AN: So, I think it's been like 2 years since I've updated this story, and I'm sorry for that. COVID quarantine inspired me to clean my desk and I found my old outline for this story.

This chapter follows 4.19 Sweet Dreams. Just a heads up, I took a good bit of liberty with the Noah/Shelby aftermath from season 3. I hope you guys like it, please review!

Chapter 7

It had been a little less than a month since Rachel and Puck's pregnancy scare. She eventually told Kurt what had prompted an impromptu visit from Puck and why Santana had been almost kind, or at least less bitchy, to her at the time.

Kurt had been nothing but understanding as Rachel had expected. After she told him, and after getting the okay from the girl in question, he told Sebastian. "I just can't believe Puckerman almost knocked up another girl," Sebastian had answered, "I mean the guy must be really bad with a condom."

Had Sebastian said this during the previous year, Kurt probably would have taken this as an insult to his friend, but having spent time getting to know Sebastian, Kurt now knew that Sebastian was only joking. It sometimes astounded him how much Sebastian could snark and still be an amazingly sweet boyfriend to him.

This week was nothing short of crazy in the loft. Rachel had found out about a revival of Funny Girl that was being cast and had decided to audition. For as confident as Rachel usually was she seemed to be very nervous and was taking it out on everyone around her. Sebastian and Puck had both come into town. Puck to support his girlfriend, and Sebastian to support his boyfriend who was supporting his roommate.

The biggest surprise to everyone had been how helpful Santana was with everything. Since the pregnancy scare she and Rachel had become rather close. Unlike most of the other former members of New Directions, Santana had always thought Rachel was more suited to Puck than Finn in high school. She also knew that behind his tough exterior, Puck was a very good guy. It was nice for Rachel to have someone to talk to, and Santana welcomed the distraction from how much she missed Brittany.

Rachel had been rehearsing at NYADA in one of the practice rooms, trying to decide what Barbra song to sing when she heard a knock. In the door was was none other than her mother, Shelby Corcoran. Rachel and Shelby had done a lot to repair their relationship her senior year.

After he had slept with Shelby, Puck went to Rachel's house. He knew almost immediately after it was over he regretted it, and having known Rachel since they were babies, felt like he owed it to her to tell her. Rachel had been beyond angry with him and her mother, but eventually calmed enough to comfort him. After having talked it out Puck came to realize that it wasn't necessarily Shelby he was attracted to, but the idea of having a real family. He knew things could never be that way with Shelby and Beth and had quietly admitted to Rachel that he knew Beth would have a better life with her mother because she could be supported.

While not known for her secret keeping, Rachel never let anyone know what Puck had told her, but had confronted Shelby about the incident privately. They came to an agreement that while Shelby could never be Rachel's mom in a traditional sense, she could be involved in Rachel's life. When she was still in Ohio, Rachel had visited her mother and Beth regularly, and since the moving to New York had continued to stay involved in regular Skype or phone calls.

It seemed to be turning into a ritual for Shelby to help Rachel with auditions, having helped her prepare for West Side Story the year before. Singing for fun and not to prepare had been exactly what Rachel needed, and helped her decide exactly what she would perform. As she and her mother were coming out of the practice room on their way to get lunch, the found Puck leaning against the wall. Uninterested in keeping their relationship from Shelby, Rachel walked up and greeted him with a kiss. "Noah! When did you get here? Were you waiting long?" She asked him. Puck answered, "Just got into town. Dropped my stuff and truck at your place. Only been here a few minutes babe."

Shelby cleared her throat, letting them know she was still there. Rachel turned to Shelby, "Would you mind if Noah joined us for lunch? He came into town to be with me before the audition," she asked. "It's fine, if you want I can go get Beth from my friends house and bring her along too," Shelby offered. "I think that would be great," Rachel answered.

Rachel and Puck returned to the loft after an enjoyable lunch. It was nice to go out and share their relationship with people who were important to them. The pair, Along with Sebastian, Kurt and Santana spent the night in. The next morning Rachel went to her audition and sang Don't Stop Believing. The song reminded her of her roots and had always had a relaxing effect on her. After going to her classes, she returned home and the five decided to spend the night out. Kurt and Puck both agreed it would be best to keep Rachel distracted instead of waiting by the phone to hear about a call back. Puck even convinced her to leave her phone at home.

It made for a nice surprise to come home that night and find a voicemail with details about her call back.

AN2: Just wanted to leave a little response to some of the reviews I've been getting about the characters drinking and being underage. There has been underage drinking in bars in this story, and I am working under the idea that Kurt and Sebastian still have fake IDs from Scandals and Puck and Santana still have theirs from high school. As for Rachel in my head she got one before going to college as she went to Callbacks in season 4 which was a bar. Just wanted to leave you guys with some insight as to why I don't see their ages as an issue for the story.