A/N: Hope you guys continue to enjoy! This was one of my favorite chapters to write :)

10.

"Bear, you look beautiful, stop worrying." Daddy says from his spot on the couch. I thought that his attention was focused on the magazine in his hands but clearly he is noticed the way that I keep checking the time on my phone and my reflection and the way that I keep moving from the couch to the loveseat and back again.

I turn to look at him. "Daddy, we're just meeting to talk about stuff for glee club." I tell him, even though I know it's a little bit of a lie. I do have several pieces of sheet music in my lap, though I'm not sure if the music is to make my words more believable to my dads or if I really think that they're going to come in handy. I can't stop from replaying my conversation with Noah over and over again (obsessive? Maybe) and somehow I doubt that his ideas about relaxing have anything to do with practicing for the duet. Even though we really should be practicing, the competition is Tuesday. But I suppose that's beside the point; tonight is supposed to be about relaxing, not thinking about glee or Quinn or Sam or Jesse or anything at all. That's a tall order.

Daddy smiles and shakes his head. "Okay, bear." He says in a patronizingly parental way, like he doesn't believe me and for some reason it makes him happy.

I see headlights flash across the windows at eight o'clock exactly, which makes me smile inside because Noah clearly took what I had to say seriously. There's no excuse for tardiness. Well, I suppose if there's an accident or you have to break for animals. I get to my feet and move toward the door.

"We don't get to meet this gentleman?" Dad questions, looking away from a recorded episode of Oprah.

I wrinkle my nose. "Dad, it's just glee practice." I pull open the door and step out onto the front step. Noah is getting out of his car, looking at the house awkwardly like he's dreading walking up to the door and facing my dads. When I told Noah that I had two dads, I swear his face got as white as a sheet. I've never understood why teenage boys find fathers so intimidating; Jesse had been to my house hundreds of times before but when we started dating, he acted like he'd never met them before in his life.

Noah looks relieved to see me heading in his direction instead of forcing him to come to the door (like a gentleman…but this isn't a proper date so I suppose that doesn't apply) and goes around to open the passenger door of his truck. I skip over to him and give him a smile. "Thank you Noah. And I should let you know that my dads are very interested in meeting you." We both glance over toward the front of the house and I swear I see the curtains quickly drop back into place.

"Maybe next time, okay Berry." Noah remarks and I try not to focus too much on the fact that he said next time. That's just something that people say and besides Noah and I are friends. I get into the seat and he shuts the door behind me.

I look down at the sheet music in my hands simply to keep from thinking about what Noah has in mind for this evening. Oh great, now I'm thinking about kissing him again. Why is it seemingly impossible to keep from thinking about Noah's lips when I'm around him? Granted, I am a woman and I have eyes so, yeah, of course I've noticed that Noah is (a little more than) attractive and my body seems to be reacting in ways that my mind is not planning for. My mouth is suddenly dry and I lick my lips nervously as the driver's side door opens.

"So," I start before Noah can have the chance to talk, "I brought along some sheet music I thought might be good for our duet and-"

Noah reaches over and takes the papers from my hands, tossing them into the backseat of the truck. I gape at him wordlessly. "No glee club shit tonight, Berry. This is supposed to be about you relaxing."

I glare at him indignantly. "Singing is how I relax myself." I inform him.

"Well, it's not how I relax." Noah tells me, putting his car in reverse and heading down the street.

"So what did you have in mind?" I ask him and suddenly it sounds like I'm propositioning him all over again. And is that a tremor in my voice? What exactly is wrong with me? I never act this way.

Noah glances over at me and smirks. "I guess you'll just have to find out."

I stare out the window, watching Lima pass by as Noah drives. He could really be taking me anywhere and I would have absolutely no idea. I don't know Lima well enough to even guess where he's taking me or to be able to find my way back home if the evening goes south. But somehow, I doubt that Noah is the type of guy to try something and then ditch me just because I'm not willing to go along with his suggestions. Of course, I don't really know Noah that well and why does a part of me think that if he tried something that I wouldn't be opposed? Being in Lima must be affecting my better judgment because I never would have been willing to do anything with a boy who wasn't my boyfriend. Yet, being with Noah, it's hard to imagine wanting to say no.

"You're quiet, Berry." Noah remarks as he drives. "Thinking too hard again."

I shrug. "Just trying to figure out where you're taking me."

"If I told you that, I'd have to kill you." I stare at him and he chuckles. "Relax, Berry, I'm just messing with you."

I let out of a breath, rolling my eyes. "I don't like surprises." I mutter. Being surprised has sort of lost its appeal after all the shocks I've had to endure over the past several months. Nothing is more surprising than having your best friend turned into a demon and your boyfriend killed.

"That doesn't surprise me. You seem like the type of girl who likes to have everything exactly planned out and written down on your calendar." Noah remarks.

I glance back out the window; the expression on my face looks almost angry, though his comment isn't far from the truth or that offensive. "I just like to be prepared."

"Sometimes you gotta let other people take care of you." Noah pauses. "Take care of things." He quickly amends and I don't know whether he's changing his phrasing because he doesn't want me to think he's interested in taking care of me or if it was just an honest slip of the tongue. I glance back over at him but his gaze is fixed straight ahead on the stretch of road illuminated by his headlights. "Didn't your last boyfriend ever surprise you?"

I stiffen at the mention of Jesse, curling my hands into fists. "I don't want to talk about him." I say softly, looking down at my lap.

Noah shifts his gaze in my direction. "He cheat on you or something, Berry?" He arches an eyebrow.

I glare at him. "I said I didn't want to talk about him." I say forcefully, my tone almost surprising myself. How am I supposed to move on, begin to heal, even have a good time with Noah tonight when Jesse keeps being brought into the conversation and I'm forced to remember what happened to him that night? Beginning the 'healing process' as my dads call it is nearly impossible with Quinn flouncing around like she doesn't have a care in the world and Noah bringing up the boyfriend he just assumed I had before moving to Lima.

My tone must also take Noah by surprise because he nods slowly, looking toward the road once more. "Sorry." He mutters and even though his voice is low and he only uttered one word, I can tell that he means it.

A moment passes in silence and I sigh softly, willing myself to relax. I never will move beyond that night if I let myself get wound up by flippant comments and vague mentions of Jesse. "I'm sorry Noah." I want to reach out and rest my hand on his knee or shoulder but somehow that seems too familiar and I'm not sure how he would take it. "I just…I don't like to think…" I exhale slowly. "He died." I hadn't intended to say those words but now that they're out, somehow I feel better, like I've finally taken the first step to showing someone the real Rachel Berry, the person I was before everything that happened with Quinn. It feels good to finally tell the truth.

Noah's expression softens and I can tell he feels like a complete ass for mentioning my previous boyfriend in the first place. "Christ, shit, I'm sorry Berry. I should've…shit…" He shakes his head, tightening his grip on the steering wheel. "This isn't quite how I pictured this night starting off."

I give him an only-slightly forced smile. "It's okay, Noah." And somehow, I don't feel like I'm lying. It is okay because I finally told him part of the truth and the world didn't fall down around me. Granted, hearing that Jesse died isn't exactly the same thing as hearing that Quinn is a murderous demon responsible for killing him and Sam. "Let's just start over." Noah smiles and I can tell he thinks that's a fantastic idea. "So…where are you taking me?"

Noah laughs and mimes zipping his lips. I wrinkle my nose at him and he winks and I feel my cheeks flush hot. Oh boy, what have a I gotten myself into?

It turns out that Noah's idea of relaxing me involves breaking and entering. Two things that, I can assure you, are not relaxing.

Noah drives a few miles outside of Lima and turns onto this little road that I wouldn't have even noticed if he hadn't piloted his truck down it and the truck bounces and dips in a way that lets me know that the road isn't exactly paved. It winds upward and there are trees and thick underbrush on both sides, brushing against the truck and it looks like something you'd expect to see in a horror movie, right around the time an idiot secondary character realizes that the charming boy they're with is actually a deranged serial killer.

"Noah," I hiss, turning to look at him, "where are we going?" I don't take my eyes off the road for long because, a) it seems like we could go plummeting off a mountain (okay, that's a little dramatic, I'll admit, we aren't even moving upward that much) at any time and b) I keep expecting some defenseless forest animal to come darting across the road at any minute.

But Noah isn't exactly driving fast and he seems focused on what he's doing, yet strangely at ease, like he's driven this road before. He just smirks at me, which is infuriating and does not stand in for an answer, and keeps driving.

The headlights wash across a house, easily four floors, towering in front of us. It has crisp white shutters and a paved driveway that loops around the front of the house, passing the neatly trimmed hedges and curving back again. Noah flips off the headlights and pulls into the driveway, parking the truck so it's pointing back toward the dirt road again. "All right Berry, out you go." He opens his door and follows his own advice.

I do the same, only because I don't exactly want to be sitting in a car, alone, in the dark in an unfamiliar place with woods and vicious forest creatures around. I hurry to follow after him. "Noah, where are we? Who's house is this?"

Noah doesn't answer, heading toward the front door and pulling out his cell phone, flipping it open and using the faint light from the screen to illuminate the ground around him. He flips up the mat, turns over a statue of an angel and overturns a rock before I realize that he's looking for a key. "Are we breaking into this house?" I question, my voice low, just because it doesn't seem like I should start shouting even though I'm pretty sure we're in the middle of nowhere. Okay, maybe not the middle of nowhere but I doubt there are any neighbors around. "Do you even know who lives here?"

Noah finally turns up a key and gives me a smile. "Relax, Berry." He unlocks the door and ushers me inside. "I clean this guy's pool every two weeks. I know he's out of town because he wanted me to swing by and just keep an eye on the house."

He flicks on a light switch and the brilliant light from an admittedly fancy chandelier washes across an impressive foyer. "I highly doubt that he meant for you to come at night and bring a girl with you." I point out, refusing to move from by the front door because I'm not keen on trespassing in someone's house.

Noah glances over his shoulder and shrugs. "He didn't specify." He points out, like it's common sense.

I glare at him. "Clearly this man trusts you Noah and-"

"Berry, are you planning on stealing his shit? Getting drunk and puking on his couch and breaking his priceless vases or whatever the fuck?" I stare at him, shaking my head slowly because I can't really find any words to respond to his accusations. "Okay, great. Neither am I. It's going to be fine. See, this is what I'm talking about: you need to relax, unwind. Trust me."

Noah is staring at me, waiting for me to move, either in his direction or back out the front door. I have the feeling that this one of those little moments in life that change the direction that your life goes in. I know that sounds dramatic but sometimes it's those little things that effect you in ways you don't realize. Like agreeing to go to Soft Shoulder with Quinn even though I had plans with Jesse. If I turn around and insist that we leave, I have a very strong feeling that Noah wouldn't be keen to continue our friendship, not because he's a jerk but because we had our moment and I didn't take it. But still…breaking and entering…

Noah arches an eyebrow and I find myself moving toward him, shaking my head. "When the police show up, I'm telling them you kidnapped me." I inform him matter-of-factly.

Noah laughs and slings his arm over my shoulder. "Sure, Berry, whatever makes you feel better."

Noah gives me a brief tour of the downstairs, gesturing vaguely toward the kitchen and parlor with a piano that is almost too tempting to resist, before steering me toward the back of the house. The French doors open out to a massive indoor pool, complete with longue chairs and a fully stocked bar off to the left. Noah pushes open the doors and steps out onto the tile, kicking off his shoes. "This is how I relax." He remarks.

I raise an eyebrow. "By breaking into people's homes when they're on vacation?"

"No, Berry, Christ." He rolls his eyes but I can tell that he's just trying not to laugh. "Swimming. It's the definite perk of the pool cleaning business. Well, that and the cougs."

I wrinkle my nose. "I did not need that piece of information."

Noah waves his hand dismissively. "They're overrated. But swimming…there's nothing quite as relaxing as a good swim." He pulls off his shirt and I try to avert my eyes but, as I said before: woman, breathing, it's a little hard not to stare. Noah notices and smiles and then turns and jumps into the pool, the sound of the splash echoing throughout the otherwise silent house.

When he surfaces, he smiles and beckons to me. "Noah, I believe there's a flaw in your plan." I put my hands on my hips. "I didn't bring my swim-suit."

"Bra and panties work too babe." Noah points out and I glare at him and he relents. "Just jump in, your clothes will dry."

"But not before my dads ask why I'm all wet." I point out and my cheeks flush again and Noah grins but thankfully he decides not to take advantage of that little slip of the tongue.

"Tell 'em it's raining." Noah is watching me closely, treading water. "The water feels great, Berry, are you really just going to stand there staring at me?"

I bite my lip, considering his proposal. On one hand, I cannot imagine going swimming, fully clothed, in a stranger's pool. On the other…a swim does sound nice and Noah is still shirtless and the water is making his muscles look even more enticing and…enticing really? Well, if the shoe fits…

I think about Noah's words when we were standing in the foyer. Trust me. I want to, I really do. Maybe that's why I told him about Jesse, maybe that's why I agreed to go out with him at all, maybe that's why I followed him into a stranger's empty house. I'm starting to trust Noah all ready and it feels nice.

Before I can talk myself out of it, I run and jump into the pool, holding my breath as I sink below the water. It's the perfect temperature, warm and all around, engulfing my body and blocking out the sounds and sights of the world above. I do feel a little bit more relaxed already sinking there below the surface because it's easy to pretend that there's nothing beyond the water and I almost want to sink to the bottom and stay there until my lungs can't take it. Which would be a while because I have great control over my breathing.

But I move toward the surface, brushing my hair out of my face and looking at Noah, who's grinning broadly. "I cannot believe I just did that." I laugh, unable to keep from smiling too. "We could get in so much trouble."

Noah moves in my direction. "Nah, we'll be fine. Guy's gonna be away for the next five days. Aren't you glad you listened to me?" He splashes me playfully.

I lean so I'm floating on my back, staring up at the glass ceiling that provides an uninterrupted view of the night sky. A part of me wishes I knew what this guy did because I could definitely get used to a place like this. It would be nice to slip into a heated pool after a Broadway show every night and relax my dancing muscles.

I feel Noah's hands on my back and flinch in surprise, straightening up so that I'm no longer on my back. Before I can move away, Noah pulls me into his arms and our faces feel much closer together than they did that afternoon in his bedroom. His skin feels warm against my palms and I'm glad that I'm still completely clothed because being in anything less than jeans and a tee-shirt would make me feel far too self-conscious in this moment.

"You're still tense Berry." Noah chides but he's smiling like he knows that whatever tension he feels in my body has nothing to do with the worries that have been on my mind for the past three weeks. In fact, I can barely remember what's been bothering me so much in the first place. "My tactics not working for you?"

I didn't even realize that we had been moving until my back is suddenly against the side of the pool and the cool tile sends a shiver down my spine. Honest, it was the tile and the not the way that Noah is rubbing circles on my upper arms with his thumbs. "No." I can barely hear the word as it passes my lips and I'm not sure if my mouth is going to follow with anymore, like no, they aren't working I feel more wound up than before or no, they're working just fine…

It doesn't really matter, I suppose, because Noah is leaning toward me and my eyes flutter closed on their own accord and I wait for the feel of his lips on mine. It's like that afternoon in his bedroom. Suddenly, I find myself waiting for another moment like the one that overtook me that same afternoon: visions of Quinn, of Sam, of the horrible things she was doing to him.

But that doesn't happen. Instead, I feel his lips against mine, softer than I expected and warm and I understand why the thought of kissing him hasn't left my head since last week. He lifts a hand and slides it through my hair, his fingers curling around the curve of my neck and I let out a sigh against his mouth.

I slip my arms around Noah's shoulders just to keep from sinking beneath the surface of the water because my body suddenly feels weightless and my mind is trying to wrap around the idea of staying above the water. I can feel Noah's lips shift into a smile and that just makes my heart flutter and my stomach flip (in a pleasantly way) and I'm not sure why that is. Maybe because the very idea of kissing me makes Noah smile, something that never happened with Jesse. Noah's leg slides between my thighs and he presses closer against me. Normally, I am not this kind of girl. I do not make it out in (stranger's) pools with boys I have only known for three months with whom I have not had a conversation about the future out of our relationship. I don't even know if Noah and I will even have a future relationship, that seems like I'm getting way ahead of myself. But, in this moment, I can hardly bring myself to care. Talk about relaxation.

I'm not sure how long we stay like that, twined together but when Noah pulls away it seems far too soon. My eyes open slowly, like the lids are too heavy and Noah is smiling at me, a satisfied look on his face. "Relaxed now?" I must nod because Noah only looks more satisfied with himself. It might annoy me, if he hadn't just kissed me completely breathless and has every reason to be proud of his prowess.

Noah moves away from me and kicks over to the stairs. I must give him a look of disappointment (my own body is working against me now) because he smirks as he climbs out of the water. "You want me turning into a prune, Berry?" He questions, his tone teasing. Though he does have a point and skin care is important.

I take his hand when he offers it, even though I'm more than capable of climbing out of the pool on my own. It's only when I'm out of the water and standing there completely soaking wet in water-logged clothes that I wish I had thought about going swimming in them a little bit harder. There's no way that I'm going to be even remotely dry by the time I get home and there's no way I'm going to be able to explain to my dads why I'm this wet. Besides, I suddenly feel like the way that my clothes are sticking to my skin is far too revealing and I feel self-conscious despite our lengthy make-out session in the pool.

I look down at myself hopelessly and Noah must read the expression on my face because he suggests, "We could throw them in the dryer." I look up at him, pursing my lips and arching an eyebrow and he holds up his hands. "There's got to be a robe or something you can wear while they dry."

As much as I hate the idea of wearing another person's clothing while I'm already in their house uninvited, I hate the idea of being in these clothes even more. I wait in the laundry room while Noah scouts around for temporary clothing. I catch my reflection in the mirror above the dryer (ridiculous place for a mirror, if you ask me) and I almost don't recognize myself. My lips are bruised and swollen from kissing and my hair is flat and stuck to the side of my head, except where it twists out in random little bursts from where Noah had his fingers in it. But the real reason that I don't recognize myself at first is because I look happy in that split-second I see myself when I wasn't planning to. Normally, the reflection that stares back at me is a perfect mirror of how I feel inside: lost, empty, conflicted, mourning the loss of my friend and boyfriend. But this girl, as sorry as her physical appearance is, has a spark in her eye that I haven't seen in a long time. I like it, it's much more like the old me.

"Here you go, Berry." I turn away from the mirror when I hear Noah's voice and turn to find him walking into the laundry room holding a plush green robe out to me. He's wearing another robe, his wet jeans draped over his arm. "I guess his wife parades around naked because I couldn't find anything more in your size."

I laugh. "It's okay, Noah, robes aren't exactly supposed to be size appropriate." He smiles at me and stands in the doorway until I shoo him out and close the door behind him so I can peel off my clothes without his eyes on me. The idea makes my cheeks hot. I really have to regain control over my body if it's just going to keep betraying me like this.

TBC