A/N- This is the final chapter! I apologize for how long it took to get this updated, I have no excuse other than my lack of motivation for this story to end! It was the first ever multi-chapter story I wrote on here :). Thank you so much for your continued support and patience, please enjoy.
"Flower petals?"
"Too Valentines."
"Horse drawn carriage?"
"Too cliche."
"Urgh!"
Quinn flopped backwards into her seat. Tina just chuckled beside her. The two were sitting in the middle of the theatre watching the final rehearsal of the day before their Friday evening show.
"Why are proposals so damn hard?" The blonde asked running a hand through her hair.
"Because nothing worthwhile is easy." Tina said wisely.
"Well, aren't you just a freakin' Hallmark card?"
Quinn had spent the last two days in a concerned daze trying to figure out how to propose, and more importantly how to make it happen before Rachel tried to do the same.
"Ok, lets go back to the beginning. Do you think she'd want some huge, grand gesture in front of a lot of people, or something small and intimate?"
The director laughed and raised an eyebrow that closely mirrored Quinn's own trademark expression, "It's Rachel. That's not even a question."
"Grand gesture it is." Quinn smiled, remembering back to the protest and the way the brunette practically glowed in the attention of the fans and reporters.
Just then, their headsets crackled.
"We need the Main Stage Manager to the left wing ASAP. And I still need more details on the Good Morning America performance." The distinct voice of Kurt said.
Quinn hauled herself to her feet, as Tina laughed a "Good luck!" to her retreating form.
"Thanks."
Rachel - for her part - was entirely lost. She had no clue what to make of Quinn's sudden clingy-ness. One afternoon she even found the blonde looking through the contacts list in her phone. When Rachel confronted her about it, Quinn went pale, denied everything and left the dressing room like she had been burned. Later that day she caught glimpses of her girlfriend sitting in the back of the theatre with a straight-back rigid posture and her knee bouncing wildly. Rachel had never seen her look that nervous. It was like she was trying to gather her courage to do something that would be physically painful.
But a few minutes later, when she looked out to the back of the theatre, she only saw Quinn pacing up and down with her iPhone pressed tightly against her ear. The blonde was doing the adorable thing where she talked with her hands, even though the person on the other end of the line couldn't see. The gesture made Rachel want to abandon the stage right there in the middle of rehearsal and just kiss Quinn. But she resisted.
Waiting for Sunday proved to be one of the most difficult things Quinn Fabray has done in her entire life. She was so afraid of Rachel beating her to the punch that she never left the brunette's side - she figured as long as she never left Rachel alone to set up or plan anything, then she wouldn't be blindsided by a surprise proposal.
It worked well, not saying that there weren't a few close calls - like when Rachel wanted to surprise the blonde with a romantic dinner at their apartment, but Quinn wouldn't leave her alone long enough to be able to buy the ingredients.
But Sunday finally rolled around with everyone blissfully not engaged.
The musical was scheduled to appear on Good Morning America to perform a couple of songs and then have a promotional interview with Rachel, Quinn, Tina and Cassie to promote the last kick of the show.
Sunday morning came with the normal crisis that Quinn had learned to handle with surprising ease. Today's big issue: the green.
"I cannot wear the normal makeup! We won't have enough time to take it off before the interview and I can't interview green!" Rachel practically shouted.
She was sitting in a plush chair before a mirror while Kurt sulked in a corner, Cassie glared from the doorway and Quinn was stuck in the middle.
"You can't perform without it, it's part of the costume. It's the brand!" The blonde director all but yelled.
"Why doesn't Kurt just apply a single coat so it can be removed quicker?" Quinn suggested, trying to play the mediator.
The makeup designer sighed as though the answer to that was obvious, "Rachel's too dark. If I were to do that she wouldn't be the right color - she would look like a rotting asparagus."
"I cannot look like that on live, nationwide television, Quinn!"
"Everyone just calm down!" The blonde ran a hand through her hair and checked her watch. "Kurt, how long does it normally take to remove all the green makeup?"
"About ten minutes with moisturizer."
Quinn did some quick mental math, "Can you cut it down to four?"
"Do you want her to look rubbed raw?"
"Five?"
The boy looked as though he were under great duress to be able to do what was being asked of him, "I suppose..."
"Great!" Quinn turned around, beaming at everyone in the room, "Problem solved. Now lets all get ready, we have under an hour until we are scheduled to go out there."
The performance went flawlessly as everyone expected it to - Rachel sang 'For Good' and 'Defying Gravity' with a small group of the cast while Tina, Cassandra and Quinn watched from the front row of the live studio audience. When they finished singing, the show cut to a commercial and the three women made their way to the stage as Rachel sprinted away to get her green makeup removed.
"That was a truly magical performance!" One of the hosts - a bubbly blonde - said with a wide smile as the three took their seats on the stage.
Quinn knew the woman's name was Kelly and she smiled right back, "I still get goosebumps every time I see Rachel preform." She admitted.
Tina melted at the comment while Cassie just scoffed from her position closest to the host, "Fabray, your constant declarations of love sicken me."
"Don't be so sour, they're adorable." Tina chastised, playfully smacking the older woman's elbow - the two of them had become close friends over the course of directing together.
Quinn checked her watch, three minutes had passed since Rachel had run off to do a full change as well as hair and makeup - two minutes until they were set to comeback from the commercial break.
The host continued to chatter on with Tina while Quinn zoned out. She could feel her heartbeat pulsing in her throat and wondered if she might have a panic attack - she had never been so nervous before in her life. All of that fear, however, was pushed away the moment she saw Rachel sprint onstage as the main camera man began counting down from five. The brunette was dressed in a stunning dark blue dress and matching heels, she was absolutely breathtaking.
Rachel managed to slip onto the plush white couch, skidding to a stop beside Quinn just as the show went back live.
"And we're back! I'm here with Cassandra July and Tina Cohen Chang, the directors and Quinn Fabray the main stage manager for the current production of Wicked on Broadway. Also joining us is the amazingly talented Rachel Berry, who flawlessly portrays Elphaba." Kelly gushed while the audience clapped on cue, "Thank you all for taking a break from your rigorous schedule to meet with me."
There was a general mumble of 'our pleasure' from the four before the host launched into the questions she had prepared.
"Many in the business are struck by something very unique that Wicked is the first Broadway production to have - and that's female directors as well as a female main stage manager. Typically those are roles filled by men. Tell me Cassandra and Tina, what has your experience been as women in a man's world?"
Tina smiled before eloquently answering the question, whereas Cassie sort of snorted and gave an answer along the lines of 'the last director didn't have the balls for the job so they hired us instead and it's been great ever since', but in fewer words.
Kelly seemed to recognize that she wasn't going to get a better answer from the blonde and she moved on. "And how about you Rachel? You are widely known for your amazing portrayal of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl and we also know you worked with a male director. How has your experience been different under these two?" She asked gesturing at the directors sitting close to her.
From the moment Rachel opened her mouth to reply, Quinn was lost. She just became completely wrapped up in the sound of Rachel's voice and the sparkle in her eyes as she spoke about the thing she truly loved mesmerized Quinn. She totally missed the next question Kelly rattled off and was only alerted to the fact when Rachel gently nudged her knee.
"I guess we have our answer then!" The host joked as the audience burst into an amused laughter and Quinn flushed wondering what she was in the dark about.
"I'm sorry, what was that, Kelly?" She asked politely while Tina and Cassie smirked at her from the far end of the couch.
Kelly smiled and repeated herself, "I asked you if it was difficult to work with Rachel since the two of you are in such a serious relationship."
"Oh!" Quinn laughed a bit to herself before replying, "Sometimes it can be because I'm just so proud of her and when she performs it is absolutely hypnotizing, but most of the time I love it. Being a stage manager is an amazing job and being able to spend more time with the woman I love is just icing on the cake."
There was a general murmur of 'aww' from the studio audience before the host proceeded with her questioning. Most of them were softball questions about what it was like behind the scenes. The whole audience laughed when Rachel recounted her first experience on the flying contraption that was used in Defying Gravity.
They broke for another commercial and Quinn took a deep breath and stole herself for what was coming next. She excused herself from the stage, mumbling something about having to get a water. The host - Kelly - gave her a knowing smile.
Before they knew it, the cameraman was counting down the seconds until they would be back on air. When he smiled and pointed to Kelly, she took a deep breath and began the next segment, "Welcome back! Rachel, we have some questions from the audience for you."
The brunette put on her award winning smile and tried not to be too disappointed that Quinn had disappeared for the moment, "Sounds great, Kelly!"
"Our first question comes from a young woman visiting from Massachusetts." Kelly read off a small note card and then nodded out into the audience where a redhead stood up on queue with a microphone that the tech crew had given her during the commercial break.
"Hello, Rachel, my name is Christine! I wanted to know what you're planning on doing next? We've all heard the rumors about a movie deal coming up."
The audience all seemed to nod and murmur in agreement while Rachel just smiled placatingly, she had heard the rumors too. They however weren't totally unfounded, but she was sworn to secrecy, "Unfortunately I can neither confirm nor deny that. At the moment, I'm totally focused on finishing the run of 'Wicked' though." She said reciting the party line her publicist had fed her before the interview.
"Thank you!" The woman sat down and Kelly glanced down at the card she was holding.
"Our next question come from a local New Yorker."
The camera swung to the middle of the studio audience where a blonde stood up. Her hand holding the microphone was shaking slightly though her shoulders were squared determinedly. Before she said a word, all of the other lights in the studio dimmed and a spotlight illuminated her.
"Quinn?" Rachel whispered in confused disbelief.
Before Rachel could say anything else, the opening chords of an all too familiar song poured out of the speakers. Quinn smiled and began making her way out of the audience, she was into the aisle by the time she began singing, "Kiss me too fiercely, hold me too tight. I need help believing you're with me tonight."
Tears pricked in the corners of the brunette's eyes while Quinn slowly sauntered down to the stage with a wide smile on her face, "Just for this moment, as long as you're mine. I've lost all resistance and crossed some borderline and if it turns out it's over too fast. I'll make every last moment last, as long as you're mine." Secretly, Quinn had always hated watching Rachel perform this song onstage because she wished it was her that the diva was singing to, not the actor portraying Fiyero.
As she made it to the stage, she crossed to the couch that Rachel was seated at and she dropped to one knee to finish out her little abridged version of the song, "Just for this moment, as long as you're mine. Come how you want to, and see how bright we shine. Borrow the moonlight until it is through and know I'll be here holding you. As long as you're mine."
By the time she finished, there were tears slowly escaping Rachel's eyes. The smaller woman had one hand pressed against her heart as Quinn grabbed the other one to hold.
"Rachel Barbra Berry, I love you with all of my being. Ever since the day I first met you, I've been head over heels in love with you - literally." Rachel smiled at the small joke about their first encounter where Quinn tackled her on the stage. "I couldn't imagine one day without you and I pray I never have to. Will you promise to be mine for the rest of our days and marry me?"
There was an audible intake of breath from the audience as they awaited the answer.
When the singer leapt up and wrapped Quinn in a hug so enthusiastic they nearly toppled over, the blonde let her own tears track down her cheeks, "Is that a yes?"
The audience broke out into applause and 'awws' when Rachel nodded wetly against her shoulder, "That is a hell yes, Fabray. I love you so much."
"I love you back."
When Rachel released the stage manager and she stood up, Quinn pulled a small box from her back pocket and popped it open to reveal a beautiful princess cut 2 carat diamond set in a platinum band with inset round diamonds. Rachel gasped as the ring slid into place on her finger, "Quinn you shouldn't ha-"
Quinn cut her off with a brief kiss to her lips, "Rachel, I should have. It was my grandmother's diamond, I had it put into a new band."
Seeing the insistence in her hazel eyes, Rachel's smile simply widened as she pulled her girlfriend (oops, fiancè - it was going to be hard for the brunette to get used to that title) into a tight hug, "I've had a ring for you hidden on the top shelf of the linen closet for weeks now." She whispered quietly into Quinn's ear.
The blonde laughed at having her suspicions confirmed, Rachel leaned back enough from their embrace to give Quinn an anything but chaste kiss. Cassie cleared her throat when the singer began weaving her fingers through Quinn's hair.
The couple broke apart reluctantly but with a light blush raising in both of their cheeks. They sat down on the couch with Rachel's left hand held tightly in Quinn's left, they were both wearing matching earsplitting smiles. In the excitement of the moment they had forgotten they were on live television.
"You heard it here first, folks! Rachel Berry and Quinn Fabray are engaged to be married!" Kelly said excitedly to the audience to refocus, "So Quinn, how long have you been planning this?"
"About three weeks now, I even stole Rachel's phone to get her father's number and ask for permission. I was mainly trying to make sure I got the question off before this one did." She nudged Rachel lovingly with her shoulder.
"That is so adorable! So the big question, what on earth are you going to do with your last names?" The host joked.
Both Quinn and Rachel just looked at each other lost for an answer, Quinn was the first to come up with something, "I don't mind hyphens!"
The entire audience laughed indulgently while the couple shared a shy smile thinking about their future life together. For the rest of the interview, they remained glued to each other's sides. They only finally separated when they arrived at the theatre for a final rehearsal before the night's show. As they walked into the theatre, the entire cast and crew that was already there greeted them with a round of applause and whistles. Throughout the day they received so many congratulations and had been grinning so much it was almost comical.
After the rehearsal everyone had a couple of hours to rest before they performed. Quinn was deep in conversation with the director of the pit orchestra while the cast all retired to their dressing rooms with their minds focused on food and sleep, and the crew was finishing resetting the stage.
The short man was explaining with wild arm gestures just why he needed extra lighting installed in the pit, when a pair of strong arms slipped around Quinn's middle.
"I will see what I can do." The blonde promised sincerely and he left with a thankful nod.
Quinn leaned back, fitting her head into the neck of the short brunette hugging her from behind.
"I was looking everywhere for you." Rachel complained, pressing a light kiss to Quinn's temple.
"You found me." Quinn quipped before turning in the circle of Rachel's arms to give her a proper kiss, "Why were you looking for me?"
Rachel smirked in a confident way that Quinn knew was anything but innocent, "I was hoping you could give me a hand with something in my dressing room."
The blonde blushed a bit, but found a smile creeping over her own features, "I suppose I could sneak away for a bit."
Without wasting a second, Rachel grabbed her hand and began half leading, half dragging her away from the stage and towards the back stairs. They hardly made it to the dressing room and locked the door behind them before Rachel had determinedly captures Quinn's lips with her own.
The shorter girl eagerly pushed Quinn further into the dressing room until the back of her knees hit the couch and they toppled onto it together in a graceful heap. Rachel, taking the opportunity to deepen the kiss and thread her fingers into the blonde's hair as her tongue explored her mouth.
Quinn released a slight moan from beneath the diva when one of Rachel's hands pushed under her shirt and began lightly running up and down her side. Not one to be outdone, the blonde rested her hands on Rachel's hips with her thumbs playing with the skin exposed between the top of Rachel's leggings and the bottom of her loose tank top.
It certainly wasn't the first time they had made out in Rachel's dressing room, but it was definitely the most heated. They generally tried to avoid that sort of a thing at the theater since they both worked there - tonight however, Rachel seemed to have other intentions. She moved to kissing Quinn's elegant neck and boldly brought her other hand down to push the taller girl's shirt all the way up to the bottom of her bra. She ran her fingernails teasingly over her favorite part of the blonde's body, her abs.
Quinn let out a strangled moan and grabbed Rachel's wrists in one hand, using the other to guide the brunette's head up so she could make eye contact, "Rach?"
The one word was question enough, but the singer decided to play coy, "Quinn?"
"What are you doing?"
"Kissing my fiancè!" Rachel happily sang and stole a quick kiss from the blonde's stern lips.
"I can see that." Quinn smiled, trying but failing to keep up the serious facade, "It seems like you were going for a bit more than that." She shot a look down between their bodies at her still exposed stomach and Rachel flushed the slightest bit.
"Maybe I was, are you protesting?"
The blonde pretended to think about the question for a moment, but when Rachel put on her best pout Quinn stood no chance at resisting, "No, I'm not."
"Great! Then let my hands go and take off your shirt!"
Quinn giggled, but did as requested and dropped the top onto the floor next to the couch. Seeing her fiancè sprawled beneath her, a smile still lingering in her eyes, her cheeks slightly flushed, and her lips swollen from kissing brought back memories from their first time.
It had been a couple of days after opening night but before the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Rachel still had a small mark on her cheek from Quinn's father striking her. The blonde touched her like she was the most precious thing on earth, like she would break apart at any second. They were both so gentle, it was an apology and a promise all in one.
This time was different. It was rough and passionate, each woman intent on expressing all of their love to each other. Rachel ducked her head back down, claiming Quinn's lips with her own.
One hand slid further south between them. With practiced ease, she flicked open Quinn's jeans and teasingly dragged down the zipper. She moved to the blonde's jaw, sucking harshly and fully intending on leaving a mark.
With every touch, Rachel showed her possession, proving that Quinn was hers and hers alone.
"Are you sure the veil isn't too much?" Rachel asked, playing with the white tulle material.
"Yes I'm sure now stop stressing and get your ass out there." Tina smiled. She gave the white dress one last fluff before collecting her bridesmaid bouquet and winked at Rachel before she danced out of the room.
She met up with Mike, who was walking her down the aisle and waited for the music to begin so they could lead out the bridal procession. They were followed by Santana and Brittany, then Kurt and his new boyfriend Blaine.
Quinn was the next to go, her mother walked her with the biggest possible smile - it split Judy's face. Quinn was wearing a simple white dress that hugged her curves perfectly and had a small amount of lace decoration on the bodice.
When she got to the altar, she was met with a smirking Cassandra. Quinn remembered the day after they had finally set a date for the wedding. Within seconds of arriving at the theatre, Quinn and Rachel were cornered by Tina and Cassie - both of them had taken online courses to become ordained ministers and both wanted to officiate the wedding.
Rather than choose one of them to perform the service, Quinn and Rachel decided to have them do Rock Paper Scissors for it. After tying for more games than should be humanely possible, Cassie finally beat Tina and thus won the honor. Tina still insisted the older woman cheated somehow.
Quinn's thoughts were pulled back to the present however, when she saw Rachel emerge on Hiram's arm. The brunette was stunning in her eggshell dress ('we can't both wear white Quinn, that's just too much!'). It had a short train and her hair was thrown up in a curled bun.
The wedding went flawlessly as did the reception. Before they knew it, Quinn and Rachel were happily walking out of the reception hall to an awaiting car. Rachel paused at the car door and spun around. She threw her bouquet over her shoulder and turned just in time to see an excited Brittany jump up and grab it.
Santana whispered something in the blonde's ear and they disappeared through the crowd. Quinn would find out later - from an excited and probably drunk Santana - that they had driven to the airport and got on the first flight to Las Vegas where they got married.
"The lighting was spotty at best, and some of the characterization was entirely unbelievable. Not to mention most of the costumes looked like something out of Goodwill." Santana said shaking her head.
"I agree. Don't even get me started on the choreography, the director didn't even feature the strongest dancers!" Rachel chimed in, her tone conveyed the deepest outrage which earned her a few glares from fellow spectators.
Quinn stared at the women in disbelief, "It was an elementary school production of 'Alice in Wonderland'!"
"That's no excuse for poor leadership." Rachel countered, "How long has that teacher been in charge? She should have some semblance of a clue on how to run a production at this point."
The blonde just rolled her eyes and readjusted the little boy on her hip, Jacob was two and a half and the image of his mother. All brunette curls and olive skin, the only difference were his striking grey eyes. It was anyone's guess where he had gotten those as their donor had green eyes and Rachel's were a deep chocolate.
Santana and Rachel continued their critique all the way out into the main hall - the elementary school was able to borrow the high school's theater for the show - while Quinn and Brittany trailed behind.
"I for one am proud of the kids." Brittany volunteered with her normal content smile.
Santana melted like she always did when it came to Brittany, "Of course, I am as well. They were the best Alice and March Hare I've ever seen."
Before Rachel knew it, she was impacted by a jumble of excited energy barreling into her. Their daughter Sophie smiled up at her with a wide toothy grin, "What did you think, Mommy?"
"You were amazing, baby girl!"
For weeks, this production was all that was talked about in the Berry-Fabray household. Especially since Sophie had managed to secure the lead though she was only in the fourth grade- widely beating out the fifth grade girls who had auditioned. This was mainly due to the fact that Rachel had taught her to cry on demand - a skill she was learning to regret passing onto her daughter.
Rachel hugged her tightly and pressed a kiss to the top of her brunette head. She presented the small girl with a bouquet of roses she had kept concealed behind her back and Sophie squealed in surprise. Santana craned her head over the crowd, jockeying for a glimpse of her son, "Hey Soph, did you see Jackson when you were backstage?"
"He was on his way out." The girl replied, Santana's brow furrowed in concern and Quinn had to hold back her laughter at her friend's tendency to be overprotective of her son, it really was her Achilles heel.
The small boy emerged before Santana could get too concerned though, and he was immediately smothered in a hug from his mother. Jackson was two years younger than Sophie, but he absolutely had to do everything she did - and the play was no exception. Quinn was secretly convinced that one day they would get married.
Once Jackson was released by Santana, Brittany swooped in. Quinn was always struck by just how much he looked like the blonde from his brilliant eyes to his gentle smile.
The whole group began the trek out to the parking lot where Quinn and Rachel loaded their kids into their navy blue minivan - Santana never let Quinn live down owning a minivan - and the others piled into Brittany's red car. They bade each other farewell with promises of a play date over the weekend. Brittany and Rachel would have time off from rehearsal for their revival of 'Rent' and Santana's work was light. All together it promised to be a good weekend.
A/N- There it is, thank you for sticking with this story, reading, favoriting, following, and reviewing. Leave one last review, and please- by all means- give me suggestions on what to write next!
I can't thank you lovely readers enough and hope you have a great weekend!
Also thank you so much to my amazing beta who has been with me through all my crazy and I could not have done this without her! 3 you ;)