Disclaimer: Ownership is neither claimed nor implied.
A/N: Life, love and happiness, Quicketh style.
Quinn was sat on the floor in the family room with Beth when Puck got home from work on Saturday evening. Beth was standing up, holding on to Quinn's hands, wobbling and bouncing, her little knees unsteady but so excited at being able to stand up. Beth squealed, getting even more excited when Puck walked in. "Dadadadadadadadadada, she chanted, bouncing more and more in her excitement at seeing her daddy.
"Hey baby girl, have you been having fun with mommy today?" Puck asked, smiling at Beth.
"Dadadadadadadadada," Beth chanted again and grinned, showing off her teeth. She let go of Quinn's hands and plopped down onto her padded butt, she flapped her arms up and down and breathed a 'hee' of excitement. Beth rolled herself onto her hands and knees and crawled rapidly over to Puck, breathing another 'hee' sound as she went. When she reached Puck's feet she rolled back onto her butt and raised her arms to him, her hands opening and closing, grasping at the air. "Dadadadadadada," she grinned, her nose wrinkling up as she showed her new teeth off again.
"What can I see?" Puck asked, bending down to pick Beth up. "Another new tooth? Wow. I bet mommy is going to just love that when she feeds you at bedtime," Puck joked glancing at Quinn, then he kissed Beth's cheek. Beth snuggled into Puck's arms as he held her against his chest. "Mmmmm, daddy missed this cuddle this morning," he murmured as he rested his face against Beth's hair, taking a long sniff. Puck had left for work before Beth had woken this morning. She'd been awake most of the night, crying and getting very upset before her new tooth had finally broken through her gum. Beth was now the proud owner of four beautiful, tiny white teeth, two on the bottom and two on the top. "I'm going up for a shower," Puck said, putting Beth back on the floor. "Where is everyone?" he asked when he finally realised that they were alone, he was more used to his mom, sister and nana being around on Saturday evenings.
"They've gone to the movies then they're having a girly night at your nana's so it's just us tonight. I thought we might order in," Quinn told Puck, giving him a shy smile. "Get Beth to bed, watch a movie, or not," she added breathlessly, as she walked slowly towards Puck, she looked up at him through her lashes, her teeth tugging at her bottom lip.
Puck reached for Quinn, pulling her into his arms. He mumbled his approval of Quinn's plan against her lips, just before his tongue swept into her mouth. "Are they staying at Nana's overnight?" he asked, one hand cupping Quinn's butt, giving it a light squeeze.
"Mmmhmm, all night," Quinn whispered, her fingers walking up his chest.
"Hold that thought," Puck groaned. "I'll go shower then make a run out to pick up…what do you feel like? Chinese maybe?" he asked. "I could really go for chicken chow mein and some spring rolls."
"Mmmm, that sounds good. From China Star? I love the spring rolls from there," Quinn agreed.
"Chinese it is then. I won't be long, just a quick shower. Do you want to phone the order in now?" Puck asked, knowing that once he got sat down and relaxed, he really wouldn't want to go out again just to pick up food.
"All right, you go shower and I'll phone it in. I'll make Beth's dinner too so that we can all eat together," Quinn said going into the kitchen as Puck went upstairs. Quinn sang to Beth while she made her dinner, Beth clattered and banged the tray of her highchair with a spoon and gurgled and squealed.
Puck came back downstairs within twenty minutes, dressed in sweats and a comfortable long sleeved t-shirt, he had his phone, wallet and keys with him. "I'll go pick up the food. I'll be back soon," he said then kissed both Beth and Quinn before he left. Fifteen minutes later Quinn's phone rang. "Hey, how do you feel about having company for dinner?" Puck asked. "Finn and Rachel are collecting their order too, I've just got ours. Should I invite them over?"
"Sure, why not?" Quinn replied. "It could be fun. I'll get the plates and stuff ready. See you in about twenty minutes," she said, wondering if Beth could hold off for a while longer. Quinn wasn't sure, Beth was eyeing up her bowl with a great deal of interest.
"About that, yeah," Puck agreed then ended the call. It actually felt like a lot less than that when the door opened and they all walked in with Puck and Finn carrying the take out bags. All three went straight into the kitchen to Quinn and Beth.
Beth squealed and kicked her feet when she saw her daddy and then she started banging her hands on the tray. "Dadadadadadadada," she shouted. Beth had a huge beaming smile on her face, just for her daddy.
"It must be really cool to have someone get that excited to see you," Finn said, laughing at Beth's little face.
"I could let it go to my head," Puck half agreed with a sigh, "except she gets that excited about seeing everyone and every toy and her dinner and even her feet first thing in the morning," he grinned, "but 'dada' is the only word she can actually say just yet, apparently all babies do regardless of the language they hear," he added, pulling a face at Beth to make her laugh. "Not so special after all," Puck said, his voice perfectly serious even though he was teasing, he did feel special, really special, he knew that Beth loved to see him. Puck put the bags on the worktop, then leant over the back of Beth's highchair to kiss her head. Beth leant back in her seat to look up at daddy and chuckle. Puck took her hands, both of them watching each other upside down. Beth giggled and squealed, Puck stealthily looked in her mouth to see if there were any more telltale little lumps that would indicate another sleepless night if she was cutting another tooth. "Yay, it looks like we might actually get some sleep tonight. No sign of any more teeth yet," he told Quinn before giving Beth an upside down kiss on her forehead. Beth chuckled even more. "Are you ready to eat with the big people?" Puck asked her.
"Yes she is, her dinner is here," Quinn said as she put a bowl down on the table near Beth's highchair. The table was already set for the four of them. Quinn had put soft drinks out for them all as well.
"Do you want a beer instead of that?" Puck asked Finn, taking a chilled bottle from the fridge and opening it.
"I'm driving so I'll just take the soda," Finn replied, "but thanks for the offer."
"I'll just have water, if that's ok," Rachel answered.
"Well, I definitely want the beer," Puck said with a smile then picked up his bottle and took a long drink.
"I seem to remember, very recently I might add, someone, I forget who, but someone said 'never again'?" Quinn informed everyone while looking pointedly at Puck. She raised one eyebrow, trying not to laugh at him and waited for Puck's reply as they all sat down at the table.
"That wasn't about beer, that was about getting drunk," Puck hurriedly explained. "And I don't actually recall saying never again," he contradicted, "I thought it was more of a 'kill me now I feel like death' type thing," he said in an attempt to rewrite recent history.
"Errm, no it was definitely 'never again'," Quinn reminded Puck in a smug voice. "Although to be fair, that was after Beth had bounced all over you while you laid in bed moaning and groaning," she added with the tiniest touch of sympathy.
"Yeah, how cruel is that?" Puck grumbled. "There I am, laid in bed, dying from a hangover, seriously dying and she just sits Beth on the bed and lets her climb all over me," he complained. "And Beth never just climbs, she bounces. As soon as she sits on me, she bounces," Puck told Finn and Rachel as he pointed accusing fingers at both Quinn and Beth. "You're cruel, both of you."
Quinn took one of Beth's hands and high-fived her gently. "Yay, mommy and Beth against daddy. Serves you right Puckerman," Quinn laughed and Beth chuckled.
Rachel was laughing along with Quinn and Beth. For the first time, Rachel really noticed how natural it seemed, how easy and effortless both Puck and Quinn made it, interacting with Beth, keeping her involved in the conversation around the table, talking to her. Rachel felt just a touch envious, she knew that as a baby she had missed out, she wished she'd been given the opportunity to know her own mother. Beth was so lucky. She had a mommy and a daddy who adored her and other family around her and a Glee club that had claimed her as a niece. She would always be surrounded by love.
"Isn't that right Rachel? Rachel? Are you still with us? Hello-oo," Finn's voice finally registered in Rachel's brain.
"Hmmm? Sorry, I think I zoned out there for a moment. What were you saying?" Rachel asked, blinking to clear her head.
"Never mind, it wouldn't be funny now," Finn replied, shaking his head and rolling his eyes.
Conversation continued throughout the meal and beyond. Quinn realised that they'd been sat at the table for more than an hour when she saw Beth starting to doze off. "Ok, this little lady needs her bath and to get ready for bed. Which do you want to do Puckerman? Bath or kitchen?" Quinn asked.
"Well, seeing as how you've had Beth all day and I've been at work, I'll take the bath and you can do the kitchen," Puck said as he stood and lifted Beth from her highchair. Beth laid her head on Puck's shoulder, her hand spread out on his chest. "No going to sleep yet baby girl, you have to get your bath and then you need mommy first," he murmured as he looked down at her. "I hope her bath wakes her up a bit otherwise she won't eat enough then she'll be awake and hungry at midnight. And she'll be screaming."
"I'll help you with the kitchen Quinn," Rachel offered then turned to Finn. "You go talk to Noah while he sees to Beth."
"Is that ok with you?" Finn asked Puck.
"Sure, come on up. You might want to wait outside for a few minutes though, this diaper is very messy," Puck advised, knowing from experience that some things, once seen can never be unseen. Or unsmelt. Puck carried Beth up the stairs and went straight into his and Quinn's room then through to their bathroom. He started the water running and as he turned to go to Beth's room was surprised that Finn was so close behind him. "Would you watch the water for a second?" Puck asked Finn. "I'll just go get her ready for her bath."
"Sure," Finn agreed straight away. "What am I watching for?" he asked.
"Nothing. Just let the water go a couple of inches higher then turn it off," Puck replied, shaking his head. He wondered sometimes how Finn managed to get through the day without causing severe injury to himself or others, his head certainly worked in a different way to everyone else's. Puck undressed Beth quickly and cleaned her up before carrying her back to the bathroom, her towel in his other hand.
"Dude, she's naked!" Finn cried, almost in shock, certainly surprised.
"Of course she's naked," Puck replied, "she's having a bath not going swimming. Did you think she'd have a bikini on or something?" he asked, shaking his head and rolling his eyes, once again Puck wondered if anyone had ever dropped Finn on his head when he was a baby. He tested the temperature and added some more warm water. When it was just right he threw in a few of Beth's favourite toys then knelt down at the side of the bath and sat Beth in the water.
As soon as she was in the water Beth started splashing and playing. She managed to balance her sponge on her head, more by accident than design, then giggled as the water ran down her face. Puck kept one hand on her back to make sure she didn't fall over but let her have her playtime first before washing her hair and her body. Beth loved bath time and at least it woke her up enough tonight so that she'd have her feed then be settled for the rest of the night. Hopefully.
Once she was bathed and had played, Puck got Beth out of the tub and wrapped her in her hooded towel. One handed he let the water out and emptied the bath of all of her toys, clearing up as he went, his actions and movements so practiced that he didn't even have to think about what he was doing. All the time he was tidying up, he was also singing to and chatting with Beth, keeping her awake enough to be able to nurse sufficiently that she would be full and satisfied all night but still sleepy enough to be going to bed soon.
Finn followed Puck into Beth's room. He watched as Puck laid her on the changing table, still wrapped in her towel. He noticed that Puck had everything to hand on the shelf above the table. One-hand Puck kept Beth in place and with the other, he reached for the items that he needed. "I don't know how you do all of this," Finn said quietly. "It's like you don't even think about it. I am seriously in awe of both of you. Tonight is the first time I've really seen how you do things and everything is centred around Beth," he added, surprise in his voice. Finn shook his head, knowing that he would not have been able to cope with things like Puck had done if Beth had actually been his daughter.
"Of course everything centres around Beth," Puck replied. "Everyone else has a voice and an opinion, she doesn't yet. Some days it's still guess work to figure out why she's crying or upset, other days you just know," he shrugged as he finished snapping all the poppers on her pyjamas shut. Puck smiled at Beth, she grinned back, her hair still ruffed up and messy from Puck rubbing it dry with the towel. He sat her up and brushed her hair. "Are you ready for mommy now?" Puck asked Beth as he picked her up. He checked the time and then looked at Beth again. "It's still a little early, you might have to play some more first. That will be such a hardship for you won't it?" he grinned.
Downstairs in the family room, Quinn and Rachel sat on the sofa, chatting. Quinn relaxed with her feet curled up, leant against the arm of the sofa, Rachel sat leaning against the other arm. Puck walked in carrying a more alert Beth followed by Finn.
Puck sat on the floor with Beth and leant against the sofa where Quinn's feet would be if she was sat up straight. Beth tried to climb over Puck to get up on the sofa. It was a big struggle and after a while she gave up and got interested in one of her toys that Puck was pretending to play with. He crawled away with it and sat in the middle of the room occasionally glancing over his shoulder at Beth. Beth crawled after him, her head down and determined. She plopped down on her diaper-clad butt in front of Puck and then she smiled at him, her patented 'daddy, give me everything because I'm so damn cute' smile. Puck pretended to be more interested in the foam blocks than her. Puck moved the blocks away from her. Beth's face changed, her bottom lip stuck out and she looked at Puck with the puppy dog eyes.
"Watch this," Quinn whispered to Rachel. "He is such a sucker for that trick, she's got him so wrapped around her little finger."
Puck didn't hear what Quinn had said but reacted as always to Beth's distress, he immediately dropped the blocks and picked her up. Beth stood on her daddy's knee, her head at the side of his, looking over his shoulder at Quinn as Puck comforted her. Beth gave Quinn her scrunch-nosed 'how good an actress am I?' grin.
"See?" Quinn laughed. "She got you again Puckerman. You will never learn. She knows just exactly how to play you and you fall for it every time," she said with a hint of superiority in her voice, certain that her baby girl wouldn't use such underhanded tricks on her mommy.
Puck held Beth in front of him, and smiled at her, she grinned back,. "You are such a little…" Puck didn't finish what he was going to say, shaking his head.
He put Beth down and she crawled over to Quinn and tried to climb up on the sofa. Quinn looked down at her. "Is it that time already?" she asked Beth, wide eyed. "Are you ready for your supper? Come on up then," Quinn helped Beth up onto her lap. Beth settled herself into position and pushed Quinn's top up to reach her supper. Quinn helped her, so relaxed and used to feeding Beth that she didn't take any notice of Finn's slight discomfort. Puck, so used to other people being present and knowing that nothing could be seen, didn't think it was inappropriate either.
Puck and Finn were discussing their last game. Coach Beiste had ripped into them because they'd narrowly lost and she thought that they could have won. Finn had to agree with her, they could have except that Sam had been taken out by a 300lb linebacker who looked as though his closest relative was King Kong.
Quinn and Rachel chatted softly about school and shopping. Rachel was fascinated by the naturalness of both Quinn's and Beth's interactions during her feeding. Beth had one hand up in the air, Quinn was stroking Beth's palm with her thumb. Beth shifted only when she had exhausted the supply from one breast, Quinn turned her to the other. Beth settled again and held up her other hand, again Quinn stroked her palm with her thumb. Beth got slower and slower at feeding. Quinn jiggled her feet which made Beth shift a little and even with her eyes closed started sucking again. Once that had happened a few times Quinn used her little finger to break the suction that Beth's lips had on her nipple. Beth huffed a breath but didn't wake up. Quinn lifted her to her shoulder and patted her back. In her sleep Beth supplied the required burp. As Quinn was about to stand up, Puck took the sleeping baby from her and carried her upstairs to put her in bed. He came back down a few minutes later with the baby monitor. "All settled, out for the count and lets hope that tonight she doesn't wake up," he said, giving Quinn a kiss on the top of her head. "Move over," he urged. Quinn shifted towards the middle of the sofa, Puck sat in her place then drew her back to him, drawing her onto his lap. Quinn leant back further against the arm of the sofa and stretched, her top riding up, exposing her tummy. Puck's hand immediately covered and stroked it. He loved skin to skin contact with her and did it without thinking, neither of them even aware of how in tune with each other and intimate they appeared to everyone else. They only knew they felt comfortable with each other.
Puck and Finn talked about their jobs, both of them working with cars but at different places. Finn worked in his step dad's tire shop and Puck at Mr Epstein's garage. Both of them liked the work and both of them thought it would be something they would like to continue with after they finished school. Rachel talked about her plans - New York, Broadway. Quinn felt a bit, well, not quite left out but left back. She didn't have any plans for after school. At least not until Beth started school herself. Then maybe she could think about college. Maybe. But she wouldn't change her life. Not now. She loved her daughter, she loved Puck, she loved his family. Quinn had never felt so happy. What could possibly go wrong?