I am deeply sorry for having been away for a long time, but between a very hectic work schedule and a lack of inspiration I wasn't able to write anything.

I hope you are still interested in this one and I promise I am trying to continue "Are you happy now?" and "Play with fire" ( I started writing a new chapter for this one).

Without any further delay, enjoy!

Please review!

A/N: mistakes all belong to me...

CHAPTER 2

The flight back to Lima felt too long for her own liking. Maybe it was because of the sour mood surrounding the whole trip or that she missed having her girlfriend to cuddle with, who held her hand throughout the journey and didn't mind having her bones crushed together by a scared Rachel, during the takeoff and landing moments. The brunette dragged her suitcase with her, sighing at the thought of having to face the multiple questions about the lack of a ring on her own finger or about Quinn's absence.

"Over here, sweetie!" A tall man, in his late fifties, waved with both arms to be noticed by his daughter, who replaced her frown with a beautiful and honest smile, at the sight of her daddy.

"Daddy!" Rachel upped her pace and crashed into her father, gripping the lapels of his jacket as she burrowed her face against his strong chest and just let him hold her like he used to, when she was a little girl.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" He kissed the top of her head and grabbed her forgotten suitcase with his left hand, keeping the other arm wrapped around his tensed daughter. They moved away from the "Arrivals" zone and found a quieter spot by the phone cabins.

"I just missed you." Rachel wiped her tears with her hands and looked up at her worried parent, who placed another comforting kiss on the crown of her head before leading the brunette out of the slightly crowded airport.

"May I ask how are things between you and Quinn?" He sat in the driving seat, with his daughter beside him who just sighed at the mention of the blonde girl. "I am sure you will work things out, baby…" He put the car in motion and placed a comforting hand on his daughter's knee for a moment, before letting it rest on the gear stick.

"I am not totally sure about that, Daddy. We want different things from this relationship and when you cannot agree on our future, does it make sense to even stay together?" She leaned her head against the car window and stared outside. "How did you and Dad make it for so long? Were there not struggles? Divergences? Was love enough?"

"Kiddo, your Dad and I had so many fights and very bad moments in our years together. There have been times when we were on the verge of giving up, but a relationship is not a yellow brick road that leads you toward a perfect world. It is made of struggles and compromises, where both parties need to reconsider their own point of views for a greater goal."

"What goal?" She looked over at him with a raised eyebrow, that would make Quinn proud.

"Love and happiness. It's not a cliché, baby; it is what it is. Your Dad made me happy and loved me like no other ever could and that mattered to me," He stopped the car in front of their house and looked back at his daughter with a soft smile. "I will always support your choices, baby girl, but I also see the way you and Quinn act around each other. That's a special bond you never had before, as far as I could see." He kissed her forehead and slipped out of the car to retrieve her bag and walk her inside her childhood home.

She lingered in the car and just grabbed her phone from her bag, Turning it on, she found a text from the blonde who asked for a text back as soon as she landed, so that she would be reassured about her safety. The brunette quickly typed an answer and then pressed send, lingering a little longer on the blonde's name. Her instinct was to just call the girl, whose voice she missed a lot but she decided against it...

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Two days later, she was sitting at one of the tables set for the wedding reception, bored out of her mind while her Daddy was around making small chats with some distant relatives she could care less about. Rachel kept on playing with her glass, rolling it around and watching the small amount of champagne float around.

"Is this seat taken?" A tall brunette guy took the chair out and did not even wait for her answer, before plopping himself down into the vacant spot beside her.

"Suit yourself." She muttered and let her eyes roam the dance floor, where all the guests were dancing or chatting among themselves, probably having more fun than she was.

"Interesting party, huh? I am one of the best men, from the groom's side. Name is Jacob." He extended his hand for her to take, but Rachel simply ignored it and kept on watching people move around not far from her. "So, Jessica mentioned you came here alone...maybe you could save me a dance, later?"

"I am afraid I will have to pass, Jason." Rachel looked at him and frowned at the apparent pout adorning his face. "I am not interested in joining you for a dance nor a drink nor any other interaction, that may have ulterior romantic motives behind." She took the last sip from her glass and stood up, gathering her forgotten purse to check on her messages.

"That's a shame, I could make you forget about all your issues with the guy you didn't bring here." He smirked proudly and tried to take her hand, but she retreated and fixed him with a stern glare.

"You could make me forget to breathe, with the amount of cheap cologne you apparently took a bath in." She started walking toward the buffet, in a perfect storm out "For your information, asshole, there's no guy but a girl."

"How did it go with Jacob?" Jessica, the bride, locked her arm with her cousin and waved back at the guy, who waved back with a frown still on his pretty face.

"Do not set me up with anyone else, Jessica. I am not here to find a replacement nor a warm body to have fun with, I am only here for you." Rachel looked back at her cousin, hoping she was not going to ambush her with more "blind dates".

"You did not bring Quinn along and I gathered you finally decided to find someone else to settle with." The girl crossed her arms over her chest. "You need someone like Devon, Rachie. Someone who will want a family and a house with a picket fence with you, not someone who is volatile and does not know what she wants from life. She is an actress, after all."

"What does that even mean? I am an actress myself." It was the Broadway singer's turn to cross her arms over her chest, not liking where her cousin was leading the conversation to. "Just because I didn't marry my High School sweetheart, it doesn't mean my relationship is less-" The brunette's rant was stopped midway when a few gasps were heard from across the room. With the corner of her eye, she saw her dad crashing onto the floor holding his chest in pain. "DADDY!" She ran across the room and kneeled by his side, holding his hand between hers as people formed a circle around them. "Call an ambulance…" She found her cousin's eyes, who nodded and grabbed her phone from her purse as she dialed the emergency number. "You can't leave me, daddy. Not you too." She gripped his hand and just whispered words of comfort in his ear, hoping the ambulance got there as soon as possible…

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Rachel helped his dad settle in bed, surrounded by comfortable pillows and with a huge glass of freshly squeezed orange juice sitting on his bedside table. Despite the scary situation of almost losing her other father as well, the brunette singer was relieved to find out her dad's heart was still quite healthy and it was just a false alarm. Although, she had decided to postpone her return to New York, so she could take care of him until he had fully recovered.

"So, I am going downstairs to make you some healthy food and when i come back, I want to see that glass empty. You heard the doctor…" She pulled the blankets up to his chest and kissed his forehead with affection, before walking out of the door to go back downstairs and find him something to eat.

The house was not as pristine as she remembered, so she was fully intended to use her time there to her own advantage to tidy it up as much as possible. The kitchen was a mess, so she decided to start from there, if she was eventually going to cook something for her dad. Among them, her Dad was the one with the culinary skills while her and her Daddy were mostly inclined to get take out and pretend it was superb cuisine cooked with their own hands. In times like these, she missed Quinn even more. Life in in New York was hard and not as familiar as she had hoped it to be, but coming home to a home-cooked meal and a house that still somehow felt like hers was something she had probably underestimated.

She was in the middle of loading the dishwasher, when the doorbell rang. She threw the kitchen rag onto the counter and walked to the main door, surprised to find her cousin and her newly married husband there.

"Jessica...I thought you were on your honeymoon trip." Rachel stepped aside and let the couple in, before closing the door behind them. "Please excuse the mess, I had no time to clean it up." She led them in the living room, where they took a seat on the comfortable couch.

"We couldn't leave, Rachel. Uncle Leroy is like my dad and I couldn't leave knowing he could have been in a critical condition." She grabbed her cousin's hand and patted it gently. "I could stay and give you a hand with the house? If you need anything, please do not hesitate asking us. Right honey?" She turned toward her husband, who was too busy going through the man's music collection.

"Do you think your Dad still listening to this stuff? I have a vintage record player at home and I could use some good music to play there." He looked back at the two cousins, who were actually taken back by his pure disinterest for the whole situation.

"I would highly recommend you to leave that music right there." Rachel gritted her teeth and watched the guy put the records back into their rightful place, raising his hands in surrender. "I am fine, thank you, but I will let you know if you can help. I am sorry this interrupted your honeymoon plans."

"It is fine, Rachel. We are family and we help each other.." She gave her cousin a one-arm hug and kissed her temple. "Have you and Leroy eaten something?" She took a quick glance at the clock on the wall.

"Had no time to fix anything, cause the kitchen was a mess. Would you mind watching over Daddy, while I run to the store to grab something healthy for us?" Rachel stood up and grabbed her car keys from the wall.

"Go ahead. I'll take care of Uncle Leroy." She smiled and watched the brunette disappear behind the main door, before looking around the house and sighing deeply. It really was a mess.

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She was pushing the cart down the vegetables aisle, looking around to find something that would be healthy and very easy to cook because she had no intentions to poison her already weak Daddy. Maybe she could search online for some easy recipe or ask Jessica to help her out, although the latter idea did not appeal her too much.

"Rachel?" A familiar voice caught Rachel's attention, who turned to her right and finally spotted the source of that familiarity. There, just few feet from her, stood her own high-school sweetheart and long term boyfriend, Finn Hudson. For a moment, she was taken back to her past filled with joy but so much pain as well, to all the angst and youth mistakes that had clouded her judgement about a boy who was probably never meant to be right for her.

"Finn…" She whispered to herself before she was engulfed in a bear hug. Her nostrils were suddenly filled by his still cheap cologne, mixed with a lingering smell of oil and grease that probably stained his work clothes.

"I didn't know you were back from New York, are you staying for long?" He pulled back, not even hiding the appreciative leer he gave her soon after. He had put some weight on, probably for the lack of a proper workout regimen that football provided him for.

"I came for my cousin's wedding, even though I will probably extend my leave to take care of my Daddy." She took a quick glance at her wristwatch and just grabbed a box of tomatoes from the shelf, throwing it in the cart.

"I thought your Dad died last year, Rachel…" He blurted out with the same lack of tact, that she usually overlooked in high school but that, now, highlighted how insensitive he could be without even trying.

"I have two Dads, Finn, but thanks for reminding me how much of a jerk you could be." She moved past him with her cart, not even stopping when she wheeled it right on his foot and heard him grimace in pain.

"Rachel, wait up!" He walked after her and grabbed the cart with one of his paws, effectively stopping her. "Can we catch up or something? Like old times.." He smiled at her and, had it been high school, she would have probably melted but at this time in her life, it only made her roll her eyes. "I am not seeing anyone, so maybe…"

"I am seeing someone and I have no interest in reconnecting with you in any romantic way. All I can offer is friendship, but I don't think you are even interested in pursuing me as a friend do you?" She looked at him and moved forward. "Thought so...Have a good rest of the day, Finn Hudson."

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"Baby girl, I am doing fine...you should go back to New York, aren't you missing shows?" Leroy sat up in bed and watched his daughter sit a tray over his lap.

"I am not missing much, Daddy. I have been reading the scripts my agent sends me, don't worry about me." She pushed her hair off her forehead and looked around the room. "I am going downstairs to start a laundry, if you need anything just call me." She kissed his forehead and collected the clothes around the room, filling a new basket with them before moving back downstairs.

The sound of a football game could be heard from the living room, making her roll her eyes. She was not surprised to find her cousin's husband sitting on the couch with a beer in his hand watching the game, but the familiar dark haired boy sitting beside him was definitely not expected.

"What are you doing here, Finn?" She dropped the basket by the door and crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for an answer.

"I ran into Devon at the store and he told me he was coming back here to help you with your dad. thought you could need an additional hand." He shrugged his shoulders and reached for his beer, taking a long gulp.

"Did you buy the groceries on the list? We ran out of cereal bars and orange juice." She addressed her newly acquired cousin, who turned toward her with a dull look on his face. "What did you even buy from the store? Beer and cheap junk food? You know my dad can't even eat that shit...you dumbfuck!" She yelled at him and walked toward the door, opening it. "I want you both out…"

"What did I even do?" Finn walked toward his ex, letting Devon slip outside without any other word.

"Nothing, Finn. You never do anything, that's why I don't need someone else to look after. I did not invite you here nor I appreciate you worming your way back into my life, when i explicitly told you I am not interested." She held onto the door and expected the guy to leave as well.

"You are no better than me, Rachel. You keep on insulting me and use big words only to confuse me and make me look like a fool. That's not fair." He raised his own voice and towered over her, even if not intentionally. "I thought New York would change you but you are still the same little girl, who thinks too high of-"

"Hudson, why don't you do us both a favor and get the hell out of this house? You heard Rachel, you are not welcomed here." Quinn's strong voice came from behind the two exes, who both looked at her with a surprised look.

"How did you even get in the house? If I am an intruder, so are you and I am not going to leave until you are outta here." He crossed his arms over his chest and smirked at the blonde, hoping his ex would get the blonde to leave as well.

"She stays, Finn; don't think I didn't see that smirk on your face and you can just wipe it off, on your way home." Rachel opened her door a little wider and took a step back, feeling the blonde's frame brushing against her back and giving her all the reassurance she needed. "Good-bye, Finn."

"Bitch…" He muttered before the door was locked and closed behind him. Rachel turned around toward the silent blonde, who had her hands deep in her pockets and looked back at her.

"Your Dad called Mercedes and Mercedes told Sam...Why didn't you call me, Rachel?" Quinn leaned against the doorway and looked back at the brunette, who was at loss of words. "I am not mad or anything, just sad that you couldn't come to me when you needed help. I know we are not on the best terms, but I am always going to be here for you…"

"I didn't know what to tell you, Quinn. I could have not asked you to come here and help me, since we are no longer together…" The brunette looked back at the blonde with unshed tears in her eyes.

"I am sorry, it's my fault that we reached this point.." The blonde moved off the doorway and walked toward the living room's entrance, grabbing the laundry basket off the floor to take it downstairs. "I want you to know that, even if we are not together, my feelings for you haven't changed. I still think you are the only one for me, Rachel." She whispered and turned to walk toward the basement, when a soft body collided against her back, making her slightly stumble for the impact.

"I missed you so much, Quinn." Rachel's face was pressed between her shoulders and her hands held onto her hips from behind. "I still love you so much too." She whispered against the girl's back, who let the basket down and turned around to envelop the brunette in her arms, not sure what the future still had in store for them...

thoughts? comments?