Hi guys. So, in this chapter, I decided to cover what was going on with Finn between the S3 finale and the Break Up episode, since the show didn't show us that. Also, I decided to include a split screen Finchel duet. I thought that would have been a good thing for Season 4, and it won't make much sense in a non TV sense, but I still thought I'd include one :) Enjoy the new chapter and review if I should keep going!
Chapter 71: The New Rachel
"What just happened?" the drill sergeant asked, running over to Finn.
"I think I just shot myself," Finn said, rubbing his leg.
The drill sergeant looked at Finn's leg. "Hudson, you know you're supposed to unload the gun before you clean it."
Finn groaned. Now really wasn't the time for a lecture. "My leg really hurts."
"I'll say it does," the sergeant said. "Let's get you to a hospital."
Within a few minutes, an ambulance pulled up and the doctors loaded Finn on. Other than feeling completely humiliated, Finn began to get worried. Did he have an infection?
Arriving at the hospital, the doctors gave Finn some ice for his leg and left to take x-rays. Finn nervously waited, wondering what was wrong. Should he call his mom? Should he call Rachel? No, he couldn't...
The doctor came back into Finn's room. "We found the bullet in the x-rays."
"Where is it?" Finn asked, wondering if he even wanted to know.
"It's in the muscle of your thigh," the doctor said. "We're going to need to do some surgery."
Surgery? When Finn was all alone in the middle of nowhere? Finn gulped and nodded.
"Are you okay, Mr. Hudson?" the doctor asked.
"Just distressed," Finn admitted. "I thought I was going to make something out of myself and instead I just embarrassed myself in the army."
"Hey, you're going to be okay," the doctor said. "We're going to have to wait a week or two to do the surgery so the swelling can go down, and then we'll need to keep you here for a little while."
Finn nodded again. "My family lives in Ohio..."
"Would you like us to get in touch with them for you?" the doctor asked.
"Could you?" Finn asked.
"Yeah," the doctor said. "I'll be right back." As the doctor left Finn's room, the drill sergeant came in. Finn gulped. "I'm sorry."
"The army isn't for everyone, Hudson," the sergeant said.
Finn sighed. "I know. I only joined because I wanted to redeem my father. He was dishonorably discharged and then his life went completely downhill... I didn't like that having to be his legacy."
"Well, there are other ways that you can redeem your father," the sergeant continued. "This doesn't have to be the only way."
"I'm so embarrassed," Finn said. "My father was dishonorably discharged and now I'm going to be too... I can barely move my leg."
"We'll give you a semi honorable discharge," the sergeant said. "You take care of yourself."
Finn sighed. "You too." He lay down on the bed, rubbing his leg, hoping the pain would go away.
x
Classes in NYADA would be starting in a few days, but Rachel couldn't bring herself to get excited. Things weren't getting any better. New York was still big and lonely, and she missed Finn. She hadn't even gotten a single letter, e-mail or text from him. She'd kept trying, but he wouldn't answer her calls. As she walked around listening to her iPod, a song came on that made her think of Finn. With a few alterations, the song was perfect for their situation now, and she began singing along.
Rachel: Sophomore year of high school when we first met
We'd make out in your Mustang to Radiohead
And on your 18th Birthday
We'd get matching tattoos
x
Finn lay in his hospital bed, listening to his iPod. Tomorrow was his surgery, and he couldn't be more terrified. Music tended to relax him, so he began singing along to the song that had come up on his iPod. Of course, this song, made him think of someone...
Finn: Used to steal your parents' liquor
And climb to the roof
Talk about our future
Like we had a clue
Never planned that one day
I'd be losing you
x
Rachel didn't think that she would have lost Finn. The army was dangerous. Who knew what would happen to him? Maybe classes would help make things better. But she wasn't holding her breath.
Rachel: In another life
I would be your girl
We'd keep all our promises
Be us against the world
x
Finn felt his phone vibrate. A text from Kurt. Kurt was asking if he should tell Rachel about what had happened.
No. She couldn't know. It would just make her freak out. Plus, she needed her space. This was what she'd wanted her whole life, and he couldn't get in the way.
Finn: In another life
I would make you stay
So I don't have to say
You were the one that got away
The one that got away
x
Rachel looked at the clock on her phone and noticed that move in time had started by now. She'd been told that her roommate's name was Haley Engleman, but she had never actually talked to her. Rachel walked back to the campus, singing along with her iPod, unaware that Finn was listening to his iPod and singing along with the same song in Georgia.
Finn: All this money can't buy me a time machine (Rachel: Nooooo)
Can't replace you with a million rings (Rachel: Nooooo)
Rachel: I should've told you what you meant to me (Finn: Whoa)
'Cause now I pay the price
Rachel: In another life
I would be your girl
We'd keep all our promises
Be us against the world
Finn: In another life
I would make you stay
So I don't have to say
You were the one that got away
The one that got away
Rachel: The o-o-o-o-o-one
Finn: The o-o-o-o-o-one
Finn and Rachel: The o-o-o-o-o-one
In another life
I would make you stay
So I don't have to say
You were the one that got away
The one that got away
When Rachel got back to her room, she heard some noise and saw that there was a curtain up between the two sides with a note taped to it. "Rachael - hope you don't mind the partisan. I had a friend over and we have some stuff to do. Maybe I'll meet you soon. - Haley."
Rachel groaned. Haley hadn't even bothered to spell her name right. Rachel hung around the room for a little while, hoping things would calm down, but they didn't. She left for dinner, hoping by the time she got back things would be quieter, but they weren't.
By midnight, Rachel decided to attempt to fall asleep. She could try, right?
x
Rachel hadn't slept much last night, thanks to Haley and her male friend. However, she knew she had to go to class. It was the first day, so she decided to make the best of her first class: Dance 101. When the teacher arrived, she just turned on the radio. "All right, kids; Show me what you got. Ready? Five, six, seven, eight. Welcome to NYADA. This is Dance 101, my name's Cassandra July, and if you are not suffering from severe body dysmorphia, then you don't want it enough. Let's get this straight, freshmen: There's maybe two of you in this room that are good enough to make it in this business. As for the rest of you, thank you for paying my rent on my loft in SoHo."
Rachel could already tell she didn't like this woman. As she danced around the room, she watched the teacher walk around and stop another student. "What's your name?" Miss July asked.
"Lydia," the girl said.
"No, no, your name's Muffin Top, and from now on, it's rice cakes and ipecac," Ms. July said. "Or cut off a butt cheek, 'cause you need to drop a few."
Rachel made a face. This woman was another Sue Sylvester. Then Ms. July approached Rachel. "Did my conversation with Muffin Top offend you? What's your name, Little Miss David Schwimmer? I bet you were a big star back in Iowa."
"I'm actually from Ohio," Rachel said.
"Ohio," Ms. July sneered. "That's even worse. You ever look at a map? Ohio is like a giant turd that Michigan just can't pinch off. So did you come all the way to New York City to show me how to run my class?"
So the teacher had seen Rachel making a face. "No, I came to learn."
"Okay," Ms. July demanded. "Lesson number one: Your pique turns are pathetic, and your stuck-up little attitude's really pissing me off."
As the class did a move, Rachel tried her best to put extra effort in it. However, she ended up falling, and Cassandra July herself came over. "I don't need any help," Rachel said.
"No, no, sweetie, I'm not coming down here to help you," Ms. July confirmed. "I'm coming down here to give you a big New York City welcome. You suck."
Now Rachel was really beginning to regret coming here.
x
Finn opened his eyes. His surgery had been earlier today, and the doctors had gave him a sleeping pill during it. He looked down at his leg and saw that it was bandaged. It felt a little sore, but that was to be expected after surgery.
The doctor came in. "Hi Finn."
"Hi," Finn said.
"We managed to remove the bullet," the doctor said. "As you can probably tell, we had to open your leg and remove some tissue to remove the infected area. We're going to need to keep a close eye on you because it was a risky surgery."
"Well, I made it through the surgery," Finn said.
"That is true," the doctor said. "Your family's in the waiting room if you'd like to see them."
"Yeah, I do," Finn said.
Burt, Carole and Kurt came into Finn's room. "Don't ever scare me like that again!" Carole told Finn.
Finn gave her a half smile. "I won't."
"Seriously, sweetheart, when I heard you were shot I was terrified," Carole said. "And when we sat in this room, waiting for your surgery to finish..."
"Honey, he's okay, that's what matters," Burt said.
"Are you sure you don't want me to tell anyone?" Kurt asked. "Everyone's wondering why they haven't heard from you..."
"I'm sure," Finn said. He didn't have much of a choice than to tell his family, but he wanted to avoid letting other people know about what happened. He'd hoped to make a difference in the army. Instead, he flopped - more than he'd ever flopped before.
"Have you seen the bit of tissue they removed with the bullet in it?" Kurt asked.
"Kurt, what's gotten into you?" Burt asked.
"I honestly don't want to see it," Finn said. "Just - thank you for coming here."
"Of course we did," Carole said. "I'm just so glad you're okay."
x
By three in the morning, Haley was finally quiet. Apparently her male friend was spending the night in the dorm room as well, but now Rachel could go shower. People had made fun of her moisturizing routine, so maybe a time when no one was in the bathroom would be better.
As Rachel arrived in the bathroom, she heard singing in a shower before a boy emerged in a towel. "You're a freshman, right?" the boy asked.
"Yeah, I'm Rachel Berry," Rachel said. "I'm majoring in musical theater."
"Me, too," the boy said. "Brody Weston. I'm a junior."
"Hi," Rachel said. She had to admit - this boy had nice abs.
"Well, you survived your first class with Cassie, so you must be good, Brody said.
"Is she, uh, always that awful?" Rachel asked.
"She's tough," Brody admitted. "But I wouldn't have gotten that chorus gig in the revival of Working last summer if she didn't push me so hard."
"You were on Broadway?" Rachel asked. Maybe if this boy had made it, there was a chance for her. They did go to the same school.
"Steel Worker Number Three," Brody confirmed. "Show lasted for, like, three performances, but still I like to come in here at night, too. People give me a hard time about my moisturizing ritual."
"Me, too," Rachel said.
"We're actors, right? Our skin is like our paintbrush and our canvas."
"Actually, I'm not really sleeping much, lately," Rachel admitted. "Not a lot of city noise in Lima, Ohio."
"I just think everything takes a little getting used to, but yeah," Brody said. "You'll be fine. Just remember, you're here because you're the best of the best. Start believing that. Oh, and, in case you were wondering which you were I'm straight."
Was this boy hitting on her? He couldn't do that. Rachel still loved Finn. And she was going to try to get him back.
x
Haley and her latest partner managed to actually be quiet tonight, so Rachel ended up getting a decent amount of sleep. On her way to dance class (which Rachel was dreading), she got out her phone and called Kurt. "Hey."
"Hey you," Kurt said. "How are things?"
Rachel decided that she should act like she was okay. "Last night a boy started hitting on me in the bathroom."
"The bathroom?" Kurt asked.
"Everyone uses the same one here," Rachel explained. "He was just in a towel."
"So he was wearing a towel that was barely covering his tinkletube, and he's straight? Hot. Do you like him?" Kurt asked.
Of course she didn't! "No, you know I'll always love Finn. Oh, and I love you, I miss you like crazy."
"Oh, is that why you're calling me every three hours?" Kurt asked.
Rachel couldn't let him know how horrible things were really going. "Well, I just want to make sure that you're okay. I'm great, I love it here. My dance teacher worships me. But how are you? Are you okay?"
"I'm keeping busy," Kurt admitted.
"Where are you now?" Rachel asked.
"I just passed Mrs. Hagberg's old classroom," Kurt said. "Figured I'd stop by McKinley and meet their newest addition."
"Okay," Rachel said. "I have to get to class anyway.
She didn't want to go to class. If she'd known this was how it was going to be, she wouldn't have applied here in the first place. Toward the end of dance class, Ms. July came over to Rachel. "God almighty, Schwimmer, possible you're getting worse?"
"I've been practicing a lot," Rachel lied. "I've just had a little bit of a rough week."
"Aw, you tired? You lonely? You homesick?" Ms. July mocked. "Well, you better decide how badly you want it 'cause this school is filled with people who will do whatever necessary to make it in this business."
Yes, all those things were true. And Rachel couldn't believe an adult was picking on an eighteen year old for that. "Why are you picking on me?"
Ms. July leaned closer to Rachel, and Rachel was sure she smelled alcohol. "I'm not! I'm motivating you! What's your problem now?"
Great. Maybe Rachel should make less faces. "There's just alcohol on your breath."
"It's Listerine," Ms. July said. "Let me tell you something. I may not be a wide-eyed ingenue anymore, but I can still dance circles around any of you." She turned to the TA. "Music." After a dance routine, she turned back to Rachel. "You're not just on my list, Schwimmer, you are my list. Class dismissed."
Well, at least Rachel had voice class today. Since she'd always considered herself a better singer than dancer, so maybe this class would be better. Sure, she had Carmen Tibideaux for this class, but at least she'd impressed Ms. Tibideaux enough to get in.
When Rachel sat down in the room, Brody came and sat next to her. Then Ms. Tibideaux came in. "New students, welcome to the round room. The acoustics are perfect and there are no corners. Which means there is nowhere to hide in here. First-year students will have the opportunity to sing publicly twice. The first time today, the Debut."
"Also known as the freshman reaping," Brody whispered to Rachel.
Before Rachel had a chance to ask Brody what he meant, Ms. Tibideaux continued. "The second, the Winter Showcase at the end of the semester if you are invited. Shall we begin?" She looked at her list. "Beatrice McClaine."
A girl came to the front of the room. My name is Beatrice McClaine and I'll be singing Ave Maria written by Franz Schubert."
The music began and the girl began to sing.
Ave Maria...
Before she could even sing another line, Ms. Tibideaux spoke. "I'm gonna stop you there. When I accepted you at NYADA, what did I tell you you needed to do? You needed to practice all summer long."
"I did," the girl protested.
"You did not," Ms. Tibideaux declared. "I think you need to practice a little bit more and reapply in December."
As Rachel watched the girl leave, she turned to Brody. "Did she just get cut?"
Brody acted like it was no big deal. "It happens."
Then Ms. Tibideaux read another name. "Rachel Berry."
Rachel didn't expect to have to sing so soon. As she walked to the front of the room, she looked at Ms. Tibideaux. "Impress me," the dean said.
Rachel tried her hardest to look confident. "Hi. I'm Rachel Berry, and I'll be singing New York State of Mind, written by Billy Joel, popularized by one Miss Barbra Streisand."
Rachel: Some folks like to get away
For a holiday from the neighborhood
Hop a flight to Miami Beach
Or to Hollywood, ooh ooh
But I'm taking a Greyhound
On the Hudson River Line
I'm in a New York state of mind
It was so easy living day by day
Out of touch with the rhythm and the blues
But now I need a little give and take
The New York Times,
The Daily News
Oh, It comes down to reality
And it's fine with me
'cause I've let it slide
Don't care if it's Chinatown or on Riverside, ooh ooh
I don't have any reasons
I've left them all behind
I'm in a New York state of mind!
Oh!
I'm just taking a Greyhound
On the Hudson River Line
'Cause I'm in
I'm in a New York state of mind!
Ooh
Oh
New York State of mind!
Ms. Tibideaux didn't cut Rachel off, which was a good thing. At he end of the song, she simply said, "Nice."
Well, that was better than what Ms. July did.
x
Voice class had been better, but Rachel still couldn't help but be lonely. As she sat around while out and about, she got out her phone to look at photos of Finn. Then she heard a voice. "That your boyfriend?"
Rachel turned and saw Brody. Well, Finn wasn't anymore. But he would be one day, right? "Yeah, this is Finn. He's in the Army, so we really haven't been talking much lately."
"I had a girlfriend back home when I first started NYADA," Brody said. "Yeah, we lasted six weeks."
Distance was definitely going to test things. "No, that's not gonna happen to us. I'm not gonna turn my back on him."
"Oh, nobody said you should," Brody said. "Anyway, I came to tell you that you killed it in Tibideaux's class. Nice job."
Well, singing was the one time she'd felt okay. "Thank you. You know, it's just, other than when I was singing that song, I've just really never felt as amazingly wrong as I do here. Just all alone. Kind of feel like I'm just gonna throw up all the time."
"Well, it's just because you're becoming a different person," Brody said. "That's why you came to New York. To be that new and improved girl. Here, let me see your phone. We're gonna take a picture."
Brody took a photo of them on her phone. "Let me see," Rachel said, making a mental note to delete it later.
Brody held out the phone. "You look good. Don't fight the new you. Because from what I've seen, she is gonna kick some serious tail. And start adding new memories to the old ones." He got up and held out his hand. "Walk you to class?"
"Sure," Rachel admitted. Even if he was making her uncomfortable, at least he was being nice to her.
x
Cassandra July, on the other hand, was not being nice. In dance class, Rachel found herself watching the clock. "What's the problem, people?" Ms. July demanded. "You've been here a week. You should be dancing at, like, Black Swan levels of psychosis right now." She stopped in front of Rachel. "You, Miss Schwimmer. Show me your pique."
Rachel did her best, but Ms. July wasn't satisfied. "Okay, give me another one. Center yourself this time." After this one, Miss July had something to day. "Better, slightly. You gonna roll your eyes at me now?"
Rachel looked her teacher in the eyes. "No. And I'm gonna keep getting better till I'm the best you've ever seen."
"Oh, you're mouthy, and you got guts," Ms. July snapped. "Good, I like it. I like that spirit in my students. 'Cause it'll make it more fun for me when I'm making your every waking moment a hell on earth."
How did this woman have a job still? It had only been one week and Rachel couldn't wait for this year to be over.
What had she been thinking? She thought she'd be happy, but she wasn't. This was what she'd been dreaming of her entire childhood? No, it wasn't. Why had Finn made her get on that train? Cassandra had made her life a living hell in dance class. Her acting professor favored the male students. Her history of theatre class was mostly things she already knew. And she wouldn't even get to sing much in her voice class.
She just wanted to go home. She couldn't even go to her dorm room because Haley always had male friends over and they were always having loud sex. Rachel was sure she sometimes heard different male voices behind that curtain. Within a few weeks, Haley would probably have either an STD or an unwanted pregnancy.
Rachel felt herself crying. She couldn't lie anymore. She picked up her phone and dialed Kurt's number.
"Hey!" Kurt said, sounding happy on the other end of the phone.
Rachel wasn't going to pretend now. "Hi."
"What's wrong?" Kurt asked. "You sound sad."
"I lied," Rachel sobbed. "I'm not okay. My dance teacher's a monster, and I can't even go to my dorm room, because my roommate is sleeping with the entire school."
"Why don't you move out and find a new roommate?" Kurt said, as if it was that easy.
Rachel wished she could do that. "Yeah."
"Turn around," Kurt said.
Rachel turned and saw Kurt on the other side of the fountain. She smiled and ran up to him, feeling better already. "What are you doing here?"
"I live here now," Kurt said. "I'm going to look for a job and an apartment and then reapply for NYADA for spring semester."
"I feel so much better already," Rachel said, hugging Kurt. "Oh my God."
"I missed you so much," Kurt said.
"I missed you too," Rachel said. "Maybe we could get an apartment together?"
"That's what I was thinking!" Kurt said.
x
"So you're in New York?" Finn said to Kurt on the phone. Burt and Carole had returned to Ohio with Kurt, but Finn wasn't out of the hospital yet. He was okay with being alone though. He needed some time to himself.
"Yeah I am," Kurt said.
"I'm happy for you," Finn said. "You deserve it."
"She asked me about you," Kurt told Finn.
Finn had a feeling she would. "I'll talk to her... when it's time."
"Okay," Kurt said. "Just so you know, I haven't told anyone... about any of it."
"Thank you," Finn said. "I just... I can't, just yet."
"What are you going to do?" Kurt asked. "You can't stay in the hospital forever."
Finn knew Kurt had a point. The doctors thought he had healed enough to be discharged from the hospital. "I don't know," Finn admitted. "I'll figure something out." He paused before asking Kurt the question he'd been afraid to ask. "How is she?"
"She's better now," Kurt said.
Better? Now? What did that mean? "But her lifelong dream is coming true!" Finn reminded Kurt.
"It's not what she thought it would be," Kurt said. "She's lonely, her roommate was always having loud sex in the room, and her dance teacher's a Sue Sylvester clone."
Now Finn felt even worse. If he hadn't put her on that train, none of that would have happened. He now knew he couldn't face her right now. She'd hate him.
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