Chapter 16: Snow on the Beach

You wanting me tonight feels impossible

After a brief stay in Lesbos, where they'd at least gotten to learn about Sappho to fulfill their sapphic lesbian island fantasy, Brittany and Santana arrived in Oahu, Hawaii. They'd be there for an extended stay before making the trek to New York when the majority of the rest of the Glee club would also be making the great migration from Ohio. They had their whole lives ahead of them, but right now they needed to get themselves in order and back in sync with one another. The lights of New York City would only dull the way their eyes shone for one another.

"It's beautiful." Brittany said, leaning on the railing of their beach view balcony watching the sunset. "I love sunsets, they're like paintings."

"It is really beautiful, but I learned to love sunrises in New York. They're a bit soured by Dani, though. I don't think Here Comes the Sun will ever be the same…" Santana mused, wrapping her arms around Brittany's waist.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you, Sanny." Brittany says quietly.

"I left you too, Britt-Britt. We've agreed to put it in the past." Santana assured, kissing Brittany's jaw softly. Brittany spun around do she could face Santana.

"I missed us. Not the sex, though I definitely missed that, but this. Quiet contemplative moments together." Brittany rests her forehead against Santana's. "You could always make sense of what I was thinking."

"As could you, after all, you're the world's foremost expert in Santana Lopez." Santana taps Brittany's nose playfully. "I tried to avoid quiet when we were apart. Less time to think meant less time to miss you."

"I'm sure it was easy enough living with Rachel." Brittany chuckles and Santana agrees. Rachel was loud.

"Never a moment of peace." Santana shakes her head "I'm glad to have those back. You're not just my missing piece, but my peace in the other sense."

"I don't know how peaceful you'll be tonight." Brittany winks, and they fall back inside together, eventually finding themselves intertwined on the bed.

I've never seen someone lit from within

Being in Hawaii with Brittany was heavenly. Days spent learning to hula, snorkeling, surfing and sunbathing, and nights spent entangled in sheets. It was everything good and beautiful wrapped up in a time and space separate from reality. There were no MIT men begging for their math monkey back, no endless auditions, no college classes, no drama. Just Santana, Brittany and white sandy beaches and endless blue waters. If they could've stayed for ever, they would've. But, as amazing and gorgeous as Hawaii was, it wasn't home. Much like Santana had never felt at home in Ohio, she never quite felt at home in Hawaii either. Sure, with Brittany anywhere was home, but she missed the New York life. The city that never sleeps, everything changing in a New York Minute…it was what she saw for her future. A skyline didn't quite compare to the glittering sunset horizons in Hawaii, but it felt more real. More grounded. It felt like her. It was Santana. When they touched down at JFK, Santana knew they were home. With Brittany by her side and friends waiting, they started a new life in New York. Their first New York City Date? A Broadway show starring their very own friend Rachel Berry. In the meantime, they return to the Spotlight Diner, learning of Dani's departure, to make some money, and Mercedes manages to help hook Santana up with her production company. So far, New York holds a lot more promise than it did in the past.

Weird but fucking beautiful

Being in New York was a whirlwind. Between shifts at the diner, going to see their friend perform, helping Rachel with a dog charity event and weekly Monday night dinners, Brittany and Santana felt like they were just passing each other by. But they always found time for each other. They revived their weekly Friday date nights, and every Friday would check one thing off their New York bucket list that, once complete, they agreed would solidify their citizenship as New Yorkers. It was probably far too cold and wintery to be trying to accomplish half the things on their list, but neither of them shied away from a challenge, and beside one more coming snow, Spring was on the horizon. One of the last stops on their lists wasn't actually in New York, it was in New Jersey. It was Coney Island. The snow was starting to fall as they finished off their day, walking on the beach, reminiscing about the much cleaner and nicer sand of Hawaii, and how it had never snowed there.

"This is so weird." Brittany said as she watched snowflakes fall to the ocean "It's beautiful though."

"It is. Kind of like our life in New York. And I love it for all it weirdness and beauty. It reminds me of you." Santana smiles softly.

"Aww, that's sweet…right?" Brittany giggles.

"Yes, my love. And you are my love. My one and only true love. I love you Britt. And I'll say it everyday for the rest of my life." Santana kisses her softly.

"I love you too Santana. We're each other's forever. We always have been."

it's like snow on the beach