Chapter 12 – Fireworks
"Next time, I think we should just fly," Kurt said over the music.
"Quit bitching," Santana said, her arms crossed over her chest.
Kurt scoffed. "Yes, because you haven't complained at all."
"Don't make me turn this car around," Quinn joked.
"Guys, we're almost there," Rachel said, turning around to look at the backseat. "And you know it wouldn't have been very practical for all four of us to fly; plane tickets are not cheap."
Quinn was just as tired of being in the car as everyone else, but she was actually happy to be going back to Lima. They had left New York early in the morning, hoping to get to their hometown by midday, and thanks to Rachel's insistence on not taking many breaks—and Santana's lead foot—they were going to get there just as planned.
They were just lucky they could all come back to Lima. Quinn was supposed to work, but someone was nice enough to trade with her since they had no plans for the holiday. The student film Rachel was working on was shut down for the week because the director was flying across the country, so Rachel had been free. Kurt and Santana were also both lucky enough to get time off work; for Kurt it wasn't hard because his boss really liked him, but Santana had threatened to quit if they didn't give her the time off and they eventually relented since she was their most popular employee. Quinn could only get off until Sunday, though, so they were going to have to leave early that morning, so she could work in the evening.
"Drop me off at Britt's house," Santana instructed.
"You don't want to see your family?" Rachel asked.
"I'll see them later," Santana said, waving her off.
"You will also see Brittany later," Rachel remarked.
"Who would you see first, your dads or Q?" Santana asked.
Rachel paused for a moment and then said, "I see your point."
"I thought so," Santana said, smirking.
"Alright, we'll drop you off and then take Kurt to his house," Rachel replied.
It was actually easier to do it that way; Santana lived close to where they were, but Brittany's house was on the other side of town. It was only a few minutes before they were pulling into Brittany's driveway and Santana was hopping out of the car.
"Don't forget that the festivities start at five," Rachel announced.
"I'm aware," Santana replied. "You've only reminded me five times today."
Rachel frowned. "That's an exaggeration."
"Whatever," Santana said as she shut her door.
"What are the chances she's on time?" Rachel asked.
"Slim to none," Quinn replied as she pulled out of the driveway. "Brittany's excited about seeing everyone, though, so they'll get there eventually."
"I guess it's a good thing it starts as six then," Rachel commented.
Kurt laughed. "Smart."
"I've lived with Santana long enough to know she is never on time," Rachel said, shrugging.
Rachel and Kurt chatted some as Quinn drove to the latter's house. She pulled in behind Finn's truck and popped the trunk so Kurt could get his bag. They said their goodbyes and she was just about to pull away when Kurt leaned down, knocking on Rachel's window.
"Yes?" Rachel said as she lowered the glass.
"This might be a good time to mention that I invited Finn to the cookout," Kurt said.
Rachel and Quinn's mouths both dropped and the brunette asked, "Excuse me?"
"Well, I couldn't not invite him," Kurt said.
"I believe you could," Quinn replied. "I managed not to."
"He called me last week," Kurt stated. "He'd heard from someone that it was happening, and I couldn't very well lie to him. I told him you must have forgotten to call him."
Quinn rolled her eyes. "Why would you do that?"
"He's my stepbrother," Kurt replied. "I didn't want to hurt his feelings by telling him you purposefully excluded him."
"I don't want to hurt his feelings, either, but I don't believe him coming today would be the best thing for anybody," Rachel said.
Kurt shrugged. "I think it's better than him not coming and finding out every one of his friends were there."
"Fine," Rachel said, sighing. "I guess there's nothing we can do about it now."
Kurt turned and made his way to the house; Rachel and Quinn looked at each other, both with looks of concern on their face. As far as Quinn knew, Finn still didn't know about them. She wasn't his biggest fan—she didn't really like anyone Rachel loved before her—but she didn't want him hurt, either. It was just a bad situation for everyone, so she couldn't really blame Kurt for trying to spare Finn's feelings. Still, though, she wished he'd given them more of a warning, and by the look on Rachel's face, Quinn figured she was thinking the exact same thing.
Quinn was late. She had left on time, but ran into a car accident on the way. She wouldn't have been that late, but she actually had a bit of a panic attack after seeing the accident, so she had to pull off the road, and sat in the Pizza Hut parking lot for a while as she tried to calm down. It hadn't happened in a long time and it took her by surprise. Seeing the accident brought back a bunch of memories from her own accident, and before she knew it, she couldn't half breathe.
Even though she would like to have not let Rachel know, she sent her a text to tell her what was going on and why she would be late. She was embarrassed by it, but she didn't want to lie to her girlfriend. Rachel tried to come to her the moment she got the text, but Quinn told her she would be okay and reminded her that she had a cookout to help with. Of course Rachel still insisted on it and demanded to know where she was, but Quinn eventually talked her out of it, saying she was okay and would be there soon. 'Soon' turned out to be a little longer than she initially thought, but she was there now.
The moment she walked through the door, Rachel was already heading toward her. Quinn laughed, wondering if she had someone keeping an eye out for when she got there, and was immediately wrapped in the brunette's arms.
"I told you I'm okay," Quinn said, hugging her back. "Just embarrassed."
"There is nothing to be embarrassed about," Rachel said, pulling away, and cupping her face.
"Right," Quinn said, not at all convinced. "It's been over a year and I freaked out because I saw car crash; I thought I was over it."
"Sweetie, it was traumatic experience, and it's completely understandable," Rachel replied. "Every time I see anything like that, even on television, I have a moment of panic because I think of last year. I can't even imagine what it's like for you or what it would be like to experience an accident that bad. There is nothing to be embarrassed about."
Quinn nodded and gave her a smile. "Is everyone else here?"
"Yes," Rachel replied. "Is Judy still coming later?"
"Yeah, she said she would be here around seven," Quinn answered.
Rachel smiled. "Do we get to meet her mystery man?"
"I don't know if I want to," Quinn said, laughing, and shaking her head.
"You know her dating again is a good thing," Rachel said, wrapping her arms around Quinn's neck.
"Yes, but I don't know if I'm quite ready to think of my mom with another man," Quinn replied.
Rachel laughed. "Understandable." Rachel nodded her head. "Come on; I'm sure you're hungry, and you should eat before all the boys get everything."
Quinn smiled and gave Rachel a quick kiss before being led to the backyard. All of their friends from high school were in town for the holiday, and every one of them was there, along with quite a few of their parents. Rachel's fathers decided to start a tradition of having a cookout on the fourth of July; they thought it would be a good way for Rachel to keep in touch with her friends. Quinn suspected it was also a way to make sure Rachel came home at least once a year.
"Berry bitched at me about being on time and you're the one that's late," Santana said the moment they walked through the door and into the backyard.
"Quinn has a very good reason for that," Rachel replied.
"Oh, yeah?" Santana said, raising her eyebrow. "What?"
"She was delayed by an accident," Rachel replied.
"Quinn!" Brittany said, coming up to her, and giving her a hug. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."
Quinn laughed as she returned the hug. "It has been a while."
"Everyone's been wondering where you were," Brittany said as she pulled away.
"Yes, why don't we go say hi," Rachel said, taking Quinn's hand again.
Quinn gave her a grateful smile; she was clearly stopping Brittany before she could also start asking where she had been. Quinn was okay with Rachel knowing the truth, but she would rather everyone else not know. It was embarrassing enough as it was; she didn't need everyone else asking if she was okay or worrying about her.
"Sorry I'm late," Rachel said as she approached the table where most of her friends were seated.
She received hugs from Mercedes, Mike, Puck, and Blaine before sitting down next to Rachel, whose hand never left hers. As she looked around, she saw Finn's eyes dart between Rachel, their conjoined hands, and back to Rachel, his brows furrowing in the process. Considering some of the biggest gossips she had ever met knew, she had no idea how he still didn't know of their relationship. It was evident by his face that he was trying to figure out what was going on, though.
"Do you want me to make you up a plate?" Rachel asked, leaning towards her.
"I can do it," Quinn said, shaking her head, and smiling.
"Nonsense," Rachel said, standing up. "Just sit here and relax, okay."
Quinn wanted to protest, but she knew it would be futile; Rachel would just end up winning in the end, anyway, so she gave Rachel a soft smile. The brunette returned the smile, squeezed her hand, and said, "I'll be right back."
"I'm confused," Finn said, watching Rachel as she walked toward Leroy, who was manning the grill.
"That's not unusual," Santana remarked.
"Why are you two holding hands?" Finn asked.
"Dude, they're all gay for each other," Puck said before Quinn would respond.
"Wait—what?" Finn asked.
"Rachel and Quinn are in a relationship, Finn," Kurt said.
"But—since when?" Finn asked.
"What, like, Halloween?" Mercedes said.
"Right before Christmas officially," Kurt replied.
"Yeah, they were trying to take it slow or whatever." Santana rolled her eyes. "Like they hadn't been wanting to bone for years."
Quinn blushed. "Santana, that's—"
"Don't act like it's not true," Santana interrupted.
"So, what—you're saying Rachel never loved me?" Finn asked.
"I don't think she's saying that," Blaine chimed in.
"I think she is," Finn argued.
"Ignore Santana," Quinn replied.
"What did I miss?" Rachel asked as she set a plate down in front of Quinn.
"Yo."
Quinn felt something hit her forehead and she turned to glare at Santana. "Can you not."
"Quit staring like a freak," Santana said, rolling her eyes. "Or let's at least move closer so we can hear what they're saying."
"I'm not eavesdropping on my girlfriend," Quinn replied.
"Not even when she's talking to her ex-fiancé," Santana asked. "Her ex-fiancé that she had sex with."
"Don't remind me," Quinn said, frowning.
"Do you really want them talking?" Santana asked.
"Can you stop?" Quinn said, sighing. "I trust Rachel; she just wants to make sure he's okay with all of this."
"And if he's not?" Santana asked.
Quinn shrugged. "She'll make sure he is."
Quinn didn't like Rachel talking to Finn—she wouldn't like the idea of her talking to any of her ex-boyfriends—but she wasn't going to do anything about it. She had tried to control all of her past boyfriends, but that had been easy; she was the most popular girl in high school and they just wanted a popular girlfriend, so they did whatever she wanted. She wasn't going to do that with Rachel, though; she trusted her—she didn't trust Finn, but she trusted her girlfriend.
"What if he tries to get her back?" Santana asked.
"I'm sure he will," Quinn replied.
Santana scoffed. "And you're okay with that?"
"I told you," Quinn rolled her eyes, "I trust Rachel. Of course I'm not okay with Finn trying to get Rachel back, but she doesn't want him, so what does it matter? Believe me, if she was my ex, I would try to get her back, too."
"He's standing up," Santana said, sitting up straighter.
"Thank you," Quinn sarcastically replied. "I can't see that myself."
Rachel began walking over to them, and Finn locked eyes with Quinn. He didn't seem very happy and definitely looked more than a little confused. He turned, walking into the house, and Quinn shifted her gaze to Rachel.
"Is everything okay?" Quinn asked.
Rachel shrugged a shoulder. "As good as can be expected. He didn't really understand, but I'm not going to waste any more time trying to convince him that this isn't some phase I'm going through and that it has nothing to do with our breakup."
"He thinks he hurt you so badly that you ran into the arms of a girl," Quinn said.
Rachel sighed. "Yes. I tried to tell him that it's not the case, and then I tried to tactfully tell him that my attraction to you is not a recent development, but I didn't want him to think that what we had meant nothing because I did love him. It was obvious that he wasn't really listening to what I was saying, so I told him it was not up for discussion and that the conversation was over." Rachel sat down beside Quinn and took her hand. "I'm enjoying our time in Lima, and I'm not going to let this ruin it. If he doesn't understand, that is his problem. Yes, I wish he would be okay with everything, but it's understandable that he's not, and I'm not going to spend any more time trying to get him to change his mind."
Quinn smiled softly. "I love you."
"I love you, too, Quinn," Rachel said, smiling back.
"Get a room."
Quinn heard the first crack of a firework going off and looked out of the kitchen window. The sky was briefly lit up with red and then another one shot into the sky, casting a green glow over everything. She quickly walked to the refrigerator and grabbed two cold bottles of water, one for her and one for Rachel. When she turned around, she nearly collided with Finn, who was just standing there.
"Can we talk?" he asked.
"If this is about Rachel, no," Quinn said, walking around him.
"Of course it's about Rachel," he said.
Quinn sighed and slowly turned around. "Make it quick; we're missing the fireworks."
"This isn't some game of yours, is it?" Finn asked. "
Quinn scoffed. "You think my relationship with her is a game?"
"I don't know," Finn said, throwing up his hands.
"Finn, listen very carefully," Quinn said, stressing each word. "What is going on is not some game. I love Rachel, and whether you like it or not, she loves me. You don't know me and you never really did; the fact that you think that this is a game proves that. I have nothing against you, but that can change." Quinn turned toward the door, but turned on her heel again to face Finn. "And not that I owe you any explanation, but I've always had feelings for Rachel, even when I didn't realize it. I was just too terrified in high school to admit it."
Finn's jaw visibly clenched, and when Quinn turned, taking a step toward the door, he said, "Just don't hurt her."
"I love her," Quinn said, putting her hand on the doorknob. "I wouldn't hurt her."
He sighed. "I just want her to be happy."
"She is happy," Quinn responded before turning the knob and walking into the backyard.
Without looking back, she walked across the yard to Rachel, where she had put a blanket on the ground. Everyone else was scattered around the yard, but Rachel picked a fairly secluded spot, saying they would be able to see better there. Quinn didn't know if that was true, but she wasn't going to argue; she hadn't been alone with Rachel all day, so it would be nice to be able to watch the fireworks without having to worry about anyone else.
"What took you so long?" Rachel asked.
"Finn," Quinn replied, handing Rachel one of the bottles of water as she sat down.
"Oh no," Rachel said, frowning. "What did he say?"
"It's not important," Quinn said, leaning over, and giving Rachel a kiss on her cheek.
"Are you sure?" Rachel asked.
Quinn nodded. "I'm sure."
Rachel sighed and leaned back on the blanket. "I'm sorry you haven't had the best day. I'm starting to think leaving New York was a bad idea."
"It's not your fault," Quinn said, lying back as well. "And I don't regret coming. Finn was going to find out sooner or later, so I'm actually glad it's over with, and this morning definitely wasn't your fault. That could have happened in New York just as easily as it did here." Quinn laid down and looked to the side, gazing into Rachel's eyes. "And the day might not have been perfect, but I can't think of a better way to end it."
"Me either," Rachel agreed. "Though I do believe the fireworks show in New York would have been slightly more impressive."
"Probably," Quinn replied with a light laugh. "One of these years we'll have to stay there and see it. Maybe we can see the ball drop, too."
"That would be wonderful," Rachel said, smiling. "We have plenty of time to do everything, though. I do plan on living in the city for quite a while, and I plan on us being together even longer."
"Are you sure about that?" Quinn asked, trying to contain her smile.
"Positive," Rachel replied. "You're stuck with me, Fabray."
"I can't think of anyone better to be stuck with," Quinn commented, leaning over, and bringing their lips together.
When Quinn pulled away, Rachel smiled and scooted closer to her so their shoulders were touching. The fireworks were beginning to pick up, lighting the sky up with a rainbow of colors. Their view was a little obscured by some trees, but Quinn had no intention of moving. She was far too happy where she was.
Considering there are very few holidays left between now and Halloween, the next chapter, Labor Day, might be the last. I'll see you all then.