fic: The All Star, Chapter 1
Quinn moseyed through the supermarket aisles slowly, almost lazily. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon and she had nowhere to be. A simple smile graced her face as she read through her shopping list again and again, occasionally looking up at the shelves she was passing to see if she had missed anything.
As she entered the cereal aisle, she pulled her cart over and reached up to get a box of Special K. When she spun around to drop it in her cart, she dropped it on the ground with a soft thud. Sighing, Quinn bent over to pick up the box, and in the process, was blindsided. Stumbling forward a few feet, Quinn snapped up, wheeling around to see what had collided with her.
There on the ground was a small girl who had been knocked on her behind from the impact. Quinn had to do a triple take. “Oh, I’m real sorry ma’am,” the child said quickly and bashfully, pushing herself off the ground. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t even see you or anything, if I had I woulda stopped, please excuse me, I know I shouldn’t be running around.” The child was dressed in an animal print sweater, a knee-length jean skirt, white tights and penny loafers with a pink headband on her soft brown hair. My God, she looks-and sounds just like-
“Mia! Mi, where’d you go, sweetheart?” No way. Quinn’s eyes bulged. There, wheeling around a shopping cart was the one and only, and certainly grown-up, Rachel Berry. “Mia, there you are, I told you not to go running off like that! You-Quinn?” There was a pause where the two women just stared at each other in disbelief. There she was, Rachel Berry, dressed like a real adult (a nice change from argyle and tights) in a blue silk blouse, black jeans and black suede boots, standing across from Quinn who was in a green sundress that brought out her eyes and a big brown belt wrapped around her slim waist.
After graduating high school nine years ago, almost ten, Rachel had gone off to Julliard, presumably to pursue a predestined career on Broadway. Quinn found herself at UCLA where she began medical school. All these years later, Quinn decided to take a pediatric fellowship at NYU, and found herself here, in the supermarket, standing opposite Rachel Berry who now had a small child holding her leg protectively. “Mama, do you know her?” the child asked softly. Rachel couldn’t even respond.
“Quinn Fabray?” It just wasn’t sinking in. Rachel never thought she’d see her old tormentor again, certainly not here with her six year old daughter. Quinn just nodded slowly.
“Rachel Berry,” she said with a small smile. After another beat of silence, Quinn stepped forward. “…Hug?” she asked awkwardly. A handshake felt too impersonal, but then again, it’s not like either of the women had exactly been particularly close.
“Uh, yeah…what am I saying, of course!” Rachel and Quinn hugged tightly before pulling back, Rachel staring up at Quinn almost in awe. “I-I…how have you been? What brings you to the city?”
Quinn smiled warmly. “I’ve been great, I’m here as a fellow for pediatrics over at NYU actually.” They both couldn’t quite grasp that the situation was happening. “And who’s this little rugrat?” Quinn said with a grin, kneeling down to be level with the girl.
“Oh, of course! Quinn, this is my daughter, Mia. Mia, this is a…friend of mine, from back in high school, Quinn.”
Quinn waved gingerly at the child. “Hi, Mia.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” the girl said quietly, tightening her hold on Rachel’s leg, grabbing it like a security blanket.
“You’ll have to excuse her, she’s very shy,” Rachel explained, before bending down to pick the child up.
“Of course, I see that with my patients all the time, I’m a strange face to her,” Quinn said nodding. Mia looked up at Quinn from Rachel’s arms, studying her face curiously. Quinn couldn’t help but grin; she loved children. “So a kid!” Rachel nodded and beamed at Mia who smiled shyly. “Didn’t expect that, Berr-er…Rach.”
Rachel kept nodding and placed her daughter on the ground. “Mia, honey, why don’t you go pick out a cereal or two ok? And see if there’s anything else you want in the aisle while you’re at it.” The girl nodded eagerly and ran off, heading for the children’s cereal. “I didn’t expect it either, honestly.”
“Husband pressured you?” Quinn questioned.
Rachel smirked. “Drunken mistake in college.” Quinn’s face went stoic and her eyes went wide. “Don’t get me wrong,” Rachel began, walking back to her cart. “I don’t regret keeping her, she’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me, mistake or not. But I had planned on Broadway, not diapers.” Quinn looked concerned.
“You never made it?”
Rachel shook her head. “Not exactly. Pregnant at 22, it’s awfully hard to sing and dance with a choreographer when you have a belly like that,” she replied with a chuckle.
Quinn nodded sympathetically. “So what do you do, if you don’t mind me asking…”
“No, not at all, I direct mostly. I do choreography and songwriting, all that, but I never got to be on stage, not with being a single mother.”
The pair began to slowly push their carts down the aisle, Rachel keeping a close eye on her child. “So what happened with the guy? Did he at least try to stick around?”
Rachel exhaled deeply. “He tried all right. Showed up at my dorm every fucking day asking to help. Drove my girlfriend insane, she wound up breaking up with me over it. That’s the last thing I needed-“
“Wait, wait, hold on.” Rachel smirked. “Girlfriend?” Quinn found herself laughing openly now.
Rachel joined her. “Yep, I’m batting for the rainbow team nowadays.”
“Oh, that’s too good.” Before the conversation could continue, Mia ran up to Rachel, her arms full of cereals.
“Mia, I told you to pick out two, not…all of them!” Rachel scolded. Quinn giggled at the child.
“But mama, I really want them!”
“Mia, you won’t eat all of these,” Rachel reasoned, taking the boxes from the girl.
“I promise I will,” the girl urged.
“Mia Olivia Berry, you can have two and only two, do you understand?” Rachel said sternly. Mia nodded sadly and picked out Fruity Pebbles and Corn Pops, tossing them into the cart. “Good girl, now put these back where you found them and we can move on to the next aisle.” Mia nodded sullenly and took the boxes from her mother’s arms, then ran off down the aisle to put them back.
“So the uh…rainbow team?” Quinn said with a chuckle as she pushed her cart slowly alongside Rachel’s.
Rachel blushed a bit and nodded. “Some experimenting in college led to some life-altering realizations I guess…” Quinn nodded and picked a box off the shelf, dropping it lazily into her cart. “But what about you? I doubt you’re still with Finn, so who’s the lucky man?”
Quinn smirked. “You tell me you’re switching sides and just assume I’m still batting for the home team?” Rachel stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes wide. Quinn kept pushing her cart, laughing to herself.
“Y-You don’t mean-“
“That I’m as queer as a three dollar bill? Gay as the day is long? A dykasaurous rex?” Rachel sputtered, her face trying to do way too much at once.
“Did you break my mommy?” Mia asked nervously as she walked back up to the two women. Rachel snapped back to reality and blinked hard.
“No, no, sweetheart,” Quinn said warmly and kneeled down to be at her level. “No, I just told your mommy I play on the same team as her,” she continued with a smirk.
“Oh, like a sports team?! Like baseball?” Mia said giddily.
Quinn laughed and looked up at Rachel. “Oh yea, just like baseball. Maybe softball is a little more apropos. In fact, yeah, I’d say I’m a softball all star,” Quinn loved working with children for just this reason; you could get away with so much. Quinn was openly laughing and here Mia was, eating it all up with a toothy smile.
“No way, what position are you?” Mia squeaked, though she had no idea why. She just heard the term all-star and got very impressed; clearly this tall blonde woman was important in some way.
“Usually a pitcher,” Quinn said and looked at Rachel. The blonde bit her lip. “Sometimes a catcher. And I’m always looking for someone new to play with.”
Mia was too impressed that she was in the midst of some sort of all star to notice that her mother was starting to grin nervously and had turned a lovely shade of red. As they exited the aisle, Quinn turned towards the register and reached into her purse as Mia pointed out an aisle of cookies she wanted to go through. Quinn pulled out a business card and pen, and quickly wrote out her cell number on the back.
“Well, I’m done with my shopping so I’m going to head home now, but it was lovely to meet you Mia,” Quinn said kindly and shook the girls hand. Mia pouted at the fact that this woman she had taken a liking to was leaving and looked up at her mother. “And so lovely to see you again, Rachel.”
“Mommy,” Mia interjected, “you should play with Quinn sometime. You know she says she’s an all-star on your team,” Mia said, trying to sound as brilliant as possible, though she obviously didn’t understand much of what was going on.
“I agree, Mia, your mom looks perfect.” Quinn winked and handed Rachel the business card. “Call me.” With one more quick wave to the child, Quinn turned her cart and headed towards the register.
“She was very nice, mommy,” Mia said thoughtfully, taking hold of her mother’s hand and steering her to the cookies. “You should call her.”
Rachel laughed and looked down into Mia’s big brown eyes. “Well, if you insist.” Mia nodded with certainty and grinned. She looked forward to seeing the nice blonde all star again, and soon.