Chapter 18

A story about genetically programmed soulmates.

Quinn and Puck had been working with the pills for at least two weeks now and the blonde could not get any further than hearing Rachel. She had tried everything the boy had suggested. They tried taking the pills together. She tried taking the pills before she went to sleep, when she woke up, after a large meal, after fasting for a day. But the outcome was always the same."This is never going to work. I'm just not good at this." Quinn sighed in frustration.

"Hey, you're doing great." Puck placed a hand on Quinn's shoulder and sat on the bed next to her. "I've been doing this for a long time. I've had much more time to perfect this. You can't just give up. Rachel needs you."

Her new friend was right about that. Quinn had been listening to Rachel for a few weeks and all Rachel ever seemed to be doing was crying although quinn had heard a few other things. She heard the girl's conversations with Sue, and Santana, and Brittany. However she only heard Rachel's words.

The only thing Quinn could hear clearly was Rachel talking to herself. She assumed it was because the girl was trying to talk to Quinn oblivious to the fact that her mate could actually hear every word.

Quinn had no idea what time zone she was in, but she was beginning to get an idea based on what Rachel would talk about at different times. When Quinn had listened to her in the morning Rachel was talking to Sue. When Quinn listened to her before bed, Rachel was singing. When Quinn listened to Rachel after she ate dinner, she didn't hear anything at all. So today, Quinn was going to try the morning. One more time.

Quinn had been hanging out with Puck for most of the day. They had played a few rounds of poker and when that got old they just laid in the boy's bed and talked. She knew he was trying to distract her from her anxiety. She appreciated his efforts but it just wasn't working. All she could think about was what she would say to Rachel. It was almost two am when Quinn left Puck's room.

"Alright, you got this, babe. Go get your girl back," Puck handed Quinn a pill and smiled weakly, "I believe in you."

Quinn nodded at the boy and walked back to her room, shuffling to her bed and popping the pill into her mouth. She struggled to swallow it without water,gagging on the taste in her mouth but eventually she felt the pill crawl down her throat.

She knew she needed something different this time. Something to get Rachel's attention. She couldn't sit back and wait anymore. Quinn closed her eyes and relaxed into her creaking mattress. She took a deep breath and began to speak.

XXX

Rachel was completely exhausted. Between glee, school, thinking about Quinn, despising her fathers, and thinking about what she wanted to do in the future, her mind was a war zone. All Rachel wanted was to find Quinn and bring her home so this nightmare would be over and they could go back to the way things were. But Quinn had been gone for so long that the girl's hazel eyes were the only feature that was still burned into her skull.

Rachel climbed into bed and turned off the light, never quite relaxing. She looked beside her at her nightstand and blinked the tears away. A picture of her and Quinn was staring back at her. Quinn's bright smile shined through the picture and sometimes Rachel pretended like that smile could warm her Sometimes Rachel actually felt like Quinn was there.

A teary eyed Rache tightened her mouth, "Hey, Quinn. I'm still here. I miss you a lot…" she started quietly. She knew it was silly, talking to a picture, but it made her feel better. In a way Rachel felt like the blonde could hear her. She wished that she could.

Rachel picked up the frame and smiled gently, she missed Quinn so much. "I wish you were here." Rachel whispered to the photo. "Everything would be so much easier."

"I wish I could go sleep in the room you painted for me. I love that room so much." Rachel felt herself on the verge of tears again. "I miss the way you smell. Before you left…" she sniffled-there was a sweater that you left here. For the first two weeks you were gone it smelled like you, but then it started to fade and everything became real. You were really gone." Rachel sniffled again and wiped at her eyes. "I just miss you so much. I know I keep saying that, but it hurts so much. It's like someone ripped a hole in me and no matter how hard I try to fill it it never gets any smaller."

Rachel was breaking again, and just as she did every night, Rachel covered her face with her pillow and cried. She sobbed uncontrollably and let all of the pain out. She wanted to be strong for Sue, for Santana, for Brittany, for herself, for Quinn. But she was tired. It had been so long since she had felt Quinn's touch. she still needed the blonde. She could barely breathe. She needed Quinn to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay. She needed- "Rachel, please don't cry…."

Rachel's body froze. Silence fell on her like a boulder and she broke it with a breath. "Hello?"

"Rachel I'm here. I've been here with you." Rachel frantically looked around the room, trying to find the source of the voice.

"If this is a cruel joke it's not funny." Rachel pulled the comforter to her body.

"Rachel, it's not a joke. It's me, it's Quinn." Rachel was reluctant to believe that this could really be Quinn. But she couldn't deny that voice. But a voice couldn't come out of thin air. Right?

"Where are you?" Rachel looked around the room trying to find a place the blonde could be hiding. "How did you escape from where-ever you are? Where are you?!" Rachel jumped out of bed and searched her room pulling up pillows, opening the drapes, tearing everything apart. But no Quinn.

"Rachel I didn't escape, I'm still here-wherever here is." Rachel wasn't following. How could this be happening if Quinn was still there? How could this be possible?

"How? How can I be hearing your voice if we haven't seen each other in months? We don't have a bond strong enough to do that..." Rachel reasoned, mostly with herself.

"I took a pill from someone tha-it's not important how it's happening. It's happening. I don't know how long this is going to last." Quinn's voice became desperate and Rachel tried to calm herself for Quinn.

"Okay. You're right. We should be using this time, do you know anything about where you are?" Rachel looked around the room trying to find a pen and paper.

"I don't know, they call it "the island". It's a rehabilitation facility-or so they say. I'm not completely sure what they do here, but from what I have seen, they aren't friendly and they aren't trying to help."

Rachel wrote rigorously, "That's all you know?"

"That's it." There was a quiet sigh and then Quinn spoke again, "It's good to hear your voice."

Rachel smiled gently, "It's amazing to hear yours. I was beginning to forget what it sounded like."

Rachel was silent for a moment, she didn't know what to say, or what to do. This was the first time she had heard from Quinn in months. She didn't know how long she would get to speak with her or if she would get to speak with her again after this. "Hey, Quinn?" Rachel asked.

"Hm?"

"I miss you so much." Rachel could feel the tears welling up in her eyes again, but she didn't want to cry while Quinn could hear her. The brunette bit her lip and tried to keep her tears at

bay.

"I know. I miss you too. Hopefully I'll get out of here and I'll find you. And then we can run away from this mess. We'll never look back."

"I'd like that."

...

Rachel spoke to Quinn for as long as she could until her eyes started to droop. she fought the urge to sleep for the fear that, when she woke up, Quinn would be gone. "I don't want to sleep."

"It's okay, Rach, I can talk to you tomorrow."

Rachel shook her head even though she knew Quinn couldn't see her. "No, you're going to disappear again."

"But I'll come back this time. I promise."

Rachel let her eyes close and relaxed for the first time in months. She wasn't sure if she should believe Quinn. The blonde might just be giving her false information to make her relax. But either way Rachel's eyes weren't going to stay open much longer. "Okay. I'll go to sleep - on one condition."

"Okay." Rachel could hear the smile in Quinn's voice.

"Sing to me." Rachel heard a scoff and could only imagine the eye roll she had just gotten from the blonde, miles and miles away.

"Fine. What would you like to hear?"

XXX

Quinn's eyes fluttered open and she was met with the harsh fluorescent lights over her bed. She groaned sitting up in her bed. A part of her was sad that Rachel was out of her reach again, but another part was happy that she could actually get in touch with the girl.

Quinn stood slowly and walked down the hall to see if Puck was awake; she looked through the window to his room to see him sitting on his bed playing solitaire. The blonde gently knocked on the door and walked in the room when Puck signaled for her to come in.

"So how'd it go?" He asked, gathering the cards from the bed.

"She heard me this time." Quinn smiled wide and bit her lip. "We talked for a long time. I really missed hearing her voice."

Puck smiled at Quinn, "I'm glad you're happy and I'm glad I could help. Now let's work on some strategies on how to get her to see you."

XXX

The next morning, Rachel woke up to an empty bed like every other day. She almost expected Quinn to be next to her. Almost. But of course she knew Quinn wasn't coming back anytime soon. But she needed a plan of action and fast.

Rachel quickly went through her morning routine: workout, shower, moisturize, groom. Then she took her pad of paper and walked down to the kitchen to meet Sue for breakfast. "Good morning, Sue. I hope you slept well." Rachel sat at the kitchen table with a bright smile.

"You're awfully chipper this morning," Sue commented as she scooped protein powder into her steaming mug.

"Yes I am! I think I might have a breakthrough in our search for Quinn." Rachel slid the paper towards Sue and smiled brightly. "Quinn spoke to me last night."

Sue's eyes nearly popped out of her head at Rachel's words, "Are you going crazy on me Barbra or what? That's not possible."

"That's what I thought too, but apparently at whatever facility she's at some kid stole some pills and apparently they raise your hormones high enough to utilize some of the abilities you can get when you have a strong bond."

Sue took in Rachel's words for a moment before looking down at the paper. " 'The Island'? What is this?"

"That is what Quinn's 'caretakers' call the facility," Rachel said, "Apparently they thought not having a name would be sneaky, or something."

"Yeah or they are just a bunch of morons." Sue ripped the paper off of the pad and tucked it into her pocket. "I'll give this to my people and we will look further into this island, but for now we have to get you to the clinic."

Rachel felt the blood drain from her face. "I thought you said I wouldn't have to see them."

"You're not going to see your fathers Rachel," Sue recited, "you're going to be treated by some of their top students."

"What about school?" Rachel offered hopefully.

"I took care of it. Santana will bring you your homework and all of your absences will be excused." Sue grabbed her jacket and took a step toward the door.

Rachel stayed in her seat, crossing her arms, "I'm not going."

"Don't make me force you," Sue threatened.

Rachel's face fell, she quickly jumped up from her seat and followed the blonde woman out the door.

…

It had only been four months since Rachel had been to the clinic, but coming back felt like she was reliving a nightmare. Everything from that horrible day came rushing back. Russell, her fathers, her entire world falling apart. This place had been tainted.

"Alright, Rachel. I'm going to walk you in and wait with you until the nurses come to take you back and then I'll be back in an hour." Rachel wanted to roll her eyes, Sue was treating her as if she was a child. But she couldn't blame the woman, Rachel had been acting like a child.

"Okay. What if something goes wrong?"

"It won't."

…

It only took fifteen minutes for Rachel to be brought back to a room. A nurse called her name and Sue left. The nurse said her name was Linda, she had kind brown eyes that looked overtired. Something about her made Rachel feel uneasy, but she pushed the thought aside and followed the woman.

Rachel was led to room 103. It was a large single room with a bed and a T.V mounted on the wall. "If you could just sit on the bed for me, I'll take your temperature and blood pressure."

Rachel hopped onto the bed and looked around the room. She wondered if Quinn had a room like this wherever she was.

The nurse came back with a thermometer. "I'm going to slide this across your forehead. Please sit as still as you can." The nurse slide the tip of the thermometer over Rachel's forehead and when the device beeped she looked down at the small screen. "98.6, you're normal." Linda smiled gently at Rachel and placed the object back on the counter.

"Can I have your right arm please?" Rachel gave the woman her arm and the nurse wrapped the cuff around the brunette's bicep. Linda pushed a button on the machine and the cuff began to tighten around Rachel's arm. The blood pressure machine beeped and Linda took off the cuff, pushing the machine back towards the corner.

"Have you ever had a PEA treatment before?" Linda sat on a small stool in front of Rachel and folded her hands in her lap. Rachel shook her head no, "That's alright. It's a very simple procedure. I am going to give you a shot. The needle contains a diluted dose of phenylethylamine. Once I administer this, I will monitor you for fifteen minutes. We can do whatever makes you comfortable. Chat, sit in silence, read. Whatever you'd like. When that fifteen minutes is over, I'm going to leave and you will have to rest on your own for forty-five minutes. After that, as long as you don't have a negative reaction you will be free to leave."

Rachel bit her lip nervously, she wasn't sure she wanted to do this. What if she did have a negative reaction? "What are the side effects of this treatment?"

"Mostly just lightheadedness, drowsiness, and nausea. If you get the sensation that you are falling or the room starts to go black you need to press this panic button right away." Linda said pointing to a red button on the edge of the bed.

Rachel nodded her head, confirming that she understood, mind racing. She wasn't sure what to do. She knew she should trust the nurse, this was her job and she probably gave dozens of these treatments on a daily basis. But something about this didn't feel right. This couldn't be the only way. If Quinn had gotten her hands on some pills maybe she could too. "Is there another way to do this? Like a pill or a patch or something?"

"Unfortunately this is a very new science and we haven't exactly perfected other methods yet. There is an experimental pill but we don't have access to it yet."

Rachel had gotten all the information she needed. If her fathers were experimenting with a pill it was somewhere in this clinic and Rachel was going to find them.

"Well, let's get this over with." Rachel said as she rolled up her sleeve.

…

An hour later, Rachel was given a band-aid with a heart and she was wheeled out of the clinic. Sue was waiting in the car - just as she said she would be. "How'd it go?" Sue asked putting the car in drive.

"It went fine. Nothing crazy happened." Rachel worried her hands in her lap and looked out the window.

"Something on your mind?" Sue asked.

"I'm just worried I won't hear from Quinn again…" Rachel said, "She said would talk to me before I went to bed today."

"I'm sure she will kiddo." Sue patted Rachel on the shoulder and turned her attention back to the road. Rachel looked out the window looking at the buildings as they passed by. They all looked so empty and useless now. Sue pulled into the driveway and turned to Rachel, "We're going to find her and now that she has figured out how to get in contact with you it will make things even easier."

The two got out of the car and walked back into the house. Rachel poured herself a glass of water and sat at the kitchen table once again. "I know, but what if we don't find her. What if they hurt her?"

"That's not going to happen. We are going to find her. I informed the investigators about the island and they said they will get back to us in a few days. I'm sure they will find something. Maybe you can ask Q next time you talk."

"I'll get as much information as I can."

…

Rachel lay in her bed, anxiously awaiting Quinn's voice. Her eyes darted to her clock. 11:00pm. Usually Rachel would be asleep by now, but she was far too anxious to let her eyes close tonight.

"Quinn said she would be here. She wouldn't lie to you, Rachel. You're being irrational." The brunette whispered to the empty room attempting to calm herself.

"Yes you really are." Quinn's voice answered with a giggle.

"Quinn! Oh my God. I'm so happy to hear your voice," Rachel squealed, "I wasn't sure if you would be able to do this again."

"I told you I'd be here," Quinn said, more seriously.

"I know. I'm sorry. How are you?" Rachel cuddled into her bed.

"I'm as good as I can be seeing as I'm trapped in a Hell on earth." Quinn answered sarcastically.

"We're doing everything we can. Sue said she needed more specifics." Rachel felt for the girl. She couldn't imagine how miserable Quinn must be trapped in that horrible place.

"I don't have any, that's all I know."

"Is there any way for you to get more information?" Rachel grabbed her notepad off the nightstand to take down whatever information Quinn could give her.

"Well there's this kid Puck, he's been here a long time. He might know more." Quinn explained slowly.

"Kid. Is that a boy? Are you stuck there with a boy?" Rachel was suddenly struck with the thought that Quinn might now be alone. She might have some company.

"Really Rach? You seriously think I'm going to cheat on you?" Quinn scoffed.

"Well it has been a long time.." Rachel shifted uncomfortably in her bed.

"Yeah I guess it has. But I'm not cheating on you. He didn't even talk to me until a few weeks ago. We'll be together again soon, Rachel and then you can claim my body as many times as you want."

Rachel's worries faded away at the new information and she relaxed into her bed, "I'll hold you to that, Quinn." Rachel smirked.

"I know." Quinn chuckled.