A/N: Hi guys!
I'm sorry for taking so long to update! I've been working on this chapter for a long time and I hope you like it. It's still in the "Quinn and Rachel approaching" scenario, but there's a twist coming soon. Oh, and in case I haven't made it clear, Quinn got to New York on a Friday and she's supposed to go back to New Haven on Sunday morning.
Enjoy :)
Rachel is sitting on the grass at her favorite spot in Central Park - the Great Lawn, watching people walk by right after arriving there with Quinn, who is taking lots of pictures of everything around them with her film camera, from trees and butterflies to musicians and baseball players. The sight they get is incredibly pretty and relaxing. The weather is still pleasant, remaining both warm and fresh, as it was when they were walking there, creating the perfect atmosphere.
Suddenly, Quinn stops what she's doing and turns to Rachel.
"You look beautiful under the sunlight, you know?" she says, smiling and looking at the ground when the brunette faces her. "I... I like the way your skin shines and your hair gets all honey-colored and glimmer-y. It's kind of like the proof that you're a star."
"Wow, that's... Nice of you to say, Quinn. Thank you so much." Rachel replies after a moment of hesitation, her cheeks starting to blush. "Although it's needless to say, you look gorgeous yourself."
"Would you... Mind if I took a picture of you?"
"I guess that's okay. What am I supposed to do?"
"Just do nothing, like you were before."
"Alright, I can do that. I didn't know you were that into photographs, though. When did this happen?"
"I don't know. I guess I just realized in the future I want to be able to know there were nice moments even during rough times. And also, I'd rather have memories hung on a wall or inside an album instead of roaming through my mind."
"Is this a nice moment?"
"Of course!"
"Is this a rough time?"
"Not really... You know, no babies or accidents or wheelchairs..." Quinn replies, which causes Rachel to laugh. She feels like adding "being in New York with you" but that remains as just a thought, because before she has time to say anything else, the brunette is asking her a question.
"So, should I do nothing now?"
"Yeah." the blonde says, with a lazy smile.
Rachel re-arranges herself to get her picture taken, remaining seated on the grass and trying to look as natural as possible, even though she's actually feeling quite self-conscious and nervous about how it will turn out. Quinn takes a few photographs and thanks her, still smiling.
"Too bad this is a film camera and I can't show you the result right now. I'm sure it'll be amazing."
The brunette smiles incredulously and lowers her head after her eyes meet Quinn's piercing hazel ones, because, even though lately they don't have the intention to intimidate her, she has the impression she'll never want to stop staring into them if she does it for any longer than five seconds. And that would be weird. Or Quinn would find it weird. Whatever. She's not risking it.
"You should let me take pictures of you too so we're even." Rachel suggests coyly, attempting to move on with the conversation.
"Nah. My camera, my rules." Quinn banters.
"Can we take one together, though? We have none! That's an insult to our best friends condition!"
"It sure is!" the blonde chimes in, laughing. "Fine, let's take one."
She sits next to Rachel and holds her camera in front of them. Once they are both ready and smiling, Quinn presses the "shoot" button.
"Happy now?" she asks, pulling the camera back and leaving it to rest on her chest, supported by a strap around her neck.
"Yeah. But only if you give me a copy of this one later."
"Okay. I will. Anything else?"
"Actually, if you don't mind me asking, are you done with your photographs? I'm starting to get hungry."
"Yeah, I'm hungry too."
"We still have to find some place to eat since we didn't bring food for a picnic."
"Yeah… Let's go then."
Quinn and Rachel stand up, gather their things and start to walk around the park trying to find a nice place for lunch. A whimsical restaurant with outdoor tables catches their eye and they decide to eat there when they find out it sells vegetarian food.
The food turns out to be wonderful. The weather is still evoking astonishing mixed sensations in their bodies, the sound of children laughing and birds singing still lingers in the air and all that makes them truly enjoy their time there.
"So, you didn't tell me what your dream was." Quinn comments during their meal.
"I told you I didn't remember!"
"I know you were lying, Rachel... You always have the same expression when you do."
Rachel's cheeks fluster with shame for being so easily decipherable. She truly considers telling the truth about her dream this time. That is, until it comes back to her mind and she is reminded how embarrassing that would be.
"It just doesn't matter, Quinn."
"Okay, it's fine if you don't want to tell me."
Rachel looks at Quinn curiously for a moment. She thought her friend wouldn't give up that easily, but is relieved that she did - or at least seemed to.
The girls remain seated for quite some time, enjoying dessert as well. After they pay the check, their waiter, who is clearly gay and proud, stops by their table.
"Hey, can I just say something before you guys leave?"
"Um... Yeah…?" Quinn replies.
"I couldn't stop myself from noticing the way you look at each other. It's just adorable! You guys are the cutest couple ever!"
"I'm sorry?!" the blonde gasps.
"We're not a couple!" Rachel exclaims, her voice sounding incidentally more high-pitched.
"Yeah, you say that now... Well, anyway, I hope you have a nice day... And come out some time soon." the young man says with a smirk on his face, turning around and walking away right after.
The two girls start babbling things about how they're not lesbians but stop when they realize their waiter is too far gone to hear what's coming out of their mouths. Quinn then turns to look at Rachel and sees the brunette do the same thing back at her. They stare at each other for no longer than a second, their faces still taken by some sort of mixture between restrained laughter and shock.
"Oh my God!" Rachel exclaims, finally bursting into a giggle.
"Where did that even come from?" Quinn asks, with a slight frown and a grin on her face, finding the man's idea insane, yet somehow funny.
"I don't know! We're not even being touchy-feely like yesterday!"
Quinn takes a moment to absorb what she has just heard. Is Rachel really saying the idea of them as a couple wouldn't have been as insane and laughable if they were still "being touchy-feely like yesterday"? What was that supposed to mean?
"His gay-dar is totally messed up." She comments, shaking her head and trying to ignore the brunette's comment.
"Definitely. He needs some classes with Santana."
The blonde's mind is brought back to when Santana told her to "stop making out with Berry" at prom. She wonders if Rachel even remembers that. But then she convinces herself that her friend doesn't necessarily mean the Latina's gay-dar is never wrong. Plus, it was obviously a joke when Santana said that at prom. She should really stop searching everything Rachel says for alternative meanings.
"Speaking of Santana, I still need to get my stuff at your apartment and bring it to hers tonight." She notes, grasping her cue to change the subject of the conversation.
"What? No! Now you're staying with me until the second you go back to New Haven tomorrow morning, unless you have a problem with that!"
"...Are you sure, Rach? I don't want to bother you or anything..."
"Quinn, you're my best friend. Of course I'm sure."
Quinn opens a lazy smile.
"I love you, Rachel."
The words come out of her mouth as the natural progression to their conversation. It's almost involuntary for Quinn. Not that she doesn't mean what she says; she means every letter of it.
The brunette beams. In a few seconds, she starts to look directly at Quinn's eyes, thoughtfully. The blonde girl glances back at the chocolate brown eyes that stare into her like they want to unravel every inch of her soul while she waits for an answer to her spontaneous "I love you". And it comes seconds later.
"I love you too, Quinn."
Quinn's face is lit up with an even wider smile. Seconds later, she beckons to Rachel and they wrap each other in a hug that seems to last a lifetime - but to neither of them a lifetime feels like it's enough. They are interrupted by a waitress that hadn't talked to them before.
"Have you guys paid your check yet?" the young woman asks, coming up to their table.
"Oh, yes, I'm sorry, we forgot to leave!" Rachel apologizes clumsily while trying to grab her bag.
"It's alright." The waitress replies with a grin, finding her client's excuse pretty amusing. She glances at Quinn, who is holding in a laugh, and then back at Rachel. "Have a nice day, girls."
"Thanks! You too!" the brunette says, already standing on her feet.
"We forgot to leave?" Quinn repeats, raising her brow, after the waitress finally walks away and she and Rachel start wandering around the park again.
"What? What's the problem with that?"
"There's no problem at all! It's a completely normal thing to say!" the blonde mocks.
"Well, did you want me to tell her we were distracted by our emotional moment?"
"No, oh my God! I'm just saying I would've done better than 'we forgot to leave'."
"Except you didn't!" Rachel quips.
"Shut it, Berry." Quinn banters.
Both girls start to laugh. It feels good to be so close now. They walk for a while, talking about everything and nothing. Some people in the park stare at them curiously - including boys that seem very interested in them, but Quinn and Rachel are so entertained with their conversation that the looks go unnoticed.
Some time later, Quinn comes up with the idea of catching a Broadway matinee. Rachel obviously agrees; adding that she's in a Mamma Mia! mood when the blonde asks if she's got any suggestions. Having decided on the musical, the two walk until they find a subway station. From that point on, they catch the subway to the station that is closest to the Winter Garden Theatre - where Mamma Mia! is performed - and, as soon as they get there, purchase their tickets for the matinee that is supposed to start soon. Rachel guides them most of the time; even though she hasn't gone out much after she's moved in, it's her absolute favorite city in the world, so she knows her way around like the palm of her hand.
The girls laugh and sing along the whole time during the musical. Every once in a while, Rachel looks at her friend with the corner of her eye to check if she's enjoying the show and Quinn always seems to be finding it amusing; a wide grin never leaves her face. The blonde also tries to catch glimpses of Rachel's reactions to the show, because somehow, unlike most people, she isn't really annoyed by the excitement that Broadway musicals evoke in her friend; she actually finds it kind of adorable.
When the main characters - Donna and her daughter Sophie - start singing Slipping Through My Fingers in a nostalgic "mother-seeing-how-her-daughter-has-grown-up" scene, though, Rachel's expression turns into something completely different: sadness for never having that type of mother-daughter relationship. Quinn manages to see that within one of her glimpses and knows exactly what is going on; it's an emotive scene for anyone, but for Rachel it can only mean one thing. She sees the brunette's hand placed on her seat's arm and carefully wraps it into her own. The girl turns to look at her a bit surprised, but when Quinn smiles at her, Rachel's pounding heartbeats reach a more peaceful rhythm. After that, both of them turn back to the show, still holding hands.
"That was fun." Quinn comments, while she and Rachel make their way out of the theatre.
"Yeah..."
The girls agree without discussion to stop at a Café near there. After they're settled on a table, Rachel sighs and starts talking again.
"Quinn... Thank you. For Slipping Through My Fingers... You know. "
"It's no problem" the blonde replies, smiling.
"No, really, thank you, Quinn. I..."
She's interrupted by the blonde's cellphone ringing. Quinn waits too long to give Rachel a sign that she'd rather listen to what she was saying than answer the phone; so long that it seems like she wants permission to postpone their conversation instead.
"You should get that." The brunette finally says, with an undecipherable expression.
"Oh. Right. I probably should." Quinn answers, failing to disguise the hint of disappointment in her voice.
