Bound By Destiny - Brittana

Research

Santana was hunched over her computer, her eyes glued to the screen as she scrolled through pictures of Brittany Pierce. Her curiosity had gotten the best of her, and she wanted to know more about the girl her parents were pushing her towards. The images showed Brittany with her family, laughing at a picnic, posing in front of a Christmas tree, and attending a formal event. Santana couldn't help but feel a mix of intrigue and anxiety.

The door to her room burst open, and Sofía walked in, talking animatedly. "You will never believe what happened! So, basically, this one guy who was about 40 came up to me and—" She stopped mid-sentence when she saw Santana's computer screen displaying a family photo of the Pierces. A mischievous smile spread across her face.

"It's not what it looks like!" Santana blurted out, her heart racing as she saw Sofía's expression.

Sofía's smile widened, and she immediately started yelling, "Diego! Diego, get in here!"

Panic surged through Santana, and she practically threw herself at Sofía, knocking them both to the ground in a tangle of limbs. The computer, and its revealing screen, was long forgotten as the sisters wrestled on the floor.

Diego rushed into the room, his phone already out and recording the scene. "Fight, fight, fight!" he chanted, a grin spreading across his face.

His eyes flickered to the computer, and he started laughing. "Already looking up pictures of your lady lover, Santana?"

Santana glared at Diego, her hair now a wild mess. "I just wanted to know what I'm dealing with," she snapped, frustration evident in her voice.

With a grunt, she hoisted herself off her sister and plopped down into the chair in front of her computer. She tried to ignore the continued giggling from her siblings.

After a moment of silence, Santana sighed and said, "It seems like she doesn't have a life."

Diego frowned and pointed to a picture of the Pierce family at the beach. "But she's at a beach."

Sofía nodded and pointed to another picture of the family in front of a mountain. "And she's at a mountain thingy."

Santana rolled her eyes. "Do you not see the similarities in every picture?"

Her two siblings leaned in closer to the computer, scrutinizing the images. Diego was the first to pull away, shaking his head. "Nope."

Sofía squinted at the screen and then gasped. "Oh my god, you're right."

Diego's frown deepened as he looked back at the pictures. "What's the same about every picture?"

Sofía pointed at the screen. "She's always with her family, no one else."

Diego's frown turned into a look of realization. "How did I miss that?"

Santana smirked. "Maybe because you're not a stalker like Sofía."

Sofía gasped at the accusation. "You noticed it too!"

————

Damien knocked on Brittany's door, the sound echoing through the hallway. "Dad's got another suitor for you," he announced, his tone laced with mild amusement.

Brittany rolled her eyes, but curiosity got the better of her. "What's their age?" she asked, not looking up from her book.

"I don't know, but Mom said it was the Lopez family," Damien replied, leaning against the doorframe.

Brittany frowned, setting her book aside. "Who's that?"

Damien shrugged nonchalantly. "No clue."

Brittany groaned in frustration and got up from her bed, pushing her brother out of the room. "I need to find a dress then."

Damien nodded, stepping back into the hallway. "It's in two days, so if I were you, I would look up the Lopez family."

Brittany mimicked him mockingly, sticking her tongue out before closing her bedroom door. She sighed deeply, her mind already racing with thoughts about this new development. She walked over to her desk and sat down, opening her laptop. A few keystrokes later, she was staring at the search bar, wondering what she would find about the Lopez family.

As the search results populated the screen, Brittany leaned back in her chair, a mix of curiosity and apprehension swirling within her. Two days. She had two days to figure out who the Lopez family was and what kind of people they might be. With a resigned sigh, she clicked on the first link, ready to dive into her research.

Brittany came across a link titled "Deep Dive into the Lopez Family" and eagerly clicked on it. As the page loaded, she scrolled past the parents' information, her eyes skimming over their achievements and history until she reached a section featuring an image of Diego Lopez.

She hummed softly, muttering to herself, "He's cute." She skimmed over the information about him—his age, occupation, and hobbies—finding him intriguing but not much else.

Her scrolling brought her to another image, this one displaying the name Santana Lopez. Brittany frowned slightly and clicked on the image link where Santana's photo was supposed to be, but a message popped up saying, "Image not available."

Brittany huffed in frustration and slammed her laptop shut. Pushing back her chair, she stood and walked over to her closet, her mind still buzzing with thoughts about the Lopez family. She began rifling through her dresses, trying to distract herself from the strange sense of curiosity and annoyance that had settled over her.

As she pulled out a few options, she couldn't help but wonder why the image of Santana was missing. What was this girl like? What did she look like? Shaking her head, Brittany tried to focus on the task at hand—finding the perfect dress for the upcoming meeting. But the unanswered questions lingered in the back of her mind, refusing to be ignored.

Brittany stood in front of her full-length mirror, holding a black dress against her body. She scanned her reflection briefly, the dress's dark fabric stark against her fair skin. After a moment of consideration, she shook her head and tossed the dress onto the floor.

She rummaged through her closet, her fingers brushing past various fabrics and colors, until she pulled out a very light pink dress. Without even checking how it looked against her, she hung it on the door. The soft, delicate hue seemed like a safe choice for the upcoming meeting.

With a determined sigh, Brittany quickly gathered all the discarded dresses and neatly placed them back into her closet. She closed the door with a decisive click and turned back to the pink dress hanging on the door, hoping it would be the right choice for meeting the Lopez family.