Chapter Text
"Hey."
Quinn Fabray spared the brunette a glance, "...Hey."
"So, I was wondering if you would like to accompany me tomorrow night to this burger joint across town. It just opened last week, and my fathers got a coupon for two. Daddy said it has an amazing vegan selection as well as an," Rachel Berry wrinkled her nose, "animal byproduct selection."
Quinn blinked.
"I'm sure you might find something to your liking. If anything I'm sure you could add a helping of bacon to your meal."
Quinn turned away to finish exchanging books with her locker, hoping the other girl would take the hint and disappear. But when she closed her locker door, Rachel still stood there expectantly with her head tilted in an almost adorable way.
"Um, not to be rude," I totally don't care if I am, "but why are you asking me?"
It seemed Rachel had been prepared for this question. "Well of course, the first one to pop into my mind was Finn, but it didn't seem right to go out to dinner with him after we just broke up. I asked Kurt but he's planned a shopping trip with Mercedes and Tina tomorrow afternoon, so that's knocked out another two people for me to ask. Also, now that neither of us are dating Finn or competing for his heart, I thought it would be a great opportunity for us to bond and develop this fledgling friendship, don't you think?"
She didn't know why, but Quinn felt a slight pang of hurt that she was Rachel's fifth choice. Not that she could blame her or even cared about some stupid dinner anyways. They weren't friends. The fact that Rachel had thought of her at all was nice. She supposed.
"Um... tomorrow? I think my mom's having people over tomorrow and I have to help her cook." Quinn didn't miss the flicker of disappointment cross Rachel's features and she didn't really understand why that made her feel bad.
"Oh! That's quite alright, Quinn. I understand. Please, enjoy your dinner and let me know what you make! I'll see you in glee." Rachel smiled brightly at Quinn and walked away.
"Hey."
"Hey!"
Quinn's eyebrow quirked at the exuberant response she received. Wasn't it ironic that just the other day, their roles had been reversed? Quinn didn't really know what possessed her to sit next to the other girl. It wasn't like she was curious if Rachel actually went to the restaurant. And if she did, did she go alone or with someone else? Did she end up asking Finn? She didn't really know why that thought made her so uncomfortable. She was sure that she was over Finn.
The bright smile on Rachel's face dimmed a bit, concern coloring her features. Oh right, Quinn had said hi first. Now what? She shook her head slightly at herself, clearing it of her cluttered thoughts.
"Uh, yeah. So how was the burger place? Did you go?"
Rachel let out a dramatic sigh, full with a whole body deflation. Quinn felt her mouth twitch and she fought the smile that threatened to show.
"No, it's really quite disheartening. My fathers had such rave reviews and the coupon is really a great deal - a two for one meal! How could no one have wanted to go with me?!"
"Sit across from you for an hour? Even a free meal ain't worth that." Santana passed by with an arm slung around Britney's waist and the two of them took their seats in the back. Rachel frowned at her.
Quinn knew Santana meant no harm - she was just poking fun at Rachel. Being snarky was just how she showed her affection. But she didn't know if Rachel knew that.
Suddenly, her guilt from last night came back twofold. Sure, she cooked dinner with her mom, but there had been no dinner party, no guests. If Quinn wanted to go out for dinner, her mom would've been fine with it. But she'd told Rachel no. And she spent the majority of her night staring off into space, unable to explain why she felt so guilty for lying.
Was Santana right? Would a night out with Rachel have been that bad? It couldn't be as bad as her old family dinners, when her father still lived at home. Stilted conversation about nothing that mattered. He never asked her how her day was.
As sure as she was that Rachel would likely monopolize the conversation, Quinn could almost hear her suddenly become aware of that fact and then actively engage her. Rachel's intentions were almost always pure, as horrendously as the outcomes of her actions sometimes turned out. Besides, they were both capable of conversation, albeit more of heated debates in the past.
Quinn supposed it was her guilt that led her to approach Rachel in Glee and strike up a conversation.
But it was the desire to see how a meal between just two of them would turn out that made her chase after Rachel when Mr. Schuester finally dismissed them.
"Hey."
"Hey," Rachel smirked, "Is this how all our conversations are going to go from now on?" Quinn's heart jumped and she froze, feeling... She didn't quite know what or why she was feeling something from Rachel smirking at her... Her eyes widened slightly and she blinked rapidly before looking away.
"I uh..." Quinn cleared her throat and swung her arms in front of her, still grasping a set of school books from earlier, "When do those coupons of yours expire?"
"Oh! Saturday I believe," Rachel turned to her locker and rummaged through it until she triumphantly pulled out the restaurant coupon. "Oh darn, they actually expire tonight."
Quinn swallowed and licked her lips nervously before finally taking the plunge. "I'm free tonight if the offer still stands."
Rachel jerked her head to look at Quinn, her eyes wide and filled with surprise. "Uh, to try out the restaurant?" Quinn continued hesitantly, trying to fill the silence.
This is stupid. I was her last choice. As if she actually wants to grab a meal with me. Quinn rolled her eyes at herself and turned to leave when she felt a soft touch on her forearm.
Rachel seemed to have gotten over her momentary bout of silence and a wide grin matched her bright eyes, "Are you sure? I don't want to tear you away from any familial obligations."
"Yeah, there's nothing going on at home today."
"Lovely! I'll pick you up at 6:00 sharp! It is in Dayton, so somewhat of a trek, but I'd like to get there before the rush and get us both back home early, seeing as it is a Friday night. I'm sure you have other weekend plans. Oh, this is going to be wonderful!" Rachel clasped her hands together in excitement and Quinn fought the urge to rub the area of her arm Rachel had touched. It tickled.
"Okay, I'll see you then." Quinn quickly spun and walked away, not even realizing she had her own smile etched across her face.
"So..."
Dinner was definitely not going the way Quinn imagined. It was weird. Seeing, or rather hearing, silence come from Rachel. Even the car ride over had been awkward small talk, any stretch of silence saved by the music playing softly on the car radio.
Now, in the restaurant, conversation remained stilted. Rachel had offered a few choice words about Quinn's taste in meat - a bison burger - when they first ordered, but was otherwise pretty mellow. Quinn was actually finding the not so subtle facial expressions flitting across Rachel's features very entertaining.
"So?" Quinn quirked an eyebrow as she popped a fry in her mouth in amusement.
"How was your dinner last night?"
Quinn looked away. "Oh. Uh, it was fine. Pretty boring actually."
"What did you end up cooking?"
"Lamb chops."
With her eyes still averted, Quinn missed the look of disconcertion on Rachel's face.
"I see."
"Yeah." What the heck was happening? What happened to Rachel monopolizing the entire conversation? This dinner was starting to look like a bad idea. It was just so damn awkward.
This was all Rachel's fault! When the silence seemed to stretch unbearably long, Quinn finally looked up to snap at Rachel.
But she was met with an inquisitive gaze. Rachel reached over to gently brush her arm. "Hey, are you okay?"
Quinn squinted at her, her annoyance fueled by guilt quickly melting into confusion.
"Yeah... Sorry. I'm just not used to... I'm not sure what to talk about. We've never really hung out alone, have we?"
"I suppose we haven't. But that can change if you'd like. Tonight can be a trial run! And we can talk about anything. Or nothing too. I know I often speak my mind and speak over everyone, but I've been working on it. Especially since Finn kept pointing it out when we were dating. Sorry. I seem to be doing again." Rachel blushed and looked away, taking her hand back to play with the straw wrapper.
Quinn frowned, "Wait, I mean yeah you can get annoying sometimes, mostly beacause you don't listen to other people's inputs when you go off on them, but honestly? I was fully expecting you to kinda take charge of the conversation tonight and you being...not talkative has really thrown me off."
"Sorry," Rachel giggled.
At that, the tension was broken. Conversation flowed decently, though there were still pauses in conversation. Which were mostly filled with hums of appreciation towards their meals. Rachel had even cut off a piece of her beyond burger for Quinn to try. It was surprisingly pretty good. In no way was it going to convert her to vegansim - she loved real meat, not to mention eggs and cheese, way too much to give them up - but she supposed she was open to trying more vegan options in the future if available. Rachel beamed at her when she shared that thought.
Quinn didn't really know what to make of the night. She'd kind of just pushed any deep, introspective thoughts to the back of her mind, but that didn't stop her from taking note of the funny feelings that were running up her stomach to her chest. She thought maybe the bison wasn't settling well in her stomach and contemplated not getting it in the future.
But when Rachel asked if she wanted to get milkshakes to go and bit her bottom lip with a hopeful expression, Quinn realized the flips in her stomach weren't unpleasant at all. They actually occurred with more of an anticipatory, excited feeling.
She said yes, of course, to the milkshake. Except they both forgot to tell the waiter they wanted them to go.
Rachel had made such a big deal about not knowing whether Oreos and peanut butter and strawberries went together. Quinn pointed out peanut butter and strawberries was basically a peanut butter and jelly sandwich so of course it'd go together. But then Rachel had to go on and on about the type of milk alternative. Quinn went simple with her vanilla shake with crushed Oreos.
When they finally ordered and were served their shakes in tall glasses, the two looked at each other and burst out laughing.
"Should we ask for a takeout cup to go?" Quinn suggested.
Rachel pouted, "But look how pretty it looks. If we take it to go now, it'll all just be smushed into a plastic container."
"It'll still taste the same. Besides, I'm so full right now, I don't know if I can finish it."
"I always have space for dessert," Rachel grinned and proceeded to take a large slurp of her milkshake, closing her eyes and letting out a guttural moan.
Quinn's eyes widened. This time, the funny feeling in her stomach went down instead of up and she- she knew what that meant. But... it was Rachel. She couldn't... it wasn't...what?
Rachel's moan softened into a hum and she finally poked open an eye at Quinn, squinting it in suspicion. "Do you not like your shake?"
Quinn blinked. She'd gotten lost in her thoughts, just staring unabashedly at Rachel. She blushed and leaned forward to take a sip of her milkshake. She was not disappointed and let out her own hum of appreciation.
"Hey, do you wanna try some of mine? I, of course, can't have any of yours, but you, Miss Non-Vegan can have the best of both worlds."
"Yeah sure." It took all she had to try and not think about the fact that Rachel's lips had been on that straw, sucking and swallowing.
Oh gosh. She was thinking about it.
Quinn could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. And with her pale complexion, she knew Rachel was bound to notice. She quickly took a sip of Rachel's milkshake, but a glob of the peanut butter shot down her throat and she immediately pulled away, coughing and sputtering.
"Quinn! Are you okay?!" Rachel's head shot up, trying to catch the attention of a waiter, "Excuse me? Excuse me!"
But after a few seconds, Quinn had managed to get her coughing under control and was taking small sips of her water. "I'm fine, Rachel. You don't have to call anyone over."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes!" Quinn laughed and reached over to pull down Rachel's frantically waving arm.
"Well the service here really is subpar. You could've died! I would've filed a lawsuit with this establishment if that happened, after your funeral of course. I'd need to pay my respects before getting justice for you."
Quinn couldn't stop laughing. The whole situation was absurd and Rachel was just so...Rachel.
"I'm fine Rachel. Let's just finish our shakes and get out of here. And your shake was pretty good, just not as good as mine. Especially since yours just tried to kill me." Quinn smirked, "Would you sue the milkshake too?"
Rachel scoffed, affronted, "Of course not! I'm not crazy. I would sue the chef."
Quinn smiles softly at the other girl's antics. This night was definitely turning out better than expected.
"Oh god. I can't drink anymore. I'm too full," Rachel groaned.
"I thought you always had room for dessert?" Quinn teased.
"That was before I knew this milkshake existed." Rachel leaned back in her seat, hands clutching her belly. "How are you still drinking? You said you were full!"
"Yeah, well. I don't like wasting food. And besides I couldn't just let you drink alone."
"But, but, you're almost done!"
"Yeah, I'm trying to finish so we can get out of here."
A look of determination crossed Rachel's face.
"Uh... I'm not sure I like what's going to happen," Quinn said.
"If you can finish your milkshake, then I can too." Rachel sat up, and started sucking the heck out of her milk shake. She swirled her spoon around, digging out clumps of peanut butter and dumping them on the coaster.
"If you're taking out half the drink, does it still count as 'finishing' it?"
"Shut up," Rachel mumbled through a mouthful of milkshake.
Quinn watched in amusement and also proceeded to continue forcing her milkshake into her stomach. She wasn't about to let Rachel suffer alone.
"Nnghhh." The two of them still sat at their table, unmoving, despite having already paid their bill.
"So, I guess we should head back," Rachel remarked.
"Mmhmm."
The two girls looked at each other and burst out laughing, at least until they grimaced at the movement associated with it.
"Ugh, I told you finishing them was a bad idea." Rachel grumbled as she shuffled around in her seat, making sure she had everything.
"No one said you had to finish your shake too!"
"You challenged me! And I never back down from a challenge."
Quinn rolled her eyes and finally stood, stretching as much as she could. "I think we should take a lap around the block before we head back. Otherwise, I don't think I can manage an hour car ride."
Rachel nodded in agreement and stood as well. She grabbed her coat and slipped it on before following Quinn out the restaurant.
The two of them walked outside in silence for a few seconds before they heard the jingle of the restaurant door open and close and a voice call out, "Miss!" They turned around to see their waiter chasing after them with a container in hand.
"Miss, you left your carryout," he said a little breathlessly as he slowed to a stop in front of Rachel, an eager smile etched on his face.
"Oh, thank you," Rachel smiled in appreciation and took the offering, "Well, I hope you have a good night." She turned around to continue walking and Quinn couldn't help but give a last glance at the waiter who was still staring at Rachel's back. She nodded a goodnight as well and fell into step beside Rachel.
They walked down another block, shyly exchanging glances every now and then, before Rachel nudged Quinn with her shoulder. "What's with that weird look on your face?"
"Hm? Oh, I was just thinking."
"About what?"
Quinn smirked and nudged Rachel back, "You know that guy was hitting on you back there right?" Rachel started. "What? What guy?" Quinn jerked her head behind them, "Our waiter."
"What? No way."
She laughed at Rachel's response, "Oh he definitely was. He was leaning into you the entire time you were trying to decide what milkshake to get and he chased after you just to give you the fries."
Rachel spluttered, "Wh- He was just being nice. We'd already paid for these fries and it'd have been a shame to have left them behind. And of course he was leaning in, he had to see my menu in order to help me decide."
Quinn pressed her lips together, suppressing the smirk that threatened to form. There was just something so... endearing? about how naive Rachel was.
"Besides, he's probably like 40 years old!"
"What? No way, he looks like he's in college, tops."
Rachel shrugged, "Anyways, it'd be more likely for him to be hitting on you, if anything."
Her steps slowed. Maybe it was more than naivety.
"Quinn?" Rachel stopped a few steps ahead, turning when she realized the other girl had fallen behind.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?" Not that there wasn't anything Quinn had to apologize for, but in this moment, Rachel couldn't understand why she was apologizing.
Quinn frowned, lost in thought. "For... I don't know. For everything? For... Damaging you to the point where you don't even know your own self worth?"
A sharp laugh escaped Rachel. "I am very much aware of my own self worth, thank you very much. I don't need your validation or anyone else's for that matter."
"Then why is it so hard te believe that the waiter was hitting on you?"
"I- Well just from an objective standpoint, anyone with eyes would be more drawn to you than me."
"That's not true," Quinn said. "Is it so hard to believe that he could be interested in you? What happened to the annoying Broadway obsessed girl who never failed to tell everyone how amazing she is?"
Rachel looked away, "I guess I've been beaten down one too many times."
Quinn frowned, "I'm sorry." Rachel looked up at the words. She didn't ask for what. She knew what Quinn was apologizing for. But what could she say? It's okay? Or There's nothing to be sorry for? That wasn't true.
But Quinn just looked so forlorn and full of remorse that Rachel just wanted to erase away all her worries. Which was almost a bit ironic - her wanting to comfort one of the people who made the past few years of school a living hell.
"Thank you. But hey, this isn't your fault. At least not just yours. I'm not as oblivious as everyone thinks I am, and I'm not as resilient either." Rachel said, "Maybe breaking up with Finn was a bit of a turning point.
"No one's ever going to like me for me here, and I don't know, I suppose part of me has given up on trying to gain everyone's favor. We only have a year of high school left, and I'll be gone after this. I can focus my energy on more important things like Sectionals and NYADA."
"I like you."
Quinn couldn't pull her eyes away from the other girl and she just stared at her unabashedly, studying her. The wide eyes, the incredulous disbelief displayed on her face.
"I don't mind this new you. Tonight's been pretty great and I never saw myself spending an entire night with you, let alone enjoy it. But I can't deny that a part of me does miss the over-the-top, slightly annoying Rachel Berry. I... I kinda like you for you, as is." She trailed off at the end, almost bashfully and Rachel wasn't sure if Quinn was ashamed of the fact or if she was just embarrassed for having admitted it out loud.
Quinn's eyes fell on Rachel's lips, the bottom of which was tugged in between her teeth. Rachel stepped closer and Quinn's eyes widened. She felt her pulse race and her breath quicken as Rachel leaned in. Her eyes fluttered close and she suddenly let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding when Rachel's face passed hers and pressed against her shoulder. Arms wrapped around her and Quinn melted into the embrace.