Small World
By LockedSoulsAM
A/n: Finally, the sequel I've been promising but procrastinating. I hope you all enjoy. I have also been going back to revise and edit a few minor things for LGL. Listen, I still cringe reading it but I'm not as embarrassed by it three years later lol.
I hope this story shows you all how far I have come with my writing skills.
11 years have passed in the story. Rachel is fourteen years old and quickly approaching her fifteenth birthday. Shelby and Joseph got married shortly after the last chapter of LGL. In the years to come came two more babies via surrogate. There is no need to read LGL but cheers if you do.
Hope you enjoy =)
Chapter 1
"I remember that night, I just might
Regret that night for the rest of my days,
I remember those soldier boys
Tripping over themselves to win our praise,
I remember that dreamlike candlelight
Like a dream that you can't quite place,
But Alexander, I'll never forget the first
Time I saw your face"
Rachel belted out her favorite Hamilton song as she applied mascara to her lashes. She wiggled her hips and let out another note. It was the last day of summer and that meant the end of summer pool party at Santana's. It was a good 80 degrees outside and she couldn't wait to swim. After camp, a weeklong trip with her grandparents, dance recitals, and summer school, Rachel was left with little time to see her long time best friends; Which her friends understood more than they probably should have. Rachel was a busy teen during summers. It was exactly how she liked it.
She stopped fixing her makeup to check her phone. She scrolled through messages from her group chat in hopes of catching up with the conversation. It proved pointless and in the end, she didn't have enough time. Rachel wasn't as popular at school as Quinn or Santana, but she had a pretty good circle. There were different texts from many different people when she realized she had an audience. Her younger sister, Brooke, was sitting in the hallway against a wall. Brooke's green eyes met her brown. Like a deer in headlights, Brooke was caught.
"What are you doing?" Rachel laid a hand on her hip. Brooke stood and rubbed the back of her neck in nervousness, much like the way their dad did. She was almost the same height as Rachel and would probably grow taller in the upcoming years.
"How do you do your eyes like that?" She asked. At ten, Brooke was always fascinated with whatever Rachel did. She would watch in fascination whenever Rachel allowed her.
Rachel looked at herself in the mirror and then back to Brooke. She figured she had plenty of time to do a little more.
"Sit down and I'll show you," Rachel instructed. Brooke beamed and immediately did as she was told. She sat tall with her hands on her lap in preparation. Rachel quickly, but diligently, applied mascara and blush to her sister's eyes and face.
Shelby was walking down the hallway when she thought her eyes were deceiving her. She stopped in her tracks at the sight of both her daughters getting along. It wasn't every day that she got to see such a view.
"Well, would you look at that." Shelby grinned. "Sisterly bonding from my favorite daughters."
"We're your only daughters, Ma." Rachel scoffed. "Besides, I can be nice."
"Oh, I know you can," Shelby replied.
"Rachel, did my makeup, Mama." Brooke showed off her newly done up face.
"I love it." Shelby praised. "Is San coming to get you or am I dropping you off?"
"Aunt Judy let Quinn have the car tonight." Rachel said. She turned to finish her own makeup. She had less than a half hour to get dressed. Since her cousin was a year older and therefore got her permit first, Rachel got to reap the benefits of Quinn's driving.
"That scares me to no end." Shelby worried. "I can't believe you all are driving and going to high school parties. It was just yesterday that I was taking you to preschool."
"Mama, are you going to cry?" Brooke giggled.
"No, I'm not." Shelby motioned to her daughter. "Let's go check on your brother and make sure he's not coloring on my walls."
Rachel watched her mother and sister leave to search for her three-year-old brother Derek. He was a rambunctious little boy and almost always in trouble. She decided in that moment to facetime her best friend. The phone rang twice before Santana picked up.
"Yo, Corcoran, where the hell are you?" Santana's eyes widened before she asked. "Is mi Tia around?"
"No, she just went downstairs." Rachel chuckled at San's wariness.
"Great," Santana spoke into her phone. "Anyways, what's the holdup? You're supposed to be here already."
"Tana, I'm not even dressed." Rachel stepped farther away from her phone to show off what she was wearing. "Quinn is probably on her way."
"Well, the longer you take, the less time you have to party." Santana shrugged. "Boys and bikinis."
"I'll see you in thirty?"
"Yeah, sweet cheeks, hurry up." Santana hung up.
Rachel sighed before looking at the time. She really should try to quicken her steps. Rachel was ready in twenty minutes with a romper over her bikini and sandals in hand. She could hear Quinn downstairs talking to Derek when she reached the top of her steps.
"Quinnie, when are you going to come over and spend the night?" Derek pouted. His floppy blond hair fluttered as he bats his lashes up at her. Derek always enjoyed Quinn's presence when she came over.
"Maybe when I get settled into a routine at school I will come over and spend some extra time with you." Quinn kissed his head. "Does that sound okay?"
Derek nodded and rushed over to sit in his mom's lap. Rachel kissed her mom on the cheek and quickly waved goodbye. She did not want to receive a lecture right now. It used to happen before every party they went to but Shelby had become more lenient over the years.
"You girls behave and be safe," Shelby called after them. She was worried but knew Maribel and Santiago would watch over the girls.
"Hey Rach." Quinn bumped her shoulder. "Are you ready to find your future bae at the party?"
"As long as you are." Rachel teased. "I know Noah Puckerman is going to be there." Yes, it was that Noah Puckerman. The same boy that would pick on her in preschool. He'd grown up to be her protector over the years and one of her cool friends. His sister and Brooke often played together.
"I do not like him," Quinn argued. Rachel scoffed before slipping inside of the car. Quinn would have to be more convincing than that. Quinn had the car started and music blasting by the time they reached the corner of her street.
The drive to Santana's house was only twenty minutes. Rachel shot Shelby a text saying they had made it safely. Rachel checked her makeup one last time. When she was satisfied that she looked okay she followed Quinn into San's house.
"Hi, Aunt Mari." Rachel greeted first. Maribel and Santiago Lopez were sitting in their kitchen chatting to each other. "Hi, Uncle Santi."
"Hello, girls, how are you?" Maribel stood to give both of her nieces a kiss on the cheek. "Santana is out back with everyone else. You can go on back."
They didn't need to be told which way. They'd been there many times before. Beyoncé was blaring on the radio when they reached the backyard. Santana was sunbathing in a lawn chair while simultaneously eating Cheetos from a bowl. Rachel recognized Mercedes, Brittany and a girl named Tina was already there. A bunch of girls from the Cheerios were in attendance along with guys from a football team. It was a decent sized party and Rachel knew if San's parents weren't there that it would be even bigger.
Waving at her other friends, Rachel pounced on Santana's lawn chair and cuddled into her.
"Hi, Tana."
"Rach!" Santana almost choked on her Cheeto. "I could have died."
"And you all say I'm the dramatic one." Rachel chuckled. She sat up straddle Santana. "You rushed for me to get here and now here I am. Did you miss me"."
Santana pushed up so that she was leaning on her elbows. "Eh."
"The girl missed you, Diva." Mercedes piped up. "She was miserable here without you. I mean Brittany and I tried to keep her company but nothing compares to her best friend Rachel."
"That's only half true," Santana said. At the notice of Quinn, Santana grinned evilly. Quinn saw the look and could only guess what she was about to do. "Hey, Puck!"
Quinn's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Santana, no, oh, I hate you so much!" Quinn hid her face in her hands.
"Ohhh, he's coming over here." Rachel spotted Noah over with a group of boys playing catch with a football.
"Did I miss something?" Brittany asked. "Does Quinn have a crush on Puck?"
"It's only obvious to the rest of the world." Santana grinned.
"What's up ladies?" Puck approached the group of girls. "How was your summer my Jewish American Princess? Santana here was miserable without you."
"It was not!" Santana protested. "I have a life outside of Short Stack contrary to widespread belief."
"It was great, Noah, thanks for asking." Rachel decided to join in on Santana's plot. "Quinn also had a great summer. She was visiting Frannie at NYU."
Quinn removed her face from her hands to glare at her cousin.
"That's pretty awesome." Puck turned his attention to Quinn. "Did you, uh, meet anyone special there?"
"Oh, no, of course not." Quinn blushed. "It was just a sister's trip."
Rachel wondered how it would be to date. She wasn't allowed to technically date until she was sixteen. With her 15th birthday in four months she had an entire year to go over her options. Though she was sure her parents would give in sooner. There wasn't really anyone she had her eye on so that helped a lot.
"Do you want to come and help bring food out for everyone?" Puck offered.
"Sure." Quinn took his hand and let herself be lead into the house.
"Alright, Rach, as much as I love you," Santana began. "You're not exactly the lightest thing on the earth. Do you mind, I don't know, moving?"
Rachel slipped from Santana's lap to sit beside her.
"Have you guys heard about the new glee club at school?" Mercedes started up a new conversation.
Rachel sat up a little straighter.
"I think Mister Schuster the Spanish teacher is going to be leading it."
"I have to audition." Rachel decided. She would have to figure out how she would be able to fit that in between gymnastics, ballet, and AP classes and maintain a life but she could figure it out.
"It's why I mentioned it." Mercedes pointed out. "Of course, our favorite singer is going to tear it up!"
Rachel was already off in her own world as she tried to figure out what song to sing at auditions. This school year was going to be insane.
"Is he almost asleep?" Joseph asked as he stepped into Derek's bedroom. A cornering lamp shed light around the entire room. Shelby was reading him a bedtime story as she rocked him.
"Yeah, he's had a long day." Shelby leaned up to give a kiss. "How was work?"
"Work." He sighed. "Where are the girls?"
"Brooke is in her room probably watching Korean drama." Shelby chuckled. "Rachel is at San's for a party. She most likely will be staying over."
"That leaves us a night of relaxation before the hectic days of the school year?" Joseph ran his fingers through Derek's hair.
"It does." Shelby smiled softly. "Though, I am not ready for this little one to go off to school yet."
"He will be fine."
"I've done it twice before." Shelby reminded herself. "Although it never gets easier."
"I think it does when you have that ten minutes after you've dropped them off to yourself. "He joked. She snorted and looked back down to their son. They'd come so far in the past few years it was amazing.
"Is it selfish of me to say I miss the days when Rachel was this small?" Shelby asked. "We'd made so many memories to outweigh the bad ones. She's grown into such a beautiful and intelligent young girl. I just miss being able to hold her and take care of her."
"I don't think it's selfish at all." Joseph took Derek into his arms. "How about we put this guy to sleep and cry over their baby pictures eh?"
"That sounds lovely." Shelby took that into consideration. It would certainly be a great ending to their night.
One Derek was all tucked in they both checked up on Brooke next. She was fast asleep in her own bed with a pillow clutched to her stomach. Shelby sent once last text to Rachel for good night and headed to bed herself. They pulled out the baby pictures of each of their kids and shared memories together.
Shelby could remember first bringing Rachel home. How afraid she was, how curious she was, and how much of a joy she was. Rachel had been the constant light in her life along with the new additions to their family. Her baby was growing up and Shelby couldn't help but feel a sense of melancholy.
A/n: So, this was the long awaited first chapter. Should I continue or delete it and forget it ever happened?
-LSAM