Saturday 14th March, just five weeks since their wedding day, and Brittany and Sam were on their way back to Lima to break the news to their parents that they were no longer together, and they were having the marriage annulled. They'd decided to drive together to Ohio from New York rather than flying after Sam landed back there late last night from LA. The 9-hour drive would give them time to talk everything through about how they were going to do this, and they'd both been able to get some sleep too, switching over in Pennsylvania to share the driving. The sleep was much needed, since they had left early at 6am to make good time, now they had just over an hour to go and Brittany noticed it was nearing 2pm as she picked up her vibrating phone.

"Mind if I get this? It's Santana" Brittany smiled apologetically to Sam, who was in the drivers seat. She was desperate to speak to her girlfriend since she hadn't heard her voice since last night. They had of course been texting all day, but it wasn't the same as hearing her, and she felt she could really use the comfort right now since her nerves were bubbling away inside of her. Still, she couldn't help but feel guilty and like she was rubbing Sam's nose in things, even though he too had admitted they rushed things and they were only together for a short space of time.

"Sure, go ahead!" Sam said, turning the radio down slightly before turning his attention back to the road.

"Hey San" Brittany smiled into the receiver. She resisted the urge to call her any pet names since that may have been a little too uncomfortable for Sam.

"Hey babe, where about's are you? I just got back from my mom's, so I thought I'd give you a call, see if you were close".

"Yeah, we're not so far out of Mansfield, so a little over an hour to go, won't be too long now".

"How are you feeling?"

"Nervous" Brittany sighed "put it this way, I'll be glad when this day's over. I'm just so scared that they're going to take all of this the wrong way. Telling them about me and you is especially going to knock them sideways, I know for sure".

"You might be surprised Brit, parents know more about their kids than we realise, I mean look at my mom. She barely even flinched when she found about us. But babe, you know you don't need to rush to tell them today if you don't want, don't you? Just focus on telling them about Sam first, we can deal with all the stuff with us later".

Brittany shook her head gently even though Santana couldn't see her.

"No, I want to tell them, get it all over with. There's no point holding off, may as well just do it all at once. At least they'll be able to understand it all better. If I tell them half a story, they're just going to be even more confused." She glanced at Sam tentatively before lowering her voice slightly "Besides, I want you and I to have the best start to our relationship. No more secrets".

"No more secrets." Santana agreed, and Brittany could hear the smile in her voice, before she turned more serious "are you sure you don't want me to be there with you, when you tell them?"

"No, I think it's best I do this on my own. But thank you, you know I appreciate it. I promise I'll call you as soon as I'm done and then I can come around and we can just enjoy the rest of the weekend together".

"Okay, well I just want you to know that I'm really proud of you. I know your parents, and I know that nothing you tell them today is going to change their love for you. They might be a little shocked, but that's all. Come on Brit, if my strict parents can get over me getting knocked up at 18 and then coming out as a lesbian years later, your parents will be absolutely fine. They've always been super laid back and supportive. It's going to be okay, I promise".

"Thanks San, I really hope you're right" Brittany sighed again, before glancing at Sam who was still focused on the road and clearly trying not to pay attention "Look I better go, okay? I'll text you".

"Okay, don't forget to call me as soon as you're done".

"I won't, promise".

"And Brit?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you"

Brittany couldn't help but smile at that, and she swallowed the emotions forming in her throat to prevent her voice from cracking. She didn't care if Sam could hear this time, nothing could stop her saying those three little words back after a lifetime of holding it in.

"I love you too".

After hanging up the phone, her heart still beating the way it always did just from hearing Santana telling her she loved her because it still felt so new to her, she turned her attention back to Sam.

"Sorry about that" she said sheepishly, although she didn't know why she felt so guilty. It wasn't like Sam didn't know everything.

"No don't apologise, it's fine" Sam smiled "actually…I meant to say to you as well, I actually met someone myself out in LA. I knew her before, we very briefly dated a few years ago in my early 20s, but we were always really good friends first. She lives out in LA and we reconnected and yeah…I guess we'll see where it goes"

"Oh Sam, that's amazing!" Brittany clapped her hands together; she felt a lot less guilty about being so happy with Santana knowing there was a chance Sam was finding his own happiness too.

"Yeah, well I mean it's early days" Sam laughed nervously "I'm not going to rush things this time like I did with you. I didn't go to LA with any intentions other than just being by myself and doing some soul searching, but I guess they always say love comes when you least expect it".

"It does" Brittany shrugged "It's the same with Santana and I. I truly gave up all hope of her ever returning the feelings I had for her, then she goes and drops a bomb on the day I'm marrying you. It's like something out of a soap opera".

"Yep" Sam laughed, as a thick awkwardness began to fill the air, before Brittany broke the silence.

"But Sam, I know I've said it a dozen times already, but I really am sorry about how things worked out with us. I really shouldn't have said yes to you in the first place and…"

"Hey Brit look come on; we've talked about this" Sam cut in "Don't worry. We both rushed in on this. I really cared about you, and I still do, but was I ready to make that commitment to you? Absolutely not. We panicked, and we made a mistake, but the important thing is that we both owned up to it before anybody could get hurt. And neither of us are looking forward to these conversations with our parents today but…they'll get over it. People have done far worse things in life, than getting carried away in a moment and making spontaneous choices, so surely, they have to forgive us for it. If I had a kid, I know I'd just want them to be happy".

Brittany paused for a moment as she considered Sam's point. Obviously, she didn't have children, but she knew she loved Mila as if she was her own, and she knew that nothing Mila ever said or did could make her love her any less.

"You know what, you're right" Brittany nodded "It'll be a tough conversation and no doubt a shock to both our parents but…in the end it's going to be okay".

Less than an hour later, they were parked outside Brittany's house where Sam was dropping her off, before heading to his own parents. They exchanged goodbyes and agreed to check in with each other later to talk about how it went, before Brittany stood outside her house for a second and collected herself. She took a deep breath and checked her phone once more to see a text from Santana.

From: Santana

Be brave sweetheart, you've got this! I can't wait to see you later. This past week has been torture without you. I got too used to falling asleep in your arms and waking up next to you on a morning, but at least we get to do that tonight. Moo is staying at my mom's for the night, I figured we could use the alone time, then we can spend time with her tomorrow before you head back! (but for now I don't even want to talk about you heading back) xxx

She smiled and sent a quick text back, before heading inside.

From: Brittany

Thanks honey. I'm feeling a bit better about it all now. They're going to be shocked but other than that, what more can they possibly say? I'm almost 30, I make my own choices in life, and I know they'll love me no matter what. Really, really can't wait to see you later! Going inside now, I'll call you as soon as I'm out Xx

No sooner had Brittany closed the door behind her was her mother in front of her, as enthusiastic as ever.

"Brittany, honey! You're home! You made good time. I thought you'd be another half hour or so, but your dad guessed you might be here around 3. Come in, come in. Where is that lovely husband of yours?"

Brittany swallowed and closed her eyes. She knew as soon as she turned up here without Sam, that the questions would be asked, and she'd have to bite the bullet and tell them. There was no easing her way into this.

"Mom can we sit down and talk for a second? I'll explain everything".

"Explain? What? Honey are you okay? Is Sam okay? Brittany what is it?" said Whitney, growing more frantic and confused with each question she asked.

"Just…just calm down it's okay. Is dad through here? We can sit here and talk" said Brittany as she walked off towards the living room, Whitney hot on her trail as she followed behind her.

"There's my little girl" Pierce said, getting up to hug Brittany "How was the drive over? Is Sam in the other room?"

Brittany could no longer take all the questions, she just needed to get this off her chest, so she pulled back from her dad's embrace and gestured towards the couch.

"Please can you both just sit down, there's something I really, really need to tell you".

Whitney and Pierce looked at each other, before sitting down, and just as Brittany was about to speak her mother broke into a grin.

"Oh my God wait! Brittany are you…you're pregnant aren't you!?"

Brittany's heart stopped, and she felt the blood drain from her face.

"Pregnant!? I'm about to be a Grandpops?" Pierce exclaimed, looking between his wife and his daughter.

"No, no, no, no. I'm NOT pregnant. Please can you just…hear me out for a minute?"

She waited for them to be completely silent before taking another deep breath in.

"Look, there's no easy way to say this but…"

"Oh my God you're sick, aren't you?"

"Mom! Please!" Brittany yelled, her raised voice causing the room to plummet into silence once again.

When she was sure she had their attention again, she continued.

"I'm not…I'm not sick okay. I'm not sick, or pregnant, or any of those things".

"Then sweetie, what is it?" asked Whitney, blue eyes wide and filled with concern.

And Brittany decided it was just time to rip the band-aid right off.

"Sam and I…Sam and I are getting the marriage annulled. We're no longer together".

There was silence for a minute, as she glanced between her parents, desperate to read their expressions to know what they were thinking. The silence didn't last long though, and soon both parents were talking a mile a minute.

"Has he hurt you? What has he done? Has he cheated on you?" Pierce was asking, while Whitney took a different approach.

"Honey no, you can't do that. The whole point of marriage is working through your issues. Have you tried couples counselling?"

Brittany raised her hand to stop them again as she squeezed her eyes shut to block out the noise, only opening them once their rambling and quick-fire questions had stopped.

"If you would just let me finish, I'll explain everything to you" she began, before taking a seat opposite them "Sam hasn't done anything wrong. He hasn't cheated on me or hurt me or anything like that. We both made this decision together. We both just knew it wasn't right".

"Then that's where you can try the couples counselling…" Whitney began, but Brittany cut her off before she could go off on another tangent.

"Couples counselling is for people who have been together a long time, who still love each other but they've just lost their way. People who want to genuinely sort it out".

"So, you're saying you don't love Sam anymore?" Whitney frowned.

"No…" Brittany sighed "I'm saying that I never loved him in the first place".

Again, she watched her parents carefully. Her dad was silent, gazing absent-mindedly in thought as he rubbed his chin, while her mom shook her head in confusion as she tried to process everything before she spoke again.

"Brittany you don't mean that. Why would you marry somebody you don't love?"

"Because I was in love with somebody else mom. I do mean it. I know it's probably hard for you to take in, but I never loved Sam, and he never loved me. We got scared, and we panicked, and we rushed into marrying each other because we were worried about our future. We both realised pretty soon after that we'd made the wrong decision. We want to put a stop to it before we cause any hurt, so I know this might seem crazy to you right now, but we're doing the right thing".

"In love with somebody else!?" Whitney furrowed her brow, before turning to her still silent husband "Did you hear that Pierce? I told you it wasn't good for her to have Denver back in her life again".

"Denver?" Brittany frowned "What? No…"

"Listen to me sweetie. I know you and Denver have a long history together, but you have to understand that he's no good for you. Sam is a much nicer guy, and together you'll have a more solid future. You don't want to throw all that away for Denver".

"Mom I'm not in love with Denver!" Brittany yelled again, trying to match the volume of her overly enthusiastic mother, and when once again Whitney was silenced, she lowered her voice and softly spoke out. "I'm in love with Santana".

This time, Whitney said nothing, she simply opened and closed her mouth, but no sound came out. As he had been the whole conversation, Pierce was still silent.

"I'm in love with Santana, and I have been for as long as I can remember. But do you know what the crazy thing is? She loves me back" Brittany couldn't help her lips curl into a smile as she said that last part, eyes glistening with unshed tears "She loves me back and we're together, and it's amazing, and its early days. But it just feels so right. She's the love of my life. My first love, my soul mate, and I'm just…so, so happy. So, I know all this is a lot for you to take in, but I'm really, really happy, so…I just hope you can be happy for me and that I can have your blessing in all of this".

"But…but Sam is your first love" Whitney shook her head in confusion, as she finally broke her silent.

"No mom, he isn't. He never was. Santana was."

"But you went to prom together…"

"We did. But only because I couldn't go with Santana. If I could turn back time…I would. Well, I wouldn't actually because without that night being the way it was, there'd be no Mila. But the point being that I can't change the past, but I know how I felt back then, and it's the same as I do now and we're finally getting to be together in the way I've always wanted us to be. The way we both want us to be."

"But you married Sam…"

Brittany swallowed, she could see her mom was having a hard time processing this, and she still had no idea what her dad was feeling.

"I did. But only because, like I said, I was scared. I used him as a placeholder because I didn't think I had any chance of a real future with Santana. That was wrong, I know that, but Sam and I have talked about it and he was effectively doing the same with me. I think both of us were just worried about turning 30 and not settling down, and we fooled ourselves into thinking if we tried hard enough, we might be happy together. But you shouldn't have to try at love, you know that momma".

"So, you're…you're g…gay?"

Brittany couldn't help but notice her mom struggled to say the words, and it shocked her because, she'd never had any inclination to think her mom had a problem with gay people. Santana was a lesbian, and Whitney was nothing but supportive over that. Surely that attitude wouldn't change on her own daughter's sexuality.

"I'm not" Brittany shook her head "But I am bisexual"

And again, the sigh of relief that Whitney let out when Brittany said she wasn't gay didn't go unnoticed by Brittany.

"Oh, thank God. Okay. That's okay then, because now you have a choice. You can still get married to a man, whether that be Sam or if you're saying that isn't right then maybe another man that you fall in love with…"

Brittany shook her head confused; her thoughts were spinning as she interjected another of Whitney's rambles.

"Did you not hear what I just said?" she narrowed her eyes in disbelief, her stomach churning uncomfortably at the direction this conversation was heading "I said that I'm in love with Santana. I'm with Santana. If I'm going to marry anyone in future…it's going to be Santana".

"Brittany, I know that Santana is an important person in your life, and she's a great girl, you know that I love her. But you're not like her. You have a choice here".

"A choice?" Brittany frowned.

"Yes, a choice, you know what I mean. Santana is a lesbian, so she'll only ever marry a woman, but you? You still have the ability to find and fall in love with a man. Oh honey, just because Sam isn't the right man for you, doesn't mean you have to settle for a girl instead".

Brittany felt the bile rising in her throat. Of all the reactions she was expecting, it wasn't this one.

"You think that being bisexual is a choice? I don't choose to be bisexual mom, the same way as you don't choose to be straight and Santana doesn't choose to be gay".

"That's not what I meant; I know you can't choose your sexuality. But if you like both, you can choose to be with a man over a woman. You can choose the easier life".

Brittany scoffed at that, and through her anger and her hurt, she began to clap her hands sarcastically.

"Wow" she laughed "Wow. Do you know what? I think that might be one of the most ignorant things I have ever heard. I can't believe that even just came out of your mouth. Oh, and news flash mom, you don't choose who you fall in love with, it doesn't work like that regardless of sexuality. And I certainly aren't settling with her either. She's the only person I've ever truly and whole-heartedly loved, so if you can't accept that, then I guess this conversation is done".

She was just about to stand up and leave, when Whitney opened her mouth once more. Clearly the shocks for Brittany were going to keep coming.

"I just don't understand why you'd choose a life that's more difficult. One where you can't have children. After everything you went through with the miscarriage Brittany, I just want you to be happy, for you to be the mommy that you've always wanted to be. How can you do that with Santana?"

"Don't. Don't you dare mention my miscarriage in all of this!" Brittany warned, a charged beat between them all before she continued "I can't believe we're even having this conversation right now. We're talking way in the future here. A future that Santana and I haven't even properly discussed yet but, it's 2020 mom. Of course, we can have children. There are so many options out there; IUI, IVF, adoption…"

Brittany couldn't deny that even though she and Santana hadn't properly discussed children together yet, she had already looked into the logistics. Having children was important to her and something she really wanted to experience for herself, so she wanted as much information as possible. Part of her could see her mom's concern, but for the most part she was just agitated on how truly uneducated she sounded.

"Oh, Brittany I know all that, but what about the baby's dad?"

"What about it?"

"Well, they wouldn't have one…"

"No. They would have two moms' instead…"

"And you think that's okay? To do that to a child?"

"To do what to a child!? Mom I'm really quite shocked at where you're going with all of this. You buy presents for Mila every Christmas and every birthday, a child who was raised by a lesbian mother and for years lived with two women. You've witnessed first-hand how amazing she's turned out. What's so wrong with two women raising a baby!?"

"Honey don't take my words wrong. I'm not doubting Santana's ability as a mother, not in the slightest. She's a great mom, and Mila is a great kid, but she wasn't brought into the world by two women. She still has a dad…"

"Yeah, a dad who wasn't even there for the first 6 years of her life, and who barely makes any effort now" Brittany scoffed.

"I just think all kids need a male role model Brittany, that's all."

"I don't agree with you at all. Kids need love and care, that's all they need".

"She does have a point Whitney, what about single mothers or single fathers even? Not all children have a mom and a dad. Families look different on everyone now" said Pierce.

"Oh, thanks dad, for finally speaking up. Nice of you to say something and get off the fence you're always sitting on, after I've just had to sit there and defend myself for the better part of an hour. But do you know what? I know that if Santana and I were blessed with a child, that we'd be great parents. But thank you so much for making me discuss something with you that I haven't even properly had the chance to discuss with my girlfriend yet".

"Brittany your mom and I just want you to be happy".

"Oh really?" Brittany laughed sarcastically "Because it doesn't really seem that way. I've just told you I'm in love and that actually, I am happy, but all you've done is told me to "choose" somebody else so that I can have an easier life."

She paused for a moment to try and quell the emotions building inside of her, but it was no good, the tears began to pour.

"Well, it's not an easier life. I spent years trying to find happiness elsewhere, watching Santana fall for all the wrong people. Both of us making all the wrong choices. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, watching her slip further and further away from me as each year went by. But now, we finally have it together and it's…it's beautiful. So, if we have to try a little harder to have a baby, or even if we don't end up having any more kids at all, then that's a risk I'm willing to take. Because nothing can be harder than not being with her. And you know something? If and when Santana and I do get lucky enough to have a baby, I will make sure that I never, ever make them question their own happiness like this".

"Look Brittany I'm sorry, but I'm just struggling to get my head around all of this. 5 weeks ago we watched you marry Sam, and it was all very quick, but we accepted that. Now you're back here telling us that's over, and you're rushing into a relationship with Santana instead" said Whitney.

"Just what are you not understanding here?" Brittany flung her arms out exasperated. She never usually lost it like this with anyone, let alone her parents, but her patience was well and truly gone by this point. "Nothing about my relationship with Santana is rushed. I've literally waited forever for her. I understand that this is a lot to take in and that it might be confusing to you, but it's not confusing to me. I'm really sorry if this is not the picture-perfect image you had in your head for me, but this is my life, and my happiness, and I'm not going to let anyone take that away from me when I've waited so long to find it".

And with that Brittany wiped her tears and ran for the door before her parents could say anymore, a million doubts circling around her head that had never been there before.