Taking Chances

Quinn mindlessly stared at her reflection on the bathroom mirror. It was barely her first day, and already she'd gotten in trouble for talking back to two of her teachers. She rolled her eyes. It wasn't her fault they were such a pain in the ass. She turned up the music on her iPod before reaching into her bag and pulling out some eyeliner to touch up her makeup, humming along to the tune.

She heard the bathroom door open as she applied her lipgloss, eyeing the stranger through the mirror. The short brunette walked into the nearest stall, before coming back out with a red-stained shirt. Quinn turned her music down and removed an earbud.

"Is that a period stain on your shirt?" She chuckled. "How'd you manage to pull that one off?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "It's not a period stain...It's slushy syrup."

"Slushy syrup, huh?" Quinn observed the girl further, taking notice of her soaked hair. "Did you get it on your hair, too?" She snickered.

The brunette ignored the taller girl and scrunched her dripping shirt on the sink under running water. "Ugh, it's still real sticky," she said, splashing a handful of water on her hair.

"Well, maybe if you drank the slushy, like a normal person, you wouldn't have that problem," Quinn grinned.

The girl continued scrubbing her shirt, noticing that Quinn had her full attention on her. "Shouldn't you be in class or something?" she asked, annoyed.

Quinn nodded. "I should be, but this is probably the most amusing thing that has happened my whole day here," she smirked.

"I'm not here for your amusement," the girl muttered under her breath.

Quinn smiled. There was just something about the tiny brunette with her huge, doe eyes and little plaid skirt that she found so adorable and entertaining.

"What are you looking at?" She asked, obviously irritated.

Quinn blushed, not aware she was staring at her. "You missed a spot," she said, pointing to the red stain on the girl's knee-high socks.

She looked down and gasped. "Oh, no..."She extended an arm toward the wall, bending down to remove her shoes.

Quinn's gaze landed on the brunette's perfectly round bottom and ran her tongue over her lower lip.

"Hey, could you hold this for me?" Quinn broke out of her daze and walked over to hold the girl's shoes. She put her arm over Quinn's shoulder to keep her balance while she removed her socks.

"Why don't you just go home already? We only have one period left."

"I have Glee Club," she replied. "We're having auditions for a solo to sing at this year's sectionals, and I am not going to miss it over a stupid slushy incident."

"What's a glee club?"

The girl's jaw dropped. "You don't know what glee club is?" She asked, sounding very surprised. Quinn merely shook her head as the short girl took her shoes from her hands and slipped them on, walking over to the sink to wash her stained sock. "We sing."

"Isn't that just a choir?"

"Glee Club isn't just a club. It's an experience. A commitment. A place without insecurity, without judgement. When you're onstage, and you sing from the heart..." She paused. "It's the most beautiful thing in the world," she almost whispered.

Quinn just stared, secretly admiring the girl's passion for what she does. "Eww," she stated simply.

The brunette gave her a look of scorn. "Yeah, well, what do you like to do, Strawberry Shortcake?"

Quinn laughed at the weak insult meant to target her hair color. "I, um, I take pictures."

"So, you're a photographer?" Quinn simply nodded, suddenly somewhat shy. "I don't see a camera on your neck."

Quinn sighed. "That would be because I can't afford to buy a new one..."

"Oh," the girl said, regretting her statement immediately. "What happened to your old one?"

Quinn remembered perfectly what had happened. Her dad had thrown it out one night, while intoxicated. He called it junk. Photography, to him, being a pathetic hobby. But, to Quinn, it meant the world.

"I lost it during the move," she lied.

The girl nodded, getting the last of the water soaked into her slushy-drenched clothes out into the sink. Quinn leaned onto the sink next to her, not knowing what else to say.

"Well, I should go," the girl stated, placing her clothes into her handbag. She grabbed onto the door handle and pulled.

"Wait," Quinn started. The girl stopped dead in her tracks. "What's your name?"

The dark-haired girl turned around. "What's yours?"

"Quinn."

"Quinn?"

"Yeah, Quinn."

"Just Quinn?" she giggled.

"No, Fabray," she stuttered. "Quinn Fabray."

The girl chuckled to herself. "It's Rachel," she said, a million-dollar smile engraved on her face. "Rachel Berry." She turned around and pulled on the door.

"Hey, Rachel," Quinn called. Rachel stopped again, keeping her hand on the handle. "Nice ass," she smirked.

Rachel rolled her eyes and strode out into the halls of McKinley High.