Author's Note: Alright, before anyone continues on with the chapter I'd like a moment to explain myself. I am not entirely sure how long this story plans to go, but when it ends, there will be a sequel. Now, the Will/Shelby relationship, I feel I need to explain further. Yes, there will be a Will/Shelby relationship but not until further along in the story. I'm not having them jump each other's bones so the need to tell me how inappropriate they are, is unnecessary. I appreciate your reviews, I honestly and truly do and I'm not in any way, shape or form, trying to come off as a bitch-but I needed to address this. In all actuality, aside from Vocal Adrenaline and Rachel, Will is all Shelby really has. The second chapter when Will was massaging her back and carrying her up the stairs to put her in bed was a simple gesture. He let himself out of the house afterwards, it's not like he jumped into creeper mode and slid into bed with her. I'm trying to say that Will is only trying to be there for Shelby, because there isn't a chance she can go through what Rachel is currently dealing with by herself. She'd eventually crumble apart, more so then she already is. Again, I hope you understand where I'm coming from. The romantic ulterior motives of their relationship most likely will not come until much further in, if not before the sequel. Thank you regardless though, for your reviews and input. I'm glad so many of you are enjoying this and I apologize for not having the chapter up sooner, my laptop's been having a few problems.
Mary-Marie- I'm very glad you are enjoying this, and think that it's so well written. I honestly hate the second chapter, I was actually anxious about putting it up because I wasn't quite sure how the reaction would be from the readers. But thanks for reading and reviewing! And I'm glad you enjoy the Rachel/Shelby dynamic, I do too. I love me some Idina Menzel. :D Haha.
Hollie.14- As I've stated in the author's note, and I do not mean for this to come out as harsh, it's not my intention at all, but Will/Shelby will not be developing a romantic relationship until later on. For now it's just a mere friendship, after all-aside from Rachel and the VA kids, Will's the only other person Shelby has.
Tivo2live- Glad you enjoy this so much! I wasn't going to originally put this up because of the dark nature, but I knew I wanted someone to read it-I needed input so finally I just said fuck it, and added it onto my profile. Haha.
Egypt-Chan-I'm glad you enjoy this as well, after reading your review to 'Shark in the water,' I've been anxiously awaiting a review from you for this. I love reading your input and the fact you like it so much is really awe-inspiring, because you're probably one of the best writer's on the Glee fandom for fan fiction. So thanks! :D
….
The night had gone rather horribly for Rachel, and she found herself waking up every fifteen minutes from nightmares until her mother trudged sleepily in the room and climbed into bed with her, a comforting arm wrapped around her waist. To say the rest of the night was peaceful would be an understatement. Despite the fact that Shelby now held her daughter protectively against her chest, it didn't change the fact that Rachel flinched and shifted uneasily at the contact. She swallowed hard as tears pressed at the corners of her eyes, watching as the slowly rising horizon started to peak in through her windows.
It was just around six am, but she felt no effort, no wanting to get out of the bed. She felt her mother shift and push back the covers on her side of the bed before she leaned over to kiss Rachel on the temple. A shuffling of feet and she had disappeared within seconds and Rachel was left to turn on her side, facing the open bedroom door that expanded into the vacant hallway.
A small sigh left her lips as she forced herself to sit up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. It was a Monday, which meant she had school-but in no means was she in the mood to go. She swallowed the small lump forming in her throat as she thought about last night. Mr. Schuster knows, she thinks silently. She felt tears well in her eyes. It was never a fact put into words, but she knew in her head that he was aware. Her mother had to have told him. She felt a slight pang of anger as she glanced at her mother's returning form, a small smile played out on her lips.
"Oh good, you're up. Your fathers flight should be in around two this afternoon, they said to keep you home from school. I've called off as well. I'm thinking about making pancakes, does that sound alright to you?"
Rachel is only half-mindedly listening to the drabble that falls from her mother's mouth but she nods and clears her throat, chewing absentmindedly on her bottom lip as she pulls her aching form out of bed.
She watches as her mother stands there for a moment longer, her eyes burning holes into Rachel's flesh before she turns on her heels and heads down the stairs and into the kitchen. Rachel fights off a fresh set of tears burning in the corners of her eyes as she forces her feet to drag her into the bathroom towards the mirror. Her eyes are squeezed shut, she refused to look at herself again. She already knows how bad it is.
She turns away quickly, heading to start the shower as she strips down and steps in. Her body is shaking as she washes it thoroughly and roughly, wanting every ounce of him wiped clean from her skin and out of her mind. She whimpers lightly as she runs the washcloth over a blue and purple bruise on her arm, the realization that she'll never be clean, beginning to set in. She may be clean on the outside, but never on the inside.
As she fishes through her suitcase for fresh clothes, she curses silently when she realizes the only thing she packed is a skirt and cardigan. She cringes as she slides it on, not really wanting her mother to see her freshly formed bruises and cuts aligning her body, but she knows there isn't a way out of it. Sighing, she sucks in a sharp breath before throwing the door open to the guest bedroom and heading downstairs to face her mother.
It's now or never.
….
Shelby had found herself thrown into a bit of a reckless sleep, waking up to the sound of her daughter's screaming. She wasn't entirely sure how she'd maneuvered herself into Rachel's bed, but as soon as she did-she wrapped a protective arm around Rachel's waist, wanting nothing more than to soothe her. She felt Rachel flinch, shifting uncomfortably in her grasp and for a second, thought about letting her go, but she didn't.
The rest of the night was spent waking up every five minutes to find Rachel whimpering in her sleep, and Shelby could feel the hot tears spring to her eyes. Her daughter had been brutalized and she couldn't do a damn thing about it.
It was killing her.
The morning came too soon and she found herself waking up as soon as the first slit of sun rose in through the window in the guest bedroom. Not wanting to wake what she thought, was her sleeping daughter, she slid carefully from the bed, placing a small kiss on the temple of Rachel's head before disappearing back into her room to get ready for the day. When she was dressed in her normal attire, she called the school, informing them that she wouldn't be in that day and to call for a sub. The principle, shocked and slightly concerned, agreed and she was left listening to the dead line.
Shelby understood where he was coming from. She has never, in a day in her life, called off of work. But this wasn't just a fluke, this was her daughter and she wasn't about to leave her in a house alone after what had happened only a mere twenty four hours before.
She found herself sniffling as she hit the end button on her phone, pushing it aside and it was only then, as she brought her hands to her face, that she realized she was crying. Her bottom lip quivered but she'd be damned if she would show Rachel the weakness that was currently succumbing her. She had to be strong, for the sake of her daughter. She took a moment to breathe before she pushed herself to her feet again and trudged towards where Rachel was staying. Words began spewing out of her before she could even blink and within seconds she was headed towards the kitchen, pouring herself a hot cup of coffee and finding the note Will had left.
She took in a deep breath as her eyes skimmed over the words.
Shelby,
Send Rachel my condolences; I really hope she's alright. I made sure to lock the front door as I let myself out, give me a call if you need to talk again, and remember-you don't have to deal with this alone.
-Will.
As she set the note back on the counter with shaking hands, she ran a hand over her face-trying to calm herself before she attempted to make pancakes. In all honestly, Shelby Corcoran was not a cook, by any means, but her daughter needed to eat and she wasn't going to settle for Rachel eating something simple as cereal. Heading towards the stove she quickly prepared the pancakes and set them in a pan, letting them cook for a few moments as she listened for her daughter to come down the stairs.
It took all of about ten minutes before Rachel had emerged before her, fully clothed and she felt herself sucking in a sharp gasp as she looked at her daughter's form. Bruises covered her body and Shelby had to remind herself to breathe as Rachel took a seat at the table, fidgeting nervously with her hands.
As the pancakes finished, she handed a plate to Rachel, along with a glass of orange juice and watched as her daughter picked at the plate. Another small sigh escaped her lips as Shelby sat down across from her.
"Honey, you have to eat."
Rachel glanced up at her, eyes filled with pain and Shelby swallowed nervously. She wasn't entirely sure how to deal with this. Rachel wasn't talking, wasn't eating, but damn was she hurting.
A small reply fell from her lips as Shelby felt her entire being flood with guilt.
"I'm vegan."
Shit, She thought silently. Pancakes have eggs in them.
Shelby nodded, quickly taking the plate as Rachel sipped at her orange juice and Shelby tried to think of something else her daughter could eat. "What about cereal?"
Rachel shook her head, glancing down to her hands in her lap and Shelby bit her lip.
"I…I'm not hungry." She heard her daughter choke out. Shelby sighed unhappily, but nodded-knowing she couldn't force her daughter to eat. She was sixteen after all, not five. She watched as Rachel finished her orange juice, quickly excuse herself and Shelby immediately placed her face in her hands, defeated.
How much more could she fuck up.
….
Hiram and Leroy Barry were always very calm, collected men but the moment they'd heard the news that surrounded their daughter, all their calm and rational nature flew out the window. They had caught the first red-eye they could, wanting nothing more than to see their hurting, distraught daughter. Fear flooded both men as they sat anxiously on the airplane, waiting for the moment the pilot announced their landing.
It had seemed like hours of waiting before they found themselves in the Lima, Ohio airport, fighting their way through crowds of people to grab their luggage and take off. The highway was backed up with two different car accidents which didn't help their case and made their insufferable ride even longer as Hiram tried desperately to weave through cars, not caring about breaking the speed limit.
He wanted to see his daughter, hell, he needed too, and he knew that Leroy felt the same way. He found himself turning to Leroy as he turned down the street to Shelby's house, words falling from his lips.
"We're here."
….
Rachel found herself staring out the window of the guest bedroom, waiting anxiously for her father's to arrive. She knew Shelby was only trying to help, that she was concerned, but Rachel couldn't deal with it. Her father's always knew what to say, what to do, Shelby didn't. She didn't blame her for this, but Rachel did feel the familiar pang of anger spark back up as she thought of Mr. Schuster and the fact he now knew what had happened.
She didn't want him to know! She didn't want anyone to know, but her mother had blown that for her. She knew that if she had gone to her father's they wouldn't have even thought of mentioning it to him, but they were gone and Shelby wasn't.
She was brought out of her reverie by the sound of a knock on the doorframe, and she turned slowly-breath hitched, not wanting to know what was on the other side of the door. Or who. Her mind flashed back to him, and she felt bile rise in her throat. Quickly pushing it down, she felt slight relief fill her as she found her father's rushing towards her, enveloping her in a much needed hug. She'd flinched slightly at first, smelling him against her again, but as her father Leroy spoke soothing words into her ear, she slowly calmed.
They mentioned something about grabbing her bags, but Rachel had stopped listening, wanting to cover herself up as she watched her father's mouths drop as they took her in. She knew what they were thinking. She was a mess, a disgusting, dirty mess and nothing she could do would change that.
She looked at the ground as her mother approached her, saying something about calling her if she needed her but Rachel didn't bother to reply. She gave her a weak, small hug before disappearing down the stairs behind her father's. Hiram was carrying her suitcases and Leroy had an arm draped around her, the two stopping in the foyer to thank Shelby for taking care of her, before he led Rachel out to the car.
Her throat was raw and burning as she climbed into the backseat with Hiram. Leroy had taken the wheel now but found himself throwing worried glances towards Hiram as he drove towards the house. Rachel was silent the entire ride, knees hugged closely to her body as she rested her head on her father's shoulder, trying desperately to keep her emotions in check.
The ride home was short, but to Rachel it had felt like an entire lifetime. She wanted nothing more than to climb into her own bed, but her father's had other ideas. They wanted details, they wanted answers to their questions and even though they weren't pressing her to answer, she felt as if she owed it to them to do so. As Leroy came back down into the living room from setting her bags in her bedroom, Rachel had taken up residence on the couch, a blanket strewn across her to cover the bruises on her legs.
Her father's sat across from her, Hiram in the recliner, and Leroy sitting on the arm of it, waiting patiently for their wounded daughter to speak. Rachel wanted too, but at the same time she was conflicted. She didn't want to tell them because that meant reliving it again and she was already dealing with that enough as it was, thanks to the nightmares. She fought with the screaming voices in her head as she opened and closed her mouth, several times before she found herself sobbing softly. Her father's had made their way over to comfort her but she wouldn't let them near her, she couldn't. She found herself being carried to her bedroom by Hiram, with Leroy trailing behind as she was set in her bed, blankets pulled up to her neck as she curled herself into the mattress. Her heart was heavy and her mind was reeling and she wanted nothing more than to sleep but she couldn't. Sleeping meant seeing him again and she wasn't able to deal with that.
Sniffling, she turned her backs to her father's, not wanting to see the looks on their faces, and waited until she heard their footsteps backtracking until they were gone completely from her bedroom, leaving her alone in the oversized bed-sobbing until she found herself over the toilet, retching.
It was just one disaster after the next.
….
At first, they had refused to believe it-refused to even think that something so horrid could happen to their daughter, but as Hiram and Leroy sat at the kitchen table, staring into mugs of coffee, they knew. They knew by the way Rachel was closed off, barely letting them near her and shuddering as Hiram carried her to her bedroom that it was true. Hiram sucked in a sharp breath as he looked up at Leroy, finding their eyes locking into a knowing stare.
"I think we should call her therapist," He found himself telling the African American man at the other end of the table.
"Are you sure? I mean, if she won't talk to us, or Shelby, what on earth makes you think she'll talk to her therapist?" Leroy hadn't meant for his answer to come out as harshly as it did but it indeed did, and he found himself muttering an apology to Hiram within seconds.
Hiram shook his head, muttering that it was fine before he looked up at Leroy again, despair filling his features. "If she won't talk to us, or Shelby, or her therapist-then what do we do?"
Leroy sighed, pushing back his chair and walking to stand behind Hiram who was staring once again, into his coffee with tears brimming in his eyes. "We give her time," Leroy says softly. "We give her time and let her know that we're here for her, no matter what-and eventually, she'll come to us. Eventually she'll talk but eventually is not now. No matter how bad we want it to be."