Chapter 10

As it turned out, they were in trouble. A lot of trouble. Maribel was mad that they were at a party with alcohol, but what she was really upset about was that Brittany got hurt. Anything could have happened to her or the baby, and she was disappointed that they didn't use better judgment. She didn't think a party like that was appropriate for them on a regular basis, but with Brittany being pregnant, it was not somewhere that they needed to be. She didn't think that it was safe.

Santana didn't argue with her mother. She came to that conclusion on her own the night before, she was just upset with herself that Brittany had to get hurt for her to learn that lesson. She didn't particularly like going to Puck's parties in the first place, so she wasn't bothered when her mother banned them from going to a party like that again. It was no great loss to her.

As punishment, Maribel grounded them for two weeks, which didn't really upset Santana and Brittany, because other than having extra chores to do around the house, it meant that they were able to spend more time together in the privacy of their own home to explore their new relationship. When Maribel was home, they acted as they normally did, but when Maribel wasn't watching or she was at work, things were different. They had always had a physical aspect to their friendship, where they touched each other more than they did other people, but now that there was a romantic element to their relationship, the way they touched each other when they were alone lingered, and had a tenderness that neither of them had felt before.

In the time that they were grounded from the outside world, they became so much closer, and Santana slowly started to become more comfortable with the idea of being with a girl. It was very different from being with a boy, but she liked it better. She liked being with Brittany a lot. She still wasn't ready to tell the world that she preferred girls to boys, but she was making progress in accepting herself, which was what was important to both of them.

They had enjoyed the last two weeks together so much that it made them sad that their grounding was over and things would be changing for them. August was more than half over, which meant that school would be starting in a few weeks, and Santana would be busy with cheerleading camp.

"Saaan! My clothes don't fit anymore!" Brittany huffed coming into Santana's bedroom in a pair of sweat pants and a baggy shirt. She was thirteen weeks pregnant, and her belly was growing. She still didn't look pregnant, considering she was so fit before, but her belly was noticeably rounder and her breasts were a little fuller. "Nothing fits except this!"

Santana had to bite her lip to keep from laughing because she thought Brittany was cute when she was annoyed. Her mother was home, so she closed her door and wrapped her arms around Brittany, bringing her into her and kissing her softly on the lips. Brittany easily returned the kiss, and within moments, she calmed down a little.

When they parted, Santana nuzzled their noses, and slid her hands down Brittany's sides to cradle her tiny baby bump and then she kneeled down, kissing Brittany's belly through her shirt. It was something that she had started doing in the past few days, and they both loved it.

"Britt, you look great." Santana cooed and kissed her belly again. "Your little belly is so adorable."

"It's not little." Brittany grumbled. "I can't zip up my shorts or jeans anymore without it pinching, and my shirts are too tight."

"I think it means that we need to go shopping." Santana said with a smile as she stood up again, her hands still on Brittany's stomach.

"Yeah, for maternity clothes." Brittany said, still annoyed. She was okay with her pregnancy so far, but now that her clothes didn't fit anymore and her belly and breasts were bigger, she was having a hard time adjusting to her new body.

"Hey, don't be like that." Santana said and leaned in, kissing Brittany's lips again. "You're beautiful."

Brittany couldn't help but to smile. She loved hearing Santana tell her that.

"Come on. Let's go tell mom that we need to go get you new clothes." Santana said releasing Brittany from her hold. "I know for a fact she was just waiting on you to tell her you needed them."

"How do you know?" Brittany asked rubbing her arm nervously.

"Because I saw her looking at maternity clothes on her computer the other day."

"Oh?" Brittany said a little surprised. "Did they look okay?" She asked and she was worried about what she would say. She had it in her head that maternity clothes were frumpy, and not at all cute.

"I didn't see much, but the shirt that she was looking at was pretty cute."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it was pink and white with a swoop neck. I mean it didn't even look like a maternity shirt. It just looked like something that you'd find in the regular section."

That made Brittany feel a little better. "Okay. I guess something like that would be nice. I just don't want to look like an old lady."

Santana chuckled and hooked her pinky around Brittany's. "Don't worry. I wouldn't let that happen, and you know mom is always on point. You're going to be the cutest pregnant girl ever."

-()-()-()-()-

When they got home from shopping, Brittany was in a better mood. She now had clothes that fit, that were neither frumpy or 'old lady'. She bounced into her room in a new outfit that she wore out of the store, happy to be out of her tight clothes, and started to spread her new clothes over the bed so she could look at them again.

"San, what do you think I should wear tomorrow?"

Santana had asked Brittany if she wanted to come with her to camp to watch and hangout. She didn't tell her that she planned to talk to Sue about Brittany helping with the team as an extracurricular. She couldn't be a cheerleader while pregnant, but she could be another assistant like Becky. It was worth a shot at least, and if Sue said no, well then Brittany wouldn't be the wiser, but she was hoping that she said yes and that Brittany wanted to be an assistant. It would let Brittany meet some new people and hopefully make some more friends before school started, and the fact that it would mean that they could be together during camp was a definite plus.

"How about those white shorts and the gray shirt with the red heart?" Santana offered.

Brittany thought about it and then nodded. "I like it."

"Good, because you looked great in them." Santana said with a warm smile.

Brittany smiled as well and leaned in, kissing Santana. Santana returned the kiss, but she pulled back quicker than she normally would because she knew that Brittany's door was open, and her mother could walk by at any time.

Brittany pouted, she wasn't ready for the kiss to end, but she understood Santana's hesitation, and she was getting better. In the beginning, Santana wouldn't even kiss her if they weren't behind closed doors when Maribel was home, so the fact that she let her kiss her with the door open was more progress.

"So what do you wanna do tonight?" Brittany asked.

"I was thinking we could go out to dinner, just the two of us, and then if you're up for it, we could go to a movie.

Brittany smiled and then looked over Santana's shoulder towards the door before leaning in really close. "Are you asking me out on a date?" She whispered with a hopeful look, because this would be the first time since they started dating that they could go out together, and she really wanted to go a date with Santana.

Santana's cheeks heated up. Brittany caught what she was doing. She intended to bring up going out together casually, but as usual, Brittany saw through her. "I-yeah, I am." She said fidgeting with her fingers nervously. "Do you wanna go out on a d-date with me?"

Brittany smiled widely and nodded. "I would love to." She said with a little chuckle.

"Great." Santana sighed in relief. Not that she thought that Brittany would turn her down, but it was the first time that she asked anyone out on a date, instead of being the one asked, and it made her nervous, because going on their first date together was a huge deal for her.

Brittany glanced over Santana's shoulder again, and when she didn't see Maribel, she leaned in and pecked Santana on the lips. "I'm glad my first date is going to be with you." She whispered.

Santana blinked in surprise, because she didn't realize that this was going to be Brittany's first date ever. She always seemed to forget that before coming to Lima, Brittany's life was so different from hers. She still couldn't understand how people could have been so mean to her, or ignored her, or in the case of the sperm donor (she refused to refer to him as 'the father') taken advantage of someone as great as Brittany.

"I'm glad your first date is with me too…" Santana said finding a spark of bravery and she put her arms around Brittany's neck without looking over her shoulder, and rested their foreheads together. "I'm also glad my first date with someone I actually want to go out with, is with you."

Brittany's heart practically leaped out of her chest at hearing that, and she leaned forward, connecting their lips in a sweet embrace. Santana hummed into the kiss, and Brittany deepened it for a few moments, before she pulled back.

"Your sweet lady kisses are amazing." Brittany cooed.

Santana giggled. "Yours too."

"So are you ready to go, and can I drive?" Brittany asked.

Maribel had bought her a car a few days prior, and with the money that her dad sent from the insurance claim, and a little money that Maribel added to it, it was a newer and better car than she had before, and she was eager to drive it.

"Sure, I just need to change into something nicer."

"Do you think that's a good idea?"

"Umm, yeah? Why wouldn't it be?" Santana asked confused as to why Brittany wanted to go on their first date in causal shorts and t-shirts."

"Don't you think your mom is going to wonder why we changed just to go out to the movies by ourselves?" Brittany asked.

Santana's bubble burst with that, because Brittany was right. They were supposed to be 'just friends' going to a movie. If they dressed up to go out, her mother would definitely be suspicious. Santana didn't think that she would think that they were going on a date together; she would probably think that they were going out to meet some guys. She did not want to deal with the inquisition that would bring; and the effort it would take to convince her mother that they weren't meeting up with any guys, without telling her that they were going on a date with each other, was too much.

Santana sighed pouting. While she knew that hiding the true nature of their relationship from her mother was her own doing, she was still miffed that it was putting a kink in her plans.

"You're right, but I really wanna make our first date special, and I wanna dress up for you."

"But honey, it will be special." Brittany said taking Santana's hand. "We're going on a real date together. It doesn't matter what we're wearing, I'll just be happy to go out with you like other couples do, even if we have to hide it. We'll know it's a date and that's all that matters."

Santana smiled and lightly squeezed Brittany's hand, because she always had a way to turn a negative into a positive. "I guess you're right, as always."

Brittany leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I would have liked to dress up for you too. You're always beautiful to me, but I'm sure you would have looked stunning in whatever outfit you had planned to wear tonight, and it would have made my heart pound in my chest knowing that you wore it just for me."

Butterfly flutters formed in Santana's stomach. She loved it when Brittany said things like that to her. "You're always beautiful to me too."

"I guess we're just two beautiful people going on a date together then." Brittany said with a wide smile and when she said the word 'date', she felt her own flutters.

"I guess so." Santana said, her smile mirroring Brittany's.

"So, where are you taking me for dinner?" Brittany chirped.

"I thought I'd let you choose."

Brittany searched Santana's face and then winked. "You know, I think I'm in the mood for some 'Stix."

Santana's face brightened at the mention of Breadstix. "I knew there was a reason I liked you." She teased.

"Oh, you like me for a lot of reasons." Brittany drawled with a knowing smirk.

Santana's cheeks heated up as many of those reasons came to mind. "I do."

-()-()-()-()-

As much as Santana had enjoyed their not-a-date-but-felt-like-a-date outing from a few weeks ago, nothing could have prepared her for what an actual date with Brittany would feel like. Both times, it was just dinner and a movie, so it didn't seem as if there would be much of a difference between the two, but just knowing that this time was a real date made a huge difference. Everything felt bigger and so much better this time.

They sat across from each other at Breadstix, making normal conversation and sharing knowing smiles of their secret. Santana wanted so badly to reach over, take Brittany's hand, and hold it while they were eating, but she couldn't muster the courage do it in the crowded restaurant. Brittany seemed to sense that she wanted some physical contact, so she slipped off her sandal that was closest to the booth wall, so it wasn't as noticeable, and slowly trailed it up Santana's leg. Santana was surprised by the move, causing her to drop her fork and her cheeks to heat up, but after she had a moment to recover, she returned the contact by slipping off her flip flop as well. They played footsie for the rest of dinner, and after Santana paid for the check; Brittany surprised her again by putting a napkin over their hands and holding her hand as she smiled at her with a look that told her that nothing but her mattered. The moment was brief, lasting less than twenty seconds, but it meant a lot to both of them.

When they got into the car to leave the restaurant, Brittany looked around to make sure that she didn't see anyone, and then she leaned in, placing a quick, but soft kiss to Santana's lips.

"Thanks for dinner." She cooed and leaned back because she didn't want to push Santana's comfort level since they were in a public place. "This is the best date."

Santana felt her whole body heat up. "Yeah it is." She whispered taking Brittany's hand and lacing their fingers together. They held hands the whole way to the movie theater.

When they walked into the theater that their movie was playing in, they were surprised to see so many people.

"Come on." Brittany said nodding up the stairs. She led them to the top row and off to the left side where there was no one sitting.

"I'm not sure about these seats…maybe we should move a little lower?" Santana whispered nervously as she sat down.

With the exception of a few groups, the theater was mostly full of couples for the romantic comedy, and she was afraid that people would get suspicious of them going to the top row that was known to be the make out area.

"Relax." Brittany said with a warm smile. "Look around, these seats were in the most open area. No one will think anything of it."

Santana looked around the room again, and when she realized that Brittany was right and that nobody was looking at them, or was even interested in them, she relaxed a little bit and nodded. "Okay. I'm sorry." She sighed. She felt bad for questioning Brittany.

"It's okay." Brittany said. "I'm not upset. I'm so happy."

Santana's frown morphed into a knowing smile and nodded. "I'm happy too." She whispered.

"Awesome." Brittany chirped. "Popcorn?" She said playfully changing the subject and holding up the bag for Santana.

Santana couldn't help but to chuckle and reached in to take a few kernels. "I shouldn't be eating this. Coach is going to take one look at me tomorrow and know that I haven't been sticking to her diet this summer."

Brittany raised an incredulous eyebrow and looked Santana up and down. "You look amazing, like I can't even think of enough words to describe how beautiful you are, and if your coach can't see that, then she's blind." She said honestly, stating what she knew to be fact.

Santana heart fluttered in her chest and a wave of heat ran up her neck and spread to her cheeks. "Thanks."

"You don't have to thank me for saying the truth."

"Well thank you anyways." Santana said with a shy smile.

Brittany playfully rolled her eyes. "You're welcome."

A few moments later, the lights lowered and the previews and commercials came on. As she did last time, Brittany lifted the armrest between them and leaned into Santana's side. "Can I hold your hand?" She whispered as she lightly trailed her finger over Santana's hand.

Santana turned her head to look at Brittany and she nodded. As Brittany smiled and laced their fingers together, keeping their hands on the seat in between them so they were out of sight of others, Santana felt a pang of guilt course through her that Brittany felt the need do that. Before they started dating, Brittany never would have asked, she would have just taken her hand, as she had done countless times since they met. In fact, the last time they went to the movies, Brittany put her arm around Santana without a second thought, but since she was being respectful of her wishes to keep things between them in public, she made sure to ask.

Santana was beginning to hate that she was not able to be more open with Brittany around other people. She wanted to be able to kiss her without looking around first or just hold her hand in public without it being in a dark room, or under a napkin, but no matter how much she wanted to do those things, she wasn't ready. She still couldn't handle the idea of people treating them differently or talking about them just because they were together.

Brittany seemed to sense where her thoughts were and she leaned in, kissing Santana on her cheek beside her ear, so it would just look like she was whispering to her if anyone noticed. "Don't think about it so hard, honey. It's okay."

Santana turned her head a little and looked at Brittany staring back at her with the most honest expression on her face and she felt her heart swell, as well as tears threatening to prick her eyes. "I just feel bad that I can't…I want to, but I-" she fumbled with her words and she felt as if she was ruining things.

Brittany tightened her grip on Santana's hand, rubbing it with her thumb, and leaned in to kiss the same spot on her cheek, letting it linger this time before she whispered, "Please don't feel bad. I'm having the best time with you tonight. I couldn't have asked for a better first date."

"Yeah?" Santana asked feeling overcome with emotion and tears now forming in her eyes.

"Yes. I promise."

"Okay." Santana sighed in relief, relaxing a little

"Now, let's get our cuddle on." Brittany said in her best Santana impression, kissing Santana's cheek one more time before scooting a little closer.

Santana couldn't help but to let out a little giggle and she relaxed pressing into Brittany's body.

-()-()-()-()-

When they got home from their date, they went into the house to find Maribel sitting in the living room watching the news.

"Did you girls have fun?" She asked looking over to them standing in the foyer.

Brittany and Santana glanced at each other with a knowing smile.

"Yeah." They said at the same time and Brittany was quick to yell, "Jinx!"

"Ugh, you always win at that!" Santana pretended to huff.

"Mm-hmm." Brittany said with a triumphant smirk.

Maribel laughed at them. "Okay girls. Go get ready for bed. You have camp early in the morning, so don't stay up all night."

"Okay Mama." Santana said. "Night."

"G'night." Brittany said with a little wave.

"Night girls. Sweet dreams." Maribel said.

They went upstairs and as soon as they approached their bedrooms, Brittany took Santana by the hand and pulled her into her darkened room, closing the door with her foot before she cupped Santana's cheeks and kissed her long, and deep. Santana whimpered against Brittany's lips as she wrapped her hands around Brittany's hips, pulling their bodies flush.

When they finally parted from the kiss that they couldn't have while they were out, Brittany rested their foreheads together and they just breathed each other in for a minute or so.

"Tonight was the best night of my life." Brittany cooed leaning back and smiling at Santana. The only light in the room was from the nightlight that Brittany kept in her room, but it was enough for Santana to see the sincerity in her face.

"Mine too." Santana said, her emotions starting to bubble again. "I just wish I could be more open with you when we're around other people."

"Honey I want that too, but I told you I don't want to rush us to come out. We'll be okay until you're ready to tell people."

"I don't like hiding my feelings for you. I wish I was ready, but I'm not, and I'm so sorry for that. You're so great, and I want everyone to know that I…that I l-love you." She said, confessing her love for Brittany for the first time as two tears rolled down her cheeks.

Brittany heart burst in her chest at hearing Santana finally say that she loved her. She had not said, "I love you" to Santana since the night they confessed their feelings for each other two weeks ago. Santana knew that she loved her, so she didn't feel the need to say it again until Santana worked out her own feelings, because she didn't want it to seem like she was pushing her.

"I love you too." Brittany said, her voice cracking with emotion as well and she leaned in to kiss Santana again. When they parted, Brittany rubbed Santana's tears away with her thumbs. "I love you." She said again, because she could.

Santana let out a teary laugh and she nodded. "I love you too. I love you so much."

Brittany smiled widely, hearing Santana say it again. "Let's get ready for bed. I want to cuddle and kiss until I fall asleep."

Santana sighed contently. "That sounds like a great idea."

"Go get changed, and I'll meet you in the bathroom."

Santana nodded and pecked Brittany on her lips one more time before she left to go to her own room to change into her pajamas.

They met in the bathroom a few minutes later, and quickly washed their faces and brushed their teeth before they went into Santana's room. The slid into bed, sharing kiss after kiss until they finally fell asleep wrapped up in each other's arms.

-()-()-()-()-

A/N: Hey all, I'm back from vacation, and I hope you liked this cute little chapter. Thank you for reading, and please, if you have a moment, let me know what you thought of the chapter!

As always, my beta naynay1963 is awesome, and manages to beta for me even when she has so much going on.

Disclaimer: I don't own 'Glee' or any copyrighted material or products that are mentioned in this story.