Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
Author: Hippo_Crat
Rating: Light R
Length: 3,100 words
Spoilers: Preggers
Summary: McKinley High School is having a talent
show and Rachel wants to win it.
Pairing: Minor Rachel/OFC, some Quinn/Rachel if you
squint
Of course making the bet had been the easy part, the
task of choosing a song and choreography with the
intent to shock her fellow glee clubbers out of
complacency was another matter entirely.
Two days after Rachel had made the bet the tiny
prima donna found herself loitering outside Mdm.
Sabado's dance studio waiting for class to let out. If
pressed the petite brunette would be willing to admit
that to a less informed individual she would appear to
be a creepy stalker, nevertheless her target had just
exited the women's changing room and Rachel wasn't
about to miss her chance.
The tiny diva's voice was low and smoky. She was
singing at the lower register of her range and the
timbre was doing strange things to Amanda's spine.
She shivered almost imperceptibly and the hairs
along the back of her neck stood on end. Rachel spun
Amanda out of her hold but even with distance
between the two they moved together.
*********
"I'm bored."
XXXXXX
"Correct."
"Correct."
She smiled, pleased, and Mike asked, "How did you
know that?"
"It's weird!"
"I think the person who just went should get to pick,"
Matt suggested.
He grinned. "Santana."
XXXXXX
"Yes."
"It's my round; shut up. How old was I when I first had
sex?"
"Oh."
"Me? Oh…okay."
XXXXXX
"Rachel, are you still keeping score?"
"Yep."
"Oh! That classy black one with the V in the neck and
three-quarter length sleeves and the back laces up!
Gorgeous!" Kurt exclaimed excitedly.
Artie grinned.
"Oh…um…Puck?"
XXXXXX
"Ah."
"Dude. Up high."
"Excellent, bro."
"Oh, well…okay."
"You did."
XXXXXX
"Not at all."
Rachel winced.
"…Kinda."
Quinn shrugged.
"You're annoying!"
She shrugged.
"I'm bored."
XXXXXX
A/N: Let me know if you'd like to see more. :)
Musical Chairs
"So?"
"Thank you."
Silence.
"Rachel?" he prodded.
"Uh—"
"Fine," he grumbled.
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
Rachel blushed.
"And me."
"And Brittany."
She shrugged.
"Okay, that's—"
"Still, you didn't even try to sit," Kurt pointed out. "That
means you're out."
"Puck, you saw her. Shouldn't you know how she was
dancing?" Santana asked.
"Uh—"
He sighed.
"Are you sure it's agility?" Santana asked. "I think it's
because you're short. You can maneuver yourself
easier."
"How does that work when you guys are doing it?"
Brittany asked curiously.
"I'm not even that short! I'm only five foot two!"
"Yes. Only."
Rachel fumed.
"Oops."
"Well, for one thing, you just pointed out that she's
short. Not to mention, fast. It's kind of like trying to
battle the Road Runner. You can keep trying, but he
just keeps getting away."
"You know…'meep-meep'?"
Brittany drooped.
"Noah!"
"Yeeep."
"We could stop," Kurt offered.
He scowled.
"If you guys don't want to know who the musical chair
winner is, fine," she said, folding her arms.
"Rachel?"
"Wow."
"I'm talented."
"I know." Rachel frowned. "How did you know about
the lip gloss and soap, though? I don't talk to people
about that sort of thing. I don't think."
"I may have broken into your house and dug through
your personal things."
"Vaguely."
"I…had to sit with you and when you woke up, I told
you that you smelled interesting or something like
that. You explained it to me and went back to sleep.
End of story."
Artie clicked pause and they both lunged for the chair.
Both were half-sitting on it, trying to scoot the other
off.
XXXXXX
"Fine. Be boring."
"Yes."
"Just do it."
"Yes, you can. That's why they have 'ties.' So you can
have them," Mercedes replied.
"So?"
"Well, now I'm bored. And I'm pretty sure Brit is, too.
Right, B?" Santana asked.
"Very bored."
Twister
"Hm. Okay."
Rachel felt Quinn swipe the 'g' and the 'l' with her
finger before she realized someone had asked her
something.
"Sorry, what?"
"But Artie can't play it, and I don't think everyone will
fit on the mat," she said uncertainly.
"I don't think two people could fit in that box," Brittany
said, eyeing it.
"That'll do it."
"We have been. Almost since Finn got here with it,"
Kurt said.
XXXXXX
"Huh?"
"Uh huh."
"That is impossible."
"Axe."
"Thank you."
"Yeah…."
"That, too."
"Good."
"Excuse me?"
"Hey!"
"He gave me this gold bikini once. I still have it. San
and I use it for bondage."
"I really thought you were done being into me," she
replied.
"You're just—oof!"
"And you're out," Artie said, smiling.
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
She, Quinn, Rachel, and Mike were the only ones left
on the mat. Rachel glared at her and moved. Right on
top of Quinn. She turned beet red.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"Tell me."
"It's nothing."
Quinn smirked.
Truth or Dare
"Bu—"
"Now."
"Santana."
"Umm…."
XXXXXX
"I don't think I'm going with dare this game," Tina said
timidly.
"Mike."
"Matt, I'm going to stop you right there before you say
something completely chauvinistic for which you will
have to be flogged and punished," Rachel said icily.
He paled.
He frowned. "Why?"
He smiled, satisfied.
"Okay…Kurt?"
He grinned. "Dare."
"Truth."
Kurt rolled his eyes. "Total lie. Go get the egg or I—"
"Uh…truth."
"Uh…I…consequences?"
"I see."
"Okay…Quinn?"
"Rachel."
"Huh? Uh…truth?"
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
"Truth."
"What really happened in the hospital when you found
out what I do with my soap scents?" she challenged.
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
"Happy?"
"Rachel."
They sighed.
"Truth."
"Dare!"
"No buts."
"Dare," he replied.
"Go sing to one of Rachel's neighbors."
"No. You have to go, with your guitar, and sing them
that song you sang to Mercedes. And you can't tell
them you did it on a dare."
They were cackling when the two boys ran for the
front porch and dove inside, panting.
"You did not. They threaten to call the police all the
time, but they never do," Rachel replied, shaking her
head.
"What?"
"Gotcha."
"Gah…fine, Rachel?"
"I think I'll go with a dare this time," she said, smiling.
"Umm…."
XXXXXX
He frowned. "Huh?"
XXXXXX
A/N: Yes, I know, I'm evil. (You know you love me. ;) )
"That's my girlfriend!"
Quinn wiped her mouth, but that smile was not going
anywhere. Rachel looked at her and stroked the
blonde's hair back into place, blushing fiercely.
"—k you."
"If you have something to say to me, then you can say
it if we're paired up for Seven Minutes in Heaven. I
know I plan to."
"First," Rachel said. "Here you go, Artie." She held out
the bowl to him.
He glared at her.
"You just put it back in and try again," Mercedes said,
trying not to grin.
He glared at her.
XXXXXX
"In you go, sirs," Kurt said, giving Puck a last shove.
XXXXXX
"I was holding the bowl the entire time, Noah. They
couldn't have cheated," Rachel assured him.
"Right. Cause it's not like you weren't too busy making
moon eyes at Blondie to notice anything else," he
grumped.
"Uh…Kurt."
Kurt grinned. "Excellent!"
XXXXXX
"Don't be boring."
XXXXXX
"I did not! She's just upset because I gave her a few
styling tips she didn't appreciate!" Kurt said
defensively. "Besides, she's the one who attacked.
She stepped on my toe." Mercedes patted him.
"Well, I'll admit I was actually aiming for your shin, but
I couldn't see, so I settled."
Finn gaped.
XXXXXX
"I'm not tired," Puck said, and Matt, Kurt, and Artie
added their agreements.
"Time's up."
"Whatever."
Quinn bristled.
XXXXXX
"Time's up!"
XXXXXX
He huffed. "Santana?"
"Damn."
She huffed and pulled the slip off the top. "Matt."
She moved.
"I was just trying to find you. It's dark in there. And my
toe hurts now."
XXXXXX
"Rachel—"
"What you mean is, you made out with Quinn and it
was so good you want to break up."
"You're—"
"OW!"
"Great. Now all our friends heard you dump me," Finn
groaned. "I'll never be able to show my face at school
again."
He gaped at her.
"Good point."
Rachel grinned.
"Shut up."
XXXXXX
"Nice bed."
"Quinn?"
She grunted.
"Do you want to play strip poker?"
XXXXXX
Title: Uninvited
Author: Claire G
Pairing: Rachel/Quinn +plenty of others
Word count: 18,033 in total
Disclaimer: Glee and its characters are the property of
Fox. No infringement intended.
Plot: Let's pretend we've had several episodes where
Rachel and Quinn have been fighting with lots of
subtexty loveliness. Quinn and Sam are no longer
together and pretty much everyone is single.
Tensions rise when Mercedes' birthday party goes
awry. Rachel leaves Glee Club and Quinn processes
her feelings. Basically it's a Faberry-orientated
episode and I hope it's fun and funny! I wanted to get
them together in the traditional Glee way.
Note:Written before 'Never Been Kissed', but is set
any time after Rocky Horror.
Songs featured: Madonna - Sorry, Usher - DJ Got Us
Fallin' In Love, Elkie Brooks - Don't Cry Out Loud,
Rascal Flatts - My Wish, Ashley Tisdale - Tell Me Lies
"Goth-vamp-rock-nerd-steam...punk?" he whined.
Rachel let her hand fly out and slapped Quinn clean
across the cheek. "Of all people in this school, Quinn,
you should know better."
[And that's what you missed on Glee.]
[Monday]
Sue held her hand to her chest. "It's not my fault that
my office has a direct ventilation link to the Nurse's
office, now is it? Nor that my predecessor, may he
rest in peace, had set up a motion-activated
monitoring system to feed his desires to hear
teenagers describe their more intimate issues. Can I
help it if the recording panel is directly beside my wall-
mounted, vibrating, abdomen-blasting belt? And my
over-worked, loudspeaker finger is liable to slip once
in a while. Come on, don't both look at me like I'm
inhuman."
"That's ridiculous."
"But Rachel isn't like that. If she ever felt down, she'd
come to me," Will assured. "Sure she's had some
rough times, but Glee Club has always got her
through."
"Whoa," Will put his hand up. "Hurt her? What do you
mean you feel guilty?"
"I'm not sure if someone told you, but there are things
called computers, and a wonderful resource called the
int-er-net."
"Merci, Rachel."
"Now."
Striding out, she headed for the practice room. "I don't
wanna hear, I don't wanna know." She held her ears
in her hands, blocking out the sounds of people
calling for her attention. "Please don't say 'Forgive
me'. I've seen it all before, and I... can't take it
anymore." Closing the door behind her she looked at
the piano, one side of which had been smashed into
the wall, just a few nights before. She lifted the lid and
ran her fingers over the keys. "Don't explain yourself
'cause talk is cheap. There's more important things
than hearing you speak. You stayed because I made
it so convenient. Don't explain yourself, you'll never
see." With a large sigh, Rachel sank down onto a
chair. "Gomen nasais. Mujhe maaf kardo.
Przepraszam. Sli'kha. Forgive me..."
"Hey, guys. I'm sure you know I've called you all here
about Friday night." Will pressed his knuckle to his
lips, deep in thought. "I don't know..." He shook his
head. "I think you know how disappointed I am in
you."
"Yes, Kurt."
"Yes, Quinn?"
"Well..."
"You'd steal all the male leads for one," smirked Kurt.
[Flash to Friday]
"Do you ever not feel bad?" asked Puck. "I mean,
really? Get over it. I've seen bigger smiles on Droopy
Dog."
"But Quinn will be there too." Finn thrust his hands out
in a begging motion.
"Do either of you think it's a little weird that Quinn has
dated all of three of us?" asked Sam with genuine
curiosity.
"Yes, Mr Schue?"
"Yes, Mr Schue."
"Come on, girl. If I didn't know you better, I'd think you
were disappointed."
"Yeah, play it cool, not play it dead. Hang out with the
men, look tough, look tall... well, you don't need so
much help with that. Just act like these girls are totally
missing out on a hunka chunka Finnlove, 'kay, bud?"
"I'm not cool, it's just not who I am," Finn groaned.
"Nice. High five?" Puck held out his palm for Artie to
slap. "Down low?" And again. "Up high?" Puck held
his hand way above his head. "Never mind," he
smirked causing Artie to look suddenly grumpy. "Nice
idea, the whole chivalrous thing, but I think I'll stick to
wine coolers and dirty looks." Finn and Artie crossed
their arms and looked at Puck like disapproving
parents. "What?" He threw his hands up. "What? Aw,
man, forget you two." He approached the mp3 player
and dragged his finger down the list. "Hey, Mercedes,
what say you we get some real moves on the floor."
Puck scanned through the tracks . "How do you feel
about..." A familiar tune began and grew steadily
louder, catching people's attention. Puck spoke in an
almost whisper. "Usher, Usher, Usher..."
Puck pulled Finn into the circle in time for him to sing:
"Thank God the week is done. I feel like a zombie
gone back to life."
Rachel put her hand up. "It's okay, that was all. Just
popped by; didn't mean to kill your fun." She turned
on her heel. But, at that moment, the lights blinked off,
leaving them all in near pitch blackness on such a
moonless night. At least two people screamed.
Mike ran out of the room to find the junction box for
the lights, while everyone else felt their way around
blindly.
"Oh, that did not sound good, guys," Tina said with a
shakiness to her voice.
[Monday]
Will shook his head. "I can promise you, they were
non-alcoholic. I checked the labels. All mocktails and
virgin drinks. Very responsible."
"Still no."
"But you want to be, don't you? You feel like it's wrong
if you don't reject us. Like you can't be Quinn Fabray,
head cheerleader, wannabe prom queen... if you see
us as friends."
The music tailed off. With a clunk, the lights faded and
Quinn became enveloped by darkness, save for a
single spotlight almost blinding her. "I know you're
there," she said with barely a whisper. "I expected you
to join me; why didn't you take the limelight?"
"Please."
"What?"
"I put braids in your hair." The voice was different this
time. Quinn groggily sat up in her chair and reached
up to find her hair a mess and Brittany staring
maniacally at her.
Everyone laughed.
[Tuesday]
"If the shoe fits," Puck shrugged. "Finn, tie the rope to
the front of Artie's chair and we'll pull this old thing
outta here. Mike, you drag Artie back and Finn and
Sam will lever it up with these sticks.
"And what will you do?" asked Sam, wiping filth from
his forehead.
"I never knew Puck could scream a high F," said Kurt
with a wave of his hand as he strode down the
hallway. "We could dress him as a nun and get him to
sing Climb Every Mountain at Regionals."
"You can't just dump stuff when you don't want it," Will
retaliated.
[Wednesday]
Finn piped in. "Is this about the party, 'cause we know
we made a mistake?"
"Answer me."
"I need a coffee drip, stat. Rip open a vein and jack
me up." Sue stumbled into the staff room, grasping
hold of various people's arms so they had no choice
but to ease her down into a chair. She lay her arm
across her eyes and sighed. "Hello? Did you jerks not
hear me? Coffee. Now," she yelped.
"Is everything all right, Sue?" Emma asked, leaning in
a little close, and causing Sue's head to draw back
into her neck.
[Thursday]
"Kicked off the debate team for taking sides? Yes, but
my dominant presence could only be seen as an
asset in the world of politics."
Sue shut her office door and crossed her arms. "I've
never seen you perform such a dire dismount. I rely
on you Quinn, I need you on the ball, eyes on the
prize. The other girls look up to you." She perched on
the edge of her desk and shook her head.
"No, thank you; those have gone after the shots you
gave me."
"C'mon, spill those beans. Let loose those inner
demons so we can get you back on form."
"I care, Quinn." Sue held her hand to her heart. "And
that's just one of the reasons why you've got a crush
on me."
"Little harsh."
"Not much."
"No way." Finn shook his head. "She always said that
without music, she was nothing."
"You can't all have kissed her. Come on. Who here
kissed someone?" Will asked everyone to raise their
hands.
"No you can't. It hurts you deep inside; I can see that
in your eyes."
"Huh?"
[Flash to Friday]
"Which dad?"
"Now!"
[Thursday]
"I didn't kiss you, Finn, I'm sorry. It must have been
someone else. I didn't lunge at anyone."
"Rachel?"
"Yes, Finn?"
"Can we be friends?"
Finn took the lead. "I hope that the days come easy
and the moments pass slow, and each road leads you
where you want to go. And if you're faced with a
choice, and you have to choose, I hope you choose
the one that means the most to you. And if one door
opens to another door closed, I hope you keep on
walkin' 'til you find the window. If it's cold outside,
show the world the warmth of your smile."
"I hope you never look back, but ya never forget. All
the ones who love you, in the place you left. I hope
you always forgive, and you never regret. And you
help somebody every chance you get. Oh, you find
God's grace, in every mistake. And you always give
more than you take."
"Mr Schue?" Finn raised his hand. "I for one would
really like to know what happened and I have an
idea."
"Okay, I'll get the switch, and you all just move in the
direction you did that night."
"Dude, your lips are like chick's ones," Puck said with
a grimace.
"You can't blame me; yours are like little pillows and
you have really soft skin."
"Thank you." They both smiled and then looked like
they were going to vomit.
"You taste like beef jerky," Brittany blushed. "I like it,"
she whispered into his ear.
"Aw Kurt, you're sweet. I just hope you're the only gay
guy I kiss in my lifetime."
Rachel covered her face with her hands and ran from
the room.
Finn spoke up: "Quinn, you have to find her and tell
her."
"No."
"Grab that o -b-l . Now dot that i . And grab that t-e-r-
a-t-e ," the Lima AllStars cheered.
"I just -" Rachel shrugged "- don't feel like singing."
[Wednesday]
"Well if you keep doing that, they will be. Look, if we're
going to do this... whatever this is, then they're gonna
have to get used to me talking to you. And I say that
despite quite liking the idea of putting on a show of
hate toward you once a day." Rachel's cheek twitched
and Quinn suddenly felt guilty. "Look, I don't really
want to do that." Her eyelashes fluttered. "You never
know, dating a cheerleader might make you popular."
"I'd rather not be."
"I'd still rather not, if it's all the same to you. So don't
expect to receive any overtures from myself, musical
or otherwise," Rachel rebuffed.
"I haven't exactly had the biggest say in all this. You
carelessly laid one on me without any regard for my
feelings. Then you did it again, and again. I didn't get
a choice and now I'm expected to fall at your feet?
Yes, sure, you distinctly bamboozled me with your lips
a few times, that's all. I didn't sign a contract to date
one Ms Fabray."
"Yes, true, but I'm also the girl you vilified and
mentally lambasted for years, made cry with your
harsh, hushed words and cruel actions, someone who
still thinks that you might be doing this just to
humiliate her."
"I..."
"You think that anything you want will just float into
your arms when you desire it? We don't all wake to a
chorus of larks, followed by a flurry of woodland
creatures entering through the window, dressing you
and braiding your hair." Rachel waved vaguely at
Quinn's perfect hair and make-up.
Puck held his hand to his chest. "Why can't you see
that I just want my girls to be happy?"
"Never mind."
Sue licked her lips. "Never let it be said that I'm not a
fair woman. After all, I did win Ohio's Philanthropist of
the Year in 2001 for my work re-settling depressed
Japanese fishmongers in a disused aqua theme
park." She removed her glasses and placed them on
the table. "I may have a job for you until the break is
healed, but screw it up and you'll be out."
"I heard you the first time; I'm astonished, not deaf,"
she said bluntly. "What did you think you were doing?
Kissing her was what sent Rachel all weird in the first
place. Now she'll never come back to Glee. "
"We get on okay, don't we? You and I," Quinn said
quietly, rubbing at her white-sleeved arm.
"Oh come on, girl, are you still clutching onto that
scrawny little straw? You slept with Puck, remember?
Why don't you take responsibility for that for one?"
Kurt blinked and pulled at his ear lobe. "We are still
talking about the slushie incident, are we not?"
"Thank you, yes." She swept her hair out of her eyes
and sat up primly.
"Don't let her win your heart. Don't let her just take
what she wants. I've nothing against Quinn, but she's
got to learn that she can't just make you like her just
like that." He snapped his fingers abruptly. "I mean,"
he chuckled, "how can she expect you just to fall for
her at the drop of a pom-pom? It's absurd. Ridiculous
even. Don't give credit to her intentions."
"But I -"
"Jeez, girl, how do you get close to any guy with that
buckaneer-bondage outfit on? Your corset clips are
leaving permanent dents in my ribcage." They pulled
apart.
Santana tried to cross her arms but the cast got in the
way. "I cannot deal with this crap," she yelled.
"Step any further out of line and I will rip out your
voice box, Hummel," Santana shouted, suddenly held
back from her imminent pounce by Quinn's hand
pressing firmly on her stomach.
"Brett got scabies after he broke into the zoo and rode
a gorilla for a dare," Tina explained with a grimace as
she pulled her long sleeves over her hands. "It's okay,
though. I don't think he wore the suit after the itching
started... or did he?" She frowned.
"Brittany not here yet?" Finn asked the group. "I was
kinda hoping we could sit together."
"That's it! And that other one about no one being able
to hear you scream when you fall from a tree in
space. Except Brittany's are: 'Where does the wax go
when you burn a candle?' and 'Is this the same
rainwater as we had on Tuesday?'" Finn's eyes
glimmered with pride.
Will smiled. "Uh, hi, guys. Great that you're all here."
"Sorry I'm late. Let's get straight to it. We've got two
weeks before sectionals, and I know I promised I'd
give you more of a say, but I need you to start
bringing the goods to the table. Has anyone had any
ideas for this week's theme?" He leaned back against
the piano and folded his arms. Everyone looked a
little blank. "Come on, it's 'Second Chances', what
could be easier?"
"I don't get it; usually you're all bursting at the seams
with ideas." Will shook his head.
Sam raised a hand. "I think you'll find that pretty much
all Rachel, Mr Schue. She used to fake our voices
when your back was turned and, for the record, I
would never suggest anything by Tina Turner." He
shook hair out of his eyes. "Don't we need another
team member since we're one man down?"
"Deal."
[ Friday]
"Poker?"
"Nerds."
"I know that I'm the reason you left. After all, I am with
Finn now and you're still in love with him. It must be
hard for you to see us together."
"I'm sure what you just said was very pretty." Brittany
nodded slowly. "Please come back to Glee anyway.
We need you."
"Quinn?"
"Hey, at the end of the day, I can take this off. You
can't."
"Atlanta."
"Yeah?"
He turned over one of the boxes and his eyes lit up.
"Atlanta!"
"I think it's time I'd better go now. It's late and my
parents will be worried."
"Well if you hear from Quinn tell her I'm taking a val-"
Judy paused and rethought her words, "vitamin and
going to bed. Before she left she had been singing
incessantly, time after time after time... my head is still
throbbing now. So thank you for being so quiet." She
looked suspiciously at Rachel. "You didn't steal
anything, did you?"
"No. What on earth would I steal?"
"If you say so, Quinn," Leroy replied. "But I'm really
not happy with lying..."
Quinn drew a flat line in the air with her hand. "No
lying. It's not like she's going to ask: 'Did Quinn visit?"
"I..." Quinn sucked her bottom lip into her mouth and
thought about it. She decided not to push any further.
"Okay, Mr Berry." She stepped outside and turned
around to face him. "Thank you."
"I'm fine, really, it's not far at all." She smiled at his
overprotective nature. "I might even call my mom to
come get me," she lied. "Goodnight."
[Saturday]
"Yeah, you. Two of our cast got sick. You kids ever
dreamed of being in the movies?"
"How about I use the key?" His eyes sparkled. "I have
a master for the whole school."
"Huh?"
"Whatever."
"Oh, come off it, Sue. My team could wipe the floor
with yours," she uttered with a sweet malice. "I don't
need to sabotage you. I'm sure this is all just some
silly mistake."
"My mom? No, she was pretty much out cold when I
got home." Quinn inhaled deeply, then exhaled softly,
tucking loose strands of hair behind her ear.
"If I talk to you about the letter, then I'm guessing that
I won't get to hear those things for real, coming out of
your mouth, expressed through those eyes."
"You got me." She tilted her head. "I didn't know what
to do either, so I asked around. I've never been in this
position before. I've never been the one doing the
chasing. And I've definitely never fallen for a woman
before."
"All the time. I'm just waiting for the right moment."
Rachel slid the tip of her nose along Quinn's jawline.
"Is that before or after I die from waiting for your lips
to hit mine?"
"Oh my God." His eyes lit up, and a smile that could
compete with The Joker spread across his gleeful
face. "I remember that. In fact -" he looked over her
shoulder "- that's my Gameboy. That's incredible. I
forgot I'd had it taken from me." He took it from Sue's
hands and tapped at the screen with his finger. Out of
his view, Terri rolled her eyes. "I was absolutely
obsessed with video games back then. I got into
trouble with all the teachers because it was pretty
much always glued to my face. They said it would
give me square eyes."
"Go on, Will." Terri pushed at his elbow." I'm sure Sue
would love to hear the story."
"Yes, please make me suffer a slow, agonizing death
worse than being eaten by a score of ravenous
terrapins."
"Billy Schuester."
[Flash to present]
"Well, let's forget about that. It's nice to see you, Will,
even if it is in captive circumstances."
[Monday]
"No, the one just before you made a leap for the perp
they were chasing." Finn held her by the cheek. "How
you restrained him by wrapping your legs around his
throat... I'll never know."
"Awesome. "
Santana was back in Sue's office, but this time she
was there for a disciplinary.
Sue sat back down quietly. "I like your attitude, Lopez.
Perhaps I've been rash. What shall we say, once your
wrist is healed... promotion to the top of the pyramid
and your own personal tanning booth?"
"Tempting, but no."
"Okay, fine, you get your way." Sue bit her lip. "You
can have Becky to peel grapes for you every Tuesday
and Thursday."
"She may give the best back rubs this side of Lima,
but it's still a no. And I'll say this clearly. I say no
because I quit, Coach."
"Santana!"
"Britt ?" She whipped round so fast that Brittany
collided headlong with her and they both fell to the
floor .
"No, sweetie, I'm just moving on. You've got Finn now
and he's the commitment, serious, dull type."
"Rule three?"
"Oh."
Puck's ears pricked up: "Which state did you say her
college was in?"
Sue winced at the girl's last note. "Is this a knife I see
before me, or are you just painfully sharp?"
PART ONE
She shut the only door and faced him fully. He put on
his best charming smile. "Come to finally stop denying
the sexual attraction between us."
She rolled her eyes. "Look Jewfro, I'm not gonna try
and shave your head again. I just want to have a
conversation." She sent him an all-knowing smile
before taking a step back.
"Of course."
"I said okay." He held out his hands again, she just
yanked the papers out of reach.
The link led her to a new page with the start of the
first chapter. It didn't seem to be anything special.
Rachel Cherry and Quinn Fabrat were in Rachel's
room discussing Mr. Shooter's new glee assignment.
Neither girl seemed to be fond of the assignment, and
Rachel Cherry suggested an alternative. Apparently
Quinn Fabrat didn't like this very much because she
shoved Rachel Cherry against the wall. Before
anything else happened, the website was telling her
to click on the "Buy Now" button if she wanted to read
the rest.
She found her spot where the preview had left off and
continued reading. She always imagined if any of the
cheerios were to kill her that it'd be an embarrassing
death. Since Rachel Cherry and Quinn Fabrat were
alone, she didn't really think any of her hypotheses
would be correct. When no death came over the next
few lines, she began to question if that was what
Quinn Fabrat was set to do. The blonde character
wasn't being violent at all. She actually seemed to be
being nice. (Clearly this wasn't art imitating life.)
Strangely, she was "gently" touching Rachel Cherry.
Her hand was softly moving down and– this was most
definitely not safe for work (school).
-that.
"Somewhat?"
"Deny it all you like, but the cat's out of the bag. Your
affair is out for everyone to know about."
PART TWO
Quinn shut her locker door and was met with the sight
of Rachel Berry standing in its wake. Lovely. It was
becoming habitual. "What do you want?" She asked
the shorter girl.
"Nope."
"Keep going."
"Sure."
"I know it was you." She looked down at the other girl.
Quinn grinned. "No, I'm not that stupid. And I'm not
treating this like it's a little prank." She leaned over
Santana's desk. "I'll come after Brittany." She
whispered before pulling away and heading back to
the front of the room. She smiled sweetly at her
clearly confused teacher. "Sorry Mr. Schue. I just had
to tell Santana something."
"Well it's not like they could've used you. You're like
Puck, you'll sleep with anyone. That takes away the
perverted fantasy."
"Q, sit down." Sue ordered, and Quinn did as she was
told because, well, it was Sue Sylvester. "Someone
had the pleasure of showing me Jacob Ben Israel's
blog last period. I must say, I was quite disturbed by
some of the things I read you doing with that glee
reprobate. So much so that I'm having trouble looking
at you right now and forgetting what I read. It's like the
words have been scorched into my retinas."
"I don't."
"No I shouldn't."
"Okay."
Quinn continued her entrance until she was standing
right in front of Rachel's chair. "You can't tell anyone
what I told you yesterday. You can't tell anyone who
wrote the book. And you definitely can't talk to Finn
about it."
"We?"
"Yes, we." Rachel annunciated. "It isn't just your
boyfriend who's responsible here, Quinn. I'd like for
Finn to know what he did was unacceptable."
"Finn?"
"Yeah?"
Finn poked his head out of his door to yell that he'd be
right down before softly shutting it once again. He
turned to face Rachel. "Can you go downstairs and
tell her I'm in the bathroom? I need to…Well, I just
need a minute."
They had tied. Had it not been with The Warblers, she
probably would be throwing a diva's tantrum right
now. However, since it was with Kurt's new team, she
was quite happy. It seemed wrong if Kurt was not at
Regionals with them. And okay, he'll be the
competition, and she didn't exactly want to tie again
but at least he'd be there. They had come to an
understanding and were friends now. And friends
were happy for friends regardless of the situation.
Plus, it wasn't like she was the only one who felt this
way. All of New Directions was supporting him. Over
all, Sectionals actually went nicely.
"Okay."
PART THREE
"Huh?"
"Relationship?"
"I know that, but I acted selfishly with him last week
which I already regret and now I just hurt him again.
I'm sorry that I don't lack a conscience like you."
"Well I'm sure they don't think that anymore. I'm sure
they're real sorry."
"Berry-"
"My mom."
Neither of her goals has been met, and so far the only
thing this plan seemed to achieve was letting
everyone in the school know that she and Quinn were
'dating.' The news spread quickly over the last three
days, and oddly enough, most people believed it.
(Even most of the glee club was coming around to the
idea though they were still wary.) All this resulted in
was an increase in chapter sales. Rachel will admit;
this was somewhat of a backfire. Quinn didn't seem to
care about any of this though. She seemed content
with only focusing on Sam, Santana, and hanging out
at Rachel's house. Because, yes, that was one of the
few good things that has developed in result of the
plan. It was decided Monday at lunch that they should
spend time together outside of school. So far it wasn't
anything special. Quinn would drive them to Rachel's,
they'd do their homework, they'd argue over their
homework, and eventually Quinn would drive home.
Still, it was something for Rachel to look forward to
after glee was over each day, and that wasn't typically
the case.
"No. I can't speak for Finn, but I'm sure Sam knows
what we're doing. He pretty much made that clear on
Monday."
"Quinn!"
"No?"
"That'd be my guess."
"We just wanted to make sure you were okay with our
relationship."
Rachel wiped her face after they were out of sight and
followed Quinn into the bathroom. "You know the
joke's on them because since Kurt left no one in glee
is actually gay. Except maybe Brittany and Santana,
but I still really haven't figured out their relationship."
"Okay fine. Don't tell me. You won't get what you ask
for, but okay don't tell me." Quinn told her
offhandedly.
"Yes, but she's by far the cutest person I've ever been
with." Quinn told him flippantly as Rachel finally
stepped down. Sam sighed before Quinn took her
turn.
"Yeah."
"Mmm-hmm."
Quinn pulled them away from the wall. "Do you know
how much time we'd save if you would just agree with
me?"
"I'm the one who doesn't agree with you? You argue
everything I say."
"No one's asking you to." Quinn told her and began to
pull Rachel towards the door. She stopped, however,
when Santana stepped in front of them. Quinn sighed.
"Look, we all know you're only in here because
Brittany's still dating Artie and has left you alone. So
why don't you go take it out on one of them?"
"Quinn."
"That's not-"
Rachel turned away from Quinn. "He led me to
believe that everything we experienced with each
other would be the first time either of us was
experiencing it. When in reality, those events already
took place with Santana for him. You I could
understand, but Santana?"
The simple fact was that she didn't care about the
book. And she was no longer thinking of the plan. She
just liked Quinn. Quinn Fabray. It was all so illogical
her head hurt.
"A little."
"I'll try." Quinn spoke dryly and sat down next to her;
Rachel sitting on Quinn's left. "You're hogging it." She
gave a yank on the blanket.
"What? No-"
"And not just any lead singer, but one that's as good
as you are." Tina continued.
Santana smirked. "Better and less annoying."
"I'm fine."
"Rachel."
"Sure. Whatever."
"Okay."
"That's nice."
Rachel grinned in response. It stayed on her face until
they rounded a corner and she was hit with frozen,
colored slush. Rachel sputtered and wiped her eyes
while Quinn gaped at Dave Karofsky.
"You don't have to. And for the record, I think you've
been a great fake-girlfriend this past month." Rachel
sent her a smile.
"Yes."
She opened her eyes and looked into soft hazel. Such
soft hazel. "Groceries." She suddenly uttered.
"I'm fine."
"Again, what?"
"Right. Of course it's not. It's why you two are always
kissing and going on dates."
"Yeah and what? You just told Finn, Puck, and Spam
about you and Berry?" Santana picked up her pace
until she was standing in front of Quinn being very
roadblocky. "You forget I know who wrote it."
"You're so gross."
"You're so prude."
"What?"
"Really?"
"Really?"
"Uh-huh."
"Just tell him the truth and he'll be fine." She advised.
"It's not like you'll be with him forever anyway. You're
a great cheerleader and a great dancer. He literally
can't keep up with you."
"I need a favor." She told him and lost her smile upon
his Puckerman leer. "Stop thinking what you're
thinking. I'm serious."
"You owe me." She cut him off. "I know you wrote the
book, and Rachel and I can get you arrested or
labeled or something. I wasn't really listening to her
completely, but I know we can do something to you."
"Fine. I'll try, but come on Babe. You can't just expect
me to give away guaranteed sex with Santana
forever."
"Please. I know who I'm talking to. It'd just be for like
two weeks."
"Fine."
"In a week."
"What?"
"It was one time." Tina defended against his love of all
things Asian.
"Still."
"I just didn't think you should be hurt over it. It meant
nothing, and felt horrible afterwards. Besides, you
were with Jesse at the time. It wasn't like we were
even together. You can be mad that I lied, but the rest
shouldn't really matter."
Mr. Schue stepped forward. "I'm glad you all feel this
way because this is the only way we're going to get to
New York and compete for Nationals."
-SMACK-
"Yeah, so?"
"Yes. Why?"
"I don't see how any of that would work, but there's
paper over there." Quinn pointed over to her shelves
that held plenty of things Rachel could have a ball
writing on. She watched as Rachel crossed her room
a pick up a notebook and pen. She got that Berry
concentration on her face and- Hey, wait a minute.
"Yes."
"Quinn."
"What?"
"Okay, just before you open it, you should know most
of it was done during my first few weeks of
pregnancy, and I was still getting accustomed to the
hormones." Quinn warned.
Rachel put the book in its home and went back over
to the couch. "I'm sorry, Quinn." She sat down.
"Quinn?"
"Yeah?"
"Oh."
"Quinn!"
"Sure."
Puck moved down the row of seats and sat down next
to a secluded Quinn. "So you're dating Berry?"
"Are you kidding? I've been trying for two years." She
shook her head with a smile. Of course he did. "You
know Finn and Bieber are pretty upset about this
whole thing."
"And like I said, it's their own fault." Err, besides Artie.
"Do you ever just shut up?" He gritted out. She had no
comeback. Probably because she was scared. She
looked scared, and so did her little girlfriend. Well look
at that, he thawed the ice queen.
"Exactly."
"What?"
"Why are you so sure? Really, when have I ever
proven that I'd do otherwise?"
"I know and I'm sorry." She shook her head and
cleared her doubts. "It's nothing. Come on, I'll take
you home."
PART FIVE
"The weather."
"Simple?"
"I don't care what you do with Finn. Or anyone else for
that matter."
"Really?"
Quinn listened to Finn and Mike talk in hushed tones
behind her. She had never in her life disliked Finn
Hudson before. Sure, she'd been annoyed with him
several times, but would it be too much trouble for him
to choke on air right now?
"And you're just going to let him plan a date with your
girlfriend?"
"It's a long story, but Finn, Sam, and Puck were the
ones who wrote the book and we were just messing
with them." She paused. "Well, not Puck."
"Uh-huh."
Quinn narrowed her eyes at the sly grin on Mercedes'
face. "What uh-huh?"
"Not possible."
"It's nothing."
"Okay, well as a new friend, if you ever wanted to talk
I can listen. So what's up?"
"If you don't care about what I do then why did you
sabotage my date with Finn?" Rachel folded her arms
for the challenge.
"I'll try." She assured and left the room without sparing
a glance at either one of them.
"Rachel." He greeted.
Rachel left her dad in the car after assuring him that
she'd only be about ten minutes. She walked up the
Fabrays' pathway and rand their doorbell. She waited
until the door opened and she was met with who was
most likely Quinn's mother.
"Oh. Well come in." Judy invited her inside. She led
Rachel into the living room. "I'll go get Quinn." Judy
departed, leaving Rachel alone with who she was
assuming was Quinn's father. He lowered his book
and glanced at her from the chair he was sitting in.
"It's not just a dream. It's a goal. One I've had since I
realized I could never actually be Fanny Brice. It may
seem impetuous, but I have all intention of making it
happen. I'm a firm believer that no goal is too high to
reach."
She grinned and held out her hand for Quinn. "Yes."
"They were just trying to get back at Finn and Sam for
the whole book of porn thing." Mercedes continued to
explain to Artie.
"Yes Finn."
"I know. You're probably the only one that does." She
was more than aware of this by now, and she needed
it. She needed someone to care enough to be
worried. And she really wanted that person to remain
being the girl beneath her.
END
Better
I look out the window, and I hear her scoot the chair
next to the bed, see her hand move to the sheet. Her
hand almost touches mine today.
XXXXXX
Quinn comes at her exact time again. I'm relieved.
Too much so to wonder why.
XXXXXX
Quinn takes my hand again, and it hurts just as much
as yesterday. There's a stuffed cat sitting on my lap
from Brittany. That hurts, too.
XXXXXX
When she sighs, I echo it. It makes her stare, and her
lips move, but she says nothing. She turns my hand
over and kisses my palm and leaves.
XXXXXX
They both stare at me. The nurse gives in, but I know
it's only because it's the first word I've spoken since I
got here. As soon as she's gone, Quinn comes over
and sits on the bed this time—a first—and wraps her
arms around me—another first—and I sob into her
shoulder and she rocks me and pets my hair and
says, "Hello," and then she whispers my name over
and over in her soft voice and we've made a new
record of firsts, because it's not 'Man Hands' or 'Berry'
that she calls me, but 'Rachel' and God help me, it
helps to hear her say it.
When Dad comes in, I'm not even crying anymore.
I've run out of tears, but I won't let go of Quinn and
she hasn't let go of me and I wonder why it's Quinn
I'm latching onto when it could be anyone else,
because they've all offered their hands. But the only
one I'll take is Quinn's and I still don't know why.
XXXXXX
Mike and Matt visit with flowers. Noah does once, the
day after I'm back home. He apologizes, pats my
shoulder, and then he's gone.
Quinn still comes every day. She stays for longer now
that the hospital visiting hours don't restrict her. She
still holds my hand and she's kissed both of my
cheeks now. She kissed the tip of my nose yesterday.
I look forward to seeing what she'll do every day.
"Hi."
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
"Hello."
"Hi."
I want to ask where the movie is, but she walks over
to the shelf. I wait for a repeat showing, but then she
holds up 'My Fair Lady.' I feel sick. I shake my head,
but she's already turned to put it in. She lays down
next to me and holds my hand. I want to cover my
ears.
No more singing. Even if I speak, I never want to sing
again. Not without him. Not after what happened. I
can't. I want nothing to do with it.
XXXXXX
I feel less sick this time. I sigh and slowly nod. She
puts it in, lays next to me, tucks her arm beneath my
shoulders to hold me. I'm surprised again. She
doesn't touch other than to hold my hand unless I cry.
I sink into it anyway, rest my head on her shoulder.
She doesn't move away.
"Sing?"
"Please?"
I smile at her.
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
It's dark when I wake up again. I bite back a sob. It
really happened. I want Quinn.
I'm still crying, but I've fallen silent and I know she's
still there, but I want to hear her, so I whisper,
"Quinn?"
XXXXXX
"Hello."
"Hi," I say.
I blink. "Why?"
"I'm sorry," she repeats, firmer this time, like that will
make me get it.
There's silence. It's the most 'me' thing I've said since
the accident, and we both know it. My voice is
superior and bossy, and the only thing missing is a
command, but it's taken all my energy just to muster
those three sentences. And I'm nervous about what
Quinn will do next, if she'll react to my words the way
she would've a few months ago or not.
XXXXXX
School starts soon. I'm not sure I'm ready. Quinn tells
me we'll get me ready. We start with a meal outside
the house. Lunch with glee.
"No, I don't."
XXXXXX
Santana gets it. Gets why I'm laughing, and she grins
and then we're both laughing and the other two are
staring at us like we've grown extra heads while
Brittany just smiles and pats me.
"Quinn," I pant.
"It's okay," she assures me, but I see the hurt in her
eyes. She doesn't understand.
"I don't deserve you," I say, and then sob harder. "You
make me happy and it's wrong because he's gone
and I don't deserve it."
It's sudden and I'm angry that I've been pulled away
from where I belong. I'm still angry when I see that it's
Quinn who's ripped me out, hands on my face and
holding me hard. Her eyes are filled with tears, but
she looks angry, too, almost frenzied. I'm about to tell
her to just leave me—I want to rot—but she speaks
first, and her voice is harsh and thick with tears.
"Rachel, listen to me. You are the most deserving of
happiness of anyone I've ever met." Her hands are
shaking and it makes me shake. "Your father wanted
you to be happy. He wanted your dreams to come
true, to see you take Broadway, and you will." I start
to shake my head. "You will. Because I want you to
and your dad wants you to, and your daddy still does.
And, most importantly, because you still want to. I
know you do. And you deserve it, and I'm not going to
let you think otherwise."
XXXXXX
"Why is it that you put your two cents in, but you only
get a penny for your thoughts? What happens to the
other cent?"
"Mm-mm."
"Quinn," he tried.
She lifted her head for the first time since she'd
started, and she pinned Puck with a steely glare. Or
at least, that's what the two of her looked like they
were doing. He blinked and shook his head.
"Oh."
--------------**********---------
But that was then, and this was now, and now, she
was sitting next to that boyfriend in the choir room,
noting how freakishly large his fingers were. And his
fingernails were kind of dirty. She cringed a little and
looked four chairs over, where Quinn was sitting with
Sam, looking positively bored. Sam was beaming at
her as she picked her nails and nodded halfheartedly
with a furrowed brow.
The seventh time, the plan for Rachel to wait until the
age of twenty-five to have sex went out the window.
She didn't complain (and, of course, Quinn said
nothing either).
She closed the front door and wasn't shoved into it.
That was different. In fact, she made it all the way up
to Quinn's bedroom without so much as catching sight
of the blonde. Rachel rolled her eyes; could she really
plan nothing? The bedroom door was slightly ajar and
she nudged it open. She heard the shower running
and worried her bottom lip between her teeth,
considering her options.
"Stay."
Rachel beamed and felt thankful that the other girl still
had her eyes closed. "Okay."
"I can't even count how many times we've done this
and you never make a sound. Ever."
"I'll stop."
Oh.
"And your silence now is EXACTLY why." Her voice
wavered as she moved away.
"Falling."
"Yes."
"Yes."
"Why not?"
"Yes."
They kissed, but not like they usually did; they kissed
softly, slowly, and without intent. When they broke
away, Quinn reached for the comforter on the floor
and pulled it over them before curling against
Rachel's back.
"Quinn?"
"Hmm?"
"Now what?"
...
...
The end.
Part 1/3
Still, just the fact that they would deign to sit with her
had Rachel's head spinning. She spent many weeks
trying to figure out what their angle was, what they
could possibly be getting out of it. But in the end, she
concluded that the only person getting anything out of
this new arrangement was her. She had a new friend,
and she wasn't going to ruin that over her built-in
sense of paranoia when it came to people wearing
Cheerios uniforms.
Sadly, the latter was about two pages (front and back)
longer than the former—and that was only half a
page, all consisting of things like 'slushies.' And she
hadn't actually finished the second list. When it
started coming down to things like 'how her thighs
quiver when she's been at Cheerios practice,' she'd
decided that what she had was sufficient.
XXXXXX
"Where the hell have you three been?" Quinn hissed
angrily.
"Well?"
"Hm?" It was the only thing she could get out that
wasn't completely unintelligible.
"Got it. I don't need the novel every time, Berry. The
CliffsNotes version will do."
"Huh?"
Rachel smiled back gratefully. "I think I've had all the
'help' I can stand."
"Don't worry. I'll tell her before Friday, she can reject
me, and then we can all move on from this."
Part 2/3
"You okay?"
XXXXXX
"Yep!"
XXXXXX
Silence. It took Rachel a moment to realize that she
was staring at her feet. She'd just declared her love
for her Mary Janes, apparently. She nearly rolled her
eyes at herself before dragging her gaze up—her chin
was heavier than she remembered it being—and
slowly, hesitantly, met hazel eyes.
Then, finally, Quinn licked her lips and spoke. "I don't
hate you."
"I don't hate you," she repeated, firmer this time, but
her voice still sounded kind of…hollow. As though she
wasn't quite sure what was happening was real. As
though she was a little detached from the whole
situation.
"Ra—"
"I'm—"
"I have to go," Rachel cut in, voice shaking. "I have
to...yeah. Um...sorry, I'll...see you."
Brittany smiled. "I knew it! Did she give you a happy?"
She rolled her eyes. "It probably just means that she
doesn't hate you. Can't you take anything at face
value, Berry? She threw you a bone, now go chew on
it."
"All right, fine." She sank into the chair across from
them. "But at least tell me what I should do next."
XXXXXX
Rachel took Santana's advice. Save for when she
arrived home Thursday evening—which involved a
pathetic spiral of depression, starting with the dreaded
box of Kleenex and ending with a repeat viewing of
'Steel Magnolias' to remind herself that worse things
could happen, and a gallon of orange sherbet—the
brunette, incredibly, managed to retrieve her cheery
exterior to cover the mess inside, and bounced and
annoyed her way through Friday as usual.
Part 3/3
"Why?"
So, they had established that Quinn still did not hate
Rachel, that they were both caught off-guard and
therefore handled things poorly, and the cheerleader
had said she knew what she wanted to say. Although
she still hadn't actually said it. The brunette opened
her mouth to voice the query when she realized
something else the blonde had said. Her eyes
bugged.
"Stand."
"I like you. I…." She dropped her hand and her gaze,
swallowing audibly. "I might…l-love you."
"I can't say that's what it is right now, but if the way I
feel when you smile at me means anything, then it's
definitely heading in that direction," Quinn said
hurriedly, her cheeks going an adorable shade of
pink. She winced. "Please don't tell Santana I said
that."
"What?"
"I beg to differ," Rachel cut in, lifting her chin. "There
are few students in this school with as many
extracurricular activities as Quinn who are able to
maintain such a high GPA, and—"
"Did, too."
"Did not."
"Shut up, San! I…I just went to get them after school
last Thursday when I heard they were selling them.
That's why I was so impatient when you asked me to
stay after," she explained sheepishly. "I was going to
get four tickets, but after you told me…you know, I-I
thought it could be our…our first date." Even her ears
were red.
"She forgot the part where she had to drive all the
way to Columbus and back, waited in line for six
hours—in the cold, in her Cheerios uniform, and, oh,
yeah, what else did you do? Get into a fistfight with
some guy who cut in front of you?" Santana mocked,
grinning wickedly. "Whipped."
"I do not."
"You coming?"
"Yeah, don't get used it," she said harshly, trying not
to betray herself.
*************
Rachel always rides shotgun in Quinn's car.
******
Title: Are You Ten Years Ago?
Major Characters/Pairings: Quinn Fabray-Puckerman,
Beth Puckerman, Noah Puckerman, Jr., Jasper
Puckerman, Rachel Berry, Finn Hudson/OC,
Mentions past: Quinn/Puck, Rachel/Puck,
Rachel/Quinn
Minor Characters/Pairings: Mike/OC, Matt/OC,
Artie/Tina, Rachel's dads Mentions: Brittany/Santana,
Mercedes/OC, Kurt/OC
Rating: PG-13
Summary: AU beginning after 'Funk'. Rachel got the
hell out of Lima, Ohio immediately after graduation,
breaking Quinn's heart in the process, and never
looked back. Now, ten years later, she's back and
Quinn is the one to show her the aftermath and the
pieces of what she left behind - all the while trying
desperately not to fall back in love with her ex-
girlfriend.
Warnings: Pre-story character death discussed in
detail.
Author's Note: Holy sweet Jesus, this took a long
time. I kept getting distracted by other things and it
just kept getting shoved on the back burner but now
it's done and here and I don't have to mess with it
anymore, yay!
-Chapter 1-
The blonde made her way through the store and was
in the boxed food aisle when Jasper started whining
and reaching insistently for his bag.
"Want!"
"Joo!"
"What kind of juice? Apple or orange?"
"App!"
"Mmm!"
"Rachel…"
"Puckerman!"
"I'll do it."
"I have three kids, Rachel. I can't just go out and have
dinner."
It took Quinn four tries to get her van started and she
sighed and made a note to take it to Burt Hummel
when she got the chance. She knew he either
wouldn't charge her if it was something he could just
fix right there or he wouldn't tack on labor if he had to
order parts. Quinn had resigned her pride long ago
and she would always take whatever she was given
by those that offered their help: Car service from Burt,
discounts at the store, free babysitting from Finn and
Kelsey, offers of great deals on cars she knew she
couldn't afford from Matt, discounts on what she had
to pay out of pocket for the kids' prescriptions and any
supplies Quinn needed for Jasper from Tina and
Artie, breaks and extensions on payments at the bank
from Mike. From her parents? A glance at each of the
Puckerman children if they were seen in public before
shaking their heads and turning away. It was usually
followed by a growl from Beth before she took Noah's
hand.
"What's wrong?"
"No, he might ask me. But the dance isn't for like a
month."
"Is he nice?"
"Yeah. He's really quiet."
"I'm not doing this for charity. I'm doing this because I
want to. Where do they like to eat? I can get a
reservation anywhere."
"Rachel, don't…"
"Please, Quinn. I'm pretty sure you deserve the
break."
"Noah Junior."
"Sounds good."
-Chapter 2-
"I…" he repeated.
"Want…"
"Want!"
"Tell me."
"Want color!"
"You look very much like your mother, aside from your
hair color of course."
"You mean she doesn't take the time to find out what
happened to anyone? I know I'm only like twelve or
whatever but I'm not stupid."
"It was a long time ago, honey. It's not…" Quinn saw
the look on her daughter's face. It was like looking in a
mirror if she were twelve again. Her parents did that
to her, too. They shrugged off her questions by telling
her it wasn't important. "Yes," she answered. "Before
she left for college in New York. We started dating
after you were born and it was wonderful and then
she just…left. She looked at me the day all of her
boxes were packed and told me it wouldn't work out
and she left and I never heard from her again. Not
until today."
"Then your dad and I got back together again and this
monstrosity was born," she said with a joking laugh.
Noah giggled and Quinn scooted over enough for him
to fall down next to her. "I wouldn't change it for the
world, you understand? I love you, all three of you, no
one and nothing will ever, ever change that."
"Can I help?"
Quinn pulled the coffee canister out of the refrigerator
and started loading the coffee maker.
"No, it's fine. It's not Starbucks, though." She filled the
pot with enough water for two cups and dumped it into
the reservoir.
Rachel shook her head. "I saw the sign for Tina and
Artie's pharmacy, though. That's good for them."
-Chapter 3-
"How often did you call them to find anything out the
last couple of years?"
Rachel's gaze fell to the floor. "I didn't," she mumbled.
"I always had my assistants send notes or flowers."
"I know how you left me, Rachel. I was there. Puck
was there. You weren't."
Quinn wasn't sure what the look on her face was but
whatever it was, it concerned Rachel enough that the
brunette was standing in front of her and looking up at
her with those dark brown eyes.
"I'm fine."
"Mkay."
"Is he okay?"
"Call me, I mean it," she said before she got in.
Quinn nodded.
-Chapter 4-
"I just wanted to remind you again that you can call
me if you need anything. Day or night, I mean it."
"I know, Rachel." Artichokes, fresh spinach bundles, a
head of red cabbage.
The second that the clock hit five, Quinn shut down
her register and hurried to her locker to get her things
and get over to the Hudson house to pick up the kids.
Noah was a blur as he ran out of the house and
Quinn prayed he was just a little hyper and it wasn't
one of those days. Her prayers came unanswered. As
soon as she strapped Jasper into his car seat she
looked at Noah and his eyes were darting around the
van and he was nervously wringing his hands.
"Why not?"
"Get away!"
"I know…I know you do, okay? I want him, too. I want
him here, you know I do."
"You're gonna forget all about him! And it's all that
Rachel lady's fault!"
"Beth told Uncle Finn that Rachel was here. And then
I heard him talking on the phone and he said…" Noah
managed to pull away from Quinn's grip and he
hopped up on his bed and grabbed onto a pillow.
"I did, a long time ago. Before you were born and
before I married your dad. It has nothing to do with
right now."
"But what if you love her again? You'll forget all about
him!"
"Jason Porter said that's what his mom said about his
step-dad and now he tries to get him to call him 'dad'."
"Are you gonna love her again like you used to? Like
you love Dad?"
"I'll tell you what," Quinn said. "If you clean up all of
your books you can ask her. If it's okay with you, she
wants to come over and have pizza tonight."
"Okay."
Quinn left her son's room and shut the door quietly
behind her. She leaned against the doorframe and
thanked whatever god was listening that at least this
meltdown was minor. After a few deep breaths she
went back to the living room and dropped to the
couch next to Beth.
"No."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
"Fine."
"Yeah."
"Yeah."
"If you guys are really, really not okay with this I want
you to tell me, okay?"
"Go away!"
"What?"
"I don't…"
"Mom…"
"Go!"
"I forgot."
"I just felt like it. I felt mad." Noah sighed. "I miss
Dad," he whispered.
"Destroying your room won't bring him back, Noah. I
know you don't know what to do and I know you can't
help being angry, especially when you skip your
meds…but all it does is make a mess."
"I know. It just feels better. I wish I was big enough for
football."
"Beth?"
"What?"
"Fine."
"I know you're not Noah's mother. I know that the past
couple of years I've asked a lot of you with him but it's
because I trust you, Beth. I trust you with him. I trust
that you can help him get ready for school so I can do
Jasper's exercises and get a few things done before
we leave. I know for a fact that you're smart enough to
help him with his homework because you make
straight A's and I am so, so proud of you for that. But I
don't think it's ever taken away from anything you've
ever wanted to do, has it?"
"I promise I'll try to stop that. But you have to promise
that you'll talk to me instead of yell at me and act like
a little diva."
"I promise."
"Listen to me, baby girl," Quinn sighed and wrapped
an arm around Beth's shoulders. "Are you listening?"
Beth nodded.
"I know we've got a big extended family and they will
always be there for us…but at the end of the day it's
the four of us. It's you, and me, and your brothers. I
rely on you to help me keep us running and I know it's
not fair…it's so not fair but a lot of things in our lives
are just not fair. I want you to know that you can rely
on me, too, okay? You come to me, you talk to me,
anytime. Whatever it is you have to say just tell me,
alright?"
"It's not been easy and it's not going to be easy. We're
going to fight and I'll yell but at the end of the day I am
your mother and I love you more than anything in the
world and I am your rock. Nothing will ever change
that."
Quinn was still bracing herself for the "I think it would
be a good idea if I didn't come back after this" but it
never came. All that came was Rachel rubbing circles
on her back and waiting for Quinn's response. Quinn
looked down at the sink and gripped hard onto the
countertop.
"I won't."
"Mom, are you guys going…to…"
"Beth…"
"You don't look at her like she's your friend. You look
at her like you used to look at Dad. I don't look at my
friends like that."
"You look at Jeremy like that, I'll bet," Quinn said with
a soft smile.
-Chapter 6-
Noah nodded. "I'll get the last book from the library,
too. The librarian said she'd keep it for me so nobody
else checked it out."
Quinn giggled.
"I met her once, you know," Rachel said. "Well, 'meet'
wouldn't be the proper word. It was at a charity event
and she started yelling at an innocent bartender
because something was wrong with her shoes. When
I pointed out they were on the wrong feet she yelled
at me about not knowing who she is and where she's
been. I'm fairly certain she was quite intoxicated."
"It's not funny! It's really not! Her eyes were bulging
out of her head and I thought she might physically
assault me! I was traumatized for no reason! I mean,
I'm certain that in her condition and with her shoes on
the wrong feet I could've out run her but it was so
very-will you two stop laughing at me?"
"That, too."
Beth went silent but the smile was still on her face.
Quinn wrapped an arm around her daughter's
shoulders.
"Bedtime, sweetie."
"Thanks Rachel…for…y'know."
"I'm aware of that. What did you say to her that first of
all made her give me an unprovoked hug and an 'I
love you'?"
She waited like she had waited the day that Rachel
left. She waited that day for the brunette to come back
to her and tell her she was sorry and that she'd stay
or they would stay together and find a way to make it
work. She'd waited for a month before she moved out
of the Berry house and into a two bedroom apartment
with Puck where she shared a room with Beth. She
waited another two months before she had sex with
Puck because, once again, she was drunk and he
was there. She found out she was pregnant on
September 7th. She waited for Rachel even after that
but Rachel never came home. She never called. She
never sent a letter. Quinn married Puck on March
22nd. She didn't send Rachel an invitation. Beth's
third birthday was April 12th. Rachel didn't
acknowledge it. Noah came a month early on April
16th. Rachel didn't know until two days ago.
"Rachel?"
"I'm aware of that, Quinn. But when the girl who was
practically your daughter for two years looks at you
and threatens you with bodily harm if you ever hurt
her mother again it kind of puts things in perspective
as to how deep those wounds really went."
Quinn was silent and the grin dropped from her face.
Yes, it had been two years. Yes, outwardly she had
healed and she smiled and made jokes…but she
never got the chance to really let it sink in. Her priority
for the last two years had been getting Beth and Noah
adjusted to their new surroundings after they moved
out of their nice house in their nice neighborhood to
where they were and of course the majority of her
attention was focused on Jasper and ignoring the
doctors telling her he'd never get caught up with kids
his age and her best bet was to put him in a group
home. She never had time to grieve. She was either
too busy or too exhausted. And now? She still pushed
the thoughts out of her head because her focus
needed to be her kids, not her.
"I'm not."
-Chapter 7-
"Nothing happened…"
"What can I get for you today, miss?" Quinn said with
a smile.
"I just don't want you to get hurt again. It was bad
enough when she left and then when Puck…look,
Puck was my best friend, Q. I've got like some best-
dude code that says I gotta look out for you. I mean,
I'd do it anyway if he wasn't my best friend 'cause
you're also kinda one of my best friends and I just
don't want you to get hurt. Just be careful, okay?"
"Cool!"
"Sounds amazing."
"I don't expect anything from you. I'll take what you're
willing to give even though I don't deserve it but I
expect nothing. I came back to Lima to figure out who
I was and what I wanted and, believe me, you're
helping. I don't have friends like this in Los Angeles.
They would never invite me to come sit on their couch
and just talk. It's always polite invitations to cocktail
parties, never anything this intimate. I miss it."
Chapter 8-
"Drama queen."
"The agency did. Rachel if you blow this off there will
be some serious backlash. People will think you don't
support…"
"Don't support! I have two gay dads! The world knows
this! Why should I have to show up to something I
didn't even know I was attending until two minutes
ago?"
"I'm not getting paid anything. I'm doing it for the son
of a friend of mine."
Rachel dropped down into one of the chairs and put
her phone on the desk and Quinn tried to pull away
but she couldn't.
"Got it."
"Will do."
"Everything okay?"
"Hey!"
"Hold on."
"Possibly."
"I will. Have a good rest of the day and night, Quinn."
"Thank you."
Quinn dropped Beth off first and nervously bit her lip
as she looked in the rear-view mirror at Noah who
was bouncing excitedly in his seat.
"I know baby, I know you did. I'm going to try to find
out where she is."
"No and I called the airport where she said she was
landing and they said they weren't allowed to give me
any information even though I knew the code she
gave me."
"Thank you."
"Hello?"
"Baby, I know. But her dad said that it's been raining
all night in Los Angeles and that means planes can't
take off which means she probably got stuck there.
Noah, I'm so sorry but it's nothing she could help.
Maybe she'll get here before the day is over?"
Quinn quickly opened her door and lost the apple and
cup of coffee she'd had that morning. She grabbed
her water bottle and rinsed the taste out of her mouth
she grabbed her phone. Her finger hovered over the
call button when her phone started vibrating with the
Berrys number yet again. Quinn hit the button to
answer but didn't say anything.
"Quinn?"
"I…radio…"
"What…what if…"
"What do I do?"
"I don't know that, either." Leroy's voice quivered and
that sent Quinn into her own tears but she attempted
to sound stoic.
There was static on the other end and the line went
dead. Quinn dropped her phone on the countertop,
gripped the edge of the sink, and tried desperately not
to cry in front of her kids.
-Chapter 9-
"Quinn!"
"I'm fine! I'm fine! The airport I intended to fly out of is,
I firmly believe, the only place on Earth that has no
cell phone signal and they absolutely refused to let
me use their phones. The director of that
establishment will be receiving a very angry letter
when I'm through with this."
"Yes."
"Bye."
Quinn lay awake until the alarm went off on her phone
and she started her day. She made sure to let Beth
and Noah know that Rachel was okay and she'd
called and that she would be back in Lima as soon as
she could. It was just a matter of waiting.
Quinn kept her phone with her the entire day and just
as she started her lunch break it started vibrating on
the table and Rachel's number flashed on the screen.
Quinn jumped and squealed.
Quinn felt her face get hot and she smiled a little and
looked down at the table. Her co-workers peered over
at her and she turned away from them to hide the
blush on her cheeks.
"I'd love to. I'll call you when I get into town, okay?"
Rachel was there every single day for the rest of the
week, whether it was after the kids went to bed or just
dropping into Pick-n-Save to see Quinn. Quinn got a
day set up with Noah's teacher and Rachel went in
and showed the kids how they made fake blood on
set and fake bugs. Quinn took the day off and she
stood in the back of the classroom and watched as
Rachel let the boys play with the fake bugs while she
pulled out magic wands and tiaras and a set of clear
plastic shoes from the Disney's attempt at making a
live-action Cinderella a few years previous.
"I did something for Noah," Rachel said. "It was only
fair I did something for Beth, too."
"Rachel, where?"
Beth shrugged.
"Mom?"
-Chapter 10-
They got Rachel moved into the house with her new
furniture. She brought over her old bedroom furniture
from her dads house and set it up in the bedroom with
the extra bathroom and as far as Quinn knew, she left
the other two bedrooms empty. The contractors
started work on furnishing the basement, Rachel had
decided on a small home gym and an office.
"Mkay."
"Mkay."
Quinn stayed where she was. Her body felt heavy and
she really, honestly, didn't want to move. She tried to
convince herself that it didn't have anything to do with
Rachel snuggling into her side but she knew that part
of it was that. The majority definitely was just being
purely exhausted. The last thing she remembered
was being glad that it was Saturday and she didn't
have to get up in three hours.
"Mom?"
"No. Snuggle."
Quinn shook her head and loaded the coffee maker. "I
need to talk to Beth."
"What about?"
"I just need to make sure she knows that." Quinn took
down two cups from the cabinet and Rachel sighed as
she pulled out a kitchen chair.
"I…yeah. Hi."
"Is everything okay?"
"I…what?"
"Beth?"
"We talked after you left this morning. She and Noah
are fine with it."
"Do what?"
"The date."
Quinn blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "Is
tonight too soon?"
"I'll call Finn and Kelsey and see if they can come
over and watch the kids."
"So…six?"
"Sounds good."
"Looks good. Put your hair up, you don't want to get it
in the food."
"Don't tell Beth that, she went to see this with her
friends and gushed to me about how cute he was."
"Dessert?"
"Really?"
"Sure thing."
"Hi mom!" Noah's voice came on. "Are you havin' fun?
Did you talk about taxes?"
"I am having fun, thank you. And no, we haven't
talked about taxes. Have you been a good boy?"
"Hi mom!"
"Right."
"Stop…stop! Rachel…"
"Sure."
"Okay."
"Normally I would find someone to hire to do weekly
house checks since that's what I do with my houses in
Los Angeles and New York but it's a rather long and
drawn out process to do background checks and have
cameras installed to make sure all goes well."
"Rachel…"
"No!"
-Chapter 11-
XXXXXXXXXX
"We're fine!"
"I know."
Quinn awoke the next morning on the pull out couch
to frantic knocking on Finn's front door and the
doorbell ringing incessantly. Finn stumbled into the
living room in his bathrobe and rubbed his eyes.
"It was late, I honestly didn't think about it. I was pretty
shaken."
"Quinn, I'm going to offer you this again and this time
I'm not taking anything but 'yes' for an answer. Move
into the house. For the kids. For you. You need this
and you deserve this. Please."
"Rachel!"
"Where is my bed?"
"Why not?"
"Are you kicking her out of her room? Why can't you
just share?"
Quinn hopped into the van and turned the key over,
nothing happened.
"Don't worry about it. I'll tell Kels to give you the keys
to her car tomorrow so you can get to work and stuff."
Quinn grabbed the baby monitor and shut off the light.
She made it down the stairs in record time, Beth had
the TiVo paused and she hit play. E! News came on
and there was Rachel in a short navy dress with
camera flashes going off everywhere. She grinned at
the cameras and twisted around as the announcer
talked about the new movie and the promotional
event that Rachel was attending.
"So the rumor mill has it that you went back to your
hometown for the summer, right?"
"I did! I went back for my high school reunion and re-
connected with some old friends. I had a great
summer, I really did."
"Thanks, Rachel."
"You look really goofy right now, Mom," the girl said.
"I didn't say that, Mom. I guess it'll just take time or
something."
"Hey you."
"Hey!"
"No."
"It's fine, Rachel. I'll take Kelsey's car and the hospital
has a free taxi service to pick her and the kids up for
Jasper's therapy. Trust me, we've use the system
before and it works."
"Goodnight, Quinn."
Quinn heard the smile on the other end of the line and
let out a happy sigh. "Goodnight, Rachel."
-Chapter 12-
"I like middle school! Ms. Green's real nice, she said I
was really good. And the gym teacher, Mr. Hart, he
said I'm the fastest runner in the whole class. He said
when I get bigger I should play football and I told him
that Dad played football when he was in school and
he said that I could be really good at it."
Quinn,
I'm aware that you've previously stated you didn't wish
for me to help like this but, as is painfully obvious right
now, I didn't listen. I've given specific instructions for
the van to be left there and under no circumstances
are they to take it back. Matt is getting a bonus on this
and I would hate for him to lose that should you
decide to return it after they leave. I attempted to talk
to your insurance agent but unfortunately, that's
something you have to handle.
-Rachel
"Matt…"
Quinn nodded.
"How did-"
"How come?"
"Since always."
Quinn took Jasper from Beth and took her kids inside.
She got them settled at the kitchen table with a snack
and called Finn to have him and Kelsey come pick up
the car. Quinn got dinner on the table and waited for
the Hudsons outside. Finn took a quick look at the
van and gave a nod of approval.
"She shouldn't have done it," Quinn said, the minute
he opened his mouth.
"Hey, Rach."
The new van was very, very nice, Quinn had to admit.
The automatic sliding doors on both sides made it
plenty easier for getting Jasper out and there was
more than enough room for his stroller in the back
without having to fight to get it to fit. Burt Hummel took
her old one and said that it was, in fact, unfixable
because the part he would need was discontinued.
He told her he'd strip the van for other parts and call it
even on any of her outstanding balances. Again,
Quinn refused the charity at first but Burt was firm
saying there were plenty of parts he could still use,
especially the discontinued ones, and that the worth
of those outweighed the balance and that really, she
was doing him a favor.
XXXXXXXXXX
"Rach…"
-Chapter 13-
For Halloween they dressed Jasper in a clown
costume and Noah wanted to be a ninja. Quinn and
Rachel took them around the neighborhood and of
course to their friends' and families' houses to show
off while Beth had fun with her friends at their house.
All of the girls went a little crazy over Rachel and she
was bombarded with questions about Hollywood and
New York City and any other place they knew she'd
been. Quinn watched from the kitchen door into the
living room as Rachel patiently answered each
question and gave makeup and hair advice directly
from her stylist.
"I…he walked?"
"I think so, yeah. Beth, Noah, did you see it?"
"I did."
"Puck's dead!"
"It's true, Quinn. He's not here. I am. Let me help you,
please!"
Quinn felt her entire body tense and her mouth went
dry. Rachel's proposal was expected and unexpected
all at once. Quinn wanted it but she didn't. She
needed it but she couldn't. Dating was one thing.
Marriage was another. Images of repeating the words
"'til death do us part" resounded in her head. Her
husband in a casket. The numerous times her
parents' marriage almost fell apart before her mother
sat back and accepted that there would always be
another woman. Rachel's back as she got into her
fathers' SUV and went to the airport. And now…now
she knew that things were crumbling and the easiest
thing to do would be to run away before they
collapsed. It was cowardly and stupid but it was all
she knew to do.
"I love you! I chose you over him even though, at the
time, I knew I had absolutely no chance to be with
you. I chose you over doing another movie right away
so I could be here with you and the kids to try and live
some kind of normal life. I have chosen you over so
much in the last year and I don't regret it! I would
rather be here with you than anywhere else. Granted,
I will have to go to Los Angeles for a few days every
now and then to check up on things and ensure the
world that I'm still alive but I will always come back to
you, Quinn. Always."
"I don't want this," Quinn lied. "I don't want to get hurt
again, I don't want my kids to get hurt again."
"I'm not asking you to. I'm asking you to let your kids
sleep and for you to get a good night's rest as well."
-Chapter 14-
Quinn slept a few hours before getting up and quietly
packing the rest of what she'd need for a little while
for the kids and then waking them. She growled at the
sight of the shiny blue mini-van sitting in the garage
but knew she really didn't have another choice. She
caught Rachel's gaze from the kitchen once as she
walked with Jasper's hand clasped in hers to the
garage. The brunette's eyes were swollen and
bloodshot and begging Quinn not to go. She lifted
Jasper onto her hip and took the two steps down into
the garage to load Jasper into his car seat.
"No."
It hurt. The look on her kids faces was killing her but
the irrational part of her brain said better now than
later. Better now than when Rachel picked up and left.
The house was silent through two sleepless nights
and tension filled days. Quinn tried to talk to her two
oldest kids but they only shrugged away and
mumbled dismissals. Noah had his first breakdown
since May that ended up with a hole in the wall from a
thrown book. When Quinn finally got him settled down
and asleep for the night she perched herself on the
couch in the living room with her knees drawn up to
her chest and her face buried in her hands. She was
unaware that she'd fallen asleep until something
nudged her.
Quinn shut her phone and stared at the floor until she
heard the soft, slow padding of steps coming from the
hallway. She looked up to see Jasper stumbling into
the living room, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. The
young boy crawled up on Quinn's lap and she cradled
him.
"Mom?"
"I thought…"
"That's excellent."
Quinn nodded.
Another nod.
"Hm?"
"Can we go home?"
"Yes."
"Of course."
XXXXXXXXXX
"I did not fire them all; I abruptly retired and was no
longer in need of a team. I gave each of them
excellent letters of recommendation. Having survived
working for me they're all sure to get wonderful jobs."
"Okay, Rachel."