It had been a few days later and Santana's mind had been occupied with nothing but the blonde she had met at the coffee shoppe. Brittany, she had been told, Brittany P. Her eyes, the way she smiled, as if there was nothing wrong with the world when in reality it would be better to list the things that weren't wrong, absorbed the Latina's every thought. Her awfully charming stupidity was captivating, to say the least. It would be saying the least for Santana to admit she was attracted to the mystery girl.

She knew it was highly unlikely she would ever meet Brittany again, however. Dallas was a big city and if you weren't a regular customer, it was highly unlikely you would ever be seen in Simply Caffeine again. The coffee was too strong and only for either men or the middle-aged, which, unfortunately for him, left Roderick looking like a pervert the way he hired any attractive young woman looking for a job.

Therefore Santana tried to diminish any hope of seeing the girl again. She reminded herself there was too much on her plate for romance, especially since she was also left wondering about the sexuality of Brittany, and she would need a clear head. She had exactly two more days left until the initial cheerleader tryouts were, and more after that. She knew she would be running on thin ice and exhausted from day to day with the added work of her three jobs. But it was what she wanted, and it would get her on her feet. Brittany was only a hope, a hope she needn't focus on.

"Please mom," the blonde begged with a deflated sigh and slumped shoulders, "I really don't want to coach the cheerleaders this year..." she trailed off. Her mother looked up excitedly, not in the slightest bit perturbed by her daughter's decline.

"Then you want to begin modeling lessons, dear?"

Brittany stood at a crossroad. She didn't want to be a model, not in the slightest bit. She didn't want to be her sister's clone, even if she did admire her slightly; but this didn't mean she wanted her other option, either.

"No," she said, the continuation of her voice diminishing in the back of her throat. She sat back and put on a small smile, "I suppose I'll go with you to the cheerleader thing."

The smile on her mom's face made the young woman's slightly more genuine, though it fell as her mother checked the time and said, "Sorry, dear, business meetings call," she pecked a kiss on Brittany's cheek before disappearing, shouting through the house to remind the maid of the load of laundry. It wasn't long before Minerva appeared, noting the befallen look on the blonde's face.

"You're looking spent," she said, pressing a motherly palm to the blonde's cheek, "You aren't sick, are you?"

"No," Brittany answered, standing and pushing aside Minerva's hand, "I just need a nap. Thank you, though."

As she left the room, the maid couldn't help but sigh. She had been working here since the girl was around ten. And here she was, a proud twenty two even if her IQ didn't live up to her age's standards, all grown up and still needing the mother she never really had, trying to fulfill the dreams that were never really hers.

"I'm sorry, Santana," the phone line gave off a constant static buzz as the girl walked around, trying to get a better signal so she could hear her brother, "I won't be there for your first game. Duty calls, you know, and we're heading into Iran the day before. Wish I could be there."

She let herself smile, "You act like I'll make the team," she said with a mix of amusement and disappointment in her voice. She hadn't spoken to her brother in two months, avoiding taking her chances ever since the incident with her mother. Now that she'd learned he had been drafted into the army, it was harder to bear.

"Course you will. Even if you didn't like your coach, Lima did wonders for your reputation as a cheerleader," he was sure to keep his voice sensitive, knowing his little sister hated her hometown with a passion.

"I'd rather not speak about that place right now," Santana said as she stepped out onto the small balcony of her apartment. It had an overlook of a back alley and it always smelled like dumpster, since the large green tub was just below her overhang. She pinched her nose and let out a sigh.

"Alright, s –" his voice cut off mid sentence. Slowly, dreading what she would see, she removed the phone from her ear. Call dropped.

Brittany rode in the back of her mother's car, her eyes on the scenery passing by. She was on her first trip to the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader tryouts, her mind anywhere but there and fluttering to happy thoughts to avoid sinking further into her funk.

It wasn't long until the car pulled into the lot and the blonde was forced to follow her mother inside the large stadium. Her mother chattered happily, occasionally greeting a few of the hundred girls gathered outside the stadium. The girl gulped, realization dawning on her. This would not be a quick affair, considering it was two hours before the doors to the tryouts opened and already so many girls were here.

"Brittany, dear, take a seat," her mother said, her voice dripping with motherly instruction. Brittany noticed they had entered the field and her eyes circled around in amazement as she took a seat in the director's chair.

"It's so big," she muttered, so awed by the enormity of the football field to notice her sister strolling up, her breasts spilling out of her shirt and her lipstick and smile plastered on to the extreme.

"Brittany! Say hello to your big sister!"

The blonde looked up to meet her sister's eyes and halfhearted embrace. She pat her back and Brittany simply returned the hug, wondering what happened to the non sarcastic sibling who had left last Christmas. She simply shrugged to her thoughts and returned to her seat, muted as her relatives engaged in conversation. Yes, she thought, this is going to be a long day.

"Santana!"

The Latina grumbled and rolled over, "Shut up," she mumbled to the pestering voice yelling in her ear. She didn't even notice that it was her friend's, her mind just begging for sleep. The previous nights she hadn't been able to sleep, worrying about her brother and pondering over the same blue-eyed face that had invaded her thoughts for nearly a week.

"Sannie, don't you tell me to shut up," Stacy. She now recognized the voice as her coworker and friend. Slowly, she opened her heavy eyelids and stared back into the green eyes of her friend, "You're going to be late for tryouts!"

That's when her mind buzzed in alert and she sat up, ignoring the throbbing in her head from the sudden movement as her eyes sped to the clock.

Shit, shit, shit!

She threw back the covers with such force there was a loud ripping sound from the fabric. She snatched up her uniform with little care and began to change, struggling with the underarmour for a moment before she managed to wiggle into it. Once she had dressed and grabbed her make-up bag, she turned to Stacy, who was now nonchalantly playing a game of Fruit Ninja on her iPod.

"Drive me to the stadium, now."

A/N: Finally! I've written this thing three freaking times and I'm finally happy with it. I don't like it as much as the first chapter, but I don't necessarily dislike it. Tell me what you think?

Also, a big thanks to everyone! I wasn't expecting so many fanfiction notices when I checked my email the morning after I posted. Thanks everyone for the alerts, favorites, and reviews. Really, it means a lot.

R&R, please and thank you.