Acceptance
The only thing I need right now, even more than looser pants, is acceptance.
He didn't want to believe it was real, but he had just witnessed the whole thing in front of his eyes. Hell, he was probably over-reacting a tad, but it was supposed to be his video.
As he sat in his car, the rain falling down on his window, he leaned his head against the steering wheel. His mind flashed back to exactly twenty-two minutes ago.
"We're done." He reached his hand to hers.
"But it was just-" He cut her off before she could finish, his anger speaking for him.
"A video. A dumb video. I know." And he stormed out of the room that contained solely one Glee club member, standing alone next to an over-heated overhead projector.
His mind slowly flashed away from that moment. The moment he ended things with his now ex-girlfriend Rachel Berry, who was probably still in the choir room crying her eyes out.
He didn't want to care, he wanted Rachel to fade out of his mind. He wanted to forget the whole Run Joey Run debacle and move on, but it hurt him. He didn't want to show it, but it really hurt him. Seeing Finn and Puck star alongside Rachel as her love interests in substitution for Jesse tore his confidence and his feelings for Rachel all in one.
Puck, he'd probably forget the incident quickly, soon finding more girls to mess around with, forgetting about Rachel and her video. Finn was Finn, way too naïve and stupid to even understand why Rachel casted three boys to play her love interests in that dumb video anyway.
But Jesse, he was different. Jesse had feelings. People thought differently, thinking Jesse was cold-hearted and manipulative, but he wanted to prove them wrong. After the Run Joey Run video had played in front of everyone in that room, he could feel his face turn to stone and his heart freeze.
All he needed at this moment was acceptance. He wanted to be accepted into Glee club as Jesse St. James, singing extraordinare, not Jesse St. James, Rachel's secondary or even third choice to increase her "bad reputation" in a dumb video.
Jesse turned the key in the ignition just so he could reach over to turn the heat on. It was a rainy and cold February day, and sitting in a dark car freezing wouldn't help his situation any further.
He looked up after turning the heat on full-blast to faint voices.
"But you just can't do it!" He saw his fellow Glee-cluber, Noah Puckerman alongside the brick wall of McKinley High School. Puck looked aggravated to no end, so Jesse wasn't even about to bother to ask. Especially considering his own problems, he knew he'd be of no assistance.
Jesse didn't quite exactly know who Puck was speaking to, until he saw a lock of blonde hair peer out from behind the other brick wall. He gulped when he saw a very pregnant Quinn Fabray in tears.
"You think I want to do this, Puck?" She took one of her shaking hands and rubbed it across her eyes, tears still falling.
"But we can do it. How hard can it be? I'll get a job, and you can watch her after school and-"
Quinn cut him off, running to the parked red convertible near Jesse's Range Rover.
Still containing lingering feelings for Rachel inside, Jesse could admit to himself how beautiful and natural Quinn looked, especially in the rain.
He had never really noticed her before, he was too busy and involved in his relationship with Rachel to ever pay Quinn any mind. Not like she ever stirred up a conversation with him anyway.
It didn't take a rocket scientist to understand that Quinn and baby-daddy Puck were fighting over baby issues. From what Jesse's heard around, Quinn is all for adoption while Puck thinks that they can both keep their daughter and raise her as a family.
Jesse looked up to the red convertible, containing a very emotional Quinn Fabray inside. She had her head buried into her steering wheel, just the way Jesse was a few minutes back. Jesse opened his car door, stepping out into the pouring rain, the sound of thunder approaching.
He found himself knocking on the window of the red convertible with a half-smiling Quinn opening the passenger door.
"Hi." She quietly whispered, her head distant from the steering wheel.
"I'm sorry to bother but-"
"You're no bother." Quinn rested her hand on her stomach, stroking her ever-growing belly. "Hell, I'd rather have you sitting in this car with me than anyone else at the moment."
Jesse soaked up those words in his mind. "R-really?" He felt himself smile, but he didn't know if it was on the outside or the inside this time.
"Really." Quinn said with a sniffle.
"So," Jesse began, "I was sitting in my car and I overheard."
Quinn gulped. "Puck doesn't get me." She saw the confusion on Jesse's face. "Like, I mean, I don't want to keep this baby."
"But," Jesse couldn't help but look down at her baby bump, her hand rested ontop of it, "You seem like you'd be a wonderful mother."
Quinn smiled at him, "You think so?"
"I know so." Jesse laughed and pat Quinn on the shoulder.
It was silent for a few seconds, their eyes meeting with a soft glance. "And you're in your car why?" Quinn giggled as she spoke.
"Oh, well, Rachel and I just broke up and she-"
"Oh, no." Quinn cupped her hand over her mouth. "Run Joey Run too much for you?"
Jesse giggled at her sarcasm, slightly flicking her arm with his index finger and his thumb. "I guess so. I'm just a soft one."
"I wish Puck was a soft one."
"You two like-"
"No." Quinn said. "We're not dating. We kind of are, but it's just too complicated, and he still fools around with-"
"I didn't ask for a story." Jesse leaned into Quinn and laughed.
"Sorry." Jesse could tell she took it seriously by the way her eyes instantly looked down.
"No, no, don't be sorry, it's cute." Quinn looked up at him. "You're cute, actually. I could listen to you talk all day."
Quinn found herself smiling, a real smile this time.
"But," Jesse grabbed her one hand rested on the steering wheel with his, "I'm probably transfering out of McKinley anyway."
Quinn's eyes grew and she turned to Jesse. "You can't just do that because of one girl. Especially one girl who won't probably even matter to you in the future."
"But she matters to me now." Jesse looked down, trying to tune out Quinn's words but knowing he shouldn't.
"Look," Quinn ran her hand over Jesse's leg, which was tapping up and down with nervousness, "To be honest, I think Finn's in love with Rachel."
Jesse expected his heart to drop, but was surprised when it actually didn't. "I know."
"You do?" Quinn looked shocked.
"It's really obvious," Jesse looked right at Quinn with a sigh, "And it's just as obvious that she loves him, too."
"You think she loves him?" Quinn instantly felt sorry for Jesse, trying to put herself in his place in her mind. She remembered during her relationship with Finn how many times he'd compare her to Rachel, or how many times he'd say she should be more like Rachel, because Rachel understood him with no judgements.
Jesse didn't speak, but Quinn knew what he would've said if he did.
"I think," Quinn cleared her throat, "I think that Rachel and Finn just understand each other."
Jesse raised one eyebrow.
"They do."
"And how so?"
"They're both so focused on the things they want. They're consumed with their music and Glee club and building their reputations and-"
Jesse cut her off. "I know, but it'd be nice to be accepted into the Glee club for once."
"I like having you in Glee." Quinn said with a smile. "I really like having you in Glee."
"Yeah, but do the rest of 'em?" Jesse threw his arm up in the air. "Doubt it. They all either view me as a threat or someone who's here to take advantage of New Directions just weeks before Regionals."
"And you aren't any of those things right?"
"No!" Jesse quickly got angered and glared at Quinn. "I liked Rachel, I wanted to pursue her, I-"
"Okay, then leave it at that," Quinn threw up her arm, "Screw everyone else and their opinions."
"But I just want-"
"Acceptance." Quinn finished his sentence. "I think everyone wants that at some point or another, don't y'think?"
"I guess, but some people don't need it. They're just...accepted."
Quinn looked up at Jesse. "Some people don't need it? Everyone needs it."
Jesse looked into Quinn's eyes.
"You think people didn't tease Finn for months after he joined the Glee club? You don't think people judge Kurt because of his sexuality? You don't think people judge Mercedes for her weight or-"
"I get it, I get it!" Jesse grabbed Quinn's hand. "Everyone needs it."
"Some more than others." Quinn looked down at her bulging stomach.
"Right." Jesse looked, too.
"So Jesse St. James, I accept you into Glee club and McKinley High School."
Jesse looked at her eyes, her batting eyelashes moving quickly. "And Quinn Fabray, I accept you, pregnant or not pregnant with the devil's baby." He let out a laugh, Quinn laughing too.
And they sat in the red convertible all afternoon long, rain and thunder outside their window, talking and accepting each other, just the way they are.
A/N: I'd totally ship Jesse/Quinn, just because they've never had interaction or anything on the show, that's why they interest me. I've seen so many St. Fabray graphics on Tumblr, so this story just came to me. I think Jesse and Quinn's idea of acceptance really hit home for me, because it's something I know I've dealt with in my school and with other peers, and Bad Reputation seemed to be the episode to base this story off of. I hope you enjoyed, reviews are love!