I'm not happy at ALL with how this chapter turned out. I wanted more in it, but it just wasn't coming to me. Hopefully now that I'm past this chapter things will flow a little easier for me.

With that, I don't know when the next update will end up being. I've been in so much physical pain for the past month. It hurts me to sit at my computer for extended periods of time, or even to lay down in the same position for long periods of time. I have a new pain killer and muscle relaxer for my back and hip, and I'm waiting to be scheduled for an MRI of my lower spine. I'm hoping it's nothing serious, but with how it feels, I'm afraid it might be. I won't know until I get my MRI done. Which will hopefully be soon.

Anyway, I'm done updating everybody on how I've been doing. I'm going to go and lie down now, maybe play a game for a little bit before I have to go to work. Hope you all enjoy this. Let me know what you think.

Help Me Help You
Chapter 10

Three weeks. It had been three weeks since that fateful evening in Quinn's bedroom. There had been little talk of the event, and it had not happened again. Rachel walked from her car, into the school, books clung tightly to her chest. She had felt a little betrayed, if anything. After that night. Quinn seemed to completely vanish. The blonde had been very short with all of their interactions since that night.

She couldn't be mad at the blonde. They had crossed their own boundary. Both of them had. So, while it hurt Rachel to keep her distance from her best friend, she respected it and knew it was for the best. Though, Rachel didn't regret their kiss, she just knew it was entirely too soon.

"Berry!" Santana greeted Rachel from her spot near the diva's locker. "I needs to talk to you."

"Good morning to you too Santana. How may I be of assistance to you?" Rachel opened up her locker and proceeded to gather her books for her first two classes.

"What's up with Quinn? Old Mother Hubbard has been all weird since that little sleepover you guys had."

Rachel froze. Apparently she wasn't the only person Quinn wasn't talking to. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yea, ya do." Santana pushed the locker door shut, forcing Rachel to look at her. "What the hell happened between you two?"

"Nothing Santana." Rachel turned to walk toward her first class. She frowned when she noticed Santana stayed right beside her.

The Latina just wouldn't let it go. "You're hiding something. You and Q both. Someone needs to tell me what the hell is going on."

"Lay off of her, Santana." Quinn stepped between her two best friends. She never once spared a look to Rachel though. She couldn't. She couldn't look at the shorter girl the same way ever again.

"Something's going on with you two… and I don't like it."

Rachel glanced up at Quinn before she spoke, "it's something we need to figure out on our own right now." She smiled softly when the blonde actually looked down at her. What she saw in Quinn's eyes, though, was pure confusion. It wasn't the same loving look she'd come to know and love herself. Quinn had the look in her eyes that she sported when she discovered she was pregnant. When she had no idea what she should do.

"Yea, whatever… But know this, I will find out what's going on. You two can't keep your mouths shut forever." With that, Santana turned to head toward her own first period.

Once Santana was out of their sight, Rachel decided to try her luck with talking to the blonde. "Good morning Quinn."

"Morning." Was all Quinn spit out before turning on her heel and hurrying down the hall.

Well, it's more than yesterday. Rachel let out a heavy sigh as she followed Quinn into their first class of the day.

Rachel: Hopefully we can talk soon… I miss you

Quinn laid in her bed. Beth had been asleep now for nearly two hours. Quinn, on the other hand, only wished she could sleep. Ever since the kiss, her mind wouldn't stop working. She spent all of her alone time thinking – trying to make sense of the jumbled mess that were her thoughts. When did everything change? She closed her eyes to try to focus on the moment that she started looking at Rachel differently. The only instance she could think of, happened nearly a year ago.

"I can't believe you dragged me here Quinn." Rachel grumbled as she followed her friend up to Santana's house. "You know she hates me. She didn't even offer me an invitation to her party."

Quinn rolled her eyes before grabbing Rachel's hand and literally dragged the brunette out of her car. "She doesn't bite, I promise."

"Sometimes I wonder about her though." She mumbled under her breath, but didn't fight her friend leading her toward Santana's front door.

Quinn opened the door to allow herself into the house. But, Rachel stopped at the doorway, feeling weary. "Come on Rach, I'll put her in her place if she tries to kick you out."

"But Quinn, I'd really rather just go home…"

"Q! It's about da- what is she doing here? I don't remember troll people being invited."

"I invited her San. Lay off."

"Um, how about no. I'm sure you can find your way out of my house hobbit." Santana's arms folded over her chest.

"I'll have you know Santana, it was not my idea to even be here. I would much rather be at home, practicing for Regionals, just like the rest of us should be doing. But no, Quinn insisted I get out of the house and mingle with my fellow Glee mates." She glared at the taller blonde, who had her eyebrows raised in amusement. "I'm well aware of the fact that you, nor anybody else in Glee even likes me."

Quinn wasn't the only one amused by Rachel's sudden outburst. "Well damn Berry, you have more attitude like that, I may come to like you."

"Well, it looks like I didn't even have to put her in her place. You did it yourself."

It wasn't that situation, Quinn decided. No, it was a combination of that, and seeing Rachel in her barely there, black bikini when she was getting ready to dive into Santana's pool. So far as she was aware, nobody noticed her staring at the tiny brunette as she splashed around with their other Glee mates in the water.

One party, that Rachel didn't even want to go to, changed everything for Quinn. From that day forward, she recalled herself watching Rachel a little longer than normal. She'd smile at her every time she sang in Glee, even when everybody else would roll their eyes. Quinn found herself standing up for Rachel at school. It became second nature for her. It had even started to become common knowledge at school, that Rachel was off limits to slushies. Especially when Santana was around as well.

Quinn was thankful to have the chance to think. She slowly felt her mind start to clear itself. She always knew her relationship with Finn was due to her father's strict nature. Her one night stand with Puck, was based on pure rebellion. Now, that Quinn was being honest with herself, she could finally admit that she hated sleeping with Puck. She hated every aspect of it. But, being straight had always been expected of her.

A small smile crept to her face. She was 18, a single mother, and lived on her own. Quinn was already going against the standards that had been laid for her while she was growing up. The expected life of an 18 year old, was to graduate high school, head off to college, and spend time with their friends. She wasn't that typical teenager.

Her phone vibrated, pulling her out of her thoughts. She couldn't help but smile when she saw it was from Rachel.

Rachel: I hope you have a good night. I'm off to bed

Quinn fought the urge to text her best friend back. She wanted to. Hell, she missed talking to Rachel as much as it was obvious to her that Rachel missed it as well. Keeping her distance, while painful, was worth it. She needed the time to clear her head and work through all of her mixed emotions. As she stared at the screen, she realized that the conversation she had with Brittany had started the whole process. She loved Rachel. And the time away from the brunette only helped confirm that.

She looked at the empty space beside her. Oh how she wanted Rachel to be there beside her… every night… for the rest of her life. Quinn closed her eyes as she felt a single tear slide down her cheek.

Quinn: I need a friend right now

She sent out the text message with shaking hands. Her phone came to rest on her chest while she wiped her tears from her eyes. Even though she'd told Rachel that they needed to figure everything out on their own, she really needed an outside opinion.

Santana: What's up chica?

Quinn: Can you come over tonight? And stay? Please?

Quinn hated the way she was begging. She was never the type to need another person for support. While growing up, she was always by herself. Having to seek help made her feel weak and helpless.

Santana: Be there in a few

The blonde curled up in her bed, her arms wrapped around one of her pillows. Once she realized it was a pillow Rachel always used, she completely broke down in tears. She didn't just love Rachel… she was in love with Rachel. And she was terrified.

Her position in bed didn't change from the time she saw Santana's text message, to the time she heard the doorbell. Quinn quickly wiped at her eyes before crawling out of bed to go and open the front door.

"So, what's got you begging me to come over at ten at night?" Santana invited herself in and tossed her Cheerios duffel bag onto her friend's sofa. When Quinn didn't answer right away, her tone softened slightly. "Why have you been crying?"

"It's Rachel." Quinn shut the front door and turned the deadbolt before looking at Santana.

The Latina made her way toward Quinn's bedroom, the blonde following right behind her. "You finally going to tell me what's going on?" Quinn nodded, "okay, I'm waiting."

Quinn sat on the edge of her bed. "We kissed… about three weeks ago when all of this started."

Santana's eyes grew wide. "Okay… so you kissed her and got scared?" She sat down beside her friend before speaking again. "Why did you get scared?"

"What if she doesn't love me back?" Quinn bit her lower lip in an attempt to fight off the tears that threatened her eyes again.

Santana reached out to rub Quinn's shoulder before pulling her into a tight embrace. She gently rubbed her friend's back as she sobbed into her neck. "You don't even have to worry about that Q. She loves you. Anybody can see that."

"Just because you think she does, doesn't mean she actually does."

"Pull your head out of your ass for a minute and actually listen to me. You guys kissed, and look at the outcome. She's moping around because you're not talking to her. Do you know how much I see her just looking at you in school?" She paused, but didn't give Quinn time to actually respond before she continued. "Every single day… I know it's scary, look how I was last year with Britt. It took me pushing her away to realize how much I needed her… much like what you're feeling right now with Rachel."

"I'm just terrified of what people will think…"

"Fuck what other people think Quinn. When have you ever cared about something like that?" Quinn shook her head. "No, tell me."

"Rachel's already picked on enough… can you imagine what it would be like for her if it got out that she liked girls?"

A small smile crept to Santana's face. "You need to ask her out. I know you want to protect her from those closed minded assholes at McKinley, but to be honest, nobody even needs to know if you two were to start dating. Rumors have circulated you two for the past year, and you know it. Just don't change how you act in school and nobody will be the wiser."

"Are you sure?"

Santana reached out to grab Quinn's phone. Without a word, she unlocked the screen, ignoring the odd look that Quinn had given her. She scrolled through her text messages to bring up the conversation with Rachel. "You're off Friday night, right Q?" Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the blonde nod. "K, good."

Quinn: This is Santana. Q's too afraid to ask you if you're busy Friday night

"What are you doing!" Quinn attempted to snatch her phone out of her friend's hand, but to no avail. "Santana, please…"

"You're too chicken to ask her. And trust me, I know you've wanted to." A sly smirk came to her lips when Rachel almost instantly responded.

Rachel: I'm free, but why are you wondering Santana?

"Oh good, she's free. How about you take her to Breadstix?"

"Why are you volunteering me to take her on a date?"

"Because you're too chicken shit to do it yourself."

Quinn: Wonderful, Quinn will pick you up at 7 for dinner

"You know I don't like Breadstix much Santana."

"Then you need to figure out before Friday where you're taking her for dinner." Santana smirked triumphantly before scooting back to make herself comfortable in bed. Just as she did so, Quinn's phone vibrated with a new message.

Rachel: Dinner?

Quinn: as in a date

"I really hate you." Quinn grabbed her phone from her friend. "I text you to come over, not to set me up on a damn date."

"Not much difference in my eyes. So, tell me. Did you like making out with Berry?"

"We didn't make out Santana! We kissed." Quinn blushed though, giving it away to the Latina that it was just an innocent kiss that they'd shared. It was a kiss that lovers usually shared.

"That look tells me otherwise Q. I know she makes you happy. She may annoy everybody else, but for some reason, you can tolerate her. As much as Finn claimed to love her, he wanted her to change. I see how you two interact. You're like this totally different person around her. And no, I'm not saying it as a bad thing. I'm saying it's a good thing. It's like she brings out the Quinn from when we were growing up."

Quinn made herself comfortable under her blankets, allowing Santana's words to sink in before she spoke. "I still hate you."

"No you don't. Somewhere inside that pretty little head of yours, you're thanking me for doing this for you." She shy smile that appeared on Quinn's face, told her all she needed to know. "You'll have a blast. Hell, I'll even watch Beth for ya."

"Are you sure?"

"I'll make sure she doesn't kill herself."

"That's comforting." Quinn smacked her friend's arm before laughing softly. After a moment of the two sharing a few friendly blows back and forth as well as laughing, Quinn spoke again. "Do you think it will work out with Rachel and I?"

"Of course it will. As long as Finn can take a damn hint and back off."

"Doubt that will happen…"

"He's a dipship, he always has been. You know that first hand from that year you spent dating him."

"Don't remind me." Quinn reached out for her phone, thankful that Santana allowed her to have it.

Rachel: I'm looking forward to that. Where are we going to go?

Quinn: I got my phone back from Santana, as far as where we're going, it's a surprise

Quinn: Good night Rach

Quinn plugged her phone into the charger before making sure her alarm was set for the morning. "Thank you for coming over San… it means a lot to me."

"No problem Quinn. You know I'm always here to help you. Even when it's obvious you don't know how to help yourself."

She rolled her eyes at her friend before switching on her TV to start a movie. She had a feeling that she'd fall asleep before it was even over, but having the television on in the background, always helped her to sleep. "Good night Santana."

"Night Quinn. Go get your girl." Santana winked before making herself comfortable under Quinn's blanket as well.

Spam that review button. I'm off to play a video game now and attempt to get comfortable in bed. I'm hoping this new medicine I have will actually work so I can do something tomorrow at work other than sit in the office all day -_-

See ya next time :D