I normally reply to a few of you individually, but honestly it would just be a lot of me saying 'thank you' because of all the kind words. So, I'll just say a big thank you to everyone; you guys are awesome with the reviews and they mean more than you know.
Chapter 6 – Surprise, Surprise
Rachel was beaming at the sound of Kurt's enthusiastic clapping and Puck's wolf whistle. Their response was a little embarrassing and it had her blushing, but she was smiling nevertheless. The room wasn't nearly as full as it would have been if school was still in session, but most of her past instructors were there as well as ones she would have in the future. She was surprised that Brody was there, and even if they weren't really friends, she did appreciate the support. She made sure she thanked several people—namely the ones who allowed her to postpone this showcase—before joining Kurt, Puck, and Beth at the back of the room.
"I'm so proud of you!" Kurt said, wrapping his arms around her the moment she was within reach.
"Thank you, Kurt," Rachel said, hugging him tightly. "I couldn't have done this without your help."
"Dude's right," Puck said, clapping Kurt on the back. "You were awesome."
"Thank you, Noah," Rachel said smiling at him as Kurt released her.
"Did you enjoy it, Beth?" Rachel asked, looking down.
Beth nodded and said, "Yes."
Rachel smiled even wider if that was possible. "I'm glad."
"Well, I hate to run, but I need to get to work," Kurt said, kissing her cheek. "I should be home around ten."
"I'm sure I will be asleep by then," Rachel said, laughing.
This week had been exhausting; she was up every morning by five and would immediately get ready and head to NYADA. She was just happy the school was open at all hours of the day, but they usually left the rooms open, so students could come and rehearse at any time. Usually she would make it home before eleven, so she could have lunch with everyone, and then she would spend the rest of the day with them. It was just a relief that the showcase was finally over, so she could spend more time with Beth until she found employment.
"It's too bad we can't celebrate," Rachel said, pouting at the fact that Kurt had to leave.
"Who says we can't?" Puck asked.
"He's right," Kurt replied.
"We should totally go out and celebrate you kicking the showcase's a—butt," Puck said.
Kurt laughed. "Yes, you did kick its butt, so go out and have fun."
Kurt gently ruffled Beth's hair, causing her to scowl at him, and then turned to walk away. He waved to them over his shoulder and Rachel shook her head, laughing. While the little girl generally favored her mother more than her father with her blonde hair and hazel eyes, the look on Beth's face reminded her a lot of one she often saw on Puck's face.
"Well, if you would like to have a celebratory dinner, I'm all for it," Rachel said. "After I go home, shower, and change because I don't think this is very appropriate to go to a restaurant in."
Puck laughed. "No, but you look kinda hot like that."
Rachel rolled her eyes and pushed his shoulder. "Don't even start that, Noah Puckerman."
"C'mon, you know I didn't mean anything by it," Puck said, laughing again.
"Be that as it may—"
"Alright," Puck held up his hands in surrender, "I won't say anything about you being hot ever again."
"Thank you," Rachel replied.
"So, where do you wanna go?" Puck asked. "Because I don't know this city at all, so you should probably pick or I'll end up taking us to some craphole."
"Noah," Rachel said warningly.
"Craphole isn't a bad word," Puck stated.
Rachel rolled her eyes. "She starts kindergarten this year and I would rather if she didn't use such words at school. It'll make me look like a bad guardian."
"Can they—" Puck looked down and mumbled, "take her away?"
"I'm sure they can," Rachel whispered, sighing, not really wanting Beth to hear this conversation. "Which is why I'm not going to give them any reason to do that." Rachel cleared her throat. "And to answer your question, I know the perfect place."
Puck nodded and looked down at Beth, asking, "Are you ready to go?"
Beth nodded back and held out her hand; Puck looked surprised by it, but reached out, taking Beth's hand in his. He appeared as if he was trying to look unaffected by it, but she could tell a smile was tugging at his lips.
Rachel would actually be sad to see him go, and wished he could stay longer, but he was catching the bus late that night. She thought about asking if he wanted to stay longer, but she knew it was probably hard enough on him to take off the days he'd already missed. They had never been friends, but she found herself liking this version of Puck; he was more mature, but was still himself. Plus, it was sort of nice to have a familiar face around.
"Three."
"Four."
Rachel looked at Puck. "Four?"
"Yeah," Puck said, scratching the back of his head.
"Right this way," the hostess said.
"Noah," Rachel said, narrowing her eyes. "Who else is coming?"
"You'll see," Puck said with a shrug."
"I will have you know, I'm not a fan of surprises," Rachel said, following behind him. "Given my personality, you might think I am, but I detest them. When I was seven, my fathers threw me a surprise party and I cried during the whole thing."
"Calm down," Puck said as he sat down.
Rachel huffed, making sure Beth was seated before taking her seat. "Who said I'm not calm?"
"Your server will be right with you," the hostess said, leaving them alone.
"Just relax," Puck said, leaning his elbows on the table.
"If it's Finn—"
"It's not Finn," Puck interrupted.
Rachel sighed. "Good."
"I thought you two were okay," Puck remarked. "He told me you two had coffee when you were in Lima."
"We did," Rachel replied. "We had a nice chat, but that doesn't mean I wish to be friends with him. I'm afraid he would get the wrong idea about us if we were to attempt a friendship, and I already have too much going on in my life to deal with such a thing."
"He still talks about you," Puck said. "A lot. Sometimes he won't shut up about you. I even threatened to break his Xbox one time if he didn't stop talking about you."
"Well, he should have appreciated me more while we were together," Rachel commented. "Maybe then he could have come to New York with me and we would still be together."
"Is that what you woulda wanted?" Puck asked.
"No," Rachel said honestly. "I'm happy with the way my life is. Yes, I get lonely sometimes, but I'm confident I will find someone who appreciates me and loves me for me. Someone who isn't going to try to change me into someone I'm not." Rachel faltered as she looked across the restaurant. "Did Quinn Fabray just walk through the door?"
Puck looked up with a guilty expression.
"Noah!" Rachel hissed. "Is Quinn Fabray the reason you said four people?"
"Maybe," Puck replied.
Rachel's jaw dropped. "I can't believe you! How could you invite her and not tell me! She hates me! She spent all of high school bullying me and trying to bring me down!"
"How do you know she hasn't changed?" Puck asked.
"How would I have the chance to know?" Rachel asked back. "She barely spoke a word to me in high school that wasn't an insult, so it's not as if I've heard from her since then."
"Weren't you talking about second chances just, like, a few days ago?" Puck said.
Rachel huffed. "That's not the point." Rachel glanced across the room. "Oh, she's coming over."
Puck stood as the blonde approached. "Hey, Quinn."
"Puck," she said, nodding at him before her eyes drifted toward Rachel and Beth. "I wasn't aware it wasn't just going to be us."
"That makes two of us," Rachel mumbled.
"My bad," Puck said. "I thought I mentioned it."
"Uh huh," Quinn said, sitting in the empty seat.
"Excuse me," Rachel said, standing up, and grabbing her purse. "If our server ever comes will you tell them I would like a water with extra lemon? And will you keep an eye on Beth for a minute; I'll be right back."
Rachel pulled her phone out of her purse as she walked toward the bathroom, and she was already dialing Kurt's number by the time she was inside. It rang so long that she thought it was going to voicemail, but she eventually heard a click followed by the sound of voices in the background.
"Kurt!" she said before her friend could say anything.
"What is it?" Kurt asked. "Is something wrong? Is it Beth?!"
"No, nothing like that," Rachel quickly said, not wanting him to worry. "Though I am in a bit of a panic."
"What's going on?" Kurt asked
She could hear a door closing and the background noise becoming quieter, and she knew she had his undivided attention. "Noah brought me and Beth to dinner. He failed to tell me there was going to be a fourth."
"Okay," Kurt replied.
Rachel took a deep breath and then said, "Quinn Fabray is here. He invited Quinn Fabray and I didn't know she was coming until she walked through the door. I have never been a violent person, but I honestly want to slap Noah upside the head and ask him what he could possibly have been thinking. You know I don't hold a grudge—though if I did, Quinn and Santana would be the ones I would have it against—but I can't believe he would do this without telling me. He knows our history; he knows how Quinn feels about me, yet he apparently decided to invite her without either of us knowing the other was going to be here. I don't know why he ever thought this would be a good idea. And if he would have just warned me, you know I wouldn't have said no. You can't just spring something like this on a person, though; you need advanced notice when you're going to have dinner with the girl that did everything she could to make your high school experience a nightmare!"
"Are you done?" Kurt asked, sounding amused.
"Yes," Rachel said, taking another deep breath, and slowly releasing it.
"Do you feel better?" Kurt questioned.
"A little, yes," Rachel replied.
Kurt paused for a moment and then asked, "What are you going to do?"
"I don't know." Rachel sighed. "Have dinner with Quinn Fabray, I guess."
"Do you want to leave?" Kurt asked. "I can always call you back and pretend there's an emergency."
"No, no—I don't want to do something like that," Rachel said, shaking her head. "I—"
She paused when she heard one of the toilets flush behind her and blushed when the stall door opened. She was in too much of a hurry to call Kurt and didn't think about anyone else being in the bathroom to overhear their conversation.
"Are you still there?" Kurt asked.
Rachel hummed and watched as the woman washed her hands; she didn't want her to overhear anything else, so she stayed silent as she walked to the door. Just when she thought she was going to leave, the woman turned and said, "Good luck."
"Thank you," Rachel said, feeling herself blushing more.
"For what?" Kurt asked.
"Not you," Rachel replied. "I should go back out there, or they'll probably start wondering why I've been gone so long."
"Just say you were drawing pornographic picture of Quinn on the wall," Kurt joked. "You know, to get even."
"Very funny," Rachel said, rolling her eyes even though he wasn't there to see it.
Rachel took deep, calming breaths as she made her way back to the table. When she neared, she tried to look confident and like she hadn't had a minor freak out in the bathroom. She tried to never let the bullies at McKinley High realize how much they affected her, and she wasn't going to let it show now.
"Sorry, there was a line," Rachel lied as she sat in her seat.
She reached out and grabbed her glass of water, taking a sip, and then picking up the menu their server must have brought while she was away. She looked at Beth, who had a small box of crayons, and was coloring on the back of her menu.
"So, I wasn't aware you were in town, too," Rachel commented.
"I live here, actually," Quinn replied.
"Oh," Rachel said. "I didn't know that."
"I go to NYU," Quinn remarked.
"What are you studying there?" Rachel asked.
"Comparative literature," Quinn replied.
Rachel nodded. "Interesting."
Rachel had no idea she and Quinn had been living in the same city for the past two years. She was actually glad she didn't know, though; she probably would have worried about running into her—especially when she first moved there and high school was fresh on her mind—and she didn't want to have to worry about that. New York was her city; practically everyone she had ever met knew she was going to move there and pursue her dreams. It's why she was so surprised Quinn had ever moved there—as much as the blonde seemed to hate her, Rachel didn't think she'd ever want to live in the same city as her if she could help it.
They were all silent as they looked over their menus; well, Rachel was mostly just staring at it blankly, trying to process the turn of events. She and Kurt came here quite often, so she already knew her options, but no one else knew that so she held her menu in front of her face, figuring it was better than staring off into space.
"Have you looked over your menu?" Rachel asked, realizing she needed to figure out what Beth wanted. "They have spaghetti, chicken fingers, hamburgers—"
"Burger," Beth said before she could go on.
"Salad or fries on the side?" Rachel asked.
"First," Beth answered.
At least with the salad, she would be eating something a little healthier. She hated the thought of Beth eating meat, but she was picky as it was, and Rachel wasn't going to make it worse by trying to control what she ate. Besides, her fathers always let her make up her own mind on things—within reason, of course—and she wanted to do the same thing.
"So, is school over for you?" Puck asked.
"Yeah, Friday was the last day," Quinn answered.
"Cool," Puck said, nodding. "Rachel had this showcase thing today. She was awesome."
"Imagine that," Quinn said, locking eyes with Rachel, and then looking down at her menu again. "I'm not surprised; she always could sing better than anyone else."
Rachel waited for her to add something negative to the end of her statement, but she didn't. It was probably the first time Quinn had ever said anything that could actually be considered a compliment.
"Thank you, Quinn," Rachel responded.
"How long are you in town?" Quinn asked, looking at Puck.
"I leave tonight," he said, shrugging. "I could only get a few days off. Besides, I was afraid Finn would destroy the place if I was gone any longer. He's been there longer than I have, but I swear he doesn't know what he's doing half the time."
"That's not surprising," Quinn commented.
"No, it's not," Rachel agreed before she could stop herself.
She heard her phone buzzing in her purse and pulled it out to find Kurt's name on the screen. Normally she wouldn't have answered it because it was a little rude, but she really didn't care at the moment.
"Hello, Kurt," she greeting.
"You sure you don't want an emergency?" Kurt asked.
Rachel laughed lightly. "No, it's fine."
"Are you sure?" Kurt asked.
"I'm sure," Rachel replied.
"Okay," Kurt said. "Text me if you change your mind. Bye."
"Goodbye," Rachel said, ending the call. "Sorry about that."
"So, you and Kurt are still friends?" Quinn asked.
Rachel nodded. "He's my best friend; we have an apartment together, and he's been really great about helping with Beth. I really don't know what I would do without him. Especially this past week; I had to prepare for my showcase and didn't really have a lot of time. My instructors postponed it for me, but that meant I really only had less than a week to really prepare. I did what I could in Lima, but one really needs a dance studio."
Rachel closed her mouth when she realized who she was talking to. Quinn didn't care about any of this; the only person she ever seemed to care about was herself. She wasn't interested in anything having to do with Rachel's life.
"Couldn't you have gone to the choir room?" Quinn asked. "I'm sure Mr. Schue would have let you use it."
"I would rather I never step foot in that school again if I can help it," Rachel replied. "It doesn't really hold the best memories for me, as I'm sure you understand."
"Yeah," Quinn mumbled. "Excuse me a moment."
Quinn stood up and Rachel watched as she headed in the direction of the bathroom before turning to Puck and asked, "Noah, why did you invite her?"
"I wanted her to see—" Puck nodded to Beth. "Look, I'm sorry, but I don't regret it. I didn't know if you'd let me invite her, and I figured if I told her you two would be here, she'd never come."
"Noah, I would never stop Quinn from coming," Rachel said, sighing. "You should have asked me, though, just like you should have asked if you could stay with us. You don't have to be sneaky and manipulative with me; all you have to do is ask."
"I was just afraid you'd say no," Puck said. "I'm sorry."
"I understand, but from now on—"
"I'll ask," Puck interrupted.
"Thank you," Rachel said, reaching for her water.
"I can't wait to make some tea and relax," Rachel said to Puck as she slid the door open to her apartment. "It has been a very long couple of days."
Beth immediately headed for her room while Rachel stopped to hang her purse on the hook next to the door. She started walking to the kitchen to put on the kettle but stopped.
"What are you doing home early?" Rachel asked upon seeing Kurt in the living room.
"I told Josh I would work late for him tomorrow night if he covered for me tonight," Kurt said, shrugging. "I wanted to be here when you came home to make sure you're okay."
"I appreciate the concern, but I'm perfectly fine," Rachel responded.
"I'm going to grab my bag and then head out," Puck said.
"Do you have to go already?" Rachel asked.
"I don't wanna miss my bus," Puck replied. "I got lost on the subway coming here, so I should go now in case it happens again."
"One of us could accompany you," Rachel suggested.
"Nah, it's fine," Puck said, grabbing his bag from beside the couch.
Rachel sighed. "Okay. Do you have everything? If you forget something, we can send it, but—"
"I packed while you were getting ready," Puck interrupted.
"Well—I guess we should say our goodbyes then," Rachel said, disappointed that Puck was leaving.
"I'm gonna go let Beth know I'm leaving," Puck said. "I'll be back."
"How'd dinner go?" Kurt asked.
"Surprisingly okay," Rachel said, watching Puck head into the other room.
"Really?" Kurt said, sounding very skeptical.
"Really," Rachel replied. "I mean, dinner was mostly silent, but that's far better than I was expecting the evening to go."
"What was she even doing here?" Kurt asked.
"She lives here, actually," Rachel answered. "I had no idea, but she goes to NYU; she's lived here for nearly two years."
"That's—huh." Kurt furrowed his eyebrows. "I would never have guessed. I thought she was always more the type that would marry before she got out of college—staying in Ohio, of course—and drop out when they decided to start a family. You know, the perfect Stepford Wife to some soon to be rich doctor or businessman."
"While I may not be Quinn Fabray's biggest fan, I have always thought she was very intelligent, so I am not at all surprised she left Ohio to attend school," Rachel said.
"Too bad she's always used it for evil and not good," Kurt remarked just as Puck walked out of Beth's room.
Rachel watched as Puck paused outside the curtain, taking a deep breath.
"Are you okay?" Rachel asked.
"Yeah, just—you know," Puck said, putting his hands in his pockets, and walking toward them.
"You know you can come back anytime," Rachel said, hoping to cheer him up. "Just give one of us a call, and we'll have the couch ready for you when you get here. I want you and Beth to have a relationship; she lost the only family she knew, and she can use all the love she can get now. I know how much she means to you."
"It'll probably be a while," Puck said, shrugging. "I used up most of my vacation time."
"Well, we will probably be in Lima for a few holidays," Rachel said. "We don't normally go, but my fathers are insisting we come by more often, so they can see Beth. I actually promised them we would be there for the fourth of July, which is less than two months away, and I'll be sure to have Dad and Daddy invite you to their annual barbeque."
"That'll be cool," Puck said, giving her a slight smile.
"Remember," Rachel wrapped her arms around Puck, "you're welcome anytime."
"Just call, right?" Puck said, laughing, and returning her hug.
Rachel nodded, smiling. "I'll be sure to take plenty of pictures of Beth and send them to you. Just text me your email address, okay?"
"I will," Puck said, shouldering his bag.
"Test or call to let us know you made it back safely," Rachel instructed.
Puck nodded, clapped Kurt on his shoulder, and said, "I'll see you guys."
She watched as he walked to the door and waved to him as he closed it. It had been nice having him around, and she hated to see him go. Hopefully he would have some time off soon, though, and could make it back to New York; if not, there was always the fourth of July. It seemed far away, but she knew how fast time flew, so it would probably be there before she knew it.
"Okay, back to Quinn," Kurt said.
"There isn't much else to say," Rachel said, walking to the couch, and sitting down.
"You spent, what—an hour or more with her?" Kurt asked. "There has to be something else."
"I told you that dinner was mostly silent," Rachel said, shrugging. "Once our waitress came, no one said much; Puck tried to make conversation, but he wasn't very successful."
"So the only thing you know about her is that she goes to NYU?" Kurt asked.
"I don't know," Rachel replied. "She said something about majoring in some type of literature. She also said that she's staying in New York for the summer, and she made it sound like she hasn't been back to Lima since she left."
"Interesting," Kurt said, narrowing his eyes.
"What's interesting about that?" Rachel asked.
"It's just that for someone who spent so much time making sure she ruled high school, you would think she wouldn't be so keen to leave it behind," Kurt commented.
"Maybe she hated it as much as we did," Rachel replied. "Maybe she was just better at hiding it."
"We hated it so much because of people like her," Kurt stated.
Rachel sighed. "I'm not defending her-why would I—but I'm saying that we don't exactly know her."
"And whose fault is that?" Kurt asked.
"Definitely hers," Rachel said with a slight laugh. "I don't know how many times I tried to befriend her only to have her throw it in my face in one way or another. She seemed—I don't know—a little different tonight. More relaxed, I guess. And she didn't insult me once tonight; that has got to be a first."
"Well, you'll probably never know if she's changed," Kurt said. "I doubt you'll really see her again."
"Yeah," Rachel agreed. "Probably not."
"I'm going to check on Beth," Kurt said.
Rachel stood from the couch. "I'm going to make some tea."
"Want to watch a movie?" Kurt asked.
Rachel shrugged as she walked toward the kitchen. "Sure, but can it be something that's not animated? It's never too early to introduce children to musicals."
Kurt laughed. "We're going to be a terrible influence on Beth."
"Or a great one," Rachel said, smiling over her shoulder.
So Quinn is finally there…