Color (2/20)
Title: Color (Part 1)
Pairing: Santana/Brittany
Rating: PG-13
Summary: When Glee club loses a friend, everyone feels it. But one glee member feels it so much more than the others and embarks on her own journey to discover how to move on.
Spoilers: None
Author's Note: Brought over from FF.net under the name EverShadow.
Previous Chapters: Part 1
Author's note: As per usual, I love feedback.
Lima, Ohio, Five Years Ago
"WHOO! TAKE IT OFF!" Puck shouted obnoxiously to Quinn who was taking off her beer stained shirt. She glared angrily at the mohawked boy who had been the reason for her drenched state.
"Puck, shut up." She hissed. Kurt draped his blazer over her shoulders.
"Come on, let's find you something to wear." He said, leading her up to his room. Puck shrugged and down the rest of his cup. He looked around.
"Who wants to play spin the bottle?" He asked, grabbing the nearest empty beer bottle. Rachel shook her head.
"Puck, look around. Who is single? And who would want to kiss you?" She said. Puck took one glance around the room. Tina and Artie were racing around the room in his wheelchair. Rachel and Finn were holding hands while Finn stared suspiciously at Puck. Mercedes looked like if he tried anything, she'd mount his head as a decorative item on her wall. That left Matt and Mike, neither of whom Puck wanted to go anywhere near in a sexual way.
"Hold on, where are Santana and Brittany?" He asked.
"Probably making out somewhere." Mercedes replied. All the guys in the room went silent and coughed awkwardly, suddenly feeling slightly uncomfortable, especially in the case of how their pants were quickly becoming too tight.
"Anyway, it's not like they'd want to make out with anyone in this room anyway." Rachel said quickly, trying to bring the focus back to the issue at hand.
"Hey, I made out with both of them!" Puck defended. "Maybe they want a threesome."
"How stupid are you?" Mercedes snapped. "They're obviously in love with each other."
"Mercedes is right." Kurt interrupted, coming back down the steps. "Besides, ever since the two of them came back from California, Santana hasn't taken off a certain accessory." He smiled coyly, pointing to his ring finger before doing a very Beyonce-esque dip. "Single ladies, they are not."
"Woah...wait..." Finn said, putting out a hand. "You don't mean..."
"Uh, duh." Mercedes replied, rolling her eyes. "Rachel, really, get his brain checked out. I think maybe the helmet doesn't help enough."
"Are you serious? I thought it was just a friggin trinket or something." Puck said in disbelief.
"Right. The two of them just happened to get matching 'trinkets' and came out hardcore as a couple to the point where Sue contemplated kicking them off before admiring their 'attention grabbing stunts.'" Kurt said sarcastically.
"They're engaged?" Mike's voice was unnaturally high pitched.
"If those rings are any indication." Kurt nodded. As if sensing that they were the subject of conversation, Santana and Brittany walked back in the room from the backyard, giggling. Santana's hair was tousled and her make up smeared. Brittany was falling all over her and kissing her on the cheek every few seconds.
"Where have you two been?" Kurt asked with a smile.
"None of your business." Santana slurred. Kurt raised his eyebrow knowingly.
"Nice...hickey, Santana." He commented. Santana clapped a hand against her neck where a dark red mark showed plainly.
"Damn it Brittany." She muttered, leaning against the blonde. Everyone in the room was more focused on their hands, linked together. More importantly, they were focused on Brittany's left hand, nestled between Santana's. A small silver ring gleamed brightly on her ring finger.
"What's your problem?" Santana snapped, not too drunk to notice everyone's gaze.
"Baby..." Brittany leaned over and petted her head, trying to get her to calm down. "Can you get me some water? I'm thirsty..." Santana stood up in a huff and walked up the stairs. Brittany's gaze followed her lovingly.
"So...spill." Mercedes sat down next to Brittany.
"Heeey..." Brittany said drunkenly. "That's San's seat."
"Oh, I'll get out of it as soon as she gets back." Mercedes replied. "So...what's with the shiny?" She gestured towards Brittany's hand. Brittany giggled and smiled more widely than most of the club had seen her smile.
"It's a secret. Santana told me I can't tell you we're going to be together forever." Upon hearing this, Rachel and Tina squealed at the top of their lungs.
"I knew it!" Rachel screamed and clasped both her hands over her mouth. Kurt smiled and then, upon looking at Brittany's skirt, colored and turned away.
"Um. Brit. I love you, girl, but you're missing something." He said awkwardly. Brit looked puzzled for a second before standing up suddenly.
"Ah! I forgot my panties in the backyard!" Everyone in the room went dead silent as the blonde skipped out of the room. Puck's eyes trailed after her, trying to catch a glimpse. After a minute, Santana stumbled back down, holding a glass of water. Everyone in the room started cheering and Rachel grabbed Santana's free hand and shook it.
"If I may speak on behalf of everyone, congratulations!" Rachel said.
"Ok, what the hell?" Santana said, eying everyone warily.
"You know, most high school relationships don't last very long. I'm surprised you'd be such a romantic to propose." Kurt stated. Santana's jaw dropped.
"Who the fuck told?"
"Your fiancee." Kurt replied with flourish. "Besides, we're not blind." He cast a look over his shoulder at the other boys. "Well, at least the non-mentally challenged ones. We know matching rings when we see them."
"Oh my god." Santana sat down on the steps.
"So how did you do it?" Mercedes asked.
"No, shut up."
"Was it in a restaurant? Were you all dressed up and did you kneel? Oh my god, did she cry?" Tina asked.
"I bet you did it in a field somewhere with stars above your head." Rachel said dreamily.
"I bet she did it after they had sex." Puck suggested.
"She did it, ok?" Santana yelled, trying to get everyone to stop making her head hurt. It did the job and there was a surprised silence.
"Woah, Brit...baller." Artie said.
"Ok, there, I said it. Now where is she?" Santana felt like burying her face in the ground. She was sure that she was red, and not just from the alcohol.
"I saw her headed towards the pool just a minute ago." Quinn said, finally coming back down the stairs.
"I bet she's planning on skinny dipping." Puck leered.
"It looked like she dropped something in the water." Quinn replied, smacking him upside the head. Everyone laughed but for Santana, everything else drowned out. Words blurred together and she saw the glass of water drop from her hands. Everything became slow motion as she stood up.
"BRITTANY!" She screamed and her voice sounded unnaturally hoarse. Everyone turned to look at her as she bolted towards the back door. "SHE CAN'T SWIM!" Suddenly everyone was on their feet and racing past the glass door. Santana was the first to reach the pool and let out a choked sob when she saw Brittany floating in the water. She jumped in.
"Santana!" Puck shouted. Santana swam towards the blonde and grabbed her but she couldn't do anything. Suddenly, there was another splash and in a few strokes, Puck was beside her towing the blonde back to the edge. Everyone helped the three out of the water and Puck, the only one CPR trained, began performing resuscitation. Artie was on his phone calling 911. Finn held Rachel close and everyone else huddled in a circle.
"Baby." Santana said, taking her hand. She looked down and saw that her hand was clenched around something. Her grip went slack for a moment and Santana caught a glimpse of silver. Brittany was holding the ring. Santana looked from the ring to the pool and back.
"No...no...no." She whispered as the scenario played out in her head. Brittany never takes the ring off. The ring must've dropped into the water and Brittany being drunk and in love with Santana must've dove in after it.
"Baby, baby, please." Santana begged. Puck pushed down on her chest.
"Come on." He grunted. "Come on." He placed his lips against hers and blew air into her mouth. "Come on."
"Baby...Brittany..." Santana sobbed and took her hand and held it close. "B..." In the dim light, the silver ring on Santana's hand sparkled in tandem with the one clutched against Brittany's palm. In the distance, Santana could hear the sirens approaching while Puck continued pushing against Brittany's chest and trying to force her to breathe again. Santana let out a heartbroken cry that shook everyone's core and she gripped Brittany's rapidly cooling hand harder.
Lima, Ohio, Present Day
Santana blew the steam off the top of her coffee before taking a small sip. She grimaced at the burnt taste and looked outside across the street. Nothing had changed. Lima was still exactly like she left it, bad coffee and all. Rachel glanced at her left hand where a now faded silver ring rested.
"You still wear that?" She asked. Quinn kicked from under the table. Santana didn't even blink before responding.
"Why not? It keeps people away and it reminds me of her." She replied.
"Is that healthy?" Quinn asked.
"Doesn't matter to me." She said nonchalantly. "My coffee is half done so you'd better hurry up with the questions. Make them good, so far they've been stupid."
"Where have you been?" Rachel nodded in agreement to Quinn's question. Santana sighed and leaned back.
"Ho boy. Where haven't I been?" She sighed.
"Start from the beginning." Rachel suggested.
"That's a lot more than a cup of coffee." Santana pointed out. Quinn grabbed the arm of a nearby waitress.
"Make sure her cup is never empty." She said, pointing to Santana's mug. The waitress nodded and Santana laughed.
"You're serious."
"Deadly." Quinn replied. Santana folded her arms.
"Look, it's a long story."
"And I'm here for another two days because my $1,093 flight doesn't leave until Friday." Quinn leveled her gaze at Santana, determined not to let her back away. Santana shrugged.
"Whatever, your time, not mine." She said.
"So...where did you go? I mean...one minute you were in school, doing glee, Cheerios...and the next day you just vanished." Rachel prodded.
"You remember the summer before our senior year? Before that year?" Santana asked. The two nodded. "Remember how Brittany and I went on a road trip the entire summer? Jumping from couch to couch, sleeping in the car, sometimes staying with a friend or relative? I did that. I couldn't stay in Lima, that's for sure. So I started driving and before I knew it, I was out of the state. I just kept going. I realized I was taking the same route that Brittany and I took."
"So you went on the same road trip again?" Quinn clarified.
"Pretty much. Told you it was boring."
"For five years?"
"Time goes by, doesn't it." Santana stated plainly.
"Five years, Santana. That's a fucking long time. Why?"
"Why do you think? I needed time away to figure things out." She looked at her watch. "Well, look at the time. And I'm done my coffee." She stood up.
"Sit the fuck back down." Quinn demanded. Santana's eyes narrowed.
"Make me, blondie." She snapped before scooting out of the booth.
"Santana! You can't do that!"
"Watch me." Santana left the diner. Rachel grabbed Quinn's arm.
"We can't just let her leave like that." She whispered. Quinn nodded.
"I know where she's going." She said, dropping a few dollars and following the brunette. Sure enough, they wound up in the cemetery again.
"They're persistent, aren't they?" Santana said to the gravestone. "You think they'll ever leave me alone? No? Damn. Do you want to hear my story too, B?" She sat down next to the grass and leaned against the round edge. She watched as Quinn and Rachel sat down close by, watching her as if she was going to get up and sprint away at any second. Santana sighed. She was tired of running.
"Well, remember that summer...?" She began. "It kinda begins there."
Pairing: Santana/Brittany
Rating: PG-13
Summary: When Glee club loses a friend, everyone feels it. But one glee member feels it so much more than the others and embarks on her own journey to discover how to move on.
Spoilers: None
Author's Note: Brought over from FF.net under the name EverShadow.
Previous Chapters: Part 1
Author's note: As per usual, I love feedback.
Lima, Ohio, Five Years Ago
"WHOO! TAKE IT OFF!" Puck shouted obnoxiously to Quinn who was taking off her beer stained shirt. She glared angrily at the mohawked boy who had been the reason for her drenched state.
"Puck, shut up." She hissed. Kurt draped his blazer over her shoulders.
"Come on, let's find you something to wear." He said, leading her up to his room. Puck shrugged and down the rest of his cup. He looked around.
"Who wants to play spin the bottle?" He asked, grabbing the nearest empty beer bottle. Rachel shook her head.
"Puck, look around. Who is single? And who would want to kiss you?" She said. Puck took one glance around the room. Tina and Artie were racing around the room in his wheelchair. Rachel and Finn were holding hands while Finn stared suspiciously at Puck. Mercedes looked like if he tried anything, she'd mount his head as a decorative item on her wall. That left Matt and Mike, neither of whom Puck wanted to go anywhere near in a sexual way.
"Hold on, where are Santana and Brittany?" He asked.
"Probably making out somewhere." Mercedes replied. All the guys in the room went silent and coughed awkwardly, suddenly feeling slightly uncomfortable, especially in the case of how their pants were quickly becoming too tight.
"Anyway, it's not like they'd want to make out with anyone in this room anyway." Rachel said quickly, trying to bring the focus back to the issue at hand.
"Hey, I made out with both of them!" Puck defended. "Maybe they want a threesome."
"How stupid are you?" Mercedes snapped. "They're obviously in love with each other."
"Mercedes is right." Kurt interrupted, coming back down the steps. "Besides, ever since the two of them came back from California, Santana hasn't taken off a certain accessory." He smiled coyly, pointing to his ring finger before doing a very Beyonce-esque dip. "Single ladies, they are not."
"Woah...wait..." Finn said, putting out a hand. "You don't mean..."
"Uh, duh." Mercedes replied, rolling her eyes. "Rachel, really, get his brain checked out. I think maybe the helmet doesn't help enough."
"Are you serious? I thought it was just a friggin trinket or something." Puck said in disbelief.
"Right. The two of them just happened to get matching 'trinkets' and came out hardcore as a couple to the point where Sue contemplated kicking them off before admiring their 'attention grabbing stunts.'" Kurt said sarcastically.
"They're engaged?" Mike's voice was unnaturally high pitched.
"If those rings are any indication." Kurt nodded. As if sensing that they were the subject of conversation, Santana and Brittany walked back in the room from the backyard, giggling. Santana's hair was tousled and her make up smeared. Brittany was falling all over her and kissing her on the cheek every few seconds.
"Where have you two been?" Kurt asked with a smile.
"None of your business." Santana slurred. Kurt raised his eyebrow knowingly.
"Nice...hickey, Santana." He commented. Santana clapped a hand against her neck where a dark red mark showed plainly.
"Damn it Brittany." She muttered, leaning against the blonde. Everyone in the room was more focused on their hands, linked together. More importantly, they were focused on Brittany's left hand, nestled between Santana's. A small silver ring gleamed brightly on her ring finger.
"What's your problem?" Santana snapped, not too drunk to notice everyone's gaze.
"Baby..." Brittany leaned over and petted her head, trying to get her to calm down. "Can you get me some water? I'm thirsty..." Santana stood up in a huff and walked up the stairs. Brittany's gaze followed her lovingly.
"So...spill." Mercedes sat down next to Brittany.
"Heeey..." Brittany said drunkenly. "That's San's seat."
"Oh, I'll get out of it as soon as she gets back." Mercedes replied. "So...what's with the shiny?" She gestured towards Brittany's hand. Brittany giggled and smiled more widely than most of the club had seen her smile.
"It's a secret. Santana told me I can't tell you we're going to be together forever." Upon hearing this, Rachel and Tina squealed at the top of their lungs.
"I knew it!" Rachel screamed and clasped both her hands over her mouth. Kurt smiled and then, upon looking at Brittany's skirt, colored and turned away.
"Um. Brit. I love you, girl, but you're missing something." He said awkwardly. Brit looked puzzled for a second before standing up suddenly.
"Ah! I forgot my panties in the backyard!" Everyone in the room went dead silent as the blonde skipped out of the room. Puck's eyes trailed after her, trying to catch a glimpse. After a minute, Santana stumbled back down, holding a glass of water. Everyone in the room started cheering and Rachel grabbed Santana's free hand and shook it.
"If I may speak on behalf of everyone, congratulations!" Rachel said.
"Ok, what the hell?" Santana said, eying everyone warily.
"You know, most high school relationships don't last very long. I'm surprised you'd be such a romantic to propose." Kurt stated. Santana's jaw dropped.
"Who the fuck told?"
"Your fiancee." Kurt replied with flourish. "Besides, we're not blind." He cast a look over his shoulder at the other boys. "Well, at least the non-mentally challenged ones. We know matching rings when we see them."
"Oh my god." Santana sat down on the steps.
"So how did you do it?" Mercedes asked.
"No, shut up."
"Was it in a restaurant? Were you all dressed up and did you kneel? Oh my god, did she cry?" Tina asked.
"I bet you did it in a field somewhere with stars above your head." Rachel said dreamily.
"I bet she did it after they had sex." Puck suggested.
"She did it, ok?" Santana yelled, trying to get everyone to stop making her head hurt. It did the job and there was a surprised silence.
"Woah, Brit...baller." Artie said.
"Ok, there, I said it. Now where is she?" Santana felt like burying her face in the ground. She was sure that she was red, and not just from the alcohol.
"I saw her headed towards the pool just a minute ago." Quinn said, finally coming back down the stairs.
"I bet she's planning on skinny dipping." Puck leered.
"It looked like she dropped something in the water." Quinn replied, smacking him upside the head. Everyone laughed but for Santana, everything else drowned out. Words blurred together and she saw the glass of water drop from her hands. Everything became slow motion as she stood up.
"BRITTANY!" She screamed and her voice sounded unnaturally hoarse. Everyone turned to look at her as she bolted towards the back door. "SHE CAN'T SWIM!" Suddenly everyone was on their feet and racing past the glass door. Santana was the first to reach the pool and let out a choked sob when she saw Brittany floating in the water. She jumped in.
"Santana!" Puck shouted. Santana swam towards the blonde and grabbed her but she couldn't do anything. Suddenly, there was another splash and in a few strokes, Puck was beside her towing the blonde back to the edge. Everyone helped the three out of the water and Puck, the only one CPR trained, began performing resuscitation. Artie was on his phone calling 911. Finn held Rachel close and everyone else huddled in a circle.
"Baby." Santana said, taking her hand. She looked down and saw that her hand was clenched around something. Her grip went slack for a moment and Santana caught a glimpse of silver. Brittany was holding the ring. Santana looked from the ring to the pool and back.
"No...no...no." She whispered as the scenario played out in her head. Brittany never takes the ring off. The ring must've dropped into the water and Brittany being drunk and in love with Santana must've dove in after it.
"Baby, baby, please." Santana begged. Puck pushed down on her chest.
"Come on." He grunted. "Come on." He placed his lips against hers and blew air into her mouth. "Come on."
"Baby...Brittany..." Santana sobbed and took her hand and held it close. "B..." In the dim light, the silver ring on Santana's hand sparkled in tandem with the one clutched against Brittany's palm. In the distance, Santana could hear the sirens approaching while Puck continued pushing against Brittany's chest and trying to force her to breathe again. Santana let out a heartbroken cry that shook everyone's core and she gripped Brittany's rapidly cooling hand harder.
Lima, Ohio, Present Day
Santana blew the steam off the top of her coffee before taking a small sip. She grimaced at the burnt taste and looked outside across the street. Nothing had changed. Lima was still exactly like she left it, bad coffee and all. Rachel glanced at her left hand where a now faded silver ring rested.
"You still wear that?" She asked. Quinn kicked from under the table. Santana didn't even blink before responding.
"Why not? It keeps people away and it reminds me of her." She replied.
"Is that healthy?" Quinn asked.
"Doesn't matter to me." She said nonchalantly. "My coffee is half done so you'd better hurry up with the questions. Make them good, so far they've been stupid."
"Where have you been?" Rachel nodded in agreement to Quinn's question. Santana sighed and leaned back.
"Ho boy. Where haven't I been?" She sighed.
"Start from the beginning." Rachel suggested.
"That's a lot more than a cup of coffee." Santana pointed out. Quinn grabbed the arm of a nearby waitress.
"Make sure her cup is never empty." She said, pointing to Santana's mug. The waitress nodded and Santana laughed.
"You're serious."
"Deadly." Quinn replied. Santana folded her arms.
"Look, it's a long story."
"And I'm here for another two days because my $1,093 flight doesn't leave until Friday." Quinn leveled her gaze at Santana, determined not to let her back away. Santana shrugged.
"Whatever, your time, not mine." She said.
"So...where did you go? I mean...one minute you were in school, doing glee, Cheerios...and the next day you just vanished." Rachel prodded.
"You remember the summer before our senior year? Before that year?" Santana asked. The two nodded. "Remember how Brittany and I went on a road trip the entire summer? Jumping from couch to couch, sleeping in the car, sometimes staying with a friend or relative? I did that. I couldn't stay in Lima, that's for sure. So I started driving and before I knew it, I was out of the state. I just kept going. I realized I was taking the same route that Brittany and I took."
"So you went on the same road trip again?" Quinn clarified.
"Pretty much. Told you it was boring."
"For five years?"
"Time goes by, doesn't it." Santana stated plainly.
"Five years, Santana. That's a fucking long time. Why?"
"Why do you think? I needed time away to figure things out." She looked at her watch. "Well, look at the time. And I'm done my coffee." She stood up.
"Sit the fuck back down." Quinn demanded. Santana's eyes narrowed.
"Make me, blondie." She snapped before scooting out of the booth.
"Santana! You can't do that!"
"Watch me." Santana left the diner. Rachel grabbed Quinn's arm.
"We can't just let her leave like that." She whispered. Quinn nodded.
"I know where she's going." She said, dropping a few dollars and following the brunette. Sure enough, they wound up in the cemetery again.
"They're persistent, aren't they?" Santana said to the gravestone. "You think they'll ever leave me alone? No? Damn. Do you want to hear my story too, B?" She sat down next to the grass and leaned against the round edge. She watched as Quinn and Rachel sat down close by, watching her as if she was going to get up and sprint away at any second. Santana sighed. She was tired of running.
"Well, remember that summer...?" She began. "It kinda begins there."