This is a one-shot. I was stuck on my other story and I was listening to a song earlier today and I just had to write this down. Uhm... This is all in Quinn's point of view. The Italic means the past Quinn. Normal writing means the present Quinn. It gets sort of confusing but bear with me? There's a big time gap between the past Quinn and the present Quinn but I'm not going to tell you the difference. *edited*
Enjoy! Happy reading!
Andie
PS. All mistakes belong to me. I don't own anything that can get me sued.
"I'm in love with someone else."
Rachel's breathless whisper dances with the raging storm in my mind. "No…" I whisper under my breath. I realize that it is getting extremely cold by the way smoke forms from my breath. "That's impossible, that can't be." My eyesight starts blurring.
I put the keys in and turn the car alive. "Not now…" I blink back the tears knowing that it wouldn't help me on my journey. "Please, not now." I plead into the darkness.
"Quinn?" Rachel's surprised voice wakes me up from my hypnotized haze, "What are you doing here?"
I am caught red-handed. "I-I…" I want to slap myself at the lame stuttering. I clear my throat and try again, "That was beautiful, Rach." I smile, hoping that it does not come out as a grimace.
"Oh…" She looks bashful as she tucks a hair behind her ear. I follow her fingers and when she looks up again, I am drawn by deep swirls of dark honey. I took a step closer to the piano. "Why… thank you, Quinn. I've always believed that a bit of luck with preparation is the key to success."
It is such a typical Rachel Berry saying that I don't know what else to say. I stand there looking like an idiot; smiling at the girl I've had a crush on for while.
"Uhm…" Rachel clears her throat after a moment of awkward silence, "As flattered as I am to find you here as my audience, I'm quite certain that you have another reason to be here." She begins picking up her music sheets from the piano stand.
"I just… I was just wondering where you're going."
She turns towards me with confusion written all over her face, "I'm going home, Quinn. It's getting late…"
"No, no." I quickly interrupt her, "Uhm… I was wondering where you're going after this… after school's done and all."
She surveys me with her gaze, maybe wondering whether I am being serious or not.
Towards the end of the high school, we gradually moved apart. I mean, we were never close or anything, but we did end up tolerating each other. Well, more like I started tolerating her.
Ever since I quitted the glee club and the club found new talented members, Rachel gave up trying to convince me to rejoin. I found my calling in the photography department and Ms. Pilsbury was kind of glad that I found something toned down compared to the Skanks.
However, after given room to breathe and time to think clearly, I found myself falling for one Rachel Berry. I was not sure how it happened but I found myself allured by her voice. When I was in the glee club, I honestly found her annoying because of her talent was over-shadowed by her bossy demeanour. However, from a distant and behind a camera lens, my feelings poured out to her just as she poured her feelings into her songs.
"I'm… I was accepted at Florida State University." Rachel pauses, I'm quite sure it is for dramatic effects, "Finn got into a community college nearby and we thought it would be best…"
"Wait…" I frown, "I thought you wanted to go to Juilliard." That's why I'm taking studio art at NYU.
"Uhm…" she avoids my gaze, "I didn't get accepted."
I blink in surprise, "Oh. I'm…" What am I supposed to say?
"It doesn't matter, I've heard the FSU has a great music department too."
I realize that she's following Finn. There goes my great big love story. Our silence becomes awkward. I scratch the back of my neck in anxiousness, "So, I can I offer you a ride home?"
She replies by narrowing her eyes, "Why?"
I feel really nervous, "Why not?" I shrug. I try to be nonchalant as I possibly can, "I mean, it is getting late and I don't want people to mistake you for a ten year old… you might attract paedophiles." I throw a joke in to ease the tension.
Rachel's jaw drops and her eyes widen at me, "I can't believe that you threw an insult behind a nice gesture."
I chuckle, "I can't bear someone knowing the truth about me." I wink and it causes a reaction I never would have thought of.
Rachel grins and if my eyes do not deceive me, I see red creeping up her neck and stop at her cheeks. I chuckle. "Shall we then?" I offer my hand.
"Sure." She takes a step forward towards me before she stops abruptly, "This is not some elaborate scheme to get me into your car, right?"
I'd like to get you into my pa... "I'm not." My voice interrupts me, "I mean…" I clear my throat and my mind, "It's not." I step closer towards her, "I'm extending an offer of friendship, just as you have tried to do in the past."
Rachel is still not convinced, "Why the sudden change of heart?"
My feelings are anything but sudden. I have to be honest because she grew on me; she grew in my heart. "I just think that it's about time that I grow up and fix the mistakes I've done."
"You think that I'm a mistake?"
I quirk my eyebrow, "That sounded weird, Rach, I did not give birth to you." I chuckle at my own joke.
"That's not what I mean…"
"No worries…" I interrupt her and shrug, "I just… if I keep pushing real friends away, I would be left with none. God knows that this world is full of traitorous people." I roll my eyes.
That seems to seal the deal by the look of Rachel's bright eyes that seem to sparkle with, dare I say it, stars and the big, metaphorically of course, ear-to-ear grin plastered across her face.
"Well then, I would be honoured to be your friend, Quinn Fabray." She extends a hand.
I roll my eyes but step closer towards her to meet her soft and warm hand, "I don't normally shake on a deal of friendship, Berry, so I'm not quite sure what's going to happen." I chuckle.
And I really don't.
"God damn it!" I shout, as the lights turn red in front of me, "Out of all the time…" I grunt in frustration. This seriously can't be happening. "Rachel…" I whisper as I feel a tear escapes my eyes. I wipe it violently against my usually spotless blouse.
I haven't seen Rachel since our high school graduation. So, to find her sitting in front of my apartment in New York shocks me. I was walking home after getting grocery and was enjoying an apple on the way home. After months of failed communication, the first thing Rachel sees is me looking like a pig with an apple stuffed in my mouth.
"Hello, Quinn." She says with a sad smile on her face.
Even after a few years have passed, she still has that shine in her that never fails to make my heart flutter. "Wachel..." I chew the left over apple in my mouth and gulp, "What are you doing here?"
Rachel answers with a shrug, "Invite me in?"
I rev up my engine knowing that the lights would turn green at any second. My weary eyes are focused on the blinking red light looking as if it had a mind of its own; delaying me from my final destination. I scoff. "I'm going out of my mind."
I smile against her lips for it is what I have been craving for all day. She just got home from an audition and what better way to celebrate than with me. Her girlfriend. Even after a year, I still cannot believe that Rachel Berry comes home to my arms. The day she waited for me at my apartment changed our lives.
It turned out that she hated Florida and had major fight with Finn. The two broke up about a year after they moved in together. It was the year that she reapplied to universities in New York. She got accepted at Tisch and it was only after she graduated that she remembered that I was also there. That was when she looked me up.
"Hey baby." She showers me with light kisses as I pick her up.
"Hey you. How'd it go?" I put her down on the kitchen counter.
"Well, I feel like it's the best performance I have given so far so I'm quite certain that I will get the part." She captures my lips between hers.
I pull back to warn her, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, shall we?" I smile.
She locks her hands behind my neck and rests her head on my shoulder. "I know."
As much as I love her confidence, I'm scared of her optimism. This is the fifth audition she has gone to this month and she's been rejected in her last few attempts. I run my hands up her back in a soothing manner that I know she enjoys. "You'll get it this time." I kiss her temple, "If not, there are tons of other parts that would be dying to have you on their team."
I hear her hum in contentment and feel her legs wrap themselves around my waist. She lifts her head from my shoulder, "We'll know by Wednesday." She pecks me chastely on the lips, "How was your day?"
I shrug. There was nothing much to say about my day. "Nothing much happened, the store's still empty." I sigh, "The fliers aren't printed until next week. Until then, there's only so much we can do with a little shop."
I hear her sigh and feel her shoulders sag a little. "Don't lose hope, sweetie." I say to her, "We'll make it. I'll make sure we'll make it."
I see her broken smile and my heart breaks. I fight my own tears and let her go, "Are you hungry?" I open the fridge.
"Do we have anything?"
"Uhm… there's… leftover meatball slash spaghetti sauce we tried to make." I smile as I open the drawer above my head, "And hey, you're in luck, we have pasta." I turn to show her, "Must be your lucky day."
Rachel is sitting with her hands beside her and she looks at me as if wondering whether she should say what is in her mind. I don't let her take that long. "What?" I ask her.
She extends her hand towards me and I take it. "Every day's my lucky day when I have you." She cups my cheeks and kisses me.
I melt in her soft lips. I hear a moan from the back of her neck and I start to smile. I blindly put the pasta I'm holding on the counter next to her. Then something stops me. I feel something moist against my cheeks. I pull back to see my girlfriend with tears rolling down her face.
"I'm sorry." I immediately whisper.
"I'm such a bad girlfriend." She chokes out.
"No, no." My thumb wipes her cheeks as dry as it can be, "You're not. This has nothing to do with being a bad girlfriend. We're just in a difficult time, we'll make it through." I wrap her in my arms, "I promise, baby."
The lights turn green and my car launches on the street once more. "Fuck the police." I glance towards the rearview mirror to see an empty road.
"Quinn?" Her melodious voice rings through our apartment and I just have to smile.
"Yeah babe?" I call out from our bedroom.
Hurried footsteps can be heard and a few seconds later, the door slams open to reveal my sweetie with a bright smile on her face.
"How was it?" I smile as I sit up on our bed.
She detaches herself from the doorway and screams. "I got it! I got it! I got it I got it I got it!" She jumps and straddles me as she puts her arms around my neck.
I laugh brightly. Even though my right ear is deaf right now due to her screaming directly in them, I really don't mind. I wrap my arms around her. Finally. Someone to recognize her talent.
"Oh my God! I just can't believe it! Quinn! I got the part!" She squeals again.
I pull back, "I knew it. It was just a matter of time, sweetie." I peck her lips, "This is a cause to celebrate."
She giggles as she bounces on my lap. She traps my bottom lip between hers and pushes me down on the bed. "I know a way we can celebrate."
I chuckle, "Yea? And what would that be?"
She sits up again to take off her top. "No teasing now." She whispers against my lips.
My vision blurs for a second as I wipe my tears off my cheek. "This is not possible…" I say under my breath. "She…" the thought shatters me once again.
I try to tiptoe as quietly as I can into the empty living room. I take off my shoes and still feel a bit dizzy from the tequila shots I had earlier. I pull the fridge door open and the warm light blinds me for a second causing my dizziness to multiply. "Ugh…" I grunt quietly as I take out a bottle of water.
I close the door and open the lid before chugging down the fresh liquid.
"Where have you been?"
The sound stuns me to the point where I reflexively spit out water. I blink furiously in the dark and see a small figure on the couch.
"Hey you." I waddle over to my girlfriend, "I'm sorry, late night. Clients wanted to have some drinks to celebrate."
I kneel in front of Rachel. She's wrapped herself in a blanket and I know that she's been waiting for me to come home. I move forward to kiss her but she stops me with a firm hand against my chest.
"Don't." she pulls the blanket tighter, "You smell like smoke. Have you been smoking?" her voice is packed with worry.
I shake my head, I don't smoke. "I don't smoke." I speak my mind.
"Well it's obvious that you've been drinking." Rachel moves closer and sniffs my neck, "You smell like someone else." She whispers.
I scoff, "No, I don't." I deny while trying to smell my own shirt but try as I might my head is still a mess, I can't smell anything.
"Quinn we need to talk." Rachel says with authority in her voice. I like it when she gets all bossy at me but those flares in her sleepy eyes make me feel like I'm about to pay for something I stupidly did.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid." I bang my head against the steering wheel. Instead of having another staring contest with the traffic light, I've resorted to killing a few brain cells. "Stupid, fucking work." I bang my head once more.
"Quinn." Rachel pulls me firmly by the elbow, "Who was that?" she whispers in my ear.
I frown, "Who?"
"You know." Her tone is accusing, "That dark haired blue eyed bitch that kept flirting with you." Her brown eyes shift to the right and I follow her gaze to find one of my client's eyes on me.
I smile politely back to Amanda, "That's Mandy. And she was not flirting with me." I scoff in disbelief.
Rachel glares at me, "Oh my God, Quinn." Her voice goes a pitch higher, probably trying to imitate Mandy, "We should soooo work together again. I love how I feel so exposed in front of your camera." she scoffs, "Bitch." she folds her arms.
This is getting frustrating. I roll my eyes, "Rach baby, she's just a client..."
"And you're just a photographer. Not a prostitute." I'm shocked to hear the words from her mouth but she's not finished. "So as far as I can remember, your job is only to take pictures. You don't need to court them."
I blink back my surprise, "How dare you call me a whore." I say through my gritted teeth, "You have no idea how hard I work to keep my customers loyal to me."
She scoffs, "Customers you won't even have if it weren't for me." She points out.
I clench my fists beside me. "We'll discuss it when we get home."
She's the actress. It's so easy for her to smile and wave at people she despises. I have to admit, I used to be good in that too. But now, I just don't give a crap.
We fight on the way back home. She's being over-dramatic as per usual. She thinks that I don't need to be overly nice to my customers. She screams at me. I have to laugh at how ridiculous her arguments are. I step out of the car and slam the door, leaving her behind. She's furious as she follows me up to our apartment.
She slams the apartment door behind her and trudges up to me. I fold my arms against my chest. She points her index finger dangerously at my face and I quirk my eyebrow. She's talking about how I'm becoming alcoholic. How she smells the alcohol every time I come home late at night. She points out that I might as well not come home at all since she doesn't see me during the evenings.
I snarl at her. She doesn't know what I'm going through. How many other photography agencies are there in the area? When I get the chance, I try to please as many customers as I can with the hopes to bind them to my company emotionally. I'm trying to get her to understand that. I come home late at night to entertain my clients. I'm not fucking them.
She goes into the bathroom and I follow her, still disproving her accusations. She pulls her hair to the side and faces her back towards me. She's still shouting at me as she takes off her earrings.
I scoff as I unzip her dress. She doesn't understand me. I'm doing this for us. I'm working my ass off so that we wouldn't starve like we used to. Doesn't she get that?
She wiggles out of her dress leaving her in her lacy bra and panties. I take off my own top and struggle when it gets caught with my earrings. I grunt in frustration. She helps me detach the piece of clothing. I throw my top violently on the floor.
I tell her that I'm doing every thing in my power to make her happy. She laughs at me. That melodious sound that usually brings joy to my ears, stabs me in the heart. She's mocking me. She tells me that she's doing enough for us. That she's getting public attention and that sooner or later, I'm not going to need to work anymore. I feel blood boiling in my chest. She's underestimating me. I raise my hand and she eyes it warily.
"Do it." She whispers. She doesn't break eye contact with me.
I clench my jaw and grunts in frustration. "Fuck you!"
"Fuck you and your pride." She spits at me.
I leave the bathroom and take off my pants. I drop them in the middle of the living room. I know she hates it when I do that but right now, I can't care less. I go into our bedroom grabbed a tanktop from the dresser. I can hear her screaming behind me about how I'm acting like an idiot. I ignore her. I grab my pillows and the extra blanket on the foot of our bed.
"What do you think you're doing?" She's standing at the doorway.
"I refuse to share the bed with a woman I barely know." I hiss coldly and pass her frozen figure.
It sounds so foolish when I say it out loud so as I turn at a corner, I pray to God for forgiveness for the wrongs things I have done in my life to deserve this.
I realize that we are both struggling to make it work. To make our relationship last. I'm usually gone during office hours while her plays start in the evening. We are both making enough money than we use to. Ever since she got the role in a big broadway musical, my photography business also has also started to boom. Rachel uses my company for photoshoots and that help other people see my talent.
However, the busier our schedules are, the less time we have to see each other. I realize that we are near our breaking point. After two years, this is it. We fight about every little thing that comes up in our minds. I know that I've been distant. But what can I do?
No, I'm not going to give up that easily. I'm not Quinn Fucking Fabray for nothing.
I'm calm now. Well, calmer than I was half an hour ago. The way the white stripes on the road blurs as I pass them, hypnotizes me into a calm state of mind. I'm no longer crying even though my hands still shiver against the cold steering wheel. I lower my window to let the cool spring breeze into my car, refreshing me from my thoughts of the past. I take a deep breath and continue to drive into the night.
I'm finally here. I waste no time in getting out of my car and I can't even remember whether I've locked it or not. I run to the automatic double doors and look around to find someone that can help me find my one true love.
I slam my hands against the receptionist's table. "I'm Quinn Fucking Fabray, where the fuck is my wife?" Okay, that isn't how I want to start but I'm so desperate to find Rachel that I don't care what other people think right now.
"Calm down, miss Fabray…"
"Mrs. Fabray to you. Where is she?" I demand. I give her a deadly stare and I'm happy with the result.
"If you would please keep your voice down, she's in room 304."
I don't hesitate launching myself to the white hallway. I hate this place. I've always hated this place ever since I was a young girl. Now, the twenty seven year old woman in me still despises it.
I find the room with no problem. I'm breathing heavily as I close my eyes. My heart thunders in my chest as I put my hand against the door. I've driven like a maniac just to see it with my own eyes and seconds before I'm hit with the reality, I hesitate to take one last deep breath. I push the door back with ease to meet a sight that catches my breath away.
"Rachel…" I am stunned. I don't move. I just. I don't. No.
"Hey baby." There's my Rachel, looking as exhausted as ever, holding a bunched up blanket against her chest, "Meet our baby." She breathes out with the biggest smile on her face.
I blink back my tears furiously as I try to keep my concentrated gaze on the two figures on the bed. My feet seem to have a mind of their own and I have to thank them later for bringing me closer to my wife.
"Rachel…" I'm standing by the bed. I'm just. Wow. That's. Wow.
"Our Adelaide Charlotte Fabray." Rachel whispers softly against the baby's forehead. It's a name we have both agreed on in the case of our baby being a girl. She chose Adelaide for… I forgot the reason right now. And I chose Charlotte.
I smile as tears of happiness roll down my cheeks. I start laughing and reaches for Rachel's cheek to kiss her lips, "I love you." I whisper against her skin. "I love you." I kiss her again.
"I love you too, sweetie." She smiles and brings my attention down to our newborn.
"My God…" I put my hand behind the baby's head, "Rachel… she's perfection." I trace the wrinkles on my girl's forehead. MY GIRL. I look up at my wife. "Our girl." I whisper.
"Our girl." She looks at me affectionately. It's the kind of look she gives me when she's in need of a kiss. I oblige.
"I love her, Rach." I deepen our kiss.
"I know. She stole my heart too." She puts her hand on my cheek and I lean into her touch.
"You scared the crap out of me, Rach."
"Quinn!" she hisses as she pinches my cheek, "Our baby is right here, there's no need to use swear words in her presence."
I smile. I love my wife. "I love you." I kiss her then our baby's forehead. "I hate you for scaring the…"
"Quinn!" Rachel hisses again.
"Clap out of me." I continue as I watch as our baby breathe in and out slowly. "I thought she wasn't due for a few more weeks."
"Neither did I. She's premature but every thing seemed to be fine. They said that there was nothing wrong with her respiratory systems so I'm really thankful for that." Rachel giggles.
"Well, we know that she takes after you then." I chuckle, "Impatient as ever." I trace the soft wrinkly face, "Wrinkly as ever too." I smile. I'm really happy my baby's healthy. I use my curled index finger to caress Adelaide's soft cheeks.
"Since today is the best day of my life, I'm going to let that one slip, Mrs. Fabray."
I chuckle. I can't stop loving this woman. "You gave me quite a scare little one." I whisper to my daughter, "You were too early too come out." I look up at my wife, "I was scared of complications. I kept thinking, the timing isn't right."
Rachel giggles, "And you're the one calling me dramatic. I told you that everything went well. I already had her in my arms when I called you."
I smile. "I'm sorry. I just… My mind just went through the worst. I'm… I'm sorry I couldn't be here to hold your hand through it. I had a meeting earlier." My eyes are transfixed once more towards the small bundle of joy. "I'm sorry I got your messages really late."
"Baby, it's alright. Though I hated you and screamed your name in agony, I'm glad you're here now." She shrugs, "There's not much we can do to the past to change it. I just love you." She pulls me by the collar for a kiss. "Because you're an idiot sometimes."
I chuckle warmly at her comment. "You're a bigger idiot for for loving an idiot." I smile affectionately at Adelaide who has just hiccuped, "And together we make the perfect idiot. Ow?" I flinch at her pinch.
"I will not have you call our daughter an idiot, Quinn. That title only belongs to you."
I smile as I kiss Adelaide's forehead softly. "Our little star."
I realize that we are both struggling to make it work. To make our relationship last. I'm usually gone during office hours while her plays start in the evening. We are both making enough money than we use to. Ever since she got the role in a big broadway musical, my photography business has also started to boom. Rachel uses my company for photoshoots and that help other people see my talent.
However, the busier our schedules are, the less time we have to see each other. I realize that we are near our breaking point. After two years, this is it. We fight about every little thing that comes up in our minds. I know that I've been distant. But what can I do?
No, I'm not going to give up that easily. I'm not Quinn Fucking Fabray for nothing.
I know what I have to do. Some people don't see the easiest solution even if it's staring at them right in the face. I'm living with Rachel. Rachel is my girlfriend. These are just statuses. But why though? Why am I living with Rachel? Why is Rachel my girlfriend?
The night we fought about Amanda and Rachel's insecurities was dragged on. I start sleeping on the couch. I don't care how uncomfortable it is. I refuse to sleep next to the woman I'd give my whole life to. I refuse to be the first one to cave. Not after all of the things I've done for her. If she doesn't see it, I sure as hell won't dictate it for her again.
I twist and turn in my sleep like any other night. But tonight is different. Rachel is usually already asleep by the time I get home. But not today. I heard her footsteps in our bedroom when I was getting ready for bed. After half an hour of twisting and turning, trying to get into a comfortable position, I hear the bedroom door open. I frown into the darkness.
I see a shadow cast itself on my face and realize that Rachel is standing in front of me with her arms folded. I turn to face her. She sits on the couch. Neither of us spoke for a while. I didn't want to be the first. I'm stubborn like that. Sadly, I know that she is too. This is the longest five minutes in my life so far.
Then out of nowhere, I hear a sniffle and a quiet whisper, "I'm sorry."
My heart melts once again at her vulnerability. That was all it takes for her to have me in the palm of her hands once again. I realize that I love her too much. I sit up and embrace her petite body.
"I'm sorry, Quinn..." She mumbles in my ear and her arms find themselves around my waist, "I'm so sorry I let my jealousy take control over me. I just... I've just... I've missed you so much. I... I feel so lonely when I come home from work to find our home empty... I missed you... Then to find out that you were making other women happy... it just... I just..."
My heart breaks again as I feel her tears against my cheek.
"I just want to have more time to spend with you... I didn't mean what I said that night... I just wished that you would take it easy with your job... I know that you're worried about us but I'm here too you know, I'm not weak. You don't have to carry all the burden yourself..."
I smile. What a fool I've been. "I'm sorry, too, Rach..." I rub her back, "I'm sorry that I've been working so hard that I started forgetting why I was putting that much effort into my work." I pull back and stroke her wet cheeks, "I wanted to make you happy."
She smiles through her tears, "Quinn... I'll always be happy if you're with me. What ever you do, where ever we are. Just because I love you."
My heart starts beating like it used to. I haven't felt alive in such a long time. I smile and kiss her forehead, "I love you too."
I know what I have to do. Some people don't see the easiest solution even if it's staring at them right in the face. I'm living with Rachel. Rachel is my girlfriend. These are just statuses. But why though? Why am I living with Rachel? Why is Rachel my girlfriend?
Because of I love her.
Why do I love her?
I take huge steps back.
What would my life be without Rachel? Why had I fallen in love with her in high school? Have I really changed from who I was back then and who I am now? Not really. So what changed?
We stopped appreciating each other. I forgot how grateful I used to be when I realized that I woke up with my arms around the woman that I love every morning. I forgot how the smell of coffee brought by a petite brunette used to make my heart beat faster. I forgot how her soft singing in the bathroom used to make my lips twitch into a grin as I sung along to the songs I also knew.
I forgot.
I'm taking her for granted.
That's what most people do when they're deeply in love. They forget the things that they have in the palm of their hands.
I'm sitting next to my girlfriend right now. We're sitting at round table for some big ceremony. I suck at these things but I know that it means a lot to Rachel, so I put on my best supporting girlfriend look. I have to tell you, it doesn't take that much effort when you really love your girlfriend.
"Quinn?" Rachel comes closer to me as she searches my eyes in worry, "Are you feeling alright?"
I smile at her and nod, "I am."
She cups my cheek and draws small circle against it, "Are you sure? You've been looking at me as if you're about to be sick or something."
I have to laugh, is that what my face looks like when I'm in love? "I look like I'm about to throw up?"
She giggles quietly at my comment, "No, just… just lately you've been zoning out more so than usual. I don't know where your mind is at most times."
I cup her hand that is on my cheek, "It's with you." I kiss the inside of her palm as I hold her gaze steady.
That little shift in her eyebrows and twitch on her cheeks tell me that I've said something right. She confirms it by meeting my lips with hers.
We come home that night feeling exhausted after the party. My girl won an award. I've learned now that it's called the Tony award. Who Tony is, I actually have no idea. But as long as she has that grin across her face, I'll thank all the Tony's in the world. As long as Tony puts a smile on my girlfriend's lips, I'll be happy.
Speaking of girlfriend.
Rachel is in the bathroom, doing her nightly ritual. I fiddle with the small velvet box in my hands. I close my eyes to regain my composure. It's not working.
I know this song. I listen to the hums and gurgles of one Rachel Berry as she tries to sing while brushing her teeth. I have to scoff in disbelief. Really?
After all these years and out of the billions songs in the world, she sings this? Tonight?
I can hear her spit out the mouthwash and she continues singing.
"Is it the look in your eyes,
Or is it this dancing juice,
Who cares baby, I think I wanna marry you."
I had to laugh. I really had to. I couldn't take it anymore.
"Quinn! Are you laughing at my…" Rachel emerges out of the bathroom with only her sleep shirt and panties. She stops when she sees me on the ground. On one knee.
Her singing drove my anxiety away and gave me the courage I need.
"I'll go get the ring…" My voice is slow and cracks at the unusual demand to sing. I clear my throat. Rachel is standing in front of me, wide-eyed.
I raise the velvet box in front of her and pop it open, revealing a modest diamond ring. "Let the choir bells sing like... Oooh."
She gasps at the sight as tears pile into her eyes. She covers her mouth and looks me in the eyes.
"So what, you want to do?" I ask, "Because I think I wanna marry you." I smile. I forgot the lyric but I think it's for the better.
A tear rolls down her cheek as she nods frantically, "Yes. Yes! Yes! Oh my." She tackles me in a hug.
I laugh in happiness. This is pretty much what I've wanted ever since I graduated high school. A decent career. Any career actually. And Rachel Berry in my arms. Soon to be, Rachel Fabray. If not, I'm thinking twice about marrying her.
She sits on my bent knee and cups both of my cheeks roughly before planting a breath stealing, mind boggling, stomach twisting, one of a kind kiss. When she pulled away, I realize that I have my nails deep on her back. I whimper at the loss of contact.
I rest my forehead against her lips. I smile at my small victory. "Rachel Barbra Berry soon to be Fabray." I feel her smile forming on my skin, "Will you do me the honour of becoming my lawfully wedded wife?" I rub her back slowly, trying to erase the scratches I've made earlier. "I promise to cherish you. To put you before anyone else. To love you like the woman you deserve to be loved. I promise you that I will love no other, the way I love you."
I feel something wet against my forehead and when I look up, well, what do you know? My future wife is crying. I have to smile at the adorableness. "Well… Actually, I can't promise the last thing." I correct myself.
Insecure glossy brown eyes look into my soul. "No?" She whispers timidly.
I smile affectionately at her, how I love this woman. "I can't promise you that I won't fall in love with little Berries."
So tell me that I had you fooled ;)
Have a great day!
Andie