It was weird how much she missed Brittany. She had never missed anyone this way before. They had only really spent 2 days together, but she couldn't wait to get finals over with and go out on a real date with her. She was dragged out of her musings of Brittany, when Quinn called out to her.
"I swear to God, if I hear Santana is so great one more time form Brittany…" Quinn made a gagging noise as she shut the door behind her. "She wants to know what I think she should get you for Christmas."
Santana shook her head and threw her hands up. "I told her not to get me anything," The brunette adjusted her glasses and leaned back a little. "We haven't even been out on a date yet."
"But you are coming to Christmas dinner at our grandparents," The blonde quipped back at her friend with a huge smirk on her face. She knew Santana still didn't know how to take in all of what was going on. Brittany texted and called her every day. They facetimed over the weekend.
"That's different…" The Latina huffed out softly. She fiddled with the paged of her textbook. "We are going to have plenty of time to have a few proper dates before Christmas. "
"My mom said Brittany is staying at our grandparents for the whole break," She pushed Santana's shoulder as she walked to her side of the bedroom. "You must be killer in bed. Her mom is annoyed she's not staying at home. She's staying with Grandma and Grandpa to be close to Lima."
Santana stammered her as she threw her hands up in defense. "I didn't ask her to stay in Bellefontaine. She could stay in Marysville and we could meet halfway." The brunette threw a pen that wised by the blonde's head. "We didn't sleep together! We haven't even kissed…"
"She spent a whole two days with you and your family and you guys didn't even kiss?" The blonde asked in disbelief.
"Brittany is very much the gentlewoman," Santana said with kind of a dreamy voice, "She did turn on the PDA a little thick around Rachel and my parents, but it was all respectful."
"If this goes well and you start dating I'll be so happy for you," The blonde stuck her middle finger up and pointed it at her roommate. "You will not talk to me about your sex life or if Brittany spends a weekend here I get a week warning so I can plan to go home!"
Finals flew by faster than Santana expected. The semester ended well for her. She was so glad the two weeks went by quickly. The brunette couldn't wait to get home and have almost a whole month off. Only part of it had to do with the fact that Brittany and she had dates with Brittany planned.
Santana nearly dropped the curling iron when she heard the doorbell ring. "MAMI! I'M NOT READY!" She started to panic she realized what time it was. She took an hour to decide what she wanted to wear then changed her mind twice. She wanted her first date with Brittany to be perfect. Well, as perfect as it was going to get. She didn't even know where they were going. Brittany had made all the arrangements.
"Santana, I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of this. She's your girlfriend," Maribel just rolled her eyes and made her way towards the door, "I'll tell her you're not ready yet and keep her entertained."
The words 'She's your girlfriend' was all that Santana heard. She still felt a little guilty about lying to her parents and grandmother. She would tell them the truth eventually probably even before her winter break was over. She didn't see the point now and telling them if this date went badly she would just say they broke up.
She smiled to herself a little when she heard her mom conversing with Brittany in Spanish. She knew it meant a lot to her parents that Brittany so respectful of them to do whatever they felt most comfortable with.
She was only a few more minutes in the bathroom before she came down the stairs and met her mom and Brittany and the living room, "Hey, Britt."
The blonde turned around slowly and her jaw nearly hit the floor, "Hey to you." Brittany closed the space between them and kissed Santana on the cheek. "You look absolutely stunning." She grabbed the brunette's hand and took a step back. "So beautiful." She murmured out softly.
"Thank you," She said quietly, trying to be discreet with her looking Brittany up and down. "You look so gorgeous." She looked towards the coffee table when she caught her eye, "You brought me roses?"
The blonde shook her head out of the daze Santana had set her head swimming into. "Oh, yeah. I brought you roses." She let go of Santana's hand to grab the roses off the table.
Maribel snatched them off the table before Brittany could, "Let me do it. I'll get them in water. You two go have a nice night."
Santana grabbed her jacket off of the back of the dining room chair, "I'll see you in a few hours Mami." She leaned over and kissed her mom on the cheek. "Are you ready to go Britt?"
Brittany offered Santana her arm and smile, "My lady, I am ready."
Brittany opened all the doors for Santana got her into her car and turned the key to start it. "I hope you like the places I've decide for us. I know you grew up here, but I hope it's still enjoyable."
Santana buckled herself in and grabbed Brittany's hand and squeezed it softly, "I don't care where we go. I'm going to have a great time as long as I'm with you."
The small talk between them didn't fell forced. Everything about Brittany felt natural. It all felt right. That's what scared Santana a little bit. She'd really only ever had one girlfriend. She went on a few dates between the summer and her first semester but nothing really stuck. Nothing felt easy. With Brittany, it was just easy. It made sense.
She almost squealed when the pulled into her favorite hometown restaurant, "Get the out…" The brunette put her hand over her mouth for a split second. "Did you randomly choose this or did Quinn tell you?"
Brittany put the car in park and unbuckled her seatbelt, "Neither actually." She smiled as she hopped out of the car to open Santana's door for her. "Your Abuela told me last week in an email."
Santana got out of the car and smiled at Brittany. "You've been talking to my grandmother?" Santana asked shocked when Brittany pulled the door to the restaurant open for her.
"Yeah," Brittany just shrugged following Santana through the door. "We talk about telenovelas mostly. I also asked a few questions to make this a memorable first date."
"Where did you even come from?" Santana asked her date with an almost dreamy voice.
"Texas originally," Brittany snickered a little just after she told the hostess 'Two for Pierce'. "If you're impressed by this, you've got a long night of impressive things to come."
Brittany made sure to get a rounded booth instead of a regular booth. She offered Santana a hand as she climbed up the one step to the booth. "I hope this is okay," She sat down beside Santana. "I'd much rather be able to put my arm around you and whisper how beautiful all night instead of having to talk across the table."
Santana could feel her face get hot when Brittany started to flirt with her more openly. "It's definitely okay." She put her hand on Brittany's thigh and nudged her with the elbow lightly. "Did you look at the menu when you were setting the date up?"'
The blonde couldn't help but smile when she felt Santana's touch. "No I didn't. But I thought the name was a little bit of a dead give-away. I'm sure I can find something good."
"Well, if you start having trouble making a decision I have plenty of suggestions," She opened the menu for show just to give Brittany time to look it over.
The waitress came soon after they sat bringing them breadsticks and got their drink order. Santana didn't waste any time tearing one of the breadsticks to pieces and openly moaning about how good it was.
Brittany smiled at Santana's reaction. She knew it was her favorite, but she didn't expect such an excited reaction. "I guess they are that good?"
Santana blushed deeply, before throwing her hand over her mouth to speak. "They are literally the best. You need to try them."
Their conversation was light and flirty while they waited for their meals to be brought to them.
"You've meet my family a couple of times now. We've talked about what I should expect in a couple weeks," Santana smiled at Brittany softly. "Is there anything I should be weary of?"
"Nothing from my family is nearly as intimidating as Papi Lopez," She teased a little bit as she took a big bite of her lasagna. "My family is a little more complicated than yours."
"All families are complicated," She gave Brittany's knee a gentle squeeze. "So what's so different about yours?"
"Well, my dad isn't my dad. Quinn isn't really my cousin." Brittany set her fork down and took a sip of her wine. "It's a little long winded. Are you sure you doing mind hearing it?"
"Part of dating is about learning about the other person," Santana said softly, "I don't mind at all."
"My biological grandmother and my grandmother were best friends," Brittany thought for a second trying to gather her thoughts of the best way to explain it. "The grandmother I stay with is Quinn's grandmother. My other grandmother passed away when my mom was 15. Quinn's grandmother took her in. My mom didn't have any other family around her and our grandmother had known her since she was born. It only made sense. They didn't want to ship her off to family she barely knew and make her lose her friends."
"So after a certain age your mom and Quinn's mom kind of grew up like sisters?" Santana was trying to keep up with the different ways Brittany was calling her grandmothers.
"Yeah, something like that." Brittany turned more towards Santana and smiled at her. "They grew up together anyway. My mom just lived with them her last two years of high school. I was born shortly after she graduated. She had a long couple years after her mother passed away and partied a lot."
"Ohhh, so you dad you talk about is your step dad?" Santana was trying to connect the pieces without pushing too much.
"My mom and Dad met when she was in community college. He was home on leave from the Army. Their love story is kind of like a cheesy Hallmark movie." She couldn't help but smile as she talked about her parents. She adored them both even if they were a little crazy, "They met and sent letters back and forth for a long time. When he was home again several months later they started dating. Once he was settled on a base. He asked my mom to marry him and move. My mom says he's loved us both since first sight. He's got the biggest heart on the planet. He's always been my dad."
The Latina liked hearing Brittany tell her story. They spoke about so much over the last couple weeks; she was surprised the blonde hadn't brought it up before. "Can I ask about your biological dad?"
"According to my mom, he saw me a couple times before I was a year old, but he didn't want to be a dad. He was just a young as my mom." The blonde just shrugged and took another bite of her food. "My dad is the best person I could ask for. He's a little out there sometimes, but he's always been there for me. I came out ahead if you ask me."
"Thank you for sharing that with me. I'm very excited to meet them both," Santana pushed her plate away and let out a big sigh. "I hope you're not thinking about cake or something. I will literally die."
Brittany couldn't help but smile at the girl beside her. She still hadn't been able to put her finger on it, but there was just something about Santana that drew her attention. "They are excited to meet you too." She followed Santana's lead and pushed her plate out of the way. "I don't think that's going to be an issue."
Brittany helped Santana into her jacket after she took care of the bill. She held the door open for her as they made their exit. Santana grabbed her hand gently and laced their fingers together as they made their way towards the car.
Santana smiled at her date just as the door was opened for her, "Thank you for dinner. I hope you liked it."
"I can see why it's your favorite. It was very good," The blonde offered her a sweet smile. "Now we are on to the next place."
Santana still had no idea what was next. Brittany had already done so much for her and that wasn't just tonight. "Britt?" She called softly before the blonde could make her way around the car.
"Yes, ma'am?" She answered softly when she felt Santana grab her forearm.
Santana got a gentle grip on the lapels of Brittany's blazer and pulled her close, "Where did you come from?" She asked softly before just as she closed the small space between her and Brittany's lips.
Brittany was a little surprised Santana made the first real move, but she wasn't going to complain. The dancer put her hands gently on the Latina's hips and kissed her back softly. The pair stayed locked together for several seconds before the blonde pulled away. "Ohio by way of Texas. I thought you would have gotten it by now." She teased before she leaned down and kissed Santana's forehead.
"Alright, I hope I don't lose too many point for being a little cliché," Brittany took a turn down a long road that Santana did recognize. "I also have some leggings and long socks for you in the bag in the back. I assumed you'd wear a dress to dinner."
"You are so sweet. I don't think it's cliché at all. " Santana didn't think it was cliché at all. The fact that Brittany thought far enough ahead to get her things to keep warm made her even more incredible. "I haven't ice skated in so many years," She clapped her hands together with excitement. "I used to be pretty decent, but it's been so long I'm not making any promises."
Brittany pulled into a vacant parking spot, "Well, can you promise me you'll kiss me again at the end of the night?"
It wasn't even a half a minute after Brittany put the car in park and unbuckled her seat belt that Santana leaned across the car and kissed her softly. "Promise." She put her hand on the blonde's cheek and smiled.
Brittany felt herself melt into Santana's touch. The blonde knew she was in deep now. They weren't even done with their first date and she had already started to plan many more in her head. She shook her head to focus back on the task at hand. Reaching behind the seat, she grabbed the spare bag she had. "Here are the few extra things. I have hats and gloves too."
It took several minutes for them to prepare but once they got their boots on and stepped on the ice, it was clear Santana was still decent…but Brittany, she was graceful and elegant. Santana wasn't sure what to expect, but it seemed Brittany is just good at everything. Not that she's complaining. At least she wasn't falling over making a fool of herself.
Brittany put her arm around Santana's waist and started to skate slowly beside her, "Are you having fun?"
"I am." She said quickly trying to keep her concentration on her footing making sure she didn't fall.
Brittany let go of Santana's waist making sure she didn't let go too quickly to mess up her balance. She turned around and started skating backwards putting herself in front of Santana, "Do you trust me?" The blonde offered softly.
Santana couldn't believe how good Brittany was. She didn't imagine there were many places it ice skate in Texas, "I do…Just don't let me fall."
Brittany turned back forward before grabbing Santana's hand and speeding them up a little bit. "I won't let you fall down."
They spent almost an hour and a half ice skating before they both got a little to frosty to keep going. Both girls had rosy cheeks, frost tipped noses and blue finger tips. They made their way back to Santana's house after.
Once they pulled in and parked in the drive way, neither of the women made a move to get out of the car. Santana had had such a good time, she didn't want the date to end.
"So I feel like date one went well," Brittany smiled at the brunette sitting across from her. "I would love to take you out again later this week."
Santana leaned across the car and kissed the blonde softly on the lips, "I think that sounds like a fantastic idea. How about I come to you this time and you can show me around?"
"I'm good with that," Brittany let out a soft sigh. "I don't want to say goodbye to you tonight."
"Then don't say goodnight yet," Santana squeezed Brittany's hand softly. "I'm sure we have hot chocolate, a plush blanket, and a feel good movie we could watch." Santana didn't wait for answer before she got out of the car.
Brittany just shook her head and followed her, "What kind of feel good movie?" She asked softly as the passed through the front door. "The Disney kind?"
"Oh, all of the Disney movies." Santana slipped off her knee high boots and smiled at Brittany. "You don't mind if I go change do you?"
"Of course you can," Brittany took her jacket off and set it on the back of the couch, "I'll be here when you get back."
"Well, I'd hope I wasn't sending you running off." Santana smiled at her, "They might be a little short…but do you want some sweats or something more comfy?"
"Santana Lopez," Brittany walked towards her and kissed the brunette's cheek, "Are you trying to get me comfy enough to fall asleep?"
"No," She nudged Brittany with her elbow, "I just want you to be comfortable."
"I'm good in my jeans," She took her tie off and her suspenders, "If you have a T-shirt that'd be good."
Both girls got settled on the couch pretty quickly. They put on 'Inside out' and got hot coca ready. Santana drug her Superman fleece blanket down for her and Brittany to wrap themselves up in it.
It was about half way through the movie when Santana notice Brittany had fallen asleep. The blonde was curled up with her head in Santana's lap. Santana had been running her finger through her hair.
She didn't want to wake her up or even more for herself. But, she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep sitting up. She nudged Brittany a little bit and kissed her cheek, "Britt." She nudged her softly again. "You fell asleep."
Brittany turned her head up a little bit, "I'm sorry. I was up late grading a few last minute papers for a professor. I'll get up to head out."
"Why don't you just sit up and I move…" Santana shrugged a little bit and moved around to lie down on the couch. "You can stay here."
"Are you sure it's not a big deal? Like your parents won't get mad?" Brittany moved to lay down in front of Santana.
"It'll be fine." Santana smiled softly at Brittany's concern. "I'd also rather you not drive an hour home."
Maribel didn't make a big deal about finding the girls curled up on the couch the next morning. She thought it was extremely sweet. Miguel was ready to make a big deal out of it until Maribel pointed out they there were still dressed and the Netflix was still on in the background. They pair had even managed to fit in another two dates before today.
Christmas morning with her parents and Abuela was fantastic. Church, family breakfast, present exchange, and of course a Christmas movie for the afternoon. She packed up a few things her mother and Abuela for her made to bring. She left with plenty of time to get there.
She nervously knocked on the front door of Brittany's grand-parent's house. She shifted back and forth on her feet when she heard a lot of loud voice. She jumped a little when Brittany pulled the door open. "Hey, Britt."
"Hi, honey." The blonde put reached her hand out for her girlfriend's and gave it a slight squeeze. "You are right on time," She pulled Santana towards her and grabbed the bag out of her hand. "My grandmother is dying to meet you."
"That's because she's all you've been talking about for the last three weeks," Quinn walked up behind the pair and pushed Brittany a little out of the way. "Merry Christmas, Santana." She walked down the step to give the girl a hug.
"Merry Christmas, Quinn." She returned the hug quickly and looked at Brittany. "Shall we get the party started?"
"Quinn gets a hug and I just get a 'hey," Brittany teased a little as she saw Santana stammer a little bit. Brittany handed the bag to Quinn and pushed her towards the door, "We'll be in a second."
"If you're not back in the house in 5 minutes," Quinn looked pointedly at Brittany. "I won't come get you. I'll send your dad out here." The shorter blonde shut the door behind her and made her way into the house.
"She hugged me first," Santana looked down at her and Brittany's interlaced hands and shrugged her shoulder, "I would have hugged you if she wouldn't have come out here."
"Well, I'm glad she didn't kiss you first." Brittany teased a little bit. She loved getting a raise out of Santana.
Santana just rolled her eyes at Brittany. The brunette reached up and put both of her hands on the side of the blonde's face, "Merry Christmas, gorgeous." She leaned up on tip toes a little, "I'm glad she didn't kiss me too." She brushed her lips softly across the blonde's.
"Merry Christmas, honey." Brittany wrapped her arms around the brunette's slender waist. She felt the brunette's fingers trail from her face to her neck then into her hair. She put her forehead against Santana's. "You wanna know a secret?"
The brunette twirled a few stray blonde hairs through her fingers, "Absolutely."
"I missed you the last couple days," Brittany saw the huge smile come across Santana's face. She pulled the shorter girl in closer and hugged her tighter.
Before she could respond, they heard the front door creep open. "BRITTANY STOP MAKING OUT WITH YOUR GIRLFRIEND AND GET IN THE HOUSE." They both whipped their heads around to see a short Asian man standing at the door.
Brittany took in a deep breath and tried not to roll her eyes at her dad, "We aren't making out, Dad. We were just on the way in."
Pierce waved his hands between them gesturing at how close they were standing, "I doubt that, B.B." He looked Santana up and down before he offered her his hand to shake, "I'm Pierce. Brittany's dad."
Brittany just sighed out deeply and tried to usher him in the house, "Dad, let's go inside. It's a little chilly out here."
"You weren't thinking about that when," He walked into the house and shrugged, "YOU WERE MAKING OUT WITH YOUR GIRLFRIEND."
Brittany grabbed Santana's hand softly, "I'm so sorry, Santana. I told you he might be a little over the top." She moved towards the door pulling Santana with her.
Santana squeezed Brittany's hand, "My dad gave you the third degree. Your dad is just trying to embarrass you on purpose. I think it's kind of cute he cares so much."
"You'll want to choke him by the end of dinner," Brittany said almost too confidently. "But seriously, not in a bad way. Just…he's a little eccentric."
The duo walked into the house when Brittany's mom practically ran into living room, "I wonder why Santana didn't bring the guitar."
Pierce shrugged a little bit too, "I was thinking the same thing." He pointed at his daughter's girlfriend and waved his hand up and down. "Santana also looks good for being seventy-one."
Brittany just smacked her hand to her forehead, "Santana Lopez, Dad. Not Carlos Santana…" She shook her head in disbelief. They promised they would act normal. She couldn't believe they were doing this the first time they were meeting her girlfriend.
Whitney just grabbed Santana and pulled her into a hug, "I'm sorry we were teasing you, Dear." She pushed Santana way to arm's length. "Most of the time our humor is lost on part of our uptight family." She waved her hand towards Quinn's mom. "Well, Nanny isn't uptight at least."
Pierce walked over to his wife and offered Santana open arms, "Welcome to Christmas with the Pierces Santana."
Santana was a little overwhelmed at how fast everything was going, but Brittany did say they were a little eccentric. She did the polite thing and gave the man a gentle hug. "Thank you for having me."
Whitney just laughed a little, "If I had you Brittany and you would be sisters. That's not legal in Ohio."
Brittany walked over to her parents and Santana, slipping her hand into her girlfriends. "Mom," Brittany warned slightly as she started to pull Santana closer to her. "Nanny wants to talk to you. She said when you came last week for our date she didn't get enough of a chance."
Whitney and Pierce just watched the pair walk across the room and they smiled at each other. The older blonde just grinned broadly, "She's very smitten with this one, Honey."
Pierce nodded as he took his wife's hand. "Santana is the only who has ever made it to a major holiday. They haven't been dating very long either."
Quinn made her way towards her Aunt and Uncle offering them a smile, "She really does adore, Santana. I can't believe it's actually a thing."
Whitney put her arm around Quinn's shoulder and gave it a small squeeze, "I think this be the best setup you ever have done for Brittany."