**NOTES**
Thanks again for reading! Here is the second part of the last chapter. Please let us know what you think! We love comments and constructive criticism. Thanks as always to my co-writer Kimby (kimbyinprogress on twitter).
Chapter 10B
Juliet threw back another shot. The burn was beginning to lessen and she barely even needed a chaser this time. She had lost count on how much she had consumed but was fairly certain she'd done a decent job in catching up to her friends. Worrying about Quinn and the fact that she knew her secret could wait for another day. There is really only so much a girl can handle and Juliet's plate was already overflowing. So far she had been pretty successful at keeping her distance from Santana, but the effects of the alcohol were setting in and her inhibitions were rapidly fading. She surveyed the room, taking note that most of her friends were drunk off their asses and everything was really loud and busy. Zeroing in on her target, Juliet watched Santana lean against the wall on the other side of the dance floor, talking to Mike of all people. Tequila was telling her that she needed some alone time with her girlfriend so she looked around til she spotted Tina. Just the person she needed to make her plan come to fruition.
"Hey Tina! Looks like Mike gets flirty when he drinks." She chuckled and nudged Tina in the side, hoping she would get the picture. Juliet had nothing against Mike, she was pretty sure he was being gentleman. But he was the one thing standing between her and Santana, so he had to go. Tina glanced over with a frown and walked directly between the pair of friends, surprising Mike with a whopper of a kiss and then dragging him off to the dance floor. If looks could talk, Juliet was pretty sure Tina gave Santana one that said "hands off or I'll cut you."
Once she was left on her own, Santana's gaze landed on Juliet who quickly made her way over. "Just the person I was hoping to see next." Santana grabbed a fistful of Juliet's shirt and pulled her in closer, clearly she hadn't been moving fast enough. Juliet giggled, she desperately wanted to kiss her but instead occupied her mouth by taking another sip of her almost empty drink. "Who, me?" Her eyes fixated on her girlfriend when she noticed her cup was empty as well. "Want me to make us another round?"
Santana leaned her head in close, almost touching their foreheads. "Hun, I think I'll pass on another one of your special concoctions. I'm in the mood for something a bit spicier than water." She smirked as she pulled her head back, remembering the fast one her girlfriend tried to pull on her earlier. Juliet felt herself melting at her expression, smartass flirtatious Santana always gave her goosebumps. Not appreciating the space that had made its way between them, Juliet grabbed both their empty cups and tossed them in the trash. She leaned close into Santana, one hand resting beside her head against the wall, the other playing with the rather short hem of her dress just barely teasing her outer thigh. In their tequila induced haze, neither girl had the mind to care if anyone was watching them. Juliet noticed Santana bite her lower lip as her gaze drifted downwards. Inhibitions officially gone, she leaned in to finally kiss her when -
"WHO WANTS TO PLAY SPIN THE BOTTLE!" Rachel's bellowing immediately caused Santana and Juliet to jump apart. They both glanced over towards the stage at the other end of the room and noticed Rachel, with pink flushed cheeks, screeching into the mic. "Spin. The. Bottle!" She hollered again.
Santana looked back over at Juliet with a mischievous grin. Juliet raised an eyebrow. "You want to play? I didn't think this was your type of thing." Santana's grin grew even bigger and she shook her head. "Nope, but you're going to play." Santana giggled as she turned Juliet to face the center of the room where everyone was starting to gather. She leaned her head onto her shoulder "I've kissed pretty much every person in this room and I don't need that torture again. Seeing you do it however...now that's a fantasy I didn't even know I had." She whispered flirtatiously into her ear.
Juliet shivered under the feel of Santana's breath on her neck. She was grateful for that last drink as anything less and she likely would have protested. If Santana was giving her the go ahead then she wasn't going to argue, but she was going to make her work for it. Juliet gave her hand a squeeze as she laid out her price. "Make me another drink and I'll consider it, but you'll owe me." Santana quickly poured a mixture of whatever was left on that table and handed it off to Juliet. "You got yourself a deal! Now get your cute ass over there." She lightly slapped Juliet on the butt and pushed her towards the middle of the room where the circle was being formed.
"Got any room for one more?" With a few nods from the group, Juliet scooted in between Mercedes and Finn, the first spin had only just begun. As the next few rounds went by, Juliet found herself cracking up at the pairings that ensued. When it was her turn, she took a deep breath and sent that glass bottle spinning, not really thinking about who it might end up on. As it slowed down Juliet realized the circle was pretty evenly split boys and girls but before she could contemplate what that might mean, it landed on none other than trouty mouth himself, Sam Evans.
The whole room starting whooping and laughing. Juliet could feel her face flush a little red as she glanced over at Sam who just smiled his signature boyband smile. If there was any boy she was going to have to kiss, Sam likely was the best option. Objectively he was adorable and just as nice as one would think. Juliet discreetly glanced up at Santana who was sitting on a chair behind the circle, she was cheering along with the rest of them, grinning widely. With the reassurance in Santana's smile, Juliet relaxed and followed Sam's lead leaning in towards the center of the circle. Sam reached gingerly behind her head, pulling their lips closer until they connected. His mouth engulfed her own but he was soft and sweet about it. When they pulled apart after a few seconds, Sam grinned at her and cocked his head a little to the side, like he was looking at her for the first time. Juliet blushed as she sat back down, her hand going up to her own lips, it had been quite some time since she kissed anyone besides Santana. She felt Mercedes give her a pat on the back as she glanced back up at her girl who merely winked at her.
Juliet's head was spinning. This night was turning into something she never could have imagined. Not sure if she was going to regret this or not, she took another sip of her drink and focused back in on the exhilarating game. A few more rounds went by and Juliet had gotten a full blown attack of the giggles. She was laughing about something ridiculous Mercedes had said when all of a sudden her classmates began shrieking, even more so than they already had been. Pulled from her side conversation, Juliet looked down at the bottle and noticed it was pointed straight at her. Her heart skipped a beat with anticipation as she looked around to find whose turn it had been. After scanning most of the group her eyes landed on Brittany, who was staring straight at her with her goofy smile she always wore. Normally, this situation would've caused Juliet to have an existential crisis. Kissing her girlfriend's best friend? That was asking for all kinds of trouble. But right now, beyond drunk in Rachel's basement, amidst the free flowing hormones and the pent up sexual energy Juliet was housing, she could give two shits to common sense. In fact, wasn't this exactly what Santana wanted? Juliet could kiss all the boys in the room but kissing another girl would definitely be a turn on for her, at least she hoped. She saw that twinkle in Brittany's eyes staring back at her and it made her heart pound a little faster. Brittany was cute, and oh so very sweet, not to mention way smarter than anyone gave her credit for. Just because Juliet had a girlfriend didn't mean that it stopped her from appreciating the aesthetics of other girls; that was a natural thing.
Brittany crawled towards Juliet on her hands and knees, using her index finger to beckon her to come closer. That was all Juliet needed to block out the noise in her head and of the rest of her classmates and meet Brittany in the middle of the circle. She leaned in, releasing a nervous giggle, as Britt placed her finger under Juliet's chin, lifting it ever so slightly to meet her own. The kiss was soft at first and more gentle than anything she'd ever experienced. Just as Juliet began to pull back, Brittany moved her hands to cup the sides of her face and deepened it even more. She tasted sweet like cotton candy, and kissed like she knew exactly what she was doing. Brittany's kiss left Juliet feeling even more intoxicated than she already was. There's no wonder that as closeted as Santana had been, even to herself, she still couldn't deny how much she liked kissing her. She was just so damn good at it. Besides how good it felt, Juliet thought about how she was openly kissing a girl in front of her friends and no one was making that big of a deal about it. Of course it was because to them this was all just a game, but to Juliet this felt like some kind of unfound freedom.
The two finally broke apart as Juliet leaned back in a haze. As her eyes focused she could see Brittany grinning at her, as if this was just everyday shenanigans. Ducking her head down to hide the blush creeping up, Juliet felt like she was on cloud 9. The sound of the bottle spinning once again brought her back to reality and she glanced up to where Santana had been enjoying the festivities. Of all the things she expected to see, her girlfriend looking pissed was not one of them. They locked eyes and Juliet could practically feel the daggers Santana was shooting at her. Realizing the severity of the situation, Juliet merely hoped Santana wasn't about to make a scene. Usually that was her M.O. about anything she was upset over but Juliet didn't envision that working out well for anyone in this present situation.
Santana must have had a moment of sobriety, because instead of doing anything rash she simply put her cup down, got up, and walked towards the exit without so much as a word. Looking around at the circle, Juliet was pretty sure no one noticed the interaction had even occurred. Except for possibly Brittany, who at this point Juliet just assumed saw everything. Although, if Brittany had noticed anything, she gave no indication. Since their kiss she had already jumped back into Artie's lap and was still cheering on the game. While trying to figure out if she should let Santana cool off or if she should follow her immediately, Rachel's voice grabbed her attention. Now, standing in the middle of the circle, next to a very buffedled looking Blaine, Rachel was yelling something about finding a new duet partner. Juliet watched as she pulled Blaine to his feet and dragged him stumbling towards the stage. The circle quickly broke apart and Juliet saw this as her indication on what to do next. Quickly getting to her feet, she grabbed her jacket and headed in the direction she last saw Santana heading.
Santana stormed out the front door realizing she didn't really have much of a plan at all. She was more than pissed and if she stayed in that basement a few seconds longer she would have gone all Lima Heights on that party. She looked around noticing how dark the Ohio nights got this time of year. She wasn't driving anywhere that was for sure, and walking seemed pretty pointless as well. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed the porch swing rocking slightly in the wind. Any other time and she'd be mocking Rachel for this antique but with no other option presenting itself she let out a deep sigh and went to go sit, instantly regretting her ensemble's lack of a jacket.
It had only been a few minutes before Juliet burst through the door like a woman on a mission. Santana was slightly amused with how concerned Juliet looked as she passed right by her and headed down the front steps, not even taking a second to glance around. "Serves her right to worry a little after that stunt she just pulled" Santana mused to herself. She watched as Juliet pulled her phone out of her pocket grumbling to the universe "where could she have gone?" Santana sat there silently, wanting to see how this all played out when she felt her phone vibrate followed by her ringtone blasting the "Parks and Rec" theme song.
Juliet spun around and instantly locked eyes with her. Santana didn't react at all, making zero movement to shut her phone off or even pick it up from where it lay beside her. For the remaining bars of the song they continued to stare at each other, a battle of wills. Only when it finally died down did Juliet come back up the stairs to join her on the swing.
"Santana…" Juliet started to speak, placing her hand on Santana's exposed thigh. It was clear to her that Juliet didn't know what she was going to say next. Santana guessed she was going first then, so she shifted around to face her girlfriend. Taking a deep breath, she felt the word vomit of angry Santana Diabla Lopez about to be unleashed.
"Okay listen, so normally I would've found that whole you and Brittany situation really hot, I mean intensely hot. But there's a lot of weird history between us three and...I've been trying to ignore it but I just keep wondering about why the two of you have been hanging out so much more alone. She's always giving you rides places and I mean, I don't know Juliet!" Santana raised her hands up in the air dramatically. "You two looked pretty comfortable mackin' on each other during that game- what am I supposed to think? I mean, Brittany can pretty much give you exactly what you want - she's completely open about what she wants and loves without care of what anyone else thinks. I thought her and I didn't work out because she liked Artie but maybe it had more to do with who I am and just maybe you are starting to see the same things. I just don't know anymore!" Santana exhaled dramatically, somehow managing to say all of that in one breath. She hadn't really meant for it to come out like that. She rarely felt threatened by other people's choices but there was something about those two girls in particular that really got underneath her skin.
Juliet pulled her hand away from Santana's thigh looking like she had been insulted. "Let's get one thing straight. I am not cheating on you with Brittany. Santana you can't be serious?" Santana just shrugged and crossed her arms, she was not about to make this easy. "I know what cheating looks like, trust me I've done it a lot." Santana spat coldly, she knew those words would cut Juliet deeply. Santana just couldn't shake the thought of her best friend and girlfriend actually doing anything behind her back. Maybe it was a little hypocritical but the idea had flickered on the outskirts of her subconscious for the last few weeks and she never gave it any real value until she saw them kiss. Now it was all she could think about and it just seemed so obvious. The fact that Juliet had suddenly gone quiet made her concerns grow even stronger with each passing moment.
Not able to suppress the sensation any longer, Santana's whole body shivered. A combination of the weather and her emotions running rampant it was the only reaction her body could physically manifest at that moment. Without missing a beat, Juliet took off her leather jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. Santana hated it, even in a potentially relationship ending argument she still had to be so chivalrous. Normally she would've shrugged it off in defiance but it had gotten colder just in the time she'd been sitting outside, not to mention she secretly had been wanting to wear that jacket all night. The added fact that it smelled like Juliet was not helping her focus on staying mad. Pulling her thoughts away from the gesture, she realized Juliet continued to open and close her mouth, as if she was trying to form words but nothing was coming out. Santana, not wanting to give her any more time to think of excuses, was about to go off on her again when Juliet interjected with something she never could have expected.
"I came out to my Mom."
Santana froze, she couldn't have heard that right. She watched Juliet for a moment as she let the gravity of her statement sink in. Juliet was avoiding eye contact and fiddling with the ring she always wore on her thumb, it was nothing special just a simple band that suited her. Had Santana imagined her speaking? No, she definitely heard her but she could tell that however it went down, it hadn't gone well. She wished she could say she struggled to imagine what Juliet was going through, but in reality she could picture it perfectly, this situation was both of their worst nightmares.
Santana's heart broke as she saw a single tear make its way down Juliet's cheek. Sure she could be mad at the girl, but the two of them have been through so much, and she knew this was a lot bigger than any petty fight. Trying not to make any sudden movements, she stretched her arm out and around her girlfriend, scooting her closer. So many questions were running through her mind. Had Brittany known? When did this happen? Does this change anything, or even everything? Santana was pretty sure she didn't actually want any of the answers just yet.
Santana could feel Juliet begin to let herself relax into their embrace. The more she relaxed the tighter Santana held on to her. With an audible deep breath, making it all too clear to Santana just how hard this conversation was for her, she continued. "My Mom...she kicked me out of the house when I told her. I've been staying in Brittany's basement." Santana gently pulled Juliet's head on to her shoulder, running her hand through her curls, trying to give as much physical comfort as she could.
Santana sensed that there was likely much more to the story, so she continued to hold onto her, not saying a word, just trying to be there for her as much as she could in that moment. She wanted to know all the details but at the same time, the more information she was given the more the situation became a reality. The fact that people, and not just people but her own girlfriend, actually get kicked out of their homes by their families for being gay was something she knew happened but had been avoiding facing. Santana felt a war being waged inside of her head, half of her was angry and sad for Juliet, wanting to protect her and stand up for her. The other half of her was scared. So scared that this was just the beginning of every secret she held so close unraveling right in front of her.
A gush of cool air hit Santana as she felt Juliet slip her arm under the jacket and around her waist. They were cuddled up so closely together on the swing it was hard to tell where one ended and the other began. Santana gave a hard squeeze to Juliet's arm, a non-verbal way of saying 'don't worry I'm right here', knowing that the last thing either of them needed now was thinking the other was slipping away. With the new revelation as to why Juliet was around Brittany so much lately, Santana had all but forgotten about what happened earlier in the night with the kiss. She knew Juliet would tell her the full story and how their mutual friend became involved when she felt ready. Santana could hear Juliet sniffle as she lifted her gaze to finally look her in the eye. Santana used her thumb to wipe away the remnants of her tears on her cheek and planted a tender kiss on her forehead. "What do you want to do?" Santana spoke softly. "We can go back inside the party, self medicate with a little more alcohol or…" She drifted off, she could feel the last drink she downed during spin the bottle hitting her, there was no way she would be able to drive in the immediate future and she really had no other ideas up her sleeve.
Santana froze as she saw Juliet reach a hand up, only to melt as she caressed the side of her face, how was it that she was now the one being comforted. Everything had become such a mess, but in that moment, with her girlfriend brushing pieces of her long dark hair behind her ear, Santana knew they'd figure this out. She knew deep down somehow, that together they could forge forward stronger. Juliet must have had the same thought as she declined going back to the party and simply stated "I just want to be here with you. Right now on this awful, stereotypical American Dream porch swing." Santana let out a small giggle, Juliet was always so good at relieving tension with humor.
They sat there staring into each other's eyes for a good while when Juliet surprised Santana by leaning in and tentatively placing a soft kiss on her lips. The kiss quickly deepened as Juliet almost desperately pressed herself harder against Santana's embrace. The only way they could be any closer would be if Juliet was in Santana's lap, although she was pretty sure she'd have no objections to that scenario. Santana couldn't tell if it was the alcohol heightening their suppressed feelings from the evening or if this was Juliet trying to hold onto something she thought was going to slip away any second. Trying to provide some reassurance, Santana placed her hand on Juliet's neck, stroking the small patch of skin behind her ear. Here, in this moment, she was thinking about nothing other than needing Juliet to know that she was safe and wanted.
They stayed cuddled up on the swing for what felt like hours, neither truly knowing for how long they had been making out. The rest of the world had disappeared from existence, ignoring the 30 degree temperature outside and the fact that their classmates were only one floor below them, they were content to stay where they were for as long as they could. It wasn't until the screen door went flying open that they were catapulted back to reality. Santana was hesitant to let go of Juliet completely but added some space between them when they heard voices coming through the door. Juliet locked eyes with Kurt as he was the first to exit in front of what sounded like everyone following him. He raised an eyebrow at the scene in front of him and smirked. "Evening ladies, it's such a nice night for some star gazing isn't it?" He chuckled at himself before pulling Blaine across the threshold of the door. Finn following quickly behind, keeping the warbler from face planting onto the hard concrete.
"Oh hey! We thought you guys had left already. The party is actually kind of fading out so we're going to head home." Finn grunted as he was carrying almost all of Blaine's weight while Kurt fumbled around trying to help. As if on cue, most of the club came spilling out the front door after them, everyone splitting up into the few cars that still had a sober driver. Bringing up the rear, Artie came rolling through the door with Brittany sitting in his lap.
"Hey there you two are!" She screamed with excitement pointing towards Santana and Juliet, who scooted apart even farther with the added attention that caused some of their classmates to look their way. "To my casa we go!' Brittany kissed Artie and hopped off his lap, grabbing her car keys from her pocket. "Uh, Britt you definitely should not be driving. I saw you take like 10 shots tonight!" Santana got up from the swing and attempted unsuccessfully to grab the keys out of her hand. Oops, guess she was still pretty tipsy herself. "No you silly goose, my shots were all water. I can't get over how fun drinking out of tiny cups is!" Juliet had stopped the swing and came up to join Santana in front of Brittany, both girls not quite sure they should believe their friend or not. "Besides, you know I have to stay off the juice in solidarity with Lord Tubbington." Brittany rolled her eyes as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. To prove her sobriety, Brittany offered to walk a straight line next to the curb, and as an added bonus she did it on her hands.
Arriving at Brittany's, everyone said their goodnights and Santana and Juliet made their way down into the basement. It was all tidy like it usually was when Santana came over but now that she knew what was going on, it was like her eyes were opened to a whole new world. She could see Juliet's things placed in certain areas, and the pull out bed from the couch was already popped open with Juliet's pillow and favorite blanket on it. As Santana took Juliet's jacket off and laid it on the arm of the couch, she noticed her girlfriend just standing in the middle of the room like a deer caught in the headlights, unsure what to do next. Santana instinctively went over and enveloped her in a hug, kissing her head and rubbed small circles on her back.
"I know the whole point of this sleepover was to...well, not sleep...but...do you mind if we go to bed? I just feel absolutely exhausted." Juliet warily looked up at Santana with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry." She added quickly before turning her head away, she was half expecting Santana to get upset at her request. Santana did all she could to stop herself from tearing up at the broken expression her girlfriend wore. She lifted Juliet's chin and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "We can do whatever you want, don't be sorry. Tonight I am 100% here for you and what you need."
The two of them clumsily changed out of their party clothes, the liquor they had consumed earlier still getting the better of them. Santana noticed that Juliet still seemed off, almost unsure about being here with her in this moment. It was like she was nervous but also relieved that she shared this secret she had been hiding for who knows how long. As they curled up under the blankets, Santana tried to think of something comforting to say, but nothing felt right. She just wanted Juliet to know that even if she wasn't wanted back home, she was wanted here, right now. Before she could decide she felt Juliet shaking, soon realizing that she wasn't just shaking - she was sobbing. It was as if she finally was able to release all the tension she had been holding on to. Santana let a few of her own tears escape as she nestled in closer. Some time had passed as the sobs slowly subsided, Juliet falling into a deep sleep, safely in Santana's arms. Fighting to keep her own eyes open, Santana drifted off as she fulfilled her promise to become Juliet's bonus blanket.
A groan escaped Santana's lips as she tried to open her eyes. Attempting to get her bearings straight, she started to regret how much alcohol she had consumed the night before. She tried to stretch, but quickly realized her arm was stuck. "I better not have spent another night at Lima's finest, I've already used my one get out of jail free card." She thought to herself. Suddenly, what she thought were handcuffs started to snuggle in closer, breathing a heavy sigh. When it registered that it was Juliet and not a pair of handcuffs, she pulled her girlfriend in tighter and ran the tips of her fingers lightly across her bare shoulder. She softly kissed the crook of Juliet's neck as the previous nights memories started flooding back into Santana's mind.
Juliet stirred a few minutes later, feeling cozy in the Santana created sauna wrapped around her. She blinked a couple of times, trying to adjust to the light of day as she looked up towards her girlfriend. Juliet was thankful she was even still around, her anxiety over telling Santana everything that happened with her Mom had her convinced it was all going to be over once she knew. But here they were, the morning after and Santana was the opposite of gone. In fact, she was practically suffocating Juliet, their bodies intertwined underneath the blanket. Juliet wiggled slightly out of the embrace, moving so her back was flat against the mattress as she stared up at the ceiling.
"Hey." Juliet tested out her voice groggily. She gave a brief smile as her head started pounding, reminding her how much they drank the night before. "San… how much of last night do you remember?" Juliet focused her eyes on the ceiling, not really sure which answer she would prefer to hear. Santana shifted around on the mattress, laying on her side and propping herself up on her elbow allowing her to look down at her girlfriend. "Hi." Santana said softly, leaning in to gingerly kiss her girlfriend's cheek. She paused slightly before figuring out the right answer to give. "I can remember as much or as little as you want me to."
Juliet released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. She turned on her side to face Santana as she tried to figure out where to start. Santana smiled tenderly, intertwining their fingers as she played with Juliet's ring, something that quickly was becoming a favorite habit of hers. They both laid there in silence until Santana decided to start the ball rolling, she hesitantly began to ask the biggest thing that had been weighing on her mind since she found out. "So, how come you told Brittany before me?" She paused, avoiding Juliet's gaze, she didn't want to push her but needed to get this out. "I want you to know, no I need you to know, that you can trust me, with anything. The good, the bad, the ugly, I'll always be here."
Juliet sighed, rolling back onto the bed to continue her intense examination of the ceiling. "For the record, I didn't tell Brittany. She figured it out somehow." Santana snorted. "Seems right, the girl knows just about everything." Juliet nodded, letting the room fill with silence before speaking again. "I was...kind of scared of how you would react. I know you're terrified of your parents finding out and I was just nervous that ... I don't know." Juliet stuttered around her words, she didn't want to offend Santana but she also wanted be honest with her about how she felt.
"You were afraid I would run." It wasn't a question, Santana feared this was why she hadn't been told. With a large sigh she shifted on the bed lying on her back, adjacent to Juliet. She kept their fingers intertwined as they both sat in silence once again. "Don't assume it's so easy to scare me off. I'm not going to run away, okay? You can talk to me about anything." Santana stretched her arm up around Juliet's head to pull her in closer, running her fingers through the mop of curls on her head. Juliet relaxed into her embrace and took a deep breath. She might as well start at the beginning, Santana deserved to know everything.
Juliet took her through all that had transpired, from the moment her mother showed up at sectionals, to staying in the sports shed, to Brittany offering her basement, and everything in between. Santana stayed silent for the entirety of the story, allowing every work to sink in. Unable to suppress her own emotions, Santana had become visibly upset when Juliet mentioned she had slept in the equipment shed for almost a week, but had managed to keep herself in check through the rest of the story. "...and that's pretty much everything that's been going on the past month or so." Juliet pensively turned her head to gauge Santana's expression. What she saw staring back at her was a mixture of sadness and horror. Santana stumbled to respond, the words not quite forming properly as her mind raced. "I...babe….fuck! You should not have gone through all of that alone. I could've done something… I would've…" Santana faded off unsure how to continue.
"What, let me move into your house? You've never even let me meet your Mom." Juliet winced as she said that out loud. Rehashing all her memories from the past month had raised her blood pressure, she didn't mean to be snarky but it just came out. Santana huffed but didn't have much of a rebuttal, turning the subject back to Juliet's mom she said, "Is there zero chance of your mom coming around? Maybe as time goes by, she will realize how fucking horrible she is being. I mean you are still her daughter!" Juliet sighed, her memory flashing back to part of that night after sectionals that she hadn't told Santana yet, that she hadn't actually told anyone. "I don't know about that… "
Juliet stood in her bedroom, tears filling her eyes after the confrontation in the kitchen. She hastily threw a few of her belongings into her duffle bag, her adrenaline was pumping and she had no idea where she was going to go from here. But if her own mother wasn't going to accept her then she would find someone, somewhere that would. She had no other option.
"It doesn't have to be like this." Juliet was startled when she heard her mother's voice behind her. "Everyone deserves a second chance." Josslyn spoke softly, clutching pieces of paper in her hands. Juliet wiped the tears from her face as she walked towards her mother, maybe there was some hope. "I knew you would come around, I am still the same me, the same daughter you have been raising. This doesn't have to change anything-"
Josslyn held up the papers in her hand, cutting her daughter off mid sentence. "Pastor Jeff has been helpful in researching some places with me over the past few months, ever since that situation with the neighbor girl this summer. I've been trying to prepare myself to help you further if it got to that point again. We can work on this together, as a family." Juliet grabbed the brochures from her mother's hand and glanced over them. "Conversion therapy!? Are you kidding me? You can't be serious!" Juliet crumpled the papers, tossing them towards her waste bin. With this latest attack she knew there was no turning back, "I'm not broken. I don't need to be fixed." She zipped up her duffel bag, grabbing her jacket and her school stuff off her desk as she pushed past her mother to leave.
Juliet made her way down the stairs as she heard Josslyn holler the last words she would hear her mother speak to her. "Fine. I'd rather have no daughter at all than one that chooses to go to hell for being an abomination."
Santana had sat up during the recount of that night, sitting cross legged in her baggy t-shirt as she faced Juliet with complete attention. This was exactly the way she feared her family would react; she was at a loss for words. She cupped the side of Juliet's face, tenderly leaning over to kiss her. When she pulled back they both stared at each other for a few moments. "You're not an abomination, I hope you know that, I need you to know that. There's is absolutely nothing wrong with you nor did you choose this." Santana spoke softly, saying these words aloud to someone other than herself in a mirror, she knew this feeling all too well. Juliet smiled, reaching up to push some of Santana's hair behind her ear before planting another soft kiss on her lips.
When they pulled apart, Santana got a mischievous grin on her face, she figured it was time to lighten the mood a bit. "You know... I may have convinced my parents that they needed a weekend away to go visit some family in Columbus." She raised an eyebrow flirtily as she climbed on top of her girlfriend, straddling her as she leaned down and began to kiss Juliet's pulse points along the side of her neck. In between kisses she continued "This means they won't know either way if I am home or not. I had intended to convince you to try and sneak away this weekend but," Santana continued to travel downwards towards her collarbone. "If we are trying to look on the bright side, it seems that we have the entire weekend to ourselves." Juliet smirked as Santana pulled the covers up over their heads.
The two of them spent a blissful morning together under the covers, giggling and laughing at one another as they blocked out the rest of the world. Santana did her best to support Juliet and to make it all about her but the more she comforted her the more it was reciprocated, making them both feel whole being together. They stayed that way until Brittany, with a hoard of pups trailing behind her, interrupted them. Neither girl was all too disappointed when they realized Brittany had brought coffee downstairs with her. Santana made a mental note to remember to thank Brittany for all she had done.