An- So I was going to try to be one of those writers who refuses to post until she receives a certain number of reviews. But I decided I cared more about writing the story and getting it to you than just getting reviews. That said, more reviews would rule.

It's a cliche that authors often write on this site, but it's true: I actually cried a little while writing this. That's never happened to me with fiction before. I hope you like it. Please take time to review after reading.

"Dammit, Britt!"

"What? I asked if you were up to visitors, and you said you were."

"I thought you meant Santana or something, not Rachel Berry and…well, whoever 'we' is."

"I'm sorry. I'll call her back and tell her no. I'll fix it."

I sighed, feeling bad. The funny thing about Brittany is that one minute she's an icy bitch, defacing old glee photos in the yearbook or critiquing an ugly outfit, and the next she's warm and bubbly, hugging a gleek or saving a baby bird that fell out of its nest. ("Usually you should leave fledglings there," she'd told me, "but this big orange cat was going to eat it.") "No, sweetie, it's fine. I'll talk to Rachel and whoever. I'm sorry I yelled at you."

She smiled, hugged me and went to make hot chocolate for our visitors.

When the doorbell rang, I opened the door and my jaw dropped, because I never in a million years would have guessed that this was who Rachel had meant by "we." It was Rachel and Puck, Rachel's dads and Puck's mom. I'd never met her, but I'd seen her in the stands at football games, sitting with Mrs. Hudson. Mrs. Puckerman's eyes were teary.

"Hello. Won't you all come in?"

Rachel's dads introduced themselves, and Mrs Puckerman couldn't stop staring at my belly.

"I'm sorry, dear. May I?"

"Um, sure," I said. I needed to get used to it. My sister says in her experience, people will ask to do this more and more as the pregnancy progresses. She put her hands on my stomach, and then she, like, beamed at me! I realized my mother had never done this. Would never do this. I know this baby isn't really mine. I'm giving her away. Still, I'm pregnant for the first time. It should be my mom with her hands on my belly. I started to cry a little. God, how embarrassing.

"Why don't you all sit down while Quinn and I seek out Brittany," Rachel said, as if she owned the place. Once we were out of the room, she pulled a pack of tissues from her purse and handed me one. "Would you like a hug?"

"No," I lied.

"Take a moment to collect yourself. I'll find Brittany and her parents."

"Wait! Rachel, what is going on?"

"We want you to live with us."

"You and your dads?"

"Yes, but all of us want you to live with us. Dads and I, Noah and his mom, and Brittany and her parents. We're here to give you your options. I'll be right back."

The second she was gone, I shut myself into the bathroom to cry. This morning I thought no one wanted me, but now I had three places to stay? I splashed my face with cold water. It didn't make my eyes less red; it just made the rest of my face pinker. At least it all sort of matched. A few minutes later, we were all in the living room, and everyone was, like, giving me these sales pitches about why I should live with them.

"Okay, you don't even like them. Sorry," Brittany said to Rachel and Puck. "Sorry, but it's the truth. I'm your best friend, so you should stay with me. There's enough room, and Mom and Dad don't mind, do you?"

"No," Brittany's mom said. "If you need a place to stay, you can stay here."

"Look I know you don't like me," Puck said, "But it's my baby, too. I'm responsible for you both, and I… I care about you, okay? I'd take good care of you. I'll sleep on the couch and you can have my room. You can even redecorate it, or whatever. I'd give you whatever you need." His mother nodded, smiling encouragingly.

I was shocked by Puck's offer. Then Rachel cleared her throat.

"Now I would like to make my proposal." She pulled out an actual list. It wasn't even hand-written: she had typed it on the computer! She talked about how I wouldn't feel obligated, because we weren't friends. How we could help each other with Glee. About how her dads would love me, no matter what.

"Love me? They don't even know me."

"Everyone needs and deserves love," Rachel's "daddy" said. "Once you really learn that, loving people is easy and hating them is hard."

This explained why Rachel was nice to me and to Puck, even though we'd been so mean to her. My face crumpled up and got all hot. I could feel tears in my eyes, and Brittany put an arm around me. God, my parents are dumb. I wondered if they could still believe the things they did if they knew Rachel's dads. How could anyone so kind possibly be bad?

"Rachel, sweetie, you skipped an important reason," he said.

"Daddy!" Rachel exclaimed. She looked mortified.

"No, he's right, baby," the other Mr. Berry added. "You're being a hypocrite. You want Quinn to put aside her pride and let us help her, yet you're too proud to do the same?"

"Fine," Rachel huffed, then stared at her feet. I've never seen her look so shy. "I want to have friends, and if you move in, we might become friends."

My "Mean Girls" side wanted to sneer at Rachel. Another part of me, though, wanted to punch the hateful part of me in the nose.

"Okay," I said.

"Okay, what?" Puck asked.

"Okay, I'll move in with Rachel."

"Seriously?" Brittany asked.

"Seriously. Look, I love you, Britt, and I really appreciate you letting me stay here. Puck, I appreciate the offer, but it would be awkward, and I don't want to kick you out of your room. At Rachel's house, it won't just be charity." The Berrys even looked happy that I picked them. They came over to hug me. I was about to start crying, so I pulled away and used my bitch voice: "Can we take it a little bit slower, please?"

"Of course, sweetie! We're a huggy family, and I sometimes forget that not everyone is accustomed to it!" Rachel's Daddy said.

Rachel had her biggest smile on. "Shall I help you pack?"

"Um, Quinn?" Puck said. "I still want to help. With, like, bills and stuff. And I want to be friends."

Seriously? "Rachel, I can do my own packing. Puck…you can help, sometimes, but I'd still rather do most things on my own." He looked mad, but nodded.

"How about this: Quinn, you go pack here," Rachel said. "I'll go back to Finn's and get your belongings from there. I can also go to your parents' house, if you need anything from there. Noah, you can come by the house later so we can establish a plan for the future."

"Rachel you and your…" gay dads "…dads can't go to my parents' house! It would be a disaster. My parents, they…I'm sorry."

Her dad spoke up. "You never have to be sorry for someone else's mistakes. Do you feel the way they do?"

"No!"

"Then you have nothing to feel bad about. Don't worry. We're adults. We can handle it. Frankly, we need to talk to your parents, anyway, about insurance and some other issues. Rachel tells me you're in debt from going to the doctor, but you're likely still covered under your parents' insurance. If they refuse to cover you, the state offers assistance, or perhaps we can adopt you, so you'll be covered on our policy."

"We just met!"

"Daddy" took my hands and looked in my eyes like he was trying to find something. For a minute, I was so scared that he wouldn't find it. He'd realize that I was right: that taking me in was crazy. That deciding to love me was crazy. Then, he nodded and said, "Rachel believes you should be part of our family, and we trust her judgment."

"God, no wonder Berry's a freak! Who are you people?" I asked, but this time, even Bitch Quinn couldn't keep from crying.

"Oh, sweetie," Rachel's daddy said, wrapping his arms around me. Rachel's dad did, too. Call them freaks and they hug you. This explains so much about Rachel Berry. I used to think she was just a masochist or something.

"I'm fine," I sniffled. Then I straightened my spine and tried again, more forcefully: "Seriously. I'm fine."

They stepped back.

"Well, I guess I'll go pack. Rachel, I'll make you a list…" I swear, her face lit up when I said list "of things I need from Finn's place and my parents' house…if they let you in. I only had a half-hour to grab stuff, and there are some things I'd like to have. If they won't let you, though, don't worry about it."

"Why don't I bring Quinn to your house when she's ready?" Puck asked.

"Good idea, Noah," Rachel replied. Then she got out her phone. "Hello, Finn. I'm coming over to get Quinn's belongings. Yes, she has. Look, if you'd like to better understand my reasoning, I've compiled a list. Finn, I stand by my decision. It will be best for her, best for me, and even best for you. I'm sorry you feel that way. Nonetheless, my dads and I will be coming by in a few moments. Goodbye, Finn."

Puck was giving her a funny look. "I think it will be best for you, too, Noah, though I doubt Finn is ready to hear me say so. This is all going to work out," she said, and squeezed his hand. He relaxed a little. Hmm…

I handed her a piece of paper with one list for each location.

"Great," she exclaimed, grinning. "I'll see you at home!" She bounded out of the room, her fathers following behind her, calling out goodbyes to me.

"Now you have to let me help," Puck said, "Or else Berry will drive you crazy."

"Shut up, Noah," I teased. "You know you like her."

"In small doses, sure, but you're going to live with her. Your life's going to be all gold stars and show tunes."

And people who don't know how not to love someone.

AN- Daddy's philosophy is how my family raised me, especially my awesome mom. I hope this chapter meant something to you. Please take a moment to review.

P.S. Lots of you have expressed envy of my family. Thank you! I am truly blessed to have them. I just hope when/if you have a family of your own, you'll teach your kids that everyone needs and deserves love. From experience I can tell you that sometimes bullies will mistake this philosophy for weakness, but you survive, with your heart open and your conscience clean. In my life, the joy of loving everyone has, by far, outweighed the challenges. Pass it on.

P.P.S. At Freaktonight's helpful suggestion, I've heavily revised Chapter 1. Feel free to check it out and let me know what you think of the new, (hopefully) improved first chapter.