Graceland (A GLEE Fanfiction)

Keep Holding On

"So," Gabe asked, "what happened?"

"Puck told me that someone spiked his drink while they were at the bar that night," Rachel answered. "He must've had a reaction or something."

"They drink?"

"They're immature and young," she chuckled, "of course they drink." And that's the damn reason why he's gone.

Gabe kept quiet for a second before hesitantly asking, "Do you drink?"

"On occasion," she answered. "Just not as much after what happened junior year."

"What happened?" he asked curiously.

"Well..." she started, but immediately stopped.

"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to."

And with that, they sat in silence the rest of the plane ride. Rachel ended up falling asleep on his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her to keep her warm.

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"Kurt," Mr. Schue asked, "are you sure you want to do this?"

"Trust me," Kurt replied, "she'll need it." Then he walked to the stage and called Marley and Jake over.

"What do you need, Kurt?" Marley asked.

"I need you two to take the lead for the song."

"But," Jake asked, "why us two?"

"I feel like you are Finchel 2.0," Kurt answered.

Marley and Jake quickly glanced at each other as Kurt continued to talk.

"You guys DO know the song, right?"

"Each word by heart," Marley replied.

"I've known it since it came out," Jake added on.

"Good," Kurt clapped. "Then get in position." This better not end in a disaster, he thought to himself as he faced the band. "Alright, start the music when you hear the auditorium door open. Remember what we rehearsed."

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Once they were settled in Lima, the first thing that Rachel wanted to do was reunite with her fellow Glee clubbers and talk to Mr. Schue about getting Gabe to help out. After they checked in to their hotel (she said she would go visit her dads later), they went straight to McKinley High. Fortunately, Glee Club practice was about to start.

They walked down the halls, with Rachel leading the way. She said a few things on the way to the choir room, pointing out her locker. Once they reached the choir room, Rachel was disappointed to see that it was empty. Isn't there supposed to be practice today?

Meanwhile, Gabe walked around the room. He found himself standing in front of the trophy case, where the Nationals trophy clearly stood. "When was this?" he asked, gesturing to the Nationals trophy as Rachel came up next to him.

"Last year," she replied. "It was my last Nationals before I graduated. Carmen was there."

"Really?"

"Yeah." She smiled at the memory when her phone suddenly vibrated.

1 new text from Kurt

She opened it, and she then walked out. Gabe was confused, but he followed.

"Where are you going?" he asked, keeping up with her suddenly fast pace.

She simply showed him her phone, which showed the text from Kurt:

We're in the auditorium.

Once they were at the door, Rachel whispered to herself, "So many great memories here." She opened the door, and as soon as she saw the band, music started playing. The New Directions came out wearing white shirts. She was confused at first, but when Marley started singing the beginning lyrics of Keep Holding On, she recognised what they were trying to do. They were trying to comfort her.

Rachel started tearing up, remembering when she performed that song for Quinn three years ago. She quietly sang along with the group, tears falling out of her eyes as she felt Gabe pull her into another hug.

He then watched the rest of the performance, grinning when he saw Kurt walk onto the stage with two other women, who he assumed were more alumni. The main female singer seemed distracted by something on the balcony, and he followed her gaze to see a familiar face watching the performance. His eyes widened for a split second when he realized who he was.

By the time the performance was over, he heard Rachel mumble, "That was seriously the best thing ever," into his shirt. He rubbed her back and pulled her into another hug as Kurt walked over to them. When he saw Rachel, he had a frown on his face.

"You didn't like it?" Kurt asked.

Rachel mumbled something, but neither him nor Gabe couldn't understand her.

"What?"

"I said," she answered, pulling away from Gabe's shirt and turning to Kurt, "I loved it." She pulled Kurt into a hug and whispered, "Thank you."

Gabe realized how wet his shirt had become, but he shrugged it off. He felt that a pair of eyes were on him, and he looked to the balcony to see the guy now staring at him, tilting his head in curiosity. Gabe sent a quick wink before turning his head back to the crowd, hearing Rachel introduce him to her friends.

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Is this rushed? I feel like I'm rushing things. Tell me in the comments.

Also, I realized something...Ryan said that they were gonna kill Finn off in the third episode of Season 5, and I killed him off (SORRY) in the third chapter of this...

It's like he can read my mind or something. CREEPY.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this!

Next chapter is Finn's funeral *tear*

~Rosie

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