Emma led Quinn and Rachel to her office. As she opened the door, she looked over her shoulder in concern. Rachel was leaning heavily on Quinn, the latter rubbing her fingers over Rachel's bare arm. Closing the door behind them, Emma walked to behind her desk and settled into her chair. She watched Quinn help Rachel settle herself into a chair, and then sat next to her.

"This is your first day back at school, right Rachel? Since Chaya's passing?" asked Emma gently. Rachel nodded and wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. Emma picked up the box of tissues she kept on her desk and offered it to the young girl. Rachel gave a weak smile and took a couple, murmuring her thanks. Before she could speak, Noah pushed open the office door and walked inside. Quinn made a move to get to her feet but Noah shook his head.

"I just came to check on Rachel, Q," he told the blonde before turning his attention to his girlfriend. Crouching down next to her, he took her hand.

"Are you okay, baby? I can miss practice and take you home," he said. Rachel shook her head.

"I'll be okay. Don't miss your sports practice for me. Mercedes and Quinn and I can watch movies or something until you get to my house," Rachel said. Noah nodded and pressed a quick kiss to her hand. Standing up, he turned to Miss Pillsbury and Quinn, both of whom had been watching the interaction with interest.

"Thanks for letting her stay in here, Miss P. Quinn, I'll tell Mercedes to bring your backpacks when glee rehearsal lets out," he said. Quinn nodded.

"It's not a problem, Puck," said Emma. Noah nodded and left the office. Rachel sniffled and looked down at her lap.

"What's on your mind, Rachel?" Emma asked.

"I just want to feel normal again. I don't feel like myself anymore. I haven't for a long time actually," Rachel admitted. Emma nodded, her eyebrows furrowed in concern. Quinn licked her lips and thought about Rachel's behaviour over the last couple of months. Ever since the secret about Finn and Santana had come out, Rachel had been more insecure and vulnerable than usual. She hadn't offered ideas for numbers, and, Quinn remembered this with a cringe; she had been the first one to suggest original songs for Regionals, only to be shot down until Quinn had said she thought it was a good idea. Quinn was drawn out of her thoughts by Rachel's voice.

"I wish my cousin was still here. Every time one or the both of us had a bad day, we would call each other after school and just talk about our day until all the bad stuff didn't seem bad anymore. I guess I'm just coming to terms with the fact I won't get to do that with her again. And we were going to go shopping together for prom dresses too," said Rachel, her lips quivering. Emma nodded sympathetically.

"Do you journal, Rachel? I've found in the past that writing my feelings down on paper helps to alleviate the emotions," Emma said. Rachel shook her head.

"No, I usually sing when I'm feeling emotional, but I haven't felt like singing much lately. Today was the first time I've sang since Chaya died," Rachel admitted.

"I see. Well, why don't you give journaling a try? It's useful to have more than one coping mechanism and writing helps to unburden your soul," Emma suggested. Rachel nodded. Emma reached down and opened a drawer in her desk. Reaching into it she pulled out a spiral notebook, which she handed to Rachel.

"Here, you can use this as a starting point," she said.

"Thank you," said Rachel as she opened the notebook and flipped through it, taking in the blank pages. Quinn, who had been silent since Noah had left the office, spoke.

"Rachel, I know this won't be the same as going with Chaya, but if you want you can come dress shopping with me and my mom. I think we're going this Saturday, what do you say?" Quinn asked. Rachel hesitated, and then nodded.

"I would love that, thank you Quinn. Are you sure your mom will be okay with it?" Rachel said. Quinn laughed.

"Are you kidding, she'll be thrilled to have another girl along. Ever since she saw us perform at Regionals last year she's been asking to meet you formally," Quinn admitted. Rachel smiled and so did Emma. Before any of them could speak, Mercedes knocked on the glass, with Brittany, Tina and Lauren behind her.

"I guess practice is over," said Quinn as she and Rachel stood up.

"Thank you for letting us stay in here, Miss Pillsbury," she said.

"You're welcome. Quinn, if you don't mind I'd like to speak to Rachel alone for a moment," said Emma. Quinn nodded and left the office. Rachel turned to look at Emma.

"I'm aware that you see a therapist outside of school, but if you want you can come and see me too, okay?" Rachel hesitated, and then nodded.

"Do you have any appointments open for this week?" she asked. Emma pulled her calendar up on her computer and perused it.

"I have 11:30 and 1:00 open tomorrow, which works best for you?" she asked.

"Can I come see you at 1:00, I have a free period after lunch," said Rachel. Emma nodded and typed in Rachel's name.

"Okay. We're all set, I'll see you at 1:00 tomorrow," Emma said. Rachel nodded and left the office, softly closing the door behind her. The glee girls were waiting for her.

"Are you okay if Brittany and Tina and Lauren come to your house too?" Mercedes asked. Rachel nodded and the six of them headed to the exit.

"No Santana?" Quinn asked as they reached the parking lot.

"No, she was pretty quiet for the rest of rehearsal. We did ask her and Kurt and Blaine if they wanted to come with us, but Santana said she had something to do and Kurt and Blaine said they were heading home to help Mr. Hummel with something," said Tina. Quinn nodded as she watched Brittany lead Rachel to Quinn's convertible.

"The boys said they might come after practice. Puck said he was going to order pizza or something for dinner tonight for him and Rachel and then Sam said that we all needed to start making more of an effort to be a good friend and teammate to Rachel," said Tina as she and Mercedes got into Lauren's car. Quinn nodded and with a wave as she got into her own car. Brittany grinned at her from the backseat before turning her attention back to her conversation with Rachel.

"So what colour were you thinking for your prom dress, Rachel? I think you'd look great in a soft pink or a dark purple. Ooh and we could find a great eyeliner to make your eyes pop," Brittany rambled. Rachel smiled as Brittany continued yammering on about prom and how fun it would be to dress up.

"Is she always like this? I don't think I've ever heard talk this much," she whispered to Quinn. Quinn nodded as she slowed for a stop sign.

"Get her started on the right topic and she could go for hours. I bet when we get to your house she'll ask you to get your laptop so we can start looking at dresses," Quinn whispered back. Her prediction proved correct. As soon as the six girls walked in the door of Rachel's house, Brittany asked Rachel where her laptop was. After receiving permission from Rachel to get it, Brittany bounded up the stairs while the other girls helped Rachel organize snacks and drinks. When they carried their snacks into the living room, Brittany was settled on the couch, Rachel's laptop in front of her. She was squirming like an excited puppy.

"Let's have some snacks first, okay Britt? Then we can look at dresses and corsages," said Quinn as she settled on the couch next to Brittany. Brittany nodded eagerly as the other girls settled themselves on the Berries' furniture. Rachel sat in the arm chair and looked around her living room. Taking a deep breath, she spoke.

"Lauren, I'm so sorry," she said. The conversation ceased as everyone looked at Rachel.

"For what?" Lauren asked, puzzled.

"Well, I know that you and Noah were kind of involved and I just realized you guys were probably planning to go to prom together," Rachel said in a rush.

"Rachel, I broke up with Puckerman the day you told us about Chaya. As for prom, we hadn't even started discussing that but it's all good, my wrestling partner and I were going together. Didn't Puckerman tell you that I broke up with him because I could see that he wanted to be with you?" Rachel opened her mouth, and then closed it again and shook her head.

"I was so distracted with everything last week I didn't think to ask Noah and I guess he was too busy trying to hold me together that he forgot to tell me. So I-I didn't make him a cheater?" Rachel asked.

"Nope, he was free and clear when he got together with you. Now let's talk about prom, I've been having a hard time finding a dress," said Lauren. The girls all nodded and crowded around Rachel's laptop. Rachel's head spun as they went through website after website of prom dresses. She suddenly began to feel all of her sleepless nights as she struggled to keep her eyes open. She gave up as her eyelids drooped and she settled against the end of the couch, tucking an arm under her head as she closed her eyes.

"What do you think of this one, Rachel? Rachel?" asked Brittany as she turned to ask Rachel's opinion on a dark green dress that had a slit up the right leg. The girls stopped talking as they took in the small brunette curled up on the end of the couch, her breathing deep and even.

"Puck said she hasn't been sleeping remember? Because of the nightmares about Chaya," said Tina in a hushed tone.

"Come on girls, let her sleep. Let's go in the kitchen," said Mercedes. The other girls nodded and followed her out of the room, except for Brittany who stayed to cover Rachel with a blanket, tucking it in around the small brunette. Carefully picking up the open laptop, she tiptoed into the kitchen where the other girls had settled around the island.

Author's Note: Not quite as long as the previous two chapters but I thought this seemed like a good place to cut the chapter off. Hope you're all enjoying the story so far. Thanks for your patience while I balance school, work, and fanfiction. Till next time, Xoxoxo