Accidentally In Love
3
March 21, 2012
While some may have considered it odd for someone to spend time looking for used vinyl records on a Monday morning in the middle of their Spring Break, well, it wouldn't have been the first time Rachel Berry had been called odd. That week, even. So, as things would have it, she'd made a rather familiar pilgrimage to Used Kids Records. It was the famed 'Vinyl Monday', where vinyl sales got a 20% discount all around. She'd even brought a small cartful of vintage records she'd found at estate sales, to sate the employees - Van Morrison, Joe Cocker, Talking Heads, Brinsley Schwarz and the Buzzcocks made up a large portion of her bounty, which she was sure to get a pretty penny for.
"Hey," an older, shaggy headed man called from his perch on the counter, by the register.
"Hello, Mike! Is Laelia in today?" Rachel beamed, wheeling her little record collection behind her.
He nodded his head towards the corner, where the store had a little stage for performances sometimes, The man waved a bit, calling Laelia over, since Rachel had asked, "Yeah, she's just... hey, you brought stuff!"
A pale, redheaded woman soon bounded over and threw an arm over Rachel's shoulders. "Hi, Rach. You're here pretty early. Don't you have school? You're still in high school, right?"
"Oh no! I mean, yes." Rachel smiled, and shook her head. "What I mean to say is that, yes, I'm still in high school, but it's Spring Break so I've chosen to stop by for the day while I have other business to attend to in the city."
"Well, you're just in time, we've got a little jam session going on. C'mon, Santana brought her new guitar. She's really good, you'll like her."
Santana? Rachel's brows knit together in thought, but no, it was too coincidental. Her Santana was popular, had money, and was supposed to be partying in places like Cancun, or Hawaii, or the Florida Keys, soaking up the sunshine and using an illegal ID to purchase alcoholic beverages. Not sitting around in a record store on a Monday morning, during her Spring Break.
Yet, as she rounded one of the record bins, she was surprisingly unsurprised to see Santana Lopez sitting on an old folding lawn chair, propping her feet atop a squared, black Marshall amplifier. Rachel slowed as her sometime arch-nemesis strummed a stripped down rendition of familiar Cat Power tune, trying to keep herself out of Santana's line direct view and losing herself in the few college student who'd already managed to crowd around. Instead, she took a few steps aside as Santana started singing, wanting to hear how the girl sounded beyond the constraints of the glee club.
Love and communication, you were here for me
At this very moment cuz I found you on the phone
You called me
And you were not hunting me
Learning more and more about less and less...
And less
On the edge of your seat in some dark movie
Can you memorize the scenes
They'll be different next week
Can you tell me can you tell
If there is something better
Cuz you know there always is...
There always is
Everyone in the store had silenced as the first word left Santana's lips, and Rachel had been quite impressed. She'd never been aware that Santana even played the guitar, but her skills were really quite passable. Her voice though - Rachel smiled to herself - at the lower volume, her voice lost the somewhat nasal tone she often portrayed, compared to some, anyway. Santana had yet to see Rachel. She'd kept her eyes down to concentrate on her guitar playing, even as a lock of hair fell against her cheek, the girl did nothing to get it to move.
Soon, Rachel's eyes were attracted to the latina's hands, watching the black painter fingernails flying over the strings. Instead of watching the reactions of the shop's handful of guests, her eyes drifted only from Santana's face, then to her hands, and to her face again.
Drawn to the party like a spider filling up your guts
Don't hate the night with what you shouldn't have
Come along for the ride you just know you should
You just know you should
I hated to see you sad when I left
There's just no good in that but the good part was
That I came at all cause I don't venture out
Into the lives of the new
I want you to come along for the ride
How long will you stay for your whole life
You just know you should
Love and communication you were here for me
At this very moment cause I found you on the phone
You called me
And you were not hunting me
Santana licked her lips as she finished and took a moment to readjust her hair, pulling a set of gold aviators from her jacket to pin it into place. She toed off the amplifier and grinned as a couple of guys, and one girl, stepped closer to fawn over her.
"Damn, girl. That was-"
"Amazing." "Cool."
Sexy. Sexy was the word that immediately came to Rachel's mind when she thought about Santana's impromptu performance. She took a step closer, and Santana eyes immediately found hers, filled with a look she'd never experienced from the other brunette before. If you'd ask her to be honest... well, never you mind.
Throughout the song, Santana had been aware of a familiar set of slim, tanned legs along the periphery of her vision. They'd been there, distracting her since the first few chords she'd played. Really, they'd been distracting her for the past few years - first in tiny little skirts, gym shorts, and now vintage-style dresses.
She licked her lips, finishing the song, and busied herself making chitchat with some of the college kids until Rachel chose to come forward. It wasn't long until a squeak from the Mary Jane's caught her attention.
"Hey Berry, enjoying yourself?" Santana grinned at her, eyes momentarily raking up and down the girl's body. She took in her appearance: dark blue, white polka dot knee-length dress, black Mary Jane shoes and a white cardigan. Her hair fell in loose waves around her face. It was a long way from short skirts, knee high socks, and animal sweaters. Or argyle. Rachel really was very pretty, no matter what Santana and Quinn and the rest of the Cheerios said about Rachel to put her down in school.
Rachel gently suckled her lower lip between her teeth and nodded. The way Santana was looking at her... it was friendly. Wanting, almost. She stepped closer to the cheerleader, legs inches from one another as the others started drifting away. "I wasn't aware that you played."
"Not well, but Puck tried his best to teach me. I'm starting to think I'm a lost cause."
"Oh, no! You play very well for a beginner. And I should know, I have perfect pitch, so I know you at least know how keep your guitar in tune, and your playing is perfectly adequate, though it's clear you're not as practiced as Puck or Sam."
"Thanks. I guess." Santana pulled her feet off the amp, and motioned for Rachel to sit by her. When she hesitated, Santana used her feet to nudge her over, until almost being forced to take a seat on top of the amplifier. "So. You come in to jam with us, or just shopping for some records?"
"Just some shopping. Actually, I've only come in to spend waste a little time before heading home. I'm having some more done on my car, you see."
Santana scratched her head, "Your Prius?"
"Um. No. I have a Camaro. Why does everyone always think I have a Prius?"
Santana's face scrunched up in thought, "Well, you know. You're vegan, for one. And you're totally eco-conscious. Muscle cars don't really fit with that image."
"No, I don't suppose it does. But," Rachel leaned forward, placing a hand on Santana's knee. "I thought you knew I had a Camaro? We used it when filming my Run Joey Run video. Actually, this is my second. My daddies bought my first car as a sweet sixteen, and then traded it in for my new one as an early graduation present."
"You're on your second Camaro in like, 3 years?"
"Yes, I'm so excited! It's their newest model - the ZL1. It's why I'm in Columbus, actually, instead of being drug along that family camping trip by Finn, or accompanying my fathers on their yearly Spring Break cruise in the Bahamas. I'm getting the sound system replaced. While adequate for a so-called premium OEM audio system, the sound quality is simply unacceptable to my ears for prolonged periods of time."
"Hmm. Sounds interesting."
"Oh, it is! There's this shop, Columbus Car Audio, that even carries the higher quality speaker components I require truly create an enjoyable listening experience. That's where I dropped my car off before coming here."
Santana smirked, tracing her fingertips over Rachel's hand, down her fingers. "So, is this a one day rush job, or what?
"Of course not. It's somewhat of a semi-custom installation. The owner of CCA insinuated to me that another customer had already come up with plans for his own instillation in - get this, a 2012 Camaro Zl1 just like mine - even using the same parts I desired for myself. So, it was a simple task of doubling the parts order and any custom installation bracketing. Price was no object."
"Huh. Well, it's not too far, how about we check this place out?"
"Oh, I'd be happy to, Santana." Wait, it's not too far?
"Mikey, I'm gonna get outta here. Don't let anyone take my stuff, or it's your nuts."
Santana grabbed Rachel by the wrist, tugging her out of the store. It was still oddly chilly for being so sunny, so she partially zipped up her sheepskin bomber jacket and pulled her classic Randolph aviators over her eyes. Before moving again, she offered Rachel her arm, which she immediately took, and the pair took off down the street. Of course, they kept their eyes open for any vintage clothing stores along the way.
And even out of the way.
At 2:48pm, Santana Lopez and Rachel Berry walked into the Columbus Car Audio shop, arm in arm, weighed down by no less than seven bags of clothing acquired from the vintage stores across town.
"Oh, Santana Your car is ready," A gentleman swung out from behind the counted, keys jingling in his hand. "Miss Berry, everything's looking right on schedule, so your car should be ready for pick up Saturday afternoon."
"Thanks, Tony!" She snatched her keys from the installer, and headed back out to the parking lot, to inspect Mr. Anthony Riebe's handiwork.
And it was beautiful. It was virtually impossible to tell that the work wasn't OEM, finish. To be truthful, the interior work had a better polish than when the car had come out of the plant.
"Um, Santana..."
She popped open the trunk, carefully checking the plexiglass and MDF enclosure around her subwoofers for any ugly, or misshapen lines, but found none. Even all the sound dampening material had been cleverly hidden out of the way, but she was certain of the work. Tony hadn't earned the reputation as one of the best installers in the business for nothing. That's why both girls had brought their cars in to be serviced at this shop.
"Santana?"
"Hmm?" she paid little mind to Rachel, tapping her knuckles against the panelling inside her car to check for any rattling, or misfit of the Dynamat material used for soundproofing.
"This is a ZL1 Camaro," Rachel gestured towards the vehicle, the dark crystal red tint glittering in the mid day sun.
"Mmhmm."
"I have a ZL1 Camaro." Again, Rachel gestured wildly, but towards the dark imperial blue vehicle in the workshop.
"Yeah, you told me."
"Okay, and - and these are all Hertz components. The MLK 3 on the doors, the custom rear deck installation, the Alpine sat nav touchscreen, the subwoofers mounted behind the rear seats... I'm getting an exact copy of your car."
"Well, it's like all those losers say: imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But what the hell are you doing spending $6,500 upgrading the stereo system in your car?"
Rachel huffed, nearly kicking one of the bags she'd set on the ground. "I could ask you the same thing! And it's like I said, I have perfect pitch and, from my years of vocal training, an incredibly discerning ear. Only the best will do, and everything you'd picked out fit my criteria perfectly."
"A girl after my own heart, huh?" Rachel folded her arms across her chest and turned away from the girl, taking a little diva drama moment for herself. Santana chuckled for a moment, then gently gripped Rachel's chin between her thumb and forefinger as she turned the girls face back to her. "No, really. Look at me. It's cute."
"It is?" A smile crept over Rachel's lips as Santana nodded. The smile grew bigger as she noticed Santana's eyes flick towards her lips, and up again. Her cheeks were so flush right now, she could tell. She was losing herself in Santana's eyes, distracted from what the girl was saying. "What - what were you saying?"
"I was saying that I've got to get home. After picking up my stuff from Used Kids."
"Oh! Oh, well, have a safe drive home, then. I honestly do have to thank you for a wonderful afternoon. Even though it's hard to imagine spending 500 dollars on vintage clothing-"
"I know, right? Oh, hey. This is for you."
Rachel's eyes lit up as Santana reached into her jacket pocket and produced a gold toggle bracelet, with a small gold star charm hanging from it. It was branded Juicy Couture, so it was likely just their gold plated brass. Still, she was touched. "I can't take this, Santana!"
"It wasn't expensive. And it's not like this is the first time I've given you jewelry." Rachel blushed hard as her mind flitted back to a small plastic necklace hanging on her nightstand at home. "Gold stars are kind of your thing, right?"
She nodded, "You've been paying attention."
Santana grinned, starting to toss her bags into the trunk of her car. Before she shut it, however, a thought came to her mind. "Rachel... If they've got your car, how are you getting back to Lima?"
"I - I was going to take the bus."
"That'll take like, 4 hours! You'll be lucky to get home by eight. What the hell are you thinking?"
"Well," she drew out her answer. "I was supposed to leave around noon. But I got... distracted."
"Oh."
"Yeah. It was a fun distraction." She turned her eyes towards the ground, trying to force away the apprehensive look in her eyes, but found a pair of fingers under her jaw, forcing her to look at the girl standing in front of her.
"Rachel." The girl tried turning away again, but easily complied as the movement of Santana's fingers brought her back. "Do you want to come home with me?"
"Desperately."
Santana grinned. There must be a double meaning in this conversation somewhere.
"I mean, uh, I would appreciate a ride home, Santana. Thank you for the offer." Rachel's cheeks were so red. And warm, Santana thought as her fingers pressed to the girl's cheeks, pushing her towards the car.
"Get in then."
Just as soon as she'd buckled her seatbelt, Rachel turned with a grin on her face. "You know, you have an awfully nice car for someone that lives in Lima Heights."
"Shut it." Santana immediately knew where the conversation was headed. After all, she'd had a similar one with Brittany in 7th grade, and Quinn just before freshman year started.
"Really, the total cost of this car can almost buy a little starter home back in Lima."
"Damn it Rachel, do you want me to leave you here?"
"No ma'am."
Santana sighed, jamming her foot down on the accelerator, as they sped away from the car audio shop. "My dad's a doctor. My mom's a lawyer. Lima Heights Adjacent is a 5 bed, 3 1/2 bath house on 5 acres by the Shawnee Country Club. I have a pool; a three car garage; an orchard with peach, apple and fig trees; a totally pimped out kitchen; we even have solar panels on the roof. Only you, Quinn and Brittany know that about me."
"Oh. You've never thought to just throw a party? I wouldn't have kept a secret like that from my friends during high school. If I'd have many friends, I mean."
"Hell to the no. Have you seen how those slobs at school treat house parties? I guess you haven't. Trust me, it sucks. Besides, I have a rep to maintain."
Rachel nodded. "Well, thank you for confiding in me."
The drive 'home' mainly consisted of blasting Amy Winehouse, Joni Mitchell and Cat Power at an unreasonable volume to test out the new sound system. For the price they were both paying, it was as amazing as it should have been. Though, the pair did find time to converse about their post-high school plans. It included talks of life without Finn, Brittany's cheerleading scholarship offer from the University of Kentucky, Arizona State, and the University of Hawaii; and the scholarship to the University of Louisville that had been offered to Santana. Rachel had been confused to hear Santana was contemplating turning it down. Full athletic scholarships were exceedingly rare in the world, but she could understand Santana's point of view. While maintaining a decent GPA to remain academically eligible was one thing, trying to excel at your subjects while under a rigorous cheerleading program was an entirely different matter.
Santana could barely withstand the squealing as she revealed her acceptance to Columbia, Barnard and NYU, trying to ignore the screams of "You're going to New York!" that pierced her eardrums. She had to calm the girl by mentioning her acceptance to both Claremont McKenna and Scripps Women's College in California, just in case she decided on moving to the left coast.
"Relax, Berry. I didn't say I was going, just that I got accepted." She'd had to fend off the next 15 minutes fending off Rachel's ideas of applying to either Tisch School of the Arts, or the Steinhardt School of Culture. While she loved singing and performing, Santana hadn't envisioned the arts being a staple in her life. She wanted to pursue a medical or law degree, like each of her parents. But trying to take extra classes to qualify for med school or law school may just drive her to kill.
The rest of the drive was surprisingly short, as the girls discussed their prospects in New York, and soon found themselves parked in front of Rachel's driveway. The car idled, as Santana shut the music off.
"I guess this is you."
"I guess so. Thank you for driving me home."
Santana nodded slowly, hand remaining on the shifter. She quickly found it covered by Rachel own, very un-manly, hands. The cheerleader stilled as Rachel leaned forward, pressing her lips against her cheek. It felt good. Even better, actually, as she felt Rachel's arms wrap around her neck. Rachel lingered a little, warm breath cascading over Santana's smooth, tanned cheeks.
"This was the best day," Rachel whispered, lips brushing across Santana's skin as she spoke.
That was fucking sexy, was all Santana could think as Rachel pulled away, but still made no move towards the door. She blatantly eyed the curve of Rachel's lips - fuck, they were smooth - then took stock of Rachel's facial expression. She'd been momentarily caught in the girls eyes, all dark and liquidy, before shooting her gaze to Rachel's mouth once again.
Shit. Those are 'Fuck me!' eyes. Santana knew that look well, she'd inspired it in Brittany often enough, as Puck, and even Quinn, on more than one occasion. In cases like this, only two sensible options presented themselves: Either A) Tear that little dress over Rachel's head and defile her in the back seat of her car, while her fathers were preparing dinner inside, or B) Send her packing.
She chose the option that didn't involve cheating on her girlfriend.
"Guess you should get inside. Your fathers have probably been expecting you home for a while."
Rachel tore her eyes from Santana's chest. "Right. We're having pot pies tonight. Wouldn't want it to get cold."
"No, hot is, uh... hot's definitely the way to go."
Rachel traced her fingers along the length of Santana's arm, her fingernails gently pricking at the skin, before slipping through the car door. "I guess I'll be seeing you."
Santana watched as Rachel practically strutted up to her own door, partially to make sure she got in safe, but mostly to check out the girl's ass, and how she'd reaped the benefits of that daily morning workout.
Soon, the front door shut, but not before Rachel snuck a small wave goodbye, which Santana reciprocated. She suspiciously turned her eyes back towards the trunk, Rachel's shopping bags obviously forgotten. Santana let out a snort, and quickly sped away from the Berry household.
"Sooner than you think."
A/N: The Cat Power song mentioned above is Love & Communication. The version I'm talking about is (youtu . be / 4YP_g4TajBk). The guitar used in it is handmade by Reuben Cox for Chan Marshall, which is also what I'm picturing Santana playing. Gorgeous.
And, really, I didn't mean for this thing to be so long. I dunno what happened, but that's just how long it took to tell the chapter I had in mind. Thanks for reading!