I was expecting this chapter to be so much shorter, but then found out that I love writing AU filler moments of Sam and Quinn and kind of got lost in it.
So I am Canadian and a devoted hockey fan, so I know absolutely nothing about football or Ohio in general. I did some research to make sure this chapter was mostly accurate, but if there are any mistakes or things that aren't true I apologize!
She decides to stay for the first month of summer. Mercedes heads back to LA because she needs to record new songs and film music videos and do whatever upcoming music artists do. Whatever it is, all of it still amazes her so much. But Mercedes doesn't leave until Quinn bakes her cupcakes. Famous or not, Mercedes' favourite dessert in the world will always remain Quinn's cupcakes.
Puck leaves shortly after. He doesn't tell them where he's going, they're not sure if he even can, but they all head to the airport to send him off, it's the least they can do as he is fighting for their country and all of their freedom.
Santana and Brittany leave a week later to Lesbos Island and then Hawaii. Neither of them tell Quinn until two days before, and they make sure that everyone else who knows doesn't tell her either. They knew she would try and convince them to stay, which she thinks is ridiculous because yes she would have told them that dropping all of their responsibilities and just traveling to random places is so careless, but she also would have been supportive.
They have one last sleepover before the two of them leave the next morning. They spent the previous day together shopping and getting everything organized before their trip. She didn't trust the two of them to have everything they needed because she knows they aren't as thorough as she is when it comes to going on a trip.
Sam drives the four of them to the airport, Rachel, Kurt, and Adam trailing in a car behind them. They barely arrive on time and neither Santana or Brittany seem to be bothered about it which makes her roll her eyes. Typical Santana and Brittany.
Kurt and Adam say goodbye first, and as Kurt wipes away some of his tears with a handkerchief he asks Santana what he wants her to tell Dani. She laughs and tells him not to worry about it, they had a long conversation before she officially got back together with Brittany and Dani understood, and promised to continue watching over their apartment.
"What do you want me to do with all your stuff?" Kurt asks and Santana rolls her eyes.
"Guys, I am coming back eventually. You do know that right?" She asks. Kurt just laughs.
Rachel goes next, acting all strong, but they can all see how she's trying to hold back her own tears. "You'll be back for my opening night?"
"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Santana tells her, giving her a smile and a hug. She's pretty sure she can hear Rachel sniffling over Santana's shoulder.
Sam steps forward as Rachel moves over to give Brittany a hug. She's pretty sure she can hear Santana whisper take care of her, Sammy into Sam's chest as he wraps his arms around her. She decides not to comment on it as it's a moment just for the two of them to share, regardless of whether or not Santana is talking about her.
She and Santana stare at each other for a few moments, neither of them wanting to take the first leap in saying goodbye.
"I won't be good for that long." Santana says and she nods.
"I know." She says.
"I'll be back before you know it." Santana adds and she nods again.
"I know." She repeats and Santana glares at her.
"Stop doing that." She tells her and she looks at her friend confused.
"Doing what?" She asks.
"Making me question whether or not I can leave without you." Santana tells her, choking up a bit at the end and she lets out a watery laugh.
"You can." She tells Santana who just scoffs. Santana walks the few steps to hug her and she cries into the latina's shoulder.
"Call me everyday." She tells Santana who just scoffs again.
"You'll be too busy with trouty." She argues, crying as well.
"Never too busy for you." She says and Santana just laughs.
They break apart and Brittany takes Santana's place. "I want tons of pictures okay?" She tells Brittany, placing her hands on her shoulders once they're face to face. Brittany just nods.
They all wave goodbye as the two of them board the plane. She leans into Sam, but the tears have stopped. Her friends deserve this, they deserve to go to places where they can be unapologetically themselves, together rather than apart.
xxx
Rachel has to head out so she can continue to work on Funny Girl and Kurt and Adam leave with her, wanting to spend Fourth of July in New York rather than Ohio.
They take Stacey and Stevie to Indian Lake in Logan County to watch fireworks which is a forty minute drive from her house. She wears a red tank top and a pair of jean shorts and rolls her eyes when she sees Sam decked out in a U.S. flag patterned muscle shirt and red shorts.
"You look ridiculous." She tells him once she gets into his truck and he just smirks at her. She greets his siblings who are sitting in the back and sees they are at least dressed not as loud as their older brother. Stacey is wearing navy blue shorts and a white tank top and Stevie is wearing khaki shorts and a red shirt.
The fireworks don't start until 10pm, but they head out early so they can find a good spot. They get there at seven and eat sandwiches she had made for all of them. She has other snacks for later, but she doesn't tell them that because she knows Sam and Stevie will probably end up eating them all before the fireworks even start.
Sam and Stevie throw a football around for a bit while she and Stacey sit on the picnic blanket they brought and braid each other's hair. She puts on one of those stick on tattoos of an American flag on her cheek.
At 8:30 they get an older couple to watch their things and walk around to see if they can find a vendor selling ice cream. They find a concession stand and Sam buys each of them a scoop in a cone. She grabs extra napkins before they head back because she knows kids and things that drip are never a good combination.
Once they've finished their ice cream she and Stacey join in on a game of football to kill some time before the fireworks start. She and Stevie completely destroy Sam and Stacey because Stacey gets distracted by the butterflies that keep flying past them and she struggles to catch the ball when she's not distracted.
She bugs Sam about it until the fireworks start and he just rolls her eyes and tells her that if they had been playing one-on-one he would have crushed her, and she doesn't doubt that for a second, but she doesn't tell him that.
She throws sweaters and hoodies on all of them right as the fireworks are about to begin. Stacey jumps into Sam's lap as the fireworks start and Stevie sits between them. Stacey oohs and aahs every time she sees a combination she likes and she smirks when she sees that Stevie is trying to look unbothered by the fireworks, but she can still see the amazement in his eyes.
Stacey asks a million questions while they're heading back to the car. Like: where do the fireworks go after they've exploded? and what are fireworks made of? How do they get them to be blue or red?
Neither she or Sam have an answer for her so Sam tells her that it's magic and she gasps in amazement, believing his answer. Both Stacey and Stevie fall asleep as soon as they start driving and she dozes off ten minutes later. Sam lightly shakes her shoulder once they arrive back at her house and she leans over to kiss him goodnight, giggling as his siblings groan and squeal in disgust. She sticks her tongue out at them as she exits the car.
xxx
They plan to go on a road trip around Ohio three weeks into July. Her mother allows it without any begging and pays for half the trip as a graduation gift for the two of them, since she says she hadn't really gotten Quinn anything (she thought most of her tuition was enough, but she guesses not), completely trusting Sam, but his parents are the ones who need more convincing.
His dad is hesitant, but eventually gives in because he realizes Sam is a man now and can go on trips with his girlfriend who they know really well. She bites her tongue from correcting the girlfriend part; she doesn't want to label it yet, but she figures she's better off not correcting him if she wants to go on this trip. His mother realizes if his father gave in she doesn't really stand a chance, but she still cries about the fact that Sam isn't her little boy anymore which makes her feel a little like shit because she knows what Mary is really saying is she was the one who took their little boy's innocence.
She packs for a week even though they're only planning to be gone for like four days. They leave early Friday morning and drive two hours and forty-five minutes to Cleveland. They check into their hotel at 10am and drive fifteen minutes to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She brings her camera and laughs at how Sam looks like a kid in a candy store.
She recognizes a few artists that Finn liked and a few bands she listens to. They spend three hours there and Sam buys a shirt on his way out. They have lunch at a nearby restaurant and then drive ten minutes to the Cleveland Museum of Art (her choice of course).
She tries her best to admire the art the best she can, but finds it extremely difficult when Sam is clearly bored out of his mind. He doesn't understand the fact that you're supposed to silently look at the artwork, instead asking her a million questions. Now she gets where Stacey gets it from. They spend about two hours there, and she would have spent more time, but Sam began to complain that he was hungry again.
She wants to head back to the hotel and properly get ready for dinner which makes Sam roll his eyes. She had worn a light pink floral skirt and white blouse earlier in the day, but wants to wear something more formal tonight. There was a reason why she overpacked so much.
She gets ready in the bedroom while Sam showers. She puts on a navy romper and does light makeup because it is still hot outside. Sam is insistent on matching her all the time, says it adds to the whole Ken and Barbie thing which she thinks is ridiculous. He wears a navy shirt and black jeans.
There's a somewhat formal restaurant walking distance from their hotel, but she realizes it doesn't really matter where they go because Sam orders a burger regardless. She sticks with pasta, she doesn't feel like bloating in this outfit. They ask the hostess to take a picture of them outside of the restaurant once they've finished and paid and she posts it on Instagram before she can think too much about it. After editing it a little bit of course. She admires the photo as they walk back to the hotel, they really do like they belong in magazines.
xxx
His mom calls as soon as they tell her they've arrived back at the hotel. Her mom just sends her a thumbs up emoji once she lets her know. They stay on call with Mary for a while and talk to his siblings. Stacey asks a hundred times for them to bring her as many things back as possible, but Sam just tells her that they'll try.
She goes to the bathroom to change into her pyjamas and get ready for bed so he can talk to his family alone for a bit.
She washes her face and brushes her teeth and decides she'll shower tomorrow at their next hotel. When she exits the washroom he's hung up and is laying on the bed on his phone. He's changed into a pair of shorts to sleep in, but goes without a shirt which makes her blush a little bit, but she doesn't comment on it. They haven't been intimate since last year, not really going farther than the casual makeout session, but that doesn't mean she hasn't thought about it. She also did bring protection just in case.
"Does your mother know we're sharing a bed?" She asks him, teasing a little.
He chuckles. "No, she doesn't even know we're sharing a room." He admits and she throws her head back and laughs.
She crawls into bed next to him and he lifts his arm so she can tuck herself underneath it. It goes quiet after that so she assumes he went to sleep. She goes through a mental checklist of what they will need tomorrow and right as she's about to close her eyes and try to sleep, he asks her a question.
"How did you and Biff meet?" He asks and she begins to feel a little uncomfortable. It's a fair question, and he deserves to know the answer, she just hates thinking about her time with him. It was stupid, dating Biff, she knows she was only doing it to distract herself from her feelings for Sam, but it's not like she can take it back now.
"At work, he used to come into the cafe and just asked me out once." She tells him casually; he doesn't tense up from beside her so she takes that as a good sign.
"Did you sleep with him?" He asks, trying to sound calm but she can hear him gulp after asking.
"Once." She tells him honestly, and he begins to tense. "I regretted it." She admits. She's not going to apologize for sleeping with him, she's a big girl, she can make her own choices. But she is going to be honest with him about it.
"Did you sleep with Brittany?" She asks him and she can hear him sigh.
"Once." He tells her. It doesn't bug her as much as she thought it would. "I think it felt wrong for the both of us so we never tried again." He says and she nods.
"Were you with anyone else?" He asks her on his turn and she shakes her head.
"Only ever been with you and Biff." And Puck, but she never really counts that one. "Oh and Santana, but you knew about that." She says and he whips his head around to look at her.
"Wait, you were serious about that?" He asks her and she bursts out laughing.
"You thought I was kidding?" She asks and he sits up.
"Yes! I can't believe you actually had sex with Santana." He says and she just rolls her eyes.
"Just joining in with the college experience." She tells him and then laughs immediately after at his reaction.
"What about you? Have you been with anyone else?" She asks once his shock has passed and her laughter has calmed down.
"Just you and Brittany." He tells her and she nods.
"What about after you and Brittany broke up? Did you date anyone else?" She asks and he begins to blush.
"Ohmygod you did, who was it?" She asks, shocked and intrigued.
"Well we didn't technically date, but Penny and I went out on like one date and kissed like twice." He tells her sheepishly and she furrows her eyebrows in confusion. Penny, where has she heard that name before. She remembers Tina complaining to her about having to get some vaccine because Sue- holy crap.
"Wait, Penny. Penny as in Nurse Penny? The fucking school nurse?" She asks him, picturing some woman in her forties hitting on a bunch of high school seniors. The thought makes her shudder.
"Okay, to be fair Nurse Penny was still in college and it wasn't even serious." She knows she's supposed to be hurt or upset, but hearing that he almost dated the school nurse makes her laugh uncontrollably.
"Anyone else?" She asks, still laughing.
"I uh, kind of made out with Tina." He tells her, scratching the back of his neck. She laughs harder.
"Stop laughing at me!" He scolds her while smacking her arm lightly. She stops for a few seconds before starting up again. He just rolls her eyes and leans down to kiss her and that, that gets her to stop laughing.
xxx
He's up before she is. Bags already packed in the car and a coffee sitting beside her on the bedside table while she tries to convince herself to get out of bed. He's showered and dressed for the day and she's still wearing her pyjamas and has bedhead.
She throws on a pair of jean shorts and a black tank top and doesn't bother trying to tame her hair, throwing it up in a ponytail instead and putting on one of his baseball caps of a basketball team she's never heard of.
They check out of the bed by 9am and are on the road to Sandusky shortly after that. It's only an hour and nine minute drive so he lets her pick the music this time. She's energized from the coffee and is bouncing in the front seat singing along to Taylor Swift as they pass through cities.
They check into their next hotel just after ten and quickly head down to where they're serving breakfast so they can head to Cedar Point. He wants to go on all of the rollercoasters, but just looking at some of them makes her knees buckle.
Sam has always been a thrill seeker, but she's always preferred more calmer rides, but with the look on his face she knows she probably has no choice. The only research he had done for this trip had been for this part, a list of rides written down on his phone that they just have to go on. She took a peek at the list, it's about thirty rides long. She gulps and begins to pray.
He takes her on what he says are the 'tamer' rides first, but she still screams her head off. Roller coasters like the Blue Streak, Iron Dragon, and Windseeker.
To make it up to her he lets her take him on the swings and scrambler before he takes her on more rides.
He takes her on Corkscrew which makes her head feel like it's going to explode. They bought a fast pass so she doesn't even have time to breathe between rides. He also drags her on a ride called Gemini which wasn't too bad, just had some big drops. He tries to take her on a ride called Gatekeeper that has huge loops and goes super fast, but she shakes her head as they're about to get in line.
"Nope, ride it yourself." She says and he groans like a little child.
"Come on Q! It's not even that bad, it just looks like it." He says, trying to convince her but she shakes her head.
"Sam there are like, forty-five rides on that list, you can handle one without me." She tells him and he sighs.
"Three passes, that's all you get." He tells her while holding up. He quickly runs into the line before she can object and sighs. She can name like seven rides she doesn't want to ride. She quickly pulls out her phone to look at the list of rides on the website and picks out five she doesn't want to go on and decides she can probably handle this one. She runs up to him in the line and he grins.
"Don't. Say. Anything." She says, shoving her finger into his chest with each word. He doesn't say anything, but the smile on his face says it all.
He gets them to ride all of the rides on his list and then some. He doesn't fight her on the four rides she doesn't want to go on, and she pulls out her camera and takes photos around the amusement park while waiting for him to get off of the ride. They do go on some tamer rides, like the bumper cars and Tiki Twirl.
While she waits in line for mini donuts he plays some carnival games, winning Stacey a stuffed dog and her a red stuffed dragon. So your penguin isn't lonely. He tells her. She rolls her eyes.
"You know one day your eyes are going to get stuck in the back of your head." He tells her.
"It'll be a tragic day." Is what she says back. He just shakes his head.
xxx
They spend the entire day at the amusement park at pick up takeout at a nearby restaurant. They eat dinner while walking back to their hotel and he watches a movie on his phone as she heads to the bathroom to shower. She's putting shampoo in her hair when the curtain is pulled back and Sam steps inside.
"Dear god Sam, you scared the hell out of me!" She yells, placing her hand over her heart. "What are you doing?" She asks as he smirks at her.
"Saving water." He tells her as he leans forward to place a kiss on her shoulder. She glares at him.
"Get out, I need to finish washing my hair." She tells him, turning back around so she can wash out the shampoo.
She feels a second pair of hands begin to massage the shampoo out. "I'll help." He whispers into her ear, and well, he never ends up leaving.
xxx
The next morning she's awake before he is. His body is sore and aches from all the rides he went on yesterday so she allows him to sleep in while she packs up their bags and gets herself ready. They're planning to drive down to Powell to visit the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.
She heads into the bathroom to get ready and put more effort into her appearance than she did yesterday. Looking at the photos that she asked one of the amusement park workers to take of them yesterday makes her cringe. They're both sweaty and her ponytail is stuck to the back of her neck. He is on the verge of a sunburn and her cheeks are bright red from all the screaming she had done on the rides he forced her on. You can definitely say she wants better pictures today.
She puts on a teal sundress with white polka dots and curls the ends of her hair. She applies more makeup than she has the entire trip to cover up the uneven tan lines and patches of red that she got yesterday. She doesn't feel like wearing her sandals because she knows they are going to be doing a lot of walking, so she slips on her infamous tennis shoes and returns to their room to wake up Sam.
He groans and swats her away and she thinks this must be how he feels while trying to wake her up while giggling. He doesn't put up as much of a fight as she would which she is thankful for. As he drags himself to the bathroom to shower she packs up their bags. He comes out of the bathroom fifteen minutes later wearing white shorts and a denim button up shirt. She raises an eyebrow at his somewhat formal outfit. She had to practically beg him to dress up nicely when the two of them were dating and now he does it voluntarily when they're going to a zoo.
"What?" He asks her once he notices her staring.
"Dressing up for the monkeys?" She asks him, nodding towards his outfit.
"You're the only monkey I dress up for." He fires back while planting a kiss on the side of her head. She elbows him as they exit the room.
xxx
Powell is a long drive from Sandussky, two hours and ten minutes, so at every red light he swings his arm around because they're all stiff from being contained by bars and seatbelts on the rides yesterday. She had offered to drive, but he had told her no one touched his truck but him. She also thinks he's hesitant on letting her drive because of her accident which she thinks is ridiculous because it happened over a year ago and she drives from New Haven to Lima all the time, but she lets him be. Sam is the most stubborn person she's ever met.
They get to their hotel just after noon. He's exhausted so she tells him to take a nap and she'll go explore and hopefully find something to eat. He's a little hesitant, he never likes letting her do anything alone or by herself, but she's dead set on going. She's an independent girl, she can take care of herself.
He eventually gives in, too tired to argue. She finds a street nearby lined with little shops. She takes pictures of the locals and passerbyers. One of the stores includes a beads store and she buys a small little bracelet for Stacey that has a bead with Powell engraved in it. She walks all the way to a park, no idea how long or far she's walked by now. She has her phone tucked in her crossbody purse so if she's still gone well past the time Sam wakes up, she knows it'll start blowing up, but there's been no buzzing so she assumes she's in the clear.
There are swans swimming in a nearby pond so she snaps a few shots of them. Close to the pond is a family of five flying a kite. She takes a picture of them, focusing more on the kite and making sure their faces aren't visible. She can't imagine they would want some random girl taking pictures of them. On her walk back to the hotel she finds a food truck selling hotdogs. She buys two and is somehow able to find her way back to the hotel without getting lost.
Sam looks like he has just woken up when she returns, his hair disheveled and his shirt a little wrinkled. He stretches by raising his arms over his head and she hands him a hotdog and one of the water bottles she also bought.
Shortly after they leave for the zoo. It's a huge zoo and aquarium, so they spend around eight hours there. Her feet ache even while wearing the tennis shoes, but she doesn't complain. Sam has a better reaction here than he did at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He tells her a bunch of random facts about most of the animals, some of which she didn't even know. He makes a case of how he would definitely beat a lion in a fight which makes her scoff.
She takes a picture of him flexing next to the lions and tigers and he sneaks some photos of her on his phone of her cooing over the koalas.
They hit up the gift shop before they leave and buy Stevie a keychain of a lion and Stacey a stuffed koala.
"That girl has too many stuffed animals." He says once they've made their purchases.
"A girl can never have any stuffed animals." She fires back and he cocks an eyebrow at her, not convinced.
They head back to their hotel to put the things they bought from the Zoo in the separate bag they brought for souvenirs. Sam says he wants to shower because he smells like animal crap and she laughs and tells him that's what he gets for getting too close to the cages.
She decides to change as well because she brought enough clothes to sometimes wear two outfits in one day. She throws on a pair of violet silk shorts and tucks in a white v-neck tank top. Sam walks out of the washroom shortly after wearing navy joggers and a white collared shirt.
They eat dinner in the hotel's restaurant and he asks her what she plans to do with the millions of photos she's taken on the trip.
"God knows you have enough frames in your room." He teases and she lightly kicks his shin underneath the table.
"I'll think of something." She tells him with a shrug, but she already knows what she wants to do. It's just a surprise.
xxx
"Sam, wake up." She says, shaking his shoulder the next morning. It's a little after eight but they need to leave soon. He groans and she rolls her eyes. She's already been awake for over an hour, showered and ready, confirming everything.
"Seriously, get up!" She says a little louder and he curses at her.
"Quinn what the hell, we don't have to check out until like noon." He snaps at her and she grins.
"Get up, I have a surprise for you. There's a bagel beside you, eat it quickly and then get ready so we can go." She tells him and he looks at her like she's grown two heads.
But still, he obeys her orders. He studies her before getting up and she knows what he's doing. He's trying to judge by her outfit what they're doing, but she played it smart. She wore a denim skirt and white short sleeved shirt so he wouldn't be able to figure it out.
He's groggy and annoyed so he takes longer to get ready than he normally would. He walks out in a black short sleeved shirt and denim shorts and goes to grab his keys, but she shakes her head.
"Nu uh, I'm driving, you have to wear this." She tells him, holding up a blindfold.
"No way, Qui-" She shakes her head, cutting him off.
"Sam, I'm not going to kill us. It's a short drive, just shut up and listen to me." She tells him and he sighs, giving her the keys and following her out the door.
xxx
She had tied the blindfold as soon as they got in the car so he wouldn't be able to figure out where they were going. She parks where the lady she spoke to this morning told her too and tells him he can take off the blindfold.
"Ohio stadium? But there are no games right now?" He asks, clearly confused, making her face break out in a huge grin.
"They give out tours." She tells him and he looks over at her shocked. She remembers while they were dating in sophomore year when he had first moved here his dad had taken him and Stevie to a Buckeyes game. Stevie had still been young and hadn't developed a devotion for football yet, but Sam had said it had been one of the best days of his life. He had attended boarding school so he never got to go to football games with his dad growing up.
He opens and closes his mouth a few times, before finally asking her "how?"
She giggles. "I called three weeks ago when we were first planning this trip to see if it was possible. When Burt was first getting to know Finn when he and Carole were dating he took the two of them on a tour here and Finn said it was awesome." She tells him and he just looks at her. He doesn't say anything for a bit so she begins to panic and fears she's made a mistake, but then he leans over and kisses her and she realizes she made the right choice.
She's breathless when they break apart and he rubs his thumb across her cheek as he cradles her face. "Thank you." He whispers. She smiles at him.
"Come on." She says after a moment. "Let's go."
She hangs in the back as the tour guide and Sam talk about football and how he's going to play for Stony Brook University in the fall. The tour isn't long, only about an hour and a half. She buys each of them a baseball cap on the way out and takes a picture of him in front of the stadium (she already has a bunch of him while on the tour, but what's one more).
She turns to walk back to the car but he pulls her arm causing her to crash back into him. She looks at him confused and he wraps his arms around her. "I love you." Is what he tells her and she feels her heart swell up.
"I love you too." She whispers back.
xxx
The ride to Cincinnati is just under two hours, but they go through a McDonald's drive through halfway there so they don't end up getting to the hotel until a little after two.
They head to the Cincinnati Museum Centre at three. They go through the history section first because she knows if she takes him through the science exhibits first he would have complained for the rest of the time. The archeology portion is the only thing that interests him while they go through the museum.
He freaks out when he sees all the dinosaurs, asking her to take thousands of pictures of him next to the ones he recognizes. But it's the Neil Armstrong exhibit that really excites him. He tells her all of his space facts as they walk and she knew eventually he would love one of these museums.
They spend three hours there and he buys an astronaut ice cream sandwich from the gift shop and a keychain for Stacey.
"Seriously Sam? That thing is probably disgusting." She says as he begins to eat it.
"It tastes fine." He tells her with his mouth full causing her to scrunch her nose up in disgust.
They head back to the hotel because she had made reservations for a fancy restaurant for their last night of the road trip. She lets him shower while she gets ready in the room. She isn't planning to do anything too special, just throwing on a plain black dress and matching strappy heels.
She does more with her makeup, putting on some gold and brown eyeshadow and red lipstick. The eyeshadow isn't as nice as when Santana does it, but it's good enough.
Sam walks out wearing a simple white dress shirt and black jeans. His hair is growing, going down past his ears, but it still looks cute. It reminds her of when they first started dating in sophomore year.
He whistles when he sees her and she rolls her eyes. "Ready?" she asks him and he nods, holding out his arm for her to take.
The restaurant is near fountain square. She pays the bill while he's in the washroom and ignores his pout when she tells him. Him and his southern charm, she is fully capable of paying their bill every other time.
They buy ice cream from a nearby ice cream shop and eat it while walking around the fountain square. Once they finish she asks someone to take a picture of them in front of the fountain.
"What do you want to do next?" She asks him once she finishes looking at the pictures.
"I would really love to see your dress on our hotel room floor." He whispers in her ear and she blushes.
"Sam." She says through gritted teeth, looking around to make sure no one heard him. He just laughs and tugs on her arm, pulling her in the direction of their hotel.
xxx
She's sad when she wakes up the next morning because their vacation is over. It's a little over a two hour drive back and they're both quiet on the way back. She's halfway into the Jane Austen book she's reading when he speaks up.
"Promise me something." He says without looking away from the road.
"What?" She asks, putting her bookmark in her book so she doesn't lose her page and then closes it.
"That we'll do this at least once a year." He says and she doesn't understand what he's referring to.
"Take a road trip around Ohio?" She asks him.
He chuckles. "No, take little road trips around different states."
"We'll lose a fortune on gas." She points out while he takes one hand off of the wheel to grab her hand.
"Don't care, it'll be worth it." He tells her and she hums.
"So then you promise?" He asks her again and she ponders over it for half a minute. Annual road trips with Sam for the rest of her life, she definitely likes the sound of that.
"Promise." She confirms.
xxx
It rains a week before they leave for New York. It's a Tuesday in August and she swore the weather forecast said it was going to be clear skies all day, but as they're heading back from a picnic, it begins to pour. She curses and hopes it's one of those rainstorms that only occur for like five minutes before ending, but looking at how some of the storm clouds are beginning to move over into the sunset she realizes this storm isn't going away anytime soon. She looks down at her outfit and cringes, she's wearing a pink short sleeve sundress and a pair of sandals, she didn't even bother wearing a jacket, she's going to get soaked.
And then Sam pulls to the side of the road and stops. She begins to panic and hopes they haven't run out of gas because she doesn't recognize the street they're on, but when she looks over she sees the tank is barely empty. She's not really good with cars so she's not sure if there's a problem with the engine or anything, but he looks calm when she looks over at him.
He puts the car in park, but doesn't turn it off, instead he begins to blare the music from his radio, some slow country song she doesn't know.
"Sam, what on Earth-" she begins to ask him, but he cuts her off.
"Come on." is all he says before jumping out of the truck and heading over to her side of the truck. He's only wearing a navy polo shirt that Kurt bought him while they were in LA as a graduation present (since he has big bucks now that he's moved up the ladder at Vogue) and a pair of khaki shorts.
"Sam what the hell!" She shouts as he opens her door and grabs her hand, pulling her out of the truck. She barely has time to throw her purse and phone onto the seat before he begins dragging her towards the middle of the road.
"Dance with me." He shouts over the rain, pulling her close to him. She looks at him like he's grown two heads. She can still hear the slow song playing from the radio.
"We could get killed!" She shouts back, looking behind them to see if there are any cars coming.
"We won't." He says, clasping his hand in hers and wrapping an arm around her waist. He spins them around and she squeals, caught off guard.
Her hair is plastered to her neck, and his bangs have fallen into his eyes. She's pretty sure he'll be able to see her black bra and panties now that her dress is soaked, but he's only looking into her eyes.
There's a soft glow on them from the sunset, thankfully the storm clouds haven't reached that yet, and they spin around, listening to the roaring of the rain and the angelic voice of some female country singer singing about the boy she loved and lost that fateful summer.
"We'll get sick." She points out, but he just chuckles.
"It'll be worth it." He counter argues and she rolls her eyes, but inside she agrees.
xxx
She helps him pack for New York. He wants to bring his entire closet, but she convinces him not to because he'll be going between New York and Lima enough to realize it's better if he has half in each place. She somehow gets roped into getting Artie packed as well. Tina tells her it's because she's the mom of the group but she disagrees. She most definitely is not the mom of their friend group.
Tina is set to leave two days before the boys. They're all driving to New York whereas Tina is flying to Rhode Island. Tina and Mike's parents are at the airport when they all get there, along with Mike and she wonders what he and Tina have been doing all summer alone together.
Tina cries an entire ocean not to anyone's surprise. She promises Tina they will see each other all the time, but Tina still acts like she's never going to see any of them ever again.
She spends the next day triple checking that Sam has everything because she knows he could not be bothered. The whole thing is exhausting and she ends up falling asleep on his bed once she's finally finished at quarter past eleven.
She wakes up the next morning somehow underneath the covers in the same charcoal grey sweatpant shorts and white tank top she was wearing yesterday. She turns over to see it's half past eight.
She throws the covers back and walks downstairs to see Sam asleep on the couch. She giggles and assumes Mary forced him to sleep there after he told her she had fallen asleep on his bed.
She joins Mary in the kitchen and allows Sam to sleep more. The boys are coming over at nine but he's going to drive the entire way there so he should get as much rest as he can.
He ends up waking up ten minutes later anyway and quickly runs upstairs after saying good morning to the both of them to shower and get changed.
Blaine and Artie arrive when he's still in the shower so she grabs his keys from his room and helps them put their boxes inside the truck. Sam had put his inside last night, knowing he'd be too tired to do it in the morning.
Mary and Stacey both cry. His dad also sheds a tear, but Stevie seems to not care, knowing it'll be two months before he sees his brother again. She swears she can see tears in Sam's eyes, but he denies it.
They all bought an apartment in New Hempstead because it's an hour subway ride from NYADA and Artie's film school and an hour drive from Stoney Brook. She can't imagine travelling an hour just to get to school, but none of them seem to care.
It's a nine hour and fifteen minute drive there, but they're making a pit stop in Bushwick so Adam can drive her back to New Haven so she can grab her own car. Sam had offered to do it, but she told him it was fine. Too much driving for him to be doing in one day.
She plans on spending a week in Bushwick with Rachel and Kurt so she can help Sam and the boys settle in. Rachel had wanted to as well, but she's been slammed with working on Funny Girl and Kurt thought it would be too awkward.
She sleeps for most of the trip and reads when she's not. She finds it feels longer when you're not the one driving, but she definitely likes being a passenger better. It's around dinnertime when she gets to Bushwick so she eats dinner with Kurt and Adam since Rachel is at rehearsal's.
When they arrive back at New Haven she thanks Kurt and Adam. Sarah is waiting by the door once she gets inside, feeling like she hasn't seen Quinn in forever and pressing her for details. She fills Sarah in on everything and then goes to bed, exhausted from the day.
xxx
She wakes up the next morning at ten and knows Kurt will be at Vogue until three so she does some laundry to kill time. She also goes to a nearby photoprint centre to print some of the photos she took over the summer. By the time she's done all that it's half past one so she figures now is a good time to leave.
She grabs the bag she's packed for the week and tells Sarah she'll be back soon who just complains that she got her back, causing her to laugh.
She gets to Kurt and Rachel's around four because she stopped for some food halfway through the trip. Kurt and Adam are watching TV when she gets there, Rachel again at rehearsals. She walks to Santana's old room and puts her bag there before joining Kurt and Adam.
They watch a couple episodes of One Tree Hill before Kurt insists on getting her ready for the dinner they're all having later tonight. Rachel had wanted to take all the boys out for dinner as a welcome to New York present now that she's beginning to get some of her Funny Girl paychecks.
He dresses her in a red jumpsuit and gold heels. He curls her hair in soft waves and allows her to do her own makeup, but insists she must do red lips.
"Quinn, you look hot!" Kurt praises once she's finished.
"I look like Santana." She points out. This is definitely how Santana would dress.
"Exactly, hot." Kurt says while smirking and she shakes her head. She goes to join Adam who is already ready on the couch so Kurt can deal with himself.
Adam drives the three of them to the restaurant, and to their surprise Rachel is already there when they get there, sitting at their circular table. Sam, Blaine, and Artie arrive shortly after and they fall into an easy conversation.
"Okay, can we address the elephant in the room?" Kurt asks once they've finished asking Rachel how she feels about opening night coming up.
No one says anything because no one has any idea what Kurt is talking about, but he doesn't seem to mind.
"Are you two dating?" He asks, referring to her and Sam. She opens and closes her mouth a few times, completely caught off guard and Sam chokes on his water. They look at each other from across the table, neither of them knowing how to answer the question because they haven't really talked about it themselves.
"Um, we haven't really put a label on it." She answers while Sam coughs, still choking a little bit. Artie pats him on the back.
"So are you together then?" Rachel asks and she nibbles on her bottom lip. She knows her answer is going to get her into trouble, but she hopes Sam will understand.
"No." She says and she can hear Kurt's sigh of disappointment from beside Rachel.
But she isn't focused on them, she's focused on the boy sitting across from her, but he won't look at her. She can tell he's upset, but she wants to be able to explain.
Adam quickly changes the subject, noticing the awkward tension, but it doesn't matter. The damage has already been done.
xxx
The ride home is quiet, which she appreciates. She knows Adam isn't saying anything because he knows she wants her space, but she also knows the only reason why Kurt is quiet is because he's disappointed.
She's annoyed at him. She's annoyed with him for asking bringing it up. She's annoyed with him for being upset with her. She's annoyed with him because if she's not mad at her then she has to be mad at herself.
But she can't do it, she can't deal with the quiet. So she finally breaks. "What Kurt?" She snaps.
He just hums, which irritates even more. "I didn't say anything." He says casually and she glares daggers at the back of his head.
"But you want to, so what is it?" She asks, tired and frustrated.
"The two of you have been circling around each other for years, Quinn." He tells her and she huffs.
"I don't even know what that's supposed to mean." She tells him, crossing her arms.
"You hurt each other more by trying to protect each other and everyone sees it but the two of you. When are you finally going to stop fighting it and realize that you're meant to be together?" He asks her.
It sounds so childish, meant to be, like it belongs in a movie; not real life. Then why do the words keep replaying inside her head?
xxx
Blaine let's her in while Sam's at campus meeting with his coach. She knows he plans to be gone all day so she's not worried. She wears an old grey shirt and a pair of faded denim shorts. She finds a silk headband in Rachel and Kurt's apartment and uses it to tie her hair back, cursing as it doesn't keep her bangs from falling into her eyes.
His room is a mess when she walks in, but she expected nothing less. There are two boxes opened, which she assumes are full of clothes because there are a few items spilling out and a few others on the floor; the rest of the boxes remain unopened. There are bed sheets thrown carelessly on his bed, unmade and crumpled.
She sighs and places the box she brought by the door, deciding she has enough time to organize his room and do what she came here to do. She deals with the bed first, figuring that will be easiest. They're navy sheets and remind her of the starwars he had when they had dated in sophomore year. She had teased the hell out of him for still having them then, but if she's being honest she kind of misses them. They remind her of their youth.
She puts all of his clothes away next. She's dated him long enough to know how he likes his clothes put into drawers and hung up. Flannels hung up in the closet, jeans folded inside of a drawer, socks thrown wherever you can find space for them.
The only thing he's done in his room so far is install two shelves which she assumes is for all the action figures and sports memorabilia he's shoved in another box labelled most important. She has to get a stool from Blaine so she can reach the shelves, but eventually she places all the action figures and framed limited edition comic books on the bottom shelf and signed footballs and helmets on the top. At the bottom of the box are four framed photos. One of his family, one of the two of them at prom, one of the entire glee club after their win at nationals last year, and one of him and Finn.
He has two bedside tables on either side of his bed so she places the picture of his family and the one of him and her on one table and the picture of the glee club and the one of him and Finn on the other.
She's never seen this photo of him and Finn, but she figures it's from when he had moved in with the Hudson-Hummel's. She assumes it's around Christmastime because the both of them are wearing matching plaid flannel pyjamas. They're both sitting on the coach, Finn taking a sip of what she knows is probably hot chocolate in a mug and Sam has a huge grin on his face. Finn has that same doopy confused expression on his face, but they both look happy.
She's finally stopped crying so much over Finn's death. The therapist she found in New Haven has taught her that it's okay to be sad, but it's also okay to be happy for all the memories Finn gave all of them.
She puts the photo back down on the table and is satisfied with all the unpacking she's done. She allows Sam's guitar to sit in its case on the bed, figuring he'll want to put it in a specific place.
She then begins what she came here to do. She moves to the empty wall opposite of the one with a window and begins to unpack the box she brought. She does the outline in painters tape so she doesn't ruin his wall and once she's satisfied, she begins.
She places the photos on his wall and the other items she's collected. She doesn't want to make it too big just in case he hates it, but once she's finished and takes a step back to admire the entire thing, she knows he's going to love it.
She had done a photo collage of their road trip around Ohio. On one end are the photos from Cleveland: a selfie of the two of them in front of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a picture she took of Sam looking at a painting from the museum, and a picture they took outside the restaurant where they ate dinner. She also included a sticker of an electric guitar.
Next to Cleveland she put Sandusky. She included a sticker of a roller coaster and tickets from the amusement park. She also included the pictures taken of them and pictures she took of the amusement park while he went on rides without her.
Then she did Columbus. She put pictures of the stores and park she took while on a walk while Sam was napping, a picture of him flexing next to the lions at tigers as well as a ticket from the zoo.
She also added a sticker of the Buckeyes logo and a photo of him in front of Ohio stadium between Columbus and Cincinnati.
For Cincinnati she put a ticket from the museum and stickers of planets and a rocketship. She then added a picture of them in front of the fountain square and a postcard from Cincinnati.
She thinks she did a good job, but she still wants a second opinion so she grabs Blaine to ask him what he thinks. When he sees the collage he gasps. "Quinn, this is gorgeous." He says and she smiles.
Now all she has to do is wait for Sam.
xxx
She can tell he's still mad when he walks into the room. He doesn't look surprised to see her, he just looks annoyed.
"What are you doing here?" He asks her and she smiles softly.
"Can we talk?" She asks, he just needs to let her explain.
"I have nothing to say to you." He tells her, pushing past her to head towards his room.
"I'm still in New Haven Sam. There's still distance, and I just thought-" She starts, but he doesn't let her finish.
"You thought. It's always about what you think. What about what I think?" He bites at her and she frowns.
"Sam, it's going to be hard-" She tries again, but again he cuts her off.
"I thought we were done with this shit Quinn! But nothing's changed!" He shouts and she flinches.
"Okay, so we're going to go on a walk." Blaine says, appearing out of nowhere but neither of them look at him. He pushes Artie out the apartment leaving the two of them to continue their argument.
"That's not true." She says in a small voice, but he just laughs.
"That's not true? The whole reason we broke up the first time is because I was in Lima. And now I'm in New York and you don't want to do this now either." That's not fair, she thinks. He doesn't understand, but he won't let her explain.
"And you were fine then!" She argues and he just laughs louder.
"I was fine then?! How was I fine?" He asks her, snapping at her.
"You were with Brittany." She argues, but she knows it doesn't get her anywhere noticing the fire in his eyes.
"And you were with Biff!" He counter argues, raising her voice louder.
"But you didn't have to watch me with other guys while you still had feelings for me." She tells him.
"Are you serious? I had to watch you with another guy when you were still my girlfriend!" He yells at her and ouch that stings. He looks like he regrets it immediately after he says it, but it's not like it matters. He can't take it back.
Neither of them know what to do and she can see him turn to look at the door. He's planning to leave, she realizes. He walks past her, and she almost lets him. He opens the door, and he's takes a step forward, and-
"Why didn't you call me?" She shouts after him.
"What?" He asks, turning back around.
"Two years ago when I went to visit you in Kentucky, why didn't you call me like you said you would? Why did you chase after Mercedes when you came back despite what happened between us?" She asks him.
He doesn't say anything, and she didn't expect him to. She already knows the answer.
"Because you were scared." She answers for him. "You were scared of getting hurt. The same way I always was. But the difference now is that I don't want either of us to hurt, not just me."
He doesn't answer her, and she knows why. It's because he knows she's right.
He finally walks into his room and she follows. He freezes when he sees what she's done for him. "Quinn, I-" He starts, turning around to face her. She can see the guilt in his eyes, the regret, and it overwhelms her. She shakes her head and begins to walk backwards.
She runs out of his apartment with tears streaming down her face. She runs to her car and sits in the parking lot and just cries. She pulls up the number of her therapist and prays that she answers.
"You said you think I run from things I want." She says as soon as the line connects. "You said I run and I want to know why. You told me you wanted me to figure it out myself, but I want to know why."
"Quinn, what's going on?" Her therapist asks her. She doesn't have time to explain, she needs to know.
"What's the reason?" She asks again and her therapist sighs.
"I think you lost a part of yourself Quinn. When you got pregnant I think you lost sight of who you are and you think other peoples validation of you is going to help bring it back. but it wont, you need to heal that part of yourself that broke after you lost beth. Maybe even before giving up Beth. Somewhere along the way you stopped loving yourself, hoping the respect of everyone else would fill the holes. That's why you tried so hard to rejoin the cheerios, or become prom queen. but they didn't make you feel any better did they? That's why you made Rachel win."
She lets the words sink in. They're heavy, and they make her cry harder, but they're true.
"How do I heal?" She asks.
"Stop running."
xxx
He's sitting on the couch with his head in his hands when she returns. He looks up at her when she closes the door, but she stays where she is.
Both of them are stubborn, neither of them will want to surrender first. She knows she should give in, he deserves that much after everything she's put him through, but there is this voice nagging at her to run back out the door.
She knows he's waiting. He put himself out there, he told her what he wants, now it's her turn. He's not going to make it easy for her, she knows that. So she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "I'm still broken." She tells him with her eyes still closed.
"Who isn't?" He says back. She opens her eyes, he's still sitting on the couch but he's sitting up now.
"I'm going to want to run away all the time." She says and he just chuckles softly.
"I won't let you go." He says, figuring out what she's doing.
She takes a step forward. "It's going to be hard."
He stands up from the couch. "When have things between us ever been easy?" He asks her while smiling. "What are you doing Quinn?" He asks her once she's stopped in front of him.
"I'm scared." She admits. He looks at her like he already knows.
"The ball is in your court Q." He tells her. She turns to look back at the door, but he grabs her arm lightly to make sure she doesn't walk out of it.
"My therapist thinks I need to stop running." She tells him and he laughs softly.
"What do you think?" He asks her, leaning his forehead against hers.
"I agree." She says, closing the gap.