okay, here we go. abby's first multi-chapter fic. the title is from the coldplay song swallowed by the sea and the prompt is from one of my favorite places in the interweb, finchel-prompts.

a very special thanks to two of my favorite ladies, carli and ashely, for beta-ing for me and listening to my incessant whining and endless questions.

disclaimer: glee is not mine. i wish it was. if it were, there would be no train scene.

Football was hard. Really hard. You'd think the coach would cut him a break. He was the new guy, after all. But, Hiram Berry didn't cut anyone a break, especially when it came to dating his daughter.

When his mom first told him that they were moving to Lima, Ohio, well, Finn wasn't exactly ecstatic. Hopefully, it wasn't as boring as it sounded because seriously? Who names a town after a bean?

Finn would make friends, of course he would, and then maybe, living in Lima wouldn't be so bad. Maybe being the new kid wouldn't suck as much as it did in the movies. He was easygoing, and he could get along with anyone. Plus, he was a pretty good football player, and that couldn't hurt... right?

When he went to register for school, the creepy, Indian principal asked him if he enjoyed any extracurricular activities, before sliding a list of the ones the school offered across the wooden desk. Glee club? No thanks. Black Student Union Club? He didn't meet the necessary credentials. Finally, his eyes wandered to the one thing he wanted to see. Football.

Apparently, the football program at the school was so impressive that you couldn't just join. No, no. There were tryouts. And they were next very day.

…

The incessant screech of Coach Berry's whistle was earsplitting. The searing pain in his joints was almost unbearable. The way his knees were quivering meant an ice bath was in his foreseeable future. Finn felt like he had been hit by a train. There was no rest for the weary, and after a couple days of moving in to his new house and heavy lifting, Finn would consider himself pretty weary.

At first, Finn thought that this wouldn't be too difficult. The Coach's last name was Berry, for the love of God. How scary can a guy with the last name Berry be?

The answer?

Very.

Finn was tossed in huddles and on the field more times than he could count. The guys on the team refused to go easy on him. Coach Berry refused to go easy on him, but it looked like Coach Berry refused to go easy on anyone. Finn was terrified of him. The Coach's scream pierced through the hot summer air as if they were on a never ending loop.

It felt like everyone was conspiring against him. Like they were playing a game called 'How Long Does It Take For The New Guy To Quit?', and from the looks of it, they would be winning that game shortly.

After a couple scrimmages and drills, Coach Berry whistled, gaining Finn's attention, and motioned with two fingers for Finn to come over to him.

"Hudson... that's your last name, right?" The Coach licked his lips from the sweltering heat.

"Yes, sir, it is." Finn hoped that the nervous tone in his voice wasn't too obvious.

"I like your stuff. You've got the potential to be a powerful player. To be fair to everyone else, I can't just hand you a spot on the team after one day. Some of these guys have been waiting for years to even get a chance to play, so I want you to come back tomorrow, and do this again. If you can demonstrate your skills once again, then we can put you in a jersey. You understand, don't you, son?"

"Yes, sir, I do."

"Good, good. I'll see you tomorrow. 8 am." Coach Berry began flipping through a clipboard full of names and plays and numbers.

"You will, sir. I'll be here." He turned around to go the locker room, in dire need of a shower. His cleats were kicking up grass, and he was almost out of earshot when the Coach called out "Hudson, it's Coach. Not sir." and returned to his clipboard.

…

As he reached for the handle of the door to the locker room, a hand grabbed his forearm. Finn's eyes followed the hand to the owner's face. He saw a mohawk and an unpleasant expression.

"Look, Flynn? Fred? Wait, what's your name, new guy?"

"Finn. It's Finn."

"Look, Finn, there are some things you need to know if you're going to be a member of this team."

"I don't even know if-" Mohawk cut him off.

"You're in. Coach looked seriously impressed during your scrimmages. He'll put you in. Hell, he looked so impressed that you might be QB, if you're lucky." Finn was pleased with what Mohawk just said. Maybe the Coach would make him quarterback. Stranger things have happened. Mohawk led him into the locker room and continued.

"Okay, so, there are a few unspoken rules that you've got to know. Don't interrupt me, new guy. This is really important... First, when Coach is talking to you, you listen, you nod, you agree with whatever he's saying cause the guy's always right, always. If, or when, really, he calls you by your full name, you're screwed, but it happens to everyone, sooner or later. Just prepare yourself, and whatever happens, you listen, you nod, you agree with him. Second, the Coach does dudes. He doesn't play for the same team that you and I do. Understand? We don't talk about it. At all. He will fuck you up if you say anything that bashes him on that. Just shut up, and leave it alone."

Finn nodded and tried to cover up the fact that he was shocked. Coach Berry was gay? He never would've guessed it. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's just surprising is all.

"Okay, new guy, this is the single most important rule of them all. Under no circumstances, and I mean none, do you date the coach's daughter. Coach saw me checking her out one day, and I did so many laps that I thought my legs were going to fall off. She's one of the hottest pieces of ass at McKinley, but if you're on the football team, she's strictly off limits. It's a stretch to even be her friend. Coach would swear she hung the moon. You don't so much as hit on her, or you'll be water boy for the rest of the year. Seriously, ask anyone on the team. You don't date the Coach's Daughter."

The rules sounded simple enough. He could listen, he could avoid the fact that Coach was gay, and he could definitely stay away from the Coach's daughter.

…

The past couple of days had been really exhausting, and but when Finn's alarm clock woke him up, much too early, in his opinion, on the first day of school, he was pretty excited.

He was the new quarterback, after all. Didn't that make him cool instantly?

By some miracle of God, Coach had made him quarterback. Hanging in his closet was a red jersey with the number five plastered on it, and a letterman jacket. Maybe living in Lima wouldn't be that bad.

He threw on a polo shirt, grabbed a hoodie, snatched a few pieces of toast off his kitchen table, kissed his mom on the cheek, and got in his old, beat-up truck, ready for the first day of senior year.

McKinley wasn't a small school. He got lost three times before the first bell even rang. He might be the quarterback, but he was still, first and foremost, the new guy. His classes seemed easy enough. English was going to be killer though. Who cared about Shakespeare anyway?

He was trying to find his Spanish classroom when he rammed, full force, into something, or maybe, it was someone. There was a loud slam when a textbook hit the ground, and when Finn crouched down to pick it up, a small figure was reaching to wrap her fingers around the spine of the book. Trying to be the gentleman that his mother raised him as, he grabbed the book, and handed it to the petite girl.

He was met by deep brown eyes and cheeks that had a blush streaked across them.

"Sorry about that. I'm not usually so clumsy. My mind was otherwise occupied, and I just didn't even see you. I'm very sorry." The girl was rambling and trying to sweep up some papers that had fallen out a pink folder with the name 'Rachel' strewn across it in delicate cursive.

"No, no. I'm sorry, Rachel?" He said her name hesitantly, as if it was a question, not a statement.

"I'm Rachel. Rachel Ber-" Just as she spoke, a shrill bell could be heard through the hall, cutting off her last word.

"Well, Rachel, I'm Finn."

"Nice to meet you, Finn... Don't let me keep you here. You're already late for class. That was the tardy bell."

"It was?"

"Yeah, it was." A look of confusion splayed across her face. Everyone at McKinley knew the bell schedule. Who did this guy think he was?

"Wait a second, are you the new kid?"

He laughed nervously. Was that what people were calling him? He did have a name.

"I am. Is it really obvious?"

"It's not that. It's just I've heard about you..." She trailed off, obviously lost in thought.

"Good things, I hope." He gathered the last of her papers and her pink, 'Rachel' folder and handed them to her. "Here ya go."

Their fingers brushed as she took the objects from his hands. He could've sworn he felt a jolt of electricity go through him as her soft, smooth fingers were quickly tangled with his.

"Thanks, Finn." She set all her papers away as the blush on grew a little pinker. Maybe she felt it too? Whatever it was. "Since you're new here, do you know where you're going? Where's your next class?"

He pulled his folded-up schedule out of his back pocket, and his eyes searched the slightly worn sheet until he found his next class.

"I've got Spanish I with Shcuester." He stood once he had noted his class. Extending a hand to her, he added. "Do you know him? Am I in way over my head here?"

She grabbed his hand and laughed softly as he helped pull her up to a standing position. Although he didn't mean to, his eyes wandered all over her body, and then locked with her own.

The first thing he noticed was her height. He easily towered over her. She had to tilt her chin up to fully see his face. It was cute. She was cute.

The next thing he observed was her dress. It was way too short to be school appropriate. Not that he minded...

Her legs were long, and he had to peel his eyes away from them. He didn't want her to think that he was some pervert. But man, her legs were easy to look at. They were totally disproportionate to the length of her torso, but he didn't mind that either.

He couldn't stop looking at her, drinking her in. She spoke again, ending the haze she had put him in.

"Well, I'm not in his Spanish class," Why did that make him sad? He didn't even know this girl. He couldn't even tell you her last name. "But I am in glee club, and he's the teacher for that. He's nice, just stay on his good side. He goes easy on new kids, so you should be just fine. Do you know where his classroom is?"

"I don't have a clue." He gave her a lopsided smile, and she gave him a bright one in return.

"Well, I'll just have to take you to class, won't I?"

Yep, he liked this girl.

…

After a full day of school and just trying to navigate his way around the building, Finn just wanted to lie down. But of course, there was football practice. They had to get in shape for their first game, and he was the quarterback. He couldn't let the guys, and especially Coach Berry, down.

Once he was all dressed in his uniform and was in the process of tying his cleats, Puck, he later learned that his name was not Mohawk, sat down on the wooden bench next to Finn.

"So, Hudson, how's McKinley?"

"It could be worse. I did get lost a couple times though. That sucked."

"Eh, you'll figure out how to get around sooner or later." Finn nodded. Hopefully, Puck was right. "Did you get any shit for being the new guy?"

"Not really. Do people here do that?"

"Some of the guys might, but since you're quarterback, I doubt you'll get any. The girls love when there's a new guy. You could milk that if you wanted to. I would, if I were you. Find someone worth chasing?"

Finn spoke after looking around the locker room timidly. Rachel was the only girl he wanted to get to know. But maybe, she was taken? Maybe she's just characteristically nice? Maybe she felt bad for him?

Maybe, but maybe not.

"Yeah, there was one..." He trailed off at the memory of Rachel walking him to class, her boisterous laugh replaying over and over again in his head.

"What does she look like? Didja catch her name?"

"Um, she's short, and she's got brown hair, brown eyes. She was wearing a dress that was way too short, and uh, knee socks. She was wearing knee socks."

Finn didn't even have to say her name for Puck to realize who he was talking about. His eyes widened as he realized what the new guy was getting himself into. There was only one girl at McKinley who wore knee socks.

Rachel.

"Dude...that's the Coach's daughter."

and thats chapter one! im thinking this'll be around eight chapters long, but who knows?

reviews are love :)