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 39th cycle. Now cycle 40!

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** UPDATED WITH CYCLE 40 CHEAT SHEET ** Check it out to find out about shift days, starting in cycle 40!

This is a shift day [see above]. There was another upload this morning: Showcased, chapter 1.

"The Ties That Bind"

Crossover of 2 of my series
1. Sam & Nell, Samchel (following "The Ex Factor")
2. Shelby & Beth, Emmett & Joanie, Shelby/Emmett (following "Bridge the Gap")
(if you're unfamiliar with either series, let me know and I'll get you a list)

1. One

When he'd arrived at the coffee shop, Sam had spotted her, at a table in the corner, tracing her finger along the edge distractedly. He didn't know what this was about, she hadn't said a whole lot when she'd called, but he'd known her long enough to get the feeling she just wanted to confide in him. He was well aware this meeting was worrying Rachel, but he'd assured her everything would be alright and he intended to keep that promise.

"Hey…" he came to stand at the chair across from her, sat down once she'd looked up and seen him. "You sounded kind of mysterious on the phone…"

"I'm sorry, I… I didn't disturb you, did I?" she asked, almost out of concern.

"Hey, what are friends for?" he waved it off. "We are friends, aren't we?"

"We are," she nodded, leaving out 'and exes.'

"So, tell me, what's going on?" She took a breath, looking into her cup. It was long empty, from what he could see. "Quinn, are you in trouble, or…"

"Nothing like that, I swear," she shook her head. "I've sort of been thinking about a lot of things lately, and as much as I try not to, I keep feeling like it's something I need to talk to you about."

"Okay?" he wasn't anywhere near understanding where she was going with this.

"I never really told you how much I appreciated the way you were about… the break-up and all that… even when I didn't give you much reason…"

"You didn't have to. In this case I kind of got it," he shook his head.

"Can I ask… I mean you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, I…"

"Her name was Summer," he went into it, understanding now what she was getting at. "We met, we went out, we… I thought it was love but I guess there was a limit to that. When we found out we were pregnant, I knew right away she didn't want to keep her at all," he shook his head. "Maybe some of it was her parents, I don't know. But I know if I hadn't found out when I did… Nell might not have been born."

"You always knew you wanted to keep her?" Quinn spoke for the first time.

"Well, after the shock wore off, I just… I knew I couldn't let it go this way. I went back and I said I'd take the baby. I wasn't really thinking about… the long run, just how if Summer wouldn't have her, then I would, I'd find a way to make it work. It was months of being worried about what would happen… but the moment she was born I knew I'd make the right decision… I could never…" He stopped himself, remembering who he was talking to, but she finished his sentence for him.

"Let her go?" her voice was hollow. He looked down.

"I didn't mean anything by it," he shook his head.

"I know." She paused, staring in her cup.

"Want me to get you a refill?" She nudged the cup back, looking to him.

"How is it now? With the baby, and school, and… Rachel… I mean you seem to be making it all work pretty well."

"Wasn't always that way. I spent the first month or so of Nell's life being terrified and exhausted and just confused. I didn't think I'd make it through, but eventually things started to fall into place. It helped that we moved," he admitted. "We all started fresh, made a life…" He could see even as she was looking at him her mind was elsewhere. "Did you ever think of keeping… yours?"

"A couple of times," she admitted. "Most of the time I knew I wanted to give her away. But then there was one time I thought I could do it. It didn't last, I went back to giving her up…"

"There was another time," he guessed.

"She was born the day we were performing at Regionals last year. My mother showed up to see me sing," a small smile gained on her face. "I hadn't seen her since the night my father kicked me out. She told me about how she'd found out he'd been cheating, that she'd kicked him out and wanted me to come home… For a second I kind of imagined… going home, raising the baby with my mother there… Three seconds later, my water broke."

"You changed your mind?"

"I realized my head wasn't in the right place, that I'd spent months knowing what I had to do, for her sake… for hers, and mine… even Puck's. So I came to the conclusion that, no matter how much I thought I could do it that one time or another… She deserved to be with someone who knew they could."

"So you placed her," he nodded. She looked up to him, and there was something in her eyes like she had something she may or may not have wanted to say.

"Did Rachel ever tell you about who adopted… my daughter?" she started. Sam gave a clueless shrug. "Her name is Shelby Corcoran," she waited to see if he had heard the name before. He paused, let the name sit in his memory, and then he looked back to Quinn – he knew who she was.

"So Rachel's mother adopted your baby?" Quinn gave a silent nod. "You trust her, don't you?"

"Absolutely, it's not even an issue," she shook her head.

"But there is something?" he guessed.

"I think I just needed to know that it's possible to make it happen, that things can work out, even if it wasn't the path I chose…" she had a shy smile, and he returned it.

X

Three days later

Quinn had already finished her business at her locker, but she was waiting for someone, so she waited, straightening things on her shelf. "Hey…" Puck came to stand at her side.

"Hey," she replied, shutting the locker door.

"Did you do it yet?"

"Not yet. She hasn't shown up." Quinn turned and leaned against the lockers, just as he did. "Are you sure about this?"

"I am if you are," he gave her a smile.

"I'm sure," she promised.

"Good, there she is," Puck nodded down the hall. Quinn took a breath, looking to him. He touched her arm, reassuring. Quinn moved down the hall, falling in step with her intended goal.

"Rachel, can we talk?" The brunette looked both surprised and like she'd expected this. She probably didn't know what she intended to ask.

"Sure… What's going on?"

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)