Chapter 13: To Start Over

Everyone noticed Finn hasn't been himself for days after seeing Rachel and finding everything about the past. Though, he did try to put a smile on his face whenever he was around his students and Lauren.

Finn came down at twelve in the afternoon on a Saturday. Lauren was coloring, Puck was cleaning the dishes, and Sam was practice a new melody on the guitar. "Hi daddy."

"HI." Finn greets Lauren. He sits on the kitchen counter seat and Sam throws him a coffee. "Dark. Just like you like it."

"Thanks." Finn responds taking a sip of his coffee.

"Are you sick? Is that why you're sad?" Lauren asked her father.

"I'm fine." Finn says, feeling guilty he lied to his little girl. "Okay..If you say so." Lauren said shrugging her shoulders. She leaves the living room.

Puck sighs. "You know you just lied to her."

"Excuse me. I need a moment to myself." Sam and Puck watch Finn leave the house. He grabbed his car keys. He isn't sure where he's going but he just couldn't stand to be in the house.

Hiram and Rachel held their daughter while she sobs in their arms on her bedroom. She's been like this for days. The only thing the Berry's could do was rock her back and forth. She woke up crying and slept with swollen eyes every day.

Rachel felt that everything was her fault. She didn't deserve anyone, especially not Finn and Lauren. She was too devastated to realize that she soaked her father's work uniforms. "I can't believe what I did. I'm doing more horrible things by soaking your shirts!" She says sobbing.

Leroy shook his head. "No, no baby girl. It's not your fault."

"And we completely understand. You did what you needed to do." Hiram says rubbing her back up and down.

"But look where it got me! Nowhere! I have nothing!" Rachel cried. "Nothing at all!"

"What do you want?" Hiram asked concerned.

She sits up and wipes her tears. "To start over!" She says. She slowly stands up and quickly walks away from her room.

"Rachel!" Her father's yelled after her. Rachel was long gone before she heard her name.

Something told Finn to take a walk at the boardwalk but he didn't know what. He eventually did.

He felt bad about the way he left the house. How he lied to his daughter. He didn't mean too, it just happened.

All this time he wanted to know why Rachel left and why she refused to meet Lauren. And now he knows. Sometimes he wished he didn't find out. When he first heard Jesse St. James, he felt like they were back in high school again. That time when Rachel used to date him. He wondered if Jesse even knew that she had a miscarriage with his baby. He wanted to find him. He wanted to say what's in his mind, how he hurt Rachel, how he was the reason for all of this. But he didn't want to ca use a scene. He had to be the bigger man, for himself, and Lauren. Each day he went back and forth thinking about how Lauren always asks about Rachel. He then asked why? Why did Rachel do it? Why did Rachel do this to him and Lauren?

He kicks the sand with his shoes. He throws rocks in the ocean. He continued to do so, letting out all his frustration. As he turned around, he didn't realize who he bumped into. She wore sunglasses and had a brown hat.

"Sorry.." He apologized. That's when he knew who it was. Rachel. She had her arms crossed. "I didn't.. Rachel?"

"It's me." She says quietly.

"I was just leaving." Finn says with his arms crossed as well.

"Um oh." Was all Rachel could really say.

"Do you normally take walks on the boardwalk when you're here?"

"No. I just needed to get away."

"To think?" Finn asked. "That's what I was doing."

"Oh." Rachel responds.

"Why do you keep saying oh?" Finn asked concerned.

"Cause I have nothing to say to you." Rachel lied. She had a lot of things to say.

"I have a lot to say to you." Finn says as he raised an eyebrow.

"Oh." Rachel said for the third time.

"You know what? I'll just talk.." Finn lets out a deep sigh. "Jesse and I were cool at the end of our high school year. We were friends..But you know what I think about him now that I know what you did to me? I think of him as a jerk, in fact his name is Jesse. St. Jerk! He caused you a lot of pain-not even you, us! Does he even know you lost his baby-" Rachel shook her head angrily. "Stop, Finn! Just stop!'

"I'm not done." Finn says. "Don't you think he deserves to know? Or are you running from him as well?" He asked, not realizing he was getting loud that some people on the beach could hear him shouting. "Tell me the truth, Rachel!"

"He doesn't know okay!" Rachel shouted back. "It's over with him!"

"I can't be with you..I can't let Lauren be with you!"

"So you're stopping me from meeting my daughter?!"

"If that's what it takes.."

"Don't make this about you!" Rachel cried. "Look, you said it's also about Lauren. So there, I do have a right to meet her."

"Keep thinking that!" With that, Finn turns his back around and walks angrily back to his car. He's stopped by Rachel.

"Finn wait!" Rachel calls after him. "What the hell are we doing?! We're not teenagers anymore. We're adults."

"And?" Finn asked as he turned around. Rachel started to remember all the times they had together before their lives changed. How they were happy, especially with Lauren being born, and so many more memories.

He stares at her waiting. She wanted to forgive and forget. She was hoping she wouldn't going to regret this. She ran to him, hugged him, and kissed him on the lips.

All the sudden it started to rain. They didn't care they were getting soaked and wet.

This is what Rachel wanted.

To start over.

AU: I hope you guys are happy with the ending! Please don't stop reading. It gets better!:)