a/n: Sorry for the long pause between updates! Holidays brought the crazies out but my schedule is returning to normal so I promise more regular updates! Thank you for your patience, all your reviews, and most importantly just reading. Now, onto the good stuff!
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Dana's lips weren't as soft as Santana's and she tasted like cigarettes but Brittany didn't care. She liked it. It was so different from Santana, almost completely opposite, and that was more arousing than she had expected. It was just what she needed, she thought, to truly move on from Santana completely. She let out a soft moan as their lips parted to allow in some air, making both Dana and Brittany smile. This was going a lot better than Dana could have ever expected.
She had shed the heavy jean vest she wore nearly every day and it now lay on the floor somewhere close. Her boots were long gone, and the stubborn chains that she thought made her look bad ass had served as annoyances and obstacles so they had quickly been discarded as well. The old plaid button up she wore under the vest was half undone and her skirt hiked up to her waist on one side. Brittany's hands definitely knew what they wanted and were going after it.
Her own hands worked swiftly enough as the two of them lay there together on the couch, tongues tangled together in an increasingly desperate kiss. She pushed her hand up the shirt Brittany wore, taking notice to how tight her abs were under her silky skin. As her fingers ventured further, they didn't hesitate to push right up under the material of the bra against Brittany's chest, pushing it out of the way to make room for her hand. She cupped gently at her breast and it sent a shiver through her spine. Her body was even more immaculate than she had envisioned in her many, many day dreams about the girl.
The hand on her breast caused Brittany to moan again and her hips to instinctively push upward for contact. When she was greeted with Dana's hip pushing down at the same time, she had to fight a yelp of pleasure from escaping her lips. The hand that had been buried in the hot pink strands of her hair dropped now and she cupped fiercely at her ass, gripping tight enough to be able to guide her hip down into her over and over again. Soon enough with every pinch or pull of her nipple from Dana's fingers, their hips were pushing and grinding against one another in a desperate rhythm in search of more. With a single shift now Dana's thigh slid firmly between her legs and Brittany felt her entire body throb.
"Oh my god" Charlie and Rachel stood at the end of the couch near where Brittany and Dana's feet were tangled together. Both of them had their mouths dropped open and their eyes wide with shock.
The words hit Brittany's ears first and she quickly pushed at Dana's shoulders enough to break the kiss. She lifted her head and looked down the couch to see the two girls standing there looking stunned. She immediately blushed and rolled toward Dana to hide herself against the girl. Dana glanced over her shoulder, licking her swollen red lips before a smirk formed on her features at the sight of her sister and her friend staring at them.
"What? Never seen two girls going at it? It's pretty hot, huh?" Dana let out a laugh and the other three girls groaned, Brittany out of embarrassment, Charlie out of disgust, and Rachel out of disappointment. The brunette shook her head and immediately walked around the couch, grabbing Dana by the shirt that now barely clung to her body, and tugged her off the blonde below her. Her eyes got wide at the sudden strength of Rachel who managed to shove her back against the wall since she hadn't gained her balance yet after being ripped off the couch. "What the Hell, Berry? You ain't jealous are you? Cause there is plenty of me to go around." She gave a cocky smirk and licked her lips again.
"Ew, no, I am not jealous" Rachel glanced over the girl who was disheveled and half dressed. She shook her head and motioned to her "Will you please do up your shirt and put your skirt down? Have you even thought about what you were just doing and how it would affect Santana?"
Dana's face fell for a moment and she looked down at herself. She quickly grabbed the two sides of her shirt and started to button them together, her head shaking a little bit "Why do you care about Lopez? You got a crush on her or something? Is that why you chased after her at Breadstix?"
"Oh my goodness, no! Why are you assuming any of my actions are tied to any sort of romantic feelings toward people? It's called be a friend, and even more so, a decent human being. You know how she feels or used to feel about Brittany and you, as her best friend, should have taken that into consideration before jumping her on your couch."
"I didn't jump her" Dana growled now, looking a lot like Quinn when she did so. "It was mutual, for your information. I'm not Santana, I don't rape people who say no to my advances." She smoothed out her shirt then tugged down skirt down in a frustrated huff. "Why don't you mind your own damn business, Berry?"
"Why don't you be a decent friend and talk to Santana about your feelings for Brittany." Rachel huffed and folded her arms. The two girls stared each other down in a heated glare for a long time before Rachel shook her head "She knows you like her, it's not a secret to her or anyone else now. She's still hurting and I advise you to take the steps to ease your way into a relationship with Brittany if you still want to consider Santana a friend."
"Wait she knows? How?" Dana looked a little panicked and looked past Rachel to the couch where Brittany was still blushing as she gathered the items of their discarded clothing and tossed them into the laundry the next room over.
"You're not sly with your leering. Every time you see her, you light up. You hardly ever swear around her and you laugh at everything she says even if it's not funny. A blind man would know." Rachel rolled her eyes, giving a look that said "duh" to the girl standing in front of her. "Look, she likes Charlie and you like Brittany and obviously Brittany likes you, for some reason, so I recommend you talk to her about it. It's going to be weird but it's better than sneaking around, or worse, having Santana walk in on the two of your dry humping and hurt her feelings, potentially causing you to lose her as a friend. A little warning might be nice."
The voices of Santana and Quinn could be heard at the top of the stairs and both Dana and Brittany went wide eyed. Dana nodded quickly and looked at Rachel "Fine, I'll talk to her just don't mention it to her, please?"
"Yeah right, like I would even know where to start." She rolled her eyes and turned away from the girl, moving over to the couch where Brittany was sitting. She gave a smile to the girl, nodding her head and mouthing, "It's alright" to her. Brittany returned the smile and stood up, both girls now leaning over to push the couch toward the wall. Charlie was just sitting there, looking disgusted at her sister. "Charlie, will you get up so we can push these couches out of the way, please?" Rachel huffed, giving her friend a glare.
Charlie returned the glare then stood up with a huff. She definitely was in a bad mood after what she had walked in on. No one ever wanted to walk in on their sister in the heat of the moment. Ever. She turned around and put her hands on the couch, ready to push. That is when her eyes fell on Santana who had just hit the bottom step and for the first time ever, her face softened and she smiled when she saw the girl.
Rachel rolled her eyes but smiled. Santana must have done something right in that study session because Charlie failed to scowl at her for the first time ever. "Come on, Charlie, push. One, two, three!" The three girls pushed and the couch moved with ease. Once that one was out of the way, they turned and pushed the other. Now with the space clear, they could lay out the blankets and pillows for their bed.
"Where were you two?" Dana asked softly, her face full of guilt when she looked at Santana. Santana didn't notice, though. She was all smiles.
"We were getting snacks" Quinn said, looking at her arm full of snacks, then back to her sister with a look that said that should have been obvious. "Why is the bed not set up?"
"They were finishing their game" Rachel said quickly. "They just turned it off when you two walked down." Rachel glanced at Dana and gave her a cheerfully forced grin and Dana just nodded slowly, then more quickly, pointing at Rachel with a smile.
"Right, sorry, we got to a level I just had to beat."
"Whatever" Quinn mumbled, setting the snacks on the table that formed the headboard area of their floor bed. "You guys set up the bed I'm going to look through the movies." Just like that, everyone got to work. The couches formed the outer boarders of the bed, the table the top, and the t.v. stand and entertainment center was at their feet. The five of them spread out blankets to cover the carpet between those boundaries and soon the bed was set up for the six of them.
"Can we watch the Time Traveler's Wife?" Rachel said hopefully as she sat right smack dab in the middle of the bed, pulling the blankets over her, and smiling hopefully at Quinn who was still rifling through the movies. She looked to her left to see what Dana thought, she was usually first to protest at her movie choice, but the girl had her back to the couch, laying on her side, talking to Brittany who had slipped in next to her. She grinned and looked to her right to see if Santana would complain only to see her with her back against the other couch, sitting with her legs folded, facing Charlie, the two of them in conversation already. No complaints? She looked up to Quinn to see if she was protesting only to find her already sliding the dvd into the player. "Fantastic!" She said, mostly to herself, since no one else seemed to be paying attention.
After putting the movie in, Quinn grabbed the remote and turned to the bed. She paused before she could even take a step. Her eyes scanned the bed and saw the only open spot was to the left of Rachel. Her heart leaped into her throat and she felt herself go warm.
Rachel noticed and for a moment she was hurt. She didn't know why Quinn didn't want to sit next to her, especially after they had seemed to grow closer the past week or so. She was about to tell Quinn to just sit down when the blonde girl blurted out "We need napkins" and quickly turned and nearly ran from the room. Rachel frowned and looked down at her hands. What had she ever done to deserve such cold treatment from the girl?
She sat there defeated for a moment before she lifted her head and looked around. Dana and Brittany were giggling about something and Santana was enthralled with something Charlie was explaining. No one had noticed a thing. So she shrugged, took a breath to steel her nerves, and got up. "I am going to go help" She said with a nod, just as a formality really, in case anyone questioned her. Which no one did, so Rachel shrugged and headed up the stairs to find Quinn.
Quinn had her back to the kitchen door, the packet of napkins clutched to her chest, and her eyes closed. She was breathing deeply. She was trying to convince herself that she could do downstairs, sit by Rachel, watch a movie, and not be completely distracted with thoughts of what had nearly happened on the balcony earlier.
Rachel saw Quinn as she peeked her head in the door and immediately she frowned. She looked like she was sad, almost. Sure, her back was to her and she couldn't see her face, but the body language almost looked defeated. She took another deep breath then slowly slid into the kitchen. She cleared her throat and spoke "Quinn?"
Quinn jumped a little, causing her to pull the napkins to her chest a little more tightly. Her eyes came open and she drew in a quick breath. She licked her lips then softly whispered "What?"
Rachel opened her mouth to speak but stopped and shook her head. She took a few more soft steps toward the girl until she was just within arm's reach of her. She looked down at her hands where she nervously twisted and pulled at her own fingers, trying to decide how to approach the subject. Realizing she was standing in silence she cleared her throat again and looked at the back of Quinn's head "We're friends, right?"
Friends. There was that horrible word. Quinn wanted to whip around and yell at her, tell her that she didn't want to be friends, that she wanted more and it infuriated her to think of them as just friends. But she swallowed that urge that was rising in her throat and simply nodded, squeaking out a calm "Yeah, I guess."
"Then why do you act like it's horrible to be around me? I saw the look you got on your face when you realized the only seat available was the one next to me. I thought we had a nice time on the balcony. Am I really that bad?" Rachel's shoulders slumped and her eyes cast down to her feet. She felt tears starting to form but she didn't want to cry.
"You're not horrible, Rachel" Quinn felt bad. She didn't even have to look at her to know that Rachel was frowning. It was palpable. She could feel it. She shook her head and finally turned, lifting her eyes to see the girl looking downtrodden beside her. Her heart twisted in her chest and she reached out without thinking and put her hand on her shoulder "I'm sorry I didn't mean to make you think I didn't want to sit by you."
"Then what is it?" Rachel's tone sounded desperate now as her eyes lifted and there was a pleading look on her face as she met Quinn's eyes "Why did you run like I had the plague?"
"Because I can't handle being near you" Quinn spat out before she meant to. When she saw Rachel's face twist in confusion, she quickly shook her head and tried to stammer out an explanation "I mean, not in a bad way. I just, Rachel, I don't know." She failed and let out a deflating sigh as her eyes dropped to her feet.
Rachel had felt even worse when she said she couldn't handle being near her. Then she saw the panic in her eyes and the way she stammered and looked defeated and she knew it hadn't been cruel. She drew in a steadying breath and lifted a surprisingly still hand to lie on Quinn's shoulder. "The balcony" She whispered, nodding her head slightly "Is that what you mean?"
Quinn shook her head but didn't say anything. She wasn't sure what to say. Saying yes would, well, have repercussions she wasn't ready for and saying no would just confuse and hurt Rachel even more. So she stood there like a silent idiot, letting Rachel figure it out for herself because she was too afraid to do it on her own.
Rachel's hand moved from her shoulder to her cheek, brushing her fingers against her face before she scooped them under her chin and started to pull "Look at me, Quinn."
Quinn refused. She turned her face away, pulling her chin from her grip.
"We had a moment out there" Rachel snapped out in frustration and grabbed Quinn's chin again, this time a bit more roughly, and started to pull "Look at me, Quinn. Look at me and tell me we didn't have a moment." Her tone was dripping with desperation, fear, and pleading. She just wanted a damn answer out of her!
"I can't, Rachel" Quinn snapped and her eyes shot up. Green met brown and the two of them were locked in a gaze more intense than either of them had ever felt. Quinn was trembling and goosebumps were forming on her skin as she stared into her eyes, unable to look away even though she so desperately wanted to. She didn't want to be looking right into her eyes, into her soul, and still denying everything she felt deep down inside. She felt like a fireball ready to explode.
"We had a moment" Rachel whispered with less fire than before and more truth. Her eyes shifted as she tried to look into both Quinn's eyes at the same time. Her heart was thundering against her rib cage as the tension mounted. She just wanted Quinn to admit it.
Quinn bit her lower lip and fought the words but the found their way to the surface and she spat them out before she could stop them "Fine, we had a moment! What's the big deal?"
Rachel's heart fluttered and the gaze went from less determined to more admiration as her face softened. Their stare they were locked in did not falter, but Rachel's tone was softened the next time she spoke "Life is about moments, Quinn. Life is a bunch of moments strung together with how you deal with each moment you are given. It's what life is all about." Her hand reached out, gripping lightly at Quinn's arm before her touch slid down, tracing her arm all the way until she was able to link her fingers with Quinn's gently. She gave a soft squeeze and her face was taken over with a smile "This is our moment to deal with together."
Quinn's lip curled into a sneer and her head shook as her body tried to put the wall of denial back to the fore front. She still couldn't look away from the girl, her eyes were saying everything her body couldn't, and yet she was still trying to lie to herself. "We have nothing to deal with together, Rachel." But the grip of her hand tightened against Rachel's fingers and it was obvious she didn't believe the words she had just said.
Neither did Rachel. She simply returned the squeeze and her head nodded. Without saying a word she moved closer. She saw Quinn's eyes widen but nowhere in her stare was the word no. Her own eyes flickered with a soft assurance that it would be alright and in that moment Quinn's stare softened to a gaze. A smile twitched on the corner of Rachel's mouth, her pink tongue streaked across her lips to moisten them just enough, then for the first time in many long minutes her eyes closed to break the dead lock stare as she pressed her lips to Quinn's tightly.
Immediately Quinn wanted to push her away. But she didn't. She drew in a deep breath through her nose and her chin tilted up to take more of the kiss. Her body was telling her to stop, that this was not what she wanted, that she should not be kissing Rachel Berry and yet she continued. Her heart was screaming out an echoing yes that vibrated through her ribs and down to her stomach. Her gut twisted with excitement and her hand that was held with Rachel's tightened its grip. Slowly the denial started to melt from her body. The longer their lips sat pressed together, the warmer she became as the ice that guarded her every nerve dripped away into a puddle of relief at her feet. For months she had wanted to just pin this girl against the wall and kiss her with all her might and now that her lips held steadily against Rachel's she knew fighting that urge from now on would be nearly impossible.
Minutes passed before Rachel finally pulled back to break the kiss. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as she backed up and opened her eyes, watching the way Quinn's face looked as realization came to her. When her green eyes opened and they met again, the stare down was less tension filled and more dreamy. Both girls had a goofy smile on their faces and Rachel swept her tongue along her lips to pull in the last little bit of flavor from the kiss. Her cheeks immediately started to burn pink when she realized what she had just done and she let off a soft giggle. "I, uh…" She shrugged and shook her head. She was pretty sure the kiss spoke for itself.
Quinn nodded quickly and let out a soft laugh herself "Yeah, totally" She whispered in agreement. The two of them shared a soft smile, gazing into one another's eyes, until finally Quinn cleared her throat and let her hand slide out of Rachel's "So we should totally get back downstairs before they come looking for us."
"Oh, yeah" Rachel nodded quickly and stepped back, pushing some bangs off her face and fighting another smile that swept across her face "They are probably waiting on us to start the movie."
"Totally" Quinn repeated, grinning again when she saw Rachel grinning. They stared at each other for another moment before Quinn had to nodded and let out laugh to break the stare "Okay, go" She pointed toward the door of the kitchen "We have to actually walk."
"Right!" Rachel laughed at herself and turned around to head to the door. She was still smiling from ear to ear when she pushed the door open, pausing to wait for Quinn. When the girl passed and she saw her smiling as well, butterflies came to life in her stomach. They had just kissed and Rachel wasn't dead for it. In fact, Quinn had liked it! Liked it so much she was now a giggling, stammering fool just like Rachel was. She was pretty sure this was the greatest feeling in the world.
The two of them moved silently to the steps, both still grinning idiots, not saying a word but both purposely now trying to brush against the other's hand as they walked. When they reached the top of the steps, Rachel reached out and grabbed Quinn's wrist, pulling her to a stop. Her heart leaped. Quinn's skin tingled where Rachel touched her. Their eyes met and Rachel drew in a deep breath "That was my first kiss."
"It was?" Quinn looked shocked. She didn't know why she was shocked, Rachel wasn't the girl that got looked at in school. She was the one that everyone over looked. Still it shocked Quinn. "But you did it so well."
"I did?" Rachel's smile grew and she blushed again "Well good. I suppose the many romantic movies I have watched paid off."
"You're such a dork" Quinn said with a warm laugh, reaching out to brush some hair from Rachel's eyes. Their gazes met again and she nodded slowly "It was good. It was so good I'm already thinking about another one."
"Really?" Rachel breathed out as her tongue hungrily swiped over her lips "Because I was too."
"Then maybe we should" Quinn whispered, already starting to lean in again, licking her own lips now as she drew within a breath from her lips.
"Come on you two I want to watch a movie!" Santana called from the bottom of the stairs.
Luckily the first few steps were around a corner and she couldn't see them at the top of the steps or she would have seen them just about to kiss. Rachel blushed and let out a laugh. Quinn rolled her eyes in frustration before turning her head "We're coming!" She turned to Rachel and smiled "Later" she whispered before taking the lead, putting a few steps between she and Rachel so it didn't look like they were coming down together.
"About time" Dana said with a roll of her eyes "Where did you two go anyway?"
"To get napkins for the snacks. I told you but you must not have heard me" Rachel said with a roll of her eyes as she hit the bottom step and moved over to the bed now. Quinn spread out the napkins on the table then grabbed the bowl of popcorn before sitting on the bed next to Rachel. They shared a smile then she reached for the remote and pressed play.
"Finally" Charlie said with a nod as she adjusted herself on the bed so her back was to Santana. She was lying a lot closer to Santana than she needed to though and Rachel could have sworn she saw the blanket move where Santana slid her arm around her waist. Aw how cute.
They all settled in for the movie in silence. Quinn and Rachel shared the popcorn, grinning every time one would reach in and brush their hand against the other. They stole little glances here and there but no one seemed to notice. As the move wore on, the popcorn was gone and the bowl placed back on the table. Quinn and Rachel had slid under the blankets now and their hands were tangled together in the tiny space between their bodies where they lay side by side.
Brittany had long since drifted off and was lying with her head on Dana's shoulder, her arm around her waist. Dana's hand rubbed up and down her back lightly, playing with her hair softly as she watched the movie. On the other side Charlie and Santana were both sleeping. Charlie had a smile on her lips and every so often Rachel could see Santana giving her a soft hug with her arm that was draped across her waist. It had been an interesting night, to say the least.
As the movie came to a close, Rachel turned to look at Quinn only to find her asleep. She grinned at the fact that she was still holding her hand tightly under the blankets. Rachel lifted her head and saw Dana had drifted off as well. Reaching with her free hand, she grabbed the remote and turned everything off, leaving the room in almost complete blackness, the only light was the one shining from above the stairs behind them. Rachel gave Quinn's hand a soft squeeze before she lifted her head and placed a gentle kiss against her cheek. She could have sworn she saw Quinn smile in her sleep. As her eyes closed, she took a deep breath and let out a happy sigh. This had been one of the best nights of her life.
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The rest of the weekend did not go according to plan, in Rachel's eyes. Her fathers had demanded she come home since they had been busy or out of town the past few weeks and wanted some quality time with her. She loved her fathers and was glad to see them but they had horrible timing. She had dreamt of spending the entire weekend with Quinn, stealing kissing, giggling, and holding hands. Now she had to spend the weekend wondering if Quinn was having second thoughts about what had happened. Plus she was dying to know if Dana spoke to Santana and if Charlie and Santana had a date. Her fathers were really inconveniencing her social life. She smiled at that. She had a social life!
"Rachel, sweetie, are you alright? You have hardly touched your dinner" Hiram asked softly, worry in his eyes.
"I'm fine" She said with a quick nod "I was just trying to remember if I finished my homework or not."
"You and Charlie didn't do it yesterday?" Her father looked surprised at that. Charlie was just about as anal as Rachel was when it came to good grades and homework.
"No" Rachel said with a little shake of her head. She drifted off into thought again and after a moment it dawned on her "We didn't have homework! That's right. She helped Santana study but we didn't have any homework to do ourselves."
"Are those girls being nice to you? You know you have the right to stand up to them. Just because they are your best friend's sister's friends doesn't mean you have to take being pushed around by those bullies."
"They're fine" Rachel said with a little smile "We are all getting along really well, actually. It's been nice."
"Really?" Both of her fathers seemed surprised at hear that.
Rachel let out a soft laugh and nodded "Things have been really great, dad and daddy. We are all falling into a nice little friendship!" Both of her fathers looked stunned at the news and shared a surprised look. Rachel rolled her eyes and let out a soft laugh as she grabbed her plate and stood from the table "I promise, things are fine. Now if you don't mind I am going to take my dinner to my room and read a little while I finish eating."
"If you're sure, sweetie." Her father nodded and Rachel quickly slid away from the table and headed up to her room. Once she was safely inside the walls of her own room she set her food on her desk and plopped down on her bed. She let out a heavy sigh and closed her eyes, pressing the pads of her finger and thumb against her eyelids. All she could think of were Quinn's lips. It was driving her crazy. She wondered how the girl would act when they saw each other next. Would she be as happy and giggly as she had been after the kiss or would she suck back into her shell and deny everything again?
She couldn't stand the wondering any longer. She reached for her cell phone and started to type out a text to Quinn. She read it over a few times, changed a few words, and then re-read it. She nodded and smiled as she pressed send, hoping that it wouldn't come off as pushy.
I hope you have been thinking about me as much as I've been thinking about you. Just remember this moment is ours together.
She stared at her phone and immediately thought that it was a stupid idea. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. She shouldn't have sent it. What was she thinking? Quinn was going to freak out and go back into her shell and start being mean again. She was about to start freaking when she felt her phone go off. Her heart jumped into her throat and she bit at her lip as she flipped the screen open and pressed read.
I can't wait to see you.
Five simple words. Rachel was grinning from ear to ear at those five little words. She couldn't wait to see her! Her heart was soaring, doing flips in the sky and fluttering with the birds! She fell back on her bed and closed her eyes as she clutched her phone to her chest. For the first time since starting high school Rachel couldn't wait for school!
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"Hi Rachel" Quinn said with a smile as Rachel climbed into the Fabray SUV on Monday morning. Dana was driving and Charlie was sitting all the way in the back. Quinn had the chair pulled forward so she could climb in next to her friend. The girls shared a smile as Rachel sat and Quinn put the chair back, letting it click in place.
"We all ready then?" Dana called but before anyone could say yes, she was pushing the gas and speeding away. Next stop was Brittany's house and she wanted to see her.
"Did you have a good weekend?" Rachel asked Quinn softly, her smile unable to be contained as she looked at the girl.
Quinn nodded slowly, fighting her own smile as her soft eyes fell upon Rachel's features "It was alright. You were missed, though."
"What?" Charlie looked between her sister and her friend and let out an exasperated laugh "You missed her?"
Quinn blinked and looked at her sister, shrugging and rolling her eyes "I just meant it was weird for her not to be at the house all weekend that's all." She glanced at Rachel and smiled before turning around and facing forward.
Charlie perked an eyebrow and looked at Rachel with a shrug "She's been weird all weekend, just ignore her."
"Right" Rachel nodded as a slow smile came to her lips "Definitely will."
Dana came to a stop in front of Brittany's house and honked the horn a few times with a smile. Her eyes were trained on the house and as soon as the blonde appeared and started to skip toward the car, Dana's face softened. She was so cute, skipping to the car! A happy sigh left her lips as Brittany opened the door and slid in next to Quinn "Hey Britt." She said with a grin, looking at her through the rearview mirror.
"Hey, Dana" Brittany blushed a little and pushed some hair behind her ear, nodding before she looked over at Quinn "Hey, Q."
Charlie and Rachel exchanged a look at the way Dana and Brittany interacted. Charlie rolled her eyes but Rachel just smiled. She thought it was cute!
Dana stared at the girl for a few minutes before Quinn looked at her and shrugged "We can go now!" Dana let out a laugh and shook her head, stepping on the gas and heading to Santana's house. She honked the horn loudly then turned around and gave Brittany a smile before looking at her sisters "Hey Q, can I have five bucks for lunch?"
"Didn't mom give you money before we left?" Quinn asked with a roll of her eyes.
Dana shrugged and gave her a smile "She found out I was using the money to buy cigarettes and packed me a lunch instead."
"Then, no. Eat your packed lunch." Quinn folded her arms in a huff. Brittany found and pulled out her wallet. She looked into her cash spot and offered Dana some money "Here, you can have mine. We can trade."
"No, Britt, that's okay" She gave the girl a soft smile "Quinn is right I should just eat my lunch that mom packed."
"Well how about we share? I will buy something and then we can share it at lunch today?"
Dana gave her a warm smile and nodded "It's a date." The two girls shared a goofy smile until Santana pulled her door open and hopped into the front seat. She huffed and pushed the hair out of her face with a sigh "Hey bitches, let's get to school." She half turned and caught Charlie's eyes. The two shared a smile but it was broken up by Dana stomping on the gas and starting them toward the school.
Rachel noticed Charlie's smile and that made her smile. She liked seeing her friend happy even if she wouldn't talk to her about it. All in good time, she thought. She knew Charlie was a very private person and she wanted to figure out what was going on before she talked to anyone else about it. When there was something to really know, Rachel would be the first to know she was sure of it.
The girls were all quiet as they rode the rest of the way to the school. Everyone seemed to be in particularly good moods that morning which was a sign of things to come, Rachel was sure of it. She could remember only a handful of times that all of the girls had been in a good mood and the days that followed always turned out great. Rachel folded her arms and sat back, smiling as she watched the city go by. She just felt it in her bone that this was going to be a good day.
When Dana finally pulled into the school parking lot and found a spot, the girls all piled out of the van. Brittany got out first and pulled the seat up to let Rachel and Charlie out of the back seat. Rachel gave her a knowing smile, winking at her a little before she paused and waited for Charlie to get out too. They had the same first class together so they always headed off that way immediately.
"Can I walk you to class?" Santana, who had gotten out of the front seat, now came up next to Charlie and gave her a smile. Charlie perked an eyebrow and looked at the girl before looking at Rachel with wide eyes. Rachel immediately nodded at her friend and smiled. That was such a romantic gesture from Santana that Rachel would feel bad not letting her friend enjoy it.
"I'll catch up" She said to the girls before Charlie turned with Santana, giving her a sweet smile before they headed off in the direction of her first class. Rachel just watched them go for a moment before letting out a happy sigh and looked at the other girls "Well I better go. See you all at lunch."
"Rachel, wait" Quinn said as she stumbled out of the SUV, grinning a little bit as she approached the girl. They stared at each other for a moment, their eyes lost in each other before Quinn realized she was staring and quickly blinked and looked down to the blue notebook she was holding "You forgot your notebook."
Rachel looked down and immediately she knew that notebook wasn't hers. All of her notebooks were pink, every single one, and labeled with which class she used that notebook for. She started to shake her head and tell Quinn that she had made a mistake when Quinn nodded and thrust the notebook into her hands. "You wouldn't want to forget your note for your first class." She bit her lip then looked back at the notebook, tapping it softly before her eyes lifted to Rachel's once more "See you later."
Rachel just nodded and watched Quinn turn and head toward the school. She could have sworn the girl had an extra sashay in her hips as she walked. Not that Rachel was looking! No, she wasn't. She cleared her throat and shook her head, peeling her eyes away from the swaying hips with a smile on her face. Okay so she totally looked, sue her.
She bit at her lip and clutched the notebook to her chest as she headed to her class. She felt like she was walking on a cloud or something. She hardly even remembered her feet hitting the floor but the next thing she knew she was at her first classroom door and the bell was about to ring. She paused outside the door and looked down to the notebook and the words Quinn spoke echoed through her head.
You wouldn't want to forget your note.
Note? Not plural? She perked an eyebrow and pulled the cover of the notebook open. She looked at the pages and just saw notes. History notes to be exact. Quinn's hand writing was pretty but there wasn't anything particularly important in there. Well, important because Quinn needed the notes for class but not important enough to have been so adamant about her taking the notebook. She frowned in disappointment and shook her head. She was stupid for thinking there was something in there for her.
She used her thumb to flip through all the pages quickly before clapping it closed and heading into the classroom with her head hung low. Damn.
"Rach" Charlie came up behind her, holding a folded note out toward her with a smile "This fell out of your notebook."
"Oh" Rachel reached for the folded piece of paper, eyeing it carefully, as if she were trying to read it before unfolding it. "Thanks. I folded it because it's an outline of what I think will be on the pop quiz."
"Whatever" Charlie said with a shrug and a smile as she walked in with her friend. They found their usual seats and slid in. Rachel pulled out her real notebook and set it on top of the blue one Quinn had given her before laying out a pen to take notes with. She then laid the folded note out on the desk and stared at it. What was inside? Common sense would tell her to open it but she was terrified of what it would say. Was it Quinn telling her she had made a mistake? Her hand shook as her fingers ran over the crisply folded paper wondering what wonders it held.
"Can I borrow a pencil?" Charlie asked softly and Rachel looked up, nodding quickly before she dug out a pencil and offered her friend a smile. "What was that all about with Santana, anyway? Walking you to class?"
"She had a question about chemistry" Charlie said with a shrug. She was a horrible liar and it showed on her face but Rachel didn't call her out. She just nodded and smiled "I'm glad she is taking her studies seriously." Charlie smiled that smile that told Rachel there was more to the story but she wasn't going to tell her right now.
Rachel didn't care because she had a note to read. She took a deep breath and grabbed the note. Her hands trembled a little as she pulled it open slowly. She bit at her bottom lip and as each little crease was unfolded she felt her heart skipping a beat. Finally the note was open and she smoothed the paper out under her palms before her eyes fell to the letters scribbled in Quinn's pretty hand writing.
Meet in the janitor's closet in the science hall after third period.
Rachel read the words over and over again. She read them until they were burned into her retinas. Every time she read them her heart leaped into her throat. Her stomach knotted in anticipation and wonderment and each time she read the words she smiled wider. She was running a thousand different scenarios in her head and not a single one was convincing her that going was a bad idea. She would be there, promptly, awaiting whatever it was Quinn had wanted to meet her there for.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.