Ch. 10: Reactions

Quinn gets into her car, staring straight ahead, trying to gather her thoughts and control her breathing before she starts to hyperventilate in front of her daughter. "Don't,' Quinn manages to utter to her daughter without her voice completely cracking. Beth closes her gaping mouth, narrows her eyes and crosses her arms. Quinn knows that look on her daughter, knows that she'll only have so long before Beth starts asking questions. But, for now, Quinn, relishing in the silence granted to her, shifts the car into drive, and points the car towards their new home.

Once the Fabray women are home, Quinn sets about to start making dinner while Beth goes to wash up from the clinic. While Beth is freshening up, Quinn uses this time to further process seeing Santana again after all these years. "Fuck," Quinn let's out finally. She grabs her phone and shoots a quick text, before turning back to the refrigerator to see what's available – and easy for her still reeling brain – too make. As Beth comes bounding down the stairs, Quinn finishes up the bacon grilled cheese sandwiches she made for them both and places them on the kitchen high-top.

"Mom?" Beth asks questioningly.

Quinn looks up at her daughter and knows that she can't keep her past a secret for long. "Go ahead and ask, Beth," Quinn says to her daughter.

Quinn braces herself internally for what she's sure to be an onslaught of questions from her daughter. "How do you know Santana Lopez, Mom?" Beth asks quietly not even sure herself that she's really asking her mom about potentially knowing someone as famous and cool as Santana Lopez.

"We went to the same high school," Quinn tells her daughter. "She was best friends with Puck. And I had some classes with her. Plus, I was a cheerleader and she was a soccer player, so we knew each other from being athletes as well."

Beth sits there for a minute to mull over what her mother just told her. "So, you knew her from Puck's parties, too? How was she? Was she as awesome of a soccer player back then as she is now?"

Quinn's grateful that Beth doesn't ask why seeing an old classmate would elicit such emotion from someone and truthfully answers about Santana's soccer skills and knowing her from Puck's parties. "But Beth. Just because I knew Santana in high school doesn't mean you can act any differently towards her. She is still you coach, still a professional athlete, and still an authoritative adult. Got it?" Beth acquiesces and happily munches on the rest of her grilled cheese.

"It's still awesome that you know her, though," Beth says as Quinn's phone starts to ring. "Maybe you're cooler than I thought," Beth says as she quickly gets out of her chair and scoots out of Quinn's reach before Quinn can get her.

"I heard that, you brat?" Quinn calls up the stairs jokingly as she slides her phone to answer Rachel's call. "Santana is here."

"What?!" Rachel practically shouts from the other end of the phone, sputtering her coffee out in the process. "What do you mean she's 'here'?"

Quinn rolls her eyes, imagining Rachel's reaction, wishing she had FaceTimed her instead so she could see it happen. "I mean that Santana's here. In Portland. She's one of Beth's clinic coaches and plays on the Thorns. How did we not know this?"

"Did you talk to her? Or did you just see her from a distance?" Rachel asks before answering Quinn's questions. "I didn't know she still played. Honestly, when she stopped talking to Britt, Santana just became part of the past. I really don't think San talks to anyone anymore from our group, including Puck. I mean, you lived close to Puck and did he ever mention her when you told him you were moving to Portland? I feel like Puck would have at least mentioned that. Maybe for her, there was just too much drama in the past and she wanted a fresh start, so she just moved on to start the next chapter of her life?"

"Ha," Quinn snorts. "You can say that again. Our clique was, and still is, so incestuous and drama-filled that I was honestly glad when we all left high school so we could finally see more. God, I think everyone hooked up with everyone from our group. Well, except me since I was pregnant. I only ever hooked up with Puck. Not even Finn."

Rachel gasps. "What? Not even Finn?"

"Nope," Quinn drawls out. "He wanted to wait for a special time for us. I think that he had our lives all played out, with him getting a football scholarship and then me following him and eventually settling down and having his babies as a trophy wife. You know, that really old-fashioned way of thinking," Quinn trails off. "But, back to your question of whether or not I talked to her? Yes and no. I went to go pick up Beth after her first day of clinic today and I see her and one of the kids watching two of the coaches practicing some more tricks after practice was over. As I got closer to Beth, I had asked her who she was watching. And that's when I realized it was Santana. I said her name, louder than what I thought, apparently, because when I said her name, Santana turned towards me and got nailed in the nose by the ball. I think she might have broken her nose, too…"

"Damn!" Rachel breathes out after Quinn finishes. "Anything else happen?"

"Well, her teammate ran over to her to help and when they got close, Santana said my name like she didn't believe that it was me. Beth was looking at me during the exchange with Santana like I had two head."

"Oh my Barbara! Beth saw you interact with Santana! Did she say anything? What did you tell her?"

"I told her the truth. Well, some of it. I told her we were acquaintances. No need to tell her anything else, like my crush on Santana. I mean, I was just a hormonal pregnant teenager, so it was probably nothing but lust anyways."

Rachel's quiet, figuring out what she should say before just letting it out. "Quinn, I know it's too little too late, but I'm sorry for how senior year played out. I -. Santana -. Teenage hormones and confusion…" Rachel finally spits out.

"I know. High school was a breeding ground for bad teenage decisions, regret and putting ourselves first before anyone else, even our friends," Quinn says, knowing in Rachel's own way, she's trying to apologize for her actions senior year. "We all made them. I did too, so I'm no innocent party in what happened senior year. But there were some amazing things that happened from senior year, too. Like Beth for me, Brit for you, Puck finally shaving off that damn mohawk and changing his lothario ways," Quinn finishes with a chuckle.

"That mohawk!" Rachel chimes in, laughing and helping to lighten the mood.

"Yes, that was a horrible look for him. I'm surprised Santana never shaved it off of him whenever he would piss her off, which was often."

"Speaking of, let's bring it back to Santana," Rachel says. "What are you going to do now that she's back in your life?"

"But she's not," Quinn states evenly. "She's just a coach at Beth's soccer clinic. I don't have to have any interaction with her. And if I do, I'll keep it strictly professional."

"Quinn, why would you treat seeing Santana again as a business-like thing? If you liked her back in high school and never told her, then this is basically the universe's way of putting you two back together and telling you to try. It's fate!"

"I pushed her away last time without any explanation. To her, we were just friends and then I snapped and shut her out. What am I supposed to say now? 'Oh hi San! So, remember back in high school when I was pregnant with your best friend's kid and we were close but I pushed you away? Yes, well, I liked you, but was a hormonal mess. Anyways, would you like to go out with sometime? Don't worry, you won't be my first tryst into lesbianism either. I really enjoy being with women now.'"

"Yes!" Rachel shouts through the phone. "Okay, well, maybe not that per se, but at least get her back in your life and then see if the connection is still there."

Quinn sighs. "Rach, I don't even know if she feels the same way about me. Or felt something back then. She was probably thankful after I cut her out. She clearly went off and made something of herself. What's a professional soccer player going to want to do with a single mom? Hell, that's if she's even single. Or wants a relationship with anyone. And I've got Beth to think about, too."

"Well, how about the next time you see her, try not to cause her to get nailed in the face by another ball and then you can go from there," Rachel chuckles "At least you guys could be friends again. And Quinn?" Rachel says before getting ready to get off the phone. "You made something of yourself, too. Don't you ever forget that."

"Thanks Rach."

"Anytime."

The next day, as Quinn drops off Beth at the clinic, Beth asks if Quinn is going to go see Santana. Taken aback, Quinn looks at her daughter in the rearview mirror, trying to figure out why she'd ask that. "Beth, I'm only an acquaintance of Santana's. From high school. A long time ago. And she's probably busy getting all of you guys checked in for that day that if I go see her, it wouldn't be productive."

"Okay, Mom. I just figured you'd want to see your friends today and not have her get hit in the face again the next time she sees you," Beth says with a shrug. "Besides, I texted Puck last night and he said you and Santana –"

"Coach Lopez, since she's your coach," Quinn interjects.

With an eyeroll, Beth continues, "Puck said you and Coach Lopez were chummy back in high school. I'm just trying to help you be chummy again," Beth singsongs as she skips out of the car, grabbing her soccer gear and heading off with a wave.

Blushing, Quinn puts her car in drive, muttering that she's going to eviscerate Puck the next time she gets ahold of him.