A/N: Thanks for your patience, all! I had a wonderful trip and it was made all the more pleasant by your well wishes. All of your reviews and alerts really made me want to get back to writing and hopefully live up to all of the kind words. This chapter was really hard to write, however. There's a lot of emotional stuff that comes up and I try to get in the character's heads which was tricky. So it'll have a different feel from previous chapters, but I hope it all works! As always, please review and / or drop me a PM. I really appreciate all of the alerts as well. Thank you all so much!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Not the show or the song, which is "Rhythm of Love" by Plain White T's.

Chapter Ten

Brittany didn't have a plan. That in itself wasn't all that unusual. She wasn't the kind of person who spent much time or energy strategizing for future events. Instead she tended to rely on her instincts and intuition, and just took things as they came. She liked the spontaneity and surprises of life and met most things with a happy-go-lucky kind of attitude.

Besides, Santana made sure she made it through the big events unscathed anyway. If Brittany had a big trip, Santana made sure Brittany packed all the essentials, exchanging excess hats and legwarmers for underwear and socks when necessary. At the beginning of each school year, she made sure Brittany memorized her school schedule, working with the dancer to create mnemonic devices that made Brittany giggle every time she recited them in her head. Most importantly, it was Santana who helped Brittany with major life decisions, not by making them for her (which would come as a surprise to many of their peers); but by focusing the capricious blonde and helping her lay out pros and cons for the choices Brittany eventually had to make on her own.

Brittany didn't really need to be a planner because she had Santana, and Santana allowed the carefree blonde to simply enjoy the world without really needing to invest much forethought into things. Santana took care of her and Brittany loved her for it. They needed each other. It was the surest thing Brittany knew. They were better people together than they ever were apart, and Brittany wasn't about to give that up for anything.

She had seen what her world was like without Santana's steady presence. And while she had learned so much from being with Artie, and as sweet and fulfilling as that time with him had been in its own way, Brittany knew she allowed herself to regress in that relationship. She let Artie indulge her fantasies and shield her from reality. Honestly, it actually took Brittany a while to realize that, unlike Santana, Artie didn't seem to understand that they were fantasies, flights of fancy that Brittany liked to disappear into from time to time. He didn't realize that Brittany herself saw them as fantasies, and in the end she found herself indulging him more and more.

Santana though, Santana knew her. She knew when Brittany was being serious and when she was being mischievous and playful. And while Santana never outright dissuaded her from her peculiar and fantastical beliefs, she didn't reinforce them either. Santana never pretended to believe things she didn't. Brittany wasn't stupid and she wasn't a child. And Santana refused to treat her like she was.

Santana let Brittany be impulsive and whimsical and imaginative. Part of the reason she fought so hard for reputation and to be on top was to create a protective bubble around the quirky blonde so that Brittany could be silly and spontaneous and hopeful. The fiery brunette protected Brittany from ridicule and harassment as best she could because she wanted to give the blonde a safe space to come to her own beliefs, to take in the world on her own terms. And Santana would gladly indulge many of the tall girl's whims, but she wouldn't lie to her. She wouldn't pretend something existed when she knew it didn't.

And Brittany needed that from someone. She needed someone who believed in her enough to let her come to her own realizations, even those she didn't necessarily like—discoveries that might be painful or unpleasant but were necessary if Brittany was going to be an independent, successful adult. Brittany needed Santana.

And Brittany knew all of this; now more than ever. And she wasn't about to let some stranger come in and disrupt the relationship she had built, and continued to build, with Santana. Because for all of their back and forth, for as many people they "dated," for as often as they hurt each other, Santana belonged to Brittany, and she'd be damned if someone new girl was going to come into their lives and take what was hers.

That's how she found herself storming down crowded halls with firm, deliberate steps, her heart filled with fire and passion but with no plan.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Landon pulled an olive green tank top over her head and smoothed it down her body. She was just about finished changing from practice when she heard the door to the locker room open.

"Lopez, that you?" she called out with a smile. When she didn't hear a reply, she turned and was surprised to see Brittany standing straight, arms crossed over her chest, her brilliant blue eyes staring her down.

"Hey Brittany," Landon began hesitantly, unnerved by the blonde's unrelenting gaze. "Um, what brings you down to the girls' locker?"

Brittany took in the athletic brunette. Landon was tall and fit and confident. If it wasn't for Santana's obvious interest in the girl, Brittany would think Landon was super sexy. But the only thing on the dancer's mind at the moment was what the jock represented, and she could only see the threat she imposed. She closed her eyes tightly and took deep breaths, trying to calm the rolling of her stomach. She felt like she was going to be sick.

The longer the blonde didn't speak, the more nervous Landon became. "Brittany? You okay?"

"Stay away from Santana," she blurted suddenly. It wasn't the most artful declaration she could make, but it was honest and it was the only thing Brittany could think to say.

Landon was taken aback. "Um, what? I don't understand."

Brittany huffed and ran a shaky hand through her hair. She turned her back to the jock, trying to collect herself. This woman made her feel things she wasn't used to feeling. Anger, jealousy, frustration, they rumbled together in her gut, making her queasy. So as with most things in her life, Brittany simply did what her feelings dictated.

"I want you to stay away from Santana. I don't want you spending time with her anymore," she restated, her back still turned to the tall jock.

Landon sighed. This was not a conversation she had anticipated having with the beautiful blonde. Brittany barely said ten words to her since their first meeting and although Landon had tried to engage the dancer, Brittany had been largely unresponsive, cold even. Faced with the dancer's unexpected anger and bold request, Landon was caught off guard.

"Brittany," she started hesitantly, "I'm not sure what you think I'm trying to do with Santana, but I'd never hurt her. I like her-"

"You are hurting her," Brittany cut her off and spun around. Her eyes flashed and she rushed to prevent Landon from continuing her thought. She didn't need to hear about how much the other girl liked Santana. "You think you're helping, but you're not. You're just…you're just making it easier for her hide." Brittany's voice was thick as she stumbled over how to verbalize what she was feeling without revealing too much to the new girl, to this stranger. "She's supposed to be working on herself, on being okay with herself. She doesn't need you…messing with her."

Landon took a breath and approached the distraught blonde slowly. "Look, I know Santana has some issues with being queer," seeing Brittany's eyes narrow she rephrased her statement, "or coming out or whatever. That doesn't bother me. She can take whatever time she needs. I just want to be there for her. I can help her through this."

Brittany stiffened at Landon's words. "You don't get it! Santana doesn't need…" she paused, "a girlfriend now," she bit off the word as if it physically hurt to say. "Being with you is just going to confuse her more. You have no idea what went on last year. You're messing everything up!"

Brittany let out a foreceful breath and pushed her hands against her forehead, trying to ease the pulsing ache that was blooming behind her eyes. Landon stayed quiet, waiting for her to continue. "Santana's so scared that she can't see how amazing she is and how amazing being with her is and how anyone she's with would want to show her off and be with her openly and…and…and she needs to realize that we can't keep going on being secretive and hiding and pretending. It's all just so stupid! And it hurts her the most in the end."

The blonde was so caught up in her emotions that she didn't realize her slip. Landon, on the other hand, had not missed the "we" in Brittany's outburst and her stomach dropped a little. "Brittany," she paused. She didn't know how to ask what was becoming painfully necessary in the moment. Landon didn't want to think that Santana had lied to her, but the emotions radiating off the tall blonde were way out of proportion to what Landon thought was appropriate for someone talking about their "friend." She looked down at her feet before continuing. "I was under the impression that you and Santana weren't together, romantically, I mean." She looked up at the blonde, hoping to make eye contact. "Was I wrong?"

Brittany felt her chest tighten. She darted her eyes to the floor and curled her toes inside her sneakers. "It's not like that," she said quietly. "We're…we're not together like that." With more force, she looked up and added, "she shouldn't be with anyone like that. Not until she's ready to accept herself and love herself and be open with who she is and who she loves."

"That's a lot to ask, Brittany," Landon replied. "I want that for Santana too but she's got to work it out at her own pace. And if she's as scared as you think, then she needs as much love and support as she can get, right?"

"She has that! I support her. Glee club will be there for her when she lets them. What she doesn't need is you -" she stopped abruptly, struggling to find a way to say fucking her without having to actually say it, "being with her and letting her continue to hide and be afraid."

"Brittany," Landon was initially relieved to hear the blonde confirm that she and Santana weren't involved but she was becoming frustrated with Brittany's accusations that somehow she wasn't good for Santana. She wanted to reassure Brittany but she certainly wasn't going to stay away from the brunette either. "I get that you and Santana have history, and believe me when I say I'm not trying to hurt either one of you. But maybe you're confusing what Santana needs with what you need."

Brittany's jaw clenched so tightly the jock could actually see her grinding her back teeth. Her eyes were dark and she straightened her back and squared her shoulders. Although Landon was much taller and broader than the leggy blonde, she found herself taking a step back, unsure what the incensed woman in front of her was capable of.

"Okay. Okay," Landon interjected, raising her palms to calm the girl. "Look, we both want what's best for Santana, and she must be making progress, right? I mean she wouldn't be friends with me if she was so worried about what people would think about her." She took a breath. "She's just moving at her own pace, that doesn't mean she shouldn't be loved in the process."

Brittany pursed her lips. "This isn't about that! This isn't about loving Santana. She is loved. It's about helping her be okay with herself!"

"You keep saying that but what does that even mean?" Landon's frustration and irritation was building as she felt unwarrantedly attacked. "What do you want from her, Brittany? You want her to shout her love for girls or for you from the rooftops? To declare to God, her parents, the school that she's queer? If that's what you need in order to be with her, then that's fine. You shouldn't have to compromise your needs for hers. But Brittany," Landon took a step forward and tried to place a hand on the blonde's shoulder. Brittany pulled away abruptly. "If there's someone who can love her and hold her and be with her as she works through this, without grand gestures or public displays, maybe you should let them try?"

Ugh, this woman was so frustrating! She just didn't get it. Brittany stomped her foot. "You're just distracting her. You make it easy for her to continue denying who she is because you don't ask anything more from her. You don't know her." She clenched her fists and slapped them against her thighs. This girl just wasn't getting it and Brittany didn't know how to make her understand. "I just want her to be proud of herself. I don't want her to be afraid anymore. I want her to know she has people here who love her and will be there for her no matter what." The irritated blonde's voice grew as she tried to convince the jock that being with Landon wasn't what Santana needed.

"But she's getting there Brittany. Maybe it's taking her a little longer than you'd like, but she's getting there." Landon rubbed her forehead, trying think of a way to convince the angry blonde that she wasn't the bad guy in this confusing scenario. "Coming out is hard. And it's scary. And it can feel really lonely. And if she's scared, maybe there's reason to be. It isn't our place to dictate when and how Santana reveals herself to others. We can just be there for her when she needs us."

"We are there for her! Even if it's going to be hard, we'd protect her!"

"You're going to protect her?" Landon slammed the open locker door that separated the two women closed. She was quickly finding her frustration morphing into anger. She had weathered the blonde's accusations, tried to reason and reassure her and still Brittany persisted in casting Landon as the villain. She looked directly into the blonde's electric blue eyes, clenched her jaw and lowered her voice. "I came out at 14 and my parents wasted no time in kicking me out on my ass, unless you count the time it took for my dad to beat the shit outta me. I live in a fucking trailer with an aunt I don't even know and I haven't spoken to my brothers in three years." Landon's eyes shimmered with the pain of the memory and she let out a strained laugh. "And you think you and Glee club are going to protect her?"

Brittany eyes darted everywhere but at Landon. It wasn't that Brittany was as naïve as others assumed. She knew bad things happened to some people who were Lebanese. But she'd never heard firsthand how cruel people could be and how bad it could get. She didn't want to believe that something like that could happen to Santana. She refused to believe it could happen because she knew she'd be there for her and they'd make it through the difficult times together, like they always did. Landon's story wouldn't be Santana's story. Brittany believed she could make sure of that.

Landon breathed deeply. She didn't mean to go off on the dancer and reveal so much. She smoothed her hands through her hair. "I don't regret coming out. I couldn't live any other way," she said softly. "But I know how much someone can lose. And I can't push Santana to make those decisions, to face unknown consequences if she isn't ready."

"I'm not pushing her," Brittany almost whined. "I just don't think she needs to be with someone when she's still struggling with herself."

"That's a little cold-hearted."

Brittany whipped her head up and glared.

"Just because she's struggling doesn't mean she doesn't deserve to be loved," Landon continued. "Santana probably needs that more than ever now."

"Don't talk to me like you know her better than I do!" Brittany took two steps towards the jock. "Don't," she took a breath, "don't think you know what she needs. We're friends. You're just something new and different, and you're just really hot. You may…do stuff with her but you don't know her. We'll be there for her! She won't have to go through what you did. We won't let her."

"God, Brittany! If your coming out was all rainbows and gay unicorns then I'm happy for you. Really I am. But it's not like that for everyone. Don't you get that there can be serious consequences here? Don't be so naïve!"

Brittany approached the jock deliberately, fists balled tightly at her sides. She'd never struck anyone (intentionally at least) in her entire life. The thought never even crossed her mind. But in that moment, staring at the tall jock who represented so much uncertainty and fear and potential loss, Brittany wanted nothing more than to strike the imposing woman across the face.

When she spoke, her voice came out as a low, penetrating growl. "I'm not stupid. Don't talk to me like I am."

"No one's calling you stupid!"

"Hey!" Both girls turned quickly at the interruption and were shocked to see Santana standing a few feet away, her hands on her hips and her eyes narrow. She looked really pissed. Brittany and Landon took a step back, surprised and more than a little frightened by the sudden appearance of the furious object of their conversation.

And Santana was pissed. She stalked directly to Landon, raising a finger and pushing it directly into the jock's chest. "You don't talk to her like that," her voice was low and disturbingly calm. There was a quiet fury burning in her eyes and Landon took another quick step back, but the enraged brunette kept coming.

Landon raised her palms out to the approaching girl. "Hey, we just…had a misunderstanding."

"You don't raise your voice to her. Ever." She gestured back to Brittany who had her head down and her arms crossed protectively over her chest. "Apologize." Santana's gaze never wavered from the tall jock. Her deep brown eyes had gone dark, almost black. She invaded Landon's personal space, her anger pulsing off of her in waves.

Landon couldn't believe how protective—unreasonably protective to Landon's mind—Santana was being, particularly since she was sure the other girl had no idea what Brittany and Landon were talking about. "Look," she said, irritated at being attacked again for nothing she did wrong, "you have no idea what's going on here so just back off, okay?"

"You don't tell me what to do. I said apologize to Brittany. Now," she pushed Landon on the chest.

"You don't even know what's going on. She," Landon pointed back to Brittany, "came at me. What the fuck, Lopez!"

"Oh right," Santana said sarcastically. "Brittany doesn't get mad for no reason. She's not like us. If she's upset, you provoked her. Now apologize."

Landon stared at Santana incredulously. This girl couldn't be serious. Landon straightened her back and returned Santana's fiery gaze. "You," she spoke firmly, directly engaging the shorter girl, "don't know what the hell's going on here. And the two of you," she gestured towards Brittany and Santana, "are ridiculous. If you want to have a conversation with me, you come find me." With that, the tall jock grabbed her duffle and pushed past the two girls, the sound of her heavy hand slamming against the locker door resounding across the small room.

Santana sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She turned toward the quiet blonde, watching her cuddle into herself. Santana knew Brittany hated confrontation and seeing her tremble and hug herself broke her heart.

"Hey," Santana said softly, approaching the blonde who still refused to meet her eyes. She reached her hands out, running them up and down Brittany's arms. "You okay, sweetie?"

Brittany nodded but still couldn't look up at the girl. She felt guilty and smug all at once. Having Santana come to her rescue without hesitation, without knowing what was happening, only hearing someone was raise their voice to her, made Brittany's heart ache. Santana loved her and protected her unconditionally. And it made Brittany feel 10-feet tall and incredibly small at the same time. She wasn't sure she deserved Santana's protection and comfort in this instance. Brittany knew she contributed to the heat of the conversation as much if not more than Landon had. She's the one who confronted the new girl and demanded she stay away from Santana. She knew she shared responsibility for how things ended.

But whatever guilt she may have felt over Santana's treatment of Landon was soon overwhelmed by the need to cling to the brunette and melt into the safety and comfort she offered. So she leapt at Santana, pulling her into her body fiercely, wrapping long arms around Santana's shoulders and burying her head into the small girl's neck.

Santana was surprised by Brittany's abrupt embrace, but she returned in it all the same. She ran calming hands up and down the dancer's back, humming softly in her ear. "It's okay. Everything's going to be okay," she whispered.

When she felt the blonde's trembling ease, Santana pulled back slightly, keeping her arms loosely around the girl's waist. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

Brittany simply shook her head and fell into Santana's embrace once more.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

It had been a long, exhausting day for Brittany, and she sighed into the body beneath her. They were in Santana's room and she was draped half on half off Santana's body, her arm circling her best friend's waist, a leg thrown across the smaller girl's thighs, her nose pressed just under and behind the girl's ear.

They hadn't spoken about what happened in the locker room, and Brittany was thankful Santana hadn't pushed the issue. She did, however, revel in the other girl's doting. The small brunette barely let her out of her sight for the rest of the day. She walked Brittany to each class, sneaking out early from her own so she'd be there when the bell rang to escort the dancer to her next session. When school let out, she drove Brittany to her house where they shared a tub of Ben and Jerry's while watching Sweet Valley High in Santana's room. And now she was stroking the blonde's back slowly, holding her securely, letting her warmth seep into the woman in her arms.

Brittany wished she could be with Santana like this always. In Santana's arms, she didn't have to worry or think. She didn't have the uneasy rumble in her belly that struck whenever they were apart and the tall blonde was left to wonder what Santana was doing and with whom. Being with the brunette like this sustained Brittany. It reinforced in her that there was nothing the two together couldn't manage.

Brittany snuggled herself into Santana's side even more, grabbing the smaller woman around the waist and pulling her close. "San," she whispered.

"Hm," Santana hummed, nuzzling into the blonde hair under her chin. She hadn't pressured the blonde to talk, in part because she wasn't sure she was ready to handle whatever it was Landon and Brittany had been discussing. Instead she worked on comforting her friend and in doing so comforting herself. She would always be there for Brittany. Santana knew this without question. Whatever happened between them, she was Brittany's protector and she always would be. "What do you need, B?" she spoke softly against the blonde's temple.

"Will you sing for me? Please?"

Without releasing her grip on the dancer, Santana reached out a hand to the docking station next to the bed. She scrolled through the instrumental songs on her iPod before resetting the device and pressing play.

Brittany smiled at the opening chords, recognizing the melody immediately. Santana's soft, sweet voice filled Brittany's senses and she let out something very close to a purr as she buried herself into Santana's shoulder. When Santana got to the chorus, Brittany closed her eyes and hugged her tightly.

We may only have tonight
But till the morning sun, you're mine
All mine
Play the music low
And sway to the rhythm of love

Santana could feel Brittany sink into her and she rubbed soothing circles on the other girl's lower back.

She's got blue eyes deep like the sea
That roll back when she's laughing at me

She could feel Brittany smile into her neck, making her grin in response.

She rises up like the tide
The moment her lips meet mine

She felt Brittany's breathing slow and she lowered her voice, continuing to rub the blonde's back and sing softly.

We may only have tonight
But till the morning sun, you're mine
All mine
Play the music low
And sway to the rhythm of love

A/N: I know this chapter might not be for everyone. It's a lot to get through. But thanks for sticking it out. More action and less internal stuff (I think!) in the next chapter. :) Please review if you have the chance.