-Part 3-

Unfortunately, Rachel noticed the summer was going by quite fast. Practices were the same as always and they won the next two games. Their final practice before their final game lasted longer than all of the others because no one wanted to leave. They played for hours and by the end of it Rachel was sore and very sunburned having accidentally forgotten sunscreen.

"Ow…ow…ow…" Rachel whimpered with every step from the field to her car. "Oh my God I can't move my arms to get the door open."

Quinn chuckled and opened the passenger door. Rachel carefully dropped to the seat and squeaked a bit when she leaned back and her shoulders hit the seat. Quinn shut her door for her and got into the driver's side and took them home.

"I'll rub aloe on it later. You need to take a cold bath first."

"I never sunburn," Rachel sighed. "I've never, ever gotten one."

"Yeah, you always use sunscreen."

Rachel growled. When they got to the Berry house Quinn helped her upstairs and dropped to the bed.

Rachel soaked in the cool bathwater to relieve some of the burning on her skin. She thought about their last game on Tuesday and how she and Quinn had agreed that the blonde would move back to her parents' house in a week. She didn't know what would happen after that, if Quinn would stay true to her word and not let high school bother her or if she would fall back into being a Cheerio and let them run her life again. She hoped not. She hoped that she and Quinn could be something.

There was a knock at the door and Rachel crossed her arms over her chest and called for the knocker to come in since she knew it was Quinn. Quinn waltzed in like she owned the place and Rachel drew her knees up.

"Rach, I was wondering…" Quinn trailed off when her eyes fell on Rachel.

"Wondering?"

"Sorry, do you want me to like…wait? I guess…I mean locker rooms and everything. I'm not really that shy. I didn't really think about it before I knocked. You know what…I totally forgot what I was going to ask so I-I'm just going to go." Quinn nodded furiously and turned.

"Wait, what was it, really?"

"I…" Quinn's mouth opened and closed a few times. Rachel saw the blonde's eyes dart away from hers and down to where she was covering her chest. "I have no idea."

"You just wanted to see me without clothes on." Rachel smirked.

"No, I really did have a question!"

"Okay, pervert!"

"You're such…"

"…a dork, Berry," Rachel finished for her. She stuck out her tongue and Quinn laughed and shook her head.

"I should go and let you finish."

Once Quinn was gone Rachel uncurled her knees and winced a little at the pain. She really, really hoped she still wouldn't be sore after the last game. When she got out of the bathtub she put on her loose shorts and tank top and Quinn was waiting for her in the bedroom with a bottle of aloe. Rachel sat on the edge of the bed and Quinn scooted up next to her. The blonde pulled Rachel's thick hair up into a ponytail and squirted some of the gel out onto Rachel's shoulders.

"That's cold!" Rachel squealed.

"It'll feel good in a minute."

Quinn softly rubbed the gel into Rachel's shoulders and down her arms. She pulled away and Rachel heard her squeeze the bottle and rub her hands together. Quinn's hands settled on the back of Rachel's neck and she moved them around to the front and down Rachel's chest. Her fingertips dipped low underneath the tanktop and Rachel giggled.

"I didn't get sunburned that far down."

Quinn nibbled on Rachel's earlobe. "I know," she said with a giggle.

...............

The final game was against the undefeated WOHN news network team. Everyone took a moment to thank their respective deities that Sue Sylvester wasn't anywhere in sight.

"Okay," Rachel breathed. "We can do this! We've beaten all the odds in glee club, so why not right now?"

"Save it, Berry," Santana said. "We're toast. Last week they beat Pick-n-Save by like fifteen runs."

Rachel sighed and everyone jogged out to their places on the field. Rachel was sitting the first inning out with Mercedes and she made sure to cheer on her teammates. There were three runs scored in the first seven minutes.

"I think that's some kind of record," Artie said, looking down at his clipboard.

"We can come back from that," Rachel assured him. "Santana! Santana! Do the thing!"

Santana looked over at the dugout and shrugged. Next time she knelt down Rachel saw the Latina's lips move. Strike one. Strike two. Strike three. Santana stood and smirked and Rachel gave a thumbs up. New Directions got two more outs quickly, once thanks to Santana and another thanks to Mike being quick and catching a line drive.

By the bottom of the second to last inning the score was surprisingly close, 10-7 in favor of WOHN, and both teams were determined to play their best in the last inning.

"It's not working anymore," Santana said. "They're all ignoring me now. And three of the guys and one of the girls asked me for my number. Creepy since they're all like, old."

"So what now?" Quinn asked. "We can't keep them from hitting."

"What if we make them hit?" Rachel suggested. "Put Noah, Finn, and Matt in the outfield and Mike pitches really good to them. They'll all hit it to the outfield and you guys can catch them. That's an out, isn't it?"

"Holy shit, Berry has a good idea," Puck said. "Let's do that. Quinn, you take first base, Santana at short stop, Kurt at third and Berry, you get behind the plate."

"I believe Tina would be much more beneficial…"

"No way," Tina said. "I haven't gotten to sit out yet. You take this one, Rachel."

Rachel shrugged. The players jogged out to their new field positions and Rachel nervously squatted behind the plate. The first pitch Mike threw was perfect but the batter didn't swing. Rachel shrieked but it hit her glove and she managed to hold onto it and toss it back.

"You should've swung at that," Rachel notified the batter. "It was a perfectly placed pitch."

"The other girl already tried that stuff," the man growled. "Keep your mouth shut."

Rachel let out an offended shriek and almost diva stormed off the field before she remembered that she was playing an actual game. She squatted down low and held out her glove. The next pitch was also perfect and the batter swung and the ball went sailing right toward Puck in center field. Rachel stood quickly and watched him center himself under the ball.

"Out!" the umpire called when the ball hit Puck's glove.

Rachel shrieked again and jumped up and down. She contemplating running to first base to hug Quinn who looked equally as excited but the brunette decided against it, citing that it would be unprofessional.

The next batter, a woman, strode to the plate and smirked at Rachel who politely smiled back. Rachel squatted down and held out her glove. The first pitch was on the outside and Rachel had to reach for it but she was proud of herself that she caught it and successfully got it back to Mike. The second pitch was perfect but the woman didn't swing. Rachel growled. The third pitch was on the inside and it hit the woman in the leg and the umpire called for her to take her base. Rachel groaned and looked over at Quinn who was looking the woman up and down with disgust.

"She could've stepped out of the way," Rachel noted to the umpire. "She simply chose not to so she could advance to first base. That was very unsportsmanlike."

The umpire looked at her like she had three heads and Rachel shrugged and squatted back down. The next batter hit the ball right to Finn to get the second out but the damage was done and the woman had gone to second base. Rachel took a deep breath as the next batter, a man probably in his late twenties, walked up to the plate. He winked at her and she scoffed.

"You're pretty. Want to grab a drink after this?" he asked as he focused ahead at Mike.

The first pitch was perfect but the batter didn't swing.

"I'll have you know," Rachel said as she stood up to throw the ball back, "that first of all, my girlfriend is at first base and she can do quite a bit of damage with a bat as you may have witnessed earlier when she hit the ball into the outfield. Second, I'm sixteen and I am therefore not allowed in bars and third, I am certain that you're well over eighteen which would make that arrangement illegal."

Rachel squatted back down and held out her glove.

"Nevermind," the man said, "you talk too much anyway."

"So I've been told. If your intent was to offend me with that comment it didn't work."

The man just chuckled. He swung at the next pitch and Rachel watched it fly to right field and Matt started running toward the fence.

"Go, go, go, go," Rachel whispered.

Matt dove for the ball and when he stood he brought it with him in his glove Rachel jumped up and down and dashed up the first base line to meet Quinn in a hug.

"We can totally win this," Quinn said with a bright smile.

Rachel nodded furiously and they walked back to the dugout hand-in-hand. Rachel looked over her shoulder at the man who just earned his team the third out and she smirked.

"Okay," Puck said when they got into the dugout. "Batting order is Brittany, Matt, Mercedes, Kurt, Tina, Quinn, and…Rachel."

"We could take the lead before I have to bat, right?" Rachel asked, panicked.

"Yeah, we totally could," Finn said.

Brittany skipped to the plate and watched two balls and a strike go by before she took her swing. The ball flew to the outfield and the blonde took off running, Finn waved her to go onto second and she made it safely, a few seconds before the second baseman got the ball. Matt drove the ball into right field which got him to second and Brittany home and New Directions cheered loudly from the dugout. Mercedes hit the ball and it skipped past the short stop which got Matt to third and her to first but Kurt's ball that was hit right to the second baseman got Mercedes out but a fortunate overthrow from second base to first ensured Kurt was safe and Matt in to score. It was now 10-9 with only one out and things were looking good.

Rachel was shifting nervously in her seat when Tina had a pop fly which earned them their second out. Quinn slid past her and dropped down to kiss the brunette and smiled.

"For luck," Quinn said.

Rachel nodded and watched Quinn take her stance at the plate. Strike one. Ball one. Ball two. Smack! Quinn's hit went deep between the left fielder and the center fielder and Kurt took off running. Puck waved him to stop at third and Quinn made it to second. Rachel nervously grabbed a bat and swallowed hard as she stood in the box next to home plate. She glanced over at Kurt and then to Quinn and thought about the fact that she'd never even gotten the ball out of the infield and how the other team knew that and they were playing their fielders incredibly shallow. She thought about how now she was expected to once again save the entire club with a miracle. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts she didn't know she had been pitched to until the umpire called the first strike. Rachel shook her head a little and waited patiently for the next pitch. Two balls in a row, right at level with her head. She was glad to be short at that moment. Perhaps she could just wait for more bad pitches and let Puck save everyone. She glanced back up at Quinn who nodded at her.

Rachel tightened her grip on the bat and took a deep breath. The next pitch was perfect as she saw it coming and she swung with absolutely everything her small body had and she felt the collision and the vibration up her arms and took off running. She didn't look up until she was stopped at first by Finn and they watched the center fielder run towards the fence to grab the ball off the ground. Kurt made it home and Quinn was rounding third just as the fielder gave a monster throw and the ball flew into the infield. Rachel held her breath and watched Quinn step on the plate just as the catcher had to step far away to catch the wild ball.

"Safe!" the umpire called. "That's the game!"

Rachel shrieked and Finn picked her up and carried her to the dugout where the rest of New Directions was jumping around and screaming. Finn dropped Rachel and Quinn met the brunette with a passionate kiss and lifted her off the ground and swung her around. Rachel clung onto her until Puck and Finn pulled her away and hoisted her up on their shoulders.

"Nice one, Berry," Puck said.

"I know! I've never even gotten the ball out of the infield, I wasn't expecting…"

"I meant the kiss." He smirked and Rachel shook her head.

"You guys!" Mr. Schuster came jogging onto the field as the celebration died down. "That was amazing! You showed really good teamwork! Pizza on me tonight, how's that?"

Everyone cheered again and a trail of cars left the park to go to Pizza Hut. Rachel and Quinn squeezed in next to each other and Rachel's right hand didn't leave Quinn's left for the entire dinner. The team had to be kicked out of the restaurant when they stayed there almost an hour after closing time. When they all finally managed to leave they said their goodbyes and promises that they would have to hang out before school started again. Quinn drove her and Rachel home and after nice hot showers the pair fell onto Rachel's bed and both let out loud sighs. Quinn took Rachel's hand and kissed the palm.

"That was amazing, Rachel. It was like watching 'Don't Rain on my Parade' all over again."

"I doubt I could ever re-create it. Some things are just once in a lifetime experiences."

"But you did it when it counted."

There was silence for a few minutes and the pair heard Rachel's dads shout a "goodnight" as they went into their room. Both girls shouted "goodnight" back and resumed their silence for a little bit longer. Rachel squirmed a little at the thought of how she really would like to celebrate with Quinn but bringing up the subject when they'd barely done anything like that all summer was rather nerve wracking. So Rachel did what she does best and she devised a quick plan and put her acting skills to work.

"There's something I don't understand about baseball," Rachel said. She turned her head to Quinn and furrowed her eyebrows.

"I'm no expert, either."

"I think you could help me with this." Rachel let a devious smile spread across her lips. "You know that metaphors are important to me, hence the gold stars. What I'm wondering is, how exactly does the baseball metaphor apply when there are two girls involved?"

Quinn smirked. "Is this your attempt at seduction?"

"This is my attempt at an educational experience relating to our activities this summer. And yes, seduction as well."

Quinn grinned and rolled over on top of the brunette and straddled her hips. Rachel looked up at the blonde and smiled.

"From what I've learned from unwanted overheard conversations with Santana and Brittany," Quinn said as she leaned down and barely touched the tip of her nose to Rachel's, "first base is the same all around."

"I'm more of a kinesthetic learner," Rachel said. "You'll have to show me by example."

Quinn nodded and pressed her lips against Rachel's and the brunette smiled. She opened her mouth and Quinn's tongue slipped inside and wrapped around Rachel's. It was nothing unfamiliar but knowing exactly what it was about to lead to made Rachel more nervous than she had been going up to bat that night. Quinn pulled away and smiled.

"That is first base."

Rachel nodded. Quinn tilted her head and kissed up Rachel's jaw while her hands moved up Rachel's stomach and underneath her white tank top. Rachel moaned when Quinn's smooth hands ran up over her breasts and pulled the tank top up over her head Rachel sat up long enough for Quinn to discard it and the blond gently cupped her breast in her hand and ran her thumb over the nipple. Rachel gasped and arched into the touch. Quinn dropped her head and kissed down Rachel's sternum to take the other nipple into her mouth and gently nibble on the hard bud and flick it with her tongue. She switched breasts and repeated her motions of gently gripping the nipple in her teeth and tasting the soft flesh with her tongue.

"Second base," Quinn whispered against Rachel's sternum.

Rachel tugged at the shoulders of Quinn's t-shirt and the blonde pulled it off and moved back up to eye level with her girlfriend. Rachel ran her hands up and down Quinn's back and gripped at her shoulders before running her hands around front and taking the weight of a breast in each hand and kneading gently.

"I thought," Quinn gasped, "I thought I was the one giving the demonstration."

"I learn by doing."

Rachel tested her limits by gently gripping Quinn's nipple between her thumb and forefinger and pinching. Quinn hissed and she jerked her hips and rubbed against Rachel. The brunette groaned and arched again. Quinn moved and settled her hips between Rachel's legs and her right hand wandered down the brunette's stomach and inched underneath the waistband of her shorts.

"Is this okay?" Quinn asked before dipping lower.

Rachel nodded. "Please."

Quinn smiled and pecked Rachel's lips. "Third base," she mumbled.

Quinn pulled off Rachel's shorts and underwear and settled back on top of her with her hand between the brunette's legs. Rachel whimpered a little and the blonde pressed two fingers Rachel's clit and the brunette groaned. Quinn ran her fingers in circles around the bud and Rachel was trying very hard to keep breathing. She wrapped her arms around Quinn's back and pulled her in for a deep kiss and Quinn started moving a little quicker and alternating between slowing down and speeding up.

"More…please…please," Rachel begged.

Quinn nodded and slowed down her circles again and Rachel squirmed as Quinn teased her entrance with two fingers.

"How many should I…I mean…you're not…are you?"

"I'm not, it's fine," Rachel assured her.

Quinn pushed two fingers inside her and Rachel groaned.

"God yes," she hissed. "That feels…so good…"

Quinn pulled out and pushed in again, Rachel's hips moved to meet the thrust. Quinn set a slow pace and Rachel quickly got frustrated.

"Faster…please…"

"Sorry," Quinn mumbled against Rachel's neck. "But you feel so amazing…I could do this all night."

Quinn moved a little faster and started kissing her way down Rachel's torso. Chest. Stomach. A lick at her navel. A kiss just below it. Quinn finally settled herself on her stomach and Rachel hooked one leg over the blonde's shoulder and braced herself. Quinn kissed the inside of her thigh and Rachel squirmed. Quinn's fingers kept working inside her and finally Rachel felt the tip of a warm tongue press against her clit and she moaned. Quinn worked the bud with her mouth for a while, flicking with her tongue and gently biting down. Rachel whimpered at the loss of Quinn's fingers inside of her but the feeling of loss was quickly remedied when Quinn's tongue was inside her and her fingers were working her clit. Rachel had never been so on edge her entire life and she tried to hold back to give Quinn more time but when the blonde pinched her clit just a little she came undone and fisted the bedsheets while her hips bucked and she tried to stay as quiet as possible as she groaned and came. She shook and finally collapsed and again felt empty when Quinn pulled away.

Quinn moved back up to eye level with the out of breath brunette and smiled. Rachel smiled a little back and Quinn wiped her mouth off with the back of her hand before kissing the girl beneath her. Rachel tasted the saltiness on Quinn's tongue and it made her wonder exactly what the blonde tasted like and she smiled at her intention of finding out as soon as she recovered.

"Home run," Rachel whispered when Quinn pulled away and kissed her neck.

Quinn giggled. "That good?"

"Yes…very good. If you'll just…give me a minute…I'll practice what I've learned."

"Practice makes perfect," Quinn mumbled.

Rachel grinned and ran her fingers through Quinn's hair and kissed the tip of her nose then leaned in for a soft kiss on her lips. Rachel squirmed a little and Quinn took the hint and rolled onto her back, Rachel followed. Quinn immediately hooked her fingers into her own shorts and started tugging at them.

"Sorry," the blonde said. "They're just really…uncomfortable right now."

Rachel nodded and pulled Quinn's shorts and underwear down and off her legs and tossed them off the bed to join the rest of their clothing. Rachel settled herself back on top of the blonde, her hips in between Quinn's legs, and the blonde smiled.

"Hi," Quinn whispered. She wrapped her arms around Rachel's bare back and the brunette hissed when Quinn dragged her nails down either side of her spine.

"You're so gorgeous, Quinn."

Quinn blushed. Rachel dropped her head and kissed down the girl's neck and settled her right hand on Quinn's hip and the other on her ribcage, just below her breast. She pulled away just enough to run her hand up over the mound of flesh and knead at it gently and she ran her thumb over the pink nipple and watched it harden. Rachel licked her lips and took the other nipple into her mouth and gave it a gentle suck. Quinn let out a soft moan and gasped when Rachel gripped the hard bud between her teeth. While focusing her mouth on the other nipple Rachel slowly dragged her fingernails along Quinn's hip and down between her legs. She dipped her fingers into wetness and ran them up and down and finally pressed two of them firmly against the blonde's clit.

"Oh God…Rach…" Quinn groaned.

Rachel smiled and started moving her fingers in slow circles and kissed her way back up Quinn's chest and nipped at her collarbone and finally looked down into hazel eyes. Quinn clutched her lower lip between her teeth and Rachel kept her gaze locked as she kept circling, moving a little faster every few passes. She could tell Quinn was trying her best to keep her eyes open. She waited until she couldn't stand it anymore and finally slipped her fingers lower and pushed two inside the blonde which sent Quinn's head back and she arched her back and dug her fingernails into Rachel's skin.

"Oh my God this is amazing," Rachel gasped.

She kissed Quinn's neck and thrust again and again. Each time the blonde moaned and Rachel suddenly saw the appeal of wanting to do this all night long. However, she had one more base to round and she was determined that she would get to it. She wanted to taste Quinn more than anything at that moment. Rachel placed a soft kiss on Quinn's neck and started ghosting her lips down the blonde's chest, between her breasts, down her stomach and finally she was flat on her stomach and inhaling the succulent scent that was Quinn Fabray. Rachel darted out her tongue to get a taste and she was immediately addicted. She pressed her tongue flat against Quinn's clit and the blonde let out a melodious moan that made Rachel shiver.

Rachel took her time and worked her tongue around, noting Quinn's reactions when she bit down or flicked or caressed. She kept her fingers pumping and Quinn was holding onto handfuls of the brunette's hair pulling her in closer. Rachel needed more. She pulled her fingers out and Quinn arched her hips and Rachel pushed her tongue inside the girl and Quinn shuddered a little. Rachel darted her tongue in and out and Quinn's moans got louder. Rachel smirked and moved her mouth back up to Quinn's clit and latched on as she plunged two fingers inside and curled them up and Quinn let go and toppled over the edge. Rachel kept thrusting and finally the blonde shuddered one last time before she relaxed and let Rachel's hair fall from her fingers. Rachel smiled and kissed the inside of each of Quinn's thighs before she crawled up next to her and curled into her side.

"How'd I do?" Rachel asked. She wrapped her arm around Quinn's stomach.

"Touchdown…homerun…grand slam…whatever."

Rachel grinned and snuggled in closer and let herself drift off to sleep.

...............

It took everything Rachel had not to cry when they packed Quinn's things into her huge duffel bag and got it loaded into her car. She stood with Quinn next to the driver's side door and held her hands and attempted not to look at the blonde because she knew she'd break down and cry.

"I'll miss you," Rachel finally sighed.

"Come on, I'll be over here all the time, you know that. It'll be like I never left."

"Yes but sleeping without you next to me will be rather difficult."

"You're acting like I'm not going to be a five minute drive away. Come on, Berry."

Rachel shrugged. "It'll be different."

Quinn put her fingers under Rachel's chin and tilted the shorter girl's head up and smiled.

"I'll call you tonight."

Rachel nodded and reached up to kiss her girlfriend.

Quinn was there early the next morning, right when Rachel woke up and she didn't leave until late that night as was the case with almost every single day until school started. The day before they were to go back was spent mostly in Rachel's bed.

"Twelve hours," Rachel mumbled around eight o'clock. "In twelve hours it will all be different."

"No it won't be."

"It'll be like the summer never happened."

"Stop saying that, Rachel. I told you nothing will change."

"Once you put on the uniform your mentality might shift. You'll have your uniform to hide behind like you did before. You're not you when you're in it. Not to mention that the Cheerios have a powerful influence and Coach Sylvester won't allow this to happen."

"You sound like you don't want this. Like you want me to dump you."

"I'm just being realistic, Quinn."

Quinn sighed. "I'll prove it to you, Rachel. I'll prove to you that this summer wasn't a waste."

Rachel nodded but when Quinn said goodbye that night the brunette couldn't help but feel that come the next morning she'd be Man Hands or Treasure Trail or RuPaul again and it would be as if none of it ever happened. She tossed and turned in bed all night and when her alarm went off in the morning she hadn't really slept all that much. She skipped her workout routine and went straight for the shower. She went through her closet and smiled at her bright pink t-shirt and pulled it off the hanger and selected a pair of jeans. She could wear a skirt another day but she wanted one more day that reminded her of summer just in case things had indeed changed.

The brunette nervously navigated through the hallways and said hello to Mercedes and Kurt before she got to her locker. She spun the dial and put away her emergency slushie bag and her backpack. Just as she was double checking to make sure she had what she needed her locker door slammed shut and she jerked her head to the side to see Quinn standing there in her Cheerios uniform with a look on her face that spelled disaster for Rachel. Over the blonde's shoulder was the entire squad of Cheerios. People slowed down in the hallway to watch what they were sure was to be a catfight by the look on Quinn's face.

Quinn smirked down at the brunette and whipped around to face the group of Cheerios, all standing with looks of fear as Quinn glared.

"Listen up, ladies," Quinn shouted. "This," she pointed to Rachel, "is Rachel Berry. Not Treasure Trail, not Man Hands, not Stubbles. Rachel. She's my girlfriend. If any of you have a problem with that then you can run a thousand suicides at practice this afternoon, got it? You go near her with a slushie it's a two mile run and you get drenched in corn syrup every quarter mile and you get to pay the dry cleaning bill. Understand?"

There was a collective nod from the group and murmured agreements before they all turned to go to their classes. Quinn turned back to Rachel with a smile on her face and the brunette was grinning from ear to ear.

"You," Rachel said, "are amazing."

"I told you I would prove it to you."

Quinn dipped her head down and kissed her girlfriend.

"Let's see if we can make the fall as good as the summer, shall we?" Rachel said with a bright smile.

Quinn nodded and linked her arm with Rachel's and escorted her to their first class proudly.

That summer would go down in Rachel's book as most definitely her second favorite summer ever. No matter how many times it was washed that pink shirt always smelled of sunscreen and summer and grass and Rachel always looked at it with a smile. Even when the design on the front and her name on the back were cracked and peeling she never threw it away. It hung in her closet for the rest of high school and in her dorm room in college and in her first apartment next to another pink t-shirt that smelled and looked exactly the same only with a different name printed on the back.

Rachel's favorite summer? The one six years later when she looked at Quinn, blonde hair in soft curls cascading down her back to meet the edge of a white dress, and said "I do". The activity after they changed out of their dresses? A round of softball with their ten best friends all wearing faded pink t-shirts.

The End

"I can tell you my love for you will still be strong after the boys of summer have gone." - The Boys of Summer by Don Henley