A/N
Rated M for language and smut
Thanks to DarthVader'sApprentice for helping me, this wouldn't be anything without you.
Santana told him. She told him so many times this was going to happen. Santana just knew his car was slowly breaking down. She'd told her Papi countless times that his car was on the verge of breaking down, he replied with a hurried "I'll get it fixed when I can Mija". She knew that somehow this car was going to be a problem for her.
Santana didn't want to risk driving her car to school this morning because she forgot to fill up the tank, normally she's good at remembering things but she was glued to her study books all weekend. That's how Santana found herself asking her Papi, when he came back from his night shift at the hospital, if she could use his car so that she could get to school on time.
If he had gotten his air filter cleaned, his engine wouldn't be sounding like it was going to blow up. When she realised that she couldn't continue driving the deathly vehicle and pulled over she was even more frustrated to find that she hadn't even gotten that far. School was at least a 20 minute walk from here.
The thing was Santana wouldn't even be late, even if she did get there in 20 minutes time she would still arrive 5 minutes before the bell. She just liked being there a little early. There's nothing wrong with being punctual. She liked to get there before her 'peers' so that she didn't have to interact with them in any way, even if it is to ask them to move out her way.
Santana also liked to get settled in her seat, not that anyone would take her seat in the back of the room closest to the wall, but she still felt the need to rush to her seat because it was the one place in the room that offered her a sense of security.
Thinking about her seat gave Santana the motivation she needed. To get out of the car. Santana hastily grabbed her bag pack from the passenger seat then stepped onto the side walk, slamming the door behind her. She paused for a moment, contemplating leaving the doors unlocked, so pissed off that she doesn't care that it seems completely stupid, she dismisses the idea quickly though, she could never do that to her Papi.
She's still pissed though. She began walking to school and after 10 tortuous minutes she thought she was going to cry, puke, or pass out, or all three. She's not unfit, she just really hates anything that requires too much movement.
The sun beamed down on her, her hair was sticking uncomfortably to the back of her neck, she wouldn't have had her hair down if she knew she'd doing a marathon. Santana wouldn't be able to put it in a quick neat bun though, she doesn't have enough bobby pins, she may not be vain but she doesn't want to look scruffy.
For a split second Santana considered putting her hair into a ponytail, it would feel so good to feel the relief of the cool breeze on her hot sweaty neck. She forced herself to snap out of it, there was snowballs chance in hell she was going to put her hair up into a ponytail, the style that those cheerleaders have. Santana would rather feel the heat than do that.
She decided to just stop being a pussy and endure. The rest of the journey wasn't as difficult. When Santana walked into her school she felt the urge to run to class, she would've too if it wasn't for the amount of chimpanzees in her way.
As Santana made her way through the crowded hallway, she'd never been more happy that no one ever paid any attention to her. She easily navigated her way through the crowd. It wasn't like she got bullied, she just kept herself to herself and didn't stand out in her jeans, sneakers and t-shirt.
Santana got to class 5 minutes before the bell, she still felt out of her element because there are so many people already. She saw Mr. Helbig looking over some notes. She passed cheerleaders flirting with jocks, she thought she just saw a kid eat a piece of paper; she shook her head and carried on her journey to her seat.
Santana came in front of her desk and stopped abruptly. There was someone in her seat. Well technically not in her seat, but next to her seat. A cheerleader. Santana blinked for a moment, then scrunched up her face. Great.
Santana, still fuming from walking to school in the heat and still frustrated because of not getting to school as early as she'd like, told the girl with a blank face "You're in my seat."
The blonde cheerleader who was focused on drawing a cartoon character (is that spongebob?) looked up at the sound of someone talking to her. At first Santana was taken back by her beautiful eyes but then she remembered where she was and focused on what was happening.
The girl smiled at her, "Oh sorry, I'm just new here and I wasn't sure if anyone was sitting here and I thought 'if anyone does sit here I would have to move' but then I didn't want to move too far so I asked that kid over there with the afro and hygiene problems if anyone sits here and he said no" She rambled as she moved over to the next seat.
Santana just looked at her for a moment trying to process what the girl has just said. She just moved over into her seat. Santana sighed, "You're in my seat." she repeated. The girl just looked confused now. Of course she wouldn't understand. The blonde looked around the room, seeing everywhere was full except for the seat next to that guy who looked high and/or homeless, and then focused back on Santana "You sit in two seats?" she asked, amused, "I don't think your ass is big enough to fit in both seats" she said teasingly.
Santana decided that she wasn't going to be sitting in her seat soon if she just glared at this girl, Santana's pretty sure the girl looked at her ass earlier, though she'd probably imagined it. "No, I sit there, in the corner" she said, gesturing to the seat that was occupied by the blonde.
"I'll sit here then" the cheerleader said, sliding back to the other seat, "Do you mind if I sit by you?" she asked Santana a little hesitantly.
Santana did mind. She was going to ask the girl why she wouldn't sit with her cheer-leading friends but she didn't want to open a door for conversation.
So Santana just shrugged whilst sitting down in her chair. She got out her English work book and a few additional notes she made and settled into her seat.
Mr. Helbig started the lesson. Santana took notes as the teacher talked, and forgot about the girl next to her until she was nudged. Santana paused and frowned at the girl. "Why are you writing so much?" the girl asked her. Santana was only half listening to her, aware that the teacher was still talking. Santana just hushed the girl and continued writing, but she wasn't as focused because she could see the girl looking at her from the corner of her eye.
When Mr. Helbig finished speaking his attention turned to the cheerleader, who's attention was on shading in in her cartoon character. Santana rolled her eyes. "Miss Pierce? Would you like to introduce yourself to the class?"
The cheerleader discreetly pushed her drawing underneath her work book (Santana hadn't even realise she had her book there) and looked hesitantly at the teacher. They seemed to be having a silent conversation for a moment, but when Mr. Helbig gives her an encouraging nod she slowly rose out of her seat and straightened her posture. The blonde cleared her throat and looked around the room for a moment before she began, "My name's Brittany. My family have just moved here from L.A, where I grew up. Uh, I'm a cheerio because I enjoy gymnastics and dancing." Brittany smiled thinly and then sat back in her seat.
Santana saw the girl - Brittany - shift uncomfortably from the corner of her eye. She seemed to relax when the class turned back around. They must have been expecting her to say a bit more about herself, Santana was too, Brittany hadn't said much about herself at all. Santana wondered if Brittany had trouble speaking in front of large groups, Brittany didn't seem nervous talking about her ass earlier and what was with that look with the teacher?
Damn it, she really needed to focus. Santana quickly turned back to the task Mr. Helbig was setting, determined not to let anything else distract her. Although she wasn't talking to the cheerleader beside her, her presence was distracting, and it frustrated Santana so much.
She was there to work. So, for the rest of the period that was what she did. She ignored everything around her and easily immersed herself in her work.
When the bell went off, signalling the end of the period, Santana lingered by her seat, putting her notes and book away in her backpack. She waited for everyone else to clear out before walking towards the door. Just as she was about to go through the door, however, she heard the teacher call "Santana?" she paused and turned around.
She raised her eyebrows questioningly. "Thank you for letting Brittany sit next to you. She seems comfortable sitting next to you, she really needs that" he stopped there. It seemed like he wanted to say more but had already felt like he'd said too much.
What the hell was that supposed to mean? Santana stood there waiting for him to explain but he just smiled at her, "See you next period" he said, and went back to looking through his notes.
Santana left the room confused and started walking to next period's class, Mr. Helbig's words echoing in her mind.
Comfortable? Why does this cheerleader need to be comfortable? He said the girl seemed comfortable sitting by Santana, it makes no sense.
"Santana did you leave the house at all this weekend?" a voice nagged from her right. Santana jumped with a small yelp, too lost in her own thoughts to notice her friend had joined her. Santana slapped a hand to her chest and tried to catch her breath, "Fuck Rachel, I've told you to stop doing that. You're going to give me a heart attack one of these days"
Rachel rolled her eyes "Stop being so dramatic"
Santana scoffs, Rachel ignores her "Anyway, I asked you if you left your house at all this weekend? You were invited to come to the movies with me and Kurt"
"I don't see why you're making a big deal out of this, nothing was set in stone and you knew it was unlikely I'd show up. Calm down" Santana sighed. She was tired of having this conversation, her social habits were increasingly becoming a main topic of conversation with Rachel "Besides, we're seniors now. This is the time where we work our hardest. There's no time to leave studying to just sit in a stuffy dark room, full of strangers and watch actors speak to each other whilst being filmed and I'm not eager to be near you when you start sobbing and inhaling junk food."
A reply was on the tip of Rachel's tongue when a taunting, nasal voice behind them spoke "Where are you going stubbles?"
Santana rolled her eyes. This was really starting to get old now. Rachel and Santana stopped walking and waited for the girl to stand in front of them. Santana notices that Quinn wasn't alone, which wasn't anything new, but her eyes widened when she recognised her companion as Brittany.
But Brittany didn't look bitchy like the cheerleaders normally looked when Quinn decided to pick on Rachel. She even smiled at Santana. Santana quickly averted her eyes and focused on Quinn who has said something to Rachel that she didn't quite catch but she thought it was safe to assume it wasn't something pleasant.
She knew that Rachel could handle herself with Quinn so she wasn't too concerned about things getting too out of hand, but she was tired of hearing the same old shit from Quinn, it slowed her down when she was trying to get to class.
Santana watched impatiently as Quinn insulted Rachel, itching to get the next period. This day was not going the way she wanted it to. Brittany was watching them as well with a small smirk on her face, looking at Quinn like she'd just noticed something interesting about her.
When Quinn walked away with Brittany, Santana noticed Brittany whisper something in Quinn's ear, pulling back with a teasing smile on her face. Brittany glanced back at Rachel and looked at Quinn wagging her eyebrows. Quinn just laughed it off and pushed her away. Santana frowned and turned her attention to Rachel, who was looking at a piece of paper in her hand.
Santana looked at it and commented "At least she didn't draw you with a dick this time."
Rachel hummed in agreement and threw it in the trash when they walked past it. Santana knew the answer but it didn't stop her for wondering, "Why do you let her treat you like this Rache?"
Santana asked her friend gently, aware that was a sore and 'complicated' subject and because she was aware that they weren't alone.
"You know why Santana. I can see it in her eyes, she's just sad. The things she says to me don't bother me any more and she needs this. You know, like the chain of screaming"
"The chain of screaming?" Santana repeated, slowly.
"I'm glad you asked Santana, Quinn's dad's bosses boss screams at Quinn's dad's boss..."
Santana interrupted her, knowing by the end of Rachel's explanation her brain will have melted and it was slowing her down, "Okay, I get it. Actually I think I've heard that before, I'm sure it was on a show when we were at Kurt's a while back"
"Oh you remember? It's from an old episode of How I Met Your Mother. I don't know why Kurt forced us to watch it, something about Josh Radnor. I admit the show was funny at times but it's not my cup of tea. Oh! Did I tell you about the herbal tea that I've started drinking?"
Santana raised her hand to quiet Rachel before she could say anything else. Damn, the girl could talk a lot.
Rachel just smiled at her, understanding that sometimes Santana can't cope with too much conversation, especially when she was in a bad mood. They walked to class in comfortable silence and as soon as they entered the room Santana rushed to sit in the far corner of the room, Rachel not far behind her.
They settled into their seats and waited as the rest of the class entered. Mercedes walked in the room, not that Santana needed to see her to know that, because when Mercedes entered a room you knew she'd entered the room, she just had that kind of bubbly presence.
Mercedes smiled at the pair and moved to sit at the desk in front of them. She greeted them "Hey, is this where all the cool kids at?"
"Hi Mercedes" Rachel beamed
Mercedes winked at Rachel and looked at Santana
"It's funny every time you say it 'cedes" Santana replied dryly.
Mercedes grinned at her and shrugged "I try"
Santana just mock glared at her until she turned to face the front.
You've got to be fucking kidding. This Brittany chick was all up in her face today. Well, all she's done this time was walk through the door but she was still instantly a huge distraction. Santana realised she was definitely going to fail this year if she kept on allowing herself to get sidetracked by this chick.
Mercedes caught her attention when she started to fucking wave to get Brittany to notice her. Santana swiftly kicked her chair "Wheezy, what the fuck are you doing?" she hissed.
Mercedes spun around and looked at her incredulously, "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm calling Brittany over to come and sit by me. What the fuck are you doing?"
Santana opened and closed her mouth a few times before saying "I just thought you were raising your hand to the ask the teacher if you could go to the restroom, you know I hate it when people go during lesson, there's plenty of time to go throughout the day"
Santana knew that it may not have made sense because it had been obvious that Mercedes was waving, and the teacher was writing something on the board so waving at her back wouldn't have gotten the teacher to look her way. Santana felt Rachel looking at her from the corner of her eye, not believing her. Mercedes seemed to accept her answer though, and refocused on waving at Brittany. She called her over to sit by her when she had her attention.
Brittany practically skipped towards Mercedes desk. She caught Santana's eye and smiled at her before she sat in her seat. Santana, like she had earlier, just looked somewhere else. That somewhere else happened to be Rachel Berry and her inquisitive gaze.
It made Santana jump a little "Fuck Rachel! Stop being a creep. Don't sit there all quiet and just stare at me. Seriously, you've been spending too much time with Tina, you're turning into a ninja or some shit"
"That's racist Santana, and the Asian jokes are starting to get old"
Santana rolled her eyes "Whatever"
"Are you guys finished now?" Mercedes interrupted, not expecting an answer, "Good, because here's someone I'll like you to meet, guys this is Brittany, Brittany this is Rachel."
"Nice to meet you." Rachel smiled. Santana thought that Rachel must have not seen her earlier then.
Mercedes continued, "And this is Satan." Brittany giggled when Santana scowled at Mercedes for calling her that.
"We've met already Mercedes, we had first period together. I don't think I got your name though, you don't look like a Satan though." Brittany joked.
Mercedes and Rachel chuckled. "You won't be saying that once you get to know her." Rachel said to her.
Santana frowned because 1) She did not want this girl 'getting to know her' whatever that meant and 2) She wasn't that bad.
Mercedes must have decided that was enough teasing her, "We're just messing. This is Santana, girl sure is dedicated to studying alright." She mumbled the last part, Brittany wasn't sure if she was supposed to hear it, but she had and it made her even more curious about the girl.
The teacher started the lesson and the two girls turned back around.
The rest of Santana's day was mediocre, and whenever her thoughts drifted to the blonde cheerleader she made herself work even more to get her mind off it.
Walking home wasn't as bad as she'd thought it would be, but then she started thinking about the car that morning and how her whole day would've been better if that had never happened and then she got annoyed. She spent most of her journey home cursing that fucking car.