Checking her reflection once more in the mirror, Santana frowned. She didn't feel normal. This wasn't something that moms wore.
"What's that look for?" Kurt queried.
"I don't know," Santana mused. "Isn't this too…slutty for a mom?"
Kurt laughed loudly, and Bella joined in from her spot on the bed, clapping her hands.
"Yeah, great support base you guys are," Santana quipped, winking at her daughter.
"Mama," Bella said seriously.
"Yes, baby girl?" Santana replied, kneeling down in front of her daughter.
Her hands on her mother's face, Bella went on a rampage of mumbled baby noises with a few discernible vowels and consonants.
"You should listen to her," Kurt said matter-of-factly. "She's wise beyond her years."
"Her year," Santana corrected. She smiled and nuzzled Bella's neck, causing her to squeal happily. "My baby's one whole year old today, aren't you?"
"Mama!" Bella giggled.
"Okay, but seriously," Santana said, standing up and doing a pirouette in front of her daughter. "What do you think? Can you be seen out in public with your mother looking like this?"
Bella broke out into a smile and clapped her hands.
"The fashionista has spoken," Kurt said dramatically. "For what my two cents may be worth, I think you look stunning."
"Thanks, Kurtie," Santana cooed. "I'm a total MILF, right?"
Kurt just rolled his eyes, then waved and disappeared out of the bedroom.
"Mama," Bella said, waving her arms in the air.
Santana bent down and picked up her daughter. "What about you, pretty girl? Do you like your dress? Abuela picked it out specially for you for today." Standing in front of the mirror, Santana told her, "Look at us, baby girl. We're a pair of hot bitches, you and me."
"Language, Santana!" Rachel called as she walked past the bedroom.
"Whoops," Santana giggled. "You're super smart though, Bella, so I know you won't use that word ever. Now, my baby genius, let's go light up the world."
She paused as she realized what she'd said. Shaking it off, she grabbed her coat and Bella's blanket before heading out.
"Papi, this place is amazing," Santana said in awe once she'd gotten Bella settled in her baby seat at the table and had a chance to look around. "It's a little out of my price range though."
"Mija, don't be ridiculous," Emilio replied with a smile. "It's our granddaughter's first birthday, and we are entitled to take her and her beautiful mother out to dinner."
"Gracias, Papi."
"Papi!" Bella said suddenly.
The look on Emilio's face was priceless. "I-I-I…"
Santana giggled. Her daughter had been saying that word, because she kept hearing her mother use it on the phone. "Don't worry, Papi. It's only because that's what I call you."
"So there's no…?" Maribel queried.
"God, no!" Santana laughed. "That was a one-time, drunken mistake. It definitely won't happen again."
"And anyone else, mija?" her mother prodded gently.
Santana sighed, her eyes betraying the sudden sadness she felt at knowing she was alone. Well, not alone, but she still missed a certain blonde.
"No, Mami," she replied eventually. "There's no one."
"Have you tried to get in contact with…her?"
Santana smiled sadly at her mother, who reached over and squeezed her hand. "I did. About two months ago, I decided to try and reach out, to rectify the damage I'd done. But her number was disconnected, and her parents didn't answer."
"And that's all?" Emilio asked, frowning. "Santanita, this is Brittany we're talking about. You're not going to try harder than that?"
Taking a shaky breath, Santana willed the tears to stay away. "This whole thing has been hard, Papi. Of course I want to see her. I want to be able to tell her how sorry I am. I want to introduce her to Bella." She ran her finger across her daughter's forehead, causing the youngest Lopez to look up and smile at her. "But I have to accept that it may be too late. I took the leap, even though Kurt and Rachel told me not to, and I didn't find her on the other end." She shrugged. "Everything happens for a reason. If Brittany hadn't left, I wouldn't have Bella, and I can't imagine my life without her."
"Are you still angry with her?"
"I don't know," Santana said honestly. "We both said some hurtful things that night. I was angry for a long time, because she just came and told me that she was going. She didn't even attempt to discuss it with me. So maybe I'm still angry about that. But mostly, I think I'm just sad. I'll probably always be sad. There's no one like her."
"Ay mija," Maribel said sympathetically. "I'm sure that someday, you two might be able to work things out."
"I don't know about that, Mami. I don't know if we can ever go back to what we had. Too much has changed. But…I don't know, I guess I'd like to know if we could ever be friends again." Santana shook her head. "But the chances of that happening are so slim. I don't even know where she is."
Suddenly, Bella squealed and banged on the table.
"Sorry, baby girl," Santana apologized, smiling at her daughter. "You're absolutely right. Today is your birthday, and here we are, talking about my sad history."
"Her dress looks gorgeous," Maribel said proudly.
"You have a good eye, Mami," Santana agreed. "But then again, you always did."
"You also look lovely, Santanita." Emilio took his daughter's hand and placed a gentle kiss on the back of it.
Santana smiled. "Gracias, Papi."
"Papi!" Bella said loudly.
The table laughed.
Brittany pulled her jacket around her tightly as she trudged home after a long day at the dance studio. She was exhausted but couldn't afford to slack on her training. Having landed a gig on Dancing with the Stars as one of the professional dancers, she was due to fly out to LA in a few days.
Passing a few high-class restaurants, she rolled her eyes at the lavish interiors. She hated how the high society lorded their wealth over everyone. Not that she was struggling — her back-to-back world tours with Rihanna, then Madonna, had blown up her bank account — but she was never home, so she had no reason to spend her money.
As she walked past the entrance to a particular restaurant, she happened to glance in and immediately froze. What in all hell were the chances?
Santana was walking through the restaurant, heading towards what Brittany assumed was the restroom. Taking a sharp intake of breath, Brittany allowed her eyes to travel up and down her ex-girlfriend's form. She was wearing red, Brittany's absolute favorite color on her. The dress was short and tight and showed off her amazing cleavage. Brittany didn't think that there would ever be a time when she didn't find the Latina completely and utterly sexy.
As Santana passed the bar, Brittany saw her turn around when a guy presumably made some sort of comment. Brittany smiled when she saw Santana's expression. The guy was getting a royal telling-off for even thinking that he could talk to her.
God, she looked amazing. She was just as beautiful as Brittany remembered, possibly even more so. Her legs…damn. Brittany missed those beautiful, toned legs. She used to stare at them for hours. Santana had always loved her heels, and today was no exception. Her ridiculously high heels just accentuated the sexy lines and muscles of her legs.
Santana flipped her hair as she turned away from the guy at the bar and walked away. Brittany couldn't move. She wanted to run in and see her, see those dark eyes trained on her. She wanted to see that dimple she loved so much. She wanted to kiss Santana's gorgeous lips.
"Crap," Brittany muttered to herself. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was supposed to be over Santana. It had been almost two years, for Christ's sake.
Her gaze was torn from Santana when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. After she fished it out, she looked back to the window, but Santana had disappeared. She sighed in resignation.
"Hello?" she answered her phone.
"Hey Britt!"
"Sara," Brittany greeted, a small smile crossing her face. She turned and started walking again. "What's up?"
"I made some mac and cheese for dinner. When do you think you'll be home?"
"I'm about 10 minutes away."
"Okay, great. I'll dish some up for you, and maybe later, we can have some dessert," she said suggestively.
Brittany considered her words. Having a fuck buddy was useful, especially considering that her libido hadn't decreased at all since high school. She could blame Santana for that.
Damn it! Stop thinking about her!
"Brittany?"
"Sure," Brittany said. "See you soon."
"I'll be waiting," Sara replied flirtatiously. "Bye."
Brittany hung up without replying and shook her head. Santana was her past. Trying to rekindle anything with her would just be a bad idea, especially since she was leaving for LA in a few days. She couldn't go through that whole drama again.
She had to leave Santana behind. Doing otherwise would just cause more heartache.
"Okay, mija, it's time we discuss your future. Both of yours," Emilio said, polishing off the last of his wine.
"What do you mean?" Santana asked, her brow wrinkling in confusion. "We're doing fine. I just got a raise at work, and my boss is trusting me with a lot more."
"Santana, we worked hard to give you everything you needed and wanted, and we want our granddaughter to be able to have the same."
"Papi, I know that," Santana said wistfully. "And I appreciate that I always had what I wanted, but…I just can't afford to do the same for Bella, as much as I wish I could." Emilio and Maribel looked at each other, and she frowned. "Okay, what's going on?"
"Have you thought about going back to school?" Emilio asked.
Santana blinked in surprise. "No," she replied. "It's not an option for me. Besides the crazy hours, I couldn't afford it by myself and still take care of Bella."
"What if we pay for your studies again and give you an allowance?" Emilio suggested.
She frowned. "That feels like I'm in high school again. An allowance?"
"Well, more like a monthly contribution to our girls' well-being," Maribel explained. "I know that you enjoy your job, but is it something you can see yourself doing for the rest of your life? Law was that for you, once upon a time."
Santana sighed. "This is a little overwhelming. Um…" She looked over at her daughter, who had passed out in her chair. "I don't know. I mean, I don't know if I want to study law anymore. I don't even know if I want to study at all. I haven't thought about it since I left."
"I understand," Emilio said. "I know you want to maintain your independence, and I respect that. I just want you to know that it doesn't have to be a struggle. We want to help. And before you argue, it won't be forever. As soon as you've finished studying, if that's what you want to do, then we will step back financially, and you can take it from there."
"Are you serious?" Santana whispered. "Why?"
"Why?" Maribel laughed. "Because we love you! And because we are here to support you now. We made a mistake, and this is our way of trying to make up for it."
"But I don't expect you to make up for it," Santana replied. "I have my parents back in my life. What more could I want?"
"Better health benefits?" Emilio said firmly. "The ability to take your daughter to museums and parks and carnivals and buy her clothes and toys?"
"Of course I want that, Papi." Santana frowned. She felt like she was losing control, and she didn't like it. Not when it came to her daughter.
"Santana, we are not trying to take over your role as mother, provider, and caregiver," Maribel reassured her softly. "We would never take that away from you. All we want is to help you fulfill those roles to the best of your ability."
"I need to think about this," Santana said, almost to herself, before looking at her parents. "Can I…get back to you?"
"Of course, mija."
"Okay. Thank you," Santana breathed, her mind mulling over her parents' offer.
"How about we call it a night, girls?" Emilio suggested. "Bella is already tuckered out, and I know you want to think about things. Plus, I'm stuffed."
That elicited a chuckle from Santana. How did she go from having no parents and no one to love her to this? At that moment, she felt like the luckiest person in the world. Of course, if a certain blonde came back into her life, that wouldn't be so bad either.