And I have another AU fic for you lovely people. This isn't so much based on a book as a description of one. I read the plot summary years ago and I never thought about it again until I saw an episode of Hot In Cleveland with a similar premise and I immediately thought that it would make a great Finchel story. If you know what book I'm referencing here please let me know in the comments section so I can give credit where it's due. And for anyone reading So We Meet Again another chapter should be up tomorrow.

She hates looking in the mirror, she's hated it for the last three years. Granted it's a lot easier now than it was the first time the doctors removed the bandages, she no longer feels like crying and throwing things and cursing God for making her this way. She's learned over time to accept the fact that she'll never be pretty again, but accepting it isn't the same as being happy about it. The truth is she wasn't always secure about the way she looked even before, she always thought that her nose was too big, her jaw too strong, her chest too flat. The fact that she used to fret over such minor flaws seems ridiculous to her now.

She dusts a bit of powder over the deep scar running diagonally across her face from her hairline to her cheekbone. Nothing can cover it completely, but the powder mutes the harsh brownish red color a bit, Kurt taught her that. He got mad at her the first time she went outside in sweats with no makeup, because the old Rachel never left the house without looking her best. When she told him she didn't see the point in fixing herself up anymore he got even madder. She started wearing makeup again mostly to get him off her back, but she has to admit it makes her feel better to put on lip gloss, her lips being just as full and pretty as they always were, and although the scar drags one of her eyelids down somewhat, the other is still big and bright, and she likes the way it looks with a bit of eye shadow and mascara. Sometimes it helps to focus on the features that weren't ruined in the accident. She brushes her bangs down over her damaged eye, and fluffs her hair with her fingers. It's as good as she can possibly look anymore. She shrugs at her appearance and grabs her purse. Ready to face another day.

"Mornin' sunshine," Kurt says as she enters their kitchen. Kurt had been her rock since she moved to New York seven years ago, they were both new to the city then and ready to take it by storm, her as Broadway's biggest sensation, him as the ultimate rock star of the fashion world. How much things had changed since then. Being a personal shopper certainly wasn't where Kurt wanted to be at this point in his life, and although Rachel was loved for her voice, it wasn't in quite the way she always dreamed of as a child.

"Did you have fun last night?" Rachel says, raising her eyebrows suggestively at her roommate as she pours a thermos of coffee for herself.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he says unconvincingly.

"Kurt, I heard you last night," She says teasingly, making him blush a little at the accusation. "Was it dreamboat Blaine from Nieman Marcus?"

"Rachel I do not have to tell you every little thing that goes on in my life," Kurt says, rolling his eyes.

"Oh my god, it was him," Rachel says excitedly. "Tell me everything."

"Why don't you ask him yourself," Kurt says, nodding toward the hallway, and instead of immediately looking where Kurt is looking she keeps her head down a little as she slowly turns to look. She had heard a lot about Blaine the struggling musician slash menswear salesmen. And Kurt was right on the money with his description of Blaine's mildly exotic good looks.

"My ears are burning," a raven haired, young man with honey-hued eyes and thick eyebrows says as he enters the kitchen dressed in only Kurt's robe. "You must be the roommate."

"Rachel," she says, extending a hand for him to shake as she keeps her head down.

"Whatever's on the floor must be really interesting," Blaine says, commenting on her lack of eye contact.

"She's just self conscious about her scar," Kurt says as if she can't hear him, and at that she takes a deep breath and looks Kurt's guest in the eye, raising her head slowly. He reacts the way people usually do at the sight of her, wordlessly with a thinly veiled look of sympathy.

"I keep telling her it's not nearly as bad as she thinks," Kurt says.

"Kurt's right," Blaine says unconvincingly. "I mean, you can still tell how pretty you are."

He means how pretty I used to be, she thinks silently to herself as she gives him a weak smile. "Well, it was lovely to meet you Blaine. I wish I could stay and interrogate you more about your rendevous last night but I have work.

"Ah yes, you can't leave the children waiting," Blaine says, clearly Kurt had told him a lot about his semi-famous roommate.

"I voice a cartoon character, the children are going to have to wait three months regardless of when I get to the studio today," Rachel replies. At that she gives Kurt a hug and a kiss on the cheek and says goodbye to Blaine before leaving her apartment.

The truth is, in spite of the crushing realization that she'll never make it big on Broadway with a face like hers, she's somewhat excited about her career for once. Working on the second season of Imaginationville, a cartoon show considered by many kids and critics alike to be the next Animaniacs, has been nothing but a joy from the get-go. Knowing that the same children who look away in fear when they see her on the street squeal in delight at the sound of her voice every Saturday morning brings her comfort in a way, it helps that Sally the seal gets to sing practically every episode.

She reads the script as she waits for Puckerman to come to the studio, for him right on time is early and ten minutes late is right on time.

"Sup Berry, hope your pipes are ready," Puckerman says as he comes in, ten minutes late of course. He hardly looks like the type of person who would work on a children's cartoon show, even one as filled to the brim with double entendres only adults would catch as Imaginationville is. He's a strong, broad man with tattoos decorating his olive skin, and a constant five o'clock shadow, when she first met him he had a Mohawk, but he had since traded it in for a shaved head that she found much more attractive, if just as inappropriately dangerous looking.

"I see you're late as usual," Rachel says humorlessly as she gets up from her seat, closing the script.

"What are you talking about I'm right on time," He scoffs. "Besides I had a bit of a crazy night."

By the look in his eye she can tell he means sex and she really wishes that he would stop offering information about his various exploits without her asking.

"So I'm guessing the crazy night in question had something to do with a certain hot blonde who still refuses to refer to herself as your girlfriend," Rachel says.

"I don't get it," he groans in frustration. "I pulled all of my best moves last night. Do you think I should offer her studio time?"

"She's a teacher."

"Yeah, a drama teacher, meaning at one point she wanted to be an actress, meaning on some level she wants to be famous."

"Isn't that a little cheap?"

"Hey it works sometimes."

"Look Noah, if you want Quinn to be your girlfriend then maybe you should stop approaching her as if she's some conquest rather than a person with feelings."

"You're one to talk," He says defensively. "When's the last time you've been on a date?"

"Okay, changing the subject," she says, heading for her seat in the recording booth as Noah takes his seat in front of the various audio instruments. "Try to go a little easier on the pitch this time, we're not making a chipmunk cartoon."

"I'm serious Berry," He says into the mic. "You're a total catch, you're smart, you're talented, you have a great ass, you should be getting some sort of play."

"What makes you think I don't?" she says into her microphone.

"I can always tell whether someone is getting laid or not, it's a gift," he says proudly.

"That's some gift," she says sarcastically.

"I'm serious Berry," He presses on. "I'm tired of these one-sided night before conversations."

"What do you know, so am I," she says snarkily.

"I'm just sayin-

"I know what you're saying," she says, cutting him off. "The same thing people have been telling me for three years, that there's someone out there for me and I just need to be open to love, or like you like to call it, screwing, well guess what, girls who look like me don't get what you so delicately refer to as play Noah."

"Come on Rach your face isn't that bad, I think it bothers you more than anyone else."

"Oh really?" She says. "Do you want to go out with me?"

His hesitance at the question is all the response she needs, yet he tries to form words anyway. "Well you know, I have this thing going with Quinn but-"

"Can we just get on with the recording, before I report you for sexual harassment?" She says, putting on her headphones.

"Yeah, we should probably get started," he says a bit defeatedly. She knows that Noah is just trying to help, and in spite of his boorishness he's a good friend, but the last thing she wanted to talk about was why she wasn't dating. Just like she accepted that she would never be on Broadway again, she also accepted that she would probably never date again either. Men just didn't look at her that way anymore, in fact, most of the time they avoided looking at her at all. She wasn't the type of girl that men bought drinks for at the bar, or asked on dates or even talked to in general really. She wasn't the type of girl that made handsome bad boys like Noah Puckerman want to change their ways. A couple of dates with a perfect blonde stunner like Quinn Fabray and he was already ready to give up the game for good, Rachel knew that she would never be that girl, not for anyone.

After a long day of nonstop talking into the mic Rachel is anxious to get home and relax her throat with a nice cup of hot tea, it's Saturday which means she'll have the house to herself, sometimes Kurt having a far more active social life than she does has its benefits. But when she turns the key in the lock and lets herself in she realizes that she doesn't hear Kurt's usual primping to go out music, she doesn't smell hairspray and she doesn't see a dress that he has laid out for her in what will surely be a fruitless attempt to get her to go out with him, she just sees him pacing the floor, his cell phone grasped tightly to his ear, a suitcase laying open on the floor with a few pieces of clothing thrown haphazardly inside.

"Well, is he awake?" Kurt says, tears in his throat. "But what? What's the but?"

"What happened?" Rachel says, noticing the tears flooding his blue eyes, but he puts up one finger, silencing her.

"Well I'm coming down there," Kurt continues into the phone. "He's my brother, do you really think you're going to keep me away? I have to make sure he's alright. Okay Carole, I'll be there as soon as I can, give Finn a hug for me and tell him everything's going to be okay… alright, I love you too," he presses end on the phone and faces Rachel, her face is confused and his is worried and sad.

"Kurt, what happened to your brother?" Rachel says. She's never met Kurt's brother, due to him having spent the last few years in London studying acting, but the last she heard he had returned home to Ohio for a potential job with the Kent State theatre arts department after his girlfriend Santana revealed that she was in love with another woman and broke up with him, and now he had apparently been in some sort of accident, it was a tough year for Finn to say the least.

"He was taking a tour of the university theatre and there was a horrible accident," Kurt says sniffling. "One of the stage lights fell and broke his skull, and the doctors were saying something about brain damage and… oh god Rachel I'm freaking out!"

"Oh my god Kurt I'm so sorry," she says sympathetically. "Do they know how bad it is yet?"

"He's awake, he's talking" Kurt says. "But he has some minor memory loss and…"

"And what?" Rachel says, gently urging him on.

"He can't see anything, he's completely blind Rachel."

"Oh no, that's terrible," Rachel says, putting her hand over her mouth. She doesn't know Kurt's brother, but she knows how much Kurt loves him by the way he talks about him, and she knows he must be worried sick.

"I have to go to Ohio," Kurt says, wiping at his tears.

"Of course," Rachel says sympathetically, at that she hugs her roommate and friend, letting him hug her back.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Kurt says. "I called my job, they understand.

"Take as much time as you need Kurt," she says, breaking the hug. "I'll help you pack."

He nods and forces a weak smile. "He's going to be okay though isn't he? I'm just worried about nothing right?"

She knows Kurt doesn't expect her to have a real answer for that, he just needs to hear some comforting words, so she offers them. "Kurt, I'm sure he'll be just fine."

Stay Tuned Folks!