What Do You Say Fabray?

By: Tracy Cook

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters they belong to the creators of Glee.

Pairing: Quinn/Rachel

Chapter 10

Challenge 2: Balancing Act

"Today's challenge will be our first physical challenge." Quinn announced to the remaining competitors with a smile on her pink lips. For the most part she was fairly happy with who was remaining. Though, she would have gladly chosen to keep Puck and send home Finn. The way that he was constantly looking at Rachel was more than she could handle.

Some of the contestants cheered when they heard this and others groaned.

It seemed like it wasn't going to be a fair challenge, considering that most of the men left were football players and dancers. Even Brittany and Santana had toned bodies and had partook in dancing and cheer leading. The only one who looked like she wasn't up to par was Rachel. But, she had something that most of the others lacked, determination and concentration.

"Each of you will be asked to stand on one of the six metal poles placed before you." The blonde explained, allowing a moment for them to all take in the scenery. There were poles sticking out of the ground that were quite small and looked difficult to stand on. "Your challenge will be simple. Whoever can balance on top of the pole the longest will win a one on one date with me tonight."

They all nodded their understanding.

Rachel was already staring the pole down and chewing on her bottom lip as she attempted to think of a strategy. She might not be as physically fit as others in the game, but she was the smallest and she knew that would work to her advantage.

"As time passes, we will add other challenges to the mix to further complicate things." She finished her explanation.

"No matter what, you will not miss out on time with me though." Quinn told them. "Everyone will be going out with me together for one last night, to get to know each other, before we eliminate another player. But, remember. The more time that we spend together the better your chances are for staying and ultimately winning."

The petite diva had a look of determination written all over her face. She didn't care how much her feet hurt after this challenge, she was going to win that date, and she was going to win the entire game.

'Quinn and I will be together...'

"Everyone stand up on your poles however you want." Quinn said with a smile. "Once you are all standing on them then the time will start."

All of them moved toward the poles and stood on top of them. Some of them chose to stand on one foot, others chose to curve their feet around the pole to help balance, and Finn was seeming to have the most trouble just staying on the pole. He was rather tall and he had large feet and they barely fit on the pole. It was evident he would be the first to fall.

"Alright!" The blonde called out, looking over the contestants to make sure they were all on their respective poles. Her eyes stopping to linger on Rachel for a minute just to admire how adorable she looked. She was so concentrated. Her eyes focused forward, her arms held out. She was in it to win it. 'In it to win me...' She blushed at the thought. "The time starts now!"

Within seconds Finn was stumbling on the pole and falling to the ground. He was usually really good in physical challenges, but he was just too tall and his balance had never been really good. He had two left feet.

He didn't seem exactly broken up by the fact that he had fallen though.

And neither did Brittany and Santana, Quinn noticed.

The two girls actually exchanged a knowing look with each other and then they linked pinkies and they fell from the poles at the same time. Like they planned to both lose, because they either couldn't go on the date together, or they wanted to spend more time alone. It was actually a bit more irritating to Quinn that they didn't seem to care about her at all then Finn's blatant attraction to Rachel. At least she understood that, Rachel was gorgeous. But, why come on a dating show if you weren't interested in the host?

'It's not like you are all that interested in them anyway...' Her mind teased and her hazel eyes returned to the remaining people fighting for the date.

It was true. The last three standing were the people that she most liked in the house. She felt a romantic connection to all of them on some level. First, there was Mike who looked like he was never going to fall. He was using his dancing techniques to help him. Then there was Sam, he would honestly probably fall next. He seemed to be struggling with his balance and a bit clumsy. Finally, there was Rachel.

Rachel was in it to win it.

She didn't look like she was going to fall any time in the near future. Her hands were out, she was still, and she had a look on her face that said that she wasn't going to lose. That was what set her apart from everyone. Once Rachel Berry set her mind to something she always followed through. She would win this or she would die trying.

'I really hope that she wins...' Quinn knew that it was so wrong of her.

She was supposed to be keeping an open mind to dating the other contestants, and she was to the best of her ability, but she just felt a connection with the brunette. A connection with her that she had never thought was possible and now she couldn't help but want to spend all of her time with her.

"Alright!" Quinn called to them. "Thirty minutes have passed! It's time to add some rain and wind!"

After saying that, large fans were turned on that were aimed directly at them and water started to fall from the rain machines above them. Rachel could feel the way that the water added to the slipperiness of the metal pole and she stumbled and almost fell off of it, but she caught herself and controlled her balance. She wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Sam on the other hand could not handle the added elements. It had already been really hard for him to balance without them, and he fell to the grass.

Now there were only two.

At this point, Quinn would probably be happy going on a date with either of the remaining competitors. She loved spending time with both Mike and Rachel, but she was still internally rooting for the young girl. She didn't show it on her face though. She didn't want to seem completely biased.

Rachel never looked over to Mike, no matter how badly she wanted to see if he was going to fall. She kept her large brown eyes focused on one specific spot the entire time and she focused on her breathing. She just needed to last a few minutes longer and hopefully she would win. That was what she kept telling herself.

The young man was having problems with his balance and he was starting to wobble. He had literally danced in the rain on many occasions, but this was different. The pole was digging into his foot and it was starting to cramp.

'Fuck!' He thought to himself as he waved his arms and tried to regain his balance.

It didn't help though, and Mike fell to the grass with a disappointed look on his face. He didn't like losing. It wasn't in his nature, but he was also very humble. So, he turned and offered Rachel a smile as Quinn told her that she was the winner. She wasn't quite as humble and she definitely looked proud of herself for winning.

Of course she was proud.

When she had heard that they were going to partake in a physical challenge she knew for certain that she was going to be the first to lose. Rachel had never taken any sports in high school, she didn't even watch sports, and although she had dance lessons they were never excessive. Her main focus had always been her voice. She just couldn't believe that she had won and her brown eyes were shimmering with excitement and she was wearing a wide smile.

"Congratulations to all of you." Quinn told the group. More than anything she wanted to run over and pick Rachel up into a hug and spin her around in order to congratulate her for her victory. She had to be fair to the others though. Still, her heart was hammering loudly in her chest at the thought of going on a one on one date with the adorable starlet. "You all did a wonderful job, and I will see you all tomorrow night when we go out."

She smiled, and hazel eyes landed on brown. "As for you Rachel. Go and get ready and meet me out front at seven."

O

Rachel Berry had always wanted to dress up like a princess and go out a romantic date with someone. She had always wanted to feel like she was beautiful, but she had never had that opportunity. Not only because people picked on her a lot and tore her down, but also because she had never had time to do so. She had spent a good portion of her life dedicating everything to her dreams.

Every single minute was about school and making it on Broadway and she never had time to invest in love.

She had only tried once to go on a date because her co-star convinced her that it would help her to understand her character better if she actually dated. It had been a complete disaster. She was praying that tonight would not be a disaster.

Her heart was racing in her chest as she walked out of the house at exactly seven o'clock. She was a very punctual person and she prided herself on always being on time.

Standing at the end of the long driveway was Quinn Fabray. She was dressed in a stunning blue dress that went down past her knees and matched her skin tone perfectly. Her hair was done up like a princess and she had a smile on her pink lips that caused Rachel's heart to melt. She couldn't understand how anyone in the household could focus on anyone or anything else. The blonde standing in front of her was the prettiest girl that she had ever seen.

Quinn's mouth felt dry as hazel eyes roamed over Rachel's body.

She looked adorable. Her outfit was not what she would call typically sexy, but she looked gorgeous. She had a shawl on, and she was wearing a classy looking black dress that went down past her knees. It didn't show too much cleavage, just enough. And Quinn couldn't stop herself from looking over the exposed tan skin of her chest and her toned legs. Rachel's legs were her weakness.

'Sweet baby Jesus! She looks amazing! Look at those legs and that smile and ah! Rachel Barbra Berry will be the death of me.'

Brown eyes were shimmering with excitement as she noticed the horse drawn carriage beside the blonde. It was beautiful. Something straight out of a movie. She knew that it was probably just for the television show, they were all about dramatics, but so was she. And she was loving every single second of the date and it hadn't even started yet.

"Hello, Rachel." Quinn greeted when the diva got close enough.

"Hello, Quinn." She said with a wide smile. "This is beautiful!" She could not contain her excitement. She had never really been on a date before and now she was going on a date with a lovely woman in a horse drawn carriage. A blush covered her naturally tan cheeks and she turned her attention to the blonde in order to add, "You are quite beautiful as well."

She laughed softly, "Thank you. You look lovely tonight."

Rachel found it sort of hard to believe the words and she hoped that it didn't show on her face.

It did.

Quinn knew that Rachel was insecure about her appearance and she couldn't really blame her. In the last challenge they had literally called her ugly and said that she had no chance in hell with her. That had to be weighing on her mind. 'I guess I will just have to show her how beautiful she truly is...'

The blonde heiress held out her hand to her in order to help the petite woman up into the carriage.

"Thank you, Quinn." She said with a grateful smile.

O

"Although I am enjoying this immensely. I feel as if I sort of won this date by default." Rachel admitted, casting her large brown eyes up at Quinn who was sitting beside her on the carriage. Her breath rushed out against the pale skin of her neck, and the blonde shivered at the contact. Feeling her breath against her skin caused her entire body to react.

It was distracting. She almost didn't hear what Rachel said and it took a minute for her to truly comprehend it.

'This girl... Every time she touches me it's impossible for me to think...' Quinn thought, chewing on her bottom lip and looking down into worried eyes. She hated that the other girl was so insecure. She didn't hate it because it was off-putting though, she hated it because it hurt her. It hurt knowing that whatever the beautiful young woman had gone through in her life had made her feel so terrible about herself.

"Why would you say that?" The blonde questioned. Her voice cracking with emotion and her heart racing in her chest.

Their lips were very close and it was once again proving to be a distraction.

"Because it is true." Rachel sounded sad. "I feel like Finn isn't putting forth an effort in this competition, and Brittany and Santana seem far more interested in each other than attaining your affections." She shrugged her shoulders. "I just find it bothersome."

"Shouldn't that be a good thing for you?" Quinn asked with a raise of her brow and a smirk.

"You would think." She stated in a matter of fact tone, "But, while I am fully invested in this competition and I intend to win." She nodded her head to show that she was serious. "I simply do not feel that there is much competition here and I would never want to win something by default. Especially when that something is as important to me as you are."

Her face heated up as a blush painted her pale cheeks. Rachel's compliments were always filled with far too many words, but she loved them. They meant the world to her.

"Quite honestly, it baffles me." The petite brunette informed.

"Why's that?" Quinn breathed out, trying her hardest not to laugh.

"I simply cannot begin to comprehend what is going through the other contestants' minds!" Rachel spoke with such passion and urgency that it was comical. She loved how passionate she was. "How can they be forming other romantic interests when someone as beautiful and genuinely interesting as you, are standing before them?"

Her blush intensified when she heard this and she was about to answer the question, but Rachel seemed to be caught up in her rambling. That happened a lot. She didn't mind. She liked listening to her talk.

"Like Finn for instance. How on Earth can he find romantic interest in me when you are an option?" She couldn't understand it.

This sentence caused her blush to dissipate and her heart to break. She could hear all of her insecurities in her voice. She could hear years of people telling her that she was unattractive and that no one would ever like her. She could hear it all in just a simple sentence and she hated it. Quinn just wanted her to know that she was beautiful. That she was one of the most uniquely gorgeous people she had ever met.

She wanted her to understand that.

"I can't blame Finn for being attracted to you, Rachel." Quinn hated talking about Finn and his attraction toward the woman she was falling for, but her words were the truth. She couldn't blame him. "You are a very lovely young woman. And on top of that you are successful and talented." She paused and offered her a playful smile, "You are quite a catch."

Rachel tugged her full lip between her teeth and chewed on it, her brows knit together. Those words were hard for her to hear. Not her being successful and talented, she knew that those words were true, but she didn't feel lovely.

"I suppose that in an unconventional way I might be beautiful, but not compared to someone as beautiful as you."

"We are really gonna have to work on your confidence." She whispered, lifting a hand to stroke a few stray strands of dark hair behind her ear.

"I'm sorry." Rachel was worried that her lack of self-confidence in her appearance was going to make Quinn not like her. She really wanted to win over her heart, but she couldn't help those feelings of inadequacy. She had felt them all her life.

Quinn chuckled softly and shook her head. "Don't apologize, Rach." She delicately ghosted her fingertips along the other woman's jawline, watching as she shivered at the touch. She loved being the one to cause her body to react in such a manner. Brown eyes were connected intensely to hazel and for once it looked like Rachel had no idea what to say. She looked speechless and confused.

"I just think that a lot of people have made it their mission to bring you down and make you feel unattractive."

Rachel nodded.

"But, those people are just jealous. They are jealous of your talent and they are jealous of how breathtakingly beautiful you are, Rachel." Quinn's voice held truth behind each word and Rachel could not help but believe her. She believed that the blonde thought that she was beautiful. For the first time in her life, she truly felt that she was beautiful. "When I first saw you standing in line with the other contestants, you were the one who stood out to me."

"Really?"

"Really." Quinn lent down and placed a gentle kiss to Rachel's forehead. She could feel the hot skin against her lips and she loved being so close to her. Every minute that they spent together she was growing more and more fond of Rachel Barbra Berry.

Author's Note :

I know that I haven't updated this fic in a REALLY long time! And I already expect to get hate for that, but a lot of stuff happened... I moved, got engaged, that fell through, got depressed, lost someone really close to me, and yeah, I am just starting to pick myself up again. I do want to go back and finish all of my unfinished works before starting any new ones so please do tell me what y'all think!

If y'all are still interested in this fic! Please leave me some reviews and tell me what you think! The next elimination will only eliminate one person and y'all are still free to vote! Do you guys think she should kick Finn out? Are you mad about Brittany and Santana and how they are treating her? What do you guys want to see?!

The next chapter should be up within a few days so please do vote! :))

I love you all and thank you for sticking around!

-Tracy Cook-