As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Glee belong to Fox – I own nothing. All the characters of The Fast and the Furious belong to Universal Studios, I'm just borrowing some of them. All writing belongs to me.
Peoples! Hello again! Ok, so I didn't intend for this chapter to be anything more than a light filler update but it kind of became heavy and intense Brittana development stuff (no angst!) so I hope you enjo! :)
Important Update Info!
So, as you may know from last weeks A/N or because you're a fellow Swan Queen fan it is yet again Swan Queen Week over on Tumblr. That means that next week there will be no updates for this story as I'm going to be participating again. Adding to this the week of no updating the week after it's my birthday so I'm taking off that week for obvious reasons. Then the week after I will start writing chapter 40 of this story. That being said the date I've set for myself to post is August 8th. I know this seems like a long time but for what I have planned it may need extra work and time, I don't know. I don't want to rush it. I hope you bare with me and will see you then. So, for anyone just following etc. please don't send me guest reviews asking when I'm going to update because I won't answer.
To everybody who has faved, reviewed and followed since the last update thank you and welcome! I will see you when I post next! :D
Santana laughed as she stood in front of the Skyline. "Are you serious? He couldn't keep up with me even if he was in a Ferrari!"
"Yeah but you were running! We took this thing right out from under his nose. He was even there!"
"I know but we pulled it off though. Have you put any thought into some of the stuff you want to put into it?"
Quinn shrugged. "I know it's Nismo tuned and they're usually pretty good parts but I have to admit since Letty agreed to go along with your plan I've been eyeing stuff in the parts catalogues."
"You have?"
The blonde nodded. "Yeah, I figured that if Letty was gonna agree then I'd have no choice but to go along with it too. So, I started researching the kinds of things I wanted."
"Care to enlighten me?"
"I've eyed a few seats, gauges, steering wheels, entertainment systems, brakes etc."
"What about body kits? I know that's the top priority when it comes to your cars considering your the queen of kits."
Quinn laughed. "That's true. I have looked and to be honest there aren't that many available. I was thinking that if I wanted it to be unique like people expect it to be coming from me I'd have to design my own."
"Well, lucky for you Miss. Fabray I have a few favours I need to cash in on and I have the perfect body kit. I didn't know if you'd be up for it but I have a feeling as soon as you see it you're gonna love it."
"I am?"
At Quinn's raised eyebrow Santana nodded. "Of course. I know a few guys that work at an auto-body shop up state. They owe me a few favours after I helped them out a while back."
"Ok, but are you sure you want to cash in on them now – for me?"
Waving a hand Santana smiled. "You're my best friend Quinn, I think I can spare one for you."
"Ok then. Thanks Santana."
"Don't mention it. Oh, and one more thing..."
Quinn's head snapped up from the car to Santana. "Yeah?"
"When we're through with tuning this thing it's gonna be a beast when it hits the streets, you know that right? If there's one thing I know it's how to tune a Nissan."
"At that I'm not surprised. That's why your 350 is so good. By the way I need to get a look under the hood of that."
"All in due time Q." She laughed. "All in due time, it's my baby remember, but thank you. I won't stop until this is tuned to perfection though."
"Thanks. This thing will rip up the streets. I've been waiting for so long to get my hands on one of these so I can get behind the wheel and push it, not that I don't love my R34 though – that's my baby. You up for a race against it when it's done?"
"Hell yeah I am. Why wouldn't I be?"
Quinn laughed. "That's what I thought. It's a date."
Just then the sound of engines could be heard and when Santana and Quinn turned their heads to look Letty lead the rest of the crew in. The two women turned to face them completely and watched as they all exited their cars ready for a hard day's work.
"Ladies, what's this beast I see now sitting in the middle of the garage? It definitely wasn't there the last time I checked."
Glancing back at the R35 Quinn smiled and turned back around to face her crew leader. "It's the latest edition to our growing garage. Let's just say me and Santana had a girls night out."
"So in other words you boosted it?" Dani questioned as the crew gathered around the entrance to the garage.
"You could say that." Santana answered, smiling when Brittany walked up to her and placed a kiss to her cheek. They'd only been apart for a good thirty minutes but that didn't stop Santana from having missed her.
"Hey." She whispered.
Santana smiled and pressed a similar kiss to Brittany's cheek. "Hey." She whispered back.
"Well, whatever you did it looks good. Nismo tuned right?" Letty asked, bringing Santana back into the conversation.
"Yeah, that's right."
"Where'd you get it from?"
"The place I originally cased. Josh Coleman."
"Wait, you're telling me that daddy's little rich boy actually spent extra cash for a tuned version of this? He can't drive for shit!"
Santana laughed. "Got that right. He blocked the gates so I drew him away by running. Stupid prep boy couldn't even catch up to me driving a Ferrari!"
"Praise sister." Dani smiled, knuckle tapping Santana. Surprised by the friendly action Santana just went along with it. They weren't at each others throats any more but that didn't mean that Santana wasn't still a little hesitant when it came to the subject of Dani and how she acted towards her.
"I have to admit though, Q pulled off a pretty neat slide to block him out so I could get in the R34."
"I will admit, it was pretty epic."
Santana laughed at her best friend. "Yes it was."
"Well, as much as I would have liked to have seen it, especially after you two stole it right from under him, we'd better get to work on figuring out how to modify this thing."
"Agreed." Mia smiled, nodding along with her girlfriend.
"Yes. Come on, let's start assigning parts and jobs."
Santana groaned as her arm was prodded.
"Santana please stop squirming."
"I would but you said you weren't gonna prod me so much!"
Dr. Mizuhara pulled back and raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think I would need to. Turns out I needed to get a better look at this gsw. Who fixed this up for you?"
"Matt."
"He did this?"
"Yeah, why? Did he do a bad job?"
"No, he did an excellent one actually. That's why I needed to prod it so much – to see how strong it was. It's so good in fact that you should continue healing right away. It might take a while for the redness to fade away but in time it should disappear."
"What about scarring?" Brittany asked from the chair beside the bed, speaking up for the first time in about ten minutes.
"That I'm afraid is an unfortunate side effect. Just like Santana's two other gsw's she's going to have a noticeable mark there. The pellet looks to have gone deep enough to scar so you're going to have to live with it."
"Great."
At Santana's sigh/groan the doctor laughed. "Hey, put it this way; any deeper and you would have problems. You were lucky it hit you the way it did. As for right now I'm going to bandage this back up and we'll make an appointment for you to get the stitches out soon."
"And how soon will that be?"
"In a week or so."
"Ok."
"In the meantime please try not to get shot at again Miss. Lopez. I really don't want to have to keep treating you."
"I've been trying to tell her that."
The Asian woman laughed with Brittany. "And she's right. Your girlfriend is a smart cookie Santana, maybe you should listen to her more often."
"Yeah yeah."
"Ok, let's get this wrapped up again and you can be on your way."
A few minutes later and she was done. She crossed her arms over her chest as she watched Brittany hand Santana her t-shirt.
"Well, that's it. Just before you go I want you to make one last appointment with your physical therapist."
"Why?"
"Because I want you to make sure that you are nearly one hundred percent again. Plus, she needs to make sure that this isn't going to hamper the remainder of your recovery."
"Ok, I'll make sure."
"Good. If you have any problems with that new gsw come and see me but try to take it easy until I can take the stitches out ok?"
"Ok."
"Bye Santana, bye Brittany."
"Bye."
"Bye."
Santana sighed as few minutes later as they stepped out into the sun and the fresh morning air.
"San? Are you ok?" Brittany asked, tightening the hold she had on Santana through their looped arms.
"Yeah, I guess so."
"San..."
"Ok fine, I'm tired."
"Of what?"
"All this medical crap. God knows I've been through enough of it these past few months."
"Hey, don't do that."
"Do what?"
"I can tell you think it's your fault Santana – it's not. Cassandra shot you, she put you through this. Just think about it this way – this is the last time you have to go to your physical therapy and I'm coming with you."
Turning to Brittany she smiled and stopped walking. "I guess you going with me makes it a little more bearable. God, what would I do without the best girlfriend in the world?"
Brittany bit her lip in fake contemplation before smiling and shrugging. "I don't know – you couldn't live without me?"
"So true. Come here."
Brittany couldn't resist the husky whisper of Santana's voice even if she wanted to. Instead she gave in and let the Latina pull her closer, happily accepting the warm kiss that she was offering. That was, until her phone started ringing.
I wanna rock wit you, no matter what we do...
Santana sighed frustratedly against Brittany's lips but pulled away anyway, fishing the phone from her pocket but making sure to keep their arms looped together. Sliding her finger across the screen she smiled when she felt Brittany's hand start caressing her bandaged injury over her hoody.
"Hello?"
"Mija, it's your abuela."
"Hey abuela, what did you want?"
"I called to ask how your hospital appointment went. What did she say?"
"That I have one last appointment with my physical therapist to check up and then I have to go back in a week or so to get the stitches out of my arm."
"Good."
"Is there anything else you wanted?"
"Yes, there is actually."
"Ok, shoot. Sorry, poor choice if words."
"It's ok mija. When are you coming over for dinner?"
Brittany looked up when she heard Santana sigh. "Abuela..."
"No is not an option Santana Lopez. When are you free?"
"Uh, Friday I guess?"
"Good. Is Brittany there?"
"Of course."
"Then put her on speaker."
Santana's eyes met Brittany's before she pulled the phone away from her ear, switching it to speaker. "You're on speaker abuela."
"Brittany?"
"Abuela Lopez, hello."
As much as Santana wanted to groan at her abuela's pushiness when it came to coming over for dinner she couldn't help but smile when Brittany grinned happily in response to the older Latina.
"Have you just accompanied Santana to her doctor's appointment?"
"Yes."
"Did she behave herself?"
"Yes."
"Hey, I am still here you know!" Santana protested, rolling her eyes at the same time.
"Yes mija, we know. Brittany, would you like to accompany Santana to dinner on Friday? I would love to finally get to meet you properly."
Looking up at her girlfriend Brittany then looked back down at the phone that was in said girlfriend's hand. "Yes, I would love to."
"Ok, why don't you both come over at seven and we will enjoy some nice big plates of rice and beans. Does that sound good?"
"It sounds delicious."
"Santana?"
"Yes, abuela, it sounds good."
"Bien. I will see you then."
"Ok, bye abuela."
"Goodbye Santana."
"Bye Mrs. Lopez."
"Goodbye Brittany. Have a good day girls."
When the line went dead Santana ended the call and slid her phone back into her pocket as they reached the parking lot, already leading Brittany over to where her 350Z was parked.
"Santana? Are you ok?" Brittany asked, looking over the roof at the Latina.
"Yeah, I guess so."
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know."
"It's about Friday isn't it? I won't go if you don't want me to."
Looking up from where she was now buckling her race harness Santana momentarily stopped and reached her hand across, resting it on Brittany's arm. Her free hand then came up to lift Brittany's chin, directing the blonde's gaze towards her. "Hey, I want you there. It's just that I'm nervous. You have nothing to worry about, trust me."
Looking into Santana's eyes and sensing something else Brittany turned the tables and took the hand Santana had on her chin into her own and used her free one to rest on her thigh. "You have nothing to be nervous about. It's ok though, I'm here if you need to get it off your chest. You're not on your own any more Santana, you have me. You don't have to act strong just for me, what's on your mind?"
Santana knew that nothing else but meeting Brittany's eyes would cut it so looking up brown met blue and she couldn't help but smile. "Thank you. I know I can tell you anything. It's just that we didn't really have a chance to do it before, you know, everything happened. Now we do and..."
"You're nervous. I get it. I'm gonna be there holding your hand every step of the way."
Brittany could see the vulnerability in Santana's eyes, knowing that what she was admitting wasn't easy. She was thankful though, the woman sat in front of her wouldn't have even shown her this before but after what they had been through there wasn't any room for anything but the truth. That's why she was glad that Santana was admitting this much, it allowed Brittany to do what she considered her job – being there for her. There was a fear underlying that insecurity, Brittany knew it all too well. She had felt it once just before she had come out to her parents but then again it was only brief, she knew they'd accept her no matter what. She knew for Santana though that that wasn't the case. She'd had enough courage to come out to her grandmother and it had backfired – badly. Now after years apart she was finally bringing home her first girlfriend and there was a fear that she wouldn't accept her after seeing it in person. Sure, she had been getting along with her granddaughter but knowing and seeing were two completely different things. Santana hadn't forgiven her yet, at least not verbally, but that didn't mean she wasn't still terrified of how things would go down. And that's where Brittany would come in. She was going to hold Santana's hand for as long as she needed it and she'd be there every step of the way and because she loved her she was going to stay by her side – starting with this.
"Britt?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you."
Seeing Santana blush Brittany leaned forwards and cupped her face, placing her a soft kiss to her cheek. "It's my pleasure. You know I love you right?"
"Yeah, I love you too Britt-Britt."
"Good." She smiled, giving her another kiss, this time to the corner of her mouth. "Now, how about we get lunch and head to the garage?"
"That sounds good."
"Ok then, drive Lopez."
Santana chuckled as she slide the keys into the ignition and brought the car to life. "Consider it done Miss. Pierce."
Brittany smiled and lent back over, placing a kiss to her cheek. "Thank you miel."
Santana raised an eyebrow at Brittany's use of Spanish and at the blonde's shrug she rolled her eyes and smiled as she pulled out of the parking lot.
"I don't see what the problem is!"
"The problem is, we can't keep losing."
"I can't help that."
"Yes you can Puck. These bitches are winning every race."
"Cass, we've raced them twice!"
"Before that. Before I took the R8 when I had Santana under my thumb she was still winning every race against your drivers. She never lost once! Once!"
"What do you expect me to do about it? I'm not the one racing!"
"Maybe you should be but you need to make sure your crew is good enough to at least challenge them! They have new cars courtesy of me and they still can't seem to get shit done! They're driving supercars Puck!"
"And?!"
"They need to be able to actually drive. Word on the street is that after Santana and Marley's little stunt the other night we're a laughing stock compared to Letty's crew!"
"Hold up, this isn't just about her crew though is it?"
"What makes you say that?"
"There's something else. It's Santana isn't it?"
"What if it is?"
"You need to let go of this beef. So what, your plan didn't go quite how you wanted it to but the fact that she is racing with them again is something you can't control."
"And that makes it harder for us to make cash! They walked away with 60k the other night! That's a lot of money that we could have used."
"It was a high stakes race, what do you expect? As much as I hate to admit it they won fair and square."
"And that won't do. If you're not willing to kick this crew into shape I'm gonna have to show you all how it's done!"
"Cass, don't do something stupid." But before he could be heard his girlfriend was already exiting the office and making her way outside to her Mercedes. Sighing he got up out of his chair and followed her. "Everybody to your cars, we're going somewhere."
"Where?" Mercedes asked with a frown from her place where she was stood beside Sam.
"Ortiz territory."
Santana and the others looked up at the sound of multiple engines approaching. That could only mean one thing – they weren't just anybody. As if on instinct Mia and Santana were ushering the others to cover the cars with tarps so that they couldn't be seen. When they were out of sight they rejoined the others as the group of cars filled up the remaining space in the yard, a familiar black Mercedes leading the pack. Santana felt Brittany's hand slide down her arm and link with her own, squeezing as the familiar blonde stepped out of the expensive sports car and made her way towards them.
"Lopez!"
She tensed but she remained calm as Cassandra got closer. "What do you want July?"
"I have a proposition."
"About what?"
"Stay out of it Miss. Ortiz."
Stepping up beside Santana she steeled herself and shook her head. "No, not until you tell me why you're stepping into my territory with no respect. Puckerman, you have anything to say about this?" She asked, turning her attentions to Puck who was lingering just behind her.
He shook his head and shrugged. "No idea."
That was the most pleasant they'd been towards each other in a long time. Taking it as a one time thing Letty turned back to Cassandra. "Come on, spill. Why are you here?"
"I wanted to ask Santana something."
The Latina in question frowned. "What?"
"I have an idea."
"Ok then, why don't you just say it out loud and share it with the class?"
"I've had enough of your constant disrespect."
"Disrespect? Like you haven't disrespected me enough already? What could you possibly want?"
"A race."
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me – a race. I'm tired of watching you win again and again so I'm challenging you. Crew race conditions, a race in the city and then we settle it in the canyon like women. 25K buy-in each. Are you in?"
"So you're challenging me to a race? Took you long enough to grow the balls to ask me."
Cassandra seemed to quietly fume, Santana knowing that she was pushing her buttons. Surprisingly she didn't bite back though. "Yes. Now are you in or not?"
Santana momentarily let go of Brittany's hand, stepping closer so that her and Cassandra were only a few inches apart. The air was tense around them but Santana didn't even need to think twice about her answer before replying. "Oh, I most definitely am."
"Good. Blaine will call with the details. I'll see you on the streets Miss. Lopez."
"I'll be waiting."
With that Cassandra turned on her heels and made her way back to her car, the rest of her and Puck's crew following. Soon they were pulling out of the lot and leaving, Letty's crew in silence at what had just happened.
"Santana, are you sure about this?"
Looking over at Letty she nodded. "Yes."
"S, you can't be serious!"
"Marley..."
"No, she's right S. This is dangerous." Tina argued, agreeing with her girlfriend.
"Yeah, she's dangerous Santana. Who knows what kind of crap she could pull! You know what she did to Finn and Jake. What if she does that to you?!"
"Rachel I know the risks involved."
"Yes, and that should be exactly why you should have said no." Dani reasoned.
"Look, I know you guys are worried, I understand that after everything that happened, but this is our chance – my chance to put her in her place. Ever since the day she shot me all I've wanted to do is have a chance at getting back at her. If that means settling it behind the wheel then I'm gonna do it. You all have your reasons why this is dangerous and you can tell me over and over again about how this is a bad idea but I'm not gonna back out of it. I have my own reasons why I'm doing this and whether you want to support me or not I'm gonna get behind that wheel and show that bitch that she messed with the wrong woman."
There was silence before Letty eventually spoke up. "Ok. If you wanna race her that's your choice but we've got your back nonetheless."
"Thank you."
"No problem. Come on, back to work ladies."
As the crew started dispersing Quinn clapped Santana on the shoulder, the two best friends sharing a look before she walked away.
"Play this smart Santana." Mia whispered, sending her a reassuring smile before walking away and leaving Brittany and Santana as the only two remaining.
"Britt, before you say anything-"
"I know."
Looking up surprised Santana frowned. "Wait, you do?"
"Yes. You need to do this. Just don't let her hurt you again, ok?"
"But aren't you mad?
"I will admit that right now I'm angry at you for not thinking about it first but I know that no matter what I say you won't back out of this. Just don't let her shoot you ok?"
"Ok." She nodded, stepping closer to her. "Thank you Brittany. I'll try, I promise."
"I know you will." She whispered, her hand coming up to play with the collar of Santana's garage shirt. "And that's why I trust you. I'll be there with you to support you, I promise."
Santana smiled and wrapped her arms around Brittany's waist, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Thank you. I love you so much Brittany S. Pierce."
"I love you too Santana Lopez."
Brittany pulled away from the hug enough to press their lips together, letting the kiss linger before pulling away completely and grabbing Santana's hand. "Come on, we still have work to do."
Brittany's fingers trailed lightly over the countless shirts in Santana's extensive wardrobe. To be honest it wasn't that Santana had an excessive amount of clothes, it was the size of the closet itself that overwhelmed her. There was so much space, even after she'd added her own clothes to it. The perks of such a big house she guessed. Her fingers continued to trail until they reached the Latina's hoodies and eventually they came to her small collection of leather jackets. Brittany let herself enjoy the feel of the cold material under her fingertips as she slowly took another step but she stopped when she came to the last one on the rack. Glancing down at it she frowned before recognizing it. Turning her body to face the clothes she pulled it's hanger off the rail and realised why it looked so familiar. It was the one she was wearing that day...
She removed the hangar and placed it back on the rail, now holding the leather jacket in her hands fully. She'd seen it in that dream she had, the one where she'd woken up suddenly – the one where she realised that she wasn't completely over the Latina. Back then it was untouched but this only proved it was a dream. What was in her hands wasn't that jacket from her dreams, it was the one that was very real, the one Santana had been wearing the day things went south. Her eyes automatically searched for them without letting her think, eventually landing on two bullet holes. There was blood staining each hole, the jacket probably never washed since before that day. Raising it to her nose she could smell the faint remnants of Santana's aroma.
A single tear rolled down her eyes and before long it opened the gates she'd been trying to hold back for weeks.
And that's how Santana found her. She had been in the kitchen texting her grandmother whilst trying to get dressed and had left Brittany to get changed in their shared closet whilst she checked on Lord Tubbington in the kitchen. When she came back she had expected Brittany to be stood in the middle of their bedroom with multiple outfits spread across their bed unable to make her mind up but when she hadn't she guessed she was still in the closet picking something out. What she didn't expect however was to find her slouched on the ottoman in the center of the room clutching an all too familiar leather jacket in her hands. She instantly knew what this was about – Brittany was finally opening up.
"Britt? Baby, you ok?" It was a stupid question but she asked anyway. What else was she supposed to say? "Hey Britt, what are you doing looking at the jacket I was almost killed in?". She moved and knelt down in front of her completely ignoring the fact that she'd been wrestling to get her t-shirt on whilst texting her grandmother at the same time.
Brittany looked up at the sound of Santana's voice, her eyes coming level with the other woman's who was projecting nothing but pure concern and worry right back at her. "I-I..."
"Hey, it's ok. You can tell me Britt. What's wrong?" She asked, placing a hand on Brittany's knee.
The touch of Santana's hand was what broke everything free, all of Brittany's emotions welling over and the barriers breaking for the first time since before they'd got back together. She fell forwards, her head meeting Santana's collarbone as sobs racked her body and hot tears rolled down her cheeks staining into Santana's clean t-shirt. All the fight seemed to seep out of her in the matter of a few moments, her sobs coming harder than before as she felt Santana's arms wrap around her as she pulled the blonde more into her. Her hand coming to rest on Brittany's back she let it rub soothingly back and forth as Brittany continued to cry. It pained her to see her like this, so upset, and she cursed herself for even having put her through this pain on purpose. She knew this was how Brittany had probably been after she'd found out everything but she vowed in that moment to do everything in her power to try and prevent it from happening again. That definitely meant it went for right now too.
"Shush, it's ok. I'm right here." She didn't know what else to say other than she knew that she wasn't going anywhere until Brittany was in fact ok.
A minute or two later a sniffling Brittany finally pulled away, her hands clutching at Santana's shirt as the Latina wiped away her tears carefully with her thumbs as if she were the most fragile thing on the planet.
"I got your clean shirt all wet."
Looking down at said shirt and the wet patch Santana looked back up at her and smiled. "I can change it." With that she got up and situated herself on the ottoman next to the other woman, her arm wrapping around her shoulder.
"Thank you."
"It's ok." She replied, pressing a kiss to the top of Brittany's head. "It's long overdue. What were you doing with this anyway?" She asked, motioning to the jacket and taking it from Brittany's hands into her own.
"I saw it and I recognised it. That's when it hit me."
"What hit you?"
"That I almost lost you."
"Britt-"
"No, Santana please, let me get this out."
"Ok." She replied quietly, kissing her reassuringly on the side of the head. "Go on."
Feeling Santana's hand rubbing soothingly up and down her arm she snuggled into her warmth and prepared herself. "I almost lost you and then I left you. I left you to deal with it when I should have been there by your side. I was so angry at you for lying that I didn't see that you needed me. I knew you loved me, even back then when you hadn't said it aloud and now I feel like a bitch for ever blaming you when I should have been blaming myself."
At the pause Santana could tell that Brittany was done. She hadn't wanted to interrupt her. "Britt...you don't have to blame yourself. Scratch that – you should never blame yourself. What happened happened. Bottom line is I lied and I paid the price."
"By almost dying!"
"And there's no point feeling guilty over it. You have nothing to feel guilty about. The only one who should be feeling that is Cassandra. She's the one who shot me and she's the one who's going to pay the price – not you, not me, not the rest of the crew – her. You had every right to blame me for what happened but we're past that now. We have each other back, that's all that matters."
"But-"
"And I'm still alive. I'm here, breathing, holding you. I'm not going anywhere Brittany, I had to live for you, as much as you didn't think that was the case in the moment. Sure, you weren't there but my abuela was and we had time to heal together – that's why we're going over for dinner tonight. She wants to meet you properly. She knows how much I love you and I'm proud that I can spend this time with my two favourite people – the woman who raised me and the woman I love. And yes, I got shot again, but it was a graze and you're here looking after me when I need it. I couldn't ask for more."
There was a brief pause before Brittany looked up at her. She smiled and let her forehead rest against Santana's as they enjoyed the silence between one another. Santana sensed Brittany's eyes opening and followed her gaze, watching as the blonde's fingers delicately traced the bullet hole in the shoulder of the jacket, then slowly moving down to the one that would have been covering Santana's stomach.
"Why did you keep this?"
"What do you mean?" She asked, temporarily taken off guard by Brittany's question.
"Why did you keep this when you nearly died in it?"
Santana shrugged looking down at the holes. "I don't know. I guess I couldn't part with it."
"But why?" Brittany asked again, frowning as she tried to understand why on earth Santana would keep a reminder of something that nearly killed her.
"I guess it was a reminder."
"Of what?"
"Of you."
That caught Brittany's attention. The blonde looked up from the jacket at the other woman. "Me?"
"Not in a bad way. I guess I kept it because it reminded me of the last moment we spent together – the last happy moment."
"That morning when you got the call from Shelby and I didn't want you to leave."
"Yeah. I didn't want to leave. I knew that that was our last moment, our last kiss. I cried when I closed that door."
"And I just went back to sleep thinking you were coming back. Then Shelby called and said she couldn't find you and you weren't answering and I panicked and then we went to the docks and Roz told us you had been shot and then I...I just..."
Santana took Brittany's hand and forced her to look at her. "Hey, calm down Britt. I know, she told me that you all came looking. I know you were worried. But that's over. I'm still here."
Brittany breathed deeply as Santana knelt down in front of her once again, taking her hand and placing it over her chest. She could feel the steady beating of Santana's heart under her fingers and let it sooth her as she soon calmed down. When she opened her eyes, their foreheads pressed together, she smiled and pressed a light but meaningful kiss against Santana's lips, letting it linger for a few moments longer than necessary before pulling away.
"Thank you."
"Don't mention it. Here, I have something to show you."
"You do?"
"Yeah, hold on."
Brittany watched as Santana pulled back, sitting back on her knees as she gripped the hem of her t-shirt. Brittany frowned, not knowing quite what she was doing, but went along with it anyway. Santana discarded the shirt on the empty space next to Brittany and took the blonde's hand once more. She slowly moved it towards her sports bra-clad chest and gently held it to her warm skin. Once it was resting over her heart again she slowly started moving it upwards. She trailed Brittany's hand to a familiar mar on her complexion and let it hover above the raised skin.
"I know you've been avoiding it. I know you try to look away when you think I'm not watching and you flinch whenever you touch it by accident but I think you need to know it to know I'm ok. Go on, touch it."
"But won't it hurt?"
"No. Go on, touch it."
Her eyes wearily meeting Santana's she took a deep breath and unconsciously lent forwards, Santana's hand falling to her side as her fingertips made contact with the scar tissue, in response sending a shiver down her spine. Santana remained still underneath her, not moving as she let her fingers wander over the place that had long-since healed. It was strange but it was oddly soothing. She had feared hurting the other woman with just a simple touch and she admitted that a part of her had indeed been avoiding it. For what reason she didn't know why but right now that answer didn't really seem to matter.
Eventually Santana took hold of her hand once again and lowered it until it was hovering over her abdomen and the more deadly of the two shots. She let go and trusted Brittany to take the lead and initiate the next part. Luckily for her the blonde did and her fingers were back on her skin once again. Just as before they lightly grazed over the raised scar tissue, exploring the bumps of the long healed wound. Santana had flashes in her mind of times when she really wished they had killed her, the pain unbearable, but with Brittany's fingers just touching them was enough to make it all worth it. The blonde's touch was soothing, soothing enough to make all the pain and agony worth it to get here to this very moment.
Brittany broke the silence.
"Santana?"
"Yeah?"
"That nightmare. It makes them hurt doesn't it?"
"Yeah, sometimes."
"But you're ok?"
"I'm fine."
"Is this what your other scar is like?"
Santana knew which one she was talking about. "This one?" She asked, holding up her left arm so that Brittany could see the large jagged scar that went from wrist to elbow.
"Yes." She nodded, leaning forwards and pressing a quick kiss to it.
"It hurts if I'm stressed or there's too much strain or pressure on it but I've learned to live with it. Just like I will this one." She said, motioning to the bandage further up her arm.
Brittany reached out and let her hand linger on the white gauze. "Your left arm seems to attract trouble doesn't it?"
Santana looked down at Brittany's hand and chuckled. "Yeah, I guess it does but admit it, you think it's sexy on me."
"Santana..."
Seeing the other woman's blush Santana saw her opportunity. "Come on, admit it!"
There was a pause before Brittany sighed. "Fine. Yes, I think it's sexy."
"Ha! I knew it! You wait, once this one has it's stitches out and heals you're not gonna be able to keep your hands off me!"
"We'll see about that."
"Yes we will." She grinned, leaning forwards and placing her hands on the ottoman either side of the blonde, now situated in between Brittany's jean-clad legs. There were a few moments of silence before she spoke once again. "Are you feeling better now?"
Instead of answering right away Brittany lent forwards and kissed the scar on her shoulder, her lips lingering for a minute or so before pulling away. She then took Santana's face into her hands, letting her fingers cup either side of her face so that her thumbs could trail back and forth over her cheeks.
"Yes. Thank you."
She then pulled the Latina in, their lips connecting in a meaningful and deep kiss that gave confirmation to everything Santana needed to know. Brittany would get there one day, to a point where she'd accept what had happened to her, but for now this was a start. She could feel the blonde's relief and let her own relief wash over her. It had been something that had been tugging at the both of them since they'd admitted their love for one another and now they could finally start moving on from it – and Santana was going to be by Brittany's side through every single moment.
"Come on, lets get dressed or we're gonna be late."
Standing she pulled Brittany up by the hand and picked up the hole-ridden jacket. She gave Brittany a kiss and made her way over to the hanger, sliding the jacket back onto it before letting it rejoin her other jackets. Turning back to Brittany she smiled and proceeded to search for a clean t-shirt.
Santana had just finished pulling on her button up shirt when she spotted Brittany reaching for her sky blue converses. She walked over and stopped her.
"Stop. I have something for you."
"You do?"
"Yeah, sit down on the ottoman whilst I go get it."
"Santana..."
"Britt, please."
"Ok."
Santana smiled and kissed her forehead before disappearing. A minute later she was reappearing with two black boxes under her arm. She knelt down in front of the blonde and smiled up at her. She then turned to the boxes and held them up in front of her.
"For you m'lady."
"Me?"
"Yeah, go on, open!"
Brittany took the first box and did as told before smiling. "Santana, you didn't have to."
"I know but I wanted to."
"What's in the second one?"
"Take a look for yourself." She handed her the second box and Brittany opened it to find another pair of shoes inside. "Now, I know it's not a lot considering I make a bunch of cash behind the wheel and if I could have bought you expensive jewellery I would have but if there's one thing I love about you it's that you have a thirst for sneakers that rival my own. Not that I don't love you in those black heels you wore the other night, especially when you don't have anything else on, but I wanted to get you something just to show you that I appreciate you and I love you-"
"Santana, baby, breathe, I appreciate the thought. Thank you, I love them. I wouldn't expect anything less than DC's either considering you practically live in them. And don't worry – I don't need jewellery, I just need you. Now I have two pairs though so I can pick and choose."
"My thought exactly. Which ones do you wanna wear?"
Brittany handed her the first box. "These."
"Nice choice Miss. Pierce. Mint and grey it is."
"What about you?" Brittany asked, smiling as Santana carefully slipped the first shoe onto her foot for her.
"I have a new pair I wanna wear. You seriously didn't think I wouldn't buy a pair for myself while I was at it did you?"
"No, that doesn't surprise me one bit."
"And it shouldn't. There, I'll let you lace them and then we should be ready to go."
"Thank you." Brittany kissed her and let her stand up, watching as Santana pulled a box from under her shirt rail. Santana came to sit down next to her and when she opened the box Santana smirked at her.
"Curious much?" Brittany shrugged causing Santana to roll her eyes and continue. She pulled back the tissue paper and the blonde grinned. "You like?"
"I like – a lot!"
"I thought you'd say that." She smiled, pulling out one of the light cream coloured Vans. She proceeded to pull them on and lace them before standing up and slipping on her watch, then turning to Brittany. "You ready?"
"More than ever."
"Good. Let's go."
Brittany smiled and took Santana's hand into her own, lacing their fingers together tightly. "Lead the way Miss. Lopez."
Santana nervously knocked on the door and took a step back, Brittany using her free hand to calmingly rub up and down her jacket-clad arm, the other clutching Santana's hand tightly in her own.
"It's gonna be ok San."
"I know, thank you."
She smiled reassuringly at the Latina and they both turned to look at the door when they heard it open.
"Ah, girls! Come in, come in. Bienvenido."
She ushered them in and then pulled Santana into a tight hug before turning to Brittany, holding out her arms. The blonde happily accepted and Santana watched with a smile as her two favourite people finally came together. Eventually Alma pulled away from the blonde and with a big smle on her face.
"Something smells good abuela."
Alma smiled at Santana and wrapped her arm around her shoulders. "I made three big plates of rice and beans. I hope you are hungry Brittany."
"Definitely."
"Ok then, let's go and eat."
She pulled Santana into the dining room and sat her down across from Brittany whilst she sat down at the head of the table.
"Tuck in las niñas. I finished cooking just as you arrived."
Both women happily did so and as soon as they took their first few bites Alma followed. It wasn't until a few minutes later Brittany spoke up.
"Mrs. Lopez, this is really good." She grinned, shovelling another bite into her mouth, the smile on Santana's face at how she cute she was missed by the blonde completely.
Alma chuckled. "I'm glad you think so. This is Santana's favourite."
"It is?"
"Yes." She replied, looking over at her granddaughter. "When she was younger it was all she ate. Apart from Breadstix that is. This girl could not get enough of them!"
"I'm not surprised. She's still addicted to them now."
"Which isn't a surprise to me either. Why do you think she's the legendary Snix?"
"Yeah, yeah, so I like Breadstix. Moving on."
Alma laughed and placed her hand on Brittany's arm. "She's just shy. I swear she doesn't like being the center of attention."
"What? Santana?"
"It's not that I don't like it it's just that it's kind of awkward when your grandmother and girlfriend are talking about you right in front of you."
Alma smiled and lent over, placing a kiss to the side of her head. Brittany couldn't help the shiver that ran down her spine at the words that fell from Santan's lips. She still got goosebumps whenever Santana referred to her as her girlfriend out loud and in front of her grandmother it made it even more surreal. She was shaken out of her thoughts by Alma calling her name.
"Brittany?"
"Yes?"
"Why don't you tell me more about you? I would love to hear about the woman my Santana can't stop talking about."
"She can't stop talking about?"
Santana blushed under her girlfriend's gaze. "Yes. She talks about you all the time."
Brittany smiled over at her. "I'm honoured. What do you wanna know?"
"Anything you want to share."
"Ok, I was born and raised here in Lima and I have a little sister named Abby. I was offered a place at MIT but I turned it down to stay close to my family and I love to dance."
"So you've lived here all your life?"
"Yep. Born and raised."
"And you love to dance?"
"Yeah, in my free time when I'm not working or driving."
"And you were offered a place at MIT?"
"Yeah, supposedly I'm some kind of maths genius. I didn't want to be away from my family though. Plus I'd miss Lima too much."
"Maybe you could teach Santana a thing or two."
"Maybe."
"Abuela...!"
Santana entered her old bedroom to find Brittany walking around investigating her stuff.
"Hey, you ok? I went to the bathroom and abuela said you were up here."
"Yeah, I needed some room to breathe."
"Let me guess, she cornered you once you were alone and started talking?"
"Yeah. How did you-"
"I know my abuela better than anyone. She didn't make you uncomfortable did she?"
"No, she just asked about us."
"Oh."
"Don't worry, it wasn't anything bad. She just wanted to know how we were doing since we got back together."
"She didn't pry did she?"
"No. She just told me she was happy that you had found someone to look after you."
In reality it had been much more than her asking Brittany about how they were doing as a couple. The blonde had used the situation to her advantage to voice some thoughts about things she couldn't talk to Santana about. To say it had turned into something completely unexpected was an understatement.
-10 Minutes Earlier-
"Mrs. Lopez, can I ask you something?"
"Please, call me abuela – or Alma if you prefer."
"Ok, abuela, can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
"It's about Santana."
"Oh, is she ok?"
"She's fine. I just wanted to ask you something that I coulnd't ask her."
"Go ahead, what's on your mind?" She asked, reaching over and taking Brittany's hands into her own, the blonde smiling at the warmth radiating from the older woman.
"Ok, here goes." She took a deep breath before continuing. "She's asked me if I'm ok, especially since she last got shot, but I wanted to ask you something about when she got out of the hospital the first time."
"When the truth came out?"
"Yes."
"Go on."
"Did she suffer?"
"What do you mean?"
"Was she in pain?"
"Yes but I have a feeling this isn't about her physical pain is it?"
"No."
Seeing Brittany bow her head Alma used her free hand to lift the blonde's chin up. "It's ok if you want to know."
"I just can't take knowing that she may have hated me."
"She didn't hate you. In fact it was quite the opposite. Santana's a complicated woman and even though I struggled with her coming out to me I know that you're the only thing that kept her going. She knew that there was a chance that you might not ever love her again but she knew that she had to keep going for you. You're the only reason why she's where she is now Brittany. Yes, she's doing the plan to make it up to the others but she wanted to prove to you that she never meant what happened to you two and your relationship. Call this old woman crazy but she's clearly in love with you."
Brittany smiled. "She did that all for me even when she knew I might say no?"
"Yes. She needed you in her life Brittany, even if it was just as friends. She couldn't take the fact that you would hate her whenever you looked at her."
"I love her too."
"I know, I can see it. You smile whenever you look at her, whether you realise it or not. I sense there's something else, isn't there? What's bothering you?"
"She's putting herself in danger again. This time willingly."
"What crazy thing has she decided to do now?"
"She's racing but it's not just any race."
"What do you mean?"
"She's racing Cassandra."
"And she agreed?"
"Yes. She came to the garage and demanded to race Santana. Without hesitation she agreed."
"And you're worried?"
"Yes. The last time she raced against our crew our friend Finn got killed and then she killed someone else, Jake. She's got something up her sleeve, I know it, and I don't want her pulling something sneaky and Santana ending up getting hurt as a result. Cassandra's got it out for her, especially after she won the other night. She's on a war path."
"And she might get up to her dirty little tricks again behind the wheel and because it's Santana it will be twice as bad?"
"Yes, exactly."
"Don't worry about her Brittany."
"But how can I not? The woman I love is going up against the woman who almost killed her."
"Yes, and if I know my nieta it's that she is a good driver. She was so dedicated to getting back behind the wheel after she was shot I had to force her not to leave the house so that she didn't injured herself further. She has something to prove, she has since the moment she first got back into her car. Now is simply that point where it is finally coming to fruition. That dedication is finally coming to a point where she can prove that Cassandra didn't beat her. She's proved that your relationship with one another is stronger than she thought and now is Santana's time to prove that Cassandra didn't win at all. I will admit that at this news I'm not happy that she's throwing herself into danger but then again my graddaughter is a hard headed Lopez Latina like me so I'm not surprised. All I can say is that if there's anything we can do other than hopelessly trying to get her to change her mind, which she won't, is to support her. She needs you more than ever if she's going to do it. Just like I said, you're the only reason why she's even doing this at all."
"I know, I'm just worried." She sighed, letting her head fall to Alma's shoulder.
"And you have every reason to be querida. Just don't think about it too much and be there for her. If she knows you're worried she won't focus and she'll let Cassandra exploit that. Promise to me that you won't let that happen." She said, her hand coming up to soothingly stroke Brittany's blonde hair.
"I promise."
"Good, now why don't you go upstairs? I'm sure that you are itching to get a look at my granddaughters room."
Brittany laughed. "Of course."
-Present-
"Britt?"
"Huh?"
"You seemed to zone out just then. You ok?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm good."
"Good. You taking a look around?"
"Yeah."
"What do you think?"
"I think I see a nineteen year-old girls bedroom showing off all the things she loves."
"Is that so?" She smirked, wrapping her arms around Brittany's waist from behind and resting her head on her shoulder.
"Yes."
"Admit it, you're being curious."
"Fine, yes, I'm being curious."
"I knew it."
"I have to admit though, I'm not surprised that you have multiple car posters all over the walls."
"You're not?"
"No. I think it's kind of cute actually."
"Cute? Me?"
Brittany laughed, her hand coming up to rest over the arm around her stomach. "Yes." Her eyes flickered around the room and landed on the dock resting upon the top of the dresser on the far wall giving her an idea. "San?"
"Yeah?"
"Can I play you a song?"
Santana frowned but didn't make to move from where she was stood. "Sure."
She let her go and Brittany made her way over to the dock pulling her iPod from her pocket. A few moments later a soft song was flowing through it's speakers, Brittany turning around and making her way back to the Latina. She wrapped her arms aroun her neck just as the lyrics started.
You never hear me singing love songs, wasn't big on poetry
Never cried in the movies, didn't want to feel so weak
I would never talk about it, never let it get too deep
But something in me's changing; guess you did something to me
Santana soon followed her lead and wrapped her arms around her waist, pulling her close and resting their foreheads together.
"You're playing this for a reason aren't you?" She asked, watching as Brittany's eyes closed as they swayed.
"Yes."
Cause for the first time, I get worried when I'm looking in your eyes
That one day, you might leave me, and it keeps me up at night
I guess that means I really love you, cause I'm afraid to make mistakes
If you ever left me, that would be my first heartbreak
Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh
If you ever left me, that would be my first heartbreak
"I wanted you to know how I feel."
"Tell me." She beckoned softly.
Brittany opened her eyes and met Santana's. "I don't want to lose you. Ever. I already did and it nearly killed me."
Maybe I shouldn't be thinking so far ahead
Better just enjoy this moment and be happy for what I get
But you know it's not that easy to get out of my head
So I guess that it's a good thing when you want something so bad
"This is about my race isn't it?" Brittany nodded. "You're afraid of what might happen?"
"Yes. I'm not scared Santana."
"But-"
"I'm terrified." She cut in, looking up to see Santana's eyes a mix of confusion and worry.
"You're terrified?"
Brittany nodded. "You almost died because of her once and now I have you back I don't wanna lose you."
"You won't."
"I know you mean it but I can't keep it in anymore. I need to tell you this out loud."
"I understand."
"You do?"
"Yes. I was waiting for you to come around. I know there's been something under the surface ever since we got back together. I just didn't want to push you, especially when it came to us and what happened."
"Thank you."
"There's no need to thank me, I'm just doing what I'm here for. Is there anything I can say other than what's expected? What can I say other than I'll try to stay safe?"
"I don't know. I just fear that I'll see you leave and not make it to the end of the track. Rachel lost Finn to her in that way, I don't want to lose you the same way when I just found you."
"And you won't. Here, give me your hand." She took it as Brittany lowered it from around her neck and guided it down to her shirt-clad shoulder for the second time that night.
Cause for the first time, I get worried when I'm looking in your eyes
That one day, you might leave me, and it keeps me up at night
I guess that means I really love you, cause I'm afraid to make mistakes
If you ever left me, that would be my first heartbreak
"I'm here, this proves it. I have the physical scars to affirm that I made it. She's not going to give me more and she's not gonna give you any either, physical or mental. I won't let her even get close to you. All I need when I go up against her is you cheering me on as if I can do anything. Nothing else matters to me Brittany, nothing but you. This race isn't only for me, it's for you too. Us."
"You mean that?"
Santana nodded, their foreheads still pressed together. "Yes. You're the only person on this planet I've ever felt this way about. I want to make sure nothing ever hurts you which is why when I get behind that wheel I'm going to do everything in my power to show Cassandra that she's not the queen bitch she thinks she is. She's not winning again."
The look Santana gave her was enough to prove her words, enough to tell her that maybe her racing Cassandra wasn't as bad as she thought it was. All she needed was Santana to tell her so in her own words.
I wanna run, I wanna stay
Hold every piece so it won't break
Wanna let go, wanna hold tight
Afraid that I might suffocate
You with my love
How much is enough?
How much is too safe?
Cause for the first time, I get worried when I'm looking in your eyes
That one day, you might leave me, and it keeps me up at night
I guess that means I really love you, cause I'm afraid to make mistakes
If you ever left me, that would be my first heartbreak
The two softly sang together, the words sinking in deep as Brittany's fear slowly dissipated. She felt her eyes tear up and Santana wipe away a stray with her thumb as she placed a kiss to her forehead.
"I've never loved someone as much as I love you in my entire life. I love you so much Santana and it terrifies me."
"You wanna know something?"
"Yeah?"
"It terrifies me too but the thing is we're gonna do this together. We're gonna be side by side every step of the way. I couldn't ask for a better woman to call my girlfriend."
"Me either."
"I love you Brittany S. Pierce."
"I love you too Santana Lopez."
Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh
If you ever left me, that would be my first heartbreak
Songs used: (Santana's Ringtone) Alicia Keys – 'Rock Wit U' / Tori Kelly – 'First Heartbreak'
P.S: For anybody who's curious to know what Santana and Brittany's shoes were let me know over on my Tumblr (shinodafan94) wtih an ask and I will get back to you ASAP to show you!
TBC