CHAPTER 14
A/N.: Hi everyone! Happy holiday season! We've been told it's going to snow in a few days, so I guess Winter has officially begun (here) =D I hope everyone travels safely! And I also plan to update in about 2 weeks. [I have exams in January so this month will be spent studying, unfortunately =( If I want to get some good results, I'll have to force myself to not use my laptop every five minutes.]
Quinn was busy curling her hair when she heard a knock on the door. It can't be Shelby, she has a key. I'm supposed to pick Rachel up so it can't be her. Gwenn knows about the date so she wouldn't come knocking on my door now. Marley already called about tonight to verify the reservation, she doesn't need to come by…
Fortunately her hair was done so she could unplug the curling iron and make her way to the door before she opened it to the unforeseen visitors.
"Mom! What a surprise! How are you? W-what are you doing here?" Quinn fired all of her questions at the older blonde. She was already a little bit nervous for their date and now her mother, who is not aware of their relationship, was standing in front of her door only half an hour before she was supposed to head to Rachel's to pick her up and she couldn't really deal with all of this.
"Hello dear, I'm fine thank you." Judy smiled warmly, "Can't I come in?" She asked as she curiously tried to peek inside the apartment. Quinn had deliberately not opened the door all the way because her apartment looked like a war zone. The contents of her purse were sprawled out on the table. She had tried on 5 different outfits prior to the one she was wearing now and she had flung them around carelessly in order to save time.
"Of course you can." Quinn replied halfheartedly as she stepped aside.
"Quinn! What on earth happened here?" The woman immediately started picking up pieces of clothing like her life depended on it.
"Mom please –" Judy kept cleaning up despite her daughter's words. "you don't need to clean up for me. I'll do it when I get back." She put her hands on top of Judy's in order to get her attention.
"But honey, you can't live in this chaos." Quinn knew her mother had the best intentions. Keeping everything perfectly orderly is a thing her mom has always been good at. It was a part of upholding the Fabray name.
"That's why I'll clean this up when I get back." She took the clothes out of her mother's hands and put them on the back of the couch. That's when she noticed Judy's eyes taking her in.
The older blonde's face had lit up like a Christmas tree. "Oh, you look beautiful. Do you have any special plans for tonight? You're going on a date aren't you! That explains the rush!"
And as expected, her face turned serious in a matter of seconds. "Who is she? Do I know her? Is she good enough for you? Because honey, that Gwenn girl seemed nice but I knew that wasn't going to work out because you-"
"Mom!" Quinn finally got her attention, "Please don't do this. It's not what you're thinking. It's just drinks with some friends. Okay?" She smiled although she wasn't comfortable lying in her mother's face. "And I hate to say this but I need you to go, because I'm going to be late." She pecked her mother's cheek as she ushered her toward the door.
"O-kay dear, drinks with friends…" Judy replied skeptically, once she was back in the hallway, "can I give you one piece of advice then?" Quinn nodded, "don't forget to give your friends that beautiful bouquet of flowers I saw lying on the coffee table." Quinn didn't know her mother could grin like that but apparently she could.
A little panicked, but relieved that she wouldn't be late, Quinn cleaned up a little bit and continued getting ready.
Rachel put on her heels as she looked herself over in the mirror. She had opted for a red skirt, a simple black t shirt and a black blazer. Quinn had told her to not dress up too much, but Rachel didn't want to look like she hadn't put any effort into her clothing.
Her dads were gone, visiting old family friends, which meant she didn't have to endure her daddy's suspicious eye. Right about now she would've expected several comments such as "aren't you a little overdressed for a movie night at a friend's? It's not like you're meeting the Queen of England". The doorbell disrupted her thoughts and she nervously hurried down the stairs to greet her date.
She was met with Quinn dressed in skinny jeans, a black trench coat and a pair of high heels, which shattered Rachel's hope of having no height difference.
"You look really beautiful Rae." Quinn handed over a bouquet of the same flower she had found in her locker earlier that day before she stepped forward and gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek. She was glad Rachel's parents weren't home because taking a girl out for a date meant she had to pick her up, and she had a feeling that the Berry men would get suspicious if they saw them right now.
"T-thanks, so do you." Rachel chastised herself for being nervous around a girl whom she spent so much time with these last few months. "Please come in, I'm going to put these in water and we can be on our way."
To Rachel's surprise, they didn't stay in Lima. They drove about a half an hour out of town before they came to a stop at a fancy looking restaurant.
"Quinn! I know this place, I've wanted to go here for as long as I can remember!" Rachel said, mouth agape. "Rose's Delight" was not only known for its impeccable regular dishes, but also for its vegetarian and vegan dishes. The restaurant was rumored to be the best upcoming brand of restaurants in the whole state. Her dads had promised several times they'd make a reservation but due to circumstances they weren't able to.
"I know. I heard you mention it once, or twice, it could have been more." She replied, amused by the look on Rachel's face.
"But, you need to book weeks in advance in order to eat here. How come you succeeded in getting us a reservation if you called merely a few days ago?"
"The mother of one of my best friends owns this place and she's also the cook." Quinn explained, "so, shall we?"
In Rachel's eyes, the date had progressed perfectly. Quinn had walked her to the car, opened the doors, pulled out her chair,… Everything she once thought she wanted in a man, Quinn did it ten times better. As for Quinn, it was one of the few times she actually had fun on a date. The thoughts of being seen drifted to the back of her mind as they chatted animatedly and flirted a little bit.
"So Glee club is pretty busy preparing for Regionals. As expected, Mr. Shue is giving us lessons about loving ourselves, believing in our own strength and all those other cliché subjects." Rachel said between bites.
"Ah I've picked up some of his 'inspiration speeches' in the teacher's room. Of course coach laughed in his face, which led to Emma furiously scrubbing one of the tables out of frustration until Shannon talked her down." Somehow Quinn couldn't think of one seemingly 'normal' teacher at their school.
Rachel laughed at the scene. "Sometimes I want to be a little fly so I could witness all of that."
"How did you put that flower in my locker?" The brunette asked as she finished up her dessert.
"I'm very good at breaking into people's lockers." Quinn shrugged.
Rachel chuckled, "You should teach me that for when the door gets stuck again." She took a sip of her water before continuing, "Santana read the note and saw the flower."
"How? Did you show it to her?"
"No, she was apparently standing behind me when I opened my locker. I swear that girl has ninja skills. Lately she's been… very interested in who makes me smile every day."
"Are you sure she's not interested in you?" Quinn tried to keep the jealousy out of her voice.
Rachel laughed out loud at the insinuation. "What? God no! She's been in love with Brittany since… kindergarten." She had to catch her breath before she continued, "we've become good friends, especially since Finn outed her in front of the whole school, and Glee club became stronger ever since. And if I presume right, she simply wants to be included seeing as she had all of her secrets revealed to us. And I actually want to tell her but then two more individuals will know about us and I cannot help but feel a little alarmed by that."
"Two?"
"Well Brittany and Santana are a package deal. I can't begin to explain how whipped she is."
Quinn smiled at the thought of the head cheerio being a big softy. "Oh, didn't know that actually." Then Gwenn, Kurt, Santana and Brittany will know about us. And this is just the beginning, how many people will know in a few weeks or months? Don't think in months Quinn, don't get your hopes up.
"But if you don't want me to inform her, than that's okay. It's not her business anyway. And if she thinks she can bully me into telling her after being friends, than she won't know what hit her." Rachel nodded confidently.
"Rae, she won't bully you into telling, you know that." Quinn reached out and covered her hand, "but if you do decide it's safe to tell her, please please please be sure about that. Because this – " she gestured between them, "is too valuable to throw away that easily. And I don't really know her so I can't determine if telling her would be a good idea, but if you think it is, then alright."
"I know, I'll think about it." Rachel squeezed her hand.
"And guess what, apparently your friend Jacob Ben Israel ran into a ladder today and knocked the handyman to the ground. Poor boy broke his fall." Quinn teased.
"Ugh, he deserved that. I'm fairly confident that he follows me around everywhere and I'm almost certain that he wasn't that far behind me when it happened."
"His classmates were giving him a hard time about how he was too busy chasing 'a hot piece of ass' to avoid the incident." Quinn informed her of her new nickname.
Rachel perked up at the mildly derogatory label. "Really? Wow, I suppose talking less, dressing differently and kissing girls in hallways can do that to a person's social status."
At seeing Quinn's face change to a grimace she explained herself, "I do not dress that differently from how I used to. Now I can actually wear clothes I want to wear since I don't get slushied anymore. And talking less is beneficial to making friends and I came to understand that. And the kissing girls in the hallways part was just to get a rise out of you."
"Well, don't do it again or there will be hell to pay." Quinn spoke lightly but Rachel heard the seriousness in her statement.
"I won't. The only girl worthy of my attention is sitting right in front of me." Rachel said, making a blush color Quinn's cheeks.
After Quinn paid the bill, they headed out. The cold air hit them like a ton of bricks, which made Rachel lean into Quinn's body warmth as they made their way to the car. Once inside, Rachel expressed her thoughts on the lovely date through a passionate yet gentle kiss.
"Do you want me to drop you off at your place or…?" Quinn left the question trail of, not knowing what should be expected of their first official date.
"Or I could come with you to yours? Or is that 'not done' on a first date?" Am I being too straightforward?
"S-sure, I was just wondering what you've told your parents. Did they want you home at a certain hour?" Thank God I cleaned up before I left.
"I told them I was going to a movies night at a friend's, which usually means Kurt and I gossip until 3 a.m. and I end up falling asleep at his place. So they don't expect me home until tomorrow morning."
The car ride was spent with Quinn trying to focus on the road as Rachel's hand traveled up and down her thigh. They were both relieved when they were finally inside the privacy of Quinn's apartment.
"I do not mean any harm when I say this, but this place is a mess." Rachel teased as she hung her coat over the back of a chair that wasn't covered by a piece of clothing.
"You're beginning to sound like my mother. She actually stopped by when I was getting ready and being a woman with an eye for details, she figured out I was going on a date." Quinn kicked off her shoes as she made her way over to the kitchen.
"Did you tell her anything?" the brunette set down her purse on top of the dining table.
"No I told her something about drinks with friends but she wouldn't have it, she saw the flowers." She opened up the fridge, "Would you like something to drink? Wine? I won't tell anyone and it's not like you're driving anywhere." Quinn half-yelled as she bent down to pick up the bottle.
"Sure, although I'm opposed to underage drinking, one glass can't hurt right?" She accepted the glass and they made their way to the couch. They decided on watching a movie, which they weren't really watching, and halfway through it they were both a bit tipsy which made it easier for Quinn to talk about certain topics.
"How did you figure out you were gay?" Their feet were stretched out on top of the coffee table as Quinn's arm hung around Rachel's shoulders, pulling her into her side.
"On some level I always knew, but when I was 15 it kind of became clear to me when I developed feelings for my best friend Marley. Nothing serious." The blonde replied, her fingers drawing a pattern on Rachel's arm.
"What happened?" Rachel didn't ask because she was feeling jealous, because she wasn't, but she wanted to understand Quinn's life during those years.
"I hadn't told her back then. Instead I bullied her right to the bottom of the social hierarchy." Quinn cringed at the memories, while Rachel only felt sympathy. "I know, I'm horrible. After many failed attempts of trying to talk to me she gave up and I let her. One year later Beth was born, so you can figure out why that happened."
"Big gay panic huh?" Rachel chuckled.
"It sure was. Got kicked out, stayed over at a friend's until Beth was born. The day after I gave her up my mom asked me to come home again because Russel 'was able to forgive me for my mistakes'. Getting into a good school was my priority so I didn't date, which helped push the thought of being gay aside. We were nearing the end of high school when I came to accept it. The first person I told was Frannie, which resulted in an emergency meeting with my parents. Russel kicked me out for a second time and my mom was too drunk to intervene. Fortunately I got an early acceptance to Yale and I could already move into my dorm." Quinn sighed as she recalled the most painful moments of her life up until now.
"Your mom found her way, that must mean a lot to you, doesn't it?" Rachel asked in a quiet voice. Compared to Quinn, she had had an 'easy life'.
Quinn hummed in agreement. "It does, better late than never."
"I wish I'd known you back then. I would have helped you." Rachel said, making Quinn's heart skip a beat.
Quinn turned her head sideways to give a loving kiss to Rachel's forehead. "I know."
"I'm a bit surprised with how your sister suddenly turned against you."
"Me too. Growing up, she was competitive and arrogant. Which I was too, so we got along quite well actually, except for the occasional sibling fight. I uhm, now that I think about it, I don't have the impression she wanted to hurt me really. With telling my parents about me, I mean." Rachel silently asked her to continue with a tilt of her head, "I was the one who was furious with her, not the other way around… I was mad at her for not convincing Russel not to kick me out when I was pregnant. Since then we grew apart but it was still her I went to when I wanted to talk to someone. Then, when she told them, I went back to being furious…" Quinn trailed off, coming to a realization. Did I push her away?
"You must have changed so much since high school, because I'm actually having a hard time picturing you bullying others."
"I have. Pregnancy changed me a lot but Yale played a big part too. I met really great people there and eventually, I got to know myself. That's why I contacted Marley again in my sophomore year to apologize."
At that Rachel lifted her head in curiosity. "And?"
"She didn't answer to any of my e-mails, texts or letters for about 6 months so it was kind of a struggle. But after that she replied every time and we became friends again. I told her the real reason why I had acted the way I did and she was furious with me for not telling her all of that in the first place." At seeing the look on Rachel's face she continued, "She was, is, a very understanding person so it wouldn't have meant the end of our friendship but I guess I couldn't accept that part of me yet. She's actually one of my best friends since I moved back." Quinn smiled.
"So it wasn't mutual?" Rachel tried to sound nonchalant about it, which made Quinn laugh.
"No, although she's very open minded about these things. And it wasn't even serious Rae."
"Why didn't you mention this before? Have you told her about us?"
"It hadn't crossed my mind, really. And I did tell her I have a girlfriend. A very hot one, at that." She kissed her lips, "but I didn't want to say more until I asked you if it was okay to tell someone. Gwenn doesn't count."
Rachel thought about it for a second. I have no right to feel threatened about a crush from that long ago. "if you want to, you can. I told Kurt so it's only fair you tell your best friend."
"You should meet her, you'd get along great. She can sing too and
I think you have similar music interests. She's not as good as you are but it'll do." Quinn tried to encourage her girlfriend.
"As long as you aren't one of those similar interests." Rachel whispered softly before she kissed Quinn's neck playfully.
"So how does it feel to know half of my life? It's a real privilege, you know." Quinn raised a brow.
"It's a huge honor." Rachel teased, "my life isn't half as interesting as yours is."
"Tell me something about you and I'll be the judge of that."
"Well, 'don't rain on my parade' was the first song I was able to perform." Rachel stated proudly.
"No surprise there, I bet you were only 1 year old when that happened." Quinn nudged her shoulder.
"When my dads and I visited New York for the first time, I sang my heart out right in the middle of Times Square and I did it every visit since then." She smiled at the memories.
"Again, no surprise there." The blonde chuckled.
Rachel realized she needed to share something more meaningful seeing as Quinn shared the biggest moments of her life.
She switched to a more quiet voice. "When I was 14, my dad was diagnosed with bowel cancer. It turned our lives upside down for approximately a year."
"I'm sorry to hear that." Quinn squeezed her hand.
Rachel continued with a smile on her face, "fortunately a chemo session and surgery removed the cancer. We've grown closer ever since. So, every family has its ups and downs, it's part of who we are."
"Ohh you sound as wise as one of those old Chinese men in those lame action movies." Quinn teased the brunette, who was pouting, "but you're definitely not ugly or old." She kissed the pout away.
They talked for at least an hour after that, which turned into a heated make out session. As Quinn was laying on top of Rachel she grinded her hips into the brunette's. To Rachel's displeasure, Quinn moved away from her but as it turned out, the teacher needed room in order to pick her up. She wrapped her legs around her waist as they made their way to the bedroom. She shut the bedroom door before she pushed Rachel down onto the bed. She wasn't planning on letting her out any time soon.
A/N.2: up next is the girl's night. Again, thank you SO much for every favorite, for following and/or reviewing this story, I really appreciate it!
Also, I recently signed up for a tumblr account, it's brand new so it isn't personalized yet. Once it is personalized, feel free to inform me about some cool tumblr accounts, or follow me, it's all appreciated ! kayimagine . tumblr . com
Hope to hear from you guys soon x