Rachel looked at the woman in front of her, her long black hair and equally black eyes, the same woman as in the photo Rachel had found in the folder containing her birth and adoption certificate.

She couldn't believe her eyes, she'd been looking for this woman for three weeks, searching for her name on the Internet, taking in every moment of her career. She'd finally stalked the woman, and asked Lauren, the computer genius she'd shared school with, to help her find her. Lauren was reluctant, but a bribe of just $50 changed her mind and two days later she sent Shelby Corcoran's address to Rachel Berry.

She'd left her fathers' house that evening, telling them she'd spend the night at Finn's house. Her parents didn't have the giant in their hearts, but Rachel didn't really care: she was 20, had been vaccinated and had a car of her own.

Rachel had little faith that she was in front of the right house; Lauren could have given her a random address to get her off her back after all. But now that she was standing in front of a Shelby Corcoran staring back at her with wide, beady eyes, she knew Lauren was ready to join the FBI.

"hum...hi", Rachel voice was small but she looked Shelby in the eyes, "I...you know who I am right?".

Shelby realized she hadn't moved or whispered a word for at least 10 minutes. She recovered her senses with a shake of her head and cleared her throat slowly.

"Rachel...huh come in, come in don't stay outside," she stepped aside to let the young woman pass. She gently closed the door before resting her forehead against it, feeling the brown eyes, exactly the same as Ryan's, resting on her back.

"Please tell me your parents know you're here, I beg you...", Shelby turned around slowly. She met the gaze of the young adult standing in her living room and let out a long sigh. "Do they even know you're gone...if, if you still live with them of course," Shelby had to come to her senses, Rachel was 20. She was an adult, she could be married, employed, own her own home by now. Shelby was about to apologize when Rachel cut her off.

"they thinks I'm at my boyfriend's, I didn't tell them I was coming to see you..." Rachel had lost all the confidence she'd had when she'd knocked on the door. "I'm sorry to show up so late...or so early. I-I haven't been able to sleep for a few days. Ever since I found my birth certificate when I was cleaning out dad and daddy's attic..." Great, now she was rambling.

Shelby nodded slowly, she knew what sleepless nights were like. Unable to sleep thinking of the love she'd lost, the child she'd given away, woken by Santana as a teenager sneaking out to see her girlfriend, woken by a nightmare by Quinn. Interrupted by knocking as she went to bed, and now, having to give up trying to get back to her bed.

"okay", she brought her hands to her face before continuing, "you want to...talk now at three in the morning ?" her voice was gentle.

"Maybe I can ask you a few questions and then...leave" Rachel took a deep breath. She'd acted impulsively and didn't really know why she'd decided to do this here and now. She should have waited but she needed advice. She'd always known she'd been adopted. Well, maybe not right away, but she'd quickly understood when her best friend's kindergarten mom had asked her why she didn't have a mom... Yes, Rachel was going to ask this woman, this Shelby, the person who had abandoned her. She would make a quick assessment of her and decide whether she could trust her or not.

She nodded with certainty and sat down on the kitchen chair Shelby had mentioned with a wave of her hand. After accepting a glass of water, Rachel watched the woman nursing a coffee in front of her. Now or never.

"Why did you abandon me", well damn it Rachel, hold your horses a little. She cleared her throat and returned her gaze to the table.

Shelby felt her body tensed, she wanted to tell Rachel she hadn't abandoned her. Abandoning a baby meant leaving it in a shopping cart outside a supermarket, like little Toby, whom Shelby had fostered for three days in an emergency. To abandon a child is to leave them alone in an apartment while we are high at the dealer, without food and electricity. To abandon a child is to leave them for dead on the roadside after doing the worst appalling things to them .

No Shelby, you too had abandoned your child...you can't think like that. You abandoned her, but you did it right. You left her with people who were going to take care of her...are you sureabout that Shelby? Did the Berry take good care of Rcahel?

"Did your parents did anything to you, Rachel?" Shelby asked the question so quickly that words got mixed up a bit. She regretted her tactlessness when Rachel abruptly raised her head and looked at her with round eyes and frowning.

"What?" Rachel practically yelled the answer, "No! , of course not! They are very good parents... Why such a question ?" Now she was piss, who was that woman to make such accusations? "I just want to know who my mother is...".

Shelby had quickly raised her hands to calm the girl down and whispered some okay to make her understand that she had understood the message.

"I'm sorry Rachel, excuse me I...", it's all right Shelby...it's all right, "Rachel I was 17 when I got pregnant with you and..".

"who the fuck are you?" Shelby and Rachel both jumped a bit before whipping their heads towards the stair.

Shelby had quickly raised her hands to calm the girl down and whispered some okay to make her understand that she had understood the message.

"I'm sorry Rachel, excuse me I...", it's all right Shelby...it's all right, "Rachel I was 17 when I got pregnant with you and..".

"who the fuck are you?" the two women both jumped a bit before whipping their heads down the stairs. Rachel looked as a young woman with tanned skin stared at her.

She had long black hair tied by a ponytail, dark eyes and frowns, she seemed to be the same age as Rachel. lightining coming out of her eyes, Rachel would have been terrified if she wasn't wearing pajamas with little smiling sun on them.

Rachel could see a second shadow half hiding behind the latina. She did not see it very well but could distinguish blond hair and saw hand tightening fist the t-shirt of the young woman that she used as a hiding place and a plush pendant of her right hand.

Shelby got up in a flash. Great, could that night get even more complicated?

"Santana!" her voice was firm but the three young women who looked at her could hear the hesitation, "please remain polite."

"Oh, my bad," Santana faked a sorry look, "Who are you? What the hell are you doing in our kitchen at three o'clock in the morning and why are you screaming like a possess demon? I ask that politely of course."

Rachel was torn between wanting to scream, cry or vomit. "Our kitchen," Shelby clearly had people living in her house. Young people, in pajamas, sleeping upstairs. Rachel giggled softly. She was slowly losing her mind.

She turned to look at Shelby, Shelby was looking at her apologetically and Rachel understood immediately.

She had been replaced. Just like that, once she got rid of an embarrassing baby, she made not one but two more. One with the mouth of a truck driver and the other with the courage of a baby.

"I see...", Rachel stood up slowly, "well, I'm here to find out a bit more about my mother, if you really want to know."

That was it, Shelby was going to faint.

She turned to Santana who now just looked confused. Opening and closing her mouth, her right hand coming to rest on the fist that was gripping her t-shirt, depositing a small pat of reassurance there. Finally her gaze found Shelby's, there was no hatred, no resentment but understanding. Santana nodded softly before looking at Rachel and regaining all her passion.

"She's not deaf, you know, no need to yell at her when you're talking to her." Rachel frowned before giggling. " What making you laugh like that you dwarf ?" Sanatna capacity to move from peacefull to murdrer had always impress, and a little annoyed, Shelby. Rachel stops laughing to answer Santana, her eyes never leaving Shelby's, "I just find it funny that's all, I always thought my mom had a good reason for... abandoning her daughter..I thought I'd find her devastated. But no, infact, she let me down to have a career and make better children...I hope the money you received was worth it!" Rachel had come right in Shelby's face to scream the last sentence.

Quinn felt Santana's t-shirt slip out of her hand and creak a little as Santana rushed at Rachel pushing her and getting between her and Shelby. She watched as the mother wrapped Santana around the waist to keep her from rearranging Rachel's face, while hurling profanity in Spanish at the petite brunette.
Shelby was overwhelmed by the events, she had spent the evening eating gifts with her two children to prevent one of these children from attacking her third child who had reappeared 20 years later.

She could see the rage on Santana's face, the anguish on Rachel's face and the anxiety on Quinn's.

"Okay!", she had to regain control of the situation, "Everyone calm down. It seems obvious to me that no one is going to sleep tonight. The four of us are going to go sit in the living room okay? And talk like human beings and not like animals who ran away from a zoo!", Shelby felt Santana relax in her arms, she also saw Rachel open her mouth ready to object but Shelby interjected in a confident voice, " Rachel, you came for answers and you have the right to you're saying is wrong please let me explain...Quinn and Santana know who you are, they know you exist but they don't know anything else okay?" Shelby was pleading with her...no...the Berry's daughter.

Rachel looked at the women in the room one by one. The dark eyes of the one who seemed to be called Santana who was still staring at her with flames in her eyes, breathing heavily from Shelby's arms. Hazel eyes watching the scene from the stairs, eyes that immediately lowered to look at the steps when Rachel crossed them. And finally the eyes of the person who had given her life, imploring her to stay.

Rachel had searched for weeks, driven miles and miles to find her mother. She had come looking for answers, and answers she was going to get.