Dear OutofSightAndMind, I feel like you're using me for your own wicked purposes, but I love you, and I want you to get better so you can start posting your own work again. The fanfiction world needs you, just like the real world, and I'm hoping you find your footing again.
To everyone else, no, this isn't going to delay or stop the updates for my stories. I'm the editor, not the writer. But I do love a good Pezberry story, and I loved this when it was first published. Give it a chance.
All Rachel wanted was to eat in peace for once. Monday's were hard enough, and it wasn't a Herculean task by any means to let her enjoy her lunch without any drama. When the sudden silence of the cafeteria finally registered in the back of her mind, it was too late. Rachel paused with her fork to her mouth, her salad caught between vinaigrette-drenched prongs, and closed her eyes as ice dripped down her face, neck, and under her sweater. She tasted the syrup on her lips, and she knew she had little time before the purple liquid stained her skin.
Rachel put down her fork and used her hands to wipe the slushy away from her eyes. She purposely flicked it in Kurt and Artie's direction, a silent jab for the lack of a warning, and she stood. Rachel walked out of the cafeteria, her steps matching the chorus of teasing and laughter coming from every corner of the room. She took the familiar route to her locker. The ice started to affect her vision, and it blurred while her fingers fumbled with her lock. They were too sticky to get a good grip. Familiar footsteps approached from behind, and Rachel stepped to the side. She waited as she heard her locker open and close, and she held out her arm. A hand gripped her elbow gently and led her down the hall. When she saw the main offices come into view, albeit a bit blurry, she sighed tiredly. When they received confirmation to enter the office, she let herself be led into the room. There was an exhausted exhale and the creak of a chair.
"I washed the towels, and there should be shampoo from the last time."
"Thanks, Sue."
Rachel didn't really expect a response, and a small bag was pushed into her hand. She smiled in gratitude before she stepped around the chairs and disappeared into the bathroom. Rachel placed her bag on the counter before she turned on the sink and washed her face. Once she could see again, Rachel turned on the shower, letting it get hot while she opened her go-bag. Thankfully, she only had one class left before her free period, but she'd forgotten her makeup at home.
Groaning under her breath, she pulled out the bottom drawer, removing a plain black turtleneck. She stripped out of her clothes and tossed them in the trash before she got in the shower. There was a knock on the door, and she poked out her head to hear the ten-minute warning. Rachel sped through the rest of her shower and grabbed a towel off the rack. She wrapped it around her chest as she stepped out. Rachel was halfway dressed when there was another knock, and the door opened. Sue came inside and closed the door.
"Your Dad just called."
"How long?" she asked.
"Three weeks."
Rachel pulled on the turtleneck. She fluffed out her skirt and glanced at Sue through the mirror.
"Is that all or do you have more bad news for me?" she asked.
Sue got the hint and left. Rachel sighed and punched the mirror. Her reflection cracked and distorted, and the pain didn't register until she washed the blood from her knuckles. After making sure she didn't hit a nerve, Rachel grabbed the first-aid kit and plucked the smaller pieces of glass first. She then poured alcohol over her knuckles and wrapped gauze around her hand with a safety pin holding it in place. Confident that was the best she could do until she got home, Rachel zipped up her skirt and slipped on her shoes. The Lima weather would be unforgiving to her legs without her tights, but she forgot to pack them. When she walked out of the office, she glanced at Sam, who looked up from his phone.
"Quinn said she took care of it. Apparently, some freshman was trying to get noticed by Finn," he said.
"Tell her I said thank you, and you should be on your way to class."
"We can leave together."
"Sam."
"Yes?"
Rachel rolled her eyes and turned to Sue.
"I apologize for my attitude," she said.
"Not the first time you've been snappy." Sue glanced at her hand. "But that's the fourth mirror this month," she said.
"You should buy stronger glass."
Sue snorted and opened her folder. Rachel looked back when Sam came up behind her.
"You going to your locker before class?" Sam asked.
"I am, yes. And you will not be coming with me."
"Why not?"
"Because I want to avoid the rumors."
"You know that shit doesn't matter to me."
"But it matters to everyone else."
"Who cares what this school thinks? You're my sister."
"A fact that not everyone knows, remember?"
"That's not the point."
"Oh? Then what is?"
Sam huffed and was about to respond when Sue whistled lowly and got their attention. The two turned to her in unison, and she waved their late passes in the air.
"You two make the whole nature versus nurture argument mute with the way you act," she said.
"Can you tell him we should leave separately?" Rachel sighed, taking her pass.
"While I wish you would stop dragging me into your arguments, your sister's right, Sam."
"But-
"Let it go. Plus, it's not like you two don't have the same class."
"Fine, but you better be right behind me."
"I would never miss Spanish," Rachel said.
"Of course not."
"Fuck off," she gritted out.
Sam smirked knowingly and left, nodding his head at Sue. Sue crumpled the late pass and threw it in the trash.
"Why do you push his buttons so much?" she asked.
"Because he keeps falling for it."
"You make being your guardian very stressful."
"I already said you should buy stronger glass."
"Or maybe you can actually take steps to control your temper."
"I think you might have the wrong child," Rachel teased.
Sue pointed at the door, and Rachel winked before she left the office. The halls were empty, and she hurried to collect her book for class. She slammed her locker shut before jogging to Spanish. Rachel knocked on the door, and Mr. Schue opened it with a frown. She gave him the late pass.
"You got a pass from Sue?" he asked.
"I dripped slushy on her tracksuit," she lied.
"Oh. Okay, well, sit down and get started. Lesson's on the board."
Rachel's mood brightened once she realized the only empty seat was next to Brittany in the back of the room. She sat down, and Brittany tapped the gauze around her hand.
"Dad is going out of town for three weeks," she explained.
"So you broke another mirror?"
"It seemed ideal at the time."
"You really need to go to anger management."
"When you go, I go."
"I'll have to check my schedule."
"Yeah, you do that."
Brittany winked at her and started working on the assignment. Rachel barely glanced at the board, knowing it was something stupid and could be completed in the last few minutes of class, and she took out her music book. She studied a new song she found while Mr. Schue droned on and on about their project due at the end of the week. Rachel tapped the rhythm on the table with her fingers, unaware of the eyes watching her every move.
Sam had the best seat in the house while Santana kept glancing at Rachel's hand. To those who paid attention, Santana's crush on Rachel and vice versa was common knowledge. Even Quinn muttered about it, how she wished they would spare the world yet another tragic love story. Sam replied that Quinn needed to stop watching so much Lifetime, and she blamed her twisted views of love on Shakespeare and trash tv. Regardless, Santana's hesitation stemmed from struggling to express her emotions, and it made more sense when they met her father. Antonio Lopez was a man of science, and affection was clearly not common in the Lopez household. Not that it mattered. Rachel was equally stunted when it came to the softer emotions of human nature. Rage and anger she felt openly, proudly, but the rest had to be given freely on her own terms. And that was rare no matter who you were. Sam mentally sighed and pushed all thoughts of his sister's love life out of his mind.
For the moment, both were content in watching from the sidelines, and he wasn't going to interfere.
Rachel had nothing against the shower at school. It did its job, but only when she was home could she thoroughly wash away the dirt and grime from her day. Especially, after the shit show that was Glee. Normally, she didn't have a problem with the club, but Finn and Kurt decided to compete on who could get on her nerves more than usual. Finn won in the end, but it was close. Her moment of peace was ruined when she heard the door open and close.
"I thought we talked about this," she said.
"You talked, yes."
"Was there not a date with Quinn on your schedule tonight?"
"I came up here to see if you wanted to go out to dinner with us."
"Where?"
"The usual."
Rachel shut off the water and snagged her towel from the hook. She wrapped it around herself and yanked back the curtain. Sam swung his feet as he sat on the counter, and she glared at him.
"You are entirely too comfortable being around me while I am naked," she said.
"I've seen all your birthmarks, scars, and private bits just as you've seen mine."
"Stop reminding me."
"Only if you stop forgetting."
Rachel flipped him off and walked out of the bathroom only to find Quinn and Brittany reclined on her bed. Sam flopped down beside Quinn and laid his head on her stomach. Brittany turned over and propped her chin on her elbow.
"Did you hear we've been invited on a date?" Brittany asked with false excitement.
"I have, and I am positively thrilled."
"You two can be so ungrateful," Quinn sighed. "Sam and I go out of our way to include you on our outings, and you treat it with so little respect."
Rachel shot Quinn a look before she walked into her closet. Bypassing her school stuff, she thought about the weather and focused on the sweaters hanging near the back.
"Have you thought about where you wanted to go for the break?" Quinn asked.
"Somewhere warm." Rachel snatched the sweater she wanted and sat on her heels to pull out her pants drawer. "I told Sue to consider Italy, but she would prefer to stay on this side of the world," she said.
"Miami's always an option," Brittany said.
"Come on, we go to Miami all the time. Why not Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic?"
"We've never been to the Dominican Republic," Sam said.
"My family is banned from that country, so it would have to Puerto Rico or maybe Aruba?" Rachel found the jeans she wanted and turned off the light. She came out to see the three of them waiting for an explanation. "All I know is the Dominican Republic is on the list of places I cannot legally go to," she said.
"I bet Sue knows," Quinn mused.
"Doubt it. This was before Papa met Dad."
"Ah, must've been family business then," Sam said.
"More than likely."
"So, what did your Papa do for a living again?" Quinn asked.
"Waste management," Sam and Rachel said simultaneously.
"The trash business is profitable if you know the right routes," Brittany teased.
Rachel laid her clothes out on her chair and pointed to her door. Quinn, Brittany, and Sam got off the bed and made their way to the door. Quinn paused and looked over at her outfit.
"You should wear those black boots tonight," she said.
"I own multiple pairs. Be specific."
"The ones Sam got you for Christmas."
"Oh. Why?"
"They look good on you."
"Make you look very handsome," Brittany added.
Rachel narrowed her eyes in suspicion, and Sam tugged them both out of the room. Rachel slammed the door once they were gone. She really didn't want to go anywhere, but she'd been a hermit over the weekend, and with Puck suspended for another three days, she wouldn't mind seeing him. She forced her desire to sleep the night away and got ready for the evening.
Puck flipped on the lights for the bar and hopped over the counter. His Dad, Eli, poked his head out of the kitchen.
"Wash those glasses out again for me?"
"Sure thing, Pop. Oh, and you don't think we'll have any drama tonight, do you?"
"I think it'll be fine."
Puck trusted his father and turned on the water so it'd get hot. He looked around one last time, making sure everything was in place for the "bar no one knew about." It was the type of place where you had to know someone to get inside. Once the water got hot, Puck re-washed the glasses. He knew his Dad cleaned them earlier, but they served high clientele and had to make sure. Eli leaned out of the kitchen and rested his forearms on the ledge.
"So. Have they gotten their heads out of their asses yet?"
"Not even close. We're all waiting for the inevitable at this point."
Eli laughed and ducked back into the kitchen. Puck finished the glasses and double-checked the inventory. Typically, there was a bartender, but she had the night off. Puck knew enough to get by, and even though he was underage, no one would say anything.
"Hey."
Puck turned and smiled at Santana. He didn't even hear her come in. She sat down in front of the bar and propped her chin.
"Long time no see," she said.
"Fighting comes with consequences," he said mockingly. "Why are you here so early?"
"You told me eleven."
"Shit. I guess I lost track of time." Puck shook his head. "What you drinking?" he asked.
"Jack and Coke?" she sighed.
"Sweet. The one drink I know how to make by heart," he joked.
"Your Yelp review is dropping by the second."
Puck went about making her drink, and Santana shrugged out of her coat. He looked her over, noticing she was filling out again, and he smiled.
"You look good," he said.
"Coach put me on an eating regimen. I've gained ten pounds, and-" Santana paused and rubbed at her wrist, "my Dad put me on some supplements to help as well."
Puck put the drink in front of her and asked, "Have you gone back to therapy?"
Santana tapped her fingernails against the counter.
"Yes. Tina's Mom has been coming over every other night, and she's been great."
"Have they found that second guy?" he asked carefully.
Santana laughed humorlessly and placed her drink against her forehead.
"No," she murmured. "I wasn't much help in the identification department."
"You weren't exactly in the right state of mind," he said.
Santana glanced at him, and Puck picked up the hint she didn't want to talk too much more about it. He was glad he didn't have to pull an awkward subject change because the door opened. Santana looked over her shoulder to see who was coming in, and she froze when she saw Rachel. She didn't even care about the others with her.
"Rachel?"
"Santana? What are you- what are you doing here?"
"I can ask you the same thing."
"We thought it would be a good time for the six of us to have dinner together," Brittany said.
Rachel glanced at Brittany and Quinn before she removed her coat and hung it on the hook. She walked over to the bar and sat down beside Santana.
"How do you want to do this?" she asked.
Santana picked up her drink and paused before she said, "We eat, and then we have our chat. Deal?"
"Deal."