A/N: Hey all! I'm sorry this took so long, real life got in the way and this chapter wasn't making things any easier. It's a bit shorter than usual but I'll try to make up for it next chapter! Well, enough of me and my useless rambling, enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, I do not own Adele's music and I do not own Mr Hudson's music.
Mr. Schuester walked into the choir room on Thursday afternoon and set his bag down on an empty seat near the door. He was reading the latest staff memo and didn't immediately realize that the choir room was already full.
All of New Directions was sitting in their seats, quietly waiting for their director's arrival.
Mr. Schuester had an idea of why everyone looked so tense and figured that now was the best time to address the issue.
"Alright guys, so I know a few of you have been dealing with some things in your relationships during the week and I think I know why."
A snort from the back of the classroom let Mr. Schuester know that this wasn't such a major accomplishment.
"When we decided to take on this assignment, it was to get you guys mentally and emotionally in-tune. I'm glad that it's working but I hate to see it have such an affect on your personal lives." He took a moment to study the faces of the students who have already completed their assignments.
Finn looked like he hadn't slept in days, Rachel's eyes were red, puffy and raw-looking, Artie kept shooting backward glances at Brittany while Santana glared daggers at him. Almost half the glee club was an emotional wreck and Mr. Schuester couldn't help but to feel responsible for their misery. He was the one who pushed the assignment onto them. Tina's hand interrupted Mr. Schuester's thoughts.
"Yes, Tina?"
"So does this mean that the assignment is scrapped? I mean, look at us? Well, not us, per say. Mike and I are fine. But seriously, there are more than a few in here who can't say the same."
At the mention of foregoing the rest of the assignment, a few eyebrows raised hopefully.
"You're right, Tina," their hopes rose a little higher. "But we can't just give up the assignment," thus their hopes were crushed. "It would be unfair to your classmates who have already performed. Besides, this kind of experience, though initially painful, may serve to bring us closer together in the long run."
"The keyword there being 'may'," came Santana's quip from the back row. "Look, we all have to sing whether we like it or not. Now, are we done with this pointless discussion? I'd like to get this out of the way as soon as possible."
"Ah, yes! Santana, we ran out of time for you yesterday so you can start us off." Mr. Schuester took his usual seat to the side as Santana approached the front of the room."
"You all know who this is for."
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am home again
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am whole again
Santana closed her eyes as she sang. Not because she was trying to imitate Rachel's usual singing expressions, but because she wasn't in the mood to deal with the stares of her classmates. It was bad enough that she had to sing about her feelings. She wasn't about to watch people judge her for it.
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am young again
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am fun again
Santana remembered the first time that she and Brittany met. It was the first day of Cheerios practice and she had already intimidated all of the other girls into submission. She was arguing with Quinn about who should be the head Cheerio when Brittany came wandering over to them, as clueless as ever.
Santana had intended on brushing the other girl off before and continuing to yell at Quinn until Brittany offered her a Starburst.
"Why are you giving me candy?" Santana asked in an annoyed tone. She was extremely close to punching Quinn and wasn't in the mood for interruptions.
"Because you seem like you like them," Brittany responded as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Santana lifted an eyebrow and was on the verge of chewing Brittany out for making assumptions about her. It didn't matter that she was right; Starburst was actually her favorite candy. Who did she think she was, anyway?
But seeing Brittany hold out the package expectantly, waiting for Santana to take one of the candies, prevented Santana from being any more of a bitch. Who was she to refuse free candy?
However far away, I will always love you
However long I stay, I will always love you
Whatever words I say, I will always love you
I will always love you
From then on, Brittany had firmly attached herself to Santana's side. Santana wasn't sure why she allowed it since she never let anyone get close to her, ever. But against her better judgement, and to her complete surprise, she found herself enjoying Brittany's company more than she cared to admit.
There was something about Brittany's unique brand of cluelessness that brought a smile to Santana's face at the worst of times. Santana couldn't quite explain how or why she'd become so attached to the blonde girl and it wasn't something she dared to dwell on.
From watching Quinn's relationships build and collapse repeatedly, Santana gathered that thinking about things too much just lead to disaster. Why question a good thing?
Whenever I'm alone
With you
You make me feel like I am free again
Whenever I'm alone with you
You make me feel like I am clean again
Unfortunately, disaster barged into her life in the form of Brittany's relationship with Artie. She'd never cared much for the wheelchair-bound boy but she'd all but put him in a body cast once he started monopolizing Brittany's time. When Santana was with Brittany, she could forget how alone she usually felt. Throughout her life, Santana spent so much time building emotional walls around herself only to have them knocked carelessly to the ground with the offering of a Starburst.
How could she let someone so important just turn around and leave her for someone who couldn't even walk? So, naturally, instead of being happy for her best friend's relationship, Santana pushed Brittany away in an effort to hide her own pain. It was a rough time for Santana but she wasn't about to suddenly declare her love for Brittany in the middle of the cafeteria.
'I suppose I should thank Mr. Schue. This assignment may just help me win Brit over for keeps this time,' Santana thought as she continued to sing.
However far away, I will always love you
However long I stay, I will always love you
Whatever words I say, I will always love you
I will always love you
'I know I'm not the greatest with words but hopefully she'll get the message. Otherwise I'm just going to have to slash Mr. Schue's tires for putting me in this position.' Santana opened her eyes and ignored the bewildered and slightly sympathetic looks on her classmates' faces.
Santana would have snorted had she not been singing. She didn't need their sympathy. She wasn't doing this for them to console her with empty words and pitying looks when she was done. The only person that mattered to Santana was sitting in the back row of the choir room, staring back at her.
Brittany unconsciously fiddled with the drawstring of her hoodie as she sat, smiling warmly at Santana.
However far away, I will always love you
However long I stay, I will always love you
Whatever words I say, I will always love you
I will always love you.
Santana held Brittany's gaze as she drew out the last note. At that moment, she wasn't aware of anything but Brittany's smile and the love she held in her eyes.
Applause broke Santana from her mild daze and she felt the heat rushing to her cheeks as she quickly made her way back to her seat.
"Alright, Santana that was excellent!" Mr. Schuester was making his way back to the front of the classroom while still clapping even though everyone else had already stopped.
"Yes, Santana, that was very brave of you," Rachel turned around to face Santana as she spoke. "We all know how much you abhor even the slightest mention of anything deeper than feelings of blatant lust but for you to put that all aside and lay your heart out for all of us to see takes true strength. If you keep that up, I might have to add you to my embarrassingly short list of those I consider serious competition."
Santana rolled her eyes but before she could silence Rachel with a scathing reply, Brittany spoke.
"I think it was really sweet." Brittany looked over at Santana as she took her hand. "I know that was really hard for you and I want you to know that I love you too."
Santana had no time to think as Brittany leaned over and kissed her. It wasn't anything like heated makeout sessions that they usually shared on each other's beds. It was short, sweet and full of the love that Santana never thought she'd receive.
Brittany pulled back and Santana smiled slightly at her.
"You don't know how happy I am to hear you say that," she said quietly.
"Yeah, while all this mushy girl-love is kind of hot to see, can we save it for the dirty magazines under my bed?" Puck's voice pulled Santana back to reality and she, much to her chagrin, blushed.
"Oh, shut up, Puck. You're just jealous that you're not getting any action from this girl-love."
Before Puck could reply with another lewd comment, Mr. Schuester cleared his throat.
"Okay then," he said loudly. "Who's up next?"
Santana smirked as Puck looked slightly crestfallen at being denied a chance to crack a dirty joke. Her smirk faltered a bit as she caught Artie's eye for a moment.
He wasn't regarding her with anything more than a heartbreaking sadness. Santana almost felt bad for him, but fell just short. After all, she and Brittany were a much better fit for each other.
'Make her happy.'
Santana wasn't sure if she'd seen that correctly, but she was fairly certain that those were the words that Artie mouthed to her before turning around and keeping his gaze firmly fixed on Mr. Schuester.
'Wheels has some nerve,' she thought. Santana looked over at Brittany and squeezed her hand slightly. The smile she got in return was more than enough to ensure that she would do everything in her power to keep it there.
A/N: So...what did you think? In this chapter, I used Adele's "Lovesong." For whatever reason, it took me forever to write this because I had trouble thinking of how to introduce a flashback of Santana and Brittany beginning their friendship. I think it turned out okay. If you feel the same (or not), don't hesitate to leave a review!