A little bit of a filler chapter for now because I changed my mind on how I wanted the chapter I was going to post to go and I'm still working on rewriting it.
It seems like you all want Rachel to go down the non-broadway route which I'm quite happy about! I do have something in mind but you're going to have to wait a while to find out what it is!
Also, the last chapter took us over 100k words! So I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all of you for taking the time to read/comment/favourite/follow/whatever, especially those of you that came back to the fic after my huge break from writing, you're all awesome, and I hope you enjoy the things I have planned for the future of this fic (and I have things planned for quite a way in the future!) just as much as you've enjoyed what I've already written.
Shelby kissed Rachel's head the next morning, "are you staying here?" she asked, "or do you want to move downstairs?" she ran her fingers through Rachel's hair when the teen began to stir. They'd spoken the night before, when Rachel had woken at 4am, feverish and a little disoriented. Shelby had given her some medication to bring her temperature down and wiped her face with a damp washcloth, holding her and rocking her, singing to her until she was a little more settled.
Rachel had told Shelby she'd be okay if her Mom went to work, and Shelby had told Rachel that Amy would come over and sit with her. She'd offered to take Rachel to Amy's on her way to work but that would mean Rachel going on the school run with Amy for Lily and Max, so, instead, Rachel had decided she'd stay at home when Shelby went to work and Amy would come over as soon as she could.
"I, I'll come downstairs" Rachel whispered.
"Okay" Shelby kissed Rachel's forehead again, "let me take your blanket and Edward downstairs" she said as she helped Rachel sit up on the edge of the bed, "do you feel up to eating?" Rachel shook her head and wrapped her arms around Shelby's waist, letting her head rest against her Mom's stomach, sighing contently as she felt Shelby's fingers in her hair. "Come on Darling, let's get you settled on the couch, I'll get you some water too, you don't have to eat if you don't feel up to it, but you need to drink so you don't get dehydrated baby."
"'Kay" Rachel mumbled, beginning to drift back to sleep against Shelby, comforted by her Mom's presence.
Shelby chuckled and gently stroked Rachel's cheek, "come on you, let's get you downstairs before you fall asleep again."
"I gotta pee" Rachel sighed.
"Okay" Shelby laughed, "can you manage on your own?" Rachel nodded against Shelby's stomach, "I'll see you downstairs then" she said before gently puling Rachel to her feet and pointing her in the direction of the ensuite.
Shelby made the bed before taking Rachel's bear and blanket downstairs, leaving them on the couch as she went to get her a glass of water, flicking on the coffee machine to make her second cup of the morning, she had almost thirty minutes before she had to leave and she was more than happy to spend that time cuddling with her baby.
Rachel was laid out on the couch when Shelby came back into the living room, "sit up" Shelby said softly, "try and drink some of this" she said, putting down the two drinks she was carrying and helping Rachel sit up before helping her drink the water, "good girl" she kissed Rachel's forehead when she'd finished half the glass.
"Is Aunt Amy coming?" Rachel asked as she tucked herself into Shelby's side, Shelby wrapping Rachel up in her blanket and kissing her forehead, Rachel could vaguely remember a conversation with Shelby in the night but wasn't completely sure she hadn't dreamt it.
"Yeah" Shelby kissed her head, "you'll probably be on your own for an hour or so once I leave, she's going to take Lily and Max to school and then come straight over".
"Okay" Rachel nodded against Shelby's shoulder, "I like her" she mumbled as she began to fall back to sleep.
Shelby laughed slightly, "she likes you too baby" she said as she watched Rachel drift off.
She let Rachel sleep until she had to go to work and woke her gently, not wanting to leave without saying goodbye. "Momma."
"I'm going to work now Darling" she said, standing and laying a cushion on the couch before laying Rachel down and straightening the blanket around her, putting Edward in her arms. "Do you want the tv on?" she asked, knowing Rachel liked some background noise when she was home alone. She flicked on the tv when she got a nod from her daughter and found something for her to watch, turning the volume down and gently stroking Rachel's hair, "Aunt Amy will be here soon" she said softly before kissing Rachel's forehead, "and I'll come straight home after work, but if you need anything you can call or text me okay?"
"'Kay Momma" Rachel mumbled, "love you."
Shelby smiled and kissed Rachel's forehead, "I love you too baby."
Rachel didn't remember falling asleep, but she stirred at the scrape of a key in the lock, rightly assuming it was Amy, "I'm awake" she yawned when she heard Amy closing the door, trying to be quiet.
"How are you feeling?" Amy asked as she slipped off her shoes and jacket before walking over to the couch.
"Tired" Rachel pouted, "and achey."
"Sleep will do you good" Amy said as she saw the water on the coffee table, "do you want a drink?" she asked, helping Rachel sit up and sip at her water, "have you eaten?" she asked when Rachel had finished.
Rachel shook her head, "I'm not hungry" she said as she laid back down.
"Okay, well tell me if you get hungry" she ran her fingers through Rachel's hair, "I'll just get you some more water and then come and sit with you" she said, making sure Rachel was settled before making her way into the kitchen, smiling when she saw Shelby had left her some coffee in the pot. She put her mug and Rachel's glass on the coffee table, shaking her head slightly when she saw Rachel was fighting sleep, the teen wanting to be sure her Aunt did come back.
"Wha…" Rachel was confused as she felt Amy lift her head and shoulders from the sofa and pulled the pillow from under her head.
"Is this okay?" Amy asked as she sat down, gently lowering Rachel's head to rest in her lap.
Rachel sighed happily and shifted so she was comfortable, "yeah" she smiled, sighing as she felt Amy begin to comb her fingers through her hair, wanting to cry at the fact Amy was so willing to love and comfort her the way she was. Sometimes she felt like Shelby felt obliged to take care of her, but she knew Amy didn't have to, knew Amy was there because she wanted to be there, because she chose to be there. She knew Shelby had probably asked Amy to watch her, but she knew, deep down she knew that Amy only held her, only cuddled her and sang to her because she wanted to.
"What's going on in that head of yours Pretty Girl?" Amy asked as she ran her fingers through Rachel's hair, she could almost hear the cogs turning in the teen's brain.
Rachel bit her lip, pausing for a minute before whispering, "I love you" she was almost waiting for the rejection, for Amy to throw it back in her face, but it never came.
"Oh Rachel" Amy bent to kiss Rachel's head, feeling her eyes fill with tears, "I love you too, so, so much."
Shelby spent a few minutes stood in the doorway when she got home, just watching Amy and Rachel. Rachel was laid out on the couch with her head in Amy's lap and Amy was settled back against the cushions with her eyes shut and if it wasn't for the hand that was gently stroking Rachel's hair over and over, Shelby would have assumed that her sister was asleep too.
Shelby loved all her siblings, but for some reason, the bond she and Amy had was different to the bond they both shared with their brothers. Amy was so much more than Shelby's sister, and despite her own problems, Shelby had loved seeing her siblings turn from the children she'd grown up with into successful adults with children of their own. She loved seeing Amy as a mother, her heart swelled with love every time she saw her baby sister with her own babies, and it turned out that Shelby loved seeing Amy with Rachel just as much as she loved seeing her with Lily and Max.
"Hey" Amy smiled, opening her eyes when she heard Shelby walk over to her.
"Hey" Shelby smiled. "If I lift her do you think you could get up?" she asked quietly, wanting to talk to her sister without waking Rachel.
"Yeah" Amy nodded, waiting for Shelby to lift Rachel carefully so she could slip out from under the teen and placed a cushion down for Shelby to lay Rachel on.
"How's she been?" Shelby asked once they were in the kitchen.
"She's okay" Amy nodded, "she's been awake more than she was yesterday and she doesn't feel quite so warm. She had a bath at about lunchtime, she erm, she asked me to sit with her though…"
Shelby shrugged, "if Rachel was comfortable then it's fine" she said, knowing that, whilst Rachel might physically be a teenager, mentally she sometimes craved the same amount of attention that would be given to Lily or Max, attention she probably didn't get as a child.
"I washed her hair for her and she put some of your pyjamas on but they're a bit big for her so I told her I'd bring her some more of mine round" Shelby smiled, knowing Rachel had Amy well and truly wrapped around her little finger, "she dozed for a bit after her bath and said she was hungry when she woke, she ate a banana and a yoghurt and then fell back to sleep."
Shelby smiled and nodded, it certainly sounded like Rachel was beginning to feel better, "was she okay when you got here?"
"Yeah" Amy nodded, "I think she was sleeping, she didn't seem completely with it so I think I might have woken her coming in but she was fine."
"Good" Shelby nodded, "I know they used to leave her so I was a bit worried, it was a big thing for her to trust that I wasn't lying when I said you'd come over, and trusting you to actually show up, I half expected her to be a bag of nerves."
Amy smiled, "she was fine, I got her to drink some water and then she settled back down, she told me she loved me, I told her I loved her too and then she fell asleep with her head on my lap and didn't stir until she woke around lunchtime, she said she felt sweaty and gross so I offered to run her a bath."
"I don't think anyone had told her they loved her before she came to live here" Shelby sighed, "and sometimes I think she still thinks I only say it because I have to, or that I say it because it's what she wants to hear. I bet it meant the world coming from you Amy."
Amy squeezed Shelby's hand, "and I meant it, I love her just as much as I love Lily and Max, maybe more than I love you" she teased.
"Gee thanks" Shelby laughed, "but thank you, honestly, you've done so much since Rachel came to live with me and… "
"And nothing" Amy interrupted. "I can't even begin to think about the amount of times you've been there for me and my family, this isn't a contest, nobody's keeping score Shel, you don't owe me anything. You're my sister, if you need me I'm here, just like you're always there when I need you."
Shelby reached out, gently cupping Amy's cheek with her hand, "I do love you you know."
"I know" Amy nodded, "I love you too Shel."
"What is it?" Shelby asked when she saw Amy frown slightly.
Amy held up a finger, before softly calling, "I'm in the kitchen Rachel."
Shelby frowned, "how did you…"
"I've had toddlers Shel, I needed to learn to identify every tiny noise I heard so I'd know if they were getting up to no good."
Shelby didn't have time to reply before Rachel padded slowly into the kitchen, "Momma" she smiled sleepily when she saw Shelby.
"Hey baby" Shelby held out her arms "how are you feeling?"
"Thirsty" Rachel mumbled as she tucked herself into Shelby's side, relaxing into her Mom's embrace.
"Water or juice?" Amy asked softly as she took a glass from the cupboard.
Rachel nuzzled into Shelby, letting out a loud yawn before answering, "juice please."
Amy filled the glass with apple juice and placed it on the counter beside Rachel and Shelby, "I'm going to go now your Mom's home" she told Rachel as she rubbed her back, "I'll come over tomorrow yeah? And bring you some pyjamas that fit" she chuckled.
"Yeah" Rachel nodded, "thank you."
"You don't need to tha…oh, hi" she chuckled as without warning Rachel turned from Shelby's embrace, wrapping her arms around Amy and hugging her tightly. "I'll see you tomorrow Pretty Girl" Amy kissed Rachel's damp hair as she held her close, returning the hug with just as much force as Rachel was giving her. "Don't you fall asleep on me" she teased when she heard Rachel yawn again.
"I won't" Rachel whispered, finally letting go of her aunt.
Amy stroked Rachel's cheek, "I'll see you tomorrow" she promised, "and you can call or text me if you need anything yeah? Even in the middle of the night."
Rachel nodded, making her way back into Shelby's arms, "okay."
Shelby and Rachel said goodbye to Amy before Shelby picked up the glass, "are you going to drink this?" she asked, keeping one hand around the glass to hold it steady when she saw Rachel's hands shake as she reached for it.
"Thanks" Rachel gasped slightly after gulping down the entire glass of juice.
"Do you want some more?" Shelby asked, refilling the glass even after Rachel shook her head, "we'll take it through with us for later then" she said, slowly walking Rachel back through to the living room.
"Aunt Amy did my hair" Rachel smiled as she settled herself back down with her blanket, waiting for Shelby to sit before tucking herself into her Mom's side and pulling the quilt around them both.
Shelby smiled, "she said she washed it for you" she nodded, seeing that Amy had braided Rachel's hair too, the braid tight enough to keep her hair back from her face and stop it getting tangled, yet loose enough to stop Rachel getting a headache, "it looks good."
"She said she loves me" Rachel whispered, draping her arm across Shelby's stomach, rolling the hem of her shirt between her thumb and index finger, something Shelby had noticed her do a lot, the woman briefly wondering if Rachel would have done it as an infant, if she'd have found as much comfort in such a simple action as she seemingly did now.
"She does" Shelby nodded, "I know it might be hard for you to believe, but my whole family loves you Rach, not just Amy, but my brothers and Nana and Grandpa, and you've got a whole army of cousins who all love you so, so much."
"Nobody's ever loved me before" Rachel's words broke Shelby's heart.
"That's not true" she pulled Rachel onto her lap, wanting the girl as close as possible, "I fell in love with you before you were born Baby, from the second I knew you existed I have loved you, and I might not have been around to show you that love, but it doesn't mean that I loved you any less. I have always, and will always, love you with everything I have."
Shelby felt Rachel's tears soaking through her shirt, "I, I wish they'd left sooner" she whispered, "I wish they'd given me to you before."
"Me too" Shelby kissed Rachel's hair, "but I've got you now Darling and I'm not going anywhere, now, why don't you close your eyes? We can both have a little nap and then when we wake I'll make you some soup or something if you feel up to it."
"You're staying?" Shelby could tell Rachel was already falling back to sleep.
"You're sitting on me Baby, I couldn't go anywhere if I wanted to, and I've got you in my arms. Why on earth would I want to be anywhere but here."