I am absolutely blessed to have such amazing readers. Thank you isn't good enough for you guys! I really hope you enjoy this chapter! (P.S. I don't own any brands and/or songs that may be mentioned!) Also, be warned-Major spoilers of "Special Education" (the Sectionals episode!) If you have not watched it, I recommend hitting the Fox website or Hulu even!
Rachel Hudson: Bored...
Rachel Hudson lay on the couch, her feet stretched out over the arm rest. Her phone buzzed.
Finn: Hey babe, open the door... :)
Rachel skimmed the message again. Was this really happening? Her hands trembled as she stood, and paced towards the door. She opened the door, to find Finn. But, he was accompanied someone unexpected.
"Finn, what is Santana doing here?" Rachel asked, perplexed.
"Rachel, I'd like to introduce you to Santana Hudson." He said, flashing his signature crooked smile.
"Rachel! Wake up!" hissed Quinn.
"Again?" Rachel asked, frustration clear as glass in her voice.
"Yeah." Quinn sighed.
"God, I need to quit doing that..." Rachel groaned. Her dreams were getting more and more vivid as the days rolled by, and her due date crept closer. She couldn't help but scream at her horrible dreams. Rachel shuddered at the memories that caused her nightmares.
*Flashback...*
"I'm so sorry and it will never happen again." Rachel was broken inside, the pieces of her perfect puzzle suddenly breaking, falling into a sea of emptiness.
"I knew you were a lot of things, Rachel, and I loved you because in spite of all of them, but I never thought you were mean." Finn pointed out. How could Rachel do this to him? They loved each other. And common - They were FINCHEL for crying out loud.
"I'm saying that I'm sorry and doesn't what you did with Santana kind of cancel this out?" Rachel asked defensively.
"We weren't together! I didn't cheat on you. How could you do this to me?" Finn protested.
"It was a mistake! Maybe we should go to another counseling session with Miss Pillsbury." Rachel pleaded.
"You can't have counseling session if you're not a couple." Finn couldn't believe what he had just said. Had he really just break off ties with the best thing that ever happened to him? Rachel was shocked too. Did the best thing that ever happened to her just break things off?
"You're breaking up with me?" Rachel stuttered.
"What you did was really bad, Rachel. And you knew how sensitive I'd be about this after what happened with Quinn." Finn said, getting choked up. He decided he would walk away before he'd be any more crushed. He made his way down the hall, when the voice of a broken girl stopped him.
"You said you'd never break up with me." Rachel stated, her voice shaking like mad. This statement cut into Finn like a knife cut through butter. He could not believe that after what had just happened, she had gone there.
"I never thought you'd make me feel like this." Finn said on he turned his back on his entire life. The tiny brunette walked away as well, heading into the bathroom. She stepped into the first empty stall she laid her eyes on, and quickly bolted the metal lock behind her. She dropped, and became a senseless heap.
She regained consciousness in her body, which felt so lifeless. Rachel Berry's glow had vanished into oblivion. She got up, and cleaned herself up. She walked to the mirror, and using a brown paper towel, wiped away any trace of melancholy. She began to do the only thing she did well. Sing...
Your fingertips across my skin
The palm trees swaying in the wind
Images
You sang me Spanish lullabies
The sweetest sadness in your eyes
Clever trick
I never want to see you unhappy
I thought you'd want the same for me
Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?
So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you
I should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do
We walked along a crowded street
You took my hand and danced with me
Images...
And when you left you kissed my lips
You told me you'd never ever forget these images, no
*End Flashback*
"Rachel, snap out of it!" Quinn demanded. "It's not good for the baby." she added.
"Sorry... Hey, how many days till the boys get back?" Rachel asked. She needed Finn's love more than ever.
Quinn grabbed her iPhone off the coffee table, and looked at her calendar.
"Ooh! Only six!" Quinn said happily.
"Great!" Rachel beamed.
The girls watched "House", and occasionally talked about the plot line together.
Suddenly, something caught Quinn's attention from outside the window. A Cadillac pulled into the Hudson driveway.
"Who's that?" She asked quietly.
"I'm... Not sure." Rachel stammered. Quinn quickly got up, and walked towards the door, waiting for the man to reach the other side. Rachel followed behind her, like a lost puppy. Rachel instinctively touched her stomach as Quinn tugged on the knob.
"Is Quinn Puckerman here?" The man asked. He was medium height, and had dark hair, that was slicked back.
"That's me." Quinn said, curious with the man's reason behind being at Rachel's door.
"Mrs. Puckerman, I'm sorry to tell you this, but your husband was..."
Quinn felt her world come crashing down.
"No... No... No..." were the only words that were able to escape Quinn's lips. Rachel's expression fell, and she swiftly put a reassuring hand on Quinn's shoulder.
"Mrs. Puckerman, please calm down. He's fine. He was in an incident, where he was shot, protecting another soldier,"
"Finn," Rachel said breathlessly.
"Your husband's are both in the States right now, hospitalized because the military requires for soldiers to be sent back home in a traumatic experience like this."
"But Finn and Puck... their fine right?" Rachel questioned.
"Their in good condition." the man replied.
"What hospital are they at?" Quinn demanded.
"St. John's." the man responded.
"That's... Omigod. That's across town!" Rachel stated jubilantly. She couldn't believe that her love was within reach.
"It is. Were leaving as soon as we make ourselves presentable," Quinn told Rachel.
"Good day, mam." The man said as he retreated to his car.
Before Quinn had even closed the door, Rachel had already sped off to her closet, pulling out the maternity dress she had bought for any special occasion. This was probably the best day of her life. Rachel paired her plum dress that stopped at the knee with a gray cardigan and some silver ballet flats.
Quinn was across the house in the guest room where Rachel had convinced her to stay while Puck was in Afghanistan, just in case Rachel popped at any random moment. Quinn pulled out some light skinny jeans, a yellow flowy top, a head band with a flower to match, and gray flats out of her duffel bag she had brought from her house.
"QUINN! I'M READY!" Rachel yelled from downstairs. Rachel almost bounced out of her silver flats with excitement. She already had purse, keys, and cell-phone and hand.
"Going," Quinn replied, as she descended down the stairs. Quinn grabbed her things, and without another word, the girls made their way out to the silver Toyota.
"God, I'm so excited." Rachel said as brightly as a light bulb.
"I can see. Me too... Lord, I can't wait to see my honey again." Quinn sighed. She couldn't help but beam as much as Rachel. The hospital was suddenly in sight, and Rachel had to be restrained to not jump out of the car. They arrived in the parking lot, and Rachel and Quinn both sprinted to the entrance.
The receptionist greeted them with a refreshing, genuine smile.
"Names?" she asked. The receptionist knew exactly why the girls had smiles to their ears. Everyone that saw their significant other for the first time in a long time always had the same reaction.
"Noah Puckerman," Quinn said happily.
"And Finn Hudson!" Rachel beamed.
The receptionist nodded, typing their names into the computer. She scribbled down room numbers, and handed them to the women. Quinn and Rachel both headed to the same floor on the elevator. When they got off the elevator, they even headed down the same hallway. Finally, they both stopped at the room numbers their husbands were assigned. Rachel inhaled. Quinn inhaled. They both looked down the hallway at each other, and exchanged reassuring glances. At the same moment, they both opened the doors.