Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to Glee or any of its characters.
Chapter 66
Rachel was standing at the top of the bleachers watching the Cheerios complete part of the routine so she could get a better view of it. She was frustrated with it because it wasn't coming together like she wanted and she couldn't explain exactly what the problem was and was about to throw her hands up and just call practice for the day.
They'd been home from vacation for a few weeks now and had settled back into their school and home lives. The rest of the week in Florida had been a blast. The remaining days were spent in Disney World, Universal Studios and with beach and water fun at the summer house along with nightly jam sessions around the fire ring. They had a wonderful time really getting to know Fran better and spent a little time with her friend Michael. They were all sad to leave and there were tears shed when after they got home and bid Fran goodbye but promised to keep in touch.
Now that they were home though, it was business as usual. Rachel called for them to do it again and Sue came up next to her. "What's the problem?
Rachel shrugged still keeping her eye on the squad. "They're off somewhere and it's not flowing the way it needs to. I just can't see where they're going wrong."
Sue looked out over the girls and watched alongside of her and sighed. She couldn't see a problem and the girls looked beyond ready to drop so she picked up her mega phone berating the squad and sent them off to shower.
Rachel looked at her incredulously. "We weren't done yet. I need to see…"
Sue turned her putting her hands on her shoulders. "They're done for the day. You can look at it again during the next practice. Now, you wanna talk about it?"
Rachel shook her head looking away. Right after they returned home from vacation they were contacted by their lawyers to inform them of the impending trial against Azimio Adams. They all went to the lawyer's office and talked about where they would go from here and how best to proceed with things. All of them had been on edge since but Rachel was a mess.
On the outside she was a rock but for those that really knew her she was not ok. She sighed and leaned in letting Sue envelope her in a much needed hug. "I'm just… I don't know Sue… I hate that we have to go in next week and I have to talk in front of a room full of people about what happened."
Sue tightened her hold and kissed her head. "I know sweetie, it sucks but once it's done they will put that trash away for a long time."
Rachel shrugged and moved away slightly, "Hopefully."
She shook her head squaring her shoulders and Sue knew that the topic was being dropped for the moment. "Well. Go get showered and over to the girls before they have a melt down and you're all late for class."
Rachel nodded curtly and made her way to her girls. At their questioning looks she waves it off kissing them both lightly on the lips and Brittany on the cheek before walking past them into the locker room. The girls exchanged worried looks and followed behind.
The rest of the day was pretty normal and afternoon Glee practice went well. Rachel was still wound tight all day and they talked Judy into letting them take her to Shelby's even though it was her night again. She hadn't left her and Shelby's house since they talked to the lawyers. She needed Shelby and her own space at home for the moment and Judy agreed.
After the girls headed home Judy looked to Shelby. "If it's ok I think I'm going to just stay with you guys for a while. I think Rachel needs us all in one house right now. She doesn't want to leave you but clings to me when I leave or when Sue goes home for anything."
She had come to watch practice and talk to Shelby and Sue about moving in for the moment. Shelby nodded softly. "I noticed that too. I would really appreciate if you were there too. Sue packed her things during Lunch today and dropped them at the house already. She's staying for a while too."
Sue shrugged. "I think they need us all right now so it seemed like the thing to do. Rachel was really tense during morning practice and I just want to help."
Shelby leaned up and kissed her softly. "That's because you love them and are a wonderful woman."
Sue blushed but said no more. Judy just chuckled, "Alright then. I've got my bags in the car so I'll meet you guys at the house. I'll cook tonight."
They all agreed and looked up to see where the girls were. Santana was close to the stairs by the stage talking to Josh and Marcus. Quinn was sitting on the edge of the stage talking to Marsha and Brittany but they didn't see Rachel.
Shelby stood looking around again and found her on the stage sitting in a chair toward the back of the stage with a guitar in hand playing softly. Dave was sitting on the floor not far away just looking through some of his sheet music and looked up watching her play.
On stage with her eyes closed Rachel was in her own head. She'd been in a bad place for the last two weeks but she was determined to snap out of it and was playing softly to herself picking through a song she used to sing after a rough day at school when she was younger. Her daddy taught it to her on the guitar. They would play it together and he would back her up. She smiled at the memory still picking through it trying to remember all of the chords.
Dave looked up when he recognized the song and smiled. "Hey I didn't know you knew country songs Rach. I love that song."
Rachel stopped playing as she opened her eyes and smiled sadly. "I love all kinds of music David. My daddy taught me how to play this one. I use to sing it when I was younger and I had an especially bad day."
He returned her sad smile knowing he was one of the ones that used to give her those bad days. Standing he grabbed another guitar and sat in the chair beside her. He started picking through the intro and smiled. "Sing it with me."
Rachel smiled and joining him starting to play again.
Rachel, Dave, Both
Ooooooooh
Another day has almost come and gone
Can't imagine what else could go wrong
Sometimes I'd like to hide away somewhere and lock the door
A single battle lost but not the war ('cause)
As she started singing she had the attention of everyone still in the auditorium as all conversation stopped and they all looked to her and Dave.
Tomorrow's another day
And I'm thirsty anyway
So bring on the rain
It's almost like the hard times circle 'round
A couple drops and they all start coming down
Yeah, I might feel defeated,
And I might hang my head
I might be barely breathing - but I'm not dead (no)
Santana and Quinn walked toward her and met just to the side of her out of her line of sight. They just stood as Quinn wrapped her arms around Santana's waist holding her as they listened to the pain in Rachel's voice. Shelby sat back down and leaned into Sue with tears in her eyes, Judy grabbing her hand squeezing it tightly.
Tomorrow's another day
And I'm thirsty anyway
So bring on the rain
Ooooooooo
No I'm not gonna let it get me down
I'm not gonna cry
And I'm not gonna lose any sleep tonight ('cause)
Tomorrow's another day
And I am not afraid
So bring on the rain
Tomorrow's another day
And I'm thirsty anyway
So bring on the rain
Bring on the rain, raaainn
Bring on the rain, Bring on the rain
Oooooooooh
When they finished the song the auditorium was filled with soft clapping as the other kids all understood that she was hurting and as always music was her release.
Rachel stood at the same time Dave did and after sitting her guitar down she wrapped her arms around his thick neck and hugged him tightly. "Thank you David. You have no idea how much that meant to me."
Dave just hugged her gently like she was something fragile and he was afraid she'd break. "Anytime Rach."
She gave him a watery laugh. "Thank you," and she turned rushing into Santana and Quinn's arms as the others went back to their conversations giving them a little privacy.
She rested her body into Quinn with her face in her neck pulling Santana into her. Santana leaned in and kissed her neck softly. "You ok querida?"
She sighed tightening her hold on both of them. "I will be." Leaning up she kissed Quinn softly then turned kissing Santana the same. "Are you ready to go home? I just want to curl up and watch a movie or something."
Both girls nod but don't get a chance to say anything as Shelby, Sue and Judy walk up to them. "We're all ready to go baby why don't you shoo these heathens out of here and we'll go home. Judy has offered to cook dinner then we can put the bed down in the media room and all snuggle with a movie."
Rachel perked up and looked over to Judy. "Can you make Mushroom burgers and sweet potato fries?"
Judy chuckled and caressed her face. "Yes and I'll even make some of that strawberry shortcake you love so much."
Rachel squealed and bounced in the girls' arms. "Oh that sounds heavenly." She pulled out of their arms and clapped moving to the center of the stage. "Ok everyone, let's all head out so we can lock up and get home. I have vegan burgers and fries waiting to be cooked and strawberry shortcake that will need my attention soon."
They all laugh and start gathering their things. Mercedes threw her bag over her shoulder and yelled back at Rachel. "I'm coming to your house. That sounds better than the spaghetti mom is making."
Rachel shook her head smirking. "Nope, all mine."
Santana came up behind her and wrapped her in her arms. "Hey, I need dinner too."
Rachel just smiled with mischief in her eyes. "Oh you can have dinner angel I just get all the strawberries and cake."
Santana chuckled into the back of her neck. "But hermosa, don't you remember what we did with the last strawberries we had?" She whispered into her ear.
Rachel bit back a moan and nods her head. "Ok, I'll share."
Santana nipped her ear playfully. "I thought so."
They both laughed as Quinn came up and took them each by a hand. "You two are ridiculous, but I love you. Let's go home."
They laugh some more and allow her to guide them out. Shelby smiled watching them go happy that Rachel was at least smiling and joking around this afternoon. She thought that might have been her first genuine smile she'd had since leaving the lawyers office, over a week ago.
Judy came up beside her as Sue shooed the other kids out. "I think she just needs a little time and some security in the form of all of us together for a bit. She'll be ok Shelbs."
Shelby smiled and bumped shoulders with her. "I think so too."
They both looked over as Sue called out to them that she was ready to lock up. Grabbing their things they made their way to her and headed home.
When the girls arrived at the house they went up to their room. Rachel was emptying her workout bag in the hamper when Quinn's arms slipped around her. "Are you really ok baby? I loved your song you sang with Dave. Did it help?"
Rachel turned in her arms kissing her softly. "I'll be ok bear and that song helped me a lot. I was in sixth grade when I heard it for the first time and I told daddy I needed the music for it. He got me the music and taught me how to play the guitar for it. Anytime I had a really bad day at school I'd go home and pull out my guitar then he would sit and sing and play it with me. He told me that nothing bad lasts forever and that I just needed to remember that and sing my song."
She sighed and rested her head on Quinn's shoulder. "The last time I sang that song with him was the day before he died. I'd been at the park down the road swinging waiting for Brittany to come and practice for our dance class together. A group of kids came and pushed me off the swing and were kicking dirt on me. Brittany got there and her dad pulled them away from me and drove me home. That night daddy held me while I cried and once I calmed down we sang that song over and over until I felt better."
She smiled slightly felling Santana now wrapped around her back. "He told me that night that as I got older somethings would get better but there would always be things that happen that would test me. He said that the true strength of a person was in how they handled those things above all others and he was proud of the way I chose to handle the things that happened to me. I went to bed that night with a smile on my face. The next day he was walking through the parking lot at Walmart and some kid that had just gotten his license turned too fast coming down an aisle not paying attention and hit him. He hung on for two days but in the end he didn't make it."
The girls tightened their arms and kissed her head as she cried softly. "You are pretty awesome querida."
She smiled wiping her eyes. "This is the first time I've talked about what happened to him since it happened and the first time I've sung that song since too. I was just sitting there picking the chords and it all came back to me. David got excited recognizing the song and asked me to sing it with him. As we sang I remembered what he said to me that day and I realized that I'm ok. I'm strong enough to deal with whatever happens next week and throughout all of the trial stuff. I have you two, and mom, Sue and mama J. I'm not alone and today I felt my daddy there with me too so I know I'll be ok."
Quinn pushed her away just enough to capture her lips in a tender kiss pushing all of the love she felt for her in that moment. "We will always be here for you baby. You never have to be alone unless you want to be. I love you."
Santana turned her and kissed her the same way and pulled Quinn into their side so they were totally connected. "I wish, and not for the first time, that I could have met that man. Every time you talk about him I love him more for what he was for you." She kissed Quinn softly then kissed Rachel again. "I love you so much and I'm so happy that you remembered that song today and that it helped you."
"I love you both too, so much." Rachel sank into them and they just held each other for a moment. Eventually they separated with a few more kisses, finished putting their things up and headed out to find the moms.
When she arrived at the house Judy had grabbed her bag and took it to her own room. She was just stopping in front of her door as the girls were coming out and saw her with a bag. Rachel moved forward and opened the door for her. "Are you staying the night Mama J?" she asked excitedly.
Judy smiled and kissed her check as she passed her. "I'm planning on staying until you are ready to come back to my house."
Rachel deflates and sighs. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to drive you out of your home to be with Quinn. Tomorrow we'll come back to the house for your weekend. I'm so sor…"
Judy dropped her bag grabbing Rachel's hands stopping her mid-sentence. "Sweetie stop, I'm not being driven out of my home. You girls are my home. If you need to be here right now then that's where I'm going to be too. We'll all stay here while you get through all of this crap with the courts and lawyers then when you girls are ready we will go back to our original arrangement and you can come home with me. I promise I don't mind. I just think we all need to be together so I asked your mom if it was ok for me to move in for a little while."
"I did too." They turned to see Sue in the doorway with her arm wrapped around Shelby's waist. "You need us so here we are."
Rachel looked between them for a moment and threw herself into Judy's arms hugging her tightly then rushed to Sue to do the same. "Thank you," was all she could get out with her tears streaming and Sue just held on.
Shelby, Judy and the girls all surrounded them in a family hug. Once Rachel calmed Judy kissed her forehead. "Ok, now I'm going to head down and started dinner. Why don't you go and wash your face then come down and help me peal the sweet potatoes?"
Rachel nodded kissing each one of them and went back to her room to freshen up. Quinn turned in Judy's arms and held on. "Thank you mom, she just…"
Judy kissed her cheek. "I know baby. I love her too and I know that this is what she needs right now."
Quinn releases her to hug Sue. Judy ends up with Santana in her arms instead. She doesn't say anything as she kissed and hugged her then leaves the room quickly. Judy smiled after her understanding that she just needed a moment.
They headed down stairs and it ended up a full family endeavor to get dinner on the table and they just spent the evening enjoying being together. Since it was Friday they all headed up to the media room after dinner and curled up all together to watch some movies and just stayed there together for the night. They spent the rest of the weekend just hanging out and using the den/game room playing games together most of the weekend.
Sunday evening they were all sitting in the den playing Monopoly when the doorbell rang. Shelby looked to the girls and they shrugged. Rachel moved to stand. "I have no idea."
Shelby placed a hand on her arm for her to sit. "I'll get it sweetie. It's your turn anyway."
Rachel nodded as Shelby moved to the foyer. When she opened the door a brunette woman stood there. "Can I help you?"
The brunette stepped forward holding out her hand. "Are you Shelby Corcoran?"
Shelby shook it still looking confused. "Yes I am what can I do for you?"
The brunette smiled taking her hand back. "I'm here to see Santana, I'm her aunt. My name is..."
"What the hell!"
They both turned to see Santana and the others in the doorway of the den. "Aunt Calliope? What are you doing here?"
Callie Torrez smiled stepping toward her, "Hello mija…"
A/N: I know I've been gone from this story for a while but I think my block is gone and I have some surprises in the future chapters. Happy reading.
The song Rachel and Dave sang was 'Bring On The Rain' by Jo Dee Messina and Tim McGraw