So I wrote this before watching the Prom-asaurus episode, just so I could write my own perspective without it being interfered with by the actual storyline. Hope you all enjoy it! (:
Story development: Begins with Quinntana friendship, eventually develops into Brittana/slight Faberry.
"Stand up!" Finn yelled, his features contorted with rage, a look of disgust on his face.
Quinn stared up at him, eyes wide, helpless and able to do nothing to stop the harsh words being relentlessly hurled at her by the tall boy.
"Come on, stand up! I know you can do it Quinn, so don't sit there and act all innocent. STAND UP!"
By this point, Coach Sue had come rushing over, after being alerted to the scene by Becky. Joe, meanwhile, was standing nose-to-nose with Finn, the veins on his neck standing out, reflecting the anger that was coursing through him.
"Back off Finn." he warned, in a dangerously low voice.
"NO! Because you know as well as I do that she's fine! She can walk, she's just choosing not to! She knew she couldn't win Prom Queen by herself, so thought she needed some stupid gimmick to make everyone feel sorry for her so they would vote for her!"
Joe then shoved Finn roughly, and the taller boy then proceeded to push him back vehemently.
"Okay, that's enough! You gonna make me kick you out of another prom?" Sue snarled, dragging Finn backwards, away from Joe's hateful glare and Quinn's tear-filled eyes. The blonde had said nothing during this incident, too shocked to find any words that were suitable for a response.
Meanwhile, Santana had been observing the whole scene as it played out in front of her. She had been dancing with Brittany, her arms securely around the blonde as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes, but found her attention was captured by Finn's loud, irritating holler ringing out across the room.
So, this meant she was one of the only people who noticed Quinn rolling dejectedly out of the doors leading out to the corridor, while everyone else was preoccupied with the current drama occurring between Fatty Gassy McGravy Pants and Teen Jesus.
Her eyebrows laced together with worry, which Brittany picked up on in an instant.
"San? Baby, what's wrong?" murmured the blonde, biting her lower lip worriedly.
"It's Quinn. I'm really worried about her. I want to go see if she's okay, but…"
Brittany smiled understandingly, nodding in the direction in which Quinn had headed.
"It's fine San. You go check on her. I'll go see how Rachel's doing. It can't be nice having your boyfriend kicked out of prom two years in a row."
Santana beamed at Brittany, overcome with love and adoration for the amazing woman standing in front of her.
"Thank you Britt. I'll be back soon though, so don't get too comfortable with Berry."
Brittany giggled delightedly, before taking Santana's face in her hands tenderly and pressing their lips together in a soft kiss.
Santana then turned to leave, but was halted by Brittany's hand on her arm.
"Oh San, one more thing?"
"Yeah babe?"
"I love you."
Brittany said that last statement with so much sincerity, so much passion, that Santana felt herself becoming choked up. She pulled the blonde into a firm embrace, inhaling the gorgeous aroma that seemed to accompany Brittany wherever she went, trying to swallow the lump of emotions that had formed in her throat. She then leaned back, looking into Brittany's eyes, then replied with four simple words that made Brittany's heart soar.
"I love you too."
And with that, she turned and made her way out into the dimly lit corridor, looking for Quinn.
Santana paced up and down rows of classrooms, searching for Quinn determinedly. After a while, though, she began to get frustrated.
"Dios mio! The girl's in a wheelchair, for Pete's sake, how many hiding places could she actually have?" she mumbled to herself irritably.
But then, her mutterings were stopped by the sound of a sniffle, coming from a closet to her right. She approached the door warily, before shaking her head and chastising herself mentally.
'What are you doing? This isn't a horror movie. Just open the damn door Santana.'
She reached forward, grasping the door handle and turning it swiftly. The door swung open inwardly, revealing a snivelling Quinn, hunched over in her pretty purple dress, dabbing at her red, swollen eyes with a tissue, in a half-hearted attempt to save the make-up that Santana had so carefully applied for her just a few hours ago.
The blonde glanced up and saw Santana, then began to sob even more, her shoulders heaving violently.
"Oh Quinn." Santana murmured sympathetically, before walking over to the distraught girl and wrapping her arms around her.
"Shhh, it's okay." she whispered soothingly, stroking Quinn's silky blonde locks that were cascading delicately around her face.
"No, it's not." Quinn whimpered, pain evident in her voice. "Finn was right. No one would've wanted to vote for me, if they didn't pity me." Her face twisted in a grimace as she said the word 'pity', as if the very idea of it repulsed her.
"Wait. You mean… you can walk?" Santana asked, her eyes wide with disbelief.
"No! No. But he's right when he said that this", she signalled to the wheelchair she was bound to, "is the only way I would ever be able to win."
"Quinn, why would you say that? You could definitely win, and I'm sure you would've won last year too, if those awful homophobic assholes hadn't had that secret ballot to elect Kurt as Prom Queen."
"I just don't know…"
"Quinn, listen to me. I know we've had our rough patches in the past", both girls giggled at the memories of their past scraps, "but you're one of my best friends. And I don't want you to listen to anything that Neanderthal says. He doesn't know what he's talking about!" Santana's voice had risen, her protectiveness over Quinn bubbling over into flowing, honest words. "Look Q. I don't care what anyone says, because, let's be real here, my opinion is really the only one that matters."
She winked cheekily, eliciting a small titter from Quinn, before continuing.
"And, in my opinion, you are one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen. You're smart, you're funny, and I can't believe I'm going to say this, but you're actually pretty nice most of the time, when you're not trying to rip my extensions out."
Quinn sniffed resolutely, drying her eyes and smiling gratefully at the caring Latina.
"You really think so?"
"I know so." Santana replied firmly. "Now, I don't know about you, but I wants to gets my prom on!"
Quinn laughed wholeheartedly at Santana's over exaggerated 'Lima Heights accent', as she called it, before smiling and nodding to signal her agreement with Santana's suggestion.
"Right, come on then!" Santana hollered.
She pulled the door open and went to push Quinn through it, but before she started moving, she pulled the wheelchair back towards her and spun Quinn round to face her. The blonde looked at her quizzically, eyebrows raised in a silent question. Santana answered simply by leaning down and planting a soft kiss onto Quinn's creamy white cheek.
"Love you Q."
Quinn smiled gently, reaching out to take Santana's hand tenderly, squeezing it gratefully.
"Love you too San."
"Alright, enough of this soppy stuff." Santana said brusquely, although her eyes twinkled with a smile. "I say, we get back out there and show these losers what singing REALLY is. How about it Q?"
Quinn grinned back at the smirking Latina, nodding, and then turned her chair around and made her way back out into the hallway. Santana followed, resting her hand protectively on Quinn's shoulder.
They reached the doors of the gym, stopping to glance at each other. Quinn's forehead was creased with worry, so Santana gripped her hand and whispered,
"It'll be okay."
Quinn nodded once again, firmly, and Santana swung the door open to allow Quinn to enter the room. They could feel dozens of pairs of eyes trained on them as they made their way to the now-empty stage, the other students wondering what was going on.
Quinn wheeled her way onto the stage via the access ramp that Artie used, while Santana climbed up the stairs on the opposite side. The girls then faced each other, and Santana grabbed the two microphones from their stands, handing one to a nervous-looking Quinn.
"Okay McKinley. I think it's time for Quinn and me to show you all how we do it in Lima Heights. Quinn, you know Take My Breath Away, right?"
Quinn replied with a timid "Yes" while nodding furtively.
"Awesome! Everyone, prepare your ears for seduction of the highest form. Me and my bestie here are going to leave you breathless, no pun intended."
Santana caught Quinn's eye and winked, eliciting a delighted giggle from the blonde.
"Alright, let's do this." said Quinn, now feeling confident and ready.
Music began seeping throughout the room, each note poignant and alluring. The other students found themselves mesmerised, as first Quinn, then Santana, then both girls began to sing.
Quinn:
Watching every motion in my foolish lovers game
On this endless ocean, finally lovers know no shame
Santana:
Turning and returning to some secret place inside
Watching in slow motion as you turn around and say
Both:
Take my breath away
Take my breath away
Watching, I keep waiting, still anticipating love
Never hesitating to become the fated ones
Turning and returning to some secret place to cry
Watching in slow motion as you turn to me and say.
They continued to sing, Santana walking around Quinn, grinning at the blonde, before taking her hand and helping her to spin on the spot. They glanced out into the sea of faces, each searching for a specific pair of eyes.
Santana's connected with the brightest blue orbs that could only belong to Brittany, beaming and pointing at the love of her life, directing the words to her one and only. Quinn, meanwhile, found the pair of chocolate brown eyes she had been looking for. She smiled shyly, meeting Rachel's curious gaze briefly before looking away out into the crowd once again.
The song then came to an end, amidst rowdy applause and cheering from their peers. The two girls grinned at each other, before each made their way off the stage and back onto the main floor. Brittany ran to Santana, engulfing her in a giant hug. Santana giggled but hugged her girlfriend back just as fiercely, before whispering in her ear,
"That song was for you baby. Because every moment I'm with you, you take my breath away."
Brittany pulled back slightly and blushed, before leaning in and kissing Santana tenderly, running her thumb over the Latina's perfect jaw line.
"I love you Santana. I hope you know just how happy you make me. And even if we aren't always together, whether it's at college or further into the future, I will always be yours. And I hope you will always be mine."
It wasn't a question; it was a statement, said with so much honesty that it brought tears to Santana's eyes once again.
"I love you too Britt. And I want to spend the rest of my life showing you just how amazing and special you are to me. You make my life complete."
The two girls embraced, then began swaying to the next song that had begun to play, holding each other tightly, stopping every so often to plant loving kisses on each other's lips, cheek, neck.
Meanwhile, Quinn had made her way over to the drinks table, and wasn't there long before she felt a familiar presence behind her.
"Quinn. I, uh, I just wanted to say that I thought you sounded beautiful up there. And you look stunning."
Quinn turned to face Rachel, smiling shyly, glancing down before answering.
"Thank you Rachel. I'm glad you enjoyed it."
The way Quinn emphasised the word 'you' made Rachel falter for a split second, before she composed herself, offering her brightest Rachel Berry smile.
"Well, Quinn Fabray, I came over here to ask you something."
"Yes, Rachel Berry?"
Both girls giggled at each other's use of their full names.
"Would you like to dance? You know… with me?"
Quinn froze for a moment, taken aback by Rachel's unexpected offer. She then shook her head discreetly, clearing the haze that had formed in her mind.
"Rachel, I thought you'd never ask."
Quinn reached out and took Rachel's hand, the brunette smirking and turning an endearing shade of pink.
They made their way to the dance floor, and in that moment, felt more content and at peace than either of them had for a long time.