A/N: Ugh, okay, so I've only just realised that does not add in the breaks I format into the document in Word to break up jumps between scenes in Word. Gah. So I'm sorry for those who have been confused in previous chapters. But I've put them in manually this time. Secondly, this chapter was fun, but oh God it was hard. There are some bits where I'm not sure if I conveyed things properly. For instance there's a bit where there's like... the world's longest sentence ever, which is supposed to indicate Quinn's thoughts being in over-drive and pretty much non-stop, but I worry it might read as though the full stop on keyboard broke or something. I promise you, it works fine. Thirdly, Hacchichu continues to be my favouritest (yes I did just make that word up) reader. Reviews like that literally make my day. I was at work when I got the e-mail, and actually I got told off by my manager for grinning too much (she was kidding - I think). And I do hate to beg, but pleeeeeease review. I need feedback. I want to know what you think of this story so far, whether you love it or hate it. I don't care! I'm just glad people are reading! And I want to know how to make it better!

I'm also like, really desperate to start doing some oneshots at some point, which probably would result in me taking a bit of a break from this story, as I barely have time to write as it it, but there's just been so much inspiration lately I think I might actually explode if I get some of my ideas down on paper. Or... you know, on my monitor.

And now I'll shut the hell up and let the DRAMA ENSUE. Oh yes, there is some srs drama here. Like srs srs.

Chapter 8 – Suspended in Gaffa

Rachel closed her locker and grinned at Quinn.

"I'll see you at lunch, okay?" The diva said brightly, standing on her tip-toes so she could peck Quinn's cheek. Quinn was mostly used to this by now. Since the day she had floored Karofsky, Rachel had kissed Quinn, or hugged her, at every opportunity. Quinn didn't really mind, it was mostly like having a happy little puppy following her around, and she liked dogs in any case.

Rachel waltzed away down the corridor and Quinn turned to head away to her own class. She was stopped by a menacing scowl from Santana who was stood in front of her.

"What's your game?" She asked, hands on hips. Quinn shook her head in confusion.

"I don't understand. I can't join in with gym class anymore; they say I might strain myself or fall and hurt the baby..."

"Don't play coy with me, Q, it doesn't suit you. B can get away with it, but you can't. What's your game?"

"Santana, I really don't know what you mean. What have I done to upset you now?"

"What, you mean apart from sleep with my man before we broke up? Or how about the time you ripped off my Barbie's head because I wouldn't lend you the red crayon, or maybe..." Quinn winced. Maybe she should have thought about the way that would come across before she opened her mouth.

"Yes, apart from those things. What is it that is currently bothering you?" Quinn asked, as calmly as she could. There was no point in getting wound up, it'd only fuel Santana's anger more.

"You getting all snugly with Wheezy and the dwarf. I saw you rush to their aide last week, and Stubbles won't leave you alone now. She was like, practically drooling all over you when she planted that big, wet kiss on your hideously pale cheek. Why are you letting her? You always have a game plan, and I want to know what going on," She demanded, stepping closer.

"I-I don't have a plan or anything. I like Mercedes, I was trying to help her. I just suddenly realised we really are similar, I mean... She's going through what we were going through when we started the whole diet, and she is nice, if you ignore her casual racism... And Rachel's-"

"Rachel? Since when did you call it by its name? You hate her, Quinn. I don't know how you can have just done a complete one-eighty. There must be some reason behind it. There must be something for you to gain from this." Santana prodded Quinn on the shoulder accusingly, her ponytail swinging behind her as her head bobbed.

"I just want to make things better. I've been mean, and now I know what it feels like to be them. To be invisible. I was wrong in the way I used to torture them, and I'm just... I don't want to be a bitch anymore, you know?"

"No, I don't know. This isn't like you, Q. The only time you're nice, is when you're playing some sort of elaborate joke on them. Oh, and Berry's totally gay for you, in case you didn't already know,"

"I- what?"

"Don't fuck up again. We need her to win regionals, alright?" With one last accusatory poke, Santana was marching away down the corridor in a fashion that Sue Sylvester would be proud of.

"Argh!" Quinn growled, and banged her head sharply into the lockers. It seemed as though she couldn't even be nice without people doubting her. She had absolutely no intention whatsoever of hurting Rachel or Mercedes. She was different now, but of course Santana would presume otherwise. Santana was the one who knew Quinn the best as her second in command. At least, she was before she was pregnant and actually mattered socially. But she wasn't going to let Santana get to her though. It was hard work being how she was now, but it felt good to wake up in the mornings and be true to herself every day, rather than putting up all those walls, and that icy facade.

But what Santana had said about Rachel... Surely she didn't feel that way about her, did she? She squirmed uncomfortably. She didn't think she minded if Rachel really did, but she really didn't like the whole not knowing part. It was understandable, Quinn thought. Rachel always did latch onto everyone that ever showed any sign of being nice to her. Hell, if Kurt befriended her, she'd probably even try for him. Although, this could make things awkward now. And she really didn't want to give Kurt any more ammunition. No, she had to find out if what Santana said was true, and then put an end to it if it was. She didn't want to hurt Rachel, but she really already had enough to deal with without the added stress of being labelled as gay.

She plodded into her class a whole ten minutes late, muttering 'Morning sickness' when reprimanded for her tardiness. She just had to figure how to know for sure what Rachel felt for her.

Rachel sat in class, for once not diligently taking notes, staring out of the window and scheming. Clearly she needed to up her game a bit. Whilst Quinn wasn't pushing her away every time she kissed her, she certainly didn't seem to be willing o hand them out in return. She was considering paying Karofsky to attack her again so that Quinn would come to her rescue, but that would just be too much... right? She pushed the thought out of her mind. She knew if she thought about it enough, she'd end up doing it anyway, and that really was too far. She would have to be more subtle than-

"Rachel?" A sharp voice cut her off mid-thought. She panicked when she realised it was the teacher and she had no idea what she had been asked, or even what she was supposed to be learning. Which class was she in again?

"Would you like to answer the question?"

"Um... I'm terribly sorry, but could you repeat that? I'm just finding it very difficult to follow," She smiled wetly and the teacher sighed, beginning again, but Rachel had already drifted off, thinking of a certain Quinn Fabray again.

"Hey, B," Quinn said with a smile as she approached the ditsy cheerleader. Brittany was staring mournfully at Jacob's hair.

"Oh, hey, Quinn!" Brittany grinned and pulled her into a hug. Quinn suddenly remembered how much she missed hanging out with Brittany and Santana. Outside of school they were just three friends. Three teenage girls out to have a laugh, but in school they wore other identities to get to the top. Or at least, Santana and Quinn did. Brittany was more than happy to just follow after, but she was never mean to anyone.

"I've missed you, Q," Brittany said quietly, her lips tugged downwards in sadness.

"I've missed you too, B," Replied Quinn seriously.

"Mr. Quackers misses you, too. You have to come over soon and see! He's so big! He lives in the bath now." Brittany's eyes were shining with excitement and it was infectious. Quinn was grinning along with her now.

"I will, I will, I promise. It'll be just like old times-"

"Except that you're pregnant now," Brittany chimed in, ever helpful.

"Yes, there is that. But listen, I have a question about Rachel."
"I like Rachel, but she confuses me." There was a silence as Quinn waited for Brittany to explain this statement more, but evidently she wasn't going to without a prompt.

"Um... How so?"

"I don't understand her clothes. I don't know why anyone would to wear their little sister's clothes and their grandmother's clothes all at once," Quinn stifled a giggle.

"No, I don't get it either. But Santana said something to me earlier. She says that Rachel... you know... likes me. Do you think she does?"
"Of course she does! You're friends now. I'd like to be friends with her too! Do you think she likes me?"
"I think she'd like to be friends with you, yes. You should talk to her about it. But that's not what I mean," Quinn explained patiently. She'd always been able to deal with Brittany's slowness, and actually found it very calming to be around her, as everything in Brittany's world was black and white, and so simple. Most would get frustrated in having to explain everything to her all the time, but she and Santana had both always adored the girl.

"What I mean is Santana thinks that she has a crush on me."
"She sat on you?" Quinn sighed.

"No, B, Santana think that Rachel likes me so much she wants to date me!" Understanding finally dawned in Brittany's eyes.

"Oh! I get it! I don't know, but I'll see if I can tell and I'll let you know. I've always been good at that," She said thoughtfully. Quinn knew this, which is why she had approached her in the first place. Brittany had always been able to smell romance much like a shark can supposedly smell blood from a mile away or whatever.

"But... I thought that you wanted to date her though."

"What? No! I'm not gay!"

"But you always look at Rachel funny."

"Yes, because I'm thinking of ways to torture her. Or at least, I used to,"

"You were covering up how you really felt. You look at her the way San looks at me. And you go red whenever she kisses you." Brittany said resolutely. Quinn spluttered.

"What? That's because it's embarrassing! I mean, she's Man-Hands!"

"And you're always mean to her,"

"Exactly! Of course I don't have a big gay crush on Rachel when it's an effort to be barely civil towards her."

"Q, shh, you're shouting and scaring the freshman!" Brittany whispered. Quinn looked around her sheepishly, realising it was true.

Brittany pulled Quinn along after her and into an empty classroom.

"Okay, sit down." Brittany seemed to be experiencing one of her rare moments of clarity and perceptiveness. "You know when we first started school, back when we were kids?" Quinn nodded dumbly.

"Do you remember how Ben would always call you mean names and push you over and steal your food and stuff?"

"Yes, and then me and San would go kick his ass for being a jerk," Quinn said coldly, her eyes narrowing at the memory.

"Yes, but do you remember the day that he shoved you into that really big puddle and then helped you up and he asked you if you would marry him?"

"I pushed him into the puddle and said no... What's your point?" Quinn was confused. Why was B talking about this stuff from so long ago? What did it even matter?

"Well, I think that it's like that with you and Rachel, but she's you, and you're Ben. You're mean to her because you don't know how to be nice and act on your feelings."

"Okay, you know what? I have heard enough of this. This is ridiculous. I do not like like Rachel Berry!" She stood up and stormed from the room – consequently in a way that would have made Rachel proud. She was about to slam the door when Brittany called after her.

"But don't you want to know if she likes you?"

"No!"

"Just kiss her!" Then the door slammed.

"Hey!" Quinn froze, anger bubbling through her. She so did not need any lip from Santana on top of all this.

"What?" Her voice was cold and harsh.

"You better not have just upset my woman, because if you did? There will be hell to pay. Don't take it out on her just 'cause you're fighting with your new man."

"Back off, Santana! And she is not a man!"

"Sure, sure. Man-Hands and Quinn, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Santana sing-songed. Quinn was advancing towards her, literally shaking with rage.

"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby's carriage! Oh wait, I suppose I should change that so the baby bit comes fir-oof-" Santana was on the floor, hand over a bloody nose.

"Take that back!" Screamed Quinn, towering over the Latina.

"No," Santana said defiantly. She never did know when to back down. Quinn raised a leg, ready to kick.

"Quinn, don't," Pleased Brittany. No one could help but listen to Brittany when she spoke like that. Quinn stepped away.

"Good dog," Said Santana, snidely, getting to her feet. She eyed Quinn angrily, wiping her nose with her arm. "You are so lucky you're preggers, Q, else I'd be about to make your dentist a very rich man." She snarled.

"Ugh, whatever," Quinn snapped and stalked away.

As soon as she was round the corner and out of sight, she deflated. The adrenaline was seeping away, leaving her feeling nauseous and dizzy and mostly confused about everything that had happened. How had this all got turned around on her? Her hand throbbed painfully and she clenched and unclenched it a few times to work out the stiffness. She slumped into the girls' bathroom and leant her forehead against the mirror as she rinsed her hand under the warm water. The water was quickly turning pink and she winched, realising it wasn't just Santana's blood on her knuckles.

The bathroom door swung open and Quinn took a shuddering breath, readying herself for whatever else Santana was going to throw her way. But no abuse reached her ears. Instead, a quiet gasp did. There was a flurry of footsteps and hot breath on her neck, and then Rachel was gently touching the swollen hand.

"Oh my goodness, Quinn, are you alright? Was this Karofsky? I'll kill him if it was. We should get you to the nurse's office in case it's broken-"

"Shut it, Berry. And get your stubby little fingers off me. I'm fine," She snapped, snatching her hand away.

"Quinn," Rachel gasped, taken aback by the sudden abrasiveness in the other girl's voice, "I'm only trying to help."

"I don't need your help. I don't need anyone's help. So why don't you just go crawl back under your bridge and wait for the three little billy goats to come along?" The insults were flowing out of her just easily as they used to, and Quinn felt a surge of comfort in the familiarity. Rachel was blinking back tears.

"I thought you'd changed. I guess I was wrong," Rachel said brokenly, beginning to turn away. She would not let Quinn make her cry again.

"Jeez, Stubbles, live up to your namesake and man up. Stand up for yourself for once," Quinn pushed Rachel slightly. The tears the little diva had been fighting dried up instantly. She batted Quinn's hand away roughly.

"Get off me. I'm tired of you pushing people around! You have no right to treat people the way you do! You think that it's okay to just bully people and order slushie facials, when it isn't. All you are is an insecure and frightened little girl, and I wish I'd never tried to be friends with you!" Rachel shouted into Quinn's face. She was panting, and suddenly realised what she'd done. What she had done was really put her foot in it. No one spoke to Quinn Fabray that way and got away with it.

Quinn's eyes bored into Rachel's, her gaze unrelenting and steely. Rachel covered her mouth with her hand and tried to back away. She really wished she'd managed to hold that little tirade in. As much as she believed in honesty and showing your emotions, and of course drama, this probably wasn't the best of times to lose control. Quinn stepped forwards as Rachel continued to back away. Her hand encircled Rachel's wrist in a vice-like grip, wrenching it away from Rachel's face. Quinn continued stepping forwards, forcing Rachel further and further back until she was pinned against the wall.

"What are you going to do to me?" Rachel said in hushed tone, afraid of speaking too loudly in case she angered Quinn further. At her words, Quinn's mind snapped somewhere unrecognisable and then Rachel broke eye contact, her gaze flickering to Quinn's perfect, rosy lips. She cursed herself for thinking in such a way at such an inopportune time, but teenagers will be teenagers, and hormones will be hormones, meaning sex is never far from anyone's mind. Before Rachel had time to look up again, Quinn had smashed her mouth against her own.

It was quite painful, really, noticed Rachel. There was no tenderness, just a hard sort of pressure. So hard, in fact, that her teeth were pushing uncomfortably against her lips. She whimpered, unsure of what to do. Quinn relented on the pressure a little and a small sigh escaped her, and the last of Rachel's resolve went down the drain.

She responded to the kiss, pressing softly against the lips she had been wanting to kiss for so long now. Quinn's arms were on either side of her, palms flat against the tiles. Rachel's own hands found their way to Quinn's waist, and she pulled her forwards a little, so their bodies were touching. Her hands moved to Quinn's baby bump, rubbing gentle circles over it.

Quinn was delirious. She had never meant to snap at Rachel. In fact, she had been glad to feel her gentle touch instead of a biting remark from Santana, but she was still angry from before, and her head was all over the place and she didn't know if she did think it was okay for Rachel to like like her and before she'd had a change to figure things out for even a second she was there in that typical almost annoying, but mostly kind of sweet way that Rachel always seemed to do things in and before she knew it she was lashing out, and then Rachel was shouting back and God her lips looked divine when she was angry and then suddenly Rachel was all she knew and they were kissing but somehow it was okay and she was opening her mouth, deepening the kiss and it was like someone lit a fire in her stomach. She's never felt anything like that before, and it scared her. But what scared her more was that she liked it.

She tangled a hand Rachel's beautifully soft hair and tugged a little. Rachel gasped for air and Quinn took the opportunity to slip her tongue against Rachel's and Jesus Christ that fire was spreading all through her. She pulled harder on Rachel's hair, but the brunette had stopped responding.

Rachel tried to push her away. Quinn did not like that. She was stronger than the other girl, anyway. Rachel pushed more firmly.

"No," She said in a tone Quinn had never heard before. Rachel turned her head away as Quinn moved in again.

"No, not like this. It wasn't meant to be like this," Quinn was kissing Rachel's cheek, her nose, her neck, her ear. Rachel so did not want Quinn to stop, but this wasn't right. It was meant to be romantic, not something started out of anger.

"Quinn, stop." Rachel said loudly and the blonde was suddenly back on earth. She stumbled away.

"R-Rachel, I-"

"Don't." Rachel ran from the bathroom.

"Shit." Quinn whispered into the silence.