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sapphireejTitle: Starlight, Chapter 36
Author: Sapphire (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sapphiresfic)
Fandom: Glee
Pairing/Characters: Rachel, Puck, Rachel/Puck, the Glee clubbers
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 4,658
Spoilers: Up to 1x22 ~ Journey; just to be safe
Series: 'Starlight' (List of all the parts on my LJ)
Summary1: He's the star who just wants to be a high school student; she's the loser, who dreams of her name in lights on Broadway... When they meet at WMHS on the first day of a new school year; how will they take each other? ~ AU from the eps.
Summary2: Noah reluctantly has to leave and Rachel's emotions finally surface.
Disclaimer: I am just borrowing them for the fun of writing, BUT I do own the plot, ideas and original characters.
A/N: I edited this chapter, so all mistakes are mine.
A/N2: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D
~*~
A/N3: Keep in mind, within this AU... There is no Puck/Quinn, no Finn/Rachel, Quinn is NOT pregnant at all, Puck's dad never left when he was a kid and Puck will be OOC so yes, totally AU, though you'll see similarities to the episodes.
~*~
A/N4: I feel horrible! One of my best friends and readers suggested 'Someone To Fall Back On' a long time ago and we agreed it fit best in 'Starlight'. I totally forgot to give her the shout-out that she totally deserves for pointing out this awesome song... Thank you, Karma22 /karmakaze22! Love ya!
~*~
Snuggling up together on the couch, Noah and Rachel relaxed in contentment. Their evening had been amazing and neither wanted it to end, but in the back of their minds they knew that by morning, Noah and his parents would be leaving Lima for almost a week.
"I don't want to go home," Rachel murmured, her eyes studying the bracelet wrapped around her wrist.
"Then stay the night," he replied, holding her close to him.
"But we talked about sleeping apart before you left so it would be easier while you were gone," she said softly.
"Yeah, we did, but I don't want you to leave either," he added, "so forget what we talked about and stay," he told her honestly.
Rachel smiled and shifted lightly, "gladly," she whispered, pressing her lips to his.
~*~
Sitting up a little, the couple stayed close as they shared the chocolate covered strawberries and sparkling apple cider, talking lightly. As they finished the last one, Rachel sat back on the couch and reached out for him to join her.
Noah turned a little to face her, "maybe we should head upstairs and do this," he whispered, "you should call your dads to make sure they're okay with you staying and then we can head to my room to get comfortable."
Rachel sighed, but sat up, "you're right," she agreed, "my phone is in my bag. I don't have any clothes to sleep in, though," she admitted.
"It's okay. I've got things you can borrow," he assured her, standing up.
"Okay," Rachel smiled and stood up, helping collect their items from the table and then headed upstairs, dropping the dirty dishes in the kitchen. Rachel moved over to her her bag and put the CD he gave her inside and then got her cell phone to call her dads.
"Hello, sweetheart, everything alright?" David answered.
Rachel nodded, "yes, everything is wonderful," she smiled, "Noah gave me this beautiful bracelet," she admitted, looking at it, "and got one for him, too."
"That's wonderful, Rachel. We can't wait to see them," David replied.
"Would it be alright if I stayed here tonight?" She asked, "I really don't want to leave."
"Of course it is. We figured you'd want to stay. Do you think you'll be okay?" He asked, "because we know Deborah and Ethan will be alright with it."
"I'll be okay here. This is my second home. I feel safe here," she assured him, moving into the kitchen where Noah was.
"That's good. Enjoy the rest of your night and we'll see you in the morning," he told her.
"Thank you, daddy. Goodnight. I love you both," she said, blowing a kiss through the phone.
"We love you, too, sweetheart, goodnight," he replied before hanging up.
Rachel slid her phone into her pocket, and smiled at Noah, "they're okay with it."
"That's awesome," Noah grinned, moving to wrap his arms around her.
"It is," she nodded, relaxing in his strength.
"I already asked my parents if you could stay. They're cool with it," he added.
"You did?" She blushed, "daddy said they knew your parents would be okay if I stayed."
"Well, as my parents said, you're welcome here anytime, day or night, so at least they all agree," he kissed her. Rachel returned his kiss, but jumped when she heard the loud ringing from the gate alarm and Noah laughed lightly, "whoa, babe, it's okay. My parents and sister must be back."
"I know, it just shocked me. I wasn't expecting it," she admitted, laughing lightly.
"I could tell," Noah grinned, kissing her gently.
It didn't take long for his family to enter the house, pulling the teens back to reality, from where they were lost in each other. Arin was happy to see Rachel, but after greeting her and her brother, she headed up to her room to start getting ready for bed and to collect some things to pack up, giving Ethan and Deborah a chance to talk to Noah and Rachel.
"I see you accepted the bracelets," Ethan commented with a smile.
Rachel grinned, "I did. They're amazing," she slipped her arm around Noah's waist, "you both have raised a wonderful young man and I'm so happy to be a part of his life."
Noah blushed at her compliment, but smiled, "thanks babe."
"He is a wonderful young man," Deborah agreed, "but he'll always be my little boy."
"Ah, mom," Noah continued to blush, ducking his head in embarrassment.
Deborah grinned and moved over to hug him, "it's true, sweetheart."
Ethan laughed, "quit embarrassing him. Save it for when he wins at the awards," he added, moving out of the kitchen.
"I love you, mom, I do, but keep it to a minimum, please," Noah begged.
"I'll try," Deborah promised, seeing her son's cheeks were still red.
"Thanks," he smiled, glancing in the direction of where his dad had gone and narrowed his eyes in confusion as he heard the front door open and close, "what's dad doing?"
"We went to get house keys made for Rachel in case Arin needs anything while we're gone. He's making sure they work before we give them to her," Deborah explained, then turned to Rachel, "and we don't want them back. You're welcome to keep them, because we trust you and know that you won't abuse the right to have them."
"It means the world to me that you all trust me and I promise I'll never destroy that trust," she assured them.
Ethan stepped into the room, "we know that, Rachel," he smiled, handing them over.
Rachel took the offered keys, still attached to the information tag and smiled at them. They looked like typical house keys, but one was white with black musical notes all over it and the other was shaped like an acoustic guitar, the neck and strings being where the key's teeth were. "These are so cool," she grinned.
"Arin picked them out," Ethan admitted. "The guitar is the door knob and the musical notes is the deadbolt. They both work. I just checked them," he explained.
"Thank you," she blushed, pealing the information sticker off of each one, "I'll put these on my keys right now so I don't lose them," she said, moving towards her bag. Digging out her keys, she found an empty ring and slipped them on, before returning to the kitchen.
"You do know the security code, right? And how to put it in?" Deborah asked.
"Yes, I do. Noah has showed me a few times," she replied.
"Good. You shouldn't have to come over here much, but if Arin should need something that wasn't packed, you're welcome to come over and get it. She also knows how to do the alarm, too," Deborah commented.
Rachel nodded, "okay. I'm sure we won't need to, but at least we can now. Would it be alright if we went out this weekend? Um, I mean, well," Rachel bit her lip, "I'm getting a little braver about going out and I was thinking she and I could go shopping at the mall, maybe Saturday with some of the girls."
"Oh, that's perfectly alright. She'll love that," Deborah admitted. "She loves you, Rachel."
"Really?" Rachel asked, surprised.
"You couldn't tell when she rushed in here to see you?" Deborah laughed lightly.
"Well, I know she likes me, but I didn't realize that," Rachel blushed, pushing some hair behind her ear.
Deborah nodded, "she loves having a girl around that's closer to her age," she explained, "someone who isn't her mom. She looks up to you," she added.
"Wow," Rachel blushed, "I, um, never had anyone look up to me before."
Noah rubbed her back, "well, considering that we'll be married one day, she'll technically be your sister-in-law, and it's not uncommon for little sisters to want to be like their older sisters," he explained.
Rachel smiled at his response and nodded, the band around her wrist a physical reminder of his comment, "that is very true and Arin is awesome. I'd love to be her sister. I also hope I continue to be someone she can look up to," she added.
"I'm sure you will be," Noah replied, kissing her on the cheek.
As the clock in the dinning room chimed on nine-pm, the four closed up the house and headed upstairs for the night. Noah and Rachel said 'goodnight' to Arin and their parents and then moved into Noah's room.
Once the door was closed, Rachel removed her top, carefully folding it up and laying it on his desk, then did the same with her skirt after she kicked her shoes off, "can I borrow one of your t-shirts?" She asked, motioning to her under clothes.
Noah walked over to her and slipped his arms around her body, "you could, but you could just sleep in that," he admitted, pressing a kiss to her bare shoulder.
Rachel smiled and stood on her tip toes as his lips kept exploring her shoulder and neck, "you do not know how good that feels," she whispered, letting her eyes drift closed.
His hands slid to rest on her bare back as he pulled back a little, "I feel a 'but' coming on, though," he admitted, guiding her to his bed.
She ducked her head in embarrassment, when she felt the bed against the back of her legs, "but I need some more time," she whispered, biting her lip as she looked up at him, "I know we did this in New York, but things have changed since then and I just need some more time to feel like myself again before we do this, okay?" She asked hopeful.
"More than okay," he assured her, "when you're ready," he added, hugging her tightly.
"Thank you," she murmured as they pulled away, kissing him on the lips.
Noah smiled into the kiss and when their lips parted, he whispered, "no thanks needed." Guiding her to sit down on the bed, he headed for his closet, digging out one of his gray McKinley Football t-shirts and brought it over to her, "how's this?"
"Perfect," she stood up and took it from him.
Watching her pull it on, seeing how much bigger it was than her petite body, he smirked, "it's big on you, but you look fuckin' hot in it."
Rachel blushed, knowing why he said that, "I like wearing your shirts," she admitted, running her hand through her hair.
"I like you wearing my shirts," he agreed with a grin, stripping down to his boxers and a t-shirt, "my closet is open anytime," he added, pulling back the blankets and slipping under them.
"I may just permanently borrow a few things to get me through this week," she explained, joining him under the blankets.
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead, covering them up and snuggling in, "I'll make sure I give you a few before we go," he promised.
"Okay," she smiled and relaxed against his chest, "I keep trying to tell myself that it's only a week, but it's the first time we've really been apart since we got together," she admitted softly, "aside from when she took me."
Noah nodded and wrapped his arms around her protectively, "I'm going to miss you so much and will be counting down the time until I can see you again. We'll get through this, baby. We got through a lot worse, and we're stronger because of it. Being apart is going to suck, but we'll be okay, I promise," he said honestly.
Rachel smiled and leaned up, kissing him lovingly, "we will be," she agreed, "promise me you'll take pictures," she whispered.
He laughed lightly, but nodded, "I will and if I can't, I'm sure my mom or dad will," he assured her.
"Good," she grinned and settled against him again, "I love you."
"I love you, too, babe. See you in the morning," he replied, kissing her forehead.
"You, too," she replied, closing her eyes.
~*~
The Puckerman's house was busy by six in the morning. Everyone was up and moving around, trying to get final things taken care of before leaving. Rachel helped where she could, but was limited with her cast. By six-forty-five everyone's bags were packed into the cars; they'd put Arin's bags into Rachel's car, so they could take them over to the Berry's and the others' bags were in Ethan's SUV, that they were taking to the airport.
With a final walk around the house, they all moved outside, "okay, Arin. Do you know Rachel's cell phone number?" Deborah asked.
"Yes, and I know her house number and her dads' names," Arin replied.
"Good. I'm going to give them to your teacher when we get to school. I've already told her that you're going to be staying with them while we're gone and Rachel, you're still picking her up after school, right?" Deborah turned to look at her.
Rachel nodded, "yes, I'll be there at three," Rachel promised.
"Awesome!" Arin grinned, skipping over to Rachel and hugging her. "I can't wait!"
"Same here," Rachel admitted, returning her hug and smile, "it'll be like a super extended sleepover," she added.
"It will be," Arin agreed moving to hug her brother, "I hope you win an award," she said.
Noah smiled, "I hope so, too," he replied, hugging her, "be good for Rachel. I love you, sis."
"Love you, too, Noah," she replied, "I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you, too, Arin, but we'll be home before you know it," he promised, "oh and," he leaned in and whispered in her ear, "take care of Rachel for me."
Arin nodded, "I will. Promise," she smiled.
Noah returned her smile and nodded, "thanks."
~*~
Piling into their cars, Deborah and Ethan took Arin to school while Noah and Rachel headed back to her house, dropping off Arin's things in the Berry's guest room and getting a few more minutes together before his parents came over to get him.
"I know you guys are only going to be gone a week, but it feels like forever," Rachel murmured as she and Noah entered the kitchen where her dads were sitting.
"It'll go by fast," Noah promised, wrapping his arms around her. "And you can see me Sunday, if you watch the awards," he added with a grin.
Rachel smiled, "I will watch the awards. I was thinking about inviting everyone over for it."
"That sounds like a great idea," David commented, setting his coffee cup down.
"It'd be okay?" Rachel asked her dads.
"Of course," Alan nodded, "your friends are all welcome over here."
"Thank you," she smiled, "I'll invite them over," she paused and relaxed in Noah's arms, "but I'm still going to miss you."
"I'll miss you, too, Rach, but I'm right here," he rested his hand gently over her heart, "and I'm going to call, text and send pictures when I can, so even though we're apart, we'll still be as close as we can be," he promised.
Rachel picked up his hand with hers and looked at their matching bracelets, "yeah, we will be," she agreed, standing up on her tip toes to kiss him, "I love you."
"I love you, too, babe," he murmured against her lips, wrapping his arms around her again.
After a few moments, they pulled apart and slid into the empty stools at the island where her dads were also sitting, "I see you're wearing the bracelets," Alan commented.
Rachel gasped, realizing that she hadn't showed her gift to them yet, "did you guys know?" She asked holding out her wrist as a blush grew on her cheeks.
"Yep, I showed our parents just after I bought them," Noah replied, "they had already given me permission to give you something for the reasons I did, so I showed them what I got to give you, well us."
Her dads looked at the bracelet and smiled at her, "they're a wonderful gift," David nodded.
Taking her hand back, Rachel nodded, "they are. I was so surprised" she continued to blush, "I can't believe you all have known since New York and no one told me," she admitted.
Alan laughed, "sweetheart, Noah asked for our permission and we knew when he got them that he'd wait until the right time to give them to you. We also knew that he'd create a special night to do that and we didn't want to ruin the surprise," he explained.
"Oh, yes, well, there is that," she agreed with a nod.
"I take it last night was the special night," David commented.
"It was amazing," Rachel nodded, "he made dinner all by himself: salad, sushi and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. We had sparking grape juice and sparking apple cider to drink and then we went downstairs to the studio, where he sang me a song he wrote for me while I was gone," she got up and slid onto Noah's lap, "it was so emotional, but I loved it and then he brought these out," she added, lifting her wrist to show the bracelet, "and I don't know when I cried more; for the song or these, but the whole night was so special," she said, kissing Noah lovingly.
Noah wrapped his arms around her while they kissed and smiled, "I'm glad you feel that way, because you're worth it and so much more. Some may say I'm spoiling you, but I think I'm treating you how you should be treated; with love, respect and romance."
"Definitely makes her dads very happy to know you're treating our daughter properly," Alan commented with a smile.
David nodded in agreement, "very happy."
Rachel smiled at her dads, then turned to her boyfriend, "I'm so lucky to have you, Noah."
"I'm the luckiest guy in the world," he replied, reaching up to brush his hand along her cheek, "I'm never letting you go," he added with a smile.
"Neither am I," she promised, smiling at him, but it changed to a pout when there was a knock on the front door.
David saw her expression and got up, heading to the door to answer it, knowing it was Noah's parents and greeted them when he pulled the door open, "morning you two."
"Morning, David," Deborah said waving.
"Hey," Ethan nodded at him as the two stepped inside.
"I don't think the kids are very happy you're here, though," he added, closing the door.
"Well, we took our time and we don't have to leave right now, but in the next ten to fifteen minutes," Ethan replied with a laugh, moving into the kitchen with Deborah and David.
"We really appreciate you guys taking Arin for the week," Deborah said to David and Alan.
"It's not a problem. Arin's a great kid and she's welcome any time," Alan replied honestly.
"Still, thank you. This is the first time we've ever gotten Deb to one of the awards shows," Ethan commented.
"Ever?" Rachel gasped, looking at her.
Deborah nodded, "yes. I've wanted to go a few times, but it's not really a place for a kid and we never felt comfortable leaving her with her friends for a long weekend or something and our family lives several hours from here," she explained, "so it's always been easier to just stay home and watch it on TV, because most of the time when they're filming it in California, it's broadcasting here at the same time, so it's like being there, but not quite."
"Oh, thank makes sense," Rachel agreed, "but you're his mom. You should go."
"I don't need to," she admitted, "he knows how proud I am of him, and being there or not being there is not going to change that. Sure, I would love to be there to congratulate him when they announce his name, but we're always the first call he makes, so it's close," Deborah smiled, rubbing Noah's shoulder, "and we knew one day I'd go with him."
"We figured it'd be a few years from now, when Arin was older and could either stay home alone or come with us," Noah added.
"Okay. I see what you mean," Rachel replied, resting her head on Noah's shoulder.
The clock on the wall was continuing to get closer to eight, and everyone knew what that meant, "I hate to say this, but we have to leave in a few minutes," Noah said softly.
Rachel sighed and stood up, holding out her hand to him. When he took it, she led him into the living room and wrapped her arms around him tightly; not wanting to let go, "I really don't want you to go, but on the other hand, this is a huge deal for you and I don't want you to miss it. I'm going to miss you so much," she murmured.
"I'm going to miss you, too, babe," he said, returning her hug, "I'm only a phone call away."
"I know," she nodded, resting her head against his chest, listening to the sound of his heartbeat, "bring me back a Grammy, please," she requested with a smile, looking at him.
He laughed lightly at her request, but nodded, "I'll do my best, baby," he replied, leaning down to kiss her lovingly.
Their kiss lasted several moments and only broke apart when they heard footsteps near them, realizing their parents had joined them.
"I promise the week will go by quickly," Ethan said softly, looking at the teens as they still had their arms wrapped around each other.
Rachel bit her lip, "maybe. You guys will have a lot to do, but I won't have much to keep me occupied. Yes, I'll get to hang out with Arin and maybe go shopping and have everyone over for the awards, but other than that, not much."
"We'll be here, sweetheart," David said, moving towards them, "and there are plenty of things you can do to keep occupied."
"I'll try," she murmured, doing her best to stay calm, "but I'm just going to miss him so much," she added, wishing the tears in her eyes would go away.
"Of course you are, Rachel, no one said you couldn't," Alan said softly, "but we'll also help you get through this, so maybe it doesn't hurt as much."
Rachel nodded, "thanks," she smiled at her dads, "I know. I'm trying to tell myself it's only a week and it's going to go by fast, but it's hard. That's all," she admitted.
Noah pressed a kiss to her forehead, "I'll be home as soon as I can," he promised.
"I know you will be," she smiled lightly at him.
As a light beeping came from Ethan's watch, they knew it was time, so Rachel hugged Noah tightly and the two shared another kiss before reluctantly letting go.
Ethan and Deborah thanked Alan, David and Rachel for taking Arin for the week and 'goodbye' hugs and handshakes were exchanged between the parents before the six moved towards the front door. Ethan and Deborah went out first, followed by Noah and Rachel. Once the teens were outside, Noah wrapped his arms around her again, "I love you, baby."
"I love you, too," she replied, hugging him one last time, before letting go and watching him follow his parents out to Ethan's SUV.
The three Puckermans climbed into the SUV and after a few moments, it pulled away from the curb and headed down the street.
Rachel watched the SUV disappear after it turned off their street and she took a deep breath and turned seeing her dads standing behind her. "It gets easier, right?" She asked hopeful.
"It will," Alan replied softly.
Biting her lip, she nodded and moved into the house, knowing they were following her. When she heard the door shut, the walls she'd held up for so long crumbled and she began sobbing, falling against David.
"Oh sweetheart," David murmured, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close. "It's okay," he promised, rubbing her back.
"I'm going to miss him so much! I tried... I tried to stay calm, so he didn't see me break down," she mumbled between sobs, "but I can't anymore!"
Alan joined their hug, hating to see her like that, but both he and David had expected she'd be upset once Noah and his parents had left, "let it out, sweetheart."
Rachel continued to cry, clinging to them, "I tried to be supportive and not show him just how much it bothered me that he was going. I know know he feels horrible that he has to leave so soon after I came home and I didn't want him to feel even worse, seeing me like this, but he's been the only thing keeping me together and it's like a huge part of me is gone now!" She mumbled through sobs, "I know that's not the best thing to do, you know? Leaning on someone all the time, but he's what has held me together and now that he's gone, I feel like I'm falling apart!"
"Rachel," David rubbed her back, "nothing you have done is wrong. There isn't a 'right' way to recover from what you've been through. You leaned on Noah, because you trust him and feel safe with him. Given why you were taken, I'm sure that's also why you clung to him, and it does suck that he had to leave, because a big part of your support system isn't with you, but I promise you're going to be fine. Yes, it will be hard, but you'll get through this."
"You will," Alan nodded in agreement.
She had calmed down a little, but still had tears falling from her eyes, "I'm trying, but it's so hard! I thought I was getting better, but now I feel like I haven't recovered at all," she murmured, moving from them to plop down on the couch nearby.
David and Alan followed, taking seats next to her, "Rachel, just like broken bones," he rested his hand on her cast, "recovery takes time. Every day you're healing just a little bit more and you still are. You haven't stepped back in that because of this," he reached up and wiped her eyes, "you're acting like any girlfriend would when her boyfriend has to go away for a while and she'll only be able to talk to him on the phone or text him. The only difference is that your emotions are a little stronger right now, because of what happened. Just give yourself some time."
"Dad's right," David nodded, "even if you hadn't been taken and Noah still had to leave and you couldn't go for some reason, you'd still feel like this," he explained, taking her hand in his, "it's part of being in a relationship and loving someone; you miss them when you're apart. Just give yourself time. You'll be okay and before you know it, he'll be back."
Rachel was silent for a long moment, contemplating what her dads had said and then blushed, "you're right. I never thought of it that way," she admitted, taking a deep breath, "thank you. I love you both so much," she added, hugging each of them.
"No need to thank us, sweetheart," Alan replied, "we love you, too, and we're here for you always."
David leaned in and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "always," he agreed.
Rachel smiled, glancing down at her bracelet and took a deep breath, "you can do this, Rachel. Noah's going to be home soon; he won't be gone forever, even if it feels like he is. Just take it one day at a time," she thought, leaning back on the couch to relax. Lifting her wrist up, she pressed a kiss to her bracelet, "one day at a time," she said softly, "I can do this."
~*~
The keys I'm talking about are below and I found them at this website: http://mysecuritypro.com/index.aspx
~*~
A/N5: Hope you all enjoyed! Please review and let me know! I'm only getting a few reviews per update, so I have no clue what you guys are thinking about the fic. Please tell me! Even if it's just 'loved it'. Your reviews keep me writing!
A/N6: I'm almost caught up to what I had going; at least a chapter ready, after the one I posted, so hopefully updates will come quicker now. Today I'm updating 'Out of the Blue' and 'Starlight' and last week I updated 'Broken Road' and 'Returning Home'. The next updates for all of them should be in less than a few weeks.
A/N6: I have a ton of ideas, but is there anything specific you'd like to see or have happen in here? Any celebrities you'd like brought in? Let me know!
~*~
Author: Sapphire (
sapphiresfic) Fandom: Glee
Pairing/Characters: Rachel, Puck, Rachel/Puck, the Glee clubbers
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 4,658
Spoilers: Up to 1x22 ~ Journey; just to be safe
Series: 'Starlight' (List of all the parts on my LJ)
Summary1: He's the star who just wants to be a high school student; she's the loser, who dreams of her name in lights on Broadway... When they meet at WMHS on the first day of a new school year; how will they take each other? ~ AU from the eps.
Summary2: Noah reluctantly has to leave and Rachel's emotions finally surface.
Disclaimer: I am just borrowing them for the fun of writing, BUT I do own the plot, ideas and original characters.
A/N: I edited this chapter, so all mistakes are mine.
A/N2: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D
~*~
A/N3: Keep in mind, within this AU... There is no Puck/Quinn, no Finn/Rachel, Quinn is NOT pregnant at all, Puck's dad never left when he was a kid and Puck will be OOC so yes, totally AU, though you'll see similarities to the episodes.
~*~
A/N4: I feel horrible! One of my best friends and readers suggested 'Someone To Fall Back On' a long time ago and we agreed it fit best in 'Starlight'. I totally forgot to give her the shout-out that she totally deserves for pointing out this awesome song... Thank you, Karma22 /
karmakaze22! Love ya! ~*~
Snuggling up together on the couch, Noah and Rachel relaxed in contentment. Their evening had been amazing and neither wanted it to end, but in the back of their minds they knew that by morning, Noah and his parents would be leaving Lima for almost a week.
"I don't want to go home," Rachel murmured, her eyes studying the bracelet wrapped around her wrist.
"Then stay the night," he replied, holding her close to him.
"But we talked about sleeping apart before you left so it would be easier while you were gone," she said softly.
"Yeah, we did, but I don't want you to leave either," he added, "so forget what we talked about and stay," he told her honestly.
Rachel smiled and shifted lightly, "gladly," she whispered, pressing her lips to his.
~*~
Sitting up a little, the couple stayed close as they shared the chocolate covered strawberries and sparkling apple cider, talking lightly. As they finished the last one, Rachel sat back on the couch and reached out for him to join her.
Noah turned a little to face her, "maybe we should head upstairs and do this," he whispered, "you should call your dads to make sure they're okay with you staying and then we can head to my room to get comfortable."
Rachel sighed, but sat up, "you're right," she agreed, "my phone is in my bag. I don't have any clothes to sleep in, though," she admitted.
"It's okay. I've got things you can borrow," he assured her, standing up.
"Okay," Rachel smiled and stood up, helping collect their items from the table and then headed upstairs, dropping the dirty dishes in the kitchen. Rachel moved over to her her bag and put the CD he gave her inside and then got her cell phone to call her dads.
"Hello, sweetheart, everything alright?" David answered.
Rachel nodded, "yes, everything is wonderful," she smiled, "Noah gave me this beautiful bracelet," she admitted, looking at it, "and got one for him, too."
"That's wonderful, Rachel. We can't wait to see them," David replied.
"Would it be alright if I stayed here tonight?" She asked, "I really don't want to leave."
"Of course it is. We figured you'd want to stay. Do you think you'll be okay?" He asked, "because we know Deborah and Ethan will be alright with it."
"I'll be okay here. This is my second home. I feel safe here," she assured him, moving into the kitchen where Noah was.
"That's good. Enjoy the rest of your night and we'll see you in the morning," he told her.
"Thank you, daddy. Goodnight. I love you both," she said, blowing a kiss through the phone.
"We love you, too, sweetheart, goodnight," he replied before hanging up.
Rachel slid her phone into her pocket, and smiled at Noah, "they're okay with it."
"That's awesome," Noah grinned, moving to wrap his arms around her.
"It is," she nodded, relaxing in his strength.
"I already asked my parents if you could stay. They're cool with it," he added.
"You did?" She blushed, "daddy said they knew your parents would be okay if I stayed."
"Well, as my parents said, you're welcome here anytime, day or night, so at least they all agree," he kissed her. Rachel returned his kiss, but jumped when she heard the loud ringing from the gate alarm and Noah laughed lightly, "whoa, babe, it's okay. My parents and sister must be back."
"I know, it just shocked me. I wasn't expecting it," she admitted, laughing lightly.
"I could tell," Noah grinned, kissing her gently.
It didn't take long for his family to enter the house, pulling the teens back to reality, from where they were lost in each other. Arin was happy to see Rachel, but after greeting her and her brother, she headed up to her room to start getting ready for bed and to collect some things to pack up, giving Ethan and Deborah a chance to talk to Noah and Rachel.
"I see you accepted the bracelets," Ethan commented with a smile.
Rachel grinned, "I did. They're amazing," she slipped her arm around Noah's waist, "you both have raised a wonderful young man and I'm so happy to be a part of his life."
Noah blushed at her compliment, but smiled, "thanks babe."
"He is a wonderful young man," Deborah agreed, "but he'll always be my little boy."
"Ah, mom," Noah continued to blush, ducking his head in embarrassment.
Deborah grinned and moved over to hug him, "it's true, sweetheart."
Ethan laughed, "quit embarrassing him. Save it for when he wins at the awards," he added, moving out of the kitchen.
"I love you, mom, I do, but keep it to a minimum, please," Noah begged.
"I'll try," Deborah promised, seeing her son's cheeks were still red.
"Thanks," he smiled, glancing in the direction of where his dad had gone and narrowed his eyes in confusion as he heard the front door open and close, "what's dad doing?"
"We went to get house keys made for Rachel in case Arin needs anything while we're gone. He's making sure they work before we give them to her," Deborah explained, then turned to Rachel, "and we don't want them back. You're welcome to keep them, because we trust you and know that you won't abuse the right to have them."
"It means the world to me that you all trust me and I promise I'll never destroy that trust," she assured them.
Ethan stepped into the room, "we know that, Rachel," he smiled, handing them over.
Rachel took the offered keys, still attached to the information tag and smiled at them. They looked like typical house keys, but one was white with black musical notes all over it and the other was shaped like an acoustic guitar, the neck and strings being where the key's teeth were. "These are so cool," she grinned.
"Arin picked them out," Ethan admitted. "The guitar is the door knob and the musical notes is the deadbolt. They both work. I just checked them," he explained.
"Thank you," she blushed, pealing the information sticker off of each one, "I'll put these on my keys right now so I don't lose them," she said, moving towards her bag. Digging out her keys, she found an empty ring and slipped them on, before returning to the kitchen.
"You do know the security code, right? And how to put it in?" Deborah asked.
"Yes, I do. Noah has showed me a few times," she replied.
"Good. You shouldn't have to come over here much, but if Arin should need something that wasn't packed, you're welcome to come over and get it. She also knows how to do the alarm, too," Deborah commented.
Rachel nodded, "okay. I'm sure we won't need to, but at least we can now. Would it be alright if we went out this weekend? Um, I mean, well," Rachel bit her lip, "I'm getting a little braver about going out and I was thinking she and I could go shopping at the mall, maybe Saturday with some of the girls."
"Oh, that's perfectly alright. She'll love that," Deborah admitted. "She loves you, Rachel."
"Really?" Rachel asked, surprised.
"You couldn't tell when she rushed in here to see you?" Deborah laughed lightly.
"Well, I know she likes me, but I didn't realize that," Rachel blushed, pushing some hair behind her ear.
Deborah nodded, "she loves having a girl around that's closer to her age," she explained, "someone who isn't her mom. She looks up to you," she added.
"Wow," Rachel blushed, "I, um, never had anyone look up to me before."
Noah rubbed her back, "well, considering that we'll be married one day, she'll technically be your sister-in-law, and it's not uncommon for little sisters to want to be like their older sisters," he explained.
Rachel smiled at his response and nodded, the band around her wrist a physical reminder of his comment, "that is very true and Arin is awesome. I'd love to be her sister. I also hope I continue to be someone she can look up to," she added.
"I'm sure you will be," Noah replied, kissing her on the cheek.
As the clock in the dinning room chimed on nine-pm, the four closed up the house and headed upstairs for the night. Noah and Rachel said 'goodnight' to Arin and their parents and then moved into Noah's room.
Once the door was closed, Rachel removed her top, carefully folding it up and laying it on his desk, then did the same with her skirt after she kicked her shoes off, "can I borrow one of your t-shirts?" She asked, motioning to her under clothes.
Noah walked over to her and slipped his arms around her body, "you could, but you could just sleep in that," he admitted, pressing a kiss to her bare shoulder.
Rachel smiled and stood on her tip toes as his lips kept exploring her shoulder and neck, "you do not know how good that feels," she whispered, letting her eyes drift closed.
His hands slid to rest on her bare back as he pulled back a little, "I feel a 'but' coming on, though," he admitted, guiding her to his bed.
She ducked her head in embarrassment, when she felt the bed against the back of her legs, "but I need some more time," she whispered, biting her lip as she looked up at him, "I know we did this in New York, but things have changed since then and I just need some more time to feel like myself again before we do this, okay?" She asked hopeful.
"More than okay," he assured her, "when you're ready," he added, hugging her tightly.
"Thank you," she murmured as they pulled away, kissing him on the lips.
Noah smiled into the kiss and when their lips parted, he whispered, "no thanks needed." Guiding her to sit down on the bed, he headed for his closet, digging out one of his gray McKinley Football t-shirts and brought it over to her, "how's this?"
"Perfect," she stood up and took it from him.
Watching her pull it on, seeing how much bigger it was than her petite body, he smirked, "it's big on you, but you look fuckin' hot in it."
Rachel blushed, knowing why he said that, "I like wearing your shirts," she admitted, running her hand through her hair.
"I like you wearing my shirts," he agreed with a grin, stripping down to his boxers and a t-shirt, "my closet is open anytime," he added, pulling back the blankets and slipping under them.
"I may just permanently borrow a few things to get me through this week," she explained, joining him under the blankets.
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead, covering them up and snuggling in, "I'll make sure I give you a few before we go," he promised.
"Okay," she smiled and relaxed against his chest, "I keep trying to tell myself that it's only a week, but it's the first time we've really been apart since we got together," she admitted softly, "aside from when she took me."
Noah nodded and wrapped his arms around her protectively, "I'm going to miss you so much and will be counting down the time until I can see you again. We'll get through this, baby. We got through a lot worse, and we're stronger because of it. Being apart is going to suck, but we'll be okay, I promise," he said honestly.
Rachel smiled and leaned up, kissing him lovingly, "we will be," she agreed, "promise me you'll take pictures," she whispered.
He laughed lightly, but nodded, "I will and if I can't, I'm sure my mom or dad will," he assured her.
"Good," she grinned and settled against him again, "I love you."
"I love you, too, babe. See you in the morning," he replied, kissing her forehead.
"You, too," she replied, closing her eyes.
~*~
The Puckerman's house was busy by six in the morning. Everyone was up and moving around, trying to get final things taken care of before leaving. Rachel helped where she could, but was limited with her cast. By six-forty-five everyone's bags were packed into the cars; they'd put Arin's bags into Rachel's car, so they could take them over to the Berry's and the others' bags were in Ethan's SUV, that they were taking to the airport.
With a final walk around the house, they all moved outside, "okay, Arin. Do you know Rachel's cell phone number?" Deborah asked.
"Yes, and I know her house number and her dads' names," Arin replied.
"Good. I'm going to give them to your teacher when we get to school. I've already told her that you're going to be staying with them while we're gone and Rachel, you're still picking her up after school, right?" Deborah turned to look at her.
Rachel nodded, "yes, I'll be there at three," Rachel promised.
"Awesome!" Arin grinned, skipping over to Rachel and hugging her. "I can't wait!"
"Same here," Rachel admitted, returning her hug and smile, "it'll be like a super extended sleepover," she added.
"It will be," Arin agreed moving to hug her brother, "I hope you win an award," she said.
Noah smiled, "I hope so, too," he replied, hugging her, "be good for Rachel. I love you, sis."
"Love you, too, Noah," she replied, "I'll miss you."
"I'll miss you, too, Arin, but we'll be home before you know it," he promised, "oh and," he leaned in and whispered in her ear, "take care of Rachel for me."
Arin nodded, "I will. Promise," she smiled.
Noah returned her smile and nodded, "thanks."
~*~
Piling into their cars, Deborah and Ethan took Arin to school while Noah and Rachel headed back to her house, dropping off Arin's things in the Berry's guest room and getting a few more minutes together before his parents came over to get him.
"I know you guys are only going to be gone a week, but it feels like forever," Rachel murmured as she and Noah entered the kitchen where her dads were sitting.
"It'll go by fast," Noah promised, wrapping his arms around her. "And you can see me Sunday, if you watch the awards," he added with a grin.
Rachel smiled, "I will watch the awards. I was thinking about inviting everyone over for it."
"That sounds like a great idea," David commented, setting his coffee cup down.
"It'd be okay?" Rachel asked her dads.
"Of course," Alan nodded, "your friends are all welcome over here."
"Thank you," she smiled, "I'll invite them over," she paused and relaxed in Noah's arms, "but I'm still going to miss you."
"I'll miss you, too, Rach, but I'm right here," he rested his hand gently over her heart, "and I'm going to call, text and send pictures when I can, so even though we're apart, we'll still be as close as we can be," he promised.
Rachel picked up his hand with hers and looked at their matching bracelets, "yeah, we will be," she agreed, standing up on her tip toes to kiss him, "I love you."
"I love you, too, babe," he murmured against her lips, wrapping his arms around her again.
After a few moments, they pulled apart and slid into the empty stools at the island where her dads were also sitting, "I see you're wearing the bracelets," Alan commented.
Rachel gasped, realizing that she hadn't showed her gift to them yet, "did you guys know?" She asked holding out her wrist as a blush grew on her cheeks.
"Yep, I showed our parents just after I bought them," Noah replied, "they had already given me permission to give you something for the reasons I did, so I showed them what I got to give you, well us."
Her dads looked at the bracelet and smiled at her, "they're a wonderful gift," David nodded.
Taking her hand back, Rachel nodded, "they are. I was so surprised" she continued to blush, "I can't believe you all have known since New York and no one told me," she admitted.
Alan laughed, "sweetheart, Noah asked for our permission and we knew when he got them that he'd wait until the right time to give them to you. We also knew that he'd create a special night to do that and we didn't want to ruin the surprise," he explained.
"Oh, yes, well, there is that," she agreed with a nod.
"I take it last night was the special night," David commented.
"It was amazing," Rachel nodded, "he made dinner all by himself: salad, sushi and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. We had sparking grape juice and sparking apple cider to drink and then we went downstairs to the studio, where he sang me a song he wrote for me while I was gone," she got up and slid onto Noah's lap, "it was so emotional, but I loved it and then he brought these out," she added, lifting her wrist to show the bracelet, "and I don't know when I cried more; for the song or these, but the whole night was so special," she said, kissing Noah lovingly.
Noah wrapped his arms around her while they kissed and smiled, "I'm glad you feel that way, because you're worth it and so much more. Some may say I'm spoiling you, but I think I'm treating you how you should be treated; with love, respect and romance."
"Definitely makes her dads very happy to know you're treating our daughter properly," Alan commented with a smile.
David nodded in agreement, "very happy."
Rachel smiled at her dads, then turned to her boyfriend, "I'm so lucky to have you, Noah."
"I'm the luckiest guy in the world," he replied, reaching up to brush his hand along her cheek, "I'm never letting you go," he added with a smile.
"Neither am I," she promised, smiling at him, but it changed to a pout when there was a knock on the front door.
David saw her expression and got up, heading to the door to answer it, knowing it was Noah's parents and greeted them when he pulled the door open, "morning you two."
"Morning, David," Deborah said waving.
"Hey," Ethan nodded at him as the two stepped inside.
"I don't think the kids are very happy you're here, though," he added, closing the door.
"Well, we took our time and we don't have to leave right now, but in the next ten to fifteen minutes," Ethan replied with a laugh, moving into the kitchen with Deborah and David.
"We really appreciate you guys taking Arin for the week," Deborah said to David and Alan.
"It's not a problem. Arin's a great kid and she's welcome any time," Alan replied honestly.
"Still, thank you. This is the first time we've ever gotten Deb to one of the awards shows," Ethan commented.
"Ever?" Rachel gasped, looking at her.
Deborah nodded, "yes. I've wanted to go a few times, but it's not really a place for a kid and we never felt comfortable leaving her with her friends for a long weekend or something and our family lives several hours from here," she explained, "so it's always been easier to just stay home and watch it on TV, because most of the time when they're filming it in California, it's broadcasting here at the same time, so it's like being there, but not quite."
"Oh, thank makes sense," Rachel agreed, "but you're his mom. You should go."
"I don't need to," she admitted, "he knows how proud I am of him, and being there or not being there is not going to change that. Sure, I would love to be there to congratulate him when they announce his name, but we're always the first call he makes, so it's close," Deborah smiled, rubbing Noah's shoulder, "and we knew one day I'd go with him."
"We figured it'd be a few years from now, when Arin was older and could either stay home alone or come with us," Noah added.
"Okay. I see what you mean," Rachel replied, resting her head on Noah's shoulder.
The clock on the wall was continuing to get closer to eight, and everyone knew what that meant, "I hate to say this, but we have to leave in a few minutes," Noah said softly.
Rachel sighed and stood up, holding out her hand to him. When he took it, she led him into the living room and wrapped her arms around him tightly; not wanting to let go, "I really don't want you to go, but on the other hand, this is a huge deal for you and I don't want you to miss it. I'm going to miss you so much," she murmured.
"I'm going to miss you, too, babe," he said, returning her hug, "I'm only a phone call away."
"I know," she nodded, resting her head against his chest, listening to the sound of his heartbeat, "bring me back a Grammy, please," she requested with a smile, looking at him.
He laughed lightly at her request, but nodded, "I'll do my best, baby," he replied, leaning down to kiss her lovingly.
Their kiss lasted several moments and only broke apart when they heard footsteps near them, realizing their parents had joined them.
"I promise the week will go by quickly," Ethan said softly, looking at the teens as they still had their arms wrapped around each other.
Rachel bit her lip, "maybe. You guys will have a lot to do, but I won't have much to keep me occupied. Yes, I'll get to hang out with Arin and maybe go shopping and have everyone over for the awards, but other than that, not much."
"We'll be here, sweetheart," David said, moving towards them, "and there are plenty of things you can do to keep occupied."
"I'll try," she murmured, doing her best to stay calm, "but I'm just going to miss him so much," she added, wishing the tears in her eyes would go away.
"Of course you are, Rachel, no one said you couldn't," Alan said softly, "but we'll also help you get through this, so maybe it doesn't hurt as much."
Rachel nodded, "thanks," she smiled at her dads, "I know. I'm trying to tell myself it's only a week and it's going to go by fast, but it's hard. That's all," she admitted.
Noah pressed a kiss to her forehead, "I'll be home as soon as I can," he promised.
"I know you will be," she smiled lightly at him.
As a light beeping came from Ethan's watch, they knew it was time, so Rachel hugged Noah tightly and the two shared another kiss before reluctantly letting go.
Ethan and Deborah thanked Alan, David and Rachel for taking Arin for the week and 'goodbye' hugs and handshakes were exchanged between the parents before the six moved towards the front door. Ethan and Deborah went out first, followed by Noah and Rachel. Once the teens were outside, Noah wrapped his arms around her again, "I love you, baby."
"I love you, too," she replied, hugging him one last time, before letting go and watching him follow his parents out to Ethan's SUV.
The three Puckermans climbed into the SUV and after a few moments, it pulled away from the curb and headed down the street.
Rachel watched the SUV disappear after it turned off their street and she took a deep breath and turned seeing her dads standing behind her. "It gets easier, right?" She asked hopeful.
"It will," Alan replied softly.
Biting her lip, she nodded and moved into the house, knowing they were following her. When she heard the door shut, the walls she'd held up for so long crumbled and she began sobbing, falling against David.
"Oh sweetheart," David murmured, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close. "It's okay," he promised, rubbing her back.
"I'm going to miss him so much! I tried... I tried to stay calm, so he didn't see me break down," she mumbled between sobs, "but I can't anymore!"
Alan joined their hug, hating to see her like that, but both he and David had expected she'd be upset once Noah and his parents had left, "let it out, sweetheart."
Rachel continued to cry, clinging to them, "I tried to be supportive and not show him just how much it bothered me that he was going. I know know he feels horrible that he has to leave so soon after I came home and I didn't want him to feel even worse, seeing me like this, but he's been the only thing keeping me together and it's like a huge part of me is gone now!" She mumbled through sobs, "I know that's not the best thing to do, you know? Leaning on someone all the time, but he's what has held me together and now that he's gone, I feel like I'm falling apart!"
"Rachel," David rubbed her back, "nothing you have done is wrong. There isn't a 'right' way to recover from what you've been through. You leaned on Noah, because you trust him and feel safe with him. Given why you were taken, I'm sure that's also why you clung to him, and it does suck that he had to leave, because a big part of your support system isn't with you, but I promise you're going to be fine. Yes, it will be hard, but you'll get through this."
"You will," Alan nodded in agreement.
She had calmed down a little, but still had tears falling from her eyes, "I'm trying, but it's so hard! I thought I was getting better, but now I feel like I haven't recovered at all," she murmured, moving from them to plop down on the couch nearby.
David and Alan followed, taking seats next to her, "Rachel, just like broken bones," he rested his hand on her cast, "recovery takes time. Every day you're healing just a little bit more and you still are. You haven't stepped back in that because of this," he reached up and wiped her eyes, "you're acting like any girlfriend would when her boyfriend has to go away for a while and she'll only be able to talk to him on the phone or text him. The only difference is that your emotions are a little stronger right now, because of what happened. Just give yourself some time."
"Dad's right," David nodded, "even if you hadn't been taken and Noah still had to leave and you couldn't go for some reason, you'd still feel like this," he explained, taking her hand in his, "it's part of being in a relationship and loving someone; you miss them when you're apart. Just give yourself time. You'll be okay and before you know it, he'll be back."
Rachel was silent for a long moment, contemplating what her dads had said and then blushed, "you're right. I never thought of it that way," she admitted, taking a deep breath, "thank you. I love you both so much," she added, hugging each of them.
"No need to thank us, sweetheart," Alan replied, "we love you, too, and we're here for you always."
David leaned in and pressed a kiss to her forehead, "always," he agreed.
Rachel smiled, glancing down at her bracelet and took a deep breath, "you can do this, Rachel. Noah's going to be home soon; he won't be gone forever, even if it feels like he is. Just take it one day at a time," she thought, leaning back on the couch to relax. Lifting her wrist up, she pressed a kiss to her bracelet, "one day at a time," she said softly, "I can do this."
~*~
The keys I'm talking about are below and I found them at this website: http://mysecuritypro.com/index.aspx
~*~
A/N5: Hope you all enjoyed! Please review and let me know! I'm only getting a few reviews per update, so I have no clue what you guys are thinking about the fic. Please tell me! Even if it's just 'loved it'. Your reviews keep me writing!
A/N6: I'm almost caught up to what I had going; at least a chapter ready, after the one I posted, so hopefully updates will come quicker now. Today I'm updating 'Out of the Blue' and 'Starlight' and last week I updated 'Broken Road' and 'Returning Home'. The next updates for all of them should be in less than a few weeks.
A/N6: I have a ton of ideas, but is there anything specific you'd like to see or have happen in here? Any celebrities you'd like brought in? Let me know!
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