Disclaimer: I do not own Glee.
A.N. My thanks as always to my beta reader xXLittleRoseAngelXx who encouraged me to publish this when I wasn't sure it was good enough.
Summary: A short story of friendship, love and Happily Ever After.
"Daddy, do you know where the glue and glitter gun are?" Rachel called out in greeting to her father, Hiram, who had just arrived home after a busy day at work.
"Hello to you too, Star!" Hiram replied, wondering what new project his ten-year-old daughter had started. Only two evenings previous, she and her partner-in-crime had transformed the Berries' outdoor pool into a giant bubble bath, after somehow knocking five boxes of detergent into the water. Rachel had told her parents that she had simply been trying to show Noah how to do laundry when the incident had occurred.
Walking into the family room, Hiram saw Rachel and Noah sitting side by side, both writing furiously on large sheets of coloured paper. "Sorry, Daddy, we're trying to beat a deadline."
"It's very important," Noah added, not looking up but instead trying to find a particular colour of marker, which Rachel handed to him with a smile.
"Can I help?" Hiram asked, wondering what was so urgent that it kept both children inside on such a beautiful summer afternoon. Rachel whispered softly to Noah, her small hand resting on his for a moment. Standing, she made her way into the kitchen, Hiram following, still puzzled by the unusual behaviour of the children. "What did you and Noah do today?" he asked, slightly concerned by how quiet his normally chatty daughter was being.
"Well, Becca is teething again, so Noah got very little sleep last night, you know how that makes him a little grumpy, so he slept on the sofa while I made some cookies. He helped me to ice the special one we made for his mom as it's her birthday but she thinks we don't know that. We want to surprise her, though, so don't tell her please. Anyway, then we decided to make her a big card. That's why I need to use the glitter gun, which you know I'm always careful with after that time I got glitter stuck in Noah's hair."
The speed and content of Rachel's answer was a clear indication to Hiram that something was not quite right, but he knew not to push the matter. Instead, he picked up the tray and brought it back into the family room, noting the look that past between Rachel and Noah.
"Daddy, we were wondering if you could help Noah get a present for his mom," Rachel said.
"I think I know what she'd like, but I'm just not sure where to find it," Noah added.
"We can go to the mall..." Hiram began, only to be interrupted by Noah.
"I want to find my dad, bring him back. I just know if he came back then we could be a family again, that Mom wouldn't be so sad anymore."
"While I've been putting the finishing touches to the card , Noah's been making 'missing' posters, like Mrs Ben Israel made when her cat disappeared, though I think Jacob knows more about that than he's letting on."
"May I see them?" Hiram asked, his heart breaking at the innocence of both children. After Mr Puckerman had left his wife, his son and unborn daughter, both Hiram and Leroy had done their best to shield Noah and Rachel from the worst of the gossip. They had been a great source of support to Sarah Puckerman as she picked up the pieces of her life as best she could. "These are very well made, Noah, but I don't think they will work. Not how you want them to. Sometimes a grown up gets lost and it takes them a long time to find their way again." Hiram chose his words carefully, not wanting to give false hope to the young boy.
Again, he watched as the children whispered to one another, before reaching some decision. "At least Rachel suggested a back-up present for mom. Maybe next year my dad will have found his way back. We don't have to mention him to her, do we?" Noah asked, his voice telling Hiram that the boy was more aware of what was going on, even if he didn't fully understand that his father would probably never return to Lima.
Any further conversation was halted by the ringing of the house phone. After speaking to his husband for about ten minutes, Hiram returned to the family room only to discover it empty, the craft supplies left neatly where they belonged. Hearing hushed voices from the top of the stairs, he found himself moving closer, wanting to check that Noah was okay. He watched as Rachel carefully wiped away a tear that was running down Noah's cheek, before guiding his head to rest on her shoulder.
"We can always go looking for him ourselves, if you want," Rachel said slowly, wanting to do whatever she could to help her friend.
"He knows where we are, Ray. 'Sides, Mom needs me here to help her and I still have to show you how to punch properly, just in case Jacob tries to kiss you again."
"I don't know why he thinks I would want to kiss him anyway. Not after he pulled me hair and stole my ribbon like that last week." Hiram couldn't help laughing at the memory of Noah running after Rachel's would-be suitor; the chase only ended once the smaller boy had been convinced to return the stolen item to its rightful owner.
"Kissing is a strange thing don't you think?" Noah asked.
"Daddy says you should only share kisses with someone special, that it's another way to show them how much you care for them. He also said that you never forget your first kiss so to be sure to make it count."
Noah lifted his head from its resting place, turning so that he could look properly at Rachel. His eyes swept over her face and he felt himself moving closer towards her. "You have such long eyelashes, Ray," he whispered, watching as they fluttered shut, his own mimicking the actions. The first soft brush of his lips on hers almost made Rachel jump, but instead she allowed herself to relax, to enjoy the moment. She felt Noah move away, but it was only for a second. Their lips met again, their hands found each other and time seemed to stand still. Rachel was aware of the rapid beating of her heart, of the way Noah's thumb moved in circles on her hand and the lights that seemed to shimmer in front of her eyes as the kiss came to an end.
"Wow. That was..." For some reason, seeing Noah so lost for words was comforting to Rachel. Her daddy had been right, there was no way she would ever forget a single detail of this kiss she had just shared with her best friend and the look in his eyes told her that the feeling was mutual.
It wasn't until many years later that Noah had finally confessed just how much he had relied on the memory of that moment to keep his sanity through what he referred to as the 'lost years'. It was the one small sliver of light in those dark days of giving up Beth, of watching his mother struggle to make ends meet, of not really knowing if he could be more than the 'Lima Loser' people thought it was. His father may not have found his way back to his family, but Noah proved Hiram's words right, that with enough time, a lost person can find their way home once more, and with Rachel Berry waiting for you, only a fool would stay away.
A.N. Thank you all for taking the time to read this, please let me know what your thoughts are. Reviews are love! ~Carrie