Rachel sat in the nook by her bed. The moonlight illuminated the sleeping forms of Santana and Quinn. Rachel wrapped the blanket around herself and smiled. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but she always assumed Santana was the big spoon. It was fairly obvious the girl was only putting on the dominant act for a show. Rachel looked out of her window.
The town was so quiet, so still.
"Why are you awake?"
She turned slightly.
"Culdn't sleep."
Quinn cocked her head. She patted the space Rachel once occupied, and Rachel slowly climbed back into bed. Quinn pulled Rachel down onto the mattress and brushed some hair from her face as she hovered over her. Even with tousled hair and sleepy eyes, Quinn made Rachel's heart leap into her throat.
"What's wrong?" she whispered.
The bed shifted, and Rachel nearly melted into a puddle when lips pressed against her ear. Quinn had a secret smile on her face and Rachel swallowed the whine that wanted to break free.
"How long have you two been awake?" she muttered.
Santana's sleepy chuckle echoed through Rachel's body and sent shivers down her spine. "The moment you got out of bed. Quinn got impatient," she said.
"We both did," Quin corrected.
"What makes you think something's wrong?" Rachel asked.
"Because we heard you thinking the entire time," Santana said.
Quinn ran her index finger down Rachel's cheek and bent over, pressing a soft kiss to Rachel's nose. "There are many things we aren't. Observant is not one of them," she whispered.
Santana's arm snaked around her waist and somehow, Quinn slipped her leg between hers. It was a tangled mess of limbs and blonde hair mixed with black and brunette. Rachel was in Heaven and Hell. She caught her breath at the sheer amount of intimacy radiating from two girls she used to drool over, and she allowed herself to relax.
"Are you two always this-
"Affectionate?" Santana guessed. At Rachel's nod, she added, "Only at night and when we're alone. Why? Is it too much?"
Rachel shook her head. "No. I just don't have much experience with it," she admitted.
"Neither did we at first, but we learned. Figured what the other person liked and disliked. It came naturally after a while," Quinn said, getting Rachel's attention.
She had to figure out the dynamics between them before she gave herself whiplash. Somehow, Quinn read her mind and shifted so that she was fully on top of Rachel. The sensation of Quinn on her chest and Santana's breath on her neck brought up feelings Rachel wasn't exactly ready to deal with, if only because she wanted to talk to them first before they took that step.
"I don't know how to do this," she blurted.
"What do you mean?" Santana murmured.
"This. This is hard. Not because it's you two, but because it's you two. I just…
Rachel trailed off. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"I didn't sing for you because I felt like that's what you guys wanted from me. I sang for you because, in many things, I'm very vocal, but in this, I can't always explain what I mean. The words get trapped in my brain and the only way they come out is through song. In this, though, I wanted to try and be as clear as possible."
She placed one hand on Quinn's back and twisted her other hand up, placing it just under Santana's chin, but she didn't look at either one of them as she closed her eyes.
"I love you both more than I thought possible. I also know that coming into a relationship already determined will be challenging. I want it known that I am not here to love one of you more than I love the other. I am here to love you both equally and in the ways that you need of me. I hope that we can come to a place where words will not be needed, and that actions will be more than enough to satisfy whatever desires, needs, and wants we have of the other. I trust you both, but I ask you to give me time to adjust."
Silence.
Rachel peeked open her eyes and found Quinn looking at Santana, who was looking at Quinn. Some sort of silent conversation passed before Santana turned to Rachel.
"We have to tell you something," she said. "Though I could've sworn we mentioned it before."
"But we have no problem repeating it," Quinn said.
"You are not entering a determined relationship, or whatever you said. You are completing it," Santana said slowly.
"I don't understand."
"I love Santana, I really do, but she's not it for me. And I'm not it for her. We've always been tiptoeing around the issue, simply because we never wanted to confront the fact that we were only two sides of a triangle. It's hard knowing that you're not someone's everything, but you will be once you add that missing piece. If that makes sense," Quinn said.
"You're our it," Santana sighed. "Our missing piece. The completion of our triangle. Without you, Quinn and I will be content, but we'll never be happy."
Rachel frowned. "I'm still not getting it," she said, annoyed with herself.
Quinn bit her bottom lip and shifted on top of Rachel. "To be blunt-
"Because there really is no other way to say it-
"And we really don't want you to think we don't have feelings for each other, because we do-
"But again, there really is no other way-
The two stopped their yo-yo speak and said together, "I can't be with her without you."
Rachel's eyes widened.
"Oh."
"The idea of trusting you and being patient with you is guaranteed. We have all the time in the world with you as we are not planning on going anywhere. You're the center, we're the planets that gravitate towards you occasionally stopping to pass one another. While you were gone, we had no center, so naturally, we gravitated towards each other more often. With you here, the balance is obvious and we're happy. I know that Santana will always be mine, and I will always be hers, but being yours is immensely more satisfying for us both," Quinn said.
Rachel turned red. She had no idea how to respond to any of it. Quinn and Santana seemed to notice because they both, thankfully, changed the subject.
"What are we going to do about Puck's Dad?"
Though, Rachel wished it was to something different.
"Let's ask the group in the morning," she sighed.
The two nodded and instead of moving, Quinn laid her head down on Rachel's chest while Santana curled into Rachel's side. She smiled and closed her eyes. That time, she had no problem going to sleep.
The next morning, Rachel, Quinn, Santana, and the Berry Brigade sat around a brand-new kitchen table with hot plates of food in front of them. Well, everyone minus Rachel. She ate her fruit in peace and was content to watch everyone enjoy. Not that the smell of bacon didn't cause her willpower to weaken, but because she didn't want to be sluggish for the rest of the day. Rachel preferred to eat meat after ten a.m.
LJ jumped up to get more food, but unfortunately, Tori got up at the same time. The two bumped into each other, knocking into Santana, whose arm jerked. Rachel yelped as she was hit with a large amount of hot coffee.
"Hot, hot, hot, hot," Rachel hissed.
She stripped off her shirt without thinking.
"Are you okay?" Leroy asked.
He came over and other than red skin and a desire to take an ice bath, she was fine.
"What are those tattoos?" Santana asked.
"What tattoos?" Rachel asked.
"The ones on your- you know what tattoos!"
"I like the animals," Rachel lied.
"Unhuh."
Rachel shifted the conversation to Puck's father. "How are we handling Puck's father?"
Tori cleared her throat and looked between the group.
"I have a plan, but it needs to happen tonight."
Santana made her way down the hall. She found Puck at his locker. He turned to her and she nearly faltered in her steps. He had a massive black eye and was sporting it proudly, but she saw the look in his eyes. She clenched her fists, nodded slightly at him, and kept walking. She ducked into the empty chemistry lab and waited. Soon enough, Puck walked in and locked the door.
"You know, if Rachel knew you were meeting me in the same room we used to fuck in, I think she would have a problem with it," he said.
"Why did you go home?" she asked.
"To get my stuff. He met me at the stairs, knocked me around, and threw my stuff onto the yard. I'm fine," he said.
"No, you aren't. Which is why I want to know how attached you are to your father?" Santana asked.
Puck snorted. "As if you have to ask," he said.
"Good. Don't be home tonight," she said.
He looked at her. He seemed to understand. "What about my Mom and sister?" he said.
"That's up to you if you take them with you or not. You have one chance, but just so you know, some members of the Glee club showed up to Rachel's new house this morning before school. They were dropping off house warming gifts."
"So?"
"The only people who knew about the house were us, Sue and Emma. Plus, the realtor."
She saw the cogs turning in Puck's head. He slumped forward.
"My Mom," he guessed.
Santana unlocked the door, but looked him in the eyes. "You have a family, Noah. A real one that will always protect you and love you and get on your nerves. Whatever decision you make, we will support you. But please, just don't be home tonight," she whispered.
LJ, Tori, and Puck were at the movies while Rachel was on the other side of town helping her father move into their new home. Santana was having a rare dinner with her father. Quinn was at the hospital with her mother. Sue and Emma were out at Breadstix, having a date night.
With that said, how could two people be sneaking through the Puckerman kitchen after picking the lock of the modest family home? How could they stalk up behind a passed-out drunkard, knives in hands, and masks on their faces? How could they slit his throat and set him on fire as they move through the home? How could they set fire to the curtains, the carpet, and other flammable things?
Those are the questions the police would ask as they investigate the arson and murder. They would find three bodies, but they would all be burnt to a crisp. DNA would somehow prove that the three bodies were what remained of the Puckerman family. Noah Puckerman would be informed and would be questioned endlessly, but with a large group of people seeing him at the theater, they would have nothing else to ask.
Puck would move in with Sue and Emma, "temporarily," and the case would be closed. Cold and not a lot of people looking into it.
But if someone looked a little closer, they would've noticed the DNA was fabricated, that only one person died that night. Unfortunately, it wouldn't matter, as a mother and daughter duo, both with freshly dyed hair, new contacts, and two new passports, would be well on their way to Vancouver. No one would ask how they got the documents so quickly.
Puck then would lay down in his new bed, down the hall from his new honorary parents, and silently pray that Marlene and Hannah Forest would find peace with their new start while being forever grateful at the chance to have his.