"That was a killer plan, Fabray." Santana said as they left the restaurant.
"I know, right. At least I know she'll have to speak to me first." Quinn agreed.
"It's good to see you've put some of that deep thinking into a deep plan!"
"I just hope everything works out. Lindsay's passing on my details at some point. I'm now playing the waiting game."
"I hope this works out for you Q, you deserve a shot at happiness." Santana said honestly.
"Thanks S." She said, pulling her friend into a hug. Santana hugged her longest friend back tightly, not wanting to let go. "You never know, next time I see you, you might have a Berry attached to your arm." She joked. "You're going to be totally whipped too, I can sense it." Santana added jokingly.
"You call it whipped, I'd call it love. We'll see. Goodbye Santana." She said waving as the Latina headed back into her hotel.
Quinn headed down the street deciding what she was going to say when she finally met up with Rachel. It'd been so long since the two had spoken, but Quinn kept reminding herself that she'd written a book about the brunette, surely that confirmed they'd have something to talk about. Even if it's Rachel telling Quinn that she doesn't feel that way about the blonde. That'd hurt, but they'd still have something to talk about.
"Are you pulling my leg?" Kurt asked shocked.
"Nope, I assure you. This is all legitimate. I am going to meet up with Quinn Fabray. The Quinn Fabray who pretty much made my life hell. Why would I joke about that Kurt?"
"I have no idea, but why?"
"Well you know that book that got delivered into my dressing room?" Kurt nodded in agreement. "...and you remember the note that I told you about; the note that accompanied it?" She continued, once again Kurt nodded his head in agreement. "Well, I finally had to remove the envelope; I had to meet the author who can help me meet the person who wants to make me feel special. I miss feeling special, Kurt. This person gave me Quinn's novel and they told me that the author would be waiting for me, when it all got too much, they know Quinn, Kurt. I have to meet her. I have to meet this mysterious person. Its all too much Kurt, I've never been so down."
"Hold on a second..." Kurt said, as he rose from the couch, he moved through the apartment the two shared and went into his bedroom. He emerged a minute later with a book in his hand. A purple book with yellow writing, on the cover in a cursive font it read 'From Old Foes to New Friends'. "Do you mean this book?" He asked. Rachel nodded when she recognised the title. "My copy is different to that, my book's leather bound with a black background and red writing..." She replied.
"You never told me the name of the novel, do you know that? Regardless of the cover, things get reprinted and rebranded all the time. If you had just told me the name of the novel, we could have solved this riddle a long time ago."
"I know, but the note said to leave it until it all became too much. I was just following their instructions."
"Rachel, when do you ever follow someone else's instructions?" Kurt teased.
"I resent that comment...but anyway, I'm waiting for an email or phone call from Quinn's editor Lindsay, who's going to pass on Quinn's details to me."
"Rachel, you have read this book right?" Kurt asked. Rachel's brow dropped as she studied the man's face. "Yes..." She finally responded. "Why?"
"Well, I was just wondering... You do understand what it's about, don't you?"
"Well of course, it's about overcoming issues and forming friendships and relationships in spite of differences and what happened in the past." She said.
"Right...Does that sound familiar?" Kurt questioned.
"Well, yeah, it happens to most kids in high school."
"Does it not sound any more familiar than that?" He probed further.
"Kurt, what are you getting at?"
"Nothing, I'm just making sure, you fully understand what the novel is about. Besides, I'm sure Quinn will explain some of the narrative choices when you two finally meet. I'm going to bed, I'm glad you're finally snapping out of this dark time, Rach, I really am. It hurts me to see my best friend so down in the dumps." He said as he pulled her into a hug.
"Thanks Kurt. It means a lot to know you're right here." She said tightening the embrace. "But what do you mean about Quinn explaining narrative choices?"
"Oh, I'm sure you'll find out soon enough." He said as he pulled away and left Rachel to sit on the couch and consider what he'd just said.
Quinn awoke the next day feeling fresher than she had in years. It was as if a tiny weight had been lifted off her chest. Someone finally knew about how she felt. She wished it was Rachel who knew how she felt but that would come in time. She showered and got ready for what she hoped would be a very productive day. After downing two cups of coffee she felt alert enough to tackle more of her latest novel. She opened the file and read what she'd written the day before to remind her of what path she wanted the novel to go down. She looked at the photograph beside her laptop for inspiration. The two smiling faces looking up at her was enough desire for Quinn to continue.
She wrote for the majority of the day, only stopping for the occasional coffee. Her phone had been on silent, so as she poured herself another cup, she popped it out of her pocket and gave it a quick glance. She was surprised to see she had no missed calls or messages, not even from Lindsay. Quinn figured she was still busy editing the first few chapters Quinn had sent her yesterday. She switched it from silent just in case Lindsay felt necessary to get in touch at some point during the day. As if her phone was reading her thoughts, her phone started ringing. The screen displayed Unknown I.D.
Quinn reluctantly answered it, she hated answering unknown callers. "Hello?" She greeted the unknown caller.
"Hello?" The caller replied.
"This is Quinn Fabray speaking, who am I talking to?" Quinn replied formally.
"Erm Quinn, its Rachel. Rachel Berry. Your editor passed on your cell phone number to me. She said you were fine with it."
"Oh hey, Rach." Quinn replied trying to keep her tone nonchalant. "Yeah, Lindsay mentioned you needed to speak to me. I must admit, I was pretty shocked." Quinn lied.
"Trust me, I wasn't planning on it." Rachel replied bluntly. "I remember how you treated me when we were younger and it kept putting me off getting in touch. It pains me to say this, but I need your help."
Quinn's heart sank. The brunette was still hurting from the way Quinn treated her when they were in high school. 'Rightly so, I was a bitch'. Quinn thought.
"Well, what can I help you with?" Quinn asked trying to lighten the mood with a cheery tone.
"I received your book anonymously a few months ago, there was an envelope with a pretty personal message in it and the person told me to remove the envelope from the front to reveal the author when it all got too much..." She trailed off.
"When what got too much, Rachel?" Quinn asked, noticing how Rachel had stopped.
"Everything. Listen Quinn, we don't really know each other, I'm not comfortable spilling my personal life to you, not even over the phone. I just want to know, do you know anything about this note? Did anyone contact you and warn you that I'd need to know about them?"
Quinn pondered her response, she hadn't thought this far ahead. If she was being honest with herself, she wasn't sure Rachel would call once she saw who the author of the novel was. Quinn had purposely sent Rachel a different copy of the novel so she wouldn't see it in the bookshops and piece everything together so quickly. "Quinn? Are you still there?" Rachel's voice called through the phone.
"Oh yeah, sorry. I'm just thinking back. I've spoken to a lot of people and had a lot of requests the past year. When did you say this book came to you?" Quinn asked, hoping that would buy her a few more seconds of thinking time.
"About five months ago. I just ignored it to begin with. I only stumbled across it when I was looking for my spare script. I opened the note and they said that the author and they'd be waiting for when everything got too much." Rachel repeated. 'There she goes again, mentioning something getting too much. Quinn why did you have to be such a bitch to her in high school?' Quinn thought, silently reprimanding herself. She just wanted Rachel to open up.
"Quinn, you must know something, the book is completely different to the copy Kurt has."
"Rachel, books get rebranded all the time."
"Yes, but Quinn, you'll have had to approve it."
"Not necessarily, my editor can approve things on my behalf if she feels they're going to be beneficial." Quinn lied.
"Look Quinn, do you know anything or not?" Rachel said, her voice rising. Quinn could sense the little brunette was getting agitated.
"What colour was the book? I can remember someone coming in asking if it was possible to get one copy printed, but on a black leather bound book with red writing. Lindsay told me she'd approved it, I thought it was strange, as we'd had hundreds of thousands printed on the purple background with yellow writing, but I rolled with it. If it made someone happy then that was me happy at the end of the day." Quinn lied. She was feeling pretty confident in her lies, although she couldn't decide whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. Is it a good thing to be able to tell lies?
"Yes! That's my book. My book's black leather bound with red cursive writing."
"I remember now, the person gave me an envelope and told me that I should meet up with you and deliver it in person, I know you're still angry with me Rachel, but would you be able to meet me somewhere? I don't want to fail this person's wishes. I'm not that sort of person anymore." Quinn assured her.
"Err. Quinn, I really don't know." She answered honestly.
"Rach, we're both adults now, do you not think we can let things go between us? I'm always going to be sorry for how I treated you and if I could take it back then I would, but I can't. All I can do is apologise for what I did. We were teenagers and had no idea where we belonged in the world. I'm confident in my expression when I say I'm at a place in my life where I'm confident in where I am, are you?" Quinn stated with conviction.
"I am. I guess, I can meet you and get this envelope. I have to admit it would be nice to see you Quinn. After all these years, I want to see the real you. The Quinn Fabray I always knew you'd become."
"Well, I'll text you a place and we can meet tomorrow? I really want rid of this envelope. I was worried you'd never call and collect it."
"Why would you be worried Quinn?" Rachel asked catching Quinn off guard.
"I don't know, I guess this person really wants you to know how they feel." Quinn lied.
"Oh ok. Well I'll see you at some point tomorrow Quinn. My show starts at 8pm, so mid morning would be great for me."
"No problem. Bye Rachel."
"Goodbye Quinn."
They both hung up and their reactions couldn't have been much more different. Quinn began jumping around the room whereas Rachel sank deeper into the couch. She'd been honest when she'd said she was looking forward to meeting the real Quinn Fabray, but part of her still expected Quinn to be the bitchy head cheerleader she was renowned for when they were teenagers. Quinn expected the small brunette to still be as loud, obnoxious and well diva-ish as she could remember from high school. Quinn reminded herself that they were the exact reasons she'd grown to love the diva. Regardless of how they felt, neither could wait until tomorrow.