A/N – I know my updates have been few and far between lately but I am definitely still working on this, I'm just suffering a lack of inspiration at the moment. I appreciate all the reviews and alerts and I'm grateful to everyone for sticking with me. I'm trying extra hard to focus all my energy back into this fic and I'm really happy with how this chapter turned out hopefully you will agree!

Santana sighed as she stared awkwardly at her reflection; it wasn't an easy thing to admit but sitting there in her car with her eyes flickering from the rear-view mirror to the flowers clutched in her hands, it was painfully obvious. She had no game. None. Letting her head rest on the steering wheel she let out a groan even as a hint of a smile flickered across her features, she couldn't believe it had taken her so long to ask Rachel out on an official date but now the moment had finally come she was even more nervous than she had expected. It wasn't the fact it was Rachel; that was actually the one thing that didn't make Santana nervous, it was the fact that it was a date. A real date with someone she cared about and that was new, uncharted territory.

Casting a last glance in the mirror Santana took a deep breath and with as much confidence as she could muster, left the safety of her car and made the short walk to the Berry front door. She had insisted to Rachel that if they were going to do this, they were going to do it properly. Of course, Santana wasn't entirely sure what real dates entailed but she figured picking her date up was a good start. Choking back a chuckle Santana rang the doorbell and was almost immediately greeted by the beaming face of an enthusiastic Rachel Berry. She knew Rachel was excited, and not merely because the smaller girl was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet but because Santana had managed to keep all of the days plans a secret.

"I'm ready." Rachel beamed as she peaked around Santana expectantly scanning the driveway, her enthusiasm making Santana grin, "Do I need anything? I'm more than happy to drive if you would prefer?" her eyes drifting back to Santana she added, "Are those for me?"

Santana blinked slowly as she waited for her brain to catch up with the quick-fire questions, "You might want to grab a jacket, I'm perfectly happy to drive and…." Awkwardly shoving the flowers in Rachel's direction she cringed at her lack of charm, "Yes, these are for you. I didn't know what ones you liked but…I thought maybe Lilies? And I know you like white so…I….here."

"Thank you." Rachel smiled warmly, one hand holding onto the flowers as she ran the other up Santana's arm. Stepping closer she placed a delicate kiss on her cheek "I love them."

As Santana waited for Rachel to place the flowers in some water, and grab a well-advised jacket, she felt her goofy smile slip as her nerves began to get the better of her. She knew it was stupid to be so nervous, after all Rachel already knew her better than anyone and if anything was going to scare her away it probably wouldn't be a bad date but still, Santana wanted everything to be perfect. She needed Rachel to know that drama aside; it was actually possible for them to have fun together.

"Ready!" Rachel piped up, already shooing Santana out of the doorway as she picked her keys up from the side, "Are you going to tell me what we're doing?"

Santana shook her head, "It's a surprise."

"But I don't like surprises." Rachel pouted as she locked her front door and tossed her keys into her bag. Skipping down the path she hesitated as she reached to open the passenger door, her eyebrows knitted together as she saw the brief flash of dejection cross Santana's face. Quickly getting into the car Rachel waited for Santana to do the same then reaching over she gently clasped the other girl's hand, "I was joking, I'm sure I'm going to love whatever you've planned."

"Yeah, I know." Santana replied shortly, her shoulders tense as she hurried to get the car on the road, if only to distracted her panicked thoughts with driving. It didn't help much, and as she slowed the car at a red light she could feel the awkward tension lingering in the car, this was not how she wanted things to start. She had barely gone five minutes into the date and already she was ruining it. It didn't help that she could feel Rachel looking at her intently, probably wondering why the hell she had even agreed to the date in the first place.

"Hey…" Rachel whispered, her body shifting slightly so she could face Santana "Are you okay?" She could feel the anxiety rolling off the other girl in waves and reaching a hand out she brought it down to rest on Santana's knee.

"I…I'm not good at this stuff." Santana mumbled eventually, "I've never done this before."

Rachel narrowed her eyes in confusion, the words slipping from her mouth before she could fully register them, "But, you've been with plenty of people."

Santana tensed, her jaw clenching tightly she muttered, "Right, I forgot my reputation."

"No, I-I didn't mean that I-" Rachel stammered, mentally cursing her choice of words.

"You did." Santana replied as she took a calming breath. Relaxing her shoulders she let her gaze drift from the road to Rachel as she offered her a sad smile, "It's okay, it's not like I don't know what people think about me."

"No, they don't…I –I mean…But it's not what I think, I know none of its true-" Rachel tried, her voice unnatural shrill as she tried to explain.

Santana shook her head and sighed, "I know that but…reputation aside…" She frowned as she reached down to place her own hand on top of Rachel's, her smile growing as she felt the warmth from the small girl's hand against her skin, "I've never been on an actual date, okay? Not with someone I cared about."

Rachel frowned, gnawing nervously at her bottom lip she whispered tentatively, "You mean, you and Brittany never…?"

She could hear the hint of jealously hidden behind the question, and casting a sideways glance at the other girl she offered a shrug, "Not officially, nothing was ever official with us you know? We were always in this grey area and yeah, unofficially we were sort of together, I guess, but it was never the right time for us." Focusing on the road Santana tried to hide the blush creeping across her cheeks as she grinned, "I guess this makes you my first."

Rachel chuckled as she carefully leant over the centre console, her lips ghosting across the Santana's ear she whispered, "Don't worry, I'll be gentle."

Santana groaned quietly, her eyes closing briefly before snapping back open, "As much as I hate to say it; if you don't move, neither of us is even going to get to this date in one piece." Reluctantly she edged her hand up from Rachel's and playfully shoved her girlfriend back into her seat, "And I really would like to see what this date stuff is all about."

"Will you at least tell me where we're going?" Rachel asked, a mischievous grin plastered to her face as she sunk back into her seat, her hand still glued to Santana's knee and edging higher.

"I don't have to, we're pretty much here." Santana replied as she turning the car off the road and down a dirt track almost completely hidden by trees. They had only been driving for a short distance but it felt like they were in the middle of nowhere, only the quiet sound of birds and the rumble of the car as it bounced along the road. Santana tried to keep her mind focused on driving and not the way Rachel had taken to drumming her fingertips across the inside of her thigh.

Rachel perked up as she whipped her head back and forth in an attempt to work out where they were, "Where is here?"

"Anyone ever told you, you ask too many questions?"

The smaller girl nodded happily, "Yes, all the time. In fact you told me so yesterday and twice this morning."

As the road came to an end and opened up into a small make-shift parking lot Santana eased the car to a stop, "Okay, we're here. Everybody out!" Throwing her girlfriend a goofy smile Santana hopped out of the car and headed to the trunk where she pulled out a rucksack, trying to hide how heavy it was she hurried around to Rachel, "Ready?"

"Always." Rachel beamed as she was unable to hold back her natural curiosity, "Now will you tell me what we're doing, please?"

Santana laughed, taking one of Rachel's hands she tugged the smaller girl forward until they were walking side by side, the car left far behind as they headed away from the parking lot and into the wooded area in front of them. A small path curved out ahead and was the perfect width to allow the two girls to amble next to each other, reaching into her pocket Santana pulled out her phone and began tapping away.

"Texting is bad date etiquette." Rachel pointed out playfully as she clung to her girlfriend's hand.

"Then it's a good thing I'm not texting." Santana countered as she passed her phone to Rachel, "And I might be new at this dating thing but even I know that." Waiting for the other girl to look down at the phone Santana explained, "It's a map, GPS or whatever it's called, see that's us…" She pointed to the little blue dot before gesturing to the little green one, "And that is where we're going."

"Okay." Rachel said slowly, her eyes drifting up from the phone in confusion, "And what's there?"

"I have no idea, that's the fun part." Santana grinned, her smile faltering slightly at the confused look thrown her way, "It's called geocaching." She explained as they approached a fork in the path, "There's a whole bunch of boxes hidden all over the place, all over the world, people hide them and then they post the location online and you can go and find them, kind of like a treasure hunt."

"You're taking me on a treasure hunt?" Rachel yelled, her excitement getting the better of her as her shout echoed around them, "Wait, what's in the rucksack? Is it a shovel? Do we get to dig?"

Santana laughed as she motioned for Rachel to go left and follow the path as it sloped down slightly, "Yeah because I've always wanted the cops to pull me over on my way into the woods with a shovel in my trunk and pretty girl by my side. That doesn't scream serial killer." Santana laughed harder as Rachel used her free hand to playful swot her shoulder, "Ouch. Now I'm not sharing my picnic with you."

"You brought a picnic?"

"I did, I even made cheesecake or well…I drove to that specialist store and brought it but I made everything else." Adjusting the bag on her shoulder Santana looked down at the ground, suddenly shy of her actions.

"It sounds perfect." Rachel stated as she hooked her hand through Santana's elbow, drawing the other girl's arm into a hug. Resting her head against the taller girls shoulder she smiled, "This is perfect; a whole day with you, nature and the promise of cheesecake."

Santana sighed contently, her worries dissipating at both Rachel's words and her embrace. They stayed that way for a while, both girl's grinning stupidly as they meandered along with the sun shining down on them. The path was fairly easy to follow, at least to begin with, then the small inclines grew steeper the multitude of twists and turns increased but it was only when they came to a dead end that the problems started; glaring at the trees in front of her Santana tried to remain calm as she shifted the weight of her rucksack, "This isn't right, what does the GPS say?"

Rachel blinked at the sudden awareness that their progress had been blocked, loosening her grip on the other girls arm she blushed as she realised she was still holding her girlfriends phone, the small device having been stuck between her hand and Santana's arm since the last fork in the path.

"What does it say?" Santana asked as she took a step back. Her arms held over her head as she stretched, her face basking in the warmth of the sun overhead and the stillness of the trees.

She looked so peaceful that Rachel hated to ruin it, "Um…nothing."

"Nothing? What do you mean nothing?"

Rachel shrugged, shaking the phone for good measure she replied, "The little blue dot's gone."

Santana frowned as she dropped her arms back to her side, her head tilted to one side she gestured for Rachel to pass her the phone. When typing in the directions again didn't work she resorted to staring at the now blank map in front of her, "I can't believe this."

"Are we lost?" Rachel asked in a small voice, her eyes darting around the surrounding woods.

"Well…according to this piece of crap, yes." Santana growled as she slid her phone back into her pocket, "But I figure we can just head back the way we came and see if we can pick the signal back up?"

Rachel thought back and with a nervous smile she asked, "Do remember which way we came?"

"I…yeah, I think we can piece it together. Right?"

Rachel gave her affirmative and followed after Santana, she could see the way her girlfriend's shoulders slumped slightly as she walked ahead and picking up her pace Rachel fell into step with her, "We can always build a tree house and hide out here for a while, I could use a break from Mr Schue and his sweater vests."

Santana smirked, "No-one is safe from those things, even out here in the middle of nowhere. They will find you."

Rachel giggled and wrapped an arm around Santana's waist.

Draping her arm over Rachel's shoulder Santana drew them to a stop as she eyed the path in front of them. She glanced at the surrounding area as she tried to find some kind of landmark to jog her memory, "This way." She stated confidently, her eyes spotting a small misshapen shrub by the side of the path. The next few turns passed without any issues but the longer they walked the less sure Santana became. It was when they came to a stop as the path divided into three different options that Santana resorted to dragging her phone from her pocket, unsurprisingly finding it with the same blank screen.

"Santana?" Rachel piped up, her grip tightening, "Do…do you know where we're going?"

"I…No, I think this way…" Santana began as she gestured to the left, only to switch to the right, "Or this way…I...Fuck. I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" Rachel asked, tilting her head up to look at her girlfriend.

"I don't know…getting us lost in the middle of nowhere?" Santana sighed with a self-deprecating laugh, "I wanted everything to be perfect and…it seemed like such a good idea at the time, I thought we could do something different but I guess I should have started off smaller huh? Getting lost in the woods isn't exactly an ideal first date, I'm starting to think I should have stuck to dinner. Or bowling." Shaking her head she tried not to sound too disheartened as she added, "I'm so bad at this stuff."

"You're not!" Rachel countered, "GPS failing aside, this is a great idea. You and me alone, the sun shining and a big rucksack full of food, that's all I need. I don't care if we're lost, it just means we get to spend even longer together and that I don't know, maybe you should give me an extra-large piece of cheesecake." Rachel giggled, her expression turning sincere as she added, "This could have happened to anyone you know."

"I know." Santana admitted, her spirits lifting even though they were no closer to knowing where the hell they were, "But I still wanted everything to be perfect."

"And it is." Rachel stressed.

"So…I don't suck at this girlfriend stuff?" Santana probed, her eyes lighting up a little.

Rachel rolled her eyes playfully and grasping onto the other girl she halted them in their tracks, moving to stand into front of Santana she wrapped her arms around the taller girl's shoulders and allowed her body to melt into the protective embrace that greeted her, "Absolutely not."

"In that case…" Santana began as she dropped a kiss on Rachel's forehead, "I'm officially admitting defeat by reason of technical difficulties…"A playful glint in her eye, she dipped her head and drew Rachel into a kiss, her next words muffled between their lips and giggles, "But I might have spotted a little secluded area back that way…"

Rachel grinned as she pulled back; one eyebrow raised slightly, "Secluded, you say?"

"For lunch." Santana beamed innocently as she wiggled the rucksack weighing her down, winking as she added, "And sweet lady kisses."

Rachel laughed as Santana took her by the hand and tugged her back down their previous path, she had lost all track of where they were since they had turned off the main road and had been relying completely on Santana to direct them.

"Check it out." Santana announced as she edged in front to gesture to a small path trailing off to the side, "I think if we cut through here, it looks like there's a field at the end."

"Lead the way."

With a pout Santana was forced to let go of Rachel's hand, the path was much narrower than she would have liked and it wasn't particularly well kept. Her trademark short dress had seemed like a good idea back when Rachel was getting familiar with her thigh in the car, but trying to navigate down an overgrown path Santana was regretting her choice, "Watch out for these spiky things." Santana called back, kicking out and stomping down one that had scratched her leg with a victorious smile, "They hurt like hell."

Rachel grimaced as she made her way passed the trampled thorns, her eyes looking ahead to the last little bit of nettles standing between them and what looked like a nice, green field, "I'm more worried about those."

Santana stopped, her gaze flicking between Rachel and the nettles. She had to admit the path looked less than welcoming but it wasn't that bad and what lay beyond it, looked perfect.

"Do you think there's another way around?"

Santana shook her head, she had definitely reached her limited of walking and as her stomach growled, she made her decision. Slipping the bag off her shoulders she held out to Rachel, "Take this."

"What-"

Santana rolled her eyes and with a little more urgency, jiggled the bag at the other girl, "A few nettles are not going to scare me away."

"Okay." Rachel said slowly as she shifted the bag onto her shoulders, her eyes bulging at the unexpected weight. Before she had time to reprimand Santana for carrying it all day and not letting her help, the other girl had turned to stand in front of her, "San…"

"Hop on." Santana laughed, twisting her head to smile at the smaller girl as she crouched down a little, "I haven't got all day; I wants to gets my eats on."

Rachel giggled as she shook her head, "No, I am not going to-"

"It's either this or a fireman's lift." Santana interrupted, "The choice is yours, I'm not risking you getting stung or you know…losing you in all the big, tall weeds."

"Was that a height joke?" Rachel growled, her arms reaching out for Santana's shoulders. She wondered momentarily, if there was any chance she could make a piggyback graceful, "Because you are not that much taller than me."

"Get on me already." Santana snickered, "That sounded as dirty out loud as it did in my head."

Rachel slapped her arm playfully, "At least you didn't ask me to mount you." Quickly, before Santana could ask just that, Rachel hopped up and onto Santana's back, her legs wrapping around the other girl's waist she clung on for dear life. After a couple of seconds Rachel realised she had her eyes squeezed shut and opening them slowly she was please to find Santana had neither dropped her or crumpled under her, admittedly, small weight, "You're stronger than you look."

"That's what years of training with Coach Sylvester will do to you." Santana stated as she began to walk forward, her boots stomping away the weeds as much as possible.

Easing the tight grasp her arms had formed around the cheerleader Rachel relaxed, a goofy smile on her face as she let herself be carried the last of the distance, "I guess carrying little old me is nothing compared to throwing the other Cheerio's in the air."

"Actually, I'm a flyer."

Rachel blinked, her eyes falling on the back of Santana's head she frowned, "A flyer?"

"I'm normally the one getting thrown in the air." Santana explained with a laugh, her chuckle fading a little as she felt something swipe at her leg. Taking the last few steps they came to the end of the path and Santana carefully bent down to let Rachel slide off her back.

As soon as her feet touched the ground Rachel bent down to examined Santana's leg, her eyes wide and apologetic she ran her fingertips over a newly formed scratch running down the other girl's calf, "You're bleeding."

"It's nothing." Santana shrugged, the minor pain already forgotten as she helped Rachel back to her feet, "But if you are worried about me, feed me."

Rachel bit her lip in thought for a moment, then tugging Santana forward she headed towards the grass, her eyes roaming the vast expanse of green until she spotted something a few feet across from them. Taking Santana's hand she scampered towards a small stream that cut its way along through the greenery. She shrugged the heavy bag off her back and smiled as Santana quickly pulled out a blanket and tossed it down, her tired body following it gracefully.

"You made all of this?" Rachel asked in astonishment as she began pulling an assortment of containers from the bag and examining them.

Santana hummed in response as she reclined back and propped herself up on her elbows, her eyes following the food hungrily, "I can't believe I was so afraid of this." she blurted out suddenly, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment as Rachel looked up at her.

"Picnics?"

"No, not picnics." Santana chuckled as she pulled herself into a sitting position and took the container Rachel had in her hands. Placing it to one side she looked up and waved a hand between them, "This. I've always been so afraid of…everything, not just being with a girl but being with anyone. The thought of being so close to someone has always terrified me…but with you…"

"With me?" Rachel pushed, her hands fiddling together nervously on her lap as she felt her heart thudding heavily at the admission.

Santana bit her lip and with a tiny chuckle she replied, "It's not scary at all, I don't even know why I was so nervous. I mean, yeah okay I got us hopelessly lost and there is a chance we may have to build a fire and send smoke signals for help…"

Rachel laughed, "And they call me dramatic."

"But even then…it's just…it feels right being here, with you." Santana concluded, her confidence growing as Rachel shifted to sit next to her, the smaller girl's arms wrapping around shoulders as she leant for forward.

"I know exactly how you feel." Rachel whispered, her lips hovering about Santana's as she let her eyes drift shut.

Santana sighed happily as she tilted her head to meet Rachel's lips, raising one hand to stroke the other girl's cheek she let out a moan as Rachel took the opportunity to gently ease her backwards. Her back meeting the blanket Santana wrapped her arms around her girlfriend, holding her close as the kiss deepened and she felt Rachel sink into the embrace.

"Maybe being lost isn't so bad." Santana whispered with a smile as she pulled back and her eyes met Rachel's. "As long as you're here to find me."