Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or its characters.
Spoilers: None
Rating: T/minor M to be safe.
Reply to reviews: (chapter 22)
chloe2007: Thank you for the review. And yep, their cousins. But that's not all; more surprises are coming!
Isa Yodice12: Welcome and thank you so much for your kind review! I'm glad you are enjoying the story. I'll try to update as often as I have been so don't forget to follow it. :)
Thanks to everyone else who reviewed. You guys are amazing. :)
Also, welcome to my new followers L1S4 and Amine (favoriter), and my new favoriter jp16jp16.
Notes: Some important and new characters are introduced in this chapter. It's short, just the morning of when they go back to school.
Enjoy :)
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
*Rachel's house*
It's Wednesday now. And the girls are going to school against their parents' wishes. They want them to take another couple of days off, maybe until tomorrow. But Quinn is getting restless with staying home and Rachel agreed to let her try it out.
So, here they are… getting ready to go back to school only a few days after the shitstorm of a weekend they have had.
Rachel is currently braiding Quinn's hair, in two French braids to match Brittany's and her own. They have about an hour before they need to leave so they are in no hurry to really do anything.
Brittany and Santana spent the night last night, and as far as she knows, San is laying on Rachel's bed, flipping through the channels on her TV.
That is why, when she hears what sounds like a little kid's voice yelling out, "Britty, where are you?!" She is really confused.
Rachel's head snaps up from where she was bent down, digging in a drawer for a rubber band. Brittany looks confused for about half a second before she asks Quinn, "Was that Matthew?"
Now Rachel is very confused because if she thinks about it, the only Matthew she can come up with that they all know is…
Santana's little brother.
Except… he was only 18 months old the last time Rachel saw him.
Still, Brittany leaves the bathroom, and she can hear the conversation (in Spanish) going on in her bedroom…
"Where is she? Can I see her? Can I, can I? Please?"
"She is in the bathroom, right over there, Mattie."
Less than two seconds later, and Rachel is staring at a much older version of that 18-month-old toddler who resembles his big sister so much.
"Matthew…" She breathes out, handing the untied braid to Quinn so she can catch the little boy in a hug. She bends down just as she lunges forward, barely able to stop herself from falling backwards.
"Hola, Tiá Estella," He whispers in his perfect 4-year-old Spanish, burying his face into her neck.
She whispers back, "Hola, mi preciosa," which is the nickname she gave him as a baby.
"Tiá Estella," Matthew pulls back. "Tana has someone else you should meet!"
Rachel thinks that he means his older sister, Maya. She was only four years old when Rachel last saw her, and if she remembers correctly, that little girl had her ninth birthday just last month.
So, she tells him she is going to be just a moment because she has to finish Quinn's hair. Once the braid is tied off, Matthew asks to be picked up, and, ever the sucker for him she is, Rachel obliges, even if he is almost too big for her now.
Rachel and Quinn venture into the bedroom to find Santana and Brittany in there. The Latina looks a tad nervous, and Rachel wonders what for, along with, Maya isn't here, so who is it she needs to meet?
"Rach," Santana says. "So… um, you've seen Mattie, and you will probably see Maya this afternoon after school, but there is someone else who I would like you to meet."
She suddenly bends down, which confuses the Diva greatly, until Rachel realizes…
She is picking something – no, she is picking someone – up.
A little girl. With beautiful tanned skinned, tight ringlet curls, and who could be no older than 1-year-old.
Rachel feels Matthew move his legs from around her waist so she lets him down, but it is more of an instinct motion than anything. Her attention is on the little girl in her best friend's arms.
"This is Miranda," Santana tells her. "She is my baby sister."
Rachel reaches out for her, which the toddler immediately complies with responding to.
"Hello, Bella," The Diva whispers, her whole demeanor softening tremendously. Miranda cuddles up to her, one arm holding onto her stuffed llama, the other going around Rachel's neck.
Santana raises an eyebrow at this because this is the fastest her baby sister has ever warmed up to anyone, even Brittany and Quinn, who both have been there since her birth last year.
"Wow, Rach. You've already won her over."
Rachel just gives a smile in return and begins walking around, bouncing Miranda lightly in her arms.
"How old are you, Bella?"
Matthew is the one to answer, giving an enthusiastic, "She's 11 months!" and then adding, "But her birday is on, um… it's on Sunday. Right, Sissy?"
"Si, Mijó. We are going to have a very small party. Mamí does not want to do too much, seeing as everything that has been going on. Just some close family, a few presents, and lots of attention for this beautiful little girl." As she says, she taps Miranda's nose, eliciting a giggle from the toddler girl.
"Well, I am sure Mamí Carmen and PapÍ Carlos already have it set to take place at your house, but you are more than welcome to have the party here, down in the basement. I mean, I'd have to ask my dads, but I'm sure they would say yes. We can watch movies with the kids after the party, to wind down from all the sugar they will be eating."
Santana nods, running her fingers through Miranda's curls, "I'll ask. We are going to set everything up Saturday night after the younger kids go to bed, so we will not have to do much on Sunday. But yeah, they'd probably wouldn't care."
She addresses Matthew then, who has climbed into Brittany's lap and is telling her and Q some wild story. "Mattie, what do you think of having Andie's birthday down in Tiá Estrella's basement?"
Matthew lights up at the suggestion. He has really missed spending time with Rachel, and although he was only 18 months old when everything started happening, his big sister and aunties talked about her all the time.
He has questioned why they could not see the Diva and was told some things were happening that prevented them from doing so. But now, all of that is over with. He does not know of the details, but what he does understand, is that he is suddenly being told 'yes' when he asks if he can see her yet.
Now, the idea of a birthday party being here, even if it is not his own party, seems like a fabulous idea.
"Oh, si! Can we, por favor?"
Rachel chuckles at his enthusiasm, telling him that they have to ask her dads first. Of course, this is met with him running out of the room and downstairs to the kitchen. He barrels into the room after a few false starts, since he does not know his way around.
That is where the older kids find him. In the kitchen with Josiah and David, introducing himself to Jacob, and saying 'yes' to the offer of hot chocolate.
And as expected, David and Josiah happily agree to hold Andie's birthday party here. Although they are confused as to who Miranda is until Rachel walks into the room.
"Oh, my," David breathes, because, like his daughter, he remembers Santana as only having two younger siblings, with Matthew being a toddler still when everything started.
"Papa Josiah," Santana says. "Papa David, this is my baby sister," She takes said girl from Rachel's arms, "Her name is Miranda. Mijá, this is Tiá Estrella's daddies."
"Hello, babygirl," David coos. "You look just like your mommy and big brother Gabriel, you know."
Miranda soaks up the attention from these new people, giggling and waving her stuffed llama around. Santana stands back in the doorway with Brittany, smiling at the scene before her.
This is what she has hoped to happen for 4 years. She wanted Maya and, especially, Matthew, to be able to see Rachel again. She wanted them to know Rachel daddies, "Papa Dave" and "Papa 'Siah".
Most of all though… she wanted them to meet Miranda. She wanted Andie to grow up around her "Tiá Estrella", which is what Maya and Mattie call her, because Santana always referred to her as "Estrella" around them.
Brittany comes over, smiling at the content look on her best friend's face. She wraps her arms around Santana's waist, which the Latina leans into, and rests her chin on her shoulder.
"It's finally happening, isn't it?" She asks.
Santana lets out a shaky breath. "Yeah, B. It's finally happening."
Maya may be older now, in the third grade as opposed to preschool, and Matthew may be 4 years old and has skipped ahead to kindergarten, but Andie is still a baby.
She is still young enough to not have any memories, like her siblings, of Rachel not being there. Andie will grow up knowing her Tiá Estrella…
And that is all Santana could ask for.
and there it is! You got to meet two out of three of San's little siblings. I couldn't resist Mattie calling Rachel Tiá Estella. I thought it was adorable.
Name credit for Maya and Miranda goes to Boris Yeltsin. I added the little brother, Matthew, in between them myself.
Santana's siblings:
Older brother: Gabriel (age to be determined) "Gabe"
Younger sister: Maya (9 years old)
Younger brother: Matthew (4 years old, turning 5) "Mattie"
Baby sister: Miranda (11 months, turning 1 year) "Andie"
The girls go to school in the next chapter. Please review and let me know what you thought! :) Next one probably won't be for a couple of weeks. I'm going to be spending Thanksgiving break with me family.
Stay safe out there, guys! Please remember to obey traffic laws and give yourself plenty of time to get to your destination if you're in an area of bad weather. :)
