A/N: This is my first attempt on a multi-chapter so be nice because I don't exactly know how this story will end. And also, English isn't my first language so there will be some mistakes here and there but I tried. Other than that, I hope you enjoy this chapter and leave a review if you like; it would help me a lot. Thank you. :)

/

CHAPTER 1

"Huff, new year, new beginnings," you sighed as you walked onto the stage that was still being set up.

Your presence seemed to have stopped multiple people from what they were doing. Some were smiling politely; others were bluntly checking you out. That was something you hated about this job but there was nothing you could do about it.

People were all over the place, hoping that this show would go as smoothly as all your other smaller shows, only hundreds times bigger. It was chaotic as usual and you were still not used to the uncomfortable amount of people trying to get your attention to either try on your outfit or do sound checks. However, there was only one person that had been helping you throughout your journey. She was your best friend ever since high school. She may be a little insane but that was something you absolutely loved about her.

Speak of the devil.

"Santana!" Quinn waved her hand as she closed the gap between you two. "I have good news and bad news."

"Don't tell me we're already out of chocolates," you whined.

"What? No, no, we still have a crate of those in the bus," she laughed but it quickly dissipate. "This is much worst, McKenzie… she, um… she fainted during one of the rehearsals and she's not in the perfect condition to perform with you tomorrow."

"Great, what are we going to do now?" you crossed your arms and faced away from the blonde. "Is she gonna be okay?"

Quinn took out her phone and opened a text. She began reading it out loud and to your relief, McKenzie was in stable condition but too weak to even pop a few moves. Quinn inched closer to you as she placed her hand on your shoulders. The urge to swat it away was so great but you couldn't do it because she was your best friend, someone you trust, someone you were afraid to hurt. So you just let it be and tightened your crossed arms.

"Tell Kenzie I sent her get-well wishes," you finally voiced out. "And while you're at it, try finding someone to take her place for tomorrow, if it's possible of course."

Quinn patted your shoulder as a gesture that she had taken note and walked away. You stood there for the next few minutes, trying to absorb what had just happened when the sound guy walked over to you to inform you that they were ready for the sound check. You sighed and nodded at him as he handed you a microphone.

/

As you sat in the green room freaking out, Quinn barged in it, bringing you up on your feet.

"What the hell, Q?!" you screamed. "Ever heard of knocking?"

"Sorry," she said unapologetically. "As I promised, here's your temporary backup dancer."

A tall blonde in an oversized knitted beanie, white striped shirt, pants and uggs stood to the right of Quinn. You didn't even noticed her until Quinn acknowledged her presence. Not to be rude, you offered a small smile and a small nod as a form of greeting.

"Hi, I'm Brittany Pierce," the tall blonde stretched her hand out for you, smiling. "I was a backup dancer for Beyonce."

"Santana Lopez," you warily shook her hand. "Are you good? Sorry… what I meant to say was do you know the moves?"

Stupid. Stupid stupid stupid. Asking a professional dancer whether she knew how to dance? You're a fucking genius, Lopez.

Quinn was already burning holes into the side of your head and the other blonde just stood there, obviously taken aback by your question. But when you heard her giggled, you felt relieved and relax. Thank god she wasn't offended by that ingeniously stupid question of yours. The last thing you wanted now was to lose another dancer which could possibly leave you with probably one hell of a boring show – not that it would, of course.

Quinn was still glaring at you, which made you so uncomfortable and embarrassed that you would do anything to run away and hide from the tall blonde forever. But running away would only make that tall blonde feel unwanted. You took in a deep breath before gathering what was left of your dignity to face her again. The smile on her face reassured you that she didn't take any offence to what you had just said.

"Yes actually," her voice was so sweet. "Ms Fabray here showed me some of her personal recordings of the rehearsal. I think I've got it covered."

"Good to know," unable to look in her eyes, you began playing with your hands. "Um, Quinn, can I talk to you for a second?"

You pulled Quinn to the opposite corner of the room where it was beyond earshot for Brittany. You took a glimpse over your friend's shoulder to the other blonde before frowning at your friend. You could easily tell that Quinn was not comfortable but the way she masked it was rather impressive. If it wasn't for all the years of being her friend and studying her, you couldn't possibly tell that she was hiding it.

You waited for a few more moments and when she didn't say anything, you scowled at her before giving the taller blonde another stare.

Sensing what you were trying to say, Quinn cleared her throat and held both of your hands to prevent you from landing a punch on her face before your conversation ended or from crossing your arms.

"Santana, trust me on this," she stared into your eyes to find some trust. "Brittany is remarkably talented; needless to say she has performed for Beyonce. Just give her a chance to prove herself."

"Ugh, fine whatever," you rolled your eyes at her before staring back at the taller blonde.

As much as you want to say how much you didn't like that new girl, her beauty just took your breath away. She was one hell of a beautiful lady but of course, being the Santana Lopez everyone knows, no one can be more beautiful than you. Sometimes people like Brittany makes you think twice about your own beauty.

Shaking yourself out of your daze, you directed Brittany to perform the rehearsed routine for you. To your surprise – not really – she was actually a really good dancer. There was no denying that she can keep a pretty face throughout the routine and even added a little more fun to it. It took you awhile to get back on earth after that amazing performance and choreography – actually, it was McKenzie's but you get what I mean.

It was Quinn's nudge to your head that brought you back down to earth. You were still a little amazed by how flawless she was considering she only learned it in a short period of time. With a slow clap, you walked slowly toward her and your mouth still agape.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," Brittany laughed at your obvious scoping.

Way to go, Lopez. Way to be subtle.

"I'm sorry, I'm just blown away by what'd just happened," you tried to hide the little blush on your face. "Anyways, welcome to the club, Blondie."

You reached out your hand to her which she gladly shook before facing Quinn for whatever might happen next.

"Brittany, could you wait for me at the break room?" Quinn pointed her to the door before pointing to you. "I have to talk to Ms Lopez for a while."

As instructed, she headed out of the room and disappeared from view. Quinn quickly faced you as soon as she was sure Brittany was gone and that smirk that spread on her face made you uncomfortable in places. She crossed her arms as she walked slowly toward you.

"I didn't know little miss bitchy over here has some manners," she teased.

"Shut up," you countered. "I was just trying to be nice. We wouldn't want to chase away our only hope, would we? Besides, I barely know her."

"Doesn't sound like you at all," she shoved your right shoulder gently. "And what was that flirting all about?"

"That wasn't me, that was totally her," you were quick to defend yourself. "And when did you get all formal in addressing me, huh?"

"Since forever?" she creased her brows together. "And stop changing topics. Anyways, I got a hot blonde waiting for me, so I'll catch up with you later."

With that, Quinn spun around and left. You back up against the wall and thought about what had just happened. Somehow, this Brittany girl made you look like you've forgotten yourself; the mean, unapologetic self. How did she do it? You had no idea but you really wanted to find out how. Even if it meant spending more time with her, so be it.

/

It had been a few hours since your first encounter with possibly the best dancer you've seen and the image of her dancing for you was still very fresh in your mind. As you walked across the stage for one final check, you saw a familiar figure behind the stage curtains to the right of the stage.

You quietly paced toward the subject with your back slightly hunched. As you neared the subject, you could hear soft echoes of music coming from what could possibly be the person's headphones. Once you were close enough to identify whoever it was, you let out a relief sigh as you watched her danced but this time, it wasn't as intense as the one you previously saw. This time, it was more relax like a leisure workout. You leaned against the stage curtain (or rather, hugged it so you wouldn't fall) as you continue embracing the way her body moved to the music.

"It's not polite to spy on people you know," said the still dancing girl whose back was facing you.

You shuffled on your feet and placed your left hand on the back of your neck, trying to think of some clever excuses but nothing seemed to prevail.

"Hey, it's okay," she finally decided to turn around and look at you as she turned the music off.

"Sorry for disturbing you," you apologized. "I should probably leave so you can practice."

"No, no, I don't mind some company," she replied. "What are you doing here this late?"

You found that particular question rather self-explanatory considering this was supposed to be your concert and you had the rights to come onto the stage and do some final checks of your own just so the concert would go as smoothly as possible. It was also mainly because you had always been skeptical about everyone who plans or prepares your shows.

"I was just doing some final checks," you shrugged. "Why are you here?"

"I don't know, familiarizing myself with the surroundings I guess," she let out a weak laugh.

Oh no, not only was she able to let your guard down, her laugh could literally melt you within seconds. No Santana, get your shit together. When the hell did you become so weak? She was just another person who might probably just walk out of your life after a few days… or weeks if you're unlucky. Wait, lucky? You don't even know anymore.

She wasn't so bad though. Maybe if you tried hard enough, you could possibly like her. Who knows? She's been rather cool and bearable so far.

"Um… Ms Lopez, are you there?" Brittany waved her hand as she tilted her head to the side to see if you were listening which you obviously weren't.

"Huh?" you said.

"I was just telling you about the meeting," she creased her brows in amusement. "Before the last rehearsal?"

"Oh right, sorry again," you looked down in embarrassment. "I'll… I'll see you in the morning. You know, during the meeting."

She just threw you a smile before turning her back to you and continued practicing. You made sure you took a few steps back just so she thought you've walked away to do whatever you were doing. There was merely ten meters between you two and far enough to give her the impression that you were gone.

Like a newborn creeper you were, you watched her every move; studying every pop, lock and even gentle waves. You could literally set fire to her clothes with just your stare. It only took her a few minutes to realize that you had been staring at her. You were still in your own little world even when she had stopped her movements. It was only when she was right in front of you and tapped on your shoulder that you were brought out of your stupor. Again.

The smile on her face made you flushed. She was hesitant to hold your hand and bring you to her own little dancing corner. Sensing that you were okay with it, she gently held your left hand and pulled you there. There was a tingle in the spot she held you and when she let go, you subconsciously let out a little whine, making her smile wider.

"You know, you should really work on being a little more subtle," she joked. "Your heavy breathing had interrupted my focus."

With that said, you really felt like running away and hiding yourself in your bunk for days. Before you could even respond to her sentence, she had already grabbed you by the hand and played a familiar tune through the speaker of her iPod. Of course it had to be one of your songs considering she was your dancer.

"C'mon Ms Lopez," she urged you to join her. "If you don't want to dance, maybe you can sing so I can nail this choreography down. What do you say?"

"I… Not that I don't… don't want to," you stuttered. "I'm just not… comfortable."

"You do realize that you are a singer and you have shows almost for the next month right?" she mocked anger at you. "I understand that you don't feel comfortable but please, let's get real here."

"What? Who do you think you're talking to?" you countered, feeling like you've just been stomped on.

"Whoa, relax Ms Lopez," she tried to calm you. "I was just teasing you. I know you don't like singing to a person in particular. C'mere."

She tried to hug it out with you but you were already starting to dislike how she acts. No one ever insults Santana Lopez. Even if they do, they never get away with it. Like ever. But for Quinn's sake, you decided to give this woman another chance. If this happens again, you would not hesitate to chase this girl away, even if that leaves you with one dancer short. Now, you just had to get over this awkward hug before leaving Blondie here to finish her work.

She looked confused when you turned and began to walk away. Knowing that confronting you would be a terrible idea, she sighed and went on with her practice. When you turned around to see how she reacted to your move, you felt a little guilt-ridden when you saw how hurt and embarrassed she was. If only you could learn how not to be a bitch to everyone you meet.

Gathering what was left of your nobility, you stopped and turned back around. You took in a few deep breaths to calm your nerves as well as think about what you were going to say to her.

"Hey Brittany," you shouted, trying to keep as much sincerity as you could muster in the tone. "You know what? I changed my mind. I would love to help you nail this routine down and even spice it up a bit. We would love a near perfect, if not perfect, show tomorrow."

Her frown quickly turned into a smile as she dashed out to hug you and this time, you were more than happy to return it. Seeing this particular blonde upset just wasn't right, even if she has a really bad sense of humor but hey, you probably wouldn't know how bad or good her sense of humor was with just one joke.

As the time passed, you were beginning to feel like Brittany wasn't so bad after all. Sure she was little immature but you found it oddly cute. She even bothered to help you perfect your own choreograph which was way less intense than hers but it definitely help you move more without losing your breath easily.

Just like that, two hours had passed and both of you were covered in sweat and panting. It was definitely the most you've exercised and it was taking a toll on your poor stamina. On another note, both of you certainly had your respective routines nailed down to almost perfection. You were so tired that you didn't even care if you were laying flat on the ground. That was something you would never do before but you were too tired to care now.

You could feel Brittany looking at you while you were on the floor with your eyes closed. It was not those kinds of perverted stare but more of empathetic one. You peeked a little to see what she was doing while looking at you. It made you worried when you saw how hesitant she was on whether to lie down next to you or give you some space.

"Brittany, is something bothering you?" you asked out of curiosity and also concern.

"It's nothing," she mumbled. "I was just… I don't know. I'm glad I got this job, even if it's temporary."

Just the word "temporary" itself made you sad, knowing that this one hell of a talented dancer was only here to cover for your other dancer and that you might not be able to see her anymore. There was something between you two but it was not attraction, not yet. There was definitely something; a possible friendship maybe?

You settled with just a nod before closing your eyes again and try to relax your body after such an intense session. Brittany on the other hand was already up on her feet and doing stretches to make sure her muscles wouldn't ache so much the next morning. She did asked you to join her but you were far too tired to even stand, so she let you off even if it would cost you a full body ache the next morning. She knew better than to force Santana Lopez into anything.

/

"Ms Lopez? Are you awake?" a familiar voice whispered as it tapped lightly on your right shoulder.

You grunted lazily and swatted away the hand that had been tapping your shoulder. Your brows were knitted as you rolled onto your side. Another wave of tapping began, forcing you to irately wake up from your little nap and almost sent you to go Lima Heights on that person until you found out who it was.

"Britt- Brittany? Brittany," you sat up straighter, realizing what you were just about to do to her. Your hand was still in mid-air about to slap whoever it was. "I… I didn't realize it was you. Sorry, force of habit."

You quickly retrieved your hand and looked down in embarrassment. Brittany sported a surprised look on her face and her eyes were still fixed on your hand, trying to register what had just happened. She lightly shook her head and cleared her throat before informing you that it was getting pretty late and it was probably best to head back to your room before anything happens, not that anything could happen but it was sweet of her to worry about your wellbeing.

You stood up, feeling self-conscious about how you look considering you just lay flat on the stage floor right after your little session with the dancer and knowing that your hair was definitely in a mess.

When you looked up to see her face, you were not surprise to see the smile on her face and maybe a muffled giggle. You crossed your arms and tilted your head to the side, hoping to get an explanation to what she found funny, beside the fact that your hair was in a mess and how awful you looked.

"Nothing," she lied. "It's late and you'd probably want to head back to your room."

"Bus, I'm staying in the band bus," you corrected. "How long have I been sleeping here?"

"Around thirty minutes. I didn't want to bother you at first but I guess sleeping somewhere more comfortable would be more practical."

You thanked her before looking at the backstage entrance for anyone who might still be around. Other than the lone security guard who was apparently sleeping during his shift, no one else was to be seen. You smiled faintly before making your way to the backstage entrance.

You fished out your phone and were expecting hundreds of missed calls and text messages from Quinn, and as said, she did left a couple of voicemails and at least six texts. You briefly skimmed through the texts before paying her a call.

"What the hell, Santana?" she sounded pissed. "Did you know how worried I was? Where the hell are you?"

"Calm down, Q," you pulled the receiver away from your ear before pressing it back onto your ear. "I was just with Brittany, correcting our routines. I'm backstage right now; I'll be back in the bus in a minute."

"You better be, people are already asking about your whereabouts," she hissed.

"Ugh, fine," you hung up the phone and slowly made your way to the bus.

Before you even got the chance to enter the bus, Quinn had pounced on you. The look on her face made you not want to talk about what you were doing while you were "missing". You tried entering the bus but Quinn was blocking the doorway with both her arms. You scowled at her before demanding her to let you in.

"Not before you tell me what you were doing back there," her tone serious.

"Q, I've already told you," you reminded her. "I was going through the routine with Brittany. That's all. Now let me in."

She didn't believe you when she noticed how messy your hair were and how smudged up your makeup was. She crossed her arms and her glare forced you to explain further.

"Nothing happened between Brittany and I," you stressed on. "I took a nap on the stage after the session and that made my hair messy. And my makeup was ruined because of all the sweat. Look, I promise you nothing had happened."

With that, Quinn stepped aside to let you in but she was still not buying your story. Her brows were still furrowed when you two met in the main area in the bus, next to the bunks. You let out a sigh and turned to face Quinn who was standing in the narrow hallway with her arms still crossed and seemed to be studying you. You tried to divert the attention to something totally different.

"You mentioned something about good news earlier this morning," you asked. "What was it?"

"The doctor said that McKenzie will be fit to perform again later this week," she answered slowly, still suspicious.

"Quinn, listen, what I told you just now was completely true," you stared into the hazel eyes. "If you still do not believe me, try calling Brittany then. I'm sure she'll tell you the truth."

Quinn gave you a final look before fishing out her phone and searching through her contacts. Once she found the one she was looking for, she went outside just so she didn't have to look at you or even let you see how she would react once she found out that you were in fact telling her the truth.

Five minutes had passed and Quinn was still outside. From what you knew, Quinn wouldn't bother fishing for information as silly as a work affair. She focused more on calls regarding business and anything that has to do with your concerts or availability.

You turned around and knelt on the built-in sofa to look out the window and to where Quinn was standing. You were expecting her to still be on the phone but she wasn't. She was just pacing around in circles, thinking about something. You're not so sure what exactly but your guts were telling you that it had something to do with you. It was barely a minute later when Quinn turned around and began walking back into the band bus. You quickly spun around and sat innocently on the sofa.

Quinn quickly walked back to the main area and stood where she was previously, in the hallway. The look on her face told you that she was embarrassed at how silly she was being. Her eyes were transfixed to the floor. Her mouth did open a few times but nothing really came out of it. In the end, she walked closer to you before deciding on what to say.

"I'm sorry for losing it on you just now," Quinn apologized. "I was just looking out for you."

You knew exactly where she was going. You hate being reminded of your high school past and how it hurt you so much, you treated everyone you meet as badly as how you treated the person who did that to you.

"I'm sorry too," you whispered, eyes looking everywhere but at Quinn. "For not informing you earlier."

There was a moment of awkwardness between the both of you. It was only when Kurt entered the area that the awkwardness started to fade away. Thank god Kurt didn't mention anything about the odd atmosphere in the room but you knew he sensed something. Instead, he sort of forced you put on the facemask before heading to bed to which you obediently complied.

Kurt was acting rather strange the moment he walked in. He hadn't really said anything other than the directions you have to take in order to get every spot on your skin covered. He was usually chatty and smiley but tonight, he only speaks when he has to. Other than that, he would just keep his mouth shut.

"Spill it," you said sternly to him.

He looked at you confused and his lips were slightly parted but nothing really did come out of his mouth. You felt a little impatient and turned around completely to face him. You swore you could see beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

"Kurt, I know you're hiding something," you added when he did not answer you. "Either you spill it or I'm going to force it out of you."

Kurt fidgeted with the warm towel in his hands as he fixed his eyes to the ground, finding it more interesting than you. You could tell that he did not want to talk about it but the stubborn part of you wanted to know really badly. Kurt could feel the intensity between the two of you increasing and he knew that if he kept quiet any longer, you would go all Lima Heights on him.

As much as you didn't like to rage on your friends, you also didn't want anything to be kept a secret between them and yourself. Your arms were always crossed when situations like this emerged.

"It's nothing really," he finally decided to speak up. "I… I kind of heard what you and Quinn were talking about."

You didn't cared so much about that though. You knew something else was bothering him but poor guy; maybe you should give him some space. Maybe let him keep a personal secret.

You just let him go this time around, figuring that you've also been through some bullshit with Quinn earlier. Kurt's hands worked awkwardly on applying the mask to your face that you could feel how stiff he was based on how rough he was working on your face. You tried not to let it bother you so much (even though it did) and tried to think back to the memory of dancing with her on stage, even if it was a practice session.

You noticed that Kurt had been eyeing his wrist watch every now and then, and by the tenth time he did it, you immediately asked him to stop whatever he was doing and just let him go without any further questions.

Kurt smiled meekly at you before heading for the exit. You didn't miss him brushed past Quinn who was leaning against the wall, watching you get your facial done. She stood there with her arms loosely crossed and one leg supporting most of her body weight. How long have she been standing there? You didn't bother to find out. Instead, you made your way toward the sofa you were on and lay down on it, keeping your eyes partially closed so you could still see what Quinn was doing.

She had been standing there motionless for the past five minutes staring at you getting your night facial done. Her presence and stare just made you super uncomfortable. You were just hoping that she would turn around and leave but she didn't. You finally decided to break the silence.

"What do you want?"

"Look, I'm sorry," Quinn uncrossed her arms and walked closer to you. "I shouldn't have assumed."

"You know what? Just forget it," you snapped. "I don't want to hear any more of it."

"Santana, just hear me out for a moment," she sat down by your legs, one hand cupping your knee. "I really shouldn't have brought up the past. I know how ashamed you were and I am terribly sorry for what I said."

You kept quiet, not trusting yourself to speak.

"Please say something," she urged you.

You still did not want to trust yourself on saying anything because there was a fifty percent chance that you'd snapped at her again and caused more complications to your already-complicated friendship.

Quinn looked disappointed when you didn't reply her. With her head hung low, she stood up and quietly informed you that she was going to head to bed. Again, you kept still and eyes shut as you hear her walked away. Sometimes you really hate yourself for being like this but old habits die hard.

Once she was gone, you took out your phone and searched for a particular number. You stared at the number for a brief moment before deciding to send a text to it.

Santana: Hey girl, are you alright? What'd the doctor say to you? xx

You balanced your phone on your stomach as you wait for the reason. It took the person a while to reply to your text that you've already fallen in and out of sleep, waiting for it. The vibration on your stomach plunged you out of your sleep, causing your phone to abruptly fall to the floor. You reached out for the gadget and fumbled with your fingers to view the message.

McKenzie: I'm alright, just a lil lightheaded. So how's it hanging? – K

Santana: Q got us a temporary dancer & guess what? She's hella good dancer. But u'd still be my fav. :-) xx

It took her a while to reply to you. At the mean time, you got up to wash the face mask off and brushed your teeth. You had already freshened yourself up and changed to a fresh, comfortable pair of baggy pants and t-shirt that was a size too large. Hey, a girl must feel comfortable when she's not doing anything or trying to impress someone.

Just as you landed on your bunk, your phone buzzed. You looked at the time and realized that it took McKenzie almost half an hour to reply you.

McKenzie: Sorry San, the doc had 2 take my blood pressure before I head to bed, hence the delay. I hope 2 see that so-called awesome dancer of urs soon! ;) Anyways, I've gotta go, ttyl dimpleface. – K

You smiled at the cute nickname she gave you and of course, your dimples were showing. Talking to McKenzie always seemed to brighten up your day – in this case, night. You hadn't seen her in almost a week (might have been a little exaggerated… more like three days) and you were already starting to miss her. She was someone really special to you, other than Quinn of course.

You were still worried for her. Mainly because she might not move as elegantly as well as badass as she was before. But you were more focused on hoping she would recover so you get to see her again. She lives in another state so if she were never to dance again, there was a possibility of not getting to see her for a long period of time.

As your thoughts washed over you, you began to feel yourself drift slowly into sleep. So far, life has been pretty unpredictable and you seemed to be handling it quite well. Life has been good so far.

/