A/N – Guys, thank you so much for all the reviews. I'm overwhelmed. Thank you.

Disclaimer – I still own nothing. I'm actually pretty bummed about it.

Quinn and Rachel had gone their separate ways when they got to school that morning. Quinn had Cheerio commitments and Rachel spent the extra time in the music room reading over the first assignment for her history class. Brad the piano player drew her out of her reading and Rachel realized it was close to the start of the day so she made her way to her locker to exchange some books. She didn't notice Karofsky coming at her with a full cup of cherry slushie. In turn, he didn't notice the blonde head cheerleader walking towards him. Quinn passed Rachel without a word; the brunette was too focused on her books to notice anyway, and met up with the hockey player before he even had a chance to get to Rachel. Without breaking her stride Quinn put her hand on the bottom of the cup and tipped it up into his face. He shrieked as the cold, sticky liquid hit his head, neck and chest. There was a collective gasp and then laughter broke out in the hallway.

"What the hell, Fabray! What did you do that for?" He demanded.

Quinn turned and shrugged as she smirked at him, "I just thought it would be fun."

When she turned back around to continue on her way, the students in the hall parted to let her walk by. Quinn wore a satisfied smile. Oh yeah, she still had it.

Rachel finally looked up to see what all the commotion was about and saw Karofsky covered in slushie and Quinn walking away. She quickly put two and two together and smiled despite herself. She knew she shouldn't feel like laughing at another student who was covered in slushie, but another part of her felt that he had it coming. That being said, she shut her locker and scurried off the other way. She didn't want him to see her smiling. She'd get it worse for sure if he thought she was laughing at him.

Quinn waited until the middle of her lunch period to grab a moment to herself and call Shelby. She didn't have time to tell her the whole situation right now, but she needed to give the woman a heads up and let her know that Quinn would need to speak with her at length very soon.

"Hello. Quinn?" was Shelby's greeting. "Aren't you in school? Are you ok?"

"Hey, Shelby. Yeah, it's my lunch period," Quinn explained. "I'm fine. Listen, I need to talk to you about something important."

"Important? What's this about, Quinn?"

"It's about Rachel. I was hoping I could meet with you somewhere this evening. Could you get a sitter for tonight?" Quinn asked. She was dying to see how Beth had grown, but Quinn knew without a doubt that she was not ready for that. And neither was Shelby.

"Rachel? What's wrong with Rachel?" Shelby asked a hint of panic in her voice.

"She's fine, Shelby. Calm down. But it is really important. Can you meet me?"

"Of course," was Shelby's response. "I'll get a sitter as soon as I get off the phone with you."

They worked out the particulars of when and where and then Quinn sent a quick text message to her mother letting her know about her plans for that night. She made sure to emphasize that she wasn't telling Rachel until after she talked to Shelby. She didn't want her mom to inadvertently give it away. And after last night Quinn figured that Rachel needed a night where she didn't have to talk about her fathers.

Quinn arrived to Glee practice a few minutes late that afternoon and by the time she got there Rachel was already up in front of the group talking about the things they would need to do to prepare for Nationals this year. Quinn surveyed the club from the doorway and was able to notice what Rachel could see. Santana was rolling her eyes and whispering to Brittney who then laughed at whatever had been said. Kurt seemed to be listening but as his eyes flickered to the clock on the wall Quinn knew he wasn't. Mr. Schuester was staring off into space and Finn was taping out a rhythm on his leg. A quick glance at everyone confirmed that none of them would remember Rachel's speech in about five minutes.

Quinn made her way across the room, passing in front of Rachel to get her chair.

"Nice of you to finally join us, Quinn," Rachel said. This caught the attention of the group who looked the blonde, no doubt waiting for a biting comeback.

"Why don't we prepare for Sectionals before we focus on Nationals, Rachel?" Quinn asked. "Take things one step at a time."

"That's true, Rachel," Finn jumped in. "We need to keep the cart and the horse together." The silence that followed that statement allowed everyone in the room to try and put together what Finn was saying. He noticed the looks he was getting and added, "Or whatever it is."

"I think what Finn is trying to say, Rachel, is that you're getting ahead of yourself," Mr. Shue spoke up. "Let's start with Sectionals."

Rachel took a seat by herself at the end of the first row of chairs. Of course she knew they needed to start with Sectionals. She said that when she started her speech, but no one had been listening to her. One sentence from Quinn had helped get the attention of the group back where it needed to be and Rachel started taking notes on the ideas that were being brainstormed throughout the room. Rachel cast a quick glance at Quinn and matched the small smile Quinn was giving her.

Rachel had to admit that she had been apprehensive about how this day would go. She trusted that Quinn wouldn't be outright mean to her, but she knew that they couldn't suddenly be seen as friends. There would be too many questions about their newfound friendship and that was exactly the type of information that Rachel was trying to keep a secret. Quinn had still been Quinn, but she had toned it down where Rachel was concerned and, so far, no one had noticed.

Rachel walked to Quinn's house after school. The weather was really pleasant and Quinn's house was closer than hers so Rachel hadn't minded. Judy was out checking the mail when Rachel walked up and bid her a "good afternoon."

"Did Quinn make you walk home? I told her she better not-"

"No, Mrs. Fabray," Rachel cut in. "She was talking with her friends or something when I left. Besides, it's gorgeous out. I enjoyed the walk."

"Ok then," Judy said, guiding the girl inside. "How was your day? Everything go ok? No one threw anything at you, right?" Judy had been horrified to hear about the slushies. And she was even more horrified to know that Quinn had ever participated in something like that. If she ever heard of Quinn doing something like that again…

They heard Quinn's car in the driveway and the door slam when the girl got out.

Rachel was taken aback as she was peppered with questions. This was certainly new to her, but she loved it all the same. She was about to answer when Quinn stepped through the door and stopped in surprise to find Rachel and her mom standing right there in the foyer.

"Hello, Quinn," Judy greeted turning to look at her daughter who was standing behind her. She turned back to Rachel and asked, "Well?"

"Well what?" Quinn asked.

"I was asking Rachel how her day went," Judy said. Quinn looked past Judy to Rachel as well, waiting for an answer.

"Everything was fine today," Rachel replied to her small audience. "And no, I wasn't slushied. Quinn stopped that before it could happen."

Quinn's smile at Rachel's good day faded. She shook her head at Rachel, but quickly stopped when her mom turned to look at her.

"Oh? How did she do that?" Judy asked, turning back to Rachel.

"She slushied him first," Rachel said, only noticing Quinn frantically shaking her head no half way through the sentence. "What?"

Judy's eyes darkened as she turned to look at Quinn who was glaring at Rachel. Quinn had received the scolding of her life the night before about this very subject.

"Quinn," Judy started.

"But I did it for a good cause, Mom," she said, side-stepping her mother to go and stand by Rachel. Quinn took the smaller girl by the shoulders and held her out in front of her, effectively placing Rachel between herself and her mother. "See. She had a good day."

With that Quinn let go of Rachel and turned to race up the stairs yelling out that she had to get ready to go out later.

"She's going out?" Rachel asked, hoping to move the conversation away from slushies.

"Yes, she asked me earlier if she could meet some people from the Cheerios later," Judy said. "She said it was something about something Coach Sylvester wanted done."

"Oh," Rachel said.

"Why don't you help me make dinner?" Judy asked.

"I'd love to," Rachel said. "But I'm a vegan. I was just going to have some of the fruit I had for breakfast."

"Nonsense. You're going to eat more than fruit. And I know you're a vegan, Quinn told me last night. I went out today and bought a ton a vegan items from the specialty grocery store up the street."

"Really?" Rachel asked. She was touched.

"Of course. You're not going to starve while you're here," Judy answered easily. "Come and look at what I got and we can decide what to make."

Quinn left the house about an hour after dinner was over to go and meet Shelby. They had chosen an out of the way coffee shop so they could sit alone and not be bothered. Both were settled into comfortable chairs with the lattes of their choice when Shelby spoke up.

"Ok, Quinn. What's going on? I've been thinking about it all day."

Even with having all day to prepare, Quinn still wasn't quite sure how she wanted to broach this subject. She couldn't just come out and ask the woman how she could have left Rachel like that. Quinn wasn't trying to accuse or blame. She believes that Shelby will want to help once she really knows the truth.

"How much did you know about Rachel's fathers when you agreed to be their surrogate?" Quinn finally asked. She knew it wasn't really a fair question. People change and who the two men were sixteen years ago is probably very different from who they are now.

That was the last thing Shelby had expected to come out of Quinn's mouth. "Umm, enough, I guess. They were both finished with college and were well on their ways to very successful careers. They were financially stable and seemed very loving with each other. They seemed so desperate to have a child. It felt easy enough to be able to help them out."

"Oh. Did you ever keep in contact with them?"

"No. The contract was in place from the moment she was born," Shelby answered. "You know all of this, Quinn. What's going on with Rachel now?"

"Well," Quinn took a sip of her drink and put her thoughts in order. "She's been having a pretty rough time for the last few years."

"What does that mean? Talk to me, Quinn. Tell me what's going on," Shelby pleaded. Quinn could hear the anxiousness in the woman's voice.

So Quinn did. She relayed everything she had learned since last night. She told of how Rachel had come to be staying with her. She gave Shelby a glimpse into what her daughter's life at school was like. Quinn did not miss the hardened look Shelby gave her when she told her of own bullying. But Shelby's features softened at the mention of how much Rachel was hurting and how scared she was.

"Rachel wants to keep everything a secret and just go on like this until she finishes high school and can leave, presumably for New York," Quinn said. "She doesn't even know I'm here talking to you."

Shelby was shell-shocked. Her heart ached for Rachel and what she had been through; what she was still going through. She silently cursed herself for turning away from the girl last year.

"Her dads have been leaving her home alone since she was 12?" Shelby asked as if trying to still wrap her head around it.

Quinn confirmed it again and said, "When she was trying to form a relationship with you in the spring, she was really asking you for help."

"I had no idea," Shelby said, the tears pooling in her eyes. "I thought her fathers were there for her. I thought she had everything she needed."

"Everything except you," Quinn said and Shelby's tears spilled over. "She was too afraid to tell you the truth."

"I can't believe I just turned away from her like that," Shelby said. She replayed her meetings with Rachel in her mind and thought she could now hear the pleading in Rachel's voice and the desperation in her visits during Vocal Adrenaline rehearsals. "I'm so ashamed, Quinn," Shelby admitted.

"You couldn't have known," Quinn said. "Rachel didn't tell you everything."

"I know now though," Shelby said, her resolve building. "We have to leave now. I have to go and get her. I've got to talk to her and let her know how much I really do want her."

"Do you mean that?" Quinn asked. "You would take her?"

"Of course."

"Because she is scared to death that if someone finds out and they try and take her from her fathers that she'll have nowhere to go," Quinn said.

"She's going to come with me," Shelby said. "I'm going to take her from her fathers. Come on, Quinn. I need to go and get her," she said getting to her feet.

"Whoa whoa, Shelby, slow down. You can't just go marching into my house and get her right now," Quinn said. "She doesn't even know that I talk to you about Beth, much less her. I need to talk to her first. Let me explain it to her. I just needed to talk to you first so that I knew you were going to be there for her before I went and got her hopes up again."

"Ok, Quinn. But I want you to understand that I'm not going to give up on her this time. I'm not going to let her sit back and keep living like this because she's afraid. I'm going to be her mother," Shelby said.

Quinn smiled. Shelby had just told her everything she needed to know. "Don't worry. I don't think Rachel realizes it yet, but my mother isn't going to let things stay the way they are either."

Shelby only let Quinn leave after promising that she would call the woman everyday and let her know how Rachel was doing. Quinn assured her that she would talk to Rachel soon and then let Shelby know what was going on. All Quinn asked for in return was for Shelby to give Beth a kiss from her.

By the time Quinn arrived home it was closing in on 10pm, after her mother's 9pm curfew, but Quinn didn't really think her mother would say anything this time. She found Rachel and her mother sitting side-by-side on the couch watching a movie, both of them crying.

"What's going on?"

"Shhh, Quinn," her mother admonished.

Quinn looked to the screen to see Barbra Streisand singing a song about her man and how she loved him so. Oh, brother. She took a seat and waited as patiently as she could for the song to end and the movie to be over.

"Have you ever seen this movie, Quinn?" Judy asked when the credits started to roll, drying her eyes. She turned the TV off and looked over to Quinn.

"I don't even know what movie it is," Quinn answered.

Both blondes turned to look at the brunette when she gasped. "Quinn, this is Barbra Streisand at her absolute best. This is Funny Girl. I brought it with me from home because I didn't know if you would have it. It's a good thing I thought of it because your selection of musicals is quite lacking."

"Sure, whatever," Quinn said rolling her eyes. "Maybe we can watch it some time."

"Oh we will watch it some time," Rachel left very little doubt about whether or not there was a maybe in that statement.

"You really do have to watch it, Quinn. It's fantastic," her mother said.

"I'm sure I'll see it very soon," Quinn said. If it was up to Rachel they would probably start the whole movie over right now.

Judy nodded, seeing the determined look on the small girl's face. "I'm sure you will. But right now you two need to get to bed. It's after ten."

Quinn rolled her eyes. They weren't little kids. Rachel chose that moment to yawn, completely negating the argument Quinn was about to make. Judy looked to her daughter as if to say, 'see!'

Judy stood and pulled Rachel into a hug, rubbing her back and landing a few motherly pats on the girl's backside. "Goodnight, Rachel. Thank you for sharing that movie with me."

"Goodnight, Mrs. Fabray," Rachel said. "Thank you for watching it with me."

Judy placed a kiss on the girl's forehead before sending her on her way with another pat. She waited until Rachel was out of the room before turning back to talk to Quinn.

"You two look like you had a nice night," Quinn said.

"She's really very engaging," Judy replied. "How did your night go?"

"Shelby was really upset. She wants to see Rachel and talk to her and take her in," Quinn said. "She was ready to come and get her tonight. She had no idea any of this was going on. I told her to wait until I talked to Rachel first."

"That's probably wise. This week is probably going to cause a lot of upheaval for her and we need to make sure nothing in rushed or overlooked," Judy said.

Quinn nodded in agreement before picking up the remote to turn the TV back on.

"Oh no you don't; you're going to bed too," Judy said pulling her daughter up off the couch and playfully pushing her out of the room.

Quinn found Rachel already in her bed and reading some more of her history book. "Are you reading for school already? It was the second day. How can you have homework already?"

"I just want to get ahead," Rachel said. "Thanks for letting me borrow your mom tonight, Quinn." Rachel had really enjoyed her evening. She was nervous when Quinn left because she didn't really know Judy and was afraid things would get awkward. But they hadn't been. Judy listened to Rachel talk about Glee and Broadway and being a vegan all before they decided to watch the movie. Rachel understood that the attention given to her by Judy was partly to do with pity from the woman, but that didn't make it feel any less good to have someone to talk to. The hugs and kiss on the forehead were just an added bonus as far as Rachel was concerned. She hadn't been held by a parent in a long time, and certainly never a mom. She usually kept her one hug from Shelby close at hand in her mind to call up when she needed it, but this had been even better.

"No problem, borrow her whenever you want," Quinn said with a laugh. "She told me she had a really nice evening." Rachel's 100 watt smile lit up the room.

"Oh and thanks for stopping Karofsky this morning. That was very good of you, Quinn."

Quinn shrugged, playing it off. The truth was, she had wanted to slushie him ever since she and Finn had gotten it from the football team last year. This had just been the perfect opportunity.

"It was nothing," Quinn said. "But thanks for telling my mom about it," the blonde said sarcastically.

Rachel winced slightly. "Sorry. I take it she doesn't want to hear your name and slushie in the same sentence ever again."

"You could say that," Quinn said.

The girls got lost in a conversation about school and Coach Sylvester being crazy and creepy Jacob. Fifteen minutes has passed without either of them realizing. Quinn thought about bringing up Shelby now, but Rachel had spent the whole evening not having to think about her fathers and Quinn reasoned that it wasn't right to say anything just before they were going to sleep. It could wait until tomorrow.

Their conversation was cut off when they heard Judy. "I know of two little girls who are going to be very sorry if they don't go to bed," the woman sing-songed as she passed by in the hallway.

Quinn rolled her eyes once again at her mother but noticed the expression of worry that graced Rachel's features. "What does she mean by that?" the smaller girl asked.

"Nothing," Quinn waved it off. "It's the same thing she used to say to my sister and me when we were little and would sit up talking instead of going to sleep. It's an empty threat."

"And empty threat?" Judy asked from the doorway, a serious expression on her face.

Both girls whipped their heads around to face her. "Geez, Mom, make a sound," Quinn said. "You're like a ninja, silently sneaking up on people and lurking in doorways."

Judy couldn't help but laugh at this and Rachel did too once she realized the woman wasn't serious. "Come on Quinn, Rachel, its bedtime," she said, a hint of parental authority returning to her voice.

"Fine," Quinn sighed. Judy left them to say their goodnights and headed to her own room. She didn't know how the kids did it. She was exhausted.

"Goodnight, Rachel," Quinn said heading to the door.

"Goodnight, Quinn," was the response she received through a yawn.

Quinn shut the light off and closed the door on her way out. She couldn't believe she had spent all that time and energy hating someone she suddenly felt so protective of. She shook her head and laughed at thought of them being friends. She could just imagine the heads that were going to explode when people figured out about their friendship. And Quinn found that she was looking forward to that.

A/N – Please review if you would like. I really do appreciate it and I love getting to see what you guys think.