Puck's line about seeing himself being dead or in prison in 18 years, really broke my heart so I decided I was going to write something where he had a future because he fucking deserves one. I will update weekly and this will end in Puckurt but the main focus is Puck.

A Bright Future - Prologue

Seeing his friends graduate didn't make Puck feel alone, that was an old feeling. Seeing Quinn spend the last months of high school talking about life at Yale made him feel proud and happy and also grateful because if they had kept Beth, if they had gotten married, he would have ruined her life and it was just better that way. She was going to leave and forget about him, and Puck could live with that.

He heard Finn making plans with Rachel and Kurt for New York and felt a little bit of envy that his best friend got to start a bright future with them, but they were all his friends and he was just going to be happy for them.

People didn't even think he was going to graduate so Puck took pride in seeing their faces when he wasn't held back and got to stand on the stage receiving his diploma alongside with them. He had always kept his grades a secret but he had never actually cared about being seen as someone smart.

Maybe he wasn't going to leave for a bigger city, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to be someone. He needed a plan and he spent the last hours of his last day as a high school student trying to come up with one. It was hard when no one actually cared about him to find someone that could help him, but if he set his mind on something, he usually got it, except for Beth and for Quinn's love, but he wanted to stop thinking about that.

High school was barely over when Puck met with his probation officer again. He walked inside the police department with his head hanging low, his gaze fixed on the floor ignoring both cops and criminals. The way to her office was engraved in his memory so he let his feet carry him where he needed to be. He knocked once and waited to hear her voice saying to come in, and then walked inside, closed the door behind him and sat down at one of the chairs without giving her time to ask what he thought he was doing.

"I need help," he said, the words coming out for the first time. After spending so many times asking for help through his actions or waiting for someone to care enough to ask how he was doing, he had finally come to the realization that perhaps he needed to say it out loud and hope that someone would be there to hear him.

The woman sitting behind the desk regarded him with a patronizing look. "Mr. Puckerman, I expected to see you sooner than this."

Puck frowned and leaned forward. "I mean it. I need help."

She arched an eyebrow and Puck still felt as if he was nothing more than scum. It reminded him of Quinn and of his mother and of Kurt and of Finn and he did his best to push away those thoughts.

"What exactly can I do for you? You haven't been arrested." And even though she hadn't said it, the yet rang loudly in the room.

"I don't know who else to ask. I can't go to College but I want to do something. You have to find me something."

The officer clasped her hands over the desk and for the first time actually looked at Puck as if he was someone vaguely human. "You want to do something?" she asked with a challengingly undertone to her voice.

Puck nodded firmly. "I don't care what it is but I..." He trailed off and it took a lot of will to stop his eyes from looking away from hers. "I don't want to end up like my dad and I don't want to end up in prison. I need something that will keep me from making mistakes."

For a few long moments all the officer did was stare at Puck as if she was trying to read his mind or as if she was looking for any ulterior motives he may have. But in the end she gave a nod and her lips curved upwards into a pleased smile. She leaned back against her chair and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Usually, I only ever see someone again because they got arrested a second time. I can't believe that you're actually the first one who comes back to ask for my help."

"But you will do something, right?" And Puck didn't even try to hide his fear or his eagerness. He was sure this was his last chance of being someone different from the jailbird everyone was sure he was.

"I can only think of one thing." She turned her chair around to face the stock of papers on the desk behind her. She moved a few sheets aside and then grabbed something and spun her chair around. She slid a pamphlet across the desk. "What do you say about this?"

Puck picked it up with a furrowed brow and read under his voice, "Become a cop and stop being a criminal." He looked up at the officer and found her smiling satisfied. It only took a moment to Puck to make his choice. "Of all the things I saw myself do in the future, this wasn't one of them."

"Become your worst enemy and you'll be alright. That is if you really want to change," and the challenge was back in her voice.

Puck was a lot of things but a coward wasn't one of them. He looked at her determined and nodded. "Okay."

"Are you sure, Puckerman?"

"Yes."

"Alright." She spun her chair around again and picked up a few sheets of paper. "We better start," she said, turning to face him and handing him over both the papers and a pen. "Welcome on board, kid."