I understand that all of you probably want to use medieval-style torture tactics on me after that last chapter, but I assure you, no one was more upset than me when Quinn got in her accident in "On My Way". And, because I would have gone all Charles Manson on Ryan Murphy's ass if he would have killed her off, she does live on in Life's A Rodeo.

So put away your ropes and guillotine blades, and enjoy Chapter 10!

My head hurts like hell and the harsh scent of lemon Pine-Sol floor cleaner flits into my nostrils when I try to take a breath. I manage to pry my eyelids open slowly, and I'm met with a sense of relief that the room is only lit by one panel of fluorescent lights on the ceiling. Robotic beeps stab at the silence of the space, and when I turn my head slowly to locate the source of the noise, I'm surprised to find the screen of a heart monitor angled away from the bed I'm lying in. The blue digital display sounds at each beat of my heart, the top of the screen labeled 'Fabray, Lucy'. Looking around the room again, I'm able to discern that I'm not in my bedroom at Shannon's. The property tag on the morphine IV drip next to my arm reads 'Lima Memorial Health System', and it all comes back to me now.

Hospital. The accident.

A sigh jerks me out of my stupor, and it's only then that I feel five small, warm fingers woven between the spaces of my own. My eyes follow the sound, and I'm pretty sure my heart monitor skips a few beats when I see the owner of the hand enclosed in mine.

Rachel. She came.

I smile weakly when I notice that she's asleep, her petite body curled up beneath a hospital issue blanket in one of the armchairs she no doubt pushed over to my bedside. Her head rests on a pillow perched on top of her knees, her silky brown hair cascading over it like a waterfall. If my arm weren't covered in purple bruises and thick white bandages, I'd reach up and run a hand through it just to let her know I was here; that I was with her. I'm not allowed any more time to bask in Rachel's calming beauty, because the door to my room opens slowly to reveal someone I never wanted to see again.

"What the hell do you want, Sylvester?"

The older woman simply rolls her eyes and tosses a small black duffel bag to the floor at the foot of my hospital bed. "Good evening, Fabray. You look like death warmed over."

"Fuck you," I manage to spit, my mouth feeling like cotton batting is sewn onto my tongue.

Sue simply rolls her eyes and tosses a small black duffel bag to the floor at the foot of my hospital bed. "Oh relax, Maggie Parker, you'll pull your stitches. I'm just dropping off a change of clothes for Berry. She hasn't left your room since you landed yourself here four days ago."

That makes me smile, my heart swelling in affection for the beautiful rider at my side. Sue, unfazed by my love-struck glance at Rachel, continues.

"You're damn lucky to be alive, Mario Andretti. A MACK truck made Shannon's little vintage roadster look like something a bulldozer shit out."

My eyes narrow at her as my grip on Rachel's hand tightens slightly. "Damn. Now I don't have a car to run you over in."

She snorts incredulously and puts both hands on her hips. "I underestimated you, Fabray. You've got bite. And since you've turned my best rider against me, I refuse to allow myself to admire the budding Sue Sylvester in you."

I'd give her the finger if I wasn't still weak from the painkillers. There is one phrase in her short self-righteous monologue, however, that jumps out at me. "What do you mean 'I turned Rachel against you'?"

Sue lets out an exasperated sigh and uses both of her hands to brace herself against the footboard of the hospital bed. "She was backing out of the plan. She told me that she couldn't go through with it because she was falling in love with you or some nonsense like that."

At that, a full-fledged grin parts my lips. My heart squeezes in my ribcage, and happy tears prick up in my eyes when I gaze down at Rachel's still slumbering form, oblivious to our conversation. I let my thumb rub slow circles on the back of her hand, causing her sigh contentedly in her sleep. Sue, apparently disgusted with our blatant display of affection, grumbles something about using attack dogs next time before leaving the room, the door clicking shut behind her.

I close my eyes and lay my head back against my pillow, expelling a deep breath of air from my lungs and letting the tears of joy roll over my bruised cheeks. I bring Rachel's hand to my lips to kiss it gently and I begin to sing to her softly, my voice raspy and low.

"'Cause we belong together now;

Forever united here, somehow.

You've got a piece of me, and honestly,

My life would suck without you."

I drift off into a peaceful sleep, Rachel's soothing touch keeping me tethered to world in the place of gravity.

AN: In other news, I, A. Tenmeadows, am currently looking for a beta. Any interested parties can message me. Thanks! : )