Fresh Business
"Is this okay?" Rachel asked.
Quinn looked at her and then followed her eyes down to their clasped hands.
"Of course, it's fine," Quinn replied, squeezing her fingers and pulling her closer. They walked into the sleek office building and paused at the elevator bank with a cluster of people waiting for the next car. Quinn noted the woman next to them. She was openly staring, her demeanor disapproving. Her eyes dropped to their hands and when her eyes came back up Quinn's was waiting for her, one brow cocked defiantly.
Say something. I dare you. Just say something and I'll kiss her right here.
The woman's eyes widened. She shifted uncomfortably and looked quickly away. Quinn smirked smugly.
When the elevator doors slid opened, the crowd surged forward, but Quinn tugged at Rachel, holding her back.
"We'll wait," she said, glaring at the woman as the doors closed.
"What was that about?" Rachel asked.
"Just some asshole," Quinn muttered. "Don't worry about it."
Another car chimed nearby and they stepped inside.
"Oh, yay, let me," Rachel piped, standing in front of the bank of buttons.
"17th floor," Quinn told her and Rachel pressed it like it was a vending machine. She seemed so enthused Quinn half expected her to press all of the remaining buttons as well. Just in case, she took her hand and pulled her beside her.
"Are there cameras?" she asked, eyes darting up at the ceiling.
"Let's just go ahead and say that there are," Quinn replied. "And act accordingly.
Rachel's lips pursed and her eyes tilted up. When there was no further response she noted Quinn was leaning her head against the wall, her eyes shut.
"Are you tired?" she asked, tipping her head over onto Quinn's shoulder.
"Yup," she told her honestly. "Very."
Rachel rolled into her, hugging her.
"I'm s..." Rachel started but Quinn interceded.
"Don't you dare finish that sentence," she said firmly. Rachel swallowed and tucked her lips in.
The elevator doors whirred open and two other passengers boarded. Rachel reluctantly moved back into her own space, but gripped Quinn's with both hands. When the doors opened on the seventeenth floor, Quinn nudged her.
"Out you go, chickadee," she coaxed, keeping one hand on the small of her back. She guided her to the correct suite.
"Welcome to Oz," Quinn remarked dryly, pulling the door open and allowing Rachel to step inside ahead of her.
The reception area was cavernous, plush, hushed. The girl at the desk raised her eyes slowly. Her gaze washed over Quinn then shifted to Rachel. Her bored expression never changed.
"Yes, can I help you?" she inquired, her tone brusque, distant.
"Santana Lopez, please," Quinn said.
"Is she expecting you?" she asked.
"Always," Quinn replied pointedly.
The girl made a pinched face and punched numbers on her phone.
"Yes, Ms. Lopez," she said, dripping syrup. "You have...people here to see you. Yes, Ms. Lopez. I'll tell them. Yes, of course, Ms. Lopez."
You tell her, Ms. Lopez.
Quinn chuckled smugly.
"No, Ms. Lopez.. I don't believe he's called yet today."
Rachel walked up behind Quinn. Quinn felt her fingers close around her wrist, seeking reassurance.
"Ms. Lopez said she'll be up as soon as she can," the girl told them, her tone cordial, even respectful. "She asked that you would please make yourselves comfortable."
Quinn nodded, wondering if Santana had actually uttered those words and deciding it highly unlikely.
"Fine, thank you." she replied coolly.
"Can I offer you anything?" the girl inquired.
I don't know, can you?
"I'm fine," Quinn said quickly. "Chickadee?" She turned to Rachel.
"Some water, please," she said meekly.
"Still or sparkling?" the girl asked, finally acknowledging her.
"Still," Rachel answered. "Please."
"Of course, please excuse me," the girl said. She pulled off her headset and stepped away from her desk.
Rachel spotted a comfortable couch and beckoned to Quinn, who followed and sat beside her.
"A nap would be good," Quinn mumbled. "Right about now."
Rachel reached out to lightly fluff Quinn's fly-away hair until she pulled her head away. She settled for rubbing her fingers lightly up and down the inside of her arm.
The receptionist reappeared and presented Rachel with a bottle of chilled water and a glass of ice before resuming her place behind the phones. Rachel sipped quietly straight from the bottle. They waited for about ten minutes before Santana burst through the inner doors into the lobby.
"Greetings kids," she said, looking perfectly poised, but sounding harried. She didn't pause to chat. "On your feet. We're walking."
She took off out into the hallway leaving Rachel and Quinn to scramble after her. They caught up with her waiting for the elevator. Doors whispered opened and they boarded. Santana repeatedly punched the button for the roof.
"Total fucking nightmare," she muttered under her breath and Quinn and Rachel glanced at each other.
The doors hissed opened onto a glass atrium. Santana held the doors and jerked her head for them to go ahead. Again, Quinn scooted Rachel out first and then followed after her leaving Santana bringing up the rear. Santana glanced around at the occupied tables and shook her head.
"Too crowded," she intoned in low whisper to Quinn."Too many ears."
She pushed through the door and out onto the sunny patio. She walked to a table at the farthest corner and fell into a chair. Quinn and Rachel joined her. Almost immediately she was lighting a cigarette and inhaling deeply.
"Ahhhh, that's...sorry, sorry, " she said, waving the cigarette and blowing smoke away into the wind. "It's been horrible. Two clients imploded over the weekend and we're managing the fallout. But that's enough about that ridiculous shit, so what's up my girlies?"
Rachel looked at her, her eyes anxious.
"It's okay," Quinn said, coaxing her. "You can tell her what happened."
Rachel took a deep, quavering breath and launched into her saga. There was hand-wringing, a few slow, trickling tears, but she got through it in reasonably good order. When she finished, she and Quinn stared intently at Santana, who by this time was on her second cigarette and staring up at the clouds.
"How did you get this job?" Santana asked absently.
Quinn had to bite her tongue. Santana had told her Finn's father was behind Rachel getting this job. Was she asking just to see if Rachel knew that?
Rachel flickered nervous eyes to Quinn who nodded and gave her a reassuring smile. Quinn wondered what she would say.
"Um, Finn got it...I mean, he helped me," she said quietly.
"Did you audition?" Santana asked.
"No," Rachel answered.
"Do you normally?" Santana pressed.
"Sometimes," Rachel answered. "It depends."
Santana pulled on her cigarette and nodded and drifted back into her thoughts.
"Okay, so why did you want this part again?" she asked finally.
Rachel looked genuinely confused.
"Well I, I mean, it, it seemed like a good one shot part," Rachel stammered. "And it's a Lane Hudson production."
Santana blew out a stream of smoke and exhaled sharply.
"Rachel," she said pointedly, turning to face her. "You need to decide what you want to be when you grow up."
Rachel gave Quinn a confused look. Quinn held up one hand, trying to tell her to relax. Santana watched the exchange and quickly stubbed out her cigarette.
"Okay, doll," she said, talking directly to Rachel. "I know that Quinn's your boo and all that, but she's not going to be much help to you here. That's why she got you to me, okay? I know you hear it all the time, but for real, trust me about this, okay?"
Again, her eyes shifted to Quinn for confirmation.
"Listen to her, chickadee," she told her. "She knows this shit."
Quinn looked to Santana who was stifling a giggle behind her hand and glared at her.
"Yes, chickadee," she parroted and Quinn gritted her teeth. "Listen to Santana, for she is wise and all powerful. So again, I'll ask you: What do you want to be when you grow up?"
"An, an..actress," she said hesitantly.
Santana shook her head.
"First of all, we don't g..g..guess, we know," she scolded. "Second of all, I know that we gotta work to pay bills and all that, but do you really want to be doing hack series work or do you want to do other things? Like films or plays or what?"
"I want to be doing real work, like films," she said, now with much more confidence.
"Much better," Santana noted. "So in light of that, why are you so torn up about what happens over a one-off part on a series that probably won't even be around next season? Truth, it's about one more piss-poor rating away from being canceled."
"Because they...I mean, I, I, I've never..." she stammered, unable to say it.
"Okay, yes, it sucks to be fired. But honestly, it sounds like it was just a bad match," Santana said. "You weren't a pain in the ass were you?"
Rachel shook her head.
Santana narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"You weren't late or impossible to work with?" she pressed.
"Most definitely not," Rachel said adamantly.
"So maybe you really were simply miscast. It happens, especially considering the circumstances. Who knows. Maybe the director's girlfriend or niece or neighbor needed a job suddenly and you got bumped out."
Rachel frowned.
"What you can't do, doll, is fall apart," Santana told her. "You gotta say, "Fine, thank you for the opportunity, maybe next time" and go on with your plan. But let me guess, your people don't really have a plan. They just keep sending you out for anything that comes up, right?"
Rachel nodded slowly.
"I used to have a plan," she admitted quietly. "They said it was...unrealistic."
Santana chuckled smugly.
"No doubt, no doubt. No worries. We'll work on that," she said, clearly mulling it over in her mind. "Why don't you see if you resurrect up that unrealistic plan of yours. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but I would at least like to look at it for myself before I decide. Can you do that? "
"Yes," Rachel said eagerly.
"Wait, hold on," she said, holding up a hand. "We're getting a little bit ahead of things here. Rachel, I can talk to you about this stuff, but you realize that I'm just a publicist, right?"
Rachel nodded.
"That doesn't mean I always want to be just a publicist," she continued. "But for the moment, right now, that is my job title and I don't want there to be any confusion about that. Do you understand what I'm saying to you?"
"I think so," Rachel said quietly. She stole a quick glance at Quinn, who was rolling her index finger as though saying, "Get on with it."
"Sometimes it just takes the right client to get the ball rolling," Santana said, slowly, staring hard at Rachel. "Know what I mean?"
Again, Rachel nodded.
"So, if you were to, you know, find the right client," Rachel asked. "What would you want to tell them?"
Santana smiled.
"I like her," she told Quinn. "Didn't I say from the beginning, 'I like that girl?'"
Santana in full schmooze mode was as subtle as a bulldozer. Quinn rolled her eyes.
"I don't really remember that, no," Quinn said, just to be annoying.
"Okay, let's get serious here," Santana said, rolled her cigarette lighter with practiced ease. "We're gonna play some 'what if'' for giggles, okay? Q, put your fingers in your ears or dangle on the ledge over there or whatever angsty crap you gotta do to deal because you're not gonna like this part."
Quinn scowled and Santana just threw up a quick "oh well" hand. She turned back to Rachel.
"You're probably not gonna like it either, munchkin," she said honestly.
Rachel looked anxious and immediately started working her lower lip with her teeth.
Santana exhaled dramatically and shook herself out as though excising demons.
"Now," she said firmly, "Finn Hudson."
Quinn groaned loudly, squinted her eyes shut hard and fell back in her chair. Rachel looked as though someone had stuck a pin in her and what little air she'd managed to build up fluttered out.
"Sorry, it's gotta be done," Santana said. "I'm not going to keep talking around some ginormous annoying slouching elephant . We're gonna talk about it and walk around it and kick in it the gonads if we need to, but we're gonna deal with it now so we can put it away. Understand?"
She was looking squarely at Rachel, and only Rachel, who nodded.
"Alright," Santana chirped, rubbing her hands together. "Excellent."
Rachel looked nervously to Quinn, who was puffed up like an angry bird and glaring at Santana. Rachel began chewing on her fingernail.
"Ah, ah, no. Ignore her," Santana scolded. "She always gets like that when she can't control everything. You might want to take notes and see what you're getting yourself into."
"Goddamn it, Santana," Quinn protested..
Santana ignored her and physically turned Rachel's chair so she couldn't see her.
"Like I said, ignore her, " Santana repeated. "And if she can't behave and STOP BEING A DISTRACTION, I'll send her to wait in the fucking car."
Quinn huffed and scooted her chair a foot away. Santana smirked and stole a quick glimpse at her watch. Rachel caught it and her lip started quivering.
"Don't mind that, sparrow," Santana said.
"Chickadee," Quinn corrected.
"Whatever the fuck ever," Santana chided, letting her voice rise up in annoyance. "Anyway, munchkin, we can't get this all done today. I'm going to be honest with you about that. So let's get the Finn crap put away and then we'll start fresh another day.
Rachel sat mutely. Santana and Quinn both knew that wasn't a good sign.
"So, Hudson, do you have any legal ties to him?" Santana inquired. "Do you own property together? A car, a house, a whiny pet? Anything like that?"
Rachel shook her head.
"No joint bank accounts, credit cards, anything?" she continued.
"What the hell?" Quinn snapped. "Are you a fucking divorce lawyer now, too?"
Santana stood up and lugged her chair about five feet away, then she walked over and nudged Rachel up. She pulled her chair over next to hers and waited for Rachel to sit down. She took out a tube of bright red lipstick our and, after a moment's hesitation, she drew a bright red X on the concrete about a foot in front of Quinn.
"We're gonna play some hardball, Q. If you step over that, I'll slap the shit out of you," she told Quinn. "You know I mean it, too. Now sit here and keep your bossy mouth shut."
She turned to walk away, then paused.
"And don't you dare even think of calling Brit." she added.
"Oh and this," she held up her lipstick. "You owe me another one."
She sat back down and looked at Rachel.
"Ignored the Wicked Bitch of the West over there," she told her, and Rachel tucked her lips in, stifling a grin. "So to answer HER RUDE ASS QUESTION, no I'm not a divorce attorney, but we don't want you having any connection to this guy that he can use to tether you to him or his people or his family. You need to be able to step away cleanly for whatever reason you should want to step away. Understand?"
Rachel nodded.
"Munchkin, " she said. "I know you can speak. I've heard you. Don't be shy. And don't look over there."
Rachel swallowed hard and twisted her hands together.
At least she isn't crying, Santana thought to herse
"I know you're worried about his old man," Santana said, leaning in, putting her elbows on her knees to get closer to Rachel. "I'm not going to lie to you If he wants to mess with you there's not much you can do about it. Yes, he could be a real problem."
Rachel turned ashen and clutched at herself. She moaned lightly.
"But I'm hoping that he won't," she said quickly. "Rachel, you're not a threat to him and, quite frankly, he's a busy man with more important things to concern himself with than tanking your career out of spite. First and foremost, he's a pretty hard-core businessman."
Rachel wrapped her arms around her waist, hugging herself.
"I don't know," she said. "He's never liked me very much. He's not made any secret about that fact."
"From what I hear he doesn't have much use for his son either," Santana countered. "He certainly doesn't go out of his way to make things any easier for him."
"No, he doesn't," Rachel agreed. "Ironically, most people believe just the opposite. Finn tries, but, well, his father is a hard man to please under the best of circumstances. Their relationship is, it's complicated."
"Sad to say, but that may work in our favor," Santana said carefully.
"Hmmph, that's possible." Rachel admitted.
"Look Rachel," Santana said. "Don't worry about the things we can't control, that we can't change. We'll just work around them as they come up."
Rachel nodded, but it was clear from her expression she wasn't nearly as confident as Santana.
"Listen to me," Santana said, scooting her chair even closer so that they were both leaning in, huddled together. "This is what I want you do to do."
=^..^=
Quinn slouched, absently tugging at her lip, watching as Santana and Rachel talked. Santana kept moving closer and closer and now they were practically huddled against each other, speaking in hushed tones. She could tell from Rachel's demeanor she was anxious, perhaps even upset, about whatever they were discussing. She kept pulling in on herself, as though trying to make herself smaller and smaller. At least Santana appeared cognizant of that and was being surprisingly accommodating.
The seats Santana had chosen were in direct sunlight and it was hot. Uncomfortable, Quinn shifted around, thankful she'd brought her sunglasses or she would have been downright miserable. She leaned her head back, closed her eyes and fell asleep. She didn't wake until she felt Rachel touch her shoulder some 30 minutes later.
=^..^=
Rachel hugged Santana fiercely.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she said, patting her lightly and rolling her eyes at Quinn. "You love me now. Well, just wait until I've really done something. It'll blow your mind."
Rachel stepped away, smiling. She looked back and forth between Quinn and Santana who were staring hard at each other.
"We good, doll?" Santana asked.
Quinn exhaled sharply.
"Oh come on, Mama, you know you love me," Santana teased and Quinn grinned.
"Yes, we're good," she admitted reluctantly.
Santana chuckled.
"See, I knew it," she sassed, winking at Rachel. "She loves me."
"Whatever," Quinn answered.
"Okay my girlies," Santana announced, nudging them toward the elevator. "Get out of here so I can get some real work done. It's not like I got all afternoon to be chatting with the girls."
Quinn grabbed her wrist and squeezed.
"Thanks, San," she said sincerely.
"No worries, doll-face," she told her. "Holler at me, we'll talk."
Quinn nodded.
"Get that stuff to me, Munchkin," she reminded Rachel. "I'm not playing"
"I will," Rachel promised.
"Gotta dash," she said pulling the door open. "Oh, the security guard is a huge perv, so don't be making out in the elevator. Just sayin."
With a happy smirk, she disappeared into her office barking questions at the receptionist like a machine gun.
Rachel and Quinn walked to the elevator and Quinn pressed the button. Rachel reached for her hand as it came away and held it.
"Better?" Quinn asked.
Rachel nodded, exhaling deeply, not trusting herself to speak yet.
The doors open and Quinn held back, letting Rachel step in ahead of her, then followed after. As soon as the doors closed, Rachel pulled her back against the wall and kissed her.
"What was that for?" Quinn asked, keeping her close.
"Just saying thank you," Rachel answered with a grin. "For today."
"You're welcome," Quinn replied, brushing her nose against her cheek.
Rachel turned and faced the front the car, leaning back into Quinn. She pulled both of her hands around her waist, holding them over her stomach.
"You do realize that there is all this other room in here," Quinn teased, glancing around the empty car.
"That's okay," she answered. "I'm good."
Quinn clasped her hands over Rachel's belly and pressed her lips against the back of her neck. Rachel tilted her head to the side to give Quinn better access.
"Do you think the security guard really watches?" she asked, glancing up, apparently looking for a camera.
"It's a little late to be asking that," Quinn remarked, nuzzling against her ear with her nose. "Don't you think?"
She tightened her grip, lifting Rachel off her feet and kissing her neck.
Rachel squealed happily.
=^..^=
Quinn pulled into parking lot and drove back into the far corner where she pulled up next to Rachel's car. She turn the car off and leaned back against the seat.
"Thank you for taking me today," Rachel said, fingers trailing down Quinn's face.
"You're welcome," Quinn said easily.
"I feel so much better," she said, clearly relieved.
"I can tell, I'm glad," Quinn replied.
Rachel's eyes fluttered across her face. She scooted closer and leaned in for a kiss, but paused and caught Quinn's eyes, apparently asking permission. Quinn nodded and moved forward, meeting her lips.
"Hmmm, I think Santana's gonna be good for you," Quinn said, her hands twisting in Rachel's hair.
"Mmm hmm," Rachel agreed, kissing around her mouth.
"She's very good at what she does." Quinn continued.
"I'm sure she is," Rachel agreed. She dropped her mouth to Quinn's neck and sucked. Quinn's eyes rolled up and closed as Rachel's teeth nipped along her throat and across her collar bone.
"Will you come over tonight?" she asked softly.
"Not tonight, kitten," Quinn answered.
Rachel exhaled sharply and frowned.
"Why not?" she asked with a pout.
Quinn's eyes opened, her reverie broken.
"I can't," Quinn answered. "Let's just leave it at that, okay?"
The lower lip inched out further. Quinn leaned over and trapped it between her teeth. She tugged on it, then sucked.
Rachel moaned her approval.
"Mmm, you like that, don't you?" Quinn teased, nuzzling against Rachel's cheek.
"Yes," she confessed. "I like everything you do to me."
Quinn scoffed gently.
"I haven't really done anything," she admitted, kissing her neck.
"Well you did last night," Rachel correctly quietly, her voice trailing away.
"What did I do?" Quinn asked, lips pressed against her ear.
"You know," Rachel said shyly.
Quinn shook her head.
"Nuh uh, " she said, looking puzzled. "I forget. It was so long ago."
Rachel grunted and slapped at her playfully.
"You could do it again," she said. "You know, if you wanted."
"If I remember, I'm sure I'll want to," Quinn confessed, "But it's not going to happen in a crowded parking lot in broad daylight."
"Hmmm, maybe I could show you," Rachel suggested, moving back against Quinn, trailing her mouth up Quinn's neck.
"Maybe you could, kitten," Quinn said slowly.
Rachel's hand moved boldly towards Quinn's breast, but Quinn caught her wrist with a sharp laugh.
"Nope, not here, not now," she scolded, smirking. "But sometime.
Rachel whined and fell back against the seat.
"You need to go home, chickadee," Quinn told her.
The whining grew louder.
"No, I don't want to go home," she fussed. " I want to stay with you. Can't we go somewhere else? Let's go look for Nelson,"
She had both hands on Quinn's arm, pulling on her enthusiastically. Quinn laughed loudly.
"I don't think anyone's ever actually asked to go look for Nelson before," she told her, amused by the suggestion.
"So can we go?" Rachel asked eagerly.
"No," Quinn answered, still laughing.
Rachel fell back, sulking.
"But..there is a supply order that Puck made for the office," Quinn said slowly. "I suppose we could go out and pick that up."
"Yes, yes," Rachel chirped. "Yay, supplies."
"But then I'm bringing you right back here and you're going home, no fussing," Quinn insisted.
"Absolutely," Rachel promised happily. "Cross my heart."
"Okay," Quinn agreed. "I'll hold you to that."
Rachel threw her arms around Quinn and kissed her heatedly. Quinn was breathless when she finally turned her loose.
"So much for not making out with you in a crowded parking lost," she muttered as she steered them out into traffic.
Rachel grinned smugly.
"Put your seat belt back on." Quinn said, shaking her head.
=^..^=
Quinn pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed her office.
"Little Bo Peep, we find lost sheep," Brittany answered in a sing-song voice. "And puppies and kittens and ducks, too."
"Hey B, " Quinn said. She was expecting Noah to answer.
"Quinn, I was getting worried," she answered. "Is Rachel okay?"
"No worries, everything's fine," Quinn assured her. "I just wanted to check in and let you know I'm going out to pick up that feed order Noah placed."
"Oh, okay," Brittany said slowly, probably writing it down. "I'll leave him a note."
"Where is he?" Quinn asked.
"He left early for class,"she answered. "He took your car. That's okay, right?"
"That's fine," Quinn replied. "I just thought I'd save him the trip."
"Maybe they have ducks," Brit said helpfully.
"Maybe so," Quinn replied. "I'll have to check and see and let you know. I'll talk to you later, Brit."
"'Kay, bye." she said.
Quinn hung up.
"Why do you need feed?" Rachel asked.
"We don't," Quinn answered. "Well, not a lot, but they also sell pet food and other things in bulk. Noah made some kind of sweetheart deal with them and we get awesome prices. I think he cleans their pool or feeds their horses or something. I don't ask, I just pay the bill."
Quinn turned into the parking lot and backed up to the loading bay.
"Can I go inside?" Rachel asked.
"Sure," Quinn said. "Sometimes they have animals. Go see."
Rachel scurried out the door and into the store while Quinn waited her turn at the loading dock.
"Hey Quinn," the lanky sales clerk said, greeting her warmly. "I was expecting Puckerman."
"Hey Blake," she said. "Nope, you got me today."
"That's a much better deal," he said easily.
Quinn smiled and shook her head.
"I don't know about that," she said lightly.
"I'll get your stuff loaded up for you," he replied. "Go on inside where it's cool. I'll come find you."
He started tossing sacks into the bed of the truck. She gave him a wave and followed after Rachel. She found her inside cooing over baby rabbits.
"Look, look," she said, rocking on the balls of her feet, leaning down over the cages. "Can I pick one up.
"Yeah, go ahead," Quinn said. "Careful, they may bite."
Rachel scooped up the nearest one she could get her hands on and pulled it up against her cheek.
"Hey Quinn," Blake said, walking up behind her. "Here's your ticket. We had everything. You can check it first if you like."
Quinn waved him off, taking the clipboard he was holding out to her, and signing his copy of the order. When she handed it back to him she noticed him staring openly at Rachel. She nudged him with the clipboard to get his attention.
"Oh, yeah, right," he said, laughing awkwardly. "Thanks."
"Sure," Quinn said, slightly annoyed.
"Maybe your friend needs some help picking out a bunny," he offered helpfully. They both watched Rachel, who was now picking up bunnies, one by one, cuddling them and putting them back. She noticed them staring at her.
"I don't want any of them to feel left out," she explained.
"Spreading the love," Blake said, nodding. "That's cool."
"Exactly," Rachel said. "They all should get affection."
"Hey, I'm Blake, by the way," he said, taking a few steps closer and holding out his hand. "My dad owns this place."
"Hi, Rachel," she said, shaking his hand briefly. "Quinn's my...my friend."
"Cool," he said. "I know Puck. We hang out sometimes."
"Ah yes, Noah," she said, nodding.
"Noah, yeah," Blake repeated, giggling slightly. "Yes, he's a wild dude."
They both laughed and turned to Quinn, who was staring at them, stone-faced.
"Uh yeah, guess I need to get back to the stockroom," Blake said, clearing his throat. "Nice to meet you, Rachel."
"You as well," she said, already back to picking up rabbits again.
"Good to see you, Quinn," he said with a nod.
"Take it easy, Blake," she said, giving him a smile and letting him off the hook.
"You, too," he said.
She watched as he disappeared down the stacks of feed bags toward the back of the store. She walked up behind Rachel.
"Do you have a system?" she asked, amused.
"Not really," Rachel answered. "No."
"You do realize that they're running back around to the other side of the pen, " she pointed out. "You're probably picking up the same ones over and over again."
Rachel paused, considering what she said.
"Then I'll just have to start all over again," she said reasonably.
"No, no you don't," Quinn said, tugging on the back of her dress. "Come on, Dr. Doolittle."
Rachel held a small spotted rabbit up against Quinn's cheek.
"See how soft?" she mused.
"Very," Quinn agreed.
"He needs a kiss," she said, nudging it forward.
"I'm not kissing that rabbit," Quinn told her. "You kiss it."
Rachel chuckled. She kissed the bunny on the head and placed it back in the cage.
"Come on, Crabbypants," she said.
She took Quinn by the hand and pulled her toward the door. Quinn rolled her eyes and let herself be lead to the truck. She opened the door for Rachel, then walked around and got behind the wheel. She looked over to see Rachel waving to Blake.
"He's a sweet boy," she commented. "I thought you said all Noah's friends were troublemakers."
"I'm pretty sure he deals weed," Quinn said. "I think that's how Puck knows him. He's his dealer."
"Oh, that's not...such a big deal," Rachel said hesitantly. "Right?"
Quinn scoffed.
They had only been driving a little while when Rachel realized Quinn wasn't headed back toward town. To her surprise, Quinn steered off the roadway and started up a tree-lined drive. She drove part of the way up the driveway then steered into a roundabout at the midway point and turned the truck so that it was facing back out toward the driveway. Instead of pulling out again, she shifted into park and turned it off.
"Who lives here?" Rachel asked in a hoarse whisper.
"A long-time client," Quinn said in a normal tone. "They're in Europe for a few weeks and we're house sitting for them.
"So it's okay that we're here?" she asked quietly.
"Why are you whispering?" Quinn asked, smiling. "Yes, it's fine. I thought we might sit here and let the traffic ease up a bit."
Rachel grinned.
Quinn pulled out her phone and checked to see if she had messages.
"Maybe we could play Words with Friends." Quinn suggested, wiggling her phone. Rachel plucked it out of her hand and tossed it gently into the back seat.
"Hey," Quinn yelped, frowning. "Not a fan of the game, I guess, huh?"
"It's fine," Rachel said, scooting across the seat until she was right up against Quinn.
"Can I help you?" Quinn asked, trying to scowl.
"No, I'm good," Rachel told her, her mouth moving to Quinn's neck. "I think you should move over here."
She was tugging at Quinn, wanting her to move out from behind the steering wheel.
"You do?" she asked. "Why is that."
"Just...come on," she fussed, pulling on her arm.
Quinn unfastened her seat belt and shifted over. Rachel climbed across her lap to make room.
"See, that's much better," she said smiling, wigging against her.
"You're right, it is," Quinn agreed, her hands sliding to Rachel's lower back. "I like this."
"Me, too," Rachel said. "Very much.
Her mouth was on Quinn's and her hands were on the back of Quinn's neck, playing with her hair. Quinn moaned.
"Have you remembered yet?" Rachel asked, licking Quinn's ear.
"Mmm, maybe," Quinn taunted. "Are you asking me to do that again?"
"Yesss, yes, please," she said, her breath hot in Quinn's ear.
Quinn put her hands on Rachel's waist and pushed so she was leaning back against the dash. The dress she was wearing buttoned down the front.
Okay, Quinn thought, we can work with this.
She ran both hands up and cupped Rachel's firm breasts, squeezing. Rachel wasn't wearing a bra and Quinn wondered if she ever did as she felt her nipples rise into her palms. Rachel groaned and bit her lip, letting her head fall back.
Quinn began slipping the dress buttons open, one by one, until it was undone down to her stomach. Cupping her hand at the back of Rachel' s neck, she pulled her down against her, sealing their mouths together. She licked across her lips and Rachel copied her. Quinn moved her mouth down to Rachel's neck, biting and licking, until Rachel moaned and squirmed in her lap.
Again Quinn leaned her back against the dash, this time following after her. She pulled her dress open, baring her pert round breasts. She heard Rachel's breath catch and then quicken again. She kissed her softly and brought her hands up, brushing her knuckles across her exposed nipples.
"Ahhh," Rachel gasped.
"Are we good, kitten," she asked softly.
Rachel nodded.
"Tell me, baby," she insisted. "Say it."
"So good," Rachel whispered, pulling on Quinn's shoulders with both hands. "Yess.
She found Quinn's mouth again and slipped her tongue inside. Quinn sucked on it and closed her hand over a breast. Rachel moaned hard when she pinched and pulled a taut nipple.
"More," Rachel whispered. "Kiss them."
Quinn dropped and licked a rosy nipple. She trapped it between her teeth, then swirled her tongue around it. Rachel grabbed her head with both hands. Quinn lapped with her tongue and Rachel twisted her hands in her hair, holding her fixed.
"Oh my god," she whimpered. "Don't stop."
Quinn tugged,with her teeth then closed her lips over it and sucked. Her fingers plucked at its twin. Rachel was curled into her, pushing her breast into her mouth and whimpering.
"Oh, Quinn," she said, her voice a husky whisper. "It's... making me.. .ohmygod. I think... ohmygod."
Quinn traded breasts and the minute her tongue made contact she felt Rachel shudder. She nipped and Rachel cried out sharply, still shaking. Quinn licked slow circles until Rachel pulled her up, kissing her.
Quinn tasted tears and wrapped her arms around her, leaning them both back against the car seat. Rachel twisted away and buried her face in Quinn's neck. Quinn just held her, quietly stroking her hair until she felt her kiss softly under her chin.
When Rachel sat up she was clutched her dress tightly closed around her.
Quinn frowned.
"Oh no, don't do that, kitten," she said, pulling her hand away and kissing her open palm. "Let me see you, okay?"
Rachel's eyes flitted back and forth between Quinn's
Quinn gently pried her other hand off, letting the fabric fall open. Quinn rose up and kissed her neck, then down her chest, touching her softly. She fell back against the seat, keeping her hands around Rachel's waist.
Rachel smiled at her nervously. Quinn took her hand again, kissed her palm, then she placed it over her own breast, holding it there. Rachel's eyes widened and her mouth popped open. She bit her lower lip, chewing nervously.
Rachel squeezed, tentatively, and then looked up at Quinn, who nodded. She did it again, more forcefully. She brushed her fingertips back and forth over Quinn's hard nipple. It made her moan softly. Eager, Rachel pinched hard. Quinn grunted and winced.
Rachel's brow furrowed and she tried to pull her hand away, but Quinn caught it.
"It's okay," she said, reassuring her and placing it back. "Just not so hard."
Rachel nodded and a look of fierce concentration came across her face. Quinn bit the inside of her cheek so as not to laugh. She finally just closed her eyes while Rachel kneaded and tweaked her breasts. Anytime something made Quinn moan, she did it again.
Finally she leaned down against Quinn, kissing her softly, her head against her shoulder.
"What am I doing wrong," she asked.
Quinn chuckled.
"You're not doing anything wrong," she replied, surprised. "Why would you think that?"
"You're not..." she said, swallowing hard. . "You don't...I can't make...you..."
Quinn opened her eyes and looked at her.
"Maybe if you took your shirt off," she suggested.
"I'm not getting naked in this car," Quinn said firmly and Rachel frowned.
"I am," she protested.
"No, you're not," Quinn said, shaking her head.
"But I want to make you... um, feel good, " she insisted.
"Kitten," she said. "That's probably not gonna happen. Not like this."
"Then I am doing it wrong," she whined.
"No, you're not," she said, struggling. "It's just...Rachel, sometimes..."
Quinn growled.
Before Rachel could get too far gone in her pouting, Quinn took her hand and put it underneath her shirt. Rachel's mood changed. Once again, Rachel's lip tucked underneath her teeth.
After several more minutes of kneading, stroking and pinching, Rachel pushed Quinn's shirt up. Quinn gasped and started to protest. She stopped immediately when Rachel took a nipple in her hot mouth. She moaned and closed her eyes, threading her hand in dark, silky tresses, as Rachel bit and licked.
"Mmm Rachel," she said, surprised at how excited she was felt just from Rachel sucking on her breast. Rachel's hand crawled up and closed over her other breast, squeezing and tugging.
Truth be told, Quinn didn't want to have an orgasm. She hadn't wanted her their first time together to be a sweaty, groping moment in car, but honestly, Rachel was making it very, very difficult to resist.
Rachel was now kissing her face.
"Tell me how," she said, between wet kisses. "Tell me what to do."
Quinn panted against her. It was all she could to keep from rolling her over and having her way with her right then and there.
"Okay," Quinn said, nodding. "Just.. I'll..."
She pushed Rachel back against the dash and ran her hands over her breasts again, both hands squeezing her berry-ripe nipples. She wanted to pull her dress away and leave her naked. Instead she dipped her head and licked across her belly button. Rachel giggled and squealed. Quinn kissed and lapped again and Rachel squirmed. Quinn licked up and planted a kiss on each pert nipple, watching them darken and peak to full pout. Then she fell back against the car seat, pulling Rachel down against her.
Rachel's hands went back to her breasts and her mouth along her neck.
"Rachel," Quinn asked, groaning.
She pushed her down and the little brunette pulled a nipple between her lips, sucking and biting.
"Ahhh, yes," Quinn gasped, rolling her head back as Rachel flicked her tongue across it. She traded back and forth on Quinn's breasts, quickly learning what to do, when to be soft and when not to as Quinn felt the tense fire building in her stomach work its way between her thighs.
Now when Rachel sucked and bit down hard, it finally exploded. Quinn gasped and shook, clutching at her.
When the shuddering subsided, Quinn fell over sideways in the seat like a rag doll. Rachel giggled, clearly very pleased with herself. Eventually, Quinn caught her breath and forced herself upright, grunting with the effort.
"That was...unexpected," she noted, smiling. Rachel took both hands and smoothed her wild hair back away from her face. Quinn, in turn, reached out and started buttoning Rachel's dress. Rachel watched her intently. When she was finished, she smoothed it down carefully with her hand.
"There," she announced.
"Thank you," Rachel said quietly.
She snuggled against Quinn, wanting to be kissed and held. Quinn happily obliged until she noticed the sky was darkening.
"The traffic is probably okay by now," she said, lips against Rachel's brow. "We should go."
To Quinn's surprise, Rachel agreed.
She leaned forward, kissed Quinn's lips once, twice, then her cheek and climbed out out of her lap. She secured her seat belt and smoothed her skirt, all without a word.
Quinn blinked, not sure what to think. She had been expecting more resistance. She started the car and guided it back out into traffic still mulling those the same thoughts. Rachel rode with her head lolling back against the car seat, one hand poised on the window frame, her face turned away.
Was she now having doubts, regrets? There had been a brief moment of insecure shyness when Rachel had tried to cover herself. Quinn was surprised that she couldn't bring herself to ask directly.
Though it was less than a foot, Quinn felt the distance between them uncomfortable.
"You cold?," she mumbled. "I can put the window up."
Rachel turned her face to her. She didn't smile, but her eyes did.
"I'm fine," she said.
"Let me know," Quinn said.
Rachel reached out and trailed her hand down the length of Quinn's arm, flexing her fingers here and there
"Everything is okay," she told her. "Just thinking about some things Santana said."
"Anything I can help with?" Quinn asked.
"No, she gave me some...homework, I guess you could call it," Rachel said and didn't elaborate.
Quinn nodded, choosing to believe it, but still relieved Rachel left her fingers touching her the rest of the drive.
The parking lot was practically deserted now and Quinn easily cut across to Rachel's car.
"Here we go, chickadee," she told her, pulling alongside.
Rachel's squeezed her bicep.
"You still won't come home with me?" she asked even though she knew it fruitless.
"No," Quinn decline gently.
Rachel was nothing if not persistent. Before she had a chance to sulk, Quinn leaned over and kissed her cheek, nuzzling against her face.
"It's not that I don't want to be with you," she explained "It's, well, it's that I know I'll never want to leave."
Rachel made a happy, chirp, satisfied with the explanation.
"I don't want you to leave," she whispered.
Quinn exhaled deeply. She felt like there was no point in having this same discussion over and over again and wished Rachel would stop bringing it up.
"Don't be mad because I keep asking," Rachel said.
"I'm not," Quinn said, knowing it was on the edge of being a lie.
Rachel swallowed hard, clearly still distracted. Quinn wanted to ask her what she was thinking, feeling, but decided against it.
"I'm sorry you had a bad day," Quinn said.
"But I had a great day," Rachel insisted. "You fixed it. You made it a great day."
"Don't expect that all the time," she said with a laugh. "You'll be disappointed."
Rachel smiled and stared down, her hands resting limply in her own lap.
"No," she said, shaking her head slowly, not making eye contact. "I won't."
Before Quinn could say anything Rachel was throwing her arms around her and pressing against her. Quinn relaxed into the embrace.
"Goodnight, kitten," she told her, hugging her, burying her face in her hair.
"Thank you, Quinn," she said. "I know this stuff isn't really your problem. I know you don't have to be here."
"You're wrong," she insisted. "I do."
Rachel kissed her, heatedly, then pulled away, panting softly into her face.
"I love you," she whispered.
It was followed by a tiny, almost inaudible, gasp as Rachel realized what she'd done.
Quinn froze.
Rachel was out of her arms and out of the truck before Quinn could even begin to worry about trying to respond. Quinn watched as she got into her car and quickly started it.
Rachel smiled, blew a kiss and drove away. Quinn sat, slack-jawed, staring.
=^..^=
Rachel rolled her window down trying to get more air. Her hands were shaking even as she gripped the steering the wheel. She cursed herself.
She kept casting her eyes up at the rear-view mirror wondering if Quinn was still sitting there or if maybe she was following her.
It had slipped out. It had just slipped out as naturally as saying hello or goodbye.
It was out there and she couldn't take it back.
She didn't want to take it back. She meant it. But the timing. She only wished the timing...it was so awful.
=^..^=
"Hi, this is Rachel. I'm so sorry I'm not available to take your call," came the familiar greeting.
Quinn grunted in frustration and disconnected the call. There was no point in leaving a message. She'd left at least half a dozen messages already and she was starting to feel like a stalker. So far none had been returned.
"God damn it, Rachel," she muttered under her breath.
It had been two days since Rachel made her her whispered confession in the empty parking lot. Almost a full 48 hours since she'd waved and left Quinn reeling, watching her brake lights fade away into evening traffic.
Quinn made it all the way home and through a full 10 hours before she first tried to call and had gotten only Rachel's voice mail. At first she wasn't worried. She knew Rachel well enough to know that she was probably freaking out and just avoiding her calls. She decided to wait it out, to let Rachel make the next move.
When a full 24 hours passed without any contact, then Quinn got seriously concerned. To such extent that she drove over and rang the doorbell. There was no answer and the house was quiet, dark. For the first time since returning Rachel's house key, Quinn regretted it.
When she came home without making contact, Puck took one look at her face and scrambled around madly. He gathered a few necessities and headed to Sam's to wait out the storm.
She made it through another 18 hours and was now frazzled enough she was doing the unthinkable, she was calling Santana.
"Hmmmello," Santana slurred.
"I can't find her," she stated in a rush of words. "I don't know where else to look."
"Wha, find who?" Santana asked, perturbed.
She was eyeballing the clock on her bedside table. It was her first day off in she didn't know how many days and she had hoped to sleep late and spend a quiet, lazy morning with Brittany. When she finally realized the time, she gritted her teeth and clenched her fist.
"Q, what the fuck?" she snapped. "Ah, look at the time. Have you lost your mind? Can't find who?"
"Rachel, San," Quinn huffed. "I can't find Rachel. I've called, I've gone to her house. It's like she's just vanished."
Santana mashed her face into her pillow and let loose a muffled scream. Brittany rubbed her shoulder and Quinn pulled her phone away from her ear, looking at it with a frown.
"She hasn't vanished, Quinn," Santana reassured her through gritted teeth.
"How in the hell do you know that?" Quinn snapped, letting her worry get the better of her. "She doesn't do this, just go off the grid. What if she's..."
"Why not?" Santana said calmly.
"Why not what?" Quinn asked, pulling herself out of her own head.
"Why can't she just disappear?" Santana asked reasonably. "You do it all the time. Why can't she?"
"She just hasn't before," Quinn said, shaking her head. "No, no, it's just not like Rachel, especially not after... No, I can't believe she wouldn't tell me. Something's happened. I'm sure of it. I need to find that shithead boyfriend of hers. "
Santana exhaled dramatically.
"No, no, you don't need to find anybody," she said, her tone firm, almost scolding. "Calm yourself the fuck down. She's fine."
"Wha...how do you know?" she said, her voice shaky. "What if he's done something?"
"I just know," she told her. "Quinn, she's fine. No one has done anything to anyone. Stop imaging things."
Quinn's mood darkened instantly as clarity took hold.
"Cut the shit, Santana, " Quinn hissed. "Where is she?"
This wasn't going to go over well.
"She's working some stuff out," Santana explained. " Some of it's work, some of it's not. That's all I'm saying. I'm not telling you anymore."
"That's bullshit," Quinn spat. Now it was Quinn's turn to scream. Santana pulled the phone away, waiting with a bored expression.
"You done?" she asked when Quinn came back on the line.
"I don't like you in the middle of my personal life." Quinn fumed.
"Too bad, doll," she said calmly. "That's part of the package. Rachel is under my wing now. I'm just looking out for her. "
"What the hell do you think I'm doing?" Quinn asked angrily.
"I know that," Santana said quietly. "And part of that is you put her in touch with me. And you did that because you believe in me and you trust me. Am I right?"
Quinn didn't answer right away.
"Am I right," Santana asked again emphatically.
"Yes, you're right," she admitted.
"Of course, I'm right," Santana said smugly. "So you know I'm not going to do anything to hurt either of you. If I thought you needed to know, I would tell you, Q. But for now, just know that she's safe and she's working some stuff out, okay While she does that, you need to stay out of the way."
"I can't believe she just disappeared," Quinn said, clearly hurt. "Not even a word. Not after...no, that's not like her. I don't believe it."
"Admittedly, I had some influence there," Santana admitted. "I didn't think that you'd be so frantic."
"I'm not...frantic," Quinn muttered.
"Oh yeah, you frantic, " Santana teased. "You're most definitely frantic. I didn't realize it had gotten to that point. My bad, doll-face."
"It was just that she..." Quinn said and then thought better. "It was at a...never mind."
"Not never mind," Santana said sympathetically. "Don't put this on Rachel. I said,"No distractions." Put this on me, Q. I own this."
"Rachel doesn't listen to anyone," Quinn said, pouting.
"Funny, that's what I thought, too," Santana admitted. "But she does, if you put it to her in the right way."
"Like it's her idea," Quinn said, smirking.
"Exactly, " Santana said with a laugh. "She's a master manipulator, but there are some cracks in the armor."
"A few," Quinn admitted.
"She's fine, Quinn," Santana said again. "She's getting her shit together, that's all. And believe me, keeping that girl away from you may well be the hardest thing I've ever done in my career. In my life, in fact."
Quinn scoffed.
"Quinn, Quinn, Quinn, Quinn, Quinn," Santana said. "If I didn't know you, I'd think you were some sort of saint from listening to her."
Quinn laughed.
"I'm doing my best to put holes in her overly-inflated notion of your abilities to walk on water," Santana assured her.
"Thanks," Quinn said dryly. "So where is she?"
Santana took a deep breath.
"Home, she went home," Santana admitted.
"No she's not," Quinn snapped.
"I mean, like home with her family. I asked her to go back to her roots, to take stock of herself and decide where she wanted to be in her life, professionally speaking."
Quinn breathed a huge sigh of relief. She didn't know where that was, but she was sure it was safe and away from him.
"I will tell you that she wanted you to go with her," Santana added. "But let's just say I talked her out of that. I may have also told her I'd explain everything to you so you wouldn't worry about her."
"San," Quinn scoffed angrily. "This is pretty shitty, even for you."
"Yeah, I know, " Santana said, already reading Quinn's thoughts. "I figured she'd be back before you came unwound. Like I said, I didn't realize how y'all had gotten to be so co-dependent."
"I'm, we're...not." Quinn countered.
"Right," Santana said dryly.
Quinn rolled her eyes. Santana's career reboot wasn't getting off to a great start.
"Great, no I've left a about a half a dozen pitiful voice mail messages," she admitted. "What the hell does she think about all that?
"She hasn't heard them, " Santana admitted slowly.
"God damn it, Santana, " she snapped.
"I have her cell phone," Santana continued, ignoring Quinn's tantrum. "She's got a disposable for the trip."
"Aaaauuhh," Quinn vented. "Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit."
"Yeah, I figured you'd say that ," she admitted. "I haven't listened to anything. I just recognized the number on caller ID."
Quinn groaned and stared at the phone in her hand. She seriously wanted to climb through it and kill Santana at this moment.
"Give me the phone number," Quinn hissed menacingly.
"Q," Santana said, trying to placate her. "She'll be home soon. Just let it be."
"San, do not make me come over there," she warned. "For real, give me her number. Right now!"
Santana exhaled deeply.
"I'll have her call you, okay? Santana suggested. "Everybody wins."
Quinn growled.
"Fine, do it." she snapped. "Now."
"Okay, I'll get with her..." Santana replied, but the Quinn disconnected the phone before she could finish.
Santana groaned.
"Is she mad?" Brittany asked, quietly.
"Yup," Santana answered. She sounded as drained as she felt. "Pretty pissed."
Brittany rolled over and snuggled against, kissing under her chin.
"I told you so," Brittany said, scolding her.
"Yes, B," Santana admitted. "I know you did. And you were right."
"Rachel's gonna be mad, too," Brittany reminded her. "She thinks Quinn hasn't called."
Santana closed her eyes. Why was this already so difficult?
"Brit, damn it," she fussed. "There was no way to get anything done with them mooning around each other. This way Rachel gets her ducks lined up."
"Ooh, Rachel has ducks?" Brittany asked excitedly, sitting up to look at Santana. "Did she get them at the feed store? I wish Quinn had let me go, too."
Santana bit her lip.
"No baby, " she told her. "It's just an expression."
"Oh," Brittany said, clearly disappointed.
"It means that Rachel has her priorities straight," she explained. "But no ducks, sorry."
"Oh," she said, "That would have been fun."
"Uh huh," Santana agreed, not really paying attention.
"Quinn won't stay mad," Brittany said, reading her thoughts. "Rachel won't either."
"Yeah, well," Santana said, shaking her head. "I don't care if they do."
Brittany smiled, knowing full well it was a lie.
"Call Rachel," she told her. "Just let them talk to each other. It'll be fine."
Santana dialed Rachel's temporary number.
=^..^=
Quinn paced around in tight little circles. When her phone chirped, she glared at it, fully expecting to see Santana's number on the screen. She was certain Santana would call back with a load of flimsy excuses why she couldn't reach Rachel.
Instead, it came up unknown number.
WTF?
"Hello," Quinn said cautiously.
"I swear I didn't know," Rachel said in a rush. "I didn't. I just thought you just weren't calling me. You know I would not ignore your calls, not even if Santana told me to. I just wouldn't. Quinn, don't be mad."
Quinn smiled.
"It's alright," she said quietly. "I'm not. I'm not mad. I was just...worried."
They both paused and breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"Actually, that's a lie," Quinn said. "I'm so mad at Santana I could spit nails. Maybe I'll get Noah to kick her ass. It'll be like an early Christmas present."
"Don't," Rachel replied.
"I called you," Quinn said. "I left messages, too. I'm gonna get Santana to erase them now, but I called."
"I know you did. She told me," Rachel said."And don't you dare."
"Of course I called," Quinn repeated. "I mean, how could I not after...and then I thought you were... aahh,shit"
"Quinn," Rachel said. "Everything is... hi."
Quinn could tell she was smiling.
"Hi," Quinn said back, grinning. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, I am, " she said. "I'm home with my dads."
"Dads?" Quinn repeated stupidly.
"Yes, I'll have to explain that sometime," she said. "But for right now, let's just say I've just been doing a lot of thinking. About a lot of things. I know you're mad at her, but Santana really did me a huge favor making me do this."
"As long as you're okay," she told her. "The rest is great. I'm glad you're connecting or whatever, just as long as you're safe. That's what I cared about."
"My goodness," Rachel said, stifling a yawn. "It's really early."
Quinn chuckled.
"Yeah, San was pissed about that," Quinn told her. "Serves her right. I'm going to call her every morning for a month."
"You sound tired," Rachel said.
"Yup, little bit," Quinn confessed. Actually she was exhausted and feeling every bit of it now that her adrenaline-fueled panic had burned itself out.
"Maybe you should lie down," she suggested. "Try and nap."
"Mmm, no, I can't," she protested. "I've got too much to do and Noah's gone into hiding."
Rachel laughed.
"Quinn," she scolded mildly.
"I didn't do anything," Quinn insisted.
Rachel clucked her tongue softly, dubious.
"No, really, he just...it was self-preservation. I know he's at Sam's"
"Quinn, go to sleep," Rachel insisted. "Just for a little while."
"Maybe," she agreed, curling into her blanket. "I'll set my alarm."
Her alarm clock was so far away. Quinn didn't want to get up. Maybe she didn't have so much to do today.
Rachel listened to her rustling about, shifting position. She waited until there was only her slow, steady breathing.
"I didn't mean to say it," she admitted quietly.
"Mmmm," Quinn replied, too tired to say much else.
"But I'm not sorry I did," she added firmly.
There was a soft chuckle in response.
"I meant it." Rachel insisted. "I mean it. I...do"
"Rachel," Quinn answered.
"It's how I feel. I know it's wr..." Rachel rambled, anxious to explain herself.
"Rachel?" Quinn interrupted.
"Yes?" she said.
"Shhhh," Quinn shushed her.
'It's just, you don't have to..." she tried again.
"Chickadee," Quinn insisted. "Stop, really."
Rachel groaned, frustrated.
"Finish your homework, do whatever you need to do," Quinn said. "Don't worry about anything here. All is well."
"Promise?" she asked meekly
"I promise," Quinn reassured her.
"See, right now, this is where I'm supposed to get to kiss you," she said, causing Quinn's heart to flutter.
"We'll get around to that again," Quinn told her. "No worries, kitten."
"See...stuff like that," she added. "That's why I said that...thing I said."
Quinn exhaled softly.
It was a good sound. A happy, contented sound and Rachel grabbed on to it with her whole heart.
"And I thought it was hard saying goodbye when you're just across town," Quinn confessed. Rachel
closed her eyes tightly and hugged the phone.
"So don't say it," Rachel suggested. "Don't say anything. Just...sleep."
"I can't," Quinn said
"Try. Put me on speaker." Rachel insisted. "Close your eyes and just talk to me."
Rachel talked quietly and Quinn's answers got shorter and fainter until they finally stopped altogether. She was sleeping with the phone still in her hand, clutched against her chest.
Rachel waited a little while longer, until she was sure that Quinn was really sleeping, before she hung up the phone.
It was true what she had told her about Santana's advice being a huge favor. From almost the moment she arrived, she'd felt layers of issues and worries that she didn't even know she carried stripping away. She felt calmer, fresher, more free to be herself than she had in a long, long time. She was getting back to the core of who she really was and seeing again who she really wanted to be. She knew now what she wanted and what she was willing to do to make that happen.
She felt excited about everything, all the possibilities, that were hers for the taking.
Above everything else, she knew one thing and she said it out loud now because she needed to and because she could:
"I love you, Quinn."
=^..^=