Chapter 21: Acceptance

Santana's POV

Saturday 23rd July 2016

Brittany is currently still at work right now so I'm just hanging out at home. After my run and a visit to the coffee shop to see Brittany this morning, I met up with my friends and we hung out for a bit before I came home. I'm just about to check my work emails when I hear someone knock on the door so I quickly go through and answer it. "James" I say shocked when I open the door. "What are you doing here at my house?" I ask.

"Things need to be sorted out" James replies.

"Ok well Brittany isn't home right now, she's still at work" I say.

"I know but I wanted to talk to you before Brittany got back" he tells me.

"Ok what do you want to talk to me about?" I ask.

"Can I come in?" he asks. "I don't want to do this at the door" he says.

"Fine" I say moving out of the way of the door and James steps inside. "You may as well go through there" I say pointing to the living room.

"Thanks" he says while entering the living room and taking a seat.

"If you're here to warn me away from Brittany then it isn't going to work" I state. "There is no way I am breaking up with Brittany so you needn't bother trying to split us up" I tell him.

"I'm not here to split you both up" James says.

"So why are you here?" I ask.

"To apologise and to get my daughter back" he replies.

"Brittany isn't a toy, you can't just claim her again" I say angrily.

"I didn't mean it like that, I meant I am here to apologise to both of you and to get my daughter to come home" he replies.

"Say what you wanted to say to me then" I state.

"Ok well firstly I owe you an apology, a very big one" James says. "I never meant to hurt anyone or their feelings but you have to understand I was concerned about Brittany. I am still worried but the past couple of weeks have taught me that I have no right to step in your way" he says.

"I don't understand what was to be concerned about, I would never intentionally hurt Brittany" I say.

"I know but with the age difference there just seemed to be more things that could end up going wrong. I just hate seeing Brittany upset so I really didn't want her to get hurt in the end" he says. "I realise now that it's not my place so I want you to know that I accept the relationship" he says.

"I'm glad you accept it now but I don't know if Brittany is going to forgive you so easily" I say. "She'll be happy but it's probably going to take time."

"I know" he nods. "I also want you to know that this wasn't a personal thing ok, it's not that I didn't think you were a good person" James says.

"I think I get what the problem was so you don't have to explain" I tell him. I'm tired of going over and over it and I do genuinely think I understand what his problem was so I want to move on now.

"Ok just as long as you know there is no problems anymore, I won't hurt either of you again" James says.

"Honestly let's just move on, ok?" I say and he nods.

"So will Brittany be home soon?" he asks.

"She'll be home in the next ten minutes or so" I reply. "Would you like a drink or something while you wait?" I ask.

"Just some water would be good" James replies.

"Ok, I'll be back in a second then" I say before heading off to get James a glass of water.

XXX

James and I are just sitting talking when I hear Brittany come through the front door. As soon as she enters the room, Brittany makes a beeline for me and kisses me as soon as she approaches me. "Hey baby, maybe we could pick up where we left off this morning" she suggests.

"Um…"

"You know you want to" she smirks while leaning down to kiss me again. "How about I meet you upstairs…preferably naked" she states and before I can answer, her dad clears his throat causing Brittany to spin around to face him. "Dad!" she says shocked.

"Hi sweetheart" he says trying not to laugh.

"How long have you been here?" Brittany asks.

"Long enough to hear everything you just said" James states.

"If I knew you were sitting behind the door and I had seen you, I wouldn't have said that" Brittany states embarrassed.

"I thought that" James smiles.

"Dad what are you doing here?" Brittany asks.

"I came to apologise to both of you and sort out this mess I made" James replies. "Things just got way out of hand" he states.

"Oh" Brittany says. Her dad then goes on to explain things and say why he did what he did. "So what are you saying then?" Brittany asks.

"That I was wrong and never should have said what I did because it's not my business" James says. "You're 18, you're not a child anymore so I shouldn't interfere like that so I promise not to do it again" he says.

"I see" Brittany nods understanding what he is saying.

"I want you to know that I am genuinely happy for you…both of you" James says.

"So you have no problems anymore with Santana and I being together?" Brittany asks.

"No I've realised my mistakes" James says. "Obviously I'm not completely worry free because I'm your dad so I'm always going to want to make sure you're ok but I do respect your relationship" he says.

"Ok thank you" Brittany smiles.

"So we're ok then?" James asks Brittany.

"Yeah I think so, I mean it was still a shitty thing to do but I sort of get it" Brittany replies.

"I understand" James nods. "I know you're staying with Santana at the moment but you are still welcome at home" he says to Brittany.

"I know dad, I just couldn't stay there when things were so heated" Brittany says. "I didn't want to stay there when you wouldn't accept our relationship or listen to me when I was trying to explain things" she says.

"I understand that sweetheart" James says.

"Good" Brittany replies. "I don't want it to happen again because I don't want to move out all the time" she says.

"Wait does this mean you'll move back home then?" James asks excitedly.

"Of course dad" Brittany states while jumping into his arms and hugging him tightly.

"Oh thank god" James says hugging Brittany tightly. "For a second, I thought you weren't going to come home" he says.

"Don't worry, I am" Brittany smiles when she pulls out of the hug. "I'll pack my stuff shortly and then I'll be home" she says.

"Oh is that the time" James says looking at his watch. "I better go now but I'll see you later then" he says.

"Yeah, you will" Brittany replies.

"If you need any help taking your stuff home, let me know" James says while standing up.

"I will dad" Brittany says while showing him to the door. I don't bother going anywhere, I just stay seated in the living room because I don't know what else to do. To be honest I'm actually quite upset and annoyed at Brittany. She was talking to her dad as if I wasn't even here. "You ok?" Brittany asks while sitting down next to me.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" I ask with a fake smile. I don't want to just blurt out what's wrong, I need a moment to collect my thoughts.

"You look sad about something" she states. "He's serious Santana, I know when my dad is being genuine and this is it so don't worry, he does accept us" she tells me.

"I know and I'm glad" I say because I am genuinely happy about that.

"So what's wrong then?" Brittany asks confused.

"Let's not get into this right now, it's nothing really I guess" I say shrugging my shoulders.

"Babe there is clearly an issue here because you're acting cold towards me" Brittany says.

"I'm not acting cold towards you Brittany" I say looking away.

"Yes you are, now stop turning your head to look the other way. I am right here so there is no need to be rude" she states and I let out a deep breath while rolling my eyes. "Don't roll your eyes either, that's just as rude" she says.

"Brittany I just need a minute so can you stop please" I say.

"No, I want to know what I could have done to upset you. You seemed fine when I left to go to work and when I got back so what's wrong?" Brittany asks.

"It barely took you two seconds" I state annoyed.

"Excuse me?" she asks confused but equally annoyed since she sensed my annoyed tone.

"Your dad asked you to come home and you didn't think twice about it, you said yes straight away" I state.

"Wait a second…are you mad that I'm going home?" she questions.

"I'm not mad Brittany; I am upset" I state. "I didn't realise living with me was such a hardship for you" I snap.

"Santana you know that's not true" she snaps back. "I made it clear from the beginning this couldn't be permanent so don't act like I don't want to live with you" she says.

"Well do you want to live with me?" I query.

"In the future of course but right now isn't the best time" she states. "You know that baby" she says, her tone softening. She reaches out to hold my hand in hers.

"I really loved us living together Brittany, I don't see why we can't continue it" I say.

"I loved it too but financially it's not the best situation" she states. "I'm 18 with only a part-time job because I don't have the time to work full time when university starts. I have lots of books to buy for my classes not to mention transport costs" she says.

"I work fulltime though, we can cut back on things and only buy essential things and I'll help you" I tell her.

"It's really sweet of you but it wouldn't be right of me when I have two parents who have said they'd help me through university. I am sure your parents helped you through it so I don't want all the responsibility to fall on you especially when there's just one of you but two of my parents" she tells. "My parents don't spoil me ok but there's no way I could afford to go to university without help so it's best I move back home" she says.

"Ok" I shrug. "I guess it does make sense" I state.

"I also don't want to put a strain on our relationship by moving in" she says. "The first year at university is going to be a major culture shock for me not to mention stressful so I don't want to ruin what we have right now so it'd be best if we weren't on top of one another 24/7."

"I get it" I sigh. "It sucks that we're going to have to wait a while longer to move in together but I get it."

"This won't change what we have, it'll just go back to how we were except I don't need to lie about where I am going, I can say I'm staying at my girlfriend's house" Brittany says.

"I suppose" I say.

"Come on babe, cheer up" Brittany smiles while leaning in towards me before kissing me.

"Fine" I say smiling back.

"How about you help me pack my stuff and then you can come with me to my parents and we can hang out for a while" Brittany suggests.

"Ok sure" I say while following Brittany upstairs where we begin packing her things.

"Wait a second, what about this stuff?" I ask noticing a few of her belongings at the side that haven't been packed.

"I'll keep them here" she states. "Just because I don't live here doesn't mean I won't be staying the night regularly" she smiles.

"Ok cool" I say.

"Why don't I take this stuff out to your car and you can get organised" I tell her while lifting her suitcase off of the bed.

"Thanks babe" Brittany smiles.

Brittany's POV

"So you're coming in then?" I say once I park my car outside of my parent's house.

"Yeah, let's go" Santana says getting out of the car. We then walk inside hand in hand.

"Hey sweetheart" my mom says hugging me as soon as I approach the kitchen where she is.

"Hi mom" I reply while hugging her back.

"Oh hey Santana, I didn't see you there" my mom says greeting Santana.

"Hi Karen" Santana politely replies.

"How are you both, are you ok?" my mom asks.

"Yeah we're fine, just looking forward to things going back to normal" I tell her.

"Ben, go and get Brittany's things from her car will you?" my mom asks my brother.

"Ok fine" he says annoyed before leaving the room.

"Your dad told me about earlier and the conversation he had with the two of you" my mom states. "I can assure you he means every word he said, he is ok with the two of you being together" she says.

"I know mom, everything is ok now" I say.

"Ok good" my mom smiles. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to make a start on dinner" she says turning around.

"Oh are you all having dinner now, maybe I should get out of your way" Santana says.

"Don't be silly, you can stay just now" I tell her.

"Are you sure because if you're all having a meal together to celebrate you coming home then I can easily just catch up with you tomorrow" Santana states.

"Why don't you just stay for dinner Santana, we've got plenty extra" my dad offers as he walks into the kitchen.

"Well I mean only if you don't mind" Santana replies.

"Of course not, it's a fresh start" my dad smiles.

"Why don't you two go and hang out or something, your dad and I can take care of dinner" my mom says to me.

"Ok mom" I reply before pulling Santana to the living room where we take a seat and watch some TV together. "It's going well isn't it?" I say while sitting back and placing my arm around Santana.

"Yeah it seems to be babe" she smiles before quickly frowning when we hear a loud bang.

"That'll be Emma, she'll have had a hard day at work so she's banging the door" I say.

"Guess who's back and I don't mean Brittany" Santana singsongs as Emma walks into the room.

"Great" Emma sighs while rolling her eyes. "It's not like I've had a hard day already but now this" she groans.

"Come on don't be like that, I thought you and Santana were good" I say.

"We are, I'm just annoying her. It's my way of welcoming her back I guess" Emma replies.

"Exactly" Santana agrees.

XXX

"Ok let's not beat around the bush, what is going on here with Brittany and Santana?" Emma asks as we all sit at the table eating dinner.

"I have come to realise my mistakes and I want us to all move on" my dad says. "What I did was uncalled for and got out of hand even though I did it out of good intentions. I never meant to hurt either of the girls, I was just concerned but now we're hoping to leave it all in the past. I understand it may take time to forgive me but as far as I'm concerned Santana has my blessing to be with Brittany and is welcome in this house" he says.

"I see so you think a few words makes everything go away then?" Emma asks.

"Of course not but it's a start" my dad states.

"If you ever carried on like that if I had a boyfriend I'd be out of here and you'd never see me again. You're lucky Brittany and Santana are as kind and forgiving as they are because if it was anyone else you wouldn't see them again after the way you acted" Emma says.

"I know what I did was wrong Emma and I accept my mistakes but like I say the whole situation got out of hand" my dad says. "When you have children you'll know where I was coming from but I'd hope you'd deal with it better than I did" he states.

"When I have children, I will accept them no matter what" Emma states.

"Emma it wasn't a case of accepting people, it was a case of trying to protect them in the long run" my dad states. "I know they are happy now but I also knew how hard it was to be in a serious relationship when you're 18…"

"Not this story again" Emma groans while rolling her eyes.

"Emma don't do that please" my mom states.

"All I am saying is that it was hard for your mom and I when we were Brittany's age to go through university and all the stresses that brought as well as being in a relationship" my dad says. "I just couldn't imagine what it would be like for Brittany when she was doing it alone and before anyone says anything I don't mean Santana wouldn't be there for her. I mean to go through those stresses herself since Santana wasn't physically at the same stage in life. Your mom and I had each other and went through it together so it took some pressure off but it was still hard but for Brittany and Santana, they would have completely different stresses because Santana has a fulltime career" he says.

"But dad…" Emma tries to protest but I jump in.

"We can go over and over who said what and who meant what but it doesn't change what happened. I think the best thing here is to move on and let each other say what they feel but at the same time let one another find things out for themselves. If Santana and I run into some problems, I am sure we can work them out on our own so let's respect one another" I say.

"Fine" Emma says and everyone else seems to agree.

XXX

"So everything seems to be going well now" Santana states as we sit together alone in the garden.

"Yeah it does, I'm just glad we can act normal again and I can stop pretending nothing was wrong" I say. The last week when I was staying with Santana, I tried to carry on as if nothing happened but the situation with my dad was always in the back of my head.

"Yeah" Santana agrees. "Hey I was thinking I could help you for your interview this week if you wanted it" she says.

"It's on Friday though, will you have time?" I ask.

"Of course" she smiles. "What kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't make time for you?"

"I just thought you had said previously that you had a busy week coming up at work" I reply.

"Sure it's going to be hectic but I'll still be able to help you. I don't want you worrying for the next few days about the interview" she says. "I could prepare some mock questions they could ask and then we can go over them. You're already a good candidate for the job but with a little extra preparation it could just boost your chances."

"Well if you don't mind then because I could use some help. My mom did say she could help me but it's more embarrassing doing stuff like that with her than it would be with either you or my friends" I say.

"It's settled then, I'll help you" Santana states.

"Cool, thanks babe" I say leaning in to kiss her.

"How about I take you out to dinner this week and then after we can go back to mine and discuss some things for your interview?" Santana suggests. "It can be any night you want before Friday and we can go anywhere you want as well, my treat" she tells me.

"Ok, cool" I smile. "I'll let you know when and where once I decide" I say.

"Ok" Santana smiles back. We sit in silence enjoying the peaceful evening for ten minutes before Santana breaks the silence. "There didn't seem to be an apology from your brother or even a visit from him at all since the fall out, do you think he'll come around to the idea of us being together anytime soon?" she asks.

"I don't know but I don't really care. The main thing is that my parents are ok with it and respect us being together so I'm happy with that" I reply. It doesn't bother me that I haven't seen my brother since the argument we all had because it's not going to change anything, I don't need his blessing to be happy.

"True" Santana nods. "I just thought he might have realised his mistakes like your dad" she says.

"He's probably just embarrassed now and does realise what he did was wrong" I say.

"You might be right but I just don't like how it's affecting my sister" Santana states. "She barely talks to me anymore because I don't think she wants to get caught in the middle. I mean I'm not saying she is ignoring me, I'm just saying she doesn't talk to me nearly as much as she used to. We used to talk all the time about personal things like relationships and stuff" she says.

"Did you talk about me?" I ask.

"I told her about how much I liked you but I didn't tell her when we first became a couple. She found that out the same time as your brother" she replies.

"Oh yeah so she did" I say just remembering. "Perhaps I should just make the first move then and go and see Scott to talk to him" I suggest. Technically he should make the first move since he was the one with the problem but I'd rather we cleared everything up, not just for my sake but for our families too. I mean Santana did just say her sister is acting different now because of the situation.

"Or I could possibly talk to him, you know tell him how much you mean to me and how I'll never hurt you" Santana suggests. "I could also try and get him to talk to my sister and make sure she's ok. I am the oldest sibling just like him so I want to protect my sister as much as he wants to protect you" she says.

"You could but I don't want things to get any worse. I've seen you with a temper babe when things don't go to plan and it doesn't always end well" I state.

"I only get really angry in extreme cases. I'm not going to make anything worse" Santana tells me.

"Well if you think it might help then by all means talk to him" I say.

"I think it could help, it's worth a try anyway" she says and I suppose she's right.

Let me know what you think. I think I'll do a bit of a time jump next chapter where Brittany is just about to start university.