Chapter 1

Quinn was sitting on top of her duffel bag, trying to coax the zipper into closing despite having way overstuffed it. She knew tomorrow her friends would groan and roll their eyes when they saw how much she had packed, but Quinn couldn't help it. She liked to make sure she had an outfit for every possible occasion, and it was hard to do that when she didn't have access to her full wardrobe hanging in her walk-in closet. The zipper finally gave in and stretched over her bulging pile of clothes. She sighed with relief and brushed her hair out of her face. She grabbed her cell phone from her desk and quickly typed out a message to Rachel.

I finally defeated the duffel bag and I didn't have to take anything out to get it to close!

Rachel answered almost immediately.

You're so ridiculous sometimes, Q. Do you really need 2 huge bags? We're only gonna be away for a week.

Quinn could picture Rachel's serious face frowning at how impractical Quinn could be.

A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. I'll see you in the morning, Rach :)

Night, Q.

Quinn saw that it was already almost midnight. She had probably disturbed Rachel's perfectly timed sleep schedule. It made her smile to think that she didn't find Rachel's rigid schedules and plans nearly as annoying as she once did. She would have never guessed that Rachel Berry would grow into her best friend over such a short time, but she had. Quinn washed up and climbed into her bed. Her stomach fluttered with excitement for tomorrow.

They had waited all summer for this trip. They planned it for so late into the summer for a reason. In two weeks, they would all be heading their separate ways. The eight of them wanted to make sure that they got to spend a carefree week together before they all headed out for what the future held. Santana and Brittany would be heading to Los Angeles. Santana was going to UCLA and Brittany had gotten a gig as a dancer. Finn was going to boot camp for the Army. Puck was starting at the community college in Lima to get a business degree and really expand his already growing pool cleaning gig. Kurt and Rachel would be heading for New York City for acting school. And Quinn, well she was headed to New Haven to pursue English and Dramatic Arts at Yale. It seemed like yesterday they were all sitting in the choir room not giving a second thought to their futures and now they were actually splitting up to follow their respective dreams. Still thinking about her friends and Yale, Quinn drifted off to sleep.

Her alarm went off at 8 and Quinn sprung out of bed. She had always been a morning person. Plus, she was way too excited to sleep any longer. She took a quick shower and pulled a sundress out of her closet. It was the one that she had bought at the beginning of the summer with Rachel. Rachel had noticed it first and exclaimed immediately that Quinn had to get it. Quinn was usually weary of Rachel's fashion sense, but this dress was one item they actually agreed on. It brought out the hazel of Quinn's eyes and looked great with her bronzed summer skin. She blew her hair dry and threw on some light makeup. Grabbing her cell phone, she realized she only had 10 minutes until the girls would be there to pick her up.

Quinn lugged her heavy bags one by one down stairs and dropped them by the front door. She said good morning to her mom and grabbed an apple from the bowl on the island, taking a big bite. Her mom looked disapprovingly at the juice dripping down her chin and Quinn wiped it hastily before her mom had time to comment and ruin her good mood. As if on cue, the doorbell rang and she could hear the girls loudly chatting on her front porch. She rang and swung the door open, grinning widely at her best friends in the world. They groaned and complained as they helped Quinn with her heavy bags, just like she knew they would. A few minutes later, Quinn called goodbye through to her mother and hopped into the backseat of Santana's SUV with Rachel.

Less than five minutes into the journey, the girls were already singing at the top of their lungs. Santana had made a playlist on her iPod for the journey full of their favorite songs. They belted them out until their voices were turning hoarse. The three hour ride flew by and before they knew it they were pulling into a gravel driveway leading up to an adorable wooden cabin overlooking the lake. They piled out of the SUV and grabbed their bags. Excitement overtook them and they lugged their stuff as fast as they could manage. Rachel extracted the key and turned it in the lock, letting them inside.

The inside of the house was just as perfect. It was comfortable and rustic and it had a great view of the lake out of the front windows. Santana and Brittany dropped their stuff, shouting about finding the best bedroom. They bounded up the steps, arms around one another. Quinn turned to Rachel, a huge smile on her face.

"This is awesome, Rach. You picked the perfect place." Quinn said sincerely. Rachel beamed at her, obviously pleased that Quinn liked it.

"It is exactly what I imagined a lake cabin to look like. I must say I am pleased with the choice as well." Rachel said, grinning wide at Quinn. "Let's pick a room before the boys arrive and Puck tries to room with one of us instead." Quinn laughed and nodded in agreement and they headed upstairs to scope out the bedrooms.

In the second one, Quinn sighed with the sight of perfection. The queen bed faced a large sliding door. It led onto an expansive wooden deck that overlooked the shimmering lake.

"This one is heaven!" she breathed, collapsing onto the bed. Rachel skipped forward and jumped onto the bed next to Quinn. The girls laid with their heads against one another, content with the silence. The peacefulness of the cabin was bliss.

A few minutes later, their peace was interrupted to the sound of the boys arrival as they yelled hello from the doorway of the cabin. Quinn and Rachel ran to go meet them. Finn and Puck had packed light, most of their baggage being beer and food. Kurt and Blaine's pile of bags looked more like Quinn's. Rachel was hugging Kurt and Blaine. Quinn grinned at the guys. She was so relaxed and happy that she just couldn't wipe the smile off her face. She helped Puck carry the cases of beer to the fridge. Behind her, she heard Santana and Brittany make their entrance. One glance at them made it obvious that they had been breaking in their vacation room. Santana's shiny dark hair was ruffled and her cheeks flushed. She was gazing lovingly at Brittany, who was wrapped in a hug with Blaine.

After the boys threw their bags in their rooms, with Puck immediately trying to weasel his way into Quinn and Rachel's bed rather than taking the top bunk in a room with Finn, they unpacked the food in the kitchen. Santana and Puck grabbed a handful of beers and wine coolers and they headed out onto the front porch. The late afternoon sun shone lazily off the surface of the glimmering lake. The warm summer breeze rustled the leaves of the huge trees. The friends were talking animatedly, enjoying the freedom and the cold drinks. Quinn watched Brittany run her fingers along Santana's bare shoulder softly, seeing the love emanating from them. Kurt was sitting on the ground, leaning back onto Blaine's legs. Puck had shaved his head completely again and was shirtless, showing off his deeply tanned chest. Finn wasn't as scrawny anymore either. Quinn knew he had been training for boot camp. His shoulders had really filled out in the past couple of months.

The biggest change was in Rachel, however. She was sitting on the old rocking chair, bare feet tucked under her. Quinn remembered the day Rachel had bought that dress. It was one of the first shopping trips that she had invited Rachel to join her, Santana, and Brittany on. She remembered how awkward Rachel had been. She was obviously scared to point out any article of clothing with the fear of the girls ridiculing her terrible fashion sense. She walked quietly next to Quinn as Quinn rifled through the racks. In one of the last stores, Quinn had pulled the dress off the rack and held it out to Rachel, insisting that she try it on. Rachel reluctantly agreed. She emerged self-consciously from the dressing room after Santana threatened to go in and pull her out. Quinn remembered admiring her handiwork. Rachel looked stunning. The scoop neck sundress hugged Rachel's delicate curves. It was bright and set off her olive skin and dark features. Quinn convinced her to buy it despite Rachel's pleas that it was too short and that it didn't look good on her. But Rachel was wrong, it was stunning on her, especially with her August tan and her dark hair falling over her shoulders.

Rachel caught Quinn's eyes. Quinn blushed having been caught staring at her friend. However, Rachel just gave her a sheepish grin. She could tell that Rachel was having the time of her life.

It seemed like the day just melted away in a blur. Quinn vaguely remembered them having a great barbeque for dinner. Now they found themselves lounging by the edge of the lake as the sun went down. The sky was full of pink and orange hues that were reflected in the calm surface of the lake. Puck had dragged a cooler down with them and they were all starting to get a good buzz. Quinn couldn't remember the last time she felt so content in her life. All of the worries she had about Yale were far away. They watched the sun set behind the edge of the trees, their arms around one another with their feet in the cool sand.

As dusk fully took over, they sauntered back up to the house and settled into the living room. They put a movie in the DVD player and sprawled out across the room. Rachel was curled on the couch with her head in Quinn's lap. Quinn was still getting used to the affectionate side of Rachel. She didn't think twice about giving a hug or leaning against Quinn's shoulder. Quinn stroked the long brown hair that spilled into her lap, finding the warmth of Rachel against her soothing. She could see Finn and Puck getting progressively drunk on the other couch, having made a drinking game out of the movie. Kurt's cheeks were flushed from the alcohol and she could see Blaine's protective arm linked in Kurt's. On the floor, they ignored the muffled kissing of Santana and Brittany. Every once in a while they came up for air and Brittany would comment on the movie until Santana pulled her in again. The whole day made Quinn feel so nostalgic. She couldn't have imagined a more perfect way to end the summer.