Santana was becoming a little worried, she hadn't met Brittany since she left Santana's apartment to take the bull by the horns and get some answers from Captain Douchebag. Oh, and hopefully break up with him while she's at it. The brunette attempted texting her friend, but only received vague replies such as "Yes, I'm fine, don't worry." and "No, he didn't eat me alive. I'll tell you later." Well, "later" has now turned into several days and Santana wondered if her friend truly is alright.

She contemplated paying the blonde a visit, but refrained from doing so in case her friend needed some time on her own or actually hadn't broken up with the gorilla yet. If Brittany needed her she would text or call her. Right?

But Santana has other matters to attend to right now.

Today is a lovely day, and Santana isn't the only one who thinks so judging by the amount of people currently occupying the streets. She pushes past them as she makes her way to Hudson's Heavenly Hamburgers, her laptop safely tucked into her backpack.

Rounding a corner, the burger place comes into view. A giant purple neon sign sits on top of the building with "Hudon's" written in cursive letters. The walls have giant windows built into them, allowing the guests a clear view of the street.

The bell above the door let out a loud ring when Santana entered, the scent of fried butter and fries hitting her instantly. The burger joint was filled with simple tables, all fixed to the floor, with red chairs next to them and a few booths aligned along the windows. A family of four were currently the only guests as it was just past the lunch rush hour.

A man with brown curly hair and a huge smile plastered on his face approached Santana.

"Hello there! My name is Will, welcome to Hudson's Heavenly Hamburgers. Can I get you a table? For two perhaps?" He leaned forward slightly and wiggled his eyebrows.

"Uhm, no. I'm here to see the manager. Carole Hudson? It's about their website."

"Oh!" Will exclaimed and clasped his hands together in front of him. "Yes, I heard about that. Right this way, miss."

The brown haired man quickly spun around and made his way towards the kitchen, Santana right behind him.

The kitchen was almost expected to be a complete mess with fries on the floor, pans everywhere and old grease stuck to the stoves just like they show in all those documentaries on TV. But in reality it was the complete opposite. There wasn't a single dirty surface in sight, the metal counters were so clean you could almost see your own reflection in them.

Even the sheer size of the kitchen was pretty impressive and there were at least five people currently busying themselves with various tasks such as preparing food or doing the dishes from today's lunch.

Will was leading Santana towards a small corridor at the other side of the kitchen where the manager's office was located.

"Well," Will turned around to face the brunette and gestured wildly towards the door, "here we are!" The smile on his lips was still in place, just as bright as when she arrived.

"Yeah, thanks." Santana tried to smile politely, but it came out more as an awkward grimace. This man certainly was something special.

"Well, tu-deluu then," the man said and turned around to saunter down the corridor.

Santana watched him go, one eyebrow raised.

Once he was out of sight she turned to face the door and lightly knocked on it. Footsteps from within the room could be heard as the manager made her way to welcome her guest.

"Miss Lopez! It is such a pleasure to see you again!" The voice of Carole Hudson filled the corridor before the door was fully open. "Please, come inside." The woman stepped to the side to allow Santana entry.

The office was fairly small . A large wooden desk with an accompanying chair was placed further into the room, the back of the chair facing the furthermost wall. Looking to the left when entering the office, a window overlooking the kitchen could be found. "To make sure no one steals any fries," Carole had chuckled last time they met. The floor was covered in green carpet, making it incredibly soft to walk upon.

"Please, have a seat." The older woman motioned towards the dark brown leather couch situated against the wall opposite the window, right next to her desk.

Santana sat down on the exceptionally comfortable couch, making sure to net let out a squeal, sounding like an injured pig, in surprise as she sank further into it, her knees almost hitting her chin. She wasn't a big fan of repeating the incident of last time she plopped down on the couch.

"Don't worry, the couch won't devour you like last time," Mrs. Hudson laughed and waved her hand as she settled herself next to Santana and turned to face the Latina. She was sporting a floral dress and dark red cardigan together with a pink scarf. Her moderately short brown hair was tucked behind her ears. She had the biggest grin sporting her lips.

"Seriously, do they all smile as if they've recently won the lottery?"

"Now, you must've been working pretty hard on this project. Oh by the way, do you mind if I call you Santana? I would most definitely prefer if you call me Carole instead of Mrs. Hudson." The woman flashed a bright smile.

"Ugh, her breath smells like onion rings."

She ignored Snixx's complaining. "Yeah sure, Santana is fine, and yes it took a few tries before I was satisfied with the layout, but after many hours in front of my computer I managed to get something decent together."

Carole threw her hands up and then clapped excitedly, the unexpected movement causing Santana to lean further away from the woman and widen her eyes. She quickly glanced towards the window to see if any of the kitchen staff had noticed their boss' behavior. No one out there seemed to be bothered.

"Dedication and hard work always pays off, that's what I keep telling my boys. But do they listen? Oh dear, no. They just live in their own little burger-flipping worlds."

Santana nodded slowly, her eyes still slightly widened. "Well, uhm, do you want to take a look at what I've made?"

"Oh yes, most certainly!"

"Alright." Santana smiled and removed her backpack from her back to unzip it. To say she was nervous was an understatement. Sure, she was more than satisfied with what she had put together, and judging by Carole's enthusiasm she was pleased as well before even viewing Santana's work. But she still had this gnawing feeling inside her. What if her layout wasn't good enough? What if her client wouldn't be satisfied?

Well, she was about to find out Mrs. Hudson's opinion. In a minute she had her laptop open in her lap, all her work on display.

The older woman next to her didn't utter a word. Her eyes were glued to the screen of the laptop and her lips moved slightly, as if she was quietly reading something to herself. She rested her chin in the palm of her left hand as she lifted her right hand slightly to point at something on the screen, but remained quiet.

"Santana noo, she's touching the screen. Her burger fingers are going to leave greasy stains! Make her stahp!"

The brunette lightly shook her head and glanced from Carole to her laptop. The woman's silence was starting to frighten her. Sure, she had seemed to be beyond excited to view Santana's work when they spoke on the phone, but what if the design didn't live up to her expectations now that she has it in front of her?

"I bet she doesn't even like your work. I mean, just look at her. She's just trying to figure out how to politely tell you to gtfo."

Oh no, don't think like that.

"Santana..."

"Hide yo'self Santana! The queen of onion rings opened her mouth!"

"Yes, Mrs. Hudson?"

"This design..."

Santana took a deep breath to steel herself, it wouldn't be the end of the world if she doesn't want it.

"It's just so..." Carole gestured with her hand towards the screen and fell silent again.

Terror started to settle itself in Santana's gut. Was her work really so awful that Mrs. Hudson couldn't say it out loud? The Latina glanced at her laptop. She was proud of her work. But that pride was slowly dissipating as each silent second passed.

"I absolutely adore this!"

"You what?"

"This design. I think you've done a splendid job Santana. As I said last time we spoke, I am more than pleased with the outcome of your work."

A small chuckle of relief escaped Santana's lips. There was no need to panic in the first place, of course she would've liked this.

"I mean, just look at it! I know you've seen it, obviously, but I mean... it's amazing! The colors and pictures go well together, and I adore the design of all the buttons."

"Heh, thank you Mrs. Hudson."

"Oh please, don't 'Mrs. Hudson' me, I told you to call me Carole. So if I can just get all the files I will send them over to our web wizard. I have no idea what you computer people do, but you work your magic and everything comes up on my screen exactly as I want it. That's real sorcery there." Carole laughed loudly.

Laughing along seemed like the only real option here, and that's what Santana did. She let it all out and laughed like there's no tomorrow, even throwing her head back and closing her eyes in the process.

"Jesus, Santana. Why don't you clap like a brainless seal while you're at it? What she said wasn't even remotely entertaining."

Suddenly there was no laughter coming from the older woman and Santana found Carole staring at her when she opened her eyes.

"I know I can be quite the comedian when I wish to, but I've never had anyone laugh that much."

Santana cleared her throat awkwardly. "Sorry, I uh... don't know what came over me."

"Well, you know what they say, laughter is the best medicine." Carole chuckled.

"In that case I'll never have to worry about falling ill, the way I laugh."

The older woman leaned forward slightly. "Lucky you," she said with a smile. "We already have your payment settled, right?"

The brunette nodded. "Yep, it's all good."

"You should've demanded a life time's supply of strawberry milkshakes and French fries instead of money Santana. You'd never have to worry about food again. Though, I guess you would die when you're like, 35. But it'd be worth it!"

"Excellent. Well, I thank you for this cooperation, Santana. It has been a real pleasure. I'll definitely recommend your services to my business partners."

The statement made Santana light up, a giant smile spreading across her face. "Thank you so much. It has been a real pleasure working with you."

Both women stood up from the couch and made their way towards the door.

"By the way, I was going to ask you something." Carole uttered.

Turning around from where she was facing the door, Santana raised an eyebrow when her eyes met the woman's in front of her. "Yes?"

"Are you single?"

The brunette flinched. Why was she asking her this? "I, um... well you see- I... um"

"Because I have a son around your age, you see. He's standing right there." Carole pointed to the window in the office.

Twisting her neck to the left she saw exactly who Mrs. Hudson was pointing at. An incredibly tall man with short dark brown hair and brown eyes was currently standing in front of the stove, flipping burgers. He was handsome, Santana would admit, but dating him? That would most likely be the definition of disaster.

"His name is Finn, and I will admit that he's only got one oar in the water most of the time," Carole stated, "but he has a kind spirit and a big heart. And that's not the only big thing he has, if you know what I mean?" She giggled and nudged the brunette next to her with her elbow.

Santana's jaw hit the floor and her eyes were as wide as those of a deer caught in the path of an oncoming train as she once more turned to face Carole. Why would a mother say such a thing about her son? and to someone she is trying to set him up on a date with nonetheless. Not very flattering.

"Oh don't look so surprised. A mother has to try her best to get her children out of the house, or in this case, the family restaurant. He needs to make more friends, I'm starting to worry he will begin talking to that spatula of his."

Not a word escaped Santana's lips. She was dumbstruck. She had no interest what so ever in dating that man in the kitchen, let alone know the size of his "equipment".

"He knows how to cook, well, he can fry burgers. But they're really good! Oh, and did I mention that he can sing? He used to be the male lead of his high school's glee club, and he has some... fascinating dance moves."

"Did you hear that, Lopez? He sounds like a catch. The perfect boyfriend. You can live on fries with Mr. Hamburglar out there and make adorable burger-babies."

"I erm... I'm sorry, but I'm not sure it would work out. We don't really know each other, do we?"

"Well, isn't that what dates are for? You can have your first one right here! Everything will be on the house of course."

"No, really Mrs. Hudson. I'm certain your son is a lovely man but-"

"Is that a yes? Oh, how delightful! Finn will be beyond excited when I tell him of this!" In her excitement Carole leaned forward and lightly pinched Santana's cheek.

The brunette grimaced and rubbed her cheek. Unexpected touching was not appreciated.

"No, it's not a yes, it's a no. I'm unfortunately not interested in dating at the moment." At least not your son, she thought to herself.

Carole's face fell. "Oh. I see. Maybe another time?"

"No."

"No, okay, okay. It was worth a shot though. My boys have a special place in my heart you know, just trying to look after them." She smiled.

"I understand," Santana replied, "I probably would've done the same if I had kids."

"I'm going to let you go then, I'm sure you have some place else to be." The older woman moved towards the door and opened it for her guest.

Before she left the room, Santana turned her attention towards her backpack to pick it up, and proceeded towards the door.

"You haven't changed your mind?" Carole asked as Santana had just passed the threshold.

"No." The Latina replied, politely shaking her head with an apologetic smile on her lips.

"No. Okay. Just checking. Thank you again for your hard work." The woman extended her hand towards Santana which the latter woman firmly shook.

"Thank you too. Just contact me if you ever need help again."

"Will do. Bye!" Carole waved a bit too excitedly.

"See you."

Returning home didn't take more than 30 minutes, after getting some coffee from the nearest café to celebrate today's success. Walking up the stairs suddenly felt a lot easier when being in a good mood, Santana was almost skipping in joy. She as even humming her favorite song to herself. But when she reached the last set of stairs she stopped dead in her tracks. A familiar blonde was sitting on the top step.

Brittany must've heard Santana approaching, for she shifted her attention from her phone to the brunette standing further down the stairs. A smile instantly formed on her lips.

"Oh my gosh, there you are, I got a bit worried when you didn't open the door. I've been waiting for a while, but that's okay, I got totally hooked on this game where you like, fling ball-shaped birds at ball-shaped green pigs. You should try it, it's very entertaining."

Santana chuckled lightly and shook her head with her arms crossed over her chest, her right foot resting on the step in front of her. "You had to wait, what, two hours tops and you were worried? I've barely heard anything from you in days. Don't you think I was worried? Just a little bit?" The brunette raised her left hand and brought her index finger and thumb close to each other until there was just a small gap in between them.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I just had to... process everything."

"That's understandable. Don't worry, I'm not mad at you or anything." Santana reassured before silence over came them. Both women were looking at each other, small smiles playing at their lips. The brunette eliminated the distance between her and her friend by walking up the remaining steps and situated herself next to the blonde.

Both women turned to face each other when Santana asked: "So, how did it go?"

Brittany let out a sigh. "It's over, we're through. He just came up with these lame excuse to try and amend what he did."

"He really doesn't deserve you Britt. Or anyone for that matter. He's a cheating douche."

"I almost fell for it though."

Santana scrunched her eyebrows. "Fell for what?"

"His excuses. I was so close to going back to him, you have no idea." Brittany ran her hands through her hair. "It just feels so strange. I'm alone now. He was one of the few friends I had, and we've known each other since high school. But now it's all... over."

"You're not alone Britt, I'm your friend." Santana put her hand on Brittany's shoulder and squeezed lightly.

"Thanks." The blonde replied genuinely.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Yeah, I think that'd help."

"Come on then." Santana stood up and extended her hand for Brittany to take. "Let's head inside."

I'm terribly sorry for taking this much time to update and respond to reviews, but life gets in the way sometimes. Will you accept my apology? :( I believe I will be back on track from now on, but we'll see. A big thank you to all of you who are still following this story 3.

Thankthatstar- I agree, away with Puck! Hopefully without another confrontation ;)

wkgreen- We'll see where they had their talk. Here's another update for you!

Amil 10- Thanks for enjoying the previous chapter. Yeah, she should've thrown Puck down the stairs aswell.

JustOneMorePerson- Thank you!

BrittanaLove93- Yeah, Trouty Mouth and Puck sure are a weird combo, and I'm happy to hear you like this! :)

Cido16- Apologies for late update, but here it is!

Guest- Hmm, maybe I should make Santana beat up Puck. :p

Ascoeur- Ikr! Ermagherd!

SGAFirenity- Thanks for all your reviews! and yeah, I've always pictured Puck being a bit "strange", hence the reason he brought Sam with him ;)