The next morning, Rachel and Carly bid the former's fathers goodbye with a kiss on their cheeks and rushed out, as fast as two pregnant women could, and joined Puck in his truck. Rachel kissed him in greeting before settling back in her seat and letting him drive her to school.
Once they were there, Rachel kissed Puck goodbye as he went to football practise and she went to Mr Schuester's office to talk. Carly walked part way with Rachel until the choir room where they parted ways.
"What was it you wanted to talk to me about?" Rachel asked after she entered the office and she sat down in the chair Mr Schuester pointed to.
"I love your mom, you know that right?" Mr Schuester started. Rachel nodded in reply and smiled, happy that this was what he wanted to discuss. "I want to marry her," he admitted.
Rachel's smile increased. "Oh my gosh, you have to ask her!"
"You don't mind?" Mr Schuester asked, doubt clear in his face.
"No, of course not! She loves you and I know you're going to be an amazing husband for her, Mr Schue!"
"Thank you, Rach," Mr Schuester replied smiling gratefully. "However, seeing as I'll become your stepfather," his grin growing proud at this, "It's probably best if you call me Will when it's us."
"Okay, Will," Rachel said laughing slightly as she started getting up out of her chair.
"Oh just before you leave, could you distract your mom just before glee starts so I can get the choir room set up and fill in the others?" Will asked. "I'll tell Noah to text you when we're ready."
"Of course," Rachel replied. "That will be fine."
She then stood and hugged him before walking out of the room with a slight spring in her step. She got many funny looks, she was used to that, but she couldn't keep the smile off of her face. No matter how many questions she got from Santana, Puck and Quinn, well everyone really, she didn't reveal why she was in a good mood.
When she went to her English lesson that afternoon, she smiled at her mother knowingly. Shelby gave her a questioning look in return but Rachel just shook her head and sat between Santana and Kurt as always.
The lesson passed quickly but Shelby kept looking over to her daughter and her friends. Rachel's smile never left her face despite the lesson being a little boring. Yes, Shelby knew when her lessons were boring or not but looking at poetry from the 19th century was compulsory whether she liked teaching it or not. At the end of the lesson, she called Rachel back to stay.
"What's up, Mom?" Rachel asked giddily.
"What's up with you? You haven't stopped smiling all lesson!" Shelby questioned lightly.
Rachel laughed. Was she really that moody usually that everyone continuously asked her what was the matter with her smile?
"Nothing," Rachel replied quickly, "I'm just in an extremely good mood. I have to go though, so I'll see you in glee!"
She leant forward and hugged her mom tightly before exiting the room, her smile still etched onto her face.
oOoOo
Rachel's last lesson that day was Chemistry with Santana and instead of walking to glee like she usually did with her best friend, Rachel said that she needed to grab something from her locker first and would meet her in glee. Santana was confused, this never happened but she hugged Rachel before heading off to meet Brittany to walk into glee together.
Pausing to think for a moment, Rachel had to decide where her mom would be. Then it hit her. Puck and Mercedes had English last today so Shelby would be heading from her classroom to the choir room. Rachel then walked down the corridor and waited by the fountain that Shelby would pass. Glancing at her watch to check the time, Rachel knew her mother would be there anytime soon and she was proved correct. The familiar clicking of Shelby's high heels was heard and she looked up and smiled brightly.
"Rach, why aren't you in glee?" Shelby asked as she walked closer to her daughter.
"I was waiting for you!" Rachel replied sweetly and held her hand out for her mother to take.
Confusing was obvious on Shelby's beautiful features but happiness and comfort was also there with the fact that Rachel was holding her hand. They started walking to the choir room but Rachel made sure that their walk was slow until she got the text from Puck which arrived just a few corners away from the choir room.
After she'd read the message, Rachel started walking faster literally pulling her mother along behind her in excitement.
"Jesus Rachel, one minute you're going snail pace and now a cheetah!" Shelby cried. "What's going on?!"
"I don't actually know," Rachel replied still smiling.
They then reached the choir room and it looked pretty much similar to normal except Mr Schuester was wearing an extremely smart suite. Rachel rushed over and sat in between Santana and Puck, the latter holding his hand out for her to take and Shelby stepped forward until she was standing before Will.
"Will?" Shelby asked cautiously.
Mr Schuester said nothing but knelt down on one knee in front of Shelby, clicking towards the band that started playing immediately. The New Directions sang in the background creating more texture and a sweeter sound to the song. It wasn't as fast as the original; Will had changed it to more of a ballad instead of a pop song in attempt to lessen the corniness.
"Love me or leave me, make your choice but believe me
I love you
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do
I can't conceal it, don't you see, can't you feel it?
Don't you too?
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do
Shelby, please say it, you love me and you know it
I love you
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do
I can't conceal it, I love you and can't you feel it?
Say I do?
I do, I do, I do, I do, I do"
It was still rather corny but romantic in the same way. When the short performance was over, Will reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box containing a diamond ring before beginning his speech.
"I know we haven't been together for that long but I've never been happier than I am when I'm with you," he began. He paused and swallowed and glanced at Quinn quickly before continuing, "I want you, Beth and Rachel to be my proper family and someday soon that will include Noah and the babies. I love you so much, Shelby, and I would be honoured if you would accept my proposal and become my wife."
Shelby hadn't been able to anything but stare in awe since she entered the room. Her brain finally fitting all the pieces of the puzzle together over the assignment, Will asking Rachel to meet him the next day and the reason why Rachel had been smiling all day.
"I don't recall hearing a question," she murmured when she was finally able to say something.
"Shelby Elizabeth Corcoran," Will said as he took her right hand in his and holding the box containing the ring in his other hand, "Will you do me the greatest honour of becoming my wife?"
"Yes!" Shelby all but screamed.
Will took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her finger before standing up and pulling her into a passionate kiss while all the New Directions clapped. Rachel then rushed forward and joined the hug with Puck soon following her. Before they all knew it, the whole club were hugging with Will and Shelby in the middle staring each other in the eye.
The congratulations died down but the smiles never left any of their faces and Will didn't seem to want to let go of Shelby's left hand with the ring glittering on her finger.
"I had planned to sing a song today myself actually," Shelby admitted.
"You can still sing it if you like," Will replied.
Shelby managed to release her hand from Will's grasp but kissed him to cease his pouting.
"As much as I am extremely happy at being engage to you, Will, this song is actually for my daughter," Shelby announced.
Mr Schuester laughed slightly, "It's perfectly okay."
Shelby looked over to the band and nodded in confirmation to the song. She had spoken to the guitarist in her earlier English lesson with him.
"So yeah, Rach, this is for you," Shelby muttered before singing.
"Schoolbag in hand, she leaves home in the early morning
Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile
I watch her go with a surge of that well-known sadness
And I have to sit down for a while
The feeling that I'm losing her forever
And without really entering her world
I'm glad whenever I can share her laughter
That funny little girl
Slipping through my fingers all the time
I try to capture every minute
The feeling in it
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Do I really see what's in her mind
Each time I think I'm close to knowing
She keeps on growing
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Sleep in our eyes, her and me at the breakfast table
Barely awake, I let precious time go by
Then when she's gone there's that odd melancholy feeling
And a sense of guilt I can't deny
What happened to the wonderful adventures
The places I had planned for us to go
(slipping through my fingers all the time)
Well, some of that we did but most we didn't
And why I just don't know
Slipping through my fingers all the time
I try to capture every minute
The feeling in it
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Do I really see what's in her mind
Each time I think I'm close to knowing
She keeps on growing
Slipping through my fingers all the time"
True to the film, Rachel stepped forward at this moment and took her mother's hand and started singing with her.
"Sometimes I wish that I could freeze the picture
And save it from the funny tricks of time
Slipping through my fingers..."
When it was over, Rachel didn't move. She continued to hold her mother's hand and Shelby finished the song looking straight at Rachel with a smile gracing her face.
"Schoolbag in hand she leaves home in the early morning
Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile..."
The choir room erupted in applause and everyone gave them a standing ovation. Rachel pulled slightly on her mother's hand pulling her in for a tight hug.
"I love you, Mom," Rachel whispered into Shelby's ear.
"I love you, too, my sweet darling daughter," Shelby replied just as quietly and kissed Rachel on the temple before pulling back.
Mr Schuester decided to leave the rehearsal there as he really wanted to go home and spend more time with his soon to be wife and soon to be step daughter.
With Carly going with Finn to his house, Rachel and Puck had the house to themselves for a couple of hours until Hiram and Leroy returned home. Puck started to take advantage of this but Rachel quickly put her foot down.
"I want to talk about something serious," she murmured. Puck groaned but pulled back from kissing her neck and took her hand, leading her to the sofa where she sat on his lap and they wrapped their arms around the other.
"What's up, baby?" He asked.
"Do you think our children should call Mr Schuester a form of grandfather?"
This question caught Puck off guard. Never did he think this would be something to consider with her but it had crossed his mind but he had shrugged it off as when the thought passed through his head, Shelby and Will were only dating. It was different now that they were going to be getting married.
"I think it's fair," Puck replied honestly. He then leant forward to kiss Rachel on her nose. She giggled before her serious face came back.
"I just don't want it to be confusing for them."
"Why would it be?" He asked. "My dad's not gonna be around so I'm sure your dads will be Granddad and Grandpa. Mr Schue can be Gramps of something. You said that you call Shelby's dad that."
Rachel considered this and realised that Puck was right. It was one of the few moments that he actually was. Just as she was about to reply, her phone started to ring and saw that it was her mom.
"Mom?" She said after answering her phone.
"Hey sweetie," Shelby greeted on the other end. "My mom's just rang me saying that she wants us to visit again this weekend. She wants Will and Noah there too. Is that okay?"
"Oh, we were just talking about Gran and Gramps," Rachel mused. "Let me just ask Noah."
She took the phone away from her ear and repeated what her mother had said to Puck. He paled slightly in anticipation but then nodded reluctantly. Rachel had said that he'd get on with her family rather well; it was just going to be the initial meeting that would freak him out slightly.
"Yeah, he's fine with it," Rachel said after she replaced the phone back to her ear. "Is that all you wanted?"
"No actually. Will and I want to invite you both out for a meal on Friday before we go to Columbus on Saturday. Quinn has said she'll look after Beth for us," Shelby revealed.
"That's great. We'll be there," Rachel replied not bothering to tell Puck what was going on; she'd tell him in a bit.
"Okay, I need to get back to my FIANCÉ! Sorry, I had to," Shelby added when she heard Rachel giggle slightly. "Love you, Rachel."
"Love you, too, Mom. See you tomorrow."
Rachel then hung up the phone call and chucked her phone lightly onto the chair in front of the sofa she was sitting on. She then leant back and Puck started to kiss her ear, biting the lobe slightly. Her lips parted slightly as she enjoyed his attention.
"Who's the 'we' in 'we'll be there'," he murmured into her ear.
"My m-mom asked u-us to go out f-for a m-m-meal with her and m-Mr Schuester Friday n-night," she stammered wishing Pucks mouth would return to her ear.
"Sounds perfect," he replied and kissed her fully until the sound of the front door opening was heard and the pulled back.
Leroy and Hiram walked through the front door carrying grocery bags. The teens rushed off the sofa to help with putting them away. Carly returned home not soon after and helped putting the last few things away. They then stayed in the kitchen and watched Leroy cook their dinner and ate together as they usually did.
When it got late, Puck bid everyone goodbye and kissed Rachel sweetly before going home and spending the rest of the evening with him mom and sister. Rachel bid her dads and Carly goodnight and started going through her usual nightly rituals. However, she had to pause them as her phone started to ring. Sighing slightly, she wiped her hands on her towel to remove the moisturiser and picked up her phone. She had presumed it was Puck saying that he missed her, which is what he did most nights, but it wasn't.
"Hello, Mia!" She greeted enthusiastically. It had been around a week since she'd last spoken to any of her mother's family and she'd missed her conversations with Amelia the most. She tried to ring her grandmother often but her busy schedule with school, homework, glee and Puck prevented her from talking to her family.
"Hey, Rach. A little birdy had just told me that you, your boyfriend, your mom and her FIANCÉ are coming over this weekend," Amelia replied.
"Yes, that's true," Rachel said happily. "I'm so excited for you to meet Noah but please tell Gramps to be kind."
From the phone calls Rachel had had with her granddad Jack, she figured that he would want to have a sit down with Puck and discuss his future plans and his commitments. It would be a similar conversation Puck had with Leroy and Hiram. Rachel was blessed that her grandfather would do this because he cared, but she didn't really want it to happen. She didn't want a reason for Puck to leave her.
"I shall do but you've come to realise what your grandfather is like," Mia sighed.
The two started discussing what Rachel had been up to since they last talk and Rachel revealed about the doubt about Puck and Shelby's great news. In return, Mia told Rachel about what she had been occupied with. There wasn't much but Rachel liked to hear about it.
About half an hour later, Rachel realised that it was getting late and she still had to finish her ritual before she could go to sleep.
"I'm afraid I have to go, Mia," she murmured.
"I'm sorry I rang so late, I presumed Noah would have been over," Mia replied.
"Yeah, he left about an hour ago, but I need my beauty sleep."
"And do your time consuming nightly routine," Amelia presumed.
"How did you-"
"You're talking to the woman who grew up with your mom," Amelia reminded Rachel, "Night sweetie."
"Night, Mia," Rachel said and hung up her phone for the second time that night.
She quickly finished her routine and flipped her light switch off before climbing into bed, counting down the few days to going back to Columbus.