I am so sorry for the wait. I could give you a million of excuses, but the truth is that I had writer's block. I am not the happiest with the chapter but here it is. Things will pick up now.

Thanks for sticking with me. I have received all of your reviews, follows, and favorites and they make my day. So thanks!

I am hoping the next chapter won't take long to get up. :)

Shelby's POV

"I am Rachel's mother." I fall to the ground, head in my hands, crying harder than I ever had.

Kurt is down by my side in no time. He places a hand, hesitantly, on my back and begins rubbing circles.

"Shelby? Why don't we go to my room and talk for a minute?" I nod. He helps me up and leads me to the other guest room, where he will be sleeping. I notice that it is the music room that has a twin bed on one side, a piano on the other, and walls lined with sheet music. He leads me over to the bed and we sit down. I can't stop the tears; they continue to fall in streams down my face.

"My baby. This is my baby. How did I not know that Rachel was mine? Shouldn't I have realized it sooner? I mean we look alike. All of the signs were there." I sob.

"Shelby, I know this is lot to take in. Hell, I am just as surprised as you are. Can I ask something though?" Oh God, he is going to ask why I have never found her.

"Where have you been all this time? I mean I know you were on Broadway, but haven't you ever tried to find Rachel? Did you ever think about her?" There it is.

"Yes, I did. All of the time. Everything I did on Broadway was for Rachel. I signed a contract before we even knew if I was going to get pregnant. The contract stated that I was not allowed to have any contact with Rachel until she was 18, unless she contacted me first. Then while I was pregnant I regretted signing that contract. The first time she moved inside of me, I tried to get out of the contract. I mean, I was going to let them have her, but I just wanted to be a part of her life. I mean, they were still getting a baby, my baby, but was it too much to ask to see her every once in a while? For her to know who her mother is? Well they refused it." I take a moment to collect myself, the best that I can.

"You didn't ever try to find her?"

"Of course I did. The next morning after I gave birth, I went down to the nursery to see her. I ran into Hiram. He introduced himself as Hiram Robertson, so all of these years I have been looking for a Robertson."

"Oh yeah, that was Leroy's maiden name. I wonder why he used it as his name."

"Maybe to keep me from finding them. I have looked up Hiram Robertson so many times and never found anything."

"Oh okay. Well you have found her." He gives me a small smile.

"Do you think she will hate me?" I hate being vulnerable and whiny but I can't help it now.

"No. She may be mad at first but she will get over it really soon. I think I am going to fake a phone call and go home to give you two sometime alone tonight. Does that sound okay?"

"You don't have to leave, sweetie." Although, I secretly wish he would. I don't need him to see me fall apart any more than he already has. I know it is going to be a very rough night.

"No, I am going to leave. I'm going to head downstairs and pretend that I am on the phone with my dad. I will tell Rachel that you are in the bathroom washing up before dinner. That will give you some time to compose yourself, okay?"

"Okay, thank you, Kurt." He gets off the bed after patting my knee. "Oh, Kurt, how do I do this?" I ask.

"Just be honest with her, Shelby. Tell her what you have told me. She will forgive you. I have known Rachel a long time; she is very understanding and forgiving." I nod as he walks out of the room. After a few more minutes I check myself in the bathroom mirror. I splash cold water on my face and wipe the running mascara off. I stare at myself a moment longer. She has my eyes. Well except hers are brown, but still they are my eyes. I put on a show smile and walkout of the bathroom and toward the kitchen. When I arrive, Rachel has set up two places at the bar for us to sit.

"Hey. Sorry about that, I just needed to get what I could of the makeup off. Where's Kurt?" I ask looking around, playing it off.

"Oh, he had to go home. His dad needed his help with something. He said to apologize to you and that he hopes he can see you before you leave in the morning."

"Oh okay, I will be sure to see him before heading home. So let's eat, shall we?" I ask taking a seat at the bar. Dinner goes pretty uneventful. I am in my head thinking about when and how I am going to tell Rachel that I am her mother. After dinner, I help Rachel clean up the kitchen.

"So what do we do now, Shelby? Are you tired? Do you want to watch a movie?" Rachel asks after we finish the kitchen. I am tired, but I need to talk to Rachel.

"A movie sounds fine. Do you have Funny Girl?" I've seen it numerous times so I won't mind talking through it.

"DO I HAVE FUNNY GIRL?! Of course I do, it is a requirement to have." She says dramatically, hand motions and all. This is your child, Shelby.

Rachel puts in the movie and joins me on the couch. Okay, Shelby you have all night. Just enjoy the movie. When "If A Girl Isn't Pretty" begins, I see Rachel busting at the seams to perform. I would give anything to see her perform a song. By the time "I Am The Greatest Star" plays, Rachel can't hold it back anymore. She is singing quietly at first, by the middle of the song she is full force performing the song. This is my child; my talented, beautiful, amazing child. I have to tell her, and tell her now. As soon as the song is over, I have to see her finish this. The song is over way too soon. God, she is so good. Now or never, Shelby.

"Rachel, we need to talk." I say softly. She turns to me, concern filling her eyes.

"What's wrong, Shelby? Are you okay?" She asks her voice thick with worry.

"Sit down, Rachel. It's long story." The whole time I am telling her what has happened, I cannot bring myself to look her in the eyes. I hear her gasp when I finally spill the news. I bring myself to take a glance at her, and what I see breaks my heart. She is crying. I am the cause my baby's tears. "Rachel, please say something." I say once I finish telling the story.

She looks up at me, tears streaming down her face, tears that match my own. The silence is killing me. "Please, Rachel."

"Shelby, I don't know what to say. I mean my idol is here in my living room, watching Funny Girl with me on the couch after a concert that you set up to be able to see me. And if that isn't enough to make me feel crazy, you are telling me you are my mom. This is all insane. I have wondered about you for years. I have always wanted to know who you were, I have sung to you so many times. Why did you never find me? Did you not love me enough? Did you not want to find me?" This is tearing me apart inside.

"Oh, Rachel, of course I wanted you. I signed the contract and then couldn't get out of it. I tried; you have to believe me I tried. I even have the paperwork my lawyer drew up trying to counter the original contract so that I could be in your life. Your dads refused to sign it. I did try to find you. I was given a false name by Hiram and it kept me from finding you." I say, getting angrier at her fathers.

"You wanted me? You tried to find me?" She asks, sobbing.

"Yes, baby. Always."

She scoots closer to me on the couch, grabbing my hand and laying her head on my shoulder.

"So what do you want to do about this, Rachel?" I have to ask. I need to know what she wants. I don't want to get too ahead of myself.

"I want you to hold me. I want you to sing me to sleep. I want you to be my mom." She says through the tears. I nod getting up and holding my hand out for hers. We make it up to her room and she climbs into bed after changing into a pair of pajamas. After changing myself, I go back into her room to see her on her phone.

"Sorry, I was just texting Kurt, thanking him for leaving. I know he already knows."

"Yeah, he does." I say, crawling into the bed. I lean up against the headboard, Rachel lying on my lap. I begin running my fingers through her hair as I softly hum a song.

In my daughter's eyes I am a hero
I am strong and wise and I know no fear
But the truth is plain to see
She was sent to rescue me
I see who I wanna be
In my daughter's eyes

I glance down at my beautiful baby girl and find that she is asleep. I make myself comfortable, I am not leaving her now, I need her and she needs me. Once I am lying down, she snuggles deeper into my chest. I feel my heart skip a beat. I lean down and place a kiss on her head.

"I love you, Rachel Barbra." I say quietly.

"I love you too, Mom." I hear her barely breathe out. Tears instantly fill my eyes. My daughter isn't just in my arms, she just called me Mom. Sleep comes easy for the first time in years.

I wake up to find my arms empty. I begin to panic, thinking it was all a dream until I hear the toilet flush. Rachel walks out and crawls back into bed, laying her head on my stomach.

"When do you go home?" She asks with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"I have a plane to catch at 2 PM, but I am going to cancel it. I want to spend some more time with you."

"Awe, you don't have to, I understand you are busy. I mean you are still Shelby Corcoran."

"Being Shelby Corcoran is nothing compared to being your mom. I am staying." She smiles up at me before placing a kiss on my cheek.

I hear the front door open.

"Uh, Rach?"

"It's probably just Kurt, he lets himself in all the time." I nod. Shouldn't we get up then? Well, Rachel isn't moving, so I won't either. Her bedroom door swings open.

"RACHEL BARBRA BERRY?!" I hear a deep man's voice bellowing. I turn to look at the door; my heart is rapidly rising to my throat.

"Hiram?!"