AN: I missed another day! I am very mad at myself; I should've planned better, but I had my 5-year high school reunion last night and things just got busy. Anyway, hope you like the Puckleberrry goodness that's back in this chapter! Please R&R! :o)

Seven Shooting Stars

It was too freaking cold to be outside today. Puck groaned as he realized he needed gas in his truck. He bundled in a heavy coat and threw a skit cap over his head. The only problem with having his awesome Mohawk was the fact that the rest of his head got a little cold in the winter.

Turning on the ignition and switching the channel away from the cheesy Christmas music his sister was blaring yesterday, Puck made his way to the gas station. Lima was all decorated for the Christmas holidays. There were some cheesy snowmen in the front of city hall, and the local bank had lights in every possible crevice.

Puck got his gas and headed home. He was done with his holiday shopping. He was glad even though his family was Jewish that they still celebrated Christmas. It was a pretty cool holiday in his opinion, even if the idea of a big fat guy flying all over the world and spending the evening breaking and entering is a little too crazy to be acceptable.

On his way home, he passed Rachel Berry's street. Instinctively, he glanced over when he passed her house, and what he saw made him almost run off the road. Up on a ladder leaning over too far was the tiny brunette who continued to confuse the heck out of him. He was so afraid she was about to fall that he whipped his truck into her driveway and made his way to the bottom of the ladder.

Of course, Rachel was so enthralled with the lights she was hanging that she didn't even notice him. The girl was absolutely crazy; it was freezing outside with snow on the ground, and she was decorating. He sighed.

"Berry!" he shouted. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, hello, Noah!" she called down. "I'm putting lights on the house. What are you doing?"

"Hoping you'll come down off that ladder before you fall and break your neck," Puck replied wryly.

"Don't worry about me, Noah. I'm perfectly safe up here," Rachel scoffed. "I'll be down in a second."

"Let me finish those for you," Puck insisted. "Please, Berry."

"Really, Noah, I'm fine," Rachel insisted. "Just hold the ladder if it will make you feel better."

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he grumbled.

He looked up at her stretch to hook the lights up. Too bad she wasn't wearing a skirt; he could've at least gotten a nice show.

"I'm coming down now," she warned.

He held the ladder steady while she climbed down, but her foot slid on the step. She began to teeter off, but Puck's steady arms held her firmly by the waist. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck which made their faces close together. Their cold breaths mingled as a spark of electricity passed between them. Rachel didn't know what to make of the look that Puck was giving her. His green eyes were practically bearing into her soul. He looked so serious yet tender at the same time.

"Thank you for catching me," she whispered.

That seemed to break Puck out of his trance. He blinked a few times, and looked at Rachel sheepishly. He gently set her down on solid ground, but he kept his hands gently at her waist as he made sure she was steady.

"No problem," he shrugged apathetically, but his voice was anything but.

They held their gazes for a few moments, before Rachel realized she didn't know why Puck was here. Not that she minded, she was just curious.

"Um, Noah?" she asked hesitantly. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was on my way home, but I saw you about to kill yourself, and I figured that would really screw up our chances in competitions this year, so yeah, I'm here," he trailed off.

Rachel grinned at his words. He was rambling. It was cute because he rarely said anything at all, so to hear him speak so much in one breath gave her a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"How chivalrous of you," she said.

Puck looked up to find her grinning at her like she didn't believe a word he said but appreciated the effort he'd given. It made him smirk in return.

"So, why are you decorating?" he asked casually.

"Well, even though my fathers are going to be out of town soon, I reasoned that our house should not suffer because the lack of people milling around this holiday season. We celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah, but there aren't really many Hanukkah decorations except our menorah. So, I took it upon myself to decorate the house. I'm almost finished out here and then I'll start with the inside," she explained proudly.

"You're going to do more?" Puck interjected.

He looked around at the house. There were icicles hanging on the edges of the porch, and net lighting covered the bushes outside. There was garland lining the porch railings, and a wreath hung on the front door as well.

"I wanted to put a Star of David light on the chimney," Rachel admitted timidly.

"What?!" Puck shouted. "You are not going to climb all over the roof, young lady!"

Great, he was starting to sound like an old man. Or her fathers. Whoa, that is just too creepy.

Rachel was amused by his outburst. She shook her head in laughter.

"No, Silly, my room has a tiny balcony on the second floor, and it is right by the chimney. I wouldn't have to climb all over the roof, just a small part of it," she rationalized.

"No way, Berry. I'll do it for you," Puck insisted.

"I was planning on decorating the inside first, but if you would rather be on your way, I can get the star now," Rachel offered.

Puck looked at her squirm. He wouldn't really mind hanging out with Rachel. In fact, it'd be kind of nice. They had gotten along well when they helped the Freemans that day. He found himself really liking being around Rachel again.

"I can stay and help you decorate the inside too, if you want," Puck said.

"I'd like that. Thank you, Noah," Rachel said sincerely.

"Cool," he replied as he followed her inside the house.

He hadn't realized how cold it was outside until he stepped into the warmth of the Berry home. Rachel shed her black wool peacoat and took off her scarf, hat, and gloves. She then held out her hands to take Puck's outer layers. He shrugged out of his coat and gave it to her. When their fingers brushed, he could've sworn he saw her cheeks redden. But, he couldn't be sure; it was really cold outside, so that could've been the reason.

Rachel suppressed a shiver when her fingers touched Puck's. She hoped he didn't notice her blushing. She had told herself many a time that she was over Noah Puckerman, but in all actuality, she was so not over him. She realized it that night of the Christmas pageant and had been fighting it ever since. She wondered what was in store of this afternoon.

"So, where do we start?" Puck asked, breaking Rachel out of her thoughts.

"Well, Dad and Daddy helped put up the tree before they left, but we didn't get to decorate it. I suppose we can start there," Rachel suggested.

They worked in easy camaraderie. They didn't speak much, but every so often Puck could hear Rachel hum or start to sing a Christmas carol under her breath. Rachel let Puck put the star on the top of the tree. He then plugged in the tree, and the lights came to life. When he looked at Rachel to gauge her response, her eyes sparkled. The lights from the tree mixed with the lights in her eyes, and Puck thought they made her look even more beautiful.

They put out some more decorations around the house, and Rachel found the stockings. Puck chuckled; of course, Rachel's had a big gold star on it.

"I am getting hungry," Rachel said. "How about we eat something, and then you can put the star on the roof?" she propositioned.

"Sounds good to me," Puck said.

He sent a quick text to tell his mom he wouldn't be home for dinner, and he realized just how late it was. Well, it was only about 7:30, but it felt much later. Rachel made some pasta for the two of them, and they ate in peace. When they finished, they headed to Rachel's room to get the star.

The balcony was a nice size. There was a little side table and two chairs on one side, and a big papasan cushioned chair on the other side.

"I can't believe I never knew you had this balcony," Puck marveled.

"Well, you only came over once or twice before, and we were always a little more preoccupied," she smiled shyly.

Puck had to laugh at that. She was right; the two times he'd been over, they'd done quite a bit of kissing. So he obviously missed the balcony tour.

Puck put the star on the roof, and Rachel was very pleased.

"Thank you for doing that, Noah," she said gratefully.

"It's cool, Rach. So," he said, looking out from the balcony, "you have a neat little place out here."

"Yes, it's very peaceful. When the weather is especially nice, I like to come out here and sit to study, listen to music, or just stare at the stars," Rachel replied dreamily.

"The sky is pretty clear tonight," Puck commented.

"Mmhmm," Rachel agreed, looking up at the sky.

Puck watched her watching the sky. He didn't want to leave just yet. Suddenly, a thought hit him.

"I've got an idea," Puck said. "Let's bundle up and get some hot cocoa and watch the stars. I heard there's some kind of meteor shower going on."

Rachel was intrigued at Puck's proposal. Did he like spending time with her, because he certainly didn't seem to want to leave, and now his idea to watch the stars? It sort of confused her, but she liked the feeling too.

"Oh, yes, the Geminids. I read about that," she responded. She smiled widely at Puck's expectant look. "I think that would be nice," she concluded.

"Great," he said, pulling Rachel back inside.

They fixed themselves some hot cocoa. Rachel got a peppermint stick to stir in hers, and Puck found lots of marshmallows for his. Then, they bundled up and grabbed extra blankets. They made their way back up to Rachel's balcony. They were both immediately filled with the same thought: Where would they sit?

"Well, I suppose we could both fit on the papasan," she said softly, answering the unspoken question.

"Are you sure?" Puck asked.

He asked not because he didn't think they'd both fit, but because he wanted to make sure she'd be okay with being that close. He definitely didn't mind.

She smiled at him. "Of course," she answered. "It'll be warmer that way too."

Puck situated himself on the chair, scooting over far enough for Rachel to have some space, but she swung her legs over his anyway. She giggled as he looked at her with an eyebrow upturned and smirk in place.

"Is it okay if I do that?" she asked. "I'm used to curling up on here."

"No, it's fine," he said honestly, draping his arms over her legs.

They sat watching the stars silently for a few moments before Puck spoke again.

"I'm sorry, you know," he whispered.

"For what?" Rachel whispered back.

"For not fighting for you," he admitted.

She stared at him, unsure if she really heard those words come out of his mouth. She didn't quite know how to respond to that.

"I was a real idiot. And you have every right to hate me for some of those things I said. Anyway, I just wanted to say that," he finished. "I thought that you should know."

Rachel let the words he spoke sink into her brain. A few beats passed before Rachel could speak.

"I don't hate you," Rachel said. "Not even a little bit."

She turned her face towards Puck. His eyes were tormented.

"I'm sorry too, Noah," she said softly. "It was partly my fault everything went downhill. I think I've learned to reign in some of my less flattering qualities though."

He let out a chuckle.

"Yeah, you're pretty cool, Berry," he smiled.

"You're not so bad yourself, Puckerman," she giggled. "I'm glad we're becoming friends again."

Puck's heart squeezed at that statement. He was hoping that maybe they could talk about getting back together. But, she wanted to be friends for now, so he'd wait. He was just grateful after everything, they were actually on track to being friends.

"Noah!" she gasped suddenly, grabbing his hand. "A shooting star! Did you see it?"

Puck looked down at their intertwined hands, and he knew that he might not have to wait too long.

"No, I missed it," he grumbled, not letting go of her hand.

Rachel savored the warmth of Puck's hand in hers. She had been so excited by the star that she didn't even think when she grabbed it. But, when he hadn't let go or flinched away, it made her heart jump and settle at a funny pace.

"There's another," Puck said in awe.

"Did you make a wish?" she asked. "I made one on mine."

"Of course I did," Puck said, smiling.

She smiled back and watched the sky. She rested her head on his shoulder, and she knew this was the place she was supposed to be: holding Puck's hand and watching the stars.

That night, Rachel Berry saw seven shooting stars, and Noah Puckerman held her hand for every one of them.

AN2: Hope you enjoyed it!! This one gave me warm fuzzies writing it. lol Anyway, I'm planning on putting up Day 8 tonight as well since I'm behind. I hope it works out. lol Oh! If anyone has an idea for Day 9, I need it ASAP! Thanks!!! Remember, R&R = Love :o)