A.N. This may be lengthy so skip it if you want to…
I just feel I owe you all an explanation for why it's taken me so long to update and it's for three reasons:
1. Things got a bit intense in here. The story and the reviews and the competition…it just got a little crazy so I felt like I had to take a step back.
2. Watching the show and the storyline they gave to Santana/Naya (who was AMAZING!) I had trouble even thinking about pairing Santana up with anyone besides Brittany because I was rooting so hard for them on the show so my heart was definitely not in Faberry or Pezberry while the show was on the air. Then RIB gave us what they did in the finale, and while I think the future looks bright for Brittana I'm concerned that the whole thing may fall apart like so many other story lines on Glee.
3. Serious writers block.
Either way, my heart is warming to these pairings and this story again and I will say it was one reviewer in particular that got my passion ignited again, so while I will keep them anonymous, I thank them because I never intended to let this one go, but I was having trouble getting it going again.
Thank you for reading and I hope too much time hasn't gone by for you to enjoy this chapter.
XX
Santana had a funny feeling the next morning as she walked the hall with Puck. It was as if she had suddenly developed her very own unique sixth sense the moment she saw Rachel and Quinn standing in the hallway chatting quietly at Quinn's locker.
Something was different.
The way they looked into each other's eyes and the gentle touches between them. It was like there was a new level of intimacy between them. It made Santana's heart clench in her chest.
"Morning, girlies," Santana greeted once she was close enough to them.
Both girls turned to her then, Rachel grinning widely and Quinn looking mildly annoyed that they'd been disturbed.
"Hi, Santana," Rachel greeted softly. "Noah."
"Hey, S," Quinn chimed in.
"Sup, hotties?" Puck greeted with a grin that made Quinn nervous. She'd never gotten around to talking to Santana the night before so she still had no idea what was up with the boy. He had his guitar case in one hand and he set the end on the floor before leaning on it.
Quinn's eyes narrowed as he proceeded to look every one of them up and down in turn, smiling lecherously.
"What, Puckerman?" Quinn finally growled.
He smirked, one hand rising in a defensive gesture, but before he could speak, another teen joined their little circle.
"Rachel, can I talk to you for a minute?" Finn requested.
Rachel sighed, her eyes closing for a moment before she turned to him. "What is it, Finn?"
He swallowed hard, glancing around to find Quinn, Puck and Santana standing firm, not willing to give him time alone with Rachel. "Could you guys give us a minute please?"
"They're fine where they are," Rachel told him, placing a calming hand on Santana's arm when the Latina opened her mouth to retort. "Just say whatever it is so I can go."
"Why are you so mad at me?" Finn demanded suddenly, his cheeks turning red.
Quinn and Santana exchanged a glance at the fire in Rachel's eye suddenly. "I'm mad at you for grabbing Santana and lying to me, neither of which you've even tried to apologize for, and then you have the nerve to go to my fathers and try to turn them against Quinn and Santana."
"What?" Santana growled, her eyes narrowing. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Finn!" Quinn exclaimed, stomping her foot on the ground in emphasis.
Finn actually shrunk back at the glares the two cheerleaders set on him in that moment. "Rachel, let me explain…"
"No," she told him softly, but firmly. "I don't want to talk until you understand why I'm angry. Until then, I need some space."
"Rachel…" Finn frowned before glancing around, unable to find a friendly face amongst them. He finally nodded at Rachel and turned around, slowly walking away.
"He's nothing if persistent," Rachel sighed. "I should go; I want to practice some vocal runs before class.
"I'll walk you," Puck told her. "I have to drop the guitar off in there."
Santana glared at him, motioning to keep his mouth shut. He offered Rachel his arm and she shot both the cheerleaders a sly grin over his shoulder before she slid her arm through his and they walked off down the hall.
"What the hell is going on, Q?" Santana asked once they were alone.
"What are you talking about?" Quinn watched Rachel until she and Puck disappeared around the corner and she turned to her friend.
Santana's eyes narrowed slightly. "You and Rachel. Something is different."
"It's fine, S, really." The blonde wasn't able to hide the smile that slipped onto her lips just thinking about the night before.
Santana knew that face and it made her stomach turn. "You're not telling me something."
"What does he know?' Quinn asked, changing the subject.
Santana stared at her for a long moment, the fact that Quinn changed the subject only confirming her suspicions that something was going on that she was unaware of. "He knows."
Quinn's eyes went wide, her mouth dropping open just a bit. "How could you tell him? What if he tells Rachel about how this whole thing started?"
Santana shook her head, leaning against the locker next to Quinn's, the cool metal surface sucking some of the heat from the skin of her bare arm. "Relax, Q. I explained everything and he's cool. Trust me when I say that I have something to hang over his head to keep him quiet."
Quinn suddenly smirked. "Are you talking about the thing with his…"
Santana laughed, her head nodding. "So glad it wasn't just me."
"Oh no," Quinn giggled. She grabbed one final book from her locker and slammed it shut. "I have to go. See you later."
"Later," Santana agreed with a nod. She watched her blonde friend hurry down the hall and she frowned. She had a sneaking suspicion that something big had gone down the night before between her blonde friend and the girl they were both chasing.
Maybe, she thought, it's time to lay it all on the line.
A low rumbling of thunder filled the air around her ominously and she only hoped it wasn't a sign.
XX
Quinn pushed through her front door later that afternoon and breathed a sigh of relief. She loved being back on top at school and to know that she had Santana on her side again was definitely a relief, but the Head Bitch façade was exhausting and it was nice to be home where she could really be herself.
School wasn't all bad. Surprisingly enough the happiest parts of her day involved Rachel. The way the diva would meet her between a few of their classes to say hi or walk her to class and the way the diva sat next to her in glee made her chest swell with something she was sure she'd never really felt before.
Her problem was that since she'd confessed her feelings to Rachel there was a part of her heart and her head that she really couldn't shut off. That little voice that still sounded suspiciously like her father telling her she was going to hell for loving her little diva.
It scared her to death.
"Quinnie?" Judy called from somewhere near the back of the house.
"Mom?" Quinn's brow furrowed as she followed the voice, rolling her eyes immediately because she figured boy-toy number whatever would be there too.
She walked into the kitchen and was pleasantly surprised to see her mother alone sitting at the kitchen table. The older woman looked up at the footfalls and smiled. "Hi, honey. How was school?"
"Fine," Quinn answered cautiously as she moved to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. "What are you doing here?" At that Judy looked rather guilty and conflicted, which had sudden alarm bells going off in Quinn's head. "Mom?"
"Your father called me," Judy said softly.
Quinn's eyes got wide and she felt her fight or flight instincts kick in immediately. She began making a mental note of things to pack in case this got ugly.
To Quinn's shock, Judy chuckled softly. "Quinn, relax, please. Sit down."
"What did he say?" Quinn wondered softly. She took a seat across the table from her mother and swallowed nervously.
"How he knows, I have no idea, but he told me that you've been spending time with Rachel Berry." Judy paused to take in the reaction from her daughter. It was subtle, but Quinn's face relaxed into a soft smile and her cheeks reddened at the mention of the other girl. "Are the two of you friends now?"
Quinn suddenly saw her opening. Since she discovered that her feelings for Rachel had been developing Quinn felt like deep down she had been searching for some kind of approval. Some kind of acceptance. She'd gotten it from Rachel. She'd gotten it from Santana and she knew that even Puck had given it to her in his own way.
But it wasn't enough.
She knew that she would have a much more difficult time truly accepting her feelings if her mother didn't accept how she felt. So she knew in that moment that she had to talk to her mom about it.
"Mom, I need to talk to you about something," Quinn said softly. She could feel her heart thrumming in her chest and her senses sharpened again, preparing her for fight or flight.
Judy reached across the table and grasped one of Quinn's hands in both of hers. "You can tell me anything, honey."
"Is that true?" Quinn asked, her voice wavering as she met her mother's gaze with watery hazel eyes.
"Anything," Judy repeated with a nod and a bit of a watery smile.
"I have feelings for her," Quinn blurted out. "I have feelings for Rachel Berry and I want to date her and kiss her and I don't want to go to hell for it. And Santana tells me that God would never send me to hell for loving another person but I can't get daddy's voice out of my head and it would kill me if you hated me for it. Please don't hate me for this."
Judy stood up and moved to her daughter's side, pulling her up from her chair.
This is it, Quinn thought. She's kicking me out again.
To her shock, Judy pulled her into a tight embrace and held her close, rocking her until Quinn realized that she wasn't being kicked out and she burst into tears.
"Oh, honey, it's okay," Judy cooed softly as she rocked Quinn gently. "It sounds like Santana is much smarter than I ever gave her credit for."
"Mommy, please tell me you don't hate me," Quinn begged softly, her voice thick with tears.
"I could never hate you, sweetie," Judy told her firmly. She held Quinn at arms length for a moment and swiped gently at her tears. "Your father may not have shown much compassion or acceptance and to keep him placated I may have been too similar, but things are different now. It's you and me and I love you no matter what."
"Really?" Quinn asked, desperate for that to be the truth.
"Of course," Judy told her softly, pulling her back into a warm hug.
Quinn sighed with relief and leaned into her mother farther. She suddenly felt like a weight had been lifted and she could breathe a little easier.
"So when can I meet her?" Judy asked suddenly as she stepped back and took the seat next to Quinn's at the table.
Quinn raised an eyebrow. "You want to meet her? You know Rachel."
"I know of Rachel," Judy corrected with a smile. "Invite her over one night this week and we can have dinner. Just the three of us."
"That sounds awesome, Mom," Quinn told her with a grin. "How about tonight? Can we have dinner just the two of us?"
Judy smiled and nodded. "I think that sounds like a wonderful idea."
As she watched her mother begin to bustle around the kitchen Quinn sent a quick text to Rachel.
Not sure I've ever been this happy b4 and you're such a big part of that. Can't wait to see u tomorrow at school. I'll call you later.
Q
XX
Santana stepped from her car and jogged through the rain after school, which had grown steadily worse as the day wore on and she ducked under the front porch and knocked on the front door.
Rachel opened the door a moment later, looking surprised to see Santana standing there drenched.
"Santana," she breathed, reaching out to grab her wrist and pull her inside. "Come in, you'll catch the flu out there."
"Hey," Santana greeted with a smile. "Sorry to just drop by. I just wanted to see you."
"Is everything okay?" Rachel asked. "Come in and I'll get you a towel."
"Everything's fine," Santana noted as she followed Rachel up the stairs and into her bedroom. "I was just kind of hoping we could talk."
Rachel nodded as she handed a large, fluffy towel over to the other girl and took a seat on her bed. "Sure." She watched as Santana began to pace the floor in front of her, obviously conflicted about something.
"I know that I was terrible to you for a long time," Santana started softly. "But to be honest I'm not really that nice to anyone. Except maybe Brit. I'm even a bitch to Q and we've been best friends since first grade." She paused and met Rachel's gaze. "My point is I'm sorry."
Rachel smiled a little. "Thank you. Your apology means a lot."
"And I know that you and Finn just broke up, but I feel like I need to be honest about something," Santana told her.
"Okay," Rachel told her.
Instead of answering, Santana leaned forward and pressed her lips to Rachel's. She felt the other girl stiffen for a moment before melting into the kiss. Santana's hands lifted to cup Rachel's face gently as she followed her kiss up with several small pecks to the diva's lips.
Rachel pulled back slowly, a dazed expression on her face and she blinked. "That's what you needed to be honest about?"
Santana nodded and swallowed hard, the kiss affecting her as well. "I like you. And not in a 'let's be best friends' kind of way. Don't get me wrong, I want us to be friends. But I want more than that with you."
"You like me?" Rachel questioned softly, her eyebrows rising. "As in like me like me?"
"As in I want to bring you flowers and write you cheesy notes and take you to dinner as my date," Santana clarified. She knew she was taking a huge risk by laying herself out on the line like this, but she had to make a move to get herself ahead of Quinn.
Little did she know her move was only just pulling her in even with the blonde.
"I want to be the one to make you smile," Santana told her softly.
"Wow," Rachel breathed, a smile quirking her lips and a blush coloring her cheeks. "I'm not sure I know what to say."
"Say yes," Santana told her with a smile.
Rachel's smile faltered a bit at that. "I want to. But it's not that easy."
"Why not?" Santana questioned, her resolve fading by the second and insecurities creeping up inside her. She had to fight the urge to run in that moment.
"Because while I can assure you that your feelings are returned," Rachel started, earning a cautiously relieved grin from Santana, "you should know that I think I have feelings for someone else as well."
"Quinn, right?" Santana asked softly.
Rachel nodded. "The way you two have been competing for me the last few weeks has certainly been chivalrous, and I appreciate the effort both of you are putting in to prove to me that you've changed. But I feel like I owe it to you and to Quinn to explore my feelings for each of you. I hope you can understand that."
Santana nodded rather reluctantly, her gaze on the floor. "I do."
Rachel stood up and approached her. She cupped Santana's chin gently and tilted her head up. "Chin up, Santana. Look at me." She waited until dark eyes met hers and she smiled. "The last few weeks have shown me that you're a really amazing person under the façade you put up at school. I care about you and I really like you."
"Really?" Santana asked softly, unable to shake the feeling that she was being left in the dust by Quinn and Rachel.
Rachel nodded, leaning up to kiss the other girl softly. "Really." Her phone suddenly chirped and she read a text from Quinn, missing the jealous flash in Santana's eyes as she typed back a quick response.
"I feel like I should warn you, Quinn and I have never been very good at sharing," Santana told her, mirth shining in her eyes.
Rachel's nose scrunched up a bit at that, but she was smiling. "I'm not sure I like to think of myself as being shared."
"Well, until you pick one of us to date, that's kind of what's going on here, baby girl," Santana pointed out with a smirk.
"Do I have to choose?" Rachel asked as if the realization of what was really going on finally dawned on her and she realized that she was going to have to consider the feelings of two people that had become important to her over the last few weeks. "I don't want to hurt anyone."
"Rachel, I care about you," Santana said softly, almost as if she was afraid her words would somehow make Rachel disappear from the spot in front of her. "And Quinn has been my bestie since forever. But someone will probably end up hurt either way." At that Rachel looked even more troubled so Santana kissed her quickly. "Look, try not to think about it. Just go with it."
"But, Santana, I'm no-," Rachel was cut off by another kiss. This one was different than the others they'd shared. It was slow and deliberate. She suddenly felt two hands slide around her waist and her hands rose seemingly on their own accord to snake around Santana's neck as the Latina deepened the kiss.
Rachel felt her stomach flip-flop and her heart flutter in her chest when Santana pulled her closer and suddenly backed her up so she was pressed against the wall gently. A sigh escaped her lips as Santana's lips suddenly began making their way to her neck and she felt her eyes roll back in her head at the feel of those lips on her skin.
The sound of someone clearing their throat nearby made them both jump. Their eyes landed on Leroy leaning in the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Hi, girls," he greeted, a teasing smile on his lips.
"Dad, this isn't what it looks like," Rachel started. When two sets of eyes landed on her she sighed. "Well, actually it's exactly what it looks like."
Santana grinned and approached him with her hand extended. "Hey, Mr. B, I'm Santana Lopez."
Leroy smirked and shook her hand. "Hi, Santana. It's nice to finally meet you." He glanced between the two girls. "Sorry for interrupting. There was a sweet little sports car in the driveway and I had to find out who it belonged to and I found it was entirely too quiet in the house for Rachel to be home so I thought something was wrong."
"Nope, I just discovered a really good way to keep her quiet," Santana replied with a wink in Rachel's direction to let her know she was kidding, earning herself a playful slap to the shoulder.
Leroy watched with rapt fascination as his daughter blushed and smiled rather lovingly at Santana. In that moment he realized that his little girl actually had feelings for the girl that had gone from tormentor to friend in a matter of a few short weeks. "It's clear to me that there's something going on here. Care to explain?"
"Dad," Rachel began. "Santana and I have feelings for each other and as it is customary once feelings are revealed we are going to begin dating to explore those feelings."
When Leroy set his gaze on Santana she smiled a cheeky smile and pointed to Rachel. "What she said."
He smirked. Despite what he'd heard about Santana Lopez, he could tell she was one hell of a charmer. He set his gaze on his daughter. "Well if that's the case, Santana, you'll be joining us for dinner tonight if you're free. And same rules apply as they did with Jesse and Finn and that Puckerman boy." He made a face that let them know exactly what he thought of Puck. "Open door policy and all that."
"Fine, Dad," Rachel relented with a teasing smile.
When Leroy looked her way Santana sighed and rolled her eyes dramatically. "Fine, Dad." Both Rachel and her father laughed at that.
"Good," he said with a nod. "Now about that car…"
"320 horsies in that baby," Santana grinned as she pulled the keys from her pocket. "Want to take her for a spin?"
He raised a brow. "Are you serious?"
She flipped him the keys and nodded. "Of course."
He looked from the girls to the keys in his pocket and back to the girls, pointing at them both. "Open door. I'll be back." He took off down the hall. "Thanks, Santana!"
Santana grinned when Rachel giggled next to her. "Your dad is cool."
Rachel nodded. "Daddy won't be so easy to win over. He's not quite as impressed with Porsches."
Santana shrugged. "Then I'll just have to turn up the charm a little." As soon as she heard the door slam downstairs she pulled Rachel into her again. "But until then…"
Rachel's giggles turned to sighs as they fluttered to Santana's ears and the sounds of the steady rain outside had her feeling more at peace than she'd felt in a really long time.
XX
A.N. Thank you all for reading. More to follow at some point…promise.