You know that I don't own Glee, right? And that I don't own the characters either. At least not the ones that are from the original show. You are already aware of that, I know, because I wrote this disclaimer already 25 times…

Anyway, back to business. :-)

Thanks Nicole for keeping correcting my mistakes. Honestly, I'm always wondering why I did not see them reading over the chapter for the 100th time. I swear, especially those damn typos are hiding from me!

All of you writing reviews and following and 'favoriting' my story … this is so rewarding!

ricetxpeaches: Thanks for the info on the musical! Haven't thought about Rent, but you are right, there are some similarities.

JPElles: Thanks for the PM explanation regarding Kurt. Haven't seen him from that angle before.

Gllover22: Thank you, thank you, thank you!

turnaroundchloe: Tank you for the "breath of fresh air" reference :-)

Chapter 26

Actors, prop guys and technical staff rushed back and forth and each time Rachel and Santana plastered themselves as close to the wall as possible to stay out of the way. Luckily, no one paid them much attention, except one actress who kept her gaze locked on Rachel when her character had a short intermission. Apparently, she recognized her from somewhere, but before she could approach Rachel, she was called by someone and rushed off.

Rachel let out a grateful sigh. She was relieved that she could manage to watch her girlfriend's performance, but was not ready for any interaction just yet with other actors or actresses who were unaware of her condition.

Then Quinn's last scene came up. Just like in the opera, her character also died in the musical, which was a quite a dramatic scene. The brunette quickly glanced at Santana, noticing that the woman with the tough behavior had a tell-tale shimmer in her eyes. Santana had a soft spot, Rachel had always known it, guessing that the music also helped to build up the dramatic setting. Quickly she dropped her own eyes back to her girlfriend standing on the stage, holding on to a lamp postfor support, gasping for air, her body raked by a coughing fit.

This was not an easy scene to play, having to cough, making it sound real and still keep on singing, Rachel could imagine. You just had to find the right balance to make the illness believable, but still not overexert your voice, get out of breath or trigger a real coughing fit.

The young man from the beginning, who had given Quinn's character the flower and had become her lover over the course of the story, came running and just caught her as her legs seemed to give out.

Again, Rachel was mesmerized by the intense mimic on Quinn's face. Not that it was exaggerated, just the way she gestured, grimaced in pain or managed a small smile was so moving and gripping and down to the point. She could feel so much with Antoine, who held her in his arms and gently stroke a strand of hair out of her lovely face. All he could do was hold his sick lover, tell her he loved her over and over – that at least Rachel remembered, though it would not have been hard to guess at that point of the story – and be with her.

She imagined herself in his place, having to see her lover die and it was a thought that was hard to bear. Wondering why this final scene made her react so strongly, she tried to tell herself that it was just a play. But knowing and feeling what it meant to have found the love of your life, a love that filled you completely and made you whole made her connect with the stage character Antoine on an empathic level that almost knocked her off her feet. She looked away and tried to get a grip on herself. Trying to take even breaths, she stepped backwards a bit, slowly bringing more distance between herself and the stage. Focusing on reality, taking in the back-stage surroundings helped a little to calm down and detach a bit from the storyline.

Santana threw her a short glace, making sure she was still there, before concentrating again on the play. Rachel waited until the curtain fell, then stepped closer again, finding Quinn's gaze, smiling, placing a hand on her heart in a silent sign that she absolutely loved her performance.

The blond was slowly placed on her feet by her colleague, getting ready with the rest of the cast to do the obligatory curtain calls. As Santana started clapping, Rachel joined her. Apparently the rest of the audience was cheering outside. Santana touched her own ear, pointed in the direction of the auditorium and then mouthed the words bravo and cheers.

"You think it's a standing ovation?" Rachel then asked.

Santana wrote her answer. Sounds like it.

Rachel smiled proudly. She was happy for Quinn that despite the rush she had managed to plant a great performance, not counting the many little improvisations she had weaved into her acting to make her feel welcome, loved and special. Rachel wondered if any of the other actors and actresses had noticed and if yes, what they thought about it.

Watching one by one of the cast step in front of the curtain to bow to the audience, Rachel decided to go back to the dressing room, before all of them would come rushing by. She informed Santana who nodded and wrote that she would follow in a second.

Rounding the corner, Rachel bumped into someone who was just on the way towards the back stage entrance. Not looking up she quickly mumbled: "Sorry," and slunk past the person. Before rounding the next corner, she snug a glimpse back at whoever she had run into.

That was a mistake, because when she recognized whom she had just crossed paths with, her heart stopped a beat. Rachel saw the woman's mouth move and knew nothing of what she said. She turned and blindly rushed to Quinn's dressing room.

Inside, she leaned against the door and slid down to the floor. Of all people, she had to run into her. Rachel berated herself that had not been able to react in a distant and aloof manner, but still being little emotionally distraught by that last scene, this encounter just threw her off balance. And she hated herself for how she let the other person affect her.

Rachel felt a nudge in her back as someone tried to open the door. She moved a little and when she saw Santana step inside she was relieved that it was her. She got up from the floor and hugged her, not caring what the other woman thought at that moment. Santana held her for a moment, understanding fully how Rachel must have felt. As she had followed her closely, Santana knew what made her react like that.

The smaller woman pulled back after a while, looking at the Latina.

"Did you see her? Do you know what she said? I know she said something to me. Did you hear it?" Her gaze skipped between Santana's eyes and her lips, waiting for a reaction.

Santana nodded and after a short moment of hesitation noted down her answer.

She omitted the other comment she had heard Sharon Basont mutter under her breath as she brushed past her in the hall, figuring Rachel had enough to suck on this one. She also thought it best not to mention that she had not held her breath either listening to the crap coming out of the elder woman's mouth. Santana had not met Rachel's former manager personally, but after hearing about Rachel' experience with her, she had googled the woman and knew how she looked. Know thy enemy, was her rule. She handed the paper to Rachel.

She asked "Enjoying the musical, Rachel?"

Rachel let out a humorless laugh. "Now she is going to think I am a total fraud!"

Why would you be a 'fraud' by being here? Santana wanted to know, even though she knew where this was going.

"Well, what do you think? She sees me here enjoying a musical! A musical for crying out loud. After already accusing me of faking my deafness."

Well, whatever that bitch thinks, you were here for Quinn.

"Yes, but she doesn't know that. Yet, at least."

Santana thought for a moment. You think she might use this also against Quinn, if she finds out?

"If she does, I am never going to forgive myself! I don't know why she would go after Quinn, if she did, it would only be to hurt me further. But maybe we are just interpreting too much into it all." Rachel tried to calm herself. She just could not figure what would be Sharon's gain. She sighed. "Let's forget about her." Rachel smiled shyly. "How was Quinn? I mean her singing?"

Santana smiled back and squeezed Rachel's arm quickly, before writing again.

She was great. Honestly. Her voice has matured so much, it sounds beautifully. This is the perfect role for her.

She watched Rachel closely as she read her words. When she finished, Santana tapped her arm again to get her attention and held out her hand to get the paper back.

How was it for you? She asked with a slightly concerned look as she searched Rachel's eyes.

The petite woman let out a long breath, then shrugged. "It was fascinating to watch her perform and only concentrate on her acting. But I'd be lying if I said I did not miss the singing, the music, hearing the audience react. I only experienced half of it. But at least that half I enjoyed. And the little crazy things that Quinn did made it so much more fun to watch."

Well, if Sharon bitch had not destroyed the mood, this could have been a nice evening. Santana remarked, which made Rachel tense and the Latina quickly appologized. Sorry, just can't get past that woman's attitude. But I am glad that you could enjoy the evening a little bit despite what else happened. Hope our star will come back soon.

"Santana, yes, meeting Sharon rattled me a bit, well, more than it should, but I will not let it diminish everything else, least the performance of my girlfriend!" She smiled, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

Right on mark, Quinn entered the room and looked at that two other women.

"What's going on?" she asked both signing and aloud, her eyes switching between Rachel and Santana, picking up on the slight tension that still lingered in the room.

With a quick glance at Rachel Sanana explained: "Well your girlfriend just had a not so nice encounter with the queen of asshole county."

"With whom?" Quinn's eyes skipped from Santana to Rachel and back. Before Rachel could answer, Santana jumped in.

"That Sharon bitch. She ran into her in the hallway. And this brainless twit had nothing better to do than giving off unqualified remarks about Rachel being here."

"She what!?" Quinn stemmed her hands at her hips. She felt her pulse quicken and her anger rise again at the thought of Rachel being confronted with that horrible woman.

Santana repeated what she had witnessed and then asked: "What is she doing here anyway?"

Quinn shrugged: "I don't know. It is not uncommon for managers to visit shows and seek out actors. Sometimes they try to buy them out of their current contracts if they show promising talent. Even though that's unfair practice, it happens. Maybe she was on a mission. Whatever her reason for being here is, I can't believe she would say something like that to Rachel. I won't let her harass Rachel again. This bitch!"

"Yeah, I'm with you on this one," Santana agreed.

Rachel touched Quinn's arm.

"I lost you after Santana told you about me having met Sharon. What… what are you two talking about?" She then asked looking back and forth between both women, seeing them getting all worked up about their conversation.

Turning to Rachel Quinn noticed the confusion displayed on her face. In all her anger and focus on Sharon Basont, she had completely forgotten to use ASL to accompany their words and thus shut Rachel out of their conversation completely. Quinn felt herself pale at being so inconsiderate towards her girlfriend and quickly signed, shame covering her face.

I am so sorry, Rachel, I was just so upset that I did not think of interpreting. Please forgive me.

"What were you two discussing?" Rachel simply repeated her question after nodding at Quinn's apology. The blonde repeated her and Santana's conversation for her.

"Quinn, I already told Santana, being behind the stage at a musical production is not the most logical place for a deaf person to be, you have to admit that."

"Well, maybe it is if that person used to be a singer before. There are many reasons I can think of for you being here, despite being deaf. Maybe you wanted to visit some old friends, maybe you … I don't know, whatever your reason is, you don't have to justify yourself! Not ever and not in front of that bitch!" Quinn was adamant as her hands sliced the air in front of her.

Rachel did not comment on it, another thought struck her mind. Quinn had told her about the conversation she had with Santana about Sharon some weeks ago. So Rachel knew about the Latina's vehement reaction at the description of her former manager's behavior regarding her deafness.

The small burnette had actually been a bit surprised that Santana wanted to 'go and nail that bitch' as Quinn had described it so fittingly in Santana-style. It honored her to know that she seemed to have found a friend in the Latina who would stand up and fight for her. Then again, knowing Santana and Quinn, each on her own could make the wallpaper catch fire with the sparks that emitted their anger. With one of them or both together on a path of vengeance, Rachel did not want to think about the consequences for the receiving end of their wrath.

So she felt a bit uneasy knowing that Santana had been alone with Sharon in the hallway, even for just a short moment. If the Latina was so close behind her and if she had heard what Sharon had told her, Rachel was not sure the Latina had held her breath.

"Santana, I hope you haven't said anything to Sharon, have you?"

Santana quickly looked between Quinn and Rachel. Then she shrugged.

"Well. What did you want me to do? Just ignore her?"

Quinn signed along Santana's words.

"Santana," Rachel groaned. "What did you say to her?

"Not much. I asked if she didn't get it and that speaking to you, especially in that tone, was just ignorant and disrespectful."

Quinn clenched her jaw. Before she could say anything, Rachel cut her short after having read the respective signs.

"Why would you even talk to her? She doesn't know you and she is – was - not aware that you have any knowledge about her and me!"

"For god's sake, Rachel, she is a mean and heartless asshole! Even Sue Sylvester had more heart than her! And that means something. Sharon is a bitch and I don't like anyone hurting my friends."

Rachel had already taken a breath to respond when reading the last sentence in ASL took the wind out of her sails. Santana truly saw her as a friend. She was not quite sure why she was surprised by that statement. Well, maybe because she always had seen Santana as Quinn's friend and thought the Latina was just nice to her because she was her best friend's girlfriend.

Some of her doubts and surprise must have shown themselves on her face, because Santana looked at her, narrowing her eyes.

"What, Berry, did it surprise you that I call you a friend?" Santana chuckled.

Quinn struggled for a moment, deciding if to actually sign 'Berry' or exchange it for 'Rachel'. She hated it when Santana called Rachel by her last name. Then she thought that it would not be fair to change anything, neither towards Santana nor Rachel. But she could not suppress rolling her eyes as she finger spelled Rachel's last name with her interpretation.

"Yes, Lopez, indeed it does." Rachel quirked an eyebrow pointedly at the Latina with her response.

Santana smirked at hearing Rachel call her by her last name.

"Well, I care about you Rachel. I really do. And not just because you are Quinn's girlfriend."

Rachel held Santana's eyes for a long moment, and then inclined her head in admission.

"Did she say anything to your comment?" Quinn then asked Santana the next obvious question, taking up the thread of their original conversation. In parallel she cherished the small valuable exchange she just had witnessed between the other two women.

Santana stayed quiet for a moment. Then mumbled: "It's not important what she said," without looking at either of her friends.

"Well, what are you not telling, Santana?" Quinn exchanged a quick glance with Rachel.

Hesitating another moment the tall woman then stated unwillingly: "If you must know, she said 'she is as deaf as I am the Queen of England and just took one step too far."

"Ok, that's it. Rachel, I'm not gonna let that woman ruin you. I've said that before, but now I really mean it!"

Rachel placed a hand on Quinn's arm afraid she would immediately rush out the door there to seek Sharon out.

"Quinn, please. You have agreed to wait until something happens. So far, she hasn't done anything except to give off unjustified comments. And if she does turn her threats into action, however they will look like, you still have to talk to me first before you act on impulse. You hear me, Quinn?"

Seeing her lovers features become hard with anger made Rachel wish that she would never be on the receiving side if Quinn vented it. She had to try to keep the lid on for now. How did the saying go? Revenge is a dish best served cold.

Nevertheless, knowing Sharon Rachel feared that the manager would win any battle that might be started by either party. And she was still not up to facing such a dispute, neither in private nor public. She just did not want to waste the time and energy. Moreover, she did not want this to have any repercussions on Quinn. This is what worried her most. Even if Sharon wanted to openly disgrace her, Rachel, and call her a liar, being set on destroying her reputation for whatever fucked-up reason, she did not care as long as it kept her attention away from Quinn. But that was only possible if she managed to keep Quinn away from Sharon as well.

Then another thought struck her. Maybe she was here for Quinn. Maybe she wanted to check her out.

Quinn thought about that for a moment when Rachel spoke her concern out loud.

"No, I think she is here for Michael," she then answered and continued with an explanation. "He's the guy who played Antoine. I know that his contract expires in a couple of weeks and he is looking for a new manager, since he isn't happy with his current one. Hope that he also has other options. He is a nice guy."

Rachel hoped that he was the reason for Sharon being here.

"Yeah, maybe that's it," Santana commented. "You and him looked cute together on stage, by the way."

Rachel nodded. There was a good chemistry between them and Quinn seemed to like Michael. That made acting out such an intense storyline much easier, Rachel knew from her own experience. She recalled the tall handsome guy and his interaction with her girlfriend on stage.

"He got to kiss you." She then blurted out, feeling a little like a kid that had to share her most precious gift. That thought made her want to laugh at herself, but she quickly sobered.

Did Quinn detect a little jealousy there? Observing her girlfriend, she noticed Rachel's little pout, looking quite cute the way she pushed her lower lip out, looking at her from under her lashes. Quinn stepped closer and chuckled.

"You know it's just pretend, right?" She smiled softly and leaned her forehead against Rachel's after finishing signing.

"Hmhm. But you've got to kiss me, too! For real!"

Quinn dipped her head and placed a sweet kiss on her girlfriend's lips.

There, better? She then asked with her hands.

Rachel smiled. "Much!"

"Ugh! Listen, you two lovebirds. Before you start making out in front of me - and I can totally see the allure in doing it in a Broadway dressing room with a hot actress - I'm gonna get outta here. Just got a message from a friend asking me to join her for drink." Santana stated, looking up from her phone. "Can I leave you two alone?"

Waiting until Quinn had finished signing, she continued after both women had nodded in answer to her question. "Great show, Q! Gotta admit, you really swept the audience off their seats with your performance."

Rachel could not resist. "Just them or you as well, Santana?" She asked with a meaningful smile playing around her lips.

Knowing that she was busted, the Latina admitted: "Yeah, well. Me, too. You were awesome, Quinn!"

"Thanks, Santana!" The blonde was genuinely pleased by the compliment.

"And I won't tell her that you had a gooey-eyed look on your face during the last scene," Rachel teased, which awarded her with a good-natured:

"Shut up!" from Santana. Then she threw a:"See ya later," at both of them and was out of the door with a little wave.

Quinn looked at the closed door and then commented her friend's exit.

My, she was in a rush to get out of here. Either she really is eager to meet that 'friend' or she is after Sharon.

"Don't say that Quinn. I don't want either of you to do anything yet. Please. And please forget her for now. Ok? Let's get you ready and get home. You didn't take long for your curtain calls, by the way. Any particular reason for that? Did the audience diss you?" she asked teasingly.

Quinn smiled and shook her head. No, for once I only cared about one person in the audience, and that person was waiting in my dressing room.

Rachel beamed at her and then grabbed Quinn's hand, pulling her to her seat in front of the mirror. She reached for the make-up removal utensils and started to gently wipe off the excess maquillage. She worked in silence, wanting to give her girlfriend some time to digest the evening. Rachel had always liked the solitude of her dressing room after the buzz and activity on and off stage following the performance and curtain calls. It had always given her the possibility to refelect the evening and calm down from the exitement.

Quinn closed her eyes obediently and reveled in the touch of her lover's hands, mixed with little kisses she placed on her lips in between changing the used cotton pads for clean ones. It was nice to just quietly enjoy the tender touches and care after the adrenaline rush that always came with performing.

...…...

After having gotten rid of the excess make-up and costumes, Quinn and Rachel made their way out of the theater through the back entrance. Luckily this was none of the nights where fans lingered outside to ask for autographs. Reaching 45th street, they looked around, but there was no cab in sight, and after a while and tired of waiting Quinn grudgingly conceded to Rachel's suggestion to take the subway.

They stood on the train platform waiting for the train to arrive. When it rushed in, they leisurely strode in and picked a seat, as not too many passengers were waiting with them. The train picked up speed and left the station. Close to the waiting platforms, lights were still fixed to the tunnel walls that rushed by in an eerie blur. Further down the tube, the only light provided came from the subway car itself.

Shortly before their second last stop, the train reduced its speed abruptly and came to a halt in between two stations. Quinn slid into Rachel, as they sat sideways to the direction in which they were going. Rachel had managed to hold on to her seat with a grunt and thus avoided both of them falling off their seats. The lights in the car flickered shortly and then died. The other passengers sharing their car almost gasped in unison at the situation.

Rachel sat motionless for a second, waiting for the lights to go on again. Or at least for some emergency lights to come on. A few moments passed and nothing happened. It was pitch-black and she had no idea what was going on around her. She felt her throat constrict, finding it more and more difficult to force air into her lungs. She let her eyes roam around her in hopes for something she could see.

Rachel felt for Quinn's hand next to her, squeezing it tight, still trying to level out her breathing. It was just so frightening not being able to know what was going on. If she could at least hear the other people, but the only secure knowledge she had was that Quinn was sitting next to her, wrapping her arm around her shoulders, pulling her close.

After the initial moments of shock, some people were turning on their cell phones, the little screens giving off some light, but not enough to ease orientation. As there was no reception anyway, soon they turned them off again to save the battery. Again, Rachel was thrown into a black, soundless world.

She pressed close to Quinn, desperately trying not to become hysterical. Rachel felt Quinn's chest vibrate, apparently trying to sooth her somehow, however much good this did on a verbal level. Still she appreciated the gesture, seeing that her girlfriend understood her fear and panic. After a moment, she felt Quinn trying to pull back her hand which Rachel still held in a deathly grip, but she could not command her fingers to loosen and let go. She was frozen in fear. When Quinn tried to free her other arm, she only managed to shake her head and whisper "no," in a choked voice.

Quinn was at a loss. She had no idea how to communicate with Rachel. Sign language would not work as she would not be able to see her hands. And Rachel would have to let go of her hands first, anyway. Quinn wanted to reach into her purse to pull out her own mobile phone. This way they would be able to at least communicate via text message, because those would be visible in the dark wagon.
She could absolutely understand Rachel's state of terror. Usually Rachel could at least visually assure herself what was going on around her, but being robbed of two senses was just too much. Quinn needed to communicate with her somehow, raking her brain to find a solution without having to let go of the small body pressed into her.

Finally, she had an idea.

Rachel had no clue what Quinn was doing at first. She only knew that she could not let go of that hand she so fiercely gripped. It was her lifeline; her only connection to sanity; the only connection that kept her from breaking down into hysterical sobs. When she felt her girlfriend wanting to move and berate Rachel of her only hold that kept her safe, she could not allow this. Then she felt Quinn's movements cease for a moment, apparently having noticed the other woman's predicament, for which Rachel was indescribable grateful.

What surprised her then was that Quinn's hand shifted again ever so slightly, but without moving away. She just rearranged her hand in her gripp. It felt strange and she gave Rachel's hand a small shake as if to draw her attention to it. At first she had no idea what Quinn wanted to tell her, but then she felt her do the same motion again.

Slowly Quinn formed a 'c' from the finger alphabet with her hand that laid in Rachel's. It took a moment until Rachel realized what she was doing. So Quinn purposefully repeated the gesture until she caught on. Tentatively the brunette then grazed her fingers over her girlfriend's offered hand and understood. She was trying to tell her something concrete through the finger alphabet.

Next Quinn placed three fingers on her thumb for 'e', next the letter 'l' came twice . When she changed the position of her fingers each time, she felt Rachel's trace her own and nod against her shoulder when she got the meaning of the letters. With the next word she only needed to form the first three letters 'p', 'h' and 'o'.

Rachel caught on to the whole message and Quinn did not need to finish. She loosened her grip at least this much that Quinn could get her phone. Rachel felt a bit embarrassed that she had not come up with this idea of just grabbing her own and write a text message. Instead she had shifted right into full panic mode. She was still shaking and found it hard to calm down, even though she knew she was not alone. But her primal instincts would not let themselves be so easily convinced by her rational mind that tried to convince her that everything would be ok, that she was safe. It took all her strength to concentrate on the contact with Quinn, on taking one breath after the other, slowly and deeply to avoid hyperventilating.

When would this damn train finally move on? She wanted to get out of here as fast as possible. She needed light, she needed to be able to assess the situation around her, she needed some control back. That was the most scaring thing about it all. She had no control and no means of gaining it back without being able to at least see.

So when Quinn's mobile entered her vision, she was glad for the distraction and possibility to communicate again.

Rachel, we are safe, nothing is going to happen, ok? I am here for you. You are not alone.

When she was sure her girlfriend had read the message, she held the phone up to illuminate her own face and turned a bit so Rachel could see her eyes. She wanted her to be absolutely sure that Quinn would be there for her in this frightening situation and that she could lean on her. Rachel bent forward, touching her forehead with her own, nodding.

"Thank you," she then heard her whisper with a shaky voice. "Do you know what happened?"

Quinn shook her head, just as someone with a flashlight and a signal vest entered the wagon. The guy stood in the middle and shortly announced that there had been a short circuit due to some construction work that unfortunately severed the whole cable beam responsible for the tunnel's electricity. The short circuit had looped back into the train and affected the emergency generators as well. Therefore it was not possible to get any lights on or get the train moving on its own.

They were currently trying to fix the damage. It would probably take another half hour until they should be able to get moving again or at least be towed or pushed out to the next station by an emergency car. So far the transit authorities had decided that it was safest for the passengers to stay in the car and wait, instead of being evacuated through the tunnel, as the repairs or the towing possibility were quite imminent.

Rachel's eyes moved between the official and Quinn, but due to the dim lightning she had no chance of grasping anything that was being said. She tried to be patient and wait until Quinn was able to type the message into her phone.

"Another half hour?" she then asked breathlessly as she read the message. "They could have at least brought some lamps." The prospect of further being trapped in this situation was not very appealing to Rachel, to say the least. She moved closer to Quinn again, who slung her arm around her shoulders protectively, pulling her close. Her mobile phone lay in her lap and she decided she needed to distract Rachel and herself.

Picking up the device, she typed another message:

Do you know which songs Kurt has chosen for his wedding? I'm sure he has planned this already down to the last minute :-)

Holding the screen in front of Rachel, the other woman perked up and then took it out of Quinn's hand to type her answer.

Yes, but I was sworn to secrecy upon death penalty should I spill anything about it.

Good Lord, is it really that bad? What on earth did he chose? Lemme guess: either Sarah Brightman or … or… haha, Barry White!

Rachel gulped when she saw the words, for once being glad that it was otherwise dark inside the train car. Because Quinn would have seen the tell-tale signs on her face that she had hit the bulls eye with her remark. She quickly let her thumb fly over the letters in a little lie.

No. Way off. You'll never guess. Then she asked herself why she was typing her answers. Probably because she could not see Quinn's reaction to know her words reached her. Nevertheless the next words she spoke out aloud. "Give it up Quinn. You know Kurt, he'll have some extravaganza planned that you can never ever imagine."

Quinn snatched her phone back, throwing her girlfriend a challenging look that she could not see.

Exactly. I know Kurt. So the game is on, Rachel. Before they get married, I will know which music they will play.

"Fine, if you want to escort me to the guillotine, then don't hold back. Kurt will think that I spilled the beans. Maybe he will even un-invite me – us - from the wedding. That would do, Quinn."

C'mon, Rachel, he doesn't have to know! We will tell him after the wedding.

"We? You, Quinn, only you. I'll have nothing to do with this. I gave him my promise. Even you can't make me break that," she said with a smile and leaned into Quinn a little to show that she was not really angry, just mocking offense.

Fine, just me. Oh I have another song inspiration: Going to the chapel by The Dixie Cups!

"Good Lord." Rachel sighed; already imagining being woken up in the night only having to "listen" to Quinn's outrageous song suggestions that Kurt might have chosen.

What's that sigh for?

"Nothing." She leaned her head against Quinn's shoulder. "I want to get out of here. Now. Can we please get moving again?" She then mumbled under her breath. "This is really unnerving."

Quinn reached around Rachel's shoulder again, holding her close, typing I know with one hand on her mobile phone. She already felt oppressed by the atmosphere in this damn train, with hardly any light, not knowing when they would get out. She was anxiously listening to the conversations and little movements around her and she could only guess how Rachel must feel. Hard as it was, she was glad that she was with her. Quinn had never favored enclosed surroundings, tunnels creeped her out and taking the subway had usually to be avoided at any cost. Of course something like that had to happen once she decided to be on one. Perfect example of Murphy's law.

Then they sat in silence for a while, leaning into each other, neither of them knowing what to say for the moment, silently praying to be relieved of this situation soon.

I have to admit, I am absolutely no fan of trains getting stuck. They are great to participate in the ATP (Alternative Travel Project), but I cannot stand it if they break down. No matter if it is shortly before reaching the train station, if it is in a tunnel or elsewhere in the middle of nowhere.

I am car-spoiled, I confess. It's either that or my 1 PS :-). Or my bike. Or my feet.