Disclaimer: I don't have any rights to the characters.

I am not a doctor so no I do not know any of the medical facts.

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Demetri was right next to the bed just as he promised Rachel he would be. The two of them were watching TV together when suddenly Rachel started to groan.

"Rachel, honey, are you okay? What's wrong? Are you in pain?" Rachel couldn't answer. The pain was too searing. All she could do was moan. Demetri hit the call button while trying to sooth his daughter. The doctor and nurses came rushing in.

The doctor moved her gown to get a better look at her stomach, which she was clutching. He immediately wheeled her out of the room. Katja and Brittany walked in two hours later. "Where's Rachel?"

"She started clutching her stomach in pain and the doctors took her somewhere." At that moment the nurses pushed a sleeping Rachel into the room.

"She ended up getting appendicitis while here so we had to go in and remove her appendix. Ordinarily this kind of surgery only takes half an hour, but due to her injuries we had to be extra cautious, so it took a little longer. Her recovery from the incident in the woods was not slowed down in anyway."

"Thank you ma'am," Demetri said as Katja and Brittany were busy hovering over Rachel. He went back and joined his family.

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A few days after the appendix scare and Rachel was doing much better. She was starting to get to know her family and they really hit it off. Everyone knew though that the hard part had yet to come. On top of her recovery she had to readjust to a different way of living.

Brittany left for school that morning. Demetri and Katja stayed with her until she fell asleep after lunch.

Rachel woke up a couple hours later. She saw Brittany standing by the door, "Hey Brittany."

"Hi Rach, I brought some friends with me today. They really wanted to see you again. The last time they saw you was before you woke up yesterday." Quinn and Santana slowly walked into the room.

"Hey Rachel."

"Hi Rach," Quinn said while looking towards her feet.

"Hello Santana, Hello Quinn. Not to be mean but why are you two here? I mean you never really liked me."

"Well I never disliked you Ray. By the way I would call you R like I call Quinn Q or Brittany B, but it makes me think of pirates. Anyway I don't even know why I treated you how I did. I guess I was trying to keep up the badass bitch image I created. I'm really sorry."

"I was… I guess… Oh God why is this so hard to say."

"Thank you Santana, I accept your apology." Rachel turned to Quinn, "Are you, Miss Fabray, trying to tell me that you've had a crush on me and were trying to hide it and/or make it disappear?"

Quinn's jaw dropped, "How'd you-"

"Quinn I spent a lot of time observing people since I really didn't have anyone to talk to. Anyone who watched you closely enough could have figured it out. By the way I forgive you too."

Quinn shuffled over to the chair next to the bed that Katja or Demetri usually occupied. They had both gone home to freshen up and rest because Brittany planned on sleeping in Rachel's room. It was a Friday night so they had no problem with her spending the night with Rachel. Quinn sat down and laid her burning red face into Rachel's mattress. Rachel giggled and ran her hand over Quinn's head.

"If it makes you feel any better I've had a crush on you too. I still do." Quinn lifted her head and smiled at Rachel. Rachel smiled back and patted the bed. Quinn gently moved to sit next to Rachel before giving her a hug. Brittany and Santana dragged the other bed in the room over and put it next to Rachel's. All four girls sat talking and laughing as they got to know each other. They were surprised at just how much each of them hid who they really were.

Santana looked at Rachel, "What happened to you in the woods? When we found you, you were in really bad shape."

"Well first I made a lot of mistakes that day. I was upset and not thinking things through. First I left without telling anyone; second I left without my pack. Third I wandered off the paths, and last I planned to not return until nightfall. I realized I was lost after a few hours and started to try and find my way back. Well I ended up pausing to rest and think in the worst possible place. I ended up standing between a mother bear and her cub."

Quinn wrapped her arms around Rachel from her spot next to her. "Wait, you mean…"

"Yup, I was mauled by a bear. Then I got up and tried to find my way back. At one point the blood loss finally got to me. That must be when you guys found me." All three girls had tears running down their faces at the thought of what Rachel went through. They fell asleep watching movies that night.

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Next chapter will be the first one out of the hospital… I think, who knows sometimes the story writes itself.