Love Mechanisms Chapter 14: The Future Is Ours, a glee fanfic

songs are "pretend" by scott porter and the glory dogs, "gonna be okay" by chris rene, and "just keep breathing," by we the kings.

SANTANA POV

Being engaged is definitely one of the most amazing feelings in the world. I had never imagined falling in love and getting married and having a family and all that fairy tale shit until I met Brittany. Before I moved to Lima, I was kind of lonely and kind of a bitch and none of my relationships lasted very long.

Brittany is. . . for lack of a better word, Brittany is everything. She's beautiful on the outside, but on the inside she's a masterpiece. She's been through heartbreak, same as I, and it shows in the painting; but when you look closely, you can see the fine detail in every stroke of the brush. The hard, the soft, the wrecked, the dried out, the vibrant; every emotion that comes together to make one priceless work of art.

Today is the first Thursday of March. Which means in Glee Club today we are going to be opening our college acceptance letters. Next to me, Brittany shakes her leg nervously as she bites her bottom lip and stares at the floor in front of her. I smile a goofy grin and put a hand on her leg to reassure her that our future is ours only, not one college letter is going to change that.

We had been talking about our future together for the past month. Being engaged is a huge step, not just for our relationship, but for us as individuals, too. We're only on the cusps of adulthood, I at the tender age of seventeen, and Brittany eighteen. The world of Love still partly unknown to us, just waiting to be discovered.

We decided that we would wait to get married until after I finished college. Brittany and I long discussed, and argued, and one time even fought, about how we wanted to spend the next four years, a brand new chapter of our lives. In the end, I'm going off to college to get my degree to become a teacher, and Brittany and I are going to support each other long distance. Brittany is going to continue to race, because it's what she's good at and it gives us stability financial wise.

As of now, I already know that I got into UCLA, and there's a huge racing scene down in LA, so Brittany and I have gone apartment shopping online. But that's a secret to everyone else.

Brittany smiles back at me knowingly and covers my hand with hers. I lean my head on her shoulder just as Mr. Schue walks in, grinning that slimy grin he does when the twinkle in his eyes lets us know how proud he is of us and how hard he's trying not to cry even though we all know he will.

He puts his satchel on the piano and strolls over to the infamous whiteboard where he writes the word "journey."

"Today is a very emotional, life-changing day for most of you," he begins. Clearing his throat he continues, "These last four years have defined your teenage years, but now you're becoming adults. Most of you will leave here with a plan, but some of you will figure it out along the way. I want you to sing about your journey. Not the band. But something you've gone through these past four years that shaped who you are today and who you want to be. But first, there's official business we need to get to. Seniors, the floor is yours."

Rachel, Kurt, Mercedes, Finn, Puck, Mike, and I all silently walk to the front and turn to face the juniors: Artie, Tina, Sam, Blaine, and Sugar.

Finn leads us in an energetic rendition of "You Get What You Give."

Finally, it's time to open our letters. One by one, we go down the list in order. Rachel gets accepted to NYADA, a performing arts school in New York. Kurt gets accepted to NYADA, Lima University, and Parsons School of Design. Mercedes gets accepted to University of Washington and University of California, but the last letter offers her a record deal as a back-up singer for an up and coming hip-hop artist named Anjuli Stars. Finn got accepted into Lima University, as well as the army. Puck got accepted into Lima University, NYU, and Weill Cornell Medical College. Turns out the man wants to be a pediatrician. Mike go accepted into Julliard, Berkley, Skidmore, and Walden University. His dream is to peruse dance, but should anything go wrong, his backup plan is Real Estate.

And then there's me. I got into so many different colleges, but I'd drop them all and follow Brittany to the ends of the earth if she asked me too. We had discussed that. Me being her mechanic permanently, but she didn't want me to get bored of it and regret "being chained to her bike," instead of following my dream.

I open my letters as if I hadn't already. It's a good thing I went last because there were over twenty of them.

Glee club ended that day with the juniors singing "In My Life" to us.

Say, won't you stay; we can talk about nothing at all
Or sit here and make up the words as we go along

The games, we could play
Maybe silently write us a song
Quietly shout from the roof that we don't belong

They told me maybe she's crazy a little like you
Everyone said you were nothing but trouble and
All that I know is that I've never been here before
And no, I'll never leave, if it's alright with you
Dreaming of oceans while jumping in puddles and
All of my life I pretend you where there by the door
I don't need to pretend any more.

Strange, oh so strange
When it feels better being alone
You accept there is nobody else and set it in stone
And then you, came along
Your reflection was so sad and strong
You made me believe once again that I could be wrong.

Maybe she's crazy a little like you
Everyone said you were nothing but trouble
All that I know is that I've never been here before
And no, I'll never leave, if it's alright with you
Dreaming of oceans while jumping in puddles and
All of my life I pretend you where there by the door
I don't need to pretend any more.

I don't need to pretend anymore
I don't need to pretend anymore

Brittany wrapped me up in a passionate kiss before the last chord was even strummed. The club whooped and hollered as we got our mack on in the middle of the choir room. I pulled back with a slight blush, but returned Brittany's blinding grin.

Puck cleared his throat next to us, guitar in hand. We realized we had been standing there a while and he wanted to go before he lost his courage. We both gave his biceps a squeeze then cuddled up on our seats.

"I know," he began slowly, "that I haven't been the nicest man to all of you. Or anybody for that matter. Sometimes I get too protective of what I have because I know what it's like to lose it. And sometimes I push people away because I'm afraid if I get too close that I will lose it. None of you deserved the shit I put you through these past few years. I'd like to come out of here a changed man," he gulped, "but I can't do that without your forgiveness. . . I'm going to sing now. You can think about it while I do."

It's gonna be okay
It's gonna be okay
It's gonna be okay

Uh, I learned to make a run like the reverend
But I never had a nine milly or a mack eleven
I was enticed the the G life
When I met them boyz from the east side
Making money in the street life
You could get stung taking honey from the beehive
Made my way through the tough and the troublesome times
You could say I always had something else on my mind, uh
Yeah, I been all about the me code
When I was young I always looked up to the hero
Everyone else they like scarface, deniro
Yeah, they used to call me a weirdo

If you ever felt your world was over
Thought about just giving up
Feeling like you're up when you're sober
And your best shot's not enough
Have you ever thought about just ending
Even toyed with the curtain call
I know how you feel right now my friend, see
I been back up against the wall
It's gonna be okay
It's gonna be okay

I remember I was rapping in the twilight
Saying it would be so nice living in the limelight
It was 1999, right
I never saw it coming it kinda hit me blindside
Been so many years since I looked back
I know that it's this music makes me look at
My life in a different perspective
Through my many studio sessions
Got my music obsession without no musical lesson
Learned to play punk rock, listened to adolescence
I was raised

west side and used my mind as a weapon
I got cracked a few times
And I spracked a few lines
Ain't saying that it's cool just glad that I survived

Before this day is done
And it falls down like the sun
Just let me hear you say
It's gonna be okay

It was silent for a moment. I couldn't read anybody's face. Kurt jumped up and whispered something to Brad while we all watched curiously.

"I think I speak for all of us when I say this," he said directly to Puck.

When heaven seems so far away
And dreams are just a memory
Without the dark the light won't show
Remember that you're not alone

When you

watch the world just turn away
And break the promises it made
When love is all too hard to hold
Just take a breath and let it go

Whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh
Just keep

breathing, breathing, breathing
Whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh
Just keep breathing, breathing, breathing

2 A.M., too tired to sleep
When what you want's not what you need
And when these walls don't feel like

home
Remember that you're not alone

The beginning's just another end
It's not too late to

start again
When hope is all too hard to hold
Just take a breath and let it go

Whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh
Just keep breathing, breathing, breathing
Whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh
Just keep breathing, breathing, breathing

Ooh ooh...

When heaven seems so far away
And dreams are just a memory
When love is all too hard to hold
Just take a breath and let it...

Go whoa oh, whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh
Just keep breathing, breathing, breathing
Whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh, whoa whoa oh
Just keep breathing, breathing, breathing

There was not a dry eye in the room as everyone group hugged.

Santana and I headed out to our shifts in the garage while Puck headed in the opposite direction to pick Tammy up from a friend's house.

It was a beautiful day out. All the windows were down, our hands were intertwined across the console, and throwback hip hop jamz blared on the radio for us to yell out the lyrics.

Our high of happiness quickly ended when we walked into the shop. The place was empty except for my dad who looked angry waiting for us.

"Break room, now," was all he said.

We followed obediently. Our heads were down when he opened the door.

"Surprise," Brittany's family yelled jumping out and spraying us with silly string.

"Wha . . . What is all this?" Brittany asked surveying the room.

"It's your congratulations party, DUH!" a blond woman came over hugging Brittany.

"What are we celebrating?" Brittany asked.

"You of course! And Santana, too." James replied excitedly.

"What did we do?" I asked.

Everybody laughed.

"You, young lady, got into college. And Brittany knows what she's doing with her life. Which I approve of," James winked.

Everybody chuckled again. Even Delilah. She's really come around for Brittany this past month or so. I can really see them eventually having the mother-daughter relationship they've always wanted.

Brittany introduced me to all her family. Holly, her uncle, her cousins, her other aunt and uncle, her motocross friends, and some of her dad's old pals from the glory days.

Puck and Tammy came later with cake. The night was filled with memories, laughter, and even some tears.

The party ended around 11 P.M. Brittany and I headed home, freshened up a bit, and crashed. At two A.M. I gently removed myself from the covers, tiptoed slowly back, watched as Brittany clutched my pillow, satisfied with its scent, and I slipped on my black chucks. I threw on my hoodie, grabbed the can, and slipped out the door unnoticed.