Crazy long author's note:

In regards to the Brittana friendship; I have probably read every well written Brittana story on the internet and they've been done so many ways that I really wanted to try something completely different. I didn't want Santana to be 'broken' over her high school love like I've seen a million times, so I decided to try this angle and I like it.

I try to avoid using actual Glee episode references as much as possible because it annoys me when people just fill up their fics with storyline they haven't written, but I did use one in here because it still amuses me :)

Lastly, if you are a Demi fan but haven't watched her Intimate Performance videos on YouTube. Go do it! Don't even bother reading the chapter! She needs to release an acoustic album, seriously. So much Demi love.

As always, thanks for the reviews!

Santana POV

The last two days have been fairly uneventful if you don't count Dani asking me to attend an intimate performance she's doing at the Bowery Ballroom. She mentioned it was fairly last minute as her manager wanted her to try out the scene but that she'd like me to come, so I'm currently in a cab on my way there.

I'm excited to see her perform. When I found out who she was, I really didn't want to get too crazy and google her so I only ended up looking at one or two videos of her songs.

I'm halfway there when I get a text from her.

From: Dani

Hey, sorry again that you couldn't ride with me. My manager can be a little paranoid when it comes to new people. Can't wait to see you :)

I was only slightly let down when I found out I couldn't go with Dani, partly because it means hanging out by myself until the show starts.

I grin like an idiot. I can't wait to see her either but I don't know if she means it in a purely platonic way? We haven't really discussed past relationships. I definitely get a vibe from her but I don't want to assume so I decide to just ignore the last part of her message.

To: Dani

I totally get it so don't worry about it. I'm in a cab so i'll be there soon.

When I get to the bar I grab a drink and find a table near the front. There's still about 15 minutes until the show starts so I text Michelle to check on Bailey.

Before I finish my drink, a waitress brings another one over to me.

"I didn't order this."

"Dani said to tell you to order whatever you want." She smiles and walks back to the bar.

The lights go down and I can see her band walking out on to the stage. The audience starts cheering and the music starts up. I recognise the intro of the song as one of the videos I watched.

I can barely make her out as she walks on to the stage. As she starts singing, the lights come back up focusing entirely on her. For a small venue, the audience is going wild for her and I can't say I feel any different.

As she finishes up her first song, I realise just how talented she is.

Somewhere we went wrong

Our love is like a song

But you won't sing along

You've forgotten

About us

(Don't forget)

She grabs a drink of water once she's done and then addresses the audience.

"Hey guys, thank you so much for coming out. I know it was last minute but clearly, like me, my fans have nothing better to do on a Friday night!" She jokes and everyone laughs and whistles at her.

"So this is my first performance since moving out here nearly 2 months ago. New York is known for it's awesome music venues so I wanted to try something else out with you guys and downsize a little. Make sure you let me know what you think!" More cheering.

"This next song is called Every time You Lie"

She plays about 10 songs and chats to the audience in between. She's an amazing performer and really tries to connect with her fans.

"I want to thank you again for coming out tonight, you guys are amazing and I've had so much fun. This is my last song. It's called Fix a Heart"

The lights on stage go down again and she grabs her guitar. She's used it a few times tonight for different songs. She starts playing and the lights come up as she sings the first line.

I'm watching her so closely, her face is so expressive when she sings. I can honestly say I've never seen anything like it. It's not until the end of the song that I realise I have tears in my eyes. As she sings the last line, her eyes lock on to mine.

You never really can fix my heart

The crowd goes crazy and I stand up to clap for her. Her eyes are still on me and she smiles before looking back over the audience.

"Goodnight New York"

Dani POV

When I texted Santana telling her I couldn't wait to see her, I was sure I'd get something back. When she didn't even respond to that part of my text, I thought that maybe I had misinterpreted the things I felt were happening between us.

I finished my last song and looked over to her and saw she had tears in her eyes. When we made eye contact, I knew I wasn't imagining the feelings between us.

I realised once I got backstage that we hadn't made plans to catch up after the show, so I grabbed one of the bar staff and told them to go find her for me.

I was packing up my stuff in the back room when there was a knock on the door.

"Hey! You were so amazing!" she burst in to the room looking so excited and pulled me in to a hug.

"Thank you, I'm glad you liked it." We had pulled back from the hug, but still had hold of each other.

She grinned at me "It was so good. Are you gonna do more shows like that?"

"I'm not sure yet, it depends on the response from the fans, but I definitely prefer these smaller gigs. I feel more connected with the audience." We make eye contact again as I say this and I can feel the tension in the room increase as we gaze at each other.

It's that moment my manager decides to interrupt us.

"Dani"

I look over to the door to see him standing there. Santana and I both pull back from each other at the same time and turn towards him.

"Hey Damon, good timing. This is Santana. Santana, this is Damon, my manager"

"It's nice to meet you" Santana says putting out her hand. She seems nervous.

"You too. I've heard a lot about you" Damon takes her hand and smiles at her.

"D, I just came to say the car's here. There don't seem to be too many crazies out the back so this should be an easy exit. I've just gotta go speak to the bouncer and I'll come back and get you guys. See you in 5"

"Okay thanks."

As he leaves I turn back to finish packing my stuff. I'm so paranoid about leaving something at a show and finding it on eBay the next day.

"So I guess I should go, I just wanted to tell you the show was great."

I turn back to her and grab her arm. I don't know why I felt like I needed to do that so she didn't leave but she didn't seem to mind.

"Wait, you're not going anywhere. I thought we could get a drink or something?" I say hopefully.

"I would love to, really, but I have to get Bailey from the babysitter." Crap. Of course she does.

"Well what about if we go get Bailey on the way home and then grab a drink at your house? It can be non alcoholic and that way, Bailey would be tucked into his bed?"

"Really? Are you sure? The babysitter isn't exactly on the way home And you said your manager is weird with new people"

"It's totally fine, I already talked him down and convinced him you're not that crazy. Do you have a car seat for him?"

"Yeah, it's at Michelle's. I left it there in case she needed to go somewhere with him."

"Perfect then. Let's go find Damon and get out of here."

It was about an hour later when we finally settled on Santana's couch with some tea. Bailey was asleep the entire time between the babysitter's and home so when Santana was putting him to bed, I managed to convince her to let me go home and change in to my pyjamas. When I got back, she was wearing a pair of sweats and an old Harvard shirt.

"Harvard, really? How do I keep missing these things about you?"

She laughs and it's honestly the best sound.

"We spent a lot of time talking about random stuff or Bailey or being famous"

"I guess. Okay I'm aiming to find out tons about you tonight, even if we have to play 20 questions"

"Okay deal. Do you want something to eat? I wasn't sure if you ate earlier."

"I had something before the show. I think I could do something sweet?"

"I've got ice cream and some cookies"

"Ooooooh cookies!" I say excitedly.

"Okay hold on" she jumps up and heads to the kitchen.

"Here you go superstar" I grab one and take a bite.

"Thanks. These are my favourite" I say while still chewing the cookie.

"So classy"

"Shut up" I swallow the mouthful then shove her playfully.

"Okay, so I realised on the way back here that it's been almost 2 weeks since I've seen Bailey and tonight doesn't count cuz he was sleeping" I frown

"Awww well what are you doing on Sunday?" I think about my weekend plans

"Nothing, at this stage"

"Why don't you hang out with us? We do breakfast, movies.. It'll be fun and he'll be excited to see you."

"Really? That would be awesome" I smile and finish eating my cookie.

We've been chatting for an hour now and I've got to know where she grew up, how many siblings she has and all about college, but we've somehow managed to avoid anything about our love lives. I was really hoping it would naturally come up in conversation so I didn't have to bring it up but I think we're both avoiding it.

"So, you said you didn't have a husband when we first met but is there anyone special in your life?" Face palm. Lame.

She looks surprised that I brought it up but I think I also saw relief on her face.

"Uh, no. There hasn't been for a while. What about you?"

"Nah, I tend to only date when I need new material for my songs" I joke.

She laughs and I'm glad that didn't fall flat.

"So a while huh? Was Brittany the last person?" There's a mixture of shock and hurt on her face.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to assume you're gay or upset you" I suck.

"No it's okay, it just shocked me that you brought her up. Most people prefer to avoid conversations about dead people."

"I'm not most people." I say honestly.

She smiles at me. "I know." She takes a deep breath and continues "Brittany and I weren't together. I'm gay, but she wasn't. We were best friends throughout high school and then I went off to college. We were still close but obviously not like when we were in the same town. My last year of college, she decided she wanted to move to New York to figure out who she was. She ended up dating a dead beat and got pregnant. I was finished college and had started an internship at the firm. We lived together in a small apartment in Brooklyn where we set everything up for her and the baby. She died and I've been so wrapped up in Bailey and my job that I really haven't bothered seeing anyone after the first date."

I grabbed my tea to take a sip and then asked the question I was dying to know the answer to.

"Were you in love with her?" She was silent for a minute before responding.

"I thought I was. Especially in high school. But I realised a long time ago that it was more admiration than anything. When I was so deep in the closet that I could see Narnia, she's the one who taught me it's okay to be who you are. She never cared what anyone thought of her and she supported me through coming out at school and to my parents. She was pretty amazing, but we were never meant to be more than what we were." She smiles but I realise she's crying.

I put my cup down and pull her into a hug. She buries her head in my shoulder and I can feel her tears soaking in to my top. I run my hand over the back of her neck in a soothing motion.

"Thank you for telling me about her. She sounds like a pretty amazing person." She looks up at me and smiles.

"She was. Thanks for letting me talk about her. It's been a really long time."

"No problem" I smile back at her and she wipes her face, pulling back to her side of the couch.

"So what about you superstar? You've heard all about me. You can't avoid answering with jokes all night." She nudges my knee

"Who's avoiding? My so called love life is all over the internet."

"Well I don't believe everything the internet says. But I haven't really read anything about you online. Besides listening to a couple of songs, all of my information is directly from the source." She points at me.

"Really? Why? They tell it so much better! There's usually wedding bells and babies involved. I had just had a really big lunch."

She laughs again and I'm sure I'll never get tired of it.

"Okay, well, are you seeing anyone now?"

"Nope. I only just got to New York. Free to good home."

"But you just bought an apartment" she jokes back.

"Good point. Well then no, I'm just free"

"What about before you left LA?"

"A while ago, but nothing serious. It got old when the people I would date would post stuff on social media about me."

"What? That seriously happens?" She seemed outraged.

"Yeah. It's fine though. They were assholes."

"Wow. Well you're definitely better off without guys like that." Is she trying to get me to say it? Really?

"They weren't guys." She blushes at this but definitely looks relieved that I corrected her.

"I did think you wore too much eye make-up to be straight"

What the? I laugh so hard at this.

"Is that even a thing?" She shrugs but starts laughing at herself.

"I have no idea"

It's after 1am and when she yawns I realise she was at work all day and probably needs to go to bed.

"I'm gonna head out before you fall asleep on me."

"Normally I'd fight you cuz I'm having fun but I'm so tired." She yawns again.

"It's all good. I really wanted to hang out with Bailey anyway so I don't mind cutting the night short." I stand up and stretch.

"Gee thanks"

"Just kidding but I am excited about Sunday, if it's still cool that I join you." I start to pick up the cups to take them to the kitchen.

"Leave those, I'll get them tomorrow. And of course you can. As I said, B will be excited." I put the cups down and head towards the door.

"Awesome, well I've got some album stuff to do tomorrow but I might text you if I get bored"

"Sounds good.. " She starts yawning mid-sentence. ".. to me. Sorry"

"Go to bed sleepyhead." I turn to pull her in to a hug. It feels so natural, like we've done this a thousand times. She pulls back but only slightly, still with her arms around me.

"On my way right now. Thanks again for inviting me tonight. If I didn't mention it, I had the best time. You're so talented and when I'm awake enough, I want to hear more about your music."

"I should be thanking you for coming. We can talk on Sunday." I smile at her and then decide to kiss her on the cheek. As my lips make contact with her skin, I hear her breath catch in her throat.

I pull back and look in to her eyes to try and see what's going through her head.

I can tell that she's thinking the same thing as me.

This is the beginning of something.