Chapter 7:

A few days had passed and they still hadn't heard anything from Brody. Rachel started to feel like maybe she could breathe again. Carole had made Rachel go to the hospital to get her ribs wrapped and proper medicine for the pain. Finn was with her whenever he possibly could, otherwise she was with Kurt. Rachel was starting to think that maybe Brody gave up on her and went back to New York but her gut was telling her that wasn't the case.

Kurt approached her that afternoon as she was watching Phantom of the Opera in the living room. Finn was at work and Burt and Carole were out running some errands, so it was just the two of them in the house.

"Hey, diva. What do you say we go out tonight? We haven't heard anything from Brody in a few days, so I think its time to get you out of this house." Kurt said as he sat on the opposite end of the couch.

"I would like that but I don't know if its a good idea." Rachel said hesitantly. She was more comfortable with Kurt now but she was worried about that gut feeling.

"Please, I miss my best friend and you need some cheering up." Kurt replied.

Rachel sighed. "Alright, fine. But you stay near me the whole night."

"Promise. Besides Finn would kill me if I left you alone, especially with everything that has happened." Kurt responded.

Rachel went to get ready, wondering if she should tell Finn what they were planning. She decided against it only because Kurt promised to stay next to her the whole night. She pulled out a fresh pair of clothes from the duffle bag that Finn packed and quickly changed.

She brushed her hair out and gently curled it, pulling most of the locks away from her face and securing them at the top of her head before applying light makeup, that she hadn't worn in days.

They left the house around five in the afternoon and first went to Breadstix to have dinner. Rachel smiled at Kurt as they sat in their booth. They both ordered their dinner before resuming small talk.

"Did you tell Finn we were coming out tonight?" Kurt asked her.

"No, I knew you would be with me so there was no reason to worry him." Rachel explained, taking a sip of her water.

Kurt nodded and surveyed their surroundings, keeping an eye out for Brody. Even though they hadn't heard or seen him in days, didn't mean he wasn't still hanging around.

Their food arrived about ten minutes later and they ate in silence for a few minutes before Kurt spoke again. "You know you could have told me, Rach. I could have helped you get out."

"I was scared, Kurt. Not just of what he might do to me but to whoever I decided to tell. I didn't really tell Finn, he figured it out on his own." Rachel explained. "I was just so scared that leaving New York felt like the safest option."

"I get it. So when are you going back? Your going to be behind in your classes." Kurt replied.

"I'm not, Kurt. I can't go to NYADA anymore. I can't see him and I no doubt will. I'm perfectly happy being here with Finn." Rachel explained.

"But what about Broadway? You always dreamed of being on Broadway since you were a little girl." Kurt said in shock.

"It doesn't matter to me as much anymore. I really got some perspective being with Brody, I realized that I needed Finn more than I have ever needed him in my life. I know he would give his life for mine unlike Brody, who never would have." Rachel explained taking her last bite.

Finn was installing a new tire on a vehicle when his phone started to ring with Kurt's ringtone. He put the lug wrench down and fished his phone out of his pocket, wondering what Kurt could possibly be calling him for.

"Hey, Kurt. What's up?" Finn said as he answered the call.

"Before you get mad just listen to me for a minute." Kurt started.

"What's going on, Kurt?" Finn asked, his concern spiking. He heard the panic in Kurt's voice.

"I decided to get Rachel out of the house since we hadn't heard from Brody in awhile. We went to Breadstix first but then we didn't want to go home yet, so we went out to a club." Kurt said before Finn interrupted.

"What happened, Kurt." Finn said firmly, pacing the floor of the shop.

"We ran into Brody...everything was fine. I didn't let him near her but I'm pretty sure he slipped something into her drink." Kurt replied rapidly.

"He drugged her?! Is she okay?" Finn asked his fear sky-rocketing. He shed his coveralls and grabbed his jacket and keys.

"She's right here with me. She's dizzy and keeps asking for you." Kurt said as Finn got in his car and Kurt heard the engine roar to life.

"Put her on the phone. I want to make sure she's okay." Finn demanded him. He heard shuffling and Rachel's shaky voice filter through the phone.

"Finn..."

"Rach, baby. Are you okay? Talk to me." Finn begged, hearing how scared she was.

"I don't feel good. I want to go home." He heard her start to cry and his eyes filled with tears.

"It's okay, baby. I'm on my way. Where are you?" Finn asked her gently. He was heading towards town where most of the clubs were.

"At the club on the corner of Oak blvd." She mumbled out before he heard Kurt take the phone again.

"I'm on my way, Kurt. Keep an eye on her and don't let her out of your sight." Finn said before hanging up. He was very concerned at how weak Rachel sounded at that particular moment.

He broke almost every traffic law on his way there, he wasn't stopping for anything when it came to Rachel. He threw the car into park before rushing into the club. He found Kurt almost right away but didn't see Rachel.

"Where the hell is she, Kurt?" Finn asked in anger as he approached. Kurt turned frightened eyes on him.

"She had gone to the bathroom about ten minutes ago. She hasn't come back yet." Kurt replied.

"You let her go by herself in this state! I told you to keep an eye on her!" Finn shouted. "Forget it. I'll find her."

Finn moved quickly through the club towards the bathrooms first. Maybe she was just throwing up and hadn't made it back out yet. He didn't care too much about the other girls as he nudged the bathroom door open. "Rachel? Baby, you in here?"

He didn't get a response or see anybody so he backed out of the room and began to look around the club. He heard a familiar scream coming from a door that led to an alley out back and he bolted for the door.

Throwing it open, he saw someone go running the opposite direction and he ran out into the alley, stopping short when he saw Rachel curled in a ball. She was sobbing harshly and her shirt was torn. My anger grew but not towards her, towards the prick that tried to take advantage of her like this.

He moved to Rachel's side slowly and shed his jacket for her. She heard his footsteps and looked up in fear and he knelt next to her. He went to wrap his jacket around her when she tried to get away from him.

"Rachel, it's me. It's Finn. You're okay. He's gone." Finn said soothingly.

"Finn?" She asked shakily through her tears.

"It's me, baby. I'm here." Finn replied, gently wrapping his jacket around her shoulders.

Rachel reached for him unsteadily and Finn grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him, kissing her head softly. "I'm so sorry."

"Shh...you don't have anything to be sorry for. I got you." Finn replied tightening his arms around her.

Rachel was still crying into his shoulder as Finn carefully lifted her into his arms bridal style. "I should have stayed home and followed my gut. I'm sorry you had to rescue me."

"Shh...it's alright. Let get you home and I'll take care of you, okay?" Finn whispered in her ear. She laid her head against his shoulder, burying her face in his throat to try to stop the world from spinning.

Finn made his way back inside the club to grab Kurt, who he wasn't too happy with at the moment. Kurt saw him approach with Rachel in his arms and he perked up.

"You found her?" He asked following him outside to his car.

"Of course I did, no thanks to you. Someone was trying to take advantage of her! I didn't see their face, they ran off when they heard the door open." Finn said, his anger getting the better of him.

"It was Brody." Finn heard Rachel whisper near his ear. He tightened his hold on her.

"I'm taking her back to the house. You can follow us or not, I don't care." Finn replied, unlocking the doors and setting Rachel gently into the passenger seat. He tried to pull away but she tightened her grip on him. "It's okay, baby. I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to take you home, okay? I'm not leaving you."

She let go of him slowly, the tears falling down her face still. Finn gently kissed her forehead before he closed her door and turned to face Kurt again.

"Finn, I'm so sorry." Kurt said near tears.

"Save it. Next time I tell you to do something when it comes to Rachel, just fucking do it." Finn said before storming over to the drivers' side and climbing in.

Rachel was clutching his hand the whole way back to his mom's house and he gently stroked his thumb across her knuckles. She was still scared and Finn couldn't blame her, she was still pretty out of it.

He pulled into the driveway and turned to her. "Rach, do you think you could walk or do you need me to carry you?"

She rolled her head toward him and he carefully brushed a wisp out of her face. She looked so tired. "I'm really dizzy."

"Okay, baby. I'll carry you. Just give me a minute, okay?" Finn replied softly. Rachel nodded and started to close her eyes. Finn gently shook her. "Stay awake, Rach. Just a little bit longer and then I'll let you sleep."

He quickly moved to the passenger side and opened her door. He went to put his arms under her and she tensed up.

"It's alright, baby. It's just me." He whispered.

Rachel put her arms around his neck and held on as tightly as she could while he lifted her into his arms. He closed the car door and locked it with one hand before moving to the front door. Rachel had her head buried in his shoulder as they moved inside.

He went to the living room and carefully laid her down on the couch.

"Don't leave me." She mumbled, barely keeping her eyes open. "Please."

"I'm not going anywhere, Rach. I'm going to grab you some water to drink. Hopefully we can get this out of your system." Finn explained running his hand over her head. "I'll be back in just a minute, okay?"

"Okay." She said weakly finally releasing his shirt. He covered her gently with a blanket.

When Finn returned to the living room, Kurt was just getting there. He handed Rachel the water and helped her sit up to drink it.

"Rach, I'm so sorry. I should have been paying more attention." Kurt said before sitting in the armchair.

"Yes! You should have! Or better yet you shouldn't have taken her there at all!" Finn yelled, causing Rachel to flinch. He reached over and laid a hand gently on her knee, rubbing it softly so she knew he wasn't mad at her.

"Finn, I'm sorry! How many times do I have to say it!" Kurt yelled back.

"Sorry isn't enough in this situation, Kurt. What would have happened if I hadn't found her?!" Finn retorted. "She can't even hold herself up."

"Finn, calm down. I agreed to go out tonight, it's just as much my fault." Rachel spoke quietly, shakily reaching to put the glass down. Finn took it from her and laid it down before helping her lie back down.

"I know how protective you are of her, Finn. But that's no excuse to blow up on the person who realized that something was wrong. I called you, remember?" Kurt said before storming upstairs and slamming his bedroom door.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

So Brody strikes again. Too bad Finn didn't catch him, that wouldn't be a very interesting story though, would it? Do you think Finn overreacted to the situation or is his anger at Kurt valid? Can Finn fix the relationship with Kurt or not? As always, please review and give me your thoughts. Until next time, 'Losers.'