Title: Floating On Dry Land
Author: y0ungalaska
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my ideas.
Summary: "Don't." It was the only thing that Brittany could allow herself to say without completely losing it.
A/N: A one-shot based off of last night's episode, 3x06. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has all kinds of emotions still ... And I've watched it at least four times. I still feel just the same as I did the first time. So I thought I'd try my hand at writing a little one shot and posting it for you all to read. I do hope you enjoy it. It's just something that I had to do. lol. ALL THESE FEELINGS. Just remember these two words: OPEN ENDING. And don't hate me too much? lol. Oh, all mistakes are my own. Ok. Happy Reading!
Floating On Dry Land
The entire auditorium was shocked into silence, except for a few gasps, as Santana's hand crossed Finn's face. Retribution. Revenge. Making him feel just as embarrassed and hurt as she felt in that moment. That's what Santana Lopez was trying to accomplish. It was no longer a secret that she was a lesbian and that was Finn Hudson's fault. No matter which way she spun it in her head, it all came down to the fact that it was solely on him and everything that she would endure in the days to come, he would pay for. One by one, she would make the days of Finn Hudson's life a living hell.
With a few words, he'd torn her life to shreds and he was just sitting there, happy as a clam, whispering to his girlfriend about god knows what. She may have been rude, she may have even been borderline mean, but he made this more personal than she ever would have.
He thought her words were harsh before? No. He had no idea how harsh Santana could be.
"Santana, what are you doing?" Rachel asked before rising to her feet and leaning over to her boyfriend. "You could have really hurt him!"
"He hasn't even begun to know what hurt feels like." She spoke through un-shed tears.
"San," Brittany called after her girlfriend as she made her way down the steps and to her side. After Santana had left Coach Sylvester's office, she'd run into the blonde, tears streaming and told her exactly what had happened. Brittany was angry; more than she thought she ever could be, but her first and only priority at this point was to protect and be there for her girlfriend.
"Santana. Principal Figgins' office. Now." Will Schuester spoke. His heart was breaking for the girl. He knew, above all, that her emotions were all over the place, but he couldn't allow her to get away with such actions. His place was to be the teacher and he needed everyone to understand that, no matter what, violence was never the answer.
Her eyes never left his. Her breathing was shallow, her body shaking. Nothing could have prepared her for this moment. She realized, without a word spoken, that everyone knew. Not her friends, but her family. And not only her family, but the world. The girl who was so afraid of showing her true self to the people closest to her, was now being broadcast all over television as 'The Lima Heights Lesbian.' She could see his trepidation, she could feel the fear radiating from him. She watched as his mouth opened to speak and before she could stop him, she heard a voice.
"Don't." It was the only thing that Brittany could allow herself to say without completely losing it. She liked Finn. He was her friend and from what she saw, a damn good leader, but he was also the boy who had just hurt the one person she loved most in the world in the worst way and that was completely unacceptable. She was angry but most of all, she was deeply hurt. She couldn't understand how someone who called you a friend could do something like this so easily and not even think twice about it. No matter the situation, the bottom line was that he had no right and no place to say what he did; it wasn't his place to out Santana.
"Come on, San. Let's go." Brittany whispered and she guided the Latina, who never took her eyes off the boy, towards the exit. She needed to get Santana out of there before she either lost it completely or broke down. And she had a feeling it was going to be the latter.
"Ok, what was that about?" Mercedes asked, breaking the silence as she looked around to her peers and teachers. She could tell something was off with her friend, but nothing could have prepared her for what she'd seen moments before.
When no one answered and Mercedes noticed everyone looking around with the same expressions, she turned her attention to her teachers. "Mr. Schue?"
He looked around to his students and tried, desperately, to rack his brain for an answer. It wasn't his place to tell them the truth. He would be doing the exact same thing that got them in this situation in the first place. "Uh," he looked around at the faces waiting for answers, "well, it's not really my place to say, but I just want you guys to know that Santana is going through a hard time right now. So, if you could, just try to be there for her? She needs her friends."
"That's it?" Quinn spoke up, concerned lacing her already raspy voice.
"Dude, whatever you did, Santana is one pissed off cheerleader." Puck leaned over and whispered to his friend.
Finn turned slowly to look at his friend, trying to conjure up something to say, but it felt as though he was choking on every word.
"I'm afraid that's all I can say." Mr. Schue spoke again, looking towards the same boy who Santana had just slapped across the face. He wasn't one to pass judgement, especially on his students, but he was disappointed and the look on his face told Finn just that. Looking around, he realized that everyone had their eyes on him, expecting some sort of answer that he didn't have. Dropping his head, he sighed. There was nothing he could say and even if he could, he was choosing not to.
Brittany led a quiet Santana through the empty halls of William McKinley High. She thought about Mr. Schuester telling Santana to go to Principal Figgins' office, but she quickly changed her mind and led her in a different direction. Maybe they'd get in trouble for not going right away, but she needed to get Santana to a place where no one was around. When the two reached the destination, Brittany opened the door and motioned for Santana to walk in front of her, making sure to close the door behind them.
Santana, without thinking, walked into the choir room and took a seat in the front row. Her thoughts were so rapid, she could hardly grasp one of them. She hadn't even noticed where she was until she looked up and saw Brittany, her girlfriend, leaning against the piano simply watching her.
Breathing in deep, the Latina tried to offer a smile, but the emotions ran too deep and she finally let go every emotion she had been holding since the beginning of their performance. Nothing could have prepared her for her actions against Finn. Not that she wasn't used to smacking people, but the anger, the rage that it brought along with it. She'd never felt something like that before. It was all-consuming. She knew, somewhere in her rattled brain, that it probably wasn't the best idea to slap him in front of everyone, but her head wasn't working quite right ever since she'd been shown the campaign video staring none other than herself.
Her body shook with sobs as she felt two familiar arms wrap themselves around her. She could smell the scent of Brittany's body wash and it made her break even more. So many thoughts were plaguing her. This girl, this beautiful and smart girl, loved her. But could she make her as happy as she knew the girl deserved? Was she enough? She'd put Brittany through hell, refusing to publicize their relationship; wanting to hide in the shadows. She knew that, in the long run, not coming out would only cost her the most important person in her life. She knew that it would cost her the only love she'd ever known, but she was afraid. No, she wasn't afraid, she was terrified. The looks, the whispers, the rumors. They were everything that she was trying to avoid and yet, here she was, bawling her eyes out because Finn had to open his overgrown mouth in front of everyone.
She was angry. Even more than that, she was hurt. She was embarrassed and she felt betrayed.
Not for the reasons you'd think...She wasn't embarrassed because she loved Brittany. No, she was embarrassed because of what Finn had done to her in front of the world. Had she come out on her own terms, she could own it. Walk the halls, head high, and be okay with it. She thought about what had happened to Kurt after he finally allowed himself to come out and be open about it. The kid went through hell for it and although things were better now, it took him transferring to another school to make it happen. Would she have to do the same? Would she have to find some all-girl school in Lima to transfer to? Would she even have the choice?
And her family. Oh god, her family, she thought as she began to cry even harder. They were religious. They were very strict. And by now, she knew they'd seen the campaign commercial. How would she explain it? Would she come out and say that it was true? That she was, in fact, in love with Brittany and tell them to deal with it? Or would she, somehow, try to spin the entire ordeal to make her family happy? Her mother, her father... her grandmother. They would be so disappointed in her. The looks on their faces would literally break her. She was their pride and joy.
"What am I gonna do, Britt?" Santana asked through sobs as her arms found their way around the blonde's waist. She pulled the girl as close as possible, not caring about the what if's and held on as tight as she possibly could.
"Shh," Brittany soothed as she rubbed light circles on her girlfriends' back, "it's gonna be okay, San. I'm here."
The words only caused her to cry harder. Brittany always knew the right things to say, she always knew the right things to do and here she was, scared out of her mind, and forcing her to hide who she is. This wasn't the way it was supposed to be. They were supposed to be out and happy and planning their future as they always had. It wasn't supposed to be them, sitting in the choir room while Santana cried her eyes out and Brittany, once again, coming to her rescue, telling her that, no matter what, everything would be okay.
She deserved better than this, Santana knew it. She needed to do the right thing. She needed to make the right decision, no matter the consequences. And she would because, above all else, she knew that Brittany Pierce deserved the best.