Chapter 9
Noah cleared his throat, partly to take his mind out of the bedroom, at least for the time being. He rifled through a folder of sheet music, pulling out several pieces that the band had considered using tonight for their female vocalist. "Here, Rachel," he said, handing her the music, "take a look at these and see if there's anything that'd work for you." She took the music from his hand and began reviewing it; he stood behind her, looking over her shoulder, and pulled her close with his arm around her waist. Rachel smiled inwardly, thinking "Santana was right about the red sweater, that's for sure." As they were considering their options, one of Noah's other co-workers who did not play in the band approached the stage.
"'Sup, Puck?" Mike asked.
Noah looked up, responding, "Hey, Mike, Tina. Thanks for coming tonight."
Mike grinned devilishly at Noah as he noticed his stance and proximity to Rachel. "I see you have company this evening," he commented.
Rachel looked up from the music, recognizing Mike and greeting him, "Hello, Sergeant! How nice to see you."
"Same here, Rachel; please call me Mike," he replied.
"Thanks, Mike," she acknowledged, and glancing to his right, noticed his companion, and happily exclaimed "Dr. Cohen-Chang! What are you doing here?"
"You know each other?" Mike asked incredulously.
"Yeah, actually, we do," Tina answered.
"Dr. Cohen-Chang is Maisie's vet," Rachel explained. "I didn't know Mike was your husband," she observed.
"And I had no idea you were dating Puck," Tina responded, grinning, eyebrow raised and looking at Noah questioningly.
Rachel blushed, replying, "Yes, we met a couple of weeks ago. He rescued me from a fire at the theater."
Tina laughed, commenting, "Yeah, I heard all about that, but I never 'connected the dots'. Way to go, Puck!" Noah chuckled, slightly tightening his hold on Rachel. "You two are so cute together," Tina teased. "We'll have to catch up, later," she advised, before leaving, hand-in-hand with Mike, as they headed toward the bar for a beer before the show started.
"What's up with those two?" Tina whispered in her husband's ear as they retreated from the stage.
"He's got it bad, Tina," Mike explained. "I think he's still in denial, but he hasn't so much as glanced at another woman since they met."
"He's looking at her with 'baby-making' eyes," she reflected, to which Mike replied "Huh?"
"Michael, I've seen that same expression on your face three times, and my mother is taking care of all three 'results' tonight so we could have an evening out," she calmly expounded.
Mike rolled his eyes, replying, "Woman, you're crazy; there is no way…"
"Give them a year, and we'll see who's crazy," Tina retorted with a giggle.
Rachel had selected two songs and reviewed them with Noah. "I'd like to sing this duet with you," she requested, "and this is a good ballad, if that's OK with the group."
Noah grinned; he really appreciated Rachel's lack of ego. She was the star of a huge Broadway show, and she was deferring to his friends and their "two-steps-up-from-a-garage-band-for-old-guys" group. "Usually Jake sings this with Marley, but I think he'd be willing switch under the circumstances," he advised. "As for the second, I think it's a great choice. The arrangement's awesome…if I say so myself," he concluded, winking.
"Thank you, Noah. Is there someplace where I can warm up for a couple of minutes?" she inquired.
"Yeah, I'll show you before we start," he obliged.
Rachel looked up to see Santana furiously attempting to make eye contact with her. "I think I'm being summoned," she announced, walking over to the nearby table, hand still entangled with Noah as he followed closely behind.
"What's going on, Berry?" a slightly agitated Santana queried. "You left me all alone with these two, and they've gone and multiplied," she commented, gesturing to the other two men now sitting at the table.
"Hey, Karofsky!" Noah greeted his fellow firefighter. "Rachel, this is Dave Karofsky, one of the men I work with. Dave, this is Rachel Berry," he introduced them.
"Hi, Rachel. Thanks for all the cookies!"
"You're welcome, David. It's nice to meet you," she replied.
"Puck, Rachel, this is my partner Wade Adams," he mentioned, his arm around the back of Wade's chair, and hand resting on his shoulder.
"Wade and I worked together on 'Annie…'", Blaine enlightened them. "He was 'Charlie Davenport', the guy who manages the 'Wild West Show'."
"And I'll be starting rehearsals for 'La Cage aux Folles' in two weeks," Wade interjected.
"Who will you be playing, Wade?" Rachel politely inquired.
"'Albin'", he answered. "When I first got out of college, I worked in drag shows until I could get my foot in the 'legitimate' theater," he explained.
"Yeah," Dave confirmed. "That's where we first met. His drag queen persona was named 'Unique'…"
"And 'Unique' tore it up every night, honey," he concluded with finger snaps and a faux-diva attitude, as the group (himself included) laughed heartily.
"Actually, Rachel," Kurt interjected, changing the subject slightly, "Blaine was just saying that you two may be seeing a lot more of each other."
"How's that, Blaine?" Rachel queried, smiling.
"I'm up for 'Fiyero', now that Todd Fabian is leaving the show."
"Yes, he was offered a role on a new TV series," Rachel confided, "…something about a high school drama club in Wisconsin where characters randomly break into song…"
"That sounds just a might high-concept, if you asked me," Kurt sarcastically commented. "I don't see that getting picked up; ever hear of 'Viva Laughlin'? Not even Hugh Jackman could save that turkey."
At that point, Sam approached and spoke softly in Noah's ear, who then clued Rachel in: "Rachel, we're starting shortly. I'll show you where to warm up." He then addressed the table: "See ya' later, guys; hope you enjoy the show," and then led her toward the stage, hands entwined. He pointed to the right, indicating, "There's a room back there where we stashed the cases and other stuff. Once we get started, it'll be pretty loud, so you can warm up and nobody will notice," he explained. "After you're done, go back to the table. I'll introduce you when it's time."
"Thank you, Noah," Rachel replied. They kissed, and she left to prepare her voice for her performance.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," Sam announced, "I'd like to introduce 'Station 34'." The audience applauded loudly as Sam mentioned each member of the band. They immediately began their set with a cover of "Old Time Rock N' Roll", followed by "Rock and Roll Music", each of which was received enthusiastically by the crowd. They had just launched into "Born To Run" when Rachel emerged from the back; she took the long way to the table, moving quietly through the crowd so as not to distract from the performance.
Rachel had obtained a bottle of water in order to hydrate before performing. As she enjoyed a sip, the band began to play "Hey, Jude". She looked up, catching Noah's eye, and beamed a proud smile to him. If music was the key to Rachel's heart, Noah was definitely her "love locksmith". Santana noticed her friend's smitten look and whispered to Kurt (who was seated next to her) "If they start singing "Tonight's The Night", I'm gonna bust out laughing...or puke." Kurt covered his mouth with his hand so his friends couldn't see the laughter he was desperately trying to hold back at Santana's caustic yet hilarious remark.
Fortunately for Kurt's sanity, that song was not on the set list for tonight. Their next number was "The Sounds of Silence", which again met with a hearty round of applause. Noah smiled at Rachel as he took the mike and announced the following: "Tonight we have a special surprise for everyone. Standing in for our female lead, may I present, straight from Broadway where she's currently starring in 'Wicked', Miss Rachel Berry!" Led by her friends (who behaved like Rachel's personal cheering section), the audience exploded with applause. Rachel stood up, faced the room and waved, then turned to walk up to the stage. She was used to this reaction in the theater, but felt relatively anonymous outside of that milieu, leaving her a bit surprised by their response.
Noah reached his hand out as she walked up the steps onto the platform and kissed said hand once she had arrived. They smiled at each other as she retrieved the mike from him. "Thank you, everybody, for your generous welcome. Isn't the band amazing?" she asked, applauding, and the crowd cheered in response. Once the room had quieted down, Rachel and Noah sang "Need You Now". Their faces registered both surprise and delight at the recognition of how perfectly their voices blended together. Rachel's next/final number was a solo, "Killing Me Softly", for which Noah had crafted a lovely arrangement. Upon completion, Rachel took her bow and attempted to return to her seat, but the room would have none of it, insisting on one more song.
Rachel knew exactly what she wanted to sing; something fun and unexpected. She quietly asked Noah if the band knew the song she had in mind, and (with an amused smirk) he confirmed that they did. He quickly found the music and distributed it to the guys, who launched into the introduction to "Cowboy Casanova". This was pure entertainment for Rachel; a little "Rock" and a little "Country" and very far removed from Broadway and show tunes. It highlighted an earthier aspect of Rachel's personality that Noah had never seen before…and that he found immensely attractive.
Ever-observant Santana leaned in to Kurt and quietly commented "Are ya' sure, Kurt? I'll raise the stakes…$50 says they 'do it' tonight."
"Pu-leeze," Kurt responded in her ear, "all bets are off. Rachel is fantastic as always, but watching the two of them up there…well, the way they're looking at each other…it almost feels like an invasion of privacy."
In choking back a laugh, Santana snorted, the rest of the table (sans Kurt) looking at her curiously. Moment passed, and their attention refocused on the performance, Santana got in one last whispered barb: "If looks could make a baby, Rachel would be pregnant by now." This time, Kurt was the one who had to swallow his laughter, and became the recipient of the next round of questioning glances.
Song ended, Rachel took her bows, thanked the band, and returned to her seat, fully ready to become a member of the audience once again. As much as she had looked forward to a night off, it had been exhilarating and was definitely something she would do again (if asked, of course). Her friends all chimed in with their praise and accolades, as did Dave and Wade, who left shortly thereafter.
Eventually, the band completed their performance for the night. A grinning Sam thanked their audience, and then handed off the mike to Noah, who announced: "We have one more song this evening; written and performed by a musical Jewish icon…Rachel, this is for you." The first chords of "Sweet Caroline" rang out, and Noah took command of the lead vocal.
Rachel sat, transfixed by the performance, smiling shyly and looking up at Noah with stars in her eyes. Santana, grinning devilishly, leaned over and whispered in Rachel's ear "Remember to use protection." Rather than respond, she just blushed deeply, unwilling to take a moment away to chastise her friend. Once the song was completed and the audience had shown their appreciation, the guys began to dismantle, packing up their equipment and instruments.
Rachel excused herself from her friends and quickly walked to the stage where Noah had his back to the audience as he was gathering the music together. She ascended the step and moved discretely behind him. "Noah?" she quietly called, touching him gently on the shoulder. He turned around, anxiety suddenly escalating with her proximity. One look in her eyes quelled his uncertainty. "Thank you, Noah; that was beautiful," Rachel sincerely complimented him, taking his hand. "Nobody has ever done that for me."
He kissed her sweetly, and then pulled her into a warm embrace. "You were phenomenal tonight, Rach," he praised her. "You have the voice of an angel," he bent down and whispered in her ear "and you bring out the devil in me." He kissed her again and she blushed deeply, burying her forehead in his chest afterward, and causing him to chuckle.
"Give me a few minutes to pack up, and I'll walk you home," Noah volunteered.
"Thanks, I'd appreciate that," she accepted. "My friends live in Manhattan; this way, they can go straight home."
Before Rachel had a chance to return to the table, her friends approached the stage. "I trust you have an escort home, Diva?" Kurt inquired.
"Yes, thank you, Kurt, Noah has offered to walk me home tonight."
Santana shot Kurt a knowing look as if to say "I told you so…" She handed Rachel her purse, saying "Here ya' go, B. Talk to you tomorrow." Santana addressed Noah, complimenting, "You guys put on a great show; glad we could be here." She linked arms with Kurt and Blaine, instructing, "OK, boys, back to the 'big city' for us," and the three walked toward the door, and then out into the night.
Author's Notes: I understand that on the show, Wade's character is transgender. For purposes of this story, I chose to make him gay, instead. He has served his purpose and most likely won't be back.
Song credits are as follows:
"Old Time Rock N' Roll" – words and music by Bob Seger.
"Rock and Roll Music" – words and music by Chuck Berry.
"Born to Run" – words and music by Bruce Springstein.
"Hey Jude" – words and music by Paul McCartney.
"The Sounds of Silence" – words and music by Paul Simon.
"Tonight's The Night" – words and music by Rod Stewart.
"Need You Now" – words and music by Charles Kelly, Hillary Scott, and Dave Haywood (aka "Lady Antebellum").
"Killing Me Softly" – lyrics by Norman Gimbel, music by Charles Fox. This was originally recorded by Lori Lieberman; the artist with whom it is most closely associated is Roberta Flack.
"Cowboy Casanova" – lyrics by Brett James and Carrie Underwood, music by Mike Elizando.
"Sweet Caroline" – words and music by Neil Diamond.