The first time they slept together was because of a dream. Santana was tossing and turning on the sofa bed, trying to find a position that was comfortable on the old overused mechanism when she heard Rachel call out. The absolute terror in Rachel's voice hits something primal in Santana and her fight or flight instinct kicks in, except Santana's never been one for flight so within seconds she's out of bed, has collected the baseball bat they keep next to the front door (just in case) and is marching towards Rachel's room.

Rachel may not be her favorite person in the world, but no one was going to hurt her on the Latina's watch. Except when she pulls back the curtain that serves as the room door, there's no one but the diva in the room. She checks the cupboards, makes sure the window is closed and locked and even looks under the bed but apart from some dust bunnies there's nothing out of the ordinary.

Santana is stood by the side of Rachel's bed when the diva cries out again. The Latina's eyes drop to the body of the little diva on the bed and she can actually see the girl shaking in the bed and Santana realises she's having a nightmare of some type. The Latina kneels next to the bed and reaches out a hand, carefully shaking Rachel's shoulder.

"Rachel… Rachel…"

The diva's eyes snap open and had body jerks back away from Santana and for a moment the Latina can see the depth of fear in her eyes, but then Rachel relaxes, her body shuddering slightly as she takes one panting breath after another.

"It was a dream…" Rachel whispers, "Just a dream."

Santana feels an overwhelming need to reach out and comfort the girl that looks so small in her bed right now, so she gives the girl's shoulder a reassuring squeeze, "Just a dream Rach, you're okay now. Go back to sleep."

Santana stands, taking one last look at Rachel, reassuring herself that the girls ok before she turns to head back through to the main room. Just as she's pulling back the door curtain, Rachel speaks.

"Santana", the Latina turns looking back at the diva, "Can you sleep here tonight?"

It takes Santana less than a millisecond to agree, not just because of the memory of the fear in Rachel's voice when she called out in her sleep, but also because sleeping anywhere would be better than the contraption they call a sofa bed. So she walks around the bed and slips in next to Rachel, both falling asleep within minutes.

The first time they slept together was also the last time Rachel had that dream because she never has to sleep alone again.

The first time they woke up together was less than seven hours later. Rachel woke first from what had to have been the best night's sleep she had in as long as she could remember. It takes a moment for her to remember asking Santana to sleep in her bed the previous night, but that sort of explains why the girl is pretty much wrapped around her right now. Santana's pressed against Rachel's back, an arm protectively around the smaller girls' waist and their legs are tangled together in a pretty intimate way. Her breath caresses the diva's neck and when she moves in her sleep, it momentarily presses her body harder against the diva's and causes Rachel's breath to hitch in her chest.

Rachel knows she should probably feel uncomfortable at the intimacy of it all, but she's never felt so cared for or safe in her life and so she reaches out and turns off her early morning alarm before it can go off and decides to spend her normal exercise time exactly where she is. Santana might want to kill Rachel later, but right now the little diva couldn't care less.

Santana eventually wakes up about an hour later to find herself wrapped around Rachel. She had always been a cuddler when it came to Brittany but she'd never really done it with anyone else and after some contemplation she puts it down to how protective she felt last night when she'd heard the fear in the girl's voice. She tries to disentangle herself from Rachel without waking her up not knowing the diva was already awake.

"Morning Santana" Rachel whispers.

The Latina can feel her face flush as she pulls away from Rachel and refuses to meet the diva's eyes as she rolls onto her back and looks up at Santana.

"I'm sorry about…" she says indicating them both with one hand, "I should get dressed…"

Rachel watches Santana as she heads towards the room door, before calling out.

"Santana." The Latina looks back, "Thanks for coming last night, and thanks for staying."

The first time they kiss was a number of mornings later. Rachel has once again woken up wrapped in Santana's arms and feeling as safe and protected as ever but this time as she turns to look at the girl behind her she finds Santana already awake and looking back at her with those large dark brown eyes. Neither girl felt the need to move, both quite happy to lie tangled up in each other as had become their habit the last few days, so much so that Rachel's thigh accidentally pressing against Santana's core as she moved cause neither girl embarrassment.

It did cause Santana to shudder, slam her eyes shut and bite her lower lip for a moment and Rachel grinned as she drew little shapes on Santana's back with her fingertips, a little proud to have been able to coax the reaction from the girl. When Santana's eyes opened, Rachel couldn't help but notice they were even darker than normal and that she was breathing harder than normal, her chest pressing against Rachel's every time she breathed in.

Even many years later Rachel couldn't say why she'd done it, it was almost like her body was under someone else's control, but her hand raised to slowly push Santana's hair back out of her face then it hooks around the back of her neck, pulling her closer into a kiss.

At first it was chaste, just two pairs of lips pressing together with the both of the owners wondering how far they dare go. Then Rachel takes the initiative, swiping her tongue across Santana's lower lip and the Latina's lips part without hesitation, the diva's tongue sliding between them to meet Santana's own in a dance for dominance that goes back and forth between them. When they finally break some time later, they are both panting for breath and smiling stupid smiles, right until their lips crash together again and again and again.

The first time they go to bed together was the night of the first kiss, a week after the first time they slept together. Each night for the past week they would lie in their own beds, staring at the ceiling until one or the other of them would break and either Santana would cautiously slip into Rachel's room and climb into her bed or Rachel would appear in her doorway, holding the curtain open watching the Latina pointedly until Santana joined her.

But after this morning's kiss neither girl knew exactly what would happen that night. The tension had been building most of the evening until it was well past their normal time to turn in. Santana was sitting on the sofa with Rachel's head in her lap as the diva lay across the empty cushions, both paying little attention to the movie that was playing on the television and more to Santana's fingers as they play with Rachel's hair.

Once again it's Rachel that takes the initiative. After a particularly large yawn and a stretch she sits up next to Santana.

"Time for bed I think."

Santana nods and watches as Rachel stands and stretches out the kinks she's collected from laying on the sofa then the diva turns and holds out her hand towards Santana. The Latina takes Rachel's hand and is pulled to her feet before Rachel turns and tugs her towards the bedroom. They change together, each making a short visit to the bathroom, before both climb into bed and become wrapped in the other girls' arms.

After Rachel turns out the light she curls up into Santana's body before whispering to the other girl, "This can be your bedroom too from now on. If you want I mean…"

Santana agrees with a kiss.

The first time they made love is almost a month later. It was almost inevitable and both girls were well aware of where things were going. Their make out sessions had gotten longer and more intense every day that had passed and the need to be physically close to each other was insanely strong, they were always touching, holding hands, kissing or snuggling up with each other on the sofa to the point where even Kurt had gotten board of teasing them about it. But neither of them wanted to push the other faster than they were ready to go, both happy to wait until the other was ready.

When it finally happens Santana blames the weather. It had been getting steadily warmer to the point that Rachel had decided to switch from sweat pants to sleep shorts for the first time that year. Santana had seen Rachel in her underwear before, they changed together every night after all, but seeing her climb in to those tiny shorts and stalk round the room to tidy up something that had annoyed her had gotten Santana seriously hot under the collar. And then the diva had slipped into bed and tangled her legs with the Latina's, who was similarly dressed, and suddenly Santana felt like she was going to explode.

They kiss passionately and Rachel can feel Santana's heart racing as they lie side by side. And when the Latina moves, unconsciously pressing herself against Rachel's thigh, the diva can feel the intense heat between Santana's legs, leaving her slightly breathless as well.

"Rachel, can I…" Santana takes a deep breath, a little nervous for what Rachel's answer will be, "Can I touch you?"

Rachel looks deep into Santana's eyes and nods, "You can do whatever you want baby."

Santana's movements are slow and deliberate, giving Rachel the time she needs to stop them if she becomes uncomfortable, but Rachel doesn't stop her as Santana first removes the diva's tank top and then her bra and then its Rachel's turn to pull Santana's top off. In the end neither of them stops the other as they first strip and then explore every millimeter of the others body.

And when they finally come, both at the same time with their fingers buried deep inside each other and their lips only parting to let them moan their pleasure into the others mouths, they both know that this was not just having sex, but making love. They fall asleep naked and sweaty and both very, very happy.

The first time Santana proposes she gets down on one knee in Rachel's changing room after her first debut on an on-Broadway show. She fills the room with flowers and has been pacing back and forward from one side to the other from the moment the curtain came down. She knows Rachel has to take a curtain call and then there will be some enthusiastic congratulations amongst the crew, maybe even a reprise of one of the songs in the show and all Santana can do is wait.

And then the door is opening and Santana has already dropped to one knee. Rachel's eyes widen as she takes in the flowers waiting for her and then her eyes drop to Santana and the little black ring box she's holding out. The speech that Santana had prepared is forgotten as she manages to ask the only five word question that means anything right now.

"Rach, will you marry me?"

"Yes!" Rachel gasps as she pulls her fiancée to her feet and into the diva's arms.