A/N: As always, thanks to anothergleekgirl for being a collaborator (especially on the next chapter!) and early reader.

Rachel stepped out into the wintry night, the temperature considerably colder than it was earlier that evening. "I thought you would have moved onto to someone else – maybe another date," Rachel said, sitting on the stoop of her building.

Brody took a seat next to her. "No other plans. I wanted to see how you were holding up."

She blew out a gust of cold air. "I ended things with Finn. He is going back to Georgia and may be overseas by the end of the year."

Brody gave Rachel's knee a pat. "I never saw you as being an Army wife anyway."

She scooted away from him. "You don't know me well enough to see me as anything."

He doubled down. "I see you as a star as on the stage, you wouldn't be satisfied on an Army base, or living in middle American, away from the theatre scene."

"I, I could start a theatre program in middle America, if anyone could do it, I could," she said quickly.

"But that isn't what you want," he indicated, not as a question but as a fact.

"I don't even know what I want."

"But you came out when I texted."

"Call it curiosity." Rachel crossed her arms. "I thought you would have been more sympathetic to my situation."

"Why? The guy is totally wrong for you."

She stood up. "You met him once, tonight."

Brody stood, towering above her. "Your priorities are different, you said so yourself. I'm surprised you lasted this long."

"You've never done a long distance relationship?"

"I don't really do relationships and labels," Brody shrugged. "Too much work."

"You told me tonight that you would consider yourself lucky if you found someone to be with for longer than a year."

"I just haven't found the right someone yet. Or maybe I did and she just became single," he winked.

"Excuse me. Weren't you the one talking to me tonight about clarity?"

"Clarity from Finn – you've been latched to him since your junior year of high school."

Rachel wrapped her arms around her body. "You are my friend, you know that right?"

"We've been friends for a few months now," he pointed out. "Tell me that you didn't break up with Finn because of me."

"You think too highly of yourself," she said coolly. "It wasn't about you Brody, or the fact that Finn saw us together – I ended things with Finn because of the distance, and the Army, and the fact that we're going in different directions."

"Then let me be there for you," he suggested. "When you need to talk, when you get lonely and need to hang out…" he reached for her arm, pulling her towards him.

"Thanks for the offer. I think I'll just go back inside," she attempted to pull away, His hand still gripping her. "Let go," she instructed, looking him in the eyes.

He lessened his hold. "You know where to find me."

As Rachel walked Brody down the street, he threw a rock in the air. She couldn't be positive, but she thought she saw something (a bird perhaps?) fall out of the sky. No relationships while Finn and I are broken up, she instructed herself.


Finn settled into his corner at the library on base and pulled out his laptop. Sequestered in one of the study rooms, Finn started another video call to Kurt.

"Hey brother, you're back at the library?" Kurt asked, settling into the apartment after a long afternoon at the Vogue offices.

"I am, I've never spent so much time at a library as I have since I've moved here. The library is one of the places where I can be alone with my thoughts, and I've even been able to do a little research on my dad. Some of his old files and reports are archived here at Fort Benning."

"That sounds amazing. Any good pictures?"

"Lots. My mom always said I looked a lot like my dad, but now I get to see it for myself – it's really weird. I made some photocopies; I'll share them with you this summer."

"Any news about his final months?"

"I've got some old journals of his from my Mom, but I'm not ready to read them yet." From what Finn had been told, his father Christopher suffered from PTSD after combat, and struggled with his mental health, never fully recovering or succeeding in civilian life after being dishonorably discharged. "I'm still looking to find out more about why he was discharged, I've started following a few trails. I feel this connection with him that I never felt before at home – maybe because he wasn't really there.

"That's terrific Finn. I'm happy that you're getting answers. I still have so many memories of my Mom – she always understood me better than my Dad ever did."

"Training is going well, I'm almost done with the One Station Unit training and I passed my gunner's exam with flying colors."

Kurt attempted to nod along in an effort to please Finn. He admired his brother for joining the Army, and it seemed like a good fit for him, but all of the talk about training and guns went over his head. "So should I tell you more about her?" Kurt and Finn had a tradition of talking about Rachel during their phone calls and video chats, all while Rachel was out of the apartment.

"Of course." Finn and Rachel had promised to go no contact till June, but that didn't keep Kurt from filling in Finn on Rachel's comings and goings. "Is that guy still in the picture?"

"Brody, oh yeah he's still around," Kurt muttered. "Still eating my cereal, hanging onto Rachel any chance he gets."

A line formed on Finn's mouth and he slowly shook his head. "Remind me to send you some cereal to replace what Brody's taken."

"I can stop if you want," Kurt suggested. "The cereal is the least of my worries."

"Mine either. No, keep going. Are those two dating?"

"I wouldn't exactly call what they do dating; Rachel says he doesn't like relationship labels, and she's been spending so much time on finishing freshman year and giving voice lessons, I don't even know if they're hooking up at this point; but he's here a lot, and he has no issue making himself comfortable. Rachel doesn't seem to be stopping him."

"So they're having fun?"

"I guess so. Rachel keeps suggesting that I hang out with them on weekends and such, but I'd rather not. Maybe, she's just getting him out of her system, spending time with him, she'll get bored, and then she'll be ready to come back to you."

"I miss her. Part of me wonders if I should have fought harder, or rejected her breakup. But what can you say when someone tells you that they want to breakup?"

"I don't have a lot of experience with that," Kurt admitted. "I guess, you just let them do their thing."

"I'm trying to, I really am. I don't even think about anyone else but her."

"I didn't think there were that many women on the base."

"Oh there's women here, but we bunk separately. Hey – I've been thinking about forming a band down here, I really miss my music."

"Music has always been a good release, well that and fashion for me."

"Do you miss performing?"

"I still perform in the shower, and I put a lot of my artistic energy into the layouts at Vogue. I'm going to be taking some community college classes in the fall, getting my basic courses out of the way. The magazine may pay for me to go to design school."

"That's fantastic Kurt."

"Blaine and Artie are both on track to join Rachel and I in New York, though I don't think we'll all be living here together. We're crowded as it is with three people."

"Three?"

"I'm including Brody," Kurt clarified. "Still acting like a third roommate. I try to talk to Rachel about it, she just shrugs it off."

"Well there's no Brody this summer in Ohio right?"

"I sure hope not. I don't see him weaseling an invite from Rachel, and Mr. Schue and Ms. Pillsbury don't seem keen on having a huge wedding."

"So it will be a New Directions reunion this summer – can't wait."

"You still thinking about active duty?"

"It's not as bad as Rachel makes it out to be. I could get a chance to travel the world for two years all while keeping others safe. And by the time I'm done and in inactive reserve, I may know what to do with the rest of my life."

"Well stay safe and we'll talk next week?"

"Always," Finn said waving goodbye to his brother. Gathering his things, Finn headed out into the April air for a walk before dinner. It had been two months since he had last seen Rachel, but she was always in his thoughts. He had her senior yearbook photo tucked in his jacket pocket. In around two months, they would see each other once more.