A/N: I apologize for not updating sooner. It's been a pretty busy time for me over the past couple of years. I wrote a dissertation, moved across the country, and am now working full-time. I've written an outline of where I'm planning the story to go, since I have time to write again and have been able to sit down and think things through. Once again, I don't own Glee or any of the characters in it, because if I did, Faberry would have been canon, and we would have found out what happened to Quinn in the series finale.

Rachel wandered through the aisles of the grocery store, stocking up on last minute items so her dads could finish making Thanksgiving dinner. They had already started cooking the turkey that morning, so she was thankful to be out of the house and avoiding being witness to that process. Her dads had planned ahead and ordered most of the side dishes, so the rest of the day would be pretty easy preparation-wise. Rachel's dads were still not fully supportive of her vegan lifestyle (considering they were eating turkey) but they were understanding and made sure there would be dishes available she would eat. As she stood in line for the checkout, she watched as the tired looking cashier rang up the customers in front of her. It must not be any fun having to work on Thanksgiving, she thought to herself. More than likely the cashier was making time-and-a-half or double time, which would be the only reason Rachel would ever consider working on a holiday. As she stepped forward and began placing her items on the conveyor belt, she listened to the woman in front of her talk with the cashier about that day's sales and having to work on a holiday.

"Well, I need the extra money since Christmas is coming up. My daughter deserves to have a good Christmas, even if I don't make all that much money. I'm hoping by agreeing to work holidays I can have a little bit extra for her this year."

Rachel glanced up, noticing that the cashier was still fairly young, with blonde hair. She was struck by how this could very well have been Quinn standing here, ringing up her groceries, if circumstances hadn't turned out differently. The thought saddened her, and she realized that even if Quinn did by some chance reciprocate her feelings, there was no way the blonde would risk being thrown out of her parents' home again. Rachel barely said two words to the cashier, paying quietly before loading her groceries back into the car and leaving.

As she drove home, she frowned, reflecting on the discussion she'd had with her dads earlier. Yes, it was her decision to talk to Quinn about the issue, and yes, she would never know if she didn't speak with Quinn, but it was too risky to bring it up. She couldn't be the reason Quinn was kicked out of her parents' home a second time. Quinn was attending an Ivy League college, there was no way Rachel could be the reason she'd have to either give up her education or take out loans to finance her degree. No, it would be better never to say anything at all, and to continue their friendship as it was. Even if it hurt to think about.

Several hours later, the three Berrys sat around the table, thoroughly satisfied with their Thanksgiving day meal. Her dads had kindly kept the actual turkey in the kitchen, only bringing the amounts on their plates to the table with them. She was finishing her last bit of salad while her dads were cutting up a vegan pumpkin pie that they had special ordered for her. She could tell her dads weren't overly thrilled about giving up the pumpkin pie they were used to, but this year the three had decided to compromise on the matter. Her dads claimed it was because they were so happy she was home, but she also thought it was in part a gesture of how happy they were that she was in college and not married to Finn. At that thought, she shook her head, trying to clear that image from her mind.

"Well, Rachel, what'd you think of the meal? I'm sure you can't get cooking like that at your apartment!"

Rachel smiled to herself. She lived in New York City, where whatever food she wanted she could find somewhere within traveling distance. Her dads knew that, but most likely just missed her. "You're right, Dads, it's definitely not the same as living in New York."

"Now, star, I don't think we're going to be able to make it to your Winter Showcase this year. I'm sure there will be a recording of it, can you send it to us? We're going to want to see you perform and win. Pictures will be nice, but seeing it would be even better," Hiram commented, watching as Leroy cut the pie into even slices. He handed one to Rachel, which she accepted gratefully, wanting to change the subject.

"Dads, I barely made it into NYADA. The showcase is very competitive; I don't think there will be any freshmen in it. Especially me, a freshman who was only admitted at the last minute. It will probably be all juniors and seniors. Besides, I doubt my dance teacher would ever support me being in the showcase." At the thought of Cassie July, Rachel frowned, and took a bite of her pie. She knew she wouldn't be in the showcase, at least this year.

"Rachel! You know you are one of the best there is. Don't say things like that, I'm sure you will be in the showcase and win it. Right, Leroy?" Hiram said. Rachel's dads both nodded at her.

"You sound like Quinn," she responded, before flushing at the comment. That had been the last place she had wanted this conversation to go. What was she thinking?

"Quinn is a smart girl," Leroy said, smiling at his daughter. He then went back to cutting the rest of the pie, much to Rachel's relief.

"Have you thought about what you might want to sing? It's very important to pick a song that will suit you as well as impress your audience."

Rachel rolled her eyes at her plate, but decided not to argue with her dads. "I'll think about it, Dads. They don't announce who made the showcase until next week when we come back from break, so I have some time to think about it."

"Good. Just perform like we know you can, and you're sure to win. Now, what are your plans with Kurt tomorrow?"

Relieved to be able to change the subject, Rachel talked about how they had plans to visit the mall to try to take advantage of some of the Black Friday deals. "We won't be going out tonight or anything, Kurt is going to be busy spending some time with his parents. I don't think we're going to be getting there in time for the specials early in the morning, but that's just as well."

And it was just as well, Rachel thought, standing in line the following morning with Kurt. She had been up most of the night trying her best not to think about Quinn, and failing miserably. She was holding a cup of coffee and hoping that a day of shopping with her best friend would keep her mind off the blonde, at least for a few hours.

"I always know I'm back in Lima when I see what people are wearing to go shopping. No one would be caught looking like this in New York," Kurt commented, glancing at the people around them in line. "I can only imagine what kind of article this would be for ."

Rachel laughed, taking a sip of her coffee. Kurt had always been one of the most fashion-forward people in Lima. The store doors had finally opened; everyone was slowly making their way into the Lima Mall Macy's. (Kurt had stated that this was a store he could handle going to, considering they were based in New York City.) "Where are we going first?" she asked, watching as the mob of people spread out all over the store.

"The ladies' department. There are some pieces you need," he answered, pulling her along with him. "I've had some time to think of ideas for you."

His ideas turned out to be mostly dresses, but as Rachel tried them on in the dressing room, she was pleased with what his ideas were. There were a few sweaters and a few nice pairs of jeans (Rachel was partial to a navy blue sweater with polka dots that Kurt had chosen) but it was mostly dresses. One dress he had picked out, that she currently had on, was a tighter black dress that showed off her legs quite well. She stepped out into the dressing room hallway to show Kurt.

"Well, wait till our Miss Fabray sees you in that," he said, standing up to make sure that it fit her properly.

Rachel blushed as Kurt examined the dress's fit. "Kurt!" she hissed, glancing around to see if anyone had heard. "Why would you say something like that? We're just friends, you need to stop insinuating more is going on between us. Besides that, you can't talk like that in here!"

Kurt was satisfied that the dress fit her properly. "Whatever you say, Rachel. I do think you should buy that. In fact, I'm demanding you buy it. Now go try on some of the other things I picked out for you."

Rachel ended up buying that dress and a floor-length white one, along with the polka-dotted sweater and some jeans. The amount was a bit more than she would have liked, but with the way Kurt kept pressuring her and thinking about how nice she looked in some of the clothes, she decided it was worth it. The white dress would be nice for performances, if she ever was able to do any at NYADA. After they both checked out, they zipped over to the men's section for Kurt, where he picked up a few new outfits for work. "What do you want to do next?" she asked, knowing that it was still fairly early in the day.

"We can go get some coffee. Not at the Lima Bean."

Rachel laughed, knowing that that was probably the last place Kurt wanted to go. "Okay. I'm sure we can find some places in the mall. Let's go," she said, hooking her arm through Kurt's. Their day was going very well so far. She didn't know if there were any other stores she wanted to visit, but maybe after a cup of coffee she'd feel differently. The first had definitely helped already.

"Hey! Berry! Lady Hummel!"

Rachel stiffened, knowing only one person would call for them in that manner. If she was here, then that would mean… sure enough, when she turned, Santana approached them, along with Brittany and Quinn. Brittany came running up to them both and hugged them, true to form. "Hi Brittany, how are you?" Rachel said, smiling at the taller blonde.

Brittany started saying something about Glee Club, Mercedes being cloned, and how Santana and Quinn had been back over the past week helping out with everything. Rachel glanced over at Kurt, feeling slightly confused, but figured it was just Brittany being Brittany.

"Yeah, we've both been given students to look over. Mine kind of reminds me of you in a way, Berry. She even has a blonde Cheerio giving her a bad time, right, Quinn?" Santana added as she walked over. Quinn was frowning at her. Rachel didn't know how to interpret that comment, except that maybe Santana was referencing how mean they had all been to Rachel at the beginning.

"I think Kitty is a sweet girl. I really don't think she's doing all those things you keep accusing her of, Santana."

"I know what I found, Q. Don't tell me Marley's mom in the cafeteria gave her those pills."

Both Santana and Quinn were glaring at each other, and Brittany finally interrupted. "Santana, you promised we could go look at the Disney store. We haven't gone yet, and they might run out of the free prizes."

Santana's face immediately softened. "Sorry, Britt. I got a bit distracted, but we'll go. Maybe we can meet up with Berry and Lady Hummel later. We gots to go," Santana said, nodding at both Rachel and Kurt. "Q, you coming?"

"Will you be around later, Rachel?" Quinn asked. "I think we have a couple other stores to go to, but maybe for lunch?"

"Sure," Rachel responded, ignoring the sly smile Kurt was giving them both. "We were going to get coffee now, but lunch would be great."

"Okay, I'll text you when we're done," Quinn said, hurrying off after Santana and Brittany.

Rachel smiled to herself, pleased she would be spending more time with Quinn that day. Maybe it would help give her some more clarity on where everything stood between them both. "So, coffee?" Rachel said, turning to Kurt.

Kurt nodded at her. "Yes, then I can think of some other stores we can go to while we wait. Since I know you want to go to lunch with all of them, or at least Quinn."

"Thanks, Kurt," she said, hooking arms with him once more as they made their way to the coffee shop.