Title: Saw Cinderella in a Party Dress
Pairing,Character(s): Quinn/OC, Quinn/Tina
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Some spoilers for upcoming events.
Summary: At twelve Quinn fell in love and thought she'd never love anyone else as much. At sixteen Quinn found out her twelve year old self had been wrong.
Note: Not totally sure where this came from. As always this story has not been betaed so please forgive typos and spelling errors, spell check and re-reading can only do so much.
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She was twelve the first time she fell in love.
She was sitting quietly on a cream colored chaise lounge chair watching the other woman button the bride to be into her expensive white dress. There seemed to be a hundred tiny pearl buttons along the back of the dress and Quinn was mesmerized.
It was her cousin's wedding and Quinn couldn't understand how he had talked such a beautiful girl into marring him. She had asked Quinn to be a bridesmaid, a real bridesmaid who got a matching dress and would walk down the aisle before her. A bridesmaid not a childish flower girl like all the mothers suggested. Quinn was too old to be a flower girl but she was the youngest in the family. The day Michelle had asked her, Quinn felt like she was going to bust. She smiled big and hugged her tightly because Michelle saw her, saw that she wasn't a little girl anymore.
Quinn began to feel anxious when the women reached the last button and started to woo and aww at the beautiful bride to be. Quinn's stomach started to knot up as she thought about the impending wedding. Michelle was about to marry her awful cousin. Her twenty-five year old cousin who still teased her every holiday, who still made fart jokes, who she just an hour ago saw fondling his fiance's maid of honor's ass outside of the church. Quinn wanted to tell her, she wanted to tell her she was about to marry the biggest asshole in the world. But she couldn't. Telling her would sever the only tie she held to her. If she told her she'd leave. Quinn knew that would hurt more so she kept quite.
Michelle turned from the mirror and Quinn caught her breath at the sight. The women who had been helping with the dress scattered around the room checking their hair and makeup leaving the two of them alone. Michelle reached out her delicate hand out and Quinn noticed that it shook slightly. Quinn knew it was just nerves but secretly she hoped it was something else. All the emotion was getting to Quinn and she felt tears swelling to her eyes but she swore she wouldn't let them spill and ruin the non-water proof mascara that she fought most of the night before to wear.
"Ready to go Quinnie?" She asked shaking her hand to invite Quinn to grab it.
Quinn wasn't ready. She wasn't ready to give her up. Quinn wasn't foolish, she knew she had no chance with beautiful twenty-three year old. She knew Michelle didn't feel the things she felt. She knew Michelle wasn't gay or whatever Quinn was. All these feelings were new and Quinn wasn't sure what to make of them. She didn't understand why she wasn't like her friends crushing on every cute blonde hair boy in class or on TV. She didn't understand all she knew was she her feelings were real unlike her friend Stacy's feelings for that boy at camp she kissed this past summer.
"Quinn?" Her voice broke into Quinn's mind making her look up at her "Quinn Bee are you okay?" Not trusting her own voice she simply shook her head no.
"Aww honey it'll be alright. You look beautiful. Hey can you keep a secret?" Michelle asked in a hushed whisper.
"I can" Quinn's voice came out slightly horse from the held back tears.
"Okay but please don't tell Cas but I think you're the best looking bridesmaid. Purple just isn't Cassie's color, is it? She looks like Violet Beauregarde after she chewed that gum." Michelle let out a soft laugh. "Now come on Quinnie lets go get married."
Quinn closed her eyes for a moment and dreamed it was really true. Dreamed that she was about to marry the beautiful bride. She let the fantasy slip and she stood up and grabbed a hold of Michelle's hand who in return gave a tight squeeze that match the hug Quinn had given her months ago.
Quinn spent most of the ceremony staring at her new high heeled shoes, every time she stole a glance at the couple sharing their vows she'd see Michelle smiling the brightest smile at her groom who had a smug bored look on his face that Quinn wished she could slap off.
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The reception was in full swing. Quinn watched as the people around her had a good time dancing, drinking, eating. She had watched their first dance, watched in disgust as he clumsily stepped on her feet watched as she playfully hit is arm like she found the whole thing cute. She watched as they cut the cake, the perfect cake Quinn had been waiting six months to taste. As she watched him force a piece between her ruby lips Quinn thought she'd never eat cake again.
At this point Quinn wanted nothing more then to go home and take off her pretty dress and her brand new high heeled shoes that pinched her toes. She wanted to strip down and climb into bed and bury herself underneath all the covers in the house. She wanted to grab hold of her stuffed chipmunk and never come out again. She wanted to forget completely about love and the horrible pain that came along with it. All she wanted was to go home but at the rate her parents were partying she didn't think that would happen anytime soon. She feared she'd fall asleep on one of the cheap folding chairs that someone had dressed up and charged a fortune for.
The music changed. Quinn sighed as she heard the ABBA song start to play, she sighed knowing it was Michelle's favorite song. She had learned that on the day Michelle had taken her to get her dress fitted, to Quinn that had been the best day of her life. They went to the dress maker and then spent the rest of the day together walking around the mall. This song came on the radio on the drive home, Michelle turned it up load and they both sang along. It was because of that Quinn had decided that ABBA was her favorite band. In Quinn's mind this was their song and it pissed her off that it was being played here. She laid her head down on the table as she listened to her eccentric aunt talk to herself about her fears that her dog might have polio.
Quinn was about to go into the bathroom and hide for the rest of the night when she felt a tap on her shoulder.
"Care to dance Quinnie?" Quinn turned to see the some what sweaty bride smiling down at her.
"Yes...yes I want to dance." Quinn stuttered like that freaky goth girl in her class did.
Michelle took her hand and lead her out to the glimmering dancing floor. As she danced around the dance floor with the beautiful bride of her dreams Quinn thought to herself that she'd never love someone as much as she loved Michelle right then.
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It had been two years since Quinn had last seen Michelle. Her cousin had gotten a job down in Florida. She had said goodbye to a gloom pregnant Michelle the week before they moved. In her two years of marriage Michelle had lost her sparkle and with it some of her beauty. On that day Quinn's heart sunk with quilt. If she hadn't been selfish Michelle might have gotten away with her youth. Gotten to go and find someone who wasn't a terrible person, someone who deserved her. Now she was stuck with a baby on the way and a husband who seemed to drink more with every passing day.
Quinn cried as she said goodbye and Michelle whipped her tears with her thumb and gave her a bright smile saying they'd be back for Easter.
Before she got into the car Michelle grabbed a hold of Quinn and gave her a tight hug. "Thank you for being such a good friend Quinnie Bee" She whispered placing a soft kiss to her hair before pulling away.
Quinn watched as the car pulled away feeling completely empty. They never came back for Easter or any other holiday. Last she heard Michelle was once again pregnant with twins this time. Quinn never forgave herself for her selfishness.
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At sixteen Quinn stood zipping up the shorter raven haired girl's dress. It was night of the regional competition and the whole glee club was abuzz with excitement rushing back and froth getting ready. Ms. Pillsbury was desperately trying to get the coffee stain out of Mr. Schuester white dress shirt, as he tried to fake confidence for the kids. Quinn wasn't sure if they'd win, she wasn't really sure if she cared either way.
Tina turned pulling at her dress. "Ddo Ii look alright?" She asked with fear spreading across her face. Quinn looked at her from head to toe taking in her curled hair and red headband, she looked at her in the matching black dress with it's pretty red sash. She thought they looked like bridesmaid her and Tina, beautiful bridesmaids.
Quinn put her hands on Tina's soft shoulders and looked her in eye "You look perfect". Tina smiled and dropped her hands down at her sides finally letting her dress rest, finally feeling like she wasn't a fish out of water in her pretty dress.
Standing here looking at Tina Quinn realized her twelve year old self had been wrong. She knew she'd always have a place for Michelle in her heart, but now she knew that she had not been her great love, she thought she could grow to love Tina just as much if not more. And that made Quinn excited, it made her want to try to win tonight, it made her sure that win or lose she'd be dancing with Tina tonight to hell with what the Cheerios thought.
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