A/N#1: I don't own glee…. so what else is new? Italics=flashback
make sure you read 2nd a/n at bottom! :)

To the outside world, we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family grieves and joys. We live outside the touch of time.

Monday September 13, 2011

"Bye aunt Holly and I know mom and dad already thanked you for everything but thank you we owe you so much. We'll see you at Thanksgiving right?"

"Yes Thanksgiving and you better be prepared because when I come back I'm going to obliterate you guys in catchphrase! But seriously Puck like I told your parents you don't owe me anything she is my goddaughter and I'm over the moon that she's back in our lives. Just tell your mom to call me more often ok? I really have to go now though. Love you!"

"Ok bye for real this time." I tell my aunt as I hug her and help her into her cab that was taking her to airport. Now it's just Rachel and me. Crazy to think that I finally get to spend the day with my little sister after so long. I have no clue as to what we are actually going to do today but I did know one thing I was going to help her get her memory back. I walked back inside to see Rachel finishing up her breakfast.

"Hey." I called out to her she jumps a little in her seat. "Oh sorry didn't mean to scare ya."

"No it's fine I just didn't see you come in I was kind of spaced out for moment."

"So…."

"So… what?"

"You do know it's only me and you for the day right?"

"Yea. Shelby and Will told me last night."

"Oh so what do you want to do?"

"I don't know. Hmmm actually do you mind if we just talk for a while?"

"Naw it's cool as long we don't get too mushy." She chuckled when I said that.

"No don't worry I'm just curious about a couple things."

"Ok shoot!"

"Alright why the hell is your nick name Puck? I mean it's a really stupid nick name."

I started to laugh a little "Seriously that's what you wanted to know?"

"I have more questions! But that one has been bugging me. I mean usually nicknames are shorter versions of your actual name and your name's Noah Schuester how the heck do you get puck from that? Unless it's your middle name or something in which case that really sucks."

"not all nicknames are based of your actual name. Santana's nickname for you is estrella, which means…

"Star in Spanish." She interrupts me "I grew up in California and was taking Spanish in school." She explained when I gave her a mildly surprised look that she knew what the word meant.

"Anyways she'd call you estrella…

"Why?"

"If you'd let me finish…"

"Oh sorry go ahead."

"that was your nick name because you had an obsession with stars and you always told everyone that you were going to be a star one day."

"hmm ok well you still haven't answered my first question. How did you get your nickname?"

" I was really into hockey when I was younger and I tended to hog the puck so everyone was constantly yelling out puck to me and somehow it stuck and everyone I've known has called me Puck except mom, dad Santana well Santana calls me Puck if she's extremely pissed at me or when she wants to… Sorry getting off track. You've never called me Puck even when you were like 3 you thought the name was stupid."

"Well it is. Ok so next question where do you work?"

"What are you writing a biography on me or something?" I ask her laughing a little.

"Who knows maybe I am. But answer the question considering I have no memory of who or any one else in this house is I think I'm allowed to ask a few personal questions."

"Fine, fine, you've made your point. Anyways I'm a police officer. And before you ask why it's because of you."

"Me?"

"yea after a year had passed since your kidnapping and the police had given up I was determined to do my part to help find you and to prevent cases like yours happening to other families. As well as put the crazy bastard who kidnapped you behind bars!"

"Shut up! My father is not some crazy bastard!" She yelled at me anger clearly etched on her face. It also further confirmed an inkling I had that her accepting her old life with us in Ohio as true might just be an act.

"ok, sorry I never said your 'father' was the one responsible…"

"The implication was there I know that what everyone's thinking. But he didn't do it! He couldn't have."

"Alright let's just calm down ok? Why don't we get off this topic? I just wanted today to be a chill day."

She sighs "ok. Then what are we going to do for the day?"

"have you seen the basement yet?"

"There's a basement?" she ask with surprise

"I'll take that as a no. Come on your missing out."

The basement was split into 3 parts there was the movie center complete with multiple couches a flat screen TV with blu-ray player and surround sound, a game center that had an air hockey table, pool table some darts and a foosball table, and finally a music center that had moms piano surrounded by shelves of sheet music and cds, and records, there were also a bunch of random instruments hanging on the wall as well.

"is that an air hockey table?" she asked after taking a couple minutes to observe everything.

"yea do you want to play?"

"Yes! I love air hockey you are looking at an air hockey champ. When I was little my dad would sometimes just randomly take me to Chuck E. Cheese and we'd just spend all the tokens on the air hockey table there. And before we left he'd make me take a picture in that one little car that had a plastic Chuck E. sitting next to you."

As she was telling me that story I realized that she was actually remembering something my dad did with her. My dad and I did the same thing too except we'd play the basketball arcade game instead. Hmm maybe if I could find those pictures she was talking about it'll make her realize that she is home or something.

For the next hour it felt like old times like something Rach and I would've been doing if she hadn't gone missing.

"Ha! Told you I was the best!" she said as she beat me again for the third time, although I did let her win the first two but she didn't need to know that.

"So what do you want to do now?" I ask her.

"Umm I don't know whatever you want."

"Why don't I show you around Lima? That way you're not totally lost and confused when you go out with your friends. And who knows maybe it will bring back some memories." I see a flash of annoyance and a brief roll of the eyes when I bring up her memories being jogged, I know that look she just gave me it's the 'I'm right you're wrong nothing you say or do will make me see it your way' look. So she definitely isn't planning to accept the fact that Ohio is her home anytime soon. Yea she still as stubborn as ever, the one thing that definitely hasn't changed about my sister her stubbornness. Ever since she was a baby she's been set in her ways, once she believed something to be a certain way that was it, there was no changing her mind. Well unless she was dealing with me. I was the only one in the family who could get her to change her mind.

"Yea that sounds alright. Let me grab my purse."

Ten minutes later we were driving down the road.

"So where are we going?" she asked me after a while.

"The best music store in Lima."

"Probably the only music store in Lima." I hear her say under her breath.

"Hey! We have 2 music stores thank you very much." She giggled at my response. "Anyways I need to buy some more guitar strings."

"Oh you play the guitar! Are you any good?"

"Am I any good? You have met our parents right? You've seen whose raised me? They told you about glee club right?" I asked her.

"Yea its like some choir group." She responded with a whatever attitude.

"Oh it's more than that. But anyways those 2 being coaches is just the tip of the iceberg. I mean mom used to be in Broadway. Dad majored in music in college and knows how to play just about every instrument imaginable. Music is in my blood, your blood. Since the day we were born scratch that since the day we were conceived music has been a part of our lives. Dad gave me my first guitar when I was like 3 and I've been playing ever since. So yea I'd say I'm pretty damn amazing with the guitar."

"Hmm you'll have to play for me sometime to prove how 'amazing' you are."

"Fine you just wait when we get to the store you'll be so amazed that…"

"That what I'm going to start bowing down to you and call you king of the guitars?" She responded sarcastically.

We just looked at each other for a second before we started laughing. Again in this moment it felt like she had never disappeared. She had to feel some connection some type of sibling bond with me right?

When we got to the music store as I went to pay for my stuff I see her out of the corner of my eye head towards the instrument section and sit down at the piano. After paying I walked over to her and asked her "do you play?"

"No. I wish I knew how though but when I asked my dad he said it was either piano or ballet. I chose ballet because I just lived for the recitals we put on every year. I'm lucky he even let me continue ballet, my dad's not a huge supporter of the arts and persuing a career in show buissness. As it is he doesn't even know I'm or was in my school drama club. He think I stay after the school because I'm on the debate team."

As she was telling me this I couldn't help but get a little angrier at the jerk how could he stifle her natural talent like that! "Well if you're still intrestead in learning piano I know mom would be happy to teach you she's a little better at the piano then dad just don't tell him I said that."

"I'll think about it." She responded.

"So any request" I ask her as I grab a guitar. She shakes her head no. "hmm ok let me think….ah! got it!" I started to play 'Sweet Caroline' one of her favorites when she was younger.

Where it began, I can't begin to know when

But then I know it's growing strong

Oh, wasn't the spring, whooo

And spring became the summer

Who'd believe you'd come along

"Dad!" an eight year old Noah Schuester called out as he ran down the hospital corridor ahead of his grandparents.

"Hey buddy." Will said as he knelt down to capture his son in a hug.

"So is it boy? Do I have a brother? Please tell me I have a little brother!"

Will chuckles a little at his son's enthusiasm "we already told you Noah that the baby was going to be a girl."

"I know but I just thought that maybe the baby would change its mind at the last minute and decide to be a boy."

"haha. Sorry bud doesn't work that way. Now come on don't you want to see your mom and new baby sister?" Will asked his son as he stood up and led him to the hospital room his mother and little sister were staying.

When they entered the room he could see his grandparents and aunt Holly off to the side cooing over his little sister; who he could not see. But that was fine the only person Noah really wanted to see was his mother, whom currently sitting up in the hospital bed smiling at him with her arms stretched out to him waiting for a hug. So that's just what he did, the second his dad lifted him onto the bed he snuggled into his mothers embrace. She was the best mother in the whole world (at least in his opinion). Instead of asking him if he was excited about becoming a big brother (which he wasn't he was the apple of his parents eye for the past eight years and he wanted it to stay that way) like everyone else had, she asked him what he had done today and if he was excited about school and she just sat there and listened to him as he went over in great detail about his day and how he can't wait to go back home because grandmas and grandpas were way boring and they wouldn't let him play Nintendo because they were watching some boring soap opera or were watching the news which was even worse than the soap opera.

After about 15 minutes his grandma came over and carefully handed his mother a small wiggling pink bundle that was starting to whimper. His sister. She continued to squirm and whimper some more in his mother arms until she stated humming. The minute the first note passed his mothers lips she stopped squirming and her whimpers started to slow before stopping all together. At least his sister was smart enough to realize his mother was the most amazing singer ever.

As his mother held her Noah took this time to study her, she was tiny! Smaller than Quinn, Brittany's new little sister and way tinier than Blaine his new baby cousin (what was it with all the grown ups having babies? All of a sudden.) She was the cutest looking one out of the 3 hands down. She wasn't all red and squishy looking like Quinn had been and not too chubby like Blaine was. As Noah continued to look at her he heard his father say "She still needs a name."

Hands, touching hands, reaching out

Touching me, touching you

Oh, sweet Caroline

Good times never seem so good

I've been inclined to believe it never would

Pretty soon everyone in the room started tossing names around

"Emma."

"Victoria!"

"Hannah."

"Sarah"

"Melena"

"Evelynn" which his parents agreed was a good middle name. But to Noah none of the names they were saying sounded right. As he looked down at his little sister he saw her little hand escape the confines of the pink blanket and reach out towards him it seemed. He stretched his finger out and touched her hand marveling at how soft her skin was and said "Rachel." Right when he said that the little hand wrapped around his finger as if agreeing and saying yes that's my name I like that one. Everyone agreed that Rachel was perfect. "Well Rachel, I'm your big brother Noah! Now there's some rules we're going to have to go over but for now you can sleep. I'll protect you from now until infinity!"

"You weren't kidding you are actually pretty amazing with a guitar." She said as we left the store. After that I just drove around Lima and showed her the main hangouts like the bowling alley, and the mall, the best pizza place and Breadstix, which was the most popular restaurant in town. We actually ended up eating there for lunch and then heading back home. When we got home she started watching some tv while I went to search for those Chuck E cheese pictures she mentioned earlier. I finally found them in an old album in my parents' room.

"Hey Rae come here I want to show you something." I called out to her from my seat at the dining room table. She walked into the room and sat across from me.

"What did you want to show me?" instead of answering her I just showed her the pictures. I watch her study them for a moment her facial expressions were very controlled (she's definitely an actress) but her eyes betrayed her. They showed confusion and hurt.

"you know who that is right?" I ask her.

"that's me… but I don't understand how did you get these? I didn't bring any pictures from home and I could never find these pictures back home anyway."

"that's because these pictures were in my parents room and you could never find them back home because you never did this with your father in California. You were remembering something you did with dad here in Ohio."

"But…but no, this can't be true."

"I know this is a lot to take in but I just had to show you. So please put your stubbornness aside and just be a little open to the possibility that what we've all been telling you is true. And don't just put on an act and pretend to accept everything that's going on. I know you have some type of plan that you think will get you back to California" she looked shocked that I had called her out on her plan. "Don' look so shocked. I'm your brother and we might've only grown up together for eight years but I know you way better than anyone else and I know when you're putting on an act. This is your home Rachel! It's always been your home and always will be. You just need to remember." She just stared at me and then at the pictures and then again at me before finally getting up and picking up the photo album and running to her temporary bedroom. Where she stayed until dinner.

When my parents got home I explained everything to them right up until she locked herself in her room. They said not to worry and that they'd just leave her alone for the night, give her some time to think. After all her whole life had just been turned on its head a couple days ago. It might be a while before and if we ever see the old Rachel again. The Rachel I know is still there she's just hidden behind a few walls that we have to knock down and it seems like there's already a few cracks.

A sibling may be the keeper of one's identity, the only person with the keys to one's unfettered, more fundamental self.

A/N#2: hi! I'm so sorry I made you guys wait a month for this chapter! It wasn't my intention! Anyways moving on firstly here's a link to the Chuck E. Cheese pictures I was talking about for those of you who live outside of the U.S. or didn't know what I was talking about. http:/ sillystarshine .tumblr .com/ post / 18895630790/ saycheese

And jsyk my ask box in my tumblr is open to anonymous so you don't have to have a tumblr or fanfic accountant (although I highly recommend you get the 2nd one at least) to ask me something.

So I am officially in school so if you don't see an update again for a while that's why. Just know that I will never abandon this Fic! I am seeing it through to the end! Next chapter: Schools in session! Rachel's POV anybody you guys want to see next chapter? Music suggestions? Review please!