Happy New Year, guys! Sorry for the delay (again), Christmas got in the way but this is an extra long chapter to make up for it. Enjoy and please review if you have time :)
Santana didn't call as soon as Brittany would have liked her to. In fact, three days had passed and the blonde was beginning to think that maybe Santana didn't want to be her tutor after all. The thought made her sadder than it possibly should have done but she couldn't help it. Not only did she enjoy learning, she also enjoyed Santana's company. It was nice to have someone to spend an evening with, someone to eat dinner. She spent so much time alone with her mother that sometimes she almost forgot what it was like to talk to other people. One evening with Santana had refreshed her and made everything seem a little less suffocating.
She'd spent the last few days moping around the house partly because of Santana, partly because her mom was making her do some stupid history of world culture project that she couldn't have been less interested in. She moved from room to room, pretending to read books and magazine articles for research, and really doing anything but. She'd rearranged her bedroom three times. Cleared out her closet and then cleared it out again. She'd changed her bed sheets and had even managed to brush Lord Tubbington; something that she'd been avoiding for at least six months.
After three days she'd just about run out of ways to procrastinate so when her phone started ringing, she'd just opened a book that might actually have been relevant to the project she was supposed to be doing.
"Hello?"
"Brittany, hi."
The voice on the other end of the phone made her heart skip an excited beat.
"Hi." She said, the smile audible in her voice.
"Can you meet me in the library at Mckinley High? I have two hours free, thought you might wanna do some studying."
"Right now?" Brittany asked, already standing up and returning the book to its shelf.
"Yep. See you in ten minutes?"
"Ten minutes." The blonde agreed.
Santana said a hasty goodbye and Brittany quickly found a pair of shoes. Tugging them on, she yelled down the stairs, telling her mom that she was going out and she was taking the car.
"Where are you going?" Her mother asked as Brittany bounded down the stairs, only halfway through brushing her hair.
"Dance studio." She lied.
"Where are your dance clothes?"
Brittany looked down at her skinny jeans and printed shirt. Her favourite shirt, actually. The one with the egg and bacon smiley face. Cute, but definitely not dance wear.
"Uh," She hesitated, pretending she was too preoccupied with checking her hair in the wall mirror. "I'm not dancing, just helping."
"Right." Her mother sounded unconvinced but for one reason or another, she didn't ask any more questions. "Have fun." She said, handing the car keys to her daughter.
"Kay." Brittany smiled, kissing the older blonde quickly on the cheek before rushing out of the front door and down the driveway.
Mckinley High School was big and noisy and absolutely impossible to navigate. Brittany had arrived ten minutes ago and already she'd managed to pass the canteen three times, meaning that she was walking a circle that she couldn't quite seem to get out of. Students rushed from classroom to classroom, knocking into her and disorientating her further. She tried her best to understand the signs nailed to the walls of the hallway, each one pointing to a different location but they seemed to tell her how to get to anything and everything other than the one place she was looking for.
She decided to slow down, ignoring the chaos around her and trying to concentrate more on her route through the school. She found a quieter place next to some lockers and took a moment to just look around. She knew which way she had come in and she knew how to get out but that was all. She sighed quietly and began methodically checking each sign again. Canteen. Science Lab. Bathrooms. But no library.
"Can I help you?"
Brittany turned to see a man with funny, curly hair stood before her. He was wearing a green vest and looked very much like he should be in some kind of musical. But his eyes were kind and he was offering a small, helpful smile.
"Uh, yeah. I'm looking for the library."
"Ah, the library. Rarely used by the kids here. I get the feeling most of them would rather spend their free time in the canteen." The man laughed, seemingly at an inside joke that Brittany didn't quite understand but she still smiled.
"Follow me." He said, before turning and walking down the hall.
Brittany followed quickly, not wanting to lose her new tour guide in the crowds. But she supposed losing him would have been difficult because she was pretty sure she would be able to see that vest from at least a mile away.
They turned down another, much quieter hallway.
"So," The curly haired man said, "Judging by how lost you looked back there, I'm guessing you're new here?"
Brittany shook her head. "I'm home schooled. I'm just meeting my tutor here."
"Your tutor?"
"Yeah. Her name is Santana."
The man stopped dead almost as soon as the word left Brittany's mouth, so abruptly that had she been walking any closer, she would've ploughed straight into him. Fortunately, she managed to avoid him.
"What did you say?" The look of pure confusion on his face was almost funny.
"Santana Lopez. She's my tutor."
The man shook his head in disbelief. "Santana Lopez. A tutor." He said under his breath to no one in particular.
"Do you know her?" Brittany asked, equally as confused.
He ran his hand through his hair, still looking utterly stunned. "Everyone knows Santana Lopez." A small, knowing smile crossed his features briefly. Brittany wasn't sure why but it created an uneasy feeling in her stomach. It disappeared though as soon as the fuzzy haired man made a quick joke and continued to walk down the hallway.
She followed closely, wanting to ask what he meant about everyone knowing Santana but not quite being brave enough. Instead, she played with the fraying edge of the small leather bracelet she was wearing and concentrated on taking note of where they were walking in case she ever needed to find it again.
"Here we are." The man stopped outside the library doors and smiled.
"Thanks." Brittany said, looking in through the glass, trying to spot Santana.
"You're very welcome-" He stopped suddenly, realizing that he did not know her name.
"Brittany." She filled the gap quickly and punctuated it with a grateful smile.
"You're very welcome, Brittany. It was nice meeting you."
"You too."
The man smiled at her again before moving away to lecture some boys about the empty cans they had just dropped onto the floor.
Brittany looked at the doors again and moved closer. They opened automatically and she stepped inside, the stuffy smell of old books hitting her immediately. The scent clung to the warm air and she inhaled deeply. It felt safe in here. Safe and really, really quiet. She glanced around, noting that the few students sat at the front of the large room were alone. No one sat in pairs and no one was speaking. She even felt the need to breathe quietly, not wanting to be the one to break the silence.
She began to walk deeper into the room and whilst looking for Santana, she also managed to glance at some of the bookshelves. Most of the covers were brightly coloured and she ran her index finger along the spines of them as she walked. She came to the end of one of the shelves and realised that the room opened up again into another space filled with desks and soft looking chairs. Santana was sitting at the desk furthest away and from her concealed position, Brittany found herself watching her for a moment. She watched her fidget with a pen, moving between spinning it in her fingers and chewing on the end of it. Her long hair was loose and every few seconds she'd run her hand through it, becoming increasingly more agitated each time it fell back in front of her face.
Brittany felt a smile toying with the corners of her mouth but she managed to supress it as she emerged from her accidental hiding place. Her footsteps were quiet so Santana couldn't hear her approaching.
"Hi." Brittany whispered as she came to a stop in front of the desk.
Santana smiled first before looking up from her book. "Well hey there, blondie." She lifted her eyes to meet Brittany's and flicked her hair over her shoulder. "Ready to get your study on?"
Brittany nodded enthusiastically and took the seat next to Santana.
"I got lost." She whispered. "And I met a man with curly hair."
"Ah." Santana smirked. "That'll be Mr Schue."
"Mr who?"
"Mr Schue. He likes to sing and be happy all of the damn time. It's exhausting, honestly. Sometimes I can't even look at him without wanting to immediately take a week long nap."
"Oh," Brittany said, not really convinced that Santana disliked him that much. "I thought he seemed kinda nice."
"Oh he's nice. So nice that it makes me wanna barf."
Brittany giggled.
"What?" Santana said, trying to conceal a smile.
"You're funny."
The brunette laughed and flipped her hair over her shoulder dramatically. "I try."
Brittany rolled her eyes playfully, feeling like she'd just boosted Santana's already particularly large ego.
Still smiling, the Latina handed Brittany a pen and opened the nearest book. "Enough with the giggling, blondie, we gots some serious work to do."
They began with reading through the basics of the history Santana wanted to teach her and Brittany had gotten a little too excited when she realised that it was all coincidentally to do with the project she had to do at home. So excited, in fact, that one of the librarians shushed them loudly, causing both girls to cover the mouths and hold their noses to squash the giggles that threatened to spill out noisily.
"God, you're so distracting." Santana said, still smiling from their momentary hysteria.
"Guess you'll just have to spend more time with me to get all of this stuff done then." Brittany shrugged, grinning at the falsely grumpy brunette.
"Yeah, yeah." Santana rolled her eyes, although she wasn't really opposed to that idea.
They settled again into a steady rhythm of readings and explanations. Santana would expand each fact with a memorable little anecdote or would twist it into something more modern and recognisable. Brittany liked that she did that, it made everything so much easier to understand.
This continued quietly for the best part of an hour until Santana produced a list of quiz questions for Brittany to answer, each question linking to the facts they'd just spoken about.
"You get half an hour, okay?" Santana said, closing the books so Brittany couldn't see the answers.
The blonde nodded.
"Cool. I'm gonna finish my homework while you do that and then when we're done, we'll check it together."
"Okay." Brittany smiled sweetly, grateful for how helpful the brunette was being.
Brittany started by reading through the questions and picking out the ones she was most sure about first. Santana was already writing in a notebook with her still bandaged hand. Brittany began to write too but as she neared the edge of her page, their wrists collided awkwardly.
"Sorry." The said simultaneously, but unlike Brittany, Santana didn't look up from her notebook.
The blonde shrugged and began writing again, only to realise that the collision was happening every time Santana started on a new line and Brittany finished one. The fourth time, Santana giggled.
"Switch seats with me," She said, standing up. "I'm left handed, happens all the time." She smiled and stepped backwards out of the way so Brittany could scoot over to the other seat.
"Ohhh." Brittany said, finally understanding what the problem was but Santana was too preoccupied with trying and failing to pull her hair into a ponytail. By the way she chewed her lip in pained concentration, Brittany could see that the bandage was the problem. Bit of hair would get tangled around it and the hair tie wouldn't quite stretch over it.
"Lemme help." Brittany said, standing up.
"It's okay, I got it."
The blonde watched with raised eyebrows because it was obvious that Santana most certainly did not have it. At all.
After a few painful seconds of watching Santana, Brittany spoke again.
"Sit down. I'll do it."
"I don't need help."
"Well I'm bored of watching you struggle so just sit and let me do it."
Santana looked a little surprised before sighing in defeat and sitting down. "Who knew blondie could be so bossy." She mumbled under her breath, folding her arms across her chest like a toddler who'd just been told she couldn't have any more candy.
Brittany smiled a little before pulling the Latina's thick hair into a loose braid and securing it with one of her own hair ties.
"Tadaa." The blonde cooed with a hint of sarcasm, still amused by just how stubborn Santana could be.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
They glanced at each other briefly and for a second, Brittany could've sworn she saw a slight pink blush on Santana's cheeks. A crack in her façade, maybe.
"Come to Glee club with me." Santana said as they reached the exit of the library. She wasn't sure why she asked. She wasn't even sure if Mr Schue would allow it but the thought of Brittany leaving was creating an emptiness in the pit of her stomach that she did not want to be stuck with all day.
"What club?"
"Glee club. The man you met earlier, he teaches it. It's fun."
"What kind of club is it?"
Santana shrugged. "We sing and stuff."
Brittany frowned. "I thought you didn't like singing or being happy."
Santana narrowed her eyes in feigned anger, surprised but amused to have been caught out by the sweet blonde. "I did say that didn't I." She tried her best to sound defeated.
"Yep." Brittany grinned.
"Well," Santana shrugged again. "It's okay I guess. The singing part. Not the constant happy part."
"Right." Brittany laughed and tucked her hand into the crook of Santana's arm, not wanting to get lost in the crowds again. "Let's go to glee club."
The girls walked arm in arm down three hallways. Brittany was quite happy to do so but the physical contact was making Santana uncomfortable. Brittany's hand was warm and soft and she kinda wanted to hold it but at the same time, she wanted to put a whole lot of distance between them. Whatever she felt about Brittany, she knew she could never act on. The old Santana would have flirted outrageously with the taller blonde. She would've complimented her eyes, her hair, the way she smelled. She would've been so charming that Brittany wouldn't have been able to resist. But new Santana was much more cautious. Santana who had been hurt saw danger in every new feeling. She'd been too free with Dani, too careless. She'd let down her guard only to be so completely torn apart that she never wanted to let them down again.
With that in mind, she moved her arm so that they were no longer touching. Brittany looked at her, an inkling of panic in her blue eyes. Santana knew what it was like to be in a crowd full of people you didn't know, trying to follow one person along a hallway that you'd never seen before. She knew that was why Brittany was so keen to hold onto her but the arm holding thing was just too much. Instead, she dropped her arm and let her hand find the blonde girls. Full on hand holding was a big deal for Santana so instead she linked her pinky finger with Brittany's, giving it a little squeeze to reassure the taller girl that she wouldn't let her get lost.
They turned a corner and came to a stop outside a brightly lit classroom.
"Welcome to the choir-"
A loud whistle cut them off and Santana spun around to see Puck leaning against the opposite wall, arms folded and eyebrows raised in mocking amusement.
"Hand holding already, Lopez? I thought you were done with love for a while."
Santana instinctively let go of Brittany's pinky and instead held onto the straps of her backpack.
"Shut up, Puck. We weren't holding hands."
Puck laughed quietly and sauntered over to them, hands in pockets now.
"Looked like hand holding to me, kiddo. So, is this Dani 2.0?" He looked the blonde girl up and down, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. "She's hot."
Brittany's eyes widened and she took a small step backwards. Santana felt the hairs on the back of her neck bristle and she balled her hands into fists.
"Don't you dare talk about her like that. She's a friend and you have no right to treat her like a piece of meat. Keep your eyes and your disgusting thoughts to yourself."
The little Latina only came up to the males chest but that didn't stop her from squaring her shoulders and giving him a quick shove. He barely moved but the message was clear. He held up his hands in silent apology and Santana turned away abruptly, taking Brittany by the elbow and pulling her into the classroom.
"Who was that?" The blonde whispered.
"No one." Santana growled, storming to the back of the empty room and sitting down on one of the plastic chairs. Brittany took the seat next to her and fidgeted nervously with her bracelet. She didn't like that guy and she didn't like the way he made Santana act.
"He seems like a jerk. You should stay away from him." Brittany offered, trying to keep the anxiety out of her voice.
"Can we talk about something else," Santana said through gritted teeth. "Please?"
"Okay, uh…" Brittany racked her brain for anything conversation starter. "Did you know that jelly fish don't have brains?"
Santana looked up from her lap, her features instantly more relaxed. "What?"
"Yeah, they're like seventy percent water and thirty percent…jelly."
Santana let out a small sigh and smiled at the blonde girl who was looking at her expectantly. Puck made her want to break every window in the school with her bare hands and on a normal day, she probably would've done. But Brittany, somehow, seemed to cancel out the anger and the humiliation and the pain. Somehow, Brittany calmed her and made her think of wild flower meadows and vanilla and the sun. She should have hated it. She should have despised her for it. But she couldn't get enough.
But almost as soon as she felt herself relax, she heard that voice calling her name across the room and she was back to filled with rage. "Oh god, no." She mumbled to herself as the voice moved closer.
"Good afternoon, Santana! I see you've brought a friend with you. Hello Santana's friend, my name is Rachel Barbra Berry and I am very much involved with this Glee club. As you've probably heard, I tend to be the lead soloist on the majority of our performances and I-"
"Rachel, for the love of god, save your life story for someone who cares."
"Hey," Brittany said quietly to Santana and placed her hand on her knee to stop her. "I care." She smiled at Rachel. "I'm Brittany and Santana is my tutor. She asked me to come to Glee club with her, I hope that's okay?"
Santana scowled at the blonde but Rachel was delighted. "Of course it's okay! The more, the merrier." She trilled in that high pitched voice Santana hated so much. "See, Santana? It doesn't hurt to be nice once in a while." The little brunette said, with raised eyebrows.
"Rachel," The Latina let the name escape on the end of an exasperated sigh. "Just go. Before I stick your mouth together with super glue."
The tiny singer gave a small huff before returning to her seat at the piano.
"Santana, that wasn't nice." Brittany moved her hand from the Latina's knee.
"She's the one who's not nice. She's like the devil, reincarnated into a tiny, tiny hobbit body. Like a little-" She was cut off by the appearance of yet another Glee club member.
"Hey, Santana. Hey, blonde girl I do not know but would very much like to." The blonde haired boy smiled warmly at Brittany.
"Brittany." She said quietly, conscious of Santana rolling her eyes next to her.
"Sam Evans." The boy smiled.
"Back off, Trouty. She's not interested in your fish lips. Quinn, thank god!" Santana was distracted from her insults as another blonde girl entered the room. Dressed in a babydoll dress and matching cardigan, Brittany thought she almost looked like a Disney princess. She smiled at Santana and stopped in front of the two girls.
"Quinn. Save me from these people, please." Santana feigned distress and Brittany giggled, amused by her theatricality.
"Oh, come on Santana. They're not that bad. And besides, we all know this is the best part of your day. You're not fooling anyone."
Santana rolled her eyes. "Sit your ass down and keep your thoughts to yourself, Q."
The other blonde smiled, obviously used to Santana's harsh words and took the seat on the other side of the brunette.
"Are you going to introduce me to your friend?"
"Oh, right. Quinn, Brittany. Brittany, this is Quinn."
"Hi." Brittany waved.
"Ahh, you're the girl she's been talking about."
"What?" Brittany asked, glancing at Santana who was glaring at Quinn.
"Nothing." Santana mumbled.
Just as Brittany was about to ask another question, the curly haired man walked in and addressed the now almost full room. His voice was happy and light but Brittany couldn't concentrate on what he was saying, she was too busy thinking about Santana who was sat fidgeting next to her.
Santana had told someone else about her. She didn't know why but that idea made her pulse quicken a little and had her twisting her hands in her lap. She wanted to ask Santana. She wanted to sit in her room with her and ask her about everything. Not just about what happened today. She wanted to know her favourite colour, her least favourite food. What music she liked. Which movie she always watches when she's sad.
She thought about what the curly haired man had meant. And what Quinn meant. And what Puck meant. And why Santana was so mean to everyone. Because the small parts of Santana that she'd seen were nothing like what she'd seen in this room or just outside of it.
She sighed, confused.
"You ok?" Santana whispered.
Brittany nodded, unaware that the Latina had been watching her chew on her lip in concentration.
"Santana, I'm sure you have something prepared for us." Mr Schue announced suddenly while Santana was still looking at Brittany. The whole room turned to look at them and Santana cleared her throat.
"As much as I know you all love to listen to me sing, you'll have to wait until next week." She said quickly. "In fact, I have to get Brittany home." She stood up and pulled Brittany to her feet at the same time.
Brittany didn't say anything despite the change in plan. Instead she followed Santana out of the room, down the hallway and finally, out of the main doors. Santana continued to walk across the parking lot quickly and Brittany fell behind her slightly, not being able to move fast enough to keep up without actually breaking into a jog.
"Santana!" She called after the small brunette. "Wait!"
"Go home, Brittany." Santana shouted back but she didn't sound angry. She just sounded tired.
Brittany was even further behind now, having had to stop for a reversing car.
"Just wait a second, please!"
Santana ignored her and stalked quickly towards the exit of the lot. Brittany frowned. Was she going to walk all the way home?
She sighed and pushed herself into a jog, not wanting to lose sight of the Latina. Santana had slowed down a little, the warm air too oppressive to move that quickly for so long and Brittany managed to catch up. She grabbed Santana's arm gently and she immediately stopped. Stopped dead like she'd been waiting all along for a reason to stand still. She didn't yell or struggle. She just waited for Brittany to move in front of her. She waited for her to lift her chin gently.
"Hey, it's okay." She said quietly, noticing the moisture forming in Santana's dark eyes. She tried to blink it away but a lone tear escaped and pooled on her cheek. Brittany, without thinking, brushed it away with her thumb. "What's wrong?"
Santana shook her head. "I'm just tired."
"Tired of what?"
The brunette shrugged. "Everything."
Brittany just nodded. She knew the feeling.
"Where's your car?" She asked quietly, taking Santana's good hand in her own. She gave it a little squeeze.
"At home. Quinn gave me a ride this morning."
"Well then," Brittany smiled sweetly. "It's a good thing I brought my car. Let me take you home?"
Santana nodded and managed to smile a little. Brittany led her slowly towards her own car and opened the passenger door for her.
"Thanks." Santana said a little sheepishly, not used to people being polite around her.
She put on her seatbelt as Brittany got in the other side. She pulled down the little mirror and ran her thumb under her eyes, conscious that her mascara wasn't waterproof.
"You look fine." Brittany said quietly when she noticed.
"I look like reheated shit." The Latina mumbled, making Brittany smile. She was wrong but she decided not to argue. She didn't want any more tears.
Santana was quiet as they drove, letting her head rest against the cool window. Puck's words echoed quietly at the back of her mind. Images of Dani faded in and out. All of it made her tired. And knowing that she'd get home to mound of ironing and washing to be done wasn't helping her mood. She just wanted to sleep.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she pulled it out.
"Mom?" She answered cautiously. Her mom rarely called her. Unless she needed something, of course.
"What do you mean, she's sick?" Santana asked and Brittany glanced at her, noting the concern in her voice.
"Right now? Okay. Bye." She sighed and put the phone down in her lap.
"Everything okay?" Brittany asked, keeping her eyes on the road.
"Natasha is sick and they're sending her home from school. My mom is at work so I need to go pick her up." She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead gently with her fingers as she said it, looking very much like she might fall asleep any second.
"I'll take you." Brittany said without hesitation.
"What? No. Just drop me off at home and I'll take my car."
"Santana," Brittany said calmly. "I'm taking you."
"But i-"
"Shush."
Brittany drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, waiting patiently for the girls. They'd arrived at the school ten minutes ago and Santana had gone in to find her sister. Brittany had offered to go with her but the Latina seemed too distracted to give her a straight answer so she'd decided to wait. She thought about Santana's mom. Surely if her kid was sick, collecting them was more important that work. Although Brittany didn't always get along with her own mom and sometimes she forgot to appreciate her, she always knew that she'd be there whenever she needed her. She couldn't imagine not having a mom to take care of you when you were sick. Or worse, having a mom who didn't want to take care of you when you were sick.
She looked up to see Santana and Natasha walking towards the car, hand in hand. Santana was carrying Natasha's bag and she watched her younger friend smile when she realised who would be giving them a ride home.
"Hey, Nat." Brittany said brightly as she got into the car. "Feeling better?"
"I guess." Natasha said, although she looked a little pale.
"Great." Brittany smiled but glanced at Santana. "Everything okay?" She asked quietly, starting the engine and turning on the radio.
Santana nodded. "Nurse said she threw up an hour ago. Apparently there's a bug going around."
"Ahh." Brittany nodded. She'd never been in school to catch anything like that. The kind of bug that had kids dropping like flies in every class. She'd always felt kinda left out, actually.
Santana turned around. "Nat, if you puke in Brittany's car you'll be helping me do the ironing for a month, okay?" She sounded serious but Natasha giggled, knowing that she was teasing.
Brittany also knew that she was more worried than she let on.
Fifteen minutes later all three girls were stood in the hallway of the Lopez house, taking off their shoes and hanging up their jackets.
"Go lay down, Nat. I'll be up in a minute." Santana said.
"In your room?"
"Wherever you want, kid."
Natasha smiled and walked upstairs slowly.
"What time do you have to be home?" Santana asked as Brittany followed her to the kitchen.
"Not yet." Brittany smiled, sensing that Santana didn't want her to leave.
The Latina nodded and pulled a small bottle of water out of the refrigerator. She then pulled a large box out of the cupboard and set it on the table. It was filled with boxes and bottles of pills and brightly coloured liquids. Brittany stared. She'd never seen so much medicine in her life.
Noticing, Santana smiled a little. "My parents are doctors, remember?"
"Right." Brittany laughed quietly.
Santana moved a few things around in the box, piling them on top of one another until she found what she was looking for.
"How do you know which one to use?" Brittany asked, mesmerized by how quickly Santana had navigated her way through the medicine mountain.
"My mom taught me when I was younger." She sighed, "When she still had time to actually speak to me."
"Oh."
"Come on." Santana said, grabbing the water and the box of pills.
Brittany followed her out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Brittany counted the doors, Santana's room was the third one on the left. The door was open slightly and Brittany could just make out Natasha lying in the middle of the large double bed.
The covers were a dark purple and the pillows that covered it were all of a similar shade. Some lighter, almost lilac, some in between and some just as dark as the actual covers. The walls of the room were painted white and were covered with black and white pictures of singers and blown up versions of album covers. Some Brittany recognised, some she didn't.
She followed Santana inside and took in the rest of the room. It was huge. So huge that the deep purple rug that only partially covered the floor was almost as big as Brittany's whole bedroom. A large vanity dresser stood prettily on the opposite wall to the bed, its surface covered with makeup products and perfume bottles and bobby pins. Above it was a large photo frame filled with small, colourful photographs. Brittany could see Natasha in some of them, Quinn in others. She even recognised the classroom they'd been in today in a couple of them. There were photo booth pictures of Santana and some other girls, all pouting and dressed in the same red and white uniform Santana wore pretty much every time she was her.
Brittany smiled. Those photos made her feel a little closer to the Latina. Like she knew her a little better.
Santana was sitting on the edge of the bed, handing Natasha a pill and holding the glass of water for her until she was ready to wash it down. She watched Santana feel the little girl's forehead and at the same time, Brittany noticed that it was uncomfortably warm in the room.
She moved over to the large French doors that she could see led onto an open balcony. She pushed them open gently and a refreshing breeze filled the room quickly. Santana flashed her a grateful smile before turning her attention back to Natasha, who was looking increasingly sleepy.
Not wanting to disturb the sisters, Brittany stepped out onto the balcony, letting the slightly cooler air wash over her. She ran her fingers over the white metal table and then let herself lean over the railings slightly. The pool below was bigger than any she'd ever seen and a large, inflatable, pink loch ness monster type creature floated lazily on its surface. She smiled and lifted her eyes to look beyond the pool into the grounds. There were blossom trees and large flowerbeds, nestled into different parts of the yard, all split by large hedges and small trees. It looked like the kind of place Brittany would've happily got lost in for hours as a child. Just beyond the edge of the yard, almost as far as she could see, was a vast field in which three horses stood, two of them chewing at the grass and another with its head resting on the tall, wooden gate.
She wondered if the horses belonged to the Lopez family. And if so, which one belonged to Santana? She watched the horses for a while before turning her attention to the sky, as she so often did when she was sitting in her own room, bored of whatever project she was supposed to be doing. She liked to turn the clouds into stories. But there weren't many clouds today. Only a few, light white trails tainted the blue, none of them interesting shapes. Or at least not interesting enough to turn into fun stories. She decided to count them but even that didn't keep her mind occupied for long. Her thoughts quickly turned to the brunette. The brunette who could stand up to a guy twice her size without hesitation but had cried in the parking lot because she was tired.
The girl who could cut people down with her vicious words but turned into a pile of concerned mush when it came to her younger sister. Brittany thought that a lot of people would be confused by Santana. She was so different in different situations. But Brittany wasn't confused by it. In fact, she could see it quite clearly. Santana was two people. The Santana she showed to the world and the Santana she reserved for important people only.
She felt a hand touch the small of her back briefly and turned to her left to see Santana standing next to her, resting her arms on the cool railings.
"She's asleep." She said quietly, pulling a cigarette out of a small box and lighting it with ease. Brittany watched as she placed the burning rod between her full lips and inhaled deeply. She coughed delicately and shook her head.
"I don't even like these things." She dropped the cigarette to the floor and stood on it, concealing the light wisp of smoke.
"Why do you do it then?"
Santana shrugged.
The girls were quiet for a moment, each of them lost in their own thoughts.
"Are those your horses?" Brittany asked quietly, watching the three animals move lazily around the paddock.
Santana nodded. "The grey one is mine. Shadow. We don't get much time to ride though."
"Oh." Brittany said, a little disappointed that such beautiful horses never got to be ridden.
"I got her for my tenth birthday," Santana continued, "I asked for a Barbie doll but I got Shadow instead. I guess mom and dad thought a Barbie doll wasn't enough to make up for all the other birthdays they missed."
Brittany frowned. "They missed your birthdays?"
The Latina shrugged. "Once or twice."
She glanced at Brittany whose eyes had dropped to the floor, saddened by the thought of Santana spending her childhood birthdays without her parents.
Santana laughed quietly. "Don't look so sad, blondie. I have awesome grandparents, they made my birthdays extra special."
"Promise?"
Santana smiled. "Yes, I promise."
"When is your birthday?" Brittany asked, curious now.
"August 3rd."
Brittany counted the dates in her head. That was only three weeks away.
"Pretty soon."
"Yep."
They fell quiet again. Santana was tired and she wasn't very good at making small talk at the best of times. She wanted to talk to Brittany, she really did but her brain couldn't find the right words. Too many thoughts were already circling and for some reason, she couldn't make them stop.
She distracted herself by un-braiding her hair and running her good hand through the loose waves. Brittany watched, questions forming in her head. She wanted to ask about why Santana had cried. Why she was tired of everything. But she stopped herself, not wanting to upset the Latina further. Instead, she asked a question that had been bothering her the most over the last few days.
"Santana?"
"Hmm?"
"We're friends, right?" She asked quickly, nerves threatening. "I mean, I know you're my tutor and all but spending time with you is fun and you're nice to me and I-"
Santana smiled as Brittany tried her best to explain. "Yes," She almost whispered. "We're friends."
An hour later, a movie was playing quietly on the television in Santana's bedroom and both Santana and Natasha had been sound asleep for the last forty five minutes. Brittany was sitting on the bed next to them, not knowing whether to leave or not when her phone buzzed on the nightstand.
She picked it up and read the message from her mom.
Dinner in half an hour xoxo
She sighed and got up as quietly and as carefully as she could, not wanting to wake the sisters. She found a pen and a piece of paper and wrote them a quick note.
Had to go home for dinner, thank you for letting me watch a movie with you. Feel better Nat. xoxo B.
She left it on the spare pillow next to Santana and crept down the stairs and out of the front door. She closed it gently behind her and got into her car. As she was reversing, she glanced up at the house, wishing she could have stayed longer. It was so big and seemed so empty with just Santana and Natasha in it, rattling around in all those, big echo-y rooms.
As she drove home, she felt echo-y too. Like something was missing. Or maybe she was missing something. Someone.
She waited up until past midnight, anticipating a text from Santana but nothing came through. Eventually she gave up and slipped into a sleep filled with images of wild horses, long dark hair and pink loch ness monsters.
Thanks for reading guys! Reviews are really helpful so if you have time, please let me know what you thought.
xoxo