"Something new," Quinn said confidently. Joe nodded. "How about we start slow."
"Slow?" Joe questioned nervously.
"Yeah, we start with a hug," she began, leaning forward to wrap her arms around his shoulders, feeling the muscles that helped her through her physical therapy sessions. He stiffened at the physical contact, but then soon wrapped his arms around her back, trying not to concentrate on the feeling of her body pressing against his. The muscles of her shoulders felt powerful, not only from the wheelchair, but from years of Cheerio's work. Her chest was up against his, and he could feel the swell of her breast against him; that feel of forbidden touch, a woman's body that he wasn't supposed to really feel until his wedding night. This was against everything he was taught, against what the bible said was right. But then the help that Sam gave him came swimming into the forefront of his mind. 'Do I want to get closer to God or closer to Quinn? Should I be a good Christian and still have the pleasures of the flesh, or continue living how I have and denying myself this?'
"Relax," Quinn murmured in his ear, as if she could tell that he was waging war within himself. She ran her hand down his back, as if to reassure him that this was alright.
Joe let out a breath and leaned more into the hug. "Alright, slow," he said, nuzzling his nose into her hair.
Quinn broke the hug and looked him in the eye. "Now you can help me back to my house and we can just sit down and watch a movie or talk."
"I think we can do that."
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
Judy Fabray was home when Joe and Quinn arrived. She was glad to meet Joe, and thought he was a fine young man for her Quinn. Soon after introductions were made, Judy said she had already made plans to go out with a few friends for the night; they were staying the night in Chicago. Joe was a bit leery about staying in Quinn's house without any supervision. Quinn promised that nothing would happen if Judy left. So with a final farewell, Judy went off to her girls' night, and Joe was left sitting on the couch with Quinn.
"Would you like to put on a movie or something?" Quinn asked.
"I think I would like to get to know you, your past," Joe said quietly. "I mean I have heard rumors but I would like to know the real you."
"What have you heard?"
"That you were pregnant, and it was Finn's or something," he said, not wanting to look her in the eye.
"Well that's partially true," Quinn began. Joe looked up at her and saw in her eyes that she wasn't ashamed of this information. "I was pregnant my sophomore year of high school. I was dating Finn at the time, so I swore up and down that the child was his. But I was feeling fat this one particular day, so I went to Puck. He got me drunk on wine coolers… no, I got drunk on wine coolers, I needed to feel better about myself. We just started kissing and one thing after another happened and we had sex; unprotected sex at that. He made me feel good about myself."
"But you are beautiful, why did you doubt that?" Joe questioned.
"Well I was quite vapid at this point in my life. I know I can still be manipulative, but its years of habit to break. I knew this was wrong, I was the president of the celibacy club at school, but then I peed on a stick and a little pink plus sign showed up. I was scared, and I knew at that point that Puck was going to be a Lima Loser. Destined to stay in this small-minded town. So I wanted the baby to be Finn's, he was going to leave, even if it was on a football scholarship. But then Rachel found out and told the glee club before sectionals that year. Finn broke up with me, understandably, and then Puck decided to try to step up, but I wasn't having any of it. I didn't want to have a child at 16, so I had already made up my mind. I was giving my baby up for adoption. Once I found out it was a girl, Puck sang me a song that he wanted to name her Beth, which we did. That was part of the stipulation of the adoption. Which it was pretty lucky that Shelby adopted her. Shelby is Rachel's birth mom, and she came back at the beginning of this year so we could see her and get to know her a little bit.
"But yes I was pregnant, went into labor with Beth during regionals. And gave her up at the end of the day. It was the most heartbreaking day that I have witnessed, seeing Puck sign his daughter away," Quinn said, smiling with tears in her eyes. She reached over to the end table closest to her and pulled out a picture. It was a picture of Puck with Beth. He was looking down on her like she was the light of his life. "I do love her, don't get me wrong, but I know that giving her up was the best thing for me; but Puck wanted to raise Beth, and I honestly think he could have done it, just not on his own."
"I think it was a pretty awesome thing you did," Joe commented, resting his hand on top of hers. "I know that the bible says that carnal pleasure is a sin, but I don't see how you were wrong. You wanted to feel loved, and that was the best way that you could do. And I'm not saying that it would be something that I would do, but I can see where you were coming from."
"Thank you for saying that," she said, letting out a sigh. "You have no idea how much it means for someone to say that and mean it. People know my story and they call me 'tubbers' or only know me as the pregnant girl."
"Well I want to get to know the real you, not the pregnant girl – even though knowing all this makes me understand you a bit more," Joe said. With the big question out of the way, they talked until the clock struck eleven. They talked about everything under the sun; from where they grew up, and what has changed about themselves, and what some of their favorites are.
When Quinn looked at the clock, and saw what time it was she turned to Joe and asked a critical question. "Hey, I know it's a Friday night, but I think if I don't get up stairs now, I won't want to later. Would you mind giving me a hand?"
"Yeah, what do I have to do?" Quinn transferred herself into the chair and wheeled herself over to the stairs. They had a system worked out, her mother and her. They would belt her into the chair and together they would haul Quinn backwards up the stairs in the chair. And then carefully in the morning. When she explained the process, Joe shook his head. "I have a better option, if you trust me."
"Yeah, what is it?" she asked.
Joe knelt down beside her chair and then carefully slid an arm under her knees and said, "Put your arms around my neck."
"Oh no, I'm way too heavy for you," she protested.
"No you're not," he insisted.
"You're going to regret it," she warned.
"Then you can take care of me," he teased as he picked her up out of the chair. Her breath caught as his arms took her weight with ease. He didn't seem that muscular, but she guessed looks were deceiving. He carried her up the stairs, looking her in the eyes the whole time. It was one of those moments that they would remember forever. Once they were up the stairs, she murmured that her room was the last door on the left. At the door, he let go of the arm he had around her back and opened the door. Quinn clung to his neck until his hand was replaced on her back. He gave a small chuckle at her nervousness. "Don't worry, I won't drop you."
"You better not," she teased. He smiled at her and walked over to her bed and gently placed her down.
"I'm going to go get your chair, I'll be right back," he murmured. She watched him leave, almost sad to see him go, even though he would be coming right back. It was this feeling that made Quinn see that her relationship with Joe wasn't something like she had with Finn or Puck, or even Sam; this was going to be a whole new mountain for her to climb, and climb she would.
Joe came back up a few minutes later with her collapsed wheelchair and put it by her bed so she could get to it when she needed to. "Do you need anything else before I go?" he asked politely.
"You could sit down and stay a while," she replied, moving herself into a more comfortable position on the bed, surrounded by her pillows to keep her upright.
"Are you sure you want me on your bed?" he questioned, not seeing any other sitting surfaces in her room.
"Yes, I want you on my bed," she said, paused, then giggled. "I really didn't mean for that to come out dirty sounding."
Joe gave a nervous chuckle, but sat gingerly on the bed at Quinn's feet. He had taken his shoes off when they came in the door before, Quinn motioned for him to join her at the head of the bed next to her. Once he scooted his was over there, Quinn laid her head on his shoulder.
"You're a good person Joe," she said simply. "You deserve good things."
"You're good things," Joe replied. "And now that I've gotten to know you a little bit better, I definitely want to see where this is going to go. I mean I know I'm only going to be a senior next year, but I think we could try to see where this goes after you graduate."
"I agree. You are a special kind of person, and you don't find those often in a lifetime."
"Hey, Quinn?"
"Yeah?"
"Can I try something?"
"Sure, what?"
Joe cupped Quinn's cheek and tilted her head so she could look at him. Slowly, giving her time to back away, he leaned in for a kiss. Their lips touched briefly, and then he pulled away. "Hmm."
"What?" she questioned, eyes still closed.
"I never imagined that this would be my first kiss," he said, caressing her cheek.
"What did you imagine it as?"
"Well, I guess I imagined kissing my bride once the Minister said you may kiss the bride," he said, a slight blush tinting his cheeks. "I never imagined touching a girl in any way other than like a friendly pat or handshake. I don't really even hug girls the way you hugged me tonight. But I'm seventeen, and I just had my first kiss. I never imagined this would happen."
"Wow," Quinn said.
"When was your first kiss?" Joe asked.
"I believe I was 12, and Finn had just asked me to go to the movies with him. We went to see some dumb action movie, and then as he was walking me home, he stopped me and kissed me. It was really sweet, but then he tried to shove his tongue down my throat. I tend to like the beginning of that experience the most, and try to forget about the after."
"But you dated Finn for a while in high school?"
"Yeah, but then it was more about popularity."
"Oh, so you really didn't like him?"
"I did, to an extent, and he will always be my first love," Quinn sighed. "But what did you think of your first kiss?"
"Um, well, it was nice," he said.
"Then I didn't do my job right," Quinn teased. "Can I remedy this?"
"I guess so," he shrugged. Quinn leaned in and captured his lips with hers. There was more pressure this time, and she felt him inhale sharply. Moving her hand to the back of his neck, she kept him attached to her lips. After a few moments, she moved her lips softly against his. He was a bit unsure about what to do at first, but soon enough he was leaning into her, opening his mouth slightly. With her bottom lip between his, he sucked lightly (getting his kissing information from Sam). Quinn was thoroughly surprised that he knew what he was doing, even though the technique seemed strangely familiar. Throwing caution to the wind, she tilted her head sideways and began kissing him more. They kept this up for a few more moments before Quinn leaned back and rested her forehead on his. His breathing has increased and his eyes were still closed.
"How was that?" she asked, looking at him, waiting for him to open his eyes.
"Umm, that was a lot better," he said, finally opening his eyes to look at her. "It was amazing."
"I'm glad, everyone should have an amazing first kiss," Quinn replied, rubbing the back of his neck softly. "Stay the night with me?"
"What?" he questioned, pulling back.
"Just stay the night, lay with me and wake up with me in the morning," she said. "I've always wanted to do that, just sleep in the same bed as a guy I cared for, without the complications of sex or anything else."
"So you just want us to sleep?" Joe asked.
"Well, if you would hold me, that would be an added bonus," she put in.
"Well, I think I can do that," Joe replied. "I'll leave do you can get dressed, unless you need help with something."
"I could use some help," she said. "Only if you are comfortable with it."
"I'm here to help you ,firstly," he said. "What is it?"
"Well, first, I need help getting to the edge of bed," she began. And although she could do this, it would take considerably less effort and strain on her already taxed arm muscles for her to get Joe to help her. He crawled off the bed and leaned over to help her, fixing her arms around his neck so he could scoot her to the edge of the bed. She began to unbutton her jeans and pulled down the zipper. "Now I'm going to lift my hips up, if you could just get the jeans down past the end of the bed. I can get them the rest of the way off."
Joe swallowed visibly, but nodded his head all the same. Quinn hoisted herself up on her arms and Joe grabbed the waist band of her jeans and shimmied them down her hips and about half way down her thighs. He kept his eyes on hers, so as to not look at her indecency. Once the pants were down to the appropriate place, she lowered her bottom back to the bed and began to remove her pants. Once she is done, she asks him to retrieve her pajamas from the middle drawer of her dresser. He grabs the first pair he sees, which were purple shorts and a tank top. He brought them over and she began to dangle the pants in front of her feet. Slowly she was trying to meet the pants with her feet; but it just wasn't working.
"Here, let me," Joe offered. She smiled at him and handed him the shorts. He knelt down in front of her and slipped her feet into the leg holes and slowly slid them up her legs. They were still nice and toned from her Cheerio's days, even though the muscles weren't being used anymore. Once they were at where the bed met her legs, she lifted her hips once more from the bed, and Joe slipped them up over her curvy bottom.
"Thanks," she murmured. She pulled him down for a few seconds so she could plant a kiss on his lips.
"No problem." Joe turned around while Quinn doffed her shirt and bra so she could put on her tank top. It worried her for a moment what his reaction would be when he noticed that she was no longer wearing a bra, but then decided to go with her gut instinct and remove it.
"You can turn around if you'd like," she said softly once everything was in place. He turned around and saw her sitting there all innocent looking.
"You look so beautiful," he said.
"Maybe you need your eyes checked, I'm in pajamas," she teased, scooting back on the bed. "I still have some of Puck's old clothes in a box in the back of my closet if you want to change into something to sleep in."
Joe nodded and headed off to her closet to find this box. Once inside, he saw a pair of red gym shorts and a sleeveless grey football t-shirt. Taking them out, he quickly made his way to the bathroom to change. It was weird to be wearing another dude's clothes, and they were a little big on him, but they would do for tonight. He returned to Quinn's room and she had her eyes set on him. He looked good in the gym clothes. Quinn had managed to get the covers down so she could fit her legs under them and pulled them back up to her lap. She patted the spot next to her, the once closest to the wall. With a nod, Joe clambered into the bed, careful not to knock into her legs.
"Are you okay?" Quinn asked, putting a hand on his.
"Yeah, I think so," he said, getting himself under the covers. "It just another in a night of firsts."
"Yeah, for me too," she said. Joe laid down on the bed next to her and Quinn snuggled down to lay her head on his chest. He put an arm around her shoulder and held her other hand in his.
"I can hear your heart beat," Quinn murmured. Joe gave her a squeeze in acknowledgement.
"And this isn't as scary as I thought it would be," he mentioned.
"Not at all. Just think of this as a trial for sleeping in bed with someone. I won't judge you on anything, and you can know what it will feel like."
"I just don't want to do anything to make you feel uncomfortable," he said, leaning his chin down to rest on her head.
"Well since you are such a gentleman, then you are in the clear," she teased. "I know you won't do anything you're not ready for, and I won't ask – well for any more than this sleep over."
"Alright," he said. "That's good."
Quinn yawned. "I think it's time we went to bed."
"Yeah. Let me go hit the lights. You get comfy," he said, easing from under her body. Quinn rolled on her right side, facing away from the wall. Joe flicked the lights and softly padded his way over to the bed; once more climbing in the bed beside her. Once under the covers, he lay on his back, not really touching Quinn at all.
"Well, when I invited you to sleep here, I was going to hold you to the 'hold me' stipulation," she teased, leaning back to look at him.
"Right," he said, rolling on his right side as well. He put his arm on her waist and left it at that.
"Silly, move closer," she goaded. Joe scooted gently forward, just before they were touching. "A little closer."
Joe moved the remaining distance to press his firm chest up against her back. From there, she pulled his arm around her waist. "Just like this," she said, snuggling her hips back against his. Although this worried him, he just went with it, because Quinn knew what she was doing and that she wouldn't have him doing anything she wasn't comfortable with. "You okay?"
"Yeah, you're pretty warm."
"I'm glad," she giggled. "This feels nice."
"Yeah it does," she agreed.
"Good night Quinn."
"Good night Joe."
0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
Morning came through the window of Quinn's bedroom in the form of sunlight and birds chirping. Joe woke up first, nuzzling the back of Quinn's neck. He tightened his arms around her. At this motion Quinn woke up, feeling strong arms around her as well as a morning wake-up call against her bottom. Once she wiggled her hips slightly, he became aware of his problem and tried to back away. She flung her arm back around his waist and kept him there.
"You're fine," she said groggily, her voice deeper than her normal tone, and Joe couldn't help himself from thinking it was hot.
"But –" Quinn cut him off.
"You are fine," she said slowly and deliberately. "I wanted to be held, and this comes with it."
"Alright," he replied, nuzzling back into her neck, breathing in her scent. "You smell good."
"Thanks," she chuckled. "I really liked this."
"Me too," Joe replied. "You know, if you are ever lonely and your mother goes out again, I wouldn't mind doing this again."
"It's addicting," Quinn said.
"It totally is," he agreed. "But definitely something I don't mind being addicted to."