A/N: All right everyone. Unless I make a big decision, this is the second to last chapter. I haven't finished, but hopefully I'll finally feel pressured into persevering by posting this. This is short but it is important because Shelby finally makes some big decisions. She's going to need your help through this, so please review and give her your love and support, okay?

Will Schuester had mentioned that she was dramatic and that was no lie. But Shelby Corcoran wasn't the whiny, overemotional kind, nor was she over-the-top, exaggerated, crazy theatrical type. Her view of theatricality was based on her experiences with life and she was quick to opine that expressions of deep, heartfelt emotions should never be anything but deep and heartfelt. To her, being dramatic was about being gripping, powerful and impressive, and if anyone could have seen her late that evening – wrapped in a worn throw and hunched over her grand piano, playing as if the world was listening – they would have barely grasped how dramatic Shelby Corcoran could be.

Her experienced fingers flew over the ivory keys, producing melodies that she had never heard before and probably wouldn't have been able to recreate later. Conceivably, they could have been interpretations of the emotions that she was feeling at that moment in time, but they more simply could have been random notes arbitrarily strung together. Occasionally, when she hit a bad chord, she would outright curse at herself but she would continue playing until the frustration faded away.

She felt drunk but she wasn't; she was simply experiencing a level of emotion that she typically only felt under the influence of too much alcohol. Her piano wasn't her means of escapism but rather an instrument to cope with the intricacies of her feelings. It never really solved the problem, but she was wordlessly and often thoughtlessly able to find peace within herself. Music was her therapy.

However, some real therapy probably wouldn't be a bad idea, Shelby decided dolefully upon hitting another sour chord. In exasperation she brought her fingers down solidly on the keys, purposefully generating an obnoxious noise, before shutting the top and bringing her session to an unsatisfying close.

She leaned forward with her elbows on the ebony lid in front of her and rubbed her tired eyes. Glancing up at the wall clock, she saw it was almost 11 o'clock in the evening and she moaned in aggravation before dropping her head down upon her folded arms. She hadn't had any great epiphanies about how she should handle things with Rachel, though she had given the subject a fair amount of thought. She knew something had to be done; she shouldn't feel this rotten all of the time and she was evidently causing problems with Rachel by giving her what were no doubt false hopes. The role of Mom had large shoes, and she didn't think she would be able to fill them acceptably for either of them to be happy. Nor could they simply be friends; Shelby knew that would never be enough.

She spun angrily off of the piano bench, the throw falling gracefully off of her shoulders, and paced around her den, unwilling to lose her temper again but unable to calm herself. Why did everything have to be so complicated? Why was it that no matter what conclusion Shelby came to, none were agreeable? This was one reason she was so disinclined to believe in religions; so many preached about good and evil and the like as if they were mutually exclusive and exhaustive yet life was full of this vast spectrum of grays and ambiguity. If only she could be fallacious and assume that there was one right answer and one wrong answer, then she could pick the one she knew was best, the curtains would close and she and Rachel could take their bows to thunderous applause.

Yeah, that would be the day.

She had to make a decision and whatever that decision would be had to be something that would be passable for both of them. There was nothing that she could do at this point that wouldn't cause stress on the two of them as well as Rachel's family but there was one choice she could make, that while painful, would allow for them to continue on almost as they had before they had found each other. Rachel would be fine without her; she didn't seek Shelby out because of some burning hole inside of her heart but instead found her by happenstance (and slight manipulation).

And as for Shelby, well… She didn't know how she would be. But it didn't matter.

She strode into her bedroom and found her Blackberry on her bedside table. It was difficult to ignore the judgmental stuffed animal sitting next to the phone but she did her best as she located Rachel's number in her contact list. She shouldn't call, considering the hour, and opted for a text message instead.

She sat on the edge of her bed in silence for at least a couple of minutes, staring at the blinking cursor and struggling to figure out what to say. What she wished she could say was, "Hey baby, I want you to know that I've loved you for all of your life and I always will love you," but considering what she needed to say, that would almost certainly make things more difficult.

We need to meet. There are things that we should talk about and I don't want to do it over text or phone. It's important.

What must only have been a minute or two seemed like an eternity to Shelby as she waited for a response. Finally her phone beeped.

Is everything ok? does it need to be now? ive just finished revising my rather extensive resume & im really tired.

No, but it needs to be soon, Shelby texted back, her stomach wrenching as she typed. Could I possibly meet you before school? I don't think I can get away from Carmel until late tomorrow.

Ok, Rachel's text read. i was gonna practice in the auditorium in the morning. meet me there 7?

See you at 7. Good night, Rachel.

Shelby put the phone back down on the nightstand and tried not to think about how that was the first time she had ever wished her only child good night. She tried not to think that it would be the last.

She ran her finger across the Blackberry's ball absentmindedly, her focus falling on Peanut, the little blue elephant, which rested next to her phone charger. Peanut was the only keepsake she had from this short week with Rachel and if tomorrow morning went as she expected it to, it would be the only thing of Rachel's she might ever have. All Rachel had of hers was a costume she had been pressured into making and a crummy set of work-out clothes that were too big for the girl's petite body. That wasn't how Shelby wanted it to be. She wanted to be preserved in something special to Rachel and even though she wouldn't have a place next to her dads in Rachel's family, she had an idea of how to be next to them in the girl's heart.

She just hoped she could remember where she put that old glassware her mother gave her as an engagement present all those years ago.