A/N: Oh boy, I am not even going to give you guys any excuses. Honestly, right now I would be amazed and happy if anyone still wanted to read this.
I will say this - my life has been pretty insane since my last update. A combination of that and the fact that Glee kind of sucked my will to write away with what they've done to the show are the main contributors to the extremely extended absence. Add to that the fact that I was really struggling with this chapter to begin with….and here we are. I'm honestly glad it's over and ready to move on to bigger and better things with this story.
So that said, hopefully you enjoy this one and I'm not too rusty. I feel like I am. I do love this story and I love writing it and I still love Brittana so much. And I think the past two episodes of Glee have actually given me the kick that I have needed to get going. I still want to do what I originally set out to do and finish this story. And hopefully continue to write the more stories I had planned if anyone is still interested in reading. As always, I hope you enjoy.
"Oh my god." Santana said, grabbing her stomach, her heart dropping. "Oh my god."
"What?" Rachel asked from where she sat at the counter. "Santana, what's wrong?" She looked up and down, her mouth dropping as she saw the small amount of fluid that had collected at Santana's feet. "Oh my god."
"My water broke."
"Your water broke!"
"Oh shit, I'm going into labor!"
"You're going into labor!" Rachel shrieked back and Santana scowled.
"Are you going to repeat everything I say Berry or are you going to help me?!" Santana growled.
"Yes! I mean no! I mean yes!" Rachel shook her head, hopping down off the stool and making her way to the kitchen. "We need help." She said emphatically. Santana nodded fiercely, steadying herself against the counter as she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in an attempt to center herself. She opened up her eyes after a moment, looking over to Rachel, eyes full of panic and desperation.
"Yeah." She agreed and Rachel swallowed, doing her best to regain her own composure.
"Okay, okay. Let's get you changed and I'll call Brittany. Can you make it upstairs on your own?"
"I think so." Santana said, starting to head that way before pausing and turning back to Rachel with an alarmed expression. "Brittany is at that thing. At Julliard." She said, her eyes filling with tears.
"Santana, it's okay. I'm sure she's going to come right away when she hears what's happening sweetie."
"Don't call me sweetie." Santana growled and Rachel frowned. "What if she misses it?"
"You know Brittany better than anyone and you know that there's nothing she wouldn't do to make it here in time for the birth of your son."
"What if we can't find her?" Santana cried.
"Santana, you're close to 9 months pregnant and Brittany watches you like a hawk, I'm sure she's made sure she's completely accessible." Rachel said, nudging her in the direction of the steps. "You go upstairs and I'll take care of getting in contact with Brittany." Santana nodded nervously and headed upstairs, Sebastian racing her to the top.
Rachel made her way over to her bag and pulled out her phone, quickly scrolling to Brittany's name before hitting send. Without even a ring she heard her friend's familiar voice come over the phone in the form of her voicemail message and her eyes widened.
"Oh no." She shook her head and tried again before coming up with the same result once more and looked around the room in panic before grabbing Santana's phone in a last ditch hope that it might work. But as expected, one more call and she still had the same result – straight to voicemail.
"Did you get her?" Santana asked as she descended the stairs seeing Rachel standing in what appeared to be shock. "God Berry, you'd think you were the one about to go through a traumatic experience! Did you find Brittany?" She asked with a hint of annoyance.
Rachel stared back at her blankly before clearing her through for a response. Her mouth moved a few times, no sound actually coming out as Santana narrowed her eyes. Feeling the pressure of Santana's glare she finally managed out a response.
"No, her phone went straight to voicemail." Santana's face fell, eyes filling with tears. Her eyes trailed across the apartment as if she were searching for the answers, attempting to come up with a logical reason why her wife was out of reach.
"Maybe she just was in a spot of bad service?" Santana asked in a surprisingly small voice.
"I tried her a few times." Rachel said gently, still afraid Santana's anger would come back again.
"This is a disaster!" Santana shouted through her tears and Rachel shook her head running to her side.
"No, Santana it'll be okay." She assured her.
"How? Brittany is stuck somewhere uptown where I can't reach her. I'm stuck here with you, of all people. We're both very pregnant and I'm about to go through what I can only imagine will be one of the most painful physical experiences of my entire life. My wife is seemingly going to miss the birth of our first child and you and I can barely move around well enough to get anything done!" Santana shouted. "So please, you tell me how this can possibly be considered anything remotely close to okay!" Rachel bit her lip.
"Well…let me call Finn." She said, nodding and rushing to her phone.
"Finn? What good is the jolly green giant going to be right now?" Rachel sighed, deciding now was not the time to fight.
"He'll be able to come and take us to the hospital. Plus, he himself is not pregnant and he can be a bit more….helpful."
"I don't want the giant, I want Brittany!" She sobbed and Rachel let out a breath, putting a tentative hand on Santana's shoulder.
"Santana right now we just need someone who will be able to get you to the hospital." Santana let out a strangled cry. "Unless you have anyone else you'd like me to call, right now I think this is your best option. I'm sure it's what Brittany would suggest. They've been discussing contingency plans for months."
"Fine." Santana said dejectedly and let out a sniffle. Rachel frowned sympathetically and giving her hand a slight squeeze.
"We'll find Brittany. I promise." Santana nodded before her face contorted.
"Son of a bitch!" she screamed, squeezing Rachel's hand roughly.
"Contraction." Rachel said seriously.
"No shit Sherlock!"
"Ohh-kay, let's get Finn. And then I promise we'll work on finding Brittany as soon as we can."
Picking up her phone she hit the first option on her speed dial and waited patiently for Finn to answer.
"Hey Rach. What's up?" He asked.
"No time for small talk Finn. The baby is coming. You need to get to Brittany and Santana's apartment. Now."
"What?!" Finn screamed.
"Immediately!" She said. "Let me go, I need to call Brittany!"
"But are you-" She hung up before turning her attention back to Santana, who had taken to repeatedly calling her wife herself, with the same result. Rachel bit her lip as she watched her mutter and curse.
After 30 minutes of repeated phone calls and a couple more contractions, Santana was finally really losing her patience enough to concern Rachel.
"Where is your husband? Why isn't he answering his fucking phone?" She growled.
"He's probably driving." Rachel said assuredly. "I'm sure he'll be here any moment Santana. He understands the urgency."
"This is a nightmare. I'm in hell. I'm going to kill Brittany when I see her for ever talking me into this. I'm fat, in pain, I have no one capable to help me and I'm stuck in my house with a hobbit." Rachel scowled.
"Would you prefer I just left you?"
Before Santana could answer a frantic knock sounded at the door.
"Oh thank god." Rachel said before rushing over and pulling open the door to see a panicked and breathless Finn, who quickly blew by her.
"Why are you answering the door? Are you crazy?" He shrieked. "We need to move!" He said spinning around and grabbing her back. "Come on, your bag is in the car." Rachel frowned in confusion as he pushed her gently towards the door in a tizzy.
"What are you doing?"
"Getting you out of here and to the hospital. What does it look like I'm doing?" He said.
"Wait!" She yelled.
"No time Rachel, you can tell me in the car!"
"No, wait!" Rachel yelled, turning around and startling him.
"What?" He asked, his eyes frantically bouncing between hers.
"I'm not the one in labor."
"What?" He asked and looked around. "What are you talking about? You called and said it was time for the baby and-"
"Not my baby." Realization washed over his face.
"Oh." He said, nodding slowly and dropping her arms. His eyes widened again. "Oh!" He said, spinning and rushing towards Santana before reaching his arms towards her.
"Touch me and you will lose one of your hideously overgrown limbs!" She growled and he hopped back.
"Where's Brittany? She was going to that Julliard thing today, right?" He asked, ignoring the insults. "Have you called her?"
"No, I thought I'd just skip out on Brittany being around for the birth of our baby and decided to go with you instead." She bit and he nodded.
"You can't get her."
"Fast learner, someone should give you a medal." He took a breath, knowing better than to answer her back.
"Okay, come on, let's get you to the hospital. We'll keep calling Britt, I'm sure we'll find her eventually." He responded, ushering her to the door as best he could.
"So I've heard and yet…I still haven't found her."
"Rachel, do you have her bag?" he asked before turning to Santana questioningly. "Do you have a bag?" She narrowed her eyes at him.
"I'm 9 months pregnant, what do you think?"
"Got it! Let's go." Rachel said, throwing some food out for the cats before grabbing the bag and scribbling a quick note for Brittany just in case she was to pop in before getting her messages.
"I can't believe this is happening to me." Santana said, shaking her head sadly.
"Let's just get you to the hospital Santana." Finn said calmly. "We'll keep working on Brittany, but let's get you settled ok?" He asked, his eyes pleading. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes before nodding.
"Ok, ok. You're right. Let's go." She said and with that they proceeded out of the apartment before locking it up and starting the trek to the hospital.
"Brittany Susan Pierce-Lopez, if you do not pick up your fucking phone, I am going to personally kill you when I see you!" Santana yelled into the phone.
After a stressful ride to the hospital where her doctor was located, Finn and Rachel were finally able to help Santana get settled and admitted, although were unsuccessful in locating Brittany. Once she was checked out they also found out that she wasn't going to be delivering Dylan any time in the immediate future, which was excellent news in terms of buying Brittany time, but horrible news of having to deal with Santana's rage and rapid mood swings on their own.
"Calm down Santana, we'll find her. I'm sure she's fine."
"Oh my god, what if she's not fine?"
"Why would you say that?" Finn said between gritted teeth and Rachel looked back at him apologetically.
"What if she's dead? What if Brittany isn't okay? What if she's dead?" She wailed.
"Santana!" Rachel yelled. "That's ridiculous. Don't even think such a thing."
"I need her here." She whined, breaking down into tears once again and Rachel sighed as she tried to calm her.
"I know you do. I know." She re-assured. "And we're going to do everything in our power to get her here."
"She'll be here." Finn said confidently. "I know Brittany and I know how she feels about this, I have no doubt." He reiterated as Santana buried her head in Rachel's shoulder. "If she isn't, I'll kill her myself." He muttered under his breath as Rachel shook her head forlornly.
It was going to be a long wait.
An hour and a half later and they were no closer to having a status on Brittany, but Santana's labor was starting to progress a bit and that made everyone in the room even more tense than they already had been.
"Mother fucker!" Santana screamed, squeezing down on Finn's hand as hard as she could as he winced in pain.
"Ow."
"Stop being such a fucking pussy. Would you like to try squeezing something this size out of one of your body parts?" She growled and he quickly shook his head.
"No, thank you."
"Then I don't want to hear about your pain!"
His eyes shot to Rachel who was on the other side of the bed, holding a wet cloth to Santana's head, her eyes wide and filled with terror.
"Rach, are you okay?" He asked, biting his lip with the expression of pure fear he saw on his wife's face.
"Your midget bride is fine. Her demon spawn is still cooking!"
"I don't want her to come out." Rachel said, shaking her head quickly and swallowing. "I don't want to do it." She said and Finn sighed. "That's it, I'm not doing it."
"Rachel-"
"No! I'm not doing this! I refuse. This looks like complete torture and I will not subject my body to it."
"Rachel, stop being ridiculous."
"I'm not being ridiculous! There is no way I'm putting myself through this! I don't know how I ever let you talk me into this!"
"Don't do it." Santana said desperately, grasping at Rachel's hand that held the cloth. "Seriously, if you only ever listen to me once, do it now. Don't do this. Nothing could be worth this."
"Santana!" Finn chastised and she snapped around, eyes glowing with rage.
"Are you seriously taking that tone with me right now? Seriously?" He swallowed.
"No." he squeaked.
"Didn't think so." She muttered before closing her eyes and trying to regain her composure. "Has anyone tried my lovely, lovely wife again?" She asked as calmly as possible.
"Still no answer 5 minutes ago, I'll try again." Rachel said. "Are you sure you can't handle the epidural?"
"I am in enough pain, I will not have someone stab a needle that size directly into my spine."
"Oh come on, big, tough Santana Lopez scared of a little needle?" Finn asked.
"I will end you if you try to intimidate me into that shit one more time!" She yelled. "Don't test me Hudson. I have a fear of needles. It is valid and it is real and I am certainly not letting one that size come anywhere near me."
"I understand, but you realize you would feel so much-"
"Not another word!" She yelled and began ranting rapidly in Spanish. Rachel swatted at Finn with the cloth.
"Stop making the Spanish come out! We can't do anything when the Spanish starts!"
"Okay, okay!" He sighed and reached for his phone. "I'll try Britt again."
About a half hour later, Rachel was in the hallway when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.
"Oh thank god." Rachel said, as she picked up her phone upon seeing Brittany's name flashing on the screen. "It's about time!" she yelled as she picked up the phone. "Where the hell have you been?"
"Rachel! Where are you? Where do I go? Is…am I too late?" Brittany rushed.
"No, no. Just…hurry up. She's freaking out and she really needs you."
"Fuck." Brittany said. "I'm so stupid." Rachel sighed, realizing this was not the time to make Brittany feel any worse.
"Calm down Brittany, we're at the hospital, we're doing everything according to plan so far. Just focus on getting here, ok?"
"I'll be right there, I swear. What floor? What room?"
Rachel gave all of the information to a panicked Brittany who assured her she'd be there within the next 15 minutes. Upon her return to the room, she happily relayed the information to Santana and saw a look of relief wash over her face for the first time all afternoon.
True to her promise, Brittany burst through the door just over 10 minutes later, still fully dressed in her black suit from the morning.
"There you are!" she exclaimed upon seeing her distressed wife lying in the bed.
"Thank you god." Finn said to the sky, sighing in relief as Santana dropped his hand.
"Brittany." Santana cried and Brittany rushed across the room, pushing past Finn to caress her wife's face gently and look at her apologetically.
"Baby, I'm here. I'm so sorry it took me so long. What do you need?"
"A sedative." Finn slipped before he could stop himself.
"Shut the fuck up and get out Gigantor!" Brittany turned to Finn and mouthed a quick 'sorry' and 'thank you'. He quickly hopped up, squeezing Santana's hand once more before bowing out.
"See you after. Good luck." Rachel ran over to her and hugged her tightly.
"Get your hands off me."
"Baby." Brittany sing-songed as she rolled the stool over and sat next to her wife, clutching her hand tightly. She brought it to her lips and kissed it. "What can I do for you?"
"Where were you? I needed you here." Santana whined sadly.
"I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere. I'm so sorry. They asked us to turn our phones off at the school and I forgot and left it off when I got on the subway and it was a mess down there. Some kind of delay. I was stuck for like an hour." She sighed.
"This is why we don't take the train." Santana reminded her before screaming in pain once more. Brittany winced.
"I guess you couldn't do the epidural?"
"It's just so big." Santana said, tears threatening in her voice again.
"Aww, okay, okay." Brittany said soothingly as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear and leaned in to place a soft kiss on her lips. "I'm sorry." She mumbled into her lips. "I shouldn't have left your side."
"How could you forget to turn your phone on. Of all times not to be accessible. How could you pick now?" She questioned with frustration, feeling instantly bad as she saw Brittany's face fall and her eyes start to fill.
"I'm a failure."
"No!...No, Brittany, I'm sorry. It's okay." Santana said and sighed. "You didn't know. I didn't know. It was a mistake and bad timing."
"I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere." Brittany repeated, tears she was trying to hold back evident in her voice. "Just tell me what you need and I'll do it."
"I just need you to be with me. You make me feel better." Brittany gave her a small smile.
"Whatever you say." She said, nodding and giving her another peck on the lips. "I'm sorry."
"It's ok." Santana said seriously, "I need you to focus on helping, not feeling bad. We can't both be a mess."
"You're not a mess. You're doing great." Brittany said.
"On no." Santana said, scrunching her face up. "Not again."
"Contraction?" Brittany asked.
"What do you think?" Santana growled as she let out a painful yelp and clamped down on Brittany's hand. "They're getting really close now."
"That's a good thing." Brittany managed as she grimaced at the feeling.
"For who?" Santana asked angrily as she continued to grind her teeth.
"It means the baby will be here soon sweetie. It's ok. You're ok." Brittany tried her best to be re-assuring but Santana was not having it.
"Ok? Ok? How the hell could I ever – EVER – convince you to let me do this? I must be out of my mind! "
"Santana-"
"Don't Santana me!" She spat. "It must have been temporary insanity. This is hell and I can't believe you'd ever want to put me through it!"
"Okay…shhh." Brittany said gently. "Squeeze my hand real tight, alright? You can take it out on me all you want."
"I will! Because it's your fault!"
"I-"
"Don't argue with me!" Brittany nodded quickly and swallowed.
"Right."
Shortly after a nurse had come back in and told them it was finally time for the doctor to come in. Santana was fully dilated and it was go time. Brittany stood by her side, taking all the abuse thrown at her, but still doing her best to calm her wife down and make her feel a little better if she could.
"I love you so much. You're doing so good Santana. You're doing great." Brittany said, placing a kiss to her drenched forehead.
"I'm done." She said, tears pouring down as Brittany reached to wipe them away quickly. "I don't want to do it anymore. I'm done. I can't."
"No baby, you have to keep going, come on."
"Don't tell me what to do!"
"Sweetheart, you're doing so well and you're almost there. You have to keep going just a little more and it'll be all done and we can see our little boy."
"He needs to stay in there longer. I can't do it."
"You can." Brittany said firmly, looking at her. "You are the strongest person I've ever met. If anyone can do this. It's you."
"One more big push Santana. Come on." The doctor said. "Come on." Brittany looked at her nodding eagerly as she watched Santana take a deep breath.
"Almost there and it'll be all over babe. You can do this, just one more big one ok?" Santana winced in pain and Brittany felt her heart wrench at the site but did her best to remain strong because she knew that's what her wife needed at this point.
Just as the doctor said, one more big push and they were met with the sound of a small cry and Brittany could swear she felt her heart jump into her throat. The rest was all a blur, there was some commotion and she looked between the bundle in the doctor's arms and Santana, unsure of where to turn first.
"Here you go." The doctor said with a grin, placing the baby with thick black hair and blue eyes into Santana's arms. "Congratulations, here's your boy."
Santana choked out a laugh, tears flowing freely as she held him close and looked down at him. She reached a hand out and pulled Brittany close. Brittany smiled, placing a hand over her mouth as her own tears began to fall. She reached out touching his soft, smooth cheek.
"Oh my god…he…he's so perfect." She said with a sniffle and Santana nodded.
"He is." Santana said, leaning down to kiss his forehead before pulling back to admire him once more. "He is."
"Hey little Dylan." Brittany spoke softly with a giggle and Santana laughed back as they caught each other's eyes. "I love you so much.' Brittany said, leaning down to capture her wife's lips.
"Do you want to hold him?" Santana asked and Brittany nodded enthusiastically before reaching her arms out and gently taking him from Santana.
"Hi." She whispered, looking down at him as he cooed and adjusted to his new surroundings. She placed a gentle kiss on his forehead and leaned back over so she could still share him with Santana.
"That's your Mommy, little guy." Santana said softly and Brittany looked at her with grateful, tear filled eyes but she just nodded.
"I am. And your Mama and I have waited so long for you to get here." She whispered.
"Yes, we have." Santana agreed.
"We are so excited to have you in our lives."
"Hey," she spoke, looking up at Brittany. "Have you thought of a middle name yet?" She asked. Brittany just smiled.
"I have." She said, ducking her head to place a soft kiss on his forehead once more. "He's going to be Dylan Andrew."
"Andrew?" Santana asked.
"Yeah, I did a lot of research. Andrew means strong and if he's anything like you, I know he's going to be. You're the strongest person I know." Santana grinned through teary eyes.
"Ugh, I can't wait till I stop being this hormonal." She said rubbing her eyes. Brittany just giggled and placed a kiss on her head as well.
"It's okay to be emotional Santana, I'd say this is a pretty huge deal."
"Yeah." Santana swallowed and nodded. "It is."
An hour later and Dylan had been taken up to the nursery as Brittany sat attentively by Santana's side as she slept peacefully. After a few more minutes of watching her sleep Brittany noticed her twitch a little and watched as Santana's eyes fluttered open.
"Hey." Brittany said, squeezing her hand.
"Hey." Santana smiled and let out a deep breath, gladly returning the kiss Brittany laid on her lips.
"How are you?"
"I feel like I'll never stop being exhausted." Santana laughed. "But otherwise I guess just a little sore."
"The nurse said she'll give you more drugs if you need them." Santana nodded.
"Yeah, that might be good." She sighed. "I just want to stay up with you and him but my body wants me to keep sleeping."
"Listen to your body, babe. We're not going anywhere."
"Are there people here?" Brittany nodded.
"Well, I mean, Rachel and Finn are still outside, but your mom and dad are on their way with my parents. Quinn said she was going to drive down on the weekend." Santana nodded and sighed.
"It sounds so overwhelming. I just want to be with you and the baby." Brittany smiled sweetly and kissed the back of her hand.
"You'll be happy to see them when they're here. And we'll have plenty of time to be alone with him, trust me." Santana frowned.
"I want it to be that time now." She rolled her eyes. "My mother is exhausting."
"Your mother is excited." Brittany countered. "She was so cute on the phone."
"There are many words I've heard used to describe my mother and cute was never one." Santana quirked a brow. "Are you sure that they didn't give you the drugs?" Brittany chuckled.
"Glad to see your sense of humor is in tact."
"Who said I was kidding?" Brittany just shook her head as Santana yawned and fought to keep her eyes open.
"Sleep baby." She said, leaning down and placing a kiss on her forehead. "I'll be here when you wake up again." Santana nodded, giving into her body and allowing herself to fall back asleep.
Brittany sat back in the chair, aimlessly watching the tv as it flickered the news until she heard a gently knock on the door.
"Hey, how's she doing?" Rachel asked quietly as she ducked into the room with some food that Brittany took gratefully.
"Okay, you just missed her actually. She was up for a few minutes. She's a little sore, but still really tired so I made her go back to sleep." Rachel nodded and sat across from her.
"Where's the little man?"
"They still have him upstairs." Brittany smiled. "I miss him already."
"I bet."
"They're supposed to bring him back in a little bit."
"At the risk of sounding incredibly repetitive, he is absolutely adorable, Brittany." Rachel commented and Brittany beamed with pride.
"Thank you." She smiled, unwrapping the sandwich and taking a bite. "He is all kinds of awesome." Rachel smiled.
"I can't wait to get to know him more."
"Me neither." Brittany grinned and thought for a moment before scrunching up her face and turning to Rachel. "Are you still planning on not letting yours out?" She asked and Rachel looked down embarrassed.
"No, I think I've come to terms with the fact that it's not really an option." Brittany laughed.
"I have to say, watching her do it does NOT make me look forward to it." She shrugged. "But seeing her after? I think she'd tell you it was worth it." Rachel nodded.
"I think you're probably right." She shrugged. "It's a scary thing to imagine, but I really can't wait to meet her face to face."
"I bet she can't wait either. I'm sure she's going to be awesome too." Brittany said, sipping her drink. "Thanks for the food Rachel." She paused and looked up at her seriously. "And for taking care of her before – getting her here and making sure she wasn't alone." Brittany frowned and looked down guiltily. "I feel so bad."
"Don't." Rachel assured her. "Things just work out like that sometimes, there wasn't anything you could have done."
"I could have been more aware." She shook her head. "Always such a space cadet."
"You got here for the important part and that's all that matters. She was so happy when you walked through that door. Everything changed. That's all that matters." Brittany smiled weakly. "At the end of the day, that's what matters."
"Yeah."
"It's true. She just wanted you to be here and you got here as soon as you could. She knows there's no way you'd ever want to miss this. Trust me." Brittany bit her lip and nodded. "And as for helping her?" Rachel shrugged. "Of course, we love you guys, we're totally here for you, whatever you need. I'm sure you'd do the same for us."
"Totally." Brittany said confidently and Rachel stood.
"I'm going to go back out and hang out with Finn. Are you good or do you want more company?" Brittany shook her head.
"I'm okay. I'm just going to sit with her and I think my boy should be back down soon. I'm good."
"Alright." Rachel smiled. "You know where you are if you need us. Finn is going to pick up all the parents when they get in."
"Awesome." Brittany said with relief. "I seriously can't thank you enough."
"I told you, it's nothing." Rachel said, with a shake of her head. "You guys are as much family as anyone in our lives." She shrugged. "When it comes to daily life, sometimes more." Brittany smiled.
"For us too…even she knows it." She said nodding towards Santana. "As much as she tries to tell you otherwise. I know she appreciated it." Rachel just nodded knowingly.
"I know." She said and sighed. "Trust me, by now, I know."
"Hey." A scratchy voice called from across the room.
"Hey." Brittany said, turning to face her with a beaming smile. "Good timing, he just got back a little while ago." She said as she walked slowly towards Santana.
"How is he?"
"He's still perfect." Brittany smiled. "Just like his Mama." Santana grinned.
"Hardly." She said softly as she gladly took her son from Brittany's arms. "Hey you." She cooed. "You are so handsome."
"He looks so much like you." Brittany said, scooting up to sit with her on the bed and look at him.
"Not that much." Santana said. "He's got eyes like yours." She said fondly and turned back up to look at Brittany, searching her eyes.
"What?" Brittany asked with a smile but Santana just shrugged and shook her head.
"This is perfect. You and him…it's perfect." Brittany leaned down to drop a soft kiss on her lips.
"You're perfect." She whispered, kissing her once more, before pulling back as Dylan started to fuss.
"He's probably hungry." Brittany said. "He hasn't eaten in a while. Want to feed him?" Santana nodded and Brittany got up to go grab a bottle.
"When is everyone getting here?"
"Really soon actually." Santana sighed.
"I know, but it's late and I'm sure once they come spend some time with you guys they'll head out."
"Is someone staying at our place?" Santana frowned.
"Your mom and dad are…they made some kind of plan that when I have a baby my parents will stay or something."
"That had to be a Claudia plan." Brittany chuckled and handed Santana the bottle that she gently gave to Dylan and he gladly accepted. "He's starving."
"He's had a lot of work today."
"He has?" Santana asked with a huff. "How about me?" Brittany giggled.
"You both have." She said, running a hand over his head lovingly as he drank. "Are you hungry? Want me to get you some food?"
"Starving." Santana said, looking at her with pleading eyes.
"I'll text Rachel. What do you want? She'll bring it up." Santana shrugged.
"Too tired to think. Whatever." Brittany nodded and bit her lip in thought before quickly tapping her fingers against the phone. She waited patiently for a response, smiling when she got one and heading back over to sit next to the bed.
They sat silently for a few moments as Santana watched her small son drift off to sleep as the bottle fell from his lips. She smiled reaching her arm carefully to place it on the table as she looked down at him before looking back up at Brittany.
"See, you're a natural. Told you." Brittany smiled proudly and Santana rolled her eyes. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by a sharp knock on the door.
"Let me see him!" Claudia said, rushing into the room and Santana sighed.
"Hello to you too Mami."
"Stop trying to steal attention away from my baby boy." She said reaching her arms out as Santana reluctantly passed him over.
"Hi sweetheart." Her dad said, leaning over to kiss her forehead, as he moved from Brittany. "How are you feeling?"
"Wonderful, thanks daddy." He chuckled and looked back at his wife cooing at the baby.
"She's very excited."
"You don't say?" Santana asked, but couldn't help the smile that overtook her face. "Where are Brittany's parents?"
"They said two at a time, it's late." Santana frowned.
"That's not fair."
"It's fine." Brittany re-assured her, grasping her hand. "My mom texted me, she's totally okay."
"We've made arrangements Santana, don't concern yourself with it." Claudia spoke, not taking her eyes off her new grandson. "Isn't that right, Dylan?"
"Oh I'm sure you've made arrangements for everything." Santana commented.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Her mother bit, her head snapping up to look at her.
"How about you hand over my new little grandson and you go say hello to your daughter?" Claudia sighed.
"I'll be right back." She said, winking as she handed Dylan over to her husband before hugging both Brittany and her daughter in greeting.
"How are you feeling mija?" Santana shrugged.
"Tired. Hungry. Sore."
"My poor baby." She said, rubbing her chin. "Won't they bring you food?"
"Rachel is getting her something. She'll be here any minute." Brittany spoke.
"Ah, thank god for your lovely friends. What would you do without them?"
"I can't even imagine." Santana said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
"Oh I bet you can't." Rachel said, entering and handing a bag over to Brittany. "I'd actually like to know what you would have done without me today?" Rachel asked with a proud grin. Santana's eyes narrowed.
"You think now is the time to get cute with me hobbit?"
"Why Santana, did you actually just refer to me as cute?"
"Not in the way you'd like to think." Santana said, horrified. "Gross. You knew exactly what I meant. Now isn't the time to mess with me." Rachel sighed.
"Santana, behave! Poor Rachel has had a long, stressful day taking care of you." Santana's jaw dropped in shock.
"You have to be kidding me. Rachel has had a stressful day? Rachel?"
"Okay, okay," Brittany said, opening the container in front of her. "Why don't you just focus on getting something in your stomach?"
"I should be on my way out anyway. I assured the nurse I would strictly be delivering food." She winked.
"Thank you sweetheart. You're too good to my grumpy daughter." Santana scowled.
"Could you crawl any further up Rachel's ass?"
"Santana!" Brittany chastised and Santana shrugged.
"I'm just keeping it real."
"I'll see you downstairs Mrs. Lopez."
"Oh stop with the Mrs. Lopez. Claudia, please."
"Maybe you two would like to continue your little love fest downstairs so Brittany's parents can have a turn with their grandson." Santana suggested as she picked through fries. "Then you can all go home and leave me and my family alone."
"That's what you have to say about your mother? Who travelled halfway across the country to see you?" Her mother asked, bristling.
"Claudia, please. Calm down. She's had a long day." Hector chuckled.
"Always sticking up for her."
"Someone has to." Santana muttered.
A little while longer of the usual bickering and some more time spent with Claudia holding Dylan and they finally agreed to leave so Brittany's parents could come up. The Pierces were also completely delighted by their new addition as expected and had a hard time with the idea of parting with him as well.
Finally after both families and Rachel had left, they were finally left alone in the room. Dylan had eaten and dozed off so they laid him in his own small bed and Brittany sat attentively by the bedside as Santana mindlessly flicked through the television.
"I can't wait to go home." Santana sighed as she switched off the TV and tossed the remote on the stand next to her. She looked over to Brittany with a weary smile. "Even though it's exhausting and I'm glad they're keeping us till the morning, I just…want to be in our home."
"I know." Brittany smiled and ran her fingers soothingly over the back of her hand. It's just one night. I'll be taking you both home in no time." Santana frowned.
"Home with my mother." She said, rolling her eyes. "That's going to be a blast. Do you know how long they're staying?" Brittany shrugged.
"I haven't talked details with them, but I know she'd mentioned wanting to stay a while till you got up and on your feet…"
"I can get on my feet very quickly if that's the case. I told her she doesn't need to be here that long…"
"Santana, you know she's just excited. They all are, it's their first grandchild."
"I know and it's great but I'll kill her if we have to live with her for too long."
"Well, I can't see them leaving before the end of the weekend. It's Tuesday now." Santana groaned. "I'll keep her out of your hair."
"I want us to have family time. All three of us."
"We will." She said, running her fingers gently through her wife's hair. We will have plenty of family time."
"Promise?"
"I absolutely promise. Your mom will listen to me. Don't worry."
"Have I mentioned your relationship is scary?"
"Don't complain. It works."
"I guess." She grumbled and Brittany laughed.
"Why don't you get some sleep? It'll make the morning come quicker."
"I'm not tired." Santana pouted and Brittany just looked at her with disbelief. She sighed. "Fine, whatever." She said rolling her eyes as she settled further into the bed and Brittany laughed.
"Goodnight Santana." She said, kissing her forehead.
"Night." Santana grumbled back.
Brittany was right, sleeping did help pass the time and the fact that she took care of waking up and feeding Dylan when he woke up during the night was even better. As much as Santana had wanted to be part of those feedings, she was able to get some much needed rest. It hit the spot and though she was feeling very sore in the morning, she felt a lot more awake and mentally fresh.
Once the morning came, as anticipated the hospital wasted no time in starting to move both Dylan and Santana out so they could free up the space. Santana had no complaints and was itching to get out of there and back into the luxury of her own home. Brittany had arranged for her parents to come help them get home, assuring Claudia that it would be much better for her to get stuff ready at home, which she luckily bought into fairly easily. Getting home and accustomed to traveling with a newborn was slightly stressful and she knew that wouldn't be ideal for Santana to handle that experience with her mother present.
In the end things worked quite well and when they reached the house they found that Claudia had taken advantage of their kitchen and made a full breakfast, which Santana actually really appreciated. She had to admit to liking her mother's food and Brittany thought maybe if she could keep her in the kitchen for most of it, her mother in law's time there would pass by a little bit smoother.
The day was spent mostly having visitors in and out. Both of their friends and Finn and Rachel had all stopped by to see the baby and both sets of parents were there all day. It was nice seeing everyone and there was no one who wasn't gushing over Dylan, but by the evening rolled around, Brittany could sense that Santana was ready for it to end.
After dinner she quietly gave her mom the head's up that Santana was reaching her limit for the day and they gladly headed back to the hotel, to give them some breathing room. Once her own parents cleared out Brittany tried her best to get the Lopezes to go out for a drink but Claudia would have none of it.
"So, when are you going back to Lima?" Santana asked bluntly, as they sat in the living room, her mom across from her on the couch, feeding her grandson happily. Brittany nudged her and she just shrugged.
"Are you trying to get rid of me already?" Claudia huffed and Santana sighed.
"Just asking."
"I thought I could stay for a while and help you guys out."
"We don't need help."
"Of course you do."
"No, we really don't."
"Santana, be nice." Brittany said, squeezing her leg.
"I'm not being mean, I'm just telling the truth."
"Having a child is a huge responsibility Santana." Her mother said. "It is exhausting and draining and you should be happy you have a mother who is willing to spend her time helping you." Brittany closed her eyes, not liking where this was going.
"Mom, don't you have a job? A life? Things you need to do?"
"I have plenty of time off." Santana sighed.
"How long are you expecting to stay here?"
"Your father has to head back at the end of the weekend." Claudia said, glancing over at her husband.
"I can't leave for too long at at time sweetheart." Hector said apologetically.
"It's perfectly fine." Santana said kindly before flicking her eyes back to her mother. "What about you?"
"Well…I was thinking I could spend another couple of weeks past your father. Just to help you two settle." Santana shook her head immediately.
"Absolutely not."
"Santana!" Brittany said.
"No!"
"Can you really not stand the sight of me that much?" Claudia asked, hurt filling her voice.
"Oh, stop playing the victim."
"Girls…" Hector started.
"You're so ungrateful." Claudia snapped.
"Enough!" Brittany said sternly, feeling a instant pang of guilt as she saw her son jump slightly in his grandmother's arms. She sighed, standing up. "Enough." She said, calmly, turning and holding her hand out to Santana. "Come on."
"Come where?" Santana asked, grabbing her hand as she allowed herself to be pulled up.
"You and I are going to go relax for a little bit upstairs. You need to decompress."
"But-" Santana started, motioning towards Dylan.
"Dylan will be fine with you're his grandparents for a couple hours and I'll come out and get him when we're ready to go to sleep."
"Fine." Santana sighed,
"Good, maybe you can find your manners up there." Claudia muttered and Brittany sighed, guiding her wife up the stairs.
"Come on, just let it go." She whispered as they ascended the steps into their room. Once upstairs, Brittany pulled down the sheets so Santana could lay down and lit a couple soft candles before getting in next to her. She watched as Santana closed her eyes and breathed calmly.
"You ok?" Brittany asked gently, brushing a stray hair away from her cheek.
"I'm sorry I'm losing my temper. I'm just….I'm just not used to sharing our personal space anymore." Santana said, opening her eyes to look into Brittany's understanding ones.
"I know. I get it." She smiled. "I really do. But I also think you're being a little rough on her." Santana averted her eyes guiltily as Brittany tangled her hand with hers, squeezing it to gain her attention. "I know it's hard for you, but she means well. And as much as you want it just to be you, me and Dylan right now, the help isn't going to hurt."
"I just feel like we've been waiting all this time for this to happen and now it's here. You and I got through this whole 9 months together and now we have to share it." She shrugged. "I guess it's selfish, but I don't want to."
"We have the whole rest of our lives to be selfish Santana." She said softly, wiggling closer to her wife so she could wrap her arms around her. "We're going to have months home with the baby to ourselves and even when we're back at work full time, it's always going to be the three of us…well, until it's more." She said and Santana sighed.
"I can't even go there now." She laughed, shaking her head and Brittany chuckled, before taking a deep breath and turning serious again.
"We're going to have plenty of time to enjoy this. Right now, we just have to be patient. And you know what, I think sometimes we're going to appreciate the help."
"Speak for yourself." Santana said.
"When we're here and exhausted and we want to take just a minute to breathe and be with each other or to sleep and not worry about a feeding or a changing….we'll appreciate it." Santana smiled a little. "When something happens and we don't know what to do because we've never had to deal with a baby alone before, we'll appreciate it."
"Yeah." She said, fiddling with Brittany's shirt. "I guess."
"Trust me. We're going to need help, whether you want to admit it or not. And I can promise you when it's gone there will be times where we're going to miss it." She said with a grin. "But we'll be ok."
"I don't think I can put up with her for 3 weeks Britt." She shook her head. "It's been a little over a day and I'm ready to kill her."
"Well maybe you can negotiate on the time."
"Negotiate?" Santana asked.
"Yeah, maybe she'll stay for one extra week if you promise her she can come back."
"Do I have to?"
"Santana." Brittany sighed.
"Fine." She muttered.
"But you better be nice when you ask. And you better apologize."
"Apologize?" Santana asked horrified. "Whose side are you on?"
"I'm always on your side." Brittany said. "But you were mean, and she deserves an apology, because she's right, you should be grateful."
"Doesn't feel much like my side." Santana protested and Brittany just looked at her seriously until she groaned. "Fine, but she needs to aplogize too. She's rude." Brittany smiled and pulled her close so he head rested on her chest.
"Come here." She said, holding her tightly. "Why don't you just lay with me for a bit and relax. Is that ok?" Santana nodded into her, swallowing.
"It's more than ok."
"Good." She said, kissing her hair. "I could use some you time." She said and she could feel Santana's smile.
"Are you sure it's ok? What about Dylan?"
"Shh," Brittany soothed, "he's with your mom and dad and I'm sure he's well taken care of. In a little bit I'll go down and get him. Ok?" Santana nodded.
"Okay."
A little over an hour later, Brittany let Santana wash up for bed while she went downstairs to get Dylan and bring him back upstairs to sleep.
"Hey, how's he doing?" Brittany asked Claudia who was sitting with him in his small seat admiring him.
"He's as perfect as ever." She smiled and Brittany returned it, sitting next to her.
"Good, I'm going to bring him up so we can feed him and put him down for a while."
"Ok." Claudia said. "You can leave him with me if you'd like. I can take care of him."
"Thank you." Brittany said genuinely. "But it's his first night home and I know Santana wants to take care of him tonight." Claudia nodded in understanding. "I'm sure we will be taking you up on that offer some other night." Brittany said with a smirk.
"I hope so. I do hope, you've convinced Santana that it's in your best interest for me to stay on past Hector?" Brittany sighed.
"Claudia, that's between you and Santana. We talked, but you need to talk with her yourself. And to be honest, if you expect to get anywhere, you owe her an apology."
"An apology? But-"
"I know, she was rude, and she was snippy. And she owes you one too." Brittany said, putting her hands up. "But it's been a rough few days and she's emotional and she's struggling with the idea that she needs any help. You know you're daughter."
"I do." Claudia said gently.
"You also know how to get to her and you haven't really been shy about doing that." Brittany said softly, but firmly. "I'm happy to have you for as long as you two can agree on, but you have to respect her. This is our home and this is our family and you have to understand there are boundaries." She shrugged. "This is her territory, a place she built. You have to allow her to breathe."
"It's hard, you know." Claudia said shaking her head and wiping a tear. "Seeing your baby grow up and have a baby of her own. It's unbelievable." She sighed.
"I can't imagine." Brittany said looking at Dylan fondly.
"I look at her and even you and I still see a kid." She chuckled.
"I know…but we're learning. We will learn." Brittany promised. "You have to trust us a little." Claudia nodded. "But I appreciate your help. And I appreciate your wanting to be here. And I know as much as you that we're lucky to have it." She said.
"Thank you." Claudia said, reaching out to hug Brittany.
"Thank you." They pulled apart and Claudia sighed.
"Alright, go take my grandson out of here." She said and chuckled. "I'm going to wake him up and head to bed." She said motioning towards a peacefully sleeping Hector on the other couch.
"Goodnight." Brittany said, reaching down to grab Dylan, before heading into the kitchen and up the stairs.
The next morning Santana woke up and was greeted to the warm familiar smells of her mother's cooking. She had slept well, even though Dylan had been up a few times in the night. She woke up to feed him the first time but Brittany took care of him the other two times and she wasn't surprised to see that both of them were peacefully unconscious before she slipped out of bed and down the stairs.
As she made her way into the kitchen her father was nowhere in sight, but her mother was bustling around humming to the radio as she flipped pancakes over. She shook her head fondly and sat at the counter across from her.
"Good morning mija."
"Morning." She smiled meekly.
"Did you sleep ok? I heard he was up at least once."
"He woke up a few times, but it was okay." Claudia smiled.
"Hopefully he settles in like you did. You were a wonderful sleeper." She said and Santana smiled broadly. "Are you hungry?" she asked and Santana nodded enthusiastically.
"It smells delicious." She said as Claudia grabbed a plate to put together for her. "Where's daddy?"
"He went to the store for a few things. You know him, he was up early, ate and had to get out." Santana nodded. "Brittany's mom texted me, they're stopping over in about an hour."
"Ok." Santana said as her mom slid a plate in front of her. "Thanks."
"You're welcome." She said, leaning against the counter and sighed. "Santana, I owe you an apology." She said and Santana froze mid-bite, unsure she heard her correctly.
"Excuse me?" she asked, swallowing.
"I understand it's hard for your. But it's hard for me too, seeing you grown up all on your own. I want to help you and I want to be here for you and Brittany and my grandson." She smiled. "But I know you're building your own life and I know I can be a bit much for you."
"You think?" Santana asked with a grin and her mom gave her a playful warning glare.
"If you'd like my help, I would love to stay, but if you don't want me to…I understand." She said, taking a breath and trying to mask her disappointment. Santana reached out a hand across the counter to cover hers.
"Mami?" Santana asked and her mom looked back up at her. "I owe you an apology too." She said and Claudia smiled. "I know you're happy and I know you want to help. I'm really glad you understand why I've been so resistant….but it's no excuse for me to be such a bitch. I'm sorry."
"It's ok." Her mom said with a smile.
"I know we could use a hand. And I know…we're really lucky to have the offer." Claudia's eyes lit up and Santana winced. "Three weeks is a long time…." Claudia chuckled and sighed.
"I'll stay for a week past your father. Is that ok?" She asked and Santana nodded, looking relieved.
"You can come back." Her mom stifled a laugh.
"Did you think I wouldn't?" she asked and Santana shrugged, going back to eating.
"A girl can dream." She said, taking another bite as her mom tossed a towel with her.
"Such a brat."
After a pleasant enough breakfast and chat with her mom, Santana headed back upstairs with a fresh cup of coffee and sat gently on the edge of the bed. She smiled as she saw Brittany twitch in her sleep and bent down to give her a soft kiss.
"Britt." She said gently.
"Mmmm….no, I don't need any more diapers. I have too many." Santana chuckled.
"Brittany." She said once more as Brittany's eyes fluttered open and she shot up.
"Where is he? Is he ok?"
"Whoa, whoa!" Santana said softly, putting a hand on her wife's shoulder as she heard Dylan stirring. "Shhh, he's fine, he's sleeping." She said and saw relief flood Brittany's face.
"Thank god."
"I brought you some coffee." She said, handing her the cup from the night stand and Brittany smiled appreciatively. "Your parents are going to be here shortly, just thought you might want to be up."
"Yeah, thank you." She said. "Do I smell food?"
"My mom made pancakes."
"I love your mom's pancakes." Brittany smiled and looked down, sipping her coffee before looking back up at her. "Is everything with you two ok?"
"It's great." Santana assured her. "We actually had a good talk, she even apologized." Brittany smirked and Santana nudged her. "Britt…did you lay down the law with my mom again?" She asked and Brittany just shrugged innocently.
"We just talked." She said and Santana shook her head.
"Well, it worked out. I took your advice and apologized too. She's only going to stay the extra week."
"Ok." Brittany said. "Whatever you two decided on."
"I still can't wait for it to be just us…but you're right. We should take the help while we can." Santana said.
"Exactly." Santana shook her head.
"Always the smart one, huh?"
"Someone has to be." Brittany teased, pulling her hand over so she could give her a kiss. "I'm glad you guys worked it out." Santana nodded and kissed her again.
"Me too."
"Don't worry, it'll be the three of us before you know it."
"Santana!" Her mom yelled from downstairs. "Help me set up the video chat!" Santana closed her eyes and sighed.
"Not soon enough."