Santana watched as Charlie swiped some of the bacon off her plate, she wasn't even being subtle about it and frowns slightly. Things were right back to being awkward. They hadn't really said anything since they had left Charlie's small apartment. Perhaps whatever she had thought they had wasn't accurate in the slightest. She glances up at Charlie who was busy chewing on the bacon she had pilfered and sighed.
"Do you still read comics?"
The question catches her by surprise and she looks up again to see Charlie studying her carefully. It was a conversation starter, and this wasn't a date. This was two friends talking to each other after over breakfast and coffee. "I don't have the time—or the money," Santana admits slowly. "I mean as much as I'd love to sit down and read some comic books, I also need to eat. Do you still read comics?"
"Uh—no, not really. You were the ones that always explained to me what was going on, I tried a few times on my own, but I didn't end up understanding what was going on," Charlie shrugged and continued to chew on her bacon.
"So, what you're saying is that you totally only liked reading comics and watching all those geeky movies because you were dating me and wanted in my pants?" Santana questions narrowing her eyes slightly, as she tried to keep the amusement off her features as Charlie choked on the bacon.
"No! I liked Doctor Who, I've kept up with it—well whenever the new season comes to Netflix," Charlie says grabbing her water and downing as much as she could, and slamming her fist against her chest. "It wasn't just to get in your pants. Also—you were the one that started sending me sexy pictures, I was trying to be chivalrous and not push you."
"No one asked you to be chivalrous," Santana points out.
"You had just turned sixteen, what did you want me to do? Swipe your virginity, the moment you turned sixteen? It's probably for the best that we didn't have sex, all things considered." Charlie pointed out.
"And you've never—"
"I'm not sure I physically can, I've never actually tried though. Maybe in the right situation with the right amount of alcohol in my veins it could happen, but I don't drink."
"You just take horse tranquilizers," Santana reminds her and shakes her head. She wasn't trying to guilt Charlie. "Which you will stop. How did you even get those? They're a controlled substance."
"You're a vet, you tell me," Charlie responds but when Santana looks surprised she can only shake her head. "I don't go see regular doctors, I need to see someone who is versed in our biology. A silver bullet can put me down, even if it grazes me. It's a slow and agonizing death, unless I get to a vet quickly. They're our doctors. I'm surprised that they haven't given you some huge speech about it."
Santana made a face, "They treat me differently, because I'm the only human."
"It's not as if some humans don't know about us, the government is certainly aware that we exist. Our kind has always been special ops teams throughout various wars. We're durable. Far more durable than a regular human." Charlie mused. "If they treat you different, then force them to acknowledge you. Just be better than they are. You also need to cut them some slack, for the most part all we've been told for years is that humans are dangerous. That they're going to kill us all or something. So, we have to hide." Charlie points out causing Santana to pause.
"I didn't think about it like that."
"That cat—"
"Brittany."
"Right, the cat, she's nice to you?"
"Yeah—"
"Surprising because cats are always plotting ways to kill you," Charlie muttered under her breath.
Santana blinked twice, "Holy shit, you're a speciesist. How did I not see it before?"
"What?"
"You're a speciesist," Santana repeats. "You think you're better than everyone else because you're a wolf."
"I am better than everyone else because I'm a wolf," Charlie responds dully.
Santana rolls her eyes, "What if I told you that I was a cat person?" She watches as Charlie makes a face at her. "I mean come on Charlie there are plenty of dog and cat videos on the internet, they're adorable—" Santana suddenly grins. "We should make a viral video."
"No."
"Come on! It'll be adorable!"
"No."
Santana sighs, she'd just have to bother Quinn and Brittany about it then. "I still think it'd be adorable, you could act out a scene from Doctor Who or—we could dress you up—"
"No. I have fur, adding another layer of clothing makes me unbearably hot. The only reason I let you get away with putting a fez on my head and a bow tie collar was because it made you happy, and you gave me treats. Otherwise I would have chewed that thing up," Charlie grumbles, making a play for the rest of Santana's bacon.
"It's the jalapeno bacon," Santana warns watching as Charlie pauses and pulls her hand back. "Baby," Santana teases after a moment and once again the awkward silence was back. She inhales slowly, "Can we go back to the way things were?"
Charlie taps her fingers along the table in a steady beat, a nervous habit she'd developed. "Santana, I can't control my wolf, I can barely keep a job down. We're not in high school anymore when things looked bright and things were looking up. You're going to be a vet and you already said that you want to remain human. We can't mate if you're human."
"Says who? I've read everything there is to know about mates, every textbook, every secret journal article and I haven't found anything that says that we can't mate, maybe it's not a proper bond. But—it's something right?"
Charlie studied Santana for a moment, she had no idea what she was asking. If Santana didn't turn, if she never did then she'd be alone forever. Her wolf wouldn't have a proper mate, she'd never have kids. She wasn't even sure if she wanted kids or Santana wanted kids but they'd never be able to have them. But for right now she wouldn't be alone. "It's a start," Charlie agrees after a moment.
