Rachel walked into the Glee room later that week without her usual confidence. She was actually scared for this performance. The last thing she wanted to do was make Finn angry. But it's none of his business. I'm simply doing the assignment, she reminded herself. Her troubled expression melted away when she saw Quinn waving her over, pointing to an empty seat beside her, wearing an easy grin. Rachel grinned back and took the offered seat. Quinn reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly. And though she had only known this side of Quinn for a few days, Rachel found the gesture incredibly comforting. Soon her pose was relaxed and her face matched Quinn's.
"Okay, guys. Performance time. Who wants to go first?" Mr. Schue asked as he walked into the choir room.
Quinn's hand shot up so incredibly fast that even Rachel was surprised.
"Mr. Schue, I have a song that is really meaningful that I would like to sing."
Mr. Schue looked taken aback but allowed Quinn to come down and take center stage. "Let's hear it."
Quinn gave a signal, and the band began to play. She looked at Rachel, smiled, took a deep breath, and began to sing.
Did some things you can't speak of
But at night you live it all again
You wouldn't be shattered on the floor now
If only you had seen what you know now then
Wasn't it easier in your firefly catching days?
When everything out of reach somebody bigger brought down to you
Wasn't it beautiful running wild till you fell asleep?
Before the monsters caught up to you
It's alright, just wait and see,
Your string of lights are still bright to me, oh
Who you are is not where you've been
You're still an innocent
It's okay, life is a tough crowd
17 you're still growing up now
Who you are is not what you did
You're still an innocent
Time turns flames to embers
You'll have new Septembers
Everyone of us has messed up too
Lives change like the weather
I hope you'll remember
Today is never too late to
Be brand new
Lost your balance on a tightrope, oh
It's never too late to get it back
The song ended, and the room was silent. Finally, Quinn cleared her throat and looked at Rachel, whose eyes had filled with tears. "Rachel, that song was meant for you. You made a mistake, but so has everybody else. And one mistake doesn't dictate who you are. I just wanted you to know that. And that I'll be here for you. I'm not going anywhere."
Mr. Schue smiled as Rachel nodded. "Great, Quinn. Really inspirational. Okay. Next?"
Quinn had returned to her seat and was now looking at Rachel expectantly. "You can do this," she whispered to her, and Rachel smiled, repeating the words, before sticking up her hand. "Mr. Schue? I'd like to go next, if you don't mind."
"Not at all, Rachel. Let's hear what you came up with."
Rachel stood in front of the club, trying to ready herself for her performance. She had never gotten stage fright before, but now she found that her palms were slick with sweat, and she was trembling.
"Rachel?" Mr. Schue prompted gently.
"Oh. Right. I chose the song 'Haunted'."
There were a few more minutes of silence, until Mr. Schue spoke again.
"Could we hear it?"
There were several snickers from the other Glee clubbers, and Rachel blushed.
Get a grip, Rachel told herself. "Of course." She nodded at the violinists, and they began to play. Then Rachel took a deep breath, looked directly at Finn, and sang.
Stood there and watched you walk away from everything we had
But I still mean every word I say to you
People try to take away my pain, and he just might make me smile
But the whole time I'm wishing he was you instead
Oh whoa, holding my breath
Won't see you again
Something keeps me holding on to nothing
Come on, come on, don't leave me like this
I thought I had you figured out
Something's gone terribly wrong,
You're all I wanted
Come on, come on, don't leave me like this,
I thought I had you figured out
Can't breathe whenever you're gone
Can't turn back
Now I'm haunted
I know, I know, I just know, you're not gone, you can't be gone, no
Come on, come on, don't leave me like this,
I thought I had you figured out
Something's gone terribly wrong,
Won't finish what you started
Come on, come on, don't leave me like this,
I thought I had you figured out
Can't breathe whenever you're gone,
Can't go back
I'm haunted
Oh
You and I walk a fragile line,
I have known it all this time,
But I never thought I'd see it break
Never thought I'd see it
By the time the song was done there were tears streaming down Rachel's face. She was still looking at Finn, and she waited for him to say something. Anything. But his features remained cold.
Mr. Schue clapped slowly. "Great job Rachel. You really put a lot of emotion into that song."
Rachel remained frozen, until Quinn gently called her name, snapping Rachel out of her thoughts.
"Thanks," she whispered, and she went back to sit with Quinn.
"Mr. Schue? I'd like to do my song now, please."
Finn's voice was flat and emotionless, almost as though he was afraid of giving away too much. Rachel swallowed thickly and kept her gaze focused on the ground as Finn began to sing.
It's strange to think the songs we used to sing
The smiles, the flowers everything…is gone
Yesterday I found out about you
Even now just looking at you
Feels wrong
You say that you'd take it all back, given one chance
It was a moment of weakness and you said yes
You should've said no
You should've gone home
You should've thought twice before you let it all go
You should've known the word bout what you did with him
Would get back to me
And I should have been there at the back of your mind
I shouldn't be asking myself why
You shouldn't be begging for forgiveness at my feet
You should've said no, baby and you might still have me
I can't resist, before you go tell me this…
Was it worth it,
Was he worth this….
No….no no no…
You should've said no,
You should've thought twice before you let it all go
You should've known the word bout what you did with him
Would get back to me
And I should have been there at the back of your mind
I shouldn't be asking myself why
You shouldn't be begging for forgiveness at my feet
You should've said no, baby and you might still have me
You should've said no, baby and you might still have me-ee.
When he finished singing Finn was panting, his chest heaving up and down. He looked at Rachel, who was still looking at the ground. Until Santana spoke.
"Guess we all know who that song was about. How do you like the humiliation, Man-Hands? Looks like your sweetheart doesn't love you anymore."
That was all it took. With a mumbled 'I'm sorry' to Quinn, Rachel was gone, sprinting down the hall, letting the tears that had been filling her eyes as Finn sang cascade down her cheeks. She didn't even realize where she was going until she was already through the double doors and starting up the stairs to the stage. When she did, she realized it made sense. The stage had always been her home, the one place she could be herself. It made sense that she would flee there now. So she did what she knew she had come here to do. She sang.
There it is! :) A pretty long update, I might add ;) Song credits (all are Taylor Swift):
Quinn-Innocent
Rachel- Haunted
Finn- Should've Said No
I don't own Glee, Taylor Swift, or any characters. Only the idea for this story. :)