Disclaimer: I don't own Glee.
Only Puck and Rachel are featured in this story, but the following is part of the background: Quinn's baby belongs to Finn, Puck and Quinn never got together, Rachel and Finn's mutual attraction faded after Quinn's pregnancy came out, and Puck and Rachel did not date. Puck and Rachel are not really friends, but are friendly for the sake of the team.
Rachel Berry had spent her Saturday quite productively, beginning with a morning yoga class, running errands, and food shopping, and was just now returning to her house. She noticed her cell phone on the kitchen counter, which was unusual since she always brought it with her everywhere. When she checked her voicemail messages, she became ecstatic, quickly followed by panicked.
"Hello, this message is for Rachel Berry. Ms. Berry, this is the Brian Johnson, director of Juilliard's summer music program. I am calling to let you know that we've unexpectedly had a slot open for a female performer and are looking to fill it immediately. We are inviting you to audition here in New York at 2:00pm on this upcoming Monday. We were very impressed by the tape that you sent us and look forward to hearing more of your work."
This upcoming Monday! How was she going to get there? Her fathers were out-of-town for the weekend and her car was in the shop. She certainly couldn't afford a last-minute plane ticket to New York City.
Rachel frantically called the number that was listed on her missed calls list. "Hello. You have reached Brian Johnson. Unfortunately, I am unavailable for the remainder of the weekend. I will return your call when I return on Monday morning. Thank you and have a nice weekend."
Rachel was frantic. She had to make it to this audition, but she had no way of getting there. She quickly found a bus leaving Lima for New York at 4:35pm this afternoon. She had 20 minutes to pack and get to the bus depot. There was no way that she was going to miss her chance to take a critical step towards her future Broadway career.
Noah Puckerman had spent the morning sleeping and the afternoon playing video games. His mother and sister were visiting his aunt since there would be no school on Monday for Sarah due to a teacher in-service day. Puck relished weekends to himself because he could sleep as long as he wanted and wander around the house naked. However, it was currently 4:30pm and he hadn't eaten yet. A quick survey of his kitchen revealed that there was relatively nothing to eat…at least nothing that Puck considered edible. So, he grabbed his letterman jacket to throw over his t-shirt and jeans and headed out to his truck.
Rachel realized that she probably looked insane literally running the entire mile to the bus depot with a pink suitcase trailing behind her. However, despite her best efforts, she was too late. She saw the bus in the distance as she ran up to the depot. And that is when Rachel Berry sat down in the middle of the street and cried her eyes out as her dream vanished in a cloud of dust.
As Puck was making his way to Taco Bell, he noticed a very strange sight…someone crying in the middle of the street. Then, he saw it was Berry and it made complete sense because the girl was absolutely crazy. He pulled over and got out of the car.
"Um, Berry, you might want to move before you get hit by a car."
Rachel looked up startled and then the look on her face changed to something Puck did not like.
"Puck! You're just the person to save me. You have a truck. Why didn't I think of this earlier?"
"Um, Berry, what the hell are you talking about?"
"I need a ride…"
Puck looked at her quizzically.
"…to New York City."
"Oh hell no, Berry."
But then Rachel began to cry again and Puck was a goner. He was a sucker for crying girls and although him and Berry certainly weren't friends, he had come to sort of like her…well not quite like her, just not want to light himself on fire when he was around her, most of the time anyway.
"Crap…Berry…Rachel…I'm sorry. What's going on?"
"I have the chance to audition for this prestigious summer music program in New York City, but the audition is Monday and my fathers are out of town and my car is in the shop and they're looking to fill the spot as soon as possible which means I need to get to New York if I want any chance at getting in and I'm just hoping that you will be kind enough to drive me there."
"Okay, take a breath, Berry. What's in it for me?"
"Um, gas money, of course. And all the money I have in my wallet…243 dollars."
Puck looked at Rachel. It's not like he was doing anything else this weekend. And hey, 243 dollars could go pretty far. He would definitely earn it riding alongside Berry for hours. And she was looking at him like he was her last hope and her brown eyes looked as if they were actually pleading him to accept and she was biting her lip in this nervous, yet sexy way, and damn, when did Berry get so hot? Um, what, where did that come from? Focus, you're a badass.
"Please, Noah…."
Ah, shit, she used my first name.
"Fine, I'll drive you. How long is this going to take anyway?"
"9 hours and 52 minutes according to Google Maps."
Puck chuckled because it was moments like this where he was actually amused by Rachel. "How precise. Wait, why are we leaving now then?"
"Puck! It is imperative that I get to this audition and we must allot for unforeseen circumstances that could delay our journey. We have to go now."
"Fine, Berry. Get in the damn truck and we'll be on our way."
The two sat in relative silence, with only the faint sound of the radio in the background, as they headed towards the highway. Puck was surprised that Rachel wasn't talking incessantly; instead she was staring out the window like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders.
"I know I'm going to regret asking this, but why is this so important to you anyway, Berry?"
"This is absolutely critical to my future goal of being on Broadway. Juilliard is the optimal place for my collegiate training and I assume that they have very high consideration of alumni of their summer camps."
"Bullshit. What's the real reason, Berry?"
"What do you mean?", Rachel squeaked.
"You want to get out of Lima…I get it. But that doesn't explain why you're acting like this is such a big deal."
Rachel sighed. "People have expectations of me. And I don't want to let them down. I have to be the best. Do you know what I mean?"
"Nah, people only expect the worst of me and I say, 'who gives a shit'. You shouldn't worry so much what they think. Screw 'em. Be like me…a badass who does what he wants."
Rachel looked at him and softly said, "Sounds like I'm not the only trying to live up to expectations. It's just the expectations that are different."
Puck grunted. He did not sign up for this philosophical crap, but what really bothered him was that in a single conversation with Rachel, she was able to see right through him.
A/N: This story won't be as many chapters as my previous ones, because frankly there's only so far you can stretch 9 hours and 52 minutes.