Disclaimer: Glee does not belong to me


Henry: Do you really think there is only one perfect mate?

Leonardo da Vinci: As a matter of fact, I do.

Henry: Well then how can you be certain to find them? And if you do find them, are they really the one for you or do you only think they are? And what happens if the person you're supposed to be with never appears, or she does, but you're too distracted to notice?

Leonardo da Vinci: You learn to pay attention.

Henry: Then let's say God puts two people on Earth and they are lucky enough to find one another. But one of them gets hit by lightning. Well then what? Is that it? Or, perchance, you meet someone new and marry all over again. Is that the lady you're supposed to be with or was it the first? And if so, when the two of them were walking side by side were they both the one for you and you just happened to meet the first one first or, was the second one supposed to be first? And is everything just chance or are some things meant to be?

Leonardo da Vinci: You cannot leave everything to Fate, boy. She's got a lot to do. Sometimes you must give her a hand.

-Ever After


Feeling like she was on the Hogwarts Express, Brittany glanced at the passing countryside outside the train window, tapping her fingers against the armrest impatiently. For the thousandth time, she glanced down at her phone, checking for the email she'd been anxiously waiting for.

Nothing.

Sighing, she checked on the other occupants of the compartment, all of whom were asleep. She smirked, noting with satisfaction that Rachel's head was resting on Finn's shoulder, her arm looped through his and her hand lying on his leg. Finn's sleeping head was resting lightly on top of Rachel's. It had taken quite a bit of maneuvering on Brittany's part to get the two of them sitting together, only managing to do so by getting Kurt started about the latest trends in fashion. She counted on him pulling out his latest editions of VogueItalia to illustrate his points, quickly pulling Quinn with her over to Kurt and Finn's seat, effectively squeezing Finn off and forcing him to sit next to Rachel. Quietly, Brittany pulled out her camera and snapped a picture of the two of them, pleased that she'd just taken their first photo as a couple.

For they would be a couple. She, Brittany S. Abrams, neè Pierce, would see to that.

She was the Maid of Honor after all. Yes, it was her responsibility to throw Rachel a Bridal Shower and a Bachelorette Party, two things she'd done admirably, but it was also her responsibility to assist Rachel in anything that she needed, and right now, Rachel needed assistance in finding the right groom.

Even if Rachel didn't know it.

Her phone vibrated, indicating an email. She opened it immediately, reading the words Artie had sent from Copenhagen.

B-

He's at the Hotel Leonardo. Why did you want to know?

Miss you,

Artie

Satisfied, Brittany put her phone away, stealing one more peek at the still sleeping Rachel, who at the moment was snuggling in closer to Finn, a smile on her face as she dreamed. Brittany smiled at the sight in front of her.

It was time to put her plan into action.


"We're here!" Quinn squealed as the cab pulled up to a large, three story stone building bearing the name "Hotel Fortuna dal Mare" across the front, with the narrow windows that Rachel had noticed in many buildings in Rome, decorated with window boxes overflowing with colorful flowers. Excitedly, Quinn jumped out of the cab, forgetting her bags and heading for the arched front door. The large bay window next to the door allowed Quinn to see who was in the lobby, and she squealed once again before running inside.

Rachel, still slightly green from the cab ride, climbed out next, taking in her surroundings in awe. She didn't think she'd ever seen such a beautiful place. Her mouth had been hanging open the entire ride from the train station as the cab navigated the hairpin turns the region was famous for. To her disgust (and deep down secret delight), she found herself gripping Finn's arm at every turn, very much aware of how the cliffs simply dropped off next to the road, leaving an amazing (and terrifying) view of the deep blue sea far below and the incredibly close proximity of the mountains on the car's other side. Bright clumps of wild flowers were growing in random spots along the mountains and someone had carved sculptures into the mountain side. She could tell that Finn was itching to get his hands on some paper and sketch the beauty surrounding him.

Not that she'd been looking at him or anything.

She watched him now out of the corner of her eye as he helped the cab driver get the luggage out of the trunk. He smiled at her for a moment before turning his attention to Kurt's mountain of luggage. Despite Quinn's directive to pack only essentials, Kurt had still managed to fill two big suitcases along with his suit bag and train case and had tried for a third before Finn threatened to send Blaine a copy of all of the bills Kurt had been planning on hiding from Blaine if he didn't leave the rest of his clothes behind in their room in Rome.

"Marco! Luca!" Quinn called happily across the lobby as soon as she spied her cousins behind the desk. Rachel followed, vaguely recognizing them from Quinn and Noah's wedding, but stopped short when she stepped into the lobby, causing Kurt to crash into her.

The lobby was large and airy, with arched ceilings that mimicked the great cathedrals. The entire room was white, the only color coming from the floral pattern scattered on some of the tiles. Rachel could see another room that judging by the clusters of seating must serve as a living room and what appeared to be a solarium beyond. Through the windows of the solarium, she could see the blue sky and she ached to get out there and see the view.

"Quinn! This is amazing!" Rachel whispered. Beside her, she could see Kurt and Brittany having the same reaction she'd just had.

"This is nothing. Wait till you see the back," Quinn replied before rushing over to greet her cousins.

"Quinnie!" A small rotund woman with graying hair came out of a room behind the desk. Arms outstretched, she ran to Quinn, enveloping her in a big hug. "Dov'è la bambina?" she asked immediately.

"Beth's at home with Puck," Quinn replied as she dragged her and her cousins over to where Rachel, Brittany, Kurt and Finn were standing. "Marco, Luca, you remember Rachel and Brittany from my wedding right?" she asked in English, before translating the same into Italian for her aunt, who quickly cut her off.

"I speak English adesso. I study," she announced proudly. "I surprise, no?"

Quinn hugged her quickly. "That's so great!"

"Brittany! Arturo no come?" she asked, looking for any sign of Artie's wheelchair.

"No, he's in Copenhagen," Brittany replied as she hugged Antonia, followed by Marco and Luca.

"And Rachele! Where is…?" she struggled trying to think of the word in English, finally reverting back to Italian. "Dov'è l'uomo pomposo?"

Quinn snorted, knowing that Antonia meant Jesse when she asked where the pompous man was. She quickly explained in Italian that Rachel and Jesse had broken up and not to mention him. Antonia nodded in understanding as she hugged Rachel.

Curiously, she turned to Kurt and Finn. Her eyes lit up when she saw Finn standing near Rachel. "Rachele! Is your new boyfriend, no?" she asked, pointing to Finn. He is…how you say…pezzo?" She turned to Quinn for translation, who smiled and simply said, "hunk."

"Ah, yes, hunk," Antonia agreed, pronouncing "hunk" as "unk". "He hunk."

Finn blushed, while Rachel attempted to straighten Antonia out. "Oh no, Antonia, he's not my boyfriend. He's just…here," she finally finished, not willing to explain the situation to Antonia. Luca's eyes widened when he heard Rachel say Finn wasn't her boyfriend.

"No? Why no? You no think he hunk?" Antonia insisted, looking from Rachel to Finn, who both refused to look at each other.

"I…well…uh…" Rachel stammered.

"Yes, he hunk or no, he no hunk. Is easy question," Antonia demanded, waiting expectantly for an answer.

Rachel sighed, knowing from past experience that Antonia wouldn't give up. "Yes, he hunk," she finally answered to the delight of Brittany, Kurt and Quinn, the annoyance of Luca and the embarrassment of herself and Finn.

Quinn, feeling Rachel and Finn had suffered enough embarrassment, decided to officially introduce Kurt and Finn. "Tonia, Marco, Luca, these are my friends, Kurt and his brother Finn."

Antonia greeted each in turn, paying particular attention to Finn. She quickly turned to her sons, issuing directions about bringing the luggage to rooms before turning to the little group. "Come. We eat." She grabbed Finn's arm and led him through the lobby towards the back of the hotel, the rest of the group following.

An audible gasp was heard from each of them as Antonia led them through adjacent room and outside to a flight of stairs. The hotel was literally built into the side of a cliff. While the main part of the hotel was built near the top of the cliff, the rest of the hotel was built wherever the cliffs would allow. Restaurants, terraces and building jutted out from various spots and levels of the cliffs, while far below the stairs they were currently standing on a pool could be glimpsed, with a dock leading out into the ocean just below it. No matter which way any of them looked, the cliffs rose majestically against the bright blue sky, while the sea crashed lazily against the base.

Kurt immediately took out his phone and started recording the view as he followed Antonia, who still had Finn's arm, down the stairs and towards a restaurant just above the pool area.

"Welcome to the Restaurant by the Sea," Antonia said proudly, gesturing to the group to enter the outdoor restaurant. The terrace was covered by a thatched roof, almost like a tiki room, while a wooden fence kept people from falling off the cliff and down into the pool area. Round tables were scattered around the terra cotta covered floor and the only wall was the cliff itself. The poles supporting the tiki style roof were covered in flower covered vines and ivy.

Antonia led them over to a large round table near the edge, giving them a fantastic view of the sea and coastline. She placed Finn in a chair, sitting on one side of him, while gesturing to Rachel to sit in the seat on Finn's other side. "Rachele! You sit here!"

Rachel, feeling it best not to contradict Antonia, immediately sat where requested. Kurt, Quinn and Brittany, free to choose their own seats, sat down around the table.

"Beautiful, no?" Antonia asked, pointing to the sea.

"It's amazing," Finn agreed, wishing more than anything he had a piece of paper and some paints, thinking that his mom would totally love a landscape painting for her bathroom.

"The hotel has been in the family for generations," Quinn explained. "I spent many summers waiting tables right here." She laughed at the memory as Antonia signaled to a nearby waiter to bring menus.

"Is there significance to the name?" Kurt asked curiously.

"Quinn, tell the story. I get drinks," Antonia announced as she got up and walked off towards the bar.

Quinn looked around the table with a little smile, ready to recite the story she'd heard so many times. "You probably don't know this, but the full name of the hotel is The Fortune of the Kiss by the Sea, although we just call it the Fortune of the Sea. It got the name because the locals strongly believe that this area has been enchanted by a band of gypsies. According to legend, a band of gypsies came to this village, wanting to fish. No one wanted to help them believing they were thieving, conning, unscrupulous people. But one girl wasn't like the rest of the village; she just saw them as a family trying to provide for themselves. She offered to show them the best place to fish from the shore, and because of her kind heart and generosity, the gypsies caught enough fish to last them awhile." She paused for a moment, waiting for her just arrived cousin Luca settle in the empty chair next to Rachel before she continued.

"That night they invited the girl to help celebrate their good fortune. It was loud and raucous, the dancing, singing and merriment. As the night wore on, the matriarch of the gypsies pulled the young girl aside, thanking her for her help when no one else would. Wanting to return her kindness, the wise sage asked her what she wanted most in the world. The girl blushed telling how much she wanted to find true love, her soul mate. At nineteen, the girl was considered an old maid by the village, and it made her sad thinking she would never know love."

"Nineteen's an old maid?" Brittany interrupted. "What does that make Rachel?"

Laughing at the glare Rachel threw Brittany, Quinn continued. "Anyway, like I was saying, the matriarch took one look at the girl, with a twinkle in her eye and a smile revealing her gnarly teeth, and held her hands up to the full moon, singing something in the gypsy language. When she had finished, she told the girl that during the next full moon, if she was kissed at the shore of the harbor, the man that kissed her would be her soul mate and they would be married within the next six months. Smiling and nodding to appease the matriarch, the girl left to go home, not putting much thought into the enchantment." She paused again, pleased that she had the attention of the whole group, with the exception of her cousin, who was staring at Rachel. She frowned for a moment at that, but quickly picked up the story.

"Forgetting the gypsy's words, the girl went about her life for the next month, helping her family and at night trying to forget her loneliness. A month after meeting the gypsies, the village children had chanted "Old Maid" as the girl walked through the village. Not being able to take it anymore, the girl had run, finding herself at the shore. She threw herself down on the sand, crying at what her life had become, shocked to find a young man she had never seen before sit down next to her, attempting to comfort her. Wiping her tears away, she introduced herself and found out that he was the nephew of one of the fisherman. His uncle was ill and he was going to be taking over his boat, and had just come to town. Both of them talked through the day and into the night, sharing everything about each other. As the moon rose to its highest point in the sky, the young man leaned over and kissed the girl. Both of them claimed that as they kissed, it was like the stars were showering down on them."

"The Moment," Rachel said softly.

"Yup. Three months later the two were married along the shore of the harbor. And a year later, they opened up the first The Fortune of the Kiss by the Sea, a place where anyone can find their destiny. This legend has been passed down from generation by generation, and it is believed that if a young lady stands on the shore during the full moon, even if she doesn't know her soul mate, fortune will bring him to her." She could see the story had an impact, as the table was very quiet. Rachel especially seemed lost in thought.

Antonia sat back down at the table, gesturing to the waiter to pass out the glasses of Limoncello, the specialty drink of the region and the antipasti. She looked from Rachel to Finn. "Quinn tell you, yes? You seek answers, you just ask the sea. Now, mangia!"

Rachel stared out at the sea wondering if it was really that easy.


Finn frowned, trying to capture the scene in front of him. His eyes flickered from the paper in front of him to the lone sailboat bobbing merrily in the water, framed by the rugged coastline behind it, trying to capture the way the buildings dotted the coastline. Quickly, his charcoal pencil danced across the paper creating a mirror image of the view. He cast his eye over it critically, fixing the occasional line until he was satisfied.

"You're very talented."

Finn jumped at the sound of Rachel's voice. Startled, he turned to see Rachel peering over his shoulder. Embarrassed, he tried to hide his paper, surprised when Rachel placed her hand over his.

"You shouldn't be embarrassed by your talent," Rachel admonished as she took the paper from him and stared at it intently. She leaned against the railing absorbing the vista.

"I'm not embarrassed, I just prefer to keep my art to myself until it's finished." Unable to help himself, he pulled out a fresh piece of paper and began sketching Rachel as she stared out to sea, appearing deep in thought.

"Why?"

"Why what?" he asked, furiously sketching her, his eyes moving rapidly from her silhouette to his paper.

"Why do you keep it to yourself? Don't you want to show everyone your talent?" The words poured from her mouth unexpectedly. Despite her protests, Brittany had sent her to tell him that they were going to be playing volleyball in the pool. She'd planned on informing him and then marching immediately out of the room, but when she saw him lost in a trance as he sketched, she found herself simply staring. He seemed so serene, so at peace, alone with his paper and pencil.

"Of course I do, but I don't do it for them. I do it for me, just like I'm sure that you sing to make yourself happy." He continued sketching, trying to finish before she moved too much. "Talent's not about showing off and being the best, it's using what you've been given to make yourself and others happy."

Rachel frowned at this. Singing had always made her incredibly happy, as did performing on Broadway, but for some time, she'd felt a change in her attitude towards her chosen career. If she was honest with herself, she could probably pinpoint it to meeting Jesse. He'd never outright said it, but she could tell that he felt that he was more talented than her and his attitudes and beliefs about talent or lack thereof, had begun to rub off on her. When he'd hear street performers, he'd always make the comment that those people were wasting their time and insulting talented people like himself, that they had no business singing. Rachel had never agreed with this, if it made them happy, who was Jesse to tell them they shouldn't be singing? She'd brought up the point once with Jesse, who proceeded to talk to her as if she was in Kindergarten, explaining that when someone is as talented as he is, he should only surround himself with talent of equal or greater value (should any be around). Street performers and Karaoke were an insult to his delicate musical palette.

When Jesse had gotten the role as Curly in Oklahoma! she'd offered to run lines with him as Laurie, but he'd turned her down, claiming that since she'd never had a lead before, she would be unable to cope with the amount of songs and lines. Somehow, she'd become jaded by the Jesse and the cutthroat industry, forgetting what it felt like to just sing. When she sang that song for Finn the other day on the rowboat, that was the first time in a long time she could honestly say she felt joy when she sang.

"You're right," she said thoughtfully, almost to herself. "I go on all these auditions and I sing, but I'm not singing for me. I'm singing for the producers. Maybe that's what's missing."

"There. All done," Finn decided, pleased with his sketch of Rachel.

"With what?" Rachel asked, still unaware that Finn had been sketching her the whole time.

"I call it Portrait of a Broadway Diva." He held out the paper almost shyly.

Rachel took the paper from him, shocked to see herself on the page. Finn had managed to capture the pensive mood she was in, the conflicting emotions she was feeling clearly shown on her face. He'd even drawn in the way the wind was gently moving her hair, along with the habit she had of biting her lip whenever she was nervous or thinking of something. It was so lifelike, she felt like she was looking at herself in a mirror. She looked back up at him, her mouth hanging open. "You...you truly have a gift," she finally managed to stammer out.

Finn rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "It's nothing."

"I'm serious, Finn, this is amazing." Rachel couldn't take her eyes off the paper, still in disbelief at how well she'd been drawn. "I would love to be able to draw like this. I can't even draw a straight line."

"Drawing's not about lines. It's about drawing what you see. Like when I drew that picture of you, I could tell that you were thinking of something that's been bothering you." Rachel's head snapped up at his words.

"Thank you." She took a step towards him, closer the already small gap between them, watching as his tongue darted out, licking his lips, his eyes following her every move. She continued stepping towards him, until the gap was nonexistent. Slowly she wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him as she placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. She left her arms around him as she removed her face from his, staring at him. His tongue came out to lick his lips and she closed her eyes, starting to lean towards him again, this time towards his lips. His own eyes closed as he started to close the already tiny gap between their lips.

"Rachel? Did you find Finn?"

The haziness that had momentarily taken over Rachel's brain cleared up immediately when she heard Brittany's voice.

She'd almost kissed Finn. What was wrong with her? She hated him, she really did, yet she almost kissed him. Stepping away from Finn quickly, she called out, "I got him, Brits!"

"Is he going to play volleyball with us?" Brittany asked, coming out onto the terrace and looking from one to the other.

"Do you want to play with us?" Rachel repeated, taking a step towards Brittany.

If us is me and you then hell yes was the first thing that popped into Finn's head, but he controlled his word vomit for once, managing to sound cool and collected, or so he hoped. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, I'll play."

"Good." Without another word, Rachel marched off the terrace, leaving a confused Brittany and Finn holding his hand to his cheek, finding it very disconcerting to know that she still wanted to kiss him.


Rachel followed Quinn and Brittany down to the pool area, still in awe at the scenery around her. She glanced up, seeing the main part of the hotel far above her, assuming that Finn was up there somewhere getting ready. She smiled as she thought of the drawing, then immediately frowned, when she remembered that she wasn't here for drawings from Finn, she was here to meet Sam. Whatever had been about to happen would have been a mistake, since Sam was her Soul Mate, not Finn.

Sam. She wondered what he was doing right now. He was probably a bigwig CEO of a company, she decided, since Quinn had said he was here on business. He probably jetted off to foreign countries all the time, so she should really get used to staying in places like this. Maybe after they were married, they could come here for their honeymoon, she mused. Quinn had mentioned the amazing honeymoon suites with the private pools; she'd have to check it out. She was just about to ask Quinn, when she found herself crashing into Brittany, who'd just crashed into Quinn.

"Oh no." Quinn stared in dismay at the pool area, her eyes focused on the bartender, who was talking to a blonde woman.

"What?" Brittany asked, her eyes following Quinn's, but seeing nothing amiss.

"Aunt Sue is here," Quinn said flatly, pointing to the blonde woman Marco was talking to.

"Is she the one who wore the track suit and pearls to your wedding?" Rachel asked, stifling a laugh at the memory. Quinn's mother had been furious, wanting everything just so and the sight of her sister in a track suit and pearls at a Black Tie wedding had almost caused her to have a breakdown.

"The one and only. I don't think she's seen me yet. Let's get seats away from her," Quinn whispered, hurrying over to some empty seats, watching as Aunt Sue threw a drink in the waiter's face.

They managed to sit and sun for a few minutes before Quinn spotted Kurt and Finn making their way into the pool area. "Aunt Sue's in the bathroom. Let me go get them and bring them here before she comes back." Quickly she walked over and grabbed them, leading the boys towards their little section. They'd almost made it when Aunt Sue stepped out of the bathroom and right in their path.

"Q! I thought I heard the sound of stretch marks rubbing together. What are you doing here?" Sue exclaimed, feigning interest.

"Hello, Aunt Sue. How are you?" Quinn asked politely.

"I'm just here to brown up a bit. Get back into fighting shape." She punched Quinn in the arm, who winced. "Some Glee Club loser got me suspended, so I have to plan my attack. Going for that seventh national championship soon, you know." She peered at Finn and Kurt just behind Quinn. "What's with Herman and Eddie Munster? You cheating on Neil already?"

Quinn rolled her eyes. "First of all, my husband's name is Noah, not Neil. Second of all, these are my friends, Finn and Kurt." She gestured to each in turn, who immediately greeted Sue, holding out their hands. Sue simply stared at their hands, before looking back at Quinn.

"Gotta be honest, Q. I already checked out of this conversation." She strode off, grabbing a passing waiter by the back of his shirt. "You! I ordered my protein shake fifteen minutes ago and I still don't have it! This is unacceptable!" Maintaining her grip on the frightened waiter's shirt, she tossed him into the pool.

Horrified that she was behaving like this in front of Finn and Kurt, Quinn quickly began an explanation. "That's my mother's oldest sister. The only one who can control her is my Aunt Jean, but she doesn't travel. I'm so sorry. I had no idea she'd be here."

"It's okay, every family has an embarrassing relative. You should see Kurt's Aunt Muriel," Finn offered helpfully.

"Hey! Like she's any worse than anyone in your family? What about your cousin Viola?" Kurt cried as they followed Quinn, carefully avoiding the wrath of Aunt Sue, who at the moment was on the verge of throwing another waiter in the pool, simply because he got in her way.

"Dude, Aunt Muriel's got blue hair and she's like 105, it's no contest," Finn replied, smiling down at Rachel as he placed his stuff on a chair next to her, relieved to see that she gave a tiny smile back. He was afraid of what her reaction would be after what had almost happened on the terrace. His bathing suit grew uncomfortably tight as his eyes roamed over her body and took in Rachel's bikini, this time pink with gold hearts all over it, with a metal heart situated between her breasts, connecting the fabric. A matching metal heart graced either hip. He was disappointed to see that this bathing suit was strapless, so she wouldn't need his help untying it.

A quick glance down at his bathing suit told him that he needed to get into the water fast before the tent that he could see forming became obvious to everyone else. Rapidly, he shed his shoes and shirt, jumping into the water to hide his arousal. The water felt good, cooling his overheated body, and more importantly, his groin. He emerged from under the water just as a ball came his way, hitting him in the head before bouncing off into another area of the pool.

"What the hell?" he asked, rubbing his head where the ball had hit him.

"Aunt Sue!" Quinn gasped. "You could have hit him in the face!"

"And I assure you he would have deserved it. This is a family hotel, not one of those sex retreats. I didn't need to see that," Sue declared as she stalked back over to the bar.

"What are you talking about?" Quinn demanded.

"Quinn, it's fine. Let's just play some volleyball," Finn cut in, anxious to get the subject off of what Sue had obviously seen, much to his embarrassment. He didn't know what was worse, knowing Sue saw it; or that fact that Sue had been checking him out to notice it in the first place. To his relief, Quinn and Brittany immediately jumped into the water. "Kurt, you in?"

Kurt looked up from his VogueItalia in surprise. "Why are you even asking? You know the answer."

"Right. The chlorine messes with your shampoo, so you're out. That leaves you, Rach." Finn looked at Rachel, who seemed surprised to be asked.

"Come on, Rachel!" Quinn called, splashing some water at her, which unfortunately landed on Kurt, who gasped and immediately got up to check his hair damage in the bathroom mirror. "Otherwise you have to sit with Aunt Sue."

Rachel cast a glance at Aunt Sue, who was downing a strange looking concoction over at the bar. The thought of staying with her for any period of time was less than appealing, so she quickly stood up. "I'm in."

She slipped into the water just as Quinn's cousins finished setting up the net across the pool. "I'm ready to play," she announced, swimming over to Brittany. Hopefully they could be teammates. Brittany was pretty athletic and liked to play sports, which meant Rachel wouldn't have to do much. Brittany however, had other ideas.

"Good. You can play with Finn then," Brittany decided.

"Wait, why?" Rachel asked, refusing to look at Finn.

"Because Finn's tall and Quinn's blonde, so it evens out," Brittany explained in a way that only made sense to her. Finn didn't see her logic, but he wasn't going to complain since Brittany's logic worked in his favor. She elaborated when she saw Rachel's confused face. "Quinn and I are both blonde and you two have dark hair, so the teams are obvious. Plus, that way each team will have one tall player and one short player."

"Fine. Let's just play." Rachel sighed, heading over to the far side of the net, with Finn following. "I should warn you, I'm really bad though. I don't really know how to play," she told him, trying to look anywhere but at his chest and the way the water glistened on it.

"It's ok, all you need to do is hit the ball over the net," Finn assured her. "Why don't you serve first?" He tossed the ball to Rachel, who looked at it doubtfully, probably wishing she was sitting with Kurt, who'd just returned from the bathroom and was now engrossed in the seventh Harry Potter book.

"What do I need to do?" she asked, still staring at the ball as Finn took his place at the front of the net.

He turned around in surprise. "You really don't know how to play, do you?" When she nodded negatively, he couldn't help but chuckle.

"It's not funny, Finn," she pouted, placing her hand on her hip under the water.

"Rachel, it's easy to serve, just throw the ball up with your left hand and hit it as hard as you can towards the net with your right hand," he directed, turning back to face Brittany and Quinn.

"Go Rachel go Rachel go Rachel go!" Brittany called, cheering her on and splashing her hands against the water in rhythm with her cheers. Finn looked back at her for a moment to see her face set in a determined line before she threw the ball up in the air. Satisfied, he turned to face forward, watching Brittany still cheering on Rachel.

In hindsight, turning to face forward was a mistake, since Rachel's serve immediately hit him on the back of the head. He turned to face Rachel, ignoring the giggles coming from the other side of the net. "Try to hit it a little higher," he advised, brushing off Rachel's apologies. She finally nodded, her face set with that determined look again. Confident that she'd get the ball over this time, he faced Brittany and Quinn again.

This time, he got hit on the back.

"I'm so sorry! I told you I was bad at this!" Rachel apologized frantically. "I really don't know what I'm doing wrong!"

Finn didn't say anything, grabbing the ball as it floated nearby and walking over to Rachel. "It's ok. I'm going to show you what to do."

He stood just behind Rachel, making her incredibly aware of his closeness once she felt his chest pressed up against her back and she felt herself taking a sharp intake of breath. She turned her head slightly as he began to talk.

"Ok, here's what you need to do." He placed the ball in front of her, placing his other hand on her right shoulder. Slowly, he let his hand trail down her right arm, causing Rachel to take another sharp breath. Rachel felt a jolt of electricity surge through her body as his other hand came to wrap around her waist, feeling a warm glow spread throughout her body. He kept his hand there as he explained what was going to happen, grabbing her hand firmly by the wrist as he demonstrated the motion of hitting the ball. "The key to serving the ball is the throw and the follow through. You need to make sure that you throw it high enough."

He grabbed her left hand, immediately placing his right hand on her waist. Cupping her left hand with his own, he helped her throw the ball in the air several times, his right hand never leaving her waist. "Once the ball is high enough, thrust your hand quickly towards the ball and bang it over the net." Switching hands yet again, he slowly raised her right hand out of the water, holding it against his chest for a moment as his left hand threw the ball up in the air. He slid his right hand up to guide her hand as it thrust forward. The motion of their arms jabbing the air caused them to lean forward, and Rachel closed her eyes as she felt Finn's body press into hers with each thrust.

Both were so focused on their private lesson that they forgot about Brittany, Quinn and Kurt, who were all watching the two of them closely. The incredible chemistry between them was blatantly obvious, and the three stayed quiet, unwilling to interrupt the scene unfolding in front of them.

Finn walked Rachel through the motions several more times, each time increasing the height of the throw. Rachel found herself paying more attention to the feel of Finn than on the ball, which was why she was surprised when she heard Finn say, "Ok, I think you're ready to try it alone."

"Wait what?" Rachel exclaimed. She'd been trying to pinpoint exactly what his cologne was. Feeling the loss of his hand around her waist acutely, she quickly added, "I uh, I think I might need a couple of more practices."

Finn smiled, more than happy to keep his hand around her waist. "Alright, a couple of more times." He wrapped his hand tighter around her waist, feeling the skin on his fingers burn when they touched Rachel's stomach.

They went through the motions a few more times, each more focused on the other than on the ball. "Okay, enough stalling. You're ready to try it." He emphasized this with a shake of her shoulders as he forced himself to move towards the net again.

He felt a surge of pride when he saw the ball sail easily over the net and threw a smile over his shoulder at Rachel, who had a huge smile on her face. His gaze lingered on her a little longer than it should have, because he failed to see Quinn hit the ball easily over the net in his direction, hitting him on the side of the face.

Rubbing his face yet again, he glanced at Rachel's laughing face, suddenly feeling that all the hits he'd taken today were totally worth it.


Brittany watched Rachel closely during the volleyball game. She knew Rachel was no athlete, but she was nothing if not a quick learner. Brittany couldn't help but smirk a little each time Rachel (who seemed to have forgotten that she hated Finn) asked Finn to teach her how to hit the ball over the net, claiming she didn't know what she was doing wrong. Every time, the same thing would happen. As soon as Finn touched Rachel, her eyes would close and she'd get a little smile on her face.

Finn wasn't exactly hiding his feelings either. The joy he felt each time he picked up Rachel by the waist to let her spike the ball over the net was clearly written all over his face, and as the game went on, so did the blatant flirting and sexual overtures.

"My God, you could cut the sexual tension in here with a knife," Quinn whispered to Brittany. "Those two better get a room and fast."

"I told you. You really think Sam is going to beat that chemistry?" Brittany whispered back watching as Finn celebrated their winning point by grabbing Rachel and picking her up out of the water bridal style, spinning her in the air before dumping her in the water. Rachel immediately surfaced and jumped on him, wrapping her arms around his neck, laughing. Brittany smiled affectionately at the two. "He's her Sam."

Quinn shook her head. "It's unbelievable. A blind man could see their chemistry. Maybe she'll forget about Sam."

"No. She's too stubborn. She may have forgotten that she thinks she hates Finn at the moment, but once she separates from him, she'll remember and insist on finding Sam. I know her, she's got to meet Sam to realize how she feels about Finn," Brittany analyzed, watching as Finn whispered something in Rachel's ear, causing her to blush and smack his chest playfully. "Are there any good places to dance here?" she asked, abruptly changing the subject.

"Well, there's this awesome club about 10 minutes from here that's built into the cliff. The glass dance floor is suspended over the sea. We could all go there tonight," Quinn suggested. "Then tomorrow, we could search for Sam."

"What's the name of the club?" Brittany asked casually, her eyes still trained on Finn and Rachel, who were now having a splash fight.

"Um, it's called the Africana," Quinn replied, smiling at the water fight going on on the other side of the net. If Rachel's shrieking was anything to go by, she was definitely enjoying herself. "Where are you going?"

"Oh, uh, I promised Artie I'd call him at uh, this time," Brittany answered, glancing down at her wrist for the time quickly before climbing out of the pool, grabbing her cell phone and walking away.

Quinn watched her go suspiciously, her eyes having observed the fact that Brittany wasn't wearing a watch.

"Where's Brits going?" Rachel called, placing her hand on Finn's chest to stop him from splashing her.

"She had to call Artie," Quinn called back, still suspicious about Brittany's actions, but smiling when she saw Rachel take Finn's hand and pull him over to her side of the net.

"Oh, well can we still play with only three people?" Rachel asked, looking up at Finn.

"You and Quinn can play against me," Finn suggested reluctantly.

"But you're my partner!" Rachel cried, just in time for Brittany to hear as she slipped back in the pool. "Oh, good. Brittany's back."

"That was quick. He wasn't there?" Quinn baited her, testing out her suspicions.

"Who wasn't where?" Brittany asked, her eyes noticing how close Rachel and Finn were standing to each other.

"Artie. Didn't you just call him?" Quinn pressed.

"Oh! Right! Uh, I left a message. Did Q tell you guys our plan?" she asked Rachel and Finn excitedly, anxious to change the subject. "We're going to a dance club tonight!" she squealed excitedly before they could answer.

"Really?" Rachel shrieked. "Finn, isn't that exciting?"

"Yeah, Rach, it's great." Finn rubbed the back of his neck. "Just great."

Crap. Rachel was going to get to see what a crappy dancer he was. Kurt liked to joke that a rhinoceros could move better than him, and he really didn't want Rachel to see anything negative about him, especially if she was here to find another guy. He glanced down at Rachel talking excitedly with Brittany and Quinn about the club and what they should wear.

He didn't know why, but he had a really bad feeling about tonight and it had nothing to do with his dancing.


"So, Rachel spill before Kurt comes back. What's going on between you and Finn?" Quinn asked as she applied her makeup in the mirror. She looked through her reflection at Rachel, who getting her hair set by Brittany while reading a magazine.

"There's nothing between me and him. I hate him, remember?" Rachel said, doing a poor job of convincing anyone in the room of this.

"You still sticking with that?" Quinn smirked into the mirror as she applied her eyeliner.

"Rachel, it's ok to admit that you're attracted to Finn," Brittany added, checking her phone discreetly.

Rachel jumped up, crossing her arms in defiance. "Look you two; I am not attracted to Finn anymore. Yes, he is gorgeous and sexy and a fabulous kisser, but he's also manipulative and a liar. He used me. Just because I sometimes go weak at the knees when he touches me, doesn't mean that I am attracted to him."

"You keep telling yourself that, honey," Quinn replied, turning on the stool to face Rachel and Brittany, just as Kurt walked into the room.

"Who's telling themselves what?" he asked, unloading his arms of the moisturizing bottles he'd retrieved from his room.

"Rachel," Quinn replied, facing back into the mirror. "She won't admit she's attracted to your brother."

"Are we still talking about that? Isn't it common knowledge that they're attracted to each other?" Kurt asked as he started going through the dresses they'd bought for Rachel. "Here. Wear this." He passed the slinky black sleeveless cowl neck dress over to Rachel.

"For the last time! I am not attracted to him. I merely tolerate his presence," she insisted, yanking the dress out of Kurt's hand and storming over to the bathroom to change.

"Based on what I saw at the pool, Rachel defines tolerate as wants to rip his clothes off, doesn't she?" Kurt whispered. "They'll be a match made in heaven; she's just as stubborn as he is."

"You have no idea, Kurt." Brittany rolled her eyes, just as the bathroom door flew open again and Rachel stormed out, looking stunning in the dress Kurt had picked out.

"I would just like to point out that if my suitcase had been packed correctly, I would never, under any circumstances, be seen wearing a dress like this." She whirled around, letting them take in the revealing cowl neck halter top showing a fair amount of cleavage and the straps from the halter top hanging down her exposed back. "I feel indecent."

"Indecent or not, I know someone who's going to be speechless when he sees you," Kurt teased, handing her the shoes he'd picked out.

"You better mean Sam," Rachel hissed, snatching the shoes out of his hand and putting them on. "I couldn't care less about anyone else's reaction. Are we ready to go?" she asked crossly before storming out of the room.

"Is she always like this?" Kurt asked.

"Only when she's in denial about something," Brittany responded, checking her phone again.

"Well, she's going to make our night interesting at any rate. Let's go ladies," Kurt proclaimed, holding out an arm for Quinn and an arm for Brittany. "Shall we go round up Ross and Rachel and pray that they end this will they/won't they drama?"

Giggling, they headed out into the night, ready to see how the night unfolded.


Kurt was right. Finn had been unable to speak when he saw Rachel's sexpot attire. His attempt to be suave failed miserably when he tried to lean one arm casually against the wall and missed completely, falling into a potted tree.

It hadn't gotten much better when they'd arrived at the club. Brittany had immediately dragged Rachel onto the dance floor. The sight of Rachel dancing in that dress combined with the fact that she kept looking over at him was enough to make him summon the mailman several times. Several different guys had danced with her, putting their hands all over her and it was all he could do to stop himself from marching out there and punching those Italian tools in the face. Fortunately, she hadn't seemed into it at all, and the guys usually left after a few minutes. Even Quinn's cousin Luca tried dancing with Rachel, but Quinn herself put a stop to that, pulling him towards her. Forcing himself to calm down yet again, he looked at the décor of the club, trying to get his mind off of Rachel.

Like Quinn had said, the club was literally built into two caves. The dance floor Rachel, Quinn, and Brittany were currently dancing on had random plates of glass cut sporadically into the cave bottom, illuminating the stalagmites and stalactites in the cave. A large bar was carved into the rock at one end, and there were lots of little secret cutaways in the cave that Finn wouldn't mind showing Rachel. Outside, another dance floor, this one large and glass, was suspended over the sea, the waves crashing far below.

Feeling calmer, he looked back towards the dance floor, only to see Rachel dancing his way. "Come on, Finn!" she called over the music.

Uh oh.

He glanced around, wondering where Kurt had got to. Kurt loved to dance, and he could easily go in Finn's place. The last time he'd seen Kurt, he'd stopped to talk to Brittany on his way to the bar.

Naturally, he was nowhere to be found.

"Come on, Finn! Come dance!" She danced over to him, attempting to pull him up by his hand.

"I'm a really bad dancer, Rachel. I don't usually dance," he explained, as she put her drink of the table near him.

"Nonsense. If you can teach me to play volleyball, I can teach you to dance," she insisted, taking his beer out of his hand and placing it next to her drink. Grabbing both his hands, she pulled him up, trying to ignore the electric feeling pulsating through their hands. "It's all about moving your hips."

He held back a groan as she placed her hands on his hips, moving them from side to side. "See how easy? Now watch what I do," she instructed. She turned around, placing his hands on her waist before putting her own on his legs. Slowly, she moved her hips, grinding into him. He followed suit, more than happy with this turn of events. She looked over her shoulder at him, smiling coyly. "You're doing really well!" she yelled over the music. She turned around in his arms, placing her own arms on his shoulders, as she continued dancing and grinding into him, her eyes trained on his face. He stared down at her, wondering if he might get to test out one of those secret cave cutouts after all.

The song ended, to both his delight (no more dancing) and his regret (no more Rachel grinding into him). "I think I need a break, Rach." He sat back down on the rock bench, patting the seat next to him for Rachel to sit. She surprised him by sitting in his lap, handing him his beer as she placed her other arm around his neck. His own arms snaked around her middle, resting on her leg. Her position on his lap afforded him a nice view of her exposed cleavage.

"Do you have any Smurfs?" she asked hopefully, taking a sip of her drink, her eyes looking at him over the rim of the glass. She lowered the glass, licking her lips as she waited for his answer.

He laughed, wondering if she was slightly drunk. "Nope, I'm all out. Falling out of a rowboat kind of finished them off."

"Oh, that's too bad." She looked disappointed for a second, before a laugh escaped from her mouth, sounding like music to Finn's ears. "I wish you could have seen your face when you fell out!"

He chuckled, tickling her stomach, making her squeal. "You weren't much better when you fell in."

"I didn't fall in. I was pulled in," she huffed, jabbing him in the chest with her finger. "By you."

"Admit it. You had fun that day," he teased, rubbing her leg.

"I did," she admitted freely, looking at him with wide eyes. "You really don't have any Smurfs?"

"I'm Smurfless, I swear. I don't even have anymore Goldfish, since Kurt ate them all," he added bitterly.

"Goldfish? You mean the crackers?" Rachel asked, taking another sip of her drink.

"Yeah, I like them. Plus, the fish on the bag, the one with the sunglasses, is named Finn, so that just makes them even more awesome," he explained, feeling a little embarrassed about his preference for kindergarten snacks.

Rachel laughed again, but didn't get to answer, because Quinn and Brittany came over to them. "Come on! Don't you want to dance?" Brittany asked them.

Finn, disappointment running through his veins, looked at Rachel. "Go ahead. I'll stay here."

Rachel looked at him before turning to Brittany. "You two go ahead. I'm going to stay here with Finn."

Finn's heart soared as he watched Quinn and Brittany dance off, whispering about something. "Are you sure? I'll be fine right here."

"I'm not in the mood to dance anymore." As if to prove her point, she rested her head on his shoulder, her hand playing with the buttons on his shirt. "Just so you know, I've decided that I'm talking to you again, but I still hate you."

"I can live with that," Finn decided, hoping she was more bark than bite. "Especially since I hate you too."

"No you don't." Rachel shifted on his lap, placing her head closer to his neck, letting the scent of his cologne invade her nostrils.

"Oh, but I do."

Rachel picked her head up for a moment. "In that case, I hate you more." Satisfied that she'd won, she placed her head back on his shoulder, enjoying the feel of his hand stroking her leg softly.

"Then I hate you times infinity."

"Well, I still want you to be eaten by a lion," she shot back, moving her head even closer to his neck trying to get more of the intoxicating smell of his cologne.

"You blew it then. You had your chance when we were at the Coliseum." The smell of her shampoo was like a cloud around him, making him start to lose this little battle of wits they had going on. He turned his head towards her, just as she picked her head up. For the second time that day, he found himself focused on her lips, wanting to feel them on his own lips. Carefully, he cupped her chin with his large hand, inching his face closer towards hers, pleased to see that she'd closed her eyes in anticipation.

"Rachel!"

Kurt's voice snapped them out of their little trance, and they looked at each other for a moment before looking at Kurt running their way.

"Rachel!"

"What, Kurt?" she asked, not moving from her position on Finn's lap. Finn glared at his brother, annoyed that as usual, Kurt had horrible timing.

"I found him," he panted. "He's in the bathroom. I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Found who?" Finn asked; a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Sam Evans!"


A/N: Kurt always has the worst timing doesn't he?

Happy early 4th of July to my American readers!