Chapter 10
Basking in the glow of a single spotlight, Rachel sang "Yesterdays", its plaintive melody bringing a slight catch to her voice and a tear to her eye. Noah ceased conversation with Santana as his gaze became riveted to the stage; yet again he found himself transfixed by her voice. "There is no way that beautiful doll is a man," he thought, immediately formulating an idea as to how prove it. As their eyes met, he winked at her, smirking at her immediate reaction, which was to demurely break eye contact.
Although Rachel performed as if the only thing that mattered was the song, her inner dialog told another story: "You're being an idiot," she thought as she evaluated the situation. "If you don't stand up to him, he'll make a fool of you and get you fired in the process."
Rachel completed the number to appreciative applause, taking a modest bow before her accompanist began the introduction to her second piece, "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes". Taking her own challenge, this time she sought out Noah's eyes, finding them at the line "They…said some day you'll find," and locking in on the next one "All who love are blind…" Having honed in on her target, Rachel's face was a mask of serenity as she completed the lovely ballad.
Leaving the stage, Rachel felt a surge of empowerment; she had met this odd yet compelling challenge head on. What surprised her more than her reaction was his; the look on his face had evolved from defiance to tenderness as the song played out. She was convinced that there was more to this man than met the eye, and she was determined to find out what that was, regardless of the cost.
Kurt, who had been discretely conversing with Blaine in a dark corner of the bar, ceased talking when Rachel began her second song. "Your boyfriend's quite talented," Blaine commented, his voice constricting a bit on the word "boyfriend".
Kurt nodded, smiling, and replied, "Yes, he has a gift."
"Do you think he'd mind us talking?" Blaine tentatively inquired.
Kurt shook his head, smiling impishly at Blaine as he answered, "Not at all; we have an 'open' relationship. I would never stand in the way if he met somebody, and the converse is true, as well." He reached out, covering Blaine's hand with his own as he quietly asked, "Do your friends know that you're gay?"
Blaine looked down and shook his head, softly replying, "No. I only realized it recently, myself," he sheepishly admitted.
Kurt, who had figured as much, himself, suggested, "Then you'd best get back before Puck suspects anything. Here's my number," Kurt indicated, slipping a small piece of paper in Blaine's jacket pocket. "Call me when you can. Now, go," he shooed Blaine off, taking the tray with their order and slowly counting to 20 before returning to the table to present them with their libations.
Upon his arrival, Santana greeted Kurt with a devilish grin, explaining, "Puck wants to talk with your boyfriend, again, Kurt. Would you mind bringing him over after he's changed?"
Noah looked at Kurt pointedly, remarking, "He doesn't have to change; actually, I'd prefer if he didn't."
Kurt did his best to remain stoic, realizing that seeing Rachel close up in a dress would most likely be a dead giveaway to her true gender. Fortunately, Santana unknowingly intervened, stating "Sorry, 'the girls' aren't allowed to mingle when they're in drag. The illusion is better from the stage, and we wouldn't want to spoil that for the audience."
Kurt breathed a sigh of relief as he headed back to the dressing room, where Elliot was busy distracting "April Showers" (another of the performers) as Rachel hastily stepped into her street clothes. Kurt moved behind the screen, discretely whispering "Your 'friend' is requesting another audience."
She fastened her trousers, commenting, "I figured he would." Kurt helped her on with her jacket; she adjusted the shirt collar and tied her ascot, straightened up and asked, "How do I look?"
While Kurt thought "Like a lamb to the slaughter," he said, "You look great, 'Ruben'. Are you sure you wanna do this?"
Rachel smiled shakily, admitting (barely above a whisper), "I have mixed feelings, Kurt. I'm afraid of being discovered and losing our jobs. But…I'm attracted; I want to know him better." She took one last look in the mirror, smoothing her hair back, and then (in a normal voice) asked, "Well, what are we waiting for?"
Santana and Noah were filling Blaine in on their plans and Lucille had not yet returned when Kurt and Rachel approached the table. Noah seemed to sense her nearing presence and looked up, cocking his left eyebrow and smiling rakishly when they drew close. "Please, have a seat," he invited. The two chairs between Noah and Blaine were empty; Kurt realized that it would be more prudent to sit next to Noah, but before he could take that chair, Noah looked at Rachel, indicating, "Mr. Berry, won't you sit here?" gesturing to the place next to him.
Rachel shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and confidently sat down, careful to keep both feet on the floor and her hands in her lap.
"I enjoyed your performance tonight, Mr. Berry," Noah complimented Rachel, who interjected, "Ruben, please…" Noah found this immensely amusing, chuckling as he acquiesced, "OK, Ruben, then. Kern is one of my favorite composers, and you chose two of his best current songs."
Rachel smiled gently, doing her best not to blush, replying, "Thank you Mr…er…Puck." Rachel was on high alert, waiting for the conversation to turn. As suspected, she didn't have too long to wait.
"Before Lucille gets back, there's something I've been wondering about…" Noah began. "How do you know that you don't 'like girls'? Have you ever been with a woman?" He addressed nobody in particular, simply put the question out. Santana was grinning from ear to ear and Blaine looked intently at Kurt, who began to speak first.
"Well, actually, my dad took me to a 'cat house' for my 21st birthday," he confessed, a half-smile formed on his lips. "He was worried that I hadn't had a proper girlfriend and thought it would give me the push I supposedly needed. It was interesting," he admitted, "but it only cemented my true feelings. I never told him that, though; he seemed so pleased about the whole thing."
Eyes turned to Rachel, who stammered out, "N…no, I've never been intimate with a woman," looking hopelessly at Kurt, hoping he would cover for her loss of words.
Before he had a chance, Noah volunteered with a smirk, "Well, then, perhaps I can help. There's a little place a few blocks from here…"
"Oh, no, I really couldn't," Rachel protested, desperately attempting to hide her fear.
Noah grinned evilly at her, taunting her "Velkh are`du moyre hobn fun, Ruben? Efsher yener der emes vel aroyskumen?"
"Rachel rolled her eyes, exclaiming "Du bist incorrigible! Es iz faran neyn emes keyn aroyskumen, Puck. Vvelkh ton ikh hob keyn ton keyn bakumen oys keyn`du?"
While the others' eyes bounced back and forth between Noah and Rachel as if they were at a tennis match, Noah looked Rachel squarely in the eyes and offered the ultimatum, "Kumen mit mir tsu dem heizel, Ruben."
Kurt could sense Rachel's mounting frustration and fully understood her trepidation. He intervened, coaxing her, "Just go with him, Ruben; it's no big deal. I'll get the address and pick you up after my shift is over." He smiled softly, attempting to lighten the mood as he added, "Who knows; maybe you'll like it, and I'll have to find a new boyfriend."
Blaine sat up a little straighter upon hearing that remark, his mouth turned up ever so slightly at the thought of Kurt being "free". Santana noticed his reaction, an impish expression on her face as she thought "I can spot 'em a mile away, that's for sure." Fortunately for Blaine, Noah was fixated on Rachel, looking for the slightest waiver in her demeanor, and he took no notice of his friend's reaction.
Noah glanced at his watch, then turned to Rachel, calmly stating, "Are you coming, Ruben?"
Rachel looked at Kurt, who nodded his head slightly. Rachel swallowed, gathered her composure, and replied (with as much bravado as she could muster), "Yes. Where, may I ask, are we going?"
Noah was surprised that she had taken the bait. He'd fully expected a breakdown, complete with tearful confession. He had to give it to this woman; she certainly had chutzpah…in spades. He shook his head slightly, clearing it of any doubt that he might possibly be wrong, before answering her, "'The Choir Room'; it belongs to a friend of a friend of mine."
"You must have some interesting friends, Puck," Rachel commented sardonically.
Noah stood up, turning to Rachel, who then arose, pushing in her chair. Before they left, Noah reminded Blaine, "Blaine, you'll see to it that Lucille arrives home safely?" Blaine nodded his head in agreement and the couple left the table. Noah fought the urge to take Rachel's elbow and guide her; if she was going to keep up the pretense, he'd certainly play along.
Kurt returned to his duties to finish his shift, and shortly thereafter, Lucille and Dani rejoined the group. Lucille's face was flushed and she was clearly more than a little intoxicated, in contrast to Dani's mask of bored sophistication (and apparent relative sobriety). "Oh, Santana, your friends are keen; I really like them!" Lucille gushed.
"Keen?" Santana sarcastically replied, smirking at the young woman's naivety.
"Yeah, definitely," Lucille confirmed with a giggle. "There's a beauty salon called 'Veil of Violets' they told me about that sounds 'tres élégante'. I'll have to ring them up and make an appointment."
Santana chuckled at Lucille's admission; she knew that the salon catered to the lesbian community. She glanced over at Dani, who leaned in and whispered "That one isn't as innocent as she looks, San. It sounds like the girls she went to school with kept each other 'satisfied', if you catch my drift…time will tell…" Santana shrugged delicately, kissing Dani on the cheek before returning her focus to the conversation at hand.
Lucille glanced around the table, suddenly pouting, "What happened to Puckiekins?"
"Puck had another appointment, Lucille," Blaine explained. "I'll see that you get home safely; don't worry."
Lucille plopped into the nearest chair, clearly disturbed. "I thought I saw him leaving with that Ruben guy," she confessed. "I don't know what it is…" Lucille sighed, a disheartened expression marring her delicate features. "Puckiekins is practically obsessed with that boy; do you think he's turning into a 'fairy'?" she inquired, hopeful that Blaine would disagree.
"Lucille, I don't think that's the case, so you needn't worry," Blaine attempted to console her.
Lucille brightened up considerably, commenting, "Well that's good. He's practically my boyfriend…not that my Daddy would approve…but that's neither here nor there…"
Blaine shook his head; he knew that Noah harbored no feelings toward Lucille. Aside from the fact that she was his friend's girl, she was too vacuous for Noah to take seriously, even for a brief liaison. She was correct on one point, though; Noah was definitely fixated on one "Ruben" Berry.
Author's Notes: "Yesterdays" and "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" are from the musical "Roberta"; music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Otto Harbach.
As I mentioned previously, I don't speak Yiddish. It just seems amusing to me that they would go into their own bubble and bicker back and forth.
Velkh are`du moyre hobn fun? - What are you afraid of?
Efsher yener der emes vel aroyskumen? - Maybe that the truth will come out?
Du bist incorrigible! - You are incorrigible! (I had to throw that one in ;-)).
Es iz faran neyn emes keyn aroyskumen. - There is no truth to come out.
Vvelkh ton ikh hob keyn ton keyn bakumen oys keyn`du? – What do I have to do to prove it to you?
Kumen mit mir tsu dem heizel - Come with me to the whorehouse.
Apparently violets are a symbol for lesbians. "Veil of Violets" is the name of a color of paint. Actually, I think I would like my next job to be naming paint. Next time you're in Home Depot, check out the paint colors... ;-)