Chapter 5: Companionable Tranquility
"QUINNNN!"
The scream startles Quinn who was in the kitchen, humming a tune to herself. Her heart jumpstarts and she falls flat on her butt. She grunts, before racing to where the scream came from, her mind going on overdrive. She curses, trying to ready herself for the sight of a broken person she knows she's going to see.
Just as she rounds the corner, a body slams into her and she falls back on her butt a second time for the last thirty seconds.
"I'm late!" Santana screeches in front of her. Quinn cracks her eyes open, and she sees Santana, not in tears or looking like she was dropped off to hell and was sent back, but in her work pants and a bra. But before she could react and point it out to the Latina, she was on her way to the front door and was out of it.
In her pants and bra.
Oh shit. Quinn scrambles to her feet, her brain disoriented.
"SANTANA!" She calls. She moves to reach for the doorknob when the door suddenly flies open, effectively smacking her hand away, hitting her nose, and making her fall back on her butt. Again.
"OH MY GOD, I THINK I JUST KILLED THE MOWER GUY NEXT DOOR." Santana says, her eyes wide not with terror or panic or craze but with amusement. The mower guy had always irritated her since he wouldn't stop trimming the grass even if there's nothing to mow anymore. Santana then notices Quinn who is on the floor, wincing in pain and rubbing her butt.
"Q, what the hell are you doing on the floor?" She asks, totally unaware of the wide open door and the view the neighbors were getting and the ruckus she just caused in under ten minutes.
"Could you please close the goddamn door? AND IF I FALL ON MY ASS AGAIN, I SWEAR TO GOD I'M GOING TO SLICE YOUR BARELY COVERED BOOBS! And fuck, Santana, I think you freaking broke my nose!" says Quinn. Santana turns only to find a guy in a car staring at her chest. Santana winks and kicks the door close. She hears a car crash into the garbage cans soon after.
"You're evil, Satan." Quinn says, smirking. Santana returns the smirk easily, feeling lighter for the first time in forever.
"I know. Now seriously, I am late and you look stupid down there." Santana says, earning a glare from Quinn.
"THIS IS YOUR FAULT!" She points to her bleeding nose, exasperated. "I have a meeting with my boss later and you just had to go and ruin my NOSE!" She accepts Santana's apologetic hand and lets her pull her up. "And you are NOT late. For the love of bacon, Santana, it's only seven-thirty!" Santana looks at her stunned and then Quinn watches the realization dawn in her eyes.
"I… Well, I'm sorry if I'm not used to waking up any time before three in the morning!" She says defensively.
"Ugh, you know what, go make yourself presentable. We're going out for breakfast."
"Why do we have to go out for breakfast?"
"Because you'll kill yourself the moment I stand in front of the stove." Quinn quips. Santana smacks her forehead.
"Oh. Right." She says and Quinn watches her saunter off to her bedroom. She chuckles.
If only every morning was like this one, then she wouldn't mind falling on her ass a thousand times.
Brittany walks through the glass doors of the dance studio, a smile on her face and her blue eyes shining with excitement. Dancing has always been the best part of her day and every time she sets foot in the dance studio, she can't help but grin in excitement. But more than that, the fact that last night she was able to help Santana had lightened up her spirits. Quinn had to wake her up and she had blushed and stuttered trying to explain to her that she wasn't doing anything to Santana.
"S-Sorry. I swear I didn't do anything to her. I wasn't being a stalker o-or whatever. I promise!" Quinn smiles before pulling the nervous girl into her arms.
"I'm pretty sure you just gave her good night's rest for the first time in a long time. Thank you." Quinn says. Brittany blushes, a goofy smile on her face.
Santana was deeply asleep that even when Brittany carried her to Quinn's car, she never woke up fully. Just before she untangled herself from the half asleep brunette, Santana unconsciously gropes around until finally, her pinky locates Brittany's. She grips it a little tighter and mumbles a quick "thanks". Brittany's heart doesn't stop hammering in her chest even after Quinn and Santana was long gone.
"Hey, Brittany!" a man in his mid-twenties waves at her.
"Hey, Jake."
"Hi, Britt!"
"Morning, Mrs. M!" Brittany bends to the child holding her mother's hand. "Hi, Abby." Abby smiles at her even though her front teeth are missing. Brittany chuckles before moving to meet her smirking secretary.
Mike shakes his head as he watches Brittany move with grace, effectively setting an atmosphere of awe in the studio. He smirks knowing Brittany has probably no idea of the effect she has on people.
"Good morning, Brittany." He says.
"Hey, Mike." Brittany graces him with her award-winning smile. "What do you have for me today?"
"Hmmm, lemme see. You're smiling awfully bright today. I take it something good happened with Sarah?" Mike shuffles through the schedules and finds today's date.
"Santana." Brittany corrects, all the while blushing. Mike laughs.
"So. Did you kiss her with everything you have and told her all night long that you won't leave her in like, ever?" Brittany smacks him on the arm. "Ow!"
"No, I didn't!" Mike smiles at the look of pure happiness shining in her blue eyes. He hopes for this person he'd heard so much from Brittany, that she be strong enough to break the ice surrounding the Latina's walls.
"Right, you have Rachel Berry's back up dancers for the ballet parts, a bunch of newbies, and…" Mike's face loses the smile and a scowl replaces it. Brittany watches the change and she sighs.
"…and Mason's group." Brittany finishes, running a hand through her blonde hair. "Maybe he'll be nice today." Mike scoffs.
"Oh, he'll be nice alright. Nice enough to get you in bed, at least. Seriously, with all his inappropriate touching and shit that comes out of his mouth, you can probably sue him for attempted rape. Or at least, make it grounds for kicking him off the group." Mike says, obviously hating the guy.
"I can't do that." Brittany flinches at the glare Mike is throwing at her.
"Sure you can. But you won't." Mike says. They've had this argument before especially when Mason accidentally slipped a thigh in between her legs and his hands accidentally grazed her breasts. Mike, being the good friend he was, had thrown him out while Brittany was content in glaring at him. The next day he came back, insincerely apologizing to Brittany and spewing out promises of never doing it again. Of course, it repeated many more times but she would never kick him out.
"I can't do that to him. I can't take away his job." Mike sighs. He wonders if he could get away with murder with Brittany. He bets his ass he can.
"Whatever. I know you know this but just in case, I'm going to remind you. If he pulls out his crap more than usual today, I am kicking him out." Brittany smiles at him, a grateful look in her eyes.
"Thanks, Mike. I have to go, it's almost time for rehearsals." Mike waves her off and she laughs heartily, moving past him and into the changing room, ready for what the day has in store for her.
Santana zombie-walks to the restaurant where she, Quinn, and Brittany where supposed to have lunch. Sleep last night was the best bets thing that ever happened to her since forever. For once, she wanted to stay asleep and so, getting up was a pain in the ass. Today, smiles were easily delivered and energy went out faster than what she had expected. Coffee, her number one idol, was missing in her system and apparently, the lack of the brown, rich, and creamy substance resulted to her losing her enthusiasm for the today faster than usual (not that she had more enthusiasm during the days before this wonderful day).
There has been something off with her today. Even now, as she tries to keep herself upright, the discomfort in her right hand is enough to be annoying. Her hand is searching for something and Santana can't quite figure what it was her fingers are searching for. Last night is a bit vague in her memory and all she could remember was passing out on the couch and the word "promise". Brittany might have whispered something to her but Santana pushes it out of her mind; it's just too much to hope for.
"You don't get sleep and you look half-dead. But then, you get a beauty sleep and you still look dead. It's either you're really set on living your life looking half-dead or you just can't handle looking like a normal person." Quinn says as soon as she flops down on the vacant seat. Santana rolls her eyes and puts her head on her arms.
"Caleb's not going to make it. A meeting 'popped out of nowhere'. And those were his exact words." Quinn informs her. Santana scoffs and mumbles her reply.
"I bet his secretary told him but he was too busy staring at your picture on his laptop to actually hear anything other than the sound of your annoying voice going on replay in his retarded head." Quinn blushes and whacks the mess of brown hair that was Santana's head. "OW!" Santana shoots up, rubbing the back of her head.
"Bitch. You deserved that." Quinn says, smirking at the pained expression on Santana's face. The Latina childishly sticks a tongue out to Quinn and Brittany walks just in time to witness it.
"AWWW." Brittany gushes, gracefully sitting down on the vacant seat in front of her. She proceeds to poke Santana's cheek which was flushed at having been caught doing something that doesn't suit her character. "Hey Q! San, you're adorable." Brittany tells her, giggling at Santana's embarrassment.
Quinn watches the pair's interaction and she feels a sense of pride that these two are her friends. She watches Santana blush uncharacteristically and Brittany giggles happily. Santana's eyes are sparkling. It was small, but Quinn's just happy that it's there. There's something different with the two and somehow, she's sure that it had something to do with last night. Santana barely remembers anything but it was clear that her body and her heart remembered. Her shoulders are relaxed, the usual panic missing. She's smiling slightly and though she and probably Brittany can tell that she's not used to feeling this calm and relaxed and content, they feel a surge of relief – relief that Santana's not in pain.
"My stomach's like growling at me to feed it. Let's order!" Brittany says enthusiastically while waving over a waiter.
"So, favorite things, people, or animals. Go." Brittany says as soon as the waiter went off. Quinn raises an eyebrow, a playful smile on her lips.
"Hmmm. Dress, dogs, and babies." She answers before taking a sip from her glass of water.
"And Caleb." Brittany confidently adds. Quinn chokes, and Santana's smirking at her after giving Brittany a high-five. "Santana?" Brittany's looking at Santana expectantly, ignoring Quinn's flustered state.
"It's a secret." Santana teases Brittany. In truth, she feels hesitant on letting someone get to know her better. Trusting someone enough to let them in her life and then losing them is something she can't go through again. But then again, Brittany's pouting at her and all Santana can think of is how much she hates that look.
"Pleeeease?" Brittany's looking right in her eyes, seeing the fear peeking amidst brown pools. Her heart flutters when Santana chuckles, shaking her head.
"Jeans, dogs, and myself."
"And Brittany." Quinn quips, recognizing the opportunity to get back to Santana in front of her. Santana's eyes bulge out of their sockets and she's glaring at Quinn with an intensity that would have made a grown man beg for forgiveness. Brittany blushes and Santana doesn't see the twinkle of glee reflected by her eyes. Quinn bursts out laughing at their embarrassment.
"Relax, guys. Kidding here." She says in between laughs. Brittany glances at Santana gauging her reaction. She's still glaring at Quinn but a sense of relief fills her when she notices the look of amusement on the Latina's face.
"Brittany?" a male voice suddenly bursts their bubble and three pairs of eyes take in a guy in his mid-twenties, arrogant face, lean body, and unkempt hair. Santana instantly hates the person for some reason.
"Oh, hey, Mason." Santana hears the small falter in Brittany's voice and sees the way the Brittany seemed to take interest on the guy's chest, trying to avoid his eyes. Mason notices and pushes out his chest, his white shirt showing off the firm muscles underneath. Santana's blood boils.
"Like what you see?" Mason says, a smirk on his face. Beside Santana, Quinn makes gagging noises. Mason outright ignore Santana and Quinn. "Why don't you come with me and I'll show you my apartment? I'm lonely in my bedroom. I could use company." At this point, Quinn doesn't miss the killing intent waving off of Santana. Mason doesn't seem to notice and Quinn feels a slight desire to slice his head off.
"Uhh, no thanks. I'm kind of in the middle of eating lunch with my friends." Brittany gestures to Santana and Quinn. The guy doesn't even glance at them.
"Oh come on. You can eat something at my place. And I promise it's gonna be good." Mason winks at her. He makes a move to touch Brittany's arm.
The sound of a slap echoes through the restaurant. Quinn looks smug, retracting her hand and Santana's standing in front of Brittany, her right hand twisting Mason's entire left arm. Brittany looks dumbfounded and frozen in shock.
"What the fuck, you crazy bitches!" Mason says, trying unsuccessfully to free his tortured arm from the surprisingly strong grasp of the Latina.
"You should have listened to her the first time she told you to back off." Santana growls out. Quinn fists a hand into his hair and he yelps in pain. She moves to stand beside Quinn, effectively shielding Brittany.
"Now, why don't you go back to your lovely apartment and entertain yourself?" Quinn says, coolly. "I'm sure your hand can satisfy you enough." She's forcing him to look at them and Mason looks like he's close to tears.
"Now listen." Santana says through gritted teeth. "The next time you get the balls, that is assuming you even have balls, to talk or even look at Brittany, keep it in your shit you call a brain that I sure as hell will slice off your penis, again assuming you have one, and force you to eat it." Santana moves close. "And I am perfectly capable of doing that." Santana hisses.
"Security!" Quinn doesn't let go of his hair even as she calls for someone to kick the guy out. The whole restaurant is watching the scene and it takes a few seconds before guards come rushing. Quinn lets go. But Santana's still twisting the arm until Mason's entire body buckle and he's on his knees in front of the Latina. The guards don't quite know what to do, eyeing Santana warily.
"San!" Brittany's voice breaks through Santana's frenzied state. Brittany gets up from her sit and places a hand on Santana's shoulder. She nuzzles her face against the brunette's neck and Santana's hold on Mason falters. "I'm okay. Let the guards take him out." She whispers soothingly against brown skin. Quinn moves to touch Santana's arm.
"Let him go. He's not worth anything." She says, glaring steadily at Mason. Santana lets go of him, looking up to the guards and mutters a tight but sincere "thank you". The security guards nod before dragging Mason out.
Brittany, as if realizing that she was invading Santana's personal space, steps back, looking down at the ground bashfully. Santana turns around, the rage all but gone from her face.
"B? Are you okay?" Brittany's heart stops ten staggers to a jog at the nickname and the worry evident in her voice. She shuffles her feet, shy but grateful. She looks up to meet brown eyes shining with worry and a trace of rage and of something Brittany doesn't quite know what. Quinn's looking at them, protective but guiding.
"Yeah. Thanks, San. Thanks, Q." Santana lets out a sigh of relief, running hand through her dark hair. Quinn moves to sit back down and Santana and Brittany follows.
"I haven't done that in a long time." Quinn says. Santana chuckles.
"I think the last time I wanted to break someone's arm that bad was when a jock threw a slushie on my face." Santana turns to Brittany. "Who was that jerk?" Santana asks and Brittany's expression turns into something akin to exasperation and mild irritation.
"He's a guy I teach at the dance club. He's a really good dancer but a friend of mine, Mike, says that he just wants to get me to do wet dances for him. There was one time when Mike had to kick him out because he was being inappropriate. But he promised never to do it again, so yeah." Quinn scoffs.
"The studio's under Caleb, right?" Santana says as calmly as she can though inside she wanted nothing more than to decapitate the guy.
"Yep." Brittany says, eyeing Santana.
"What exactly are you planning to do, Satan?" Quinn asks, an evil smile on her face telling Santana that she knows exactly what the brunette is scheming.
"I'm going to do what I do best. Give hell to those who deserve it." Santana says and Brittany sighs before chuckling. The food arrives and all three instantly look like they haven't eaten in days.
Lunch continues on a lighter note and they decide to walk around the town for a while before going home. Of course, Brittany drags them to the duck pond and Santana and Quinn watches her gush over the ducks.
Santana feels absolutely content and satisfied. But as she watches Brittany bend over the pond trying to get the ducks to come to her, the Latina feels lonely. Brittany's every bit as bright as the sun and as clear as sky. She's the perfect image of a happy person – a person of the light. She, however, is the exact opposite of Brittany. She's a person lost in the dark – a person of pain. Brittany would never hurt someone. But Santana would kill for the people she loves. Santana laughs bitterly inside as she looks up at the heavens, cursing her life for not even letting her have someone.
After all, Santana knows that she can't be with Brittany. She can't drag her down to her hell. She can't.
"You're being depressing again." Quinn whispers, squeezing her shoulder.
"Can't help it. It's kind of what I'm bound to do." Santana says, giving Quinn a sad smile before returning her gaze back to Brittany. Quinn follows her line of sight and her eyes soften.
"You know, maybe it's time for you to get up and find your way back." Santana looks at her, confused. "Let her guide you." Before Santana can utter a reply, Quinn's walking away from her and crouching down next to Brittany. They giggle and laugh and Santana feels lonelier than ever.
"San?" Brittany's looking at her, her excitement apparent on her face. Quinn is smiling encouragingly at her and the brunette takes a step forward.
"Yeah?"
"Duckie wanted me to tell you something." Brittany straightens up and moves toward Santana. She can see the void in Santana's eyes and the blonde wishes that somehow, someday, she'll be able to fill that void.
"Oh?" Santana raises an eyebrow.
"He wanted me to tell you that you deserve to be happy too and that you're not alone and that someday, you're gonna be okay." Brittany's voice rings with sincerity. Santana eyes tear and a piece of her heart heals a little. She feels Brittany hook her pinky into hers and it automatically curls around the finger.
Promise.
Quinn stands up from her place on the ground, dusting off the earth from her green dress.
"Mama Duckie wanted me to tell you something too." Quinn says, moving to grab Santana's other hand. "She says you needed to stop being a bitch." The three of them burst out laughing and Santana gives it her all and feels it with everything she has.
A/N: I know it's been so long since I updated. I'm so so sorry. It's the first week of classes here and there's been so much to do. I'm sorry.
This chapter may feel like it's filler but it's an attempt to lighten up the mood in preparation for well… it's a secret. ;) It's the unholy trinity people! So, tell me what you think? The reviews on the last chapter was amazing. Thank you so much.
Brittana (ship's not sinking. Ever.),
theangel1710