Title: On a Clear Night
Pairing: Quinn/Rachel
Chapter Preview: Tension begins to build to the point of no return as the pair begin to find comfort and solace in their bond.
A/N: I own nothing. Song featured in this chapter is "Warm Whispers" by Missy Higgins. I started writing this before I got Reviews so I'll address all your lovely and amazing comments (thank you so much everyone!) in the last chapter of this particular fic. Then, SEQUEL!
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Chapter 10: Warm Whispers
Rachel's clock blinked at her, reminding her of the restless minutes ticking by. She was having an absolutely impossible time sleeping; her sheets were twisted about as if she'd gotten the vaccuum and tried to make her bed with it, the comforter splayed over her torso. The brunette huffed impatiently and she rolled to her back, staring up at the ceiling. Never before had she suffered such difficulty in sleeping until she'd had the unexpected joy of falling asleep next to Quinn.
It had been just that one night, but Rachel couldn't forget what it felt like to breathe the same air as Quinn, to have her friend's... no, that wasn't quite right. She didn't really know what Quinn was, besides the fact she loved her, she just knew Quinn was much more than a friend. It didn't really make her anything, she supposed, besides extraordinary and the object of Quinn's affections. It had only been one night, and only spurred on because Quinn had a nightmare - the contents of which Rachel never got around to asking - and wanted to feel safe.
Rachel's heart had admittedly warmed at the thought that Quinn felt safe with her. Brown eyes fluttered shut as she remembered sifting her hands through Quinn's perfect blonde locks until they'd both drifted off, Rachel's hand having dropped lazily to rest on the back of Quinn's neck. Chewing her lip in thought, she swallowed and felt butterflies in her stomach as she looked to the empty side of her bed. Would Quinn think it strange of the diva crawled in to bed with her?
The brunette craved Quinn's arms, her gentle hands resting on her back. She craved it so deeply that it hurt a little. Growling quietly in frustration, she sat up and made her way into her restroom. She splashed a little warm water on her face, looked into her reflection. Rachel Berry, for the first time, felt as if she needed someone. Felt as if she depended on some kind of contact with Quinn. She loved Quinn, this much Rachel knew.
Could Quinn love her in return? Did she already?
Rachel's features were painted with worry, and she saw it herself as the reflection staring at her seemed to wait, and want. She'd been desperately trying to get a handle on these feelings until she believed it was the appropriate time to let them be known, but as she drew a shaky breath she found herself about three seconds away from saying 'hell with it' and boldly striding into Quinn's room.
Rachel's fingers grazed the handle of her brush and she sighed, resigning her urges as she tried to relax. She toyed with the handle, listening to the audible click of plastic against marble, over and over again. She lost herself in thought and as she turned her gaze upward, the brunette's eyes widened and she gasped at the mirror; she thought maybe she'd screamed a little, or squealed, too.
"Quinn Fabray don't you ever scare me like that! How dare you come in here without announcing yourself you know how incredibly jumpy I get! Do I have to explain to you the means of which -"
Quinn's eyes crinkled with an apologetic smile and she closed the distance between them, the action causing Rachel to stop midsentence as feminine fingertips slid over her hips and pulled Rachel into her arms.
Rachel heard an audible sigh escape between them, unsure if it was Quinn or herself. Rachel knew that for some reason, she was trembling in Quinn's arms. Her fingers pulled desperately at Quinn's shoulders as if needing to be closer. How could someone absorb her so completely with just an embrace?
Quinn didn't say anything, but Rachel had a feeling that Quinn had lost the approximate amount of sleep in a mutual displeasure at being deprived of warmth. Quinn's fingers were buried in Rachel's hair, her breath falling gently against Rachel's neck.
How could Rachel have missed Quinn? Yet her heart yearned, ached, absolutely craved the nearness of Quinn. She missed her, she had been missing her, as if she hadn't seen her in far too long. She didn't know what they were doing, why they were, she just knew that Quinn was crushing her into an intense and emotional embrace. Rachel knew it was dangerous territory, being this close, letting herself feel this intensely. She may do something stupid and kiss Quinn, which would inevitably send the pair reeling either into a fit of lust or separate them in a bought of insecurity and uncertainty.
Rachel could smell Quinn's shampoo surround her and was certain Quinn was experiencing something similar, the way they were pressed together in Rachel's bathroom.
"Quinn," Rachel all but whimpered into the embrace, her fingers again bunching the fabric underneath in a grip which communicated all her emotion, her desperation.
"Why are you shaking?" Quinn's voice was a breath against Rachel's ear, unwilling to let go in order to converse. "Are you okay?"
Rachel nodded wordlessly. Her heart was beating impossibly fast and she found herself unable to even find a proper expression for the feelings surging through her rampantly, the reason for the goosebumps on her skin or the emotional trembling.
"Remember when you said I couldn't decide if you were dirt on my shoe, or if you were the best friend I'd ever had?" Quinn's murmurs fell along Rachel's skin, and Rachel could only nod in response.
Rachel had never wanted to kiss Quinn as badly as she did right that moment. She loved Quinn's everything with such desperation it broke her heart. It terrified her. She wanted to beg Quinn to never let her go, to hold on to her this hungrily forever.
Quinn seemed to hesitate on her words, "I knew you were the best thing that could ever come into my life. You looked at me all the time as if you cared, as if you... knew who I was without me saying anything. Even when I was horrible to you, even when I tortured you," Quinn's grip tightened on Rachel, so much so that the shorter girl was being practically lifted in the embrace but instead found herself resting on the edge of the marble sink behind her, Quinn positioned between her legs.
Rachel pressed her lips to Quinn's temple, to the top of her head, listening to every word, not giving an inch between them.
"I was a monster to you and you forgave me every single time. You never gave up on caring about me even when I gave you every reason to run away. I slushied you after you were the only one to comfort me about losing Beth. All the horrible things I've done to you, Rachel, all the terrible things I've done," Quinn's voice was trembling now.
Rachel shook her head, brow furrowing in quiet confusion, and she pulled away slightly.
"I don't deserve it, Rachel, you can't forgive me, you can't," Quinn's eyes were full of tears, her hands still tangled affectionately in Rachel's hair.
Rachel was short of breath, just a little, because the grief painted in front of her was absolutely shattering. She wanted more than anything to lean down, just a little, from her vantage point seated on the edge of the sink, and kiss the girl standing in front of her. Instead, Rachel gently maneuvered her way off the sink and took each of Quinn's hands in her own, disliking the amount of space between them but trying to pace her reactions.
"You can't," Quinn insisted desperately.
Rachel merely blinked, swallowed, unsure of what to say, how to soothe Quinn's pain, "Quinn," her voice was soft, full of adoration, letting one of Quinn's hand go to reach up and press her palm to Quinn's cheek, "I'm afraid you don't get a choice in whether or not I forgive you."
Quinn's face contorted, the blonde sniffling to keep her tears at bay (but failing). She covered Rachel's hand with her own and those angelic hazel eyes closed.
Rachel closed the distance between them, slightly, finding herself breathing the same air as Quinn, gently guiding Quinn's forehead down to rest against her own. She could kiss Quinn, but it wasn't the right time, not just yet. Not while Quinn was so vulnerable and full of grief. She swallowed her urges as she tried to breathe evenly.
"Why?"
The question was full of complexities and nuances and shades of gray and Rachel couldn't really tell Quinn why because she didn't know. She only knew this, she only knew this feeling and this intensity, and that she had always cared what Quinn thought and how Quinn looked at her and wanted nothing but this. Somehow she had always wanted this and she couldn't explain that to Quinn. "My head's so cluttered," Rachel didn't realize she spoke aloud until she heard Quinn make a soft sound of acknowledgement, "I wish I could explain to you everything, Quinn, but unfortunately I find myself with an inadequate vocabulary to properly express everything going on in my mind right now."
Quinn laughed tearfully, sniffled, "Rachel Berry without adequate vocabulary? Alert the media," she grinned, her face lighting up with a smile. Her eyes remained closed, and Rachel sought out her falling tears with the pad of her thumb.
Rachel closed her own eyes and felt Quinn pulling away. At first, she felt disappointed because she thought perhaps Quinn had experienced enough intimacy and been in close proximity too much for one day, but she felt a soft pair of lips on her forehead, and the heat from them lingering. Quinn's lips remained there for some time, and Rachel's heart fluttered erratically. Her small hands delicately snaked around Quinn's waist. "This is why, Quinn," Rachel's words came out before she could really think about them. "This feeling. It's always been there, I don't know why, it just is."
Quinn's lips disengaged from Rachel's forehead as she pulled the brunette tenderly into her arms. Rachel swore she could feel Quinn's heart pounding just as hard as her own as they stayed pressed together.
"Why did you come in my room, did you have another nightmare?" Rachel questioned, trying to stop the feverish desperation to clutch to Quinn like she were the last hope of survival.
Quinn shook her head gently as she pulled away. Rachel didn't know if Quinn was conscious of her actions, but Quinn's fingers were raking down her back as her lips pressed to Rachel's cheek.
Hammering out of control, she tried to keep an even breathing pattern as she felt the warm lips pressed flush to her own cheek, and Rachel knotted her fingers in Quinn's hair again. She swallowed, trying to maintain her coherency despite the fact Quinn being this close and this affectionate made her dizzy and the fact Quinn's fingers were raking down her back desperately that suggested a whole other line of thinking; the diva's chest rose as she took a deep breath to steady herself.
Quinn's voice broke Rachel out of her trance as she spoke near her ear, "I don't deserve your forgiveness but I need it so badly," the admission hung between the thin layer of space between them.
"Quinn," Rachel spoke, trying to keep the wavering breath out of her voice, "I forgive you. I swear, I forgive you, I already did. I always will."
Quinn nodded and Rachel thought maybe she was crying again until Quinn pulled away and pressed her lips to Rachel's temple, "Is it weird if I want to hold you?"
Rachel shook her head adamantly as she opened her eyes to meet the questioning gaze hovering in front of her. "No, not at all," she murmured, unaware of the husky timbre to her voice.
"Okay," Quinn responded quietly, sounding a little unsure as her eyes searched Rachel's face.
Deciding it best if they take this into the other room before Rachel acted on every screaming urge in her body to kiss Quinn with all the love and passion the ex-Cheerio made her feel, she delicately slipped out of Quinn's arms and guided her by the hand back into her bedroom, crawling into bed and encouraging Quinn to follow as she reached out her hand.
Quinn slipped into bed easily beside Rachel and they lay face to face, occasionally reaching out a finger to brush stray hairs away from eyes or leave a lingering touch on cheeks and jaws and necks. Soon Quinn was slipping an arm underneath Rachel and pulling the girl's body flush to her own, wrapping them tightly together.
Rachel needed this, needed Quinn, and after an extended period of time pressed fully against Quinn, she gently disengaged and lay on her side, not waiting for Quinn to wrap an arm around her waist but grabbing Quinn's hand in her own. She pulled the ex-Cheerio simultaneously toward her as she scooted back, pressing them as close together as possible. Rachel pulled Quinn's hand to her stomach, playing with her fingers gently as Quinn's breath rose and fell against her back.
It felt perfect, laying with Quinn this way, Quinn holding her as they both felt sleep beckoning them. Rachel guided Quinn's hand carefully upward and pressed her lips to Quinn's palm, and then the pad of each fingertip, lingering warmly on each as she did so. She could feel Quinn's breath hitch unexpectedly and she turned her gaze to the girl laying just behind her.
The electricity flowing between them was unmatched. A few embraces had lead to a constant exchange of energy that couldn't be explained by any earthly feeling. They'd committed no intimate act further than a few pecks to the cheeks, eyelids, forehead, and quite emotional embraces, but the intensity between them couldn't be pushed aside.
Rachel's breathing had picked up. She wanted so badly to pull the blonde's lips to her and kiss her until neither could breathe. From the spark in Quinn's gaze and the way Quinn's cheeks were flushed even in the dark, she could tell she wasn't alone in it, "Just hold me," Rachel's voice was gentle, husky, full of a mixture of lust and adoration. It wasn't time yet. The same words she had murmured on stage in Quinn's ear in front of the glee club seemed to be so much more powerful as they share the same bed. Rachel shifted in Quinn's arms, resting her head on Quinn's shoulder.
Quinn's arm snaked around her side and pulled Rachel completely against her side, her lips resting against Rachel's forehead, light and delicate kisses on her forehead. The squeeze at Quinn's waist communicated the fact Rachel, too, was feeling completely overwhelmed.
Rachel's eyes fluttered shut as Quinn stroked her scalp gently, pressing kisses to her eyes, her cheeks, everywhere but her lips.
Desperately, she clung to Quinn and rested her head against Quinn's chest, listening to the sound of Quinn's racing heartbeat as kisses were peppered delicately and innocently against her skin.
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Rachel awoke the next morning with Quinn's arm wrapped around her waist from behind. The even breathing at her back told her Quinn was still sleeping soundly, and Rachel didn't even mind she'd missed her alarm. She breathed a sigh of relief. Part of her was afraid she'd dreamed about the intimate interactions they'd exchanged the night before, the obvious emotion and connection between them, and dreamed that she'd fallen asleep with Quinn's lips pressed almost too near her own to resist.
She hadn't dreamed it at all, and she rolled over quietly in Quinn's arms, tracing her fingers along Quinn's jawline, fingers curving gently around the back of Quinn's neck as she massaged the muscles there. It seemed to be the most pleasant way to wake Quinn up, and Rachel enjoyed the way those hazel eyes fluttered open this morning.
"Hi," Rachel murmured sleepily, offering Quinn a gentle smile.
Quinn returned the gesture and buried her head delicately between Rachel's pillow and Rachel's collarbone, "Hi," she murmured against Rachel, sleepily grasping at Rachel's shoulders to pull her closer.
Rachel was glad to know the craving for close contact wasn't a one-sided experience. She let herself be pressed flush to Quinn's body and sighed in contentment. Her fingers sifted through long strands of bed-tangled hair.
"You always smell so good," Quinn commented sleepily and she seemed to be waking up faster than usual. Her leg lifted, hanging loosely over Rachel's, as her hand slid underneath Rachel's waist and pulled her closer, "how is that?"
Rachel grinned, "Should I make a PowerPoint illustrating the release of scent from pores or just skip straight to the lecture and cliff-notes?" She joked affectionately against Quinn's ear, lips pressed to Quinn's earlobe.
Quinn seemed to shiver, and Rachel could feel the blonde's breath hitch, much in the way her own had when drunk-Quinn had taken her earlobe between her teeth. It was an intoxicating response, "Cliff-notes please," Quinn joked back, though decidedly slurring her words together in what seemed to be a positive response to the physical interaction.
Rachel had to stop herself. She was pushing things too fast and though she wanted desperately to make her affections completely known, she couldn't do that to Quinn yet. Instead she settled for stroking Quinn's hair, "Come on, sleepy-head, breakfast is soon."
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Rachel felt a finger tap her shoulder in the hallway, and as she wheeled around she expected to find Quinn, but instead her expression fell when she saw it was just Santana. The displeasure most likely obvious in her face, she sighed, "Hello, Santana, can I help you?"
"Good to see you too, Gimli, but let's get down to business," Santana stated simply and she shoved Rachel back against her locker, narrowing her gaze. "Why are you radioactive today?"
"Radioactive?"
"Glowing. I thought you were supposed to be the smart one. With all your encyclopedia drabble and talking like Rabbit in Winnie the Pooh?"
"Did you just reference the popular childrens' stories?"
Santana grew impatient and grabbed Rachel's hairband, holding it high up in the air, about a foot from Rachel's tallest grasp.
Rachel angrily narrowed her gaze, jumping at the headband but not managing to reach it, "I don't appreciate you once again using my stature against me, Lopez, and I find you disregarding my feelings completely insensitive." Rachel continued to make the occasional leap at the headband, only to watch Santana pull it higher, the Latina's perfectly manicured eyebrows arching in challenge.
"Give it up, Gimli," Santana stated simply in a bored tone, "Why are you glowing? Did you find an especially charming dwarf to share your life with?"
Rachel growled under her breath, visually displeased and she stomped her foot insistently, "Give me my headband!"
Santana tossed the headband down the hall and pushed Rachel back against the locker again, "Forget the headband. Spill."
Rachel blinked confusedly, a mixture of anger and amusement and irritation painting her features, "Why do you care?"
Santana glowered, "Who says I do? I just find it suspicious both you and my best friend are like .. getting along and stuff."
Rachel huffed, "It's perfectly acceptable for two people to get along. Look at Brittany and yourself. You're quite chummy and that kind of comraderie is -"
"Britt and I are different, obviously," Santana folded her arms. "I mean I'm glad you make Q happy and all but whatever you're doing is what I need to know."
Rachel looked around, as if looking suspiciously for cameras. She peeked under Santana's arm, "I do not appreciate you accosting me in the hallway like this. Quinn and I are growing closer because she is living in my house and we have reached a more mature stage of our ... friendship," Rachel hoped her hesitation didn't show too much at that word, "to the point that it is mutually pleasant for us both."
"God, I just wanted to know if you guys were close or what," Santana rolled her eyes and pulled her arm away, "do you have to speak in entire paragraphs?"
"I merely express myself with the appropriate vocabulary for someone with such an extraordinary capability for language like myself," Rachel stated indignantly and faltered as she saw Quinn approaching them, her face lighting up with a brilliant smile.
Quinn responded in kind, narrowing a playful eye at them both, "Are you two going to fight again? Because if you are, I have to get my camera. The last video got so many hits," she grinned and leaned against Rachel's locker.
Rachel caught the scent of Quinn's perfume and reminded herself to attempt to act normal, "The Spanish Inquisition was quartering me for being 'radioactive.'"
"Is that a crack at me being Latina?" Santana snarled and lifted a warning finger in Rachel's direction.
Rachel grinned wolfishly, "Maybe."
Santana's expression faltered as if she'd been caught offguard, "Well... good job then." She congratulated suspiciously. "Quinn's humor is rubbing off on you."
"Who's rubbing on Rachel?" Brittany's voice appeared from behind Santana as her hand slipped into Santana's.
"That's what I was trying to find out," Santana quipped and laughed before she walked away from a blushing Rachel and disappeared into the throng of students.
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Rachel knew they'd have to discuss it at some point. The longing looks, the embraces that were so desperate it made them both ache. Rachel had to be honest with herself and admit she was a little afraid. There was always the slight chance of rejection and it's not something she wanted to consider.
Arriving 10 minutes early for their usual lunch in the auditorium, Rachel didn't think much of the light on the stage. She started to make her climb up the steps when she nearly tripped over a vase.
Full of flowers.
Perplexed, Rachel touched the petals. Someone had gotten her peonies, her favorite flower. Only two people knew that and Rachel was pretty sure that Finn wasn't sweet enough to buy her flowers. The only time he'd bought her anything was really by accident. He'd been at a baseball game and bought one too many hats, so he figured he'd just give it to Rachel and pass it off as a thoughtful gesture. The hat was gathering dust in Rachel's basement.
Picking up the vase carefully, she looked around but saw no one. Nervous, she chewed on her bottom lip, setting the vase down delicately on top of the piano. Was it perhaps a prank?
Just as fear started to drain into Rachel's system, she heard footsteps behind her and saw Quinn standing quietly at the foot of the stage, a quiet smile on her face, "Do you like them?"
Rachel's face lit up and she bounded down the stairs, throwing hersel finto Quinn's arms, "I love them," she whispered against Quinn's ear and felt her heart alight with absolute joy.
Quinn's familiar embrace enveloped Rachel, the blonde humming delicately against her ear. "They're for you. Sort of like a 'thank you' present. For everything you've done. For saving me from my dad, for letting me stay with you, for everything," Quinn's words were rife with emotion and she gently let Rachel go.
Their fingers tangled together, really for the second time, and she felt quiet jolts of electricity passing through her veins, "You don't have to thank me."
"I do, actually," Quinn's voice was gravelly, affectionate. "And that's not all, although the flowers were the surprise part of it."
Rachel carefully pulled Quinn closer to her, beaming up at the girl with a brilliant gaze, wrinkling her nose in amusement. "You're a schemer."
"Like you didn't know that. Now have a seat, Berry." Quinn pulled a stool to the side of the piano, gently guiding Rachel to it and sitting her down. The tone in which Quinn had once said 'Berry' was now completely forgotten, the warm timbre of Quinn's voice moving over Rachel like silk.
Rachel smiled, almost bashfully, and found herself nervously folding her hands in her lap as she watched Quinn sit down at the piano. Quinn had only seemed to play piano when Rachel or Santana was around, and part of Rachel felt as if it said much about her importance in Quinn's life now. To think weeks ago they'd still been fighting it out, trying to figure one another out. Now that both their guards were down, there had been a purer and more intimate connection than Rachel had ever allowed herself to believe.
Even if they weren't together just yet.
Quinn's fingers danced along the piano as they began to play a soft tune, her eyes moving occasionally to follow the motion of her fingers.
Your warm whispers
Out of the dark
They carry my heart
Your warm whispers
Into the dawn
They carry me through...
Rachel knew this was by far the sweetest thing anyone had done for her. Her eyes were already cloudy and she told herself to keep it together while Quinn performed for her, determined to memorize every movement and every word. The girl knew she couldn't stay this far away from her, and tentatively stepped down from the stool, making her way to the piano bench. The brunette dragged delicate fingers along Quinn's back and sat down beside Quinn, eyes darting from the blonde's face to her fingers.
And I'm weeping warm honey and milk that you stay surrounding me
Surrounding me
Your warm whispers
Letting me drown in a pool of you
Your warm whispers
Keeping the noise from breaking through
It was as if Quinn had written the song herself. She could feel every single emotion pouring out of Quinn right now and her hands were folded shyly in her own lap. She wondered to what extent Quinn meant them, how she should react, feel, and found herself lost in the performance despite her worries. Hope fluttered in her chest like a winged creature as she gently reached over, touching Quinn's lower back as the blonde played.
And I'm weeping warm honey and milk that you stay surrounding me
Surrounding me, yeah
I'm weeping warm honey and milk that you stay surrounding me, surrounding me...
Quinn's voice faded, the song carried on for a few more bars before Quinn's eyes searched Rachel's out. They sat in silence for a few moments before Quinn reached over and delicately, almost nervously, touched Rachel's leg, "I remember the party, and," Quinn's voice tremored, "even though I was drunk it was no excuse to maul you like I did." Quinn apologized gently.
Rachel blushed at the mention of that evening and she took a breath, "I accept your apology," she hesitated, hazel eyes meeting her own.
"You were right, when you said we needed to talk about what we were afraid to talk about," Quinn's voice hesitated a little as if words were caught in her throat. "Whatever this is..."
Rachel was afraid this was it, that Quinn was going to tell her that this was it. They couldn't pursue it. Quinn would leave her side, and she wouldn't be able to have one of those perfect embraces or fall asleep with Quinn's arms around her and Rachel began to panic.
The panic must have been obvious because Quinn grabbed Rachel's face insistently, jarring Rachel to reality, "Rachel," Quinn's murmur was desperate, "I'm not going anywhere."
Rachel remembered the day Quinn begged her not to leave her alone, the desperate clinging, the fear in Quinn's eyes.
"You're not alone, either," Quinn's words were sincere and the pad of her thumb stroked Rachel's cheek. "I'm not saying I know exactly what I feel, but I know that I feel happier with you than I've ever felt with anyone else and I just ..."
As Quinn's sentence fell off into an abyss, Rachel's arms flew around Quinn's neck and the shaking brunette clung to her, gratefully, tears falling from her eyes, "I thought you were going to tell me we had to stop, that you had to stop, and I can't live without your arms or the way you look when you're sleeping and I know I'm terribly strange sometimes and I know I'm terrible for your reputation but Quinn I'm desperate every time you .. every time, I feel your arms and I'm desperate, overtaken with this feeling that I can't -" Rachel began rambling in a panic, not realizing her words were mixing with tears.
Quinn broke away, just far enough to gently press her lips to Rachel's cheeks, catching her tears, moving a kiss to Rachel's forehead, her eyelids, "Stop," Quinn insisted softly, pressing a laughing kiss to the tip of Rachel's nose.
Rachel chewed thoughtfully on her bottom lip, laughed tearfully, "Sorry."
"Never be sorry," Quinn stated softly, resting her forehead against Rachel's.
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The agreement was to explore their feelings as they had been - slowly and without labels. Without the burden of expectations forced on them by others. In secret, although the looks they shared betrayed their feelings. They were often caught in one another's gazes, or the simple brush of an arm against arm, gentle nudge. Anything that brought them in contact seemed to light their hearts with joy.
Rachel found that even though they had yet to share an actual kiss, their exchanges were growing more intimate with every touch. Sometimes they'd slip their hands together under the lunch table, or at the dinner table. It was easier to slip into bed although they had agreed they would try to keep it to a minimum. Rachel was grateful for this, only in the sense it made the times in which they shared more special.
Meanwhile, the glee club was busily planning for Nationals and it was consuming most of their time. Mr. Schuester had announced the fact their plan for Nationals was an original number and a special duet. He already had plans for the singers although he was yet to give up that little detail. Everyone was vying for a place to win them the trophy. Santana had even paid off Sue Sylvester to tie Schue up in her office and interrogate him. The coach had simply lit up at the prospect and walked away from Santana, a gleam in her eye as she mumbled something about "5th Century torture implements" and sound proof glass.
That plan had yielded no results, though. It had only left Schue shaken and smelling of butter. Rachel had suspected Sue had used her own "styling methods" by the way Schue's hair was sticking up at the back and feathered in the front. The glee club had spent much of the time holding back laughter at Schuester's scowl as he flattened his hair and tried his best to keep some amount of dignity.
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Rachel was staring at her bedroom door, hoping beyond hope that tonight Quinn would sneak in again and she'd feel those arms around her. Things had progressed so slowly sometimes that it drove Rachel crazy now that their feelings were on the table. Quinn wasn't ready to put a name to her feelings or put a label on their relationship, but the anticipation made it nearly as satisfying.
Her face lit up with a smile as the door squeaked at the hinges, eased open by a freshly showered Quinn Fabray. Rachel couldn't help herself as she got up, rushing into Quinn's arms and breathing her in. They hadn't seen much of each other that particular day, much less enjoyed a hug.
"I missed you," Quinn admitted quietly as Rachel's weight pressed them against the door.
Rachel swallowed at the words, the intensity in which they were spoken, and she pulled away carefully as if to make sure she had heard right.
Quinn looked frightened, and only Rachel's soothing touched seemed to relax the blonde's features.
"Really?" Rachel murmured the question carefully, hopeful tones softening her voice. The brunette continued holding onto Quinn's arms as she delicately let her hands fall down Quinn's arms, grazing her warm skin, pressing her lips to Quinn's bare shoulder, lingering, feeling Quinn's breath lift under her ministration.
"Really."
"I just.. wanted to be sure," Rachel murmured thoughtfully against Quinn's skin. Her heart was humming nervously. This was it. She could feel it, the torturous build-up had reached its peak. "I missed you, Quinn," Rachel murmured quietly. "I know you're not ready to put a name to our .. relationship yet, and you don't know exactly what your feelings entail, but ..."
Quinn shook her head, fingers trailing down Rachel's features and lifting the brunette's gaze.
Her pulse rushed in her ears and Rachel forced herself to hold Quinn's gaze.
"Quinn," Rachel began fearfully, "Promise you won't run away?"
"I couldn't, not now. I'm scared as hell, Rach, but I can't stop. I keep wanting to hold you, anything, and you have no idea," Quinn's fingers had now begun a slow trail over Rachel's neck, hazel eyes taking in every inch of skin there, stopping at Rachel's throat, the place Quinn's lips had stilled the brunette's heart at the party.
Rachel's breath was coming in nervous, tiny little bursts, and she was trembling a little.
"I'm going to kiss you now," Quinn breathed into the dark, the words settling on Rachel and setting her on fire as Quinn leaned in slowly, achingly.
At first it was just a brush of lips, Rachel whimpering against the softness of Quinn's lips; she had arched up into Quinn's arms, the palm at her back helping her a little with the task. Rachel's hands seemed to find their place as she tangled her fingers in Quinn's hair, luxuriating against the tender kiss.
The heat grew, and soon Rachel was panting quietly into Quinn's mouth, pressing herself as close as possible as Quinn's fingers gripped her shoulderblades, Quinn's name slipping from her lips in desperation as she was guided backward into her own bed, surrounded with the feel of Quinn's lips on her own before they feverishly found the skin of Rachel's neck, eliciting a hushed cry of lust in the middle of the darkened room.
It was going to be really hard to focus on Nationals when she could be at home with Quinn doing this.