Chapter 9

Rachel awoke the next morning to the sun peeking through her curtains as she stretched out like a cat across her bed before wiping the sleep from eyes. This was the second time she had woken up in her own bed, and it was just like the previous morning; Rachel falling into the routine she had done before New York, starting to being comfortable waking up in her own house.

Sitting up in bed, she leaned over and turned off her alarm before shifting to the edge of her bed picking up her phone; wiping her eyes as she glanced at the screen. She grinned as she saw several messages from James on her phone. One of them was replying to her goodnight text, the second letting her know that his plane had landed and the final one was sent when he arrived home. She wondered why the sound of her phone going off as she received a text hadn't woken her up during the night. Shrugging, she decided that now she wanted to talk to him right away; falling asleep without talking to him had felt strange despite how soundly she had ended up sleeping. Biting her lip, Rachel brought up his number and called him eager to talk to him. It rang several times, and Rachel was nervous he wasn't going to pick up, and just as she considered putting the phone down he picked up.

"Mhmm" His voice came down the phone groggily. She found the sound of hearing him this morning was strange, the huskiness and how rough it sounded were incredibly attractive to her ears, never having heard him this early in the morning before she find herself biting her lip "Hello?"

"Hey…" Rachel replied softly as she then realised what time it was. His flight had gotten in late and she just now realised that he hadn't been sleeping all that long. Her excitement at wanting to call him had overwritten her sensibility.

"It's really early…" He said, and she could tell that he was stretching and yawning as he spoke. "Is everything okay Rachel?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry baby" Rachel said affectionately. "I saw your messages from last night...and...and I couldn't wait to ring you. I'm really sorry, it's really early and I know that you didn't get much sleep last night. I was just really excited…"

"Don't worry about it" James replied, his voice still groggy. "I'm not mad at you, I'm tired but its alright. I'm glad you called I miss you and its nice to hear your voice"

Rachel smiled, standing up and walking into her bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror, she stood smiling brushing her hair out of her face. "I missed you too. How was your flight?"

"It was alright…I don't like flying at night that much. I always get tired and I can never sleep on planes" James said, and she heard him shifting in his bed; probably to sit up, as she heard him yawn another time. "It was alright though, they were showing some films that I haven't watched for a while so that helped to pass the time"

"I love planes, but I think it would have been better if I'd have you to cuddle up against" Rachel said softly, she really did miss the feel of her arms around her as well the scene that she had found extremely comforting.

"I miss holding you" James said sadly and Rachel sighed. Her eyes welled with tears as she thought about how far away they were and what Mercedes had told her about her relationship about Sam. James must have sense something wrong.

"This is too depressing talk for so early in the morning" James said and Rachel couldn't help but laugh; glad that he knew just by the sound of her voice when she was upset. "Hey, did I ever tell you that we flew to New York for nationals like a week beforehand so I wouldn't be tired and I'd be prepared enough to perform"

"Really?" Rachel asked teasingly

"Yeah, I still get crap from the guys about that" He replied "They are so mean to me"

Rachel laughed at him, as she walked back into her bedroom sitting back down on her bed. "You're so cute"

"I'm not as cute as you are" James replied, and she heard him smirking as he spoke. "What are you doing today?"

"I'm going to spend some time with Finn later" She said softly, trying to gauge his reaction. He was silent for a few long moments before she decided to speak again. "James? Are you still there?"

"Yeah, sorry I'm just taking in what you said" James replied his voice seemed as if he was fully awake now "So you're spending time with him today...right…are you going to be with Kurt or some of your friends? Or are you going to be alone with him?"

"Alone" Rachel said, and she heard him sigh down the phone. Speaking with a firmer tone than she normally would do; in fact she'd never spoken in this way to him before. "James...don't be like that. Don't get worried about what's going on here. I know that you don't like the idea of me and him spending time together, but he is my friend"

"Does he know about us yet?" James said softly, but she knew that he still wasn't happy with the idea. They'd spoken about their past relationships this summer and she knew that while he was okay with the fact that she would always have some feelings for Finn; he was her first love; but she had a feeling that he still didn't want her to spend too much time with him.

"No" Rachel replied, and before he could reason she spoke quickly; "That's the reason I want to spend some time with him. We haven't been alone with another since I broke up with him before summer"

"I'm sorry" James said in an incredibly tender apologetic tone, she could hear the truthfulness in his voice. "I don't mean to be so crazy...I'm just tired, you know I trust your right?"

"I know" Rachel replied, "I'll let you get back to sleep. Sorry again for waking you up early"

"I told you that it's alright. I don't mind you waking me up, I just like hearing your voice " James said and she couldn't help but smile. "I'll call you tonight. I'm meeting up with a few of my friends, but just call me if you need me"

"I will" Rachel replied softly, smiling at how he understanding he was being. She appreciated the fact that he understood she needed to talk to Finn about the future of their friendship. "Have a good time hanging around with your friends baby"

"You too" James replied "Bye"

Rachel said gently, "Goodnight"

She laughed as she heard him snicker down the phone, to which he laughed at saying it was too early in the morning for a goodnight. Bidding him goodbye, she hung up and put her phone back down on top of her bedside cabinet.

...

Falling backwards on her bed, she tilted her head and glanced at her alarm. She decided that she would alter her morning routine after spending a while talking to James she would skip using her elliptical. Though she would normally hate to change some of her early morning routine; it had been worth it talking to James. She knew that he trusted her to talk to Finn, but she still felt happy that he was okay with her spending time with Finn. That reassurance that he trusted her to know what she was doing was one of the reasons she cared so much for him.

Rachel had realised that he might be a upset at her seeing Finn, and really she couldn't blame James for being a little at upset at the fact she was spending time with Finn today. After all, who wouldn't be angry at the fact their girlfriend was spending time with her ex. The way he had accepted what she said was one of the reasons she cared about him. He was sweet and trusted her completely; something she appreciated immensely. As she showered and got dressed, wearing a pair of blue skinny jeans and a yellow blouse; the confidence she had gained this summer meant that she wanted to look nice but not wear anything too revealing in case of giving Finn the wrong idea about what she was spending time with him.

Half an hour later, Rachel headed downstairs and into the kitchen to be greeted by her Dads sat the table eating their breakfast. Greeting them, she poured some of her favourite bran cereal sitting down across from them. She sat listening to her dads talk about when they would like to take their end of year holiday as she thought through what she wanted to say to Finn. He had sent her a few texts the day before saying that they could take a walk around the mall and grab some lunch. Agreeing she had said that he could pick her up at around eleven. Fifteen minutes passed and she was certain of a large part of what she would say. She was in the kitchen as always as she was helping her dads clean up the dishes. She was stood with pursed lips as she was deciding on the final few parts of her speech later that day.

"You okay sweetie?" Hiram asked, causing her to look up at him and she saw concern in his eyes. "Did James not call you this morning?"

"Yeah, well no he didn't…I mean I called him and he was very tired so we didn't talk much" Rachel said smiling, his voice fresh in her mind. "No, I'm just thinking about what to say to Finn"

"Oh, yeah you're spending time with him today" Leroy asked and she nodded.

"He's coming to pick me up at eleven" Rachel said following them out of the kitchen as they headed to the front lounge. "We're going to the mall and then grab some lunch at some place"

"Alright sweetie" Leroy replied, and she hugged him. "Good luck today"

"Thanks Dad" Rachel said as she hugged Hiram, before he kissed her on the cheek "You too Daddy"

After her Dad's left, Rachel had a couple of hours to spare before Finn would arrive at her house to pick her up to spend the afternoon together. Deciding that she hadn't watched Funny Girl for over a week, since her and Kurt had watched it over at James' apartment the day before their date around sightseeing around New York.

Heading into the family room to watch it on her Dads large flat screen, Rachel put the DVD into the player before she collapsed into the couch. As she watched it, the nerves she was feeling about talking to Finn melted away; the same effect that her favourite film often had when she watched it when she was upset or troubled.

There was something about her singing along to the songs that she had spent a large part of her life worshipping and memorizing for the time she would play Fanny Brice on Broadway, her problems at the moment seemed so small compared to everything. Speaking to Finn seemed like it would be immensely difficult thing, but she found that next to the future and lay unknown to her on the road to heading to New York as she made her way to becoming a huge star on Broadway, it really wasn't going to be hard as she had talked herself into thinking it would be. She had made her decision and whatever his reaction was going to be he would have to respect it.

As the film finished, Rachel was feeling a lot of happier. Something about Barbara always calmed her, the comfort knowing she wasn't alone and that she would one day walk in her idols shoes. Looking at the clock as she walked into her room, she saw that she still had a little while longer to wait before Finn picked her up. He had text her the day before offering to drive her, and she appreciated him remembering that she enjoyed other people doing it for her; one of her many diva tendencies checking her phone she saw that he had sent her another message saying that he was setting off from his house now and he would be there in around ten minutes.

Taking a deep breath, Rachel sent a short text back saying that she'd be waiting and then headed into her adjoining bathroom, something she would be incredibly glad off when James came to visit. While she cared about him and she had told him about her moisturising routine she was not ready at all for him to see her in the morning before she had gone through her rigorous cleansing routine to make herself presentable.

Fixing her hair in the mirror, she smiled at her appearance; feeling confident that she looked good in what she was wearing, the outfit having been picked out by Kurt in New York during one of their several shopping trips. She was brought out of her thoughts as she heard a car pull up on the driveway outside her house. Heading back into her room, she made her way over to the window peaking outside to be greeted by the sight of Finn getting out of his truck and making his way towards the doorway. Glad that her dad's had carpooled this morning, one car remained on the drive thus leaving a bit further for Finn to walk to the door than if there was no car on the drive already. That gave her the time to grab her bag and head down the stairs.

...

She arrived at the foot of then stairs just at the exact moment the doorbell rang. Taking a final deep breath she opened the door and smiled widely at Finn stood on the other side.

"Hey Rachel" Finn said wearing his half smile as she watched his eyes roam up and down her body making her feel slightly uncomfortable before his eyes returned to meet hers and he added softly "Are those new clothes? You look nice"

"Thanks, and yeah they are. Kurt helped me pick them out when we were in New York this summer" Rachel replied smiling back at him, she had appreciated his kindness: there was something about Finn telling her she looked nice that always meant a lot to her "You look nice as well"

He blushed a little. He was wearing a short sleeved Fred Perry polo shirt that highlighted his toned arms. She had noticed the day she came home from New York at Noah's. He had definitely been working out this summer and appeared to have lost a bit of weight, in a good way. Feeling a little awkward about being alone with him, as he apparently was with her, there was a few moments of silence between the two of then before she broke the silence, smiling at him.

"Shall we go?"

"Yeah let's" Finn replied and stood aside to let her walk to his truck first. Opening the door for her, she climbed in and settled into her seat as he walked around the other side. She smiled as she saw that it was cleaner than she had ever seen it during the time they had been dating.

"Yeah...I know what you're thinking but I decided to clean it. It's been a mess all summer and well, not very good for us to use" Finn said and she couldn't help but giggle at him as he flashed her his trademark smile.

The thought he had put in touched her, and she wore a smile as he pulled out of the drive, that he had taken the time to clean his truck ahead of the meetup. Gulping she realised that he was putting a lot of effort into today and realised that he may be preparing himself to ask her out again. Frowning she shook her head, determined to enjoy the day before she told him about James. She told herself that he was looking forward to spending time as friends with her and so was she. While she didn't want romantic relations with him any longer, she had missed the Finn that was her friend and knew so much about her. Smiling at him as he launched into asking her about New York she was determined for then to be friends.

They talked for twenty minutes in the car about the party Noah had held at his house on Saturday night. He had asked her if she enjoyed seeing her friends again after being away from them for so long this summer. She had smiled nervously and replied that yes it was nice to see them, but she didn't think they would have missed her as much as it turned out. As they parked up at the mall parking lot, he had turned to her and gazed at her as he spoke; telling her that of course they had al missed it. Lima just wasn't the same without their gold star about. That had caused her nervousness to increase, and she had just smiled awkwardly at him before both of them jumped out of his truck.

She thought, and knew, that it was going to be difficult to talk to him but it got harder as the day panned out to try and bring up the topic of conversation with Finn about her relationship with James. She had decided in her mind that she wanted to tell him about her new boyfriend as quickly as she could but Finn being his typical self was proving to be his typical charming self. Annoyingly charming as the day went on as she grew more and more frustrated.

After that, they had spent several hours walking around the mall as they caught up with one another. Finn explained to her that he had been working at Burt's garage for the last month and half. She had heard that from Artie, but he didn't know why. Finn told her as they walked around that he was considering applying to go to college and that he wanted to have some money himself to pay for his living costs rather than rely too heavily on student loans if he did end up going to them. He told her that his mom was going to help him with his college fees, but he would still have to be in large amounts of debt if he did go to college. That was the reason he wasn't completely decided on whether or not he would end up going college. Rachel had asked him about what colleges he thought he might apply to. She was relieved when he hadn't said New York; part of her thought that he may have said it just to try and win her back trying to show he could relate to her. He had said that he'd looked at Ohio state university if he could get a football scholarship; and that he wasn't sure if he could afford to live out of state if he did go.

She was glad that he was considering college. Finn always had a low self-esteem and little really appreciation of himself. Rachel knew that he had so much more to offer than just being the quarterback of the football team. She had seen it the first time they had sung together that first time in glee club two years ago. It had been one of the reasons she had fallen in love with him, he was so oblivious to his own talent and worth that she so clearly saw that she wanted to try and help him discover just what he was worth.

...

They had talked about her summer in New York, and she was happy to tell him considering how little she got to speak to him at Noah's party; partly through her own nervousness about what he wanted from her as well as partly down to being overwhelmed by seeing all of her friends in the glee club. She spoke happily with a smile on her face about the classes and workshops she had attended, and Finn had watched her talk giving her his full attention. It was nice to see as she knew that he didn't listen to her much when they were dating. He asked her about the people she had met, if she'd made any friends and as she told him he was surprised.

"Wait...so you're friends with members of Vocal Adrenaline now?" He asked in angry voice with a frown on his face. "Don't you remember all the trouble we've had with them?"

"Yeah, they really aren't that bad once you get to know them" She had said a little frustrated with him.

"It just...seems odd to think that they're suddenly so friendly. They didn't have any problem bringing us apart the last couple of years" He had said as they walked.

"Well, I'm not saying they are all suddenly nice. The three that I have met and spent a lot of time with this summer are my friends now" Rachel said absent mindedly as they made their way to the place they were going to eat lunch. "James helped a lot with that as well. They seemed to be more open to me when I started spending time with him around them"

"Who is James?" Finn asked, and Rachel eyes widened. Gulping, she bit her lip nervously. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sorry" Rachel said softly, trying to pass it off as nothing. That wasn't how she had intended to start their conversation about him. "What did you say?"

"I asked who this James guy is? Does he go to Carmel?" Finn asked with a raised eyebrow.

"He's my...my friend. He lives in Oregon" Rachel said, trying to sound firm voiced. She didn't want to reveal anything about James yet.

"Oh, that sucks, did you get know him well?" Finn asks, and her breathing sped up a little as she felt her eyes well slightly with tears.

"I...uh...yeah, I did" Rachel replied, smiling slightly. "He was my best friend there, apart from Kurt of course"

"Oh" Finn said softly, "That's good that you got to know some people. I know you've always struggled making friends"

She smiled at him as they went into a diner. It got harder to find the way to bring up the topic with Finn, particularly after the incident where James had already come up. While they ate lunch, there would be a lull in the conversation and she would try to bring it up; but it was as if he seemed to realize there was something she needed to talk to him about and kept finding things to distract her.

As they made their way back to his car, Rachel decided and steeled herself to tell him on the way home as he dropped her off. They sat in silence for a good five minutes, Rachel chewing her lip softly as she tried to find the courage to talk about James with Finn. Letting out the breath she was holding in, she glanced at him and saw that he was clenching his hands tightly on the wheel and looking forwards and she knew he was trying to avoid her gaze.

"Finn?" Rachel said softly. He turned to look at her briefly and smiled.

"What's up?" He asked, but she saw that his eyes had doubt and concern in them.

"There's something I need to talk to you about" She said gently, smiling slightly at him.

"I thought so and I have something to say as well" He said "Can we wait to talk until we are at your house?"

Biting her lip softly, she nodded at him and he turned his attention back to the road. They remained in silence for a further ten minutes before they pulled up at her house. They walked slowly into her house, and after she let him in, he walked and stood in her lounge. Glad that her dads weren't home from work for another couple of hours, she followed Finn in and sat on the couch. He was watching her as she came in, and when she sat down he let out a breath.

"Finn, I-" She started to speak

"Wait, can I speak first?" He interrupted and she looked at him with sad eyes.

"No, I really need to tell you this, its very-" She started to say, her voice was soft and weak.

"I love you Rachel" He said firmly, staring at her with a smile on his face. At his words, she felt her throat tighten and she closed her eyes scrunching her eyebrows together in frustration. This is why she knew she should have told him before they had even left this morning; she was worried that he would try to win her over again after what she had heard at Noah's party. She had moved on, but he was still living in the past with his love for her. She had found someone else who she cared about and didn't want to lead him on by spending time with him today. Rache had kid herself into thinking that he had just wanted to be friends. "Will you say something?"

She opened her eyes, and looked at him; noticing that he had shifted next to her on the couch. She sat at the edge of the couch, looking at him clenching one of her fists that was resting on her knee. She watched as he looked at her confused.

"What's wrong?"

"I told you Finn" She says sadly, tears in her eyes. "I told you before summer that we were over. You were supposed to forget about me, you were supposed to realise that we can't work"

"What do you mean forget about you? You're the girl I love, Rach, how could I ever forget you?" He said in a pleading voice

She shook her head at him, "No, no I'm not. We don't work Finn, how can you not see that?"

"I listened to what you said" He says shifting slightly closer to him, and she shakes her head as he does; causing him to stay far enough away from her. "You said that we don't work because I didn't appreciate you enough; and I've realised while you were away that I don't. I've thought about us so much this summer, and all I can think of is that we are perfect for each other"

"Finn..." She says warningly "I don't love you anymore"

He frowned at her, and she saw anger in his eyes. Despite the tears in her eyes, and the horrible feeling she had in her stomach; she kept her head held high and looked determinedly in his eyes, wanting him to understand the truthfulness in her eyes. What he did next surprised her, in a swift movement he had closed the gap between them and pressed his lips against hers.

She was surprised at what he did at first, and it took her mind a moment to recognize what was going on. When her head caught up to the sensation, one thing dawned on her. There was nothing when he kissed her. In the past there had been a spark, something that felt absolutely right about her lips against hers. But that wasn't there any longer; it was just an empty sensation aside from her rough lips against hers. As he tried to deepend the kiss she pushed him off her and slapped him across the face.

"How dare you" She shouted as she stood up from the couch with her back to him. She cried for a moment, trying to compose herself; wiping her mouth on the back of her hand. After a few dozen seconds, she turned around to see him with tears in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kissed you" He says softly

"You're right. You shouldn't have" She says at him angrily. "I still care about you, but I don't love you anymore"

"How can you have moved on?" Finn says looking at her sadly

"I've met someone else" Rachel says, sniffing softly. "Someone who treats me better than you ever have. He makes me feel like the most amazing, luckiest girl in the world"

"That James guy?" Finn asks, and Rachel nods slowly. She see's his tears run down his cheeks. "How..."

"It just happened" Rachel says, taking a few tentative steps forward and sitting on the end of the couch. "We spent a lot of time together this summer...and my feelings just developed"

"And he?" Finn asks, his voice breaking off before finishing the question.

"Yeah, he feels the same way" Rachel says and tries to smile.

"Does he love you?"

"We've only been together for a week" Rachel says defensively, "But he is someone who would never hurt me, he would never choose another girl over me"

"But he doesn't love you" He says and tries to grab her hand before she pulls it back and shakes head. "Rachel...I love you, how can you choose him over me"

"Finn, we're over. I didn't choose him over you. I was single and so was he. You can't control how you feel about someone or what happens when you find someone who cares about you" Rachel says softly and moves a hand to hold his gently. "I will always care about you Finn. You were my first love, but I don't love you"

He raised his head to look at her and she smiled softly at him. "I want to be your friend still Finn. We just can't be together"

"No" Finn says, frowning at her as he stands up. "I'm not going to stand around and help you pick up the pieces when he lets you down"

"James would never-"

"He lives in Oregon you said right?" Finn snaps at her, and she nods at him gently. "You really think that this guy is going to stay faithful to you? He's going to get lonely and there will be girls who he will want to fill the emptiness with. I'm not going to be there to listen to your crap when he does"

"Fuck you" Rachel says loudly, standing up and pointing her finger at him "How dare you you Finn, James isn't you"

"Yeah well, now you don't have either of us. I don't want anything to do with you. I don't want to be your friend. I hope you and your new little boyfriend are happy until one of you cheats on the other" Finn shouts at her, and that makes Rachel even angrier. She hates when people shout at her, especially people she considered to be her friends.

"GET OUT" She screams at him, poking her finger at his chest. "Just get out and run off to Quinn like every time I hurt you, I'm sure she'll be glad to welcome you back"

He looks at her with anger in his eyes, and she thinks that he is s going to shout back at her. Instead he shakes his head and storms out of the room, and a few moments later she hears the front door slam shut. Rachel stands staring at the doorway Finn had just stormed out as the tears falling freely from her eyes before she runs up the stairs into her room. Pushing the door open, she stares around her room and that's when she breaks down completely, falling onto her bed and rolling up into a ball as she cries her heart out.

Rachel had tried to tell him in the nicest way possible, but he had been insistent on trying to make her take him back as her boyfriend. She hated the fact that he had kissed her, a sense of violation at the fact he had force himself on her as he kissed her roughly. Trying to get the thought out of her mind, she remembered the sensation of James lips on hers; how tender and affectionate his kisses were. When Finn had said that James would cheat on her, she had felt angrier at him than at any point during the last two years they had known each other. How dare he have the nerve to judge her boyfriend; someone who he didn't even know; especially given how badly he had lied to her in the past and his track record for cheating on his girlfriends.

Defiantly, Rachel had defended James because she trusted him. She knew that he would never cheat on her; that he would continue to care for her. That despite the size of the distance between them, he wouldn't go to another girl if he felt lonely. Obviously there was no way that she could know this for sure, but there was something about how much time she had spent with James that made her trust him completely.

...

A couple of hours later, and Rachel had managed to calm herself down and stop the tears from falling down her face. She had been led on her bed crying and that's the way that her dads had found her. They had brought her a glass of water, and sat with her; Hiram spending the time stroking her hair gentle as she lay in his lap. Leroy had sat there rubbing her back soothingly as they tried to coax out of her what had upset her so much. They knew that she had been speaking to Finn, and when she came to telling them about it, they had both looked at each other with angry, disappointed expressions on their faces.

She had told them fully what had happened, including the kiss, and they had been eager to call Finn's parents and ask them to speak to Finn about the inappropriate behaviour; but Rachel had talked them out of it, saying that she didn't want to both with him anymore. If he was going to speak and treat her in such a way then she didn't think they could be friends any longer.

They had gone to make dinner, after making sure she was okay to be alone for a little bit, and thats when Kurt had called her. He had forced Finn to explain what had happened and to say that he was furious was an understatement. He told Rachel how he screamed at Finn that Blaine had needed to hold him back before he slapped his step-brother. Rachel had laughed before she told him that it was okay and she would feel better once she spoke to James. Kurt had replied saying that he didn't himself nor should she believe that James would treat on her. Rachel nodded and thanked him for calling, letting him know that she would talk to James after dinner.

Dinner with her dads was a sombre affair, as they tried to talk to her to try and cheer her up. She could tell they wanted to ask her how she was feeling, but neither knew how to start off the conversation. As she stood in the kitchen as her dads washed up after dinner they finally broke the silence

"How are you feeling sweetheart?" Leroy asked. Rachel looked up at him and he smiled at her sadly

"I'm still upset...but I'm feeling better. Kurt knows how to cheer me up" Rachel replied softly looking at him with a slight smile.

"At least you spoke to him, baby girl" Hiram said walking over touching her cheek softly. "He won't be angry with you forever"

"I know..." She said softly, "But I'm not sure we can be friends anymore after this"

Her dads remained silent and looked at each other sadly. Neither of them cared much for the boy, but they knew that their daughter had always appreciated the fact Finn was her friend, and they knew that she would always care about him even if she wasn't interested in him romantically.

"Have you spoken to James yet?" Leroy asked softly, and Rachel shook her head at him.

"No not yet, I didn't want to call him while I was crying. It'll only make him angry that he isn't here" Rachel replied, letting out a sigh. "I'm going to call him now though, if you'll excuse me"

"Of course sweetheart " Hiram smiled, "You should tell him what happened despite all that. He cares about you"

"I know" Rachel replied, and a wide smile crossed her face for the first time in a few hours. She hugged him "And I will, thanks Dad"

"Don't worry about it dear" Leroy hugged her before she left them to head upto her room. The two men glanced at each and shared sad smiles.

...

As she entered her room, Rachel collected her phone from the bedside table and collapsed onto her bed, sitting up against her headboard as she brought up James number. This was going to be a difficult conversation, because she knew that he would be angry and upset about how Finn had treated her; and the fact he was so far away while she was upset would make him feel horrible. If she was honest with herself, Rachel was more than just a little bit worried about how he would react. In the short time she had known James, he had never gotten angry at anybody, and she had a hard time believing that he could raise his voice above its natural calm tone.

She dialled the number, leaning her head back against a pillow she had propped up behind her back; closing her eyes for a moment as she waited for him to pick up. It took him a few seconds to pick up, and Rachel smiled as she heard his voice.

"Hey Beautiful" He said happily over the sound of some music playing in the background, and she was about to respond before she heard him shout to someone wherever he was "Dude, shut that off; Rachel's on the phone"

"Hey baby" She replied sighing gently as she spoke. "Where are you? It's very loud"

He laughed, and she giggled as well after a second. "I'm with some of the guys from my school. Been catching up having a BBQ at Matt's"

"That sound's like fun" Rachel said, her smile returning to her lips. "Enjoying being around your friends again? I bet it was nice to see them all"

"Yeah it is" He replied, and then he spoke to her for a few minutes describing what he and his friends had been doing. He explained there was around eight or nine of them apart from him. They'd met up and then gone to play some football in one of the fields around where they lived. After a couple hours playing, they had headed over to Matt's and she could hear the smile on his lips as he spoke to her. She smiled as she listened to him, laughing as he told her a little about his friends she hadn't met. He paused for a few silent seconds before adding in a soft tone "It would be better if you were here though. Everything is better with your beautiful smile"

"So charming" Rachel replied as she bit her lip, blushing slightly. "I know baby, I miss you too"

"How was your day?" He asked, and she sighed. As she wondered about how to start the conversation, she remained silent for a few long seconds. "Let me go find a quiet room, I won't be a minute"

She nodded, muttering a soft okay as she heard him moving about. Thirty seconds later she heard a door close on his end of the phone and she spoke again. "James? You there?"

"Yeah, sorry. I can tell you're upset and I don't want to talk about it in front of my friends" He responded in a concerned tone.

"Thank you" She replied smiling.

"What happened babe? Why are you upset?" He asked, and she sniffed sadly feeling her eyes well.

"I told Finn about us" She replied in a weak voice

"Tell me about it" He said softly in a comforting tone. She nodded, knowing that he was concerned about her and wanted to do whatever he could to try and make her feel better.

"I'll start from the beginning" She said, and he replied with a quick okay. For the next quarter of an hour, she talked him through the day; how she had spoken to her Dads firstly. Then she moved onto about what she did during her day with Finn while they walked around the mall. She paused after that and he gave her a few seconds before he spoke again.

"You're leaving something out, Rachel" He said gently, trying to push her to talk but the concern in his voice reassuring her he wouldn't get mad if she didn't want to tell him.

"I could tell that he had realised about you when I mentioned your name by accident" Rachel said, rubbing her arm nervously. "I told him that you were my best friend, aside from Kurt, but there was something about how he acted after that. He didn't let me bring it up, by mentioning something to distract me if I started talking after a bit of silence"

She paused a moment to see if he would react, but she was glad that he remained silent; trying to let her talk him through what had upset her at her own pace.

"After that he took me home, but along the way home it was awkward. We were both quiet and he said that he wanted to talk when we got back to my house" Rachel said softly, "When we got back to my house, We sat in the lounge and I tried to tell him I needed to speak with him about something important but he told me he loved me"

"Okay" He said, she heard his breathing tenser and moved to keep talking.

"I sat there frozen for a few seconds, and I said that I didn't love him back. I told him that I wanted him to move on" Rachel replied, sniffing. "He said that he'd been thinking this summer and we were perfect for each other. I denied that and told him that I felt nothing like that for him anymore...and then he"

She paused as she felt a tear roll down her cheek. James recognized that this was the part she was upset about and asked her gently; his voice cracking softly. "What did he do?"

"He kissed me" She said softly

"He what?" James replied, and she heard hurt in his voice.

"He kissed me, I'm so sorry I didn't want him to but he..." She said letting more tears down her face.

"It-...It's okay, It's okay" He says, hurt still in voice but she could hear the comfort he was trying to offer her. To reassure her that he wasn't angry with her. "It wasn't you it was him"

She laughed as she cried; thankful that he had trusted her. "Thank you for "

"I told you, I will always trust you babe. Always" He says, his voice reassuring her as always as she heard the complete truthfulness.

She smiled, letting out a little giggle before she sniffed.

"What happened next?"

"I told him that I would always care about him; but I didn't love him anymore. He asked me how I could just move on like that..." She said pausing, taking a deep breath. "I told him that I met you and how amazing you are. "

She heard him smile down the phone, "Not as amazing as you"

Biting her lip before she continued, "He then asked me if I loved you; and I told him that we had only been together for a week, but you made me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. After that he got angry, saying that he didn't want to be friends with me anymore. That he wasn't going to hang around for when you cheat on me and break my heart; i was so upset when he said that, when you were so far away it was going to happen"

She stopped talking as her tears fell heavier, listening to see if he had anything to say to her. She heard sniffing, but apart from that silence. After a little period she spoke again; "James are you there?"

"I'm going to kick his ass" He said, softly and she could hear the hurt in his voice "I would never do that to you"

"I know, and please don't get angry with him; he was upset and-"

"So he decided to make you feel awful? That's fucking not acceptable and when I -" He said and she cut him off sobbing.

"Please James, don't. I know what he said, and I just feel so awful about what happened" She said crying

"I'm sorry baby" He said gently and soothingly "I would never, ever cheat on you. You mean too much to me"

"I know" She says sniffing to try and calm herself. "You aren't like him, and I told him that before I screamed at him to leave"

Rachel heard him laugh down the phone before he spoke again. "I'm glad. He shouldn't be around you if he's so horrible to you"

"I don't need anybody like that. All I need is my friends who care about me" She replied smiling softly; her voice breaking as she spoke again "I need you, but you're not here"

She knew she shouldn't have said it, but she needed him to comfort her; to know how much she missed him. He spoke with sadness rich in his voice. "I'm sorry, you know if I could I'd be there right now"

"I know, but I still miss you" She replied before crying again and she could tell he was as well. They spent the next half an hour comforting one another, as he sung comforting words down her the phone to her. She was thankful for the fact that he was being so amazing with her, uncomplainingly trying to make sure that she was feeling better; to try and sing her tears away. She listened silently, trying to calm herself as he sung to her; and eventually she smiled after a while as she managed to calm herself; before talking to him again.

"Thank you" She spoke softly, wiping her face with the sleeve of her blouse.

"I would sit here forever singing to you" He said, and a smile crossed her face. "Are you feeling okay now?"

"Yeah, talking and listening to you is comforting" She said and he laughed.

"I'm glad that I could help you baby, and I promise when I come to Ohio next week I'm going to cuddle you so much" He said, and she giggled.

"I look forward to it" Rachel said, smiling. "I'll let you get back to your friends now"

"Are you sure?" He asked softly,

"Yeah I am" She said, and yawned "I'm going to go to sleep earlier tonight. I'm feeling really tired from today"

"Okay, sleep tight" He said

"Have fun with your friends baby" She said softly and hung the call up.

As she led back in her bed, a smile crossed her face. Even after the horrible day that it had turned out to be; she felt happy that she could now accept that her relationship Finn was over and now that she had spoken to him; Rachel could look forward to moving on with James as her boyfriend. She wondered if she could ever get back to being friends with Finn; but that was at the back of her mind as she remembered James' soothing voice in her mind as she drifted off to sleep.

...

/

A/N : So, Finn and Rachel aren't on friendly speaking terms right now. Don't be mad at me for making Finn seem a bit jerkish, but its a lot to hear and he didn't take it very well right now. We'll have to see if they can be friends again in the future.