Quinn sat down,running her hand through her silky blonde hair. She stared at the picture in her hand. It was tattered and ratty from being looked at so much in the past year and a half. On it,Quinn was standing next to Santana,Brittany and Puck in front of a red Shadow Honda XLT motorcycle that had been given to her for her 25th birthday by Puck. Rachel was on her back,arms around her neck,beaming at the camera. Quinn's eyes lingered on Rachel and a few tears fell from her eyes. She thought about that day and how much happiness it had brought her.
(Flasback)
Quinn watched as Puck pulled back the tarp and exposed her birthday surprise. She squealed and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"I love you sooo much right now! Omg! How the hell did you get this? I thought they weren't even available to order yet!" Quinn said,trying on the helmet.
"Finn's dad had connections to a couple of dealers who were shipping out the first line of bikes and he was able to buy it before it hit the market." Puck shrugged,smiling devilishly at her.
"Wow,can I take a ride?" Quinn said,dizzy with happiness.
"Welll...it is your bike BUT I have something else to show you before you go." Puck says,motioning for her to follow him.
"Wait? What? You didn't have to get me anything else! Are you trying to bribe me to do something with you. I have a girlfriend you know and I;m pretty sure she would kill you if..." Quinn says,doing the famous fabray eyebrow arch.
"What! No! just follow me!" Puck laughs,part embarassed and part enthralled.
He walks out onto the yard and Quinn follows,screaming in shock when a bunch of people yell surprise as she walks outside.
"Puck!" she yells,punching him on the arm. "You know I don't like fucking surprise parties!"
"He didn't plan it,I did."
Quinn turns to see Rachel,dressed in a overly large NYU sweatshirt and a pair of tight shorts that hug her just right. Quinn embraces her warmly,kissing her on forehead.
"You didn't have to do this for me ya know." Quinn said,hugging her tightly.
"Well, I-" Rachel begins but is interrupted.
"Oh! I see how it is! She gets a kiss but I get yelled at?" Puck yells.
"Shut the fuck up!" Santana says,glaring daggers at him.
Puck holds up his hands in surrender,walking off. Quinn shoots Santana a thankful look then turns back to Rachel,who is fidgeting nervously with the hem of her shirt.
"What were you saying?" Quinn said,wanting to know.
"Umm..I wanted to do something special for you. To show I love you so much more than you'll ever know. I know you don't like surprises but I only invited our parents,the pierces,the lopez family,our glee family,and-"
Quinn's lips press onto hers,caressing them softly. Quinn pulls her closer,relishing in her taste then pulls away,not wanting to express too much PDA in front of company.
"It's ok. Really. Thank you so much. I love you too." Quinn says breathlessly,looking at her with adoration.
Rachel takes her hand,leading her over to where a small stage is set up.
"I have something I would like to say to you but it would make a bigger impact if I sang it. I just want you to listen to this song and tell me what you think ok?" Rachel says,signaling for Sam,finn,Mike,Tina,Artie,Mercedes and Santana to go take their spots on the stage.
"Ok" Quinn says suspiciously.
Brittany brings up a chair for Quinn. She thanks her and sits down,waiting for the song to start. Rory hands her a coke and sits down next to her. Other people take their seats as well,knowing something is about to happen.
Rachel walks onto the stage,and clears her throat nervously. Her heart is pounding in her chest as the music begins. She sits on the stool.
"it's a beautiful night. We're looking for somethin' dumb to do. Hey baby,I think I wanna marry you.
Quinn almost chokes on her drink,gasping for breath. Rory pats her back,chuckling.
Quinn looks at Santana, silently asking her if she knew about this. Santana just smiles and gives her a thumbs up.
Quinn smiles as her friends join in,missing how their voices sounded together. Mike dances around Rachel,his moves calm and collected. Rachel looks at everyone but her as the song continues,her voice shaking a little. Nearing the end of the song, Sugar throws rose petals all around and Puck winks at her. Realization settles on Quinn as Rachel focuses all her attention on her with so much love and happiness in her eyes. Rachel wants her to marry her.
"...who cares baby,I think I wanna marry you." Rachel finishes,relieved that the song is over.
Brittany coughs 'say yes' ,smiling at her.
Rachel stands,holding on tight to the hems of her shorts tightly.
"Quinn,since the moment I met you,I knew I loved you. I just didn't realize it then. You make me smile and laugh and feel like there is nothing that I should worry about when i am with you. You are my sun,moon stars and beyond. One day I plan on helping you bring a bundle of joy into this world that we can call ours but for now,this is all I can give you. I love you more than you will ever know,Quinn. You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. You bring so much light into my life and i would like to do the same for you. Please do the incredible honor of being my bride to be." Rachel says,her heart beating faster than the speed of light.
People smile and look at Quinn,waiting for her answer.
"No..." Quinn says.
People gasp and Finn grabs Rachel before she can run off the stage.
"Rachel you are the greatest thing that has happened to me. I would love to marry you." Quinn continues,smiling at her with enough joy and happiness to last a lifetime.
Rachel runs over to her,tears in her eyes. Quinn spins her around,kissing her passionately. Cheers and claps can be heard all around as Rachel takes out the ring ,sliding it onto Quinn's ring finger. For the rest of the night,they can't keep their hands off of eachother and Santana has to clear her throat more than a few times.
(End of Flashback)
Quinn had never been so happy in her life. That day,it had felt like there was nothing else in the world that would have compared to how she felt when she was with Rachel. She thought about all the possibilities she had with Rachel,now that she had been honorably discharged from the Army. She checked to make sure her bag was packed and she wasn't missing anything. In Iraq,they had gagged her and beaten her almost every night. They spit on her and yelled all types of profanities at her while she hung upside down,starved and weaker than ever. they cut her all over her body,laughing as they carved their initials on her skin. The only thing that had kept her sane was the thought of seeing Rachel again.
She heard someone knock on her hotel and slowly stood up,letting out a hoarse 'I'm coming'.
She walks over to the door,swinging it opened.
"Are you the person they chose to accompany me?" Quinn says,smiling.
" Yep,it took some bribing though. You owe me big time. You look like shit,Fabray." Puck says,smirking.
"Yeah,yeah. Just say you missed me already." Quinn says,laughing.
"I missed you alot and so did the others. It was so hard for me to keep my mouth shut around them,especially with Rachel and Beth,but I managed." Puck said,hugging her gently,careful not to hurt her.
"What about Rachel and Beth.?" Quinn says,arching her eyebrow.
Puck clears his throat,suddenly focusing all his attention on her luggage.
"You and that damn eyebrow,Q!" Puck laughs nervously,pushing the button for the Lobby.
"What about them Noah" Quinn says,narrowing her eyes at him as they descend.
"Rachel was trying to let it go,not bring her hopes up but after a while,she crumbled to she can go days,even weeks,without a problem,she is still not doing well. She won't eat unless someone makes her. She cries every other day. She burned a lot of pictures of you. She won't even watch her musicals anymore. Sometimes she seems normal,but then goes back to isolating herself the next day. She barely says a word to Beth when she comes to visit her,she won't even look at her half the time she's there. I talked to Beth recently,she feels like she lost two parents instead of one. She's really depressed right now but she puts up a wall and acts happy when I go see her." Puck says,his face void of any kind of emotion. His teasing demeanor gone.
"I don't know if I can do this,Puck." Quinn states,her eyes dark with sadness.
"That's some BS. you can and you will because I'll be right beside you,encouraging you every step of the way,I promise. You have to get better for Beth,Rachel, and most importantly yourself." Puck says,squeezing her hand.
"You're right." Quinn says,wincing in pain. She stops walking and leans forward,taking a few deep breaths. Puck immediately comes to her aid,looking worried.
"Hey,you alright?" he says,rubbing her back.
"My side is hurting,that's all. You don't have to worry. They beat me up real good there," Quinn says,looking up at him.
"Are you sure? I can refund the plane tickets so I can get a car. We can drive to Ohio. It might take a few days but..."
"Not gonna happen! I have a wife to get to! I can handle the flight. I just need to take my pain medication before we take off and I'll be FINE,ok?" Quinn says,slowly straightening up her posture.
"Ok,but I'm gonna help the rest of the way." Puck says,wrapping his arm around her waist to hold her up.
While they wait for their flight to be called,Puck informs her that he's going to be helping watch over her until she gets better. He tells her that him helping her these couple months to come will help him bring up his ranks.
"I thought you were training to be part of the vehicle engineering and repair unit? How does you helping me bring up your rank?" Quinn says,arching her eyebrow suspiciously.
"They want to see what else I am capable of doing besides fixing cars. They said that when I go with my squad on a mission,I should be able to help in more ways than one. Like being able to care for and watch over you is a key element to surviving a mission. "
"So..all you have to do is help me around and make sure none of my captors try to kill me or anyone I'm around at the moment and you get brownie points and a rank up?" Quinn says,brushing her hair into a low pony tail,wincing everytime she accidently touches a cut or bruise.
"Yep,pretty much. That's about the only two reasons I can think of volunteering in the first place.
"Oh,shut up. You know you were probably the first person to raise your hand when they asked my unit." Quinn says,putting her hand on his shoulder.
"That's what you think." Puck says,laughing as their flight number is called.
Santana wakes up to the sound of her phone blaring. She answers,still half asleep.
"Why the fuck doesn't anyone understand that I need my damn sleep?" She huffs,sitting up.
"Uummm...it's almost 12:30" Quinn laughs.
"Quinn! I'm sorry. It's just,I haven't gotten much sleep lately."
"Why?" Quinn asks worriedly.
"Ummm...I can't talk to you about it over the phone." Santana says,scrunching her eyebrows together.
"Ok,another time then. Can I ask you a favor San?" Quinn asks,yawning.
"Yeah,sure. Anything that doesn't involve me getting in trouble with my wife...which is almost everything these days.
"Nothing like that. I would just really appreciate it if you came to pick me up at the airport. Now?" Quinn says,trying not to laugh at Puck's really lame pickup lines that he keeps giving every girl that walks by.
"Aren't you dating someone already?" she asks him,quirking her eyebrow.
"Keyword: Dating" Puck says,walking off to another girl.
"What?" Santana asks,getting out of bed and going over to the closet. She picks through each outfit until finding the perfect one ; a collared blue dress shirt with no sleeves,a pair of khaki capris and some white striped sandals.
"Oh. I was talking to Puck." Quinn replies.
"You want me to pick you up right now?" Santana asks.
"Yep,right now." Quinn says.
"I'll be there. 15 minutes tops."
"I came in a millitary-issued jet so you'll have to meet me on the landing strip. Landing number 4 ok? I'll be waiting. Oh and remeber, it is on the roof. Love you. See you there." Quinn reminds her.
"Love you too. Bye." Santana says,ending the call.
She pulls on her clothes,having taken a shower the night before,then brushes her teeth and washes her face. When finished,she scribbles out a small note,telling Brittany to call when she wakes. She slips out of the bed room silently,then quietly pads down the carpeted stairs. She grabs a banana and some coffee then snatches her keys off the key rack hanging on wall next to the door. Setting the alarm,she walks ouside,locking the door behind her. The air was nice and moist after a night of pouring rain that had finally calmed around 4am. A soft breeze passed through as Santana walked over to her car,cursing herself for not bringing a jacket. She unlocks the car door and is about to get in when she sees a familiar blue Audi parked next to her mailbox. Santana quickly walks over to the car,her sandals sinking in the wet grass as she did. When she reached her destination,she tapped softly on the window,not wanting to startle the shorter brunette. Rachel still jumps anyway,frantically looking around until she spots Santana,instantly relaxing. She opens the door,gets out then leans against it. Looking at Santana with a look that clear reads well? get on with it!
"What are you looking at me like that for? I'm not the one who showed up at someone's house at 7:00 in the damn morning and sat in their car like a stalker. Matter of fact,what are you doing here?" Santana said defensively,putting her hand on her hip.
"First of all,I'm not a stalker. Second,I'm in a bad place right now and I didn't want Ellie around me. So,I'm dropping her off early. Third,I just got caught up talking to Quinn. She said she won't be here for another 4 hours." Rachel says,her shoulders drooping and her lip in a pout.
'What's the problem? Is Ellie ok? Where is she?" Santana says anxiously,trying to keep herself from laughing at the lie she just told.
"She's in the trunk Santana." Rachel says sarcastically.
"Oh shut up. I can still kick your ass right here,right now Berry." Santana sneers,smirking at her.
'But you wouldn't." Rachel says.
"What makes you so sure hobbit?" Santana says,stepping into her personal space and slamming her palms on the window above Rachel's head.
Rachel doesn't even flinch but merely twirls her dark,curly, brown hair and laughs softly.
"You'll have to try harder than that Satan." Rachel says, shaking her head.
"Not worth it." Santana smirks,removing her hands from the window.
Rachel scoffs and crosses her arms,walking over to the passenger side to retrieve the latina's daughter.
"Here you go." she says,handing Santana the little bundle of energy.
Santana carefully takes her,being sure to make sure she is grasping Ellie firmly.
"Thank you for taking care of her for a little bit. I'm sure she had fun. She won't stop talking about you when you're not around. She adores you Rachel." Santana dotes,smiling fondly as she watches Ellie's chest rise and fall with each breath.
"Really?" Rachel says,her face lighting up.
"Yep. Hey,do you wanna go with me to go meet my boss? She is being dropped off and she wanted me to meet her at the airport. She also lives in Lima." Santana says brusqesly.
Rachel stays silent.
"Please? I could use the company. Britt and Carter are still asleep and I didn't want to wake them." Santana reasons.
'Sure. Why not?" Rachel says,needing something to occupy herself from the anxiousness of seeing Quinn in four hours.
They decide to drive Rachel's car,knowing Brittany will need the ford chevy to get to work. They ride in silence for a while,until Rachel breaks the ice.
"I always wanted kids. From the moment I saw Quinn,I knew that I wanted them with her and only her." Rachel said longingly,staring out the window. She replayed the night Quinn told her she loved her.
/
It was a foggy spring morning junior year and for some reason,Rachel could not sleep. She sat up,rubbing her eyes,and looked at herself in the mirror positioned on her drawer directly across the room. She turned on the lamp resting on her nightstand then grabbed I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou from under her pillow. As soon as she starts reading she hears a soft knock on her terrace door. When she walks over and pulls the curtain she is surprised to see a breathless Quinn standing on the balcony outside. Her hair tassled and wild,hazel eyes shining in the dim morning light,covered in a thin grey robe with no shoes on. Rachel quickly opens the door,motioning for her to come inside. Once they are settled, Rachel begins to rant angrily.
"What the hell Quinn! It's fourty degrees outside! You can't just show up uninvited in shorts and a grey robe that doesn't warm you at all! On top of that,you have no shoes on! I don't want you to get sick! Why are you here anyhow?" she huffs,her face beet red.
'I realized something really important. Something i should have realized the moment I set my eyes on you freshman year." Quinn laughed, walking up to Rachel and grabbing her hands softly.
"What exactly is that?" Rachel said,calming down a little when their hands meet.
"That I am head over heels in love with you. That I don't want you to be with anyone else. I want you to be mine.. Not Finn' Puck's. Just mine. I've been yours from the start but will you make it official?" Quinn says,taking a necklace out of her pocket and clasping it around Rachel's neck.
Rachel stares at her,tears in her eyes. "Yes." she simply says.
Quinn kisses her gentlly,elated with joy. That morning,they sleep in each other's arms,both happy and content...
/
Rachel wipes a tear away,smiling as they pull up to the airport parking lot.
"That's wonderful Rachel. " Santana says, finding a place to park then putting the car into park.
Santana gets Ellie out of the back seat,careful not to wake her,and locks Rachel's car quickly,handing her the keys. They walk into the airport and Santana walks over to a tall man in uniform,her name written on the cardboard in his left hand. She smiles at him and then greets him politely,following as he walks.
"You don't have to check in?" Rachel asks,confused.
"No,I come here so regularly. They know me well. Plus,there is a guard on the roof who checks everything. So don't worry about it Rachel. Everything is set." Santana explains,as they step into an elevator.
Santana silently wonders about Quinn,how she us doing. If she is doing well. Asurge of panic hits her as she stares down at the ceiling. What if they couldn't find her captors? What if Quinn is too badly bruised for Rachel to manage and she sinks right down to where she was when she first found out Quinn was probably never coming back home? She doesn't have time to dwell on it once the elevator screeches to a halt and the doors open.
They silently walk onto the platform and the soldier leads them to an anxious Quinn,who is standing next to a massively large private jet,leaning casually on the big mound of steel. As soon as Rachel sees her,she collapses on the ground,tears clouding her vision as she slowly slips into a dark,foggy haze. The last thing she sees is Quinn limping to her aide and a pale Santana,if thats even possible.