The Assignment

Chapter 2: Character. Adds Character.

Disclaimer: Checking…nope. Still don't own Glee.

Noah Puckerman

Great. This time, I really didn't do anything wrong. I had nothing to do with this Sam/Quinn/Rachel/Sam fiasco, yet I was still stuck in the middle. (…Ok, maybe I had a little to do with it…) Always a troublemaker, I guess. And of ALL the names Schue could have handed me, he gives me HERS? Why would he do this to me? What I told him weeks ago after Glee club was in confidence, and now he wanted me to blab some stupid love song to her? In front of EVERYONE?

I could handle bustin' out some "Big Bottom Girls." But this wasn't Lauren. This was HER. I would never dream about singing some copout, cliché song to her. She deserved something special. Ugh. What a nightmare.

I mean, how do you tell a girl that she's wonderful and beautiful and talented and all that junk… Let's face it: expressing myself has never really been my strong suit. And how would Lauren feel to know all my attempts at getting with her was all just me trying to distract myself from who I really wanted to be my Valentine?

This sucked. Big time.

…But then again, the thought of making her smile made me feel all fluttery and nauseous inside…and that was good, right? I wanted to make her smile, especially after everything she'd been through so recently. And it was kind of my fault. If I hadn't always been so damn available to her to make him jealous every time she asked, maybe she wouldn't be in this mess. But how could I say NO? Especially feeling the way I knew deep down I felt about her.

So, no I have to find a stupid song that says all the stupid, sappy crap I wanted to say to her…but not make me look stupid. Or soft. I do have a badass rep to uphold. It's not easy bein' bad. I just want to tell her that she's amazing; that I don't mind just being her friend, or even her fallback guy, as long as I get to be close to her every once in a while. How do I tell her that she deserves so much more than him? That she's…she's fucking perfect? Last I checked, AC/DC doesn't have a song like that… Not one that she would appreciate, anyway.

She's looking at me. Odd. She never looks at me. I crinkle my paper in my palm and shift away from her, hoping my thoughts don't read on my face. Mr. Schue just always has to complicate things, makes me feel junk that I strive to avoid.

And then I wondered who got my name. From memory, I couldn't think of anyone I had wronged…except Finn. But we were okay, from what I knew. We'd been through a lot more than just this. And maybe I wouldn't have to swoop in on his girls if he would just stop being such a doofus. And when he wasn't being a doofus, he was busy being an egomaniac. That kissing booth? Please. I can't believe so many chicks flock to him. Even Santana said he had no game. But, in reality, he was a good guy. Just a little confused. See, it was always about how Rachel had wronged him and Quinn had wronged him…now he was no better than them. Or me, for that matter.

And I loved it. Because it opened her up to move on…maybe this time with someone that would treat her right.

Rachel Berry

I knew who it was before I even opened the paper, but it still hit me in the gut as it would have if it had been a complete surprise. I could look at it as competitive advantage; Mr. Shuester knows I work well when there is real emotion behind my songs. But, for some reason, my confidence is shaken, and I am having a hard time imagining myself being able to sing to him without getting choked up.

Not because I'm not over him. I am…I think. I don't know.

Come on, Rachel Berry. Pull it together.

I made the hard and determined decision to retire from love. Kurt and Mercedes were right; Barbra didn't need love. Cher didn't need it. I don't need it. Not to mention, once I'm rich and famous Finn will regret everything, and he will want me back…but it will be too late. I will be in the arms of someone more on my level of stardom. And he and Quinn can have a nice little trailer on the outskirts of town and join a bowling league for all I care.

Fireworks? Really?

Forgive me for being so vain, but Quinn has the personality of a blank sheet of paper. What is so explosive about her, anyways? Other than her ability to get pregnant, of course.

There he was over there, staring at her like he was never going to see her again, taking her all in. I guess what makes me the most bitter is wondering why it was so easy for him to fall back into that…he must not have ever really cared about me. And to be completely honest, I don't blame him. I'm not pretty like her. I self-consciously felt myself reaching up to my nose, one of my biggest insecurities.

Character. It adds character.

That's what my fathers always say. I remember when I was 13 I begged them to let me get a nose job. I pleaded and put on the best monologue I had ever done! But they still said no.

"It adds character, Liebes." Liebes. It was short for Liebeskind, a Jewish pet-name they had called me from infancy. Meant 'child of love.' I loved that nickname as a girl. It always reminded me that I was WANTED. I was a child of their love, even if my mother never kept me. "Streisand, darling! She never changed a thing about her face, and she never will. And she has more character than all those plastic 'stars' out there ever will!" Needless to say, I let the nose thing go, but it still creeps up on me ever-so-often.

I watch as Finn is handed his slip of paper. I watch his eyes narrow and his jaw clench. Is it me? I can usually read his face, but I have no idea who he could have been assigned to. I glance around the room. Everyone looks uncomfortable…apprehensive. Mr. Schue couldn't have picked a more interesting assignment…at lease things would finally be out in the open, I suppose. My eyes stop at Puck. He's looking at me. Odd. He never looks at me.

I guess the only thing now is to pick a song. All of the greats have had to sing a song of heartache…how do I do it in the classiest, most confident way possible?

How do you sing goodbye?