OMG, this is the end :O Sorry for not updating for a while. Here is the epilogue… reaaaaly long, sorry! (I mean really, really long, normally I do about 1.4k, this is 3.2k :S) You guys all got your way with Finchel. R&R please! And enjoy!
P.S. This is set 5 years later.
P.P.S In case you didn't realise, I don't own Glee. You should be really pleased by that fact.
P.P.P.S. Did anyone else miss Groff in Glee? I sure did.
"Puck!" Quinn screamed. "Get up, it's 10am!" She hit him with a pillow.
Noah rolled over. "What babe?" He said groggily.
"Up! Now!" She screeched. "They'll be here in five hours! We need to decorate the house, move the furniture, put out the food, eat breakfast and then lunch and dress for the party! Get up!"
For the past five years, on the anniversary of the disaster at regionals and Beth's birthdays, which were obviously on the same day, New Directions, Vocal Adrenaline, Will, Shelby and Beth had had a get together, to celebrate all still being here, although Beth thought it was just for her birthday until last year when it had been explained to her. Shelby had hosted first, then Will, then Rachel and then Jesse. It was Quinn and Puck's turn this year.
Quinn stalked out of the room, leaving Puck to drag himself out of bed. Five hours! He thought to himself. What an over reaction, forcing him out of bed at this hour. He dressed and followed her into the living room, where Quinn was already bustling around busily.
"Whaddo I do?" Noah asked, raising his eyebrows at his fiancée who was shoving furniture out of the centre of the room.
"Go get Jack up and dressed and feed him, then you can come and help in here. I do not want a half dressed, hungry toddler wandering around when everyone's here." She told him.
Two years ago, Quinn had found out she was pregnant again. When they found out it was going to be a boy, she had given into Noah and allowed their son to be named Jack Daniel Puckerman, reasoning that it was better than Drizzle. They had kept their son, and had kept in close contact with their first daughter, it being an open adoption. Today it was Beth's fifth birthday, and Quinn was adamant that it was going to be a very special day for her.
"Good morning, rock star." Noah picked up his son, who gurgled in response. He dressed him, and shoved some gunk, which Quinn called food, but Noah wouldn't eat in a million years, into his son's mouth. He put him into his cot again, before joining Quinn in helping preparing everything for later. Puck was proud of himself; he wasn't a deadbeat dad like his own had been.
Rachel grabbed her bag and leaned down to allow Finn to kiss her on the cheek. They'd been dating for over a year. After the earthquake, they mutually decided to break up, giving them both time to explore other possibilities, but in the end they had got back together.
"Got everything?" Finn asked her, giving her the side smile that never failed to make her heart flutter.
"Yes Finn." Rachel replied. "Now, I'll see you at the party later. Don't forget, it starts at 3pm, and do not forget Beth's present! Five is a crucial age in a girls development and it wont help her if her big sister and her uncle Finn forget her present!"
Finn rolled his eyes. "Of course I'll remember Beth's present, I'm not stupid ya know."
"Finn, you flunked just under half of your classes at high school." Rachel pointed out.
"Yeah well. My classes weren't about remembering birthday presents were they? It was like, math and stuff. The find X kind of maths. Why was X always missing anyway?" Finn frowned, slightly confused.
"X was just a substitute for a number Finn. Anyway, I have to go or I'll be late, and I can't be beaten there again, or Jesse will draw ahead." Rachel began to move towards the door. "Bye Finn, I'll see you later. And do not forget Beth's present!"
"Wouldn't dream of it." Finn muttered as the door closed, before flicking the TV off of Rachel's favourite channel, and on to the movie channel. James Bond was on. He grinned and leant back in his seat, stuffing some chips that were next to him into his mouth.
Rachel arrived at 12:01, receiving a smirk from a triumphant Jesse. She raised her eyebrows at him.
"Anyone would think you got here particularly early just to be able to beat me." She said accusingly.
"That's 3:2 to me. We'll see if we can even it out next year by you arriving first. So far you seem to be unusually tardy." He grinned at her, pushing himself off of the post he'd been leaning on.
The pair had met at Emilie's Café, which was opposite the site where the building that they had had regionals had once stood, before the earthquakes. Every year since, they had met up there and just talk about life, and be grateful the earthquake hadn't claimed any casualties. Jesse offered his hand to Rachel and they found a table, and sat quietly for a minute, staring at the rubble opposite them, that the council had left as a memorial.
A waitress came over to their table.
"Would you like to order?" The girl asked.
"Yes please." Jesse replied. "I'll have a jacket potato with beans and cheese please. And I assume Rachel wants one with just butter?" He looked Rachel questioningly.
"Yes please." Rachel nodded. "And two cokes for drink?" She asked Jesse, who smiled in response.
The girl went off, and Jesse turned his attention to Rachel.
"Would you like your present now?" He asked. Every year the pair gave each other a small, jokey present, as a thank you for all they did for each other on the day of 2010 regionals.
"Okay then, but me first." Rachel grinned.
She reached down into her bag, and pulled out a small parcel. She handed it to Jesse, who was looking at it quizzically.
"This is a very odd shape." He said, taking it off her.
"Just open it." Rachel grinned at him, leaning forward.
Jesse slowly unwrapped the blue parcel, revealing an eggcup. It was a vibrant blue, the same colour as the costumes they had work whilst funkifying New Directions with Another One Bites the Dust. On the cup the words "Don't break this eggcup like you broke my heart." Jesse laughed.
"Wow, I love it. Very artistic, if slightly bitter." He told her.
Rachel's grin widened. "I thought my very amazing, brave line deserved to be immortalised."
"On an eggcup?" Jesse smirked.
"It's a metaphor. A metaphor for you egging me. And metaphors are important." Rachel replied.
"Well, its very lovely. I shall treasure this forever. Now for my present." Jesse reached into his own bag, and pulled out a soft package wrapped in pink tissue paper, completed with a star covered bow.
He handed it to her, and she undid the bow with as much care and precaution as when Miss Pilsbury unwrapped PB&J sandwiches. She gasped at the contents and held it up against herself.
"It's a sweater!" She exclaimed. It was a navy blue sweater with a fat little cat on it, staring up at the night sky.
"Not just a sweater. It's an animal sweater. With stars on." Jesse told her.
"It's lovely! It looks so warm. And the little cat is adorable. Oh, and the stars, another present with a metaphor on. Great minds obviously think alike." Rachel folded the sweater up and put it into her bag. "How did you know my size though?" She asked him, looking him up and down.
"Don't worry, I didn't go through your draws or anything." Jesse assured her. "I asked Kurt."
"Kurt knows my size?" Rachel squeaked. "How?"
"It's Kurt. He always knows this sort of thing." Jesse shook his head. "Don't question it." He winked. The waitress brought over their food and they began to tuck in.
"So, how are things with you and Finn?" Jesse asked Rachel.
"Pretty good." Rachel nodded. "You and Brittany?"
Jesse smiled. The unlikely relationship had sprung up when they'd both been in the same show. Brittany had been a dancer and Jesse had been the lead. Their relationship worked because they both had so much to learn from each other.
"Pretty good." He told her, continuing to eat.
When the pair had finished, they continued to sit and talk. They had become pretty close friends over the years, regionals having washed away all of the problems they'd encountered. They had so many similarities, so much to talk about. It turned out being the same worked better as a way to keep a friendship, not a relationship.
People started to arrive at the Puckerman- Fabray-soon-to-be-Puckerman household at ten to three. They all greeted each other by name, having all become friends, Vocal Adrenaline and New Directions alike.
"Noaah! Quiinn!" The couple turned to see a small, blonde child running at them. Noah bent down to pick up his daughter and swing her around.
"Bethy!" Quinn kissed the little girl on her cheek, her hands restricted by the fact that she was holding Jack. Noah put Beth down. "Happy Birthday baby!" Quinn told her, with a huge smile on her face.
"I'm five! I'm five!" Beth jumped up and down.
"Wow, you're such a big girl now!" Noah grinned. "Soon you'll be old and wrinkly." He teased.
Quinn hit him playfully. "Don't worry Bethy, Puck will get wrinkly quicker than you." She stuck her tongue out at Noah, who rolled his eyes and pulled a face at Jack.
Jesse and Rachel arrived at exactly 3pm, being there usual prompt selves, and were immediately mobbed by Beth.
"Rachel! Uncle Jesse!" Beth shouted, leaping at them.
Jesse swung Beth around. "Wow you're so big and old Bethy! I remember when you were so small you could fir snugly in everyone's arms." Beth giggled.
"Not anymore!" She ran around in circles, and Rachel caught a look from Shelby that clearly said mad child. "Did you bring me presents?" Beth asked.
"Your Uncle Finn's bring ours Bethy." Rachel told the child, trying to pacify her. "Now, I'm going to wander off, I'm sick of Jesse, three hours of him is enough to drive anyone mad." She winked before going to chat to Kurt and Mercedes.
"Two hours and fifty nine minutes actually, as you were a minute late!" Jesse called after her, smirking, before turning back to Beth. "Come on." He said, taking her hand. "Lets go see your mom, then you can have your present."
Finn arrived at quarter past three, and made a beeline for his girlfriend.
"Hey." He said, giving her a dopey smile. "How was your lunch with Jesse?" Finn understood that Rachel and Jesse were friends, and that what they had gone through together at regionals was something that bonded you for a long time.
"It was good. He bought me an animal sweater with stars on." She grinned. "Did you remember Beth's present?" She asked.
Finn nodded. "Yep, got it here." He held up the package proudly.
"No reason you're fifteen minutes late then?" Rachel said sceptically, eyebrows raised.
Finn pouted. "I might have had to go back for it when I was halfway here." He smiled again. "'Least I have it now though."
Rachel rolled her eyes. "Well done Finn, that was better than I'd expected." She dragged him other to where Jesse and Shelby were, with Beth, who was trying to control Jack, starting a mini-wrestling match with her biological brother.
When everyone had arrived, with Brittany wandering in last, forty minutes late, straight into Jesse's arms, Quinn taped a glass, preparing for a speech. She smiled at the crowd of people, who, back when she was Head Cheerio, and even when she was in glee, she didn't think she'd ever come to like, especially the Carmel High students, who had been their sworn enemies.
"Hello everyone." She began, clearing her throat. Noah squeezed her hand, knowing she didn't like public speaking. "Six years ago, I was a cheerleader. I was dating the biggest jock in school, and that includes height wise." She paused for the crowd to titter. "Then I screwed up." She said carefully, Beth being around. "But that mistake was the best thing that happened to me. That and joining Glee to try, and eventually fail, to stop Rachel from stealing my boyfriend."
In Finn's arms, Rachel grinned. Finn held her closer, playing with his pocket.
"Then, five years ago today, the biggest day of my life came around. The day in which the fate of our rag tag bunch of misfits would be decided; and the day that I would have my first child, the very beautiful little birthday girl we see before us." Quinn picked Beth up, and snuggled into Noah, who was holding Jack. "And that day I had to choose something, and that choice was between my baby getting what was best, and what I wanted. I picked what was right for my baby." She released Beth, and returned her to Shelby.
"But, before that, as you all know, a disaster struck, the disaster that is the reason were all here today, celebrating being alive, and being brought together by the brave efforts of both clubs to preserve the forty live that were at risk from a collapsing building." Quinn looked around. "Two of those lives were most endangered, and I think it's only fair to applaud the bravery of both Rachel and Jesse for keeping calm in that situation and supporting each other, and for both Glee clubs pulling it together."
The group applauded, and Jesse removed one of his arms from around Brittany to high five Rachel, who laughed at the gesture.
"But now that I've made a silly speech, I think we should all just enjoy ourselves and all be happy we weren't squashed by falling concrete, and eat lots of the food I prepared, because I have no use of it other than to throw it at Noah." Quinn finished.
"Only if you want food poisoning." Rachel called, causing Quinn to stick her tongue out.
"Yeah." Finn joined it. "I saw yours and Noah's baking session for the bake sale." Causing the three to grin at the memory.
The group began to chatter before Finn clicked his own glass, stepping up to where Quinn was.
"Hey, hey guys! One sec, I got somin' to say to!" Finn called out. "Um, well this is kinda hard." He pulled a face, and looked at Jesse. "Help me out man?" He asked him.
Jesse rolled his eyes. "You can't even do this by yourself?" He smirked, before grabbing Rachel's hand and depositing his best friend next to Finn. "That's all the help you're getting." He winked, before going back to Brittany, who asked him if the food really would poison her.
"Finn?" Rachel asked, confused, looking at her guilty looking boyfriend.
"Dude, it aint hard." Puck told him, shoving his shoulder. "Forty people's nothing. I did it at a gig man."
Rachel gasped, as did anyone else who knew the story.
"Way to give it away Puck." Finn said, before turning to Rachel. "Rach, as you know, we've kinda been on and off dating for like, five years, which is crazy. I don't want us to be on and off anymore. I want us to be on, forever. Which is why," Finn reached into his pocket and bent down to one knee, not ending up too much shorter than Rachel.
"I want to ask you to marry me. It's always been you really, ever since I took the time to find my inner rock star, ever since the time I promised to steal you off Jesse." He looked at his girlfriend's best friend. "Which I did in the end." He smirked at Jesse, who just raised his eyebrows in response. "Rach, you know I'm forever yours, faithfully and all." He rambled; scared he was screwing it up. "Be my wife Rachel?" He looked at her expectantly, praying she wouldn't embarrass him in front of forty people.
"Yes Finn, of course!" She replied, eyes wet, smiling. Finn stood up and embraced her. When they pulled away Rachel looked at Jesse and Puck.
"You two knew?" She asked.
Puck nodded in reply. "Yup. Congrats Berry." He said, grinning.
Rachel turned to Jesse. "And you?" She asked, wondering why Finn would tell Jesse of all people.
"He knew he had to check with your best friend before he claimed you forever." Jesse told her. "Plus he needed to check you'd say yes. Obviously I told him you would. And he needed help with his speech. He's far to blunt to make a proposal decent without help" He smirked at the taller man, who just grinned back sheepishly.
Rachel left Finn to hug Jesse. "Thank you!" She told him, kissing him on the cheek. "You're such a good friend Jesse. I'm so glad we had that earthquake in the end, and that you were there with me. And I'm so glad you sorted Finn's proposal out."
Jesse laughed, returning Rachel to Jesse.
"No problem Rach." He told her. "I do my best. As always, that's more than enough." He winked. The earthquake had been kind of useful in the end. "It's funny how bad things can turn out to be good eh?" He smiled.
Rachel grinned. "Just like you. My evil, lovely best friend."
Ok, I'm going to end it now, because I could carry on for ages and you don't want to read my ramblings. That's the end! Sorry for the soppy finnchel… go and puke if you have to xD I hope you enjoyed it though and pleeeasse review! May write some more St. Berry friendship, or more disaster fics, they're fun to write and seem popular. Thank you to everyone who's read this, and for everyone who's reviewed this, and for everyone's who's stuck with this. I love you all! :) Review please!