Yup. You're looking at the summary and thinking she never ever updates and now she has the nerve to write four thousand words. Well yeah, I do. I love love love this story and this all once again tumbled out of me. Please tell me what you think! I love hearing from you!

Songs:
Hall of Fame by the Script
22 by Taylor Swift
Turning Page by Sleeping at Last

ENJOY LOVELIES!

Turning Page

The glee kids cheered after the three girls finished. Rachel made her way over to sit on James' lap.
"That was great," he whispered in her ear. Rachel smiled, and grabbed his hands. They were freezing. She brought them to her lips and blew hot air on them.

The group hung out for a little while longer, just goofing off. Brittany turned on some Christmas music. Rachel giggled as she showed James how to waltz and soon they were doing it all around the room.
Kurt, from next to Blaine on another couch, watched the two, feeling torn. They looked so cute and happy. But behind his smile, James was breathing shallowly and was pale. He knew James was freezing, watching Rachel's efforts to warm him up again.

They had the rest of this week together. Saturday was Regionals. James was leaving early Sunday morning. Soon Rachel would be sad again. Sad and alone. He sighed. Not if he had anything to do with it. He was determined to get her through this, no matter what. He looked over at Santana and nodded. She stood and said, in her no nonsense voice,
"Everybody has an hour to get sexy, cause we're going to the Beat!"
Everybody laughed. The girls all stood up and ran to Rachel's room, changing into their clothes, that they'd all been instructed by Santana to bring. Rachel put on a comfy white lace dress that was ombre into blue at the bottom. She put on some sheer black tights and some dark grey suede ankle booties. She wanted to be comfortable, and the shoes that Santana was pulling on looked anything but. She made her way downstairs to where the guys were inhaling the pizza that somebody had been smart to order. She felt her phone buzz in her pocket.

Shelby: Hey, how are u?
Rachel: I'm alright... ish
Shelby: Wanna talk?
Rachel: Cant everybody is going to the Beat right now...
Shelby: Oh i get it. Kinda bittersweet right?
Rachel: Yeah, next sunday...
Shelby: U will be fine, like i said, keep busy
Rachel: I'll try
Shelby: That's good, go have fun with your friends!

Rachel sighed and looked back in the family room. All of the guys were talking. James sat among them, talking about some basketball game. Despite the shaking of his hands and looking paler, he looked like one of them. Rachel backed up and leaned her head back on the wall, taking deep breaths. She knew she shouldn't dwell on James' looming departure. She should treasure the moments with him. She looked up, hearing somebody come down the stairs.

"Hey," Rachel said.
"Sup Berry, you look good. Are you okay?" Santana asked.
"We'll see, I guess. You look hot," Rachel said, putting smile on her face.
"Thank you. Now why aren't you out there with your man?" Santana asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Overthinking things, as always," Rachel replied, looking at the floor.

"Here's what's going to happen Rachel," the taller girl said, putting her hands on Rachel's shoulders, forcing her to look up into the Latina's eyes, "You are going to go to the club and have an amazing night with your boyfriend. Then you two are going to have an amazing week before Regionals, where we are going to kill it. Then you and James are going to have wild crazy goodbye sex and you're going to see him off at the airport. Then your life is going to go on. You have all of us to keep you busy. We'll have Nationals to get ready for and a musical to do. And there will be no whining or I will kick you in your tiny butt. Am I clear?"
"Crystal," Rachel said with a slow smile. She looked up and saw all the glee girls standing on the stairs, all smiling at her encouragingly.
"Now let's go dance our asses off!" Santana called, and everybody cheered. Rachel took James' hand and the two climbed into the back of Kurt's car. The night was amazing. Rachel couldn't remember being so happy. She took Santana's advice to heart and focused on James. Matt got up and after cheering from the McKinley kids, was allowed to take over for the DJ that was there. By the end of the night, even James wasn't as cold or pale. His eyes were sparkling and his cheeks were flushed. He walked Rachel up to her front porch and kissed her goodnight. It was a long and sweet kiss. Then from Rachel's driveway came a honk and catcalls from open windows. The guys were all waiting because the guys were having a sleepover. Rachel smiled into the kiss and pulled back, going up on her tiptoes to kiss James' cheek.

"Have fun," she said. James smiled at something over Rachel's head.

"You too," he said. Rachel laughed. Kurt's big car pulled up and all the glee girls spilled out. Each was clad in pajamas, holding snacks and sleeping bags. James kissed her forehead, smiling at her surprised face. Rachel released him, only to be half dragged into her house for a night of fun.

The week passed in a blur of James, friends and rehearsals. Rachel and Matt's number was getting better every single day. Mr. Shuester was cracking down. Shelby came in at times and the tough coach of Vocal Adrenaline, long buried underneath Shelby's new role as a mother, was unearthed. The club was working harder than ever, and it brought them even closer. Every day that week they were either at the Lima Bean or somebody's house doing homework, going over dance steps, or reviewing music. Rachel, like Shelby, unearthed the inner beast bit by bit as the competition approached, knowing they had to pull off all the stops. Brittany, Tina and Kurt had called Mrs. Solomon who had sent out their rough designs to her Broadway costume designer friends, who gave their input. Artie was involved in the choreography with Mike, Matt and Brittany, trying to get the overall look of the show just right. Their setlist was big this year, having decided on three songs once more for their program. The only difference was that nothing would be decided last minute.

The glee club was ready and they would make this perfect for Rachel and James. A loss right before James' leaving would be no good. It was true that James was a little off in rehearsals, having to sit down and take deep breaths to get his heartbeat to slow. Nobody was more in tune to him than Rachel. She always was there with his water bottle and a kind smile and kiss to make him relax.

Rachel woke up and shut off her alarm. She rolled back over to snuggle back into James. He looked tired, with dark circles under his gorgeous eyes. Rachel lightly traced the black under his eyes, gritting her teeth. The less reasonable part of her had been hoping if she had paid extra attention to him this week, he would miraculously get better.

"Did you sleep well?" James asked sweetly, and Rachel broke. Tears fell down her cheeks.

"What's wrong?" James asked furrowing his brow, wiping away the tears stroking her face with his thumb.

"How did you sleep?" Rachel asked pointedly, breathing deeply to stop the tears. James hesitated.

"I got a couple hours in," he sighed. Rachel looked back at the clock. They had a lot of time before they had to be at Regionals at noon. She turned back to James.

"Well do you think you could sleep now?" Rachel asked.

"I don't know Rachel," he said looking out the window.

"I'll help you," Rachel said determinedly. She put a pillow on her lap and motioned for James to put his head on it. He did it, looking up at her expectantly.

"Do your deep breathing," she instructed. He complied. Then Rachel proceeded to sing every song that had ever mattered to the two of them. Falling Slowly, Chasing Cars, I Got You, Use Somebody, Faster, and more. A big smile came onto her face when she saw he'd drifted off. She began to simply hum softly and sat back against her headboard, happy that James was getting some well-deserved sleep.

The two arrived at the venue and joined the rest of the glee clubbers in the green room. James had managed to sleep for four hours and had apologized for making Rachel sit. She told him not to worry about it; the circles were gone from his eyes and she and Blaine had an epic Words with Friends showdown. Rachel ran through some trills, testing her voice. She felt good. She had a good feeling about the competition.

She walked to get her dress from Tina and slipped it on behind the girl's changing curtain. They had truly outdone themselves on the dresses. They were strapless. They were white and the skirt was a sheer white tulle skirt with rose petals scattered and collecting at the bottom. Each girl wore red strappy heels. Their hair was curled and pinned into a low side updo. The guys wore white shirts with the sleeves rolled up, thin red suspenders and black pants. Once she was ready, she walked over to James who was humming his solo to himself.

"Ready?" She asked, perching on his leg.

"As I'll ever be," he said with a grin. Rachel smiled back and kissed him sweetly on the lips.

"All right you too," Shelby said, walking up to the couple. James smiled and stood, Rachel sank down on the couch and watched as Shelby warmed James up and ran him through his song. Each time Rachel heard it she got chills. Once he got on stage with the lights, the band, and the crowd, he would be magnificent, blowing everybody away. Rachel settled into the couch, forcing herself to relax. Her mind was on overdrive today. She shut her eyes and breathed deeply, trying to think of nothing. She felt somebody sit beside her. It was Kurt.

"Good luck today," he said, smiling brightly. She smiled back and nodded. He gave her hand a squeeze and went to help Finn with his suspenders. Rachel looked back at James. He was talking to Shelby. Rachel clenched her fists, willing her thoughts to stay away from his departure the next morning. She stood and did some runs, even though she'd been warmed up all morning.

Matt and Rachel stood on the stage together, heads down. Lights came up behind them, lighting up the piano that James sat at. Only the black outlines of Matt and Rachel were visible. In the crowd, Mr. and Mrs. Solomon sat down in their reserved front row seats. James began to play the piano. Already emotional, Rachel felt her eyes prick with tears at the lovely, familiar sound. Then the beat that Matt had put together came over the speakers. Rachel turned and began to sing.

(Rachel, Matt, Both)

Yeah, you could be the greatest
You can be the best
You can be the King Kong banging on your chest

Matt turned around and sang his part.

You could beat the world
You could beat the war
You could talk to God, go banging on his door

Rachel and Matt began the dance that they had put together. Rachel was barefoot, and looked gorgeous in her dress. She and Matt moved smoothly together, totally in sync.

You can throw your hands up
You can beat the clock
You can move a mountain
You can break rocks
You can be a master
Don't wait for luck
Dedicate yourself and you can find yourself

The song picked up, as more instruments were added in. Brittany. Mike, Santana and Blaine came out and joined in the dance behind them, adding the oooo's to the song.

Standing in the hall of fame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
Cause you burn with the brightest flame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame

Rachel felt the adrenaline she always got from performing, rushing through her veins. She jumped into the next verse and the crowd was on its feet.

You can go the distance
You can run the mile
You can walk straight through hell with a smile

Once again Rachel awed everybody with her ability to dance hip-hop.

You could be the hero
You could get the gold
Breaking all the records that thought never could be broke

Do it for your people
Do it for your pride
How you ever gonna know if you never even try?

Do it for your country
Do it for your name
Cause there's gonna be a day

When your standing in the hall of fame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
Cause you burn with the brightest flame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame

Be a champion, be a champion, be a champion, be a champion

On the walls of the hall of fame

The rest of the club got on stage. The dance became slightly militaristic and the crowd ate it all up, cheering.

Be students
Be teachers
Be politicians
Be preachers

Be believers
Be leaders
Be astronauts
Be champions
Be truth seekers

Be students
Be teachers
Be politicians
Be preachersBe believers
Be leaders
Be astronauts
Be champions

Standing in the hall of fame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
Cause you burn with the brightest flame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame

(You can be a champion)
You could be the greatest
(You can be a champion)
You can be the best
(You can be a champion)
You can be the king kong banging on your chest

(You can be a champion)
You could beat the world
(You can be a champion)
You could beat the war
(You can be a champion)
You could talk to God, go banging on his door

(You can be a champion)
You can throw your hands up
(You can be a champion)
You can beat the clock
(You can be a champion)
You can move a mountain
(You can be a champion)
You can break rocks

(You can be a champion)
You can be a master
(You can be a champion)
Don't wait for luck
(You can be a champion)
Dedicate yourself and you can find yourself
(You can be a champion)

Standing in the hall of fame

The crowd went crazy. Rachel ran off quickly to get her heels on with Shelby's help. The guys made their way off stage. Rachel and the girls had thought up this song at their sleepover. Brittany had taken the song and come up with fun choreography.

Brittany moved to the front and began the song. She pulled a pair of black hipster glasses out the top of her dress and put them on as she sang the first line.

It feels like a perfect night to dress up like hipsters
And make fun of our exes, ah ah, ah ah.

Santana stepped up beside Brittany, taking her hand and leading her to the rest of the girls. While Santana sauntered, Brittany skipped, smiling brightly.

It feels like a perfect night for breakfast at midnight
To fall in love with strangers, ah ah, ah ah.

Tina stepped up among all the girls and went through all of the facial emotions needed.

Yeah,
We're happy free confused and lonely at the same time
It's miserable and magical, oh, yeah
Tonight's the night when we forget about the deadlines
It's time

The girls all began to sing, beginning the cute choreography that left everybody smiling, the crowd was on their feet clapping in record time.

Oh oh!
I don't know about you
But I'm feeling 22
Everything will be alright
If you keep me next to you
You don't know about me
But I'll bet you want to
Everything will be alright
If we just keep dancing like we're
22
22

Quinn stepped up and sang the next part. Rachel put in the speaking part.

It seems like one of those nights,
This place is too crowded.
Too many cool kids, ah ah, ah ah (who's New Directions anyway? ugh)

Quinn and Rachel continued the verse continued and while they did, each girl went and grabbed a guy from offstage to be their partner.

It seems like one of those nights,
We ditch the whole scene and end up dreaming
Instead of sleeping.

Brittany and Tina took the next part, harmonizing with each other beautifully.

Yeah,
We're happy free confused and lonely in the best way
It's miserable and magical, oh, yeah
Tonight's the night when we forget about the heartbreaks
It's time

Oh oh!
I don't know about you
But I'm feeling 22
Everything will be alright
If you keep me next to you
You don't know about me
But I'll bet you want to
Everything will be alright (alright)
If we just keep dancing like we're
22
22
I don't know about you
22
22

The girls rotated through, each singing a line.

It feels like one of those nights,
We ditch the whole scene.
It feels like one of those nights,
We won't be sleeping.
It feels like one of those nights,
You look like bad news,
I gotta have you,

I gotta have you.

ooooooo, Yeah!

I don't know about you
But I'm feeling 22
Everything will be alright
If you keep me next to you
You don't know about me (you don't know about me)
But I'll bet you want to
Everything will be alright
If we just keep dancing like we're
22
22
22, yeah, yeah
22, yeah, yeah

It feels like one of those nights,
We ditch the whole scene
It feels like one of those nights,
We won't be sleeping
It feels like one of those nights,
You look like bad news,
I gotta have you,

Rachel stepped up and sang the last line, smiling brightly, holding James' hand since he'd been her partner.

I gotta have you.

The crowd cheered, louder than before. But Rachel wasn't conscious of them. She wasn't conscious of the rest of the club leaving the stage. It had been debated all week whether Rachel should be on the stage for James' performance, and she'd been glad that she was. She'd learned a piano duet with him. She had played when she'd been little, and it had felt good to play again. James and Rachel sat down on a piano bench on a keyboard that faced the crowd. There were several spotlights shining brightly on them. The crowd quieted. James' mike was brought out by a stage hand. James began playing a little, then said into the mike.

"There's this girl. She's my everything. I believe I don't deserve her. I've hurt her. But she won't let me leave. I really don't know where I would be without her. And now I have to leave. This song is for her." James finished speaking and leaned down to kiss Rachel's jawline. She looked up at him, and held his gaze. She nodded and put her hands on the keys, ready for him. They began playing together, just as they'd practiced. Then James began to sing

I've waited a hundred years
But I'd wait a million more for you
Nothing prepared me for

Rachel felt tears in her eyes, and soon they were rolling down her cheeks.

What the privilege of being yours would do

Rachel couldn't help but think back to the end of their first summer together. She thought that she would have to say goodbye then. But she hadn't said goodbye. This time she had to. For him.

If I had only felt the warmth within your touch
If I had only seen how you smile when you blush
Or how you curl your lip when you concentrate enough
Well I would have known
What I was living for all along
What I've been living for

Their stolen moments of pure happiness flashed though her mind. Being so close to James, and now knowing how far he would be.

Your love is my turning page
Where only the sweetest words remain
Every kiss is a cursive line
Every touch is a redefining phrase

James looked at Rachel, a promise in his eyes as he sang the next line.

I surrender who I've been for who you are
For nothing makes me stronger than your fragile heart
If I had only felt how it feels to be yours
Well I would have known
What I've been living for all along
What I've been living for

Though we're tethered, to the story we must tell
When I saw you, well I knew we'd tell it well
With the whisper, we will tame the vicious scenes
Like a feather, bringing kingdoms to their knees

The crowd was silent. James hadn't cried. He looked at Rachel.

Her fingers were still on the piano keys, but not playing. They were shaking. He took her hands in his. They were icy cold. Then he wrapped his arms tightly around her small frame, enveloping her completely in his arms. Rachel clasped her hands behind his back, never intending to let him go. Then as a whole the crowd stood on its feet and cheered, the rest of New Directions came out, took their bows and then the curtain closed. After fifteen seconds, Rachel pulled back. James carefully wiped the tears off her cheeks. She looked up at him and he kissed her forehead.

"I love you so much," she whispered.

"I love you," he said.

Rachel sat in Santana's kitchen, watching as James talked to all of the guys, saying his goodbyes, promising to text them. He was allowed to text them. But not her. Just pictures and songs. She looked away, focusing on the glint of the 1st place trophy in the low lighting. Santana had called a victory party at her house. James had wanted to stop by to talk to all the glee clubbers, to say goodbye. Rachel had obliged. She took a sip of her water.

Just then Santana came up beside her.

"Rachel will you come with me?" she asked. Rachel nodded and followed her, unsure of where they were going. They went out the back door to Santana's guesthouse.

"I thought your Grandma lived out here," Rachel said as Santana fumbled with the key for the door.

"She moved out a year ago," Santana said, "We redid it, and tonight it's all for you, she said, swinging the door open and pulling Rachel inside. Rachel gasped.

The room was full of candles. It had exposed brick walls with elegant white and turquoise design everywhere. The center of had a huge bed. Rachel turned to Santana.

"Thank you," she said. Santana nodded, with a smile, just then Brittany and Quinn came out of an adjoining bathroom. Quinn had a lighter and Brittany an overnight bag, which she handed to Rachel.

"Go change," she said with a smile. Rachel took the bag and went in the bathroom. There were also candles in there and bath salts. Rachel pulled on her pretty blue night shift. It was the softest cotton and she loved it. It had loose three quarter inch sleeves and it was short. She pulled the pins out of her hair, letting it fall down her back, still in perfect ringlets from Regionals. She walked out and saw that the other girls had gone. Rachel made her way to sit in the small reading nook, in the corner, pulling her knees up to her chest.

She sighed, shutting her eyes and waited for James. She heard the door open. She opened her eyes and saw James. He smiled at her. She stood and watched him look at her as if she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. In one fluid motion they moved towards each other, lips connecting. Rachel smiled into the kiss and began to take off his red suspenders. His lips trailed down her jawline and to her neck.

"I love you," she whispered.