The tree house was deep in the woods behind Puck's house. Very deep in the woods. So deep that you almost had to drive. But that's how the gang wanted it, and that's how they liked it. It was far away from parents, bullies, and magazines with too-skinny models on the covers. The tree house was a sweet escape. That's what Lucy Quinn Fabray loved the most. The escape. She was about sixty pounds overweight with braces and thick glasses that even Victoria Beckham couldn't pull off. Lucy was always self-conscious in public because of her looks. But in the tree house, she wasn't being judged. Well, maybe she was by Santana but that was because they were always at each other's throats.
It was the last day of summer before freshman year. Back when Quinn was still Lucy, Puck was a virgin, Santana liked boys, Kurt was finding himself, Finn didn't know he had a voice, and Rachel was still on Myspace. Before all of the drama of high school that the kids knew they would soon be facing, they were just a group of kids who had known each other all of their lives. They were all friends, and heading to the tree house for a 'Farewell, summer' get together. Quinn was bringing food, Rachel was bringing the WMHS Thunder Clap to scope out the upperclassmen, and Puck was bringing the beer.
To get to the tree house you had to start at Puck's house and walk through the woods until you saw a stream. Puck's dad (before he left) had built a bridge for them to walk across, which the girls and Kurt used. Instead of taking the 'easy way out' the boys put a rope on a tree and swung across the stream to land. Rachel had told them countless times that one day the rope would snap and one of them would end up the like the girl from Bridge To Terabithia. Of course they didn't listen. Luckily the rope hadn't snapped. Yet.
The tree house was basic. There was wood attached to the tree bark so they could climb the up to the house that was a little too high up for comfort in Finn's opinion. There wasn't a door or anything. Once you climbed up the tree, there it was out in the open. Sometimes they would find dead birds or live ones in it because of the lack of a door.
In the house were dozens of pictures of them all. Individual portraits, group pictures, and one of Santana in a bikini that sometimes Puck would take home. Also, there was a secret entry that Puck's dad had made for them to hideaway candy and library books that seventh grade teacher Mrs. Pembroke had forced the kids into checking out. Now it was filled with gummy worms (Finn brought a pack once a week because they were Rachel's favorite), bridal magazines (courtesy of Kurt Hummel), Quinn's emergency glasses, and Puck's stash of porn.
"Can you believe that we start freshman year tomorrow?" Quinn exclaimed, passing around the Subway sandwiches she packed in a picnic basket that Santana constantly teased her about and called her 'Little Red Riding Bitch.'
"I plan on joining the Cheerios." Santana smirked.
"I heard that coach is a total bitch." Puck said, attacking his sandwich.
"I'm sorry, have we met? I'm the biggest bitch you'll ever meet. In two months I'll be running the Cheerios and Principle Slumdog Millionaire will be writing checks out to me." Santana said, making everyone laugh.
"I'm going to join New Directions." Rachel said with a big smile.
Rachel had been planning and choreographing her New Directions audition for months. Her audition for the New Directions was going to be the biggest audition of her life. Behind her Julliard and Wicked auditions, of course.
"Gross." Quinn muttered.
"That Sandy Ryerson guy is a total perv." Puck said.
"Well then what do you have planned, Noah?" Puck cringed. He hated when Rachel called him Noah.
"Football all the way, baby!" Finn and Puck high-fived.
"Why boys are so fascinated with slamming into one another, I will never understand." Kurt shook his head, looking at a bridal magazine and circling the biggest and flashiest dresses instead of eating the enormous amount carbs Quinn brought.
"Why would you want to join the football team anyway? We haven't won a game since Fleetwood Mac broke up." Quinn said.
"Me and my boy Finn are going to bring the team to victory this year." Puck and Finn high-fived again.
The gang went silent after that. They all just sat there in silence and ate their food. Maybe it was the nerves of becoming freshman or maybe it was because they knew that this was probably it for them. They were all going in different directions tomorrow and probably wouldn't have time to go to the tree house every day, or even talk to each other.
That would definitely hit Rachel the hardest. These were her best friends and to think that this would all be over really upset her. Rachel didn't have many friends. In fact, these were her only friends. Well, Homeless Brett was kind of her friend. But only when he needed test answers or a dissecting partner in Science class. It wouldn't actually happen, right? They would still be friends. Friends forever. Or at least that's what their friendship bracelets all said. She had made them for everyone. After 'Friends Forever' there was a gold star. Everyone wore them except for Puck and Santana who thought they were too badass to admit that they actually kind of liked Rachel.
"We're all still going to be friends, right?" Rachel finally broke the silence. Her voice was low and uneven.
No one said a word.
"Totally." Quinn nodded. She would never admit it, but she valued Rachel's friendship. She was always nice to her when no one else was.
"Yeah." Kurt nodded.
"Definitely." Finn smiled at her.
The four of them turned to Puck and Santana who had been noticeably quiet.
"Fine. Friends forever." Santana rolled her eyes and took a sip of beer.
"Whatever." Puck chugged his beer. Sure that wasn't much, but to Rachel it meant everything.
"That settles it." Rachel beamed. She passed the beer around and they all held it up in the air.
"Friends forever!" Rachel announced.
"Friends forever." They repeated.