Chapter 6

As the group approached the dining room, Noah's cellphone rang. Everyone paused momentarily while he answered the phone.

"Hello…Yeah?...Wow, that was fast…That's interesting…Sure, I'll meet you…let's say two hours…Great job, man! Yeah, see ya' later…"

Noah ended his call and explained, "Well, looks like this is where I get off the 'crazy train' for today. Quinn and Sam," he addressed the reporters, "Be gentle on 'er. San," he turned his attention toward Santana, "talk to you later. Becs," he addressed his sister, who had met them at the entrance to the dining room, "take care of Ma…and Rachel for me. I gotta bounce…" He exchanged a kiss with his sister, waived to the group, and walked away.

"Wait…you're related to him?" Quin queried.

"Yeah, he's my big brother…why?" Rebecca pondered.

"So, you're Rachel's assistant and former sister-in-law?" an increasingly puzzled Quinn posed.

Rebecca laughed as they seated themselves at the table. "Only her sister-in-law…well, former sister-in-law…and friend. Rachel doesn't have an assistant," she explained. "I'm in veterinary school in Michigan, and my mom lives here, so I visit when I'm on break."

"Your mom…lives…here?" Quinn sputtered.

"Yeah," Rebecca confirmed. "When Noah and Rachel first bought the property, they insisted that we move in. My mom sold our house in Ohio, we relocated, she got a job, and I enrolled in college. When they split up we offered to leave, but Rachel wouldn't hear of it. She said that just because their marriage didn't work out, we were still family, and this was our home, too."

"That's a bit unorthodox," Quinn commented.

"Yeah, but it works for us," Rebecca affirmed. "After all, we're Reformed, not Orthodox," she added with a wink.

Between bursts of laughter, Sam remarked, "Good one, kid…'Reformed'…so funny…"

Glaring, Quinn caught his eye, diffusing his laughter immediately, and he apologized, "Sorry, that just struck me…"

"That's OK; it was supposed to be funny," Rebecca reminded him, grinning. "Laughter is a good thing…"

"Yeah, yeah…heard it all before," Santana interrupted. "I'm due in court and I have to get back to the City, so let's eat, already."


"So tell me, Rachel; how did you two meet?" Quinn gently probed as they relaxed by the pool, Sam currently swimming laps and occasionally attempting to garner their attention (so far, with little success).

Rachel smiled nostalgically, recalling, "We've known each other all our lives; a group of us came to New York for college and we started dating during our Freshman year…"

"No, Rachel; your fiancé…" Quinn corrected, thinking "That's odd…she thought I was asking about her ex, not the man she's marrying…"

"Oh; sorry," Rachel apologized, an almost imperceptible wave of sadness crossing her features before she smiled serenely and began once again: "About six months ago, I attended a 'Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS' fundraiser with my friend Kurt Hummel. We were chatting with some friends when this handsome man seemingly materialized in front of us. He confessed that he'd been admiring me from across the room and had finally worked up the courage to approach me." She glanced up, looking directly at Quinn and smiling demurely before continuing, "I was still relatively gun-shy at the time, but with Kurt's encouragement, we struck up a conversation and discovered we had a lot in common. He asked for my number, he called, and we started going out. One thing led to another, and the next thing I knew, he was down on one knee with a Tiffany ring box…"

"And now you're getting married," Quinn interjected, completing Rachel's anecdote.

"Yes; now we're getting married," Rachel agreed, looking down at the ring as it sparkled in the sunlight. "He treats me well, there's no drama, and I know I'll never answer another 3AM call to retrieve my drunken husband from some dive bar in a less-than-nice part of town."

"And you're in love…" Quinn prodded, noting to herself that Rachel hadn't mentioned feelings at all in her narrative.

"Yes; of course I'm in love," Rachel hastily confirmed. "I wouldn't be marrying Sebastian if I didn't love him."

"Of course…I wasn't suggesting anything to the contrary…" Quinn quickly backpedaled.

"It's different this time, Rachel confided. "Sebastian is calm and steady and dependable. I know I can trust him, and that means a lot to me."

"Isn't love supposed to be about fireworks and passion and not being able to live without each other?" Quinn posed, left eyebrow cocked knowingly.

"I've had that, Quinn, and it's not all it's cracked up to be," Rachel answered quietly. "Not when it's coupled with uncertainty, and worrying every time the phone rings that it'll be from a hospital or police station...or a bar. Trust me, I've had more than my share of those, and eventually the pain overrides the passion."

"I know it's none of my business," Quinn prefaced her next statement, "but you're way too young to be sacrificing passion and romance for complacency and what sounds to me like boredom."

"Well, I hope I won't be bored, and complacency sounds blissful to me," Rachel confirmed. "You'll meet him at Blaine's party tomorrow and you can judge for yourself." Rachel paused thoughtfully for a moment before leaning toward Quinn and softly asking, "Can I trust you to keep this completely off the record?"

"You have my word," Quin averred in an equally hushed tone.

"I got off birth control after Noah and I broke up and never started up again. I haven't discussed this with Sebastian, yet, but I'd like to have a baby before I go back to work," Rachel shyly admitted.

Although Quinn was extremely surprised with Rachel's revelation, she maintained her composure, asking, "How do you think he'll react?"

"I don't know," Rachel answered honestly. "I hope he'll be thrilled. If he's not, either I'll go back on the pill, or this'll be one of the shortest unions since Britney Spears married that kid in Las Vegas. Noah and I always talked about having children, but I couldn't have handled him and a baby. I still want to have children, though…"

"Well, good luck with that," Quinn thought to herself, saying, instead, "I hope everything works out for you…and, I promise not to include this information in our broadcast.

"Thank you, I appreciate it," Rachel acknowledged with a grateful smile.

After checking her watch, Quinn stood up, explaining, "If you'll excuse me, I have to catch up with my email and work on another assignment. I'll see you later, Rachel. Thanks again for your hospitality."

"You're welcome, Quinn," Rachel graciously replied.

Quinn smiled in acknowledgement, waiving at Sam before she left the pool area. Rachel had just closed her eyes when Sam called from the pool, "Come on, Rachel! The water's perfect!" Opening her eyes, Rachel looked out at Sam, finding herself mirroring his infections grin. She sat up, quickly French braiding her hair into a single plait in back and then twisted it around her head, securing it with clips that she withdrew from the pocket of her short robe. She stood up, removed her robe (revealing a halter-topped black and white maillot), walked over to the diving board, and seamlessly dove into the water.