Hello Lovely Readers,

Welcome to the First Chapter of "Reunited" a GLEE fanfiction revolving around the Mother/Daughter relationship of Rachel, a fifteen year old aspiring Broadway star and leader of the Mcinley-High Glee Club who loves to be the center of attention, and Shelby, Rachel's Birth Mother, a retired Broadway performer, nationally ranked show choir director and coach of the most successful show choir team Vocal Adrenaline.

Characters will be written close to the nature of the show, however there are a few differences.

Rachel was adopted by the Harem and Leroy, when Shelby found out that she had become pregnant at a young age, and wasn't ready to be a mother. She sought out the Berry men though a local adoption agency and felt that they could provide her baby girl with a better life than she could at her age.

Shelby did make her way to Broadway, and was extremely successful in her role of the Wicked Witch Elphaba, and Leading role in the production of Funny Girl, but later retired after a successful 10 year Broadway career in the heart of New York City to move back home to Lima and start a new life. She had achieved everything that she ever wanted, though she felt that something was always missing.

I have several ideas for story lines going forward if you are all into the story, please leave a review and let me know what you think!

Chapter 1: The Accident

The coach of Vocal Adrenalin sighed at her students poor attempt in covering the classic Broadway number of the one and only 'Don't Rain on My Parade'

The group had been working with the lead choreographer for weeks but they couldn't seem to get the steps down while covering the high notes.

As she watched the chaos unfold on the stage, she had enough.

Shelby rose to her feet to addresses the situation from the centre of the auditorium.

"Enough! Enough! You people are making my eyes bleed.." She said dramatically. "Jessie, your moves are completely out of sequence. Hannah your voice is out of pitch, and Matt, don't even get me started on your vocal range errors." She snapped.

The students stood motionless as their coach continued in her rant. They knew better than to say anything during these times. Coach Cochran was tough, and at times down right scary, they knew not to step out of line with her, but that's why they were the best, they had a nationally ranked show choir coach and clearly her methods has worked for the team to be this successful. Shelby sighed pinching the bridge of her nose in stress as she continued.

"What is it going to take for you people to get this right, we have sectionals in three weeks! This kind of performance so close to the completion is completely unacceptable!" She shouted sternly.

Shelby sighed looking to the students on stage.

"Ugh.. Just take 5 and everybody grab a red bull. I've seen more energy at the retirement home across the street! I expect more when you return!" She snapped before taking her seat once more as she watched the students walk off stage.

Shelby sighed reaching over to her purse and pulling out her phone. She noticed that there had been 3 missed calls. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and unlocked her Iphone looking at her recent call list.

She noticed all of the calls had been from Rachel. Shelby was confused as Rachel had really only called or texted Shelby once in a while, since they had met after she had Jessie discreetly disclose to Rachel that Shelby was in fact her birth-mother.

Since that time they had gone through ups and downs, Shelby wanted to be a part of Rachel's life, she was just afraid that she was going to make things more complicated for the fifteen year old future Broadway star in an already complicated situation.

Rachel longed for Shelby to be a part of her life. She needed a mother and craved any and all attention that Shelby was willing to give her. Though she had hurt feelings on how things had gone in their first meet up at the Vocal Adrenaline practice she had snuck into a few months prior in which she felt that Shelby had basically blown her off, and didn't want much of anything to do with her. But that wasn't truly the case. Shelby was just afraid.

Initially Shelby was expecting to meet her little girl, her baby, but that wasn't the case. Rachel was now fifteen with the mind, and personality of the average forty year old. Rachel was driven for success. She was going to be a star and nothing and no one was going to stop her. Much like her birth-mother Shelby, Rachel was stubborn and difficult to reason with.

In Shelby's eyes she felt at the time after meeting her young daughter that she wasn't needed, but she was wrong. She now had realized that. However, the contract complicated things. She cursed herself everyday for ever giving her daughter up and signing that contract, but it was something she just simply had to live with. Or oh she thought.

Shelby dialled in Rachel's number and heard the phone ring numerous times before Rachel eventually picked up.

"Shelby.." Rachel said in an emotional voice. Which caused her alarm. What was going on! She panicked.

"Rachel is everything okay?" Shy asked with concern.

"No. Everything is not okay." Rachel cried.

Shelby listened to her daughter's cries over the phone and was slightly lost on what to say next. She still had no idea what was going on as she listened to Rachel's sobs.

"Um. Rachel?... What's going on, are you okay? Please tell me what's wrong?" Shelby pleaded with nervousness.

"There's been an accident..." Rachel managed to choke out.

Shelby paused for a moment. An accident? What kind of accident? With who? Was her daughter hurt. She panicked.

"What accident Rachel, are you hurt? Where are you?" Shelby asked.

"A car accident, my Dads... They. They were in an accident..." Rachel sobbed.

Oh my god. Shelby thought to herself.

"Rachel, where are you?" Shelby asked.

"I'm at the hospital.. They just took my Dads into surgery..." She cried.

"I'll be right there!" She said hanging up.

"VOCAL ADRENALIN!" She said clapping her hands to get their attention. "Practice is over! Work on your steps and lyrics over the weekend and I will see you all on Monday.." She said gathering her things in a panic and running out of the auditorium. Her students stood in confusion before shaking it off and heading towards the dressing room.

******GLEE******

It was only fifteen minutes before Shelby burst through the emergency room doors and found Rachel sitting off to the side hugging her knees and crying into her lap.

Shelby quickly made her way over to the teenager and bent down to her level.

"Rachel... I'm here... What happened?" Shelby asked quickly then took a seat on the hospital floor along with her.

"Shelby!" Rachel cried softly before wrapping her arms around her birth-mother. Shelby was slightly taken back by it but returned the hug.

"Shh. Rachel. It's okay.." Shelby said rubbing her back. She was a bit lost in this situation but was just doing what she felt was best.

"My Dad's were in a car accident on their way to pick me up from my audition... It's all my fault and now they are in emergency surgery..." She cried into Shelby's arms.

"Rachel. It's not your fault.." Shelby said honestly.

"Yes it is!" Rachel snapped pushing back slightly.

"Rachel..." Shelby said in comfort feeling slightly lost for words.

A moment later, a surgeon walked towards Rachel and Shelby bending down to Rachel's level.

"Hello Rachel.." He said.

Rachel looked up from her lap slightly with tear filled eyes.

The surgeon looked over towards Shelby with slight confusion. Rachel had been waiting alone for several hours and he hadn't seen Shelby yet, and didn't know if she was family, before disclosing the following information he wanted to be sure.

"Hello I'm Dr. Thompson." He said reaching his hand towards Shelby.

Shelby shook his hand. "Hello. I'm Shelby. I'm. Um..." Shelby hesitated before Rachel jumped in.

"She's my birth-mother." Rachel said quickly releasing the tension.

"Pleasure to meet you Shelby." He said, then turning his attention towards Rachel.

"Rachel.. I'm afraid I have some bad news. Your Fathers… Your Fathers injuries were much too serious, we did everything we possibly could... But I'm afraid that they didn't make it..." He said compassionately.

Rachel felt a feeling of numbness come over her. Her body froze in shock as she heard the doctors words, there was no reaction, she sat with a blank stare as she felt her eyes fill with tears.

Shelby's heart broke at the look on Rachel's face. This couldn't be happening. Her heart broke for the girl.

"Rachel... Do you understand?..." Dr. Thompson asked softly.

Rachel simply nodded, still in shock.

Dr. Thompson sighed. "I am so incredibly sorry for your loss, is there anything we can do for you?" He asked.

Rachel shook her head still with a blank stare in her face.

Dr. Thompson motioned Shelby to walk with him off to the side so that he could ask Shelby a few questions.

"Shelby, as Rachel is a minor, by law I am forced to call Child Protective Services as there are no other family members listed on file, I am unaware of your relationship with the family, but is there anyone you know if that we can call for her before I have to call CPS.." He said seriously.

Shelby sighed with tears in her eyes looking over her shoulder at the broken teenager behind her, and thought for a moment.

"No. That won't be necessary Doctor. I will take her..." She said confidently.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Yes I'm positive. She's my...She's my daughter, and she's my responsibility now.. I mean where else is she going to go.." She stated again looking over her shoulder.

"Alright then. I will just get you to fill out a few forms.. We will be in contact with you over the next few days pertaining to final arrangements." he said reaching for the forms from the nurse's station behind him.

Shelby began to fill in the forms as Dr. Thompson continued.

"I am also going to recommend that Rachel speak with someone, regarding her fathers death, we have a grief counsellor here by the name of Dr. Freeman, I will give you her card, if you could set Rachel up with an appointment in the next few days, that would be best."

"Okay.." Shelby said. Suddenly this all became so real. She had her daughter back. She had no idea what she was doing.

She finished filling in her information and handed it to Doctor Thompson before heading back to Rachel.

She took her previous seat on the hospital floor next to Rachel and took a deep sigh. She didn't know what to say to her, how to explain this to her, but she had to say something so she began.

"Rachel..." Shelby said softly.

Rachel sat motionless, with subtle tears streaming down her face.

"Rachel. I am taking you home..." She blurted out. Shit. That's not how that should have gone. God I already suck at this mother thing.. Shelby thought to herself.

Rachel broke her stare and looked into Shelby's eyes.

"You. You. You're taking me home…" Rachel confirmed in a confused tone.

"Yes Rachel. You are going to come and live with me.. If you are okay with that of course.." Shelby said.

Rachel thought for a moment. The shock of her Fathers sudden death, and now she was moving in with her birth-mother whom she barely knew was all too much for one day. She looked into Shelby's eyes.

"Do you.. Do you want me, or are you just doing this because…" Rachel said quietly.

"Rachel... I've always wanted you…" Shelby said emotionally.

Rachel looked into Shelby's eyes for a moment before collapsing into her arms and letting out her cries.

"Shh. Rachel. It's okay. It's all going to be okay. I promise.." She said in comfort towards the teen while rubbing soothing circles on her back.

"Can we leave now..." Rachel said wanting to get out of the hospital. She couldn't take being there any longer.

"Yes, we can go.." Shelby said helping her up as they walked towards the exit.

Once they reached Shelby's car she helped Rachel into the passenger seat buckling her seatbelt, then walking around the car and getting into the driver's side.

As Shelby drove towards her apartment she glanced towards Rachel numerous times, they were both in silence, still in shock of the days events. Shelby felt that silence may be the best thing for the both of them right now.

After a short time she noticed that Rachel had fallen asleep. Shelby looked over at the overly-exhausted girl from the days events. Her tear stained cheeks made Shelby's heart break, she looked so fragile, so broken. This wasn't how things were supposed to be.. Shelby thought to herself.

Shelby sighed as she put the car into park in front of her upper class apartment building.

She looked down at Rachel as tears formed in her own eyes.

"Were gonna get through this…" Shelby sighed.

"I promise…" Shelby whispered with emotion.

******GLEE******

I hope you all really enjoyed this chapter! What did you think? Do you want more? I'll leave it up to the reviews!