Title: Choices We Make

Genre: AU/Romance/Hurt/Angst

Rating: M

Parings: Puck/Kurt, Tony/Maxxie

A/N: I know I've been a bad author since I still have a couple of pending stories but you know, ideas are hard to come by. Sometimes, when a certain idea for a new chapter came by, my hands won't stop flying on the keyboard but it rarely does these past few days. It just so happens that while I'm reading a Koontz novel, this particular idea popped in my head, I don't know why. Anyway, hope you enjoy this one and I'm glad to say that the idea is complete so this won't be unfinished.

Summary: Puck is a stripper but there is more to him than meets the eye. Kurt is a socialite and what you see on him is what you get. They come from two different worlds. Who will choose to leave the life he had grown up with and be with the one they love? Or will their difference keep them apart?

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, Tony and Maxxie

PROLOGUE:

*** PUCK ***

Money. I want loads of them. Who doesn't? It's not because I want to buy the coolest cars or the biggest mansion. I just want to have enough money to provide for my sister. Enough money so I can continue college. I know that money can't buy everything but that is what I need right now.

*** KURT ***

Dad asked me what I want for my graduation gift aside from the Paris vacation he had promised when the school year started. Well, I was contemplating between a new apartment in Upper East or a new car. Tony told me I should go for the latter since dad will still give me my own apartment either way. And plus, the Mustang Convertible dad bought me last year was getting old and I can't exactly use Dad's Maserati because it was so last season. Hmmm, okay, I decided on a new car.

CHAPTER 1:

Kurt always hung out at this coffee shop every Thursday afternoon. He never failed. The coffee was good and the pastries were heavenly but those were not the reason why he was always there.

Across the street from the coffee shop was another coffee shop where Kurt always saw him. Kurt called him Mohawk. Usually, Kurt didn't like guys with outrageous hairdo but that strip of hair was definitely an exception because the guy totally rocked it. Some might call him crazy or stalker or pathetic but he couldn't help it. He somehow developed a crush on the guy ever since his eyes landed on him three weeks ago. So instead of going inside the shop with the air conditioning, he settled outside under the umbrella so he could catch a glimpse of Mohawk who was now currently serving a customer. Kurt smiled to himself. Mohawk was really gorgeous even from afar.

"What's up princess?" Kurt shifted his attention to the voice and saw his best friend, Tony Stonem, grinning at him as the latter took a seat across him.

Kurt shrugged. "Catching up on my reading." He said briefly. Midterms were starting next week and he needed to prepare early. He couldn't wait to graduate college. Few more months and he's off to a Paris vacation like what his dad had promised as a graduation gift. Well, aside from a brand new Porsche Carrera he had requested.

Tony lifted an eyebrow at him as he sipped his coffee. "Still crushing on Mohawk?" Tony asked coolly. Kurt rolled his eyes. "Why don't you just go there and ask him out and get it over with." His best friend added casually as he took a bite on a gourmet chocolate chip cookie which Kurt had ordered aside from his usual double caramel macchiato with three pumps of vanilla.

Kurt shook his head. "Not gonna happen." Mohawk was easy on the eye but Kurt was not the type who asked first. And plus, it's just a silly crush. He just needed some distraction whenever he got bored reading Shakespeare for his Lit exam. "How's your date with Neil Anderson last night?" Kurt asked changing the topic. He was not up for a conversation about his 'crush' on the sexy guy. He rather kept it to himself.

Tony smirked at him as he tugged the collar of his gray shirt downward. There's a huge hickey on the left side of his neck. "I banged him so good and hard, he muffled his scream by sucking a bruise on my neck." Tony said casually. Kurt didn't even blink. He was so used to his best friend's sexual conquest that it didn't faze him anymore.

"Did you get his number?"

"What number?" Tony asked coolly as he sipped the rest of his coffee. Kurt shook his head in disbelief but still gave Tony an amused smile. "You know me Kurtie. Fuck you once, good for you, fuck you twice, shame on me."

"Oh god Tone, you're too much!" Kurt exclaimed with a giggle then he shifted again his attention back to the cafe where Mohawk was working. The guy was currently talking to a lady customer, his trademark smirk never leaving his face and Kurt thoght that the smirk made the guy more gorgeous. Then suddenly, Mohawk turned his head and their eyes met. Kurt's eyes widened and he quickly averted his gaze back to Tony. "Is he still looking?" Kurt asked Tony.

"Yep." Tony confirmed. "You shouldn't have looked away. Too obvious."

Kurt bit his lower lip. Oh well, so what if he got caught looking? It's not illegal. "Still looking?" Kurt asked after a few seconds. Tony shook his head. The last thing he wanted was to let Mohawk think that he had a stalker. Kurt was not the type. He just knew how to appreciate beautiful scenery when he saw one. Mohawk was lucky that he had captured Kurt's attention. Not all guys had the same effect on Kurt.

"So are you attending Rachel's bridal shower?" Tony asked suddenly.

"Of course, I don't want to be castrated. You know that she can be a bitch if she wants to." Kurt replied. Rachel Berry had never changed. She's still the bossy kid like she was in high school but Kurt had learned to love her. Rachel was his stepbrother's fiancée. She and Finn got engaged last month against protests from both families. Rachel and Finn were getting married after graduation but their friends had decided to throw the parties early since Tina and Mike were flying to Europe for their internships and they might miss the parties which both Finn and Rachel didn't want to happen. "How about you? Are you attending Finn's bachelor party?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." Tony grinned. "Sam told me that it'll be different."

Kurt rolled his eyes. As far as he's concerned, bachelor parties were always the same. Women in kinky outfits and booze. He sipped the rest of his coffee and slammed his book shut. He would just finish reading it at the apartment. He and Tony were sharing an off campus apartment four blocks from the university. "Let's go." Kurt announced as he gathered his things from the table. Tony stood up first and wove his way through the table and chairs. Kurt, on the other hand took another glance at Mohawk who was currently wiping the tables outside. The ripples of muscles on his arm as he wiped the table were not lost on Kurt.

Kurt smiled to himself. He's definitely going back next Thursday.

***!***

"I'm home." Puck announced as he stepped inside their Queens apartment. He found his younger sister Nella studying at their dining table in the kitchen. Nella looked up and smiled at him. "How's school?"

"Same old. The cheerleaders still think they own the school and the jocks are still meatheads." Nella answered as she went back to her book. She's currently a freshman at Queens High School but she would always be Puck's baby sister. Their parents had died when Puck was fifteen and Nella was eight and since then, Puck had been taking care of his sister and providing for her needs. That's why he's currently working three jobs, one at the coffee shop every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, one at a local deli every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. His full time job was every night at a club as a male stripper. He was not proud of it but it paid well.

"You're hanging out with Maxxie for too long." Puck joked. Maxxie was his childhood best friend and they're sharing the apartment with him. Maxxie studied at a local community college in the morning and worked at night at the club like him. Maxxie couldn't afford to study full time. He, like Puck, also had lost his parents to an accident. The three of them considered each other as family.

"I heard that." Maxxie said as he stepped in the kitchen, his hair was still damp from the showers. Maxxie walked to the stove and started heating up the pan. "Tonight is taco night." He stood on his toes as he reached up for the cupboard and grabbed a can of tomato sauce then he turned to Nella. "Sweetie, the air is cooler in the living room, you can study there."

"You're having an adult talk right?" Nella asked as she gathered her books and carried them out to the living room. "I'm not a baby anymore!" Nella added from the living room and Puck chuckled.

"She's too intelligent for her own good." Maxxie said briefly as he sautéed the onion and the tomatoes. "You took the job?"

Puck nodded. "It was short notice but they'll pay big."

"How much?"

"Three grand." Puck answered. Maxxie whistled in appreciation. That was a lot of money and would definitely be a great help for Nella's college tuition. "Apparently, the bridal shower is in Upper East so I expect whiny rich bitches."

Maxxie laughed. "You're too cynical. I have a job too. A bachelor party."

"For real?" Puck raised an eyebrow. He didn't like the sound of it. The guys at that bachelor party might harass Maxxie. Suddenly, his protective instinct for his best friend kicked in. "Not gonna happen."

Maxxie widened his eyes at him. "Noah, they're paying me three grand too. I can't exactly say no to that."

"Fuck, Maxxie. There are guys in there. What if they hurt you?"

"Relax. I'm with Chad." Maxxie assured. Chad was also one of the male strippers at the club and their close friend as well. "Noah, as you can see, I can take care of myself."

Puck nodded slowly. At least Chad was going to be there too. But what kind of sick bachelor party was that? Were they messing with the soon-to-be groom? Well, whatever it was, he really didn't care just as long as Maxxie was safe. The two of them rarely accepted jobs for shower and bachelor parties because they could get messy and they didn't want to get caught in it. He was just stripping at the club and Maxxie was pole dancing, other than that, no more. Of course since they worked at a club, it's inevitable that they were offered money for sex. Puck was a magnet for elderly women and gay guys while Maxxie was getting hit on by loads of guys and sometimes by ladies but Maxxie didn't swing that way. They had both declined those offers. They were not that desperate for money.

"Just be careful." Puck said finally.

"I will, mom." Maxxie joked and Puck shoved him playfully. "So who is the bride?"

"Nacho told me it's for a Rachel Berry." Puck answered. Nacho was the club manager and owner and sort of like a father figure for the two of them. He and Maxxie were really lucky to score a job in a club where they were not force to do anything they didn't want to do. It also didn't hurt that Nacho favored them. He had told them that they were the kids he never had.

"Berry? As in Berry Cosmetics?" Maxxie asked excitedly, blue eyes twinkling.

Puck shrugged noncommittally. "Who cares?" All he knew was that the shower party was going to be held in a private country club in Upper East and those people threw a lot of money in it. "And you, who is the groom?"

"Finn Hudson-Hummel." Maxxie said dreamily. "He did a cover for GQ when his mom Carol Hudson got married to Burt Hummel." He added as he smiled to himself like a particular good memory came in him.

Puck lifted an eyebrow. There were way too many names in that sentence. Maxxie was reading too many magazines. "I don't know shit what you're talking about."

Maxxie rolled his eyes. "Noah, it doesn't hurt if you open the society pages of New York Times." Maxxie said. Puck rolled his eyes this time. He didn't even know that they were buying the newspaper. And even if he did, he's not really into those society craps.

"For your peace of mind, I've heard about Hummel." Puck said. "As in Hummel Group of Companies." Puck mimicked the way Maxxie had said 'as in Berry Cosmetics.' The blonde threw a strip of bell pepper at him.

"Well, consider ourselves lucky for having the job. Who knows, I might find the guy of my dreams there." Maxxie said with a smile as he proceeded to chop some onions.

Puck just shrugged. He was not expecting to find romance in a job. Plus, those girls were probably too high maintenance. He didn't need that kind of distraction. And plus, he didn't have the money to support that maintenance.

He then remembered the brunet at the coffee shop across the street from where he worked. The brunet screamed money from the way he dressed and sipped his expensive coffee. That was the kind of high maintenance he didn't want.

Too bad, the brunet was gorgeous. Well, like he said, he didn't need that kind of distraction.

A/N: Worth continuing? All mistakes are mine.