Chapter 8: Twenty-Four Hours

Sam felt terrible for suggesting Finn to go out and have fun. He didn't think he would come back in the worst mood ever. He was in a funk, but couldn't let his students see him this way. That isn't the only problem; Lauren came down with the flu. She woke up three times crying and throwing up. The hotel smelled like vomit, it almost made Finn throw up.

Puck tried to keep the family getting together since he knew a very big day was coming. He knew the story of what happened in Serendipity. He knew who Finn saw. He understood why he was so down.

"Daddy!" Lauren whined as she lay in bed. She was coughing non-stop. There was a bucket by her bed side, towels, and teddy bears. Finn rushed over to wet the towel and put warm water gently on her face. He gave her Strawberry medicine in which she refused to take. "Daddy! No! No!"

"Baby girl, please..It's going to get you better."

"I don't want that!"

"But we know what's right. You need to take one cup.."

"Daddy." Lauren began to cry. Finn sighed. He carefully sat Lauren on his lap. "Ssh baby." He says rocking her gently. Suddenly Puck came in with candy. "Here, I have candy." Finn glares at Puck. He knew candy wasn't going to make Lauren feel better.

Lauren clinged to her daddy, crying. "Candy? Are you an idiot?!" Finn shouted. Lauren's cries became worse.

"It's good for kids! Listen; just give her a piece of a candy after she drinks the medicine so she won't taste it. It worked for me when I was little." Puck responds.

Finn strokes Lauren's curls. "The problem is that she won't drink the medicine."

"Then she won't get better.." Puck responds. Finn held Lauren tight as Lauren started fidgeting and whimpering. "She has the stomach flu."

"Are you Dr. Hudson now?"

"I know what she has, Puck. She's had this before." Finn said sounding frustrated. "I love you, Lauren. I really do, but I hate to leave you." Finn begins to explain that he can't stay with Lauren for the rest of the day. He had to be with his students to prepare them for one last time.

"Please! Daddy no! No!" Lauren cries turned into sob. Her curls were all over her face and snot coming down her nose. "Daddy..I want you!"

"Oh, baby girl..I'm sorry. I need to be with my kids."

"I'm your kid!" Lauren said, her sobs getting louder.

"You'll be with Puck daddy, okay? he'll take care of you..And if you need a laugh, Dad will be here." He says giving her a kiss on the head. Lauren gave Finn a hard time as he handed Lauren over to Puck.

The one thing they hated about raising a child is when they get sick. "Daddy loves you." He says. He grabs his clothes to take a shower.

He was later out the door, leaving an hysteric Lauren.

Twelve students raging from the age of fourteen-eighteen sat in the waiting room. They looked at their teacher Mr. Hudson as he was giving them the last competition talk. They had a wonderful time in New York. What would make it even more wonderful is winning that trophy. "I'm very proud of you guys. You've come a long way. Get up at that stage with pride. I know you guys can do this." He said smiling. Suddenly he didn't feel so well and sat down. "Are you okay?" Fifteen-year old Luke Thomas asked.

"Umm...just a little dizzy." Finn responds.

"That doesn't look like dizzy to me." Samantha responds with her knowledge. "You must be coming down with the flu."

"I think you could be right. My daughter's ill with the stomach flu. She threw up two times last night."

"Is she okay?" Seventeen-year old Jake Daniels asked concerned.

"She's not doing well. She was holding onto me, not wanting to me to leave her. I hate leaving her when she needs me the most." Finn sighs.

The students felt Finn's sadness. "Are you going to still watch us tomorrow? You know, considering you don't feel so well?" Fourteen-year old Angela Lombardi asked.

"Of course I'll be there. I wouldn't miss it for the world." Finn smiles. He opened his arms to form a group hug but nobody came to hug him. "Oh right, I might be coming down with a cold." He laughs. His students laugh along with him.

It's been a routine that Finn spends the last night on before the competition having dinner with the New Directions family. He called the guys to check on how Lauren was doing. She would take naps, throw up again, and cry for Finn. Lauren never got off his mind. "To Nationals!" Samantha says holding a glass at Olive Garden.

"To Nationals!" The club and Finn cheered. "When we took the 2012 trophy, it was one of the greatest days of our lives. I want you guys to experience what we did. It's the most amazing feeling of your life." Finn tells his students with a huge smile on his face. "We're going to continue the legacy."

The students smile at him. "Feeling better, Mr. Hudson?" Jake asked.

"I'm hanging in there. I'm eating light tonight..so I won't come down with the cold." Finn winked at everyone at the large table. "You kids better get some goodnight sleep. No partying hard or staying late." He warns them. The students moan. "You've had your fun. Now it's time to get serious." He says in a serious voice.

Finn nods his head with a smile after every student glanced at each other. They finally agreed that tonight meant serious practice.

Finn called it a night. He called it a night full of excitement and worries. He was getting home late since his train wasn't working so he had to wait an hour for his bus. He didn't have enough money for the taxi. He got off the phone after talking to Lauren who woke up from having a nightmare. He took a deep breath. He just wants to be home and cuddle with his princess even if she was sick as a dog. He was exhausted that he leaned against the pole by the bus stop. He didn't care how much germs were touched by there. He opened and closed his eyes, trying not to fall asleep. That's when he realized the young woman again standing five feet away. She was texting on her iPhone.

She looked up every two minutes to see if the bus was coming. She walks over to the pole to see what time it would arrive. She must have been tired, since she didn't realize Finn standing by. "R-Rachel?" Finn spoke up. He wasn't stupid. He wasn't blind. That's who she was all along. His Rachel. Rachel Barbra Berry. "Rachel?" He called out again after she tries to quickly run back. "Wait! Rachel!" Finn runs after her.

He gently grabs her by the arm. "Please don't walk away." Finn pleads, holding her. "I know it's you. I know it was you at Serendipity the other night. Please, just..."

"Just what?" She spoke up, trying to hold back tears. "Give you another chance?!" She watched his every mood. He went from calm to anger.

"I didn't do anything to you!" Finn yelled out angrily.

"Yes, you did!"

"Oh, yeah...tell me what I did! Because the last thing I remember was that you left and I came running back for you. So, did you leave to become a Broadway star?"." Finn says rudely.

He stared at Rachel. Her eyes were becoming teary. She was trying to be strong for herself. She couldn't cry in front of him. "You have no right." She said, slapping him hard across the face. He held his right cheek with his hand. "Rachel.."

"No! You don't even have a clue why I left!" Rachel began yelling through her tears. "You can't judge me!" She tries to walk away for the second time. And for the second time, Finn held her arm gently. "Let's just talk about this calmly.."

Rachel crosses her arms. "You started yelling.."

"And I'm sorry." Finn apologized. "Can we just talk?" He asked waiting patiently. He clears his throat. "For the past six years, I've raised Lauren. She's so beautiful, she's great, she's intelligent, she's a lot like you, and she's a spitting image of you. Recently she asked about her mother. Do you know how hard it is to talk about you? Do you wonder how I stay strong for her? Sure, I have Sam and Puck, everyone from Glee club minus the Hummel-Andersons but sometimes I feel lonely. I'm not with the woman I'm supposed to love and marry. I'm not with the mother of my daughter. I never stopped loving you Rachel.." Rachel began sobbing, covering her mouth with her hands.

"And you've always been on my mind. Please, just tell me why.." He begs calmly, waiting patiently for Rachel to speak. "This is all too much..." Rachel says sobbing.

"Just come to my show tomorrow. It' s Nationals, at the St. Charles theater. I'd really appreciate if you come. Maybe we can talk some more there?" He offered.

Rachel shook her head. "Finn, we can't do this. I have to go." She ran to the other direction, far from Finn, as fast as she could. As she ran, she was hoping this wasn't reality.

Most of you guys were right about Rachel being Lauren's mom! But uh-oh what happens next?!