Whispering

by Angel's Fallen Knight

A/U. For Captain Quinn Fabray, one of the best pilots flying for United Airlines, it comes as a welcome idea to move into a new home and push forward in her career. But this new start will open up a series of twists and turns that threatens to end her beloved career.

1. Chapter 1

So, this story has been sat on my laptop for a while now. I wrote it in between Nightfall and I never released it. I don't know why, I just never got around to it. It's a monster of a story, and it spans over 250 pages. I'll be releasing the chapters periodically. All edits have been done, so I'm thinking two chapters a week or maybe just the one. I'll see. I hope you enjoy this story.

---

Oh, I'm gonna be wounded.

Oh, I'm gonna be your wound.

Oh, I'm gonna bruise you.

Oh, you're gonna be my bruise.

The Word of Your Body – Spring Awakening

---

A chain of events lead her to this moment. A series of catastrophic and devastating events led her to where she sat right now; sat in a room, an interrogation office in the main FAA headquarters. She sat in an uncomfortable wooden chair, clutching her pilot's cap that lay in her lap with both hands, dragging her nails over the embroidery as she waited impatiently. She wore her uniform, white blouse with the four stripes of her rank on her shoulders, black slacks and jacket, the black tie; the only reminder that she was still the Captain, still the one that should take all the credit, or all the blame. The golden wings over her left breast felt uncomfortably heavy, almost dragging her down into her seat.

She was one of the best and most experienced pilots that United Airlines had to offer; she flew the direct route from New York to London. Of course she flew other routes, but if anyone wanted to get from New York to London in record time, she was the pilot to go to.

Her eyes were trained forward, staring into the eyes of the men and women that sat in front of her behind a large desk. They had filled in paperwork, taken notes and even left the room at points to deliberate amongst themselves, but now they were sat there, staring at her with such disbelief in their eyes. Maybe they were wondering how she could do what she did, or how she survived, but they had asked all the questions they had.

But only one remained.

The investigators, two from the NTSB, the National Transportation Safety Board, another who was the CEO of United Airlines and the last was a representative from the FAA sat who sat with their hands clutched tightly together, resting on the table in front of them. They stared, and continued to stare, eventually making the Captain lower her eyes to her booted feet.

"Captain Fabray, we only have one last question."

Eventually she looked back up and stared into the eyes of the man in the middle, the lead investigator from the NTSB. She knew what question was coming, and honestly, she did have the answer, but what use would it be? They already had evidence stacked heavily against her; no one would take the word of an emotional unstable Captain would they? Instead she chastised herself for not seeing things more clearly; the whole situation screamed wrong to her, but she chose to ignore it because she was stubborn.

Taking a deep breath she straightened up in her seat, allowing her body to relax, the violent grip on her cap finally ceasing.

The question was almost deafening to her ears, and seemed to echo throughout the room.

"Did you intentionally crash United Airlines Flight 922?"

---

2 Years Earlier

"You're so full of yourself." Captain Quinn Fabray laughed from the pilot's seat of the Boeing 767-300. The twin engine airplane was almost the flagship of the United fleet, and was given the nickname 'Alpha' for being the first 767 to be bought by the company, and a plane that Quinn was incredibly proud to pilot. Along with her Co-Pilot, First Officer Michael Chang, she had the most experienced flight crew at her disposal. At least twenty years of flying lay between the two.

Mike laughed and adjusted his headset as he glanced at his superior and best friend, "Hey, you asked if I had fun last night. I was only telling ya."

"Reporting back more like," She shook her head and adjusted her grip on the controls in front of her, "I don't need to know what woman you took home, what she looked like or more importantly how good you 'gave it to her'."

Mike laughed, almost giggling at the look of disgust on his friends face, "Okay, okay...I won't say anything like that anymore." He coughed slightly, "You're just jealous."

A long silence held between to two, only the random incoming transmissions from other airplanes contacting ATC and the gentle almost hypnotic whir of the Boeing's engines filled the air. Both their faces were set like stone as they stared out at the sky, only a gentle scattering of light cloud and a bright sun filled with windscreen.

Then they both burst out laughing.

Mike wiggled his eyebrows after his loud bark of laughter died down, "Don't deny it."

Quinn wiped the tears from her eyes quickly and shook her head, "Oh I won't. I'm so damn jealous of you and your bimbos." Truthfully, Quinn was in no way jealous of the women that Mike took home almost every night. She knew that her First Officer and best friend thought more of their relationship, almost hinting every day of how he thought of her. But in no way was the thirty-four year old Captain interested; she didn't know how to break it to him that she usually liked the variety of people with breasts.

Before she could even finish her train of thought, a British voice rang through both hers and Mike's ears, "Heathrow to United 922."

Mike, who was handling the communications for the flight, responded quickly, "United 922. Afternoon Heathrow."

The man who worked as an air traffic controller had contacted the crew for landing instructions; Quinn was glad to land the plane. It had been a long seven hour flight, and she was verging on being exhausted; she couldn't wait to just get into the airport hotel and rest up for the return trip the next day.

"922, you're fourty-six miles from runway 27 left. Descend to flight level 8000 and use pilot's discretion. You're second in the chain. Traffic ahead of you, twelve miles, flight level 7500."

"Roger. Thanks. United 922." Mike glanced at his Captain and nodded, "Descend to flight level 8000."

Quinn immediately pushed the controls forward slightly, lowering the nose of the plane to begin a slow but effective decent to the right level.

"I heard you were going to move. Can't stand being in the heart of New York anymore?"

Fabray smiled and glanced at her friend, "I just hate the hustle and bustle. I grew up in Ohio, on a farm of all places; I guess I just want a slower pace of life."

"But you'll still fly, right?" He asked worriedly, hoping that his long term friend wasn't handing in her wings already. She was nowhere near the age to retire from flying.

She laughed, "Of course. I'm not ready to give up flying yet; it's my one true love." Slowly she began to make her decent from 8000 feet, looking out for a visual on Heathrow Airport, "I just need a new start, I've lived in Brooklyn for almost fifteen years."

Mike bit his bottom lip and leaned back in his seat, resting his head back on the head rest as he looked at his Captain, "You know what this is called?"

Quickly she glanced at him before returning to the windscreen, "No. Go on?" She was honestly puzzled.

"A mid life crisis."

Quinn groaned and threw her route maps at his chest, making him bite out a groan, "Shut up."

Mike laughed, "Do you have any idea where you're going to live?"

"I've already bought a house actually," She paused, "Landing gear down."

Her First Officer leaned forward and pulled down the landing gear lever, waiting for the three green lights that confirmed the gear had locked in place before continuing, "Landing gear down. Go on."

"I've bought a house in a little suburb, just a thirty minute drive from the airport. South Valley Stream, heard of it?"

"Valley Stream, of course I've heard of it. But wouldn't you better off living in North Valley? There's a bigger population there."

"Just over five thousand in South Valley, that's enough for me." Quinn responded with a smile, "Don't worry, Mikey; that's one of the main reasons I chose that place. It's calm, quiet and there's a real sense of community."

"I have a feeling you'll be bored in less than three months."

"What? Why?"

"Because you could never keep away from a challenge; that place won't give you a sense of adventure, not like living in New York City."

Quinn rolled her eyes at her friend; they had known each other for several years, ever since Quinn had moved from Ohio in fact, but it did annoy her at times when Mike insisted he knew more about her than she did.

"We'll just see..." She mumbled in still reply; choosing to drop the line of questioning now that she was coming up on the runway. "Preparing to land." She lined up the passenger jet and slowly pulled back on the throttle.

"100 feet..." He called aloud as he looked at his altimeter, "50 feet..." He glanced up and watched the plane close in on the runway, "20 feet..." Then the sharp squeal of rubber hitting the tarmac, both pilots grabbed the brakes and pulled back strongly. The control columns shook violently as the brakes began slowing the planes' wheels, bringing the plane to a slow and gentle stop.

"922, proceed to Gate 12."

"Roger, 922." Quinn replied before Mike could, slowly controlling the plane toward Gate 12. It only took a few minutes before they had parked and turned off the Boeing's engines. "Another successful flight."

Mike grinned, "And we have to do it all over again tomorrow morning and then again in the evening."

"Actually no, I'm only doing the morning flight." Quinn replied, unbuckling her harness and climbing from her seat, "I've booked the next few days off to move in."

"Ah...right." He seemed disappointed that he wasn't flying with Quinn, and inside it made her smirk. When would Mike ever get it in his head that she was in no way interested?

"Don't worry, Mike. I'll be back before you know it." Smiling, she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder before turning and leaving the small cockpit. All the passengers had disembarked and only a few remaining cabin crews remained, doing their rounds up and down the rows picking up odd pieces of litter and placing pillows back in the overhead lockers.

One of the members of the cabin crew, a young man who one day hoped to achieve a pilot rank came up to Quinn and grinned in an almost childlike manner, "Great flight, Cap." Then he leered, "But I could do it better."

Quinn couldn't help but smile, Noah was such an eager and confident student, maybe a little bit of an asshole.

"Prove that at practice, Puckerman."

He clapped his hands together and rubbed them in glee, "Awesome, can't wait. Have a good night, Cap." He then turned away and continued the rest of his rounds. Quinn found it amusing that Noah refused to call her by her first name, only calling her by her rank. No matter how much she tried to tell him, almost ordering him some times, he flat out refused.

"You're the Captain. That's who you are." He replied, his eyes twinkling in the bright sun as he walked out of the airport and toward his car.

Quinn knew from a young age that she would always be called 'Captain' with the job she had in mind ever since she was six. Her father before her was a Captain and flew for many airlines; he was always called Captain, almost as in respect for the almost legendary pilot. She was a Fabray too, so she was given the same respect. Most of the time it annoyed her, she was a woman, not just an authority figure. But then again, she took it in; it was a final respect to her father.

Her father, Russell Fabray, had been an almost legendary pilot for several airlines. He'd flown for almost thirty-two years before he took his final flight. He was both well known as a commercial and research pilot, often taking brand new aircraft to the skies to check their credibility. He had taken a state of the art Airbus to the skies; a brand new aircraft fitted with high tech computers to keep track of every movement and change in fuel and oil levels. The planes manufacturers had said that the plane could almost fly itself, except for takeoff and landing. Russell had been the first test pilot to check this huge claim. Everything had run smoothly for almost half an hour until the computer had begun giving many different and conflicting readings; high oil pressure, low fuel pressure, no fuel, too much fuel in one tank.

While he had tried to troubleshoot the problem, he hadn't realized the autopilot had started to tilt the aircraft with a small, unnoticeable bank to the right, slowly flipping the plane on its side. The turn was too severe, however, to get out of. By the time Russell had realized what his plane was doing, it had almost turned fully onto its back; the stress had become too much for the fuselage and the engines cut out completely. He tried desperately to turn the plane into its original position, fighting violently with the shaking yoke, shouting mayday into his radio for help. Alarm bells began to ring throughout the cockpit, almost screaming that he was in such an outrageous position that the plane wouldn't stay together.

"Too low, terrain."

"Mach speed trim."

"Pull up, terrain."

And he almost had it, but he was only a few feet off the ground. The underbelly of the fuselage was almost skimming the ground beneath it and with sheer will and determination, Russell pulled the plane back up toward the sky. He managed to gain some lift, but only from the air itself, the engines were still offline. The Airbus began to fall from the sky, and still fighting with the violently shaking controls, he tried to glide the plane down; but the controls weren't responding, and he slammed into an abandoned field forty-two minutes into the flight.

The NTSB concluded from their investigation that a simple computer chip generated false readings to Russell's flight computer. There had been no problem with the plane, but the claim by the plane's manufacturers had been inaccurate. The plane couldn't fly itself, often tilting and heading off course. The plane was taken back for more work; backups made for the computer chips, and then put into mass production for several airline buyers.

But there had been one loss of life.

The Fabray family slowly began to move on, but Quinn found it the hardest to move on. She looked up to her father, loved him with all her heart. She was his princess, and now she'd never hear his deep robust voice calling her that. Ever since that day when she was only twelve years old, she promised herself and her father, that she would become a pilot.

She didn't like to think about her father like that, only liking to remember the memories that made her smile. The ones where he would come home early, arms filled with presents from his flights to India, China, Japan, and Australia. The hugs he gave both her and Frannie; the gentle loving kiss that he would give Judy.

Thinking happy thoughts, such as moving into her new house, she left her plane and headed into the airport. It wasn't long now until she was back flying; so for now, she headed to the hotel adjacent to the airport, hoping to catch a few hours of shut eye and get back to New York.

Times like this she hated to be alone. Lying alone on her hotel bed, flicking through endless channels, nowhere near enough tired to sleep. Although she had a fledging and growing career she knew deep down she was missing out on one thing; a love life. She had realized her orientation when she was still in high school, looking at women instead of men, which was the norm among all her other friends. She had been incredibly confused, but eventually realized there was nothing wrong with being gay.

It had taken her years to come out of the closet and sit her mother and sister down. She had come home from College early for the weekend, demanding of herself that she stop being such a wimp. She was a Fabray! Her heart pounding harshly in her chest, she sat in front of Judy and Frannie, taking long and deep breaths to relax her tense body.

"I'm gay." She said flat out, closing her eyes so she couldn't see her mom and sister's face.

"Oh I know that, dear."

"Damn sis, I thought you were going to say something horrible!"

Quinn's eyes snapped open as she looked at the smiling faces of her mother and sister, "What...?" She half mumbled, her eyes flicking from her sister, to her mother and back again.

"Sis, we knew you were gay." Frannie stood up and leant down to hug her older sister, gently whispering in her ear, "You kind of scream it."

"How...?" Quinn half screamed as she pulled back, a look of horror in her face.

"I've seen you look at women...or more at their chests." She laughed in reply before slapping her sister playfully on the back, "Well if that's all, I need to go finish a painting for college."

Judy sat, sipping a cup of steaming tea as she waited for her eldest daughter to leave the room, the familiar steps on the stairs before the shutting of her bedroom door. "Did you honestly think I didn't know, Quinn?"

"Well, I thought I was hiding it pretty well."

"Dear, you're my daughter. I knew you were hiding something from me, and it was only a matter of time until everything clicked."

"Ah..." Quinn sighed with relief, feeling the heavy burden fall away from her shoulders, "So...you're okay with it?"

"Of course!" Judy smiled and stood up from her seat, "Whatever you want makes me happy." Quinn smiled up at her mother before standing up too, "Now come on, there's some freshly baked caramel brownies with your name on it."

She had several relationships as she grew up, as well as in her adult life, but nothing had ever been serious. They were only flings, brief and uneventful, but now she was in her mid thirties and nothing to show for it. She wanted to settle, meet someone who made her heart pound harshly in her chest, struggle for breath and ultimately fall in love with.

Sighing with disgust she turned the television off and turned onto her side, clutching her pillow to chest. She hated getting into these almost depressing states; and although she adored and loved her career, when she was like this, she often blamed her love life, or lack of one, on it.

Her father had been the same, often taking extra commitments and flights on, because he loved his job that much. At times, she'd walk into her mother's bedroom and find her struggling to hold back tears as she sat on the bed. She knew that her mother must have thought that Russell loved his job much more than he did his family, and it must have torn her apart. She vowed to never do the same thing; but here it was, happening and she had no control over it.

Maybe I could imagine Mike as a woman...?

"Urgh..." She rolled onto her back and pulled the pillow over her face, "How desperate do I sound...?" She mumbled almost disgustingly into the white and blue pillow. Then a spark of hope; she was moving tomorrow afternoon, a fresh start. She could meet someone, and who knows, they could be right on her doorstep.

"Are you okay...?" Mike asked, clutching his flight briefcase in his left hand as he walked beside his friend and colleague, Quinn Fabray. The flight from London back to New York had been uneventful, but he had noticed that his love interest was completely off mood.

"Hm...?" She asked, glancing at her first officer, "Oh...fine, just a little tired."

"I can tell," He held open the entrance doors and gestured for Quinn to go through first, before he followed her into the hot afternoon sun, "You could store money in the bags under your eyes."

She knew he was trying to crack a joke, but it made him sound all the more irritating and all she wanted to do was crack him around the jaw.

"Thanks..." She stifled a yawn and walked toward her car, a large silver SUV, her pride and joy beside her plane. "I'll see you in a couple of days, Mike."

"Sure, enjoy the move, Quinn." He waved her off, watching her pull out of her reserved parking spot and driving away from the airport before he turned his back and walked toward his car.

He'd been in love with Quinn for as long as he could remember; ever since he laid eyes on his Captain he knew that it was meant to be. She was commanding, funny, easy to talk to and incredibly passionate; he simply had to have her. Ever since, he'd been trying to drop hints whenever he could; but still nothing. He wasn't sure if she just hadn't noticed or if she simply didn't understand his hints, but she mentioned nothing of them.

So he decided to pull back and think of a plan; something that would defiantly throw her head over heels in love with him.

He just had to think of it first...

---

The house was just as fabulous as she remembered; a small, but homely, detached house on Forest Road. It was incredibly modern, freshly built only months before. The pure white exterior beckoned visitors to come closer, the front porch made of aged pine wood added a rustic feel to her new home; it reminded her of the old barn back in Ohio. She spent many days in the school holidays just lying in the bales of hay, just thinking things through. Something so small as a porch reminded her of her childhood; and that was a massive bonus.

The keys to her new home weighed heavily in her left hand; the sudden realization that she owned a real family home began to dawn on her. She'd lived in her one bedroom condo for fifteen years, and now she'd spent almost a year's wage on a family home? Last time she checked, she was single. Maybe she would take this new start as a fresh outlook on finding a partner; someone who she could be with for the rest of her life.

The key slid effortlessly into the lock and she stepped in, glancing around her new home. She'd only been here two weeks before, but every time she walked into it, she felt as if she was seeing it for the first time. It was almost invigorating. She didn't like the house looking so empty, but she would soon have sorted that out; the moving van was going to be arriving any moment and she could finally move all her possessions in. Then it would really feel like home.

She took the chance of being alone to do a quick walk through of the bottom floor. She started in the living room, quite large for only her, but the large open fireplace was a must have. The Captain could just imagine it now, sitting by the fire with a glass of wine, reading one of her favourite romance novels. The idea sounded heavenly to her.

The adjoining room was the kitchen, not to large, but not too small. She had always known she couldn't cook for toffee, even managing to burn beans at one point in her life, so until she'd managed to get some good cooking lessons from her mother, she'd have to rely on takeout.

I only hope that mom agrees to give me cooking lessons...and I only pray I pay attention to them!

The two other rooms that made up the bottom floor were a study and a downstairs toilet; she didn't need to check those rooms, as they probably wouldn't be used. Being in a study reminded her too much of her father; the countless nights he'd spend in his study just working. Quinn knew that although she hated her father being cooped up in his office when he should really be spending the rare time with his family, it was good just to have him home. It was a welcoming and almost calming feeling.

She walked up the stairs and headed into one of the two bedrooms. The first bedroom was by far the largest, and immediately she pegged it as the master bedroom for herself; already she could picture her spacious king sized bed and all the antique furniture she'd inherited from her recently deceased grandmother. A large hatched window overlooked the main street; from her vantage point she could look up and down the long street, as well as the rows of houses opposite.

In the distance she could she a rather large red and white van, and after scrutinizing it for a couple more seconds she realized it was the moving van. With a little childish grin, she headed downstairs and opened up the front door, watching the moving men gather several boxes and bring them in.

It had taken almost two hours for all the boxes and furniture to be unloaded from the truck, by that time it was going on five pm and the nagging feeling in her stomach told her she needed to eat. Honestly, she wasn't in the mood, so instead she unpacked her coffee machine and made a steaming mug of her addiction. Her addiction for coffee was going way too far, she consumed it more than actual food and she knew it must have been the reason for her insomnia most nights; but no matter how much she tried to cut down and promise herself not to drink it after seven pm, she always ended up caving in.

The full bodied aroma of the coffee tingled her senses and she took her time bringing the steaming mug to her lips, she was about to take her first sip when there was a knock at the door. "Dammit." She muttered half angrily, putting the mug on the counter before walking to the front door and opening it.

A tall and handsome young man stood on the other side, his blonde choppy hair almost shone in the early evening sun and his bright green eyes seemed to glow as he smiled at Quinn, "Hey, you just moved in, right?" His voice was thick with a New York accent, and to Quinn's delight it didn't annoy her as much as Mike's.

"Yes that's right, I'm Quinn Fabray," She extended her hand which the young man took readily. "And you are?"

"Lucas Miller." He pointed over his right shoulder with his thumb and smiled, "I live right across the street, I just wanted to say hello and welcome you to the neighbourhood, it's not every day we get new people moving in."

Quinn smiled, "Thank you very much, it's appreciated, at least I know someone now." She laughed almost nervously, noting that his smile never even seemed to die down, which amplified his chiselled jaw line, "You don't get a lot of people moving into this neighbourhood?"

"Nah, not really; not even into South Valley to be honest. North Valley is the more upstream place to live, you know, large shopping malls, colleges and a lot more high schools than here."

"Ah, well it's a good thing I don't need any of that then."

"Oh really...? I hope you don't find this rude, but what is it you do?"

"I'm a pilot, I fly for United Airlines."

"Get out of here!" Lucas' grin seemed to widen exponentially, "I'm a pilot too. I should have known, most of the people that live in South Valley are actually pilots or cabin crew; you know, 'cos it's so close to JFK and Newark."

"Which is the main reason I moved here," Quinn laughed and leaned against the door frame, "Who do you fly for?"

"Ah, everyone really. I'm a loan pilot," His arms crossed over his chest as he looked at the roof above his head in thought, "I've flown small private jets for VIP's, as well as flying commercially for all the big airlines including Continental, American Airlines and United."

Quinn's jaw seemed to drop in shock; the thought of being a loan pilot was all too tempting when she first got her wings, but the thought of settling down with one company was much too alluring to ignore. But now she had heard of Lucas' experience of being a loan, she mentally kicked herself for passing up on the opportunity to fly privately and commercially.

"You should do it; you get twice as much by being a loan pilot." He looked back and Quinn and grinned.

"Ah, I love flying for United, it's my home away from home."

"I know the feeling."

A long silence began to draw out as the two newly introduced pilots reminisced over their careers; the love of being able to fly a machine that looks so incapable to fly, but make it soar above the clouds almost as if it was weightless. The feeling was unbelievable, almost euphoric to a pilot. It was natural for flight crew to feel edgy on the ground, and completely at ease in the air. For Quinn, that was true. She never believed she belonged on the ground, living out a monotonous life, a 9-5 desk job; her true calling was in the air, soaring high above to clouds, going to new locations day in and day out. It was her life. She was sure Lucas Miller felt exactly the same way.

"Hey, we're having a barbeque tomorrow afternoon; a lot of the neighbours are coming round, maybe you could come and meet the rest of the neighbourhood?"

Truthfully, Quinn just wanted to sit at home and read a good book; but it would be good to go out and meet the neighbours she'd be living near. So instinctively she nodded, "Sure, what time do you want me there?"

"Around four, would that be alright?"

"Sure, not a problem."

"Fantastic! I'll see you then, Quinn." Waving a goodbye, Lucas turned and leaped the porch steps before taking a dash across the road back toward his house. Quinn couldn't help but laugh at his young enthusiasm, he reminded her of Noah Puckerman way too much. Chuckling to herself she shut the front door and headed back into the kitchen. The mug of coffee stared her in the face, and no longer willing to tease herself with just the smell she took one large gulp. Cringing, she looked into the mug and swallowed her mouthful.

"Damn cold coffee..."

---

She really did despise alarms. What she despised more was that she forgot to shut off the automated alarm which was set for the time she was due to get up for the New York to London flight she was suppose to fly today. So after finally dozing off around two am, thanks to her insomnia, which she thanked on the gallon of coffee she drank before going to bed; she got up at the ripe old time of six am.

Quinn was exhausted, almost falling asleep at the breakfast bar where she sat sipping at a cup of coffee and eating her breakfast, which consisted of toast and chopped fresh fruit; the only things she could cook and not manage to burn.

By the time she'd finished eating and jumped in the shower it was going on seven am. As she luxuriated in the warm water, fingers going through her hair as she massaged the shampoo into blonde locks she realized that getting up so early was in fact a good thing; she could start unpacking the huge pile of boxes in the living room and she could add her own personal style to the still bland home.

After washing the suds from her hair she climbed out of the shower and towelled off, before diving into an unknown box in her bedroom to pick out any clothes she could find. She settled on a pair of white shorts, a white tank top and form fitting blue chequered button up shirt over that. She was going for the rather relaxed look, and from the sun blaring in from the bedroom window, she could tell that it was due to be a rather hot day.

Jogging downstairs barefoot she made herself yet another coffee before heading back into the living room. There were boxes upon boxes all piled up on one another and Quinn groaned inwardly. She honestly couldn't be bothered unpacking everything, but the more she put it off, the more she'd just hate doing it. So taking a deep breath, she began opening up the boxes and unpacking the belongings that would her house a home.

Several hours later, sweaty and completely exhausted from unpacking all of her belongings as well as moving countless items of furniture around, she took a step back and looked at her house with an added sense of pride. The living room was incredibly warm, almost reminiscent of her childhood home with aged wood furniture; priceless antiques from her late grandmother, pictures and photograph galore in every inch of the room reminding her of points in her life she was particularly fond of; childhood photos of both her and her older sister, photos from school sports days which she had excelled at, her graduation photo, the pictures of when she received her wings and one adoring photo of her father which stood out among the rest, nestled safely within a golden frame above the fireplace.

The kitchen was now filled to the brim with kitchen appliances and utensils, newly bought in fact; she'd have to start cooking sooner or later, although the thought of it terrified her. The downstairs study was filled with books upon books, all stacked neatly in bookshelves that lined the rustic looking room. A desk stood dominant in the centre, a laptop laying safely atop, waiting to be used.

Her bedroom had been given the light touch of different nick-nacks around the room; several gathered from her travels as a pilot, others given to her on birthdays. She'd collected them from such a young age, she'd gotten into the habit of become a sort of hoarder. They were a devil to dust, but to her they told a story, a story of her life; they didn't deserve to be packed away never to be seen again.

The ensuite was kept just the way it was, but added her personal towels and grooming products to the medicine cabinet above the sink. Such small changes around the household added such a homely effect that Quinn didn't really want to leave.

The guest bedroom was kept as it was when she moved in, only a spare double bed filled the room and several different wardrobes and cabinets that couldn't be put anywhere else. She was proud of her achievement, she'd been at it for hours and she was exhausted from the work, but it had paid off completely.

Glancing at her watch she noted the time, twelve pm, enough time to shower and get herself dressed up for the neighbourhood barbeque at Lucas' house. She didn't want to look too dressed up, she wanted to blend into the crowd, not completely stand out; it was nerve wrecking enough being the new 'kid' on the block.

Treating herself, she drew herself a bath, filling it with lavender and vanilla bubble bath before luxuriating in the warm water. Immediately she felt her muscles begin to un-kink, a wave of calm wash over her body.

The last thing I want to do is fall asleep in the bath...

In time she washed and got out of the bath, towelling off and putting on a blue terrycloth robe. She was about to open her wardrobe and pick her outfit when she heard the knock on her front door. Sighing she headed downstairs, clutching the robe around her tighter as she poked her head around the door as she opened it.

"Surprise!"

"M-Mike...?" Quinn asked with a slight stutter, coming out from behind the door, "What are you doing here?" She noticed the bottle of wine in his left hand and the childish grin on his face and felt an impending sense of doom hit deep in her stomach.

"I thought I would come see your new place, see how you'd settled in. I bought a bottle of wine with me and I was hoping..." He paused and Quinn fought back the urge to cringe when he moved closer toward her, "I could take you out for a nice lunch?"

"Ah..." She let out silently, "Um...your flight?"

"I swapped with Finn, he owed me from way back and he was all too happy to take the flight."

"Oh how nice of Finn..." She replied between gritted teeth, "But I can't, I'm afraid. I'm going to a barbeque to meet the neighbours a little later on."

"Ah..." His arms dropped to his sides and he looked at the bottle of wine in his hand before looking up at his superior, "I could come with you...?"

"I think it'd be better if I went by myself."

God, Mike, you are such a good friend, I can't deny that. But the day you get it into your head that I am in no way interested, I'll damn near cheer.

"Oh no, I insist. I can't have you going by yourself."

It's like talking to a plank of wood.

"No, no...Honestly, it's just a neighbourly affair."

"Right." He replied shortly, finally getting her point. "Well...take a rain check on the dinner then?"

"That'd be great." She smiled, as genuinely as she could at her friend, before hugging him a quick goodbye and shutting the door. Collapsing with her back to the door she took a deep breath; that man was damn near insatiable.

Mike stood on the other side of the door, hand still clutching the bottle of wine, maybe a little too tightly, feeling completely and utterly rejected. He thought he was being completely romantic by finding someone to take the flight for him, coming all the way to South Valley to ask rather out of the blue if she'd like to go to dinner with him. He'd thought about the plan all night, knowing it was pull proof and a sure fire way of Quinn to see him for the man that he truly is. A man that loves her.

Dejected, he turned and headed back down the porch; it had taken him hours to actually track down her new address, that must have been proof in itself to Quinn that she meant a lot to him and that he had tried his hardest. Mike knew he had to come up with a much better plan, something that would really show Quinn how much she meant to him; something that would make her fall head over heels in love with the man.

He just had to think some more.

---

She hated being early, it made her feel eager...almost too eager. It was quarter to four and she could have easily have gone back across the road and gone back into her house to wait, but Lucas had already seen her from the living room window and now there was no turning back.

Waiting at the front door she sighed to calm her nerves, she was going to meet a lot of new people today and she had to make a good impression. It wasn't that she wasn't confident, in fact she was the total opposite; she'd been independent and confident ever since she was in diapers. She was in charge of everything, an air of command about her even when she was a young child; she only hoped it still exuded now, but not so much she appeared snooty to the neighbours.

Lucas had seemed to like her; she must have been doing something right.

He opened the door, a large smile plastered on his face as he set eyes on Quinn. The sun seemed to set off the bright blue chequered shirt he wore, and the white shorts and flip flops. "That's what I like, people who are early!"

"I hope I'm not too early...?"

"No, no not at all. Please come in; I was just about to light up the barbeque." He pushed open the door further and gestured Quinn to come in. Walking through, she glanced around Lucas' home, noticing that it had the well lived but orderly look. She assumed early on that he would be the bachelor sort of man, having clothes and empty beer cans hanging about the place, as well as a few randomly placed Chinese takeaway boxes to add the au'naturale look.

Surprisingly, the house was immaculate, almost perfectly so. Lucas began to chuckle to himself as he showed Quinn into the kitchen and through the back door into the large back garden, "I don't have OCD, I just like things to be tidy."

Quinn smiled, "I wasn't going to suggest; I'm just a little shocked."

"Cos I'm a guy...?" Quinn thought she'd insulted the young man, but when he turned to face her and saw the glint in his eye, she sighed with relief, "I guess I'm just one of those hard to find men that actually enjoys cleanliness."

He bent down and reached into a large cooler by the open barbeque, "Drink?" He pulled out a beer and Quinn cringed, "Let me guess, you're a spirit woman?"

"Pretty much," Quinn laughed, watching as Lucas walked around her and back into the kitchen, "It's okay if you don't have anything, I'll settle for beer."

He poked his head through the door and grinned, "My girlfriend doesn't drink beer either, only wine and these weird cocktail concoctions that make me want to hurl." He disappeared again while Quinn chuckled at him before appearing again, several different spirits in his hands, "Name your poison."

Almost instinctively her eyes zoned in on the almost full bottle of Jack Daniels and bit back the urge to lunge at the bottle; it was her most favourite of whiskeys, it's robust, smoky, charcoaled flavour was a wonder for her taste buds.

"The Jack, for sure."

Lucas grinned and put the rest of the bottles back and brought the bottle of Jack Daniels with him, grabbing a plastic cup on a large buffet table that sat beside the large swimming pool, the pool that dominated most of the back yard.

"Single or double...?"

"Triple."

The blonde's head turned slowly toward Quinn, "Sure you can handle that?"

"You think I can't because I'm a woman?" Her hands automatically went to her hips, a move she used all the time at work when she wanted to prove a point to Mike; it always worked with him, and it seemed to work with Lucas because he grinned and poured a triple of Jack into the cup.

"So you have a girlfriend?" She glanced around the backyard, taking in the pool, patio and the large size barbeque just waiting to be lit.

"Yeah, she should be here any minute." Lucas smiled, a light blush dusting his pale cheeks. Quinn couldn't help but smile; she remembered what young love felt like; the feeling that you were invincible, capable of anything while you had your love by your side. Suddenly she felt kind of low, lacking that feeling now. "She had to pick up a few of our friends."

"You sound smitten with her."

The blush deepened, "She really is amazing." Cracking open his beer, he took a long sip before glancing out at the pool, hoping to hide the redness of his cheeks; "Loud, but amazing."

"How long have you been together?" She didn't mention his obvious shyness when it came to his girlfriend, knowing it would probably embarrass him more.

"We just had our four year anniversary," Grinning, he looked back at Quinn, "So it's going pretty well." Quinn smiled and watched as Lucas put his drink down and grabbed several defrosted meats; pork chops, ribs, steaks, sausages. She was suddenly looking forward to this barbeque; she hadn't eaten a lot and because of the triple whiskey's she was partaking in now was going to impact her incredibly empty stomach any minute.

The honk of a car horn made Lucas' head snap around toward the kitchen doors, "I guess they're here. Though I have to warn you, my friends are a bit...mental?"

Quinn laughed and raised her hand, "Thanks for the warning."

In a matter of seconds a throng of party goers marched into the backyard, cheering at Lucas, their hands filled with crates of beer and bottles of wine. All the men patted Lucas on the back in a gestured hello, whereas the women hugged and kissed him on the cheek.

The introductions were short and sweet, all of the mid-aged guests and friends of Lucas welcomed Quinn into their little group, making sure she was well fed and the first one to ceremoniously cook the largest steak on the barbeque; safe to say, she panicked, her history with cooking wasn't a good one, but with some instruction from Lucas, the steak turned out perfectly; medium rare with the blood still running through.

More and more neighbours arrived, and Quinn made her way around, Lucas making the introductions and then eventually sloping off to continue the cooking. The neighbours were friendly and inviting, with almost a little too much to tell; they always had a new story to tell Quinn as she continued with her rounds and then eventually sat down by the pool.

The whole group had eventually settled there, paper plates filled with cook meat covered their laps while their bare feet splashed playful bits of water at the person next to them. It made the pilot feel young again, playing footsie in the water and drinking like she was at a high school party.

It was then she noticed that Lucas was missing from the party, glancing over her shoulder to look at the barbeque she noticed what had made him absent; a young brunette that had her arms locked around his neck. They were kissing, holding each other close and eventually pulling back to smile at one another.

Quinn noted that it was obviously the girlfriend that Lucas had spoken of; and no wonder he was proud of her; she was small, curvaceous and the way she flicked her long brown hair over her shoulder just added to her beauty. She had bright brown eyes, almost coffee in colour, and full lips that made Quinn's eyes zone in on them, before flicking back up to her eyes.

The young woman's head was on Lucas' shoulder, her face turned toward the pool as they hugged one another. Slowly her eyes began to open and locked with Quinn's; the feeling was electric, almost terrifyingly so. She couldn't pull her eyes away; something about the way that those eyes seemed to dive into her soul, reading all of her deep and dark secrets.

Then it was broken, the young woman looked away and kissed her boyfriend on the cheek before turning toward the barbeque.

Sighing, Quinn looked back out to the pool; what was that feeling she just had? Sure, the young woman was attractive, so perfectly attractive that she looked like some Hollywood A lister; but this was so much more than physical attraction.

It all had to do with that look.

"Quinn!" Breaking out of her thoughts she looked back once more and saw the young woman flipping the meat while Lucas waved her over, a smile plastered on his face.

Slowly she got up and walked over to the couple, amusingly thinking that the way she was walking should have a funeral dirge to accompany it. Perking herself up, she smiled and greeted Lucas with a hug, "Enjoying the party?" He asked, his arm wrapped around her waist.

"Of course, everyone is so friendly."

"Told you not to worry," Grinning, he turned back to the woman beside him who was purposely ignoring the conversation before he tapped her on the shoulder, "Rachel, meet Quinn."

Suddenly her mouth was incredibly dry, and she wished she'd brought her drink over with her. The young woman turned, her lips curled ever so slightly at the edge in a small smile at the older woman, extended her hand in a gestured introduction, "Rachel Berry, pleased to meet you."

Her voice sent shivers down Quinn spine and she felt herself physically start before thrusting out of her hand, taking the extended hand and shaking it, "Quinn Fabray, the pleasure is all mine."

Wow, smooth.

---

The rest of the night had rushed by; by ten pm the drinking games had started, everyone was completely plastered and a game of spin the bottle ended up becoming rather heated between two of the players. Quinn had to admit, it was a tad awkward sat there watching two people make out, their hands in places that should only be done in private; but she was too drunk to actually care.

Then the skinny dipping happened. Lucas had been the first to take the plunge, ripping off his shorts and shirt before doing an incredibly awkward belly flop into the water. A barrage of laughter greeted Lucas as he swam back to the surface, one hand rubbing his sore stomach; then many of his female and male friends jumping on his head to join him. All naked.

Rachel and Quinn were the only ones not to participate; the older woman may have been drunk but she wasn't drunk enough to strip off and jump into a pool full of people she'd only known half a day. She just sat on the edge, laughing at the rest of them; but making sure to keep her legs well away, she didn't want to be dragged in.

"I take it you've enjoyed yourself?" Rachel asked, who sat beside Quinn at the pool edge, her legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles, leaning back on her hands.

Quinn smiled, "I think the last time I had this much fun was at Senior Prom."

"I have to agree there."

"When did you have your prom, it can't have been that long ago."

Rachel seemed to blush and looked down at her lap before side glancing at the older woman, "It wasn't long ago, no. But working on a school campus does throw you into the party scene."

"School campus...?" Her mind wasn't working as quick as it should be, she blamed the triple Jack's and the weird tequila shots that one of neighbours ordered her to drink in one of the drinking games. It was hard to even focus on the young woman, but she resoundingly focused herself on Rachel's face, hoping that she didn't look too sloshed.

"I teach Musical Theatre at NYADA."

"How old are you?"

"I'm twenty-eight."

A pause when she heard one of the women scream in the pool, glancing over she realized that one of the guys had picked her up and was threatening to drop her in the water, "What made you want to get into Musical Theatre?"

"My parents," It was a whisper and Quinn almost missed it, turning back to the brunette beside her she tilted her head to the side, a silent plea for her to continue, "They had there own regular jobs, my father was a elementary school teacher and my daddy was a car mechanic."

Two dads…?

"They always loved to sing, and every night, we'd sit down together and watch musicals."

Quinn smiles, "Wow, they sound pretty awesome."

"They were."

Well, shit.

"Were?" Suddenly Quinn sobered, had this conversation taken a wrong turn?

"They were the unfortunate victims in a home invasion three years ago," A ragged sigh escaped the full lips and Quinn felt the pain, deep in her chest. It reminded her of her own father, but Rachel had lost both her parents, the pain must have been phenomenal for her to handle.

Rachel sighed softly to herself, wishing she could just melt back into the comfortable buzz of the alcohol that settled in her stomach. She cried for too long over the loss of her parents; she'd learnt to live without them.

"Then you decided to become a lecturer?"

"Yes, to show other people the love that comes from music and theatre, and how it can bring people together, like with my father's and I."

Somehow this whole conversation had turned incredibly macabre, but Quinn kept pushing, "I was inconsolable when my father died." Somehow the last word caught in her throat, and it only came out in a mere whisper.

Rachel smiled ever so slightly before glancing up at Quinn, "But you worked through it; you have to."

Before Quinn could ask what the young woman meant, Rachel rose to her feet, stumbling ever so slightly before regaining her bearings. "I'm going to bed, nice meeting you, Quinn." Then she walked away.

Somehow she thought she'd offended the young woman, until she realized what time it was. Glancing at her watch she noticed it was going on two am; not knowing how the time flew she rose to her feet slowly, making sure she didn't front roll into the pool in her drunken movements. Standing tall she looked at Lucas who was still in the pool, on the shoulders of one of his best friends, "Lucas, I'm going to get going now."

His head snapped toward Quinn and he smiled, "You sure? You don't want to join us for a bit?"

Laughing, she shook her head, "You've exhausted me, and I think it's time for me to go to bed."

"Whatever you say Quinn," He waved her off and smiled, "Thanks for coming, it was great to see you."

"You too. Goodnight everybody!" She shouted back, heading toward the kitchen doors. A chorus of goodbyes and drunken cheers joined her as she walked through the door. Laughing to herself she headed straight for the front door, glancing into the living room as she did.

Rachel was stood there, still in her shorts and blouse, glancing down at something. Her back was to the older woman, so she couldn't see what she was looking at. She stood there for a few moments until Rachel extended her hand and placed the object back on the bookcase. A picture of two people, two men, holding a smiling girl in their arms, laughing toward the camera.

I can only imagine what pain you must be feeling...

She wanted to say it out loud, but instead turned away from the living room, and left the house.

---

Even though Quinn wasn't meant to be on duty for two more days, nothing could keep her away from flying. She was due to meet Noah, the Chief Flight Attendant on the United 922 flight for a training lesson. The young man was a natural, a great pilot in the making, and Quinn took it upon herself to train him.

His father worked for the Federal Aviation Authority, or the FAA for short; he was incredibly high up in the ranks, and in the past worked with Russell Fabray.

It only took around twenty minutes to reach the airport; being in such a prime location to get to and from the airport was a must have for someone with her schedule. The Captain went straight onto Sunrise Highway, merged onto the Belt Parkway and then took the immediate exit 20 to drive onto the JFK Expressway, the long road that took her straight to her home airport.

She loved taking the JFK Expressway, for most people, driving on the home straight to work was almost death to some people, but to Quinn Fabray, it felt as if she was coming home. She found it amusing, that at one point in her life, she completely detested the thought of being a pilot.

"Daddy...can we stop now?" Eight year old Quinn Fabray looked up from her paper and stared at her father, giving him the best puppy dog eyes that she could possibly give despite her exhaustion. She had finished school only a couple hours earlier, after doing extra-curricular activities and then homework. Then her father had told her it was time for their weekly quiz; the quiz that she despised.

It was rare that her father was home on such occasions, and sometimes she just wanted to cuddle up to him and fall asleep while watching some TV with him. It was times like these that she missed having him around, but as soon as he was back, he was all work. He tucked himself away in his office, worked on his flight schedule and contacted several airplane engineers to talk about recommendations. Only when he did come out of his office, it was for him to call her in. That's when the quizzes started.

The quizzes were used to help Quinn with her flight knowledge and the names of every instrument within a commercial airliner. At the tender age of eight, her father demanded of her that she become a pilot and train every day at her young age to be ready for it when she was older.

She had welcomed it when it first started, the long hours stuck in his office, just memorizing flight instruments and the name of every airliner in the industry but after a while, she became bored, annoyed even, at being stuck in a room learning something she necessarily didn't want to learn.

"But daddy, I like science."

The older man behind the desk leaned back in his seat, something he did often when he was going to prove a point to his oldest daughter, "And that's why science is key for this sort of job. Being a pilot is one of the most intriguing professions you could go into, you dive into all sorts of subjects, most of which you're learning in school now; science, maths, English."

"But..." The daughter whined, looking up at her father, "I want to be a scientist. I want to go into space!" Jumping off her chair in excitement she grabbed the model of the Boeing 747 that stood proudly on his desk and began to fly around with it, "I want to be the Captain of a shuttle, and rocket into space," Emphasising her point, she pointed the plane upward, "I want to go to the moon, and to all the other planets. I want to be an explorer!"

Smiling at his daughter's enthusiasm, he got up from his chair and took the plane from her hands gently, "And you can be, an explorer of the skies." He picked her up and sat down behind his desk, placing his daughter on his lap, "And the day you become one, is the day I'll become the proudest dad in the world."

Smiling, Quinn hugged her father, not seeing the slight movement in the corner of her eye. He had grabbed the quiz she had turned her nose up at before and had now placed it back in front of her.

"Now, tell me the specifications for a McDonald Douglas DC-9."

Groaning, Quinn began to recite the specifications that had been drilled into her head weeks before.

Smiling at the memory, she continued on into the personnel car park, parking up in her SUV and jumping out, grabbing her flight briefcase from the back seat. She could already see Noah's car parked up, a dark blue and white Mustang; the young man had a strange affinity to work on old cars, bringing them back from the brink and into the cars they used to be. But his affiliation with the Mustang was a tight one, no matter how much his girlfriend told him to get rid of the car, he flat out refused; it was his baby.

"Captain...!" Noah was outside the main entrance of the airport, wearing his cadet uniform so he stood out against the throng of passengers entering and exiting the huge airport. His uniform was just the same as hers, except for the slides on his shoulders showed no strips.

"Hey, Puckerman. Are you ready to fly?" Quinn smiled at his enthusiasm as they headed into the airport. They went straight into the flight crew only area, using Noah's pass card and password. Before 9/11, the airport only used pass cards as entrance into restricted areas, but ever since security had tightened, the use of passwords was needed too.

"What plane are we using today?"

"A Pilatus PC-12; a bigger plane than you're used to, but I think it's time we moved you up."

"Shit, really?" He opened the door that led out to the tarmac for his superior and exited after her, "I don't really know that plane well."

"That's why we're going to run through it before I let you anywhere near the controls," She grinned, stopping beside the parked plane. She noticed the look of panic on his face and smirked, "Chickening out, Puckerman?"

The flight attendant frowned and cracked his knuckles, "Let's fly this bitch." He climbed into the small plane, buckling himself into the secondary seat beside Quinn. He was already trying to turn on the engines so he pulled out the specifications from her flight briefcase and handed him a copy, "Read through this, try to memorize it, and I'll quiz you."

"Ugh, fine."

---

"Done?" Fabray asked, taking the paper from him and setting them down back into her flight briefcase behind her. Puck grabbed the flight controls almost immediately. "Puck, just chill, otherwise I won't be able to teach you how to fly it."

He nodded in reply.

"Okay, we'll run through some quick specs while I do the start up checklist." She began flipping switches, making sure that they worked, that the flaps were set, that the fuel levels were at an optimal level and that the electronics all worked. "How many passengers can you fit on this plane?"

"9 is the maximum."

"The wingspan...?"

"16.25 metres."

"How fast can the propeller go at top speed?"

"1,700 RPM."

She got the jist that Puck had taken his revision seriously, most pilots didn't even know most of the specs about the PC-12, and it was obvious that Puck just wanted to get off the ground and fly.

"Alright, how about you start up the propeller for me?"

He nodded and leaned forward to flip two switches beside each other. The propeller at the front of the plane began slowly rotating before whirring to life, "Let's get this thing in the air then!"

Quinn simply smiled.

"So how are things going with you and Bella?" Fabray asked, keeping an eye on Noah as he controlled the plane. They had ascended to the normal flight level of 4500 feet, and now was just watching the young man to make sure he didn't make any mistakes.

"Ah, we're good." He grinned and glanced at the Captain, "I think she wants me to propose."

"Has she said that?" She asked with a slight chuckle; Puck was a good man but he could be completely obtuse when it came to women. It had taken him three years just to get with his girlfriend Bella Turino, an Italian woman who was quick to anger, but easy to love; she was incredibly loyal to her family and friends, as well as a woman who could be trusted.

"Well, when you start seeing Bridal magazines and small post it notes on the refrigerator door, I think it means she might want to get married sometime soon."

Quinn chuckled, "Do you want to marry her?"

"Of course...! It's just...you know, getting a ring and paying for the wedding. That shit's expensive."

"I thought because you were a Purser, you get paid double?"

Noah shrugged his shoulders slightly, "I do, and it's alright I suppose, but it's not enough to give her the engagement ring and wedding she deserves, you know?"

"Puck," The Captain sighed, adjusting herself in her seat before she continued, "Have you thought that maybe Bella doesn't want a major wedding, or a huge diamond ring? I think she'd just be happy to have you as her husband."

He glanced at Quinn, both to wonder if she was being serious and sincere, "For serious…?"

"Maybe you should talk to her about it...? That's the best way to find out what she wants, and what you want. But first of all, you need to be comfortable about the thought of getting married; you're still young, you have your whole life ahead of you."

"My life is with Bella," He adjusted his grip on the yoke and smiled, "I want to be with her for the rest of my life."

Quinn smiled at the young love; Puck had been with Bella for almost six years. They had met at College when he had been doing his Travel and Tourism classes. Bella had taken up a Mechanical Engineering class, two very different subjects and one that sounded as if it needed swapped around. Mechanical Engineering was a very male proud subject, with Bella being the only female in the class. She wiped the floor with most of her class mates though, and tended to excel in anything the tutor gave her.

With Noah's love of retro cars, he had taken it upon himself to go see the tutor of the class for advice on if he should completely rip out the engine which was almost beyond repair, or just try his best to fix it.

The tutor had not been there, but Bella had been, doing extra credit. It had been a stormy first meeting, with Puck taking the opportunity to both offend and disgust her. He had offended her, by saying that she 'couldn't possibly be a mechanic because she was a woman' and disgust her by telling her that 'anything she fixed would probably fall apart in seconds'.

She hadn't told him, however, that she was the best in class, and decided to just drop it, although her anger had reached boiling point within her. They hadn't seen each other for weeks, until Bella had been driving home, to see a Mustang parked outside a house, with Noah Puckerman hanging inside it, covered in head to toe with grease.

Now, was the time to prove her point. She parked her car and asked him if he needed any help; he took the chance to slam is head on the open car bonnet as he jumped upward. He had told her that she couldn't possibly fix the engine, the same engine he had been trying to fix for several weeks now, but Bella had not paid any attention.

Pulling out several tools from his toolbox, she began to work her magic on the almost unfixable machine. It had taken several minutes, but eventually she stood back up straight, whipped the cloth from Puck's hand and began wiping the oil from her hands. "Try it," She ushered him.

He stared at her in disbelief, but decided to humour her. He turned on the engine and almost dropped to the floor in shock when the engine almost purred to life. "But..."

"That's why you don't insult a woman," She threw the rag in his face and sauntered off back toward her car. Puck had been quick to recover, however, and shouted out his apology.

"How about I make it up to you with a drink?!"

Bella stopped opening the car door and turned back to face him, a gentle smirk on her face, "Oh...?"

And the rest had been history; they had gotten along like a house on fire after Puck had apologized for his behaviour with every breath. The night had been superb, and the company had been better, he took her home in the Mustang, the engine still purring like a dream. Parked outside her house, he kissed her gently and from then on he knew that he loved her.

"Well, if you feel that it's the right time, you should go for it. Don't let the chance slip through your fingers." She ordered him, almost talking from her experience. There had been many times when she let opportunities slip through her fingers, mostly because of her job. There had been many chances that she could have dated many beautiful women who were interested in her, but decided to blow them off at the last minute because of her duty to her passengers and crew.

She didn't regret it, just hated thinking about it.

"Aye Captain," He laughed and glanced at the fuel readout when a gentle beep echoed throughout the cockpit, "We're running a little low on fuel, Cap."

"Alright," She sat up straighter in her seat, "Feel like you can land it?"

"What?" His head snapped to her, "Already?"

"You've flown it perfectly so far, it's just like landing any other plane."

He thought for a few moments before grinning, "Bring it on!"

---

Driving home after her training flight with Puck, Quinn relaxed into her seat and began to think about the flight. She had been deliberating for some time if she should put him in for his final test; the man was obviously a natural, but she wasn't so sure. He was overzealous at times and that could be a great hindrance. She wouldn't be allowed to sit in on the flight, obviously because she tutored him and because the cockpit wouldn't be big enough for three people.

She summarized she'd just have to think some more on it before she came to a conclusion about Puck and his licence, but she couldn't honestly concentrate on that, because of the conversation her and Puck had when they were leaving the airport.

"When do you think I can go in for my final test? I've been learning for almost three years."

"You can't rush it, Puck." She pushed open the door and left the airport, "You have be completely sure in your abilities before you go in for your test, and it isn't cheap." She stopped beside Puck's car and rested her hand on her hip, the other hand grasping her flight case, "It costs a couple hundred dollars, and then you have to pay for the license itself. Don't you think you should buy the ring for Bella before you do anything to do with your licence?"

"Hmm..." He ran his hand through his hair and sighed, "I suppose your right, and I can get my license anytime I want. With the way I spend money; I'll never be able to save up for the ring, so maybe I should get it while I still have the cash."

"I would agree with that."

Puck grinned, "You know, I never understood why your single, Cap. You're pretty banging."

Quinn shook her head, "I guess I'm too busy with my career to bother with a relationship." She was glad she's already told Puck that she was gay, with them working in such close quarters with each other, Tom had finally begun to notice when his Captain tended to look in the direction of who he was looking at; women. He had been fine with the Captain's admission, telling her that it was better to be truthful then hide a part of who you are. That, and he found it hot.

"Yeah but, you need love eventually in your life. You've already got an amazing career; you can't get any better no matter how much effort you put in. Why don't you try meeting some new people?"

The thought had intrigued her; she'd met many new people only after days of moving into her new home. Most of them had been incredibly interesting to talk to, keeping her occupied for hours as they talked about their works as lawyers or doctors and she knew that a select few were in fact gay. But she wasn't interested in dating those people; she only saw them as friends, acquaintances.

Except for a certain brunette that had piqued her interest.

Jumping in her seat at the thought, she shook her head; she shouldn't be having thoughts like that for someone else's girlfriend, let alone one of her friend's. Although it was true, Rachel was a beautiful and strong woman, she was sure that most the student's that Rachel taught probably thought exactly the same thing but that's all the feeling were; feelings of physical attraction but nothing more.

It only took a few minutes to get home, and as she climbed out of her car she heard her name being shouted from across the road. Lucas was sitting on the porch in just a pair of shorts, showing off his strong muscular torso, wearing aviator sunglasses and holding a glass of ice water. The weather was sweltering, Quinn having to come out in a thin grey t-shirt, 3/4 pants and sandals for the day.

"How're you feeling this afternoon?" Lucas laughed as Quinn walked across the road to meet him.

"My head was thumping this morning; I could hardly get out of bed." Quinn walked up onto the porch and leaned against the wooden railings, her hands crossed over her chest, "But after a few cups of extra strong coffee, I managed to look alive."

"Ah, you went home way too early. We didn't stop drinking till at least five am; I only woke up an hour ago!"

His grin made Quinn laugh, "I take it your hangover was terrible then?"

"Ohhh yeah..." He ran his hand through his unruly blonde hair, "My toilet was my best friend when I woke up."

"Indeed," The Captain cringed, "Well that's what you get for drinking shots and swimming at the same time."

"You have to admit it was good fun." When no reply came he leaned forward, "Come ooon."

"Okay! It was fun; I haven't had that much fun at a party ever since I was in College."

Lucas seemed pleased, "Good to know that I can throw an amazing party, then." Then his face dropped suddenly, "You were talking to Rach last night, right?"

"Yeah, before she went to bed." Lucas nodded slowly, and this piqued her interest, had something happened after she left for the night? She had left Rachel in the living room, looking at the family portrait, "Why? Is there a problem?"

"Well, sort of..." He sighed and pulled off his glasses, throwing them on the small table beside him along with his drink, "She seemed off all night; I even noticed it when I was completely blind drunk. She didn't talk much today either before she went to work."

"Maybe she's just not feeling well?"

"Somehow I don't think so, maybe...I don't know..." He chuckled and leaned back in his seat, "She usually talks to me when something's wrong, and that's why I'm worried. It's like she's keeping something from me."

"She seemed fine to me last night, we talked quite openly in fact."

Lucas didn't respond straight away, but rubbed his chin with the tips of his fingers were light stubble had began to grow. "Could you do me a favour?"

Suddenly, it felt like a bomb had hit her stomach, "It depends on the favour?" She asked wearily, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Could you got to the college, and just...check that she's alright? She doesn't have to know your there, it's just, I'd do it myself but I have a ton of work to catch up on."

Quinn's eyebrow rose, "You're a pilot."

"I have to do flight plans and stuff, it's going to take up most of my day. I won't be able to concentrate if I don't know how Rachel is. She hasn't taken the liberty of calling me back either," He frowned at his phone which lay discarded on the table beside him, "So...will you?" He glanced back up at the slightly frowning Captain.

"So you're practically telling me to...'spy' on your girlfriend...?"

He grinned and nodded, "Don't tell me you never played spy when you were growing up?"

Groaning, Quinn knew she'd lost this argument and honestly she was interested to know how Rachel was doing anyway. Ever since their abrupt end to the conversation the night before, she'd been wondering what the other woman meant by her saying 'Not so incredible'. So slapping her hands down on the thighs, she pushed off the railing and nodded, "Fine, I'll do it. But you owe me," she warned, pointing her index finger right at his nose.

Nodding, he grabbed his glasses and put them back on, "Sure thing. I'm in your debt." His tone slightly awkward.

---

Luckily she knew where NYADA was, but unluckily for her, she didn't ask Lucas where Rachel usually took her class. So having wandered around for several minutes, she found the reception desk and asked where the brunette was taking her class.

Quinn didn't know why Lucas had taken it upon himself to recruit her into spying on his girlfriend; honestly it sounded a little paranoid on his behalf. All that could be wrong is that the young woman was possibly feeling under the weather and didn't really want to talk to her boyfriend before she left that morning, but Lucas had seemed to take it to a new height.

From the way he sounded, although he tried to put a positive spin on his words, there was a hint of strain behind his voice, and to end the conversation he actually put his glasses on, hiding his eyes away from Quinn's prying gaze.

She had no reason to speculate, she wasn't involved; if they had troubles in their relationship, and if Lucas was a paranoid man, it was purely between the two lovers. She was just an innocent bystander, a friend, but she felt horrible about having agreed to spy on Rachel, and for some reason it felt as if Lucas had taken it upon himself to spy on her before.

It didn't take long to get to Rachel's class, but having glanced through the glass door she found the auditorium empty. There was no sign that any students had even been in the class, and when she tried to open the door, it was locked.

"Are you looking for someone?" Quinn jumped and turned on her heels to face the voice; a man in his early 20's stood in front of her, holding a laptop case in his hand, while his other hand was stuck in oversized distressed jeans pockets.

"Uh yeah," She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb, "Rachel Berry's class?"

"Miss. Berry? She called in sick today, my friend is in her class, he got the day off."

"She never came in?"

"Nope."

"Right," She mumbled lightly, before rolling her shoulders and smiling at the man, "Thanks for your time."

"No trouble." He nodded and walked off down the hall, disappearing around a corner.

Quinn sighed and walked in the opposite direction, hands on her hips as she walked, thinking where Rachel could possibly be. She had told Lucas that she was going to work, but had called in sick, and now she wasn't answering her phone? Was she purposely avoiding Lucas for some reason, or maybe she really was sick?

For some reason, unknown to even herself, a slight wave of panic rushed through her body and suddenly she cursed herself for not having Rachel's number to call the young woman. All she could do was go home, tell Lucas the news and go about the rest of her day, before promising herself she would never try to spy on someone's girlfriend ever again.

She'd only just made it to her car and pulled out her keys before she heard a voice from behind her, "Why are you here?" The tone was accusing, stern.

Slowly, Quinn turned and steadied herself as she gazed into the icy expression of Rachel Berry. The young woman looked normal, dressed in black slacks, heels and a white blouse; her hair fell down past her shoulders and shone in the late afternoon sun. But something about her face made Quinn fall back against the car door; her face was shut down from any sort of emotion, incredibly void.

"I, uh...well, you know..." Suddenly she felt incredibly dumb, unable to formulate a normal sounding sentence toward the woman who almost towered over her. "I came to see how you were." It sounded lame, but she added a smile to make herself look sincere.

"Why?"

"Well, our conversation ended rather abruptly last night. Did I say something to offend you?"

"No."

Laughing uncomfortably, "It would help if you could give me more than a one word answer?"

Raising her chin ever so slightly, Rachel replied, "No, you didn't offend me."

"Right..." Quinn conceded slowly, putting her hands on her hips, "Then, are you okay now? You seem...off somehow?"

"You've known me one day and you assume I'm off?"

She frowned, "Okay, I don't know you that well, granted, but I can tell when someone is giving me the cold shoulder."

Rachel's face seemed to crack ever so slightly, the icy facade began to chip away slowly before the brunette sighed ever so gently, "I'm sorry; I don't mean to be harsh on you. I just hate the reason why you're here."

"The reason...? To see if you're okay?"

"No," Rachel shook her head, "You were sent here by Lucas."

Without any sort of thought process, Quinn's mouth opened and she came out with the only explanation she had, "No I wasn't."

A thin eyebrow rose, "You're a terrible liar."

"I'm not lying."

"You know how I tell you're lying?"

"I said I'm not lying."

"You fiddle with your watch," Brown eyes moved away from hazel toward the shining silver watch on Quinn's left wrist, where she was fiddling with the leather strap. Quinn glanced down, realized what she was doing, and dropped her hands to her side.

"Doesn't prove anything,"

"And the fact that you're a terrible liar helps too," Rachel sighed and crossed her arms over her chest, "Just admit Lucas sent you."

Biting her inner cheek, Quinn groaned inwardly before nodding, "Yes, he sent me."

"I thought so," She turned and walked away, leaving a confused Captain behind, leaning against the car door. She stood there for several seconds, just watching Rachel's retreating back before her brain shot back into gear. She ran after her and stopped the woman getting into her car by slamming the door shut as she opened it, "Yes?" Rachel asked, miffed.

"What are you going to do?" She purposely put herself right in front of the young woman's car door, barring her from any sort of exit.

"I don't think that's any of your business."

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Quinn let out one long breath, "Tell me," Dropping her hand, she looked into the young woman's eyes, "Please...?"

Rachel seemed to physically start before conceding, "I'm not going home, if that's what you're wondering. But I do intend to speak to Lucas about this little incident later on today."

Quinn knew she'd dropped her friend into the dog house, and it'd be a long time until Rachel would actually forgive him or her for that matter.

"Look, I know what I did was wrong, and I don't know why I let Lucas talk me into it, but he seemed genuinely worried, and I guess I was too."

Sighing, Rachel took a step back, allowing a little breathing room between the two women. "You were worried?"

"Yes," With a nod, Quinn stood away from the car door, no longer worried that Rachel would try to bolt into her car and give Lucas a black eye, which didn't seem all that impossible. "After last night, although I was drunk, I could tell something was wrong, and I saw you looking at that picture in the living room,-"

"You were watching me?" Rachel broke in, her eyes wide with both shock and anger.

"No, no, no!" Taking a deep breath to calm the tension between them, "Look, I'm not explaining this very well, how about we go get a coffee?"

"I don't think so," She walked toward her car and opened the door once more before Quinn slammed it shut against with the heel of her palm, "Do you mind?"

"Just let me explain, over a coffee, and then you can think of me what you will."

Sighing in defeat, Rachel dropped her hand away from the car door and nodded, "After you."

---

The walk had been uncomfortable for the two women as they walked together toward the coffee shop; a little cafe that sat on the edge of a large park. They hadn't talked, only exchanging pleasantries with the young woman behind the till to give her their orders.

The weather was sweltering, and most patrons took the outside chairs, and while those seats were taken, all of the seats had been taken in the little shop. "How about we go into the park? Sit on a bench and talk?" Quinn asked, hoping that Rachel would agree.

"Alright," Taking her take out white tea with one sugar, she left the store, leaving Quinn to grab her large black coffee, extra strong, just the way she liked it, before rushing out to catch up with the young woman.

The park opposite was strangely deserted, even with the hot afternoon weather. There were only a few groups of families, dining on picnic blankets with small children nearby who kicked footballs around and played on the large scale swing set that stood dormant in a children's playground. The whole park was surrounded with large oak trees, standing tall in the warm summer breeze, while a large duck pond sat near a row of benches in the centre of the park.

They didn't sit on the benches however, Rachel taking a detour up toward a bright white gazebo that sat on the boundary of the park, looking out toward the large duck pond, while large oak trees stood behind them, blocking their view out onto the street.

Rachel took the initiative, sitting down on the bench that wrapped around the interior of the gazebo, sipping at her tea before looking up toward Quinn who stood in the centre of the gazebo, looking out at the view of glistening water and children laughing and playing. It looked like a scene from a magazine.

"This is beautiful," Quinn whispered, leaning up against the banister beside the sitting brunette, "You come here often?"

Smiling ever so slightly, Rachel looked up and nodded, "I usually come here on my lunch a break, a teacher friend of mine usually comes here to be with himself; he's into all the mediation stuff."

"Meditation...?" Quinn asked, her eyebrows furrowing.

Rachel laughed, "Don't ask, but he's a good man. He doesn't speak much, but still, he's a very good friend. So ever since I've come here whenever I have the chance."

"It's a nice place to be," Quinn took a sip of her coffee before looking up, her eyes shutting, allowing her face to feel the heat of the afternoon on her cheeks.

"So you wanted to talk?" The voice seemed so far away to the Captain, and it was almost a chore to open her eyes once again. It wasn't every day she had the chance to just sit back and look at the world; when she did she was usually behind an aeroplane windscreen, and usually had tunnel vision, only seeing her destination. But a day like today was different; she was allowed to sit back and see the world for how it was, and look at the place she now lived. She had only chosen South Valley because of its easy commute to JFK and its cheaper house prices; she didn't take the chance to actually look at the area she would be living in, or how truly beautiful it was.

"Yeah," Quinn pushed away from the banister and sat down opposite Rachel, leaning out her legs and crossing them at the ankles, "I guess I let myself be talked into 'spying' on you because I was little worried. I saw you looking at that photo last night, and I don't want to intrude because it's private-,"

"And you'd be right," Rachel butted in.

Nodding, Quinn agreed, "Of course, but, curiosity gets the better of me I suppose."

"Understandable."

Quinn internally groaned at the one worded answers, but continued none the less, "I don't want us to hit it off on the wrong foot, that's the last thing I want to do. But honestly, I wasn't being nosy; I was just worried for a friend."

"A friend...?" Rachel raised her hand and took another sip of her tea.

"I know we've known each other for a day, but I like to think we're friends?" With a lop sided smile, Quinn tilted her head.

"I...would like that." Stumbling ever so slightly over her words, Rachel continued, "To be your friend, that is."

"Fantastic." Quinn took a large congratulatory gulp of hot coffee, "So, what's this whole thing with Lucas 'spying on you'?" She emphasized the word spy with the quotation gesture.

Rachel groaned slightly and rolled her eyes, "I don't know where it came from. At first in our relationship he trusted me with everything." Suddenly she stopped and began to amend herself, "Not that he's a horrible boyfriend, quite the opposite actually, he's loving, caring, and kind. He'd do anything for me."

For some reason, unknown to herself, Quinn felt a slight twinge of annoyance spark inside her.

"But after about a year of being together, this paranoia and jealousy began to flare up whenever I wouldn't speak to him," Taking a sip of tea, she processed her thoughts, "Whether I was ill, upset, or we'd argued, he assumed there was an ulterior motive."

"Ulterior motive...?"

"That I was sleeping with someone else."

"Ah," Quinn took another sip of coffee. She knew that it had to be something along those lines if Lucas had recruited a friend to spy on his girlfriend, and from the sounds of it, it sounds like he'd tried to spy before, and from the information coming from Rachel, he'd done it many times before in the past. "So he assumes you're sleeping around?"

"Yes," Putting the now empty cup of tea beside her on the bench, Rachel clutched her fists together and rested them perfectly in her lap, "He would check my phone for messages or calls from men, check my emails, take me to work because he didn't think I was going there." Rolling her eyes ever so gently, Rachel continued, "I felt like I had to look over my shoulder most days because of him."

"Then...why stay with him?"

Rachel's eyes zoned in on Quinn's, "I mean...if he's that paranoid, and making a relationship almost impossible, why stay? He assumes you're cheating all the time, it's obvious that he doesn't trust you."

With a gentle sigh, Rachel stood and turned her back to the Captain, leaning up against the banister to look out into the park, "I love Lucas; I don't want to leave him. He has problems with paranoia, he always has, and I guess I just have to accept that."

"So you're just going to keep going on, looking over your shoulder?"

"It doesn't make the relationship impossible." Glancing over her shoulder, she looked at Quinn, "And what relationship doesn't have problems? This is just mine."

Sighing ever so gently, Quinn finished off her coffee and placed it down beside her before crossing her arms over her chest, "I guess you're right, and if you do love him, you should hold onto what you have."

With a smile, Rachel looked back out to the park, allowing the warm afternoon sun to warm her.

"But that doesn't explain why you didn't go to work today."

The comment was off handed, not meant to offend, but Rachel turned back toward Quinn and glared at her, "I need an excuse to not go to work? You're not my boss."

"Look, I'm sorry I'm sticking my nose in, but maybe that's why Lucas was paranoid."

"He thought I was at work, that's all that mattered."

"Then why didn't you go?"

"I don't think that's any of your business."

"Maybe, but I'm only asking, no need to bite my head off about it."

"I'm not biting your head off!"

"Then why are you raising your voice?!"

"Why are you?!" Storming away from Quinn she made a beeline for the gazebo stairs and stormed melodramatically down the three small steps before stopping a few feet away from Quinn, turning and glaring at her, "You may be a friend, but that doesn't mean I have to share everything with you."

"Fine!" Quinn shouted back, hands on her hips, face red with rage; oh how this woman infuriated her.

"Fine!" Rachel echoed, continuing to stomp away from the infuriated Captain, then stopped and turned away, shouting to the much further away Quinn, "You're infuriating!"

"So are you!" Quinn shouted back, cupping her mouth with both hands, in a hope that her anger would reach the small woman. Rachel seemed to grumble before turning harshly on heels of her feet and stomping away until she was out of sight.

Quinn collapsed back into her seat and regained her breath, before letting out a low chuckle, "How petulant did I sound just then?" She asked to herself, "I'm thirty-four, not four."

She sat for an hour, just staring out into the park, watching the world go by as she thought about what had just happened. She hadn't meant to lose her cool like that; it had been so long since she had in fact, that she couldn't quite remember what had made her so rattled. The whole conversation had made her sound almost like a child, and she knew that she had gone in the completely wrong direction when it came to handling the situation with Rachel, so with a gentle sigh; she stood from her seat and left the park.