Rachel pushes the chair back and stands up immediately stalking after the angry Latina. "Santana wait!" she pleads.
Santana closes the door behind her and hits the sterling wheel with her palm a couple times.
A minute later Quinn and Rachel get in the car on the passenger side. Rachel in the front and Quinn in the back.
"I'm sorry San, I didn't think he would invite himself. I'm going to go tell him he can't come," Rachel is sitting in the front passenger seat her left leg pulled up looking at Santana tears threatening to spill.
Santana looks at her briefly before turning her head, "It's fine, it a free fucking country. Finnocence can come if he wants to." She puts both hands on the steering wheel and grips it tightly before buckling up.
Rachel frowns, "No, I'm going to go tell him not to come." She moves to open the door.
"I said it was fine, just buckle up so we can go!" Santana hisses out.
"S!" Quinn scolds.
Santana turns so fast in her seat her hair flipping with her, her bangs out covering half her face, "What?!"
Quinn's eyebrow shoots up in surprise and a bit of a challenge. Santana's growing anger is something neither of them has seen in a while. Sure she slammed the door the other day, but she hasn't snapped at them. "Stop yelling! Rachel didn't invite him. She invited Puck. I know it is your favorite holiday, but... Fuck!"
"You don't understand! He-" Santana closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. She looks between Quinn and Rachel.
Rachel is sitting there hands in her lap looking out the window willing herself not to cry. Quinn has her arms crossed over her chest staring at Santana expectantly.
Santana turns back around and bangs her head against the seats headrests. She grips the steering wheel with both hands again and squeezes it a couple times, "Can you two please just buckle up?"
Quinn scoffs but scoots back in the seat and buckles up.
Rachel sniffles and buckles up herself never tearing her eyes away from the window.
They ride to the mall in complete silence. Santana somehow manages to get the parking spot next to Quinn's moms car. She parks the car, turns the ignition off and gets out; walking to the front entrance.
Quinn rolls her eyes at the action. She gets out of the car and opens Rachel's door. She catches the diva wiping away tears trying to make it look like she hasn't been crying.
Quinn sighs she hates to see either of her girlfriends cry. And to know that Rachel is crying because of Santana, it pisses her off more. She leans over, unbuckles the diva's seat belt and holds her hands out for Rachel.
Rachel takes one of Quinn's hands and step out of the little sedan. She turns to follow in Santana's footsteps, but Quinn stops her pulling her back.
The blond wraps her arms around her shoulders and hugs her. Rachel melts into the embrace and squeezes Quinn tight.
After a few moments with no words being said, they end the embrace. Quinn locks the car, before reaching for Rachel's hand and leading her to the entrance.
They spot Santana at the front of the building leaning against the wall; her left leg bent, her foot on the wall and arms crossed over her chest.
When they are close enough, Santana pushes herself off the wall and holds the door open for Quinn and Rachel to walk in first.
They immediately spot Judy and Mariel sitting in the lounge area at the front.
Rachel walks in the sitting area first hugging both older women, "sorry we're late."
"No worries dear, we just got here ourselves," Judy tells them letting go of Quinn and hugging Santana.
"Cool so how 'bout we get this show on the road?" Santana wants to get this over with as soon as possible. She's pissed. She pissed at herself for blowing up. Yes the 4th is basically her favorite holiday, but that's not the reason she's so angry that Finn invited himself. But either way, she knows she fucked up and now she's angrier with herself than anything.
Judy and Maribel share a look before turning back to their kids. "We figured we would start on our left and work our way around stopping at all the stores with baby things. How does that sound?" Maribel asks.
"Perfect," Santana exclaims and starts walking in that direction expecting the others to follow.
Maribel and Judy share another look, but don't say anything and follow Quinn and Rachel.
They are leaving the 5th store with Santana and Quinn carrying a bag each. They had to talk the mothers out of buying everything in the stores. They don't even know what they are having yet and they don't have a place for all the big furniture or swings that babies need. But after much insistence from both mom's they have two large bags filled with unisex items that they absolutely had to get now and a double stroller ordered to be shipped to their apartment in New York.
"Well I need to go to the ladies room. I'll be right back," Judy says as they stood in the mall looking around.
"I'll come with you," Maribel adds.
"Ok. Well we're going to rest for a bit," Quinn tells them motioning to a second lounge area in front of them.
"I'll be right back," Santana mumbles, before walking in the opposite direction of the restrooms.
Quinn and Rachel sit down on the couch and Rachel lays her head against Quinn's shoulder.
"I just wish she'd talk to me," her voice quivers trying to hold back her tears.
Quinn's stomach knots. She wraps her arm around Rachel and kisses the top of her head, "I know baby. She will. You know San. She just needs some time to gather all her emotions so they make sense to her before she's ready to explain it to others."
Rachel sighs, "I know but it doesn't make the waiting any easier," she pouts.
Santana walks back and sees her girlfriends sitting on the couch their backs towards her. She stops in her tracks and frowns. She feels absolutely terrible for snapping at them.
She looks at the box in her hands and then back to the couch. "I hope this works," she lets out a breath and keeps on walking.
She sits on the leather ottoman in front of the duo. Placing the bag to her side and the box in her lap. She hasn't made eye contact yet, she slowly opens the lid and looks up.
She holds the box out showing the words 'I'm Sorry' written in red icing on top of a large chocolate chip heart shaped cookie.
She slowly lifts her head to make eye contact with Rachel first, "Please forgive me. I'm sorry for snapping..." her eyes dart to Quinn. "I'm sorry for snapping at you both," she turns back to Rachel and puts her left hand on the divas knee, "You didn't do anything wrong Estrella. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did. I'm sorry."
Rachel breaks eye contact to look at the message on the cookie again before looking at the tanned hand on her knee.
Santana's heart breaks at having not received a response yet. Rachel brings her right hand to rest on top of Santana's still on her knee. She runs her thumb across the girls knuckles, her eyes following the movement before returning to Santana's eyes pleading for forgiveness.
"I'm sorry too San. I should have stopped talking or at the very least changed the subject when he showed up," Rachel breaks eye contact and looks to their joined hands again.
Santana puts the cookie to the left of her and kneels in front of Rachel. She cups her chin so she can't break eye contact again. "You have nothing to be sorry for Rachel. There is no excuse for the way I acted. I should not have snapped at you. At either of you," she looks to Quinn briefly then back to Rachel.
Santana stands to place a kiss on Rachel's lips. She tucks some of the other girls hair behind her ear and rubs her thumb up and down her cheek bone. "Forgive me?" she whispers.
Rachel leans up and pecks Santana lips softly, "Always."
Santana leans her forehead against Rachel's for a few seconds before kissing her again quickly moving back to the ottoman to apologize to Quinn.
She puts both hands on the blondes knees and stares into Quinn's eyes.
Quinn can't stop the small smile that starts to form. She breaks eye contact and looks to her left with a slight blush to her cheeks. "Only because you got a cookie," she teases trying to lighten the mood. She knows Santana hasn't had the easiest of mornings she's not going to dwell on her little outburst.
Santana smiles and stands up moving her right hand to the arm of the couch for support she kisses Quinn on the lips, both staring into each other's eyes.
Quinn brings her hand up to rest on Santana's right cheek their foreheads still leaning against one another, lips millimeters apart. "Don't let it happen again," she warns.
Santana closes her eyes and nods her head yes against Quinn's forehead. She slowly sits back down on the ottoman.
"So are we ready for the next store?" Maribel asks breaking the silence.
She and Judy had been waiting for the trio to make up on their own. After spending nearly two hours already shopping and seeing no signs of that happening, she and Judy concocted a plan to get them by themselves. They waited off to the side out of view of their daughters until apologizes were said.
Santana laughs, "Very clever mom."
They spend another three hours shopping; taking a break for lunch at the food court which was cut short by Rachel's nausea.
At four o'clock they decide to head to Quinn's mom's house to spend the evening, watch a movie and maybe take a nap before meeting everyone at Breadsticks for dinner later in the afternoon.
Maribel had some things to do after the outing, so she had Judy drop her back off at home, but will be rejoining them for dinner.
Quinn and Judy are in the kitchen baking a pie and catching up. It was also Quinn's subtle attempt at giving Santana and Rachel some alone time. Hopefully Santana would actually talk to her.
It's impossible not to see the stress Rachel is going through because of this. And from what Quinn has gathered from her reading, stress isn't a good thing for a pregnant woman to be experiencing. It's never a good thing, and with the condition she found Santana in this morning she's has no doubt her stress level is off the charts. So she really hopes that Santana will take this time to explain things to Rachel.
Santana and Rachel are lying together on the couch. Rachel in front leaning back against Santana's chest. The TV is on but neither of them are actually watching it.
Santana has her right arm bent with her head propped up looking down at Rachel. Her left arm draped over the pregnant girls stomach her thumb moving back and forth in a calming motion.
Rachel's has her hands together her head laying on them. She's looking at the TV, but not actually watching it to consumed with her thoughts and enjoying being in Santana's arms after the stressful morning.
"I'm sorry," Santana's whispers, catching Rachel's attention.
Rachel tilts her head some and leans further into Santana to be able to look at her face, "I know San... I have already forgiven you," she answers in confusion. She truly had forgiven the Latina for her outburst when she apologized in the mall.
Santana sighs and puts her forehead to Rachel's shoulder. "I'm sorry for making this trip less enjoyable. I didn't expect... I don't know l..." Santana sighs and lifts her head back up to look in Rachel's eyes. "I'm going to say something, but I want you to promise me you won't get upset. Not until I get everything out and explain okay?"
Rachel rolls over more to where she is laying on her back, her left arm bent and under her head, she looks up at Santana and knows she is ready to open up now.
The Latina's hand is still on her stomach, so she uses her free hand and laces their fingers together and nods yes.
Santana mimics her nod. "That means you have to let me finish before speaking. Let me get everything I'm trying to say out, before you react please," she squeezes Rachel's fingers with her own in what she hopes is a reassuring way.
Rachel brings her left arm up and strokes Santana's hair, "I promise baby."
Santana closes her eyes and takes a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "When I saw Finn yesterday it was like the flood gates opened and every negative thing that happened when I was growing up came rushing back. Before I met Quinn I thought I was alone in this world. A freak of nature. Yes I was only 5, but I knew by all the doctor's visits and sleepover's that I was not normal," she has to break eye contact with Rachel and settles for laying her head back down, still on her side looking at their joined hands.
"When I met Quinn, that all changed. I had finally found someone who understood, who was the same as me. I wasn't alone any more. But then when things progressed past friendship, it scared me. I was already a freak but it was something that I was able to hide to the outside world for the most part. But to be in a relationship with a girl, in Lima," she scoffs.
"When I really think about it, I always knew I was gay. I mean aside from the fact that I have a penis and no guy would ever want me... I never felt an attraction to any guy. Don't get me wrong I can appreciate a hot guy as much as the next, but it's not for me, it never was. After seeing what Kurt went through, I wasn't sure I was ready for all the ridicule. To be out in the open with her was a whole other ballgame. I... And then when Finn, when he said those things in the hall way, in front of every one... All the years of being so careful of making sure I crossed my legs or I didn't let me eyes linger for too long, they went out the window in a flash. I thought my world was going to end."
Rachel wants to cry. She knows it wasn't easy for either of her girlfriends growing up, but hearing Santana poor her heart and soul out makes it that much more real. She doesn't say anything keeping good on her promise, when Santana briefly looks back up at her she nods to let Santana know she is following her.
Santana continues, "When I saw him yesterday it was like for a second everything I have. Everything we've built; you me and Quinn, it was all vulnerable. All the emotions I felt seeing you with him in high school and knowing I couldn't have you, the time at the loft when you thought you might be pregnant," she pauses to run her hand along Rachel's stomach. "It all just hit me like a ton of bricks. My insecurities growing up..."
Rachel rolls to her side facing Santana she tucks a few pieces of fallen hair behind her ear, and cups the Latinas right cheek.
Santana moves her hand to Rachel's hip with the change of positions. They stare in to each other's eyes for a few moments, before Santana closes hers and starts speaking again. "I had these dreams last night, these flash backs to high school… I'm scared Rach, what if the babies are like me and Quinn… I don't want our kids to have to go through the same self doubt and ridicule I did. We already live an unconventional life as it is. I don't think I would be able to handle my kid coming home crying because she was bullied, bullied because of me, because of who I am," a single tear falls from her eye.
Rachel quickly wipes the teardrop away with her thumb, "May I speak now?"
Santana only nods her head.
"San, I don't want you to ever feel like you can't talk to me. I get that there are some things that Quinn may be better at understanding, and I know that you two had each other long before I came along... but I don't want you to be scared of telling me your feelings. Scared that I'll have a diva melt down and storm off. If you haven't noticed those days are few and far between," she smiles a little trying to get Santana to do the same. "Believe me I understand how you are feeling I'm scared too."
Santana sighs and closes her eyes, turning her head away and from Rachel and laying on her back again.
"Hey look at me..." Santana shakes her head no.
"Please..." Rachel begs.
Santana lets out a breath, but turns back to face Rachel.
Rachel places a light gentle kiss to Santana's lips and wipes away the stream of tears as best she can. "Baby, I'm not scared that they may be born like you and Quinn. Honestly the thought never even crossed my mind."
"You're- It didn't?" Santana asks surprised.
Rachel shakes her head no, "Not once."
"How?" Santana asks still not believing that Rachel hadn't feared the same.
Rachel shrugs her shoulder, "I don't know. It just didn't. I don't mean to imply that what you or Quinn have had to overcome isn't incredible, or down play it by any means but it honestly isn't a fear of mine. If one or both of the babies are born intersex I will love them just the same as I would if they weren't. I get where you are coming from but you know what?"
"What?" Santana asks softly.
"If either of them is inter-sexed then they are going to be pretty darn lucky," she smiles.
"How can you say that?" Santana asks louder this time, sitting up slightly propping herself up on her elbow.
Rachel's eyes followed Santana's movements, "Because they have two of the most amazing women I know in the corner. You and Quinn didn't have anybody until you met each other and that was scary, but these babies have both of you as their mothers, and that makes them incredibly lucky."
Santana lays back down on her side wrapping her arm around Rachel, pulling her closer. "You are amazing," she cups Rachel's cheek and leans in for a kiss, "I love you Estrella"
Rachel connects their foreheads and pecks Santana's lips " And I love you baby."
They lay there not saying anything for a couple minutes, before Santana's asks, "So if you're not afraid of them being like me... What are you afraid of?"
"Everything else..." Rachel admits.
Santana cups Rachel's cheek, "What do you mean?"
Rachel raises her hand from Santana hip and drops it back down softy, "I've never done this before San, everything's new... I mean suddenly my body isn't my body anymore. I've already failed them once... what if it happens again? What if I'm not a good mother? What if-"
Santana cuts Rachel off with a kiss, "Mi amore, you are going to be a great mom. You already are. You didn't fail them and you're not going to. When the doctors said you had to change your eating habits, you did. Look at how you are with Olivia and Oliver and Matthew."
Rachel thinks about it for a minute, "I guess so. But it's still scary."
Santana nods her understanding
Rachel brings her hand up and threads her fingers through dark locks, stroking Santana's check with her thumb, "Promise me that if you get scared again, you'll come talk to me."
Santana's kisses Rachel's forehead, "I promise"
Rachel scoots closer to Santana and lays her head against Santana's chest. Santana kisses the top of Rachel's head and wraps her arm around her, resting her chin on her head. The lay in silence before drifting off to sleep.
"So what's this I hear about me becoming an aunt?" Frannie asks walking into her childhood home. Her almost eight year old Gracie at her side and 18 month old daughter Stella in her arms.
Quinn comes out from the kitchen, wine glass in hand needing to see with her eyes that she heard correctly. She wasn't expecting to see her sister this visit as she lives two towns away.
"Aunt Quinn!" Gracie takes off towards Quinn in a sprint.
Quinn squats and holds her arms out towards the young girl. "I've missed you Gracie," she wraps her arms around her mindful of the wineglass.
"I missed you too," Gracie tells her against Quinn's shoulder.
Quinn pulls back to look at her niece's face, "You know I think there are two more people who miss you in the living room."
Gracie smiles and makes a bee line for the living room saying a quick, "hi," to her grandmother with a wave.
"What are you doing here?!" Quinn asks hugging Frannie after sitting her wine glass down on the little table in the foyer.
They end the embrace, "Mom called me this morning," Frannie replies.
Quinn looks to her mom shaking her head with a smile on her face.
"I can't believe how big the girls have gotten. Video chats do not do them justice... Hi Stella," Quinn coos holding her arms out intending on taking the almost 2 year old in her arms.
Stella shakes her head no and lays it against her moms chest clinging to her shirt. "She's a little shy," Frannie explains and Quinn nods.
"Quinn, why don't you let your sister come into the house," she teases her, turning for them to move further into the house and out of the foyer.
The woman walk into the living room, where they see Gracie talking to Rachel and Santana who look like they haven't fully woken up yet, but have smiles on their face any ways at their niece's excitement of her purse.
Both brunettes look up briefly with a smile greeting their blonde girlfriend when she enters; their attention immediately redirected back to Gracie who tells them all about what they have missed since their last Skype call.
"Gracie why don't you breath for a minute and let them say hi to everyone else first," Frannie pats her daughters head as she speaks.
Gracie pouts but nods.
Santana and Rachel stand from the couch in order to great Frannie properly. When Rachel pulls away from the hug, Stella puts her arms out wanting Rachel to hold her.
Rachel reaches out for the baby immediately. "Well hello there little one," she sits her on her hip and smiles at the blonde haired little girl who from the baby pictures she's seen at least looks exactly like Quinn when she was her age. Gracie puts her head on Rachel's chest and sucks her thumb.
"Hey I thought she was shy!" Quinn pouts.
Frannie shrugs, "I guess she likes Rachel better than you." She teases her little sister.
Santana rubs Rachel's back sending her a smile. They have a silent conversation with their eyes, before Rachel blushes and looks away, "She's absolutely precious"
"Yeah just wait till she has a temper tantrum. She's hit the terrible twos already I swear," Frannie sits on the couch pulling Gracie into her lap, "So I want to hear all about how I'm going to be an aunt."
They all talk for a little bit, the trio explaining everything about the pregnancy in detail before its time to leave for Breadsticks.
After Breadsticks, the girls head back to the Berry household to spend the night again. They end up deciding to just stay there every night they are in town so they don't have to keep lugging around their things night after night.
They spend two more days in Lima alternating their days between each family member.
Frannie and the kids stayed at Judy's Sunday night so the sisters could catch up. Rachel and Santana even babysat the girls on Monday, so Quinn and Fran could have a day to themselves. They took the girls to the park and to the movies to watch the new Disney movie Inside Out.
Rachel had to keep shushing Santana during the movie because every time the girl would have a mood swing shed make comments about the movie being all about a bipolar kid.
On Monday night they had another family dinner at the Lopez's to which everyone came; including Frannie and the girls. When it was time to leave Stella was in tears and didn't want to let go of Rachel.
And on Tuesday, Rachel's dad drove the girls to the airport. They opted to take a plane home instead of spending another 14 hours on the train.
Big thanks to Forevergleek9615