Just want to thank you guys all for sticking with this story. I am learning it's hard to write two fics simultaneously, especially when they are so incredibly different. Going back and forth between this and a straight up comedy is tricky. In any case, if you haven't read my other fic The Edge yet, check it out.

As always…review ;)

By the summer before their freshman year in high school, Brittany was starting for feel less and less like a kid. Sure, she still thought like one. Still loved doing what all the teenagers her age were doing. She loved going to Cedar Point, and staying out late with Santana. But she couldn't help but notice that on those nights when they stayed out late, she got sleepy hours before Santana did. Her back was pretty achey these days too. She used to be able to run and jump and climb just like Santana, but these days even a long walk would leave her craving a hot bubble bath to soothe her sore muscles.

But she tried to ignore it. She especially didn't want Santana to know she was starting to feel different. They hadn't mentioned Brittany's fate to one another since that night when they were twelve, but they both thought about it constantly when they were alone.

Brittany wasn't too scared anymore. She just wanted to make sure she captured as many of her dreams as she could before it was too late. Other than that, she concentrated hard in school, tried new things whenever she had the chance, and spent as much time with her best friend Santana as possible.

She was nervous about starting high school, sure. But Santana seemed completely confident as they looked at their schedules, comparing classes a few days before school started.

"I have math first period! That sucks," Santana whined.

"Oh. I have math after lunch," Brittany replied.

"That's good Brits. What about English?" Santana wondered.

"I have it last," she said.

"Me too. At least we have one class together," Santana shrugged.

"I'm gonna miss middle school. We had all our classes together," Brittany pouted.

"It's okay, Brit. Eric told me the first day of high school they let you pick what clubs you want to join. So we'll just pick all the same clubs," Santana assured her. Brittany loved that no matter what was bothering her, Santana knew exactly what to say to make her feel better.

"Sanny…are you gonna get a boyfriend in high school?" Brittany asked. Santana looked at her and shrugged.

"I dunno. I don't really like any of the boys in our grade," Santana replied.

"Oh. Cause Quinn has a boyfriend. And she told me if we didn't get boyfriends we wouldn't be popular," Brittany explained.

"Well her boyfriend is ugly and stupid. We're gonna be popular Brit cause we're awesome," Santana bragged.

"Yeah. You're right," Brittany grinned. She wasn't sure if she wanted a boyfriend. But she didn't want to decide that she didn't, not yet. She knew it would be hard to find a boy who would be able to like her without being freaked out by her condition. But it didn't mean it was impossible. So she decided to keep herself open to it, just in case.

"I'm gonna go get us a snack Sanny," Brittany announced, heading out of her room toward the stairs. Santana put her schedule back in her back pack and decided to put Brittany's away for her too. Brittany had pulled it out of her beloved rainbow binder that she used for school every year, no matter how tattered and worn it got. Santana opened the binder and a loose piece of paper flew out onto the floor. She leaned over to pick it up and noticed a long list written in purple pen. She couldn't help but read it.

'Things to do Before I Die. By Brittany S. Pierce. 1- Try sushi. 2- Swim with a dolphin. 3- Have candy for dinner. 4- Learn how to ski or surf. 5- Have a clubhouse, an outside one like I couldn't have when I was little. 6- Go to a school dance. 7- Try a drink with alcohol in it. 8- Eat a whole pizza by myself. 9- Convince mom and dad to let me have a puppy or kitten. 10- Watch Santana's college graduation…

Santana felt her heart seize as she read the list. Brittany was getting prepared for her own death, and that killed Santana. It somehow made it real to her, and she didn't want it to be. Without even really thinking about it, Santana folded the paper a few times and shoved it in the pocket of her jeans. She picked up Brittany's rainbow binder and put it back into her book bag. She hadn't even really realized as a tear started to roll down her cheek.

…A few days later…

Santana had spent nearly every free moment she had reading over Brittany's list. Honestly, she didn't really know what to make of it. How could Brittany already know everything she wanted to do in life? Santana didn't even know what she wanted to eat for lunch most days, and her favorite color had changed about twenty times since she was five years old. Decisive was one thing Santana was not, she lived in the moment and did what she wanted. So to see Brittany's whole future scribbled out on this page in purple pen scared her quite a bit.

Santana did manage to make one important decision about her future, though. The more she looked at the list, the more she realized she wanted to make sure every single thing on that list happened for her best friend. Sure, some of it would be hard, she was only 14, so she couldn't exactly make it all happen, yet. So she'd handle the easy ones first, and even add a few of her own. Because Santana truly believed she'd had some amazingly fun experiences in her life, definitely a lot more things she wanted to share with Brittany. She was still convinced to get Brittany on a roller coaster with loops, for instance, because in all their trips to amusement parts, Brittany would only go on the ones that didn't flip you upside down. They were one of Santana's favorite thing in the world. She also really wanted to try this ice cream challenge at a diner in their town, her brother worked there and told her about it when she was younger. They put 45 scoops of different ice cream in a bowl with whatever toppings you wanted and if you could eat it all you got your picture on the wall. You were allowed to do it with one other person if you wanted. Santana loved ice cream, but she knew she'd need another stomach to help her out. Maybe she'd be able to convince Brittany to do it with her. She'd even toyed with the idea of trying to convince her parents to let her and Brittany go to a concert without their supervision. That was gonna be a tough one, but she was determined. Santana knew from that moment on, no matter what, she was going to make all of Brittany's dreams come true.