The next morning at school Rachel kept an eye out for Santana. She knew the girl would have a hard time working past her current situation and fully intended to be there helping every step of the way. However, she was a bit wary of what mood her friend would be in now that she had time to let it settle in. The other girl had a way of shutting everyone out and resorting to anger and violence when she felt vulnerable and Rachel didn't want to see that happen. Santana had made so much progress over the years and she didn't want to see all of that be a waste. She wanted Santana to put everything that she had worked on into action now because this was the time when she really needed to.
Rachel was just about to give up and go practice in the choir room when she spotted the girl she was looking for. Santana did not look happy at all. Aside from her still puffy eyes and slightly red nose she looked positively livid and Rachel knew that today was not going to be a good day for the students of McKinley.
Santana stalked down the hall like a predator, daring anyone to challenge or approach her. The initial shock of finding out that Brittany didn't want to be with her had worn off and now she was just angry. Not at Brittany or even Quinn, but at the situation she found herself in. Rachel approached Santana cautiously but with determination and Santana just wished that she would turn around and continue in the other direction. Santana really wasn't in the mood for Berry and the way that she just, you know, cared so much about everything. She always wanted to fix things and make them okay, but Santana wanted to wallow in anger and self-pity for a while. She wasn't ready for her, sometimes, really good friend to help her fix things. Unfortunately for her, that is exactly what Rachel intended to do.
"Rachel, please just go away. Don't you have some freaking song to rehearse or something?" Santana said exhaustedly.
"I do, but I wanted to check on you before I went to the choir room. You look um…"
"Fucking shitty and angry? Yeah, thanks, Rachel I really needed you to clarify that for me." Santana didn't even know why she was so irritated with her she just was.
"I wasn't going to say that, well I was but not that way. Are you okay?" Rachel refused to let Santana's abrasive nature get under her skin, she had prepared for this kind of response and she needed to handle it.
"What do you think Rachel? You just pointed out that I don't look okay and given what happened yesterday do you think that I would be okay?" Santana snapped.
Rachel refused to let Santana know that she was hurting her with her words, "I guess that was a superfluous question."
"Gee, you think?" Santana was hoping that after having enough of being verbally assaulted that Rachel would just give up and let her go on about her day, but no such luck.
"I know what you're doing, Santana. I thought you realized yesterday that I can see through that tough 'Lima Heights Adjacent' exterior you put on. I just wish you would let me in." Rachel pleaded, unsure as to whether her words reached the other girl.
Santana stared silently at Rachel for a moment because she knew Rachel was right. "Just, leave me alone okay? Just let me, damn it, Rachel, just let me try to handle this on my own for once."
Rachel didn't expect the girl to say that. She was taken aback and for some reason a little hurt that she didn't want her help. "Yea, ok that's fine. This is your situation after all. You're more than capable of handling this by yourself."
Santana could literally feel the sadness that she just caused Rachel which totally wasn't fair because this so wasn't about her. Leave it to Berry to make herself the center of attention in someone else's relationship problems. She wanted to say something to make the girl feel better, like an apology but not exactly because she had nothing to apologize for, but she didn't really have the words. Rachel turned in the direction of the choir room and walked away without another word.
"Fuck…" Santana breathed out as she continued down the hall to her locker. She knew that she would eventually have to apologize to Rachel for talking to her like that otherwise she would do that thing where she sang her emotions out to the whole class. Rachel was excellent at letting you know she was upset with you without actually saying it directly to you and Santana did not want to be at the receiving end of that. She was just about to head to her first class when she saw Brittany and Quinn standing in front of the latter's locker smiling and laughing as if they hadn't completely spat on her heart and stomped on her pride yesterday.
You know how in the movies when someone is really fucking angry everything slows down and music starts playing just before they do something terrible? That's exactly what happened to Santana. It was like the students around her slowed to a stop and eventually stopped existing and she could swear that the theme to Kill Bill was playing somewhere. She really didn't know what made her do it because she had just told herself that she wasn't angry with Quinn, but that didn't mean that she couldn't become angry with her. It was just in the way she was looking at Brittany like she was the most beautiful and precious girl in the world and yea she fucking was, but Santana fucking knew that look. She knew that look because that's the same look that she had been giving Brittany for years. That look of being totally stupid for someone. It made Santana go crazy because Brittany was hers, no matter what came between them. Brittany would always be hers and the way Quinn was looking at her like a lover blatantly for all to see was like a big middle finger. She began to wonder exactly what Quinn saw when she looked at Brittany. Did she see an amazing friend or something more? Santana hoped for the former. Before she knew what was happening she was standing face to face with Quinn Fabray herself seeing red in every direction.
"Santana, no hard feelings I hope?" Quinn asked as if she were oblivious to the obvious anger on the Latina's face.
Santana just stared at her not hearing a word she said. All she could hear was Kill Bill and all she could feel was incredibly fucking angry. Her hand reared back almost on its own accord and quickly connected with Quinn's face. Slowly the red eased out of her vision, the students began to appear again and in normal motion, and the regular sounds of the hallway returned as she stared at Quinn holding her cheek. Literally, everyone stopped what they were doing to see what happened, it was always a sight to be seen when the two girls fought.
"What. The. Hell. What's your problem?" Quinn yelled, still holding her stinging cheek.
A new wave of anger crashed over her because seriously? What was her problem? How dare that bitch ask her what her problem was when she knew very well what the answer would be. Where to begin? The fact that Quinn had been messing around with her secret girlfriend type person, the fact that she thought that it was totally fine to do so because she wasn't out yet (which was seriously fucked up because neither was she), or the fact that she was just going on with her life! Not to mention that look in her eyes when she was looking at Brittany. It was so like Quinn to want things that were not hers.
"Don't you dare ask me that." Santana whispered harshly, and Quinn was honestly terrified by the look in her eyes. Quinn didn't dare respond to that.
That's when Santana remembers Brittany standing there right behind her. She couldn't bring herself to look her in the eyes because she would probably cry uncontrollably. That really wasn't something she was looking forward to because the only person who would actually take it seriously besides Brittany would be Rachel who currently probably thought she was being an insensitive asshole. Puck would just try to resort to violence and yelling which is fine when you're angry, but not when you're heartbroken. But she could literally feel Brittany staring at her back like she had x-ray vision or something. It made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end and she felt her back and neck warming up. All her instincts told her to just fucking walk away, but for some reason, she was stuck there.
"Are you gonna hit me too, San?" Came Brittany's soft voice and Santana's heart melted. She turned around slowly to meet the impossibly down-trodden look on the other girl's face. She didn't know what to say. "I hurt you too."
Of course, she wasn't going to harm Brittany, how could she? But the fact that Brittany thought that she would totally sucked for Santana. Santana wanted to say something, she wanted to so bad, but the words wouldn't come out. Her mouth just kept opening and closing like a fish out of water. The only thing she could manage was a slight headshake that she hoped to God the other girl would understand as a "no" because that was the best she could muster up before getting away from there as quickly as possible.
To say that news spreads quickly in McKinley would be an understatement. By the end of first period, everyone had heard about the slap Santana bestowed upon Quinn. By lunch, a rumor had been started that Santana put the complete smackdown on the hazel-eyed blonde and she had to cover up a black eye. By the time Glee club rolled around someone had said that Quinn was going to spill the beans about Santana's abortion that she apparently had so Santana put her in her place. Santana was 99% sure that at least one of those rumors had been started by Wheezy and Kurt. It was hard enough trying to get through the day without thinking about her two blonde friends without the whole student body staring at her and whispering. It was really fucking annoying and caused her to be in a terrible mood.
She took her usual seat in the back of the room and hoped that no one wanted to actually converse with her today because she'd probably rip their head off. She started out the day with fiery anger, but after seeing Brittany torn apart her mood was totally trashed. It was her plan to just sit quietly in misery while Mr. Shue made up some random lesson that Rachel would absolutely hog from everyone else. But holy fuck she forgot about Rachel. She had been so caught up in herself and the rumors spreading throughout the day that she forgot to just freaking apologize to Rachel who, without a single doubt, spent the whole day planning out the perfect performance to indirectly (or directly if she decided to go the route of Finn and the Gives You Hell performance. A thought that actually scared the Latina) tell Santana how much of an asshole she was. And to make matters worse Brittany was sitting front row with Quinn casually laying her head on her shoulder. It may have been commonplace to everyone else, but Santana was having her suspicions. So, she had to try to ignore that and sit through a musical "fuck you" from Rachel Berry. This was just fucking great.
Mr. Shue finally arrived, late as usual, and gave his usual speech about Regionals coming quickly and having to be our best. He apparently couldn't think of a valid lesson during said speech because he opened the floor to anyone who wanted it for any reason. Great, Santana saw that as basically no lesson for the day. Santana so expected Rachel's hand to shoot up as it usually did when she had something to sing or say but it didn't. She just sat there quietly with a vaguely pissed off look on her face. Even Mr. Shue expected her to want to sing something as there were a few moments where he and the rest of the class sat quietly looking at her waiting for something that never came.
"Well if Berry isn't going to sing anything then I will." Mercedes happily volunteered. As she belted out an Adele song to Sam, a performance that literally made Santana want to claw her eyes out for what should be obvious reasons, Puck moved up to sit next to her.
"Hey, so what's up with Britt and Quinn? I thought you guys were inseparable these days, or at least you and B were." He asked, placing an arm around her shoulders and a leg up on the chair in front of him.
Santana just sighed, "It's a really complicated, fucked up story, Puckerman. I'm not even sure I have all the details yet."
"I'm pretty sure it's nothing that alcohol can't fix." Puck replied cheerily, not knowing the severity of the situation. Even if he had heard the rumors, which Santana was 100% sure he had, she and Quinn were always fighting so there was nothing new there.
"Maybe not fix it, but it would definitely make me forget about it for a while. What do you have in mind?" Santana asked.
"Glee club party at my place, the usual." Puck shrugged because it was now a normal occurrence. "Tonight at 7."
Santana was a bit wary of this. She had a way of getting drunk and crying her feelings out to everyone, but the way she was feeling now was something she wanted to keep to herself. However, hanging with her friends and drinking alcohol seemed to be the only normal thing in her life now and she desperately wanted to go back to feeling normal. "Sure, I'll be there." She fist-bumped her lesbro before he went back to his original seat next to Finn.
She tried so hard not to freaking stare at them she really did. But she just couldn't help it. She loved the girl that Quinn was now comforting to the ends of the earth! She thought that she had earned her love as well and she fucking wanted, no needed to be loved by her. That's how she felt in her heart. Brittany was her every waking thought and who she thought about before she fell asleep at night. She made her envision weddings and children who looked like a spitting image of her. Brittany was her first love, and, before yesterday, she was pretty sure she would be her only love.
What the hell was Quinn's deal anyway? Where did she get the idea that if she wanted something that belonged to someone else she could just take it? Probably from being a spoiled only child who never learned to share. But why Brittany? Why her Brittany? It wasn't fair, and Santana knew that they weren't always best friends, but she thought that their friendship meant something to her. At least enough for her not to completely rip her heart out. Brittany should be resting on her shoulder, not Quinn's and it sucked that this was happening.
Tears started to burn her eyes, but she refused to cry in a room full of Glee clubbers because that was not badass. But she couldn't help the way her face seemed to curl in disgust at just the thought of Brittany sharing sweet conversations with Quinn. Not just the average "Brittany sweet" conversations but the kind of sweet conversations you would share with your girlfriend. About meeting parents and how they would love you and making stupid little dates that were ridiculously tacky but for some reason made the other person smile. Those kinds of conversations were the kind that Santana wanted to have and sure they had already met each other's parents a long time ago, but there were other topics to share.
On the bottom row, Rachel quickly lost interest in the announcements and songs of her fellow members. If they weren't going to discuss Regionals or even agree on a set list, then what was the point of rehearsal? She found more interest in thinking about Santana's behavior. She expected the harsh tone and cutting words, but she didn't expect to be told to be left alone. Well to be completely honest she did expect that, but she didn't expect the reason. Santana wanted to actually try to handle the situation on her own. She didn't want to repress it or pretend it never happened, she actually wanted to deal with her problem. Rachel was actually somewhat proud of her, she had grown since joining the club.
She couldn't say the same for Quinn and Brittany however. Rachel didn't want to blame Brittany at all, but the girl could have informed Santana of her intentions with their relationship instead of leading her on. What would have happened if Santana came out to the school and then found out that Brittany didn't reciprocate her feelings? The Latina would have been completely destroyed emotionally and would have been, quite frankly, a pain in everyone's ass. Without the love she thought she had from Brittany, Santana may have just collapsed under the weight of discrimination. Now they were parading in front of Santana and it was painfully obvious that the other girl couldn't handle it. It was quite disrespectful on their part, almost as if they didn't care enough about their friend to have the common courtesy to be subtle. Rachel hoped to be let back into Santana's inner circle soon, but she didn't get her hopes up. Santana did not easily admit that she needed help, but Rachel was determined to be the first one there when she did.
Kurt and Mercedes had been texting her all day asking about what happened between the two girls that could separate Brittany from Santana's side and could earn Quinn a nice smack in the face if the rumors she had been hearing were true. She purposely ignored their inquiries as it wasn't her place to tell them nor was it her business to discuss, but they were persistent.
"So, did you ignore us all day so you could tell us in person? Because the suspense is killing me." Kurt asked as he and Mercedes surrounded the diva.
"Why Kurt, whatever do you mean?" Rachel feigned ignorance.
"Oh no no no no no, don't pretend to be Miss Innocence, we know you know something Rachel, you always do." Mercedes pushed, not buying Rachel's façade at all.
Rachel stared ahead and pretended to have a keen interest in Sam's performance of some Justin Bieber song as she replied, "Even if I did know something, which I do not, it would be hardly in my place to tell you don't you think?"
"Hasn't stopped you before." Mercedes said under her breath earning a sharp glare from Rachel.
"So, it doesn't involve you then?" Kurt asked, earning her attention again.
"No, why would you think it did?" Rachel asked, clearly confused.
"Well, you and Santana look extremely upset about something. I thought it involved you as well." Kurt explained. He was really an expert at prying information out of Rachel.
Rachel turned to look at said Latina and found that she did look completely upset. About 2 seconds from tears actually. She got up and was about to go talk to the girl when she felt Mercedes' hand on her wrist. Rachel turned to look at her.
"You aren't going anywhere until you tell me what's up."
Rachel really had had enough of speaking of the past as if it had an impact on the present. She really thought things had changed, that everyone had begun caring about the well-being of others rather than their own personal agendas. She knew that it was hard to change old ways, but she thought that everyone was trying. "Do you two even care if they will be okay? If Santana is going to be okay or if she is even alright now? It seems to me that you two are just looking for gossip, but you will not get any of that from me. You can listen to all the gossip you want in the hallways during school but as for me, I've changed. I know when I have a right to tell something and when I don't, and I suggest you two learn when you have the right to know." With that, Rachel left the two gossips completely taken aback. They did not expect to get a lecture from Rachel Berry and had come up royally empty handed with nothing but their own outlandish theories to satisfy them.
"Santana." Rachel called softly, effectively pulling her attention away from the two blondes. "It's not going to make you feel any better if you stare at them."
"Really, I thought that by torturing myself, even more, I would eventually hit a loop and find a place of happiness." Santana said, blinking at the ceiling. A desperate attempt to rid herself of tears.
"That was a really well thought out comeback, however, hostility is unnecessary. I just wanted to check on you." Rachel replied softly, avoiding eye contact.
"I'm just peachy." Santana replied, taking another look at the two blondes.
"I can see that." Rachel was silent for a few moments. "Kurt and Mercedes are dying to know what happened." She tried. Honestly, she just wanted to distract Santana from her tears.
"Surprise, surprise. Have you heard the things that have been floating around the halls today?" Santana asked. It felt good to be angry at something other than Quinn or herself.
"Yes, I told them they had no right to know." Rachel then looked at the girl hesitantly. "I really wish you would let me in." She then admitted.
Santana sighed because they had just gone over this. "Rachel, I told you. I want to do this on my own."
"I know and I'm glad that you do, honestly. I just want to be someone that you can talk to about anything. I'll only help if you want me to, but I just want you to be able to talk about what you're going through with someone who actually cares and can try to empathize with you." Rachel explained because that is honestly all she wanted. No one seemed to care about how Santana was going to get through this, not even the cheerleader herself.
Santana didn't know how to respond. That sounded really good and through all the drama in Glee club, she learned that it was good to have a support system, but this wasn't something she wanted the rest of them to know because they would start looking at her with pity. Santana did not do pity. But Rachel already knew what she was going through and she wanted to be there for her which sounded fucking awesome because being alone with her thoughts was not. It was like sinking in the middle of an ocean and refusing to call for help. You'd been boasting and boasting about how strong of a swimmer you were, but you choked, and you couldn't handle anyone else knowing that. "Whatever. Sure."
Rachel held back her excitement and sense of accomplishment to just a subtle smile. It would be extremely hard, but she would get Santana to completely open up to her one way or another. Brittany was right about that, it felt good to be open with others and she would get Santana to see just how good.
"Are you going to Puck's party later? It's supposed to be Glee kids and stuff. I really don't want to be in a confined space with them for what should be an obvious reason, but booze makes me happy." Santana queried, trying to have a somewhat normal conversation to keep her mind off of the now whispering blondes. She tried to pretend like she didn't hear the little cute giggles they were sharing, and she tried to ignore the flames of jealousy in the pit of her stomach.
"Maybe, but if I recall correctly alcohol makes you weepy." Rachel replied, pretending not to see the way the other girl's eyes flickered to the sounds of giggling for a second.
"Whatever. I'm happy inside when I drink." Santana tried, and Rachel just nodded in agreement.
"Fair enough."
It seemed that Santana was the only person who intended to get blackout drunk that night. She permanently took up residence at the alcohol table and no one seemed to think much about it. Except for Rachel of course. She decided that it was her duty to keep a close eye on Santana, so she was sitting directly across from her with a water bottle in hand. Santana carpooled with Rachel after they both went to their respective houses to drop off school work for the weekend and to freshen up. By the time they arrived at Puck's the party was in full swing with all of the clubbers dancing. Quinn and Brittany were particularly enjoying each other, spinning each other and playfully falling over themselves. It made Santana's stomach hurt with jealousy again. Her throat suddenly dried up and she found it hard to breathe. Rachel saw a potential emotional break-down in the works and nearly ran to the alcohol table and brought Santana a beer. She gave Rachel a look of gratitude before completely downing the bottle. Somewhere around her 6th beer and her 4th mixed drink Santana felt the need to just talk to someone.
"Brittany is awesome you know that? I never deserved her." She said through heavily slurred speech.
"What makes you say that?" This could be just the opportunity Rachel was waiting for and she intended on taking full advantage of it.
"Ok, like, Brittany is just made of good stuff. All happy, nice, good stuff. And I am mean and angry. Bad stuff. It just would have never worked out." Santana concluded sadly, and Rachel did not approve of the girl's view of herself.
"That is not true. Sure, you may have your certain…qualities…but you possess plenty of wonderful qualities as well. You are a very good friend to those that you care about, Santana. Just look at how you protected Brittany over the years." Rachel said, her heart swelling at the memories of Santana coming to the other girl's aid time and time again.
"Yea, and look at where that's got me." Replied Santana, beer bottle resting on her lips. "This is tearing me apart, Rachel. It's only been a day and I can't eat, I can't sleep, all I can think about is them. I feel like I was lied to."
Rachel took the bottle away from her, "Look, I don't want to give you some speech about it 'not being so bad' and 'you'll move on eventually'. You can feel however you want to feel about this whole thing and honestly, you were lied to. It is perfectly natural to be angry about it."
Santana stared at Quinn and Brittany dancing happily in silence. Usually, she would be right beside them drink in hand and body in motion, but she didn't think she would ever be able to do that anymore. "Can you take me home?"
Rachel nodded and grasped her hand, squeezing it tightly for just a second before pulling the girl into the dancing teens.
"You guys aren't leaving already are you?" Puck called from across the room, he was deeply invested in a video game Finn had brought all night.
"Santana isn't feeling well so seeing as I was her mode of transportation I will escort her home so that she may rest properly." Rachel explained, she actually expected the others to at least wish Santana well once they heard the news, but they continued on in bliss as if they hadn't heard her. Yes, the music was loud, but she knew that she was louder.
Puck turned back to his game and just waved them off, "Ok Rachel, I got it. See ya later."
There was just the slightest of huffs performed as Rachel turned back to lead Santana out of the house. She at least expected Puck to say something for Santana, but no such luck. The car ride to Santana's house was filled with the Latina singing lazily with no accompaniment to songs that only she could hear, most of which were very sad. Rachel knew that when the alcohol had run its course in her system, Santana would never admit to being this vulnerable or this sad because that is not her style.
Rachel helped Santana into her empty home and up to her room, which had a theme of mostly black unsurprisingly. She dropped the girl off on her bed before searching for pain medication and a glass of water because with the amount of alcohol Santana had consumed, she would need both in the morning. "So, I assume that you would like me to leave." Rachel said, turning and heading for the door.
"No, you should stay. I won't sleep anyways." Santana called, laying back in her bed.
The diva smiled just a little. Sure, she was intoxicated and probably wouldn't remember most of what happened the next day, but when Santana was completely uninhibited she didn't mind Rachel's company.
"Just talk with me. I don't have anyone to talk with about this kind of stuff anymore. Puck wouldn't really understand and would probably get me to do something stupid." Santana continued to stare at the ceiling, "This is the first time I've felt alone."
Rachel didn't know how to respond to that without making it about herself, so she decided to change the subject. "What made you choose black for your room?"
Santana smiled softly, "A lot of people don't appreciate black. They make it seem like it always means something bad, but it's beautiful. It can be beautiful if it wants to. It's not always bad. Stars only shine against the night sky and that's black."
Rachel sat down on the bed and stared at her in wonder because she never thought of it that way. "Black couldn't be a symbol for yourself, could it?"
"Bingo. You know, you're not as self-centered as everyone says you are. You're the only person who gives a shit about me, but that could be because they think I'm a bitch too. Kindred spirits or some shit like that."
"Thank you." Rachel replied shyly.
"Hey, can I ask you something?" Santana asked quietly.
"Sure."
"Why didn't you, like, sing angrily at me earlier in Glee?" She asked.
Rachel was confused, "Why would I do that? I wasn't angry with you."
"I thought you were. Because I was mean this morning." Santana explained, just a little ashamed of herself because Rachel was so nice. She didn't deserve to be treated, you know, meanly.
"No, not at all. I'm actually quite happy that you want to try to get through this on your own. I was just put out I guess because I wanted to be the person you relied on. So much for not being self-centered." Rachel answered honestly.
Santana sat up with a little difficulty, "Ok, but what about…them. You're upset with them. Why didn't you sing?"
Rachel looked the girl in the eyes, "Why didn't you?"
Santana's eyes grew wide because, wow that was deep. She wasn't exactly sure how or why, but it just seemed deep. Maybe because it was a simple question that had a lot of underlying meanings, or maybe because she was just so drunk. "I don't want anyone else to know about this. They would just choose sides and complicate things."
"Is that it?" Rachel pushed.
Santana hated how Rachel could just ask all the right questions at all the right times, "They'll just pity me."
Rachel nodded, "And you don't want their pity."
"I'm not weak, I don't need pity." Santana replied, getting flustered.
"I know. But why do you think that letting them know would mean you were weak?" Rachel asked, wanting to fully understand.
"Because it would be like asking for help!" Santana exclaimed into the silence of the room. "I'm not always going to have help, so I should learn how to handle my life without it."
"That's the real reason you turned me away?" It was coming around to one in the morning and Rachel wasn't tired at all, not when Santana was laying bare her honest feelings. They weren't really about Brittany and Quinn, but they were a start.
Santana hiccupped loudly, "You're going off to New York in a few months and I'll most likely stay in this town. Not everyone cares the way you do, Rachel. Everyone isn't as forgiving and accepting either. I have to learn how to take care of myself."
"Mr. Shue will always be here. He's just as accepting as myself and he would be more than happy to help." Rachel tried and immediately regretted it. The look of sheer disbelief Santana gave her let her know exactly how she felt about that. And honestly, Mr. Shue wasn't always the best when it came to knowing how to handle situations. Usually resorting to singing or sending you to see Ms. Pillsbury, an equally unappealing option.
"Well, why do you think you will stay here?" Rachel asked. Santana had more talent than anyone else in the club, of course not more talent than herself, but she was second.
"How many people actually do leave?" Santana countered.
"The ones with talent and determination leave. You have both, Santana!"
Santana just sadly shook her head, "I thought I would leave with Britt. She always said that I would get some cheerleading scholarship and she would get one for dance. She knew I wanted to be a recording artist, but she said to get a scholarship on my strongest skill which was cheer. We would leave and never look back."
Rachel placed a gentle hand in Santana's just as she had done at Noah's. "I believe that you have many strong suits and as long as you put your mind to it, you can accomplish whatever you want. I've seen you do it before. You wanted to be head cheerleader and, through very, um, bold methods, you became just that. The only thing stopping you from leaving here is yourself. And you can do that with or without Brittany."
Santana smiled softly, "I won't say this any other time, but you're a good friend Rachel."
"I know you won't. Thank you." Rachel smiled back.
