It's been a family tradition since Mrs. Pierce was a little kid. So now, Santana joins them. This is the third Halloween eve in a row they've all watched The Wizard of Oz together. The first two times she thought something was wrong with the TV for the first twenty minutes, but this year she gets it.
The twister scene has always terrified her, but every year Brittany holds her hand and gentles her through it. Mr. Pierce attempts to calm her, too, by saying cyclones don't come through Ohio very often, but this year he makes the mistake of continuing on about the thunderhead pressing over Lima right now.
Thunderheads form in a low-pressure zone and can be as low as a tenth of a mile above the earth and tower to five miles. They are associated with thunder and lightning and lightning strikes and high winds and downpours and as he lectures on, she finds herself edging closer and closer to Brittany until she's almost in her lap.
Brittany smiles at her and wraps her arm around her. Santana can feel her breath slow a little. It could be a little embarrassing, anywhere else; at eight they might be a little too old for hand-holding and stuff, but here at Brittany's it still feels safe. Like, it was clear even two years ago spending the night with Quinn, that they couldn't touch in the big double bed, so she'd lie awake almost all night carefully not rolling into Quinn. But Brittany gets her, and Brittany's folks get her, and here feels like, well, sometimes more like home than home itself.
Lightning flashes through the windows, followed almost immediately by a very loud crack of thunder.
Santana's breath hitches.
Brittany rubs her back with one hand and her chest with the other, vigorously at first, then slower and slower, calming her again.
Another flash and crack. The downpour follows.
Mr. Pierce stands up, pauses the movie, and states, "Ladies, it is the end of the world."
Santana's eyes go wild. Brittany tightens her grip.
"Therefore," he says, "we need to have an end of the world party."
Brittany releases Santana, and jumps up and down, clapping. She pulls Santana off the couch.
"We had an end of the world party last year. It was awesome!"
Mrs. Pierce pours wine for everyone. The girls get an ice cube in theirs. More lightning and thunder. Santana jumps with every rumble.
"To the best people to spend the end of the world with— my family," toasts Mr. Pierce.
Santana's shoulders slump.
But Mr. Pierce lifts her chin with one hand, looks her in the eyes, smiles, and touches her glass with his.
They all touch glasses. "To family!" they say.
"To family," says Santana. They drink.
"Best. End of the world. Ever," says Brittany.