A/N: I really want to get the good stuff… but I'm taking my time. I hope you enjoyed the story so far. I'm really excited about this chapter too because I've never written up to chapter 10 before.

Also, with each new Glee episode, I have to tweak my plot around a little. I mean Rachel and Kurt and Puck and Quinn and Finn and Rachel... AHHHHHHHHHHHH! Glee is so amazing!

Disclaimer: You know.

Chapter Ten: You Belong With Me

Rachel woke up the next morning before her alarm went off. Blinding white light had snuck through the cracks of the blinds and filtered through the white lace curtains. Rachel sat up and rubbed her eyes and looked at the window. What was causing that bright light outside? What time was it? She glanced at the clock as she swung her legs out of bed and found her slippers. It was 8 o'clock. Rachel grumbled as she pulled on her robe and shuffled to the window. She had wanted to sleep in and be lazy all day. This wasn't like Rachel Berry, but something inside her made her feel this way. She had had the most wonderful dream. Noah and her shared a passionate kiss only to be interrupted by Kurt. Rachel was sad that she would never be able to taste him again, but he had called her name… yes, her first name and sauntered down those porch steps and kissed her again. Then she made it snow. Well, not really but their second kiss had caused the clear night to close up and let snow fall for the first time all season.

Rachel sighed and tucked her hair behind her ears, yanking open the curtain. What she saw outside reminded her that what happened last night was not a dream. Kurt's yard was covered in a blanket of thick, fluffy snow. There was at least 6 inches on the ground and it was building up, seeing how the snow had no let up since last night. This wasn't your blizzard-I'm-going-to-stay-inside kinda snow… this was the let's-go-out-and-play-all-day snow. She grinned and touched her lips with her fingertips. She swore she could still feel the buzzing feeling that Noah had given her. She smiled and quickly tied her hair into a ponytail, heading into the kitchen.

Kurt was cooking breakfast, turkey bacon and egg whites in two separate frying pans and the toaster with 4 full slots. He poured himself some hot water, obviously a tea bag sitting in the bottom. He turned to put the electric kettle back on the counter and saw Rachel standing by the island. "Well, well… good morning my darling. How did you sleep last night?" Rachel smiled and brushed her bangs to the side. She moved over and grabbed a mug out of the cabinet and then the coffee pot, pouring herself a cup full.

"Amazing. Had this really good dream." She grinned and took a sip of her drink.

"Sweetie, I'm sure it was not a dream." He winked but didn't say anything. He had drilled her enough last night in the car. "So, my annual Christmas party is coming up soon and this year I'm going all out! I'm going out shopping today for decorations and you are coming with me. Oh and you're invited… and Noah and his daughter." Kurt grinned, almost evilly and looked at Rachel as he took sip from his mug.

"Kurt… Noah and I are Jewish." Rachel shivered. She liked that way 'Noah and I' sounded. "We don't celebrate Christmas."

Kurt sighed. "Rachel, I'm not asking you to convert… it's just a party. Come on! Artie and Tine are coming, so is Mercedes, Mr. and Mrs. Schuester and my cousin Sarah is coming with her husband and 3 kids. One of them is around Rebecca's age… she's 6 right?" Rachel nodded. "Invite him… it'll be fun!" Kurt batted his eyelashes.

"Fine, I'll ask. But could we call it a holiday party or something? I don't want to make Noah or Rebecca feel uncomfortable."

"Sure." Kurt waved his hand.

"And, how are we going shopping? There's 6 inches of snow outside." Rachel nodded her head towards the window.

"Ah my dear, look outside again." Rachel eyed Kurt suspiciously and moved to the front door, opened it and stepped on the front porch. The roads were freshly plowed and the sidewalks were shoveled and iced. "Guess who was out since 4 am this morning?"

"Noah?" Rachel came back inside and closed the door. "Wow."

"Honey, this is the first snowfall all year. People started calling him that early." Kurt finished his hot tea and walked back into the kitchen, placing the empty cup in the dishwasher. "Well, we'll be leaving after breakfast." Kurt finished cooking the contents of the frying pans and distributed them equally between two plates. Rachel grabbed the toast out of the toaster and buttered the slices, placing two pieces on each plate.

They sat down at the island, eating their breakfast and discussed decoration and food ideas for the party. The party was a week away but Kurt wanted everything to be perfect. He had already sent out all the invites via email (to those he currently had) and had received RSVPs from all of them. They were going to have a full house and Kurt wanted to be prepared. After discussing desserts ideas, they cleaned up kitchen and went to their own rooms to shower and get dressed. Rachel closed her bedroom door and took off her bathroom, hanging it on the hook on the bedroom door. She checked her phone before taking off her pajamas. There was one text message… from Noah. Rachel picked up her phone and went to her inbox, opening the message: "School was cancelled today. I've been up since 4 but got most of the neighborhoods done. Taking Rebecca sledding after breakfast. Want to come?" It was sent 15 minutes ago. Rachel dialed Noah's number and waited impatiently for him to pick up the phone. It only rang once.

"Rachel?"

Rachel smiled, her heart beating wildly. "Noah, hey… I just got your text."

"Oh yeah. I've been real busy this morning." She could see him grinning, cheeks red from the cold but his eyes bright. "But school was cancelled and Rebecca was asking me to ask you to come sledding with us. So what do you say?"

"Hold on!" Rachel ran out of her room and flew down the hallway, knocking on Kurt's door. "Kurt?"

"Yes?" Kurt opened the door still in his robe. He noticed the phone and then Rachel's anxious expression. "You owe me." He grinned, winked and then closed the door mouthing 'have fun'. Rachel grinned and went back to her room.

"Rachel?" She had left him on the phone.

"Sorry, but yeah. Sure… I'd love to come."

"Great! We'll stop by in 10 minutes?"

"Yes!" Rachel said, a little too enthusiastically. She bade him a good bye and hung up the phone, quickly sliding out of her silk pajamas. She heard Kurt leave saying he'd be back in the afternoon and that he'd miss her. She responded to Kurt and after hearing the door slam she threw together an outfit suitable for the outdoors. After pulling on her hot pink rain boots, she heard the door bell ring and nearly fell over. She got up and placed her phone and wallet in her water-proof coat pockets and pulled the zipper shut on them. She half ran to the door and fixed her hair under her hat before yanking the door open.

"Hey." Noah stood in the doorway, his hands shoved in his pockets. Next to him stood Rebecca with a bright yellow sled attached to a string in her hand.

"Rachel! We're going sledding!" she exclaimed, as if Rachel was oblivious to their plans.

"I see that." Rachel beamed and closed the door behind her. "So where are we going?"

"To the high school… you know the big hill by the parking lot?"

"Oh my, I do. I was ambushed there once by a couple of guys back in the day." She laughed and kicked up some snow on the sidewalk as they made their way to their old school. She looked at Noah who had gone quiet. "Don't tell me… you were one of the guys?"

"Sorry." Noah rubbed the back of his neck and grinned at her.

Rachel huffed slightly, a smile spreading on her lips. She bent down quickly and scooped a handful of snow, packing it into a ball and threw it at Noah. It hit his shoulder, bits of snow flying in his face and Rebecca's hair. He laughed and repeated her actions, hitting her hat. Rachel laughed and felt another hit ball hit her shoulder. She looked at Noah, who pointed at Rebecca who was giggling. Rachel laughed, Rebecca's giggle highly contagious, and picked the young girl up in the air and plopped her on the sled. Rachel grabbed the string and began to pull. Noah followed behind, watching Rachel and Rebecca.

Within several minutes the three were in the high school parking lot. Rebecca scrambled off the sled and began to climb the looming hill. Rachel and Noah watched as the bright green dot moved up the slippery slope. Rebecca turned around when she reached the top and waved to the couple below. Rachel took the sled by the handle and began to start the same trek. She turned to see if Noah was following, but he stood on the ground.

"I'll catch you guys." Noah said, waving her to keep going. Rachel turned back and continued to climb, greeting Rebecca as she reached the top.

"Whew… what a climb. You ready?" Rachel set the sled down and sat towards the back. She patted the spot in front of her and Rebecca gladly plopped down. Rachel used her hands to push them forward and they teetered on the edge for a while before the sled's nose went down and they began descending down the hill. Rebecca was squealing and laughing the whole way and Rachel couldn't help but laugh too. Once they reached the bottom, Noah stood there waiting, helping Rebecca out and then Rachel. Rebecca sprinted back to the hill and started climbing again. Rachel adjusted her hat and grinned at Noah. "She's pretty active."

"Yeah, it's hard to keep up with her sometimes." Noah took his hair off and rubbed his head.

"Here." Rachel handed him the sled. "Go catch her." Noah grinned, grabbed the sled and took of to catch Rebecca. Once his daughter saw him chasing her, she screamed and climbed faster but ended up sliding on the snow and ice even more. Noah caught up with Rebecca and grabbed her around the middle, carrying her the rest of the way up. Rachel watched Noah and his daughter interact, throwing snow at each other before climbing onto the sled and scooting down the hill. The three of them stayed out for hours, each taking turns sledding down the hill. After the thrill of sledding wore off they built a snowman at the bottom of the hill, using sticks and stones for his eyes, nose and mouth.

It was after 2 when Noah decided to go back home to eat some lunch. With the snow still coming down, Noah was getting calls from neighbors asking to re-ice the sidewalks. He was going to call his mother to ask if she could watch Rebecca, but Rachel had stopped him saying that she could.

"I really don't mind. Kurt is out shopping all day."

"Really? Wait, shopping for what?" Noah had fixed Rebecca's hat and took her hand as they made their way back to Noah's house.

"His party next week… which reminds me, Kurt invited you and Rebecca."

"A party!" Rebecca started jumping up and down. "Oooo Daddy, can we please go? Will there be other kids?" Rebecca looked up at Rachel.

"Yes, Kurt's cousins will be there and one of the girls is 6 too. Kurt said he's setting up a room just for the kids. Everyone is going to be there. He would really like it if you came. I… I would… like it too." Rachel blushed and she brushed her fingers along his arm. He smiled at her but Rachel didn't know if he could feel her touch.

"I think we can make it. It'll be fun to see the whole gang again." He let go of Rebecca's hand as she raced forward and flung herself in their yard, making a snow angel.

"Great. I'll tell Kurt." Rachel took off her hat, fluffing out her brown locks, allowing the small flakes to collect in her hair. She walked over to Rebecca and helped her out of the snow and stood back to admire her work.

"You sure about watching her?" Noah called. He had collected his snow gear and waited at the end of his driveway. Rachel walked to him and took the keys that were sitting in his hand. She smiled and took another step closer to him.

"I don't mind." She reached out and brushed the snow off his shoulders, her hand gently resting on his right one. Noah leaned down, his nose brushing hers. She could feel his hot breath on her lips and she parted them, hoping to get another taste, but they were interrupted when Rebecca had stomped up the porch steps demanding lunch. Rachel smiled and brushed her hair out of her eyes, turning to follow Rebecca into the house. "I got it. Go to work." She grinned, followed Rebecca and tickled her as the pair headed inside.

Noah smiled and grabbed his gear, heading down to Mrs. Peters yard to de-ice her sidewalks. He was lucky… damn lucky he got Rachel, in the sense that he got to spend time with her. After everything that happened in high school between them and with their friends… he was lucky he got anyone. He had to admit… he was a huge jerk in high school. He was a kid in a candy shop with all those hot girls running around him. He was a boy who had needs and now, and now Noah was a man who had just one need. Rachel Berry. He had messed it up with Quinn and he didn't want to repeat the same mistake with Rachel.

Noah remembered that day Quinn had confronted him in the hallway. Noah was changing out his books for his next class when Quinn had bombarded him, taking his cell phone and checking his texts. She had caught him 'sexting' with Santana and a dozen other girls in the school. Shit. Noah tried to play it off like it was no big deal, but to Quinn it was a big deal. It was a big enough deal that it pushed her back into Finn's arms. The one girl that Noah had wanted and even she wasn't good enough for Puck. He had told her that he needed to get some and that she wasn't giving… dammit. Now that he (7 years later) thought about it he realized how stupid and childish it sounded. But it wasn't that comment that had wanted Noah to punch himself in the face. He had told Quinn that he wanted to be the father, but that he wasn't going to change his ways about it. He was going to be Puck and no one was going to stop him.

That changed when he had saw Rebecca for the first time in the hospital. Noah was walking around the hospital; Quinn wouldn't allow him in the room because she didn't want a punch out between him and Finn. She had promised he could see her when she came home, but Noah couldn't wait that long. He paced the corridor, asking his fellow Glee members how Quinn was and how the Rebecca was. When Kurt and Rachel exited the room, a nurse wheeling a large plastic crib left the room, with a small pink screaming bundle in the middle. Noah didn't remember what Rachel or Kurt had said… but he just watched the screaming baby… his screaming baby being carried off. It only took one look and Noah had fallen in love. It was that one look that convinced him to change from Puck… to Noah.

By the time he finished Mrs. Peters, Mr. Hornbeck and Ms. Wine's sidewalks it had stopped snowing and the calls were less frequent. He told the last callers that he would be by in the morning seeing how he'd been out all day. He checked his phone and realized it was past 5. He cursed to himself and went home, hoping Rachel wasn't too mad at him. Noah dumped his gear on the porch and stomped his feet to get the snow off. He went into the hallway and looked into the living room, where the sound of Scooby-Doo could be heard.

"Rebecca? Rachel?" He smiled. He liked the way her name sounded on his lips. He pulled off his snow clothes until he was stripped down to his driest clothes, his wife beater and his sweats. He peeked into the living room and saw two bodies curled on the couch together, sleeping. Noah walked in and turned off the TV and threw a blanket over the girls. He grabbed the empty plates and cups off the coffee table and went into the kitchen. Sitting on the counter was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a Ziploc bag and a bag of pretzels sitting on the plate. Noah placed the dirty dishes in the sink and looked at the note from Rachel saying, "Didn't know when you would get home, but we made you lunch anyway!"

Noah took the sandwich from the bag and wolfed it down at the counter. He threw the dish in the sink and opened the fridge, taking a gulp or two from milk carton.

"That's really gross you know."

Noah choked on the milk and looked over to the doorway. Rachel was standing there, stripped down to her black thermals and bright pinks socks. She ran her fingers through her hair and pulled it over her shoulder.

"Noah?"

Noah shook his head; apparently he was staring for too long. "Yeah, sorry."

She laughed and moved into the kitchen. "How was work?"

Noah gulped. "Cold. But good… it feels good to work."

Rachel nodded. "That's good. Rebecca and I played Barbies and doctor. Apparently my heart is broken." She smiled shyly. "We then had peanut butter and cheese puffs and then watch TV." She turned and looked at Noah. "It was fun… too bad you missed out."

Noah had moved over to Rachel and brushed her hair out of her eyes. "Thank you for watching her."

"It was no problem, really." She brushed his hair free of the melted snow and rested her hand on the side of his neck. "You're cold." She muttered, pulling closer to Noah.

"Snow… is pretty cold." Noah breathed, pulling Rachel closer to him. He leaned down, brushing his nose along hers then her cheek and jaw line. He felt Rachel shiver underneath him and couldn't tell if it was from the cold or his touch. His nose came back to hers and he pressed his forehead against hers. His arms snaked tighter around her waist and pulled her close to his body. Their bodies were as close as they've ever been her thermal and his wife beater the only fabric that was keeping their bare skins from touching. Her hands touched his chest, feeling the tight fabric that was stretched across his chest. He looked down at her, watching her brown eyes search his. "Rachel."

That was all he could say. Her mouth covered his, her hands wrapping around his neck. She smiled into the kiss and opened her mouth, feeling Noah slide his tongue inside. She pushed against his with hers, running her tongue over the roof of his mouth. He groaned and bit down on her bottom lip slightly. His hands went from her waist down to her thighs and back up to her waist. In their fit of kissing, they ended up by one of the kitchen counters; Rachel's back bumping into it slightly. Noah instinctively picked her up and placed her on the counter pressing close to her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and slid her hands down his back until they landed firmly on his butt, squeezing slightly.

Noah groaned even more, bucking his hips softly against her. It was too much for him to bear… he just wanted to pick her up and throw her into his room. He continued grinding into her until he was pushed back. He coughed slightly, his hands moving to the counter on either side of her. "I'm… sorry. I just got… caught up… and…."

Rachel placed a finger on his lips. "Noah… what are we doing?" She tilted her head, a smile tugging at the edges of her lips.

"Making out." Noah shrugged.

"No… I mean." Rachel leaned back on her hands. "I left for 5 years and then just suddenly reappear. I mean, we're friends and we dated a little."

"What are you asking?" Noah's heart raced.

"What are you feeling?"

"Feeling?"

"About me? About us?"

Noah blushed. There they were in the heat of the moment and she wanted to know how he felt. This is a good time as any and she did have a point. After not seeing each other for 5 years, what were they doing? Was it the lack of physical contact? Noah didn't know… but he did know something. He reached up and tucked some hair behind her ear. He squared himself and looked at her straight in the eye.

"Rachel…" He took a deep breath… it was now or never. "I love you."

A/N: YES! Done done done! Sorry for the delay, you know how Turkey Day is! I love you all and I hope you enjoy. PS- I know… I'm evil :D