[Cat calendar aside, what if Finn actually *talked* to Rachel about his feelings instead of crying on a broken Schue's shoulder and getting crap advice to find his inner rockstar? – aka, the one where Rachel doesn't end up dating JSJ]
. . . . .
"Rachel, this calendar thing... it's.. Uh, it's a nice idea, and I know you worked hard on it, and it's even kinda cool, even though I hate cats. B-but..." he pulled her to the side of the busy hallway and quietly tried to explain himself. "Listen. You just asked for total, brutal honesty a second ago, so... I don't wanna hurt your feelings but I need to be honest, Rach. I think you already know, I like you... so much, I really do... but I-I don't think I"m ready for us to date yet." He noticed her happy, attentive smiling face deflating into a sad crinkled frown and tried to catch her before she erupted into tears. He placed a hand on her shoulder and hunched down to keep direct eye contact with her. "But I wanna be though, I do. I just, I think it's be better if we waited a while longer."
"But... why? What do you mean?"
"Rachel, look behind you. See them?"
Rachel turned to follow his gaz and saw Quinn and Noah arguing at her locker. "I still can't see them together yet without wanting to go over there and punch him in the face. And I can't see HER without feeling like garbage and a total idiot. And I can['t think about that baby without being totally heartbroken. My head is a mess still, Rach."
"But they lied to you and used you in the worst way Finn. It's been nearly a month...and I thought we talked through all your pain over what happened."
"I know... We did. And you've helped me SO MUCH, Rachel like, more than you know. You're seriously like, my best friend. Probably my only REAL friend now... and maybe I'm being selfish, but I don't want to lose that yet. And I don't think it's fair to you that I can't get all that other crap outta my head yet to be the kind of boyfriend you deserve right now. So I'm... I'm just asking if you can give me a little more time 'til I'm ready."
"More time? Like how much time do you think you'll need?"
"I don't know Rach, I can't measure it. I just know that all I wanna feel when I look at them is nothing, and I'm not there yet. It's not because I don't want to be with you though, I swear. And the minute I'm ready to date again you'll be my first call, I promise. We can even use the next date on your cat calendar as out first date, whenever that might be."
Rachel blushed under his intense gaze as he moved his hand from her shoulder to her cheek. She believed his earnestness. "You really do like me though?"
"Yeah, I do. For a long time now... but I think you knew that before I did. There's something about you, Rachel Berry... and I don't wanna stop feeling what I feel for you, but my feelings for you are getting all mixed up with the rage and hurt from what they did to me. That's not fair to you – or to me. I want things to work for us when we really give this thing a shot. Does that make sense?"
Rachel placed her hand over his that still rested against her face, smiled and nodded. "Yes Finn, it does. I'm sorry for being too pushy and overzealous... I should have considered it was still too soon for you, and I shouldn't have been so presumptuous about your intentions."
"Hey – you might have jumped the gun a little early, but you're not wrong about how I feel. I wanna be ready Rach, but right now I'm just not. But y'know, maybe the more we hang out, the sooner I'll get there. So... you'll wait for me?"
"Yes, of course I will. Barbra herself couldn't stop me."
"Thanks for understanding, Rach." With that he kissed her forehead and hugged her in a tight embrace. When the hug broke, he grabbed her backpack from her. "Walk you to your next class?"
"Finn, we're at opposite ends of the school for next period... you'll be late to your class."
"I'll run. Anyway it's just bio and Miss Haggerty likes me. C'mon best friend, let's get you to math."
She beamed a million dollar smile at him and wrapped her tiny hand around the elbow he offered her. "Okay sure, but just this one time. I don't want you making a habit of being to class late, especially not on my account. Your studies shouldn't suffer over personal relationships. In fact, I think we should institute regular study sessions at my house. I know your Spanish and English grades are pretty abysmal right now. I can help you in the subjects you're falling behind in. How about 6 pm tonight? We can have dinner first and I still have some cookie dough left, I'll bake you a fresh batch."
His eyes lit up with delight. "The double chocolate chippers? Those were the best ones you made yet. I think they're my favorite so far."
"I know," she giggled. "But no cookies until AFTER your work is caught up."
"Okay fine, homework at your place – but I'm bringing the pizza. Sorry Rach, I can't eat that rabbit food you like for dinner. I need MEAT."
"Deal."