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Chapter 16: Epilogue

And the Epilogue, I must admit I'm a little sad :(

It was only the first day of school, but Finn could tell that that year was going to be brutal. It seemed like everyone was paired up. Mike and Tina were still going strong, Puck and Quinn started dating over the summer, as did Sam and Mercedes, Artie and Brittany made up, and even Santana had that girl from the McKinley West golf team. Finn wished that Rachel were there, that he could see his girlfriend in glee or after school like everyone else. He wasn't even safe during school hours with only the boys now that Kurt and Blaine were officially Kurt and Blaine. It seemed like love was all around and his love was in Manhattan, reachable only by phone, computer or the occasional weekend train ride, if only he had a car. He couldn't wait until next year when Rachel went to NYADA and he started at the fire academy, or maybe he still wasn't sure. Rachel supported his decision no matter what it was and couldn't wait for him to join her in the city, but the wait wasn't going to be easy.

"Hey Finn, we saved you a seat," Kurt said, patting the chair next to him.

"Thanks Kurt," Finn said, accepting it.

"Hey guys," Mr. Schue said excitedly as he shuffled in. "Welcome to senior year, I hope you had a great summer."

After a few assorted responses from the glee club Mr. Schue continued.

"Before I get started I wanted to introduce you to our newest member, now she may look a little familiar but... you know, I think I should just bring her in."

Finn knitted his brow, it couldn't be... could it?

"Everyone, I would like you to meet Rachel Berry," Mr. Schue said.

"Rachel?" Finn said as she entered the room, nearly knocking him off of his chair with sheer surprise. He slowly stood up, as if she were a stray cat and if he moved too fast she would scamper away, never to be seen again. "What are you doing here?"

"This is where I go to school," she said matter of factly. "Well, technically I go to McKinley west. It took some serious pleading but my fathers decided that aside from the unfortunate business with Karofsky McKinley prep truly was a worthwhile experience for me."

"But how?" He said. "I talked to you on the phone every day this summer, you never said anything."

"Well it was supposed to be a surprise," she said coyly.

"I'm definitely surprised," Finn said, still taken aback.

"Is it a good surprise?" she said.

"Are you kidding, this is the best surprise ever," he said, taking her into his arms and hugging her close, a mile-wide smile on his face. "But, what about Broadway? What about your career?"

"Broadway will still be there next year, Finn" Rachel said. "Besides, I just finished a 20 show starring run on the off-Broadway stage, I'd say I'm way ahead of the curve don't you think?"

"So you're really a student here now?" Kurt said, "You're not just preparing for a part as a schoolgirl are you."

"Nope, I'm 100 percent legit," Rachel said.

"This is amazing," Kurt said, getting up to hug her.

"Berry's officially one of us now," Puck added.

"We all have to go out for pizza after this to celebrate," Blaine chimed in.

"That girl looks like Daniel," Brittany said confusedly.

"Okay guys, we can all trade sentiments after practice," Mr. Schue said. "Let's get to it!"

Rachel sat down next to Finn not letting go of his hand for anything. Finn was wrong, this year was going to be the best one ever.