Summary: The glee club throws a party to try a cheer each other up after everything they've been through, but it only makes things worse. Finn's empty inside, Sam's throwing punches, Santana keeps crying, and Puck's actually the stable one. Will they be able to pull themselves out of the ashes, or will they continue to crash and burn?

-GLEE-

There was only so much drunk teenaged partying that Finn could take before he disappeared upstairs without anyone noticing. He grabbed a beer off of Santana's counter and slipped outside to sit on her porch swing. Since it was around midnight, the darkness was a comfort to look at. With a long sip of his beer, Finn threw himself down against the wooden swing and stared into the night. He's been like this for a month and a half. He barely has any emotions anymore. He's started to skip classes- history, math, and Spanish to be exact- he's barely showing up to Glee club anymore, and when does go to class or practice, he just sits there, staring into nothing like he's doing now. Only now it's better, because he has beer. He could hear everything that's going on around him; he just doesn't care anymore. He's like a hollow shell; he sort of likes it that way.

"Hey, stranger." A familiar voice says sweetly. When Finn looks to his left, he spotted Quinn slipped out from the house. Her hair was long in curls, falling down past her shoulders over a jean jacket that covered a white dress. She looked like she was glowing; beautiful. It made Finn's chest hurt. The smile she was giving him was so sweet and loving; it could make him cry. Her smile never fell as she sat down next to him on the swing, close enough to feel her warmth. Finn closed his eyes with a long breath, taking in her presence. It felt so good.

"I thought you left," Finn said with a shaking voice. He gave her a sad smile, the first smile he's given in a over a month. Quinn shook her smiling head.

"I'd never leave, Finn." She said simply, her hands in her lap. Finn nodded slowly, looking away from her. He took another sip of beer. Suddenly, there was a hand over his wrist, stopping him from taking another. "You've got to stop, Finn. This isn't you."

"It could be." Finn's voice was dry of any emotion. Quinn frowned at the sound. He looked back at her with broken eyes. "It has been for the past month." Quinn bit into her pink lip, knowing she was the cause of this.

"Yeah, I know." She nodded once, her eyes landing on her lap. Finn couldn't help but watch how her curls fell off her shoulders. He also couldn't help running a hand through them and placing some strands behind her ear. Quinn looked up with a kind smile.

"God, I missed your curls." He admitted his voice husky from the beer. Quinn leaned into the feel of Finn's hand against her cheek. "I…" Finn's voice shook. "I miss you, Quinn." The quiver in his voice broke Quinn's heart. She held onto his wrist, stroking it with her thumb.

"I'm still here." Leaning in, she planted a sweet, soft kiss on his cheek. Finn closed his eyes, wanting to feel this peace forever. But when he opened his eyes, Quinn was gone. In fact, she was never there to begin with. Finn let out a shaky breath at the realization. It just made his heart ache more. Even though he hadn't moved an inch, he could still feel Quinn's cheek against his palm at his side and her lips on his face. He set his jaw tightly before taking a long sip of the beer that ran warm. He didn't want to move ever again; he just wanted to stay there forever with the imaginary scent of Quinn around him and the imaginary touch on his skin. After all, he's hollow; hollow things don't move on their own. They need a push.

Finn didn't move a muscle but his arm to bring the rim of the beer to his lips as the porch door slid open. Santana stepped out of her home and closed the door behind her; she was the only one that realized that Finn was no longer in the basement with the rest of them. Everyone knew that Finn has been different for the past month and a half; they've all seen how absent he's been, even when he's sitting right there next to them. He hasn't talked; he hasn't smiled. He just sits there. Sam's been telling Santana how some of Burt's beers have been disappearing from the fridge and finding their way underneath Finn's bed. Puck's been telling her how he finds drinking underneath the bleaches while he should be in class; but only the classes that he had with Quinn, that is. Rachel's been telling Santana how Finn doesn't bother making dates with Rachel anymore, and when they do hang out, he just sits there, not even looking at her. Kurt's been saying how Finn's car has been missing from the driveway almost every night and how it doesn't come back until early in the morning, if it comes back at all. Santana doesn't need everyone telling her what's going on with Finn. She can see it for herself. She hears him sighing when he thinks no one notices. She sees the bags under his eyes and the stubble on his jaw. She can smell the alcohol on his breath. She could sense what a complete wreck he is, but no one bothers to stop him; not that they could if they tried. Finn saved Santana once; it's time for her to save him.

Santana sighed as she stepped her way to the swing. Finn just continued to sip his beer and stare off into the dark. Santana sat down beside him, far enough so that he doesn't freak out, but close enough that she could slap some sense into him if she needed to. Looking out into her backyard, just as Finn was, Santana reached over and grabbed for the beer in his hand. Finn didn't bother fighting her on it. Santana took a small sip of it and set it on the other side of her where Finn couldn't reach it. Once she swallowed down the warm liquid, she let out a breathy sigh. She could see Finn close his eyes tiredly, and she could see how he was swallowing down emotions he's been fighting for a month. The only sound between them for a while was the booming vibration of the music from in the basement and their friends' wild cheers. Finn bit the inside of his jaw to stop his lip from quivering. His face was growing hot from fighting off tears for so long.

"Hey," Santana said with a small smile, slowly turned to face him. She pulled a leg up underneath her and rested her arm across the back of the swing. She knew something that would make him feel better, at least for a second. "Remember the last party we had?" She asked with a grin. Finn smiled a bit for the first time in a month.

"Yeah. I got so wasted." He chuckled dryly. Santana smirked despite his rusty voice and slapped his arm.
"Yeah, you did." Finn bit his smiling lip, thinking back on that night. Leaning forward, Finn rested his elbows on his knees and looked at the corner of the porch. An image popped into his head that he was embarrassed about, but it makes him chuckle every time he thinks of it.

"I made out with Sam." Finn smiled a little.

"Yeah, you did!" She repeated with a smirk. Their laughs died down, leaving them in silence. Finn's smile died, and he was frowning deeply again. His eyes grew heavy as he thought about his daydream from earlier. Santana bit into her lip, studying Finn's saddened face. Without thinking about it, Santana reached over and placed a hand on his wrist. Finn shut his eyes tightly, the touch so familiar. "I miss her, too, Finn." Santana said softly. He only nodded slowly, unable to speak for a while. When he grew the courage to, his voice didn't agree with him.

"Yeah," He cleared his dry throat, "Yeah, I-I know you do." He turned his head just slightly to give her a smile. They sat like that for what felt like forever, thinking about the same person silently. Neither of them felt like breaking out of their thoughts until they heard fighting shouts from inside the house. Santana sat up straighter, craning her neck to try and see into the house from the small window above them. She could see Sam storming out of the basement with Brittany and Puck chasing after her. Santana slowly rose to her feet when she heard the two friends try and reason with the pissed off looking Sam.

"Sam, don't!" Puck's muffled voice said. Finn straightened up, frowning at the sound. The front door was whipped open and Sam stormed out. Brittany called out after him.

"Oh, no." Santana managed to say, worriment in her voice. In seconds, both her and Finn were on their feet and running through the back door into the house and through the front door. They stumbled out of the door just in time to see Sam running to his car parked in the drive way. Finn's eyes widened, knowing how much Sam had been drinking, and how pissed Sam was at the moment.

"Sammy, don't!" Brittany pleaded with hot tears on her face. Sam ignored her and got into the car anyways, slamming the door shut behind him. His friends that gathered outside all shouted at him to stop but he ignored them.

He jammed his key into the ignition quickly, his breathing heavy and warm. He needed to get out of there. He didn't care if he was drunk, he just needed to. Ignoring his friends pleading for him not to drive, Sam pressed his feet to the peddle and the car jerked backwards at almost full speed.

Everyone saw a car driving passed the street right when Sam flew down the driveway. "SAM!" Brittany shouted. The car driving honked their horn so loud that it snapped Sam back into reality. He quickly broke the car before the two cars could crash into each other. His heart was pounding with adrenalin and fear. Once the car had drove off, honking wildly at Sam, he couldn't take it anymore. He let out a giant scream of frustration and anger that he's been holding in for a month.

Unlike Finn, he hasn't been a shell. He's been this angry, bitter, dare I say ass hole to everybody around him. He constantly caused a fight, and was mouthing off to everyone. He wasn't the sweet Sam everyone loved. He was now this bitter Sam that had punched Rory for no reason down in the basement. Puck had grabbed a hold of Sam to try to calm him down, but Sam just shouting and tore Puck's hands off him. That's when he stormed upstairs and outside to the car. Brittany, who had to sit by and watch Sam turn into this thing for the past month, begged Sam to stop but he ignored her just like everyone else. Now all that anger grew so deep, Sam wanted to throw up.

Brittany, Santana, Finn, Puck, and the rest of his friends watched from the front porch as Sam's face grew from red to purple, and his hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his hands were white. They could hear him screaming with hurt; it made Brittany burst into tears. Puck started to run down the stairs of the porch to go get the boy, but Brittany broke out of Santana's arms and dashed for the truck. By the time she whipped open the driver's door, Sam's screaming was mixed with tears and he fell out of the car and into her arms. Brittany wrapped her arms around him tightly, not wanting them to fall over. His cries were wild, and deep. It was the most heartbreaking sound any of his friends have ever heard.

Brittany hand one hand gripping into Sam's hair tightly and her arms wrapped around him even tighter. His body was dead weight as he let everything out into the deep sobbing. His screams had broken out into hysterical crying, and his knees caved underneath him. Brittany held onto him as Sam's body caved to the ground. Brittany tried rocking him back and forth but his body had crashed into hers so hard that it was impossible to move him. His arms had snacked around her to hold onto her tightly as he cried against her shoulder. He kept saying how he was so sorry, over and over and over again, unable to control him. Brittany shut her eyes tightly, unable to handle it all.

"It's okay," She shushed him, rubbing his back without unwrapping her arms from him. "Shh, it's okay." She bit into her lip to stop herself from sobbing too. She couldn't tell if the tears on her neck and shirt were from Sam or herself, but she didn't care. All she cared about was that Sam was coming about at the seams against her, and she couldn't' do anything about it except this.

Santana had a hand over her mouth to keep the emotion in. Her body fell back against Puck's. The boy hold onto her arms, rubbing them comforting as they watch their two friends cry against her drive way. Santana's lip quivered with small, silent tears running down her cheeks. She felt Puck plant a kiss in her hair as he held her tighter.

Soon, Sam's cries were less hysterical. His voice was practically gone, and his face was burning from both the tears and the screaming. He continued to sob against Brittany's shoulder, taking comfort at how cold her skin was compared to his warm cheek.

Finn pushed past the small crowd of teenagers to go help Brittany with Sam. Puck followed, knowing that even Finn wouldn't be able to hold onto Sam in his condition.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Sam never stopped saying that, even when he felt Finn's hands on his arms.

"I know; I know, Sam." Finn pried Sam's arms off of Brittany; they seemed to be stuck in that position, but as soon as Sam was out of Brittany's arms, his body curled in against the pavement. "Sam, Sammy, it's okay. It's okay, Sam." Finn told him, suddenly not as hollow as before. Puck helped get Sam to his feet and Finn scooped Sam up from underneath his knees and back. Sam crashed against Finn's chest as the tears kept coming out, but his cries were over. The feeling of the cold night wind against his skin helped calm him down as the boys made their way inside the house.

Once the boys had Sam off the ground, Santana sprinted to help Brittany to her feet. Brittany leaned against Santana for comfort and the two girls followed the boys inside. The rest of the glee club stood there and watched it all go down before filling inside. Santana brought Brittany upstairs and to the room where Puck and Finn were helping Sam down onto a bed. Sam curled up into a ball once his body fell back against the mattress. Brittany broke out of Santana's arms and ran to her friend, draping her body over his to comfort him. Puck, Finn and Santana watched from the doorway as the two blondes cried together.

Brittany held in her tears and rubbed some of Sam's off his warm face, "It's okay, Sammy. You're okay." Brittany rubbed his bare arms, her forehead between his chin and shoulder. She kissed the closest patch of skin closest, shivering at how hot it had grown and went to step away to give him space. Sam's hand quickly jumped up into the air and grabbed Brittany's wrist. Sam's eyes had grown puffy and shut. His vision was blurred from that and his tears that refused to stop. His ears were ringing and on fire. Brittany's figure was just a blur; all he could make out was her blond hair. His mind was so out of it, he couldn't stop himself from thinking she was someone else.

"Q-Quinn." His broken voice whispered. Santana let out a little sob and hid her face into Finn's chest. Brittany's lip quivered.

"N-No, Sammy, it's me." She whipped his cheek with the back of her hand. Despite the disappointment and heart ache that sent through him, Sam pulled at Brittany's hand, making her crash down onto the bed.

"Stay." He said into her shoulder. Brittany shut her eyes tightly, tears stinging her eyes. She wrapped her arms around Sam's shoulders and held him tight as his head feel back against her chest. She stroked his arm and hair to calm him down. He repeated the word over and over in a tired voice.

"Okay, I'll stay. I'll stay, Sam." She soothed him, baring her face in his hair. "I'll stay, Sammy." Sam's quivering breathing started to even out, despite his occasional gasp for air, and he was soon sleeping heavily in Brittany's arms. Even though Brittany knew he was peaceful now, she continued to rub her hand up and down his arm and kiss the top of his head. Every once in a while, Sam would whimper in his sleep, and she's shush him softly, whispering comforting things in his ear.

"I-I should go turn off the car." Puck whispered to Santana and Finn. Finn nodded, unable to look away from the sight. Puck rubbed Santana's arm one last time before disappearing downstairs.

"Come on, San." Finn said softly to the raven haired girl. Santana nodded against his chest. She pulled away from him to whip the tears off her face and the two of them left the doorway. Finn closed the door slightly behind him and braced Santana as she stumbled downstairs.

It was quite obvious that their party was over. When they got downstairs, everyone was sitting on the coaches or chairs in Santana's living room; their faces were long, and some had tears on them. Sam's break down shook them all up all over again. Tina was sniffing away tears as Mike holds onto her. Sugar was clasped against Artie's lap, hugging his legs as he strokes her hair. Kurt was sitting on the coach, his feet curled underneath him as he covered his face with his hands. Blaine was lying down beside him, staring off at nothing with tears dripping down the leather pillow. Rachel was alone on the recliner, her arms wrapped around her legs as she cried silently into the arm of the chair.

"You…" Santana's voice broke as she addressed her friends. "You can all sleep here tonight." She wasn't offering; it was more of a demand. She whipped a stray tear off her cheek before descending downstairs to clean up. Finn slipped back outside to the back porch right when Puck walked into the house from the front door. He closed the door behind him, ran a hand down his face, and threw Sam's keys into the bowl on the side table. When he walked into the living room, the people who were sitting up looked up at him with glossy eyes.

"I can't stay," A soft voice said from the couch. Blaine slowly sat up, running a hand through his crazy curls. "I-I need to get back to Westerville." He mumbled tiredly. Puck nodded.

"I'll call you a cab, kid." Puck offered. Blaine nodded as thanks while Puck went into the kitchen to get the number. Kurt remained silent as Blaine got up off the couch grabbed his jacket off the counter and took off to go out the front door to wait for his cab. He left without a word or a kiss goodbye for Kurt.

Tina, wanting to be strong, stood up from Mike's arms and sat down on the couch with Kurt. "You okay?" She asked him softly, rubbing his arm. Kurt nodded with tears in his eyes before leaning his head down on her shoulder. The two of them leaned back against the couch and Kurt closed his eyes tiredly.

Mike got up and fished his wallet out of his jacket. "I'm gunna make sure Blaine has enough money for the cab ride."

"Thank you, Sweetie." Tina said softly, not wanting to disturb sleeping Kurt. Puck walked back into the living room and sat down on L shaped couch. He sighed tiredly, throwing his head back against the cushion. His hands went up to rub his face. His eyes were starting to close but he couldn't sleep. He needed to make sure everyone was okay first. When he lifted his head, he noticed that Rachel was asleep on the chair, Tina and Kurt on the long couch against the wall, and Sugar was curled up on Artie's lap where he parked his wheelchair in the middle of the room. Puck stretched before getting up.

"Let me help you with her, buddy." Before Artie could thank him, Puck had scooped sleeping Sugar off of Artie's lap and lied her down onto the couch he had been sitting on. Puck then went back to pick up Artie. Artie held his hands up, shaking his head.

"It's okay, Puck. I'm fine." Puck rolled his eyes and picked up Artie anyways, lying him down on the opposite end of the couch. "Thanks, dude." Artie said tiredly. Puck just smiled and went to fold up Artie's wheel chair.

Rory and Santana walked back upstairs slowly just as Mike walked back inside. Santana frowned, "You leaving?" She asked. Mike shook his head.
"No, Blaine did. I was making sure he had cash for his cab ride; he said he'd call when he was home." Mike informed her before joining his girlfriend in the living room. Since Kurt and Tina were taking up all the space on one couch, Mike lied down on the floor. As he did this, Tina dropped her hand down off the couch for Mike to hold. Once he did, Tina fell back asleep.

"Dude, you can't sleep on the floor," Puck told Mike. Mike shrugged.

"No it's okay," He bent his elbow and rested his head underneath his arm. "I'm good."

"I can get everyone blankets," Rory suggested. It was the first time he spoke since he got punched; Puck almost forgot that he was here. "It's the least I could do; I started this."

"No, you didn't," Puck placed his hand on Rory's shoulder. "I'll help you with the blankets and stuff, kay?" Rory nodded and the two boys went softly upstairs.

"Thanks, Puck." Santana whispered, touching his arm as he walked past her. He nodded at her with a smile before joining Rory upstairs. With a sigh, Santana looked into the living room to see all her friends sleeping soundly. She could only hope that Sam and Brittany were doing the same upstairs. She was about to go check when Puck and Rory returned downstairs. Puck was holding a pile of blankets and Rory was holding extra pillows. "Thanks, guys." She said lowly, not wanting to wake anyone. Rory went and slipped a pillow underneath Mike's head. The Asian boy stirred but didn't wake up. Santana helped Puck drape blankets over everyone.

Rory went to the corner of the room and collapsed onto the last reclining chair. He rested his head against the back of it and closed his eyes tiredly. The stretch of his skin only made his cheek sting. Hissing at the feeling, Rory touched the tender skin where Sam had punched him.

Both Puck and Santana notice. "I'll get you ice, Ror." Santana offered. The boy just nodded, closing his eyes again to rest for a bit. Puck handed Rory the last blanket.

Puck turned around to go find Finn, but his eyes fell on Santana bracing the sink with her hands and her head hanging down. Puck frowned, hearing her soft sobs from over in the living room. Patting Rory's head, Puck left the living room and walked straight into the kitchen. He stayed by the 'entrance' area, wanting to give her space.

"San?" He asked softly. Santana jumped a little at his voice. She sniffed away a tear and whipped her lip. She could see Puck slowly make his way over to her from the corner of her eye. Tears started to form in her brown orbs again.

"Ice. Rory needs ice." Her voice quivered as she broke down crying. Puck made it to her right on time to wrap his arms around her as she cried into his chest.

"Shh, it's okay," Puck kissed her hair and rubbed her arms. He knew how much stress she was going through. With everything that's been going on with her own personal life, it has been added by Quinn, and Finn, and Sam, and Brittany, even Dave, and everyone else. Puck took a step back so he could see what he was doing as he whipped tears off her cheeks. Her hands were still up in the air, shaking as she cried.

"Every-everything is falling apart." She ran her shaking hands through her hair before crashing back down against Puck's chest.
"I know," He kissed her head again and rubbed her shoulder with his thumb. Resting his chin on her head, he rocked her side to side to calm her down. "It's going to be okay." When her breathing calmed down, Puck took her face in his hands and tilted her head back a little to get a look at her face, "Okay?" Santana closed her eyes and nodded, leaning against Puck's hands. How was it that a guy like Puck would step up like this? Santana thought as she opened her eyes. She found Puck's warm eyes staring at her, trying to make sure she was calmer. It was so endearing, comforting. Santana bit down into her lip, unable to resist the shiver that went to her spine at how intense Puck was staring at her. The only thing that kept her from giving in to his gaze was the sound of a phone vibrating on the counter. Santana snapped out of it, pushing herself against the sink counter. Puck sighed and went to grab the phone.

"It's Blaine. He's home." He whispered. Santana nodded, whipping her face. Then she remembered Rory, and how he had a bruised cheek. Santana went to her freezer to grab ice, but Puck's hand closed the door before she could get it open enough. Santana sent him a confused glare. "Don't bother," Puck nodded his head towards the living room. "He's dead asleep." Santana looked where he was nudging at to see Rory curled up on her chair. She sighed with relief; everyone was peaceful. That is, until she saw a red light glaring from outside.

"Finn." She whispered. Puck looked over his shoulder at the sliding door. Finn was standing on the porch, leaning against the railing with a cigarette in his mouth.

"Little punk stole my pack," Puck patted his back pocket, the box missing. Santana made a move to go talk to Finn, but Puck held onto her hand to hold her back. "I got it. You go sleep."

"Puck-" she sighed; she didn't want to sleep until everyone was okay. Little did she know that Puck had the same thing in mind, and he could be a lot more stubborn than she can be.

"I got this. Come on," He rubbed her cheek and nodded his head towards her stairs. "Go." He said with a soft smile. Santana bit her lip; she was starting to feel just how tired she was. Puck leaned in a kissed her forehead softly. That was her cue to do what she was told, but she couldn't step away from his touch. It felt too good. Santana leaned in against his lips. Puck let his lips linger against her skin for a while longer before removing himself from her completely and going outside. Santana let out a big, long, groan. Why was he doing this to her? Why?

"Hey, brother." Puck got Finn's attention. Finn turned around, the bud hanging from his mouth. His eyes widened with shock; no one was supposed to know about him smoking. "First drinking, now stealing and smoking?" Puck asked with a light smirk. Finn rolled his eyes and inhaled. He had half a mind to blow the smoke in Puck's face. Instead, Finn turned his back on his childhood friend and continued to take a long drag. Puck sighed and went to stand by Finn's side. "What the hell is going on with us, Finn?" Puck said tiredly, stress rolling off his tongue. He knew Finn wasn't going to answer, but he continued to talk anyways. "I mean, first Karofsky tries to kill himself an'-an' Quinn get's into a freakin' car accident…" Puck rubbed at his forehead, his head hurting from thinking about all this stuff. "Now Sam's throwing punches and almost gets himself killed, and you're…" Puck didn't know how to put what Finn was. He was the anti-Finn, how about that? "I mean…these things aren't supposed to happen," His voice was too close to shouting. Finn closed his eyes tiredly; that's all he's been lately. Tired. "We're not supposed to just completely fall apart!" Puck pushed himself off the railing. Finn scuffed; it made Puck twice as mad. "What the hell is wrong with you, Finn? Huh?"

"Nothin'," Finn shook his head, not caring enough to deal with Puck. Puck shoved at Finn's chest, making the taller boy drop the cigarette onto the porch. Puck crushed it with his boot and grabbed fist fulls of Finn's shirt to shake him.

"No! Tell me! Tell me why the hell you've been acting like a completely different person!" Puck yelled in Finn's face. Finn stared down at the porch, feeling the effects of tonight even stronger than before. Maybe it wasn't just the affects of tonight, but of the past forty three nights; the longest forty three nights of his life. "Come on, man!" Puck hissed, giving one last shove at Finn to push him away from him. Finn backed into the post of the porch. "You're ditching classes, drinking like crazy, smoking! That's not supposed to be you, that's supposed to be me!" Puck gestured to himself. "I'm supposed to be slacking off without a damn care in the world and you're supposed to be picking up the pieces. Since when is it the other way around?"

"Because life sucks, okay?" Finn yelled back. Puck flinched a little; Finn's face was growing red with frustration. "Because people are ass holes and push people to the edge, and the world is too fucked up to even care, that's why, okay?" Finn wove his arms in the air. "I'm just tired of sitting around and watching it happen, seeing how I can't do anything else about it." Finn admitted with a huff. Both boys' steam had worn off and they were both breathing heavily. Finn braced himself against the railing. The blood in his body was rushing to his head, making him want to throw up. "I'm so-I'm so freakin' tired, man." Finn said with a husky voice. Puck clenched his jaw before taking the small step closer to Finn and patting his back.

"Yeah; yeah, I know."

A/N: that's a long one! Sorry if there are any grammar or written mistakes. Please leave your thoughts, thank you!