"Rachel..."
"C-come on, wake u-up."
"Is she okay? What happened?"
"I don't know, she left for the gym four hours ago. I just found her here."
"Shhh, she's coming around."
Rachel's eyes fluttered open and she was greeted with a painful pounding in the back of her skull. When her blurry vision cleared she saw Tina, Kurt, and Mercedes crouching over her. In her current state, the first thing that came to mind was-
"Kurt... Why are you in the girl's locker room?"
"Looking for you, of course." Kurt stated, standing up.
"R-Rach, what h-happened? Are y-you okay? How l-long h-have you been here for?" Tina stuttered.
Rachel groaned and grabbed her head.
"Too many questions." she grumbled.
"Come on, we got to bring her to Holly." Mercedes said.
"Can you stand?" Kurt asked concernedly.
Without answering the question, Rachel stood shakily to her feet using the lockers for support.
"I'm fine... I just pushed myself too hard, I guess."
Kurt glanced at her suspiciously.
"Rachel you know you can tell us if something happened. We're you're friends."
"I'm being honest, Kurt. I'll try not to push myself too hard next time."
"Y-you got t-to take better care of yourself, Rachel." Tina said disapprovingly.
Rachel flashed Tina her best smile.
"Don't worry I will."
"Are you sure you're okay, Rachel?" Kurt asked.
"I'm fine. In fact it was like taking a refreshing afternoon nap."
"Rach... It's 8 o'clock."
"What!"
How long have I been out for?
0o0o0o0o0o0
She felt horrible lying to her friends. She prides herself on being honest, even if it's painful, but in circumstances like these, it wasn't any of their business. She didn't want them to get involved. She had seen a side of Quinn Fabray that she would never have thought existed.
She needed to find her. She wants to know what's going on, Quinn had no right to treat her in such a manner. She had never seen anyone that angry before.
The only thing she could pick up from Quinn's rant was her yelling at her about Noah. First of all, nothing happened. It was over as soon as it began. Second of all, she had no idea how Quinn found out about that... unless...
"Noah!"
Noah turned away from his jock friends, who scowled at Rachel for interrupting, and started walking over to Rachel wearing his goofy smile.
"Sup', Princess. Coming back for round two?" he asked jokingly, wiggling his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.
"What did you tell Quinn?"
Noah frowned.
"Quinn's back? I thought she wasn't coming back until tomorrow?"
"So... you didn't tell her about... what happened?" Rachel whispered, not wanting anyone to overhear.
"What? No! I'm stupid, not suicidal. If Quinn found out she would... she would create an icicle sword, chop my head off, than parade it around the school on a pike."
"Oh... Did you tell anyone else?"
"Rachel, what's going on? Did something happen?"
"Just tell me, did you tell anyone?"
"NO! I wouldn't-"
"Fine... I believe you, just keep it quiet."
"Good..." Noah muttered "We're good right?"
"Yes Noah, we're fine." she answered giving him an apologetic smile "Can I ask you for a favour?"
"Are you okay? I'm here for you, you know-" Noah started, seeing the nervous look on Rachel's face.
"Can you tell me where Quinn's room is?" Rachel asked, quickly interrupting Noah's soon-to-be speech.
"What! You're not going to tell her are you!"
I don't have to she already knows.
"No worries, Noah. I have no intention of upsetting Quinn with more troubling news."
"I care about Quinn. I care about you too. I couldn't stand it if-"
"Noah." she smiled and hugged him. She pulled away smiling up at him. "You have to learn to relax."
0o0o0o0o0o0
"QUINN FABRAY, I DEMAND THAT YOU OPEN YOUR DOOR THIS INSTANT!" Rachel screeched, pounding on the door with all her strength causing quite a ruckus. Sure, she attracted some strange looks from people who were passing and covering their ears because of her volume, but this was a desperate measure.
"IF YOU DO NOT OPEN THIS DOOR I WILL-" the door swung open to reveal a pissed off Harmony wearing only a towel, her hair still wet giving her the assumption that she just got out of the shower.
"Scream..." she ended weakly, dropping her hand back to her side.
"Look, Yentl." Harmony sneered. "Your kind of interrupting something important. Besides Quinn isn't even here at the moment."
"Uh... Sorry. Do you know where she is?" Rachel asked, averting her eyes from Harmony's towel which was sliding down slightly every time she moved. Unfortunately Harmony noticed.
Harmony smirked.
"She's around..." she replied mysteriously "I would invite you in but I have... company."
"Oh! Um... I'll just check with Santana and Brittany."
"Come on Harm, get your ass back in here." A muffled voice growled out.
"Yeah, you go do that..." Harmony said distractedly, looking over her shoulder.
Before Rachel could get another word in, the door was slammed in her face.
She jumped back, startled, when she heard a loud bang on the other side of the door.
"Ugh... Right there, don't you dare stop... Yes! Lucy!" Harmony shouted in ecstasy.
Rachel flushed red and backed away slowly, slightly repulsed.
Do I know a Lucy?
0o0o0o0o0o0
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were busy..." Rachel blushed, looking at her feet.
Santana stood at the door, tapping her foot impatiently, dressed only in boy shorts and a bra.
"I think I'll just... go now." she stated awkwardly, turning to leave.
"Sanny! Is that Rachel? Invite her in San, she can join us!" Brittany called from her place on the bed.
Santana turned to Brittany and gave her a look of repulse.
"Mierda, you can't be serious." Santana stated in disbelief.
Rachel looked past Santana to see Brittany who was wearing an old gym shirt and her naked bottom half was covered by a thin white sheet, giving an almost complete view of her- well her- you know...
Brittany brushed her sweaty hair behind her ear and shrugged.
"Why not? Rachel's hot. We're hot. It would be like, totally hot..." Brittany finished with a grin.
"Oh, uh..." Rachel looked up to see Santana shaking her head frantically and mouthing 'no'. Well she defiantly wasn't going to say yes. "I politely decline your offer."
"Fine." Brittany huffed getting out of bed. Rachel made a strange squealing sound, before she could look away, she was greeted by the sight of Brittany's naked backside.
Santana rolled her eyes at Rachel and got out of the way to let Rachel in.
"Well since you killed the mood, I guess I'm free." Santana stated grabbing Rachel's arm, pulling her into the room. "Britt, honey, why don't you go put on some pants."
Brittany flashed her signature pout.
"I can't find them. After you took them off I sort of lost track of them."
Santana pinched the bridge of her noes.
"Than go put on some different pants, B."
Rachel covered her eyes until Brittany managed to find a pare of pants and make her way to the bathroom.
Santana and Brittany's room was very different from her and Tina's. The walls were a midnight back with an abstract chandelier hanging from the ceiling, not to mention the room was huge. Someone was getting special treatment. Half the wall was covered in odd indie band posters along with posters of Carlos Santana, the other half as covered in self drawn pictures of unicorns and ducks. The two twin beds were pushed together to make a double. Rachel looked to the desks to see some pictures. Some were photos of a slightly younger Brittany in a cheerleading uniform. Most of the pictures though, were more recent and contained Santana and Brittany smiling brightly at the camera.
"You looking for Quinn?" Santana asked knowingly.
"Erm... yes. I wanted to know- actually now that I think about it I remember you being there too."
Before Santana could reply, Brittany came bursting out of the bathroom holding a very fat cat.
"I can't believe you would do that to me! Do you know how heart broken I would be if you left me like that!" Brittany shouted at the cat with tears in her eyes.
"Britt..." Santana looked at the blonde questioningly.
"Lord Tubbington tried to jump out of the bathroom window!" Brittany explained tearfully. The cat meowed loudly. Brittany looked over to the cat in shock.
"That's not true! I love you!" the cat meowed in response, Brittany started to cry. "I know I've been spending a lot of time with S, but that doesn't make me love you any less." Brittany paused when Lord Tubbington hissed. "I don't believe it. San would never say that."
Rachel looked to Santana in confusion. The latina just shrugged and went back to watching the exchange between Brittany and the cat.
"San? Did you say that you wished Lord Tubbington would become roadkill?" Brittany asked scarily calm.
Santana paled and turned to Rachel, looking slightly scared.
"If Quinn isn't in her room, she's in the lounge. Besides that I can't help you."
Brittany looked to Rachel icily.
"Thank you for coming, Rachel, but I think It's time for you to leave. Santana and I are about to have a talk."
Rachel nodded in consent and dashed out of the room, not before hearing Brittany scream-
"How dare you! Santana, I thought we were a family! You know Lord Tubbington isn't feeling well lately!"
"It's not my fault! He always meows and begs for food while we're getting it on! It completely kills the mood with that fat cat perving on us!"
0o0o0o0o0o0o0
Rachel kicked a stone out of her path and into the tiny pond. Last time she was here she didn't have time to appreciate the beauty of this place. It was a nice place to clear ones mind.
Rachel ran her hands up and down her arms trying to create friction. She should have grabbed a coat before coming out here.
The chirping of crickets could be heard all around her. The lamps were the only source of light in the garden.
She was about to turn around and head back inside she heard a silent sobbing. She followed the sound in the direction of the source of the sobbing until she returned to a familiar spot in the garden. A willow tree perched near the top of a cliff surrounded by bushes of unique and simple flowers, the very same stone bench she and Noah had sat on facing the void of an open night sky. On the bench a familiar blonde figure was cradling herself.
"Quinn?" Rachel asked cautiously. The blonde girl whipped around quickly almost falling off the bench.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." It was true. She really didn't want a snow ball to the face at the moment.
Quinn turned away from the short girl and wiped her wet eyes with the cuff of her long sleeved shirt.
"What are you dong out here, Berry?" she asked bitterly.
"Quinn... are you okay?" What was Quinn doing out here alone?
"I'm fine! What do you want?"
"Really? Because it doesn't look like you're okay."
"Why do you care!" Quinn yelled, spinning around to face Rachel.
"I-I don't know."
Quinn sighed and chuckled under her breath, tapping the bench beside her.
"Either stay here and tell me what you want, or go away and leave me alone."
Rachel took the seat next to Quinn surprising both the blonde and herself.
"Okay, I was kidding. Get lost, Berry."
"No, I think I'll stay here for awhile, Fabray." Rachel bit back, putting an emphasis on Quinn's last name.
"Why are you being so stubborn!"
"Why are you?"
"Because you stole Puck from me!" Quinn didn't mean to let that part slip out.
"Quinn... He was never yours to begin with. He was your arm candy, nothing more." Rachel replied sounding like she was about to tell a child that the Tooth Fairy doesn't exist.
Quinn clenched the edge of the bench in anger, her knuckles turning white.
"You're wrong. I care about him."
"But do you love him?"
Quinn sniffled, wiping away a few stray tears. Instead of answering the question, Quinn looked at her curiously.
"You're fine."
"What?" Rachel asked in confusion.
"You're awake, you're fine."
"Yes, I believe so since I'm talking to you."
"Good..." she got up from the bench and started pacing as if Rachel wasn't still there.
"Quinn, are you okay? Why are you out here alone?"
"None of your business." Back to Bitchy Quinn.
"Quinn, we have school in the morning, being up late will make you suffer in your academics-"
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT THIS STUPID SCHOOL!" Quinn shouted madly, her hazel eyes staring frantically into brown ones.
"Well you should! Because this is the only place we can feel normal!" Rachel countered, standing up along with Quinn.
"Aren't I supposed to be popular?" Quinn asked in defeat. "You have love, Santana has love, even Harmony hooks up." she sobbed, almost choking in disgust at the mention of Harmony's name. Quinn dropped to the ground at Rachel's feet, hugging her knees to her chest.
"I just want somebody to love me." Quinn finished brokenly.
Rachel sighed and sat next to her on the ground.
"You have love Quinn. It may not be the type you're looking for, but it's still there. People care about you, Quinn. You just have to open your eyes and pay them attention."
Quinn sniffed clearing her eyes and looked at Rachel questioningly.
"Why are you being so nice to me? I would have tortured you if the rolls were reversed."
Rachel shrugged.
"What kind of person would I be if I did that?"
"Normal." Quinn retorted.
Rachel laughed.
"None of us here are normal." Rachel shook her head, smiling. "I used to think being part of something special made you special. But really, special is just an opinion. Special is a fancy word for different, unique."
"I'm sorry."
"Why?"
"I-I hurt you."
"Silly Quinn, people hurt me every day. You're just among the long list of people who have."
Quinn flinched and looked away from Rachel as if she had been burnt.
"Quinn, I'm not mad. You know the saying: whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
"Should have controlled myself better... My life is just so... messed up." Quinn concluded.
"Who's isn't?"
Quinn's angelic laugh made Rachel's heart flutter.
"Truer words have never been spoken."
"Hmm... Your right. Do you think I should consider the career possibility of a philosopher?"
Quinn laughed again and beamed at Rachel.
They sat in comfortable silence before Quinn lay down and propped herself on her elbow so that she was facing Rachel. Rachel assumed the same position and looked at her questioningly.
"Want to see something cool?" the blonde asked enthusiastically.
"What?" Rachel asked, Quinn's enthusiasm catching on.
"There's a bit of a story..." Quinn started teasingly.
"Get on with it!" Rachel shouted impatiently.
"Okay, okay!" Quinn giggled at Rachel's impatience. "When I was little, around five years old. My mother had a large garden. Not as nice as this one but still amazing. Whenever my dad went out on business during the summer, we would spend time together in the garden. It was one of my most favourite places in the world. One evening before my dad went on business, he and my mom had a huge fight. It was about something stupid. Something like... Hot water usage. The next morning he was gone, and the entire garden was dead."
Rachel pouted.
"This story is getting depressing."
Quinn shushed her.
"It gets better." she thought for a while. "Where did I leave off?"
"Dead garden."
"Right. Well, my mom was outside crying because she worked very hard on this garden. She loved plants, gardening was her calling, she told me. I remember her sobbing outside, cursing out dad, I looked out my window and the beautiful, colourful garden was gone. Only dirt, wilting flowers and rot was left. It was like... my mother's entire world was destroyed."
"I wanted to make my mom stop crying. Than a little... voice... or maybe more of a feeling, in the back of my mind told me I could make her stop crying if I wanted to. Next thing I knew it was snowing and the garden turned into a winter wonderland in the middle of July. It was amazing. The dirt trails were covered in frost and all the flowers looked like-" Quinn picked a rose out of a nearby bush and handed it to Rachel. Rachel watched in awe as Quinn circled her hand around her own. The red rose started to frost over until it was completely iced over. "That."
Rachel flipped the rose around in wonder.
"It's incredible." she whispered
"It's not dead, you know. It's still in there. Even in death there is a trace of beauty that once was."
Rachel didn't answer, she just ran her hands delicately over the frozen rose.
"The garden is still like that. No matter how much my father tried he couldn't get rid of the ice." Quinn smiled mischievously "My mother called me her 'Little Miracle Maker' after that. Somehow she knew it was me, even before my father and I did."
"She sounds like a lovely woman."
"She was..."
Rachel looked into Quinn's eyes and saw the flash of heartbreak.
"I'm sorry... Is she...?"
"Yeah... She died two months later."
"I-"
"Don't worry, Rachel." Quinn got up from the ground and dusted herself off "Thanks for the talk, I needed it."
"Wait!" Rachel called out as Quinn started to walk away.
"You forgot something." Rachel reminded, nodding towards the flower in her hand.
Quinn smiled and walked back towards the shorter girl. She closed Rachel's fingers around the rose.
"You keep it. It's my apology for almost murdering you." Quinn replied with a sad smile.
Without another word Quinn walked back towards the school leaving a confused Rachel to contemplate what just happened.
A/N: You're Welcome.