Chapter 11: The Aftermath Part 1

"Noah, I need you to go after Quinn." Rachel said anxiously, "I have no idea how she is going to react to this but it won't be good." She started pacing around the room.

"Nope, not until you at least tell me why my Baby Mama looks like shit." He stood in the living room with his arms crossed looking aggravated, "I came running as soon as you called and I put my body in the middle of those two loons, you owe me something so spill JewBabe!"

Rachel stopped pacing and faced Noah Puckerman. She could see the obstinate look on his face and knew he would not help her anymore until she told him something.

"Fine, Noah, fine, I know you heard at least the tail end of the fight, what did you hear?"

"Well after a lot of swear words in Spanish and she said some really good nasty ones just FYI," the handsome dark haired man smirked at Rachel, "San was screaming something about pressing charges and assault and child abuse."

Rachel sat down and held her head in her hands not speaking for a long moment, "What do you remember about Quinn's parents?" She said finally looking into Puck's dark eyes.

Puck's handsome face grew dark and his brown eyes flashed dangerously, "Her father was a drunken abusive prick and Judy was a lush. Neither one of them was worth a shit and Q would have been better off raised by wolves, what does that have to do with anything?"

Rachel raised her head and looked at Puck with such sadness and pain he felt his heart clench.

"What Rachel? What did they do? I'll kill that motherfucker if he laid a hand on Q!" Puck spit out angrily.

"They didn't do anything Noah, except damage and hurt Quinn in the past and pass on the gene for alcoholism."

"What are you telling me?" He said dangerously.

"She's drinking Noah, way past what could be considered normal, daily, and a lot. San and I were trying to figure out how to get her help when all this happened. It all blew up in our faces, we waited too long."

Sitting down next to Rachel he gently reached over and took both her delicate hands in his own large calloused ones and all but pleaded with the diva, "What happened Rachel, please tell me, I want to help her, I owe her!"

Rachel sighed sadly and made a decision, they were beyond secrets now, this was life and death, "Besides the drinking Noah, she is mixing booze with pills, she has totally withdrawn, her personality has changed back to Q the HBIC and last night she totally lost it with Shannon. Quinn said it was just a spanking but she left bruises Noah, on the baby. She has hardly ever even raised her voice to Shannon let alone physically disciplined her. It's all crazy and she refuses to admit she has a problem. She says that Santana has ruined her life and turned her into Judy. She can't see it is the drinking that is destroying her." Rachel started to cry softly.

"Jesus Christ, what a fucking mess." Puck huffed incredulously.

"Yes indeed Noah, a great big fucking mess." Rachel sighed and leaned back on the couch.

"Hey watch the fucking language JewBabe, my virgin ears!"

Rachel sat up indignantly with angry words at the tip of her tongue when she noticed the mischief dancing in her old friend's eyes and the familiar smirk plastered on his face and she started to laugh. She could always rely on Noah to lighten her mood.

Pretty soon they were hugging each other laughing uproariously which just as quickly turned to tears; tears of anger and pain and fear for their old and dear friend whose life was currently veering dangerously out of control.

Puck gave Rachel one last awkward pat on her back and stood up wiping his face on his hands in embarrassment for showing emotion and then wiped his hands on his jeans, "I'll find her, don't worry Rachel, I'll keep her safe."

"Do not get her drunk Noah!"

"I have a feeling by the time I find her it will be too late for that, but I will keep her safe and out of trouble, I promise, keep your phone close and I'll keep you updated."

Rachel walked over to her purse and fished her keys out and tossed them to her friend, "Get her to my place if you can and keep her there. Do I have to tell you not to get drunk and sleep with her?"

Puck looked insulted, "No, of course not Rachel, this is serious; I'm not stupid you know!"

"I'm sorry Noah, I am not myself today." Rachel apologized sincerely, "Please don't leave her alone, I'm afraid of what the guilt of seeing those pictures of Shannon's bruises might lead her to do."

"I won't babe, I promise, I got this!" He turned and walked out of the house.

Rachel headed back to check on her other heartbroken friend.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Santana stormed out of the living room and into the bathroom, slamming the door with all her might. She stared at the angry wild eyed stranger in the mirror and punched it. The glass shattered on impact and she split open the knuckles on her already bruised left hand. Just that quickly her anger abandoned her leaving only a sick feeling of loss.

She sank to the bathroom floor and held her head in her hands as blood and tears mingled. The adrenaline from the past few hours had drained away leaving her feeling weak and nauseous.

"I am Shannon's biological mother, and you are nothing to her in the eyes of the courts."

Santana kept hearing Quinn's angry bitter hateful words over and over in her head. Was her wife so far gone that she would sink to this? To dragging them into courtrooms and before lawyers and judges and causing rifts so deep they could never be mended? To traumatize Shannon more than she already had been just to hurt Santana?

Santana had legally adopted Shannon in New York after her birth so she wasn't as concerned about the validity of the threat. Deep down inside Santana just knew that the girl she fell in love with and the woman she married would never have thought anything so spiteful let alone said it out loud.

The heartbroken Latina remembered Rachel asking Quinn, "Who are you?" That was the million dollar question, "Who was that fucking harpy in the living room, it sure as shit was not my wife." Santana said out loud dragging herself up to a standing position, holding onto the marble sink for support.

She heard Rachel's gentle but insistent knocking on the door, "San please open the door, I'm worried about you, please?"

Santana smiled gently, she had always considered Rachel a friend but she was always Quinn's best friend not hers. This last week she had come to see the brunette diva with new admiring eyes. The tiny singer was a pit bull. She was so glad for the love and loyalty that the tiny spirited diva was showing to Quinn, Shannon and herself. Rachel had been fair, kind, understanding and steadfast in her support and Santana was grateful for her presence.

She steeled herself for what she was sure would be Rachel's very vocal displeasure with Santana's behavior as she leaned over and unlocked the bathroom door.

Santana very nearly laughed as she took in the sight of the tiny diva standing there with her hands on her hips glaring at her.

"I heard glass breaking Santana, what have you done?"

Santana vaguely waved her bleeding left hand around in the air gesturing at the mirror.

She heard Rachel's sharp intake of breath as she took in the broken glass and the blood, "Oh Santana are you badly hurt?"

Santana snorted, "You mean my hand, or my heart?" She said sardonically. She immediately felt guilty as she watched Rachel's soft brown eyes fill with tears and regret, "I'm sorry Rach, I didn't mean to be flippant."

Rachel sniffed and waved off her apology, "It's the situation that hurts me so much Santana; Shannon's pain, your pain, Quinn's pain." She was digging around the bathroom cupboards for a first aid kit.

Santana took her uninjured hand and gently stopped Rachel's incessant movement. She carefully cupped her friend's cheek, "How about your pain? She said some awful things to you as well."

"My Quinn didn't say anything to me and that Quinn is who we need to get back home!" Rachel said confidently, "Now where is a first aid kit already, you are bleeding all over the place and we need to get you patched up and go get Shannon for our pizza, movie and ice cream night."

Smiling at her friend's never ending optimism, Santana reached over Rachel's head and grabbed the first aid kit off the top shelf of the cupboard, "Right here short stuff!"

She handed it to Rachel, "You know Rach that is exactly what I was sitting in here thinking about."

Rachel looked up from Santana's battered hand and into her nearly coal black eyes and raised her eyebrows inquisitively.

"You know about it being a stranger in the living room saying all those awful things, it sure wasn't my Q. Don't get me wrong, we can both get out of line when we lose our tempers as you've witnessed in the past, but we had lines that we would never cross, not since high school. It was unspoken you know, but we knew not to go that far. Not with each other and I know for Quinn not with you either!"

Santana looked back into soft chocolate brown eyes and whispered sadly, "My Quinn would have never crossed those lines. Not with Shannon last night and not with me and you today."

Rachel nodded sadly as Santana took a deep calming breath and continued, "That bitch in the living room was not my wife and I know I said some awful stuff too but I made up my mind, I want my Q back, I want my wife back. You were right Shannon needs her Mama back and you need your best friend back! We need to find a way to get OUR Quinn back."

The brunette diva sat down on the edge of the bathtub and held the first aid kit in her hand as she looked at Santana questioningly, "But how San, I really can't think of how to get her back especially now when she seems so far gone already."

Santana sat down on the closed toilet seat and said, "I don't know Rach, not just yet but we will get her back, I promise we will."

The two friends sat across from each other and reached across the divide and held each other's hand and silently sealed a pact to save the woman they both loved so much.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Puck found Quinn in the fourth bar he searched. He knew she wouldn't be caught dead in a dive bar, she was a Fabray after all and Fabray's had standards. Even as hard as Quinn had tried to escape the shackles of her upbringing, Puck knew some habits never died.

He sat far enough away that she wouldn't catch sight of him but close enough to get a good look at her. She had cleaned up but her lip was still swollen and a little bruise had formed on her jawline.

Even with all that she was a beauty, there was no denying the facts. Even looking run down and tired and a little beat up she was a classic beauty and he knew the kind of guys that would be hitting on her as the night progressed, "Hell," he snorted, "I am one of those guys."

Puck knew he was walking a fine line, Santana was the soft, sentimental drunk but Quinn was the angry kind. He didn't want to wait too long to try to winnow his way into her good graces tonight. She might haul off and deck him and he probably deserved it if truth be told.

They had a complicated relationship since Beth. No one could really understand the bond they had, the loss they shared, the pain they lived with. He had watched her crazy insane grief in high school helplessly and the guilt he bore had eaten at him until Santana had come along and saved Quinn. He would forever be grateful to the fiery Latina for saving Quinn when he could not.

Maybe tonight he could help repay both his ex-lovers.

While Quinn had kept her good girl Fabray game face on for almost everyone else in the world she never seemed to wear it around Puck. In a strange way they understood each other and she was a little more real, a little more honest around him than she was around the rest of the world and he was banking on that tonight.

Sauntering over to where Quinn was sitting and sipping on a vodka cranberry he slid into the seat next to her, "Hey, how's it going?" He said trying to keep it casual.

"What the hell do you want?" She said coldly never looking up from her drink, "Why aren't you back at my house with the lynching party?"

"Maybe I don't think you deserve to be lynched." He shrugged easily.

"You seem to be the only one then." She quickly swallowed the dregs of her drink and motioned to the bartender for another, "You want something?"

"Give me a draft if that isn't too low brow for this high class establishment." He smirked at her as she glared at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Can I ask you something Q?"

"Can I stop you Puck?"

He couldn't gauge if she was drunk enough for this conversation yet but he gave it a shot anyway; "Do you think you deserve to be lynched?"

"Fuck off and leave me alone Puck, I don't need a goddamn shrink."

Nope clearly not drunk enough yet, oh well cat's out of the bag now, "Then why are you acting so fucking guilty?"

The beautiful blonde turned her back on him and tried to ignore him. She finished her drink and ordered yet another as he quietly sipped his beer. After a full half hour and three vodka cranberries later, Quinn tried to stand up to go to the bathroom.

"Whoa easy there babe, let me help you. Where you headed?" He said gently taking her elbow and trying to guide her.

"Yeah, thanks but no thanks, I know your kind of help and I had enough of that ten years ago." She slurred nastily.

He stopped her and leaned down to her level to look her in the beautiful hazel eyes that still haunted him at times, "I was a total and complete shit heel to you Quinn and I am so sorry. I have no excuse except I was a 16 year old teenage boy in way over my head. I watched you drowning and I didn't even try to help. I didn't know what to do. Let me help now? Please?"

She faltered for a moment and stared with an open mouth at the father of her first born child. He had never apologized to her before and she was taken aback and seeing the shattered and completely sincere look in his eyes she just didn't have the heart to be a bitch to him anymore tonight.

"Come on Q, let me take you back to Berry's place, we can talk or drink or eat or puke or whatever you need."

"You do remember I'm a lesbian now right?"

"Why does everyone think I am some man whore with no conscious?"

"Was that a serious question?"

Puck looked at her and smirked, "No, I guess we best leave that one alone."

"Good, let's get out of here." The beautiful blonde headed for the door.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

After watching Beauty and The Beast, The Little Mermaid, and Finding Nemo; Shannon lay curled up against her Mami, sound asleep and clutching blankie and Moose.

"You know Berry, I totally blame you for her love of all things musical."

Rachel sat at the other end of the couch with her feet tucked under her and a blanket wrapped around her feet. She had a bowl of popcorn on her lap and she was looking fondly at Shannon, "So we are back to Berry again are we? I thought we had at least progressed to Rachel after today." Rachel grinned mischievously at the Latina sitting at the other end of the couch.

"Sorry Rachel, that much cuteness makes me snarky." Rachel laughed out loud in delight. She was happy that they had all been able to have a drama free evening. Noah had texted her that he and Quinn were back at her apartment and she was drunk but safe.

"San do you mind if sleep here tonight, I want to give Quinn some space."

"Of course not and you never have to ask, you know that, you are family." Santana looked over her sleeping beauty and smiled genuinely at her friend.

"As a matter of fact," Santana started out in a teasing tone, "If I wasn't already married and in love with a crazy blonde, I would so jump all over that." She wiggled her eyebrows up and down in a teasing sexy manner.

Rachel laughed in genuine amusement.

"What are you laughing at midget? I am totally hot!" Santana said indignantly.

Rachel couldn't stop laughing, "Oh my god Santana can you even imagine what a disaster that would be, we would kill each other in record time."

Santana snorted out loud, "Fuck yeah we would but it would be totally hot while it lasted."

Rachel stood up and stretched and yawned, "Put your baby to bed you crazy person and I will see you in the morning and we will figure out what to do next!"

Santana stood up and quickly leaned over and hugged Rachel and just as quickly let go, picked up Shannon and headed off down to her daughter's bedroom, "Goodnight Berry."

"Goodnight Santana!" She whispered quietly, feeling like she belonged and feeling loved.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Quinn wobbled straight from Rachel's front door to the freezer and grabbed the bottle of vodka that was chilling. Grabbing a glass she filled it halfway with straight vodka and leaned against the counter.

Puck walking behind followed her into the kitchen, "You sure that's what you want Q? I can make some toast or grilled cheese for you? I'm afraid that's all the food I know how to cook though without burning."

Quinn kept sipping her drink and waved Puck off without even making eye contact.

Puck sighed; it was going to be a long night, "Let's go sit in the living room then, we can talk or watch TV or something."

Quinn pushed up off the counter, grabbed the half full bottle and staggered into the living room flopping heavily onto the couch, slopping her drink over the sides of the glass.

Puck watched sadly from the kitchen doorway before heading into the living room to join Quinn. He was not sure what to say but was determined to try to reach their Q and make her see reason.

He sat down in the chair and watched the blonde drink for another minute or two, "So tell me now, why do you think you need to be lynched?"

Bloodshot hazel eyes slowly lifted and made eye contact for the first time since they got home and flashed with such naked emotion and pain that Puck felt his heart skip a beat. It only lasted a moment before the famous Fabray walls went right back up again.

"Why do you care?" She turned her attention back to her drink.

Puck shrugged his muscular shoulders, "Honestly? I am not sure. It could be this all-consuming sense of guilt I feel about you and Beth, it could be because I've never seen you happier than you were the day you married S, it could be because of Shannon or it could be because my JewBabe will kick my ass if leave you like this."

Quinn snorted in derision, "All very good reasons in your little pea brain I am sure, wildly inaccurate as they are, except for Rachel, and she can be a little scary, I'll give you that one."

Puck let the insults roll off him, he had years of practice dealing with insults from his girls, they didn't even phase him anymore, "No shit, she is like the size of the average garden gnome but she scares the crap out of me when she gets pissed off."

Quinn looked at Puck drunkenly and nodded solemnly, the alcohol finally hitting her hard.

"How much did you hear back at the house? Rachel had you come over didn't she?" Quinn was starting to slur a little but she was still holding herself together.

The handsome man nodded in affirmation, "I pretty much heard everything." Puck decided to bend the truth a little to protect Rachel's confidences.

"Then why are you asking me about the lynching? You obviously heard why they want to lynch me. I hurt everyone, I always do, and anyone who is stupid enough to get close to me gets destroyed. It's the Fabray curse."

"I didn't ask that, I asked if you thought you deserved to be lynched and sorry Q but I call bullshit on the whole Fabray curse thing. That's just self-pity and it gives you a good excuse to treat everyone including yourself like shit."

"Fuck you Puckerman, you want an answer? Then yes, I deserve the worse that life can offer ok? San was right you know? I left her because I knew she was gonna catch on to the drinking as soon as she got time to notice me again. I ran to Rachel, used her and then treated her like shit tonight and the worst, the absolute worst I have ever done in my life? I beat my child Puck; I left bruises on my baby!" The blonde was gesturing wildly as her voice got louder and louder, "I deserve to die and we haven't even mentioned Beth or you or my parents or the awful shit I said to San tonight!" She finished emotionally her eyes shining with angry tears.

Puck sat there stunned. He knew Quinn still felt guilty about Beth but he had no idea how fucked up her head really was and he had no idea how to help.

"Q, I am gonna tell you some cold hard truths here ok and I don't even know if you're gonna remember them in the morning, or if you are ever gonna forgive me if you do, but it's the only thing I know to do here ok?"

"Go for it, do your worst!" Quinn bluffed drunkenly her old friend's words striking icy cold fear into her heart making her feel number than the vodka had made her feel.

"You're a drunk Q, you can't handle booze, you never could. I've seen it before, some people can handle it some can't. You can't, simple as that. It's changed you and it's been slow and sneaky and I don't think you even see all the ways it's changed you. It's just the way things are. The person who hit her kid, that's not you, not the real you. I've seen you with Shannon since the minute she was born, you love each other, and you need each other. The person who told S you were gonna take her kid from her? That's not you either. It's the booze babe and it makes you mean and lonely and guilty and sad. You think it takes your pain away but it doesn't. It just adds more guilt and more pain. It's the same all over babe, you think the booze is what is helping you survive, and you think it's the answer to your problems but it's a lie, the booze is the problem Quinn."

Quinn huffed in disbelief, "Great, so now you got all the answers huh? So if you have all the answers why are you still such a loser, huh?"

"Go ahead Q, hide behind your walls and your booze and your guilt. Just so we are clear though, when the day comes, and it will, that you wake up alone and have no one left to piss on and no one will take your calls and no one will give a shit if your alive or dead and you look in the mirror and see your mom, make sure you blame the right person."

"Oh believe me, I am clear on whose fault it is, it's that prick Russell's fault for destroying me and my mother."

"No Q, it will be your fault and yours alone." He said clearly with sadness and compassion.

Quinn's face froze and she stood up unstably. She leaned over and threw her drink in Puck's face, "Get out you motherfucker and don't ever come back. You're to blame as well you bastard, the night I got drunk and slept with your sorry ass was just the beginning of the end!" She screamed and started swinging wildly at Puck crying hysterically.

The ex-football player grabbed her arms and tried to hold her still, "This choice is yours Q, I will check you into rehab and be with you every step of the way. I will never leave you. I will even go to meetings with you, whatever you need but you gotta want your life back. You have to make the choice to believe you are worth saving."

"Leave me alone and let me go you bastard. I am not worth saving and Shannon and San and Rachel and even you Puck are all better off without me just like my family never once looked back after dumping me, I am not worth loving, don't you get it?" The blonde continued struggling in his arms.

"Bullshit, you have something your mom never had Q; a partner who loves you and respects you and needs you. You have friends who will never abandon you if you just admit you need help. What about Shannon, huh? Is your drinking yourself straight out of her life and into an early grave really less of an abandonment than what your fucking useless family did to you?"

Quinn stopped struggling and grabbed Puck with all her strength and held on like she was afraid of disappearing, sobbing like a little girl, "Oh God Puck stop, please stop talking, I can't do this, I am not strong enough to do this can't you see?"

"You don't have to be strong enough Q, you just have to for once in your stubborn hard-headed life lean on us for once. You don't have to do this alone."

"No Puck, what I've done has been unforgiveable."

"Everyone loves you and everyone will forgive you and one day maybe you can forgive yourself but you gotta let us help you babe, please, I am begging and I never beg for anything, well except maybe for sex, huh?" He pushed the blonde back away from his chest and wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.

She smiled an anemic pathetic attempt at a smile but at least it was something.

"Q please, we can go tonight, we go to the ER and we can get you checked in for detox and find you a bed at a rehab."

"I need to think about it Puck, I don't think I can do this." Quinn sat down on the floor in despair and started to wipe her face with the sleeves of Puck's shirt.

"No, no more thinking we go now or you won't go in the morning and you know it."

Quinn just nodded, "Alright but can you do me a favor?"

"Anything babe, just ask."

"Can you go into my room and pack me a few things; some tee shirts, sweats, and my toothbrush? I'm not sure I can stand up anymore." She tried to smile.

Puck stood and gently pulled Quinn to her feet, "Ok babe, you sit on the couch and I will go pack, I will be 5 minutes and then we go alright?"

Quinn nodded sniffing gently and smiling up at her friend half-heartedly, "It's a deal!" The blonde tried to sound brave but she was terrified.

"I'll be right back Q!" Puck got her settled on the couch and took the bottle from the end table and headed back to her bedroom.

He looked in her closet and found an overnight bag and started to lightly pack. He put in some clothes and her tooth and hair brush and the picture of her and S and Shannon from her nightstand.

Puck was scared for his friend, but he just knew that with everyone loving and supporting her she could get through this. He was serious; he would never leave her side as long as she wanted him there.

He knew Santana was pissed off but he also knew she still loved Quinn and would find a way to forgive her, and Rachel and Shannon were no brainers. Rachel couldn't hold a grudge to save her life and Shannon was young enough to forget the worst of her Mama's behavior besides she loved Quinn with all her heart.

Puck smiled to himself and breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't wait to get to Santana and Rachel and let them know she had checked herself into the hospital. It really was gonna be ok, they weren't going to lose the blonde they all loved so much. One day with enough time she would learn to love and forgive herself too, Puck was sure of it.

He headed into the living room and saw Quinn was not lying on the couch anymore. Puck was just about to check the bathroom when he noticed the front door was open, "Fuck, oh no, no, no, no! Jesus Christ you fucking pain in the ass hard head!" He screamed out loud heading into the hallway.

Puck turned to grab his keys out of the bowl next to the door and froze feeling ice water race through his veins. The keys weren't there, he quickly rifled through his pockets, maybe he still had them but they weren't there either.

He leaned against the door breathing heavily in fear and panic. Quinn had left, she had taken his car keys, and she couldn't walk so she certainly couldn't drive. He was frozen for a moment until reason returned and he thought maybe he could catch her, she was drunk and he wasn't. Maybe they still had a chance.

Puck raced down the stairs not even waiting for the elevator bursting through the parking garage doors looking wildly around for his car but it was too late it was gone and so was Quinn Fabray.

He sat down on the cold garage floor and fished his cell phone out of his pocket and listened while it rang until it went straight to Quinn's voicemail. Punching out new numbers in sadness and despair he waited until her heard a tired voice answer, "San? I'm so sorry, I fucked up big time!" He started crying into the phone.