From New Haven To New York-Faberry

Chapter 8

Quinn barely slept that night. She tossed and turned constantly. She knew Rachel liked to touch when she slept but the blonde felt like she was cheating the diva of emotion. Every time Rachel moved over in the bed, Quinn would move away. She couldn't allow Rachel to wake up being too close to her, it could only enhance any false hope the brunette might have. Every time she closed her eyes, Rachel was there with a bright smile and a hope that it could work. Quinn violently shook her head several times trying to lose the shining face but she wouldn't go. Even in dreams Rachel was persistent; in the end Quinn just lay gazing up at the ceiling allowing the dream version of Rachel to smile at her. It was the only version that would be smiling at her in a few hours anyway.

She looked at the clock and saw that it was seven thirty. Although she'd had no sleep she felt wide awake and slowly got out of bed and headed to the shower. She couldn't wash away the guilt from her body but she gave it a good attempt. Suddenly Quinn stopped what she was doing; she hadn't comprehended the diva being okay with just being friends. She might even come around to Quinn's way of thinking that their friendship would be too much to risk.

Rachel slowly opened her eyes and knew instantly that Quinn wasn't there beside her. She heard the shower running and immediately knew where her friend was. Last night had left her slightly deflated but she was going to talk to Quinn today. She had to. This was the reason she was here. To show Quinn she was an option; that she was ready to move on. It was Quinn she wanted and she was Rachel Berry, she wasn't known for giving up. She propped herself on her pillow and waited for her friend to emerge from the bathroom. She was looking forward to her day in New Haven. Exploring a new place with one of her best friends was exactly what she needed to get away from the stress of assignment work.

"Morning," Rachel said as she heard the bathroom door open.

"Hey you, how'd you sleep?" Quinn asked.

"Pretty good, you?"

"Yeah same," Quinn lied running the towel through her slightly damp hair. "Did you want to shower?"

"If that's ok?"

"Of course, go shower and then our day of fun can begin," Quinn said smiling. The diva jumped out of bed, grabbing her things as she passed. Once she was out of the door, the blonde's smile fell into a frown. She couldn't do this to her friend. She couldn't stand there and break her heart. 'No, I have to. It's not worth risking.' She thought. She couldn't let her conscience try and worm its way back into her ever changing mind. Quinn smiled again when she heard the diva singing in the shower. She stopped what she was doing and just lay on her bed soaking up the brunette's voice. It was one of the biggest things about high school that she missed: glee club. Being able to hear Rachel's amazing voice every day when she'd fight their friends off just to perform another emotion driven ballad. In the shower Rachel sung every word like it was going to be her last. The lyrics were definitely appropriate to the situation she'd found herself in.

'I just wanna start again and maybe you could show me how to try?

Maybe you could take me in; somewhere underneath your skin.

What do you say to takin' chances?

What do you say to jumpin' off the edge?

Never knowin' if there's solid ground below or a hand to hold or hell to pay.

What dya say?'

Rachel remembered singing this song during auditions for the school musical in her sophomore year but now it had so much more significance. She knew Quinn would be listening. So she tried to tempt the blonde with the most powerful weapon in her arsenal: her voice. She'd also found the song she wanted to use for her assignment; although it could be branded too safe if Rachel could find appropriate theory for it linking it to her performance she didn't care. She just desperately wanted to pass her first major assignment and get the girl in one fell swoop. If only life could be that easy.