A/N: Just something I thought of today and wanted to get out before it became one more in the pile of unfinished Glee fanfictions – I think I'm up to three or four now .
Anywhow, I tried my hand at writing in present tense too, while I can't recall ever doing, so incase anything is tense-wonky, I apologize, also for any spelling/grammar mistakes, spellcheck only goes so far, and this is unbeta'ed as usual.
And personally I think the ending is rather abrupt, I may go back at some point in time and try to fix it.
And if anyone is ooc, my bad (not that we're given too much to work with *waves fist*.
Spoilers: None whatsoever.
Disclaimer: I'm in university, nothing but massive student debt is mine.
------
In retrospect Brittany was not quite surprised at the events that lead to a very angry Tina standing on her front porch. Santana had been giving Artie seductive glances (bordering on obscene, really) during glee practice for the past month, while Artie blushed and grinned back when he assumed no one was looking.
Brittany hadn't been looking specifically, but it's not like those two were subtle. Santana was as low-key as a battering ram and Brittany had known forever that her sneers directed to the dorky boy were signs of an inevitable crush. And when Santana confided in her that the two had in fact, started a relationship "on the down low", Brittany only smiled and commented on how they were rather cute together.
Unfortunately for Tina, the astounding oblivion shown by Artie had rendered him blind to the stares his friend was directing at him (for more than a month too). Brittany often compared her observations to some cheesy romance movie; he's looking at her, who's looking at him, while the other "she" is looking at him, and Brittany is just the innocent bystander in this whole fiasco.
----
Well, perhaps not as innocent as she had thought, as Brittany bounds down her stairs as the doorbell rang, and pulls open the front door, only to be met with first, and most hostile look that she had ever seen from Tina.
"H-ho-how l-long have y-you known?" Tina's arms are crossed, eyes glued to her boots (apparently just as shy when angry as any other time) and Brittany only blinks while she runs through the secrets they both know, and Tina could possibly be angry about. Quinn's pregnancy comes to mind, and that can't be it.
"Artie, and San-s-santana. How l-long have they been together?"
Ah, that secret.
Brittany sees no point in denying what is obviously, for whatever reason, not a secret anymore, so instead she gently takes hold of Tina's forearm, gently pulling her inside when there's no opposition, and leads the way to her bedroom.
Brittany doubts a private conversation such as this one would go over well if shared with the neighbors.
Tina frees herself from Brittany's grasp once they're relocated in the cheerleader's room, and faces her silently, clearly waiting for an answer, which Brittany provides.
"Santana told me a few weeks ago. She really likes him, Tina." She waits for a response, and leans up against the closed door while hoping her expression comes off as impassive. Artie and Tina and Santana are her friends and teammates, and Brittany sees no need in imparting any opinion she may have, in their business.
However she quickly abandons her plan as Tina's face crumples, tears welling up in dark eyes, and it's the most emotion that Brittany has ever seen Tina express asides from the laughs she shares with Artie during practice. So it takes Brittany all of two seconds to close the gap and pull Tina into a tight hug, because in her experience, hugs were never-not welcome.
This case apparently isn't any different, and Brittany only grasp the shorter girl against her tighter, as desperate arms wrap around her own waist and Tina sobs out something that sounds like "love him" against her dampened shoulder. Brittany stays silent, aware that there's little to say in the way of comfort.
----
Several long minutes pass before Brittany decides to relocate Tina and herself to the carpeted floor, her reason being that sitting was far more comfortable than standing anyway. Tina only nods, scrubbing at her damp eyes and leaving streaks of blue eye shadow on her arm warmers.
Leaning against the side of the bed, it's now been more than ten minutes without conversation, and Brittany has her hands folded on her knees, content to sit in (hopefully) comforting silence, and therefore is very unprepared when Tina's quiet voice breaks through the quiet.
"It's because she's pr-prettier than m-me. Isn't i-i-i-it?" She turns her attention to the floor, forcing the words out. "She's p-probably, funnier too. Sm-smarter and – " Tina never finishes her sentence however, and instead lets out a squeak of surprise as Brittany's lips cut off the stream of degrading comments aimed at herself.
The blonde pulls back just as fast, lifting a hand to trail through blue strands of hair. She meets Tina's shocked look and tilts her head, quietly waiting for a reaction. To her own surprise, Tina does not freak out like Brittany assumes (considering she does have every right to). Rather, Tina's eyes grow round, and she stutters more than she usually does while trying to formulate a response.
"W-w-w-w-w –" And once more, Brittany cuts her off, but now with what she hopes is a completely lame monologue.
"You love Artie, and with the situation at hand, you're upset, and hurting, and sometimes only a biological and sensory experience can make someone feel better," she smiles slightly, tugging gently on the blue hair her fingers are still entangled in. "it's like eating ice cream from the carton and watching sad movies, but I know from Kurt that you're lactose intolerant and you hate sappy romance movies, judging from your disagreements with Mercedes during glee practice."
Brittany slides closer, her hand moving from Tina's hair to her shoulder, looking carefully for signs that she was leaping outside any boundaries. Instead Tina lets out a shaky breath, eyes still streaked with smudged makeup but thankfully now free of tears, and Brittany swears there's a hint of a smile as she moves her hand from shoulder to cheek as she leans further in. She hardly has the time to whisper: "Let me help you feel better." before Tina leans into her, hands reaching out for blonde hair as they kiss.
Because of this, it's not as awkward as Brittany would have assumed, and she feels less like some creepy pervert for practically molesting a distraught friend. But she meant what she said, and right now Tina appears to agree that biological stimulants can be a terrific distraction from most (is not all) problems.
At least she assumes this from the way Tina's tongue runs across her bottom lip before teeth less-than-gently bite down. But it's far from unpleasant, actually, and when Brittany slips her hands beneath the (unsurprisingly) black t-shirt, she digs her nails into soft skin ever so slightly, and almost (almost) grins as Tina inhales sharply, her grasp on the cheerleader's hair tightening for a split second as she arches into the touch.
----
Things progress rapidly from there, and other than a whispered reassurance from Tina that led to Brittany easing her onto her back on the carpet (the bed was unmade and frankly, too intimate), and another affirmation that Brittany's hand inching under her skirt was, in fact, very okay, the two girls were silent.
In terms of conversation that is.
----
Brittany can only smile softly, smoothing that blue-streaked hair away from a dampened forehead, and fixing the (predictably) black skirt. Dark eyes open and for a brief moment, when Tina blushes and smiles, Brittany can only feel pleased with herself that she was able to help her friend forget about Artie – if only for a short time.