I do not own Glee or any of the original characters, It all belongs to RIB and Fox. Any characters you don't recognise are my own creations.
Thank you very much for your amazing reviews for this story so far and for your patience while waiting for this chapter, I really appreciate it! :)
R&R please.
Chapter 13
Santana glances sideways at her girlfriend, noticing how tightly Quinn grips onto the steering wheel and wishing that she had been more firm with her offer to drive. She turns her head to look at Olivia in the backseat and sighs in relief when she sees that the three year old is fast asleep. Her knee bounces nervously when they stop at a red light and her hand shoots out to gently squeeze Quinn's thigh in a reassuring manner.
"Are you sure you're okay to drive? I can take over if you'd like?" Santana offers softly.
"I'm fine," Quinn assures her. "I just need something to focus on or my mind will run all over the place, driving keeps me calm," she explains, "but I'm fine," she insists.
"Which way are you going?" Santana questions.
"I won't drive past the...the car," Quinn murmurs.
"Britt's gonna meet us at the hospital, she'll take Olivia home with her if we need to stay longer than planned," Santana murmurs, "is that okay with you?"
"Yeah, I don't want Olivia to be at the hospital for too long. You don't have to stay with me," Quinn says quietly.
"Yes, I do," Santana states simply, her tone of voice implying that she won't listen to any arguments. They fall back into silence as the light turns green, Santana leaving Quinn to focus on driving; her distraction from the piece of news they had learned not thirty minutes ago. She worries about what they'll find when they get to the hospital and she spends most of the car ride to the hospital going over all of the possible scenarios in her head. Santana groans inwardly when her cell phone blares out into the otherwise quiet car, knowing there's no way Olivia slept through it. A quick glance behind her confirms it and she sighs before placing her cell to her ear.
"Hey, papi. I'm a little busy right now, can I call you back later?" Santana requests tiredly. She frowns slightly as she listens to her father speak. "Yeah...we already know, we're headed there right now," she states quietly. Quinn casts a sideways glance at her girlfriend, easily working out what Santana and Carlos are discussing.
"Quinn, where are we going?" Olivia asks in confusion, her tiny fists rubbing her eyes as she attempts to wake up properly.
"Just...uh..just go back to sleep, baby girl," Quinn murmurs. She winces and silently curses herself for not being able to talk to her little sister properly but, honestly? She has no damn idea what to say to her.
"Okay, Papi. I'll see you soon." Quinn looks across at Santana as the other young woman ends her phonecall.
"Is he with my pare...them?" Quinn asks her softly and Santana nods subtly. "Are they okay?"
"He wouldn't say," Santana murmurs, sneaking a quick glance to Olivia in the back seat, noticing that the young child is watching them carefully. "Hey, pretty girl, did you have a nice nap?" she asks kindly.
"Uh huh," Olivia nods, "where are we going?" she questions again. Santana gazes over at Quinn, chewing the inside of her cheek nervously and catching the miniscule nod from her.
"Well, honey, we're going to the hospital," Santana tells her gently.
"Why are we going to the hospital? Do I have to get a shot?" Olivia questions warily and, despite the situation, Santana and Quinn chuckle quietly at the question.
"No, you don't need to get a shot," Santana reassures her. "Your mommy and daddy got into a tiny accident, honey, so we're gonna go see how they are."
"What kind of accident? Did they fall off the swing set? Cause I had to go to hospital when I did, I got four stitches in my finger," Olivia states proudly, holding her finger up for Santana to inspect, the older girl turning around in her seat as much as her seat belt allows her to.
"I bet you were very brave," Santana guesses, grinning gently at the serious nod from the three year old. "Your mommy and daddy's accident was a little more serious than that though," she acknowledges. "They had a little accident in their car, we're just gonna go see them and make sure they're okay."
"What if they're not?" Olivia whimpers.
"They will be, I promise," Santana informs her, holding out her pinkie to the toddler. Olivia studies it for a moment before nodding, seemingly satisfied, and wrapping her tiny pinkie around Santana's much larger one. She catches Quinn's gaze and frowns at the look of disapproval on the blonde's face but chooses not to bring it up right now, not while Olivia is in earshot.
0-00-0
Santana firmly grasps Olivia's hand as the tiny girl jumps out of the back of the car, a giggle erupting from her throat when Santana scoops her into her arms. Quinn sends her girlfriend a silent, grateful gaze while Santana handles looking after Olivia, allowing the older blonde to escape into her thoughts. The warm smile and wink that she receives as a response makes her lips pull into a soft smile.
"Where's mommy and daddy?" Olivia asks innocently, looking up at Santana, the unwavering trust in her eyes causing the teenager's heart to expand in her chest.
"They're inside, pretty girl, they need to stay inside so that the doctor can take care of them properly," Santana explains kindly and patiently.
"Brittany!" Olivia wrenches her hand out of Santana's when she notices the tall blonde approaching them, sprinting as fast as her little legs can take her and jumping into Brittany's arms.
"You shouldn't have promised her that," Quinn murmurs to her girlfriend, "don't get me wrong, I totally appreciate you taking charge and keeping her occupied, really I do but you shouldn't have promised her that."
"Promised her what?"
"That my parents are definitely okay, we don't know if they are," Quinn whispers. "She trusts you, she takes your promises to heart and if they're not okay..."
"You're right," Santana sighs, inwardly cursing herself. "I'm sorry, I didn't think, I was just so desperate to make her feel better that I didn't really think it through."
"It's okay. I mean, you're probably right...I just.."
"There's no need to explain, babe. I get it, you're just protecting her feelings, it's what a big sister does," Santana cuts her off.
"I don't need to protect her from you though," Quinn argues.
"You're not protecting her from me, you're protecting her from my inexperience," Santana chuckles. "I'm so new at this but you have been looking out for her ever since she was born, I was bound to make a mistake sometime," she shrugs, "the question is, can you forgive me?" Santana asks, somewhat flirtaciously.
"I guess I could," Quinn smirks, leaning forward to capture Santana's full lips with her own. "I feel awful," she sighs. "..guilty."
"Guilty? Why?" Santana asks in concern.
"When I heard about the accident, my first thought wasn't about their well being," Quinn mutters.
"What was it?" Santana questions, taking Quinn's hands into her own and squeezing them gently...reassuringly. Quinn stares down at the ground, hesitantly chewing on her bottom lip. "You can tell me anything, babe. I won't ever judge you, not for anything," Santana sincerely states.
"I felt...I felt like we might finally be...free," Quinn whispers, shame evident in her brilliant hazel eyes. "Like, now they might not be so terrible to us, that this will force them to get help or, at the very least, they will no longer be allowed to have Olivia...that I might get her."
"You shouldn't feel guilty about that, sweetheart. Of course you felt that way, you're thinking of Olivia...just like she needs you to," Santana tells her honestly. "Please don't feel guilty about that. No matter the circumstances right now, your parents are the only people who should feel guilty. This is their fault, it doesn't matter who was driving, both of them had been drinking. They are to blame for that and your awful home life."
"I doubt they'd ever feel guilty," Quinn scoffs, anger flashing across her perfect features.
"Let's just take this one step at a time," Santana says reasonably. "We'll go inside and find out exactly what's going on. If it's serious then Britt can take Olivia out of here," she adds, inclining her head in the direction of the little girl and their best friend.
"You're right," Quinn murmurs. "We'll just go inside and then go from there, I've dealt with so much shit with my parents before, this isn't gonna be any different," she sighs.
"There's my dad," Santana says quietly as they walk across the parking lot, both of them keeping a careful eye on Olivia as she giggles with Brittany a few yards ahead of them. Quinn looks up at the emergency room doors, easily spotting the older man as he paces outside. Carlos stops pacing when he notices them approaching, the grim expression on his face causing Quinn's heart to jump into her throat. She watches as the doctor gazes at his daughter, a slight shake of the head telling them that it's not good news.
To be continued..Thank you for reading, please leave a review to let me know what you think. Again, I apologise for the long wait!