Welcome back!
I'm just letting you guys know: I have no updating schedule. Right now, I am planning on one chapter a week, but I am also awful with keeping up with my planning. The reason I'm posting chapter 2 after such a short notice is to get the story moving a little bit. So far, I have six chapters and I'm also crossposting this on tumblr and AO3.
Anyway, thank you for tuning in. For the people who left reviews: THANK YOU SO MUCH.
"A girl, can you believe it?" The entire school is a buzz. The fact that the new quarterback is a girl fazes everyone, including Santana.
But Santana isn't fazed by it because holy shit a girl is playing football? No, she's fazed by it because holy shit I've been crushing on a girl the past 24 hours.
Santana never has been into guys on a romantic level, but girls? Sure, Quinn is pretty and Tina has a cute round face and Mercedes is sweet too even though they have their differences and even Rachel- woah.
Santana stops mid step.
Suddenly, all the whispers in the hallway stop and everyone backs away.
The quarterback is wearing a beautiful baby blue sundress and a letterman jacket. Santana almost drops her books as she passes. Her long blonde hair is tied together in a bun and she is wearing cat earrings.
As she watches her leave, Santana realizes that she is in deep trouble.
"I feel like it is a great change, you know?" Kurt tells Mercedes, "A girl quarterback isn't that bad. Even Karofsky and Z are keeping it low. She's respected." Mercedes is about to answer when someone tugs Kurt's arm from behind.
His first instinct is to turn around and lunge at the person behind it - probably a jock - but he stops when he sees the dark haired Cheerio. She's dragging him along to an empty classroom.
"It is that you know I'm gay, otherwise I'd be freaked out," he tries to joke, but Santana only grumbles.
"I need to speak to you, Kurt."
He can't remember the last time she called him by his first name. Santana has nicknames for everyone, some more creative than others. This must be serious.
When she locks the door behind them, Kurt starts to worry.
"I'm not going to strangle you," Santana pushes him in an empty chair, "I need to talk to you." And for the first time, she looks nervous.
She sits down on the teacher's desk and crosses her legs.
"Why do I have this honour?" Kurt decides to ask, "When was the last time we spoke to each other face to face? Oh yeah, that never happened."
Last year Quinn started talking to him and that didn't end well. It only hurt Finn and Rachel's feelings, so what is Santana planning?
"We are friends, right?" And wow, Santana has never sounded this unsure before.
"Not really," Kurt says, "We tolerate each other and we're civil, but we're not friends." Not yet. He'd love to be friends with everyone in the glee club, but the popular kids make it harder.
"Santana, we have nothing in common except for the fact that we are both in glee," he reminds her. Santana quickly looks away and mumbles something.
"Speak up, I can't here you," Kurt says and sits back.
Santana, still not looking at him, repeats: "Maybe we have one more thing in common," she says quietly.
At first, Kurt is confused, but then the realisation hits him. "You-"
But then Santana jumps off the desk and shakes her head. "This- this is stupid. I don't even-" she takes a deep breath, "You're right, we're not friends. I don't even know…" she trails off and turns towards the door. "Sorry for interrupting your chat with Aretha."
Santana unlocks the door and she's about to leave when Kurt calls her name. "Santana!" he quickly hurries out of his seat and to his surprise, Santana waits.
"Santana," he says, "If I'm right, and I know I am, then I just want you to know you're not alone, okay? And sure, we aren't friends, but I'm here for you."
Santana nods and leaves.
The first time Brittany notices them is during football practise. A group of players and a kid in a wheelchair are discussing something with the coach in the locker room. Brittany usually changes in the Cheerios locker room, but after she's done she goes to the other one because coach always speeches.
Also, she appreciates the attention she gets from the other boys.
Intrigued, she scoots closer.
"Coach, give him a chance," the tall one, Finn Hudson, is pleading. Brittany realizes that they're trying to get the cute guy with glasses in the team. The cute guy with glasses who is in a wheelchair.
She leans away and turns to Sam Evans. Sam is nice enough. "Evans, do you know them?" she asks and Sam pales slightly. Apparently he does, but he doesn't want to know them.
"They, uh, they're from the school's glee club," he answers.
Brittany has heard of the glee club. She knows that it will kill her reputation if she joins, but a part of her really likes the idea of it. And she knows for a fine fact that Sam does too.
"Interesting," she says, looking at them from afar. The group of guys, Hudson, Puckerman, Chang and the wheelchair kid. Karofsky and Z always say that glee club turned them gay, but Brittany doesn't understand how. How can a club turn you gay?
She watches the group interact and a smile appears on her face.
During glee club meeting next day, Santana is too afraid to meet Kurt's eyes. She knows that he is watching her, so she just turns to Quinn the entire time.
"Alrida guys!" Mr. Schue enters the choir room, "Since Sam didn't show up the other day, we are still in the need of a twelfth member, but I have faith that we will find one. Tina, have you heard anything from Sunshine?" Tina shakes her head.
"Okay, uh, Jesse? How about the drama team?"
Jesse rolls his eyes. "They do not see the drama in show choir," he says.
"Guys? Football?"
The jocks sighs deeply. "Except for Sam, no one seemed interested," Mike says, "And he didn't show up."
Rachel's hand shoots into the air. "Mr. Schue, if I may?"
"You may not," Quinn grumbles, barely audible, and Santana cracks a grin. But Rachel is already standing.
"Fellow glee clubbers, I propose another public performance. Maybe if this time, we give the lead to me instead of to less talented individuals, we might attract even more possible members."
"I… don't think that's needed," Mercedes says, who's looking at the doorway.
A girl is standing there.
Not just a girl.
The quarterback.
She is wearing her letterman jacket, but Santana can read the text on her t-shirt. It says "UNICORNS LOVE ME". She's also strangely wearing a fluffy panda bear hat. It is adorable.
"Hi," she says shyly, "I saw some of the guys earlier today. This is the glee club right?"
Rachel, still standing, is baffled. "Are you here to join?"
"Well, I heard you talking about needing new members," the quarterback slowly enters the choir room and it immediately feels right. Like she belongs in this room.
"Can you sing?" Rachel demands to know.
"Yeah," the quarterback grins slyly, "And dance."
"Oh, I heard you sing once!" Quinn says and Santana jerks her head towards her best friend. When?
"You were singing Britney Spears in the showers," Quinn sounds excited, "You sound good."
Everyone looks happy. Not only do they have a twelfth member, but the member is also the quarterback. Mr. Schue is smiling brightly. "Well, welcome to the New Directions!"
Everyone starts applauding her and the quarterback takes a bow. Then her eyes fall on Santana and she smiles. When she makes her way to her and Quinn, Santana's mind is racing.
"Hey, I saw you on the Cheerios together!" the quarterback says and she sits down in the empty chair in front of them, "I'm Brittany, Brittany S. Pierce."
"Quinn Fabray," Quinn says and then pokes Santana, who's frozen in shock, "And this lovely lady here is Santana Lopez."
"Nice meeting both of you!"
By the way, since Brittany never joined glee in season 1, Jesse has been part of glee for longer and he never left. They needed 12 members after all.