24 Hours Earlier
Rachel was at her locker getting her books ready for her morning classes. It was Tuesday morning and she was officially dragging. She was glad she didn't have any tests to prepare for today and she could let her attention wander a bit in her classes.
"Hey, Berry." She saw the letterman jacket out of the corner of her eye, recognized the timbre of the man's voice. She turned towards him.
"Hey, Noah."
"Get the chem homework finished?"
"Yes, it took more time than I had anticipated, but I finished it."
"Any problems?"
She shut her locker and brushed aside an errant strand of hair. "Some difficulty with the last section, but other than that, no. I think your tutoring has really paid off."
He reached out and brushed back the same strand of hair when it refused to stay behind her ear. "Good. We can work on the last section tonight if you want."
She nodded gratefully as they started walking down the hall. "That would be great. I do appreciate your help with chemistry, Noah. I didn't realize it would give me so many problems."
He grinned down at the petite girl. "Can't be good at everything, Berry," he teased.
"Yes, well, I suppose that is true," Rachel said with a frown.
Puck laughed softly at her. She didn't like it any more now than she had when she asked him for help. "Seriously, Rach, you're allowed to be bad at some things. Not a lot of things, but an occasional one here and there is ok."
She gave him a mock glare before stepping slightly behind him to avoid a passing classmate. "Yes, well, no worries there, I am most assuredly bad at chemistry and I don't see that changing any time soon. You, however, are surprisingly adept at the subject."
"Yeah, I don't have any problem with chemistry," he said, shooting her a wink.
She rolled her eyes at his double entendre, not the first he'd used since he'd started tutoring her. "Yes, Noah, I am well aware of your chemistry skills, as is almost everyone in Lima."
He grinned, placing a hand over his heart. "You wound me, Berry. No, really, that stings."
She rolled her eyes again and smacked his arm but was unable to keep the smile off her face. "Whatever."
His grin got wider. "Whatever," he mocked. He ducked out of the way as she tried to smack him again. "See you at lunch," he called, darting off down the hall.
Rachel shook her head, wondering why she put up with him and his antics, although truth be told she didn't mind much anymore. He had really mellowed out towards her and the rest of the glee kids. New Directions had really come together after their disappointment at regionals the previous year and the threat of no longer having the glee club to fall back on had really made an impression on the members. Things weren't all smooth sailing all the time, but things were vastly improved over last year's group. And Noah was really good at chemistry, which was good, because she had a GPA to maintain and she really didn't think she could do that without him.
She noticed the hallways emptying out and hurried toward her first class, pushing all thoughts from her mind in favor of a nice relaxing class.
!
Rachel was a little surprised to see Mercedes and Kurt at her locker when she went to put her things away for lunch. The three had called a truce of sorts since regionals but divas were divas and sometimes attitudes would flare. Still, they had all decided that while competition amongst themselves was healthy and made everyone better, they should probably try to stick more to friendly competition and support each other where they could. It was a work in progress.
"Hey, guys," she greeted them as she spun the dial on her locker.
"Doll," Kurt said. "Ready for lunch?"
Rachel groaned softly. "You have no idea."
Mercedes quirked an eyebrow. "Rough day?"
"Long," Rachel corrected. "I was working on chemistry last night and didn't get much sleep and then I was running late this morning."
The two best friends shared a look. "Working on chemistry with Puck?"
Rachel chuckled. "No, you gossip mongers, I was not working with Noah, I was actually attempting to see if I had learned enough to do my work by myself. Which, apparently I have not."
Kurt clucked his tongue as they headed toward the cafeteria. "Can't blame you there. If Puck were my tutor I'd make sure not to learn anything either. Keep him coming back for more." He winked at her and Rachel felt herself blushing.
"Whatever," she muttered.
They headed to the glee table, and nodded to Tina and Artie, who were already there. Before long they were joined by Quinn and Finn, with Puck, Matt and Mike following shortly after.
"No Cheerios today?" Kurt asked.
Quinn shook her head. "There's some intense competition training going on so they're sitting with the rest of the team. Probably will all week."
Conversations picked up with various parts of the table and Rachel found herself drifting along, tuning everyone out. She flinched when a hand suddenly waved in front of her face. "Earth to Rachel, come in Rachel," Matt joked.
Rachel turned back to the group. "Sorry. What was the question?"
They all chuckled at her but these days their teasing was good-natured and lacking in the malice it had been so full of last year. "We asked if you knew what Mr. Schue was planning for glee this afternoon. He was practically humming in Spanish class but all he would say is that it's going to be great."
Puck rolled his eyes. "He thinks everything's great."
"It's true," Finn said. "Remember when we went behind his back and did Push It at the assembly instead of his weird song? He thought his song was pretty great."
Puck grinned. "I remember that. Think we could get him to re-instate that number? Some of those images are still burned into my head." He winked at the original female glee members and was pleased to see both Tina and Rachel blush.
"Somehow I don't think he's anxious to perform that number again any time soon," Artie mused. "Whatever it is, let's just hope it's actually good."
"And doesn't involve him dancing," Mercedes piped up.
"I think he dances very well," Tina said, coming to their teacher's defense.
"He did have some wonderful choreography to Bust a Move," Rachel pointed out. "He obviously isn't completely without choreography skills."
Mike laughed. "You want to tell him that?"
Rachel shot him a pointed look. "No."
They all laughed again.
!
Schue's epic idea turned out to be duets, which was not a foreign concept to the group. However, he wanted to focus on movie duets and he had Rachel and Tina come up to the front to demonstrate.
"I want you guys to sing When You Believe from the Prince of Egypt," he told them, handing them each the sheet music.
"Whitney and Mariah?" Tina said doubtfully. "Mr. Schue, I don't think I can handle this. Maybe you should have Mercedes down here instead."
"Nonsense, Tina," Rachel said before Schue could get a word in. "Your voice is beautiful and while it does not exactly resemble a power voice like Whitney or Mariah, I believe you place too many limitations on it, especially without even trying."
Schue stepped up beside the two girls. "Rachel's right. Besides, we're not trying to recreate the original and sound exactly like it, we're trying to give the song a new sound, a good but different sound. I chose you specifically for this, Tina. You can do it."
The duet was shaky at first, and Schue stopped them several times to offer notes on their performance but when they got through it the group clapped and genuinely seemed to like the performance.
"That was great, guys," Schue said. "I really like that one. We'll keep working on it and who knows? It may be a contender for competition this year."
Rachel smiled at Tina on their way back to their seats and Mike reached out to high five the Asian girl, offering congratulations. Tina sat down smiling, thinking maybe it was a good song choice after all.
After practice, Tina approached Rachel as she gathered her things. "Do you really think the song was good?" she shyly asked.
Rachel gaped at her. "Tina, of course! I wouldn't lie about that, you know. We are going to win regionals this year and we're going to need some strong numbers and no one will benefit from people lying to spare other people's feelings. It was good. It needs some work, of course, but it definitely has potential."
"I was actually thinking about that," Tina said, pulling out her sheet music. She had gone over their performance in her head and jotted down notes during practice. "I have a few ideas I was hoping we could try. Are you free now?"
Before Rachel could respond Puck came over. "Hey, Rach, you ready to go?"
Tina looked back and forth between the two.
"He was going to give me a ride home and help me study," Rachel explained briefly. "My car is having some maintenance done and I needed a ride." She turned to Noah. "Actually, if it's ok, Tina and I were going to work on our song some more. Can we study tomorrow night?"
"Oh no, that's ok," Tina interjected quickly, stuffing the music back into her bag. "I didn't know you had plans, I should have realized. I'm sorry."
"No, it's no problem," Rachel assured her. "Is it, Noah?"
Puck shrugged indifferently. "Nah. We have some time before the next test, no big deal."
Rachel nodded. "Ok. See, Tina, it's fine. Will you be able to take me home afterwards?"
"Of course," Tina said hesitantly. "But if you want to go with Puck, that's fine, I understand."
Rachel shook her head. "No, I think now is a perfect time to work on the song. Shall we work in the auditorium?"
Tina nodded. "Sure. I'm going to run to my locker and I'll meet you there."
They watched the Asian girl practically run from the room. "I've been ditched for Tina," Puck joked.
"I'm sorry, I know we had plans to study but this is the first time I've really seen Tina take the initiative like this in regards to a performance and I don't want to discourage her," Rachel said, regret tingeing her voice.
Puck shook his head. "It's really ok, Berry. I mean, it won't be the same as an evening full of our amazing chemistry but I'm sure you'll have fun."
She rolled her eyes at him. "Do you ever run out?"
He grinned and headed toward the door. "Not looking like it," he tossed back over his shoulder.
Rachel grinned and headed to the auditorium.
!
The auditorium was windowless and neither girl realized how long they'd been practicing or how late it was until Tina glanced at her watch. "Oh wow, it's almost nine," she said stooping to gather her things. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to keep you so long."
"No problem," Rachel said easily. "I think we made a lot of progress."
Tina nodded as they headed for the parking lot. "Yeah, we might actually be able to pull this off. Well, I might," she amended. "There's no doubt you can."
"Tina, you need to have more confidence," Rachel admonished gently. "You have a very pretty voice."
"You and Mercedes are much better," Tina said automatically. "I can't sing nearly as good as you guys."
"You don't have to," Rachel said. "You have a completely different sound. Mercedes and I have big voices. You and Quinn don't, but that doesn't mean your voices aren't good or beautiful in their own right. It's just a different sound. Remember when Mr. Schuester gave you the lead on True Colors? You sounded amazing and that song would have sounded completely different if Mercedes or I had sung it. Sometimes power is good but sometimes understated is better."
Tina blinked at her mini monologue. "Thanks, Rachel. It's just hard to compete with you guys sometimes."
Rachel shrugged. "Then don't. We aren't supposed to be competing anyway, we're supposed to be making our group better, and we need a variety of skills and sounds to make that happen."
Tina nodded, thinking that made sense. She pressed the remote on her key ring and unlocked her car. She and Rachel put their things in the backseat and climbed into the front, reaching for their seatbelts. Tina turned the key in the ignition, frowning when nothing happened. She tried again, with the same results.
Rachel glanced over. "Is something wrong?"
"I don't know," Tina murmured. She tried again. Nothing. "The car won't start."
Rachel furrowed her brow. "Is your battery dead?"
Tina shook her head. "I don't think so. My lights work." She flipped her headlights on to demonstrate. "It just won't start."
"I'm afraid I don't know much about cars," Rachel said regrettably.
"Me either. I'll have to call my mom to come get us." Tina pulled out her cell phone only to discover it was dead. "Crap. This is not my day," she said apologetically.
Rachel nodded. "It's ok, I can call one of my dads," she said, searching through her bag for her phone. After several minutes of searching, she discovered it wasn't in her bag after all. "Oh no, I think I left it at home. I was charging it last night and I was in such a hurry this morning I must have forgotten to grab it."
Tina was quiet for a second. "What do we do now?"
Rachel sighed, looking out into the darkness beyond the parking lot. "I guess we walk," she said. "At least to my house and then one of my dads can drive you home."
Tina nodded. "Ok." They retrieved their book bags from the backseat and Tina locked her car again before they started walking. They'd only made it a few minutes before Rachel started giggling.
Tina looked at her suspiciously. "What?"
Rachel wiped a tear from her eye. "Can you believe us? This is the twentieth century and we have to walk home."
Tina laughed with her. "Yeah, in the time of AAA and cell phones and we still have to walk." They laughed together again.
"How's your chemistry grade?" Tina asked when they'd calmed down again.
"Better than it was," Rachel said, relief evident in her tone. "I am just awful at it and I'm so grateful to have Noah's help."
"I think he's happy to offer it," Tina said hesitantly.
"What do you mean?"
"I think he likes you," Tina said quietly.
Rachel laughed again. "Oh, Tina, no," she said. "We've already done that and it was nice and everything but I don't think he feels that way about me anymore, if he ever did before."
Tina shook her head in disagreement but before she could respond movement further down the road caught her eye and she stopped talking.
Rachel followed her gaze and squinted into the distance before making out the shape of a person. A few steps closer and they could see it was a man, older than them, tall and lanky, walking toward them. His head was down and he wasn't paying very much attention to where he was going. Rachel felt the hair prickle on the back of her neck and she stepped closer to Tina. As they got closer the man raised his head and he nodded at Rachel. Tina stepped slightly behind Rachel to avoid colliding with the man. Rachel nodded back slightly to the man as they passed him.
Things must have happened quickly then but for Rachel time felt interminably slow. She heard a noise behind her and when she turned she saw the man had Tina, arm around her throat, knife pressed against her neck.
Rachel stood there gaping, unsure what to do. Her brain was having problems catching up to reality and she was having trouble figuring out what had just happened.
The man stared her dead in the eye. "You scream and I'll kill her," he warned.
Rachel stared at Tina, the Asian girl's terrified eyes the only thing she could see. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think. How had this happened?
"Don't move," he warned and Rachel realized she had been moving backwards, away from the man. Away from Tina. She stopped in her tracks. She wouldn't leave her friend. Not with this man.
"What do you want?" she asked, trying to control the disbelief in her voice.
"I'm not going to hurt you," the man said. "Just do as I say and I won't hurt you."
"My wallet's in my purse which is in my book bag," Rachel said. "I have cash, not much on me, but I have my ATM card and I can give you the PIN number. Also, I have two credit cards on me and you can have those." Rachel was aware she was babbling but, looking into Tina's frightened eyes, she couldn't stop. "I'm sure Tina has some money on her too, I can get it and-"
"Stop." The command was spoken in a soft voice but full of authority and Rachel audibly clamped her mouth shut. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said again.
"What do you want?"
"I'm doing a training exercise for the military," the man said. "I'm not going to hurt you. Just do as I say."
Rachel looked him straight in the face and her stomach sank. She didn't believe his story, not for a second. Her lower lip started to quiver and she clenched her jaw to get control.
"I want you to unlace your shoes," he said to Rachel. She frowned at him and didn't move. "Now."
The authority in his voice was unmistakable. This was a man that was used to having people follow his orders. Rachel stopped and began unlacing her shoes. Her mind was racing a thousand miles a minute, trying to think of something, anything, that might get them out of this. She knew in the back of her mind that it was unlikely he would let them go. They'd seen him now, could identify him when they got away. No, it wasn't likely they'd be getting away easily.
Her hands shook as she held the shoelaces out to him. He beckoned her closer with the knife. She stumbled toward him, knees quaking badly. She locked her eyes on Tina's face as she got closer, unable to look at the man at such close proximity.
"Tie her hands together," he said, motioning to Tina. He turned her slightly and pulled her hands behind her back. "Tightly. I'll be checking them when you're done."
Rachel stared blankly at the laces before moving her gaze to Tina's hands. No, this couldn't be right. Shoelaces were meant for shoes and those go on feet, she must have misheard.
"Tie her hands. Now." Rachel furrowed her brow but knelt beside her friend, whispering a quick "I'm sorry" before binding the girl's hands tightly. Her hands were shaking and she had to re-tie it several times before it stayed.
The man pulled on Tina's bound hands several times. "Good. Now unlace her shoes."
Rachel numbly pulled the laces out of Tina's shoes, realizing what was going to happen next. When she handed him the laces he maneuvered Tina so she was facedown on the ground and gestured to Rachel with the knife. He pulled her hands behind her back and bound them more tightly than she had Tina's. He pulled Tina to her feet stood the two girls side by side in the middle of the road. He nodded once in approval. "Let's go."
He gave Rachel a shove and she stumbled forward, Tina beside her. He was leading them up the road, in the direction they'd been headed. Rachel glanced behind her. He was walking immediately behind them, eyes intent on their forms, knife still in hand. She glanced past him, looking for any sign of approaching headlights, but all she saw were their backpacks, abandoned by the side of the road.