A/N :Sectionals Chapter ! But also a nice moment between Shelby and Rachel. Some James and Rachel Fluff as well ! :-)
Chapter 51
The last few days had been a real tide of emotions.
First of all, Rachel had the most amazing weekend spending time with her boyfriend and on Sunday with his family as his sister had come to stay from college for her birthday. That had continued onto the Monday evening where they had gone to a really nice restaurant an hour outside of Lima for dinner; Rachel had sat with James on her left and her fathers on her right as they all celebrated Charlie's birthday. The only way it could have possibly been any happier of an occasion was if James' father had been there with them, but James didn't seem to be letting that get to him so neither did she.
In between that however, there had been a piercing of sadness and frustration when it was revealed that James was banned from competing at sectionals; she had been looking forward to dancing with him immensely and someone had robbed her of that. She'd spent some time in his bedroom after school consoling him the best way she could, by kissing away all of his frustration as they lay on his bed. He definitely seemed a lot happier after that, and with the pure overwhelming excitement she felt for Kurt to have won the senior class president; Rachel wore a beaming smile on her face as she walked through the corridors of McKinley high the next day.
It was masking the frustration she herself felt though, because the New Directions were faced with a massive task of getting not just one person for sectionals, but two and she really didn't like their chances of achieving that. She knew that more than likely thee spots would be filled by a few members of the band to reinforce their numbers, and as much as she would appreciate that; Rachel preferred to head into sectionals with people that had been rehearsing the choreography to their numbers for more than a few days beforehand.
As far as she was aware, everyone had been trying to locate some more people to join and she herself had tried asking the few people she was friendly with outside of Glee. Her Dads had looked over the show choir regulations when they returned from dinner with James' family and after several hours of pouring through the documents had reluctantly accepted that they were just going to have to accept James' disqualification.
After thinking about it, Rachel had a horrible feeling that she'd experienced this before; their hopes of winning a competition had been dashed just a few short days before the competition. Turning a corner, Rachel took a deep breath before she pushed the door open and smiled slightly when she saw Shelby sat at her desk looking through some papers.
"Hi Rachel" Shelby said warmly, looking up at the sound of the door. "Everything okay?"
"Hey" She replied softly, wringing her hands as she walked towards her mom. "I need to ask you something"
"Anything sweetie" Shelby said with a smile.
"Did you let the show choir board know about James ineligibility?" She asked quietly, afraid she'd offend Shelby but also afraid it was true.
"No" Shelby answered almost instantly, sending a wave of relief through Rachel's body. "I heard about that but I promise you sweetheart that I didn't let them know. I didn't even know it was a rule until Will told me"
"Apparently not many people knew about it" Rachel replies, biting her lip softly. "I'm sorry for accusing you; I didn't-"
"You didn't accuse me, Rachel" Shelby says, giving her a warm smile "You asked me a question, one I was expecting you too. I don't blame you for asking me, not after what happened two years ago"
Rachel nodded, smiling sadly. "It just seemed familiar, this feeling of our hopes being dashed"
"It wasn't any of my girls either" Shelby said, clearly eager to move the conversation on. "As hard as it is to believe, for me as well, I think we've finally made headway about making it about the music instead of the competition"
"I'm glad" Rachel replied, smiling again. Santana had seemed less cruel in the last week since their girl music week, even if that still wasn't quite as nice as most people but it was an improvement and she certainly seemed happier.
"How's James taking it" Shelby asked, as Rachel leant against the desk.
"He's not happy; he was really looking forward to performing"
"I can imagine…I never knew him too well; but he always seemed so passionate about performing, even if it was when he was coming in second to Vocal Adrenaline" Shelby said fondly and Rachel felt her heart warm with pride.
"He's such a sweet guy" Rachel replied "Even know he's offering to help everyone, even though he can't perform himself; I'm so proud of him"
"Keep hold of him; As far as I can tell, he treats you right and you deserve every happiness sweetheart" Shelby said softly, reaching over to clasp her hand. Rachel grinned and nodded her head at the statement. There was no way she was letting anyone come between them.
…..
Walking towards James locker, she wore a smile on her face after her conversation with Shelby. It really felt like she had built a real relationship with her mom over the course of the last few months; it didn't hurt to be around Shelby anymore and just as James had told her when she'd been upset about her mom's arrival in September, Shelby really seemed to want a relationship with her. It wasn't like she was going to start going on shopping trips with her, but it felt nice to be able to speak and get another woman's opinion on things. Andrea had been amazing in that regard as well, and Rachel truly loved James' mom, there was just something about Shelby being her biological mom that made it just that more special.
When she got there, James wasn't to be found and she wasn't too surprised; it often took him a little longer to get to his locker after school on a Tuesday. Standing there, leaning against his locker, Rachel waited several minutes until she saw him walking down the corridor with a huge grin on his face. Frowning in amusement at his expression, she leant off the lockers and was about to greet him when he instantly picked her up and spun around the spot.
Squealing before breaking out in a giggle, she gripped his arms tightly as he put her down before she felt his lips pressed against hers. She opened her mouth to him instinctively only to groan when he pulled back.
"Hey" He murmured happily, stroking her neck with one of his hands
"Hi" She replied, licking her lips "You're happy"
"Someone just got their grades for mathematical from those tests I had to do two weeks ago" He said confidently, and by the smug look on his face she knew he'd done well
"How well did you do" She asked, trying to stop herself from smiling at his joy
"I aced it" He murmured, leaning down to kiss again before she could say anything. Giggling against his lips she gripped his arms tighter as he pulled away, "Me! I aced a mathematical class"
"Baby that's so amazing" She replied , grinning at him. "I'm so proud of you"
"Yeah?" He asked, smiling
"Of course, you've been working so hard" She replied moving a hand to stroke his cheek.
"Thanks for all the help, Rach, I couldn't have done it without you" He said turning to kiss her palm. "love you"
"Love you too" She replied with a grin, moving her hand down his arm and taking his hand in hers. "How was your day"
With a smile that looked as though it was never going to leave his face, they walked hand in hand towards the choir room as he filled in on the classes he'd missed. They hadn't seen each other since that morning since she'd gone to see Shelby at lunch and he told that he'd spent it with Blake and Drew, two guys from his classes, trying to convince them to help him out by stepping in. She wasn't surprised to hear that they'd turned him down, but she was glad that they hadn't laughed in his face or mocked him because of what he did; apparently James instilled a strange belief in his friends that what he did could at least be respected.
As they walked into the choir room, Rachel's eyes widened in surprise as she saw Noah stood next to someone she'd never thought would ever step foot in the choir room again.
"Lauren?" She asked, dropping James' hand as she walked towards the girl. After Zizies had left the group at the start of the year, she'd really fallen out of touch with the glee club. "What are you doing here?"
"Looking good Berry" She replied "Puckerman came and gave me those sad sack eyes of his and begged me to help him"
"You're joining New Directions again?" Rachel asked with a wide smile. Lauren hadn't been the best of singers, but she had a stage presence and confidence that was hard to replicate.
"Wow, wow; slow down there" Lauren interrupted her as Rachel was about to hug the other girl "I'm helping out for sectionals; that's it. There is no way I'm hanging out with you losers for the rest of the school year"
"Same old Zizies" Kurt remarked with a smirk and a few others laughed. "Thank you for helping us out at sectionals"
"It really means a lot" Rachel added, grinning from ear to ear as she turned to look at James who had an amused smirk on his face.
"Alright guys" Mr Schuster announced as he walked into the classroom, Rachel outstretched her arm and offered James her hand; which he gladly took before she led him to their seats. "As you've already seen, Lauren has agreed to help us with our member problem at sectionals"
There was around of applause from everyone, before Mr Schuster clasped his hands together. "Tom and Mark from the band are going to perform with us as well, just in case anybody gets ill or has to drop out between now and sectionals"
"Right, guys; lets get to it we've got a lot of work to do!
….
Rehearsal had gone well, and Rachel couldn't help but think dryly that so it should with only a couple of days before sectionals. The band guys had surprised her by actually being able to dance reasonably well and they had fit into the group quickly as they worked through their set list. Lauren had likewise been able to learn it and Rachel was actually filled with happiness as she thought that maybe the situation wasn't as horrible as she'd imagined it to be.
That had been of course, until Sam had suggested a dance move to Mr Schuester and Blaine had reacted badly; accusing the dance moves of selling out and resembling someone trying to sell themselves. She, like everyone in the room, had been shocked by his outburst as he stormed out of the room and she looked at James with worried eyes as he moved over to Sam and she could see him calming him down. When her eyes met Kurt, she saw the same confusion that she knew hers must hold.
After Glee, she had gone over to ask Sam if he was okay; the comments by Blaine were harsh but seemingly he hadn't let them bother him as he said he was and thanked her for asking before disappearing off leaving her and James alone as they walked towards her car.
"I'm so surprised by Blaine" Rachel murmured, holding on James' hand as they walked out of the doors. "He's normally so calm and relaxed…like you are"
"I guess he finally let all the crap boil up just like I did last week" James replied, stroking the skin on the back of her hand with the pad of his thumb. "He just needs some time to cool off, don't worry about it alright babe"
"I know, it was just a little scary to see Blaine just snap like that…" Rachel murmured as they headed towards her car. Her Dads were working late and he was keeping her company until they finished. She wished he'd be able to sleep at hers, but with his sister being in town, she couldn't complain about how he spent his time.
They got to her house a quarter hour later and after doing their work together in the kitchen, made their way into the lounge to watch some TV together.
Of course, the two of them alone together often led to whatever it was they were doing being ignored and today was no different; her protestations about it being a really good show lost as soon as James licked a trail from her jaw up to her ear before he started to nibble on her ear lobe before she'd turned and covered his mouth with her own, aggressively exploring his mouth with her tongue.
Despite of the fact they'd agreed to wait until she was completely sure she wanted to do anything intimate with him, Rachel couldn't ignore the longing and desire she'd felt recently to do things with him. Their makeout sessions had become more intense, and she was more comfortable showing herself to him as his hands skilfully massaged and caressed her exposed skin.
She couldn't remember how long, or when she'd let him unbutton her blouse , or when his hands had slipped under her bra as his thumb brushed across her nipple at the same time he sucked her tongue but she did know that the breathy moan was hers and what he was doing felt insanely good. Pushing him off her, she wasted no time in climbing into his lap and straddling him as she fisted his shirt and started pulling it upwards; wordlessly demanding that he take it off. She felt a smirk against her lips as she continued frantically kissing him as he let her remove him of the t-shirt until he was sat topless in front of her.
Leaning back, Rachel licked her lips as she took him in; He was gorgeous, his body was perfect and she loved the way she could trace the lines in his abs as he gaze followed her fingers downwards, settling on the bulge in his pants. She couldn't help the fact her gaze lingered on his arousal subconsciously, she'd felt him so many times pressed against her as they made out but she'd never actually seen or felt it up close. Her cheeks blushed as she thought about it, but she couldn't help but think that maybe she did want to touch him.
"Rach?" Her eyes snapped up to meet his, his hand tenderly caressing her cheek that she leaned into instinctively. "You okay beautiful?"
"I'm….I'm just admiring" She murmured, giving him a smile as he smirked at her.
"Come here and let me admire those lips of yours a little more" He replied, gently motioning with his hand on her cheek for her head to come back to him. licking her lips, Rachel leaned closer and kissed him again; drawing it out as she slowly stroked his tongue with hers, wanting to make it more affectionate and passionate; showing him just how much she loved him. James seemed only too pleased with that, as he returned her kisses with equal tenderness, gone was the duelling tongues; replaced by careful touches of them and longer meetings of their lips.
"You're so beautiful" He murmured against her lips, his hand slowly running over her stomach as they kissed, her arms wrapped around his neck keeping him close. She practically purred when his fingertips brushed over her thigh as he gently kneaded her bum in his hand. It was insane the reactions he could get out of her simply by a tender touch in the right place, which he seemed to understand perfectly where and what reaction they'd cause. "I love you so much Rach"
"love you" was all she could managed in between kissing him, caught up in the moment she was more than happy to just show him how she felt rather than express it in words. He'd managed to undo her bra and she was gasping at the feel of her nipples pressed against his exposed chest when she felt a vibration against her thigh. Pulling back, Rachel lasted a second before she started giggling at the fact his phone had gone off.
Licking her lips together, loving his taste on them, Rachel watched as James groaned and his hand left her bum to retrieve his phone. She rested her head against chest and cuddled close to him, her gaze following his to his phone outstretched to the side and she saw the message from his mom.
"You have to go?" She murmured quietly, turning to press a soft kiss against his chest before looking up through her eyelashes at him. Sighing, James nodded his head before resting it against the top of hers.
"Yeah, she wants to go out for dinner with Charlie and Hugh" He murmured, his arm around her waist pulling her tighter against his body. "You okay on your own till your Dads get home?"
"I will be" She replied, smiling at him. "They shouldn't be long, don't worry"
"I know…I just don't like leaving you alone" He said softly. Rachel smiled, leaning up to kiss him sweetly on the lips.
"Go, before your mom worried" She replied, pulling away to speak before pecking him once more "I love you"
"love you too" He murmured, kissing her again before she shifted to stand up; reaching to redo her bra and button her blouse as he pulled his shirt over his head. "By the way…the purple lace is my favorite one you have"
Rachel giggled at him as he smirked at her, reaching over to kiss him a final time after buttoning her blouse. "I'll remember that for the future"
Walking him outside to her car, she gave him another few kisses before he climbed in and with a wave pulled out of her driveway and drove off. Making her way back inside, Rachel smiled to herself at the time they'd spent alone as she walked towards the couch. When she did sit down, her smile only grew.
….
The next day was hectic as they pushed to finish their set list and dance routines for sectionals; despite her classes occupying her during the school day, Rachel couldn't prevent it when her mind drifted off as she ran through her lines in the songs and her dance moves; eager to ensure that they would win even without James' assistance. They'd need to be perfect to beat the Troubletones and it seemed as though everyone was of that one singular purpose as the glee club sat together at lunch and in rehearsal, she could tell that everyone was concentrating fully on the task at home.
They were so close to being ready; Mr Schuester spent a large quantity of their final rehearsal fixing little miss-steps and mistakes that were made. Rachel sat watching them with Kurt, Quinn and Lauren off to the side of the auditorium.
"I can't believe I'm saying this…but I actually missed you guys" Lauren said causing them to look at her as she shrugged.
"We missed you too" Rachel replied, smiling.
"You can always just join us again if you want" Kurt said with an amused smirk "Our door is always open"
"I'm not making any promises" Lauren replied,
"She's right guys, let's just concentrate on winning" Quinn adds, "I can guarantee it's in the bag"
Turning her gaze back to the boys, Rachel couldn't help but smile fondly as she watched her boyfriend; he might have not been allowed to compete but that didn't stop him from lending his assistance where it was needed.
After rehearsal, they sat together at home, laughing as they watched TV; their hands joined as she held them close in her lap, even though they weren't doing something innately intimate she still enjoyed the way she reached out for him subconsciously whatever they were doing.
After eating dinner with her Dads when they arrived home from work, Rachel quite happy to sit with Leroy at the table while James helped Hiram with the cooking; her face lighting up at the way that her fathers laughed and joked with her boyfriend so easily, she took James by the hand and led him upstairs eager to spend some alone with him after the busy day at school and little chance to do it with her fathers home. Given him a tender kiss, she went into her bathroom to shower and get herself ready for bed.
"What you doing?" Rachel asks, drying her hair with the towel as she makes her way over to him sat at her desk looking at her laptop. Reaching him, she places her hand on his shoulder as he turns and kisses her wrist.
"Just looking at my facebook…I haven't checked it for a few days" He replies, and she grins when she sees his display picture, one of them kissing. "Matt says good luck tomorrow"
"Oh is he online?" She asks, resting her head against the side of his as she watches the screen
"Yeah, he just had dinner" James murmurs as he types his response out before leaning back in the chair and Rachel moves to sit on his lap, smiling as she feels his arm wrap around her waist as he leans forward and presses a kiss into her hair. "Mhmmm, is that a new shampoo?"
She nods, turning to gaze at him as he watches her. "You like? It's Apricot and Peaches instead of Berries"
"It smells amazing" He replies, stroking her hair with his free hand as she smiles at him. "Though you always smell amazing and you know how much I love the taste of a Berry"
"Behave" She chastises him, not being able to stop her smile widening as he leans forward and kisses her once before he moves to her neck and plants soft kisses there that cause her to shift in his lap, edging closer to him. "Mhmmm, James"
He kisses his way up to her ear, before whispering as his tongue darts out to lick her ear lobe "I love it when you say my name like that"
Feeling the heat pool to her groin in arousal, Rachel turns her head and finds his lips with hers; kissing him fiercely as she feels his hand hold her neck while the other moves underneath her pink sleeping blouse with the teddy bear on. Rachel can only whimper into his mouth as she feels his hand slowly pulling her shirt up her body, their lips separating for a moment as she helps him pull it over her head before she grips the sides of his face in her hands and pulls their lips back together.
At that moment, Rachel doesn't actually care that her Dads are downstairs, nor the fact that she's just spent thirty minutes getting herself ready for bed just for him to ruin it; all she can think about is that James is too good of a kisser and it's illegal how much he is getting her worked her. After a few minutes, she squeals as he stands up, carrying her with him as he secures one arm underneath her legs as he moves towards her bed; their lips separating as he chucks her on top of the covers.
Rachel giggles as she props herself up on her elbows, watching as James climbs onto her bed and crawls towards her, finding her lips again as soon as he's close enough; gently pushing her back into the mattress as he arches his body over hers as their tongues battle again.
Much later, as they lay in her bed cuddled up, resting her head against James' exposed chest after asking him to sleep without a top; All Rachel can think about is that she couldn't get any more at peace than she was at that moment and in general, she couldn't get much happier.
…..
Stretching in the morning, Rachel groaned as her muscles waking up careful not to wake James up. Taking a glance to her right, she smiled as she saw him sleeping peacefully next to her; a content feeling to seeing him like that next to her in her bed.
Carefully climbing out of bed, she made her way towards the bathroom to prepare herself for her morning exercise routine. She felt excitement inside of her as she remembered that later that night she'd be competing at sectionals. She loved to perform, and in the intense situation that arose from a competition; she felt herself rising to try and meet the highest possible standard, eager to be the best and to win. What made it all the more exciting was the fact that her fathers as well as her boyfriend, even if he wasn't going to be competing, and his family would be there to watch. It was more pressure being added, but it was something she knew she thrived upon.
Halfway through her elliptical routine James woke up, giving her a wink and smile as he made his way into her bathroom to get himself ready; emerging a few minutes later and murmuring something about making breakfast as he slipped past her and out of her bedroom.
When she did eventually finish and make her way downstairs after showering, Rachel was greeted by James putting a cooked breakfast in front of her as soon as she sat down. Her fathers were watching her with an amused expression before they greeted her.
"Morning Daddy" She replied, taking a set of cutlery, turning to Hiram as she in turn smiled a him "Morning Dad"
"Good Morning sweet pea" Hiram said, "You seem excited"
"I am" She replied, swallowing her first bite of the delicious food. "Sectionals tonight and my three favourite people are going to be to watch"
"Barbra is going to be there?" James teased as he moved to sit down next to her, his own plate in his hand. "Morning princess"
"Hi" She replied, leaning forward to give him a kiss before pulling away feeling much happier "And no silly, you and my Dads are"
"I suppose you're my favourite person too" He admitted before putting a spoonful of food into his mouth.
Rachel grinned at him before turning back to her Dads "What time are you finishing work?"
"With plenty of time to make sure we can get to your show" Leroy replied, smiling reassuringly "Don't worry sweetheart, we wouldn't miss it for the world"
"I know you wouldn't" She smiled "I just want to make sure everything has to be perfect"
"The competition starts at seven, we are to be there for six, fifteen in order to mingle with the other parents and to show our support. The competition will conclude shortly after eight and we shall promptly cheer when the New Directions are announced as winners" Hiram said with an amused tone, as if he was reading straight from a list Rachel had created. She heard James snort before he coughed to cover it, giving her an apologetic smile that was more teasing than anything.
"I'm glad you remember" Rachel giggled. "Sorry for being so-"
"You don't have to apologize, sweetie" Hiram said with a warm smile "We love you enthusiastic nature and we love you"
"love you too Dad" She grinned "You too daddy"
Throughout the school day, all her mind could focus on was the fact that they were competing in sectionals that night. Rachel prided herself on being able to focus on school no matter what, but she couldn't help her lingering thoughts. As the glee club sat together at lunch, she smiled as she talked to Kurt and Blaine; faintly hearing the voices of the other members, all of them excited.
Her afternoon classes flew by, and with a smile on her face following the teacher of their ballet class wishing them good luck; Rachel walked hand in hand with James down the corridor. The Glee club were staying at the school before the competition, helping with the final setup of their dressing room and some last minute warm ups.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay?" She murmured, giving him her puppy dog eyes to try and convince him against going home. "You could stay and keep me company"
"You've got Kurt and Blaine, Sam and Finn; Quinn, tons of people to keep you company" he smirked, pausing and resting his back against the wall. Rachel smiled, turning to face him and stepping close to his body. "I'd just distract you from preparing properly"
"Maybe you're the kind of distraction I need to relax" She replied and he chuckled at her, placing his hands on her waists and pulling her closer so that there was barely a gap between their bodies.
"I'll be back here in no time" He murmured "I'm going to go home, get changed into a shirt and come back with my mom, Charlie and Hugh. You, you are going to go and warm up; get dressed up and look even more beautiful than normal and when you do, I'm going to ruin your makeup by giving you the biggest kiss of all time"
Rachel giggled at that, resting her head against his chest and enjoying being wrapped up in is arms. They stayed like that for a good five minutes before she saw Sam walking towards them, stepping back from her boyfriend, she leant up and kissed James on the cheek.
"Sup dude" James said with a smile.
"Hey, you're still going home right?" Sam asked
"Yeah, you want something?" James said
"Would you picking up my lucky star wars socks?" Sam asked, a slight red tinge on his cheeks as Rachel smiled widely at him
"Of course dude, where are they?" James replied, his face serious and Rachel knew he'd already heard about them
"Top draw of that cabinet beside my bed" Sam said, "Thanks for this"
"Yeah no worries dude, that's what friends are" James winked, offering his fist for Sam to bump. "I'll be back in a couple of hours alright?"
"Thanks man" Sam replied, meeting James' fist with his.
"I'll see you later" James murmured, leaning down to kiss her softly.
"Miss you already" She replied, waving as James winked at her before walking away from there. She watched him until he disappeared around the corner before turning to Sam and with a sigh, decided to tease him a little. "Lucky star wars socks?"
Sam's embarrassed laugh and the quick reddening of his cheeks made her start laughing, feeling the worry fading and her excitement building.
…..
"Can you believe that this is going to be our last ever sectionals?" Kurt said sadly as the two of them were sat in the choir room, which was doubling as the New Directions dressing room. It was approaching show time, and they had gotten changed into their costume as they were waiting. They could see a few of the others stood around talking, Blaine was talking with Tom and Mark; presumably about what to expect. Noah, Quinn and Lauren off to one side exchanging hushed words.
"I know" She says, biting lip as she absentmindedly fiddles with the necklace James got her for her birthday. "It seems like only yesterday we were competing for who would get to sing defying gravity"
"Or when you were trying to take control of the club when Mr Schu was sick" Kurt laughed as she giggled along with him at that.
"It's amazing that we're still here" Rachel said, smiling. "We've lost people and gained new people but the core of us is still the same"
"Its nice" Kurt agreed, sighing happily. "Who would have thought we'd be sat here, both of us with amazing boyfriends; looking forward to sectionals without any drama or tension, well aside from the fact we're competing against Brittany, Mercedes and Santana"
Rachel smile faltered slightly as she saw Quinn shake her head at something Noah had said to hear, her memories going back to when Quinn had told her about Shelby's relations with her friend.
"You okay Rach?" Kurt asked and she turned to see him looking at her with concern in his eye.
"Yeah of course" She replied, smiling widely. "Just thinking about all the drama in the past"
"Speaking of past drama" Kurt said and let out a chuckle, gesturing as Finn was walking towards them.
"Hey guys" He said with that half smile of his
"Hi Finn" She replied warmly.
"Hey Kurt, mom and Burt are here; they wanna see you before the show starts" Finn added and Kurt nodded his head, squeezing her arm before jumping of the stool.
"I'll see you in a little bit, Maria" He said, wiggling his fingers at her as he walked away.
"Excited?" Finn spoke again as he sat down in Kurt's vacant seat
"Too much I think" She said grinning. "You?"
"It's a little different than in the past" He replied "But, yeah I'm excited and I think we're gonna win"
"Me too" She said, dropping her hand away from her necklace. "You did a really good job as a leader this week"
"You too" He replies with a smile "I know it must have been hard having James suspended like that"
"It's okay" She says "He's gonna be there cheering for me and that's all I need. Whoever did it trying to get us to fall apart didn't succeed"
Finn gazed at her for a moment, before nodding his head. "Just so we're clear, no confessions of love this time from me"
Rachel laughed with him, nodding her head "I think it's for the best"
Finn smirked at her, looking away "James is back"
Turning her head, to follow his gaze, Rachel smiled widely as she saw James talking to Sam in the doorway of the choir room as he handed over a pair of socks a slight smirk on her boyfriend's face. She felt her chest beating faster as she saw him looking incredibly handsome dressed up in dress pants, a smart shirt and black tie. James in general was incredibly handsome, but to see him as he was now, he took her breathe away.
Murmuring to Finn "I'll see you before the show", Rachel rose from her stool and practically skips over to James, who turns and grins at her as she steps into his arms and pulls his head down for a kiss.
"Hi" She hears him murmur against her lips, kissing him once more before pulling back and beaming at him
"Hey handsome" She says "I missed you; got Sam's lucky socks?"
James smirked at her, nodding his head "Yep, I even had to answer an awkward question from my mom why I had an old pair of socks"
"I hope you told her they're going to make sure we win" Sam replied with a slight smile. "Thanks a bunch dude, I'm gonna go get ready"
"Alright man" James said with a wink, before turning back to her. Rachel felt her heart beat faster when she saw his eyes roam over her, a twinkling in them as they took her appearance. The look in his eye alone was enough to make her feel how much he cared for her "You look absolutely gorgeous, Rach"
Taking a breath to control the urge she felt, Rachel grinned back at him before leaning up to meet their lips in a sweet embrace for a few seconds. As they separated, Rachel murmured "I wanted to look good for you"
"Mission accomplished" He replied as she moved her hand to wipe the lipstick away from him. "Your Dads are here"
"Already?" She asks with a wide smile "I didn't think they'd be here so soon"
"Mom caught them as we were walking in, they seemed really excited" He replied, reaching to take her hand. "Come on Munchkin, I'll show you where"
Rolling her eyes at him as she clasped his hand tightly, Rachel followed him out into the corridor as they headed towards the auditorium. "Is everyone ready to perform?"
"I think so" Rachel replied, leaning her head against his shoulder as they walked "Everyone seems so excited for sectionals, it's nice to not have people angry and upset for a change"
"Nothing is going to stop you from winning this year" James said. Rachel smiled as she felt him kiss the top of her head. "Have you spoken to Quinn?"
"No" She shakes her head. She had told him about what was going on between Noah and Shelby when Quinn had informed her of it a couple of days ago. He had been surprised and was worried, as she was, about it ruining Shelby's reputation. "Do you think she'll really tell Principal Figgins about them?"
"I don't know, Rach" He replied, squeezing her hand.
"Maybe I should speak to her" Rachel murmured, glancing up at James who nodded and was about to open his mouth to speak when they heard her Dads.
"Rachel sweetheart!" They both said, catching her attention; a wide smile forming on her face when she saw her Dads, dressed smartly in suits, stood with Andrea, Charlie and Hugh. Lifting her head of James' shoulder, she guided him over towards them. Andrea was wearing a beautiful blue dress underneath a black jacket; Charlie was a summer dress that looked incredibly elegant on her while her boyfriend was wearing a shirt, dress pants and a suit jacket.
"You look beautiful, sweet pea" Hiram remarked as they separated from their Berry family hug, his hand coming up to stroke the back of her hair.
"I think we have Kurt to thank for making you look so beautiful" Leroy said with a warm smile. Rachel nodded, turning to Andrea who was smiling kindly at her.
"Rachel, dear; you look perfect" She said and Rachel bowed her head smiling.
"Thank you and I'm so glad you could make it Andrea" Rachel replied, turning to Charlie and Hugh "You two as well, it means so much to James and me"
"Even if monkey isn't performing, I'm looking forward to seeing you all perform" Charlie said, warmly.
"Rach is going to be amazing" James added and she turned to look at him, a confident smile on her boyfriends face. Rachel nodded and stepped back towards him, happily cuddling into his side as he lifted his arm up.
"Have you found out what position your performing?" Andrea asked
"Last" Rachel replied, curling her fingers into the side of James' shirt. "Which is good, because we can really leave an impression on the judges"
"Exactly" Hiram nodded, "Impress them just before they leave to vote"
The group of them stood around for around ten minutes before Kurt found them, and after a few further minutes were he talked to Andrea; he turned to Rachel and told them that Mr Schuester wanted to talk to them before the show. Nodding her head, Rachel apologized for having to leave but promised she'd find them all in a bit, she frowned as James turned to leave; catching his hand in hers and pulling him back to her as their families walked away.
"What's up?" He asked, eyes searching her face.
"You're a member of New Directions too" She giggled as he smirked at her amused "Come on, you can listen to Mr Schuester's pep talks.
"Ah the legendary motivational speeches" James laughed as they walked close together back out of the auditorium foyer and towards the choir room. They passed a few of their friends from classes along the way, before turning and walking into the room finding everyone standing around the piano waiting.
"Right, you're all here" Mr Schuester said, clasping his hands together "Alright guys, tonight is the main event; we've practicing for weeks for this and I'm proud of all the work each and every one of you has put in to getting us ready.
But, we're here to win; so that we can go to regionals and go to Nationals in Chicago. We've had some setbacks so far…this week included, but you guys have been amazing and we're ready. So when its our turn, lets go out there and put a show on! But most of all, lets just enjoy it!"
The group put their hands together after their show circle and on the shout of "New Directions" they all cheered and lifted their hands into the air laughing. They were waiting for around five more minutes before they all went to take their seats in the auditorium; Rachel enjoyed stood with James' arms around her as they talked to Kurt and Blaine about their building excitement.
They start walking towards the auditorium together, when Shelby calls her name just as she's about to enter the foyer. Kissing James on the cheek and telling him to save her a seat, she walks over to her mom with a smile on her face.
"Hi Shelby" She says warmly, seeing the emotion reflected in her moms face.
"Hey sweetie" Shelby replies, "You look beautiful"
"Thank you" She says, bowing her head as she blushes slightly. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah" Shelby says, rubbing her hands together "I just wanted to talk to you before you went in….to tell you how proud of you I am"
"No matter the fact that we're on different teams, I am really happy that we've spent this time together and I can look on as you become this amazing young woman"
"Thank you" Rachel says, feeling herself tear up as she steps forward and embraces her mom; smiling as she feels Shelby's arms tighten around her. "Good luck…..mom"
The wide smile on Shelby's face stays with her as the two of them part, Rachel sinking into the seat next to James with a smile on her face.
"Hey you alright?" James murmurs, leaning over to kiss her softly on the lips.
"Yep, I'm perfect" She says, grinning as she rests her head on his shoulder and threads her arm around his, holding tightly onto the boy she loves
…..
"Ladies and Gentlemen! Good evening and welcome to the Western Ohio sectionals 2011! Tonight we have three teams that will be hoping to progress onwards towards The Showchoir Nationals in Chicago!"
Rachel was nervous as she sat in her chair, the crowd cheering at the introduction resounding in her ears; she felt James hand squeeze hers as she sat next to him among the New Directions, Kurt on her left. Turning her head she smiled at him as he winked at her.
We have three teams competing tonight, From William McKinley High, Lima Ohio; The New Directions, From Defiance City High, Ohio; The Unitards and finally, competing for the first time ever tonight, From William McKinley High, Lima Ohio; The Troubletones!
There was another round of applause, significantly louder for the two groups from McKinley high; Rachel letting out a relieved breathe when both they and the Troubletones were greeted the same way.
Please give it up for our Judges this evening!
The department of motor vehicles employee of the month;Brandi Englebert, From the eleventh district court of appeals the honorable Judge Dorothy Saunders…and Western Ohio's birthday clown of the year three years running...Tickles!
"A clown?" James murmured in her ear, turning to him Rachel giggled at his confused expression; shrugging her shoulders at him.
Now lets welcome our first competitors tonight, from Defiance, Ohio; the Unitards!
They were good, the group performing Buenos Aires from Evita. Her and Kurt were both singing along to the lyrics, something which she hadn't really realised until James nudged her and she turned to him and saw his wide smile as he watched her. Shrugging her shoulders at him, a grin on her face as she continued to sing along. James bit his lip and leant over to kiss her cheek before he settled back in his seat next to her, squeezing her hand affectionately.
Her smile had faded however by the time the Unitards had finished their set list; they had placed their plans on the Trouble-tones being their only real competition and even though he hadn't specifically said it, Mr Schuester had seemed to give off the aura that they hadn't anything to worry about with their Ohio group.
"They were good" James agreed as they sat turned towards each other "But don't worry it, Rach; we're going to win"
"Yeah" Rachel nods her head, about to open her mouth to speak again when she sees Quinn rise from her seat and walk towards the exit. Panic flashing through her, she kissed James on the cheek and murmured "I'll be right back" against his skin as he smiled at her.
...
"Where are you going?" Rachel says loudly as she spots Quinn walking down the corridor. The blonde girl pauses and after a few moments turns around
"Aren't you supposed to be in the auditorium"
"I saw you leave, I know what you're going to go and do" Rachel replies, clasping her hands together nervously. "You're going to go and tell Figgins about Shelby"
"I'm an adult and I can do whatever I want" Quinn replies passively, her eyes meeting Rachels.
"If you want to be a disruptive force in the universe, that's your business; but can you, please, at least wait until after the Troubletones perform" Rachel says, frowning slightly as she tries to reach out to her.
"Why?"
"Because we don't want to wreck all of the hard work that our friends in that group put into their performance"
"So we win" Quinn says softly
"No, not like this" Rachel shakes her head "If you're going to go through with this, you owe it to Shelby to tell her first; that's the adult thing to do"
Quinn's eyes flicker with emotion, understanding? As Rachel turns and starts to walk back towards the auditorium, pausing again to turn back to Quinn, giving the blonde a smile before speaking up again; "I was going to cheat to help Kurt win the election, but I got some advice that what I thought was worth it to win isn't always the best reason to do something. You don't want to look back at feel that you made a horrible mistake"
Letting out a sigh, Rachel walks down the steps towards her seat in between James and Kurt; there was something in Quinn's eyes as they stood there talking, something that told her that she knew ruining Shelby's career was wrong. Hopefully, Quinn would listen to her and not go ahead with her planned revealing of Noah and Shelby's affair.
"Hey, you okay?" James asked as he stood for her to walk past him as she reached their seats. Sitting down next to him, Rachel nodded her head putting a smile on her face.
"Yeah" She replies, "Just had to deal with something, I'll tell you later"
"Alright" He said nodding his head. She spent a few minutes talking to James before the lights dimmed and the announcers voice bellowed out from the speakers.
Ladies and Gentlemen, our next performers; from William McKinley High, performing for the first time ever; The Troubletones!
Rachel and James clapped politely while the crowd mostly there to support the home groups roared loudly, showing their appreciation of the entertainment to come. Turning to Kurt, she shared a smile with him which he returned before she gazed at the stage as the music started playing. The trouble tones were good, there was no denying it, their choreography and their singing was high quality which they knew would happen as they did a mash up. Shelby had done a brilliant job in making the team as competitive as possible and Rachel couldn't help but know that they would be the New Directions challengers.
As the Trouble tones set list came to an end, the other two songs following the high energy and amazing vocals of the first song, the crowd roared in appreciation. Rachel smiled as she applauded the girls, giving them the standing ovation that they honestly did deserve; enjoying, despite their cross glee club lines, the way that Brittany, Santana and Mercedes in particular seemed to be loving the limelight and attention from being the leaders of their group.
"Alright guys, let's go backstage; we're on in 10" Mr Schuester said from his seat in the front row of their section next to Miss Pillsbury. There were murmurs as the New directions all stood from their seats during the short interlude. Rachel turned to James and saw the warm smile on his face as she stepped into his arms and hugged him tightly.
He kissed her neck, before he whispered softly, his breathe tickling her skin. "Good luck babe, you're going to be amazing"
"Love you" She replied, leaning up to meet their lips in a quick kiss before she stepped away from and ran slightly to catch up with Kurt and Blaine as they made their way back up the steps to go through to behind the curtain. The group had already started to spread out slightly, each person running through their own personal warm ups. She giggled slightly at seeing Lauren down on the ground doing her traditional pre competition press ups. Her eyes lingered on Quinn, who seemed to be deep in thought as she stood next to Noah who looked troubled. She didn't have time to ponder on it as she heard Finn arrive next to her.
"Are you nervous?" Finn asked. Rachel turned and smiled at him warmly, shaking her head.
"No" She said, clasping her hands together "I know we're going to win"
"Me too" Finn replied, giving her a smile.
"Alright guys gather round" Mr Schuester announced, the whole group moving towards their teacher. "Let's go out there and have fun, but if we manage to win that would be really nice as well"
Rachel laughed along with the others, them all doing their group cheer before they made their way out to do their first number, ABC led by Tina and Kurt. Taking a deep breath heard the announcers voice pick up again to announce their performance;
Now, put your hands together for our last performance of the evening; Also from William McKinley High school, Lima Ohio, The New Directions!
…..
The atmosphere is electric as they perform their first song, ABC, the crowd constantly making noise to show their support. The crowd had roared particularly loudly when Kurt , who filled in James' part incredibly well, and Sam took centre stage to their own little dance moves. As the music ended, Rachel could feel the adrenaline coursing through herself and her team mates, all stemming from the electric crowd.
After that they moved onto singing The Way you make me feel. As she danced with Finn as several of the new directions sung lead again, including Artie, herself and Sam, she couldn't help the way in which she noted every way that James had danced it better with her during rehearsals but pushed it to the back of her mind as Finn spun her around as the music came to an end. The crowd was completely captivated by their performance and she knew they were on track to win.
They ended their performance with a moving rendition of Man in the Mirror, all of the boys singing amazingly well. Again, as Sam sung the lines that should have been James' she couldn't that her thoughts lingered on him but all of them, all of the boys and the rest of the group were incredible and by the final few bars of music; She had a huge grin on her face.
As the music died on their final song, there was a thunderous roar of applause from the crowd; greeting them as they held their finishing pose as a group in the middle of the stage. Rachel grinned massively as she looked out at the audience, feeling her chest heave with exhaustion but also the adrenaline. The most amazing feeling in the world was standing in front of a crowd that were all cheering and screaming for you; it was the reason she wanted to be a performer, to feel that sensation course through her blood.
They tall stepped forwards, forming a line, before bowing as one; taking in the applause. After a few moments, they turned and ran off the stage towards the choir room. As soon as they reached it, Rachel went flying into Kurt and Blaine pulling them into a group hug.
"Oh my god that was incredible!" She giggled, pulling away from them.
"I know!" Kurt replied equally as excited, a huge grin on his face "You were really good"
"We all were" Rachel said, smiling widely. "Especially Sam! Did you see it when he did his body rolls"
"The crowd was incredible the whole way through" Blaine laughed "But that really got them going!"
They all mingle for around five minutes, each of them hugging one another and congratulating them on a really amazing performance. As Mr Schuester finishes giving them a speech saying how proud he is of what they out there, she spots James walking through the doorway into the choir room; breaking away from talking to Finn and Sam to run over to her boyfriend, practically leaping into his arms.
"Babe you were amazing" She hears him murmur in her ear as he spins her around on the spot. Rachel giggles and wraps her arms tightly around his neck as she hugs him. When he puts her down again, James pulls away slightly and stares into her eyes. She can see the immense pride and love flashing across them as she gazes back at him. "I love you"
"love you too" She replies, leaning up to kiss him several short times. "Thank you for being here"
He winks at her, squeezing her hands in his. "Anything for you"
James leans down to kiss her once more, before he wraps an around her shoulder as they walk back towards the group. Sam turns and fist bumps her boyfriend.
"Dude you were awesome, my mom and sister went crazy when you did that body roll" James says laughing.
"Oh god…I forgot they were here" Sam replies, a lock of shock on his face. "I'm going to have look them in the eye knowing they watched that"
"Relax, Sam" James says, smirking "They thought the whole show was awesome"
"I just hope we were good enough to beat the Troubletones" Tina murmurs as she stands holding Mike's hand, both of them were happy smiles.
"I might be biased but I thought you were definitely the best out there" James says "All your songs were done perfectly and I think the judges will be hard pressed to vote any other way"
"Whatever happens" Blaine says nodding his head. "We can be really proud of ourselves"
….
James leads her to the auditorium foyer were there families are located and as soon as they see her, Leroy and Hiram pull her into another huge Berry Family hug. Giggling away, she listens as they sing her praises and Andrea only increases her happy spirits as she compliments Sam on his dancing, a small blush appearing on his cheek.
"You guys were amazing" Charlie says as she pulls Rachel into a hug. "That was incredible, you must be so proud"
"I am" Rachel replies grinning as she steps away from his sister back towards James who is just grinning at her, a look in his eye telling her just how he feels.
They spend around another ten minutes in the foyer talking before they hear the announcer telling them that the judges are ready to announce their results. Taking a deep breath, Rachel feels James' hand squeeze hers reassuringly as he walks her towards the auditorium. Grateful for the gesture more than she can say, She opts to just lean up and kiss him softly before they separate so he can go back to his seat with his mom and sister. Biting her lip, Rachel walks up with the New Directions to take her position on the stage as they wait for the judges.
Feeling her hands being taken, she turns and see's Blaine and Kurt on either side of her, giving her reassuring smiles. Smiling back at that, Rachel lets out another deep breath and turns to face the audience, spotting her and James family talking amongst themselves.
Tickles the Clown walked into the centre of the stage holding the envelope in his hand as he took the microphone from the stand;
"As an award winning clown, I have to say that its nice, for once, to be working with Kids that are just sick with talent"
Rachel bites her lip to hold back to the laugh as the crowd sat there silenly taking in the joke. She turned to glance at Kurt who was shaking his head.
"Third place….The Unitards!"
Rachel lets out a sigh of relief, politely applauding as they make their way to collect their trophies before walking off stage.
Squeezing Kurt's hand tighter, Rachel gulps nervously as the clown opens the envelope revealing the winner.
"And the winner of the Westen Ohio show choir sectional….and the team advancing to Regionals is…
THE NEW DIRECTIONS!"
Rachel can't contain her happiness and screams in joy at their victory, jumping up in the air before she turns and pulls Kurt into a hug, the two of them clinging to each other for a few seconds before they separate and turn to their team mates. They all share their excitement together for a couple of minutes before she turns to the crowd, searching for the happy faces of her family. After a few moments, she spots her Dad clapping still; huge grins on their faces. Next to them, she see's Andrea and Charlie both talking with smiles on their faces. As her eyes drift to James, she feels her happiness only grow as he holds two thumbs up at her before he moves and blows her a kiss.
Rachel grins as she returns the gesture, mouthing an "I love you" knowing that he'll know just how thankful she is to have him there.
….
A/N : I wasn't going to change that result !
Lauren is back in the Glee club and I think for the foreseeable future. James and Rachel seem really close again and I wanted to get back to that after a few difficult chapters.
I like writing these little Shelby + Rachel moments and I plan on having a few more!
Next up; Mercedes and Rachel talk. Christmas!