A/N: So I went ahead and go myself a tumblr for this story. Check it out: parispal23[.]tumblr . Put in a little surprise there about this story. ;)
Brittany was enjoying her chat with Jerry when she looked up and saw Officer Lopez across the room. At lease she thought it was Officer Lopez. Her hair was down, revealing long, straight hair. She had on jeans and a form fitting top.
"The restaurant," Brittany said softly, as she admired Officer Lopez.
"Excuse me?" Jerry said.
"Sorry," Brittany said, shaking her head, "Nothing."
Jerry turned around, no doubt seeing Brittany's attention had been distracted, "Oh hey, Santana's here."
"You know her?" Brittany asked, surprised, her heart suddenly beating a lot faster than it should.
"Sure," Jerry said, "We were partnered up for about a week a while ago while she was changing partners. She's picky."
"I believe it," Brittany said.
Across the room, Santana began to slowly walk to Jerry and Officer Pierce.
Now what is she doing at headquarters, Santana wondered, is this her station?
Pierce had an almost deer caught in the headlights look that amused Santana.
"Good afternoon," Santana said with her most charming smile, once she reached the pair.
"Santana!" Jerry said, standing up to give Santana a hug, "What's up lady? Haven't' seen you in ages."
"I'm doing great," Santana said, pulling back from the hug, "You know the busy life of a patrol officer. Or did you forget?"
"That's nothing compared to a detective's schedule," Jerry said, laughing slightly.
Brittany watched the exchange between friends. She was so glad to finally find out why Officer Lopez had looked so familiar when she had first seen her because, truth be told, it had been driving her crazy. The more she tried to forget about Officer Lopez, the more she'd randomly pop up in Brittany's thoughts. The restaurant, Brittany thought, of course, now that that's settled, I can forget about her.
"Oh!" Jerry said to Santana, "Have you met Brittany S. Pierce? She's finishing up her first week on the force."
Santana looked past Jerry and saw the rookie officer stand up, "Yes, actually," she said with a smile, "We've met."
"Yeah," Brittany said.
Santana kept her eyes on Officer Pierce noticing that now that she wasn't pale and about to throw up, she had a light tan that made her eyes look impossibly blue. Probably a beach bum on her days off, Santana thought.
An air of tension seemed to suddenly appear.
"Uh, OK," Jerry said clearing his throat, "Great. Brittany and I were just discussing the robberies on the West side."
"Is that right," Santana said, looking at Brittany, thinking about the press leak.
"Jerry...," Brittany began, "Detective Fox, was telling me that he's going to help out in the case."
Santana made a mental note about Officer Pierce calling Detective Fox by his first name, "That's great," was all Santana said.
Brittany felt like she was being scrutinized. She wondered how it was possible for this woman to make her feel like she was being seen through a microscope.
Jerry's cell phone rang, "Excuse me officers, gotta take this. I'll be back," Jerry said as he left to find an empty office to take his call.
Brittany and Santana were left alone.
Where the fuck is my partner, Brittany thought. She hated the idea of being alone with this woman.
Santana was sure she could almost see the awkward tension that between them. She hated it. Santana was never one to fell awkward about anything.
"So," Santana began, trying to east things, "How's the job so far?"
"Great," Brittany said, quickly.
"Good," Santana answered, "Uh, is this your home station?"
"Uh, no," Brittany said, "I'm at West LA, actually. What about you? Is this your home base?"
"No," Santana said, letting out a laugh, "I'm actually also at West LA too."
"You're kidding," Brittany said, not hiding her surprise.
"I guess that makes us co-workers," Santana said, not sounding too happy about the news.
The conversation came to a stall. Brittany wasn't sure what it was about Officer Lopez that made her feel so uncomfortable and self-conscious. Whatever it was, she hated it.
For the first time in a long time, Santana didn't know what to say. Usually, conversation came easily to her. Sam had always joked that she could make a friend in the desert. It was this skill that helped make her a good cop. She was able to talk to people, relate to them. Except now.
"In case you were wondering," Brittany finally said, "I haven't talked to any reporters since the last time you saw me."
Santana was caught a bit off-guard because she had indeed intended to ask Pierce that question, "I wasn't going to ask."
"Sure you weren't," Brittany said, not believing her.
"But now that you bring it up," Santana said, narrowing her eyes a bit, "Have you been reading Sugar's articles?"
"Yes, I have," Brittany said, coldly, "She's good."
"There's a lot of information in there that was new to me," Santana said, looking Brittany straight in the eye.
"Well then, maybe you need to review the case," Brittany said, standing her ground, "Get updated."
"I guess I should," Santana said, slowly, not sure if she should be angry or amused at this officer's comeback.
"Day off?" Brittany asked, "I'm guessing...since you're dressed in civilian clothes."
"Way to crack the case, Nancy Drew," Santana said, sarcastically, "You should skip straight to detective."
Brittany bit her lip to keep from lashing out, "Is this what you do on your day off? Hang out at headquarters and annoy officers on duty?"
"Is that what I'm doing?" Santana taunted, "Am I annoying you?"
"Of course not," Brittany said, doing her best to keep the frustrations she was feeling show in her voice. She failed.
"I'm meeting my best friend for lunch," Santana said, teetering between being pissed and annoyed, "What are you doing here? It's way out of our area? Did you come down here to visit Detective Fox? Excuse me, Jerry, I mean."
Brittany took a deep breath. Keep it together Pierce, she told herself. This woman might be a pain in the ass, but she was still had seniority over you.
"I'm here with my partner," Brittany said, calmly, "He's finishing up a case."
"Oh right, Jim Wilder."
"That's right," Brittany said, "You know him?"
"I've seen him around a couple of times," Santana said, "But the other officers talk about what a great officer he is."
"He is great," Brittany added.
"I haven't seen you at the station at all, though," Santana said, curiously.
"I've only been there less than a week. But I guess we just have different hours," Brittany said, happily.
"I guess," Santana said.
Where the fuck is Sam, Santana wondered.
Where the fuck is Jim, Brittany wondered again.
The few officers that were in the squad room, suddenly erupted in hushed talk. Brittany looked over and saw what the commotion was all about.
Santana turned to see what was going on, and saw that Mayor Fabray had made an appearance. She was walking with a man and a woman.
"Brittany?" the mayor called out.
Santana didn't hide her surprise. This rookie was proving to be on a first name biases with many in the department.
"Mayor Fabray," Brittany said as the mayor and her assistants reached them.
"How many times have I told you to call me Judy," the mayor said, giving Brittany a quick hug.
"Not while I'm in uniform," Brittany said, stepping back.
"You and your rules," Judy teased.
Santana watched the exchange with growing fascination. She had expected the Mayor to be a complete bitch, but watching her interact with Brittany proved the opposite.
"How are you?' Brittany asked.
"Horrible. Having to deal with this damn robbery mess," Judy said. She turned to Santana, "Hello, you look familiar...wait, yes.. you're Sam's friend."
"I am," Santana said. Even though her friend was the deputy mayor, Santana had never met the mayor.
"He has your picture on his desk. A bunch of you at some lake," Judy said.
"Wait," Brittany said, turning to Santana, "Your best friend is Sam Evans?"
"That's right," Santana said, proudly.
Brittany tried not to roll her eyes. She turned her attention to the mayor's assistants, "Hi Rachel, Artie."
"Hello Brittany," Rachel said, "I wanted to thank you for the birthday card you sent."
"No problem," Brittany said with a smile, "I hope you had a good one. Sorry I couldn't make it to your party. This job is keeping me pretty busy."
Rachel Berry was an odd one. She had been the mayor's assistant ever since Judy had been elected. Rachel could be the nicest person one day and a bit crazy the next. At one point, Brittany had thought she suffered from some sort of disorder, but it turns out, Rachel was just...Rachel.
"Mayor, I'm sorry," Artie interrupted, "You should get to the meeting."
"Yes, of course," Judy said, "Nice to meet you Santana, Brittany nice to see you again. You need to come to the house soon, it has been ages. Maybe we'll set up a dinner for everyone."
"That sounds nice," Brittany said with at smile.
"Come on," Judy said to her assistants, "Let's see what excuses the chief has for me."
"Let's hang out soon Rach," Brittany called out after Rachel.
"Of course. I'll call you," Rachel said as she followed Artie and the mayor into the chief of police's office.
Once Judy and her team were gone, Santana turned to Officer Pierce, "You're full of surprises."
"What do you mean?" Brittany asked. Why does this woman annoy me so much, Brittany wondered.
"Well, the mayor seems to love you," Santana said, with a bit of a smirk, "You're friends with her assistant. Must be nice having friends in high places."
"Yes, Rachel and I are friends," Brittany said, not hiding her annoyance, "But not Judy...um..Mayor Fabray. I'm close with her daughter, she..."
"Quinn Fabray?" Santana interrupted.
"That's right," Brittany said.
Suddenly, Santana knew whey this officer looked so familiar, "Oh..," she said as she took a seat behind Jerry's desk, "You were at the Mexican restaurant the other day. With Officer Fabray."
"And so were you," Brittany said, also sitting down, "I didn't recognize you at the crime scene...all that hair was in a bun."
"Doesn't bode well for your detective skills," Santana said, "Maybe you aren't Nancy Drew after all."
"Well you didn't recognize me either, so I guess your observation skills suck too," Brittany said.
"True," Santana said, trying to suppress a small smile. Score for the rookie, Santana thought.
Behind her, Brittany heard Jim's voice talking to another officer and turned around. Jim nodded and Brittany knew that they were ready to go.
"Well," Brittany said, standing up, "It's been...interesting talking to you."
"Same," Santana said, remaining where she was, "I guess I'll see you around the station."
"Or not," Brittany said, "Different schedules and all."
"Or not," Santana repeated.
Jim approached Brittany and stopped when he saw Santana, "Hi, sorry to interrupt."
"No problem," Brittany said, "Ready to go?
"Sure," Jim said. He looked down at Santana an extended his hand, "Hi, Jim Wilder. We haven't officially met, but I've seen you around."
"Santana Lopez," Santana said, shaking his hand, "Officer Pierce and I were just talking about how odd it is we work in the same station but haven't crossed paths ."
"It is pretty surprising," Jim said, "I have heard Lieutenant Schuester say what a great cop you are. "
"He speaks the truth," Santana said smugly.
Oh brother, Brittany thought.
"I'm sure he does," Jim said, smiling, "I hope to work with you soon then."
"Same here," Santana said.
"We should go," Brittany said. She just wanted to get away from this woman.
"Nice to officially meet you Santana," Jim said.
"See you around," Santana said, almost taunting.
Brittany said nothing and began to walk with Jim towards the elevator.
Santana watched pair leave and was glad to not have to talk to Officer Pierce anymore. Not only might she be a possible press leak but Santana found the young officer got under her skin. She needed to talk to Sugar to find out who was giving her information.
"Hey," Jerry said, coming back, "Where's Brittany?"
"She and her partner left," Santana said.
"Ah OK," Jerry said sounding a bit disappointed.
Santana's curiosity got the better of her, "So, how do you know Officer Pierce?"
"From the academy," Jerry said, "I taught a few classes."
"Little student, teacher thing going on?" Santana teased.
"No, not all," Jerry said, with a chuckle, "Purely professional."
Oddly, Santana was glad to hear that.
The door to the chief's office opened and Sam stepped out.
"Finally," Santana said.
"Sorry, sorry," Sam said, "We can go get some food."
"What about the mayor?" Santana asked, "Didn't she just go in there?"
"She's handling this meeting," Sam said, "Ordered me to go get some lunch," he turned to Jerry, "Hey Jerry, how are you?"
"Good, good," Jerry said, "Is this about the robberies?"
"Yeah," Sam said letting out a breath.
"I'm actually going to start working on that case."
"Good," Sam said, "We need all the help we can."
"Well," Santana began, "We should go. Jerry it was great seeing you again."
"Same here," Jerry said, "Guess I'll see you around the station."
"I look forward to it," Jerry said.
After bidding good bye, Sam and Santana headed out to lunch.
-TBC-