Fic: The Alphabet of Rachel Berry part 13 (Glee)
Title: The Alphabet of Rachel Berry part 13
Author: meremortal2k5
Rating: R (Hard)
Word Count: 3600
Pairing: Rachel/Quinn
Spoilers: All aired episodes.
Authors Notes: were!peen weirdness. All mistakes are my own, especially concerning the religious/mythological content and the hour or so I spent on research.
Prologue - http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/17634.html#cutid1
Part 1- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/17675.html#cutid1
Part 2- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18147.html#cutid1
Part 3- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18267.html#cutid1
Part 4- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18502.html#cutid1
Part 5- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18740.html#cutid1
Part 6- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19121.html#cutid1
Part 7-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19447.html#cutid1
Part 8-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19675.html#cutid1
Part 9-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19803.html#cutid1
Part 10-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19977.html#cutid1
Part 11-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/20384.html#cutid1
Part 12 http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/20689.html#cutid1
It wasn’t my fault that Santana and Brittany emerged from Quinn’s room with an entirely too satisfied look on both of their faces. It wasn’t. I may have slowed down our departure from my home by searching for something suitable to wear for tomorrow morning and packing it in to a small carry-all, but it was Quinn who picked out simple soft pink boxers and a t-shirt for me to wear to bed. Therefore, it was her fault that it took us an extra thirty minutes before we even started the drive to her home.
Huh? I hear you say. Well, Quinn Fabray is some sort of cotton fetishist because her hazel eyes became glazed over as soon as she set them to my underwear draw.
At first, I watched in amusement as she fingered a pair of my plain white briefs. They certainly weren’t what I would call sexy but they were definitely my most comfortable and well-worn panties. Then I watched a slow blush colour her cheeks when she ran her fingers over a faded pair of blue ‘Wednesday’ boyshorts, and then my, what used to be red, ‘Friday’ shorts. I don’t know what happened to the rest of the days of the week, they were probably thrown away some time ago as they fell into disrepair.
I only had a single pair of what I would call sexy lingerie. A matching lace bra and panty set in a beautiful rose pink, but Quinn didn’t even look twice at those as she continued to riffle through my underwear draw.
“Really, Quinn? I’m fully capable of choosing what to wear for our sleepover tonight.” I shook my head, but I was still highly amused by her.
She flicked her gaze at me and blushed further. “You’ll need boxers again.” Her throat bobbed as she swallowed thickly, fully ignoring what I had said.
I huffed as I pulled out my second drawer. Sweat shorts, booty shorts, boxer shorts and board shorts. I didn’t fail to notice the quirk of her lips when she spotted the brightly coloured board shorts, but she didn’t say anything about them. What Quinn actually did was zero in on a pair of pale pink boxers. She pulled them out of the drawer, stroking the material between her fingers.
“Do you like these?” She breathed and I was half expecting her to rub the soft material against her face.
I nodded. “They’re one of my favourite pairs.”
“Good.” She seemed reluctant to hand them over to me, but she did so before tugging open the next drawer down. She ran her fingers over my sleep shirts, pyjamas and vest tops. It was a greyish/white jersey t-shirt that had seen much better days, that took Quinn’s fancy this time. Granted, it was one of my favourite t-shirts to lounge about in, but the threadbare material was starting to drop into small holes, and would not give the right first impression if I were by chance, seen by Mrs Fabray.
“Quinn?” I was exasperated by her choices. “I do have other, less worn, shirts to wear for bed. Please, let me choose one of those?”
She shook her head at me then. “Please, Rachel?” Her face is flushed, and not all of the colour stemmed from our earlier activities. I honestly believed right then and there, that Quinn Fabray liked cotton in a freaky way. “They’re so soft.” She blushes furiously and I’m taken aback by her embarrassment. “They’re as,” Her voice was barely above a whisper and she couldn’t look me in the eye. “Soft as your skin.”
Oh wow! She’s a sweet talker alright, and I’m a pushover where she’s concerned, so I sigh. “Fine.”
Next thing I know is that I’m being pushed up against my drawers, and Quinn is ravishing my mouth while her hands are in my hair, tugging me closer, and all the while I’m begging her to let me repay my earlier debt.
See? It was Quinn’s fault that we were longer than what was prudent, oh, and we stopped for soy Frappuccino’s, so I don’t know why she is currently glaring at me while Santana and Brittany just look smug.
I stiffen slightly when Brittany bounces over to hug me. She’s still a little sweaty from whatever she and Santana have been doing in Quinn’s bedroom, and I really don’t need to be thinking about what it was they had been up to. I was only human after all.
“Are you feeling better, Rachel?” She’s looking down at me but she hasn’t released me from her arms. “You had us all worried, even San.”
I can’t help the smile that stretches across my face when Santana blushes. “I wasn’t feeling too well last night, Brittany, but Quinn stayed with me and now I feel just fine.”
“You stayed all night?” Santana’s frown mars her beauty as she looks to Quinn and then back to me. “Weren’t your dads home? I felt for sure that they’d string Fabray up as soon as they saw her.”
Quinn scowls as she crosses her arms over her chest.
“My fathers were going out.” I gently extricate myself from Brittany’s hug and stand closer to Quinn. “They would’ve stayed home to look after me, but Quinn offered to stay and help me out. I didn’t really want my fathers to know just how ill I’d been because they would’ve been all worried and then they’d start talking about calling out the emergency doctor or taking me to the hospital. They can overreact horribly sometimes, but I didn’t feel up to being left alone.”
“Breathe, Berry.” Santana shakes her head at me. “I don’t really care if you and Q spent the night together. We’re a team after all, and we need to help each other out.”
My eyebrows rose at that. Did Santana Lopez just call us a team?
She scowls at my incredulous expression. “Things have changed, Berry, especially after the debacle that was Nationals.”
“You threatened me in Spanish.”
“And I’m not apologising for that.” The Latina snaps. “I was angry that you and Finnocence got all up on each other in front of everyone and ruined our chances of winning.”
“That was Finn.” I huff but hold off on stamping my foot when I see a smirk start to lift the corners of Quinn’s lips.
“I don’t care who was to blame,” Santana glares. “As far as I was concerned, your lips and his lips together made me want to vomit, and lost us the Nationals title. Now, you’ve broken things off with him and for the first time, I get the impression that it’s permanent.” She crosses her arms over her chest as she continues. “I also get the impression that you didn’t like losing as much as I didn’t, and that you broke Finnept’s heart for the good of Glee. That makes you like Jesus in my book or Bruce Willis in Armageddon. Why do you think I’ve been so nice to you?”
Did I miss something? She’s been nice to me? My eyes snap to Quinn when she snorts.
“That movie made Lord Tubbington cry.” Our eyes turn to Brittany and then back to Santana when she doesn’t say anything else.
“Anyway,” Santana quirks a smile at me. “We’re good now.” She says it as though the last few years were just a snarky argument between best buddies. “I still wonder why your dads even let Q here through the front door though.”
“My dads know who Quinn is,” I sigh. “But they also trust my judgement. They also believe in the adage ‘to err is human, to forgive, divine’.”
“So all is forgiven between you two?” Brittany looks puzzled until she starts to smile. “Great, we can double date.”
I swallow harshly and Santana laughs. Quinn doesn’t even bat an eyelid at her friend’s remark.
“You’ve got it all wrong, babe.” The Latina turns to her girlfriend. “You and I date, but Q and Berry are just friends.” She then glances over at Quinn. “You are friends now, right?”
She shrugs her shoulders before looking to me. “You could say that.”
Dear Lord, Quinn Fabray would be hell to play poker with. The girl can seriously keep a straight face.
There is way more than friendship going on between us, but I’m grateful that she’s keeping quiet for now. I certainly don’t have any desire to share what we’ve become with others, or explain what it is that we’re actually doing, when I can hardly come to terms with it in my own mind.
“Cool.” Santana grins. “Britt-Britt and I’ll go put some music on and start clearing up cans and bottles outside.” Her grin slips into a sly smirk. “We’ve stripped your bed and put the sheets in the hamper, but you’ll probably need to open the windows and shit. Stinks like sex in there.”
I groan and shake my head as the new couple saunter off down the stairs with their pinkies linked.
Quinn’s scowling at me again. “This is your fault, Rachel.”
My eyes widen as she points at her bedroom door. “If I’m not mistaken, Quinn, you were the one who spent an inordinate amount of time searching through my panties, and then kissing me within an inch of my life. Not the other way around.”
A fine blonde brow shoots up. “Are you saying that you didn’t like it?”
“Well,” I huff. “I could’ve done without the ten minutes spent rifling through my underwear.”
She’s back to blushing, and maybe I shouldn’t keep mentioning the underwear thing because it seems to embarrass her. I didn’t really mind, not at all, I just don’t like being blamed for something that I didn’t do.
She steps towards me, backing me up against the wall besides her bedroom door. “And, what about me kissing you to within an inch of your life? Did you or didn’t you enjoy that as much as I did?”
“Of course I did.” I gasp as she presses her body into mine. “But that was your doing, Quinn,” I swallow. “Therefore, it’s not my fault that Santana and Brittany had sex in your room.”
"It's still your fault," She breathes just before our lips collide. "Because I keep on," She sucks on my bottom lip and my knees give, but she's holding me up by the press of her body. "Needing to do this." She grabs my hips and kisses me forcefully before she pushes away from me and sucks in a deep breath.
"Okay." I relent dazedly.
"Could you open the windows when you drop your bag in there?" She's back to smirking at me. "I need to go check on San and Britt. They're probably christening the kitchen table and I'll never be able to eat there again if they are."
"Okay." I'm still feeling that toe curling kiss and I would do anything for Quinn right now. I turn and open her bedroom door as she saunters off down the stairs.
..............................................
"Took you long enough, Berry." Santana stops gathering the glass bottles as she turns to smirk at me. "What were you doing up there? Enjoying the ambience?"
My lip curls with distaste. "That's disgusting, Santana." I scowl because honestly? I tried to get out of Quinn's bedroom as quickly as I could. I don't know what sex smells like, and unless its the scent of Quinn and I that permeates the air, I really don't want to find out, but I'm not sure if Little Rachel would feel the same way, and getting a rise around the Cheerio's would certainly end in disaster. "I was in the kitchen looking for the Fabreeze, if you must know, or at least some scented candles, in case the open windows don't do the trick."
Santana scowls at me. "Shut up and go wake up the jolly green giant."
My eyebrows furrow in confusion and I place my hands on my hips as I look around the Fabray garden.
"What are you talking about?" Quinn drops yet another empty can into a bin bag. She comes closer to us, looking around too.
Santana rolls her eyes. "Observant aren't we?" She points over to where part of the garden had been landscaped with small bushes and shrubs.
Both Quinn's and my matching expression of aversion must amuse Santana because she’s currently laughing herself silly.
“He wouldn’t like it if I woke him.” She waggled a half full bottle of stale beer and raised an eyebrow at Quinn. “And, I don’t think he’d appreciate Q kicking his ass out of here.” She pulled out one of the garden chairs, tipping it up so that the chips fell off and then collapsed into it. Santana then reached for one of the four Frappuccino’s that I’d bought and that Brittany had placed on the garden table before taking a seat herself.
Quinn’s eyes flashed dangerously at seeing her ex snuggled up to one of her mother’s plants. I really can’t blame Quinn for her anger towards Finn, especially after he convinced her to cheat on Sam for him, treated her so badly at prom, and then broke up with her at a funeral. The boy was anything but sensitive, and I’m glad that we’re both no longer tied to Finn Hudson in any way, except for the fact that he still keeps asking me out. I also suspect that Quinn’s anger doesn’t completely stem from the way he acted with her, but also how he acts with me. Is it too early to think that maybe she’s a little jealous?
I grab for the vanilla flavoured iced beverage that Quinn had chosen before and hand it to her. “I’ll be back in just a moment. Please guard my drink from anything that Santana thinks would be funny to put in it.”
Quinn’s eyes narrow at me for just a moment before she relents. “Fine.” She then turns her gaze to her friend. “Don’t, Santana.”
Santana just smirks and relaxes back in her chair as three sets of eyes watch me walk away.
I really don’t want to do this and wonder as to why no one made sure he got home once the party had ended. I would never be so irresponsible and thoughtless.
I can feel her eyes on me as I close the distance between myself and a slumbering Finn Hudson. My lips curl into a smug smile. She’s watching me like a hawk, I just know it.
Bending at the knees, I’m careful to keep them together so as not to give Finn, or the girls behind me, a show, I shake Finn’s shoulder. “Wake up, Finn. It’s time to go home.”
“Rache.” He grumbles sleepily before a huge smile starts to stretch his face. I grimace at the little sticks and leaves stuck to his dirty face and I swear that he smells like alcohol and vomit. “I knew we’d,” He yawns and throws his arms out to stretch as he turns over to grin up at me. “Hook up at Puck’s party. How was I?”
My eyes widen at his erroneous assumption. It’s then that he notices a pale blue sky above him and not a bedroom ceiling. He looks around quickly, probably spotting the others, before scrambling ungainly to his feet. I reach out to steady him as he wobbles and grabs his head, but I’m grateful when he seems to right himself.
“We didn’t hook up?”
I sigh. “Finn, I went home whilst you continued to drink yourself into an unsightly mess. We certainly did not, and never will, hook up.” I feel like pressing the point of my finger into his chest, but I really didn’t want to touch him. I still hadn’t worked out wear that god-awful smell was coming from.
“But, Rache.” He whines. “We were so good together.”
I can’t help but scoff at his remark. “I’ve offered you friendship, Finn. That is all I’m offering, and if you continue to badger me into going back out with you, I will rescind that offer.” I place my hands on my hips. “We were never all that good together, Finn. We both deserve better.”
“But, Rache,” He whines again. “You love me. We’re Finn and Rachel.”
I roll my eyes. “I thought I loved you, but I get it now. Our relationship was always something that I thought I should have, instead of what I really wanted.” I’m back to sighing as my shoulders slump with the realisation of what I did. “You’re tall, dark and handsome, Finn. You’re leading man material for some girl, just not me. Not anymore. I used you, and I’m truly sorry for that.” I glance over at the other girls, letting my eyes settle for a second on Quinn. I’m already fighting off a smile at just seeing her. I never felt like that for Finn. It was all forced and fake.
“But, Rache.”
“No, Finn. Go home.” I watch as he frowns at me and I pretty much know what he’s about to ask before it even comes out of his mouth.
“There’s another guy, right?” His frown deepens and I take a step backwards. “Is Jessie back in town?”
“There’s not another guy.” I purse my lips, trying to figure out just how much to tell him. “I just want to be myself, and I can’t be that with you.”
“But, why?”
“Because she’s not interested, Finncompetent.” Santana scowls up at him, and when I turn around, I realise that she, Brittany and Quinn have all crossed the yard. “I think it’s time for you to build a bridge and get over it.” She shakes her head at him. “Go fuck a Cheerio or two. I’m sure that that’ll take your mind off of the heartache. It did last time.”
“This isn’t any of your business, Santana.” Finn growls.
I don’t like the flash of anger I see in Quinn’s eyes so I take another step back. Before I can go to her though, Santana has thrown her arm around my shoulder and is pulling me into her side. I might be rapidly blinking my surprise, but years of acting classes help me to convey to Finn that this is actually normal.
“Berry’s a friend, so it is my business.” Santana scowls back.
Finn seems to grow impossibly taller. “Since when?”
“Since she broke up with you, douche bag.” She turns her dark eyes to me and gives me a sly wink. Now I’m starting to get nervous that Quinn will get the wrong idea about her and me, instead of Finn and me. “And, since her clothes stopped making my eyes bleed. Nice bikini yesterday by the way. Congrats. You gots to show off the hot bod a little more.”
Finn’s mouth opens and closes and then opens again before Brittany pipes in. “Kurt’s on his way to pick you up, Finn. You can meet him on the curb out front.” She waves her cell and steps to my other side as she glares at my ex. Quinn comes into line and I send her a quick smile.
I really don’t have a clue as to what is going on here, but I am grateful for Santana’s help. Finn can be more than a little intimidating when he towers over you.
Finn huffs as he looks at me. “Fine, Rachel. We’re through.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying, Finn.” I narrow my eyes at him but he just huffs again and then storms off across the yard towards the gate. I watch him carefully until he’s gone and then I send Santana a puzzled look.
“What?” She slips her arm from my shoulders and grabs for Brittany’s hand, tugging her back towards the table.
“What was that, Santana?” Quinn calls after them, but she lingers back with me. Her fingers brush mine and I’d really love it if she would hold my hand.
I try to hide my surprise when Quinn links her arm with mine and starts to walk towards the others, pulling me at first until I step in time with her.
“You and Rachel are friends now, since when?” Quinn hands me my Frappuccino as we all sit down, ignoring the rest of the mess for now.
Santana looks at me for a little while before she smiles softly. “She’s not as bad as I thought she was.” She shrugs. “And like I said earlier, breaking up with Hudson for the sake of Glee, that was the most unselfish thing I think she’s ever done. She’s all good in my books.”
I return her smile and turn my gaze to Quinn as Santana leans forward to press a kiss to Brittany’s lips. I lick my lips and watch as her eyes darken.
“Looks like Finn’s off your back for now.” She’s smirking and I can’t help but smile widely at her. “So, you want to be yourself? Is that anything I can help you with?” Her voice is low enough for only me to hear even if Santana and Brittany weren’t currently occupied with each other.
I nod coquettishly. “I’m more than positive that you’re all the help I need, Quinn.”
Tbc
Author: meremortal2k5
Rating: R (Hard)
Word Count: 3600
Pairing: Rachel/Quinn
Spoilers: All aired episodes.
Authors Notes: were!peen weirdness. All mistakes are my own, especially concerning the religious/mythological content and the hour or so I spent on research.
Prologue - http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/17634.html#cutid1
Part 1- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/17675.html#cutid1
Part 2- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18147.html#cutid1
Part 3- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18267.html#cutid1
Part 4- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18502.html#cutid1
Part 5- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/18740.html#cutid1
Part 6- http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19121.html#cutid1
Part 7-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19447.html#cutid1
Part 8-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19675.html#cutid1
Part 9-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19803.html#cutid1
Part 10-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/19977.html#cutid1
Part 11-http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/20384.html#cutid1
Part 12 http://meremortal2k5.livejournal.com/20689.html#cutid1
It wasn’t my fault that Santana and Brittany emerged from Quinn’s room with an entirely too satisfied look on both of their faces. It wasn’t. I may have slowed down our departure from my home by searching for something suitable to wear for tomorrow morning and packing it in to a small carry-all, but it was Quinn who picked out simple soft pink boxers and a t-shirt for me to wear to bed. Therefore, it was her fault that it took us an extra thirty minutes before we even started the drive to her home.
Huh? I hear you say. Well, Quinn Fabray is some sort of cotton fetishist because her hazel eyes became glazed over as soon as she set them to my underwear draw.
At first, I watched in amusement as she fingered a pair of my plain white briefs. They certainly weren’t what I would call sexy but they were definitely my most comfortable and well-worn panties. Then I watched a slow blush colour her cheeks when she ran her fingers over a faded pair of blue ‘Wednesday’ boyshorts, and then my, what used to be red, ‘Friday’ shorts. I don’t know what happened to the rest of the days of the week, they were probably thrown away some time ago as they fell into disrepair.
I only had a single pair of what I would call sexy lingerie. A matching lace bra and panty set in a beautiful rose pink, but Quinn didn’t even look twice at those as she continued to riffle through my underwear draw.
“Really, Quinn? I’m fully capable of choosing what to wear for our sleepover tonight.” I shook my head, but I was still highly amused by her.
She flicked her gaze at me and blushed further. “You’ll need boxers again.” Her throat bobbed as she swallowed thickly, fully ignoring what I had said.
I huffed as I pulled out my second drawer. Sweat shorts, booty shorts, boxer shorts and board shorts. I didn’t fail to notice the quirk of her lips when she spotted the brightly coloured board shorts, but she didn’t say anything about them. What Quinn actually did was zero in on a pair of pale pink boxers. She pulled them out of the drawer, stroking the material between her fingers.
“Do you like these?” She breathed and I was half expecting her to rub the soft material against her face.
I nodded. “They’re one of my favourite pairs.”
“Good.” She seemed reluctant to hand them over to me, but she did so before tugging open the next drawer down. She ran her fingers over my sleep shirts, pyjamas and vest tops. It was a greyish/white jersey t-shirt that had seen much better days, that took Quinn’s fancy this time. Granted, it was one of my favourite t-shirts to lounge about in, but the threadbare material was starting to drop into small holes, and would not give the right first impression if I were by chance, seen by Mrs Fabray.
“Quinn?” I was exasperated by her choices. “I do have other, less worn, shirts to wear for bed. Please, let me choose one of those?”
She shook her head at me then. “Please, Rachel?” Her face is flushed, and not all of the colour stemmed from our earlier activities. I honestly believed right then and there, that Quinn Fabray liked cotton in a freaky way. “They’re so soft.” She blushes furiously and I’m taken aback by her embarrassment. “They’re as,” Her voice was barely above a whisper and she couldn’t look me in the eye. “Soft as your skin.”
Oh wow! She’s a sweet talker alright, and I’m a pushover where she’s concerned, so I sigh. “Fine.”
Next thing I know is that I’m being pushed up against my drawers, and Quinn is ravishing my mouth while her hands are in my hair, tugging me closer, and all the while I’m begging her to let me repay my earlier debt.
See? It was Quinn’s fault that we were longer than what was prudent, oh, and we stopped for soy Frappuccino’s, so I don’t know why she is currently glaring at me while Santana and Brittany just look smug.
I stiffen slightly when Brittany bounces over to hug me. She’s still a little sweaty from whatever she and Santana have been doing in Quinn’s bedroom, and I really don’t need to be thinking about what it was they had been up to. I was only human after all.
“Are you feeling better, Rachel?” She’s looking down at me but she hasn’t released me from her arms. “You had us all worried, even San.”
I can’t help the smile that stretches across my face when Santana blushes. “I wasn’t feeling too well last night, Brittany, but Quinn stayed with me and now I feel just fine.”
“You stayed all night?” Santana’s frown mars her beauty as she looks to Quinn and then back to me. “Weren’t your dads home? I felt for sure that they’d string Fabray up as soon as they saw her.”
Quinn scowls as she crosses her arms over her chest.
“My fathers were going out.” I gently extricate myself from Brittany’s hug and stand closer to Quinn. “They would’ve stayed home to look after me, but Quinn offered to stay and help me out. I didn’t really want my fathers to know just how ill I’d been because they would’ve been all worried and then they’d start talking about calling out the emergency doctor or taking me to the hospital. They can overreact horribly sometimes, but I didn’t feel up to being left alone.”
“Breathe, Berry.” Santana shakes her head at me. “I don’t really care if you and Q spent the night together. We’re a team after all, and we need to help each other out.”
My eyebrows rose at that. Did Santana Lopez just call us a team?
She scowls at my incredulous expression. “Things have changed, Berry, especially after the debacle that was Nationals.”
“You threatened me in Spanish.”
“And I’m not apologising for that.” The Latina snaps. “I was angry that you and Finnocence got all up on each other in front of everyone and ruined our chances of winning.”
“That was Finn.” I huff but hold off on stamping my foot when I see a smirk start to lift the corners of Quinn’s lips.
“I don’t care who was to blame,” Santana glares. “As far as I was concerned, your lips and his lips together made me want to vomit, and lost us the Nationals title. Now, you’ve broken things off with him and for the first time, I get the impression that it’s permanent.” She crosses her arms over her chest as she continues. “I also get the impression that you didn’t like losing as much as I didn’t, and that you broke Finnept’s heart for the good of Glee. That makes you like Jesus in my book or Bruce Willis in Armageddon. Why do you think I’ve been so nice to you?”
Did I miss something? She’s been nice to me? My eyes snap to Quinn when she snorts.
“That movie made Lord Tubbington cry.” Our eyes turn to Brittany and then back to Santana when she doesn’t say anything else.
“Anyway,” Santana quirks a smile at me. “We’re good now.” She says it as though the last few years were just a snarky argument between best buddies. “I still wonder why your dads even let Q here through the front door though.”
“My dads know who Quinn is,” I sigh. “But they also trust my judgement. They also believe in the adage ‘to err is human, to forgive, divine’.”
“So all is forgiven between you two?” Brittany looks puzzled until she starts to smile. “Great, we can double date.”
I swallow harshly and Santana laughs. Quinn doesn’t even bat an eyelid at her friend’s remark.
“You’ve got it all wrong, babe.” The Latina turns to her girlfriend. “You and I date, but Q and Berry are just friends.” She then glances over at Quinn. “You are friends now, right?”
She shrugs her shoulders before looking to me. “You could say that.”
Dear Lord, Quinn Fabray would be hell to play poker with. The girl can seriously keep a straight face.
There is way more than friendship going on between us, but I’m grateful that she’s keeping quiet for now. I certainly don’t have any desire to share what we’ve become with others, or explain what it is that we’re actually doing, when I can hardly come to terms with it in my own mind.
“Cool.” Santana grins. “Britt-Britt and I’ll go put some music on and start clearing up cans and bottles outside.” Her grin slips into a sly smirk. “We’ve stripped your bed and put the sheets in the hamper, but you’ll probably need to open the windows and shit. Stinks like sex in there.”
I groan and shake my head as the new couple saunter off down the stairs with their pinkies linked.
Quinn’s scowling at me again. “This is your fault, Rachel.”
My eyes widen as she points at her bedroom door. “If I’m not mistaken, Quinn, you were the one who spent an inordinate amount of time searching through my panties, and then kissing me within an inch of my life. Not the other way around.”
A fine blonde brow shoots up. “Are you saying that you didn’t like it?”
“Well,” I huff. “I could’ve done without the ten minutes spent rifling through my underwear.”
She’s back to blushing, and maybe I shouldn’t keep mentioning the underwear thing because it seems to embarrass her. I didn’t really mind, not at all, I just don’t like being blamed for something that I didn’t do.
She steps towards me, backing me up against the wall besides her bedroom door. “And, what about me kissing you to within an inch of your life? Did you or didn’t you enjoy that as much as I did?”
“Of course I did.” I gasp as she presses her body into mine. “But that was your doing, Quinn,” I swallow. “Therefore, it’s not my fault that Santana and Brittany had sex in your room.”
"It's still your fault," She breathes just before our lips collide. "Because I keep on," She sucks on my bottom lip and my knees give, but she's holding me up by the press of her body. "Needing to do this." She grabs my hips and kisses me forcefully before she pushes away from me and sucks in a deep breath.
"Okay." I relent dazedly.
"Could you open the windows when you drop your bag in there?" She's back to smirking at me. "I need to go check on San and Britt. They're probably christening the kitchen table and I'll never be able to eat there again if they are."
"Okay." I'm still feeling that toe curling kiss and I would do anything for Quinn right now. I turn and open her bedroom door as she saunters off down the stairs.
..............................................
"Took you long enough, Berry." Santana stops gathering the glass bottles as she turns to smirk at me. "What were you doing up there? Enjoying the ambience?"
My lip curls with distaste. "That's disgusting, Santana." I scowl because honestly? I tried to get out of Quinn's bedroom as quickly as I could. I don't know what sex smells like, and unless its the scent of Quinn and I that permeates the air, I really don't want to find out, but I'm not sure if Little Rachel would feel the same way, and getting a rise around the Cheerio's would certainly end in disaster. "I was in the kitchen looking for the Fabreeze, if you must know, or at least some scented candles, in case the open windows don't do the trick."
Santana scowls at me. "Shut up and go wake up the jolly green giant."
My eyebrows furrow in confusion and I place my hands on my hips as I look around the Fabray garden.
"What are you talking about?" Quinn drops yet another empty can into a bin bag. She comes closer to us, looking around too.
Santana rolls her eyes. "Observant aren't we?" She points over to where part of the garden had been landscaped with small bushes and shrubs.
Both Quinn's and my matching expression of aversion must amuse Santana because she’s currently laughing herself silly.
“He wouldn’t like it if I woke him.” She waggled a half full bottle of stale beer and raised an eyebrow at Quinn. “And, I don’t think he’d appreciate Q kicking his ass out of here.” She pulled out one of the garden chairs, tipping it up so that the chips fell off and then collapsed into it. Santana then reached for one of the four Frappuccino’s that I’d bought and that Brittany had placed on the garden table before taking a seat herself.
Quinn’s eyes flashed dangerously at seeing her ex snuggled up to one of her mother’s plants. I really can’t blame Quinn for her anger towards Finn, especially after he convinced her to cheat on Sam for him, treated her so badly at prom, and then broke up with her at a funeral. The boy was anything but sensitive, and I’m glad that we’re both no longer tied to Finn Hudson in any way, except for the fact that he still keeps asking me out. I also suspect that Quinn’s anger doesn’t completely stem from the way he acted with her, but also how he acts with me. Is it too early to think that maybe she’s a little jealous?
I grab for the vanilla flavoured iced beverage that Quinn had chosen before and hand it to her. “I’ll be back in just a moment. Please guard my drink from anything that Santana thinks would be funny to put in it.”
Quinn’s eyes narrow at me for just a moment before she relents. “Fine.” She then turns her gaze to her friend. “Don’t, Santana.”
Santana just smirks and relaxes back in her chair as three sets of eyes watch me walk away.
I really don’t want to do this and wonder as to why no one made sure he got home once the party had ended. I would never be so irresponsible and thoughtless.
I can feel her eyes on me as I close the distance between myself and a slumbering Finn Hudson. My lips curl into a smug smile. She’s watching me like a hawk, I just know it.
Bending at the knees, I’m careful to keep them together so as not to give Finn, or the girls behind me, a show, I shake Finn’s shoulder. “Wake up, Finn. It’s time to go home.”
“Rache.” He grumbles sleepily before a huge smile starts to stretch his face. I grimace at the little sticks and leaves stuck to his dirty face and I swear that he smells like alcohol and vomit. “I knew we’d,” He yawns and throws his arms out to stretch as he turns over to grin up at me. “Hook up at Puck’s party. How was I?”
My eyes widen at his erroneous assumption. It’s then that he notices a pale blue sky above him and not a bedroom ceiling. He looks around quickly, probably spotting the others, before scrambling ungainly to his feet. I reach out to steady him as he wobbles and grabs his head, but I’m grateful when he seems to right himself.
“We didn’t hook up?”
I sigh. “Finn, I went home whilst you continued to drink yourself into an unsightly mess. We certainly did not, and never will, hook up.” I feel like pressing the point of my finger into his chest, but I really didn’t want to touch him. I still hadn’t worked out wear that god-awful smell was coming from.
“But, Rache.” He whines. “We were so good together.”
I can’t help but scoff at his remark. “I’ve offered you friendship, Finn. That is all I’m offering, and if you continue to badger me into going back out with you, I will rescind that offer.” I place my hands on my hips. “We were never all that good together, Finn. We both deserve better.”
“But, Rache,” He whines again. “You love me. We’re Finn and Rachel.”
I roll my eyes. “I thought I loved you, but I get it now. Our relationship was always something that I thought I should have, instead of what I really wanted.” I’m back to sighing as my shoulders slump with the realisation of what I did. “You’re tall, dark and handsome, Finn. You’re leading man material for some girl, just not me. Not anymore. I used you, and I’m truly sorry for that.” I glance over at the other girls, letting my eyes settle for a second on Quinn. I’m already fighting off a smile at just seeing her. I never felt like that for Finn. It was all forced and fake.
“But, Rache.”
“No, Finn. Go home.” I watch as he frowns at me and I pretty much know what he’s about to ask before it even comes out of his mouth.
“There’s another guy, right?” His frown deepens and I take a step backwards. “Is Jessie back in town?”
“There’s not another guy.” I purse my lips, trying to figure out just how much to tell him. “I just want to be myself, and I can’t be that with you.”
“But, why?”
“Because she’s not interested, Finncompetent.” Santana scowls up at him, and when I turn around, I realise that she, Brittany and Quinn have all crossed the yard. “I think it’s time for you to build a bridge and get over it.” She shakes her head at him. “Go fuck a Cheerio or two. I’m sure that that’ll take your mind off of the heartache. It did last time.”
“This isn’t any of your business, Santana.” Finn growls.
I don’t like the flash of anger I see in Quinn’s eyes so I take another step back. Before I can go to her though, Santana has thrown her arm around my shoulder and is pulling me into her side. I might be rapidly blinking my surprise, but years of acting classes help me to convey to Finn that this is actually normal.
“Berry’s a friend, so it is my business.” Santana scowls back.
Finn seems to grow impossibly taller. “Since when?”
“Since she broke up with you, douche bag.” She turns her dark eyes to me and gives me a sly wink. Now I’m starting to get nervous that Quinn will get the wrong idea about her and me, instead of Finn and me. “And, since her clothes stopped making my eyes bleed. Nice bikini yesterday by the way. Congrats. You gots to show off the hot bod a little more.”
Finn’s mouth opens and closes and then opens again before Brittany pipes in. “Kurt’s on his way to pick you up, Finn. You can meet him on the curb out front.” She waves her cell and steps to my other side as she glares at my ex. Quinn comes into line and I send her a quick smile.
I really don’t have a clue as to what is going on here, but I am grateful for Santana’s help. Finn can be more than a little intimidating when he towers over you.
Finn huffs as he looks at me. “Fine, Rachel. We’re through.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying, Finn.” I narrow my eyes at him but he just huffs again and then storms off across the yard towards the gate. I watch him carefully until he’s gone and then I send Santana a puzzled look.
“What?” She slips her arm from my shoulders and grabs for Brittany’s hand, tugging her back towards the table.
“What was that, Santana?” Quinn calls after them, but she lingers back with me. Her fingers brush mine and I’d really love it if she would hold my hand.
I try to hide my surprise when Quinn links her arm with mine and starts to walk towards the others, pulling me at first until I step in time with her.
“You and Rachel are friends now, since when?” Quinn hands me my Frappuccino as we all sit down, ignoring the rest of the mess for now.
Santana looks at me for a little while before she smiles softly. “She’s not as bad as I thought she was.” She shrugs. “And like I said earlier, breaking up with Hudson for the sake of Glee, that was the most unselfish thing I think she’s ever done. She’s all good in my books.”
I return her smile and turn my gaze to Quinn as Santana leans forward to press a kiss to Brittany’s lips. I lick my lips and watch as her eyes darken.
“Looks like Finn’s off your back for now.” She’s smirking and I can’t help but smile widely at her. “So, you want to be yourself? Is that anything I can help you with?” Her voice is low enough for only me to hear even if Santana and Brittany weren’t currently occupied with each other.
I nod coquettishly. “I’m more than positive that you’re all the help I need, Quinn.”
Tbc