Author's Note: This was written before Quinn was kicked out of her parents' house, so she still lives at home in this story. Reviews are truly appreciated...and motivate me to update faster! No pressure, though. The title of this chapter comes from the David Bowie song, "Changes." It felt fitting given poor Finn's current state of mind and the conversation he's about to have.

Chapter Two: Turn and Face the Strange

Finn stared up at the large, Georgian-style house with its perfectly manicured lawn, fresh coat of yellow paint, and porch swing that never dared to squeak. He stood there, taking it all in, hardly able to believe that he'd come. Just do it, Hudson. Get it over with and then you can go find Rachel and tell her it's done. He couldn't help grinning at the thought of her reaction. Nothing made Rachel happier than having people follow her directions. He wondered if she would be bossy in other areas, too...stop, stop, stop! This was not the time and certainly not the place for those thoughts.

Taking a steadying breath, he rang the bell. Finn shuffled his feet, half hoping no one would answer. No such luck. The door opened and Mr. Fabray stood on the other side. "Finn. Well, this is a surprise." Although the words were friendly enough, the tone seemed void of all emotion. Not that Mr. Fabray had ever been a touchy-feely kind of guy in Finn's opinion.

"Um, yeah. Is, uh, Quinn, you know?" Smooth, as always, Hudson. Mr. Fabray nodded, once, and opened the door wider. Finn assumed that he was supposed to follow. Without another word. Mr. Fabray went up the stairs. Finn guessed he was going to get Quinn--Finn had never been allowed in Quinn's room while they were dating--and waited by the front door. He's always felt jittery in this house. Like God or Jesus or someone was watching his every move. Looking around at all the religious paintings on the walls still creeped him out.

He heard footsteps and saw Quinn coming down the stairs, followed closely by her father. When she saw Finn, her face erupted into a smile...until she got a closer look at his own. Quickly hiding her initial reaction, she adopted a neutral look, not unlike her fathers. Huh. So that's where she gets that Ice Queen act from. He'd always wondered how Quinn could be so happy one minute and, seemingly out of nowhere, so cold the next.

"Finn," she said quietly, shooting a look at her father. Clearly Quinn wanted her father to give them some privacy.

"I'll be in the living room," Mr. Fabray stated, clearly emphasizing that he would not be far away.

Quinn focused on her father's retreating back before facing Finn. "What are you doing here?" She was quiet and obviously nervous.

"Can, um, can we talk?" Finn replied. Quinn nodded and started toward the kitchen, indicating that Finn should follow. Finn sat down at the table. When he looked up, Finn noticed that Quinn was having difficulty lowering herself into the chair. Automatically, he rose, took Quinn's arm and helped ease her down. She looked into his eyes, searching for something. Finn, uncomfortable, looked away.

"Thanks," Quinn replied, eyes now focused on her lap. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

Finn shifted anxiously in his chair, trying to remember what Rachel had said. "I need, um, closure, I guess."

Quinn looked up, her eyebrows raised. "Closure? That's why you're here?" The disappointment in her voice was evident. Suddenly her eyes found his again, her lips twisting. "This wasn't your idea."

Crap. "Yes, yes it was." Finn certainly did not want to get into a fight about Rachel at the moment.

"Finn, please. It's obvious that this wasn't your idea. I mean, closure? Really?" Quinn shook her head. "So, you're really here because Man Hands--" She paused at the fierce look Finn shot her at the use of the nickname and relented. "Because Rachel asked you to come. Why? Why would she...oh. She wants to make sure that you're totally done with me so that she can have you." She shot him a knowing look. "Am I close?"

"Look, I'm not here to talk about Rachel. I just want to know what happened. Why it happened, okay? Don't you think you owe me that much?" Finn's fists were clenched on the table.

She laughed bitterly. He shot her a confused look. "Sorry. I just find it funny that you had no interest in hearing me out when I asked you. When I begged you to listen to me. And here, all it took was Rachel batting her eyes at you for you to come running." How did Quinn know that Rachel did that thing with her eyes? "Well, that just sums it all up, doesn't it, Finn? You want to know what happened? Blame me all you want, but let's not kid ourselves. It takes two people to destroy a relationship." Quinn paused before meeting his eyes again. "Or, in our case, three."

"Are you seriously blaming me for you cheating and getting pregnant by my best friend?" Finn was beyond stunned.

Quinn shook her head, clearly frustrated. "No, and I didn't mean Puck. I mean Rachel."

She was so not going to make him the bad guy here! "Rachel did nothing to break us up. And not that I owe you any explanation, but Rachel and I are not even together," he ended defensively.

She looked genuinely puzzled by Finn's last statement. "You really are an idiot, aren't you?" Quinn blurted. It was a toss up who was more surprised by the question: Quinn or Finn.

Finn could not believe her nerve. After what she'd done to him, she was going to call him an idiot to his face? Believing her lies had already made him feel like one, thank you very much. "This is just like a nightmare I had the other night. The only difference is from the head up, you looked like a praying mantis. You know, one of those bug-things from science class that eat the males whole after using them?" Finn stood and Quinn rose, too, blocking his path. He made a move to maneuver around her, but she turned around, her increasingly growing stomach making it impossible to get away.

Quinn stared him down. "Sit," she stated firmly, pointing to the chair behind him.

"You can't boss me around anymore," Finn spat. Much to his shock, he found himself shoved down, nearly falling backward in the chair. "What the hell?"

Quinn looked a bit sheepish. "Sorry. The hormones." With this, Quinn eased herself down into the chair beside him, grabbing the edge of the table for leverage. "Look, I know you hate me and I get it. I screwed up and I hurt you." She reached out to touch his shoulder, but he flinched. Sighing in defeat, she continued. "Don't you think I saw it, from the beginning? She wanted you, and it didn't take very long for you to start wanting her." Her voice lowered. "Why do you think I joined glee club in the first place?"

"You said it was to support me and share my interests." He shook his head. "Did you ever tell me the truth? About anything?" Finn was clearly getting worked up at this point. "I never slept with Rachel or anyone else."

"I believe you, but I do think you were cheating," Quinn said slowly. Finn's eyes flashed. "Don't be naive, Finn. Emotional infidelity is still cheating."

"You've been watching too much Dr. Phil." Finn, not ready to face the truth of her accusation, grew defensive. "This is ridiculous. What's your point, Quinn?" He was clearly losing patience. He could not believe that Quinn was trying to justify cheating on him. So what if he'd had feelings for Rachel? He hadn't acted on them...much.

"My point, Finn, is that you are an idiot," Quinn repeated. "I assumed that the minute we broke up, you'd go running straight to Rachel. We broke up over two months ago, so what are you waiting for?"

"You are so out of line," Finn got up to leave but sat back down abruptly. "Am I hearing you right? You actually want me with Rachel? What are you trying to pull?"

Quinn shifted, looking uncomfortable. "I do not want you with her. I'm just wondering why you aren't."

"What gives you the right to ask?" Finn countered. Although, he'd asked himself that same question many times recently. Several times a day. Whenever he he was with Rachel, and whenever he wasn't. Finn wondered what was standing in their way. There was something stopping them, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was.

"Since I was forced to watch the start of your bizarre courtship while we were still together, I think I have every right to ask," Quinn snapped. "Look, I'm going to give you some advice. So listen closely." Finn was looking straight ahead, avoiding Quinn's gaze. She turned and pinched his arm. Hard. Finn yelped, but his focus, accompanied by a nasty look, were back on Quinn. "Pay attention, because I will not say it again." She blew out a tense breath. "If you want her, you'd better do something about it. She's been waiting for you, but she won't wait forever."

Finn blinked several times. Did he hear her right? "It's official," he said aloud, more to himself than her. "I will never understand girls."

Quinn laughed at this. "We're complicated, Finn. This is true." Her lips twisted humorously. "But when it comes to love, we all want the same thing."

At this, Finn sat back casually, pretending not to be interested. He didn't think he was very convincing. "Which is?"

Quinn stared straight ahead, but she seemed to be looking at something that wasn't really there. "The boy of her dreams to come after her and make her feel like she's the only girl that matters. The only one that exists for him." She looked like she was sleeping and awake at the same time, kind of like Finn figured he must look while he was replaying scenes from Skinemax in his head during Social Studies. Even her voice sounded far away. Finn was startled to see the tears in her eyes.

"Quinn--" As usual, Finn wished he had the right words at the right moment.

She hastily wiped the tears from her eyes. "I'm fine, really," she said lamely. "This is about you, not me."

Finn wasn't so sure about that. He also wasn't sure how she'd done it, but he was now feeling guilty. Quinn was right; he had started having feelings for Rachel long before they'd broken up. Was that why she had cheated on him? Because she'd felt threatened? Whatever her reason, Finn could not forget the months of worry and fear he'd experienced when he thought he'd gotten her pregnant. Even still, it hadn't taken long for him to fall in love with his child, his little girl. Except, she wasn't his little girl anymore. She never really was. That he did not think he could forgive. To be honest, Finn didn't even want to try. "Why are you telling me all this?"

"Because I don't want this all to be for nothing!" Her eyes suddenly looked wild. "I slept with Puck because I knew that I was starting to lose you. I wasn't going to let you go without a fight, but part of me just wanted to hurt you like you were hurting me. If it wasn't for the baby, you probably would have dumped me sooner. For her. Why her, Finn? Of all people?" Finn did not respond and Quinn took a calming breath. "Never mind. I don't really want to hear the answer to that. Look, I'm never going to like Rachel. Mostly because you like her too much. All I know is that I made a mistake and will be paying for it for a long time. But you...you're free now. So what are you waiting for?"

Finn was genuinely at a loss for words. Coming here, he wasn't sure what to expect, but it certainly hadn't been this. "Are--are you doing okay? You know, with everything." It sounded lame even to him, but he wanted to make sure that she was okay.

She huffed. "Well, my parents haven't sent me off to a convent, yet. I'm not allowed to tell any of our relatives, not that I'd want to. They don't trust me anymore, but mostly they're embarrassed. I mean, they won't even look me in the eye anymore. They agree that I should give the baby up for adoption. My mom actually said that once it's over, we can pretend like it never happened." Quinn looked more heartbreakingly sad in that moment than he'd ever seen her. "How am I supposed to do that?" Finn didn't have an answer and Quinn didn't seem to expect one.

"What about, uh, Puck? How's he fitting into the picture?" Finn wasn't sure what made him ask, only that the words were out of his mouth before he'd thought them through.

Suddenly, and surprisingly, Quinn's lips twitched, this time with actual humor. "He comes over after school to check up on me, even though my parents won't let him past the front door. My dad keeps threatening to shoot him, but Puck won't give up," she sighed. "He leaves all of these random baby things on the doorstep, like diapers for toddlers and teething rings. I don't think he has any idea that a baby can't use any of that stuff before it's born," Quinn chuckled, unable to hold it in. Then she stopped abruptly, her voice wavering. "Puck's got this crazy idea that we should raise the baby together and be a family. Can you imagine?" Finn agreed; it was a crazy idea. He certainly could not picture Puck as anyone's father. What would he teach the kid? Cow tipping? The best way to shoplift a six-pack? Still, this was the first time he'd seen a genuine smile on her face since they'd started talking.

Finn wasn't sure what to think at this point. Did part of Quinn want to keep the baby, or was it just Puck's constant attention that made her light up? Either way, Finn knew that it was no longer his business. "I hope that things work out the way you want them to. Whatever that is."

Quinn looked at Finn, a regretful look gracing her face. "You can't always get what you want."

His lips twitched. "Are you actually quoting a song from glee right now?"

She looked taken aback. "I guess I was. They really get stuck in your head, don't they?"

Finn agreed, thinking that music really did say more about life than most people could. If this were one of those musicals that Rachel was always going on about, he and Quinn would start singing right about now. A song of good-byes, endings, and new beginnings. Since this wasn't a musical, Finn simply said the first thing that entered his mind. "Don't forget the rest of the song, okay?"

Quinn tilted her head, clearly running through the lyrics in her head. He saw her expression shift the instant she remembered; her lips curved upward slightly, just for a fleeting moment. "I hope you get what you need, too."

She walked Finn to the door and as he turned to leave, Quinn paused, seeming to need a moment to find the right way to say goodbye. Her final words were delivered with the perfect blend of mischief and spite. "And good luck to you if you get her. You'll need it." With this, the door snapped shut in his face.

Author's Note: I apologize for the lack of Rachel in this chapter, but she will return! It will be worth it when she does. Trust me!