Stop The World [4/?]
Title: Stop The World
Author: gabbie217
Pairings: Rachel/Quinn; Brittany/Santana; Rachel, Quinn, Brittany, Santana and Puck friendship.
Rating: R [Language, alcohol and some drug use, all involving teens]
Spoilers: None for this chapter.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, except the mistakes.
Summary: The five have a secret double life. At school, they hate each other, outside? They’re best friends.
A/N: I got the title from a Demi Lovato song… Stop The World ;]
School started in four days, and Quinn had yet to leave her room since the day they slushied Rachel. Frankly, Santana had had enough.
“Get up, Blondie!” she growled.
Puck flung open the curtains, and Quinn whined her protest before burrowing deep into her covers.
“Don’t you wanna hear the plan Brittany came up with to get Rachel back?” Puck asked coaxingly.
Quinn sat up, looking suspicious. “I’m listening…”
Brittany beamed and launched into her two part plan.
Looking vulnerable and hopeful at the same time, Quinn hesitantly asked, “Will it work?”
Knowing enough to not be offended, Brittany smiled gently. “We can only try, Q.”
**
As soon as she woke up, Rachel rushed downstairs to her dining room. On the table, lay the now glued back together cork board. 10 minutes after Rachel had chucked the broken thing outside, she had rushed back out there to rescue it.
Rachel had then spent the next three days gluing each piece back together, not even stopping to eat. Each night one of her dad’s would carry her upstairs to her bed, only to have her wake 4 hours later and come rushing back to her project.
Now that the glue had dried, she was trying to put the taped together pictures back the way they used to be.
Just as she was cursing herself for ruining all those wonderful memories, the doorbell rang.
Thankful for the distraction, Rachel all but ran to the door. Cautiously looking through the peephole, she was surprised to see Santana, Quinn, Brittany, and Puck.
“Go away!” she shouted.
“Not until you come out and listen to what we have to say!” Santana shouted back.
“Hope you have food with you, because I’m NEVER COMING OUT!”
Puck smirked. “I’m sure your dads wouldn’t mind if you came out.”
“Shut it, Puckerman!” Rachel didn’t have a reason to be upset with him, other than the fact that he was with them and therefore had chosen their side.
“Well, luckily we have two coolers of food, a tent, some sleeping bags, and even wood and matches for a fire,” Santana cut in smoothly.
Rachel ran to a window and stared in disbelief as the four set up a little mini camp.
Puck even hammered a sign into the ground that read: ‘Rachel Berry Needs To Come OUT!’
This, she suspected, had a double meaning. He was forever telling the girls they just needed to come out to the world. But they always told him that apart from him and Rachel’s dads, no one would accept them for who they were.
And she was touched that they were going to so much trouble for her. Not enough to go out there of course, but touched nonetheless.
**
Eric and John greeted the four kids huddled around a fire and offered them the use of their bathroom, should they need it.
Puck had called them at work and explained everything. They then forgave the girls, and agreed to go along with the plan.
“Thanks, Mr. Berry,” Quinn said quietly. The word felt foreign on her tongue.
Eric eyed the girl and then smiled kindly. “You can still call us Dad and Daddy, Quinn.” He told her.
“Yeah Quinn, you made a mistake, but we still love you enough to let you claim us.” John laughed.
Her eyes watered as she felt love and relief for these two men who had practically raised her. All four kids called all of the parents of their group mother, mommy, mom, dad, daddy, papa, mama, if you could use it for a parent, then they said it.
“Thank you,” Quinn whispered.
Entering the house, Eric and John informed Rachel that she had people waiting for her outside.
“I’m making them wait,” Rachel said stubbornly when they tried to get her to go out there.
“They’re freezing honey,” John tried again.
“They are well within their rights to go home where it is warm.” She sniffed. But her eyes darted outside more than once.
**
“You know, I wasn’t sure if they would forgive us or not…” Santana said lowly as she looked into the flickering flames.
“Me either,” Brittany agreed.
“I thought they would hate me forever.” Quinn’s eyes grew teary again. This whole ordeal had made her into a huge basket case. It didn’t take much to get her crying.
“But they don’t and they would never,” Puck said firmly. Adding another log to the fire, Puck leaned down and gave Quinn a side hug as he headed back to his chair.
An hour later, they curled up into their sleeping bags and fell asleep.
**
The next morning, all four woke up with sore backs.
Waving goodbye to John as he left for work, Brittany drank her orange juice before taking the first shift of coaxing Rachel outside, or into letting them inside. She had no luck in speaking with the singer.
Puck was up next, and he waved goodbye to Eric when he left. He had no luck either.
Late in the afternoon, Quinn got her to come downstairs, but the conversation ended with both girls in tears, unable to do anything but cry.
Santana got Rachel to talk a little bit more.
“Please, Rachel. We want to talk to you!” Santana begged.
There was silence. Then a tiny broken voice whimpered, “You promised Sanna. You promised you wouldn’t let them hurt me. And then you did their dirty work for them.”
At the use of her old childhood nickname, Santana nearly burst into tears. She remembered clearly the promise she had made.
The Fab 5 walked into the huge high school, looking for Mama S. Brittany’s mom had just gotten a job at McKinley High as the new Cheerleading Coach.
While their school was on early release for conference week, the high school still had normal hours. So the halls were packed with huge grown up kids.
All 5 watched in fascination as a boy had a slushy thrown in his face. Never before had they seen anything like it.
When they asked Mama S about it, she told them that was how high school worked. The popular kids had the privilege of pranking and bullying the lower ranked students.
“What’re the levels?” Rachel had asked.
“You got you’re cheerleaders, football jocks, and basketball studs at the top. The rest of the jocks on the next level down. Band geeks, drama freaks, and other weirdos on the bottom floor. And then you have the glee kids in the basement,” Mama S told her gravely.
Rachel’s lower lip had trembled. “I wanna be in glee…”
Mama S smiled at her. “And you can be, sweetie. It will be all right for you to be in that club ‘cause you’re special. Those other kids aren’t, so they’re ridiculed.”
Looking relieved, Rachel stopped the tears before they came.
“Besides Ray, I won’t ever let anyone hurt you. The whole high school will have to go through me before I let them hurt or humiliate you!” Santana vowed.
“No one touches my girls,” Puck agreed, looking menacingly towards the crowded halls.
Quinn and Brittany just pulled Rachel closer to them protectively.
Santana pulled herself out of memory lane and quickly wiped a stray tear from her cheek.
“I know Ray-bear. I know. And I’m sorry, but please, hear us out!” Santana begged.
A note came poking out from underneath the door.
Try again tomorrow. I’m sleepy. XOXO Ray-Ray
Taking the Ray-Ray as a good sign, Santana skipped over to the camp fire. She showed the note to the rest of the group and didn’t bother teasing Quinn as she fingered the card; she was too happy, and they didn’t want to ruin the moment.
“Progress, Daddy B!” Brittany squealed when Eric and John came walking up the path.
“Good job kids,” they praised.
After eating the toasted hot dogs, they decided to go to bed early so tomorrow would come quicker.
**
Quinn woke up to the smell of waffles and… sausage?
Mystified, she crawled out of the tent, only to be met with the sight of a tiny brunette crouching by the fire. A plate of steaming waffles was staying warm on the outer edge of the fire, while more were cooking in the middle. The sausage was being neglected, as Rachel couldn’t bring herself to touch them anymore.
“Rach?” Quinn whispered, wondering if she was dreaming.
Looking up, Rachel squeaked in surprise. “M-morning,” she said hesitantly.
“You cooked meat for us?” Quinn smiled at Rachel’s scrunched up nose.
“I had daddy buy some because I knew you guys would need more protein then you’ve been getting…”
“Does this mean… you’re speaking to us again?”
Rachel rolled her eyes playfully. “No, Quinn. I’m not speaking.”
“Ha. Ha.” Quinn rolled her own eyes.
“But, yes. I-I will hear you out.”
“YAY!” Brittany came rushing at her, flinging her arms around her waist and pulling her in for a tight hug.
“I said give them some privacy!” Santana said exasperatedly.
Brittany ignored her. “Hi Ray Bear,” she said softly.
Rachel bit her lip. “Hey Britt…”
“Ray Bear, I really am sorry for getting you all wet and sticky.” Brittany looked like she was about to cry.
“That sounds so wrong.” Puck snorted.
“Shut it Puckerman,” all four girls snapped.
Then they pulled him into a group hug.
“We good, Ray-Ray?” Santana asked quietly.
“We’re good. But… what are we gonna do about school?”
And so they told her Brittany’s plans.
Rachel scared Brittany by tackling her into a huge hug. “You’re a genius, B!”
“I know,” came the simple smug reply.