Disclaimer: I don't own shiz

Author's Note: And to think I had hoped to be at least ¾ of the way through this fic by the time Glee returned. Ah well. Thanks to everyone who reviewed – positive feedback makes me so happy! Considering A2s are coming up I highly doubt I'll be churning out a chapter every other day, but now that Glee's back, hopefully I can be a bit more productive. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

Rachel Berry was clearly a woman on a mission. She was waiting for him by the main doors, her eyes sweeping across the oncoming waves of teenagers. How long had she been standing there? Probably not long, they both knew he would never arrive at school more than five minutes before the bell rang.

Puck was tempted to duck back into his car and drive off; he had physics and his teacher had long given up on his sporadic attendance. But, as he promised his mother, he was trying to turn over a new leaf and Coach Tanaka could only overlook so many bad grades before the principle would intervene. He contemplated slipping in amongst a crowd of people, but she had already seen him, almost falling down the steps as she leaned forward in anticipation.

With an eye roll, he began to make his way inside Mckinley High. Evidently it was not fast enough for Rachel; she met him halfway, eyes impossibly wide and a desperate look on her face.

"I need to talk to you," she announced. He ignored her and continued walking. She trotted beside him.

"I left you 56 messages this weekend…you didn't reply."

"I was busy."

"I have already apologised for my actions and I'm sure that you are probably sick to death of hearing me say this, but I'm-"

She stopped, stunned, as Puck stopped abruptly and turned around to walk back the way he had come. Physics wasn't worth this. Rachel watched him amble down the steps, moving effortlessly against the current. She looked back towards school, torn between her plan and the fear of being late for her lesson. With a deep breath she stalked after him. It was less easy, going against the crowd, and Rachel was disappointed, but not surprised, that they didn't part for her the way they had done for Puck. After pushing past shoulders and ignoring glares and mutters of abuse Rachel entered the school car park. Puck's red truck was parked near the front.

He was sitting inside with his eyes closed and his head in his hands. Rachel rapped on the window and waited expectantly as he jumped, glared at her and cursed. When he didn't move she knocked on the window again. He slowly rolled the window down.

"What?" he asked impatiently.

"I have a solution."

Puck's blank expression told Rachel she could continue.

"I think it would be more than appropriate for me to help you, Quinn and Finn get over this hurdle, considering the part I, er, played." Rachel paused, waiting for Puck to make some sort of comment. When he didn't say anything she continued. "I would like to help in the reconciliation of you, Finn and Quinn, after all, you need-"

"Reconciliation?" There it was, the interruption she was waiting for. "You want to make things better?"

Rachel could not tell whether his tone was incredulous or sceptical, "Well I believe it-" he cut her off again.

"You know how you can make things better?" he asked. Rachel nodded, gullible as ever, her big eyes urging him to elaborate.

"Fuck off," Puck spat.

Rachel flinched and struggled to compose herself as he began to wind up the window.

"I'm trying to offer you some help."

"I know," he grunted," and you know what would've really helped? If you kept your big mouth shut!"

"I had to say something. If I didn't Finn still wouldn't know. You two were obviously never going to tell him; the kid could've come out the spitting image of you and you'd still bullshit about it."

If she had not seen his jaw clench and eyes narrow, Rachel would have thought her last comment had gone unnoticed. Puck did not look at her as he turned on the engine and pulled out of his space – who said he had to go to school today anyway?

"It's for the best."

Finn nodded, only vaguely aware of the hand stroking the back of his head. He stared mournfully at the dashboard, avoiding the sympathetic gaze of his mother.

Hearing she was not about to become a grandmother anytime soon had been one of the best things to happen to Carole Hudson in a long time, but for her son it had evidently been the worst.

"I know it might not seem like it now and you probably thought Quinn was special, but things are going to be a lot simpler now. Now you can just be an ordinary teenage boy and be free to do whatever it is you want to do."

"I know," he mumbled. It had become an automatic response to his mother's pep talks, but Carole did not seem fazed by this. She smiled encouragingly as Finn slowly unbuckled his seatbelt.

"Do I have to go to school today?" he asked.

"You'll have to face them sometime."

"But I have physics first… Puck and Quinn are in physics," Finn pleaded. He watched his mother's smile falter.

"Procrastination isn't going to make you feel better," she warned.

"I know."

"Quinn and Puck might not even come into school today. They're probably more upset than you are."

"Sure," Finn scoffed, but his mum had a point. Quinn had a habit of hiding out and waiting for scandals to blow over and despite the bravado, Puck did not enjoy tackling emotional confrontations head on. Both of them would probably go out of their way to avoid him.

Carole's smile reappeared as Finn opened the car door and slid out, a half-hearted smile the only good bye she would get in a high school car park. She watched as he shuffled towards the school's main entrance, head down, shoulders hunched. She didn't see the now bulging figure of Quinn Fabray until it was too late.

His mother was always going on about posture. Head up, she would bark when he walked away after any kind of argument. Maybe if he listened he wouldn't always be bumping into things.

Finn was all set to apologise when he felt the all too familiar feeling of a body collide with his own. The words stopped in his throat as he looked up to the face of the person standing in front of him. His mind froze.

Finn was only vaguely aware of Quinn's own discomfort. Her mouth opened and closed, as if to say something, but her words appeared to fail her too. Awkwardly she held a closed fist out to him, opening it to reveal a neatly folded piece of paper.

The note was cowardly, Quinn knew that, but if she said anything to Finn she knew she would start crying and spewing apologies or not know what to say. Knowing him, he would probably start crying too, maybe throw something around and tell her to leave him alone before storming off.

Besides, it was a good note.

In it she explained everything: the faux pas that had resulted in it, how awful she had felt afterwards, her dilemma when she had found out she was pregnant, the guilt she had felt over lying and, most importantly, why she had chosen him to be the person she would forever be bonded with.

Quinn's arm hung awkwardly as Finn stared at the piece of paper in her hand. From the corner of her eye Quinn could see Kurt and Mercedes standing at the top of the steps, staring down at them.

"Please take it," she whispered. The sound of Quinn's voice seemed to bring Finn back to reality as his eyes flickered to her face. Without a word he turned and ran. She watched, mortified, as he scrambled into his mother's SUV parked a few feet away.

"Take me home," Finn mumbled. Before he could even finish his sentence, the engine was on and his mother was pulling out of her space.

Kurt and Mercedes exchanged scandalised glances, both conflicted by the urge to squeal about the gossip and console Quinn. Neither felt particularly close to Quinn but Finn's rejection – however justified - had made them cringe. Wordlessly they reached a decision and rushed down the steps.

"Are you okay?" Mercedes asked gently. Quinn nodded and smiled, but there were tears in her eyes. She opened her mouth to make a blasé comment but the words caught in her throat. She mentally slapped herself as tears began to uncontrollably spill down her cheeks. Exchanging sympathetic looks, Mercedes and Kurt looped their arms through hers and marched Quinn to the closest ladies toilet.

Quinn stood numbly as the pair promptly emptied the bathroom, unable to smile at the pair's sharp, snide remarks to the small resistance they faced.

"He's still recovering," Mercedes said as she turned the lock in the door, "he'll get over it soon."

"No he won't," she mumbled. She waited for the pair to instantly tell her it was not true but their silence was a confirmation of her fears. "I thought he would, but I don't think he ever can."

The note was still in her hand. Slowly she unfolded it.

"I thought this note would make him forgive me… I had it all planned out. I – I thought he'd be talking to me by the end of the month, and then we'd sing in Glee and everything would be fine again."

Kurt's inner bitch was overridden by his sympathy as comparisons to Rachel strayed in to his head. "He might not forgive you," Kurt said tentatively, "but he won't be mad at you for ever. You might not get back together, but you'll be friends some day, even if it is when you suddenly meet again in 20 years time."

He winced as Quinn's silent tears morphed into loud, breathy sobs and avoided Mercedes' silencing glare. Kurt usually knew the right things to say, but he was obviously too emotionally invested in this affair and his resentment towards Quinn was beginning to shine through.

"Listen," Mercedes began, grabbing Quinn's shoulders and forcing eye contact. "This isn't going to be easy and I can't say whether things will ever be the same again, but Finn will talk to you again."

"And if he doesn't?"

"He will," Kurt interjected.

Quinn shook her head, "you didn't see the way he looked at me."

"Honey we were there," Mercedes said soothingly.

"No…no you didn't really see it. It was like… pure disgust. Like he never wanted to see me again."

"Maybe now, but it'll pass." Kurt's blasé tone earned him another glare from Mercedes.

Finn had looked more scared than angry to Kurt, but now was obviously not the time for him to be so vocal with his own opinions. Everything about Mercedes' body language was screaming for him to shut up. The bell rang, signalling the start of the school day.

"Don't listen to him. Finn may be angry but he doesn't hate you." Mercedes' certainty was reassuring and within moments Quinn's sobs were silent again.

She wiped her eyes and offered Kurt and Mercedes a satisfied smile. It didn't quite reach her eyes but it appeared genuine enough.

"Everything's going to be fine," Mercedes said with a seemingly genuine smile of her own.

The three all wore the same strained, plastic smiles as they left the bathroom and walked silently to the science block. Kurt and Mercedes to reassure Quinn that everything was going to be all right and Quinn to show the pair that she was going to be just fine. Nothing was said until Quinn had been safely dropped off to her physics lesson.

"Oh my god," Kurt sighed, rubbing his aching cheeks.

"Poor thing," Mercedes muttered simultaneously.

"And I thought Friday was bad. I guess this is the part where the shit hits the fan," Kurt's wry tone failed to show any sort of sympathy.

"Please, we ain't seen nothing yet," Mercedes said dismissively.

"You think they'll ever be Finn and Quinn again?" Kurt asked slyly. There was a pause.

"Do you?" she asked with a small smile.

Though not as brazen as he hoped, Mercedes' tone was undeniable. Sympathetic with just a trace of the innocently malicious tone that he himself had taught her. Kurt only felt a sliver of guilt as he revelled in the fact that this was still an area where he and his best friend could never disagree.

The pair walked into their chemistry lesson cackling, neither noticing Jacob, Mckinley's very own gossip girl, gawping after them.