A/N: Aaaand another chapter. Was debating for ages on what to call this one, but suddenly it all made sense. You should listen to the song. "Just for Now", by Imogen Heap (whom I will be seeing live in November for the second time 3) and the lyrics are ridiculously relevant to this chapter. Also parrots are noisy. I'm house-sitting and bird-sitting for my Grandma while she's away, and as much as I love Toto, her shrieking into my ear so loudly it whistles is not appreciated. I am going to find my earplugs tomorrow.

Chapter 6 – Just for Now

Quinn had gone into a catatonic state. She sat perplexed and staring vacantly at Rachel as she talked and talked.

"This is going to be so fun, Quinn," Said Rachel, beaming at the blonde and not seeming to notice that Quinn was not nearly half as enthusiastic. "I'll just call my dads to let them know we'll be having company," Rachel said as she stood to leave the room, phone in hand.

Quinn's stomach sank. Rachel's dads were bound to know who she was and all that she had done to their daughter. But, she thought, I deserve everything that's coming to me. That, however, did nothing to quell the butterflies rapidly morphing into rampaging elephants in her belly. This whole being 'nice' thing was going to be difficult. More difficult than she had initially thought. She was still trying desperately to stop freaking out about the fact that was going to IT's house, and she really had to stop calling her mean names. But 'Rachel' just didn't seem to come out of her mouth, no matter how hard she tried. It really was much easier to be a bitch than it was to be kind and thoughtful. Quinn found herself admiring the brunette's good nature and kind heart.

Rachel came bouncing back into the room, grinning from ear to ear.

"It's all sorted," She stated proudly.

"Oh, good." Quinn replied without much conviction.

The rest of the day passed much too quickly for Quinn's liking. All too soon the final bell was ringing and there was Rachel, somehow waiting outside her classroom already.

"What are you doing here?" Quinn asked, feeling somewhat overwhelmed.

"Waiting for you, of course. Are you ready to go? You're not having doubts already, are you?" Rachel asked, looking worried.

"No, no, I'm looking forward to it," Quinn said with forced cheer, adding an equally forced smile to it. Truth be told, there was a part of her looking forward to the evening. It felt nice to have a friend again. Someone who wanted her there just because, with no ulterior motives, even if it was with Rachel Berry. But it really was buried deep down, and the bigger, louder part of Quinn's mind was telling her not to go, because this was Rachel What's-Her-Name who should have been sold back by her parents. Her stomach twisted in fear again.

Rachel was still grinning at her – almost maniacally – and clutching her books to her chest as they walked through the hallway together, both fending off students bustling busily around them and pushing and shoving. Quinn's hands instinctively went to her baby bump for protection and Rachel went ahead valiantly taking the brunt of the abuse. More than most would have to endure due to her lack of height. She was the perfect height to receive a backpack to the face.

There was a time where everyone in the school would have moved aside for Quinn in a heartbeat, either out of fear or respect, or maybe even both. But not anymore. Quinn was no long 'Head-Cheerleader Quinn Fabray'. She wasn't even 'Cheerleader Quinn Fabray'. Instead she was just 'that pregnant teen' and no one even looked her way twice unless it was to snigger and make comments behind conspiratorially raised hands. She sighed, wondering if she would ever get used to being this low on the popularity scale.

They finally made it to the parking lot, and to Rachel's car. Kurt was parked next to Rachel and he was meticulously placing his prized designer bag in the back seat. Quinn was surprised he wasn't strapping the thing in there for safety. He saw Rachel and a look boredom settled on his fine features.

"Hi, Rachel," He said. Then his eyes moved over Quinn, and then he did a double take. Rachel and Quinn together? This was new. And juicy. A sly smile formed on his lips.

"Well, hello there, Miss. Fabray! May I ask what it is you are doing with the lovely Miss. Berry?" He had a look in his eye that Quinn truly disliked. It made her nervous.

"I uh... um, well..." She floundered pathetically. Rachel talked loudly over her stuttering, placing a hand on the blonde's arm to get her to stop making ridiculous noises.

"Quinn is coming to dinner at mine tonight," Kurt was speechless and he blinked several times, looking between the unlikely pair as though they had both sprouted an extra head. Quinn rather felt like she really had, as her actions were truly uncharacteristic currently. She also understood his surprise, considering the history they both shared.

"It-it's because Puck's mum is Jewish," Quinn blurted. She realised what she'd said made no sense out of context.

"So, you're going to Rachel's house because you're anti-Semitic?" Kurt asked, looking utterly lost.

"No, I just uh... really want bacon?" She was not making this situation any better.

"But isn't Rachel vegan? I see... Very interesting," He said speculatively. He opened the door to his car and got in. "This sounds like another hot tub lie, Quinn," Kurt continued, that same look still gleaming in his eye.

"Oh no," Quinn whispered. Rachel looked at her curiously. "Wait!" She cried, but it was too late. Kurt was gone with a wave and a distant call of; "'Bye, ladies! Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

"Oh no." Quinn said again.

"What?" Rachel asked, getting irritated that she was clearly missing out on something. Rachel hated missing out on anything, no matter how mundane. She had once thrown a tantrum because she wanted to join in with whatever her dads were arguing about doing and consequently spent the next hour vacuuming the house after having discovered the argument was over housework. She evidently had still not learned to control her nosiness.

"He thinks there's something going on between us. He'll tell everyone," Quinn said hoarsely. Rachel looked hurt.

"I know I'm not cool, Quinn, but I will not have you deny our friendship. You can go back to Puck's now if you think you can get away with that. I will not be your friend in secret."

"You're misunderstanding me here. And stop with the conclusion jumping, already. He thinks there's something going on between us," Quinn repeated, this time accentuating her previous words and gesticulating emphatically to the two of them. Understanding dawned in Rachel's dark eyes and she went a very bright red. Quinn's brows knitted together.

"Oh, I see. Well, how... that's just ridiculous. Ludicrous, you could even say," Rachel sputtered, "We're just friends!"

"Barely. Let's go. The damage has been done. There's no stopping him now. Just get me some bacon and I'll be able to deal with the consequences." Rachel was still red, even once they started the drive back to her house.

The drive was awkward, as a lot of their time spent together seemed to be. Neither Rachel nor Quinn could think of anything to say to one another. Both girls were lost in their thoughts. Quinn was worrying about Kurt, along with many other things a teenage girl should have to worry about. She could handle being labelled as a friend of Rachel's. That was inevitable seeing as they were in glee together. She was already associated with her in that way, but being gay... and with Rachel of all people... That was something there would be hell to pay for. Karofsky would have a field day. Kurt got bullied for his sexuality all the time, but he had always been known as 'that gay kid that gets thrown in the dumpster'. Well, Quinn was a different story. 'Ex-head-cheerleader fallen from grace turns to lesbian lover, Rachel Man-Hands Berry.' That was definitely not a story she wanted published on Jew-Fro's blog. She just had to pray that Kurt would only tell Mercedes and no one else. What if her parents heard the rumour? They were already angry enough, and they would absolutely not let her back if they thought she was 'one of those faggots'.

Quinn had never agreed with her parents on thinking that homosexuality was a sin. It was just different. It may say something in the bible, but the bible said tons of stuff that made no sense at all. She couldn't believe in a god that didn't love everyone, especially if everyone was supposedly made in His image. Not to mention she'd grown up with Santana and Brittany as friends. They were gayer than Kurt, no matter how much they tried to hide it by sleeping around. Either way though, Quinn did not need a lesbian rumour circulating to make her parents hate her more.

On top of this, was panicking about meeting Mr. and Mr. Berry. She had several horrible fantasies of being slushied by the parents on arrival. She felt like that guy in that film on death row. Knowing what was coming, but entirely powerless to stop it. But she was deserving of the punishment, unlike him.

Meanwhile, Rachel was trying to calm herself down. She was still remembering the feeling of Quinn's baby beneath her hands, and the way Quinn had held her hand so tenderly and with a familiarity that should not have existed yet. She kept telling herself not to dote on it too much as Quinn would never feel that way for her. But another part of her argued that if she could lure Finn from Quinn then surely she could get Quinn to do the same. She risked a glance to her right to see the blonde looking absently out of the window and just knew she couldn't give up on this. Which meant she had to get rid of Jesse.

Truth be told, Rachel had already been getting tired of him. He was just like her, but even she found him annoying, and she hoped he wasn't half as bad as he was. Rachel had never imagined that someone could be more of a drama queen than she was, but Jesse managed to surprise her every day with his dramatic tantrums. She also had a sneaking suspicion he was gay. She knew these things. After all, she did have a sixth sense. No, ending things with Jesse would be fine. It was getting Quinn to want her back that would be difficult. Rachel's current plan was to woo her over dinner with the best bacon sandwich ever made.

Quinn's knuckles were white from gripping the edges of the seat so tightly. They had turned onto the road Rachel lived on now, and Rachel's house was closing in on them fast. Quinn gulped as the pulled into the driveway. Rachel put the car in 'park' and unbuckled her seatbelt. Quinn did not move. In fact, she seemed to not even be breathing.

"Here we are," Said Rachel anxiously, eying Quinn who was still frozen. Rachel got out of the car and decided to be a gentleman (the irony was not lost on her) and open Quinn's door for her, too. Chivalry never dies, She thought. Quinn leapt out of the car as though her seat was on fire, and glanced all around her. Rachel thought that she looked as though she was expecting an ambush. Which, in all fairness, she was expecting just that. The brunette was confused as to what was causing the girl to act so strangely, but put it down to crazy pregnancy hormones. She slipped the key into the door and stepped inside, Quinn following warily.

"Hi, Dad, Daddy!" She called, "We're home!"

"Hey, Sweetie," A gruff voice answered. Rachel grinned and dashed down the hallway kicking her shoes off haphazardly in the process and dived into the kitchen. Quinn followed sagely after her, her steps halting and unsure. There was a loop of the men throwing slushies at her and depriving her of bacon playing in her head. She stood in the doorway and look up cautiously. Rachel was being embraced tightly by both of the men, and all three of them were wearing big, goofy grins. Quinn's heart clenched at the sight. She couldn't even remember the last time her parents had hugged her like that.

"Quinn, come in," Rachel said, breaking away. She – remarkably – did as she was told.

"This is my dad, and my daddy, Hiram and Leroy. Quinn feigned confidence, a skill she was glad she had, and moved towards them extending a hand cordially.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both, Mr. and Mr. Berry," They shook hands. It was all very formal.

"Likewise," The shorter one, Hiram, said, "but really, there's no need for any of this 'mister' business. Take a seat?" She complied, relief coursing through her. They didn't seem to want to murder her thankfully. Her posture relaxed a little and Rachel took her hand as she sat down next to her. Quinn looked at the small hand in her own and smiled. She really had missed having a friend like this.

"I'm going to cook bacon for Quinn."

"That's very brave of you, Sweetie. Count yourself lucky, Quinn, she would never normally touch the stuff," Leroy said, smiling jovially. "Well, Hiram, let's leave them to it, shall we? We'll be in the living room if you need us, okay? Later," He said as he breezed past them, Hiram following behind.

A moment passed, but the awkwardness that had been overhanging the two girls had lifted.

"So," Rachel began, her smile as big as ever. Quinn wondered if her cheeks ever hurt from smiling so much. "What do you want to do?" Quinn shrugged.

"Your house, your choice."

"Well... We could watch a movie or something. Or listen to music. I don't mind."

"Movie?"

"Sure," The pair rose from the breakfast bar and walked to the living room.

"Daaaaaad?" Asked Rachel, fluttering her eyelashes at him.

"You want the TV, don't you?

"Yes. Please." Rachel remembered her manners.

"Alright, alright, we're going. We can tell when we're not wanted," The tall man joked as he rose from the couch.

"Don't you worry about us in the kitchen on those uncomfortable chairs..." Hiram said playfully.

"Don't worry, we won't,"

"I thought as much,"

"Thank you!" She called after them. The pair took their places on the couch and settled down, remote at the ready.

"You choose," Rachel offered. Quinn was shocked. Rachel was offering someone else control? She took the remote from her.

"How about something scary? I don't want anything that might make me cry any more today," Quinn joked light-heartedly.

"Okay," Was the simply, cheery response.

An hour and a half later Hiram and Leroy peeked into the living room to see Rachel curled into Quinn's neck, hiding from the screen. Quinn was laughing at her and stroking her hair.

"Is it over yet?" Squeaked Rachel.

"See for yourself!" The blonde prodded her in the ribs, eliciting a giggle from Rachel.

"Quinn..." Rachel whined.

"Yes, it's safe. For now." She added with a devilish grin.

The two older men stepped out again.

"Hard to imagine such a sweet girl to be capable of such horrible behaviour. It almost makes me wonder if this is the same Quinn Fabray we've heard all the horror stories of." Hiram remarked quietly. Both men were looking seriously at one another.

"People can change. From what Rachel said, I don't think this is the same Quinn Fabray," Replied Leroy.

"Maybe so... I'm just worried our baby's going to get hurt."
"I know, Honey, but Rach said not to say anything on the phone. I'm more than happy to let you break your word, but only if Quinn goes back to her old self. Give her a chance."
"I will, I will. I just worry... She's so fragile, even if doesn't show it,"

"Let's leave them to it, hey?" They disappeared down the hallway once more.

Quinn stepped out of the living room once Rachel's dads had gone. She wanted to cry. She wanted to laugh. They did know, but they were willing to let her start again. Be the new person she wanted to be. Be who she really was underneath all the layers and the defence mechanism of bitchiness she had created. And Rachel was the one who had convinced them otherwise. She would prove it to them, to Rachel, and even to herself that the new, nice Quinn was here to stay, and then she remembered that since getting pregnant her baby sitting on her bladder interrupted even the emotional moments like the one she was currently experiencing and she waddled to the bathroom

"Oh no..." Rachel sighed.

"What's up?" Quinn stood and moved towards Rachel and the cooker.

"I don't know how to cook this horrible stuff. I keep thinking it's going to get up and shout 'meat is murder' at me, and then by the time I'm done panicking about that, I've forgotten what I'm meant to be doing with it," Quinn laughed.

"I'd be impressed if it did," She countered, "Here," She took the spatula from Rachel and flipped the grilled sandwich over. "You did a good job. It looks to die for,"

"You mean like those poor pigs did." Rachel responded, pouting.

"Yes, just like those tasty, succulent, mouth-wateringly delicious poor little piggies did," Rachel shoved Quinn lightly, smiling a little.

"Well, at least someone is going to get some enjoyment out of their tragic and untimely deaths."

"Yes. More people would die if I didn't have my bacon intake. Trust me, it's good you made me this. The body count would have been on your conscience if I went without." They both giggled, and watched as the sandwich sizzled on the grill.

"All done," Quinn put the sandwich on her plate and raced to sit down. She ate in silence, and Rachel watched her. She finished and licked her lips, then wiped her hands on the napkin Rachel passed her.

"Thanks,"

"No problem,"

"I don't mean for the napkin. I mean, I do mean thanks for that, but thanks for you know... Everything. Second chances, being there for me today. Never giving up on me, even after all I've done. What I mean to say is I-"

"You're sorry?"

"Yes. I'm... I'm sorry. For everything."

"That was very big of you, Quinn. I appreciate and accept the apology. But on one condition," Quinn paused on her journey to the sink.

"What?" She asked with trepidation.

"You have to call me my real name from now on. No more names. Not even 'Berry'."
"But-but 'Berry' is your name,"

"Why can't you just call me Rachel?"
"I-I don't know. I just never- Um... I'm too used to being an asshole?" Rachel smiled wryly.

"Whilst that may be a very apt description for you, I would never stoop to such language. And it doesn't apply anymore. But is it really so hard to say it?"
"No, of course it's not. I mean, we're friends now, so I should call you that. I will. From now on." Quinn nodded, affirming it.

"Go on, then," Rachel pushed.

"R-Man-Ha-" Quinn was joking now, smiling as she pretended to not be able to say it, "RuPau- No, that's not it... Treasu-Stubbles? Rachel." Rachel's face lit up.

"Thank you."

"Don't say that, I should have been able to do it a long time ago."

"I'll take you home now, if you like?"

"Sure," But Quinn didn't want to go yet. She was getting somewhere at last.