Rachel Berry is a successful Broadway star with a reputation as a demanding, cold and heartless diva who cares for no one but herself. Truth is, she is none of those. Due to some events, Berry is forced to have a new assistant; one that will change her world without meaning to. Eventual Faberry. AU

A/N: I own nothing, sadly.

To put it mildly, she was sick of it. Sick of the press hounding her, following her every move. She was tired of the rumors, of the fabricated lies trying to tear her down. She tried to remain calm, she really did, but something always happened that would push her past that line where it was easier to just live those lies, to give them what they wanted and expected of her. She used to be able to close her eyes and find herself back in Lima, Ohio, surrounded by two pairs of strong arms that would shield away all the hurt. Those moments where she would watch Barbra Streisand movies; where life ahead was full of optimism and love. Unfortunately, now every time she would close her eyes, all she could see was the harsh reality of what her life had become. Sadly, she was completely out of strength to even bother to care.

"Ms. Berry." Her manager tried getting her attention once again. "Rachel!"

"What do you mean Amanda is in labor?" Rachel screamed into the phone. "She wasn't due till next month! What am I going to do now? The Grammy's are next week and-"

"Surely you didn't expect Amanda to fly with you to LA, Rachel. Woman was 8 months pregnant." Eric knew he was losing the battle and fast. "You knew we would have to find you a new assistant. At least temporary, until Amanda can come back in some months."

"Well some help I'll have. Do I need to remind you how long it took to find an adequate assistant that would do her job properly without me having to hound them at every moment? Someone that I could trust and wouldn't sell me out! Amanda promised me she would get someone before she had the baby and it seems to me that is NOT going to happen since she is going into labor, LABOR!"

"Rach, I've-"

"No Eric, NO! I'm already stressed out as it is. I don't want to worry about this. Not on top of everything else." The short brunette had started to walk back and forth across the living room. "I can't-"

"She found someone." Her manager quickly said. "Amanda has someone that she knows she can trust. She knows how you are; she knows what you're going through. You will be fine."

"And who is this someone? Why am I barely hearing about this? Why didn't Amanda say-"

Eric was slowly starting to develop a migraine. "Rachel! It's fine. She will be dropping by your apartment in an hour. She and Amanda know each other from before. I promise, if it doesn't work out the first day, I will personally make sure you have 10 assistants lined up by next week. Ok? Just focus on relaxing and doing well on your upcoming performances. We can't afford any bad publicity at the moment"

"I know. I know, Eric." The singer had stop pacing and had settled on the couch with her head resting on one of the furniture's arm. It seemed like all the fight had suddenly left her body. "I'll meet with the new assistant and test her. I am not going to lower my expectations. I don't care if I have to go through that many assistants again. I will not make the same mistake twice. I will call you tonight with the results and we'll discuss our course of action. Oh and Eric.."

"What is it, Rach?" He knew that Rachel only acted out when things were really bad. Even though their relationship had started as purely professional, throughout the years they had developed a brother and sister relationship. He worried about her often, worried that the demands were becoming too intense and she would finally crack under that much pressure.

"Can you send some flowers to Amanda? A baby package? I would do it myself but -"

"Its ok Rachel, it's already been taken care of."

"Umm, great. I'll talk to you later then." As Rachel sat back on the couch, she wondered how much the next couple of weeks would change. She wasn't ready to deal with someone new and having to explain herself. No, she would give no explanations, the hell with everyone else.

It wasn't until the door bell rang that she realized she had fallen asleep on the couch, too tired to even move to bed. She looked at the wall clock and assumed the new assistant had arrived. At least she was punctual, she'd give her that.

Rachel opened the door, not even bothering to look through the peep hole. There, looking rather anxiously, was a young blonde woman extending her arm.

"Hi, I am Quinn Fabray. Your new assistant."