Chapter 53: Can't Hold Us Down

Chapter title song and soundtrack: "Can't Hold Us Down" by Christina Aguilera


A/N: Thank you to everyone who sent me good wishes as I embark on the next step in my career! The first week was wonderful, and I got everything I wanted out of my placement and training assignments. Your wishes must have worked!

Thank you, as always, to my betas Mia and terriblemuriel. Also, my amazing proofreader Emma's 409.


March 2020


Santana walked down the hall to her office the following Monday, trying not to look smug with her new bling around her neck. She was excited, not only to show Elinor the ring, but because it was just one week until SB 61 went to its preliminary assembly hearing. When she opened the door to the office she shared with Elinor and Denton, she was surprised to see a strange woman sitting at the conference table looking over some papers with Elinor. Her long red hair hung over her pale shoulders and ivy green shirt.

"Um… hi," Santana said.

"Morning!" Elinor chirped, looking up from over the redhead's shoulder.

The redhead didn't look up. Santana thought that was rude, so she walked around the table and extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Santana."

The stranger lifted her head, unsmiling, and begrudgingly extended her hand, shaking it for just a second without a trace of enthusiasm. "Jordan."

Santana's blood went cold.

"Hi Jordan," Santana forced out. She tried to catch Elinor's eye, but Elinor remained focused on the papers in front of her. "Elinor? A word?" Santana hissed, gesturing toward the hall with her head, eyes wide.

Elinor gave her a defensive look before standing and following Santana into the hall.

When they were just out of earshot Santana wheeled around. "What the fuck is she doing here?" she demanded as quietly as she could, pointing towards their office. She would have preferred to yell, but they were in a government building and she didn't want to draw unnecessary attention. Still, it was difficult to keep her voice down, and her words were seething. "That bitch screwed you over dozens of times and now I come into work and she's going over our fucking document? That's confidential! If Marcía found out she would flip her shit. Seriously, you might have to restrain me so I don't go in there and rearrange that whore's face. No one fucks with my friends and then waltzes into my workplace without first giving me a damn good explanation and doing an obscene amount of groveling, which frankly I don't think she-"

"Santana! Calm the fuck down. She hasn't looked at the bill, okay? She's just here to sign our lease termination papers."

"Lease termination papers?"

"We both have to sign them stating our intent to move out, even though I already did. We're just making it official."

"She couldn't fax them or something?"

Elinor looked down the hall, pausing. "It… it was just easier this way."

"Easier for who?" Santana challenged, her eyes narrowing as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Elinor shot Santana a look that meant don't push me.

"No, really, El, for who? For her? Because that's bullshit. There's no way it's easier for her to drive across town than to fax a few papers back and forth. She has an assistant. She could even forge your signature. Whatever reason she gave you is a thinly veiled attempt to drag you back into her twisted little game."

"It's complicated, Santana."

"No, it's not!" Santana seethed, exasperated. "She's doing her same old snake-in-the-grass thing and I'm not going to sit there and let her get away with it! If you're not going to stand up for yourself, I will!"

Before Elinor could object, Santana stormed down the hall back into their office, leaving Elinor dumbstruck in the hall.

"Hi, Jordan," she said with an insincere smile. "Are you done with those documents? Because I'm afraid you've overstayed your welcome and I have to politely ask you to leave."

"Oh really? Who are you?" Jordan challenged.

"Elinor's new girlfriend," Santana fibbed without missing a beat. She would tell just about any lie to protect Elinor. She knew Brittany would approve. Brittany probably would have suggested it.

"Oh really," Jordan scoffed, rolling her eyes. "She the one who gave you that ring?"

Santana was boiling mad now. "I said," she growled, "it's time. For you. To leave."

"Whatever," Jordan huffed, tossing her pen on the table and standing. She picked up her purse and walked out. As she rounded the doorframe, she looked back and sneered. "Hope you don't mind she stayed over at my place last night."

Santana gripped the back of a chair to keep herself from hurling a stapler at Jordan. She heard Elinor fluttering down the hall after Jordan, making whining apologies. A few moments later, Elinor walked back into the office, stone-faced. Santana avoided eye contact. Not a single word was spoken for five full minutes as they pretended to do work. Santana wished as hard as she could that Denton would arrive and ease the tension with his casual attitude and perfectly timed humor. But he didn't show up.

Finally Santana couldn't bear it anymore. "I'm sorry," she grumbled. It wasn't sincere, and Elinor knew it.

Elinor held up her hand. "I don't want to hear it," she snapped.

A few minutes later Elinor's phone buzzed. She looked at the text message, collected some documents into her briefcase, and walked out. Santana didn't see her for the rest of the day and Denton didn't ask any questions when he arrived.

That night Santana went back to her hotel room and watched Law & Order reruns – which were terrible, because they never got things quite right – and picked at her room-service dinner, feeling even lonelier than usual.


The next morning, Santana walked into the office with a sheepish expression on her face. Glancing across the table at Elinor, she quietly opened her briefcase. Elinor's eyes remained on the document in front of her. As Santana closed her briefcase, Elinor slid a piece of paper across the table to her without looking up. Santana eyed Elinor with suspicion before moving the paper in front of her to read.

I, Elinor Kelley, promise not to meet with Jordan McClendon in person without first consulting Santana Lopez. I understand that Miss Lopez has my best interests at heart and although she is very, very scary when she's angry, she is a protective and loyal friend. I hope that I would be able to do the same for her if the tables were turned. Furthermore, I will stop deluding myself about Miss McClendon's intentions and will consult with Miss Lopez before initiating any further contact with Miss McClendon. Signed on this day, March twenty-sixth, two-thousand-twenty: Elinor Kelley.

Santana tried to conceal a satisfied smile. "Sorry I went ape shit on you," she mumbled.

"No you're not," Elinor grinned. "And I should have known better than to bring her here," Elinor shrugged. "But… I'm kind of glad I did. So are we cool?"

"Yeah," Santana smirked. "We're cool. I'm still pissed at her, but now I have it in writing that you're not going to get back together or do anyth-"

"OH MY GOD!" Elinor screamed, pointing at Santana's necklace. "Girl, you got some shiny! When were you going to tell me?"

"Yesterday," Santana said with a smug grin.

"Sweet jeezus, it's gorgeous, Santana!" Elinor exclaimed, getting out of her seat to come examine the ring more closely.

"Isn't it?" Santana smiled, looking down at it. "Britt's got good taste."

"Does it not fit?" Elinor frowned, examining it with her fingers.

"No, it fits."

"Why are you wearing it around your neck?"

"I don't know, it just felt right when she asked me," Santana shrugged. "We had a long talk and I told her I didn't want to get married until it was legal. I want to marry her more than anything– you know that. But since it's not legal yet, putting it on my finger felt… off."

"Actually, that's genius," Elinor said, sounding impressed. "It's like you're saying 'hey, since I'm not legally allowed to get married, you don't consider my engagement real either.' It's a powerful statement. It calls out that 'separate and unequal' thing between marriage and domestic partnerships."

"Yeah… yeah, I guess that's it!" Santana said, pleased that Elinor understood her impulse in more concrete terms than she did. "It is about being treated as separate and unequal."

"It will look especially good at the press conference."

Santana froze. "Press conference?"

"Yeah. Marcía didn't tell you?" Elinor frowned.

"No…"

"Next week after the preliminary hearing they're holding a press conference to ask us about our work on the bill. Marcía and Denton will talk a lot, but we'll be there too. Having that ring around your neck gives a personal story to our cause. They'll eat it up."

"Oh… Wow, I didn't know that was part of the job…." Santana said, trying not to sound nervous.

"We'll talk about it lots later. But for now, we need to go take our final copy of SB 61 to Neil," Elinor said, giddy with excitement. "I feel like a proud mama taking her baby to the first day of kindergarten. C'mon, you have to tell me every single detail of Britt's proposal on the way."

Santana smiled and stood, gathering her papers. She was just as excited as Elinor about next week's hearing – she had never been to anything like it before – but was distracted by her sudden worry about the press conference. She was glad she had the short distance to the car to walk off some of the anxiety she felt. As their heels clicked down the hall, she dug in her purse for her nail file and began examining which nails needed to be smoothed. It helped her to do something with her hands when she felt like this. She chatted away with Elinor, recounting the candles and the snow and how utterly surprised she'd been. But she couldn't shake off the feeling that she was headed down a one-way freeway with no exits. Would she have to out herself at the press conference? As an adult she had never been shy about her orientation, but she wasn't sure she was ready to be an LGBT representative for the media. It was one thing to hold Brittany's hand in public and steal kisses every now and then; it was another to go on the news and talk to strangers, having her answers edited and transmitted to more strangers who sat passing judgment in the comfort of their own homes. Now, apparently it was part of her job to be an example.


Santana arrived at work on Thursday to find Denton, Elinor, and a strange woman sitting at the table in their office. The stranger had sleek, shiny dark hair cut to her shoulders and looked like she was somewhere between thirty and forty years old. Her suit was a little faded, but her makeup was precise and elegant over her olive-tone skin.

"Um… hi," Santana said, glancing at Elinor with a who is this? expression on her face. Elinor smiled.

The woman looked up. "Hi! Oh, I'm sorry, is this your seat? Here, I'll move." She stood, gathering her papers.

"No, no, it's okay. We switch seats every day. It's one of Denton's strategies to make sure we get 'fresh perspectives.'" She nodded towards Denton who gave her a cartoonishly charming smile.

"I like that idea. Sorry, I'm Danielle, Marcía's publicist," she said, extending her hand across the table. "I'm here to brief you on what will happen at the press conference."

"Oh, great! I'm Santana," she said, shaking Danielle's hand. "Nice to meet you." She settled into her seat and took out a pen and paper.

"So have any of you ever been to a press conference?" Danielle asked, settling back into her chair and straightening the papers in front of her.

Santana and Elinor shook their heads.

"I have," Denton said, lifting his hand. "Many times."

"Excellent. Have you told them about your experiences?"

"No, we've been focusing on the bill."

"Okay. Well, it's a lot like what you see on TV. What you don't see is the preparation or the thought process of the facilitator. So that's what I'm here to brief you on, and then I'll answer any other questions you might have. Sound good?"

Elinor, Santana and Denton nodded.

"Okay, I'll just jump right in. The press will assemble in a room and you'll be brought in to answer questions. There will be a facilitator, a neutral party, meaning neither press nor subject, who will pick who gets to ask the questions in what order. The facilitator knows which members of the press get to answer questions first, for whatever reasons; usually status and the reputation of the publication."

"Are there questions they're not allowed to ask us?" Santana asked hopefully.

"No, they only do that for celebrity press conferences."

"What, we're not celebrities?" Denton teased.

Danielle grinned at him. "Hopefully soon. Anyway, sometimes the subject will read a prepared statement before opening up the floor to questions. I'm not sure what Marcía has decided about that. In any case, you'll be seated at a table with microphones. I would suggest dividing up which topics each of you will speak about beforehand to avoid awkward pauses and glancing up and down the table. I'm guessing that Marcía and Denton will be fielding most of the questions since they've worked the longest in government agencies, but if a question relates specifically to legal issues, it makes most sense for either of you to answer," she said, nodding to Elinor and Santana.

Denton nodded. "We don't want to emphasize that this team was formulated specifically for the bill because we don't want to subject Neil to scrutiny. So of course it's fine to reference your legal training, but your involvement in this bill isn't solely about that aspect. So don't identify yourselves as 'one of the lawyers that was hired to help draft the bill.' We're all just members of the team and we happen to have different backgrounds."

"Okay, good to know. So Elinor and Santana, just be sure to address the camera when you're speaking. Enunciate and sit up straight and you'll be golden. Is there anything I didn't cover?"

Santana lifted her hand a few inches. "Since there's no off-limits topics, how should we handle questions that are blatantly judgmental or too personal?"

"Hmm… Do you have kids, Santana?"

Santana shook her head.

"Have you ever been around kids?" Danielle asked.

Santana gave Danielle a bemused look. "Some," she answered. "I have lots of little cousins. Why?"

"Do you like spending time with them?"

"Sometimes they get a little whiny, but usually they're adorable."

"Good," Danielle nodded. "When you're answering a question that might irk you, just pretend you're talking to a group of kids. You can still use legal terms, of course, but just spell everything out in the simplest, most straightforward way possible. You don't have to answer anything too personal. Don't get overly emotional, either. When they ask a question or go in a direction that seems ridiculous and far-fetched, just remember they don't know any better. All they know is their own little childlike reality. That or they're testing your boundaries like a kid does. It's way easier to be patient with them that way."

"Okay…" Santana contemplated Danielle's suggestion. She crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair. "Kids, huh?"

"Yup," said Danielle, nodding. "That makes it easy. Anyway, I suggest you wear business attire, not unlike what you're wearing now. Don't wear white or bright red because it doesn't look good on camera. I would also avoid flashy jewelry. But definitely keep the ring, Santana," she said with a grin.

Santana glanced at Elinor, knowing she would get an I told you so smile. But Elinor was staring at Danielle with rapt attention and Santana couldn't catch her eye. Santana realized Elinor hadn't spoken the whole morning, but just sat there, smiling. Danielle was looking at Elinor and smiling too. Santana looked back and forth between the two women.

Elinor was spellbound.


After the preliminary hearing the following day, Santana was furious. As she listened to the elected officials debate the content of the bill, she clenched her fists at her sides to keep from throwing or breaking anything. She tightened her jaw, biting the fleshy part of her lower lip to keep from yelling. She didn't say a word during the car ride with Marcía, Denton and Elinor to Carlos' hotel where the press conference was being held. When they arrived, Santana bolted down a hallway. She burst through the door of an empty conference room. "Those fuckers!" she shouted, slamming her briefcase down on a table. "The fucking nerve of them!"

Elinor followed Santana in. "Calm down, Lopez," she said, shutting the door.

"Did you hear what the one asshole said?" Santana fumed. "He actually used the term 'fag' in a public hearing. What decade does he think this is?"

Elinor's voice was steady and hushed. "We knew it would be an uphill battle. The preliminary hearing was a shit show, but we have time to make revisions before this session closes."

"But we shouldn't have to!" Santana argued. "The arguments these Assembly people come up with to justify their bigotry are ridiculous! It's disgusting what kind of lunatic gets voted into public office in our 'democratic' system. We shouldn't have to present research data proving gay people aren't child molesters and perverts! We should be talking about our constitutional rights!"

"Your temper has really flared up lately," Elinor noted dryly. "Being away from Brittany is getting to you, isn't it?"

Santana huffed in admission, her shoulders still tense.

Elinor rallied. "Well, hopefully just a little longer until this moves through to the senate and you can go back to Lima. But rest assured – this morning's hearing was a good sign."

"How is this a good sign?" Santana whined, hands on her hips. "I thought I'd be doing real legal consultation, not helping Marcía pander to their ridiculous theories about how we're mutants!"

"It's a good sign because it means they're grasping at straws. They can't find anything to actually back up their argument because the bill is sound. Classic filibustering."

Santana sighed, lowering her voice a bit. "The fact that these 'government officials' are actually ignorant turds pisses me off. I just want to take Britt back to New Haven where we can get married, live happily ever after, and never have to deal with people like that again." She flopped down into a chair with visible petulance.

Elinor sat on the corner of the table and folded her arms across her chest. "Santana," she said, looking down at Santana in a way that made her feel like she was back in grade school. "You know there are people like that everywhere, even in Connecticut — especially in Connecticut. At least Ohio is a swing state. And if you decide to run away and marry Brittany somewhere else just because this is frustrating, not only will I not come to your wedding, I know you'll feel guilty about it for the rest of your life. So enough with that nonsense." She handed Santana a bottle of water from her purse.

"I know…" Santana grumbled, taking the bottle of water and resting her head on the back of her chair. She took a sip of water and another deep breath. She picked up the ring on her necklace and pulled it side to side, making the thin silver chain vibrate against her neck. "I know I would feel like a quitter if I did that, and it wouldn't be fair to Britt to make her move again… but this is really hard. It's one thing when everyday people stare or scowl when they see me holding her hand, but it's another to watch elected officials discuss the validity of my relationship. It just makes my blood boil. I have no idea how I'm going to respond if any bigoted questions come up during the press conference this afternoon."

"Remember what Danielle said. Answer the bad questions like you're talking to a kid."

"Okay. Can we have a sign in case I can't handle the question?"

"Sure. Scratch your eyelid."

"Great. Just… how do these people think all those awful things?"

Elinor paused, gazing out the window for a moment. "Remember when we met? That summer?"

"Yeah…" Santana said, glancing away and reaching for the ring again.

"Remember how scared you were about being gay?" Elinor pressed.

Santana nodded, looking at the label on her water bottle.

"They're afraid of what they don't understand too," Elinor said gently. "They don't know any better."

Santana paused before she spoke again. She wanted to be very careful with her words. "Maybe they just didn't have someone patient enough to teach them otherwise," she said, still staring at her water. She heard Elinor exhale as she smiled in gratitude. There was a moment of silence. "I guess I should have a little more patience with the turds," Santana added, shrugging.

Elinor chuckled and picked up her purse from behind her on the table. "I need to go make a call. Will you be okay until I get back?"

Santana looked up and nodded. "Yeah," she said. Elinor stood and turned to go. As she reached the door, Santana called after her, "Hey, El?"

Elinor turned halfway around. "Yeah?" she asked.

"Thank you," Santana mumbled. "For that summer. And… for everything else."

"You're welcome," said Elinor with a gracious smile. She gave Santana an affectionate nod as she opened the door and walked back into the hallway.


The hotel ballroom where the press conference was being held – coincidently the same hotel Santana had been living in – was crowded and noisy. Santana sat at the end of the table next to Elinor. Denton and Marcía sat to their left, fielding most of the questions. Denton was as charming as ever, and Marcía was just as straightforward and humorless as she was in the office. They balanced each other out well.

"What were your initial reactions to the preliminary hearing?" a reporter from the Cincinnati Times asked.

"We had mixed feelings," Denton answered, leaning towards his microphone. He continued with his diplomatic and vague answer, earning a few satisfied nods from the press.

Most of the questions were about the motivations for drafting the bill, which they spoke to in both general and specific terms: themes of equality and justice were addressed, but the practical and legal reasons for enabling same-sex couples to marry were also given attention.

After a while, questions drifted past motivations to other issues. "Has the governor indicated whether or not he would veto the bill, should it be passed through the senate?"

Marcía leaned forward. "No, he has not. It would be a bit premature at this time."

A man with a recording device held in the air raised his hand and the facilitator brought the microphone to him.

"Do any of you have any personal investment in this bill?" he asked.

"You mean are we banking on it passing for our own right to marry?" Denton asked with a grin.

The reporter who asked the question confirmed.

The team looked up and down the table, trying not to let their gazes linger on Santana. Santana could feel Elinor perk up next to her, curious to see if Santana would answer the question.

Santana thought about all the people in the room. Outing herself to them was different than outing herself to a room of high school students like she had done with the Speakers' Bureau in college. Now she was a legal professional. Once she was out, she couldn't go back in, and it was possible that being out would affect her future career. She looked at the journalists with their pens raised, the photographers and cameramen with their devices poised. One camera was clearly labeled C-SPAN. If she outed herself now, it would be public knowledge and she wouldn't be able to take it back.

Then she remembered that night on the porch with Brittany. The snow, the candles, and the look on Brittany's face when Brittany thought Santana was rejecting her proposal. Santana would do anything to make sure she never saw that face again.

Santana's heart raced and blood pounded in her head as she cleared her throat. "I've got a personal investment," she said, leaning toward the microphone with confidence. "I want to marry my girlfriend. We've been together almost nine years and we don't feel a civil union or domestic partnership accurately reflects the commitment we're ready to make to each other. It's unfortunate that our fate lies in the hands of others, but I'm very hopeful our elected officials will do the right thing."

A few members of the press gave stiff smiles and nods as they scribbled and held up their recording devices. They seemed satisfied with Santana's reply and moved on to the next question.

The next half hour was easy. Denton and Marcía handled most of the questions, with Elinor and occasionally Santana giving their input on the legal implications of the bill.


"You seem like you've done that before," Santana smiled at Elinor once they were back in the empty conference room they had used as a green room. Denton and Marcía had quickly gathered their belongings and left in a towncar, leaving Santana and Elinor alone with a few hotel staff who were prepping the room for a later event.

Elinor shrugged. "I just focus on my breathing and try not to get worked up. It's easy to stay calm if you remember they're just people who are also flawed."

"It was a lot easier than I thought it would be, but I was still nervous," Santana said as she sank into one of the conference room chairs.

"You were awesome. I was proud of you for outing yourself," Elinor said, remaining standing with a smile.

"Yeah… I was kind of… relieved afterwards. But I think my heart's still beating a little fast."

Before Elinor could respond, someone put their hands in front of Santana's eyes. The fingers were thin and warm. Santana knew those hands anywhere. She whirled around.

"Britt!"

"Surprise!" Brittany cheered, bouncing her knees with her hands pressed together at her chest.

"Hey!" Santana exclaimed, her eyes going wide in delight as she stood up. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to watch my celebrity girlfriend kick ass in her first press conference!"

"Aw, Britt, you didn't have to do that!"

"I know, but I'm awesome," Brittany smirked, wrapping her arms around Santana's neck. "You did so good," she murmured. "I was so proud of you."

"Who told you where it was?" Santana asked, still incredulous.

Brittany pointed to Elinor, who raised her hand and muttered, "Guilty as charged," with a grin.

"Aw, you two…" Santana said, shaking her head.

"Good to see you, El," Brittany said, giving her a quick hug.

"You too," Elinor said. "You look awesome."

"Thanks! I've been running."

"Let's take your awesomeness upstairs," Santana said, putting her hand on the small of Brittany's back. She turned and picked up her purse, giving Elinor a pat on the shoulder. "See you in the office tomorrow morning?"

"Oh, Denton said we're not meeting until noon, since we've been working such long hours. Go ahead and sleep in!"

"She'll need to," Brittany grinned, pulling Santana towards the hall.

"Britt!" Santana scolded, chuckling as they turned to leave.

Once the elevator doors closed behind them, Brittany tackled Santana, pushing her up against the wall playfully, kissing her neck and nibbling her ear. The doors opened and they trotted down the hall towards Santana's room.

"So…" Brittany lilted as Santana slipped her access key in the door. "Seeing your press conference was reason enough to come visit you. But I have another reason."

"Oh yeah?" Santana asked with a smirk, holding the door open for Brittany.

"Uh huh." Brittany walked into the room toward her suitcase, which she had placed on the chair before the press conference. "Carlos let me in," she explained, nodding towards the suitcase. She unzipped it, pulled out a bottle of champagne and exclaimed, "I got into nursing school!"

"Aahhhh!" Santana squealed. She jumped up and down before darting towards Brittany, wrapping her up. "Congratulations, Nurse Pierce!"

"One step closer," Brittany grinned.

"Where?" Santana asked.

"OSU Lima and Mt. Carmel, here in Columbus."

"Oh, baby I'm so proud of you… I knew you'd get in." Santana rocked side to side on her feet, swaying with Brittany in her arms.

"Guess what else?"

"There's more?" Santana asked, pulling back to look at Brittany's face.

"My parents sat me down this afternoon… annnd… they told me it's time I moved here to be with you. Not just weekends. Full time."

"What!" Santana cried, even more ecstatic. "Really?" She gripped Brittany's shoulders.

"Uh huh!"

"That's the best news I've heard this year."

"Tonight's going to be a big celebration," Brittany purred, nuzzling Santana's ear. "You're not gonna know what hit you..." she kissed the hinge of Santana's jaw. "I brought the bubbly. And you have a really nice bathtub in there…"

"Oh, it's so on…" Santana grinned, already slipping out of her shoes and sliding her hands under Brittany's shirt.

A few minutes later they lay across from each other in the oval bathtub, water up to their shoulders, drinking champagne out of the hotel cups. The hot water slowly drained the press conference adrenaline out of Santana's muscles. Soon all she felt was the satisfaction of having been brave enough to out herself and the joy that came when Brittany visited. Steam clung to the glasses and moistened their faces; it looked like they were glowing.

They grinned across the water at each other as they took sips, letting the champagne bubbles sparkle on their tongues and tingle down their throats. Brittany wiggled and splashed her feet, sending a few drops into Santana's face and hair. Santana giggled into her champagne. After a minute she slithered across the tub, nuzzling into Brittany's ear and nipping it.

"Have I told you lately how unbearably sexy you are?" she purred.

"Yes, but please tell me again," Brittany grinned.

"You are so sexy sometimes I have to remind myself not to rip your clothes off in public."

"Oh yeah?"

"Uh huh. Sometimes you'll be doing something boring like putting the shopping cart back in line in a parking lot and I'll have the urge to push you up against our car and do naughty things to you."

"Like what things?" Brittany hummed.

"Like this..."

Setting her champagne on the edge of the tub, Santana sank her head under the water, closing her eyes and blowing air through her nose as her lips found Brittany's nipple. She slid her hands down Brittany's waist, anchoring herself at the smallest part, flicking out her tongue and sucking on Brittany's nipple.

Santana heard the rumble of Brittany humming through the water as it seeped into her ears. The water made little sloshing noises against the edge of the tub as she moved her head to Brittany's other nipple.

When she needed air, she rose from the water, blinking and grinning as her face dripped. "Just for starters," she added.

"That's a very good start," Brittany mumbled. "And it would be very naughty to do that to me in a parking lot. What else would you do?"

Santana wiped her face with her hand, then kissed Brittany's cheek, leaving drops of water on the damp skin. "I'd stick my hand down your pants and touch you," she said, sliding a hand down to Brittany's hip.

"In the parking lot?" Brittany gasped. "That's really naughty, Santana. I think you'd get in big trouble for that."

"Probably" Santana hummed, running her tongue over Brittany's pulse point up to her ear, feeling Brittany tremble a bit. "I can't help myself though. I want to do lots of naughty things to you." Her touch felt extra light in the water as she slid her fingers down the crease of Brittany's thigh, coming to rest just above Brittany's clit.

Brittany exhaled in anticipation as she parted her legs, pressing her knees against the ceramic walls of the tub. She tilted her head back against the ledge, letting out a barely audible groan. "Please," she whispered, "show me."

Santana moved her hand away, earning another frustrated groan from Brittany. But not a moment later, much to Brittany's delight, Santana took a deep breath and slid her torso underwater, curling back on her knees with her head positioned right above Brittany's sex.

Santana felt the water slosh around her as Brittany jerked when her tongue first slid over Brittany's clit. She grinned, a few bubbles floating out of her nose as she chuckled. Going down on Brittany underwater was difficult, given the confines of the tub and the fact that she had to fight the air in her lungs that pulled her upwards. She also had to practice good breath control to make sure she didn't get water up her nose and start sputtering, breaking the mood completely.

But it was worth it. Every noise Brittany made was muffled yet louder as it echoed through the water and sounded off the walls of the bathroom. Ripples accompanied every movement; waves lapped and swells sloshed against the porcelain. The heat of the water relaxed them, making it easy to lose themselves in their lovemaking.

Santana had to come up for air frequently as her own arousal made her breathing more rapid. She felt the hot water against her own sex, cool in comparison to the heat that was building there. Finally she grew so exhausted of coming up for air, she slid back up Brittany's body, resting against her shoulder as her fingers took over drawing circles around Brittany's clit and sliding up and down her folds.

"Here," Brittany said, trying to steady her voice through her ragged breathing. She wriggled out from under Santana and pushed herself up onto the rim of the tub, holding herself steady with her hands on the edge of the porcelain. "Please," she panted as she spread her legs.

Santana grinned and slid forward through the water, pulling herself up with hands hooked over Brittany's thighs, bringing her mouth to Brittany's sex again. It felt firmer against her mouth now that Brittany was out of the water.

Brittany leaned back against the wall, moaning in satisfaction.

Santana pressed in, feeling the water dripping down her face and back cool in comparison to Brittany's skin. Brittany tried not to buck her hips, but the added sensations of the hot water and cold porcelain made it difficult. She was growing frustrated, needing just a bit more than Santana could offer with her mouth.

Santana knew it and withdrew her mouth, panting, "Bed."

"Yeah," Brittany muttered.

Water sloshed from Santana's body as she rose out of the tub and stepped onto the mat. She grabbed a stack of towels as they both dripped into the bedroom. She flung the towels out over the sheets, pushing Brittany down, kissing her fiercely and bringing her hand down to flit through Brittany's folds before pushing two fingers inside. Brittany gasped, arching up into Santana and tilting her head back. "Santana…" she moaned.

Santana had noticed that since their reconnection, Brittany allowed herself to be dominated far more frequently. Santana still loved it when Brittany was forceful, but she enjoyed topping Brittany almost as much, and it gave them even more variety in their sex life. Neither of them was complaining.

Brittany snaked her hand between them, finding Santana's sex and mirroring what Santana's hand was doing. Their rhythm was urgent, pumping in and out until their lower arms were sore. Santana came first, pushing up into Brittany as she winced and squeezed her eyes shut, gasping.

"Oh god," she groaned as she started to come down. "Oh god, come for me, Britt," she gasped, trying to prolong her own orgasm. She pushed her thumb down, pressing upwards with her fingers, willing Brittany to come around them. And Brittany did, clenching Santana's fingers as she arched, wailing Santana's name and plunging Santana into another fit of ecstasy.

Santana collapsed on top of her, still gasping for air. "Fuck," she grinned. "Why haven't we been using that tub more often?"

Brittany chuckled. "The water makes everything more intense, doesn't it?"

Santana nodded against Brittany's chest, her wet hair clinging to it and feeling slightly scratchy against her cheek.

When their breathing had steadied, Brittany lifted the edge of one of the towels to dry off Santana's back, patting it through her hair and wiping the sweat off her forehead. "You look really sexy," she murmured, her words slurring together in her sex-induced fatigue.

Santana chuckled, lifting the corner of a towel to wipe droplets off Brittany's arm. "You too." She brought her lips to Brittany's, feeling the damp skin of their torsos sticking together. She kissed Brittany until they were both so tired they fell asleep, naked, damp, and happy.


They woke the next morning tangled in a mess of towels and sheets, ravenously hungry. They ordered room service, Santana donning a robe only for the purpose of answering the door. She shed it as soon as the door shut and they lay in bed naked, sunshine pouring through the window as they ate and giggling at the tangled messes their wet hair had formed while they slept.

Santana gazed out the window, mellowing in the joy of knowing she would soon be able to wake up next to Brittany every morning.

"You know what we should do today?" Santana asked.

"Hm?"

"We should go look for a new place. Our place."

Brittany grinned. "We finally get to free all our stuff from the storage unit."

"Where do you want to live?"

"Anywhere," Brittany shrugged. "As long as it's with you. I've pretty much decided on Mt. Carmel for nursing school. So anywhere in Columbus works for me."

"Maybe in a cute little neighborhood with lots of nice restaurants and shops we can walk to? Or near the Mt. Carmel campus?"

"Maybe…" Brittany mused. "How long do you think we'll be living in our next place?"

"Who knows? We were in our place in New Haven for three years. Moving sucks, so I'd like to stay put."

"That sounds good. I'm ready to settle down too. Do you think… do you think we could maybe get a two bedroom?"

"Sure," Santana shrugged. "Why?"

"Well…" Brittany hesitated. "I've been thinking… We've been talking about our future a lot, legal forms and getting married and the rest of our lives and happily ever after… and I realized that we still haven't talked about…" she bit her lip for a moment, "kids."

"Oh," Santana said with a shy grin. She adored Brittany's roundabout way of bringing things up, even if it had taken her years to figure out when Brittany was hinting. "So… you want a new place with a bedroom and a nursery."

Brittany gave a little nod as she returned Santana's shy smile. "Do you… do you want kids?" she asked hopefully, lifting the ring on its chain around Santana's neck and playing with it gently.

"Definitely," Santana replied, turning onto her side so she could look Brittany directly in the eyes.

"Really?" Brittany asked in delight. Her eyes sparkled.

"Mm hm." Santana nodded. "It's funny we never talked about it, 'cuz I just assumed. Of course I want a family with you. You're gonna be a wonderful mom," she said, gazing down at Brittany in adoration.

"How many?" Brittany asked, beaming.

"A hundred," Santana teased, tossing her hair flamboyantly.

"Ack! I'm not a clown car!" Brittany laughed, twisting on her back and tickling Santana.

Santana laughed and batted Brittany's hand away. "Who says you're gonna be the one to pop them out?"

"What, you want to?"

"Well, it's not terribly appealing, but I guess if I had to..."

"My point exactly. I'm totally game for carrying our lady babies. For real though, how many?" Brittany repeated.

Santana glanced up and to the side in thought. "Two," she said, meeting Brittany's eyes again. "So they have someone to play with. I didn't like growing up alone."

"Perfect," Brittany agreed.

Santana kissed Brittany on the nose. "No, you're perfect."

Brittany captured her lips, the playful mood dissipating as she ran her hand up Santana's arm and tangled her fingers in her messy hair. Their tongues danced together for a minute before Santana pulled back and asked, "When were you thinking of having them?"

Before Brittany could answer, Santana's phone rang. She debated letting it go to voicemail, but thought perhaps she should check to see who it was, since not many people would call on a weekday morning without a good reason. She lifted the phone off the nightstand and saw it was Denton. Pulling a sheet over her bare chest and mouthing a sincere sorry to Brittany, she sat up and answered it.

"Hey, Denton. What's up?" she asked, pinching the bridge of her nose as she tried to sound alert.

She listened for a moment, nodding even though he couldn't see her. About twenty seconds into the call, her shoulders slumped.

"Okay… see you in an hour." She hung up, tossing the phone into the sheets and slumping down against the pillow.

"What did he say?" Brittany asked, looking concerned.

"Well, it looks like you and I have some more legal documents we need to file," Santana muttered, evading the question.

"…Why?" Brittany asked with a grimace.

"The committee reviewing SB 61 just rejected the bill."


A/N: I'd love to hear your thoughts in the form of a review.