Disclaimer: Ownership is neither claimed nor implied.
A/N: If I could see the future and how this plays out...
"Grams?" a sweet, clear voice nudged the silver haired lady into wakefulness. "Grams?" the girl whispered again.
"Mmm?" Quinn sighed, reluctantly opening her eyes. Crap, she had fallen asleep under the apple tree again. Every time they plonked her here and left her alone for more than a few moments, that was it, she zonked, "Yes, sweetie?" she mumbled to the beautiful almost teenager who had appeared at her side.
"Tell me again, the story of how you and grandpa got married," the young girl encouraged and sat down on the grass beside Quinn's feet.
Quinn shuffled herself in her comfortable seat and adjusted the light blanket over her perpetually cold legs. "Are you sure you want to hear this story again?" she asked her granddaughter.
"Yes," the girl replied, joyfully, "I have this old photo album here, look through it with me, tell me the stories," she pleaded gently.
"Alright then," Quinn agreed.
"This should be good," Puck muttered from his prone position on the grass, his head propped uncomfortably against the trunk of the apple tree, his hat pulled low over his face to keep the sun out of his eyes.
Quinn narrowed her eyes and frowned in Puck's direction but managed to ignore his interjection. "Well, it happened like this, Lucy," she began and gently took the young girl's hand in her own. "I was just about to graduate from Yale and your grandpa had been given his deployment notification," she explained, "he was going to be overseas for six months," she added. "So anyway, the week before my graduation he'd called to say he was coming to visit me in New Haven for the weekend," she said, her eyes taking on the misty, far off look of someone casting their mind back over fifty years. The present faded away and Quinn found herself back in her dorm room in New Haven...
"Please Victoria," Quinn begged her reluctant room mate. "We only have this weekend together then he's going to somewhere dire in the Middle East. For six months," she pleaded. "Six whole months. Please, can't you just bunk in with Tara and Janelle for the weekend? Please? For me? I'm begging. Please? Please, please, please, please, please, ple..." Quinn's pleading was interrupted.
"God, alright," Quinn's long suffering room mate sighed. "Enough with the pleading already and get up off your knees, Puck isn't even here yet," she teased with a groan and a roll of her eyes. "I better be invited to the wedding, that's all I'm saying," she added as she hauled herself up from the sofa to pack a few clothes to tide her over until Puck blew out of town again.
"You're a doll," Quinn answered with a huge smile on her face, "and if he ever actually pops the question, you'll be the first to know and you will absolutely be on the guest list," she promised and smacked a big kiss on Victoria's cheek in gratitude. Quinn spent the next two hours preparing herself for Puck's visit. She all but ran to the beauty parlour on the corner of the street. "Full wax please," she instructed the beautician breathlessly. "Phew," she sighed as she lay back on the paper covered bed. "Wow, I didn't realise it had been so long since my last visit," she muttered as the woman began the routine of stripping Quinn of her unwanted body hair. Quinn couldn't believe how painful it felt this time. Every rip of the cloth from her skin almost made her scream out.
"Are you sure you're ok, Quinn?" the beautician asked, concerned for her client and her business. The last thing she needed was a client going away and complaining that her waxing technique was too painful, she was heading into her quiet period as it was, what with all the students packing up and leaving town for the summer.
"Yes, I'm fine, I don't know what it is," Quinn replied, she was trying her best not to scream out loud, but every rip took her breath away and it was only the stringent training by the sadistic Sue Sylvester that allowed Quinn to hold it all in.
"Hey, babe," Puck murmured against Quinn's lips the second she opened the door to his knock. "Expecting someone?" he teased as she led him into the candlelit room. "Mmm," he moaned and kissed her deeper as soft music played in the background.
"I have missed you so much," Quinn sighed as her fingers speared through the short hair at the back of his head. "I hope you didn't have any plans for tonight because I need you all to myself," she informed Puck, with a silky, sexy tint to her voice, she blushed and bit her lip, she tried desperately hard to not look shy or embarrassed, she failed.
"The only place I want to go is heaven, with you," Puck groaned as Quinn's lips traced a pattern from his lips all the way down his throat to the open v of his t-shirt, to his smooth pecs, to his nipples.
Quinn tore herself away and caught Puck's hand in her own, she led the way to her bed, she glanced shyly over her shoulder at Puck's face, her heart fluttered at the half smirk she saw there, she loved that smile. Quinn had always loved that smile, it just made everything inside her shiver with anticipation and if she was being really, really, one hundred percent, totally honest, she would admit that it always had, even when she'd pretended that she hated him. She turned and drew Puck close to her body. "The only place I want to go is bed, with you," she said huskily before her lips found the pulse beating rapidly in his throat.
Puck didn't reply, at least not with his voice, he let his hands and lips do the talking. Within a second he'd tugged Quinn's shirt over her head and dropped it on the floor beside their feet. "No bra?" he muttered as his lips swooped in to claim one pouting nipple.
Quinn sucked in a breath as his mouth began to bestow such pleasure on her excited flesh. The sensation was immense, terrific, out of this world. "Stop," she breathed and tried to push him away just a little. "Puck, please, I can't take it, please, oh my God, I'm going to...I'm...argh," she screamed quietly as she shattered inside.
"Fuck," Puck breathed as his lips left her nipple. "Did you just come already?" he asked, not sure if he was more impressed with his own skill set or with Quinn for being that close to boiling point. She must have been getting it on with her vibrator before he arrived to have been that close. "I didn't even get my hands into your pants yet, never mind anything else," he muttered with a grin then dipped his fingers into the waistband of Quinn's yoga pants. "Mmmm, soaking wet and hot, hot for me," he groaned against Quinn's lips as his fingers delved inside her. "Fuck, you are so ready for me, did you miss me?" he asked as he shoved the pants and the thong out of his way. "Yes, baby, yes," he moaned as Quinn unzipped his pants and jacked his hard flesh a few times. "Fuck," he groaned again as he quickly, expertly, rolled on a condom. "Fuck, ahh," he moaned as he slid deep inside her, he'd drawn one of Quinn's legs up so that her foot was on the bed which opened her up to him, he'd bent his knees a little to line up his aching erection with her smooth, hairless entrance, then thrust inside, deep inside. "Oh, baby," he whispered into her hair beside her ear. "Every time I'm away from you I miss you more and more," he sighed then caught her lips with his, he thrust his tongue deep into her mouth, they both rocked together. "How will we survive six months apart?"
Quinn couldn't reply, she was too close to breaking apart again, too close to shattering into a million pieces. She screamed as she felt her insides burst into flames. She sagged towards the bed, Puck dropped with her. He pumped and thrust into her as if the world was about to end. "Arrgh," he shouted, his body bowed, he was so tight into Quinn, tight, tight, tight, tight, tight, there wasn't even a milimeter between them. Puck shivered as he exploded inside her. "Fuck, that never gets old," he murmured breathlessly as he pulled out then dropped down beside her.
"Dinner?" Quinn asked an hour later after they'd loved some more, rested a little, teased each other a lot.
"Mmm," Puck sighed as he watched her get up out of her narrow bed. "What did you have in mind?" he asked. Sure, he was hungry, he could eat something, but then again, after the work out he'd just had, he was bound to be hungry.
"I was thinking Chinese, you know, from that restaurant around the corner?" Quinn suggested. "They deliver," she added with a saucy wink. "Means we don't even have to get dressed," she whispered just to make her position on clothing clear.
"Cool," Puck replied. "Make sure you order plenty, I'm a hungry boy," he joked with a wicked grin. Quinn rolled her eyes and picked up the phone and the menu.
"Mmmm, that's the best sweet and sour chicken I've had in a long time," Puck sighed happily. "Hey, are you ok?" he asked, suddenly concerned about Quinn, she'd gone a funny colour, she looked pale and sweaty. "Hey," he said again as she dove off the bed and headed to the bathroom with her hand over her mouth. "Quinn, let me in," Puck called from outside the bathroom, a split second after she'd slammed the door. Puck could hear the wretched sounds of Quinn throwing up. He hated that sound, it always made him want to puke too. Puck stayed at the door listening, with an occasional wince and gag of his own, to Quinn losing what little bit of dinner she'd eaten. "Are you ok? How are you doing in there?" he asked.
Puck stepped back when he heard the toilet flush then the water run in the sink. Quinn groaned as she came out of the bathroom, straight into Puck's arms. "I feel like crap," she semi-sobbed with a pitiful pout.
"Hey, let's get you into bed, can I get you anything?" Puck suggested, he hoped that he could do something, find something that would make her feel better, he hated seeing Quinn ill, she was not the most tolerant of patients.
"I think I just want to rest, is that ok?" Quinn murmured and shivered within Puck's arms.
"Of course," Puck replied and helped Quinn into bed. As she dozed he cleaned up the left over food, picked up their discarded clothes, tidied the tiny kitchen area, cleaned the bathroom then watched a little TV. Puck sighed deeply as he drained the bottle of Corona.
"I'm sorry," Quinn muttered huskily from beside Puck.
"Oh, hey, no," Puck hastily reassured her, "no, listen, you can't help feeling ill, it happens," he insisted, he was just glad to see that she looked so much better, her eyes at least had a sparkle in them. "Want to get your jammies on, watch a movie with me?" he suggested. Quinn nodded gratefully. "Ok then, I'm going to have another beer, I think it's probably best if you don't," he advised with a nod. Again Quinn nodded her agreement. Soon they settled down to watch Knocked Up, because even if it was about being accidentally pregnant, at least Seth Rogen was funny in it, according to Puck anyway.
Puck drifted towards wakefulness aware that something had disturbed him. He blinked sleepily as he noted that he was in Quinn's dorm room, that he was in Quinn's bed, that he was alone and that he could hear Quinn puking again. "Ah, crap," Puck thought. "My last weekend on home soil for half a year and she has to be freakin' sick," he mentally grumbled. He sighed heavily as he got up and padded to the bathroom door. "Quinn? Are you alright?" he asked after he'd knocked on the door.
"No," Quinn answered in a haughty, quivering, pitiful voice. "This is the third time this week that I have woken up and felt like crap," she informed Puck through the closed door. "This is the first time I've actually thrown up, apart from last night, but I've felt like it for a few days, I think it's a virus or something, it can't be anything I've eaten, that would be out of my system by now, it's got to be a virus," she sighed as she flushed the toilet. "You should stay away from me, you can't get ill before you deploy."
Puck suddenly remembered the movie they'd watched the night before and gulped on the other side of the door. "Erm, Quinn?" he began, then had to stop so that he could swallow hard, he felt a little bit sick himself. "Erm, Quinn? Erm, have you thought of the possibility that it could be something else?" he suggested.
"Like what?" Quinn asked wearily as she came out of the bathroom after brushing her teeth.
"Well, like, I don't know, like maybe something happened on my last leave, like six weeks ago, when the condom broke?" Puck explained nervously, hesitating just a touch between the snippets of information. And crap, maybe he forgot to inform Quinn of that fact at the time.
Quinn's scared eyes snapped to his. "It did?" she asked through almost numb lips. "I don't remember that," she whispered, her trembling hand fluttered to cover her equally trembling lips. "Oh my God," she whispered to herself as she thought through the last few weeks. "Waxing, it hurt more than usual, I remember that the last time, throwing up, I remember that too, Chinese food, that made me sick before too," she listed then gulped. "And I'm late," she realised. "Oh, crap," she whispered as a wave of nausea rose up and almost engulfed her. "My period's late."
"Where's the nearest pharmacy?" Puck asked. He'd taken a deep breath and pulled himself together while Quin had noted everything from recent weeks. "Before we go getting our panties in a twist we ought to be sure, ok?" he suggested. Quinn nodded and gave him directions. Puck hurriedly dressed and set off, he hoped that it wasn't too early.
Puck arrived at the nearest CVS a few minutes before it opened at 7am. He waited, slightly impatiently, for the door to be unlocked. "Ok," he sighed silently to himself. "If I was a pregnancy testing kit, where would I be?" he wondered as he looked around the store, lost in the brightly lit, colourful aisles. "With the freakin' condoms I'd have thought," he suggested with a scowl. "Come on, where, where will they fucking be?"
"Can I help you?" the young assistant asked.
"Yes please, I'm looking for a, oh, never mind, I've spotted them, thanks," Puck replied. He looked up and down the well stocked aisle. "Jeez, what's the freakin' difference? Why can't they just make one? Why do they have to flood the market with a million different ones? What's the difference?" he thought, absolutely baffled by the array of boxes and packages. "Excuse me, I'm sorry, I actually do need some help," he said politely as he approached the assistant. "I need to get my...fiancee," he lied, overstating his and Quinn's relationship slightly, "a pregnancy testing kit, but I just don't know, there's like a hundred different boxes there, which one's the best?" he asked, giving the assistant the best 'puppy dog eyes', 'little boy lost' look that he could muster.
"We seem to sell a lot of this particular brand," the assistant suggested and reached past Puck to pick up a package with a picture of a generic wand with a digital screen on the box.
"Cool," Puck sighed, "if it tells us what we want to know, that's the guy for me," he said with the hint of a grin. He hurried to the counter and paid for his purchase. "Thank you," he called as he left the store and headed back to Quinn's room. "Here you go," he said as he handed Quinn the bagged package. "Go pee on a stick for me," he teasingly ordered.
Quinn gulped as she slid off the bed to go to the bathroom. "Play some music or something," she suggested with a pout, "I can't pee if I know you're listening," she said.
"I won't listen," Puck promised, then promptly followed Quinn to the bathroom and stood outside, shamelessly listening in to her private moment.
"I know you're there," Quinn wailed. "I can't do this when I know you're there," she cried.
"Ok, I'll come in," Puck responded and opened the door, thankful that the lock was only a showpiece. "We have two choices here," he said as he sat down on the edge of the tub, facing Quinn who was sat on the toilet. "Number one, we go with this test here, find out real quick if we did it again," he suggested, "or number two, we make an appointment at the health centre on campus but that will mean you have to wait till next week and I will possibly already be out of the country. I'd rather know before I ship out," he admitted quietly.
Quinn thought for a second then swallowed hard and nodded. "Fine, but do you think you could, oh God," she sighed, her face flamed red when nature wouldn't wait any longer. "Crap," she shrieked and thrust the wand between her legs to catch the flow that it needed to activate the chemical process.
"And now we wait?" Puck asked. Quinn nodded. Puck picked up the package to read the instructions. "I thought it would have taken longer," he mused when he read that the result would be displayed within three minutes. "So that's been a minute and a half," he said, counting the seconds. "Did you look yet?" he asked, still nodding his head very gently in time with his counting.
"Nope," Quinn gulped. "I can't, I can't look, here," she said as she carefully handed the wand to Puck.
"Wow," Puck sighed as he glanced at the screen. "Pregnant, three plus weeks, what does that mean?" he asked then turned the box over in his other hand to read the information again as Quinn washed her hands.
"It means that we did it again and my mom is going to kill me," Quinn replied then sat down heavily on the now closed toilet seat. "She's probably going to kill you too, she told you that when we got together, she made us promise that we wouldn't do this to her, remember?"
"She'll be fine, she loves me now," Puck replied with a grin and knelt in front of Quinn, with the wand still in his hand. "I think we should get married," he announced. "Look, I'm even on my knees for you," he teased. "We could do it now, right now. We could fly to Vegas, get married and be back here in time for your graduation," he suggested. Quinn gulped again, wide eyed and slightly hysterical.
"We can't, we cannot do that," Quinn hissed. "Our mothers would absolutely kill us," she insisted. "Can you imagine what Santana would do to you if you cheated her out of being your best man?" she asked, the standing joke about Santana being his best man hadn't worn thin even after a couple of years. Ever since Santana had stated in the former New Directions' choir room that she liked the 'Quick' pairing, she had made Puck promise that if they ever decided to tie the knot, she would be the one standing beside him. Puck had promised because he never actually thought that Quinn would ever marry him, but this changed things, it changed everything, actually.
"Yes, we can," Puck insisted. "We'll just call our moms, have them meet us in Vegas, we have to do it today," he vowed. Puck knew that if Quinn had to spend the next six months alone, pregnant and unmarried, she would be too ashamed to go home to Lima at the end of the month.
"I can't do it, you'll have to call them, I can't," Quinn muttered then gulped. Suddenly she spun around, lifted the toilet seat, fell to her knees and puked again and again and again. Puck comforted her as best he could and winced with every fresh onslaught. He really hated this part.
Once Quinn was settled on the sofa with a cup of weak tea and some crackers, as per internet instructions, Puck made the conference call to both his mom and to Quinn's mom. "Hi, it's me," he said once all three of them were on the line, "you're on speaker so be careful what you say, mom," he teasingly instructed his own mother.
"Hi Noah, what's up?" Puck's mom asked, she knew something had to be wrong for him to make this strange call, especially so early on a Saturday morning, especially when he was spending the weekend with Quinn.
"Hello Monica," Judy Fabray called, they hadn't really seen each other since Christmas when Puck had spent a few days in Lima with Quinn, who had been home for the holidays. "Is Quinn there too?" she asked.
"I'm here mom," Quinn called weakly.
"Sweetie, you don't sound very well, what's wrong?" Judy asked, immediately concerned.
"Well, here's the thing," Puck sighed after taking Quinn's hand in his and giving it a squeeze. "You know I'm getting deployed next week, right?" he began, putting the moment off for another couple of seconds.
"Yes," Monica replied uncertainly, she still wasn't sure where this was going, Judy didn't answer at all.
"Well, we found out this morning that Quinn is, that we are," Puck hastily amended his words, "that we're pregnant. Again," he finished after a slight pause.
No one spoke for what seemed like an eternity. "Are you sure?" Judy asked, her voice sounded suspiciously croaky as though she was trying to hold back the tears.
"Yep, we're pretty positive," Puck replied, giving Quinn another teasing grin and her hand a little kiss. "Mom?" he said, hoping that his mother hadn't hung up.
"I don't-I don't know what to say, I mean, you're both adults, you-you," Monica struggled to string words together that made any sort of sense. "Oh Noah, how could you do this again? What on earth? You're getting sent to a hostile area, you don't know what could happen and you leave this? How could you? What were you thinking? Both of you? Seriously? What were you thinking?" she demanded, she couldn't quite stop the sob that stopped her flow of words.
"Have you done?" Puck asked. "Thanks for the support there, ma, classic Puckerman tough love, thanks," he muttered sarcastically. "And you wonder why I never tell her anything," he grumbled to Quinn.
"Quinn, honey, how are you?" Judy asked tearfully. She truly didn't know what to say either.
"I'm fine mom, just a little bit shocked," Quinn replied truthfully. "This has come as a big surprise to both of us," she admitted then sniffed loudly. "Really, we didn't plan on this, it was an accident, but it's happened and, I don't know, I mean, I know after graduation next week I had kind of planned on spending the summer in Lima, relaxing, recharging my batteries and applying myself to finding the perfect job before the start of the new school year, but maybe this is an indication that I should stay in Lima till Puck comes home from Syria and when he does, I'll move to Dayton, be with him there, find a house or an apartment on or off base, maybe find a job there," she said, without giving anyone the chance to speak, without giving anyone a chance to object.
"Actually, the reason I called is," Puck said, bringing everyone's attention back to him, "I asked Quinn to marry me, I suggested we elope to Las Vegas, take off today, get hitched, fly back in time for her graduation, then I can ship off to the Middle East and I'll know for sure that both Quinn and the baby," it was the first time any of them had actually said that word, "will be looked after, I'll know that, if the worst was to happen, then at least there would be some sort of insurance for Quinn, for them both," he finished and shrugged at Quinn, giving her a sort of nervous, weird look. Quinn gulped and shuddered, she hadn't even thought of that, she was so freaked out by the reading on the pregnancy test that she'd sort of forgotten that Puck was heading out to a very dangerous place in the next few days.
"Ok," Judy said, she sounded like she was deep in thought. "Ok, so, have you even checked anything out? Flights? Hotels? Anything?" she asked.
"Not yet," Puck replied, "we literally did the test like, ten, maybe fifteen minutes ago," he admitted, "and we're just trying to get to grips with this. It would be easier if we had your support," he reminded both of their parents.
"And you have it, both of you," Monica said with a sigh. "I'm sorry I went off at the deep end, I just-it was just a bit of a shock," she excused herself and her reaction.
"A bit of a shock?" Puck asked with the hint of a laugh. "Scared the hell out of me," he admitted then kissed Quinn's fingers again. "But we can do this," he urged her to accept. "We can, we can do this, yes?" he said and nodded his head while staring intently into Quinn's eyes.
"Yes," Quinn agreed faintly.
"Good," Judy said. "I'm on the internet right now and we can get you a flight this afternoon, from New Haven to Las Vegas, with only one stop, it'll get you in to Las Vegas at eight thirty this evening and that's with a penthouse suite at the Bellagio, does that sound ok?" she asked, slightly distracted because she was reading more information even as she spoke to them.
"That sounds pretty cool, Judy," Puck replied after he'd recovered from the shock.
"And we can get a flight from Toledo and arrive an hour later," Judy continued, I can book two penthouse suites at the Bellagio, do you want to invite anyone else? It might be a bit short notice though," she warned.
"Mom, you'd do that?" Quinn asked, overwhelmed by her mother's generosity and understanding. She got that Quinn really needed this before Puck left the country, she got that Puck needed this before he had to leave, before he had to go to do his duty in a country far away.
"Yes, of course I would," Judy replied. "My finger is on the button, yes or no?"
"I say, go for it," Monica announced decisively. "We can organise a big, over the top thing for when Noah gets back, but I would like my grandchild to be born within the bounds of wedlock," she added quietly. "And I really am excited about being a nana."
"So will you?" Puck asked, taking a knee again in front of Quinn who was still huddled up on the sofa. "Will you marry me?"
"Yes, yes, I'll marry you," Quinn whispered then cried as she launched herself into his arms. They both forgot all about their mothers on the other end of the phone as they kissed and celebrated their decision.
"Quinn," Judy called to gain her daughter's attention. "Quinn? Quinn?" she called again after receiving zero response. "Monica, are we still connected?" she asked.
"Yes but I think they forgot about us," Monica replied.
"Oh, good Lord, I think they did," Judy sighed when she realised that she could hear her daughter and soon to be son-in-law putting the cart before the horse one more time. "Ok, so we're booked, those two from New Haven, you, Sarah and I from Toledo, we have two penthouse suites and we'll be collected from the airport by limo when we arrive," Judy announced. "And now I'm hanging up. Oh, no, I need to speak to Quinn, I have to give her the details," she wailed.
"Mom, it's fine, I can hear you," Quinn giggled as Puck lifted her top to nuzzled at the faintly marked skin of her abdomen. Quinn laid back on the sofa and listened. "Ok, I've got it, and thank you, both of you, for doing this for us," she whispered again, she suddenly felt extremely emotional.
"Wow," Puck stated then whistled, he was seriously impressed with the suite that the bellboy had just guided them to. "Thank you," he added and turned to drop a tip into the young man's waiting hand. "Jeez, look at the view," he said, his voice was hushed in awe of the magnificent sight of The Strip, far below them. "This is amazing. Now all we need to do is wait for the moms to get here, then we can go find a chapel and then you, my dear, will be Mrs Puckerman," he growled into Quinn's neck and kissed her noisily.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Quinn asked for the hundredth time since they'd boarded the plane in New Haven.
"Of course I'm sure," Puck replied. "I love you, I always have, you're my soul mate," he reminded her and hugged her close. "We have an hour before the parents get here, what do you want to do to pass the time?" he asked with a grin and a glance in the direction of the huge bed that dominated the room. Quinn didn't say a word, she just caught her bottom lip between her teeth and slowly walked backwards towards the bed, her hands busily removing her clothes as she went. "I like your idea," Puck growled as he caught up with her and lifted her from the ground. Neither of them came up with an alternative way to pass the hour till their mothers arrived.
"Crap, what was that?" Puck whispered as something roused him from his sleep. He heard it again. "Shit, Quinn, wake up, the moms are here," he told her as he nudged her awake. "Quinn, the mothers," he said, "they're here, at the door," he added more urgently as Quinn did not seem inclined to move.
"Damn, has it been an hour?" Quinn asked tiredly. "Go let them in, I'll be out in a minute," she mumbled as she turned over.
"Ah, shit," Puck sighed and hauled himself out of bed. He pulled on his sweatpants as he strolled to the door, thankful that he'd even thought to pack any. "Hi," he said as he answered the door to his mom, his sister and Judy Fabray. "Quinn fell asleep," he explained as he pointed in the general direction of the bedroom. The ladies all trooped past him.
"Did Quinn bring something to wear?" Judy demanded, she lifted the garment bag that was draped across her arm.
"Erm, no, she couldn't even think of anything," Puck replied.
"What about you?" Monica asked.
"I got one of my buddies to collect my dress uniform and meet me half way," Puck responded, "I'm all set, we thought we could just find something here for Quinn.
"No need," Judy replied happily, "I have her grandmother's dress right here, I wore it, Frannie wore it and now Quinn will wear it. I hope it fits," she added the last part under her breath.
"Mom, hi," Quinn said tiredly, from the door way, she was holding a robe around herself.
"Noah, if you'll collect your things and go to our room, get dressed there, all of us girls can get dressed here then we'll meet you downstairs, ok?" Monica instructed, handing him a key card. Puck had no choice but to allow himself to be bundled out of the room, he knew that no amount of arguing with three, possibly four, because he felt that Quinn might agree with them, females would get him anywhere near a win.
"We haven't even booked anything, we haven't even been in contact with a chapel or anything," Puck reminded his reflection as he shaved after his shower. "What if we do all this, get all dressed up like freakin' idiots then have to wait till tomorrow because there's no place freakin' open at," he looked at his watch, "ten thirty at night." Puck continued to get himself ready, he felt the nerves rising within himself, he could feel the shivers and shudders tracing along his spine and settling in the pit of his stomach. "Should I send out text messages to everyone?" he asked himself. "Maybe it's better to do that once it's mission accomplished, then they can all be pissed that we didn't invite them."
"Noah, are you ready?" Monica asked from the doorway. Puck had been so lost in thought that he had no idea how long his mom had been there or if she'd called him before, not a clue. "Quinn is ready, she looks beautiful, she, Sarah and Judy have gone on ahead, the receptionist arranged the chapel and a limo for them, she also arranged a limo for the two of us," she announced. "It makes me feel it's a little bit like a Jewish wedding, me being your escort. Sort of," she said with a half smile. "Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked him suddenly, halting Puck's progress through the door. "Marriage is a big step," she said quite seriously.
"I know mom and there's nothing I want to do more than marry Quinn," Puck replied, he patted his mom's trembling hand on his arm. "She's been everything to me since we were almost sixteen, I always wanted her to be 'the one'," he admitted, "but she wasn't ready, not till she realised that I had grown up, that I was doing something positive with my life, that I was making a contribution, I wasn't just wasting my time out in LA, like an idiot," he said, mocking himself and his past.
"I'm proud of you, Noah, proud of the man that you've become," Monica told him. "Jake is going to be annoyed that he's still touring Europe," she informed Puck with a sniff as she got her emotions back under control. "Tanisha said that he's understudy to the principal dancer now, he even does some of the matinees," she added, she felt strangely proud of her ex-husband's illegitimate son, despite the fact that he was born of an affair that her husband had had during their marriage. Monica shook her head and concentrated on her own son. "Ok," she breathed heavily, satisfied that Puck's uniform was clean and tidy, that he looked every inch a serving airman. "Are we set?" she asked. Puck nodded and led the way to the elevator.
Puck and his mom literally had a ten minute limo ride from the Bellagio to the Little White Wedding Chapel. When they arrived, there was another limo already waiting. "Is Quinn in there?" Puck asked as he tried to glimpse her through the windshield. Monica tugged his arm to get him into the chapel. "I'm coming, I'm coming," he said with a grin. "This is like the first day of school," he said from the side of his mouth to his mom as they waited at the front with the white haired old man who was waiting patiently to perform the service. A blast of the wedding march made Puck turn around and catch his first glimpse of Quinn. "Holy sh..." he started to say but caught himself just as his mom poked his side. "Sorry," he apologised to the reverend. Monica scowled a warning at him. "I didn't expect the full dress and veil bit, but she looks amazing," he whispered.
"Yes, she does," Monica agreed and smiled at Quinn and Judy, who were walking down the aisle together, with Sarah preceding them, tossing rose petals as she walked. "Sarah looks very sweet," Monica reminded her son.
"Yep, she does," Puck agreed, "she scrubs up well for a tomboy." Monica rolled her eyes, she didn't want to agree, but really, she had to. Sarah was definitely a tomboy. But maybe that was a good thing, maybe it would save her from falling into the same trap that Noah and Quinn had fallen into all those years ago.
Puck bundled Quinn into the back of the first limo, the other was waiting for Judy, Monica and Sarah. "I am so glad we did that," Quinn sighed. She looked down at her left hand. "It's a pity we forgot about rings and things," she giggled and twisted the large, rather gaudy diamond ring that her mother had thrust at Puck when the officiant had asked for the rings.
"Hey, be grateful I remembered how to put pants on," Puck said with a laugh. "I was so nervous I almost cut my ear off while I was shaving," he admitted.
"I love you," Quinn said, suddenly serious. "I really, really love you."
"I love you too, wife," Puck muttered before he dragged Quinn into his arms and kissed her soundly for the rest of the return trip to the Bellagio.
Puck, Judy, Monica and Sarah were in the audience to see Quinn receive her diploma, Puck tucked his fingers into his mouth and whistled loudly as Quinn turned and grinned at her family. He couldn't believe how proud he felt right at that moment. He couldn't believe how amazingly beautiful she looked right at that moment, she seemed to be glowing in the May sunshine. Puck quietly applauded all the other graduates, he wished the ceremony would hurry up and be over, he only had the rest of this day with her, the night and then in the morning he had to get back to base, ready for final checks before shipping out on Thursday. He'd already been in touch with the Families Officer regarding his new status as a husband, he'd already started the ball rolling, he just had to sign some paperwork when he returned to base tomorrow.
"I am so proud of you," Puck murmured against Quinn's lips the second she rejoined her family. He hugged her tight, he wished he could show her a little more of how he was feeling, but really, in the open air like this, with everyone around them? No, he needed to be a little more circumspect.
"Thank you, I'm proud of you too," Quinn replied and managed to sneak one more kiss before she was claimed by her mom for a hug and photos.
Quinn really enjoyed the meal, she loved mingling with her peers, the people that she had spent time with over the last four years, the people that she had studied with, learned with, she would miss them. Some more than others. Puck caught sight of Biff across the room, standing with a horsey looking woman. "Who is that?" Puck asked Quinn, slightly mockingly. "His 'mother'?" he sniggered.
"No, that's his fiancee," Quinn corrected then turned back to Puck with a huge grin on her face. "Let's go say hello," she suggested. Puck became a little suspicious at the naughty look in her eyes.
Puck allowed himself to be led over to where Biff and his fiancee stood, holding court with an equally lame group of people. They all sounded toffee-nosed and boring. "Biff," Puck cried and reached out to shake his hand. Biff pulled back, immediately afraid of what Puck might do to him, he glanced around to try and see a way out. "Biff, why so afraid?" Puck asked jovially, his arms spread wide, his grin even wider. "I'm not going to hurt you, I only did that because you insulted Quinn," he reminded the terrified looking man. "And seriously, nobody gets away with insulting my wife," he told Biff. "No one."
"Oh my God," Biff gulped. "You actually married this guy?" he asked Quinn incredulously.
"Of course I did," Quinn replied with a huge smile. "When you've loved someone since you were fifteen years old, when you've had a child with him, when you make another baby with him, it's fairly conclusive proof that you're supposed to be together forever," she revealed, putting paid to all the rumours that Biff had tried to start about her during the last couple of years, "so, I finally said yes, we eloped to Vegas at the weekend, it was magical," she trilled happily. "Well, bye now, we have to go have lots of sex before Puck goes to the Middle East for the next six months," she confided loudly, absolutely loving the scandalised look on the faces of everyone in that circle. "How could I have ever imagined I wanted to be a part of that?" she asked Puck in disgust as they walked away, back to their own family.
"I have no idea," Puck replied with a grin, "but I love the idea of the lots of sex till I leave, part."
"You should be so lucky," Quinn murmured as she reached up to smooch his cheek again. She squealed with laughter as Puck turned in time so that their lips met instead, then lost herself in the moment. She would never get tired of kissing those lips.
Puck held Quinn close all night. "And you promise me that you'll email me all the ultrasound pictures, download DVDs, anything you get, right?" he asked yet again. "God, I can't believe I have to leave you," he groaned. "I don't want to leave you, I want to stay here with you, forever, just you, me and the baby, we'll just stay here, for all time," he sighed as he rolled back on top of her. "Ahh," he groaned as he slid inside her once more.
Quinn wrapped her arms and legs around him. "I think the hotel manager might complain," she sniffed into his shoulder, trying to use humour in an attempt to deflect the tears that threatened to fall at any second. "But I think we can manage one more time," she sighed as Puck began to move. "Oh God," she cried. "I don't want you to go, please, ask them if someone else can go instead, tell them I need you at home to help me," she begged.
"You know I can't," Puck sighed before he kissed her again and again and again. "But I'll be back. Before our baby's born, I'll be back, ok?" he vowed, staring intently into Quinn's watery eyes. Quinn nodded, barely able to hold it together. "Alright," he sighed as he rolled to her side and hugged her close. Eventually they slept, but only for a little while.
"No, really, I told the doctor I don't want to know, not till Puck gets home," Quinn insisted when Santana and Rachel both begged her to tell them if she was expecting a boy or a girl. They'd met up in New York when Quinn had gone to the opening night of their new Broadway musical. Quinn had just told them about the baby, about Puck getting sent overseas and about their rushed wedding. Santana was not impressed, she was planning all sorts of revenge on Puck for fiddling her out of her 'best man' position. "Don't worry, both of our moms are planning a 'do over' ceremony with a big party for everyone and they both insist that it will be the real deal, the whole thing, church, dress, flowers, the lot. I'm sure Puck will remember his promise," she assured Santana.
"This is just torture," Santana grumbled to Rachel six months later when the three girls met up again, this time at The LimaBean in Lima. Rachel managed to smile and pass a plate of lemon cakes towards Quinn.
"No, that's not torture," Quinn sighed. "This is, this waiting for Puck to come home, waiting for the tour to be over, I mean, I know it means that he shouldn't be deployed overseas again for another year or so, but tacking another two months onto the end of a six month tour is just mean," she groused, plucking at the cake crumbs that had collected on top of her high, tight mound of a belly. "It's like the commanding officers have got it in for us, you know?" she grumbled without looking up. "I mean, how am I supposed to get anything ready for the baby when we haven't even been assigned a permanent home? It's ridiculous, right?" she complained then leaned forward to pick up her teacup. "So I'm still living with my mom, right? And there's four houses available on base, in the same street as some of his best buds and their families, don't you think, as his wife, I ought to be allowed to take one of them? But no, rules and regulations stipulate that Puck, as the serving airman in our family, he has to be the one who actually gets allocated the house and has to sign for everything," she pouted. "It's a complete ball ache, I refuse to decorate a nursery only to have to move everything to another house once he gets home. And it better be soon otherwise Junior here is going to arrive before him," she finished with a shift of her entire body and a pout.
Santana pounced immediately. "Junior? It's a boy?" she cried excitedly. "You are such a liar, you swore you did not know and you've been holding out on us all this time?" she demanded.
"No,of course not," Quinn jumped in to answer. "I just call him-slash-her 'junior' because I don't want to say 'it'," she explained. "I wish Puck was home," she suddenly wailed. "He promised he'd be home before the baby arrived, but unless he gets here in the next few hours, he won't," she announced and looked at her friends with sad, sad eyes. "My water just broke," she explained to the puzzled women.
"Oh crap," Santana breathed.
"You suck, you suck, you suck, you suck," Quinn screeched at Puck via the face time connection.
"Baby, I am so sorry that I'm not there with you," Puck cut in, he genuinely sounded remorseful, even Judy could hear that over the satellite link that was currently connecting Puck, from thousands of miles away, to the small room in Lima where his son or daughter was about to be born. "Jeez, mom, we really don't need shots from that angle," he cried as Monica shifted the ipad so that her son could actually witness the birth of his child.
"One more push, Quinn, one more," the doctor instructed.
"I hate you Puckerman," Quinn wailed as she bore down, her eyes and her face were screwed up in both effort and concentration. Quinn's body curled up from the pillows with the force of her body's demands, she gripped onto her mom's hand and crushed it mercilessly. "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you," she growled over and over again as she used every ounce of strength and will that she had, to force the baby from it's snug home inside her. The sudden wail of a baby broke into the organised chaos that seemed to be present in the room. "Oh, oh, oh," Quinn cried, desperate to see the strange little human who had been causing her so much discomfort.
"Here we go, mommy," the doctor said gently as he placed the squirming, wailing child onto Quinn's chest.
"A boy?" Puck cried, his face was wet, he had tear tracks down his cheeks. "A boy? We have a son? I have a son?" he muttered, absolutely disbelieving, despite being able to see the evidence for himself.
"Yes, Mr Puckerman," the doctor nodded over his shoulder in the direction of the ipad, "you have a son."
"Oh my God," Puck whispered, he was overcome with emotion. "Quinn, baby, I wish I was there with you right now, I wish I could be with you, I love you so much, both of you, he's amazing, you're amazing, I love you so much," he waffled on in his excitement. Quinn had yet to take her eyes off of her baby, her beautiful child.
Suddenly, the faint sound of sirens came from the ipad. Puck looked back over his shoulder. "Babe, I got to run," he said, with apology written all over his face and evident in his voice. "As soon as I can, I'll call, ok? I love you," he assured her. "Take care of them both for me, right?" he urged both of their mothers. Quinn sobbed as the internet connection was cut, she pressed her lips to her beautiful son's head and cried her heart out.
"Quinn, you look wonderful, the baby looks gorgeous," Judy assured her nervous daughter.
"But do you think Puck will think I'm too fat?" Quinn asked nervously, she was almost begging her mom to not answer.
Judy sighed, she knew that no matter what she answered, until Quinn actually saw her husband, in the flesh, on home soil, there was no way that anything that came out of her mouth would make any sense. "Quinn, you gave birth only four weeks ago," Judy reminded her. "I love you but I'm not going to lie to you, yes you still have baby weight to lose but give yourself a break." Quinn looked surprised at her mother's direct answer.
"So when Noah gets here, are we finally going to be allowed to know what you've decided to call the baby?" Monica asked, subtly interrupting what she felt could become a demoralising speech from Judy and Quinn was fragile enough already, she didn't need a knock to her confidence.
"When Puck gets here and holds him for the first time, that's when he will hear his name for the first time," Quinn replied, lifting the wriggling little boy so that she could kiss his cheek. "I know what your name is and your daddy knows what your name is, it's you and everyone else who doesn't know, isn't it? Yes it is, isn't it?" she muttered, smiling and talking to the baby. It had been hard for the last four weeks just calling him 'baby' rather than using the name that she and Puck had chosen, but for some reason, some superstitious reason, Quinn needed Puck to be the one to announce their son's name, she just couldn't do it.
"We have to make a move," Monica stated. "Sarah, do you have the video camera ready?" she asked.
"Yes mom," Sarah replied, her tone and manner showing that she was totally bored with the whole proceedings, she just wanted to get it over with, get her brother home so that she could find out what her nephew was called. She had three CDs, several DVDs and an XBox game riding on it, she'd made bets with Jake, with Sam Evans, even Kurt Hummel was in on the bet. Sarah really hoped that she knew her brother as well as she thought she knew her brother.
"Ready," Quinn said breezily as she whirled around to check the balloons and gifts placed in readiness for Puck, his birthday had actually been a couple of months ago but they were going to celebrate it later, once he arrived home.
The drive to Dayton, to the airbase, felt more like ninety hours than ninety minutes. Quinn felt tearful, nervous, excited, terrified, happy, every emotion that she had ever felt in her life seemed to have mixed together, ready to explode, and probably would at the worst possible moment. She could see that Sarah was really excited too, sat as she was on the other side of the baby, in the back of Monica's minivan. Quinn didn't quite know where her head was, one second she was picturing the loving reunion, the next she was imagining the baby puking all down Puck's back when he finally managed to get his hands on him for the first time. Puck had spent as much time as he possibly could online in the last few weeks, trying to sample life with a newborn even across an internet hookup, but it wasn't anywhere near the same as reality. Quinn knew that Puck was in for a shock, especially once they were actually living together as a family unit, which she hoped would be really soon.
As soon as they arrived, Quinn saw a few of the wives and significant others whom she had met many times before the guys had been deployed. Some of them didn't know that she and Puck had married or that she'd even been pregnant, but that was probably because she didn't live on base and they did. Quinn hoped that would alter soon, she hoped to be able to immerse herself in the 'air force wife life', at least until the baby was old enough to go to school, then she planned to start her career. Judy and Monica had both encouraged Quinn to be a 'stay at home' mom, at least for the first few years and Puck had agreed with their reasoning. He thought that if he was going to be in and out of their lives, what with training and deployment, it would be better to have at least some consistency.
"They're here, they're here," Quinn heard someone call. She looked off into the distance, squinting into the sky in the hope of catching sight of the plane that was bringing Puck back to her. "I see it, I see it," she whispered as she saw the sun glint off something metal, high in the sky. "Hurry home, we're waiting for you," she prayed silently, she had her lips against her son's tiny, fuzzy head, Quinn could feel her heart beating faster and faster, she was almost hyperventilating, she could barely see by the time the wheels of the plane touched down with a puff of smoke. "Daddy's here, he's here, daddy's here," she muttered over and over again, like a mantra as she watched dozens of servicemen disembark. Suddenly she caught sight of a familiar figure at the top of the steps, her breath stuck in her throat and her eyes filled with tears that dripped from her eyelashes, her lips trembled as she struggled desperately to keep it together, Monica and Judy stood either side of her, each with a hand on her back, helping to give her support and comfort.
Puck glanced across to the hangar where all the families were waiting to greet their loved ones, he was desperate to catch sight of his own family, he couldn't see into the shadows. He wished everyone in front of him would hurry the fuck up and get out of his way. Suddenly Puck found that his feet were on the ground, he looked over again and saw Quinn, saw her coming towards him with a tiny bundle in her arms. Puck pushed his way past his comrades, etiquette and graces went straight out the window, he had to reach her, he had to wrap his arms around them both, right now, right this instant. The second he reached her they melded together, the baby squawked his protest. "Oh, baby, did we squish you?" Puck murmured as he bent enough to see his son in the flesh for the very first time. "May I?" he asked Quinn and held his arms out to take the whimpering child. Quinn nodded and passed the baby over to Puck. Puck glanced at his family, at his mom and sister, at Judy too then back to Quinn, he winked at her and she nodded, she looked like she couldn't speak, she was shivering, trembling, her lips were quivering and she was trying desperately to hold in the tears. At first, Puck whispered something right into the baby's ear as though bestowing a secret on him, then Puck spoke up. "Hi Noah, I'm your daddy and I am so happy to finally meet you," he said and lifted the baby to kiss his head again.
"Noah?" Monica and Judy cried together. "Oh that's so sweet," Monica crooned. "I always loved your name, but I thought you hated it, you always said it wasn't 'badass' enough," she reminded her smiling son.
"Yeah, well," Puck sighed, "it's not too bad a name I suppose and I really think one badass in the family is enough, we don't need this kid thinking it's ok to do the stupid stuff I used to do, right?" he said, looking to Quinn for support in his explanation. "And if the name was good enough for my grandpa, it's good enough for me and my son, so here he is, Noah Aaron Puckerman junior," he announced, telling everyone the baby's full name for the very first time.
Sarah looked ecstatic. "Cha-ching," she murmured as she panned the video camera left and right. "Yep, I know my brother," she congratulated herself.
"Bet you anything you don't go into detail, old woman," Puck muttered from underneath his hat. "Bet you don't tell her all of that," he added. Quinn glanced over at him and barely restrained herself from poking her tongue out.
"Grams?" Lucy said softly, bringing her Grams' attention back to her. "So Grandpa proposed to you just before you graduated, and you got married the same day?" she asked, pulling a face as she thought about the timeline. Quinn shrugged and made a noncommittal noise but didn't directly answer the question. "You got married in 2016, right?" she asked as she studied pictures of her grandparents' wedding and pictures of her grandpa, dressed in desert fatigues and holding her dad in his arms. "You both look so young," Lucy sighed.
"We were twenty three then, both of us," Quinn replied proudly, looking at the pictures with her granddaughter. "Your Aunt Beth came to meet your daddy that very weekend, that was the very first time she'd seen him, that picture there," she pointed with a bent, arthritic finger, "that was when we finally gave him his name too, he was a month old and he'd never even heard his own name, not till your Gramps came back home, that's what we'd decided, it was like a good luck charm, if your Grandpa had to be the one to name the baby, then nothing would happen to him, he would come home safely," she explained. Lucy got it, she understood, she was the same, she saw signs and meanings in everything, she didn't step on cracks in the sidewalk, she muttered something silently to herself if a black cat crossed her path, Lucy was very superstitious, just like her Grams.
"And how long were you married for?" Lucy asked, still studying the old pictures.
"Fifty five years," Quinn replied with a sad sigh. "I still miss him, you know," she told the young girl. "Every day, I miss him every day, sometimes I still talk to him as though he's here with me," she admitted and looked out of the corner of her eye at Puck who had taken the hat off his smooth, wrinkle-free, young face to grin at her.
"I am still with you, babe," Puck reminded her, "and when you finally get here to join me, you'll be young again too," he advised as he gave her his very, very best 'Puckasaurus' smirk. "You better be anyway," he sniggered, "I don't want to spend eternity with an old woman, I'm planning on you becoming Cheerio Quinn again, I wonder if you'll still be able to pull your leg upright while balancing on one foot?" he mused. "Remember that? In that elevator?" he chuckled. "Those were the days, right?" he sighed. "But don't have to be in a hurry to get here," he advised his wife, "I'm not going anywhere, I'll wait around for you, whenever you're ready and you don't have to miss me, I still wrap myself around you every night when you fall asleep," he admitted and he didn't feel the slightest bit of shame about it either.
Quinn felt comforted by that. "I know that you do and I love you for it," she whispered back. "But I think I'll be with you soon," she informed him, "very soon."
"Grams? Who are you talking to?" Lucy asked, glancing warily in the direction that her grandmother was looking. "Grams?" she said nervously when Quinn didn't immediately respond. "Grams," Lucy shrieked when she saw the old lady slump to the side, her lifeless eyes staring at the apple tree. "Mom, dad," she yelled. "Grams, please, wake up, Grams," she pleaded.
"Oh, that's so sad," Quinn whispered to Puck as they stood together under the apple tree, their arms around each other.
"I didn't think you meant this soon," Puck murmured and bent to touch his lips to hers. "Awesome," he whispered, "you still taste awesome," he sighed happily and hugged her even closer. "Jeez, how much hair has Noah lost?" he muttered as their son tore out into the yard at the sound of his youngest daughter's yells and screams. "He looks more like my grandpa than I do, did, do," he added, wondering what tense to use.
"Aww, my poor little Lucy," Quinn sighed as her son tried desperately to separate his hysterical daughter's hand from his deceased mother's cooling one. "It's sad that she had to be the one with me, she shouldn't have had to see this, but I knew it was coming, I've seen you more and more and more, I knew it had to mean something and I'm glad you were waiting here to collect me, I think it might have been really scary to be left alone. Who was waiting here for you?" she asked, suddenly curious.
"Finn," Puck replied. "Finn was here for me, he's over there, just out of sight, they all are, you'll see them again when you're ready, but first, it's time to say goodbye to our boy."
Quinn drifted towards her son as he crouched in front of her worn out, aged body. Gently she lay her hand on his balding head then bent to press a kiss to his forehead. "I love you Noah, you and Beth and your families, we both love you, me and your dad, we always have, we always will, please don't forget us, remember us through the happy times, the family times, tell our story so that we stay alive in your minds and just remember, we will meet again some day."
Noah Puckerman Jr bent and let his forehead rest against his mother's bony knee. "I love you mom," he whispered as he heard the wail of a siren that seemed to be heading towards him. "I know you've gone, I hope you found dad, I hope he was waiting for you, thank you, both of you, for being my parents, I love you both, we both do, me and Beth."