Fic: Language Barrier
Title: "Language Barrier"
Author: mallardeer
Pairing: Brittany/Santana
Spoilers: The tiniest one ever for 1.7 "Throwdown"
Rating: G
Summary: The summer before their daughter was supposed to start kindergarten, Daniel and Ana Lopez tried desperately to get her to start speaking English.
Author's Note: Here's some more unbearable cuteness. It's a prequel of sorts to " Buenas Noches, Wild Things."
The summer before their daughter was supposed to start kindergarten, Daniel and Ana Lopez tried desperately to get her to start speaking English. Santana understood it perfectly, but she refused to answer her parents in anything but Spanish. “Santanita, the other kids won’t be able to understand you,” Daniel pleaded as his daughter settled on his lap and handed him her favorite book.
“Lee, Papá,” she said, smiling winningly up at him, and he frowned gently at her.
“Say it in English, Santana,” he ordered, and she sighed.
“Read, Papá,” she muttered, and he stroked her hair and opened the book.
“We should get you this in English,” he murmured, but she scowled and tugged on his shirt, so he just started reading.
In the morning, Ana helped her daughter get dressed and somewhat nervously drove her to the elementary school. Santana wouldn’t stop scowling as she followed her mother inside. The idea of spending the entire morning at school did not appeal to her in the least. When they arrived in Santana’s classroom, most of the kids were already there, seated at round tables, and Santana suddenly panicked and clutched at her mother’s skirt. “Quiero ir a casa,” she said frantically.
“Santana, stop,” her mother said firmly, carefully detaching her small daughter.
“No, no, no,” she said, her heart rising in her throat. None of these kids would understand her, Papá had said, and she didn’t want to be around any of them.
The teacher, seeing another panicky child, came over then and offered Santana a calming smile. Her mother introduced them, and Santana just scowled. Ana sighed. She should have let Daniel do this; Santana was always better behaved for him. But, with Daniel, there was a chance he’d give in to her pleading and take her home, saying they could try again the next day. That was why Santana had never made it through pre-school.
“She’s stubborn,” Ana warned, and the teacher just smiled.
“Most of them are,” she said. “Come on, Santana, there’s a seat over here,” she said kindly, guiding the small girl over to a table where two blonde girls were sitting.
One of them looked up and smiled shyly, but then immediately went back to the picture she was coloring. The other looked up, saw the new girl, and grinned. Santana froze. “Hi!” the girl said cheerfully.
“Brittany, Quinn, this is Santana,” the teacher said.
“Hello,” Quinn said softly, her eyes never meeting Santana’s.
“Hola,” Santana returned, and the teacher blinked.
Ana, watching this, sighed again. “She understands English perfectly, but like I said. She’s stubborn. Her father and I have been having trouble getting her to speak it.”
The teacher nodded, trying not to show she was at a loss. “You can color with me if you want,” Brittany said to Santana, offering her a crayon.
Cautiously, Santana took it, and when the girl’s smile widened, she sat down beside her. “I think she’ll be fine,” the teacher said to Ana, and she nodded.
“Behave, Santanita,” her mother said, bending to kiss her head. “And use your English.”
Santana just looked blankly up at her, and Ana shook her head. “Adios, m’ija.”
“Adios, Mamá,” Santana said slyly, and her mother took her leave.
“You’re Santana,” Brittany asked, trying the name out, as Santana leaned over to share her coloring book.
“Sí. Eres…Brittany,” she replied.
“Yes. And that’s Quinn. We went to pre-school together. She’s shy, but she’s really nice.”
Santana looked up at Quinn, whose cheeks were pink, and decided maybe she’d be nice to her. If Brittany liked her. “Hola,” she said, offering Quinn a smile.
“Don’t you know English?” Quinn asked guardedly.
“What?” Brittany asked.
Santana just shrugged. “¿Puedo tener el azul?” she asked Brittany, and the girl passed over the blue crayon.
Quinn watched them and frowned. She hadn’t known Brittany knew any other languages. Usually, she had enough trouble with English, mixing up her words all the time. But she seemed to understand exactly what Santana was saying to her.
“I just don’t understand anything,” Brittany whispered, dismayed, but Quinn snatched her test back.
“That’s not my problem!” she hissed, and Brittany only sighed.
Later that day, when Brittany had only narrowly escaped becoming academically ineligible for Cheerios, Quinn demanded to know why she needed to cheat off her Spanish test. “You were the only one who understood Santana in kindergarten!” she remembered, and Brittany blushed.
“I don’t think that had anything to do with Spanish,” she said haltingly, and Quinn softened.
“Really?” she asked enviously.
Brittany shrugged, scuffing her sneaker on the locker room floor. “Britt! Let’s go,” Santana called from the hall.
“Coming?” she asked Quinn, but Quinn shook her head.
“I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” she said softly, and Brittany shouldered her gym bag and gave her a guarded smile before heading off to meet Santana.
Author: mallardeer
Pairing: Brittany/Santana
Spoilers: The tiniest one ever for 1.7 "Throwdown"
Rating: G
Summary: The summer before their daughter was supposed to start kindergarten, Daniel and Ana Lopez tried desperately to get her to start speaking English.
Author's Note: Here's some more unbearable cuteness. It's a prequel of sorts to " Buenas Noches, Wild Things."
The summer before their daughter was supposed to start kindergarten, Daniel and Ana Lopez tried desperately to get her to start speaking English. Santana understood it perfectly, but she refused to answer her parents in anything but Spanish. “Santanita, the other kids won’t be able to understand you,” Daniel pleaded as his daughter settled on his lap and handed him her favorite book.
“Lee, Papá,” she said, smiling winningly up at him, and he frowned gently at her.
“Say it in English, Santana,” he ordered, and she sighed.
“Read, Papá,” she muttered, and he stroked her hair and opened the book.
“We should get you this in English,” he murmured, but she scowled and tugged on his shirt, so he just started reading.
In the morning, Ana helped her daughter get dressed and somewhat nervously drove her to the elementary school. Santana wouldn’t stop scowling as she followed her mother inside. The idea of spending the entire morning at school did not appeal to her in the least. When they arrived in Santana’s classroom, most of the kids were already there, seated at round tables, and Santana suddenly panicked and clutched at her mother’s skirt. “Quiero ir a casa,” she said frantically.
“Santana, stop,” her mother said firmly, carefully detaching her small daughter.
“No, no, no,” she said, her heart rising in her throat. None of these kids would understand her, Papá had said, and she didn’t want to be around any of them.
The teacher, seeing another panicky child, came over then and offered Santana a calming smile. Her mother introduced them, and Santana just scowled. Ana sighed. She should have let Daniel do this; Santana was always better behaved for him. But, with Daniel, there was a chance he’d give in to her pleading and take her home, saying they could try again the next day. That was why Santana had never made it through pre-school.
“She’s stubborn,” Ana warned, and the teacher just smiled.
“Most of them are,” she said. “Come on, Santana, there’s a seat over here,” she said kindly, guiding the small girl over to a table where two blonde girls were sitting.
One of them looked up and smiled shyly, but then immediately went back to the picture she was coloring. The other looked up, saw the new girl, and grinned. Santana froze. “Hi!” the girl said cheerfully.
“Brittany, Quinn, this is Santana,” the teacher said.
“Hello,” Quinn said softly, her eyes never meeting Santana’s.
“Hola,” Santana returned, and the teacher blinked.
Ana, watching this, sighed again. “She understands English perfectly, but like I said. She’s stubborn. Her father and I have been having trouble getting her to speak it.”
The teacher nodded, trying not to show she was at a loss. “You can color with me if you want,” Brittany said to Santana, offering her a crayon.
Cautiously, Santana took it, and when the girl’s smile widened, she sat down beside her. “I think she’ll be fine,” the teacher said to Ana, and she nodded.
“Behave, Santanita,” her mother said, bending to kiss her head. “And use your English.”
Santana just looked blankly up at her, and Ana shook her head. “Adios, m’ija.”
“Adios, Mamá,” Santana said slyly, and her mother took her leave.
“You’re Santana,” Brittany asked, trying the name out, as Santana leaned over to share her coloring book.
“Sí. Eres…Brittany,” she replied.
“Yes. And that’s Quinn. We went to pre-school together. She’s shy, but she’s really nice.”
Santana looked up at Quinn, whose cheeks were pink, and decided maybe she’d be nice to her. If Brittany liked her. “Hola,” she said, offering Quinn a smile.
“Don’t you know English?” Quinn asked guardedly.
“What?” Brittany asked.
Santana just shrugged. “¿Puedo tener el azul?” she asked Brittany, and the girl passed over the blue crayon.
Quinn watched them and frowned. She hadn’t known Brittany knew any other languages. Usually, she had enough trouble with English, mixing up her words all the time. But she seemed to understand exactly what Santana was saying to her.
“I just don’t understand anything,” Brittany whispered, dismayed, but Quinn snatched her test back.
“That’s not my problem!” she hissed, and Brittany only sighed.
Later that day, when Brittany had only narrowly escaped becoming academically ineligible for Cheerios, Quinn demanded to know why she needed to cheat off her Spanish test. “You were the only one who understood Santana in kindergarten!” she remembered, and Brittany blushed.
“I don’t think that had anything to do with Spanish,” she said haltingly, and Quinn softened.
“Really?” she asked enviously.
Brittany shrugged, scuffing her sneaker on the locker room floor. “Britt! Let’s go,” Santana called from the hall.
“Coming?” she asked Quinn, but Quinn shook her head.
“I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” she said softly, and Brittany shouldered her gym bag and gave her a guarded smile before heading off to meet Santana.