A month managed to pass by, until Brittany actually had returned her call. She made a quick apology and asked Santana to meet her at Starbucks for coffee.

"So?" Santana said as they took their seats, Brittany with her Caramel Frappuccino and Santana with her Peppermint Mocha. "Sooo, what?" the blonde took a sip from her beverage. "What is this Brittany? Why are you ignoring me? Did I do something wrong?" Brittany simply shook her head. "No, Santana, you didn't do anything wrong. It's just, I met someone." Santana flinched "You, met someone?" Suddenly she felt betrayed by the words coming out of Brittany's mouth.
This was Brittany. The same girl she'd been crushing on since kindergarten.
All of a sudden, everything became extremely complicated.

"Santana?" Brittany reached out her to stroke her hand, but that only caused Santana to jump out of her seat. "Oh, I'm sorry." The Latina sighed deeply and Brittany could only feel confusion. "Are you angry?"

"Who am I gonna be angry at, life? Tell me who I should be angry at." Santana crossed her arms as she tried to make as little eye contact as possible.

"Santana, please."

"No, Brittany, don't. Do you not remember high school? Do you not remember us?" She knew she'd gone too far with that one.

"Ouch. How could you for one second think, that I don't remember? I remember everything."

"Then how come, you told me that if you and Artie were to ever break up, we'd be together?"

"But Santana, we tried. It just didn't work." It was true, they had indeed tried, oh god how they had tried.

"We weren't ready then. I still love you, you know." 'If we only knew back then, what we know now. We have the right tools now.' Thought Santana.

"San…"

"Please, either you say it, or you don't say anything."

"I'm still yours. But, I can't be with you." Santana gave her a nod and walked out.

Brittany called her that night and she called her the morning thereafter, both calls which Santana screened. Knowing that she was yet again, someone's second choice was just something she couldn't deal with right now.
Brittany choosing Artie over her in high school had been one thing, because they were kids.
But this?
To Santana, this wasn't acceptable, because she really had given Brittany her all, apparently just to be kicked, when she was down in return.

Maybe she was being selfish, but she didn't know how to handle it without being stubborn and childlike.
And Brittany knew Santana too well. She could do nothing but to give her time, let her cool off.

It wasn't until two months later that they would see one another again. They literally bumped into each other at the mall. "Oh shit, I'm so sorry." Santana said. She had knocked the girl to the ground. She pinned her hair behind her ears, before she helped her to her feet. "Brittany?" Their eyes met and smiles were exchanged. Brittany looked at Santana and then at the girl standing beside her, who had her arm slightly around her waist. "Britt, this is my, friend, Ariel. Ariel, Brittany."

Brittany scoffed, yet there she stood, with the man of her dreams. What was this feeling in her gut? Was she perhaps, jealous? "Hi, Ariel." She smiled and waved awkwardly at the petite girl with green eyes and chestnut brown hair, now holding Santana tightly in her arms. "This is my boyfriend, Collin." Santana glared at him. It was the guy from the gym, obviously. Santana didn't know him and she knew that she had no right to judge, but she hated him. "So, Collin, you're the one who's been keeping Brittany from me?" She said jokingly, hoping it hadn't sounded wrong.
Collin grinned and squeezed Brittany's shoulders. "You refused to talk to me, I figured the best thing to do was to leave you alone, I'm sorry. I didn't know what else to do."

Santana wasn't about to start anything, especially not at the mall. "You know what? It doesn't matter. We have to go, just trying to get some last minute shopping done before I head on out east." Brittany looked puzzled and actually kind of hurt. "East?"

Collin and Ariel took this as a chance to dodge any possible forthcoming bullets from the two best friends. "Long story short, got a job offer, took it. Flying out to New York on Thursday." Brittany crossed her arms. "How about the long story then?" She was angry. "Tell me this has nothing to do with Ariel being your girlfriend?"
She was angry at Santana, angry because she hadn't told her earlier. Angry that she had told her like this. "She's not my girlfriend, I'm very much single thank you very much. I don't know what you want me to say Brittany. You didn't want to give me a chance, so why should I stay?"

"You stay for me! Santana, you're my best friend and just because I can't be with you right now, you're going to fly across the country? Sounds to me like you're running away."

"So what if I am, why does it matter?"

"Santana, I love you. I need you in my life, you know I can't do this without you and right know you're making me feel guilty."

"Well, your feelings aren't my priority anymore. You've now got Collin to guide you through life. I'm sure he'll do a fantastic job!"

"Why do you have to be like this? I haven't done anything to you."

"Brittany, try to understand, that this is real life and real life doesn't have happy endings." She said and walked away from her best friend.

It was all Brittany ever saw of Santana, her walking away, always.
Afraid to deal.
She was also beginning to realize, that if they didn't fix their broken friendship now, it would stay broken for good.