this took longer than i thought to update. i had most of it written for a while but then i was busy with work. anyway here it is thanks to an unexpected day off and some inspiring music from seether, blink 182, and fall out boy. thanks to everyone still sticking with this and taking time to read and review.
"Sneakers, flats, heels? What do I wear with this outfit?" Rachel asked her fathers who were standing in her bedroom doorway. "What if there's a lot of walking involved? I shouldn't wear heels then. But sneakers don't really go with this outfit. I think they're too casual anyway. So that leaves flats. What do you guys think about flats?" She turned to her dads a sneaker in one hand and a flat in the other. Leroy turned to his husband as if to say 'you want to take this one.' He had dealt with the ordeal of picking out an outfit. Rachel finally had settled on the sixth one she tried on. Leroy couldn't even count the ones she had laid out but not tried on.
"Flats definitely work honey. They're half casual half dressy. Right in between sneakers and heels and perfect for whatever Kelley has planned, I'm sure." Hiram stated. Rachel nodded her head sagely in agreement. Just as she sat down to put the shoes on the doorbell rang and Rachel froze. Her eyes went wide as she looked back up at her dads. They looked at each other. "I'll get it." They both said and took off towards the front door. Rachel stood up and smoothed down her sweater. She grabbed her purse and looked at herself in the mirror. "You can do this. You are pretty and smart. You can perform in front of full auditoriums and not leave a dry eye in the house. Your voice moves people. You move people. Kelley likes you. She likes you so much she asked you out on a date. You're going to have fun just relax." Rachel said to her reflection. She found her pep talks to herself were quite effective although sometimes she wished someone else would give her one. She took a deep breath trying to calm herself. It was her first date. It was the first time anyone had been interested in her since Lu…no she didn't want to think about her tonight. Tonight was about Kelley and her and nobody else. Even if Rachel was nervous she could act calm, cool, and collected. Acting was in her blood.
"Rach, Kelley's here." Her daddy called up to her. One last look and in the mirror and Rachel headed downstairs.
Across town Quinn stepped into her closet. She threw a pair of jeans, a tank top, and a cardigan over her shoulder onto her bed. Good enough she thought. She did her makeup and got dressed. She felt no need to try too hard. She was only going out with Finn after all. If she didn't have a reputation to uphold in town she probably would've just settled for a sweatshirt and sweatpants. She turned to look at herself in the mirror. Her butt looked fantastic in these jeans anyway and she smiled satisfactorily. She was hot and she knew it; everybody in town knew it. She had come so far from her Lucy days and it made her feel accomplished. She had set a goal and made it happen and yet she still felt like something was missing. A horn sounded from outside stopping Quinn's thoughts before they could get out of control again. She headed downstairs.
"Isn't your boyfriend ever going to come to the door like a real gentleman?" Russell Fabray asked.
"He would but you scare him Daddy." Quinn chirped and kissed her father on the cheek.
"Well tell him to man up." Russell replied gruffly.
"Oh Dad." She smiled and swatted his arm playfully. If only he knew she had tried a while ago. Finn and Quinn had been sitting in Finn's car.
"Don't you think you should come to the door to pick me up. It's what dates are supposed to do."
"I would but your dad scares me."
"More than I scare you?" Quinn asked putting on her best intimidating face and glaring at the boy next to her.
Finn looked like a deer caught in headlights. "Well…no but…but I…I…I can't deal with more than one Fabray at a time." Finn practically screeched this last part and Quinn rolled her eyes.
"Try to be a man and learn how to." Quinn had responded apathetic to the boy's discomfort but Finn still hadn't come to the door and Quinn hadn't brought it up again. Part of her figured it was better this way. Dealing with Finn and her parents sounded exhausting. There would be all these questions that Finn would struggle to answer and Quinn would have to help and it all just sounded like more effort than it was worth right now. Eventually he would have to meet her parents but that wasn't tonight.
Quinn headed out the door to Finn's car. He puckered up his lips for a greeting kiss and Quinn reluctantly obliged. She turned back to the windshield. "So where are we going?"
"So there's not a whole lot going on in Lima even on a Friday night." Kelley started as they drove toward their destination. "I had tickets for a local performance of West Side Story but it got cancelled at the last minute so I had to resort to plan b.
"Which is?" Rachel prompted.
Kelley just smiled. "Which is hopefully tons of fun." Rachel rolled her eyes and Kelley laughed. "Don't worry. We'll be there soon." Ten minutes later they pulled up to Lima's Lanes and Games.
"We're going bowling?" Rachel asked gleefully. She hadn't been since she was a child. She had never been particularly good nor fond of it but it seemed like such a typical date activity for teenagers and it delighted Rachel at how normal it all felt.
"We're going bowling." Kelley echoed. "Like I said not a whole lot going on especially for the underage crowd. Besides I'm not half bad at it."
"It's wonderful. Definitely the next best thing to West Side Story."
"I'm glad you think so but the real question isn't whether or not you like bowling. It's whether or not you like losing."
"Oh I don't lose." Rachel said.
"You're good at bowling then?" Kelley asked.
"No but I'm an actress. I can act like I'm good at bowling."
Kelley chuckled at that. "We'll see about that." She offered Rachel her arm. Rachel smiled and slipped her arm through Kelley's and was led inside.
Five minutes later Finn and Quinn pulled up to the same building.
"Bowling?" Quinn said.
"Yeah we went a while ago with Puck and Santana and you seemed to have a good time." Finn said proudly hoping Quinn would think he remembered she liked it. He had actually called Santana last night for ideas and this is what the girl had given him. He waited for some sign of excitement from the girl sitting next to him but Quinn merely nodded her head unfazed and got out of the car. Finn slumped back into his seat then shrugged. At least she didn't yell at him. He got out of the car and followed behind Quinn into the building.
Rachel scrunched up her nose in slight disgust as she slipped on the rental shoes.
"You're positive they clean these after every use?" She asked Kelley.
"Yes I'm positive. It's a law in bowling alleys. Besides you're using children's shoes and children don't have a lot of foot fungi. We should be more worried about me using some dude's nasty shoes." Kelley rationalized. Rachel smirked accepting that explanation as she velcroed her shoe.
The bowling alley was packed tonight. After all it was Friday. There were other people who appeared to be on dates, some groups of friends, and some families mostly with younger children. In fact it was so packed that there was only one other alley open and it was right next to Kelley and Rachel's. Rachel was looking around waiting for Kelley to finish tying up her shoes when she saw the screen next to theirs start to change. Two strings to keep score were set up along with two names, Finn and Quinn. "No way." Rachel muttered to herself but Kelley heard. "What's the matter?" She asked and then followed Rachel eyes. "You've got to be kidding me." She said as she too saw the names.
"Oh great." A third voice proclaimed. Kelley and Rachel turned towards the voice and saw the cheerleader standing there with Finn right behind her.
"Hey guys." Finn greeted quietly. He was no expert when it came to girls and he wasn't sure why these three didn't like each other but even he could feel the tension. He was starting to think he shouldn't have listened to Santana. Movies! His head suddenly screamed at him. He should've taken Quinn to the movies. All he would've had to do was watch the screen. There would be minimal talking so there wouldn't be a lot of opportunities for him to say something stupid and with any luck he would have been able to make out with Quinn a little in the dark. So stupid he thought as he trudged over and plopped down in a seat to put his shoes on. Quinn's eyes widened as she saw Finn start to get ready to bowl. He wasn't actually thinking of staying. You couldn't find two people Quinn would rather not be around more than Kelley and Rachel, three if you counted Finn. She walked over to him without looking at either of the other two girls even as she could feel their eyes following her.
"What do you think you're doing? We're not staying." She whispered harshly in his ear.
"They don't refund your money. We have to bowl at least one string." He said without looking at her. He was scared of what he might see. He finished tying his shoe and stood up. "Hey Rach it looks like me and you are first." He said nodding his head towards the screens. His comment broke the girl from her trance and she finally turned her eyes away from Quinn and looked at Finn. He was offering her a weak smile. She felt bad for the boy. He was caught in the middle of whatever this was between the three of them and he could feel the hostility.
She smiled. "Yes it appears so. I have to warn you though I might embarrass you going head-to-head. As I told my date earlier I don't lose."
"Really?" He chuckled good-naturedly. At least someone was helping him make the situation less awkward. And Quinn, Quinn could've smacked herself in the head or better yet smacked the boy now smiling at Rachel. Every time he opened his mouth he became closer and closer to turning this into a double date and that was just not acceptable to Quinn.
"Well when I was younger, I played in a league so…" Finn trailed off as he strutted to the lane and picked up a ball. He rolled his first one and it hit dead center knocking down eight of the ten pins. He turned to Rachel and shrugged as if saying told you so. The second one knocked down the remaining two earning Finn a spare. He looked at Rachel and smiled. "Good luck." He said as the pins were set up for his second round.
Kelley had watched the whole exchange and smiled. Maybe tonight could actually be fun. She looked over at Quinn again and saw the girl looked just as pissed if not more. Maybe she would just have to ignore her. Kelley stepped up behind Rachel.
"Need a few pointers?"
"Yes please."
"Don't roll the ball from a stationary position, get a moving start and if the ball's too heavy to throw with one hand use two like the little children." She smirked at the shorter girl.
"You know that's two cracks about how I look childlike."
Kelley let her eyes scan over Rachel's body. "You definitely don't look childlike." Rachel could feel her face blush. "You're just so tiny." Kelley said. Usually when someone made a comment about Rachel being small she took offense. She may have been tiny but there were big things inside, a big voice, a big heart. But the way Kelley said it, it was almost reverent and Rachel found she liked the way it sounded.
Kelley and Rachel were so focused on each other that neither one noticed that Quinn was now pissed but for a whole different reason. She had watched the exchange, had watched the way Kelley looked at Rachel and wanted to smack her. 'No one was allowed to look at her like that no one but…' Quinn's thoughts trailed off as Rachel squealed with delight, her ball had knocked down half the pins. Quinn realized she was now standing up her fists clenched by her side. She shook her head and tried to untense her body. She felt like she was going crazy.
Finn walked back to Quinn and was happy to see her up. He assumed she was getting ready for her turn. "You're up babe."
Quinn sashayed down to the alley and was pretty sure she felt more than just the three sets of eyes turn to watch her. She exaggerated the sway of her hips. Quinn knew what she was doing. Kelley cleared her throat and went back to bowling her string. Rachel sat down and tried to focus on her date but more than once caught herself glancing over at Quinn. Every move the girl made was graceful and filled with confidence. Her body had the fluidity of a dancer. Rachel wondered if she had stayed in ballet after she had moved. Then she remembered she would get to see the girl dance in glee club and she was excited by the thought.
After a few more rounds Finn decided he needed a plate of nachos to keep up his energy and maintain his lead. He asked Kelley to come with him to get drinks for the four of them. The girl looked torn she knew Rachel and Quinn wouldn't want to be left alone together and she knew she didn't want to leave them alone together but she also knew there was no good excuse for not going without pointing out the awkwardness of this evening, which wasn't an option. She reluctantly got up and followed the boy. Quinn and Rachel watched their dates until they disappeared in the crowd of people. After that they sat there in painful silence only the noises of the alley to ease it. Rachel tried not to look at Quinn but failed more than once. The girl was sitting perfectly still like a statue staring at the ground while Rachel fidgeted and played with her hands. She couldn't take it anymore. "Quinn" she said and the word brought the other girl back to life. Quinn jumped up from her seat and said "Bathroom" then took off.
Over at the snack bar Finn and Kelley were waiting for their order.
"Hey I'm going to head to the bathroom. You think you can handle this until I get back?" Kelley asked.
"Yeah I think it'll be a little longer anyway."
In the bathroom Quinn was washing her hands in ice-cold water. It felt too hot in here, too small, too claustrophobic. She looked at herself in the mirror. "Just a little longer." She promised herself. Then the date would be over and this was definitely the last one she let Finn plan. She heard the door open and got ready to make her exit when she came face-to-face with Kelley.
"This night just keeps getting better and better." She grinned sardonically.
"It's actually wouldn't be that bad if you'd stop being such an uptight bitch." Kelley deadpanned.
"Actually I think it would be better if you were far far away."
"Right cause I'm the root of all your problems."
"No just some." Quinn smiled sweetly.
"I think you have that backwards." Kelley said stepping closer to Quinn.
"You almost ruined my life." Quinn stood her ground.
"So you intentionally tried to ruin mine."
"Seemed fair to me." They stood there practically nose-to-nose staring each other down. Then Kelley stepped back and looked at herself in the mirror.
"Whatever. I'd love to stay here and waste more time with you but I have a pretty girl waiting for me." She fixed her curls. Just as she was about to leave Quinn spoke again.
"Don't…" Quinn started and stopped. What did she want to say? Don't look at Rachel. Don't touch Rachel. Don't be with Rachel. She knew she had no right to say any of those things yet she wanted to say them. "Don't hurt her." She finally decided on. If she was feeling really honest she would've added 'Don't hurt her because I think I have enough.' But that would've been over sharing and the first part alone made her feel vulnerable enough.
Two freshmen girls from McKinley entered the bathroom and stared at the odd scene, the most popular girl in school talking to the school lesbo. Quinn opened the door to leave but before she did she threw one more comment over her shoulder. "And don't let me catch you two making out or doing whatever else nasty little dykes do." Then she left as the two freshmen girls snickered behind their hands.
The whole incident left Kelley feeling slightly confused. That last comment was definitely for the benefit of the immature freshmen but the one before that 'Don't hurt her' what was that all about? Did Quinn care about Rachel? Kelley had noticed the way Rachel had been checking Quinn out but she was willing to ignore that since everyone checked out Quinn. Was there something between the two of them? She shook her head. That was just ridiculous. She noticed the two girls were still staring at her. She stuck her tongue out at them and laughed as they looked offended. It was time to head back out to her date. She could ponder over this encounter later.
The rest of the evening passed uneventfully. Quinn seemed to be less angry although she remained quiet and even let Finn bowl another string. It was still awkward but he talked to Rachel and Kelley and that helped a little.
On the ride home Finn babbled on and on about bowling and how good he had done while Quinn said yeah and mhmm where appropriate while not really paying any attention. He stopped in her driveway and leaned over to kiss her goodnight.
"You're not even going to walk me to the door." Quinn huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Scared of your dad remember." Finn smiled sheepishly.
"You wouldn't have to come in."
"Can't risk it." Finn kissed her. "Goodnight babe."
"Night." Quinn muttered as she walked up to her house alone.
In a different car Kelley and Rachel talked happily about their date. Kelley had won and said they would just have to do it again so Rachel could practice and beat her. When they got to the Berry residence, Kelley walked Rachel up to her front door.
"Tonight was really fun." Rachel said.
"I'm glad you thought so." Kelley smiled and reached out a hand to tilt Rachel's face up. Rachel closed her eyes and felt Kelley's lips press softly against her own. She reached one hand up and tangled it in Kelley's curls to bring the taller girl's mouth closer still. She nipped at the girl's bottom lip and smiled at the moan that escaped Kelley's mouth. The porch light start flicking on and off and the two girls parted.
"Wow." Kelley said.
"Yeah." Rachel agreed.
"I'll call you later."
"Goodnight."
Rachel entered her home and saw her two fathers waiting for her on the couch. She told them all about her date including Quinn and Finn being there. Hiram absolutely loved this part. He loved dramatics and this sounded like something right out of a novel. Of all the places and times to go they were there when Kelley and Rachel were. It was perfect he decided. Rachel told him it wasn't so much perfect as painful but they still managed to have a good time.
"So do you like Kelley?" Leroy asked.
"I think so. She's fun, intelligent, creative, and cute. What's not to like?" Hiram and Leroy watched their daughter as she spoke. She was saying all nice things but it wasn't like the way she used to talk about Lucy. Her face would light up and she would be so excited like when she talked about Broadway. This was too tame in comparison. They decided not to mention it though considering it was only their first date.
Alone in bed that night Rachel thought the same thing as her fathers. Kelley was great but there was something missing. The kiss was good. It felt nice but she didn't feel the same tingles she had when she kissed Lucy. Maybe it was because she had known Lucy longer before they kissed and they had already been good friends? She didn't know but it was too early to write Kelley off as a potential girlfriend. It was only their first date after all.
so who feels bad for finn? i know i do at this point. got some tension building up between quinn and kelley maybe there will be more revealing of what happened between the two of them...any guesses? if anyone gets it right there might be a catfight between them in the future (there might be one anyway cause that sounds fun)