Chapter 8

Rachel's second day back in Lima was much more enjoyable than her first by a large margin. Waking up in her own bed was a pleasant surprise after sleeping in a hotel bed in New York for the last month. She had enjoyed sleeping there, it wasn't as if it wasn't a comfortable bed but there was something reassuring and safe about her own. The safety factor in knowing that she had slept in it for so many years allowed her to sleep sounder than she thought would be possible. When she woke, Rachel wanted to start to get her routine back to normal as soon as possible. It was strange to wake up and not head off to NYADA or Julliard to meet up with James and her other friends for their daily activities. She couldn't help but feel comfortable at being home in Ohio. It was so different from how she'd spent the last month, but it was nice to be home. After her morning routine, she ate breakfast with her Dads before Leroy left for work.

"What are you planning on doing today sweetie?" Hiram asked, as they were washing up together. Rachel smiled up at him as she dried a dish.

"I'm going to hang out with Kurt, Mercedes and Blaine" Rachel said, drying her hands and placing the dishcloth on the side.

"That sounds nice" Hiram says smiling at her, as he hugs her. "I'm going to do some shopping before your Dad gets home. Have a good day sweetheart"

Rachel headed up to her room, grabbing her handbag and placing some things into it that she would need. Skipping down the stairs, Rachel headed out the door; saying goodbye to her dad one more time before she left. As she walked down the driveway to her car, she called Kurt to let him know that she was on her way to the Lima Bean now.

A little while later and she was walking into the coffee shop, arm in arm with Kurt as Mercedes and Blaine walked on either side of them. As they stood in line for their order, Rachel smiled as she remembered going to get coffee with James in New York. He would always insist on paying for her; even after only know her for a couple of days. Smiling, Rachel paid for her coffee and the four of them walked over to sit in a corner booth.

They talked for a while, Blaine and Mercedes telling them about how they had spent their summers; going into more detail than they had at the party the night before. Blaine had been spending a lot of time with the warblers singing at various different community centres. Aside from his frequent skype movie calls with Kurt, he had been spending more time with some of the New Directions as well; mainly Tina and Mercedes.

"So Mercedes…what really happened between you and Sam this summer. You two were getting really close before summer…especially after prom" Kurt asks, smirking. Rachel bites her lip as she listens, glad for once that the relationship talk wasn't on her.

"We were" Mercedes replies, "It was nice to spend time with someone who cares about me, but it's over now. His dad got a job back home in Tennessee and they moved. It was just a summer fling"

Rachel smile faded as she heard Mercedes see that. Her mind raced as she thought about her and James. Mercedes and Sam had a relationship over the summer, but he had moved away; much in the way James was back home in Oregon. Shaking her head, she pushed the thoughts out of her mind. She and James both had agreed that they would stay together and make their relationship work. Smiling, she returned her attention to their conversation. They started talking about New York, as they explained a bit more about their classes and the people they met.

"So come on tell me about this James" Mercedes said, looking at Rachel. Rachel giggled and was about to open her mouth when her phone rang. Pulling it out, she grinned as she saw the photo on the display. Turning it around and showing them; she giggled as she saw the roll of Kurt's eyes.

"Is that him?" Blaine asks, Rachel nods as she answers it

"Cute" Mercedes says in the background as she laughs answering the phone. Kurt raises his eyebrows up and down.

"Hey…what's funny" Rachel heard James down the phone, amusement in his voice.

"James…We were just talking about you" She said grinning widely.

"All good I hope" James responds. "You doing okay beautiful?"

"Yeah, I'm fine baby" Rachel spoke in a tender loving voice, biting her lip, Mercedes mouth opened in surprise at hearing Rachel speak so affectionately. Blaine laughed at her, and Rachel shrugged her shoulders.

"I like it when you call me that" He replied, and Rachel felt her cheeks blush madly.

"I like saying it" Rachel said smirking, and she frowned when she heard a announcement in the background. "You okay? Where are you?"

"Relax, apart from missing you like crazy. I'm okay babe" James said laughing softly. "I'm at the airport. Our flights in an hour and I wanted to call you"

"Are Matt and Lucy there?" Rachel asks, taking a drink of her coffee; licking her lips.

"No they're not, they got an earlier flight" James responded, "My mom's grabbing some last minute things. I'm sat in the middle of Starbucks drinking coffee and watching sports on my phone"

"I'm sat having coffee with Blaine, Kurt and Mercedes" Rachel said, feeling a smile cross her face "There's a strange coincidence between us. Our schedules are synced up perfectly"

"I don't think its that's strange…I mean we did spend so much time together this summer. I guess we just got used to certain things" James said, Rachel finding herself nodding as he spoke.

"Yeah, it's nice to think even though we're so far away that we are still connected" Rachel said sighing happily. "I should let you go, I need to stop ignoring these guys now I think. They're pulling faces at me"

James laughed down the phone, and she joined in giggling happily. "yeah, me too. I think I see my mom coming to find me anyway"

"Can you call me tonight?" Rachel asks softly.

"I'd like to, but our flight gets in late" James replies, and she can hear the sadness in his voice. "My house is an hour or so away from the airport as well. By time I get home it'll be…well I don't want to make you stay up too late for me. I know how you like to be in bed early to get enough sleep"

"I don't mind waiting up" Rachel responds. She's not sure that she's ready to go to sleep without talking him tonight. The previous week they had been hanging out till late; and the couple weeks beforehand they had been talking on the phone or texting before she went to sleep.

"Yeah, but I mind you waiting up" James said and she nodded feeling a little disappointed. "I'll call you in the morning alright"

"Okay…I'll miss talking to you" Rachel said her voice sounding upset and vulnerable. Kurt placed his hand on her arm and squeezed softly.

"Hey…please don't cry. I hate it when you do" James replied, and Rachel sniffed, mouthing a thank you to Kurt. She smiled sadly at James' next words; "I miss you"

"I miss you too" Rachel replied, wiping her eye with her sleeve. "I'll talk to you in the morning"

"Bye Baby" James replied softly before he hung up. Rachel stared at her phone for a few seconds before placing it in her bag and turning her attention back to the three of them with her; taking a sip of her coffee.

"So that was James?" Mercedes asked, smiling reassuringly at her. Rachel nodded

"Yeah" She replied softly

"Has he left New York yet?" Kurt asked.

"Not yet…his flight leaves in about an hour" Rachel said gently. "He's getting home late so he isn't going to call me tonight"

"You two…you sound pretty serious" Mercedes replied. "I mean, how long have you known him?"

"A month…and I know what you're going to say but I've heard it from Kurt and some of James' friends as well" Rachel said softly, frowning. "We're going to make it work, even when he is so far away"

"Sorry I didn't mean it like that" Mercedes said, "I'm really happy for you, I can see just from that phone call he makes you feel great. You've never smiled that widely at seeing someone call you before"

"Thanks…I just get so frustrated about being reminded that he isn't here" Rachel replied, "I miss him, and it makes it even worse knowing that I've got to try and find a way to tell Finn as well. Its just so hard"

"Don't think about that now" Blaine said gently, squeezing her hand. "Tell us about James and how you two met"

Rachel spent a while talking to the three in the Lima Bean, telling them about how she and James had met this summer. She started off with their awkward impromptu meeting as they waited on the first day of the summer programme. They laughed when Kurt told them that she refused to admit that she was attracted to him at first, despite the fact that he saw the two of them looking at one another, Rachel looking as if she was in love with him. Rachel smiled, and then admitted about how she was mesmerized by his brown eyes and had struggled to find her voice when James had said hello to her. Blaine and Mercedes both agreed that it was fate when she told them about how she'd been out into the same group as him for the first few weeks if summer at Julliard.

She moved on and told them about how as the weeks went on, her and James become closer to one another. They went from simply sharing classes to going for lunch and coffee together and texting each other all the time.

"I think he saw more of her than I did this summer, you became inseparable"

Rachel blushed furiously as Kurt told them about how awkward they were when saying goodbye to each other at the end if the day.

"They would both stand there and just look at each other in silence" Kurt replied laughing slightly "then one of them would lean in and hug the other. They'd both have the biggest, silliest smiles on their faces. This was before they started dating, like when we watched videos of nationals, she was literally sat in his lap as we did. That's when her dads walked in"

"Kurt! We weren't sat that close" Rachel said defensively but she carried a smile on her face as she remembered being close to him, how good his arms felt and how amazing he smelt.

"So when did you two get serious about being a couple?" Blaine asks

"Well there was a party that the programme put on at Callbacks, that's a karaoke bar that all the NYADA students go to, and he asked me to go with him as his date. We'd be skirting around the issue for a few days, after we talked about our pasts things my feelings started to become more romantic towards him, I felt a real connection with him" Rachel smiled

"That's really really sweet" Blaine said and Rachel blushed, remembering what came after James had asked her out.

"That's when we shared our first kiss" Rachel sighed happily; "That night at Callbacks was amazing, it felt so natural and right to be there with him as his girlfriend"

"What's it like to kiss him?" Blaine asks and Rachel laughs at the Kurt gives him a horrified expression "Oh relax Kurt I'm just curious"

"It's amazing. He's such a sweet guy and it shows in every part of him. He kisses me with so much tenderness. He makes me feel completely appreciated" Rachel replies "it's unlike anyway I've been kissed before: it's incredible"

"I think I need to kiss him" Blaine says teasingly winking at Kurt

"Over my dead body" Kurt exclaims and they al laugh.

"I think your forgetting he's mine and I'm the only one he'll be kissing when he comes to visit next week" Rachel giggles

Rachel spent the next half hour telling them about that night and then rest of the week they were together. By the end as she told them about the conversation they had at the restaurant Mercedes had a year in her eye and Blaine and Kurt both looked emotional.

"Wow Rachel it sounds like you too really care for each other" Blaine "I'm so happy for you and I want it to work between you; I have no doubt you can make it work"

"Thanks Blaine" Rachel says smiling, her own eyes a little bit wetter than before. "I know we can"

"Whatever happens after you tell Finn, we'll support you Rachel" Mercedes replied and Rachel squeezed her hand thankfully.

...

After they were done in the coffee store after talking for a little while long; the three of them decided that they would go for a walk together talking about less emotional and serious matters; simply enjoying being together. The three from McKinley were looking forward to heading back to school in a couple of weeks. The summer had given the kids that hadn't gone to New York time to think over what had happened at nationals the year before, and as Mercedes explained they had agreed to put it behind them; that blaming Rachel and Finn wouldn't accomplish anything and they weren't completely alone for their failure to win.

"I wondered why Santana was being friendly to me at Noah's last night" Rachel had mentioned thoughtfully.

"Yeah, she understands that you and Finn were sorry about what happened. In fact, Finn spent a lot of time talking to her and Santana is over it. I mean, she was really angry and refused to talk to anyone but Brittany for a few weeks after you left but...we're a family and we forgive one another" Mercedes replied smiling, as Rachel nodded happily.

"Finn spoke to Santana?" Kurt asked surprised. "He was really mad with her for what happened between him and you Rachel"

"He'll probably tell you himself, and I don't mean this as me recommending you get back together with Finn, but he has spent a lot of time this summer going over what happened. He's realised how he treated you was wrong and wants to make amends" Mercedes has said softly, and Rachel had sighed. She didn't want Finn to spend this summer thinking about her or how to win her back. She had wanted him to spend it worrying about himself; that way they could both move on; but she wasn't going to be upset at the fact he had taken responsibility for his actions. Him acting like a leader, and being a man was one of the reasons she had loved in the past.

"I'm happy for him" Rachel said simply and the three of them kept talking with one another.

Around six o'clock they said their goodbyes and Rachel found herself walking through the front door of her house a quarter of an hour later to find her dad's sat in the living room listening to some soft jazz music.

"Hi Sweetheart, did you have a nice day?" LeRoy asked as she walked in

"Hey Dad" she said kissing him kn the cheek before walking over to her other dad and doing the same "Daddy. I did, it was nice to spend some alone time with my best friends"

"We're glad sweetie, you look happier as well" Hiram remarked and Rachel smiles widely at him "Dinner will be ready in a little bit dear "

She spent twenty minutes or so talking to her dads about her day before they got up and set the table. As they were eating her dads talked about LeRoys day at work while as absentminded ate her food. Her thoughts were dwelling on how she was going to tell Finn about her and James. She knew that honesty would be the best policy; but that didn't make it any easier to actually find the words to say it outloud. By the sounds of what she had heard from various glee club members over the past few days, Finn had spent a lot of time thinking over how to make things right between the two of them. If that meant that he wanted to get back together with her, then she had to be prepared to hurt him again. She thought that calling time on their relationship before the summer had been the end of it. She must have been looking sad because her dad's interrupted their conversation to ask her if she was okay

"You okay sweetie?"

"Yeah just got a lot on my mind" she supplied a lame excuse and immediately she knew they didn't buy it.

"Rachel? Are you sure? We love you and we can tell when there is something bothering you" Smiling slightly at how well her Dads could recognize when she was down, Rachel sighed before she explained.

"We know it'll be hard, baby girl, but you'll feel better once you speak to the boy" Hiram said smiling reassuringly

"Have you spoken to James today?" Leroy asked and Rachel immediately felt a smile cross her face, thanking her Dad for knowing how to try and cheer her up.

"Yeah, he called while I was out with Kurt, Blaine and Mercedes" Rachel said chewing her bottom lip softly "We didn't talk for long because his flight was leaving in a little hit but even if it was only for a little while it was nice"

"I bet you were happy to hear his voice? We know it must be hard sweetie" Hiram asked tenderly

"Yeah it was. I can't wait to speak to him tomorrow morning" Rachel said smiling

"He isn't calling you tonight?" Leroy asked raising an eyebrow "You too speak every night"

"No his plane gets in late and he told me not to wait up: he knows how important my sleep is too me" Rachel said happily: looking back on it. while she had been upset at the time about not talking to him tonight, James had been very sweet when he told her

"I knew we were right to like that boy" Hiram said and the three of them laughed.

"I'm really glad you get on with him" Rachel said softly "It means a lot to me"

"We know sweetie" Leroy replied before she kissed both of them on the cheek.

After helping her Dads clear up from dinner, Rachel watched TV with them for around an hour before she went up to her room at around ten; kissing them goodnight. Intending to spend some time chatting to people on Facebook, Rachel ran through her routine and after her Dads brought her evening tea, she sat at her computer. Smiling, she saw that Kelsie as well as Jake from Vocal Adrenaline were online. Eager to catch up with them; she ended up speaking with them for around an hour asking them about their flights and if they were excited to be back home. The two of them returned the question and thankfully neither brought up James. A little while later she logged off and led in bed, sending James a goodnight text before she led her head down on her pillow and fell into her dreams