Chapter 12: Sectionals

Sectionals. Rachel feels odd, though. She's sitting in the green room with her team, dressed and ready for a performance she may not give. She had a moderate attack yesterday, so the odds of her having an attack today are slim. She had a hard time waking up this morning, but she's here now. Finn had called her, as promised. They'd talked for a few minutes and she'd still struggled, but managed to get up. She thinks back to yesterday's attack. Her family had come to her house to celebrate the end of Hanukkah. She'd gotten a new iPod (from her Mom), nice new headphones (from her grandparents), and a bunch of iTunes gift cards. But before they got around to sharing gifts, or dinner, she'd had a moderate attack. Two weeks to the day of her last attack. For the first time, it happened in front of both of her younger cousins. It scared the shit out of the poor kids. Dylan had seen the beginning and end of one, but not the whole thing. He and his brother had been crying and snuggling with her for an hour after it ended. She felt bad for upsetting them, but her family reminded her that it wasn't her fault. Once she felt a little stronger she'd sung a song with Ollie and played a game with Dylan. They'd calmed down after that, though Dylan still watched her warily.

The door opens and everyone looks up, then smiles as the Warblers begin "sneaking" into their green room. The boys (minus the seniors from last year and freshman from this year) had become friendly with ND last spring. They'd met up over the summer at a "bar" to do karaoke and had a lot of fun. ND had then invited the Warblers to their spot, after making them promise not to come back without them or to share the location with anyone else. The Warbler's had promised and the'd had a big summer bonfire bash. Some of the kids from Vocal Adrenaline had come as well. In the fall, they'd gotten together once to do a friendly karaoke battle. Rachel and Blaine had won with their performance of "Don't You Want Me," not that anyone was surprised that the stars of each club would win when singing together. They haven't seen each other since then, but they're all Facebook friends and chat frequently.

So now, on competition day, it is no surprise that the Warblers spread out in New Directions green room to sit with friends and talk. Rachel had been sitting between Finn and Kurt on a loveseat, and since it was smaller than a couch, they were all squeezed in tight. Blaine decided he wanted to sit with them, so he pulled Rachel off the loveseat and took her spot. When she started protesting (while laughing), he pulled her back down so she was on his lap. This just made her laugh harder.

"Rachel's boys." Mercedes says with a smile.

Rachel looks a the three boys sharing the loveseat with her and smiles, agreeing. Her boys. From their smiles, they don't seem upset with that moniker either. The guy with the headset who comes in to announce how much time they have looked startled to find two teams in one room.

"Um….New Directions, you're on right after Oral Intensity. You have 5 minutes. Warblers, you'll be on after them."

Everyone nods and he leaves, giving another confused look over his shoulder.

"I guess we should head out." Blaine announces.

A series of "break a leg" and other encouragements flow between the teams as they separate. The New Directions heads to side stage, except Quinn and Sam. They're stealing Rachel and Finn's idea from last year and coming in from the back of the auditorium. Mr. Schuester, Holly, and Sue stand with them. A chair and oxygen tank are sitting side stage in a spot where the person sitting can see the performance but not be seen by the audience. Rachel's jaw clenches. Finn grabs one hand and Brittany grabs the other. They both smile at her and she forces herself to smile back. Finn would understand her inability to smile in this moment, but not Brittany. So she puts on her best show smile for her friend. They need 12 member to perform, even if not all 12 need to perform in each number. ND has exactly 12 members. While Rachel will be (most likely) performing the final number, just in case she ends up not, she needs to be seen on stage so that 12 can be counted. They've designed the routine to include a moment early on in the first number where Mike spins her, lifts her, and carries her off stage, then dances back on stage alone. On the other side of the stage, Noah is doing the same to Tina. The only difference is that Tina will return to the stage moments after Noah and Rachel is to sit in a chair to watch the rest of the performance.

That's what they do. She forces her show smile to remain in place for the minute she's on stage. The moment Mike sets her down side stage, she lets it slip. But only for a moment. While the team won't be looking side stage at her, she doesn't want to risk any accidental glances to show her true feelings. However, without close scrutiny, she can get away with a smile that's not as big or bright. Watching her team perform, she finds it's not hard. Her smile becomes real. Not one of joy, but one of pride. In them. They've worked really hard on these numbers. Mr. Schue stands behind her with his hands on her shoulders. She grins up at him and sees the same proud smile on his face. When both songs are done Rachel stands and cheers with the adults around her. Her team hurries off stage and she notices that all of them look to her before looking to their coaches. Their already bright smiles stretch even bigger upon seeing her dazzling smile directed at them.

Before Finn can get to her, Sam does. He wraps her up into a hug but keeps walking towards the green room. She laughs, ignoring Finn's complaints. And Noah's. He'd been right behind Sam and apparently was going to do the same thing but Sam beat him to it.

"You were wonderful, Sam." She tells him quietly in his ear.

His eyes sparkle when he pulls back to look her in the eye. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. You really were." She looks at the rest of her team. "You were all amazing."

Her friends look both relieved and excited, yammering away about what they thought the best parts were and their odds of winning. Once its announced that the Warblers will be going on in a minute, they decide to go sit in the audience to cheer them on. They're good, of course. Blaine is great as usual. Rachel isn't certain if they managed to beat them or not. Maybe the third song will determine the winner. When they finish, the New Directions give a standing ovation, cheering for their friends.

"Now that all three groups have performed their two prepared numbers," the MC begins, "it is time for the surprise song to be thrown at them. Can I get all three groups up on the stage please?"

The three groups obediently return to the stage, anxious for the third song. Rachel in particular is anxious. She wants to sing, damnit!

"Can I get the captains of each team to step forward to me?"

A girl and boy from Oral Intensity confidently walk towards him. Blaine glances at his team, then steps forward alone. The Warblers are run by a council, not a captain, but rather than have a group step forward, they apparently decided to have their lead singer act as captain. Kurt grabs Rachel's hand and they step forward together.

"Okay, so, we decided that the songs you will be singing unprepared are all going to be by the same artist. We will name the artist, give you the card with the song you'll be singing, then you'll head to your green rooms. You will have 15 minutes to rehearse, without any input from your coaches. When those 15 minutes are up, you will all come sit in the audience and we will call you up one at a time to perform. Coaches will remain in the audience. Understood?"

Everyone nods. Kurt's grip tightens and Rachel grins at him. Blaine looks over at them and winks.

"The artist you will be all be emulating is Whitney Houston."

Rachel lets out a quiet squeal of excitement and Kurt does a a little dance. Blaine looks absolutely thrilled. The MC hands them their card and they hurry off to their respective green rooms. They only open the envelope when they're all sitting quiet.

"How Will I Know." Kurt reads off the card.

They talk for a couple minutes, debating how to best perform it when Rachel offers up an idea.

"What if we slow it down? Change it up a bit."

"I like that idea." Mercedes agrees, smiling.

"It's your song, Rach. How do you want to perform it?" Finn questions. "Do you want to sing it as a solo?"

Everyone looks at her expectantly. No one argues that it shouldn't be her or even asks if she's up for it. She smiles. "I was thinking four of us sitting on stools singing a slower version of this, a cappella."

"Okay, who?"

"Me, of course," She says, making everyone chuckle, "With Kurt, Mercedes, and Santana."

Everyone agrees and the four spend the remaining time practicing. When the lights flicker and announcements call for all groups to return to their seats, they head back into the auditorium. As she walks down the aisle, her mom catches her eye and raises an eyebrow. She smiles in return. She's fine.

"We're going to do this in the order your originally performed. So, Oral Intensity is up first."

Those kids head up on stage and perform "I Wanna Dance With Somebody". They're…..pretty good. But they clearly can't handle a whole big dance number in such short a time. They sound good, but they also sound tense. They're stressed instead of just having fun with it. Still, when they finish, ND and Warblers all give a standing ovation to their competition. Now its New Directions turn. The four who are performing head up onto the stage. Rachel stops by the MC to let him know they won't be needing any music track to be played. He looks surprised, but agrees. They each grab a stool and a microphone, sitting in a line about a foot apart. Rachel had originally suggested they sit further apart, but the others wanted to be closer to grab her, just in case. She hadn't argued. Besides, with them closer together, it'd be easier for them to hear each other and harmonize appropriately.

Mercedes starts them off. "There's a boy I know…"

Santana joins in "ooooh, get enough…."

Then Kurt "ooohhh, really love…."

Finally, Rachel joins. "How will I know?"

They've arranged it so that once all four have joined in, Mercedes and Santana sing lines together and Rachel and Kurt sing lines together, echoing each other. When Mercedes takes lead, the other three are her backup/echo. They'd been surprised when Rachel suggested that Mercedes take lead, but really, as good as Rachel knows she is, Mercedes' voice is just a better fit for this song. They all snap in time together through the last half of the song and for the final 30-ish seconds Kurt stands and drums a steady beat on his stool. They finish to enthusiastic applause and a standing ovation. Rachel feels a thrill go through her. She may not have gotten to sing a real solo, but she had a lot of fun and they sounded amazing together. She loves solos, she really does. But there's something about hearing voices all around her, blending and harmonizing with her own, that has its own appeal. It's own magic. She's practically vibrating with excitement as they carry their stools off the stage. Her eyes instinctively search out her mother's. When they connect, she sees pride and joy shining back at her through her mom's bright smile and eyes. Finn kisses her soundly as soon as she's sitting next to him. Mr. Schue leans over and swats at him, then whispers to them that they'd done an amazing job.

Still "high" off the thrill of a great performance, Rachel happily settles back to enjoy the show the Warblers put on. They were given "The Greatest Love of All" and do a fantastic job. Again, Rachel isn't certain there's a clear winner and fiddles with Finn's fingers to distract from her nerves. Her boyfriend leans closer to whisper in her ear.

"No matter what, you were incredible."

She smiles softly. "I was one voice of many in one song, Finn."

"Doesn't matter. You were incredible. Besides, you were the one to come up with that arrangement. Mercedes may have taken lead, but you were it's creator. That was all you."

She kisses him. He's the incredible one. Somehow, despite his difficulty with vocabulary, and school in general, he always knows what to say to her when it matters. The audience talks quietly while the judges convene. Their coaches pass out water bottles and snacks to the group. After a while, the MC returns to the stage and calls for everyone's attention.

"Okay folks, there's been a new…development. There's been a tie. However, we were told that there were too many ties already in the area, so….we need a tie breaker. Two teams will be given another song to sing. This time, there will be no prep time. No rehearsing. You'll be given your song on stage and sing it immediately. If you can't, you forfeit. If you refuse, you forfeit. The tie is between The Warblers and the New Directions."

Excited chatter breaks out among the two groups and their families. Rachel grins widely. Another chance to sing. The two teams head up onto the stage and the MC faces them.

"Alright, since there's no rehearsal time, you'll just have to pick one person on your team that is most likely to be able to sing whatever song is handed to them."

Rachel looks at her team to find every single member looking back at her. She bites down a smile, trying to be humble.

"You up for this? Be honest, Tink. If you're not it'll mean we lose." Kurt whispers in her ear.

She glares at him. "I'm well aware of that, Pan. I wouldn't risk us losing, no matter how much I want to sing. I'm good. I'm ready. I promise."

He grins and kisses her cheek. "Just checking. Knock 'em dead."

She smirks and walks forward to join Blaine, who is already standing by the MC. The MC claps his hands. "Wonderful! Now we can get started. The rest of the teams can head off stage now, it's down to these two. Now, for you two, I'm going to have you pick a song out of a hat. You will both remain here on stage and just take turns singing. When it's not your turn to sing, you'll sit on a stool."

Blaine raises a hand hesitantly. Rachel catches him glance at her briefly. "Um, can we sit on stools while performing?"

The MC frowns, then shrugs. "Sure."

Rachel is grateful that Blaine asked so she didn't have to. She gives him a quick smile and he nods back.

"As I was saying, it's up to you. Now, once you pick a song there is no changing it. The song you pick is the song you sing. If you truly can't or won't, you can pass it off to a teammate. However, you will be deducted points for that. And if the person you choose can't or won't, then you forfeit."

The two teens nod their understanding. Rachel isn't worried. She can sing anything. Looking at Blaine, she knows that's true for him as well. What it really comes down to is how well matched they are to the song they happen to pick. Blaine picks first, looks at the paper in his hands, and smiles slightly with a shrug. The MC holds the hat in front of Rachel. She pulls out a song and looks at it.

The words float off the small slip of paper, mocking her. Everything becomes muffled and dulled. Her pulse beats loudly in her head. "If I Die Young" by The Band Perry. Are you fucking kidding me? Of all the songs to pick, she just happened to pick this song? Not knowing how long she's been staring at this paper, she quickly pulls herself together, her show face back in place. Blaine is looking at her with a frown. Ignoring the MC, he steps closer and takes her hand, tilting it so he can read the song title on the paper. She watches his face blanch. His jaw clenches. With barely a glance at her, he pulls the paper from her fingers and hands her his. She looks at what song he'd gotten. "Cough Syrup" by Young the Giant. Also not a chipper song, but better than hers. She's pretty sure this song is about depression. Still, she'd rather sing this than….the other.

"Uh, no, not allowed. You can't trade songs. Swap back." The MC berates Blaine.

He sighs and hands Rachel the slip of paper back. Once she's holding both, he grabs back the same song. She's still holding "Cough Syrup". She presses her lips together to hide a smile. Unfortunately, the MC is watching them closely.

"Nice try. Seriously, swap back." The audience titters.

Blaine hesitates. He looks at Rachel. She gives a jerky shrug. She's tired. She wonders if she's been tired and her excitement and nerves hid her exhaustion from her or if it's truly just hitting her now. Either way, she's tired. For just a moment, she's tempted to walk off stage and go take a nap. Rachel brushes that thought away. She's a star. She doesn't back down. She has never backed down from any challenge and she's sure as hell not going to start now. Can she sing this song? Sure. It's easy. Even as emotional as she'd get, she can sing and cry at the same time. The real problem is not her singing. The real problem is those listening. Her friends. Her family. Would they be okay listening to her sing this song? Probably not. She thinks of her mother sitting in the audience. "Ain't even gray but she buries her baby." No. She can't sing this song. She can't make her mother listen to her sing this song.

She's not sure if Blaine sees all these thoughts and emotions in her gaze or if he has his own similar ones, but he comes to a decision. A rather odd and panic fueled decision. He looks at the MC, who has just turned his head away, and stuffs the slip of paper in his mouth. Startled, and feeling like she's being pulled between opposing emotions, Rachel laughs. He grins at her, lips closed to keep the paper inside. The MC looks back at them when the audience starts laughing as well.

He frowns. "Where's your paper?"

Blaine looks around, wide eyed. Finally, he speaks. "I lost it." His voice is muffled.

"Did you just…..did you just eat the song paper?" The MC's tone is incredulous.

The audience laughs harder. Rachel looks off stage to find her team. They're not amused. They're worried. She looks away. Blaine starts chewing faster and quickly swallows, his face disgusted.

Voice now clear, he speaks. "No."

The MC just stares at him for a moment, lost for words. The poor man seems unsure where to go with this. He shakes his head.

"What song do you have?" He asks Rachel.

"'Cough Syrup' by Young the Giant."

"And what song did you have?" He asks Blaine.

"I don't know. I only got a quick glimpse of it, so I didn't really get a chance to….digest it." He shrugs innocently.

The audience sniggers. Rachel giggles. Despite the situation, it is pretty funny.

The MC rolls his eyes. "There were only 5 songs in the hat. I have the list of songs written here." He holds up his clipboard. "I can check quickly and figure out what song it was."

Blaine's smile drops. So does Rachel's. Well, they tried. She squeezes his hand in thanks. He frowns at her and shakes his head. He doesn't seem willing to let this go.

The MC goes on. "And, I know that the song you ate was actually the young lady's song. Not yours. So you, sir, will be singing 'Cough Syrup' and the young lady will sing the song she originally chose."

"Please." Blaine says softly. "Please let us pick different songs."

"You know, I can penalize you for your actions and have you disqualified." Blaine looks down, biting his lip. "I'm willing to give you another chance. But refuse again or defy my orders again, and your team is disqualified. Got it?"

Blaine gives a tense nod. Trent from the Warblers comes on stage carrying two stools. He sets them by the singers, eyeing them nervously. Despite not knowing what's going on, the hefty boy whispers to Blaine "If you have a good reason for forfeiting, we'll support you."

Rachel sits on a stool and purposely doesn't look at Trent. Blaine nods to his teammate and sits as well.

"Alright young lady, what song did you originally pick?"

Rachel turns to the MC and her throat closes up. It's only for a moment, but the fact that it happened at all, the fact that she can't even bring herself to say the name of the song, tells her she's probably going to end up forfeiting. She knows her team will be as supportive as Trent. However, she has to try at least one more time.

She clears her throat. "I know that….you said there's no changing songs, but I think we made it pretty obvious that neither of us want to sing it."

"Or even hear it." Blaine chimes in.

The MC is already shaking his head. "No. Look, you kids are young. You need to learn that sometimes you have to do things you just don't like. Sometimes, life really sucks and you just have to learn to deal with it."

Rachel smiles bitterly. "Trust me, I'm learning that."

"You two are being really dramatic over a simple song. Just tell me what it is so I don't have to figure it out myself and waste even more time." He's clearly getting irritated.

Rachel doesn't know what to do. She knows for a fact that no one on her team will be willing to sing this song. She also doesn't want to be the reason they forfeit. Not after how hard they worked. But she also doesn't want to hurt her family by singing this song. Then again, it's just a song like the MC said. It's just a song. She nods to herself. It's just a song.

With a quiet voice, Rachel finally reveals her song to the audience. "The song I pulled was from The Band Perry, 'If I Die Young'."

She glances off stage to see her team's reaction. 'Unhappy' would be an extreme understatement. Kurt immediately tries to walk onto the stage, no doubt to pull her off stage, but Quinn and Brittany stop him. Tina is covering her mouth with her hands.

"There, see? That wasn't so hard. And it's not a bad song."

"Without context, it's not a bad song." Rachel can't resist telling him.

The MC pauses, looking at her curiously. "Context?"

Seeing a potential opportunity to correct the situation, Blaine sits up straighter. "Very important context that explains why we're being so 'dramatic' about 'just a song'." He looks at her pleadingly. "Tell him."

Again, she looks to her team. They're nodding. Tell him. Since she was diagnosed, Rachel has hated saying the words. She's only had to explain her illness a couple times. It never gets easier. She has never wanted pity or special treatment because of it. But now, for the first time, it just may work to her advantage to reveal all. It's Blaine's turn to squeeze her hand.

"You gave me the song 'If I Die Young' to sing." The MC nods a tad uncertainly. "What you couldn't have known is that I'm sick." She hesitates for just a moment, then pulls down the top of her dress just enough to reveal the port implanted in her chest. The MC's jaw falls slack, his hands slowly dropping to his sides. "I'm stage 3. The treatments…don't seem to be working." She ignores the hushed mumbles from the audience and powers on. "In the year since I was diagnosed, I have never asked for special treatment, or what my brother and friends refer to as 'sick kid perks'. But today, I'm asking. Please don't make me sing this song. I really, really don't want to forfeit. We've worked so hard and want this so badly. And, yes, it's not a hard song. I could sing it easily. I just don't think my friends or family want to hear me sing it."

Blaine is shaking his head emphatically. He gets an idea. "How about this. Go into the audience and ask her mother if she wants to hear her 15 year old very sick daughter sing the song 'If I Die Young'. If she's okay with it, I'm sure Rachel will go ahead and sing it."

Rachel grins wryly and nods. There's no way in hell her mother would encourage her to sing this song. She doesn't think her mom would stop her from singing it, but she wouldn't encourage it or even be happy about it. The murmuring from the audience gets louder. She looks back to the MC. He's staring at her sadly. He's so focused on her that he doesn't notice Mr. Schuester come up behind him.

"Actually, I've already spoken with her mother and that's a firm 'no' from her. The rest of her team will refuse to sing it as well. So if you are going to force her to sing this song, then the New Directions will formally forfeit." Mr. Schuester declares.

The MC looks around, stunned, before managing to shake himself. "Um…." He looks down at his clipboard.

"Booo!" Someone yells up from the audience. "New song!"

She's pretty sure that was Tyler. She holds back a smirk. Very quickly, more people join in calling out their support in changing songs. The MC is now frazzled, pressing a hand against his earpiece.

"Alright, folks, hold on. Just….give me a minute. I'll….be right back." With a final glance at Rachel, he walks briskly off the stage. Once he's gone from view, the audience stops calling out and reverts to talking.

"There's a chance." Blaine tells her quietly. She nods.

Mr. Schuester walks over to them. "I'm sorry, Rachel. I never imagined you'd pick that song."

"Me neither."

"Until they decide what to do, let's head off stage." She nods and allows him to guide her off the stage. She purposely doesn't look at the audience.

Once she's in the wings, she's instantly wrapped in hugs from her friends. They echo her thoughts; they'd rather forfeit than sing that song. Or worse, hear her sing it. The group parts, revealing her mother hurrying towards her. She's engulfed in her mom's embrace.

"I could have sung it," she murmurs into her mom's shoulder "but I didn't think you'd want to hear me sing it."

"You're absolutely right. I would not. Thank you for not singing it, Rachel. I know how much you want to sing a solo."

All of this emotion is exhausting her more and she leans deeper into her mother's hold. "Honey, are you okay?"

"Just tired." Oh, she'd better clarify that statement fast. "If they let us choose a different song I can sing it as long as I'm sitting on a stool. Promise."

Her mom chuckles and rocks her. "Okay, princess."

Rachel turns her head and realizes that she's still standing partially in view of the audience. Embarrassed, she takes a step further into the wings. Her mother notices as well and pulls her over to the seat she'd been in before.

"Do you need your oxygen?"

"No."

"Okay." Her mom tucks her hair behind her ear. "In that case, I'm going to head back to my seat. But Rachel, no matter how much you want a solo, if you don't feel like you have the energy to sing it, don't. I'm trusting your judgement here."

Rachel nods. "I know. I won't risk causing us to lose." At her mother's sharp look, she quickly tacks on "Or risk my health."

Her mother grins wryly. "Good girl. Though we'll be discussing your priorities later." With a kiss on the forehead, she leaves.

It's not long before the MC returns to the stage and calls Rachel and Blaine back up. They resume their spots on their stools and wait for his decision.

"By unanimous vote, the judges have decided to allow you both to pick a new song." The audience cheers. Rachel barely hears it over the intensity of her relief. She smiles widely at Blaine.

"And to avoid us risking a similar situation, we have decided we will not be assigning the songs." He turns to the two teens. "We've gathered that you two are friends, is that correct?" They nod. "So you two know each other fairly well?" Again, they nod. "Good. You are going to choose a song for your opponent. Choose a song that they have not sung in a competition before."

Rachel and Blaine share a happy, but confused look. "Um, can you help us narrow it down to a single genre?"

The MC looks amused. "Alright, how about…..musicals."

Rachel smiles happily. "Perfect."

He hands each of them a clipboard and marker. "Write the song you want the other to sing, then hand it to them. Unless you're extremely against whatever song they chose for you, you will sing it. So once you have 'approved' the song, pass it to me and we'll get the music ready."

They nod and he steps back to set up the microphone. Rachel thinks about Blaine and what musical song could best feature his voice. She wants to challenge him, but not give him something too hard. She wants to win, but not by giving him an impossible song.

"Do you want easy or challenging?" Blaine asks her.

She grins, amused that his thoughts are so similar to her own. "Challenging."

He grins back. "You asked for it."

"What about you?"

"Challenging, please. But, not….you know,…..your level of challenging."

She scoffs. "Oh please, Blaine. You're incredibly talented and can handle whatever song I toss at you."

"That's high praise, coming from you."

She hums in response, still thinking hard. Various songs run through her mind but she vetoes them for one reason or another. There are so many choices. "Okay, this is difficult. Name a couple musicals." She requests of him.

"Uh…..My Fair Lady, Into the Woods, or Singing in the Rain. Now you."

"Funny Girl—"

Now he scoffs, interrupting her. "That one I knew."

She rolls her eyes. "Wicked, or…" she shrugs "….Into the Woods."

He nods and they're quiet while they think. She's pulled from her thoughts by Blaine's soft "ooh!" She turns to see him smiling excitedly at her.

"It's too bad we can't sing a duet. I think our voices would go really well together on 'Suddenly Seymour'."

Her eyes light up. "Oooh, yes! That'd be awesome. But, yeah, not today."

"Yeah. One day we'll sing it." He agrees with a smile.

She nods. "We'll have to sing it soon, though."

She's startled when his face suddenly falls and he almost looks like he's trying not to cry. She frowns in confusion.

"Soon?" He questions in a small voice.

Her frown deepens until she realizes how he interpreted her words. She gets why that's immediately where his mind went, but she can't deny that its also a little disheartening. Despite her inner turmoil, she gives him a reassuring look. "Because winter break is coming up soon. We'll be off from school and have more time for it."

His face clears and he lets out a breath of relief. "Right. Yeah. Of—of course."

Rachel shakes her head, grinning teasingly. "Geez, Blaine. Have a little more faith in me."

His face scrunches up and his shoulders slump. He looks both irritated and remorseful. It makes her grin more. "I do! I just...I—You…ugh." He gives up trying to defend himself. "I'm sorry, alright?"

She knows he is. She smirks and goes back to looking down at her clipboard. She writes a song idea she just had. "And here you guys have been trying to get me to stop thinking like that."

She doesn't bother looking over at him when he makes a soft sound of protest. Rachel doesn't need to see his puppy dog eyes to know he's sorry and feeling miserable. She writes a song for him from Singing in the Rain. Then he grins and writes down a song.

"Fine. You want me to show my faith in you? Here. Just remember, you asked for a challenge."

Warily, she takes the clipboard from him. Seeing what he wrote, she plops the clipboard on her lap and gives him a hard look. He's doing his best to look innocent.

"You asked for a challenge!"

"So you're giving me the hardest song I've ever tried to sing? This was hard even when I was healthy!"

"Well…" He reads her facial expression, seems to decide she's not actually mad, and confirms his choice. "…yes." But then he frowns uncertainly. "Are you up for singing that?"

She looks back down at it and takes stock of her body. She shrugs lightly. "Sure."

"Sure?"

"I'm tired, but when aren't I these days? I can handle this."

"What can't you handle then?"

She grins. "Doing absolutely anything else today. I already kind of want to take a nap. After singing this, I'm pretty sure I'll sleep for the rest of the day." He laughs lightly. "I bet you $5 I fall asleep on the bus ride home."

"Please, I bet you $5 you fall asleep in the green room before they even announce the winner." He challenges.

"You're on!"

Hearing chuckles, they look up at the audience. Belatedly, they realize that the microphone is now live, and just a few feet in front of them. Whoops. Rachel looks back down at her clipboard. She crosses out her initial choice.

"Hey! Your'e changing mine?"

She shrugs. "Considering the challenge you gave me, I feel it's only fair if your song is also challenging."

Blaine groans. "Now, wait a minute…."

"Nope." She hands it to him.

He looks at it, looks at her, then sighs. "I brought this on myself, didn't I?"

"Yes you did."

"Are you two quite finished?"

They nod and he takes their clipboards. His eyes widen. "Do you two secretly hate each other?" They chuckle and shake their heads. "No? In that case, you two must think very highly of each other's ability levels."

"That is true."

"Alright, then. Who first?"

"Ladies first." Blaine insists. "Can't have her falling asleep before she even starts the song."

"Ha ha ha." She says dryly.

Blaine kisses her cheek and backs his stool up a few feet to give her space. The MC hesitates.

"Young lady, before, when I said life sucks and you just have to deal with it…."

Rachel smiles disarmingly up at him. "You had no way of knowing that I'd already learned that lesson the hard way. I wasn't upset, I was amused."

He gives a relieved sigh. "Okay, good."

He leaves the stage. Rachel brings her stool closer to the microphone and waits for the music to begin.

"Oh, my man I love him so

He'll never know…."

Rachel sings her heart out. With less than a minute left in the song, she feels herself tiring more. And getting lightheaded. She grips the microphone stand, focusing on pouring her heart, soul, and every ounce of energy into the end of the song. She feels hands grip her waist. Without having to look, she acknowledges that Blaine has pulled his stool up directly behind hers and is holding her up so that she can focus on singing. She's grateful, but it's not necessary. As she sings the final note, she places her hands over his, trying to convey that she's fine. The song ends leaving her chest heaving. The audience is on their feet and loudly cheering. A standing ovation. The thrill of successfully singing such a difficult song, and the absolute joy just from singing it, flows through her. She smiles from ear to ear. Despite the feeling of triumph, she's shaking. She overdid it.

Blaine leans closer and rests his chin on her shoulder. "You're incredibly stubborn, you know that, right?"

She laughs breathlessly. "Mmhmm."

"But absolutely amazing, too."

He kisses her cheek. Finn is standing next to them, smiling down at her. He offers his arm and she takes it, using it to pull herself up. Once she's standing, she's relieved to find herself steady on her feet. Still, he wraps an arm around her as he walks her slowly off stage. The audience is still applauding. As soon as they're out of sight, he sweeps her into his arms. Holly places the nasal cannula on her.

"Girlfriend, that was breathtaking. For you too, it seems."

Rachel smiles tiredly and nods. Finn carries her towards the green room to rest. She watches Kurt wiping tears away as she's carried past.

"Damn, Tink. That was…..incredible. Even by your standards."

She rests her head on Finn's shoulder, still smiling. Happy to have sung. Relieved to have done well. Even more relieved that it's over and she can rest.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Blaine watches from the stage as Finn leads her off, guilt and awe warring within him. Why did he give her such a challenging song? But goddamn that was phenomenal. He still has goosebumps. She's leaning heavily on her boyfriend and moving slowly. But steadily. When he'd seen her waver just the slightest bit while singing, leaning to the side before grabbing hold of the microphone stand, he knew she was pushing herself too hard. Knowing he was at least partially to blame, he'd pulled his stool up right behind hers, ducking his head so he wouldn't be obvious, and gently grabbed her waist. He could feel her shaking. He's pulled from his thoughts by a hand landing on his shoulder.

"That was quite a performance." He nods his agreement. "And quite a song you gave her."

"I….I knew she'd be able to do it, I just didn't think about what it would cost her."

The MC shakes his head kindly. "She could have told you she wasn't up for it. She chose to sing it anyway."

He knows the MC is right, but he also knows that Rachel Berry has never backed down from a challenge. Knowing this, he should have given her a less taxing song.

"So, now it's your turn."

Blaine turns to him wide-eyed. "What? I can't follow that."

"But now it's your turn to sing."

Blaine looks between the MC and offstage where Finn is now carrying Rachel. "Look, I'm very talented. But there is no way in hell I'm going to be able to top the performance Rachel just gave."

There's a smattering of applause from the audience. He's not the slightest bit offended. They're agreeing with him, after all. And he knows he's right.

"That may be, but if you don't sing then your group forfeits. More than that, if you don't sing and the New Directions win by default, your friend will have sung her heart out for nothing."

That gives Blaine pause. He's surprised to see Kurt stalk onto the stage. The boy he has a crush on stops a few feet from him and crosses his arms. Uh-oh.

"You have to sing."

"But…"

"No, I'm just playing messenger here. Rachel says you have to sing. She flat out refuses to win by default, so if you don't try your absolute best she's going to be pissed at you."

Blaine feels a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Okay."

"Good. Now that I'm done playing messenger, I can speak my own thoughts." The older boy glares at him. "She rose to the challenge you set before her. With flying colors, I might add. Rachel poured every fiber of her being into that song. She literally had nothing left in her after that performance. It'd be insulting for you to not do the same." Blaine swallows hard and nods. Kurt notices and his expression softens into a smile. "You're not going to top her performance, but you can at least come close."

Blaine laughs. "Okay."

Kurt nods, spins on a heel, and leaves the stage. With renewed determination, Blaine takes a seat on the stool closest to the microphone. When the music begins, he puts in his all.

"There are giants in the sky

Big, tall, terrible giants in the sky…."

Unlike "My Man," this song's biggest challenge is the frequent key changes. He's pretty sure he nailed it, though. He holds the final note, hand in the air, and proud to have done his best. He, like Rachel before him, receives a standing ovation. He walks off the stage feeling elated, but not victorious. This was hands-down a New Directions win. But he's delighted to be a close second.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The three teams regroup on the stage to hear the results. Oral Intensity looks torn. At first, they'd clearly been upset about getting third place right off the bat. However, after hearing Rachel sing, then Blaine, they'd known they were beat fair and square. The group keeps giving New Directions odd looks. Kurt attributes this to Rachel. Either they're blown away by her talent, or they're sympathetic due to her being sick. Either way, they keep looking at the team and clearly looking for Rachel, who is not currently on stage.

The MC looks over the three teams, then lets his eyes linger on the New Directions. "So, I take it Mr. Anderson won the bet? Did Ms. Berry fall asleep in the green room?"

Mr. Schuester speaks for them. "Actually, they both lost the bet. Rachel fell asleep before getting back to the green room."

The MC's eyebrows shoot up. He clearly wasn't expecting that. "That's….fast."

"She expended a lot of energy."

Blaine is looking down at the stage. While the judges were convening to decide on the winner, the Warblers snuck into the ND green room to check on Rachel. They weren't surprised to find her sleeping, but Blaine had felt sick when he'd been told how quickly she fell asleep. Passed out is more like it. She was pale, shaking, and didn't argue about being on oxygen when she came off stage. Not only had her mother hurried in to check on her, but it turns out both of her doctors, Dr. Reed and Dr. Morgan, had come to watch the performance. They'd both checked Rachel over. The team, and Aunt Shelby, had calmed down when the two doctors confirmed that she just needed rest. And hydration. They suggested getting her to drink as much as she could as soon as she woke up.

"She has quite a voice." Dr. Morgan had commented. "I've heard you all talk about how good she is, so I had to see for myself. I honestly didn't expect her to be as good as she was. But, she did overdo it."

They'd all nodded their agreement. Aunt Shelby did not look happy. The woman hadn't wanted Rachel to attend and this was why. Kurt's pretty sure Rachel will be in for a long talk with her mother tomorrow. He feels bad for her. He hopes Aunt Shelby isn't too harsh with her. The MC announcing the winners draws him back to the present.

"We've already announced that Oral Intensity is in third place." He hands them their trophy. They take it, looking disappointed but accepting. "Now, for first place. The remaining two teams had initially tied, but we couldn't leave it a tie. Before we announce the winner, please know that both teams did a phenomenal job. However, only one can go on to Regionals."

Kurt grips Mercedes' hand. The team had discussed it. On the one hand, of course they want to win. On the other hand, they'd be okay with losing. They want to focus on Rachel's health. Rachel is not going to be willing to focus on her health while there are still competitions to prepare for. So if they lose, they can take that stress off of themselves and off of Rachel. They can use the rest of the year to relax, have fun, and get Rachel to truly rest. However, they're aware of how upset Rachel would be at losing. Especially after that performance. They don't truly think they can lose after that, but if they do they don't want Rachel upset. She'll blame herself when there's no blame to be had. She was truly phenomenal. Her performance was flawless. So for the sake of Rachel's happiness, he hopes they win.

"In first place, from Lima, Ohio, the New Directions!"

Tears unexpectedly jump to Kurt's eyes. Around him, his team yells and cheers, jumping for joy. All Kurt wants to do is run off stage, wake Rachel, and tell her the good news. He wants to see her face light up with joy. The only thing stopping him is knowing that she desperately needs her rest. He can tell her when she wakes. He'll ask Aunt Shelby not to share the news, so that he can be the one to tell her. Or maybe the team can make a video of them holding the trophy to show her when she wakes. Mercedes and Quinn hugging him from either side snaps him out of it. He hugs them back. He looks over their shoulders to see the Warblers watching them all with big smiles. They're not upset. They're not even surprised. When everything calms down, Mr. Schuester steps forwards.

"If I could have your attention for just a moment, please. Just, before you all leave, I'd like to point out that there is a box in the lobby for donations. You see, the illness Rachel has is life threatening and there's no cure. Not yet, at least. Scientists are working hard on making one, but they require more time and more funding. 100% of the donations will be sent to the organization that is working directly with the scientists and doctors to fund their research. There are also pamphlets with more information on the illness as well as other ways you can donate. Thank you."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hearing Rachel begin to rouse, Shelby sits on the edge of her bed and takes her hand. Despite knowing she's fine, she's still relieved to see her daughter's eyes open. She waits. Lately, Rachel has been groggy and requiring a few extra seconds to wake up enough to be fully aware of her surroundings. After Rachel blinks, then makes direct eye contact with her, Shelby knows she's fully awake.

"Hey, princess." She begins softly, not knowing how she's feeling.

"Hi, Mom."

"How're you feeling?"

Rachel closes her eyes for a moment, then reopens them. "Tired. And I have a headache."

Shelby keeps her voice soft and low. "Okay. Let's sit you up."

Considering how frequent her headaches have been, Shelby has begun keeping ibuprofen in her nightstand drawer. She also keeps a collection of water bottles on the shelf under the drawer. Grabbing both, she hands them to Rachel who takes them gratefully. When she tries to hand the water back, Shelby shakes her head.

"No, hun, drink more. Dr. Morgan and Dr. Reed said you need to stay hydrated."

Rachel frowns in confusion. "Huh? When?"

"Earlier today, after your performance." When Rachel continues to look confused, Shelby moves further on the bed so they're facing each other. "They came to see you perform. They were amazed at how good you were." She loves watching her daughter's face light up. But it doesn't stop the ache in her chest. "After you passed out, they checked you over. They said to let you rest and once you're awake to get you to drink as much as you can."

"I didn't pass out. I feel asleep."

Shelby presses her lips together until she has gathered herself. "Yes, you did. Falling asleep that quickly is not natural, Rachel. You passed out in Finn's arms. You were old cold before he even got you to the green room."

Rachel looks down. "Oh."

"Drink more, please."

Obediently, Rachel drinks down several gulps. Shelby opens her mouth to praise her performance. "You overtaxed yourself. You were supposed to stop if it became a risk to your health." Well, damn. That wasn't what she meant to say. What she wanted to say, sure, but not in that moment. She had planned to start out with praise, then gently ease into a conversation about taking it easy. Not start like this, with her tone harsh.

Rachel looks down. "I'm sorry."

Shelby takes a couple deep breaths. "You promised me you wouldn't overdo it."

"I…..I just…..I didn't know he'd give me that song."

"No, but you could have told him to give you something less taxing."

"I love that song. And I've never backed down from a challenge before. Do you really want me to start now?"

Shelby's jaw snaps shut and she reels back. Rachel may as well have punched her in the gut. Her daughter's eyes widen guiltily. "What?" It comes out a gasp.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I didn't….." Rachel can't seem to think of what else to say. Instead she scoots forward and wraps her arms around Shelby. "I'm sorry, Mom. I shouldn't have said that."

Shelby hugs her back, taking a minute to get control of herself. "Rachel," she breathes out "of course I don't want you to back down from all challenges. But the ones that put your health at risk, I do."

"I knew it'd be hard, but I didn't think it'd be that hard on me physically. It wouldn't have been so bad if I hadn't gotten lightheaded during it."

Shelby's eyes overflow. "You have no idea what it was like watching Blaine have to hold you up so that you wouldn't fall over."

"He didn't have to, though. It was thoughtful of him, but not necessary."

"Rachel—" Shelby pulls back to look her daughter in the eye.

"No, really! I mean it. I got lightheaded for a moment, but once it passed I was fine. Yes, I needed Finn's help to walk off stage. I doubt I would have been able to on my own. But I was able to stay sitting up on my own. Blaine was cautious and thoughtful, and I'm grateful to him, but it wasn't needed."

She believes her. A bit of tension is released from her. Despite feeling a little better, her mind flashes back to sitting in the audience, hands over her mouth, torn between awe and fear. She gently takes her daughter's face in her hands. "I'm glad. But it was still upsetting for me to witness." Rachel's eyes fill with tears. Shelby brushes them away. "And when you were done, watching you have to lean on Finn to be able to get off stage…"

"I'm sorry. I knew I overdid it. I knew I pushed myself too hard as soon as the song ended." Her tears begin again. "I hate that I can't sing a song without getting so tired that I need help walking afterwards."

Shelby pulls her back into a hug. "I know. But honey, I doubt that would have happened with most songs. You just happened to sing an extremely challenging song. It took more effort. It took more energy than you had to give. You should have told Blaine it give you a less taxing song. Or not sung at all."

"I know."

"But," she pulls back again, making sure they're eye to eye, "you were flawless."

Rachel's expression slowly went from regretful to proud and triumphant. Her wide smile and sparkling eyes cause Shelby's lips to curl into a smile, too.

"Really?"

"Really. Rachel, I've heard you sing many songs. You've impressed me time and time again. But today…..today you were on a whole new level. A professional level." Before her daughter's smile can widen further, she gives her a stern look. "But professionals know when to stop."

Rachel sighs, still smiling, though less radiantly than before. "Yeah. I'm learning."

"Can you finish learning that lesson so I don't go gray before my older sister does? She'd never let me live it down."

Rachel laughs. "Okay." She looks around. "What time is it?"

"Around 7."

Rachel's eyes widen. "Seriously?"

"You needed the sleep."

"Where's everyone else?"

"Nana and Grandpa are downstairs. Everyone else went home. They wanted me to tell you they thought you were incredible." Rachel smiles happily. Shelby smiles back. "I'm surprised you haven't asked yet."

"About the results?"

"Yes."

Rachel shrugs. "I figured Kurt would want to be the one to tell me."

"True. Why don't you give him a call?"

"I'm sure he's still partying with the rest of the team."

Shelby gives her an odd look. She runs her fingers through Rachel's hair. "And if he is, all the better. They'd all be happy to hear from you."

Her daughter's smile falters. "Unless I cost them the competition."

No, that won't do. "Rachel, you care more about the competition than they do. They care more about you than winning. If you lost, they wouldn't blame you."

Rachel tilts her head. "Do you know if we won or lost?"

"Honestly, no. After the teams were called on stage to announce the winner, Uncle Mark picked you up and we took you home. We left before hearing the verdict."

Rachel picks up the phone she hands her and calls Kurt. He answers quickly. Rachel puts him on speaker, so Shelby stays with her.

"Tink! How are you?"

"I'm alright."

A series of shouts from the rest of the club come through. Rachel's mouth curls up into a smile, but Shelby realizes it's a bitter-sweet smile. She frowns, but tucks that thought away for later.

"When did you wake up?"

"Just a few minutes ago. So, did we win? Lose?"

It amazes Shelby that after that performance Rachel can think there's even a chance they may have lost. If they did, then something is very wrong with those judges. Blaine's song was very, very good. Great, even. But it was not to Rachel's level.

"We won!" There's whooping and hollering in the background followed by chants of "we won!"

"Rachel, you were amazing! There's no way we would have lost after that." Shelby agrees with the boy. She's glad someone other than herself has said it to Rachel. Maybe she'll start to believe it. As confident as Rachel is in her ability to sing, she's just as quick to doubt if she's 'enough'. Shelby blames Leroy for that.

"Thanks. We'll talk more later? I'll let you get back to partying." Oh. So that's the reason for her bitter smile earlier.

"Yeah, of course! Bye, Tink. We love you!" More voices echo this and Rachel laughs.

Again, Shelby notices that it doesn't reach her eyes. She hangs up and Shelby waits. And waits. Rachel keeps looking down. Eventually, her face falls and tears drip onto the comforter.

"Mom…it's not fair."

Shelby's heart aches. She pulls Rachel onto her lap and holds her while she sobs. Her daughter should be out celebrating with her friends, laughing, dancing, singing, kissing Finn, and basically just enjoying her victory. Not be curled up on a bed sobbing, too tired to celebrate.

"I know it's not, baby girl."

It doesn't take long for Rachel to cry herself back to sleep. Shelby stays where she is, holding her. Her parents come in to check on them. It's only when her mother wipes her cheeks that she realizes she'd been crying right along with her daughter.

Xxxxxxxx

A/N: I had a bunch of ideas for how Sectionals could go. Mostly what songs she could pull from the hat and how she and the others would react to and handle the songs. I'm going to post a companion piece at some point in the near future where each (extremely short) chapter is a different version of this could have gone. If you're interested, keep an eye out for it.