Chapter 4:
Author's note: Wow, I really appreciate all of the kind words and follows and whatnot. This has been a lot of fun to write, considering I haven't written fiction since high school almost ten years ago. Thanks for the reads!
Quinn finished applying her makeup and glanced one last time in the mirror. She had to pick up Santana shortly and needed to get out the door. Her mascara and eyeliner was simple, but elegant. She stared at her reflection, but could see nothing but the same brown eyes that haunted her recent dreams. They were at school today, sitting right in front of her. Around each corner, in the café, and everywhere that she turned. Yes, they were Rachel Berry's gorgeous brown eyes.
And that frightened her.
Why is this even happening? Why are they her eyes?
Blinking rapidly, she tried to clear her mind. Focus. She had to go get her friend and go to a party. At Rachel's house.
This night was bound to end in disaster.
Quinn glanced once last time in the mirror and pulled her tresses into a ponytail. She wore a simple red v-neck t-shirt with jeans and boat shoes. Comfort was key tonight. She had no one to impress at this party. Bounding down the stairs, she yelled her goodbye to her mother and flew out the door. Her car roared to life and she soon found herself outside of Santana's door. She honked once and the Latina appeared shortly after. Santana had taken the opposite route in her choice of dress for the evening. Her long dark hair cascaded down her back and her floral print mini dress hugged her body in every right place.
"What bum stole Q's car?" Santana smirked as she took her seat in the car.
"You look nice too, S." Quinn was used to her friend and her biting remarks. They shared a smile and drove along, listening to a mix cd that Brittany had put together for Quinn. She recognized Santana's game plan for the night: wow Brittany and try to bring her back. They had talked at great length about Santana's newly accepted sexual orientation. Long ago, Quinn would have considered that wrong. She had come so far from her ultraconservative Christian upbringing, though, and saw that Santana had nothing but love for Brittany. She had to respect that. If love doesn't mean anything to a person, what else can? And besides, she herself had had too many lingering thoughts about a certain girl to consider anything wrong.
They arrived at Rachel's house quickly. Taking a deep breath, Quinn looked up at the residence. It was exactly what she had imagined. A two-story home with two car garage painted white with a red door and shutters. A porch wrapped around the front with what looked to be the most comfortable porch swing at one end. Quinn made a mental note to spend a minute or two on that bench.
"Let's do this!" Santana brought Quinn back to the land of the living and punctuated her statement with a slam of her passenger side door. Quinn slowly swiveled in her seat and moved out of the car. She followed behind her aggressive friend who marched right up to the door. Without hesitation, Santana opened it and strolled in finding the party in full swing.
Quinn glided along behind, scanning the room. Mike and Tina were together on one end of the sofa, with Mercedes sitting oddly close to Sam at the other end. Brittany was in her usual place as of late, perched upon Artie's lap. Puck posted up on the wall, talking with Finn while Zizes looked on, hand in hand with the mohawked boy. Rachel was nowhere in sight.
"Probably busy running around, organizing things to no end" Quinn mused to herself.
As if on cue, the diva appeared with food on a tray. She was wearing a white dress that ended just above the knees and a blue cardigan. Quinn couldn't help but look at her tan legs and consider how beautiful she looked.
Beautiful? Where did that come from? The conflicted emotions continued on towards this girl that she once despised. Quinn's face must have shown her internal struggle as Santana approached.
"Who's winning the war in there?" the brunette said, tapping sternly on Quinn's forehead.
Quinn scrunched up her nose and released her worried lower lip from her teeth.
"No war," she said with a smile. "Just trying to decide how long to stay tonight. I'm not sure I'm feeling all of this and I need to finish packing for New York."
"You haven't packed yet? Quinn, our flight leaves tomorrow!" The comment came from behind the pair, from the girl who Quinn could not get out of her head. "I, for one, believe that you must be well packed for such an important trip. You never know what you will need in a pinch!"
Quinn regarded the short girl with a slight smile. "Relax, Berry. It's almost done, just need to do finishing touches. I started packing for this trip weeks ago."
"Well, consider my admonishment rescinded." Rachel unleashed a huge smile at Quinn, those brown eyes twinkling. "Would you care for a vegan pizza bite?" Rachel presented the tray she carried to Santana and Quinn.
"I wouldn't eat that with Trouty Mouth's lips. And believe you me, that boy could suck down that entire plate." Santana still loved to give Sam as much grief as she could.
Quinn admonished her friend with a stern look. "I'll gladly try one, Berry." She grabbed the smallest portion she could from the platter and took a bite. Her eyes widened upon realizing just how good they were. "Impressive," she said between chews. "I'll think I'll have another."
If it was at all possible, Rachel's smile grew even larger. Quinn could feel her face flush.
"Is it warm in here? I think I need a second outside." Quinn excused herself from the party and practically ran outside. She found the corner of the porch with a swing and set down upon it. Kicking her legs, she began to swing at a gentle pace. The crisp spring air was beautiful that evening. Looking up, she could see stars from the deck. She tried to clear her mind, but each time her thoughts would come back to those brown eyes she couldn't help but fixate on when they were nearby. She closed her eyes and wished for understanding. She had been in the house for less than a half hour and she couldn't contain her feelings! What was happening?
The door to the house opened and closed. Quinn could hear the padding of small feet across the wooden deck. Somebody sat down next to her and began assisting in her gentle swinging. Quinn refused to open her eyes until she heard the voice to her new swing partner.
"Why did you leave so quickly?" the visitor asked.
Upon hearing the voice of Rachel Berry, Quinn's eyes cracked open. She peered down at the girl and saw big, brown eyes looking up at her with worry.
She couldn't help but think "Oh. This is going to be a long night."