Tina Cohen-Chang had loved glee club in high school because it had given her a way to express her individuality. However, even in high school Tina's major form of self-expression had been through her clothing. She had attended an art school and majored in fashion design and now she was one of the top up and coming designers in the nation. She lived in New York City and she was able to see Kurt and Rachel on a fairly regular basis, which in their hectic, overscheduled lives ended up being every few months or so. Her first show was at the coming Fashion Week in New York and she had already sent Rachel and Kurt invitations. She grinned when she saw what Rachel had chosen to wear to their lunch. It was one of her designs and she had sent it to the petite brunette as a birthday present.
"I love your outfit, Rachel," Tina couldn't resist teasing. Rachel gave a light laugh and a toss of her loose brown curls.
"I thought it fit the occasion."
Mercedes joined them a few minutes later and the old friends spent a pleasant afternoon reminiscing and talking about high school.
"So, Tina, are you married or dating or anything?" Mercedes asked after a while. Tina shrugged.
"I really don't have a lot of free time right now. My show is the focal point of my life at the moment. I had a boyfriend and it was pretty serious for a while, but he decided he needed someone in his life who thought he was as fabulous as he did. Unfortunately, her name was Kiki and she worked in his office." Tina said flatly with a wry twist to her lips. Mercedes started giggling. Rachel's eyes were sympathetic and she gently squeezed Tina's hand.
"Was it Ian? That up and comer from Calvin Klein?" Rachel asked quietly. Tina nodded and made a face. She knew that Rachel had always hated Ian—she didn't think he treated Tina well enough.
"Kiki? It wasn't really Kiki, was it?" Mercedes managed to gasp out, which only made Rachel start to giggle. Tina's lips twitched as she tried to hold back a smile.
"It really was. It was awful because every time I tried to explain what happened everyone reacted like you. Even I can't help but giggle when I sit down and think about it." Mercedes and Rachel both felt bad but Tina's twitching lips sent them into another fit of giggles. Tina laughed with them. The women had a pleasant lunch and enjoyed the time they spent in each other's company. Rachel insisted that it was all for the best and that there was someone out there who actually deserved Tina. Mercedes and Tina both smiled fondly at Rachel. Trust Rachel Berry to decide on an optimistic track. Tina knew that Rachel would probably try to set her up on some dates, hoping that one of them would be Tina's One True Love. That was one of the good things about Rachel—she was a true friend and incredibly loyal.
At the same time, Finn and Puck joined Sam, Kurt, Blaine, Artie and Mike for a beer at a sports bar. They all sat around and traded stories about what they'd been up to for ten years. Puck and Finn had known that Sam had married Quinn and they had two children named Austin and Kimberly, but they hadn't known that Sam was an EMT. He had always enjoyed helping people and this career choice made him feel that he was doing something to make a difference in the world. Finn and Puck already knew what was going on with Kurt and with Blaine so they sort of tuned that part of the conversation out. Blaine was disgustingly happy at the moment and Finn felt it was necessary to shoot threatening glances his way. A guy shouldn't be cocky about stuff. Especially not about another guy's kid brother. Puck and Finn were surprised to learn that Artie was a high school music teacher who was currently dating a fellow teacher. There were some terrible jokes comparing Artie to Mr. Schue and his tortured romance with Ms. Pilsbury-Howell. Artie just grinned and shrugged them off. He was happy with his girlfriend, Diana Pierce, and he didn't care what his fellow glee-club alumni said. Mike had become a choreographer and he and his wife worked for the Colts' cheerleaders as their choreography team. All of the guys were absolutely fascinated by the idea of choreographing for cheerleaders. To be honest, Blaine and Kurt's questions were far more technical and had to do with the choreography, but all the guys had plenty of questions. The men didn't really drink beer—they were too busy catching up on each other's lives. Everyone was impressed by Kurt's Broadway career and his new role, but Puck's transformation shocked everyone. He was an associate professor of Jewish Studies at a respected university in Vermont. It just wasn't what anyone had ever pictured for McKinley's resident bad boy. Puck himself was convinced that both Rachel and his mentor in community college were responsible. They both believed that he was capable of amazing things and they expected him to do well. He hadn't wanted to disappoint either of them and he ended up surprising himself. He still had his Mohawk, but he wore a suit when he taught because he understood that a person needed to present a certain level of professionalism to students.
The men of glee ended up spending a very pleasant afternoon catching up with one another.
*glee* *glee* *glee*
Santana and Brittany had arrived the day before the reunion dance. The evening of the dance both women joined Rachel, Puck, Finn, Kurt and Blaine for dinner at Breadstix. It was still one of Santana's favorite places and she was eating with gusto. Brittany watched her fondly with a slight smile on her lips. Finn looked at Rachel and then turned to Santana.
"We're gonna do a thing next summer, June. Can you come?" Finn looked slightly anxious as he waited. Santana stared at him for a moment and then looked toward Rachel.
"A thing?"
"A declaration ceremony," Rachel clarified. Santana's eyes widened in surprise.
"Of course we'll come. Send my office the dates and I'll make sure I mark them." She grinned wickedly at Rachel. "So you're going to make them into honest men at last?"
"Oh! For heaven's sake!" Rachel threw her napkin at Santana. Kurt chuckled.
"Rachel, honey, I think that's what everybody thinks. It's about time." Rachel stuck out her tongue at him.
"I'm so sorry that we didn't all do what everyone expected us to do when you expected us to do it. Shame on the three of us for experiencing a little of life and spreading our wings a bit," Rachel huffed dramatically at Kurt.
"It's okay, Rachel. We forgive you," Brittany said brightly from her place next to Santana. Everyone bit back a smile.
"Anyway," Blaine said with an eye on the time, "we should probably all go and change. The dance is supposed to start in an hour and a half."
Rachel, Finn, and Puck headed back to her dads' place to get ready. The boys both insisted that tuxes were not necessary for a reunion dance. They wore dark suits instead. Rachel wore an aquamarine cocktail dress that Tina had designed. It was over a year old, but no one here had ever seen it and she knew she looked good in it. Puck and Finn both looked incredibly handsome in their suits. Rachel eyed them with a proprietary smile. Puck and Finn both thought Rachel looked hot. Her dress made her golden skin seem to gleam and her chocolate eyes shone with happiness. They each kissed her, but their kisses left her slightly breathless. She smacked them both on the arm.
"You two stop that. We have to go to this thing. Everyone's expecting us." Rachel admonished them sternly.
"Yes ma'am," they said in unison with angelic smiles. Rachel raised her eyes toward the ceiling.
"God grant me the strength," she muttered.
They drove to the high school and headed toward the dance. Everyone was there—all their fellow glee clubbers. Lauren showed up with the wannabe wrestler named Jake. Rachel raised an eyebrow and Lauren gave her a wicked grin. The three of them were enjoying themselves immensely. All of their friends gathered as a group and talked and danced together. They were all having so much fun that they didn't notice a figure moving along the wall, keeping to the shadows. She watched them all with a bitter expression. Her fingers tightened on the gun she clutched in the folds of her skirt. This was all his fault. If only he had done what he was supposed to do. He had no one to blame for this but himself.
"Noah," she called when she got closer to their group. He whirled around quickly and stared at her in horror.
"Hannah," Puck whispered growing pale. Finn looked up sharply and gasped when he saw Hannah holding a gun. He looked to Puck and realized that he was focused completely and solely on Rachel who was standing with Lauren. Hannah's arm came up with the gun in her hand. Everything seemed to happening in slow motion and it all seemed so surreal, like one of the thousands of dreams they had each had about Hannah. Finn realized with dawning horror that Hannah wasn't pointing the gun at Rachel, she was pointing the gun at Puck. Puck, for his part, hadn't noticed that Hannah wasn't pointing the gun at Rachel because he was still keeping an eye on her position in relation to Hannah. At that point, all Finn could think about was that Noah was in danger. His best friend in the world, the person he loved most in the world after Rachel, was in mortal danger. Finn started to move towards Puck almost at the same time as Hannah fired her gun. He flung himself at Puck and he felt the bullet rip into his flesh. After that, it was difficult to concentrate. Puck was holding him and yelling at him not to die damn it. Rachel was holding his head and crying. Or wait, was Puck crying? Then Sam was there and he started doing stuff that hurt, but Finn trusted Sam. He was a good guy. He knew what he was doing, right? Ow! That really hurt. Finn closed his eyes and started drifting.
"Sam, is he okay?" Puck's voice was ragged with fear and stress. Sam looked up at Puck and Rachel and saw how terrified they both were. He tried to smile reassuringly, but they didn't look convinced.
"The bullet hit him in the upper chest. I can't tell just yet, but I think it may have missed any vital organs, which is very good. We have to get him to the hospital now though."
The doors to the gym burst open and the ambulance team hurried in with their gurney. They quickly and efficiently shifted Finn onto it and took him out of the reunion dance. Rachel and Puck hurried out of the gym after them. Rachel was clinging to Puck's arm and she was gasping for air. Her lungs felt wrong, like she couldn't get enough air into them. Puck wrapped an arm around her and hurried her to their rental car. The ride to the hospital was agonizing for Puck and Rachel. Why the hell did he do that? What the hell had he been thinking?
"He loves you. I don't think he was thinking. He saw you in danger and he just reacted." Rachel choked out through her tears. Puck realized with chagrin that he had actually spoken aloud. He drove faster. Finn had better not die on them, or Puck would have to kick his ass.
Waiting in the hospital was horrible. It was worse than when Rachel had been attacked because then they had known that she was alive. Puck held Rachel against his chest and stared at the Emergency Room doors with haunted eyes. Carol, Burt, Kurt and Blaine joined them shortly. Santana and Brittany showed up a little later. Mrs. Puckerman came with Sarah and Rachel's dads. They all sat together waiting to hear news. After what seemed an eternity, a harried doctor came out.
"Are you the family for Finn Hudson?" Rachel and Puck stood.
"We've signed medical advocacy papers for Finn. I've got his primary care provider's information right here," Puck said pulling a card out of his wallet. Rachel stared at him for a moment. She hadn't realized that Puck had all of this information on him.
"Oh good! You don't know how often I wished everybody did that. Okay, so Finn is still critical, but he's stable. We got the bullet out and stitched him up. I want to keep him here overnight for observation. It's possible that we missed something—with bullets sometimes things can slip by you." Rachel watched the doctor's lips move but she couldn't hear anything he said. All she could hear was a roaring sound in her ears. Puck's arm around her was the only thing keeping her upright. Rachel's eyes rolled back into her head and she fainted. Puck caught her before she hit the floor. He swung her up into his arms and looked at the doctor.
"Huh. Must be shock due to trauma. Follow me." The doctor turned and went back through the Emergency Room doors. Puck followed. The doctor had Puck lay Rachel into a bed next to Finn. Holy God. Finn looked like shit. He sat between them and held each of their hands. After several minutes, Rachel stirred on her bed. Her eyelids fluttered open and she stared at Puck.
"Hey, baby girl. You kind of scared me there for minute," Puck murmured huskily. He carefully stroked her cheek.
"Noah," Rachel whispered. "Is he okay?"
"For now, yeah. He's stable, but critical." Rachel sat up and looked over at Finn. She blanched slightly.
"Are you sure, Noah?" Her voice was shaky.
"It'll be okay, shorty. I promise." Puck hoped that Finn didn't make him a liar because that would suck.
*glee* *glee* *glee*
Finn blinked his eyes slowly and stared at the ceiling. This was not Rachel's room at her dads' house. Then he realized that it didn't matter where he was because everything hurt. He must have made a noise or something because instantly there was a nurse at his side. She smiled gently.
"Finn? Hi, I work with your mom Carol. My name is Maggie and I'm your nurse this morning." She deftly changed out his IV bag and after a couple of minutes the pain was just a dull ache. Finn tried clearing his throat, but that hurt too because it used muscles in his upper chest.
"Rach? Puck?" Maggie turned to him again with her gentle smile.
"They've been waiting all night in the waiting room. I'll go get them right now."
Then Rachel and Puck were there. Rachel was clutching his hand to her chest and crying. Puck was unashamedly crying and holding his other hand. Finn frowned at both of them and they stopped. Rachel stroked his brow.
"What is it, Finn?"
"Hannah?" Rachel flinched, but kept a hold of his hand. She looked to Puck who shifted in his chair.
"Uh…I guess Lauren sort of tackled her and started beating her head into the floor. Quinn got the gun and held it for the cops. When the police got there they pried Lauren off of Hannah and took her to jail. She's still in jail. Right now she's being charged with attempted murder. I think they're trying to come up with some other stuff, too." Puck spoke quietly. Finn nodded when he was done. Good. She couldn't hurt his people anymore.
"We won't let her hurt you anymore, Finn," Rachel whispered stroking his brow. Finn frowned again and shook his head.
"She wasn't after me. She was trying to shoot Puck." Rachel and Puck stared at him for a moment. "She was aiming at you, dude. Not at Rachel."
"I still can't figure out why the hell you'd take a bullet for me," Puck muttered ducking his head.
"I love you, dumbass," Finn croaked out. Puck rolled his eyes at Finn. "Besides, Rachel would've had a fit if Hannah'd shot you." Rachel glared at him.
"Do you think I'm not having a fit because she shot you instead?" Rachel's voice started rising. Puck shook his head at her and she took several deep shuddering breaths to calm herself down.
"We love you too, Finn. And we're pretty pissed off and upset that you've been shot. I think we're slightly happier that you're not critical anymore. Your mom and Burt want to come in and see you. Is that okay?" Puck spoke calmly. He wanted to hug Finn and then thump him for doing all this, but he knew that was not possible right now. Finn nodded. Okay then. Puck stood up and Rachel stood too. She stroked his brow again and leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips. He raised a hand and held her there for a moment, increasing the pressure of the kiss.
"I love you, Finn Hudson. Don't you dare die on me," she whispered in his ear. He started to laugh, but then grimaced because that hurt too much. Rachel's eyes started to well up with tears again. Puck put an arm around her and held her against his side.
"He'll be okay. I promise. If he doesn't get better I'll kick his ass myself," Puck murmured in her hair. Rachel pulled back and glared at him.
"Noah Puckerman! You had better not!" She huffed at him. Puck smiled at her and kissed her forehead.
"C'mon Rachel. Carol really wants to see her son. Let's give her a chance to visit with him." Rachel followed Puck out of the room, but cast a worried glance over her shoulder. Finn grinned cheekily at her.
Carol and Burt came into the room and Carol hurried to his side. She touched his forehead with the back of her hand, touched his check and checked the pulse in his wrist. Finn smiled wryly at his mom and then at Burt.
"I'm fine, mom," he croaked at her.
"Fine, my ass! You were shot, Finn!" All of Carol's love and fear came out all mixed together in her voice.
"She's been worried about you," Burt said quietly. Finn knew that Burt had also been worried about him, but he wasn't sure if he had the right to say that. They had always had a cautious and careful relationship. Burt respected the memory of Finn's dad and Finn respected Kurt's relationship with his father.
"Of course I have! You are never allowed to do this ever again." Carol's eyes shone with unshed tears. She blinked them back and squeezed his hand. He squeezed back and gave her a cheeky smile.
"Sure mom. I'll make sure no one ever shoots me ever again." He wasn't sure there was a way to control stuff like that. He somehow doubted it. Carol growled at him. He blinked. His mom had never growled at him. Maybe it was the worry? He glanced at Burt who looked sort of surprised as well. Then again, Finn had never been shot before so how could he really say how his mom would act in that instance. He hadn't realized she would be so protective, but he guessed that he should have known better.
After his mom, Kurt and Blaine had visited him. Then Santana and Brittany. They both cried and Santana threatened him in a similar manner to both his mom and Rachel. He grinned at her and she got angry.
"What's so funny?" Santana balled her hands into fists on her hips.
"I never realized how many people loved me until I got shot," Finn croaked out at her. Santana rolled her eyes and threw her hands in the air.
"Did you hit your head or something? Of course, we all love you!" Santana exclaimed in exasperation.
"You're my friend, Finn. I love you like I love Cap'n Crunch Berries," Brittany added with a gentle squeeze for Finn's hand. Santana shook her head at Brittany. Finn smiled at Brittany. He knew how much she loved Cap'n Crunch Berries. Part of his job had been to make sure it was in stock in Santana's kitchen.
"I feel the same way about you, Britt," Finn said and Brittany beamed at him.
*glee* *glee* *glee*
Finn got better slowly, but surely. Rachel hovered over him and Puck had to step in occasionally to tone her down a little, but for the most part he was worried enough to allow Rachel free reign. It took an extra couple weeks before Finn was pronounced flight ready by the doctor. Rachel and Puck didn't worry because neither of them had anything incredibly pressing at the moment. They got Finn to their apartment safely enough, but by the time they did he was exhausted and he ended up taking a nap.
"Should we call Dr. Van Zandt?" Rachel was fretting in the living room, wringing her hands.
"Shorty, he's fine. It's just been a long day. You already scheduled an appointment with Dr. Van Zandt for later in the week. Don't worry so much." Puck stroked her hair gently. "I have to go out for a bit. I have an appointment at the Museum of Jewish Heritage. This might be perfect for us," he added hopefully. Rachel nodded and kissed him on the cheek.
"Good luck, Noah."
"Thanks, shorty."
Rachel puttered around the apartment and went and checked on Finn. He was resting peacefully. Rachel brushed his bangs off his forehead and kissed him gently. She pulled back and saw that Finn was watching her.
"Hey," he said softly. He reached up and touched her cheek. She leaned into his hand.
"How are you feeling?"
"I feel fine. Don't worry so much, Rachel."
"I can't help it," Rachel said in a small voice. Having Finn get shot, being that close to losing him had scared her more than anything else in her life.
"Rachel, I'm not going anywhere. I promise. You're stuck with me whether you like it or not." Finn teased her gently. Rachel stroked his hair again.
"I wouldn't want it any other way," she said softly. Her chocolate brown eyes were filled with love for him and he swallowed at the intensity of her gaze. He pulled her head down and kissed her hungrily. He'd missed her. Everyone had been careful around him for weeks. He had gotten really tired of being treated like glass. Rachel gave a sound of surprise, but she kissed him back eagerly. His fingers closed around all that lustrous chocolate hair and he kissed her until he got dizzy. He laid back on the pillows panting slightly and Rachel gazed at him, bemused and slightly worried.
"Are you okay?" She asked softly. "Maybe I shouldn't have kissed you back?" Finn growled at her. Her eyes widened in surprise.
"Rachel, I'm fine! I have to be careful, but kissing you is not going to kill me." He hit the blankets with his left hand in frustration.
"I suppose not," she agreed with a slight smile. She crawled into their bed with him and proceeded to kiss him senseless. She made sure not to jostle him too much because even while his lips moved against hers she worried about hurting him. His hands stroked her back and slid up to tangle in her hair. She caressed him with feather-light touches of her hands on his shoulders and chest. She made sure to stay strictly to the left side of his body and away from the injured area.
When Puck came home he had a huge grin on his face. He picked Rachel up and whirled her around the kitchen where she'd been making soup for Finn. She laughed breathlessly and hung on to his broad shoulders.
"Noah! Stop, put me down!" Puck placed her gently down and kissed her hard on the mouth.
"I got it, Rachel." He was proud of himself, she could see that easily.
"The job at the Museum of Jewish Heritage?"
"Yeah. I'm going to be working under the curator. This could lead to some pretty important work, Rachel. I'll have access to special collections held by the museum and it could lead to work at other museums." Puck was like a little boy he was so excited and happy. Rachel hugged him.
"I am so proud of you, Noah! Let's go tell Finn and then we'll call your mom and your Nana." Rachel linked her arm through his and dragged him into the bedroom. Finn was happy and excited for Noah. Noah's mother was really proud of him, but his Nana cried into the phone she was so happy. She told him was a good and noble thing he was doing and that if his grandfather were still alive he would be proud too. Puck had never before been in this position. He was being inundated with love and pride from all the people he cared most about. It was a weird feeling, but he liked it and he was pretty sure he could get used to it.
Later that evening, after Finn fell asleep, Rachel dragged Puck into the spare bedroom to show him how proud of him she really was. She didn't want to wake Finn and she didn't want him to strain himself or hurt himself in anyway. That and she thought it was plain mean to do things in front of him that he couldn't participate in at the moment. Puck wholeheartedly agreed with her on all counts, but he couldn't help the fact that he wanted her. Puck's large muscled arms wrapped around her and he pressed fevered kisses along her jaw and down her neck. She tugged his suit jacket off and started unbuttoning his shirt. She pressed kisses along his collarbone and he started unzipping and unbuttoning things on Rachel. Puck kissed her ankles and slowly worked his way up her legs. He nipped the backs of her knees, which always excited Rachel. She gave a breathy gasp and twitched beneath him. He chuckled against her inner thigh. Puck gently stroked the silken skin of her inner thighs. He nibbled his way up to the tune of Rachel's moans and sighs. He loved all of her sounds. Rachel tugged on his hair and pulled him up to kiss her again. His tongue invaded her mouth and entwined with hers. Her hands slid up his back and she held onto his shoulders. Puck pulled back and grinned at her. He knew that one of her favorite positions was Indra's wife. He grabbed her ankles and set them against his shoulders. Then he slowly and carefully entered her. Rachel gave a low moan of pleasure and Puck closed his eyes for a second. She felt like heaven, just like she always did. He turned his head and kissed one of her ankles. She wriggled against him impatiently. He pressed into her more deeply and she gave another moan of pleasure. That was why she loved Indra's wife so much. It made each stroke incredibly deep and he could hit all the right spots at all the right times. Their girl was a naughty, naughty minx. Finn had better hurry up and get better or she just might kill him. Puck moved slowly and purposefully insider her. She gave an impatient whimper and he just grinned at her. He was going to take his time and she was just going to have to deal with it. She moved against him and he had to bite the inside his cheek. He gave her right butt check a light slap and her eyes burned into him. She threw back her head and gave a short sigh, which turned into a moan as he thrust into her. Her moans and gasps spurred him on and his thrusts became deeper and faster until she screamed into a pillow that she grabbed at the last minute. Puck gave a groan and let go. He fell down onto the bed and pulled Rachel to him for a kiss. She kissed him back, but then pulled away. She dragged Puck to the bathroom for a shower where he couldn't help taking her again up against the wall. She bit his shoulder, which surprised him but he found he liked it. They toweled off and slid into bed next to Finn. He mumbled in his sleep and Rachel pressed a couple kisses against his brow. Then she snuggled into bed between both of her boys. Puck wrapped himself around her and pressed a kiss to her shoulder. Rachel threw one leg over Finn and sighed contentedly.
*glee* *glee* *glee*
Dr. Van Zandt proclaimed Finn to be officially doing quite well. He gave Finn a list of positions that would put the least amount of stress on his healing wound. He patiently answered all of Rachel's worried questions. Finally, he had put to rest all of her fears and concerns and they were able to leave. Rachel called Carol, Kurt and Santana to let them know the news. Then she called her dads and Puck's mom.
"This is getting exhausting you guys," Rachel said when she was done.
"Why don't you just do some status updates? That way everyone else will know what's going on. Just tell them that all the phone calls hurt your throat. Everybody knows how picky you are about your throat." Puck's argument made a lot of sense.
"Rach, he's right. Calling twenty-five people every time I sneeze is getting a little ridiculous." Finn added after a moment. Rachel thought about it briefly. Very briefly.
"That sounds great to me." Rachel typed briefly into her phone. "There. I feel much better."
"Good. Now let's go get something to eat." Finn was starving to death. All Rachel wanted him to eat was oatmeal and soup. Puck gave him a sympathetic glance and steered him to a corner hot dog stand. Finally! Real food. Rachel watched them with a disgusted expression, but she didn't say anything. She might make comments to her boys every now and then, but for the most part Rachel felt that being vegan was a personal choice that had to be made by the individual. She knew that Puck and Finn were unabashed omnivores and that was unlikely to change anytime soon. At least they had both agreed to keep a kosher home with her and that was what truly counted. Puck had managed to find a kosher hot dog stand with all beef dogs—trust her Puck to have an internal map of kosher hot dog stands.
Rachel glanced at her phone and smiled. She had a ton of messages from all of their friends. Quinn and Sam sent their well wishes. Mercedes said that she would be praying for Finn's speedy recovery. Lauren offered to put Hannah in a headlock. Again. Artie and Mike both sent messages saying that Finn would be in their thoughts. Tina wanted to know if Rachel wanted to reschedule their lunch scheduled for the day after tomorrow at Bernard's. Rachel messaged her back and let her know that their lunch date should be fine. The boys joined her after they both consumed a frightening number of hot dogs. Rachel shook her head at the both of them.
"You two. I can't take you anywhere." They both grinned at her.
They were on their way back to the apartment when Rachel's phone rang.
"Hello? Margaret?" Margaret was Rachel's manager. Both Finn and Puck had been introduced to her. Margaret's eyebrows looked like they might disappear into her hairline, but she never said a word. After she saw the way the boys treated Rachel she still didn't say a word, but she always treated both men with respect and dignity. Rachel knew that Margaret liked them.
"Rachel, darling, I've gotten word from the studio. They're going to do the New York premiere first. I'm going to send you all the information, okay?"
"When?"
"In a few weeks, but I'll send you everything—all the details. Are you going to bring the boys?" Margaret asked cautiously. Rachel felt a slight pang. Was Margaret going to say something?
"Yes. Why?"
"Oh, good. I was worried you wouldn't. All right then. Come see me tomorrow at my office? 2:00 p.m. See you then."
"Very good, thank you Margaret." Rachel was brisk and efficient as always. Margaret had a small smile as she hung up with Rachel. She would never, ever tell her, but Rachel was one of Margaret's favorites. That girl had more heart and more drive than any ten people Margaret worked with.
"What's up shorty?"
"They've set the premiere date for Artistic Explosion in New York. It'll be in a month. Will you two come with me?" Both men snorted.
"We don't really have a choice, do we?" Puck asked.
"I suppose not, but I like to give you that impression," Rachel said with a cheeky grin. Both men just gave her a look. Then Rachel looked at them seriously with her wide chocolate eyes and bit her lip. She looked vulnerable and nervous. "You will go with me, right? This is my first movie premiere."
"Yeah, we'll go with you," Puck said finally after staring at her mouth for a moment. He had been considering whether or not their girl was some type of diabolical evil genius. Then he decided he didn't care.
"Wait a minute, your first movie premiere? Are you planning on lots of others?" Finn wanted to know.
"Well you never know. Barbra Streisand had a very impressive movie career." Rachel said solemnly. Rachel wondered if Tina could put together a dress for her in a month. Hmm. She might need to message her. And Kurt. He always helped her with situations like this. The wheels in Rachel's mind started spinning wildly.