Title: I'm Still Waiting For the Rain to Fall
Author: anan0maly
Summary: ...pour real life down on me...
Pairing: Eventual Rachel/Quinn
Rating: PG to NC-17
Word Count: 49,000+ (so far)
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to Evanescence's 'Good Enough'.
Author's Note: This was born about by a conversation regarding Rachel's two gay dads. Anyway, I mentioned that maybe they weren't all they appeared to be in a passing comment. Then I talked to my friend Aimee about it. I told her at the time it would probably be a one-shot. We were trying to figure out how to make it Faberry, and after many hours, we managed to flesh out a plan that turned this potential one-shot into a multi-part fic. I fear it could be a long one, and I have a little bit written up, but it's been difficult trying to keep this going. I started this over a year ago and it's nowhere near finished, but I don't want to abandon it either.
Betas: My friends Aimee and Alma. :) Thank you both so so much.

Prologue:

& ! & ! &

"Again," her father ordered from behind the camera.

This was the fifth time he'd allowed her to sing the whole song from start to end. He'd already stopped her part-way through six times. Rachel held in a sigh, straightened her back, clasped her hands together and counted the beats in her head. She was going to nail it this time. She would.

"Midnight, not a sound from the pavement, has the moon lost her memory..."

Rachel poured all her heart and soul into her performance. She could see her father watching intently through the camera, his finger tapping the slow beat against his thigh, his lips mouthing the words along with her. When she spied a small frown beginning to mar his brow, she knew she needed to try harder. Her fingernails dug into her palms as she strained and pushed forward to be the best, and she hoped he noticed the extra effort.

She made it through to the end of the song without interruption. She'd performed better that time. She didn't allow herself to relax though. Past recordings had taught her that she could be singing the song through another ten times before he felt she'd achieved the best she could.

It took them twenty-eight recordings to perfect 'On My Own'.

Her father sighed and rubbed his forehead. Rachel could see he was tired and ready to give up for the evening. "It looks like that's about as good as you're going to get tonight." He switched the camera off and closed the lens cover. Rachel knew she couldn't leave her spot just yet. She stood tall and watched as he shook his head in disappointment. "I don't know what's gotten into you lately, Rachel. You can do better than this." Rachel just nodded her head in agreement. She knew he hadn't been looking for any excuses for her poor performance. She knew she could do better.

"Here," he said holding the digital recorder out to her. "Take it. Upload it and then get to bed. You have vocal exercises to do in the morning." And with that, he left her room closing her bedroom door behind him. He didn't quite slam it, but it definitely hadn't been a soft click of the latch either. Rachel jumped at the sound and her grip tightened around the camera.

She stood stock still as she waited a few minutes in case he returned. It wouldn't be the first time he'd decided that she needed to try it just one more time. It took her three long, torturous minutes before she slowly let her shoulders slump. She set the camera down on her desk next to her laptop before quickly and quietly packing up the recording equipment.

She stored the tripod away in its place in the cabinet under her desk. She made sure it was standing perfectly straight and in easy reach. Her father liked things just so. She tidied up the cables and made sure they were all wrapped up for easy use tomorrow evening. The cables were carefully put away in her top desk drawer.

She stifled a yawn as she quickly checked the time. 12:37 am. She needed to be up in less than six hours. Rachel eyed her bed briefly before she let out a tired sigh and took a seat at her desk. She flipped her laptop open and logged into her MySpace account. She ignored the 'New Comments' and navigated directly to upload a new video.

She'd been uploading videos for two years now and, in minutes, she had the camera hooked up to the laptop. She used the time it would take to upload the video to quickly check that she had everything packed in her bag for the next day's classes. She was glad tomorrow was Friday. She was exhausted and desperately needed the weekend to catch up on all the homework she'd missed.

Just as she was zipped her bag closed, she heard a soft knock at the door. Her dad poked his head through the entryway. He spotted Rachel at her desk and used it as an invitation to open the door wider.

"I'm just getting ready for bed," Rachel explained as she idly directed her thumb toward her open laptop. "Just uploading tonight's video," she said as she turned her head away to check on the progress of the upload. The upload was only at 23% and so, in an effort to avoid her dad's knowing look of disappointment, she made her way to her bed. She located her pajamas from behind her pillow and pulled them out to lay the tank top and pajama pants on the covers.

Her dad stood silently at the door for a few more seconds watching as Rachel began to fold down her sheets. "Your father said you weren't trying hard enough," he finally said.

Rachel paused, her right hand gripping her comforter and sheets. "I'm sorry," she apologized softly. She couldn't meet his gaze. She couldn't handle both of her parents' disappointment. Not tonight. "I promise I'll try harder."

She heard her father sigh from the doorway. "See that you do. You know we only want what's best for you. Your father knows more about this than anyone else we know. You should listen to him."

Rachel began to feel the sting of tears behind her eyes but she willed them not to fall. "I will. I promise," she replied with a nod of her head and a small crooked smile, her eyes still unable to meet her dad's.

It was only when she heard the soft click of her door closing that she let one lone tear slide down her cheek. Furious with herself at this sign of weakness, she hurriedly brushed the tear aside, took a deep breath and made her way back to her laptop. The upload was complete and she only needed to make sure it was labeled correctly. Once she was satisfied with the new video, she made sure to log out and shut down. She wasn't sure why she even bothered logging out; her father knew her password anyway.

Rachel changed into her pajamas before picking out an outfit for the next day. She hung the skirt and top with a matching cardigan off the wardrobe handle. She draped her knee-high socks over the left shoulder, perfectly in place. She carefully chose her footwear and placed the shoes together on the floor beneath her skirt. Everything in its place.

It wasn't until after 1am that Rachel found herself readying herself for bed in her ensuite. Her pink headband held her hair back from her face. She splashed some warm water on her face and allowed herself a few tense moments of staring into the mirror.

"One day you'll get it right," she whispered to her reflection. She took a shaky breath and quickly averted her gaze from the mirror. She turned the taps off with a flick of her wrist before burying her face in a fluffy white towel.