Emma heard a knock at the door, and upon opening it, found a sobbing Quinn Fabray tumbling into her office. "What's wrong, sweetheart?" she asked sincerely. She took out her tissue box, fully ready to have to go out and buy another after school. These tears didn't seem to have an end in sight.
"I'm…oh my God, I-I'm pregnant, Ms. P." Quinn's voice was laced through and through with pain and shame, and although Emma couldn't condone teenage sex, she couldn't bear to see any student hurting as much as Quinn clearly was.
Swallowing, Emma asked quietly, "Do your parents know?"
Choking loudly on her sob, Quinn cried, "I t-t-told them the other n-night…my d-dad told me g-get out. S-s-so I went to P-Puck's house, and I w-was staying t-there, but…h-he…I c-c-couldn't stay there!"
Trying to get a better sense of what was going on, she asked in what she hoped was a gentle way instead of a prying one, "Why Puck?"
Gasping, Quinn replied, "H-h-he's the f-father."
"Does Finn know?" As a person who tried to avoid confrontation, she wasn't sure that she wanted three screaming teenagers in her office…throwing things. There might be blood, after all.
Her voice softening from its previous hardness, Quinn replied, "Yeah. I told him today. He was…he won't t-talk to me or anything. It's sad," she said softly, "I used to be the head of the Celibacy Club and now I'm a pregnant sixteen year old without a place to stay."
Her eyes wide with shock, wider than Quinn had ever seen them, Emma said softly, "Are any of the cheerleaders willing to take you in?"
Snorting, the teenager replied, "They'll be glad to have me gone, and honestly, I don't blame them."
Racking her brain for possibilities, Emma asked, "What about glee club? Anyone there who might take you in?"
"I haven't exactly gotten on the right foot with them. And my boyfriend and the father of my child are both in that club. I'm probably not even welcome over there."
Emma smiled, hoping that the gesture wouldn't be wasted. "I can make something happen, I'm sure."
Quinn thanked her graciously, stood and left with her eyes reddened just a becoming amount, some of the life back in her eyes.
Emma had stood outside of the choir room, her back pressed flush against the wall. First, she was thinking of Will, plain and simple. But then the music came overwhelmingly, swelling and filling the air around her. She wasn't going to lie, she loved music. And she loved that she had picked this song out. For New Directions. For Quinn.
Strains of "Keep Holding On" came through the cracks between the door and wall, but seemed to liquefy the glass panel and pulse through that as well. The glee clubs sounded beautiful, and it made Emma smile even wider to hear the interruptive promises to stand by Quinn, no matter what. She had faith in these kids, that they would.
Quinn walked out, smiling, with Mercedes at her back. "I-I-I…thank you, Ms. Pillsbury. You h-have no idea how much it means to me…you'd go to all of the trouble…thank you!" She threw her arms around Emma's, a tear falling from her nose into Emma's sweater.
Beaming, Emma replied simply, "See? I told you that you'd have a place to stay."
Emma hadn't seen Quinn in her office, in hysterics, until her bump was finally showing and it was obvious to any passer-by that she was pregnant. This time she came in, more terrified than angry and more desperate than terrified. "Ms. P," she asked quietly, pitifully, "I need some help. Again."
"Of course, sweetheart! What do you need?" Emma asked earnestly, wiping the same circle on her desk with cleaning spray and a tissue.
Trying to find words, Quinn replied meekly, "I was at the doctor, and he said that the baby was at risk of developing health problems because of a lack of nutrients, and that I hadn't been gaining weight like I should be. He gave me a list of vitamins and stuff, but…without my parents supporting me, I don't have any money or anything. Puck gave me fifty bucks, but that's not enough, at all. Plus the stupid maternity clothes…"
Emma immediately understood the direness of the situation. "Sweetie, calm down. You shouldn't be wearing a sundress to cover your stomach two weeks before Christmas. There's snow on the ground, for God's sake. If you'd like, I'll take you to get whatever it is that you need."
Blushing, Quinn whispered, "You know, this is actually a really, really humbling experience. Thank you so much, Ms. P. It means a lot."
Quinn slid into the front passenger's seat of Emma's small black car. It was clean, which wasn't a shocker, and smelled pleasantly of rain. "Don't tell me you left the sunroof open while it rained!" she chided, amused.
Nodding, Emma said, "I did. But I like the smell, so I decided not to disinfect it all away. It's water anyway, the purest stuff I could be using."
"Me too. Well, the smell of the rain, not the use of disinfectants."
Turning to face her young passenger, Emma asked quietly, "Quinn, tell me whatever it is that you need. Food, vitamins, maternity clothes, baby things, anything. Just say the word and I'll find a way to make it happen."
Furrowing her brow, Quinn answered honestly, "Well, Mercedes has been giving me money for lunch every day…it's really sweet, and you have no idea how grateful I am, but three dollars can only get me a cheeseburger and some fries. I split a juice or something with whoever offers."
"First things first, then, lay off the fatty stuff. You're baby will thank you."
Quinn continued racking her brain. "The prenatal vitamins…I'm supposed to be taking a prenatal vitamin every day, plus a high-dose of multivitamins, and Rachel's been helping me out with the multivitamins, but the prenatal ones are too expensive."
She paused, to catch her breath, watching the thunderclouds roll in. Maybe it would snow again. "As far as maternity clothes go, I am – was – a cheerleader, which was kind of all about 'the tighter, the better.' I have a couple of pairs of yoga pants, the really stretchy kind, and those legging jeans, but for shirts…well, you've seen me."
Emma smoothed Quinn's sundress. "I can get you the vitamins, Quinn, and I'll get you whatever loose-fitting shirts you need. What about baby things? I'm sure that if you don't even have food, you can't have a crib or anything."
"We're…I'm giving the baby up for adoption. Puck was really pissed about that – he wants to be a better dad than his dad was – but we just can't take care of the baby. Adoption is our only option, pardon the pun."
"That's a really mature decision you made," Emma said honestly, touching Quinn's hand in a gesture of comfort.
Placing the paper gift bag of vitamins and maternity tops that she hoped Quinn would like on her desk, Emma waited until the announcements finished before calling Quinn down to her office. "Hey there, Sweetie!" she said happily, giving Quinn the bag and watching her face explode into unadulterated gratitude.
"Thank you so much, Ms. P! You have no idea what this means to me, really. You've really shown me what being a mother is all about."
Shocked at the unexpected praise, Emma asked tentatively, "I did?"
Nodding, Quinn assured her. "You've shown me the devotion and love that any mother would and should show to her kids. It means a lot to me." She paused, watching Emma's eyes widen in delight. "I've been eating healthier, too. Just some orange juice and salads and stuff. Trying to be healthy for the baby."
"I'm so glad that I could make a difference, Quinn, I really am. It's every teacher's dream, I think. To change a student's life like this."
Standing, Quinn said slowly, "I don't know how to thank you."
Smiling gracefully, Emma replied, "You don't have to."