For four years I lived in the shadow that was Quinn Fabray. 50 sit-ups, 50 push-ups, three years of gymnastics and I was still the bottom of the pyramid while Miss Quinnie wore her hair up in that damn prestigious high pony-tail. I slept my way through everyone in high school, boys and girls, and still she was considered the hottest piece of ass at McKinley High. I guess that last bit was a bit counter-intuitive, but whatever, I worked my ass off and still couldn't keep up with her reputation. Even when she allowed herself to get knocked up, humiliated by her inner fat girl and hit by a truck.
So how is it that 6 years after high school, she walks into my life and it's as if all that stupid adolescent angst and competitiveness has somehow managed to vanish?
"Dude! Hurry up in there! I ate a mucho caliente grandeburrito the size of a bowling pin and it's already made its way down the southern tracks!" Puck, my extremely annoying but good-hearted room-mate yelled from the other side of the door.
I twisted my hair up into my bath towel and opened the door just as he was about to bang his fists for the third time.
"You know, there isn't anything I haven't seen before underneath that bathrobe," Puck winked and tried his best seductive grin.
"Beyond ew, Puckerman! That was so long ago, I get that I'm the hottest piece of ass you've ever had, but c'mon." I punched his arm just as he grabbed his stomach.
"Uh-oh, time to drop the kids off at the pool!" he exclaims running past me and slamming the door shut.
It's been about four years since high school and two years since college. I dropped out of Kentucky State and transferred to CUNY and am one semester away from getting my BFA in Sonic Arts, which is really just uppity NY speak for a Bachelor's in Music and Audio Technology. Turns out though, New York appreciates my blunt honesty and snark, so making a home and life here for myself wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. I managed to get a job at Le Poisson Rouge, a college bar that showcases a lot of underground college art.
I finished getting ready for my one class of the day, grabbed my laptop bag, iPod and made my way out the door and towards the subway. Puck's pool cleaning business fell through in California due to some legal troubles involving a suspecting 45 year old husband and his 23 year old wife. Somehow he found his way to New York doing odd jobs here and there, playing music for any bar, hospital or street corner that would take him.
I let him crash in my one bedroom apartment as long as he pays electric, keeps the place clean and skank-free. Well, skank-free while I'm there and fully disinfected by the time I get home.
I grabbed a seat on the subway and opened up my laptop to a mix I had been working on for an engagement party the club was rented out for. I guess all those lame mash-up weeks assigned us in Glee club did end up having a lasting impression. Originally I had just taken a couple of engineering and mixing classes for electives, but I found that I had a real ear for musical structures and similar melodies and patterns. While it isn't exactly the reality TV, Hollywood career route that I always dreamt for myself, one would be surprised by how much attention this hot Latina lesbian DJ garners. I guess I would have Carmen from The L Word to thank for that.
Six songs had finished playing which usually meant that my stop was coming up. I packed up my laptop and stood up as the subway came to a stop.
All that's standing between me and my degree is an 80 minute audio track that utilizes (not depends on) audio technology. My answer to that assignment? A mixtape of hip-hop and R&B samples plus original compositions of mine and Puck's. The mix tape is also a sort of concept album on the rollercoaster that is falling in love.
I'm sure it's a bit odd hearing Santana Lopez speak so openly and calmly about love, but a lot has changed since I graduated high school. Many a thing has happened that's helped me to discover that I'm more than just a sexy snarky ice cold bitch. I can't hide behind that façade that my grandmother passed down to me forever.
No longer am I a fame hungry eighteen year old with the world's biggest chip on my shoulder. Now, I'm a determined, ambitious 24-year-old with the world's second biggest chip on my shoulder. I'm an aspiring triple threat : DJ, singer/songwriter, and producer. At the moment, I'm the in-house DJ at Le Poisson Rouge, which gives me a lot of opportunities to collaborate with all sorts of musicians and talent that comes through.
Since I'm in my last semester, my classes are all pretty much labs. I walked into the studio lab, plugged my hard drive into the computer, placed my headphones over my ears and zoned into the sound board for two and a half hours, tweaking the treble, bass and levels to my perfection. My professor has learned to just keep away from the studio I occupy until I emerge with a question or need an extra pair of ears to double check the levels.
After my session I walked down to Celeste's diner and ordered my usual sandwich and unsweetened tea, and hopped on the subway to work. By this time it was already 6:30 when I arrived at the club, and I decided to take a second listen to the mix to make sure it was perfect for the happy couple. Kori, my boss, said her niece was about my age, as is her fiancé and that they wanted something with a good mixture of classics, romance, and dancing. Hopefully what I created is what they were hoping for.
I took off my headphones as I walked into the club and set my laptop bag down behind the DJ stand.
"How's it going Santana?" Kori greets me with a smile as she walks around the stacks of beer and liquor the vendor has unloaded.
"Good, this place is almost done already, huh?" The decorations and lights have all mostly been already set up, the party doesn't start until about 8:30 so that gave us an extra hour or so to finish up the last touches.
"Just about, if I could just get you to set up the projector, the banner and whatever you need for the music then we're all set,"
"Leave it to me, I gotcha back girl," I said with a smile as I grabbed my laptop out of my bag and headed for the stage. "Where's the slideshow or whatever it is they want projected?!"
"Top left drawer in my desk!" Kori shouts back from the bar.
I hopped off the stage and went to her office. When I opened up the top left drawer, I instantly hesitated when I saw the names printed on the DVD.
No flipping way could it be…
"Kori!? What's your niece's name!?" I shouted with skepticism.
"Oh! Tina Cohen-Chang! It's a little weird that she's marrying a guy with the same last name, huh?" she said as she walked into her office for a pen. "Why what's up?"
"I went to high school with these two! We were all in glee club together!"
Kori tries her hardest to keep from laughing. "You, in glee club?"
"Oh shut up, it was high school and about the most fine-art McKinley could afford,"
"Mhmm, I'm sure. Well, it's a small world after all," she sings to me.
"Quit it! We were National Champions!"
"Oh and that's just the cherry on top! I bet you had all the solos!"
I slapped her on her shoulder. "Go back to checking in the vendor before the happy couple gets no adorable slideshow,"
How could I have not known they were having their engagement party here? How could I not know they were engaged? Well, it wasn't like I had kept in great touch with Tina and Mike. I hadn't really kept in touch with anyone from McKinley. After Brittany and I broke up and she got together with Trouty Mouth, we just sort of drifted apart. She wound up at the same school as Mike and the two of them took over that fancy dance conservatory. I dropped out of Kentucky State, packed everything up and took a one way flight to New York, never really looking back. Sure, there was man-hands and Porcelain that I talked to when I first got there. But Rachel soon started to get noticed by all sorts of Broadway casting agentsand directors, while Kurt wound up living a real life Devil Wears Prada. The only person who I kept around was Puck really. Even then, I moved around a lot in New York so it was hard to keep track of who to send all my change of address's to.
"Can I see the guest list?" I asked as I walked back towards the stage.
Kori pulled it out of her back pocket and handed it to me.
Sam Evans, Brittany Pierce, Finn Hudson, Mercedes Jones, Mr. and Mrs. Schu, Kurt Hummel, Blaine Anderson, Rachel Berry, Quinn Fabray, Artie, Sugar, everyone from glee club was on the list. Including their close family and friends from college and post high school. My name was on there with a question mark.
"How come they have my name on here if they never sent me an invite?"
"Maybe because we'd hoped someone knew where you were," said a familiar voice.
I turned around and saw Tina and Mike in the doorway.
"Oh my gosh, you guys are ridiculous!" I exclaimed as they walked up to me and pulled me into a huge hug. "Okay, can't breathe,"
"Sorry, sorry! It's been so long since we've soon you! I can't believe you're here!" Tina said as she grew even more excited by the minute.
"Okay, calm yourself before you have a heart attack."
"Why are you here so early? The party doesn't start for another hour or so," Mike said checking his watch.
"I work here! I'm the in-house DJ!"
"No flipping way! I didn't even know you could spin!" Mike said with a very surprised look on his face.
Kori grabbed two beers and a wine as we took seats at the bar and started to catch up. The two had always known they wanted to get married since Tina graduated high school, but wouldn't make it official until both had finished their degrees. I told them all about how I wound up in New York.
"So do you have a plus one for tonight, or are you strictly working? Because you're also a guest, so it's not allowed for you to only work,"
"I promise to try and peel myself away from the board," I said sipping on my Blue moon. "All right, well I gotta finish setting up your guys' precious vomit inducing slideshow,"
"Now that sounds like the Santana we're all used to," Mike chuckled as he finished off his beer.
"A lot has changed in eight years guys," I said with a smile as I grabbed my beer and hopped back up on stage.
More than I could cover in a 15 minute chit chat.
20 minutes until everyone started showing up, and I was in the bathroom putting the final touches on my make-up and quickly fitting into a tight red dress I found at one of the local shops by my apartment.
"Knock knock, and ow-ow Lopez, you're looking sexy as ever," Puck said from the doorway. He finally grew out of his Mohawk phase and decided to stick with the shaved buzz cut look.
"Pfft, and you're surprised, please Puckerman, I was JT's inspiration when he brought sexy back,"
"Dude, that joke is like 10 years old," Puck commented.
"Whatever, I'm hot, we know it, ready to party?" I asked as he held his arm out for us to walk in together.
Puck and I have become wingmen of sorts. When he needs saving from a lady he just can't shake off I come to the rescue and vice-a-versa.
When we entered the club it looked like a ten year reunion three years early. Instantly I spotted Brittany with a guy she must have met up at school, Sugar and Artie were seated at a table catching up. I nodded at Puck as I made my way to the booth. He walked over to Finn, giving him a high five and pulling him into their tradition bro hug. No one had yet noticed that it was I behind the booth, until I rewound the record.
"Good evening ladies and gents, first and foremost, congratulations and best wishes to the very happy couple," everyone cheered and clapped. "I've prepared a little mix for theevening, I hope you all enjoy the soundtrack,"
I placed the marker at the starting point of the mix, pressed play and allowed the mood for the room to be set. Mingling and chatter erupted as people made their way to the bar to grab their first drinks of the evening. Kori was handing me my whiskey sour when I heard a familiar voice.
"Girl do not tell me that is Santana Lopez spinning records in that booth!" Mercedes gave a warm smile and I stepped down to give her a hug.
"Indeed it is, how are you girl?" I asked as I sipped on my drink.
"Fabulous! Working on my first album with a little indie label in SoCal, but I'm more anxious to know how you ended up spinning records instead of being on them!"
I smiled coyly and nodded as I took another sip from my drink before I answered. "Oh you know, had to play catch up with school when I left Kentucky, and it just turned out that I had a natural ear for production and the behind the scenes aspects of music."
"You're not getting off that easy, here's my card with my cell and email on it. I'm going to be in town for another three or four days, hit me up for lunch. I want to hear more about what you've been up to,"
"That'd be great," I added as I saw Brittany making her way over to us.
"San! It's been like what? 3 or four years?" She said pulling me into a tight hug.
"It's been too long," I said. It really has. I had forgotten what it was like to have people around who actually knew me.
"I think we always knew you'd end up here, just in this capacity? I think everyone's heads are still spinning,"
"Oh you know how life is, just insane, " I said trying to get the attention off me before Tina thought I was stealing her thunder.
The guys all started to pull and drag tables together so that we could all sit as one big group. Once you got all the Glee kids together it was hard to keep us apart. Just as Puck and I set the last table together, in walked Quinn Fabray in a beautiful green dress and her hair cropped to her chin. She looked as gorgeous as ever.
"Looks like you finally made it!" Tina squealed as she just about ran over to her and tackled her.
"My train was a little delayed, but I made it!" she said with a bright smile.
Everyone took turns greeting her and adding another chair to the giant table. As I straightened up and smoothed out my dress, I met her hazel eyes and smiled.
"No one thought you would make it," she said as she pulled me into what must have been my 20th hug of the night.
"It seems my presence has become one of the biggest surprises of the entire evening," I added as I pulled out of the hug.
"No one had any idea how to find you! How did you even-"
I filled her in one the details that everyone seemed to be so interested in. I hadn't realized I was the only one who hadn't really kept in touch. Brittany was a frequently sought after dancer for music videos, concert tours and ballet/dance productions, Mike became a choreographer and opened up a dance studio in Connecticut. Tina just finished up her degree in Advertising and will be starting her first job at PendertonAgencies. Finn was still running the tire shop with Kurt's father, learning all the ins and outs of the trade and becoming groomed to take over and franchise the business. Kurt had become assistant to the editor in chief of an up and coming fashion web magazine.
"The print industry is just going south with no upturns in sight. Web magazines and online publishing is the way to go at this point. " he added
Blaine is still working on his bachelor's in teaching, he has a position at Dalton waiting for him once he's completed all his requirements. Sugar is living off her trust fund and enjoying life. Her dad's business only boomed since high school with assertion that she would probably never have to work a day in her life. Artie is interning at Lionsgate in California, he's working on a script that he hopes to get picked up soon. Rachel is on her way to the top of Broadway. She's received numerous roles in Broadway productions and has her first top billed production scheduled for the Spring season. Mr. Schuester and Emma are still in Lima, he's still teaching at McKinley and New Directions have become four time National Champions.
As the party wore on, I realized the first mix of the evening was coming to an end, and I decided to take a break from all the hoopla and try to show off my records a little bit.
"Okay let's see all the beautiful people on the floor," I said with a headphone over one ear as I started playing Q-Tip'sVivrant Thing.
Everyone got on the floor and started to move with the beat. Mercedes and Kurt partnered up with Rachel, Tina and Mike were moving, he was helping her with some moves. Soon everyone started to just dance as a group, until Mike and Brittany were pushed to the middle.
"Just like old times?" Mike questioned at Brittany and the two started to battle.
It felt as if no time had passed whatsoever as the two took turns showing the skills they've developed since high school. Immediately I decided to try and work the crowd a bit more by flexing my mixing skills. Watching the two of them felt like something out of those ridiculous Step Up movies as their moves became more intricate as I blended song with song with song. It got to a point where everyone decided to show off any move they had, Sugar jumped in and did some ridiculous show choir move from high school, and then Puck fed off it doing a signature move from our sophomore year when we performed with April Rhodes. I just laughed as I watched everyone grow more and more crazy and funny.
"Ahem!" I heard from below me and saw Quinn standing below the booth.
"Do you have a request Miss?" I asked with a smile as Icrossfaded Usher's OMG with Katy Perry's California Girls.
"Only for you to get out from behind that booth and dance with the rest of us," she said with a coy smile.
I laughed and placed in order a mix to keep the party going as I stepped from out of the booth. Quinn grabbed my hand and led me to the floor. I didn't think much of it until she spun me around and we started dancing together. Somehow she and I wound up in the middle of the group and she winked at me.
"Follow me lead, just like in Cheerios?" she said as she began one of our signature numbers that I couldn't forget if I wanted.
I laughed and followed her lead, Brittany caught on to the routine and jumped in as well. We continued, all of us moving in perfect sync as if we hadn't been separated at all.
The music, the moves, the people, it all came rushing back to me in forceful waves. A beautiful familiar sense of togetherness that I hadn't felt in so long. It made me wonder how I could have allowed myself to lose touch with everyone.
Just before everyone jumped in to join us, Kori snapped a picture of the three of us together. The Unholy Trinity reunited. Brittany grabbed both of us by the shoulders and pulled us close into a group hug.
"I can't believe we all remembered it!" Quinn exclaimed with a huge beaming smile stretching from each end of her face.
"Please, Coach Sylvester would probably come over the megaphone and call us sloppy babies to this day!" I remarked laughing.
"Careful, she could be lurking in any corner," Brittany said as she did a double take behind her shoulder.
Quinn playfully slapped her shoulder as we took a seat at one of the tables, Brittany went back to the dance floor.
"Santana Lopez, what have you been up to, aside from moonlighting as a DJ here?" she asked as she sipped on her vodka martini.
"Not moonlighting, this is my actual gig," I pointed out as one of the servers brought me a glass of champagne.
"What? You're not seriously telling me that you've taken a job behind a booth instead of in front of it, right?" she said incredulously.
"That's my story. I love the spotlight, don't get me wrong. But this is where I'm able to get the better change. Everyone in New York is trying to be a star in the spotlight. This allows me to pay the bills, get some exposure and still be able to work on my own music. I really like mixing and producing actually,"
"If someone would have told me this before hand, I think I'd have laughed in their face," she said with a smile as she sipped her martini.
I couldn't believe how much she hadn't changed. If anything, Quinn certainly had grown even more into her figure and her looks. I'd say she had somewhat aged gracefully if it appeared she had aged at all.
"Do you remember Schuester's wedding?" she asked as I almost choked on my champagne.
"Ahem, umm. Which part?" I laughed off as I grabbed my cocktail napkin to wipe the side of my mouth.
"Me being an awkward teenager and never wanting to talk about that night?" she said.
I wasn't sure why she had brought this on so quickly. Usually it took Quinn a lot of warming up to get her to be open about anything, this was a new side that I wasn't sure how to handle. The night before Schuester's wedding Quinn and I both had quite a bit to drink. I was still reeling over Brittany and Sam being together at the time, and doing my best to let her go and be happy. Quinn was moving on from her break up with her professor. For once we had laid our weapons down and found comfort in each other, but instead of trying to figure out if it meant anything, Quinn never wanted to speak of it again.
"What about it?" I asked apprehensively. "Is this really the place you want to bring it up?"
"After that night, I couldn't really find you. Your number had changed, you had already left Kentucky State, I just really want to say I'm sorry."
My eyes narrowed on her suddenly, and it felt like Snixwas ready to emerge and pounce, but I've learned better than that.
"That was years ago. It's not like we each held a torch for each other all this time. But I appreciate you trying to make things right." I said as I took another sip of my champagne.
She nodded and sipped her martini. "So where's your hot girlfriend? I know you must have one,"
"I don't actually," I responded looking out to the crowd.
"That's it? Just that you don't? Not even a special lady friend to get your sweet lady kisses on with?"
"A lot has changed since those days, I've been through a lot," I added with a vague smile. It's true, I grew up and learned that life is much too short for that kind of behavior.
"Okay, I feel like I'm talking to a clone of Santana and not the real Santana, what happened?"
I sighed, this whole thing was getting a bit old and stale.
"Wanna dance?" I said abruptly, trying my best to deflect.
"I'll dance if you agree to a coffee meet,"
"What is everyone's deal, am I really all that interesting?" I laughed as I sipped my champagne again.
"Like you said, a lot has changed and life is too short. So let's have coffee, catch up and keep in touch. I could use some familiarity in my life, and I think you've been cut off for far too long,"
"And who are you to make that call?"
"If you really don't then don't. But not everything has changed. And I could see on your face that you've missed everyone just as much as we've missed you. You may have been a bitch Santana Lopez, but you're our token bitch and our good friends are getting married."
I sighed again, but this time out of consent. I took her hand and led her to the dance floor with everyone else.
A lot has happened since we graduated high school. I've grown up, and let go of a lot of the baggage I clung to as a teenager. Experiences and people that have come and gone from my life have taught me many a lesson. Quinn was right though, life is too short to stay disconnected from the people who had my back during those days, familiarity couldn't kill me.