Her feet splashed on the wet sidewalk at a brisk pace. She hurried, as if anyone in Lima, Ohio would happen to be in this part of town at this hour, to see her in the rain. Even if someone were to see her (which is highly unlikely anyway), what would they think? It's even less likely the random person on the street would know her, or even recognize her figure at 2am in the rain. And even if they did, how could they possibly know what she was doing?
Rachel couldn't convince herself out of the nerves. The idea that someone might see her, stop, and ask, "what are you doing? Are you meeting up with Quinn Fabray?" terrified her.
The streetlights were spaced out just far enough so she had to run between shadows every so often. Rachel couldn't stand it when she couldn't see. That prickly fear of walking alone at night nudged her heart. But she knew it was worth it. She would walk down this street in the snow, sleet, or hail for Quinn Fabray. And knowing that scared her a lot more than walking alone at night.
The bell chimed in the door as Rachel entered the diner. She breathed a sigh of relief when the rain stopped pounding her head and she felt the warmth of the air inside. The night shift waiter waved to her, and she smiled awkwardly in response. In the back right corner sat Quinn Fabray.
She must've driven, as her hair was perfect as always. Curling gently down to her shoulders, tossed to the sides of her face. She wore her necklace with the crucifix on it, and Rachel knit her eyebrows. It was going to be one of those nights.
"Quinn," she said as she sat down across from her.
"Rachel, God, did you walk all the way here again?" Quinn took Rachel's hands in hers and massaged warmth into them. Rachel smiled. "Don't smile at me, Berry, I told you to stop doing this! It's dangerous, and I hate seeing you cold."
Rachel glanced down at the table. "I-I had to. My dads fell asleep downstairs, I thought they'd hear the car."
"You could've called to cancel."
"Cancel? Quinn, I only get to see you like this once a week, or twice if I'm lucky. I wouldn't cancel on you for anything."
Quinn's lip twitched, almost forming a smile. The two girls looked into each other's eyes, thinking about everything they wished they could say. The unheard "I love you"s drove them crazy, but they knew telling each other would make what they had too real. Too painful.
The waiter brought the girls water and gave them each a nod. He seemed to have this knowledge about him, like he knew they needed a safe space. A place to not be judged or questioned. A place to simply exist as two girls who were falling in love.
Rachel picked up Quinn's hand and brought it to her lips. Quinn giggled, remarking, "your lips are freezing."
"I've missed you, Quinn."
Quinn's smile faded. She slowly took her hands from Rachel and placed them, uncomfortably, in her lap. "Rachel, we need to talk." She swallowed nervously. "I don't think I can do this anymore. It's just too hard. Sneaking around like this, meeting up here in the dead of night, being afraid all the time at school that someone will know and tell my parents…" Her hand reflexively reached for the cross on her neck, and she twisted it between her fingers.
Rachel sighed. "Quinn, you keep trying to do this. You keep trying to stop, and it never lasts. We both want to keep this a secret, but I don't want to break up, or stop, or end whatever it is we're doing, whatever we are. And neither do you. I know that."
"I can't, Rachel. I have to end this."
"Quinn, why?" Rachel's voice cracked. "Why do you keep doing this to yourself, to me?" She paused to lower her voice. "You have tried to break up with me three times already, Quinn, and it hurts so much every single time. Not just because I want to be with you so badly, but because I know how much it's hurting you. And you have no one to support you. Quinn, you're just going to have to accept that you're-"
"Don't." Quinn snapped. "Don't label me. You don't know what I am. And Rachel, this isn't us breaking up. You were never my girlfriend." She said the word as if it were revolting. "All we ever did was hook up, Rach. That's it. We are not anything."
"Fine, Quinn." Rachel said, tears in her eyes. "But whenever you're ready to come back to me again, just know that I will always walk through the pouring rain for you."