I'm going to be honest, not a lot happens in this chapter, but it's getting us to where we want to go, so in that way, it's super important!

February 6, 2017

"Dude, these tickets are primo."

Sugar sat on her desk, swinging her legs out from beneath her. She and Santana had just come back from lunch (Sugar's treat, she insisted), and now had just finished the grand tour of the studio. Sugar had been working at Atlantic for about six years, and what she lacked in musical acumen, she more than made up for in producing ability. She'd produced three of the last five albums of the year, and spent more time creating superstars than she ever would have been able to as a singer.

Santana had to to admit it was a pretty sweet gig. Sugar had a swanky corner office near the top of the building, and it seemed that whatever she wanted, she got. But anyone who was pumping out number ones like Sugar deserved everything she got. She was even doing work on her own label under the umbrella of the company, and bringing in new producers and talent that were doing big things on their on.

Now, Sugar was bugging her to come along on a date night with her and Jane. It was a ballet, which Santana had gotten into when she was still dating Brittany, but she didn't really feel like hitting the town.

"It's not that the tickets aren't 'primo'" Santana said, putting the word in air quotes. "It's that ballet reminds me of Brittany, and that's the last thing I need right now."

"Okay, but have you considered this?" Sugar hopped down from the desk and moved closer to Santana, putting a hand on the chair, and moving in close. "That is exactly what you need right now."

Santana rolled her eyes. "Wow, you're a debating champion, Sugar. You should be a lawyer."

"I'm just saying! You two have been apart for longer than you've ever been in your entire life. You've probably spent months trying not to think about her. To get back into the groove, so to speak, you've gotta put her back in your brain, first and foremost."

"Is that how you explain you and Jane?" Santana said, teasingly.

Sugar scoffed. "No, Jane and I work because I'm more in love with her than anyone I've ever loved in my life, and she's got me wrapped around her finger."

Santana was taken aback. "That's a surprisingly self aware comment you made there, friend."

"Yeah, well, it helps to know when you're licked." She waggled her eyebrows. "If you know what I mean."

"Ew, gross."

Sugar laughed. "And I can't help it. I probably tried to play it cool for a total of five seconds, but then she smiled at me, and I'm pretty sure my bones melted and slid out of my body. I'm still not over it. She's special, you know?"

"Yeah, I know." Santana said with a sad smile.

"Anyway, you've gotta go with us and see us in our natural element. You know, classing it up. Me in a dress that shows off all my curves, and Jane has these spats that are just divine. And, she likes you, and I like you, so I want you two to get along."

There was a note of worry in Sugar's voice, and Santana couldn't ignore it. This was more than just a case of Sugar taking her out for a night on the town, now that she was in New York and officially active in their circle, Santana suddenly had responsibilities. She'd always been protective of Sugar and Mercedes, and she had to admit, since she'd broken up with Brittany, she hadn't been as diligent as she should have been. It had always seemed like she was the one who needed the support. It was time that she pulled her weight.

"Okay, okay, Sugar, I'll do it."

Sugar bounced up and down a few times, pumping her fist. "Awesome! I'm going to call Jane right now." She hopped around her desk, and picked up the phone connecting the call.

It was a pretty low stakes scenario, all told. She liked Jane too, and getting to see Sugar act normal would be totally worth it. Well, as normal as Sugar could act, probably.

"Hey, babe. Yeah, Santana is here with me now. Yeah, she's in!" Sugar continued her dance, and winked at Santana. "Yeah? Good, good. All right, I'll be by later. About four. Well, tell Brittany you've gotta leave early. Cause, babe, we didn't finish what we started last night, and I have about three more positions I want to get you in…"

Santana stood up quickly. "I think I'm going to take my cue, Sugar. Call me before you want to come pick me up from Mercedes'."

Sugar waved, and turned back to her phone call, and Santana was relieved. As much as she was happy that Sugar had found someone, she still hadn't reached the point where she wanted to know about her friend's sex lives any more than was absolutely necessary.

As the door closed behind Santana, Sugar breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, she's gone now."

"I don't know why you had to go the pervy route, Sugar, you could have just asked her to leave."

"Santana and I have a very particular relationship, babe, you wouldn't understand. It's, like, nuanced. Like a sexy tango that's always going on in our heads."

"Sexy tango?" Jane said skeptically.

"Oh, no, not, like, really sexy. Just like a regular tango. You know that tangos are pretty sexy already, so, just like, the requisite amount of sexiness that a tango requires."

Sugar was relieved hear Jane's smile in her response. "It's fine, Sugar."

"Did you ask Brittany?"

"Yeah, I asked her on Saturday, remember?"

"Oh, right, I remember. At the Cosmos thing, right?"

"Yes, that you promised to come and volunteer at, by the way."

"I know, babe, but duty called. I will make it up to you, though."

"Oh really?"

"Oh, yeah." Sugar's voice became low. "I wasn't kidding about the positions."

\

If Santana had ever wanted a view of what she and Brittany had most likely looked like in high school, she didn't have to go any further than hanging out with Sugar and Jane. After the third time of them not being able to carry on a conversation without trying to feel each other up at the table, she'd made Sugar switch seats, and glared at them whenever they lost track of the conversation.

But other than the early hiccups, she was having a good time. Sugar was right. Jane smoothed out Sugar's rough edges, and while they weren't perfect, Santana felt a little nostalgic for a time where she felt so comfortable with another person.

They'd gone to dinner, and then a car had come to pick them up or the ballet. Santana had insisted on sitting in between the two of them, but once they got to their box, Sugar had put her foot down.

"C'mon Santana, you can't keep us away from each other all night. It's not fair." Sugar stamped her foot a bit. "You just sit on the outside, and we promise we'll be good."

Jane nodded. "I'll keep her in line, Santana, you can trust me."

"Fine, ok. Whatever. But, if I look over and I see you two making out, I am dumping ice water on your heads."

Box seats at the Metropolitan Opera didn't come cheap, and apparently they were owned by a friend of Sugar's dad. He must have been either pretty rich or pretty important because the view was perfect, and the digs could not have been swankier. Santana sunk down in a plush cushion, leaving an empty seat between her and Sugar. She had forgotten how nice it was hanging out with her rich friends. She could certainly get used to this.

"Seems like a waste not to invite another person, Sugar. You've got four seats here, and there's only three of us. We could have asked Mercedes or something."

"Well, Mercedes is busy, but I wouldn't say that the seat went to waste."

Santana thought for a moment. "What do you mean?"

"Ow!" Sugar squealed. She rubbed her side while looking nervously at Jane. "I mean, nothing." Her phone buzzed. "I've gotta take this San, hang out with the babe, okay?"

She kissed Jane, and walked up the stairs and out of sight. Jane and Santana enjoyed a few moments together, pointing out interesting patrons that they could see milling about below.

Then Santana sat back with a sigh. "So, you and Sugar, huh?"

Jane sat back as well and smiled. "Yeah, she's pretty cool."

"But, how'd you do it, Jane? I mean, no offence, I love Sug like a sister, but the thought of dating her makes me consider therapy."

Jane laughed. "Yeah, I've heard tell from Mercedes. Apparently, she was pretty bad. And I see it sometimes. With her dad, and people from Lima. But with me she's just different. I don't know how to explain it."

"Well, you must be pretty special to her."

"It's not just me, Santana. It's everybody. It's Mercedes and it's her growing up and, well, it's you and Brittany."

"Me and Brittany?"

"Yeah. We've talked about it. You two were always close in high school. You were best friends. Then you were dating and you lived together… She thought if there was anybody who could make it, it was you two. Then you broke up, and she just kind of decided she didn't want to wait around for someone. When she fell in love she was going to go all in."

"And none of this is freaking you out? You've only been dating for a couple of months."

"At first I was a little unsure, yeah, but now I just see it as the way that Sugar is. She doesn't really take things personally, so I'm free to call her out on it."

"This is true."

They shared a laugh, and enjoyed another moment of companionable silence before Sugar's voice came blasting through the ruckus.

"Yeah, we're just down here. I told you, these are primo seats, friend."

Santana turned just in time to catch sight of Brittany following Sugar towards their box.

"Surprise?" Jane squeaked.

Brittany noticed Santana a moment later and turned to glare at Sugar. "Seriously?"

"What?" Sugar said, putting her hands up in surrender. "You both were free, and I had the two seats! I thought you were all buddy buddy now anyway."

"Yes, Sugar, we are friends, that is all."

Santana smiled as Brittany sat down beside her. "Friends, huh? That's definitely an improvement over last week."

Brittany returned the smile easily but before she could respond, her phone started to vibrate. She looked at the screen and turned to Sugar.

"It's Clark. Sorry, give me a sec, I'll be back."

"Well, hurry up, Britt. The show will start soon." Sugar whined.

She was up the stairs like a shot, and Santana stared after her.

"So, Clark, huh?" Sugar looked at Santana significantly.

"I don't know anything about him Sugar, before you ask."

"Hey, I wasn't going to ask. The guy is a mystery to me. Seems like a real tool when you get right down to it."

"How could he be a tool if you don't know anything about him?"

"I dunno. Just, like, what kind of name is Clark? Lame."

"Well, she likes him, and you aren't going to give her a hard time about it."

"What is this, bizarro world? You can't tell me that you're just going to-"

Santana reached over Jane and poked Sugar in the shoulder.

Hard.

"I said, you're not going to say a word, Sugar. Just leave it, okay?"

Sugar gulped and nodded, but if you asked her girlfriend, she looked more turned on than anything.

They all attempted to look normal as possible as Brittany bounded down the steps back towards their seats. Santana gave Sugar another significant look as the lights finally went down and the show started.