Disclaimers: I do not own Glee or its characters.
Spoilers: spoilers for my story Is It Worth Giving Up? Please do not read this if you are not passed chapter 22 (the first flashback).
Rating: K+
Thank you to those who reviewed on the last chapter! I am so glad you enjoyed it! Also, welcome to my new followers ohnanagleek, Tishamay, Gwennie49 (favoriter), Boris Yeltsin (favoriter), and DawnB. And to my new favoriters Mbran72 and SharkGamer3095. :)
Notes: This is a little snippet of a future chapter/flashback. It will have Abigale, and also Rachel and Quinn. It will be much longer and have an extended part of the ending of this one it is posted in Worth Giving Up?
Quinn does speak in this chapter, but only 1 line. Back then (when they were younger), she only spoke to three people – Abigale, Rebecca, and Rachel. They are 5 years old and in kindergarten as of this flashback.
Enjoy!
*October 1999 – Berry Residence*
Abby pulls up in the Berrys' driveway, and then exits the vehicle, opening the backdoor, and undoing her little sister, Quinn's, carseat.
"Remember, LuLu, to mind Mr. Berry and his boyfriend, okay?"
The 5-year-old nods, her blonde pigtails bouncing up and down. "They said I can call'em Mr. Josiah and Mr. David, Sissy!"
Abigale freezes at those words…
… Could it be?
No.
It isn't possible… is it?
Quinn grabs her backpack full of her clothes, toothbrush, and hairbrush, plus the teddy bear that Rachel gave her, and jumps out of the car, unaware of the inner turmoil her sister is experiencing.
Usually, she just drops Quinn off and makes sure she gets inside the house, but this time…
This time she will go inside and… and see just what this Rachel girl's fathers look like.
Quinn is halfway down the walkpath leading up to the front door when Abigale snaps out of it and hurries to catch up to her little sister.
If she wonders, Quinn does not say anything, just going right up to the door, opening it, and letting Abby inside, before shutting it behind them.
Abigale watches her little sister's body language now, as Quinn loses just a tiny bit of her calmness and relaxed stance. She guesses she is still not speaking to Rachel's fathers, but Quinn has promised her she does speak to Rachel, so, now, she just watches…
As soon as the door is shut, a little brunette is running out of one of the rooms. She has brown eyes and it is easy to know who they came from, and it takes Abigale's breath away.
"Hi, Lucy!"
The little girl positively beams as she comes running over, and Abby notices how her baby's sister's body language changes the split-second her friend comes into the little hallway they are standing in.
There are several things that happen in the next few seconds.
First, Quinn takes her shoes off and places them neatly next to the front door. Years of conditioning have taught her that, even at 5, there is no excuse for her to leave her things "in a mess". It hurts Abigale but she does not say anything; she just continues… watching.
Next, she takes her backpack off and places it next to the shoes. She then looks to Rachel, a little anxious, and it makes Abby want to step in, because she knows what comes with that look, but…
"You did not knock on the door." Rachel states it plain and simple and, anyone watching would think she has no tact because she is only five. But Abigale does wonder, because it is obvious that the statement makes Quinn uncomfortable. However, once again, before she can say anything, Quinn is speaking.
"Sorry…" It is a whisper so low that the older Fabray finds herself blinking owlishly, wondering if she just imagined her baby sister speaking to someone other than herself or Rebecca.
Of course, Quinn had told her she was speaking to Rachel, but then again, she also says she speaks to her teachers and classmates, which Abigale found out was a lie not too long into the month of August, back when Quinn was the new student.
Rachel is reacting to something now. She throws her arms around Quinn, and again, Abigale finds herself wondering about this child.
Does she not know of Quinn's aversion to touch? Why does it seem like this little girl is causing her baby sister more anxiety than what is necessary?
It is on the tip of her tongue; she even is reaching out, but then…
Then Quinn is reacting to the hug at the same time Rachel is speaking, "It's ok, LuLu. I'm not mad; I was just pointing it out. Don't cry, LuLu." Quinn tightens her grip on Rachel, prompting Abby to freeze with her hand halfway reached out. "Don't cry, Lucy… Look," She holds her arm out, wrist upwards, hand closed. "Can you tell me who this? You remember what I showed you?"
And then…
Lucy Quinn does something amazing… Not only do the words "don't cry" have a positive effect on her (whereas, usually, it causes her anxiety, because she needs to cry, but is scared to show emotions), but she also reaches out with her own hand…
She holds Rachel's tiny little wrist in her hand, to where her thumb touches it, and starts doing some weird patterns of taps and presses.
It confuses the hell out of Abigale, but Rachel is beaming yet again, one that shows off her adorable little dimples, and she pops her head up to look at Abby, acknowledging her for the first time in nearly 10 minutes.
"Hello, Abigale. My name is Rachel Berry. It is very nice to meet you. You know, you look a lot like Quinn. You are almost as pretty as her, too, however…"
Rachel turns, looking at Quinn, and Abigale is struck by, not only how comfortable her little sister seems at this moment (well, as comfortable as she can be) but also by how this little girl looks at Quinn like she could be her whole world.
"Quinn is the prettiest girl I have ever met," She is saying, "but… she is going to be so much more than that."
Quinn ducks her head shyly at that but does not respond. Abigale watches this interaction and it hurts her heart because, if Russell found out Rachel has two dads…
This…
This right here would be gone in a flash, and…
She has absolutely no clue how Quinn will survive without this little girl in her life.
Rachel leads them down the hallway and to what comes to be the kitchen.
"Dad, Daddy, Lucy is here!"
"That's great, Sweetie," One of the men say. "Just a sec and we will be with you, ok?"
Both of them stay turned around while the two little girls go over to the table where Rachel shows something to Quinn and… Abigale would be interested in what it is but…
She would recognize that voice anywhere.
She can't speak, and she can hardly breathe, and she hopes to God that–… that she is wrong about this, because if her parents found out…
But…
"Uh–… Uncle… Uncle 'Siah?"
The men at the stove freeze, but Rachel and Quinn are oblivious to anything being wrong.
One man – Josiah – slowly turns around.
He should have known because, my god, Quinn looks just her big sister, but… he had tried not to think too much about it.
It's confirmed when he lays eyes on the oldest Fabray girl, standing slightly in front of the kitchen doorway.
She is about 13 years older than the last time he physically laid eyes upon but…
"Abby…"
And there it is! A little taste of how Rach and Q interacted as little kids. Quinn's anxiety has always been there. She did not speak to many people, and there were a lot things that triggered the anxiety. Abigale's instincts told her to protect Quinn from Rachel, because her first impression of Rachel was not very good.
However, as you saw, Rachel handled it like a pro, and Quinn responded positively to the things Rachel said/did. Quinn was always able to draw calmness from Rachel, even in the beginning!
Please review and let me know what you thought! Those of you reading Worth Giving Up?, please let me know if this is a flashback you would like to see soon, or if you are good with waiting. I have it completed and can post it at any time. :) And to those of you who caught the Rachel quote I used - you are awesome!