Warnings:

Angst incoming.

Disclaimer:

Some dialogue modified from Glee, including S1.10 (Ballad) and S1.14 (Hell-O)

Author's Note:

Thank you all for responses to last chapter (broke our review per chapter record). I know some of you aren't too happy with my decision for Sue to out Quinn since there doesn't seem to be a reason why she would. This chapter will shed some light on the issue.

And the g!p is coming, I promise.

Also, I'm sorry if any of you are Finn fans.

zKai

Rachel was definitely impressed at how fast Quinn could run. By the time she left the choir room, she was almost worried that she had lost her. After racing through the school, though, she found Quinn fumbling with her keys at her car.

"Quinn," she breathed out, partly in relief and partly because she was out of breath.

The blonde's hands were shaking so much that she couldn't get the key into driver's side door.

Rachel approached her carefully, realizing she was crying heavily. She reached out and took hold of Quinn's hands.

The touch caused her to break and Rachel barely managed to catch Quinn's keys before the girl was wrapped around her. Rachel leaned back against the car, securing her arms around Quinn's waist.

Quinn buried her face against Rachel's neck, unable to help the sobs escaping her.

"Shh, it's okay," Rachel cooed. She tried to focus on rubbing her hand soothing over Quinn's back.

Rachel looked up toward the sky, almost feeling the need to cry as well. She had no idea how horrible Quinn probably felt.

After a few minutes, Quinn was starting to calm and as much as Rachel wanted to continue holding her, she was very aware they were still in the school parking lot.

"Come on Q," Rachel murmured, kissing the girl's temple.

Quinn pulled back from her a bit, self-consciously wiping at her eyes. Rachel gave her a sad smile and used her thumb to brush some of the tears on her cheek.

"I'll drive," Rachel told her gently.

The blonde really had no choice but to agree. Rachel turned and used the key to open the driver's door of the Volkswagen, since the unlock button on her keychain was bugged.

Quinn went around to the passenger side and slipped in. She wasn't crying, but she was incredibly still and curled into herself.

Not sure what she could possibly say to make things better, Rachel put the car in drive and headed to her house.

"I'm screwed," Quinn murmured when they pulled into the Berrys' drive way.

"Maybe it won't be as bad as you are anticipating," Rachel offered weakly. When Quinn only gave her a pointed look, she realized that definitely wasn't the right thing to say.

Rachel sprung out of the car and hurried around to open Quinn's door for her. She offered her hand. Relief washed over her when Quinn actually took it.

She lead them into the house and then up to her room, glad that they'd have a little while without her fathers around.

"It's going to ruin you too, you know?" Quinn questioned, standing near the doorway to Rachel room.

"Don't worry about that," Rachel told her. She realized that being identified as anything but straight-as-an-arrow would probably result in slushy facials and trips to the dumpster. And now she couldn't count on Quinn's protection. "I'm more worried about you."

Quinn shook her head, getting teary again.

"I know it seems bad now, but we'll figure it out," Rachel whispered, taking the girl's hands in her own.

Quinn let out a humorless, watery laugh. "We're going to get destroyed in school tomorrow and if my parents find out…."

Rachel pulled her closer. Once again Quinn curled into her.

They were near the end of the bed and Rachel let them slowly sink down to the floor. She leaned her back against the bed with her legs crossed, and gently guided Quinn onto her lap. Quinn easily settled sideways and leaned her head against Rachel's shoulder.

"They won't find out," Rachel tried to comfort. "I mean…it's not like the students actually talk to their parents about things."

"Can you just hold me?" Quinn whimpered pathetically.

Rachel's chest felt tight as she nodded her agreement. She continued to rub her hand over Quinn's back. The singer could feel Quinn softly crying, her tears dripping onto her neck.

She desperately wanted to ask if this was the end of them. The thought made her feel queasy. Why couldn't everyone just butt out?

"Rae," Leroy said gently, trying not to disturb the girls too much. When he had gotten home around six, he had found the two of them curled up in Rachel's bed.

Rachel was wrapped around Quinn's back, an arm over her with her hand tucked against the girl's chest. Quinn was gripping Rachel's hand with both of her own.

Leroy had almost been a put-out to find them like that, until he noticed the dark trails of tears on Quinn's cheeks.

With a light shake to her shoulder, he managed to wake Rachel.

She stirred slightly, before opening her eyes. Rachel tried to turn onto her back, but Quinn's hold on her arm prevented her from moving.

"Daddy?" she asked in a hoarse voice.

"It's eight o'clock," he told her.

Rachel carefully extracted herself from Quinn, relieved when the blonde didn't wake up. She stretched as she sat up before looking at her dad.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

She motioned toward the door, indicating they should go out in the hall. Rachel glanced at Quinn and pressed a soft kiss to her head.

Rachel followed her dad out into the hall and carefully shut her bedroom door behind her.

"It got out at school that Quinn and I are dating," she told him in a whisper.

Leroy frowned. "And she didn't take it too well?"

"She's really worried about her parents and what everyone will do…I think she'll probably break up with me," Rachel said sadly. She took in a shuddering breath when Leroy pulled her into a hug.

"Just be there for her Rae, she's going to need you," he assured her gently.

Rachel nodded a little against his chest.

"Can you follow us to her house so I can drive?" Rachel asked.

"Of course sweetie."

"Will you be okay?" she asked softly, pulling Quinn's car up into her driveway. The blonde had been mostly quiet since Rachel gently woke her up.

"Yeah," she replied in a whisper.

"Please try not to worry too much," Rachel told her.

She stepped out of the car when Quinn did and handed the keys over to her. Rachel glanced behind her to make sure Leroy was at the end of the driveway.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" she asked nervously.

"Yeah…you should probably bring some extra clothes," Quinn warned her.

Rachel wanted to hug her good bye, but knew Quinn wouldn't go for it in front of her parents' house. She gave her a small smile and a half wave before making her way down the driveway to where her dad was parked on the street.

"Rachel!" Quinn called out.

She came to a stop and turned toward her.

"Thank you for everything," she said more softly, almost to the point Rachel couldn't hear from the distance.

"Bye Quinn," she told her with a smile.

Quinn watched her go, making sure she was safely inside Leroy's car before heading to her front door. The lights were on, but the house was quiet when she stepped inside.

She hoped she could dash upstairs before her parents caught her.

"There you are," Judy greeted, her steps not completely straight as she came out of the kitchen. Quinn tensed and glanced at her clearly drunk mom.

"Hey," she greeted.

Judy was nursing a cup of scotch in one hand, her eyes glazed over.

"How is that boy you've been dating?" she asked suddenly. She wobbled toward Quinn.

The blonde tried to keep from recoiling from the stench of alcohol.

"I broke up with him," she answered.

"Oh no!" Judy cried, placing her hand over her heart. "He was such a nice boy."

"He cheated on me," Quinn said as way of explanation, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

Judy's hand landed heavily on her shoulder and Quinn closed her eyes to keep from reacting.

"Honey, sometimes you need to forgive people. That Finn…he was a nice boy," she said, her words slurring slightly.

"You already said that."

Rachel wasn't completely sure what to expect when she walked through the front doors the next day. She had heeded Quinn's warning and packed several extra pairs of clothes, just to be safe.

When she first walked in, she was surprised by the silence but then realized Quinn was up ahead.

The blonde was facing three football players. Karofsky was in the middle with a slushy in his hand.

No way is he going to slushy her, Rachel thought angrily, starting to march down the hall.

"And here we all thought you were bearding for Hudson while he danced around in homo explosion, but really he was the beard huh?" Karofsky taunted, nudging one of the guys beside him with a smirk.

"Let me give you a cold welcome to LoserTown," he said.

Rachel knew there was no way she could get to them in time, but she was surprised when Quinn side stepped and the slushy landed harmlessly on the tiled floor. She came to a stop and gawked as Quinn moved up right into Karofsky's personal space.

"You ever try to slushy me again and I will end you," she warned him.

He actually looked unsure for a moment, before he puffed out his chest.

Why do guys do that? Rachel wondered, while she cautiously inched toward them.

"I don't take orders from some carpet muncher," he said as harshly as he could.

"Fat football player, in Figgins office now," Sue shouted from behind them.

The crowd of students that had gathered in the hall way immediately tried to disperse. Karofsky glared at Quinn, who stared right back at him before turning toward Sue.

"If you think you can insult my Cheerios you have another thing coming to you," she warned him. He had the decency to look a little scared as he scurried off to the principal's office.

Rachel had managed to get up next to Quinn. She completely confused what was going on.

"Quinn," she said softly.

The blonde glanced at her. "Hey," she replied just as softly.

"Q, my office pronto," Sue commanded before stalking off.

"Are you in trouble?" Rachel asked worriedly. The last thing she wanted was for Quinn to be outed and kicked off the Cheerios.

"I guess we'll see," Quinn commented.

"You know Q, you remind me of a young Sue Sylvester," Sue was said, leaning back in her chair.

Quinn glared at her from her seat in front of Sue's desk. She really couldn't believe that her coach was acting like she hadn't told the whole school she was gay yesterday.

"How could you do this to me?" she asked harshly.

"Cease fire on the waterworks," Sue said, with a snap of her fingers. "The real question is how could you do this to me?"

"What?" Quinn asked incredulously.

"I knew you gays were sneaky, but I had higher expectations of you Q," Sue told her.

Quinn just stared at her. She had no idea what Sue was even talking about.

"I have to find out from that maggot of a reporter that my head Cheerio is running around scissoring some Streisand wannabe," Sue scoffed. "Do you have any idea the damage you have caused?"

"I don't know what you're talk…."

"How am I supposed to take an eighth national title, funded by conservative Republican backers, when you are batting for the lesbo softball league?" Sue asked rhetorically.

Quinn's jaw flapped as she searched for a response.

"And you didn't even choose to contract venereal diseases with one of your attractive fellow Cheerios. No! You had to choose little Liza!"

"What are you saying?" Quinn asked, her brows knit together.

"You've just made a mess for me Q," Sue told her. "And the only reason you're still allowed to sit here is because I need a ruthless bitch to continue to rule this school."

Quinn slumped back in her seat. In some ways she was relieved that she hadn't gotten kicked off the team, but she was still upset that Sue did this to her.

"My parents can't know," she said softly.

"You think being gay is hard? Try living with hepatitis," Sue told her.

Quinn rolled her eyes.

"Q, I'm giving you all the power to continue to control the swarm at this school. Do not disappoint me," Sue told her. "And own this gay thing or it's never going to work."

"Are you off the Cheerios?" Rachel asked nervously when Quinn met her in the auditorium for lunch.

"No," Quinn huffed out with a humorless laugh. "She was just getting back at me for not telling her I was dating a girl."

"What?" Rachel yelped in confusion.

Quinn shrugged her shoulders and settled beside her, their legs hanging off the edge of the stage.

"It's hard to predict how Sue is going to react to things," Quinn told her.

"So what now?" Rachel asked vulnerably. She was almost certain Quinn was ready to break them up.

"Now we just hope my parents don't find out," Quinn told her.

"You aren't breaking up with me?" she asked hopefully.

"What?" Quinn asked with a little laugh.

Rachel blushed and turned her eyes away from the girl. She bit into her lower lip when she felt Quinn's arm encircle her shoulder and pulled her close.

"Why would I break up with you?" she asked gently, pressing her lips to Rachel's forehead.

Rachel turned into her, wrapped an arm around her waist and resting her head on her shoulder.

"I'm not the most popular kid at this school," she whispered softly.

"I don't care," Quinn told her.

"I need to tell you something," Rachel said, taking a deep breath.

Quinn arched her brows slightly and gazed down at her. Rachel met her gaze nervously.

"If I give myself to you and it turns out that you don't completely return my feelings…I might die," Rachel paused for a second when Quinn scoffed. "N-not literally but emotionally. It'll be the kind of heart break that girls like me hold for the rest of their lives…."

Quinn was giving her the most amused look.

"…like Barbra is The Way We Were," she added.

"Are you done?" Quinn asked with a smile.

"Don't mock me Quinn," Rachel whined, starting to pull away from the girl.

Quinn held tight, not letting Rachel pull back. She pressed her lips to the singer's forehead again before letting out a small chuckle.

"Rachel, I'm crazy about you," she murmured genuinely.

"You are?" Rachel asked, slightly surprised.

"And I'll never do anything to hurt you," Quinn assured her.

Rachel leaned up and connected their lips. She felt relief flood through her when Quinn gently returned the kiss.

"So it's true then?" Santana asked, sitting behind Quinn in glee. The room was empty except the two of them.

"Yeah, happy now?" Quinn replied with annoyance.

"You could have at least chosen someone hot," Santana pointed out.

"She's a lot hotter then you," the blonde snipped. She smirked when Santana's face went red.

"I will go all Lima Heights on your ass…"

"I thought you only did that to my ass," Brittany commented, as she entered the room.

If Quinn thought Santana's face was red before, it was nothing to the blush the crept all the way up to her ears now. She lifted a hand over her mouth to try and hide her amusement.

"Britt, remember how we talking about not over sharing?" Santana asked through gritted teeth.

"Oh yeah, sorry," Brittany said with a little shrug, plopping down beside her.

Whatever Santana wanted to say to Quinn was put on the back burner when most of the other kids entered the room.

"Hello fellow glee clubbers, I'm must apologize for my tardiness," Rachel said as she came through the door.

"You're two minutes early," Artie commented.

"That may be, however, it is important to be punc…"

"Come sit down Rach," Quinn interrupted, patting the seat next to her. Rachel blushed a little, tucking her hair behind her ear before she hurried up the risers.

She sat beside Quinn with a shy smile.

"God you two are disgusting," Santana groaned.

"I think it's cute," Brittany chimed in.

"Alright guys," Mr. Schuester said, leading Finn through the choir room door, "After all the excitement yesterday I think it's important that we get all our emotions out."

Everyone rolled their eyes.

"Mr. Schuester, I'd just like to point out that there's nothing we need to express," Rachel said, raising her hand even though she didn't wait to be called on.

"Well I think…."

"Seriously Mr. Schue, we've got in covered," Mercedes dismissed him.

"Well Finn…"

Quinn shook her head in disbelief. Of course Finn was still making the situation about him.

"Then let Finn says what he needs to say so we can get on with our preparation for sectionals," Rachel said.

Finn stood near the piano, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"I just think it's really unfair that you kept this from everyone, especially me," he said after a moment, looking more toward Rachel then Quinn.

"I have no obligation to tell you about my personal life," Rachel told him.

The victim act Finn was putting on was getting incredibly old. She glanced at Quinn, whose lips were pursed a little.

"Like you told me you really liked me…"

"I don't recall that," Rachel quickly pointed out.

"And I've been trying to be cool and stuff, but you've been sneaking around with Quinn this whole time…"

"Finn," Quinn cut him off, obviously irritated. "Rachel's doesn't want to date you."

"You don't know that!"

"She's dating me!" Quinn snapped back at him.

Everything was quiet for a second. It was the first time she'd actually said it out loud. Rachel was staring at her with affectionate eyes.

"She kissed me first!" Finn huffed, starting to get frustrated.

Quinn slid her arm over the back of Rachel's chair, smirking when the girl leaned into her slightly.

"Get over yourself dough boy," Santana finally commented.

"You know what? Screw this…Screw you guys and this stupid club!" Finn yelled. Everyone watched in annoyance as he kicked over a chair before storming out of the room.

"Guys! We're a team!" Mr. Schue admonished. "You're not supposed to put each other down."

"Mr. Schue, Finn's refusal to accept that I'm romantically involved with someone else is childish," Rachel said.

"And annoying," Mercedes pointed out.

"I'm so disappointed in you guys," Mr. Schuester told them.

That night, Quinn headed straight home after Cheerio's practice since her dad wanted them to have a family dinner.

She pushed open the front door with her bag slung over her shoulder and immediately stopped.

"What is he doing here?" Quinn asked in horror.

Finn was standing in the living room with her dad. When they turned toward her, Finn had a slight smirk on his lips.

"Don't be rude Quinnie," her mom cooed.

"I invited him over for dinner," Russel said, clapping Finn on the shoulder. "Need to get know the boy my daughter is dating."

Quinn wasn't sure what to say. She felt a horrible sense of dread at Finn's presence and she wasn't sure why her dad thought she was still dating him.

"We're not…" she started to said, but Judy gripped her arm a little tightly. She looked toward her mother in disbelief.

"He's a good boy Quinn," she whispered.

Quinn tore her arm away from Judy's grasp. She couldn't believe this was happening. She shot Finn a glare before heading toward the stairs.

"Dinner's almost ready. Hurry and change sweetie," Judy called after her.

Quinn ran up the stairs and slammed her door behind her. She felt like she was having a panic attack. Finn looked so vindictive and somehow her dad thought they were still dating. She just knew that everything was about to go badly.

She took her time changing out of her uniform and into one of her baby doll dresses. If she had a choice, she would have just hid away in her room.

"Quinn!" Russel called from down the stairs and she knew her time was up.

She reluctantly went down to the dining room and slumped into her chair.

"Posture Quinnie," Judy scolded lightly.

She straightened up and glanced at Finn, who still looked smug.

"So how's football going Finn?" Russel asked once they were all settled in at the table.

"Ah, well, we're not doing too good," Finn admitted. "But we're getting better for sure."

"Well it's hard to do well when you don't have a decent coach. It's a real shame," Russel commented.

Quinn kept her eyes down and focused on her plate. If she could make it through this dinner, maybe everything would be okay.

"Quinnie, you've been there cheering him on right? A little encouragement goes along way," Judy chimed in.

Quinn only shrugged.

"Quinn's been pretty busy lately," Finn said. The blonde cut her eyes to him.

"Oh with what?" Judy wondered.

"Finn don't," Quinn said harshly, realizing what was about to happen. "Please don't."

She stared at him, trying to convey how bad this situation actually was. He looked away from her and toward Judy.

"Well she's been dating someone else," he said, trying to look sad.

"What?" Russel asked, looking confused.

"Yeah it's been kind of a big deal at school," Finn added.

"Finn stop, please," Quinn begged him. She could feel the panic building up in her chest and she worriedly glanced at her dad. He looked mostly confused.

"I don't understand," Judy said, her eyes wide.

"You know the Berrys?" Finn asked.

All the color drained from Quinn's face and she shrunk back in her chair. She knew Finn was pissed, but she never imagined he would do this to her.

"Those faggots down on Clampton Street?" Russel questioned, looking more confused than ever.

"Yeah, they have a daughter…"

"It's disgusting that our government even allows that."

"Finn," Quinn tried weakly, but he acted like he didn't hear here.

"Quinn's dating her."

Russel looked across the table and locked eyes with his wife. Quinn could practically see the fire burning up inside him.

She was seated on the couch, as far away from Finn as she could possibly manage. Russel was sitting across from them with a hard glare.

"There must be some sort of mistake here," Judy said, glancing between Quinn and her husband. "We raised you right."

Quinn was staring at the floor, not sure what else she could do.

When Russel started in about taking her to an Indian's game Quinn knew she was screwed. She felt the tears welling in her eyes and one slipped down her cheek.

"Daddy," she whispered, hoping he would just stop.

"You need to leave," he said when he was finished.

Quinn wanted to hit Finn when she saw the shocked look on his face.

"Daddy, please can we talk about this?" she pleaded, more tears starting to trail down her cheeks. "Rachel's a good person and she…"

"Get out of my house," he said coldly.

It felt like a knife going straight into her heart. She took in a gasping breath.

Finn looked dumbstruck beside her.

"Wait, you can't do that…" Finn said, now looking upset. When Russel didn't budge Finn turned to Judy. "Please Mrs. Fabray, do something…"

"Don't bother Finn," Quinn said bitterly.

Russel sprang up from his seat. "You are the disgrace here!" he cried at Quinn.

She stood slowly, now unable to keep her tears from falling.

"Why? Because I'm not a little girl anymore?" she asked shakily.

"Who are you? I don't recognize you at all," he replied coldly.

She couldn't help trying to appeal to him.

"I'm your daughter, who loves you. And I know this must be really hard for you, but I just need my Daddy to hold me and tell me it's going to be okay," she whimpered.

When her dad walked toward her she had the slightest bit of hope.

"Please?" she asked in a whisper.

He gave her one last look before walking past her. Quinn broke, starting to cry openly.

Finn was beside her still, obviously having no idea what to do.

"Quinn, I'm so sorry…" he started to say.

"Don't," she snapped.

Thanks for reading!

Let me know what you guys think.

Posted: 1/28/14

Word Count: ~4000