fic: Bring Me Back Something Awesome
TITLE: Bring Me Back Something Awesome
AUTHOR: Brio
SPOILERS: Future AU.
RATING: G
SUMMARY: A snowstorm hits, Rachel is stranded. Technology to the rescue.
WORDS: 3,093
PAIRINGS/CHARACTERS: Rachel/Quinn
NOTES: I have this series of Skype fics taking shape. This was started for Faberry week then ended up being longer than I thought it would.
Pacing back and forth across the carpeted floor of her hotel room, Rachel listens to her assistant as she reels off a list of airline companies who will not be flying out of New York any time soon. Outside, the city is a sea of white and more of it is on the way, falling thick and fast in huge flakes.
“And there’s no chance…?” Rachel starts.
“I’ve tried every company and everyone we know with a plane,” the younger woman says, adjusting her glasses before glancing down at her notepad. “Everything is at a standstill for the next twenty-four hours at least. I’ve got you on standby with dozens of flights. I’m sorry, Rachel.”
Rachel tries to think of other ways to get back to Los Angeles. There must be a way. A little snow isn’t going to stop her getting home to her family. She’s close to heading to the nearest airport to see if there are any polka-playing musicians about to embark across the country in a van when she realises that she isn’t being rational. It would take days to get back to Los Angeles in a van. She needs to be there tonight.
“Take the rest of the day off,” she concedes. “Thank you for trying.”
“Do you want me to order up some room service?” the younger woman says, gathering her things and standing up.
“No, I’ll order something after I’ve broken the news to the girls,” Rachel says despondently, already booting up her laptop. The other woman waves and heads through to the adjoining room, closing the door behind her.
While her laptop whizzes and burrs, automatically signing in to various programmes - most of which her daughters have downloaded over the two months since her previous laptop had mysteriously exploded, Rachel goes to stand in front of the window and surveys the city. Snow had been predicted during the week before Christmas but it had decided to surprise everyone and show up a few days early, effectively ruining everyone’s travel plans and Christmas shopping.
Wrestling with the decision to leave her hotel room and attempt a little shopping or not, the snow starts to fall once more. Sighing dramatically despite her lack of audience, Rachel turns back to the laptop to find more than a dozen notifications. She minimizes the important ones, closes the unimportant and double clicks on the Skype icon.
A message from Quinn comes through before Rachel has even started scrolling through her contacts list.
Don’t even think about getting on a plane. We’ve been watching the news.
Rachel smiles and hits the green button at the top of the window, listening to the familiar jingle the program plays when it attempts to connect a call.
“Morning!” Quinn says, far too brightly for just after seven in the morning.
“How much coffee have you had?” Rachel enquires. From the backdrop, Rachel knows Quinn is sitting at the breakfast bar. When the blonde moves slightly to the left, Rachel can see an array of boxes on top of the counter. “Quinn! What are those doing in my house?”
“Our house,” Quinn corrects her and glances over her shoulder. “Oh…”
“Those cereals are full of sugar and additives and… chocolate Wheaties, Quinn? Really?”
“The girls wanted to try something different, Rach,” Quinn says calmly. “I figured one box of cereal isn’t going to turn them into sugar-addicted hellions.”
Rachel is about to argue her point when she’s interrupted by the sound of her daughters coming into the kitchen.
“Is that Mom?” Madison breaks off and skips over to the breakfast bar, nudging Quinn out of the way slightly. “How’s New York?”
“Snowy,” Rachel says, pulling a face. “I’m great, thanks for asking, Madison.”
“Sorry, Mom,” Madison says with a grin. “Mama, have we still got that yoghurt stuff I had with my muesli yesterday?”
“Yeah, check the second shelf in the fridge, sweetheart,” Quinn says, enjoying the surprised look on Rachel’s face. “The cereal boxes are for Alex’s health project. Completely empty. Right, Al?”
“Yup,” the youngest member of the Berry-Fabray family comes into view and gives the computer screen a wave. Rachel feels an overwhelming wave of sadness pass over her before she collects herself and smiles. Quinn catches the waver in her wife’s demeanour though and decides to let it slide for the moment.
“Aunt Santana ate all the Wheaties,” Madison pipes up, reappearing with a bowl and sitting down next to Quinn. “Mama is taking her to the concert tonight since you’re stuck in New York.”
“I’m sure she’ll enjoy it,” Rachel says, her grin wavering again.
“Girls, go eat breakfast in the lounge,” Quinn says, sensing Rachel’s imminent breakdown into a flood of tears. The twins retreat down the hall to the lounge where a quiet argument breaks out over what channel they’ll watch. “It’s Alex’s turn to choose!” Quinn calls after them, silencing the argument. Turning her attention back to computer screen, she leans forward a little. “Good morning, baby.”
Rachel can’t contain the chuckle that bubbles up as Quinn leans a little closer and presses her lips to the camera.
“Hey you,” Rachel replies, blowing a kiss in return.
“You need to come home soon,” Quinn says. “I’m enjoying having the bed to myself way too much.” Quinn gives Rachel a wink causing the brunette to roll her eyes.
“Is that a fact?” she asks. “Sophie has been calling every airline, every airport… as soon as there’s a flight back to Los Angeles, I’ll be on it.”
“That’s great, but like I said, it looks pretty bad on the news so just sit tight until the worst passes. We’re doing okay without you. The house is still standing, the girls haven’t started failing classes or injecting things into their eyeballs… I’m sleeping all night wrapped up in the covers because someone hasn’t stolen them.”
“This might be a good time to tell you that you snore,” Rachel deadpans. “That’s why I feel justified in stealing the covers every single night.”
Quinn’s jaw drops as she processes this new information.
“I do not snore!”
“You do,” Rachel iterates firmly. “And since you all are doing fine without me, maybe I’ll stick around in New York for a while longer. I could see a few shows, catch up with old friends, go to Tiffany’s…”
“I was kidding,” Quinn interrupts. “Alex got a B on her English homework, I’m pretty sure Madison has booked an appointment at the tattoo parlour, I’m not sleeping at all because you’re not here.”
“And the house?” Rachel asks.
“The house is still pretty sturdy, Rachel. I’ll go break a cupboard door if it’ll make you feel loved though…” Quinn glances around the room, choosing her target. Rachel starts to laugh and shakes her head.
“Please don’t,” Rachel says. “Our track record with DIY isn’t spectacularly great. I don’t want you hurting yourself if I’m not there to drive you to the emergency room. Or mock you incessantly.”
“It was a tiny scratch…” Quinn protests.
“That required seven stitches,” Rachel reminds her. “So, the girls aren’t too upset about me not making it home for their first concert?”
“You’ve seen them in dozens of concerts, Rachel,” Quinn says.
“But this is their first Middle School concert,” Rachel argues glumly. “And Maddie and I have worked really hard on her solo and Alex has been practising so much for hers…”
“They probably are a little upset, yeah,” Quinn says. “But they’re old enough to understand that you’re not missing it on purpose. As much as you like to think you control the world,” Quinn pauses when Rachel opens her mouth to object.
“I wouldn’t say the world…” Rachel grumbles.
“As much as you like to think you control your world,” Quinn corrects herself, “they understand that the weather being a complete asshole isn’t your fault.”
“Mama, language!” Maddie says as she walks back into the kitchen before Rachel can give her wife into trouble.
“Hey Mads, come and tell your mom how much you miss her,” Quinn says. Their eldest twin comes back into view and gives Rachel a huge grin.
“I miss you , Mom,” she says. “Bring me back something awesome!”
“I miss you too,” Alex chimes in, crowding around the laptop with her mama and sister. “And you don’t have to bring me back a present,” she shoots a pointed look at her sister. “After all, it’s nearly Hanukkah and Christmas.”
“Bring me back something small then,” Maddie says with a grin. Alex rolls her eyes.
“Time to say bye,” Quinn says, glancing at time on the laptop and realising that the girls are going to be late for school if they don’t get a move on.
“Bye Mom!” the girls chorus in unison before dissolving into giggles. “Stop it! You stop it!”
“Bye girls,” Rachel interrupts them and blows two kisses at the camera.
“Don’t have too much fun without us!” Maddie adds, waving as she disappears out of view.
“See you soon!” Alex calls as she leaves the room.
“See? They aren’t traumatised,” Quinn says. “But we all miss you so get home as soon as it’s safe for you to fly.”
“I miss you too,” Rachel says. “And I love you.”
“Awww, thanks baby,” Quinn says. “Speak soon…”
“Hey!” Rachel cuts her off.
“I love you too, ridiculously gorgeous wife,” Quinn says, sticking out her tongue.
“Thank you,” Rachel says. “Are you busy today?”
“A little bit of this, a little bit of that,” Quinn says vaguely. The gallery is closed today and she has nothing lined up.
“Call me when you get back from dropping the girls at school?” Rachel asks. “I’m sure I can find a way of occupying some of that time.”
Quinn stares at the screen a little blankly before regaining use of her voice.
“Sure,” she says, hoping that she doesn’t hit any traffic on the way home.
“I’ll be waiting,” Rachel says, blushing slightly as she bites down on her bottom lip. Quinn nods and waves before closing the lid of the laptop.
“Time to go!” she calls to her daughters, wondering if she can make the girls walk to school instead.
xxxxx
“Mom’s pretty upset about missing the concert tonight, isn’t she?” Alex asks from the back seat as they make their way home from school at the end of the day.
“Yeah,” Quinn says, keeping her gaze on the road. The worst part of doing the pick-up from school is undoubtedly having to deal with all the other parents on the road.
“Just because she’s in New York doesn’t mean she can’t see it though,” Alex points out, flicking through her Maths textbook to read over her homework assignment.
“Hmm?” Quinn asks, glancing at her daughter in the mirror, confusion etched on her face.
“Sometimes I wonder about our parents,” Alex says, exchanging a glance with her sister.
“Me too,” Madison agrees gravely.
“Every parent at the concert tonight will have a camera,” Alex points out, turning her focus back to the textbook.
“It won’t look out of place if you have one,” Madison continues.
“Even if instead of recording us, you use your phone to call Mom…”
Both girls watch as their mama finally gets it, a grin spreading rapidly across her face.
“You two are geniuses,” Quinn proclaims, finally spotting an opening to get away from the school.
“I wonder where we get that from,” Alex murmurs to her sister.
xxxxx
Glancing around the auditorium, Quinn feels a lot more nervous than her daughters probably feel right now. Santana is on her left, telling her to calm down.
“I’m pretty sure this place is bigger than our auditorium at McKinley,” she says. “The kids are going to look like midgets on that stage.”
“Then it’s a good job that we’ve got seats in the second row,” Quinn says, drumming her hand against her thigh now as she reads through the programme for the fourth time. Madison is fifth and Alex is the third last in the list. “I envy the parents of the kids who are at the top of this list. After they perform, the parents can relax. But not me, I have to wait the whole damn thing for Alex.”
“She’ll be amazing,” Santana reassures her. “You have nothing to worry about. Me on the other hand? Oliver shows no interest in music or singing… it’s all sports this and dinosaurs that. They don’t have concerts for kids that like dinosaurs.”
“That would probably be the most bizarre thing imaginable,” Quinn muses, suitably distracted from her nerves until the lights dim slightly.
She fails to pay attention to the first four numbers and then finds herself scrabbling to get Rachel on the phone, making sure her wife remains completely silent as their daughter walks onto the stage.
“I can’t see her,” Rachel is hissing.
Quinn self-consciously raises the phone a little higher so that Rachel has a clear shot of the stage.
A shiver runs through Quinn’s body as her daughter begins to sing and she forgets to be nervous. Like her mom, Madison is completely at home on the stage. She smiles and remembers all the words and brings Santana to tears.
“Wuss,” Quinn whispers, wiping away her own tears as Rachel cheers from the phone. When Madison leaves the stage, she turns the device around and waves to her wife. “Call you soon,” she says quietly before hanging up.
There’s an interval just over halfway through and Santana dashes from the auditorium to call Brittany and check on their son. Quinn remains seated, tapping out messages to Rachel.
She was amazing!! Xx
The reply lights up the phone seconds later.
Must run in the family. Was Santana crying? Xx
Of course. Motherhood has turned her into a giant crybaby xx
Waiting for Rachel’s reply, Quinn glances around once more, smiling at a few of the parents she recognises from the orientation days she and Rachel had attended in August. Quinn had been wary about this school at first but Rachel and the girls had been charmed by its focus on the arts. Quinn had argued that she didn’t want her daughters to be pigeon-holed at such a young age, that she wanted them to do what they wanted to do, not just to follow in their parents’ footsteps.
Eventually the girls had persuaded her that this is where they want to be and Quinn had acquiesced and signed a cheque for their tuition.
“The house is still standing and Oliver is bathed and falling asleep,” Santana says as she drops back into her chair.
“Remember all those times you made fun of me for ducking out of meals and only staying out for a couple of drinks instead of rolling into bed at dawn so I could check up on my kids…” Quinn says, smirking at her best friend.
“Yeah, yeah, Fabray,” Santana says, crossing her arms. “I get it now. I completely get it.”
Rachel’s next message comes through causing Quinn to huff slightly.
She’s not the only crybaby, Fabray ;) xx
Santana glances at the message and grins.
“I’m completely fine with being a crybaby when it comes to my favourite nieces,” Santana says quietly.
The lights start to dim signalling the end of the interval and both women turn their focus back to the stage. The school’s eighth-grade choir starts things off, followed by another soloist. Before she realises, Quinn is dialling Rachel’s number again. Alex is visibly more nervous than her sister, taking a seat at the grand piano.
Quinn watches as her younger daughter takes a deep breath and feels the butterflies in her stomach intensify.
“Come on, Al,” she whispers and although she knows there’s no way Alex could possibly have heard her, the girl’s gaze meets hers. Quinn gives her a huge grin. Santana is next, giving her a thumbs up.
“Go Alex!” Rachel’s voice calls out from the phone and Quinn turns it around to shush her wife. Rachel shrugs and grins back at her from the screen. Looking more relaxed now, Alex raises her hands to the keyboard and places her foot on the pedal.
As soon as she starts to play, Alex relaxes. Quinn knows that she can play this piece note perfect from memory, she knows every crescendo and ritardando and where to move flawlessly into another key, adjusting quickly to the new configuration of sharps her fingers have to navigate.
When she finishes, she takes another deep breath before standing up and taking a bow. Rachel whoops out from the phone while Quinn and Santana applaud with everyone else. Alex offers them a small wave before walking quickly from the stage.
The rest of the concert passes in a flash now that Quinn has nothing to worry about. She meets her daughters backstage afterwards to give them huge hugs having excused Santana so that she can run home and check on her family.
“We have to run,” Quinn tells her daughters. “Mom made me promise that I’d call as soon as we get home so that she can tell you that she’s really, really proud of you.”
She watches her daughters exchange glances.
“Can we stop for ice cream?” they ask in perfect unison causing Quinn to roll her eyes and chuckle softly, putting an arm around both girls’ shoulders.
“You bet,” she says, steering them towards the exit.
xxxxx
Trudging up the stairs with the remains of their trip to the ice cream parlour, Madison and Alex disappear into their rooms to get ready for bed. Quinn settles down on the couch in front of the laptop, shooting her wife a grin.
“We did alright with them, right?”
“Yes, I think we’ve done exceptionally well.”
Though desperate to stay awake and talk to Quinn until she falls asleep, Rachel can’t stop the stream of yawns that she’s trying to hide behind her hands.
“Bedtime for you, wifey,” Quinn says.
“Check the weather before you go to sleep,” Rachel murmurs, taking her laptop with her as she falls back against her pillows. “Looks like I’ll be coming home soon.”
“You better,” Quinn says. “Sweet dreams.” Rachel’s eyelids have already started to droop.
“Mmhmm,” Rachel hums. “Love you.”
“Love you more.”
“Not possible,” they say in unison causing an almost-asleep Rachel to smile and Quinn to roll her eyes. “Good night,” Quinn adds but it’s too late; Rachel is fast asleep and already dreaming of being on the other side of the country, surrounded by her family.
AUTHOR: Brio
SPOILERS: Future AU.
RATING: G
SUMMARY: A snowstorm hits, Rachel is stranded. Technology to the rescue.
WORDS: 3,093
PAIRINGS/CHARACTERS: Rachel/Quinn
NOTES: I have this series of Skype fics taking shape. This was started for Faberry week then ended up being longer than I thought it would.
Pacing back and forth across the carpeted floor of her hotel room, Rachel listens to her assistant as she reels off a list of airline companies who will not be flying out of New York any time soon. Outside, the city is a sea of white and more of it is on the way, falling thick and fast in huge flakes.
“And there’s no chance…?” Rachel starts.
“I’ve tried every company and everyone we know with a plane,” the younger woman says, adjusting her glasses before glancing down at her notepad. “Everything is at a standstill for the next twenty-four hours at least. I’ve got you on standby with dozens of flights. I’m sorry, Rachel.”
Rachel tries to think of other ways to get back to Los Angeles. There must be a way. A little snow isn’t going to stop her getting home to her family. She’s close to heading to the nearest airport to see if there are any polka-playing musicians about to embark across the country in a van when she realises that she isn’t being rational. It would take days to get back to Los Angeles in a van. She needs to be there tonight.
“Take the rest of the day off,” she concedes. “Thank you for trying.”
“Do you want me to order up some room service?” the younger woman says, gathering her things and standing up.
“No, I’ll order something after I’ve broken the news to the girls,” Rachel says despondently, already booting up her laptop. The other woman waves and heads through to the adjoining room, closing the door behind her.
While her laptop whizzes and burrs, automatically signing in to various programmes - most of which her daughters have downloaded over the two months since her previous laptop had mysteriously exploded, Rachel goes to stand in front of the window and surveys the city. Snow had been predicted during the week before Christmas but it had decided to surprise everyone and show up a few days early, effectively ruining everyone’s travel plans and Christmas shopping.
Wrestling with the decision to leave her hotel room and attempt a little shopping or not, the snow starts to fall once more. Sighing dramatically despite her lack of audience, Rachel turns back to the laptop to find more than a dozen notifications. She minimizes the important ones, closes the unimportant and double clicks on the Skype icon.
A message from Quinn comes through before Rachel has even started scrolling through her contacts list.
Don’t even think about getting on a plane. We’ve been watching the news.
Rachel smiles and hits the green button at the top of the window, listening to the familiar jingle the program plays when it attempts to connect a call.
“Morning!” Quinn says, far too brightly for just after seven in the morning.
“How much coffee have you had?” Rachel enquires. From the backdrop, Rachel knows Quinn is sitting at the breakfast bar. When the blonde moves slightly to the left, Rachel can see an array of boxes on top of the counter. “Quinn! What are those doing in my house?”
“Our house,” Quinn corrects her and glances over her shoulder. “Oh…”
“Those cereals are full of sugar and additives and… chocolate Wheaties, Quinn? Really?”
“The girls wanted to try something different, Rach,” Quinn says calmly. “I figured one box of cereal isn’t going to turn them into sugar-addicted hellions.”
Rachel is about to argue her point when she’s interrupted by the sound of her daughters coming into the kitchen.
“Is that Mom?” Madison breaks off and skips over to the breakfast bar, nudging Quinn out of the way slightly. “How’s New York?”
“Snowy,” Rachel says, pulling a face. “I’m great, thanks for asking, Madison.”
“Sorry, Mom,” Madison says with a grin. “Mama, have we still got that yoghurt stuff I had with my muesli yesterday?”
“Yeah, check the second shelf in the fridge, sweetheart,” Quinn says, enjoying the surprised look on Rachel’s face. “The cereal boxes are for Alex’s health project. Completely empty. Right, Al?”
“Yup,” the youngest member of the Berry-Fabray family comes into view and gives the computer screen a wave. Rachel feels an overwhelming wave of sadness pass over her before she collects herself and smiles. Quinn catches the waver in her wife’s demeanour though and decides to let it slide for the moment.
“Aunt Santana ate all the Wheaties,” Madison pipes up, reappearing with a bowl and sitting down next to Quinn. “Mama is taking her to the concert tonight since you’re stuck in New York.”
“I’m sure she’ll enjoy it,” Rachel says, her grin wavering again.
“Girls, go eat breakfast in the lounge,” Quinn says, sensing Rachel’s imminent breakdown into a flood of tears. The twins retreat down the hall to the lounge where a quiet argument breaks out over what channel they’ll watch. “It’s Alex’s turn to choose!” Quinn calls after them, silencing the argument. Turning her attention back to computer screen, she leans forward a little. “Good morning, baby.”
Rachel can’t contain the chuckle that bubbles up as Quinn leans a little closer and presses her lips to the camera.
“Hey you,” Rachel replies, blowing a kiss in return.
“You need to come home soon,” Quinn says. “I’m enjoying having the bed to myself way too much.” Quinn gives Rachel a wink causing the brunette to roll her eyes.
“Is that a fact?” she asks. “Sophie has been calling every airline, every airport… as soon as there’s a flight back to Los Angeles, I’ll be on it.”
“That’s great, but like I said, it looks pretty bad on the news so just sit tight until the worst passes. We’re doing okay without you. The house is still standing, the girls haven’t started failing classes or injecting things into their eyeballs… I’m sleeping all night wrapped up in the covers because someone hasn’t stolen them.”
“This might be a good time to tell you that you snore,” Rachel deadpans. “That’s why I feel justified in stealing the covers every single night.”
Quinn’s jaw drops as she processes this new information.
“I do not snore!”
“You do,” Rachel iterates firmly. “And since you all are doing fine without me, maybe I’ll stick around in New York for a while longer. I could see a few shows, catch up with old friends, go to Tiffany’s…”
“I was kidding,” Quinn interrupts. “Alex got a B on her English homework, I’m pretty sure Madison has booked an appointment at the tattoo parlour, I’m not sleeping at all because you’re not here.”
“And the house?” Rachel asks.
“The house is still pretty sturdy, Rachel. I’ll go break a cupboard door if it’ll make you feel loved though…” Quinn glances around the room, choosing her target. Rachel starts to laugh and shakes her head.
“Please don’t,” Rachel says. “Our track record with DIY isn’t spectacularly great. I don’t want you hurting yourself if I’m not there to drive you to the emergency room. Or mock you incessantly.”
“It was a tiny scratch…” Quinn protests.
“That required seven stitches,” Rachel reminds her. “So, the girls aren’t too upset about me not making it home for their first concert?”
“You’ve seen them in dozens of concerts, Rachel,” Quinn says.
“But this is their first Middle School concert,” Rachel argues glumly. “And Maddie and I have worked really hard on her solo and Alex has been practising so much for hers…”
“They probably are a little upset, yeah,” Quinn says. “But they’re old enough to understand that you’re not missing it on purpose. As much as you like to think you control the world,” Quinn pauses when Rachel opens her mouth to object.
“I wouldn’t say the world…” Rachel grumbles.
“As much as you like to think you control your world,” Quinn corrects herself, “they understand that the weather being a complete asshole isn’t your fault.”
“Mama, language!” Maddie says as she walks back into the kitchen before Rachel can give her wife into trouble.
“Hey Mads, come and tell your mom how much you miss her,” Quinn says. Their eldest twin comes back into view and gives Rachel a huge grin.
“I miss you , Mom,” she says. “Bring me back something awesome!”
“I miss you too,” Alex chimes in, crowding around the laptop with her mama and sister. “And you don’t have to bring me back a present,” she shoots a pointed look at her sister. “After all, it’s nearly Hanukkah and Christmas.”
“Bring me back something small then,” Maddie says with a grin. Alex rolls her eyes.
“Time to say bye,” Quinn says, glancing at time on the laptop and realising that the girls are going to be late for school if they don’t get a move on.
“Bye Mom!” the girls chorus in unison before dissolving into giggles. “Stop it! You stop it!”
“Bye girls,” Rachel interrupts them and blows two kisses at the camera.
“Don’t have too much fun without us!” Maddie adds, waving as she disappears out of view.
“See you soon!” Alex calls as she leaves the room.
“See? They aren’t traumatised,” Quinn says. “But we all miss you so get home as soon as it’s safe for you to fly.”
“I miss you too,” Rachel says. “And I love you.”
“Awww, thanks baby,” Quinn says. “Speak soon…”
“Hey!” Rachel cuts her off.
“I love you too, ridiculously gorgeous wife,” Quinn says, sticking out her tongue.
“Thank you,” Rachel says. “Are you busy today?”
“A little bit of this, a little bit of that,” Quinn says vaguely. The gallery is closed today and she has nothing lined up.
“Call me when you get back from dropping the girls at school?” Rachel asks. “I’m sure I can find a way of occupying some of that time.”
Quinn stares at the screen a little blankly before regaining use of her voice.
“Sure,” she says, hoping that she doesn’t hit any traffic on the way home.
“I’ll be waiting,” Rachel says, blushing slightly as she bites down on her bottom lip. Quinn nods and waves before closing the lid of the laptop.
“Time to go!” she calls to her daughters, wondering if she can make the girls walk to school instead.
xxxxx
“Mom’s pretty upset about missing the concert tonight, isn’t she?” Alex asks from the back seat as they make their way home from school at the end of the day.
“Yeah,” Quinn says, keeping her gaze on the road. The worst part of doing the pick-up from school is undoubtedly having to deal with all the other parents on the road.
“Just because she’s in New York doesn’t mean she can’t see it though,” Alex points out, flicking through her Maths textbook to read over her homework assignment.
“Hmm?” Quinn asks, glancing at her daughter in the mirror, confusion etched on her face.
“Sometimes I wonder about our parents,” Alex says, exchanging a glance with her sister.
“Me too,” Madison agrees gravely.
“Every parent at the concert tonight will have a camera,” Alex points out, turning her focus back to the textbook.
“It won’t look out of place if you have one,” Madison continues.
“Even if instead of recording us, you use your phone to call Mom…”
Both girls watch as their mama finally gets it, a grin spreading rapidly across her face.
“You two are geniuses,” Quinn proclaims, finally spotting an opening to get away from the school.
“I wonder where we get that from,” Alex murmurs to her sister.
xxxxx
Glancing around the auditorium, Quinn feels a lot more nervous than her daughters probably feel right now. Santana is on her left, telling her to calm down.
“I’m pretty sure this place is bigger than our auditorium at McKinley,” she says. “The kids are going to look like midgets on that stage.”
“Then it’s a good job that we’ve got seats in the second row,” Quinn says, drumming her hand against her thigh now as she reads through the programme for the fourth time. Madison is fifth and Alex is the third last in the list. “I envy the parents of the kids who are at the top of this list. After they perform, the parents can relax. But not me, I have to wait the whole damn thing for Alex.”
“She’ll be amazing,” Santana reassures her. “You have nothing to worry about. Me on the other hand? Oliver shows no interest in music or singing… it’s all sports this and dinosaurs that. They don’t have concerts for kids that like dinosaurs.”
“That would probably be the most bizarre thing imaginable,” Quinn muses, suitably distracted from her nerves until the lights dim slightly.
She fails to pay attention to the first four numbers and then finds herself scrabbling to get Rachel on the phone, making sure her wife remains completely silent as their daughter walks onto the stage.
“I can’t see her,” Rachel is hissing.
Quinn self-consciously raises the phone a little higher so that Rachel has a clear shot of the stage.
A shiver runs through Quinn’s body as her daughter begins to sing and she forgets to be nervous. Like her mom, Madison is completely at home on the stage. She smiles and remembers all the words and brings Santana to tears.
“Wuss,” Quinn whispers, wiping away her own tears as Rachel cheers from the phone. When Madison leaves the stage, she turns the device around and waves to her wife. “Call you soon,” she says quietly before hanging up.
There’s an interval just over halfway through and Santana dashes from the auditorium to call Brittany and check on their son. Quinn remains seated, tapping out messages to Rachel.
She was amazing!! Xx
The reply lights up the phone seconds later.
Must run in the family. Was Santana crying? Xx
Of course. Motherhood has turned her into a giant crybaby xx
Waiting for Rachel’s reply, Quinn glances around once more, smiling at a few of the parents she recognises from the orientation days she and Rachel had attended in August. Quinn had been wary about this school at first but Rachel and the girls had been charmed by its focus on the arts. Quinn had argued that she didn’t want her daughters to be pigeon-holed at such a young age, that she wanted them to do what they wanted to do, not just to follow in their parents’ footsteps.
Eventually the girls had persuaded her that this is where they want to be and Quinn had acquiesced and signed a cheque for their tuition.
“The house is still standing and Oliver is bathed and falling asleep,” Santana says as she drops back into her chair.
“Remember all those times you made fun of me for ducking out of meals and only staying out for a couple of drinks instead of rolling into bed at dawn so I could check up on my kids…” Quinn says, smirking at her best friend.
“Yeah, yeah, Fabray,” Santana says, crossing her arms. “I get it now. I completely get it.”
Rachel’s next message comes through causing Quinn to huff slightly.
She’s not the only crybaby, Fabray ;) xx
Santana glances at the message and grins.
“I’m completely fine with being a crybaby when it comes to my favourite nieces,” Santana says quietly.
The lights start to dim signalling the end of the interval and both women turn their focus back to the stage. The school’s eighth-grade choir starts things off, followed by another soloist. Before she realises, Quinn is dialling Rachel’s number again. Alex is visibly more nervous than her sister, taking a seat at the grand piano.
Quinn watches as her younger daughter takes a deep breath and feels the butterflies in her stomach intensify.
“Come on, Al,” she whispers and although she knows there’s no way Alex could possibly have heard her, the girl’s gaze meets hers. Quinn gives her a huge grin. Santana is next, giving her a thumbs up.
“Go Alex!” Rachel’s voice calls out from the phone and Quinn turns it around to shush her wife. Rachel shrugs and grins back at her from the screen. Looking more relaxed now, Alex raises her hands to the keyboard and places her foot on the pedal.
As soon as she starts to play, Alex relaxes. Quinn knows that she can play this piece note perfect from memory, she knows every crescendo and ritardando and where to move flawlessly into another key, adjusting quickly to the new configuration of sharps her fingers have to navigate.
When she finishes, she takes another deep breath before standing up and taking a bow. Rachel whoops out from the phone while Quinn and Santana applaud with everyone else. Alex offers them a small wave before walking quickly from the stage.
The rest of the concert passes in a flash now that Quinn has nothing to worry about. She meets her daughters backstage afterwards to give them huge hugs having excused Santana so that she can run home and check on her family.
“We have to run,” Quinn tells her daughters. “Mom made me promise that I’d call as soon as we get home so that she can tell you that she’s really, really proud of you.”
She watches her daughters exchange glances.
“Can we stop for ice cream?” they ask in perfect unison causing Quinn to roll her eyes and chuckle softly, putting an arm around both girls’ shoulders.
“You bet,” she says, steering them towards the exit.
xxxxx
Trudging up the stairs with the remains of their trip to the ice cream parlour, Madison and Alex disappear into their rooms to get ready for bed. Quinn settles down on the couch in front of the laptop, shooting her wife a grin.
“We did alright with them, right?”
“Yes, I think we’ve done exceptionally well.”
Though desperate to stay awake and talk to Quinn until she falls asleep, Rachel can’t stop the stream of yawns that she’s trying to hide behind her hands.
“Bedtime for you, wifey,” Quinn says.
“Check the weather before you go to sleep,” Rachel murmurs, taking her laptop with her as she falls back against her pillows. “Looks like I’ll be coming home soon.”
“You better,” Quinn says. “Sweet dreams.” Rachel’s eyelids have already started to droop.
“Mmhmm,” Rachel hums. “Love you.”
“Love you more.”
“Not possible,” they say in unison causing an almost-asleep Rachel to smile and Quinn to roll her eyes. “Good night,” Quinn adds but it’s too late; Rachel is fast asleep and already dreaming of being on the other side of the country, surrounded by her family.