Chapter 9: Shhh Let's
A/N: So much Finn hate on the reviews. It's delicious. Thanks guys.
Previously: Everyone at NYADA discovered that Finn is special and our girls had their first real fight.
They receive a warning the next day. Quinn blearily opens the door to find Eric Von Furston's steely face close to her own. He gives her a crisp piece of paper. "Mrs Fabray, this is your first warning. We've received complaints that you and your partner were creating a disturbance last night. I, myself, have heard the commotion. A word of advice, close the windows and doors next time to muffle the sounds. Also, we've tolerated the stay of your relative with special needs lumbering around the dorms but you have to get rid of him or you can pay for his stay." With his speech delivered, Von Furston does an about face and marches away.
Quinn holds the paper away from her and tries to read the words, decides it's too early for this shit and walks to their room. She gives Finn a quick kick in the side on her way to make herself feel better. "Wake up sleepyhead." -'and find a job'- she mutters almost to herself.
As per usual Rachel is at her elliptical huffing and puffing away in her barely there workout outfit. They are still at odds with each other. Their screaming match was followed by another screaming match after Quinn entered the bathroom. With Rachel outside the door banging away. Finn left them after he failed to make them stop fighting. He left the door open so the entire dormhood must have heard their argument.
"We really need to get a house with a wide front yard and preferably a forest as backyard so that nobody will ever file some noise complaint against us." Quinn hands Rachel the letter.
"Ohhh like the Beckhams." Rachel reads the letter while exercising. "So fitting since I'm tiny and you're blonde. Their son is even named Brooklyn! Those British people are stealing our life Quinn."
"We are still not friends, Rachel. Don't talk to me." Quinn is back in bed trying to block the whirr whirr of the machine with a pillow. She removes the pillow from her face. "Also, your boy needs to go or I need to go. Whichever. Apparently, Von Furston is only tolerating him because he thinks Finn has special needs." The laughter that's boiling in Quinn's throat bubbles over.
"Don't be mean. Also, I'm sorry about how I acted last night. I was irrational and a bit insane." Quinn hums with approval at the statement. "I didn't mean that you were spreading yourself around. I was just...jealous." The last part is spoken so softly Quinn doesn't catch it.
"What?"
"I was jealous alright!" Rachel dismounts from the elliptical and sits on Quinn's side of the bed. "It was you and I at first then Brody came along. He likes you better than me. I'm his friend first. Then, you leave me here while you hang out with people. I had to work hard to be your friend, you know. For two years, Quinn. Then they get to hang out with you just like that. So, there. I was jealous."
"Well, Brody doesn't get to sleep with me as you brazenly declared to the entire wing last night. Nor does he take to kiss me as you proudly over shared with everyone who cares to listen. So, I guess your place as my top friend is safe." Quinn raises and props herself with her elbows. "For the record but for your ears only. Rachel Berry, I think you are my bestfriend."
An ear splitting squeal comes out of Rachel's mouth as she tackle-mount Quinn to give her a hug.
"Yuck, please Rachel. You're sweaty." Quinn tries to avoid the tiny girls grip and ends up crawling away on the floor.
"The sweat comes with the bestfriend Quinn. Accept it. It will be a great anecdote for future interviews." Rachel pursues her and once again attempts to give her a hug.
"Me murdering you would be a greater anecdote, Rachel. Maybe, they'll even make a musical out of it like Chicago but peep squeakier. Coz you're tiny." Quinn gets up and makes the bed her barrier. "The audience must be this tall to be able to enter." She mock measure the gap she makes with her thumb and pointer finger.
"That's too far, Quinn Fabray! I am sensitive about my height!" Rachel lunges but misses. Quinn's cheerio training is superior to Rachel's own.
"Ha! Slowpoke." Quinn feels her sleep shorts slipping down. Her drawstring comes undone with all the movement. "I call for a time out. Wardrobe malfunction." She starts to tie them together but Rachel's too quick. Soon they are one giggling mass on the floor.
"Ouch! NOT THERE! TOO FAR RACHEL BERRY! I'M TICKLISH THERE!" It's a bit difficult to breathe once the-rock-formerly-known-as-Rachel-Berry is on top of you. "Stop! No. No biting!" She feels like laughing and crying at the same time.
"Guys, stop fighting for..." Finn's eyes widen as he takes in the sight before him. Rachel is half-naked, only in black panties and a sort of torn top, straddling Quinn with her head buried at Quinn's shoulder. Quinn's threadbare white and lavender baseball shirt is hitched to show her abs. He can see her panties where her shorts are half on-half off. They are both covered in sweat, on the floor.
"Don't you ever knock, Finn?" Quinn pushes the still giggly Rachel off her.
"How could you do this to me, Rachel?!" Finn all but growled at them.
They were frozen. They could only watch as Finn put on his shoes, grab his bags and storm out the door. Quinn swears he was repeating 'mailman,mailman' under his breath.
"So, you are saying that Finn walked out because he saw you and Miss Berry wrestling on the floor?" Brody scratches the five o'clock shadow that's gracing his chin. Quinn nods. "What a dumbass." He offers his sojo to be tapped by Quinn.
Quinn clinks her glass with Brody. "Yeah. The worst part is Rachel chases him to Lima. Just straight up boarded a plane to the big O-H-I-O."
"But it's a school night!" Brody sounds so scandalized.
Quinn only shrugs and eats her Bibimbap in silence.
"Do you want us to drink stronger stuff? I can get us something." The Korean resto they're eating at might have some heavy duty rice wine for broken hearts.
Quinn shakes her head. "I'm not supposed to mind Brody."
"Why are you a martyr? I mean Rachel is my friend but right now her sexy ass is so dumb." He stabs a piece of beef from Quinn's platter. "She's got you and she's chasing Finn?"
"Stop it Brody. Another crack at Rachel and I'll crack this bowl on your head."
"Alright, Sorry." He goes back to spearing bits of meat with his silver chopsticks. "I just don't understand it."
"She's trying to save her relationship. What's there to understand?" Quinn carefully takes a sip of her sojo. Yuck. She takes a slow swig.
"What relationship? She's in a relationship with you not him."
Quinn instinctively reaches to turn the ring on her hand. It isn't there anymore. She's not sure what'll be the outcome of Rachel's trip to Ohio. One thing's for sure she's not sure she can handle being thrown out again. She needs to clear her stuff before they get back. "I'm not sure where I stand anymore."
"Oh. Come on, Quinn. This calls for some hot choco and a rooftop." Quinn clings to Brody as they brave the night wind. She carefully tucks her skirt to avoid being blown.
"You're a moron Brody." It's even colder on the rooftop than on the streets. Quinn wraps her coat more tightly about her.
"Be patient." He leads them to a vent. "There's a Chinese restaurant kitchen under here. I think they roast Peking ducks, so this area is always warm." And indeed it's warm. And smells great, the scent of roasting game is evident. Brody pushes some empty crates for them to sit on.
"Wow. The restaurant is on the first floor yet it's still warm here?" Quinn tucks her skirt under her as she sits.
"Must be a fuckin' inferno down there." Brody plunks down on his own crate. "Chinatown is really pretty at night. Too many people at daytime, it's distracting."
"Why are we here?" Quinn takes the top off of her hot chocolate.
"You're in a vacation. I am a stranger you've met here, in China. You can tell this stranger anything. He's gonna forget it in the morning." Brody is grinning like mad. Awesome idea is awesome.
"Oh, alright. Thing is, I don't talk to strangers, Brody." Fabray rule number 4: don't talk to strangers. Quinn ponders on this, maybe it's time to stop being a Fabray. "I'm gonna tell you something but you must never reveal this to anyone. Can you do that, Yang Man Ho? That's your name by the way."
Brody chuckles. "Yang Man Ho. Bit harsh, but ok."
Quinn is silent for a while then - "My friend, Rachel and I, back home in the States were never engaged. We just want a room at the dorms. Finn, a lost boy, is her real fiance."
Brody forgets about the funny name that Quinn gave him in an instant. "Holy fuck, really?"
"A fuck is not holy Brody. Yes, really." She calmly sips on her drink.
"But why are you T-rexxing about?" Brody rakes his fingers through his short hair. "Uh oh. UH OH! Quinn are you... in love with Rachel?"
"What? No!" Quinn thinks for a while. "Nooo."
"Then why are you acting all jealous and angry?"
"Finn is my ex-boyfriend, ok?"
Brody snorts. "What? There's no other man in Ohio?"
"Shut up. I'm telling you something." Quinn sweeps her long hair away from her face. "That's why I know him and I think he doesn't deserve Rachel."
"You should tell her that." This is getting good.
"I've told her in so many ways. I was nearly uninvited from her wedding because of it." Quinn shakes her head remembering the events that followed.
"She was married?"
"No. No. The wedding didn't go through because I had an accident on my way to the wedding." Like a constant reminder Quinn's back protests and she shifts in her seat.
"Why you stubbed your toes or something, then Rachel went berserk?" Brody can really see that happening.
"I got in a car accident. I was told that Rachel didn't want to go through the wedding without me. Their timeslot expired waiting for me because I was already at the hospital getting operated on. I was texting her back when I was hit. I wasn't looking at the road." Quinn hears grumbling laughter from her side.
"I'm sorry. I know it's not funny but she waited for you? Are you the groom?"
Quinn shakes her head in denial.
"Maid of honor? Mother of the bride?"
She's glaring at Brody now. Absurd questions doesn't need answers.
"All I'm saying is you are obviously more important than the wedding itself. In the short span of time that I've known Rachel. She'll get what she wants, come hell or high water. Just think about it Quinn." Brody raises his foot to prop it on Quinn's crate.
"I know that, so she must want something in Lima now coz she ups and flies away. Right?"
"Text her. Call her... anything. You've stopped her before, you can do it again."
"What jump down a building?" Quinn is rummaging through her purse for her phone.
"Wow. You'd do that? You sure you're not in love." Brody pushes at her shoulder. "Quinn Fabray, be honest with me are you straight? Coz I'm straight. We can be straight together."
"Shut up Brody. I'm texting Rachel."
Brody just snickers because he just might already have his answer.
Rachel is in the middle if her tirade about being a grown woman when her phone chimes. She looks at it intending to put it on silent; she does after she replies to the text.
"Lemme guess. That's Quinn right?" Finn toes a wire on the stage floor at McKinley High.
"She's just worried." Rachel puts her phone back her skirt pocket.
"Of Course. How long Rachel, Quinn and Brody?" Finn has his hands forming fists on his side. "How long have you been seeing both of them?"
If lightning hits the stage at that moment Rachel Berry would never have felt it. She's so mad, she's numb. "What?! You... You think I'm seeing both Quinn and Brody? Are you insane?"
"Look, I know you want to have the experiments and all the fun in college but that's not what I meant when I said I was setting you free. I meant free to pursue your dreams not pursue everyone." Finn doesn't get why she's so mad. He's going to forgive her eventually. He just needs time to think.
"Are you calling me a slut Finn Hudson, because it sounds like you are? I haven't been seeing anyone save you. How am I supposed to know what you meant when you set me free? You didn't contact me for four months. I didn't know where you were. Even your own brother doesn't know."
"I was giving you space!" Finn throws his hands up in frustration.
"And in the process made me hate you. I hated you. I told myself that this is love. That love means sacrificing something for the one you love. I told myself you sacrificed your time with me in favor of me pursuing my dreams. But, then you disappeared Finn. You left me, abandoned me. You were my rock but you turned to sand and just slipped between my fingers." Her voice cracks at that point. "I... have always thought that you are the James to my Barbra but maybe I was wrong. I love you Finn. You were my first love but I can't do this anymore. I won't be the last option, only worth getting back to when everything else fails. You can be my Elliot, for now, Finn." She was hoping for tears to come and ease the pain in her heart. They never came. Maybe she had cried them all once upon a time.
"What am I gonna do now? I have no job, no girl, no direction nor plans." Finn hangs his head.
"Please stop. I believe in you Finn. Just keep in motion then maybe you'll find your own road." Rachel takes the boy's hand and gently places the ring in his palm. "Goodbye Finn." She closes his fingers over the ring and kisses Finn's knuckles.
Without a second glance Rachel exits the auditorium steps light, head high. So this is what freedom really feels like.
Silence greets Rachel as she enters their dorm room. "Quinn?" She slips to their bedroom. The bed is without bed covers. Quinn's clothes are not in her closet. Her boots are not by the door. She checks her phone. One message from Daddy. Five missed calls from Kurt. Finn probably told him of the engagement's demise. She opens her Daddy's message. He is simply asking if she's arrived. She fires a quick affirmative text back and then sends Quinn a -'Where are you?"
Maybe Quinn's at the common room. Must make haste! A handful of; 'Have you seen Quinn?' to everyone she passes by at the common room, the entertainment room, the kitchen, later she returns to their room. Clearly, Quinn doesn't want to be found. She's not answering her phone.
Can it be that even Quinn left her? Did she do something wrong? Did Quinn realize that Rachel is a selfish bitch and just ups and runs away? She opens the mini fridge and takes out a bag of chips and a pint of ice cream. The fridge was their latest addition to their little abode. It's pretty new, they purchased it last week. Quinn fell in love with its fire engine red hue and its retro style. Is Quinn going to be fine with shared custody of the fridge or are they going to have to return it? Rachel shovels another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth. She'll just wait for Quinn's text. For the time being, she is a bit tired of thinking about everything. A good song might be a good option at this time. She docks her iPod and hits play. She's already back on the couch when Celine starts singing about being all by herself. First Finn, now Quinn. She's used to being alone being an only child but she has never felt this lonely before.
"Sing it, Celine." A single tear falls from her eyes, and then the floodgates opens. Now, she's openly weeping with a tub in her hand and a bag of potato chips by her side. How low.
Will she call Kurt? Sure. He picks up after the first ring. "Rachel, I've called you five times. How are you holding up? Finn's been mum about everything."
"Kurt, Quinn left me. The fridge will be, maybe, gone tomorrow. I'm eating ice cream." Rachel bawls all over again.
"Wait, honey, what?" Kurt checks his phone if it is indeed Rachel who's calling. Affirmative. He puts the phone back to his ear. "Let's hear about it?"
"Her clothes are not in the closet, her boots are not by the door, and I think she left me Kurt. It's over. Also, I broke up with Finn."
Kurt decides that Rachel has lost her mind from her break up with Finn. "Shhh... It's ok." He doesn't really know what to do with the information. Suddenly Rachel is not crying anymore, she's talking loudly but Kurt is sure it's not him she's talking to. A new voice that suspiciously sounds like the missing Quinn can be heard in the background.
"I'll call you later, ok? I love you." Then Rachel is off the line. Kurt looks at his phone. What the hell just happened there?
The door just won't open. The stupid cardkey is just not her friend. She tries it just like Rachel showed her and the door clicks open. Rachel must be already inside because she hears music. She pushes inside pulling with her the heavy laundry bag. Then she's staring at a crying Rachel, eating junk food in the couch. "Hey what happened?"
"Quinn! You're here. I asked our neighbors and they haven't seen you." The potato chips spill on the floor when Rachel stands up. Then she's talking to the phone again saying I love yous and call you laters. Quinn feels a pain in her heart. She needs to see a doctor, must be some pinched nerve.
"Why are you crying?" Straightforward because running around issues is tiring and Quinn had a long day.
"I thought you left me. Where have you been? You're not answering my calls or texts." Rachel wipes her tears with her sleeve. An overwhelming urge to laugh seizes her and she does just that. So now she's craughing, if that is even a word.
"Hey, hey." Quinn drops the bags and embraces the shorter girl. "I was just down the laundry shop. A family of raccoons trampled our bed then took shelter in my closet last night. Must be escaping the cold. It's my fault because I left the windows and my closet door open. I was just out of it last night. I had everything laundered. Let's sit down."
"I was so scared I'd lose you too." Rachel all but crawled at Quinn's lap.
"Lose me to the washing machines?" Quinn tucks Rachel's head under her chin. She's afraid to ask about the trip to Lima.
"I... I broke up with Finn and when I came home you are not here." Once again a fresh wave of tears bursts forth. The reason, not certain.
Quinn's heart does a somersault. Home? Did Rachel mean New York? Did Rachel mean Quinn? She really needs to get it examined. Eighteen is too young to be dying of a heart attack. Might be a mini stroke. She clutches at her heart.
"Quinn?" Rachel pushes away to look at her human seat.
"You broke up with him?" Finally.
"Yes. It was just too much I don't think I can handle the two of us. Atleast not now."
"The two of us?"
"Finn and I." Rachel tucks her head back under Quinn's chin.
"Oh." For a second Quinn thinks Rachel is talking about the two of them. She's losing her mind along with the heart attack. A few months ago if you tell Quinn she would be holding a crying Rachel Berry in her lap, she would have laughed at your face. A few months ago they were just hugging friends now it seems they had progressed to cuddling friends. Not sure if that's good or bad.
"Let's stay like this for a while if it's not much of an inconvenience, Quinn. I am not certain if I am ready for the world right now besides..." A hand muffles the rest.
"Shhh. Let's."
Disclaimer: I do not, I repeat, I do not own that Sadie Hawkins Episode nor Glee. *snort*
To come: Somebody suspects of the truth. Trouble ahead.
