And we're onto Part 2! This will cover ten months from February of their 5th year. A good chunk of this chapter is inspired by the Glee girls'the first time ever I saw your face song, and I've had it in my head since watching that episode. You should listen to it during the first part :) /watch?v=vKPBb2InkrI

PART TWO

Chapter 11: The Morning After

February, Fifth Year

Her heart was beating perfectly in time with mine. The rhythm transmitted through her chest to pulsate against my hand, never faltering even as I shifted so I could observe her face better. Her skin was so smooth and her cheeks tinted faintly pink. Blonde hair billowed around her head on the pillow and I skated two fingers down one strand, remembering doing the same last night. My fingers continued their journey down to her neck, tenderly tracing the marks I had unintentionally left on her, then down further and across her collarbone, round her shoulder and slowly down the arm resting above the duvet.

In the tranquillity of our Room of Requirement, it was okay to recall everything that had happened last night without worry. Her kisses that were so gentle at first, then more insistent when she realised that I wasn't going to push her away. The touches, that one after the other relieved me of any tension and sought to comfort me further, persuading me in a way that Brittany knew words would never be able to do. The way that she had known to turn off the lights and climb into bed before beginning to unbutton my robes, so my nerves couldn't get the better of me. And then for hours later, her hands guiding mine when I became unsure, kissing me again and again in that way she could do to push away the uncertainty about breaking our rules.

Because the rules didn't matter now. Me and Brittany were best friends, and I'd come to the conclusion at some point last night that nothing we did could ever change that. I was certain of it.

And also because last night had been special. Special like I'd always thought my first time would be, and Brittany's, until that week in our third year when we had both lost our virginity and 'special' had been revealed as little more than a hope-filled lie. But this wasn't a lie; nothing about this could be anything but truth. It was almost like Brittany had found the 'special' we both should have felt back then and somehow made it about last night instead. Two years of resisting the lust that always came when I kissed Brittany, and now I was wishing I'd never made up those new rules after all. If I hadn't, maybe we could have been doing this for the last two years instead of her chasing me when things got too heated and I ran away.

Wanting to apologise in some way for making her wait so long, especially for something that really wasn't that big of a deal now I thought about it, I leaned in to kiss her softly. We both slept with guys regularly, and I'd had this idea in my head that it would somehow be different with Brittany. And I guess yeah, it was kind of different - Puck had never made me feel so good - but of course it didn't mean anything more than when I had got busy with Matt when I was drunk at that party last week. Puck had been kind of mad, but considering he slept with Annalise at New Year's he had no room to talk. I reassured myself that no one needed to know what me and Britt got up to. It was our business. I just had to make sure Brittany understood that.

I continued to place tender kiss all over her face, surprised she hadn't woken up yet. Normally she was awake before me. I tugged at her earlobe with my lips and noticed her mouth twitch. So. She wasn't quite as asleep as she seemed. But if she wanted to play, then I could play. I blew gently into her ear and her head tilted slightly away, confirming my suspicions. My hand moved up her arm to slip under the covers, fingers tactically sliding down the channel between her breasts - at which she twitched again - to lay flat on her stomach. I let my hand rest there for a moment and she stayed far too still for a sleeping person, holding her breath as she waited for my next move. Her lips were slightly parted in anticipation and I longed to kiss them again, but instead, I began to tickle just above her hipbone.

"Aaah!" she shrieked, giving up on her pretence immediately and rolling away from my hand straight off the edge of the bed. She landed with a thump and sat there half-gasping, half-laughing. I giggled - not really a noise I make in front of anyone but Brittany - and rolled as well so I was lying lengthways on the bed, my head sticking over the edge to look down at her recovering on the floor. She'd been doomed in tickle wars since we were six years old and I'd found the one spot that sent her into hysterics every time.

"Not - fair - Santana!" she gasped, arms clutching at her ribs as she tried to catch her breath. For a moment I allowed my eyes to wander over the rest of her body, but when my eyes eventually moved up to her face I found her smirking at me, apparently recovered, and I blushed. Caught again. No different to the eleven year old version of myself eyeing Brittany in the prefects' bathroom, except this time I was sure she didn't mind.

"Well, next time don't pretend to be asleep when I want to get my sweet lady kisses on," I replied, raising an eyebrow at her in an attempt to save face. She grinned wickedly as I spoke and I suddenly wondered if I should have said that. How was it that Brittany was the only person at Hogwarts who could make me doubts my own words and catch me off guard? She crawled closer on her hands and knees, not caring in the least that she wasn't wearing a single item of clothing. I watched silently as she approached, trying to at least keep my eyes on her face and not the rest of her. I wasn't Puck, I had the ability to focus on someone's face instead of their boobs. But they did look so enticing…

Her lips pressed against mine before I'd even realised how close she was and I melted into her as I felt her arms wrap firmly around my shoulders. My hand slid up the bed to reach for her but before I had even touched her she was suddenly pulling on my shoulders with all her weight, sending me tumbling over the edge of the bed to join her on the floor. Rolling over to lie on my back, I gaped up at where she was crouched. She was biting her lip to try and hold in her laughter.

"What was that for?" I demanded, acting playfully aggrieved. I felt suddenly uncomfortable when I realised how exposed I was in front of her and I dropped an arm over my chest and crossed my legs to try and cover myself a little. But she didn't even seem to realise, the way her eyes were raking over my body, taking in everything as if my little protection from her gaze wasn't there at all. The humour that had been visible on her face moments before was being eaten up entirely by desire. My breath hitched in my throat. She didn't answer my question, instead lifting a leg over my waist and leaning forward as she straddled me. The closeness sent me spinning back to last night.

It suddenly became difficult to breathe at all. I couldn't move or look away, my eyes were locked on hers. Now I was the one waiting to see what she would do next, completely at her mercy. She leaned in slowly, brushing my hair carefully away from my face with long, graceful fingers, but this time when we kissed it was deeper than before. My tongue rolled against her lower teeth and she mumbled something unintelligible, pulling back for only a second before she reattached her lips to my neck. And fuck, her body pressing down against mine was driving me crazy. I kept my eyes squeezed shut as I felt her starting to kiss her way down my body, her tongue drawing patterns on every bit of skin she could find and her hands dropping down to run over my thighs from my hips to my knees and then back again, every whisper of her fingers producing its own spark.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath, a tremor running through my body when one finger skated a little further down my leg than the rest. I curled my toes into the blue carpet and one hand grasped the duvet hanging off the bed when her mouth reached my belly button, trying to hold in every tingle of pleasure she produced in anticipation of what was to come. Her lips brushed the inside of my thigh and I felt my knee jerk upwards, knocking against Brittany's leg.

"We'd be so great together, Santana," she whispered against my thigh. I heard, though. I heard what she said and all the implications behind it, and all the heat that had been rising in my body transformed into a deathly chill.

"Stop." My voice sounded hollow in my ears and I slid hastily away from her on my back, pulling my legs out from underneath her and sitting up and turning so she couldn't see me. My body was still throbbing from her touch but I couldn't carry on when she said something like that.

"W-what? Santana, you can't-"

"You can't say stuff like that!" I protested loudly. I curled into the side of the duvet, grabbing a corner and wrapping it over my shoulders to cover myself. Everything had been going so well, why did she have to ruin it by saying shit like that? "You have a boyfriend! You think Mike would be okay with us… dating?" I hissed the last word as quietly as possible even though there was no one else around. It stung my tongue, just having to say it aloud. Had she seriously not heard everything I'd been saying over the past two years, between making out in empty classrooms and secret passages?

"What? I didn't say we should date, Santana, I was just saying that if we were we'd be great!"

"But we can't, we're girls. We're just best friends," I told her firmly.

"I know, Santana. It was hypocritical."

"Hypothe-"

"I know it's not the right word, I don't care!" Brittany snapped. In the corner of my vision I saw her moving and I averted my eyes. Robes flew across the room and landed in my lap, and I took the hint to quickly find the rest of my clothes and dress quietly. How had everything gone so wrong so quickly? Earlier this morning, when I had woken up to Brittany with memories of last night, it had felt perfect. Finally I dared to look up, and found her watching me fully-clothed with a conflicted expression, leaning against the old chest of drawers that still had photos of me and Tony on top. The room had changed a lot since I had first summoned it, but hints of Tony remained everywhere I looked and gave me comfort. I breathed in his presence that was somehow still here five years later, calming myself before speaking.

"I'm sorry, Brittany."

"I just wanted to make you feel good like last night!" she replied sharply, obviously still upset by my sudden rejection of her advances. "I didn't mean anything, I didn't say we should date, that was you who said that! I know we're best friends, you don't have to remind me every time I say something like that. It's just sex, like it was just making out before. Right?"

Maybe I'd got a bit ahead of myself assuming she didn't understand.

"Right. Sorry," I replied quietly.

She turned away, hunting for her bag, and I couldn't leave it like that.

"Wait, Britt, wait," I said, stepping forward to gently take her arm and turn her. Her lips were pressed together, and I knew she was trying to hold in whatever she was feeling. "It…" I should have thought of what I was going to say before getting her attention. "Just… just because it's only between us, and we're best friends, it doesn't…" I hesitated again, not sure I wanted to admit this. "Doesn't mean it was nothing. It felt good, it was…" Special. I fought with myself to say it, to admit it aloud. God, I hated talking about this. But she was watching me, looking less upset as she listened. Fuck it. "It was special, like first times are supposed to be. Even between best friends," I couldn't resist adding. She was smiling now though, almost in disbelief, and didn't seem to care that I'd added a disclaimer.

"It was?"

I couldn't deny the happiness I'd felt waking up this morning. I nodded. Maybe we didn't have a conventional friendship, but that was okay, because when me and Britt were alone what other people thought didn't matter.

"Of course. We're special, aren't we? This place is special, made just for us," I pointed out, gesturing around at the Room of Requirement that had adapted to all our needs over the years. "That makes last night special. It's our secret. Just ours."

Brittany beamed at me.

We entered the Great Hall together with our little fingers linked and all thoughts of our earlier argument gone. I was dressed in my quidditch uniform while Brittany was garbed in florescent green that she somehow managed to pull off. Mike and Puck were already deep in antagonistic discussion about the day's quidditch match, but both were satisfactorily distracted when we arrived together and sat in between them. Mike gave Brittany a sweet little kiss on the cheek while Puck sent me a wink - we both knew I wouldn't appreciate any attempt of his to be romantic. We told people we were dating for convenience, but there weren't any gifts of roses or moonlit walks involved. He bought me dinner, and we fucked. That was our deal. It was easy, and neither of us got too attached. Sometimes it stopped, like when Puck had gone crazy after that Lauren bitch - I swear she must have slipped him a love potion - but he always came back to me at the end. We kept each other secure in our positions at the top of the school's social ladder, and that plus a regular hook-up session was all either of us needed. It was supremely uncomplicated.

"Ready to beat those Ravenclaws into the ground, Lopez?"

"Am I ever not ready to beat Ravenclaws?" I replied, reaching for an orange and starting to peel it.

"Brittany, is there any chance that one day you'll support me in a match instead of Santana?" I heard Mike ask jokingly. She laughed, leaning into him.

"Mike, you know Santana wouldn't let me be seen in anything other than green. Anyway, blue just doesn't suit my skin, it makes me look like a fish!"

I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing. I loved it when Brittany made comments like that on purpose. She said similar things without realising often enough, but I could hear the change in her voice when she was doing it intentionally. Her elbow dug into my ribs as if she knew I could tell, and I kept my mouth shut obediently. I nodded at whatever Puck was saying as I looked across at her flirting with Mike. He was loving the attention just like always - who wouldn't? - but I bet he didn't notice the little things. The way her fingers drummed against the table in excitement for the upcoming match. The way her eyes widened slightly and her speech rushed when she thought of something else to say and wanted to get it all out before she forgot. He definitely didn't see the marks I had left on her last night, now completely concealed by the spell I had learnt within two weeks of first starting to date Puck. I could picture them now. I had memorised every last one when I had been watching her this morning.

My thoughts were interrupted by a whiny voice almost as irritating as Berry's, and a magically-enhanced microphone shoved into my face.

"Santana Lopez, is it true the Slytherin quidditch team has been hexing broomsticks this season in an attempt to prevent another year of Hufflepuff victory?"

I knocked the microphone out of my face quickly, glaring at the nervous-looking Jacob hovering across the table.

"When we beat Hufflepuff in the cup final, it will be by knocking them squarely out of the sky, not by doing something that Professor Beiste is going to spot in a heartbeat, idiot. Go bother someone else."

He obeyed immediately, turning to Puck instead.

"How has your break-up with Lauren Zizes affected your quidditch performance? Rumour has it you will be pining for her in the stands rather than paying attention to the game."

"Why would I be pining when I've got the hottest girl in school at my right side?" Puck asked with a raised eyebrow, turning to kiss me full-on. I didn't protest; showing off was what we did best together. I brought my hand up to his neck, purposely scraping with one fingernail so that when he pulled away a scratch remained, marking my territory right in front of the school's worst gossip. Perfect.

"Puckerman blocks the quaffle! That's another opportunity missed for Ravenclaw and the score remains at 80-40 to Slytherin!"

I caught the quaffle easily as it fell into my hands from Puck and did a swift 180 to speed in the opposite direction towards the waiting three hoops, dropping down when I felt the distinctive roar of an approaching bludger which zoomed straight over my head.

"Karofsky, Azimio, get your act together!" I screamed to the wind as I continued towards my target. Another bludger came from nowhere and I dived desperately to avoid being hit, but the quaffle slipped from my fingers into the hands of Quinn hovering just beneath. She did the mirror image of my previous 180, and made her way straight back towards Puck. I swore under my breath, recovering myself as I twisted my broom to chase her.

"And the quaffle goes to Rutherford, and to Fuller, now back to Fabray – and it's a goal for Ravenclaw! 80-50!"

I punched the air in frustration, wondering what the fuck Karofsky and Azimio were playing at letting those bludgers get so close. A familiar voice caught my attention and I turned my head to find Brittany just a short distance away in the stands, shouting encouragement at the top of her voice. I grinned at her, but then a much more urgent voice sounded from behind me.

"Lopez, mark Chang!"

"What?" I replied, bewildered. Mark Mike? I was a chaser!

"Just do it!" Jason bellowed as he streaked past me with Mike following a moment later. I realised what was going on and sped after them, grateful papá had bought me the latest broom earlier this year. Mike was a great seeker, but I had the edge on him with speed. I inched closer with every second even as he gained on Jason and the three of us soared far above the pitch into the thick clouds. I was so close… Without warning, an image of him kissing Brittany on the cheek this morning appeared in my head and I lost all patience. I lashed out with one gloved hand, grabbing the end of his broom and yanking on it as hard as I could. He spun to the left out of control, his broom rolling. He yelled in panic, but - fortunately for Brittany - he managed to stay on. It was too late, though, with Jason diving back down to the pitch with that fluttering ball of gold firmly in his hand.

"You cheat!" Mike shouted, flying towards me now he was back in control of his broom. "I had that snitch until you grabbed my broom! Professor Beiste won't just let you win after a foul like that!"

"Look around, Mikey. Clouds. Everywhere. Professor Beiste didn't see a thing and there's no way you can prove it. Deal," I retorted. Normally I quite liked Mike, but today for some reason - I guessed it must be the quidditch frenzy - I had the desire to irritate him as much as I possibly could. I circled down to join my cheering teammates before he could respond. Brittany was already running across the pitch and the moment I landed she jumped on me, tackling me to the ground. I laughed victoriously, hugging her back as Mike landed a few metres away, glaring at me menacingly but not daring to say anything in front of Brittany. He knew she would take my side. I smirked at him as Jason's booming voice called across the pitch.

"Party in the common room tonight, Slytherin supporters welcome!"

It was going to be a good night.