SUMMARY: Rachel and Santana drive home with all of Santana's things. They bond over a surprising song that pops up on Rachel's CD and laugh a bit. When they pass Santana's house, Rachel does her best to assure the girl that she isn't in the wrong. Santana meets the Berry dads and Hiram is very much in her face, overwhelming her a bit. Leroy gets her to open up and Pezberry gets a little closer than they expected.

NOTE: Hasn't been reviewed yet.

Awkward silence. After getting Santana's stuff into the purple PT cruiser with gold accents, a serious teasing about said car, an argument about Rachel's driving ability, and a stop at the local Bed, Bath, and Beyond for some extra pillows, that was pretty much what the car ride was filled with. They weren't upset with each other. Not at all. For Santana, the whole living with the Berrys thing was setting in. She was nervous, though she'd be damned before she ever admitted it. These were the fathers of the girl who had received the butt-end of her torturous reign as ⅓ of the Unholy Trinity. Santana couldn't help but half-expect them to kick her out of the house. Rachel had said that they were fine with it, but a part of her still found it hard to believe. Santana leaned her head against the glass and sighed against it, catching Rachel's attention.

Rachel was a bit uneasy about the transition of the mood. Yes, the bickering was a little tiring, but, at least, they were talking and, to be completely honest, she didn't mind the challenge. Now that Santana was quiet, however, things felt highly uncomfortable. She glanced over at the girl who looked out of the car window and she couldn't help but to feel sorry. Rachel wasn't sorry for her. Even mentally, she was afraid to pity Santana in any way because the latina would hate it, but she was sorry that she hadn't noticed her suffering before. Being the daughter of two gay fathers, she felt like she should have noticed. Rachel looked over at Santana again and watched as the girl sat up a little when she saw her 'home'. The taller brunette locked onto the house and tried to look inside, but she couldn't see anything. Rachel watched her shoulders slump down with disappointment as she turned in her seat. "They don't deserve you as their daughter, Santana."

Santana shot her eyes over to Rachel and cocked her eyebrow with a scoff as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Whatever," she spat out. She didn't even have the composure to mutter something sarcastic or witty.

"No, Santana. They don't deserve you. You are an intelligent, strong, talented and beautiful young woman. You and Kurt are probably my only competition in Glee Club. In fact, I won't admit this again so listen closely, I am convinced that, if you had received as much vocal training as I have, you would probably have gotten a good half of my solos." Rachel spoke without taking her eyes off the road, but gave a small grin at her own confidence. If she had picked up anything while talking to Santana this past day, it was that she appreciated cockiness and rivalry in doses. The taller brunette looked toward her and glared at her, but she couldn't really hide the smirk on her face. When Rachel did look over at her and caught sight of Santana's eyes, they both let out a short chuckle.

"If you're going to hit on me, at least try to be subtle, Berry," Santana joked and put her elbow on the car door so she could lean her head on her palm. Rachel sat up and held onto the steering wheel a little tighter than she already was. The comment shouldn't have made her chest tighten the way it did. It left her a bit confused by her own reaction as she scrambled for a response. "And change the damn song before I kill myself," she added before Rachel could respond to the first joke. Quietly, she let out a sigh of relief and changed the song on her Broadway CD.

When the song started to play throughout the car, Santana sat up and cocked her eyebrow at the radio. "You have the In the Heights soundtrack?" She glanced over at Rachel with an impressed look on her face. Sure, Rachel was a Broadway fanatic and Santana was well-aware of that fact, but this was something she just didn't expect. In the Heights was a Broadway musical based on the heavily Dominican neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York, where some of Santana's relatives lived. It was a heavily Spanish-speaking neighborhood, so, obviously, the musical had a lot of Spanish and culture references. Santana didn't think that someone like Rachel would be able to keep up.

"Yes, of course. I love their soundtrack. It is very lively and, though I do find it difficult to follow a lot of the context behind the songs, I love the fluidity of the music." Rachel continued to rant on for a good three minutes before Santana reached over to restart the song.

"Berry, hush. I'm about to teach you something," Santana said casually as she got lost in the instrumental introduction. Rachel looked over at Santana and smiled at the fact that, for once, Santana was quieting her in a way that wasn't blatantly rude. The Latina sat back and paused the song, looking over at Rachel.

"Basically, these four women are at the Beauty salon. For us latinas, that's like gossip central. So, in this song, they start gossiping about different people in the neighborhood. It isn't malicious. They're just nosy. When they say no me digas, it's kinda like they're saying no way or say what? Literally it means like... don't tell me that...but it doesn't make sense that way when you translate it. Anyway...hush and listen." Rachel laughed and shook her head.

"Did Santana Lopez just tell me to 'hush' so she can listen to a Broadway so-" Rachel stopped in the middle of her question when Santana shot her a glare and pressed play. Obviously, this was the equivalent of interrupting Rachel while she was listening to Barbra Streisand.

"Gorgeous! Linda! Tell me something I don't know! Vieja! Sucia! Cabrona! Tell me something I don't know! A little off the top! A little off the side! A little bit of news you've heard around the barrio! Tell me something I don't know!" Santana sang out and managed to move to the salsa beat even though she was sitting and her feet really didn't have space to move. It was therapeutic to just listen to the music. One of the things that she had missed was the way salsa music used to blast through her house when it was cleaning day. She hated it then, but, now that she couldn't hear it anymore, it left her with a huge sense of nostalgia. Santana let her thoughts focus on the lyrics, instead of torturing herself. Rachel watched the girl and laughed, enjoying watching Santana just let loose.

"Bueno," Rachel started and Santana looked up at her, willing to silence herself just to see if Rachel wasn't bullshitting about knowing the musical. "You didn't hear it from me, but some little birdie told me Usnavi had sex with Yolanda!" Santana would be lying if she said she wasn't impressed with the way Rachel could fake the accent. Sure, they had started West Side Story rehearsals, but this was a spur of the moment semi-jam session and she was definitely holding her own

"No me diga!" Santana feigned a surprised look and Rachel let out that five year old laugh at her facial expression. When she started to laugh, Santana followed close behind. It was cathartic to just let loose and forget about their pseudo-rivalry. Rachel wasn't thinking about Finn and Quinn. Santana wasn't thinking about her parents. They were just two glee clubbers belting out randomly like they had a tendency to do.

The two girls were still laughing when Rachel drove into the parking lot and parked the car. When Santana realized where they were, her laugh caught in her throat and nearly made her choke. In that moment of exposure, Rachel saw the nerves that were written on her face and she reached over to place her hand on Santana's hand that was on her own knee. "You really don't have to be nervous, Santana... They know about the teasing, but they also know about what you're going through. They understand. They just want to make sure that you have somewhere to call home, okay?" Santana wasn't really in the position to not take comfort in Rachel's words, to be honest. She wanted to come back with a snarky remark or a joke that would pull her out of this vulnerable state, but the comfort was what she needed. She looked over at Rachel and nodded slightly, choosing to stay silent. Santana hoped that Rachel wouldn't take the opportunity to mock her sensitivity in the situation and she didn't. The diva pulled her hand back, feeling an odd tingling in her fingertips.

The girls got out of the car and Santana couldn't help but to shake her head at the flamboyant car again. It was a sight that she didn't see herself getting used to any time soon. Santana opened the trunk and grabbed the bulk of her stuff so Rachel wouldn't have to carry much. When they had loaded themselves up, Rachel led the way to the door and Santana followed close by like a child. Rachel wanted to comment on it, but chose not to. She didn't want to send Santana running or piss her off.

When the doors opened, Santana looked up to the two gentlemen that stood before them. They quickly scrambled to take the stuff from Rachel and Santana, so they could usher the girls into the house.

"This wasn't the girl I was expecting. I thought it was the Marilyn Monroe-looking, soft voice blonde that dated Finn," Hiram said and received a nudge to the ribs by Leroy.

"No," Leroy said and looked over Santana with a comforting smile. "She's the pretty brunette with the booming voice." Santana gave an awkward laugh at the already bickering couple, while Rachel glared at Leroy. "...the other pretty brunette with the booming voice." Leroy added quickly when he saw the look on Rachel's face. The diva rolled her eyes and laughed at his late attempt to rectify the situation.

"I say we should get the awkward conversation out of the way now at once, so we don't have to keep tip-toeing around it," Hiram interrupted everyone and caught everypne's attention. Santana's heart sunk and a little hint of fear crept up her spine. Hiram took a step closer to her with intense eyes that made Santana prepare comebacks and a storm out. "First of all, none of this Mr. Berry stuff. You can call me Hiram and him Leroy, or dad, but I hardly think you'll be comfortable with that. Second, this is your home now. You make yourself at home. Do you understand?" Santana looked over at Rachel, who was smiling, and then directed her sight back to Hiram with a nod. Before she could say anything, he continued. "Third, we are well-aware of the bullying between you and Rachel. We're not going to judge you for it. Fourth, you'll be sharing a room with Rachel for now until we can get your room fixed up. We're calling the decorator and contractor tomorrow-"

"-You don't have to-" Hiram rose his hand slightly to stop Santana from continuing.

"Like I said, this is your home. You're a young woman and you will need your space. Now, we tried to get your clothes from your parents, but your father is a little-"

"Hiram!" Leroy belted out. He and Rachel both gave Hiram a death glare. Santana swore she saw the family resemblance in that moment.

"I was going to say rude... Anywho, since tomorrow is Saturday, you and Rachel can go to the mall and we'll work on getting you a wardrobe-" Hiram stopped when he heard a ding coming from his kitchen. "MY GARLIC BREAD!" His eyes widened as he rushed off toward the kitchen, leaving Santana with an overwhelmed look on her face. Leroy looked down at Rachel and she took it as a sign to go help her father. She looked over at Santana and hesitantly nodded, turning on her heel to walk over to the kitchen. Of course, Rachel wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to eavesdrop, so she stayed close to the entrance of the hallway that they stood in so she could hear everything.

Leroy walked closer to Santana with his arms crossed and concern in his eyes. "Overwhelmed?" Santana just nodded, not really knowing how to interact with him. Leroy nodded and stepped in a little closer. "Do you mind if we sit and talk for a moment?" She wasn't really in a position to say no, so she wasn't sure why he just didn't tell her to sit down. Santana didn't question it. She just followed him into the living room and sat on the couch, unaware that Rachel had sneaked in closer to hear. Leroy sat next to Santana and looked over at her. "My parents kicked me out of my house when I was about your age."

Rachel scrunched up her eyebrows in confusion. She had no idea that her grandparents had done such a thing. They seemed to be so civil from the little she remembered about them. Shaking her head, she focused back on the two of them. Peeking out just the slightest bit, she couldn't help but want to reach out and join her father in telling Santana that everything would be okay.

Santana only looked over at him in silence. "It makes you feel...worthless. Like, you disappointed them and ruined their dreams for you." Santana felt a tugging at her heart as he spoke, but she refused to show it. She didn't know them well enough. "These were the people that were supposed to stick with you through everything, thick and thin. Yet, here they are turning on you, abandoning you." Leroy's voice choked up and Santana's eyes watered. He hit every note. That was it. Everything he said was true. She didn't want to admit that she wanted them, needed them, but that was what she felt. "I felt so lost and...hopeless and..." Leroy took a deep breath in as a tear managed to work its way down his cheek and cleared his throat. He put his hand over Santana's and looked into the girl's eyes. "You, young lady, are not alone. You are not wrong. You are not a disappoint. You, Santana, are perfect just the way you are and, if your parents can't see that, they don't deserve to see you grow up to be the magnificent woman I just know, feel that you will become." Santana felt the water build up in her eyes, but she still fought them. She couldn't break down. She just couldn't. Not here. Not with Rachel in the next room.

Rachel watched the sight and she felt her heart break. She knew Santana was in a bad situation, but she had no idea it was this bad. She couldn't imagine her fathers treating her that way, making her feel that way. It wasn't fair. Her sadness was overtaken by anger. She would do anything to give Maria another piece of her mind. When she saw the tears in Santana's eyes, however, she refocused. Rachel could feel her own tears build up, sympathizing with the girl. She could feel Santana in that moment and she'd give anything to fix it, though she wasn't exactly sure why it touched her so much.

"You..." Leroy put his hand on her cheek and looked into her eyes. "...are in a safe place, Santana. You can be yourself here and no one will ever judge you. We will love you and care for you like you were our own. Come here," he said with all the care a father should have as he pulled her into his arms. Santana was shocked by the way she clung to him and how tightly she embraced him. She couldn't hold anything back anymore. She sobbed full force into his shoulder and, though her back ached from the embrace, she only squeezed tighter.

"T-thank you.." She mumbled out in between sobs. "T-thank you...so m-much...Thank you.." Santana repeated herself over and over again, feeling like she actually had someone who cared, truly cared. It was a rushed sense of home, but, god, she needed it so badly. Leroy rubbed the girl's upper back and rocked her slightly. Rachel debated on whether she should walk into the room or walk away, not wanting to upset Santana. She felt her father turn to look at her and she knew what he expected of her. Rachel walked out from hiding behind the wall with her arms over her lap and her eyes reddened with tears as well. As she walked over, Santana looked up and saw Rachel. She felt a sense of shame until her eyes locked with Rachel's and saw that she was crying too. It didn't make sense, but, when the girl got down on her knees in front of her, she didn't protest. Santana and Rachel wrapped their arms around each other, sobbing in unison. Santana, because she finally felt like she could be herself, herself completely. Rachel, because felt the girl's pain and felt so horrible about not noticing it before. Leroy kissed the tops of both their heads.

"I'm going to help your father finish setting up for dinner. You girls take your time to settle and clean yourselves up," he spoke softly. The girls were lost in their embrace but they heard him, though they did nothing to acknowledge that he was walking out of the room.

A good three minutes had passed before Santana realized that she was hugging Rachel Berry. Yes, she knew that she was hugging Rachel. She hadn't suddenly become stupid, but this was... Rachel Berry. Nobody had gotten to see passed the wall and, now that somebody had, it was her. She felt more vulnerable than she cared to in that moment, or, rather, she expected to. Surprisingly enough, she didn't seem to care. Santana pulled away from the hug slowly and subtly, as to not frighten the girl. For some reason, that mattered to Santana now. Rachel looked into her eyes and felt her breath hitch a bit at the lack of distance before she moved to sit on the couch next to her. She rubbed at her eyes and Santana followed suit; both in silence.

"Do you feel better?" Rachel looked over at Santana with sincerity written on her face.

"My eyes sting like a mother-"

"SANTANA!" Rachel belted out before Santana could finish. The taller brunette chuckled and wiped at her eyes, Rachel joined in the laugh seconds later.

"God, you're incorrigible," she shook her head as she straightened out her skirt. Santana still looked over at her and she wasn't even sure where to begin when it came to explaining her gratitude.

"Hey, thank-"

"You don't have to thank me. I already discussed this with you, Santana," Rachel spoke plainly as she finished wiping at her eyes. Santana reached over and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and Rachel's heart raced.

"Thank you, Rae." Santana spoke even though she knew she didn't have to. She was giving her gratitude from the bottom of her heart without any shame. After everything she had just handed over, it felt more than right to give her some simple words. Rachel turned toward her and scrunched up her eyebrows with a small smile creeping onto her face.

"Rae?...What? No name-calling?" Rachel teased and Santana rolled her eyes as she got up from the couch.

"Screw you, dwarf," Santana turned to let the words fall from her lips as she walked toward the kitchen. Rachel gave a cheesy smile and followed behind her.

"I prefer Rae," she said when she finally caught up. Rachel reaches out for Santana's arm and stops her. "You do know that you're more than the choices you've made... You're more than what you think," she desperately added. "It's not about what you've done. No one deserves this." Santana just looked at Rachel and she wasn't sure how to process the expression in her eyes. "I just wanted to say that," Rachel added quickly and walked into the kitchen, leaving Santana slightly confused and with a weird feeling in the pit of her stomach. Butterflies? Ha...fuck no.

SNEAK PEEK TO CHAPTER 5: Rachel and Santana get really acquainted with each others' morning routines. Information is accidentally revealed. Santana pisses off the wrong person and is outted at school. Two of the glee guys come to Rachel and Santana's rescue and surprise everyone.