hey there pretty brown eyes

Chapter 4: Dumb Struck

It means so much to me that you are enjoying this. This chapter was a blast. It ended up taking a little bit of a different turn than I expected, but it was a fun one. One of my favorite lines ever is in this chapter. I hope you get a kick out of it. As always, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!

Finn was pleased that Rachel seemed to remember who he was, even if she was on a date. He smiled as she continued to look at him in shock, the alfredo sauce that once coated her pasta, now on her lips. "Hello. I would like to thank you for joining us at Crescendo this afternoon. I'm Finn Hudson, the owner and head chef. How does everything taste?"

Jesse watched as Rachel basically lost all of her wits right there in front of him. She was staring blankly at the chef. She had no idea that there was white sauce on her lips, he thought about telling her, but chose not to in hopes that she would figure it out before too long. He wasn't sure what was going on with her, Rachel Berry was usually very composed, but apparently he was going to have to be the one to carry the conversation today. "It's delicious, as always, chef. I'm Jesse St. James and my silent companion over there is Rachel Berry. I'm sure if she was able to speak she would tell you her food is delicious as well." He looked pointedly at Rachel, who was still staring blankly at the chef, and discretely kicked her under the table. "Right, Rachel?"

Finn turned his attention to the brunette beauty. He noticed her flinch then blink rapidly before her eyes seemed to actually see him standing at her table. "Yes. It's Rachel, I'm delicious." Jesse raised an eyebrow in amusement. She was clearly flustered, something he was enjoying but also very much wanted to understand. Her face reddened and she tried again. "I mean. My name is Rachel and the food is delicious."

Rachel couldn't believe what was happening. There he was, standing at her table. She found herself staring at the way the white coat fit his torso. He was even taller than she remembered, maybe because she was sitting and he was standing. Either way, he was tall. She didn't have time at the coffee shop to admire him as much as she would have liked, but looking at him now, she was impressed. She was happy that her random kissing had at least brought her someone as attractive as he was.

"I'm glad you are enjoying it." Finn chuckled at her obvious word jumble; he could see that Rachel was not herself. In the coffee shop she was completely composed and collected, even in her anger. He enjoyed this side of her too; pasta sauce included. "Please let Wendy know if you need anything else. It was great to meet you and I hope you will join us again soon." Finn would never describe himself as suave, in fact he was pretty sure nobody would, but today he was proud of the way he kept his cool. Especially around Rachel. He still wanted to kiss her again but at least he was able to keep himself from doing so in his restaurant in front of a guy who could possibly be her boyfriend.

Jesse watched as Rachel once again sat there in silence staring at the chef. "Thank you chef. We will definitely be returning."

"Enjoy the rest of your meal." Finn bowed slightly as a way to politely remove himself from the table. He took a step back and then turned to begin his short journey back to the kitchen.

Rachel watched as Finn made his way back to the kitchen. It was then, that her mouth finally caught up with her brain, mostly. "Thank you!" She practically shouted. Finn turned over his shoulder and gave her a heart melting smile just as he disappeared into the kitchen.

"What the hell was that? I've never seen you act like that." The end of his sentence was punctuated with thud as Rachel's forehead hit the table. "Rachel?"

Rachel groaned. "I can't believe that just happened." She refused to lift her head while she spoke to the table. "I'm such an idiot." He was just as good looking as she remembered and she had just made a huge fool out of herself. She was impressed with his professionalism and obviously his food and now she felt as if there was no way she would ever have a chance with him.