A/N: I am so sorry it has taken forever to get this chapter out. School started back up and it's been a bit crazy, but I promise to try and get the next chapter out sooner rather than later. I also want to thank you all again for reading. Your reviews are amazing and mean so much! Thank you again. I know this story has gotten pretty long, and I've considered the idea of ending it soon and possibly doing a sequel to finish it out or I could just continue with this story, despite its length. I haven't quite decided yet. Thank you so much again!
Chapter 21
While Puck and Quinn had reunited and made the best of their first night back together, they still knew they had a long way to go to get back to normal again.
Although the road to recovery was a bit rocky for a while after their initial reunion, they both wanted to make the most of Puck's remaining time back in the States until he had to return to active duty. Puck still attended sessions with the therapist at the VA and even took Quinn along with him a few times to continue to work on their communication issues. It ended up being a good opportunity to learn how to cope with Puck's job and the distance better than they had in the past.
Despite some initial setbacks and the occasional marital squabble they had while working on these communication skills, not including the few heated exchanges Puck had with a feisty Santana, the two of them thoroughly enjoyed being back together and spending time with one another again. Even though they only had a short while left before Puck and the boys went back to Afghanistan, they found themselves falling into an easy routine with one another. They had started looking into places to live near Ft. Drum for when Quinn would make the move up there after she graduated at the end of the semester and had even started picking out furniture and choosing colors for their new space together, wherever that ended up being.
They were also very grateful that they were able to celebrate their first wedding anniversary together as well. Initially, Puck's unit was supposed to be stationed overseas on their anniversary but given the medical leave and their subsequent return to the US, they were actually able to spend it together. Puck had wanted to do something special for Quinn both to show her how much he loved her and as a way of thanking her for supporting him throughout his deployment and the aftermath of his return, seeing as how they had spent almost their entire marriage apart up until now.
On their anniversary, Puck got up a bit earlier than Quinn, which wasn't too difficult considering he was usually up a little before the ass-crack of dawn anyway, and started preparing her favorite breakfast. After a considerable amount of prep-work and cooking, he loaded up a tray with a large platter of French Toast, scrambled cheese eggs, bacon (only for her, of course), two mugs of coffee, and a daisy he had picked from the neighbor's front yard to garnish the tray.
He made two extra plates, wrapping foil over the top and placing them in the warming drawer of the stove, leaving a note to let Santana and Britt know he made them breakfast too before picking up the tray and walking back into Quinn's bedroom. He wanted to do something nice for them as well for putting up with him invading their house for the past month and putting them through hell with the whole him and Quinn situation earlier. So he figured he would start by taking baby-steps and cater to their stomachs first, hoping they would see he was trying and making an effort.
He placed the tray on Quinn's side table before kissing her lips to rouse her. She barely moved, her head rolling back to the side before Puck continued to trail small kisses down her neck. He had just made it to the hollow of her throat when she let out a small giggle, running her fingertips through his short hair.
Puck leaned up and captured her lips, tracing her cheek with his thumb as she deepened the kiss. He pulled back and murmured "happy anniversary" against her lips, waiting for her to reciprocate the greeting before kissing her again. While he wanted nothing more than to crawl back under the covers and enjoy his wife, his stomach had other ideas, growling loudly and eliciting an almost musical laugh from Quinn.
He finally acquiesced to his stomach, turning her surprised attention to the breakfast spread he had brought her and the duo sat and munched for a while before Puck remembered his other surprise. He jumped out of bed and made his way to the kitchen, finding Santana and Brittney tucking into their food and thanking him with their mouths full before he waved at them, grabbing what he was looking for out of the fridge and walking back into Quinn's room.
He shut the door and had her hold the two wine goblets he had grabbed from the cupboard, popping the cork out of the bottle and pouring liberal amounts of champagne into each of their glasses. When Quinn questioned his desire to start drinking at 8am, he smiled and pulled out the bottle of orange juice, topping each of their glasses off and watching her raise the glass to her lips and taking a slow drink, appreciating her breakfast mimosa.
After the two of them had finished their breakfast and were both a bit buzzed after polishing off the large bottle of champagne and the rest of the OJ in the house, Puck went to shower while Quinn went to find her roommates to see what they were up to for the rest of the day. Once she found Santana and Britt hanging out in Britt's room, devious looks on both of their faces, she knew something was up.
Santana teased her a bit about hearing the two of them from across the entire house the night before. Even though she was married to the man who was rocking her world and all three of the girls living in the house had known each other and Puck for their entire lives, knowing that she had been loud enough for her roommates to hear was still a bit embarrassing.
Britt then tried to reassure her that it was totally normal and she jokingly told Quinn that they had actually gone out and purchased some ear plugs, nudging Quinn with her elbow before she produced a small blue bag and explained it was an anniversary gift from her and Santana. She prodded Quinn to open it right then so Quinn shifted the tissue paper out of the way to see what was hidden within. As soon as she saw what her friends had gotten her, the light pink in her cheeks turned to a deep red as she pulled out the contents of the bag: fuzzy handcuffs, alcohol-infused whipped cream, chocolate sauce, a set of dirty dice and a blindfold.
Santana started laughing as soon as she saw the discomfort on her friend's face, Brittney chiming in to let her know all of the items were tons of fun to play with and that she and Puck could take advantage of it that night, seeing as how Puck paid both Santana and Britt $50 a piece to stay somewhere else for the evening. Santana stopped laughing and glared at Britt, who realized she had said something she wasn't supposed to and tried to look away and glance around the room, hoping Quinn didn't catch that last part.
That was news to Quinn, who simply smiled smugly to herself, curious as to what her hubby had in store for that evening. She thanked her friends for the gift and wandered off to find Puck, hoping to sneak into the shower before he was done.
x-x-x-x-x
The rest of their anniversary was simply wonderful in Quinn's book. Puck had made reservations to spend the evening dining at the restaurant in the hotel where they had their wedding reception and the two of them enjoyed the wonderful food, great wine, and even better company as they danced the night away.
After the taxi dropped the couple off at home, Quinn made sure all of Puck's prior plans he had made for after dinner flew out the window when she decided to take a page from Santana's book of seduction, wanting to incorporate a few things her wonderful friends had given her earlier that morning. She hoped she wasn't coming on too strong but Puck never complained once, thoroughly enjoying the whole evening seeing as how the only thing coming out of his mouth were a series of grunts, groans and moans, followed by her name a few times.
It was a wonderful evening and one they would remember for a long time to come. Later, as she lay in his arms tracing nonsensical patterns with her fingertips along his chest while he dozed peacefully, Quinn tried to soak up the moment and commit everything about the night to memory.
Puck would be returning to base in a few days and would be back in Afghanistan by the end of the week, and while she wanted to stay wrapped in his arms forever, she knew he wouldn't know real inner peace until he faced his demons overseas and could come back saying he completed his mission in full when he returned.
x-x-x-x-x
While their goodbyes were always hard, especially knowing the boys were going back over to a war zone, Quinn and Puck kept reassuring each other and themselves that it was only a few more months before they would see each other again. When the guys first deployed, the idea of them being gone a whole year seemed daunting to say the least, but the more Quinn thought about it, she figured a few more months would be fairly manageable.
Puck and Finn assured their wives that they would be plenty distracted for the next few months and even joked that they probably wouldn't even miss them while they were gone. Rachel was headed back out on tour to finish the last leg of her "Rock of Ages" tour and Quinn would have her last semester of school to finish up so they both had enough on their plate to distract them, but they also knew it was impossible not to miss them while they were gone.
The guys headed off with a wave, leaving the girls standing there to watch the plane take off, waiting and staring intently until it became a tiny speck in the sky.
Mid-October
While their mission was, by no means, any easier than it had been prior to their impromptu leave, the infantry that had been able to roll through the area managed to clear a lot of the insurgents out of the region, sending them hightailing it into the hills and over into Pakistan. Their team's intelligence gathering had paid off after all, helping other Special Operations teams clear the area in their absence which in turn, allowed for the US Armed Forces to establish better security in the area.
Even though all of the men had been medically cleared for active duty, they all had a bit of a rough transition back. Puck's leg was feeling fine but he still found it getting sore and fatigued more often after longer days. Finn's shoulder was still giving him trouble too, but the men pulled through and allowed their mental toughness to overcome their physical discomfort.
While they were initially sent back to an area that was more secure than the last place they were fighting, it seemed as though no place was truly safe. More than once they found themselves embroiled in a firefight with local insurgents and luckily all of them had come out unscathed. Whether they were assisting and protecting the Navy SeaBees or the Army Corps of Engineers while they were drilling water wells or building new schools or facilities, trouble always seemed to follow them
After a long and draining month and a half, they were finally rewarded with their final papers, notifying them as to their final tasks and their departure date for when they would return home again. Though Puck and Quinn were able to stay in touch and Skype whenever they could, there was nothing quite like the thrill of finally being able to go home to his wife and stay there, hopefully getting started on making a life together with her instead of living two separate lives.
Finn was equally as excited to head home and see Rachel. The singer still had about a month left on her run in her "Rock of Ages" show and he felt very guilty that he had yet to see her perform. She had started the tour just before he left for Afghanistan a year ago, yet he was unable to catch a show due to his hectic schedule. Furthermore, when he was able to come home, it was due to injury and she took a month off to be with him, allowing her understudy to fill in for a few of the Canadian and West Coast dates.
After dinner one evening, Finn caught up with Puck and Tex as the men headed back to their barracks. "Hey Puck, wait up!"
Puck spun around and stopped, clapping his friend on the shoulder as he reached the two other men, "What's up chief?"
"So, quick question, have you told Quinn when our official discharge and arrival date is by chance?"
Puck thought about it for a second, scratching his head and trying to think back on his last conversation with Quinn. "Nah, not yet. We got those papers yesterday but I haven't been able to get a hold of her yet. I was going to try again tonight. Why?"
Finn broke out into a sly smile, quirking his eyebrow before replying, "Don't tell her yet, I have an idea."
Puck stared apprehensively at his friend, raising his eyebrows in question, "What is it? Wait, do I even want to know?"
Finn simply smiled as the men continued walking back to their barracks, making themselves comfortable on their racks before Finn started explaining his plan.
x-x-x-x-x
Quinn finally got a hold of Puck via Skype for the first time in about a week and was absolutely thrilled to see his face again. It was one thing to get an email or message from him, as it was better than nothing, but being able to talk to him and see for herself that he is ok meant the world to her. It was a huge relief that he was doing well but it was also somewhat of a treat to be able to Skype when they could given Puck's manic schedule.
For the most part they just caught each other up on what was going on in their lives. Quinn filled him in on everything from school to cheerleading, not leaving out any of the dirty details about what Santana and Britt had been up to lately either. Those girls were party animals and while she loved her friends to death, they were a bit crazy to say the least. Puck, on the other hand, couldn't talk much about his job and what they were doing over there, but filled her in on what he was allowed to say, neglecting to mention some of the details that would probably freak his wife out if he told her. Besides the day to day stuff, Puck and Quinn had been getting serious about looking at places up near Ft. Drum for when she graduated, and a lot of their conversations as of late were about their future together.
However, their conversation that evening was a total downer in comparison to their usual conversations. She mentioned that she was excited he would finally be coming home soon and wanted to know the date they were expected to arrive back in the States. She saw him hesitate slightly before he apologized, explaining how their medical leave had thrown off their timetable a bit more than they originally anticipated and they weren't 100% sure when they would get back.
He noticed the upset look on her face and decided to go ahead and mention that they had been told they would be back before Christmas, but that there were no guarantees as to when exactly they would be discharged from active duty. She nodded and smiled, choosing to change the subject before the waves of disappointment completely overtook her emotions. After chatting for a few more minutes, they said their goodbyes and Quinn headed to bed, somewhat upset with this new turn of events.
She always prayed that he would come home safely and really only wanted what was best for him, and even though she couldn't control what the Army had him do, she was thankful he would make it back before Christmas. He had been deployed during their first Christmas and holiday season as newlyweds and it was a relief that he probably would make it back to celebrate this holiday season, so she shouldn't really complain too much.
She was bummed, however, at the chance that he may miss her graduation from college though. She had worked so hard to get to where she was at this point in her life, considering she was a 4 year letter winner and captain of the varsity cheerleading team, would graduate Magna Cum Laude with a 3.88 GPA, had been accepted into several law schools on top of dealing with getting married her junior year of college, only to have him deploy for over a year. She hated tooting her own horn these days, but she thought that was a pretty good set of accomplishments, especially coming from a girl who had thought her life was over when she found out she was pregnant and had a baby while she was still in high school.
Now she had the opportunity to graduate early and celebrate the fact that she had survived college, let alone thrived and made the most of the opportunities she had been given. It was a tough and rocky road and she really just wanted to be able to share her happiness and accomplishments with him, because it wouldn't mean half as much if he weren't there to see it. She felt guilty feeling this disappointed over a simple ceremony given the fact that Puck was fighting over in a war zone, but she couldn't help it, the thought nagging her throughout the night.
She tried to finish up some homework that was due the next afternoon, but her mind was elsewhere so she gave up and closed her books, hoping a little sleep would help her calm down and help her refocus on her homework tomorrow.
It had been a few weeks since Puck had told Quinn that he wasn't sure when they would be able to come back, and while they had talked a few more times since then, things just weren't the same. She would be the first to admit that she had been in a funk lately and even though cheering and school had kept her busy and been a pleasant distraction, the fact that she didn't know when her husband would be back had been at the forefront of her mind ever since they spoke last.
Fall in Ohio meant football season, and while she was pumped that The Ohio State University Buckeyes were having a great season and her friend Taylor was being highly touted as a NFL first round draft pick, even the excitement of the season was a bit lost on her this year.
That was until Rachel called her up at the end of October, delivering some news that made Quinn genuinely happy for the first time in a while.
"So, do you have your tickets yet?" Rachel asked, foregoing a formal 'hello.'
Quinn was a bit confused, wracking her brain for the correct answer. "Um, tickets to what exactly?"
"My show! Duh!" Rachel exclaimed incredulously, "We are coming to perform in Columbus in two weeks, Quinn!"
"Oh, seriously?" Quinn replied, feeling bad that she hadn't been following Rachel's show as closely as she should have, "I'm not going to lie to you, Rach. I've been so busy and so distracted lately that it must have just slipped my mind. I am so sorry!"
"Distracted with school, sports, or Noah?"
Quinn smiled, acknowledging the fact that her friend seemed to know her so well, "I think it's safe to say that it's a mix of all of them at this point."
"I hear ya on that one," Rachel replied, "But hey, what are you doing like two Saturdays from now? I think its November 9th or something."
"Um, as far as I know, nothing really. The football team has a bye week that weekend so we don't have a game. Why?"
"Cuz I'm getting tickets for you to come see my show, Quinn! Try to keep up here."
Quinn laughed out loud before asking if she was serious and when Rachel replied that she was serious and she was getting tickets for her parents, the Hudson-Hummels, the Puckermans and the Schuesters anyway, so she said it would be no problem snagging Quinn some tickets. The production understood that it was one of their lead star's home states and they were more than happy to help accommodate her family and friends. Rachel even offered to get a ticket for Quinn's mother as well, but Quinn told her she wasn't sure what her mom's plans were so Rachel just said she would go ahead and leave five tickets for Quinn and whoever at will call that evening.
She quickly thanked Rachel for thinking of her and her mom and including the Puckermans as well. Rachel joked that every time her fathers saw the Puckerman women at temple, Noah's little sister always asked how Rachel was doing and where her show was that week, so she was more than happy to invite everyone she knew would enjoy it to the performance when they came through town.
The girls exchanged a few more pleasantries and stories, catching up for a bit before ending the call. Quinn found herself quite excited at the prospect of getting away from school for an evening and getting to see Rachel perform again. She got online and looked up the show, seeing that it had earned rave reviews from all across the country. She was happy Rachel was doing well for herself and was truly ecstatic to be able to get to see Rach and the rest of their family friends as well.
She walked out of her room to look for Santana and Britt, figuring it would be polite to ask them first if they wanted to go with her before she went and asked some other people if they were interested. Britt was thrilled, excited to see the show and all of the pyrotechnics Rachel had talked about when she last visited. Santana was a bit harder to read but Quinn knew she had wanted to go to see the show for a while now, seeing as how she caught Santana singing along to most of the 80's rock songs that were featured in the show in the shower on multiple occasions. They both agreed and the three girls began planning their girls night out, starting with trying to figure out what they would all wear to the show.
x-x-x-x-x
After a seemingly long few weeks, the big night of Rachel's "Rock of Ages" performance had finally arrived. Quinn, Santana, Britt and their teammate Whitney all got ready and headed out toward downtown Columbus, deciding to meet up with Quinn's mom for dinner before the show started. Rachel had left tons of tickets at will call for everyone and had sounded super excited to perform for all of her friends when Quinn last spoke with her a few days ago so Quinn knew this was going to be one of her best performances yet.
The conversation at dinner flowed easily and the five women enjoyed their meals and wine, chatting away until Santana noticed they needed to get going in order to get there on time. Quinn's mom treated the girls to dinner, paying the check and they all walked down the street toward the theater.
They ran into the Hudson-Hummels and the Schuesters at the box office, chatting a bit while they waited to be seated, shocked and awed when they realized that Rachel had snagged them front and second row seats. They talked for a bit longer until the lights started to dim and the narrator began to speak, setting the scene for the performance.
The main character strolled onto the stage, interacting with one of the other characters for a while before Rachel's character "Sherrie" was introduced, the brunette skipping out onto the stage to deliver her first lines. Easily half of the theater erupted into an enthusiastic applause, Rachel's parents standing and cheering from a few seats down the row. Quinn was positive she saw Rachel's smile grow even wider as she recognized her friends and family in front of her.
She began to deliver her lines and the scene easily moved into the first number of the performance, the audience tapping their feet and some singing along to all of the songs, from Twisted Sister, Whitesnake, Styx, Bon Jovi and plenty of other 80's classics. Quinn even found herself singing along and sharing nostalgic glances with San and Britt near the end of the performance when Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" came on, the entire audience on their feet and cheering as the entire company belted out the tune.
Once the curtain drew to a close, the narrator came back on stage to introduce the cast members and to allow for them all to take a bow, the audience cheering wildly as Rachel came back out on stage and gave her a standing ovation as she waved at the crowd. The narrator took that moment to come back out near the front, clearing his throat as he began to speak again, the audience quieting down as they listened to what he had to say.
"Well, we hope you all enjoyed the show this evening just as much as we enjoyed performing for you all," he said, loud applause drowning him out again. Once they quieted down, he spoke again, "As many of you may know, our Sherrie, a Ms. Rachel Berry, or rather Mrs. Rachel Hudson hails from this great state, from the town of Lima which is not too far from here, so let's give it up for the hometown crowd, eh?" he asked, the crowd cheering wildly.
He used his hands to try and calm them down a bit before continuing, "Now, many of you know that Mrs. Hudson here is from the state of Ohio but many of you may not know that she is married to her high school sweetheart." He paused, allowing the crowd to get out all of their 'awws' and 'how cutes' out of the way.
Rachel blushed a bit, trying to mask her confusion as to where this was all going by pasting a smile on her face. The narrator decided to continue, "Yes, this lovely lady is married to a young man by the name of Finn Hudson, who is a Specialist in the Army currently serving overseas in Afghanistan." Rachel felt her heart clench a bit at the statement, trying to continue smiling as she saw Quinn's face fall a bit from her seat in the front row.
The narrator walked over to Rachel and placed a hand on her shoulder before continuing his spiel, "And seeing as how this upcoming Monday will be Veteran's Day, we wanted to acknowledge our service men and women who have served or who are currently serving in the military. So we, the 'Rock of Ages' ensemble would like to ask that anyone out there in the audience who has either served or is currently serving in one of the branches of the Armed Forces to please stand up so we can recognize your commitment and sacrifice to this great nation. Please, don't be shy."
People started looking around, Quinn's eyes scanning the room trying to see who all had also served. Slowly but surely, several men and women here and there began to stand up, their loved ones clapping as the entire audience and the cast broke out into applause. The men and women waved slightly, smiling as everyone in the room applauded their efforts.
Once the applause died down a bit, the narrator began to speak again, "We also wanted to take a moment to recognize the family members and friends of those who have served, realizing that they too have been asked to make a sacrifice while their loved ones are off serving our country." He smiled at Rachel before looking out over the audience, Quinn strangely feeling his eyes meet hers a few times as he continued, "And since Ms. Berry's husband is currently serving, we felt we needed to acknowledge their sacrifice as well. Would you like to say anything, Rachel?"
The narrator looked over at her, handing her the microphone as she gave him a puzzled look, confused as to why he was putting her on the spot right now when none of this had been rehearsed.
She accepted the microphone and looked out over the audience, "Um, thank you very much for that warm reception and thank you again for coming out to see the show. I would like to take a moment to thank all of you out there who have served or who are currently active duty, and like 'Lonny' over here informed you all, my husband too is serving overseas so your support means the world." She cleared her throat, looking down at Quinn and giving her a small smile before continuing, "And please remember to thank a Veteran for their service this weekend, I know it means a lot to them."
The narrator cut her off, tapping her on the shoulder and stopping her train of thought. She was perturbed at this point, but she didn't want to let the audience see so she smiled again and leaned over to ask what was going on. The narrator took the microphone from her and looked out over the crowd, smiling before looking back at Rachel's borderline peeved face before he spoke, "I apologize for interrupting but apparently we have some VIP's in the house tonight that we forgot to acknowledge earlier."
Rachel's brow quirked in annoyance, the narrator not being one of her favorite members of the ensemble from the beginning and now he was just digging himself a hole in front of her home crowd. She looked down at Quinn, who was leaning over and whispering with Santana, Britt and Whit, wondering what the hell was going on too. The audience looked a bit confused as well, and Rachel really hoped these VIPs were like the President or the governor or something to substantiate this interruption.
The narrator smiled wide before continuing, "Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we have several VIPs here tonight, so without any further ado," he paused for effect, grinning at Rachel, "Returning to the United States after a year-long deployment in Afghanistan, I give you Ohio's own Specialist Finn Hudson and Specialist Noah Puckerman."
He stepped aside, motioning to the side of the stage where Finn walked out in his Army fatigues holding a bouquet of flowers, his smile dominating his face as he walked toward Rachel. Puck trailed after him wearing the same uniform, hopping down off the stage and making his way toward Quinn's seat.
As soon as Finn began to walk toward her, Rachel stared at him in disbelief before bursting into tears, beaming brightly at her husband before taking off in a run and leaping into his arms. She clasped his cheeks between her hands and kissed him deeply while Finn held her tightly. The audience burst into applause, many pulling out their cameras or phones to record the tender moment.
Quinn was so shocked to see Puck jump off of the stage and walk toward her that she felt frozen in place, her hands clasped over her mouth as tears cascaded down her cheeks. She watched him walk toward her with that familiar swagger and that beautiful smile and felt completely overwhelmed by the whole situation. Santana poked her in the back and her mother urged her to stand up but everything seemed to fade out around them as he pulled her into his arms and held her close, capturing her lips with his.
The crowd was still going wild, applauding loudly even after both couples broke apart and finally took in their surroundings. Puck received several pats on the back and "welcome home" greetings from many of the other audience members before hearing Finn's voice come over the PA system.
"I would just like to take a quick moment to say thank you all for this wonderful homecoming and show of support. It truly means the world to us. I also want to say thank you to the cast and crew of this awesome production. You not only put on a hell of a performance but both Specialist Puckerman and I really appreciate you all helping us pull off this surprise. And most of all, I want to quickly thank my friends and family, and especially my incredible wife for always supporting us through everything. I love you, Rachel." The couple kissed again and Finn handed the microphone back to the narrator.
The narrator wrapped everything up and wished everyone a good night before the house lights popped on, leaving the audience to make their way out of the back doors. Rachel opted to stay out near the stage with Finn, socializing with her friends and family for as long as she could before she needed to go backstage and change out of her wardrobe.
Quinn felt like she was in a dream, standing there with Puck's arm wrapped around her while several other audience members made their way up to the boys, thanking them for their service and wishing them all well. As they stood there, Tex made his way down the aisle, joining in on the reunion and earning hugs from Rachel and Quinn while the boys introduced Tex to the rest of the crowd gathered there.
Tex turned to Finn and held up his Flip camera, letting him know he got the whole thing on film and telling both of the other men that he would send copies of the files as soon as he got back to his computer. All of the people gathered there were stunned at how thoroughly the boys had planned this all out, managing to surprise not only Quinn and Rachel, but also surprising their families and close friends as well and recording the whole thing so they could enjoy it later.
The group chatted a bit longer before the wardrobe department supervisor came out to find Rachel, and the brunette excused herself from the group to go change. The rest of the crowd made their way out the doors to wait in the lobby for Rachel so everyone could go out for drinks afterwards.
Tex glanced around the crowd, realizing how close all of these people were and feeling slightly jealous at the amount of love and support in the room. His family was very supportive of him, but they lived on a fairly secluded ranch in Texas and he never really had that kind of camaraderie with anyone from his high school. He had heard all about all of Puck and Finn's friends and family and even though he had met both of their spouses before, he was more than happy to stop off in Ohio to see this elaborate reunion on his way through back to his home state.
He glanced over to see Finn completely immersed in conversation with his family and Rachel's parents, enjoying the way Carol Hudson seemed to hover over her son while he stood there. He noticed a group of girls huddled near a different man and his wife, deciding it was safe to assume these were the infamous Schuesters from Puck and Finn's old high school. From what he had heard, Mr. Schuester was a pretty cool dude, helping both guys out in their times of need and seemingly inadvertently played match-maker for both of his fellow teammates. He then turned and saw Puck and Quinn chatting with their mothers and Puck's little sister, Puck's arm locked around Quinn's lower back as he held her tightly against him. He smiled as he saw Puck glance over at Quinn, completely absorbed by what she was saying before leaning down and kissing her softly, chuckling at how whipped he thought both of his friends were. His train of thought was interrupted by someone clearing their throat behind him.
"They're so cute, they make me want to vomit sometimes."
Tex looked over to find a familiar face, the hot Latina Puck's wife Quinn had introduced him to at the Ohio State game they went to at Army a few years ago. "Yeah, you should hear him when he gets to talking about her. It's sickening sometimes."
Santana chuckled a bit, "See, I would have figured Finn would be way worse."
"Oh, you have no idea. Way worse. He could go on and on and on about her for hours on end if you let him."
"I could only imagine."
He took a long glance at her, admiring all of her curves and assets for a few seconds before deciding to strap on the Southern charm he was blessed with and go for it, laying on the drawl heavily as he spoke, "So, since both of our friends are most likely going to be pretty, um…busy tonight, how about you let me buy you a drink."
Santana looked up at him and smirked, raising her hand and caressing his arm lightly before replying, "You know what, I would love for you to buy me a drink. But before you go and get any crazy ideas as to where this is going," she drawled, biting her lip as Tex widened his eyes, practically drooling over the raven-haired woman in front of him, "I should be honest with you. You're not my type."
Tex smirked back, "Well, how would you know that? You haven't even taken me for a test drive yet."
Santana laughed before dropping the seduction act, patting him on the back before responding, "Let's just say I don't play for the same team that you do."
"Huh? I don't think I follow," Tex said, his brow creased in confusion.
Santana leaned in toward him and pointed toward the group of girls talking to the Schuesters, "See the taller blonde girl over there?" Tex looked over toward where she was pointing, nodding when he saw who she was pointing at. Santana continued, "Yeah, she's mine. But that was a good line you used. I would bet it works on a lot of other girls who are, you know into that whole dating guys thing."
Tex simply stared at the blonde, looking back at Santana wide-eyed as the reality of what she had just said sunk in, "Wait, you two are like…together, together?"
"Yep. Wow, you're a quick one, cowboy."
"Seriously?"
"Um, yeah. Seriously." Santana began to walk away toward where Britt stood.
Tex followed, his eyes glancing back and forth from Santana and Britt, "Wow, that's hot."
Santana continued walking, glancing over her shoulder and chuckling, "Oh, believe me, it definitely is."
"Holy shit," Tex said, swallowing hard at the images flooding his brain at the moment and speeding up to match her stride, "Can I watch sometime?"
"Geeze, perv," she snarked back, stopping for a moment and narrowing her eyes at him before smirking again, "but maybe. We'll think about it."
Tex looked at the ceiling and muttered a quick "thank you Lord" while Santana stood there and laughed at him before the two of them followed the departing group out the front doors and into the crisp fall air.
x-x-x-x-x-x
Later that night, Quinn finally felt at ease as she curled into Puck's side, his strong arms encircling her and holding her close. She missed seeing him and being with him, and while she was a little overwhelmed at his surprise arrival earlier, all of the tension, frustration and disappointment seemed to melt away the second his skin touched hers. He kissed the top of her head, adjusting his arms once again before leaning down to murmur in her ear.
"So, did you like your surprise?"
She smiled, leaning forward to kiss his chest, "Mmmhmm, best surprise ever."
"I'm glad. Finn is like a ninja coordinator when it comes to this stuff."
"I was wondering how you did all of this. That was pretty damn elaborate."
"Yeah, Finn got a few numbers off of one of Rachel's castmates and put in a few calls to some of the production supervisors and stuff. They actually were pretty cool about the whole thing and were super-eager to help. They even offered to set aside a shit-ton of tickets for everyone."
"So that's how all of us got such great seats!"
"Well, Rach was going to get you all tickets anyway, but the producer upgraded them all to be near the front. I tell you what though, that was one hell of a show. I never thought I would enjoy a play that much, but it was pretty badass. Classic rock? Best Broadway soundtrack ever."
"Wait, you were there?" She asked, looking up at him, "You saw the show?"
He smiled softly back, "Well yeah, you don't think we would have gone through all of the trouble of surprising you there and not watched, do you? That and since he had never gotten to see it before we deployed, there was no way in hell Finn was missing it."
"Aww, I'm so glad he got to see her perform! She was so bummed he hadn't seen it yet and she works so hard. It's good to know he was there to appreciate it."
"Oh, you should have seen him. It was like watching a little kid unwrap his birthday presents or something. He had the biggest, goofiest grin on his face the whole time and could barely contain himself when people stood to applaud at both intermission and at the end. Thank God Tex was there to calm him down or I don't think he would have made it out onto the stage as easily as he did. He probably would have tackled her from all the excitement."
Quinn laughed, picturing Finn and his dopey grin launching himself at Rachel. "Well, what about you? You were pretty calm too when they introduced you."
"That was a struggle too, seeing as how I could see you and the rest of the girls from where we were seated in the theater. All I wanted to do all night was run up to you and kiss you but that would have ruined the big surprise, and I really wanted to see the look on your face. My mom and sister were really surprised too, so between the three of you, it was totally priceless."
"And Tex recorded the whole thing?"
"Yep, Finn takes care of everything."
"Mmm, that'll be nice to see sometime," she smiled against his chest before crawling over top of him. Puck grasped the back of her thighs and pulled her closer to him, groaning at the contact before she leaned down and placed a soft kiss against his lips, "I'm so glad you're finally home for good."
"Me too babe, you have no idea how much I've missed you."
The sun filtered gently through the blinds, its rays settling across Puck's face as the light gently roused the slumbering man. He rubbed a hand across his face before turning over, seeking out Quinn's body to snuggle up and sleep in for a bit longer. He reached across the bed, feeling around and finding an empty pillow before snapping his eyes open.
He glanced over at her side of the bed to make sure she really wasn't there when he heard noises coming from her bathroom. The closer he listened, the more it sounded like she was getting sick, so he got up and walked into the bathroom, finding her crouched on the floor near the toilet. They had gone out the night before and had a good time, but Quinn had always been somewhat of a lightweight so it didn't surprise him she wasn't feeling too hot this morning.
He grabbed her glass off of the vanity and held it under the faucet, handing it to her before sitting on the edge of the tub to rub her back a bit. She looked up at him and he felt terrible for her, her face pale as she tried to smile, the corners of her mouth falling as it turned into a pathetic frown.
"I feel like death."
"Don't take this the wrong way, but I can tell."
She tried to give him her best sneer but even then, it was just sad, so Puck offered to help her back to bed, going out to the kitchen and making her some toast before coming back in and sitting with her for a bit longer.
Quinn took a bite of the toast, chewing slowly and trying to swallow, the bread proving difficult to get down her throat, "Dammit, I had been trying to avoid this so much this past week."
"Avoid what? A hangover?"
"No, not a hangover. I really didn't drink last night anyway," she said, leaving Puck to think back and realize that he didn't actually see her drink when they had gone out last night. "I'm pissed. I probably got it from Britt. She had the flu and strep all last week and had just started getting better toward the beginning of this week. We cleaned and sanitized every room in the house, but I guess I've been so stressed with school and graduation here in a month and with you being gone, my immune system must have been shot. I haven't been feeling all that well for the past few days but I tried to take vitamins and stuff to ward it off. So much for that idea."
"I'm so sorry. That sucks. But the good news is I'm back now, so that's one less stressor. Can I get you anything else?"
"I think I'm good for now. I have been starting to feel better later in the day so hopefully a nap or something will make me feel better."
"I bet it will," he said, pulling the covers up around her and kissing her forehead, "but if you're not feeling better by Tuesday, you should probably get in to see a doctor and get some antibiotics or something."
"Tuesday?" she asked, "Oh yeah, Veteran's Day is Monday. Happy Veteran's Day, by the way."
"Thank you, now that I'm officially a Veteran," he smiled as he walked out of the door, "Now get some rest."
x-x-x-x-x
Quinn was officially pissed that she was sick for the entire first weekend Puck had been home. Some homecoming that was. She felt bad for the poor guy, who she had made sleep on the couch the night before to avoid getting him sick too. She was exhausted, achy, had a foul stomach and her throat felt like sandpaper.
After sticking it out the rest of the weekend, she decided not to go to the campus student health center as the lines would be ridiculous this time of year, opting instead to take Puck's advice and go to the general medicine clinic located near the VA hospital where his military insurance would cover her visit. Puck had even called ahead and scheduled her an appointment for the earliest possible time they could get her in, knowing he could probably get her in quicker if he gave his information and was a bit more assertive with the operator on the other end of the line.
She arrived early enough to fill out the necessary paperwork, and was called back into an exam room shortly thereafter and was informed that the doctor would be with her soon. She heard a knock on the door and a young woman walked in carrying a file and a clipboard, sitting down and introducing herself to Quinn. The doctor asks a few preliminary questions before asking Quinn to describe her symptoms.
Quinn begins to list off her symptoms, telling the doctor that she had been feeling quite fatigued and exhausted for a while now and how her body just felt achy all over, her throat hurt like hell and her stomach wasn't agreeing with her lately either. The doctor asked a few more questions and Quinn informed her that one of her roommates had been sick earlier so the doctor made a note of that as well. She set the clipboard down and took Quinn's blood pressure and listened to her lungs, asking a few random questions in the process.
After checking her vitals, the doctor asked her what other activities she was involved with and Quinn began to list off everything she could think of. She told the doctor how she was captain of the cheer squad at OSU and how she was working toward finishing a semester early to graduate in December. She also told her she had been stressed in general with school and mentioned her husband being deployed for a while there so all of those factors probably contributed to her immune system being so weak.
The doctor nodded and jotted down a few more notes before looking back up at Quinn and taking her temperature. Once she was all done, she told Quinn that it was completely possible that she just had the flu and had gotten it from her roommate. However, the doctor went on to explain how she suspected it could be mono or something similar, seeing as how stressed out Quinn had been lately.
She asked if they could run a blood test and while Quinn hated getting blood drawn, she agreed, willing to do just about anything at this point to figure out what was going on so she could do something to make it go away. The doctor excused herself and the nurse came in and drew a small vial of blood, informing Quinn that they would probably have the results in a day or two and Quinn thanked her, picking up her purse and heading out of the office.
x-x-x-x-x
After playing the waiting game for the next two days, Quinn finally got a phone call from the clinic informing her that the results from her blood test came back. She had been feeling a bit better lately and shook her head as she thought that it may be moot at this point. However, she was thrown for a bit of a loop when the nurse mentioned that she needed to come down to the clinic to hear her results.
She figured they would just let her know what was going on over the phone and asked the woman why she wouldn't just tell her. The nurse simply stated that medical privacy laws had changed and prevented her from being able to disclose that kind of information over the phone so Quinn would have to come back to the clinic to find out.
Quinn thanked the woman and checked her schedule, relieved that all of her classes and practice was over for the day leaving her free to head down to the clinic. A few short minutes later, she pulled into the lot and made her way back into the clinic, checking in with the nurse before being led back to an exam room.
The same doctor she saw a few days prior came back in with Quinn's folder. Taking a seat near Quinn as she asks the blonde how she is feeling. Quinn told her she had been feeling better but isn't quite at 100% yet.
The doctor offered her a small smile before opening the folder and explaining the findings of Quinn's blood sample. Quinn sat there stunned, trying to absorb all of the information but suddenly finding it difficult to focus on the rest of what the doctor has to say. She can feel her eyes widen and she begins to feel light headed, the doctor's words droning on but she can't quite comprehend what the doctor is saying behind the ringing in her ears.
Finally, the doctor finishes her speech, asking Quinn again if she was feeling alright and requesting a nurse take her blood pressure again before she left the office. She shook hands with Quinn and departed with a smile as a nurse came in to take her place.
A few minutes later, Quinn exited the building, her face chalk white and drained of all its color as she tried to comprehend what just happened in that exam room. She opened her car door and slid in behind the wheel, rigidly sitting in the driver's seat and staring out into space for several minutes while she tried to wrap her head around the test results.
What the hell just happened? she thought to herself as she sat there, too stunned to move.
TBC...