AN: Just a warning, I ship Puckleberry like no other, and I despise Finchel. So if you're into Finn/Rachel, I suggest you stop reading now.

CHAPTER 1

"Rachel, honey, time to wake up," Simon Berry said, gently prodding his daughter. The sixteen-year-old brunette opened her eyes, her brown ones meeting her father's green ones before they darted over to her pink clock which read 4:30.

"Dad," she said tiredly, sitting up in her bed and rubbing her eyes with her small palms. "It's 4:30 in the morning. School doesn't start for another three and a half hours."

Simon Berry chuckled lightly. "You must be overworked. Don't you remember you're heading to Nationals in New York City today?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah," she said, laughing slightly. How could that have slipped Rachel's mind? She'd only been talking about it nonstop for the past three months. Ever since they'd placed at Regionals, she'd put all her energy into helping Mr. Schuester prepare the McKinley High's Glee Club for Nationals. After all, they'd be facing some tough competition—even tougher than what they'd faced at Regionals. She wanted to win more than anything. In fact, she'd come up with six different set lists which she'd presented to Mr. Schuester during practice one day. He'd thanked her for her help but said he had the perfect set list in mind.

And he was right. The set list was great. The vocals were great. The dancing was great. New Directions had never looked or sounded better. Everyone was even getting along better than ever. Kurt had transferred back from Dalton, even getting his boyfriend Blaine to transfer with him. Rachel and Finn were back together. Life was pretty great right now.

Rachel hopped out of bed, heading into her bathroom to take a quick shower—after all, Finn would be here at five to bring her to the school, where they'd be taking a bus to the airport.

After she was all clean, Rachel stepped out of the shower, wrapping a fluffy white towel around her tiny body and heading back into her room. She pulled on her normal outfit of a skirt, sweater, knee high socks, and shoes. She did her make up in the mirror and dried her hair before looking over her bag, making sure everything was packed.

She heard a honk outside, meaning Finn was here. She stood up, grabbing her suitcase and carryon bag, heading down the stairs and towards the door, where her dads were waiting to say goodbye. Rachel gave each of her father's a kiss and hug goodbye before exiting their house and heading towards her waiting boyfriend.

Finn waved to Mr. and Mr. Berry before lifting Rachel's suitcase into the trunk of his car. In the back seat, Kurt and Finn were seated, absorbed in a deep conversation about Nationals. Rachel waved to her dads before climbed into the car, turning her head and smiling at Kurt and Blaine.

"Hey guys," she greeted, pulling her seatbelt on while Finn took his seat and started up the car. "You two ready for Nationals?"

Kurt gave her a look, rolling his eyes. "I was born ready for this," he said, taking Blaine's hand in his and giving it a squeeze. Rachel smiled at the couple before turning her attention back to the front of the car as Finn drove through Lima, heading towards WMHS.

Once they arrived at the school, the four juniors climbed out of the car. Finn popped the trunk open and each of them removed their suitcases, heading to the front where the rest of the Glee Club was standing, waiting to get on the bus.

Sam and Quinn (or, as Rachel liked to call them, Barbie and Ken,) were standing by the bus, Sam with his arms wrapped around Quinn as she rested her head on his shoulder, her eyes closed. Mercedes, Tina, Brittany, Artie, and Mike were all standing around and talking while Santana and puck were both leaned against the wall of the school, dozing off. Mr. Schuester was on the bus, talking to the driver.

Rachel, Finn, Blaine, and Kurt all made their way up to the group of people. Mercedes waved to Kurt as he and Blaine walked over to her, throwing themselves into the conversation.

Rachel looked around, noticing Puck looking at her. She shrugged it off, turning her attention back to Finn.

"So, you excited?" she asked.

"Excited, nervous, freaking out," he said with a chuckle.

Rachel placed a hand on his arm. "Don't be nervous. We've never been better. And your dancing's really improved with all that extra practice we've been doing," she said.

Finn nodded his head slowly. "Yeah, it has improved. But only because you're an amazing teacher," he said softly, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, his fingers brushing her cheeks, eliciting a blush from her.

"Alright guys, over here!" Mr. Schuester called from the bus. Everyone's heads snapped up and they all headed over. Mr. Schue looked at all of them. "First, I wanted to let you all know how proud I am of you guys. You've achieved so much and you've been practicing very hard. Give yourselves a round of applause."

Everyone clapped their hands, huge smiled on their faces.

"Now, for the flight, everyone's been given a seat partner. And before I hand out your tickets, no complaining about who your partner is. I didn't pick them—the airline did." Mr. Schue reached into his coat, pulling out the tickets. "Once we get to the airport, you're to stick with your partner. Got that?" he asked, looking at everyone.

Rachel nodded her head enthusiastically, assuming she'd be paired with Finn. After all, they were the golden couple. There was no reason for their seats to not wind up next to each other.

"The person who has the same row number as yours is your seat partner," he said, handing out tickets. "And no trading. Your names are on these, so you get who you get," he said, giving Rachel her ticket. She looked down at the seat number. 22B.

"What's your row?" she asked, looking over at Finn. He showed her his ticket. 12D. She frowned, showing him hers. "We're not sitting next to each other," she said sadly.

"Hey, it's okay," he said, cupping her face in his hands. "We'll see each other once we get to New York. Now let's get on the bus. She and Finn took a seat. Puck took the seat across from them while Kurt and Blaine sat in front of them with Mike and Tina next to them.

Kurt and Blaine were talking excitedly how they were seat partners. Some couples just had all the luck. Rachel stared out the window, sulking.

"What's wrong with her?" she heard Puck's gruff voice ask.

She heard Finn chuckle a little. "She's just upset we're not seat partners. I'm row 12. She's 22."

"22?" Puck asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

"I'm 22 also," he said, showing Finn his ticket. Rachel's head snapped up and she looked over at Puck.

"You're my seat partner?" she asked, a frown on her face.

"Oh don't look so disappointed, Berry," Puck smirked. "You'll have plenty of time to spend with your boyfriend once we get to New York. Two hours sitting next to the Puckasaurus isn't going to kill you."

Rachel let out an annoyed sound, leaning back against her seat, ignoring Puck and Finn's conversation for the rest of the bus ride. Instead, she focused on Nationals. They'd placed, but not come in first at Regionals. Vocal Adrenaline was still amazing without Jesse. But she was positive this time they'd have them beat.

Rachel felt the bus come to a stop and looked up. Everyone was getting off the bus. She grabbed her purse and looked next to her. Puck was sleeping. She let out an annoyed sigh. "Noah, get up!" she said, poking him in the side.

"Geez, what the fuck Berry?" he groaned, sitting up and rubbing his arm.

"We're here. And since we're seat partners, I have to make sure I stay with you, as much as I'd like to do the opposite."

Puck smirked. "Don't deny it. You just want to get into my pants. It's natural," he said as he stood up out of his seat, heading down the aisle of the bus and out into the parking lot, grabbing his and Rachel's suitcases and heading into towards the airport.

"Noah, may I please have my suitcase?" Rachel asked in a strained voice. Why the hell was he carrying it for her? Was he going to steal a pair of her panties and claim they had sex? She wouldn't put it past him.

"Relax, Berry. I'm being a gentleman and carrying it for you. Can't I ever do something nice for you?"

"No. Because every time you've done something nice for me, we've ended up making out."

"That's not—" Puck started to say before realizing it was true. He'd sung her that song in Glee Club sophomore year, and they'd actually gone out for a few days. Then he'd consoled her after she found out about Finn and Santana doing the nasty, and they'd ended up on her bed, their tongues in each other's mouths.

Yes, Rachel was right to distrust Noah Puckerman. After all, for some inexplicable reason, he wanted her. He couldn't even explain it to himself. After all, she was a loser with a capital L. She got slushied in the face daily. He was Noah Puckerman, the kid ever loser, geek, and nerd feared. He threw losers into the dumpster on a daily basis. He was a football star. So why could he never get the petite brunette who was walking with him out of his head?

There was no explanation for his attraction to Rachel. Sure, she was hot. And she was a Jew. That definitely worked in her favor. But she was also loud, obnoxious, annoying, and the height of his eight-year-old sister Daphne. Plus, she dressed like a freak.

But Puck liked her. He genuinely liked her, which wasn't something he could say about most girls he'd slept with. The only other person he'd ever actually liked was Finn's ex-girlfriend and the mother of his bastard child, current head Cheerio of WMHS.

Rachel and Puck made their way into the airport and met up with the rest of the Glee Club who were waiting for them. Rachel flashed Finn a smile, frowning as she stood next to Puck. The trip to Nationals certainly wasn't turning out the way she planned.

When she imagined the flight to New York, she always pictured her and Finn next to each other with two hours of uninterrupted time. No dads there to come in and check on them when they hadn't made much noise for more than 20 minutes. No Kurt constantly coming in and wanting a compliment on the outfit he'd chosen to wear on his date with Blaine.

She had not been expecting to be forced to sit next to Noah Puckerman, listening to him blabber on about football and who knew what else.

The McKinley High Glee Club made their way up to the security line, presenting their tickets and ID for inspection. Rachel and Puck made their way through, sending their suitcases and bags through the screening machine while they walked through the metal detector. Rachel passed through fine and went to collect her things. Puck, of course, beeped.

Mr. Schue looked back at them, an exasperated look on his face. They were on a tight schedule after all. Rachel sighed. "Go on," she said. "We'll be fine. We'll see you guys on the plane." She turned her attention back to Noah, who was getting a pat down by the one male guard while another one waved a metal detector wand over him. It beeped when the guard waved it over his thigh.

Rachel looked at him suspiciously, as did the guards. Puck sighed. "It's a pin from when I broke my leg," he explained. The one guard nodded his head, patting down his legs again, just to make sure he wasn't concealing a gun or anything. He came back clean.

Puck walked over, grabbing his shoes and pulling them on, then grabbing his and Rachel's suitcases. "What gate is the fucking plane leaving out of?" he asked.

Rachel glanced down at her ticket. "C-32," she replied. "And we need to hurry. The plane leaves in 15 minutes."

"Shit," Puck cursed aloud, earning him a few glares from a group of elderly people. Puck grabbed her hand, causing Rachel's cheeks to darken a little. "We gotta book it if we want to make this thing, Berry," he said, rushing down the terminal until they reached their gate. Rachel and Puck both handed their tickets to the woman, who scanned them. They headed onto the plane, looking around for their classmates. Rachel didn't see anyone from McKinley, but then again, the plane was very large. They'd see them when they landed in New York anyways.

She and Puck made their way towards the back where their seats were. Puck put the suitcases in the overhead compartment before taking the aisle seat—Rachel preferred the window seat anyways.

The pilot announced they'd be lifting off momentarily, so Rachel buckled her seat belt, watching the stewardesses go through the emergency protocol. Honestly, she thought it was a waste of time. Planes never crashed. She tuned them out, twisting a lock of hair around her index finger.

Puck stared at her the whole time instead of the blonde stewardess who was having eye sex with him while she demonstrated how to use a life vest. The way she twirled that hair around her finger, it was so innocent. Yet so sexy at the same time. He shook that off. No Puck. She's off limits. She'd back with Finn. And he wouldn't do that to Finn twice. He wasn't that much of a tool.

The engines started and Rachel gripped her armrests. She wasn't the best flier. To be perfectly honest, she'd only flown once before. And she'd been such a wreck after that that her dads agreed that any trips they went on either had to be close enough to drive or they wouldn't go.

She shut her eyes, hyperventilating as the plane gained speed. Just let it be over, just let it be over, she repeated in her head. She just wanted to be in the air. The lift off was the worst part for her, anyways. In the middle of her freak out, she felt a warm hand over hers. Noah's hand. Instead of rejecting it, she took it in her own, squeezing it tightly. Well, tightly for her. It probably didn't even phase him. The fact was, Finn was ten rows in front of her with Brittany or Santana or Mike while she was back here with Noah, and his hand was comforting.

Puck grinned inwardly as she took his hand. It was stupid and middle-schoolish, but Rachel was holding his hand, albeit a little too tight for his comfort, but he'd let that go for now. After all, she was clearly scared.

The plane took off without a hitch, and soon they were in the air, flying towards New York. Rachel dozed off at some point, and her head ended up on Puck's shoulder. He glanced down at her, a goofy smile on his face.

A stewardess, the same blonde who had been eye fucking him earlier, walked up, pushing a cart of beverages. "Can I get you anything sir?" she asked, undressing him with her eyes. Puck mentally eye rolled. Could she be any more obvious that she wanted him?

"No thanks. We'll get something in New York," he said.

She gave him a strange look. "New York? This plane's headed to New Zealand," she said before heading up the aisle.

Wait, New Zealand? Did she just say they were headed to New fucking Zealand? Puck took a deep breath. He was just hallucinating. They were on their way to New York…right? Another stewardess walked by him, this one a little older. He looked up at her.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" he asked politely.

She turned her head towards him. "Yes young man?"

"I was just checking, this plan's headed to New Zealand, correct?"

She smiled warmly and nodded her head. "Of course." With that, she walked away.

Puck felt his stomach drop. Somehow, they'd gotten on the wrong fucking plane. That, or this was some really fucked up version of Punk'd. Wait, was that show even on anymore? Probably not, but same idea.

Rachel stirred next to him, sitting up. "Are we there yet?" she asked sleepily.

"Uh, Berry?" he said hesitantly, not sure how to tell her they were heading across the world instead of across the country.

"What is it, Noah?" she asked. He felt his stomach flip. Why was it that every time she called him by his real name it sent a wave of butterflies through his stomach?

"I don't know how to tell you this, but we're on the wrong plane."

Rachel shook her head. "Very funny. We got on at the right gate. Here," she said, pulling out her ticket, showing him. Right there, it said C-32. And that was where they'd gotten on. He examined the ticket a little more before he felt himself fill with dread. It said it. Right fucking there. Rachel Berry. Destination: New Zealand. Somehow, the airline had fucked up and sent them to New Zealand, not New York.

"Berry, look," he said, pointing out the ticket. He heard Rachel groan. Even annoyed, she had the sweetest voice he'd ever heard.

"I'll kill them," she muttered. "What if we miss Nationals because of this?"

"I think we have bigger things to worry about. Like the fact that we're heading across the country."

She scoffed. "We'll just explain it to them when we land. It'll be okay. I just hope we don't miss the competition," she said, biting her lip.

Puck smirked. "Of course all you can think about is Nationals."

"Of course it is! I want to beat Vocal Adrenaline and rub it in their emotionless, robotic faces that we're better than they are!" she said fiercely.

Puck had to admire her determination. Even though they were headed to the wrong place thousands of miles from where they needed to be, Rachel still thought only of Glee Club. It was cool, if not a little insane.

"Berry, relax," Puck said, draping an arm around her. She shrugged him off, attempting to ignore him.

"Just leave me alone. If I have to spend the next twelve hours with you, I want them to be quiet."

Puck sighed, leaning back against his seat and shutting his eyes. If he was stuck on this plane, might as well catch up on some sleep.

The next thing he knew, someone was shaking him. Puck groaned and opened his eyes, which was when he realized someone wasn't shaking him. It was the plane that was shaking. He could hear people yelling in fear. He glanced next to him and saw Rachel, her eyes shut tightly, holding onto her seat for dear life.

"Berry, what's going on?" he asked groggily.

Rachel opened her eyes and looked at him. "The pilot said we hit some turbulence," she said, the usual confidence gone from her voice.

Puck frowned a little before, for the second time that day, putting his arm around her. This time, she didn't object. Instead, she clung to him, and he could feel her hot tears dampening his shirt, not that he cared.

The plane jerked and the overhead compartments opened, spilling all the luggage into the aisles. Rachel held onto him tighter, letting out a small shriek. Puck had no idea what was going on, but he knew this wasn't good.

"Noah, what's happening?" Rachel asked, looking up at him with her big brown eyes.

"Hey, relax," he said, repeating his words from earlier. "Everything's going to be okay. It's just a little turbulence. Don't worry." Puck wrapped his arms tighter around Rachel as the plane continued shaking. He never let go of her, not even as the plane started losing height. Instead, he just pulled her onto the floor and held her in his arms as the chaos went around above them.

And when the plane hit the water, Rachel had her arms wrapped around Puck, trying not to think about the face that the plane was crashing and they were probably going to die.

Rachel jerked forward into the seat in front of them on impact, knocking her head against the tray table. She lost consciousness and Puck cursed aloud. Everything around him was chaos, but all he thought about was getting the fuck out of there. He grabbed the life vest under his seat and the seat cushion, throwing Rachel's small body over his shoulders.

He made his way down the aisle of the plane, which was rapidly filling with water, coming to a stop in front of the emergency exit. Both passengers there were dead. Puck tried not to think about them as he pulled the door open, letting even more water in. He swam out and up to the surface, putting the vest on Rachel and inflating it.

He laid on top of the seat cushion, holding onto her as they two of them floated away from the burning, sinking wreckage, not sure what was going to happen next.