A/N: So when I first started this story it was because I have a love for writing and a sad and pathetic (by that I mean awesome) obsession with Brittana. But I continue it because of you guys. Thank you so much for all the criticism, reviews, and for sticking with this story. You guys are really humbling and keep me motivated. I don't name my chapters, but if I did, this one would be called Baseball and New Year's. I hope you enjoy it.
Sometimes in life, you are thrown curveballs. It seems to be an additional unwritten law of physics (although to be realistic, such a rule would defeat the laws of physics, which tend to be unrealistically predictable). But because of this unwritten law of physics, you have made it a rule to expect the unexpected.
However, no matter how unexpected it may have been, you never expected that you would someday be sitting in a coffee shop across from a beautiful blonde who you had (unexpectedly) fallen for. You also never expected to be staring in awe as said blonde laughed with your niece, who, also unexpectedly, has become the most important person in your life. And to think, just a few months ago, you had no idea these two people even existed.
Like you said, life likes curveballs (not that you're that into baseball where you could use it as metaphor because that is just too lesbian for you and like, the Yankees aren't even that good. Not that you would know, it's not like you watched them totally cream the Reds this year…).
The point is, that because of your rule to expect the curveball that life will inevitably throw at you, you may have forgotten to watch out for the changeup. And that is why you don't expect to look up and see the two most important people in your life looking at you curiously.
"What? Sorry I zoned out for a second." You look back and forth between them and it makes you uneasy to see Brittany looking at you expectantly while Cass looks at you with wide, panicked eyes.
"I said, since Christmas was such a success, I was wondering when I get to meet your family, San." Brittany raises an eyebrow at you and suddenly Cass' panicked expression makes sense.
It's not like you purposely avoided the 'my family hates me' talk with Brittany. You just… happened to not talk about it while also, maybe, kind of, sort of avoiding it. Those are two vastly different things.
"Oh." Now Cass is looking at you like you are the dumbest person alive. Her eyes are practically screaming at you that you're a moron for not telling Brittany this sooner. "Well about that…" You stop, unsure how to continue.
Cass huffs loudly across the table. "You are an idiot. I can't believe you didn't tell her."
Brittany looks between the two of you. "Tell me what?" You glare at Cass. She is definitely not helping.
"She doesn't have anyone for you to meet." Cass looks at Brittany. "Her mom like, totally disowned her."
"Cass, shut up."
"Why, I'm not the one that's too scared to tell my girlfriend that my parents hate me."
You stare at her angrily. "Screw you."
"Wait, Cass you have a girlfriend?" Brittany looks surprised.
"What?" Cass thinks about it. "Oh, no that was hypothetical Britt. I was talking about her." She nods her head at you.
"I'm so confused." Brittany's forehead scrunches in confusion, but you're too pissed at Cass to appreciate the cuteness of the expression.
"My mom kicked me out when I was sixteen," you state bitterly. Now that it's out there, you might as well tell it how it is. Cass sucks, stupid little bitch (what, you're allowed to say that in your head, aren't you?).
Brittany looks at you, confused. "Why?"
You shrug. "I'm gay."
You watch as Brittany's expression turns from confused to surprised to angry to sad. "Seriously?"
"Yeah." You shrug.
"What about your dad?"
"He left when I was little." You avoid her eyes because you don't want her to see your expression. Not that you're sad or angry about either of these things anymore, because you're not. You just… don't want her to see.
The table is silent and you look up to see Brittany looking at you sadly and Cass licking whipped cream off the straw to her Frappuccino, apparently bored. You could punch her, seriously.
"It's not a big deal," you eventually get out. "I'm an adult now, and it doesn't matter anymore."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Brittany's eyes flash with hurt and you feel really guilty. And a little pissed that Cass was right, you should've told Britt before. Fucking stupid.
You bite your lip. "I'm sorry, Britt." You frantically search your brain for an excuse, but come up blank. You sigh. "I should've told you."
"Yeah, you should've," Cass cuts in.
"Cass, shut up," you snap at her.
"Don't give me attitude, you got yourself into this situation. It's not my fault."
"Yeah, well she didn't want you either so shut up."
Your eyes widen. Crap. You didn't mean to say that.
Cass stares at you for a second, and you can feel the tension that has suddenly covered your little booth in the back of the coffee shop. Brittany's eyes tick between the two of you like the second hand on a clock.
You're pretty sure Cass is going to yell, maybe cause a scene and storm out. But apparently life likes screwballs too. Her eyebrows furrow and she turns to Brittany. "Hi, I'm Santana's only family, and she's mine. I'm glad we could meet." She holds out her hand and Brittany looks at it confused, before finally shaking it.
"I'm glad we could meet too," she says slowly and looks at you. You just stare at the both of them, shocked.
Cass smirks and looks at you. "You should really close your mouth, Tía, you look like a dead fish."
Your jaw snaps shut and she laughs before continuing to lick her straw. Brittany tilts her head to the side and looks at you curiously, her eyes big and wide like a puppy's. "I'm sorry," you mouth at her, hoping she can tell you really do feel like shit for not saying something sooner.
She nods and you know this is her way of saying that it's okay, but you'll talk about it later.
Suddenly, Cass snorts to herself and you look at her confused.
"Do you ever think that when Kurt and Blaine are together they realize they look like a fairy and a hobbit from a scene out of Lord of the Rings or some shit?" That statement is so Cass. Both you and Brittany stare at her, and you realize this is her way of saying things can get back to normal.
A fucking fastball.
Finally.
The one night you truly hate working at the bar is New Year's Eve.
It's ridiculously busy and everyone gets so wasted and you don't get to join in and celebrate because you have to work. It sucks.
So really, it's no wonder you're in a shitty mood as you mix a rum and coke for some guy sitting at the bar with his wife. They get to have a jolly good drunk time and you get to sweat under the bar lights until three in the morning. The idea has you scowling like nobody's business.
"You know, I hear if you keep your face like that long enough it could get stuck like that."
You whip around from the sink to find Quinn leaning across the bar, chin in her hands.
"Oh. Hey Fabray."
"Lopez."
"What are you doing here?"
Quinn smiles at you. "Am I not allowed to go out with my friends on New Year's?"
You shrug. "Not if you're going to come in here and give me extra work, bitch."
"Oh, well I can leave if you want." She smirks at you and you roll your eyes.
You guys have sort of become friends since you started dating Brittany. You even went on this weird double date with her and Puck. Apparently they're serious now. Which is weird as fuck, but whatever.
"Who are you here with?"
She shrugs. "Nobody yet, but the night is young. You wouldn't happen to know where my charming boyfriend is, would you?"
You might throw up. Puck, charming? What alternate universe does she live in? "I think Fuckerman is in the back." Quinn nods and pulls out a stool at the bar. "You want something to drink?"
"Sure, just make me anything, I'm not picky."
You hand her a beer because it's easy and if her friends aren't here yet, you don't want her getting drunk. You don't have time or the patience to deal with any extra drunk people tonight. Then you tell Finn you'll be right back and head to the back, where Puck is doing some inventory.
"Your woman is here," you say dryly and he jumps because he didn't hear you come back.
"Shit, you scared me." He rubs his neck before perking up. "Wait Quinn is here?"
"Yep. She just came in."
He smiles this disgustingly cute grin and it's weird because you've never seen him act like this about a girl. It's gross. "Cool. I'll be back out in a few, I'm almost done here." He pauses. "Wait, shouldn't you be out there?"
You shrug. "I told Finn to man the fort for now. I wanted to talk to you."
"About what?"
"What's the deal with you and Quinn? I thought you were the 'can't-be-tied-down Puckasaurus'?"
He shrugs and continues checking off stuff on his clipboard. "I don't know, she's different."
You raise your eyebrows. "Different how? I mean, yeah, she's hotter than most girls you get in your pants, but she seems kind of… wholesome."
He grunts. "Look, Quinn is hot, but that's not the only reason I'm dating her. She's like, I don't know, real."
"I knew you were making up all those girls from before." You smirk because yeah, you came back here to get the scoop on this relationship, but he's being unusually serious and it's freaking you out. You and Puck do not do serious. You're fucking lesbros.
"Shut up." He picks up a bottle of wine and examines it. "She's been through a lot, and like… experienced life and shit." He puts the bottle down and scratches something on the clipboard. "That's more than me and you can say. We haven't done shit with our lives."
"Right." You roll your eyes. When did he get so annoyingly mature? "So what's so awesome that she's experienced that makes her better than the rest of us."
He sighs and looks at you. "I didn't say she was better, just different."
"Just answer the question."
"I don't know man, like, she traveled to Europe and lived there for a year. She made money doing odd jobs so that she could travel around and take her pictures and become a better photographer and stuff."
"So she's different because she's been to Europe?" What a joke this is. Why did you start this conversation, you should go back to work.
"I don't know, she's mature, okay?" Puck gets this serious look in his eyes. "Did you know she was pregnant when she was sixteen?"
You shake your head. This was news to you. "No. So what, did she just leave her kid at home to come out partying tonight?" That's mature.
He scoffs at you. "No, she gave it up for adoption, dipshit."
"Hmmm. So where's the father?"
He shrugs. "Douche bag isn't in the picture anymore." Puck smirks slightly. "Only because I think she threw all those ones out."
You roll your eyes. He's such an idiot. "Okay." You look at your phone and see you should get back to work before Finncompetent screws something up. You push away from the wall you're leaning on but Puck grabs your wrist.
"Come on, San, you don't only like Brittany because she's hot do you? What happened to 'one-night-stand Santana'?" You roll your eyes. Fine. He has a point.
"Whatever, I'm not judging you," you tell him. "Just wanted to see what the deal was. As long you're like, happy and shit, that's fine with me." You aim for nonchalance, but it kind of sounds like you care. Ugh.
Puck lets go of your wrist and smiles. "We're still lesbros for life, dude."
"Yeah, whatever." You roll your eyes again, but smile and fist bump him before getting back to work.
Turns out that Quinn's friends are Brittany, Kurt, Blaine, and Rachel. Well, actually Brittany invited them, but they're all standing by Quinn when you get back. You wave to them and tell Finn he can take his break if he wants, since you were gone longer than you expected to be. You hand off a Bloody Mary to an older woman and walk over to the group.
"Hello, Santana," Kurt smiles at you. "You're looking absolutely stunning in your sexy bar get-up tonight."
"Compliments don't get you free drinks, Ladylips." Blaine chuckles beside his husband and you raise an eyebrow. "Laugh all you want, Pinstripe. You should hear the question Cass asked about the two of you the other day, it was priceless."
"We honestly don't want to know, Santana, but thank you." Kurt holds up his hands in an exaggerated offended motion. You roll your eyes and turn to the others. "Can I get you guys anything, since you insist on making me work? Without giving me tips, I'm guessing." Bitch friends never leave tips. Fucking lame.
"I'll have what Quinn's having, if you don't mind, Santana." Rachel smiles at you and you refrain from rolling your eyes again. Quinn could be right. They might get stuck one day.
"Whatever, Berry." You turn to your girlfriend. "You want anything Britt?"
She winks and points at you seductively, and you fight the way your scowl starts to morph into a smile. "I'll just have what they're having, babe."
You get them a few beers and help out a few more customers before Finn comes back. He smiles at you and you see him eye Rachel as he fills a glass from the tap. She smiles cutely at him and you pray that relationship doesn't amount to anything. He'd look even more like a gigantic freak standing next to her munchkin ass. You sigh and get Quinn another beer, but they've moved to a table so that they could all fit. You place it on the bar for when one of them comes for refills. As you're thinking it, a familiar blonde gracefully leans against the counter.
"Hey gorgeous, did it hurt when you fell from heaven?"
You raise an eyebrow at Brittany. "Is that supposed to be charming?"
She shrugs cutely as you set another beer in front of her. "Got your attention didn't it?"
You shake your head. "No, I think you'll have to do better than that."
"Mmm." She smiles and leans over the bar to kiss you. "I disagree." You laugh and kiss her again. "Where's Cass tonight?"
You shrug. "She's out with friends from school, I guess."
Brittany tilts her head to the side. "Did she say who?"
You think back. "Some girl named Melanie I think." You nod. "Yeah, and a kid named… ummm. Crater?"
She narrows her eyes and laughs. "That's John Crater, he's in gym with her. All the kids just call him Crater, though. He's a nice kid." She purses her lips in thought. "Don't know any Melanie's though. She might have filled all her gym credit already."
"Hmmm." You nod and wipe down the section of the bar in front of her.
"What time do you get off?"
"Like three."
She pouts and you smile slightly. "Do you have a break before that?"
"Yeah I can take one again soon, probably. Before midnight."
She nods and smiles and your stomach does that clenching thing again. Does she get prettier every day, or…? "Okay. Come see me on your break then."
"Okay."
Brittany leans over the bar and kisses you again before picking up her beers and heading over to her table. "Love you!" She calls over her shoulder.
"Love you, too." Yeah, you definitely lost the battle to keep a scowl on your face. You shake your head and get back to work, again.
You're exhausted when it's finally time to take another break. It's a little before midnight and you've been going nonstop since like, eight. You leave Puck and Finn behind the bar and head over to your friend's empty table and slide into the booth. You look around and see Quinn and Rachel up at the bar talking to Puck and Finn. Brittany, Kurt, and Blaine are on the small dance floor in the corner. You smile as you watch Brittany laugh when she tries to dance with Blaine, her hair whipping around beautifully. You'd be content to watch her dance all night, but you're distracted by a vibration in your pocket.
Cass: U steel the bra?
You scrunch your eyebrows. What does that mean? You're trying to think of either a reply, or the meaning behind the text, when a body crashes into you.
"Hey, baby."
You look up from your phone. "Oh, hey B."
"Who you texting?"
You glance back at your phone. "Cass. I think she wants to know if I'm still working." Brittany laughs and takes the phone from your hands. She presses a few buttons and snaps the phone shut. "What did you say?"
She shrugs. "I told her to learn how to spell and that Brittany loves her, smiley face."
You feel a tiny smile take over your lips. "That's cute, B."
"I know." She wipes under your eye. "Your makeup smudged a little." You lean into her and feel your shoulders relax. How you wish you could take a nap.
"San."
"Hmmm." You murmur, content to just sit in silence until your break is over.
Her hand touches your cheek softly and you sink further into her arm. "I wish you would've told me about your family sooner."
You sigh and squeeze your eyes shut. Do you have to talk about it now? "I know Britt, I'm sorry."
"It's okay to be sad about it you know." Her voice is all soft and it makes you feel vulnerable.
"I'm not sad about it. It's in the past." Your voice is loud next to hers. You take a sip from one of the half empty beers on the table because you need something to do with your hands.
You hear Brittany sigh and her arm feels tighter around your shoulders. "If you weren't sad then you would've told me about it."
You shrug. "I said I was sorry, Britt, I don't know what else I can do."
"I know, San, it's just…" She trails off and you look up at her. Her eyes are distant and clouded under the bar lights. "We need communication and trust in this relationship." You bite your lip and you see bright blue clarity bloom in her eyes. "I love you, Santana. And it's okay for you to open up to me. I'm not going to hurt you. But I want to know when things are hurting you so that I can help make them better."
Brittany looks at you full of determination. "I don't like when you're hurting because it makes me really sad, and even though you don't tell me that something is wrong, your eyes get all dark and sad looking and I can tell. You don't think so, but I can. And it really sucks when I have to hear things about you from Cass and not you, because I love Cass. So, so much. But Cass isn't my girlfriend and you are and girlfriends are supposed to trust each other." She finishes and closes her mouth and your lips curve up slightly.
"Stop smiling, I'm being serious."
You laugh a little. "I know you are, Britt-Britt."
She narrows her eyes. "Then why are you smiling?"
"You're just really, really cute."
She scoffs. "I'm not cute, I'm trying to be forceful. I want you to understand." Brittany bites her lip and furrows her eyebrows.
"I know, babe. And I do." You grab her hand on the tabletop. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, and I promise to try to be better at telling you things in the future." You hesitantly squeeze her hand. "I'm just good at dealing with things myself, you know?"
She nods slowly. "I know. But we're in this thing together. So you don't have to."
"I'll try."
Brittany smiles softly. "That's all I ask." She leans in and kisses you slowly and purposefully. When she pulls back she winks at you playfully. "Come on, the ball is going to drop any minute now." She slides out of the booth and grabs your hand. You walk back to the bar where people have converged near the several TVs lining the wall. The countdown is only a few minutes away.
Puck is behind the bar pouring champagne into two rows of glasses. "Champagne's on the house guys. Nothing better than free bubbly to ring in the New Year!" You help him get a glass to everyone in the bar that wants one. When you get back, the countdown has begun. Everyone is chanting and single people frantically look around for someone to kiss. You look at Brittany and she smiles brightly at you.
"3…2…1… HAPPY NEW YEAR!"
You stand on your tip toes and kiss Brittany gently, trying to convey how much she means to you and the hope you have for a new year with her by your side. You think she understands because you're pretty sure you can feel the same meaning behind her lips.
You finally pull away and look around. Everybody is cheering and tipping back their glasses of champagne. Puck and Quinn are laughing as they clink glasses and Kurt and Blaine are smiling lovingly at each other. Rachel and Finn are embraced in a fierce lip lock. Ugh, so gross.
Brittany places her arm around your shoulders and you feel a kiss to the side of your head. "Happy New Year, San."
"Happy New Year, Britt."
Only two more hours to go, and then you can go home. Thank God. You have the worst headache and you wish people would stop screaming. There will be another New Year to celebrate next year so they could do you a favor and just calm down.
You're pretty sure you're headache couldn't possibly get worse, but you are proven wrong when a familiar guy sits down at the end of the bar and your head starts to throb harder.
"Hey, hot stuff."
You roll your eyes. "Hi Jake. Can I get you something?"
"Tequila would be nice." You set a shot glass in front of him and he runs a hand through his shaggy hair. "There's something else you could give me." He wiggles his eyebrows and you sigh audibly.
"I've told you a million times, Jake, I'm not interested."
"I could make you interested. Come on, Santana, give a guy a chance."
You look him straight in the eye, hopefully for the last time. But you doubt he'll take the hint. "I already gave guys a chance, actually. Not my type."
His eyes widen and he smirks. "Oh right, I forgot. Where's your Blondie?"
You smile and point over your shoulder to where Brittany is talking to Puck. "Right over there actually."
He nods and downs his tequila shot. Then he raises his eyebrows and looks at something behind you. You feel a tap on your shoulder and spin around.
"Tía! Happy New Year!"
Cass engulfs you in a giant hug and you have to pry her arms off of you. "Cass? What are you doing here?"
"I came to see you," she giggles. "Because I like, missed you so much, and I really, like love you, you know?"
You narrow your eyes. "Are you drunk?"
Her eyes grow wide and she frantically shakes her head. "No. No I am not." She shoots you a somber look. "That would be irresponsible. And illegal." She tries to keep a straight face, but it quickly disappears and turns to a fit of giggles. "Get it, like illegal? Because I come in here and sit at the bar all the time, but that's illegal too."
You close your eyes and try not to yell. Getting angry right now would not be the best option. But seriously, you can't deal with this. You have to work and your head fucking hurts.
"Cass, go sit by Britt until I'm done working, okay?" You point down the bar.
She looks around then looks back at you with panicked eyes. "She won't get me in trouble right? Because she's my teacher, and I'm totally wasted. Actually no, I'm just kidding, I'm not. But just say that I was, I wouldn't get in trouble with her, right Tía? Right?" She sways a little and you sigh.
"Just go sit down, we'll talk about it later."
She nods. "Okay. Love you!" You watch her to make sure she doesn't fall as she makes her way from behind the bar and over to Brittany. Britt can handle her for now.
You turn back to Jake, who raises his eyebrows at you. "Who was that?"
"Nobody," you reply curtly. "You want another shot?"
"Maybe later."
You nod and move away to give refills to a rowdy group who you really wish would calm down. Fucking New Year.
When you're done with them, you notice Jake has left his stool and has moved over to your group of friends. Most of the other people have left the bar and moved to tables or the dance floor so you walk over and stand by Finn to see what's going on. As you approach, a glass smashes to the floor.
"Fuck you, douche bag!"
You watch in shock as Cass makes a lunge toward Jake and Puck grabs her around the waist from his spot between her and Quinn. "Cass, no!" She struggles against his strong hold.
"What the fuck, Cass?" You look between her red face and Jake's smirk and feel uneasy.
"He was saying stuff about Britt!" She tries to swing at him again, but Puck has a firm grip on her.
Jake laughs and stuffs his hands in his pockets. "Chill out, babe. Didn't mean to upset you." You scowl, disgusted. He is not trying to hit on your niece, hell no. "If you want, I can take you back to my place and make it up to you."
"Fuck you," snarls Cass and you feel slightly proud. That vanishes when Jake continues to smirk. You hate how everyone is drunk and you have to deal with this shit. Mostly, you just hate him.
"Oh, feisty." His smile gives you the creeps and disgusted anger bubbles in your stomach. "I bet you're an animal in bed, aren't you, hot stuff?"
Something in you snaps and you lunge across the bar at him. Your fist clips his ear and he howls out in pain at the same time that arms clamp your wrists down.
"Let me go, Finn!" You try to elbow him but he's holding you tight. You watch as Puck hands Cass to Brittany and Quinn who struggle to hold her as tightly as Puck did. He grabs Jake by the shirt aggressively.
"You need to leave. And don't even think about stepping foot into my bar again, or I will kick the shit out of your scrawny ass. Understand?"
Jake shakes Puck off. "Whatever man. Keep your dyke under control and we wouldn't have a problem."
Puck's eyes are scary as they stare Jake down. "Get the fuck out. Now." He gives the man a shove toward the door and Jake rolls his eyes, but complies.
You're breathing hard as Finn lets your arms loose. The bar is quiet and everyone is looking toward you, but you ignore it.
"Finn always has to hold you back, huh Santana?" Puck tries to joke with you through his masked anger, and you glare at him. You aren't in the mood for reminiscing.
Fuck this night.
Your eyes find Cass, looking for an explanation, but she is slumped against Brittany, who is attempting to hold her up. Brittany looks up at you sheepishly. "I'll take her home if you want, San."
You nod and pinch the bridge of your nose, frustrated. Brittany puts Cass' arm around her shoulders and waves goodbye before awkwardly disappearing outside the door. The bar has begun to return to its normal loud volume as people get back to their drinks and games of pool. You return to mixing drinks and try to ignore the increased pounding in your head.
You want to feel relieved when you finally get back to your apartment, but you can only feel dread in anticipation of a drunk Cass. You hang up your jacket and make your way down the hall to her room. You slow down when you hear sobbing on the other side of the closed door.
"It's just so hard, Britt." Cass' coughs and your eyebrows furrow. "I miss my family and I've made so many mistakes. Things I can't take back." There's silence, except for unintelligible murmuring that you assume is Brittany. Then another sob reaches your ears and you cringe slightly. "Santana is like, amazing, you know? And I love her so much. And I love you so much Britt and that guy was saying shit about you and I had to get him, you know? Now she's going to be so pissed at me. I didn't mean for this to happen, I promise."
Brittany's voice floats under the crack in the door and into the hall. "I know, Cass, it's okay."
"He just… he said you were sexy, Britt! And that he could help you see straight. He's a fucking jerk." Another sob and round of coughing and you feel guilty for listening into this drunken conversation. And mad. You hate that fucking douche bag more than you've hated anything in your life. You turn the doorknob and push the door open. The two of them are sitting on the bed and Cass is leaning into Brittany while Brittany softly pushes hair off her face. Brittany looks over as you open the door.
"Hey."
"Hi. Is she okay?" Cass lets out another sob at the question. Brittany untangles herself from Cass.
"Cass, Santana and I are going to step into the hall really quick. We'll be right back, okay?"
Cass sniffles. "Kay."
Brittany closes the door behind you. "I think she's fine. She's just the weepy drunk, I'm pretty sure."
You sigh and nod. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry, Britt. I'm going to fucking kill that guy."
Brittany hugs you close and it surprises you, but you sink into the embrace. "I'm fine, San. I don't care what he said."
"I hate him."
You feel her cheeks move against the top of your head and think she's smiling. "I love you."
"Still hate him."
She laughs and pulls back to stroke your cheek. "You look exhausted babe."
You make a noise in the back of your throat. "Thanks."
"You should go to bed."
You sigh and look at Cass' closed door. "I think I'll go see her first. How about I meet you there and we can get our cuddle on?"
She nods and pecks you on the cheek. "Okay."
Cass is still sitting up when you walk back into her room. She looks up and sways slightly. "I don't feel good." Your eyes widen and you grab her arm and haul her into the bathroom just in time. She leans over the toilet and you have to look away as she empties her stomach. Ew. You hold her hair back until she is done and then you start the shower.
"What are you doing?" Cass' voice is raspy.
"Helping you get clean. Take your clothes off."
She stares at you and then slides her pants down. She grabs the bottom of her shirt, but almost falls over, just barely catching herself against the wall. Sighing, you close the toilet lid and sit her down on it. Then you pull her shirt off and unclasp her bra and help her sit in the bath.
You take the shower head off the wall and spray her with it. She sniffles a little, but seems to have the sobbing under control. You lather some shampoo into her hair and rinse, then do the same thing with the conditioner. Cass just sits there motionless and you think of all the times Rachel did this for you in high school. You really need to thank her for that.
You turn the water off and grab Cass' towel from the rack. She manages to get out by herself and you wrap it around her. You sit her back down on the toilet and start to run the comb through her long hair. The only sound is the dripping of water coming from the shower.
It's nice and steamy in the bathroom, but Cass starts to shiver. "You okay?" You tilt her head up and look at her eyes. They're red and puffy and you push her neatly combed hair behind her ear.
"Yeah." She seems to have sobered up a little, so you help her stand and walk her to her room. You grab a shirt and panties off the floor and help her into the dry clothes before laying her down in bed. You tuck the covers around her and decide you'll talk to her about what happened tomorrow. It's late and she looks so sad and you're not that angry anymore. It can wait. You start to get up from where you're sitting on the edge of Cass' bed but she grabs your wrist.
"I'm sorry," she squeaks out and releases your arm. Her eyes are big and dark and you have a strange urge to cry. Instead, you gently kiss her forehead before making your way out of the room. You close the door behind you and sigh in exhaustion.
Brittany is nearly asleep when you finally slide into bed. As soon as your head hits the pillow, her arm snakes around your waist and pulls you closer. You take in her familiar smell and try to relax. But suddenly the tears that you held back before sneak their way past your eyelids. Your body is shaking and you aren't exactly sure why you're crying, but you can't stop. You roll over and bury your face in Brittany's neck. She pulls you impossibly close and places soft kisses in your hair.
You haven't cried in the longest time, and now it feels like a fucking river is pouring itself out of your eyes and you can't stop it. You're crying for Cass not having parents and for your mom kicking you out. For Brittany's dad not being supportive of her dream and for that douche bag Jake hitting on both of your girls. You're crying for nothing and for everything and you still can't stop.
You're not sure how long you cry. The only thing you're sure of is that Brittany never lets you go and that the sun is already peeking through your curtains when you finally do fall asleep.