A/N: So, I discovered that this story has been going for two years now. On the one hand, I'm sorry (and this chapter I hope totally makes up for it), and on the other… it's my two-year anniversary with the girl who prompted this and is sitting in bed beside me after editing my horrendous spelling and grammar. A big 'I love you' to both her and YOU for sticking with me for these two years.

Quinn winced as she placed the cold compress against her inflamed cheek. There was no excuse she could give to her father for Rachel being in his home that would appease him, so instead she simply said she was having a friend over. He didn't appreciate the remark, clearly, because he promptly slapped her. The blonde was glad, really, because it meant that the conversation was over. And it was. He didn't press her for any more details, and instead simply left the room after warning his daughter that next time, she won't get off so easily. Naturally, Judy slinked in moments later, her eyes downcast and focused on the carpet in an attempt to avoid looking at her damaged daughter. She offered the cool wet face wash and ice water.

The physical violence was not a new occurrence to Quinn, and if she was being honest she wasn't frightened by it anymore. It hardly fazed her. Instead of lamenting on the pain, she instead simply went about ensuring she could cover it up properly. The moment she looked at herself in the mirror to assess the damage, the events of the hour prior came flooding back to her mind. She had been so cruel to Rachel, who had done nothing but care about her. She was a coward, forcing the girl away before she could get too close. And Rachel's eyes… she had looked so betrayed, so sad, and there was something else in there that Quinn couldn't quite place.

The blonde settled on the fact that this pit in her stomach wasn't going to go anywhere anytime soon. She opened her draw to dig out the kit she kept to disguise such marks to her face. The note she had written to Rachel lay on the top, staring up at her defiantly. It could have been mocking her, reminding the blonde of the words she thought she had been so brave to say. What an idiot she was, to think that she would be capable of committing such bravery and telling the brunette how she really felt. It was almost laughable. Even more laughable was the idea that Rachel would feel the same.

The ex cheerleader carefully picked up the paper, walking backwards to the bed and sitting on the end of it, her mind racing. Rachel- the girl who saved seats for her. Who shuffled closer to her on the sofa. Who held her hand at any chance, and squeezed it back. Who blushed when her fathers talked to the blonde. Who took any chance to be near her. Who smiled only for her.

And suddenly the look in Rachel's eyes when she had denounced their relationship made sense.

Waves of emotion crashed into Quinn, who sat dumbfounded on the edge of her bed, staring at the small piece of paper in her hand. This was it. This courage flowing through her veins, this certainty of mind, this was what she needed to be able to act. She wasn't being hopeful or deluded, she was seeing with clarity for what felt like the first time in months. The blonde gently placed a hand over her chest, feeling the thrill of her heart as it picked up pace. She hadn't been this scared in a long time, and that was saying something. Yet it was the fear of inaction that she feared the most, that despite this knowledge and bravery, she would still not be able to go through with it.

Before she could even entertain the thought of not doing anything, Quinn leapt to her feet and grabbed her keys, stopping quickly to look at herself in the mirror. She adjusted her sundress, fixed up her ruffled hair and hastily covered the mark that marred her face. Then, without hesitation, she ran downstairs and out the door, the booming voice of her father hitting nothing but the closed door.

It was night now, darkness blanketing the streets. The quiet night resembled the one in which Quinn had run through months ago, frantic heart beating in time with bare feet. She had been so sure she'd heard a gun shot, positive that it was Rachel who she had failed to protect this time. But, as is the case with many matters of the heart, it was all in her head. Yet Rachel hadn't turned her away, wordless in her understanding, and took her into her room for the night.

The memory made Quinn gnaw on her bottom lip as she stood on the Berry Residence's doorstep. Would Rachel extend a similar invitation to stay the night in her bed, under a different context? God, no, she couldn't do that. Even if that really was what the brunette wanted… was she even the type of person that did that? But Rachel was Rachel, her beauty and softness and the smell of her shampoo were all so intoxicating…

'Pull yourself together, Fabray!' Quinn hissed to herself.

Maybe she wasn't in the right frame of mind to do this right now. Quinn turned around to walk back to her car. Maybe it was rude, invasive even, to turn up at someone's house in the middle of the night, unannounced. Let alone entering and kissing the occupant. Yes, that was definitely rude.

Wait, was she going to kiss Rachel?

Stop chickening out and just do it already!

Quinn turned around to face the door once more.

Wait, nope, nope. This is a bad idea. Abort mission.

The blonde turned around and began walking back to the car.

"Quinn?"

The ex cheerleader promptly froze mid step. Gulping, she turned around to face the unknown person, although she knew to whom that voice belonged to. It'd been in her dreams for years.

Rachel was standing in the doorway, looking puzzled, and rightly so. The brunette must have been settling in for sleep, if her pajamas were anything to go by. Loose pink pants dotted with music notes (what else) flowed down her legs, while a tight tank top clung to her torso, revealing far more than Quinn was comfortable with.

The combination of being caught, what she was planning to say, and the revealed curves of the singer's body proved too much for Quinn. She simple gaped, remaining frozen on the spot.

Mercifully, she managed to speak.

"Can I come inside?"

Rachel promptly nodded, stepping aside and ushering Quinn over the threshold. Doubt gnawed at her once more, making her heart beat increasingly faster as she fought her body's desire to flee. She was brave enough to do this, she could do this. All she had to do was look Rachel in the eye, take a deep breath and say-

"Oh my goodness, Quinn…what happened to your face?"

Dark eyes were flickering over her face, highlighting the concern that was written across Rachel's face. The brunette stepped closer and gently cupped the blonde's cheek in her hand, skimming her thumb over the sensitive area of red skin. They were so close now, blanketed in the silence of the night, soft breaths being felt on soft skin. Rachel slowly moved her thumb over the porcelain skin, electricity sparking in the wake of her touch.

"And I'll get a cold facewash for your cheek, and you can get changed into some of my pajamas. You're staying here, I'm not sending you home," Rachel finished, her tone stern yet gentle.

And Quinn let Rachel take care of her.

The few hours Quinn had been in the Berry household had passed quickly. Now dressed in loose purple boxers and white tank top, she sat crossed legged on Rachel's bed and tried to explain the man that was Russell Fabray. Throughout the exchange, Rachel remained quiet, other than the occasional snort or furrowing of her brow. Quinn couldn't blame her. Her father was a man not many would agree with, but whom many would follow. In many ways that mystical power was something she had tried to replicate in her HBIC days; a ruler who gave the illusion of fairness, all the while hiding behind the veiled threats of force. Her father was a man who was burdened with pride, heavy with deceptive knowledge, flawed in his perfection. He was made of contradictions, and Quinn would have almost found it sad if he wasn't so entrenched in his arrogance.

"Anyway, what's done is done," Quinn concluded as she leaned her face further into the cool compress Rachel had provided for her.

There was silence for a while between them; filled only by the soft gentle music the brunette had playing in her room. Despite the relative heaviness of the topic, the silence was light and comfortable. Nothing seemed forced when it came to Rachel, the blonde noted. Everything just seemed to fall into place, leaving the two girls to simply relax with their shared knowledge and experience of each other.

"Let me have a look at you," Rachel mumbled softly, reaching forward to gently pry the facecloth from the blonde's grasp.

Rachel was so close now that Quinn could once again smell the shampoo of her hair, which in turn made her head spin as she vaguely felt the cool cloth slip between in fingers. Dazzling rich brown eyes sparkled with concern, flickering over the blonde's skin. But Quinn couldn't stop staring at the girl's lips. She couldn't get the softness of Rachel's skin out of her mind, couldn't stop losing herself in the intoxicating smell of her shampoo, couldn't rein in her heart from racing away at the proximity of the girl who meant so much to her.

Rachel reached out to once again softly cup Quinn's cheek in her hand. The brunette shifted closer a little, closing the already minimal gap between them.

Quinn leant forward, her eyes jumping up from Rachel's lips to her eyes, searching their depths for any signals. They were so close now that the blonde could feel the singer's warm, hastened breaths against her lips.

Quinn's eyelids fluttered closed.

Her lips brushed softly against Rachel's, so softly they barely touched, yet there was no denying the explosion of emotions that the ex cheerleader experienced. Her head felt lighter than ever before, and she found herself feeling like she had never known time to exist before that kiss. Her heart ached and filled with joy all at once.

Suddenly, the singer's lips were again pressed against hers. With Rachel's hand still on Quinn's cheek, she guided the taller girl deeper into the kiss, her lips moving delicately against the blonde's. Quinn found her hands moving on their own accord, one placed on the small Rachel's back, the other intertwining itself with thick brown locks. She had been kissed before, but never like this. Never before had such a slow and gentle kiss left her lungs breathless and head spinning.

And then something snapped inside of her. Quinn pulled away quickly, jumping off the bed in her haste. Her stomach –previously accommodated by butterflies- now knotted into a twist of guilt and disgust.

"Rach, I'm so sorry, I don't know what happened, I just-"

"It's okay, Quinn, it's alright," Rachel whispered, slowly rising from the edge of the bed and extending a hand in comfort.

Quinn backed away, her head shaking absently as her thoughts took off at a million miles an hour. There was so much wrong here. Without knowing what else to do, she turned around and fled from the room. She could hear Rachel crying her name, but it only made her flee down the stairs faster.

She managed to keep herself together right before she entered her car. As soon as she closed the driver's side door, Quinn Fabray come undone. The tears came slowly at first, as did her breaths. Before long both were coming quickly and freely, as the blonde laid her forehead against the steering wheel. Sobs wracked through her fragile frame as she placed her hands together in front of her chest.

She knew it was wrong to love Rachel. She knew it was wrong to have lustful thoughts about another girl. She knew it was wrong to betray Finn. But in that moment of kissing her, all of that had slipped from her mind.

Her lungs screamed in pain from the heaviness of her sobbing as a quiet settled in the car around her. She rocked herself back and forth, her eyes drooping in fatigue. Her bottom lip trembled before words could even be formed.

"D-dear God," she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut.

"I am so, s-so sorry. Please still love me. Please."

Silence.

"Finn?" she whispered, opening her eyes to look out her car screen window and up into the stormy night sky.

"I am so…I'm sorry. But I love her too."

And with the silence of their replies, Quinn felt truly alone.