The Running Back

Chapter 18

Almost nothing could stop Rachel from performing her morning routine... except for Quinn that is. On the occasions when Quinn had slept over Rachel put off her routine for a few minutes so she could just watch her for a little bit. She also didn't have much of a choice since Quinn had a tendency to cling onto her during the night. Her golden locks would typically be a mess and she'd usually be nuzzling into Rachel. It was in those moments that Rachel would be reminded of the fact that Quinn wasn't perfect.

Although... her hair was always perfect even when messed up. That part just wasn't fair.

Despite that Rachel tucked a loose strand of hair behind Quinn's ear. Quinn began to rouse at the feeling of Rachel's fingers brushing against her skin. She groaned lightly as she slowly opened her eyes. "Sorry," Rachel apologized. "I didn't mean to wake you." Quinn shook her head. She took Rachel's hand and brought it up to her lips, kissing her knuckles.

"It's okay..." She trailed off, lightly grasping onto Rachel's hand. She looked up into Rachel's eyes and then took a breath. "Besides, we should probably have a talk." Quinn pushed herself up into a sitting position, all the while still holding her girlfriend's hand. She looked scared, an expression that Rachel rarely ever saw on Quinn's face. Immediately, Rachel wanted to push the topic aside. She wanted to forget about the conversation before it even started.

But Rachel knew that she needed to hear whatever it was that Quinn needed to tell her. "Okay, but how about some breakfast first?"

"That would be nice... but I need to say this now or else I might chicken out." Rachel nodded her understanding. She scooted in close to help comfort her girlfriend and as a way to tell her that everything would be okay. "Okay... so as I'm sure you've figured out on your own, my mom and dad don't know about us."

"I had guessed that, yes."
"I want to tell them, I'm just not ready. I don't even know how they'd react."

"We can take our time," Rachel assured. It had been easy for her but that had been because her own parents were gay. And even then they both still worried about her. Neither of them wanted her to have to face the same issues that they had to endure growing up. "We can wait until you're ready to tell them." Quinn forced on a smile. A single tear fell from the corner of her eye. Rachel cupped her cheek and gently wiped the tear away with her thumb.

Quinn wrapped her fingers around Rachel's hand, giving it a firm squeeze. "I knew you'd say that and I'm grateful that you're willing to wait, but that's not the problem." Quinn kissed the palm of Rachel's hand. "My dad worries about me since he's never seen me go out on a date with anyone. So..."

"He set you up with someone," Rachel finished for her. Quinn nodded. "Oh."

"He-he set me up with Jesse." The world seemed to stop. Everything grew silent. Rachel felt sick. Jesse. Of all the potential boys that Quinn could have been set up with it had to be Jesse. She couldn't find the words to respond. She didn't know how to respond. Rachel was angry, upset and hurt but she knew that none of this was Quinn's fault. That fact did little to help her feel better. Her body felt weak. Her hand would have dropped from her girlfriend's face if not for the grip Quinn still had on it. Tentatively, Quinn gave her palm another kiss. "Baby, talk to me."

For a moment Rachel remained silent. She looked up into Quinn's eyes. Her girlfriend was on the verge of tears. Rachel wanted to do something to cheer up her, but she felt like was about to cry as well. But still she tried, opening mouth to speak so she could comfort Quinn but no words escaped her lips. Rachel covered her mouth with her hand to fight back her sobs.

Quinn nodded dejectedly. "I'll understand it if you hate me and want to break up with me."

Rachel's head snapped up. "No," she squeaked out. "No, of course not. You were only trying to make your dad happy. I would have preferred that you told me about it first, but I can understand why you did what you did."