Disclaimer: I won nothing
"Unforgettable That's What You Are"
Chapter Six
"Hello Miss Gilmore. I am Constance Ulbright. I am here to make sure that everything goes as you plan" greeted her at the front door of the Ritz. "I hope your day has been pleasant"
"Please Constance, call me Rory. My day has been fantastic thank you. Has everything gone according to plan?" she followed the tall blond through the foyer and up the stairs to the hall they were going to be holding the icebreaker party.
"Of course. The catering has arrived. Mrs Abrams is overseeing the whole thing personally. Mister Alexandre has arrived with the beverages. So we are all set to go as soon as Miss Berry and yourself give the go ahead"
"Thank you for your efficiency Constance. Really appreciate it"
"Hope everything is to your liking" she asked her, following her around the great room.
"Hello Miss Berry, I am Gretel Daniels. How was your performance tonight? I saw it a couple of weeks ago with my husband. It was absoluntly faboulous to watch you on stage! I have seen all you performances." The older woman gushed like a teenager, realising this, she continued in her business like tone "Miss Gilmore has already over seen everything."
"Thank you Miss Daniels. And thank you for supporting all my performances. You are what makes me love the stage even more" she gushed back with a blush, reeling herself back in, as she followed the woman to where Rory would be.
"You're welcome Miss Berry. I hope you have a pleasant night" and with that she walked away tending to other guests.
"Rachel Berry?" she heard a familiar voice call out to her from behind.
"Noah? What are you doing here? I thought you couldn't make it?" she said with surprise, hugging him tightly, he picked her up easily and swung her around the room. He seemed taller and bulkier than when she had seen him last.
"I couldn't go. I am working tonight. A friend of mine hired me to work an icebreaker party tonight." he said with a smile, still holding her hand. They walked together in silence for a while, feeling so comfortable.
"When did you get to New York?" Rachel asked him curiously. Glad that he was able to come to her party after all. She had missed her old friend.
"I arrived here two years ago. I love it here. I am laying down some tracks and finishing off my album" he said with such pride in his voice.
"That is fantastic! I am so proud of you Noah! I knew you could do it!" she said with equal pride in her voice.
"And you. You are hitting Broadway like a storm! I have seen all your performances for the past two years. Boy they are hefty!" he said with a wink.
"Why didn't you ever come say hello?"
"I was too embarrassed Rach. I felt like a two bit failure, and you are doing so well. I didn't feel like I belonged in your world" he admitted to her.
"Noah!" Rory called to him, making them aware that they had reached the hall. "So glad you could do this for me!" she hugged him tightly like old friends do. Rachel felt a pang of jealousy course through her body, and she didn't know why.
"Oh my look at you Blue. Such a stunner in your beautiful blue dress!" he complimented her.
"And look at you in your nice black tux Noah! You really look so suave!" she complimented him back with a big smile.
They stopped at the stage and walked up the stairs together. "You can set up where ever you want Noah. The band that you requested has been learning your songs for the past couple of days, and will be able to play whatever you request for them to play."
"Thank you Blue. So how has your night been?" he asked her, really interested in what she had to say to him.
"It's been great! I'm so glad you can do this for me tonight! And more importantly, more exposure for you as well" she told him happily, very proud of her good friend. She had seen many of his performances in the past year and a half since she had done that article on him.
She left him to organise with the band.
"Rach, how was your performance?" she hugged her friend tightly.
"It was great thanks Ror'"
"Noah is the performer you hired tonight?" she asked stunned that her friend new her old glee team mate.
"Yes. I did an article about him, about the 'up and coming performers in New York' a year and a half ago." She eyed her friend, wondering how she knew about him, seeing the unmistaken pang of jealousy course through her friend's eyes and quickly faded again.
"How come you never mentioned him before?" she asked Rory curiously.
"I didn't think you would be interested because of your on and off thing with you know who. I have asked him to perform at many of the functions that my office organises" she said with a shrug, trying to see where her friend would bringing this conversation.
"Oh I see" she said dismissing her questions.
"Why so keen Rach?"
"Oh I know him from Ohio"
"OH… oh he was in you glee club wasn't he?"
She nodded "we dated for six days when we were sixteen and he was seventeen. But I was too driven to accept how great he was, and obviously still is. I was too interesting in finding my leading man to give him any real credit"
"Yes Rach…" Rory said with a pause, smiling at her friend's obvious heart struck for Noah. "He is single." She watched her friend overly excited face, which she quickly composed.
"Oh and here come Jesse…" Rory said with amusement.