Can't Take My Eyes Off You || Quinntana

Four

"We have this whole house to ourselves for the next two days. What do you want to do?"

Quinn locked eyes with Santana, who'd just gotten out of the shower. Her eyes were freshly red and puffy, but they silently agreed not to acknowledge it.

"Can we just watch a movie or something?" Santana replied, her voice hoarse.

"Ten things?"

"You know it."

10 Things I Hate About You was a staple in Quinn and Santana's friendship. They watched it at nearly every sleepover. Quinn would always cry at the end, and Santana would make fun of her. They would then fight about whether or not Patrick was a douchebag, Quinn finding him romantic and Santana reminding her that being paid to date someone is not at all romantic. It usually ended in a slap or two.

The friends entered Quinn's living room and settled on the couch together. Quinn suddenly became very aware of the body next to hers, the places where their skin connected sending off fireworks.

She did her best to compose herself and turned on the movie. Almost instantly, Santana began questioning the plot.

"What kind of high school has cowboys as a social group? I live in Kentucky, for god's sake, and there aren't cowboys walking around my school."

Quinn was tempted to fight back, but she let her friend rant.

"And who in their right mind makes up a rule where one daughter can only date if the other dates? That doesn't even make sense. Who came up with this?"

"It's based on the Taming of the Shrew. Shakespeare, San. That's who came up with it."

"Okay, Miss Yale."

Santana's tone was harsh, but after that remark, she relaxed into Quinn and rested her head on her shoulder. Quinn flinched in response, then quickly played it off, pretending nothing had happened when Santana gave her a questioning look.

Quinn's favorite scene started playing. Patrick was dancing on the stands at Kat's soccer practice, singing Can't Take My Eyes Off You along with the marching band's accompaniment.

"I wish someone would do that for me," Quinn said dreamily.

"Do what? Get paid to date you, then refuse to kiss you, then publicly humiliate you?"

Quinn couldn't help but laugh. This was the Santana she knew and loved.

"Yup. Exactly."

"It is a pretty good song, though."

Santana relaxed further into Quinn, and soon, she was asleep, her head still resting on the blonde's shoulder. Quinn wished she could stay there forever, feeling Santana's slow, steady breathing. For once, the fiery girl looked to be at peace.

As the movie came to an end, Quinn slowly shuffled out from under Santana, laid her down on the couch, and covered her with a blanket. For a second longer, she allowed herself to take in the sight of her beautiful friend.

. . .

Santana awoke to the sound of the front door opening. She sat up and groggily rubbed her eyes, a massive headache starting to form. Her miseries, however, quickly dissipated when she smelled what Quinn had brought into the house.

"I got us—"

"Breadstix! Let me at those sticks."

"Wait. First, I want to show you something. Put some shoes on."

Santana looked at the blonde inquisitively, a smirk appearing on her face. She followed her friend out the back door and through her lush backyard. They walked past the pool and garden, then suddenly stopped at the bottom of a hill.

"Here we are." Quinn looked incredibly proud of the—valley?

"A ditch? This is what you wanted to show me?"

"This is where I used to come when my parents would fight. I'd play here by myself until I couldn't hear the yelling anymore. I thought we could eat here. It seems like you could use a safe space."

Santana didn't know what to say.

"How come you never showed me this before?"

"I don't know. Guess I was waiting for the right time."

They stood awkwardly for a moment, then Quinn laid out a picnic blanket, and they sat down to eat. The food was delicious, as Breadstix always was.

"Thanks for doing all of this for me. I know you'd probably rather be in New Haven right now, rubbing elbows with all the fancy smart people."

"Rubbing elbows, San? Really?"

They laughed. Quinn was impressed by how much Santana was opening up this weekend. She'd never been comfortable with vulnerability. She must have really been affected by the breakup.

"There's no place I'd rather be right now than here with you. I promise. I just want to see you happy again. And anyway, Yale is great, but it's not all it's cracked up to be."

Apparently, Santana wasn't the only one letting vulnerable thoughts slip out that day.

"What do you mean? I thought you loved Yale."

"I do. It's just that ever since I left Lima, I've felt like something was missing. You know?"

The friends locked eyes, a mutual understanding binding them together. They had both been looking for something to fill that hole.

"I know."