hello everyone! ok, so again sorry it took me so long, but here it is! and I hope the wait is worth it :D and sorry to everyone who thinks my shout outs are long, but is only cause I got the best reviewers that give me so many amazing reviews so it'll be really long! if you don't want to read it skip 'em ;)
tomfeltonlover1991 - thank you so much :D I'm glad you liked Puck hahah I knew you would!
Eliana Sanchez - ooww sorry I made you cry! but I'm really glad you liked it :)
ashley1985 - I'm glad you liked it! and you're hopes about Santana and Karofksy did happen a little ;)
swgirl1533 - thank you so much! :) I'm so glad you like it!
Princesakarlita411 - I'm glad you liked the song! and it's um kind of the last of Jesse per say! haha
ThSk8t3rG1rl - hahaah I'm so glad you liked it! considering you had A LOT TO DO WITH IT! :D hahaha thanks agian!
a bit of slytherin - I'm soo happy my story is popcorn worthy! :D hahahaha I'm glad you like the POVs! and Kurt! and that Izzy kneed Jesse :) I owed you that! hahaha I'm glad you liked the coach! :D and the boys like always and Mike's singing :D thank you so much for your reviews! you've been one of the few who has been in this story from the beginning! you rock :D
bookfreak1317 - I'm glad you liked the ending even if it was kind of tragic and the whole chapter itself :D haha thank you so much :)
Angel JJK - I'm glad you liked it! :D and that everyone helped Rachel and she will be ok don't worry :)
anonymous - I'm thinking it was good it made you shake? haha glad you liked it!
aeropostale1967 - thank you SO SO MUCH for liking my story and thinking I'm a good author! :) you rock!
PuckleberryShipper326 - thank you! I'm glad you liked it! and yeah, she has her little rascals to help :D
Gryffindor4eva - thank you :')
pinaypinay - don't worry, I didn't kill her :) hahaha thanks
SmilesforCrayonsxx - hahaha I'm sure Jesse would be dead if you'd be in the story! hahaha thank youu! I'm glad you liked the POVs! :D and Sue! haha I thought I made her still a bitch but, well, a nice bitch! hahaha :D and James and Mimi will be back :) don't worry hahaha I'm glad you liked the flashbacks and Karofsky and Santana will get what they deserve! haha I'm glad you liked Mike singing to Rachel and all the songs :) haha thanks again for your awesome review
Miss Puckleberry - I am so so glad you liked it! and I'm sorry it took me this long to update :$ hope you like it :)
PuckleberryPezGleek - haha you are aloud to hurt Jesse :) I'm glad you liked the chapter :D haha
BTRfan4ev - hahahaha THANK YOU! :D I'm so glad you like my story and the music and movies I use :D (sorry about the angry dad) hahha :)
theamazinggleek13 - thank you :D I'm glad you liked it and I hope you keep on liking it :D
allielovesyou - GIRL! I absolutely adore your reviews! :D I'm glad you like the protective boys :) and Puck, Matt, Kurt and Izzy hitting Jesse! hahaha and I'm glad you like sweet dear old Mike! :) hahahaha I'm glad you liked the flashbacks! and how Andy helped Daniel :) and the end of the chapter! haha sorry if it made you cry but I'm really really glad you liked it! thank you so much for your reviews! they make my day! :D :D :D you rock girl!
ninjacupcakegleek13 - sorry it took me so long, but the story continues for this chapter and another one and I think that's it :( haha :) thanks for your review
MidnightDreamer73 - hello my dear thing 2! you know how much I owe you and how much I love you and how much you rock! :D YOU ARE THE BESTEST TWIN IN THE WORLD LUCKY IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS! :)
anonymous (2) - thank you so much! I'm so glad you liked it :D
lizzy2234 - ow, you are lucky to have a guy like that :) I hope I find one haha
geranium08 - thank you so SO much! I am so glad that you like my story :) I'm honored to hear is one of the best stories in FF you've read! :D thank you so so much! it means a lot to me!
bubba333000 - THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH! I am so glad you like my story! and that you like the quotes from the shows haha :D and I did have a great vacation thank you! :D sorry it took me so much to post this :P haha thank you so much for thinking I'm a good writer :D I loved your review!
demigirl606 - thank you so much! :) I'm glad you liked it and again, sorry it took me a lot to post :(
aburke2016 - thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it!
gleekgenica - thank you thank you so much for all your reviews in the different chapters! :) I'm so so glad you liked them and that you like my story! :D
Anon - sorry for being away too long! I'm back on my stories now! :D haha
ForeverAndAlwaysMyself - omg! thank you thank you soo much! :D I am really really glad you like my story and that it made you fall in love with Cherry! :D I loved your review! you're one of my favorite writers so thank you so much for liking my story! :)
PuckleberryGeek - :) I'm so soo glad you liked my story and now YOU have to update :P hahaha THANK YOU!
puckleberry-marksalling-xx - here's the next chapter :) hahaha
ok, a few more things, first! I want to give a special shout out to aeropostale1967! :D because you asked for it! and I love all your reviews they all are awesome! :D
second, in the first part there are lines between Rachel and Puck! Puck is the underline and Rachel is italics, and both if it's a song :)
third, again, sorry it took me so long! this is the chapter before the last one (seriously I get teary eyed when I say or think that) I'm still thinking if there will be two more chapters or just one! I really really hope you like it! and I would like to thank you all for being with me in this amazing journey! :D hope you had as much fun as I did! :D enjoy - moony!
Disclaimer: I don't own Glee. If I did, it would never NEVER end :)
Puck woke up the next day when it was still dark. Mike and Matt were still asleep on their chairs snoring. He turned to look at Rachel. He had no idea how in so little time, someone had grown on him as much as she did. He knew the Ruthefords, Mike and Andy had been his family in the last couple of months, maybe even before that. But when this girl stepped into the Ruthefords door, he couldn't help but feel like someone could understand him. She was completely alone. No siblings, no parents. Her mom walked out on her like his did. And she would still be a little more of a badass than him, even if he would never admit that to anyone. He stayed there in silence for what felt like hours looking at Rachel with thoughts going round and round in his mind.
'Ok, not that I'm complaining, but last time I saw you, you were a lot shorter, didn't have that awful mohawk and you were a little less cuter.'
'It's Puck, Berry.'
'It's Rachel, Noah.'
'We look out for each other, and you're one of us now. Matt looks at you like his little sister, and we will too. So don't worry midget.'
'No, he has my brownies!'
'She has my shoes!'
'That's because you stole my shoes!'
'Look, I know we've known each other for almost a week, but since the day I came here, you've been nothing but nice to me! You're a really great guy Noah! I don't think you're a Lima Loser.'
'Really?'
'Really, and I'm not the only one that knows you're not!'
'So, where were you last night? Cause everyone that messes with you has to go through me.'
'Yeah, right like you can pull that off.'
'Are you questioning my badassness?'
'You're crazy midget.'
'What do you want to do?'
'I wanna go.'
'Are you sure?'
'Yes! I can't let him run my life right? And I will be with you guys so… yeah, I wanna go!'
'That's my midget.'
Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play. Dear Prudence, greet the brand new day. The sun is up, the sky is blue. It's beautiful and so are you. Dear Prudence won't you come out to play…
'Dude, you're cheating! You cannot be that good! You're a girl!'
'That is so sexist Noah!'
'So, we're like definitely you're my brother! I mean we have no one else, so we're like you're my brother and I'm your sister and I love you… you loveme …because I love me loves me you and me, me I love me! Yes, I'm a natural blue.'
'You're crazy midget, but I love you too! And I am your brother! You're my sister! And no one messes with my sister, you know that right?'
'You know you're kind of sweet for a badass.'
'Um, Noah?'
'Yeah?'
'How much detergent did you put on the dishwasher?'
'Rachel, is not the first time I do the dishes ok?'
'Really? Then why is there soap coming out of the machine?'
'We're a family midget! Don't forget that.'
'YEAH! TAKE THAT! I win! You suck! I rule all! Mini-wave in celebration of me!'
'You're crazy midget.'
'We would not let anything happen to you! What do I always say you are to me?'
'I'm your sister.'
'That's right! And who messes with my sister?'
'No one?'
'No one! If you don't want to go out we can stay here! Mike will understand. But Rach, NEVER doubt that we would not protect you!'
'I freaking love you! You know that, right? Well I love you! Like this much! But you can't see me, but I am stretching my arms to show you...see? Can you see?'
'I can see that baby. I love you that much too!'
'Rach? Rachel? Baby it's me, Noah!'
'N-Noah?'
'Yes love, I'm here… I'm here baby… It's ok Rach! You're ok.'
'H-he's he was-h-here! I it w-as that n-night! A-and the m-mall and t-to-day! And…'
'Shhh it's ok.'
'I'm ss-sorry.'
'Hey! You don't say sorry to anyone ok? Not about this!'
'You were great Noah!'
'Thanks midget, and don't say I said this but, get up there and kick my ass!'
'Berry!'
'I'm not even sorry!'
'Thank you Noah! You're the best brother any girl could ever ask for!'
'You're the best sister in the world midget.'
'It's kind of nice to have friends again.'
'So what is it?'
'All You Need Is Love from The Beatles.'
'That's so badass dude.'
'I know, I'm more badass than you.'
'Ok, don't get ahead of yourself.'
'Are you questioning my badassness? Have you seen my guns?'
'Are you ok?'
'No one had stood up for me before.'
'Well, even a badass needs it once in a while.'
'I get by with a little help from my friends.'
Puck laughed at everything that had gone through in less than a month. He turned to look at Mike and Matt, who were still snoring, and at that moment, for the first time in a really long time, he felt like he had a family again.
Mike woke up slowly when sun hit his face. He opened his eyes and saw her. She looked so small and fragile lying there. He kissed her hand, which was still in his, and sat up. He looked over at Matt and Puck. Matt was still asleep but Puck was up, looking out the window.
"Morning" he muttered looking at him.
"Hey" Mike answered without any emotion on his voice. "How long have you been up?"
"About two hours" Puck answered him. "I couldn't really sleep" he said looking back at Rachel.
"I thought it was a nightmare" Mike muttered looking at Rachel too. "I wanted to wake up at home with her in my arms but…" he stopped.
"She's gonna be ok" Puck told him trying to convince himself more than Mike. "She's a badass" he said smirking at Rachel but then his smirk turned into a frown.
"You ok?" Mike asked him. He had never really seen Puck care so much for someone.
"Yeah" Puck said smiling sweetly at Rachel. "We're gonna be ok" he said looking back at Mike. "Look, I'm gonna go get something to eat. You want something?"
"I'll go with you" Mike said kissing Rachel's forehead. He didn't want to leave Rachel, but he couldn't just look at her lying there. It made his heart break more every second. "I'll be right back doll" he whispered to her. They went outside and saw Daniel and Andy almost at the door.
"Hey guys" Andy said sadly. "How is she?"
"Same" Mike said looking at the floor.
"We were gonna go get something to eat" Puck told them.
"We'll go with you" Andy told them.
"Actually, I'm not hungry" Daniel told them. "I'm gonna go see Rach" he said making his way to Rachel's room. When he went inside, he saw Matt still asleep and he went to sit where Mike had been sitting.
"Hi monkey" he said holding Rachel's hand.
For the first time since Rachel was in the hospital, Daniel looked at her. He looked at his little sister lying on the hospital bed with bruises all over her neck, her wrists and her face. His hand was shaking. He had never been so scared in his life. Rachel was his little sister. Ever since she was born, his dad told him he had to look out for her. Even after she moved with her grandma, his mom told him he would always be her big brother. When he found out she came back, he couldn't wait to see her. And when he did, he couldn't believe how things hadn't change one bit. For anyone else, seeing someone for the first time in ten years would've been something completely emotional, sweet and moving moment. But for them, it was Daniel slipping on the marbles he had once taught her to do by watching Home Alone a million times when they were kids and laughing their asses off like they did back then. And he wouldn't have it any other way. He smiled sweetly at Rachel while he draw circles in the palm of her hand.
"Hey" Daniel heard Matt waking up.
"Hey" he answered still looking at Rachel. "Everyone went to get something to eat, if you want to go" he told him.
"No, I'm alright" Matt said looking sadly at Rachel. "What's that?" he asked pointing at a bag Daniel had.
"Oh, I brought some things for her" he said taking out Rachel's picture of her and her dad for her birthday and putting it on the nightstand. "And I got Beary" he said getting Rachel's teddy bear out and gently picking up her arm and placing the teddy bear under her arm so it would look like she was hugging it. "Thought she would want him with her" he said with a sad chuckle.
"She's gonna get better, right Dan?" Matt asked with his voice breaking. Daniel turned to look at his little brother.
He could see the fear in his eyes. This was his best friend in the whole world. Even after she left and he started hanging out with Puck, Mike and Finn, no one could replace her. When they were kids, they were joined by the hip. Matt would even go to Rachel's tea parties and Rachel would play baseball with him. They did everything together. When Rachel left, Matt cried for months. He went out to the front porch for like a year waiting to see if she came back. He still did every Saturday before she came back. He would make pancakes when it was her birthday and he even saw Sixteen Candles when she turned sixteen. Yes, Daniel knew Matt felt like his world was crashing down.
"Of course she's gonna get better" he told him as confident as he could, trying to convince not only Matt but also himself. "She's our sister" Matt noticed Daniel's voice breaking too.
He knew Daniel was trying his best to be strong for him. But Matt knew how much Daniel loved Rachel. Daniel taught her how to tie her shoes. He would help her when she started reading. Every time Rachel fell from her bike, Daniel was over there in less than five seconds to put a bandage on her knee. Every time Daniel felt sad, or Matt would feel sad, Rachel would make them brownies, knowing how much they both loved them. Whenever Rachel spent the night at their house, if there were thunderstorms outside, Rachel would always go to Daniel's room. Yes, Matt knew Daniel was just as scared as him. And then, he saw him cry. Matt had only seen Daniel cry four times in his life. Once when their grandfather died. The second time was when Mr. Berry died. The third time, was when Mr. and Mrs. Chang died. And this was the fourth time in his life he had ever seen Daniel cry.
"She has to get better" Daniel whispered never taking his eyes off Rachel. Matt had let a few tears come out. "She's our little sister. She's one of us and she just has to get better" he turned to look at Matt but before any of them could say anything else they heard someone yelling outside.
"SHE'S MY DAUGHTER AND I DEMAND YOU TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!" they both knew that voice so well. They laughed getting up and walking out of the room to see their mom and their dad standing a few steps away, while their mom yelled at a nurse.
"Ma'am I've told you-"
"No! You listen to me! You either tell me where she is, or I'm gonna sue you! Not this hospital, I'm gonna sue you!"
"Miranda" Mr. Rutheford said when he saw Matt and Daniel standing at the door of a room trying not to laugh.
"And my husband here he's a lawyer!" she said grabbing Mr. Rutheford by his arm.
"Miranda!"
"You get back on that case honey!" she said upset never taking her threatening eyes off the nurse.
"Mom!" Daniel and Matt yelled at the same time. Mrs. Rutheford turned to look back at them, shoved Mr. Rutheford out of the way and ran towards her sons.
"Oh my God!" she said hugging both of them. "I was so worried" she said letting out a few tears.
"How is she?" Mr. Rutheford asked coming to them.
"Well, the doctor said she was going to be ok. She has a broken rib and some bruises on her writs and her n-neck" Matt said trying not to cry again. He still couldn't believe someone would actually try to strangle Rachel.
"They put her on a heavy dose of sedatives so we just have to wait for her to wake up" Daniel told them. By this time, Mrs. Rutheford had let the tears fall down.
"Oh my God" Mrs. Rutheford said hugging Matt. "I'm so sorry we weren't here" she told him.
Daniel didn't know what came on to him. Maybe it was the scared look on Matt's face. Maybe it was the fact that his little sister was hurt in a hospital bed. Maybe it was the fact that at his nineteen years of life, he had to take care of everything that went on the night before. All he knew was that he was tired of his parents not being here.
"Well, you should" he snapped at his parents. Mr. and Mrs. Rutheford turned to look at him a little surprised. "What the hell were you thinking when you left? There was an idiot that wanted to hurt Rachel! She's sixteen years old! And so is Matt! I'm nineteen years old dad! How were we supposed to handle all this? I know you guys do what's best for us but haven't you ever thought that maybe what's best for us is you being here?"
"Daniel-" Mrs. Rutheford tried to talk but Matt cut her off.
"No! Mom, Daniel is right! Look, I'm sorry! We love you guys and you're the best parents in the world! But you have no idea how it's been since you guys left! You guys are her guardians now and you weren't here last night!" Matt basically yelled at them. Mike, Puck and Andy were at the end of the hallway but they just stood there and watched their friends finally saying what they needed. They knew how much Daniel and Matt hated their parents not being there and they weren't going to stop them when they finally brought up the subject. "It was the worst night of our lives and you weren't here!"
"Matthew-" Mr. Rutheford said raising his voice a little bit.
"No! Dad, he's right! Last night was so fucked up! You have no idea how much we needed you! You weren't here when Rachel went missing and we all felt like shit for not protecting her! You weren't here to look for her through the whole damn school begging to find her before that shithead did anything to her! You weren't here to see her flinch away from her own boyfriend because she was scared as hell of anyone touching her! You weren't here to see the EMT'S sedating her and taking her away on an ambulance! You know who was here? Mr. Shuester and a scary Coach that would've killed us all if we didn't get Rachel help right away! I mean she didn't even know her that well and she helped us! You weren't here to see Mike pacing around on the hallway like a lunatic, not only because his girlfriend was attacked, but because him and Andy had to go through the same shit they did ten months ago being in the hospital where their parents died! You didn't see Puck, clinging on to her as if she was the only person left in his family and he just met her about a month ago! You didn't see Matt scared to death looking at his best friend lying in a hospital bed and he couldn't do anything about it! You didn't see the bruises on her neck! You weren't here for us! She's our sister! She's Mike's girlfriend! She's your daughter! And you weren't here!" Daniel yelled furious.
Mrs. Ruthedord was in tears and Mr. Rutheford had a really shocked and sad look on his face. They knew their sons were right.
"You're right" Mr. Rutheford said defeated looking down. "We failed you guys" he said sadly looking at his sons, wondering when did they grow up so fast. "We failed Rach, we failed Charlie, we failed Mike, Andy and Puck" he said looking mad at himself. "We're sorry" he said sincerely.
"I am so, so sorry" Mrs. Rutheford said hugging Matt and Daniel to her. "I am so sorry you went through it alone, I swear no more" she said kissing each of their cheeks.
"We know mom" Matt said smiling at her. "We just really needed to say that."
"And it's good that you did. I honestly can't believe how we never saw it" Mrs. Rutheford said with a sad smile.
"It's ok mom" Daniel said smiling at her too and she hugged them again.
"How long are the three of you planning to stand over there before coming here and giving me a hug?" she yelled to the three teenagers that were shocked at how she knew they were standing there since she was facing the other way, but they didn't argue and just went to hug her. Mrs. Rutheford let go of Daniel and Matt and hugged Andy and Puck first. "I've missed you guys" she said tightening the hug. She pulled apart and looked at Mike. She saw his exhausted, sad and terrified eyes. She went over to pull him in the biggest hug he had ever received. "Michael" she whispered letting a few more tears out. She pulled away a little and looked at him. "Your mom and dad would be so proud of you" she whispered with a sad smile.
"Thank you Mrs. Rutheford" Mike said with a sweet smile. She pulled him in for another quick hug.
"Let's go see Rachel" Mr. Rutheford said softly. Daniel opened the door of her room and they all went inside.
"Oh, my God, Rachel" Mrs. Rutheford said crying a little harder and holding her hand. Mr. Rutheford walked over to the nightstand where Daniel had put Rachel's picture of her and her dad. Daniel saw how his father's jaw clenched and he tightened the grip on the frame.
"Daniel" he said in a serious tone and nodded his head to the door motioning for him to follow him. Once outside, Mr. Rutheford turned to look at him. "I want the name of this kid."
"Dad, I think he's already in juvie-"
"I don't care Daniel. That's my best friend's daughter lying in that bed. I know I failed you guys, and I failed her and I failed him. I'm not doing that again. I want that kid locked up for life" he said with venom in his voice.
"His name is Jesse St. James, he went to Carmel High. I have no idea what his parents' names are though, I just know that he's friends with Karofsky" Daniel told him.
"Daniel?" they turned around to see Puck standing there. "I um didn't mean to hear but Mr. Shuester knows all about that jerk. He said he talked to his parents when he moved here" with the same anger Mr. Rutheford was talking with.
"Is Mr. Shue coming today?" Mr. Rutheford asked them.
"He said he would" Daniel said.
"Ok, I will wait until he gets here. Not a word of this to your mother" he warned the two boys who just nodded.
Mike was losing his mind. He couldn't take it anymore. He want Rachel; no he needed Rachel to wake up. I can't believe we didn't protect her. How can Mrs. Rutheford say my parents would be proud of me? I let my girlfriend down! I failed her! It had been hours since Mr. and Mrs. Rutheford had arrived. Mike was still sitting in the same chair for hours. Daniel and Andy left to pick up Izzy and Sofia and Puck and Matt went to get something to eat. He was alone with Rachel again. He could hear Mr. and Mrs. Rutheford talking to the doctor outside the room. He then heard Kurt, Brittany, Blaine, Mercedes, Tina and Artie's voices. And two other older voices he didn't know. He figured it was someone's parents. He was trying his best to not close his eyes and fall asleep again. He had to be awake. What if Rachel opened her eyes and he was asleep. He was fighting with all he could to stay awake. Mike heard the door open and saw Puck, Matt, Kurt, Blaine, Brittany, Mercedes, Tina and Artie coming into the room in that order.
"Hi" Kurt said softly to him. "How is she?"
"Same" Mike answered sadly.
"Oh my God!" Mercedes gasped shocked when she saw Rachel. She went to sit next to Matt and grabbed his hand.
"I know" Matt said trying to smile but Mercedes could tell it even hurt him to smile.
"How are you Mike?" Tina asked him sympathetically. Had no idea what to say. He had no idea how he felt.
"I'm fine" he simply answered to Tina.
'You know what 'fine' stands for right? Fucked up, Insecure, Neurotic and Emotional' Mike blinked his eyes. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Rachel was right there, sitting next to Tina talking to him. He shook his head and when he looked again, she was gone.
"I can't believe someone would do this to Rachel, she's like the sweetest person I know" Artie said sadly and everyone nodded.
'Oh, and you're the strongest man in the world Artie' Mike saw Rachel sitting next to Artie and smiling at him and a moment later, she was gone again.
"B-but, she's just tired" Brittany said smiling but everyone saw the tears on her eyes. "I mean, she just needs to take a long nap and then she's gonna be ok, right?"
"Yes baby" Puck said softly kissing her head.
'I'm scared to go to sleep' Mike saw Rachel standing next to Brittany. She was crying looking straightly into his eyes. 'I don't want to go to sleep! I want to stay here with you! I don't want it to come again! What if he comes back?' Mike felt his eyes watering when he saw Rachel trying to grab his hand before disappearing again.
"I'm right here doll" he whispered grabbing Rachel's hand.
"Sam and Quinn are on their way over" Mercedes told everyone and they just nodded.
"Is this Rachel?" Artie asked looking at her picture with her dad.
'Yeah, that's me and my dad for my fifth birthday' Rachel was once again sitting next to Artie and smiling looking at her picture, and just like that, she was gone again.
"Yeah" Matt said with a little chuckle. "That's her and her dad for her fifth birthday."
"She has cake all over her face" Blaine said laughing a little bit. "Classic her" he finished and everyone laughed a little.
'Yeah, Matt pushed my head into the cake when I gave it a bite' Mike saw Rachel sitting next to Matt and she stuck her tongue childishly at him before disappearing again.
"I pushed her head into the cake when she bit it" Matt explained with a sad smile.
"She looks a lot like her dad" Tina said smiling.
'Thanks. Everyone told me that when I was a kid. It's nice to hear it again' Rachel appeared next to Tina and smiled sweetly at Mike and then she was gone again. He remembered he told her that once and smiled to himself.
"Yeah, she does" Matt said with the same sad smile.
"She's so lucky to have all of you" Blaine said all of the sudden. "You have no idea how lonely she was back in Chicago" he said sadly.
'We have our own big, twisted, crazy, family…That's what Noah said' Mike saw Rachel standing between Puck and Blaine and smiling sweetly at the whole room in front of her before fading one more time.
"Well, she did manage to make an impact in all of us" Kurt said with a small smile. They heard the door open, and Sam and Quinn went inside the room with some 'Get Well!' balloons.
"Hi guys" Quinn said with a small smile while Sam put the balloons on the nightstand. "How is she?"
"She's gonna be ok" Puck said softly.
"Can you tell us now exactly what happened?" Sam asked them. "Sofia and Izzy sort of knew and well, we didn't want to upset you guys even more yesterday" he told Matt, Puck and Mike.
"We're just really lost in this whole thing" Artie explained. Puck sighed and he started explaining the whole story.
'Where were you?' Mike saw Rachel standing in the middle of the room, looking at him. But it wasn't the same Rachel. It wasn't her voice. She looked disappointed and she was mad. She was a broken doll. All of the sudden, the whole room drowned and he could only see her standing there, crying. 'I needed you! I was so scared! I was alone! And you never came!' she yelled at him. Mike could feel his eyes watering. 'I needed you to hold my hand! I needed you to hug me! You weren't there!'
Mike couldn't take it anymore. He stood up and stormed out of the room. Maybe I just need some fresh air. Mike just started pacing around the hallway like the night before. He had no idea what was happening to him.
'Where are you going?' he saw Rachel sitting on a chair crying on the hallway. But she wasn't angry anymore. She was sad and she looked terrified. 'Mike! Please, don't leave me!'
"No! Doll, I'm never gonna leave you alone" he said sitting next to her. "What are you doing here baby?" Mike asked her but she was gone again. She was sitting on the other side of the hallway now.
'I came along. I wrote a song for you. And all the things you do. And it was called Yellow' she sang smiling at him. 'That was the song you sang to me the night you kissed me for the first time' she said smiling sadly.
"Rachel!" Mike tried to hold her hand, but Rachel vanished again.
"Mike?" he turned around to see Kurt standing there. "Are you ok?"
"I'm losing my mind Kurt!" he admitted. He was even shaking a little. "I can't be in that room anymore! I can't see her lying there, knowing I didn't protect her! Knowing that I failed her!"
"Hey! Mike, you did not fail Rachel!" Kurt tried his best to convince him.
"Kurt, I yelled at her! I made her believe that thought she hurt herself and I made her run away from me! I was supposed to protect her and now, the last image she has of me is being a jerk yelling at her!"
'That's not true' Rachel said standing behind Kurt. 'You sang All You Need Is Love to me yesterday' she said smiling dreamily at him. 'You said love was all we needed and I know that's true because… because you taught me how to love' she said before fading away again.
"Look, Mike I know you were just stressed because you wanted her to be ok, and I'm sure she knows that too" Kurt said sympathetically.
"No! If I wouldn't have yelled at her, this never would've happen! I should've stayed with her! I told her, I promised her that I would never let anyone hurt her, and that idiot came from out of nowhere and he grabbed her and he touched her and he hit her and-" Mike said frustrated.
"Mike! Stop! You need to calm down! Breathe" Kurt said softly leading him to sit down on a chair and Kurt sat next to him. On the other side, he saw Rachel smiling sweetly at him.
'And I'd give up forever to touch you. Cause I know that you feel me somehow. You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be, and I don't want to go home right now' Mike could see her eyes watering but her smile never left her face. He felt his breathing calming down just by looking at her.
"I miss her" he said looking at the ground once Rachel was gone again.
"We all do" Kurt said softly. "But she's going to be ok."
"How do you know that?" Mike asked him looking at him. Kurt didn't really know what to say. This was what they were all supposed to believe, right? She was going to get through this with their help. But how could he assure him that his girlfriend was going to be alright.
"Because, I think she's the strongest person that I know" Kurt told him honestly. "I mean, she lost her mother, she lost her dad, then she lost her grandmother, she was thrown into a horrible world, she managed to escape and it still hunt her here" he finished with his heart breaking more with every word he said. "And still, she trusted you and Puck as if she'd known you as long as Matt. She came and helped us without knowing us. She never judged us. She never said a single thing about her past, she was always so brave and strong and she even worried about us. I mean, she's like the smallest person that I know, but she still has the biggest heart in the world" Kurt told him with a big smile.
'That's not true! I only have half of a heart, remember? You said I could put it together with your half and we could be a whole heart' Rachel was now sitting on the other side of Kurt, smiling at Mike.
"Yeah" Mike simply said answering both of them.
"You really love her, don't you?" Kurt said still smiling. Mike let out a sad sight looking at the ground again but he lifted his face to see Rachel across the hall, singing in her own little world.
'If it's love, and we decide that it's forever, no one else could do it better. If it's love, and we're two birds of a feather, then the rest is just whenever' she turned to look at him and smiled while she continued to sing. 'And if I'm addicted to loving you, and you're addicted to my love too… we can be them two birds of a feather, that flock together…Love, love. Got to have something to keep us together. Love, love… that's enough for me' she finished with a sweet smile.
"More than I thought I could love someone" he said smiling on the direction Rachel had been.
"She loves you a lot too" Kurt told him putting a hand on his shoulder. "What happened wasn't your fault Mike" he said getting serious. "Don't be so hard on yourself" he said softly.
"I know" Mike said still looking to the ground. "Thanks man" he said turning to look up at him and tried to smile. "I'll be back in a minute, ok? I just need to think for a while" he said. Kurt simply nodded and returned to the room. Mike got up and went to the bathroom. He threw water on his face and when he looked up, he saw Rachel sitting on the counter. He shook his head but she was still there. "Rachel" he let out a whisper.
'Don't call me Rachel' she said pouting. 'You never call me Rachel! Why won't you call me like you used to?' she said with sad eyes.
"Why are you here doll?" he asked knowing he sounded crazy, but he just missed her so much.
'I feel safe when I'm with you' she said with a tiny little smile.
Before Mike could say anything, she was gone, and he saw her on the corner, hugging her knees to her chest and resting her head on her knees, singing sadly, but looking right into his eyes.
'I'm falling fast but the truth is I'm not scared at all. You climbed my walls… So lay here beside me just hold me and don't let go. This feeling I'm feeling is something I've never known… and I just can't take my eyes off you' when she finished the song, she was gone again. Mike felt the tears running down his cheeks and he wiped them away.
"Doll, please don't go" he begged closing his eyes. "I need your voice" he said desperately. "I need to hold you in my arms. I miss you so much!" when he opened his eyes, he saw her standing so close to him, looking up at him with her beautiful bright eyes. He could swear he felt her hand on his cheek. He wanted so badly to feel it.
'The smile on your face lets me know that you need me. There's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me. The touch of your hand says you'll catch me wherever I fall. You say it best, when you say nothing at all' with the last word, he swore he could feel her lips brushing lightly against his, and she was gone again.
"Rachel! Baby please come back! I'm sorry" Mike said turning around waiting for her to stand in front of him again.
'Don't say sorry' she said softly standing next to him. 'This wasn't your fault.'
"But you said I wasn't there, and that you needed me and that you were scared and alone" he said clenching his fist hating himself for not being there.
'I didn't say that' she said sadly. 'YOU thought that' she continued. 'I knew you would come for me' she said with a sad smile. 'You said you would never leave.'
"I won't ever leave baby" he said softly.
'I know' she said with a sweet smile. 'Oh my God, look!' she said all of the sudden looking away excited.
"What?" Mike asked confused looking in the direction she was seeing but he only saw a wall.
'Fireflies' she said as she continued to look that way. He could see the spark on her eyes getting brighter.
"Where?" Mike asked getting scared.
'Over there' she said pointing at them. 'They're so beautiful' she said hypnotized looking at them and then she slowly faded away.
"Rach! No, Rachel! Come back!" Mike yelled trying to stupidly hold on to her hand, but she was gone. Mike let out a frustrated yell, turned around and punched the mirror with all his strength, and he yelled out in pain when he cut his hand. "Shit!"
"Dude!" Mike turned around and saw Sam walking inside the bathroom. "What the hell?" he asked confused walking towards him.
"She's gone. She's gonna go! She's gonna leave me" he muttered under his breath like a crazy person. Sam saw he was shaking.
"Dude, you're bleeding" Sam said worried. "Come on" he said leading him towards the reception.
"Mike?"
"Sam?" Sam saw Andy, Daniel, Sofia and Izzy making their way to Rachel's room, but when they saw them, Andy and Sofia walked over to them.
"Mike! What the fuck happened?" Andy asked when he saw he was bleeding but Mike was lost in space.
"I was going to the bathroom and I heard him yell and then when I walked in, he was bleeding. He punched the mirror" Sam explained to him.
"Shit! Michael!" Andy said pulling Mike by his other arm and leading him towards the reception with Sofia and Sam following him. While Andy explained to the nurse what happened, Mike saw her again standing in the middle of the hallway.
'And that was the day that I promised I'd never sing of love if it does not exist. But darling, you are the only exception. You are the only exception' she was smiling at him while tears ran down her face.
"Rachel" Mike whispered. Andy turned to look at him more worried than ever.
"What's wrong with him?" Sofia asked a little scared.
"I think he's like in shock or something. I don't know" Andy told her.
"Andy?" Mrs. Rutheford said coming towards them with Mercedes' mother. "What's going on? Michael!" she yelled when she saw Mike's hand. But Mike was still lost just looking at her sing like she did that day.
'And up until now I had sworn to myself that I'm content with loneliness. Because none of it was ever worth the risk. But you are the only exception. You are the only exception' she kept on smiling at him as the people in the hallway just passed around her.
Andy and Sam explained to Mrs. Rutheford what had happened. And she demanded to see a doctor immediately. She walked with Mike down the hallway while he was oblivious to everything happening around him. Mike saw a doctor standing in front of him. He was talking to Mrs. Rutheford. Andy was standing next to him. He watched as the doctor cleaned up his hand and put a bandage around his hand afterwards, but he couldn't really feel anything. And then, there she was again leaning against the wall.
'I've got a tight grip on reality, but I can't let go of what's in front of me here. I know you're leaving in the morning when you wake up. Leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dream, oh' Rachel sang to him with another tear rolling down her cheek.
"Michael" he heard the doctor saying his name but he wasn't really paying attention.
"Michael, honey" Mrs. Rutheford said sweetly, but nothing.
"Mike!" Andy shook his shoulders to snap him out of it for a little and Mike finally turned to look at them.
"You're going to stay here and get some rest" the doctor told him.
"What? No! I have to go back to Rachel! She needs me-" he said trying to get up.
"Michael!" Mrs. Rutheford said softly and making him sit down again. "Honey you need to get proper rest. Rachel's room is two doors away. She's with Matt and Puck and your other Glee friends" she said smiling sweetly at him and placing her hand on his cheek. "You need to get some sleep" she said in a motherly tone.
"Ok" Mike just nodded at her. For some reason, he couldn't fight with her. He felt the tiredness invade his whole body and he laid back on the bed. He saw the doctor talk a little more to Mrs. Rutheford and Andy and then he turned around and saw Rachel lying next to him.
'You are the only exception…and I'm on my way to believing' she finished smiling at him.
"Thank you" he whispered smiling a little.
'For what?' she asked a little confused.
"You can make me forget about everything" he said closing his eyes. "I love you."
'I love you too' he heard before falling asleep with her in his arms. And he knew, she wasn't going anywhere.
It had been a really long day. People had come and gone to see Rachel. Mr. Rutheford left to his office the first time Mr. Shue got to the hospital to see her and he came back about an hour later. Daniel and Andy were gone with Izzy and Sofia. Mercedes' parents said they would come back to pick up the teenagers who didn't really want to go just yet. Puck and Matt had gone to check on Mike, who was still passed out two doors down from where they were standing. Brittany had refused to leave Rachel's side, until now when she went out to get something to drink. Yes, it had been a long day. So it wouldn't be a surprise, that what they were imagining what they were seeing right? They had no idea why, but walking straight towards them, was Mr. Shuester with Miss Pillsbury and Coach Sylvester. But that wasn't the strange part. The thing that confused them the most, was that Finn and Santana were walking behind them.
"Hi guys" Mr. Shue greeted them and they heard an unenthusiastically 'Hey' chorus as a response, while everyone glared at the two teenagers behind them.
"How is she?" Sue asked concerned.
"She's fighting" Matt said sadly.
"She is a fighter" the Coach replied smiling kindly.
"Where's Mike?" Mr. Shue asked confused.
"He, um, kind of had a meltdown and ended up punching a mirror" Puck explained to them. "He cut his hand and he's resting over there" he said pointing two doors next to Rachel's.
"Oh my God" Miss Pillsbury said worried with her eyes watering. "Where are your parents?" she asked Matt.
"They're in there with her" Matt told them.
"Can we see her?" Miss Pillsbury asked shyly.
"Sure" Matt said opening the door. Once the three teachers got inside the room, he immediately closed the door and turned to look at Finn and Santana. "What the hell are you two doing here?" he asked between clenched teeth.
"Look, Matt we heard what happened and we just wanted to see if she was ok-" Finn started.
"Oh, what? So all of the sudden you're her friend? After what you said to her?" Mercedes asked irritated.
"Wait, what did you say to her?" Puck asked clenching his fists and stepping closer to the taller guy.
"Look! I'm sorry ok? I know I was a jerk to her but that doesn't mean that I'm that much of an asshole! What happened yesterday was just fucked up!" Finn tried to defend himself. Santana was standing quietly next to him, not looking at anyone.
"What about you?" Quinn snapped at the Latina. "Don't you have anything to say for yourself?"
"Oh, look who's talking" Santana snapped all of the sudden. "You hated her just as much as I did when she came here!"
"That was before I knew that she was actually a better friend than you'll ever be!"
"You are such a hypocrite Fabray! You're no better than me and you know it!" Santana told her.
"Girls! Stop fighting!" Brittany said stepping between them.
"Look, I know I've been a bitch to Berry" Santana started.
"To Berry?" Tina said arching an eyebrow.
"Fine! To all of you! I didn't come here to try and be your fucking best friend and hope that we'll all hold hands and sing happy songs and shit! The thing is" she sighted sadly. No one expected her to say what she said next. "I feel bad for her."
"Really? All of the sudden you grew a conscience?" Kurt asked with coldness in his voice.
"Shut it Hummel!" Santana said throwing daggers at him. "Look, I don't care if you believe me! But even a bitch like me knows that something like that is just wrong! I don't expect to get into her room and see her. I don't expect for her to be my friend, I'm not a hypocrite" she said glaring at Quinn. "I just wanted to be sure, that she would be ok, eventually! And now that I know that, I can leave" she said turning around and leaving. All eyes turned to Finn.
"Why don't you follow your little whore Finn?" Quinn asked disgusted.
"Quinn, I didn't come here to talk to you" Finn said rolling his eyes. He then turned to look at Matt and Puck. "You guys have been my best friends since we were like seven! And I know that if something like this, I mean, if someone that I love as much as you guys love Rachel, I know you guys would be there for me" he told them truthfully. "I'm sorry about all the stupid things I said to Rachel and about being a jerk to her. Like Santana said, we don't expect you guys to forgive us just like that. We don't expect for Rachel to suddenly become our best friend, but we're a team" he said now turning to the rest of them. "I know I don't deserve you guys forgiving me and you guys having my back. But I have yours" he said landing his look on Kurt. "I know about Karofsky" he said in a serious tone.
"What? How do you know?" Kurt asked terrified.
"Wait, what do you know?" Blaine asked confused. Finn realized, no one knew and he wasn't going to put Kurt through that. He had been too much of an asshole already.
"That fucking asshole was out of school by then, but we got Karofsky" he said with a smirk.
"Wait, what do you mean you 'got' Karofsky?" Sam asked confused.
"And who's 'we'?" Puck asked equally confused.
"We, the rest of the football team, found out that Karofsky knew exactly what that shithead St. James was going to do" he explained to the rest. "So we beat the shit out of him. When he wet to the Principal's office to try to get us into trouble, Coach Sylvester showed a video where he was" he stopped briefly giving Kurt a quick look and returning to the other ones. "He was pushing Kurt around and in one of them, he pushed Rachel too" he said causing everyone to gasp shocked. "So, Principal Figgins expelled him and the police interrogated him and he's like under house arrest or something for helping Jesse too" he finished.
"Are you serious?" Matt asked furious about what Karofsky had done, but shocked that Finn would still have Rachel's back.
"She's your little sister dude" Finn said with a small smile. "If I had a sister, I would want my friends to look out for her" he said shrugging.
"Thanks man" Matt said with a genuine smile and Puck behind him smiling too. They knew things weren't back to the way they were before, but he knew they would be ok.
"No problem" Finn said as if it was nothing. "Look, I gotta go, I just really wanted to know she was ok. I mean, I know she's not ok but… you know" he stuttered awkwardly. "Tell Mike I hope he feels better ok? Bye guys" he said turning around.
"Finn, a word" Kurt said walking next to him. Finn nodded and they went aside from the rest of the group. "So, what did you really mean when you said 'I know about Karofsky'?" he asked him really curious and worried and Finn sighted looking down.
"In one of the videos that the Coach showed, he kissed you" he said a little awkward but going straight to the point. "I was the only one who saw that one" he said looking at him. "You looked really scared. I um, didn't want to tell them cause, well they looked like they didn't know and, is not really my story to tell" he finished.
"Rachel was the only one who knew" Kurt said feeling his eyes water a little. "Thanks for not telling the other ones, I um, didn't really know how to tell them" Kurt said with a little smile.
"Sure man" Finn said smiling. "Like I said, I got your back" he said before walking down the hallway.
"So, when exactly were you planning on telling me this?" Blaine said coming from behind Kurt.
"Y-you heard that?" Kurt asked worried.
"I didn't really trust the guy and I wanted to make sure you were ok" he said blushing a little and looking where Finn had left. "And then I heard it" he simply said. "You wanna talk about it?" he asked him and Kurt thought about it for a little while.
"Yeah" he said with a small smile. "I think I should. Like you heard, Rachel was the only one who knew and I got her into this mess" he said letting a few tears fall out.
"What do you mean?" Blaine asked confused.
"Well, if I hadn't told her, she wouldn't have stood up for me to Karofsky, and he wouldn't have hurt her and then she wouldn't have had that fight with Mike and she wouldn't be here with Mike two doors down hurt, blaming himself for it" Kurt said sadly sitting on the floor.
"So, instead you're blaming yourself?" Blaine asked sitting next to him. "Kurt what Jesse did was in no way your fault!"
"I know" Kurt said wiping away his tears. "But what Karofsky did was" he said looking back at Blaine.
"No it wasn't! Rachel would've stood up for you anyways! And I'm sure she made you tell her! She wasn't going to let you handle this by yourself! I know you wanted to protect her from everything just as much as the rest of us do!" Blaine said trying to calm him down.
"When he kissed me" Kurt started whispering. "I was so scared" he admitted. Blaine was sitting next to him just waiting for him to let it all out. "It was nothing like a kiss should be, and it was just a kiss! I can't imagine what Jesse-" he stopped not even being able to say it. He just cried harder and buried his face on his knees. Blaine put his arm around him and rubbed his back, trying to calm him down. "How can life be so unfair?" Kurt said sadly. "How come this happened to Rachel? I mean, hadn't she gone through enough?"
"I don't know" Blaine said softly. "But Rachel is the strongest girl that I know. And when I saw her the first time you all came to Chicago, she looked so happy and, if possible, even stronger. I mean, the way she looks at you and at Brittany and Puck and Matt and Mike" he said with a sad smile. "You are the family she needed all along. So I know that now, that she's not alone, she's gonna fight even more" he said with a sad chuckle.
"She looks at you the same way" Kurt said with a sad smile. They didn't say anything else. They just stayed there for a while in comfortable silence.
After a couple of hours, the rest of the Glee Club, Izzy, Sofia, Daniel and Andy left. Puck went to take Brittany home. Mr. and Mrs. Rutheford said they would go home to pick up some clothes for the guys and something for them to eat.
"So, a lot of people came by" Matt told Rachel who was still peacefully asleep. "Mom and dad are back" he continued. "Finn came by, he wanted to know if you were ok and apparently so did Santana" he said with a little laugh. "You managed to put this whole town upside down smurf" he said laughing a little. "I miss you" he said getting serious again. "Puck misses you, Britt misses you, Blaine and Kurt miss you" he said getting sad. "Mike misses you so much, he broke a mirror" he said with a sad chuckle. He stayed quiet for a while just looking at her and rubbing her hand with his thumb. "Come home smurf" he said resting his head on the side of the bed and quickly falling asleep.
"Matty?" he felt someone shaking him. "Matty, wake up!"
"Rach?" he asked opening his eyes.
"Yes! Come on!" she said offering her hand to help him.
"Where?" Matt asked confused.
"You'll see" Rachel said smiling. Matt took her hand and she dragged him all the way through his house, until they made it to his room. Matt looked at her really confused. "Well, open it" she said as if it was obvious. Matt opened the door and looked inside.
'Matty!' a young version of Rachel complained when a young version of Matt threw blue paint at her.
'Stop staring at Daniel! It's weird!' the young version of Matt said making a disgusted face and laughing at his friend.
'It's not weird! He's cute!' the little Rachel said giggling and blushing. I'm all blue!' she complained.
'You look like a smurf!' the little Matt said laughing hysterically at her.
'You are blue too!' Rachel whined.
'Yeah, but I'm not as small as you are! You could actually live in a mushroom' Matt said laughing more.
Rachel closed the door while they both laughed a little and then they heard two kids yelling walking inside the house.
"What was that?" Matt asked her. Rachel shrugged her shoulders and they quickly made their way to the living room where the little version of Matt ran terrified inside the house followed by the little version of Rachel.
'Did you see that! DID YOU SEE IT!' little Matt yelled at little Rachel.
'I told you we shouldn't have spend the night at Mrs. Martin's house! That house is haunted!' little Rachel said sitting on the couch next to him. 'And now, we have to clean Daniel's room!' she complained.
"See? I told you, you were the chicken" Rachel said laughing and Matt glared at her a little. "Come on" she said grabbing his hand again and leading him to the kitchen.
'This isn't fair! Why are my brownies burned!' the same little version of Matt complained on the kitchen.
'Because I told you to get them out on time and you didn't!' the little Rachel said trying not to laugh at him.
"You know, I did tell you to watch them" the older version of Rachel, standing by the door, told the older version of Matt and he rolled his eyes.
When they turned to look at the living room again, the little version of Rachel was crying. They saw the little version of Matt holding her hand and dragging her upstairs, so they decided to follow them. Once upstairs, they heard Matt sing their song to Rachel.
'Come stop your crying, it will be alright. Just take my hand and hold it tight. I will protect you from all around you. I will be here, don't you cry. For one so small, you seem so strong. My arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm. This bond between us can't be broken. I will be here don't you cry. Cause you'll be in my heart. Yes, you'll be in my heart. From this day on, now and forever more. Yeah, you'll be in my heart. No matter what they say. You'll be here in my heart… always.'
They watched from the door smiling at each other until they turned around when they heard someone yell.
'Rachel Berry! Let go of that door!' Miranda Rutheford said pulling little Matt by his feet, who was holding onto little Rachel by her feet, who was holding onto the door as strong as she could.
'No! Rachel don't let go!' Matt complained holding Rachel's feet as strong as Rachel was holding the door.
'Guys! We've talked about this' Mrs. Rutheford tried to reason with the two little kids. 'You're going to have fun at school.'
'That's not true!' Rachel said holding onto the door for dear life.
'Ok, guys, I'm gonna pull out the big guns' Mrs. Rutheford said getting serious and she released Matt who held onto Rachel's waist instead. 'Daniel!' she yelled walking upstairs.
'She's bluffing' Matt whispered to Rachel.
'What?' Daniel said coming downstairs.
'I need your help' Mrs. Rutheford said nodding her head in the direction of Matt and Rachel.
'Ok monkeys, time to go to school' Daniel said coming towards them.
'NO!' they both yelled, Rachel gripping the doorknob tighter and Matt gripping Rachel's waist tighter.
'Yes!' Daniel said walking over to them. Mrs. Rutheford grabbed Matt by his waist and tried to pick him off.
'No!' Matt whined.
'Rach, let go of the door' Daniel tried to convince the little girl.
'No!' she said stubbornly.
'No?' Daniel asked with a little smirk and he started tickling her.
'Daniel!' Rachel said laughing trying not to let go of the door, but she lost the grip.
'Rachel!' Matt complained, making it easier for his mom to drag him away from her and get him in the car, while Daniel picked up Rachel over his shoulder and followed them.
"See? It was your fault that we went to school" Matt complained to Rachel.
"Right, cause if I didn't let go, we would still be there holding on to the door" she said rolling her eyes and they laughed a little. "Come on" she said holding his hand and leading him to the backyard.
"So, why did you bring me here?" Matt asked her as they both sat on the grass looking at fireflies.
"I missed you" she simply said.
"I miss you too baby" Matt said smiling at her. "When are you coming back?"
"I don't know" Rachel said sadly hugging her knees to her chest. "I don't know how to come back."
"So you brought me to show me how you always brag about you being a better cook than me?" he asked with a little chuckle.
"I don't have to brag" Rachel said laughing. "I AM a better cook than you" she said smirking.
"Ok, you've been spending way too much time with Puck" Matt said laughing and saw Rachel's smile fall. "What's wrong?"
"I miss Noah" she said sadly. "And Kurt and Britt, and Blaine and M-Mike" she said crying a little when she mentioned Mike.
"Shh, come here baby" Matt said hugging her to him. "We all miss you too" he said kissing her head. "And we're all waiting for you."
"I know, I want to come back. I really do! I don't like it here" she said still crying. "It gets lonely" she whispered. "I thought I would see my dad" she said sadly. Matt turned to look at her. "I just wanted to look at him, I wanted to hug him… it's just been so long" she said crying a little more. "But I can't find him!"
"I know baby" he said kissing her head. "He would be so proud of you Rach" he said hugging her closer. They stayed in silence for a while, until he saw him. "Baby" Matt whispered softly. When she turned to look up at him, he pointed in the direction behind her. She turned around, and she saw him. Her dad was standing right there smiling at her. She got up as fast as she could and ran towards him. Matt saw his best friend happier than he had ever seen her in his life.
"Daddy!" she yelled when Mr. Berry carried her and spun her around.
"I miss you so much princess" Matt heard her father say. He sat there for a while and let them had their moment. A couple of minutes later, Rachel made her way back to him with a huge smile on her face and a couple of tears streaming down. Mr. Berry came towards Matt and put a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you so much for taking care of her Matt. She couldn't be in better hands" he said smiling before he saw him fade away.
"You ok?" Matt asked Rachel as he hugged her to him again.
"I will be" she said hugging him tighter.
"Come on" Matt said leading her back inside. When they got to the leaving room, they laughed at what they saw.
'No one saying do this' little Matt sang dancing around the living room.
'No one saying be there' little Rachel joined him.
'No one saying stop that!' Matt sang again.
'No one saying see here!' they sang at the same time. 'Free to run around all day! Free to do it all my way!'
While Rachel and Matt watched the kid versions of themselves dancing around, they noticed them fading away and all of the sudden, it wasn't kids version of them. It was them; just a couple of days ago, when they sang this song. Rachel saw Puck and Mike sitting on the couch laughing at them, while Matt and Rachel kept on dancing around just like when they were kids.
'Everybody look left! Everybody look right! Everywhere you look I'm… standing in the spotlight!' Rachel sang pushing Matt off the table.
'Not yet!' Matt complained getting up again and she jumped off the table and on his back.
'Let every creature go for broke and sing. Let's hear it in the herd and on the wing. It's gonna be King Simba's finest fling. Oh, I just can't wait to be king! Oh, I just can't wait to be king! Oh, I just can't waaaaaaaaait... to be king!' they finished singing together before Matt tossed a laughing Rachel on the couch next to Mike.
"Hey look" Matt said walking out to the front porch, where Rachel saw a little Matt with all of his toys together looking down the street. She felt her heart melting. She knew he was waiting for her.
"You're waiting for me" she whispered hugging him closer to her and feeling another tear slip out from her eye.
"I'm sorry Rach" Matt said all of the sudden. Rachel turned to look at him with the most serious expression on her face.
"Don't you dare say sorry to me Matthew!"
"Rach, I fail-"
"Shut up!" she said pushing him a little. "Stop saying that!" she yelled at him. "Why don't you understand that this is not your fault? You have never failed me!" she said frustrated. "Matty, you were the first one there" she said with a little smile.
"What?" he asked a little confused.
"You always told me that you weren't there, or that you were the last one there, but I heard your voice yesterday and you were the first one I saw" she said with her eyes watering a little. "You found me!"
"Matt!" Matt jumped when he heard his name and felt someone shaking him but felt a little relieved when he saw Mike standing there. "Are you ok? It looked like you were having a bad dream."
"Well, not bad just, weird" Matt said waking up and looking at Rachel. "How's your hand?"
"I'll live" Mike said chuckling a little. "So, what happened while I was out?" he asked Matt and Matt told him everything, including Finn and Santana. "You're kidding, right?"
"Nope" Matt said without any emotion on his voice.
"I'm thirsty, you want anything?" Mike asked Matt getting up and Matt simply shook his head. "I'll be right back" Mike said walking out the door.
"So, are you gonna wake up?" Matt asked playfully at Rachel. He didn't know what else to do. He was tired of feeling miserable. He just wanted her to wake up and maybe if he did what he always did when he wanted her to so something, she would do it. "I'll give you pancakes" he said smiling hopeful. He sighted sadly when nothing happened. "Come on, wake up sleeping beauty."
"Five more minutes" he heard her mutter.
"You're such a lazy- wait what did you just say?" Matt asked shocked looking at her. "Rachel?" he said smiling when he saw her trying to open her eyes. "Oh thank God! You're awake!" he said kissing her forehead softly.
"Matty?" Rachel asked still sleepy.
"Hey" Matt said smiling sweetly at her. "How are you feeling?"
"Um, my head hurts" she said a little confused looking around. Her voice was a little sore. "Where are we?"
"We're at the hospital baby. You've been asleep for almost a day" Matt said softly. "Do you remember what happened?" he asked really nervous.
"Um, I remember I was talking to Mike" she said trying really hard to remember the night before. "And then I went to look for Brittany" she continued.
"What else baby?"
"The lights went off and-" Matt saw the look on her face turned horrified when she saw her wrists. "Oh my God! Jesse!" she yelled freaking out and she started breathing heavily.
"Baby, baby" Matt said sitting next to her and hugging her to him. "Shhh, he's not here" he whispered in her hair. "He's never going to be able to hurt you ever again" he said kissing her head.
"He's gone?" she asked with a single tear rolling down her cheek.
"He's gone baby" Matt said kissing her forehead. "It's ok" he said hugging her.
"Where's Mike?" she asked a little scared.
"He'll be right back, he went to get something to drink" Matt told her. "Do you want anything?"
"No thanks" she said still looking around the room. "What?" she asked when she saw Matt still smiling goofily at her.
"I knew you'd come back" he whispered smiling at her.
"Of course I would come back. I knew you were waiting" she said smiling sweetly at him.
"I'm gonna go call my mom ok?" Matt told her and she nodded. Before he left he came back and kissed her forehead again. "I love you smurf."
"Love you too Matty" she said smiling at him. When Matt left the room, Rachel started looking around the room. She noticed she had Beary on her arm and smiled down at him. She saw the picture on her nightstand and spotted the balloons next to it. When she grabbed the card, she saw that it was from the whole Glee Club. She smiled to herself knowing that she had an actual family who cared about her.
"Dude, the machine stole my money-" Mike entered the room with a drink in his hand, that he dropped when he saw her awake. "Rachel!" he yelled running towards her and grabbing her hand and kissing it like a million times. "Oh my God! You're awake" he said placing butterfly kisses all over her face and then hugging her to him.
"You're here" he heard her say holding onto him as if her life depended on her.
"Of course I'm here baby" he said pulling away a little and giving him a peck on the lips. "I love you so much doll" he said kissing her cheek.
"I love you too baby" she said with a small smile. "I'm sorry for just running away like that" she started saying looking down. He gently pulled her chin up.
"Look at me doll" he said softly. "You have nothing to be sorry about" he said in a serious tone. "I'm so, so sorry for everything! I promise you I will never let anyone hurt you ever again" he said kissing her head over and over again. He looked at him with her big bright eyes and smile at him. The same eyes that he saw when he saw her in the bathroom. But she didn't say anything; she just leaned up to crash her lips against his and then pulled away with the same smile. He leaned down to kiss her forehead one more time. "I missed you so much!"
"Rachel!" she saw Mrs. Rutheford said practically storming in the room followed by Mr. Rutheford. "Oh my God!" Mrs. Rutheford said running towards her bed, hugging her and kissing her head. "Oh honey, I am so sorry we weren't here! I am so glad you're ok. I was so worried! How are you feeling? Do you need anything?"
"Mom, you just said like twenty things in one!" Matt said rolling his eyes a little.
"Right, I'm sorry" Mrs. Rutheford said pulling away a little from Rachel. "How are you feeling, honey?"
"I'm ok aunt Mimi" Rachel said smiling and never letting go of Mike's good hand. He was hiding the other one a little.
"Oh, my poor little girl" Mrs. Rutheford said putting her hair away from her face and then, Mr. Rutheford walked towards her.
"I'm so glad you're ok kiddo" he said hugging her.
"Thanks uncle James" she said smiling brightly at him.
"You look so much like your father" he said kissing her head too. "And you're just as strong as him" he told her. Rachel could swear his eyes were watering a little. "You know we love you, right?"
"So, so much" Mrs. Rutheford said with a few tears rolling down.
"I know" Rachel said smiling sweetly at them. "I love you too."
"We're gonna go get the doctor ok?" Mrs. Rutheford said and they walked out of the room and letting Puck inside followed by Brittany.
"Midget!" Puck yelled happily, not caring about sounding like a little kid and rushing towards her and hugging her. "You trying to scare the shit out of me?" he asked jokingly hiding the fact of how scared he really was and he kissed her head.
"Don't make me laugh Noah, it hurts" she said trying not to laugh at how happy Puck actually looked.
"I'm so glad you're ok" he said kissing her forehead again.
"Thanks Noah" she said smiling and then Brittany made her way to hug her.
"I thought you were dropping her off" Matt told him confused.
"When you sent the text she said I was crazy if I thought she wasn't coming with me" Puck said shrugging his shoulders.
"Rachel! I'm so glad you're ok! And I brought my teddy bear so he can play with yours" she said handing her a little teddy bear.
"Thanks Britt" Rachel said smiling at the blonde and gave her another hug.
"I have to go. My dad's outside waiting for me, I just really wanted to know that you were ok" Brittany said smiling. "But I'll come back tomorrow" she said happily.
"I would really like that Britt" Rachel said smiling. She hugged her one more time and then Brittany left. "So, little rascals" Rachel said laughing a little and resting her head on Mike's shoulder. "What'd you guys do today?"
After a while of them telling her everything that went on that day, including Mike's hand, the doctor came with Mrs. and Mr. Rutheford to talk to Rachel while the three boys waited outside. Mr. and Mrs. Rutheford left and Rachel practically forced Puck and Matt to leave too, since Mike was just a lot more stubborn than her and said he was supposed to spend the night anyways because of his hand. He was sitting on the chair next to her bed just looking at her looking back at him.
"If you're here because of your hand, aren't you supposed to be in your room?" she asked teasingly.
"You want to get rid of me doll?" he asked her pouting. Rachel laughed a little gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Never" she said smiling but then her look turned sad when she saw her nightstand.
"You ok?" Mike asked worried. "Do you need anything?" he asked her, but then he saw what she was looking at.
"I miss him" she said sadly with her eyes watering a little. Mike couldn't help but feel his heart ache a little and he wrapped his arms around her.
"I know you do baby" he said kissing her head. "But he's still here with you, and he would be so proud of you" he said smiling down on her when she turned to look at him and she kissed his cheek.
"I love you" she said resting her head on his shoulder.
"I love you too doll" he said resting his head on hers.
"You're staying with me, right?" she asked getting a little scared.
"I'm not going anywhere doll" he said kissing her lightly on the lips. Rachel grabbed his hurt hand and kissed it. After a while she heard him breathing slowly and she kissed his cheek. Rachel turned to look at the picture in her nightstand and then held Beary closer to her.
"Look daddy" she said looking at her picture. "I have a family" she said with the biggest smile she had on for days before finally falling asleep too.
A/N: the songs in the chapter are songs I've used throughout the whole story :)
I really hope you liked it and that it made sense! haha again, sorry it took a while! and well, I'll try to update [the last chapter] sooner! I can't believe it's almost over! :'( I cry just to think about it! but it's all thanks to you! hahaha let me know what you think :)
