Chapter 8:
As Finn woke up, he groaned. He knew the pain was going to be intense but it felt like someone had ripped his leg off. He knew he needed to take some of the pain medicine but he looked down at Rachel and noticed she was still asleep. He knew she needed her rest.
Looking at his nightstand, he saw it was past eight o'clock. He reached over to grab his phone off the nightstand and opened his messaging app. He sent a short text to his mom that he was in pain but didn't want to wake Rachel. She replied a minute later that she would be done with his medicine and a glass of water.
Finn locked his phone and ran a hand through Rachel's hair with a smile. He couldn't believe how far they had come even in the last year. Her nose crinkled up as he heard the door open. He gently kissed her forehead just as her eyes opened and Carole came into view.
"Hey, sweetheart. I brought your pain pills." Carole greeted as Rachel sat up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
"Thanks mom. I didn't expect it to hurt so much." Finn explained.
"They said it was to be expected and they had you on quite a bit of pain killers before you came home." Carole replied.
Finn swallowed the pills quickly with a drink of water, making a disgusted face and sticking his tongue out causing Rachel to laugh.
"That bad, huh?" She giggled.
"They don't taste that bad, just have kind of a chalky taste that I don't like." Finn said after taking another drink of the water.
"So Burt and I have been talking about this arrangement..." Carole started.
"Wait, mom please don't make her leave. Honestly, her support is the only reason I'm getting through this." Finn begged, throwing off the covers and swinging his legs carefully over the side of the bed. Rachel placed a hand on his back, trying to calm him so he could listen to what she had to say.
"Relax, honey. We aren't making Rachel leave. We just don't think that you should be going up and down those stairs. So we are trying to figure out a way that you won't have to." Carole explained gently.
"Oh. I think you're right about that. Sorry for jumping to conclusions." Finn said sheepishly.
"Please call for one of us before you two come up. Last thing we need is for you to take a fall on those stairs." Carole reassured before leaving the room.
Finn turned his attention back to Rachel as she left. "Morning beautiful, how did you sleep?"
"Better than I have in a long time." Rachel replied, giving him a smile before climbing out of the bed. She shot him a glance over her shoulder as she moved to the dresser. "Do you mind if I pick you out something to wear? I swear it won't be as bad as Kurt."
He chuckled and gestured for her to go ahead. "I trust you, Rach. It's not like I'd have an easy time trying to do it myself."
She ended up deciding on a pair of dark wash jeans with a white t-shirt and his red and white plaid button up. He smiled at her and grabbed her hand as she handed them to him.
"You always did like me in this." He said fingering the fabric.
"Yeah, you look good in that." Rachel started before sitting next to him. "I have a question for you, though."
Finn looked confused but turned more to look at her. "Okay, you know you can ask me anything."
Rachel took a deep breath before she asked. "Why did you hold onto one of my shirts after we broke up?"
"Isn't is obvious?" Finn started placing a hand on her knee. "You became one of the biggest parts of my life. You never failed to support me, no matter what I decided. So I kept it as a reminder to keep going and I hoped that the universe would decide that we belonged together, so I could eventually give it back."
A single tear slid down Rachel's cheek and Finn wiped it away. "That was very sweet but I think my style has changed a bit since then."
"That may be but you're still the same big ambiguous girl I fell in love with." Finn replied tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"I think the word you were looking for is ambitious." Rachel smiled as she stood back up and moved to her suitcase.
"Oh, shoot. Yeah, you're probably right." Finn said.
She pulled out her next organized outfit and turned to look at him. "Do you need any help changing?"
"No, I think I got it. I'll meet you upstairs." Finn grinned at her.
Rachel came down the stairs from the upstairs bathroom twenty minutes later in a pair of light wash blue jeans, a striped halter top and a black cardigan. She had brushed her loose curls out and they bounced behind her as she descended the stairs. She noticed the living room was empty so she moved to the kitchen and saw Finn sitting at the island, sipping on a cup of coffee.
"When did Finn Hudson start drinking coffee?" Rachel smirked wrapping her arms around his neck now that he was closer to her height.
"About the same time that I took over the Glee club for Mr. Schue." Finn replied placing a hand on her arm still wrapped around him. "It was awful at first but it grew on me after awhile."
"Sleep deprivation will do that to you." Rachel giggled before placing a light kiss to his neck and releasing him to grab her own coffee.
Kurt came into the kitchen at that moment and noticed Finn at the island. "Hey Finn, how did you sleep?"
"Better than the last couple days." Finn replied. "Just something about sleeping in my own bed, I guess."
"Sure it's the bed." Kurt said with a smirk and a glance at Rachel. "There better still be some coffee left, Rach. You know how I get without it."
Rachel turned to him and smiled. "Oh I sure do. Come get it before its all gone."
Carole left the table and gave Finn a kiss on his cheek which he immediately wiped off. "Gross mom. I'm an adult now."
"You'll always be my baby, sweetheart. Anyway, we're headed to the police station to find out why it took so long. Is there anything you need while we're out?" Carole asked grabbing her purse.
"Actually there's a couple things. Could you ask them what happened to the other driver and I'm sure Rachel will need somethings to eat. I don't think we have anything here for her." Finn replied looking up at her.
"Of course, honey. I'll make sure I pick up enough groceries for her for the week." Carole replied before they were off.
"I'm going to go hang out with Blaine. Do you need help to the living room before I go." Kurt asked when it was just the three of them.
"Nah, Rachel's got it. Right, Rach?" He smiled at her.
"Yeah, go on Kurt. We'll be fine here." Rachel replied giving him a smile. "I know Finn wasn't the only reason you came back, even though he was the main reason."
Kurt nodded and gave Finn and Rachel a hug before he was off. Rachel moved back to Finn and took a seat across from him. She took a sip of her coffee before Finn spoke.
"I'm sorry you have to do practically everything for me." Finn said quietly.
Rachel looked up and quirked an eyebrow. "As opposed to the alternative? Finn, I would gladly take care of you, even if you had ended up like Sean did. I love you as a person not how able you are. What did you want to do today? I mean we can't do much considering but..."
"Rach, you're rambling again." Finn said with a smile. "It means so much to me that you want to take care of me, even if it had been worse. Do you want to watch a movie? I can't grab the drinks and snacks unfortunately."
"That's fine, Finn. I'll grab that stuff." Rachel said getting off her stool and moving towards him. "Do you want to sit in your dad's chair again? To make it easier to rest your leg?"
Finn nodded and eased himself up from the stool as Rachel grabbed his crutches. His casted foot slipped on the tiled floor and Rachel turned in time to see him come crashing to the floor.
"Finn!" She gasped rushing toward him.
The mishap triggered something in Finn as he sat up and he shoved the stool over in anger. Rachel knelt beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Are you okay? Do I need to call your mom?" She asked in concern.
"No, I'm fine. Can you help me back up?" Finn asked in shame.
Rachel nodded and he reached for the edge of the counter, knowing she wouldn't be able to lift him on her own. She wrapped an arm under his and slowly he lifted himself back to his feet. Rachel grabbed the crutches that she had moved closer and handed him the first one, making sure he was steady before handing him the other one. "Are you sure your okay?"
"I might have a few new bruises tomorrow but I promise I'm fine, Rach." Finn replied as she followed him closely to the living room until he was sitting in his dad's chair.
"Okay. I'll go grab the snacks and drinks really quick and we can watch whatever you want." Rachel replied leaning down to place a kiss to his forehead. He smiled widely as she pulled away showing off his dimples.
Carole and Burt came back to the hours a few hours later, carrying a few grocery bags. Carole noticed Finn napping in the chair and Rachel looked up at them as the door closed. Carole gave her a smile before Rachel gestured them to the kitchen.
"What's up, sweetheart?" Carole asked as Rachel clasped her hands in front of her.
"I don't know if he'll want me to say anything but I feel I need to." Rachel started. "While you both were out, Finn had a fall."
"What? Is he okay?" Carole asked anxiously as she started to move towards the living room. Rachel stopped her though.
"He insists that he is. We were going to the living room to watch a movie so he started to stand up. I went to grab his crutches and when I turned back around, I saw him slip on the tile and hit the floor. He fell pretty hard but he insists he's okay." Rachel explained.
"I should make sure he's not in any pain. He might need another pain pill." Carole said making her way into the living room. Rachel trailed behind her but stayed back unsure of how this conversation would go.
Carole knelt beside Finn and touched his knee. "Finn, honey?"
His eyes slowly fluttered open and came to rest on his mom. "Hey mom. Did you guys just get back?"
Carole nodded and glanced at Rachel who bit her lip in worry. "Rachel said you had a fall in the kitchen...are you okay? Do you need anything for pain?"
Finn's head snapped towards Rachel and she looked away in shame. "I told you I was fine. You didn't need to tell her."
"She thought we should know, Finn." Carole said trying to calm him.
"I'm fine!" Finn shouted in anger before looking at Rachel. "If she needed to be told, I would have told her!"
Rachel's eyes began to fill with tears and she ran out of the house, hearing Carole call for her as the door slammed shut. She didn't know where she was headed but she needed to get away for now.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
And there it is, Finn has put his foot in his mouth again. How will he fix this situation with being pretty immobile? Do you think his fall was worse than he's saying it was? You'll have to stay tuned to find out. As always please review and let me know what you think so far. Until next time, 'Losers.'