𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐄, 𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐒. You can either be in deep agony or a forever solemn funk. Having your heart broken is like, for some, having two broken ribs. Nobody can see it but the pain is unbearable every time you breathe. But what strikes more is when your the one who's responsible for your own heartache and miscellaneous confusion, the tear that finally breaks you into pieces. After signing She Keeps Me Warm with Santana, rumors had spread like wildfire of the pair either, according to JBI's blog, having a secret affair behind Catalina's back or trying to rekindle their failed short term romance. Of course, none of the latter were true in the slightest, but it still didn't stop people igniting the flames to make them much more ablaze in power. As the Cline walked down the hall she kept her head down, she could feel everyone's eyes instantly glue to her like hawks waiting for their prey. Just as Aerin was about to turn the corner the girl was then bombarded and practically cornered by Jacob and his cameraman.

" Miss Cline," JBI began as he shoved the soft lining of his mic into the poor blonde's face, "The blogosphere wants the truth from your sweet suckled cherry lips, are you and Santana Lopez having a lesbian affair with each other ?"

Aerin let out a shaky sigh and push the camera lens out of her face, " I'm this close to filing a restraining order against you Jacob," the girl grimaced in JBI's direction, whilst the cameraman panned into her face.

He then turned to the camera and shook his head before he turned back to Aerin again, which made the blonde let out a passive-aggressive grunt of frustration. "Confirm or deny this then, one of our viewers saw you at the back of a Lima Bean last night scraping for leftovers and pleading for extra chocolate chip cookies after hours. How do you respond to that ?"

A dry lump formed at the back of Aerin's throat, hot flashes brimmed all around her as she tried to shake the feeling off. She had one of two options, the first would be to obviously lie through her teeth until it sounded believable. But the girl also knew that JBI would somehow manage to find a way to dig as much dirt on her as he could through his many moles, which consisted of people from the AV Club and others on the 'inside'. Aerin's other option was to do the noble thing, the right thing, tell the morbidly embarrassing truth.

" Yeah, I was, and I'm not ashamed of it," Aerin replied with a slight quiver at the end of her sentence. She watched as JBI's brows went up with astonishment, the blonde could tell that he was practically buzzing at the number of viewers his blog would rake in from spilling her story. " They said that if you bought a drink, the snacks would be 20% off; but the barista totally cheated me out of my money and decided to charge me extra for the cookies that i bought. So, as payback I decided to throw litter on his car and take a couple of extras and some cronuts for myself."

" So you're admitting that you're a dumpster diver," JBI instigated with intent, the slim-built boy leaned in closer with his microphone, much to the annoyance of Aerin. With one swift motion, the brown-eyed girl quickly swatted the camera away as if it were a fly and began to speed walk down the hall towards her locker. Jacob and his cameraman followed in pursuit, "She's on the run, She's on the run !" JBI hawked from behind her with a voice that weirdly boomed out, traveling frivolously down the halls.

" Leave me alone, JBI !" Aerin called out as she turned a corner, her eyes searching for the nearest classroom. Noticing the choir room on her left, the Cline slyly hide behind a locker and stalled until Jacob suddenly caught interest in something more interesting to dig his paws into. With one small step, the girl sprung into the classroom without checking if anyone was there first and let out a sigh of sheer relief. But Aerin's shock soon came back when she turned and saw her sitting there, the one girl who had been playing at her heartstring all week. Santana was sat on the top riser with her chin rested gently in her palm and a pencil twiddling in between her fingers, the raven haired girl hummed along to the music that was projecting from her turquoise coated earbuds.

Aerin was frozen in place, the apples of her cheeks were instantaneously tickled with a deep shade of deep sapphire; a smile tugged at the corners of the girl's lips, but she managed to settle it by biting down on her bottom lip. When Santana's deep brown orbs finally lifted from her iPod up to where Aerin stood, a angry swarm of fluttering butterflies took over the pit of the girl's stomach. That feeling, it had returned, warm lust and desire, the Cline girl had been trying to shake it off for weeks now, especially after their unofficial duet with each other during Glee Club.

" What are you doing here ?" Santana asked as she tucked her ipod into the side of her cheerios's duffle bag. Aerin moved towards her with crossed arms and cheeks were still trying to cool down after blushing profusely, the girl sat on the chair next to her former counterpart. "I could ask you the same question," she echoed back in response, which made Santana slightly sit up in her chair.

" I'm practicing. Schuester said that I'm doing the solo for this week, and a duet with Mercedes," Santana replied as her eyes stayed glued the Cline girl. " I didn't want to do it at first, but seeing Berry have a hissy fit and practically get carried out of the room over not being picked was so worth it."

A small chuckle escaped from the base of Aerin's lips, and a small smile broke from Santana's. She liked it when Aerin laughed  or giggled on some occasions; her laughter was a rare thing to come by, which made it all the better when she heard it within earshot. For just an instant, the emotional pain that you can constantly see in her eyes if you try disappears, and in that moment, she's happy. She doesn't force laughter for things that don't deserve it, so when she does laugh, it's one of genuine amusement. It's not infectious like Santana's, but like Aerin herself, it's real.

But anyone who knows Aerin knows not to make her laugh. Because after that laugh? Comes the aftermath. It's nothing extremely noticeable, but once you see it, you just can't look away. Her eyes get a wistful, lonely look, even if she's in the middle of a crowd. It's like she's remembering something...or someone.

"Well I don't blame him, you're really good at singing," Aerin remarked softly, her lashes fluttering as Santana sent a smile of appreciation. " You have a way of making any song sound like, ten times better. I think it's..."

" Hot ?" Santana asked in a quiered tone, cutting the dirty blonde off. "I have that effect on things, and on people too when they date me."

" I..uh," Aerin mumbled back as she fiddled with her friendship bracelet which was made by Brittany for their 5-month 'friendaversary'. Looking for a way out of the awkward hole that she had just dug for herself, the girl was quick to change the subject to something that was more topical. " I wanna hear some of it! practicing in front of an audience always helps to improve performance. And although I'm a bit judgemental when it comes to critiquing I promise that I'll be gentle on your soul San."

Santana playfully rolled her eyes, "I don't need to improve my performance, I can kill it at anything with little effort," the cheerio declared with confidence. Aerin shook her head and slowly snuck around to the side of the Latina's duffle bag, right to the pocket where her new iPod shuffle was. "I find that very hard to believe," the dirty blonde smirked as she clasped her dainty fingers around the iPod and briskly hid it behind her back, surprisingly without Santana even noticing.

( you're still the one; by shania twain - sung by aerin cline and santana lopez )

" Oh really ? how can I prove you wrong oh great noble one," Santana challenged as she rose to her feet and crossed her arms in curiosity. That was when Aerin, on cue, hit the play button when the track landed on You're Still the One by Shania Twain. She unhooked Santana's earbuds from the iPod's socket and began to trail around the choir room whilst the girl looked on with furrowed brows. " You sneaky little- how did you swipe my iPod ?"

Aerin continued on her mini route, winding around the piano then gliding towards San. Instead of giving replying, the Cline girl murmured the beginning melody until it got to the chorus. " When I first saw you, I saw love and the first time you touched me, I felt love," she sang sweetly. Santana tapped her foot as she tried to resist singing out with Aerin, she had done it before and it only ended in everyone assuming that they had gotten back together again. The girl was not one to hold on for two long, she liked relationships that blossomed in nature and that could last for as long as she wished for. With Brittany, it was different, her feelings for the innocent doe eyed cheerio had grown from the moment they first smiled at each other from across the locker room back in freshman year. It took a while before she could actually come to terms with the new feelings that were stirring within her. 

"And after all this time, you're still the one I love, mmm, yeah-yeah," Aerin continued on as she unexpectedly reached for Santana's hand and twirled her in place, "Looks like we made it, Look how far we've come, my baby." 

"We mighta took the long way."

Santana huffed. "I'm not joining in fish lips." She backed up to try and exit the classroom but Aerin managed to swing her arm over the raven-haired girl's shoulder.

" They said, 'I bet they'll never make it' But just look at us holding on we're still together, still going strong," Aerin could see the smirk that was currently playing at the corner's of Santana's lips, she held her closer and began to make her sway to the beat of the song.

" You might sound super freakin charming right now, but I'm not budging," Santana snared as she tried to wriggle out of Aerin's grasp, " I know how'll this end, and it won't be pretty for either of us." 

Aerin paused to reel Santana in, both her brows raised as a faint grin stretched across her face from ear to ear. " You're still the one I run to, the one that I belong to," the dirty blonde softly hummed, taking her arm off Santana's shoulders.

" You're still the one I want for life," the Latina finally sung out in a cold tone as she leaned up against the piano, her eyes averted away from Aerin's longing gaze. Tension filled the room like thick smog, the Cline girl couldn't figure out why Santana wasn't reciprocating the same warm and bubbly emissions that had been filling her up since she started singing. They hadn't fought or glared at one another all week, and the pair had even made progress by talking to one another for the first time. Granted, it wouldn't be easy for them to repatch a friendship that didn't really have time to grow in the first place, but Aerin had assumed that their 'twin flame' status would easily provide the stepping stones to them trying again. 

"You're still the one that I love, the only one I dream of,"  Aerin sighed as Santana filed her nails attentively, making sure that her pinkie got extra care.  She didn't care, and for some reason that made the Cline girl feel weirdly miserable. There was something in the lyrics that spoke to her, that was conveying a story that she could somberly relate to. It told of defying the odds of a relationship even when others had their doubts, it told of two people's love surviving despite everything; despite the heartache. But that wasn't how she was supposed to feel about Santana anymore, it was wrong, her heart belonged to Bianca Santos. 

And always would till the end of time.

" You're still...You're still,"  Aerin chocked on her words as her singing slightly dwindled, what was the point of singing about binding love when she never knew what it truly felt like? 

Her glimmering brown orbs dimmed, the spark that once shone in them had long died and she was ready to turn off the song and leave. That was until Santana suddenly turned, revealing that small tears had slipped from the crooks of her eyes, and the nail file she had been using was tightly dug into the palm of her hand. " the one I kiss goodnight," she quietly finished as one more tear cascaded down her tan skin before it was caught quickly by Aerin's hand.

" Ain't nothin' better, we beat the odds together, I'm glad we didn't listen look at what we would be missin'," Aerin sang, her hand still gently pressed up against the base of Santana's cheek. "They said, 'I bet they'll never make it' But just look at us holding on, we're still together, still going strong." 

" You're still the one I run to," Santana sang back as she lowered Aerin's hand, "The one that I belong to, you're still the one I want for life." 

" You're still the one that I l-love," Aerin stammered, she had never uttered those words to anybody in song or in real life either. They weren't just singing anymore, Santana and the Cline girl were talking to each other, letting their true feelings flow without putting up a guard to push them back.  Whatever they did, whoever they met along the way; the universe always had a way of drawing them closer and closer each time. 

" The only one I dream of," the pair chorused together, eye contact still transfixed on one another. 

Aerin pushed the strand of hair that fell into her face as she sat on the piano chair, whilst Santana stayed glued in the middle of the choir room floor. She could feel it again, the butterflies, the lust and desire, that sparking connection that happens between two people right before they fall in love in cheesy romcoms. The dirty blonde continually envisioned Bianca in her head, and as she looked back up at Santana's face she tried to replace it with Bianca's alluring beam of a smile. 

" You're still the one I kiss goodnight,"  Santana sang out, her hand placed on her chest, "You're still the one-" 

the Cline girl let out one last shaky sigh as she bit at the inside of her cheek. "You're still the one," she ended, placing Santana's iPod on the roof of the piano. There was a long delay before anybody spoke after the pair finished 'practicing', you could practically hear a pin drop from the classroom next door. 

" I thought that was really nic-"

" I need to know," Santana demanded, cutting off Aerin before she could even finish her compliment. " When we were singing last week, who were you truly singing about? It's been bugging me..no it's been literally eating me alive forever now and I can't take the feeling anymore.  I can't escape you, or my...or my weird mushy feelings for you either," she began.  " And I hate that, I hate you for making me feel that way...and I can't stand the fact that I have to walk past the halls and see that she-devil mac all over your precious soul.  But do you know what I hate most of all ?" 

Aerin hesitated a response, she bit harder into her cheek until a soft 'no' came out. 

" I hate that you play with my emotions, Aerin. I mean, one minute you're singing soppy love songs with me about how we beat the odds, then the next you're ignoring me and completely denying the fact that you still have feelings for me, and have never felt a drop of admiration for Medusa." 

Aerin rose from the piano chair and began to make a b-line for the choir room door, her hands shaking as anxiousness ran courset through her veins. 

" Of course, I knew you were gonna do that, run; again," Santana bitterly hissed through her shaky breath, eyes slightly welling once more. " I can't, just tell me the-"

It was then that Aerin friskly walked back to where the girl stood and lightly pushed her against the wall with her left hand, adrenaline pumped through her. she kissed her like she wanted to be kissed like no girl had ever kissed her, soft and moist and hot and breathy, not trying to win a battle but seeking union and closeness and the sharing of one breath, one sensation, one timeless and passionate moment. The heat rose in her cheeks as her tongue touched Santana's tongue, quick and electric and delicious, then firmer, more determined, more curious about the heat that lay within, seeking to chase down that elusive liquid lightning that reached through both of them.

When Aerin had realized her mistake she quickly backed away whilst Santana's face turned to a lighter pale shade and her mouth gaped in astonishment.

" There," the Cline said in a panicked but oddly relieved tone.

"Does that answer your question ?" 

◜ -ˋˏ 𝙍𝙊𝙉𝙉𝙄𝙀'𝙎 𝙉𝙊𝙏𝙀𝙎 ! ˎˊ- ◝

new chapter finally here ! woop woop, sorry for being so lazy for the past 2 weeks i'm in summer mode so work for me has been a big no-no as of late. 

I've also been super emotional because this i'm going into my final yr of school next year, (i'm in sixth form upper set now which is like grade 12) and because of that i have to move schools. mine only has it for one year but my mom wants me to do two...which means i have to leave all my friends :( 

i feel like the kissing scene was a bit too..detailed lmaoo, but hey, at least clopez finally kissed again after like what ? 5 or 6 chapters. who do y'all ship more? clopez ( aerin and santana ) or sline ( bianca and aerin) comment ur thoughts i wanna know 

ANYWAYSS I hope you guys have a good evening/morning/or afternoon, next chapter might be delayed again since i'm working on other projects, but we'll honestly see.  

STAY SAFE BBYS, RONNIE LOVES YOU !