Author's note: This chapter is a little shorter than all the others, because you guys have been fantastic to contact me and enthusiastically ask for an update. So at your request…
HER SMILE HEALS ME (Chapter 9)
Santana stepped out from inside the bathroom, "Hey, Britt…don't forget to bring a couple of those candles."
Brittany watched Santana's naked form turn back through the doorway. Her heart swelled with how much love and trust they had solidified in their relationship with this night together. She picked up two oversized, square plates that held scented candles and gingerly carried them into the bathroom where Santana was sitting on the side of the tub, filling it with water.
The tall blonde leaned over Santana to set a candle on each side of the bathtub then moved behind her, pushing her long, dark hair off one shoulder to expose the back of her neck. Brittany leaned again to kiss a light trail from the back around to the front of Santana's neck, feeling a slight tug as she was pulled into the brunette's lap for a passionate kiss.
Brittany broke the kiss and ran a caressing hand down the left side of Santana's jawline before standing again. She added some of her lavender-scented bath salt from a small jar she pulled off a shelf near the tub, mentally shaking off a sudden déjà vu flashback to prom night.
Santana lowered her arm into the warm water to help dissolve the salt, looking up to find Brittany staring into space.
"Hey, babe…what's wrong?" Santana asked.
Brittany set the jar on the shelf above her and stepped back toward Santana to put her arms around her neck. She leaned over and kissed her again, grateful for how far they had come together, "I was just thinking of how wonderful this weekend has been."
Santana stood then stepped a slender, tanned leg into the water followed by her other one, lowering herself into the warm water and pulling Brittany's hand to follow her.
The brunette leaned against the back of the tub, guiding Brittany back against her chest and wrapping her arms tightly around the blonde's waist. Santana squeezed her love as she tenderly kissed her bare shoulders, smelling the remnants of sex on her skin.
"Thank you again for tonight," Santana said sweetly.
Brittany gently splashed some of the warm water over their arms and torsos, seeing their skin glisten in the flickering, candlelit bathroom, "I just wanted tonight to be as incredible as you are."
Santana smiled broadly though Brittany couldn't see it.
Brittany sunk down into the water a little more, "This is nice."
"Uhuh…," Santana hooked her legs over the thighs of the blonde, locking her ankles, "We should do this often."
"You know what I've always wanted? One of those old, claw foot tubs…like in the movies," Brittany told her excitedly, covering Santana's arms with her own, "Maybe we'll luck out and have one of those in our apartment in New York…then we can bathe together and make love every night before we go to sleep."
"Britt, sweetie…I don't mean to rain on your romantic parade…but I think we'll probably be lucky if we have a toilet inside our apartment there."
"Really?"
"Yeah…Rachel and I were looking at this binder she put together with neighborhoods and apartment pricing in New York…it's crazy how expensive cost of living is there."
Brittany's excitement evaporated like steam from the warm water, "Oh…well…we're still going to go though…right?"
Santana hated that she zapped the blonde's enthusiasm. She squeezed her tightly again with both her arms and her legs, "Of course! We'll find a way, ok? Even if I have to work three jobs…I promise you I'll get you to New York."
Brittany squeezed back.
Santana started kissing Brittany's neck, vowing in between each kiss, "And…even if…we can't afford a tub…we can still make love…every night…before we go to sleep."
The brunette moved her hand down under the water, easily finding Brittany's folds, slipping her middle finger inside them and rubbing. Brittany started absent-mindedly rotating her pelvis to assist with the stimulation Santana was applying, rubbing her own nipples under the slickness of the bathwater. Santana replaced her light kisses with sucking on the crease of the blonde's neck and shoulder, eliciting low, guttural moans from her.
Santana moved her free hand up to squeeze one of Brittany's nipples as she sucked on her neck and rubbed her clit.
"Ohhhh…," Brittany said at Santana's three-point assault on her senses.
The Latina knew that sound meant Brittany was close to climax so she continued with a steady rhythm until the blonde went stiff in her arms under the impact of her orgasm.
After a moment of silence passed, Brittany told her, "Sorry…that was fast."
"I noticed," Santana responded with a purr in her voice.
Santana slid out from behind Brittany, the bath water sloshing slightly over the edge, and raised one of the blonde's long legs over her own head as she ducked and turned herself to face Brittany.
The Latina put her legs around Brittany's waist and pulled her closer for a long kiss. Both girls' hands moved up and down their slick bodies as their tongues moved in and out of each other's mouths.
Brittany pushed her hands downward first, breaking their kiss long enough to check with Santana, "You're sure that you're still doing ok?"
There was no hesitation from the brunette this time when she guided Brittany's hand between her legs, "…Uhuh…more than ok."
Brittany pushed two fingers inside Santana, hearing her gasp at the contact, before feeling Santana push two fingers inside her. The girls kissed and groped and rubbed and pumped each other at an almost frantic pace.
Brittany could feel that her orgasm was going to come quickly again, still feeling very stimulated, but she wanted to hold it off in order to make Santana cum so she reached down and pulled the Latina's hand away, bringing it up around her hip.
Santana started to protest but felt Brittany add a third finger and pull her even closer, the blonde's hand going deeper inside her. Other thoughts vanished from Santana's brain, and she moved her arms up and held on tightly to Brittany's shoulders as the blonde continued to pump her hand harder while rubbing Santana's pulsing clit.
Brittany knew from Santana's moans and gasps that she was on the edge, and it wasn't but a few seconds more before Brittany felt Santana bite her shoulder as an "Ohhhh godddd, Brittt…" escaped loudly. The brunette's body quivered in Brittany's arms as she held her tightly until her climax ended.
Santana laid her head on Brittany's shoulder as that sat with their wet bodies pressed tightly together. Brittany could hear Santana's breathing becoming lighter, and she kissed her on the back of the neck.
"Oh, Britt…we've got to find one of those claw foot tubs."
"Rachel, did you mention to Santana about our annual Tony Award party?" Daniel Berry asked while passing a large bowl of mashed potatoes to his daughter.
"It will be the hottest invite in Lima next weekend, Santana," Rachel told her, stabbing several green peas with her fork.
"No doubt," Santana said with a mostly-sincere grin.
"Trey, this pot roast is divine…," Daniel told his partner between bites.
"Thank you, dear…," the handsome, dark-skinned man responded, "And this year, Santana…the Tonys fall on LGBT Pride weekend."
"It'll be the closing event in my dads' pride weekend extravaganza," Rachel said, setting her fork and knife down simultaneously so she could gesture grandly.
"Yes…and…tell her the best part, Rach," Daniel prodded.
"It's black-tie only…and we all stand around, pretending we're at Sardi's at the pre-show party, and eat crudités and hors d'oeuvres…."
"Made by yours truly," Trey motioned toward himself with a smile.
"…and sip champagne out of champagne flutes…with little slices of strawberry in the bottom," Rachel described with flair.
"Then we check off our ballots as the winners are announced live," Daniel added.
"And whoever pre-selected the most winners gets a gift basket ornately-designed by my dads' friend to look like one of the presenters 'thank you' baskets…doesn't that sound fabulous," Rachel told her.
"I won last year!" Trey added excitedly.
"True…," Rachel confirmed, "…but that was only because Memphis totally robbed American Idiot!"
"It sounds…festive…for sure," Santana was actually starting to feel a little scared at the amount of enthusiasm the Berrys were sharing.
The doorbell rang.
"Oh, that should be Brittany…do you mind if I get it?" Santana asked, thankful for her girlfriend's impeccable timing, folding her cloth napkin and tucking it under the edge of her plate.
"Not at all," Daniel smiled.
As Santana approached the door, there was a light knock. She opened it and smiled broadly when she saw the tall blonde on the other side.
"Guess what, guess what, guess what…?" Brittany jumped up and down with uncontrollable excitement.
Santana laughed, pulling her inside the entryway, "What?"
The blonde presented her with a typed-written letter on white paper, holding it out in front of her with both hands clenched tightly at the edges, "I got in!"
"Into what…?" Santana was confused.
"Into Interlochen!" she clarified with a huge smile.
"…the dance camp?"
"Yeah…I got a scholarship for this summer."
"Oh, Britt…that's awesome!" Santana reached out to hug her, "I'm so proud of you."
"My parents wouldn't have been able to afford it without the scholarship so I'm really lucky."
"No…you're really, really talented, my love," Santana pulled her tight again, "…so when do you leave?"
"My mom is going to drive me up to Michigan this Sunday…I'll be there three weeks."
"Three weeks?" Santana asked sadly.
"I know, I'm going to miss you soooo much," Brittany leaned in and kissed the Latina firmly.
"Hey, Brittany," Rachel said, stepping from around the corner.
"Hey, Rachel…are you going to go with us to the movies?"
"No, no…I don't want to be a third wheel on your date," the petite brunette insisted.
"Oh, come on, sis…," Santana playfully put her arm around Rachel's shoulders, "It'll be healthy for you to spend an evening away from the dads."
"You sure?" Rachel's brown eyes lit up.
Brittany and Santana both nodded.
"Ok, just let me grab my purse and sweater!"
Santana squeezed Brittany's hand and leaned to whisper, "Whatever you do…don't mention The Tony Awards…please."
Quinn opened her front door on the fourth ring of the doorbell to find Puck standing there. "Ringing the doorbell again and again doesn't make me move any faster, you moron."
"Well, hello, Quinn…and a lovely day to you too."
"What do you want, Noah?"
Puck pulled a colorful bouquet of flowers from behind his back and smiled.
"Did somebody die?" Quinn asked dryly.
"No…they're for you," he said with a smirk.
"Why?"
"…Why not?" he pushed them closer to the beautiful blonde.
"Thanks," Quinn took them from his hand and turned unenthusiastically, "I guess I should put them in water."
"Yeah, sure, I'd love to come in…thanks" Puck responded sarcastically, stepping inside and closing the door behind him.
The tall teen walked behind Quinn as she turned left and went down a short hallway. He backed up briefly as he passed a large mirror, stopping to stroke his mohawk and the stubble on his jaw and chin to assure rugged-perfection, then he followed her path into the kitchen where she was reaching up to remove a tall, frosted-glass vase from a cupboard shelf.
"Here, let me get it for you," he moved quickly to reach over Quinn.
"Thank you," she said, taking a step backward.
Puck set down the vase on the counter near the sink while Quinn untied the string and unwrapped the brown paper from around the stems of the bouquet.
"Won't Lauren be upset to know you brought another girl flowers?" the attractive blonde asked nonchalantly as she snipped the ends off each stem with a pair of kitchen scissors.
"Not really…," Puck answered, leaning back against the kitchen island and crossing his muscular arms over his chest.
Quinn looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.
"I broke it off with her at the end of school last week," he admitted with a shrug.
"I see…," Quinn placed the trimmed bouquet into the vase, arranging some flowers higher than others and spreading them around the opening of the vase.
"Why do you say it that way?"
Quinn shrugged and flipped up the long silver handle for the faucet, holding the vase under it to fill it with water.
"I like your new haircut," he told her.
"Thanks…," she said as she turned off the water and turned to set the bouquet in the center of the large island, "…it was time for a change."
"That's more chop than change, Quinn…," he referred to her now-missing long, blonde locks of hair, replaced by a drastically shorter style.
"Well, I really like it…that's all that matters."
"I didn't mean I didn't like it…I do," he tried to clarify, "…seriously, Quinn…you could shave your head in V for Vendetta-style…and you'd still be gorgeous."
"Thanks…I think…," she gave him a small chuckle while shaking her head.
"I noticed you stopped wearing your cross ever since we got back."
"Yeah, well…a lot of good it served me last year, right…?" Quinn instinctively reached up to touch the lower part of her neck where her cross had always hung, ever since her confirmation in middle school, "…so God and I are taking a hiatus from each other."
A stillness hung in the air before Puck said, "…do you ever think about her?"
"Way more than I ever thought I would."
"Me too," he looked down and crossed his left boot over his right one, leaning further into the wood of the island.
"We made the right decision though…to let her be adopted."
"Do you ever think of us?"
"Us…?" Quinn chuckled again, but this time there was less humor in it, "…there was never any us, Noah."
"There could be…," he turned his head to look at her.
"Is that what the flowers are for?"
He shrugged, "…I just thought maybe we could try again…just a date…maybe?"
"You're sweet…and you'll always be special to me, Puck…," she moved toward him and wrapped her arms around him in a hug, "…but you know as well as I do that…what we have together…it's just friendship…let's not ruin that…ok?"
"Yeah, ok…well, you can't blame a guy for trying," he squeezed his arms around her, internally thankful that he was tall enough that she couldn't see the tears in his eyes.
Brittany took Santana's hand and pulled her around the corner of a wooden building. "Promise me that you will do fun things while I'm gone, ok?"
"I promise."
"Don't sit and mope, ok?"
"I won't," the dark-haired teen said, trying to hold back her emotions for Brittany's sake.
"I'll miss you so much,"
"You'll be so busy dancing your butt off you won't even remember my name," Santana tried to sound light-hearted.
"Impossible," Brittany put her hands on Santana's hips and inched her closer.
"I love you, Britt."
"I love you, Santana," the blonde told her, pulling her into a deep kiss.
"Girls…," Mrs. Pierce called out to them as she rounded the corner, "Oh…sorry to interrupt." The older blonde quickly turned her back to them.
"Mom…it's ok," Brittany laughed, cutting her eyes back at Santana who was grimacing.
"Santana…we need to head back now," Brittany's mom informed them, holding her arms out to her daughter, "Give me a big hug, honey…be good, have fun, and call us every day, ok?"
"Yes, I will," Brittany took Santana by the hand as they started following her mom toward the visitor parking lot.
As they reached the blue Sienna, Santana opened the passenger door and climbed in. Brittany leaned in to kiss her once again, pausing to look at her again before saying, "I'll call you tonight at bedtime."
Santana squeezed her hand again and forced a supportive smile, "You'll do great, babe…show them whatcha got!"
"Bye, honey," Mrs. Pierce said from the driver's side as she buckled her seat belt and blew Brittany a kiss.
Brittany closed Santana's door and stepped back to wave goodbye as her mom backed out of the parking space and slowly pulled away.
The car ride was silent for the first thirty minutes. Santana had hot tears forming in her eyes as she sat in the passenger side, looking out the window at the passing trees and highway signs. She was so excited for Brittany to have this opportunity to strengthen her dancing, but the Latina suddenly felt so alone. She was trying hard to hold back her emotions in an effort to avoid any awkwardness with Brittany's mom.
Mrs. Pierce looked over at the brunette teen, "You miss her already, don't you?"
Santana nodded without turning her head toward her, afraid the moisture in her eyes would give her away. She felt a firm hand pat her thigh.
"It's ok, sweetheart…three weeks will fly by…I promise."
"I hope so," Santana wiped at a tear as it finally escaped and rolled down her tanned cheek.
"Do you mind if I ask…have you spoken to your parents recently?"
The question seemed out of nowhere, "Uh…no…why?"
"I've known your mom for many years, Santana…," Mrs. Pierce assured her, "She loves you very much."
"Yeah, well…she has a really fucked up way of showing it," the dark-haired teen said bitterly then caught herself, "…oh crap…I mean…oops, sorry."
Brittany's mom laughed, "Relax…it's ok…I'm not going to wash your mouth out with soap when we get home."
Santana laughed too.
"I want you to think about giving your mom a second chance."
"You sound so sure she'd want one."
"Kids don't come with instructions, Santana. Just think about some of the struggles you and Brittany have had with coming to terms with your own sexual identity. Parents struggle too…with what generations before us have determined as right and wrong."
"But hearing your parents say how wrong you are is way worse than having a stranger tell you," her voice thick with unexpressed hurt.
Mrs. Pierce sighed deeply, "I understand they've let you down, sweetheart…I'm just suggesting you might think about reaching out to them…that's all…just food for thought."
The older woman stretched her arm out and took Santana by the hand, squeezing it gently, then reached to turn on the radio, "…Let's see if we can find a decent station to listen to."
Santana's future with Brittany and her family flashed in the Latina's mind…holidays, vacations, family get-togethers. Santana glanced over at the aging, blonde woman with sincere, blue eyes, and the teen's mind flashed forward twenty years. That's what Britt will look like, she thought with a smile. She suddenly felt less alone and instead, Santana felt something she rarely felt ever. She felt at peace.
"Hey, Burt…," Santana leaned down and yelled out over the sound of tools clanking against metal and the radio blasting a 80s rock station.
A slightly-pudgy, middle-aged man, with a ball cap smudged in grease sitting on top of his head, paused from under the car that was jacked up above him, "What?"
"I said…the phone is for you," the dark-haired teen repeated, her long pony-tail hanging as she tilted her head up under the car.
"Just tell them I'll call them back," he told her.
"I did…but it's the parts department from that import place," she said, "The guy said it was important."
Burt Hummel pushed out from underneath the car, pulling himself up from the mechanics dolly, and walked toward the side office, wiping his hands on a dirty, red cloth as he moved. He was on the phone for a couple of minutes before he hung up and said, "Ok, I've got to go over and pick up the part for that Volvo…you can hold down the fort for awhile?"
"Yeah, no problem," Santana assured him.
"I'll stop and pick up lunch on the way back…what sounds good?"
"It doesn't matter."
"Pick now…or I'll bring back burgers and fries."
"Actually, that sounds good," she said.
"Yeah? Ok, you want cheese on yours?"
"Sure…the works…but no onions."
"No onions? Come on, that's the best part…you need to eat some in self-defense if you're going to work around here, kid."
"I'll chance it…," Santana laughed at the jovial man.
"Ok, ok…but the burgers are our secret. Kurt doesn't need to know, deal?" he referred to his ever-concerned son who had been watching Burt like a hawk since he suffered a heart attack last year.
"Deal," Santana smiled.
"Tell Chuck I said to start switching out those tires on the sedan when he gets back."
"Got it."
Santana looked around the shop after Burt drove away. This was her fourth day at her summer job thanks to the generosity of Kurt's dad. She could already tell there wasn't very much for her to do around the shop other than answer the phone, hand things to Burt and Chuck occasionally, and laugh at their dumb jokes, but she was grateful that he was willing to pay her to hang around. In return, Santana was determined to take the job seriously. So each morning, she had been dressed and ready to go when Burt honked outside the Berry house. He had even given her some coveralls to claim as her own, though it had a patch with the name Rick on it. The Latina laughed as she looked down at the stained, gray jumpsuit that she had to roll up at the ankles and the arms.
Santana turned when she heard the rev of a motorcycle pulling into the small lot outside the raised door of the shop. She moved toward the large opening as its rider eased to a stop and cut off the bike's engine. The Latina waited for the rider to take off the shiny, black helmet before she approached, surprised to find it was a young girl not much older than Santana herself.
"Need help?" Santana asked as she walked toward her.
"Yeah…you work here?" the girl seemed as surprised to find Santana in mechanics coveralls as she felt to see a girl riding a sleek, electric blue street bike.
"Yes, but the owner's out right now. He should be back in like forty-five minutes."
"That's ok…do you think I could just use his pliers? This is coming loose," she pointed to some silvery thingy that Santana couldn't identify to save her life.
"Sure, why not…they keep them back over here," she guided the taller girl toward the back corner of the shop.
"I appreciate it…I just don't want to risk part of my bike flying off while I'm riding," she explained.
"Cool bike, by the way," Santana told her as she stooped down to dig through the dusty, metal box on the ground, picking up a tool and standing to hand it to the older girl.
"Thanks, I love riding it!" she said, snickering slightly, "…that's a socket wrench…I need pliers."
"Oh…," the dark-haired teen blushed, "You can just dig around for whatever you need."
Santana watched her squat to search the toolbox. She had short, light-brown hair that had some curl to it which appeared a bit untamed from the helmet she had on earlier, and she wore strategically-ripped Levi jeans with a black, motorcycle jacket. When the girl leaned over, Santana saw she had a tattoo right at the crease of her neck. It said something that Santana couldn't quite make out so, intrigued, she shifted her stance to get a better look.
"Here…," the girl stood unexpectedly, bumping right into the Latina, "Oh sorry."
"No, my fault…I was…um…just trying to see which ones the pliers were," she threw out as a cover.
The girl laughed, "So are you…the owner's daughter or something?"
"No…why?" Santana was puzzled.
"Well, because you don't know anything about cars or tools or fixing things, do you?"
"I do too…," Santana defended.
"Ohhh, I'm sorry to insult you," the taller girl said playfully, "What do you know about cars?"
"I know…where to…put in the gas…and how to find the cup holder for my coffee," Santana laughed, giving up the charade.
The girl laughed with her, sticking out her right hand for a shake and looking at Santana's name patch, "Hi…uh, Rick? I'm Cate."
Santana laughed again, and shook Cate's hand, "I prefer Santana."
"Well, Santana…if I get my coffee mug stuck in my cup holder…I know just who to call."
Santana blushed when Cate winked at her. "Let me see if I can tighten the panel on my bike then I'll get out of your way."
Santana followed her back outside and watched as she used the pliers to maneuver several sections of the blue cover panel.
As she stood there, Santana's phone buzzed inside her pocket. She pulled it out and smiled broadly when she read the text:
on a break. just thinking of you. miss you. xoxo
Cate looked up and observed, "Well, that's from someone special."
"Hmm…um, yeah…very," Santana confirmed, biting her lower lip in slight embarrassment.
"Oh, she's blushing…," Cate teased her, "…she your girlfriend?"
"Yes…," Santana answered automatically, "Wait…how did you know…I was…?"
A pause of confusion hung in the air.
"Hey, I didn't mean to offend you," the taller girl back-pedaled.
"I just didn't know I gave off...any sign," Santana wasn't sure if she was offended or not.
"Well, it's not like you have a rainbow bat signal over your head or something, Cate laughed out loud, "…I guess we all just get good at recognizing the vibe."
"You're gay?" Santana asked in awe.
The girl laughed again, handing the pliers back to the Latina, "Um…yeah."
"Did you need anything else?" Santana smiled at her.
"No, I think that fixed it…thank you."
"Sure, no problem…not like I really did much."
Cate smiled as she took her helmet off the back part of her bike, "You provided the company…so thanks."
Santana smiled up at her as Cate threw her left leg over the seat of the bike, setting the helmet on her thigh.
"Question…do you know many other lesbians, Santana?"
"Not really."
"Well, what are you doing tomorrow night?"
"Um…nothing…why?"
"You're joining me then…a friend of mine is singing at open mic night at The Lima Bean tomorrow…I play guitar for her," she told her, "…several of our friends with be there, and they'd love to meet you and your girlfriend."
"Oh, she's out of town actually."
"But…you can come though, right?"
"Sure," Santana confirmed with a smile.
"Great! It starts at eight…see you there?"
"The Lima Bean at eight," Santana nodded, watching Cate put on her helmet and start up the bike's engine. Cate gave her thumbs up before she gave the engine a quick rev then drove away.
Author's note: No worries, readers…I have already started the first scene in Chapter 10. And hang onto your hats, because Chapter 10 will be a wild ride. ;)
Please take just a moment and leave a review to tell me what you think of the story so far. I assure you feedback is vital! Thanks, KB