Can't believe we're at chapter 4! I've really enjoyed writing this, and I hope you all enjoy it too:) If you haven't noticed, this part of the story has been mainly following Finn's POV, but we'll learn more about Rachel later. In this chapter, we'll be seeing just how Finn and Rachel have been getting along... and if anyone is wondering where Kurt is and the rest of Rachel's life, it'll come soon, not to worry! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of the characters. I also do not own Just Like Heaven. This is just for fun:)


Chapter 4

It was about 11:00 PM when Finn got home later that week, much later than he usually stayed out on a Sunday when he had work the next morning. He didn't have anything going on that required he stay out so late but he found himself wanting to be out of his apartment for as long as possible lately.

Fortunately for him, Rachel didn't seem to ever leave the apartment and follow him elsewhere. In fact, she seemed to just disappear whenever they weren't within a certain distance of each other. He didn't know if she was able to leave the apartment, but he wasn't about to ask and give the idea for her to do so.

His place seemed to be empty when Finn walked in, letting him give a sigh of relief. But he didn't let his guard down. It was becoming a regular thing to turn the corner and have the brunette pop up in front of him out of nowhere. Usually he'd just walk right through her to make her annoyed, giving himself some personal enjoyment – hey, he was the one stuck in this never ending torture zone. Why not try to make some fun out of it?

Unfortunately, as every hour with Rachel constantly harping on him went by, it was becoming more and more difficult for Finn to make fun out of anything.

He decided to head straight for his bed hoping Rachel wouldn't want to show up if he was asleep. Even a girl as annoying as Rachel would have the sense to see spying on people while they were sleeping was creepy and stalker-ish, wouldn't she?

She had done some pretty weird things in the past couple days though.

The whole personal space rule didn't seem to apply with Rachel. Wherever Finn was, Rachel would be there too, glued to his side, and talking to no end. The only exception to this would be when he was using the bathroom, though she did still stand right outside the door and ask him about his day. It was just messed up in so many ways.

He had to admit, she was getting pretty creative. The day before, while Finn was eating a bowl of cereal in the morning, he turned away to grab his coffee, but when he looked back, there was Rachel, cheery as could be, with her head poking out from under the kitchen table sitting in his breakfast.

He lost his appetite pretty quickly after that.

One thing he noticed about Rachel was that she wasn't afraid to embarrass herself at all. He had seen her do plenty of things that most girls wouldn't want any other human being to see. Her determination was admirable to him, and sometimes served as a good source of entertainment.

There had been a few instances that he couldn't help but be entertained by her, which annoyed her to no end. Rachel's only intentions whenever she spoke to him were to bother him, but sometimes, she did just the opposite. It was just too funny whenever she got really pissed at him, or whenever she overreacted because he put his feet on the coffee table.

But there was one incident the night before that had genuinely intrigued Finn, something Rachel had not meant to do.

He was in the middle of watching a big hockey game when she thought it would bother him immensely to stand right in front of the TV and sing at the top of her lungs. At first, he was upset, since it was a big hockey game after all, and he began groaning at her to cut it out. But something compelled him to stop arguing and listen to her.

Her voice was beautiful. It was filled with so much power and feeling that just wafted through the air and was capable of drawing anyone who heard it in toward her. She sang with so much emotion, not only in her voice, but also in her face and body movement. Her eyes shut when she sang the really high notes, getting lost in the wonderful music.

But she cut off short when she realized that Finn was no longer bickering at her but was…staring at her in…wonder. He was actually smiling. Finn could tell that was not what she had in mind.

"You're amazing." He told her. She moved her mouth, about to speak, but stopped herself, looking lost and confused in her thoughts. Finally, she spoke.

"I wasn't really expecting that." She whispered, almost inaudibly, sounding very shocked.

"No one's ever told you that you can sing?" Finn asked, puzzled by her response. A disoriented look was still spread across her face as she shook her head, and then swiftly walked off only to disappear right before his eyes. There had been no sight of her since then.

That was the only time Finn ever really got a hint of who Rachel was. She conveyed so much about herself through her singing – things she didn't even seem to know.

As he lied on his bed, he couldn't help but think that the memory was a strange one, considering how differently it made him view her. Sure, she was annoying as hell, and seemed a little bit crazy, but she wasn't soulless. In the instant that she had sung for him, it seemed that she was… nice.

It didn't take long for him to fall asleep after that. Since Rachel wasn't around, it was a lot easier for him to relax and doze off. In fact, it was probably the most relaxing sleep he'd had since the break up.

But his sleep didn't last long.

"No! Nobody don't nobody is gonna…rain on my pa-rade!"

Finn's eyes snapped wide open as he shot right up from his peaceful slumber.

It was 3:00 in the morning, and there Rachel was, sitting right next to Finn on the bed, singing at the top of her lungs into his ear.

"Oh, good morning, Finn. I was just practicing my singing since you liked it so much last night." She batted her long brown eyelashes at him and smirked. "Sleep well?"

He didn't care how amazing her voice was. She was fucking dead – in more ways than one.


"Hi Brittany, thanks for coming." Finn hesitantly ushered the blonde into his apartment, trying not to stare at the humongous cat in her arms too much so he wouldn't offend her… or her cat.

"Oh, it's totally cool. I hope it's okay that I brought Lord Tubbington along. He's been dying to meet you." Brittany said, placing the cat on the ground. But he didn't seem all that interested in Finn as he just plopped down on the floor next to Brittany, licking his fur. "I think he's turned on by your apartment. That's so hot." Brittany said, bending down to pet her cat's back.

Finn tried to dismiss her unusual behavior and words. After all, he didn't invite Brittany over to hang out with – sure, she was hot, but he wasn't that desperate. He invited her over because she was his last hope.

Over the years, Finn had gained plenty of experience with cutting girls loose that he no longer wanted to go out with, and let's face it, he'd been let go his fair share of times before too, so he was pretty sure he knew what it took to get rid of someone. After meeting Rachel, he wasn't so sure.

In his defense, he didn't have any experience with dead girls. So, he decided he'd call up some people who did. But as it turns out, no one else was able to kick Rachel out either. He'd hired everything from Ghostbuster guys to priests to come and rid his apartment of her "spirit", as they liked to refer to it, but none of them had any effect on her whatsoever.

With every new person he brought in, Rachel happily watched them make a fool of themselves with their electronic devices and holy water, while laughing her head off. And why Finn was the only one who could see or hear her out of all of them he had no idea.

He was tired of hitting and missing, and Brittany was his last chance.

"Yeah, the cat's fine." Finn assured her while she stood up to stare at him. "So, Brittany, I was wondering if you could help me with something." Finn wanted to take it slowly so as not to confuse her, but she seemed to be following along alright. "I'm still having a problem with the…uh, spirit."

"What kind of problem?" Brittany asked.

"She's still here." Finn answered flatly. As if on cue, Rachel walked out of the kitchen to stand by Finn.

"You're praying on helpless girls now, Finn? What, are you planning on sacrificing her for my soul to be set free?" Rachel asked sarcastically, crossing her arms. Finn rolled his eyes at her and looked back to Brittany.

"Speak of the devil." Finn motioned to what appeared to be an empty spot to Brittany. He expected her to ask what he was talking about but instead she took a step closer to the place Finn motioned to and stopped in front of Rachel. "Can you see her?" Finn asked.

"No, but I can totally sense a presence. Yeah, I'm getting a ton of rainbow and star auras from this general area." Brittany said, tilting her head back and forth at the spot Rachel was standing in.

"I see you like them dumb, Finn. I can't say I'm surprised." Rachel laughed, walking past Brittany and looking her up and down.

"Shut up." Finn spat at her, but she just brushed him off.

"Whoah," Brittany began, turning around to face where Rachel had walked to. "She's like, really angry at you, Finn. Like an apostle or something."

At this, Rachel dropped her jaw, but Finn couldn't tell whether she was impressed or weirded out.

"You mean 'hostile'?" Finn offered. Brittany nodded her head and continued to scrutinize the empty space in front of her where Rachel stood.

"Yep. She seems dangerous, Finn. I think you should leave." She said matter-of-factly, turning back around to face him. Rachel let out a loud cackle and Finn's jaw dropped.

"I changed my mind Finn, I like this one! She's good." Rachel said in between laughs and circled back around Brittany to stand beside Finn.

"You have got to be kidding me." Finn ignored Rachel and continued with Brittany. "I'm not leaving because a controllist dead girl in my apartment wants me to!" He shouted.

"I'm controlling, Finn. 'Controllist' isn't a word." Rachel corrected him.

Brittany just shrugged her shoulders and pursed her lips.

"Sorry, but I don't think she's going anywhere." Brittany began to walk closer to the pair, but stopped dead in her tracks a few feet away from Rachel, as if she hit an invisible force field. "Hold up." Brittany began to sniff the air around her to the bewilderment of both Finn and Rachel.

"What is she doing?" Rachel asked, beginning to back away, but Finn stopped her.

"Not sure, but I think she's onto something." He whispered back.

Finally, Brittany stopped sniffing the invisible Rachel and nodded her head. "Yep, I thought so." She said. "This girl's not dead."

"Ha!" Rachel shouted, turning toward Finn with a triumphant grin on her face. "See, I told you! I knew I wasn't dead!"

Finn couldn't believe what he was being told. Finally he found someone who could sense Rachel's presence, and she tells him that she's not dead? She walks through walls, damn it! How can she not be dead?

"What? How would you know?" Finn questioned Brittany, not wanting to admit defeat.

"Look, Finn. I just know these things okay. Just accept it. This girl is alive somewhere out there." Brittany motioned toward where Rachel was standing, but then placed her hand on Finn's shoulder. "You know, you're giving off a terribly dark aura. It's like, darker than a black hole, and I've seen a lot of those, trust me." Brittany sniffed him a bit as well, but not for as long as she did with Rachel. "Oh, Finn. Let her go, okay. She's holding you back."

"I've tried to let her go, she won't fricking leave!" Finn shouted, turning toward Rachel. He would have said the full blown cuss word but something about cussing around Brittany didn't seem right to him.

"Not your invisible girl, Finn. The other one." Brittany said, poking Finn on the left side of his chest. "Look, it's been cool, but Lord Tubbington and I have to record an episode of Fondue for Two, the currently most watched web-show in North Korea and the South Pole." She grabbed her cat and headed out the door, leaving Finn and Rachel more than confused.

"Oh, wow." was all Finn could manage to say in response to Brittany's visit. Rachel, however, was stuck on a whole other subject.

"What other girl?" She asked, side stepping to stand in front of him.

He was hoping she wouldn't bring that up. That was the last thing he wanted to discuss with her. Maybe if he walked away he'd disappear from her vision – it worked the other way around, so it was worth a shot.

No such luck. She followed quickly behind him and pressed on. "Oh, I get it now. You were dumped! Ha! That's it! And your ego is too big to accept it! I just knew it! You are – "

"Would you just stop? You have no idea what happened." Finn answered her calmly, turning back to face her, his face full of sorrow. She stopped and scrutinized him, noticing how badly this was affecting him.

"Sorry," She offered in a whisper, her voice choking up. It seemed like she realized that she'd taken it too far and regretted it now. "Sometimes I don't even realize what I'm saying and I just can't stop spewing out insults. I don't why."

Finn nodded his head and sniffled. "Yeah, it's okay." He began to turn away but her voice stopped him.

"Wait!" She called after him, taking a few steps closer. "Talking about it might help." She said, almost in a whisper.

"Yeah, well, it's never really done much for me before." He scoffed.

"Just try." She half smiled at him, sitting on the couch and patting next to her for him to sit down. "You'll find that when I'm not talking, I'm a very good listener."

He couldn't help but laughing at her as she sat there, those brown eyes wide and staring at him hopefully, a cute little smile splayed across her lips.

Reluctantly, he sat down next to her and told her the whole story. How he met Quinn and instantly fell in love. How he thought she was going to be the one. How his life turned around when he suddenly became a father. How his world fell apart when he learned that he'd been lied to and he lost the love of his life and the baby he'd grown to love.

Surprisingly, Rachel was an excellent listener. She wasn't one of those people that just took pity on others – she seemed to genuinely care about what Finn was saying to her, giving support when needed.

"It's a terrible thing she did to you, Finn." She said gently. He sighed and agreed with her, turning his head away. "But you're strong. I know you are. I mean, you've put up with me for this long." He laughed at her and nodded his head.

"Thanks. It's just… ever since then…I've just felt so…empty. Like there's something missing from my life." Finn gave a half smile to her.

"I know the feeling." She said, sighing while he looked at her, expectantly. "I feel like my whole entire life is missing. I've been trying to remember…anything. Anything from before I met you and I – I can't." She paused and looked him straight in the eyes. "It's like everything just disappeared. I don't know a thing about myself. I don't know who I am at all."

There was a long silence between the two of them, but it wasn't awkward. It was…nice actually. They both just looked at each other, thinking about how they had by chance been thrown into this situation that neither of them understood, trying to understand how two completely different people had the same void to fill.

"You certainly get how I feel sometimes." Finn sighed.

"Well, at least you're not alone. I'd like to at least know who I was." A single tear rolled down her cheek, and she quickly brushed it away.

"You mean who you are." He replied. She gave him a puzzled look, but he continued. "Brittany said you're alive. And even though she may not make any sense half the time, she certainly read into both of us well. I think she's right. If she is, then you'll remember eventually." Finn offered her another smile and stood up to go into his bedroom, but stopped before he could leave completely, looking back at her.

She stared blankly at the apartment, her hands nervously playing with the ends of her hair. Suddenly, a look of realization spread across her face.

"Wait! Finn!" She called to him. He hesitantly walked back to the couch so he was closer to her.

Oh no. She had that look on her face. That look that she always got before she did some new annoying thing to him to try to get him to leave the apartment. She was planning something that he already decided he wanted absolutely nothing to do with.

"Rachel, what are you – " he began hesitantly, but she cut him off.

"You can help me! Finn, don't you see? This is why I can't be anywhere that you aren't! This is why I'm here!" She rambled on, offering no explanation to him.

"What?"

"You're supposed to help me remember! That has to be it!" She was standing now, a beaming smile spreading across her face.

"Me? What – no! I don't even know you." Finn said, awfully confused.

"That's okay, I don't really know me either!" She spoke faster now, trying to get the message across as quickly as possible. "Look, Finn. We're both at a loss here. I can't leave and you don't want me here."

"I don't think I can help you." Finn said curtly, beginning to turn away.

"You've got two options Finn! You can either help me, a woman who has come into your life in an unexpected way, or you can refuse and keep having one-sided conversations with the air while I follow you around, everywhere. What'll it be?" Rachel stared him down, the look of innocence that she was giving to him on the couch completely gone.

Rachel was smart, way too smart for Finn. He knew by now that she would keep true to her word too – she was a head-strong and determined girl that for some reason could get whatever she wanted out of him.

He towered over her tiny figure while she stared up at him with a pleading smile on her face. How could someone so small be so powerful against him?

"Fine. I'll help you." He answered reluctantly, letting out a long sigh.

She screamed like a giddy little girl and hopped up and down clapping her hands. "Thank you, Finn! If I could hug you, I would!" She exclaimed, pure joy spread across her face, while she laughed.

For some reason, he couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of her. Damn her and her adorable contagious laughs!

This girl who was barely 5 feet tall, tiny as can be, that had the biggest brown eyes and the sweetest smile had managed to take down the 6'3 giant that is Finn Hudson. He knew all this, and yet he was still smiling at her. He'd never felt so pathetic in his entire life.

Finn Hudson had a weakness. And unfortunately, she knew it.

What the hell did he just get himself into?


Next chapter begins the hunt to remember Rachel's life! We'll be meeting a lot of characters that we know and love:)

Thanks for reading, and please review!

-Goldstarrach