Jesse was home alone when Rachel barged into the apartment huffing angrily at something. He raised his head from the script and observed in silence as Rach took of her shoes, then the coat and threw it all to the floor. She looked around in search for something and when her eyes fell on his figure, she sighed heavily and started walking into his direction.
Before Jesse had a chance to ask about anything, she simply lay on the sofa next to him and hugged his waist, with her face hidden in his chest, inhaling deeply. Jesse didn't even ask; he just hugged her back and kissed her forehead, murmuring quiet 'I love you' and went back to reading his script.
Rachel stared at Jesse in silent shock. He was crazy. He couldn't have just said what she thought she heard from his lips. She gulped not even allowing her mind go into that direction. The mere thought of Jesse... and that woman... doing that.
"Don't you dare," she hissed in madness. "Don't you ever dare give in to that... monstrous idea."
Jesse stiffened and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath and tried to reason with her.
"Rach, baby, it's not like it would change anything..."
"How can you even say so?" Rachel growled, jumping to her feet. "I don't agree."
"Rach..."
"Jesse, I said no. As your girlfriend, as the person you come back home to: no."
Jesse cupped her face between his hands and forced her to look him into eyes. He kissed her lips and she shuddered.
"You don't love me anymore," she pouted miserably. "If you loved me, you wouldn't do it."
"I love you, baby," Jesse assured her. "I will always love you. But this can help me getting that role."
"I don't care about that role!" she hissed. "No, Jesse. I beg you, don't do it!"
Jesse shook his head. He let go off Rachel's arms and stepped away. He started pacing around their living room.
"It's just for a few months. Few months and everything will be back to normal," he tried to convince her but Rachel was adamant.
"Maybe, but before the few months pass, I will be stuck with watching you like that."
"Rach..."
"Jesse, it's my last word," Rachel poked her finger into his chest. "If you do it, I..."
"You what?" he asked, not really willing to know the object of her ultimatum, to be honest.
"I will do the same, too," she glared at him.
It was Jesse's turn to turn pale. He stepped closer to Rachel but she stepped away, rising her head bravely. In her eyes, he could see that she was at her limit.
"I'll do it," she threatened him. "I know a guy; he'll be more than willing to..."
"No!" Jesse growled. He suddenly understood the powerful feeling that led Rachel to counter his every argument; the sense of loss, even for a few months, would be... unbearable.
Rachel folded her arms across her chest. She smirked at his hopeless expression and narrowed her eyes.
"You will go to the theatre tomorrow morning," she told him. "And you will tell that woman that if she will as much as lay a finger on you, she would answer before me."
Jesse gulped.
"I don't care how many roles you will not get, it's not worth it."
He gave up. Nodding his head, he stood up and took Rachel in his arms. The girl sighed with relief.
"Thank you," she breathed out.
The next morning, with a heavy heart, Jesse met up with his manager. Hayden looked up from the pile of documents and raised his eyebrows.
"Jesse?"
"I won't do it," Jesse declared. "Rachel will kill me."
Hayden didn't even try to hide his irritation.
"Jesse, there are things that people like you just have to do to get to the top," he told him. "Even if people you care about don't approve."
Jesse shook his head. Hayden murmured something with irritation.
"Jesse, it's not such a big deal around here," he tried again. "People do it all the time."
"I know, and believe me, I've done worse," Jesse assured him. "But, it's a big deal to my girlfriend."
"You want this role or not?" Hayden lost his patience.
"There must be other way."
"There's none."
"Then forget it," Jesse finished and sighed. "Tell Alicia that I will not get that buzz cut."
There were a lot of things that he loved about Rachel: she was sweet, honest, cute and at the same time, totally sexy. She would wear those damned skinny jeans or short skirts like no one is looking and Jesse would just have to remind himself not to stare too much otherwise she would glare at him.
The other day she wore this incredibly tight dress to a night out with their theatre friends and Jesse had to literally keep his hands to himself before they left for the club. She didn't really realise just how freaking stimulating she was sometimes. Other guys were leering at her and Jesse more than once had to remind them that this goddess was his. He wasn't jealous, though. He was above that shallow emotion. Besides, other guys could only look and see the surface.
It was Jesse who would come back to their apartment and see Rachel dressed in her pink oversized flannel pyjamas, with a messy bun on her head and without her impeccable make up, grinning at him with her toothbrush sticking out from her mouth. What other people saw everyday was Rachel Berry, in the evening she turned into his Rach.
And to be completely honest, it was when she wore those stupid childish teddy-bear slippers and an elastic head band to keep her hair up that she looked most beautiful.
R: Jesse?
R: Are you there?
R: I can't sleep
J: Rach, it's 3 a.m. here.
R: I miss you.
J: Damn you, woman. Go back to sleep.
R: I told you. I can't. When are you coming back?
R: Can you call me and sing me to sleep?
R: Jesse?
R: Jesse!
J: WHAT?
R: I love you?
J: GET BACK TO SLEEP
J: Love you, too.
"Can you buy me a beach house?"
Stunned, Jesse looked up from his phone and arched his eyebrow at his wife.
"What?" he asked.
"A beach house. You know, in Hamptons," she answered. "I heard Annie talk about a beach house yesterday. I think I would like one."
Jesse shook his head.
"Why would you need a beach house in Hamptons?" he asked incredulously.
"I don't know. I just feel like having a beach house in Hamptons."
Jesse sighed. He pulled Rachel closer to him and kissed her temple.
"Baby, I'm not buying you a beach house in Hamptons," he told her matter-of-factly. Rachel started to protest, but Jesse kissed her lips to stop her tirade. "Rach, the last time we've been to Hamptons you cursed the place."
"What? I did not..."
"No, Rachel, you literally took out some weird Jewish book and started murmuring some curses over the front yard. For the last time, I'm not buying you a beach house in Hamptons."
"I don't think it was appropriate," Rachel looked around the room.
"Come on, Rach. Don't tell me you've never imagined it."
Jesse slowly started buttoning up his dress shirt and tied up his bow tie. Rachel reached down picked up her expensive Valentino dress off the floor where it had fallen a few minutes earlier. She turned her back to him and Jesse helped her to zip up her dress. She put on her shoes and glanced between them to make sure they looked presentable again.
A few minutes earlier he had to muffle her screams with his mouth on hers when he drove her over the edge, and now she stood in front of him trying to look dignified. He smirked.
"Oh, dear lord," she murmured against his lips when he finally managed to kiss her on her lips.
Slowly, the distant hum of music in the gym reached their consciousness – the ten years reunion of McKinley High was well in act – and Rachel looked around her old choir room in shock.
"I'm going to blame it on my pregnancy hormones," she concluded finally.
Jesse laughed and grasped her hand tightly before following her out.
"Shelby's office, Carmel's auditorium and McKinley's choir room," Jesse murmured straight to her ear. "Rather interesting venues, huh?"
"Your latest show turned out to be less enthusiastically received that the public predicted," the interviewer began another question. "You've been through a lot of professional critique."
Jesse nodded his head, thinking back to the last couple of months.
"Well, no one is perfect, we all have better or worse days," he replied inclining his head slightly. "I happened to have a rather bad year."
The interviewer laughed and nodded his head. Jesse moved slightly in his chair.
"You seem pretty happy now, though, despite the fact that the production is still highly criticised. Many young actors before you couldn't handle the pressure but you didn't give up and strode on. You've spent less than few weeks before you've been cast in another show, which, by the way, is impressive. Can we know your secret?" the man laughed and Jesse smiled in response.
"Of course, my secret sits in the first row," he gestured to a grinning Rach who sent him a kiss through the air. The audience laughed when Jesse pretended to catch the kiss and pocket it over his heart.
"Can we ask about your secret's name?" the host asked with a smile.
"Yes, her name's Rachel. She's the reason I'm sitting here tonight and not in my couch, you know. I'm totally impressed that she actually put up with me moping around for so long and didn't run away like the rest of my friends. I'm quite a handful when in a bad mood to be honest."
"How did she do that?"
"You mean, how she started with ritually burning the bad reviews I've gotten?" Jesse chuckled and a wave of laughter ran over the audience. Jesse looked over at Rachel and smiled warmly at her. He honestly wouldn't have survived the past several months without her by his side.
"She's just the most amazing person in the world."
"She seems like a very special someone," the host raised his eyebrow, looking at Rachel meaningfully.
A mysterious smile played on Jesse's lips when he spoke again:
"Yes, she is. She's been my best friend since I was a kid, and I'm pretty sure that, fortunately for me, she's stuck with me for the rest of my life."
That piece of information caused a wave of 'awws' and 'ohs' over the audience. Some other voices expressed their disappointment. Rachel blushed slightly but Jesse just winked encouragingly at her.
"Are you really telling the hundreds of the heart broken women in America that you're taken?" the man laughed lightly and Jesse nodded his head with pride.
"What can I say?" he spoke up eventually. "I've found the love of my life, I'm not going to let her go."
On Saturday morning, exactly twelve years to date after Rachel met Jesse in the small music shop in Lima, she changed her name to St. James.
Jesse woke up to the sound of hushed whispers and giggles. His eyes fluttered when something small but, damn, heavy landed on his chest.
"Ow, what the f..."
"Jesse!" Rachel's voice scolded him sharply and Jesse finally realised what was happening. He opened his eyes to see his little princess happily beaming at him from above. Jesse grinned in response.
"Happy birthday to me!" Lis sang in her small voice. "Wake up, daddy. I'm a birthday girl and you are going to do whatever I want!"
"And what would that be?" Jesse asked with another smile.
"Princess movies!"
And she was out of their bedroom. Jesse moved to the sitting position while Rachel slipped under the covers with a smile. She leaned over him and planted a kiss on his lips.
"I spared you as long as I could," she told him. "Hayden called, you're free until seven. Then they want you in the theatre."
Jesse nodded. He closed his eyes to kiss his wife again but Lisa's call brought them back to reality.
"Daddy! Now!"
He managed to get out of their bed. He turned to look at Rachel's baby bump pointedly:
"I sincerely hope the other one is going to be a boy."