Title: Kiss and Tell (Loose Lips Sink Ships)
Author: texaswatermelon
Fandom: Glee
Pairing: Quinn/Shelby, eventual Quinn/Brittany, eventual Rachel/Santana
Rating: R, for language and possible adult situations
Summary: Most people in Vocal Adrenaline tend to feel one of two ways about Shelby Corcoran: they either loathe her with all the fire of a thousand of Carmel High's stage lights, or they possess some amount of sickening admiration for her. Quinn is really a mix of these two extremes.
Disclaimer: Glee is property of Ryan Murphy Television and 20th Century Fox. All characters, places, and recognizable names herein have been borrowed for the use of this fanfiction. Title from "XO" by Fall Out Boy. This story is a work of fiction and is in no way affiliated with the aforementioned groups. No infringement intended.
A/N: AU Quinn has always gone to Carmel school district, so none of her storyline from Glee applies. This takes place during the same year as season 1 of Glee, so just assume spoilers for all episodes. On the WMHS side of things, there will be an OC who will replace Quinn and take over her whole plot. Assume that everything follows cannon over there unless otherwise mentioned in the story. As far as Vocal Adrenalin goes, I'll be mentioning some real characters and some OC characters, so don't get confused there. If anything is unclear, just ask and I'll try my best to Windex that shit. Unbeta'd; all mistakes are my own.
Warnings: This story deals with issues of alcoholism, abuse of prescription medication, neglect, minor instances of child abuse, student/teacher relationships, sexual relations with a minor, and of course femslash. Now, as far as I know, the legal age of consent in Ohio is 16, but it's still pretty taboo; we're talking about a relationship between a sixteen-year-old and a woman in her mid thirties, so. If any of that stuff is a bother to you, I would suggest finding something else to read. Also, angst. So, that being said, please enjoy.
Oh my god you guys, I suck so bad. I don't even know what to say, other than the fact that I already warned you of my suckiness. And to make matters worse, this is a pretty short chapter, but I'm trying to move the action along here and get things going because I feel like we're dragging. Anyway, things are about to get a little intense, so hopefully you can enjoy this chapter. This one is NSFW.
I really want to thank all of you who have taken the time to review or favorite or alert. You are all amazing and you keep me going. I love you guys, seriously, and I apologize for not being worthy of your praise.
There are probably worse people out there who could have found out about them than Andrea Cohen, but right now Shelby can't think of very many. She looks down at Quinn snuggled tightly into her side, most of her pale naked body exposed where the sheet slipped down in her sleep. Her soft breasts are pressed into Shelby's stomach, one leg tossed carelessly over both of Shelby's legs, an arm tucked over Shelby's middle and head resting heavily on Shelby's shoulder. Her face is completely relaxed and she looks impossibly young. Shelby pushes that thought down immediately and brushes some of the hair away from Quinn's face. She doesn't want to have to wake Quinn up, but it's early Friday morning; they have to be ready for school in a few hours and they have a few things to discuss beforehand.
She drops a kiss to the top of Quinn's head and runs her nails lightly down her exposed back. Quinn sighs in her sleep and shifts closer to Shelby and away from the sensation. Shelby repeats the motion, following the plane of Quinn's back down to the swell of her ass and back again. Quinn's brow creases as she tries unsuccessfully to squirm away. Shelby smirks at how adorable she looks and continues her actions. Quinn finally groans softly and buries her face into Shelby's shoulder before rolling over and blinking up at her blearily. Shelby can't stop herself from smiling down at Quinn with something close to adoration.
"Hi," she whispers, smoothing Quinn's hair back again.
"Hi," Quinn replies, her voice rough from sleep. Her eyes do a quick sweep of Shelby's body, as if to confirm the fact that what happened earlier was real. Her hand moves slowly from its place at Shelby's hip and trails across her stomach. She watches the muscles there twitch under her touch as she swirls her finger around the belly button and up Shelby's sternum, across her protruding collarbone and down over her right breast, fingernail catching on the nipple slightly and causing Shelby to suck in an involuntary breath. Quinn's eyes flick up to hers with utmost concentration as she scans Shelby's face. Shelby decides that her best course of action is to lean down and kiss Quinn—a real, medium-force kiss like she means it. It's not that she doesn't want to do that with Quinn again—God does she ever—but she feels that there are some things they need to discuss beforehand, the first of them being—
"How do you feel?"
Quinn is still staring at her lips when she pulls away to ask the question and it takes her a few moments to answer.
"I feel fine. A little sore, but…"
Shelby grimaces and tightens her hand on Quinn's hip as if that will make it feel better. "Sorry."
Quinn smiles and tangles her fingers with the ones on Shelby's free hand. "Don't. It's not that bad. I don't regret anything." Shelby just nods. "How do you feel?"
"I feel good. Quinn, you were amazing," Shelby says earnestly, which makes Quinn smirk shyly and blush a little.
"Well that's actually good to know, but I was talking about this whole thing with Andrea." Shelby sighs and looks up at the ceiling while biting the inside of her lip. "Are you mad?"
"Of course I'm not mad, Quinn," Shelby assures her quickly, leveling Quinn with a serious look. "I'm just disappointed—frustrated… I don't really know. This situation is not ideal."
Quinn casts her eyes down to the sheets and picks at some thread there. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kissed you at school."
Shelby's fingers are under her chin in a second, forcing her to look up. "Stop it. This is not your fault. None of this is," she says forcefully and with unmistakable self-loathing. Quinn pulls away from her a bit.
"Shelby, I'm not helpless. You didn't force me into anything. I wanted this. I pushed for it even when you tried to get me to stop. And I'm the one that kissed you at school where anyone could see. Please stop acting like I'm some poor, confused child with Stockholm syndrome or something that you're just taking advantage of. That's not what this is. It's a relationship. A mutual relationship."
That word alone causes Shelby's heart to stop in its tracks. Her mind is screaming at her to end this now, because a mutual relation is definitely not what this is. It's just not possible for a dependent sixteen-year-old girl to have a mutual relationship with a thirty-four-year-old woman who also happens to be her current guardian and teacher. There is nothing mutual about this at all—not in her eyes and certainly not in the eyes of the law. Quinn's still got two years before she graduates, and even then their lives will be so far apart that Shelby doesn't know how they could manage it even if they survived the next two years sneaking around behind everyone's backs.
Not only is this not what's best for Quinn—forced to live in a secret relationship with a woman twice her age who she already lives with when she should be out doing regular teenage things and breaking up with people her own age every other week—but Shelby's not even sure if she wants this for herself. She's getting older now. She's just about to have the chance to meet her daughter for the first time and maybe have some sort of place in her life. She's getting tired of coaching glee and she's just about ready to move on. To what, she doesn't know, but she's pretty sure it's not a long-term relationship with a woman who is the exact same age as her daughter.
And all of this only comes into play if she doesn't get fired and arrested for having sexual relations with a minor.
That's what her mind is telling her. But apparently her body has a will of its own (she thinks it may originate from the thing beating inside her chest) because it betrays her immediately and reaches for Quinn, pulling the blonde flush against her and kissing her until their tongues meet and they're both breathless.
"I don't think she'll say anything," Quinn says against Shelby's lips once they've stopped. "As long as I give her what she wants and stay away from glee. She doesn't have any proof."
Shelby knows that it doesn't actually take any proof to destroy a person, just someone with enough determination and a convincing story. She doesn't say so, though, just strokes the side of Quinn's face and sighs.
"I feel bad. I know how much glee means to you. And you have so much talent.
Quinn smiles weakly. "It's okay. I made my choice. I don't regret it."
It's certainly not the most convincing thing she's ever heard, but she allows herself to believe it anyway once Quinn starts kissing her again and stroking Shelby's body with a little more purpose.
xx
Jesse had already made contact with Rachel earlier in the week, just like Shelby had instructed him to. He'd managed to set up a date with her for tonight, which is almost too impressive for Shelby's taste, but if they're going to make any sort of progress, she needs Jesse to pull out all the stops. She decides to end practice a little earlier than usual in order to give Jesse enough time to prepare.
"Are you ready?" she asks him as everyone packs up to leave.
"Of course I'm ready," he replies with a smug smile on his face. "You should have seen her face when I sang to her on Tuesday; she practically fainted in the face of my talent. After tonight I could probably propose and get her to agree without any effort at all."
Shelby levels him with an icy glare because he seems to be forgetting the fact that this is her daughter they're talking about.
"Just remember to be romantic and respectful," she emphasizes with a look that threatens his precious vocal chords if he doesn't do what she says. He swallows and nods his understanding. "Good. I want a full report on Monday."
As she turns to gather her own things, she comes face to face with Dustin, who is standing in front of her with his hands glued to his thighs and his fingers tapping restlessly against them.
"Ms. Corcoran?" he says like he's not really sure if he's allowed to be speaking to her or not.
She quirks an eyebrow. "What's up, Dustin?"
"Well, I just was wondering…" His hand flies up to the back of his neck, which he rubs at furiously. "It's just, I noticed that Quinn wasn't at practice this week and I was wondering if everything was okay."
"She's fine, Dustin. She hasn't been at practice because she decided to quit glee," Shelby says a little waspishly. She doesn't really want to be rude to him, but the memory of Quinn's broken sobs and shaking body after he was done with her last week still makes her heart clench.
Dustin's face goes slightly pale at the news. "Did—did she say why?"
What he's really asking is if Quinn quit Vocal Adrenaline because of what he said to her, which Shelby knows is nowhere near the real reason, and it's clear that he still cares about her despite whatever stick he's got up his ass right now. She decides to cut him a break.
"She says she's got too much schoolwork. Apparently her chemistry grade is suffering."
"Oh," Dustin says with a nod. It's clear that he doesn't quite believe that story, but he seems willing to accept it for now anyway. "Okay, well. Thanks." Shelby gives him a tight-lipped nod and he goes to leave. "Uh, Ms. Corcoran, would you mind not telling Quinn that I asked about her?" he says suddenly and Shelby frowns at him. "It's just, I don't think she'll really appreciate the sentiment right now."
Shelby gives him a terse nod in reply because she's pretty sure he's actually right about that and he gives her a wave and stutters out some goodbyes before backing away like she's a hungry tiger who might attack at any moment. When he's finally gone, Shelby continues collecting her things and goes to retrieve Quinn from the library.
xx
Later that night Shelby fucks Quinn against the back of the couch and tries not to think about the fact that Jesse is probably trying to violate her daughter in the same way that she is violating Judy Fabray's.
xx
Christmas comes and goes quietly. Quinn makes them pancakes, eggs, and bacon for breakfast and afterwards Shelby hands her a small box wrapped in Christmas paper.
"Aren't you Jewish?" Quinn asks playfully. Shelby just rolls her eyes and waits as Quinn unwraps her present.
The box yields a golden bracelet with tiny stars all around it and Quinn gasps softly, running her fingers over it reverently.
"Gold stars are kind of my thing," Shelby explains, even though Quinn has already heard that several times before.
"It's beautiful, Shelby. Thank you," she says breathlessly as she fastens the bracelet to her left wrist.
Quinn hands over two gifts. The first is a special edition copy of Across the Universe. "I noticed you didn't have it, so I wanted to make sure your collection was complete." The second is a homemade CD entitled "Covers by Quinn Fabray."
Shelby looks up in surprise. "Quinn, did you record all of these?"
Quinn just shrugs sheepishly. "I've had a lot of free time lately."
"I can't wait to listen to it," Shelby says with an awed smile. Quinn just blushes.
They complete the morning by making love in Shelby's bed until well past noon before Quinn drives herself over to see her mother for a few hours.
xx
A few days before New Years Eve Quinn emerges from her bedroom to find Jesse and Shelby engaged in what appears to be a pretty intense conversation. It's weird to see him there and she tries to walk quietly so that she can catch some of their words. The floorboards creak underneath her foot just as she comes into earshot and both of their heads snap up immediately to look at her. Jesse, ever the performer, recovers in an instant and flashes her a bright smile.
"Quinn! It's great to see you, and might I add that you're looking lovely today as usual?" Quinn glances down at her outfit—a pair of Carmel High sweatpants and one of Shelby's old musical cast tees—and just shakes her head. Jesse doesn't take any notice and continues to plow ahead. "Shelby and I were just talking about how difficult it's going to be to wow the judges at regionals this year without your stunning voice to help us out, especially now that we're up against that promising talent from McKinley."
"Well, I'm sure you'll pull it off, Jesse. You always do. I know you won't let anything stop you from getting one last nationals title to your name," Quinn replies blandly. She catches Shelby's smirk out of the corner of her eye as Jesse practically beams at her and jumps up off the couch.
"That's so kind of you to say, Quinn. Anyway, I really should be going, but before I do, I wanted to invite you to my annual New Years Eve bash. All the kids from Vocal Adrenaline will be there and I know they're dying to see you again. You can meet my new girlfriend as well!"
Shelby's jaw clenches instantly at that, but she manages to loosen it as Quinn glances at her questioningly.
"You should go," she says as encouragingly as she can. "It'll be boring here with me and I always fall asleep before midnight anyway."
Quinn wants to say that she can think of plenty of ways to make sure that Shelby stays awake, but she does kind of miss some of her friends from glee, and it's not like she has to stay too long anyway.
"Sounds great," she agrees finally and Jesse claps loudly.
"Excellent! I'll see you then. Have a wonderful day, ladies," he says before backing out of the apartment. Quinn gives him a tiny wave and then glances at Shelby with something like exasperation. Shelby just shakes her head.
"Well, as exciting as that was, I need to run to the store real quick. Do you need anything?"
Quinn shakes her head, so Shelby gets up and gives her a quick kiss before grabbing her keys and coat and heading out the door. Quinn stares after her, Shelby's hushed whisper of the name Rachel echoing in her head.
xx
Jesse's party is already in full swing by the time Quinn arrives, but he still opens the door personally when she rings the bell and ushers her in excitedly, taking her coat from her and complimenting her appearance.
"Look who's here, everyone!" he announces at the top of his lungs as he drags her into the living room. The kids from Vocal Adrenaline cheer and some of them run up to give her a hug and tell her that they've missed her at practice. "See? I told you," Jesse says, and his smile could split his face in two. "Here, I want you to meet someone."
He reaches into the throng of people and magically pulls a short brunette out of the crowd. Quinn's breath catches in her throat when the girl turns around and she's met with a pair of large brown eyes.
"Quinn Fabray, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Rachel Berry. Rachel, this is Quinn."
"Nice to meet you, Quinn," Rachel says with a nervous smile. Quinn shakes her hand dumbly. This is the girl. The girl that had Shelby so shaken up after sectionals. The girl that they had been discussing yesterday. The girl that Jesse is apparently now dating.
"I saw you at sectionals," Quinn replies without thinking. "You were amazing."
Rachel blushes lightly, but her smile turns proud and it reminds Quinn so much of Jesse that she finds it a little gross.
"Thank you very much."
"Ah, you two are friends already," Jesse says jovially. "Quinn, would you do me a favor and keep Rachel company while I go attend to my guests?" Quinn barely has time to breathe before he's giving Rachel a kiss on the cheek and disappearing into the crowd.
The two of them stand there somewhat awkwardly for several moments. Quinn tries her best not to stare, but now that she's close to Rachel, the similarities between her and Shelby are even more glaringly obvious.
"So," Rachel says finally, and Quinn doesn't even have to strain to hear her over the music because she speaks so loudly, "I assume that you're in Vocal Adrenaline as well?"
"I was until recently," Quinn replies, "but my grades were starting to suffer."
"Yes, I can see how that might happen. Your practice schedules are quite intensive," Rachel agrees. Quinn nods.
"Yeah, well, Shelby knows how to win, anyway."
"Shelby Corcoran, your coach?" Rachel asks, her eyes lighting up with interest.
"Yeah. You, uh, kind of remind me of her, actually," Quinn says. Before Rachel can question her on that, someone bumps into Quinn, splashing their drink onto her. Rachel gasps loudly.
"Oh man, I'm so…" Quinn stops shaking the sticky drink off of her arm to look up at the person. "Quinn."
"Dustin," she acknowledges darkly.
"Quinn, I'm really sorry. Here, let me help you get cleaned up," he offers guiltily, reaching for her.
"Don't!" Quinn snaps loudly, and he flinches away. "Excuse me, Rachel."
"Of—of course," Rachel stutters out as Quinn storms off toward the bathroom. Much to her annoyance, Dustin follows.
"Quinn, I swear I didn't mean to."
"Whatever," she mutters, using a hand towel to wipe herself off.
"Well, are you okay? Do you want me to find you a change of clothes?" he asks nervously.
"Look, you've made it pretty clear that you don't care about me over the past few weeks, so you might as well stop wasting your breath pretending now," Quinn says, shooting a glare at him in the mirror. He looks away from her gaze.
"Come on, Quinn. You know I didn't mean that stuff I said," he tells her quietly.
"Oh yeah?" she sneers nastily. "Well, you were pretty fucking convincing to me."
She leaves him standing there in the bathroom as she hurries back through the house, muttering a quick goodbye to Jesse and Rachel on the way out.
Shelby is not asleep when she gets home and she looks surprised to see Quinn return so soon. Quinn just ignores her worried questions and strips her dress off over her head, dropping it carelessly to the floor as she stalks over to the couch and straddles Shelby, kissing her without preamble.
Shelby recovers pretty quickly for having a half-naked Quinn in her lap. She gets rid of Quinn's bra with a flick of her wrist and has to pause for Quinn to rip her own shirt off over her head before the blonde attacks her again, grinding down roughly. Shelby moans into the kiss and reaches up to palm Quinn's breasts, but Quinn rips her mouth away quickly.
"No," she growls, dragging one of Shelby's hands down into her underwear. "Fuck me."
Shelby gushes at the sound of Quinn's demand and wastes no time in burying three fingers deep inside of her. Quinn's resounding moan is obscene. Her hips begin moving immediately, grinding down onto Shelby's fingers with bruising force. Shelby leans down to suck a rosy nipple into her mouth as she thumbs Quinn's clit roughly. Quinn bucks hard, gripping Shelby's hair painfully. Her whimpers and cries reach a crescendo within minutes. Shelby makes one final harsh press, curls her fingers, flicks her thumb. Quinn comes apart to the faint sound of cheering as the countdown on the television reaches zero.
An hour later Shelby is naked and asleep underneath her on the couch. Quinn reaches over and grabs her phone off of the coffee table and sends her mother a happy New Years text.
xx
News reaches her by lunchtime the following Wednesday: Jesse St. James has transferred to McKinley High.
"Aren't you the least bit upset by this?" Quinn asks Shelby before English.
Shelby just shrugs. "He'll be back," she says knowingly, and Quinn just shakes her head in bewilderment as she turns to sit down.
"Hey," Dustin calls to her as she passes him. "Can we talk?"
"I don't have anything to say to you," is Quinn's disinterested reply.
"Please?" he asks desperately.
"No."
He doesn't try again.