A/N: LayLayX is the winner this time. She guessed my least favourite couple and all of my favourite couples, so she wins the prize. PM me with your question or your one-shot request.

Brittany had been a blur of energy ever since she had decided that a weekend away was the perfect way for everyone to bond. She had called Mike straight away, asking him to get the beach house for the weekend, and had received a call back within the hour, saying that they were more than welcome to use the house.

She had fired off texts to Santana, Matt, Puck and Quinn, telling them to pack their bags because they'd be driving up to the beach house this Friday, and got four instant replies, all varied in enthusiasm but all saying that they'd go, just for Brittany.

They were supposed to be leaving on Friday, which gave her just over two days to convince Brittany to let her stay at home.

Operation: Cancel beach trip was a go.

On Wednesday, she pretended to come down with the flu, coughing and spluttering in bed, but Brittany called Santana and Santana, within minutes of walking in the door, called her bluff. On Wednesday afternoon, she pretended to sprain her ankle but Brittany simply put ice on it and bandaged it up, saying that she'd be ready to go for Friday.

On Thursday morning, she pretended that she had a major assignment to finish but Brittany e-mailed her professor and reassured her that she still had three weeks before she had to hand it in. On Thursday afternoon, she broke down in hysterics (those acting lessons finally paid off), saying that she wasn't able to go if Puck was going, but the distraught look on Brittany's face forced her to change her tune.

On Friday morning, she slept in and no matter how many times Brittany called her name, she didn't open her eyes, hoping that the blonde would just let her stay in bed, but instead, her roommate set Mike on her, who took great pleasure in jumping on her bed until she crawled out. On Friday afternoon, when everyone was meeting in the dorm room with their bags, she snapped the zip off of her suitcase as a last minute attempt to get out of the trip, her face falling into a pout as her clothes spilled all over the floor. Matt was more than happy to quickly drive back to the apartment and grab her a spare bag though, and by 2.15pm, she was officially out of options.

She had no choice but to tell the truth.

"Hey Britt... can I talk to you for a second?" she asked as soon as the others had begun to lug their bags out to the car.

"Rach, this better not be another silly excuse to get out of the trip. You're coming and that's final. You'll have a great time when we get there, I promise!"

"Britt... remember how I told you about the car accident I was in?" she says hesitantly, pausing as Brittany nods her head. "Ever since then, I've had a fear of cars. I can't sit in a car for longer than ten minutes without getting antsy and the thought of driving to the beach house is killing me"

"But the best part of going to the beach house is the road trip", Brittany pouts, her eyes wide as she bites at her bottom lip. "Mike and I have a bunch of road games that we like to play, and we hired a car that was big enough for all of us to fit... you can't bail now"

"Britt..."

"I promise that we're really good drivers. Matt's driving us and he's never, ever had an accident. I promise you'll be safe Rach..."

"Brittany, I just can't"

"That isn't a reason Rachel... don't you trust me? We'll keep you safe"

"I didn't tell you the full truth about the accident, okay? I was on the way to my graduation party with my boyfriend Finn, his step-brother Kurt, my best friend Tina and her boyfriend Artie and it was one of those perfect moments that you feel like you'll remember forever. Finn lost control of the car and we spun out of control and hit a tree, and the car tore straight down the middle. I managed to get out, but none of them did, and I couldn't rescue them before the car blew up. I just can't get in a car again, not with friends who seem so happy, not when I know what could possibly happen"

"Rachel..." Brittany whimpers, her eyes filling with tears. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know"

"I'm just going to stay at home this time. Maybe next time I'll be able to book a flight and come with you but I think it's best for all of us if I just stay behind"

"No, you can't do that! If you stay here, you'll be letting death win Ray. You may as well congratulate him for what he did, because you're just sitting here and taking it. You have to keep fighting and show him that he may have taken everything from you but you aren't going to give up", Brittany says softly as she extends her hand.

"It's time to go Britt", Santana calls from the door.

"And if you cancel now, Puck will think that it's because of him", Brittany whispers into her ear before grabbing her hand. "Don't let him think he has any power over you"

So her mission failed but it doesn't seem like that much of a bad thing because Brittany's hand in hers is exceptionally warm and for the first time in a long time, she doesn't feel so overwhelmingly alone.

By the time they settle in the car, she can tell it's going to be an awkward and uncomfortable journey. Matt's driving and there's a brief argument between Santana and Puck about who is going to sit next to him in the passenger's seat (for some reason, neither of them want it), which only ends when Santana beats him at scissors paper rock.

Then Santana practically forces Mike to sit in the seats they've pulled down in the boot, and glares at Quinn until she offers to sit in the boot as well. Only then does Santana put a smile on her face as she slides into her seat, not even fighting to sit next to Brittany, but choosing to sit next to her and grip her hand tightly, smiling a little more as Brittany does the same.

"Eyes on the road", she teases Matt, who rolls his eyes before looking forward. "We don't want any accidents today"

If Santana or Brittany notice the way she tenses, they don't say anything and she's insanely grateful to them. "Relax Rachel, Matt's a great driver. He'll get us there safely, I promise"

"Wait... you told San?" Brittany asks, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "I thought no one else knew"

"I didn't tell Santana", she replies, her face mirroring Brittany's. "I have no idea how she knows. Did Puck tell you?" she hisses.

"No, I found the files on his computer", Santana whispers, just as Brittany hisses "Puck knew too? And neither of you told me?"

"It wasn't our secret to tell Britt"

"Just don't Santana. We're best friends. We don't have secrets. I've been worried about Rachel for weeks and you didn't tell me. That's not something a best friend does", Brittany snaps before turning her head away from Santana.

"Brittany..." Santana trails off, unsure of what to say next, her face contorting into confusion as Rachel rips her hand away, leans forward and slaps Puck around the head.

"Damn Rachel, what the hell was that for?" he grumbles, turning and glaring at her. The frown quickly melts off his face when he sees that she's near tears and he orders Matt to pull over. "Satan, switch with me now", he growls, practically throwing open the doors in his haste to switch seats.

For once, Santana doesn't argue, merely sliding into the passenger's seat with a sigh, and watches in the rear view mirror as Puck grabs Rachel's hand and gently rubs it, pulling her close into his side. For once, Rachel doesn't have anything to say, and despite the fact that she was furious Puck just this morning, she lets him comfort her.

The rest of the drive is silent, with Santana and Brittany staring out their windows, Matt refusing to take his eyes off the road, Quinn sleeping in the back, Mike playing hangman on his phone and Puck stroking Rachel's hair until she fell asleep.

If only the rest of the weekend had continued down that path...

She pulls away from Puck as soon as the car pulls up outside the house, her face flaming red with embarrassment and anger at what happened in the car ride. She's embarrassed because the way they were sitting looked so personal and intimate, and she's more than a little angry because she's still upset with him and he took advantage of her when she wasn't feeling strong enough to push him away.

The weekend goes from bad to worse as they pull up at the house. She's supposed to be sharing a bedroom with Santana, Quinn and Brittany, and although it could be worse (she could be sharing with Puck), she's kind of nervous about having to spend two nights with a trio of girls that are almost ready to kill each other (Santana and Brittany aren't speaking and Santana is always on the verge of slapping Quinn).

She watches Brittany unpack her bags, all while successfully ignoring Santana's pleas to 'just listen to my side of the story Britt', and she feels trapped when Brittany asks her if she wants to share one of the two double beds. Initially, she was supposed to be sharing with Quinn (despite the awkwardness) so that Brittany and Santana could share, and she feels Santana's eyes on her as soon as Brittany asks her.

"Sure Britt, that'll be fine", she says softly, avoiding eye contact with Santana and folding her clothes into the wardrobe. She can feel Santana's anger practically vibrating around the room, partly because Brittany's mad at her and partly because she has to share with Quinn now too.

Santana walks out of the room after that and as soon as Brittany and Quinn have finished unpacking their bags, they walk off in different directions, Brittany explaining that she's just gone to see Mike and Quinn giving no explanation but gracing her with a tiny smile.

She decides to just crawl into bed and sleep the afternoon away. She's got a killer headache and she just wants to pretend that she's not stuck in this beach house where everyone's fighting.

Her silence is interrupted within half an hour as Quinn comes storming back into the room, banging the door behind her and throwing her suitcase onto the empty bed, frantically flinging her clothes back inside it.

"Quinn, what are you doing?" she says quietly from her place under the covers.

"I don't know how much more of this I can take. I've apologised so many times and told him that I'm not here to get him back, but he still won't look at me. God, I only want him in my life as a friend, just like I want Santana and Brittany and Mike and Matt back. I just want my family back but he won't even look at me Rachel, and it's all your fault", she growls, taking a menacing step towards her.

"My fault?"

"Puck's always been able to forgive me for anything, even when I didn't deserve it. I've never had anyone love me unconditionally like that and I liked it, okay? That doesn't make me a selfish person. It makes me human. And yes, I made some mistakes. I'm not flawless. I get upset too easily and make stupid decisions when I'm emotional and even though it doesn't seem like it, I don't forgive myself for the mistakes I've made..."

"Quinn, I'm sure he just needs time"

"God Rachel, are you that stupid?" she yells, her eyes wide as she yanks her fingers through her hair, pulling it out of the ponytail it's been in all day. "I waited a long time for Puck; waited while he grew up and reduced his drinking habits and stopped sleeping with women he met in a bar. I waited a long, long time for Puck to be ready to start dating me, and when that happened, we were happy. We were together for two years and we may have fought sometimes, but we always made up and I truly loved him. I've never loved anyone like I've loved him"

"Quinn, I thought you said you didn't want to get back together with him?"

"I don't. I just want him to forgive me like he always used to", she whispers before bursting into tears. "He stayed with me even when I cheated, and was willing to help me raise the baby, and I just kept pushing and pushing at him, and even after I broke his heart and ran away, he still answered my phone calls and still looked at me like I hung the stars... or he did until he met you"

"Me?"

"You really are that stupid, aren't you? He may not realize it yet, and you obviously don't notice it, but he has feelings for you. Today in the car... the way he stroked your hair back from your face as you fell asleep, well, that's how he used to comfort me. And the way he ordered Matt and Santana about... I've only ever seen him down that the first time we ever drove to the beach house, and I got car sick. He looks at you the same way he used to look at me and it kills me inside Rachel, because you've got something that I lost a long time ago and I'm still trying to get it back. You have his respect, and his admiration and his faith, and you haven't even noticed yet"

She's silent for a second too long, and she can tell the instant Quinn's guard goes back up. She wipes away her tears, and her eyes go back to that cold, indifferent state they're usually in, and her face settles back into her emotionless mask. "I don't know why he feels that way about you though. I heard Brittany telling Mike about your high school boyfriend on my way back up here and her voice sounded so sad. God, what's the big deal? Did he break up with you? Find you too grating, too high-maintenance, didn't want a long-distance relationship?" she hisses venomously, her eyes narrowing as she picks at the only weakness she's been able to find.

"Quinn, please stop now. You have no idea what you're talking about", she warns, her eyes already swimming with tears.

"Well, considering you're the same age as us but your still in your first year at NYU like Brittany... I'm guessing you gave up your dreams to stay behind in that small town you grew up in and then you found him in your bed with some other girl"

With a strangled sob, she jumps out of the bed and stalks towards Quinn. "You have no idea what you're talking about Quinn, so just stop"

"Touchy subject, huh? Was it your sister? Best friend? Oh, let me guess... he was in bed with another guy?"

With a shaky hand, she pushes Quinn out of the way and brushes past her, running down the stairs and out the front door, relishing the large slamming sound it makes behind her.

She's just going to keep running and never, ever come back.

Her silence last for hours. The sun sets over the ocean, and the wind whips at her hair as it gets darker, but no one can see her from her secluded place amongst the dunes. Just as she begins to get goosebumps, despite the sweatshirt, she begins to see an outline of a person running towards her. Ignoring the instinct to duck out of sight, she sighs when his voice breaks the silence.

"Jesus Christ Rachel, you can't just run away like that", Puck growls as he runs towards her, his eyes worried. "Do you know how long I've spent looking for you?"

"Just leave it Puck. I just needed a break"

"Yeah, we know. We all heard the front door slamming shut and then Quinn came in all pale telling us she'd done something horrible and that we had to go after you. Santana looked ready to kill her, Brittany had to physically restrain her from starting something and we've been looking for you ever since"

"I asked her to stop but she seemed so upset, and angry and distraught, like the only possible way she could get rid of all those feelings was to take it out on me"

"That's Quinn... she bottles everything up inside until she can't take it anymore and she just explodes. After a while of being around her, you can tell when the fuse is going to burn out, and you know to run for it", he explains quietly, putting his jacket around her shoulders before sitting down next to her in the sand.

"You just tolerate it? None of you say anything?"

"Not even Santana dares to say anything, and she's the biggest badass any of us have ever met. There's just something about Quinn... you can't question her, and it's so easy to forgive her, no matter what she does to you. It's taken me years to finally be truly mad at her for everything she did to me. She picks something she sees as a weakness and just picks at it until you can't take it anymore because she feels like it deflects the attention away from her. What did she say to you?"

"She heard Brittany and Mike talking about Finn and she thought he was my ex-boyfriend, and she just kept picking at the reasons our relationship could have fallen apart"

"God, Rach, I'm sorry. I know that must have sucked for you", he says softly, placing his hand gently on her knee.

"What sucks more is how I'm just the girl everyone feels sorry for, and it's all because of you", she hisses, shaking his hand off her knee. "I came to New York for a fresh start... so that no one could look at me and see the girl who lost everything, but you just had to screw that up for me. You just had to step in and be such a jerk, and because of you, practically everyone knows"

"You were the one who told Brittany", he reminds her, and she can see that his eyes are flashing dangerously as the street light throws beams across his face.

"Because she needed to know why I couldn't go on the trip... it was my secret to tell Puck, and you took that right away from me. Now I'm just everyone's pity case and that was the only thing I didn't want", she whispers, her eyes vacant as she stares at the ocean.

"I'm sorry Rachel, I am. It was a stupid thing for me to do and if I could take it back, I would, but you're wrong. You're wrong about the way we see you. Brittany had adopted you into the family before she even knew about your past. She loves you because of the person you are, not because of what happened to you. We consider you family Rachel, not because we feel sorry for you but because we like you"

"As soon as Matt and Quinn find out, nothing will be the same. You may not do it on purpose, but you'll look at me with sympathy in your eyes, and you'll try and protect me and keep me sheltered from everything and for once, I just wanted to be treated like a normal person", she responds, her eyes flickering in the light.

"Rachel, I don't know how else to make you believe this", he whispers, gently tilting her chin towards him. "You are an amazing person. Sure, we're going to feel sorry for you because you've had something horrible happen in your life, but what kind of person wouldn't do that for a friend? Sure, we're going to want to protect you, but that's just what friends are for. We aren't going to restrict ourselves around you... we're still going to dare you to do stupid things, and keep filling up your glass when you aren't looking so we can see what "smashed Rachel" is like. And we're still going to look at you like you are a beautiful, strong and amazing person, and that's only going to increase when everyone knows because you are a survivor"

"You think I'm beautiful?" she questions, her eyes trailing across his face.

"Of course I do. You're fucking stunning", he replies, before leaning forward and pressing his lips against hers for the first time, and, he hopes, not the last.

A/N: This is the first half of the weekend away. There's way more drama to come, involving a truth or dare game that will have everyone revealing secrets about themselves.

Okay, a simple one this time: do you have tumblr? If so, leave me your tumblr username, because I want to follow you! Anyone with tumblr gets a free question or one-shot request...