Chapter 1

The sun kissed Santana's brown skin everywhere it was uncovered. A gentle breeze lifted her hair, letting the dark tendrils tickle her face. The only thing she could hear was the sloshing of waves breaking against the shore and the cawing of birds in the distance. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so relaxed, so at peace.

Santana loved the beach. Not just this one, but any beach. Maybe it was the combination of the water, the sun, and the sand on her skin. Maybe it was the feeling of "getting away," of escaping real life for a while. Maybe it was the stillness of just "being" she felt she could melt into. Whatever it was, the beach had always been her favorite place. Growing up in Lima, Ohio, she rarely ever got to visit a quality beach. The same could be said now that she lived in New York.

She opened her eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the day's brightness mitigated somewhat by her sunglasses. Lifting her head, she looked out across the expanse of blue water before her, sunlight dancing across it, and breathed a breath of contentment. It was just so beautiful.

Soft rustling beside her caught her attention. She turned her head and saw something even more beautiful.

Brittany.

She was there. Beside her. So close she could reach out and touch her. None of it felt real.

It had been months since she saw Brittany last when she left Lima and McKinley to go to school at MIT. Months without knowing what was going on in Brittany's life. Now here she was, lying next to her on a chaise lounge on Lesbos island.

As if Brittany could feel Santana's eyes on her, she turned her head and locked her eyes on Santana's before smiling. Her blue eyes sparkled clearer and brighter than the ocean in front of them. Her pale skin glistened with a sheen of sweat and sunscreen. Her body stretched out on the lounger, letting the sun touch as much skin as her baby-blue bikini would allow.

"You're staring," Brittany said matter-of-factly. She wasn't surprised. She'd caught Santana staring at her since sophomore year of high school. Only these days, she wasn't ashamed of it. She lifted a hand to cup Santana's face and stroked her cheek with her thumb.

Santana caught her hand and kissed her palm before intertwining their fingers. "It's still so unreal you're here. That we're here together." She gestured to the beach, sparse with a few other people minding their business. "Thanks for making us come here, Britt."

"This was your doing as much as it was mine, San." When Santana's brows furrowed in confusion, she continued, "If it wasn't for you, I'd be back at MIT right now. Stressed out and unhappy solving all those stupid algorithms." A flash of disdain crossed Brittany's face but disappeared as soon as it came. "You were right. I wasn't happy. I needed to get away and think about what I really wanted for myself." Brittany leaned closer to close the gap between them, and pushed Santana's sunglasses onto her head to look into her eyes. "And there's no one else I'd rather get away with than you, Santana."

Their lips pressed together in a way that let Santana feel that Brittany's words held nothing but truth. When Brittany kissed her, her insides fluttered like butterflies. Every time was still like the first time they kissed all over again minus the worry and anxiety over their secret affair.

"I missed you so much, Britt," Santana said when they pulled apart.

"I missed you too," Brittany smiled easily at her. "Come on. Take a walk with me. I'm bored just lying here in the sun."

"I thought we were tanning," Santana chuckled and took the hand Brittany held out for her to stand.

"You were born with a perfect tan, and you know I only ever get really red or really white. I'm either a lobster or a ghost. No in-between."

Santana laughed and intertwined their fingers as they started walking along the shore. They walked for a while letting their shoulders brush against each other and the water ebb and flow over their bare feet. Every now and again Brittany would say spurt out a random fact about something she would see that would either make Santana laugh or press her to explain.

"I know this isn't the fantasy lesbian island I thought it would be," Brittany said after a while, "but I'm glad you decided to run away with me."

Santana smirked at her comment. No, Lesbos wasn't chock full of carefree lesbians living their best lives free of men. In fact, Santana felt like they were the only lesbians on the entire damn island. Still, the Greek island was such a beautiful place, and she was glad to be sharing the experience with Brittany.

They'd only been there for a few days so far, but they'd spent so much of their time exploring mainly because of Brittany. Santana would have been more than happy to spend their time relaxing in the hotel room, on the beach or by the pool, but Brittany wouldn't allow that.

Two days earlier

"San, we're on the other side of the world," Brittany had said their second day on the island as Santana mumbled in her pillow about going back to sleep. She'd already pulled the sheets off Santana's body, but had no luck in getting her to budge. "I'm not gonna let you sleep all day like I'm sure you do in New York on your days off."

Damn, she knows me so well. Santana thought at the time. She'd thought Brittany had given up her coaxing until she was suddenly bombarded with Brittany's full weight on her and her fingers tickling her sides. It didn't take long for Brittany's infectious laugh to spread to Santana as she writhed in laughter underneath the blonde. "Alright, alright," she laughed as she conceded, holding Brittany's wrists to stop her tickling. "I'll get out of bed." She'd looked into Brittany's eyes then. The piercing blue eyes that always seemed to look into her soul flickered to Santana's lips. "But first…" Santana pressed her mouth into Brittany's and felt Brittany's satisfied sigh in response.

It was something new she noticed Brittany did. Whenever they kissed now, she would sigh just a little like she'd been waiting for it to happen and was relieved when it did.

Their mouths worked slowly but tentatively against one another's. Brittany's kisses were familiar yet foreign to Santana. Her lips felt so familiar, but there was a confidence there now that didn't used to be. It reminded Santana that this wasn't the same girl she secretly made out with in her bedroom a few years ago.

Santana pulled away eliciting a soft groan from Brittany. "Come on," she smiled and rolled to swing her legs off the edge of the bed. "If we don't leave this bed now, we never will."

Present Day

Santana was pulled back to the present by Brittany softly squeezing her hand. Her focus went straight to Brittany's inviting smile. She had the most beautiful smile. Santana couldn't help but feel herself smile in return.

"I'd run away with you anywhere, Britt."

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