A/N: Vero, it's only appropriate that you're my 100th review. You should get a prize or something. Unicorn pillow pet? Seems right. To answer a couple questions that came up: This story is very light on actual chemistry and Quinn is too responsible to blow up the kitchen. Yes, I'm following the show speculation that Kurt will do fashion in NYC, and coveralls seemed like a natural start. Kurt makes glamour-alls :D Yes, Brittany can cook! She wasn't following a recipe, so she's fine. I also never realized how many Def Leppard fans I have ;) Back to our regularly scheduled programming.
Santana and Brittany approached Kurt as he hung up the phone.
"Any luck with 'Mission Impossible: Get Out of Lima'?" Santana asked.
Kurt slumped his shoulders. "No. I'm saving all the money I make here, but apartment hunting and job searching is awful. I'm competing with every fashion student in the New York Metropolitan area for a job – any job – and the only apartments I can afford are terrifying."
"What, no Broadway?" Brittany asked.
"Someday. Maybe. I'm going to take acting and voice lessons and reapply to NYADA next year. But fashion is performing too," Kurt explained.
"Brittany had a great idea for job searching," Santana said in an attempt to cheer up Kurt.
Kurt looked dubious.
"April Rhodes," Santana stated. "Tony Award-winning play on Broadway. And you know she has a soft spot for us Lima Losers."
"She's a drunk and clinically insane," Kurt scoffed.
"But she's our drunk, insane person. I'm going to get her number from Mr. Shue and call her. She's got to know someone. Because it sounds like your experience making cold calls and emailing has gotten you about as far as it's gotten me. Nowhere," Santana explained.
Kurt gave it some thought and nodded his head. "At this point, what have we got to lose? It's either that, or be stuck here, and despite the fact that having Blaine here would make things better, I don't think I can stomach another year in Lima."
Santana and Brittany both nodded in unison.
"Have you talked to Rachel since she's been back?" Kurt asked.
"She's not exactly on my speed dial Kurt," Santana smirked.
"She's on mine. She found an apartment, so we better call her before she skips town," Kurt explained.
"Set it up Hummel. We'll be there," Santana agreed.
Mrs. Lopez entered her home after being dropped off by a co-worker, and found the exact same scene as the day before. Santana reading Shakespeare on the couch and Quinn reviewing chemistry with Brittany in the kitchen. The only difference was that this time, there was a box of 64 Crayola Crayons on the kitchen counter and Quinn was carefully drawing colorful cartoons of molecules, and their interactions for Brittany.
Brittany, Santana and Maribel got through that night's dinner lesson with another burn for Santana and some decidedly overdone peas.
"British people eat mushy peas," Brittany reasoned.
Santana and Maribel both gave her a quizzical look.
"What? Giles," Brittany explained.
Maribel stared blankly. Santana had a glimmer of recognition.
"On Buffy. The Vampire Slayer. The show," Brittany continued.
"Giles was alright, but I don't remember that part," Santana shrugged.
"You were too busy staring at Faith," Brittany teased.
Maribel chuckled.
"Was not," Santana grumbled.
"Sure. Whatever," Brittany dismissed her with a smile.
Later that evening, Santana kissed Brittany goodnight in the hallway, and turned to enter her bedroom. Maribel stood at the end of the hall in her robe and smiled.
"What are you plans for tomorrow?" Maribel asked.
"Britt and I are meeting Rachel and Kurt at the bookstore to get all of Rachel's apartment-hunting information out of her. She found a place," Santana said.
"Oh I'm so happy for her. Good. I'm glad you're reaching out to your friends for help," Maribel said, rubbing her hand down Santana's arm and lightly squeezing.
"I wouldn't call Rachel a 'friend friend' Mama," Santana clarified.
"You be nice," Maribel warned.
"I will Mama," Santana said with a smile. "Promise. I'm working on it."
"I'm so proud of you, do you know that?" Maribel confessed.
"I have done anything yet."
"You're job searching, you're apartment hunting, you're tutoring Brittany, you're learning how to cook, and take care of yourself," Maribel assured her, a tear starting to form in her eye. "You're getting so grown up," she continued, cupping Santana's cheek.
Santana leaned into her mother's hand, and looked down, a little uncomfortable at the praise she didn't know what to do with, but it made her heart lighter and she let herself feel some pride. She pulled her mother's hand from her face and held it at her side.
"Thanks Mama," Santana shyly smiled. "I'm working on it, but I still have a long way to go."
"Yes you do," Maribel agreed. "But you'll get there."
Santana and Brittany entered the bookstore and were greeted by Quinn sitting behind the counter.
"Hey girls. Coffee?"
"Iced," they both replied in unison. "With vanilla," Brittany added.
Quinn looked at Santana. "Hazelnut Q," she said with a smile.
Rachel and Kurt were sitting at a table in the back of the store and waved them over.
Rachel got up and immediately hugged Brittany. "Kurt just told me you're doing summer school and coming to New York! This is so exciting!" Rachel squealed.
Rachel turned to Santana; her arms open for a hug. Santana rolled her eyes and unfolded her arms from her chest, giving in with a nod. Rachel gave her a bruising hug then quickly stepped back.
"I can't wait to have all of you in New York with me! It's going to make New York even more amazing, if that's even possible!" Rachel gushed and clapped her hands.
Santana and Brittany seated themselves and Quinn came over with everyone's drinks.
"We're out of the regular soy Rachel, so I used vanilla. Hope that's okay?" Quinn asked setting down Rachel's latte.
"That's great, thank you Quinn."
Santana looked over at Rachel, then Quinn and raised her eyebrow with a smirk. Quinn rolled her eyes and shook her head at Santana and walked away from the table.
"Alright Berry, spill," Santana began.
"Yes, we need to know everything about your apartment and the search. The neighborhoods, the square footage, the price," Kurt said.
"Well," Rachel started, leaning in. "It was exhausting, that's for sure. I mean, even with my extensive morning workouts, mental training, and visualization techniques, I found the entire experience draining. I lost count on how many apartments we looked at. A few big, but most were tiny, shoebox-sized studios. All expensive. I looked all over Manhattan and Brooklyn too. But my Dads and I settled on a student apartment. I get a discount on rent, or they get it subsidized from the school. I'm not sure how it works. But they have some deal with schools in the area. Since I'm enrolled full-time, we got a deal on a bright little studio walk-up in Midtown East."
"A studio like those lofts?" Brittany asked.
"No, like one little room Brittany," Rachel explained. "It's one open room with a little kitchenette the size of a closet and a bathroom."
"How much walk-up?" Kurt asked.
"4th floor walk up," Rachel chirped. "These legs are going to get a work out."
"How big is it?" Kurt asked.
"20 feet long by about 12 feet wide."
Kurt was mentally inventorying his belongings and decided to rent a larger storage unit for his things.
"How much?" Santana asked.
"It normally goes for $2,000, but I got it for $1,200 with the student discount. That and my loans and I got a scholarship and a grant, I should live quite comfortably," Rachel said with a satisfied grin.
"$2,000 for one room…" Brittany whispered.
Santana squeezed Brittany's hand under the table.
"The neighborhood is safe?" Santana asked.
"Yes, it's not bad. Obviously not ideal, but it's relatively close to the Theater District. There's so many people out at night, and it is almost all students in the building, so I felt quite safe," Rachel explained. "My Dads looked up the crime statistics and Midtown East isn't bad at all. Plus, I have my rape whistle and pepper spray, so I feel confident in my ability to successfully navigate the streets of Manhattan," Rachel said with a confident smile.
Santana, Brittany and Kurt left Rachel and the bookstore dejected. New York seemed farther and farther away, the more they did the math. Santana didn't have a job. Rent would take up all her graduation money, plus there was paying for classes, subway passes, utilities, and oh yes, food.
Kurt returned to the tire shop and Santana and Brittany went home to regroup.
Santana slumped onto the living room couch and ran her hands though her hair in frustration.
"I was hoping Berry found some secret to getting a cheap apartment," Santana sighed. "Fuck!" she exclaimed, and sat up, putting her head in her hands. "I'm sorry Britt," Santana said, her face still covered. "I'm not any closer to getting us to New York. "
Brittany rubbed Santana's back and leaned into her. "Call April," she suggested.
"I don't think I can take any more bad news today Britt," Santana confessed.
"Call," Brittany insisted.
Brittany got up to get ready for her tutoring session with Quinn, and Santana retreated out the back door with her cell phone and dialed Mr. Shue's home number.
"Hello, Pillsbury-Shuester Residence," a chipper voice greeted.
"Hi Ms. Pillsbury, it's Santana."
"Santana! Is everything okay?" Mrs. Pillsbury asked.
"What? Yeah. Yes. I'm fine. Everything's fine. I was calling to talk to Mr. Shue actually. Is he there?"
"No, not at the moment, but maybe I can help you?"
"Only if you have April Rhodes' number. I'm trying to get in touch with her," Santana explained.
"Job search got you down?" Ms. Pillsbury asked.
"How did you? I mean…"
"April's play was on Broadway, so I assumed it was something to do with your New York plans. It was either that or you were trying to get someone to buy you alcohol, but you have Puck and his fake ID for that," Mrs. Pillsbury explained.
Santana's mouth was agape.
"Or did. I think the police finally confiscated it," Mrs. Pillsbury finished.
"Um…okay. So yeah, April, it's about New York and work," Santana stumbled to get the conversation back on track.
"Hold on, let me get our address book," Emma said cheerfully. Santana listened to rustling through the phone.
Emma gave Santana April's phone number and asked about Brittany.
"She's good Ms. P. Quinn and me are helping her with summer school, and she's got some good job prospects lined up."
"And how is she doing with her parents being gone?" Ms. Pillsbury pressed.
"Great. I mean, it sucks for her, but they Skyped last night. She felt a lot better seeing her grandma's face and talking to everyone," Santana assured her.
"Oh, I'm so glad. Good. Well I have to run, but Santana?"
"Yes Ms. Pillsbury?"
"We're here if you need anything, okay? Anything."
"Thanks Ms. P."
Santana hung up the phone and immediately dialed April's number. It rang several times before Santana heard a gruff, "Yeah?"
"Miss Rhodes? It's Santana Lopez. I don't know if you remember me, but I was one of Will Shuester's Glee Club students, and…"
"Cute little Mexican cheerleader?"
"Yeah, I'm not Mexican, but…"
"D'you get your girl?"
"What?"
"That tall hot piece of blonde action you couldn't keep your eyes off of."
"How did you…"
"Oh honey, anybody with eyes could see you were head over heels for her," April explained.
"But…" Santana stammered.
"Yes, even blind drunk I could see that. So, you get her?"
"Yes ma'am," Santana shook her head in disbelief.
"Good for you honey. Now what can I do you for?"
"Well, I'm actually calling about New York. We're moving there in August, and I've called and emailed every place that I could, but I still haven't found a job yet. They're only hiring locally, and I'm a hard worker, and…"
"Got an apartment lined up yet?" April interrupted.
"Not yet. We're still looking," Santana braced her self for more rejection.
"What kind of work you lookin' for darlin'?"
"Anything," Santana confessed her desperation. "Anything that pays decent."
"Hell honey, that could be a lot of things. You lookin' to break into show biz?"
"I want to be a star," Santana confessed.
"Well, first step is admittin' you have a problem, so good for you honey," April replied. "But that ain't what you need. You need to start where everyone else does; at the bottom. And what you want is to make a livin' doing it. Stardom is a rare and mysterious mistress. And she can also be a bitch. So let me give it to ya straight darlin'. You want to sing? Act?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Then I might have somethin' for ya if you're willin' to work."
"Yes, anything," Santana's hopes rose. "I'll do anything."
"Can you sew?"
"Um, no. Not really," Santana winced.
"Okay…hmmm…let me check into a couple things and get back to you. I have a friend renovating an off-off-Broadway theater, and he's gonna be puttin' something together over there. He's gonna need a lot of help."
"Thank you Ms. Rhodes. Thank you so much."
"First of all honey, it's April, or don't bother callin' and second of all, you kids remind me of me back in the day. So if I can help you out, I will. Plus, that Will Shuester…damn, he's tastier than a box of wine," April said wistfully.
Santana grimaced.
"April?"
"Yes honey?"
"Um, I have a friend, from Glee. His name's Kurt. He's really into fashion and he can sew…"
"Thank the Lord. Well that's one hole filled. Tell him to call me Monday," April said.
"Thanks April. Really. This means so much to me. Us. Thank you," Santana said, so relieved.
"Don't mention it honey. I'll call you in a couple weeks when I know more, okay?"
"Yes. Okay. Thank you. Thank you."
Santana hung up the phone and did a happy dance on the back patio. Santana burst in the back door and tackled Brittany off the kitchen stool. She kissed Brittany hard and gave her a hug. When she pulled back, Brittany saw her grinning from ear to ear.
"God I love you. You're a genius Britt! Genius!"
"I'm going to guess your talk with April went well," Brittany teased.
"I might have a job. On Broadway. Well off-Broadway," Santana couldn't contain her excitement.
"Was she sober?" Quinn asked.
"Oh shit, I didn't see you Quinn. When did you get here?" Santana asked.
"2pm, like I've been doing. Like I'm doing all summer," Quinn reminded Santana.
"Oh right. Oh, so yeah, she seemed sober-ish. I'm not sure. With that accent, it's kind of hard to tell. Anyway, she knows a guy that's putting something together at this theater and he needs help. And she has something for Kurt too. I've got to call him," Santana kissed Brittany again and started to leave the kitchen.
"Tell him in person S," Quinn suggested. "I think you'll like to see the look on his face."
"Whatever Q. Why would I care what his face looks like?"
"Because you cared enough to put his name in for a job, that's why," Quinn replied.
Santana smirked and nodded. "Fine. Oh, hey Quinn, what are you doing Saturday night?"
"Nothing, why?"
"Mama's gone for the weekend. Think Judy will let you stay over? I feel the need for a celebration."
Brittany sat up, smiled and nodded enthusiastically at Quinn.
"Who else is going to be there?"
"Rachel's back in town. Puck hasn't left yet. Sam's around. Kurt's here," Santana was trying to think of more people.
"Rachel can't come. She's going out with Finn Saturday night," Quinn explained.
Brittany let out a small sigh of relief.
"Okay so it's Puck, Trouty Mouth, us three and Kurt," Santana gave a nod of satisfaction.
"Where's Sugar?" Brittany asked.
"France?" Santana guessed.
"Switzerland," Quinn clarified.
"Teen Jesus?" Santana asked.
"Jesus Camp," Quinn smiled.
"Alright, I'll text everyone and set it up," Santana said, and headed up to her room and left Quinn to finish helping Brittany.