A/N: This is an AU song fic... Puck's killed himself and the parents and teachers of McKinley decided to remove him from the yearbook, our Gleeks, given the opportunity to sing at the end of year assembly have decided to make their opinion known.
I don't own the characters, if I did, there would be a hell of a lot more Puckleberry=) And Hanson own Yearbook, so, that's another loss for me ;)
Enjoy,
Yearbook
Rachel Berry stood before the entire school, her eyes dark and furious, "Six weeks ago, six long excruciating weeks ago, Noah Puckerman took his life."
Whispers broke out through the auditorium as Principal Figgins began to bristle off stage, students and teachers all noticing the yearbook, the Thunderclap, held tightly in her hands.
Her and Noah, their relationship was never an easy one, Hate, Love... it all mixed into one big exciting ball of absolute passion that neither of them could ignore.
She knew though, knew the school's resident badass was hurting... missing his daughter... hurting by the harsh words from everyone, Quinn, Finn, her fathers, his mother...teachers. It wasn't easy. But she thought they were making progress.
Until she'd agreed to marry him, three weeks into the second try of their relationship.
And her fathers had hit the roof.
She continued on, "In those six weeks, the faculty and our parents, people we're meant to trust... conspired to remove him from the Thunderclap to preserve their delicate sensibilities!" She threw the Thunderclap to the ground in disgust, "All because our friend... our friend was so broken... that he..."
"He took his life." Finn stood up in the crowd.
They'd prepared this, New Directions scattered though out the Auditorium, their way of saying goodbye. Their way of making sure that everyone else remembered him too.
The spotlight focused on Rachel, as the piano started, they hadn't told Mr Schue about the song choice fearing he was one of those teachers who'd made the choice... after all, they didn't practice in the choir room anymore.
Dear Amy, see you in September
Hope that you remember me next year
Hey Jamie, you've been a great friend to me
I hope that I'll still see you around here
'Cause I'm looking through the yearbook then I find that empty space
There's a name without a picture, but I can't forget his face
Tell me where did he go, I want to know
Video of Noah, dancing with Mercedes, playing football with the boys, singing with Rachel and Tina, laughing with Artie and Kurt, played behind her. Memories of Noah Puckerman, badass, best friend, boyfriend played on as the hearts of people who knew him best, broke all over again.
Where did Johnny go?
Finn began singing, his voice rough with emotion as his eyes locked onto the video, ignoring the whispers from the other students, he needed to make amends, needed this song to apologise for all the hurtful things he'd said... He couldn't help being angry when he'd found out about Puck and Rachel... he was angry... heartbroken even. But that wasn't an excuse for cutting him out. They'd been brothers, that was meant to be stronger then fighting over girls. It was supposed to mean something.
It says, "Picture unavailable" right here
More than sad, it makes me mad to know somebody knows
There's a lying in your silence. Tell me where did Johnny go?
Poor Katie, she won't even speak his name
None of us will ever be the same
Artie rolled onto stage beside Rachel, being pushed by Tina as Mike, Britney and Matt stood up, sorrow etched on all their faces as they too began to sing.
It's quiet in the halls, but I hear echoing off the walls.
The rumors of Johnny's mystery
'Cause I'm looking through the yearbook then I find that empty space
No he never wrote me nothing, but I can't forget his face
[Repeat Chorus]
Quinn stood up now, Noah's death had hit her just as hard, if not harder then Rachel and Finn, sure, they weren't friends. They never spoke anymore. But she still loved him, how could she not? After all, Noah Puckerman had given her Beth...
Ohhh. There's a lying in your silence. Tell me where did Johnny go?
Ohhh. There's a lying in your silence. Tell me where did Johnny go?
Sometimes I think I hear him calling out my name
Sometimes I wonder if maybe we're to blame
Mercedes and Kurt were the last ones to stand up, their friendship with Noah had been a tentative one, while they had eventually grown fond of him, and he of them, in the end, their treatment was in direct correlation with how they treated Rachel. They were mean, he was mean. They were nice, so was he. They were 'kinda' friends and, in the end, they wished they'd been closer.
It's been a year now and a lot of things have changed
But I keep thinking about Johnny. I keep turning to that page.
Where did he go I want to know, Where did he go I want to know?
Ohhh. There's a lying in your silence. Tell me where did Johnny go?
Ohhh. There's a lying in your silence. Tell me where did Johnny go?
Santana had opted not to sing, with a deep breath she steeled her resolve as she walked onto the stage with the rest of New Directions, she'd spent days with Rachel, trying to find the perfect thing, the one thing she could say to show them just how much Puck had meant. How much their loss burned deep within the team.
Taking Rachel's hand, Quinn's in the other, Britney and the other Gleeks at her back she cleared her throat, "Noah Puckerman was a stud." Her lips curled into a smile, "A Badass, a boyfriend, a best friend, a brother, a lover," One by one, girls in the audience began to stand up, she smirked, typical Puck, "he was a Gleek, a footballer," the football team stood up, their red and white Letterman's jackets dotting the crowd, she spied Shelby Cochran, baby Beth in her arms, sitting with Mr Schue, "he was a father, a son, a fiancée," Rachel squeezed her hand, "And most of all, most of all, he was our friend. He will be missed."