A/N – Thank you so much for all of your reviews and notes and for continuing to read. Some of you guys have come up with some really great ideas for the story and, I'll be honest, I hadn't even thought of a few of them. Please keep the ideas coming because I love to hear what you guys think. I hope you enjoy this one. Thanks!
Disclaimer – I still don't own Glee.
"That's Nicky Arnstein," Rachel said. "They're going to end up falling in love. Of course, Fanny loves him already."
Rachel smiled at the screen as the two boys flanked on either side of her groaned. Jack to her left and Michael to her right had been excited when Rachel had asked them if they wanted to watch a movie with her. They were sitting together on the couch in the music room and Rachel had been explaining Funny Girl to them the same way John Madden would call a football game and the boys had had just about enough of the play-by-play.
"Rachel," Jack said.
"Wait a second. Listen to her sing," Rachel said.
Shelby stepped into the room to see how they were doing and lingered in the doorway to watch. She was just now seeing what movie Rachel had picked, though she had her suspicions. She had tried to warn the boys that letting Rachel choose might not be the best idea.
"We already heard her singing a few times," Michael complained.
"Yeah, I thought you said this movie was good," Jack said.
"It is good," Rachel said, scandalized. "It's the best."
"It's old!" Michael said.
"So!" Rachel said. "That doesn't mean it can't be good."
"It kinda does," Jack said. "Can't we watch Star Wars instead?"
"Star Wars is old too!" Rachel argued.
"Not this old," Jack said. "And nobody sings."
"And there's lots of cool fights," Michael said.
"And Darth Vader," Jack said.
"And light sabers," Michael said.
"But it doesn't have Barbra Streisand," Rachel countered.
"Who?" the boys asked together.
Shelby saw Rachel's face register in shock and she decided to spare her nephews the lecture they were about to receive.
"How's it going in here?" Shelby asked as she stepped further into the room.
"Aunt Shelby, she's making us watch… this," Michael said as he pointed to the screen. He said 'this' in a way that made it seem like he couldn't even bear to say the movie's name.
"Mom, they don't know who Barbra Streisand is," Rachel said.
"Honey, this may not have been the best choice for a movie," Shelby said as she put a hand on Rachel's head and smoothed it over her hair.
"But they said I could pick," Rachel told her.
"Yeah, but we thought you'd pick something good," Jack said.
"I did!" Rachel said.
"How about Transformers?" Shelby asked before Rachel could get going again and the boys' faces lit up.
"Yeah!" Michael said.
"But I thought you said you wanted to watch a good movie," Rachel said.
"It is a good movie," Michael said.
"Hardly," Rachel said. "It's a-"
"Rach," Shelby cut her off. Jack was already up and switching out the DVDs.
"But Mom," Rachel whined.
"Quinn is here," Shelby said. "Come on."
"Already?" Rachel asked as she got up and left with Shelby. "Jesse won't be here for two more hours. Everyone is going a little crazy over this. I've been on dates before. I've been on dates with Jesse before as a matter of fact."
"Are you not excited?" Shelby asked, stopping her on the stairs.
"No, I'm excited," Rachel said. "But you guys are acting like this is something brand new for me."
"It's brand new for us," Shelby said. They started their way down the stairs again.
Rachel was headed for the stairway to take her to the living room but was stopped when Shelby took her arm and led her into the master bedroom.
"I thought you said Quinn was here," Rachel said, confused.
"She is," Shelby said. "But I want to talk to you for a second. Have a seat." Rachel sat on the edge of the bed and her feet dangled over the side because the bed was tall and she couldn't reach the floor.
"Since this is you first date since you've been living with me, I wanted to talk to you before you went out," Shelby continued.
"Mom," Rachel said to try and cut her off because she knew where this was going.
"Rachel, just listen," Shelby said. "I want you to go and have a good time tonight, but I want you to remember that you are still very young. I know you've gone out before and I know you've been in…situations, but you're not alone anymore and you have someone to talk to if you want to discuss any questions you may have."
"Mom, I'm not planning on having sex with Jesse tonight," Rachel said.
"Oh, I know," Shelby said, laughing nervously a bit at Rachel's bluntness. "But sometimes, it's not planned and things just happen. You have all of these hormones and desires and-"
"Mom," Rachel cut her off. "How about you just give me a condom and then that way you know I'll be safe."
"Rachel, that's not what I meant!" Shelby gasped out, shocked. "I don't want you to be safe. No, I mean I do want you to be safe, of course. But not tonight." Rachel cocked her head to the side and smiled a little bit, amused at having flustered her mother. "No, tonight too. Always. Always be safe. I'm saying that I don't want you having sex tonight."
"Ok," Rachel said. She got up off the bed and stepped around her still shocked mother and moved towards the door. "Though I suppose it will have to be soon since he's going back to school next week." With that she gave her mother a mischievous smile and then slipped out the door.
"Rachel, wait," Shelby said as she hurried to catch up with her. "You're not ready."
Rachel stopped in the hallway and turned to look at her mother. "I know." Rachel took both of Shelby's hands in her own and asked, "Are you ok, Mom?"
"Yes," Shelby answered.
"Good. And while, I appreciate your efforts to give me a birds and bees speech again, I don't really need it," Rachel told her.
"Honey, you're only fifteen," Shelby said. "Yes you do."
"I looked up the answers to all of my questions a while ago," Rachel said. "And it seems to make you uncomfortable so why should you go through it if I already know?"
"You looked them up?"
"On the internet."
"Of course," Shelby said. "Let's have that talk anyway. I'll try not to be uncomfortable and you can just consider it a refresher."
"If you think it's necessary," Rachel shrugged. "It'll be different having a woman to talk to about it. Ok, let's talk, woman to woman."
"How about mother to daughter," Shelby said as she took Rachel's hand and led her back into the bedroom.
Two hours later Rachel was still in her room with Quinn and Maggie when they heard the doorbell ring and Rachel went to the window to look out.
"I hope they don't embarrass me down there," Rachel said. "You guys are acting like it's prom," she said to Maggie.
"This is new and exciting for us, Rachel," Maggie said. "I have known your grandparents and Sam and Shelby a really long time and, trust me, this would have been our reaction to your first date had you lived with Shelby your whole life."
"But it's not my first date," Rachel reminded her.
"Details, details," Maggie said. "Your grandfather liked to torture any boy that came to the door for your mother. Sam and I used to have a lot of fun with it."
"How long have you known Sam?" Quinn asked.
"Since we were in junior high; middle school now," Maggie answered. "Shelby is younger than us and was his annoying shadow for a good while so we had fun getting back at her when she started to date. We'd tell Paul all sorts of things about the guys who were coming to pick her up that weren't true."
"Aunt Maggie," Rachel laughed. "That's not very nice."
"But it's a lot of fun," Maggie said.
Downstairs both Paul and Sam stood intimidatingly in the living as they waited for Shelby to open the door. They had brushed off her order to be nice and were waiting to meet the boy. Shelby felt sorry for Jesse and her soft spot for him was shining through as she sent one last glare at the men in her family before opening the door.
"Hi, Jesse. Please come in."
"Hi, Shelby. Thanks," Jesse said as he stepped into the house. He had been there many times as a member of Vocal Adrenaline and he felt comfortable inside; until he saw Paul and Sam looming.
"Jesse, these are my parents Paul and Rebecca and this is my brother Sam," Shelby said. "Everyone, this is Jesse St. James."
"It's nice to meet you," Jesse said warmly, turning on his charm. He knew what they were doing. "Is Rachel ready?"
"Not quite," Paul answered. "Where do you plan on taking her?" Jesse looked nice, but was still casual.
"A place I know she'll love," Jesse answered. "I've got it all worked out."
"That's not really an answer," Sam said.
"It's a surprise," Jesse told them.
"For her," Paul said. "Not us."
"Dad," Shelby said. "Let him have his surprise."
"What other surprises do you have planned?" Paul said.
"Oh god," Shelby muttered.
"Excuse me?" Jesse asked.
"A boy your age. Already in college," Paul said. "We're not naïve. She's younger than you."
"Yes sir, I know," Jesse said.
"Dad," Shelby said.
"I don't want to see one hair out of place on her head when she comes home," Paul said.
What do you think we're going to be doing?" Jesse asked.
"I think you know," Paul said.
"I know that I plan on showing her a nice time tonight," Jesse said.
"That nice time better not include what I think it does," Paul said angrily.
"I suppose that would be up to her now, wouldn't it?" Jesse said defiantly, his charm not working.
"Jesse!" Shelby scolded.
"She's not going," Paul said.
"What?" Jesse and Shelby asked at the same time, both turning to look at Paul.
"You just heard him, Shelby. You'd let your daughter go out with him?"
"Rachel and I have been out before," Jesse said, his cocky nature shining through.
"Come with me," Shelby said as she pulled Jesse towards the kitchen. She pushed him into the room and then went back to her dad. "What are you doing?"
"What are you doing?" Paul countered.
"I'm waiting to watch my little girl go out on a date," Shelby said. "I was fully prepare to let you guys have your fun and scare him a little, but don't start telling him or me what Rachel will and won't be doing. She's a good kid. And Jesse is a good kid. I'm not going to be that parent that treats dates horribly." This wasn't exactly true, Shelby knew. It helped that she already knew Jesse.
"I wasn't treating him horribly," Paul said.
"Well then how about don't embarrass Rachel," Shelby said. "She already thinks we're being crazy so let's not prove her right."
"Prove you right about what?" Rachel asked from the top of the stairs. All eyes turned to her as she started to descend the stairs. She was wearing tight jeans with black boots and a green top. Her hair was straight and glimmering and there was worry etched on her face. "Where's Jesse?"
"You look beautiful," Shelby said. Rachel matched Jesse's casual but dressy attire and Shelby knew the boy would approve. "Say goodbye to everyone and I'll get Jesse."
When Shelby walked back into the kitchen, Jesse stood up immediately because he knew that glide and posture very well. This wasn't just some date's mom, this was Coach Corcoran.
"Jesse," Shelby said quietly, yet firmly. "Listen to me. My dad made it a sport of intimidating my dates and none of them ever talked back to him so he wasn't quite sure how to react. So let me do it for him. I know that you tried to sleep with Rachel once and that she said she wasn't ready. Well, she still isn't ready. Do you understand that?"
"Yes," Jesse answered. "I understood it then too, you know. She told me she was ready and then when it came to it, she wasn't and I never said another word about it. I've never tried to pressure her. Shelby, I just want to have a nice time tonight. I have something planned that I know Rachel will like and I will too."
Shelby smiled despite herself and nodded. "Then you two had better get going."
Jesse and Shelby joined the group in the living room and he stopped short when he saw Quinn. "Rachel, what is she-"
"I'll explain it all later," Rachel said. "Bye everyone." She tried to usher Jesse towards the door as fast as possible.
"Wait, let me get a picture," Rebecca said. She stepped past her still fuming husband and son and towards Rachel and Jesse.
"Oh my god," Rachel muttered and looked to her mother for help, but Shelby just grinned.
Rachel and Jesse stopped and posed for a few pictures before finally Rebecca felt she had enough.
"Be home by ten, Rachel," Paul said as the kids were headed towards the door. Rachel looked over her should at him like he was crazy and then looked to Shelby.
"Eleven," Shelby told her.
"Thanks, Mom. Bye."
The front door closed and the rest of the Corcorans plus Quinn just stood there and looked at it for a few moments. It was the blonde guest that broke the silence.
Quinn moved to stand by Shelby and said, "Our little girl is all grown up." She sniffled a bit playfully and looked over at her. Shelby put a hand on her side of Quinn's head and gave her a gentle shove before she started to laugh. Even Paul cracked a smile.
"Where are we headed?" Rachel asked once they were away from the house and in the car. He leaned over from the driver's side and gave her a kiss.
"You'll see," he answered before putting the car in gear and driving away.
It was half an hour before Jesse pulled into the empty parking lot of a local community theater. The whole place was dark and Rachel gave him a bewildered look when he got out of the car.
"What are we doing here?" she asked when he opened her door.
"Playing," Jesse said.
They made their way around the side of the building and to the stage door.
"I'm sure it's locked," Rachel said.
"Nope," Jesse said as he turned the knob and held the door open for her.
"Jesse, we can't just go in there," Rachel said. "Isn't this breaking and entering or something?"
"Not if the door is unlocked," Jesse said. "I used to do Community Theater here all the time and I know the owners. The place is ours for the night."
Rachel smiled as they wondered around backstage. She looked through various props and backdrops and costumes until she finally settled her eyes on Jesse again. She pulled him forward into a kiss and then hugged him. "This is fantastic."
Jesse went back to bins full of props and looked through them until he found what he was looking for; a mask. It wasn't exactly a phantom mask, but it would have to do. He put it on and started singing "The Music of the Night" and pulled Rachel with him until they were standing center stage and looking out into the empty theater. Rachel only listened through the first verse and then she joined in and harmonized with him. When the song was over, they both looked at each other for a few moments before grinning like kids in a candy shop and then rushed back to the props.
"Are you sure she's going to be ok with that boy?" Paul asked…again.
"Yes, Dad," Shelby answered.
"He seemed like a nice boy," Rebecca said.
"He was rude," Paul said.
"So were you," Shelby answered.
"You're not at all concerned?" Paul asked.
"No," Shelby said. "I talked to both of them today and feel confident that they can make the right decisions."
"I have a question," Maggie said as she joined the group in the living room after putting her sons to bed. She wanted to steer the conversation away from Jesse. "Does Rachel always have a hard time referring to us as her family?"
"What?" Rebecca asked. "I thought she was ok with all of that."
Shelby sighed and looked down at her hands.
"I'm asking because she doesn't seem to have any trouble calling you guys Nana and Grandpa and you Uncle Sam and me Aunt Maggie, but it's only here. At the mall when we ran into her father she introduced me as 'Shelby's sister-in-law' and I corrected her."
"She called me mom after one meeting," Shelby said thinking back on when Rachel walked into the Carmel auditorium wearing her horrible stuffed animal Gaga costume. "But she often times refers to you guys as my family as if she still has trouble counting herself as part of it. She struggles with it. And her talking to her dads recently hasn't helped."
"So there's no meaning behind the names for her?" Sam asked.
"No, there is," Shelby assured them. "She loves you guys, but it's just weird for her. She's not used to an extended family.
"Is there anything we can do to help her feel like we're her family all the time?" Maggie asked.
Shelby shrugged. "Just everything you have been doing. She knows. She's just always waiting for the other shoe to drop."
"Maybe she could come and spend a weekend with us or something," Maggie said. "Just her. Something so that she feels more included or something."
"Maybe," Shelby said. "It'd have to be something we talk to her about."
"That's a lovely idea," Rebecca said. "We could have her over for a weekend as well. Do you think she'd be up for it?"
"I don't know," Shelby said. "I'm sure she would. It would all depend on when and why and things like that. She'd question it, I think, and would probably be unsure of the whole idea even if she was excited about it."
They all agreed to talk it over with her when the time was right. The room grew quiet as the conversation trailed off and each of them surreptitiously glanced at a clock to check the time. 9:47.
Jesse and Rachel sat center stage eating from the picnic basket Jesse had packed for the occasion. There was a lot of bottled water and fruit to hold them over.
"This was a great idea, Jesse," Rachel said. She was still wearing a long duster coat and hat like the ones Eponine wore in Les Miserables.
"Thanks. I thought you'd enjoy it," Jesse said. He had on a Captain Hook jacket and the hook prop rested at his side. "I can't wait until I can do this for real. In New York on a real Broadway stage."
"Me either," Rachel agreed. "I was actually kind of surprised you went to school in Los Angeles instead of New York."
"I got a full scholarship," he said. "But like I said before, I'm hoping I can transfer to NYU. I have applied and started to fill out forms for more scholarships and financial aid. UCLA has a great program, but it's not New York."
"I understand."
"It is really nice out there though and I'm learning a lot," he confessed. "I'm really torn about what to do."
"I don't know what I'll do if I don't get into a school in New York City," Rachel said. "It's the only thing I've ever planned to do."
"Then you'll do it," Jesse said. He lied down on the stage and put his hands behind his head and looked to the lights in the ceiling. Stage light was way better than starlight. "I know you will, Rachel."
Rachel took off her hat and lied down next to him and rested her head on his chest and he wrapped his arm around her.
"Do you really think we'll make it, Jesse?"
"It's an inevitability," Jesse said. "You're going to live on stage and so am I. They're going to write glowing reviews for us and people will wait at the stage doors just to see us. We'll sign as many autographs as is needed, of course." Jesse did love an audience.
"We'll play all the great roles," Rachel continued for him. "Maybe even together. You'd make a wonderful Curly to my Laurie in Oklahoma. And later on I'll play Evita. But in between I'll originate an amazing role that I'll always be remembered for. They'll trot me out at the Tony's when I'm ninety and make me sing my signature song and the room will listen with hushed excitement until I'm finished and the applause will be thunderous."
"The young kids won't believe that they really got to see you sing that song," Jesse said. "Our caricatures will be up at Sardis before we're thirty. We'll end up playing opposite the best in the business. The people we've only dreamed out. And they'll tell us that yes, we do deserve it. We do belong there."
"Thank you for bringing me here, Jesse," Rachel said.
"My pleasure," Jesse said. "Thank you for accepting my apology, Rachel. It means a lot to me to know that I've got you as a friend. You understand me so much better than just about anyone. You understand when I say that I don't just want to be on stage."
"You have to be on stage. I know. Me too," Rachel said. She turned to her side and leaned up on her arm so she could kiss him. "Jesse, I know this is just a short thing because you won't be home that long, but will you promise me that we'll continue to talk when you leave. As friends."
"I'd love that," Jesse said. "I hope we'll be friends for a long time." He kissed her once more before she settled back down and rested her head on his chest once more. She closed her eyes and soaked in the moment.
It was a few minutes before Jesse said, "We should probably get going."
"In a minute," Rachel answered, her eyes still closed.
When the grandfather clock in Shelby's house started to chime eleven the conversation grew quiet and all five adults glanced towards the front door and expected it to swing open to reveal Rachel standing on the other side. The eleventh chime came and went and still the door didn't budge. No one said anything and soon tried to return to the conversation. What was a couple of minutes anyway? They could be stuck at a red light or behind a slow driver.
At ten after, Shelby got up and went to the kitchen so she could look out the window and into her front yard where she expected to see Jesse's car idling at her curb. They were probably sitting in the car kissing. When no such scene could be found, Shelby went back to the living room and resumed her spot on the couch.
At eleven-thirty, Paul was up pacing the room making everyone else more anxious.
"You guys do not have to sit up and wait with me," Shelby said hoping they would all agree to go to bed.
"Are you kidding?" Sam said.
"I want to be able to strangle that Jesse kid when they get back," Paul said.
"They probably just lost track of time," Shelby said though she too was angry. "It happens."
"Well it shouldn't happen," Rebecca said. "You gave her a specific time to be home."
"I know, Mom," Shelby said. She didn't need all of them focusing their anger on her right now and she hoped that once she found Rachel she would be able to get them to go to sleep so that she could deal with her on her own. But knowing them as she did, Shelby wasn't sure how likely that was.
At midnight a distant sound caused Rachel to stir and she opened her eyes and looked around. It took her a second to place the sound until it hit her that it was her phone. But where was it? By the props? She'd left it back stage. The phone stopped and then she heard a different sound. Jesse's phone which was right next to hers.
"Oh my god," she said when she realized what was going on. She grabbed Jesse's wrist and looked at his watch. "Jesse, wake up!" Rachel yelled. "Jesse, we fell asleep. My mom is going to be so mad at me."
Jesse sat up as she was scrambling to get to her feet because her phone was ringing again. She tripped over the long coat she still had on once before she reached her phone and answered it.
"Mom?" Rachel answered.
"Rachel, are you and Jesse ok?" Shelby asked her relief at hearing Rachel's voice evident.
"We're fine," Rachel said. "We just-"
"Then you better get home right now."
A/N – Thanks for reading everyone. Please leave me a review.
