She spent the rest of the night ignoring her stupid boyfriend, wiling him to die in a fire for his utter inability to keep a single damn secret, and keeping her tears at bay. Which was surprisingly difficult, despite her having many years of practice. She blamed it on her hormones, rather than the need to just cry for once. Fabrays, even disowned ones, did not cry.
That one phone call she had been able to place in between packing her things and her father shouting at her to hurry was the only thing keeping her together at the moment; the knowledge that soon, someone responsible was going to be there for her, that she wouldn't have to deal with this alone anymore.
"Um…" He silenced himself obediently at the raised hand, knowing better from previous mistakes. His head was still throbbing from when she hit him earlier.
"Finn," she said flatly, "I don't want to see you right now. I don't even want to remember you exist. Thanks to you, I'm officially homeless on top of being pregnant. It's almost the middle of winter! What on Earth told you it was a good idea to tell my parents that?"
"I couldn't help it! I'm happy! Proud even. Why wouldn't I tell them?" The earnest expression on his face only made her facepalm. Whoever had planted the idea in his head was a dead person once she found them.
"Finn. Go away. My ride will be here soon."
"But I thought you'd stay with me." Her glare, honed through years of observation and practice, trumped his pout soundly and had him retreating quickly upstairs. The usual rush of joy that would spread through her body at people obeying her commands despite not having said a word never came. She sighed and crossed her arms over her slightly distended stomach, doing her best to convince herself that it wasn't because she was afraid of falling apart.
Fabrays were very good at deceiving themselves.
She looked around the living room, seeing the happy family photos from when Finn's father had still been alive. Like now, he still looked like an adorable little boy, ignoring his large size, with that dopey grin on his face that he certainly inherited from his father. Most of the frames were well worn and she could almost see his mother picking them up from time to time, immersing herself in the echoes of times long since passed.
A shuddering exhale that threatened to turn into a sob turned her attention inward, moving away from all thoughts 'daddy' related. Thankfully someone heard at least one of her prayers and she eagerly moved towards the door when she saw the headlights pull up to the house. She flung it open, launching herself into a tight blonde embrace, her tears finally falling.
"Oh baby," she heard somewhere above her, a hand rubbing her back. "It's gonna be okay…" Hearing those words only made her cry harder. She was only sixteen damnit! She still wanted her mommy to hold her and tell her everything would be alright, that mommy would make it better. Granted, Judy had not been that kind of mother once she turned ten so she was used to doing without but damn if it didn't feel amazing right now.
"How? My life is over!"
"Stop being so dramatic; it doesn't suit you. Where's your bag?"
"Uh, right here. Who're you?" Finn stood in the doorway of his home, blinking at the two blondes, the red duffel at his feet. Again, Quinn willed him to spontaneously combust so as to not see the extent of her shame.
"I'm Spencer Carlin, Quinn's cousin. I'm going to assume you're the one responsible for this?" She obviously couldn't help the accusation from seeping into her tone and didn't bother trying. Quinn was just too happy she finally had someone proper to defend her. The past few weeks had been tough, especially since Finn was so ineffective as quarterback at getting people to leave her alone once they found out she was pregnant. She choice to ignore the hypocrisy of that thought, knowing she would have tortured a pregnant teen if the roles had been reversed.
"It was a mistake, I swear!"
"Spence, stop scaring the poor boy. He reminds me of a dumber Aiden. Hand over the bag, AJ. The blonde's staying with us tonight." Quinn lifted her head, surprised at the brunette standing just behind Spencer's shoulder, hand outstretched. Finn did so quickly, obviously intimidated by the woman's manner. "Good boy. Now go inside while we fix your mistake."
"Finn, just go," Quinn added when he opened his mouth to argue. "I'll see you next week." He nodded, the kicked puppy pout doing nothing for her as he closed the door.
"Did he honestly think that stupid expression would work?" Ashley scoffed. "Let's go, blondies. Ashley wants sleep."
"Lee-Lee, be nice. Quinn, this is my girlfriend, Ashley. Ashley, my baby cousin, Quinn. Will you be alright with staying with us? I remember mom's stigmatism on all things not endorsed by the church and she was considered the liberal one." The pair shared a fond eye roll at that.
"Anything is better than staying with Finn at this point," she replied, with a laugh that came out more as another sob. "I doubt living with a pair of lesbians can lower me any further to mom and dad." Spencer just tucked her into her side, supporting her as they piled back into the car, neither saying a word as she continued to cry quietly, pretending they didn't hear.
They set her up in what should have been Ashley's room but was now just a spare workroom/guestroom that doubled as 'the couch' whenever one them were kicked out of their joined bedroom. A futon was placed against one wall, tucked in between two bookshelves, one covered with various vinyls and the other with actual books. The one window faced the west so she wouldn't have to worry about the sun waking her up in the morning and promised a nice view when the sun set. Arranged around the room were pictures, some of Spencer, some of Ashley, a few of the Carlin family, and still others of their time in California. The biggest one was of Spencer and Ashley together, obviously having just graduated, both of them happily kissing each other. In the background she could see her aunt and uncle, smiling widely as they watched on, and a few others.
"I know it's not much but we'll get the other things in the morning," Spencer said as Ashley placed her bag at the foot of the futon, drawing Quinn's attention back to the present. Compared to what she would have had to deal with, specifically the couch in the living room that was terribly uncomfortable at Finn's house, this small room was heaven.
"I don't know how much I can thank you two for this, or even how I'd begin to repay you."
"No probs, kid. I'm used to taking in Spence's strays," Ashley said with a teasing grin. Spencer glared at her but the smile diminished its effect greatly, especially when Ashley dropped a kiss on her cheek. "Well, you two bond or whatever. I'm taking a shower."
"Does she not like me?" Quinn asked after she left. Spencer tugged her over to the futon, seating them both.
"Hardly. She's just mad at me for picking up the phone when I did. I'll make it up to her in a little while." Quinn's brow furrowed as she thought.
"What did I interrupt?" Spencer raised an eyebrow.
"Quinn. I know you can't be that repressed." There was a beat of silence. "Or maybe you can be. Fine. We were having sex. I made her stop to pick up the phone." Predictably, the bright red blush overtook her cheeks, ears, and neck quickly, prompting a chuckle from Spencer. "You asked."
"I know. I just…" She sighed and tucked herself into her older cousin.
"If it's making you uncomfortable, we can tone down the PDA. I know not everyone is okay with it."
"No. This is your home and those were da-my father's ideas. I'm beginning to think he was wrong."
"I wouldn't say wrong so much as misguided and prejudiced. Grandma isn't the most understanding of parents." Something in her tone caused Quinn to look up.
"Does she know? About you and Ashley?"
"Yes. She came over to visit and found out. She wasn't happy but mom defended me, and Ashley. Mom stood up and realized that the ideals being shoved down our throats weren't necessarily right. Either way, don't worry about everything else right now. Push it away for tonight and we'll deal with it in the morning. I'll call mom and dad later and you can talk to them if you like. He's still really good at putting things in perspective."
"Wait. Aunt Paula is okay with this?" The very thought was insanity. Russell and Paula had been two very similar peas in a pod from what her grandparents always said. If they were any stricter devout Christians and borderline supremacists, they would be neo-Nazis, just probably without the genocide.
Spencer only grinned. "She's still not okay with it, per say, but she focuses more on how happy Ashley makes me. She just accepted it over time. She and Ashley really didn't get along in the beginning, although now that I think about it, it probably had more to do with me figuring out that I was a lesbian than Ashley herself."
"So, you are one then? I remember daddy screaming about it one night and he made me promise I wouldn't shame him that way. I had no idea what he was talking about."
"No one is allowed to tell you who you are. Only you can, Quinn. Remember that. But yes, I am quite thoroughly a lesbian. I've been with Ashley for…wow, around six, seven years now."
"What happened to Aunt Paula? What made her change so much?"
"Don't forget, mom was always more liberal in comparison to Uncle Russ. Her and dad did adopt Clay, after all. But I think it was mostly being in Cali. Most people there really just do not care about what everyone else is doing as long as it's not illegal. It's a much more relaxed atmosphere than here in Lima. And because it's so much bigger, it's not as insular either so the opinions of your neighbours didn't really affect you too much. After we lost Clay, it forced mom to re-evaluate her priorities. She realized that she'd much rather keep what children she had left rather than pushing us away. It didn't hurt that Clay's daughter is there to help remind her."
"What? Clay had a…"
"Yea, a baby girl. She was nearly in a car accident but Glen saved her."
"How's she doing?"
"Aisha? Just fine. She'll be turning four soon. Both sides of the family help Chelsea, that's the mother, out so it's been going pretty well, all things considered."
She sighed. "Too bad that won't happen with mom and dad. I doubt they'd forgive me for this and I don't think they'll be changing their world views anytime soon."
"Hey, you never know. Granted, Uncle Russ is an ass for kicking you out in the middle of winter but stranger things have happened. But again, let's get you settled. We'll get you some proper clothes tomorrow. Do you wanna take a shower before you go to bed?"
"Sure. But I can't let you just buy everything for me."
"Yes, you can. Even if Ashley wasn't completely loaded and I wasn't above asking for certain things, she'll probably do it herself. She was in your position once. Almost exactly the same position."
"And what happened?"
"Miscarriage. But I was going to keep him," Ashley announced as she stopped in the doorway, drying her still wet hair with a towel. "Spencer's right, by the way. We'll help take care of you so long as you take care of yourself."
"And this is why I love you," Spencer said with a wide smile, getting up to peck her girlfriend on the lips. Quinn couldn't bring herself to look away, awed at the easy and carefree love the pair had for one another, something she'd only seen with happy couples. Hell, she'd seen more love between Rachel Berry's dads than her own parents, even when they were doing their best to appear as a loving couple. Her mom and dad were always stiff and formal around one another and sometimes she couldn't help but wonder how in the world they'd had created both her and her sister.
"I know. You two. Shower, then bed. In that order," she added to the blonde at her side, rolling her eyes at the faux, innocent look. "C'mon, Quinn, I'll show you where everything is."
She got up, trailing behind the brunette, feeling for the first time that everything just might, in fact, turn out alright.
Wow people. The response has been all kinds of epic so I pumped this one out as fast as possible. But just know the next one might take a little bit since I have to go through Glee season 1 to create a proper timeline for the episodes, get the important things that happened in that episode, and then proceed to twist it to my own ends. That being said, I have something to add so you all won't be disappointed later.
This is a Faberry story with Brittana and Spashley elements. So while yes, Ashley and Spencer will make multiple appearances, this story will not focus on them. This is a slight crossover and I meant that. I also haven't seen South of Nowhere or the first season of Glee in a very long time so forgive me if I take a lot of creative liberties, like having Chelsea's baby live, her death was stupid anyway. I'm more or less throwing the series finale of South of Nowhere out the window, rushed and contrived that it was, so most of the series is canon up to the end. And Glee is only canon up to Ballad.
So from here on, sit back, enjoy, and I hope I don't disappoint everyone.