Title: A New Direction
Rating: M
Pairings: Will/Rachel
Spoilers: Current through episode 2x22
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own anything relating to Glee. That honor is reserved for the wonderful Ryan Murphy and Fox.
Summary: Rachel never dreamed she would become a mother right out of high school. With no one else to turn to, will her trusted former glee advisor be the one she needs to help her find her new direction in life?
A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed or added this story to their favorites list. It means the world to me.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Rachel couldn't believe such a big place could be so loud. The second they entered the crowded mall, she fought the urge to cover her ears to protect her sensitive hearing. Kurt had warned her that using their going to mall on a Sunday was a suicide mission. He said it would be packed with people doing last minute shopping for the week ahead, but she refused to listen. She was desperate for his help, and today was the only day she had. So here they were, fighting their way through the bustle of shoppers on their way to the first store.

They perused the racks, Kurt's ever-critical eye for fashion giving the items Rachel held up a quick scan before vetoing or approving. As the hour mark quickly approached, she felt a slight sense of defeat at how pathetically small the "approved" pile seemed to be. She steeled her reserve; she would find appropriate work attire before the days end if it killed her.

They left the first shop with a small bag that consisted the only button up shirt the store possessed, leaving the belly shirts and rhinestone studded tees on the racks. As they headed to the next store Rachel was sure she heard Kurt utter something about fashion, and how everything didn't need be covered in glitter.

The second store they entered resulted in even less satisfying results. Kurt took one look at the matronly window display, pivoted on his heel and led her out the store. When he caught the confused look Rachel gave him he sighed. "Rachel honey, there is one thing you need to know about shopping. The display window will tell you everything you need to know about a store. Their purpose is to draw you in with a glimpse of what they have to offer. If you aren't even the teeniest bit intrigued by that glimpse alone, there is a very good chance the store isn't for you."

"Now don't get me wrong," he said continuing his pursuit for an appropriate third store, his grip on her hand tightening slightly as the crowd got thicker. "I'm sure the store was wonderful, for some. I am also sure you may have been able to find at least one nice thing in there, but why spend hours looking for just so-so when you can find fabulous at a more suitable store."

With a small, "ah-ha" Kurt pulled her into one of the bigger department stores. They passed the rows of shiny make-up display cases on the way to the escalators. The smells of pressed powder and the different smells of the perfumes were causing Rachel's now sensitive sense of smell to go into overdrive. She fought the urge to be sick on the back of Kurt's linen shirt as she cursed yet another pregnancy "perk". She couldn't wait for her nausea to pass completely, though she felt relief at the knowledge it was becoming more manageable.

He led her to the more appropriate corporate attire before scanning the racks. She watched him for a second as he complied a more extensive "approved" pile than he had at the previous store. She had a just started on her own when she heard him speak.

"Not that I don't love shopping, and you know I will use any excuse I can to further your fashion education, but why are you interested in corporate casual? Every time I saw Blaine on a day he worked for Kat he wore jeans and ratty t-shirts. I know how Kat dresses as well, and a Calvin Klein capped sleeved linen shirt might be a little dressy to knead bread dough."

"The 'corprate casual' look," Rachel said questioningly, looking at Kurt to confirm she used the correct term, smiling as she caught his nod of approval. "Is for the times when Kat and I are attending meetings and other appointments relating to the opening of her second store, as well as when we have to deliver to events."

She added another shirt to the approved pile before continuing. "I am so grateful she is giving me this chance. I want to do the very best job I can. I don't want to get too much right now, as I will be growing out of it very soon, but I would at least like a small collection at my disposal."

Kurt looked at her sending a smile toward the vicinity of her stomach before resuming riffling through the racks. He nodded his understanding as he led her by the shoulders to the changing rooms. The bubbly female attendant let Rachel into one of the cream colored rooms before giving Kurt a small hug and leaving her to try on her clothes.

Rachel shot him a questioning look as she hung the clothes on the hook inside, laughing as he shrugged and took the seat across from the room. "What?" He asked, smoothing his linen trousers down as he crossed his legs. "I'll have you know you aren't my only friend, Rachel Berry."

He smirked jokingly at her, "Now quit stalling and get to it. I have a strawberry smoothie in the food court that is calling my name."

Rachel was pleased by the fit of all the clothes, grateful for Kurt's idea of buying a size bigger and letting him alter them as the baby grew. That way she wouldn't have to replace all her clothing two months later. With a quick stop to pick up a pair of boots Kurt saw were on sale, they headed to the registers.

Thankfully the food court was experiencing a temporary lull and they were able to find a table quickly. Kurt left Rachel at the table while he retrieved their drinks, setting hers down as he sat across from her.

"So are you excited to start work?" Kurt asked her, stirring his smoothie with his straw.

"You wouldn't believe how excited I am." Rachel responded, taking a sip of her favorite 'Very Berry' smoothie, the ironic name not lost on either of them. "I haven't been this excited or nervous since Nationals."

"Don't be nervous Rach." Kurt said, patting her arm.

"Kat is as nice as they come. She is almost as awesome as I am. She has been amazingly supportive about Blaine and I, and before you and I started hanging out all the time, she was my go-to girl." A small frown settled on Kurt's face and he grew quiet.

Rachel knew why her usually sunny friend seemed down. He was thinking about his lost relationship with Mercedes. She didn't know why they had grown apart, she had always thought they were inseparable. Until Halloween time rolled around that is.

She remembered the day vividly. She had just finished packing away her list of song ideas that she would hand out on a weekly basis and was just about to leave, stopping short when she realized she wasn't alone. Kurt was sitting in his seat, unmoving except for his toe, which he would occasionally tap.

Rachel had been surprised to see him there. She would have guessed that he and Mercedes had a lot of planning to do for their Halloween costumes. They went as a famous duo every year without fail. Yet here he was, sad and alone and Mercedes was nowhere to be seen.

Approaching him slowly, she put her hand on his shoulder before sitting next to him. Kurt didn't say anything to her, just looked at her for a second before hugging her. Rachel didn't know what to say. No one ever opted to just hug her, so she just sat there rubbing is back, looking for a sign as to why he was feeling so down.

Part of her was worried that there was a problem between him and Blaine. She had noticed the brunette crooner was absent from practice and she feared that might be the reason. Not only would the break up be horrible for Kurt, the potential loss of Blaine's voice would have been devastating for the team. His talent was a valuable asset, and he didn't seem to find her overbearing, which was a nice change from the rest of the group.

All Kurt said was, "She already has plans with Sam. She's been doing that a lot recently." Before the crestfallen look returned to his face.

"Do you want to dress up with me?" Rachel asked, surprising even herself with the offer. She wasn't sure why she had said it, since she didn't have the kind of relationship with Kurt that he had with Mercedes and she was almost certain he would turn her down.

He didn't. Instead he looked at her a second, smiled and stood. "Let's go to the mall and plan. Blaine will meet us there after."

From that moment on they were inseparable. They had settled on Cabaret as their theme before they even got in the car to head to the mall. She smiled as she remembered the framed picture of them on her dresser, her in her Sally costume and Kurt dressed as the emcee, his heavily made up face bright and happy under the costume makeup.

Snapping out of her memory she glanced up at Kurt, who was stirring his smoothie again. He caught her gaze, smirking at her. "So Ms. Berry, how are things with Shue?"

"Things are great." Rachel said, as she sipped her drink. "Things are practically too great. I am kind of scared. When things went this well with Finn it was like the calm before the storm."

"In fact, all of my happiest memories with Finn were right before a major fight." She confessed, looking at the table. She knew she didn't miss him, at least not the version of Finn he had become, but part of her still missed that wide-eyed sophomore she once knew.

"Well, I doubt Shue would be as immature as Finn, he's an adult and can handle his anger accordingly. I highly doubt he has ever been as immature as Finn. He's an absolute fricking idiot." Kurt said, an edge to his tone.

Rachel was taken aback by the hostility in her friend's voice. Even when Finn was being absolutely horrible to him, he never spoke ill of the tall teen and would always go to great lengths to defend him. She was about to ask why he sounded so bitter when he sighed and continued his mini rant.

"I mean look what he did. Did he even consider me in his plans? He just flat up refused to believe it, effectively eliminating me from my niece or nephew's life." He sat back, his face etched with a scowl.

"Oh Kurt," Rachel said, reaching to pull him in for a hug. "You are going to be an uncle. You know that you and Blaine are two of the most important people in my life. I couldn't do this without you. I want you two to be there every step of the way."

"You know how special you are to me right?" she asked, pulling back to examine his reaction to what she said.

Kurt nodded, hugging her before taking another sip of his smoothie. "Sorry about the breakdown. I know how important I am to you because you are just as important to me. It just hadn't been said that I would be involved and I needed to hear it, even if that's crazy."

Rachel smacked him playfully on the arm. "I didn't say it because I didn't think it needed to be said you dolt."

He smiled in return, finishing off his smoothie with one sip. He stood to throw the cup away, tossing her finished one as well. Together they headed out to the car to head home.

-.-.-.-

They made it to her apartment in record time. Kurt made her promise that she would call the second her day was over and tell him how it went. After a goodbye to both her and the baby he pulled away with a wave.

Rachel entered the apartment, unsure if Will was even home. She called out to him, and it was only a second before she heard, "I'm in here."

She wandered into the bedroom to find Will lying on the bed, reading the paper. He looked up at her, setting aside the paper to motion her closer. Rachel crawled onto the bed and into his waiting arms. He gave her a kiss before looking at the bags that littered the floor.

"My goodness honey." he said, his eyes wide in fake awe. "Did you leave anything in the store for anyone else?"

Rachel rolled her eyes playfully at his jab. "Yes, I did. It's actually not as much as it seems. Want me to give you a fashion show?" She asked, giving him a suggestive look.

Will laughed, sitting up in bed, his back against the headboard. "I am always game for any fashion show you want to give."

She stood in front of the bags, removing her clothes so she was standing in her underwear. She pulled the purchases out of the bag laying them out before trying the first thing on. She turned slowly for Will, giggling as he let out a whistle.

Rachel continued this until she reached the end of the last bag, at which point she decided to reward Will for his undivided attention. Wearing just her underwear she straddled his waist and kissed him soundly.

"Thank you for being such a good audience." She said, grinding down on him slightly, giggling as he let out a low moan.

He flipped her over gently, "I am trying to fight my every instinct so I don't rip off those little strips of cloth you say pass as underwear."

He kissed the junction of her neck and shoulder before righting himself. "Can we bookmark this for later honey? I haven't eaten all day and I really want to start dinner, since I know how Kurt shops and he leaves no time for food breaks. When I went with him one Christmas, I was this close to eating a lint covered mint I found in my overcoat." He held his thumb and forefinger together to illustrate his description. "And when I found half a granola bar in my pocket from earlier in the day I almost cried with relief."

He stood, looking down at her, "Our little guy is craving my vegetable stir fry. Isn't that right little man?" He asked, pressing a kiss to Rachel's stomach.

She giggled at the ticklish sensation before nodding. "We would love it. Right baby?" She looked at her stomach as if waiting for his answer. "He says yes, and he would also like some leftover cake for dessert."

Will left, his laughter carrying through the apartment. "Anything he wants he gets." He called, as he started rattling pots and pans in the kitchen.

Rachel followed behind him, sitting at the kitchen table to watch him cook. It was one of her favorite things to do. He would get this cute little furrow in his brow when he would read a recipe, taking such care to make sure it is right. It reminded her of how he used to look at school when he would try to teach them a new step. He had a graceful ease about him, he made it all seem so simple, and besides Finn, they never needed much more than the initial walkthrough. Yet he put so much concentration into trying it was like he had no idea how easily it came to him.

"So what was with the new wardrobe?" He asked, as he chopped the carrots into perfect julienne strips as Rachel prepared the snap peas at her spot at the table.

Pausing, she looked up; she had forgotten to tell him. "They are for my new job." She said, a proud smile on her face as she waited for him to mirror her.

He turned around, leaving the knife on the cutting board. "Job? You never told me about a job. When did this happen?"

Rachel was surprised, he didn't seem happy. "Just yesterday. I went in to get your cake and…"

Will cut her off, "And what? They just gave you a job? Honey, do they even know about the baby."

"Of course they do." She started again, still confused by his obvious irritation for her new job. "It's at the bakery we love. Blaine's sister is the owner and…"

"Honey, I told you that you didn't need to work. You should think about the baby. Were you even going to talk to me about it?" He said, cutting her off again, his tone coming off as condescending to Rachel's ears.

"You think I don't care about the baby? Is that what you are implying? Silly impulsive Rachel doesn't care enough for the baby to put its wellbeing first." She knew she was yelling now, and she couldn't help herself. She was angry and didn't know why he was making her this way.

"No, that's not what I am saying." Will said, holding his hands out in front of him. "I just…"

"You what? Want me home all the time? Want me to be here waiting for you everyday like a puppy? Would you like me to bring you your slippers at the end of the day as well?"

"Rachel," He pleaded. "I didn't mean to upset you. I am just thinking about the baby. I am just concerned for your wellbeing."

"Why?" Rachel demanded, standing up to go to the fridge. "I am not just an incubator you know. I have feelings too. Don't you think I know what's best for me?" She pulled out the ingredients to make a sandwich, sloppily completing the sandwich and slamming the door and opening the kitchen door with a huff. "I am going to sleep in the spare room."

As soon as she sat on her old bed she started to cry. She curled up on the mattress waiting for the sadness to pass, which it did, only to be replaced by guilt and confusion. It was like her mind was having a debate and it was starting to give her a migraine. One side argued that she had irrationally lost her temper, that Will was just being the kind, considerate man she fell in love with.

The other side, the more dominate side at the moment, argued back, confirming her fears he might just be in this for the baby. Although she logically knew how incorrect that side was it still confounded her. She wasn't sure which to listen to at the moment so she stayed where she was, curled up on the bed.

She laid there, her head on the soft pillows, staring up at the pattern the blinds made on the ceiling. She listened for the sound of Will's movements, but she didn't hear any. Part of her wanted to go out and apologize, blame her penchant for the dramatics and her overwhelming pregnancy hormones, but stubbornness kept her in her place.

Rachel wanted him to come to her, to apologize for ruining her happy moment. She hadn't done anything wrong when she accepted the job. She hadn't hurt anyone, and she hadn't broken any promises. Just when she was about to give up hope that they were going to make up tonight she heard a knock at the door.

Her pride still wouldn't allow her to talk first, so she just lay there not responding as the light from the hallway flooded the room. She watched him out of the corner of her eye as he hesitated in the hallway. Actually seeing him uncomfortable and nervous was greatly swaying her determination to stay strong, but she wanted to see how he would handle this so she stayed put.

She watched as he slowly approached the bed. His hand was slightly extended toward her. She felt the bed dip as he sat next her, the tips of his fingers brushing the hair out of her face. Rachel wanted to melt into his touch, bur instead she waited on baited breath for him to make the first move.

"Rach?" She heard him whisper into the darkness, his voice taking on an edge of pleading to it.

She locked eyes with him and the last bit of her resolve crumbled. She sat up and found herself wrapped in his strong arms. He covered her face in kisses murmuring apology after apology in between, until Rachel had to stop him and add her apology to his.

"Will," She said, holding his face between her hands to halt his kisses. She watched as he opened his eyes to look into hers. He wore a confused, slightly concerned expression as he waited for her to continue.

"I am so sorry." She said, after taking a deep breath. "I want to blame it on the pregnancy hormones alone, but I can't. Truthfully, everything has just been so great I have been waiting for the fallout, the thing that would take this marvelous thing we have away and I thought this was it."

"You did?" He asked, sounding genuinely surprised by her fear. "Honey, this was just an argument. We wouldn't break up over this unless you were the one doing the leaving. I couldn't leave you. I never could."

He took a deep breath, wiping his hands over his face before continuing. "All those times I almost left. All those times I almost threw in the towel, do you know what stopped me?"

She looked into his eyes, which were dark in the dim light from the hallway. "You. You are what stopped me. At first I tried to tell myself I was staying for the kids, then Emma, my parents. I even told myself reasons that were only slightly plausible but no matter the reason, it didn't add up in my head. The kids could always get a new coach. Emma was believable for awhile, but then she had Carl and although it stung at first, I started to realize it wasn't my heart that was wounded, it was my ego."

"So I told myself I was staying for your talent, because you were a big fish in a small pond and I owe it to the world to help you make it. Though even that didn't work after awhile."

"Do you know when I finally admitted to myself that I loved you? When I opened that door and saw you standing there on the day you moved in. It was like I was seeing you for the first time, but then I realized the way I felt that day was how I had felt about you for awhile. I just didn't want to admit it myself until then. So please, please don't think I don't love you. You mean everything to me."

She felt Will's thumbs brush against her cheeks before she even realized she was crying. For once in her life Rachel could find no words to respond so she kissed him soundly, trying to pour as much love and emotion into the kiss that he had shown her with his confession.

He moaned into her mouth, pulling her so she was cradled in his arms. Will stood, holding her closely as he made his way into the bedroom. He laid her down between the soft sheets before lying next to her and pulling her close. He didn't try anything, just lay there and stroked her hair, playing with the ends as he nuzzled his face against hers.

His breath had evened out, blowing in little puffs against her forehead and she knew he was asleep. Just as she was about to join him she bolted up in bed. "Shit, shit shit!" She exclaimed quietly, sitting up.

"Where are you going?" Will asked sleepily, rolling over on his stomach and fluffing the pillow under his head.

"You haven't eaten." Rachel responded, throwing her legs over the bed. "I am going to go make you something."

"Rach," He groaned groggily as he reached out his hand.

"Rachel. Stop." He put his hand over hers to still her. "I already ate a sandwich. Don't worry sweetie, lets just get some sleep." And he rolled over and did just that.

-.-.-.-

The alarm Rachel didn't even remember setting woke her at bright and early at 7 a.m. the next morning. Groaning she sat up, rubbing her eyes sleepily. As she sat trying to regain consciousness she looked at Will's peaceful sleeping form still wrapped up in their blankets. Fighting every instinct she had not to lay back down, she dragged herself into the bathroom to get ready.

When she emerged she found Will still asleep in the same position she left him in. Not wanting to wake him when he was so peaceful, she left him a note explaining she had left, and with a kiss to the forehead she left him.

Deciding it was too nice a day to drive, and since it was such a short walk from her home, she started off down the block toward the bakery. She was grateful she had decided against the more business casual outfits Kurt had picked out. She didn't want to seem overeager on her first day. That was something the old Rachel Berry would do. This Rachel Berry wanted to be calm, and not, as so many people put it, "extremely grating."

The front of shop quiet when she entered, a lone cashier was standing behind the counter. He looked young, though she could tell he was older than her. He was handsome as well, looking more like an underwear model than a baker. His blonde hair was combed back from his face in a messy fashion and his dark rimmed glasses stood out against his fair skin.

"Hi, Can I help you?" He asked, fiddling with a stack of napkins that sat next to his hand on the counter.

"Hi, I'm Rachel." She said, walking up to him and raising her hand to shake his. "Today is my first day. I am Kat's new assistant."

"Oh, hi," he said, shaking her hand. "Kat told me you would be starting today and I completely spaced. I'm Josh. Nice to meet you Rachel. Follow me, Kat is working in the back."

She followed Josh into the warm kitchen, searching for Kat but not seeing her anywhere. There were muffins sitting in long rows across the big wooden table that filled up the middle of the kitchen. At the end sat a huge wedding cake, the fondant a beautiful light pink color.

"Kat," Josh called out, smiling at Rachel. "The new hire is here."

"Rachel?" Rachel heard Kat ask out, though from where Rachel had no idea.

"Yeah, I'm here Kat." Rachel responded, craning her neck to look for her.

Josh noticed Rachel's attempt, and nudged her gently with his shoulder, pointing at the wedding cake. Just as Rachel looked over she saw Kat peek around the cake. "Hey Rach, I am just doing some detail work on this wedding cake. I should be done in a second."

Looking at Josh she continued. "Josh, I left all the forms she will need to fill out on the counter next to the espresso machines, will you help her out while I finish up here."

Nodding, Josh turned around and headed out to the front of the shop, pausing to wait for Rachel to follow. Once he saw she had, he started talking again. "Okay so usually it is just going to be me, you and Kat doing most of the businessy type stuff. Though we have a waitress that comes in on my weekends. She's kinda odd but cool. Her name is Elyse, though I am not sure you will meet her on your actual work days, since you and I have the same schedule."

He smiled at her, handing her the forms before continuing, "There is also Vinny and Eddie our assistant bakers, Luke our delivery boy, and Don our dishwasher. You won't really be dealing too much with them either. From what Kat has told me, you are going to be somewhere at the front of the house unless she needs you for a personal project."

Rachel nodded, trying to absorb all the information he was supplying. She figured she could text Blaine with questions about anything she didn't catch anyway so she turned her attention to the forms.

She couldn't believe how grown-up she felt actually filling out the forms. This was going to be her first official grown up job. Sure, she had baby-sat for extra money on occasion, but she didn't make a habit of it. She had been much too focused on readying herself for the Broadway stage to worry about things like spending money. Her dads had always given her more than enough and she didn't really need or want anything more.

A flicker of sadness washed over her as she signed her name. Her signature was perfect, Rachel Barbra Berry. She had spent hours perfecting it, changing it, trying to get it just right. She figured she should have it down by the time New York came calling. She wanted everyone to know she signed it. She had even bulk ordered metallic gold markers two months before graduation. Her signature B's, the base of which was a star, were what she felt set it apart, because after all gold stars are kind of her thing.

Josh must have noticed her change in mood because he asked, "You okay, Rachel?" while he gathered up her papers.

She nodded, "Yeah I am fine. Just hungry. I didn't grab any breakfast this morning."

He reached into the case pulling out a delicious looking coffee cake and handed it to her. "Most important meal of the day." He said, before turning to the back counter.

"Would you like a smoothie? It's a product idea of Elyse's. Brand new today… wanna be our guinea pig?" He shook the jar of the blender slightly as if trying to coax her. "How about I whip you up a strawberry banana one?"

Rachel nodded again, "Sure. Thanks." Before she went behind the counter to take the other seat next to the one Josh had been occupying. Kat hadn't given her any tasks yet, so she decided to take a little break and enjoy the breakfast Josh had so kindly provided.

The morning was slow and uneventful, and for that Rachel was grateful. She spent the day with Josh learning the ropes. He trained her on the cash register, though he said she wouldn't really ever need to use it, as well as how to take phone orders, before Kat called for her help.

Rachel spent about an hour with Kat, learning piping techniques and helping roll fondant for the elaborate candy pink wedding cake. She was tempted to ask who's it was. Lima was hardly a small town, but she wondered if she knew the client whose cake she was helping create.

She had just learned the basics of how to make the bakery's butter cream frosting when her stomach rumbled. Kat looked up with a grin, still bent over the cake, barely halfway done with her piping work. "Are you hungry Rach?"

Kat glanced at the clock, nodding to herself before looking back at her. "Well, it's almost 1:00 p.m. You get an hour for lunch. You are more than welcome to eat here if you want. Josh swears by the soup and sandwiches at the café next door. I'll show you our office and give you a run through of your job duties when you get back from lunch."

She was just hanging her pastel apron on one of the hooks on the wall when Josh peeked back. "Rachel?" He asked, leaning against the door frame. "There is a guy here, says he knows you. I think he said is name was… Will?

An excited thrill ran through her that Will had come to visit. She left her apron on her hook and hurried to the front of the restaurant. She had just entered the room when he turned around, smiling as he saw her.

"Hey honey," He said, leaning over to kiss her. "Are you having a nice day?"

"Yeah, it's been great. I am at lunch if you want to do something." She said, wrapping her arm around him.

They heard a cough to their right, and turned to see Josh standing behind the counter. "Hey, I'm Josh." He said, holding out his hand to Will.

Will looked at him a second before holding out his hand in return, shaking Josh's as he said. "Will. Nice to meet you."

Will slid his arm around Rachel's shoulders, turning her to head out the door. When they were just outside the door he stopped her. She looked up at him expectantly as he held up a flower she hadn't noticed he had been holding. It was a single pink daisy.

"This is to say I am sorry for upsetting you last night. I am really so very happy for you sweetheart. Please remember I am always happy about anything that brings even the slightest smile to your face."

Rachel took the flower with a kiss and a thank you. She was just about to continue walking, intent on trying the café that Kat had mentioned when Will put his hand out to stop her. He chuckled softly before running his hand down her arm.

"You don't remember do you?" He asked, smiling down at her.

"Should I?" She returned, wondering what he was talking about.

"Remember your sophomore year? When we sang endless love together?" He paused waiting for her to remember, when he saw an embarrassed blush cover her face he kissed her forehead before continuing.

"At the end of the week you gave me pink daisies as an I'm Sorry gift. So I thought pink daisies could be our thing. We already have a song out of that week, why not a flower too?"

He hugged her to him, "I didn't know it then, but it really was one of the best weeks of my life until now. You have been a part of almost every happy event in my life."

Rachel was touched by his thoughtfulness as well as his romantic gesture. She had never loved a flower as much as she did the one in her hand. She stood on tiptoe to give him a kiss before pulling him next door to the café to eat.

-.-.-.-

The food they served lived up to Josh's excellent review. Rachel was astonished and pleased that two absolutely delicious places could be located right next to each other. She watched Will pay their bill as she stood a few steps behind him clutching her leftover container of tomato bisque and a wrapped half of the best sandwich she had ever eaten.

Rachel handed her leftovers to Will to take home as they walked back to the bakery. Josh was manning his post with Kat serving someone a smoothie when they walked in. Kat looked up as they walked in, wiping her hands on her apron before holding her hand out to Will.

"You must be Will. I am Kat, Blaine's sister. He's told me so much about you." She said smiling at the both of them, before her face took on a sly smile and she winked at Rachel.

"Aren't you two an adorable pair. Aren't they a cute little couple Josh?" She said, giving Rachel a hug.

"Yep." Josh responded, sounding slightly bored.

"You two are going to have an absolutely adorable baby." She said, as she leaned on the counter. "When are you due?"

"February 10th." Will responded proudly, wrapping his arm around Rachel. He turned to Rachel, kissing her before continuing. "Hun, I am going to head home and let you get back to work. What time are you off? I will come back to walk home with you."

"Around 6." Kat answered for her. "But you can come before and just hang out. Hell, hang out all day if you want. A pretty face like yours is good for business."

Will laughed, saying thanks before he kissed Rachel goodbye. He waved to Kat and Josh before opening the door and heading outside. They all watched him go in silence before Kat broke the silence with a clap. "Okay Josh, you head to lunch, I am going to supervise Rachel on the cash registers."

"You aren't going to have to do this often, but you might as well learn right?" Kat said with a laugh. "The most you would do is cover for Josh or Elyse, who you will meet one day. I want you to take it easy though, no lifting heavy things and make sure you take it easy, you hear?"

Rachel caught on to the process quickly and after Josh returned she returned to the kitchen to help Kat. She met the bakery assistants and cleaners, introducing herself to each of them with a quick handshake and a friendly hello. When she had made her rounds Kat set her to work learning the bakery's signature cupcake frosting swirl.

After frosting what felt like a million cupcakes Kat announced it was time to close up. She started her job of mopping while Josh stacked the chairs on the table and Kat cleaned in the back. She was halfway through her job when she heard Josh speak from behind her.

"So you are going to be a mommy huh?" He asked, glancing at her before continuing to stack the chairs.

"Yeah, I am. We are really excited." She finished her job, taking a spot at the window seat, eating the frosting off of one of the cupcakes that Kat had left out for them. She loved her job, and enjoyed the perk of getting to eat the leftover pastries even more.

"You seem like you are going to be a good one." Josh said, joining her with a vanilla cupcake, laughing as the sprinkles fell down his black t-shirt.

They ate in silence for a while, enjoying their cupcakes. Josh had turned to her to ask another question, before seeing the smear of chocolate on her nose. Laughing he went to the counter and got a napkin, handing it to her before starting to mop.

By the time he had finished his job both he and Kat were standing by the door. Rachel had been lost in thought and hadn't noticed that Josh had basically mopped her into a corner.

Unsure what to do she looked at Kat and Josh in a panic. Josh laughed as Kat told her to walk across the wooden love seat. She stood carefully holding out her hands for balance, though she didn't know why, the seat was wide enough for two of her to walk comfortably. As she neared the end Josh held his hand out for her to hold while she jumped to the safety of the mat by the door. Josh steadied her when she landed and held the door for her and Kat to exit before closing it behind him.

Kat and Josh left her with a wave as she saw Will approaching on foot. He gave her a smile as he neared her, sweeping her up in a kiss when he was close enough to her. Nuzzling her neck softly he whispered, "I missed you."

"I missed you too honey." Rachel said, giving him a small kiss and wrapping her arms around him.

"Ready to go home?" he asked, putting his arm around her waist and starting toward home.

Rachel nodded, falling into step beside him. The sky was still bright and the hot summer day was easing into a cool summer night as she took in the people around them. A light breeze brushed over her face, as she felt Will grasp her hand. As she looked down at their entwined fingers she couldn't remember seeing a more perfect sight.