After the next couple of months slowly passed by, I was ecstatic when the final school bell rang, officially signaling the beginning of summer. I cannot tell you just how excited I am because in just a few short hours, Santana will be here! Not only that, but she'll be here for about a month and a half. After that, I'll be flying back to Seattle with her to spend the rest of the summer there.
After discussing it with our parents, San and I decided that she would spend the beginning of summer in Lima, that way she had the chance to hang out with all of our friends. Then, to make it fair so that she got to spend some time with her dad as well, I agreed to come back home with her. I really liked the idea of having some significant time alone with Santana without our other friends vying for her attention. Plus, Mr. L is a hoot so I definitely don't mind hanging out with him too.
Once Santana arrived in Lima later that evening, we spent the rest of the time catching up. And when I say catching up, I mean making out (insert wink here). Feeling her soft lips against mine just made everything in the world feel right again. Kissing Santana is seriously one of my most favorite things in the whole world. And getting to rest my head against her fluffy chest pillows ain't too shabby either.
Unfortunately for us though, the fun had to end sometime.
Whenever Santana came to visit during Christmas, my parents allowed her to stay with us, in my bedroom. However, since she would be staying for much longer this time, my mom and dad said that she had to sleep downstairs on the air mattress. This made me a very sad panda. They said that because Santana and I were girlfriends now, it would be inappropriate to let us stay in the same room. I tried to argue that they didn't seem to mind the last time she came to visit, but they didn't budge. They simply stated that they made a special exception because it was during the holidays and we had just started dating. Again, I tried to argue a logical point like, "we haven't even gone that far yet" or "it's not like I can get her pregnant or anything". However, Susan and James weren't going for that. In fact, they just stared at me with a 'seriously Britt' expression.
Hey... at least I tried.
Eventually, I wore them down enough to where they agreed to let Santana stay in Lindsay's room.
Actually, that's a lie.
Lindsay was gracious enough to let me bunk with her so that Santana could just sleep in my room, in an actual bed. The first few days were rough, knowing that San was so close, being in the next room, yet she was still too far away for my liking. It just really sucks when you've gotten to experience sleeping in the arms of the person you love and then it gets snatched away from you.
"Will you please stop moving?!" Lindsay yells exasperatedly as I feel a pillow hit my face.
"What the hell, Lindz!"
"You're like the worst roommate ever!" She replies back. "I haven't been able to get any decent sleep for the past few nights cuz you won't stop cryin' about not being able to sleep with Santana."
"Geez, I'm sorry. I just..." I pause. "I just miss her all the time when she's gone. I know it'll only get ten times worse when she leaves again, but while she's here... I just really wanna hold her in my arms."
"Gosh Britt... I didn't know you were such a sap," Lindsay chuckles out as she hits me in the face with her pillow again.
"Really?! That's all you have to say?" I ask, flabbergasted. "I just spilled my guts out to you and you think this is funny?"
"It's a little funny, how your former dorky best friend can suddenly turn you into a pile of mush," my baby sister retorts. "You're so adorable!" Lindsay says as she lends over to pinch my cheeks.
"Get off me," I respond back as I slap her hands away from me.
"Oh Santana... I love you so much," Lindsay says, attempting to do an impression of me. "I wanna have your babies and share sweet lady kisses with you," she continues on, making kissing noises with her mouth.
"You're so gonna get it now!" I reply as I tickle her sides. "I do NOT sound like that!"
"Yes... you... do..." Lindsay gasps out in between breaths. "Britt! Please... I can't take it anymore; you're gonna make me pee on myself."
"Serves you right for making fun of me," I state, applying more pressure against her sides as she thrashes back and forth, uncontrollably.
"What the hell is going on in here?"
As I cease my tickle attack, Lindsay and I both look towards the bedroom door where the accusatory voice came from. My heart skips a beat as my eyes take in my beautiful girlfriend, standing there with her messy bed hair and cute pajamas.
"Hey San..." I softly say. "Sorry if we woke you up. I had to teach Lindz here a little lesson in humility."
"Is that right?" Santana says cutely as she leans against the doorframe. Have I mentioned how sexy her voice sounds when she's just woken up?
Before I have a chance to respond, Lindsay cuts me off.
"She's lying," my mini me says. "She was just getting back at me for makin' fun of how whipped she is for you."
My mouth immediately drops open. "Lindz!"
"What? It's true," she replies nonchalantly.
I then raise my hand to rub my temples because I'm so annoyed with my sister right now. But, before I have a chance to wallow in self-pity, I hear Santana's adorable giggle.
"Aww, babe... you are too cute right now," I hear her say as she places her hand under my chin to lift it up. "I don't care what she says; I'm totally whipped too."
Just as soon as those words leave her mouth, I feel Santana's lips softly press against mine. It's short in duration, but sweet and exactly what I needed. I can't help but smile as our lips part.
"Oh God!" Lindsay says exhaustedly as she makes a gagging sound. "Can you at least warn me before you two start to make out so I can grab my barf bag?"
I gently cup Santana's face with my left hand as I lean in to kiss her again. Meanwhile, I use my right hand to lightly push Lindsay's face in the other direction, just knowing that she's making a face behind my back. From behind my hand, I hear a muffled 'hey' coming from the shorter blonde.
"I guess I should head back to my room then," Santana solemnly says as she sighs and looks down at the ground.
"You might as well jump in here; otherwise, this one over here..." Lindsay pauses, pointing at me, "... will be pouting all night."
Without having to be told twice, Santana jumps in the bed with us, leaving me sandwiched in the middle. "Thanks Lindz! You're the best!"
As Santana leans over to give my sister a peck on the cheek to show her appreciation, I do the same. "Yeah... you're the best sister in the whole wide world."
"Yeah yeah yeah..." Lindsay replies flatly. "I'm your only sister, genius."
And with that, we all snuggle into Lindsay's queen size bed the best we can before finally drifting off to sleep. In the morning when my mom comes to wake us up, that's exactly how she finds us. While I'm lying on my side facing Santana with our legs intertwined and my arm rests on her lower back, Lindsay lies on her back with her mouth wide open. Very attractive, by the way.
Anyways, when my mom questioned us about our change in sleeping arrangements, Lindz went on this long rant about me basically being a cry baby cuz I couldn't sleep in the same bed as my girlfriend. I was highly offended... at first, but that quickly passed once I saw my mom's resolve crumbling. After a few artificial tears, a 'please Mom' plea, and my trademark Pierce pout, my parents finally caved.
And that's how Santana and I got to spend the rest of the summer sleeping in the same bed.
They don't call me a genius for nothing.
The rest of Santana's visit in Lima was fun and very eventful. We went on plenty of dates, which I just completely loved. Santana made me swoon like nobody's business. To see how loving and attentive she is just made me fall in love with her all over again. I still can believe that I was so blind before and didn't see this amazing girl that was standing right in front of me.
Anyways, after spending a good amount of girlfriend time together and getting to hang out with all of our friends, I was really excited to fly back to Seattle with San and spend some quality time there.
I remember one night after we had gone on a double date with Blaine and Kurt. Once we got back to the apartment, we found Mr. L in a somewhat compromising position.
"Hey girls!" Santana's dad squeals with surprise as he stands up from the couch, trying to smooth out the wrinkles in his shirt. "I thought you kids were going to the movies."
"We did... 2 hours ago," Santana smugly replies. "Hey Jamie! It's nice to see you again," she says to the very attractive woman hiding behind Mr. L.
"Hey Santana... it's good to see you too," Jamie says shyly as she tries to cover up the blush overtaking her face. She looks so adorable, like a little school girl that just got caught by her parents. The guilty look on Mr. Lopez's face isn't helping the situation either.
Not gonna lie... awkward.
"Any who... Jamie, I'd like you to meet Brittany... my girlfriend," Santana says, breaking the silence. There's that word again... girlfriend. God, I love hearing her say that. "And Brittany, this is my dad's girlfriend Jamie."
"Hi, it's so nice to meet you!" I happily greet her and shake her hand. "San's told me so much about you."
"All good things, I hope," Jamie says back playfully, finally relaxing a bit.
"Of course! How could I not have anything but good things to say about you?" Santana replies happily as she brings the woman into a tight embrace. "You're awesome!"
"Aww...thanks," she says back sincerely. I don't think that Jamie was expecting that kind of compliment judging by the look on her face.
"You hang onto this one Dad... she's a keeper," Santana simply says as she gives Mr. L a peck on the cheek and then grabs my hand. "Britt and I will be in my room. As you were!"
As Santana leads me back to her bedroom, she misses Jamie's bashful look as she tucks a strand of her jet black hair behind her ear. After we make it to her room, we commence in the same activities that San and I had just caught her dad and Jamie doing. I can't blame nor fault them though... making out is fun at all ages!
After getting our mack on for about a half hour, we all sat down and enjoyed a nice meal together. I loved getting to know Jamie and seeing firsthand all of the wonderful things that San had told me about her. She was so friendly and down-to-earth; honestly, I felt like she could be our cooler, older sister. From just the brief time that I got to spend with her, I could tell how sincere she was and how much she cared about Santana and her father. It was really nice to see Mr. L genuinely laugh and smile again.
Although I never had any problems with Mrs. Lopez, - except for that one day that San didn't come to school, - I knew that she could be hell on wheels if you got on her bad side. She really did a number on Mr. L when she abruptly left. Thankfully, it seems like he's finally moved on and found a wonderful woman to spend his time with.
Later on that night as San and I are exchanging soft kisses, I couldn't help but voice my earlier thoughts.
"I really like Jamie," I randomly say as I play with her fingers.
"Yeah... me too," she simply replies. "I'm really happy that my dad found her. I mean, I know it couldn't have been an easy transition for her."
"What do you mean?"
"Well... Jamie's never been married before and she doesn't have any kids, yet she jumped in, head first," Santana begins. "She took on dating a man that just got out of a 20 plus year relationship without batting an eye; a single dad with a gay teenager. She's brave and incredible; I really admire her."
"I do too."
"You know who else I admire?" Santana wonders as she places light kisses down the base of my throat.
"W-who?" I shakily ask as my breathing starts to pick up.
"You... my beautiful blonde genius," she whispers out as she starts to nibble on my collarbone.
"Mmmm... I hope the other people you admire don't get this same kind of treatment," I playfully retort, causing her to giggle.
"Nope... just you, my love."
"Good... cuz you're all mine," I reply as I lunge forward and attach my lips to hers roughly.
And let's just say... we fooled around for the next couple of hours.
After spending the next few weeks in utter contentment and happiness, eventually reality set back in and the new school year was about to start again. Santana had just dropped Brittany off at the airport and was trying her best not to get all depressed and start moping around like she usually does whenever they have to say goodbye to each other. Her girlfriend would've stayed longer, but unfortunately volleyball tryouts were being held the week before school officially started and it would look pretty bad if the team captain wasn't there.
As Santana enters the apartment, she calls out for her dad, but gets no response.
"Hey Santana," Jamie greets as she makes her way over to sit on the couch. "Your dad just left to pick up some dinner. Hope Chinese is okay."
"Yeah, that's fine..." The Latina replies sullenly as she just stands by the door.
"Here..." Jamie says as she pats the spot next to her on the couch, "come sit with me." Santana obliges and slowly makes her way over to Asian woman before plopping down beside her. "How ya holdin' up?"
"I guess as good as I can be," Santana sadly responds as she looks down at her lap. "You'd think I'd be used to this by now, but it never gets easier... does it?"
"I wish I could say yes and you would find some comfort in that, but I'd just be lying," Jamie honestly replies. "Your father and I haven't been together nearly as long as you and Brittany, but it's crazy how much I missed him when I had to go out of town last week for work. I missed you too, y'know."
The last statement takes the young Latina by surprise, causing her to look up. Jamie smiles back endearingly.
"In such a short time, you guys have become a really important part of my life. It was so unexpected, but I've treasured every moment of it," Jamie bashfully admits. "Although, I must say... I was really nervous about meeting you at first; you're kind of intimidating."
"Seriously?" Santana incredulously asks, laughing at the other woman. "Intimidating how?"
"Well... your dad told me about how much you struggled with your feelings for Brittany, yet you didn't let that deter you," she explains as she scoots a little closer to younger woman. "Even though you were thousands of miles away from each other and you were still trying to cope with your mom being gone, you never gave up. I don't know where a teenager gathers that type of strength from. Hell, I didn't even really know myself at that age," Jamie pauses, thinking back to her youthful days. "You're the strongest and most determined 17 year old I've ever known."
"I get my strength from my dad, but I guess I can see how I could come off as intimidating," Santana giggles out thoughtfully. "You were wrong though..."
"About?"
"Not being able to comfort me cuz you're doing a pretty good job at it," Santana says with a small smile. "After my mom left, I never thought that I would see my dad smile again. There were times when I felt incredibly guilty being with Britt, knowing that my dad was all alone... because of me."
Santana briefly pauses as she lifts up her hand to wipe away her unshed tears. However, Jamie beats her to the punch and then lightly grasps her hand. "Sweetie, you shouldn't feel guilty," she begins. "Your dad doesn't blame you for what happened with your mom; he never did. In fact, you should see how much he lights up whenever he talks about you. He is so proud of you."
Santana doesn't know how to respond so instead, she just opts to listen. Her and Jamie have had tons of casual conversations in the past, but nothing of this magnitude before. It kind of scares her to be able to feel this comfortable and close to an older female that isn't her mother or Mrs. Pierce so quickly, but it's also kind of cool.
"Honestly, I think the strong bond that you and your dad have is what scared me the most and made me so nervous to meet you," Jamie continues. "I didn't want you to think that I was trying to get in between you guys or trying to replace your mom."
"Well... I'm glad we didn't scare you away," Santana joking states, but there's genuineness in her voice. "You make my dad extremely happy and I can't thank you enough for that."
"Aww... that's so sweet of you to say, but completely unnecessary," Jamie insists.
"But it is. You have no idea how much you being here has affected our lives... in the best way possible," Santana says earnestly. "I love you Jamie; I just wanted you to know that."
Jamie is so overwhelmed with emotion that she doesn't quite know what to say. Here is this 17 year old girl that had suffered through so much loss and pain within the last year or so, yet she still manages to be hopeful and optimistic. From Santana's words, Jamie understood the underlying meaning between them and what the Latina was actually saying: welcome to our family; I accept you. The thought alone made her choke up.
Jamie pulls Santana into a warm embrace as a few silent tears fall from her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Jamie... I didn't mean to make you cry," Santana rushes out, thinking that she may have said something wrong.
"No, it's fine. These are happy tears," Jamie supplies. "I love you too, kiddo."
As the two women continue to share this intimidate moment, Mr. Lopez returns home and is a little concerned about what could've possibly happened in his absence.
"Is everything okay in here?" Ben hesitantly asks.
"Yeah Dad... everything is fine," Santana replies as she finally pulls away from the older woman. "We were just bonding."
"Oh, okay... should I leave?"
"No, don't be silly Ben," Jamie casually replies as she wipes the last bit of wetness from her face. "Things got a little heavy, but we're good."
"Alrighty... I was just checking," Mr. L responds as he walks over to the couch. "I'm gonna go set the table," he says as he gives his girlfriend a peck on the lips and places a kiss on top of his daughter's head.
As Mr. Lopez goes into the kitchen to spread out all of the delicious smelling take-out food around the table, Santana smiles in contentment.
"I'm really glad you're here," the younger Latina says after a beat.
"Me too," Jamie says through a smile. "And I plan on staying, as long as you guys will have me."
Santana smiles back at the older woman. Although she terribly misses her girlfriend, it's nice to get to know Jamie on a more personal level and feel some sort of happiness in Brittany's absence. It was also nice to feel a sense of warmth and comfort from a motherly-type figure again.
So... today is my first day of senior year and it has been very boring and uneventful.
I've been looking forward to this day since freshman year, but now that it's finally here, I'm not as excited. I guess the reason is because San isn't here. We always had a plan of exactly how we were gonna spend our first week of senior year with our friends, but now it just seems incomplete without her.
I know that everyone sympathizes with me, but I'm pretty sure they're tired of me being all sad and depressed whenever my other half is gone. In fact, I can definitely tell by the hurt puppy look that Sam is giving me right now. He should definitely stop though cuz the way his face is currently contorted only attracts more attention to his big guppy lips. I can see why Cedes calls him Trouty Mouth. I wonder how she kisses him without getting sucked in?
Sorry... what was I talking about?
Oh! Right...
Nevertheless... I've really been trying my best to mask my feelings for my friends' sake, but it's not easy. Rachel and Mike can relate a little bit, having to deal with their girlfriends being at a different school, but at least they're within a 10 mile radius at all times.
Argh!
I just need to focus on the positive. As soon as senior year is done, San and I can go off to college together and maybe share an apartment... if our parents let us, that is. In any case, I just have to be a little more patient and know that everything will work itself out.
Have I mentioned how much it sucks being a teenage?
As I'm waiting for the lunch bell to ring so that Mr. Schue will stop rambling on about some guy that did something 2 million years ago, I decide to send my girlfriend a text.
To San: Hey baby! Hope you have a great 1st day. Love you xoxo
I'm not expecting an immediate response from San. Seeing that there's a 3 hour time difference, I bet that she's either still asleep or in the process of getting ready for school. Finally, the bell rings and I exit the class, ready to get my grub on.
"So, what do you think about what Mr. Schue said?" Sam inquires as he sidles up next to me.
"What are you talking about?" I respond back, having no idea what he was referring to.
"Oh, that's right... you were too busy textin' your Boo Thang," he says mockingly.
"I think you've been hanging around Mercedes too much," I dryly reply.
He chuckles back at me. "Maybe you're right. Anyways, Mr. Schue was talking about starting up a Glee club if there were enough people interested. Whataya think?"
"What's a Glee club?" I ask, feigning ignorance.
"It's kinda like chorus meets dance team," the blonde boy begins to explain. "It's like that movie Pitch Perfect."
As I start to internally giggle to myself, Sam gives me a questioning look and mouths 'what'. "Nothing... I just got you to admit that you watched Pitch Perfect!" I say as I finally burst out laughing, no longer able to hold it in. "Hold on... I gotta tell San this!"
As I pull out my phone, I shoot Santana another text to let her know the titillating piece of information that I had just acquired.
"And here I thought I was the gay one," I add in for extra measure, just to bust his chops.
"Ha ha... very funny," Sam says as a pout begins to form on his face.
"Aww... don't be sad, little panda," I say condescendingly as I bring him into my side for a hug.
"Anyways, you ass," Sammy slips in casually, causing me to laugh again, "I'm thinking about joining. I'm sure I can get the others on board too, even Mike."
"Yeah, I'm sure 'The Divas' would love that," I agree. "Since there probably won't even be a dance team this year with the majority of the members graduating last year, that sounds like it could actually be fun."
"Awesome sauce!" Sam exclaims as we make our way through the lunch line and gather our trays. "So... how's Santana doing?"
"She's good," I casually reply as I try my best not to become sad again. "I know she's really shy when it comes to singing in front of other people, but I think she would love being in the Glee club."
"Who knows... maybe she'll get to join her own Glee club," he says cryptically as we reach the courtyard and sit down at a table near the base of the stairs. Hmm… weird. "Hey Cedes," Sam says as he places a light kiss on the diva's lips.
"Hey boo," she replies back with a smile. "Hey B, what's up?"
"Nothing much; Sammy was just telling me about this Glee club thingy," I answer back while waving to greet the rest of the group.
"Oh yeah! Mercedes and I were just discussing that as well!" Rachel cuts in excitedly while clasping her hands together.
While the rest of the group starts to make small chat about the new year and how great it's gonna be, I finally get a text back from my girlfriend.
From San: Mornin' love! I hope u have a good day as well. Just getting to school now. Love you more!
I smile at her response before instantly receiving another one.
From San: I knew he liked that movie! I thought we were the gay ones?! Lol
To San: OMG... that's exactly what I said! God, I wish you were here :(
From San: I miss u too babe! You'll see me soon enough
As I read over Santana's response, I'm puzzled by what the last part meant. The soonest we'll be able to see each other again probably won't be until the holidays. Ooh... maybe she's planning a surprise trip before then! The thought of seeing my amazing girlfriend much sooner than expected is enough to make me beam from ear to ear.
As I'm thinking of what to write back, I look around to see all of my friends engrossed in conversation; all but one... Sam. The blonde appears to be texting someone, but I'm befuddled to think of who that could be. His girlfriend is sitting next to him and the rest of our friends are surrounding us so who is he talking to? Maybe his parents?
Before I can think about it any further, I start to hear the soft strumming of a guitar behind me. Hmm... some musical entertainment for lunch could be kinda cool.
When life leaves you high and dry
I'll be at your door tonight
If you need help, if you need help
As soon as I hear that sultry voice, I instantly know whom it belongs to. I immediately snap my head towards the direction of the music and there, standing at the top of the stairs, is my beautiful girlfriend and her guitar. All of the oxygen leaves my body.
I'll shut down the city lights,
I'll lie, cheat, I'll beg and bribe
To make you well, to make you well
I can't believe what is standing right before my very eyes. I seriously don't believe it. If I wore glasses, I would totally be going to the doc right now to double check my prescription.
Give me reasons to believe
That you would do the same for me
There's no doubt about it though: Santana is here... in Lima!
And I would do it for you, for you
Baby, I'm not moving on
I'll love you long after you're gone
As Santana starts to sing the chorus, the rest of our little group of friends join in, providing back-up vocals.
Where did Rachel and Mercedes get those tambourines from?
Nevermind... not important.
For you, for you.
You will never sleep alone
I'll love you long after you're gone
And long after you're gone, gone, gone...
As Santana gets to the bridge of the song, she slowly starts descending down the stairs and getting that much closer to me.
You're my back bone
You're my cornerstone
You're my crutch when my legs stop moving
I have finally started to breathe again, but now my heart feels like it's about to beat out of my chest.
You're my head start
You're my rugged heart
You're the pulse that I've always needed
She's here, singing to me... in front of all of these people. She's amazing.
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
Like a drum, baby, don't stop beating
As Santana starts chanting those lines, Sam and Mike began beating on the table. For dramatic effect, I suppose.
Like a drum my heart never stops beating...
Now she's standing directly in front of me. It takes every ounce of my being to not just grab her and kiss her fiercely, but I refrain. I don't wanna be rude and interrupt this very rare performance.
I'll love you long after you're gone, gone, gone...
As she strums out her final note, she removes the guitar from hanging around her shoulder and places it on the table. She then locks eyes with me and I instantly melt. I then grab the back of her neck and bring her closer to me as our lips connect. I don't care that we're in the middle of the courtyard, surrounded by hundreds of students and faculty members. All that matters right now is her.
Our lips mold together expertly as I begin to hear some hoots and hollers from the crowd. Feeling as if they've gotten to witness enough, I reluctantly detach my lips from Santana's. Actually, it was getting harder to breathe and I wasn't sure how much longer I'd be able to keep my hands in an appropriate place before Principal Figgins expelled me.
"What are you doing here?" I ask breathlessly.
"I heard Mr. Schue was putting together a Glee club," San jokes back. I playfully slap her arm. "I'm here to spend my senior year with you," she says more seriously.
"But how? What about your dad and Seattle?" I wildly question, not believing the words my ears have just heard.
"I won't get into all the mundane details right now, but let's just say that I had a little help from our friends," she simply states as she glances over at the small group of people surrounding us.
Following her line of sight, I see all our friends with similar smirks plastered across their faces. "I don't know what you guys did, but thank you," I sincerely say, receiving a head nod and a smile back from each of them. "So... this is real?"
"It's very real," she replies back. "I love you Brittany."
"I love you too," I whisper back as I lean in and capture her lips again.
I don't know how or why, but things are certainly starting to look up. Maybe this year won't be so bad after all.
Author's Note:
Hey hey hey! Sorry for the long delay guys... I know it's been long overdue. I've been meaning to update this for a while, but I had the biggest case of writer's block on how exactly I wanted to transition this story. Hope everyone enjoyed it, although there is limited Brittana interactions though. Don't worry though; now that the girls are back in Lima together, there will be plenty of time for them. Also, I hope that everyone enjoyed the Santana and Jamie bonding. Next, I'll be working on an update for Quantico and some other one-shots for A Magnetic Force. Thank you all again for your continued support!
-Kris
Songs Used:
Gone, Gone, Gone by Phillip Phillips