Life As We Know It

Chapter 25: Acceptance

Married life for Finn and Rachel Hudson had started off blissfully; rounded off with their family and friends surrounding them and their main focus being Cassie. As happy as days of their wedding and Christmas were, they couldn't help but feel the slight pang of having two of their most cherished friends missing. This would be their first Christmas without Sarah and Jason since either had known them. This would be Cassie's second Christmas, her first without her parents and that had made Finn and Rachel all the more determined to make it a special one for her, even if she wasn't really going to remember much.

They rung in the new year with everyone around them, determined to make the new year a bigger and brighter one than the last; a year they would both love to leave behind, full of tough memories alongside some of their biggest and best. The first week being a great test.

Much to Finns annoyance at Rachel not giving herself a break, what with hitting her seventh month mark of her pregnancy very soon, they had planned a party with all the neighbours for Cassie's second birthday. Each of them determined to make her first birthday without her parents a happy one rather than dwelling on what should have been and the dark clouds looming over them.

The Evans' happily offered to hold the party at their house to save Finn, and especially, Rachel from the worries of organising and from the aftermath of the party. It was on a snowy Saturday afternoon that everyone had gathered; children wrapped up warm, playing in the snow and taking turns on the bouncy castle.

Cassie reigned, and rightly so as the birthday princess, adorning a fluffy little pink tiara and a sparkly wand with a star on top. Wrapped up in her woolly scarf, mittens and cuddly coat, she played with Finn and the Puckermans who were all having a snow fight. Rachel stood in the warm indoors, at the kitchen window, where Santana, Brittany, Mercedes and Quinn were discussing suitable baby names with Kurt. While the others were deep in discussion, Santana had noticed Rachel's distance and made her way to her, standing beside her and watching the kids play outside.

'She's happy Rae' Santana tells Rachel sensing her distance. 'Look at her, she's probably one of the happiest kids out there, besides Finn. Honestly, I can't tell who is having more fun chasing who, throwing snowballs. You'd think he'd give the girl a chance'

Santana makes Rachel smile, if only for a moment. Placing an arm around Rachel and leaning her head on her shoulder, both continuing to watch the scene before her.

Sam and Artie are in a corner building an igloo with some of the children while Finn, Puck, Blaine and Mike are busy getting each other with snow, ducking behind their children for cover and having them chuck the snowballs. Puck decides to go over to the igloo being constructed and threaten to flatten it much to Sam's and Puck's kids protesting. It only takes a second for Blaine to run into Puck who falls on to it and knocks over the semi-built igloo, pissing Sam and Artie off and making the kids cry.

Rachel watches and it is hard to stop the smile building on her lips at the commotion outside which begins to alert the ladies in the kitchen, breaking their discussion, each running out to see what is going on but she and Santana stay in place.

'I miss them too you know. And I know Sarah's birthday, their wedding anniversary, thanksgiving and Christmas were hard to get by but we did it, Rae. We made it through those tough days but this is a new start, a new beginning. Let's focus on the happy times and the greater things to come. Cassie's got her guardian angels watching over her, they'll never really leave us.'

Gradually, everyone began to make their way in to the house, the noise starting to escalate, shaking Rachel out of her thoughts.

'You're right San. Thank you.' Rachel turns to Santana 'It's just a little hard sometimes. It'll be a year in three days, it still feels like only yesterday and I know Cassie won't even remember most of this but I just want it to be easy for her. I want her to have a happy life, she's already had so much loss in such a small period, and I don't want her feeling neglected. I need her to be okay.'