Again. Thank you all for all of the wonderful comments! Here is chapter 8. I'll try to get chapter 9 up soon!


"What do you mean you know?" Quinn spat, "You knew all this time, and you didn't say anything?"

"Quinn, it's only been two days. And by the time I figured it out it was very obvious that you don't like me very much." Rachel explained.

"Well, you're not wrong there." Quinn mumbled.

"Quinn!" Brittany squealed, "She didn't mean that, Rachel. She's really nice when you get to know her. She's just scared." The blonde defended.

"It's fine. I understand. This is not the first time I have seen anger in response to a homosexual imprint." Rachel said, "It's very common."

"How do you know that?" Santana asked furrowing her brow.

"I told you. My dads are doctors. They are leading specialists in Phenylethylamine Imprinting and function in North America. They want me to follow in their footsteps and try to cram as much as they can about it into my brain." Rachel explained.

"Wait… so you're like… loaded. I mean, I already assumed from your car that you had to have money. But you have to be like super mega rich," Santana beamed at Quinn, "You got so lucky, Q."

"You have two dads?" Brittany asked.

"Shut up, Santana." Quinn scoffed.

Rachel chuckled at the three girls in front of her and leaned back against the wall, "You don't have to be scared of being gay, Quinn. It's perfectly normal. Your two best friends are gay and they are perfectly fine."

Rachel watched as Quinn bit her bottom lip and looked away from her. Something was wrong. "This isn't just about being gay is it?" Rachel asked.

"No." Quinn looked down at her lap as she worried her hands in her lap.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Rachel asked ducking her head to meet Quinn's eyes.

"That's exactly why we brought you here." Santana answered for the blonde.

"Alright. Let's talk then." Rachel said.

"I think Q should be the one to tell you." Santana whispered.

The blonde continued to stare down at her hands not responding to anyone's words. "Quinn?" Santana tried to get the blonde's attention but she wouldn't budge.

"Quinn? It's okay Rachel's trying to help you." Brittany added softly.

"It's okay," Rachel said, "Whenever she's ready. We have all night."

After a half hour of silence Santana was getting worried. Quinn had barely moved from her spot on the floor. Santana, Brittany, and Rachel had resorted to playing a game of monopoly to distract from Quinn's silence.

Santana gave Brittany a worried look.

I'm getting worried.

Me too

Should we do something?

Rachel said not to.

But this is Quinn. She never shuts down like this.

She's dealing with a lot San. Maybe she needs a little time to herself. Maybe she needs a hug!

Britt you know how she feels about that when she's not expecting it. Maybe she needs a beer?

Remember what happened last time Quinn got drunk?

Britt, that was hilarious… she definitely needs a beer.

"Hey, Quinn, do you want a drink?" Santana asked the blonde.

The blonde shook her head no and Santana sighed heavily, I tried.

Maybe we should give them some space?

You want to leave her alone with Rachel?

I trust Rachel. She's nice, and she's smart, and pretty, and she wants to help.

Santana smiled at her mate, Okay, Britt Britt.

The Latina cleared her throat and stood from her spot on the bed, "Brittany and I are going to uh-go make drinks."

Brittany glared at Santana but the girl just shrugged, I panicked.

"We'll be back later. Does anyone want anything specific?" Santana offered to the group.

"Vodka," Quinn spoke for the first time in over an hour, "All of the vodka."

"Um. Okay. It might be awhile though, so you guys just sit tight and we'll be back." Santana added knowing she may not return with any alcohol at all.

The two girls walked out of the room and closed the door behind them. Rachel sat on the bed with the unfinished game of monopoly and tried to look anywhere other than at Quinn. As the minutes ticked by, the brunette felt more and more awkward. "We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. I understand. You just met me. I completely understand if you aren't comfortable sharing your personal life with me right now." Rachel assured the girl, "I can even leave. If you want me to." The diva added.

"No." Quinn replied, "don't go. I just need. I don't know what I need. Maybe let's start with something else." Quinn said.

"I can tell you more about myself." Rachel offered.

"Okay."

Rachel moved from her place on the bed and sat on the floor closer to Quinn. "Okay. Where should I start? Maybe some interesting facts. I keep a sheet of gold stars in my backpack and my purse because whenever I sign an audition list I put a gold star next to my name."

The blonde chuckled and looked up at Rachel. "Are you serious?"

"Of course! It's a metaphor for the star I am destined to be." Rachel said proudly.

"That is definitely an interesting fact." Quinn said with a small smile.

"What else? Oh! I love food. The key to my heart is well cooked food. So you better learn vegan recipes now." Rachel teased.

"I make no promises." The blonde replied, "My favorite food is bacon. So we might have a problem."

"I think I can overlook that for you. Or you can just eat vegan turkey?" Rachel tried.

"Never," Quinn replied quickly.

"Well, I tried." The diva shrugged.

"It's my dad." Quinn mumbled.

"What?"

"My dad. That's the problem. He's-not a good man." Quinn continued.

"What do you mean?" Rachel asked.

"He-you have to promise not to tell anyone. Okay? You have to. If he finds out I talk about anything that goes on in our house it will just get worse." Quinn pleased, "Please."

"Okay."

"Promise."

"I promise."

"He hits me. A lot. For everything. If I so much as look at him wrong he raises his hand. He hits my mom too. But she's too scared to stand up to him. I can't blame her. If he ever finds out I am gay. I don't know if he will be satisfied with just leaving a bruise. I'll lose everything. He will probably beat me and then kick me out on the street. Or worse."

Rachel placed a hand on Quinn's, "You don't have to be scared Quinn. I can help you. My dads, they would have no problem taking you in. We have the money, and the space. We can hire lawyers. Get security guards. Whatever it takes to keep you safe. We can do it."

"No. That's not enough. He's too close. He knows too many people in Lima. He'll find a way." Quinn sounded so scared and Rachel just wanted to take all of that fear away and replace it with love and kindness and safety.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I've never told anyone before but I've tried to run. I've tried to just drive out of Ohio. I've even packed some bags. For the last three years I've tried to find a way out. Every summer I tell Brittany and Santana that I'm going on a road trip. They never drive down my street because when my dad found out he actually tried to get them kicked out of Lima. It didn't work. But they don't go near my house. Not unless I need them to. But the point is. I tell them I'm going on a road trip. I pack some bags. One every day until I have three full bags of clothes and food and water. And then I get in my car and I drive. I've tried three times and every time somehow he has found me. The first time he gave me a warning. The second time he broke four of my ribs. The third time I ended up in the hospital for a week with a concussion and a broken nose. I had to have surgery to fix my nose job. There's no way that I can escape from him. Not until I go to college and just fade away from them. That's the only way. I'll change my name, get a new identity. I don't care. I'll find a way. When the time is right."

"Quinn I need to get you may from him. I don't care how. I need to. I can't leave you with a man who treats you like this." Rachel moved closer to the blonde and took both of Quinn's hands in her own, "Please let me help you."

"I can't. I'm sorry." Quinn pulled her hands away and folded them in her lap, "That's why I can't open up to you. I can't imprint with you. I can't even bond with you. I can't risk putting you or me in that kind of danger."

"You can't punish yourself because of this. You deserve to be happy." Rachel said.

"I've been doing it my entire life. I can keep doing it for a little longer."

"What if we just keep it a secret? That's not that hard. I can help protect you from your family." Rachel tried.

"That's what Santana wants me to do. But I'm so scared. What if he finds out?"

"Think about it this way. If we are together. If we create a strong bond, we can reach a mind link. And I'll be able to hear you and feel you all day no matter what. If anything ever goes wrong. I'll know."

"Well, when you put it that way…" Rachel could see the wheels turning in the blonde's mind, "I guess that's a good point. How do we do it?"

"Well… you've taken health right?" The diva asked.

"I mean yeah, but they only go over heterosexual bonding."

"Okay, I'll be blunt. If you want to strengthen a bond quickly, you need two parts. The emotional and physical bond." Rachel said.

"What does that mean?"

"We need to have sex."