"Oh my God, Rachel, you were amazing!" Quinn yells as she runs towards the smaller brunette backstage.
Rachel opens her arms wide as Quinn jumps into them, a bright smile on both girls' faces. Santana stands awkwardly behind them with her hands folded in front of her - letting the two girls have their moment - and giving everyone around a polite smile.
"Santana!" Rachel practically screeches, her face bursting at the seams with excitement. "Thank you for coming! What'd you think?" She wraps Santana up in a tight hug as she speaks.
"Hey, um," Santana begins, caught off guard by the new attention and tight embrace. "I actually liked it. I didn't have to put in the earplugs I brought." She smirks.
Rachel scoffs and waves a hand dismissively. "Please, you didn't bring earplugs." Santana raises her eyebrows challengingly and moves to open her purse, intent on pulling them out. "Okay, okay! Thank you for your kind words." Rachel says with a sheepish smile, grabbing Santana's wrists to stop her movement.
"What are you guys' plans for the night? There's an afterparty if you don't have anything to do." Rachel grasps her hands together, hoping her two friends don't have anything planned.
"Actually, we're-"
"Free! We're all yours," Quinn interrupts Santana.
Santana looks at Quinn with her eyebrows pinched together. Quinn knew good and well she had other plans.
Well, they weren't definite plans - but she still had other things in mind!
"Yay!" Rachel claps her hands and jumps up and down. "We're going to this Italian place across town. Apparently, eggplant parmesan is my producer's good luck charm or something," Rachel rambles on with a slight eye roll at the end. The smile never leaves her face, though.
"Do you think I could invite someone?" Santana asks hesitantly. She gets an idea on how to keep her plans still somewhat intact - but it'd only be if Rachel said yes. She would understand if Rachel said no, but she really hoped that wouldn't be the case.
"Um-" Rachel starts, looking back and forth between Santana and Quinn. "Yeah, I guess…who else would you know to invite, though?" She asks, eyebrows knitted.
Santana chooses to ignore Rachel's insinuation of having no other friends and just answers her question. "My friends Brittany and Kurt. They were in the audience, too."
"Oh!" Rachel perked up at hearing that last bit of information and nodded. "Well, the more the merrier! Just let me know whether they're coming or not."
"I'll call Brittany now," Santana flashes her phone to the other girls before stepping away to make the call.
She presses Brittany's name on her phone screen and hits the call button. She takes a deep breath and brings the phone to her ear, listening to the line ring.
"Hello?" She hears Brittany's voice pick up.
"Hey, Brittany! It's Santana."
"I know…we exchanged numbers earlier." She says with a laugh, causing Santana to blush.
"Oh…right." She closes her eyes tight as slight embarrassment courses through her body. "Um, I was just gonna invite you and Kurt to this Broadway afterparty thing. If you don't want to come, no worries…it honestly sounds really lame anyways, so-"
"We'll come," Brittany interrupts, but in the best way possible.
"Y-you'll come?" Santana repeats, semi in shock. She didn't really expect Brittany to agree so quickly without asking Kurt first.
"Yeah, of course!" Santana can practically hear the blonde's smile through the speaker. "Just text me the address or something so we know where it is." She chuckles.
"Y-yeah, sure. I'll tell Rachel you guys are coming and get the location."
"Wait…Rachel?" Brittany asks. Santana winces, hoping it's not a problem her friends are going to be there - although she doesn't see why it would. "As in Rachel Berry?"
"Yeah…" Santana mutters. "Is that okay?"
"We're invited to Rachel Berry's Broadway afterparty." She hears Brittany say, but it doesn't sound like she's saying it to Santana.
She furrows her brows curiously but soon hears an ear-splitting scream through the phone. At the sudden sound, she quickly pulls the phone away from her ear and covers it with her hand.
She waits for a few seconds before returning the phone back to its previous position, trying to ignore the new ringing in her left ear.
"Santana?" She hears Brittany ask. "Are you still there?"
"Yeah, sorry." She apologizes, but doesn't bring up how much it startled her.
"Sorry, Kurt got really excited. He's a big fan of the show." She explains, sincerity laced in her tone.
"It's okay, I get it," Santana says with a small laugh. "I'll get the details from Rachel and let you know, okay?"
"Sounds good!" Brittany responds in a cheery voice. "See you in a little bit, Santana."
"Yeah, see you soon." She replies before hanging up the phone and looking blankly at the screen for a moment.
She became extremely nervous all of a sudden. She was about to see Brittany - and Kurt - again. Why did this feel like such a big deal to her? What's going on with me? She criticizes herself for her outlandish behavior and shakes her head, trying to snap herself out of it.
She walks back over to Rachel and Quinn to see them talking animatedly about the show.
"The costume I was in during "Don't Rain on My Parade" was my favorite! I know it looks really heavy and uncomfortable, but it's so the opposite. I could honestly go to sleep in that thing."
Quinn's listening intently, but Santana can't see for the life of her why she would. Sure, if she were in that position, she'd pretend to listen, but it's obvious that Quinn's actually paying attention.
"Ahem," She clears her throat as she nears the two girls. "Brittany and Kurt are coming, so I'll need to text them the address." She tells Rachel.
"Oh, no, don't do that!" Rachel exclaims with a wave of her hand. "They can ride with us. Just bring them back here until the limo arrives."
Santana doesn't know what to say…she's surprised and happy at the same time. For one, it's very unusual for Rachel to offer her star luxuries to two random people she'd never even met. But she's also really happy Rachel offered…now she can spend more time with Brittany.
And Kurt… definitely Kurt, too.
"Wow - thanks, Rach. I'll, uh, go get them." She says with a bright smile as she points her thumb over her shoulder toward the auditorium.
Rachel nods, saying of course, before returning to Quinn and continuing their conversation.
Santana walks for a few minutes before she eventually finds Brittany and Kurt in the lobby. Kurt's nursing a cup of coffee and talking to Brittany, looking more excited than a kid on Christmas.
"Hey," She says shyly as she approaches the two. "Rachel said-"
"Oh, Santana! Thank you so, so much for this opportunity! You have no idea how much this means to me," Kurt interrupts excitedly. He's bouncing on the balls of his feet, and Santana would try to be mad at him for interrupting, but he just looks so damn happy.
"Uh, yeah, it's no biggie." She shrugs off. She turns to Brittany with a small smile. "Rachel said you two can just ride with us…I was told to bring you backstage."
Brittany raises her eyebrows at the information, but before she can say anything, Kurt talks again.
"Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!" He exclaims and starts to fan himself.
"Calm down, Kurt," Brittany laughs, but the red tone on her face shows that she's a little embarrassed by her friend. "What did I tell you about staying cool?" She whispers.
"Right, right." He says as he straightens up and takes a deep breath. "That's cool." He says, the nonchalance obviously sounding forced.
"Great!" Santana smiles. "Follow me then," She waves her hand and slowly walks back the way she came.
When they get back into the auditorium, Brittany catches up with her and starts walking next to Santana. "Thanks for inviting us - I haven't really had the chance to say it yet." She chuckles.
"Please, I should be the one thanking you." Santana jokes. "This whole Broadway thing isn't really my scene." She waves around to their surroundings.
"It's not?" Brittany asks with her brows furrowed. "You came to the show?" She questions more than she says.
"Yeah. I came to support Rachel." She explains. "And I'd totally do it again, for the record, but I wouldn't ever come voluntarily."
"That makes sense." Brittany nods. "I guess I'm the same way with Kurt." She gestures back to him, walking behind them. "This has been his favorite show since he was little, so he'd been looking forward to this for a while."
"This is Rachel's favorite show, too. God, you should've heard her when she got the part." Santana shakes her head with a laugh, remembering how exciting and chaotic that night was. "There were many impromptu songs sung that night - much to my dismay."
"What, you don't like spontaneity?" Brittany teases. "I love surprises like that."
"Well, I like performances and stuff…just not the kind that breaks out in the middle of Target."
Brittany looks at her with a disbelieving look on her face, clearly thinking Santana's exaggerating.
"Just ask Rachel…she'll tell you." Santana pats her on the back as they enter through the door leading backstage.
/
"And then I started singing 'One Moment in Time' in the candy aisle." Rachel explains as she twirls the pasta around her fork. "Honestly, you haven't lived until you burst into song in the middle of a grocery store."
"See, but I wanted to do anything but live when she did that," Quinn jokes as Santana nods along in agreement.
Brittany's frozen in her place, with her fork halfway up to her mouth, as she hears Rachel tell the story. Her mouth's slightly parted in surprise…she didn't think Santana was being serious.
"My ex and I did something similar to that once," Kurt says. He's calmed down a lot since Santana first invited him out to dinner. "Granted, we were in our high school courtyard, but it was still invigorating."
"Thank you!" Rachel exclaims, gesturing to him. "I've been trying to tell these two that, but neither wants to believe me!"
"Yeah, and we still don't," Santana laughs. "I mean, if it works for you, then so be it, but give me a warning next time so I can vacate the area." She says, emphasizing the last three words.
Brittany's brows are furrowed as she shakes her head in disbelief. "I don't think I'd ever have the courage to do that."
"Oh, come on, Britt. It's not that bad," Kurt nudges her shoulder. "You dance in front of people all the time…what's the difference?"
"Dancing is a lot different than singing, Kurt. I can't carry a tune in a bucket," Brittany says with a laugh.
"Ugh, you're not that bad, Britt." He smiles.
"You dance?" Rachel asks before taking a sip of her water.
Brittany nods and swallows the bite of food she just took. "Yeah, I've been in classes since I was little."
"But she wants to do it professionally," Kurt says, sounding proud.
"That's really cool, Brittany," Rachel smiles. "Is that what you're doing here in New York?"
"For the most part," She nods. "I'm just kinda exploring all my options right now."
"Smart," Quinn says as she points her fork towards Brittany. "I wish more people did that. There are so many people that move to this city with one dream and one goal, not realizing that life can take you in so many unexpected directions." She points to Santana next. "That's what happened to this one."
Santana blushes at the new attention on herself and shakes her head. "It wasn't really like that."
"Yes, it was - you just don't want to admit it," Quinn teases, slapping her shoulder.
"What do you mean?" Kurt asks. The question was evident on Brittany's face as well, but she wasn't going to vocalize it.
"Santana moved here to be a writer. She dedicated like all of her time to that, until one day she just got fed up with it. She started exploring her options and found her real dream." Quinn explains.
Santana shoots her a glare. "You didn't wanna let me explain my life story?" She asks sarcastically.
Quinn shrugs and looks back to the people at the table.
"So…what is your dream?" Brittany asks hesitantly.
Santana looks at her plate, contemplating how exactly to answer the question. She's been mocked about it before, and she really doesn't want to hear the back talk again. Besides, it doesn't even sound that ambitious! Rachel's dream is way more unrealistic than hers.
She looks up to Brittany and Kurt and sees nothing but curiosity in their eyes. She doesn't think either one would judge her - especially Brittany.
"I wanna make music," She says quietly with a shrug. She takes a sip from her water after, hoping to show she doesn't want to talk about it anymore.
It's quiet for a moment, which has Santana on edge. She sets her glass down and avoids eye contact with anyone at the table.
"No way!" Kurt exclaims, slapping his hand on the table, effectively startling Santana. She looks up at him with her brows furrowed. "I'm studying music at NYU!"
"Really?" Santana asks. She's never met anyone here other than Rachel who's interested in having a career in music.
Most people in New York are working in business, law, or real estate - like Quinn. She hasn't seen very many people interested in the arts, surprisingly.
When she made the decision to move to New York after graduation - much to her parent's dismay - she thought it'd be filled with other aspiring musicians and actors. She quickly learned that that was not the case…at all.
"Yeah! I'd love to be a singer someday - theater preferably - but I'll take whatever I can get." He chuckles. "Is that what you want to do, too?"
Santana shrugs. "Kind of? I mean, singing is cool and all, but I like the whole production side of things better."
"I admire that," Kurt says with an impressed grin. "And who knows? Maybe one day, if either of us makes it big, we can help the other out." He suggests, hope evident in his tone.
"Deal," Santana laughs.
"Can you sing?" Brittany asks, resting her fork down on her empty plate.
Santana opens her mouth to answer when Quinn and Rachel interrupt her.
"Hell yeah!" Quinn says at the same time that Rachel says, "Absolutely."
"She lacks my years of intense vocal training," Rachel says with a wave to herself. "But she has a good voice for someone so inexperienced."
Santana looks over at Rachel with her eyes narrowed. "Thanks, Berry. And I thought we would get through the night without you giving a backhanded compliment." She says sarcastically.
Rachel throws up her hands in defense and Quinn chuckles. "We were all in glee club together in high school." Quinn says.
"We won nationals our senior year as well." Rachel boasts, causing Santana to roll her eyes.
She'll never miss an opportunity to bring that up.
"I was in glee club, too!" Kurt says. "We never had enough people to compete, but it was still fun nonetheless."
"Awww! That's so sweet!" Rachel exclaims as she taps Kurt on the shoulder, only sounding a little condescending.
Kurt's smile falters the slightest bit, but he nods in agreement. Santana looks over to Brittany with a smirk, only to see the other girl already looking back, trying to hold in a laugh.
"Rachel!" The group is startled as a booming voice echoes throughout the restaurant.
Santana looks around, trying to find the source of the sound, when she spots a plump man near the entrance waving his hand.
"We need you for pictures for the press!"
"Oh!" Rachel says, surprised, as she stands quickly. "Coming, Sydney!" She shouts back at the man. "Be right back, guys."
Quinn nods in acknowledgment before turning back to the group.
"Anyways," She says with a laugh, causing the rest of the table to smile.
/
After dinner and dessert, the group makes their way outside before departing to go home. Rachel, Quinn, and Kurt are all laughing about something while Santana walks a few steps behind with Brittany.
"Thanks again for the invite," Brittany breaks the silence. "I had a good time."
"Me too," Santana agrees. "And that's saying something since I sat next to Berry the whole time."
"She's nice," Brittany laughs. "You two seem like good friends."
"We are…it wasn't always that way, though." Santana sighs, feeling guilty again.
"How so?"
"Well, remember when I mentioned having regrets from high school?" Santana asks, and Brittany nods in reply. "Rachel's one of them."
"You regret being her friend?" Brittany's eyebrows scrunch in confusion.
And for a second - just a second - Santana admires how adorable she looks.
"No," She says with a small laugh. "Quinn and I were huge bitches to her."
Brittany raises her eyebrows and mouths an "oh" as she nods in understanding.
"Yeah," Santana says quietly. She doesn't usually like talking about her past - especially when it comes to the person she was in high school - but it happened, so there's nothing she can really do to avoid it. Like Brittany said, the good part is that she's moved on and isn't the same person she was three years ago.
"Well, either way, you're a good friend," Brittany reassures. "Otherwise, Kurt and I wouldn't have been invited. We have you to thank for that…and I'm sure you'll be hearing it for many weeks to come." She laughs.
Santana smiles and watches her feet as she walks - one step in front of the other. She tries not to get hung up on Brittay's words - many weeks to come - and what they might mean. The mere thought of Brittany wanting to hang out again excites her.
God, I hope so.
"You ready to go?" Kurt walks up and drapes an arm around Brittany's shoulders. "It's getting late, and you have class in the morning."
"Yeah," Brittany responds, pointing to a cab, silently telling him to stop it. "So…see you next time?" She asks.
"Definitely," Santana nods with a smile. She's already thinking about when next time will be, and how soon she can make that happen. "I might stop in for a coffee on the way to work next week - if you're there, of course."
"Monday and Wednesday from 7-1, and Friday from 12-5."
"Noted," Santana laughs. She'll definitely make sure to stop by during that time frame.
"Britt!" Kurt yells, waving Brittany over.
"I'll see you later, Santana." She smiles and taps Santana's shoulder before walking away.
When she passed, though, she let her hand linger on Santana's shoulder for as long as she could until she was too far out of reach. Santana turned and watched the blonde get in the cab with Kurt in tow.
She didn't realize how big she was smiling until her cheeks started to cramp up. She takes a deep breath to calm herself before turning towards Rachel and Quinn.
Quinn has her back to her, but Rachel's looking at Santana with a smirk. She gives Quinn a final hug before shooting Santana a wink and wave, climbing into the open limo door.
Santana knits her brow, curious as to what that was about, but doesn't have much time to think about it before Quinn's walking towards her.
Hey, guys!
So, for these first few chapters, I pretty much setting things up for the remainder of the story. That's why the chapters weren't very long.
But, from here on out, the chapters are going to be longer! Yay!
As always, thank you so much for reading! :)