Chapter 28 – In the Morning

The moment Rachel slid the door shut, she heard something metal drop. She looked toward the kitchen to make sure everything was okay just as Kurt came rushing out. She sighed, knowing she was about to get the third degree from him. She really didn't want to talk to him right now, but she knew he would never let this go. When she finally checked her phone after leaving Quinn's, she had five messages from him and all five texts were questioning her.

"I want to know everything," Kurt stated.

"I just got home, Kurt," Rachel said. "Can't I have a few minutes?"

"No," Kurt replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

"There isn't a lot to know," Rachel said as she breezed past him to go to her room.

"You're gone all night and you want me to believe that nothing happened," Kurt asked, following her into her room.

"I didn't say nothing happened—I said there isn't a lot to know," Rachel remarked. "It's clear that you already know what happened."

"You owe me more than that," Kurt replied.

"Where's Beth?" Rachel asked.

"She's in her room," Kurt answered.

Turning, she began walking to Beth's room, hoping Kurt would let up, but he continued to follow her. She was just thankful she had warned him beforehand that she may not be home; it would have been a little awkward to stop what she was doing with Quinn to ask Kurt if he could watch Beth.

"Beth, honey," Rachel said as she poked her head into the little girl's room. "How would you like to go to the zoo today?"

"Okay!" Beth said brightly.

"The zoo?" Kurt asked.

"Well, since we're going to be gone next weekend, Quinn and I decided we would do our zoo trip today," Rachel replied. "Beth and I are supposed to meet Quinn there in just a little over two hours. I'll let you know when you need to begin getting ready, okay?"

"Okay," Beth replied.

"Good, that gives you plenty of time to tell me what happened," Kurt commented.

Rachel rolled her eyes as she closed the curtain. "Do you want me to draw you a diagram? Because I'm fairly certain you know how it works."

"Eww," Kurt said, scrunching up his nose.

"You're the one who asked," Rachel replied.

"You know that's not what I'm asking," Kurt said.

"Then what are you asking?" Rachel asked.

"I want vague details," Kurt replied. "Please, do not go too in depth; I just ate."

"Well, our date started off at the Gershwin Theatre—"

"You saw Wicked again?" Kurt interrupted.

"Actually, no," Rachel said with a smile. "Quinn said she wanted to see me sing on a Broadway stage. She heard about the time we snuck into the theater to sing; apparently she knows someone at the theater, so she got us in without us having to sneak in." Rachel laughed lightly. "After that, we went to dinner, then we went to a play, and then we finally went to Quinn's apartment."

"And how did that go?" Kurt asked. "Remember, vague details."

Rachel laughed. "It went well." Rachel smiled. "Quinn told me she loves me!"

"Are you serious?" Kurt asked with wide eyes.

Rachel nodded. "It's amazing how much can change in a relatively short period of time, isn't it? Five months ago, Quinn wasn't even in my life; now I'm finding it increasingly more difficult to imagine my life without her." Rachel shook her head, smiling. "I never thought I would hear Quinn say she loves me."

"Neither did I," Kurt replied. "It is crazy how things can change."

"She makes me happier than anyone else ever has," Rachel admitted. "At the time, I thought I was happy with Finn and then with Brody, but this is different. She doesn't try to change me or make me feel bad about myself or the things I want. For once, nothing feels forced or like it could end at any moment because the other person may get tired of me."

"I have to admit, I'm surprised at how well you and Quinn do go together," Kurt said. "I really didn't know how it was going to turn out, but I think you two bring out each other's better side."

Rachel smiled. "We do, don't we? I just hope my fathers see that when we have dinner together."

"They're still not happy with your relationship?" Kurt asked.

"No," Rachel said with a sigh. "They're worried I'm going to get hurt. I told them they have nothing to worry about, but they still think of Quinn as the girl who tormented me in high school."

"Don't worry," Kurt said, reaching out, and squeezing her hand. "I'm sure they'll change their minds about Quinn once they get to know her a little better."

"I hope so," Rachel replied, looking at her alarm clock. "I think I'm going to nap for about thirty minutes before I have to begin getting ready. Can you—"

"I'll watch Beth," Kurt finished before she could even ask.

"Thank you," Rachel said, grateful that she had such a wonderful best friend.

Rachel held onto Beth's hand as they approached the entrance to the Bronx Zoo. She spotted Quinn standing near the ticket booth and waved. The blonde smiled, waving back, and then Beth shyly waved as well. Beth began tugging on her hand, clearly wanting her to walk fast, but Rachel just laughed and jokingly slowed down. Beth began pulling on her hand even more before realizing she wasn't going to get Rachel to move any faster. Rachel laughed and shook her head when the little girl huffed. When she looked up, she could also see Quinn laughing at the sight of them.

"Hurry up," Beth begged.

"Patience," Rachel said, squeezing Beth's hand.

Rachel began walking at her normal pace again, but Beth was still ahead of her, urging her to go fast. When they were close to Quinn, Rachel let go of Beth's hand and let her run the rest of the way. It was rare to see the little girl this excited, but she did love animals, so the zoo was one of her favorite places to go.

"Can we go in?" Beth asked.

"Let me buy our tickets and then we can," Rachel replied.

"I already bought them," Quinn said.

"You didn't have to do that," Rachel replied, giving the blonde a smile.

Quinn smiled back and said, "I know."

Rachel held out her hand and Quinn entwined their fingers together. Beth was impatiently waiting for them a few feet away and Rachel had to laugh when she saw the little girl roll her eyes at them. Sometimes, Rachel couldn't figure out if she saw more of Puck or Quinn in Beth, but it was times like that when there was no doubt she was Quinn's daughter.

"Did you get a map?" Rachel inquired.

"Yeah," Quinn said, pulling one out of her bag, and handing it to Rachel.

Rachel pulled the map open to see what was around the gate. There were two ways they could go and she had no idea which would be the better option. She supposed it really didn't matter all that much, but she usually liked to have a plan when it came to things like this. She always liked to be prepared and make sure she got the most out of what she was seeing. However, she'd been so busy lately, that she hadn't had a chance to research it.

"Beth," she glanced up to make sure Beth hadn't run off, "would you rather go to JungleWorld or the African Plains first?"

"Jungle," Beth answered.

Rachel tucked the map away for the time being and followed the signs. She wasn't really sure what was in JungleWorld, but whatever it was, Beth would probably love it. Sometimes, she thought about getting the little girl a dog or a cat, but then she would remember that no one was in the apartment half the time and that wouldn't really be fair to the animal. So, Beth would just have to settle for going to the zoo or seeing the ducks at the park rather than having an animal of her own. Thankfully, Beth had never actually brought it up; Rachel really didn't want to have to tell her no.

"Have you ever been here before?" Quinn asked.

"No," Rachel replied. "We went to the one in Central Park before, but this is my first time here. Have you come before?"

Quinn shook her head. "I thought about it, but I never really had anyone to come with me."

"Not a fan of going around the city by yourself?" Rachel asked.

"No," Quinn replied. "It's not very much fun."

"I know the feeling," Rachel commented. "Thankfully, I've had Kurt to see the sights with or I doubt I would have seen half of the things I've been to." Rachel smiled at her. "Of course, now you have me, so maybe you can see all the things you've missed."

"I'll keep that in mind," Quinn said, taking Rachel's hand again.

"Hurry up," Beth said, looking back at them.

"We're coming," Rachel said with a laugh. "And don't get too far ahead of us; I want to be able to see you at all times, okay?"

"Okay," Beth replied.

"So, I asked my mother about having lunch with us next weekend," Quinn announced.

"Oh?" Rachel said, looking at her.

"She said she's busy," Quinn said.

"That's too bad," Rachel replied, frowning. "Maybe the next time we're there—"

"She won't," Quinn interrupted, shaking her head. "Whenever she wants to get out of something, she always says she's busy."

"You don't know that." Rachel replied. "Maybe she really is busy."

"No," Quinn argued. "She just doesn't want to have to sit down with her daughter's girlfriend. It would mean that she would have to acknowledge that I'm gay and she couldn't possibly do that."

"I'm very sorry, Quinn," Rachel said, leaning up, and kissing Quinn on the cheek.

"There it is!" Beth yelled.

"Wait for us," Rachel called after her when she began getting a little too far away for her comfort.

"I don't believe I've ever seen anyone this excited before," Quinn remarked.

"She does love her animals," Rachel replied, looking up at the blonde. "Thank you for doing this."

"Why wouldn't I?" Quinn asked, looking at her curiously.

"I'm just—happy you're spending more time with Beth," Rachel replied. "And me, too, obviously. I know this can't always be easy for you, but I'm glad you two are bonding a little more. I can tell Beth really likes you."

"You're right," Quinn sighed, "it's not always easy. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm doing the right thing by being around, but it's kind of hard to stay away."

"I don't believe there is any right or wrong thing to do in this situation," Rachel replied, glancing at Beth, who was completely mesmerized as they entered the building. "I think we're all just doing the best we know how to do."

"Look," Beth said, pointing at a large enclosure, and looking down into it.

"Come on," Rachel said with a smile. "Let's not worry about your mom or anything else. Let's just enjoy our day."

Quinn nodded and gave her a soft smile. Rachel gave her hand a gentle squeeze before leading them over to the enclosure to look at the monkeys with Beth.

As Rachel took the last step up to her apartment, she let out a sigh of relief. She was completely exhausted from the long day. They had stayed at the zoo until closing and then went to dinner afterwards, followed by ice cream. Rachel had no idea how Beth still had so much energy when It was almost her bedtime and they had been out almost all day. When she slid the door open, Beth bound inside while Rachel and Quinn walked in much slower. The brunette felt like she was going to collapse where she stood and Quinn looked exactly how Rachel felt.

"Can you take this to your room," Rachel said, handing the stuffed animal she was carrying to Beth.

While Beth ran off to her room, Rachel walked to the couch and collapsed onto it. Quinn did the same, laying her head across Rachel's lap. Rachel slipped her shoes off and rested her feet on the coffee table, happy to be off of them. She hadn't worn the best shoes for a day at the zoo and had quickly regretted her decision. At that point, there was nothing she could do about, though, so she just had to suffer for the rest of the day.

"Can we stay here forever?" Quinn asked.

"Yes, please," Rachel replied.

Quinn laughed and lifted her head to look at Beth. "How is she still running around?"

"I do not know," Rachel said, shaking her head. "But I hope she gets tired soon; she can't stay up too late or she'll never want to get up in the morning. I swear, she is impossible to wake unless she's had at least ten hours of sleep."

"That sounds familiar," Quinn commented. "I was the same when I was a kid."

"Really?" Rachel asked.

Quinn nodded. "My mother would put me to bed, but I would stay up late a lot and read. I had a flashlight stashed in my nightstand, and I would pull the covers over me, so my parents wouldn't see the light. I don't think they had any idea I used to do it. More than once, my mom would talk about taking me to the doctor; she didn't know why I was so hard to get up. I think I did it until I was thirteen. After that, I had to stop because cheerleading practice was early and if I wanted to eventually be captain, I couldn't fall asleep during it."

"I always went to bed at my exact bedtime," Rachel commented. "I've always been very strict about my routine."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Quinn asked, looking up, and smiling at her.

"Having Beth here has changed that a bit, though," Rachel replied.

"I guess that's what happens when you're a parent," Quinn said softly.

It was a little jarring to think of herself as Beth's parent, and it felt even stranger coming out of Quinn's mouth. But she supposed that was the closest thing to what she was. Still, it was hard to think of herself as that. Yes, she took care of her and provided for her, but a parent? Sometimes, Rachel wondered if that's what Beth looked at her as, but she was hesitant to broach the subject. Besides, it was more of a curiosity than something she really needed to know.

"Is that your phone?" Quinn asked.

"Probably," Rachel said, not wanting to move to check.

Quinn laughed and sat up, grabbing Rachel's phone from the coffee table, and then lying back down. She handed the phone up to Rachel, who thanked Quinn, and then looked at the screen. Rachel figured it was probably Kurt or even Zoe, but it turned out to be her father, Leroy.

"My fathers want to know if you have any preference for dinner," Rachel said.

"It doesn't matter to me," Quinn answered.

"Are you sure?" Rachel asked. "They won't mind going wherever you want."

"Okay, not Breadstix," Quinn answered.

Rachel smiled. "That won't be a problem since none of us like it, but I'll let them know."

She sent out a quick reply and then set the phone on the arm of the chair, to the side of her head.

"You must have hated it when you dating Finn," Quinn remarked. "I'm pretty sure he doesn't know any other restaurant exists in Lima."

Rachel laughed. "That's not entirely true. He once took me to eat at the bowling alley."

"Lucky you," Quinn wryly said.

"Thank you again for agreeing to dinner with my fathers," Rachel said. "It really means a lot to me."

Quinn shrugged. "It's not really a big deal."

"It is to me," Rachel replied. "I really want my fathers to get to know you and see that they're wrong. I love you. I don't just want them to accept that; I want them to be happy for me and not wish I was with someone else. I want them to be able to see why I fell in love with you. I'm confident they will; they're simply going to need a little time."

"And if they never do?" Quinn asked.

"Then it will be their loss," Rachel replied.

Rachel lifted her head and looked around, wondering where Beth had gotten to, but then she heard the little girl in her room and put her head back down. She hoped Beth was winding down, but she was honestly too tired to get up to see what she was doing. Rachel figured she was probably playing with the stuffed tiger she got at the zoo, though.

"I guess I should go," Quinn said, reaching over, and taking Rachel's hand. "It's getting late."

"Yeah," Rachel agreed, rubbing her thumb. "Actually, maybe you don't have to go. Maybe you could stay here tonight."

"Are you sure?" Quinn asked.

Rachel paused for a moment and then said, "Yes. Stay. I mean, if you want to; don't feel as if you have to. I just—"

"Okay," Quinn interrupted, smiling. "I'll stay."

Rachel smiled back. "Great. I'm just going to check on Beth and I'll be right back."

As she stood and walked to Beth's room, she glanced over her shoulder at Quinn and smiled to herself. It had been a long time since she'd had a significant other stay over; actually, it had been a long time since she'd been in a relationship to have someone stay over. Considering she had Beth to think about now, it wasn't something she took lightly, but it was going to happen sooner or later. And she really didn't want Quinn to leave right now; the day had been amazing and she didn't want to have to say goodbye.

"I think we should do this more often," Rachel said as she laid her head on Quinn's shoulder.

"I'm not arguing with that," Quinn said with a smile.

"Thankfully, I believe I have gotten over my nervousness," Rachel said, trying not to blush. "Last night I was a little—terrified."

Quinn laughed lightly. "I could tell."

"I'll admit, I did a little research beforehand, but it really didn't prepare me for when the time came," Rachel said, burying her face into the pillow.

"At least you didn't run away like I did," Quinn remarked. "I had been at this party and there was this girl from one of my classes. It was the first time I ever danced with another girl, and then we ended up at her dorm. Saying I was terrified would be an understatement, and of course I panicked afterwards and pretended I didn't know her when I ran into her in class. I wasn't ready to admit that I liked girls at that point, but it was a little harder to deny it after that happened."

"So, it definitely could have been worse for me," Rachel joked.

"Well, you were still there in the morning, so yes," Quinn replied, smiling at her.

"How many—" Rachel cleared her throat, not sure if she really wanted to know what she was going to ask. "How many girls have you been with?"

"Three," Quinn answered.

"And guys?" Rachel wondered.

"Just the one," Quinn replied.

Rachel nodded. "Oh."

"Were you expecting it to be more?" Quinn asked.

"No, I just—I don't know," Rachel said with a sigh. "I was just curious. I know before you mentioned that you've dated a couple different women."

"Only one that's really mattered," Quinn replied, looking at her. "But, yes, other than the terrible first time I just told you about, there was only one other, and we dated for a couple months."

"Why did you two break up?" Rachel wondered.

"I just knew it wasn't going to go anywhere," Quinn said with a shrug. "I broke up with her not long after we met again. I told her about Beth and my past. She didn't really want me to see Beth; she told me I was making a huge mistake. So, I broke up with her."

"Well, I'm glad you didn't listen to her," Rachel replied.

"Me too," Quinn whispered.

"That's probably Kurt," Rachel commented when she heard the front door open.

"Will he come in here?" Quinn asked.

"I doubt it," Rachel replied, looking at the clock. "He's rather late tonight. I'm sure he'll just go straight to bed after showering."

"Good," Quinn said with a laugh. "I really didn't want to have to find my clothes."

"I don't want you to have to find your clothes, either," Rachel said, smiling. "I quite like this look."

"Good to know," Quinn said, smiling down at her.

It was amazing to Rachel how comfortable she felt. With Brody and Finn, she had never just laid there in bed with them and talked. Usually, they would fall asleep, or in some cases, leave right after. Quinn, however, was perfectly fine with talking and cuddling, which was something she really hadn't expected of the blonde. Rachel was constantly surprised by Quinn, though, and almost always surprised for the better.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you, but I purchased our plane tickets this morning," Rachel said. "Our flight leaves at 9am and it's a nonstop flight, so we should be in Ohio around 11. I've already asked my fathers to pick us all up from the airport, so everything is taken care of."

"Don't be surprised if I hold onto your hand during the whole flight," Quinn remarked. "I'm not really a huge fan of flying; I get claustrophobic sometimes."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Rachel asked. "We could have driven to Lima or taken the train."

"You know it would take too long," Quinn replied. "We're only going to be there for the weekend and it take half a day to go one way. It wouldn't be worth it."

"It would be worth it if you were more comfortable," Rachel argued.

Quinn smiled and shook her head. "It's okay; it's not like I've never been in a plane before. I just wanted you to know."

"You're sure you will be okay?" Rachel asked.

"I'm sure," Quinn replied.

Rachel sighed softly as she wrapped her around across Quinn's abdomen. She was suddenly worried about Quinn flying, but she had to take her word that she would be okay. She would just be sure to distract Quinn the whole time and hopefully take her mind off things. She had no idea that Quinn was claustrophobic, though now that she thought about it, she was pretty sure Finn had offhandedly mentioned it once.

"I have a feeling this is going to be a very long weekend," Rachel commented after a few moments of silence.

"Probably," Quinn agreed.

"I just hope I can pack up most of Shelby's belongings while I'm there," Rachel said. "My fathers rented a storage unit to put anything I would like to keep in it."

"What are you going to do with the rest?" Quinn asked.

"I'll donate anything that could be of use to people and I guess I'll sell the house," Rachel replied, furrowing her brows slightly. "It almost feels wrong to sell it, but I don't know what else to do. It's not as if I'll ever move back to Lima to live in it." Rachel sighed. "I'm just glad I'm going to have you and Kurt there with me. Hopefully it'll make all of this a little bit easier."

"Just let me know if you need anything while we're there," Quinn said, kissing Rachel's forehead.

Rachel smiled warmly. "I'm sure I'll take you up on that."

"Good," Quinn replied.

"Thank you, Quinn," Rachel said. "For everything."

"No need to thank me," Quinn replied.

"Nevertheless, thank you, anyway," Rachel said, closing her eyes, and listening to the sound of Quinn's heart beating.