Chapter Three
"Rachel! How've you been?" he called, "I'm sorry, I would've talked to you earlier, but I thought you might want some space."
Rachel sighed. She couldn't believe who she was seeing. "I thought we agreed to break it off a long time ago, Brody."
"I heard your crazy ass man went and got himself out of your life."
Rachel stared at him, horrified at his comment, on the verge of tears.
"I didn't mean it that way," Brody said, not convincing Rachel in the least bit.
"You never cared about how I felt. I can tell you still don't because anyone who insults him insults me," Rachel shouted for the whole world to hear as she stormed off.
By the time she got to the Gershwin Theater, her face was tear-streaked and she felt worse than she had in the past week. Paolo immediately noticed her mood, her pained expression only confirming it.
"Hey, Rachel! Are you okay?" he interrogated as he walked up to her."Yeah, I'm good. I just need to go to the bathroom, so can you tell Rupert I'll be in for rehearsals as soon as I'm done?" she said as she paced off.
The second she got to the bathroom, she broke out in tears. She had obviously thought less of Brody when she found out who he really was, but she had never thought he was this rude. But she wasn't going to let this get to her - she was Rachel freaking Berry. She was a star. Stars have to deal with drama all the time, and if she was going to let this small complication impact her, then she might as well give up her whole dream. And she was never going to do that.
She wiped her face, reapplied some of her makeup and put on her wig before walking out of the bathroom.
Since it was the day before Christmas Eve, there wouldn't be any shows the next three days, and there was only one show that night. She walked over to Rupert and Paolo, and took a seat next to them.
"So, what are we doing today?" she asked, assuming they would just go over all the scenes she had with Paolo. Rupert seemed to think that the chemistry between them wasn't exciting anymore, and truth be told, Rachel thought the same thing. She actually thought that it was her sex appeal that wasn't exciting anymore.
She'd always had insecurities about the way she looked. She'd never felt sexy until Finn came along. He made her feel like the prettiest girl in the world, even though she would never be that person. Now there was no one else to make her feel that way, so she didn't seem that way. Her insecurities about herself had turned her from a confident woman who knew who she was to a little girl who was afraid to go back to living life normally.
But today, Rupert surprised her by saying, "I'd actually like you to go over Who Are You Now again. I need to really feel your pain when you sing this. I just feel like last night, you were a little out of it."
She didn't complain and, after the music started, did what she was asked to do.
Who are you now,
Now that you're mine?
Are you something more
Than you were before?
Are you warmer in the rain,
Are you stronger for my touch,
Am I giving too little
By my lovin' you too much?
She thought of only Finn at this point in the song. She hoped he was doing alright. As she sang the next lines, she looked up.
How is the view,
Sunny and green?
How do you compare it to
The views you've seen?
I know I am better, braver and surer too,
But you-are you now-
Who are you now?
Are you someone better for my love?
Rachel let a tear slip down her cheek as she finished the song. She hoped that her love had changed Finn. Finn's had definitely had changed her.
She almost forgot who she was singing for, but when she heard clapping from the two men in front of her, she was pulled out of her daydream.
"Wow, Rachel. You manage to stun me every time. That was almost too much emotion," said Rupert. He had a few tear streaks on his face, as did Paolo.
Wow, was all Rachel could think.
When she got home from her show that night, all she could think of was what it would be like if tomorrow was her first Christmas Eve back with Finn since senior year. But it wouldn't be. It couldn't be. All she wanted for Christmas was Finn. She knew that would never happen.
He wished it was their first Christmas Eve together, but he couldn't. He needed to make sure she was safe. But he had seen Brody with her. Of course, Brody had broken his promise. He shouldn't have trusted that jackass. But at least she wasn't hurt physically. He hoped she wasn't hurt emotionally.
A/N: Hey guys! I hope you like this chapter. Sorry I haven't updated lately. Please comment and suggest things to me, it would be really helpful. Thank you guys for all the positive feedback!
Song: Who Are You Now by Barbra Streisand