Hello all! This is my first Glee fic and I'm VERY excited about it. This is a gift for two of my favorite people, Ella and Manda, who are also in love with Puck & Rachel. I'd also like to thank Jac Danvers who betaed my story for me and made it even better. Just FYI this will be a oneshot ONLY but I will hopefully be doing more Puck and Rachel stories shortly.

A Liar Looking For Forgiveness

"Dude, shut up! It's not even your baby-"

Puck's eyes widened as he realized what he'd said. He hadn't meant for it to come out. He was just so sick and tired of hearing Finn complain about everything that he had to give up because of Quinn and the baby that they were expecting.

Finn stood still, not moving a muscle as he tried to comprehend what was being said. "What are you talking about?"

"How could you?" Quinn's voice was shrill as she stormed up to them, tears in her eyes as she stared at Puck.

Puck shook his head, trying to deny what was happening. "I…I, uhhh…"

"What the hell is he talking about Quinn?" Now it was Quinn's turn to just shake her head. "If it's not my baby then…" The realization came to him suddenly and he slammed his hand into Puck's chest, forcing him back a step. "You?"

Quinn turned to Finn, the tears sliding down her cheeks. She reached out, grabbing Finn's arm to not only draw his attention to her, but to keep him from hitting Puck again. "Finn, I'm sorry. It was just once. You've got to forgive me."

"No. No, this can't be." He glanced between the two people he'd trusted most. Everything he knew, his entire world was crumbing around him. "I've gotta go." He shook off Quinn's hand as he practically ran from the room.

"Finn, please! Don't leave me! You have to forgive me," Quinn pleaded as she started to follow him.

"Just leave me the hell alone."

Finn's words were enough to cause her to stop short. "I can't believe you!" Quinn turned to face Puck, her eyes angry slits. "You just can't stand to see anyone happy can you?" She jabbed her finger into his chest. "Well I have news for you – Finn and I will work this out. You will never have anything to do with me or this baby!" Her hand slid to her slightly rounded stomach. "Never!" She spun on her heel, exiting the same door that Finn ran out, her head held high.

Puck slid onto the stairs that lined the back of the room, feeling completely overwhelmed. What had he just done? He'd blown any chance that he ever had with Quinn, and Finn, his only real friend, would probably never speak to him again. He ran his hands over his face, not believing how just one moment had blown up his entire life.

Rachel heard the entire conversation from her place at the other door that framed the classroom, stepped into the room and wondered if she should go to him or just leave. He hadn't seen her yet and she couldn't probably leave without him noticing, but he just looked so lost. Not that she blamed him, not after what she just heard.

And now I'm all alone again…

The sudden ringing of her, her favorite ringtone of "On My Own" from Les Miserables, jarred her from her indecision and brought Puck's attention to her. She grabbed the phone from her bag, checking the caller ID. Finn. Her eyes shot up, meeting Puck's as she once again struggled with indecisiveness. Well there was only one thing that she could really do, wasn't there?

She flipped open her phone, her eyes never leaving Puck's. "Hello?"

"Rachel, I need you." His voice was strained, tinged with anger and just a hint of hurt. There was a pause before he spoke again, "Can you meet me in the auditorium?"

"Finn." She watched as Puck flinched at the name and he quickly looked away from her, not being able to bear what was about to happen. "I'm sorry, I can't meet you. I'm in the middle of something right now."

Puck's eyes shot up, meeting hers again. The disbelief was apparent.

"Please, Rachel. I need a friend." His voice was ragged as he stumbled over his words, "Quinn's b-baby? Not mine...its Puck's. Puck!"He took a deep breath. "I need to talk to someone, someone who can make me forget."

"No Finn, what you want is for a way to get back at Quinn and I won't help you do that." She shook her head, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "And I think that there's someone else who needs me more than you do. Goodbye, Finn." She shut the phone as she stepped further into the room.

"What are you doing? This is your chance." Puck shook his head, trying to play the cocky boy. She knew was just a façade. "It's the only chance you're going to get to have Finn all to yourself. And there's no one here who needs you."

Rachel only smiled as she sat down beside him. "Well even if there's no one here that needs me, I'd still rather be here."

Puck shook his head, the façade slipping slightly. "Why?"

"Because you're really not as bad as you want everyone to think." She placed her hand lightly on his knee, hesitating for a moment out of fear. She knew how she felt, but how did he feel? Was it worth the risk of making a fool of herself? She shook the negative thoughts out of her mind, determined to get it out. "And because somewhere along the way, although I'm not sure when, I stopped caring so much for Finn and started caring more about you."

Puck's hand stroked down her cheek, the façade completely gone by then. "I really want to believe you."

"Well then believe me." She leaned over, her lips meeting his lightly.

When she pulled back Puck leaned his forehead against hers, his eyes staying closed. "But I just can't understand why you'd pick me over Finn. Everyone always picks Finn over me. Quinn even picked him over me to be the father to the baby that she's carrying."

Rachel's touch was feather light as she ran her hand over his head, loving the feel of his Mohawk. "That's because Quinn's an idiot. If she actually took the time to get to know you – the real you – she'd never pick Finn over you."

The smile that slid across his lips was genuine as he pulled away, his eyes opening. "You're the only person that I can be real with. Everyone else would just laugh."

"You have so little confidence for someone so cocky."

He laughed as he drew her into his arms, kissing her. "Me? Cocky? Really?"

"You know just how cocky you are," she said with a laugh, meeting his eyes again. "Not to ruin the mood, but do you wanna talk about it? The whole Quinn's having your baby and not Finn's thing I mean."

"What's there to talk about?" Puck shrugged. "My best friend hates me because I knocked up his girlfriend, who wants nothing to do with me. Oh and she has informed me that I will never have anything to do with my child."

"Noah, really? Finn will get over it and I highly doubt if it comes down to it that Quinn will keep your daughter from you." She took his hand into her, reveling in the feel of his fingers intertwined with her own.

A sudden noise in the doorway drew their attention. Finn stood in the doorway, his jaw slack with shock. "First you take Quinn from me and the baby that I thought was mine. Now you have to take Rachel from me too?"

Rachel gave him a sad smile. "I was never yours for him to take, Finn." She stood, taking a step towards him but stopped when he stepped back. "I'm sorry Finn." And she truly was. But she knew that, although she'd thought herself in love with him, it was really the idea of him that she'd been in love with. "I'm sorry for what you're going through, for the pain. But you're not the only one who's hurting."

Finn just shook his head, looking over her shoulder to Puck. The hatred was naked in his eyes. "You pick him over me? He'll just screw you over like he does everyone else." He met her eyes once more, shaking his head again before he turned to go.

Rachel stood there for a moment, watching the spot that he'd just vacated, when she felt Puck step up behind her and place his hands on her shoulders. "You can go after him if you want."

"What?" Rachel turned around to face him. "If I wanted to go after him, I would have gone when he called." She shook her head. "Don't you get it, Noah? I want you, not him."

Puck gave her a small smile. "And I want you, so I guess it works out all around."

"I guess it does." She shot him another hesitant smile before stepping back, sliding her arm into his. "Shall we?"

He gave a snort before nodding and just like that Puck's façade, his public face, was in place again. He straightened his letterman jacket and aimed a smirk at her. "Yeah, let's get the hell out of here."