Hey guys, so it's chapter 5 everybody :D hope you like it!
Before you go on and read, I just wanted to give a HUUUUGE shout out to all my AMAZING REVIEWERS! you guys seriously have no idea how happy you make me! every single review makes me smile and my heart jump!
thanks sooo much, my lovelies!
now, off you go ;)
Chapter 5
"Hey dad?" I peaked around the living room door way, one hand grabbing the frame. "I'mma go to bed, okay?"
My dad looked up from the book he had been reading and smiled at me, his reading glasses reflecting the light from the fireplace. "Sure, honey. Sleep well."
"Thanks, you too." I was about to walk away to my room when he held me back.
"Ah!"
"What?" I turned back around.
"Did you say goodnight to your mother?" he raised an eyebrow, tilting his head downwards to peer at me over the rim of his glasses.
"Uh…"
"Santana!" he said indignantly.
"Ugh, come on, dad!" I exclaimed, throwing my hand into the air and taking a step into the living room. "Like she even wants me to bother her. Can't I just avoid her? Just for a little while?"
I knew I was sounding like a whiney kid, but hell she wasn't acting any better either. Why did I have to be the adult here?
He just gave me a look, not even dignifying my question with an answer and after a minute-long stare-off, I groaned loudly and rolled my eyes. "Fiiine."
My dad settled back into his armchair and smothered a soft grin. I thought I heard him murmur 'good girl' as I strode away, but I ignored him, racing up the stairs to get it over with.
When I got to my parents' room I only hesitated a second, gathering myself, before knocking quietly. After the fourth knock there was still no answer, so I tried again, a little louder. "Mum? You in there? Can I come in for a sec?"
A week ago I would have just opened the door to check if she was there, but now I didn't feel like I could do that. It felt too… familiar. As unfair as it was, my mum and I weren't that close anymore.
I was about to leave, when I heard something in the room and shortly after the door was being pulled open, only far enough to show my mother's face. There was a slight impression of the pillow on her left cheek. Judging by that and her tired, squinting eyes, she must have already been asleep.
"Oh! Uh, sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." I apologized awkwardly, taking a step back so we weren't in each other's faces.
"That's alright. What is it, mija?" she asked in a voice rough from sleep.
The endearing nickname threw me for a second, but I recovered quickly, smoothing over the surprised frown-lines on my face. "I just wanted to say good night." I told her, keeping my voice as emotionless as possible to be safe.
The smallest hint of a smile tugged at one corner of her mouth and I noticed how tired she really looked. Not just tired from having been asleep, but from the last days. Her skin was paler than usual and it wasn't because of the scarce lighting, her wrinkles were deeper, more pronounced, and her eyes wore a heaviness I had never noticed before.
Or maybe it had never been there before. I almost felt bad for her, but then I remembered that it wouldn't have to be this way if she just shook off whatever devil was riding her and acted like a real mum again.
"Good night, Santana." She leaned forward and gave me a soft peck on the forehead, simultaneously cupping my cheek gently with her right hand.
Before I could say anything more she had already softly closed the door and I was left alone in the quiet hallway, wondering once again what the heck I was supposed to be feeling.
I didn't even try to figure it out this time though, tired of the emotional rollercoaster I had been stuck on for over three days now, and just went back to my room with a shaking head. I took a detour into the bathroom to brush my teeth and get cleaned up, before returning to my own quarters. I didn't bother turning on the light and just made my way to the bed in the dark out of memory, snuggling up in it with my phone, once I had reached it.
An hour ago it had stopped snowing for the first time since my relatives had left this morning and I noticed it with relief. I had started getting anxious that my parents might be snowed in tomorrow morning and wouldn't be able to go to work, which would leave me stuck with my mum at home for another day. I wasn't grounded exactly, but my mum had made it quite clear I shouldn't go anywhere.
She had justified it by pointing out that Christmas and the following days should be family time. Bullshit, if you asked me. She just didn't want me to meet Britt, even though she had told me I wasn't allowed to anymore anyway, which still pissed me off more than her silent-treatment. I guess she didn't trust me not to go see her despite what she had said. And rightfully so. The minute she ran out of excuses and couldn't stall any longer, I would be out of here and over at Brittany's house before she could say 'grounded'.
I mean, who was she to tell me who I could and couldn't date or even hang out with? I wasn't in kinder garden anymore. It wasn't like she could still choose my friends for me, and she sure as hell had no right to meddle in my relationship with Brittany, least of all tell me to end it.
No, I really didn't want to have to spend another day constantly controlling my anger and emotions with her and having her play me hot and cold. I mean, what the fuck was that just now anyway? 'Mija'? Did she really just address me by that pet name and then even smile at me? Ella es loca! Jesus!
I grunted softly and tugged my blanket closer around myself, leaving only a little space in front of my face as I lay on my side. It looked a little like an igloo or cave from my head to the mattress and I cradled my phone there, squinting at it as the lit-up screen almost hurt my eyes.
Ten past eleven. Still early enough for Brittany to text back if I write her now.
My fingers were a little stiff from the cold and from the fact that I was partly lying on my left arm, cutting off the blood supply to my hand, but after repositioning myself slightly, blowing on them for a minute and then rubbing them together to warm them up, they flew over the tiny buttons, composing the message.
'hey babe. I talked to my dad earlier and he said they'd both go back to work tomorrow! Yay! Want me to come over or do you wanna meet somewhere else? :*'
I pressed 'send' and smiled warmly. I couldn't wait to see her again. Like, I seriously couldn't wait. My stomach had been feeling fluttery since I had weaseled the information that I'd be free tomorrow out of my dad.
He'd been a little preoccupied balancing a pile of books as he was reorganizing his study, and hadn't even noticed me slipping in the question whether or not he and mum were going back to work tomorrow between my rant about the school cafeteria and a joke uncle Julio had told me before he had left.
Distractedly, he had answered yes and from that moment on I'd had a hard time hiding the grin on my face. I was gonna get to see Brittany tomorrow. Finally. And it would be amazing.
My phone bla-blinged with an incoming message and I quickly opened it.
(11:13 pm)
' Cool! my parents and emily are home but you should totally come over! :**'
I bit my lower lip and felt my heart speed up at her double kiss smiley. God, she's so cute!
Hurriedly, I texted back.
'Okay cool! I'll be there around ten or something? –
I hesitated. Was that too early? Was I pushing myself onto them and disrupting their family Christmas? I deleted my last sentence and instead wrote, 'When should I come over? Ly'
Happier with my message now, I sent it and then waited for her answer, already dreamily imagining what we could do tomorrow.
With her parents there any really sexy stuff would regretfully have to wait, but maybe we could sneak off to her room for a little while and at least make out or cuddle on her bed. I missed her so much and it felt like if I didn't touch her soon I would implode. Seriously. I needed her. Needed to connect with her again and the waiting was making me edgy and grumpy.
My heart sped up when my phone made the message sound again and vibrated strongly in my left hand.
(11:17 pm)
'How soon can you be here?!'
The biggest grin spread over my face as I re-read Brittany's text. She sounded just as urgent as me, even having forgotten to add a cute smiley at the end like she usually did, and I hummed deep in my throat as I thought of her being as impatient as me to be together again. My skin tingled pleasantly as the images flooded my mind.
Brittany's eyes sparkling as she saw me, Brittany's lips parting just the tiniest bit, expectantly, wanting me, her head moving towards me because she just couldn't help i- Stop! Jeez, get a grip! I just said no hanky-panky with her parents there. I mean, not that we ever let that stop us, but somehow it's different now…right?
Suddenly a thought struck me. Had she told her parents about us yet? Did they know we had been sleeping together for quite a while now? Did they know anything? Did they approve? How did they react?
"Shit!" I hissed, my eyes widening. Why had I never thought to ask Brittany about that? I'm too fucking self-centred! That's why!
Coursing myself, I stared at the phone, trying to figure out what to write. After a second of battling with rising panic, I managed to calm down however, reminding myself that Brittany would have told me if anything bad had happened with her parents and she surely wouldn't have invited me to see all of them tomorrow if they weren't okay with us.
Or maybe she hasn't even told them yet!
I concentrated back on the phone and typed, 'Okay, I'll be there around 9 or something depending on when my parents leave for work. Do ur parents know about us?'
It wasn't even a minute until the reply came.
(11:23 pm)
'Yay! Can't wait. What do you mean? :*'
(11:23 pm)
'I mean, do they know that you and I are girlfriends?'
(11:25 pm)
'Um, yeah. I thought that was okay. Should I not have told them? I'm sorry!'
I blew out a breath of relief but hurried to write back. I didn't want Brittany to think she had done anything wrong. I had told her she could tell her parents and I had meant it, I had just wanted to know if she already had.
(11:25 pm)
'No of course that's okay! I just didn't know if you had already told them. Sorry I never asked. How did it go? :*'
We texted back and forth for a while, Brittany telling me that Robert and Anna had been thrilled but hadn't seemed too surprised about our relationship - she said she didn't want to tell me about it because she didn't want me to feel sad about my mum again – and me reassuring her that I was fine and then moving on to the topic of possibly meeting up with Quinn and Fernando after New Year's. We also discussed what we should do on the date itself and Brittany informed me that she had received an e-mail from Rachel saying she was invited to a New Year's Eve party at hers.
(00:13 am)
'You should have gotten 1 too, she said everybody in Glee club was invited.'
(00:14 am)
'Maybe I did. You know I almost never check my emails. Do you wanna go?'
(00:16 am)
'yeah. I mean could be fun right? Her last party was pretty cool.'
I thought for a second but had to agree. After the initial rocky start Berry wasn't too bad at throwing a decent party. Especially if we had Puck to score us some hard liquor.
(00:18 am)
'Yeah I guess you're right. Do you know if puck's coming?'
Last I had heard he was visiting his cousin in Santa Fe over Christmas, or Hanukkah as it was for him, and I didn't know if he was back yet.
(00:19 am)
'I think so. Rachel pacifically wrote that there would be all kinds of alcohol.'
I grinned at her word mix-up, feeling like things in my life finally made sense again. Brittany and I were up late texting, she was beyond cute and mixing up words, and we were talking about a party to look forward to with Puck bringing the booze. This is how it should always be!
Yawning loudly, I responded to her last text.
(00:20 am)
'It's 'specifically'. Not 'pacifically', babe. That's the ocean. Or peaceful I think. Anyway. That's cool then! Rachel's party is officially a go!'
Another yawn forced my mouth apart as Brittany's quick reply announced itself.
(00:21 am)
'Oh right thanks. Okay I'll cpr her that we'll be there :D'
This time I had to laugh out loud, but didn't bother to correct her. I just beamed at the text and wrote back that I couldn't wait to see her later and that I loved her.
We said good night and then I tiredly put the phone onto my night stand, another yawn rippling through me and bringing tears to my eyes. Geez, I'm so fucking tired!
I closed my heavy lids and snuggled into my pillow, loving the softness and warmth that beckoned me to sleep.
With Brittany on my mind as I fell into the land of dreams, it was no wonder that they were full of love and laughter and the feeling of coming home.
The next morning I awoke to my parents' aggravated arguing. They were shout-whispering at each other in the hallway just outside my bedroom as I groggily sat up in my warm bed, feeling a little disoriented, and strained to hear what they were fighting about.
"-not going to leave her in the house alone, Hector! She's still confus-"
"She is not confused, Maria! She is a seventeen year old girl in lo-."
"Ay, dios mio! I can't talk to you like this! This is ridiculous! How can you even- how can you defend her? This- this is malo!"
My heart pounded in my chest as my mother's footsteps went off and down the stairs with my dad's right behind them.
"Maria! Maria!"
For a second I was frozen in bed, fighting the remaining sleepiness and the shock that kept me in place, before I jumped out from under the covers, not even noticing the cold despite the fact that I shivered, and crept over to the door.
As quietly as possible I opened it and peered outside. No sight of my parents, but I could hear their voices coming from downstairs.
On barefooted tip-toes I sneaked to the first floor landing and chanced a glance over the banister. When I still couldn't see them or discern what they were saying, I tried to walk down the stairs without making a sound.
The two times when the carpet covered wood beneath my feet creaked loudly, I flinched and ducked my head, but my parents didn't seem to hear it.
I made it to the broad, doorless frame between the kitchen and the living room undetected and crouched down next to it. It was colder there and slowly I felt the lack of heat as I wasn't preoccupied with sneaking around anymore. Wrapping my arms and hands that were covered by my too big, snuggly night hoodie around myself, I stayed as quiet as possible and listened in to their conversation.
My parents were still arguing and, judging by what I could hear as they walked around and continued talking, moving from the living room through the dining room into the conservatory and back during their banter.
"- can't just call in sick, you already said you'd be back to work today."
"That was before I knew that I can't leave my child alone at home!"
Oh no! Uh, come on! She's not really gonna stay home, is she!?Fuck!
"Maria, that's ludicrous! Of course you can leave her at home."
My dad's voice wasn't as agitated as my mum's but I wasn't fooled. Even though he didn't outwardly show it as much as her, he was equally pissed. I could tell from the amount of words he spoke alone. Usually my dad was more of a listener and thoughtful watcher during an argument.
"Oh really!" My mum's sarcasm bit so harshly that I pressed myself closer to the wall, the feeling that she'd burst into the kitchen, practically fuming with fury, creeping over me mercilessly.
She didn't however. For now.
"God, Hector! Am I the only one who is concerned about our daughter here? You act like you don't even care what becomes of her!"
"Maria!" my dad's voice held a clear warning and had it been directed at me, I was sure I would have blinked and looked away. Maybe even mumbled an apology. But my mum was undeterred.
"No, Hector! If it were up to you she and Brittany would probably be up in her room right now and –" even across the distance I heard the catch in her voice that stopped her from going on, and I could imagine the disgusted expression on her face. I closed my eyes to shut out that image and clenched my jaw to keep myself calm, willing my heart to slow down so they wouldn't hear it racing in the other room.
I heard them walk towards where I was hiding and prayed they wouldn't come into the kitchen. But it was only two or three steps and then they suddenly stopped.
As I heard some rustling I knew they were closer now, probably in the living room again, next to the table just around the corner, and I held my breath.
"Stop. Just stop it." My dad said, exasperation and compassion both evident in his voice. "I understand that you don't want this for her, Maria, but this is not the way. You can't make her do anything. You know that as well as I do. She's our daughter after all." He sounded calmer now, less tense and more in control. I heard another few steps and then a soft sob.
"Shh, come here."
My dad must have pulled my mother into his arms because when she spoke next her voice, already distorted by her obvious tears, sounded muffled and I could barely make out her words.
"I just don't know what to do. I just don't know how to convince her to change her mind about this."
My dad hummed and I heard the stroking motions as he probably soothed his hands over her back.
"It's not like that Maria. She can't just decide not to be who she is. You know that, mi amor." His voice, too, was quieter now and harder to understand. It took my mum a couple of minutes to respond and it gave me time to evaluate my situation.
Should I try to sneak back upstairs? I really don't wanna listen to this bullshit anymore. It's just her crying about how unfair everything is and how hard her life is and how horrible it s to have a daughter like me and my dad comforting her. I can think of better things to do than listen to that. Besides, if she catches me eavesdropping it'll just give her an excuse to ground me or something.
I was about to quietly push away from the wall when my mum said something.
"I know."
I froze.
As her words carried to me, their meaning unfolding in my mind, first in slow motion, then in fast forward, I gasped in a breath.
She knows?
Her words repeated over and over in my voice, so fragile and wavering, broke my heart. It actually physically hurt me to hear so much pain in those two words, and I could practically feel the throbbing pain in my own chest and throat. She knows. But if she knows, then why-
"But I can't! I just can't! She's not strong enough, Hector! She's not- they'll eat her alive! She'll never be happy and then we'll lose her!" it wasn't just sobs anymore, my mum's heartfelt crying filled the room and I felt my own lip quiver and my eyes sting with tears.
'She's just scared… for you.'
Brittany's words echoed in my head and I pressed my lips together to hold in a sob. I had known that she had been right the minute she had said it, in theory, but to hear it like this- to hear the fear, the paralyzing fear in my mother's voice, made it real. Only now it truly sank in and made sense to me, how this kind of fear could make her fight me so hard on this. Or, in her mind, fight for me so hard.
"Ah, honey, but she is." My dad sounded almost as if he would laugh. "She is so very strong that daughter of ours." He soothed. "And yes, it won't be easy, but that's not a choice she gets to choose, mi corazòn. She can't change who she is inside anymore than we can, and if we try it'll only hurt her. And us. If we try to change who she is, we would be telling her that who she is now isn't good enough for us. That we don't love her unconditionally and that, Maria, is worse than anything the people out there in the world could ever do to her."
For a while I heard nothing except her crying and his whispered words of comfort that were to low and quiet for me to understand over my own stifled sobs. My head was numb. I couldn't make sense of what I had just heard. The heart-crushing feelings that were rolling over me took every cell in my body to feast on and left nothing in me to ponder over the meaning of what had been said. I couldn't think, couldn't wonder, couldn't hope.
For a few minutes I just felt.
Then my body reclaimed itself, chasing away the overwhelming emotions and waking up my brain, as my left leg began to cramp up, sending a shooting pain through me that instantly brought me back.
I wanted to curse so bad and only barely managed to hold it in. I tried to shift my weight onto the other foot without making noise, my cheeks still wet from my tears and my palms aching where I had pressed my fingernails into them.
I managed to slide a little further down the wall until I was properly sitting on the floor, but suddenly I froze. My dad had stopped murmuring soothing words to my mum and I strained to hear if they were moving towards me. Had they heard me shift?
I couldn't make out any footsteps though, and after a second my dad spoke again, his voice so full of emotion that it temporarily stunned me into forgetting how overwhelmed I was still feeling.
"I know how much you love her. I know how much it hurts you to think of all the pain and suffering she'll have to go through because of who she is and who she loves, Maria. But you can't protect her from it like this. By trying to force her to be different you are the one hurting her, my love. I know you only want the best for her and so do I, but what she needs from us isn't guidance. It's love and trust. Trust her that she will find her way. She's already passed the hardest part."
My mum's voice, although free of tears, was still tiny and I couldn't make out what she was saying, but I guessed it was the same question I had. What's the hardest part?
"She's found herself." He said gently. "Now all she has to do is stay true to that and all we have to do, is try our best to support her however we can."
For a moment she was quiet and I noticed I was holding my breath again, but this time out of apprehension rather than fear of being found.
"How?"
It was just one word, but it felt like a punch in the lungs. My mouth opened but I couldn't draw in any air and my stomach constricted so painfully that I almost doubled over. Silent tears ran from my eyes again. She was coming around.
This was the moment. This was it. She was coming around.
And then my lungs demanded what they needed and the air rushed in with a choking breath.
She was coming around.
My mum was coming around and everything would be fine.
Somehow I had managed to sneak back up into my room without my parents noticing. There I crawled back into bed and curled up, pulling my too long sleeves over my freezing feet to warm them up.
My back was to the door and when I heard a light knock I pretended to be asleep. I couldn't deal with either of them right now, still feeling too emotionally raw to do anything but lie in bed and wait for the giant waves inside me to calm down enough or me to think.
A second later I heard the door open and then my dad whispered, "Santana? Are you awake?"
I didn't react. I just lay as still as possible without seeming too tense. It seemed way harder than when I wasn't so messed up. Usually I was good at pretending to be asleep. At least my parents had next to never called me on it.
Even though I felt like I was being painfully obvious, my dad just closed the door again and soon I heard him and my mum get ready for work.
I barely moved a muscle until I heard the front door open and shut about forty minutes later and then two cars as they drove off.
I lay still for a little while longer, feeling frozen in the position I had held for such a long time, until I tore myself out of the depths of my blank mind.
Blinking twice, I stiffly rolled over until I was lying flat on my back, staring at the ceiling.
Wow.
I didn't know what to think. Was this a good thing? It was, wasn't it? My mum had sounded like she would be trying to accept me from now on.
He had done it. My dad had managed to shake her and wake her up and convince her that I wasn't the one that needed to change.
Yes, it was definitely good.
But what would happen now? Was I allowed to see Brittany again? Officially, I mean. Was she even welcomed back? Did this mean I could bring her over again?
What does this mean? God, this is…it's…
Is it huge? Should I feel like this is something huge? I mean, technically it's just going to become the way it was supposed to be all along, right? It shouldn't be a big deal, because she should have accepted it in the first place, right?
But she hadn't. She hadn't accepted it at first and now…
Now it'll get better!
As that thought really sank in I felt a warmth spread out from the centre of my stomach. It was small at first, but soon it spread all throughout my body, racing down my veins until every last cell of me was alive and tingling with excitement and happiness.
Barely containing an exhilarated squeal, I jumped out of bed for the second time this morning and then quickly grabbed my phone from my night stand.
I hit number one on speed dial and held the phone to my ear.
After four rings she finally answered.
"Santana?" her voice was a little rough and I immediately checked my alarm clock. Almost seven. Whoops. Well, it's not too bad. Brittany's a morning person anyway.
"Hey babe!" I said cheerfully, noticing that my own throat scratched as well, but three words in it smoothed out. "Sorry, did I wake you?"
There was a little cute grunt and I heard her cover rustle in the background. "Yeah, but it's okay. What's uuuuh-" she yawned and then cleared her throat sounding a little more awake. "Sorry, what's up?"
The smile that was already plastered on my face widened. "They're gone! Mum and dad just went to work." I know I sounded more excited than would make sense to her since I had already told her that my parents would go back to work today, but I didn't want to tell her about the news with my mum yet. I didn't want to discuss something important like that over the phone if I'd get to see her soon anyway and could tell her in person.
Another yawn. "That's great. Um, nobody's really up yet, but if you want you can come over and snuggle in bed with me, I'll let you in." she suggested sweetly and my heart pounded at the idea. I couldn't think of anything I would rather do, but I shook my head anyway, laughing a little when she sneezed like she did every morning.
"That's alright, Britt. I gotta shower anyway. I'll just come over after I've had some breakfast okay? Let's saaay, in about an hour?" I asked, walking across my room and into the hall.
"Yeah, okay, sure. Just ring me when you're here okay? I don't know when they'll get up today."
Brittany's family were a lot like me, sleeping-habit wise, and they enjoyed lying in almost as much as I did. Well, all of them but Brittany. She was usually the first one awake, except on the days Emily had something fun planned which always made the littlest Pierce get up at an ungodly hour before any of the others.
"Gotcha. I'll call you when I'm there. Love you!"
"Love you, too. See you later."
I hung up and skipped into the bathroom, where I put the phone onto the counter and took off my compfy clothes. Before I stepped into the shower I put on one of my 'fun' playlists on my phone and then sang along with it as I showered and got ready.
This was gonna be a good day.
I got to Brittany's house a little before eight and was glad to see that most of the lights were still out. Only from Brittany's room a small light shone down to greet me as I parked my car behind her dad's in the drive way.
If someone had ever told me that I would voluntarily be up before dawn and driving through the snow on a cold winter's morning, during school holidays nonetheless, I probably wouldn't have believed it myself, but here I was.
I had even had a little breakfast that didn't only consist of coffee for a change. When I had gotten to the kitchen I had immediately noticed the plate on the table. Two cinnamon rolls had been on it and a note tucked underneath.
Good morning, Santana,
Your mum and I left early for work and didn't want to wake you. We thought you should have breakfast for once. We'll be home around six. It would be great if you could take the trash out before that.
There's some Lasagna in the freezer, see to it that you don't eat pizza and nachos for lunch again.
Have a great day, honey.
See you later,
Love dad
The short letter had only brightened my day even more. There was nothing about 'stay in the house' or anything which made me think that my dad had really gotten through to my mum. Like, really gotten through, to the point where she didn't insist on keeping me away from Brittany at all costs.
That made me beyond happy. So happy, that I had even eaten one of the cinnamon rolls right then. The second one was in a little lunch bag in my big purse. I had saved it for Brittany.
Grabbing the purse from the passenger seat, I opened my door and stepped out of the car.
The sun hadn't come up yet but it wasn't completely dark anymore either. The faintest hint of light already illuminated the horizon and made everything seem in a state of change.
I felt it in my heart too, the change. And as I walked up to Brittany's house, my coat and the lingering warmth from the car keeping the cold at bay, I felt excited and content at the same time in the face of things to come.
My mum would accept us sooner or later, I was sure of it, and then my life would finally be complete. It would be perfect.
Some aspects already are, I thought, as I took the spare key out of my purse. Thankfully I had remembered to take it with me so Brittany wouldn't have to get up from her cozy bed to open the door for me.
I quietly opened the door after stomping my feet on the welcome mat so I wouldn't carry the snow with me into the house, and closed it just as carefully behind me.
At once I noticed that there was a light on somewhere downstairs, sparsely lighting up the hallway I was in and part of the stairs. Maybe Brittany had heard my car and already gotten up?
I bent and pulled off my slightly wet boots and then hung my coat next to Brittany's, before going to check it out. The light was coming from the kitchen so I went into the living room which you had to go through to get to it.
As there was no door between the kitchen and the living room just like in my house, I immediately saw that it wasn't Brittany who was making coffee by the looks of it.
"Oh, hey, Santana! You're here early." Anna greeted me with a surprised smile. "I thought I heard the door."
"Uh, yeah. I hope it was okay. I still have that spare key Britt gave me once, I just thought-"
"Of course, of course! That's what it's for." She waved me off and then indicated a place at the table. "Want some coffee?"
"No thanks, I already had some at home." I declined, but sat down anyway, placing my purse on the chair next to me.
Anna nodded to show that she had heard me as she turned her back to me and stretched to get down a cup from the shelf. "So-" she said, her voice a little strained as she got up to her tip-toes, before she retrieved a bright yellow one and set in onto the counter. "Does Brittany know you're here?"
"Yeah, I called her like an hour ago and asked if it was okay if I came over a little earlier. My parents are going back to work today and I just, I don't know-"
"Wanted to see your girl." She smiled and winked at me over her shoulder before pouring herself some coffee from the pot.
I was glad she looked away again because I wasn't sure the dim light would hide my burning cheeks. "Uh, well…"
Anna gave a little chuckle. "We know about you and Brittany, dear. I'm sure she told you?"
She took her cup and walked over to sit opposite me, crossing one thigh over the other and blowing on her coffee.
"Yeah, she did." I said, not knowing what else to add. I wanted to tell her that I was glad and relieved that they were obviously so okay with it, but I didn't know how to.
Anna was watching me, her eyes as bright as Brittany's, even though the blue in them was a shade lighter even than my girlfriend's. The hint of a smile was still playing around the corners of her mouth, making her whole face seem soft and warm.
Brittany and her mum looked rather alike in general I thought, as I took in Anna's oval shaped face and her long blonde hair which was currently gathered up in a loose bun. They were about the same height too, I knew, and they had a similar figure, although of course Brittany was still a little more athletic and her hips were narrower.
But all in all they were quite obviously closely related. Mother and daughter, most people they met guessed correctly, and some even thought them to be sisters much to Mrs. Pierce's delight.
It was more than just their appearances though, that they had in common. They both had that warmth inside of them that shone out through their faces and gestures and immediately made anyone in their presence feel special and welcomed. And of course the sparkling blue eyes.
I remembered being nervous the first time I came around to Brittany's house, but when Anna had looked at me with those blue eyes, that held the same joy and capturing sparkle as Brittany's did, I had felt calmer at once- Had felt like I had nothing to be afraid of here, that this was a safe place where I wouldn't be judged for the color of my skin or my Hispanic roots or anything.
Those eyes still looked at me the same way and as I looked back at them, I stopped worrying.
"I'm glad she told you." I said honestly. "I'm glad you know."
Anna's small smile turned into a real one and she reached over with her right hand to take mine. I grasped it gently and smiled as well.
"I'm glad, too. And Bob and I are so very happy for you." She squeezed my hand as she said it and then patted it motherly. "But you know, that means that Robert will have to give you the speech soon."
What?
"Speech?" I asked a little uneasy, shifting in my chair. Was this going to be some 'new rules' thing like my dad had said? Where we had to keep the door open at all times or something? I frowned a little at that thought.
"Oh yes! The father-boyfriend speech. Well, girlfriend in this case obviously." She drew her hand back and sipped from her coffee, the aroma wafting over to me as I nervously pressed my thumb against every finger in turn.
"Um, I'm not sure what…"
Finally she broke out into a grin that told me not to look so freaked. "Well, he's gotta give you the intimidation speech about how he will hunt you down if you ever break his little girl's heart." She said, laughing lightly and circling her hands around the cup.
Seriously? I relaxed a little, but not completely. Even though Anna apparently found the thought rather entertaining I couldn't help but feel a little apprehension at the thought of being threatened by my girlfriend's father. Even if it was Mr. Pierce.
"Okay, um, thanks for the warning." I said, trying to sound a little sarcastic as if I found it funny as well.
"Sure. Just don't let on that you know it's coming. He's been looking forward to that since Brittany told us the two of you are a couple." She said with a loving smile and a little shake of her head. "He's been practicing it on me in fact." She informed me and couldn't hold back another chuckle. "That man…" she added adoringly.
Then she took a breath and stood up and walked over to the kitchen counter to fill up her cup, leaving me feeling a little high-strung.
"Now go on, she'll be waiting for you." Anna said warmly, her left hand shooing me in the direction of the stairs.
I grinned wistfully as the prospect of seeing Brittany and cuddling with her filled me with excitement. "Yeah. Right." I said, standing up and taking my purse from the other seat. Before I walked off, however, I turned around, fingering the leather straps of my bag. "Um, and thanks. You know, for-"
"Yeah yeah! Go!" Anna urged, chuckling and shaking my head as I finally turned around and speed-walked out of the kitchen, which was by now lit up by the morning sun that peeked out from behind the clouds.
I jogged up the stairs and sneaked into Brittany's room, not wanting to wake Emily or Mr. Pierce as I did so.
"You're here!" I whirled around at Brittany's excited squeal, beaming big as I could only just get a glimpse of soft golden hair before two strong arms flung themselves around my neck and Brittany's body was pressed against mine.
"Hey." I greeted back, not managing more as my heart was already hammering inside my chest and my breathing came out a little sporadic.
Finally she was in my arms again and I held her as tight as possible as my senses got over flooded with Brittany.
Her unique, delicious scent embraced me and I took a deep breath to take as much of it in as I could, getting light-headed from the sweetness of it. Her soft but strong body melded against mine and I still wanted her closer, always closer. Her brilliant blue eyes laughed as she tilted her head back to look at me and I fell into them until I was lost in her. And her mesmerizingly soft, pink lips beckoned to me until I gave in and kissed her.
The kiss felt like we hadn't seen each other in months, not merely four days. It was bruising and I couldn't get enough. I pressed my lips against hers as if I wanted them to stick together forever, but she pushed against me just as powerfully, her right hand wandering from my back up to my neck, where she grabbed a fistful of my hair and pulled me closer.
The subtle sparks of pain ignited a fire that raced down my spine until the pit of stomach was burning. I moaned against her and my mouth opened a little to catch my breath. Brittany's lips reclaimed mine in a second, impatient, demanding, and when she bit my lower lip possessively, my knees almost gave out and my nipples hardened against her chest.
"Fuck, Britt…" I choked out, as she walked me backwards until my back hit something hard.
"I missed you so much." She purred and then her lips were on my neck, sucking right where my pulse was hammering against my soft skin. I hummed weakly, craning my neck so she could do whatever she wanted to with me and held onto her tightly.
She moved her nose lightly over my neck, drawing in a breath, and I shivered in anticipation. It made me wild when she wanted me like this, took me in like she couldn't get enough.
I wanted her to press her thigh between mine to answer the pulsing ache in my clit, but instead she slowed us down. She gently nibbled on my earlobe and released a bit of the pressure she held against me so that I wasn't pressed against the door as much anymore.
A shaky sigh showed my disappointment and she chuckled softly before giving me a quick peck on the lips and then stepping back completely until we weren't touching anymore.
I still felt unbelievably worked up, my heart going a thousand miles minute, and pressed against the door as subtly as possible to steady myself.
Brittany looked pretty hot and bothered herself though, her eyes darker than usual as her pupils almost eclipsed the blue in them and her cheeks almost as red as her kiss-swollen lips.
I also noticed with a smug smirk that her chest was heaving just as fast as mine and that her nipples showed prominently through her tight, raglan shirt. I wanted to take them into my mouth and suck until she begged me to take her, but I held back. Barely.
"Well, that was a nice hello." I said with an open smile when I was sure of my voice again.
She grinned and bit her lip, making me press mine together to not jump her again. I really need to get over that 'not trusting myself to sleep with her' thing! And fast!
She didn't say anything, just continued to look at me with those hungry eyes. For a moment we just stared at each other and I felt my heartbeat everywhere.
Then she finally looked away and I wasn't sure if I was relieved or disappointed at the loss of connection.
She only glanced at the floor for a second though, a small smile on her lips, and then she looked at me again. It was still nerve wrecking how she did that. The soul-staring, I mean.
"So, you sounded really happy on the phone." She said, her eyes asking more than her words did.
I nodded even before I spoke. "Yeah." I couldn't help but grin. "I got some good news."
"Yeah?" she asked curiously.
"Mhm." I smirked, leaving her hanging.
She stared at me and when I didn't answer she raised her eyebrows. "Well, what is it?"
"My mum's coming around." I exclaimed, barely containing my excitement. I was still leaning against the door, but I wanted to push away from it and hug her so desperately. I didn't though, because I didn't want to talk about anything else but us when I did that. I wanted to tell her about my mum and then hug her and then snuggle with her on the bed, my mind blissfully free to think of nothing but her.
"Huh?" the little wrinkles on her nose as she frowned made my heart do a flip.
"She's coming around to accepting that I'm gay." I clarified with a little tilt of my head.
Brittany's face was comical. Her mouth fell open and her eyes grew big, before a huge smile spread from one ear to the other and she threw her hands up, freezing with her fingers spread as if she were holding a giant ball.
"Oh my god! That's amazing! Wh- but since when?" she asked breathlessly, her eyes switching between mine unblinkingly.
"I overheard them fight this morning, my dad and her, and then I eavesdropped and she was like 'I only wanna protect her from what's out there' and my dad-" I swallowed as the emotions caught up with me from hearing him defend me like that, "He told her that she was the one hurting me and that they needed to be there for me and love me and support me," I repeated his words with a think voice, heavy from happy tears that gathered in my eyes, "and then she- she just asked 'how'? She didn't object or anything, she just asked him how she could help me." I finished and then sniffled a little as a single tear rolled down my cheek.
Brittany's eyes were swimming too and my heart swelled at her compassion and love for me.
"That's great!" she said again and when her voice caught on the last word I just had to hug her.
I quickly pulled her close to me and as soon as I had her securely in my arms I felt her chest construct with a silent sob of happiness. My own tears ran freely now as well, and I let them, because I was safe with her as I was with no one else.
We didn't let go of each other for several minutes.
"I missed you." I hushed again, stroking a strand of Brittany's blonde hair behind her ear.
We were lying in her bed under the covers, me still fully clothed and her in her pyjamas, facing each other and just looked and touched and smiled.
"Me too." She said quietly and inched her head forward on the pillow, an invitation I gladly answered with a gently kiss.
Sighing happily I eased my head back until I could watch her again. Her eyes ran over my face and collarbone, lingering every now and then, before finally fixating on mine.
"I ran into your mum downstairs." I told her, playing with the little bow on the collar of her raglan night shirt.
"Really? I didn't hear her get up." She said. Her fingers walked up and down my left side and I shuddered when she teased under the hem of my shirt.
"Yeah. We talked a little." I said on a breath.
Brittany wore a lazy smile. "What about?" she asked, her eyes watching her own fingers as they nudged my shirt a little higher until she could smooth them over the little dip of my waist.
"Us." I answered, my breath quickening and my abs contracting jerkily as she trailed a single finger over them.
"She said she's happy for us." I said quietly, my skin starting to tingle all the way up to my breasts.
Brittany just hummed and flattened her hand against my stomach, pushing softly until I relented and let myself roll back onto my back.
Heart galloping in my chest, I lay my arms on either side of my body, holding really still and watching Brittany's face as she pulled my shirt even higher until it bunched up just underneath my bra.
"What else did you talk about?" she asked in a low voice, eyes briefly flickering up to my face before she concentrated back on the slow patterns her fingers drew on me. Burned into my skin, more like.
It took me two fast breaths to answer, my head spinning as she scratched lightly and my abs twitched at her mercy. "Your dad giving me the boyfriend-speech."
Her movements stopped. "The what?" she asked amused, finally looking up at me with laughing eyes.
"The boyfriend speech. You know, where he tells me he'll hurt me if I'll ever hurt you." I said hastily, gulping the last part of the sentence as I got impatient for her to continue her ministrations.
She laughed. "Really? That's hilarious."
I just nodded quickly. "Yeah, I guess."
Impatience was something I would have to work on hiding, because Brittany loved teasing me and whenever she noticed that I was getting restless I'd be in for a small torture.
"I wish I could be there." She said, still chuckling, and then she finally continued to lightly scratch over my abs. They responded to her like waves to the moon, falling and rising at her command.
She obviously enjoyed the power she had over me as she smirked when I sucked in a little breath when she dipped under the waistband of my bright blue jeans, my lower abdomen jerking violently and my nipples hardening against my bra.
I was breathing heavy and felt the need to close my eyes, but I fought it, wanting to keep watching her.
A door and then footsteps startled us, and a second later Brittany stilled her hand as we heard her dad walk past her bedroom door on his way downstairs.
"Shit." I murmured frustrated. I didn't know what I had been expecting, but now it became clear again that nothing more than teasing could happen either way.
"Soon." Brittany promised, correctly interpreting my frown, and kissed me until I struggled for breath.
"Yeah." I swallowed dryly as I watched her get out of bed. "Real soon, though!"
She grinned at the serious urgency in my voice and winked at me as she pulled on a pair of comfortable dark green training pants she always wore to hip hop practice.
That stirred something in the back of my mind. The last time we had talked about her dance class something had bothered me.
Patricia! We talked about 'Trish'.
Suddenly the jealous feeling I had pushed to the back of my mind reared its ugly head again and I locked my jaw to shove it away again.
It wouldn't budge however, as hard as I tried, and I had a bad feeling that it would get me into trouble with Brittany sooner or later.
So that's it :)
Hope you enjoyed their reunion. About time, don't you think?
Can't wait to read what you all have to say about this chapter.
Thanks so much, for reading so loyally, my darlings :*
Love you all :}
Spanish:
Ella es loca – she's crazy
-malo - wrong