AN: We made it to Ch. 10, yay! As always, thanks so much for reading, reviewing, favoriting and alerting, I just love getting those little e-mails! :) I'll be honest...this chapter is FLUFFY, but it also sets up a few things for upcoming chapters! Enjoy!

Here's the Polyvore Set for this chapter! Check it out because the twins' outfits are super cute, lol!

www . polyvore . com /cgi/set?id=29223388

Disclaimer: Don't own Glee, if I did Britt Britt would already be San's. Proudly so, damn it!

Chapter 10 – Quite Literally Falling

The next morning, Santana sat wrapped in a towel on the edge of her bathtub while she scanned through old text messages for the second time. She had already looked at them when she woke up just to make sure that she hadn't dreamt up the events of the previous night. To her delight, she and Rachel's date seemed to have been one hundred percent real life.

Im home and n bed now. 2 bad ur not here 4 more awkwrd cuddling ;) ~ SaNtAnA

It wasn't awkward! But yes, too bad! ~ BrightStar

It was soo awkwrd! Get real! :p ~ SaNtAnA

I suppose we will just have to practice until it isn't awkward then. ~ BrightStar

Im down! ~ SaNtAnA

Can't wait! Have sweet dreams tonight, baby! ~ BrightStar

Thnx, u 2! And thnx again for saying yes, I really am excited about us! xo ~ SaNtAnA

:D ~ BrightStar

Every time Santana read the endearment 'baby' at the end of Rachel's text her face was overtaken by a dopey smile. And since no one was around to judge her, she didn't mind acting like a lovesick puppy. Rachel was making her feel like any normal sixteen year old girl who had just gotten someone she truly liked to be with her and she figured that was perfectly alright. The excited squeal she had screamed into her pillow after waking up may have been borderline insane, but she let it slide anyway.

Before going to dry her hair, Santana read through the texts just once more and then switched Rachel's caller ID from 'Berry', to 'My Girl'. Big changes were taking place and as far as Santana could tell, they were nothing to fear.

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

Santana's good mood was untouchable, or at least that was what she thought until she saw Isabel's face for the first time since the night before.

"What happened to your face!" Santana asked frantically, as she sat next to her little sister on the couch and carefully cradled her small face to inspect the splotched scratches on her cheek.

Isabel looked up at her with wide doe eyes and her lower lip trembled as she sobbed, "Noelia did it!"

"When?" the eldest Latina questioned, her voice nothing but sympathy and concern.

"Last night when you were gone!" Isabel cried.

Santana had been wondering why Noelia was sitting silently at the other end of the couch when usually she and her twin were curled up like puppies each morning, watching cartoons together. Then it all made sense. "Did you do this, Noelia!" she demanded to know, while pointing at the little cuts that had so obviously come from fingernails.

"Yes…" the young girl answered coolly, but without looking at her two sisters.

"Why!" Santana yelled angrily. Her positive energy had quickly taken a dive in the opposite direction. She hated when she had to punish either one of the twins, but she didn't particularly like seeing gouges in their faces either.

Noelia hopped off the couch and stared up at Santana, perfectly matching her glare. "Because I wanted to!"

"Well, guess what! That's not a good enough reason for you to go tearing your sister's face off!" Santana shouted back. "You get to go spend some time in your room! Go, now!"

She continued to glare defiantly, but after a few seconds Noelia turned around and stomped up the stairs. Santana turned her attention back to Isabel, who was still sniffling and wiping at her eyes pitifully. "I'm sorry she did that, baby. What happened?"

Isabel shrugged. "She was mean to me the whole night and then she got mad 'cause I didn't want to watch a movie and then she hit me and then – and then she scratched me!"

By the time the confession was finished, Isabel was sobbing again and Santana was pulling her into her lap. While she was angry with Noelia for what she did, she was also ready to call the twit of a babysitter and demand the fifty dollar bill back that she had given her for staying so long. She should have known that just being able to think about herself for once and be content was nearly unheard of in her life; there was always something or someone to worry about.

"I have to go talk to your evil twin, okay?" Santana whispered to her sister, hoping that the tease would cheer her up a little bit. Isabel cracked a faint smile, nodded, and then moved back to her spot on the couch. "I'll be back in a while," she said, and then jogged up the stairs.

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

"Noelia?"

"Get outta my room!"

"Sorry, Noe, but you can't boss the boss," Santana said as she walked over and sat on the edge of the twin bed where Noelia was lying. "Talk to me," she urged softly and gave the girl's arm a nudge. "Tell me why you're beating on your sister."

Noelia rolled onto her side so that Santana couldn't see her face and snapped, "I said because I wanted to!"

Santana knew this defense mechanism because it was one of her own repertoire. She hated being bothered when she was upset, but she also knew that if someone pushed a little that the truth would eventually come spilling out. Until recently, she hadn't had someone to do that for her and she knew the feeling of being stuck in a swamp of conflicting emotions. She was never going to let that happen to her sisters.

"Come on," Santana said as she lied down and nudged the girl again, this time with her leg. "We both know that's not true. You love Is and you normally don't go around beating her up, so tell me what's really wrong."

"I'm not telling you 'cause I'm mad at you," Noelia said quietly and evenly.

Santana's brows furrowed as she looked up to the ceiling. Surely, Noelia couldn't have still been mad about being refused on going along to her and Rachel's date.

"Are you still mad that you didn't get to come with me?"

"No…"

"Then what did I do to make you so mad at me?"

Noelia's sharp breaths and her small shoulders quivering let Santana know it was just going to be one of those days. But she couldn't have imagined the reason why.

"You said you liked Rachel better than us!" the young girl cried, curling herself even further away from her older sister.

"No, I didn't!" Santana's first reaction was shock and denial, but at the back of her mind she now knew exactly what Noelia was referring to. "I didn't say that!"

"Yes, you did!" Noelia insisted, suddenly sitting up and revealing her dark, teary eyes. "You said when you go on a date you go with who you like the most!"

Santana felt her heart sink and the ever present guilt that she felt over not being good enough for her sisters hit her square in the chest. How could she have said something like that without thinking about it first? Without a mother and a caring father, she was all that Noelia and Isabel had in the world and now she had planted a seed of doubt and betrayal in their heads. But at the same time, she was so happy being with Rachel and she didn't know how to make two small children who had already been hurt understand that fact.

"I didn't mean to say that…that's not what I meant," Santana whispered softly, not knowing what else to say.

"Go away…" Noelia said flatly and laid down on her bed again. She rolled onto her stomach and hid her face in her folded arms.

In that moment, Santana had an angel on one shoulder and a demon on the other. She's young, she doesn't understand. She'll get over it, she thought to herself. But the next second she was thinking, You of all people should know why she's upset! You let her down!

Taking her chances, Santana tried to take one of Noelia's hands into her own but it was shaken away.

Seeing that she couldn't do anything more, she got up and went into her own room. She had thought of calling Rachel to cheer her up again, but that was the exact reason as to why her sister was mad at her and she didn't want to be that kind of girlfriend. Her cell phone lied on her bedside table and she picked it up, intent on being pathetic and reading through her old texts again, but when she slid it open she was greeted with a new message.

New TXT Message

My Girl

Wed, Dec 22 10:00am

Good morning, my gorgeous girlfriend! ~ BrightStar

She had never been more thankful for Rachel's thoroughness and enthusiasm. Now, she had an excuse to talk to her, but she was still pretty sure she was going to sound pathetic.

I would like 2 say its a good mrning after last night, but its not even noon and both of the twins have already been crying…I might b next. ~ SaNtAnA

:( Aw, I'm going to call you, okay? ~ BrightStar

Santana closed her cell phone and within a matter of seconds it was buzzing in her hand. "Hello?"

"Hey, don't cry, Santana…" came Rachel's gentle voice over the line.

It gave her the urge to cry even more. She couldn't figure out what it was about Rachel, but while being able to completely undo her, she also gave her a sense of calm. Forcing her voice to stay even, Santana replied, "Sorry, I won't…God, so far all I've been is the needy, whiny, weepy girlfriend and we haven't even been dating a full day!"

"It's okay, San, that's why I'm here," Rachel said cheerfully, not at all put off. She was actually glad that her new relationship with Santana was starting out as emotional. It was easier to figure out each other's feelings earlier on, rather than having to dig for them. And she hoped that once they got past that stage they could only grow closer from there. "And someday when I don't get the solo I want or Mr. Schuester tries to downplay my talent, you'll be there and I'll be whiny and weepy too."

Santana couldn't help but laugh because that was likely to happen almost every week in Glee club. "I will be there."

"So, are you going to tell me what has the Lopez ladies in such an uproar this morning?"

"Ugh," Santana groaned. "I really don't want to, but I will. It's just that Noelia is a little upset about something I told her before I took you out last night."

"Well, what did you tell her?" Rachel inquired.

The Latina sighed. "She kept asking me if she could go out on a date too…of course, I told her no. Then she said that you probably would want her and Isabel to go because you liked them. I told them that you liked them, but that you're supposed to go on a date with the person you like the most. She took it the wrong way, so she was upset while I was gone and she took it out on Isabel and scratched her face. Now, she's still mad and she won't talk to me. It's just a big mess…and I don't want them to think I'm going to leave them like our dad."

"I'm sorry," Rachel said. Santana couldn't see Rachel's face, but if she could she would have seen that the petite brunette looked genuinely hurt over her new girlfriend hurting.

"No, don't be sorry," Santana said glumly as she played with the ends of her hair. "I suppose they're going to have to learn that I won't always be there. I just have to be careful I guess…"

There was a pause in their conversation and then – sounding mysterious – Rachel asked, "I think I have a perfect idea! Would you be opposed to another date this afternoon?"

"That probably wouldn't be the best idea, considering –"

"Just have the girls ready by one o'clock for their date and make sure they dress warmly. Oh, and don't forget about yourself as well!"

Santana was thoroughly confused now, but it wasn't the first time that Rachel had confused her and she knew it wouldn't be the last either. "What are you even talking about?"

"Just trust me, Santana!" Rachel said, her voice jovial.

Rachel might not have known that she was asking Santana to do something that she was still slightly struggling with, but that was alright. It was an issue that the Latina could only fix for herself. So, after hesitating for a moment, Santana answered, "Okay, I'm trusting you!"

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

A few hours later the twins were flinging open the front door with a sharp, ecstatic cry of, "Rachel!"

They clung to her legs just as they had done on the day that they had unintentionally played matchmakers for her and their sister. That was only days ago, yet all of the girls' lives had gained new dimensions in one way or another.

"Just the young ladies I wanted to see! And don't you both look adorable!" Rachel said in greeting, as she grasped the door jamb and half walked, half dragged herself and the girls into the foyer. Before meeting the twins, children were one of the few things that Rachel didn't really know how to handle. But since Noelia and Isabel had responded so warmly to her she didn't feel the need to be uncomfortable with them. It was almost like having siblings of her own.

"You're Santí's girlfriend now!" Isabel stated matter-of-factly as she smiled up at the older girl.

The simple and obvious reminder gave Rachel a little thrill. "I am!" she smiled back, "And speaking of Santana, where is she?"

"Right here!" Santana panted as she rounded the corner in a jog, stilling attempting to shrug on her dark brown coat. As soon as she saw Rachel already giving her a slightly shy grin she stopped dead in her tracks and lost all ability to function beyond smiling and staring. "Hey…" she managed to say quietly.

"Hey yourself…" Rachel teased as she stepped closer. Enough so that Santana could reach her hand forward and link it with one smaller than her own.

"You look cute," Santana said, swinging their linked hands. Rachel certainly wasn't wearing anything like she had on their date, but the simple casualness was what lured the Latina. She was used to seeing her in short skirts and knee socks, not form fitting jeans and knee high boots.

After a hint of hesitation, Rachel took Santana's free hand in hers so that they faced one another and all of their fingers hung woven together at their sides. "You look cuter…"

Santana did think that she looked pretty good, especially after spending an unusual amount of time getting ready for the exact reason of impressing her new girlfriend. But actually hearing Rachel confirm the fact made her duck her head bashfully to study the tips of her boots. "Thanks…"

The relationship was still very new; all innocent freshness and butterflies. And there was a short moment where they were both uncertain about whether or not they needed permission or some silent invitation to give the other a kiss. But when Santana raised her head she found that she was at the perfect angle to let her lips meet Rachel's, so she did just that. The kiss only lasted seconds because the twins were present, but when Rachel gave both of Santana's hands a squeeze as they parted it let her know that she hadn't wanted it to end so soon.

"I see you got Noelia out of her room," Rachel whispered so that the two young girls milling about and pulling on their Ugg boots would not hear.

Santana shrugged her shoulders high and pressed her lips into a thin line, still absently swaying their hands. "All I had to say was that you were coming and she was fine, imagine that."

The petite brunette couldn't help but giggle. "Poor Santana…"

Then the Latina pulled a strange face, while shaking her head and rolling her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Now are you taking me on a date or what?"

It was evident that Santana was only joking when she had asked the question in that manner, but Rachel did a perfect job of impressing her and attacking back with some of her own sarcasm.

"I'm taking Noelia and Isabel on a date," she corrected, untangling her hands from Santana's and moving back to the front door with a well placed smirk. "You're just along for the ride. Come along, girls!"

Santana smirked right along with her and filed out behind her sisters. She didn't mind having to chase Rachel for the afternoon if she knew that ultimately in the end she was still going to be hers.

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

After driving for a short while, they reached a snowy parking lot where people were getting out of their cars in outdoor wear and carrying ice skates tied together by their laces over their shoulders. Santana immediately recognized the location and her face fell a little, but she tried to hide it.

"We're going ice skating!" Rachel announced excitedly, which in turned caused the twins to cheer along with her. Santana remained quiet and soon Rachel was grabbing her gloved hand and enthusiastically asking, "Aren't you excited, San! You know how to ice skate, right!"

Santana quickly snapped out of her stupor and nodded her head cockily. "Psh, of course I do! I'm a Cheerio. I was like born to do athletic things!"

Rachel clapped her hands together in approval. "Wonderful! That way I won't have to teach you how and we'll be able to help the girls!"

"Right…" Santana said and then looked out over one of the ovals of ice with a shiver of fear. This place had not been kind to her during a class trip in fourth grade and she had had no intention of ever coming back; the afternoon would be a definite test of character for her.

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

"Santana, I thought you said you already knew how to ice skate!" Rachel laughed, as she easily glided up to her girlfriend and made an effortless stop. Noelia and Isabel puttered around her, the blades of their skates clicking on the ice as they went. They had picked up the skill in no time. "Or did you just say that to try to impress me?"

"No!" Santana swiftly snapped from her position on her knees. It was only about the fifteenth time she had fallen and now she had resorted to clinging to the barrier surrounding the rink. "I just…haven't done it in a while!" she huffed, as she hauled herself back up by hanging onto the edge.

"Well, you were able to roller skate at April Rhodes' skating rink with no problem. So I see no reason as to why you would have difficulties doing this, it's roughly the same concept," Rachel explained, then skated a few yards ahead. "See, it's easy!"

"Well! Obviously it's a different concept for me!" Santana growled in frustration, continuing to pull herself along by the barrier. Even aside from the twins, there were plenty of other small children doing a fine job of skating over the ice without injury. It made Santana roll her eyes and swear under her breath.

"We wanna go faster!" Isabel shouted, after completing a small circle beside Rachel. Her comment was met with a glare from her older sister.

"You don't need to go any fa –" Before Santana could finish the sentence both of her feet slipped out from beneath her for the umpteenth time, and she once again landed flat on her back. Although she had done it just minutes before, it was the hardest she had fallen yet.

"Omigosh!" Rachel cried, as she went back to Santana's side while obviously trying not to laugh. "Are you okay?" she giggled, and then added, "I'm sorry, it's just that –"

"You're really bad at this, Santí!" Noelia finished for her, giggling right along.

"Oh, just go skate!" Santana finally yelled once she had righted herself again. "I'm going to stay here and try to salvage what's left of my pride."

Rachel took Isabel by her hand, and then looked over her shoulder to smile at Santana. "I'll come back for you, San!" She then blew a kiss.

Santana kept her face hard in aggravation. But when Rachel refused to go on without a reaction, she let go of the rail and pretended to catch the kiss – automatically falling in the process. As she sat on the cold ice, she couldn't help but laugh at herself, especially as she watched Rachel skate away while still laughing and shaking her head.

After pulling herself up once again, she decided to stay put and try to at least look smooth by casually leaning her back against the barrier. She rested her elbows on the flat ledge at the top and let her eyes follow Rachel and the twins as they made their way around the loop. It was almost ridiculous that they were all out together. High school crushes usually didn't tolerate little siblings, but Santana should have known that Rachel wasn't the average teenager in high school. She was so much more special than that and it was blatantly obvious by the way she laughed along with the twins in the distance.

"Come on, San!" Rachel called from the middle of the oval, after they had completed a lap.

"Uh uh…" Santana said mostly to herself while shaking her head. She didn't want to yell about how she didn't want to attempt to get to the middle because she was awful at ice skating. Things like that just didn't happen in her life.

"Please!"

"No…" Santana mouthed to her girlfriend, still shaking her head but now trying not to smile. "Not happening."

Rachel held out one of her open hands in front of her and smiled widely. "I'll catch you, you won't fall!"

Santana nearly snorted with laughter and tossed her head, having to break eye contact with Rachel to avoid blushing like a fool. "Yeah, sure!"

"Aw, come on, Santana!" Rachel shouted, and then stomped her skate on the ice with a click. "I promise I'll catch you!"

Santana rolled her eyes and shifted her weight to fully balance on her skates. She knew it was going to be a disaster, but what was a few more bruises if it would make her girlfriend happy. Her world had suddenly narrowed even further. Aside from caring for her sisters, the only other thing she really wanted to do was impress Rachel and hold her interest. Because she was still a little wary that the petite brunette was going to come to her senses and realize she had made a mistake.

"You better!" the Latina warned as she inched forward. She hated how silly she must have looked with her hands out for balance, but she focused on Rachel's smile and soon she was slowly approaching her.

Rachel extended her hands for Santana to take and excitedly stated, "You made it!"

Their fingertips had just brushed when gravity took its toll and sent the taller girl sailing forward, easily plowing down the small obstacle in her way.

"Oh, God! Are you okay! I'm so sorry, Rachel!" Santana blathered, sounding panicked as she got to her knees to assess the damage. The petite brunette was on her back and her ear muffs had skittered a few feet away.

Rachel just laughed and pushed herself onto on arm. "You're outrageously cute when you're in a panicked state. Oh, and also when you're frustrated, you get this tiny crease between your brows and it just makes me want to hug you."

"Well, considering you didn't catch me you probably ought to do something to make it up to me," Santana said, feigning seriousness as she pushed at Rachel's shoulder

"Would the hug I spoke of suffice?"

Santana cocked her head thoughtfully. "Hmm, it may, but how about a hug and a kiss? Deal?"

"I can work with that! Deal!" Rachel agreed, moving to fully sit up. Santana shuffled forward on her knees, the cold chill seeping through her jeans no match for the warm feeling she was getting from the flips and dips her stomach was doing.

"I still can't believe you didn't catch me," the Latina playfully scoffed as she moved in. "You just let me fall."

"Maybe I didn't…" Rachel said, and then lightly pressed her lips to her girlfriend's. "But at least you didn't have to do it alone."

While lightly gripping the lapels of Rachel's plaid coat, Santana pulled her in for kiss after kiss. Finding that once they separated and the cool air met her lips, she just needed a little more. It didn't matter that there were plenty of other people bumbling around them as they sat awkwardly, kissing on the ice. Someone could have sliced open their jugular in a freak ice skating accident and they wouldn't have noticed, so they certainly didn't notice the twins charging at them at full force.

"Stop kissing! It's gross!" Noelia screamed as she slammed into Santana's back, making her bite her tongue as she had been in the process of swiping it along Rachel's lower lip.

"Mmm!" Santana yelped, bringing her hand to cover her mouth. She was afraid she would drool if she didn't. "You little bitch!"

"Bad word! Bad word! You said a bad word!" Isabel chanted from where she clung to Rachel's back, nearly choking her with the arms wrapped around her neck.

Noelia outwitted her older sister and swiftly skated away, taking advantage of her current lack of coordination. Santana seemed to have forgotten her handicap as she lunged after Noelia and her poor balance could only take her so far before she crumpled in a heap for the infinite time.

Rachel grasped dramatically as she witnessed yet another of Santana's ungraceful blunders. She was beginning to regret bringing the Lopez girls skating. If anyone was going to take a few spills, she expected it to be the two six year olds, not one of the star cheerleaders of her high school. "Are you alright!" she asked, not for the first time that day. "Santana, I must insist that we get you off this ice! It's really not your calling!"

"I'm fine…" Santana said slowly, sounding a little dazed as she sat up with a hand covering her forehead.

When Rachel pushed Santana's hand away she gasped even louder and threw her own hand over her heart. "Omigosh! We have to go right now, I won't have you subjected to these conditions any longer!"

"It's nothing…"

"You have a knot on your head the size of a softball! Don't try to argue with me, Santana!"

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

And even though the knot was only approximately as big as a golf ball, Santana did not argue. She sat quietly on a chair inside the lobby of the ice skating complex and dutifully let Rachel examine her for signs of medical distress. Including, scrutinizing the size and dilation of her pupils for approximately five minutes and holding fingers up for her to count in a variety of combinations.

"It's just a little bump…"

"Shh…" Rachel urged as she immobilized Santana's face between her hands and stared into her eyes with an extreme, creepy intent. "I think your left pupil is starting to expand more than the other."

"Oh, no it's not!" The Latina finally fought back and shook her head away, sending dark hair flying. She wouldn't have admitted it out loud, but it was kind of reassuring to know that Rachel was so concerned about her all the time. It made her appreciate the tiny brunette in ways she really couldn't explain.

"My sister is tough!" Noelia announced fiercely, as she continued to cling to Santana's side. Since the last fall she had been stuck to her older sister in silent apology.

"That's right!" Santana said with just as much fierceness, while quirking a brow and smirking. Rachel did not look amused at all as she pulled out a chair across from her girlfriend and sat down, crossing her arms to showcase her irritation.

Isabel had already been sitting in the chair beside Rachel's and she looked to be lost in thought, too busy watching her swishing feet to pay attention to the conversation. That was until she perked up with, "Santí is tough just 'cept for when spiders come in the house."

"Aw, come on!" Santana cried and threw her hands in the air exaggeratedly. "Maybe I suck at ice skating and maybe I don't really like spiders, but I'm a Cheerio and that's like practically equivalent to a Marine or something! I can run like a bazillion miles without puking and I can do one handed back hand springs and back flips for days! I don't need no ice skates!"

"Ooh! Do one, S! Do one!" Isabel cheered and clapped her hands together, while vigorously kicking her feet back and forth under her chair.

Santana smiled appreciatively at her sister's enthusiasm, but shook her head. "I can't do one in here. I'll do one later when we get home."

"No one will see! Do it!" Noelia urged, latching onto Santana's shoulder and literally pushing her to do what she wanted.

Rachel huffed loudly as she neatly set her gloves on top of one another on the table, purposefully trying to draw attention to herself. And it worked. "Really girls, don't encourage her. She's endured enough today and I would hate to see her injure herself again trying to do silly tricks."

"Silly tricks! Silly tricks!" Santana echoed in disbelief and her face contorted into an expression of offended shock. She pushed herself up from her chair, slid it away from the table with determination and then removed her beret-style hat. The twins became giddy with excitement, already knowing what to expect. "Oh, I'm definitely about to do it now!"

"I don't doubt your talents, Santana. I just feel that it would be more appropriate to engage in gymnastic feats after you've rested and the side effects of a possible concussion have worn off. And while – wait, what are you doing! Get down from there!"

"Can't do that…" Santana finished climbing on top of the table, staying in a stealthy crouched position as she scanned the lobby for any employees' lingering eyes.

When she was in the clear, she stood up, straightened out her coat and then took a deep breath in preparation. Really she didn't need to prepare or even concentrate, she had done this countless times and it was practically like walking to her. She just wanted to make sure that Rachel got a good look at her in her best form; because even if Puck was kind of dumb, his classic words of, 'Even if they try to talk you out of it, chicks really dig that crazy dangerous shit,' were completely true.

"You think I can't do one silly back flip because I have a big ol' goose egg on my head, well I'll show you, Rachel Berry," Santana muttered under her breath.

The petite brunette still seated at the table tried to appear disinterested and said primly, "We'll see how cocky you are when you're trying to kiss me in a neck brace…"

Santana waved her hand dismissively and before the twins could even shout, "Do it!" once more, she was already midway through the back flip and then sticking a perfect landing with a dull thud. She tossed her disheveled hair over her shoulder with a flip of her head and gave Rachel a smug look as she tilted her head. "So?" she prompted, as she planted her hands on her hips.

"I wasn't watching…" the petite brunette lied.

"Don't make me do it again."

"Fine!" Rachel huffed, her tone one of annoyance. "It was very skillful…and decidedly sexy. But the next time you feel that your talent and ego are threatened just because you fail to ice skate properly, you should probably demonstrate something less dangerous to counter it."

Along with the annoyance came thinly masked adoration and Santana knew she wasn't wrong in assuming that Rachel had definitely loved the impromptu performance. And that's why she just couldn't help sweeping up to her and kissing her through smiles and giggles.

"You loved it…"

Rachel turned her face away from Santana's. "I did no such thing."

"Yes, you did," Santana sing songed, brushing her hair back so she could whisper in her ear. She cradled Rachel's face in her palm and kissed her way up to her temple. "You loved it and you can't deny it."

Rachel sighed and instinctively let her body lean into her girlfriend. "Maybe just a little…"

Isabel and Noelia were looking at one another and exchanging mutual expressions of disgust over all the kissing going on. But even though they were more worried about cootie exposure, they couldn't deny that both of the teenagers – especially Santana – were giddier than they could ever remember seeing them.

~S~R~S~R~S~R~S~R~

"They'll be out cold 'til morning," Santana informed as she hung up her coat on the rack and looked to the two little ice skaters who had gone straight to the couch. The twins could barely keep their eyes open during any car ride, let alone after several hours of ice skating.

"What about us?" Rachel teased. She was still sitting on the hardwood floor from having sat down to take off her boots. Santana wasn't the only one to suffer a few falls throughout the day and Rachel had found that it took a lot less energy and aching to stay on the floor than to stand.

Santana kicked off one of her own boots and let it land on its side, then did the same with the other. "After a bottle of ibuprofen I might be able to sleep."

Rachel lightly hummed her amusement, too tired to even speak. When the Latina offered her hand she took it and rose to her feet with a long groan. "Our first date was more relaxing…"

"Fo' sho'," Santana was fully prepared for the scolding nudge she got for using the slang and she silently marveled at how in tune she was to Rachel's actions after just a short amount of time. "But I think I know how we can relax…"

"And how might that be?"

"Hot tub, baby!"

Rachel's face spread into a languid, sleepy smile and she sighed deeply. "That sounds heavenly."

"You got that right," Santana agreed as she held tight to her girlfriend's hand and began trudging up the stairs to her room. Each of them was so preoccupied by their bruised and sore bodies that they didn't even realize what exactly using the hot tub meant – way less clothing and way more exposure of said bodies.

So San is definitely lovesick and a little insane over Rach, but that's the way it should be, right! The resolution to the whole San/Noelia rift will come in the next chapter, after the hot tubbing! ;) Thanks for reading and let me know what you think, please!