When You Believe In Miracles

"Miracles are spontaneous, they cannot be summoned, but come of themselves."-Katherine Anne Porter.

Life is about living the unexpected, discovering new things along the way. Some are good, and others, bad. Countless times we wonder if we are in the right place, at the right time. Daily, all kinds of things happen, things you don't expect would happen, things you wish would happen. Some of them go the way you want them to, but some never do. However, what really makes you ponder, is if they were already meant to happen. For better or worst, like if you had a huge meeting that got cancelled and just like that, you are able to make it to your child's first birthday party. Or if you're on your way to a friend's house and forget to bring your keys with you, you turn back around and get into an unfortunate accident. Was is fate? Or destiny? You question. Most times people agree with you, that things were planned out that way. Things like that were meant to happen, they'd say. His or her time has come. What if they were wrong? What if the reason people lose things was because they never fought hard enough for it? Or perhaps they thought it was not worth the fight. Given, no one would ever dream of losing any loved ones. Still, does that mean they will hold on to every second just to make sure that things don't end that way? Sure, we can't guarantee that it will end up the way we want it to, but we can try.

Everything goes away somehow, they never stay forever. True love stays. It is perpetual, no matter what. I know it sounds cliché, but life never turns out the way it seems, does it? To say i believe in miracle is the understatement of the year. No. Scratch that, it is the understatement of the century. Why?

I lived in one.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Rachel? Are you in here?" Quinn spoke in a hushed tone.

"Quinn?" Rachel asked, perplexed. Not only by the fact that Quinn just called her by her first name, but also because she knew where she was. The reason, was probably because the only place they had really talked this year was in the bathroom.

"Yeah, I just wanted to speak to you before the graduation ceremony begins, to make it right."

"W-what did you want to talk about?" She said as she appeared from behind a stall.

"I'm sorry for everything I've done to you, I truly am and I really hope we could be friends." Quinn says sincerely.

"I am for one, a very forgiving person, however in your case Quinn, I must decline."

"What? Why!" Quinn exclaimed, trying her best to stay calm and collected.

"Why Quinn?" She let out an exasperated sigh. "You know why! You of all people should know why! You tortured me for years, making me feel unwanted and lonely! I had no friends Quinn! A-and now of all days, you chose graduation day, the day we would and now will graduate, to finally tell me that you're sorry?" Tears were streaming down her cheeks and she didn't know why. She was not supposed to cry, Quinn was the one at fault here.

" Look Rachel, I really am sorry! I'm sorry about the names I've called you, the slushies, making you feel like you felt. I never intended to hurt you the way I did! I just…" She trailed off.

"Just what Quinn? We are barely even acquaintances." She bit back.

She couldn't tell her now, it was too soon. She wasn't ready. It would have to wait, she had to know Rachel better.

"I'm just really sorry Rachel." She says, defeated."I don't really know how else to apologize and it's perfectly understandable that you won't be able to forgive me now but, please let me try to be friends with you for the rest of the summer before I head to Yale and you to NYADA? I really don't want this to drag on forever. I don't want us to leave high school as enemies, or mere acquaintances, as you put it."

"Okay." She acquiesced."I would love to try and be friends with you, Quinn. However, that does not mean I will forgive you." She says with a tentative smile.

"I know. But if we do become friends, we are only about an hour and a half away from each other." She teased as she returned the smile.

Without another beat, Quinn pulled Rachel in for a hug that sent tingling sensations coursing through their bodies. Rachel was the one who broke contact and Quinn missed her warmth as soon as she moved out of her reach.

"Well, I have to go now, my dads are waiting in the car, I have to pick up my graduation gown. See you in a bit Quinn." She says, flashing a radiant smile. Without another word, she's out the door and disappears behind the corners.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Hey, S. What are you doing here in the choir room all alone? She asks with a smirk.

"What 'bout you, Fabray?" She replies with an eye roll.

"Well, I left my bag pack." She says as she walks towards her seat, picking it up."You're going to miss it, aren't you? She says as she lets out a low chuckle.

"So what if I do, Q? Aren't you gonna miss it too?"

"Yeah, Of course. It's one of the best moments of our high school careers, besides Cheerios. We've made plenty of memories along the way. We have made true friends. It's amazing what change can do, isn't it? If we hadn't changed our ways, we would've never been friends with all of them." She says genuinely.

"True, but Berry's still an annoying midget." She says with a snort.

"C'mon, S! She's not that bad. In fact, she's not bad at all. She's changed, we've all changed. So, please stop calling her a names or I'm going to have to go through another one of her rambles." Quinn says, slightly annoyed." She said, and i quote ' I know we're not friends, but we're in Glee Club together now, we are a team, a family and i really wish you and Santana stop with those hurtful words that always seem to have something to do with my physical appearance. I detest that, resent it! Also, if you could please tell Santana, to do her best to avoid enumerating my foibles every now and then.' ensuing with her diva storm out."

"Wow Q, you remembered all that?" She says with a snicker.

" That's not the point here! Did you even hear a word I said!" She says with a scowl.

" Yeah yeah, got it Q, no more making fun of Berry's obnoxious nose or her uncanny resemblance of a dwarf. You lost me at 'rambles' , don't know what else you said." She says with a shrug before giving Quinn a smug grin.

"Pretty much that and just don't insult her in any way, that would be great." She says as she gives her a small smile."Thanks S, means a lot."

"I bet." She says before letting out an indecorous laughter. She stopped short when she noticed Quinn's cold hard glare. " What's up with you Q? You gonna turn into incredible hulk now? With all the 'you won't like me when I'm angry' crap?"

"Oh god, S! You're such a nerd! You watch the incredible hulk? She lets out a hearty laugh. When she looks to Santana, She looks like she's about to pounce on her but Quinn stops her in her tracks. "Whoa S, calm down, I was kidding, I won't tell everyone about your inner nerd if you stop calling Rachel those names, deal?" She says with a smirk.

"Whatever, Fabray." She hisses.

"Yeah, 'Whatever'. Where's B?" She asks, curious.

"She's at some presidential club meeting, her last one before they pass the torch."

"Oh." She says, suddenly distracted by the new text she received. "So, I guess I'll see you guys at graduation, I've got to go find my mom! Bye, S!"

"Hold up Q, we still on for the sleepover tomorrow night?"

"Yes, we are," She says with a smile." Oh and before I forget, I'm going to invite Rachel later on. We've just started our friendship so,"

"No need to explain Q, it's not like I'm your mom or anything. Just make sure Berry doesn't ruin our fun."

"She won't. Bye, S!" Flashing one final smile, she dashes out the room.

" Bye Q!" She yells after her.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Today is the day.

She will finally be graduating after four long years in high school, attending classes, doing assignments, having to go for Cheerios practice and Glee Club. When she was told that she was the valedictorian for class 2012, she was not surprised. She had to manage a 4.0 GPA while having a teen pregnancy and being kicked out of her house by her own parents. Thankfully, Judy left Russell and apologized. She became a lot closer to her mother now that Russell was gone. Nevertheless, she had to admit that she believed Mike would have gotten that role. He was much smarter than she was.

As nerve-wracking as it was, she couldn't contain her exuberance. No. She was not excited for the speech she was about to give, she was elated because Rachel finally agreed to try to be her friend. She has done too many things in the past that she wishes she hadn't. All she wants now is to finally make things right. Rachel has finally given her this chance and she was going to use the whole of this summer by hook or by crook to make Rachel her friend.

After all their names were called, they were led back down the stage to their seats while Principal Figgins gave them his speech.

"Now that I have come to the end of my speech, let us invite this year's valedictorian up on stage, Quinn Fabray, everybody." He says as he nods her way.

If she didn't feel the nerves earlier, she sure as hell did now. She rises from her seat and glances across the room to notice many unfamiliar faces, which she assumes were the freshmen. Out of all the faces in the room, her eyes falls and lands on a particular petite brunette and locks onto those deep chocolate brown eyes staring back into her own piercing green orbs. She wishes she could look into those chocolate brown orbs forever but when Rachel flashes her a smile and sends a thumbs up her way, she returns the smile while reluctantly breaking eye contact as she walks towards the stage.

Tapping the mic a few times, she begins. "Well, Hi." She says as she rubs the back of her neck.

"I don't really know how to do this because, well, I never graduated from high school before." She smiles sheepishly, gaining a few chuckles from the crowd."So, here goes." She flips her note book open and sets it on the podium in front of her.

"I may not be the most experienced person in this room but I have lost things of great importance to me. As most of you know, I was pregnant, sophomore year.I had to give my daughter Beth away to someone i didn't know. Which was hard for me, even though I hardly knew Beth. In between all that, I somehow managed to maintain a 4.0 GPA during the pregnancy while being Head Cheerleader and being in Glee Club. I still don't know how I managed to do all that but it was probably just my determination to move to greater heights and a mindset of doing well so Beth could have a better future." She exhales a shaky breath.

"I'm not saying that you have to have perfect grades or that you have to get pregnant," She says, stifling a giggle before continuing."It's just a matter of how badly you want it." She states confidently but smiling slightly when the audience erupted into laughter.

"I thank my mom and Glee Club the most for making me who I am today, but there is one person I thank especially," She looks up and locks her eyes with Rachel's.

"Rachel Berry. If it wasn't for Rachel, I would've never even dreamt of going to Yale. Sure, I thought about it, but I never really imagined I would be able to. Her determination, her drive and her passion in everything she does, especially singing, made me realize that there was more to life beyond Lima, Ohio. I'm not saying that Lima isn't good enough, but rather, that there are places to explore and things to learn that can be brought back home to share with everyone here." She pauses.

"-and I was jealous of Rachel. I started bullying her for the reasons that I shouldn't and started calling her names that she didn't deserve. Names that till this day, she doesn't deserve. I didn't mean a word then and I won't ever say them again." It was more of a promise than anything else."Even after all that, she still helped me."Her eyes were stinging, tears threatening to escape her eyes. Keeping eye contact, she wipes away a stray tear that rolls down her cheeks.

"I will do anything for the rest of my life to make things right with Rachel. No matter what it takes. No matter what happens in the end." She releases a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

She release a teary laugh before continuing."So anyway, here's a piece of very important advice that i hope you all keep with you. Treasure these moments you have in high school , be it your friends or teachers , or academics. Do your best to achieve exceptional results, not only for your parents but most importantly for yourselves, for your future depends on them.

The friends that you make here will probably stay with you for life and so will the enemies you make. So be nice."She says as she lets out a soft chuckle.

"Well done Mckinley High, Class of 2012, and good luck everyone!" She says with one final smile before she's off the stage and heading back to her seat.

A few student leaders in charge usher her back to her seat and as she turns to where the New Directions were seated, she looks over to Rachel with a hesitant smile.

Rachel returns a smile that lit the entire room, as if saying 'Thank You' and that's enough, because for now, that's all that matters.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

She's in the school bathroom re-applying her make up when a knock on the door interrupts her from her thoughts. She looks away from the mirror to face the door when her line of sight meets with none other than Rachel Berry.

"Can I come in?" She asks, almost too quietly.

"Rachel, it's the school bathroom, its kind of public, you can come in if you want to." She says with a giggle. If Quinn noticed Rachel's face turning crimson, she didn't say anything.

"Oh. Right." Her blush deepening further.

"How did you know I was in here?" She asks before she can stop herself.

"Same reason you knew where I was this morning. It just seemed..right. It's probably the only place we've really talked in this year, besides during Glee rehearsals."

"True." She says as her lips tug into a small smile. They stay like that in a comfortable silence staring at each other before Rachel breaks the silence.

"So, I know that we agreed that we were going to get to know each other better for the entire summer but I just wanted to let you know that I will be away this weekend with my dads to visit New York. They suggested I get use to the city before i even start living there." She says with a playful eye roll. "Even though I have never been there, I know New York better than they do!" She says with the most adorable pout Quinn has ever seen.

"Oh, no problem Rach I-" She cut herself short when she saw the surprised look on Rachel's face. " I'm sorry Rachel, where are my manners! I should've asked! Can I call you Rach?"

"Well, it's a little perky." She says, barely hiding her grin.

"Wicked?" Quinn says as she quirks an eyebrow at Rachel, slightly amused.

"Oh my goodness! You've seen it?" Rachel exclaims in mock horror before playfully whacking Quinn's arm.

"Yeah, my mom and I went up to New York last summer because she wanted to make it up to me and I suggested we watch wicked." She says, still laughing. She stopped abruptly when Rachel started whacking her arms once again. "Ow! Rachel! Stop hitting me!" She says, producing a pout of her own.

"How do you expect me to hold my jealous rage! This is a travesty, Quinn! I can't believe, I, Rachel Babra Berry, Diva slash Drama Queen slash Broadway fanatic have not seen Wicked and yet you cheerleader Quinn Fabray has! This is outrageous!" She says with a huff, and her insanely adorable pout. No one can do it like Rachel Berry can.

"Rachel, calm down! It's not that bad! It's just a musical."She says nonchalantly.

"Calm down? Not that bad? JUST A MUSICAL, QUINN! Do you not realize what you're saying right now? It's not just any musical! It's WICKED! A well written backstory of the wizard of oz, that was made into a musical that won 35 major awards! 35, Quinn! Broadway's biggest blockbuster! I can't believe you right now! It's th-"

" You're rambling Rachel, I get that its great okay? All I'm saying is that you won't have to wait that long since you are going to New York this weekend, and you could just catch it with your dads."

"I-you're right! Why didn't I think of that? How could I have missed out on the most important detail in my plan for this weekend…" She trailed off, muttering to herself, she looked as though she was chastising herself.

Quinn let out a chortle before speaking up again. "You're so adorable when you drift off into your own little world." Her own eyes widened when she realized what she just said. It seemed that she wasn't the only one who had her eyes wide open because when she looked up at Rachel, she stared wide eyed at Quinn, her mouth opening and closing a second later as though she was trying to formulate some sort of a reply.

Quinn quickly recovered and continued speaking as though that didn't just happen seconds ago. " Oh right, before I forget, this is for you." She says as she hands Rachel an envelope.

"What's this?"

" It's a ten-trip Metro North pass from New York to New Haven. I got one for myself, into New York. Just to make sure we stay in touch after the summer."

"Oh. Thank you. It's very sweet of you." She smiles sweetly before wrapping Quinn in a hug.

"Not a problem, just make sure you use it." She says with a chuckle.

"Of course." She replies with a wide smile.

"So, since you're leaving on saturday, I was wondering if you're going to be free tomorrow and friday? I thought maybe we could have a sleepover. Santana and Brittany might be coming over too."

"Oh, I promised Finn I'd meet him tomorrow around 3 in the afternoon. He said we needed to 'Talk' and I'm not sure what time I will be done." She says with a shrug.

"I could pick you when you're done? I'll be free from 4 onwards, so call me when you're done."

"Okay, sounds good." She says, beaming.

"Alright then, see you tomorrow! I've got to go meet my mom at the bakery store down the street. Apparently we are running low on her favorite bite size cakes. Take care, Rach!" She gives one last smile before turning around and going on her way.

To say Rachel was thrilled that she was going to spend the next two nights with Quinn is an understatement. She had a good feeling about this. They were going to be friends and that was good enough for Rachel. Despite that, She knows that this isn't just about being friends. This could very well be the start of something new.