I'm going to get a lot of mixed reviews on this one. There are some tropisms but what are you gonna do? But more on that later. Enjoy.


Puck ended the call and thanked his cab driver. He pulled his bag from the trunk and headed into the Columbus airport.

Sam and Quinn's date had gone well and his friends were planning on extending their trips to get reacquainted with Sebastian and Quinn. He was happy for them even if the fear of being the odd man out was niggling deep within his chest.

He checked in and headed for the waiting room. He was late for his flight and they had almost finished boarding when he handed his ticket to the attendant. She pointed to his seat in first class and he stowed his bag in the bin before sitting down in the aisle seat. There was a purse on the window seat so he figured his seatmate must be in the bathroom. He plugged in his headphones and glanced around the cabin. He'd been lucky to get home tonight. There wasn't another free seat on the plane.

He was reading a work email on his phone when a pair of killer legs stepped into view. The owner of those legs gasped at the same moment that he realised just who those legs belonged to. His gaze slowly moved up her body until it met surprised, brown eyes. He closed his eyes and counted to three but she was still there when he opened them. He looked over her shoulder at the exit and realised the plane was preparing for takeoff. She was shifting uncomfortably in front of him when he finally looked back at her. Her eyes were still wide and brimming with so much emotion that he had to look away. He stood silently so that she wouldn't have to crawl over him. She was bumped by the passenger behind her and he hissed when her chest grazed his own as she stumbled forwards. His hand was on her hip, steadying her without his permission to do so. Their eyes met and he couldn't quite catch his breath. She still smelled like cinnamon and vanilla. He closed his eyes against the sensory assault and withdrew his hand. The air shifted as she moved away from him and took her seat.

"Sir, could you please take your seat? We're getting ready to take off."

He threw himself unceremoniously into his seat and snapped his safety belt into place. He stared straight ahead as the plane started to move. He heard a sharp intake of breath beside him and remembered suddenly just how terrified she was of planes. Why did this shit always happen to him? Seriously.


Rachel's eyes were squeezed shut as her mind shut down. What were the odds of her ending up sitting beside Noah on the way home to New York? And when she'd stumbled forward, he'd caught her and the heat of his hand had branded her. She could still feel where his hand had gripped her and her nipples were still erect from when their chests had brushed. Humiliating. Add to that her never-ceasing fear of air travel and it was no surprise that she couldn't get enough air. Her vision was starting to tunnel when she heard a soft oath muttered from beside her and a large, warm hand wrapped around her own small clenched fist. Her eyes popped open in shock and her head whipped around. He wasn't looking at her, instead staring at the seat in front of him like he wanted to disappear into it. But he was holding her hand. And she was breathing normally again. His body was strung tighter than a bow even though his hand was gently holding her own. She stared at him as the plane leveled out and then he wasn't touching her anymore.

"Thank you." She was breathless and her voice was quiet.

He jerked his head in acknowledgment but kept his gaze averted. She couldn't take her eyes off him. His jaw was set tightly and his body looked ready to spring into action. She had no doubt that the action it craved was flight. Her fingers twitched in her lap as she thought about easing the stress lines between his eyebrows with her thumb. His body was the same. The tension that was rolling off of him in waves was new though. His hands were balled into fists in his lap and she heard the telltale 'pop' of his jaw cracking under the pressure.

"I-" At the sound of her voice his eyes snapped shut and she froze.

She had a choice to make. They could sit in painful silence for the next two hours. She could shove her headphones on and ignore the heartbroken man next to her. Or she could use what little time she had apologizing for every way she'd ever wronged him.

She blew out a long breath.


He couldn't relax. His body was tensed to strike and he was tempted to look for a parachute. The very last thing he needed was another blowout. The other night had been public enough. He'd rather not get arrested this time.

"I-" His eyes snapped shut as he waited for the onslaught. She paused and he could just picture her building up her argument. She'd attack and this time he had nowhere to go. Fucking perfect.

"I'm sorry."

He blinked and turned to look at her for the first time since they'd sat down. "What did you say?"

She fought to keep her eyes on his, fingers twisting in her lap anxiously. "I said I'm sorry."

He shook his head slowly. She was fucking with him. This was a trap. Don't say anything. Do not get drawn in. Don't. "For what exactly?"

Damn it.

His lips twitched as he watched her blow out a long, dramatic breath. "For just about everything I've said and done in the last seven years."

Huh.

"I'm sorry about what I said last night and I'm sorry that I brought a date to the reunion to hurt you." Her voice was sincere but he found himself bristling. Still presumptuous apparently.

"To hurt me? Who says you're even capable of doing that anymore?" He was bluffing and he was 98 % sure that she knew it too.

She ignored his derision. "I shouldn't have said that I regretted ever being with you. I regret how things ended and I regret everything I did to hurt you, intentionally and unintentionally. And-"

He wasn't ready to have this conversation.


She could see him withdrawing and she wasn't sure what to do. She'd thrown a lot at him in the last few minutes and even more in the last seven years. He needed time.

"-And I heard Sam and Quinn's date went well." She supplied, desperate not to lose this time with him.

He jumped at the chance to change the subject and they spent the next two hours carefully discussing only things that didn't involve either one of them. They disembarked together, more to avoid awkwardness than anything else. He waited silently beside her as she grabbed her bags from baggage claim and they headed out the door. She paused when she realised that there was just one cab left and two of them. He sighed softly beside her before stepping forward and opening the door for her. He climbed in after her but sat as far away as the small bench would allow. They both mumbled their addresses to the cabbie and then they were off. Her eyes darted over to him and he looked so very tired. He looked older than his years and she wondered just how much of that was her fault.

She was startled when the cabbie stopped in front of her brownstone. She opened her purse but Noah mumbled that he'd take care of it. She stared hard at him until he finally met her gaze from across the cab.

She knew that she should get out of the cab. She knew that he'd heard enough already and she shouldn't push him. She knew it. But the words slipped past her lips anyways.

"I could never regret you, Noah. I've done nothing but regret how things ended and what I said and did. But you? You, I've never regretted." She whispered fiercely before getting out and hurrying up the steps to her home.


He was stunned by her admission and was barely aware of the cabbie's words.

"Hey! Are you going to sit there with your mouth hanging open like a moron or are you going after her? The meter is still running, Dumbass."

Damn New York cabbies and their free advice. He hesitated for only a moment longer before tossing too many bills at Dr. Phil and running up the steps. The hand that wasn't holding his bag hammered on her front door. The front door opened and Rachel stared tearfully up at him in surprise. He threw his bag behind her and pushed her into the apartment. The door closed behind him as his hand roughly cupped her cheek and he brought his mouth down on hers. She gasped into his mouth as he quickly stripped her of her clothes. His hands trailed over her ass before lifting her to wrap her legs around his waist. Their lips continued to battle as he carried her back into her home. He dropped her on her kitchen table and she hastily divested him of his own clothes. She wrapped her legs around him once more and he slid home for the first time in five years. His fingers were ever-moving, teasing her here and there. She screamed into his mouth and his hips were frantic as she clenched around him. His lips moved to latch onto her throat and her legs fought to bring him ever closer. His hands followed a path they remembered and she arched her back with another scream. She chanted his name as he buried his face in her long brown hair and growled out his own release. He panted against her neck as she shook in his arms.

He shouldn't be here and they shouldn't have done that. He knows this, he knows it and yet it doesn't stop him from kissing a trail down her body and burying his face between her legs. He kissed and licked, caressed and sucked until they both lost track of how many times she'd come. She was a quivering mess and barely able to hold herself upright but she was moaning his name. His real name. And so instead of kissing her goodbye like he should, he picked her up and carried her to her bedroom.


So, okay. I know that only some of you are stoked about the (rather light) smut and that probably more of you aren't. Some of you are probably pissed about them falling into bed together. And I tried. I really tried to fit the next chapter in here as well. But there was no way to make it happen. Too much happened in this chapter (despite how short it was) and it would take away the meaning of the next. So this is where I left it. I also want to tweak the final chapter a bit because I don't feel 100% about it yet. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter. And if you didn't? Please don't flame. Graci

-Lizzy