Happy Superbowl Sunday! Hope you guys are having a great weekend. We've had lots of snow here, so I hope you're all staying safe. Some recent spoilers about Glee have pretty much disgusted me (what are they thinking?!), but we might as well hang in there. Anyway, enjoy the new chapter and review if I should keep going!
Chapter 16: Bumps In The Road
Finn got home from the diner and saw Rachel sitting on their bed, staring at a piece of paper. When he sat down next to her, he saw that she was looking at the ultrasound. Rachel looked up at Finn. "Our baby."
Finn smiled. "Yeah, our baby."
"I feel horrible," Rachel sighed. "This is supposed to be a happy time, the time when we wait for the arrival of our first child. Instead, I don't know how to feel because I don't know if we're going to keep the baby or not."
"I know," Finn said as he hugged Rachel tightly. "I know."
"I've always fantasized about us and our first child," Rachel said. "Baby shopping, getting the nursery ready, reading baby name books... but now we have a baby on the way, and I don't even know if we can keep it. I want to keep it, Finn, I really do. I love him or her and I love you and I want us to be a family. But I also want what's best for him or her, and I don't know if we can give our baby what they'll need."
"I feel the same way," Finn admitted. "I love this baby so, so much. And it would break my heart to give him or her away. But can we do it?"
"I don't know," Rachel sighed. "We love the baby, but think about what our parents did for us. We're in school, and our jobs barely pay enough for us to pay our bills and we get help from our parents."
"Yeah," Finn said, hugging Rachel. "We have time to decide, but it won't be an easy decision."
"I know that even if we do give this baby up, we'll have children one day, who we'll get to experience everything with, but they won't be this child," Rachel continued.
x
As Finn arrived to the school for glee club rehearsal early to start preparing for today's meeting, he saw the principal sitting in the classroom where they met with a woman Finn had never seen before. "Finn, this is Collette Goulde..."
Finn thought that name sounded vaguely familiar, but he wasn't sure where he'd heard it. "Hi, I'm Finn Hudson, I'm the director of Choral Inspiration, the glee club here..."
"She knows who you are," the principal said. "She actually was here to talk to you about something."
"Okay," Finn said. "What's going on?"
"Finn, I was the leader of the glee club for five years," Collette began. "This year I decided not to coach it again because when I led it, we never made it past Sectionals. Watching what you did with those kids, seeing the fall musical and Sectionals - they were incredible."
Finn smiled to himself. "Thank you. We've already begun to work on our Regionals setlist."
"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about," Collette continued. "I know you've done a good job with these kids, but now that I know they can win, I'd like the glee club back. They made it to Sectionals, so they must be good enough..."
So this woman just wanted to take the glee club back? After all the hard work Finn had done with them this year? Finn looked at the principal. "What's the meaning of this? I signed a contract!"
"Exactly," the principal said, eyeing Collette. "And I spoke to Ms. Goulde about that before. I wouldn't let her take the glee club away from you. But I didn't know if you'd be willing to take her on as an assistant..."
Collette looked at her boss. "I'm not interested in being an assistant to a college student. I work here, and people who work here are first in line to advise extracurricular activities."
"You told us last year you did not want to continue with the glee club after they lost Sectionals," the principal said. "So we advertised and hired Finn as a replacement."
Collette glared at Finn as Josh and Caitlin came in. "Finn, I have a great idea for a song for our next performance..." Caitlin began before she looked at Collette. "What's SHE doing here?"
"Ms. Eastfield, watch your mouth," the principal said.
"She may have used a weird tone of voice, but I'm wondering the same thing," Josh said. "When Ms. Goulde was our director, she barely did anything."
"I could fail both of you if you want, and you might not be able to cross the stage in June," Collette said. "Seriously, a college graduate is doing better than I did?"
"With Finn as director, I'm finding my vocal range getting better after every practice!" Caitlin declared. "I actually got here early to tell him that I'm a finalist for NYADA, and that wouldn't have happened if he wasn't director."
"That school is hard to get into, but being the lead of the New York based glee club that won Sectionals, you would have gotten in," Collette said. "Now, Mr. Hudson, I do appreciate what you did with my kids this year, but I'm in line for tenure, and if I lead them to a Regionals victory, I might get one of the tenure spots. The science department has three teachers eligible for the tenure spot..."
"Well, if we lose Finn, I can guarantee that you won't have much of a team," Josh said. "If Finn's out, most of us will leave."
"Yeah," Caitlin added.
Finn was thankful for the support. He looked at the principal, who looked at Collette. "Ms. Goulde, I think the kids really enjoy working with Finn, and he really likes leading the club, so I don't see him stepping down. You can talk about helping out with him, but he is under contract, and we're satisfied with his work."
Collette picked up her papers. "I'm not interested in helping out." She looked at Josh and Caitlin. "I hope you both studied hard for tomorrow's biology test."
The principal looked at Finn. "I'm sorry about that."
Finn shrugged. He was used to adults who acted like this, especially after dealing with Sue Sylvester for four years. "It's fine. Thanks for not letting me go."
"Of course we're not letting you go," the principal said. "You've been fantastic with this club."
When the principal left, Finn turned to Caitlin. "So, congratulations on becoming a NYADA finalist!"
"Thanks!" Caitlin said. "Do you think Rachel, Kurt and Blaine could work with me on a song for my final audition?"
"I'm sure they'd love to," Finn said. "So, the old director wants back in..."
"Like we said, I guarantee everyone will quit if she somehow got it back," Caitlin said. "She didn't make it fun, and the songs we did weren't what anyone was looking for. We're doing so much better with you."
"Plus, you actually let us have a voice in here, everyone," Josh added. "She was the only one whose opinion mattered when she was director."
"Well, I'll keep things how I'm doing them," Finn said. He hoped Collette was out of the way, but he had a feeling she wasn't.
x
Rachel rang the doorbell at Shelby's house. She'd decided today she was going to tell her mother the news. She'd told her dads and her friends already, and she couldn't put this off any longer. Finn had to work both at the diner and with the glee club today, so she'd be doing this on her own. She thought that the more people she told, the less nervous she'd be, but every time she was about to tell someone, she felt just as nervous as before. She also knew that eventually, she'd have to tell the Funny Girl executive team and the professors at NYADA.
Shelby came to the door. "Rachel! I wasn't expecting you."
"Hey Mom," Rachel said. "Can I come in?"
"Yeah, of course," Shelby said, leading Rachel in.
Beth was watching TV in the living room and looked over when she saw Rachel. "Rachel!"
"Hi," Rachel said, giving Beth a hug. "How's pre-k?"
"It's good!" Beth said. "I'm making lots of friends!"
"Good," Rachel said. "I wanted to talk to our mommy about something, but I'll come play with you after talking to her, okay?"
"Okay," Beth said happily.
Shelby led Rachel into the kitchen.
"What's going on, honey?" Rachel just decided to say it. "I'm pregnant."
"Rachel..." Shelby began.
Once again, Rachel was terrified of what Shelby would say. "Well, how far along are you?" Shelby asked.
"Not that far," Rachel said. "I first started having symptoms in November and I found out shortly before the holidays. Finn and I had our first ultrasound last week." She reached into her purse and got out the photo. "See, here's our baby."
"Do you guys know what you'll do yet?" Shelby asked.
"We don't," Rachel admitted. "That's what we're struggling with. We love this baby, but we don't know if we can give them what they need."
"Can I tell you something, as someone whose been in your shoes?" Shelby asked. "With both you and Kylie, I fell in love with you girls right away, but I felt like I couldn't give you what you needed right now. I know I have you in my lives now, and I'm so proud of the women you've both become, but I do wish that I'd had you with me from the beginning. Not every parent who gives their child up for adoption gets to have what I have with you and Kylie, or what Puck and Quinn have with Beth. There's a possibility that if you give your child up for adoption, you'll never see or hear from them."
"That's true," Rachel said. And she didn't like the idea of never seeing or hearing from this child.
"So Rachel, if you and Finn do end up deciding to keep the baby, I know you can do it," Shelby said. "I'm right here in New York, and you have all your friends and your brothers-in-law. Puck and Quinn are nearby in Connecticut, and I'm sure that your dads and Finn's parents could come over and help whenever you needed them."
"You think I could do it?" Rachel asked Shelby.
"Yeah, I think you can," Shelby said.
x
Rachel hadn't stopped think about what Shelby had said to her. She knew that she and Finn would have lots of support if they decided to keep the baby, but at the same time, the baby would be their responsibility, not their family members and friends. It wouldn't be fair to ask their parents for money all the time...
Rachel was starting to feel tired, but she knew there was something else to do today. She picked up her phone and dialed Kylie's number, knowing she had to tell everyone in her family and get it done with. Kylie picked up the phone after one ring. "Hey."
"Hey," Rachel said. "How are you?"
"I'm good," Kylie said. "We're getting ready for Regionals."
"And how's that going?" Rachel asked.
"Well, Mr. Schue's school in LA had a three week winter break, so he worked with us for a week, too," Kylie said. "It was great to work with him again."
"I bet it was," Rachel said.
"Yeah," Kylie agreed. "I don't think he wanted to say it, but I think he really misses us."
"That wouldn't surprise me," Rachel said. "I know he loves the glee club. So how's it going with your new directors?"
"It's going okay," Kylie admitted. "I think they've learned some things by watching Mr. Schue with us and they've begun to take us more seriously."
"That's good," Rachel said.
"Yeah, it is," Kylie said. "So, what's up with you?"
"I was actually calling to tell you something," Rachel said. "I'm pregnant."
"What?" Kylie asked.
"Yeah," Rachel said. "Finn and I told our parents, and our roommates know too, but I wanted you to know before you found out from someone else..."
"Yeah, before Artie has a chance to tell Kitty," Kylie laughed. "So, are you okay?"
"I'm doing as well as I can," Rachel admitted. "I still don't know what I'm going to do. Our mom encouraged me to keep the baby because she doesn't want me to miss out on the things she missed out on with us, and my dads and Finn's parents sounded like they think we should give the baby up for adoption."
"What are you and Finn leaning toward?" Kylie asked.
"We don't know," Rachel admitted. "We have time to decide. I know that as your older sister, I'm supposed to be a role model for you, and I know this isn't a role model thing to do, but at the same time, you deserve to know."
"Hey, I'm not mad at you," Kylie said. "When will you tell other people?"
"I don't know," Rachel admitted. "Eventually I'm going to have to tell the director and producer in Funny Girl. I'm just worried that if I tell them, they'll take the part away from me."
"I hope they don't," Kylie said.
"I hope they don't, too," Rachel said. "But there's no way of knowing."
"Hey, I've got to get to Jack's soon to work on duet ideas for Regionals," Kylie said. "The seniors want us to do the duet to get ready for being the leads next year. I'll call you later, okay?"
"Okay," Rachel said, hanging up the phone. "Have fun!"
"I will!" Kylie said before hanging up the phone.
A few minutes later, Finn came in. "Hey babe."
"Hey honey," Rachel said. "How was your day?"
"It was all right," Finn said. "Kind of stressful."
"Awww, what happened?" Rachel asked.
"The woman who was director of glee club last year wants it back," Finn groaned. "Since I go the glee club to Sectionals, she thinks that she should get it back and take them to Regionals."
"Are you serious?" Rachel asked.
"Yeah," Finn said.
"I hope they didn't let her take it back," Rachel said.
"Of course they didn't," Finn said. "But I'm still annoyed. Josh and Caitlin told her that everyone would quit if she took it back, because they think I'm so much better than she is."
"You are so much better," Rachel said. "I saw what you did with those kids at Sectionals and in the musical, Finn. They were amazing. And it was all because of you."
Finn smiled at Rachel. "Caitlin told me today she made it to the NYADA finals."
"That's great!" Rachel said. "If she wants someone to work with her on an audition song, I'd be happy to."
"She was hoping you, Kurt and Blaine could work with her," Finn said.
"You know I'm always happy to," Rachel said. "I was talking to Kylie. I guess Mr. Schue was there during his school's winter break to work with them. She thinks he misses them."
"Oh, I'm sure he does," Finn said. "My glee club's great, but nothing's like the New Directions. We all had such a special bond."
"I know," Rachel said.
"So, what did your mom and sister have to say?" Finn asked.
Rachel knew what Finn was talking about. "Well, my mom thinks that we should keep the baby. She said that if we give the baby up, we might never get to know him or her, and that's true..."
"That is true," Finn agreed. "And I really want to be in his or her life."
"So do I," Rachel said. "She said that we'll have lots of support, with her in New York, and Kurt, Blaine, Santana, Mercedes, Tina, Artie and Sam, plus Kitty for sure next year and probably the other seniors, and Puck and Quinn nearby, and our parents would be willing to come help, but it's our child. We can't just ask our parents for money and ask our friends to help out all the time."
"I know," Finn said. "Why does this all have to be so complicated?"
"I don't know," Rachel said. "Let's get to bed. I'm pretty tired."
"Yeah, me too," Finn said as he crawled into bed with Rachel, both knowing their troubles were far from over.
Chapter 17 preview: The former director of the glee club continues to give Finn trouble. Word that Rachel is pregnant begins to spread. Preparation for the next Glee wedding begins.
10 reviews unlock Chapter 17!
