So, it's the final chapter! Yay! I really had a blast writing this fanfiction. I love writing AUs and I always have ideas flowing around in my brain so who knows? Maybe in the next month or even the next week I'll pop out another story - AU or not. I want to thank you guys for being such good sports and kept reviewing throughout the entire story. Really, thank you.

Also I want to thank my beta reader CES5410. She's awesome and I love that she put up with my extremely faulty writing. Find her if you need a beta! She's a big Klainer ;)

FaberryBRA: :]

Gmac62: OMG your username is so cool! And I hope you're not in too much pain sitting on pins and needles haha. More to come!

Katy: Miss Perry? Is that you?

laylarei: Don't cry! Do I have to buy a box of tissues? Cuz I'm pretty broke so...

lost in a musical dream: Well I love you :)

CanadianPianoMan: Wow you are a really avid reviewer! Thanks so much!

Okay, I'm done writing this AN for now. Read, ponder and enjoy!

I can't be normal anymore.

That was Quinn's first thought when she woke up the next morning. Her heart ached in a way she didn't know was possible when the sight of Rachel sleeping on the chair invaded her vision. She remembered everything that had transpired yesterday and regretted not forcing Rachel to tell her what was going on before she said yes. She regretted saying yes. She truly regretted that decision and she wished she could take it all back.

She couldn't and she wouldn't marry Rachel and let herself be the brunette's burden for the rest of her life. God knows what Rachel had been through before and she needed to have space to succeed. Quinn knew if she stayed, Rachel would waste time taking care of her and eventually she would hate Quinn for destroying her life. Quinn cursed her legs, she cursed the doctors, she cursed the Hudson's, she cursed everybody and she cursed herself.

"I need you to stop."

She stopped her train of thought and turned her head to see Rachel staring at her in a way like she was trying to chastise her.

"Stop thinking too much into things. I need you to stop doing this to yourself." Quinn stared at her in confusion. "You're thinking so loud that I can practically hear you, Quinn. You're thinking that you're going to be a burden to everyone else for the rest of your life. You're thinking that you're useless now that your legs aren't going to function normally. You're thinking that nobody will love you anymore, that I wouldn't love you anymore. And what's worse is that you're even contemplating leaving me."

Rachel didn't sound angry. She sounded disappointed. She sounded sad. Quinn kept silent as she pursed her lips in a tight line and looked away. She was unable to look at Rachel anymore because like a mind reader, she was right. Everything Rachel said was nothing but right.

Rachel scooted closer and took Quinn's hand in hers, clutching it tightly as though Quinn would leave if she let go. Honestly, Quinn would if she could just fucking walk. "Look at me, Quinn," Rachel prodded, reaching out and took hold of Quinn's chin gently. She turned Quinn's head to meet her eyes. "You're flawless, baby." Quinn snorted and attempted to look away but Rachel wouldn't let her. "Stop it. Quinn, I just got you back and I cannot risk losing you again. I want you to be here with me. Physically and mentally."

Quinn choked as she took a shuddering breath and she gulped. "You should go, Rachel," she whispered brokenly.

The brunette shook her head frantically and said, "No." She took a deep composing breath and tightened her grip on Quinn's hand. "I am not leaving you anymore, Quinn. I don't care if you punch me or scream at me, I will not leave you alone anymore. I have to look at you and I have to say to myself that you are here. You're no longer with the Hudson's. I have to tell you every single minute that you are not trash and you are not useless. I have to tell you that I am marrying you no matter what. I have to tell you that I need you. I have to tell you that I love you. Because apparently, you are not in your right mind right now to even think that you are the opposite of those things."

"Rachel," Quinn said in strangled tone. She gestured at her legs and clenched her jaw, furrowing her brows and shaking her head. She pulled Rachel's hand away from her chin and looked down at her lap. "I'm not…I can't walk anymore, okay? I'm twenty-three and I'm going to have to limp my way through life until the day I die." Tears welled up in her eyes and she sobbed. "I actually thought I had a chance at having myself fixed before this happened and now I can't anymore. I am nothing."

"Well, if you are nothing then what am I?" Rachel snapped. Her tone brought Quinn's eyes to hers and she clenched her jaw. "I might still very well be trying to think of a way to destroy the Hudson's and my brain would still be filled with all this hatred. You stopped those things, Quinn. You. Do you have any idea how hard it is to stop me from something when I'm determined to do something? I admit I was very stubborn when you asked me to stop the first time but I still stopped, didn't I?"

"Because your adopted father asked you to, Rachel. It has nothing to do with me."

"It has everything to do with you, Quinn!" Rachel interrupted. "He asked me to think about you! He asked me to stop because he wanted me to have a beautiful future with you without anything holding me back. He wanted me to think about what you would think if I ever proceeded with my plan. Everything was and still is about you." Quinn stared at her, wordless. "I need you. I want to marry you. I want to wake up every morning and see you. I want to laugh with you. I want to cry with you. I want to go on stupid little dates with you. I want to sing silly love songs to you. I want to have children with you. I love you."

"I know, Rachel. And I love you too. But –"

"Then what's the problem?" Rachel cut Quinn off. "Quinn, you do not need to be fixed! You are…you are the epitome of perfection. Maybe you aren't to other people, but you are to me. I don't need you to be 'normal' like you say you aren't. When I look at you, I see the only person who actually makes me smile without even saying anything. I see this girl who is so real. I see this woman that I'm so in love with. I see this person that I know I want to spend the rest of my life with."

A tear rolled down the blonde's cheek and she sniffled. "That is…that is very romantic, Rachel," she whispered, squeezing Rachel's hand. "However, you can't be too sure of anything. I am not perfect. I am not normal. I can't walk, for God's sake. And I know if I walk in public, people will look at me and they'll whisper behind my back. And I will need help. If I marry you, you'll have to help me for the rest of your life and eventually, you will hate me for restricting your freedom. I'm giving you an out, Rachel. I'm giving you an out before it's too late. I want an out for you."

Rachel stared at Quinn for a moment before she gently released her hand. Quinn sighed and thought Rachel was taking her chance to get out. Rachel didn't walk out, instead she stood up and she sat on the edge of the bed, maneuvering herself to avoid the wires. She leaned forward and pressed her lips on Quinn's, holding her tight even when the blonde struggled to pull away. She only released her when she needed a breath and stood up.

"I'm I'm gonna go out for some air. I'm gonna give you some space to think. I don't want to argue with you. I want you to really think about what I said. But remember, I am not leaving. I don't care how long it takes to get you some senses, but I'm staying." Then Rachel turned and walked out of the room.

Blaine sat in the cafeteria opposite Kurt, holding the cup of bland coffee in his hands and kept his eyes on Kurt. When Kurt finally met his eyes, he raised his brows, waiting for him to explain.

"You know I'm a private investigator," Kurt began. Blaine nodded. "Before I officially know you, I was hired by Rachel Berry's friend, Noah Puckerman. I'd been given many tasks. I was asked to investigate the Hudson's. I was asked to provide info on the structure of the Hudson Organization. I was asked to…check you guys out because your sister was initially one of the pawns in Rachel Berry's game to take revenge on the Hudson's."

Blaine frowned. "What do you mean my sister was one of Rachel Berry's pawns?"

"Rachel Berry had this perfectly manufactured plan to take down the Hudson's. She intended to seduce Quinn and then ask me to leak out false information to you so you'd get your family to invest in the wrong stock in the stock market. And then she'd swoop in like a superhero when you guys owed people debts and then she would buy the bakery from you, providing the money to pay off your debts. And then she'd sell the bakery to the Hudson's."

"So you were helping her," Blaine stated coldly, narrowing his eyes at Kurt.

"I didn't know anything, I swear," Kurt hurriedly said. "I didn't know anything about this plan of hers until yesterday when Puck told me everything so I can explain to you. I actually…forced Puck to tell me so that I can give you an explanation."

The other man harshly inhaled and exhaled. He shifted in his seat and tightened his hold on his cup. "So what happened?"

"She didn't expect Quinn to be the girl she'd helped when they were orphans. They were orphans staying in the same orphanage and the kids often teased Quinn for having miss-matched legs. They often taunted Quinn until Rachel Berry stood up for her and chased those kids away. Her compassion began to emerge and eventually, she fell in love with your sister. Apparently, so did Quinn. Everything was so…complicated. All in all, Rachel called off her plan, apologized to your sister and courted her. Turns out to be successful."

Blaine clenched his jaw and leaned back against his chair, contemplating everything Kurt said. "So all this…between you and me, is just a fraud?"

Kurt shook his head. "No. I may have concealed the fact that I investigated you and you and your family's info to Noah Puckerman, but everything is real, Blaine. I've had these unexplainable feelings for you ever since the day I ran into you outside the bakery. And then when Puck told me I will no longer be needed, I gathered the courage to call you and ask you out." Kurt sighed and looked down, swallowing. "I understand if you feel like you can't trust me right now, Blaine. But I beg you; please just give me a chance."

Blaine gulped and sipped his coffee as he thought over what Kurt had said. Then he exhaled. "I need time."

Kurt nodded. "Take all the time you need," he whispered.

Instead of the usual where Santana was the first to wake up, this time it was Brittany who woke up first. When Santana opened her eyes, Brittany was fully dressed and smiling at her from the foot of the bed. Santana smiled back and yawned, turning her head to look at the clock. She gasped when she realized how late it was and quickly sat upright, scurrying out of bed and past Brittany into the bathroom.

"Why didn't you wake me like two hours ago? It's twelve noon now!" Santana called from the bathroom, turning on the shower.

Brittany leaned against the door panel and turned to Santana in the shower. "I figured you needed some sleep since you cried for ages last night after we came back from the hospital," Brittany replied.

Santana couldn't help but smile at Brittany's statement. She slid the shower curtain open and smiled at Brittany. "That was very sweet of you, Brittany; but Quinn is lying in the hospital right now and God knows if she's woken up and if she's still bawling like a baby over there."

"Oh it's not like you weren't bawling like a baby last night. And I'm sure Rachel's gonna be there for her. If you're that worried, then hurry up. I picked up breakfast for you. I'll be in the kitchen," she said before heading to the kitchen to set up breakfast for her girlfriend.

Santana drew the curtain and stood under the showerhead, letting the water wash all over her. She wasn't ashamed at the fact that she bawled the minute Brittany closed the door behind her. She was just too emotional for everything that had happened and she just wanted to let everything out. Crying seemed to always make people feel better all the time so she did. And it sort of made her feel better. What actually made her feel better was Brittany.

While she was crying her heart out, Brittany took her in her arms and just comforted her, whispering soothing words in her ear and telling her that everything would be okay. She told her that Quinn would be okay and nothing would happen since the Hudson's were now at the police station.

Santana's smile disappeared as she remembered seeing Quinn crying in Rachel's arms. When she opened the door, she initially thought Rachel must have said something to Quinn; then Quinn began rambling about herself being stupid and useless and she kept hitting her leg that Santana finally understood what was going on. She recalled running to Quinn and grabbing her arms to stop her from abusing herself. Quinn just wouldn't stop crying.

Brittany bought her a fluffy duck and even though Quinn mustered a smile and thanked Brittany, Santana could see Quinn just wanted them to leave. So she ended up comforting Quinn one last time, told Rachel to remember to feed her and then left with Brittany, which led to her coming back to Brittany's apartment and crying.

She had been watching her sister grinning and laughing every day, dismissing them every time they asked if she was tired or if she had to sit. She had been there almost every time Quinn got those jolts of pain and just had to sit down. For almost her entire childhood to her adulthood, she had been watching Quinn put on a brave face and confront reality as best as she could and Santana truly admired her for that. She remembered when Quinn had her first surgery, which had made everything worse. Quinn was smiling when she first heard the news and she said, "It's not like I didn't expect that," with a chuckle.

Quinn was smiling when she first heard the news and she said, "It's not like I didn't expect that," with a fucking chuckle.

That night, when Quinn thought they'd left, Santana came back to bring her extra blanket. She saw Quinn shivering under her blanket and she knew her sister was crying.

She just didn't know why everything had to happen to Quinn. She didn't even know Quinn had actually seen a doctor and considered having another surgery until Rachel told her while Quinn was still sleeping in the hospital room.

Santana turned the knob to stop the water and she grabbed a towel and dried herself thoroughly. She stared at herself in the mirror and couldn't help but wish that she was the one at the hospital now and not Quinn. She loved her sister and she just couldn't bear the thought of Quinn suffering so much. Born with legs like that, being orphaned, having a failed surgery, falling in love with a woman who Santana still wasn't sure she could trust, getting kidnapped and now Quinn couldn't even walk like a normal person.

Santana wanted to believe everything was going to be okay. But she just wasn't sure anymore.

Quinn pretended to be asleep every time a nurse or Dr. Abrams came in. She didn't want to talk to them. She didn't want to look at them. She wanted to be left alone. She didn't know how long it had been since Rachel stepped out of that door and she convinced herself that Rachel had left the building and she wouldn't come back.

Her heart was breaking as each second ticked past but she didn't want to grab the phone and call Rachel. She was setting Rachel free. Unfortunately, her peace was broken when a voice interrupted her train of thoughts.

"I actually can differentiate when a person is faking their sleep or is actually sleeping so why don't you open your eyes, Miss Fabray?" She frowned and opened her eyes to see a tall blonde woman standing at the foot of her bed. She had a notebook in her hand and she looked twenty years older than Quinn was. The woman smiled. "Good morning, Miss Fabray. I am Inspector Holly Holiday. I'm in charge of your case here and I understand if you are not in the mood right now."

"Well if you do, then you should get out," Quinn snapped, disregarding that the woman before her was a cop and she should be polite. She was just not in the mood to be polite to anyone right now.

Holly didn't seem to mind. "I have actually gotten all the details I needed to charge the Hudson's with kidnapping." Quinn stared at her coldly. "I was just wondering if you'd like to make a statement about David Karofsky."

Quinn froze and she cursed herself for forgetting about that guy. How could she forget? "Is he okay?" she whispered.

"He is locked up as of now. And he'll charged and will probably be in jail for the next seven years or more. Surprisingly, out of all of his accomplices, he's the one most willing to tell us the truth and that is a note I've made to appeal to the judge so he or she can…lighten his punishment."

"Please do that. He doesn't deserve to be in jail. He surprised me, actually. I've never actually seen a kidnapper cry before."

"He attempted to cut off your finger, Miss Fabray."

"That's because Carole Hudson ordered him to, Inspector," Quinn stated sharply. "Everything was ordered by that woman, Inspector, including my kidnap."

"I have a clear idea on that, Miss Fabray. Thank you for your insight," Holly quipped. "So are you saying you want to plead on David Karofsky's case?"

"Yes."

"Well then I'm afraid you'll have to appear in court for that."

"I'll have to appear in court one way or another since I'm the subject in this case," Quinn deadpanned and Holly smiled in amusement. "Now, are you done? I'd love it if I'm left alone."

Holly kept her eyes on the girl and took a deep breath. "When I ask this question, Miss Fabray, I'm not asking it as an inspector; I'm asking it as Holly." She paused and looked around. "Why isn't Miss Berry here, Miss Fabray?" she asked.

Quinn clenched her jaw and looked away. She swallowed and fought the tears welling up in her eyes. "She left, Inspector."

"Call me Holly." Quinn snorted. Holly raised her brows. "And contrary to your belief, Miss Fabray, Miss Berry hasn't left the building. In fact, when I was on my way here, I saw her sitting on a bench outside and she looked distressed." Quinn's eyes snapped to hers and they were alarmed and saddened. "I heard from your doctor that your legs are in an irreparable state now." Holly took the liberty to sit down on the chair that was previously occupied by Rachel and leaned on her knees. "Let me guess. You feel like a piece of plastic bag. You feel like you're useless. You feel like you're not worth it. You feel like you're going to be an anchor in Miss Berry's life. You feel like you're not worth her loving you. Am I correct so far?"

Quinn kept her mouth shut but the regret and distress in Quinn's eyes were enough to tell her that she was right.

"Miss Fabray, I don't mean to intrude into your relationship because frankly, you don't know me and I don't know you. But I know what you're feeling. Believe me, I do." Holly took a deep breath and bit her bottom lip. "I've been a police officer for over ten years now. And in these ten years, I have never seen someone so in love and devoted that they actually threaten a police officer until I met Miss Rachel Berry. She loves you. She loves you like you're her lifeline, Miss Fabray. She's willing to risk everything for you and I doubt she will ever hate you after what I've seen."

"I'm a burden now, Inspector. I'm not…I'm not who I was before. Maybe if I still had my legs from before, though admittedly still imperfect, but at least I could still walk normally. It's not the same anymore. I can't walk normally anymore and I'm gonna limp my whole life and it's going to slow everybody down. I'm not going to be selfish and expect everyone to cater to me every day. My sister, my brother, my mother, not even Rachel! They have their own lives and they deserve to live them and not to take care of a…disabled person like me!"

"And you are not!" Holly quickly said. "You are not a disabled, Miss Fabray. You can still easily go on with your life. This is just a little obstacle that I am sure you can overcome!" Holly stated, gesturing wildly at Quinn's leg hanging in the air.

"She's going to hate me, Inspector. Rachel is going to hate me if I let her do this. She has bright future ahead of her and I'm just going to be an anchor dragging her down. And – and I can't do that to her."

"She is not going to hate you, Miss Fabray. She's not. Look, I'm just saying that you should stop looking at all of this in a negative way and start thinking positive. Think about how you've been this strong and wonderful girl trying to uphold a bakery that is not even yours! Think about how you can finally relax and let people take care of you for once instead of it being the other way around. Maybe you should stop putting up this strong front and let things flow on their own. Stop pushing people away. Stop pushing Miss Berry away," Holly emphasized.

Quinn sniffled and rubbed her eyes with the back of her sleeve. "I just don't want her to hate me," she whispered brokenly.

"She won't," Holly repeated. Then she stood up. "Honestly, I don't see myself being of any use here right now so I'll just leave you alone and let you think things through. I hope you really consider what I've said. I'll be in touch to tell you when the court date is." She made her way to the door and before she exited, she turned back to Quinn. "I can see that she really does love you, Miss Fabray."

Rachel didn't know how long had she been sitting out here. She'd been watching the patients moving about in wheelchairs and walking around with crutches and she thoughtQuinn would most likely be stubborn and choose the crutches over the wheelchair despite how convenient it made everything. A sad smile tugged on her lips and she looked down on her clasped hands in her lap.

She wanted to hate Quinn for making her feel these things and making her heart ache so much. But her love for Quinn always won and she just…she just didn't know what she could do help Quinn. She wanted to stop Quinn from hating herself. She wanted Quinn to stop pushing her away. She just didn't know why Quinn wouldn't understand that Rachel's love for her transcended everything that was so superficial and completely trifling compared to what Rachel actually saw whenever she looked at Quinn.

She reached for her pocket and fished out a ring. It was simple. Just a simple gold ring with her and Quinn's initials etched on the inside. She knew when she was going to propose, Quinn was going to prefer something simple. Rachel had heard enough from Quinn to know. She bought this ring in replacement to the one she initially bought and etched the initials herself. That was before this kidnapping happened and everything just went spiraling down to hell.

She thought once Quinn came back, everything would be fine. Then Quinn had to say those things and Rachel just knew the actual impact this incident had brought to her and had brought to everyone else. It was more than she'd ever imagined and her mind was just wiped blank. For the first time in her life, she had no idea what to do. She scoured everywhere in her brain to just give her a hint on what to do and yet nothing came.

"What are you doing here?" She looked up to see Santana standing there, staring at her stonily. "Shouldn't you be in there with Quinn right now? And Berry, is that a ring?"

Rachel let out a dry chuckle and shook her head. "One, I'm sitting here to clear my thoughts. Two, it's apparent that Quinn needs some time alone to clear her thoughts as well. Three, yes, this is a ring that I'm going to propose to your sister with."

"What the hell happened, Berry?" Santana said, sitting on the bench next to Rachel.

Rachel swallowed the lump in her throat and ran her hand through her hair. "Quinn woke up this morning and she has this absurd idea that she's not worth me loving her and that she's trash and she's useless and shit like that. She kept asking me to get out and not come back and she kept telling me that I'm going to hate her if I stay with her and eventually marry her." She took a deep shuddering breath. "I just don't have the energy to argue with her anymore so I told her I'm going to get some air out here but I definitely will not leave her side. In fact, I think I'm the one who's not worth her loving me."

"Well, you're absolutely correct on that one, Berry." Rachel looked up to give Santana a dirty look but the Latina seemed unfazed. "But for some insane reason she loves you anyway so I guess we all just have to live with that. Also, my girlfriend works for you which kind of make things worse," she muttered. "I don't really blame Quinn for thinking like that because honestly, who wouldn't? She just lost normally functionality in her legs so of course she'd get all depressed over it."

"You're not really helping here."

"And I won't be of any help," Santana intercepted. "Maybe we can say shit and try to convince her to not think of shit like that but it's all in her own mind okay? We can't tell her what the fuck to think and we should just give her a little bit more time to accept things." Santana quieted and she looked down at her own hands. "Don't you think I want to help her? I want to help her so badly. I want to get a fucking pistol and just shoot those fucked up people who kidnapped her and I want to fucking maim Finn Hudson and his entire family."

"We still have time tonight. The prosecution's not done yet," Rachel joked and they laughed for a minute. "Seriously, we can still kill them."

"You wouldn't dare," Santana drawled.

Rachel took a deep breath. "I would if I didn't promise Quinn," she said softly.

Santana lowered her eyes to stare at Rachel's lowered head. "You really do love her, don't you?" she asked after a long moment of silence.

Rachel lifted her head and smiled sadly with a nod. "I love her like she's my life, Santana."

Santana laughed a little and grinned. "We need to get you and Quinn a doctor, lady," she said dryly.

The shorter brunette smiled and shrugged. "I don't think there's a doctor for lovesick, Santana."

They both bought coffee from the cafeteria and went upstairs. Rachel stood outside the door for a moment before taking a step back. Santana turned her head and stared at her in curiosity. Rachel breathed harshly and leaned her back against the wall, holding the coffee tightly in her hand.

She waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "I just…you go ahead. I'll be just a minute," she muttered, running her hand through her hair.

Santana heaved a sigh. "Just remember I will hunt down your ass if you don't come in ten minutes. She needs you," she added before going inside. Quinn and Brittany were talking when she came in and she put on a smile, walking towards Quinn and put the coffee down. "How are you, sis?"

Quinn stared at her for a moment before faking a smile. "Okay," she lied.

"You're lying," Santana blurted and Quinn frowned. Santana sat on the edge of the bed, avoiding the wires and the drip. "I talked to Berry." Quinn's gaze dropped and she released a quiet groan. "And forget how I don't actually like her, but you're being really unfair towards her." Quinn scoffed. "She saved your ass, Quinn," Santana said. "And I'm really grateful that she did. Look, I don't encourage you pursuing a relationship with her because honestly, I still don't really trust her yet. But she's quite trustable and if you really love her, you should give her a chance."

"I am giving her a chance, Santana."

"No, you're not!" Santana disagreed.

Quinn took a deep breath and clenched her jaw. "Look at me, Santana!" she said loudly, stopping Santana from saying anything. "I'm a cripple now!"

"Quinn!" Santana yelled, holding Quinn's arms and shook her a little. Quinn panted and Santana swallowed a mouthful of saliva. "You aren't a cripple," she gritted between clenched teeth. "You are my sister and you're going to be walking."

"I'll be limping," Quinn said quietly.

"And so what?" Santana quipped angrily. "Stop punishing yourself for something you have absolutely no control of. Get this through your exceptionally tough head for once, Quinn. Nobody is going to hate you. Nobody is going to stop loving you. Especially not Berry! You aren't helping anyone if you're going to keep thinking shit like that." She took a calming breath and looked Quinn in the eyes. "Sis, I love you, okay? You're the best sister anyone could ever ask for and I really wouldn't trade you for anything else."

"Don't go soft on me."

"Don't bother. I'll go soft whenever I want and you'll have no say in it," she murmured playfully. "I'm happy that you found love, but I'm angry that you're willing to just let it go. I can't believe I'm saying this and I'll deny it if you tell on me in public but I think Berry is worth it."

"Yeah well I'm the one who's not worth it."

"God will you please stop?"

They turned to see Rachel standing at the door with a broken expression on her face and a really damaged paper cup in her hand. As if on instinct, Quinn and Rachel's eyes met and Quinn could barely suppress the gasp when she saw the hurt and plead in Rachel's brown eyes. Rachel clenched her fist around the cup and then all but threw it into the dustbin. She turned back to Quinn and poked herself in the chest. "I love you, Quinn! I love you and you are delusional if you think that I'd hate you."

"Why would you still love me when I look like this?"

Rachel took a step forward and spoke as she neared Quinn. "Because even if you look like this, I still see you. I don't care that you're going to be limping forever. All I care about is you being happy and all I want is to have you with me. I want to hug you. I want to kiss you. I want to feed you. I want to carry you piggyback style. I want to marry you. I want kids with you. I want to travel around the world with you. I want to wake up and say good morning to you. I want to love you like you deserved to be. But I can't do that if you won't stop pushing me away and right now I just want my Quinn back and I want to put this ring on her finger." She fished out the ring from her pocket and showed it to Quinn.

The blonde looked at the ring for the longest five minutes and everyone in the room was anxiously waiting for her to respond. Quinn's gaze traveled from the ring to Rachel. "Rachel, I…" she drifted off and gulped. Her brain was whirring with everything. Everybody's – Holly, Santana and Rachel – voice performed a medley in her head and she was at a dead end here. "I'm not who I was anymore," she whispered weakly.

"No," Rachel agreed. "You're not. You're better. You're more real. You're making me fall deeper in love with you. And my longing to marry you has never been stronger. I just want you to say yes and let us live that happily ever after." She sensed Quinn's hesitation and stood in front of Quinn, her face inches away from the blonde as she cupped her cheek. "You deserve that happy ending," she whispered. She rested her forehead against Quinn's and begged, "Just say yes."

Quinn stared into Rachel's eyes and she couldn't believe it when she saw the tenderness, the hurt, the pleading and the love all swimming in Rachel's brown depths. She took a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut. She listened to her rationale and also to her heart. She listened and when she made her decision, she hoped that she wasn't making the wrong one. Then she opened her eyes and focused on Rachel.

"I thought I already said yes," she whispered with a weak smile.

The grin that appeared on Rachel's face was blinding and Quinn's smile widened. "Thank you," Rachel whispered and captured Quinn's lips, ignoring the presence of Santana and her own assistant in the room. The love of her life just agreed to marry her. Why would she care?

She wasn't pleased when Puck and Sebastian came by and talked to Quinn for fifteen minutes before pulling her out to tell her that Carole Hudson wanted to see her. Quinn had just said yes to her proposal and she just slipped that ring onto Quinn's finger, feeling so proud that she was ready to rush to the rooftop and yell that Quinn had said yes.

So she certainly didn't appreciate Sebastian and Puck being such mood spoilers. "I'm not going," she said defiantly, glaring at her two friends.

Puck shrugged. "Holly said she's going to jail anyway and why don't you just grant her one last wish?" he said and she narrowed her eyes. He narrowed his in return.

"Holly?" she repeated and he stiffened. She frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Since when did you get friendly with a cop?" she queried. Her gaze diverted to Sebastian when he chuckled behind his fist and she looked back at Puck in horror. "Did you sleep with her?"

Puck deflated and rubbed the back of his head absently. He swallowed and shifted his weight. "She's hot. I'm hot," he replied.

"She's twice your age!" Rachel exclaimed.

He shrugged. "So? Age means nothing."

Her face twisted with disgust and she faked gagging noises until Puck swatted her gently on the shoulder. She chuckled and shook her head. "God is there anyone on earth that you won't screw?" He rolled her eyes and groaned. She sighed. "I guess she's right. When does she want to see me?"

"How about tomorrow?"

Rachel turned to stare into the room through the window on the door. She watched Quinn finally laughing and chatting with her family and her siblings' partners. She smiled tenderly and turned back to Puck. "Don't tell Quinn I'm going to see her though," she said quietly.

Sebastian and Puck nodded. Sebastian pointed behind him. "I've got stuff to follow up so I'm gonna go."

Rachel nodded and smiled at him. "Thank you, Sebastian," she said with a genuine smile. Sebastian smiled, saluted her and walked away. She turned to Puck and raised her brows. "What are you still doing here?"

"What? I can't visit my friend who's in the hospital now?" he said with a roll of his eyes and then went into the room. Rachel shook her head and followed.

Rachel went to the headquarters early in the morning and saw cops bustling in and out, here and there and she tried her best to avoid getting in their way. She stopped one of them and asked him for Inspector Holly Holiday and he kindly led her to the inspector's office before excusing himself. She knocked on the office door and opened it when she heard a response.

Inspector Holiday was sitting at her table looking through some files and she raised her brows when she saw Rachel standing at door. "Miss Berry," she said in surprise. "Never thought you'd actually come."

Rachel shrugged and pushed the door wider. "They're going to jail anyway," she commented dryly. "So are you going to bring me to meet her now or what?"

Holly nodded and stood up, closing the file for confidential precautions and went to the door. "Come on. I'll bring you there and then I'll bring her up to meet you," she told Rachel, as she led the way down a flight of stairs where they reached the basement. Rachel was led into a room with two doors – one where she came in from – and there was table in the middle of the room with two chairs on two sides. "Sit down, Miss Berry. I'll be a minute," Holly instructed and then went in the other door.

It didn't really take long for the door to open again and then Carole Hudson came in, donning an orange jumper and Rachel could barely fight the laughter bubbling up in her chest. She'd gotten so used to seeing this woman in animal jackets and with jewelry all over her body that she just didn't imagine her to be in an outfit like this. Carole was wearing a poker face when she came in with Holly in tow. Holly sat her down and made sure she was cuffed before nodding at Rachel and heading out.

The both of them stared at each other for the next fifteen minutes before Carole broke the silence. "You actually came."

Rachel crossed her arms and leaned back. She shrugged her shoulders and licked her lips. "I'd have to say I'm curious as to why you wanted to see me; and also you'll be in jail soon anyway," she said mildly.

"That's where you're wrong," Carole cut in, smirking. "I will get out of here no matter what. Don't you know I have a really good lawyer?"

"Didn't you know that those kidnappers you hired already admitted everything? Including who their employer is." Rachel added with a matching smirk. "Oh yeah, your son was there to collect the money and he admitted everything, which I recorded on my phone, so…" she shook her head with a fake grimace, "you're not getting out of here any sooner." Carole's smirk completely vanished, replaced by an ominous look and Rachel wasn't the least bit scared. She'd seen worse. "You'll be in court two weeks from now, and your entire family will be sentenced. Face it, Carole, you're screwed."

Carole clenched her jaw and looked ready to pounce on Rachel. "For a girl who was stupid as hell when she was a child, you sure did grow a brain, Rachel."

"See, normally, I wouldn't allow you to speak my name so freely, Carole. But since you're sitting there and I'm sitting here, I'll give you a bit of freedom," Rachel said softly. "I sure do hope you aren't regretting what you did to me all those years ago Carole, because that would be a waste of effort, don't you think?"

"Oh I am actually regretting it a little," Carole admitted. "I should've just killed you," she added.

Rachel smirked and ran her hand through her hair. "Unfortunately, you didn't and now that stupid girl has finally put you in jail," she said. "Funny thing is, I actually aborted the plan of even taking revenge on you and your family and then you had to be stupid enough to kidnap my future wife. Look where it got you."

"You were ruining my family."

"No, I was not. I was ruining your husband's empire. I have to say despite how bloody clever you are, Finn never inherited your cleverness. He was dumb enough to think I was interested in him and he's dumb enough to still be interested in me despite knowing that I sold that shop lot to his brother on purpose." Rachel chuckled darkly and enjoyed the sight of Carole Hudson seething in front of her. She stood up, sighing loudly. "I assume you have nothing else to say. Well then, I shall leave. You enjoy yourself here though. It's gonna be your home soon," she said with a smile before walking out.

"I'm going to return the favor to you in the future, Miss Berry," Carole said, her tone chilly as ever.

Rachel stood at the door, her hand at the knob. She smiled and opened it. "We'll see about that." She walked out to see Holly leaning against the wall opposite the room with her arms crossed. Rachel nodded at her and Holly nodded back.

She pushed herself off the wall and stuck her hands into her pockets. "How was the talk?"

"Interesting," Rachel remarked flatly.

"That doesn't really ease my anxiety," Holly retorted.

"Why were you anxious?"

Holly shrugged. "You have a bad history with that woman."

Rachel resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She shook her head and side-stepped Holly. "I'm going to leave now. Call me if there's anything. And if you can, please stop sleeping with Puck."

Holly chuckled. "It was just once!"

"Once is more than enough when you're sleeping with Puck."

It took one more week for Dr. Abrams to officiate Quinn's release from the hospital. During her stay, she went through a lot of physical therapy and it stressed her out every time. Rachel was there for her and whenever Quinn had her moments, which was often, Rachel took them without backing down. Quinn asked her to leave many times and there were times when she actually took off the ring and tried to give it back to Rachel, which she refused every time.

Santana, Blaine and her mother were on the verge of yelling and shaking her every time she said those stupid things and they left before things got worse every time. Rachel always stayed. She fed Quinn, she slept by Quinn's bedside, she brought Quinn out for walks; she patted herself on the back when Quinn insisted on using the crutches instead of the wheelchair despite her family's protests. She made sure Quinn took her medications. She watched boring soap operas with Quinn every night on the hospital television. She took care of Quinn the best she could.

On the third day of her stay in the hospital, Quinn argued with Artie to release her from the hospital. Artie insisted that she stayed for a week for thorough inspection and Quinn realized she couldn't fight Artie by the fifth consecutive time she told Artie to release her. She surrendered and even agreed to physical therapy, much to Rachel's surprise.

Rachel could see every time Quinn went to physical therapy that she was hurting from it and it didn't really do her any good. Quinn was sore after each session and she was so tired she slept until the next morning. She wanted to tell Quinn to not do this to herself and to stop. However, she also knew Quinn would do anything to make her legs better and nobody could dissuade her from it. Rachel could only smile and encourage her fiancée each time they were doing it and each time Quinn fell, Rachel made sure she was there to help.

Her devotion to Quinn's wellbeing wasn't being ignored. In fact, everyone could see the way she devoted her time to the blonde and how much effort she took to take care of Quinn. Santana eventually softened to Rachel's presence, as did Blaine and Maribel. They began to trust the brunette though they still carried a sense of wariness when they were around her. They could laugh with each other nowadays and Maribel would often bring soup to Rachel when she visited Quinn.

Rachel hadn't taken a step into her office building all week, which led to her now staring in despair at a huge pile of documents sitting on her desk. Brittany brought in her favorite caramel latte and went outside quietly. Rachel had left that morning anxious and nervous about Quinn despite how Santana, Blaine and Maribel practically begged her to leave and stop bugging them; allowing them to spend some precious family time with Quinn. She gave them a list of 'dos and don'ts' and Santana rolled her eyes when she saw it but nodded anyway, pinning the paper to the refrigerator. It finally took Quinn smiling and reassuring her that she would be fine to get her out of the apartment.

Right now, Rachel was regretting even driving there to face these papers. She grunted and snatched the top file and flipped it open. She huffed and forced herself to concentrate as she began reading. Eventually, she corrected some documents she had found with flaws and signed those she found plausible. Four hours later, she was finally done and heaved a sigh of relief. She gasped when she saw the time and immediately picked up her phone receiver, dialing the number she'd memorized.

"Santana speaking, say whatever shit you have to say because I have a sister to take care of," Santana answered with a boring tone and Rachel could hear Quinn and Maribel protesting her manners in the background.

Rachel chuckled quietly. "I am very well aware of that fact, Santana," Rachel replied, amused.

Santana cursed in unintelligible Spanish and gained more stern protests from her mother. "What do you want, Berry?"

Rachel rolled her eyes. She sighed and played with her pen. "I want to talk to my fiancée."

"Seriously, I'm still trying to process the fact that she'd be stupid enough to agree to your proposal, so please don't say that while I'm still processing," Santana deadpanned.

"Santana!" Quinn yelled from the dining table and Rachel chuckled.

"I remember at one time you were persuading Quinn to 'let me in' and 'stop pushing me away', Santana," Rachel mentioned and smirked when she heard the Latina curse again. "So will you be the nice little sister that I know you are and pass the phone to Quinn?"

Santana mumbled something under her breath and she stalked towards Quinn, thrusting the phone at her. Rachel could hear them bickering in quiet tones and waited patiently for someone to say something. Then she heard someone breathing and she smiled.

"Hey, Rach," Quinn said.

"Hey, Quinn. How are you doing back home?" she asked with a grin. She looked up to see Brittany grinning mischievously at her and Rachel rolled her eyes. She took a second to wonder how an assistant of hers could turn into someone who Rachel saw as a friend.

"I'm bored," Quinn said. "I've been sitting on the couch all day and I can't even go get water by myself. Only thirty minutes ago, Santana allowed me to sit at the dining table and have lunch. Can you believe it? I needed to get permission from her! My own sister! My sister who is younger than me!" she added pointedly, glaring at Santana who was ignoring her.

"Well, because I know you'd try to…prove to them that you can do anything despite your current situation, I was the one who sort of gave her the control over you for the rest of the day until I come back," Rachel said with a teasing smile.

Quinn paused as she heard those words, and her jaw dropped. Her eyes traveled from the tabletop to Santana, who seemed to sense something and looked at her, frowning. Quinn shook her head and said, "What?"

Rachel smacked her lips and grinned widely. "I totally did."

"Oh you are in so much trouble, Miss Rachel Barbara Berry," Quinn warned, though there was a hint of smile in her tone.

"I'm not worried. Not in the least. Remember, you're marrying me. I have an entire lifetime to beg for your forgiveness. And you know you can't resist me."

"You're giving yourself too much credit here."

"She always does!" Santana chipped in.

Quinn rolled her eyes. "And why would you give Santana, of all people, control? You could at least give it to my mom!" she said, gesturing at her mother who was watching her in amusement.

"Because I know your mom would be too soft with you and with your cute and beautiful eyes. She'd say yes to anything you ask. So no, I'm not going to ask her to keep an extra cautious eye on you, Quinn," Rachel quipped, shaking her head at the thought. She heard Quinn sigh and she laughed. "By the way, I miss you," she said softly. "I mean, I came to work and I have all these papers to sign and look over and all I could think about is you."

"That just shows that you're gonna be a pool of mess without me and I'm not too sure I want to marry a pool of mess," Quinn teased, biting her lip as she stroked the ring on her finger gently.

Rachel shrugged. "I'm always a pool of mess without you. And you know you can't get out of this engagement. I won't let you." Quinn giggled and Rachel's grin turned into a tender smile. "I'm just so happy that I finally get to marry you," she said softly.

"I think it should be the other way around," Quinn replied. "I mean, you have all that money and you have the power and you're beautiful. You can marry anyone you like. And I'm just this…small bakery owner who has to limp forever and what's more, she's as poor as hell." Hearing her words, Santana lifted her head from the table and watched her with wide eyes, frowning. Quinn ignored her mother and sister's stare and looked down at her lap.

"Quinn," Rachel chastised. "Stop."

Quinn released her breath and nodded. "Okay, okay, I'll stop. I was just proving that I should be the one who's happy to finally get to marry the one and only Rachel Berry. Who I know in the future is going to buy me jewelry I don't even want and buy me clothes that are not my taste. Seriously, why am I marrying you again?"

"Because I love you," Rachel reasoned. "And you love me."

"That's true," Quinn said with a laugh.

"Alright, I gotta go. I'll come by later and I'll take you out for dinner."

Quinn wanted to say something but the phone was snatched away by Maribel. She put it to her ear and said, "Rachel, I haven't properly thanked you for assisting my daughter in so many ways since…you know," she said with a little grudge. She still held a little distrust towards Rachel. "I'd like to invite you here for dinner. I will cook and you will eat. You are not allowed to reject so we will see you tonight." Quickly, she returned the phone to Quinn who was staring at her in shock.

The blonde took it. "Uh…"

"Did your mom just invite me to dinner?" Rachel asked, bewildered and astonished.

Quinn took a glance at her mother and swallowed. "I believe she did," she said weakly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Um, okay. Tell her I'll be there for sure and I love you," Rachel said, still a little unnerved.

"Yeah, I love you too."

"Bye," Rachel whispered before hanging up.

Quinn put down the phone and stared at her mother who was pretending nothing happened. She turned to her sister who shrugged and kept on texting with Brittany on her phone. Quinn rolled her eyes and leaned back against her chair, sinking into the sea of boredom once again.

After the dinner, Quinn's family began to warm up to Rachel. Kurt had patched things up with Blaine, so there were times when all three of them would bring their significant others and they'd hang out, much to everyone's surprise. Santana began to trust Rachel and she stopped giving warnings to her whenever she was bringing Quinn out. Blaine, however, still watched Rachel warily occasionally. He wondered if he would ever stop being careful of the woman. Probably not.

One weekend, while everybody was bustling about preparing for their wedding, Rachel brought Quinn to LA to meet Mr. Schuester. He was an important part of her life so she wanted to Quinn to meet him. Mr. Schuester was surprised when he Rachel appeared at his doorstep and when he saw the blonde next to her he grinned and gestured for them to come in. Rachel introduced them to each other and they hit if off right away. Mr. Schuester truly enjoyed Quinn's company and found her an amusing woman.

Before they left on Monday, Rachel invited him to their wedding and he promised he'd be there. He pulled Rachel to aside and smiled at her.

"She's a nice girl and she obviously loves you very much." He released a harsh breath and ruffled her hair. "Take care of her, you hear me?" he said.

Rachel smiled softly and nodded, promising him that she'd take care of Quinn.

Quinn stood at the double oak doors, blowing out breaths in between seconds and she could feel her head beginning to spin. She smoothed her white skirt and puffed out another breath. Her hands were beginning to sweat, causing her to tighten her grip on the bouquet of gardenias she was holding. She couldn't remember being this nervous since her first surgery. She couldn't remember herself ever being so elated and excited since she'd graduated from high school. She couldn't remember a lot of things except that in fifteen minutes she would be married to the most beautiful and amazing woman she had ever met in her life.

She stood there and rocked on the heels of her feet. She thought back on how boring her life was before Mercedes decided to mess up the ingredients and she had to get help. That was where Rachel Berry swooped in and her life changed entirely. In just a few months, she'd gone through more than she'd ever been and she had never been happier than she was now. She had everyone she loved with her and the Hudson's were all now safely locked up in jail, excluding Finn Hudson's wife who was now probably off to find someone worthy of her love. Quinn calmed herself and stared straight ahead at the door. Just beyond these doors and at the end of the aisle stood the love of her life. And she was going to marry her.

Quinn sighed and grinned. Someone stepped next to her and she turned to see Blaine there with a smile on his face. He straightened his tie and jacket before offering his arm to her. She smiled at him and hooked her arm with his.

"You're getting married, Quinn," he spoke quietly. "You don't have to be strong for us anymore. You'll have someone to look out for you and I can't believe I'm saying this but I know that person is going to take care of you and love you like you deserve to be." She squeezed his arm. "Just don't forget that you have a family who'll always love you."

A tear made its way down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away. "I won't," she whispered.

He sighed and patted her hand as the wedding march began playing and the door slowly swung open. "Here we go, sister," he said and walked her down the aisle.

Her eyes stayed focused on the other woman standing at the end of the aisle. The woman who was smiling at her with that tender smile of hers and who was going to love her. Quinn didn't need to think about putting one foot in front of the other. Her heart was driving her to do so. As she reached the end of the aisle and stood next to Rachel, she knew this was her forever.

Did I mention I miss Quinn in the real show? I want Quinn back! And I want Finn away from screen, like seriously. And he's singing The Scientist! Gawd why?

Let's pray nothing but Finchel will break up in the show.

Okay, so my journey with Sweet Vengeance is done for now. I'll say goodbye. Maybe I'll write a one-shot or something, who knows? But now, I have a really important test coming in one week. It decides my future but not like university-future, no. Anyway, wish me luck and I'll see you next time!

(I hope I won't fail)

- Nicole