Title: I Have A Love
Rating: G
Word Count: 1,100 words
Pairing: established Rachel/Santana
Summary: Santana has never been one for big public declarations of love, but Rachel absolutely loves them.
A/N: This is just a short ficlet inspired by something that someone sent me on Tumblr. It's just a little shameless fluff. Enjoy.
Rachel has never heard so much applause before. Throughout an entire life spent on the stage, stealing the breathe away from judges and audiences alike, the cheering had never been like this. Granted, she was sure that about a quarter of the Gershwin's audience was made up of her friends and family there for her one hundredth performance as Elphaba in the Broadway revival of Wicked, but the applause was earth-shattering nonetheless.
It was her one-hundredth show and she was buzzing with excitement. Landing the role of Elphaba in the Broadway revival of Wicked had been a dream come true. And Santana had been there with her every step of the way, attending as many shows as she could, sitting in the audience or hovering around backstage and cornering Rachel in her dressing room during the intermission, convincing her to do things that left her make-up smudged and the breathe stolen from her lungs.
And Rachel was having the time of her life. She had just been nominated for her Tony Award, along with her leading female costar, and their excitement for each other and for the show bled through into all of their performances. They had never been better. She had never been better, at least, so Santana said.
Rachel stood in the wings, watching the ensemble perform "March of the Witch Hunters" and pictured her girlfriend out in the audience. Santana would have flowers, no doubt, and she would be sitting between Rachel's fathers and her own parents, all of whom were in town for Rachel's one hundredth performance. Their friends were filling up all of the rows behind them, Quinn, Noah, Brittany, Kurt and Blaine among them. Their college and adult friends would be behind them. Santana had been adamant that everyone come for the show.
Maybe Santana had gotten her some jewelry, a necklace or a bracelet. Rachel always appreciated some bling.
Her cue came and she strode on stage, yelling at Dorothy as she cried. She could feel the audience watching her, spellbound by the show and her performance and what everyone knew was coming - the end of the Wicked Witch of the West.
But first, there was the most emotional moment of the show - "For Good" when Glinda and Elphaba came together to apologize for their past wrongs and acknowledge their friendship and how it changed both of them. It was a lovely moment of friendship. (Santana said it was the gayest thing she had ever seen in her life.)
She was supposed to call for Chistery, her flying monkey, and Glinda would enter at the same time he did. Rachel yelled for him as she had ninety-nine times before, but no one came. She heard the audience stir and she repeated her line, adding in a frantic Elphaba-like cackle. She heard whispers pick up out among the theater-goers.
And then everything was silent as a voice echoed through the theater. She heard the audience take a breathe and she took one with them.
Rachel knew that voice anywhere and she fought down the smile that came to her face every single time she heard Santana. A single note rang out from the top of the stairs and Rachel turned around, confused. Glinda was supposed to be standing there and everyone knew it, but when Rachel looked up, all she could see was Santana.
The theater was full of nervous energy and it infected Rachel. She didn't know what was happening. But Santana looked beautiful wearing a light purple dress that shimmered in the spotlight, her hair hanging in loose curls down over her shoulders, and Rachel almost forgot to breathe for a moment.
"I have a love and it's all that I have," Santana sang, giving her a nervous smile as she descended the stairs. She was singing it in a lower key than it was normally meant to be sung, but it was beautiful; Santana was beautiful and Rachel really did forget to breathe. "Right or wrong; what else can I do?"
What was happening?
There was no music and even though Rachel could hear whispering in the audience, nothing struck her more than Santana singing to her in that moment. It struck her deep in her heart and deep in her stomach and it made her insides flip over. She was grateful that she was painted green so that no one could see how her cheeks were burning.
It was their first duet, after all. It was the first time that she and Santana had sang together and it was the moment that changed everything for them.
Santana finally reached her and took her hand, lacing their fingers together. "I love you, we're one," she continued, "There's nothing to be done. Not a thing I can do, but hold you, hold you forever."
And then Rachel gasped, realizing what was happening, why this was happening. She felt tears sting her eyes. Santana had never been one for large emotional displays, prone to quieter moments of sweetness that usually took Rachel by surprise. But here she was in front of an entire theater full of people, in front of their friends and their family in the middle of Rachel's one-hundredth show, and she was -
Santana fell to one knee, her smooth voice cracking slightly as she sang, "Be with you now, tomorrow, and all of my life."
Santana's hand was warm in her own and her eyes were shining. She looked up at Rachel nervously. "Rachel, will you marry me?"
Rachel could feel eyes on her, hundreds of people staring at her. A few tears fell down her face, streaking her green makeup. She laughed slightly. God, she was green; she was painted green.
"Yes," she cried. "Of course," she practically shouted, falling to her knees and grabbing Santana.
Santana's arms wrapped around her and Rachel could hear their friends and family cheering, applause and shouts of encouragement echoing throughout the theater louder than she had ever heard them.
"I'm never doing anything like this ever again," she heard Santana say in her ear, her breathe warm as it blew across her cheek. "I love you," she added.
"I love you, too," Rachel said, still smiling brightly. She pulled Santana up with her and kissed her then, not caring that her makeup smudged across Santana's cheeks and lips. She pulled her close and kissed her for a long moment before she pulled away.
"Now go away," she laughed, hearing the audience laugh with her. "I have a show to finish."
Santana just laughed at her and kissed her again.
