"Baby, wake up" Quinn lightly shook Rachel awake.
"Hmm, Quinn what's wrong?" She asked, turning and getting up from the bed.
"The shutters in the living room are closed again"
The voice began and Rachel clung onto Quinn from where the stood centered in the bedroom.
Good morning Ladies. As you are aware, the shutters are closed in the main room. Do not be alarmed, they will be opened again. I'm working on a treat for you that I hope you will like.
The speaker crackled as it turned off and Rachel still didn't move. Quinn continued to hold her, knowing that since they woke up in the house, that voice had turned into Rachel's biggest fear and it had begun to haunt the girls dreams. At night, Quinn would rock her back and forth, side to side until the tears stopped and the girl would fall back to sleep. It wasn't every night, but it happened enough for Quinn to almost be able to predict when the nightmares came, just by Rachel's mood that day.
Even now that they were involved in a relationship and were now approaching their second Christmas in the house, their daily routine and treatment toward each other didn't change. They still argued about some of the smallest things, they still celebrated of a sort whenever Rachel finished recording a track and had put the finishing touches on it. They still sat down on Friday nights, a glass of wine each and watched the newest movies on TV.
Every Sunday, they tried out any new dishes that they had requested ingredients for. Every Monday, they cleaned the entire house after quickly finding out how dirty it could get. The rest of the week was taken at random as they tried to avoid putting themselves on too much of a schedule.
They kept their morning routines, both now at the peak of health as they continued their daily work outs, sometimes spending an entire day in the gym when it had been a rough week for them. Whenever it came to a family celebration; a birthday or the birth of a new family member within a group of friends that they observed on facebook were the hardest of days.
They sat down nightly and scanned the profiles of the New Directions.
Finn and Puck had both joined the army and had been deployed. Both girls cried when they looked through the pictures of their going away party.
Mercedes had gone to study fashion in Paris with some rich friends of her father.
Mike was attending classes at Tisch for dance and his employment stated that he was also working in Starbucks.
Tina, who was still down as In a Relationship with Mike, was working on a degree in childcare.
Artie, who is in Lima, was working as a chemist's assistant for this year after returning from a year in New Jersey. This was his year of work experience and he had opted to return to Lima to help take care of his father when he got sick. Sadly Artie's father had died last month and he was now transferring to a school in New York to be closer to Tina and Mike. Both girls thought that the situation was going to be very awkward for everyone, but judging by the posts back and forth on Mike, Tina and Artie's facebook walls, they seemed to be very good friends and the couple had even flown into be with the boy at the funeral.
Kurt and Blaine had separated sometime last year and Kurt was now In a Relationship with someone unknown. Quinn bet Rachel that it was someone they knew. Kurt was now co starring in an off Broadway show, his first foot in the door of the showbiz world.
Santana and Brittany were now engaged and living in LA with Santana's aunt while Santana attended a culinary school and Brittany was attending dance classes and teaching while she waited for their move to the city so she could begin her second year classes in Julliard. Santana posted weekly on her page about how close they were getting to saving up to have enough money to move to New York. It seemed like everyone was heading to the city when it originally had only been Kurt and Rachel who were bound for the bright lights in the city that never sleeps.
###
Tonight they sat and watched as the ball dropped to ring in the new year. When the clock struck 12, they would now be in 2014. Last year, they had sat on the couch, cuddled together. Being away from their family at Christmas was hard, but now it was even harder since more time had passed. For Christmas, their capturer had decorated the living room again along with showering them with new gifts that included some of the latest technology like an iPad and iTouch. They both received two large boxes of clothing which upon further inspection, were designed by Kurt Hummel.
They were then informed that Kurt had started a small business in the city, designing and selling clothing items online to help support himself. Rachel received a note which said that her studio was under going some renovation for the time being.
They figured that their capturer was running out of ideas of stuff to buy them. Books were delivered once a month and they packed up the ones that they had already read as to keep the library stocked. They would soon be approaching the two year mark on their captivity and they wondered how much longer they would be trapped in this house. How much longer they would be kept for observation. Neither had wondered out loud though in sometime or questioned who it may be that is observing them or why it had been them in the first place that had been chosen.
By now, Rachel had recorded over 45 tracks on CD's since last Christmas and Quinn was on her 2nd book of recording their activity in the house. Along with a childrens series that she had begun and with Rachel's artistic skills, had started to illustrate.
3 minutes before the ball was set to drop, the shutters on the window which had been closed since Christmas morning opened and they were instructed to get on jackets and proceed outside.
As they watched the ball on their TV drop through the glass window, they were suddenly alerted to something whistling in the sky.
5...
They turned quickly around and watched the flame rise into the sky
4...
The beamed of light rose higher and higher
3...
It suddenly exploded, sending hundreds of lights around the night sky.
2...
The ball dropped behind them on the TV as Time's square erupted in applause.
1...
"Happy New Year"
"Happy New Year Baby" They kissed as the noise from the TV grew louder, the nights sky glowed above them and the whistling of the flames because more frequent as the finally of the small fireworks display continued.
But they were lost in each others embraces as the held each other, lips pressed together.
That night they made love for the first time. Even though they had been dating for a year on their anniversary which was Christmas day, they had yet to go further than heavy making out and light groping. Under the blankets of their bed, blocking the view of the camera which was placed above their door, they touched each other for the first time.
Quinn had lead Rachel to the bedroom after they re entered the house and extinguished the fire. They changed and got ready for bed, cuddling together under the covers after turning off the lights. They began kissing, doing so as they did nightly, seeking comfort in each other.
Tonight though was different for the both of them. They were both, to say it simply, really turned on and the passion over trumped the lack of privacy as they slowly stripped under the covers and began to touch each other intimately for the first time.
###
When they woke up the next morning, still covered by blankets, cuddled together, they both acquired a sudden shyness. Rachel blushed as she looked down at their nude bodies pressed together and Quinn giggled.
"I don't know why I'm reacting like this. It's normal, natural and we've seen each other naked loads of times before" She muttered into Quinn's neck.
"Oh baby. There was nothing natural about what we did last night. That was... amazing"
"Really?" Rachel questioned in a whisper.
"Really. Was it okay for you? I know it was your first time and for me it was sorta my first time too" Quinn asked,
getting lost in thought.
"It was perfect" Rachel replied, pulling back from Quinn's neck and placing a kiss on her lips.
"I love you" Quinn told the women in her arms, brushing her fingers through her hair.
"I love you too baby" Rachel replied, smiling. "I love you, so much"
###
Ladies. Good morning. I ask you before you settle down for your breakfast to go out to the studio. Rachel's birthday present is out there, waiting. Sorry that it has taken until now for you to receive it, I know that it is a month late.
The girls had just exited the shower that they had shared and had froze when they voice began. Sometimes they forgot that they were even under surveillance. It wasn't often anymore that the voice would make contact with them.
After getting dressed, they headed out to the studio where they saw that it had been extended. Inside, they found that a separate booth had been built that held multiple guitars, keyboards and a drum set.
"I guess he wants you to expand?" Quinn said.
"But I don't know how to play the drums and I'm only a beginner on guitar" Rachel answered, picking up the acoustic.
"Well" Quinn began, picking up a box that was in the center of the floor and placed it on the coffee table. "These might help" She said, pulling out self help teaching books for multiple instruments along with DVD's.
Suddenly Rachel was a lot more enthusiastic about her music writing.
###
On their nightly ritual of browsing the New Directions facebook pages, they discovered the exciting news that Mike and Tina had gotten engaged. A week later, it was revealed by a comment left on Tina's page from her cousin that the girl was expecting a baby.
They had their own celebration for the couple and were moved to tears when Tina posted a sonogram picture on her page of the baby Chang, now 3 months into the pregnancy.
Artie was now in a relationship with a very pretty girl called Ashley that was training to be a dental assistant and they had been dating for the last 6 months. His latest facebook status was informing everyone that himself and Ashley were moving in together now that the happy couple would be needing space for the baby. And that he couldn't wait to be a god father.
Puck and Finn, who didn't update their pages often, were now both heading out for their second tours together. The girls were relieved when they had checked facebook the night of New Years and found statuses from both men saying that they had arrived home, safe and sound. But only after being home a few weeks and visiting their friends all over the country, both boys had signed up for another tour.
Mercedes was a frequent visitor to New York from Paris as her and Kurt had come together to start their own fashion company that excelled in online sales and had landed a spot on the runway in the oncoming New York fashion week.
Rachel had been made do the dishes for 2 weeks after Kurt's mystery man had been revealed to be Dave Karofsky from high school. Apparently the tormentor had apologized for his actions in high school as a confused, struggling, closeted gay teen who acted out in homophobic ways to hide his long time crush on the openly gay teen.
Brittany and Santana were planning to move to New York come July and be settled in for when they start school in September.
Now that they were sitting down and looking over their friends pages, they had another one of their nostalgic moments. They spoke of the day they were abducted, 21 months ago roughly. 4 months to go until the 2 year mark came.
"So, I guess it was The Voice that spray painted our names on the wall, huh?" Quinn said as she placed the computer on the coffee table.
Rachel looked at her, rolling her eyes and then leaned over to knock on the girls head. "I think your brain has shrunken since high school. You used to be so smart back then" She giggled as the blond batted away her hand.
"Excuse me! I was plenty smart in high school and am only smarter now!" Quinn said sticking out her tongue. "I'm learning how to play the guitar and the drums and I've wrote two books along with 2 children's series and... and... I'm plenty smart!" She said, pushing the brunette onto her back on the couch and straddling her waist.
Leaning down, she kissed the Rachel's exposed collar bone and whispered "I'm smart enough to have fallen in love with you" in her ear.
"Oh you big sap!" Rachel teased, pushing Quinn up off of her and then getting up off the couch. Quinn sat back down on the couch, huffing and pouting with her arms crossed until Rachel called her from their bedroom, claiming to not be wearing any clothes under their covers.
###
Now in March, the weather had improved meaning that The Voice had re opened the Jacuzzi and pool area now that the snow had cleared. This was great relief to them as now it would give them something more to so during the day.
There was only so much reading, writing and singing you could do daily before you had started to want to pull your hair out. Rachel requested gardening supplies for them to work with during Spring until the Summer months where they could be more active in the warmer weather.
"Babe, do you ever 'Why us?" Rachel asked as she dug a hole in the ground that surrounded her studio. She was digging, while Quinn placed and covered the seeds.
"Why we were taken?" She questioned, earning a nod from Rachel.
"Well, sometimes I think maybe it has something to do with the mistakes I made in high school and the way I treated people"
"Yeah. I've thought that too but I can't think of anything major that I regret except... except telling Finn about Beth being Pucks" She said, dropping the shovel and then helping Quinn get to her feet as they heading inside to grab some drinks.
"And I've forgiven you for that Rach. I should probably be thanking you really. If you hadn't told Finn, I'd probably still be dating him, stuck in Lima, raising Beth in an unhappy relationship that was being kept together by a lie" Quinn answered, pouring the juice into glasses and then handing one to Rachel.
"I guess. But at least then you wouldn't be stuck in here, in this house with me" Rachel said in a small voice.
Quinn placed her glass on the counter and marched over to Rachel, grabbing her face with her hands roughly and looking into the girls eyes.
"Rachel Berry, I will say this once, and once only. I'd rather be stuck in this house with you, the girl I love, any day than be anywhere else in this world right now. You are my life Rachel. Even when we get out of here, you will continue to be my life. You're the girl I love. The only positive thing about being in this house, is that I was able to get the chance to fall in love with you. And I honestly couldn't picture what my life would have been like if we weren't here. You're the first thing I think of in the morning, and the last thing I think of at night before I go to sleep, wrapped in your arms, even if you are the person laying next to me." She laughed. "I love you Rachel. I love you with all my heart" She placed a kiss on Rachel's lips before pulling back.
"I love you too" Rachel replied, wiping the tears from her eyes and then the ones from Quinn's cheeks. "I'm sorry for upsetting you"
"No Rach, you didn't upset me. I just don't want you thinking that I feel stuck here with you. When we leave this house, it's your hand that I'm going to be holding" Quinn reassured the girl, kissing her cheek.
Deciding to take a break, they sat themselves down at the kitchen table.
"What's the first thing you want to do when we get out of here?" Rachel asked her girlfriend.
"The first thing that I want to do? Hmmm... Well, I guess the first thing I would do would be to go see Beth. I want you to meet her. Being here has made me realize how much I miss her and how bad I want to see her again" Quinn said, looking to the photo copied picture of her daughter that hung on the wall. The original was placed beside their bed and another copy could be found in the Library.
"I'd really like that, to meet her" Rachel said smiling at her girlfriend and also looking at the picture on the wall.
"What about you super star? What's the first thing that you want to do?"
"Well... I guess I'd really like to meet Beth also. But mostly I can't wait to see my dads. Introduce you to my dads"
"Me meeting the Berrymen? I dunno Rach, don't you think they might chase me down the street with pitch forks?"
Quinn laughed, getting up and bringing their empty glasses to the sink.
"Don't be silly baby. They'll love you. After all, you are the girl that their daughter loves and wants to spend the rest of her life with"
"The rest of your life?" Quinn asked raising an eyebrow, as she turned around to look at the girl still sitting at the table.
"Well I don't plan on leaving you any time soon" Rachel smirked, getting up from the table and going back outside.