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⊹˚₊‧ ┈┈━────── ‧ 𝄞⨾𓍢ִ໋ ‧ ──────━┈┈ ‧₊˚⊹
RACHEL BERRY
I chased after Quinn as she stormed into the girls’ bathroom, her cloudy green eyes welling up with tears.
“Quinn, you need to calm down.” My brows knitted as I watched Quinn’s blazing gaze. The expression on her face signaled the brink of explosion, so I kept myself grounded in preparation.
“This is your fault, Rachel! Nobody ever would have voted for me because they know he would rather be with you!” Quinn snapped. I caught the wavering in her voice as she spoke, and my heart began to ache for her.
My chest tensed up at the thought of Finn Hudson. I wanted nothing to do with him after tonight. When he intervened in Jesse and I’s prom dance, it was humiliating to be put under his spotlight. Because it was one that no longer aligned with my desires. Now I know that it gravely hurt Quinn in the process. The bubbling guilt and frustration inside of me feasted on my emotions.
I wanted nothing more than to be Quinn’s friend because I desperately grasped onto the fact that she was the only person who understood more than just a fraction of how I felt. But because of Finn’s inconsiderate thinking, we could’ve fallen apart sooner than I predicted.
“That’s not true.” I countered Quinn, hoping that she would see past Finn.
“Yes, it is! I see the way that Finn looks at you. Everybody can see it!” Quinn’s mascara left black streaks rolling down her blushed cheeks, and I painfully held back the desire to wipe the sorrow away from her remarkable olive green eyes.
“But I don’t care about him, Quinn,” I admitted, expecting more from Quinn. But she only trained her eyes on mine.
We stood beside the bathroom sinks with a few beats of silence that followed. Quinn removed her gaze from me, unconvinced that I didn’t care about the boy.
My breathing lost all of its depth whenever I stared at the blonde girl in her bedazzled sky blue prom dress. She was stunning, and it hurt to see her practically deny it. All over a boy.
My fingertips suddenly grazed Quinn’s soft hand on the bathroom sink. She turned her head to look at me, unmoved.
Quinn got closer and closer to me the more I blinked, but she remained standing in place. The reflection in the bathroom mirror soon told me that I was the one eliminating the distance between us.
My cheeks burned once my eyes met Quinn Fabray. Despite her running mascara, she was undeniably radiant. I felt as though it was a privilege to continuously exchange silent blinks and glances with her.
My knees gave in, and that’s when I drowned in the sugary sweetness of Quinn Fabray’s lips. Quinn’s body freed itself of the initial tension once my hands made their way to cradle her gentle face, and I wiped away any remaining tears from her eyes.
Even though I couldn’t see her beneath my eyelids when we kissed, Quinn’s distinct vanilla perfume wafted through the thickened air as I got a hint of cherry from Quinn’s glossed lips. I only heard the short breaths she took between the contact that our lips made, and lastly, I felt Quinn’s touch overwhelming my body once she carefully placed her hand on mine.
After a few addictive moments that could’ve been easily mistaken for centuries, I resurfaced from the alluring taste of Quinn that took many deep breaths to recover from. Nothing could flood my senses like Quinn did, which made me realize that no kiss with Finn or Jesse could even begin to compare.
Unfortunately, it didn’t matter how blissful any of it was, because I landed back on Earth and soon realized the damage I’d done. My heels stumbled a few steps away from the mess, which nearly made me fall backwards.
“I’m, I’m so sorry, I…” Every single word that I should’ve said had fallen right out of my mind. Frantically, I flashed my brown eyes towards Quinn, holding back the panicked tears that began to well up.
“Finn can’t know about this.” Quinn suddenly interrupted the flurry of mutters and mumbles that slipped out of my internal monologue.
“What?” I sputtered in disbelief.
“I said: ‘Finn can’t know about this.’” Quinn repeated back to me with a stern glimmer in her eyes.
“Why does it matter to you? It’s not like you love him anyway.” A twinge of dejection slithered through my tone.
“It matters to me, because I’m not ready!” Quinn raised her voice at me in a choked confession. She shut her tear-glistened eyes tightly in an attempt to block me out from her vision.
Quinn broke down into silent sobs and sniffled over the bathroom sink, her face giving in to her shaky hands. I extended a hand out to Quinn, but she refused it.
“I know you think it's hard to be you, Rachel. At least you don't have to be terrified all the time.” Quinn weakly muttered, unable to meet my eyes.
“What are you so scared of?” I questioned. Imagining that Quinn Fabray was scared of anything was nearly impossible; she always seemed so fearless and untouchable. It was agonizing to watch her in such a weak position.
“The future,” Quinn replied, her voice nasally. “When all this is gone,” she added with a sniffle.
I held Quinn’s hands reassuringly, desperately hoping for her face to come back up from the depths of her sorrows to meet my gaze.
“Look, you have nothing to be scared of.” I paused to adjust my breathing. “You're a very pretty girl, Quinn.” I smiled shyly at the blonde beauty as my cheeks flushed at the sight of her once again. “Prettiest girl I've ever met. But you're a lot more than that.” My eyes watched Quinn carefully to make sure that she heard every word that I spoke to her.
“Do you really think so?” Quinn lifted her head to look back at me, a twinkle of hope resurfacing from her cloudy eyes. I never thought that Quinn would’ve been asking me for my approval. The question nearly caused me to also question her myself, but now wasn’t the time.
“I know so,” I confirmed, my thumbs circling Quinn’s soft hands.
Quinn fluttered her eyelashes at me as she slowly composed herself. Her slightly gaped lips tempted me to kiss her again, but I forced myself to resist. Quinn leaned into me for a gentle embrace. I didn’t know just how tightly I held onto her until a few moments later, when I felt her struggle to pull away from me.
“Sorry,” I murmured apologetically, quickly loosening my hold on her. Quinn let a subtle smile form on her lips once her eyes met mine, which soothed my mind. We both needed a hug.
“Can we ditch this thing? I’m exhausted.” Quinn half-laughed. It was clear that she only wanted to leave so that she didn’t have to see Finn again. I nodded my head.
“Of course. Whatever you want, Quinn.” I returned a smile to Quinn.