AN: Hi everyone. I'm having a few problems with my laptop at the moment, so I will try to update regularly but if I stop, it's probably because I am without computer. Anyway, this is the next chapter.

Thank you for all of the alerts, favourites, reviews etc. It really does mean the world to know what you think. If you have any questions, you can always find me at pocketdragon . tumblr . com

Part 13

'Hello?'

Heather had been pacing the hospital entrance for a few minutes when her phone rang.

'Heather? It's Mark from PR. I'm really sorry to have to call you like this, but we've got a problem on our hands. An online article has been published claiming to know inside information about your relationship with Naya. The article has been taken down but our sources tell us that it has been leaked and that people have read it, so the best advice we can give you is to prepare yourselves. Your lawyers have had it removed, and will continue to be vigilant but there's not a lot more we can do.'

'Okay. So who was it who published it, and what did it say?'

'It, erm, it was Perez Hilton. And I'm emailing you a copy right now so you can read it. Could you forward it to Naya? Her management have been notified but they were happy for us to deal with it since we've become… experienced.'

'Thank you.'

/

As Heather ended the call, a sheepish Naya appeared beside her.

'I'm sorry for not telling you.'

'Nay, it's okay. I mean, I'm a little bit worried about you taking risks when physicians don't think you're ready, but we have to get past this. Can we go to the car? I need to tell you something.'

The girls made their way across the lot and to Heather's Prius. Opening the driver's door, Heather took a deep breath before sitting down.

'I've just got off the phone with my management. They intercepted a web-posting this morning…' Hearing her voice begin to wobble as tears pricked at the backs of her eyes, Heather stopped to take a breath. 'Honey…' Naya reached her hand across the car, stroking gently at her girlfriend's trembling shoulders, 'what is going on?' She tried to hide her nervous tone, but it was no use.

'The… that bastard Perez Hilton posted an article ah…about us. They said that someone had called him with inside information. They've had it removed, but people have still seen it. Nay, what are we going to do?'

Taking a shaky breath, Naya leaned in and pulled Heather in for a hug. Trying her best to hold in her tears, she pressed a kiss to her blonde hair. 'We'll fix it. I'll think of something. Did they say if they had a copy we could read? I want to know if it really is inside information. Whoever leaked it is going to face some serious consequences.'

Heather held out her phone, the email from her management team open and ready.

The Secret Is Out! Glee stars' secret relationship REVEALED!

Well, well, well. It seems that two of our favourite on-screen lesbians have been secretly hooking up backstage.

According to a trusted insider, Glee stars Naya Rivera and Heather Morris (Santana and Brittany) have been taking part in some extra-curricular activities… with each other! Sources tell us that the couple hooked up months ago, and recently revealed their relationship to their friends and family.

The girls' characters are two of the most popular on the show, but with Ryan Murphy's alleged strict rules surrounding off-screen relationships; how will the actresses fare for season three?

'Such bullshit' Naya exclaimed, handing the phone back to Heather. 'I take it people have seen this? I don't want to check twitter or anything, just in case.' Heather simply nodded; 'yeah, it took them just over an hour to take it down. '

'Looks like we'll have to push forward the interview we were planning. That should help. Did your PR say if they had a plan?' Heather shook her head. 'I'll call them whilst you drive home; I think we need to arrange a meeting to decide what to do next.'

/

It took Naya around five minutes of conference calling before it was decided that this was a situation best discussed when everyone was in the same room. Heather's management offered up their office space, and gave the girls and Naya's team an hour to get there. On the way, Naya made a call to Ryan, inviting him. Heather offered her a confused look as she hung up the call.

'What? I think he needs to be there. I mean, he's the one who is going to have to have our backs at work so I think it's best to involve him from the off.'

Before they knew it, an entire boardroom had been filled with management and PR representatives, along with the girls and Ryan. Heather reached over to take Naya's hand once they had been seated in the middle, immediately understanding how overwhelming the situation could be for both of them. One of them had to keep their head above the water; and she nominated herself.

'Okay, everyone. Welcome. So we have brought you all together to discuss some issues that have been raised this morning and to come up with a plan of action. As many of you may already know, Perez Hilton's blog this morning released alleged inside information about the nature of Naya and Heather's relationship. Although the claims it made were, as we all know, true, this does not mean that we can just let things slide. The post has been removed, but there are copies being circulated online as we speak. I' the speaker stopped and gestured to Naya and Heather, 'I know that you are in the process of making your relationship public and that you had suggested some ideas for telling the world. Could I make the suggestion that our first port of call is how and when this will be done; and most importantly- who are we going to ask to interview you? They must be trustworthy, friendly, LGBT respected and able. Any ideas?'

'So who do we call? Piers Morgan? Ellen?'

Naya shuffled in her seat, swallowing hard.

Heather spoke up.

'Guys, I'm sorry. I don't think Naya and I really have the balls to be able to do this in front of a live TV audience. I mean, I'd be happy to do a TV interview once we were out but initially? Not for us. I'd rather it was in print.'

Naya squeezed her hand as the to-ing and fro-ing recommenced.

'LA Times?'

'Too…. Newsy.'

'People magazine?'

'Too much focus on celebrity. And too tacky.'

'The Oprah Magazine?'

'Hmmm…. Not really.'

'The Hollywood Reporter?'

'Now that is a good idea. I do trust them.'

'But who would do the interview?'

'I… I have an idea.' A younger girl sat next to a burly, suited man shuffled nervously in her seat. Naya smiled at her as she spoke, Heather turned to face her.

'Sorry, I know it's not really my place since I'm just… new at this…'

'No please, tell us what you have to say' Heather adopted her most friendly and reassuring tone.

'What about AfterEllen? I mean, I know they're not a huge publication but they do make waves online. Especially within the LGBT community. They were always huge supporters of the relationship between your characters, and the information would get out to your online fans without them having to pay to buy an issue of anything.'

Heather smiled at Naya, who was nodding whilst listening intently.

'They've always been really nice before. I know what you mean. I don't want people to make money out of this, if that makes sense. And it would be online so quickly so it would have the same impact as doing a TV interview but without the pressure. '

Ryan Murphy held his hand up. 'I know the perfect person for the job. Girls? I'll give her a call and get her to meet you tomorrow. 10am at…. Naya's place. That seems about right. Anyway, ' he stood up and put his hat on, 'back to work. Good luck, girls.'

/

The sun pouring through Naya's curtains pulled Heather to her senses the following morning. After quickly showering and dressing, she left a hasty note on the kitchen table for Ashley before saying goodbye to Zach, who was quite comfortably resting on the windowsill. 'I'll be back later, so don't miss me too much. Make sure Ashley behaves herself.'

Once she arrived at Naya's apartment, she parked her car and headed towards the door. It was still early, but the email from Ryan had said to be ready for 9.30am. Both girls had developed an ability to wake up early through their experience with ridiculous call times, but it was still a struggle to get motivated on barely any sleep. Heather had arrived early, fully expecting to have to wake Naya by banging annoyingly on the door. However, one knock and the door swiftly opened.

'Morning. Coffee?' Naya offered a cup to the blonde who took it with a smile and stepped into the living room.

'I didn't think you'd be up yet' she said quietly, before pressing her mouth to Naya's waiting lips.

'Thank you. And I didn't really sleep very well.'

'Nervous?'

'You could say that. I had a nightmare about them asking really horrible questions and being really mean and then I couldn't get back to sleep.' Heather pouted across at Naya, 'my poor baby.'

An hour later, there was another knock at the door. 'It's time' Heather whispered in a creepy voice as she padded across the floor to open the door.

'Hi' a friendly woman greeted her, clutching a messenger bag. 'You must be Heather. I'm.. well, I'm Heather, too.' The woman extended her hand out, which Heather shook with a smile.

'Hi Heather! Come on in, Naya's just in the living room.'

/

Once the three women were seated on Naya's couch, the journalist began to speak.

'So, we should probably get down to business. I'm Heather Hogan- senior editor of Afterellen. I understand you wanted us to be the ones to do this interview, so thank you very much for picking us and I promise we'll do a good job!'

The girls settled back, almost completely at ease.

'So the plan is to take some photographs of the pair of you first, someone will be here within the next ten minutes to sort that out. Then we can sit down and I'll interview you properly.'

Both Heather and Naya had grown very used to being photographed. Once they were in sufficiently co-ordinated outfits, and their hair and makeup was respectable enough for a home-style shoot, they began.

'Great. So, Naya, could you rest your hand on her shoulder…' Naya did as she was told , 'and look up and smile at Heather. Heather, can you hold her hand and look into her eyes. Yes! Perfect. Now, could you move and hold her from behind? Wonderful. Okay. Now, what about a few shots in the living room? Just sit next to one another, and hold hands. Lovely.'

The photo shoot was over quickly, and the women were now seated at Naya's kitchen table to allow Heather the chance to spread out her interviewing equipment.

'Ready?' Naya turned to look at Heather and smiled, before turning back and nodding.

'Ready'.

/

EXCLUSIVE: HEATHER MORRIS AND NAYA RIVERA

Interview by Heather Hogan

Heather Morris and Naya Rivera have found fame as Sapphic Cheerios Santana and Brittany on Fox's high school musical comedy series Glee. The price of recognition, it would seem, is their new-found place in the tabloid rumour circuit. Morris and Rivera arranged to speak with After Ellen today to give us the facts.

So, girls. You've both become household names this year following your coming-out storyline on Glee. How has this recognition affected your everyday lives?

Heather: I try to stay out of the limelight as much as I can. I do my everyday things like everyone else; I go to the supermarket, I buy petrol, I go to dance class. I do exactly the same things I did before and I try not to let anything get to my head. It's important to me to stay level headed.

Naya: Yeah, I mean, we do get recognised by fans a lot. And I'm quite happy to stop and chat and sign things and take photos. It's still quite a surreal experience for me, but I think it's important to make time for the fans. Without them, where would we be?

Exactly. Now, Heather, you were caught in a phone hacking scandal this year. Can you tell us anything about what happened and how you dealt with it?

Heather: It's not something I really want to talk about in detail because it was a very painful experience for me. It did eventually lead to the breakdown of the relationship I was in. My team were very good at making sure all the right decisions were made, and I escaped without many problems so it's all good. I would say though, to anyone who may end up in the public eye, make sure you monitor what you keep on your phone.

Naya, have you had any strange rumours spread about you this year?

Naya: Well, there is the forever-circulating rumours that I've had breast implants. I'm putting it down on paper now- it is not true. They are all mine! Then there's just the same old stories linking me to every actor in Hollywood and beyond.

Has there been any truth in the dating rumours? Are you seeing anyone right now?

Naya: There had been rumours before about me dating Hollywood actors, football players and such… None of them are true. I am in a happy and committed relationship. A rumour came out a few days ago that I am dating Heather and I have to say that this is true. We haven't been together long, but it seemed like the right time to clear everything up and let the world know!

That's wonderful news! Congratulations. I'm sure your Glee fans will be going wild!

Heather: Naya's dad actually told us recently about the online fans that we have who have wanted us to be together for a long time. It's actually a huge compliment; Naya is beautiful and I consider myself incredibly lucky to be with her.

Naya? Any words for your fans on your feelings for Heather?

Naya: Let's just say I'm the happiest I've been in a long time, and that I'm putting this all down to her.

So did either of you know you liked girls before?

Naya: I think I've never really labelled myself as anything. I'd never identified as truly straight.

Heather: I don't know. I, again, believe that sexuality is fluid. You should be with the person who makes you happiest. As long as you feel comfortable, then it's nobody else's business.

Do your fellow cast members know about your relationship? How did they take it?

Naya: Of course they know. We told them a while back and they've been incredibly supportive.

Heather: We really are like one big family and we look out for one another. They're great.

It's always good to have the support of your friends. Do you have any advice for people who are struggling to come to terms with their sexuality or who are in the process of coming out?

Naya: Just be brave. It seems a lot scarier than it is. You have a right to be able to be yourself and you have to keep telling yourself that, if people can't respect that, they're not worth knowing. And, like you said, it's important to have a strong network of friends.

Heather: I think it's really important to keep at the back of your mind that you're not the only person in the world to be going through this. There are a lot of people out there, so don't feel like you're on your own. There are support groups through It Gets Better or The Trevor Project and there are a lot of people you can talk to.

Naya, we all saw paparazzi photos of you coming out of hospital a few months ago. Would you be able to clear up the many rumours about why you were there?

Naya: Okay, so firstly, I am not nor have I ever been pregnant. I don't have an eating disorder. I don't have a drugs problem. It's just epilepsy. It wasn't diagnosed until a few months ago and, for a time, I was really ill. So that's why I've been in hospital. I'm okay now though so don't worry.

Heather: She was really sick. You won't be able to tell in the footage from the show [Glee] because she's such a professional and we have a kick-ass make up department, but it was scary for everyone.

Have you had to make lifestyle changes to deal with your diagnosis?

Naya: I haven't changed my diet or exercise regime as I was really active anyway. I no longer drink because of my medication, and I try to avoid too much stress. To be honest, I think the process of coming out and revealing my relationship with Heather has helped to relieve some of the pent-up stress I was feeling. But, all in all, I just have to listen to my body and be careful.

Heather, you always appear to be super-fit. Do you have any vices?

Heather: I do. Mainly snack foods like Goldfish. I'm a little obsessed with them. But I am a firm believer in listening to what your body needs and making sure you have a healthy balance. Cutting out an entire food group will do nothing for you in the long run.

And finally, speaking of 'in the long run', do you have any plans for future projects? A couple's reality show maybe? Or a duet album?

Naya: [laughing] maybe not. I am in the process of putting an album together, so I have that to work on. After that, I have no idea.

Heather: And I'm working on a couple of movies you'll be hearing about in the near future. I also run an online web series with my roommate.

Glee airs Tuesdays on Fox at 8/7c.

/

Heather put down her pen and looked up at the girls.

'Thank you. You were both great, and I really do wish you all the best. I have to get back and write this up, and it should be posted on Monday morning. Prepare yourselves.'

/

AN: I hope you enjoyed this one. I thought it would be good to post what I imagine would be included in the interview. Please leave a review if you would be so kind.