Disclaimers are not my thing. I obviously don't own Glee.
The rest of the week was exhausting for Rachel, and for Blaine and Tina. Santana was on the warpath, which didn't surprise any of them in the least. Rachel had been expecting it, and prepared for it by making sure to bring what the three of them had dubbed the Slushy Survival Kit to school every day. It was really just some extra clothes and makeup and skincare products, but something about giving it a name only the three of them knew made taking the slushy facials much easier.
Santana herself never actually threw a slushy, nor did Quinn, and this they did find surprising. The slushies were coming from either the Cheerios or the hockey team, so Rachel suspected that Santana and Quinn were masterminding the whole thing. She wondered why they were bothering to go about it that way; originally she had figured it was because of Mr. Schue's homework for the week, but Tina had pointed out that they weren't ever stopping anything from happening. They just weren't executing themselves.
Most everyone blatantly ignored Mr. Schuester's instructions, even Rachel who took to only standing up to people when it was Blaine or Tina, which she was doing because they were actually her friends and not because Mr. Schuester told her to. The only person who seemed to be taking him seriously was Brittany, who had almost been brought to tears when she was arguing with a fellow Cheerio after she had seen her throw a slushy on Artie. She had tried to explain to the girl that Artie was a war hero and deserved respect when everyone around had started to laugh. Brittany had just gotten more and more upset until Puck had walked by and asked ominously what the fuck was going on.
Brittany had explained quickly, while everyone gathered watched in stunned silence as Puck told the girl that they were all dumbasses and didn't know what they were talking about. He had then told Artie to go clean up and told their audience to find something better to do.
Rachel and Tina, who had watched the whole event, followed Artie silently and handed him wipes and scrubs from their Slushy Survival Kits. Puck had watched them until Mike walked by; drawing his attention by asking what had happened. Then the pair had strolled away without a second glance.
It was currently Sunday afternoon and Rachel was lounging on her bed next to Tina. She and Blaine had stayed the night at Rachel's house the night before watching movies and discovering a mutual love of signing, which had turned into a full blown Destiny's Child karaoke night. It was the first time in three years that Rachel had friends over to her house, and she had forgotten what it felt like to tell someone your secrets, to have someone else trust you with theirs and to laugh so hard you cried a little.
Blaine had already left, his family liking to spend time together on Sundays, but Tina had asked if she could stay a while longer and Rachel had told her she could move in for all she cared. Tina, Rachel had found out, was really quite loud and funny once you got her going. She talked fast and about anything, which was one of many things they had discovered they had in common.
"You know," Tina said randomly. "I pretend to have a stutter at school."
Rachel quirked a brow at her and giggled, "You are like the least likely person I know to have a stutter."
Tina laughed and nodded, playing with one of the blue stands of her hair.
"When I was younger I hated talking in front of class, so I just decided to stutter so I didn't have to. And when I realized people left me alone and didn't talk to me because of it I kept it up," she explained. Her eyes were downcast and Rachel thought she looked regretful.
"Why didn't you want people to talk to you?" Rachel asked gently.
"I am incredibly shy," Tina told her. "But I more so have a hard time trusting people. It felt easier to keep everyone that I could potentially like at a distance than risk getting hurt by them."
Rachel contemplated her new friend for several moments. She wondered what it was like not trusting anyone. Rachel trusted people immediately, even when she knew she shouldn't. She trusted Tina explicitly from the second the girl had smiled down on her and offered her a ride.
"I have no idea how that must feel," Rachel admitted. "Didn't you get lonely?"
"Not as much as you'd think," Tina explained. "But I think it's probably because the fear was so ingrained that I thought it was better to be lonely."
"So, why did you talk to me?" Rachel questioned.
"Because I've noticed you, you know?" Tina smiled. "Being quiet and ignored has its bright sides; I can observe people from a distance and it's really obvious what they're like after a while. Especially people like you; you've never pretended to be anything you're not. And I looked up to you for that. But at Battle Assembly the other day I watched you finally react to the bullying. Even though Puck had to step in, you weren't going to let her continue to talk to Blaine like that. It's like now that you've got friends you're different, like you made the decision to toughen up and not take it anymore, or at least not let it happen to people you care about. And I saw how Blaine tried to get you out of the way before Santana could hit you, even though you guys were a fumbling mess, you had each other. I guess I just kind of thought if you guys are going to watch out for one another like that after only knowing each other for three days you were probably worth trusting. And I don't want to be alone anymore."
Rachel smiled brightly and rubbed at her eyes, which may or may not have been watering. She pulled Tina into a hug telling her she'd never have to be alone again and listened intently as Tina continued to tell her about her trust issues and how they'd come to be. It was a lot deeper seated than Rachel could have possibly guessed at and she just did her best to listen and support the best friend she'd ever had.
Sometime later, after they'd eaten an entire box of Fruit Loops and spent an hour discussing everything from Honey Boo Boo to Broadway, Tina finally got around to bringing up the Battle.
"You know, when Figgy called your name for the Battle I had this stupid thought," she whispered.
"Yeah?" Rachel prompted.
"I just thought, please let Puck get called," Tina admitted quietly.
"What?" Rachel sputters, almost choking on her soda. "Why would you wish the apocalypse on the school?"
Tina laughed and shook her head, "You know I get why you think that. But I just felt we were really going to need him."
"No one needs Puck," Rachel said, flabbergasted.
"I don't know," Tina said. "I know he can be downright terrifying, but we do need him."
"For what?" Rachel demanded.
"Puck is the leader," Tina began.
"Mr. Schuester is our leader," Rachel interrupted.
"Of our Battle team, I guess," she went on. "But Puck? Puck is the leader. The whole school follows him. And let's face it, we don't want him to be because he leaves us at the bottom of the food chain, but he plays with Mr. Schue like a cat plays with a mouse. It's obvious to everyone but Mr. Schue, who is deluded, that he's in charge for only as long as Puck lets him be."
Rachel didn't say anything. She agreed with Tina; she was practically saying what Rachel had thought on Wednesday. But that didn't make it any less intimidating, Rachel felt like her life had less of a chance of being flipped on its head if she pretended Mr. Schuester was in control. Puck was a wildcard—he'd never let on to why he'd decided to go along with the Battle now that it was obvious he didn't think he was being forced.
"That still doesn't explain why you wanted him on our team," Rachel prodded.
"I just have this feeling. He's not going to let anything happen to us," Tina stated. Rachel had no clue how she could sound so positive about such a thing.
"Puck let's things happen to us all the time," Rachel argued. "He throws slushies at our faces."
"When was the last time he threw a slushy?" Tina asked.
"I don't know," she replied, exasperated.
"He hasn't this year," Tina stated. "Not one."
"So? When has he ever put a stop to one?" Rachel probed.
"Last Tuesday," Tina said as though it was obvious.
Rachel just looked at her like she'd lost her mind.
"He kept Blaine from getting slushied," Tina said slowly, like Rachel might not be catching on. "You were there."
"He did that because he hates Stick," Rachel reputed.
"I don't think so," Tina said.
"You don't think he hates Stick?" Rachel wondered. She was confused because if there was one person Puck actually hated it was Stick.
"Oh, no, he detests Rick," Tina agreed. "But why?"
"Because even he knows Stick is scum?" Rachel said. She hadn't meant for it to come out sounding like a question.
"Why do you refuse to call him anything but Stick?" Tina questioned, laughing.
"Because he's awful," Rachel grumbled. "He trapped me in a portable toilet for an entire day last year! For no Reason! It took days to get rid of the smell. I missed the rest of the week because of that."
"Who got you out?" Tina asked. She was at Rachel's closet, trying on some of her sweaters.
"I can't remember," Rachel disclosed. "I was on the verge of passing out. I just remember finally waking up in the nurse's office."
Tina was digging through the very back of Rachel's closet, throwing things out onto the floor and making incredulous noises. Rachel watched the growing mess on her floor, wondering what Tina was doing.
"Rae, you have some awesome clothes in here!" she finally exclaimed, resurfacing from the depths of the closet. "Why do you just wear skirts and sweaters and polos?"
"Because they're what's school appropriate?" Rachel responded, picking a pair of her jeans off the floor and refolding them.
"You should wear this!" Tina exclaimed holding up a shimmery blouse with a gold sequined color. "With jeans!"
Rachel just shook her head and started gathering her clothes back up.
"Maybe outside of school," Rachel conceded. "I don't want to draw attention to myself."
"It's all designer!" Tina exclaimed. "You have to wear it. The Cheerios would drool over this stuff. How do you get it?"
"Daddy loves fashion," Rachel shrugged. "So he's always bringing me home clothes from the shopping he does when he travels."
"That's so cool," Tina said, amazed.
"You can borrow whatever you want," Rachel said. "I think we're fairly close to the same size."
Tina smiled and thanked her, stuffing some clothes in her bag. It was getting late at that point, so Tina started gathering her things to leave.
"Do you want a ride to school in the morning?" Tina offered. "I live close by, it's not a problem."
Rachel beamed, "If you're sure it won't be an inconvenience."
"No way, Rae," Tina assured. "You're pretty much my best friend."
She'd said it as though it solved all the problems in the world. Rachel smiled softly and nodded telling her she was hers too; because it really did kind of solve all the problems in her world.
Rachel helped her carry her things out to her car, laughing over the fact that she was undeniably leaving with more things than she'd brought. It made Rachel's stomach flutter because she guessed that's just what came with the territory of having a female best friend. And even Blaine had left with several of her CDs to put into his iTunes, assuring Rachel he'd bring her some of his own to fill in the unacceptable gaps in her musical interests.
Just as she was about to back out of Rachel's driveway Tina rolled down her window and beckoned Rachel back over to her.
"I meant to say this before, but I got distracted by the clothes," Tina giggled softly. "Puck was the one who found you and took you to the nurse last year. I was hiding in the office to avoid an end of the day slushy and saw him carry you in and tell the nurse what happened."
Rachel gaped openly at her, trying desperately to pick through her memories of that day. She had trouble believing that she wouldn't have been able to remember Puck rescuing her and carrying her around. She couldn't reconcile the notion with her ideal of him.
In the end she settled for, "Huh?" as a response.
"He said he'd noticed you missing after first period," Tina went on. "That was what? Like the middle of last year?"
"Little bit before, yeah," Rachel clarified. "That doesn't make sense."
"Puck does strange things," Tina granted. "I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah," Rachel responded.
Normally she would have thanked Tina profusely for the ride, but she walked back into her house confusedly. She spent the rest of her night in a daze and finishing up her homework. It wasn't until midnight that she even remembered that she hadn't done any vocal practice all weekend.
Monday and Tuesday proceeded much like Thursday and Friday had for Rachel, though the slushy war seemed to be slowing down slightly. Santana and Quinn walked the halls in their Cheerio uniforms and paid no attention to any of their teammates other than Finn, Mike and Puck. So really, everything seemed to go back to normal. That was if you didn't count the weird looks Rachel thought she was getting, but those she brushed off thinking it was doubtless the side effects of a rumor that had been started about her. She found it odd, though, that the football team appeared to be outwardly attempting to stay as far away from her as possible.
When Wednesday finally rolled around Rachel found herself in the same position she had the week before, with only one noticeable difference; Tina flopped against the wall beside Rachel and Blaine, waiting with dread for the time to come when they would need to head to the choir room.
"What do you think we're going to be forced to do today?" Rachel wondered aloud.
"In my mind it looks something like the battle for Middle Earth," Tina groaned.
"You've been to see Lord of the Rings one too many times," Blaine stated. "It'll be worse than that. WWIII is more likely."
"You two are being dramatic," Rachel said. "Plus the battle for Middle Earth would be immeasurably worse than World War anything."
The three glanced up at the clock and began the short walk to the choir room. They walked as slowly as possible, and Rachel wondered how late Puck would be today.
"You remember the time they put Legally Blonde on Broadway?" Rachel asked. Her friends nodded as they filed through the door. "It's going to be worse than that."
"Now who's being dramatic?" Blaine mocked.
Rachel was surprised to find the room already full, Puck reclining in a chair in the second row, his foot on the back of Brittany's, holding him in place. Mike and Finn were chatting loudly about football, occasionally calling on Puck who merely nodded a lackluster response, absolutely uninterested. Quinn and Santana sat in the row in front of them, as they had the week before, both were motionless with their arms crossed over their chests. Brittany was smiling and talking happily with Artie who had maneuvered himself into the space to the right of her chair.
On the other side of the room Mercedes and Kurt were flipping through the most recent issue of Vogue in the front row, a seat between them and Artie. Blaine looked over the room quickly and led Rachel and Tina into the second row; he sat behind Kurt, leaning forward to give the boy a quiet hello. Tina took the seat to his left and propped her feet up on the vacant chair beside Artie. That left Rachel next to Tina with only one space between herself and Puck.
"Where is Mr. Schuester?" Rachel wondered as she peered around the room.
"He isn't hiding under the piano, Hobbit. Who needs him anyways?" Santana cracked not bothering to turn around to give Rachel any more of her attention.
"Santana," Puck rumbled quietly. He was still staring ahead disinterestedly.
"I cannot believe this bullshit," Santana griped, whipping around to glare at Puck. "Are you serious? What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"Relax, Lopez," he murmured, and though it was said softly if was more full of warning than anything Rachel had heard him say to her thus far.
"Why don't you tell Bilbo to relax?" she snapped bad, flicking her hand at Rachel.
"Why don't you just stop instigating arguments with me before you go embarrassing yourself again by getting forcefully removed from my presence?" Rachel suggested smiling politely. Blaine and Tina snapped their fingers in unison at the end of her question.
Santana stood slowly from her chair and turned to face Rachel, her face billowing with rage. Rachel, though she wouldn't admit it out loud, began to fear slightly for her safety. She was fairly sure that someone would put a stop to Santana if she decided to try to hit her again, but she was also certain that if Santana lunged at her she'd at least make impact this time before she was halted.
"Listen up, King of the Goblins," Santana commanded as she addressed Rachel, Blaine and Tina, "and goblin minions. Just because you think you're suddenly safe because of this cracked Battle shit doesn't mean that you are. I don't give one single fuck about your precious feelings or your rightfully tiny self-esteems, so watch yourselves, because your guard dog doesn't scare me. He can't be around all the time."
Rachel scowled back at her, not quite sure what to say. She personally hadn't been able to retain the terrorized feeling she'd had after Santana had called her 'King of the Goblins'. She was quiet for several seconds, contemplating whether or not to dignify Santana's absurd threat with a response and weighing the pros and cons of putting up a fight. In the end she didn't seem to be able to hold her tongue.
"Santana, please do not pretend to presume that you actually know anything about me. I have a perfectly acceptable self-image and my self-esteem can withstand much more than slushy throwing and lewd drawings. I am especially unimpressed by the attempted insult that was 'King of the Goblins'. Honestly, Bilbo was more offensive because I like to consider myself exceedingly more cultured than you and that makes it amazingly remarkable that you know who Bilbo Baggins is, and while surly you are only aware because of the movie adaptations they were once highly successful novels. So why don't you just sit down?" Rachel stated slowly.
Her sentence was punctuated this time with chuckles from almost half the room. Puck smirked and kicked Santana's chair at her further ingraining Rachel's point while simultaneously adding his authority to it. The angry Cheerio kicked her chair back into its place and slammed herself forcefully into it. She was quiet for a beat before she turned around to look up at Puck who was still reclining lazily.
"Why are you doing this?" She asked; her voice submissive but controlled.
Puck let his foot fall from the back of Brittany's chair sending him crashing unceremoniously back to the ground. The only people who didn't flinch were Mike and Brittany. Everyone's eyes latched onto him, all wondering about the truthful answer to Santana's question. Rachel willed him to reply, reeling over his actions; the things Tina had brought up rushing to the forefront of her mind. She was beginning to feel like his motives were much larger than the simple interest he claimed having in how things would turn out. If that were the extent of it he wouldn't be handling situations and getting so entangled with the proceedings.
"What am I doing Santana?" Puck demanded.
"You're standing up for her," Quinn interjected when it appeared that Santana was't going to answer, her finger pointing at Rachel.
"And you want to know why?" Puck clarified.
If it had been Rachel she would have muttered a, 'No, sorry. I was talking to myself.' Puck's voice had dropped a register and his eyes were livid, moving back and forth between Quinn and Santana. He had leaned forward, closing the distance between all of them in a way that was more threatening than anything Santana had managed to spout during one of her verbal tirades. Unfortunately, they weren't able to maneuver out of the conversation because Puck seemed intent on having it. They just nodded their response.
"Because I damn well can," Puck hissed. "Because you whores bore me. Because I find it amusing that you're so threatened by a sophomore who has never shown any interest in anything you two deem yours. I think it's fuckin' hysterical how terrified you are of me telling you two to leave her and her friends the fuck alone, because you think I picked her over you and that if anyone else were to find out it would ruin the perfect little images you've been able to create around the fact that I favor you; you don't want people to know that I've never been able to stand either of you bitches and the only reason we hang out is because you're dating Finn and you used to date Mike. That's why; because I don't care about popularity. It's worthless and I'm fuckin' done with the bullshit."
"So you're picking her?" Quinn asked enraged.
"I'm not picking fuck," Puck snapped. "I'm just not picking you."
"It's the same thing!" Quinn screeched. "She's below you!"
Rachel felt that at this point she should chime in; insist that she was, as a matter of fact, not below Puck, but she was stunned into silence as Puck scoffed and shook his head once again leaning back in his seat.
"You threw slushies at her! You called her names," Santana found her voice. "And now you're saying you were fucking kidding? No!"
"I can do what I want," Puck laughed.
"But why?" Quinn demanded. "Why her?"
"Get your spanks out of your ass Fabray," Puck told her. "I don't give a fuck about her either."
"It sure doesn't look that way," Santana accused.
"I don't fuckin' like her and I don't fuckin' like you two," Puck continued with a roll of his eyes.
"Do you like me?" Brittany asked, looking up at him hopefully.
"Of course, Bri," Puck chuckled. She had managed to take some of the fire out of him with her earnest perusal of his approval.
"I like Rachel," the quirky Cheerio told him in a manner she obviously thought was helpful. "Her sweaters are my favorite part of the day. It's like a game. What animal will it be today? Artie and I bet on it. It's fun. Do you want to play? Oh, and remember the time we heard her sing at Castle over the summer? Her voice is like baby angle wings brushing against your face."
"What castle?" Rachel whispered.
She was thoroughly confused by Brittany's admissions, unsure if the fact that Brittany and Artie making a game out of her wardrobe was rude or strangely adorable. She looked over at Tina and Blaine for some sort of assistance, but they both looked just as muddled as she felt. She turned around to ask Puck where he and Brittany had heard her sing, but was interrupted by Mr. Schuester finally making his entrance.
"How are we all doing today?" he asked as he dropped a large duffle bag onto the floor.
"Are we going to burry a body?" Brittany asked.
"Um, no," he replied. "How has everyone's week gone?"
"This week I discovered that people throw slushies on other people, and sometimes on cats," Brittany lamented. "And I would like to place a formal request for this to end. Cats don't like slushies and Artie said it's not a nice thing to do to people either."
"Who slushied a cat?" Mercedes questioned.
"Coach Sue," Brittany responded.
"Well, Brittany, I'll see what I can do," Mr. Schuester told her, looking really quite unsure how to talk to her.
"Oh, Mr. Schue, I wasn't talking to you," Brittany explained to him as if he was too slow to understand her. "I was talking to Puck."
"I got you, Bri," Puck said tugging on her ponytail.
Their advisor glanced around the room, and Rachel thought it looked like he was seeking council from some superior being. She couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her as she shared a look with Tina and Blaine.
"What torture are you forcing on us today?" Kurt spoke up as he eyed the duffle bag wearily.
"I'm glad you asked, Kurt," he responded enthusiastically as he unzipped the bag and rifled around. Pulling a box out of the bag he held it up to display it proudly to the class.
"Please tell me there's a pizza in that box," Kurt groaned.
"I don't feel safe participating in this assignment, Mr. Schuester," Rachel exclaimed, shaking her head rapidly.
"Ya'll are going down!" Brittany cheered raising her fist in the air. "I've never lost a game of Twister in my life."
"How are we going to fit twelve people on one Twister mat?" Finn wondered.
In response to Finn's question Mr. Schuester pulled several more boxes out of his duffle bag. All of them displayed cheerily that they were "The game that ties you up in knots!"
"Epic Twister!" Mr. Schuester crowed. If Rachel were a more violent person she would snatch one of the boxes from his overly enthusiastic hands and brain him with it.
"Mr. Schuester," Rachel settled for quipping, "Tina and I are wearing skirts. It would be highly inappropriate for you to force us to participate in this game with the possibility of us being put in uncomfortable positions is quite a possible likelihood."
Her teacher's face fell for only a second before he managed to recover. Rachel shrank back from his triumphant grin knowing she'd lost her last objection.
"Puck, Mike, do you guys have any gym shorts your partners could borrow?" he asked the football players.
Rachel gaped at him like he'd lost his mind and was sincerely hoping that Puck would put his foot down and provide Mr. Schuester with whatever reason he pleased about why Rachel would not be wearing his clothing. She decided she wouldn't even be hurt if he made some gross joke about her. She turned to see his response, but was surprised to see the two of them shuffling through their bags in search of the requested items.
"This is… this is degrading," Rachel stuttered as Mike tossed Tina a pair of mesh gym shorts.
"All I've got that's clean is sweatpants," Puck stated, handing Rachel a pair of black McKinley sweats with "Puckerman" written down the side.
"Thanks?" she mumbled as she got up to follow Tina to the bathroom to change.
"I can't believe this," Tina groaned pulling her shorts on and tightening the string around her waist to keep them in place. "This is weird. I'm wearing Mike Chang's pants."
Rachel looked over at her best friend as she hiked Puck's sweats up. They were about three sizes too big for her, and several inches of fabric were left pooling around her feet on the floor.
"This is just ridiculous," Rachel complained, rolling the waist of the pants up as much as possible and then bending to do the same to each of the pant legs. "Puck is about a foot taller than me and a hundred more pounds of muscle. There's no way these are going to stay on."
"You look like you've died and come back as the gangster reincarnation of yourself," Tina laughed, clutching at her side.
"This is so undignified," Rachel whined, balling her fists in the fabric in an attempt to keep Puck's pants in place. "Let's just get this over with."
Tina followed Rachel back to the choir room laughing the whole way. As she entered the room she took in the Twister mats now covering most of the floor and the students standing all around the edges of them; Mr. Schuester was standing on top of the small risers at the back of the room with Artie who was holding onto the spinner and a whistle.
"Rachel! Tina! Good, you're back," Mr. Schuester called, bringing the attention of everyone in the room to them. "Join your teammates and I'll go over the rules."
She glanced around finding Puck standing on the far side of the room, a space open next to him for her. He watched her with a content expression as she crossed the mat covered floor and took up her place beside him, all the while holding on to the sweats that were drooping much too low for her pleasure. She craned her head to look up at him and scrunched her face at him as he chuckled at her to show her displeasure.
"Good look for you, Dollface," he murmured.
Rachel was quite tempted to tell him to take his sarcastic comment and fuck off with it, but reminded herself that she was a lady, so she settled for a snide, "Thanks so much for your approval."
And of course he wasn't fazed in the least, so he just hummed a laugh low in his throat. Rachel barely contained the urge to stomp her foot and storm out.
"Alright, listen," Mr. Schuester said and for once everyone turned to look to him for instructions. He almost seemed shocked, but managed to hide it well. "This isn't going to be just your average game of Twister. The main objective is to be the first team to reach the center."
He pointed to the middle of the mats where Brittany was sitting holding the fish bowl. She looked quite put out about not being involved in the competition and Rachel honestly couldn't fathom why anyone would want to take part in what was sure to be the most deadly game of Twister ever played.
"Why do we care?" Kurt asked. He was standing on the opposite side of the room from Rachel and Puck.
"Valid question," Blaine seconded.
"I agree," Mr. Schuester conceded nodding at the two boys, "Which is why inside the bowl are eleven prizes described on the slips of paper. They vary from movie tickets to Breadstix gift certificates to a two hundred dollar cash prize; things like that. Everyone gets a prize, but the first teams there are allowed to redraw a number of times based on how they place. For example, if you're first you can redraw as many as ten times, second can do nine, etcetera."
"What's the catch?" Mercedes asked.
"You must do it while answering questions about your partner," the Spanish teacher beamed.
"Excuse me?" Santana demanded. "What kind of questions?"
"Any kind that I or Brittany ask," he responded happily. "You must answer the question correctly in order to complete your next move, which will be called out by our unbiased referee Artie, who is also in charge of making sure there is no foul play. If you're caught doing something he deems unacceptable you'll hear the whistle blow, will be called out and then you'll have to explain your actions and move back to your last position."
"This is really complicated," Finn stated; his face faraway in thought.
"You gotta work for it," Mr. Schuester nodded. "Last week we lost miserably, this week we have to step it up to show that we're making progress."
"But we're not," Rachel scoffed, hands planted on her hips. Across the board Blaine nodded his agreement. Mr. Schuester didn't respond and Rachel rolled her eyes.
"Mike and Tina will start us off since they did second best last week," Mr. Schuester pressed on.
"We were graded?" Mercedes questioned.
"Not in so many words," Mr. Schuester explained. "But I paid attention to how everyone did. Artie and Brittany seemed to do the best, bridging the gap smoothly. Mike and Tina, while not doing quite as well, managed to complete the task without any problems. Everyone else got in a fight of some sort."
No one said anything to that, not being able to disagree. They all stood silently waiting for their advisor to move on.
"Everyone ready?" he asked.
He was answered by a loud chorused, "No," that he seemed to take delight it.
"Take it away, Artie!" He chirped.
"Left foot, red," he called out. He seemed to be enjoying his post quite well.
"Question before you move," Mr. Schuester reminded. "Tina what is Mike's football number?"
Rachel watched as Tina cocked her head to the side, closing her eyes to think. She didn't understand why his sports number was relevant. Tina looked up at Mike, probably trying to call to mind him in his football jersey. She, like Rachel, had never found it necessary to attend a football game.
"Eight?" she said hopefully.
Mike grimaced and shook his head, "Eighty."
"I was close!" Tina exclaimed, looking to Mr. Schuester.
"You were off by 72," Brittany said with a shake of her head. "You shall not pass!"
Rachel giggled and Puck looked down at her confusedly. Tina smiled and shrugged, smiling apologetically up at Mike.
"You guys get it now?" the teacher asked them. He was answered with silent nods. "Finn and Kurt you're up next."
"Oh, Lord," Kurt droned.
"Right hand, green!" Artie spun for them.
"What grade is Kurt in, Finn?" Mr. Schuester asked.
Finn's eyes went wide, his mouth opening and closing as he desperately grasped for an answer.
"Sophomore?" he guessed.
Kurt nodded and they both moved forward at Mr. Schuester's nod to place their hands on an appropriate spot.
"I feel ridiculous," Kurt said, squatting down. He looked over at his partner who looked like he was doing some sort of weird lunge. "You look ridiculous."
Then he remembered the rule about foul play and glanced over at Artie to show he'd meant no harm. Artie shrugged to show he didn't care as Mr. Schuester pointed at Rachel and Puck. Rachel's heart skipped as she gazed down at the mat in front of her.
"Right foot, blue," Artie informed them.
"What is Puck's football number?" Mr. Schuester asked.
Rachel stifled her eye roll and tried to think back to all the times she'd seen Puck in his uniform.
"I'm fairly certain it's red," Rachel supplied, tugging at her sweatpants.
"Warm," Puck snickered.
Mr. Schuester looked like he was about to intervene, so Rachel held up her finger in the universal sign for I'm thinking.
"In the twenties?" Rachel said with closed eyes.
"Warmer," Puck said.
"Rachel," Mr. Schuester warned.
"Twenty?" she finally asked, looking up at Puck for conformation.
"Nice guess, Biggie Smalls," Puck laughed taking a step forward to a blue dot. Rachel followed his lead.
"What's a Biggie Smalls?" Rachel asked.
Puck shook his head and smirked, "Rapper."
"Oh."
"Santana and Blaine," Artie took over, "To yellow, left hand."
"Blaine, who is Santana's best friend?" Mr. Schuester questioned.
"Quinn?" He conjectured. Santana nodded and they both sought out the nearest yellow dot.
"Quinn and Mercedes. Left foot, yellow," Artie called.
"What is Mercedes' last name?" Mr. Schuester inquired.
Quinn crossed her arms over her chest, "I don't know."
"Jones," Mercedes snapped. "Same as it was when it was called out last week for the whole school to hear."
Artie's whistle shrilled through the room. Rachel clapped her hands over her ears and glared.
"No sassing your teammate," Artie corrected.
"We're doing good though, guys," the teacher added to encourage them.
"I have absolutely no interest in what's in that stupid fish bowl," Rachel grumbled.
"Two hundred bucks is two hundred bucks," Puck said quietly, looking over her with a shrug.
Rachel hadn't heard the question Mr. Schuester asked Mike but silently applauded as they moved forward. Brittany then asked Kurt what position Finn played in football, and apparently got it very wrong by answering, "Pitcher?" Everyone laughed, including Kurt.
"I don't understand," Rachel muttered.
"Pitchers are in baseball," Puck explained, still smiling over Kurt's mistake. "Finn is quarterback."
"At least it was a real sport term," Rachel laughed.
"Rachel and Puck's right hand to red," Artie tolled out.
"What does Rachel smell like?" Brittany asked.
Rachel nearly choked over her own giggles as she watched Puck eye his friend.
"What kind of question is that?" he demanded. "She smells like glitter and rainbows and all things Broadway."
She couldn't keep herself from giggling obnoxiously at his response. She had to clutch at his sweats to keep from toppling over as she bent forward and placed her hand on a red circle.
"Rachel," Mr. Schuester started to admonish her.
Flipping her hair out of her face she looked up smiling, "I wear a perfume created by Barbra Streisand."
Puck grinned and joined her, shaking his head as if to clear it. When no one else argued their teacher had no choice but to let them go. Rachel half listened as Santana incorrectly guessed Blaine's middle name.
"Eventually we're going to run out of things we know about one another," Rachel whispered. Puck quirked his eyebrows at her. "My middle name is Barbra, I'm fifteen until December 18th, I have two fathers named Hiram and Leroy, I don't know my mother."
"Middle name is Elijah, turned eighteen August 3rd, I live with my mom, Ava, and my dad fucked off when I was thirteen. His name was Eli," Puck responded quietly. "I play left tackle, can play guitar, my favorite band is Led Zeppelin."
"My favorite class in English, and I'm rotten at math. I'm vegan and I really miss the taste of real cheese. I love fireworks and concerts and I prefer Kansas," she muttered trying to find a more comfortable postition.
They both looked up startled as Artie's whistle sounded again on Quinn and Mercedes, forcing the girls back to the start.
"I've got offers from Michigan and Florida for scholarships once I graduate," Puck continued.
"Oh, that's fabulous," Rachel beamed at him.
"Focus, Dr. Dre," Puck hushed her. "But I don't think I'll go anywhere if I don't get an offer from Ohio State. My backup plan is to work with Kurt's dad at his auto shop."
"My leg is cramping, this is really uncomfortable," Rachel hissed. "I'm going to go to Julliard. My dream is to play Elphaba in Wicked. Or be in Chicago or Les Miz. I have a cat named Boo and I'm allergic to dogs and latex."
"Puck and Rachel, right hand to green," Artie called.
"What is Puck's favorite band?" Mr. Schuester asked. He looked like he was having the time of his life.
"Led Zeppelin," Rachel smirked as she and Puck moved forward.
Rachel groaned. This is where thing were going to start getting interesting. In order to reach her next circle Rachel had to go either above or below a precariously perched Finn. She stared at her predicament thinking until Puck motioned for her to start going over. She followed his advice as Finn tried to get as close to the ground as possible while maintaining his position.
"Just go under me," Finn grouched, his body wobbling slightly.
"Fuck that," Puck hissed. "You'll fall and crush my midget and we'll have to start over."
"I am not a midget!" Rachel hissed back. "Just stay where you are Finn, I can do it without you going any lower."
Rachel couldn't see Puck anymore, but she could hear him arguing quietly with Finn. She looked up and came face to face with Kurt, who appeared to be having even less fun than she was. She smiled at him, happy when he returned it.
"Yo, Tupac, watch your drawers," she heard Puck say.
"Watch my what?" she called back.
"Your pants," Finn snapped.
"Oh sweet, Céline Dion," Rachel sighed.
"Finn and Kurt to right hand green!" Artie called before she was able to do anything about her 'drawers'.
"Finn what does Kurt's dad do for a living?" Mr. Schuester asked.
"So help me, Hudson, you better fuckin' get this," she heard Puck growl. "If you fall on me you're dead."
"Uh, cars?" Finn huffed. "He fixes cars and stuff."
"Yep," Kurt affirmed. He hastened to move as Finn tried to untangle himself from Puck and Rachel.
"You're stepping on my hand Frakenteen!" Santana shrieked.
Artie's whistle trilled out again as Finn and Kurt both went crashing to the floor.
Rachel just barely managed to remain upright as she narrowed her eyes at Santana for shoving.
"Santana, why did you do that?" Mr. Schuester demanded.
"He was on my hand!" She defended. "And he is outlandishly tall."
Rachel looked back to see that Finn and Kurt had gone back to the outside of the mats, Blaine and Santana slowly following. She was relieved to see that Puck had also managed to hold the pushup like form he was currently in.
"Puck and Tupac, right feet to blue," Artie called.
Rachel was surprised it was their turn again, admonishing herself for not paying close enough attention. Then she decided listening to the others was probably the last distraction she needed.
"Are the rapper jokes going to end when I put my own clothes back on?" Rachel inquired with a resigned huff.
"No!" she heard Blaine, Tina, Artie, and Puck respond with laughs.
"Puck, what is Rachel's favorite flavor slushy?" Mr. Schuester asked.
"That is hardly a fair question!" Rachel protested.
"Grape," Puck stated confidently. "You always lick your lips before you clean grape slushies off."
Rachel gaped at him as he move forward into a more restful position. She nodded that he was correct as she moved to her next dot. Doing this however, brought her into very close quarters with her partner. His shoulder brushing against her side as she almost collapsed in hysterics.
"What the hell?" Puck exclaimed, leaning as far away from her as he could.
"Sorry," she said, trying to get her breathing under control. "I'm ticklish."
"How's your leg, Slim Shady?" Puck asked once she'd caught her breath.
"Oh, it's fine. Thank you for asking. I was just in a peculiar position," Rachel responded politely.
Puck nodded at her as he listened to Mike get another question right, resulting in them being in the lead. Rachel snorted as she watched her best friend awkwardly do some sort of backwards crab walk to get to the next circle.
Finn and Kurt made it back onto the mat as Finn correctly guessed what kind of car Kurt drove. She could hear Santana and Blaine whispering furiously and complaining as the team of boys blocked their way onto the board.
"N.W.A left hand to yellow," Artie called out.
"The only named I've even recognized is Tupac," Rachel snipped. "He was a fabulous poet, you know?"
"What does Puck want to do when he grows up?" Brittany asked.
"Play football for OSU?" Rachel said, not quite sure if that counted as what he wanted to do when he grew up.
"After college," Mr. Schuester clarified.
"Uh, professional football?" she guessed.
Puck nodded and the two began to attempt to figure out how they would maneuver to their next places.
"I'm going to go up there," Puck pointed, speaking softly to Rachel as the game continued around them. "And get down like I was before. You can go over me to there."
Rachel shrugged her shoulders, figuring his plan was as good as any. Secretly she was glad he had asked her to go over as she felt she was much more likely to be able to hold the more delicately balanced position and she wasn't strong enough to be confident about the whole pushup looking thing. Plus, she thought as they managed to get into place, her falling on him would hurt a lot less than him crashing down into her.
Everyone was beginning to take the game more seriously now, Rachel thought. Seeing as they were thinking more about their answers and trying to help each other out by cooperating as much as was possible.
"Arghh," she moaned as her arms started to quiver. "I can't stay like this much longer."
Puck glanced up to her from where he was, and she marveled at how well he seemed to be holding up. She supposed playing football was good for those kinds of things. She could see that Tina was faring in a similar fashion, and Finn and Kurt's faces were matching shades of red. If she hadn't been about to fall she'd have found it funny.
"Put a little of your weight on me for a bit," Puck told her.
"Are you sure?" Rachel asked thankfully. "You won't fall?"
"I'll be fine, Slim," Puck assured her.
Rachel did as she was told, resting her hips into his back. She was excruciatingly embarrassed by the small purring noise she had let slip as her arms got a break. She could feel the chuckle that left Puck through his back; it made her stomach flutter and her face heat.
"Mike and Tina get first!" she hears Mr. Schuester exclaim a couple of seconds later.
She can hear them flipping through the papers in the bowl as they each fish out a prize. The excited squeak Tina lets out brings a smile to her face, and she's happy her friend won.
"You two can leave if you want," Mr. Schuester tells them. "Go enjoy your prizes."
"Jay-Z and Beyoncé right foot to red," Artie informed them as Tina and Mike grabbed their things to leave. "If you get this you're second place!"
"What does Rachel consider to be the worst experience of her life?" Mr. Schuester questioned.
Rachel groaned, knowing they hadn't talked about this. Her arms were aching so badly and she was resting so much of her weight on Puck already she was sure if she had to keep it up much longer she'd start saying the curse words that were scrolling through her head out loud. She felt Puck sigh, as he thought about it.
"Probably that time Fuck Stick trapped her in a PortaPotty for seven hours," Puck stated.
Rachel grinned ecstatically as she and Puck moved their way into the center. She sighed happily as she fell into a cross legged position next to Brittany. Puck stood up and gestured for Rachel to draw first. Slipping her hand into the bowl she twirled it around before she plucked a piece of paper out. She smiled; satisfied by the two movie passes she was rewarded. Standing she waited for Puck to draw out whatever he wanted, he drew a couple of times before smirking.
"You two can go now," Mr. Schuester smiled at them. "Good job."
She gathered her things quickly and followed Puck from the room. Hearing the tink sound that signaled a text message she pulled her phone from her bag, reading the message as she and Puck exited the front of the building.
I forgot you! Do you want me to come back and pick you up? Tina's frantic text read.
Rachel stopped, staring around at the parking lot, considering her options. Sighing heavily she plopped down on the stairs, preparing to text her back to ask her to come and get her.
"What's wrong, Slim?" Puck asked, stopping in his tracks to turn back and look at her.
"I normally ride with Tina," she explained. "But I guess she forgot me in her haste to take advantage of whatever she won."
Puck watched her silently for several seconds before jerking his head toward the parking lot, saying, "C'mon, Dollface, I'll give you a ride."
"My name is Rachel," she said in a puff. She trooped after him anyways, typing out a response to Tina to let her friend know she'd got a ride.
"I know your name," Puck snickered as he unlocked the passenger's door of his truck and helped her in. She watched him incredulously as he walked around to climb into the driver's seat.
"Then why don't you use it?" she challenged, pointing him in the direction of her house.
"I do," he replied.
"Berry is my surname," she retorted. "It doesn't count."
"You don't call me anything," he stated.
"I call you Puck," she disagreed. "Just like everyone else."
"I've never heard it," Puck stated.
"Take a left at the next light, Puck," she said and smiled over at him. He just scoffed and did as she instructed. "Would you prefer for me to call you Noah?"
His response was to gaze over at her for a moment, making her nervous and her face warm up again.
"Watch the road," she gasped.
"What prize did you get?" he asked her once he'd completed the next turn.
"Movie passes," she shrugged.
"And you didn't draw again?" he prodded.
"I told you I didn't care what was in that stupid bowl. I hate that stupid bowl," she said dismissively. "What'd you get?"
"Hundred bucks," he grinned.
Rachel wasn't surprised, and then the two lapsed into silence as Puck continued the drive to her house. He only spoke to ask her for directions. After a few moments she remembered their last question during the Battle Challenge and what Tina had told her over the weekend. She contemplated bringing it up quietly, wondering if it would be one of those things that a normal person wouldn't mind but would set him off. Her curiosity ended up getting the best of her.
"Did you find me that day Stick locked me in the portable toilet?" she asked him with a soft voice.
Puck glanced over to her quickly before turning back to the road and replying, "Yeah."
"And you took me to see the nurse?" she probed.
"Yes, Slim. Why?" Puck demanded.
She considered letting it go, noting the hesitant tone in his voice. Instead she asked, "Were you looking for me?"
He pulled into her driveway and slammed his truck into park, getting out quickly and making his way to her side of the car. Rachel sat stunned as he opened the door and helped her down. Dumbfounded, she took her bag from him as he shut the door again.
"No. I noticed you were missing," he growled.
Then he walked away, leading them up the path for her front porch. In a daze Rachel fumbled with her keys before she manages to unlock and push open the heavy wooden front door.
"Why?" she asked, her voice soft.
Puck shoved his hands in his pockets and remained silent for what she thought was an inordinate amount of time. It was unnerving, how he scrutinized her so openly.
"Because I just noticed you weren't there, and had this feeling like you needed me," he rumbled. His voice taking on that guarded tone again.
Rachel couldn't think of a response and luckily for her it didn't appear that Puck was in need of one. He turned as she entered her house and was in his truck and gone as soon as she was locking the door behind herself.
Later that night, as she was sitting down to eat take out alone and wishing her father's wouldn't have had to go on yet another business trip, she finally realized she was still wearing Puck's sweatpants. Having no idea what to do, she grabbed her iPhone and pulled up his number.
I forgot to give you your pants back. Sorry. I'll bring them tomorrow? She typed out quickly, sending it before she could talk herself out of it.
I know. Keep em. Puck's reply came almost instantaneously.
Are you sure? She asked, wondering why he'd give her his pants and why she was kind of happy about it.
Yeah. Im goin 2 sleep. Football meeting early 2mrrw. He responded.
How does one reply to that? Rachel wondered, her fingers hovering over her screen. She didn't know why he'd told her anyways.
Okay. Sleep well. She felt ridiculous as soon as she hit send and immediately wished she could take it back.
Night doll. Puck sent.
She stared at her phone for quite some time after that, ignoring the late showing of The Sound of Music she had been looking forward to all day. She ate, staring stupidly at her phone as she finished her less than satisfying meal, not at all capable of coming up with any reasonable way to take the last twenty-four hours; or even the last couple of week.
Resigned and exhausted she gave up. Crawling into bed with his sweats wrapped warmly around her body she nearly felt sick with the way her stomach wouldn't settle and heat kept flushing her body. Ruffling her pillows violently she flicked her iPod on and lulled herself to sleep with the poignant crooning of Jeff Buckley.
Love is not a victory march. It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah…
Heyy, I was going to update tomorrow, then I realized it was Christmas and I assume people have better things to do on Christmas than read my fanfiction. lol. So here you go; a day early. I want to thank everyone for the reviews, the favs, and follows. I'm blown away that so many people are interested, seriously. I'd love to hear from all of you; let me know what you think, what you want to happen, who you want to happen, anything. =)
xox Charlie