Chapter Text
20 years, she had been stuck in a loop for two whole decades. The sounds of the marching band forever in the young girls head - the symphony of practice yet instead of it feeling like a calming thing it was just disturbing. She had died - SHE WAS DEAD and nobody even cared.
She had no friends in life and she doubted her parents cared anyway. She tried to be a good daughter, the perfect one they needed her to be. So she got those grades and just wanted to keep her head down and survive high school. But it was never that easy she was a loser, a DEAD loser. God there were so many things she never even did in life, she never told her parents how she felt about girls, she never told her crush how she truly felt hell ,she never even had her first kiss and yet it all just - didn't matter her life was a joke.
She was never great with people, she isn't great with people - even in the afterlife she's a loser but Rhonda well she hates everyone but she doesn't seem to hate her or hate her as much.
But they hugged and while she may not know everything about the 60s ghost she knows she isn't exactly a hugger but that's all she really knows? Maybe she should try to find out more about Rhonda she could ask her friends right?.
So that's what she does, she looks for Charley it was either that or Wally and well, they seem to have more in common. Loser gay kids is possibly a reductionist view of the both of them but well, it wasn't exactly wrong at least - not in life. Charley actually seems to be doing pretty well in the afterlife he has friends and maybe even a boyfriend? She wasn't quite sure what exactly the two were but they seemed to really like each other maybe Quinn could be lucky and have that with Rhonda.
So she found him or well them, he seemed to be spending a lott of time in the pottery studio lately with the pottery ghost guy, Yuri his name was she was pretty sure. She knocked on the door and heard a simultaneous "come in" from the two.
Walking into the pottery studio she saw them both sat down, the blonde man working delicately on what looked to be a bowl looking towards her and the other man simply sat next to him looking at her as well.
She suddenly felt very nervous with the two just staring at her, throwing them an awkward smile and a shy wave she started walking over to them.
"Charley hi" she said breaking the silence
"Hey, uh can I help you?" He asked looking a little confused as to why she was there which she supposes was fair they hadn't exactly had a proper conversation before.
"Yeah" she says until she promptly follows up with "about Rhonda".
"What about her?" He questions.
"You guys are friends right?" She says.
"I mean I guess so? She isn't exactly the type to be close with people or even call us her friends but that's probably what it is. Quinn opens her mouth to respond but he isn't finished talking.
"Look she can be a bit... difficult at the start but you shouldn't be off put by that she's a really nice person she just struggles to get close to people, literally and figuratively" he says.
"We kinda..hugged and she just doesn't seem to hug anyone else? And I just thought maybe she has and I just didn't know or something".
"Wait she HUGGED you???" He almost yells out "why would she hug you?" He questions.
" well I mean I was just going through a lot and really she probably just felt forced to stay with me" she tries to reason because even she wasn't quite sure why she did it.
"No- I'm sorry I didn't mean it like that it's just Rhonda she just doesn't get close and when she does she just trys to push them anyway and I think maybe she's stopped doing that as much and that's a good thing for her - maybe you're good for her".
She can feel her cheeks become a soft red as she blushes with the idea "you think I'm good for her?" She asks.
"Oh" he says as he starts to see the blush arise on the girls cheeks "OH".
"YOU TOTALLY LIKE HER DON'T YOU?" He yells, a bit too loudly for quinns liking.
"Okay fine yes fuck I like her but it doesn't matter anyway she doesn't like me" she responds sounding almost sad, it was the first time she admitted to it out loud.
"How do you know she doesn't like you back?" He questioned.
"Look I don't know okay, I barley know her".
"Maybe you should get to know her then".
"What like a date?" She asks.
"Just ask her I'm sure it'll be fine and worst case scenario I'm always here to talk about it if you want" he responds as he briefly pats her shoulder.
"Right, .. thanks" she responds pretty unsure of his advice sure she'd love to ask her out but would Rhonda really say yes?? She wasn't so sure maybe she should talk to somebody else.
And that's how she ended up on the football field, wally has been here for longer than Charley anyway right so surely he knows Rhonda better than anyone else and while he may be a LITERAL stereotypical 80s jock he seems like nice enough of a guy plus his dance thing the other saturday was fun so she could at least try to have a conversation with him, especially if it will help her.
And well.. predictably there he was tossing a football up and down repeatedly, clearly not noticing her until she does a small little cough.
"Oh hey Quinn, what's up?" He asks still tossing the football.
"I just wanted to talk to you about Rhonda I spoke to Charley already and he wasn't that helpful" she replied.
"Aww what about Rhonda do you have a crush on her or something?" He teases and finally looks at quinn who is blushing like crazy.
"oh you do??? I was joking but hey good for you" he replies.
"That's not like exactly what I wanted to talk to you about" she responds trying to change the subject.
"No sweat it's fine I can help you with what charley couldn't, after all the ladies love me and as much as I love charley he's gay and has literally 0 experience with girls" he finally stops throwing the ball and simply asks her "so..what can I do?".
"Right well, I'm not sure" she responds she wasn't exactly guessing wally would be so well...nice? And supportive but annoying at the same time.
"Well I am like THE best wingman in all of split river high afterlife so let's start with why you like her?" He cockily said but still seemed to show genuine interest in the conversation.
"Well I don't know she is just amazing you know and she was really there for me the other day when I needed somebody" she responds finally, leading the jock to raise an eyebrow.
"Oh?" He questions "what happend the other day?"
"She hugged me and I know hugging for a lot of people is normal right? But she just doesn't hug and nobody has ever hugged me and it felt just like really nice okay"
"RHONDA HUGGED YOU???" .
"WAIT YOU'VE ALSO NEVER BEEN HUGGED?".
"No okay I haven't I didn't exactly have friends in life and now I finally do okay and yes she hugged me" she responds.
"I think she likes youuu" he simply responds his tone however clearly teasing in a sing songy voice.