Chapter 11

The remaining time in Columbus passed swiftly and uneventfully. Puck and Rachel sang for Nana Connie's maj group: a pinch of Neil, a dash of Barbra, and a few "golden oldies" to round out the program. Shelby's aunt was present, but if she recognized Rachel she gave no indication, and Connie offered no introduction beyond "my Noah's friend Rachel". Finn had dutifully called Rachel every night; their conversations were considerate but brief, and the youthful endearments that once peppered their banter had all but disappeared. Friday quickly rolled around, and they were on the road to Lima, and eventually, back to McKinley's hallowed halls.

Sam returned from Kentucky on Saturday and confirmed he would not be visiting his family during Easter break, needing the hours at Sheets and Things more than another vacation. He was pleased to be included in the upcoming Passover festivities, now three weeks away, and, when asked, mentioned to Rachel that he would appreciate it if she would invite Mercedes. Since the re-combination of the two "rival" Glee Clubs, Rachel and Mercedes had begun their first tenuous steps toward friendship, and Rachel told Sam that she would be happy to extend an invitation to her on his behalf.

The first day back to school arrived unceremoniously. Rachel had spent the night before engrossed in The Catcher in The Rye, surprised that a book written so long ago was still relatable today. She had continued reading during her morning elliptical routine and was more than half way through. Finn had arranged to pick her up before school that morning, and Sam had decided to ride separately so he could go to his job directly from school.

Rachel awaited Finn's arrival, her feelings conflicted. On one hand, she was happy to see her boyfriend after a ten-day separation; on the other, after verbalizing her feelings, she could no longer deny her deep connection with Puck. She certainly didn't want to add any fuel to the fire under the bubbling cauldron of drama that is by nature high school. She, after all, is an actress; she decided to utilize those skills and behave as if nothing had changed, and let nature take its course.

Finn pulled up to the house, parked his car, came to the door, and rang the bell. Rachel answered it, only to be enveloped in a huge hug. As they kissed, and Finn attempted to deepen the kiss, Rachel instinctively drew back. "What's the matter, Rach?" he worried. "Aren't you happy to see me?"

"Of course, Finn," she quickly countered, "it's just that my dads are home, and well…" Rachel smiled hopefully up at Finn, and he seemed satisfied with her response. She put on her coat, grabbed her books, shouted her good-bye to her fathers, and left with Finn for school.

Soon they were back in school, as if the week away had never transpired. Rachel and Finn stood outside of Rachel's locker as she was getting her things together for her first classes. Rachel was deep in her own thoughts when Finn's voice broke through "Rach, are you OK? You seem, I don't know, kind 'a far away or somethin'". "Great job acting," Rachel thought; "no Tony for this performance."

"I'm fine, Finn, just preoccupied right now. Regionals are around the corner, after all, and we still don't have a set list." Rachel smiled at Finn and thought to herself: "Good recovery, girlfriend." Finn, on the other hand, thought: "Here we go again, Glee Club. Doesn't she think of anything else…like sex?"

Since their classes were in opposite directions, Finn and Rachel split up and headed toward their respective home rooms. When she arrived, she caught Puck's eye and smiled genuinely, which he returned, and she sat down in the desk next to his. They began a conversation of no particular consequence, and were in mid-discussion when Quinn Fabray sat down behind Rachel and whispered in her ear "If you two don't quit eye-fucking soon, it'll get back to Finn. Just saying…"

Rachel, aghast (partly due to Quinn's vocabulary), turned to face Quinn, and primly retorted "Quinn, I have no idea what you are talking about. Noah and I were just discussing possible songs for the Regionals set list."

Quinn gave her a knowing look and said, "OK, just keep telling yourself that, Rachel."

Puck looked at Quinn quizzically, as he had no idea what had triggered their discourse, and Quinn simply smiled and shrugged her shoulders. He looked at Rachel, who offered a similar gesture. "Women!" he said exasperatedly. The bell rang, and the first day back to school had officially begun.

During the course of the day, Rachel met up with Mercedes and extended an invitation to Passover dinner. Mercedes, although surprised, graciously accepted Rachel's offer. She generously asked Rachel if there was anything that she could bring, and Rachel politely declined, explaining (at a high level) the Passover dietary restrictions. She also asked Mercedes not to broadcast this to the Glee Club, as there were only a few people invited and she didn't want to hurt anybody's feelings.

As Rachel turned to walk way, Mercedes stopped her. "Rachel, do you have a minute?" she inquired. "Of course, Mercedes; what's on your mind?" she replied.

"Well…I've wanted to apologize for a while, now." Rachel was surprised by the girl's admission, although she tried to hide it. "You were really great as 'Maria'; I never could have done that," she humbly conceded.

"Of course you could, Mercedes. You're an excellent singer," Rachel complimented.

"Thanks, Rachel, but that's not it, exactly." Mercedes paused, and then said "For you, it was all about the play and being 'Maria'. For me, it was all about me; having the spotlight on me and singing in front of an audience. I didn't get it until I saw your performance." Rachel was about to respond, when Mercedes continued, "Shane convinced me to try out." She whispered in Rachel's ear "He was my first. I never thought anybody would feel like that about me, and he could get me to do just about anything…obviously."

Rachel was not altogether surprised by Mercedes confession, having lost her virginity to Finn only a few months prior. "I understand completely, Mercedes," Rachel said comfortingly, "and thank you for the compliment."

"Thanks, Rachel. I'm glad we talked." Mercedes hugged Rachel, tentatively at first, but friendship and mutual admiration apparently trumps petty rivalry, and the girls genuinely embraced, friends once again.

The remainder of the school day flew by, and by 4:00 Finn dropped Rachel off at her home. She lightly kissed him on the lips and exited from the car. So much for Monday, and the almost carbon-copy days that followed.