A/N: Precious-passenger, Tara621 THANK YOU SO MUCH for letting me know you are with me on this story and care. You know it means the world to me. I hope you will love this chapter and I have not messed up this important and devastating scene. Because I am genuinely scared of that.

No Amount Of Glue

Chapter Three

Kurt knows it is bad, whatever it is, when he arrives at the diner and finds Emma almost frantically scrubbing away at the silverware, the food on her plate untouched, and Will zoned out, sitting opposite her, just staring into space, empty coffee cup still clutched tightly in his left hand.

So much for not being a mess with the kids around.

"Hey. Hi," Kurt tries, softly placing his hand on Emma's in the hope of helping her calm her nerves and ease her OCD with it, if only for a brief while.

She still looks fidgety, but lets go of the fork and the napkin, instead grabbing back at Kurt's hand, squeezing it tighter than Kurt had expected her to. "Kurt," she is pushing the tears back hard, and then reaching over for Will's free hand with one of hers, startles him into looking up.

Kurt expects a Hello or an How are you? All he gets is "Where is Rachel?"

"Gee, calm down Mr. Schue, she is no superstar yet. She still has time for all the people from her old life," Kurt jokes, trying to lighten the tension palpable.

It does not work.

"Kurt, please, Santana already called someone to cover her shift, can you find someone as well? We need to talk. With all of you. Something happened. We, he ... Please, Kurt."

That is when Santana shows up at the booth, "Already taken care of. Liam is covering for you, Kurt. Let's go."

As they all get up, Kurt still flustered by all the buzz, Santana adds, "I tried Rachel's phone again a couple of minutes ago, so far nothing."

"How did you get here?" Kurt asks.

"Our car is parked around the corner of your place," Emma says.

"In Bushwick?" Santana replies.

"Yes," Emma nods her head, as Kurt and Santana exchange a confused look, Santana mouthing, "What the hell?"

Kurt can only shrug. "I had actually meant the diner, but okay."

It takes some convincing once they reach the studio, and another several tries to reach Rachel on the phone until things get moving again and they are allowed inside.

Rachel meets the confused and drained looking couple from her Lima life, accompanied by her two roommates, in the wide white hallway leading to the studio she is rehearsing in with part of the cast.

"What are you guys all doing here? I mean it is nice to see you Mr. Schue, Miss Pillsbury," Santana rolls her eyes, Rachel will forever get that one wrong it seems, "always, but this is really not a good time we were just about to make our first run-through ever for some of the songs and scenes, and you know how directors can get if a star appears difficult or does not make herself available all the ti..."

"Rachel!" It comes out louder and much harsher than Will had intended. "I'm sorry," he is quick to add in a much milder tone.

"Okay," Rachel sounds suddenly small, more shocked than anything. Even when she was still in Glee there were only a handful of times he had ever said her name like that.

"You need to come with us, Rachel. Please," Emma tries softly.

"What? NO! I can't just ... we are in the middle of rehearsals! Can't it wait until tomorrow or something? I'm sure you did not just come to see us. Go enjoy your time in New York. I can clear my schedule a little for tomorrow, or the day after. Today, however, is really quite impossible."

Rachel pauses for a breath and Will takes the opportunity. "Rachel, please, you really ..., you have to come with us. You really want to come with us."

"No, I don't," Rachel protests, her arms locking in front of her chest.

"Gee," Santana cuts in between the two, rolling her eyes, "Just tell us already why you are here. How bad can it be? You said Burt is fine, so what is it?"

"Santana, please stop pushing," Emma steps in.

"Urgh," Santana lets out a frustrated sound, turning away, still shaking her head at the absurdity of this she feels, all of it getting more and more on her nerves.

"I have to get back to rehearsal," Rachel says, turning and starting back down the hallway.

It is Kurt who stops her, with one hand on her upper arm.

She knows that look he is giving her while shaking his head. "If you don't cut the crap, well, you know what happened last time!"

"Fine," Rachel turns back to Will and Emma. "I can ask for a break, and get us an empty room to talk in. Is that enough?"

"Yes," Will says, even though nothing could be enough with what she is about to learn, but he knows they have to start with agreeing on something.

While Rachel is back inside Will gives Burt a call, hands on a hello from Santana and Kurt, and explains to Burt as best he can in just a few moments what is going on.

"Then I will have to tell them right now. Can you put me on speaker when they are all there?" Burt feels sick at what he is about to ... what he has to do next. All he has kept seeing, with every call from Will flashing on his phone today, with every word the two men have exchanged, has been Kurt. Kurt's eyes cried raw from the moment on he had understood, his mother was never coming back, and it had taken time and Burt telling his eight year old over and over. It will be so different this time ..., no less horrible.

"Rachel is coming back now, Burt."

"Put me on speaker."

"One moment, she is just getting us somewhere to talk in private."

Will's stomach does a weird swoop when Rachel leads them into a whitewashed room with wooden floor boards and at the far end a wall covered entirely in mirrors. "Most spaces here are dance studios," she says shrugging only half apologetic. "Can we now? I only have minutes really," she is tapping her high-heeled shoe impatiently already, glancing at the big clock on the wall.

"Okay," Will, presses a button on his phone.

Santana is still irritated by how nervous he looks doing so when she hears Burt's voice, sounding tired and on edge all at once, "Hello? Kids? Will, can they hear me?"

"Dad, hey, yes. We are all here, and we can hear you. What's wrong? Why did you need to talk to us?"

There is a quiet at the other end of the phone for a moment that Kurt knows all too well, it is his dad swallowing back tears, to bring something else out. "Dad?" Kurt's voice is shaking now. "Are you really okay? Mr. Schue said you are okay. Dad?"

Rachel and Santana are already both stepping closer to Kurt as Burt chokes out a wet, "No. It's not me, Kiddo. Your brother ..."

"Finn?" Rachel whispers.

Emma is still looking stoically ahead, moves from Will's side over to Rachel's, eyes filling with tears she can no longer control when Burt's next words pierce the silence.

"Finn is dead."

The next sound is a hard thud, a body hitting the floor, as Rachel's legs shaking too hard break away from under her and she collapses in on herself.

Kurt is kneeling beside her instantly, his arms already closing around his best friend as she, hands balled into fists, covering her mouth, eyes wide, begins to rock back and forth, shaking her head, biting back a cry that comes out somehow in a crushed sob, "No."

Kurt feels like his heart has stopped beating, is lying dead and heavy in his chest, as he can think of nothing but to hold on to his friend as the rocking motion grows more and more broken with every growing cry of "No. No, no no no, not true. I ... I talked to him last week, is ... no. It's not... . It's not true."

She has no idea when she stops talking, and starts whimpering, no recollection of Will and Burt saying anything more.

It is like the whole world has collapsed onto her and no amount of screaming that leaves her mouth can bring back air into her lungs, the space too dark, too small.

Rachel does not remember anything of Will talking to the musical's director trying his best to explain.

She does not register Santana sobbing into Emma's shoulder the whole cab drive back to Bushwick.

She does not even remember Kurt not once, not ever letting go off her, of Kurt curling up with her on her bed and holding her until she falls asleep.

"Dad?" the first thing Kurt does when Rachel is tugged safely in blankets, fast asleep with exhaustion, for now, and Santana holding her now, Emma sitting with them, to make sure she does not have to wake up alone, the first thing Kurt does after cleaning his raw-cried face, only to have new tears come rushing over his cheeks instantly, is call him, "What," he has to stop to make way for the next sob, and another, "... what happened?"