Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 33rd cycle. Now cycle 34!

Hear that little bird twitter! Been thinking about doing this for a couple days, then this morning decided to just go for it. If you go there, find 'gleekathon' and there I'll be. There's also a video explaining everything... Yep... ;) Check it out!

A/N: DAY 700, HOLY CHEESUS! Doesn't seem possible... DOESN'T seem possible... But then there's an even more 'impossible' coming up in... actually, exactly a month, give or take, so I'll leave the hootin' and hollerin' for that ;) Still, OMG!

"Solar Flare"
Rachel & Quinn, Finn/Quinn
Sunshine Girls #34 (sequel to 'Let us shine on')

Rachel was greeted by Judy when she arrived and was then promptly directed to the backyard. There she found Quinn sitting in the rocking bench swing, looking up at the sky. Hand on her growing belly, she looked peaceful… But Rachel could see there was more to it. She walked up, taking a seat at her side. Quinn looked over. "Aren't you cold?"

"I'm alright," she promised.

"Are you?" Rachel asked, and Quinn knew they weren't talking about the weather.

"I don't know yet…" When Rachel went on staring at her, Quinn specified, "He doesn't know yet." Rachel didn't say it, but Quinn knew even without looking. 'So what happened?' "I'd told myself not to cry, that if I did then I'd lose it…" Rachel could still see streaks of dried tears on the blonde's cheeks. "I asked him if he loved me… He said yes. I asked him if he thought I loved him… He said yes. I asked him… if he… if he knew that I loved him. 'Without a doubt.' Then I asked… if he thought I'd changed, these last few months, me as a person, not just physically…" she paused, and Rachel saw a smile wedge itself as best it could on her tired features. "He said when we first started dating, he liked me, but he fell in love with me when I let him know me, not the Cheerio…" she paused again, the smile retreating. "I asked… if he thought I'd ever… if I would ever intentionally… hurt him…" she struggled against the words. "That's… when he started getting concerned… That's when I realized I'd been crying. He wanted to know what was going on, but I made him answer. No, he said. Never. 'What about back then?'" There were fresh tears now. "I think that's when he figured it out. But I needed to say it, and he needed to hear me say it; so I told him. I told him one day I did something I shouldn't have… that I slept with someone, not him. I could have told him why, what made me do it… But it wouldn't have helped… it would only have made it worse."

Rachel felt she could only listen. What could she have said, in the middle of all this? Quinn needed to let this out," she wouldn't stand in the way.

"He was angry, I could tell, but it was like he was waiting, holding it in until he had all the facts… Even then he didn't want to hear it, didn't want to have to know it, I could see… It was anger, but sadness, too… Then he asked about the baby…" she caught her breath, and Rachel knew, when she'd come to this part, telling Finn, she must have caught it, too. "I said she wasn't his. He looked at me, waited until I said it… just his name… He got up, started walking around, and I… All I could do was sit there… Then he said he had to go, and…" she gestured to her face, to the tear streaks, and Rachel understood.

"Quinn, I'm sorry…" Rachel took up her hands.

"Before he left, he said he had to think…" she ended her tale, letting out a deep breath before looking up at her friend. "Think he'll stay?"

"I… I don't know. I wish this was one of those things where I could say 'don't worry, it'll all work out,' but… it's more complicated this time…" she had to say, bringing the blonde into a hug.

"The crazy thing is… it's the lie that gave us a chance to even get to this…" Quinn sniffled as they pulled back. "If I hadn't gotten pregnant, if I hadn't… leaned on him when I needed him… I wasn't in love with him either, at first… He was cute, and nice, but I just cared he was on the football team… I'd have let him go eventually, or… I don't know… But then this happened and…" she looked down at herself. "She brought us together… now I just want it to stay that way… not just for me, but for her…" she put a hand to her stomach and Rachel covered it with her own.

"No matter what happens, I'm not going anywhere, you know that, right?" she looked back at her and Quinn nodded. "Diapers, bottles, you name it," she insisted, getting a much needed laugh out of the sniffling mother-to-be.

"Name…" she whispered at first, before looking back to Rachel. "I think I got it, you know? A name for her," she spoke, wiping tears from her face. Talking about her baby girl again, it brought more reasons to smile.

"Yeah?" Rachel smiled back. "Are you telling people, or…" Quinn shook her head.

"Just you… Haven't even told my mother yet," she explained, leaning in to whisper it to her fellow former Sunshine Girl. Rachel's face lit up.

"I love it… Can't wait to see her," she smiled back at the blonde. Quinn smiled back, though Rachel could see the worry, all still there. "He'll call," she promised. "Or come to you… You know he will," she nodded.

"I know…" Quinn breathed.

They didn't know when it would be; for Quinn's sake, Rachel hoped it would be soon… He had to come back, he just had to… At least for that night, Rachel was staying at Quinn's for the night; then Sectionals would be there, and… no, for now, all that mattered was that Quinn was alright.

They had just finished dinner with Quinn's mother when the doorbell rang. The girls looked to one another while Judy, who had no idea that the boy she led into the dining room knew now what she still ignored about her granddaughter's paternity. She watched the girls and Finn stand there, so quiet. Finally Rachel snapped out of it and got up.

"Judy, why don't I help you with these," she started taking the empty dessert plates, ushering the woman away and silently hoping for her friends, both Quinn and Finn, that everything could and would work out. Maybe it hadn't all gone according to plan, but then what did? So she got to washing dishes with Judy.

As she put some plates away, a few minutes later, she saw into the hall. She saw Finn gather Quinn in his arms, while the girl softened into the embrace, lightened by the relief of stress and fear. After, Rachel would hear the rest, how Finn would try, to trust her again, though he still hesitated. Looking at them though, Rachel could only see… love.

THE END

A/N: This is a one-shot ficlet, which means that signing up for story alert will not bring you any alerts.
In the event of a sequel, the story will be separate from this one. And as chapter stories go, they are
always clearly indicated as such [ex: "Days 204-210" in the summary] Thank you!