Hi everyone! Thanks for all of your reviews on the last chapter. As I'm sure I don't need to say, this is a pretty big time for Finchel. I know that everyone has different opinions, so you'll just have to wait and see what they'll do. Hope you all enjoyed Glee on Friday (if you still watch) and review if I should keep going!

Chapter 13: Star of the Show

Rachel had barely slept since she got that call from the doctor.

She hadn't expected to get pregnant before she even turned 21, before she graduated college, before she had a solid job. She couldn't stop thinking about the baby, and even with finals coming up, it was hard to distract herself. When she studied for her finals, her mind kept going back to the baby.

She'd only told Finn, and she knew he hadn't told anyone. She was glad he hadn't, because she wanted to stick to her plan of not telling anyone until after the holidays. She wanted to just have a normal holiday season, especially since she had no idea what their situation would be next year.

Rachel yawned as she sat in the student lounge at NYADA with Kurt and Blaine. Carmen Tibideaux came in, and Rachel had a feeling she knew what this was. It was the time of year when she hand delivered her invitations to perform in the winter showcase. As Carmen walked toward the table Rachel, Kurt and Blaine were sitting at, Rachel's heart stopped.

Carmen handed an envelope to Kurt, and then she handed one to Blaine. She didn't hand one to Rachel.

Rachel tried to hold in her disappointment, but she knew she had to be happy for her friends. She smiled and gave Kurt and Blaine each a hug. "This is amazing! You're going to be in the Winter Showcase!"

"Thank you, Rachel," Blaine said. "I'm so excited."

"Yeah," Kurt added. "I mean, with everything that was going on last year, I don't think we were doing well enough to perform, but this year, we'll get to!"

It did make Rachel feel better to see Kurt and Blaine so happy. "You guys should perform your number together. Do your annual Christmas duet for it!"

"Ah, the annual Christmas duet," Blaine said. "And our first as a married couple!"

Kurt looked over at Rachel. "I'm surprised you didn't get one."

Rachel had been trying to keep the attention off herself by talking about Kurt and Blaine's invitations, but she knew that she couldn't avoid this subject. "It's okay. I won my freshman year. You guys deserve this."

"From what I heard, Kurt was the real winner," Blaine said, making googly eyes at his husband.

"Well, his performance really impressed people, and he got some loud applause, and he got in," Rachel said, relieved to have the attention off her. "So yeah, I think you're right."

"Still, I do think it's weird that you didn't get one," Blaine agreed. "I mean, you're a Broadway understudy!"

"I'm okay with not getting one, seriously," Rachel admitted.

"Rachel Berry okay with not getting an invitation to the winter showcase?" Kurt asked. "We've entered an alternate reality..."

"Well, well, I heard who got invited to perform in the winter showcase," a voice said. Rachel, Kurt and Blaine turned and saw Sebastian. Out of the corner of her eye, Rachel saw how annoyed Kurt looked. "I haven't gotten my envelope yet, but I know I will. And Blaine, I was thinking we could do a duet together. After all, this will help me toward becoming the lead of the next One Direction."

"Sorry Sebastian, but I'm doing a duet with MY HUSBAND," Kurt declared.

"Oh, really?" Sebastian said. "Well, you're going to be really disappointed when I win the whole thing?"

Another familiar voice was heard. "YES!" Rachel, Kurt, Blaine and Sebastian turned and saw Harmony running in with her envelope. "I'm going to be in the winter showcase! Not that I wouldn't be!"

"Well, you are the most talented female here," Sebastian sneered.

"Yeah, I know," Harmony said. "I'm thinking I'm going to do the best song of all time: Don't Rain On My Parade."

Don't Rain On My Parade. "That's Rachel's song!" Kurt gasped.

"Harmony can do it," Rachel said. Clearly she wasn't going to be invited to the showcase.

"See, even she recognizes that," Harmony said. "So, what songs are you guys doing?"

"I don't know yet," Sebastian said. "Kurt and Blaine claim they're going to do a duet, and Rachel wasn't invited."

"I bet she'll be really jealous when she hears me practicing at the apartment then," Harmony declared.

Rachel groaned. Why had Harmony still not found a place?

"Well, luckily for me, my roommate thought I was too awesome, so I have my apartment to myself," Sebastian said. "If you want, you can move in with me. My parents said I need to find a new roommate."

This was perfect. "Oh, then there we go, Harmony."

"Yeah, since these guys won't give me their bedrooms," Harmony said. "Plus, you're the only other really awesome member of NYADA's Class of 2018."

"There we go then," Kurt said, sounding relieved.

"Yeah, at least I'll have my own room there," Harmony said, glaring at Rachel, Kurt and Blaine.

"Yeah, and we'll actually have peace and quiet," Blaine said.

x

"Okay guys!" Finn said to the glee club. "Let's hear it for our Sectionals victory!"

The glee club cheered as Finn put the trophy on display. He'd need to order a trophy case, just like Mr. Schue had. He still couldn't believe it. He had a trophy. He'd won Sectionals with his glee club.

"So, winning Sectionals was definitely a team effort," Finn continued. "And we're going to work even harder to win Regionals and get to Seattle for Nationals. Imagine, guys, the west coast!"

"I've never even been on an airplane before!" Miranda said.

"I want to go on top of the Space Needle!" Bridget declared.

"And we will go to Seattle for Nationals," Finn continued. "Now, first up, the holidays are coming up, and I think we should do something special..."

Before Finn could say anything else, he heard a knock on the door. He looked and saw the principal. "Hi," Finn said.

"Mr. Hudson, you've got a call on the line in the office," the principal said.

A call in the office? Why hadn't whoever wanted to talk to him just called his cell phone? Finn walked to the office and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Hi, is this Finn Hudson, director of Choral Explosion?" the voice on the other end asked.

"Yep, that is me," Finn said, wondering who this was.

"This is Amy Andrews, I'm one of the producers of The Today Show," the voice on the other end continued. A producer of the today show? Was this a joke? "I saw your glee club perform at Sectionals, and you guys are incredible. I was wondering - do you think they'd like to perform for one of our holiday festivities?"

The Today Show wanted Finn's glee club to perform? He couldn't believe it. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," Amy continued. "I showed the video of the group online to Matt and Savannah, and they would love to have you perform the week before Christmas on the show."

One of the biggest shows in the country? "Wow, I'm sure they'd love that," Finn said.

"Thank you," Amy said. "You can look at your schedule to see what would work best for you, and then give us a call."

"Okay, thank you," Finn said. He knew that the kids would be so excited to hear about this opportunity. "I'll look at my schedule." He went back to the classroom, where the principal was still with the kids. "Hey guys, guess what?"

The kids looked up at Finn. "How would you guys like to perform on TV?" Finn asked. He knew he wanted them to do a holiday performance, but he thought it would just be at the school for the parents and friends, not on national television.

"TV?" Caitlin asked.

"Yeah, TV," Finn said. "One of the producers from The Today Show called and they'd like us to be part of their Christmas program."

"The Today Show?" Rebecca asked.

"Yeah, The Today Show," Finn said. "Someone from the crew saw you guys performing at Sectionals and enjoyed your performance, so they want you to perform on their show."

The group cheered. "Looks like we have some Christmas songs to learn!" Finn said. "I'm so proud of you guys."

x

"Look who's home!" Kurt said as Finn arrived home. Kurt and Blaine were making dinner, and Santana was watching TV. Rachel wasn't home yet, but Finn knew she was at the diner tonight.

"Hey guys," Finn said as he arrived. "Guess what!"

"Tell us," Blaine said.

"The Today Show wants my glee club to perform!" Finn announced.

"Are you serious?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah!" Finn said. "One of the producers was at Sectionals and enjoyed our performance, and they want us to perform as part of their holiday special!"

"Wow, that's amazing," Blaine said.

"Yeah, I can't believe it," Finn said. He looked around the apartment, noticing Harmony's bags were gone. "Hey, where's Harmony?"

"She moved out," Santana said.

Even though Finn didn't like living with Harmony, he wasn't sure if the tone of Santana's voice indicated a good thing. "Santana, what did you do?" Finn asked.

"I didn't do anything," Santana said. "She moved in with Criminal Chipmunk."

"Sebastian?" Finn asked.

"Yeah," Kurt said. "Apparently he drove his roommate away. Not surprised, with his horrible personality."

"He's sure he's going to be invited to perform in the Winter Showcase," Kurt said. "Whatever, there's no way he's going to be able to beat the Klaine Klistmas Kluet."

"You guys will be performing in the showcase?" Finn asked. He knew that with everything that was going on last year, Rachel, Kurt and Blaine weren't at their best, and therefore weren't invited to perform in the showcase.

"Yeah, we are," Kurt said. "Rachel hasn't gotten her envelope yet, but I'm sure she will."

Finn didn't know what to say to that. He knew that with everything going on, Rachel might not be up to the showcase. "Was she upset?" Finn asked.

"She was surprisingly okay with not getting an envelope today," Kurt said. "In a very un Rachel Berry like way."

"Yeah," Blaine added. "It surprised me. She almost didn't seem to care."

"Yeah, Finn, what's up with Rachel lately?" Santana asked.

Finn knew that he and Rachel had decided not to tell anyone about the pregnancy until after the holidays. And he was sticking to that. Still, he had to admit, this was Rachel's two best friends, his brother, his brother-in-law and one of his best friends. They knew him and Rachel. Quickly, he decided to play naive. "What do you mean?"

"How she's always in the bathroom in the morning," Santana said. "And how she goes to bed early these days? Any of that sound familiar to you?"

Santana always figured things out. Finn now knew they had to be extra careful if they didn't want her to figure this out. "She's just stressed about waiting to hear if she'll get the lead in Funny Girl and about finals coming up."

"Yeah, but finals are coming up for us, too," Blaine said.

"Guys, don't worry about Rachel, she's fine," Finn said. Of course he was worried about Rachel, and about their baby. He couldn't say anything just yet though.

Then Rachel came in. "Hey guys."

"Well, look who's home," Kurt said. "Rachel, Finn's glee club was invited to perform on TV."

Rachel's face lit up. "Are you serious?" She gave Finn a big hug. "Finn, I'm so proud of you!"

Finn hugged his wife, glad that she still was acting like herself. Maybe now Kurt, Blaine and Santana would be less suspicious. "Yeah, on the Today Show," Finn said.

"Wow," Rachel said. "That is absolutely incredible! I can't wait to see you guys perform!"

"I'm excited, and nervous," Finn said.

"Don't be nervous," Rachel said. "Finn, this is a huge opportunity for you. And if people from NYADA see it, it could really help Caitlin with getting in."

"Oh, I know," Finn said. He knew Caitlin was already hoping people from NYADA would see it.

"How was the diner?" Kurt asked Rachel.

"It was good," Rachel said. "You know, the closing shifts are never the most fun, because you have to clean up. I'm going to go to bed."

Finn saw Kurt, Blaine and Santana exchange looks. As Rachel left, Santana looked at Finn. "See what I mean?"

"It's late," Finn said. "She had school, rehearsal and a shift at the diner today..." He had a feeling that somehow, Santana knew. He certainly wouldn't put that past Santana. "I'll go check on her."

Finn went into his and Rachel's bedroom. Rachel had taken off the diner uniform and was in her pajamas, but she had her pajama shirt lifted up and was staring at her stomach in the mirror.

"Babe, if I didn't know, I wouldn't be able to tell," Finn said, giving Rachel a kiss.

"Not now," Rachel sighed. "I'll be showing in a few months. And we won't be able to keep this a secret from our roommates, and our jobs, and our colleges, and Funny Girl..."

"Remember what we agreed on?" Finn asked Rachel as he began putting on his pajamas. "This is the holiday season. It's going to be stress free."

Rachel sat down in the bed and patted the spot next to her. "Yeah. And I'm so, so proud of you. You've only been working with the glee club for a few months and already you'll be on TV."

Finn smiled. "It's pretty cool."

"Yeah, more than pretty cool," Rachel said as she kissed Finn.

x

When Rachel woke up the next morning, she saw her phone ringing. Looking at the caller ID, she saw that it was Rupert. Hoping not to be lectured, she picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Rachel, this is Rupert," Rupert said.

"Hi Rupert," Rachel said.

"We need you to perform tonight," Rupert said. "Marissa has a bug."

That was why they'd been calling? Of course she wanted to perform! "All right, I'll do it."

"You can do it?" Rupert asked. "Great. We wouldn't want to disappoint the sold out crowd."

Her performance would be in front of a sold out crowd? "Well, I'm not going to let the sold out crowd be disappointed." She was glad that even though she wasn't on the best of terms with the production staff, they were still letting her perform. Now that she was pregnant, she didn't know if they would let her take on the role.

"Great," Rupert said. "So we'll see you tonight?"

"Yeah," Rachel said. She sent Finn a quick text, telling him that she'd be performing as Fanny Brice tonight and wouldn't be home until late.

x

Getting to perform in front of a sold out crowd was incredible.

Rachel had been singing these songs for as long as she could remember, but tonight it felt extra special. The crowd's enthusiasm made it feel as if she was the main Fanny, not just the understudy filling in. She loved every moment that she was on that stage and could think of very few times in her life where she'd enjoyed herself more. She hoped that once the tour left, she'd get to play the part.

At the end of the performance, Rachel went back to her dressing room, and to her surprise, Finn, Kurt, Blaine, Santana, Mercedes, Tina, Sam and Artie were there. "Surprise!" the group declared.

"Oh my God!" Rachel gasped. "What are you guys doing here? It was a sold out crowd."

Finn handed Rachel some flowers and gave her a hug. "We pulled some strings."

"What do you mean?" Rachel asked.

"Today Kurt and I talked to Jean at NYADA," Blaine explained. "He and Taylor talked to the production crew, and they got some extra seats for us."

"Wow, that's amazing," Rachel said, reminded that she not only had great friends from high school, but great friends in the cast of this production as well. "Thank you all so much for being here. And I'll have to thank Jean and Taylor, too."

"You were really, really good," Mercedes said.

x

It was a nice relief for Finn to get to see Rachel performing on the stage and looking so happy when she got to perform as Fanny Brice. With everything that was going on, it was hard to focus on school and the glee club, but seeing Rachel so happy and getting the invitation to perform had been high points.

Of course, finals were still there, despite everything that was going on, and the week before finals was mostly spent studying. Even studying was a nice distraction. After all, if he and Rachel kept the baby, they'd need to be well educated...

He couldn't keep letting his mind go there. He'd be okay. They'd be okay, they were Finchel, right?

Chapter 14 preview: Finn's glee club performs on the Today Show and NYADA's winter showcase takes place. The New Yorkers also celebrate Christmas and Rachel's 21st birthday.

10 reviews unlock Chapter 14!