Hello! Hello! My apologies for the delay, I spoiled you guys last time with 3 updates in 3 days!

This prompt comes to you courtesy couragetcd. Thank you very kindly! and just so you know, this is probably going to be more than just the one chapter.

Thank you all for the interest and lovely reviews. You are awesomesauce.

I do not own glee. But I do harbor resentment that Dianna Agron was at the Hot Topic at my mall this last weekend and I did not go meet her. Stupid work!

And onward!


Rachel Berry Does Not Hook Up

"Open up, Bitch!" Rachel heard Santana yell from the hallway outside of her front door. "We're taking you out tonight!"

"Oh, jeez." Rachel muttered. Through the peephole, she could see Quinn look up and down the halls nervously, ready to apologize for their friend had any of her nosy neighbors bothered to poke their heads out to see the commotion.

She slumped her shoulders, took a deep breath and slid the locks then slowly opened the door. Her friends took in her appearance silently for a moment before Quinn was the first to react.

"Oh. Sweetie." Quinn pouted as she nudged Santana aside and gathered Rachel into a tight hug just inside the doorway. "How are you doing?"

Rachel nodded softly into Quinn's shoulder, returning the hug, "I've been better." She saw Santana rolling her eyes in the hallway. "God. I oughta junk punch that asshole." She said as she moved past their hug and through the entryway.

Rachel felt herself tearing up again. She didn't want to cry anymore. She'd wasted so much time crying over her broken heart and the wasted months with a guy who really wasn't worth it. She sniffled as she pulled away from Quinn's embrace trying to discreetly wipe away the moisture leaking from her eyes before her friends could see. Quinn pulled Rachel close, wrapped an arm around her shoulders and began rubbing her arm soothingly leading them all into the living room. A glass of water sat on the coffee table, half full.

"It's fine. Really. There is no need for any violence, Santana. Entirely too much effort has been wasted on Ian as it is." She plopped down on the couch and sunk back into the cushions. She was so small it looked as if the couch might swallow her whole. Quinn took a seat next to her still trying to comfort her friend somehow. "Thank you guys for coming to check on me though." She smiled weakly.

They'd all met in college at NYU four years ago. At first Rachel was intimidated by the two because they reminded her so much of the girls back home in Lima who'd made it their daily mission to try and break Rachel's spirit and tear her down. Thankfully it turned out to be the complete opposite. Quinn was sweet and kind but definitely had her moments to show off a silver tongue if you crossed her or someone she cared about. Santana had proven to be just as expressive with words albeit a bit more colorful with the expletives plus she was an intensely loyal friend once she considered you as such.

She'd literally stumbled upon them during their first week getting situated in the dorms freshman year. Carrying a box entirely too large for someone so tiny, Rachel didn't see who was in front of her and nearly bulldozed right over them without even knowing it. Santana and Quinn helped Rachel lug the oversized box into her dorm room and pretty much from that moment, they'd been inseparable. Quinn and Santana lived across the hall as roommates and had surprisingly taken and instant interest in befriending her, much to Rachel's surprise. She was in no way shy when it came to trying to make friends and social interactions but she had never had someone actively pursue friendship with her. It was nice and comforting. She knew from then on that New York and college were going to change her life and couldn't have been more grateful to have left that small town in Ohio in the dust.

"We didn't come here just to check on you." Santana stood there in the living room with her arms crossed over her chest rigidly and an unrelenting look in her eye. "Get dressed. You need to come out with us tonight." She flicked her head towards the bedroom.

Rachel furrowed her brows and shook her head slightly. "N-no. You girls go ahead. It's Thursday and I have work tomorrow…" She trailed off hoping against hope that Santana would drop it.

Santana huffed and came to sit on the edge of the coffee table in front of Rachel and Quinn. "Ok, look. Rachel, I know that you're relationship girl and everything, but you gotta get out there and loosen up. Let your hair down. Unclench."

Rachel scoffed in resentment at that. "I do not clench." She looked at Quinn for support and found none.

Shrugging her shoulder a little, Quinn added, "You kind of do." A small smile cracking across her lips. "Rach, we're just trying to help. We hate seeing you like this. It's been two weeks. The only time you leave your apartment is to go to work. You need some good old fashioned polluted night life air."

Rachel warred between being incredibly thankful that she had such good friends and being upset that they were trying to get her to do something she really didn't feel like doing even though in the end, she knew she'd relent to. She just didn't want to give in to them that easy.

Santana put her hands on Rachel's knees, "Come on. Just a couple drinks to get you out of your apartment. He's totally not worth all this wallowing. We'll go to a bar, find a group of hot guys to have some fun with and tease a little, because right here," she gestured within their circle, "are the three hottest girls in New York City and you, Mopey, are dragging us down."

Rachel rolled her eyes at Santana's proposition, a defeated grin playing its way onto her lips. "You are ridiculous, you know that?" Quinn and Santana shared a triumphant laugh while Rachel stood from the couch and headed to her bedroom to change, shaking her head the entire way. "We love you…" she heard them chorus out, from behind her. Without turning to look at them, Rachel pointed out, "You were both sha-aarp." She singsonged back, in perfect pitch of course.

Ninety minutes later, Rachel emerged from her bedroom looking pretty smoking hot, if she did say so herself. She was wearing dark skinny jeans with her favorite boots. Her top was a dark eggplant color that dipped dangerously low down the front. Her hair was in the perfect waves that always made guys take a second look. Santana and Quinn had both gone through Rachel's closet to see if they could find something to change into as well. They had some of their own stuff mixed in with hers, even though their clothes usually weren't interchangeable. Santana had found a sexy black top that Rachel thought looked about a thousand times hotter on Santana than it would ever look on her. She made a mental note to just give the top to Santana, there's no way she'd be able to wear it now and be pleased with her look.

Quinn was wearing the same navy blue top as before but found a cute little cream cardigan to wear over it. Somehow instead of looking homely or librarianish, Quinn actually brought some sex appeal to it and it all blended quite nicely.

Santana let out a low whistle. "See, this is what I was talking about. New York is in for some trouble tonight!" She boasted and spanked Rachel on the bottom on the way out the door making Rachel squeak and Quinn laugh.

On the street, they hailed a cab and piled into the backseat.

"Where to, ladies?" The cabbie asked with disinterest. Rachel and Quinn turned to look at their friend who was tapping out a message into her Blackberry. "Do you know where Paramount is? It's on the Avenues." She asked without looking up.

"Yeah, I've been there." He said as he pulled out onto the street in the direction of the bar.

"Perfect." Santana said and smiled at her two friends, then received another text on her phone. She grinned mischievously and typed something back quickly then placed it in her clutch.

Rachel and Quinn exchanged a quirked eyebrow and a shrugged shoulder. "What is Paramount? I've never heard of it." Rachel asked, settling back into the seat, trying to get comfortable being wedged between the two girls.

"It's new. Only been open for a few months. A pretty modern bar, a small dance area, TVs in every corner, and a sexy clientele. We'll have fun." Santana settled back as well, and nudged Rachel's shoulder.

Quinn just sat back and chuckled, shaking her head. She had a pretty good idea why Santana was bringing Rachel to this specific bar. She had said something before about the sexy bartender that worked there.

Twenty five minutes later the cab was pulling up to the curb in front of Paramount. The girls stepped out and Quinn turned to pay the cab fare. "Thank you!" She said sweetly as the three girls began walking into the bar.

It was quite comfortable in there. The lighting was a little low, giving off a calm, welcoming ambiance. Inside it was more like a sports bar than an actual club like feel to it. This was exactly what Rachel needed. She was not looking forward to a night at a dance club with a bunch of drunken sweaty strangers grinding up against her and trying to grope her. Quinn and Santana found a raised up table close to the bar with three open stools, they sat down pulling Rachel behind them. Settling into the mood Santana was already scoping out the bar to see if there were any guys worthy of the attention of her and her two gorgeous girlfriends.

There was a couple of guys standing on the other side of the bar smiling and looking around the same way Santana was. Every now and then taking a drink of their beer and laughing at something one of their friends had said. "Girls…Target achieved." She grinned naughtily and ticked her head in their direction and Quinn and Rachel both looked their way. The tall guy was goofy looking but something about him kind of appealed to Santana. Next to Tall and Goofy was a good looking blonde guy that Santana knew would be right up Quinn's alley. He had a dorky haircut but that could be worked with. They were with a guy in a wheelchair who seemed to be very cozy with a pretty blonde girl. They were all laughing and having a good time. Blonde Guy turned to the bartender and ordered another round for him and his friends. And Santana and Quinn exchanged approving looks that went unnoticed by Rachel when they saw the bartender. He was the hottest guy in the entire bar and Santana winked at Quinn with a nod. Physically he was exactly Rachel's type.

Tall and Goofy caught eyes with Santana and gave a little nod. Santana being the infinite flirt she is flicked her eyebrows up and nodded back. He and Blond Guy began making their way over to the girls' table and stopped behind Rachel's chair, who had been sitting with her back to the guys.

"Hey ladies, come here often?" Blonde Guy said. Rachel tried to stifle her laugh but failed. Quinn pushed at Rachel's shoulder and said with a giggle, "Be nice."

Santana, looking annoyed already, said "Oh, wow. That one's all yours, Quinn. He's got no game." Quinn shot her friend a scornful glare from across the table, then turned and smiled sweetly back to Blonde Guy and proceeded to monopolize his attention.

Tall and Goofy, whom Rachel thought was sort of cute with his half smile and soft brown eyes seemed to be taking quite an interest in Santana, and it left her sitting at the table by herself, while her two friends were 'otherwise occupied'. Rachel heard Blonde Guy tell Quinn his name was Sam and that his friend's name was Finn. She sighed and rolled her eyes. Some Girl's Night Out. Rachel thought to herself bitterly. Standing up from the stool, she announced, "I'm going to go get some drinks. Do you guys want anything?"

At the same time, without even turning their heads to address their friend, Quinn and Santana said, "Usuals." Rachel rolled her eyes and headed towards the bar.

She saw the guy in the wheelchair talking quietly to the blonde girl sitting in his lap. She smiled. She thought they looked really sweet together. Walking up to an open spot at the bar, she waited for the bartender to come up to her for her order. It only took a minute or two and Rachel had her back against the bar as she watched the baseball game that was playing on one of the many TVs in the place. She didn't know much about sports, but she knew enough. She was raised by two gay fathers in a small conservative town in Ohio. She had a good upbringing aside from the close-mindedness. She couldn't have asked for a better set of parents. They kept her fully immersed in the arts, with dance classes and voice lessons. But also made sure she had the opposite side of the coin as well. One of her fathers was very much into sports. He loved baseball and basketball and would explain game to Rachel as he watched happy to share this side of himself with her.

"Hey there, did you need to order something to drink?" Rachel was pulled from her thoughts by the bartender's voice. It was deep and smooth and she had the urge to curl up to it when she went to sleep at night. Her throat went dry. She'd never had that kind of reaction before to just the sound of someone's voice. She was almost afraid to see the rest of him. She cleared her throat and turned around quickly and took in the bartender's appearance. His head was shaved very short, but it somehow suited him. He had the body and face to match his voice and Rachel swallowed thickly before saying, "Y-yes, please. Can I have two Malibu pineapples and a Madras. Please."

He took a second to acknowledge her order and nod his head slightly. "N-no problem, Beautiful." He said and Rachel blushed. He also cleared his throat and began to assemble the three drinks. He slid them over to her with a wink and noticed her struggle to grab all three glasses securely to make it back to the table. Bartender Guy quickly stopped her. "Hold on a second there." He placed his hand softly on her forearm. "I'll help you to your table." He swiftly made his way around the bar with the two other drinks that Rachel had let him grab and followed her back to her table where the two couples were still very much wrapped up in themselves.

He placed the two on the table and patted Finn on his shoulder. "Hey man! Puck, this is Santana. And over there is Quinn. And I didn't get your name…" He said to Rachel as he stuck out his hand for her to shake.

"That's Rachel." Santana interjected.

"Rachel. Awesome. Puck is the bartender here and he's also—" Sam said from the other side.

"Just the bartender, man. Nothing special." Puck cut off his friend, smiling at the group and ignoring the look his two friends gave him.

Rachel smiled at the insanely delicious bartender and shook his hand as well.

"So, do you have a break coming up, Puck?" Santana asked, smirking at the fact that Puck and Rachel were still holding each other's hands even though the handshake had ended seconds before.

Rachel noticed as well and slowly withdrew her hand, blushing and quickly took a sip of her drink. Puck looked around at the table and settled his eyes back on the tiny brunette that was trying desperately to avoid eye contact with him. "Uh. Yeah. I could take a break. Let me just let them know back there." He walked away, turning back a few times to take a peek back at Rachel, who just so happened to be watching him leave. They smiled shyly at each other from the distance. Rachel stifled a giggle as he clumsily bumped into people scattered around the bar, murmuring apologies. Sam and Finn also left for a second, telling the girls they'd be right back.

"Not bad, huh?" Rachel heard Santana lean in and whisper loud enough for Quinn to hear. Q leaned in as well and said, "These guys are foxes. They always run in packs, right?"

"That's wolves." Rachel said and her two friends looked at her quizzically. "Wolves run in packs. A group of foxes is called a skulk." Rachel corrected absentmindedly and glanced over to where Puck was behind the bar.

"Whatever. The bartender is hot. You should totally hook up with him tonight. It'll be good for you. I bet he's a fantastic lay." Santana was never one to shy away from sexual topics. In fact, she always tried to bring the most innocent of discussions back to something dirty. Rachel just shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"I'm not hooking up with anyone, San. You said it yourself. Relationship girl." She poked herself in the chest as she spoke. "I don't want that."

Santana shrugged, "I'm just saying. Let loose." She took a sip of her drink.

Rachel shrugged her shoulders, too. "I don't know. We'll see. But I wouldn't be opposed to getting to know him better. He is quite handsome." She smiled softly.

"That's the spirit, Rach! Keep yourself open to love." Quinn said excitedly.

"Oh my god. Q, did you just quote The Sweetest Thing? You are such a nerd." Santana teased, knowing full well that, with them, an entire conversation could be had quoting movies back and forth to each other.

"What are you talking about? You know that is one of the best girl friend movies ever made. We could totally be Cameron Diaz, Christina Applegate and Selma Blair. Easily!" It was clear that Quinn was a little bit of a light weight and got very vocal when she drank. However she did have a point. It was a great movie and those three girls definitely had the same kind of deep friendship that Santana, Quinn and Rachel did.

Rachel blinked a few times and sipped on her Malibu as she watched Puck speak with the other bartender and then shake his hand and clap him on the shoulder. He had an adorable smile on his face and he kept licking his lips while he spoke. Rachel licked her own lips as she watched him from across the bar.

"Rach! Are you listening? Hello!" Santana was snapping her fingers in front of Rachel's face to bring her attention back to the group. Sam and Finn had rejoined them and Puck was making his way back as well. "Sorry. What were you saying?" Rachel said a little dazed. Puck's hand was just barely touching the small of her back and she could feel the heat from his hand through the thin fabric of her top.

"They wanna get out of here and get something to eat. Are you in?" Quinn asked, her smile clearly conveying that she wanted Rachel to say yes and not bag out early like she's done a time or two before.

"Leave? But, doesn't Puck need to get back to work? You're just taking a break, aren't you?" She turned to ask him over her shoulder. She hadn't realized just how close he was. She fought the urge to lean back into his chest.

Puck shook his head and smiled down at her. "Nah. They're good without me. I just told them I was gonna leave early. They'll be fine. So where're we going?" He looked around to the group.

Rachel furrowed her brows. "Are you sure? I don't want you to lose any hours or tips from leaving your shift early." She felt bad for dragging him away from his job.

Puck's grin widened. "Really. It'll be fine." He brought his hand up to rest on her shoulder then squeezed lightly.

The other four watched the exchange with wide grins of their own. "Alright. I'm starved. Let's get Britt and Artie and get out of here." Finn announced. Couple by couple they all made their ways to the doorway of the bar. Rachel made a mental note to thanks Quinn and Santana for forcing her to take a night out.

So… Not a whole lot went down there, but I promise more Puck and Rachel in the next one. I hadn't meant for this to become a multi-chap entry, but that's what it's turning into, maybe 3 chapters if I can get everything in.

But thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.