A/N : This story is currently set somewhere during Season 1.

Chapter 6

"I'm emancipated. Against my will."

Quinn's eyes widened, her entire thought process faltering. She was expecting anything, literally anything, but not this. Not once could she have guessed that this is what Phoenix would tell her. She almost felt sick and guilt surged through her as she thought about how she manipulated the information out of Phoenix, how her issues seemed so minimal now.

"Oh my god," Quinn whispers, "I am so, so sorry, I shouldn't have asked you like this," Quinn says, ashamed for giving Phoenix that ultimatum now. It was selfish of her to try and save her superficial popularity and reputation like she had.

"It's okay, you wanted to protect yourself, I get that," Phoenix says quietly.

"Is that why you moved to Lima? Cause of the emancipation?"

"I came here to get away from there. From the society, the culture. The people. I've been emancipated for three years now," Phoenix states, making Quinn gasp, as she quickly did the math.

"You were forcefully emancipated when you were fourteen?" Quinn asks, fearing the affirmation, although she knew that it was most likely true.

"Thirteen, actually"

"How the hell can someone do that?" Quinn explodes, her voice uncharacteristically loud, making Phoenix flinch in surprise, "To their own child?" Quinn exclaims, her hand flying to her stomach, before she frowned "Wait, can a parent even do that?" Quinn asks in confusion.

"My parents have a lot of contacts in a lot of places. They have friends who could get them the papers. Faking my signature wasn't difficult. I came to the house from my friend's home one night, two days before my thirteenth birthday, to find three boxes and one backpack, a note attached to the top," Phoenix divulges, surprising herself as well because she had never told anyone this before. She didn't stop though, because for some unfathomable reason, she trusted Quinn more than anybody she had meet in a very long time, "Happy fucking birthday to me," Phoenix says bitterly.

"God, I'm so sorry," Quinn whispers, reaching across the counter and holding Phoenix's hand in her own, "No one deserves to go through that, no matter what happens or what they do"

"I came out to them," Phoenix says suddenly.

"What?"

"I came out to them. In case you were wondering why it happened. Well, not exactly that, but I had a friend who was from a family with a lower status and I was arguing about it with them one day and I had enough of it so I finally told them I was a lesbian. I was out of the family the next day. Apparently, a lesbian daughter who is friends with the son of the school janitor isn't worth risking their perfect image for," Phoenix says in one breath, tears filling in her eyes as she recounted her story, but she quickly blinked them away, but not before Quinn saw them, her heart aching for the redhead.

She barely knew this girl but she was sure of the fact that Phoenix didn't deserve this. No one did.

"God, that's horrible. I'm so sorry. I didn't know and I shouldn't have asked like this," Quinn apologizes again, hoping that she hadn't messed up with Phoenix.

Surprisingly enough for someone like her, she rather liked the mysterious redhead.

"It's okay, it's not your fault," Phoenix says softly.

"How...how did you live?" Quinn asks after a few seconds, unable to not voice her curiosity, making Phoenix smile. The blonde was so hot and cold, conflicted at every step.

Intriguing. Phoenix was so desperate to know more.

"Initially, it was difficult. I broke into my house the next day to get some money, which wasn't much, but it would last for a while for basic necessities. I could finish my school years though, since I was on an academic scholarship. For a long time I sneaked into school at night, sleeping under the bleachers, classrooms, wherever it was unlocked and comfortable for that night. Ate leftovers from the cafeteria, broke into the vending machine," Phoenix explains, getting up from her seat and taking a deep breath before going to grab a glass of water, leaning against the counter, "It was difficult during the vacations though, so half of the year, I spent on the streets," Phoenix says, an underlying tone of finality in her voice.

She didn't want to talk more about what happened during those times. At least not right now.

Quinn respected that.

"What about the friend you were talking about?" Quinn asks carefully.

"Ironically enough, he was only pretending to be friends with me because of my family's money and status. Left me high and dry the minute I told him I was thrown out of the family. " Phoenix says sadly, her entire demeanor looking so exhausted and betrayed talking about it that Quinn was scared to imagine how Phoenix lived through it all.

"What made you move here?" Quinn asks, not saying anything about Phoenix's earlier revelation.

"Well, there was this really close family friend. She didn't have a family of her own but everyone considered her a part of mine. She was someone I related to more than anyone in my family. She understood me. She was in Africa on a charity trip for the underprivileged as a doctor. She came back two years after I was kicked out and my family told her that I wanted to go to an art school across the country."

Phoenix let out a humorless laugh as she said this, scoffing at the excuse, putting a small smile on Quinn's face, regardless of the situation.

"She believed them but around six months after that, I met her in town. She was shocked when I told her the truth and she immediately took me to her apartment. She had no obligation or duty to do it, but she gave me a home. She gave me a family when I had nothing and no one," Phoenix sighs.

"Why are you here alone then?"

"Two weeks after she cut off my family, some drunk asshole who shouldn't have been outside of his fucking house, let alone on streets, hit her car," Phoenix says softly, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

Quinn wanted to stand up, she wanted to wrap her arms around the redhead and comfort her, tell her it would all be okay. But she couldn't. She was frozen to her spot, shocked at everything that the sixteen year old in standing in front of her had to go through.

"Her death was something that broke me. None of the crap that I had been through before devastated me as much as losing her did. I finally had someone I could trust and call my family, and it didn't even take two weeks for that to be taken away from me," Phoenix explains, her voice wavering and cracking, before she let out a deep breath to steady her mind and continuing.

"Her lawyer visited me after the funeral. Apparently, she left me all her money," Phoenix states, "I don't know how or why she did it, but even though she wasn't there anymore, she made sure that I would never have to live the way that I had been for so long. Every single penny she had, investments, everything, she gave to me."

"That's amazing. She sounds like an incredible woman," Quinn smiles.

"She really was"

"Why would you move to a town like Lima with that kind of money with you though?" Quinn asks, surprised that someone wouldn't move to New York or LA or somewhere like that.

"Honestly, I didn't think I was ready to be thrust into a big city after being on my own for so long. So I sold her holiday home, cashed in everything and added whatever small part I had from jobs here and there. Packed up and moved here. Bought the apartment, paid school fees and I have enough to live comfortably and keep some money aside to start a college fund. It's better now. Easier," Phoenix says honestly, shrugging like it was no big deal.

Quinn just stares at Phoenix in awe, unable to believe that the redhead had been through so much and still had such a confident, self-assured aura around her.

"You're amazing Nix," Quinn says, the nickname easily slipping off her tongue, "What you've been through and how you've come out of it, it's pretty admirable"

"Well, thank you," Phoenix smiles, her heart feeling lighter now that she had finally told someone else at least a part of her story. It felt good to not have to hold it all in anymore, "It's your turn to share now though," Phoenix winks, quickly changing the topic away from her, making Quinn sigh.

"Well, a deal is a deal," Quinn says, before taking a deep breath, hazel staring into green.

"I'm pregnant," Quinn says quickly, squeezing her eyes shut as uncertainty over Phoenix's reaction as well as the relief of telling someone washed over here.

"W-what?" Phoenix stutters.

"I'm having a baby. And no one knows," Quinn repeats, her eyes downcast, almost prepared for Phoenix to look at her in disgust and tell her to leave her house.

Silence prevails for a few seconds before a smile breaks out on Phoenix's face and she walks towards Quinn, taking the blonde by surprise.

"Can I...can I touch?" Phoenix asks uncertainly, pointing to Quinn's stomach. The blonde thinks about it for a second but nods, standing up from the kitchen stool.

Phoenix moves closer and knelt down, gently pressing her palms against Quinn's stomach, her breath catching at the subtle roundness under her hands.

She was shocked she hadn't noticed that small curve before.

"It's...Quinn, it's beautiful," Phoenix whispers, looking up at the blonde before she got up to her feet and wrapped her arms around the blonde, hugging Quinn tightly, "You're beautiful."

Quinn's eyes fill with tears as Phoenix embraces her, feeling immensely loved and protected, something she hadn't expected happening after everyone would know, especially from someone she had just met yesterday.

"How far along are you?" Phoenix asks when she pulls away, a breathtaking smile on her face.

"15 weeks"

"Q...wow, that's a long time," Phoenix exclaims softly, "Wait, Quinn, you're carrying a child and you're on the cheerleading squad. I'm pretty sure you can't be catapulting all over the place like this," Phoenix says, frowning at Quinn, concern and a twinge of disappointment visible in her features.

"I haven't been on the pyramid or any of the extreme stunts since I found out. Mostly running and commanding people," Quinn explains, before picking up her now empty plate from the table and placing it in the sink.

"You don't have to clean up Quinn," Phoenix says softly, grabbing the blonde's hand and pulling her into the living room. The girls sat down on the couch, facing each other before Phoenix started up her stream of questions again.

"You said no one knows," Phoenix starts quietly, "So who's the father?"

Quinn takes a deep breath, steeling herself. Discussing this made everything so much more real and she hated that.

"Puck," Quinn says after a few seconds, making Phoenix falter.

"Puckerman? The suggestive guy with the squirrel on his head?" Phoenix asks, her head cocking to the side in confusion.

"Yep. The very one," Quinn says, laughing at her description of Puck's mohawk.

"Are you guys dating or something?"

"Oh, god no"

"Why haven't you told him?"

"Have you met him? He's not parent material. He can't take care of himself, let alone someone else. He's a sexist ass and if I do keep the baby, he's not the kind of person I want to be raising a small child with. Besides, he slept with me after he got me drunk on wine coolers," Quinn says coldly but as soon as the last couple of words leave her mouth, she immediately regrets when she sees green eyes darken with anger.

"What?" Phoenix says through clenched teeth, "You were drunk and he took advantage of you?"

"Well, that's not exactly what happened," Quinn says cautiously, knowing that Phoenix was angry but she couldn't figure out why. It's not like it was up to the redhead to be protective of her.

"Well, it sounds like that's exactly what happened! I'm pretty sure that it classifies as date rape!" Phoenix exclaims, her voice raising involuntarily, making Quinn sigh.

Maybe it wasn't the best of ideas to tell Phoenix what happened.

"It's not like I tried to stop him Phoenix. I was drunk, not dead," Quinn says, surprising even herself with those words.

"Why are you defending him?" Phoenix asks in disbelief.

"I don't know," Quinn says, slumping against the couch, "I just….I don't know what to do. I'm supposed to be the picture perfect Fabray daughter. Good grades, cheerleader. But no, instead, I'm 16 and I'm pregnant," Quinn says and it's like a dam breaks because tears spring to her eyes and before she knows it, Quinn is in Phoenix's arms, sobbing against her chest.

"Oh Quinn, shhh," Phoenix soothes, "It's going to be okay. I promise you, no matter what happens, you and your baby are going to be okay. I'm going to make sure of that," Phoenix promises, running her hands through blonde hair as Quinn broke down in her arms.

Phoenix just held Quinn, the only sound in the room being Quinn's sobs. After a few minutes, Quinn slowly calmed down, her cries reduced to tears streaming out of the corners of her sad hazel eyes. The blonde pulled away from Phoenix's embrace, a coy and slightly embarrassed smile on her face.

"That's the third time I've cried in your arms in under twelve hours. And you've been through so much worse and you barely shed one tear. You're so strong with everything that's happened and I'm a mess over something so small," Quinn says quietly, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.

"Hey, we both have had our share of problems and we handle it differently. It doesn't mean that yours are any less important than mine. We might not have known each other for that long, but I'm here for you. All the way, okay?"

"Okay"

"Do you want me to call Brittany or Santana for you? They might be better equipped to help you. And I think you should tell someone Quinn," Phoenix says gently.

"I haven't even told them yet"

"Why?"

"Puck is Santana's boy toy," Quinn says and realization hits Phoenix.

"That complicates things," Phoenix says, letting out a low whistle, "But won't Santana choose a friend over a boy?"

"She will. Santana acts bitchy and tough on the outside but she's a really good friend when you need her. But how am I supposed to tell everyone Phoenix? I can't just go 'Oh hey, by the way, I'm knocked up by school's resident manwhore at sixteen' can I?" Quinn says, raising an eyebrow at the redhead.

"You know that's not what I meant Q," Phoenix says softly, "You're over three months pregnant, you're going to start showing. And you can't do anything on the Cheerios at this stage."

"I know. But I'm not sure if I'm ready yet."

"What about your parents?" Phoenix asks after a few seconds, her heart clenching at the expression on Quinn's face when she did.

"That's what I'm most terrified about. More than what people think, more than that social standing. I don't know how they'll react. I'm their perfect daughter and I know that they love me. They do. But I don't know if they'll tolerate this, let alone accept it," Quinn says honestly, refusing to let the tears fall this time.

She had cried over this enough for one day.

"Okay. But I hope you know that you have a friend now," Phoenix winks, instantly lifting the mood.

"Oh really? Who?" Quinn questions playfully.

"That really hot, badass redhead you met yesterday you know," Phoenix grins, making Quinn laugh.

"I'll definitely keep that in mind."

Thank you all so much for the favorites, reviews and follows! Let me know how you liked this chapter!

Special thanks to Sabine for her much appreciated help and advice :)