Packing up the last box had to be the hardest. It was filled with nothing but pictures and I debated taking it back to my apartment. It was valuable memories. Pictures from family reunions, birthday parties, dance recitals, trips to the beach, basically everything that I've ever been through with my abuela. The good old days.

I looked around her house one last time with the box still in my hands. The house was totally empty now, the furniture was moved out days before, everything that made this place her home is gone. She's gone.

I sigh one last time before going out to my car and putting the box in the back of it before closing the door and walking over to my mom.

"Okay mija, well abuela is in the car, everything packed up in there?"

I nodded before motioning to my car. "I stole one of the boxes."

"Which one?"

"Pictures."

"Gotcha, well your father is already there. Are you coming with us?"

I sighed. "Yeah, I'm coming. I'm driving myself though" I said motioning toward my car.

Mami nodded before getting into her own car and starting it before driving off.

I got into my car and leaned forward to look at the house one last time and sighing once again before starting it and driving off.

I started thinking of my abuela as I drove toward the place. I really do miss her, I've really been hiding it from my family but the thought of my abuela not being there just breaks my heart.

I pulled up to the place and frowned from my parking spot. The place was all white with windows along the front of it, just from first glance you can tell that the inside of the place is squeaky clean with an over powering smell of cleaning supplies. I feel my face scrunch up at the thought of no one under 40 in this place.

Sighing again I get out of the car before going to the backseat and looking through the stolen box. I smile when I finally find the photo I was looking for.

It was my 8th birthday. I had cake all over my face from my brother throwing it at me and starting a cake fight. Grama was next to me with the biggest grin on her face, I was hugging her and the picture made it look like all was right in the world.

I smiled down at it and bit my lip to stop the tears from falling.

I need to be strong for my family. I slipped the photo in my pocket and started walking.

I walked inside and it happened almost immediately.

I was lost.

There were six different hallways, three in front of me and three behind me, I don't even know which hallway I came down.

I spun in a circle hoping that I would somehow get a sudden sense of direction.

Nothing. Damn.

"Are you lost?"

I spun around and met baby blue eyes. A tall blonde stood in front of me wearing a smile. She was wearing a white button up shirt, dark blue blazer, and jeans along with black heels that made her legs go on for miles. I looked her up and down with my jaw dropped before I gulped and smiled.

"Yeah. I have no idea where i'm going...I think they modeled this place after a maze or something."

The blonde laughed and I practically swooned at the sound. "yeah, they probably did, we encourage visitors so if people get lost here they're technically visiting for a long time."

I laughed and nodded. "Oh you work here?"

She smiled and nodded "I do, and welcome to westcott nursing home."

"Thank you, are you a nurse or something?" I said stepping back and looking at her clothing again.

She shook her head. "No, I'm a grief counselor here. My names Brittany."

I smiled and held out my hand. "Santana Lopez."

She shook my hand and grinned. "Lopez. Like Alma Lopez?"

"Yeah, that's who I'm searching for, she's my grandmother."

"Perfect, I can lead you there. I was going to help her get settled in." She smiled again and I nodded before motioning for her to lead the way. She started walking down one of the hallways and I looked all around me to make sure I remember where I'm going. We passed an office with a glass wall before Brittany grabbed my hand and stopped me from walking, she pointed at the office.

"If you ever need me, that is my office. I'm in there if I'm not with a patient, and people usually come to me so I'm always in there." She said before grinning again

I nodded and we started walking again.

"So Santana Lopez. Are you planning on coming to visit your grandmother often?"

"As much as I can. I live close to here so I can visit everyday if I wanted to."

"It's encouraged. The more people visit, the more this place feels normal to the residents."

"Yeah...My abuela doesn't remember me though. I don't think my visiting would help."

"Well-"

"Santana! Where have you been! We were just leaving!" My mother says turning a corner with my father and seeing us.

"Hey mami. I got lost but here showed me the way. Is abuela in there?" I asked looking at the hallway my parents just walked out of.

"She is, there's a nice nurse in there right now."

"Gotcha."

Brittany watched us speak before my mother finally notices her standing there. "Hello dear, I'm Maribel. Santana's mother and Alma's daughter."

"Hello, I'm Brittany. I'm the grief counselor here."

"Oh well, thank you for being here. But we need to get home. Our youngest son can't be home alone to long. Teenagers you know." My mother says before giving me a brief hug.

"Of course."

My parents walk away and I watch them walk away with sad eyes. I know they won't come visit her often. They couldn't put her in here fast enough. I sigh sadly before turning around and meeting the blue eyes again. She's frowning and looks curious. I just put a smile on.

"Which room is hers?" I ask nodding toward the other hallway.

"Right this way." She smiles again and leads me to a room with my abuela sitting on the bed while a lady starts folding my gramas clothes out of the suitcase.

Immediately Brittany moved to the bed and shook my abuela's hand with a grin.

"I'm Brittany."

"I'm Alma. It's nice to meet you. You look so young...and skinny, do you ever eat?"

Ah, grama Lopez. Absolutely no filter.

Brittany just laughed before nodding "I actually eat all of the time. It's nice to meet you too."

"Have you seen my granddaughter? I haven't seen her all day. I want to speak to her."

I bit my lip and looked down to blink away the tears before pulling the photo out of my pocket and putting a fake smile on. I looked up and walked to her and handing her the picture.

"She couldn't come today. But she told me to bring this picture." I said sadly.

"I remember this picture. My little Santi had just turned 8, her little brother threw cake at her so they ended up having a cake fight, ruining the entire cake but she didn't care. We took this picture together and after she got cake all over me. She is such a happy little girl."

"Is she?"

"Yes, she's my little Santi. Have you seen her? I haven't seen her."

And we come full circle again.

I sigh before shaking my head no. The nurse says something about it being time for the residents to go to sleep so I check my watch and nod. It's only 6.

I look at my abuela again and I feel tears fill my eyes again at the smile on her face. She probably doesn't know what's going on.

"I'll see you later okay?"

She nods.

"Okay, say hi to Santana for me okay?"

I nod with the tears leaking out as I walk out the room as fast as I can. I reach the end of the hallway before I lean on the wall and slide down to the floor before burying my face in my hands and letting more tears out. I hear two sets of footsteps before I hear someone speak.

"Ma'am?"

"She's with me, let us be." I hear Brittany say before I feel a hand on my shoulder. I look up from my hands to see sad and sympathetic baby blues staring back at me.

"Can..." I take a deep breath. "Can we go to your office? I don't like people seeing me cry."

She nodded and we got up from the floor before we start walking.

We're silent until we get to her office and walk in. I look around, it's peaceful, lots of neutral colors and books, there are two chairs and a couch on the wall.

It's homey.

Which is weird for an office.

I sit in one of the comfy chairs in front of a desk and watch as Brittany shuts all of the blinds. There are alot of them considering an entire wall is glass. She finishes before turning to me with a smile and sitting on the couch next to my chair. I raised my eyebrow.

"You don't sit behind the desk?"

"No. Do you want me to? I for one think sitting behind the desk is intimidating."

"It is."

She leans back on the couch and stretches as I keep looking around the office.

The silence finally gets to me and I start talking knowing that she'll listen. After all, it is her job.

"She started losing her memory a little over three years ago. She fell and broke her ankle. Needed to have surgery on it so they put her under general anesthesia. We knew one of the risks of anesthesia in older people was memory loss. The doctor told us that it was usually temporary. And we expected her to make a full recovery."

I sighed and looked down at my hands.

"She was always the strongest woman in our family ya know? We didn't think something so trivial could bring her down. But it did. When she woke up from the surgery her memory was spotty and it just got worse from there. She was then diagnosed with Alzheimer's and sun downers syndrome. She's bad during the day with her memory but it gets...horrible after dark."

I pause before looking up again.

"She started forgetting everything. She even thinks she's in a different time. She remembers people though."

I bit my lip before I felt more tears leak out of my eyes.

"She just remembers me as a child. She doesn't know who I am now. Every time I see her, she asks me where the younger version of myself is. She doesn't know me...She doesn't know who I am."

I looked up at her.

"I know she's still physically my abuela. But I can't help but feel like that is not her. She's doesn't act the same, she's...not the same person. I can't help but feel like my abuela died in that surgery and I miss her. God do I miss her."

I couldn't help it. The dam finally broke and I started crying fully.

It felt like all of the air was being expelled from my lungs and it started to hurt when I breathed regularly. I felt like the walls were closing in on me and I might just be swallowed up. It was horrible.

Until a pair of arms circled around me and picked me up.

I was still crying as hard as I could when I ended up in Brittany's lap on the couch. She was holding me tightly just letting me cry. I needed this, I needed to let all of the pain and anger and sadness go. I could finally breathe regularly again when I finally heard Brittany speak again.

"Santana. I promise you, I will get you through this."

Hello, this popped into my head when I was at the nursing home visiting my grandmother earlier, it seemed fitting and well. I applied my story and my grandmothers story to brittana while adding a little bit more chemistry for the characters and boom, here you go.

Also, sun downers syndrome is a real thing, look it up if you want. Its a syndrome where dementia sufferers get even more confused than usual after the sun goes down and the dementia patient just can't remember anything at all or function properly by themselves. It really is a horrible thing to go through and to watch.