Glee: We are Family Chapter 25: The Welcome Home Party, a glee fanfic

Hey there! I hope you're ready, because here's the newest update! Please read, review, but most of all enjoy (though I certainly would love it if you posted a hefty number of reviews). And here's to hoping that you're all looking forward to when Glee comes back from hiatus next month as much as I am (which is a lot) :). Anyway, on with the fic! In this chapter, the Season 3 New Directions alumni celebrate their reunion in full with a dinner party at Breadstix. How will the night go for them? Find out, in this chapter :).

Once again, I do not own Glee. And I don't own any of the songs used in this chapter either.

Chapter 25:

The Welcome Home Party

Four days later, Finn smiled as he dressed up in his best formal attire. Tonight, he had arranged for all the New Directions members from his senior year experience in the glee club, including himself, to go to Breadstix for dinner to celebrate their joyous reunion. His smile widened as he remembered how fifteen of the New Directions members, he himself included, were going to be treating this welcome home party of sorts as a dinner date.

He had never felt happier as he thought of how much fun he would have at Breadstix with Rachel tonight. He also couldn't help but feel happy as he thought of how much fun the experience would be for the other couples among the New Directions alumni as well after all these years, especially for Quinn and Joe since this would be their first official date since they'd become a couple at the Lima Bean four days ago. Upon thinking about all this, Finn felt a twinge of guilt as he thought of how Puck was not only dateless, but would now be forced to undergo the agony of being in the same area as the woman who he would've taken as his date in a heartbeat if she hadn't already been in a perfectly well-functioning relationship with another guy.

Finn smelled the delightful scent of a very familiar perfume, and he immediately removed all thoughts about Puck's current situation from his mind as he was reminded about the enjoyable night he had ahead of him, or in a more literal sense, directly to his right. Smiling, he turned around and saw Rachel standing in front of the entrance to the bathroom connected with his bedroom. She was smiling as well, had carefully washed and combed her hair so that it was as straight as possible just the way Finn liked it, and was wearing a larger version of the same dress she'd been wearing at the reception of Mr. Schuester's failed first wedding attempt with Mrs. Pillsbury.

Still smiling, Finn picked up his wallet, placed it in his pocket, and left the bathroom. However, upon doing so, he noticed Rachel looking meaningfully at his left hand and looked in that direction himself, thus noticing that he was awkwardly carrying his tie in that hand. At the sight of this, Finn sighed. If he'd been allowed to wear a bowtie for tonight's party at Breadstix, he would have had it on in a heartbeat. Rachel, however, had insisted that he wear a regular necktie for this time. And once again, he needed help putting it on.

Rachel chuckled as she politely grabbed the tie and started to assist her boyfriend in putting it on. "Forty years old, and you still haven't learned how to tie a tie," she said as she gently worked on tying the tie.

"It's not my fault that my mom rarely ever took me to church after my dad died," Finn responded. "Besides, every time I've tried, it's been pretty difficult to concentrate enough to remember the proper procedure when I'm already worried that I might accidentally choke myself with it."

"I seriously doubt that people can actually die by accidental self-strangulation through use of a necktie Finn," Rachel replied jokingly.

"Don't be too sure about that Rachel," Finn responded back. "If it's something you tie around your neck in a knot, there's always at least a slight chance of being strangled by it."

Rachel giggled as Finn said all this, and Finn rolled his eyes in mock irritation. For some odd reason, he always liked it when Rachel helped him put on his ties.

Within seconds, Rachel had the tie snugly, but not lethally, tied around Finn's neck. "So," Rachel stated "Are you ready to go?"

"You bet," Finn replied with a smile on his face.

"Good. We don't want to keep our friends waiting at Breadstix for us."

"Indeed we don't," Finn agreed as he and Rachel left the bedroom and made their way to Finn's Jeep Cherokee to get to Breadstix.

. . . . .

Kurt was pacing the floor in the lobby of Breadstix as he and the others waited for Finn and Rachel to arrive. As Kurt did this, the other gleeks could only watch, all trying their best to keep silent to avoid any chance of accidentally stressing Kurt out further. At exactly 6:15, five minutes before the agreed time of beginning the celebration at Breadstix, Kurt said, "What's taking them so long? They should've already been here by now."

At this point, Blaine couldn't take it anymore, and he patiently responded, "Don't worry Kurt. This is Finn and Rachel we're talking about. They will get here sooner or later, and if they're late, it won't be without a good reason."

Kurt sighed, and replied, "You're right; they won't be late without having a good reason for it. Still, I just want them to be here right now. They should have been the first to arrive here. That's what I would have expected anyway considering how well I know them."

"Don't you worry a single bedazzled hair on your head Cobain," said Puck. "Finn promised that he and Rachel would be here tonight for the party, and he's a man of his word."

"That he is," Joe said in agreement.

"Damn straight," Artie chimed in.

"I wish he'd stop saying that," Joe whispered to Quinn out of the corner of his mouth.

Quinn smiled, wrapped her right arm around Joe's left arm, and whispered back in his ear, "It's fine Joe. There's nothing wrong with swearing as long as it doesn't take the name of the Lord in vain."

Puck glared unobtrusively at her. Four days after seeing Quinn and Joe become an official couple again after 23 years, and he still couldn't help but feel green with envy. "She belongs with me," he thought jealously to himself.

"It's a pity that Finn isn't a dragon," said Brittany with a smile. "If he were, then he could have just flown here with Rachel on his back and been here in no time."

Santana rolled her eyes. "True, and then he'd be too big to fit through the doors to enter the restaurant; and that's assuming that he didn't end up getting chased off by the National Guard upon arrival."

Brittany playfully slapped Santana on the shoulder and responded, "Lighten up Santana!"

The other gleeks started laughing. Even Kurt let a humored smile break out on his face.

At that exact moment, Finn and Rachel came into the restaurant, much to the delight of all the other gleeks, and at exactly 6:20 p.m. like agreed.

"Here we are!" Rachel yelled.

"Yes indeed," Kurt agreed. "And just in time to."

Finn wrapped his right arm around Kurt, gave him a hearty slap on the back, and stated, "Lighten up little bro! We'd have been here at exactly 6:00 if it hadn't been for the unexpected traffic, not to mention my ineptitude at tying a tie."

The other gleeks nodded and mumbled in agreement. They all certainly knew how bad Finn was at tying a standard necktie. "I can definitely understand why you took so long to get here then," Kurt stated. "The only ability you have that's worse than your tie-tying skills is your awful dancing."

Upon saying this, Kurt and all the other gleeks started laughing. Even Finn started laughing, for he certainly knew that his dancing skills were legendary among the New Directions members for how terrible they were. "God my dancing skills are horrible," Finn stated in agreement with Kurt, and with a completely straight face. They all started laughing again after Finn said this.

Puck eventually managed to compose himself enough to say, "Enough with the laugh-fest people! It's time to get to our tables and get this party started!"

"Couldn't agree with you more dude," Sam yelled in agreement.

"Let's get this place rocking yo!" Artie shouted out.

As one, all sixteen of the gleeks yelled "Yeah," and made their way into the inner area of the restaurant to take their tables and begin the official public celebration of their reunion together in Lima in earnest.

. . . . .

Long before any of them noticed the piano that had been set up in the center of the area where the New Directions alumni were gathered, all sixteen of them were definitely in the mood to add some music to their celebration that wasn't a stereotypical Italian instrumental tune. Of course, that didn't mean that they had been in the mood to wish away the time they spent beforehand eating their food and engaging in friendly chit-chat.

Puck, of course, was the only person that was definitely in that kind of mood. In fact, he'd have been perfectly willing to wish away the entire experience of him being at Breadstix tonight if it had been possible. Throughout the time, he ate his hefty serving of lasagna very slowly as he spent the majority of the time jealously watching Quinn and Joe. Every time he saw Quinn smile or heard her laugh, he couldn't help but breathe heavily in anger because of how she was doing it in response to something that Joe, and not himself, had done to make her happy.

In fact, for the last few days between this night and the fateful day at the Lima Bean, Puck had tried his hardest to sweep Quinn back into her rightful place with him on her arm instead of Joe. Unfortunately, with every attempt he'd made, he had consistently lost to Joe again and again. The day after seeing Quinn hanging out at the Lima Bean with Joe, Puck had attempted to trick her into going out with him by leaving a note by her door that he'd typed out in which he was pretending to be Joe. Unfortunately, soon after he'd seen Quinn look at it from behind the bush he'd chosen to hide behind for this incident, he'd learned from reading the reply she'd written on the back that A: the notes that Joe and Quinn sent to each other were always hand-written rather than typed like he had done, B: that Joe apparently called Quinn by the pet name of 'Q' rather than 'Madame Fabray," and C: that Joe apparently signed his notes to Quinn under his own pet name of "Joey" that Quinn commonly called him by.

The day after the note failure, Puck had left a bag of butterscotch candies on the front porch of her mother's house as a gift for her, this time with a fake "Joe" note that was properly designed in accompaniment. Unfortunately, he had later learned by watching Quinn's reaction and reading the reply note she'd written that she was allergic to butterscotch.

The day after the candy incident, Puck had tried again to give a romantic gift to Quinn while pretending to be Joe. This time, he'd brought an entire large Philly cheese steak pizza from Domino's over to her mother's house with a note asking her to share it with him. Unfortunately, to his horror, Quinn had opened the box upon sight, made a disgusted look, and then proceeded to toss the entire box into the garbage with the pizza still inside it.

As if to add insult to the injuries, throughout those three incidents, Joe had somehow consistently arrived at the Fabray household directly after Quinn was finished with her reaction to Puck's attempts and with a proper opposite to Puck's attempts. On the day of the note incident, Joe had of course given Quinn a hand-written note with the proper pet-names used. On the day of the candy incident, he had brought her a bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Finally, on the day of the pizza incident, he had brought her a large Brooklyn Style pizza for them to share. And each time, Quinn had smiled, and verified with Joe about whether or not he had been behind the "mistake" gifts. Of course, Joe had constantly smiled in reply and told her no. In fact, on the day of the pizza incident, when Quinn had brought up the Philly cheese steak pizza, Joe had said, "Let me guess; fake Joe has struck again."

Puck snorted angrily as he remembered that particular comment from Joe. He just didn't understand what was going on here. Twenty three years ago, he and Quinn had practically declared their love as endless before Quinn had proceeded to give him a passionate kiss and thus given him the inspiration he needed to truly gather up enough European geography information in his mind to successfully get a C- on his retake of the test. Why wasn't she following through with her word now? Puck took another massive bite from his lasagna angrily as he continued to watch the happy lawyer couple. "She's mine. Hands off," Puck growled to himself in his mind.

Fortunately, none of the other New Directions alumni at Breadstix that night were anywhere close to being in the same foul mood as Puck. As Puck ruefully noted, Quinn and Joe looked as if they could have been on top of the world as they chowed down on their spaghetti. Finn was happily eating lasagna like a gentleman while Rachel dined on her vegetarian mushroom ravioli. Even Artie, Rory, and Sugar were in good spirits as each member of the trio worked on eating their respective main courses. All in all, there could not have been a happier atmosphere in the restaurant where all the other fifteen New Directions alumni were involved.

. . . . .

When Finn finally finished his lasagna, he pushed his plate into the center of his table and leaned back on his seat to relax. Rachel smiled when she saw this, for she herself was on the verge of finishing her ravioli.

All around them, all of their glee club alumni friends had either finished or were close to finishing their meals and were ready for possibly all ordering some cheese cake.

Artie then asked, "You know, am I the only one who's noticed that there's a piano in the room?"

The other gleeks turned their heads in the direction that Artie was pointing, and saw that there was indeed a piano set up on the stage in the center of the circular area where all their booths were located. In fact, not only was there a piano, but someone had even left a guitar, a set of drums, and a few other assorted instruments.

Mercedes grinned at the sight of the instruments, and voiced out to all her peers among the New Directions alumni, "Are you all thinking what I'm thinking?"

"I'm thinking that I agree with you that this calls for some performances," Sam agreed with a smile. The other gleeks eagerly chimed in with their own agreements.

"You've got that right," said Kurt. "This is a New Directions reunion people. It won't really count if we don't do any singing."

"Right you are," said Blaine.

"Well then why don't we go ahead and get this show on the road," Finn asked. "I certainly don't see anyone about to try to stop us."

"Couldn't agree more," Rachel agreed. "Who knows how long it's been since the staff here at Breadstix last got to be treated with some impromptu performances from any of the members of the New Directions? I say we finish off tonight's celebration with some musical performances and cheese cake for dessert."

The other gleeks cheered out in agreement. "Well let's get this started then!" Artie yelled. "Who's up first yo?"

To their surprise, Joe got up from his seat. "There is something that I've been working on for in case any of us ever got the chance to do any performing before we meet up with Mr. Schue and his new batch of students. I thought that the song I chose would be an appropriate way to start things off. After all, it perfectly captures how the music and our experiences in the glee club made our lives so wonderful, and especially since it's something that I'm positive is going to be on Rachel's A-list."

The other gleeks whistled and nodded in agreement. Even Rachel smiled, for now, as the Broadway musical expert she was, she already had a feeling just what song Joe was about to perform. Smiling still, Joe walked up onto the stage, picked up the guitar, and strummed it experimentally to make sure it was set on the right tune and key. He grinned up at his assembled audience of glee club friends, and with a strum of the guitar, he began to sing:

Thank you for the music
The songs I'm singing
Thanks for all the joy
They're bringing
Who can live without it
I ask in all honesty
What would life be
Without a song or a dance what are we?
So I say thank you for the music
For giving it to me

While Joe was singing the opening lines of the song, he didn't even notice Quinn get up from her own seat and move over to the piano before sitting down on the piano seat and preparing herself to join in. Directly after Joe finished singing the last lyric of the opening lines, he heard someone play the instrumental tune preceding the upcoming lyrics on the piano, and smiled when he noticed out of the corner of his eye that Quinn was playing on the piano in accompaniment. Right as Joe turned his head from the guitar to get a full look at her, she sang in her beautiful alto:

Mother says I was
A dancer before I could walk
She says I began
To sing long before I could talk
And I've often wondered
How did it all start?
Who found out that nothing
Can capture a heart
Like a melody can?
Well whoever it was, I'm a fan

The instant Quinn sang out the word "fan," Joe started strumming the guitar at the same time as Quinn started repeatedly tapping one of the piano keys. As this happened, all the other gleeks apart from Puck got up from where they were positioned and headed over towards the stage, and all fifteen of them joyously sang together:

(Quinn, Joe, and New Directions)

So I say
Thank you for the music
The songs I'm singing
Thanks for all the joy
They're bringing
Who can live without it
I ask in all honesty
What would life be
Without a song or a dance what are we?
So I say thank you for the music
For giving it to me
(Quinn)

I've been so lucky
I am the girl with golden hair
I wanna sing it out to everybody
What a joy
What a life
What a chance
(All but Puck)

For giving it to me

For a few seconds after they'd all finished their joyous group number, the fifteen gleeks gathered on the miniature stage smiled happily at each other. Then as one, they all cheered happily.

"Wow!" Finn shouted, his dark eyes agleam on his joyous face. "I can't believe we were actually able to pull this kind of thing off after so many years!"

"Believe it baby," Rachel stated. "New Directions forever!"

"New Directions forever!" shouted all her friends gathered on the stage with her.

"New Directions forever," Puck whispered acerbically under his breath.

Back on the stage, Santana said, "You know what peoples? We needs to do some more performances!"

"Damn right we do!" Mercedes belted in agreement. "Who wants to go next?"

All the other gleeks on stage with her cheered enthusiastically, none of them properly answering the question. Finn himself couldn't have felt happier at this moment. He was here in Breadstix surrounded by all fifteen of his closest friends from his years at McKinley High school, they had just finished a heartfelt performance, and they were all feeling very happy and companionable. His joyous dream was definitely running smoothly now. And even better, he already knew just the song that he and Rachel would sing in front of their friends tonight when their turn came.

. . . . .

Nearly half an hour later, the time finally came for Finn and Rachel to finish off the round of performances for the night. The penultimate performance to take place before them had been Kurt and Blaine performing Just Can't Get Enough, the same song they'd performed together at the wedding reception for Mr. Schuester's first wedding attempt with Mrs. Pillsbury. The last performance preceding them, meanwhile, had been Sam and Mercedes making a performance of Human Nature by Michael Jackson, which they had admitted to the gleeks was a song that they had once performed in a private moment during the Michael Jackson week. At the thought of that, Finn and Rachel looked each other in the eyes and smiled as they realized that their own upcoming performance was very similar in that regard to Sam and Mercedes's performance.

Puck turned his head to Finn and said, "Alright bro. It's your turn."

Finn got up from his seat without hesitation and walked up to the stage. Rachel followed close behind. "Oh great, here we go with another Finchel show stopper that will steal all our thunder," Santana groaned sarcastically.

"Ignoring you," Finn said without even looking at Santana. This comment earned him a sharp glare from Santana.

Rachel walked up to the microphone, tapped it experimentally, and spoke confidently into it, "Alright everyone, I am very happy that we have had such a wonderful time tonight, and I hope you all enjoy the upcoming performance Finn and I are about to treat you to."

Finn walked up to a second microphone that had been set up, and then spoke into it, "You know how Mercedes and Sam said that the song they just performed was a song that they once sang during the Michael Jackson week 23 years ago in the midst of a private moment? Well what we're about to perform was under similar circumstances."

"What do you mean?" Mercedes asked. The other gleeks nodded in agreement with confusion on their faces.

Rachel explained, "Remember how after Kurt and the rest of you guys, not counting you Joe since you weren't a member then, went over to the auditorium to teach the warblers a lesson through the "high road" directly after Santana showed us the evidence she'd gathered that would have gotten Sebastian sent to jail?"

The other gleeks nodded. "Indeed I do," Quinn said. "And now that I think about it, you two did take a pretty long while to get to the auditorium compared to the rest of us."

Finn said, "Well the reason why we took so long is because of how I had proposed to Rachel the week before that week, and she was still trying to decide what her answer would be, so I decided to just give her some help in making her decision by conveying a message of my love for her in the best way I know; through singing. This song that Rachel and I are about to perform for you guys tonight, is the very same duet that we performed in the choir room that day. We're doing this now, because we now want you to see and experience the event for yourselves. However, for this performance, we will at the very least need someone to play the guitar and the piano. Joe, are you willing to come up to play the guitar again?"

Joe smiled, got back up from his seat, and walked over to the stage. Upon reaching it, he picked up the guitar. Finn leaned over and whispered, "Do you know how the Michael Jackson song, I Just Can't Stop Loving You goes?"

"You bet I do," Joe replied with a grin.

"Good," Finn said before turning his head to face Rachel and giving her a thumbs up to signal that Joe knew what to do.

Rachel smiled, looked back at the audience and asked, "Quinn, would you like to join us on stage and play the piano? I know for a fact that you're one of the best piano players among us, and this performance deserves the best in order for us to truly convey the message to you guys."

Quinn smiled, got up from her seat, and replied, "Gladly. You didn't even need to ask since the answer was a guaranteed yes the minute Joe agreed to take part in this performance."

The other gleeks, excluding Puck that is, stated their approval. Quinn proceeded to walk on the stage, and Rachel asked her if she knew the tune for the song, and Quinn smiled in response. She did indeed know how the song went, and thus the correct notes to play on the piano.

Within seconds, Finn and Rachel had taken their places so that they were each facing each other from opposite sides of the piano while Quinn was seated at the piano and Joe was standing nearby with the guitar in hand. Joe winked to signal that he was ready, Quinn gave Finn and Rachel a thumbs-up, and Finn and Rachel smiled.

Finn then winked at Quinn, and Quinn started playing the opening notes to I Just Can't Stop Loving You. Joe started strumming the opening notes of the song on the guitar at the same time. The other gleeks grinned happily at the sound of the tune, for they could certainly understand why Finn had chosen this kind of song to convey the message he'd wanted to convey to Rachel at the time. When the time was right, Finn and Rachel, who were even at that very moment feeling exactly the way they had when they'd performed this song twenty three years ago, joyously made their performance; and it went something like this:

(Finn)

Each time the wind blows
I hear your voice so
I call your name...
Whispers at morning
Our love is dawning
Heaven's glad you came...
You know how I feel
This thing can't go wrong
I'm so proud to say
I love you
Your love's got me high
I long to get by
This time is forever
Love is the answer
(Rachel)
I hear your voice now
You are my choice
Now the love you bring
Heaven's in my heart
At your call
I hear harps,
And angels sing
You know how I feel
This thing can't go wrong
I can't live my life
Without you
(Finn)
I just can't hold on
(Rachel)
I feel we belong
(Finn)
My life ain't worth living
If I can't be with you
(Finn and Rachel)
I just can't stop loving you
I just can't stop loving you
And if I stop... then tell me just what
Will I do
'Cause I just can't stop
Loving you
(Finn)
At night when the
Stars shine
I pray in you I'll find
A love so true...
(Rachel)
When morning awakes me
Will you come and take me
I'll wait for you
(Finn)
You know how I feel
I won't stop until
I hear your voice saying
"I do"
(Rachel)
"I do"
This thing can't go wrong
(Finn)
This feeling's so strong
(Rachel)
Well, my life ain't
Worth living
(Finn and Rachel)
If I can't be with you
I just can't stop loving you
I just can't stop loving you
And if I stop...
Then tell me, just what
Will I do
I just can't stop loving you
(Rachel)
We can change all the world tomorrow
(Finn)
We can sing songs of yesterday
(Rachel)
I can say, Hey... Farewell
To sorrow
(Finn)
This is my life and I,
(Finn and Rachel)
Want to see you for always
I just can't stop loving you
(Rachel)
No, baby,
Oh!
(Finn and Rachel)
I just can't stop loving you
(Rachel)
If I can't stop!
(Finn)
And if I stop...
(Finn and Rachel)
No
(Finn)
Tell me just what will I do?
(Rachel: what will I do)
(Rachel)
I just can't stop loving you
(Finn)
Hee! Hee! Hee!
Know I Do Girl!
(Finn and Rachel)
I just can't stop loving you
(Finn)
You know I do
(Finn and Rachel)
And if I stop...
Then tell me, just what
Will I do
I just can't stop loving you

Seconds after the performance finished, all the other gleeks in the audience cheered. Joe and Quinn also clapped their hands and joined in the applause from where they were positioned on the stage.

Finn and Rachel smiled, clasped each other's hands, and then bowed to the audience. This resulted in their fellow gleeks letting out an even more hearty applause.

When Finn and Rachel straightened back up again, Rachel said to the audience, "Thank you very much everyone for watching this performance. We are happy that we were able to finally allow you to share this wonderful moment from my life, and that of Finn's, alongside us."

"Thanks Rachel," Blaine said with a happy grin.

"You're welcome," Rachel replied.

Finn smiled, and stated, "This performance may have taken place 23 years after the first time Rachel and I performed it, but the message behind this song for us is still true to this day. I know that you all might have all heard this same message too many times for you to truly take it seriously anymore, but it is true. True love isn't something that you choose; it chooses you. Rachel and I, we are a living example of that.

"Throughout all the drama we've gone through for all these years starting back in high school, we have always ended up remaining in a deep friendship, getting back together eventually after every breakup, and have never, ever, stopped loving each other. Even now, the one thing about our relationship together that will never change is how much we love each other. For those of you who have found a similar form of love in someone, we couldn't be happier for you. For those of you who have not yet found that person, then we wish you the best of luck. Rachel and I both know how it feels, and how even when it seems as if it had ended forever, it truly never stops no matter where we live, or what dopes we're shacked up with.

"We want you to be able to have a chance at experiencing the same pure, true, and unending love that Rachel and I have always had, and will always have, for each other ever since we first fell in love during our sophomore year in high school. We want you to find that special person that you just know instinctively deep in your heart is the person you want to spend the rest of your life with; your soul mate. We know what good people you all are at heart, and how wonderful the feeling is, and we believe that all of us deserve a chance at it. I know how the love that Rachel and I have is a treasure worth more than any other, and that it is something that you will never find a worthy replacement for no matter how badly you want to. This song was just the right song in my mind to convey this message to Rachel, and I hope that it will prove to do the same for you all in the end."

"That, Finn Hudson, was the most beautiful speech you have ever made," Rachel said in awe of Finn's heartfelt speech.

"To think that I, or anyone else, could have ever doubted the true depth of your love," Quinn said wistfully.

"For once, I am completely unable to think of a bible quote I could make that would truly be appropriate for this moment," Joe said. "I guess all I can say is, wow. I know for a fact from my experiences in life so far that the kind of love you and Rachel have isn't always obtained by everyone. Sometimes people can wander for countless years and never find it. The fact that you found it so early in your lifetime is a true miracle. I guess it's correct what they say; when you find true love, you don't even know how you know that it truly is that; you just know, deep in your heart, that that's what it is."

"I couldn't have said it better myself," Finn said with a look of admiration on his face.

"In your case, that's no exaggeration. I certainly wouldn't have expected you to give off that speech you gave earlier considering what I remember about you during our high school and University of Lima experiences," Puck said. All the performances that night had served to mellow him out of his funk over his situation regarding Quinn for the moment.

Finn sighed, rolled his eyes, and whispered to Rachel, "I have got to stop giving Puck openings for him to say stuff like that."

"Don't let that get you down Finn," Rachel whispered back confidently. "You know he means well."

Finn smiled at her, winked, and replied, "Thanks Rachel."

At that moment, all sixteen gleeks then heard a very familiar new voice coming from the entrance to the area of the restaurant they were in say, "Well I'm glad that you all enjoyed your welcome home celebration, because now it's time for you all to be welcomed back home by someone other than yourselves, your families, and the paparazzi."

The other gleeks all faced the area where the voice had come from, gaping in shock when they saw who was now standing in that area, smiling proudly at them. With a vest on, his kind hearted and passionate eyes gleaming with pride at them, and his curly dark brownish blonde hair in the same trademark style that Sue Sylvester had always teased him about, it was all too obvious who this man was, or even could be at all.

"Mr. Schue!" Finn yelled out in surprise and happiness. The other gleeks all screamed happily out in surprise and joy to see their former teacher there at Breadstix to greet them. Before long, they all rushed over to him, and the teacher just barely had time to brace himself before all sixteen of his former students from so many years ago embraced him in a massive group hug. Mr. Schuester couldn't help but smile as he was tightly hugged by his former students. Now, in their company, he felt as if they had never been apart at all. At that moment, he felt as if he'd gone back in time all the way to when he'd still had all sixteen of these students in the choir room with him. And at that moment, he vowed that he would make sure that he made the next few months he had up ahead with them truly count.

Well, here's the new chapter everybody. I hope you enjoy this, and leave lots of reviews :). Did you like how I had Mr. Schuester drop by at the end? I hope so. I also hope you enjoyed my music selections, especially the song I chose to have Finn and Rachel sing. That particular song is my absolute favorite Finchel duet. For all you Finchel fans out there, I am not afraid to admit how I still feel the pain of how Finchel will now be unable to exist in full anymore within the canonical universe of Glee, nor to admit how I've wished and begged in my mind so many times for Cory to come back. But he can't, and never will. I can only hope that he's watching me right now from the brightest star in the sky and smiling in support of my work on this. We can get through this together people, and I know that you already know this, but it's up to us now to keep Finn, and the blessed Finchel pairing alive through our fanfiction writing. It's what Cory would have wanted us to do, and it's something that I know Lea would agree with. Well anyway, please read, review, an enjoy (but definitely review).

Coming up next: Mr. Schuester gets back in touch with the way things have been for all his former students from season 3, fills them in on his current batch of students, and makes arrangements for bringing the two generations together. Meanwhile, back at McKinley, the new generation of New Directions is as hard at work as ever. Will they be ready for the day of the promised "special surprise" that was mentioned to them all the way back in chapter 5? Find out, on the next update! :)