Just to be clear, he doesn't usually get to school this early, but Eliza has a field trip or something and she has to be at school early, and he always drives her to and from her elementary school. After dropping her on the curb outside Lima's only public elementary school, he stops at the only Starbucks in town and entertains himself for twenty minutes by ordering a coffee and hitting on the marginally attractive barista that he would never actually date. Once he gets bored with that, he decides that instead of just driving around aimlessly and blowing gas that he's gonna have to pay for, he'll just get to school early and go flirt with the new Home Ec teacher who's fresh out of college, super blonde, and super hot.

After dumping his backpack in his locker (he's seriously less sexy to older women when he's carrying a fucking backpack—it's like a tattoo reminding them that he's still in high school), he starts traipsing through the hallways. And this is how he finds himself wandering past Berry's locker when literally no one else is in the halls.

Someone—someone who seriously sucks, he might add—has decided to do a little redecorating of her locker, and he doesn't like it at all. He knows he started all this bullying of her, and he pretty much hates himself for it because she's totally awesome, and high school blows for her, thanks to his need to fit in. He knows he's an asshole, but it's moments like this in which he remembers how much he sucks sometimes.

So he goes ahead and moves it. What-the-fuck-ever. No one has been kinder and more accepting of him and Quinn since their whole situation spilled than Berry has been, and he doesn't know why Quinn keeps repaying her with this infamous ice queen act. It's not cool, and he doesn't like it, but taking up for Berry is more of a social risk than he really has the margin of error for these days. Even as he thinks that, he's knows it's an asshole thought, but he can't help the fact that he kind of is an asshole.

He pins the sign across the hall from Berry's locker, and then turns back down the hall toward the Home Ec room, missing the icy, scheming glare of his blonde, pregnant girlfriend—or whatever she is. He spends the half hour until the warning bell leaning against Jayne Harrison's desk, flirting and flattering. When he leaves to go to his first period class (he does go to lit; he secretly likes that stuff), he strategically avoids Quinn, if for no other reason than she is a pain in the ass about 99% of the time.

The next time he sees the Glist, it's in Schue's hand and he's being accused of making it. He doesn't like the way the entire room is staring at him, eyes squinted, all clearly thinking the same thing—that it was his doing. Seeing the way Berry is looking at that list makes him wish it was never made, but then he looks at Kurt and Mercedes and he remembers why he's also kind of glad it was. Those two deserve to be knocked down a peg or two because seriously—thinking they're better than Berry? What the fuck kind of drugs are they on and where can he get some?

But anyway, the entire room of idiots is staring at him, led by Schuester, so he's not surprised when he's asked point-blank if he did it. He doesn't get pissed until he says no and no one believes him because that shit isn't cool. He draws himself up to his full height and looks Schue straight in the eye. "I'm a delinquent, sure. I like setting stuff on fire and beating up people I don't know. I own that, but I'm not a liar." He's more than a little offended that that isn't the end of Schue's questioning of him, but there's not a whole hell of a lot that he can do about it, since he can't very well throw Quinn (who he's sure is the actual culprit) to the wolves—she is carrying his child. And it's a little comforting that he isn't being singled out in the continuing questioning, but he still knows everyone thinks he did it, and he's not happy about that.

Like he said, he doesn't really see the point in throwing the real culprit (Quinn) under the bus. The ensuing drama would definitely be a bunch of bullshit that he doesn't want to deal with—the blame would be spun back to him somehow anyway since everyone thinks he corrupted the angelic good girl long ago. But he wants to tell her how shitty it was of her to screw Berry in the rankings and then to put it on her locker to make sure she sees it.

Seriously, though, he can't believe that Schue doesn't believe him. He doesn't have much ground to stand on, he knows, but he's more badass than a motherfucking list, and Schue should give him a bit more credit. Anyway, if he'd done it, he'd be number one by a landslide—everyone knows that he is the most badass motherfucker at the school. And he definitely tells all that shit to Schue when he gets questioned one on one.

Also, he doesn't tell Schue this, but he's not that much of a coward. He tells this kind of shit to people's faces all the time; he doesn't need a list to remind people that they're lame (honestly, Schue should use his brain-has he forgotten the slushies?) This list has Quinn's passive-aggressive nature written all over its scathing rankings. But he's already promised her that he'll do everything he can to make sure that her pregnancy is as easy as possible, so he's not going to throw her under the bus. He's not taking the bullet for her, either, though. He's already taken plenty for her, and he can admit (at least to himself—it's a start) that he doesn't want Berry to think he did it.

Which is why, when he completely randomly and mysteriously ends up at her house the night the Bad Reputation project is assigned, he asks her if she really thinks he did it even though he denied it vehemently in front of the entire club. Rachel's always had more faith in him than most people have and so the question that he doesn't want to ask just tumbles from his lips, and he hates how vulnerable he feels when she says it seems like something he would do. He's not too happy that she thinks that he thinks that little of her because he really doesn't. He was actually pretty psyched when she asked him to come over. Making out with her when they were together was super hot, and he wouldn't mind starting that up again. It's not like he would be sacrificing anything in the sex department—for all his talk of being a sex shark, he really isn't getting any. Quinn keeps him on too short a leash to call up any of Lima's housewives or Santana, but she's not exactly putting out either. He's pretty much only allowed to hold her hand and listen to her bitching.

However, he does appreciate the way she accepts his explanation of his uncontrollable urges to be an ass. And her response is pretty fucking cute, actually, the way she gets all worked up and closes her eyes and just lets the rant pour from her mouth. He's been able to tell that she's trying to work on holding in her criticism, and he does appreciate it, but he isn't going to pass up on this opportunity to charm her.

So a little smile plays on his lips, he meets her eyes gently and laughs a little. "It does suck when you do that." And then he flicks his gaze down to her lips and leans slowly in. He's about a quarter of a second from kissing her when she pushes him gently away and shakes her head.

FUCK.

The night just gets worse from there.

When her project tanks as badly as it does (at least with Finn and Jesse—the rest of the room just sort of pretends that they don't know what's going on and claps dutifully at the end) and when he realizes how truly shitty it really is, he doesn't take up for her. He really doesn't need to be associated with that anymore than he already has been so he just kind of watches as Finn and Jesse have pussy diva fits—he's obviously way too badass to do that anyway, and then after they sing "Total Eclipse of the Heart," he just lets Quinn pull him out. He doesn't really know why anyone is making such a big deal out of Berry's movie. Sure, he was expecting be the only guy, and sure, he got why Jesse was pissed, but Finn was just being his typical pathetic self. How did he figure Berry owed him anything? He jerked her around like it was his job. But he didn't protest when Quinn pulled him from his chair and clasped his hand with both of hers, tugging him from the choir room. He doesn't spare Berry a glance, mostly because his girlfriend (if they even really have a relationship) pulls him so fast that he doesn't have a chance. He feels bad, though, that everyone else is filing out behind them, leaving Berry totally alone with her broken heart.

However, he forgets about all that when he gets home and his mom washes his hair, and she finds the mole and he has to get fucking maimed.

The halls of McKinley fall completely silent as people see him, and it's not in the fuckin' sweet way that they did before he joined Glee because they were absolutely terrified of what he could do to them. Instead it's because they don't know what the hell happened to his hair, and for the first time since he threw the first slushie, he feels thoroughly powerless in the school halls.

It continues like that all day, and he's so sick of it by last period that he tells Mrs. Fernandez, his middle-aged, stick-in-the-mud history teacher (coincidentally, also the only female in McKinley—other than Sylvester—that he hasn't been able to charm) that he feels sick so that he can run to a bathroom and hide in a stall while everyone else gets their books and then gets the fuck out of there. He's surprised when she grants him permission by nodding and smiling at him and even tells him that she hopes he feels better as he walks past. He thinks maybe the lack of Mohawk might help him in his constant battle against her.

He gets to the bathroom without incident, and he locks himself in the stall on the end. He can't believe all the stupid fuckers at this school. So he got a stupid haircut. What-the-fuck-ever. These losers should have more a life because caring about his haircut? Seriously lame. He's been in a downright foul mood all day because of all those idiots.

It's silent for a couple minutes and then the door creaks open and bangs shut and he can hear a couple guys shuffling into the room. He reads some scratches on the bathroom stall (mostly about Santana and the awesome head she gives—there are sketches, too) and tries to ignore the sounds of three or so guys pissing in the next three stalls over. It's pretty much silent until they're all out by the sinks and one of them (he recognizes the voice of a junior linebacker on the football team) says, "hey, did you see Puckerman today?"

Puck's ears perk up. He wants to know what these meatheads are saying about him. "Yeah, man, what the fuck happened to his hair?"

A third voice chimes in. "I don't know, but Puck isn't Puck without the 'hawk."

Abandoning his plan, Puck fixes his most menacing scowl on his face and throws open the door of his stall with a resounding clang. He glares at the three guys huddled around the sinks and mutters "get the fuck out of my way," before pushing past them, but he doesn't miss the amused smirks they pass around their little circle.

He gets an even more unwelcome surprise when he violently opens the bathroom and door and sees that he didn't hide out in the bathroom long enough. The hall is still teeming with students and he has to walk half-way across the school to get to the choir room. He tries to look straight ahead, but he sees all the people looking and hears the whispers that follow him.

When he slides into Glee rehearsal, everyone is already there, gathered around the piano. He shifts a little self-consciously in the doorway, and he doesn't have time to consider how much he hates the way the action feels (Puck does not get self-conscious) because Rachel Berry turns around and her jaw drops.

(He doesn't notice that as much as he notices how fucking short—and sexy—her skirt is).

He tears his eyes away from Berry's legs and glances at Brittany. She's looking back at him with the most confused expression he's ever seen on her face, and he hears her whisper to Santana. "Who is that?"

Just like that his foul mood is back in full force. He had begun to cool off over the course of the day, but the combination of events since those dickheads from the football team entered his hideout in the bathroom to this moment in the choir room served to put him right back where he was. And fucking Glee certainly didn't help him cool off which explains why he's ranting to Santana Lopez of all people. His mood bottoms out when Santana looks at him for a long moment and then informs him that she's not turned on. He knows she's being a total lying bitch because he's still him, and he actually thinks that other than the tragic loss of badassness he might look even sexier than he did before. He's so hot that he knows he can pull any look off and he definitely looks a lot more sophisticated than he did with a Mohawk. But he is really concerned about how utterly unafraid everyone at school is of him. He wants to be popular again, and the only way he knows how to get there is the way he did the first time: scaring people. His plan of action as a freshman had been to slushie the drama freaks and other various capital L losers, beat up upper classmen (he was unusually strong for his age even at fourteen), and fuck Santana Lopez until he got a reputation and somehow he had become popular and Santana had become his girl along the way.

And honestly, he had always been pretty fucking okay with that. They never dated exclusively because they were basically the same person and it would never in a million years work, but they did have a mutual understanding that they could always come back to each other for a good fuck, and they actually made pretty awesome friends. They always had a shitload of fun together. Quinn had always been a decent friend to talk to (although she's kind of a bitch so he doesn't really trust her too much), but he's only ever had fun just hanging out with a girl (not hooking up) when he's been with Santana or Berry.

He knows how fucked up it is that he can't just have fun with a girl, but he's a guys' guy, and he's just not ashamed of that. He's pretty sure that Santana is just a guy in a really hot girl's body, but Berry is definitely a girl, and she's actually so cool (and he's simultaneously glad and sickened that no one realizes just how great she is) and just genuinely nice that it didn't take much for him to develop legitimate feelings for her even though it scares the shit out of him.

When he gets into his truck at the end of the day, tired, pissed off and Mohawk-less and thinks that at least he's seen the worst of it, he doesn't know how wrong he is.

That night, he knows even as he's doing it that he's taking out his terrible mood on Quinn and Eliza, but he does nothing to stop himself from treating them like total shit. He's less than surprised when Quinn decides that she would really like to not be his constant punching bag and talks about maybe moving in with someone else. It's not just because of his foul mood thanks to the haircut from hell. He and Quinn fight literally all the time about everything under the sun: which Dairy Queen to go to, what to have for dinner (which he always wins because Quinn can't cook, so he has all the control), how he takes care of Eliza (how the fuck is that Q's business?), and, of course, the baby. He actually thinks that time apart will be good for their relationship—they literally cannot handle all this time together. With all the fighting they do all the time, there's no way they'll ever be able to make a decision about what they're going to do with the baby whose due date is rapidly approaching.

He also wants her out of his house because she's totally throwing off his game with Berry. Her mere presence in every aspect of his life makes Rachel uncomfortable just because Quinn used to be so horrible to her—he hasn't figured out why she doesn't feel uncomfortable around him, but he's glad because she's already proving to be a great friend.

But he goes to bed that night thinking that tomorrow has got to be better than today was, and with that thought he actually is able to fall asleep decently quickly.

The next morning, Puck doesn't even make it into the building before Jacob Ben-Israel and his gang of sniveling, nerdy, perverted freaks surround him in the parking lot and use their combined strength to throw him in the dumpster. He knows that Mohawked Puck could have fought off all six, but he thinks he might have lost all his strength and doesn't want his social standing to fall anymore by losing a fight to Jacob and his clan.

As he's falling through the air, he can't believe that this is happening. He hadn't thought that things were going to get worse for him than they were yesterday. Baby or no baby, Mohawk or no Mohawk, he's still Puck, and he still rules that fucking school—or so he thought. Apparently, though, he's got some work to do. And so, he decides that dating Mercedes Jones might just be his ticket out of social hell.

The school day has been over for several hours, but he's sitting on the open gate of his truck with his guitar, strumming mindlessly as he stares across the parking lot at the dumpster that he threw ten of his classmates in earlier that day. He never thought he'd see the day when an original Gleek chewed him out, but Mercedes (yes, he learned her name) had laid into him about picking up his old habits again. It was even more surprising that she actually made him think about the choices he was beginning to make again, but every time he looked at Quinn, he wanted to be the type of person that that little girl would admire and be proud to claim as her father—even if she never met him.

The thing is he knows that he's not ready to be a father, but his old man is the dictionary definition of a deadbeat, and he couldn't bear it if his little girl thought of him the way he thinks of his father.

Ten minutes later, he finds himself cutting the roaring engine of his truck in Rachel Berry's driveway behind a silver Volvo convertible, a black Volvo SUV and Rachel's blue hybrid Ford Escape, informing him that all three members of the Berry family are home. He's actually not that miffed that the Daddies B are there since they've always been pretty great to him, unlike the vast majority of parents. He hops out of his truck and strides up to the door, knocking soundly. It's pretty fucking cold, and he's not wearing a coat. Fortunately, Rachel's bigger, African-American dad answers quickly, and he seems to recognize Puck. He opens the door more and gestures widely with his arm. "Come in, son."

Puck nods and smiles, rubbing his hands together before offering his right to the much larger man. "Thank you, sir. I'm Noah Puckerman."

Rachel's dad smiles back at him, shaking his hand and clapping him warmly on the back. "I know you. You're in the Glee Club with Rachel. I'm Rachel's father, Alex Berry. I assume you're looking for our little star."

"Yes, sir, I was wondering if I might be able to speak with Rachel for a few moments?" (And people say he has no manners! What is that bullshit?)

Alex claps his hand on Puck's shoulder again. "Relax, Noah, we're not about to throw you out onto the street because you want to talk to Rachel. Let me grab her for you."

Puck nods and Alex disappears into the house, leaving him alone in the entryway. He pulls out his phone, just to have something to fiddle with while he waits and sees that he has a text from Mercedes. "Puck, this charade ain't gonna work. You need to figure out a way to change, and you haven't yet."

He finds, even immediately after reading the text, that he's a lot less worried about Mercedes breaking up with him than he is about figuring out a way to change himself (he had sorta seen this coming, based on her rant at school earlier), but he doesn't have much time to dwell on that either, since Rachel comes into the entryway, visibly concerned. "Noah, hi, what's up?"

"Guess I just was in the area, decided to drop by." The lie feels bitter on his tongue, and he can tell that Rachel doesn't buy it, but she just purses her lips and nods and he kind of loves her for just accepting his answer.

"Do you want to have something to eat here? Or we could go to that diner around the corner. I'm starving."

"The diner sounds good. I love that place." His gaze shifts around the room, looking pointedly for either of her fathers, and she seems to understand the message because she wordlessly grabs her coat from the closet and shrugs into it.

"Dad, Daddy," she calls, hand already on the doorknob, "I'm going out for a while with Noah. I have my phone but I won't be gone long."

They respond in unison with a chorused. "Love you, star." He can't decide if he's sickened by their obvious affection or unbelievably jealous of it. For God's sake, how did she end up with two great dads and he got zero?

They drive in silence to the diner. They don't speak as they get out of the car, enter the small building and wait for a table. Rachel worries the cuffs of her coat sleeves between her fingers and watches as he shifts his weight from foot to foot every few seconds. If she didn't feel so awkward herself then she would be fascinated by his obvious discomfort. She's never seen him exhibiting such a total lack of self-confidence, but him and her willingly together in public is very unexpected, so it's not completely ridiculous that they're both so wholly uncomfortable. Fortunately, it's only a couple minutes before a tiny little booth in the back opens up and they're led to it by the friendly hostess. Neither of them knows at this point in time that this booth will become their spot in their place.

They're barely settled in the cozy booth when a middle-aged woman appears beside the table and smiles at them. "What can I get you kids?"

Rachel orders a mug of herbal tea and a Chef's salad with vinaigrette while he, typically, treats himself to an enormous (but well-balanced and healthy, she'll admit) meal of steak, mashed potatoes and a raw spinach salad. "Feeling a big dinner tonight?" she wonders, offering her first words since they got in his truck in her driveway.

"Nah, B, this isn't that much. I'll have more later. When you're building muscle, you gotta eat extra protein but you gotta keep your carbs proportional. Otherwise all that extra protein just goes to keeping your body functioning."

She just sort of nods, unable to find words, which she knows is rare for her. Predictably, only a couple of seconds pass before he smirks and meets her eyes across the table. "No words? That's a first. I wish someone else were here to witness this."

She'd probably be angry with him if the exact same thought hadn't literally just floated through her mind. Instead, she smiles and nods and then offers words. And once she starts talking, they both know she won't stop. "It's just strange, Noah. You and me out at dinner together, where anyone from McKinley could see us? I'm not exactly cool, and you're dating Mercedes, even though we all know it's for your reputation. But being out here with me is certainly not going to help your reputation. And I know you don't like Mercedes, so don't pretend that you do."

He smirks and shrugs a little. "We broke up. And I can't stand her."

"So why are you here with me? You tolerated Mercedes for a week to boost your reputation, and I know you don't particularly like me. So why are we here? I'm certainly not going to help your reputation," she repeats emphatically.

Putting down his menu, he straightens in his side of the little vinyl booth. "B, let's get our shit straight right now. I don't not like you. And you know I don't give a shit about my reputation. Jesus, I picked Glee over fucking football. Don't you remember that?"

"Of course I do, Noah, but a lot has changed then. Most notably, the truth coming out about Quinn's baby and you losing Finn's friendship and trust. I know how important trust is to you."

He scowls. "Berry, sometimes I wonder why you think you know anything about me."

She just scoffs and says, "because you tell me things," and his scowl only deepens as he settles back into his chair.

He knows she's right, but he hates it nonetheless, so he sulks in silence for five minutes, internally enjoying her shifting uncomfortably. He finally took pity on her when she gathered her hair into a ponytail for the fifth time in as many minutes. "Mercedes told me that she doesn't like the person I am."

Rachel meets his eyes. "Well, that's not entirely surprising. The person you pretend to be at school isn't particularly likeable."

He rolls his eyes and is saved from answering immediately by the arrival of the waitress with a glass of water for him and Rachel's mug of tea. "Thanks for reminding me of that," he grumbles, taking a healthy gulp of water and avoiding her eyes over the rim of his cup.

She slams her mug down, and scalding hot tea slops over the side. "Don't be like that. You know what I said, and you know I'm right."

Shocked, he raises his eyes to meet hers and sees fire in the brown depths. She's never spoken to him so assertively before, and he just raises a challenging brow and continues to look at her. "I said 'pretend,' and I chose my words very carefully so don't be all dramatic about it. I know you're not the guy you pretend to be at school. What I don't know is why you're so afraid that Mercedes noticed that."

He takes another sip of water in an attempt to keep his temper in check. "For a smart girl, you're pretty fuckin' stupid sometimes, Berry. You know that I don't like it when people know me, and you know that I don't tell people shit. Hell, you should know just from the way I reacted earlier that I don't even like it when people who I actually talk to figure stuff out. It's the way I am. I don't even like or trust Mercedes so I'm not thrilled with the idea that she's figuring me out, alright?"

"Why did you let her get close enough to date you, then?"

This is why he hates talking to Berry sometimes, he thinks, shoving his mouth full of pie to avoid answering her question immediately.

"Is it just because of your reputation?" she persists, and he rolls his eyes. "Because something doesn't fit there—if you hate her as much as you claim you do, and you care as little about your reputation as you tell me you do, then why did you tolerate Mercedes just for your reputation?"

He swallows the revolting amount of pie in his mouth and looks Rachel dead in the eye. "I care about my reputation, Berry. I just care about you more."

And for the first time since he and Rachel started this weird friendship, she is left confused by a comment he made, and he is left simply content.