Beginnings in Disguise- A Glee AU

Chapter 2

Brittany's POV

Okay, the way Rachel and Santana just left like that was weird. But I still think my new neighbors are cool. Sam and I have been hanging out with Kurt for a while now, and he seems like good people.

"So when are you two thinking of tying the knot?" he asks Sam and I.

Sam replies, "We were thinking sometime in June, and definitely on the beach. Brittany's always wanted a beach wedding, and as long as she's happy, I'm happy." It's true. I always have. I've never actually seen the ocean in person, having lived in Ohio my whole life, but beach weddings seem so romantic. "Other than that, though, we don't really have a direction."

"Oh my gosh, you have to let me plan your wedding. I've practically been planning them my whole life. When I was little, my Power Rangers got married and divorced in so many different combinations, they were like Fleetwood Mac."

Sam and I both laugh, then I say, "Yeah, sure. You can plan our wedding. We just met you, like, less than an hour ago, but I trust you. I don't know, I'm just getting a good vibe. What do you say, Sam?"

"If you're getting a good vibe, than I say Kurt's planning our wedding."

"Excellent. I'll start working on moodboards right away. Sam, since you're not gonna be here that long, Brittany can just take pictures of the moodboards and send them to you."

Sam looks confused. "No clue what you're talking about, but okay I guess. Anyway, Brittany and I should get going. It's starting to get late."

A part of me doesn't want to go home. I mean, why would I? I'm having such a good time! But Sam has a point. It is getting late, and I need to unpack. "Yeah, we should. This has been fun, though. Maybe we can hang out more tomorrow?"

"Yeah, of course! I mean, I have to work in the morning, but Santana and Rachel will be here if you want to stop by."

---
(the next day)

I just got back from dropping off Sam at the airport, and now I'm alone with my cats, Lord Tubbington and Lady Tubbington. They're great company, but I can't stop thinking about the fact that I miss Sam. It's finally sinking in that my time in New York is going to be the longest I've ever been away from him. In high school we saw each other every day, and even after that we lived in the same town. We did agree that we'd call each other every day once I moved here, but it just isn't the same. I'm going to miss being with him.

I hear someone knock on my door, and I'm startled out of my thoughts. "Who is it?"

"It's Santana, Brit."

Santana? "I'm drawing a blank."

"Santana Lopez? From next door?"

"Ohhh, that Santana. Lemme get the door."

I let her in, and she makes herself at home. "Do you know many Santanas or something?"

"No," I say. "I've actually never met someone named Santana before. My short-term memory just isn't great sometimes. Or my long-term memory, for that matter. Sometimes I forget my middle name. But I'm getting off-topic. You have a beautiful name, I don't know if I mentioned that."

"Oh. I see. And thanks for the compliment. I was actually named after the band. My parents are huge fans."

"There's a band called Santana? I never knew that. I'll have to listen to them. My last name is Pierce and my middle name starts with an S, so I'm Brittany S. Pierce, and that's basically Britney Spears. I guess that means you and I have the whole music-name thing in common."

"I guess it does."

We chat for a while, then I decide to finally bring up the question I've been wondering about. "Why exactly did you and Rachel just leave yesterday? That was really weird."

"Well, I can't explain anything Berry does. That girl's always been an enigma to me. As for why I left? It's a long story, and kind of heavy. I don't know if I want to get into it."

"Just tell me," I urge. "We're friends. Well, sort of. We met yesterday. But I already consider you a friend."

"Thanks for that. I appreciate it. To return the favor, I'll tell you about why I left. If you weren't already sitting down, I'd tell you to do that, because I wasn't kidding when I said this was a long story."

---

Santana's POV

"I'm not fully sure where to start with this story," I begin. "I guess I'll start from the beginning. Around this time last year, I met a girl. Dani. She was a co-worker of mine, and I just had this... connection with her from the beginning. We became friends pretty quickly; we later found out that we both had huge crushes on each other but didn't want to say anything for fear of the other person not reciprocating. But anyway, a month or so later she worked up the nerve to ask me out, and of course I said yes.

"The time in which Dani and I dated was hands-down the best almost-year of my life. If you asked me then if I could see myself one day being married to her, I would've said yes. 100%. But you know the saying. All good things must come to an end. That end came last night, rather abruptly. We got into this huge fight- I don't even remember exactly how it started- but it ended with Dani yelling that we're through and then storming out of the apartment. I still feel... hollow from the whole experience. I can't believe I lost Dani."

"I'm really sorry to hear that, Santana," says Brittany. "Breakups can be tough. I know from experience. If I could offer you any advice, though, it'd be to change your perspective. From what I've learned, most of the time endings are just beginnings in disguise."

"Solid advice, Britt. And thanks for letting me vent. That was really therapeutic."

"Of course," she replies. "It's nice to already have a friend in New York."

"And it's nice for me to hang out with someone who isn't Hummel or Berry. No disrespect to them, but they're, like, super boring. Living with them is like living with the world's youngest grandmas." Brittany laughs, then I go on to say, "Do you mind if I stay a bit longer? This is really nice."

"Of course you can stay."

As our conversation goes on, it feels more like I'm talking to an old friend than to a new one. Something about Brittany feels familiar, like maybe I knew her in a past life. Whatever it is, I just feel comfortable around her, and the more I think about it, the more I realize that Brittany was right. This ending was, in fact, a beginning in disguise.

"Hey, Britt?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for letting me hang with you."