I wish my excuse for not posting was that evil Abed kidnapped me, and tortured me by forcing me to put on a fake moustache and sing EVIL TROY AND EVIL ABED! If you can't tell, Imma big Community fan and I'm ecstatic it is finally back on, even though I don't live in the land of the Yankees. Anyways, why am I rambling about Community when this is a Glee fic?
I'm having post-summer-depression now that I'm about to start uni in a few weeks, so while I wallow in the corner eating what is left of the icecream, here is the much delayed chapter of this story.
DISCLAIMER: See first chapter if there is any. If not, I don't own Glee. The storyline is just something that escaped my mind without me knowing. There would be an icecream flavour named after me if this series was mine.
"For having everything you require, I am zanily jealous of you. For not wanting to go where you want however… well not to be mean and rub it in, but it sucks to be you."
Rachel recalled punching Blaine again on his arm for that remark, but there was no denying it. He was right; it did suck to be her. If only she wasn't a princess but an ordinary person. If she was ordinary, then her fathers would definitely say yes to her going to New York. If she was ordinary, then her Uncle Bart would not be so strict with her requests and decisions. If she was ordinary, then she would be able to reach for the stars and achieve her dreams.
So here she was five years later, smiling exuberantly while nervously waiting for her name to be called out. Straightening her crimson robe and adjusting the tassel on her matching coloured cap, she exhaled a long breath she had not realised she was holding while practicing the smiles she should choose from once her name was called. She could not believe she had made it, five years in the making and now it all came down to this exact moment. Any second now, and she would be free, free to finally have her long-time dream come true.
Her musings were interrupted when her name was called, and for a moment she had no idea what she was doing at this ceremony. It wasn't until she glanced down to straighten her robe a final time was when she remembered. Holding onto the metal railing, she made her way onto the stage to shake the chancellor's hand, and his other hand handing her the college diploma she had waited five years for, while the announcer voiced out to the audience how (her royal highness) Rachel Berry had earned honours and high distinctions for her double degree on international relations and the creative arts.
Facing the crowd, she tried to find her family amongst the spectators, and it wasn't hard to find them when Blaine and her fathers were cheering loudly for her, with her uncle no where in sight. Typical of him, he hardly attended any of her greatest achievements. But she didn't care about him not being there at the moment, today was her day and she was not going to let the absence of her king of an uncle get to her.
Rachel raised her diploma high in the air while waving to the crowd, with flashes from photographers and everyone else standing up and applauding for their princess graduating from college. And with true Rachel Berry fashion, she plastered on the smile she had practiced for this day one too many times, all mighty and full of determination. She had finally done it, after what seems like forever, she can finally say the words she had wanted to shout through a megaphone when she was eighteen – look out New York, because Rachel Berry is about to be the next lady of liberty… and more.
"All the odds are, they're in my favour, something's bound to begin," Rachel started to sing when she finally found her very euphoric family trying to get a hold of her, due to reporters interviewing, photographers taking snapshots, and fellow attendants congratulating her.
"It's gotta happen," Hiram began, wrapping an arm around Blaine's shoulder while squeezing Leroy's hand in an assuring manner.
"Happen sometime," Leroy continued, bursting into tears while Hiram patted his back, comforting his husband.
"Maybe this time," Blaine sang in a melodious tone, waiting for Rachel to finish off the song's line.
"Maybe this time I'll win," she ended with, holding the final note in an iconic Rachel Berry way.
She squealed for joy, running towards the main men in her life, the four of them having a group hug. She had never been so happy to see her fathers and cousin. They were the ones that supported and encouraged her throughout her life, through thick and thin. From the time she bawled her eyes over J.T.'s death in Degrassi to the time she almost had a nervous breakdown over the fact that she won a scholarship in her second year of college, they were there to lend a helping hand or to lend their shoulder to cry on, and for that alone, Rachel could not thank them for their gratitude. Having a close relationship with these people meant so much to her, and without them, she would not be where she was today or be the person she was right now.
"Congratulations pumpkin, you have finally graduated!" Leroy exclaimed, squeezing the daylights out of his daughter. Hiram had to restrain his partner from killing their own daughter, even if Rachel was delighted with how much they cared for her due to their actions.
Her cousin chuckled, reaching out for his cousin's hands. "How does it feel?"
Blaine himself had graduated with a bachelor of fine arts a couple of years before, so he understood what his cousin was going through. And at least they knew they were related, they pretty much majored in theatre performance – what could they say, they had pretty good taste. Together, they were raised well.
"It feels absolutely, positively, incredibly amazing!" Rachel squealed, squeezing Blaine's hands in return and jumping on the spot full of excitement. "I cannot believe it, I am a college graduate!"
"Oh baby girl, you have no idea how proud I am of you," Leroy stuttered out, trying to hold his tears in, but failing, clutching Hiram into a bear hug.
"As much as I love you and our daughter, stop your crying Leroy. Stop trying to make a scene," Hiram whispered, rolling his eyes at his husband's antics.
"Well excuse me for being so happy about my pumpkin's accomplishments!" Leroy exclaimed, stomping his foot in a dramatic way. Yep, Rachel knew where she inherited her theatrical flair from.
"Dad, daddy, you have no idea how thankful I am for having you both there for me whenever I need the help, assistance and love," Rachel stated with a huge smile on her visage, letting go of Blaine's hands to hug both her fathers.
"No Rachel, thank you for becoming our beautiful shining star that you deserve to be," Leroy said, wiping his tears with a handkerchief.
"And thank you Blaine for keeping me in line whenever I unleash my diva-ness to everyone," Blaine jokingly stated, earning a chuckle from the Berries and a light punch on the arm from the princess.
"How can I forget you Blaine? You are my best friend, my cousin, my rock, one of my biggest fans. I can and will never forget you," she articulated, beginning to tear up on the spot.
Knowing her make-up would be destroyed anyway, she wiped a few droplets away from her face, her eyeliner and mascara already smudged, and put on a fake glare towards Leroy. "Look what you made me do daddy!"
"I always get blamed for everything," Leroy muttered, huffing and crossing his arms across his Armani suit.
"To the three of you, thank you for being here to watch me accept my college diploma. Just your presence alone has made me so honoured and flattered, you have no idea how grateful I am for all of your support and love, as well as constantly reminding me that I can do anything if I set my mind to it. Thank you for your encouragement throughout my infant, childhood, adolescent and early adult stages of life, I am the person I am because of you three. I know I may have been a pestering nuisance here and there, but know that it was for love, for the perils that I needed to encounter on my rollercoaster ride. As one chapter of my biography ends, another one is about to written, so with that being said…"
By the time Rachel reached that point of her speech, she was blubbering worse than Leroy, who was also tearing up and holding on to Hiram once again. Blaine hugged his cousin to him, rocking her back and forth just like he used to when they were younger and how she would cry because there was dirt on her new outfit. Even at a young age, she was such a princess. But that quality (as much as she hated it) was what made her… well, her, and he would not change her at all. Not even her cute, original Jewish nose and he did not regret pantsing Jacob Ben-Israel for making fun of her nose. No one makes Rachel Berry cry and gets away with it… except that one time when he was eight and put a few worms down her shirt. In his defence, she broke the head of his Action Man toy, so some payback needed to take place.
Knowing her waterworks had died down; she broke off her hug and placed her hands on Blaine's shoulders, squeezing them, trying to remember what she said before the tears took over. "… So with that being said," she continued, excitement growing through the pits of her stomach and a smile creeping on her face. "New York, here I come!"
When Rachel returned back home from the graduation ceremony, she was not surprised to learn the whole palace had prepared some kind of celebratory party for her graduating from one of the top and prestigious colleges of the country. So here she was mingling and surrounded with honoured guests in a black one shouldered corsage dress and red velvet platforms with her hair in a loose bun when she could have battled Blaine in Singstar. The princess was chatting to the current Prime Minister of their country when her birth name was called out next to her.
She immediately knew who it was because the next thing she knew, she was face to face with her Uncle Bart, known to everyone else as the king, wearing his most formal suit and royal sash. "Congratulations on obtaining your college diploma. You have made your ancestors, future generations, your people, your fathers, and … me very proud."
Of course he would add the last part with a slight pause, considering he was not present at the ceremony. "Thank you Uncle Bart," she said quickly, smoothing down her knee-length dress. Just because she was the next in line for the throne did not mean she wanted to start an argument with the current person on the throne about why he did not take any time out of his busy schedule and attend her graduation ceremony. He may be the king and she knew she was acting like a diva in her mind right now, but she was family for heavens sake!
But tonight was her night, and it would not be ruined because of how hurt she was over his absence earlier on today. "After today, I cannot wait to tackle life's rollercoaster ride."
"Speaking of which, I need to discuss an urgent matter with you personally in the library," he affirmed, walking away from her and in the direction of the library, several guests making way for their king.
Rachel sometimes wondered if she really was related to her uncle. Nevertheless, she followed her uncle towards the library, mumbling a few "excuse me's" to a few guests that were in her way. Closing the polished oak doors behind her, she made her way to where her uncle stood in the dimly lit space, who was staring at a portrait of his father, her grandfather.
Glancing down at her crimson peep toe heels, she tapped them together and for a moment envisioned herself as Dorothy in the future revival of The Wizard of Oz. "I have a gift for you," Bart began to say, interrupting her Broadway musings for the nth time.
Peeking up from her cherry platforms, her chocolate orbs landed on a rose bow stuck on top of a raven leather briefcase below the portrait of her grandfather. Had that been there when she walked in the room this morning? If this was her uncle's way of saying, "I'm sorry for not attending your important graduation ceremony that you have talked about non-stop for the past year because I am the king of this country and there are more pressing issues that matter than you, the future heir to the throne, graduating," then he was on the road to be partially forgiven. Not completely, partially.
"What is it?" she questioned, unsure of the meaning behind this gift, but could not tear away from how beautiful and delicate the briefcase was.
"Your graduation gift is made of the finest Italian leather. Your gift will be handy once you begin tomorrow."
She glanced up to her uncle, confused. "Tomorrow? What is happening tomorrow?"
His facial expression expressed how ridiculous her question was. "Tomorrow is when you commence your royal duties, starting with a meeting in Switzerland for six months with fellow business representatives over the European tax debate and funding for infrastructure."
Now Rachel was very lost in the whole matter. It took her a while for his sentence to register, and all that she could respond with was, "Why would I do that?"
The king sharply faced her, his jaw in a grim line and russet eyes narrowed. "You are a princess, or have you forgotten that fact?"
How could she forget she was a princess when he constantly reminded her of that fact her whole life! With that aside however… "But I thought after college, I was going to New York."
Bart gave his niece a stern look. "Are you still thinking about that fantasy of making it big in that scandalous town?"
Rachel had never taken an offence to anything, even the time when Blaine said that Kristin Chenoweth performed better than Idina Menzel in Wicked… until now. "New York is not a fantasy; it is passion, an excitement, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a dream." She turned to her uncle and made her way towards him, a fiery glint in her eyes. "We made a deal that I was allowed to go and study in New York if I studied my double degree."
"You are twenty-three years old. By taking the double degree, you would realise during your five years of studies that your career and your future are more important than some town you have wanted to seen. I was hoping by taking your studies seriously would mean the memory of New York would fade. How do you expect to fulfil your royal duties while you are gallivanting around in a town where you know nothing about?"
Rachel thought about his question for a moment. During her five years of studies, New York had always been her determination, had always been the force that kept her going. And here she was now, she had reached her goal but her dream was out of reach once again because of her title. If only she was not a princess, but an ordinary person. "Maybe I don't want to be a princess. Maybe I want to be an ordinary person living an ordinary life."
Bart sighed, already knowing how this conversation was going to go down. He placed a hand on her shoulder, looking her square in the eyes. "Look around you Racheline. You are anything but ordinary. You are a special girl that has everything you need with a click of a hand…"
Well that was very assuring to hear. Sarcasm. "… Many girls wish to be in your position right now, so you should be grateful to have what you have. In a few years time, you will be married with a man that will help you run this country, and I believe Jesse will be the right person to help you."
Rachel never swore… not in front of anyone that is, but just because she never said it out loud did not mean she was not thinking it. "You want me to marry Jesse?" Rachel bawled, taking a step back from her uncle. She had no idea what was worse - not being able to fulfil her dream again or being betrothed to her ex-boyfriend.
"Jesse is a good man, a good leader, a good businessman, and will be a good supporter and husband for you when you run the country…"
This was all too much for Rachel to handle. "No, I won't do it."
She never depicted her uncle as a villain, but the expression on his face right now showed otherwise. "Excuse me?"
Rachel was shaking with nerves, she had never defied his orders before, which considering her age was pretty sad. But if her dad could handle his family's disappointment and the hatred of people over him being the first gay royal, then she could be able to handle the current king.
"You promised me I could go to New York when I was ten, and that did not happen. You promised me I could go to New York after I obtained my high school diploma through homeschooling, and that did not happen. We agreed that if I do a double degree on international relations and the creative arts then I would be able to go to New York, but once again, that is not going to happen. Now I am practically forced to marry my ex-boyfriend? Not that I would agree to the marriage but I would like to be proposed to instead of finding out that I am already betrothed. The worse part? For the rest of my life, I will have a career that will make me feel unhappy and have an unhappy life. And it will happen because I never got to go to New York!" And to be a little dramatic, she stomped her right red heel on the floorboards.
Rachel was not the only one getting fed up; her Uncle Bart was close to erupting like a volcano. "For the last time Racheline, New York is nothing but a troubling place, and your dream will not get you far. Your career and your future will commence first thing tomorrow, there is no backing out, your flight and accommodation in Switzerland is set, your marriage with Jesse will go through and that is that."
"But Uncle Bart-"
"And that is that Racheline! Or are you forgetting who the current ruler of this country is," his voice roared, echoing throughout the library, and with that, the king marched out of the library, his footsteps stomping and his final departing words shouting in her mind. "You may be my niece but I am not afraid to cut you off from the throne and make you homeless!"
Rachel, shaken over her uncle's shouting, headed towards the burgundy leather couch, and slumped, crying her eyes out for the second time today. Her life was officially over; she was just a mere puppet whose strings were controlled by her power hungry uncle. This was how Blaine found her moments later.
"This is a party dedicated to you. Why are you sitting here crying your eyes out? Do you know how long it took for me to put that eye shadow and eyeliner on you?" he questioned, putting down his champagne glass on the coffee table in front of the couch and sat next to his distressed cousin, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.
"Well you would feel betrayed, hurt and annoyed too if you were told you were going to marry Jesse St. James," Rachel muttered, choking on her words.
"WHAT!?" Blaine shouted, startling Rachel and himself to the point he kicked the coffee table in front of him and accidentally spilling and breaking the champagne glass all over the hardwood. But he did not care about the shattered glass or the spilled champagne, even if it was a white merlot. "B-b-but… you cannot… you just cannot marry him! Apart from the fact that he is such a jerk, he does not fit into my cousin-in-law list."
"I thought that list was all a joke."
Blaine gasped loudly, taking offence from her response. "Why would I joke about my future cousin-in-law? Rachel, you're my best friend, and your future husband has to somewhat meet my criteria, can be tolerable, is gorgeously handsome, and will love you for you and not for your title or money. Jesse met some of my criteria, but he definitely is not handsome, and I'll have to admit… he was also a bore to be around."
Rachel as well gasped, shocked at this revelation. "I assumed you had somewhat enjoyed his company."
Blaine gave his cousin a look that said 'I thought you knew me at all.' "For you, I held my tongue for you. Can you actually see yourself married to Jesse? Oh god, if you get married, you will become," he then whispered in a high-pitched frightening tone, "Rachel St. James!"
The brunette chuckled at his attempts of humour. "It doesn't sound that terrible."
"Are you considering of marrying him?" Blaine asked her, his eyebrows raised.
"Blaine, I am not even twenty-five. Marriage is currently the last thing I am considering at the moment, you of all people should know my current focus is New York… well, was New York. Apparently my uncle was hoping that by focusing hard on my studies, my New York dream would fade into the distance. And now by this time tomorrow, I will be in Switzerland getting ready to start the first day of the rest of my life all miserable and moody. What would you do if you were in my position?" she enquired, resting her head on his shoulder and waiting for the comforting words he always gave.
"… Jesse?" was Blaine's response.
Rachel exhaled deeply, removing Blaine's arm off her shoulder, annoyed. "Seriously? After all I have said in the past minute that is all you can process?"
"It's just that… I would have to be related to him… by association of you," Blaine said, still disturbed at the fact that Jesse St. James the douchebag was officially his future cousin-in-law. Oh how the world was cruel to him.
"So it is my fault? My fault that I am denied the opportunity to go to New York for my future again? My fault that I am betrothed to my ex-boyfriend? My fault that no matter what I do or say, I can never win an argument or stand up to my king of an Uncle Bart?" By then Rachel was pacing back and forth across the library, her corsage attire ruffling around and her heels making an emitting clicking-clacking noise.
"Rachel, Rachel, Rachel, Rachel, Rachel," Blaine called out, interrupting her rant. He took her cold hands in his and sat them both down on the couch. "I did not mean to say what I said like that. What I meant to say was… well to be honest, I have no idea what I was meant to say, but I was not trying to hurt your feelings. Remember five years ago when I said it sucked to be you? Well, I have to bring that up again – it sucks to be you. But you always get through. You always find a way… always find some kind of a loophole to be one step closer to what you want.
"The king may be your uncle, and even though you are old enough, he eventually has to learn he cannot control everything that revolves around you but I believe going through with this business deal in Switzerland and your other royal matters may be the way to go for now. But trust me when I say that you might be going to New York sooner than you think. I am no way a psychic that can see into the future, but you will go to New York, I don't know when and how, but you will."
"May I ask how you know that, oh wise one?"
"Because Obi-wan, you are Rachel Barbra Berry. A dreamer, an adult yet a young girl, an admirer, a role model, a princess, a star. Along with your hopes, determination and how your fathers raised you to never give up, in a matter of time everything will be in your favour and fall into place, and your already perfect life will be more perfect than ever."
"You can call me whatever you want Blaine, just don't call me perfect."
"Never said you were."
Can't believe it took me more than a year just to type and post this chapter. In my defense, it is the darkest timeline (despite the fact that we should all be dead by now). AND I haven't given up on my other stories, I'm just lazy and taking my time verreeeeeeeee slowly with each of them.
So all that is left to say is Happy Valentines Day to the couples and more to the single peeps (I'm single myself, and for once the PCD got it right - I don't need a man to make me happy, I get off being free). Just love yourself the way you are because you are funtabulous and awesome like that!
Also, just wanna say/type out... #sixseasonsandamovie
AND...
SMIGGLE!
R&R!