Spoilers through 4.09 - Swan Song. Thanks to jelee- for making me sound like I've played Left 4 Dead 2 before.
Santana stared impatiently at the television screen in front of her. Her roommate was only going to be at her weekly sorority meeting for another two hours and it was already past her own pre-arranged meet time.
She didn't have time for this shit and she sure as hell wouldn't be able to stomach another hour of Celine Dion to calm down her emotions.
Finally her screen lit up with the message that 'Trty Mth' was online. Santana rolled her eyes at the name ("The lack of vowels makes everything 20% cooler," Sam had assured her at the time).
"Hey sorry 'bout that, I was out doing something and lost track of time," Sam's voice rang through her headset as he showed up in their private Left 4 Dead 2 room.
Santana's heart clenched involuntarily in her chest.
"Yeah I'm sure you were doing something alright," she grumbled back into the mic.
"Um yeah I was," Sam responded with confusion. "Didn't I just say that?"
"Whatever Trouty. You best be ready to fuck up some zombies."
"'Tonight, hell freezes over!'" Sam announced in his best/worst Schwarzenegger impersonation.
She could practically feel his giddy excitement over the headset. Her stomach turned over at the thought that his good mood had to be more than zombie-killing-anticipation based. Santana clicked through the map and settings and started their two player match.
This was their weekly tradition. Every Thursday night they would meet up in their private Left 4 Dead 2 room and kill some undead ass together. Sam got to nerd out with someone who wasn't Artie, and Santana got to work out her end-of-week aggressions ('cause come on, it wasn't like she actually enjoyed playing video games – she was just trying this whole 'being a good friend' thing out).
That was something she was trying very hard to remind herself of at the moment, as she felt stomach flip over again. She was being a good friend.
The loading screen faded and she was dumped into the level with Sam at her side. Sam's character scrambled to the table to grab a gun with Santana's close behind. Weapons in hand they charged through the doorway towards the inevitable hoards of zombie scum.
"Fair warning: if your guppy ass makes any more awful impersonations I will not be above bustin' a cap in it," Santana called out into her mic as they ran head first into a room swarming with the undead.
"I make no promises, Snixxx!"
Santana felt her eye twitch as she unloaded her gun into the nearest zombie, trying very hard not to mentally replace the face of it with a certain blonde haired boy who was still cheering happily into her headset.
It only took a few more seconds to reach her snapping point.
"Say hello to my little friend," Sam's grainy Pacino voice echoed into her ear.
With that Santana started bustin' a cap into Sam's ass.
"Oh shit! Santana! It was just a joke I swear! No more impressions, I promise!" Sam begged. "Oh come on, I'm incap now!"
Santana simply fired on Sam's character's prone body until the game announced their failure to survive the level.
"Urgh you are so lucky our stats can't go down from that mission failure. I'd be so pissed right now."
"Yeah. Well. Join the club," Santana growled back.
Her heart raced at the admission of anger.
"Look, I'm sorry okay?" Sam's said in his kicked-puppy voice.
Santana stayed silent as they restarted the level and they were thrown on the waterfront of The Parish, her chest tightening with anger and disappointment and a whole mess of other feelings again. Sam darted towards the table with weapons, this time sans impersonation, to grab a gun and run into the fray. Santana followed and picked up a gun before following Sam's character, gun pointed at his back.
"Hey, remember a few years ago when you were an asshole and cheated on Quinn?"
"Um that was an eon ago and I cheated with you," Sam's confused voice said into her headset. "Besides she wasn't into me anyway so it didn't matt-HOLY SHIT!"
Santana's gun emptied bullet after bullet into Sam's avatar as both he and his character shrieked about the friendly fire.
"Are you seriously doing this now while there is a zombie attack?!"
"Yeah cause zombies are the fucking issue here, Trouty!"
The failed mission screen displayed again as Sam's character bit the dust again. Sam's heavy breathing echoed through her ear as the map was selected and loaded again and Santana knew there was no way she could hold it in any longer.
"Was your phone broken? Or did your lips really eat up so much of your brain you forgot to text your best friend before hooking up with her ex?"
The waterfront appeared on screen and the table of weapons materialized digitally in front of them once more.
Sam darted toward the weapons again, but Santana's character got there first. Her character grabbed the frying pan and Santana slammed on the joystick to face Sam.
"A frying pan?! You can't be serious right no-"
Sam's voice was drowned out by the sounds of Santana's furious button mashing and Sam's character being smacked to the ground with the melee weapon.
"And if you ever fucking hurt her it won't be Rochelle busting up your face, you understand me?!"
With that Santana slammed her fist into the xbox and her television screen went black. She spun towards her bed and crawled under the safety of her covers. Her fingers scooted under her pillow to retrieve her ipod, selecting her Celine Dion playlist.
She had at least one full hour to cry in her cave of blankets before she would have to fix her makeup and welcome her roommate back.