If you were surprised by the happenings in last chapter, so was I. That wasn't my initial thought, but I went with it. I think it worked. Here's the aftermath. Also, thinking this story has 3-5 chapters (probably longer chapters like this) left.

Chapter 22: Hospital Reunion

Rachel killed him…

Shelby didn't realize she could be any more heartbroken for Rachel. She still wasn't sure what happened in that apartment, not completely, but she knew enough to know Rachel acted in self-defense. But no matter the cause, Rachel took a life and that would be hard for her to deal with emotionally, especially when she was already so fragile and dealing with so much.

Kurt and Shelby just felt useless. They could tell Santana that everything would be ok, and they would mean it, but they couldn't know that for sure. Things were messed up. What they went through was terrible. What Rachel was forced to do was traumatic…

Now it was just about understanding and helping them though.

Kurt didn't know how to react. He felt so on the outside looking in. He was living with Rachel for months, and though he could see she was in pain, had no understanding of what that pain really was nor did he force her to tell him. He wished he had. He wished he had done something, pushed harder… Spent more time with her.

He was so wrapped up in his own New York adventure that he missed some glaring signs that something wasn't right. He wracked his brain going through every encounter he had with Jasper, searching for things he missed. He should have detected something. He should have pushed harder. He should have made her talk.

What was wrong with him?

How could he let his best friend suffer through everything and not try to help? Yet Santana saw it. She tried…

He was feeling like a crappy friend but determined to be there for her now. Better late than never, right?

"Kurt… You haven't been to the apartment, have you?"

A hand gently squeezed his shoulder.

Pulled out of his thoughts, he shook his head and said, "I was spending the night at a friend's. I came here once I got Santana's call."

"Did anyone call Rachel's fathers?"

"No…"

"Ok, I guess I'll do that. They deserve to know she's in the hospital now before it shows up on their insurance." Shelby took a deep breath and checked in again with Santana. "How are you doing, hon? Do you want me to call your family or anyone?"

"No… I…"

Santana bowed her head.

"I'll give your mom a call. She'll want to know what's happening."

Santana looked at her sadly, but nodded, "Thank you."

She may not have been the one practically stalked and raped, but she was part of the mess. What happened to her was still traumatic and she held some guilt for the end result.

"Of course," Shelby told her. "I'm going to step out to make some calls, but please let me know if you hear anything about Rachel."

"We will," Kurt promised.

Shelby quickly stepped out of the room. Once she was far enough away, she leaned against the wall and felt the world move around her in slow motion. She felt like she couldn't catch her breath, like the world was crushing her and she just couldn't breathe.

It all felt like too much… What Rachel was going through… It felt like it was impossible to help her. She wasn't giving up, but she needed to feel her feelings.

Taking a few deep breaths, watching the world around her move, Shelby settled herself enough to make the first call.

"Why are you calling me in the middle of the night?"

"LeRoy," Shelby started, voice quivering. "It's Rachel… There's been an incident."

"What? What happened?"

"She and Santana were attacked tonight. She is being seen by a doctor now. I don't know much yet, but… I think it would be a good idea for you to get here."

"You don't know anymore than that? Is she ok? What about Santana?"

"Santana is shaken, but alright. The doctors have already seen her. Rachel is getting some scans done. She hit her head. Honestly, I don't know anymore than that. But… You and Hiram should be here. Do you think the two of you can be in the same room without arguing. I don't think she could deal with that on top of everything."

"We've done it for years… For Rachel. We can do it again. I'll call him right now."

"I promise to call you if I hear anything or if I get to see Rachel. Right now, it's just waiting."

LeRoy had so many questions, but didn't even know what to ask or how to start. His mind was on Rachel and having to call to let Hiram know what was going on.

"Thank you. Please, please do call the moment you know anything."

"I will."

One call down. One to go…

With Santana's mother, Maribel, the call was a little easier.

"I'm sorry to wake you, Maribel. This is Shelby Corcoran, Rachel's mother. I'm calling about Santana. She and Rachel were assaulted tonight. Santana is ok, but shaken. She could really use her mother right now."

Maribel followed up with a bunch of questions. Like with LeRoy, she gave the name of the hospital and where to find them. Maribel was going to be on the soonest flight or train, whichever would get her there faster.

"I don't know if Santana has her phone on her, but I'll have her call you as soon as she's a little calmer. It's been a rough night for them."

"I appreciate you calling me. We'll be there soon. Please update me if there are any changes. I hope that Rachel is alright."

"Thank you."

With that out of the way, and the likelihood that she would be with Rachel for most of the day – exactly where she wanted to be right now – Shelby decided to send a text to her father asking if he could come watch Beth.

Even as a grown up, she really wished she had her father there with her right now. He would know what to do, how to get answers, and maybe how to help Rachel. All she had right now was to be there however Rachel would let her.

But there were so many dark thoughts running through her head. Obviously, Rachel was attacked. Beyond the emotional toll taking someone's life, self-defense or not, would put on her, they still didn't know how long Rachel was alone with Jasper. They didn't know what he could have done to her in that time. A part of her didn't want to know, didn't want to even think about the possibilities.

Jasper…

She was glad that vile, ass was dead. Knowing his name didn't help her focus her anger at all. If anything, it just made her angrier. This man was someone her daughter was supposed to be able to trust and rely on and he abused that power… Then manipulated her for months. Now, he forced her hand to defend herself and her friend… It seemed like Rachel was the only one that had to bear the brunt of his actions. She didn't know how to help that. She wasn't sure how to help Rachel with any of it.

While she tried to figure that out and waited for information on Rachel, she spent her time trying to support Santana. Kurt and Shelby both talked with Santana more about what happened. Since it was the middle of the night and she went through a trauma, they were going to keep her overnight and get a social worker to talk with her in the morning to offer her counseling and let her know what services were available to her.

Eventually the night just weighed on her, and though it wasn't restful, Santana fell asleep, and Kurt soon behind her tucked in a chair. Santana's dreams quickly turned into nightmares, replaying the final moments. She saw Rachel's face as she realized what she did… The statue she became… The blood on her own hands from trying to help Jasper… Which in itself was a mindfuck because he deserved what he got, but Rachel did not.

She woke up with a gasp, immediately looking down at her hands, no traces of blood left. The nurse long since gave her a change of cloths – hospital issued sweats that they gave to victims when they had to collect their clothes for evidence…

"You're ok," Shelby told her when she woke.

"It was horrible," Santana whispered.

"I'm here. And your mom called. She's on the flight now with the Berrys and they should be here soon."

"Did they say anything about Rachel?"

"A doctor came by a little while ago. They're getting her settled into a room. She was sedated because she had a panic attack. She has a concussion that they're monitoring and a cracked rib, but baring complications she should be ok."

"Were you able to see her?"

"Not yet. Later in the morning."

"Was she… Did he…"

"I don't know, Santana. She hasn't said anything, and they couldn't tell me even if she was."

"I don't know how long they were alone," Santana said, "And she was only wearing her work dress…"

"Let's not dwell on what ifs until we know more, ok? It's not healthy for either of our minds."

"Ok…"

Shelby pushed the hair off Santana's face, giving her a gentle smile.

"Try to go back to sleep. The police stopped by again and said that we can go into the apartment in the morning. Hopefully, after I see Rachel, I can run there with Kurt and grab you and Rachel some supplies."

"It's a mess…"

"Don't worry about any of that right now. Just rest. It's still early."

Santana nodded and turned over.

Around 7 am, Shelby was informed that she could finally see Rachel. With Kurt and Santana still sleeping, she left a quick message for them, then another for Laura about plans for Beth, and went to the other floor where Rachel was admitted.

When she saw Rachel, Shelby's heart broke all over again. The younger woman's face was bruised, especially around her jaw. A bandage peaked out from the back of her head. Her lip was split, and more bruises littered her arms. And that was only what she could see. Who knew what was hiding under the hospital issued blanket.

Not hesitating, Shelby took the empty seat and pushed it next to the bed, taking Rachel's hand in hers.

"I'm so sorry you had to go through this," she whispered to her unconscious daughter. "I'm here for you. Your friends are here, and your fathers are on their way. We're all on your side."

Shelby wanted nothing more than to erase all the bad from Rachel's life. She made a promise there and then to do everything in her power to support Rachel, to do anything she could to make things better, and help her find her way again.

She just wanted her daughter to understand how strong she really was. She was a survivor… A warrior.

Shelby was just about to say something when the door opened.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't know she had visitors. You must be mom. I'm just doing my check and then I'll be out of here."

"How's she doing?" Shelby asked.

"She'll be in pain for a while, especially with the ribs and she'll need to be on complete rest for at least a few days to help her heal from the concussion, but she's a strong girl. She'll be ok."

"The doctor said he had to sedate her. Is that why she hasn't woken still?"

"The sedative probably wore off by now. I'd say she's just sleeping. She could wake at any point. If you're in here when she does, let us know, especially if she starts to panic again. If she's calm enough, the doctor wants to do some neurological tests to see what symptoms she might have from the concussion."

"Did the scans show anything concerning?"

"She'll be ok. Because she does have the concussion, we just want to be safe. It's possible that she might have some memory loss or confusion. She'll probably have a wicked headache for a while… We just want to know what's going on so we can address it and help her."

"Thank you."

"Hang in there, Mom," the nurse said. "This will get better. She just needs some rest."

Easier said than done, Shelby thought. Nonetheless, Shelby nodded and hoped that was true. Right now, she was just anxiously waiting for Rachel to wake up.

It didn't take long for that to happen. Shelby had just pulled her phone out of her pocket to check for any messages when she heard a faint mumble from the bed. Her eyes immediately went to her daughter.

Rachel continued to mumble and squirm. Clearly, she was stuck in a bad dream or flashback.

"Rachel. You're ok. I'm here. You're safe."

"No!" she woke with a scream.

Shelby was at her side, but Rachel couldn't focus enough to see her. She was still in that moment with Jasper. Her breathing was rapid and she felt dizzy.

"Rachel, I know you're scared, but you're safe here. You're safe, and you need to relax. You're at the hospital."

"No. No. No. No. No…"

"Yes… You're alright. You're going to be alright."

When it was clear that Rachel wasn't calming down, Shelby jumped into action. She sat on the bed beside Rachel and sang to her, producing a gentle melody to calm her down.

Rachel's breaths slowly started to even out, but she was still crying.

"Deep breath."

"I can't," Rachel panted. "It hurts."

"It's going to hurt for a while. You have a few broken ribs. Just try your best. Focus on us, and being in this moment. Slow breaths, as deep as you can without hurting yourself."

"It all hurts," Rachel uttered, leaning into Shelby's grasp.

"I know baby," she said, kissing her head and holding her as close as she dared. "We're going to get you through this."

Thankfully, Shelby's placating was enough to normalize Rachel's heartrate before it alerted the nurses. Still, the tears kept comping.

"I've got you. You're alright."

"My head hurts," Rachel said.

"It's going to hurt for a while. It will heal though. So will you."

"I'm in the hospital," Rachel said, taking in her surroundings. "What happened?"

Shelby stilled. She didn't know how to answer that. She didn't truly know what happened and, if something did happen – something more than the physical attack – she didn't want to be the one to break it to her.

"What do you remember?" Shelby asked.

Rachel thought hard. Everything felt a little fuzzy around the edges. It was like the memories were there and she knew them, but she couldn't quite access them.

"I don't know. It hurts to think."

"That's ok. Don't force it. Just relax, ok? No need to worry about anything."

Maybe it was for the best that she didn't remember. At least for now, it would offer her a reprieve to start the physical healing before having to face the emotional trauma. Maybe…

"I don't want to be here," Rachel whispered. "I want to go home."

"I know, sweetie, but this is where you need to be for now. Until you're doing better. Let's just focus on that. Are you in a lot of pain? The nurse told me to call them, and they'll give you some pain medication to take the edge off. You have a concussion, so they can't give you anything too strong, but…"

"I'm ok…" she said, as she really tried to push through the fuzziness and understand what was happening.

Unfortunately, once the door to her room opened and Santana and Kurt walked in, all hell broke loose. She immediately noticed the bruises on Santana and it was like she was struck with memory lightning, and not the good kind.

"Santana…" Rachel mumbled.

The other girl quickly approached her.

Everything from the night hit Rachel all at once. She had been blocking it out more so than forgetting and now it was all back. It just made her head her more.

Panicky, she asked, "Jasper… Did he hurt you? Are you ok?"

"You saved me," Santana told her.

"No… But… And he…"

Her thoughts were incoherent as she worked herself back up into a frenzy.

"He was there and I… I stabbed him," she said, the last complete sentence before she went into a full-blown panic attack, hands grabbing at her head as it all just made everything worse.

Kurt and Shelby rushed over, doing their best to offer whatever words and comfort they could to no avail. Between choking breaths, Rachel just seemed like she was in agony, and there was nothing they could do. Thankfully, the nurse rushed in and gave her another sedative.

"Let's try to keep her calm next time she wakes up. She needs rest for her head injury to heal without any further damage. That requires relaxing and minimizing stress. If you can't keep her calm, we'll be forced to limit her visitors."

"We're sorry."

Rachel was out again, and maybe that was for the better.

"She didn't remember what happened," Shelby said to the two young adults. "It must've all come back to her when she saw you."

Truthfully, they were all secretly happy that Rachel was out again. They didn't want her to be in such pain, physically or emotionally. She needed rest while she could get it in order to confront what happened – everything that happened to her. The longer she slept, the better it was.

Santana was awfully somber though. She spent the time waiting for her mother to show or Rachel to wake again just pondering the what ifs, searching for any clues that something more happened before she arrived at the apartment.

She couldn't think of anything specific beyond the look on Rachel's face. Maybe that was for the best. But it left a lot more time for sulking and thinking as the three of them sat around waiting for Rachel to wake again.

When her mother and the Berry men arrived, Santana ran into her mother's arms and gave in to her feelings. The two excused themselves after briefly checking in, and she told her mother everything. It all felt like her fault. Rachel wasn't giving her answers, so she went in search of them herself.

She went to Jasper looking for proof. She tried to be covert about it, but she got caught after talking to one of his castmates. He deserved to pay for hurting Rachel, and Rachel wasn't willing to go to the police at the time. So, she tried to find solid evidence or someone with a story similar to Rachel's.

She really just wanted him away from Rachel and to get some revenge for her. Rachel wasn't a violent person, so Santana curbed her desire to literally set him on fire, and instead gave him a little taste of his own medicine.

Santana showed up at the theater where she learned Jasper was working. He had some background role in the play, but she could see him in his element. The way he hit on all the girls and talked to them like he was better than them… It sickened her. She could tell they didn't like it either.

Then she took it further and approached the girls. Drea and Haley, she learned. They needed to know the kind of man he was and who they were dealing with before it was too late. She was sure Jasper didn't prey on everyone, but Drea seemed a bit like Rachel – naïve, eager, and ambitious. Just his type.

"You know he's a predator, right?" Santana said to them, catching up with them as they left the building soon after Jasper.

"What?"

"Jasper."

"Lady… We don't know you. We're not interested in what you have to say. You're probably some jilted ex trying to cause problems."

"I'm a lesbian, thank you very much. He's not my ex. I just thought you should know he's dangerous."

"Dangerous how?" Haley asked.

"Like it's dangerous to be a woman he wants."

Drea looked a little skittish, and both Santana and Drea picked up on that.

"Come with us for some coffee? My treat," Haley offered.

Santana nodded. Somewhere a little more private than a public street was a good idea.

They walked a block over to a quiet coffee shop.

"Alright, you have my attention," Haley said. "Jasper is a pompous ass, that's for sure. Convince me he's dangerous."

"He raped my best friend," Santana bluntly said, catching them by surprise.

"What?"

"Yeah… He was her TA at NYADA. He said he was helping her, coaching her to be better… Then he took advantage of her. We believe he drugged her drink. What's worse is that he took pictures of her when he did it and spread them around the school."

"Then why didn't she say anything," Haley said, clearly no believing everything.

"He has been harassing her for months now, even threatened me if she told anyone. The only reason I found out is because she had a breakdown after he sent the pictures to the entire school."

"He did that?"

"Don't let his innocent act full you. He's not a nice guy."

Without giving away Rachel's identity, Santana gave them some details, at least what she knew and felt comfortable sharing. The more she told, the more withdrawn Drea became. She had been awfully quiet, eyes downcast.

"Drea, are you alright?"

The girl shook her head and began to cry. Haley comforted and told her she could talk to them. Whatever she said would remain between them.

"I believe you… About your friend. Because he hasn't been kind to me," she said.

Then it all came out. While her story wasn't exactly the same as Rachel's, she was a victim of Jasper all the same. Apparently, he had been hitting on her and threatening to get her fired from the show if she didn't go out with him.

She gave in and even had some fun, convincing herself she was just reading him wrong. She thought that was the end of it, but one day she saw Jasper talking to their director, giving her weird looks. When she asked Jasper about it, he told her that the director was worried about her poor performance, but he could put in a good word for her. In return, all he wanted was to start fresh and be friends.

"I told him ok. I wanted a fresh start, and I definitely didn't want to be fired. So we started fresh. Then we went out for a cast dinner. He plied her with plenty of alcohol that she willingly accepted. They were having a good time, but then he took things too far.

He didn't drug her, she swore. She wouldn't even call it rape… Exactly. She didn't know what to call it… She didn't say no, but she didn't say yes either. He held some power over her, and he certainly used it to his advantage. In the end, she just let it happen. She didn't feel she could say no… Afterward he was… She wasn't sure how to explain it. Nothing about it felt right and he treated her like a one night stand, but they still worked together.

There were comments here and there, and sometimes she felt uncomfortable but he hadn't tried anything again… It just seemed like she built it all up in her head and it was nothing. It was just a fling, she convinced herself.

"That's not ok, Drea. Why didn't you come to me? I told you I was here for you if you needed me. I would have got him out of here."

They spent some time talking everything through before they exchanged numbers and went their separate ways. Santana thought talking to Drea might do Rachel some good. She would see she wasn't alone, that Jasper was the problem.

After that, Haley reached out to Santana to thank her for bringing the Jasper situation to her attention. She had a long talk with Drea and some of the other cast and stage crew women, and a lot came to light.

Santana didn't know then that Haley and the women brought it to the director's attention, and it became a problem that couldn't be ignored. Jasper was easily replaceable and they let him go. It was another unintentional catalyst on her part.

"That wasn't your fault, Santana," Maribel told her. "You were trying to help your friend and in turn helped another woman who was victimized as well."

"But look what happened. I won't forgive myself if he hurt her like that again."

"Mijito. Listen to me. You are not responsible for that man's actions. He hurt your friend, and I'm proud of you for trying to help. I'm sorry it came to this and that the two of you were hurt, but it doesn't change the fact that you love fiercely and are willing to do anything for the ones you love."

"Mom, please stop saying that I love Rachel Berry."

"But you do sweetheart, and that's ok."

"God help me," she laughed.

Maribel hugged her daughter in a long, tight embrace. She too felt a little guilty because she was happy it wasn't Santana. Her little girl faced that monster and came out of it relatively ok. Right now, she wanted nothing more than to be there for her daughter and make sure that she and her friends would be alright before she returned home.

Somehow, Maribel convinced Santana to leave the hospital for a little while and come with her to check into her hotel. She plied her with non-hospital food and a shower, but really, Santana was afraid to go back into that room and set Rachel off again. She didn't put up much of a fight and she didn't want to.

So, while Maribel took care of her daughter, Shelby and the Berry men took care of theirs.

"Who would do this to her?" Hiram asked.

"I knew we should have paid for them to live somewhere safer," Leroy argued.

"Hiram, Leroy, let's talk," Shelby said, already tired of their bickering.

She asked Kurt to stay with Rachel while they went to talk. He readily agreed. It wasn't like he had anywhere to go even if he wanted to leave. His home was a crime scene.

"There are some things you should know… Rachel has been having a hard time."

"We know," Leroy said.

"You don't… Listen…" she started, but wasn't really sure where to start. She didn't plan to tell them everything. She couldn't do that to Rachel who already had so many of her choices taken away from her, but they had to be told something. Shelby needed to find that happy medium.

"The person who attacked Rachel and Santana was someone from Rachel's school. He has been… difficult and last night, he attacked them both at home."

"I don't understand why anyone would want to hurt them. My sweet girl…"

"I'll kill him. Where is he? Let me get my hands on him and show him what it's like…"

"Leroy…" Shelby stopped him. "There's more you need to know."

"What more could there be? That monster hurt our baby, terrorized her in her own home. He has to pay. Is he in custody?"

Shelby bit her lip before stating, "He's dead."

"What? How?"

"Rachel?" Hiram asked.

Solemnly, Shelby nodded.

"In self defense, Rachel stabbed him. He was alive when they took him to the hospital, but he had internal bleeding that was too severe and he passed soon after they brough him here."

"Our poor, broken baby."

"She doen't know he's dead yet. When she woke up, she couldn't remember everything and I still don't believe she does now. But she did have a panic attack and that was why she was sedated."

"A panic attack?" Hiram asked, looking to Leroy. "I don't think she ever had one before. Has she?"

"No. Not that I know of anyway."

"I really don't want to share her personal business, but she has been dealing with a lot of stress lately, and she has had some panic attacks. She's working with a therapist here to get better, and she has been, but this will likely be a setback."

"She hasn't said anything to us."

Both Leroy and Hiram were hurt by this. It felt like they had failed their daughter. It was a feeling Shelby knew all too well. Disappointing and failing Rachel seemed to be a skill she perfected.

"She didn't want you to know," Shelby said. "I don't think it was about you at all. She was struggling, but she knew you two were struggling with your own things and she wanted to handle it on her own."

"But she told you," Leroy stated.

"No. I saw it and made it my business."

"Is this why you told us you weren't going to tell us anything anymore? You got her to open up to you and forget about us?"

"No, of course not. All of this has nothing to do with you. This is all about Rachel. I want her to trust me as well as the two of you and if we continued to discuss her behind her back then she wouldn't trust any of us."

It took a lot of back and forth between all three of them, including some arguing between the two men, before Leroy and Hiram calmed. They did understand her point of view, but there was a sense of guilt and self-preservation that made it hard to just accept what she was saying and move on.

"The most important thing right now is helping Rachel."

On that, they could all agree. The divorced couple and Shelby all needed to band together and support Rachel however she would let them.

"Tell us what we need to know."

"How bad have the panic attacks been?"

"I knew we should have come for the holidays. She was a mess."

"Hiram, we agreed not to because we were already hiding the divorce and she didn't want that."

"Well, add that to the list of mistakes we've made."

"Guys," Shelby interrupted. "Let's focus."

It was like hurdling teenagers with the bickering men, but eventually they got back on track. They weren't happy with Shelby keeping things from them as they were Rachel's fathers, but they also knew that Rachel needed to be able to trust Shelby if they were ever to have the relationship Rachel always wanted.

"We should have her therapist come talk to her," Hiram suggested.

The three brainstormed the best ways to help Rachel and Santana, coming up with some plans to have her therapist, Dr. Freedman do a hospital visit if Rachel was here for a while or schedule an emergency appointment for as soon as Rachel was released.

"Kurt just texted. Rachel is starting to stir, so she'll be up again soon. She doesn't know you're here and I just want to remind you that she might not remember everything that happened. Once the doctors do some cognitive assessments, the police would like to speak with her. They already talked with Santana."

"We should go see her. We'll make more firm plans once we know about where she is mentally."

The adults were on the same page, but Shelby worried that seeing them would be a lot for Rachel. It was her understanding that Rachel hadn't seen them in months, at least not since she was raped. She wasn't sure what Rachel's reaction would be to them showing up together at the hospital after what happened.

"She's just coming to," Kurt told them when they arrived back at the room. "Maybe… Maybe we shouldn't all crowd her."

"I think you're right, Kurt," Leroy said. "Shelby, she knows you're here. Why don't you sit with her until she wakes up and let us know when she's ready for us?"

Surprised, but thrilled that it seemed they were working out some kind of symbiosis, Shelby eagerly nodded. The men stepped out leaving Shelby and Rachel alone. Thankfully, this time Rachel was waking calmly.

"Hi," she mumbled, still a little drug addled.

"Hi," Shelby responded. "How are you feeling?"

"Everything still hurts. They drugged me?"

"They had to. They didn't want you to worsen your injuries. We couldn't get you to calm down."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry."

"Is Santana ok?"

"She's a little roughed up, but she's ok… Thanks to you."

"Thanks to me?" she questioned.

Shelby quickly covered her tracks. It seemed Rachel was back to not remembering or suppressing the memory. Either way, she wasn't going to make her remember then.

"Santana is with Maribel right now, but I assure you that she's ok. What about you? Can I get you anything?"

"Maybe some water."

Shelby nodded and walked to the small tray where a pitcher and plastic cup were sitting. She poured and brought it to Rachel. With a shaky hand, Rachel reached out. It gave Shelby the opportunity to see the bruises on her arms and internally shutter. Anger flooded her system, but she hastily put up the dam.

"Do you think you're up for some visitors?"

"Who?"

"Well, Kurt for one would really like to see you, but… Your dads are here."

"My dads… Together?"

"Yes."

"But… How?"

"Rach, sweetie, you're in the hospital. They needed to know. They flew out with Maribel to see you and Santana. Would you like to see them? I can make them wait. The doctor wants to run some tests, so we can blame them."

"No… I… I'd like to see them. Just… Please. Don't go."

"I'll stay as long as you want me," she assured.

"I don't know what to say to them. What did you tell them? Did you…"

"I didn't tell them anything, Rachel. Nothing you wouldn't tell them anyway. If you want to tell them, I can help you and support you in any way, but that's your choice. I wouldn't take that choice away from you."

"Ok… I… I want to see them."

"Let me go grab them. They're just outside."

"Kurt too."

"Kurt too."

Shelby escorted the three men back in. Rachel was oddly calm which Shelby didn't trust, but let it happen. It was her knowledge that until the freak out while getting tests, Rachel hadn't uttered a single word since the attack. So, she wasn't going to look down on the calm or the talking, but she didn't trust it either.

"My little star. Look at you."

They wanted to embrace her, but settled on each taking a side of the bed and holding her hand.

"Hi Daddy. Dad. I'm sorry."

"Oh, none of that. Don't be sorry. We're just so glad you're alright."

They had a good half hour to talk and check in. That was all the nurse would allow since they wanted to run some tests. The men and Kurt just wanted to show her their support. They didn't ask any questions about what happened, much to Rachel's delight. They just let her guide the conversation and made sure she was doing ok.

It was still a lot for Rachel though. It was mentally draining to be so… unreactive when everything inside her still screamed to run and hide or crawl in a ball and cry. So when the nurse interrupted them, it was a welcomed distraction.

"Miss Rachel. Nice to see you awake again. We're going to take you for some tests now. Why don't you say goodbye to your guests."

Rachel groggily waved bye.

Shelby and her fathers promised to see her again when she was back. Once alone, Hiram and Leroy could finally voice their worry and frustration.

"That monster…"

"I know Hiram. Keep it together. We can't lose it in front of Rachel."

"Why don't you two go grab some coffee or something?" Shelby suggested. "These tests seem to take a while. I was thinking Kurt and I would run to the apartment and grab some things to make Rachel more comfortable."

Kurt nodded. The police gave them the go ahead to go to the apartment, and part of him was dying to see the aftermath. It was some morbid curiosity to wonder what remained, but it all felt so surreal and he needed that tangibility.

"Sounds good."

"Please call us if anything changes."

"We will."

Hiram and Leroy when one way; Kurt and Shelby the other.

Shelby and Kurt made the quiet, antsy trek to the apartment together, not at all ready for what they would see. There was police tape at the door, though they were told it was ok to go in now. Pulling that off, Kurt let them in, and they were immediately greeted by a mess. A lamp was thrown down, glass from a figurine was scattered on the ground, and that wasn't even the worst of it. As the moved deeper, they saw it…

There was a red stained towel next to a pool of blood… That was where it happened. Right outside the door for Rachel's room it was just a mess. There was a little splatter of blood a few feet away. They wondered if that was where Rachel hit her head, but they also tried not to think on it too much.

"Let's just get what we need and get out of here. We'll hire someone to clean this. I don't want any of you here while the blood is still there."

"Agreed. That's Rachel's room and the one to the left is Santana's. I'm going to grab my bag, then I'll get some stuff for Santana."

"Alright. I'll start with Rachel and move to Santana if I'm done before you. Please grab whatever the girls might need from the bathroom."

He shook his head and disappeared into his room. He needed away from the blood and mess. Just looking into Rachel's room… Her usually made bed unnaturally turned down… It just brought up more questions, and so far, Rachel wasn't answering them.

But they would get her through. They had to. As messed up as the situation was, Jasper was dead, and he couldn't hurt her anymore. They hoped that would give her some peace in the end.