It was a bright day, the sun was shining and people were bustling about the street on their way towards wherever their lives may take them. The wind was gentle, warm and comforting. The ocean was sparkling like thousands of tiny liquid diamonds creeping towards the people lying lazily on the beach. It was perfect, just perfect.

The perfect dream was cut short by shouting coming from beyond the door to Beth's bedroom.

"BETH!" The voice was followed by several raps on the bedroom door. "BETH! HONEY PLEASE GET UP, WE HAVE A BIG DAY AHEAD AND I WOULD LIKE TO GET A HEAD START!"

Beth rolled herself out of bed to look at the clock and sure enough it was 7:15 am and her mother had most likely been up since 5:00 am to see her father off to work, and was bored of being up alone so Beth was up for entertainment patrol.

Beth groaned sleepily and dragged herself out of bed stumbling over to her full length mirror to see how bad the damage that was her bed-head was. Beth stared at all five feet 5 inches of herself and shrugged. Beth never considered herself "pretty" but she had been called pretty and beautiful by people other than her parents. Her blonde hair hung down to her lower and cascaded around her head. Her chocolate brown eyes were soft and still bright with youthful wonder. Beth had a very athletic body, after the countless hours of running track and doing yoga and Pilates with her mom, Beth expected herself to be physically fit and healthy.

Beth smiled at her reflection and got to work getting ready for the day, which meant getting dressed, combing her hair, cleaning and putting in her contacts and brushing her teeth. After the regiment was over Beth headed downstairs to meet her mom. The house she lived in wasn't big but her family wasn't poor either with both of her parents working Beth had enjoyed her life and was looking forward to move forward with collage and start her own life.

When Beth reached the kitchen she was assaulted by the smell of bacon and pancakes (her favorite). She jogged through the kitchen door and was met with her mother's back to her working on the pancakes. When she heard the door open her mother Shelby turned and smiled at her. Beth loved her mother more than anything in this world, along with her father Shelby had raised Beth very musically but never forced her to do anything she did not want to do. Beth remembers the first time she had watched the classic musical "Funny Girl" and how much fun she had and how she had watched it at least 500 times since. Despite having a great voice Beth had focused on painting and had become very accomplished and her teachers marveled at her work, her artwork was plastered all around her dad's office and her mother's classroom and to Beth's pleasure everyone that saw it said how much they liked it.

"Hey baby B how you feeling?" Shelby asked with love written in her eyes and smile.

Beth smiled back at her mother and reached around her to grab a pancake off the growing amount on a plate. "Alright" Beth replied after taking a small bite of her stolen pancake.

The two sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes before Beth remembered what had made her not want to get up this morning, Beth turned towards her mother "I had that dream again last night." Shelby looked at her daughter with a smile; she leaned across the counter and gave the girl a quick kiss on the forehead. "Beth honey, don't worry. I know that's summer just began but you will be in California missing your dad and I before you know it. OK?" Shelby said the last part as a question and Beth just nodded her head and went back to her pancake trying not to let her nerves get the best of her again.

Beth had been accepted to the California school of fine arts which was very picky with their selection, so Beth being accepted was a very big deal and she couldn't wait to be there among all that talent. But like her mother said she was anxious to get there and get adjusted to collage life and her classes.

Beth's thoughts were cut short by her mother smiling and handing her a large plate of food. Beth thanked her mother and went to the table to begin her feast. As Shelby sat to making her own plate she looked over at Beth, "Hey Beth I had some ideas for things we could do over the summer, you know keep your mind off of school." Happiness and energy seemed to almost explode from the older woman and Beth couldn't help but smile.

Beth and her mother had always been close even in her early teenage years when she didn't consider anyone her friend her mother was there for her and Beth was internally grateful. "What did you have planned?" Beth asked as her mother was pouring two glasses of orange juice for the two of them. Shelby grinned at her and picked up both of the glasses only to put them back down again.

"Mom you ok?" Beth asked her mother who looked a little odd. Shelby shook herself and smiled back at her daughter.

"Yes of course sweetie, just a little dizzy. I was just going to say-"the rest of Shelby's words were cut off by the sound of glass shattering as Shelby's eyes rolled back inside her head and she fell hard to the floor.

"MOM!" Beth yelled running over and dropping down to her knees not caring that there was broken glass all over the floor. Beth checked for a heartbeat and found her mother's was off the charts. Beth grabbed the phone off the counter and dialed 911, all the while tears streaming down her cheeks begging her mother not to leave her.

At the hospital.

Beth sat in the uncomfortable hospital chair as she tried to stop crying, but the tears just kept coming. Why had her mother just collapsed like that? Shelby was the healthiest person she knew, never smoked, a glass of wine every now and then, and her mother worked out almost every day. So why had she just collapsed like that?

Beth was brought out of her thoughts by footsteps that she could tell belonged to her father. Beth sat up tears covering her face as she watched the door, and sure enough the door busted open reveling her father Noah Puckerman, he was tall about 6'2 very muscled very scary with his dark skin and bald head. Noah was panting like he had run the entire way there which knowing her father Beth didn't rule out.

The moment she saw him Beth started crying all over again and rushed into his arms sobbing uncontrollably.

"Daddy I don't know what h h happened she j j just fell over a a and I didn't know what to do!" Noah just stood there rubbing his 19 year old daughters back and head trying to sooth her and himself.

Noah had been at the police station where he worked; putting the finishing touches on a report, after all crime in Cleveland Ohio was pretty soft. Then he got the call from the hospital telling him his wife and daughter were in the ER and he needed to come quickly.

"Beth are you ok the doctors said something about your knees. Are you ok?"

Beth nodded and lifted up her jeans to show the bandages on her knees and legs.

Noah was about to cry but thankfully the doors to the ER opened and a tall doctor came walking out. "I have a Mrs. Puckerman." The doctor announced to the room.

"Over here." Noah called his voice breaking as he said it.

The doctor took them back to a small room where Shelby was lying with machines attached to her, she looked terrible. Shelby lay on the hospital bed still passed out her hair a mess her face even worse looking with no color in it at all.

Noah couldn't bring himself to say anything and just stare at the woman he loved lying motionless on the bed.

"What's wrong." Beth said the sentence was normally a question but Beth made it sound like a demand. She had stopped crying her mother was alive and the only thing that mattered now was making her better.

The doctor sighed taking his glasses off and cleaning them off before readjusting them on his face. "Your mother passed out due to pressure on her brain that was caused by tumors that were shown on her cat scan."

Beth felt the air leave her body. "Cancer?" That was a question.

The doctor nodded his head letting them know that yes Shelby had brain cancer.

"How much?" Noah asked looking at the doctor. The doctor looked puzzled and Noah spoke again.

"How much to get it out of her? How much to make her better?" Noah's voice cracking at the end.

The doctor now understanding sighed and said. "Fortunately the cancer is in the early stages so I believe we can remove it but I have your health insurance on file and I am sorry Mr. Puckerman but they won't cover it.

Beth could tell her father was about to destroy the doctor so she put a hand on his arm to calm him. She looked at the doctor and said. "Doctor could you give my father and I some time please?"

The doctor nodded and left. As soon as the door shut Beth turned towards her father who was looking upset to say the least. "Dad look at me please." Noah looked into his daughters eyes and knew what she was about to say. Beth knew her dad would say no but she had to try so she asked. "What if we take the money for my collage fund and put it towards mom's surgery or whatever she needs? It would be enough and I can get a job to earn the money back."

Noah raised his finger to show his daughter he heard her but needed a second to think. If he said what he was thinking Shelby might hate him but at least she would be alive.

With his mind made up he turned towards his daughter and spoke fast. "Look I know a way to get the money but I am going to have to tell you something that you might not like ok?" Beth just nodded there was nothing that could make her angry at her father for anything.

He took a deep breath and said the words carefully and clearly. "Shelby is not

your real mom." Beth' face was that of shock, she didn't understand the words her father had just said. "Explain please." .And so Noah began telling Beth the story of one Quinn Fabray and the story of how he and Shelby had finally gotten together, and by the end of the story Beth understood why they hadn't told her and she was less mad at the two of them for it.

"Why are you telling me this?" Beth asked her father, she was confused and didn't understand what was going on or why he told her all of this.

Noah shifted his weight uncomfortable with the situation and said "Quinn's made a good life for herself she came across some good fortune and she has made A LOT of money." Beth thought about it for a couple of seconds then said. "Do you think she will help I mean you kinda took advantage of her and all that stuff."

Puck nodded his head in agreement and said. "She lost that anger for me a long time ago and I think all we would have to do is like agree to help her out with some stuff or some other kind of trade but your mother needs those things out of her head and Quinn can help."

Beth nodded her head in agreement but was hit with another round of confusion. "What do you mean she found some good fortune? Did she like marry a rich guy or something?"

Noah rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Not really."

Beth was even more confused now though. "Dad why is she rich?" There Beth thought that should get the answer out. Her father rubbed the back of his neck again and said slowly.

"Quinn Fabray is a mixed martial arts cage fighter."

Authors note:

Hey thanks to those that read this, it's my first story and I am by far not the best writer so give me some tips, what you liked, what you hated and everything in-between. Thanks again and I will post more if people want more.