Summary: "Looking for your next target?" Rachel shakes her head, playing with the straw in her drink.
"Counting." She takes a long sip, eyes on the crowd.
"How many women have you taken home? many can you add to your bedpost?" She scoffs, not needing to hear this.
"How many women can compete with you?" She grabs her by the hand as she tries to walk away, pulling her in with her back to her front, like they were on the dance floor. "And you know what? None." She whispers in her ear.
A/N: Got the idea listening to a song that I randomly stumbled on, through social medias. Flashbacks are in Italic
A/N 2: Title is a reference to Taylor Swift's song
Warnings: explicit sexual content
This Love
The bass pounds into her ears and the dark lights play with her eyes, confusing her. She navigates through the dancing bodies, until she finally sees him, perched against the bar counter obviously flirting with the attractive bartender.
"Am I interrupting something?" She clears her throat and when he turns to face her, he almost jumps into her arms. Good thing he really doesn't do it. Her dress is too new for her not to care.
"You're here!? You're finally here!" Kurt wraps himself around her, making her aware of how much alcohol he has gotten into his system. "My maid of honor! Whooo!" He turns to the bartender, who just smirks her way.
"What can I get you, special one?" He smirks. "You gotta catch up, you know?"
"Vodka lemon." She nods and he gets busy with her drink behind the counter.
"He's hot." The inebriated husband-to-be whispers conspicuously in her ear and laughs so hard that he stumbles. "I should tap that while I can."
"You'd regret it in the morning, trust me on this." She furrows her brows and looks around. Is she being watched? That's how she feels.
"If it makes you feel better, my brother sucks in bed." He laughs even harder and she deposits him on the nearest stool. "You needed a fucking good time. Right?" He slurs towards the bartender.
"Can I get some water? For him." She thanks the bartender and takes a sip from her drink. She fights the urge to cough and make a fool of herself but she is not surprised if Kurt is hammered. There's so much alcohol she could make two drinks out of it.
"He looks fine in my book." The bartender winks and Kurt does it back. "I get off at 2." He leans over to stare at him.
"You can get me off whenever you want." Kurt leans in, but she just pulls him back before something else happens. She has witnessed enough.
"We're getting you away now." She drags him by the elbow, having spotted the rest of the crew. She struggles against his resistance, but as soon as they lose sight of the bartender, Kurt gives up.
"Rachel! You made it!" Mercedes pulls her in a bear hug that she has never received from anyone before. "I thought you'd be too busy shooting your show to be here…"
"I moved things around but I couldn't miss my best friend's wedding." She smiles. "He's hammered, how did you let it happen?"
"I am not hammered." Kurt tries to stand but fails miserably, leaning into Tina.
"It's his last night as a free man, let him live and have some fun." The brunette girl chuckles. "You should've seen his bachelor party with the stripper."
"You hired one? I wish I didn't miss that." She drops on one of the couches and sips from her drink. "How's it with you? Your album?"
"Coming next fall and promo tour next year." Mercedes pours herself some champagne.
"I'm totally going to be there, first row." Rachel turns to Tina who has left Kurt in one of his closest colleagues' hands. "And you Miss New Yorker?"
"Oh please, I am nowhere near you two." She reaches for her Gin Tonic. "How's the show coming along? Anything juicy you can share?"
"My lips are sealed. Huh huh." She shakes her head laughing.
"Mm, Rach?" Mercedes nudges her. "Who's that?" She nods towards the bar and when Rachel turns, she freezes in the spot.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"Tell me again how you convinced me to follow you here." Rachel looks around the dim lit club. It looks like any other club she has gone to, even if she can count those on one hand.
"'Cause you need one last night as a free woman, before you tie the knot with Finn." He drags her to the bar and places an order for something that she doesn't even know, but that probably has too much alcohol in. "I don't get why you couldn't have the wedding here."
"Well, Lima is less expensive and Carol found this church just a few miles from Lima. It's cute." She shrugs and takes a sip. It's strong. Maybe too strong.
"Is this what you wanted? Didn't you dream of a wedding in Central Park?" He raises an eyebrow at her.
"It's fine. We are both moving here and that's what really matters to me." She looks around. "Are we meeting some of your colleagues here?"
"No, why do you ask?" He asks for a refill and looks at the brunette girl. "You've been to gay clubs before, what's the matter?"
"Nothing." She shakes her head. She know she is being watched. She knows eyes have been following her and the feeling? Well, she is flattered by that.
"You want to dance? I am in the mood for dancing." Kurt claps excitedly. He doesn't even wait for her to say yes or no and just drags her to the dance floor.
Fifteen minutes later, they're squeezing in the middle of the dance floor, pushing to get enough room to move without stepping on feet or getting elbowed when the rhythm picks up. Fifteen minutes to finally lower her walls down and let herself get lost in the music.
Arms up, hands tangled in her hair, she sways from side with her eyes closed to focus on the music. She doesn't need to see to feel the music within her. She just lets it guide her body.
"May I have this dance?" The music is still high but the voice is clear and raspy. She feels it before another body moves along with her, barely touching her but still letting her feel its presence.
She opens her eyes to look at Kurt, but he just gives her thumbs up and scurries away to get a refill. She keeps on moving, thinking of her options. It's just a dance, what's the worse that can happen?
"Or I can just leave you alone." The body takes a step back.
It's a hit or miss.
Rachel turns around just to pull them back in and when she does, she finds her breath caught in her throat .
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"You're back." The blonde is leaning against the brick wall outside the club with a cigarette hanging from her lips.
"For a while." Rachel stands in front of her, arms wrapped around herself almost to protect herself from the way her hazel eyes are staring at her. From head to her stilettos.
"You never called again." She takes a long drag from the cigarette and throws it away, hitting a can with it. The smoke comes out of her nose and mixes with the colder air of the night.
"So didn't you." She furrows her brows.
"I'm not the one with a ring on my finger." She chuckles and looks at her hand, but the smile drops realizing something is missing.
"Not anymore, I guess." She shows her hand and tucks it inside the pocket of the jacket she has borrowed from Kurt.
"I'm sorry." She stands straight and takes a step forward.
"Why?" Rachel stands her ground and looks at her, almost eye-to-eye given the heels she is wearing.
"I'm supposed to say that, no?" She raises her brows questioningly. "You were engaged and now, you're not. Don't you want some sympathy?"
"Yes, but not from you." She clenches her fists tightly.
"Fine, what do you want then?" She stands in front of her. She stands so close that she can smell the nicotine on her breath. She can smell the perfume she is wearing.
"Just…" Rachel grabs onto the sides of her face and crushes their mouths together. "This."
Their lips are still hovering and so it's easy to close the distance once more. She pushes against her, pressing them back against wall behind as their lips find each other, again.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
She is engaged. She is engaged to a man she's know for her whole young life. She's engaged to a man she is supposed to marry in a month from then. She's engaged and yet, he is the last thought crossing her mind while she dances with her.
Hips sway slowly. Almost too slow. Probably not even following the music around them.
The blonde's front presses up against her back, molding around her like no one before.
Not Finn, with his tremendous height and poor coordination (and short self-control).
Not any of her exes, either too bulky or too interested in taking her clothes off to dance properly with her.
Their hands are tangled over her stomach and for once, she is the one having those kind of thoughts. For once, she is left wondering how those hands would feel against her, under her clothes. For once, she is left wondering how a stranger would touch her.
"Do you want to get a drink?" Her voice is low and it sends chills up and down her body. It actually makes her tingle all over. It makes her blood pump in her veins and it hits her. It hits her right there.
"Mm, sure." Their hands remain tangled and she just lets herself be dragged, pushing through people, to get to a more secluded area of the bar. She can still get a glimpse of the dance floor, but they're hidden behind a pillar that gives them more privacy. More intimacy.
"What are you in the mood for?" She is still behind her, pressed against her back, hands over the counter to keep her there.
"Surprise me." Rachel takes that moment to stare at those hands. Her fingers are long and looks strong. Strong enough to touch her the way she is secretly wanting, but shouldn't need to.
"Seb, two Whiskey Sour. Put it on my tab." Leaning over her, she raises her voice enough to be heard by the closest bartender. A tall brunette that would totally be Kurt's type.
"You come here often huh?" She turns around to take a better look at her "new" friend. She is taller than her, but not enough to tower her. Just the right height for them to talk (or maybe more) without straining their necks.
"I guess." She smirks. "What about you? Never saw you before."
"I don't…I am not…" She stumbles on her words. How to say it without sounding like an homophobic idiot? "But I have two Dads and I support your causes."
"Our causes?" She laughs genuinely, without any resentment. "So you're not, but here we are." She steps back in and their lips are just a step away. "What does this make you then?"
"I…" She licks her lips and she can almost feel those lips on hers. She can almost feel them.
"Drinks are here." The blonde pulls back before she can make a fool of herself and kiss the air and she is smirking, in a way that infuriates her.
"Thanks." She slips out of the circle of her arms to lean against the counter, beside her, and nurse her drink.
"Cheers." The blonde stranger leans beside her, with her back to the counter.
"Looking for your next target?" Rachel shakes her head, playing with the straw in her drink.
"Counting." She takes a long sip, eyes on the crowd.
"How many women have you taken home? many can you add to your bedpost?" She scoffs, not needing to hear this.
"How many women can compete with you?" She grabs her by the hand as she tries to walk away, pulling her in with her back to her front, like they were on the dance floor. "And you know what? None." She whispers in her ear.
"How far is your place?" Rachel gulps, leaning back into this woman.
"You're sure?" She looks at her and when Rachel leans in to kiss the corner of her lips, she just guides her out of there.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
" Can I ask something personal?" She sits up against the headboard, wrapped in the bedsheets.
"Am I allowed not to answer if it's too personal?" The blonde lies across the mattress, head angled towards her.
"Forget it, Quinn." She shakes her head, resting it back against the headboard.
"I'm kidding. Go ahead, ask me." She nudges her foot with her knee.
"What do you do for a living? I know we didn't exactly talk last time, but…" She looks down at her.
"Cause we were too buys screwing each other?" She smirks and it's Rachel nudging her back, kicking her hip from her advantage point. "I'm rich. That's what I do."
"So, you just do nothing?" Rachel crosses her legs and leans her head on her hands, elbows perched on her knees.
"I do many things, but not for a living. I got this place from my Mom's side of the family and a few other things." Sitting up, she reaches for the robe hanging from the bedpost and puts it on as she gets up. "You want anything to drink?"
"As long as it's not one of those things you drink." Rachel follows her, wrapping herself with the shhets.
"I'll keep my very expensive whiskey all to myself then." Quinn sticks her tongue out at her, earning nothing but a chuckle. "What brings you here?"
"You did or you forgot that?" She perches herself on one of the stools, watching Quinn make them a drink.
"Smartass, I meant New York." She throws her an orange slice, hitting her hand.
"My best friend is getting married." Rachel reaches for her purse and gets her phone, finding a few texts and missed calls. She types a quick response in the group chat and turns it off, to save battery (or just not to be bothered).
"The same one who ditched you the first night we met?" She squeezes some orange juice in their glasses and stirs the mix with a metal straw.
"Yep." She takes the offered glass and clinks it with Quinn's, who never stops staring at her as they take their first sip.
"So, you'll be in town until then." She nods, rather than asks.
"Pretty much, yes." Rachel averts her eyes, noticing something she isn't totally familiar with. "Is that what I think it is?"
"What?" Quinn turns when her eyes land on the object that caught Rachel's attention. "Oh that."
"Why do you have a vacuum sealer for food?" She leaves her glass on the island counter and just goes to check it out, from a closer distance.
"You never know when you need to store your leftovers, okay?" She tries to hide it. "I barely use it."
"And this juice extractor? How many times you've used this." She chuckles at the perfectly clean kitchen aid tool. "You probably live off Starbucks. How do you have all of this stuff?"
"I'm bored, ok? I am very bored and when I can't sleep I just…" She tries to put herself between Rachel and her kitchen. "I buy stuff."
"Well, as long as you don't have any of those hideous self-massaging chairs." Rachel laughs but when Quinn doesn't join, she realizes what the real truth is. "God no. Don't tell me…"
"I won't." Quinn looks away.
"You have it? You really have it?" Rachel laughs even harder. "How much was it?"
"700$." Quinn hides her face in shame. "Do you know how many times I sat there? Twice."
"Can I see it? Please, Quinn." She reaches for the woman's hands, who nods and grabs her by the hand, leading her to the second bedroom turned in her hobby room.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
Pushed against the inside of her front door, she tugs the blonde by the front of her dress and presses up against her, feeling every inch of their bodies together through the clothes.
Her other hand tugs her own dress upwards, making it easier for her to wrap her leg around the blonde's waist as their mouths never stop kissing or finding each other.
She has never been kissed like this before.
She has never been wanted like this before.
She has never wanted someone like this before.
"Mmmh." The blonde's hands slip under the hem of her dress, caressing up her thighs until they slip under the waistband of her panties and tug. They tug once. Twice. Thrice. They tug until the fabric moves down with her fingers, until it's Rachel flinging them across the room.
"Please…" She whines at the contact loss. The blonde is too far for her liking.
"Quinn. You can call me, Quinn." The jacket is halfway off her shoulders when her name comes out of her perfect mouth.
"Rachel." She surges forward, making them stumble back a couple of steps, until Quinn gains her footing and pins her against the nearest surface. It's another wall.
"I want this off." Her hands roam over clothes to lower the zipper on the back and finally leave her naked, safe for her bra and shoes.
"Fuck." It's all Quinn can mutter.
"I'm a little underdressed, don't you think?" She tries to keep it playful, but she is just trying to keep her mind off being naked in front of this gorgeous woman. She can't even remember the last time she got naked for someone like this.
"You look perfect for the things I want to do to you..." Quinn's hands slide down her shoulders and spine, brushing over the shape of her backside, and just grab her by the back of her thighs and lift her off the floor with ease.
"Well, who says I have no plans for you?" She nibbles on her earlobe, as she is carried further in the living room and lied on the couch, with the blonde hovering her.
"Maybe later." Quinn has one knee on the couch, ready to straddle her but Rachel sits up and pushes her off.
"Get those off first." She tugs at the fabric of her dress and Quinn finally gets it. She throws her clothes everywhere with a speed that said enough about how the night was going to progress, really.
"Happy?" With her panties at her feet, Quinn stands in front of her, bare and exposed. She is gorgeous and toned and perfect in every way, that she feels even more self-conscious.
"I…" Rachel looks away.
"Hey. If you want to stop, we can just get our clothes back on." Quinn kneels on the couch and tilts her head back to hers. "I know you've got someone and-"
"No, it's not for him." She doesn't even mentally reprimand herself for not thinking of him. Of the guy she is supposed to marry and be loyal to, for the rest of her life. Of the guy she is supposed to love. "You look like that and I…"
"I was serious you know? No woman in that club could compete with you." She cups her face and looks down in her eyes. "And I want you. I wanted you then and I want you even more now, that I've seen all of you."
Rachel can only pull her down for a kiss that leaves them breathless and excited for what's to come. For the night that has just begun.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
" Can I say something? That massage chair was awful." Rachel is perched on her elbow, looking down at Quinn who lies in the middle of the bed, sharing her bedsheet.
"I know right? I should've got a refund for it." She chuckles, eyes closed and arms behind her head.
"Or sell it. There must be someone worse than you that could fall for it." She chuckles and gets a pillow smacked against her chest, making her drop on her back.
"You're so funny, Berry." Quinn rolls over her, pinning their hands at their sides, against the covers. "Why don't you make an offer?"
"No thanks, I know how to do business." She giggles and when Quinn pouts, she just kisses it. Once. Twice. Until the pout is replaced by a soft smile.
"That's why you're the famous actress between us." Quinn rolls on her back and Rachel follows after her, facing her,
"Are those your parents?" She nods on the framed pictures on the wall. There were many photographs around the house, even if not many included Quinn or any other person. It was mostly black/white pictures of places that she assumes she has visited.
"Yeah. A couple of months after their wedding." Tilting her head, she stares at it.
"That's where your beauty comes from." Rachel keeps staring at it, seeing so much of the woman in front of her, into them. The same eyes as her Father's. The same beauty as her Mother's.
"You should have seen my sister." Quinn smiles sadly. "She was…well, a classical beauty. Like one of those actresses from the 50s with her perfect blonde hair and blue eyes."
"She was?" She scoots upwards, head resting beside the blonde's on her pillow.
"She got in a car accident. A drunk driver came out of nowhere and just hit the side of her car." Quinn looks up at the ceiling. "The doctors said she didn't suffer."
"Oh." She curls on her side, wanting to reach out and comfort her but unsure if she should. If she is allowed to.
"What about your family? Any sibling?" She swallows the imaginary lump caused by her painful memories and puts on her best smile.
"So we are really doing this?" Rachel brushes her own hair back from her face.
"Doing what?" Quinn rolls on her side to face her, arms crossed over her bare chest.
"Pillow talk." She gestures between them.
"We don't have to." Quinn's eyes harden and walls rise all around her, shielding herself. "You don't have to stay, if you don't want to."
"Do you want me to go?" She looks into her eyes, finding herself unable to read into them. One moment she could easily lose herself into those hazel eyes, the other she is kept outside.
"That's not what I said." Quinn starts to move around to lie on her back, but the other woman just cups her face and pulls her in for a soft kiss. It's unexpected. It's so random that she cannot even process it.
"I am an only child." Rachel's words are whispered against her lips. With every pause between her words, she leans in for another peck and then another one. "I have two Dads and they're the best parents a girl could wish for." She keeps alternating words with kisses and Quinn can only reach for her, pulling her closer.
"Tell me more…" Their lips barely part and their fronts are so close that she could swear she could hear Rachel's heartbeat against her own chest. She could swear they're beating in unison.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
" It's getting late." Rachel sits up, pulling the sheets over her chest. Her clothes are strewn anywhere around the living room.
"I am not kicking you out." Quinn is still lying down, bare from the chest up but she doesn't really seem to mind, not that she should have any reason to. Not with that body. Not with those mad skills.
"I know but I can't stay." She slips the first thing she can find on and just pads back to where she has come from, to locate her discarded clothes.
"Here." Quinn is wrapped in the sheets and Rachel has to look away when she bends, to take her lace bra off the floor.
"Thanks." With her dress halfway on, she turns around to put her bra back on. It's silly to be ashamed to be seen, after all the ways Quinn has touched her.
"You should get a cab. It's too late to roam around on your own." The blonde leans against the back of the couch.
"Your address?" She nods pulling her taxi app up.
"Give me that." She nods to her phone and when she does, she types away her address as the pickup location. "All settled."
"Thanks." She reaches out to take her phone back, but it's Quinn's other hand pulling her in, until she has to kneel onto the couch to stay close.
"I saved my number." She looks down in her eyes.
"Oh." Rachel nods quietly.
"You don't have to use it, but…" She isn't too sure of what to say. She usually doesn't do this. "Whenever you're in town."
"I already live here.." She raises herself higher and pulls her down for a lingering kiss. "I can't see you anymore."
"Thought so.." She nods against her lips. With her hands tangled in her locks, she pulls her forward for a harder kiss. "Does he make you happy?"
"Yeah." She sighs against her lips, eyes closed. She wonders. She lets the thought cross her mind and when it doesn't leave her, she kisses her a little harder. She pulls and lifts herself higher on her knees, pressing up into Quinn.
"Rachel…" Quinn drops her forehead on hers and she takes a moment to breathe. She breathes heavily, still tasting of Quinn, in so many wonderful ways.
"I have to go." Rachel hears the notification sound, alerting her of the incoming ride.
"Okay." Quinn pulls away, dropping her hands from around her waist to fasten the sheets around her. Rachel slips her shoes on and gets her discarded purse, fixing herself the best she can not to look like someone who has just been fucked thoroughly.
"I guess it's goodbye." With a hand around the knob, she looks at the blonde. One more glance.
"Goodbye, Rachel." Quinn nods softly. She isn't going to chase after her and Rachel isn't going to ask her to. She doesn't change her mind either.
She just walks out of the door, slowly. It's such a contrast to the moment she has walked in, rushed inside by the eager blonde.
She just walks out and Quinn closes the door after her. She closes the door on what has just happened and what could have been…
If only…
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"Earth to Rachel." Mercedes waves a hand in front of her face and she pulls herself out of her daydream. "Welcome back."
"Sorry about that, what were you saying?" She sits up in the leather armchair, looking at her bridesmaid dress. "You look good, 'Cedes."
"Long night huh?" The brunette chuckles and Rachel blushes. "Something tells me, it has something to do with that blonde hottie who showed up last night and couldn't keep her eyes off you."
"What blonde hottie?" Tina pops her head out of her dressing room, having caught the last part of their conversation.
"A very attractive woman who couldn't keep her eyes off our dear starlet." Mercedes chuckles. "Tell us more."
"There's nothing to tell." She blushes and stands up. "Where is my dress?"
"Don't change the subject." The other brunette just pushes her back in the chair and stands in front of her, aided by Tina. "You went home with her, didn't you?"
"You know I did." She looks up. "And no, I didn't get much sleep. I am actually wiped." She stifles a yawn.
"You've got a thing for blondes anyway. There was that guy in college, during spring break, and then the girl from a year ago." Tina has her dress halfway off, when she says it.
"So, there was someone else! You didn't call the wedding off for a sudden case of cold feet?" Mercedes looks at her, incredulous. "Why ya never told me that?"
"I thought you knew. It's not a secret." She rubs the back of her head. "Well, Finn probably doesn't know or maybe he likes to think I got scared, over the truth."
"You ever saw that girl again? Maybe we could find her." She nods to her other friend.
"There's no need really." Rachel stands up, wanting to get over this as soon as possible.
"I can ask Mike from the IT department. He is a pure nerd with a A-lister body." Tina blushes.
"So, you saw him naked? Good for you." Rachel raises a hand for a high five, but she doesn't get it back. "I don't need to find her, okay?" She moves into one of the dressing rooms for her own fitting.
"You don't want to find the girl who turned your world upside down so fast, that you called your wedding off?" Mercedes chuckles. "Sounds special to me."
"Or maybe she already found her, right?" Tina nudges the other brunette. When no answer comes, they both grin conspicuously. "It's her. It's that girl!"
"Can you keep quiet? People across the street didn't hear you." Rachel comes out of the dressing room, with her maid of honor dress halfway up.
"Well, that girl must have broken so many engagements. Way to go." Mercedes fist bumps Rachel, who looks away blushing and to hide a hint of a smile.
"You saw her? When?" Tina reaches behind Rachel to help her with the zip.
"The club, yesterday. It's where we met the first time." Rachel fixes her hair. "Kurt thought it could be one last night of fun before the wedding, but maybe not like that."
"Do you have her number?" Tina asks and gets shoved back, with purpose. "Ouch, I'm kidding. I don't swing that way."
"So didn't Rachel and here we are…" Mercedes laughs, earning a death glare from her. "Calm down tiger."
"Is she coming to the wedding?" Tina asks as Rachel steps on the platform to get her dress looked at, by the designer assistant.
"No, but I didn't ask." Rachel looks down at her dress. "Finn is going to be there and it will be awkward enough without bringing her too."
"Right, but you and Finn ended things a year ago. Hasn't he moved on?" Mercedes takes a glass of champagne. "Wasn't he dating that teacher?"
"Not that I know but that's good for him." Rachel winces when the pin brushes her shin.
"You can always ask Kurt and see what he thinks? If Finn is bringing someone, I don't get why you can't?" Tina smiles and Rachel just nods. Something to think about.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"I never thought you'd call me." Quinn leans against the open doorway, arms crossed over her chest, in home clothes.
"Two of us." Rachel nods shortly. "May I come in?"
"Of course, do you want anything to drink?" The blonde lets her in, closing the door with a soft thud. "I just made some tea but I've got coffee or juice or something stronger."
"I'll have a glass of water." She undoes the buttons of her coat when Quinn grabs her a bottle of water, handling it to her. "Thanks."
"You can relax, you know? I don't bite." Quinn chuckles but she doesn't react to it. "You're getting me worried. What's wrong? Look, if you regret what happened is fine. I know girls like to experiment and we can just call it that…"
"I'm getting married in a week." Rachel puts the bottle down. "I'm getting married to a guy who I've been knowing for years."
"That's good right? He doesn't need to know. I won't tell anyone, not that I know any of your friends." She rubs the back of her head.
"It's not that." Rachel shakes her head, looking down.
"What is it?" She takes a step forward, reaching out to cup her chin and Rachel just tilts her head back up, standing equally close.
"I can't stop thinking about you." She looks into her eyes, that sort of shine a little brighter at her revelation. "I am supposed to plan the best day of my life and all I can think of is you."
"Oh." Quinn swallows hard.
"I've got a million thoughts running through my head but they all lead back to you." She drops her hands on her hips and leans up, unsure of what to do next.
"You're the last woman I've slept with." Her fingers cup the side of her neck, tilting it back to drop their foreheads together.
"I shouldn't be doing this to him." She goes to take a step back but Quinn just presses their lips together, for a soft kiss. She grips her tighter and pushes back in, leaning into the blonde while their mouths move so slowly, almost with tenderness.
"I can stop…" Quinn breathes in, fully inebriated by everything that is Rachel.
"I don't want you to." Her hands slip under the hem of her t-shirt, caressing the skin that is already familiar to her, even after just one night together .
"Okay. Okay." Quinn's lips trail along the side of her neck. Her hands just pull her with her, back towards her bedroom and Rachel doesn't stop her.
She follows her, clearing her mind off everything else.
She follows her one more time.
She follows her, for one last time.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"Mhhm Hi." Quinn is surprised to see her on her doorstep, but it doesn't stop the smile on the other woman's face.
"Hi." Rachel fidgets, switching her weight from one foot to another.
"Did I miss a call or text? I mean…" The blonde looks at her puzzled.
"No. I was in the neighborhood and dropped by." She rubs her hands together, in front of her. "I know we never talked about this, but do you want to go out? There are a couple of new places I'd like to try."
"Sure, tomorrow at 7 sounds good?" Quinn nods. "Should I dress up?"
"Nothing too fancy, but I was thinking more of something in the immediate future? Like in 30 miniutes?" Rachel chuckles nervously.
"30 minutes? As in today?" Quinn turns to look at the apartment behind her half closed front door.
"But if you're busy already, I don't want to mess with your plans." She takes a step back, trying to mask her disappointment. Maybe she wasn't even alone and she is interrupting Quinn's time with them. "You know maybe I should just go."
"No, I mean…" The blonde keeps looking behind her.
"You have clearly other plans, so why don't we take a raincheck? Enjoy your night with whomever you have in there." The brunette turns on her heels, wanting to bolt out of there as fast as she can without making an even worse fool of herself. It is improbable for someone like Quinn not to go after someone else.
There isn't only her on her list.
"Rachel, wait…" Quinn catches up with her by the elevator, stopping her before getting inside. "Let me show you, okay?" She holds her hand out and Rachel takes it, allowing her to lace their fingers together.
She follows and when Quinn opens the door to her apartment, she is even more confused.
"There's no one else here." She stands a couple of feet inside, past the threshold.
"You thought I was with someone else?" Quinn raises an eyebrow to her.
"I did but there's nothing wrong with it, really. You don't owe me anything, we're just…" She backs into the closed front door when Quinn takes a bold step forward.
"Fucking?" With her hands each side of her head, she leans down to peer into her eyes.
"Yeah." She fists the front of her shirt and pulls, 'till they breathe the same air. It's her turn to nuzzle her nose along the column of her throat.
"Knicks are playing and I wanted to watch the game." Quinn keeps herself upright, while Rachel assaults her neck. "It's game night."
"That's all? I mean that's why you didn't want to go out tonight?" She pulls back to look at the blonde, who nods shortly. She cannot help herself and just laughs.
"I know it's stupid okay? But I've been a fan since forever and my Dad and I text at the end, just to comment how it went." Quinn rolls her eyes at her. "It's our routine."
"I didn't mean to laugh, sorry. But I thought it was something else." Rachel shakes her head amused.
"Like screwing someone else." Quinn pushes herself off the door.
"We're not exclusive, Quinn. What are we?" The brunette follows her around the apartment, taking mental note of the snacks on the coffee table, the six pack beer and the familiar scarves.
"I don't know, really." Quinn sighs.
"I should go and leave you to your game." Rachel nods sadly.
"Or maybe you could stay?" The blonde looks at her. "You wanted to go out but you're more than welcome to stay."
"I don't know anything about football." She looks over at the TV.
"Basketball." Quinn throws her one of her jerseys. "Put this on and take your shoes off, you don't need heels to enjoy it."
"Alright." She wears the jersey over her dress and kicks her heels off, sitting on the couch. "Are you sure?"
"I am." Quinn takes a seat beside her and reaches over the back of the couch, to retrieve a Knicks cap and to place it sideways on Rachel's head. "You're all settled."
"So, how do we say…Go Knicks?" She looks over at the blonde who grins and hands her a beer bottle.
"Bing bong." She clinks their bottles together and leans forward, eyes on the TV.
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"Coffee?" Quinn is standing by the coffee maker when she emerges from her bedroom, in her previous night's clothes.
"With a tablespoon of sugar." She drops her heels by the couch and pads barefoot across the apartment.
"There you go." She sits the mugs on the counter and leans against it, staring at the brunette who stands before her. "You could have borrowed something from my closet."
"I wouldn't be able to return it." She wraps her hands around the mug. "I'm leaving today."
"Right." She nods quietly.
"Quinn, I…" She tries but the blonde takes a step back.
"You don't have to say anything, really. I knew what I was getting into, when we slept together last night." She puts on her best smile. "I knew it and I went with it, so you don't owe me anything at all."
"I feel like I do. I owe it to everyone." She looks down at the ring on her finger. Twice. She has cheated on him twice and she would do it again, if she didn't have to go back. She would do it again but only with the woman in front of her.
"I don't blame you for wanting to escape the pressure of a wedding. It's a big deal and you're still young, so it happens okay? It doesn't have to mean anything." Quinn reaches out to cover her hand with hers, hiding her ring. "You can forget about this and it'll feel like it never happened."
"But it happened." She looks up into Quinn's eyes. "It is wrong but it felt right, when we did what we did."
"Your boyfriend is a very lucky man." She uses her other hand to caress Rachel's cheek, with the back of her fingers.
When Rachel leans into her touch, she just rounds the counter to lower her mouth on the brunette. Their lips are unmoving and still. They are simply pressed together, in a simple way.
That's how they stay, even when Rachel stands up and moves in the circle of Quinn's arms. That's how close they stay, with their heads tilted and their lips hovering, breathing together.
"I have to go." She pushes her forehead against Quinn's, who doesn't loosen her grip around her waist. Rachel's hands clench around the fabric of her night shirt, pulling her forward and even closer.
Quinn doesn't say anything else. There's not a lot to say, so she just pulls her forward and kisses her. She kisses her hard and fast. She kisses her with a desire that she cannot explain and Rachel is not holding back.
Their hands grip and reach for each other, while their mouths do the rest.
Their hands tug at the clothes and bare them to each other, like the night before.
Like the night they have met.
Not like a couple of strangers.
Not like someone who is living on borrowed time.
"Rachel…" She whimpers her name out and pushes forward, moving with her and against her. Their hips are just dancing on their own, finding a frantic rhythm that is all theirs.
"Quinn…" Rachel moves above her, pushing with her hips down to rub herself against her. It feels so primal and urgent, yet intimate and deep.
"Come here." She pulls her down, to stare into her eyes as their bodies move on their own accord. She can feel every inch of her against her own body. Skin on skin. Chest to chest.
"I'm close." Rachel whimpers when a hand sneaks between her legs, rubbing her upper folds as their nubs bump together. She has never gotten so much pleasure in such a little time and for so long. It's astounding how Quinn can get her there.
"Then let it go. Let it go." Quinn's voice sounds like a plea. She is almost begging when it should be the other way around. She should be begging for her. For her pleasure.
"Mmm. Quinn…Quinn…" She chants and pins the hand to the side, leveraging on it to get as much pleasure as possible from Quinn's, directly. From rubbing against her warmth. From feeling her pulse against her.
"Let it go." Quinn doesn't say anything else. She keeps on saying it until she cannot resist anymore. She moans louder and louder until her insides clench and she throbs. She throbs with every movement of her hips. She throbs right over Quinn, who follows after her, gripping her by the ass to keep their intimacies close.
"Oh, God." She drops against her, nuzzled in her shoulder and exhausted. She's physically and mentally drained.
She is just too tired to fight this. She is so tired that she starts dozing off, wrapped in Quinn's arms.
She is so tired that words are not even clear. She is so tired that her mind is tricking her. It can't be anything but a figment of her imagination.
It can't be anything but that because what she hears at last cannot be true can it? Because Quinn cannot really have said what she thinks she has heard.
"Let him go."
Because Quinn cannot have really said that.
Or can she?
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"Well, that was fun." Rachel leans against the kitchen counter, watching the blonde store away the leftovers.
"You're a lucky charm. I should consider inviting you over whenever we play." Quinn rinses the beer bottles before throwing them away in the ad-hoc bin.
"You can try, but with 2,800 miles apart it might be a bit challenging." She chuckles and Quinn freezes in the spot.
"Right, you're here for the wedding." She wipes her hands on the kitchen towel, her back to the brunette.
"I am shooting a tv show in Los Angeles, I need to be there." She doesn't know why she feels like she has to apologize or make excuses.
"Of course, it's your life." She nods tersely and turns around, with a forced smile on her face. "You've got everything for the wedding? Dress? Shoes? Speech?"
"I'm working on my speech." She doesn't ask further, risking to dampen the mood. "I was thinking about something…are you available next Saturday?"
"I think so, why?" She raises an eyebrow.
"Well, I can bring a guest and…" She looks away. "You can say no."
"Do all of your friends know about me and what happened with your ex?" She leans forward, chin propped on her hands.
"My close ones do. I didn't exactly shout it from the top of a mountain." She looks back at her.
"Does he know?" She raises both eyebrows at her, questioningly.
"Not exactly, but he won't be a problem. He's moved on and will make sure to rub it in my face." Rachel clenches her fists.
"So, do you want me to be there only to get back at him?" She straightens her pose. "If that's what it is, then I don't want to get into your business with him. It's something between you two."
"It's a little late to get out of this situation, don't you think?" She snarls at her, realizing what she has just said without thinking about it
"As if you had no choice and it was all because of me, Rachel? There's always a moment when you can choose to do something or not to. I don't know when your moment was, but I bet you had one." She crosses her arms over her chest, protectively.
"You're right. It's not on you really." She nods in agreement.
"Maybe we should call it a night." Quinn walks past her to gather the remaining items on the coffee table.
"Oh." Rachel nods lightly as she passes her by.
"Do you need me to call you a cab?" Quinn has her back to her, missing the way Rachel is holding it in.
"I'll be fine. I've got it." She wipes the corners of her eyes and heads for the couch, to retrieve her heels and jacket.
"Okay." Quinn follows after her around the apartment and reaches for the front door, unlocking it.
"I guess I'll see you soon?" Rachel doesn't search for her eyes and so doesn't Quinn.
"I'll think about Saturday and will let you know by tomorrow." She grips the doorknob but doesn't twist it open. "We could go out for dinner tomorrow if you're free."
"I'll think about it, okay?" She nods quickly.
"That's fine. Text me when you get home." She goes to open the door, leaning over and Rachel takes advantage of that moment to lean up, to kiss her.
It's a kiss that sounds like an apology more than a goodbye kiss. It's a kiss that makes Quinn's disappointment crumble and dissolve.
It's a kiss that makes it okay.
"I'm sorry." Rachel's hands cup her face, stroking her cheeks with her thumbs.
"I know you are." Quinn nods and reaches behind her back to lock the door once again, before pushing the other woman against it. "We really need to talk about this, Rach."
"I know." Her heels give her a small advantage and it's easier to kiss Quinn. It's easier to meet each kiss with one of her own.
"Stay here tonight." Quinn's hands caress her sides, playing with the fabric of her dress.
"Here?" She looks over at the familiar bedroom.
"We don't have to do anything really…" She follows her gaze. "We can just sleep, with clothes on."
"You want me to sleep over." Rachel looks puzzled now.
"Mmh." Quinn nuzzles their noses together and lowers her mouth on Rachel's, who clings to her and leans back against the door. "I'll get you something of mine to sleep in."
"Okay." She nods and pushes forward, pressing into her. "I'll stay."
RQRQRQRQRQRQRQRQ
"Rachel, you're home early." Leroy looks up from his book. Sleep usually escapes him when his daughter is not home, so he just waits until she is back and a book is always a good company.
"Can't sleep?" She leans down to kiss his cheek, as a greeting. "Where's Daddy?"
"Tucked in." He chuckles. "How was dinner with Finn? Have you confirmed the music setlist?"
"Sort of." She turns on her heels and heads to the kitchen. The unmistakable sound of the running water alerts him, so he just stands to follow his only daughter.
"Did you and Finn have another disagreement?" He leans against the doorway, watching her a couple of glasses of water one after the another. Not a good sign.
"When you and Daddy got together, how did you know he was the one for you?" She is still leaning against the counter with the empty glass in her hand.
"I think I knew it from the start. It was really love at first sight." He sighs happily. "I couldn't think straight or breathe. He was the only thing on my mind when I wasn't with him."
"Has that changed over the years?" She fills another glass.
"Of course, but my love for him only grew stronger and then you came." He smiles. "I love him even more because we had you and he gave me a family."
"But you never thought there could be someone else out there? Someone who could make you feel better?" She looks at him.
"Honey, what's going on?" He takes a step forward but it's Rachel crashing into him, clinging for dear life.
"I knew it was wrong but it felt so right." She nuzzles her face into his shoulder. "I never wanted to hurt him but Dad…I don't know anymore."
"What do you mean?" He rubs her back gently.
"I can't marry him". She pulls back to look at her Dad. "I can't marry Finn."
"Honey, fights happen all the time. We all have our differences but they won't matter." He cups her face.
"I…I met someone else." She looks away. She looks away not to see the disappointment on his face. "I don't know how it happened but…Dad, I can't do this to Finn."
"Are you sure it wasn't just the spur of the moment? You got scared." He tries again but Rachel won't even look at him. "Is this guy from Lima? It's not Noah right?"
"God no. I did something awful but not that much." She wipes her eyes. "I've met her in New York. I tried to resist but…" She pushes the images out of her head. "She's all I can think of."
"A woman? We always thought you were into guys." He is surprised. "Not that there is something wrong with it, of course."
"It's just her. I mean I don't like labels but there was something about her that I couldn't…" Shs trails off. "I couldn't resist."
"And she feels the same? You're dating now?" He nods softly.
"No, I told her I couldn't see her anymore. It was a one night stand, well two." She looks at her Dad.
"Honey, I want you to think about this okay? You realize you're giving this up for a woman you might not see anymore?" He holds her by the shoulders. "Finn loves you. Are you really sure?"
"I don't love him anymore." She looks back at him. "I can't see a life with him, Dad. We would just make each other unhappy and I know it's late, but maybe it's not too late."
"We need to wake your Daddy up." He nods, understandingly. There's nothing else he can do. Nothing matters more than her happiness.
