BlackThroated Green Warbler CHAPTER ONE Quinn adjusted the straps of her pack as she watched the heads

of her fellow glee clubbers bob ahead of her. The sun was high and hot as it burned its way through the dense foliage casting shadows across the hiking trail they were all following. She was bringing up the rear by choice. They were only a week out of junior year and were staying a week in the Wayne National Forest in southern Ohio as another one of Mr. Schuester's grand ideas to foster camaraderie. Part of her wished he'd stop trying so hard to get them all to be friends. The fact was that considering the differences in background and personalities that were found among the group of teammates it was amazing that they were able to get along as well as they did. They had never really let their differences affect a competition and she felt that a lot of the tension in the club fed their creativity and the emotion it took to give the performances they did. However, in this instance, she had to admit that she was enjoying herself. Each of the club members had contributed toward a fund and they had rented a cabin even though Mr. Schuester had wanted them to "rough it" in tents. Rachel and Mercedes had insisted that the only way they would be participating was if there was an actual roof and solid walls over them as they slept and running water when they wanted it. Since Artie wasn't able to come because his family already had vacation plans and Sam couldn't come because his family was moving to Dayton where his dad had finally found a job they hadn't needed as many beds. This was their second day in the wilderness area and they'd all decided to go on a hike. They'd each prepared a small pack and had a leisurely lunch in a small clearing and now they were making the long trek back. Quinn smiled wearily as she could now easily spot the difference between the more athletic members of the club and those who were less active. Mercedes and Kurt walked slowly in front of her, their feet barely rising from the ground with each step as they trudged slowly along the rough terrain. Rachel, Finn, Lauren, and Puck were staggered between the rear of the pack and Santana, Brittany, Mike, Tina, and Mr. Schuester leading the way. Quinn let her pace slow even more to put more distance between her and the rest of the group. She wasn't tired. She just wanted some quiet. From all appearances she would be one of the least likely of the group to enjoy the great outdoors, but Quinn actually liked camping and hiking. From the time she was little she had accompanied her father and older sister on annual fishing trips both locally and even across the state borders into Indiana and Kentucky. Her grandmother on her mom's side liked to bird watch and had been a member of the Ohio Ornithological Society. She had passed her appreciation for winged creatures on to her youngest granddaughter and Quinn had packed a pair of binoculars in her pack in hopes of getting some time away from the group to bird watch in peace without the threat of ridicule.

Just as she lost sight of Mercedes and Kurt around a bend in the trail a flash of bright yellow flitting through the trees to her right drew her attention away. She stopped as she peered into the thicker brush, focusing on the lines of branches until she saw it again; a flip of quick wings and a bright almost neon yellow movement of color. She grinned as she slung her pack from one shoulder so she could reach in with her now free arm and grab the binoculars. Zipping the pack back up and readjusting it on her shoulders she wandered off the trail, picking her way slowly through the underbrush. She wanted to be careful to not frighten the bird off by being overly noisy. She was about twenty yards from the trail when she saw the movement again, but closer now. She stayed focused on her goal as she moved slowly through the woods. She picked each step with care until she found herself in an area of thick ferns and decided to stop. She found the movement again and raised the binoculars to her eyes as she remained fixed on her desired location. Everything became too big once looking through the magnifying device and she deftly adjusted the focus with her right index finger until what she saw became sharp. A grin spread across her face as she watched the small bird rest on the limb. He took a few small jumps along the limb as his bright yellow head swiveled and twitched as he took in his surroundings. "What are you doing?" Quinn jumped at the sudden question and saw the flash as the bird took off. She turned around with a frown on her face to find a petite brunette standing beside her. She could have let herself feel a little warmth over the fact that Rachel seemed concerned about her, but the fact that the girl had just interrupted her first opportunity for watching one of her favorite species of birds let her instead find the annoyance she needed. She glared at the girl and said, "God Rachel. We're not in glee club right now. I don't have to answer to you. And besides, what are you doing? Why aren't you with the group?" Rachel's back instantly went rigid and she crossed her arms across her chest, taking a defensive stance. "While I did notice that you didn't answer my question I will not extend you the same discourtesy. I was performing my regular ten minute head count to ensure that all members from our hiking party that set out this morning would indeed make a safe return when I noticed that you were no longer with the group. I dropped back to find you and noticed you walking off the trail and disappearing into the woods. Feeling that this was a much too dangerous task for you to be attempting without a partner I followed you. Your safety was my only concern Quinn." Quinn clenched her jaw and shook her head. Of course Rachel would be performing regular head counts. The entire drive up in the rented van had been filled with a tutorial on the dangerous animals and poisonous plants they may encounter. Rachel had expressed her disappointment in not being able to provide the presentation in Power Point multiple times. She really wasn't upset with Rachel for following her. She was upset that it made her feel good to know the brunette cared enough about her to travel off the

trail to make sure she was safe. She was upset by the feeling in the pit of her stomach whenever the two of them were in each other's presence. They had gone through a tumultuous couple of years and Quinn's recent realization about the true extent of her feelings for the girl only added to her discomfort. She didn't know why she chose to fight with the girl in that moment instead of just accepting her explanation and heading back to join the group. "Well as you can see I'm perfectly safe so you can go back to Finn now before he mistakes some woodland fairy for you and takes it home instead." She regretted it as soon as it was out of her mouth. The hurt she saw flash in brown eyes made her regret it even more. "I'm sorry that Finn hurt you Quinn, but I had no choice in that matter. It was completely his decision and there's no reason for you to be cruel to me when I was simply concerned for you. I see now that my efforts are wasted on you." Rachel turned quickly on her heels to begin her normal storm out, but doing so in the woods with branches and rocks and uneven earth is much different than while doing so on tiled floors. As she turned her foot caught on a protruding tree root causing the momentum of her upper body to continue as her foot remained where it was. Quinn saw her begin to fall and instinctively reached her arm out to try to catch the girl at the same time that Rachel instinctively reached out for the blonde to try to stop her fall. Quinn felt Rachel's hand in her own, but instead of stopping Rachel she was pulled along with her through the thick ferns and brush that had stopped Quinn from proceeding further. They both hit the ground with a hard thud that knocked the air from Quinn's lungs. She was aware of Rachel yelping in pain and in the next instant she felt her body hurtling forward and slamming again into the earth as they each continued to tumble. As small branches and twigs scraped across her body Quinn realized that the relatively flat ground they had been on had not continued where they had fallen. The brush had concealed a steep decline that they were both now tumbling down with no way to stop. Quinn tried to dig her heels into the earth to slow her descent but she couldn't keep her feet planted long enough to get traction. Her hands flailed as she tried to grasp onto anything to give her purchase but the world was flying by too quickly for her to find anything and what she was able to grab was either too weak and broke quickly in her grasp or she was going too quickly to hold on and her grip would fail. It felt like she was falling forever but it truly only took a few seconds to come to a stop. It was a painful stop and Quinn let out a grunt of pain as her body settled hard on the ground. She lay motionless in the dirt as she tried to catch her breath and assessed her body for serious injury. She'd had the wind knocked out of her and she could feel small cuts across her hands and arms from the branches she'd passed but overall she didn't think she'd suffered any serious injury. When she finally opened her eyes and turned her head to see the large rock inches from her face she swallowed the bile that rose in her throat as she realized how close she had come to a serious head injury, if not death. She heard a groan of pain a little distance away and suddenly remembered that she wasn't the

only one to make the unintended trip down the hidden ravine and she forced herself to rise to unsteady feet as she searched for Rachel. "Rachel! Rachel!" Quinn quickly scanned the area as she called for the brunette. She spotted the red of her shirt at the same time that she heard her moan again and stumbled the few remaining yards that had separated them. She dropped to her knees beside Rachel and placed a hand gently to the girl's back. She worried her lower lip as she scanned what parts of Rachel she could see for any visible serious injuries. "Rachel, are you able to move?" Her hand ran soothingly across Rachel's back. She was relieved to see that the prone girl appeared to be breathing normally and that she didn't see any blood. "Rachel I'm going to help you roll over, okay?" Quinn placed one hand against Rachel's neck to stabilize her and then placing her other hand under Rachel's hip she slowly rolled the brunette onto her back. Another moan escaped her lips as she changed positions. Quinn bit her lip to hold back the gasp that threatened to leave her mouth at the sight of blood trickling across Rachel's forehead. It was only when she reached to shrug her pack off in order to retrieve her first aid kit that she realized it was no longer attached to her. She raised her head and scanned the surrounding brush. "I'll be right back," she whispered to Rachel before she scrambled a few feet up the slope to retrieve her pack which had ended up tangled in the branches of a small evergreen. She hastily wiped the tears from her face before quickly making her way back to Rachel. "Quinn?" "I'm right here. Rachel, don't move." Quinn said as she gently pushed the girl back down to the ground as she struggled to rise. Quinn quickly opened her pack and pulled the red box from the bottom. Her hands shook slightly as she opened it and she tried to take a calming breath as her fingers deftly moved through the contents to find what she was looking for. She grabbed a couple alcohol wipes to start with and turned back toward the brunette. Rachel's eyes were full of tears, her complexion was pale and her breath was coming in sharp gasps. "Rachel, sweetie, you need to calm down," Quinn whispered as she tried to comfort the hurt girl. Her fingers gently brushed the long brunette locks away from her face as she gently began cleaning the blood from Rachel's forehead with her other hand. "I'm going to take care of you Rachel. Everything's going to be okay. I know you're in pain. You have a little bit of a cut on your head and I'm going to take care of that first, okay. Then we're going to check the rest of you for injuries." Quinn swallowed hard. She was reassuring herself just as much as she was trying to reassure Rachel.

A small smile of relief played across her features as she realized that the cut to Rachel's head wasn't as large or serious as she had initially thought. It was right at her hairline which made it difficult to bandage, but once she was certain she'd cleaned the small wound thoroughly she worked a couple of small bandages together to properly cover the cut. "Is it bad?" Rachel asked as Quinn gently finished dressing her wound. Quinn smiled into the worried brown eyes below her. She felt the urge to tease the girl and play the injury up as being worse than it was, but she forced the urge down with a bite of the inside of her cheek and a smirk. "It's not bad." Quinn's fingers threaded softly through Rachel's hair and then cupped her cheek before taking a shaky breath. "Now that we've stopped the bleeding can you tell me where you hurt?" "Everywhere." Quinn chuckled. "Okay, let me restate. Where do you hurt the most?" Rachel's tongue darted out as she wet her lips and Quinn could see the concentration on her face as she tried to determine which parts of her actually hurt worse. "Well, my head hurts, but that's most likely due to the wound you just dressed. Besides the aches I feel I think that my left ankle may be seriously injured." "Okay. Do you want to try to sit up or do you want to lie here while I check out your ankle?" "Could you help me sit up? I don't like the idea of lying on the ground with all the bugs." With a smile Quinn reached forward and grabbed Rachel's shoulders as she helped the girl sit up. She wobbled slightly even though she wasn't standing and Quinn worried that she may have a concussion. She determined to keep a close eye on the brunette until she could rule it out. Once Rachel was stable Quinn moved down to her ankle and gently moved the leg of Rachel's blue jeans up to give herself access to the injured ankle. She knew it was bad as soon as she saw it. Rachel's ankle was already beginning to swell and when she gently ran her hand under Rachel's foot to test its mobility Rachel wasn't able to contain the hiss of pain or stop herself from flinching away from Quinn's touch. Quinn worried her lip between her teeth as she tried to figure out what to do. She gently released Rachel's ankle and slowly stood. Her body ached and she knew that the next day would be even worse. She stretched slowly and twisted around as she checked for any possible injuries she hadn't found before. With her new height advantage she was able to see much more and for the first time since she'd stopped her tumble down the ravine she really took in their surroundings. The glint of the sun off of water caught her attention and she noticed there was a small creek flowing a few yards behind where they were currently

resting. They were in a narrow ravine, perhaps a maximum of thirty yards in width. The opposite side from which they'd entered the ravine was a nearly straight rock wall with bits of hardy plants and bushes making their homes in the cracks between rocks. She looked back up the side they had come down and swallowed hard. It was a miracle either of them were alive. For as far as her eye could see there were large trees growing up out of the steep incline. She guessed it was probably a seventy degree grade and mixed between the tree trunks that they had somehow avoided were large ferns and smaller trees and shrubs with rocks scattered around them. She saw Rachel's pack caught in a low hanging tree branch about halfway down the hill. With a creeping feeling of dread Quinn forced herself to look down at Rachel instead of their current surroundings. She could see the fear mixed with pain in Rachel's eyes. Rachel was a city girl in every sense of the word. She'd never camped in her life. She didn't go hiking or fishing. She definitely had never been hunting. Her dream was the concrete jungle of New York City not the forests of Ohio. Quinn forced her own fears down as she gave Rachel a comforting smile. "I see your pack up there. I'm going to climb up there and get it and at the same time I'm going to scout a way out of this ravine." She saw a surge of fear in the soft brown eyes and reached down to place a reassuring hand on Rachel's shoulder. "I'll be right back and if you turn and rest against this tree trunk you should be able to see me." She waited for the slight nod from Rachel before she started slowly picking her way up the steep hill, choosing her footing carefully because she didn't want to risk another fall. She stopped and turned when she heard her name. Rachel had dragged herself against the trunk of the tree as she had suggested and was now watching her intensely. "Be careful." Quinn nodded and then turned her focus back to her current task. It had only taken a few seconds for them to end up in this situation, but it took Quinn nearly fifteen minutes just to reach Rachel's pack. She leaned against a tree trunk to catch her breath and closed her eyes as she tried to calm her racing heart. There was no way Rachel would be able to climb out of the ravine. Quinn wasn't even sure if she'd be able to climb out. She wasn't even halfway up the slope and she was exhausted, but she knew she had to try. If Rachel couldn't climb out on her own then at least Quinn could go for help and maybe Puck or Finn could carry her out. She considered grabbing the pack and going back down to let Rachel know what she was going to try to do, but the thought of having to make the climb she'd just made again convinced her the best idea right now was to press on. She decided to leave Rachel's pack where it currently was and with a grunt pushed herself off the tree and continued her strenuous climb. Twenty minutes later with sweat dripping down her face and her chest heaving with exertion she reached the point that she and

Rachel had fallen from. Quinn closed her eyes and leaned her head against a cool rock as she rested her exhausted body. Where the ridge began was a rock face approximately five feet up. Once again Quinn thanked God that they'd actually survived the fall. Quinn reached up to try to find a finger hold in order to pull herself up but all she found was dirt and rocks that came loose as soon as she took hold. She worked her way along the edge grasping for anything sturdy enough to pull herself up until she finally was able to grab onto the base of some sort of bush. She gave it a few hard tugs to test and when it held she placed her foot up on a rock as if it were a ladder and used the branch like a rope to begin pulling herself up over the ridge of the ravine. Quinn almost had her hips pulled over the edge when she felt the root suddenly give way. "Oh shit," she whispered as she felt her body fall backward with the momentum of the loosening root and her foot slip from its place. She was more aware this time as she plummeted back down the mountain. She could see the branches of trees whizzing by her and caught glimpses of blue sky with each occasional flip of her body. She was aware of Rachel frantically screaming her name and she tried to keep her limbs tucked in toward her body and to direct her fall, but the momentum was too much and she knew it was futile. Please just let me survive this, she thought as she felt a sharp pain in her back as she slammed against a small boulder. It caused her to slow her descent slightly and spun her around. In the next instant she felt a tremendous pain shoot across her shoulder and she cried out and then saw nothing.

CHAPTER TWO Never in my life have I been as terrified as when I saw Quinn falling back down the mountain. I was reminded of a rag doll as her body hit the earth and her arms and legs flailed with each jarring turn. I began screaming her name even though I knew that there was nothing either of us could do to stop her rapid descent. I watched helplessly as her arm got caught against a branch and her cry of pain sent chills through my heart. Then her body went limp and she finally skidded to a stop about ten feet from me. I could hear my heart thundering in my ears as I slowly scooted across the distance to her. My ankle throbbed worse than when Finn broke my nose last year but I pushed through it to get to her. "Quinn!" I called her name in an effort to get her to respond to me in some way, but she remained unmoving and it terrified me. Finally I reached her side and I breathed a sigh of relief when I could see her chest still rising and falling with the breaths she was taking. "Quinn," I whispered as I pulled myself beside her prone form. She was unconscious but I couldn't see a visible head wound. Her left shoulder that had briefly been caught by the tree branch didn't look right to me, but I was afraid to touch her or do anything. While I had brought the largest first aid kit that had been available at the outdoors store in Lima

before we left, I am not well versed in the treatment of serious injuries and the way Quinn's upper arm jutted out strangely from her shoulder made her injury look very serious. I carefully brushed her hair back from her forehead and gently brushed dirt and debris from her face. It shocked me to realize that other than the occasional hand holding we'd done in the heat of the moment during a performance this was possibly the most I'd ever touched Quinn Fabray. Her skin was so soft and warm and I took comfort in that. People who were sick or dying had cold, clammy skin, right? That's always the way it was in the movies. "Quinn please wake up." The low moan I heard released by her in that moment sent my heart soaring. My heart plummeted in the next instant as the moan turned to a cry of pain as she tried to move. "Quinn, don't move. Your shoulder is seriously injured. I believe you may have broken or dislocated it against a branch. Is there anything else that hurts right now? What should I do to help you?" Quinn didn't respond verbally. She shook her head and wet her lips and then her eyes slowly opened. I could see the tears welling up in them and soon they were coursing down her cheeks. She moved her head so she could view her shoulder and then a sick look washed over her and I thought she was going to vomit. "It's dislocated," she whispered. I could feel the tears falling down my own cheeks now at the sight of her in so much pain. "What should I do Quinn? I don't know what to do." I could feel myself beginning to panic and I tried to force it down, but I am not bred for the wilderness. While I believe it is a noble profession I have absolutely no desire to join the medical profession either, unless of course it's playing the role of a medical professional. Perhaps I could use this experience later on in my acting career. I file that thought away because now I feel guilty for not focusing on Quinn. I think she heard the panic in my voice because now she's using that soft calm voice she'd used earlier when she was dressing my wound and assessing my ankle. "Rachel, it's going to be okay. It's good that it's not broken and we can reduce my arm ourselves." "Reduce?" I question her because I've never heard this term before and I wonder how Quinn knows so much. "It's just a term used for fixing a dislocated shoulder, which is what I have. We're going to need a sling and maybe some muscle relaxers if you can find any in the first aid kit." I pull myself back to the tree where Quinn had bandaged me and where her pack and first aid kit are still located. This whole dragging myself through the dirt is becoming quite tiresome and uncomfortable. I decide to use the tree to see if I'm able to stand. After a great deal of effort I'm finally holding myself steady on one leg with a hand against the

tree to keep myself upright. I decide to test out my injured ankle because I can handle the amount of throbbing pain I'm feeling right now, but as soon as I put any weight on it I feel a searing pain shoot through my ankle and I can't hold back the whimper that escapes my lips. "Rachel what happened? Are you okay?" Quinn can't see me clearly from where she's lying on the ground and I don't want her to try to move so I answer her quickly even though I can hear my own voice tremble. "I'm okay. I just thought I'd test out my ankle but it wasn't a good idea." I wait a moment for the pain to subside but the throbbing ache is now back in full force. I slip the first aid kit back into Quinn's pack and sling it over my shoulder but immediately realize that it throws me off balance. Then I remember that Quinn had used a retractable walking stick earlier in the day when we were hiking up the mountain. "Quinn, where's your walking stick?" "Um, it's in the side pocket. After you extend it be sure to press the button on the bottom of the handle to lock it in place." Her voice sounds distant and I'm worried about her possibly going into shock. Right now we're dealing with her shoulder but I don't know what other kind of injuries she may have sustained. She lost consciousness after all and I worry about a concussion. I run my hands quickly across the sides of the bag and immediately feel the bulge of the stick. That's what she said. I chastise myself for the inappropriate thought even though it makes me smile a little and I think in this instance I need a little moment of levity. I make certain to lock it as Quinn said and press it into the earth hard to be certain it won't give out on me before I actually let go of the tree. Once I'm certain it's safe I settle her pack across my shoulders and hop back toward her feeling much better with my mobility now that I have a makeshift crutch. "Okay we need a sling and some muscle relaxers." I find that speaking aloud sometimes helps me to remain calm in upsetting situations. I also hope that I can somehow bring a little comfort to Quinn to know that I'm following her instructions to help her. I search through the kit frantically. "There's no sling in here Quinn and the only muscle relaxers I can find is a packet of Midol." Quinn nods and I look at her face which now looks ashen and she's sweating profusely. It worries me and I wish desperately we had a sling. Then I remember that we do. "Quinn, before we left Lima I purchased the most comprehensive first aid kit available. It has a sling. But it's in my pack." At that I look back up the mountain. I can see my pack slung across a branch taunting me. I saw how difficult it was for Quinn to climb to that point. There's no way either of us can make it back up there injured the way we are. "It's okay Rachel. I'll take the Midol. Look through my pack. There should be an oversized bandana in there. We can improvise that as a sling." I am amazed at Quinn. She's injured and in an incredible amount of pain right now and still she's staying so calm and collected. If it weren't for her I would be completely freaking out right now. I pull her water bottle from the side of her pack and rip open the package of

Midol. I lean in closely and carefully place the blue pills against her lips. She curls them inward and the pills disappear. I then carefully lift her head and help her sip from the bottle. She swallows and then breathes out slowly and I gently lay her head back down against the hard earth. I wish I had something soft to put underneath her but my hoodie is in my pack. Her voice draws my attention back to her. "Okay Rachel, here's what we're going to do. You're going to help me sit up and then you're going to rotate my arm back toward my side. You're going to have to go slowly and smoothly. Don't jerk it or force it. When it's at about a thirty-five degree angle it should pop back into the shoulder." I gape at her. I can't help it. I mean seriously. Does she honestly expect me to be able to do this? I feel an instant wave of guilt wash over me as I realize how selflessly she cared for my injuries and how she hurt herself in an attempt to try to get help for me. She's been so brave through this whole ordeal and I want to be brave too. I think about Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown and suddenly I feel determination sweep through me. I'm a strong, independent 21st Century woman. I can do this. "Okay." I can still hear the uncertainty in my own voice but I push that aside as well as I move myself behind Quinn, being careful not to move my ankle. I place my hands underneath her back and I can see her abdominals contract as she helps me set her up. The low groan she releases as she moves makes me feel sick to my stomach and I wonder how it must make her feel. Now I want to get this over as quickly as possible so I move to Quinn's side and I place my hands gently against her arm that she has crossed across her belly. Her upper arm is much lower than her shoulder and I can see the strange way her bones are protruding. I try not to think about the fact that I'm about to put Quinn's shoulder back into its joint socket. "Just slow and smooth," Quinn whispers to me and I nod to let her know I heard. I'm afraid my voice will betray me and as much as I want to be as comforting to her as she was to me I'm afraid that I'll say the wrong thing or annoy her in some way. I take hold of her elbow and slowly begin moving it slightly outward and back toward her shoulder. I see Quinn's whole body tense and a gust of air escapes her mouth as sweat beads pop up all over her skin. I hold my movements to give her time and when she nods I continue pushing further back but there's too much resistance and then Quinn is telling me to stop. "It's too painful," she explains with tears in her eyes. "We're going to have to do this a different way." She works her teeth over her lower lip as I slowly release her arm back to its previous position. "Okay. Help me lay back down." I again move and she rests her body against my hands as I help her recline back to the hard earth. "Okay. Now, um, grab my hoodie out of my pack and roll it up really tight. As tight a roll as you can make it." I reach into the pack and follow her instructions as she continues to tell me what we're going to do now. "When you're done you're going to place the rolled up hoodie in my armpit. Then you're

going to put your foot against it as a brace and you're going to have to pull my arm out straight. Once it's far enough out it should slip back into the socket." Now I can't hold back my tears. "Quinn, I don't know if I can do this. I don't want to hurt you. What if I hurt you even more? Please, Quinn. Isn't there another way? Wasn't there a Bourne or Bond movie where they slammed themselves against a wall to put their shoulder back in? Couldn't we try that?" She smiles. She actually smiles and it makes me feel even worse. "You want me to throw myself against a tree?" "No. I justQuinn I don't think I can do this." I sniffle and I hate myself for not being strong for her. She reaches her right hand out to me and grasps my fingers tightly in her own. Her hand is clammy but I hold on tightly because it's suddenly clear to me that right now we only have each other. "You can do this Rachel. You're Rachel Freaking Berry and you can do anything that you put your mind to. You're going to get out of Lima, Ohio and you're going to take New York City by storm. You're going to walk the boards of Broadway and join the greats as you take home every award possible. And right now, Rachel. Right this instant you're going brace yourself against my armpit and you're going to pull back on my arm hard enough to get my humerus back in its joint." I wipe the tears off my face but they keep falling even as I roll up Quinn's hoodie as tightly as I can. I see drops of my tears on Quinn's shirt as I lean over her to place the improvised padding against her armpit. I'm still crying as I awkwardly situate myself because I have to use my right foot and her left arm is injured. I feel the warm salty water rolling down my neck as I gently take her hand in mine and extend her arm toward me. I grasp her forearm with both hands and pull back; slowly increasing the amount of pressure I'm applying because I don't want to jerk at all. I want it to be as smooth as possible. Quinn is a blur through my tears now but I can see her chest rise and the breaths she's slowly releasing through her nose and mouth remind me of women on television giving birth and then I realize that it's exactly like that. Quinn is using her breathing techniques to try to relax her muscles and work through the pain. "A little more." Her voice is thick and her words are more grunted than actually spoken. I don't have any more strength in my arms so I tighten my grip and slowly lean my body back so that I'm almost reclining. And then I feel it. There's a popping sound and Quinn exhales and I slowly release her arm. I wipe the tears from my face so that I can see her more clearly. Her face is still a grayish color but I can see in her eyes that while she's still in pain it has subsided. She doesn't move her shoulder as she rotates her elbow so that her arm is across her abdomen. "Now the sling," she whispers and I immediately jump into action.

(***********************) I'm amazed at how quickly Quinn seems to recover. Within less than thirty minutes she rises slowly from the ground and uses her good right arm to brush the dust and debris from her jeans. When I grab the walking stick to try to get up and follow her she motions me to stay still. "I'm just going to look around really quick to see what our next plan of action should be. You should rest Rachel. I want you to stay off that ankle as much as possible." I watch her walk slowly away and I'm slightly shocked by the loss I feel at her absence. I will admit, if only to myself, that I've always wanted to be friends with Quinn. Honestly, who wouldn't? She's that girl, you know. The one who seems to be effortlessly beautiful, who knows what to do and say in every situation. She's the girl you imagine being best friends with and telling all your secrets to, knowing that she'll never spill a word of them to anyone. I'm kidding myself if I believe those are the only things I've imagined doing with Quinn, though. I had a small crush on her freshman year. I think a part of me has held onto that over the years which is what has made it possible for me to forgive her so many times for her cruel words and treatment of me. But I can't think about those things right now because it doesn't seem appropriate. We're obviously in a life or death situation and contemplating my ever evolving feelings for the blonde that I'm currently stuck in this Dual Survival situation with doesn't seem like the best way to use my time. Quinn's approach stops any further mental ruminating on my part anyway. "On the other side of the creek there's a rock wall and I found a good spot that's sort of concave. If we cross over there for tonight we can build a fire and the warmth it gives the rocks should help keep us both warm and safe through the night." What she's saying makes sense, but I feel fear grip my heart at the idea of being out in these woods overnight without any kind of shelter to keep us safe. "Why do we need to do that? We're going to be found soon. They have to have realized that we're missing by now and they'll follow the trail and find us." Even as I say the words I can hear how ridiculous I sound. I wait for the inevitable tirade of words from Quinn, telling me how stupid I sound and that I should just keep my mouth shut. It never comes. Instead of derision in her hazel eyes I see concern and, dare I say it, affection. "Rachel, we need to face the facts of our situation. Even if Mr. Schuester realized we were missing within a reasonable amount of time, unless you happened to say to someone that you were going to find me then no one knows exactly where we disappeared along the trail. By the time Schuester calls the authorities and they take statements it's going to be too dark for them to start looking for us, which means they won't actually send out a search party until morning."

I think I must have looked as terrified as I felt because she knelt down on the ground and took my hand in hers. The small smile on her face made me feel warm inside and I felt a surge of confidence in this girl that has been my tormentor/rival/object of desires. "Everything's going to be okay, Rachel. We're going to get through this by thinking ahead and taking care of one thing at a time. Right now our biggest concern is staying warm tonight because it may be early summer, but as soon as it gets dark the temperature is going to drop. I know that we have a shaky past, but I'm hoping that we can work through that because if we're going to survive this we're going to have to rely on each other. Can I rely on you Rachel?" It feels like the most important question anyone has ever asked me. This is serious. It isn't about getting a solo or being the best or my obsessive desire to be popular. Our lives are at stake. And this isn't a movie. "You can rely on me Quinn." My voice is thick with emotion and I fight back the tears that threaten at the corners of my eyes. Quinn has only cried during her extreme moments of pain and I want to show her that I can be just as strong. I feel the need to add a caveat to my statement as I grab the walking stick and struggle to balance on my right leg. "However, I'm sure that you're aware by now that I was never in Girl Scouts and am at a complete loss when it comes to the outdoors. I will do my best. That is what I can promise." "That's all I ask." Once we cross the small creek Quinn shows me the area she's picked as our camp site and instructs me to clear the area of debris while she gathers firewood for the evening. I don't question why she seems to be in such a rush to get everything done, but when it's barely past five o'clock and I can see dusk already falling across us I realize the reason. Even though the sun hasn't even set yet the height of the surrounding canopy of trees and the fact that we're in a deep, well hidden ravine means that darkness will fall around us faster than at home where we're surrounded by open rolling hills. It takes me a while to get the area cleared because I'm hopping around on one foot and using Quinn's walking stick as a cane. Once I clear the area as much as I can I start going down to the creek and picking up the largest rocks I'm able to carry with one hand in order to build a small fire pit. The entire time that I'm working Quinn keeps coming back with dry branches she's gathered underneath her arm. By the time I've finished she has a large pile that I'm certain will be more than we need for the night, but I suppose it's better to have too much than to run out. Quinn continues to make wood gathering trips until it's so dark that all I see is the white of her t-shirt walking towards me through the woods. She's been so focused on gathering wood that I half expect her to go back out for one more trip. Instead she drops the bundle on top of the already large stack and I watch her eyes as they dart around in the darkness as if she's searching for something.

It worries me that she seems more concerned than she has this entire time. "What's wrong?" I ask and my voice seems to startle her. She doesn't answer me right away, but when she does I get the feeling that she's not being completely honest. "Nothing's wrong, you know, besides the obvious." She smiles to try to reassure me and her teeth are bright in the dark. I watch her as she rifles through her pack and then pulls out a small, dark, flat thing. She reaches into her back pocket and pulls out a pocket knife. Once again I'm surprised. I think I should be used to that by now. I'm transfixed as I watch her pick out small branches and some dried clumps of weeds and place them in the fire pit I made. She scrapes a few silver shavings from the dark flat thing she pulled from her pack with her knife and then flips the knife over to use the blunt edge and strikes the dark rectangle a couple of times. Suddenly there's a blue glow and instantly the dry weeds are on fire and there are comforting orange flames licking up and catching the small branches on fire. Within minutes Quinn has built the small campfire into a comforting size that flickers and sparks and sends warmth all around us. I don't know what to do without Quinn's instructions and so I just stand there as she quietly moves around the fire, gently pushing larger branches in and rearranging her pile of wood so that it's within easy reach of where she plans for us to spend the night. It appears she has things to her liking because she lifts the pack and walks a couple feet from the fire to the rock wall and sets the pack down. I'm so wrapped up in studying her movements that it takes me a moment to realize that she's stopped and is now staring at me from across the flames of the fire. Her short blonde hair makes her look older, but in a good way; more mature. The light from the fire dances across her pale features and lights her eyes in a way that makes the gold and green flit around as if they have a life of their own. It actually takes my breath away in that moment. How beautiful she is. "Rachel, come over here and sit down. You need to rest." Her concern warms my heart and I give her a shy smile because I'm embarrassed by my own thoughts. I hope she can't see my obvious admiration for her. When I reach her I realize exactly how smart she is. Where I had been standing I could feel the heat from the fire, but I could also already feel the cold of the night creeping across my back. In this place where the rock face that rises above us slightly curves, creating a natural sloping lean-to of sorts, the heat of the fire is trapped and the rocks are already beginning to soak in the warmth. She takes my right hand with hers and helps me work my way to the ground without putting pressure on my ankle and then she sits down beside me and crosses her legs Indian style as she pulls the pack into her lap. "Tomorrow I'm going to go up and get your pack," she tells me. When I open my mouth to protest she just continues talking as if I don't have a say in this matter at all. "We need the sling because this bandana isn't as stable as having an actual sling." I watch as she once

again opens up the first aid kit that we've used so much in the last few hours and pulls out an ACE bandage. She scoots herself across the hard earth so that she's next to my injured leg and gently pulls my pant leg up so she can view my ankle. I hear her suck in a breath and I peer down at the throbbing appendage. It's been aching miserably ever since I tried to put weight on it but I've been so busy that the pain had ebbed to the background of my consciousness. The sight before me makes me bite my lip as the amount of pain I actually feel registers with full force. My ankle is huge. It's swollen to almost twice the size of my right. "I think we need to take your shoe off. I'm worried about it cutting off circulation to your foot if it stays this swollen, but once we take it off we may not be able to put it back on." The fear of losing my foot because of lack of blood circulation outweighs any other concerns I have about going without a shoe on a foot I can't even walk on. "Take it off," I whisper because I know it will be painful. Quinn fishes two aspirin out of the kit and makes me take them before she carefully begins to untie my shoe. I try to be stoic the way that Quinn was with her shoulder, but I'm not Quinn and that's not how I deal with these kinds of things. So I talk. I can't help myself. "They're brand new. I got them specifically for this trip. I've never gone hiking before so I talked to my Daddy and he gave me his credit card so that I could be properly outfitted. I went to that outdoors store over on Walker Road with Finn and Kurt because Finn's been camping before but Kurt needed some new supplies also. Kurt helped me pick out the shoes and my pack. They match. He insisted that I not bedazzle anything unless I wanted to reenact Tippi Hedron's role in The Birds." I haven't felt any tugging or new pain so I look down again to find that she has slowly removed the entire shoelace from the eyelets so that the tongue of the shoe is completely free. With gentleness I've rarely seen she carefully grips the heel of the shoe and slips it off, the loose tongue allowing my foot to come free with minimal force. "You okay?" she asks. I nod because my voice has suddenly left me at the amount of care she's showing me. "I have to take your sock off too, Rachel. This might hurt." I brace myself as she carefully runs her fingers along my ankle to slip them under the fabric of my sock. Her fingers are cold against my skin, but it feels good. When she slips the cuff over my heel I feel pain shoot through my foot and I can't stop the gasp that escapes or the tears that well up in my eyes. She doesn't stop because it needs to be done and before I can register anything else my foot is completely bare. "You need some kind of ice pack to bring the swelling down," she murmurs and her face once again becomes thoughtful as she cradles my throbbing ankle in her cool delicate hands. "I have an idea," she states as she gently rests my foot back to the ground. She

starts rummaging through her pack again; opening and closing pockets I didn't realize were even there until she finally pulls out another bandana. "How many of those do you have?" I ask. She laughs. "I forgot this was in here from the last time I used my backpack and I packed a new one. It's just lucky for us that I did." She rises with the bandana and starts to walk off into the darkness. "Where are you going?" I ask the panic clear in my voice. "I'll be right back," she answers without pausing. She's only gone for a few moments, but it feels like an eternity before I see her shape moving toward me in the darkness. Once again she's at my feet only now the bandana she carried with her is soaking wet. She wraps it gently around my ankle and the coolness of it feels so good against my hot skin that I actually sigh. "I'll re-wet this every fifteen minutes or so to try to bring the swelling down before I wrap your ankle. I'm hoping it's just a sprain and not broken, but just in case try not to use this foot at all." I watch as Quinn puts the first aid kit back in her pack, leaving the ACE bandage out for when she plans to wrap my ankle. She's digging through her pack when she asks me, "Do you have food in your pack?" I furrow my eyebrows as I try to remember. "I'm fairly certain there are some granola bars and a small bag of trail mix." "Good. I have some protein bars and trail mix also. Do you have a water bottle?" I nod my head affirmatively. "Okay. Okay, that's good." She seems to be working things through in her head even as she pulls one of the protein bars from her pack. She peels the wrapping off and breaks it in half, but it doesn't break evenly and when she starts to hand me the larger piece I protest. "Rachel, please." Her voice is soft and pleading. I think this is much worse than when she's angry or annoyed with me. It has a much deeper affect. "We need to keep up our strength and you're not accustomed to this kind of exertion. Please don't fight me on this." I feel guilty for arguing with her. I feel guilty for getting more food than her because even I can realize the need for rationing what we have when we have no idea how long we'll be

stuck out here. I feel guilty for eating it anyway because I'm starving and I feel weak. I don't answer her, I just take the piece she's offered me and lean against the rocks. But I turn away from her as tears fill my eyes with the first bite.

CHAPTER THREE A mantra has been working its way through Quinn's mind for the last few hours. Stay calm for Rachel. Stay calm for Rachel. It is what got her through the excruciating pain of having her shoulder dislocated and put back in place. It is what kept her searching for fuel for a fire even when her legs felt as if they were going to give out and her shoulder throbbed with pain. It is what made her swallow her fear and walk out into the dark three times to cool the bandana in the waters of the creek before carefully wrapping Rachel's swollen ankle in the ACE bandage and settling her foot carefully atop the pack, using it much like she would have a pillow if they had one. They finished their meager meal a while ago and neither of them had really said a word since. Quinn knows that Rachel's upset with her for making her take the larger portion, but really it wasn't that much bigger. It's not like that one little bite would make a difference between Quinn starving or not. But giving it to Rachel made her feel better. It made her feel like she was taking care of the small brunette and she needed that. She needed to focus on taking care of Rachel, on getting Rachel safely out of the situation they found themselves in, because if she didn't focus on that then she would be forced to focus on the fact that they were both injured. And that they were off the hiking trail with no way to get back to it, stuck in a ravine that they'd been standing right next to and had been unable to see. She would have to think about the fact that they didn't have enough food to last more than a couple days, even if they did ration it and that if they tried to hike out by following the creek and the ravine she had absolutely no idea where it led or when they'd be able to find help. She leaned forward and put another branch on the fire enjoying the pop of sparks as the dry wood caught fire. As she leaned back she felt the warmth of Rachel's body close by her side and felt the comfort of having her close by. Suddenly a searing pain shot through her shoulder and she cried out. Rachel jolted upright beside her. "Oh my God, Quinn I'm so sorry!" Rachel cried out. Quinn groaned and leaned forward as she tried to swallow the bile that rose in her throat. Her shoulder felt like it was on fire and tears stung her eyes as she tried to breathe through the pain.

"Quinn, I'm so sorry," Rachel continued with tears in her own eyes. "I must have fallen asleep. I'm so sorry." "It's okay Rachel," Quinn finally groaned out. It took her a good ten minutes to recover from Rachel falling against her shoulder as she fell asleep. She looked to her left to see Rachel watching her with wet eyes and trembling lips. "Maybe I should move to your other side. I don't want to accidentally fall against you again." Rachel's voice was broken up by the occasional sniffle. "I have a better idea," Quinn said quietly with a soft smile. "You could just lie down. Here, I'll help you." Quinn reached across her body with her right arm to direct Rachel into laying her head in her lap, but as she grasped the brunette's arm she gasped. "Rachel, you're freezing!" she exclaimed. "I'm fine Quinn. The fire's keeping me warm." But even as she protested she couldn't help rubbing her hands briskly across her own arms in an effort to warm them up and basically making the truth obvious to Quinn. Even though her arm was still radiating pain Quinn pushed herself up from her reclining position against the rocks and fed a few more branches to the fire. She then gently removed Rachel's leg from off her pack, unzipped it and pulled her pullover hoodie out. "Put this on," she ordered as she tossed the article of clothing into Rachel's lap. "Quinn, this is yours. You should be the one wearing it. I'm sure that you're cold as well and if you're not now you certainly will be later tonight when the fire burns down. I'm not taking your only source of warmth." Rachel crossed her arms against her chest and did the best sitting down foot stomp that she could manage in her current position; which was basically just shrugging her shoulders to denote the finality of her statement. "First of all, I'm not cold and I probably won't get very cold tonight because I plan on continuing to feed the fire through the night. I figure on the off chance that they do send searchers out tonight it's best to be visible and they'll definitely be able to spot a fire outside of a normal camping area. Secondly, I can't even wear that sweater because it's a pullover and I can't get it on over my arm so one of us needs to make use of it and based upon injuries that person is going to be you." "Oh." Rachel's voice was quiet and she looked down at the hoodie lying in her lap with a look of chagrin. "Well, I guess since you put it that way it makes sense that I would wear it instead of you." Quinn watched as Rachel gently ran her fingers over the soft fabric and then slipped her arms through the bottom to pull the hoodie on. When her head popped out of the neck of

the sweater she quickly pulled the hood away and swept her dark brown hair up and out of the inside of the sweater. "You'd probably be warmer if you left the hood on," Quinn advised quietly. Rachel shook her head as she looked up at Quinn who was still standing over her, her face masked in the darkness so that Rachel couldn't see her eyes. Quinn bit her lip as she let her eyes rake over Rachel's form. She had to admit that she really liked the idea of Rachel wearing her things and McKinley Titans red was definitely a good color on the girl. She was pulled from her short reverie when Rachel spoke up. "I don't like having things around my face. It makes me feel like I'm suffocating." Quinn nodded. "I can understand that. I'm claustrophobic. I pretty much avoid elevators as much as possible, but sometimes if I'm in a crowd I can start to panic even if it's a large room. Pretty much anything that makes me feel like I don't have a way out can cause me to panic." "Well that explains the last three years." Rachel looks surprised at her own comment and Quinn can't help but laugh as her brown eyes go wide and she claps her hand over her mouth. "It really does," Quinn chuckles as she kneels down in front of Rachel. "Now, let's find you a better way to sleep." "I'm not sleeping if you're not sleeping Quinn. You said you were planning on keeping the fire going all night which means that you're not planning on sleeping. I feel guilty enough that you gave me the larger portion of our dinner, I'm not going to let you get no rest while I sleep." "Hey," Quinn says to try to quiet the girl. She places her hand on her knee and Rachel instantly closes her mouth to whatever she was going to say next. "I appreciate that, but I'm going to sleep. I'll be able to feel when the fire's going down when I start to get colder. It'll wake me up and I'll just build the fire back up and go back to sleep. And please don't feel badly about the one extra nibble of protein bar that you ate. I wanted you to have it, but I don't want you to feel guilty about it. Okay?" Rachel stares at Quinn for a moment and Quinn can see that she's thinking things over because her eyes are locked on her own and she's gently chewing the inside of her lip. "Okay," she agrees quietly. Quinn smiles at her and then rises from her kneeling position and picks the pack up. "Now scoot yourself over so that you're lying along the length of the rocks instead of toward the fire." She watches as Rachel carefully twists her lower half around and scoots so that she's

where Quinn told her to be. "Can you still feel the fire?" She waits for Rachel's affirmation and then places the pack once again underneath the injured ankle. She then gently asks for Rachel to sit up. When Rachel rises up on her elbows Quinn lowers herself against the rocks. She makes sure the wood pile and fire are still within her reach before she directs Rachel to lie back down. "Is that better?" she asks the brunette quietly as brown eyes stare up at her from her lap. "It is, but it can't be very comfortable for you." "I'm comfortable Rachel," Quinn assures her. She swallows hard as she tries to control her breathing. Rachel Berry's head is in my lap. Rachel's head is in my lap. Oh my God Rachel's head is in my lap! Quinn pushes the dirty thoughts that rush through her mind away. Looking at the fire helps a little so she moves her gaze to the hypnotizing flicker of the orange flames. "You'll help keep me warm and this way you're far away from my shoulder." "I'm sorry about that," she says again but Quinn quickly silences her with a look. "Stop. It was an accident. You've apologized abundantly already." "Okay," Rachel says as she tries to stifle a yawn. She turns her head so that she too can look into the comforting flames a couple feet away from them. There's silence between them for a while. The only sounds are the crackling of the fire and the occasional chirping of insects. Quinn doesn't even realize she's doing it until she feels Rachel's head turn in her lap to once again look up and she realizes that she has her hand threaded through the girl's hair. She looks down in surprise at the betrayal of her own hand, but Rachel has a soft smile on her face so Quinn doesn't remove her hand. Instead she continues to slowly run her fingers through Rachel's hair, lightly scraping her nails against her scalp occasionally. She watches as Rachel's eyes begin to slowly droop closed. For a moment she thinks the girl is asleep, but she's proven wrong when Rachel's voice, heavy with approaching sleep, comes up to her in the night. "I'm sorry I cried so much today. Thank you for being so patient with me." Quinn looks down to her lap with surprise. She had never thought the girl would feel badly about the way she'd handled their current predicament. It hadn't even occurred to her to let Rachel know what she thought. Quinn's hand stilled in Rachel's hair and she watched as the brunette's eyes fluttered open. Slowly she moved her hand down so that she was now cupping Rachel's soft cheek in the palm of her hand and she waited for the girl's soft brown eyes to focus on her before she began to speak.

"Rachel I'm so proud of you for everything you did today. You were so brave." "I was a mess," Rachel protested. "I'm still a mess. I feel like such a burden." "Don't." The word came out harsh and urgent. "You're not a burden. We're going to have to work together to get out of this Rachel. You'll be my hands and I'll be your legs and together we'll survive. If you're a burden to me then that makes me a burden to you." "No you're not." "Okay. Then neither of us is. It doesn't matter that you cried Rachel. In case you didn't notice I've done my fair share of that today too. What matters is that you did it anyway. That's what bravery is. Being afraid and still doing what needs to be done. You were amazing today Rachel Berry, just like every other day of your life." Tears formed in Rachel's eyes as they stared at each other. Quinn wasn't sure what Rachel was thinking, but she looked confused by something. In truth, Quinn was confused herself. She didn't know what had happened to her, but it felt as if some sort of switch was flipped when she realized the kind of danger they were in. She didn't care if Rachel figured out how she felt about her. She couldn't find the energy within herself to try to keep the girl at arm's length with rudeness and insults. As positive as she was trying to stay, the truth was that if these were their last few days of existence on this earth she didn't want to spend them hiding how she felt about Rachel. It was easier to just be honest. "I don't understand why you're being so nice to me," Rachel said quietly as she continued to look up at Quinn, her eyes flickering between the hazel eyes above her as if she were trying to decipher some hidden code. "Because it takes too much effort to be mean to you. And also you deserve it. For people to be nice to you, I mean. You've always deserved it," Quinn whispered huskily as she began threading her fingers once again through the soft brown locks. "I regret a lot of things, Rachel, but at the top of that list is the way I've treated you the last few years. If I could take it all back I would, but all I can really do is tell you how sorry I am and promise that I'll never treat you that way again." A smile spread slowly across Rachel's face and a couple tears tracked down her temple where it had escaped the corner of her eye before she nodded her head slightly and said, "Apology accepted." Quinn smiled and watched contentedly as the tiny brunette resting in her lap finally drifted off to sleep. (****************) Quinn awoke with a jolt, her movement causing sharp pain to shoot through her shoulder. It took her a moment to realize where she was, but quickly the events of the previous day

spilled into her consciousness. Dawn was making itself known in their portion of the woods and she enjoyed the soft light that spilled down the ravine, revealing dull shapes with promise for more detail. She could hear the raucous sounds of birds calling to each other through the trees, announcing where breakfast could be found. That must be what woke me. She shivered with cold and looked to the fire. She had awakened a few times during the night to build the fire back up. As she had wandered through the immediate area the evening before, picking up dead, dried, and fallen branches for their fire she had felt uneasy. She'd been unable to see anything out of the ordinary, but she hadn't been able to shake the feeling of being watched. She had felt an almost constant creeping, tingling sensation across her neck the whole time she'd been picking up wood and for that reason alone she was determined to keep the fire going. Now she saw that it had died down to embers and the only warmth she felt was from the head still resting in her lap. A soft smile played across her lips as she gently threaded her fingers through Rachel's soft brown hair. She wasn't exactly sure when it had happened. It seemed so clichd to say that she'd always had feelings for the brunette and had just acted out in an effort to make her less attractive. It was clich, but it was also probably true. There were so many factors working against her she was surprised she'd ever accepted the reality of her feelings at all. Her upbringing and her need to maintain her social status and Rachel's complete lack thereof should have kept her safe. But lately she'd been unable to hold back her smile when Rachel performed and she was finding it more and more difficult to conceal her excitement when she had any interactions with the girl. Rachel's brow furrowed in her sleep and she tried to snuggle in closer to Quinn. Quinn looked back toward the low glow of what was left of the fire and realized that Rachel was probably cold. Reaching her hand gently underneath Rachel's head she tried to move out from underneath the girl. Rachel's eyes fluttering open stopped her. She watched as brown eyes slowly focused on her. "Hey," she said softly as she brushed a stray strand of hair from Rachel's forehead. Rachel smiled up at her and stretched her arms. "Hey," she replied. "The fire's burned out. I was going to get it going again to help us warm up a little if you're ready to sit up." Rachel nodded and began to rise, but as soon as she began moving she let out a loud groan. "Oh my God, I'm so sore!" Quinn rubbed Rachel's back as she helped the short girl sit up. Rachel grimaced with each movement. "I've never been so sore in my life," she groaned again as she moved herself so she could lean against the rocks. "We took quite the beating yesterday. I figured we'd be sore this morning." Quinn groaned as she forced herself to rise through the ache she felt with each new movement.

When she finally made it to her feet she bent at her waist and did some stretches to work the sore muscles along her hips and thighs. She pushed herself to run in place for a moment to get the blood circulating back through her legs. When she felt her body warm up a little bit she grabbed some smaller sized branches and stoked the fire back to life. "I'm going to go get your pack. Do you want to pick out which granola bar we're going to have for breakfast while I'm gone?" Rachel's face looked worried. "Quinn, are you sure it's absolutely necessary? The climb took a lot out of you yesterday and you weren't injured then. What if you fall again and get hurt even worse?" Quinn bit her lip as she contemplated Rachel's concerns. The truth was she was worried about the same thing, but they also needed that pack. She couldn't bring herself to leave supplies that could help them just because she was afraid. She kicked herself mentally for not freeing the pack when she'd been there the last time. With a confidence she didn't feel she smiled at Rachel before she spoke. "It'll be okay Rachel. I'll be really careful and I'll take my time. But we need what's in that pack. We can't just leave it there. Don't worry. I'll be right back." Quinn walked quickly away before Rachel could protest any more. She crossed back over the small creek and carefully tracked the course she wanted to take up the hill. It took longer than it had the previous day because she had to be careful of her arm and her legs were sore and tired. When she finally reached Rachel's gray and pink backpack she freed it from the branches that had held it captive and rather than trying to negotiate her way back down with the pack in her one good arm she simply tossed it to the ground and watched it roll and bounce its way to the bottom of the ravine. Not wanting to lose her footing she took her time climbing back down the ravine as well and when she finally stood next to the pack she breathed a sigh of relief. When she got back to Rachel she found her adding a couple branches to the fire. She dropped Rachel's pack beside her own. "I'm back, safe and sound. See? No new injuries." She grinned as Rachel inspected her. Rachel frowned slightly and then reached her hand up and gently ran her finger along Quinn's cheek. "That wasn't there before," she said softly as she traced the small scratch. Quinn swallowed hard as Rachel's soft warm fingers traced her cheekbone. She forced a deep breath as she tried to calm her suddenly racing heart. In an effort to keep anything from getting too serious she jokingly whispered, "You should see the other guy." Rachel smiled and shook her head as she chuckled softly. "Quinn. What am I going to do with you?"

Quinn chose to simply smile back and not reply because the only thing that was going through her mind was, anything you want. "So what did you pick for breakfast? Will it be a granola bar or protein bar?" Rachel had decided on a peanut butter flavored granola bar that had two bars in one package so they each received the same amount. Quinn never thought she'd be grateful to Sue Sylvester, but at this moment the Cheerios diet and exercise regimen was actually doing her some good. Her body was used to exerting a great amount with very little fuel being provided to replenish her expended energy. "What's the plan?" Rachel asked as she chewed slowly on her dry breakfast. Quinn gazed around at the thick tree coverage, her eyes searching through the dense foliage as her mind evaluated the details of their situation. "Normally when you're lost it's a good rule of thumb to stay where you are. You run less risk of leaving an area just as your rescue party gets there. What worries me though is that we were standing right next to the ravine and we couldn't even see down into it, which means that the chances of a search party finding it and figuring out that we're down here are minimal. Also, because of the tree coverage and how narrow the ravine is if they use a plane or helicopter they wouldn't be able to see us." She turned back to look at Rachel and she could see the fear in her brown eyes even as the girl tried to put up a brave front. "In this instance, I think we have a better chance of being found if we get out of this ravine. We can follow the creek downstream and it's bound to eventually meet up with a larger body of water or hopefully open up into an area where we would be more easily found. Maybe further down we'll find a good place to set up more of a permanent camp and just stay put until we're found. We'll have to play that part by ear. For now, though, I think we should take our time this morning. Who knows, maybe if we take our time leaving the spot they'll figure out where we left the group and we'll be able to hear them calling us or something." "How are we going to carry two packs?" Rachel asked after a long moment of contemplation. Quinn was thankful she wasn't questioning the blonde's decision to travel even though prudence would suggest it was better to stay put. "We'll have to go through both packs and figure out what we actually need and move it into one pack. We'll take turns carrying it." Rachel shook her head. "No. I'm putting my one good foot down on this one Quinn. I can carry the pack. You're not carrying anything." Quinn wanted to argue, but she knew that carrying the pack herself would mean that she wouldn't have a single arm free and moving through the rough terrain was going to be difficult enough without crippling herself even more. So she gave Rachel what she wanted

and the smile the girl beamed at her was enough to make the twinge of guilt she felt melt away. They emptied both packs completely and together they sorted their meager supplies into two piles. Rachel removed the bandana from Quinn's arm and replaced it with the sling she retrieved from her first aid kit. Quinn couldn't believe the difference it made. The sling was adjustable and held her arm snugly against her body so she didn't have to use her own muscles to keep her shoulder immobile. Rachel had a zippered hoodie that she insisted Quinn wear since she was wearing Quinn's. When Quinn told her that she'd be too warm wearing it, especially once they started traveling, Rachel balanced on her right leg as she stood in front of the blonde and tied the purple NYU hoodie around her waist. They took each of their water bottles, Quinn's pocket knife and flint which she chose to just leave in her pocket, all of the food which consisted now of five granola bars, one protein bar, and two bags of trail mix. Rachel insisted on including the small book she'd brought identifying edible and poisonous plants commonly found in Ohio. Quinn couldn't really argue with her on that. The book weighed nearly nothing and it might prove to be beneficial. They chose to only take Rachel's first aid kit since it was more comprehensive than Quinn's and it seemed redundant to bring both with them, although they did take all of the pain medication they could find from Quinn's and move it to Rachel's. They packed the shoe Rachel was currently unable to fit on her swollen foot in the hopes that her ankle would heal enough to walk eventually. Rachel offered to leave her pack behind since she insisted that once they made it out of the "infernal woods" she would never have use for it again as she was "never again setting out on such a fool hardy adventure as thinking that I was meant to be anywhere near nature". They would also leave a note in her pack so anyone that may find it would know who it belonged to and where they had gone. It was mid-morning by the time they were finished and Quinn was satisfied that they had packed everything they could possibly actually need for their survival. Rachel had brought a lot of stuff and Quinn had had to bite her tongue to keep from making a comment about the fact that she'd actually packed enamel cooking supplies for a hike. Finding the collapsible fishing pole in Rachel's pack had made up for all of the non-essentials the girl had been carrying around with her. When Quinn expressed surprise that Rachel would have brought a fishing pole with her seeing as how she's vegan Rachel had looked confused. Quinn held the device up so Rachel could see what she was talking about. "Oh. I don't know what that is. Finn asked if I'd carry it for him because his pack was full with his lunch and then I forgot to give it to him after we ate." Quinn smiled. It was the first time she was actually happy that Finn could eat enough food to feed a small village. "Okay, well I'm going to go down to the creek and fill our water bottles."

"Quinn, we can't drink that water! You don't know where it came from. There could be bacteria and parasites." Rachel looked furtively around and then whispered, "Fish poop in there." Quinn couldn't stop the full on laugh that escaped her throat. Rachel was so freaking adorable. Her hazel eyes twinkled as she answered the brunette. "That's why we have filtered water bottles, sweetie." Rachel looked at her strangely. "That's the second time you've called me sweetie." The smile disappeared quickly from Quinn's face and she felt her heart stop. She hadn't even realized what she was saying. Rachel looked at her shyly as she admitted, "It's okay Quinn. It's nice; just surprising." The shy look was quickly replaced by panic. "Quinn, my water bottle isn't filtered. I didn't see the need since I assumed I would be filling it from an already purified source." Quinn fought the blush that washed lightly across her cheeks at Rachel's acknowledgement of the term of endearment and the fact that the brunette didn't mind being called that by her. She looped her finger through the straps that attached the lids to the water bottles and lifted both from the ground. "I'll fill mine first and then we'll fill yours by filtering the water through my pour spout, then I'll just refill mine. That way we'll both have clean water and you won't have to worry about drinking fish poop." Quinn laughed again as she walked toward the creek. As she let the cold water run into her bottle she let her mind wander a little as she thought about Rachel. She truly was proud of how well the tiny brunette was handling their predicament. She screwed the cap on her water bottle and then sighed as she tipped it over and let the filtered water flow into Rachel's bottle. As she waited for the bottle to fill she gazed lazily around her surroundings. Maybe we should stay here longer. Even if it's just one more day that might be enough for us to be found. After all, the top of the ravine couldn't be more than 50 yards max from the trail. We would most likely be able to hear anyone calling for us and they'd perform a grid search by foot before they sent any kind of aircraft out to look for us. Quinn had just made up her mind to tell Rachel they should wait and conserve their energy for one more day in the hopes of being found before they tried to find their own way out when she happened to look a few feet to her left and her heart froze for an instant and then began beating so fiercely it felt as if it were about to explode from her chest. Her breath caught in her throat and then came in slow ragged gasps as she tried to control her initial flight or fight response. Her skin became clammy with sweat and her spine tingled with fear. Her hands shook as she tried to get the cap back on Rachel's now full water bottle. It took her a few times to get the threads to match correctly so she could twist it tight. Her jaw clenched as she dipped her own bottle back into the creek and let it

fill once again with cold water. She forced her eyes away from what she had seen just a few feet from her, but they kept returning as her mind tried to find another explanation. But there was none. Quinn rose slowly to her feet after getting her own bottle closed. She held the now full water bottles with her finger looped through the straps. She forced her now racing heart to slow as she concentrated on regulating her breathing. Her eyes searched the surrounding bushes and trees intently as she tried to find a danger she knew they'd never see until it was actually upon them. When she was certain she couldn't see anything she took one last glance at what had struck fear in her heart and turned and walked as calmly as she could back to Rachel. "Water bottles are full. Let's get a move on!" Quinn tried to sound normal as she helped Rachel settle Quinn's yellow pack on her back. She tried not to hurry Rachel as the brunette insisted that they pile enough dirt on the now non-existent fire to indicate a round of Amazing Grace was in order. She tried not to let her anxiety be obvious to Rachel as they slowly set off, following the fast moving creek downstream, even as her eyes continued to scan the tree line. Occasionally, she would turn and watch intently behind them for a long moment. When Rachel began questioning her she forced herself to not look so often, but she couldn't stop completely. Quinn tried desperately to put out of her mind what she had seen at the edge of the creek, but she couldn't. Every snap of a twig, every seemingly strange moment of silence from the natural sounds of the woods around them brought panic back to her heart and the image back to her mind's eye. As she had felt the cold water coursing over her hand and looked to her left she had seen the impression of her own hiking shoes in the soft, damp earth of the bank of the creek. She must have made them the night before when she had made her treks into the dark to cool the bandana for Rachel's swollen ankle. But it wasn't her own tracks in the soft earth that terrified her so much. It was the other track she saw. The track, which if it had been smaller, would have matched perfectly the cheesy paw prints that Lord Tubbington often tracked through Brittany's kitchen. But it was not Lord Tubbington. It was much too large a paw print to belong to a house cat of any size. And it had covered over the top Quinn's track.

CHAPTER FOUR I hate the woods. I realize that hate is a strong word, but my feelings are strong. I hate the woods. The only thing about this entire situation that I'm grateful for is Quinn. I've always admired her, but she's proving herself to be more amazing than I ever knew. The way that she's taken control of our situation fills me with confidence and hope. I know that Quinn will keep us safe. I know that we will survive this because Quinn won't stop until we do.

This is the confidence she gives me. From the way she's cared for me from the moment I stopped falling down the cliff (I'm already composing this chapter for my memoirs in my mind and I've decided that the five foot drop constitutes a cliff), to the way she just seems to know what our next step should be and then she does it, without doubt or fear. I am in awe. I watch her move slowly in front of me, carefully picking the easiest path for me to follow her in, and I feel a warm blush rise across my neck and to my cheeks as I realize I'm not really watching her to follow her. Her every movement is graceful, even as she moves across this uneven terrain. Her upper body swivels and moves as she dodges the occasional branch, her hips rocking in a slow sway as she walks across a soft dip in the ground. I love the way her ass looks with my purple hoodie draped across it, but part of me would like to have an unobstructed view. I can't regret tying it around her waist though, because it gave me an excuse to invade her space a little and when I had leaned forward to wrap it around her I was so close I could feel her breath catch. I smile at the memory. I think Quinn might like me. I can't come right out and ask her because I've been wrong about these things before. I've noticed a few things since this whole adventure started and when I analyze some of our more recent interactions I realize there were a few clues there as well. Since prom Quinn has been less antagonistic toward me. And while that normally wouldn't be a sign of any importance I was expecting her to attack me in some way after Finn broke up with her and then kissed me at Nationals. I had thought that her actions were simply her letting go of the past. I had never considered the possibility that she might feel anything for me except contempt. But last night as I'd gazed into the fire, my head resting in her lap as she threaded her fingers through my hair I was surprised to find the feelings I'd harbored for her rising up in my chest. When I'd touched her cheek this morning after she scratched herself climbing up for my pack I saw the soft blush rise across her cheeks and then she called me sweetie for the second time in less than 24 hours and when I called her on it I saw the fear flash in her eyes. Yes, I definitely think Quinn may be harboring Sapphic feelings for me, but I'm not going to confront her because I don't want to scare her away with my reciprocation. I'm resolved to let whatever happens between us come naturally because I've learned that forcing relationships just doesn't work. I'm pulled from my thoughts when Quinn suddenly comes to a stop. I've mastered the use of her walking stick as a crutch and it only takes a moment before I'm standing beside her and I see why she's stopped. There's a large tree across our path. From the way that half of it is sunken into the ground with weeds and dry moss clinging to its dark bark it's obvious that it's been here for a very long time. Even so, it's a large tree that rises to my waist in height. "Give me a minute," Quinn says before she's walking along the edge, testing broken limbs that must have snapped as the tree fell however many years ago. They now resemble thorns jutting out from an oversized rose bush and I find myself

smirking at the idea of ROUS's creeping through the woods around us. Quinn could be Westley to my Buttercup. In my mind the walking stick becomes a sword as I picture Quinn battling large rats to defend me from danger. "I think I found a spot," Quinn calls to me and I shake my head slightly to clear the fantasy from my mind. She's about ten feet left of me and I watch as she tugs sharply on a thick branch and then pulls herself up and onto the fallen tree. "Let me test the other side before you bother coming up here." She's so thoughtful. She jumps down and I hear her softly grunt but she doesn't say anything about the pain I'm sure she's in. "Quinn, please be careful." She ignores me. "Okay, I think this will work. Come on up this way, but take your time and be careful. There's a slight dip that's kind of hidden by those ferns there." She points and I see the area she's talking about. I use the stick to test the ground so that I don't hurt my other leg. I hear a lot of rustling and crashing in the brush and look up to see that Quinn is clearing the opposite side of the trunk of debris. I smile and warmth spreads across my chest. Finn would have never thought to do that. When I finally reach the spot where Quinn crossed I see that it's slightly lower to the ground and the loose bark that had clung to the tree in other sections is gone. I'm staring at the tree and the branch I watched Quinn use to cross as I try to figure out how I'm going to get myself over this obstruction without using my injured leg when Quinn grasps the branch with her hand again and pulls herself back up to stand on the trunk of the tree. "I think it's smooth enough here that you should be able to just slide up and over it," she says, as if it's the most obvious solution. I'm not sure how she wants me to slide across this large chunk of wood but I haven't contributed much of anything to our situation, besides actually making us be in this situation and so I walk forward and grab the limb like she did and start to pull myself up on my belly. "No, no, wait Rachel." Now I feel like an idiot. "Here, I'll help you." Before I know it Quinn has jumped down to stand beside me. She puts her hand on my waist and I try to ignore the heat that shoots through me at the weight and warmth of her hand on me as she turns me around so that my back is to the tree. "Grab the branch," she tells me as she leans down and wraps her right arm underneath my knees. Now I see what she meant and I pull myself up backwards across the smooth tree trunk and sit there for a second until she's helping me swing my legs up and around. Then I spin and now I'm facing the other side. "Wait for me," she huffs and I realize that she must be exhausted from pulling herself over the tree so many times, but she grips the limb and repeats her trip over the tree trunk for the third time. Now she's standing in front of me. There's sweat on her brow and her chest is heaving slightly from exertion. The sun is high in the sky but we've wandered slightly away from

the creek to make this crossing and the tree coverage is thicker here. Still it fights through the leaves and branches in shafts of light that dance across the forest floor like little fairies playing tricks. In a cinematically breathtaking moment the light finds its way through the trees to cast a glow around her. Her blonde hair shines with an angelic aura and her hazel eyes flash with bits of emerald and gold. I want to tell her how beautiful she is, but she steps toward me, out of the light, and the moment passes. Quinn hands me back the stick I hadn't even realized I dropped and then takes my hand in hers. Her grip is strong as she once again instructs me on how to dismount the tree to avoid injury. "Keep the stick firm and slide down slowly. Be sure to pull your left leg up so you only land on your right." With Quinn's help I'm quickly back on solid ground. "This might be a good spot to take a break." I'm so thankful she said that I actually squeal a little with delight. I'm exhausted. Walking with only one leg is extremely difficult. I'm slightly worried that this little excursion is going to make me lopsided. Quinn chuckles at my response to her suggestion and then helps me remove the pack before she helps me lower myself to the ground. I lean against the tree we just crossed and close my eyes as I feel my sore muscles relax. I feel Quinn sit beside me and then I hear the zip of the pack as she opens it up. "Here." I open my eyes to see that she's handing me my water bottle. "We need to be sure to stay hydrated." "As you wish," I reply as I take the water from her. I chuckle and I know my eyes are doing that sparkling thing my fathers say tells them when I'm being playful. Quinn quirks her eyebrow at me questioningly but there's a smile on her lips and I just shrug my shoulders and laugh because I don't want to explain to her that I was fantasizing about her being my Dread Pirate Roberts. I take a long drink. I didn't realize how thirsty I was until the cool water hit my lips. As I drink the water I'm humiliated to realize that there are now tears in my eyes. Now I'm thinking about my dads and how worried they must be. I want my dad and daddy. The enormity of our situation slams into my chest. I feel as though I'm suffocating and it's not until the sob escapes my throat that I realize I'm actually crying. "Rachel? Rachel, what's wrong? Calm down." I hear Quinn's soothing voice and I'm trying to listen, but I've let the fear in and now I can't seem to get control of myself. I can't even see anything through my tears but I feel Quinn move beside me and now there's a warmth across my lap and I feel her pull me against her with her one good arm as she holds me and rocks me. Her breath is warm against my neck and ear and she's quietly shushing me. It takes me a while but I can finally breathe again and still Quinn straddles me holding me close to her in a death-like grip. Her hand is rubbing soothing circles across my back as I

sniffle against her shoulder. It's because we stopped moving. As long as I had something to focus on then I couldn't think about all of the terrible things that could happen to us out here. There are wild animals and poisonous snakes and even if none of those get us there's the threat of starving to death. I saw Into the Wild. I don't want to die that way. My voice is low and thick from my crying session and I try to clear it a little before I whisper, "I'm sorry," against her neck. Quinn pulls back and smiles down at me. I look down because I know my face must look all puffy and gross, but now I'm staring at her breasts, which feels even more awkward, so I glance up and she's not even looking at me anymore. She's reaching into the side pocket of the pack and now she has one of the bandanas in her hand. "Don't be sorry, Rachel," she says quietly as she gently cleans my face with the soft cloth. "Things are really messed up right now and it wouldn't be normal for us to not be afraid. It's okay to cry. I'm scared too. But we can't let our fear make us give up. I don't want to die because I'm afraid. So you go ahead and cry when you need to and I'll hold you and then when I break down and need to cry a little, you can hold me. How does that sound?" Tears cloud my eyes again as I smile at her. "That sounds really good," I reply. I feel a tear drop escape and roll down my cheek, but before it can even reach my jawline Quinn's warm fingers are ghosting across my skin, wiping it away. I suddenly realize how close we are, that her body is warm and soft pressed against me and I can feel her breath on my skin. Our eyes lock as if we both realized our proximity in the same instant. I try to read what her hazel eyes are telling me. Is that fear? Indecision? Desire? I lick my lips as I realize it would only take a slight movement on my part to meld our lips together in a kiss and I see her eyes dart down and watch the movement of my tongue. We're so close I see her pupils dilate and in the next instant she's taking a shuddering breath and quickly extricating herself from my lap. I can't stop the shiver I feel at the sudden loss. As she gets herself settled beside me again I look away to hide the smile that stretches across my face. Quinn likes me. I know it now without a doubt. I also know that she's afraid. Whether the fear stems from the fact that she has these feelings for a girl or from fear that I would reject her (as if!) I still don't know, but I vow to myself to find out. And now I have something else to focus on. I whip my head back around as I hear Quinn's voice again. "I'm sorry about all of this Rachel. It's my fault. I should have never wandered off the trail. If I had just stayed with the group none of this would have happened." "Quinn, this is not your fault. If anyone's to blame it's me. I'm the one that went to storm off and ended up tripping down the hidden ravine. I should have just let you have your alone time and I shouldn't have gotten so upset over you not wanting me there."

"If I hadn't been mean to you when you were just showing concern for me then you wouldn't have tried to storm off in the first place. Don't blame yourself Rachel. You would have never gone off the trail if you weren't trying to make sure everyone on the team was safe." We're arguing now and it actually feels good. It feels normal. "Honestly, Quinn, what you said wasn't even that hurtful. I've heard much worse things from Santana. I was just trying to be dramatic and look where it got us." Quinn frowns at me and I try desperately to control the twitch in my cheek because I'm actually having fun getting her worked up, even though everything I'm saying is truly how I feel. "Rachel, I saw the hurt in your eyes when I used your petite stature to imply that you could be mistaken for a woodland fairy. Don't try to let me off the hook. This is my fault and I promise you I'm going to get us out of it." I'm quiet for a moment. Her words and voice and the way she's looking at me is so sincere that I think she actually believes this is her fault. I do not and I also know for a certainty that I would not have made it through the night without her. We need something to break the cycle of blaming ourselves and I know it's up to me because sometimes Quinn's like a dog with a bone. Sometimes I love that about her because she's so driven and determined, like myself, but sometimes it's annoying. Like now, when she won't agree with me. "Well, Tinkerbell and I have more than one thing in common." I smirk at her and the next instant she's laughing and shaking her head at me. Mission accomplished. "Besides, you know whose fault this really is?" I wait a beat for her to quirk her eyebrow, waiting for the answer. It's so cute when she does that. "Mr. Schuester. Mercedes and I suggested that the club spend the weekend at a spa in Cincinnati. We had already done all the research and financials and had organized a discount for the group. Mr. Schuester vetoed it. He thought camping in the woods for a week would be a better bonding experience because we wouldn't have any outside influences and we'd all be forced to spend time together. He felt the spa would lend too many opportunities for what he deemed "clique-ish behavior". Can you believe that?" Now that I'm thinking about it I realize how true my words are. It is his fault! "Just think about it Quinn. Right now we could be getting a mani-pedi with a seaweed facial wrap while the boys engaged in Frisbee golf." Now I'm really upset. I want to ream Mr. Schuester out for his negligence and inability to accept that other people may have superior ideas to his own. Namely, me! "I always thought he was trying to ruin my life, but now I think he may be trying to kill me!" "You might be right. It does seem suspicious that he would insist we all come to a wilderness area so far from home, especially with such a large portion of the group being unfamiliar with wilderness survival. I think this whole trip may have just been an elaborate ruse to get rid of you."

The tantrum I'm about to throw is quickly halted at her words. I turn to her slowly in surprise because no one's ever agreed with me when I say things like this. Even I know I'm being overly dramatic, but the way she said it makes it sound like she's completely serious. She's even keeping a straight face, but her eyes give her away. I see the laughter in them and like a pin pressing on a balloon the frustration I feel with Mr. Schuester is gone and I start laughing. When our laughter has faded into the occasional soft chuckle I speak up again. "How about we agree that no one's to blame for our current predicament? It was just a series of unfortunate incidents that culminated to the current situation. It's no one's fault, Quinn, especially not yours." "Nor yours," she says. She reaches her hand down and squeezes mine before letting go to pull one of our bags of trail mix from the pack. "We should eat a little bit before we start moving again. And be sure to drink more water. You still haven't drunk enough for how much energy we're exerting." I frown at the water bottle. I don't want to drink any more. She must see the look on my face because now she's asking me what's wrong. I don't want to tell her. It's embarrassing. But I know that I have no choice. "I need to use the facilities." It's barely a whisper and she looks strangely at me and leans closer. "What?" I blow out a huff of air. What the hell. "I don't want to drink any more water because I already have to pee and I have no idea how I'm going to be able to go with no sanitary facilities available." Quinn bites her lip and to her credit she doesn't laugh as hard as I thought she was going to. But she still laughs. "I'm sorry," she says as she wipes her hand across her eyes, as if I was just so hilarious. "Okay, Rach, here's the deal. We're both kind of crippled right now and as embarrassing as it's going to be we're probably going to need to help each other out a little bit in that area." The incredulous look I gave her must have been absolutely hysterical because she actually guffawed. Guffawed! I just cross my arms and push out my breath in a harrumph. I HATE the woods. (*************************) It is something that will never be mentioned. I'm just going to pretend that it's like Survivor. You know it happens, but it's not really necessary to know where or how.

Just.God. I have to move on, literally and figuratively, because we're on the move again. Quinn's doing that thing again. She was doing it this morning too. I watch her move a few steps in front of me, her head almost on a constant swivel as she seems to take in our entire surroundings in a sweeping gaze. Every once in a while she stops and watches down the trail behind us, her gaze intense, her hazel eyes searching. It worries me because I feel as though she knows what she's searching for and she's not telling me something. "Quinn, what are you looking for?" "Hmm, oh nothing. It's just always a good idea to be aware of your surroundings." I frown but I let it go. I can tell she's not being completely honest with me, but I don't want to push her. Obviously, it's not something she feels she needs to share with me. It's almost imperceptible but I notice that the creek has gradually been growing larger at the same time that Quinn speaks up about it. She falls back and walks beside me. "It's a good sign that the creek's changing. If we get to a stream or larger body of water there's a better chance of coming across camps or fishermen." "The ravine doesn't seem to be any less steep," I reply as I look to our left to see the steep incline even though the ravine itself has widened. "Yeah." Quinn suddenly jogs forward a little and pushes a hanging branch up with her arm, allowing me to hobble underneath without ducking. I smile shyly at her as I approach and she winks and says "M'lady" with the most adorable British accent. Her cheeks color instantly with a blush as my smile basically rips my face in two. "How chivalrous," I murmur as I pass underneath the branch. She's quickly by my side again and I wonder why she's hobbling along with me instead of leading the way as she has for the whole day. "So, um, anyway, yeah I think that probably a few hundred or thousand years ago this creek was probably a river. It probably carved this ravine. I'm guessing that we're not going to find a way out until we find where the creek meets up with another stream or river because the ravine may get wider but I don't think it's going to get any less steep. At least not enough for us to get out with our injuries. Plus, because I don't have a map, which I'm kicking myself for now, I just don't want to leave the creek to wander around in the woods without knowing how close or far away anything is." "That makes sense. It's fun to think about, though. You know, what all of this looked like a few hundred years ago. Can you imagine, Quinn, what it was like when settlers first started coming into Ohio. It was untamed, with raging rivers and wild animals. There were no hiking trails. I bet the trees were bigger and the brush more wild because there had been no major logging."

We're both smiling as we slowly make our way along the creek, each lost in our own thoughts. I imagine myself as Annie Oakley, braving the wild frontier as I find my place in a world focused on the strength and rights of men. Quinn's voice pulls me gently from my current daydream. "I think about that sometimes; the strength of will that it would have taken for the early pioneers to leave everything familiar, their friends and families, to strike out on their own and tame a wild land. I wonder if I would have had the courage." I wish that I didn't have to occupy my left hand with the walking stick because I want to take her hand so badly right now. "I believe you would have been in history books Quinn Fabray." She turns her head and smiles at me as she shakes her head. "Making it into history books isn't always a good thing Rachel." "Quinn, you are one of the bravest, strongest women I know and I have no doubt that you would have been an exemplary pioneer woman, blazing trails and conquering mountains. What you've gone through," I shake my head as I try to find the words, "I know that I couldn't have made the choices you did. You were so brave to have Beth and so strong when you made the difficult choice to give her up. I know that it weighs on you, the sadness and the what-if's. But you carry it all with such grace and poise Quinn. I admire you for the strength you've shown. It's difficult to live with regrets. It's even more difficult when it feels as if everyone knows exactly what those regrets are." Quinn stops and looks at me. There are tears streaming down her face and suddenly she's in my arms. I lean against her for balance as I carefully wrap my arms around her, staying aware of her injured shoulder. My neck is wet with her tears and I feel her body convulse with sobs as we hold each other up. I didn't mean to make her cry. I hadn't intended on bringing up sore subjects, but I realize that she needs this. She needs to cry and feel and not be judged. I want to be that person for her. The realization blossoms in my heart that I want to be everything for her. When she pulls back I wipe her tears away, but I leave my hands cupping her face. I need her to know, to understand that I'm here when she's ready. She gives me a half-smile. "Thank you, Rachel." Her voice is even more husky than normal and it does things to me, how low and sultry it is from her tears and I wonder briefly if that's how her voice sounds at other times. I push the images away because, really, this is the worst possible time to be thinking of intimate moments. "I didn't mean to," I start, but she interrupts me.

"I know. But I'm glad you did. Maybe when we're not fighting for our lives we can talk about it again?" She bites her lip nervously and I want to kiss her so badly. I have never shown such restraint, but the last thing I want to do is scare her off. "Something to definitely look forward to. I mean, not the subject matter, but you know, us talking. Being close." Quinn gently pushes my hair behind my ear, her eyes locked on mine. "Yes. Being close to you is something I look forward to." And the way she says it I know she means something else and I think she knows that I know that she means something else. Something more than just friendship and feelings and secrets shared. I smile softly at her and I hope that she knows without me saying it how much I want that to happen. How much I want those future possibilities to come true.

CHAPTER FIVE It's around three o'clock when Quinn tells Rachel that they need to start keeping an eye out for a good place to make camp for the night. When Rachel asks her why they need to make camp so early Quinn tells her that she doesn't know how long it will take to find a suitable place and then they have to gather wood and she wants to have a fire going before it gets dark. What she doesn't tell Rachel is that a couple times throughout the day the feeling of being watched has crept across her shoulders and she doesn't want to chance not having a fire when darkness falls. She's not sure if the feeling is just her own fear and paranoia getting to her or if they truly are being stalked. When she would get the tingling feeling she always made a point to make more frequent checks behind them and in the surrounding woods, trying to catch a glimpse of tan fur. She hasn't seen anything but she knows that doesn't mean anything. Her father always told her that if you saw a cougar it was most likely not hunting you. It was the ones you didn't see that were dangerous. It was when she remembered this little bit of advice she realized that if there was a large cat tracking them it would most likely take down whoever was in the rear and a strangling dread made it difficult for her to breathe. From that moment on she walked beside Rachel rather than forging the way. It meant their trek took a little longer because Quinn couldn't find the easiest route until they were upon it, but it was worth it to feel the comfort of the brunette's presence beside her instead of the fear of her lagging behind as easy prey.

They walked together in silence, each of them trying to spot a place that would mimic closely their camp from the previous night. Quinn's thoughts were everywhere except where they should be. She couldn't believe she'd cried over what Rachel had said. It had seemed like the most innocuous of conversations and it had somehow turned into something else entirely. Something that touched her deeply. The last year had been more of a struggle than she'd anticipated or acknowledged. She had thought that once she gave birth and didn't have the constant reminder of her mistakes that she would be able to get her life back. Finding out that nothing could go back to the way it was before had been a harsh reality and a difficult pill to swallow. She'd struggled to maintain normalcy by dating Sam, but then she made another mistake by cheating on him with Finn. She wasn't even sure now why she had done that. She didn't love Finn. She hadn't loved him in a long time. It was like; if she could be with Finn then maybe she could pretend that none of that bad stuff had happened. When she still felt empty she decided she needed the Prom Queen crown. That would make her feel happy, whole. That night as she heard the crack of her hand across Rachel's cheek it felt as if something snapped inside of her. When Rachel told her that she was more than just a pretty girl she realized that wasn't true, but it could be. She could be more than the faade. In all honesty she still wasn't ready to talk about Beth. Her tears had been less about her daughter and more about Rachel. She was so grateful for the girl and so absolutely floored by her ability to see right through her. Rachel stumbled slightly beside her and Quinn reached out to steady her. Her fingers wrapped firmly around her arm. Rachel gave her a grateful smile and then pointed to an area on the opposite side of the creek. "That looks promising," she said. "I'll go check it out. You stay here and rest," Quinn told her as she quickly made her way across the creek. The cool water rushing over her hiking boots felt good on her hot feet but she didn't linger. She wanted to find a suitable campsite not only for safety but because they were both exhausted and needed to rest. The more Quinn walked the area Rachel had pointed out the better she felt about it. For the most part the area was clear of a lot of trees. There were a few large bushes and a couple tall evergreens, but it felt open. The cliff face rose above them to a point where it would take a mountain goat or a serious climber to scale it. The mountainside curved a bit in here as well, creating a small alcove. Quinn smiled as she looked more closely at the rock face. Perfect she thought as she walked over to what she had spotted. It made her nervous to leave Rachel alone for any length of time so she turned quickly to make her way back to where she'd left her. Quinn could feel eyes on her as she began the short walk and when she looked up and saw Rachel watching her intently as she approached the creek she felt an entirely different type of tingle shoot down her spine.

They're gazes locked for an instant and then a soft smile pulled at the edges of Rachel's mouth and Quinn's stomach flipped at the sight. Quinn wasn't sure what was happening between them, but there had been a few moments during the day that she felt certain if she'd made the move they would have kissed. Each time she'd pulled back. Part of her was afraid. She was afraid that Rachel would reject her. The brunette had made it no secret that she loved Finn Hudson. She'd been chasing him for two years and now, after Nationals, it seemed that she'd finally got her man. But the way Rachel had touched her cheek this morning and the look in her eyes when Quinn had comforted her by the tree made Quinn wonder if perhaps Rachel was harboring at least some sort of attraction for her. The idea of this brought on a whole different kind of fear. The truth was Quinn wasn't absolutely positive about her feelings or orientation. She knew that what she had felt with each of her boyfriends had been mild. She'd never found it difficult to cool down their physical intimacies. She knew that when she was near Rachel she felt an electric charge through her whole body that she'd never felt with anyone else. It almost felt like her skin would hum with an electrical current and she just knew that if she and Rachel were to ever kiss it would light that spark of electricity. She just knew it. But she also felt things for Rachel beyond physical attraction and it would break her heart if she were to open herself up to the girl only to be told that while, yes, Rachel found her attractive she was still in love with Finn. These doubts and fears were what kept her from acting on her impulses. When she'd climbed into Rachel's lap earlier that afternoon she hadn't been thinking of anything except being able to hold the small girl as she cried; to give her comfort and make her feel safe. But when they'd parted and she'd looked into Rachel's expressive brown eyes she could suddenly feel the heat of Rachel's body pressing against hers, she could feel her soft breath against her lips they'd been so close and when she'd seen Rachel's pink tongue dart out and wet her lips she'd almost lost all control. It had taken every ounce of selfcontrol she had to force herself to move away. She kept berating herself for the thoughts and feelings she was having because now was not the time to be dealing with them. Now was the time to focus on surviving. "This is the perfect spot, Rachel. Come on, I'll help you across," Quinn told the object of her desires and ruminations as she approached. She took Rachel's left arm in her right so that Rachel could use the stick in her right and with the extra support she was able to cross the creek without incident. Now Quinn was excited to show Rachel what she had found and to get their improvised campsite set up for the night. "I'm so glad you noticed this area. There's not a lot of tree coverage so it's more open and we'll be able to have a clear view of anything approaching. We have the mountainside to our backs and see how it curves? I was thinking we could put the fire in this area here and the natural alcove will give us an almost four wall protection. And here's the best part,"

Quinn said as she approached the side of the mountain she'd been gesturing toward on where they would be putting the fire. "A cave?" Rachel asked with doubt and fear obvious in her voice. "Quinn, animals live in caves. There are bats and snakes and bears. They all live in caves. Maybe there's nothing in there now, but what happens when it comes back Goldilocks?" Quinn gave Rachel an incredulous look and then laughed aloud. "Well I guess I like that better than Barbie." She watched as Rachel blushed slightly and guiltily broke eye contact. "Rachel," Quinn reassured her, "it's barely even a cave. It's more of an indentation. Trust me, no animal lives in this. It's practically just an outcropping, but it's enough to give us some protection if it rains or the wind blows and I think it will make you feel safer while you sleep tonight." Rachel bit her lip as she contemplated Quinn's words. "You're sure it's not some wild animal's home?" "I'm positive," Quinn stressed. Rachel smiled. "Okay. You make a good argument. Have you considered joining the Debate Team? Since you're not on Cheerios anymore it might be a good choice to round out your extracurriculars." Quinn huffed a slight laugh. Rachel could change subjects so fast sometimes it gave her whiplash. "I'll keep that in mind once we get back home. For now, let me help you get the pack off and then we can start gathering firewood for the night." They immediately fell into the same roles they had filled the previous night. Rachel prepared the area for their temporary habitation while Quinn made dozens of trips gathering fuel for their fire. When Rachel finished she began helping gather wood as well until they had two large piles stacked on either side of the opening of their "cave". "That should be more than enough," Quinn said as she looked proudly at all that they'd accomplished. She checked her watch. It was a little after five in the evening. She looked up at the sky. It was clear blue, but she could see the longer shadows the trees were casting and she knew they had less than an hour before the sun would no longer reach them. She chewed on her lip as she tried to make a decision. Quickly making up her mind she unzipped the pack that was lying at the mouth of the cave and pulled out Finn's small fishing pole. It wasn't a great pole. She had a Quantum Artemis rod with a spinning reel at home that she'd received four years ago for Christmas. What Finn had was just one step up from the Disney Princesses pole she'd used when she was three. "What are you doing?" Rachel asked her as she pulled the rod from its case and began quickly assembling it, fixing the tangled line as she went because apparently Finn didn't

know how to properly pack the rod either. She was thankful to see that it already had a hook and a small sinker attached to the end of the line. "I'm going down to the creek to see if I can catch us some dinner before it gets too dark." Quinn waited for the lecture. She could already hear it in her head. Quinn, how could you even think of killing a defenseless animal? Even fish have feelings. Don't you realize I'm vegan and this act of murder would completely offend my sensibilities? The lecture didn't come. Instead Rachel bit her lip nervously. "Can I come with you?" Rachel asked quietly. Quinn was shocked. "Um, yeah, of course." Rachel quietly watched as Quinn worked her way slowly through some high grass beside the bank of the creek her eyes intently watching the ground below her. Instead of focusing her gaze, Quinn let her vision relax as she looked for any quick movements in the grass. When she saw the movement in her peripheral vision she was thankful it was on her right side as her hand shot out and she grabbed a clump of grass. When she pulled it back, letting the grass blades slide loosely through her fingers she smiled because she could feel that she had caught what she was after. When Rachel saw what Quinn had in her hand she grimaced. "I'm not starving enough to eat insects Quinn." Quinn shook her head and smiled. "It's bait, Rachel. I want the fish to eat it. I don't know if I could eat this thing even if I was starving." Rachel shivered. "I don't know how Bear Grylls does it. I mean, I doubt he's even really starving. He's just setting up teaching scenarios, but he still eats those disgusting things." Quinn laughs as she turns her back to Rachel so the brunette doesn't have to see as she impales the grasshopper quickly on the hook. "I'm surprised you know who Bear Grylls is Rach. You don't seem like the type to watch Man vs. Wild." "My daddy loves the Discovery channel. He and Dad have a standing argument over which is better, Man vs. Wild or Survivorman. Bringing up anything about the shows works as a wonderful distraction whenever I'm about to get into trouble for something." "Aahh," Quinn said as she moved slowly downstream, her eyes watching the current intently as it swirled and rippled in areas. Her eyes narrowed when she reached an area where a slight bend had created a slower moving pool of water. She dropped her line in the water and let the water take her bait slowly into the deeper pool. "Devious Rachel Berry. Here I thought you saved that for your competition." She kept her voice playful because she really was joking and she wanted Rachel to know that.

Rachel laughed. "Yes, well, I'm full of surprises." Quinn was almost certain that Rachel intended the insinuation of that statement based on the fact that Rachel's voice had become playful and sexy when she said it. Quinn tried to ignore the flutter in her stomach and focus on the line running the length of the rod in her hands. She wished she had use of her other arm because she liked to feel the line when she was fishing. She was worried she'd miss the signal of a bite on the line if she had to go solely on sight rather than feel. After a few minutes had passed Quinn slowly began reeling the line in by holding the pole with her left hand as she propped the weight of it against her stomach. She paused every couple minutes until she could see the dull metal of the sinker and then she reeled the rest of the line in. She checked that the bait was still on the hook and then cast a little further into the current, letting it drop back into the slowly swirling pool but in a slightly different area this time. "Quinn, can I ask you something?" "Sure," she replied absentmindedly as she watched the line intently. Was that the current or a fish nibbling the line? "So, I know we decided that no one is at fault for this.situation. I was just wondering, you know just out of curiosity, and you don't have to answer if you don't want to, obviously because it's your business." "Rachel, I said you could ask. What is it?" Quinn's jaw clenched as she gently moved the tip of the small rod up and down in an effort to give life to the now drowned grasshopper. "Okay, so um, why exactly did you wander off the trail?" Quinn slowly reeled in some of the slack on the line as she sighed. Really the only person she feared would mock her for her hobby was Santana so there didn't seem a point in keeping it hidden. "I was bird watching." "You were?" Rachel's surprise was obvious and Quinn shook her head. "I like to watch birds. It's something I used to do with my Nana. She'd play bird calls on her record player and we'd try to see who could identify the most birds by their call. She bought me my first pair of binoculars and we'd spend Saturday mornings in the park or sometimes out at Jenson's Woods just watching birds. If I could identify three different species with absolutely no assistance she'd buy me an ice cream before we went home. She has Alzheimer's and is in a home now, but when I feel the cool metal of the binoculars in my hands and I see a blurry image come into focus it's like I can practically hear her beside me."

Quinn waits for some kind of response from Rachel, but when it doesn't come she turns her head to see the brunette leaning against a small tree, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Hey, it's okay. Please don't cry Rachel. Sometimes I feel sad about it, but usually I'm just grateful for the time we had when she was herself." Quinn gives Rachel another reassuring smile before turning back to the line which once again has too much slack and she slowly begins reeling it back in to check the bait and recast. Rachel's voice is quiet from her spot when she speaks again. "What's your favorite?" "Favorite what?" Quinn asks, her concentration focused on casting the bait where she wants it to land. "Bird. What's your favorite bird?" "You're going to laugh," Quinn replies as she once again tries the pool. She just knows there's fish in there. She can feel it. She glances up for a moment and sees the shadows have darkened and they don't have much time left before they need to get back and build the fire. This is probably the last chance for the evening. "I won't laugh," Rachel promises. Quinn quirks her brow at the girl. She's pretty sure Rachel's going to laugh. "Warblers," she finally says. She watches as Rachel fights the smile that's spreading across her face. "Why would I laugh at that?" Rachel squeaks out and it's obvious she's fighting her laughter. "I'm assuming it's not the Dalton variety?" And then she laughs, like full on boisterous laughter and it sounds so freaking good after everything that's happened in the last 24 hours that Quinn starts to laugh as well. She shakes her head as she laughs. "No, although I have been tempted to tell Blaine he's a dirty bird on occasion. I'm afraid the joke wouldn't go over well and Kurt would think I was trying to insult his boyfriend." Rachel laughs even harder at that and it carries easily over the water. Part of Quinn hopes that any search party looking for them will hear her and call out, but she hasn't heard or seen anything that would indicate that anyone's looking for them. Of course, she also doesn't know how far away from civilization the creek has led them. "It was a Black-Throated Green Warbler," Quinn explains as she once again begins to slowly reel the line in. "They're small songbirds. They're actually pretty common, but I still like to watch them. They're beautiful little birds with black bodies and dark green tipped wings. But what's really striking about them is their head. They're body is all dark, but their head is this vibrant yellow. It almost looks neon." Quinn was so wrapped up in

describing one of her favorite birds that she almost missed the slight tug on the line. When she felt it again she yelped in surprise and jerked the pole up quickly to try to set the hook. There was a flash of silver and the line went tight as Quinn tightened her grip on the butt of the rod and tried to make her body concave as she used it as leverage to hold the rod upright as she reeled the line in slowly. In her peripheral vision she saw Rachel stand up from her reclining position against the trunk of the tree. "What should I do? Do you need me to help you Quinn?" Quinn could tell instantly that it wasn't a very large fish, but it was definitely a fighter. She played with it, but only enough to tire it out because she didn't want to take the chance that the fish would somehow free itself. "Yeah, work your way down to the bank. I'm going to reel it in closer and when I tell you I'm going to need you to grab the line and pull the fish up out of the water. If you can get your hands around it that would probably be better." It took about five minutes but Quinn was finally able to angle the fish to the bank where Rachel was waiting for it. It was actually a little bigger than Quinn had expected, approximately nine inches. Rachel's first attempt at grabbing the fish made Quinn's heart jump in her chest. She was certain they were going to lose it back to the creek, but Rachel took a deep breath and tried again. She wrapped her small hands around the body and held tight as she pulled the flopping fish up out of the water, squealing like a little girl the entire time. Quinn couldn't keep the huge grin from her face as she quickly walked to where Rachel was standing with her head turned away as the fish flopped its' head and tail frantically against her arms. "Quinn, please take it!" Rachel cried out. Quinn chuckled as she checked to see where the hook was. "Greedy little sucker," she muttered when she saw that it had swallowed the hook. She took the fish from Rachel who promptly began scrubbing her hands in the cold creek water as if she'd been contaminated by some deadly disease. Quinn thought it would probably be best to kill, gut, and clean the fish before Rachel was even fully aware of what was happening. While she was busy muttering about slimy wriggling things and washing her hands Quinn took the fish by the tail and with a quick snapping motion against a rock she put it out of its misery. She blocked Rachel's possible view with her body, pulled out her pocket knife and with a practiced motion quickly slit the belly open and gutted the fish, retrieving the swallowed hook, and cleaning it in the fast moving waters of the creek it had come from. She held the fish in her left hand and picked the fishing pole up in her right as she stood and turned toward Rachel. Darkness was quickly descending upon them and the nervousness Quinn felt over what may be lurking in the forest made itself known once

again. "Let's get back to camp and get that fire started." She turned to head back when Rachel's tremulous voice stopped her. "You killed it? Already?" Quinn turned and sighed when she saw the tears in Rachel's eyes. "Rachel, that was kind of the point." "I know, but I didn't actually think you'd catch anything and then when you did it was all just so exciting. I, I didn't think about the actual act of killing it. We could have put it back in the water Quinn. It could have lived. We have granola and protein bars and trail mix and we could be rescued any minute and we just killed a defenseless fish for no reason." With each word Quinn could see and hear Rachel working herself up into a hysterical fit. She wanted to wrap her arms around the girl and comfort her because she was so upset over the death of the fish. Quinn herself had no problem with it, but she understood that it was because she was raised differently. She'd been fishing since she was three years old and as soon as she was old enough to hold a knife had been cleaning her own catches. She felt the weight of the fish in her hands and felt the darkness creeping in around them. As much as she wanted to placate the frantic brunette she also needed to get them back to camp and get the fire started. She decided to try a dose of cold reality. "Yes, we could be rescued at any minute. Or it could be days, Rachel. And if it is days then this fish means that tomorrow we have food that we would have had to have eaten tonight. I know you're vegan and I respect that in normal circumstances, but right now this one little fish could mean the difference between life and death. I don't want to be dramatic about it. I just need you to understand that I'm trying to keep us alive here and I'm sorry that it's upset you, but I'm not sorry that this fish is going to feed us tonight and give us another day to hopefully be rescued. Now, we need to get back to camp while we can still find our way because the last thing we need is to get lost in the dark in these woods." The walk back to camp was quiet except for the sniffling of Rachel as she tried to stop crying. Quinn set the fish down on a rock and quickly got the fire started with her flint. She didn't say anything as Rachel carefully lowered herself to the ground beside one of the wood piles and rested her back against the rock face. Quinn purposefully kept the fire small and then fashioned a makeshift spit to hang the fish over the small fire. She never thought she'd miss the enamel pan she'd left in Rachel's pack back at the old campsite. She watched the fish carefully. She didn't want it to burn and she also didn't want it to suddenly fall apart and lose it in the fire. The longer the silence stretched between them the worse Quinn felt about how she'd reacted to Rachel's histrionics. It only took about twenty minutes for the small trout to cook sufficiently. Quinn grabbed one of the bandanas and gently laid the cooked fish on it then carried it over to wear

Rachel was sitting. They hadn't said a word to each other in half an hour, but it felt much longer. Quinn took her knife back out. She had cleaned it in the creek after gutting the fish, but she was sure Rachel wouldn't think that was enough so she'd also used one of the alcohol wipes in the first aid kit to sanitize it. Now she gently pulled the cooked skin back to reveal the meat of the body. She used her fingers to pluck a piece of the white meat free. It was hot and she blew quickly on it before taking a bite. They had no seasonings and it was probably the worst tasting fish Quinn had ever eaten, but it was food and she didn't want to admit it, but she was starving. She pulled another piece free and stretched her hand out to offer it to Rachel. The brunette looked at her with her jaw clenched tightly shut. She shook her head no, refusing the food. Quinn bit her lip hard to try to keep herself from getting angry with Rachel. "Rachel, we've expended thousands of calories walking through these woods today and we didn't even consume 500 calories in food. You need this protein. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, but I just.I don't want anything to happen to you. You need to eat." Quinn could see the struggle in Rachel's eyes as she debated what to do. She knew Rachel must be just as hungry as she was, but she also knew that Rachel's convictions were important to her. The idea that Rachel would rather starve than eat a fish that had been stupid enough to get caught made Quinn angry and frustrated and just love the girl even more. Tears welled in Quinn's eyes as she thought of the possible horrible outcomes to this whole journey. "Rachel, please," she begged her quietly and she wasn't sure if it was her tone or the wetness of her eyes, but Rachel tentatively reached out and took the piece of fish from her fingertips. She looked at the meat in her fingers, took a deep breath, and then promptly plopped it in her mouth and chewed with her eyes closed as if she was trying to imagine it was something else. They ate together in silence and when they were done Quinn disposed of the bones and skin in the fire because she didn't want to lure any animals like raccoons or weasels into their campsite with the smell of food. Rachel still hadn't said a word to her and Quinn hated to admit it, but it hurt. Her chest felt tight and she felt on the verge of tears as she built the fire up. They didn't need it to be small to cook anymore. Now they needed it to be larger for warmth and protection. When she was done she knelt in front of Rachel. "Is it okay if I check your ankle?" she asked quietly. When Rachel nodded her ascent Quinn sighed and carefully did as she'd intended. "It looks like the swelling's going down. That's a good sign. You should probably still try to not put any weight on it, but you might try moving it around a little bit tomorrow." Quinn gently re-wrapped Rachel's ankle and then rose to stand in front of the fire. Gazing into the darkness only made her feel more alone so she let the flames of the fire hypnotize her for a while before she felt a shiver and realized that even with the heat of the fire she was cold. She looked up into the sky and could make out the tops of the trees standing even darker against the black of the night, blocking out the pinpricks of light that hung in the darkness.

Quinn moved away from the fire and opened the pack. She pulled out her hoodie and handed it to Rachel before untying Rachel's hoodie from around her waist and awkwardly getting her right arm through the hole before she realized she couldn't get the left side over her shoulder. She tried leaning to the left and grabbing the fabric with her right arm, but she just couldn't get it to work. "Quinn, come here." It had been so long since Rachel had spoken to her that her voice now surprised her. She looked over at the brunette who was already wearing her red hoodie. She slowly made her way over to where Rachel was sitting down and knelt down in front of her. Rachel reached out and gently fixed the purple hoodie so that it was covering her and then she grabbed the hem and zipped it up. "I'm sorry, Quinn." Rachel's voice was soft and sad and Quinn wanted to reach out and hold her and tell her it was okay, but she didn't because she was still kind of hurt from the brunette's silent treatment when all she was trying to do was keep Rachel alive. "I know I overreacted. It's just I haven't eaten anything animal based in almost five years and even before I made the decision to change to a vegan lifestyle anything I had eaten was already dead before it was purchased." As she spoke, her fingers played gently with the zipper lying against Quinn's sternum. Quinn breathed slowly as she tried to ignore the feeling of Rachel's hand resting lightly against her chest. "I understand, Rachel. I really do and I'm sorry if I was harsh with you." "No, I deserved it Quinn. I was being unreasonable. I just," her voice grew thick as tears welled in her brown eyes, "I just want to go home. I miss my dads and I miss my house and my bed. I never thought I'd ever miss Lima, but I miss it now, Quinn." Her voice broke in a sob as the tears she was trying to hold back burst forth. Quinn moved to sit down beside the overwhelmed girl and wrapped her arm around Rachel. Rachel turned her body into Quinn and wrapped her arms around her waist as she buried her head in Quinn's shoulder and cried. "I just want to go home," she choked out again. Quinn held Rachel as she cried, gently stroking her hand through her soft brown hair and then rubbing her back as her sobs receded to occasional hiccups. "I'm going to get you home, Rachel." She barely recognized her own voice when she spoke it was so heavy with emotion and conviction. Rachel pulled away slightly and quickly wiped her face with the sleeves of the red hoodie before she looked at Quinn with such softness and affection in her eyes that Quinn's breath caught in her chest. Quinn pulled her hand from around Rachel and gently palmed the girl's cheek. "I promise you that I will do anything humanly possible to make sure that you get back home. Okay?"

Rachel bit her lower lip and nodded. "If I had to be stuck out here, Quinn, I'm glad it was with you," she said quietly and then she leaned forward and pressed her warm lips softly against Quinn's cheek. It was so unexpected and so quick that Quinn almost didn't register it. Except for the fire that burned its way from her cheek down her neck and stopped in her chest, she would have convinced herself that it hadn't even happened. They were so close and Quinn could have pulled the brunette into the kind of kiss she truly desired, but Rachel moved slightly and snuggled herself down into Quinn's side, resting her head upon her shoulder as Quinn's arm automatically wrapped around Rachel's shoulders to hold her. Quinn held Rachel and stared into the fire as she tried to regulate her breathing. Rachel kissed her. Sure it was just on the cheek, but still Rachel Berry kissed her. She watched flames dance in front of her as she battled with herself internally, trying to decipher what it could have meant. Did Rachel like her as more than a possible friend? She'd always known that Rachel wanted to be friends with her. The girl had been very open about her intentions. She tried to think if she'd ever seen Rachel kiss Mercedes or Tina on the cheek, but she couldn't think of any instances. Of course, that didn't mean anything because she rarely spent time outside of school or glee club with any of them together. She's probably just grateful. That's it. Don't jump to any conclusions. She's just thankful that you're taking care of her. "Quinn?" Rachel sounds more like herself when she speaks Quinn's name and she's thankful that the brunette seems to be doing better emotionally. "Yes?" "How do you know all this stuff? I mean, you've been amazing from the start of all of this. I can't even express how much confidence I have in you just from how knowledgeable you seem to be. You've never seemed like the outdoors type." "Well the first aid stuff is Cheerios 101. If you're going to cheer for Sue Sylvester you have to know how to care for injuries that include more than the occasional bruise or sprain." Quinn's quiet as she thinks about how she acquired all of her knowledge of surviving in the woods. It had been almost two years, but everything was so ingrained in her that assuming the role of guide had felt natural. It also made her nostalgic for the past and left a stone weight in her belly that had become smaller with time, but was still there. "The other stuff, the mountain survival stuff, I learned from my dad." Her voice had become soft and reminiscent as she spoke those words. Quinn had made it a point to never talk about her dad. She had convinced herself that if she could pretend that he didn't exist as well as he pretended the same about her then his rejection of her wouldn't hurt as much. The truth was it was like pretty much everything else in her life. There were moments, in fact these moments were in the majority, when none of it mattered and she could go about her day with relative ease. And then there were the few moments that

would take her by surprise and leave her heart torn from her chest, bleeding and gasping for air because it all just hurt so fucking much. Rachel didn't respond and Quinn was quiet for a long while as she stared into the fire. The occasional pop of burning wood would cause small sparks to flurry around the flames as if they were fireflies. Quinn felt lost in a swirl of memories that made her smile in the same instant that they saddened her heart. For a moment she thought that maybe Rachel had fallen asleep against her, but then she felt the girl shift slightly in her arms. In the next instant she felt the soft warmth of Rachel's hand as she slipped her hand into the one Quinn had dangling over the girl's shoulder. Rachel entwined their fingers and gave her a gentle squeeze, wordlessly encouraging her to speak if she wanted to. Quinn hadn't felt so safe in what felt like forever so after taking a deep breath she began to speak, her voice quiet, as if they were sharing secrets. "My dad doesn't have any sisters, just two brothers. They're all big, athletic guys who enjoy pretty much all sports, including hunting and fishing, which are technically considered sports although I know how offensive that sounds," she added quickly. "So, I guess he always assumed he'd have a son to do all the things with that he grew up doing. When all he got were daughters he figured that girls could be just as athletic as boys. He took me and my sister to sporting events and played catch with us in the yard as if he didn't wish we were sons instead." Quinn chewed her lip as she formulated her next thoughts. "Growing up I never once thought that he would wish I was someone else. I was more athletically inclined than my sister, Abby. I worked harder at everything, I think because I wanted it more. I wanted that look of pride in my dad's eyes when I did something well. Whatever it was it didn't matter. If it was important to him, it was important to me. When Abby was eight Dad took her on a fishing trip, just the two of them and I was so jealous. God," Quinn chuckled softly at the memory, "I was only three but I remember Mom setting up a wading pool in the backyard so I could practice casting with my little pink fishing pole. I was determined to be able to go the next year. When they got back I showed Dad how I'd been practicing. I remember he kneeled down beside me and watched me cast that line into the pool over and over again. I can still his face, how he smiled at me with tears in his eyes and said he was so proud of me and how he couldn't wait for next year so he could take both of his girls with him and he wouldn't have to leave part of his heart behind with me." Quinn's throat closed up at the vivid memory and she fought desperately with the tears that threatened to fall. She took deep breaths as she tried to push the pain of the memory behind. Until two years ago it had been one of her happiest memories, but now it just filled her with a consuming sadness that threatened to swallow her whole. She felt as if she were drifting away into that dark pain until she felt Rachel's thumb beginning to slowly rub circles against her hand that was still linked with the brunettes. In the next instant she felt Rachel's left arm slink between Quinn and the mountain, she gently placed

her hand on Quinn's waist and she dragged her thumb slowly across back and forth across Quinn's rib cage. It anchored her in the present, in the feel of this beautiful, caring girl beside her, so that the pain still mattered, just not as much. Quinn leaned her head against the top of Rachel's head that was still resting on her shoulder and before she could think the gesture through completely she turned her head and placed a soft kiss against the brunette's forehead before gazing back into the safety of the fire and continuing. "So it became an annual thing. Every year we'd go camping, when I got older we started going for a full week as soon as school let out for the summer. When Abby turned fourteen and was more interested in her friends and boys than spending a week alone in the woods with us she started staying home and it was just me and my dad. When I turned thirteen we started going to some more isolated places. We'd hike into areas that were only accessible by foot, carrying all of our supplies on our backs. There was this one time when we were in Kentucky that we followed a stream down until it led into a small lake that was just completely surrounded by trees. There was no vehicle access. We caught the largest bass I'd ever seen and we cooked it for dinner that night, sitting by that lake, looking up at a sky full of stars. We didn't talk, we just were. I thought," Quinn clenched her jaw tightly and unconsciously she tugged Rachel closer, "I thought there was nothing more perfect than those times with my dad; than knowing how much he loved me. This is the second year we haven't gone." It was all too much. She felt as if she'd bared her soul to Rachel and now she needed some space. She needed to distance herself from the wounds she'd opened for the girl beside her. "Fire's going down," she choked out past the emotion closing her throat as she gently removed her arm from around Rachel and moved forward to pile more wood into the lowering flames. Once she had better control of her voice she kept her back to Rachel as she said, "You should lie down in the cave, get some sleep. We'll have another long day ahead of us tomorrow and you'll need your rest." There was silence behind her and part of her expected Rachel to put up a fight. She was grateful when all she heard was the girl moving behind her and when she glanced back she saw that Rachel had listened to her without argument and was trying to make herself as comfortable as possible in the small cave. Quinn turned back and continued what was becoming her favorite pastime as she gazed into the flames but didn't really see them, her mind lost to memories, regrets, and painful truths.

CHAPTER SIX

I have never been so miserable in my entire life. I'm sure things could be worse than they currently are, but the thought of that doesn't really make me feel any better right now. Sure, we could not have a fire or I could be completely alone or dead right now, but somehow that doesn't make me feel any less miserable. I ate an animal. Yes, it was a fish, but it was still a living, breathing creature and I ate it. I watched Quinn catch, kill, and cook it and then I ate it. I take comfort in the knowledge that it was a wild animal that had just as much chance of being caught as not. It's not as though it was one of the millions of poor chickens and cows kept in small enclosures and force fed foods not natural to their diet in an effort to make them gain weight fast and cheap. Food, Inc. is required viewing in my household. I know my morose feelings have more to do with Quinn and less to do with what I ate, however. I was upset with her because I know she killed that fish before I could argue for its life on purpose. I was upset with her because she then had the audacity to be more dramatic than me in her reasonable argument for why we should eat the fish. So I made the decision that she may eat it, but I would not. But then there was the look she gave me and the sense she made in her argument that, yes, we are basically starving right now. But, God, that look is what did it. Her eyes wet with tears she was so sincere in her plea for me to eat. I could hear the concern in her voice and the caring in her eyes and I couldn't refuse her. And then it made me realize what a child I was being and it made me feel even worse. Quinn had done nothing but take care of me for more than 24 hours and how did I repay her? By arguing with her and refusing to speak to her and then practically making her beg me to eat. I watched her become sadder as the evening progressed and I wanted to talk to her, to tell her how sorry I was and that from now on I'll do whatever she asks as soon as she asks it, but I didn't know how to even start. Before I know it her sweater is in my lap and when I pull it over my head the most adorable sight greets me as Quinn tries and fails repeatedly to get the left side of my hoodie over her shoulder. I knew that was my chance and I took it and once we started talking again it felt as if nothing had happened. Except it kind of did. I kissed her. True, it was just her cheek, but oh how I wanted to kiss her lips. I didn't for two reasons. Firstly, I want to ease Quinn into the notion that I am indeed open to an intimate relationship with her. I am a very tactile person. I like to sit close to people, touch their arms or hands when I'm speaking to them, and if I'm close to them and feel safe with them I like to hold hands. But I don't make a habit of kissing my friends. I look forward to the day when I will be able to greet my fellow celebrities with a kiss to the cheek, but I do not practice that currently. I hope that Quinn has been observant enough to realize this and to know that by kissing her cheek I was leaving an opening for her to feel free to make a move. Secondly, and probably most important, I realized as I was going in for the kiss that I haven't brushed my teeth in over 24 hours and I just don't want that kind of memory surrounding our first kiss. I make a mental note to see Dr. Carl when we get back home because I'm definitely going to need a cleaning.

I am surprised beyond belief when Quinn opens up so much about her childhood and why she knows so much about camping and the like. Quinn doesn't really talk about her family, but I'm fairly observant. It's something I consciously work on because I never know what types of roles I may be called upon to play in my future career and I may one day need to draw upon what I'm able to infer from others experiences. I find it difficult to reconcile the images of the caring, attentive father that Quinn painted with her reminiscences with the Russell Fabray that so callously threw his underage pregnant daughter out of the only home she'd ever known. I can't imagine how difficult it must be for Quinn and I understand a little more about the kind of pain she's suffered. She didn't just lose her daughter. She lost her father also. So now I sit in the back of our little covered alcove or cave, my back resting against the hard rocks that are slowly warming from the heat of the fire. I watch Quinn carefully as she sits in front of the fire with her back to me. She pokes at the fire with a stick and sparks shoot into the air. She turns her head and I can see her in stark profile, her high cheekbones and strong jaw, her perfect nose sloping gently down her face. Her hair is wild and unkempt and I can't help the shiver that runs through me at how sexy she looks framed against the dark and the fire like that. It's primal. I continue to watch her as my eyes grow heavy and I fall asleep. (*****************************) "Rachel, wake up." Quinn's voice is urgent in my ear and I open my eyes to meet her hazel eyes just inches from mine. I'm thrown by the depth of them, how immense they look, but then I realize that it's Quinn and of course her eyes would be like that because she is immense and deep and forever. "What's going on?" I ask sleepily. I look up and there are still stars in the sky and there's barely enough light to see by. There are darker shadows standing in the night and I tell myself it's just trees and rocks, but it feels menacing and my heart chills with fear. "We have to go. They're coming," Quinn tells me as she takes my hand and pulls me up. "Who's coming?" I ask because I'm still confused and my fear is making my heart pound in my ears so hard that I can't quite comprehend what she's saying. Nothing makes sense. "They are," Quinn answers as if I should know who they are. And then we're standing outside our cave and the darkness and the trees are surrounding us and she moves in front of me and locks her eyes on mine. "Do you trust me?" I can't find my voice but I know within my heart and my head that I trust her implicitly and she somehow knows this. She smiles shyly at me, as if she's heard more in my mind and

heart than I wanted her to know. Suddenly she turns and her movements are swift and sure. She takes my right hand in her left and now we're running through the darkness. I've never seen her run so fast and I had no idea that I could run so fast. Branches pull at my clothes and I feel vines wrapping around my feet trying to slow me down, but Quinn never lets go of my hand. She pulls me through the scary tangle of forest and suddenly we burst out of the darkness. We're standing at the edge of a cliff. I can see the dark forest all around us, at our back from where we came and far below us, like a dark shag carpet. The moon is larger than I've ever seen. It takes up almost the whole sky and Quinn smiles at me. "We made it. I told you I would get you home. Now you can be a star." She points and I follow her gesture. I see the dark point in the sky and I understand that she wants me to go there. That the empty space is meant for me to shine, but I don't know how I'm supposed to get there and I don't want to leave Quinn. As I stand there trying to get the courage to make the jump it appears is necessary Quinn just smiles at me. I see movement to my right and I turn to see a large white horse come out of the darkness behind us. It's beautiful and then I notice that it's not a horse. It's a unicorn. "Quinn, there's a unicorn." I tell her this as if I'm simply delivering a message. I realize that I've used the wrong emotion and so I try again. "Quinn, there's a unicorn." It comes out in the same monotone and I frown at her. She smiles a goofy grin. "Once more with feeling," she tells me. "Quinn, there's a unicorn!" I feel proud that I finally got the line right. She claps for me and I give a small curtsy. "Sing to the unicorn Rachel and it will take you home to the stars." She hasn't said it but I know that if I sing and ride the unicorn home that I will leave Quinn behind. I will lose her and it terrifies me more than the darkest forest. "Quinn, what about you? Can't you come with me?" "Sweetie," she says as she runs her fingers soothingly over my cheek, "I can't ride the unicorn." "Why not?" I cry. "Because I killed the fish."

"But I ate the fish," I wail now and I can't stop my sobs. "I can't Quinn. I can't sing. I can't leave you!" She wraps her arms around me and shushes me, her lips warm against my ear. I shiver and we're back in the darkness of the woods standing outside our cave. The unicorn is gone and it's dark and cold. I feel so cold now and I wrap my arms tightly around Quinn. She's warm against me and it feels so good to have her this close. "Quinn, I'm cold," I tell her. "Let me take care of that." Her voice is husky and I look to her with shock at the sultry tone I hear. Before I realize what's happening her lips are on mine. They are soft and warm and it feels so perfect. Our lips brush lazily against each other as we learn each other's contours. I suck her bottom lip slowly and pull away slightly. I feel as if we've been kissing forever and from the look in her eyes and the plumpness of her lips we may have been. "Look. We started a fire," she says quietly, her eyes never leaving mine. I pull my gaze from her and I now see that the dark forest is gone and fire surrounds us on all sides. I'm confused for a little bit because I don't know how the entire forest caught fire and yet I'm still so cold. "How did that happen?" I ask her. "Like this." Now her hands are on my waist and she pulls me hard against her body as her lips crash against mine over and over again. I gasp at the shock of arousal that shoots through me and she slips her tongue inside my mouth. It's wet and soft and she runs her tongue across the roof of my mouth before twisting her tongue around mine and then sucking on it. My hips rocket forward and I grip her hair as I shout with the unexpected force of my arousal. Her hands seem to be everywhere. I feel them pulling my hips into her even as she backs me up against the wall of the mountain. She pins me against the wall with her own hips and we find a rhythm quickly as we writhe against each other. She drags her tongue down my jawline and nips lightly at my neck before she's sucking on my collarbone as her hands push their way up my stomach and now she's cupping my breasts as I cry out into the flaming forest. I still feel cold but I don't care because there's electricity coursing through every nerve ending of my body as she twists my nipple in the same moment that she shoves her tongue back into my mouth and, oh my God, I could die right now. But no! I don't want to die right now. Not yet, not when I'm so close. I can feel it building in my belly. That delicious feeling that I know is going to be so much better because I'm not alone. I'm with Quinn and it's her body, her hands, her tongue pushing me to that edge. Her mouth moves down my neck and then up to my ear and she

takes my lobe lightly between her teeth before she whispers in my ear. "Sweetie, you're so cold. You should wake up." "What?" I breathe as I rock my hips erratically against her. I'm so fucking close. "Hhhhuuuuuhhh," I hear myself breathe in deeply as I rocket awake so quickly I'm completely disoriented. I blink my eyes as I try to calm my racing heart. My dream is still very vivid in my mind and I groan as I feel the wetness between my thighs and the throbbing ache that I know I won't be able to take care of. I look around to try to get my bearings. I see Quinn lying beside me, propped against the cave wall with a stick still in her hand. I smile at how innocent she looks, but it quickly disappears when I'm barraged with images of the sex dream I just had. I wonder if what I imagine her tongue tastes like is really what it tastes like. Probably better than I imagine, I think with a smirk. I shiver and realize that I woke up because I'm cold. Dawn is barely breaking and it still feels much too dark to be wandering around. I'm thankful that the fire and wood pile is so close that I don't have to actually leave our little cave to get it restarted. I've seen Survivor enough times that I know how to at least get it restarted and I'm quite proud of myself when I blow the embers into flames. I slowly pile branches on the little fire, building it up the way that I've watched Quinn do over the last two nights. Two nights. That amazes me. We've been out in these woods for two days and two nights together. I'm concerned that we haven't seen any planes or helicopters flying overhead. We haven't even heard anything, no search parties calling our name or distant engines flying over the wrong area. It worries me because if I'm being honest, Mr. Schuester is the last person I'd entrust with my life. He's much too easily distracted and I'm concerned that he somehow convinced himself that Quinn and I took some time to ourselves to work out our perceived differences and he hasn't even called the authorities. I rub my arms briskly as I feel the heat from the fire slowly permeate my clothes and reach my chilled body. I stare into the fire and watch the flames dance as I've seen Quinn do so many times. They truly are hypnotic. It's almost meditative. I'm pulled from my thoughts when I hear a sudden loud noise, almost like rushing water and my entire body tenses as I look around to try to figure out what it is and where it's coming from. It seems to come from everywhere and images of bursting dams and rushing water crushing us flash through my mind. Unconsciously I scoot further back into the cave and find myself right next to Quinn. She jolts awake at my movements, her eyes darting around as she tries to gain focus. She grips the stick in her hand and raises it as if she's going to ward off all the possible evils in the world. "What's wrong?" she asks me as I snuggle in close to her.

"Don't you hear it?" I ask her and my voice once again betrays my fear and uncertainties. "What's that noise?" Quinn cocks her ear and listens and then quirks her eyebrow at me. "What noise?" I know I'm not crazy. She must hear it! "That sound! Like rushing water is all around us." Quinn listens intently again and then smiles kindly at me as she wraps her right arm around me. "It's just the wind Rach. It sounds different here because we're down in the ravine which is kind of acting like a funnel and the sound you hear is it moving through all the trees." "Oh." I'm so tired of feeling like a complete and total idiot. "I restarted the fire," I tell her proudly because it's the only thing I can think of that I've contributed lately and I feel badly for waking her up because the wind blowing through the trees scared me. Quinn looks to the fire and then smiles at me. "Good job. It feels good. I think it was colder last night than the night before." I smile and snuggle in as close as I can get underneath her arm. I rest my head against her shoulder and I feel her place her chin on top of my head. It feels so natural for us to be together like this. I place my hand against her stomach and play with the fold of material that covers the zipper. We should cuddle like this every night. Everywhere our bodies touch feels so much warmer. I tell her this and I feel her breathe deeply. I wonder if she's about to let me down gently. "That's probably a good idea. It would definitely keep us warmer." I smile and I think she can feel it against her shoulder because she moves her chin a little and I can barely feel her lips ghosting over my hairline. Her breath is warm against me when she speaks again. "I should have a look at that cut. We haven't checked it since I first bandaged it and I don't want it to get infected or anything." I nod as I wonder if it's going to leave a scar. I don't think I'd mind too much because it doesn't feel like it's in a very visible place and also it will always remind me of Quinn and how awe-mazing she is. I smirk to myself because I just made up a word. "How's your shoulder?" "The sling has helped a lot. It doesn't hurt nearly as much right now as it has been." I'm glad for that because I hate the idea of her being in pain. It reminds me of my own injury and I look down at my ankle as I slowly try moving it around, twisting my foot up and down and left to right. There's some pain, but it's bearable. I relate the news to Quinn and she squeezes my shoulder.

"That's great news, but I don't want you to try too much too soon. You don't want to reinjure it." We're quiet for a while as we watch day break on our little part of the world. I could lay with Quinn like this forever, but I know that's impossible because for one thing we'd starve to death and then what would be the point of anything. "Quinn, what's going to happen?" "We'll take our time this morning, let the fire burn down and refill our water bottles. Then I think we should keep following the creek. We said that's what we'd do in our note so if anyone finds it we want to keep to that as much as possible, plus it's gotten much bigger so I don't think we're far from a stream or river. Definitely at least a larger body of water that we'll have a better chance of finding other people at." I'm glad she has a plan. Quinn always has a plan, but it's not exactly what I meant. "I mean when we get home. What's going to happen between us?" I pause because I feel her muscles tense against my body and I don't want to try for too much too quickly, but I have to know that we at least have a shot at friendship after all of this. Although based upon my dream I don't know if I can be just friends with her. "I mean, we've gotten close through all of this. You haven't called me anything except sweetie and Rachel since it all began and you've been so caring and kind. I just, I really like being your friend Quinn. I like being close to you and when we get home I'd like to continue this relationship if you're willing." I pull my head back a little and twist so that I can look in her eyes and let her know what I truly mean when I say my next words. "I'd like to see where this could lead." I want to smile at the slight widening of her eyes, but I maintain my composure. I watch as her eyes dart quickly as she takes in my face and I can actually see the emotions and thoughts racing through her mind. Slowly her lips curl up into a soft smile and she leans in and kisses my cheek, reciprocating from the night before. She pauses before she pulls back and then whispers lowly in my ear. "I'd like that too." She pulls back shyly and then nudges me to lie my head back down against her and she places her chin on my head again. We lie their cuddled together and I wonder if her mind is full of hope and happiness the way that mine currently is. The only thought that darkens my emotions at the moment is the realization that all of my hopes and dreams currently hinge on one tiny thing. Actually getting home. "They're looking for us, right Quinn?"

Quinn breathes in deeply and then her breath tickles my forehead again as she assures me, "Yeah, Rachel. They're looking for us."

CHAPTER SEVEN: UNEXPECTED VISITORS Judy Fabray stood and watched as the rising sun slowly illuminated the standing wall of trees that currently separated her from her youngest daughter. She sipped slowly from a paper cup filled with disgusting but hot coffee as she watched the organized swarm of people from the porch of the cabin the kids had rented. She had dark circles underneath her bloodshot eyes and her hair was pulled into a sloppy ponytail, but she really didn't care. From the moment she'd received the phone call from Will Schuester telling her that Quinn and one of her classmates were missing she hadn't really cared about anything except finding her daughter. It had been over thirty-six hours since the girls had gone missing. Over twenty-four hours since either of the girls' parents had been notified. Judy bit her lip as she darted a disdainful look toward Will Schuester. He was standing a few yards away speaking animatedly to the head of the Search and Rescue Team, an Officer Baker. The only impression she'd had of Will Schuester before this incident had been based solely upon things Quinn had mentioned. She had thought he was a well-intentioned, caring teacher who sometimes interfered too much; that occasionally he was oblivious to what his students were actually doing, but only because he trusted them and knew them to be good people at heart. Now Judy thought of him as a weak, sniveling, pitiful excuse for a man. He waited over twelve hours before contacting either herself or the Berry's to let them know that their children, whom they had entrusted in his care, were nowhere to be found. Worse than that, he had refused to take responsibility for the delay in the initial search for the girls. According to what she'd been able to find out the group had gone on a long hike that had taken most of the day. When they stopped to have lunch everyone was accounted for, but at some point on the way back to the cabin the girls were separated from the group. No one knew why or how it had happened. They didn't even know exactly when it had happened because no one noticed that her daughter was missing until an hour after they'd been back at the cabin and then each person who realized it didn't think anything of it because they all assumed she was with someone else. That Mercedes girl had thought Quinn was with Santana and Brittany. Everyone thought Rachel was off somewhere with Finn. No one had put anything together until nearly five o'clock that evening when the group gathered for dinner and realized that neither of the girls was there. Even then Mr. Schuester had hesitated to consider that anything was seriously wrong, stating that he thought the girls had taken some private time to try to work through their issues. Whatever that meant Judy wasn't sure, but she was grateful to Santana and Brittany who had insisted that they call for help and even that Hummel boy

had spoken up and stated that Rachel wouldn't be out in the wild for any longer than necessary. She took another slow sip of coffee as her eyes skipped across the group of volunteers and friends that had come out to help search for the girls. She spotted the tall frame of Finn Hudson and frowned slightly. She'd never really liked that boy. He was sweet enough most of the time, but sometimes she got the feeling that he only seemed sweet because he was so dim, mentally; that if he were only a little sharper he could be more cruel and cunning than kind and sweet. She watched as he spoke to the Berry men, his head lowered in shame and she could only imagine what kind of excuses he was handing out to his girlfriend's fathers as to why he never noticed that she was no longer by his side on their way down the mountain. Judy felt and heard the presence of someone moving to stand beside her and turned her gaze slightly to see the lean form of Santana Lopez leaning against the railing nursing her own cup of coffee. She saw the girl grimace as she took a sip of the hot brew. She took a deep breath and for the hundredth time forced back the tears that threatened as she searched the dense woods as if she could see through trees and rocks and mountain terrain to find her daughter herself. Two nights. Her daughter had spent two nights in that wilderness with little to no food, no supplies, nothing to protect herself. She took a shuddering breath and gripped the railing hard as she tried to not let the weight of that truth crush her. "Q's tough." Judy turned sharply and met the dark brown eyes of Santana. The girl looked tired, her eyes just as baggy and bloodshot as Judy's, but there was also a fire there that Judy wished she possessed. "She's been through a lot in her life and she's not an amateur when it comes to surviving, wilderness or not. We have to believe that she's doing what she needs to in order to stay safe until we find her. She's doing her job. Our job is to find her. We're going to find her Mrs. Fabray and then I'll kick her ass for you for making us all worry like this." Judy gave the Latina a half smile and then in an unfamiliar gesture to both of them she grabbed the girl close to her in a one-armed hug. "Thank you, Santana," she whispered before quickly releasing her and turning her attention back to the search party. She watched Santana walk down the steps and wrap an arm around Brittany's waist as she joined a group of her friends. Judy glanced at her watch. Ten more minutes and then everyone would form into the same groups they had the day before to begin searching for the two missing girls. Each group contained at least one professional, whether it is a police officer or forest ranger, acting as team leader. The team leader had a radio so they could keep in touch with base camp as their team searched the woods in a grid, each of them walking approximately twenty yards away from each other. It was enough to be able to yell at each other to communicate and still cover ground.

She was amazed at how many people had shown up to help in the search. There were volunteers from nearby towns and of course all of the glee kids were helping. What surprised her was that all of their parents had come as well. She assumed that probably part of the reason they were all there was to make certain that their child was safe and accounted for, but it was reassuring to see as many people as possible helping, no matter their reason for being there. She finished her coffee and began her own walk down the steps as she thought bitterly of who wasn't there. When she had received the news from Will Schuester she had immediately called Russell to let him know. He was, after all, familiar with being in the woods. He'd spent all those years camping with Quinn. She had thought if anyone could find her, Russell could. When she'd told him that Quinn was missing in Wayne National Forest and that she'd already been out in the elements for one night before Judy had even been informed, he'd been silent and then he asked her what she expected him to do about it. The rage that had swept through her at his cavalier attitude toward their daughter's safety had nearly choked her. "You know what Russell? I know that you were angry and hurt and disappointed by Quinn's actions. I know you had higher hopes, higher expectations for her. So did I. But the fact is she's trying to put her life back together and she's been doing a fairly decent job of it no thanks to us. We're her parents and we're supposed to love her and help her and support her no matter what. We failed Russell. I failed when I let you throw her out of the house that night. I failed when I suspected the truth and I ignored it instead of offering her the guidance and support that I should have as her mother and as an adult." She paused only long enough to take a quick breath before continuing. "You failed too, Russell. You failed as a father and as a husband. But you didn't fail because you made a mistake born of youthful ignorance the way Quinn did. You failed because you helped raise our daughter to have Christian values, to believe the things you taught her were important in pleasing God and then you failed to practice any of those things. You let your own pride take precedence over helping Quinn through the most painful choices she's ever had to make. You bathed in your own hypocrisy when you threw our daughter out of her home because she'd sinned by having sex before marriage when you yourself were defiling our marriage bed with your whore. You want forgiveness from God and your loved ones for the mistakes you make, but you yourself aren't willing to forgive your own daughter when she's begging for you to just love her. And I swear to God Russell, if anything happens to Quinn and you didn't do everything you could to help, I will never forgive you. God will never forgive you. And you'll never forgive yourself." Judy took a calming breath and quickly whisked a stray tear from her eye as she approached her search party grouping. She was in the same group as Kurt Hummel and Leroy Berry. She had only met Leroy less than twenty hours ago and yet she liked him very much. He was quiet, but she could sense a strength about him that she found comforting. His husband, Hiram, seemed anxious and overly energetic, but she wasn't sure if that was

just his way of dealing with the situation or the way he was all the time. Either way, Leroy seemed to have a calming effect on him and after yesterday's search the short Jewish man had been switched with Mercedes Jones so that he could be in the same group as his husband on the request of his team leader. Judy noticed a few more cars pulling into the area as more volunteers showed up to help just as Officer Baker grabbed the bullhorn off the hood of his Jeep and began making an announcement. "I want to thank everyone for coming out. I know you're all aware of the urgency. We have two seventeen year old girls that have now been missing for almost forty hours. We are working under the assumption that they have little to no supplies, including food, with them since they were on what was supposed to be a one day hike. We are also assuming that either one or both of them are injured in some way since it is believed they would not have wandered far from the trail if they weren't. Now I'm sure most of you have noticed that the wind has picked up a bit. I just got off the horn with the weather service and they're expecting a severe thunderstorm to roll through our area in the next twenty-four hours. Its estimated time of arrival is either late afternoon or this evening. No one is to stay out in the storm so let's get out there and find those girls. Your team leader will have your maps." "She'll be on the move." The voice from the back of the group made Judy's head snap around in surprise. Her mouth dropped open and tears sprung to her eyes as she took in her ex-husband standing slightly away from the rest of the group. His hair was disheveled and he looked as if he'd aged considerably since the last time she saw him, but he also looked strong and confident and she felt a surge of long buried admiration for the man she'd once loved. "Excuse me?" asked Officer Baker as he frowned at the outspoken man he didn't recognize. Russell cleared his throat and then explained. "I'm Russell Fabray, Quinn's father. If you haven't found her yet it's because she's on the move, which could mean multiple things. Either she and this other girl got themselves in a situation, whether they're injured or in an area they can't get out of, or they ended up somewhere that Quinn didn't feel was safe. Either way, I'm telling you right now that Quinn's not going to sit still and wait for someone to come find her. She's going to either try to find her own way out or she's going to try to get to somewhere that she'll be able to signal for help." "Mr. Fabray's right." Judy was going to get whiplash with how quickly she was snapping her head around as each new person joined the conversation. It was Santana again and Judy had to smile at the girl. She was certainly the most outspoken of the bunch that she'd met so far. "Quinn isn't the type to just sit around and wait for shit, sorry, stuff to happen. She's going to do whatever she can to get herself out of it."

"Quinn may be this Warrior Princess type you describe, but my Rachel doesn't know the first thing about survival in the woods. Are we absolutely certain their together? And if they are is Quinn going to drag my daughter into even more danger by not staying put and waiting for help to come?" Hiram Berry's nervous voice made Judy cringe a little, but she couldn't help feeling a defensive fire burn up her spine at his words. Santana must have felt the same way. "No offense intended Daddy Berry, but you don't know Quinn. There's no way in hell she's going to let anything happen to the dwarf, sorry, Rachel and I bet you dinner at Breadsticks there's no way she walks out of these woods without your daughter right beside her." Hiram's eyes fill with tears and he looks away, but asks quietly, "How can you be so sure she'll take care of her?" Judy watches as Santana cuts a quick glance toward Brittany and then just replies, "I just am." A niggle of worry starts in Judy's mind at the look that crossed the girls face, but she pushes it aside because the dreadful fear of never seeing Quinn again is more present. Officer Baker's voice focuses everyone back to him. "We're wasting time debating here. Everyone you have your assignments. Let's find these girls." He lowers the bullhorn and Judy watches him walk toward Russell and pull him aside. Just before she follows her group into the tree line she takes one more look over her shoulder and sees Officer Baker and Russell leaning over a folding table, scouring over a map. (********************************) "Okay, um, favorite book." "Watership Down," Quinn answered without hesitation. Rachel smiled as Quinn moved to help her over an especially rocky area. "I've never heard of it. What's it about?" "Technically, it's about a bunch of rabbits that leave their home warren when one of them has a premonition about an unknown danger. It follows their adventures as they try to find a safe place to start their own warren." At the lopsided grin that Rachel gives her she blushes and then, as she usually does when she's asked about the book, she feels the need to defend why she loves it so much. "They're not anthropomorphic. It's not like Roger Rabbit or anything. Really it's a story about this ragtag bunch of outsiders and a couple insiders that aren't happy with the way they're being treated who band together and through the adversities that they overcome they all become this family that learns to depend on each other and recognize each other's strengths and weaknesses for the betterment of the entire group."

There's silence as Rachel seems to mull this information over. "So it's kind of like us." "Us?" Quinn questions. "You know. Glee Club." Quinn thinks about it for a moment and then laughs. "Yeah, I guess it is kind of like us." They've been doing this for the last hour or so. Rachel said it would be a good way to get to know each other better, but Quinn suspects that part of it is just Rachel being nervous. There may be many things she didn't know about Rachel before this whole fiasco, like that her favorite color wasn't actually pink but was golden yellow or that when she was four and had watched Annie for the first time she would line all of her Barbie's and stuffed animals up on the floor and perform "Tomorrow" each night before she would go to bed. She also didn't know that Puck had actually been Rachel's first kiss when she was six and he'd cornered her one night at Temple. That little bit of information she could have done without, although it had been gratifying to know that Rachel had told her fathers, who told Puck's mother, who grounded Puck for a week and the next time he saw her in Temple he refused to speak to her. It wasn't gratifying to know that Rachel's feelings had been hurt, just to know that Puck had been punished for stealing her first kiss. So now Quinn knows a lot more details about Rachel and Rachel knows a lot more about her, but one thing Quinn didn't need to be told about Rachel Berry is that when she's nervous, she talks. A lot. Honestly, Quinn was feeling pretty nervous herself and the really crazy thing was that she wasn't nervous about the situation they were in or the fact that after having a very minimal breakfast this morning that didn't leave them any less hungry but depleted their food stuffs down to a couple granola bars and a small bag of trail mix, or the idea that they could at this very moment be being stalked by a mountain lion and not even know it. No, these many things were not what Quinn was nervous about. She was nervous about the way Rachel had looked at her this morning when she talked about the possible progression of their relationship. She was nervous about how natural and comfortable it had felt to cuddle with Rachel this morning, to hold her close and kiss her cheek. She was nervous about the fact that none of that had actually made her nervous. It had all felt soeasy. And nothing in Quinn's life had ever been easy. "What about you?" she asked Rachel as they continued to slowly make their way downstream. "What's your favorite book?" "I think you'll be surprised," Rachel sing-songed as she flashed Quinn a flirtatious smile. Quinn couldn't stop the heat that flushed through her face and chest. She was done pretending that Rachel wasn't flirting with her. There was no way to misinterpret the way they'd been with each other that morning and when coupled with all of the little moments they'd shared in the last two days Quinn was certain that Rachel liked her in a more than

platonic way. Now she just didn't know what to do about it. She knew that her feelings had started for the brunette long before any of their current adventures had taken place. But she couldn't be certain of Rachel's feelings and she was worried the girl was simply misplacing gratitude toward her or possibly misinterpreting her own feelings because of the heightened emotions due to the life or death situation they found themselves in. Either way, Quinn was determined to not do anything that she couldn't take back until they were back in the real world and they could both be certain of Rachel's true feelings. But that didn't mean she was going to completely ignore Rachel either. "So then I'm guessing it isn't the Barbra Streisand biography," Quinn teased as she lightly bumped her good shoulder against Rachel's. Rachel laughed and Quinn let the sound fill her chest with a warm happiness that she didn't think she'd ever felt before. The brunette shook her head and then turned her sparkling brown eyes on the blonde. "That would be a good guess and although I do love Barbra and feel a deep connection to her both personally and professionally, it was not my favorite piece of literature. Informative, but not favorite." When Rachel went silent Quinn prompted her to continue. "Okay, so what is your favorite book, then?" "I'm trying to pick one. I love a certain author and I'm weighing the properties of each of his books to try to decide which one I enjoy the most." Quinn watched with a smile on her face as Rachel's brow furrowed in concentration. She takes everything so seriously. Freaking adorable, Quinn thought. Rachel sighed quietly as she seemed to finally make up her mind on what she would answer. "Okay, so even though it feels a little bit like I'm betraying his other books by choosing one as a favorite, I'm going to have to say that Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde is my favorite book. I love the way that he uses language and other works of literature to create humor within the framework of his stories. He does that with all of them, but with Shades of Grey it just felt bigger. It felt kind of like a commentary on accepting the status quo and how much government and societal mores can limit our vision, both of our own predicament and what others may be experiencing. And at the same time it's kind of a love story, star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet and all that." Quinn smiled and shook her head. Of course Rachel would love a love story that also had a social commentary. "I've never heard of it," she said. "I'll loan it to you when we get home," Rachel replied with a smile. Quinn smiled in response. "Can I borrow Watership Down?" she asked quietly.

"When we get home we'll do a book exchange," Quinn said with confidence. She knew that's partly what Rachel was looking for when she asked the question. Quinn had been working very hard at keeping any negative thoughts at bay. She knew she needed to stay confident for Rachel. She could see the way the girl looked at her, as if she held the answers to everything. As if by sheer will alone Quinn could save them both. And Quinn wanted nothing more than to provide that to Rachel. She wanted to be her hero, her savior. She knew that if she stayed positive and confident of their survival then not only would it keep Rachel positive and working with her, but it would keep her moving too. Because right now Quinn was so hungry and tired that she was fighting the occasional urge to simply sit down and wait for the inevitable. But she would never do that because keeping Rachel safe, getting Rachel home, was the most important thing to her right now. It was approaching noon and the wind had picked up considerably. The trees around them shook and moaned with the strength of the wind pushing through them. Quinn didn't like the look of the clouds skidding across the sky. They had started out small and scattered, but they were quickly growing larger and piling together into a light gray mass of ominous peaks that promised nothing good. She wondered if maybe they should have stayed at the cave instead of pressing onward. She had searched the entire area for more cougar tracks that morning and had found no signs of the animal. The tingling feeling of being watched hadn't plagued her since the day before and she was fairly certain that they had successfully found their way out of the large cat's territory. She was hoping that he'd found easier game. "Could we rest for a little bit?" Rachel asked as she leaned tiredly against the trunk of a large tree. Quinn instantly felt guilty. She had been so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't noticed that Rachel had begun to slow down. "Of course," Quinn said as she hurried to help Rachel take the pack off and lower herself to the ground. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as she reached into the pack and pulled out the bag of trail mix. "What?" Rachel asked as she held her hand out for Quinn to pour some of the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit mixture into it. "I was just thinking about how adamant you were about getting a cabin because you didn't want to expose yourself to, how did you put it, "the elements and dangers of the natural world". And now look at you. You've spent two nights without any kind of shelter, not even a sleeping bag, and you just sat down in the dirt, the dirt Rachel, like it was nothing." Quinn paused as she smiled at the brunette.

Rachel frowned slightly as she chewed slowly on what would most likely be the only thing they had for lunch. "It's not like I've really had a choice." Quinn picked up on the slight hurt she heard in the girl's tone and shook her head. "I wasn't trying to tease you Rachel. I I'm just proud of you." Rachel blushed slightly and then whispered, "Thank you." They ate another handful of trail mix in silence. After a while they decided mutually that it was time to get going again and Quinn helped Rachel up from the ground and then in a very practiced routine helped put the pack back on her small shoulders. When Rachel turned around she had a smudge of dirt across her cheek. The strap from the pack must have brushed against her when she was putting it on. Quinn smiled and reached forward without really thinking about what she was doing. She cupped Rachel's jaw in her hand and gently rubbed her thumb against the girl's cheek as she swept the bit of dirt away. It was the slight hitch in Rachel's breathing that made her realize that she was basically caressing the girl and that they were standing close enough for her to actually feel the warmth emanating from the small girl. Quinn swallowed hard and met Rachel's eyes. They were dark; darker than normal. Her eyes flickered down to Rachel's mouth as her tongue darted out and quickly wet her luscious lips. God Quinn moaned internally as her breath suddenly quickened and her body betrayed her by moving even closer. "You have a bit of," her voice trailed off as she realized she'd forgotten exactly why she was cupping Rachel's face, why her thumb was still gently rubbing soft circles across her cheekbone. She barely even recognized her own voice when she spoke. It was suddenly so low and husky and full of something, she wasn't sure what. Was that desire? And then she felt Rachel's hands reach forward and grip her waist and electricity shot through her. Yes. Yes that is desire. She felt Rachel's breath against her own lips as the girl whispered her name. She watched Rachel's eyes begin to shutter closed as she moved forward and Quinn moved to close the distance and finally, finally, kiss her when movement over Rachel's shoulder and to her left caught her attention and she suddenly pulled back. "Quinn?" Rachel's voice questioned, but Quinn quickly moved the hand that had been caressing Rachel's cheek to her mouth and she gently placed her finger over the girl's lips. She gave her a soft smile to try to reassure her, but her eyes remained serious as she moved slightly to the left to get a better view. Her heart instantly began thudding hard in her chest and she broke out in a cold sweat. It hadn't seen them yet. They were downwind so it hadn't smelled them yet either, but there was no mistaking the large black shape lumbering slowly down the steep hill, now maybe sixty yards away and heading straight for them.

CHAPTER EIGHT: BREAKING STORMS Quinn's hand is so soft and warm on my face and there's this amazingly soft smile playing across hers' and I can't even help the way my breath catches in my chest from the feelings that being so close to her evoke. Her eyes track to mine and I lick my lips in anticipation, watching as the dark hazel flicks down quickly to catch the movement of my mouth and I know, I just know that this is it. I don't care about proper oral hygiene. I don't care that it may be moving too quickly. I don't care that she may be afraid of what's happening between us. I just want to kiss her. I want to kiss her so badly that I can almost feel her lips already on mine as I reach forward and grip her hips to steady myself as she leans into me. I breathe her name to try to reassure her. We are so close I can feel the warmth of her flesh teasing my lips and suddenly she's gone. I feel the shift in her mood instantly and when I question what's happened her finger moves to gently press against my lips. It's not what I was expecting, nor exactly what body part of hers I want there, but I see in the curve of her lips that she's not trying to be cruel. I turn my head to where she's anxiously looking and I feel my heart stop and my breath catch in my chest for completely different reasons than it did just a moment ago. There is something big and black moving slowly across the rough terrain and when it lifts and swings its head slowly left and right as it tries to catch a scent in the wind I realize that this whole situation has become much more real. Technically, it's a relatively small black bear, but even a small bear is terrifying and extremely dangerous when there's nothing standing between you and it. We have no weapons to defend ourselves, there is no zoo fence to keep it from reaching us, and we are both injured. I realize that Quinn could run right now and get away from the bear quite quickly, leaving me behind to keep herself safe and even though rationally I know this won't happen it fills me with the uncontrollable need to start running. Right now. It only takes a few seconds of putting all of this together before I turn to try to run in the other direction. Quinn's hand on my wrist stops me. Her voice is low and completely calm and if I didn't see the sweat on her brow or how pale she's suddenly become I would have no idea that she's just as afraid as I am. "Don't run," she whispers. "I don't think it sees us yet. Start heading back toward the cave but try not to draw attention to us." "Quinn," I whisper and I can hear the fear in my voice. She gives my hand a squeeze and then pushes me to start moving. "I'm right behind you Rachel."

Moving slowly isn't really a problem for me right now. My leg is so exhausted from carrying me all this way it aches and the muscles tremble occasionally. I've been forcing myself to keep moving, to not show Quinn how exhausted I am because I don't want to be a burden to her. I choose my way carefully so as to avoid making a lot of noise, but it's nearly impossible and every movement I make sounds deafening to my ears. My heart hammers in my chest and I can hear my blood pounding in my head. It seems to scream along with every nerve ending in my body. Bear. Run. Bear. Run. Bear. Run. It keeps chanting and I have to force myself to not ignore the pain in my left ankle and simply run crashing through the forest. I feel certain that at any moment that's exactly what I will hear behind me. The gruff huffing noise of the bear as it charges through the trees, crashing through the grass and brush to slam into my body and rip me to shreds. I know that my vivid imagination is not doing me any good in this moment. I haven't made it very far when I chance a glance over my shoulder to make certain that Quinn is still following me and my heart stops in my chest. The bear is much closer now. It's standing beside the creek we've been following this entire time. It's not like any of the giant bears I've seen in movies. It's short and stout with trunk like legs and enormous paws. I realize it's probably just a little larger than my dresser at home. All of this flashes through my mind in an instant, but the one thing I can't take my focus from is the fact that it has obviously seen us. It's maybe thirty yards away from us right now. I watch as it throws its' head around in the air. I try to remember what I've read about bears and I realize it must be trying to catch our scent because they don't have very good eye sight. I lean against a nearby tree for support as my leg feels like jelly and I don't think I can stand anymore. I know I should keep moving like Quinn told me to, but I can't because now my focus has shifted from the bear to Quinn. She's about fifteen feet away from me and she's put herself between me and the bear. I don't understand what she's doing, but I see that she's holding the end of a large branch in her right hand. She just stands there for a moment and then she takes a slow deliberate step backwards, never turning to look at me. Her eyes are focused on the bear. My throat closes up with fear when the bear throws his head to the ground and paws the earth in front of him, making a loud snuffling noise. Quinn stops. My breath stops. The bear takes a step forward and then I can't believe what's happening because Quinn lifts the large branch up, but it's too big to lift with only one hand and I hear pain in the loud cry that emits from her mouth when she grips it with both her hands and raises the large branch into the air. "Ha! Bear! Ha!" Quinn is yelling loudly now and waving the large branch making herself as big as possible. She keeps yelling and the bear shakes its head and paws the ground again. Quinn doesn't stop. She just keeps yelling and waving the large branch as she stands between me and

the animal. Suddenly the bear snuffles loudly and then turns and ambles away. Quinn doesn't stop yelling until the bear pulls itself over the ledge it came down from and is gone. My breath comes back to me in a hungry gasp. I watch as the branch falls from Quinn's hands and she crumples to her knees. I push off the tree and make my way to her. She's now clutching her left arm against her and as I reach her she braces herself against a tree trunk with her right arm and vomits. I let the pack slide heavily from my shoulders and quickly grab her water bottle from inside. I kneel down beside her and I can now see that she's visibly shaking. I rub my hand over her back soothingly as she continues to dry heave into the bushes. I don't know if it's the pain she must have experienced by using her shoulder or the fear of facing off with the bear, but her body is practically in convulsions she's shaking so badly. When her stomach stops revolting I help her take a drink of water. She uses it to wash out her mouth and spits it into the bushes along with the meager contents of her stomach. She's still shaking and her face is so pale I sit down beside her and wrap my arms around her. I nuzzle softly against her neck and whisper nonsense in her ear as she trembles in my arms, her breathing erratic. I don't know how long we sit there like that, but then Quinn takes a deep breath and pulls away. She's still very pale and I can see a slight tremor in her hands when she moves, but her breathing is more regular and her voice is steady when she speaks. "We should go back to the cave." It's that simple. And then she rises and helps me to my feet and slips the pack back on my shoulders and her arm back in the sling and we start slowly making our way back to the campsite we left that morning. Every fiber of my being wants to talk about what happened. I want to tell her how scared I was. I want to ask what in the hell she was thinking putting herself in danger like that. I want to ask her how her arm is and if she thinks she's permanently damaged it now. I want to ask her if she would have kissed me if the bear hadn't wandered down at that moment. I want to ask her if she still would kiss me. But I don't ask any of these things. I don't say anything as we make our way back because I can feel that Quinn is holding on by a thread. I need to talk things through and Quinn needs silence. I'm working on being less selfish so I decide to give her the silence she needs. I'm grateful when we reach the cave for many reasons. It feels safe and familiar and after what I just witnessed I really need that. I'm exhausted from hobbling around on one leg and lack of sleep and I'm starving and I don't want to go anywhere anymore. There's still a decent pile of firewood left over from our previous night and I breathe a sigh of relief as I lower myself to the ground and slide inside the small enclave. I expect Quinn to join me,

but she mumbles something about gathering more wood for the night and then walks off faster than I can catch her in my current state. I don't understand what's going on with Quinn. She's barely said a word to me since the bear incident and I know that it was terrifying and she risked her life to save us, but it feels like she's pulling away from me. I can't define the exact reason why it feels that way. I just know that I miss her hazel eyes on me. I miss the reassurance of her smile. I sit quietly as she returns with a load of wood and dumps it unceremoniously outside the cave before leaving again. When I feel as though I have some strength back I pull myself out of the cave and stand up to lean against the edge of the mountain. The wood pile is now enormous and I think we have more than enough wood for our nightly fire. "Quinn, don't you think we have enough wood?" Quinn looks at me as if she's just now realizing that I'm standing there. I see the pain in her eyes and I know that her shoulder must be killing her right now. She points to the sky and when she speaks her voice feels like the old Quinn Fabray, the one who tortured me freshman and sophomore years. "Do you see those clouds, Rachel? Do you feel that wind? There's a storm coming in and I have a limited amount of time to try to get some sort of a windbreak built here to keep us as warm and dry as possible. So when I think we have enough wood then I'll stop gathering. You could make yourself useful by moving the rocks from the fire pit closer to the cave so when the rain starts coming it doesn't get doused." She turns and walks quickly away before she can see the tears that spring to my eyes at her words and her tone. I'm thankful for that. I don't want her to see me cry. I don't want her to see the hurt she's caused me. She's right about the sky though. It's dark and ominous and now I notice that the wind has a bite to it that I hadn't felt before. I try to force the tears back as I do what Quinn said and begin moving the rocks where she told me to. I try to make sense of what changed. She's been so kind and caring this entire time and even though it fits what our relationship seems to have always been, her current treatment of me doesn't fit in at all with the way she's been the last couple days. Quinn comes and goes four more times before she drops what will be the last pile. By then I've moved the rocks a couple feet to the very entrance of the cave. I hope that it's enough to keep it out of the rain, but not close enough to smoke us out. Quinn begins going through the pieces of wood she's brought and I watch her as she starts at one edge of the cave and begins to interweave the different sizes and shapes of wood into a sort of very short wall. When I think I've figured out what she's doing I start to help her by going through the other piles of wood she's accumulated and pulling out the next pieces I think she'll need for her puzzle. She doesn't say a word the entire time. She's barely even looked at me since her outburst and it makes my chest ache in a way I haven't felt in a long time.

I know who I am. I know that I can beabrasive. Some I guess would say annoying. Most of the people in my life have a limit of how much time they can spend with me before it becomes too much for them. I really try to not be so annoying. I just don't understand what it is exactly that's so annoying about me. I think maybe Quinn has reached her time limit with me and so I don't push the issue. It's probably best if I just give her the time she needs to believe I'm not here. We had been doing so well, getting along so well, and I really thought that we were making progress toward a good relationship. A relationship I've wanted with her for much longer than I could ever have admitted. We're only halfway through making our makeshift shelter when the first drops of rain start to fall. They're big and wet. I know all rain is wet, but there's certain rain you can walk in and you only feel misted. This is not one of those times. We both look up at the same time and I gasp at how black the clouds look. The tops of the trees are swaying and I can see leaves and light twigs skittering across the ground as the wind picks up substantially. I'd been so focused on the work at hand that I hadn't noticed how dark the woods had become around us, the clouds blocking out the sun before it even had a chance to properly set. "Get in the cave." It's the first time Quinn's spoken to me in over an hour and I look at her shocked. I know she's not finished with the windbreak so I ignore her and continue to grab branches and fit them into the ones she's already placed. The rain is coming harder now and we're both getting wet. She lets me help for a few more minutes but then she tells me to get in the cave again. I ignore her again and grab another branch. I'm surprised when she grabs my wrist and pulls me toward the cave. "God dammit Rachel! Get in the fucking cave!" I would be hurt if I weren't so angry. "Don't you speak to me like that!" I scream at her over the wind that's now whipping around us. "There's no reason for both of us to get soaked," she yells back at me. "Just get in out of the rain!" I pull my hand free from her grasp and go back to stacking the limbs. We're almost done and there's no reason for me to not help as much as I can. She may not have noticed, but I've been able to rest slightly on my injured foot and it has made standing much easier. I want to help her. I'm afraid that the strain of caring for me may have contributed to her current anger toward me. Once again I feel her grip on my wrist and she's practically dragging me toward the cave entrance. "Would you just do what I tell you? Stay dry. GET. IN. THE. CAVE."

Her eyes are flashing and her jaw is set and if it weren't for the wind and rain I would think we were in the halls of McKinley right now. "I'm just trying to help Quinn!" "You trying to help is what got us here!" I try to hide the hurt I feel at her words but I fail miserably. It feels as if I've been punched in the stomach. I see a flash of regret in her eyes, but I don't even care at this point. I rip my hand from her grip and turn my back to her as I finally do what she's told me to. She stands there for a moment and I see her chest heave a few times before she turns around and continues filling in the small remaining space. She leaves an opening for us to be able to walk out and drops a large pile of wood that I assume is for the fire within reach of our shelter before walking back into my view. I've pulled myself as far into the corner of the small cave as I can. I hurt all over and I can feel tears burning in my eyes, but I don't want to give her the satisfaction of seeing how she's affected me. I feel so confused and so hurt. I thought we had moved past blaming anyone for this whole mess, but it appears to me that she's blamed me this whole time and was just trying to make me not feel guilty. It's not like I don't know that I share a huge part of the responsibility. I know that I do, but to hear her say it; to know that she blames me for it too. God, it just hurts more than I can even describe. Quinn's voice is barely audible when she asks me where the pack is. I close my eyes as I realize that I left it out by a bush when we first got back to camp. I lower my head in shame as I realize that I've been no help to Quinn at all in any of this. I am a burden. I've messed up so much. I speak more to the wall than to her when I mumble through the tears I'm fighting where I left it. She doesn't say a word. She just walks back out into the darkening storm. A loud crack of thunder makes me jump and then it's as if the heavens have opened up and what was once a normal rain storm is now a torrential downpour. I stare anxiously at the mouth of the cave as I wait for Quinn to reappear. It feels like forever but it's only about thirty seconds when she comes back into view. She tosses the pack into the cave and drops of water fall against my arm from it. Quinn is completely soaked through. There's water dripping from the ends of her hair and off her nose and she's shivering and I feel even worse. I can't stop the tears now and I hide my face as I finally let them fall. I hear her going through the pack and then I hear the familiar sound of her striking the flint to try to get the fire started. I only know she's successful when we both start coughing from the smoke it's creating. The wind is pushing the smoke into the cave and filling it up. I'm shocked when Quinn starts frantically kicking at the fire. She's screaming at it and my tears dry up quickly as I realize that it's more than rain dripping down her face. "Fucking shit! Goddammit! Mother fucker!"

I'm shocked at her language, but now the fire is out and Quinn scoots to the corner farthest from me and draws her legs up as she lays her head against her knees and covers her face with her right arm so that I can't see her anymore. It's completely dark now and the wind is howling. The rain is falling so hard it sounds as if we're standing next to a waterfall. A flash of lightning momentarily lights up the cave and because I'm still looking in Quinn's direction I see that she's trembling. I don't know if she's cold or crying. It's probably both. It really doesn't matter. I move the pack so that it's not between us anymore and I pull myself over to her. When I reach her I can feel that she is freezing. I reach into the pack and feel around until I find the first aid kit. I open it up by feel and jump slightly when lightning flashes bright around us and a loud clap of thunder seems to shake the ground almost instantly following. My fingers search through the different bandages and packages until I think I have what I'm looking for. I rip it open and am relieved to feel that I found it on my first try. I unfold the emergency blanket and drape it over Quinn as I pull it and her close against me. When my arms wrap around her she kind of collapses against me and I can feel the gasps of her sobs. I pull her closer and she practically crawls into my lap. She is cold and wet. The wind is blowing bits of rain into our small cave, but I can tell that the windbreak she constructed is helping to keep the majority of the rain out. Thunder and lightning is now crashing in an almost constant cacophony of sound and light. For a moment I flash to a memory from my childhood. I'm five years old and watching Bambi with my fathers when the drops of rain turn to a raging thunderstorm. It scares me because the symphony builds the moment so perfectly and poor Bambi is obviously terrified. I crawl into Daddy's lap and he wraps his arms around me and I feel so safe. I feel his lips against my hair as he tells me not to worry. He tells me Bambi will be okay; that his parents will keep him safe the same way he and Dad keep me safe. Just as he promised the storm soon wears itself out and once again becomes April showers dripping softly against leaves and into puddles. In that moment it's almost as if I can feel Daddy's arms wrapping around me again and even though there is a tempest raging outside, I feel safe. I want to make Quinn feel that way. I wrap my arms around her as best I can and she tucks her head against my chest. I rub her arms and back to try to warm her up and I can feel the emergency blanket working to keep our body heat trapped against us. I lay my lips gently against Quinn's head and then I bend against her ear as I try to comfort and calm her. "It's going to be okay Quinn. Everything's going to be okay. The storm will pass and we can start a fire and get warm then. We're going to be rescued soon Quinn. I can just feel it. I think maybe tomorrow, after the storm passes. I'm sure they'll find us tomorrow and I'm a little psychic so you can count on it."

I feel Quinn chuckle lightly against my neck and it makes me smile. It's okay that I was serious. I'm just glad she's not crying anymore. It feels as if she's getting warmer now too and even though she's treated me horribly the last few hours I can't help feeling relieved that she seems to be doing a little better. "I'm sorry Rachel." She whispers the words against my neck and I can't help the shiver that her breath against my skin elicits. "It's okay. You were just frustrated," I assure her. I feel her shake her head and then she pulls back and even though we can't really see each other in the pitch black that surrounds us I know that she's looking at me. "No. I'm sorry for everything that happened today. I should have been paying better attention. When I think about what could have happened if I hadn't spotted that bear when I did." Her voice trails off and I feel her take a shuddering breath. "It would have been on us before we could do anything about it. My carelessness put you in danger and I'm so sorry. That's all I've been able to think about all afternoon. I let myself be distracted and it almost got you hurt or worse." "Are you serious?" I can't believe that is what has had her so upset all afternoon. "Quinn you were amazing today. Stupid, but amazing. You put yourself in harm's way to keep me safe. You are my hero. You have to know that." She just shakes her head again. I only know because we're still so close that I can feel the movement of the air around her head and a few stray droplets from her still wet hair land on me. "But then I was mean to you. Rachel, I don't ever want to treat you that way again. I was just still so scared that anything could happen to you and it felt like these things were happening because I," she takes a deep breath and then her voice drops to almost a whisper, "because I let the way I feel about you distract me from making sure we get out of this alive." My heart instantly picks up its pace and I hold my breath for a moment before slowly letting it out. I swallow hard. "How you feel about me?" In the next instant I feel her lips pressed softly against my cheek. I barely register that they're gone when they're on my other cheek. Now her lips are pressed softly against my own. Her kiss is soft and tentative. I think perhaps she's unsure of how I'm going to react. I respond by slowly moving my own lips against hers and I feel her dig her fingers into my side where she's had her hand for the last few minutes. I run my hands up her arms and neck until I'm cupping her face. I hold her there as I press more firmly and the tentative kiss we began becomes more sure as we languidly move against each other. She pulls away to catch her breath. I can feel the trembling of her body and I know she can feel mine as well. A flash of lightning illuminates her for me for an instant and that's all I

need to dive back in. I tug her even closer to me and now the passion we've been fighting the last few days is released. Quinn feels absolutely amazing. Her lips are so soft and she knows exactly how much pressure to use. It is the best first kiss I've had with anyone, ever. And I don't want it to ever stop. I slide my tongue tentatively against her lips. When she opens her mouth to me and I feel her tongue for the first time I'm not sure whose moan is louder, hers or mine. I taste nuts and raisins and I realize she must have grabbed a handful of trail mix at some point this evening. She still tastes pretty amazing and I wonder what it will be like when we've both had the opportunity for proper hygiene. Completely fantastic. She unexpectedly sucks on my tongue and I feel a little embarrassed at the whimper that escapes me as arousal shoots through my abdomen and I involuntarily grind my hips up and into her. She cries out and then whispers, "God Rachel," against my lips before claiming my lips again in a bruising kiss. The next clap of thunder is so loud it startles us both and we break apart for a moment. She raises her hand and caresses my cheek. She leans her forehead against mine as we both try to catch our breath. "I'm so sorry Rachel," she whispers against my lips. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier. This isn't your fault and I don't blame you for any of it. I love that you worry about me and that you want to help. I just wanted you to be safe and out of the rain and you frustrated me with your stubbornness. But that was no reason for me to be so mean to you. I'm so sorry sweetie." I smile at her apology. I know she's under an incredible amount of stress right now. And I finally know how much she actually cares for me, that she was more worried about my safety than her own. I understand her distance this afternoon more fully now as well. She was blaming herself for not seeing the bear in time because we had been so wrapped up in each other. "I forgive you Quinn," I say as I lean forward and kiss her gently. I feel her smiling against my lips and it's the most amazing feeling I've ever had. Not just physically, but emotionally. Having her so close and open with me, being herself with me, makes warmth bloom in my chest. We continue to kiss in our little cave cocooned in the warmth of our own bodies and the silvery blanket as the storm rages all around us and I realize that as long as we're found this whole camping trip may have been the best thing Mr. Schuester ever made me do.

CHAPTER NINE: LOST AND FOUND

The soft glow of daylight filtered through the trees and into the cave slowly pulling Quinn from the most restful sleep she'd had in the last three days. She blinked her eyes slowly as she listened to the soft rustle of wind through the surrounding trees and the frantic calls and twitters of busy birds and insects. Slowly the cobwebs of deep sleep were brushed away from her mind and she remembered the events of the previous day with a small grimace. She wasn't proud of herself. She had tried to get them away from the bear without being seen, but when it was obvious they'd been spotted she had decided the only other option was to stand her ground. She had hoped the bear wouldn't be looking for a fight and that the additional height the branch appeared to give her would make him think better of testing how much resistance they'd be able to put forth. The relief she'd felt as the small black bear fled had been quickly replaced with anger. How could she have been so stupid? She knew there was a mountain lion not too far away from them and yet she hadn't even thought about what they would do if they ran into a bear, which would have been much more common than coming across a cougar for Christ's sake. She let the anger at herself build up in her to the point where she needed an outlet and she'd taken it out on Rachel. The look on Rachel's face had been painful to see. And after all of that, when she realized they wouldn't be able to have a fire she had completely lost it. When her mind finally reached the events of the evening, when Rachel had pulled her so close and the warmth of the brunette's body had felt like fire against her cold skin, she shivered with the memory of Rachel's lips moving slowly against her own. The rhythm of her breathing increased as she remembered how Rachel had slipped her tongue into her mouth, how she had reacted when Quinn had followed her instinct and sucked on that tongue. Quinn felt herself becoming aroused at the memories of their heated make out session and when she shifted and felt an arm tug gently at her waist she suddenly realized that she wasn't sleeping completely on the hard earth. Her torso was completely lying across Rachel's chest, her head rested against the small girl's shoulder. Quinn moved her head slightly and realized that she was right next to Rachel's neck. Without thinking about it she leaned forward and placed a soft kiss against the girl's warm skin. She smiled when Rachel hummed softly and tightened her grip on Quinn's waist. "G'morning." Rachel's voice was thick with sleep and Quinn thought this had to be the best way in the world to wake up. "I should see if I can find anything dry enough to get a fire going," Quinn whispered. Rachel didn't release her grip. "I think you should stay here and cuddle with me." Quinn chuckled softly and snuggled into the girl a little more. "You do, huh?"

"Mmhmm." They lay there together for a while, neither one of them in much of a hurry to extricate their bodies from each other. Quinn couldn't believe how peaceful she felt lying there in Rachel's arms, feeling the heat of her body pressed against her as Rachel's fingers slowly drew patterns against her back and side. She didn't ever want to move from this spot. The longer she stayed there, though, the more overwhelmed she began to feel. She had finally accepted just a few short months ago that she had feelings for Rachel, but that was as far as she had gone. She had never expected to actually ever kiss her. She had definitely never expected to make out with her, to wake up next to her. And she had never expected that doing those things would cause her to feel more than she'd ever felt with any boyfriend she'd ever been with; that simply kissing Rachel would set her more on edge than actually having sex with Puck had. Now she was left with thoughts and doubts and fears she had previously been able to put aside swirling through her mind. Am I gay? Or is it just Rachel? What if my mom finds out? Will she kick me out again? I can't be homeless again. Quinn could feel the weight of her concerns like a stone on her chest. She needed movement. As much as she wanted to stay wrapped up in Rachel she knew that if she did all of these thoughts and doubts were going to spill out of her in a way that would once again cause the girl pain. "I have to pee," Quinn whispered. This time she felt Rachel sigh and reluctantly release her from her grasp. As Quinn slowly raised herself up from her reclining position she felt Rachel drag her fingers heatedly down her side and it sent chills through her entire body. She couldn't stop the shiver that shook through her but she tried to play it off as simply being cold now that she was out of their cocoon of heat. "Hey." Quinn looked back down at the sound of Rachel's soft plea and for the first time since the storm broke she got a good look at the girl. She took her breath away. Three days in the wilderness still couldn't take away the natural beauty that was Rachel Berry. Quinn swallowed hard as she fought the sudden urge to lie back down and just feel the girl, like every inch of her. Quinn slowly breathed out as she fought her desires. She needed time to think. "Are you okay?" The concern in Rachel's eyes grounded Quinn and she gave Rachel a reassuring smile and a nod. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Rachel nodded and then chewed nervously on her lip. "Maybe," she started and then paused, her voice becoming suddenly soft and unsure, "maybe when you get back we should talk. You know, about what happened last night." Quinn's heart thudded in her chest. She really wasn't ready to talk about what had happened between them. She wasn't ready to answer Rachel's questions about what she wanted or who she was because she wasn't even sure of those things herself. But the fact remained that something had happened between them and she couldn't just ignore it. She also didn't want Rachel to think that she regretted it in any way, so she smiled and nodded her head. "When I get back, we'll talk." The look of relief in Rachel's eyes was enough to let Quinn know that she'd made the right decision, even though the thought of trying to talk through her feelings andhaving to hear how Rachel felt about the boundaries they'd crossed made her feel sick to her stomach. Quinn stretched as she stepped out of the cave and winced at the sharp pain that shot through her arm from the stiff movement. She'd become accustomed to the almost constant dull ache she'd felt in her shoulder since the dislocation, but yesterday when she'd lifted the branch up she'd felt a whole different kind of pain. She knew she'd reinjured it; she just couldn't be sure what the extent of the damage was. As Quinn slowly walked toward the bushes on the far side of their little campsite to "use the facilities" as Rachel called it, movement across the creek caught her eye. She stopped dead in her tracks and turned toward what had drawn her attention. She blinked a couple times in disbelief because walking along the creek, not thirty feet away from where Quinn currently stood, was Santana Freaking Lopez. "Santana," she called out, but the excitement and utter joy that coursed through her made it come out more as a whisper. She started moving quickly toward the girl and this time found her voice when she called out again, "Santana!" A huge smile spread across Quinn's face when she saw the Latina turn sharply and let out a loud cry before the brunette was running across the creek and directly into Quinn's arms. A cry of pain escaped her lips when the girl hugged her too tightly and Santana jumped back. "Oh shit! I'm sorry Q. Damn, what happened? You look totally jacked up. Oh my God I can't believe I found you." As tears of relief ran down Quinn's face she laughed out loud at the girl's rambling. She'd never been so happy to see her best friend in all her life. She watched as Santana pulled a small walkie talkie from a clip on her hip and told whoever was on the other end that she'd found them and approximately where they were. When the Latina turned her attention back to Quinn she had tears in her eyes.

"Shit, Q, what are you trying to do, give us all a heart attack? And where the fuck is Berry? I promised her Jew dad that you wouldn't let anything too bad happen to the dwarf. You better not have made a liar out of me." "I'm right here Santana." Quinn whipped around to see Rachel hobbling out of the cave. She probably had the biggest smile she'd ever worn stretched across her face, at least the biggest one she'd ever had in Santana's company. Rachel turned wet eyes on Quinn and then said, "See. I told you I was psychic." Quinn laughed out loud. The relief and joy running through her nearly made it impossible to do anything else. They were found. They were rescued. Everything was going to be okay. She felt like wrapping her arms around the tiny brunette and twirling in circles with her as they laughed and cried. A tall bearded man wearing a forestry service jacket was the next to arrive and he listened quietly as the girls interacted. Quinn couldn't wipe the smile from her face she was so incredibly happy. "What took you so long to find us?" Her tone was slightly joking, but she also seriously wanted to know. Santana grinned. "Are you shitting me? We would have found your dumb ass a lot sooner if you'd just stayed put. Britt spotted your binoculars hung up in some bushes yesterday afternoon, but the storm hit before we could safely get down the ravine. That shit was steep!" Quinn laughed. "No kidding. But yesterday was still day three. If you had just come back down the trail and yelled we would have been able to hear you guys that night from where we were." She saw the guilty look flash through Santana's eyes and knew the answer. "No one noticed we were missing until it was too late to come looking, did they?" "People noticed," Santana corrected, "but each person thought you guys were with someone else. When everyone gathered at dinner and compared notes we realized we hadn't seen either of you since the hike back to the cabin." "I knew Mr. Schuester couldn't be trusted to perform a proper head count!" Rachel interjected. Quinn chuckled softly and shook her head. It didn't really matter anyway. They'd been found. They were safe. "So we found Berry's pack this morning. They sent a couple search teams a few miles further downstream and we started at the top figuring that we'd find you two somewhere in the middle. A Faberry sandwich," Santana said with a wicked smile as she gave Quinn a

look that made her heart squeeze with fear. What does she know? Before Quinn could question it any further the man who'd been silent until then finally spoke up. "It's probably a good thing that you girls decided to move on from that area anyway. We've had a couple mountain lion sightings around there in the last few months. We think there's probably a den in there somewhere." Quinn had noticed more movement coming from the trees as more people from the search team began to make their way to them. She nodded distractedly as the officer spoke. "Yeah, that's why we left the next morning. I saw cougar tracks covering the ones I'd made the night before when I was filling our water bottles and I thought we should get out of the area." She hadn't even really thought about what she was saying because she was too distracted by a familiar figure moving through the trees toward them. It can't be, she thought. Rachel's loud angry voice pulled her attention back to the conversation and she visibly winced when she realized what she'd just said. "You what?" Rachel shrieked. "You saw a mountain lion and you didn't think that this was pertinent information for me to have?" "I didn't actually see the cougar Rachel. Just tracks." She knew it was weak, but it was all she had. "Stop calling it a cougar Quinn. It's a mountain lion and you're just saying "cougar" to try to distract from the fact that there was a lion stalking us!" Quinn huffed slightly. "Fine. I didn't actually see the mountain lion Rachel. Just tracks. Better?" The smirk she saw stretching across Santana's face just made her feel even angrier and attacked. "What would you have done anyway if I had told you? You would have been terrified the whole time, jumping at every sound and I needed us to move." She didn't really expect Rachel to back down at her reply. She even knew that in a way she was egging her on, but for some reason she couldn't stop herself. "Oh my God!" Realization seemed to light up Rachel's eyes as she pointed accusingly at Quinn. "You said it was nothing! You said you were just trying to be aware of our surroundings. That entire time you were looking for it weren't you? Then you stopped walking in front of me to make the path. You barely left my side the first two days. You could have told me Quinn. You should have told me. We were in this together. That's what you said. We were a team, but that was just a lie wasn't it?" Rachel's voice had turned from angry to hurt in just a matter of seconds. It was the hurt that wrenched at Quinn's heart and forced her to take a calming breath. She could hear heavy footsteps moving across the creek as she reached forward for Rachel's hand, hoping that the physical contact would ground her and keep her from saying more wrong things.

"It's not a lie Rachel. We were a team. We are a team. I'm sorry. You're right. I should have told you what I saw. I should have had more faith in you and I apologize." Quinn looked directly into brown eyes that were now pooling with unshed tears. She squeezed the small hand she held tightly and whispered, her voice heavy with emotion. "I was just trying to protect you." She felt Rachel squeeze her hand in return. A look she didn't recognize passed across Rachel's face and in the next instant the girl standing in front of her was gone. It took Quinn a moment to realize that she was now looking at the back of Finn Hudson and when she finally did recognize the boy and the fact that he currently had Rachel wrapped up in his large oafish arms she felt her heart drop into her stomach. How could I have been so stupid? Quinn berated herself as she watched Rachel get mauled by her boyfriend. Quinn felt sick to her stomach and her eyes burned as she fought back tears. She couldn't believe she'd forgotten about Finn and the fact that Rachel was taken. She wished the earth would open up beneath her and simply swallow her whole as Finn leaned down and claimed Rachel's lips with his. Her jaw clenched and she looked away as she tried to control the jealous rage that swept through her at the sight of it. Not thirty minutes ago she'd been wrapped up in those arms with her lips on that soft warm skin. But it wasn't her right. Rachel wasn't hers. She never had been and the realization of that knocked the wind out of Quinn. She barely heard Rachel telling Finn she was happy to see him but that she didn't want to kiss him in her current hygienic state. Her eyes had landed on the figure she'd seen coming through the woods earlier. The one Finn had outrun in his rush to molest Rachel. "Daddy?" Quinn didn't even care that she sounded like a little girl as she spoke. It was too much. Everything was just too much. Rachel and Finn and lions and fathers and bears, oh my. She felt as if she was going insane as a hysterical laugh ripped from her throat only to dissolve into sobs as she felt her father's arms reach around her and gently hold her for the first time in two years. When she felt a small hand against her back she stiffened and quickly extricated herself from her father's arms and stepped away from both him and Rachel. She needed distance. She saw the hurt flash in Rachel's eyes but she couldn't help that. Rachel had a boyfriend. Rachel was in love with her boyfriend. What they had shared the night before was simply two people overwhelmed by their situation and needing comfort. She had known better than to let anything like that happen and now she would have to deal with the heartache. Her father's voice gave her the distraction she needed. "You're both hurt. We should get you back to base camp and get you to the hospital." "It's just a dislocated shoulder. Rachel set it for me on the first day. I'm fine, but I think Rachel may have a broken ankle."

"It's not broken. I've been able to put a little weight on it since yesterday evening. You would have noticed if you hadn't been busy yelling at me." Of course Rachel would argue with her and of course she'd let her hurt bring up the argument from last night. "Oh my God would you drop it? I told you I was sorry. You know what? Forget it. You hate me protecting you and keeping you safe so much, that's just fine because I don't have to do that anymore. Your boyfriend's here now. He can have you." Quinn had to bite her tongue to hold back the tears that burned at the back of her eyes as Rachel's shocked expression turned quickly to guilt and then some mixture of pain and sorrow that just killed Quinn to look at. Both girls were breathing hard and staring at each other as everyone around them watched silently. Finally Rachel cleared her throat and spoke up softly. "Quinn should get checked out at the hospital too. She reinjured her arm yesterday scaring off a bear." She turned her eyes quickly toward Russell Fabray. "Please be sure she's well taken care of. I owe her my life." Then she turned her back on Quinn and hobbled toward the towering figure that was Finn. Quinn closed her eyes against the physical pain she felt burning through her chest. She would be eternally grateful to Santana for taking the focus away from her at that moment. "Well, damn that was entertaining. I knew the most dangerous thing out here would be you two being alone for three days. Now that we know Berry's got balls and Quinn's the fucking Grizzly Man why don't we get this show on the road and get the hell out of here? Finnept, you're going to have to carry your damsel." Rachel tried to protest that she'd been getting around fine the last few days and she didn't need to be carried, but everyone insisted. Well, everyone except Quinn who remained silent, her eyes fixed on anything except the sight of Finn easily sweeping Rachel into his arms like it was their wedding night and he was carrying her over the threshold. She waited until Finn was working his way through the woods before mumbling something about getting her pack and walking quickly over to the cave. She leaned against the cool rocks as she looked at their makeshift shelter. The emergency blanket Rachel had covered them in was still lying on the floor of the cave. Quinn felt the tears give way as she looked at what was left of her and Rachel. This was all they would get. One night in a thunderstorm, wrapped up in each other, touching and kissing. It wasn't enough and it was too much all at the same time. Quinn quickly wiped the tears from her face when she noticed feet standing beside her. "Just give me a minute," she said as she crawled into the cave and grabbed her pack. She glanced toward the blanket and considered shoving it quickly inside the pack. Making up her mind she walked out of the cave into the sunlight and stood next to Santana who was

looking at her with painful understanding. Quinn gave her a shaky smile and then started toward her father who was waiting at the creek for them. She forced herself to not look back at the dark opening to see the soft silver of the blanket still lying there on the dark ground. A final memento of a stolen night, left behind. The walk back through the woods was almost silent and Quinn was thankful for that. She needed that time to quiet her mind and get her emotions back under control. There was actually a trail that led out of the ravine about a hundred yards away that they would have completely missed if they'd followed the creek. She was thankful the bear had pushed them back to the cave. When they finally reached the cabin which had apparently served as base camp for the search they found utter madness. There were news vans and EMT's and two ambulances along with all of their friends, parents, and local volunteers. All of them were curious about the girls' condition and how they had survived. Quinn answered a few questions with as brief a comment as possible and as soon as the reporters realized that Rachel was the default spokeswoman they left her alone and surrounded the brunette. Quinn watched quietly as her mother fussed over her and her father stood to the side, his hand gently resting on her uninjured shoulder. Finn stood behind Rachel as her fathers flanked her and Quinn couldn't help the small smile that played across her lips as Rachel came to life in front of the news cameras. She couldn't hear what the girl was saying, but it was animated and joyful. Dramatic. Rachel Berry. At that instant Rachel's sparkling eyes seemed to find her across the din and confusion of so many people and they locked onto her and stole her breath. There was a connection between them that she didn't quite understand and the look on Rachel's face was unreadable as she continued with whatever part of the tale she was replaying for her audience. But her eyes, God, Rachel's eyes held everything. Admiration, trust, affection.hope. Quinn felt her breath leave her and she forced herself to break the connection. She felt emotionally drained and physically exhausted. All she wanted was a warm meal, a hot shower, and to fall into the comfort of her bed for a few days. When an EMT attempted to get her to get in the ambulance for a ride to the hospital she declined. When he began to insist Quinn was thankful when her father spoke up and insisted that they would make sure that Quinn got the medical attention she needed, but that they would be driving her themselves, thank you very much. She leaned into her mother's embrace as her father parted the sea of people in front of them, clearing a path to their vehicles. He opened the driver's door for her mother and whispered things to her that Quinn couldn't catch all of, but she heard enough to learn that he was planning to follow them out of the mountains and they were going to meet up in the first available town to have some breakfast together. Quinn wandered slowly to the passenger side and when she reached for the handle her father's hand was suddenly there. She looked up at him in surprise. His eyes were bright and wet as he stared at her.

"I've made a lot of mistakes Quinn and I'm sorry for all of them. I didn't know how to humble myself enough to admit that I was sorry and I was wrong. We talk about having the fear of God, but there's nothing more terrifying than what your mother and I have lived through for the past few days, not knowing where you were or if you were safe." His voice broke slightly and Quinn felt hot tears building in her own eyes at the show of emotion. She had never seen her father like this. He hesitantly put his hand on her right shoulder. "I'm so proud of you Quinn." Tears streaked down her face as she flung herself into her father's arms and cried against his chest. She felt the strength and warmth of his embrace that she had missed so much. They had both made mistakes and she knew that this didn't fix anything, but it was a starting point and she was glad that at least something good came from this whole experience. At that thought she raised her head slowly and looked across the open parking area, her eyes landing on Rachel who was currently wrapped up in her short father's arms. The man was sobbing into her shoulder and Quinn smiled at the dramatics of it all. Rachel would appreciate that, she thought with a smile as she gently pulled away and finally got in the car so they could all go home. (*********************) Three days later things were starting to get back to normal. The man they'd rented the cabin from had felt badly about their experience and had been kind enough to comp their entire stay. The club decided to put the money they got back from him back into the club fund to get a head start on next year's Nationals. Quinn hadn't seen or heard from Rachel since they pulled out of the parking lot that day, but she really hadn't expected to. She was sure the girl was wrapped up in Finn and making good use of her summer to build the relationship with the boy she'd always wanted. Quinn had received a gift basket from the Berry family as a thank you for saving their daughter's life, even though she didn't feel she'd done anything that dramatic she was certain Rachel was playing up the events that had taken place over their time in the woods. The basket had been huge and her mother had barely been able to get it through the door. It had been filled with muffins, scones, and a variety of fruits. Quinn had just grabbed an apple from it as she walked through the kitchen toward her room when she heard the sound of the doorbell chiming through the house. A confusing array of emotions washed through her when she opened the door to find Rachel standing on her porch. There was excitement at seeing the girl because after spending so much time together she actually did miss her company. There was fear of the unknown because she had no idea why Rachel was there. There was the definite warmth of arousal because the girl was wearing one of the shortest pairs of shorts she'd ever seen on anyone pretty much anywhere and a tight fitting V-neck tank that flowed softly around her hips and grew tight around her chest. Her hair was down and in loose curls and her make-up was light. She looked beautiful and sexy and Quinn bit her lip nervously when her gaze reached Rachel's eyes and she could see that the brunette was blushing from

Quinn's perusal of her body. Then there was concern because that body was currently being held up by crutches. "Hello Quinn." "Hi Rachel." Quinn felt completely unsure of herself. She wasn't sure what to do or what might be expected of her. Seeing Rachel again brought back the flood of emotions she'd spent the last couple of days trying to forget about and she wasn't sure what to do about that. "May I come in?" Rachel asked softly. Quinn startled slightly when she realized she'd just been standing there like an idiot for who knows how long. "Oh! I'm sorry, yes, please, come in," she stammered as she moved away from the doorway to give Rachel enough space to amble through on her crutches. "Um, come with me," Quinn directed as she led the way into the family room and motioned toward the couch for Rachel as she sat down at the far end of the same couch. She had expected Rachel to sit where she had motioned, but instead the brunette waited for Quinn to get seated and then chose the place right next to her. Quinn fidgeted with her hand as she pulled gently at some soft threads sticking up in the seam of the couch and tried desperately not to make eye contact with the brunette for several awkward moments. Rachel thankfully broke the tension. "How's your arm? Did you get it looked at by a well-respected professional?" Quinn couldn't help the smile and the small shake of her head. She had a feeling that any physician that cared for Rachel Berry most likely went through a rigorous background check and credentialing profile through the AMA. "I did. Um, obviously I still have to wear the sling." Quinn motioned toward her arm currently resting in a brand new sling with a wrap-around brace that kept it snugly against her body and severely limited movement. "The doctor said it probably would have been a simple recovery if it was just the dislocation, but they think I tore something when I lifted that branch so he's referred me to an orthopedic surgeon. That appointment is scheduled for tomorrow so until then I just have to keep it immobile and they gave me some pretty good drugs." At the worried look on Rachel's face Quinn felt the need to take the focus off herself. "What about you? Obviously I noticed the crutches, but that thing you're wearing doesn't look like a cast. Is it broken?" Rachel glanced down at the black brace that was wrapped around her ankle and then flashed a reassuring smile. "No, it's not broken. They performed a series of x-rays and are most certain it is a serious sprain. They want me to continue to stay off of it completely for

the next couple days. I just have to continue to wear the brace for a few weeks after I'm allowed to put weight on it." "Good," Quinn breathed out. "I'm glad it's not too serious." Another awkward silence followed and Quinn nervously ran her hand across the seam of her jeans. "My fathers were very impressed with the thank you note they received from you in regard to the gift basket they had sent. I hope that you've enjoyed it. Daddy and I were quite insistent that it hold a variety of items, especially since I'm not certain what your favorite fruits and pastries are yet." Quinn quirked her eyebrow at the implication that Rachel would one day know those details about her, but she chose not to comment on it. "If there's one thing that's drilled into you as a Fabray, it's proper etiquette. The basket was perfect and completely unnecessary. I didn't do anything special Rachel." Quinn felt Rachel's knee press into her outer thigh as the girl twisted on the couch to face her fully. "That's not true, Quinn," the girl said vehemently. "You can argue all you want and say that you didn't do anything special, but I know the truth. I know that you stayed calm in a harrowing situation. You kept me calm, which I will be the first to admit can be a daunting task at times. You kept us alive and warm and reasonably fed long enough to be found. You kept me safe, not just physically, but mentally as well." Rachel paused and bit on her lip before continuing with her next statement. "I know that I said some things on the last day that may have hurt you. I was upset to find that you'd been keeping information from me as if I were some child that couldn't handle the truth or the reality of the situation. It was my pride that made me upset Quinn. I didn't want you to look at me as someone that you had to practically babysit. I wanted to be your equal. I wanted you to look at me and see someone that you could," Rachel paused and licked her lips, "maybe admire. The way that I admire you. But the truth is, you were right to keep that information from me because knowing that a lion was stalking us would have practically paralyzed me with fear." "Rachel," Quinn interrupted, "you should not be apologizing to me for what was said when we were rescued. I should be apologizing to you. I should have told you about what I saw. You had the right to be aware of any and all dangers that we were potentially in and it was wrong of me to keep that from you. And I never looked down on you for your inexperience." Quinn took a calming breath before raising her hazel eyes to the brown ones currently staring at her with so much concern.

"I admire you Rachel. So much. You never gave up and that's the key to any kind of survival. The way you always seem to face every situation you come up against with such fierceness and determination just fills me with awe. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the way I acted whenpeople showed up. I never wanted to cause you any hurt and I'm sorry that my words and actions did that." Rachel was quiet for a moment and Quinn broke eye contact and once again began pulling at the loose thread on the couch. She gasped slightly when Rachel suddenly grabbed her hand to hold in her own. "I forgive you if you forgive me." Quinn chuckled softly. "What do I have to forgive you for?" "For kissing you." Quinn felt a searing hot pain flash through her chest as tears instantly sprung to her eyes at Rachel's words. Did she regret it so much that she felt forgiveness was necessary? Quinn tried to pull her hand away but Rachel held it firmly in her grasp. "No, please listen Quinn. That's not what I meant. I mean, it is, but it's not how it sounds. Please, just let me explain?" Her hurt reaction had apparently been obvious to Rachel and the brunette was trying to fix it as quickly as possible. When Quinn didn't respond, but didn't try to pull her hand free either Rachel forged ahead. "Okay, so it's no secret that last year I cheated on Finn with Noah." Quinn turned her gaze slowly toward the brunette. This was not the direction she'd expected this conversation to take and now she was even more curious where it was leading. "I didn't want to be with Noah. I wasn't looking for a relationship with him. I was hurt and angry. I wanted Finn to feel the way I felt. Being with Noah wasn't about him. It wasn't even about me wanting to be with him. It was all about getting back at Finn." Quinn wasn't really liking the way this was going. Was Rachel comparing her to Puck? Had the moments they'd shared been about getting back at Finn in some way? Quinn felt sick to her stomach at that thought. It hadn't felt as if Rachel was using her, but then she was usually the one doing the using. How did it feel to be used? "I've had some time the last few days to contemplate many things, but I came to this realization the first night we were home. The reasons I was with Noah were not the same reasons I was with you. I wasn't angry with Finn or trying to make him jealous. It had absolutely nothing to do with him. I'm ashamed to admit this, but I barely thought of Finn the entire time we were out there. Full disclosure? The only time I thought of him while

we were making out was a brief realization that I had never in my life been kissed the way that you were kissing me nor had I ever felt so much from intimate contact with another person as when I was with you." Quinn felt her breath quicken and she involuntarily squeezed Rachel's hands at her words. Oh my God, what is she saying? Does she like me more than Finn or am I just a better kisser? As if she could read Quinn's mind Rachel continued quietly as she took one hand away from holding Quinn's and reached up to gently brush golden strands back and behind her ear. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry that I was still technically with Finn when we kissed because I don't want you to think that I'm some kind of serial cheater or that my returning your kiss had anything to do with Finn in any way. Kissing you had nothing to do with anything except how I feel about you and, I believe, how you feel about me. Feelings that I hope we still share." Quinn's eyes widened slightly as she felt Rachel's palm cupping her cheek as her fingers spread through her hair and gently pulled her forward. As Rachel leaned forward Quinn sucked in a quick breath and let her eyes drop closed in anticipation. Rachel's lips were so soft. God this is better than I remember Quinn thought as she tilted her head slightly to slide her lips more smoothly against Rachel's. It was tentative and soft and warm and she never wanted it to end. Quinn could feel Rachel's warm breath when she pulled back slightly. Before Quinn could even open her eyes from the loss of contact Rachel was back, pressing more firmly but still maintaining a slow closed mouth dance against her own lips. Quinn felt warmth spread throughout her and a tingling sensation shot through her abdomen when Rachel pulled a little more sharply against her head as she tried to tug them closer together. She darted her tongue out to taste Rachel's lips and the soft whimper she heard from the back of Rachel's throat nearly made her lose control and simply shove her tongue in the brunette's mouth. Hearing Rachel husk her name before she gently sucked on Quinn's bottom lip suddenly made Quinn realize what they were doing and how quickly it was escalating. "Rachel," she breathed as she tried to release her hand from Rachel's grip. But Rachel misinterpreted Quinn's attempt to get her attention and responded by dragging her lips down Quinn's neck and sucking gently on her pulse point. "Oh God," Quinn cried out as she felt warmth spread between her legs and her hips canted forward slightly into the air at the feelings Rachel's ministrations had evoked. "Rachel, please. Please, stop," Quinn finally husked out. Rachel immediately pulled back. Her breath was heavy and her lips were wet and slightly swollen. Quinn swallowed hard as she tried to control her own breathing.

"I'm sorry Quinn." There were tears brimming in Rachel's eyes as she pulled back. "I thoughtGod I'm so sorry. I thought you reciprocated." Quinn gently shushed the brunette. "Rachel, sweetie, please just stop for a minute." Quinn wet her own lips as she let her arousal lessen enough to have rational thought. She raised her hand and cupped Rachel's jaw, gently running the tip of her thumb along the edge of the girl's bottom lip. "I do reciprocate, Rachel. I justI don't want to be something you regret. I don't know what's happening right now, but you have a boyfriend and I don't want to be your new Puck." "You're not my new Puck," Rachel stated vehemently, "and I had a boyfriend. Past tense, Quinn. I broke up with Finn yesterday morning." To say she was shocked would be an understatement. She had never thought Rachel would leave Finn, especially considering how single-mindedly Rachel had chased after him for the last couple years. "You broke up with Finn?" Quinn questioned, still not truly believing it. "Yesterday morning," Rachel confirmed quietly. "He didn't take it very well and I regret that I've caused him pain, but I felt that after what happened between us it would be wrong to continue a relationship with Finn." "Rachel," Quinn nearly gasped. A new kind of panic had set in and Quinn was having a difficult time controlling her flight response. "Please tell me, please tell me you didn't break up with Finn just to be with me." She could see instantly from the look on Rachel's face that she'd said the wrong thing. She hurried to explain herself. "I mean, I like you Rachel. A lot, actually." Quinn struggled for the right words to explain the fear currently coursing through her veins. "But I don't know what I'm doing. I don't know who I am or if I'm ready for a relationship with a.a girl. I don't even know how to date a girl." Quinn felt as if she were going to hyperventilate as more doubts and worsecase scenarios began crashing through her mind faster than she could even voice her concerns. She was so caught up in her mild panic attack that she didn't notice Rachel shifting on the couch. Suddenly her face was being grasped gently with both of Rachel's and she felt the warmth in her lap from Rachel straddling her on the couch. She locked her shocked hazel eyes on Rachel's amused brown ones. "Quinn," Rachel started calmly, "please take a breath. Now as far as my break up with Finn, while yes I did break up with him because of you, it isn't really because of you." Quinn looked questioningly at Rachel. That doesn't even make sense, she thought. Rachel smiled and wet her lips before continuing.

"I wasn't expecting to immediately be in a relationship with you simply because I'm now single. And I'm not single now because you kissed me in that cave. I'm single because I realized that I wanted to have a relationship with you beyond just friendship and that's not fair to Finn. I broke up with him because of my feelings for you, not because of your feelings for me, whatever those may be. Do you understand?" Quinn quirked her eyebrow. Having Rachel in her lap was really distracting. She didn't know where to put her hand so she currently had it resting palm down on the couch even though it itched to run up and down the length of Rachel's tan bare leg just inches away. She wished she had use of both of her hands right now. What did she say? Oh yeah, Finn's out because she wants me. Quinn swallowed hard as that last thought sent images swirling through her mind that she really didn't need to be thinking about right now. "II think so," she spoke tentatively. "So, like, even if I'm not ready for anything you're not going to go back to Finn?" Rachel bit her lip nervously. When she spoke her voice was soft, but sure. "While I certainly hope that eventually you will feel comfortable enough to be in a relationship with me, if you decide that you're not ready for that then no, I will not go back to Finn. We're all going to be leaving for college or taking the first steps in our paths to adulthood in the next year and I realized that what I wanted when I was a sophomore is not what I want nor need as I embark on this new journey. Finn is a nice boy and a good friend and I believe a part of me will always love him, but I realized that I'm not in love with him anymore. When I picture my future I see a strong partner by my side. Someone who can hold an intelligent conversation not only with me, but with the college friends I'm sure to make and the entertainment industry types that I'll be surrounded by when I star in my first Broadway show. I want someone who will challenge me, but also support me. Who knows me at my best and at my worst and loves me anyway. I want to find out if that person could be you Quinn." As Rachel spoke Quinn felt hope bloom in her chest. The future she described was one that Quinn could picture, one that she herself dreamed of. She was certain that Rachel's dreams were much more detailed than hers, but what she wanted, what she'd always wanted was an equal. Someone who would have her back when it counted. Someone she could lean on and who would lean on her. A partner. But still that future was a long way off and so far all they had shared was a near-death experience in the Ohio woods and a couple very intense make out sessions. "I want that too, Rachel. With you. I just don't know if I'm ready for what having all of that would mean." "Okay. Can you tell me what you do know?"

It wasn't said in a snarky manner. There was warmth in Rachel's eyes and voice when she asked that question. She was truly interested and listening to what Quinn was telling her. Tears welled up in Quinn's eyes when she spoke. "I know that I can't come out to my mom." "Okay," Rachel replied as she quietly walked Quinn through her thinking process. "So then you are gay?" Quinn was slightly shocked by that question and her eyes darted around the room as if she were afraid that by just saying the words aloud her mother would suddenly appear to rip Rachel off of her and throw them both out of the house. When she was reassured that they were both still alone she realized that she'd spoken about coming out without putting much thought into whether she was gay or not. She justwas. "Yes. Rachel, I'm.I'm gay." It came out as a choked whisper and then tears were coursing down her face and Rachel's arms were wrapping around her and tugging her into a hug. Quinn rested her head against Rachel's shoulder and let herself cry even though she wasn't entirely sure why she was crying. She wasn't sad. She tried to figure out what exactly she was feeling and then with a rush she realized it was relief. She felt relieved at finally saying the words aloud, at accepting herself. Her tears suddenly turned to laughter. She pulled back as she continued to laugh. She tried to brush the tears that were still falling from her cheeks and Rachel reached up and helped her with a small smile on her face. When Quinn's laughter died off to a soft chuckle she looked directly into Rachel's twinkling brown eyes. "I'm gay." This time when she said it she didn't whisper and there was confidence in her voice. Rachel's smile lit up as she let out a soft laugh. "I'm so proud of you Quinn." "Thank you," Quinn said quietly as she smiled softly at the brunette. "Now, what else do you know?" Quinn settled herself slightly and as she did she rested her hand against the side of Rachel's knee. Her skin was soft and warm under Quinn's hand and when Rachel didn't react Quinn decided to leave it there. "Well, I know that I'm really glad you broke up with Finn." Rachel smiled. "Yeah?" "Yeah," Quinn breathed. Her fingers began gently moving over Rachel's knee, up her thigh and back down as she drew indiscernible patterns across the tan girl's skin.

"I know that you have the softest skin I've ever felt." "I follow a rigorous moisturizing routine," Rachel supplied quietly as her breath quickened slightly. "Mmm, it's nice," Quinn replied. She locked eyes with Rachel again, just a few inches away from her. "I know I love the way it feels to touch you. Like fire under my fingers, but like, the best kind of fire." Quinn can see the muscles in Rachel's throat work quickly as she swallows hard and she can't help the smirk that flashes across her face at the reaction she's eliciting. "I know that when you feel threatened in glee or are really angry and you're trying to hide it you do this thing where you lick your lips in this really exaggerated way." Rachel furrowed her brow and Quinn chuckled. "Please don't stop doing it. It's freaking adorable. Makes me want to kiss you senseless." "It does?" Rachel's voice is breathy and she moves forward slightly against Quinn's thighs. "Every damn time," Quinn breathes out as she leans forward and pulls Rachel's bottom lip between her own, tugging gently until Rachel's falling forward and sliding her lips against Quinn's. It doesn't take long before Rachel's slipping her tongue into Quinn's mouth and Quinn's gripping at Rachel's hip as she tries to pull her closer. Rachel's hips rock forward at Quinn's insistence. They're both breathing hard and when Rachel trails her warm tongue down Quinn's throat and nips at her collar bone the moan that escapes from her chest is enough to send Rachel diving back into Quinn's mouth, tugging hungrily at her hair as she grinds her hips into Quinn. Quinn realizes that things are getting out of control quickly and she begins to slow her kisses, directing Rachel toward more lingering moments than the unbridled passion they'd both been experiencing moments before. As they both slow Quinn breathes out slowly and places a soft closed mouth kiss to Rachel's lips before she slowly pulls back. Rachel's eyes are dark and Quinn's certain hers most likely match both the condition of the brunette's eyes and her swollen lips. "Too much," Rachel whispers quietly. "Too fast," Quinn nods with a smile. Rachel nods her head and then slowly pulls herself from Quinn's lap and collapses beside her on the couch. She leans her head against Quinn's shoulder and Quinn drops her own

head to rest against the girl's, her soft brown hair tickling against the blonde's nose as they each work to quiet their arousal. "Sogood talk." Quinn laughs at Rachel's attempt to normalize the situation and Rachel soon joins her. When their laughter dies away Quinn grows serious again as she speaks. "I want to try Rachel. I can't beout. No one can know about us, not my parents, not our friends, no one. At least not right now. I just can't risk losing everything again. I don't know if I'd be able to survive it." Quinn felt Rachel nod her head against her shoulder. "I believe you're stronger than you think and can survive anything, but I'm not ever going to push you to do something you're not ready for. Everyone comes to grips with their sexuality at their own pace and in their own way. I just want to be here for you Quinn. And I want to be with you, but I can and will respect your wishes in regards to who has knowledge of the extent of our relationship." Quinn was quiet for a while. The ordeal they'd just been through actually gave them the perfect opportunity to explain their new closeness and Quinn realized this. Everyone would simply think the girl's had bonded over their shared fight for survival. She decided it would be best to take advantage of that and set a precedent for how she and Rachel would be from now on. "Would you like to go out with me tomorrow night? We could go to that Thai place on Martin Boulevard. I could tell you how my doctor's appointment went." She could feel Rachel's cheeks move as she smiled. "That sounds really nice. I'd love to." Rachel was quiet for a moment before she asked, "When does your mother get home from work?" "Usually around 5:30." "Hhmmm," Rachel responded quietly as she snuggled into Quinn. "Would you like to stay the afternoon? We could watch a movie or something." Rachel sat up and looked at Quinn with a blinding smile on her face. "Can we cuddle?" Quinn returned the smile. "It's required," she answered.

"May I pick the movie?" Rachel asked as Quinn rose from her seat and walked toward the entertainment center. "Do I get to pick the next one?" "Of course," Rachel replied as if this should have already been known. Quinn smiled as she leaned down to look through the DVD collection. "Name it then." Quinn couldn't see the way Rachel was perusing her.assets as she leaned into the cupboard. Nor could she see the wistful smile that graced the brunette's lips as she named her request. "The Princess Bride, please."

CHAPTER TEN: YOUR FAVORITE SONGBIRD Our three month anniversary is next week and Quinn's present is currently burning a hole in one of the bags I'm carrying in my left hand as I work my house key frantically in my right. I keep telling Dad that my key needs to be re-cut or something. It sticks most of the time and sometimes I have to wiggle it side to side and adjust it to just the right depth to get it to actually turn in the lock. I drank a 21 ounce coffee at the mall and now I really need to get inside. I don't have time to deal with this stupid key. Finally it turns and I breathe a sigh of relief as I let myself in and drop my bags and purse in the entryway as I hurry to the downstairs bathroom. When I make it back out to the entryway I can hear my phone alerting me to the fact that I have a new text. I smile dreamily when I see that it's from Quinn. I don't wish to diminish what Finn and I had, but I don't think I knew what real love was until I was with Quinn. What we have isn't perfect. It can be messy. We're both very stubborn and opinionated. We're very passionate about certain things and it more often than not bleeds into the way we are with each other. We fight and then we make up. The first rule I instituted when we became official was that we would not let a 24-hour period pass without making up. So now when we get into an argument, if it gets to a point where either of us feel we're going to say something hurtful that can't be taken back, we step away until we've calmed down. She was hung up for a while on who was right or wrong, but I've helped her to see that sometimes there is no right or wrong and we just need a discussion and to realize that we have our own opinions. I actually love that we disagree on certain subjects. It's a far cry from not having an opinion at all or even being able to carry on a conversation beyond

which sports team is making the playoffs or the new video game that's soon to be released. Quinn: What are you doing? I appreciate that she uses proper spelling and grammar when she texts me. I know that she doesn't do that for everyone because I saw some of her texts to Santana over the summer and I could hardly understand what they were even saying to each other. It's one of the things that make me love her so much. She knows that I believe that "text speak" is a major contributor towards the degradation of written language and even though she doesn't feel as strongly as I do, she compromises and shows her love for me by not using it when texting me. Rachel: I just arrived home from a last minute shopping trip. Would you like to come over for lunch? We could watch a movie and cuddle on my bed. ;) I'm not above emoticons however. Quinn: Just cuddle? Is there anything else on the table? I don't even try to stop the blush or the giggle that bubbles up. I love when she's flirty. Rachel: Perhaps if you allow me to pick the movie then more could be arranged. I flip my phone closed and begin to pick up the bags to carry up to my room. My phone alerts me to her response half way up the stairs. I flip my phone back open and read her reply as I walk across my room and enter my walk-in closet. Quinn: I'm fairly certain that it's my turn to pick the movie. Yep, definitely certain now. I just checked our Faberry calendar and sure enough, it's my turn. I chuckle as I place the bags on the floor. I rifle through the one I want and find her gift before leaving the rest of the bags on the floor and going out to my vanity. I put the small box down as I sit in the chair and text her back. Rachel: Yes, Quinn, but this is apparently a negotiation. To get something you need to give something. "And what exactly would I be getting?" "Oh my God!" I scream and jump up from my chair, spinning and clutching my chest all at the same time. My heart is pounding and I'm so terrified. Then I see Quinn lying on my bed with her phone in her lap and a wicked smile across her face. "Quinn!" I chastise, "You scared me half to death."

"But not fully dead so still slightly alive," she replies with that same smile that just melts my heart and sends warmth through my chest. I laugh and walk toward her. She stays where she is, lying on my bed propped up against the headboard with pillows around her. I crawl up and my smile changes from amused to predatory. I can see in her eyes that she noticed the difference and she swallows hard. "Not fully dead, but mostly dead," I breathe as I straddle her hips. This is my favorite position. It allows me access to all my favorite places. Her hair, her lips, her breasts, heryeah. We're not quite there yet, but I know it's going to be soon and it's already on my favorites list. I lean in so that our lips are close enough to feel the warmth from each other's breath but not to actually touch. "What do you have that's worth living for?" she whispers quietly. Her eyes are shining and amused with our little game, but I can see that they've darkened slightly. I smirk and then in my deepest voice I blurt out, "To blave!" as loudly as I can. Quinn bursts into laughter and wraps her arms around me. I laugh because it was pretty funny if I do say so myself and I love to hear Quinn laugh like that; so real and uncontrolled. When we stop laughing I pull back and run my hands through her short hair. I love this haircut. "Hi, Baby," I whisper as I lean forward and kiss her gently. She moans softly and pulls me closer into her. As much as I want to get lost in her right now I hadn't planned on her being here right now so I pull back and place a soft kiss against her cheek as I extricate myself from her hold and slip back off the bed. "How long have you been here?" I move as inconspicuously as possible toward the jewelry box I left on my vanity as I wait for her response. "I let myself in with the hide-a-key over an hour ago. Speaking of which, Sweetie, you should just switch your key with that one because it works much better." "The point, Quinn, is not that there's a perfectly usable key available for me to switch with, but that Dad doesn't seem to feel the importance of replacing the one he gave me. He should understand that it's more than a convenience issue. It's a safety issue." "A safety issue?" I can hear the question in her voice as I randomly move things around on the vanity as if I'm reorganizing things just to throw her off my real purpose of covering the box I'd left there with a playbill. I face her as I explain my reasoning. "Yes. Say that I'm leaving school alone after a late rehearsal for glee."

"I wouldn't let you be alone," she interrupts. I continue as if I haven't heard her even though it makes me smile a little because there have been many times I've been alone when leaving the halls of McKinley over the last three years, even when I had a boyfriend, and the idea that she won't let me feel alone warms my heart. "It's already getting dark because it is winter and the days are short. I go to my car and begin the treacherous drive home, but something catches my attention as I'm about to pull out of the parking lot. Headlights suddenly turn on from a car I hadn't noticed in the fading light. I pause because my sixth sense is telling me that something isn't right, but I've been berated so many times for my latent psychic ability that I ignore it and pull onto the street anyway." Quinn has a huge smile on her face right now. I secretly love that she enjoys how dramatic I can be sometimes even though I'm completely serious. I've considered this scenario many times. My vivid imagination is going to help make me a great actress someday. "The roads are slick and I take my time driving home. I make certain to brake long before I reach the stop signs, but the entire time I see the headlights following me in my rearview mirror. I decide to take an alternate way home and turn left where I would have normally made a right and still the car follows me. Now my heart is racing and my palms are sweating. I'm certain the person in the car has nefarious motives and will do me harm when I reach my destination so I try to call my fathers but neither of them are home because even though it's dark outside their work hours haven't changed. I decide that I will have to make a run for it so I speed up to give myself more time and as I pull into my driveway I don't bother with my backpack. I slam the car into park, rip the keys from the ignition and race as quickly as I safely can up our walkway. My hands are shaking from cold and adrenaline, but I find the house key quickly and slip it in the lock, but it won't turn. I struggle with it, trying all of the tricks I've learned over the months of dealing with a key that doesn't work properly, but nothing works. I hear the crunch of snow and ice beneath tires as the other car pulls up and still I'm trying to get the door unlocked so I can find sanctuary within my home. I can hear the panting breath and heavy footsteps of the evildoer approaching and just as I feel the key turn in my hand my throat is slit by a crazed fan and I bleed to death on my front porch, a young talented life cut short, all because I couldn't get a damn door unlocked." There are tears in Quinn's eyes she's trying so hard not to laugh. I quirk an eyebrow and give her a little grin to let her know it's okay and she bursts into laughter as she motions for me to come to her. She's moved to a sitting position on the edge of my bed and I settle between her legs as she pulls me into her. I rest my head against her shoulder and nestle my nose against her hair, breathing in the scent of her shampoo. So good. "I'm serious," I whisper softly against her neck. She's still chuckling softly as she runs her hands along my back in a comforting gesture. She dips her head against mine and chuckles softly in my ear. "I know you are Sweetie." I feel the warmth of her lips against my jaw line as she drags her mouth down my neck. I tilt

my head slightly to give her better access and I can feel her smiling as she continues to place soft kisses along my throat. "No one's ever going to hurt this beautiful neck of yours," she whispers hotly against my skin and it makes me shiver and step further into her, "I won't let them." "We should make a movie," I say as my lips move to reciprocate the attention she's giving me. "We could enlist Kurt to be the nefarious stalker and you could film it. Then I would be able to present it as part of a presentation I've been planning to show Dad on how his neglect in this safety issue is endangering my life and the happiness of my future fans." "I think Santana would be more believable." I scoff and pull back so I can see her face. Her eyes are sparkling and she has a playful smile. I love this girl. "I don't want to give her any ideas. I'd feel safer with Kurt, I believe." She chuckles and nods. "Oh!" I'm excited now. "We could do it this Friday night. I'm sure Kurt would love to come over for dinner and we could do it then. You're going to be staying over anyway so it would be perfect." I see a look flash across her eyes that makes me feel nervous. "You're mom's still going out of town right? You're still staying the night?" She recovers quickly from whatever had flashed across her face and now she's nodding her head and smiling at me, but I see that the smile doesn't quite reach her eyes now. "Of course I'm still coming over. Friday will be perfect. Do you want me to bring my camera or would you rather I use yours?" "We can use mine," I answer distractedly. It feels like she's trying to hide something from me. There's a niggling feeling at the back of my mind. It feels similar to when you're trying to find the right word or remember a specific fact and you know it's just at the edge, but you can't quite get a grasp on it, like images lost in fog. I love the imagery that induces, but I focus back on the unsettling feeling that's now bothering me. "Quinn, what's going on?" Quinn just smiles at me and brushes my hair back from my face. "Aw, my little Spidey, is your sixth sense tingling?" "You do realize that if you'd listened to my sixth sense over a month ago and actually double checked that you had in fact locked your bedroom door then Santana and Brittany wouldn't have found out about us in the way that they did." Her face flushes with embarrassment at the memory of the two girls letting themselves into her house when we didn't hear them knocking and then finding us on Quinn's bed with her hand in place of the bikini top I'd been wearing and my tongue down her throat. I clear my throat to get us

back on track. "And yes, my "spidey senses" are tingling and now I'm even more worried because you didn't try to deny it." She stands from the bed, effectively stepping into me, and pulls my body flush against her in a tight hug. I can feel her warm breath against my neck as she just holds onto me. It feels like more than a hug. It feels as if she's trying to anchor herself, as if she's clinging to me for dear life and I pull her closer and place my lips against the curve of her neck. I don't kiss her. I just let her feel the warm connection. Soon I feel her hum softly against my neck and I know she's trying to open up. It's difficult for her sometimes and I'm slowly learning to give her the time she needs. "Not yet, Rachel," she whispers softly. "Soon?" There's a pause and then she says, "Soon", before placing a kiss against my shoulder and pulling back. There are unshed tears in her eyes and I so desperately want to know what's going on. But the look she gives me is basically begging me to ignore it and give her the time she needs. "So how about the lunch and movie you promised me?" she asks as she walks toward my bedroom door and down the hallway. I follow her because what else am I going to do except follow Quinn Fabray. We eat lunch and even though it's difficult I manage to refrain from bombarding her with questions. I let her pick the movie because it technically is her turn and she never really has to negotiate for physical intimacy from me. Sometimes I think that she's made of metal and I'm a magnet it feels so impossible to keep from touching her in some way. When she picks How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days I know there's something serious going on with her because she really dislikes Matthew McConaughey. Not that I'm a fan. We have the movie because my dads like it and Kate Hudson is on my list of top five favorite blondes, the one next to me of course ranking as number one. We're currently lying on my bed reclining against a plethora of pillows. My head is resting against Quinn's chest. Her arms are wrapped securely around me and I'm playing gently with her long, slender fingers. I love lying like this. Her arms always make me feel safe and loved. I can feel her soft firm breasts rise and fall with each breath under my cheek and the steady rhythm of her heart is a soothing sound I will never tire of. I know she hasn't been watching the movie for a while now and I wonder what she's been thinking about because her heart keeps racing and then calming and there've been a couple times I thought she might hyperventilate her chest was rising so quickly. The movie's to the point where the characters are playing Bullshit at his family's house when Quinn suddenly speaks, her voice so quiet and husky with emotion I barely recognize it as hers. "I told my mom last night."

Every single molecule within my body stills for a moment. Even though I want to ask her exactly what she told her mom I force myself not to ask the stupidest question in the universe because I can tell from the way Quinn spoke what she told her. And now I know what's bothering her. I slowly rise up from my resting place, letting her arms slide out of their embrace while still maintaining my hold on the hand I'd been playing with for the last hour or so. When I finally see her face my heart clenches at the tears welling in her red eyes and the way she's biting her lip to try to keep herself from crying. I wonder if she's been silently crying the whole time we've been watching the movie and it makes me feel awful that I didn't look at her sooner. "Quinn," I breathe out as I run my free hand across her cheek and she smiles a grimace at me as she rests her head heavily against my palm. "Can you.do you want to tell me about it, Baby?" Quinn sniffles softly. "I just had to tell her, you know. I mean, your dads know. And sure, they were worried at first that what we felt was some kind of survival syndrome or whatever, but we proved to them that our feelings go beyond The Wayne Affair." I nod my head and force myself not to smile at her use of the term I coined. I was so tired of referring to it as "the three days we spent alone in the wild because Mr. Schuester is an incompetent buffoon and nearly got us killed" experience that I had started calling it The Wayne Affair, which I thought added just enough mystery and descriptive truth that it would work well as the chapter title for that section of my memoirs. "And then Santana and Brittany found out and you told Kurt, which I know we argued about but I'm not upset anymore because I know you needed a friend you could confide in, but I just.." she trailed off as she appeared to try to gather her thoughts. "We've been getting closer, my mom and I, and it was starting to feel like every word I uttered was a lie because she didn't know this huge, life-defining thing about me. So last night I sat her down in the living room and I told her that I'm gay." There are so many things I want to ask her right now. So many things I want to do, like wrap her up in my arms and tell her I'm so proud of her, or kiss her senseless because I honestly didn't think Quinn would ever willingly come out to either of her parents. But right now she needs me to help her keep talking and to do that I need to say and do as little as possible so as not to distract her. "And?" I prompt. She laughs sadly through her tears. "And I'm not homeless, so that's a good thing." Quinn's quiet for a moment and then she looks at me with possibly the saddest, most heartbroken expression I've ever seen on her. "She cried. I cried. She said she didn't understand how this could have happened. She cited the fact that I've only ever had boyfriends; that I got pregnant so obviously I was attracted to boys. She tried to convince me it was just a phase I was going through. I told her that sleeping with Puck had been the

biggest mistake of my life, not because of Beth, but because it had been more about trying to make myself believe that I was desirable, that I was worthy of love and affection, than about any kind of attraction I felt for him. She really didn't like hearing that. She tried to blame it on my friendship with Santana and letting me join glee club. She said it was a new form of peer pressure. That my new friends made me think it was cool to be gay. I got angry at that and told her that it was no one's fault; that no one had talked me into anything. And besides which, with all of the bullying and ignorance I'm bound to face I didn't know how she could possibly think I would choose to feel the way I feel. I told her that if anything I would have accepted this about myself a lot sooner if I hadn't been terrified by her reaction; that maybe I would still be a virgin if I could have trusted her to be a supportive mother. She kind of just shut down after that and we each went to our rooms. She had already left the house for work by the time I woke up this morning and then I just wanted to be with you. I just wanted to hold you and feel good for a while before I have to face the uncomfortable situation that is my current household atmosphere." I breathe in deeply as I try to calm my racing thoughts. I tried to remain quiet and simply listen as Quinn recounted her experience with her mother. I felt sad and angry and protective and I just wanted to hold her right now and tell her everything would be okay even if I didn't know that to be the truth. I just wanted to be there for her. "Quinn, you know you didn't have to do this alone, right? I would have been there with you if I'd known you were even considering coming out to your mother." "I didn't want you there." Her words cut me and I try to hide it. We've been together for three months and we've learned that we both say things without truly thinking through how it sounds or how it may affect the other. We try to wait now for an explanation before taking offense, getting angry, or feeling hurt. But this time, because it just feels so important, I can't hide the hurt her words cause me. She sees it and grabs my hands before I can pull away. "Rachel, that's not what I meant. I would have loved to have had you by my side, but I had good reasons for not wanting you physically there." I'm chewing on my lip to try to keep myself from tearing up anew over her seeming rejection, but I decide to hear her out so I make it obvious that I'm not leaving by settling down on the comforter and pulling my legs in to sit Indian style and listen to her explanation. Quinn leans forward and takes my hands in each of hers'. "The only thing I was uncertain about when I decided to tell Mom the truth was whether or not I'd be packing my bags again. I knew that it wasn't going to be like when we told

your dads. I knew that whatever concern she showed wasn't going to be about our relationship and whether or not we were rushing into something based on unauthentic emotions or handling the difficulties of being in any kind of relationship, let alone a homosexual one in Lima, Ohio. And I was right, Rachel. She was hurt and confused and angry and she lashed out, blaming anyone and anything she could think of for my "deviant life choices". Having you there would have given her a target and I knew that things would escalate drastically if she attacked you in any way." "I also didn't want her to think that it was all because of you. She can try to say it's just a phase or that it's the people I choose to associate with, but the truth is I'm gay. Whether I'm with you or not Rachel, I'm gay and nothing's going to change that. It's true that if we weren't in a relationship then I most likely would not have come out to her, but it wouldn't change anything about who I am. I wanted there to be no doubt that I was telling her who I was because I wanted her to really know me and not because I'm afraid of her finding out the truth because I get caught making out with my girlfriend." I understand her reasoning and really it's about her, not me, which is a huge step for me that I hope she recognizes. It still hurts a little that I wasn't able to be there for her during the whole ordeal, but I know she was trying to protect me and at the same time being strong for herself. Independence is important to us both. We choose to be with each other because we want to, not because we need to. We've had many discussions about this and I realize that Quinn choosing to come out to her mother on her own is an independent step that I need to allow her and not feel slighted about. I uncurl my legs and rise onto my knees as I move across the bed and straddle her again so that I can hug her the way I want to. She kind of melts into me and I realize this is what she needs from me. "I understand," I say softly into her hair. "I wish I could have been there for you, but I understand why you needed to do this on your own." Her arms tighten around me. "You have no idea," she chokes out, "no idea Rachel, how much I wanted you there; how much I just wanted you to hold me close, like you are right now." I tighten my hold on her and for a long while that is how we sit, clutching at each other desperately as Quinn cries softly against me and I try to give her strength and comfort. After a while she stops crying and I reach over to my nightstand and grab a box of tissues. I don't move from my spot on her lap as she cleans her tear-stained face. "Doesdoes your mom know about us?" "Yeah," Quinn kind of exhales her answer. She looks unsure as to whether she wants to share this next part with me, but I grasp her hand and nod slightly to let her know that whatever she says will be okay. "Um, she was asking how I could even know for certain

that I liked girls when I'd only ever dated boys. I told her that I know because you're my girlfriend and I feel more in the simplest moments with you than I ever did in the biggest gestures from any of the boys I'd dated. I told her that I've had feelings for you for a long time, but that only recently had I found the courage to act upon them and that she could disapprove of me, but she would not disrespect you. I told her that I love you and that giving you up was non-negotiable." I smile shyly. I can't believe she said all those things about me to her mother; that she actually feels all those things for me. "You have no idea how good it makes me feel to know that you feel that way about me, about us. I'm so proud of you Quinn and no matter what happens in the future with your mom I'm going to stand by your side and support you." "I imagine we're going to avoid each other for a while." I know she sees the small grimace that I make because her hands squeeze my hips slightly where they're resting and she raises her eyebrow at me. When I hesitate she sighs. "Just say it Rachel." "Okay, I'm going to preface this by saying please don't think that I'm taking your mother's side in any of this. I realize that ignoring the elephant in the room until you face plant in its feces is the Fabray way," I didn't mean for that to sound so harsh and she frowns at me, but I figure if I keep going she won't hold it against me, "but I really don't think you should avoid your mom. I think you should continue to make strides to spend time with her and work on your relationship. She needs to see that you're still the daughter she loves and is getting to know, really for the first time. If you avoid her then that gives her the opportunity to place the blame on your sexual orientation or your friends or even me." Quinn is quiet and I can see that she's seriously considering what I've said so I decide to continue. "It might help if you could maybe view it from your mom's perspective, also. I know you think that my dads were completely cool about our little revelation, but the talk the four of us had together a couple months ago isn't the only one we've had since. They've expressed their concern over the prejudice I'm bound to face; prejudice they're intimately aware of. They've talked to me about how they had dreams for me beyond the scope of my career that they've had to alter their mental image of. They know that I've faced some hardships because of them, but they never wanted me to have to deal with the kind of bullying that will take place because of who I love." Quinn's eyes have turned worried and sad. I kept the conversations I'd had with my fathers from her because I didn't want her to be nervous around them or to think that

they didn't approve of her somehow. I want her to understand that it's simply parental concern on their part and not disapproval of my choice in companionship. "Now, think about the dreams your mom has probably carried for you since the day she first held you in her arms. She most likely thought about the boyfriends you would bring home to meet her until you finally brought home the one. She pictured the engagement party she would throw for the two of you, complete with a blown up engagement photo, the same one she would use in the announcement she had put in the paper. She probably pictured your wedding gown, your father walking you down the aisle to marry the man of your dreams and then of course, all the grandchildren you would give her. Quinn, all of those hopes and dreams were just destroyed and she can't see her way around that yet." "But I can still get married," Quinn argues. "I can still have that engagement party and the wedding. I still want those things; even the children, eventually. My being gay doesn't make those dreams for the future an impossibility. I just don't want them with a man." "I know that and you know that. You just have to give her time to photo shop me into the picture." Quinn laughs and tugs me closer. "I love you Rachel Berry," she says as her lips brush against mine. "I love you Quinn Fabray." "It's going to get hard," she says after a moment. I smirk. "That's what she said." She playfully slaps my hip, but she's smiling which was the whole point. "The summer's been relatively easy. Very few people knew the truth about us. Most everyone thinks that we got past our differences and became friends in the woods. They don't know it's more than that. We start our senior year tomorrow Rachel and I have no idea what to expect. It scares me." "So, you want to be out at school also?" I'm even more surprised. She's moving faster than I ever thought she would and I'm so happy for her because even though I know it won't be easy I also know that she'll at least be happier with herself because she'll actually be herself. I see the worry in her eyes as they search mine. "You don't? I just thought that since my mom knows and I'm planning on telling my dad tonight and pretty much ending whatever little progress we've made that there's no need to keep us a secret. But Rachel if you don't want to be out at school I'd completely understand. I know it's hard enough for you there, I don't want to add anything to that."

"No Quinn, that's not it. I don't ever want to hide how I feel about you. It just feels like you're moving so quickly and I'm trying to keep up. We haven't even really talked about this for the last few months and I'm just surprised that you're so ready to be open about yourselfand our true relationship." She bites her lip and I have to force myself not to kiss her because it's just so sexy when she does that. "I know we haven't talked about it, but I've been thinking about it a lot. I realized that I was letting fear dictate how I led my life. Fear of your reaction to my feelings for you almost made me miss out on the best thing that's ever happened to me so I decided to just face it. But facing it doesn't take the fear completely away and it doesn't make anything about what we're going to face any easier." I lean my forehead against hers as I contemplate her words. My fingers slowly stroke along her neck and she starts this contented humming sound that fills me with such love and happiness I barely know how to contain myself. I understand what she's saying and I've thought about the same things. I worry about Quinn and myself; how we'll handle the challenges of being girlfriends within the halls of McKinley. But I also know that the best things in life take effort. Nothing worth any value comes easily or without a cost. "Don't move," I whisper against her lips before pecking her softly and jumping off the bed. I walk to my vanity and grab the box I'd hidden earlier and hurry back to my previous position. I've moved so quickly she's barely had time to register that I was even gone and I see the questioning look in her beautiful eyes. I hold the small jewelry box between us and she looks down and then back up at me. I shake my head as I try to clear the jumble of thoughts currently zipping through my brain so that I can focus on what I want to say. "I had a plan," I start quietly. For some reason I feel nervous so I break eye contact and gaze down at the dark blue box I'm currently fiddling with. "And you know how I feel about my plans so I believe you understand the gravity of me changing said plans." I chance a glance at her and I see a soft smile on her lips. She nods slightly. I appreciate that she's not bombarding me with questions as I most certainly would be if the roles were reversed. "I went to the mall today, in part, to pick this up from the jeweler. I had it commissioned a month ago in preparation for our three-month anniversary next weekend. I was going to give it to you over dinner. I had a speech prepared and everything. I know that you coming out to your mom wasn't about me, but I also know that you wouldn't have felt the need to do that if it weren't for me. I love you so much Quinn. I love your confidence. I love your bravery and courage. I love your sense of humor and I'm fascinated by the way you see life. Your intellect amazes and challenges me in such an exciting way. I love how patient you are with me and how you seem to actually like the things that I hate most about myself. I love the way you thread our fingers together when we're holding hands. I love

the weight of your hand on my back when you try to calm me down. I love that thing you do with your tongue when we're kissing when you kind of curl it around mine and suck." She blushes and chuckles and I lean forward and place a soft kiss against her lips. It grounds me and I breathe a sigh when I pull back and place the box in her hands. "So this is to remind you of all the things I love about you and the many more that I'm sure will be added to the list in the years to come. Because when I picture us together, Quinn, it's in our senior year. It's winning Nationals and our graduation day. It's New York and college and Broadway and whatever it is you find you want to do. But it's always our future together and I don't see an end. I hope that when you wear this you're reminded of that love and of what it took to find it. The thin line between life and death. The struggle to survive. We fought nature, Quinn, and together we conquered it. Together we can conquer anything." She finally cracks the box open and I wait with bated breath as she softly fingers the delicate gold chain. She hasn't breathed a word and my hands are shaking I'm so nervous now. Finally she speaks, but her voice is thick and when she looks up at me her eyes are full of tears. "Rachel, this is too much. I didn't.God, what I got you isn't nearly this expensive." My hands instantly start waving her off. "It's not as much as you think, Quinn. My cousin Leon is the jeweler and he sold it to me at cost. Please, I want you to have it. It was made specifically for you so it's not like I can return it anyway. The cost isn't what matters anyway. I'm sure I'll love whatever you got for me." She hesitates for a moment, but then she gently lifts the slender necklace from the case and holds it carefully in her hand as if she's afraid she's going to break it. "Will you help me?" Her voice is so soft and I can see a couple tears track down her cheek. I reach forward and gently wipe them away before reaching for the necklace with trembling fingers. I don't know why I'm so nervous, but it feels like such a monumental moment between us and I'm terrified I'm going to do or say something to ruin it. I undo the tiny clasp and carefully drape the chain around Quinn's neck. It takes me a couple tries but I finally get the hook set. As I arrange the necklace properly I'm pleased to note that it appears to be the perfect length so that the pendant rests against her sternum. I bite my lip as I take in the look of it around Quinn's neck. It's even better than I imagined. I make a mental note to bake Leon some of my famous "Thank You" cookies. The pendant he designed is a gold encrusted bird in flight with tiny emerald stones set at the tips of the wings. I reach forward and gently finger the pendant, letting the back of my

fingers rest against Quinn's warm skin. I can feel her heart racing against my hand and it thrills me to know that she truly likes my gift. "It's a black-throated green warbler. I took a picture in to him so that he'd have an idea of what to work toward. That little bird reminds me that even through incredible hardships and trials we can find moments of peace, degrees of contentment, and explosive heartpounding possibilities." "What doesn't kill us makes us stronger," Quinn says quietly with a smile. "Leave it to you to boil down my outpouring of words to just a simple statement." "It's beautiful," Quinn says before she kisses me softly and pulls back. "I love it." She kisses me again, just a little longer this time. "You're beautiful." This time she slips her tongue into my mouth and slides it along the roof. I grip her shoulders and try to stifle the moan that nearly escapes my chest. I feel her lips smile against mine and I know she heard it anyway. "I love you," she husks as her hands trail down my sides and grip my ass, pulling me tight against her as she delves into my mouth again. Quinn pushes up and rolls us so that my back is now pressed into the mattress. I keep my legs wrapped around her torso as I return her kisses, our tongues sliding against each other in a delicious dance that we've perfected over the last few months. For nearly twenty minutes we roll around together on my bed, sometimes I'm on top, sometimes she is. The shirts we were wearing are both discarded and Quinn's mouth is trailing down the column of my throat when I reach behind myself and unsnap my own bra, allowing her to remove it. This is not new territory for us. However, normally at this point I would be starting to slow us down. I would make sure that our hips didn't meet together as often in the natural grinding rhythm that they currently are. I would place soft kisses against her jawline and down her throat being careful not to use my tongue and Quinn would eventually begin to pull away so that we could each catch our breath and rein in our hormones and emotions. None of this happens now. Instead when Quinn takes my breast in her mouth and swirls her tongue slowly across my hardened nipple I dig my fingers into her hips and grind up hard into her causing us both to gasp. "God, Rachel," Quinn gasps against my skin hotly. Her hands are everywhere as I fumble with her bra and when she pushes herself to pull it off and toss it aside the sight of her, with blonde hair wild and hazel eyes darker than I've ever seen them, I think I've never seen anything so beautiful or sexy. In the next instant her mouth is back on mine and our bodies are pressing hard against each other as she pushes me into the mattress. Her hands are skimming across my body so quickly that I barely register pleasure in one place before she's moved on to

somewhere else. It feels like pleasurable insanity and I don't think I ever want it to stop, but before I realize it Quinn's gasping for breath and pulling away from me. She throws herself on her back across the bed and away from me as she stares unseeing at the ceiling. "Rachel, oh God, Rachel we have to stop now or I'm not going to be able to." I hear the struggle in her voice. Amazingly enough, it has not been Quinn that's been holding back in the physical aspect of our relationship. She's spectacularly adventurous when we're alone, but wonderfully understanding and patient with me. I watch her for a moment across the bed as her chest rises and falls rapidly as she tries to calm herself. She's so beautiful and I love her and I don't know what I've been waiting for really, but a realization comes over me in that instant. I'm done waiting. "Quinn." I breathe against the skin of her abdomen and watch as her muscles contract from the sensation. "Sweetie, I need a minute more, please." "No." I swipe my tongue across her right breast and she arches into me even as I feel her hands trying to push me away from her. "Rachel, please." Her voice is pleading and slightly annoyed. "Yes. Please." I say as I nibble my way up her collarbone. I drag my tongue wetly along her neck and suck softly on her pulse point. Her hands that were trying to stop me are now clawing softly down my back and grabbing my ass, pulling me against her rocking hips. "Rach." It's a whimper and the sound of it shoots electricity through me and I bite a little harder than I intended. I pull up so that I can look into her darkened eyes. Her lips are swollen and red and she's breathing hard, her cheeks are flushed and I feel a fresh wave of wetness between my thighs at the sight of her. "Quinn," I whisper against her lips before I press a soft closed mouth kiss to her lips. I move slowly, pressing and twisting as I draw her back to me. When I open my eyes again her eyes are still dark, but they're focused on me again. "I'm ready," I tell her quietly and I see the hesitancy in her gaze. "I love you Quinn. I want us to make love. Please, Quinn." When she licks her lips slowly and pulls me back down to kiss her I know that we won't be stopping again. And we don't, but it feels different from any make out session we've had before. We move slowly, touching and kissing, as if we're rediscovering each other. Quinn whispers disjointed words into my ear and against my skin. Things like "God" and "Rachel", "sexy" and "so fucking beautiful". Things that make me whimper and moan and

undulate against her in a wanton way that would be embarrassing if I didn't trust her so much. She's doing that thing with her tongue that I love so much when her fingers slip inside me for the first time and we groan loudly into each other's mouths at the sensation. She moves in a slow rhythm and my hips naturally find the cadence she's set. I can feel her wetness against my thigh as her hips follow the rhythm of her fingers inside me. I find it incredibly endearing that only we know these intimate details about each other. That the normally verbose Rachel Berry turns into an unintelligible mess while the Queen of Silence Quinn Fabray can't seem to stop talking. I feel the tightness building low in my belly and her words urge me on. They've changed now to things like "shit" and "fuck", "so wet, Baby" and "so fucking tight". When I reach down and slip my hand between her and my thigh she stills her movements and looks deeply into my eyes. For a moment I feel unsure but then I feel the cool weight of her necklace, the only thing either of us is wearing, resting on my chest from where it's dangling from her neck. "Together," I say quietly and I never knew my voice could sound so low, "I want ustogether." Quinn smiles lovingly at me and the look on her face and the wet warmth I feel as I slip inside her nearly makes me come undone right then. It's not long before the rhythm we've set becomes frenzied and erratic and then we're jerking against each other as our bodies convulse and contract through our orgasms. Quinn collapses against me and the weight of her hot, slick body against mine causes small tremors to shake through my body. As our heartbeats slow and we gain control of our breathing again Quinn slowly rolls off of me and then pulls me tightly into her, entwining our legs and arms into some kind of sexy human pretzel. She kisses my closed eyes, then my nose, then my lips. I smile and kiss her back. "Are you okay, Sweetie?" I hum my assent because I still can't seem to find my words. I open my eyes to see her watching me with a look I've never seen anyone look at me with. "I love you so much," I say as tears leak from my eyes. She seems to understand that they're not tears of sadness or regret and she tightens her grip on me as she places chaste kisses all over my face and whispers to me promises I know she'll do everything she can to keep. "I love you too Rachel, so much. Thank you for always being there for me. And thank you for my present. I love it." I pull back a little so I can see the shine of gold against her soft, pale skin. I smile as I pull my hand up to finger the small bird gently and then run my hand slowly against her warm skin. "Your favorite songbird," I say with a smile, pleased that I seem to have finally found

my voice again. I feel a hot wave of worry rush through me when Quinn shakes her head in the negative. Then she leans forward and says throatily, "You're my favorite songbird," before she claims my lips in a kiss that promises more than an amazing afternoon. It promises an amazing future as well.