Pre-story A/N: (I know! A rarity!) Trying something a bit different here...the texts between Artie and Quinn are the bolded parts. Obviously A means Artie, and Q stands for Quinn.
Artie was sitting in the living room waiting for Martin and AJ to arrive. They had planned an epic Mario Kart marathon, and decided to do it at Artie's house, because his tv was bigger than Martin's.
His phone buzzed.
Q: R is on her way over. What am I going 2 do with her? Why did I do this?
He grinned at her use of the number 2 instead of the word. They'd often talked about how they both hated it when people used "text-speak," and sometimes they'd throw some in just for fun.
A: Dunno. Because you're a good person? You want to have more friends?
Q: I'm freaking out. I should have planned something.
A: It'll be fine. Text me if you have a problem, and you guys can come here. M&AJ on their way over.
He didn't know if Rachel would be into hanging out with all of them, but he thought it made a nice backup plan in case Quinn didn't know what else to do with her. He didn't really know Rachel that well, but he thought it was nice that Quinn was making an effort to be friends.
He heard what sounded like Martin and AJ wrestling on his doorstep, and went to open the door.
"Quinn, thanks for inviting me over! I brought some vegan sugar cookies. Usually I make these when I'm sorry for things, but sometimes I do it just because!"
Quinn smiled. "They look great! I love sugar cookies."
She led Rachel into the living room, and put the cookies on the coffee table. Her mother was out for the day, so they had the house to themselves.
"I'll be right back, I'll just go grab something to drink. Is iced tea ok?"
Rachel nodded, and Quinn walked into the kitchen, pulling out her phone.
Q: She brought sugar cookies. Vegan sugar cookies.
A: Her cookies are awesome.
Q: How do you know?
A: Oh...um...Someone told me.
She laughed as she reached into the cabinet to grab a couple of glasses. She should have known that Artie would be up to date on how good people's baked goods were.
As she walked out into the living room, she stopped to grab a couple of coasters out of the basket her mother kept on the end table.
"Thanks Quinn. What do you have in mind for us today?"
Quinn thought for a moment. "I don't know. I thought we could just hang out. Talk, that sort of thing. Why, did you have something you wanted to do?"
Rachel smiled. "No, not really. I'm just not sure what people do when they just 'hang out.' Contrary to what some people may think, I don't really spend that much time with people outside of school. I mean, of course I spend lots of time with Finn, because we're dating, but other than that I don't really have friends."
Quinn didn't want to tell her that everyone knew that, so instead she said, "Well, why don't we just talk for a bit, and then maybe later we can do something?"
"That sounds excellent. What should we talk about?" Rachel asked, clasping her hands together in her lap. "Oh...before we start talking, could you please direct me to your washroom?"
Quinn showed her down the hall, before returning to the living room and pulling out her phone.
Q: I think she wants us to plan out what we're going to talk about. Help.
After a few seconds, a text came in from Artie. He must have had his phone on standby, waiting to hear from her.
A: Um...Just talk about anything.
Q: Not helpful!
A: Sorry. Talk about school? Kittens? Idk.
Q: Kittens? NOT HELPFUL!
A: Love you!
Quinn heard the bathroom door open, and tucked her phone back in her pocket before Rachel came back into the room.
"Your house is beautiful! I think we have the same light fixture in our bathroom."
Quinn smiled. "Thanks."
Rachel sat back down on the couch, taking a sip of her iced tea. "Why did you quit the Cheerios?"
Quinn choked a bit on the cookie she was eating. She hadn't planned for their conversation to go there that quickly, but it had, so she had no choice but to respond.
"I just felt like it wasn't for me anymore. I wanted to have more time for myself so I could do things that I want to do. And I wanted to have more time to spend with Artie."
Rachel seemed satisfied with this answer.
"I think it was a wise decision on your part. Plus, you seem a lot nicer since you quit that and started going out with Artie."
Quinn wasn't sure how to respond. "Um...thanks?"
Rachel, realizing what she said may have come across as rude, rushed to clarify.
"Not that you weren't nice before...I just think you're different now. In a good way. Please don't be offended."
"Don't worry, I'm not offended," Quinn said, smiling. "Now that I'm not doing that anymore, I have a lot more space to just be myself. I kind of like it."
Rachel looked relieved. "Artie is really nice. I'm happy that you guys are dating."
"Me too. He's one of the nicest people I've ever met. And he's so funny!"
Quinn couldn't believe that she was sitting in her living room talking to Rachel about how nice and funny Artie was. Two years earlier, or even the year before, she would never have pictured something like that happening. And yet, there she was, having actually initiated the interaction between herself and a girl that was hated by...well, pretty much everyone, from what she could tell.
She heard her phone buzz. Rachel heard it too.
"You should answer that. It might be important."
Quinn glanced down. "It's Artie...just a sec! I'm going to text him back and tell him I'll talk to him later."
A: What up? How's it going? I'm beating everyone's Mario Kart asses. I guess those driving lessons are paying off.
Q: Good. Talking. Text you later. Love you!
Artie read the text that had just arrived on his phone. "Text you later?" He assumed that meant it was going well with Rachel.
"Dude, stop texting, and drive, or Martin's going to beat you!"
Artie turned his attention back to the game they were playing. AJ was right...Martin was going to beat him. From the look of things he had lapped him, and there was no way Artie was going to be able to catch up.
"Sorry...I got a bit carried away. You've been kicking our asses all day, and I just saw this as a chance to catch up. I'll pause it next time," Martin said, looking slightly guilty.
"It's cool," Artie said.
"Who was that on the phone?" AJ asked, looking curious.
Artie put down his controller. "It was Quinn. She's hanging out with Rachel today."
"Rachel? I thought she was hot the first time I saw her, and then she opened her mouth. I wanted to run away."
Martin swatted AJ on the back of the head. "She's not that bad. She's just a little...I don't even know. I have a class with her, and sometimes we're partners. She's really smart, and kind of hilarious sometimes."
Artie agreed. "Yeah, she is smart. She kind of grates on my nerves sometimes, but overall she's not so bad. I mean, I don't really know her that well, but she seems alright."
"And why is Quinn hanging with her?" AJ asked, reaching for the can of Pepsi he'd been drinking.
"Well, she decided she should make some more friends that are girls, and Rachel doesn't really have friends, so..." Artie trailed off.
"That is so incredibly sweet," Martin said.
"Dude...are you going to cry?" AJ said, grinning.
Martin looked over at him. "No. I just think that's sweet. What, I'm not allowed to think something is sweet? Last week you said that kitten we saw was the cutest thing you've ever seen, and then YOU almost cried. Because of a kitten. A KITTEN."
AJ's face paled. "DUDE! You said you'd never tell anyone that! And that kitten was the most adorable thing on the planet. And I did not almost cry. Those were my allergies."
"Riiiiight," Artie said, trying not to laugh. He noticed that the screen on his phone had lit up again.
Q: She's in the bathroom. Don't worry if I don't text for a while...we're having a really good talk.
A: Ok. Let me know if you need help. I think Martin likes her.
Q: What? Martin?
A: Yeah. He works with her in some class sometimes. He thinks she's smart and hilarious.
Q: She kind of is. Oh. She's coming back. Talk later.
"Why aren't you with Artie today?" Rachel asked, sitting back down on the couch. "Don't you guys usually spend the weekend together?"
Quinn shrugged. "I'm with you today. Artie has Martin and AJ at his house. Do you know them?"
Rachel thought for a moment. "Oh, Martin! Yes, he's in my biology class. We're partners sometimes for labs and other biology-related projects. He's so nice. I don't think I know AJ personally, but he's that young man that's always with Martin, isn't he?"
Quinn nodded. "They're both really good friends of Artie's. They're in AV and the jazz band with him." She kind of couldn't believe that Rachel had just referred to AJ as a "young man."
"I know everyone thinks I don't need them, but sometimes I wish I had friends," Rachel said, looking down at her hands.
Quinn moved closer to the girl, and put an arm around her shoulders. "You do have friends. I'm your friend."
Rachel looked up. "Really? You mean you're not just humouring me by having me here? You didn't lose a bet? Someone didn't put you up to this?"
Quinn felt slightly hurt that Rachel would think something like that, but she could see where Rachel was coming from. People weren't very nice to her sometimes, and it was only natural that she might be suspicious of anyone trying to be friendly with her.
"No, nothing like that. I just thought that maybe we should get to know each other better and, you know, do friend stuff."
Rachel smiled. "I think this is great! Now, what are your thoughts on the set list for Regionals?"
Artie's phone rang, indicating that a call was coming in. He checked the call display, and answered.
"Heeeeeey."
Quinn grinned. "Did you just 'heeeeey' me? What are you guys up to?"
"Oh, you know, intense Mario Kart battle. The usual. You?"
"Well, we were thinking we might come over there for a bit, if you're willing to have us?"
"Sure. I could make lunch for everyone?"
"I'd rather you didn't. I don't want to be sick tomorrow...Rachel and I will bring lunch." She tried not to laugh.
After agreeing, and exchanging several "I love yous" with his girlfriend, Artie hung up.
"Did someone say something about lunch?" AJ asked, turning to face him.
"Yeah. Quinn and Rachel are coming over, and they're bringing lunch. That cool?"
Martin and AJ nodded in agreement.
"We should probably stop playing this when they get here," Martin suggested.
"Or, better yet, they should play too!" AJ piped up, looking excited. "A little girl on girl action!"
"DUDE. Stop. Just stop. Do you ever listen to yourself when you talk? I'm pretty sure that didn't come out how you meant it to sound." Martin looked annoyed. "And, if it did, what the hell?"
Artie was trying hard not to laugh. He loved it when AJ blurted out random things and Martin called him on them.
"I...oh." AJ blushed. "What I meant was, I want to see them race each other. In the game."
Artie headed toward the kitchen, laughing as he rolled down the hall. He had such awesome friends.
"Do you think our selections for lunch will be well received?" Rachel said, as they got out of the car.
"I told you. They will be...as long as you don't mention where they came from. Everything looks, and smells, amazing, but if the guys hear that it came from the Natural Leaf, or whatever that place is called, they're probably going to be resistant. Well...I think Artie and Martin would be fine, but I don't know about AJ."
Rachel nodded. "I agree. And I'd hate for them not to enjoy their lunch just because they have unjustified biases about something they've probably never experienced."
Quinn grinned. She had been unsure at first when Rachel suggested they pick up lunch from the little vegan cafe on Main Street, but decided to go along with it and just see. She was glad that she had, because the things Rachel had picked out for their lunch all looked great.
"Did you know that all of the packaging they use is fully biodegradable? I usually put it in our compost bin, and it breaks down really quickly!"
"That's great! I know that Artie's mom has a huge compost thing in the back yard." Quinn stepped up to the door, and knocked. She could hear crashing and banging going on inside the house.
"Just a minute...AJ, GET OFF!" Artie's yell was followed by a quiet and unintelligible shout from someone else in the house.
Rachel looked concerned. "That sounds like it could be dangerous. Should we do something?"
Quinn laughed. "No, I'm sure it's fine. Let's just give them a moment."
Finally, the door opened. The first thing Quinn noticed was that AJ appeared to be on the teenage boy equivalent of a time-out, sitting on the couch furthest from the tv. Martin had all the Wii controllers in a pile next to him. He kept glaring at AJ.
"Hello Artie, Martin, AJ..." Rachel started.
Martin cut her off. "Hey Rachel. Don't talk to AJ. He's on a time-out."
Quinn looked questioningly at Artie, who mouthed that he would tell her later.
"Oh, well, in that case...Hello Artie, Martin. We brought lunch. Artie, could you please show me to the kitchen so I can get it set up?"
Artie nodded, leading the way down the hall.
Meanwhile, Quinn sat down beside Martin. "What's going on here?" she asked.
Martin sighed. "AJ got a bit carried away. First he tackled the tv. Then he tackled me. Then he tried to tackle Artie, who eventually rolled over his foot and told him to sit down and shut up because you guys were outside."
Quinn tried not to laugh. "He rolled over his foot?"
AJ piped in. "Yes, and I don't think my toes will ever be the same..."
A quick glare from Martin silenced the boy, who looked down to the ground, apparently suddenly interested by the design on the carpet.
Quinn was about to say something, when Artie entered the room.
"Rachel sent me to tell you guys that lunch is served. She also said, and I quote, that AJ should be allowed to leave his time-out and partake in the meal with us so that he doesn't feel left out or undernourished." He grinned.
Martin shrugged, and waved towards AJ, indicating that he should follow him into the kitchen.
Quinn stood up, walking toward her boyfriend. "Hey, you," she said, leaning down to kiss him. "Missed you this morning. Having a good day? I heard you hobbled AJ."
Artie shrugged. "He'll be fine. He was just being an ass."
Quinn laughed, and they headed into the kitchen.
"That was one of the most awesome lunches I've had in a while!" AJ said, crumpling the napkin he was holding into a little ball. "I heard that you were one of those...I don't know what they're called, people that don't eat a lot of things."
Quinn and Rachel exchanged glances.
"If you mean vegan, then yes, I am. This entire meal came from the Nature's Leaf Vegan Cafe on Main Street. If you mean something else...then you'll have to be more specific."
"Well, I don't know what 'vegan' means, but this was awesome," AJ said, reaching for his glass.
Everyone else at the table tried not to laugh. Quinn would have been fine, but her eyes met Rachel's, and then Artie's, and then Martin's, and that was that. She burst out laughing.
"What?" AJ looked confused.
"Oh...nothing. I just remembered something from a couple of days ago. I'm going to go put these plates in the dishwasher..."
Martin jumped up. "Here, I'll help."
Once they were out of earshot, he turned to her. "It's probably better if he doesn't find out what vegan means when Rachel's here. He has...very strong opinions on any food that doesn't involve large quantities of meat and animal fats. What should I do with these food containers?"
Quinn looked at the cartons in his hands. "Apparently they're fully biodegradable...throw them in the compost?"
Martin nodded, making his way toward the door to the backyard. He had never actually visited Artie's compost thing, but he knew there was one out there somewhere, and it couldn't be that hard to find.
Quinn returned to the table, where Rachel and Artie appeared to be deep in conversation. AJ was gone.
"Where's AJ?" she asked, reaching for the last of the plates.
"Bathroom," Artie said. "Just to warn you, he's going to ask you and Rachel to play Mario Kart when we go back in the living room."
"Mario Kart? What's that?" Rachel asked.
"It's a video game," Quinn explained. "I've played a few times with Artie...it's fun. We should play."
"I'm not very good at video games..." Rachel started, looking toward Quinn.
"Don't worry, I kind of suck at it. It's just a lot of fun. Don't play against Artie though, he's without mercy!"
Artie shrugged. "What can I say? I like to win."
Rachel laughed. "I can understand that, Artie. I also like to win."
At that moment, Martin re-entered the room. "Hey, where is he?" he asked, pointing towards AJ's vacant seat.
"Bathroom. He's allowed to do that, right?" Artie asked, looking up at Martin. He always forgot how tall he was, until he was looking up at him when they were side by side. Martin usually sat down so they were eye-to-eye, and even then he was almost a head taller than Artie.
"Yeah, I guess," he shrugged.
"PASS HER ON THE INSIDE! PASS HER ON THE INSIDE!" AJ was practically jumping out of his seat.
"AJ! You're still on time-out. SIT DOWN." Martin glared at him.
"Martin, I think it's quite alright. AJ is merely expressing his excitement at the fact that I am beating Quinn at this game," Rachel said, as her Princess Peach character passed Quinn's Yoshi. "I must say, I share in his excitement, and the only thing preventing me from jumping for joy is that I will lose if I do that!"
Everyone laughed, and, as Rachel crossed the finish line, well ahead of Quinn, everyone cheered.
They played for another couple of hours. In the end, Rachel and Quinn ended up racing against everyone, including AJ, who Martin had allowed back in the game shortly after they had started playing. Rachel proved herself to be somewhat of a Mario Kart prodigy, and Quinn was glad that she had brought her over. Martin and AJ also seemed quite happy to have her there, and she knew that Artie was too.
Finally, around 4:30, Rachel announced that she had to be getting home. "Thank you so much for the lovely day today you guys, it was really nice."
As she went to grab her coat, Martin followed her. "We should probably be going too. Can we drop you off?"
She smiled. "That would be nice. Then Quinn can stay here with Artie...I think they could use some alone time."
Martin noticed that AJ was about to say something, and promptly stepped on his foot, silencing him.
"Hey guys, we're going to drop Rachel off. Artie, man, see you tomorrow. Quinn...see you whenever." AJ said, as he limped towards the door.
"Good day today, thanks everybody!" Martin said, as he stepped out onto the porch behind Rachel and AJ.
Artie turned to Quinn after the door was closed.
"So, you had a good time with Rachel this morning?" he asked.
"Yeah, it was great. Intense, but great. She talks A LOT."
Artie laughed. "She seemed really happy. I'm glad you guys did stuff today."
"Yeah, me too," Quinn said, sitting on his lap and placing her head on his shoulder. "But now, I think I'd like to do stuff with you. How much longer do we have the house to ourselves?"
Artie grinned. "Oh...a while."
A/N: I don't like having a note at the beginning, but I felt the need to clarify!
Hope you enjoyed! I like the idea of Quinn and Rachel being friends...but obviously not as much as I like Martin and AJ! hahaha