He finally removed his hands from over her eyes, instead letting one fall down to grasp her hand, the action was so nature, he doubted either of them really noticed. He was observing her face, anticipating what her reaction would be, he wasn't disappointed when he saw her start smiling like a fool and she even let out a happy squeal.
"Jesse! You are so amazing, have I told you that lately? Like so unbelievably amazing! How did you know?"
They were standing outside the new completely vegan bakery and café, Rachel had been waiting to go here, but sadly had been unable to since she didn't often go to Toledo for no reason. She had secretly wanted to try it when she found out where Sectionals was, but figured it was very unlikely, even if Finn took her there, he would only complain. For some reason, he always thought vegan food tasted not near as tasty as what he dubbed 'normal' food.
"I just figured, plus I drove by here the other day, when I saw it was a completely vegan store, I knew you would love it."
She pulled him inside, the warm atmosphere a welcome change to the chilly weather, her and Jesse were some of the very few people in here, the place set up to be a comfortable café. A few arm chairs and couches scattered around, with a barista bar set up, and a huge display case of baked goods and at the far end there was a stage, and it had officially become her new favorite place. There was an upright piano on the stage off to the side against the right wall; the far wall had a doorway leading both behind the stage and probably to bathrooms. While Rachel had an immediate desire to go sing on the stage, she realized it was not an open mike night and would have to wait, but she did see a rather inviting loveseat. She figured after getting their coffees, her and Jesse could snuggle up on the couch as they talked.
"Hi, welcome to Micro-Delights, what can I get for you?"
Jesse could only smile down at Rachel, she had the whole 'kid in a candy store' face going on, and it was simply adorable, the girl at the counter say the internal battle in Rachel for what she wanted.
"You know, the Strawberry Cream is just delicious, so is the Chocolate Love or the Raspberry Cream, I'm a bit of a fruit fanatic though."
"I have the same tendencies, being vegan is hard, so I always like to be simple and just nibble on fruit. I think I'll go with the Strawberry Cream, Jesse next time you bring me here I want to get the Raspberry Cream."
The girl's face immediately brightened, "You're vegan too? Oh thank god, I thought I was the only one, either the people who come in and are vegan are mean or they are just pretending to be and just want to be with the latest sensation. Have you tried Devilish Delights?"
"Devilish Delights?"
"Yeah, it's new, in Uhh… Lima? I think so, anyway my friend is opening it over there, and it's going to be a complete sort of restaurant, bakery and coffee shop. I hope I can go down there some time, the amazing thing is that my friend agreed to put my pastries on display, so if you ever have a craving for my delicious recipes you only need to go there."
"Yes! I have been waiting for a vegan eatery forever! I mean sure there are some vegan options, but no real vegan place, oh I can't wait to go in there."
The girl at the counter laughed, "My name is Amanda, just take one of these cards over and Jamie will be sure to give you a discount." Amanda handed over a Micro-Delights business card with her signature on it and Rachel was quick to pocket it in her black side bag.
"Rachel and thank you so much."
"Any time, now is there anything else?"
"I would like to try the Chocolate Love, also a soy latte and whatever this lovely lady wants."
Amanda smiled turning back to Rachel, who looked at the menu, "I think I'll just have a soy latte too."
"Coming right up." The girl moved quickly grabbing two cupcakes, placed them on plates, added some napkins before working on the drinks. The girl worked fast, making quick work of the drinks that she thus did heart designs in the foam, giving Rachel and Jesse a knowing smile before setting all the food and drinks on a tray.
"That'll be $13.19."
Jesse handed her a twenty, Rachel had taken the tray, making sure she could claim the loveseat before any other couples, Amanda went to hand Jesse back the change, but he shook his head.
"Keep it." He had a happy smile on his lips looking over at the brunette beauty that could possibly be his once more.
Amanda smiled a knowing smile, "She's a keeper, and you both make the perfect couple."
Jesse didn't correct her, just smiled before walking off to join Rachel, who was sitting down; sipping on the delicious caffeinated beverage and her eyes couldn't help, but brighten when she saw Jesse walking over.
"What were you talking about with Amanda?"
"She was just telling me you were a keeper and that we were a perfect couple."
Rachel's cheeks went red for what must have been the millionth time today, yet a smile still found it's way to her lips, showing she had no real problem with someone thinking they were a couple.
"She's right, I am a keeper."
They both laughed, if there had been any awkwardness still lingering, it was most definitely gone then, but they both had already realized it felt as if no time had passed. Their love was rekindled, stronger this time than before as they joked and played, feeding each other and snuggling on the couch, neither wanting to leave when they realized the food was gone. Jesse checked his watch, it was only 5:00 o'clock and he would only end up having about another hour left with Rachel, that being the drive to take her home.
"You ready to go?"
Rachel looked up at him, from her spot curled up into him, his arm around her shoulder as she absently played with his jacket and she gave him a cute pout.
"If we leave does that mean you have to go soon?"
"Well, I figured I'd drop you off at home and given your fathers will be home in two or so hours then yes, I don't think they would be happy to know that you spent your whole day with me."
"I never told them…"
He in no way wanted the evening to end, but he knew he should do the right thing, internally fighting, deciding to do the right thing by both telling Rachel's fathers about the egg fiasco, but still the idea of being without her created an empty feeling inside. He sighed, his emotions and the pout combined with her sad eyes were almost too much to resist, "Rachel, later on if you want to get back together, then we need to tell your fathers, I want us all to start on a new beginning with everything known."
"I know.", She sighed with sadness dancing in her eyes as the tears that graced the rim of her big brown eyes threatened to fall, unhappy with the prospect of having to be without him.
"What should we tell my dads about us?"
Their future could rest within this question, were they ready to be together again or were they both trying to rush into something, once again following their impulses? He didn't know what to say, while his heart screamed to yell 'We're together! I love you!' his mind demanded him to think about it. He knew letting the silence between them grow was not the best of options and forced him to do something that was difficult for the both of them, trying to express their feelings without song.
"I want to be with you and nothing could make me happier than to be your boyfriend."
Rachel immediately brightened, the tears gone as she stared into his blue eyes, her own sparkled with joy and as she opened her mouth to speak, he interrupted.
"But I don't want to rush into this, I want us to work out more than anything and I want our relationship to start the right way, unlike before."
She was still smiling, "Okay, then that is exactly what we will tell my dads and you will be taking me out on a date tomorrow."
He shook his head, laughing slightly, as he took the tray back to the counter, Amanda smiling at the couple as they exited the store, Jesse instinctively took off his jacket placing it on Rachel's petite frame and they made their way back to the Range Rover. While Rachel felt bad for Jesse being cold, she still found some delight in the fact that she got to wear his coat that had the amazing blend of smells that was so him and it had picked up a hint of a coffee smell from the coffee shop. Jesse turned the heater up a bit, before he pulled out of the parking spot, heading back towards Lima, his mind full of thoughts on how wonderfully this evening went, he had figured he'd be making this journey back to Lima alone.
"So how has the new year been going, obviously you got a few new people, the girl with those big glasses and then Ken. Anything interesting happen in glee?"
Rachel almost laughed, staring at him, still able to see him as the sun was setting, thinking that maybe she could convince him to stay up so they could see the same sun rise.
"Isn't there always something interesting happening in glee?"
"I guess so, now spill I want to know all that has gone on in your life."
Rachel smiled, recalling her memories, until she remembered the Sunshine debacle, she wasn't sure how Jesse would react when he found out how innocent and sweet she really wasn't. Almost immediately Jesse knew there was something wrong, he turned to look at Rachel, a flash of regret on her face and then a flash of fear as she internally battled, this time a much bigger decision than which cupcake to get.
He grabbed her hand, caressing her skin softly, turning to look at her, right into her eyes, those brown eyes he had spent dreaming about and now he got to gaze into them again. "You can always tell me anything Rachel; I'm not going to judge you."
"I did something really bad, like horrible."
He smiled, "Remember when I said you were more of a drama queen than I am. It's true, Rachel, just know that no matter what you do, it wouldn't effect how I think of you, I know the real you, so don't even try to think I'm like any of your glee mates who probably didn't understand."
Rachel chanced a glance over at him; they met eyes, her doubt and worry washed away as she let out a sigh. "I kind of sent a girl to a crack house, not an active crack house, because I thought she would be competition for me, I already share the stage with so many others and I don't know I just want to be the best. I want to be the reason why we win."
Jesse smiled, glancing at her, careful to actually pay attention to the road, "I understand. I don't know this girl, but I know you and I know that you are better than her, you deserve center stage, and no one should deny you that right."
"So… you don't think it was horrible?"
"Not at all, I've witnessed and done much worse."
"Oh really, I doubt that!"
"You said it wasn't an active crack house one, but I have done worse. I told one guy back in junior year, it was mandatory that all Vocal Adrenaline auditions are to be performed out on the field. I neglected to mention that the football team would be practicing, so while the guy started singing only minutes later did the team come out for practice. To make it short the football players didn't appreciate it and decided to beat some sense into him, the coach showed up and broke it up, but the guy never showed up in the auditorium again."
"How did your teammates react?"
He chanced another glance at her face, a hurt expression had adorn it, her eyes dark with regret and pain, obviously her teammates weren't as understanding as his had been.
"They understood why I did it, they would do the same thing, so they couldn't very well have been angry at me and as long as we were winning they didn't care."
Rachel laughed, but this one was tainted with a bitter edge, obviously whatever her teammates had done still affected her, sometimes words create deeper scars than intended.
"Why doesn't New Directions see it like that?"
"Because everyone in New Directions actually cares about others, while Vocal Adrenaline only cares about winning and will let nothing stop them from accomplishing their goal."
He glimpsed at Rachel, a question lingering on her lips, yet to fall, but he already knew what she was going to say, their way of thinking was so akin to each other.
"I know it's hard for you to share the stage with anyone else, but just know that this is their only shot to be in the limelight, while you, you're going to be on Broadway. You're going to be making your dreams come true, so for now you can be generous and willing to share the stage."
He saw Rachel's face brightening immediately, her old determination back, she had missed him, always understanding her mood, her unasked questions and always knowing what to say to cheer her up.
"Do you really think I'll make it to Broadway?"
Jesse laughed and she couldn't help, but join in, the laughter infectious as was the goofy smile they both had on their faces.
"You are joking, right? In a few years your name will be up in lights, I have no doubt about it and you will have all your dreams come true."
She smiled, yet a few unsaid words were still on her tongue, but she knew it was a little too early to admit everything, to admit he was one of her dreams. She squeezed his hand, he looked at her once more, unable to believe how stupid he had honestly been, why had he ever thought anything would be better than this.
"What else has happened? There has to be more to the Rachel Berry story."
She giggled, "This year has been quite horrible to be honest, I mean there are some good points and then some very great points, like right now. So after the new girl fiasco, the next week I had to go get my teeth whitened."
Jesse gave her an incredulous face, causing her to giggle once more.
"I know, it had something to do with genetics, but the dentist guy had us chew these pills that turned any plaque blue and my teeth all turned blue, it was embarrassing."
"I'm sorry Rachel, I still find it hard to believe, your teeth are perfect and you have impeccable hygiene routines, especially for oral hygiene!"
"I know, that's why it was embarrassing, but now my teeth are perfectly clean and white, so I have no complaints. Let's see… the week following that Finn thought he found Jesus and became all religious and that led to some awkward situations. I can't believe I let him get to second base."
The words had left her lips before she even thought about what reaction they might get from Jesse, the most noticeable reaction was the stiffening, tension filling his body infused with underlying notes of hatred and possible jealousy. He had to control his breathing and bite back his tongue, words full of hate and insult ready to fire and bash Finn Hudson. He honestly thought he might explode and go on a rant of the bad things about Finn when his hand was lifted up, Rachel placing the softest of kisses on the back of his hand and instantly his anger ebbed away.
"Don't be mad, it was a reward, plus he probably was in a bit of shock, I wanted him to raise our children in Jewish faith, but I also said I would be ready for sex and children when I was 25."
He let out a light chuckle, she followed suit, but hit him playfully. "Oh he was definitely in a state of shock, he would have said anything at that moment to make you happy and try to change your mind."
"Okay, so he did have a 'deer in headlights' kind of look, but I was being very serious, not like it matters anymore."
He let the confusion show on his face as he continued to look at her while driving, had she always been this beautiful and how had they ever gotten anywhere safely? He found it hard to look at the road for a minute, yet was perfectly content to stare at her, see the way her facial expressions changed with each one as equally dramatic as the last. "What happened?"
"He slept with Santana even though he told me he was still a virgin and then he lied about it! Everyone else knew except me, his girlfriend was the only one left out of the loop then he didn't even tell me, Santana did and he had the nerve to try and stop her from letting me find out the truth! Sorry… you probably don't want to know all about Finn and me."
"If we want to have a new start, we will have to be honest about everything that goes on in our lives, no secrets."
She felt a smile tugging at her lips until a new though popped into her head, what if Jesse had a girlfriend after they broke up or what if he had more than one. Would she really want to know about Jesse's ex-girlfriend? She knew she didn't, but she felt she should ask anyways it was the only way that everything that had happened during their break could be shared. So she took a deep breath, anxious for the answer, she felt as if her whole body had chilled, fear of the answer looming over her as she asked the question, "Did you…"
The words died before she had even half finished the sentence, yet he still knew what she meant, she wanted to know about his love life, whether he had a girlfriend while they were broken up. He looked over at her, she had tried to steel her emotions, but to no avail, she looked scared of what the answer might be, yet had a curious sparkle in her eyes.
"No, after we broke up I worked on Regionals and Nationals too much for any girlfriend, following that I haven't been able to even think about having anyone else, but you. The last girl I kissed was you, Rachel, and I tend to keep it that way."
Rachel couldn't help the smile on her face, her cheeks turning red at his statement, except this time she wasn't embarrassed and she had to admit she enjoyed knowing she was his last kiss. She always wanted it to stay that way, her being his last and him being her last, the term soul mates being the only thing that could come close to describing their feelings.
"Sorry… I just… Is it bad that I'm happy?"
"No… I should have realized you were the only one for me long before then."
She smiled, whispering out two words, "Me too."
He glanced over at her, she was uncharacteristically nervous, biting her lip and he caught her as her own eyes found their way to his, a flush rose to her cheeks as she looked away. While it was undeniably adorable, he couldn't help, but be curious as to why the completely switch in emotion and attitude.
"Jesse…. Would you stay with me until my fathers get home?"
"Of course, Rach, I'd do anything for you."
He flashed a reassuring smile, quite content with how far he'd manage to get with Rachel, happy that there was no hostility, that they could possible have a relationship once more. Both of the teens drawn back into the depths of their mind, while a few obstacles were still lying await one they would soon face in only a matter of hours. Her fathers, he could only guess what their reaction might be, and none of the guesses involved a warm reunion. Rachel looked over at Jesse, he was deep in thought, probably thinking over the same thing she was, her fathers and how they would react to his appearance. She had to admit the most likely outcome wasn't something she wanted, but she knew lying to her fathers about Jesse would end even more disastrously.
She wanted their relationship to work, that meant being honest from the very beginning, although she found the idea of telling her glee mates even worse than her fathers. Especially if she had to do that alone, she knew, even if she wished to ignore it, that Jesse would have to leave for UCLA soon. She felt a strong desire to ask Jesse to run off with her, go to New York City, live as actors and make their dreams a reality, but that was far too irresponsible and un-Berry like. Yet the prospect of not actually knowing what could happen was just as alien to her, she was always organized, composed and in control. She squeezed his hand, staring forward at the road, his silent reassurance, nothing more than squeezing her hand back, both staring forward at the unknown.