Disclaimer: Don't own Glee. Sucks, huh?

Tina C Featuring Pregger

Not so much now, but way back when, mini-Cohen-Chang and mini-Fabray were best friends.

It started when they were about six years old, each of them at the playground with their parents. Both of them lined up for the purple twisty slide at the same time, and Quinn pushed Tina out of the way, saying that she got there first. Tina shoved her back, reminding her that, no she did not, they got there at the same time. Neither of them knowing what to do, they went back down the ladder and asked Quinn's mother how to solve the debacle. Desperate to have little Quinnie make another friend (she didn't have very many at school), Judy Fabray suggested they go down the slide together as a train. Tina would sit in front of Quinn, and they could slide down at the same time. The two girls nodded in agreement and silently walked back up the ladder and to the twisty slide. They assumed their positions and slid down. At the end of the slide, the more talkative Quinn declared that it was much more fun than sliding on her own, and Tina agreed. They spent the rest of the afternoon playing on the jungle gym, swings, and of course, the slide together until their parents, who had exchanged phone numbers, said it was time for dinner and left.

A play date was organized, and the blonde and the Asian were joined at the hip for memorable five years.

A tearful eleven-year-old Tina showed up at Quinn's doorstep one morning and explained her story between sobs. Her mother had gotten a job opportunity in New York, and they were leaving Ohio in less than two months. Tina had a lot of friends here (including Rachel Berry, Kelsey Grammar, and Santana Lopez, but Quinn being her best), and she loved her school, Lima Elementary. When asked if and when she would ever come back, Tina explained that she really didn't know, but it sounded like it would be a while. She had run away from home, angry at the sudden news. Quinn cried along with her, having no idea how else to react to the fact that her best friend ever was going to be gone for a long, long time. They held each other and sobbed for what seemed like hours on Quinn's living room couch, ignoring the fact that each of them was a starving mess.

Six and a half weeks later (Quinn was counting), the girls said their final goodbyes and choked back sobs. Quinn had written Tina at least eight plane letters to get her through the flight, and Tina promised to write her the minute she got to New York.

Two years passed. Tina became depressed and angry in New York and her letter exchanges with Quinn became more and more infrequent. She had friends, but she wasn't one to move on easily, and this had a clear effect on her. Quinn grew closer to Santana and a nice girl named Brittany who had moved to their school in seventh grade, but neither of them was special as the pretty dark-haired girl she met on the swirly purple slide, which had since been taken down (coincidentally, a month after Tina's departure). Life went on, but it wasn't the same. There was still a void that could never be filled.

Finally, the day came when Tina Cohen-Chang returned to Lima. This was a day both of them had been dreaming of for the last couple of years. It was summer, and they were going into McKinley High when school returned. Quinn was excited to share the news with Tina that after summer training camp, she had made the cheerleading squad and had been selected as the team captain. Hopping off the plane, Quinn wrapped her old friend in a warm embrace. She took in Tina's new look. Something felt off. Her dark hair had been dyed blue in certain areas, and her makeup had gotten darker. She looked sad and miserable. Tina was never a talker, but now, she just seemed silent, and Quinn could hardly get a laugh out of her. She told Tina the great news about the cheerleading, but she just smiled softly and congratulated her. Not like their usual, oh my God, oh my God, oh my GOD! After an awkward couple of hours, they exchanged a goodbye and a we'll hang out soon, but it never happened. The damage of years apart had already been done, and the air about them was polluted.

At McKinley High School, Quinn became a popular Cheerio. She was officially the coolest girl in school and started to date the equally popular quarterback, Finn. She and her cool clique continued to ignore Tina, who had become a shy loner, hanging out only with the wheelchair nerd.

Then something happened. Glee club happened. Mr. Schuester had taken over, and Tina and her friend Artie joined. They quickly befriended the fashionable black girl and the obviously gay soprano. None of them like Rachel Berry, though, the annoyingly talented brunette with no social skills. Tina seemed happier, and though she was still using the gothic look to hide herself, she wasn't as depressed or quiet. Soon enough, Quinn's boyfriend Finn joined, and Q herself followed, to keep an eye on that Rachel, who seemed to like him as much more than a friend.

After Noah Puckerman, Finn's best friend, got her pregnant, she began to distance herself from her friends. She was this close to a relationship with the baby's dad, Puck himself, but she found out he had some shady stuff going on with her supposed friend Santana, and that friendship went out the door. Brittany was a sweetie, but was too dumb to confide in.

This is why Quinn found herself weeping at Tina's doorstep one dark night, in fact, the night of Sectionals. She had no home, her parents having disowned her, and Finn kicking her out when he found out she cheated on him. Quinn cried herself to sleep in Tina's arms, not even bothering to explain why she had showed up. And Tina didn't even need to ask, because after all these years, they still managed to always understand each other in some weird way that only best friends can.

Paul Chang carried Sleeping Beauty up to the spare bedroom and Quinn woke up knowing she had somewhere to stay.

In the morning, Tina's mother Jennifer had prepared blueberry waffles for the two girls. She still remembered that this was Quinn's favorite from the countless times she had slept over. Tina smiled. Things felt just like they used to.

Things would probably never be the same between the popular blonde cheerleader and the awkward punk girl with confidence issues. One thing they knew for sure was that they were both still clueless little sixth graders. But for the first time in about six months, Quinn thought that maybe, just maybe, she wasn't alone.

*~*~*

Ah! I swear I had a better ending, and then I forgot it. Wow. I absolutely hate when that happens. Sorry about the awful-ness of it. Until next time!

~ArtieAndTinaAbrams~