Chapter 1: Tangled Web of Lies.

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of its characters.

Warnings: Mentions of rape.

The day Quinn Fabray accepted alcohol from Noah Puckerman was the day her life changed forever. From the moment she felt his chest pressing her into the mattress below them, his big hands gripping her wrists, a sick feeling took refuge in the pit of her stomach and now it refuses to leave. She told him no, she tried to push him off but god he's twice her weight and several heads taller, no one could expect her to do anything but sob into the crook of his shoulder that was pressed so tightly against her jaw. He never said a word just kept his eyes fixed on the pillow next to her head, she was glad that at least he was sparing her the focus of that cold hard glare. When he finished he stood and zipped his trousers before leaving, never once looking at the sobbing blonde girl clutching fistfuls of the crumpled bedsheets. That was the day Quinn Fabray learned that even boys like Noah Puckerman, who hugged her so warmly and called her beautiful could leave her shattered on a bloody bedsheets without even a second glance.

Things went on as normal, outside of her head anyway, Finn continued to be the loving boyfriend he always was and she tried not to flinch when his hands grazed up her thighs.

"Wait.. Let's pray."

Puck continued to strut around and make pretty cheerleaders swoon but Quinn doesn't miss the dangerous glares he occasionally sends her way. Its not like she's going to tell, she couldn't tell, no one ever listens to the stupid drunk girl who got more than they bargained for. She doesn't even want to think about what her father would have to say on the matter, too many times has she had to listen to his lectures about over exaggerating little girls looking for attention.

The day she sees those two little lines is the day her world truly falls apart. The stick falls out of her limp hand as she slides down the door, sobs wracking her slim frame as she desperately tries to get a breath but the next day she calmly pulls Finn into a classroom and tells him the baby is his. What else was she supposed to do? It hurts her to watch as his world starts falling apart too, it breaks her heart when he wraps his warm arms around her and tells her its going to be ok.

When the truth comes out and Puck starts claiming that he just wants to be a good dad Quinn is just too tired to feel anger. She flinches when Finn's fist makes contact with Puck's jaw, she closes her eyes tightly as they fall to the ground, struggling against each other. When Mr. Schue comes running down the hallway she turns and swiftly walks away. After a few minutes she finds a peaceful spot to sit and lets her head fall into her hands, a quiet sigh escaping her lips. If she's being honest she felt the nervous presence of one Rachel Berry before she even looked up to find the girl standing awkwardly several meters away. Quinn sighs again when the girl launches into an awkward apology, long-winded as always. She looks up at the brunette with weary eyes and tells her she doesn't want to hurt her she just wants this all to be over.

All of this occurred several weeks ago and while broken hearts were being fixed and friendships reformed the blonde ex-cheerleader had managed to slip into the background, becoming a support for her friends during hard times, watching on as Mr. Schue spoke excitedly about Regionals and everyone danced and sang with passion. She would often feel the questioning stare of Rachel burning into the back of her head but didn't think much of it until the tiny girl cornered her one day after glee practice.

"Quinn? What are you still doing here?" The brunettes inquisitive tone cut through the peaceful silence.

The blonde sighed, she had been getting a few moments peace before going home to Mercedes' house. "Nothing, just getting some extra practice."

"Practice?" Rachel frowned as Quinn gestured towards the piano she was sitting in front of her. "You play?"

"You say that like your surprised."

"Well.."

"Contrary to belief I'm not two dimensional Berry."

The small girl stuttered slightly, "I wasn't implying that you weren't talented, I was merely surprised, which is perfectly acceptable considering I've never heard you play before."

"Berry, we have a perfectly capable piano player in glee, its more of a personal hobby anyway." Not that she'd had much time for personal hobbies the last few months. This thought caused her to sigh heavily and cover her eyes with her hand, momentarily forgetting the presence of the pint sized diva in front of her.

"Quinn, I know you've been through a lot lately and I wouldn't exactly know how people normally act when put in your position but I'm certain it would not be as you are. Has something else happened?"

The blonde stood quickly, narrowing her eyes. "Have you ever been in my position Berry?"

"N-no." She replied frantically shaking her head.

"Then you have no idea what your talking about, so stop fabricating these ludicrous ideas and just leave me alone." The ex-cheerleader hissed before brushing past the shocked girl, the slap of her trainers echoing down the hallway as she half walked, half ran away, all rational thoughts were pushed to the side and overtaken by fear, no one could find out. She swiftly turned and entered the nearest bathroom, resting her back against the door before slowly sliding down it. She concentrated on breathing in and out but it only got harder and harder as her throat closed tighter. Quinn fumbled with the zipper on her bag before pulling it open and ripping out a paper bag, the rustling noise calming her slightly as she held the opening against her mouth, she focused on watching the paper bag open and close and increasing the time taken between each stage before eventually her breathing returned to normal and she let her head fall back with a dull thud against the door.

xxxxxxx

"One of the most important things in making a show choir stand out is unity. Teams like Vocal Adrenaline work completely as one unit, they trust each other and they form a perfect team. It has come to my attention that not everyone in New Directions work well together," several groans erupted from the students in question, "so this week I will be assigning partners and you with both have to come up with a number that works well and compliments the skill of both yourself and your partner." Mr. Schuester handed each member a sheet of paper. "Now go find your partners."

The sheet read;

Artie Abrams – Matt Rutherford

Noah Puckerman – Tina Cohen-Chang

Santana Lopez – Kurt Hummel

Rachel Berry - Quinn Fabray

Finn Hudson – Mercedes Jones

Brittany – Mike Chang

There were several seconds of silence before absolute chaos broke out, the students all began arguing with each other heatedly. "Guys!" The bellow of their teacher effectively silencing them. "Look, this assignment is to bring us together and it's an opportunity for you to work with members you haven't worked with before."

"But Mr. Schuester your putting Quinn and Rachel together? We want unity, not to be down two members." Kurt said gesturing towards the two girls wildly.

Noah spoke up, "yeah I don't want my baby mama under too much stress."

Quinn froze before glancing quickly at the boy who just spoke only to find the usual cocky smirk on his face.

"I am perfectly capable of working professionally with anyone, one shouldn't let emotions get in the way of stardom."

"Hell Berry, there's no way you and Quinn can work together." Mercedes chuckled.

"If Santana and Kurt can work together then so can Quinn and I." Rachel spoke heatedly whilst glaring at anyone who dared question her professionalism.

"Rachel's right guys and I'm not changing the partners so you're all just going to have to deal with it."

Great, just great, thought Quinn, this is just perfect.

"Now I want you to get together with your partner and sort out where you're going to practice and try and find an appropriate song."

There was scuffling as everyone gathered their stuff and moved seats, it was quite funny, seeing people who never usually got on well sitting next to each other. It was awkward to begin with but slowly they all began to get into it.

"So Berry, we're going to have to work together now so let just put any personal issues to the side and do our work."

"I wholeheartedly agree! Now I've come up with a list of songs that will suit both of our vocal capacities." The tiny girls brown eyes sparkled as her excitement grew.

"Hold up a second. I think today we should just sort out practicing arrangements and think about songs another time."

"Do you currently have any plans for tomorrow?" The blonde shook her head in response so Rachel continued. "Well then it would be most productive if we spent the day together. You can come to my house at lunch and stay overnight as well."

Quinn was stunned, she didn't want to be spending so much time with someone who was already suspicious but it wasn't like she had a choice so the blonde nodded, "yeah sure. Ill see you then Berry."

Rachel opened her mouth to respond but the bell signalling the end of practice sounded and Quinn was out the door before she had time to take a breath.

A/N: Just something that seriously wouldn't leave my head!

Reviews are appreciated!