A/N: I'm not sure I like this story. It's much darker than my normal Glee stuff but it wouldn't leave me alone and let me write what I wanted to until I got this out. It also went in a lot of different directions that I wasn't expecting. Hopefully, the story is still cohesive and coherent.
It ended up in unexpected places and is much longer than I'd originally plotted. Sometimes, characters have minds of their own. It also ended up much better than I'd originally thought it would.
AU after Mash Off
Also, this fic does not fit anywhere into my own "Brittana World".
Fair Warning: I hate Finn Hudson.
Trigger Warnings: homophobic slurs, racial slurs, racism, homophobia, violence, attempted rape.
XOXOXOXOXO
Chapter 1
Finn Hudson was laughing at something Puck had said when a blur of blonde knocked him off his chair and began pummeling him. He tried to protect himself from the fists that were flying at him seemingly from every direction. A crunch of cartilage signaled the breaking of his nose. Suddenly, the weight that had been sitting on his chest lifted and the fists stopped. The blur of blonde resolved itself into a screaming Brittany; Puck was holding her by the waist, Sam and Mike each holding an arm, and she was fighting them to get back to Finn.
"It's all your fault! You did this! And you're laughing! You think it's funny? YOU DID THIS! THIS IS BECAUSE OF YOU! AND YOU'RE NOT EVEN SORRY! I HATE YOU! I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!"
A quick clicking of heels down the hallway signaled the arrival of another person. Quinn Fabray hurried into the choir room and looked at Brittany.
"Oh, sweetheart," her voice was soft but Brittany obviously heard it and stopped fighting the boys holding her back.
"Quinn," Brittany's lip trembled and tears started slipping down her cheeks as her face crumpled "it's all his fault..."
"Let her go." It was a soft but firm demand.
The three guys did as Quinn commanded but stood ready to grab Brittany in case she went after Finn again. Brittany fell into Quinn's arms sobbing.
Something was definitely wrong. Brittany Pierce was not violent. She didn't hit people. She certainly didn't hate people. She cried pretty; she didn't sob.
"It's going to be okay, honey."
"It's his fault, Quinn, and he was LAUGHING. He did this and he was LAUGHING. He doesn't even CARE!"
"Shhh … I know, sweetheart, I know. It's going to be okay." Quinn held onto her sobbing best friend and gently rubbed her back and stroked her hair. Eventually, the sobbing slowed to soft sniffles and hiccups. Quinn pulled away from her and asked, "Did you get everything you needed?" Off Brittany's nod she continued, "where is it?"
"In the hallway," came the sniffled reply.
"Okay." Quinn looked around the room until she spotted Mercedes. "Mercedes?"
Mercedes stepped down the risers. "What do you need, girl?" her voice low and soothing, trying not to startle Brittany.
Quinn reached into the pocket of her blazer and handed Mercedes her car keys. "Can you take Britt and get her cleaned up and sit with her in my car? I'll be out shortly." Mercedes took the keys with a nod.
"Brittany, sweetheart? Go with Mercedes, okay? I'll be out in a few minutes and then we'll go back to the hospital."
Brittany nodded and let go of Quinn, allowing Mercedes to put an arm around her waist and lead her out of the choir room.
"Wait, Mercedes … Quinn … Brittany can't just leave," Mr. Schue stuttered, "We have to go to Principal Figgins' office and …"
"Mr. Schue, I'm going to stop you right now," Quinn said, steel in her voice; anger blazing in her eyes.
"Actions have consequences, Quinn! Brittany broke Finn's nose! She can't just …"
"She can. You can go to Figgins' office after I say what I have to say. Right now Brittany doesn't care if she gets suspended or even expelled. She's not going to be in school for the foreseeable future. And, yes, actions have consequences … unless you're Finn Hudson."
She looked at Finn Hudson with obvious distaste. "Around two months ago, Finn's ACTION caused Santana a lot of pain and heartache …"
"Really, Quinn, that's all in the past. Santana …" Rachel interrupts her.
"Rachel, finish that sentence and you'll wish Brittany was still in the room," Quinn's eyes flashed dangerously. "As I was saying, around two months ago Finn's ACTION caused a lot of consequences for Santana and Brittany but Finn never suffered a one. Not a SINGLE CONSEQUENCE for Finn Hudson OUTING Santana in the middle of a crowded hallway. That action caused a domino effect. A campaign ad forcing Santana to come out to her parents and her abuela before she was ready. Santana and Brittany are STILL paying consequences for FINN'S action."
Tina chimes in, "I thought Santana was okay? I mean, she said her parents were okay with it and, yeah, her abuela disowned her but …"
"She lied." Quinn shrugs, interrupting. "Santana isn't the person you all think she is. She didn't want pity or attention. She lied because school was the easiest battle to quit fighting. Her parents weren't okay with it."
XOXOXOXOXO
(Flashback, Quinn's POV)
Quinn had just climbed into bed and turned off the light when her phone rang. She was going to ignore it but it was 11:15 at night and nothing good could be coming from a phone call at that hour. She grabbed her phone and saw Brittany's number.
"Hey, Britt, what's up?"
"Hey, Quinn," Brittany's voice sounded strained, "have you, um, have you heard from Santana?"
Quinn frowned. Why would she have heard from Santana? "No, Britt, I haven't. Should I have?"
Brittany sighed. "She was going to tell her parents about the ad and being gay tonight at dinner. They were both actually going to be home tonight. That was at 6. She promised me she'd text or call by 9 no matter what happened. When I didn't hear from her by 9:30, I texted her and got no answer. Same at 9:45, 10, 10:15, and 10:30. At 11 I called and it went straight to voicemail." Brittany's voice cracked and she sniffled. "I'm scared, Quinn."
"I'll be there in fifteen minutes, Britt."
"Thanks, Q."
Quinn hung up and quickly threw on a pair of leggings and a hoodie. She threw her phone in her purse and headed downstairs. She tried to be quiet so as not to let her mother hear her but she didn't have to worry; Judy was passed out on the couch with an almost empty bottle of vodka sitting on the coffee table. Quinn shook her head and covered her mother with an afghan on her way out the door.
She pulled into the Pierce driveway; all the downstairs lights were on and Brittany was sitting on the front porch. She looked up as Quinn's headlights flooded the front of the house, got up, and hurried to the car.
"Hey, you okay?" Quinn asked as Brittany slid into the passenger seat.
Brittany shook her head. "I still haven't heard from her and I still can't reach her."
Quinn nodded. "What do you want to do?"
"Sneak in?"
Quinn raised an eyebrow.
"I just need to see she's okay, Quinn. Or rescue her if she's not." Brittany shrugged. "It's not like we've never snuck in or out before," a small grin crept across Brittany's face.
"That's true," Quinn chuckled and put the car into gear. "Your parents still up?"
"Yeah. They're worried, too." Brittany sighed. "She doesn't break her promises to me, Quinn. She promised she'd call or text."
Quinn nodded and they fell into silence.
Ten minutes later they were pulling into Santana's driveway. Quinn she knew exactly where to stop the car to avoid activating the motion detector lights; as Brittany had said, it wasn't their first time sneaking in or out of Santana's house. The whole house was dark. They left the doors unlocked and crept around the fence to the side of the house. There were no lights on that side because the neighbors had complained; every time a raccoon or a rabbit wandered into the yard, the lights came on.
They crossed the yard once they were across from the side door to the garage. Brittany used her key to open the door (Santana's parents had no idea that Brittany had a key to the side garage door) and crept in slowly. They used the flashlight apps on their phones to guide them. The garage would hold four cars but Santana's older brother, Gabriel, had moved to California the previous summer so the only cars in the garage were Santana's mother's Honda CRV, her father's Cadillac, and Santana's Jeep. Brittany checked the Jeep and saw Santana's current Cheerios' duffle bag in the back, along with her school backpack, and her Cheerios' jacket. She and Quinn shared a look.
They crept up the stairs and opened the door to the mud/laundry room. Brittany quickly punched in the code to disarm the alarm. Quinn made a mental note to remind her to re-arm it when they left.
Exiting the laundry room, directly across from it, was a small bathroom. To the right was a family room that Santana and her friends often used for sleepovers. To the left were two stairs that led to the kitchen and the door to the basement was directly at the top and to the left of the stairs. The were silent as they entered the kitchen. Quinn pointed to the island; a set of keys with a Cheerios' pom-pom key chain was sitting there next to a phone. Brittany listened for a moment but the house was silent. She quickly crossed the kitchen to the island and held up the phone; Quinn recognized Santana's phone case.
Quinn was now getting really nervous. Santana's room was in the basement. She quietly opened the door and saw a dim light at the bottom so she motioned to Brittany to follow. They silently went down the stairs and saw light coming from Santana's room. They hurried across the basement and entered the room. It looked like a hurricane had gone through it. Santana wasn't the neatest person but it was never this bad. Glaringly obvious was the fact that Santana wasn't here and she apparently left in a hurry. Brittany crossed to the closet and reached up to the top shelf, grabbing down several old Cheerios' duffle bags. She tossed two to Quinn.
"They kicked her out," Brittany's voice was laced with anger. "That dresser," she pointed to a chest of drawers, "underwear and socks are the top two small drawers. Pajama bottoms and sleep shirts are in the top big drawer; sweats and sweatshirts in the bottom two. Empty them?"
Quinn nodded and got to work as Brittany rifled through the closet. She came out with two lock boxes and two rolling suitcases. She put the lock boxes into one of the rolling suitcases then added Santana's jewelry boxes. She went through the desk and grabbed school work and a few keepsakes from the top; she then turned the center drawer upside down and grabbed three envelopes taped there. Quinn watched as Brittany climbed onto the desk to reach the top of the wardrobe and came down with several notebooks. She tossed those into one of the remaining duffle bags. She slid under the bed and came out with two more notebooks and a guitar.
"Do you know all her hiding spots?" Quinn asked, impressed with Brittany's thoroughness.
"I hope so. This is the only shot we're going to have at this."
Quinn nodded knowing Brittany was right; Santana's parents would know someone had been here and would probably change all the locks and the alarm code. Quinn watched as Brittany scanned the room making sure they hadn't left anything important behind. Quinn had packed up all of Santana's extra Cheerios uniforms and emptied "Brittany's drawer" so that was taken care of. Brittany shook her head. "I think that's everything important. We gotta go."
Quinn looked at the packed duffle bags, the guitar, and the suitcases trying to figure out how they were going to get it all upstairs and out to her car quietly and in one trip. Brittany slung a duffle over each shoulder, wore the guitar in front of her, and grabbed one of the suitcases. She looked at Quinn and Quinn nodded, following her lead. As quickly and quietly as possible they moved up the stairs, pausing at the top to listen for Santana's parents. All was silent. Down the two steps, a right into the laundry room and out into the garage. Brittany paused at Santana's Jeep. She set down the duffle bags and opened the rear door, grabbing Santana's backpack and slinging it onto her back before re-situating the duffle bags. She grabbed the suitcase from Quinn and nodded at the extra duffle and the jacket. Quinn grabbed the jacket and slipped it on over her hoodie, then grabbed the duffle and silently closed the Jeep's rear door. Quinn shook her head; Brittany was carrying the guitar, a backpack, two duffle bags, and two suitcases. She was in Beast Mode. Quinn made sure she had a grip on the three duffle bags and out they went. They followed the same path back to the car and loaded most of it into the trunk; the guitar was placed carefully in the back seat.
"I need to go make sure the door is locked; I don't want her parents to know how anyone got in." Brittany said before sprinting back toward the garage. Quinn started the car and Brittany was back in five minutes.
"Did you remember to re-arm the alarm?"
Brittany nodded. "Yeah. I forgot until I locked the door then I remembered. That's why it took so long."
"Where to?"
"My house. We'll see if she's shown up there. I doubt it because my mom would have called me but …" Brittany trailed off and Quinn knew she didn't have a better idea.
It was almost 1am by the time they got back to Brittany's. They had taken a circuitous route, checking to see if Santana was maybe still walking toward Brittany's house. All the lights were all still on when they finally got back to Britt's house. Brittany and Quinn walked in and found Brittany's parents in the living room.
"I take it you didn't find her?" Whitney asked, concern clear in her voice.
Brittany shook her head. "It looks like they threw her out. Her phone, keys, and car were all there. Her room looked like a whirlwind went through it and there was no sign of her. Unless they locked her in one of the upstairs rooms …" Brittany trailed off.
"Britt … she'd have left a light on and would have been screaming her head off." Quinn tried to assuage Brittany's fears. They hadn't even thought to check upstairs.
Brittany nodded. "Even if her voice gave out, you're right … there would have been lights on in whatever room she was in. She'd have known I'd come looking." She seemed to accept that as fact. "I don't know what to do now." She looked like she was about to cry.
"Let's empty the car. Then you can wait here in case she shows up and I'll drive in every direction from her driveway. She may have not even thought about where she was going or where she could go and she couldn't call you so you could tell her it was okay to come here. It's possible she just … wandered."
"Yeah." She looked at Quinn. "What … what did you do when …"
Quinn shook her head. "Finn was there. I wasn't alone. But I remember being … not disoriented, exactly, but like my brain just couldn't function. I couldn't think. I was … disconnected from everything. I just kind of … shut down."
Brittany nodded. "That makes sense. Santana was alone. She wouldn't have had anyone to help her or guide her. Yeah. Let's empty the car out …" Brittany looked at her parents. "I didn't even ask … um …"
"Of course she can stay here, sweetie. I'm sure you girls will sleep in your room but she can have the guest room right next to yours so she has a place of her own." Whitney answered the unspoken question kindly. "She's welcome to stay as long as she needs to."
Brittany threw her arms around her mother. "Thank you," she whispered. Whitney simply hugged her and rubbed her back.
Brittany pulled away and wiped her eyes. "Okay, let's get her stuff in here so you can go looking."
With Brittany's parents helping, it only took one trip to get everything into the house. Brittany handed a pair of sweatpants and sweatshirt to Quinn. "She probably left with only her Cheerios uniform and her long sleeved undershirt. It's so cold out," she bit her lip nervously, "she's probably freezing. I hope she thought to put track pants on or a hoodie or something." Tears welled in her eyes.
Quinn hugged her and took the clothes. "I'll call you when I find her."
Brittany just looked at her brokenly.
"I'm going to find her, B, I promise. I won't give up until I do." Quinn's voice sounded a lot more sure than she felt but she was determined to find Santana and bring her back to Brittany. Another quick hug and she was out the door and back in her car.
She drove back to Santana's house and looked at each direction trying to decide where Santana would go if not to Brittany. She suddenly remembered a small park that was about a mile away from the house so she headed in that direction, keeping an eye out in case Santana was still walking along the road.
She got to the park and got out of the car, taking the clothes with her. She was feeling pretty confident that this would be where she'd find Santana. She walked into the park and saw a small figure curled up on a bench near the frozen duck pond. The person's head was resting on a duffle bag and the body was under a large quilt. Quinn got nearer and let out a sigh of relief when she recognized Santana.
"Santana," she called softly approaching the bench slowly, not wanting to spook the Latina.
The small figure sat up and looked toward Quinn with vacant eyes. "Quinn? What are you doing here?"
"Brittany is really worried. We've been looking everywhere for you."
"I'm okay. Tell Britt … just … tell her I'm fine."
"Santana, you're not fine." Santana was in her Cheerios' uniform and a long sleeved undershirt; she was shivering violently and her teeth were chattering so hard Quinn was afraid she was going to chip them.
Quinn handed her the sweatpants and sweatshirt, removing the jacket and handing that over as well. "You're freezing. Brittany gave me these to give to you when I found you."
Santana listlessly put on the sweatpants and hoodie and slipped the jacket on over them. She then wrapped the quilt back around herself and sat back down on the bench. "Thanks."
"Santana, get your ass in the car. I am NOT going back to Brittany and telling her I found you but didn't bring you back with me."
"I can't, Quinn," she said, her voice devoid of any emotion, "I can't drag her down with me. I can't … I just can't … I've got nothing to offer her. I'm homeless. That ad is going to run and everything is just going to get worse. She doesn't deserve that. I'm never getting out of this town. I'm … nothing." She finished in a hoarse whisper.
Quinn slapped her. "You're a fucking idiot. Brittany loves you. We did a little breaking and entering to find out what happened and stole a bunch of your stuff. It's at Britt's house. In a room that her mother has designated as YOUR room. Brittany is out of her mind with worry. Whitney and Pierce are still awake because THEY'RE worried. I was in bed when Brittany called me and I'm here in the middle of the night in the fucking freezing cold arguing with an idiot."
Santana looked at Quinn, silent tears rolling down her face. "Why?"
"Because we love you," Quinn said, softening. She sat down on the bench and put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "You're a bitch but you're our bitch. Now …" Quinn stood back up and offered Santana her hand, "you can either come with me now or I'll be back in half an hour with Brittany." Quinn quirked a brow at Santana. "Really think you'll be able to resist her and her pout?"
Santana let out a tired, wet chuckle and took Quinn's hand. "Not a chance."
Quinn grabbed Santana's bag as Santana wrapped the quilt more tightly around her shoulders; she was still shivering pretty badly and her teeth were still chattering. Once she started the car she set the heat on blast and dialed Brittany.
"Quinn? Did you …"
"I've got her, Britt. I'm bringing her home." She handed the phone to Santana.
"Britt?"
"Santana! Oh, thank god! I was so worried. Are you okay?"
"Cold. Tired. No, Britt, I don't think I am."
"I love you. It's gonna be okay. We're going to get through this together, baby, I promise you."
Santana finally broke down and started sobbing. Quinn took the phone as she pulled back into the Pierce's driveway for the third time that night. "We're here, Britt."
The door flew open and Brittany came tearing out of the house. She reached the passenger door and wrenched it open, kneeling down and gathering Santana in her arms. "I've got you, baby. I've got you. I'm here. Everything is going to be okay." She cooed softly as she held tightly to Santana, gently rubbing her back. "I've got you." It was several moments before Santana took a shuddering breath and pulled back from Brittany. "You ready to go in?" Santana nodded and Brittany took her hand and helped her out of the car as Quinn grabbed the duffle bag from the back seat and scooped up the quilt Santana had left on the passenger seat.
As soon as they walked in, Whitney enveloped Santana in a warm, reassuring hug. "You're okay, sweetie," she said as Santana sighed softly, relaxing into the embrace.
Brittany took the things Quinn was holding and ran them down the hall to Santana's room as Whitney moved them all into the kitchen. When Brittany joined them she pulled Santana into her lap and wrapped her arms tightly around the Latina; Santana's shivering had mostly stopped but her teeth were still chattering. Whitney gave them all a mug of hot chocolate and put out a plate of cookies.
"Santana … why didn't you come here?" Brittany asked.
Santana sighed. "I don't want to drag you down with me, Britt. That ad is going to run and … god, Britt, it's going to be so bad." Tears started sliding down her face again.
"I don't care about any of that. I love you. That's what I care about. Loving you means standing by you through the shitstorm that's coming." She cupped Santana's chin gently. "Look at me, Santana." When Santana lifted her eyes to Brittany, Brittany smiled. "You're not alone."
"Santana, sweetie, you can stay her for as long as you need to. You'll have your own room even though I know you two girls won't sleep apart but you'll still have your own space. You will have to share Brittany's bathroom, though." Whitney smiled kindly at Santana. "Like Brittany said … you're not alone. Okay?"
Santana nodded and looked at Quinn. "Thank you." She whispered as she looked around the table, "all of you." She leaned her head against Brittany's shoulder; she looked exhausted. "But … I … don't want anyone to know I got kicked out. I don't want their pity or whatever." She sighed heavily. "I just … I can't fight all these battles anymore. I'm so tired of fighting." Her eyes fluttered. "Let them think their 'Lady Music Week' worked and I'm all good now. Please?"
Brittany and Quinn looked at each other then nodded.
"We have to at least let the administration know you're living here. That way anything you need for school will come here." Whitney paused deep in thought. "There are a few things we'll need to do but all of that can wait. It's late." She looked at the clock. "Very late. Quinn, you'll stay here tonight. It's been a long, emotional night and I don't want to worry about you driving home. You can sleep in Santana's room … I'm sure Brittany isn't going to let go of Santana any time soon."
The three girls chuckled and Quinn nodded. "Thank you, Whitney."
"Now, go to bed girls. Get some rest. Sleep in. Try to make it in by third period and I'll write you all excuses. I'm guessing it's going to be a long couple of days."
The three girls got up and each of them hugged Whitney before walking down the hall to the bedrooms. Brittany got fresh toothbrushes for Quinn and Santana and they all got ready in silence.
Santana hugged Quinn tightly. "Thanks, bitch." She smiled.
"I'd say anytime but … let's not make this a habit." Quinn grinned.
"Good night, Quinn."
"Good night, Santana."
Santana slipped into Brittany's bedroom and Brittany pulled Quinn into a fierce hug. "Thank you, Quinn. So much. I don't know what I'd have done if you weren't here. Thank you for answering. Thank you for coming. Thank you for finding her; for bringing her to me. Just … thank you."
"I love you, Brittany. I love her, too. I'm really glad I was able to help." Quinn said, hugging Brittany just as tightly.
"I love you, too. Good night." Brittany pulled back and smiled softly. "See you in the morning."
"Good night, Britt." Quinn watched as Brittany closed the door and then went into her room, closing the door behind her. She climbed into bed and glanced at her phone. 3:30am. Tomorrow was going to be hell.
(End Flashback)
XOXOXOXOXO
"And none of you noticed. I mean, she used the word "y'all" when she told you about her parents and nobody questioned it when Brittany said 'No way!'." Quinn rolls her eyes. "As if Brittany wouldn't have been Santana's first call after that conversation." Quinn shakes her head. "Santana told you what you wanted to hear and showed you what you wanted to see because it was easier than continuing to fight a lost battle. She was outed. Nothing was going to change that. So she's been living at the Pierces' ever since."