A/N: I have inadvertently created a series of one-shots that I think fit together into a bigger story. One day, when we're done with the prompts, I'll post them together and write some of the missing pieces. Until then, enjoy some more New York City HummelBerry :) xoxo
Prompt #12: Born This Way - give a new character a BTW shirt or change one of the original character's
Character(s): Rachel & Kurt
Words: 566
Date: September 19, 2012
**Warning: This is slightly spoilery if you haven't seen episode 4x01 or the preview for episode 4x02**
Small Town Girl, Big City Dreams
"I made us something," Rachel told Kurt as she bounced on the balls of her feet.
The dust hadn't even settled in their new loft. Boxes of their belongings, still bearing the Lima shipping labels were strewn around the small space. Their belongings intermingled, the same way that their lives always were.
Kurt stared at Rachel, his reaction a mix of terror and excitement. "If it's matching reindeer sweaters, I'm taking my boxes and finding a new roommate," Kurt joked, half-teasingly.
Rachel went into her room which right now consisted of two curtains hanging from a retractable clothes drying line. They still had a lot of decorating to do. She rummaged through a few boxes until she found the matching shirts she'd been looking for.
She popped back out between the curtains and threw a piece of white cloth at Kurt. He caught it just as Rachel made a grand flourish about showing hers. She waved it around in front of her and then held it up to her shoulders, so that Kurt could finally read the two words written in large black letters. There was no mistaking the script or the meaning behind the t-shirt. Rachel had recreated Born This Way shirts for both of them. This time they bore the same words - Small Town.
Kurt looked at Rachel quizzically and he could see her smile falter slightly at his lack of immediate understanding. She shrugged her shoulders and folded the shirt. She placed it on a pile of boxes, grabbed two cans of pop and motioned for Kurt to take a seat. Since they hadn't yet purchased a dining room table, they both settled onto the floor.
"I made these after that day Cassandra, my dance teacher from hell that I told you about, mocked me for being from Ohio. It probably would've been even worse if she'd known I was from Lima, I mean it doesn't really get more small town than that. And when she said 'I bet you were a big star back in Iowa...' it hit a nerve." Rachel bit her lip, it had hit more than just a nerve. The loneliness of those first few days washed over her again. Kurt reached forward and took Rachel's hand, reassuring her that he was in fact here. That they would face the next step of the journey together.
She gave him a watery smile. "I realized that if I let it get me down, every time someone learned I was from Ohio, or even worse, from Lima, then I might as well go back there. I think it's better to have been a big star in a small town than no star at all. I know what it feels like to be at the top and I'm going to use my addiction to that feeling to push myself to the top at NYADA as well."
Kurt watched as Rachel's tears faded away and her eyes filled with stone-cold determination.
Rachel squeezed his hand even tighter and smiled at him. "I made you one too because when you enter that Vogue office tomorrow and start the internship of every wannabe fashion designer's dream, I want you to remember just how far you've already come. And how much further we still have left to go."