Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 14th cycle. Now cycle 15!

"Good Old Days"
Puck & Finn

From the time they had become friends, if one thing was certain it was that they had each other's back, at any and all time. That had remained their rule for years, but then it had been torn apart by betrayal of trust, by secrets… The next few months, they had nothing to show they could ever mend burnt bridges, instead straying further apart.

Time would pass, fires would be soothed, even if they still felt the heat, and finally one day something came along to give them a common cause important enough to once again join forces. That came in the form of a need to respond against Vocal Adrenaline and their strikes on New Directions and its members. A look was shared, an understanding came to say 'we need to do something to deal with this.'

In no time, there they were, blades in hand, slashing tire after tire in the Vocal Adrenaline motorcade. They went in with a plan, and they were out without being seen, as far as they knew. Before long they were on the read back to Lima.

"See how they like that," Puck nodded victoriously, tapping the steering wheel. Finn diligently nodded along, smirking.

"Yeah," he spoke up, then after a moment, "What if we get caught? I can't pay for all those tires, and… what if we end up in jail?" he spoke the thought that only just now entered his mind.

"We performed a service," Puck shook his head. They were silent for a moment, and it was Puck who spoke next, looking to Finn. "I know we can't be alright, not like before, but I'm glad we could do this, you and I." Silence resumed for a moment, but then…

"Me too," Finn replied, and Puck quietly nodded to himself. Alone and talking now, he decided he might as well ask. "How's Quinn doing, with the baby…"

"She talks in her sleep, like she's dreaming. Something about a tunnel," he shrugged. Finn smirked to himself.

"Yeah, okay, do you still have the lamp by the bed?" he asked.

"It's broken," Puck shrugged.

"Fix it, change it, or find another one. Just turn it on for a minute or so and she'll calm down," he explained.

"Right," Puck looked at him. "Figured you might know, I just couldn't ask… Thanks." Finn nodded in response. "Well, other than that, she's okay. She gets kind of moody over nothing sometimes…"

"And the baby?" Finn asked.

"She's okay, too. My mom's always trying to make sure Quinn eats right, so I guess that's working," he shrugged, then sighed. "Just a few more weeks now…" he contemplated aloud. Finn didn't respond… He'd been thinking the exact same thing.

"You know, I've always wanted to know this, even if I couldn't stand to even look at you for a while, and because at the same time maybe I didn't want to know…" Finn started, and he could see Puck bracing himself, like he'd expected it to come, whether it was on that day or any other day. "Why'd you do it?" He didn't answer right away… had to find the words; they weren't as far off as he thought.

"I don't know how it'll sound, but it had nothing to do with you," he started. "She just makes me feel… different, better… even before all the baby stuff. And that day… Yeah, part of it was about sex, but… that came from somewhere, you know? She was the first one… first one that mattered… Then after, that's when…" He paused; Finn remained equally quiet. "Part of what I'm trying to say is… I'm sorry…" Again, he paused. "The other part is none of this leaves this car, okay?"

"Okay," Finn replied after a beat. Maybe they couldn't get back everything as it was, but they could continue with the rest.

THE END

[A/N: Attention, reader! If you're at all skilled in helping break fic-planning conundrums, give a big ol' shout! :D]
(Note to self, don't put the words 'crack' and 'fic' next to each other, it leads to confusion ;))

[A/N: This is a one-shot ficlet, story alert won't get you anything! ;)]