This chapter was hard to write the past week cause I may or may not have pinched a nerve in my wrist...lol...but it's all good. I figured it out. I hope you like it even if it may or may not end on a sort of cliffhanger...welp. Tell me what you think:)

The commotion swirled around Dani as people rushed from one point to another. She should be used to the process by now, but she was still taken aback by all the work put into a single concert. The singer still had an hour before sound check started and the stadium crew was already setting things up that wouldn't be used until the show itself started.

The blonde was standing watching them before she needed to go to get her makeup done. People passing her carried cords and wires while some dragged rolling black cases behind them. The amount of people necessary for her to share her music with her fans was astounding compared to how she used to think of the procedure. Her mind then traveled back to her first time performing in front of any type of audience.

Dani swallowed thickly as she walked through the doors to the dinner. Today was the day that Gunther had asked her to sing when the customers requested. She had only been working at the diner a week so he gave her a chance to get comfortable around her coworkers and settle in. But today, she had no excuse. 'Maybe no one will ask me to sing,' she thought to herself as she put her coat and guitar down in the back room.

Less than 20 minutes into her shift a guy she had served called her over.

"Can I help you with anything," she asked innocently and professionally.

He looked past her at a woman with auburn hair who was sitting at a booth with who looked like her best friend. "Can you sing? Like, isn't that what you do here," he requested shyly.

Dani glanced over her shoulder following his line of sight and smiled when she saw the woman. "Of course. What song?"

"Chelsea," he replied firmly. His gaze snapped back to meet hers with a smile as he waited for her approval.

"Chelsea," she trailed off scanning her brain for the song title. "Oh! Chelsea by The Summer Set?"

He grinned and nodded thanking her for doing this for him.

The blonde was happy to oblige and before walking too far she turned back. "Is it alright if it's an acoustic version? I know it on guitar," she paused then quickly interjected before he could answer her, "I mean I can always play the track but I just thought I'd ask."

"No, no go for it. Acoustic is more personal." She smiled at his answer and hurried to the back room to grab her guitar.

On the way out she saw Rachel and stopped to ramble nervously. She wasted no time in allowing her thoughts to spill. "What if I mess it up? Rachel I need you to sing it with me please," she spoke quickly, the words almost crashing into one another.

"Whoa Dani calm down. You'll be fine," the brunette rested her hand on the girl's arm. "I can't sing with you because I have to rest my voice for my Fanny Girl audition, but I have an idea. Go up there and I'll find someone to join you."

Dani thanked the girl and rushed up to the stage. She was confident in her voice and her ability to sing and play the song. It was the unfamiliarity of the situation that scared her. Not only had she only worked at the diner a week, but she had no idea what she needed to do to set up her guitar's amplifier or anything. Stepping onto the stage, a coworker of hers followed suit. She had worked with him once in the past week and didn't even remember his name.

"You need help with your guitar," he asked, his voice deeper and smoother than she expected.

"Yes please," she replied with an ashamed laugh and a light blush on her cheeks. "I have no idea what I'm doing."

"No worries," he flashed her a smile then reached out for the guitar in her hands.

After a couple minutes of carefully watching him untangle cords and plug them into various sockets, he handed her back the instrument.

"All set. I doubt you'll need a mic with how few people are in here so you're good to go."

"Thanks," she watched as he descended the stairs and went back to work. Looking up, she made eye contact with the man who requested the song and cracked a smile. She carefully placed her fingers on the correct strings and took a deep breath.

"Let's take this back 2005, Drinks are pouring and girls so fine," she pulled her eyes off of her fingers and looked around the restaurant. Some people were paying attention while others were carrying on their conversations just as before. "So many dimes got dollars signs, and there she goes, right on the spot," Just as she was about to drop her gaze back to her fingers to switch chords, her eyes met with a certain Latina's she met the first day of work. Santana. She moved her fingers praying she wouldn't miss a string and beamed back at the girl who she had come to like, "Gotta taste so sweet I swear this beat will make you want to drop."

"She wears a new dress every day," Dani saw Rachel walk up to the girl and whisper something in her ear that caused Santana to smile. The Latina nodded then shifted a burning gaze back at the blonde singing. "No she won't stop makin' the crowd scream," Dani looked back down to her guitar to focus on the chords. "I can't hear anything. But hey, it's Miss L.A. again, again."

"Chelsea, Chelsea, tell me you love me." She lifted her eyes only to see if the man had gotten up to talk to the auburn hair woman yet. When she saw that he was still looking at her longingly, she pressed on. "Chelsea, Chelsea, are you feeling me now? Chelsea, Chelsea, I think it's 'bout time we get down, get down. I wanted more."

What caught Dani off guard was the voice that followed into the next verse of the song. She looked up from her instrument and saw Santana leaning against the wall singing the words. "I wrote her a song; Not Delilah, not Kelsey. Got 'em both in my palm, but I'd drop them for Chelsea."

She continued and pushed herself off the wall as the words continued to fall from her lips. "Hey, hey what'd you say? You've been lookin' good today," the Latina had now made her way up to the bottom of the stairs, her eyes locked on Dani's the entire time. "Let's go around the town and tell, the girls that I'm taken."

Dani beamed back at the girl then shyly dropped her head in an attempt to hide the pint tint she felt covering her cheeks. The two of them sang the chorus together. "Chelsea, Chelsea, tell me you love me. Chelsea, Chelsea, are you feeling me now? Chelsea, Chelsea, I think it's 'bout time we get down, get down. There ain't no stopping us now, get down, get down. I wanted more."

Dani shook her head as she came back to the present time and smiled to herself. That was the second song her and Santana had ever sang together. It was also the beginning of a long career of singing on the diner stage and figuring out the kind of artist she wanted to be. Without her coworker, she would've had to learn how to set up her guitar on her own. Without that job, she may not be where she is now.

Lost in another trance, she didn't notice the addition to the people rushing around her. Thankfully, she was pulled out by an all too familiar voice…

"Dani!" Santana shouted excitedly, even though no one around them was making enough noise to require it.

The blonde's head shot up, looking for the source of the exclamation. When her eyes landed on Santana, she couldn't help but run towards her like a little girl in an airport. "Santana!" She shouted back as she jumped into the woman's arms catching her off balance, causing her to stumble backwards a little.

"Well hello to you too," the brunette chuckled, keeping her arms wrapped tightly around the singer.

Dani finally pulled back but remained standing less than a foot in front of the taller woman. "I thought you weren't gonna be here until after sound check?"

"You're not the only one who knows how to pull off a surprise, ya know."

Squinting her eyes into what ended up a playful glare, Dani slapped Santana's arm. "Let me have my surprises, okay? That's my thing go find your own," she pouted, again, like a little girl.

"You're such a two year old sometimes, I swear. I don't know how Samantha puts up with you all day every day," Santana teased, knowing it would set off her defensive side.

"Santana Lopez you better watch your mouth before I kick you out of here and throw you to the savages outside the gates."

The brunette's eyebrows rose at the mention of the woman's fans. "Those poor people kill themselves to support you and buy your shit and that's how you refer to them? Damn, maybe I will leave." The two both knew they were messing with each other and biting back smiles.

"Well I guess you can leave now then. John!" Dani yelled, dragging out the name then threw an evil smirk in the taller Latina's direction.

"Oh no you didn't," Santana glared. She turned briefly to see the singer's bodyguard approaching. "John don't listen to her she's just being stupid. Don't let her disrupt your routine or whatever is going on right now." Giving Santana a skeptical look, the man turned around and went back to doing his job, stationed somewhere out of sight.

"Excuse you, he works for me, not you. You don't get to tell him what to do." Dani stepped closer to the taller woman, leaving a couple feet of distance between them.

Santana ran her eyes over the smirk that graced the blonde's lips and felt her breath catch in her throat. She quickly moved her gaze back up to see Dani's searing glare. Without giving the shorter woman any warning, she closed the space between them and connected their lips. The kiss was short but lingered as Santana was slow to pull away.

"You should've started with that," Dani beamed at her leaning up to peck her lips.

"I—"

"Danielle can I see you for a second?" Samantha cut in just as Santana was going to talk.

The lighter Latina rolled her eyes and mumbled, "always fucking interrupting us," below her breath before walking away from Santana.

She reached Samantha who was standing in the opening of a doorway. Dani peaked around her manager and saw that it was a storage room but had been converted into a sort of backstage lounge for the crew. Before she had a chance to admire the work put into the room, probably by the crew themselves over the years, Samantha pulled her inside and shut the door behind them.

"What the hell Sam? Why'd you pull me away from Santana? You know I don't have much time with her so this better be important."

The woman sighed, her facial features softening from the stern look they held prior. "I need to talk to you about Santana actually."

Dani's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "Wait what?"

"I'm worried about you Dani. I know you've been in love with her forever and even despite whatever dating you did after the two of you broke up. Don't tell me I don't know that because I do. But for Christ sakes you just started talking to her again two weeks ago. You're acting like nothing ever happened and that worries me. Nothing has changed since you broke up with her. You live in LA. You travel the world as a singer and she lives in New York City. If you couldn't make it work back then, what's so different now?"

The blonde sat speechless for a minute, letting the thoughts soak in. The question rang through her mind. To her it sounded much like the question she asked Santana the night they broke up. How was it going to be okay? The answer to both: it wasn't. "Nothing's different, Sam, about the situation at least. But you saw how much of a mess leaving her made me. All I had to do was run into her again and have a five minute conversation to void all progress I made on not thinking about her. You've worked through hell trying to help me move on from her and I'm so grateful you've been here for me. But I'm not willing to give up this time, that's what's different."

The determination in the blonde's voice struck something deep in her, causing her to realize there was no way she would convince her of anything. "I'm just worried. I believe in both your abilities to make this work but it's my job to be the voice of reason in your head. I just don't want you heartbroken again. Santana seems like a sweet girl and I trust your judgment on her but it's still been four years. I don't think jumping back into this relationship as quickly as you have is smart." Taking a deep breath, she reached out for Dani's hand showing her the words she said were spoken out of love. "I'm never going to tell you who you should or shouldn't date. That's not my job. I only think you should slow down and allow the two of you to grow back together after all this time apart, okay?"

The singer sighed, knowing that her manager was right. They had jumped back into each other's company far too quickly. If anything, now the relationship would be harder due to how famous she had become and all the attention and pressure that came with it. "Thank you Sam," she paused lifting her gaze that had fallen on her lap halfway through. "for looking out for me and everything. It's really not your job but you do it anyway. I feel like I'm on tour with my older sister or something."

Both women laughed softly at the admission. "Come here you," Samantha pulled on the shorter girl's hand, moving her closer. She wrapped the singer in a hug and kissed the top of her head. "I'm here for you, all right?"

Dani nodded and pulled away from the hug. "Thanks again, Sam," she smiled warmly.

"Oh and one last thing, Dani…"

The singer turned back before getting to far away. "Yeah?"

"You might want to tone down the whole relationship dating thing even backstage. The crew are the only people back here but you know how rumors can start from anyone."

Dani nodded and scrunched her face in annoyance. "Yeah…that might be a good idea," her voice trailed off, the realization leaving her slightly upset.

"Go back out there and woo your girl with all your fancy rich people things, sis," Samantha teased nudging the blonde in the direction of the door.

"Oh make fun of me being cute with you some more why don't ya?" Dani shouted over her shoulder then opened the door to find Santana.

Once Dani stepped through the doorway, Santana's head shot up from where she stood. The movement had caught her eye as she was leaning against the wall waiting for the shorter woman. Unsure if she wanted to talk after what sounded like an important conversation, Santana waited for the blonde to approach her.

Sure enough, Dani saw the darker Latina almost immediately and set off in her direction. She half forced a smile onto her face directed towards the woman. "Hey, sorry about that. I wasn't expecting to get pulled away or anything like that today. You want me to give you the fancy backstage tour?" Her voice bounced back to its usual happy tone.

Santana nodded along understandingly. "I would actually love that. Getting to know how this all works is really cool."

"Follow me," the blonde began to extend her hand out then quickly withdrew it. Remembering what Samantha said, she crossed her arms instead and motioned with her head for Santana to follow her. "Honestly, the entire thing was pretty shocking to me at the beginning too so I'm glad I'm the one who gets to show you."

The darker Latina noticed the quick shift in body language but decided it would be better to bring up later. She lightly bit the inside of her lip to prevent herself from smiling too big at Dani's last comment. "So…I know you get here early to do sound check and to meet some of your fans or whatever, but besides that, I have no real clue what goes on back here."

The two continued down the progressively narrowing hallway as the singer began to explain the process of setting up the stage for her shows. "I'm not here for the entire set up of the stage and the lights though. The crew at each venue usually starts that the night before, then gets here before me the day of to finish up." She glanced over at the taller girl beside her and saw her nodding along as she looked around. "But when I do get here, which is around nine if the show starts at seven, all I do is sit around watching people and eating food as they set up the mics."

Santana abruptly stopped taking in her surroundings to respond to what the woman previously mentioned. "Wait but if you just sit here in the morning, why don't you come in later?"

"Honestly, I probably could. But a part of me is fascinated by the process and effort that goes into each show."

"And the other part?" The brunette's eyebrows rose with the inflection of her voice.

"It gives me time to think, ya know? It's the same reason people go to the park and just sit on a bench to watch the world go by. The crazy rush around me of people just seems to blur out of focus if I sit there long enough. I tend to get lost in thought about something…sometimes it's music I'll sing in my head, sometimes just life decisions I need to make, sometimes just…" her voice trailed off leaving the last thing on the list unknown.

Santana's eyebrows drew together, yet again, because of Dani's strange behavior. She knew she should ask the blonde why she was acting so weirdly but, once more, chose to put it off until later. The woman wasn't telling her something but she needed to leave the choice up to Dani. "What's this room for?" The taller woman motioned towards a slightly cracked open door they were about to pass by.

Relief of the topic change flooded Dani's face. "This is the hair and make-up room. Wanna go in and meet everybody?"

With a nod from Santana, the singer pushed the door open and sauntered into the room with confidence. "Hey Sky, Em, Keaden this is Santana," she motioned to the woman who was now standing just a step behind her. "Santana, this is Skylar and Emilie, they do most of my make-up and hair. Then this is Keaden," she stepped forward leaning up to rest her arm on his shoulder, "who does my hair sometimes, especially when I want to dye it; and my wardrobe sometimes too."

Santana lifted her hand and waved. "Hi, it's nice to meet you all," she said politely.

The man next to Dani spoke up first. "She's polite, that's a nice surprise, Dan."

The singer shoved him playfully and mock slapped him. "Hey now, watch yourself Keaden. I'll get you fired so quick."

The dirty blonde who had her hair in a fishtail braid, Skylar, interjected next. "Oh please, Dani. We all know Samantha would kick your ass before you ever got around to firing him, or any of us for that matter."

Emilie, who was standing next to Skylar with her arms crossed, attempted to stifle her laugh. Dani scoffed at the two comments made by her friends and rolled her eyes finally allowing them to land on Santana. "Let's continue the tour and leave these losers alone to insult me and my life where I can't hear them," she said as she walked to the brunette's side, linking their arms together and continuing out the doorway.

"What was that all about?" The Santana asked as she allowed herself to be led further down the hallway. In the past five minutes, she had felt nothing but space between herself and Dani. The woman was being distant all of a sudden, but being linked together relieved some of her concern.

Dani rolled her eyes before answering. "They just like to tease me cause I mess with them all the time. It's innocent really; they're some of my best friends."

"Like Samantha's your best friend?"

They reached a door and the blonde reached her free hand out to push the handle. "Yeah…Sam knows me better than almost anyone else." She led the pair to a couch in what looked to Santana like the singer's dressing room.

As they sat down, Santana caught her gaze. "Almost anyone?"

"I-I uh.." she hesitated. "Um, yeah."

"Dani, why are you acting so weird with me all of a sudden? First, you pulled back from holding my hand. Then, you stopped when you were about to say something and now you won't even tell me this? I don't get it," Santana's face fell as she shook her head in confusion. Her once anger filled words leveled off. "Did I do something?"

The blonde's worry and minor panic coated her face. "No, no, of course not. It has nothing to do with you," she said softly, tilting her head down to focus on her lap.

Santana knew that look. Not the panic or worrying, but the shame. Dani was lying to her about it not being about her. "What did Samantha talk to you about?" After the question was thrown into the air, the lighter Latina's face only became more focused on the movement of her hands in her lap. "Dani, tell me," she paused to lean forward and lift the woman's head with her finger gently, "please?"

"She pulled me aside to talk about…you," Dani sighed. "Well," she rethought her wording, "more about us than about you…"

"What do you mean us? I wasn't really...aware there was an us," the brunette replied nervously. "I mean like…not yet at least."

Dani scooted closer to the woman and reached for her hand. Interlocking their fingers, she attempted to soothe her by rubbing over the back of her hand. "I know what you mean. But dating in the music industry practically means you're engaged. It's stupid but the media blows every little thing up. So she kinda needs to take that into consideration."

Santana nodded along realizing that a relationship with the singer now was going to be a hell of a lot different and more complicated. "So is that what Samantha talked to you about? Being more careful around people who might tell the tabloids?"

"Um…sort of." Seeing the questioning expression on Santana's face, she continued her explanation. "She did tell me that I shouldn't run up and hug you and kiss you like I did today even though we were backstage. I know I can't do that anywhere in public but I guess she doesn't really trust the crew. I can't blame her though; people will tell secrets around here for the right price without a second thought."

The brunette saw the flash of sadness in Dani's eyes that was paired with her breaking eye contact again. Even the woman's voice grew softer as she mentioned the lack of trust and loyalty of the people surrounding her. "I'm sorry, D," she apologized, feeling bad that Dani had to put up with such a vicious attitude. "That must be tough not knowing who you can talk to."

Dani briefly glanced up with a soft smile pulling at the corners of her lips. "I have a few amazing people I know I can trust, so it's okay."

At this, Santana smiled, glad that the singer had a release for all the pent up secrets. Whether she was one of those people Dani could trust yet or not, she was determined to become one.

"What Sam really pulled me aside to talk about though was more about me than you. She just wanted to make sure I um…know what I'm doing I guess is the way to put it."

"What do you mean, Dan?"

"She sees how quickly I'm coming back to you, Tana," Dani almost mumbled. " After all the heartache and tears she had to deal with when we broke up the first time, she wants to make sure I'm not throwing myself back into this too fast…"

Santana was about to respond but Dani cut her off.

"That's why I pulled back instead of holding your hand. It's why I stopped myself before telling you that lately I've been spending more time than I should sitting backstage before concerts thinking about you. Or how nice it would be to be in your arms again. How I haven't felt as loved or as beautiful in four fucking years because you haven't been the one to remind me. It's why I didn't tell you that although Samantha has become my best friend and someone I trust with my life, no one has or ever will know me better than you do."

The darker Latina pulled her hand out of Dani's and tugged her into a hug by her shoulders. The two allowed the hug to last a little longer than usual before Santana reluctantly pulled away. Her eyes quickly met the blonde's, preventing her from moving too far away. Her eyes flickered down to the woman's lips then met her eyes again. "Can I kiss you in here?" She tried to ask innocently, but truly knew the answer and only wanted the singer to tell her to.

Dani's eyes crinkled as her smile widened genuinely. "Yes stupid, you can," she giggled through her answer.

Santana felt her smile grow after hearing the heartwarming laugh of the woman in front of her. "Mmm, good." She searched the lighter Latina's eyes for any insecurity in her words, and then softly pressed their lips together. This kiss, she knew, meant something different after hearing the singer's admissions. It was softer and slower than any they had shared since they were reunited. She felt the need to show Dani how much she cared about and understood the woman's worries. After a several seconds, she pulled away. As she was about to reply to everything the singer just told her, a knock came from the door. The two women stayed close but leaned away from each other. The door opened almost immediately.

"Dani, sound check starts in 15 minutes we need you to get your make-up done. The rest can wait until after," Samantha informed her.

Dani looked towards Santana apologizing with her eyes before getting up. "Show her where to stand backstage," she whispered to Samantha quietly, and continued on, walking past her manager and down the hallway.