Rachel set her bags down in the foyer of Jesse's house and glanced around.
"Holy motherfu-"
"Noah!" Rachel exclaimed in surprise and a hand flew to her chest in shock. "What are you doing here?"
"Jesse sent me here to keep you company incase you decided to just come straight here. But, for once, let's not talk about me."
"What do you mean?" Rachel asked. She watched as Puck gave her a quick once over and saw his mouth twitch up in approval.
"I've gotta hand it to you, Berry. The new look, totally badass-hot."
"Thank you," Rachel smiled. "I think-"
"Stop right there," Puck commanded. "Chicks as hot as you're looking right now don't think, they just act."
"Well," Rachel sighed, "the only action I want to perform right now is a trip up to my room and maybe a shower."
"I'd be happy to join you," Puck commented. "You know, conserve water, save the planet. Never say that Puckzilla doesn't care for the environment."
"Right," Rachel shuddered. "Well, I'm more of a solo kind of girl."
"I can respect that. Besides, I think I've got a call to make anyways," Puck shrugged. It was worth a shot...
He waited until Rachel had disappeared up the stairs and then tugged his phone out of the back pocket of his jeans. With a last look up the staircase, he hit his speed-dial and waited for an answer.
"What's up?" the cocky voice answered nonchalantly, and Puck could picture Jesse sitting in his trailer.
"What's up? Dude, you need to get your ass back to your place."
"Why? I left Rachel a message with Rodger. Is something wrong?"
"Um, yeah. I'm not so sure the girl who just walked into your house is Rachel."
"What? Puck, what all have you taken to day? There's a difference between an occasion hit and getting hooked on the shi-"
"I'm not on anything, you jack-wad. Just get yourself out of the monogramed faux-director's seat you're sitting in and get your ass back to your place. Trust me, you want to see this."
Jesse walked through the door more anxious than anyone should when entering their own home. While part of him knew better than to take anything Puck said too seriously, the other part was itching to know what had caused his best friend's minor freak out.
"Puck!" He called as he continued into the living room.
"You just missed him," a very familiar voice said from behind him. He turned around excitedly and stopped dead with a smile frozen on his face. Soon, though, the smile changed into an open-mouthed gape because the girl standing in front of him couldn't be Rachel Berry. There was no way. Rachel Berry was cute – adorable, even. Hot in that way too innocent way with conservative clothes that made you wonder what was going on underneath.
But this girl, she was just... insanely hot. She stood with confidence and a bright smile (although it did seem to dim more and more with the amount of time he spent staring and not moving). Her hair was curled into intricate waves that practically screamed "Run your hands through me." Her jeans were tight enough to let you know that she had it going on, but her overall out fit was covering enough to let you know that she wasn't a slut. In essence, she was perfect. As though she had come straight off the cover of the latest issue of Seventeen, and with a smirk to himself, Jesse realized that sooner than later that would be the case.
Several greeting options flew threw his head:
Rachel! I almost didn't recognize you! – Nah, too cliché.
You look so different! – Wait... That kind of sounds like an insult.
Who are you and what have you done with Rachel Berry? – And, back to the clichés...
And then his personal favorite:
Wow... Rachel, you look fucking hot.
But that would just be inappropriate, so he settled on one that couldn't fail.
"Hey."
"Hey yourself," Rachel smiled.
And with that simple greeting, the tension seemed to be relieved. The two of them let out a laugh at how ridiculously lame they had just sounded before moving in for a hug.
Jesse took in a quick whiff of Rachel's hair before (begrudgingly) letting go. He stepped back and looked her over.
"I like it," he finally settled on. "I like it a lot."
"I would say 'thank you' and that your opinion means a lot to me, but the last thing you need is another compliment," Rachel smirked even though the inside of her was rejoicing in his reaction.
"Seriously, though, you look amazing. There's no way you're not getting this role if you go in tomorrow looking like that. Not that there was really any question as to you getting the role before hand."
"Thanks," Rachel grinned. She took a seat next to where Jesse now sat on the couch. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"I live here," Jesse answered slowly.
"I thought you had some emergency scenes to film or something," Rachel explained.
"Yeah," Jesse nodded, "I did. I also pride myself on being a gentleman, and no gentleman leaves a lady all alone in a place that's not her hometown. It's common courtesy really. So, I pulled some strings, reworked some schedules, and just used that St. James charm that gotten me this far. You'd be surprised what all I can get people to do."
"No, no. I already know that you can get whatever you want whenever you want. But, enough about you. I have a very life changing day coming up tomorrow, and I need someone to listen to me while I talk about it."
And while Rachel rambled about her possible future, Jesse was stuck with one thought.
No... not everything...
By the time the next day had rolled around, Jesse was exhausted. He rubbed the bags under his eyes that he was sure to get hell over from the makeup artist today. He had stayed up practically the whole night with Rachel and not in the good way. Nope, he ran lines with her until he had the whole pilot script memorized and he'd played her audition song so much that right now, sitting in his dressing room, he found his fingers trying to play the notes on his thighs.
It had been worth it though. The look on her face when he assured her that she'd nailed a scene or the joy in her eyes when he told her she had hit every note perfectly was enough for him to say that he would do it all again if he had to.
He checked the time on his phone again 4:55... Rachel's audition had been at 4:30, so it was still possible that she was currently auditioning or hadn't even started at all. Either way, Jesse was anxious in a way that he hadn't been since his own first audition for a movie. For the first time in a few years, Jesse admitted to himself that he was nervous – a feeling he hadn't felt for himself in a long time much less for anybody else.
And that's why, twenty minutes later when his phone rang off to the side during a scene, he didn't hesitate to call cut and run over to the table he had laid it down on. He glanced at the caller I.D. and answered it immediately.
"Hey! How'd it go?"
"I got it!"
Alrighty! Chapter 15? Check! :)
So... we've made some progress in the Rachel auditioning process! And yes, to the skeptics, Jesse was talking to Rachel at the end there.
Oh, and really quick, I've gotten some questions PMed to me that I thought I would go ahead and address here. SPOILER ALERT. Some ARE about the story, but some aren't... so, read at your own risk!
How long until Rachel and Jesse get together?
Soon... ish... I think... :) I can't tell you specifically because that would ruin the element of surprise. (And that's kinda my favorite element)
Is there going to be any Puck and Rachel scheming to make Jesse jealous?
I'll admit that I definitely considered it, but the whole jealousy thing gets a bit clichéd and hard to end. Plus, I'd have to deal with any feelings that might become a result from it and I'd have to deal with Jesse being mad when he finds out they were faking it and all this other stuff that would prolong them not being together.
Are Quinn and Rachel going to be besties now?
Maybe... I think anything is possible really:) Okay... yeah. They're going to be growing closer.
What about Finn?
Ummm... Wait? Who's Finn again? Oh yeah, that character I don't like! Sorry that was kinda harsh... Finn hasn't made his last appearance yet, but as far as him making a huge contribution to this story from this point onward... Not very likely.
What do your parents do for a living?
Hahaha... Gotta admit, I love that not only one, but two people asked this! I figure it deserves an answer though! My dad owns a fortune 500 company, and my mom's guidance counselor at a high school.
What part of New York do you live in?
I'm a proud Upper East Sider:) But that's as much detail as I'll go into.
Anyways... Thoughts?