About 80 miles south of Quinn, Rachel was currently sprawled out on a couch in her apartment mindlessly watching television. It had only been a week since she arrived in New York with Kurt and already she was bored. Don't get her wrong, Broadway was still her dream and she loved the city dearly, but her plan had always been to get to New York and now that it was accomplished, she felt lost. She wished Kurt would come back already. Though she would never admit it to him, she longed for his company. The city was huge and full of people and it scared her. It scared her how real everything seemed now. It was time to grow up and assume her responsibilities as an adult. Was she ready for life? Or would should crumble and fall? The starkness of reality was something she would have to come to terms with eventually, but right now, she was perfectly alright with being blissfully innocent. Tomorrow college would start and she was sure that everything would fall back into place then. As she mindlessly flipped through the channels, going from one brainless reality show to the next, she thought of how much she craved the heat of a warm body next to her. She missed Finn. Granted, he was mediocre when it came to romance and a lousy boyfriend the majority of the time, but he had cared about her and that was more than what most people did. She was going to continue wallowing, until she heard the sound of someone unlocking the door. Quickly turning off the TV, she positioned herself on the couch to look like she had been napping. She heard Kurt call out her name as he walked through the door and pretended to wake up from a deep sleep upon his arrival.

"Hey, Kurt. How was your shopping trip?" she asked with a yawn.

"You know, Rachel, I do other things besides shopping. I was out getting some coffee with the guys we met from the NYADA mixer a few days ago, which you could've gone to, but you apparently had some pressing matter to deal with," replied Kurt sarcastically.

Indeed, she had gone to that mixer and while Kurt had fit in perfectly, she had felt uncomfortable and unwanted. Her future peers had looked at her with disdain and it made her sick because she felt like she was back in high school. It wasn't even the first day yet and people already judged her without even bothering to know who she was. Maybe if she had tried harder to assimilate, then she wouldn't feel so abandoned, but it was a lonely journey to the top; she knew that. Knowing it didn't make anything easier though. Kurt had noticed how withdrawn she had become and had attempted to draw her out into the public, but she had found solace in her solitude. Sure there were times when she would succumb to her loneliness, but for the most part, she liked having the time to think.

"Earth to Rachel," Kurt said as he waved his hand in front of Rachel. "Is anyone there?"

"Sorry, Kurt. I was just thinking," answered Rachel.

"Yea, that's what you always say and you have yet to tell me anything you've been thinking about," countered Kurt.

"I'll tell you when I want, Kurt. Can you please not push the subject any further? How was coffee," asked Rachel with a sigh.

"Not as good as ye old Lima Bean, but it was decent. I miss having coffee with Blaine though. Wait...ah, shit. I left my favorite sunglasses at the café; I'm going to have to go back and get them," said Kurt.

"Really, Kurt? Is that absolutely necessary?" Rachel said with an eye roll.

"These are Warby Parker sunglasses; I refuse to just leave them behind. I'll be back in half an hour or so," huffed Kurt and off he went.

"And there he goes," muttered Rachel to herself bitterly. It wasn't right for her to be mad at Kurt; it's not like the boy had done anything wrong. In actuality, she was jealous of how easy everything seemed to be going for him. He deserved it, he really did after all he had been through and she was happy for Kurt. Hopefully time would sort everything out. Hopefully. Instead of continuing her miserable thoughts, she opted for a shower instead. Kurt usually used up all the hot water and she hated the feeling of lukewarm or cold water when all you want is heat. Along her way to the bathroom, she grabbed her towel, pajamas and iPod. While letting the water warm up, she scrolled through her music library until finally settling on the perfect shower song for tonight. She plugged the player into the speakers, pressed play and stepped into the warmth. The sensation of water hitting her bare body was relaxing. The waves of music crashed over here and enveloped her in their hold. Music always set her free and that would never change. She had picked a song that reflected her current mood and could not resist the urge to sing as she bathed.

Everyone thinks that I have it all,
But it's so empty living behind these castle walls,
These castle walls.

Perhaps it was her fault for placing so many defenses around herself.

If I should tumble if I should fall,
Would any one hear me screaming behind these castle walls,
There's no-one here at all, behind these castle walls.

Would anyone hear her? Did she have anyone in her life who cared about her anymore?

As the music swelled, her voice rose as well and the sound that came from Rachel's lips could be compared with that of the sirens who lured sailors to their death with song. When Rachel sang, all the pieces of the puzzle fit. But the minute she stopped, they would all fall apart again. The stress from the past week had disheartened her so much that even singing couldn't offer her a short reprieve. Suddenly, she became aware of a loud banging noise and realized that someone was knocking on the door. Shutting off the water, she grabbed her towel and hastily wrapped it around her dripping body. Kurt probably forgot his keys again because who else would be knocking at their door? Grumbling as she walked towards the door, she was thrown completely off guard when she opened the door to reveal a middle aged man that she had never been before.

"Um...hello. May I..." started Rachel, but before she could finish, the man interrupted her.

"Were you the girl belting obnoxiously loud a few minutes ago?" asked the man.

"Um, yes?" replied Rachel hesitantly.

"Well fucking shut up. Some of us here like the peace and quiet without having Broadway wanabees tearing down the whole place," and with that, the man walked back to his room which happened to be right next to Rachel's.

"I'm sorry," Rachel whispered to no one in particular.

She closed the door.

She missed the sense of newness the city had held when she first arrived. Ever since the glee club had nationals there, it had always been her source of inspiration. The day she had moved in, the first thing she had done was visit Times Square and stood in the midst of it all and breathed in all the Big Apple had to offer. She had done this at least once every day since; hoping to receive some sign about what to do next. It's not like she believed any of that supernatural bullcrap, but sometimes it was nice to believe in something rather than seemingly waiting around for nothing. A slight breeze blew through an open window and Rachel shivered. She had forgotten that she was still in naught except a towel and her cheeks flushed with embarrassment even though no one was there to see her. Making her way back to the shower, she decided that it wasn't worth it to get back in and got dressed instead. The heart printed sleepwear still smelled faintly of home and she pretended like she was back there, having a conversation with her dads or perhaps coming up with a new set list for glee.

It was still too late to go to bed, so she plopped down on the couch and turned on the TV again. Breakfast at Tiffany's was playing and Rachel smiled to herself. No matter how many time she would watch this movie, it would never get old. Rachel watched as the great Audrey Hepburn commandeered the screen.

"I'm like Cat here, a no-name slob. We belong to nobody, and nobody belongs to us. We don't even belong to each other," stated Holly Golightly.

Rachel had never really understood that line when she previously watched the movie, but now it made more sense than ever. Out here on her on, she was nobody. She had nobody and she was nobody. Oh well, she thought to herself. Tomorrow would be a new day and she would try harder to make new friends then. Just as she was about to get up and make herself some chamomile tea to help her fall asleep, the door unlocked and Kurt walked through looking flustered.

"Well, that was a complete waste of money and time," he said as he took off his coat.

"I take it that you didn't find your sunglasses then? I could've told you that before you even walked out the door," Rachel remarked.

"No, I didn't! And I swear I saw a guy walk out holding them; he probably stole them," Kurt said, his voice laced with menace. "Anyway, I'm tired so I'm going to go take a shower and then head to bed. Goodnight, Rachel."

"Goodnight, Kurt. Sweet dreams."

Rachel probably should've told Kurt about the incident regarding their neighbor, but it wasn't necessary to burden the boy with such an insignificant problem. It's not like they needed their neighbor for anything anyway, so what was the point? She returned her attention to making tea and went to the cupboard to get the kettle and tea bags. While she waited for the water to boil, she took out her phone to check it. Of course there were no missed calls or texts or new emails; everyone was probably too busy with their own lives. However, Rachel herself was determined to keep in touch with her high school friends and shot off a few quick texts to the former glee club members to ask how they were. After pressing send, the tea kettle started whistling, so she poured the water into her mug and allowed the tea to steep for a bit. Once she had deemed the tea acceptable, she picked up her phone and mug and carried them to her room. She opened up a window and climbed out onto the fire escape. It was peaceful out here. The city made it's own soundtrack and Rachel loved listening to it. Eventually, the wind began to blow too fiercely for her taste's, so she retreated back into her room. Placing the cup on her desk, she quickly looked at her phone again to see if anyone had replied. To her surprise, one person had and it was the person she had assumed to be least likely to respond.

From Quinn: Hey, Rachel. It's nice to hear from you. I'm doing alright here; Yale's a beautiful place. How are things with you? Ready for NYADA?

Rachel found it difficult to not call the blonde and immediately pour out all her problems to her. If Quinn was willing to talk to her, she shouldn't ruin it by talking about how much her life sucked.

To Quinn: Everything's fine here, I was just getting ready to go to bed. My first day is tomorrow, so I should probably get some sleep so I don't go to school looking like a zombie. I don't really need anymore nicknames."

She waited a bit to see if Quinn would reply, afraid that she had overstepped a line with her last sentence. It was true that Quinn had called her multiple demeaning names in the past, but the girl had come a long way since then. Rachel made a quick note to not indirectly attack Quinn if the girl decided to text her back and then climbed into bed. It wasn't long before sleep overtook her body and she was snoring in a matter of minutes.

She didn't hear her phone buzz.

Author's Note: So now you got to see the story from Rachel's POV. Next chapter will probably contain some Faberry interaction and will be long(probably)! Hope you guys liked this chapter and let me know what you think. Please?

Song is called Castle Walls by TI ft. Christina Aguilera

Quote is from the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's

All media referenced belong to their respective owners.