A/N: Hello, everyone! I am so sorry about the delay in this update! I have had the worst time recently and as a result of that, I have been unable to find the right inspiration in order to actually sit down and write this chapter. So, again, I'm sorry. I'm feeling a little better at the moment, so I am trying to get this done to a standard I am happy with; which is high, hopefully. Anyway, as always, I hope you enjoy this chapter, please review if you do, I'm open to some constructive criticism, and I will see you on the other side!-Lauren's Glee Stories
Last Chapter... Santana's POV
"What is it?" Brittany asked sleepily,
'Uh, that I haven't seen you in years because you died in a car crash and I'm back from the future to save your life?' Santana thought to herself,
"Nothing," She replied,
"So, should we make out now or after the movie?" Brittany asked innocently, making Santana laugh.
Rachel's POV
Rachel was lying awake on her bed early on Sunday morning, a few days after she and Santana had performed 'So Emotional' for the second time, the thoughts racing around her head keeping her from going back to sleep.
There was one thing that had always bothered her about when Brittany and Finn had died, apart from the fact that they died, obviously.
"I never sang for them," She muttered to the empty room, running through it a couple of times,
She gasped and sat up in her bed,
"I never sang for Britt and Finn!" She realised, "I practically became a ghost in glee after the accident and never ended up paying tribute to them, leaving me to feel guilty about not saying goodbye properly," She said aloud,
A knock on her bedroom door startled her,
"Come in!" She called,
"Hey, honey, are you talking to someone?" Her dad, Leroy, asked her,
"Oh, uh, I just got off the phone with Tina," She lied, picking up her phone and waving it awkwardly to her father,
"Oh, okay, then, your father and I are going out for a while, but we'll be back for lunch," He explained,
"Cool, have fun!" She replied, perhaps being a bit more short than usual,
"Bye," He farewelled, smiling at her before leaving to her own devices,
She kept a wide grin on her face until she heard the car back out of their driveway, her face then shifting to one of sheer determination,
"It's simple," She told herself, "Performing a song to Finn and Britt will assuage some of my guilt from their death, and give me some measure of closure," She elaborated, "Now, to find the perfect song."
She spent the entire morning and most of the afternoon listening to her iPod to find the perfect song; listening to her playlist in the shower, on the treadmill, and whilst eating breakfast until finally, she heard it. The one. And it was perfect.
"The Band Perry! How did I not think of them before?" She practically yelled,
Her fathers just looked at her, faint amusement showing on their faces,
"May I be excused?" She backtracked,
"Of course, honey," Hiram replied fondly.
After she had found the song, she had to, of course, practice it. After all, practice makes perfect.
"If I die young, bury me in satin, lay me down in a bed of roses," She sang along with her music, frowning when a note didn't come out right, a rare occurrence for the singer,
"Lay me down in a bed of roses," She repeated, smiling when she nailed it,
"Sink me in the river, at dawn, se-" She continued, jumping when there was a knock on her door,
"Come in!" She yelled over the music, walking over to switch it off,
"Yes?" She asked, walking over to her mirror to fix her hair,
"It's me, midget," An amused voice replied,
Rachel jumped slightly and spun around, "Sorry, I thought you were one of my dads," She apologised,
"Uh-huh," Santana replied amusedly,
Rachel raised her eyebrow, "How'd you get in?" She questioned,
Her friend shrugged, "I knocked, Hiram answered, he called for you but obviously you didn't hear, so he said I could come up,"
Rachel narrowed her eyes suspiciously, "Daddy didn't give you any trouble, did he? Or Dad?" She asked, scanning over her friend as if to look for any sign of lying,
Santana chuckled, "He just gave me the stare, but let me go up," She assured Rachel, "I don't think they're too happy about us being friends," She laughed,
Rachel made a mental note to speak with her fathers later,
"I'm sure they are fine," She said firmly, going to sit on her bed,
"Yeah," Santana replied absent-mindedly, "Good song, by the way," She commented,
"Sorry?" Rachel replied, too distracted to understand what she meant,
Santana rolled her eyes, "If I Die Young; good song, your voice suits it really well," She elaborated,
Rachel nodded with a smile, "Thank you," She thanked,
Santana shrugged it off, "For Glee club? Or just for fun?"
"Glee," She replied, "It's a tribute of sort," She explained,
Santana tilted her head, but her eyes widened in realisation, "For Finn and Britt," She said,
Rachel looked away, but nodded, "Yeah,"
They fell into a semi-awkward silence as Rachel went to look through the lyrics and Santana looked at her photos,
"Can I sing with you?" Santana suddenly asked,
Rachel looked up in surprise, "Of course," She replied, "Have time to practice now?" She asked her friend,
Santana nodded with a small smirk, "Always."
Santana's POV
They had spent the rest of Sunday afternoon practising, and when school came around on Monday morning, they both felt as prepared as they could for the song. Santana was studying her nails when Mr Schue entered the room, and sat back in her seat, intending to let Rachel do the talking,
Rachel raised her hand at the start of Glee club and cleared her throat,
"Mr Schuester?" She questioned,
"Yes, Rachel," He replied, nodding for her to speak,
"Santana and I have a number we wish to perform," She told him,
He raised an eyebrow, "Another one?" He asked, probably confused that they wanted to do another number so soon after 'So Emotional', but Rachel nodded, "Uh, great, do you think it could wait until tomorrow?" He asked her,
Rachel shifted uncomfortably, really eager to perform that day,
"Sorry, Mr Schue, it's time-sensitive," Santana interrupted, standing up from her seat and putting her hand on Rachel's shoulder,
More than a few eyebrows were raised at that, but Mr Schue smiled, "Of course, take it away, then,"
They walked up to the middle of the room and she cleared her throat,
"What you guys don't know is that Rachel and I both went through some pretty crappy stuff a while ago," Santana started, trying to avoid Brittany's gaze,
"And while that was a dark time for both of us, it has sort of passed, and as you have seen, brought us closer together," Rachel continued,
"So, this is a tribute of sorts, to two people who meant, uh, mean, a lot to us," Santana finished, nodding to the band that she was going to start and ignoring the confused and worried looks on the club's faces,
Santana:
If I die young bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
Uh oh uh oh
Santana looked to Rachel when the singer started her verse, forever impressed, though she'd never say it, about how she could always project so much emotion into her voice without wavering or losing her composure.
Rachel:
Lord make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother
She'll know I'm safe with you when
She stands under my colours, oh and
Santana took a breath before joining her friend, keeping her eyes on the ground lest she completely lose her voice.
Santana and Rachel:
Life ain't always what you think it oughta be, no
Ain't even grey, but she buries her baby
The sharp knife of a short life,
Well, I've had just enough time
Once again, Rachel took over, singing the chorus with no fancy gestures or gimmicks, just herself and her voice.
Rachel:
If I die young bury me in satin.
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
The sharp knife of a short life,
Well I've had just enough time
Santana took a risk as she started her next part, looking to Brittany to judge her reaction. Her girlfriend was watching her closely, studying her as if trying to see right through her secret. Knowing Brittany, she'd either be exactly right or decide not to push her for answers. Santana hoped it was the second.
Santana:
And I'll be wearing white when I come into your kingdom
I'm as green as the ring on my little cold finger
I've never known the lovin' of a woman
But it sure felt nice when she was holding my hand
Once Santana stopped she looked at Rachel, observing her as she looked at Finn, who, whilst he looked concerned for his girlfriend, was clearly confused.
Rachel:
There's a boy here in town says he'll love me forever
Who would have thought forever could be severed by
The sharp knife of a short life,
Well I've had just enough time
So put on your best boys and I'll wear my pearls
What I never did is done
Rachel and Santana:
A penny for my thoughts, oh no I'll sell them for a dollar
They're worth so much more after I'm a goner
And maybe then you'll hear the words I been singin'
Funny when you're dead how people start listenin'
At the end of their joint part, Rachel looked at Santana with an expression she couldn't read. Santana raised an eyebrow at her during the break, and Rachel huffed, grabbing her hand.
'Ah, that's what she meant', Santana realised, adjusting her grip on Rachel's hand and holding it tight as she started her next chorus.
Santana:
If I die young bury me in satin
Lay me down on a bed of roses
Sink me in the river at dawn
Send me away with the words of a love song
Uh oh (uh oh)
The ballad of a dove
Rachel:
Go with peace and love
Rachel and Santana:
Gather up your tears, keep 'em in your pocket
Save 'em for a time when you're really gonna need 'em oh
Santana:
The sharp knife of a short life,
Well I've had just enough time
Rachel and Santana:
So put on your best boys, and I'll wear my pearls
The whole club burst into a kind of cautious applause once the music stopped.
Beside her, Rachel cleared her throat and left the room.
Finn got up to follow his girlfriend instantly and Santana took her seat next to Brittany.
"Excellent performance, girls, well done," Mr Schue applauded,
"You okay?" Brittany asked her in a quiet voice after the group had calmed down,
"I am now," Santana answered, "How's Lord Tubbington?" She queried, knowing the perfect way to calm Britt down and distract her,
"He's good," Brittany answered, "Though I'm worried about his drinking habits..."
Santana listened to Brittany as well as she could but felt herself getting light-headed, the sound of Brittany's voice sounding distant and distorted.
She stood up shakily, hearing Britts ask her if she was okay, but being unable to respond.
In this state, Santana couldn't begin to figure out what was happening. It was like her sight and hearing were both blurred.
She made her way for the door but felt herself blackout before she reached it, hearing faint voices in the background calling for her to wake up.
The first thing she noticed when she came to was that it was loud.
She rubbed her head, which had obviously been resting on the hard floor, and sat up slowly, taking in her surroundings.
"God damn it," She cursed when she realised where, or more accurately, when, she was,
"Santana!" A voice shouted from somewhere down the hallway, making Santana jump up,
"Rachel?" She called back, running down the hallway,
"Santana!" Rachel called again, sounding more desperate than before, and slightly closer,
"Where are you?" She called out, ignoring the weird looks from her peers, running down the hall towards the staffroom,
She rounded the corner and collided with another person,
"San?" Rachel spoke in a quiet voice,
"Rach," Santana breathed out, "What happened? Are you okay?" She asked her urgently,
"Am I okay?" Rachel replied exasperatedly, "I was talking to Finn, are you okay? What happened to you?" She asked,
"Nothing," Santana replied confusedly, "I was just talking to Britt, then I felt dizzy, passed out and woke up in the hall," She explained,
Rachel took a deep breath to calm herself, "Okay, so we're both okay," She muttered to herself, "The same thing happened to me," She added in a louder voice, "Passed out whilst I was talking to Finn," She elaborated,
"Right," Santana affirmed, only then realising that the pair of them were still sitting on the ground, people around them watching curiously,
She glared at the people staring, making them look away hastily, and stood up, offering a hand to Rachel, which the girl took gratefully,
"Right," Rachel said in agreement, "So, it would appear we did something wrong," She concluded,
"But what?" Santana questioned, "I mean, I don't see anything wrong with what we did,"
Her friend tilted her head in consideration,
"Finn and Brittany," She decided, "Let's go talk to them, in the bathroom,"
Santana nodded and followed Rachel to the nearest girl's bathroom,
She cleared her throat, "Britts, Finn, uh, can we talk or something?" She called out, feeling stupid as ever,
"Yup," Finn replied, making both girls jump and twist around,
"Jesus, can you not?" Santana muttered, rubbing her forehead,
Finn shrugged with a smirk, "One, it's fun. Two, no matter which way we did it, it'd scare you,"
"Not if you appeared in front of us," Rachel said pointedly,
Brittany smiled, "Like Finn said, it's fun," She said happily, "So, you want to know why you're back?" She asked knowingly,
Rachel sighed, "We didn't die, so it means we messed up, but we can't think of what we did wrong," She explained tiredly,
Finn winced, "I hope you weren't planning on us telling you..." He said slowly,
"How else will we find out?" Santana said, throwing her hands up in exasperation,
"Look, we can't tell you that, you have to figure it out on your own," Britt replied apologetically,
Finn opened his mouth to talk but closed it,
"Sorry," He finally said, "We need to go see the supervisor," He explained,
"Wait, but what do we-" Rachel started, but Brittany spun her circle and left, Finn leaving seconds after with an apologetic smile on his face,
"Urggghhhhh!" Rachel groaned,
"It's alright," Santana tried to assure her, "We just need to do what we did before and change something," She said decisively,
Rachel raised an eyebrow at her, clearly unimpressed,
"Look, that's all we can do!" Santana defended, "We do the same thing, changing different parts until we get it right," She explained,
The diva sighed, "I know, I know," She agreed, "Sorry," She apologised,
"Don't worry," Santana accepted,
"Now, we do everything the same, apart from getting shot like we did the time before last, and we change something that happened just before we came back," Rachel agreed,
"So, round three?" Santana asked with a strained smile,
Rach nodded, "Round three," She agreed unenthusiastically.
Rachel's POV
The day of their tribute performance came again, and the girls had spent the time since they arrived back in the past discussing what to change about this time around.
"Okay," Rachel said before they entered the choir room at the end of the day, "We do the performance, and instead of walking off, I stay in the room," She reminded her friend,
"Right," Santana agreed, "Let's do this," She said determinedly,
Once Mr Schuester arrived in the room, Rachel raised her hand like she had the last time, and requested that they perform their song, to which Mr Schuester agreed after Santana stepped in.
They gave their speech and started the song, performing almost exactly the same as they did the first time.
Rachel and Santana:
So put on your best boys, and I'll wear my pearls
As they sung the last line, Rachel tried to remain more composed than she did last time, and though it was hard, she managed to keep herself from crying as her peers applauded her and Santana's performance.
"Good job," Santana congratulated, "Now we'll stay here, sit down together and see what happens," She reminded,
Rachel nodded her agreement, smiling shakily at Finn as she sat down in between him and Santana.
A few moments passed and Rachel grinned, they were still there.
"Well, that was easy," She whispered in surprise to Santana,
"So that was it? Your diva storm off was what sent us back to the past?" Santana asked in an amused tone, smiling slightly,
"Shut up," Rachel muttered, smiling slightly, and wincing as she felt a headache coming on,
"You okay?" Santana asked her concernedly,
"Yeah, it's just," She answered, pausing when Santana also winced,
Realisation shone in Santana's eyes as they both realised what was happening,
"Shit," They both cursed, before passing out in the back of the choir room.
Rachel groaned and sat up,
"You okay, Rachel?" Kurt asked, fond amusement clear in his voice, "For a second I thought you had two left feet," He teased, offering his hand to help her up, which she took gratefully,
"Thanks," She thanked him, brushing off her dress, "I'm just going to head to the bathroom," She told him,
"You alright?" He asked concernedly, looking her over as if he was looking for any cuts or bruises from the fall,
"I'm fine," She replied, taking a step back, "I won't take long," She assured him, then walked out of the choir room to find Santana.
"Looks like it wasn't your storm out," Santana said grumpily from behind her,
She turned around to face her friend,"It would appear that way, yes," She replied,
"Round four?" Santana asked,
Rachel nodded, "Round four."
Rachel raised her hand and took a deep breath, ready to get past this one day that they had failed to clear twice,
"Mr Schuester?" She questioned,
"Yes, Rachel," He replied, nodding for her to speak,
"Santana and I have a number we wish to perform," She told him,
He raised an eyebrow, "Another one?" He queried like the last times, so she nodded, "Uh, great, do you think it could wait until tomorrow?" He asked her,
"Sorry, Mr Schue, it's time-sensitive," Santana replied, standing up from her seat and putting her hand on Rachel's shoulder,
Rachel ignored all of the eyebrows raised and Mr Schue smiled,
"Of course, take it away, then,"
"What you guys don't know is that Rachel and I both went through some pretty crappy stuff a while ago," Santana started, trying to avoid Brittany's gaze, already sounding bored of repeating the same words,
"And while that was a dark time for both of us, it has sort of passed, and as a result, brought us closer together," Rachel continued,
"So, this is a tribute of sorts, to two people who mean a lot to us," Santana finished, nodding to the band that she was going to start.
Rachel and Santana:
So put on your best boys, and I'll wear my pearls
This time when they finished the song Rachel couldn't bear to be in the room any longer. She tried to keep calm but she felt herself getting more and more anxious about the thought of going back again and before she knew it she was having a full-blown anxiety attack, leaving her with no option other than to leave the room.
She ignored the looks on her friends' faces and walked as quickly as she could down the hallway to get some fresh air,
"Rachel! Wait!" Santana called after her, but she kept walking, practically jogging outside and coming to a stop at the bleachers,
'Just breathe, Rachel, nothing's wrong, you're okay,' She told herself, repeating the mantra as she desperately tried to steady her breathing,
"Rach," Santana said cautiously, making her jump slightly, "It's alright, you're fine," She assured her, "Just breathe, okay, nothing's wrong, we're all okay," She told Rachel, sitting next to her and putting her hand over hers,
Rachel nodded to show she had heard but apart from that remained in her own little bubble as she tried to breathe and calm herself.
Santana didn't move, nor did she say anything else. She simply sat there, her hand over Rachel's. Offering exactly what the girl needed at that moment.
After a few minutes had passed, Rachel finally spoke,
"Thank you, Santana," She whispered,
"Are you feeling better?" She replied,
"Much," Rachel answered, "I don't know what happened but I freaked," She admitted,
"Want a lift?" Santana offered, holding up her car keys,
Rachel grinned, "Always," She accepted.
As they pulled up outside of Rachel's house twenty minutes later, Rachel realised something,
"We're still here," She muttered,
"Hmm?" Santana replied,
"We're still here, now, which means we didn't mess it up," Rachel said in a louder voice,
Santana tilted her head,
"You're right," She whispered, "At this rate, who knows, maybe we'll even make Tuesday!" She exclaimed in a faux excited voice,
Rachel hit her friend's arm, "Shut up," She huffed,
"See you tomorrow?" Santana asked her,
"Of course," Rachel replied, "Text me if anything life-changing happens," She half-joked,
Santana scoffed, "Yes, mom,"
Rachel raised an eyebrow at her, "Goodbye, Santana," She said in a sing-song voice, stepping out of the car but holding the door open,
"Bye, Rach," San replied softly, "Don't kill us," She joked,
Rachel just smiled as she closed the door, and watched Santana drive off, pleased with the fact that she would be able to see another sunrise.
A/N: I always thought Rachel's voice would have gone have perfectly with this song, and I thought she might have some closures issues about Finn's death (and Brittany's), considering she closed herself off to most of the world for a long time afterwards. I know Rachel was very strong after Finn's death in canon and did sing for him, but in my mind in this story, she was young, and Finn's death destroyed both her and her plans for the future. I can imagine Rachel becoming a bit of a ghost in glee club after Finn's death because, though it's so important to her, Finn was a huge part of Glee for her from the start. Santana, in my opinion, wouldn't have had the same overwhelming urge for closure but would have been a bit of moral support for Rachel, as we, hopefully, see when they introduce the song.
I hope this chapter wasn't too confusing with the jumps in time we saw, but if you have any questions about the timeline or anything, feel free to PM me or leave it in a review and I'll get back to you as soon as I can! Sorry for the delay in chapters, again. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please review if you did and I'll see you next time!-Lauren's Glee Stories