AN: Apologies ahead of time for this chapter. Most of you are probably not going to be very happy about it, but fret not. All will turn out well in the end. Also, my guess is there's probably only about five chapters along with an epilogue left in this story. Thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing this. You all are wonderful!

"And for once it might be grand
To have someone understand
I want so much more than they've got planned."

Rachel held the last note as Puck began clapping loudly, placing two fingers in his mouth and let out a loud whistle. "Baby that was awesome," he cheered. It was Monday evening after rehearsals had ended, and Rachel and Puck were in her dorm room. She was continually going over her lines while Puck sat at her desk, studying for his exam on Friday. He was taking another break as Rachel practiced another solo.

"You really think so?" she asked. "I wasn't too pitchy on that last note? Because I thought maybe I was a little sharp during the second bridge."

"Well, now that you mention it, I don't see how I could have missed that," he joked, giving her a grin. Rachel didn't appear to be amused. "Relax darling. I'm joking," he laughed, tossing a pillow at her.

"Ow. Rude," Rachel scoffed as the pillow hit her on her left hip. "Remind me why I keep you around?"

"Uh, because I'm amazing?"

Rachel laughed as she shook her head. "No, that can't be it. You don't seem all that amazing to me, especially since you're throwing pillows at me."

"Then it's obviously because you're using me for my penis," he joked, which caused Rachel's face to turn bright red. "It seems that a week of sex education with the campus' biggest manslut has done nothing to stop you from turning as red as a strawberry whenever someone who isn't you mentions anything to do with bedroom activities," he taunted, sticking his tongue out at her before flipping his economics book open, attempting to go back to studying.

"You're a horrible person, I hope you know," she retorted as she started moving around the room, attempting to practice her part of the choreography for the finale of the show. As much as she hated to admit it, she was actually kind of happy Jesse was now the male lead opposite her. She adored Wes, but Jesse was a much better dancer than he was.

"Why, because I remind you that you enjoy having sex with me as much as possible? I don't think that makes me horrible," he said, not looking up from his book as he attempted to memorize a few definitions from his textbook.

"No, you're horrible because I say you are," she said as she spun once and fell back onto her bed with a sigh. "I'm nervous, you know," she said after a few minutes, her eyes focused on the tiles of the ceiling of her room. "What if I make a fool of myself?"

"You said the same thing before your first show and that went off without a hitch. Relax, everything's going to go great. You're going to knock it out of the park and impress all those senior girls who have been mean to you since your audition," Puck said, looking up from his book and over at Rachel on her bed.

"You have to say that," she sighed dramatically, draping her arm over her eyes. "Just like my dads have to say I'm the most beautiful girl in the world even though that's not true."

Rachel heard the springs in her bed squeak as Puck left her desk and climbed onto the bed beside her. She felt a warm hand on her arm as it was pulled away from her face so she was looking up into the warm eyes of her boyfriend who was hovering over her, a smile on his lips.

"Now tell me when I have ever lied to you about something like that before?" Puck leaned his face closer to her, his one hand resting on the side of her face. "You are the most beautiful, talented, sexy, amazing girl I know," he said, placing a kiss on her face after each compliment. "And you're crazy if you think I'm lying about that."

Rachel closed her eyes as she blushed, her hands resting against Puck's chest as she turned her head to the side. "You're just saying that so I'll have sex with you," she said.

"Hey, look at me," Puck said, placing a hand under her chin and turned her face towards his so they were looking each other in the eyes. "I would never lie about how I feel about you just to get you into bed with me. I may be a slut who has done a lot of crummy things to get girls to sleep with me, but I would never do that to you." He placed a kiss on her lips. "I love you, and I know you're going to kick ass Friday night."

Rachel smiled, moving her hands up and placing them on the back of his neck, her fingers running over the ends of his hair. "Well, I think that mini speech earned you a study break consisting of ten minutes of make out time," she teased, pulling his face down to hers.

Puck kissed her before pulling away for a moment. "Well good, because there's nothing I like more than that. Except maybe naked making out."

"Watch your mouth or you might be making out with a pillow," Rachel muttered as Puck lowered his face again, capturing her lips with his, his arm wrapping around her waist to pull her closer to him.

Making out with Rachel had to be one of Puck's favorite things in the world. She always claimed she wasn't a good kisser, but she really was. Her lips were the softest he'd ever kissed and she did this thing with her tongue he'd never had anyone do with him before. He was curious who'd taught it to her.

It took about thirty seconds for Puck to get Rachel's shirt off and toss it to the floor. Ever since she'd lost her virginity, every make out session had turned into so much more, not that he was complaining about that. He was sure tonight wasn't going to be any different as he moved his lips down and started kissing over her bra-covered breasts.

The only thing he had forgotten about making out in Rachel's dorm was that his sister could walk in without warning at any time, as was the case tonight. Quinn had been in the library since her afternoon class ended, working on a term paper. Rachel had figured she'd meet up with Finn and go to his apartment after. Unfortunately for her and Puck, Finn was at a friend's apartment working on a group project until late, causing her to walk into her dorm and see her brother and her roommate rounding second base.

"Oh god," she gasped, dropping her bag on the floor with a loud thud. Rachel bolted up in bed, whacking her forehead against Puck's which caused her to fall back on the bed with a groan while Puck fell onto the floor, more startled than anything.

"Jesus Quinn, ever heard of knocking?" he asked, rising to his feet as he straightened out his shirt before taking a seat next to Rachel and examining her head.

"It's my room, jackass. I don't have to knock when I have a key. It's not my fault you're a horndog and feel the need to try and worm your way into my roommate's pants every chance you get." Puck helped Rachel sit up and helped pull her shirt on over her head. "You okay, Rach?" Quinn asked.

"Fine," she said as she rose to her feet. "Sorry about that. I thought you were going to be with Finn tonight."

"Dumbass had a project to work on, otherwise I would be. Sorry about ruining the moment," Quinn said, her face still as red as Rachel's was. "You know, I'm going to go hang with Kurt and Sam for a bit, get them to edit my paper for me. Text me when it's all clear," she said as she gave Rachel a peck on the cheek and left the room, leaving the two alone once more.

"So, I guess make out time is over then?" Puck asked, attempting to make a joke. Rachel gave him a look that was as unamused as someone could get. "Sorry," he added.

"Why don't you go back to studying?" Rachel said just as Puck's phone rang.

He picked it up and looked at the number, his face becoming confused. "Hello?" he answered. Rachel could only hear one side of his conversation but he continued looking confused the whole time, hanging up with a thank you after a few minutes.

"What was that about?" Rachel asked as she ran her fingers through her hair, removing the knots that had developed from making out with her boyfriend.

Puck turned his eyes on Rachel and she was shocked to see him looking serious and very confused. "That was some guy from some corporation or something. They're giving me a full scholarship for school until I graduate," he said, his voice lacking the excitement Rachel expected it to have.

"That's great!" she gushed, a huge grin on her face. "You must be thrilled."

"Rachel, I didn't apply for any scholarships, so how could I have gotten one. Did you talk to your dads and ask them to help me get one?"

"No," Rachel said quickly. She took a moment to compose herself. "I promise I didn't talk to them, Noah," she said, placing a hand on his arm and looked up into his eyes.

"What about Shelby? Her husband's loaded. Did you ask them for charity for me?"

"No," Rachel lied.

Puck sighed and sat on her bed. "You're lying," he accused. "Kurt told me your tell for when you're lying and you just did it. Why Rachel? Why'd you ask them? Did you think I could support myself?"

"Wait I have a tell? What is it?" Puck gave her a stern look so she made a mental note to ask Kurt later what it was. "I just...I got scared okay? I kept thinking about you not having the money and having to leave and then you meet some other girl and we break up and never see each other again. I just didn't want you to leave," she murmured.

"I was going to get a job and work, earn my way through school for a year and a half. I don't need or want someone to pay for me, and the fact that you're so insecure about my feelings for you makes me question all of this."

"Wait, what?" Rachel asked, starting to panic. No, this wasn't happening.

"Look, I love you, but we need a break. You went behind my back and asked your mother to pay for my school. You never asked me, you just did it. If you didn't ask me about that, what else are you not going to ask me about? I just feel like I can't trust you anymore, and you obviously don't trust me if you thought I'd cheat on you and we'd break up if I left school."

"Noah please, I do trust you," she begged as he grabbed his books and slid them into his bag. "Please don't do this."

"I just need to think all this over. I'll call you," he said, kissing her on the forehead lightly before leaving her alone in her dorm. Rachel watched the door shut before sinking onto her bed, trying to figure out how everything that was so perfect in her life had gone all wrong. It didn't make sense. They were perfect for each other. They were going to be together forever, but now they weren't. Now they were on a "break" which was one step before he dumped her.

She knew she didn't want to be alone right now, but she wasn't exactly looking forward to facing all her friends who were probably joking and laughing right now. Still, she could not be alone right now. She grabbed her phone and keys, heading out of her room and down the hall to Sam and Kurt's room. She could hear some laughing going on through the door and contemplated going back to her room, but she knew she'd just crawl into bed and cry for a few hours.

She raised her hand and knocked a few times, wrapping her arms around her stomach as she tried to hold herself together, literally. She heard a click as the door unlocked and Sam opened the door, a grin on his face. "Ah, the lovely Belle is here. Did the boyfriend leave already?" Rachel felt her lower lip start trembling and guessed she had about five seconds before she completely lost her composure and broke down into tears.

"Rachel, diva?" Kurt asked, coming up beside Sam and focusing his eyes on his best friend. "What's the matter? Did something happen?"

"Oh boo!" Rachel gasped, throwing her arms around Kurt. She buried her face into his shoulder as she burst into tears, realizing she was probably ruining a designer shirt he'd worked hard to afford. However, she also knew Kurt wouldn't call her on it when she was sobbing in his arms.

Kurt kept a hold on Rachel and helped her over to his bed, taking a seat on the edge while Quinn and Sam sat opposite them on Sam's bed, watching Rachel with concern. The only time Sam had seen Rachel like this was after her fight with Kurt, so he knew something really bad had to have happened.

"Sweetheart, what's going on? Did something happen with you and Puck?"

Rachel looked up with tears in her eyes and nodded her head. "He...he broke up with me," she said, hiccuping slightly. "We got in a fight and he said we needed to go on a break."

Quinn and Sam looked between one another. "Come on Sam, why don't we go back to my dorm and you can help me finish editing my paper," Quinn said quickly, the two of them getting up and leaving the two Ohio natives alone. Quinn knew this was a conversation Rachel would want to have alone with Kurt and not with Puck's sister present.

Kurt rubbed Rachel's back once they were alone in his room, keeping her close as she kept crying. "Okay, what happened exactly?"

"Shelby must have come through and got him a scholarship, but he realized I had something to do with it and got all offended. He asked me why I did it so I told him and he said I was insecure and didn't trust him enough. So he said we needed a break and left. I don't know what to do."

"It's going to be okay. He's just being a stupid stubborn boy. He'll come around, I promise. He's going to realize how miserable he is without you and beg you to take him back just like I begged you to be my friend again," Kurt said, kissing her forehead.

"I'm just so sad," Rachel sighed. "I miss him already. I should have just left everything alone and we wouldn't be in this situation. But I can't, I had to take matters into my own hands and not tell him and now Noah hates me."

"Hey, he does not hate you. He loves you. His ego's just a little bruised so he needs to build that back up before he comes groveling back to you. Trust me. I know things. Why don't you stay here tonight? We'll have a sleepover like old times. Me, you, and some cheesy movies. It'll be like we're back in high school and help you forget all about your broken heart. Sound good?"

"Sounds great."


"What a dumbass," Quinn vented to Sam in her dorm, pacing back and forth while Sam sat on the edge of her bed. "I mean how stupid can he be? Rachel was perfect for him. He stopped being such a jackass and he was genuinely in love with her. I don't know why he had to fuck that up and dump her."

"He's a guy. We never do anything that makes sense. You should know that by now from hanging around with Finn half your life. We're irrational assholes who make bad decisions on a daily basis."

"Sounds about right. I feel like calling him and giving him a piece of my mind."

"So why don't you?" Sam questioned. "Quit bitching and do something about your brother being a dick. Maybe hearing it from you will knock some sense into his thick skull."

"Well maybe I will," Quinn said, picking up her phone and dialing her brother. It rang a few times before her brother's voice was on the other end of the line. "Did Ma drop you on your head when you were a baby or are you just plain stupid?" she snapped, not even bothering with a hello.

"Quinn, what are you going on about?" she heard her brother sigh. She could hear rustling in the background and guessed he'd opened a bag of chips and was stuffing his face with them.

"You breaking my roommate's heart you jackass. That's what I'm talking about. Rachel comes into Kurt's room and breaks down into tears while managing to get out that you dumped her because you're a giant tool. Want to explain how you convinced my roommate you were worth taking a chance on, tricked her into falling in love with you and giving her virginity to you, and then broke up with her? God this is like Lucy all over again. I knew I should never have said it was okay for you guys to go out."

"Are you going to listen to me explain or are you just going to assume I'm the bad guy?"

"I don't need an explanation. I know you're the bad guy in this case, just like you were back in August when you slutted it up with that skank in the bar right in front of Rachel. You need to fix this, Noah. She's so upset and it's all your fault. Fix it!" she snapped before slamming her phone shut.

Puck stared at his phone after his sister had hung up on him, shaking his head. He wasn't surprised she already knew he and Rachel weren't exactly together at the moment. The two of them seemed to be connected by the brain. As soon as Rachel knew something, Quinn knew it too. It was kind of scary sometimes.

He also wasn't surprised he was already regretting telling Rachel he wanted a break. He'd overreacted back at her dorm. She'd done what she'd done because she loved him and he knew that. He'd reacted the way he did because he had too much pride and looked at the money as charity, something he always turned away.

But was he willing to let his pride cost him the best relationship he'd ever had? Hell no. However, he knew Rachel wasn't going to be so forgiving this time. He'd already fucked up once before and it had taken her awhile to forgive him for that. This time, he'd be lucky if she'd take him back after he broke her heart.

No, he needed to make this up to her in the best way possible, but when it came to stuff like that, Puck was clueless. Normally, he'd ask her gay bestie to help, but he doubted Kurt would be willing to help him impress Rachel this time. He knew he was public enemy number one in their little group now.

No, he'd have to get someone else's help this time, and there was only one other person he could think to ask when it came to doing something special for Rachel. He picked up his phone again and scrolled through the contacts, looking for the name of someone he'd never had to call before.

He listened to the phone ring a few times before the other end picked up and a familiar voice came on the line. "Puck?"

"Hey Jesse. I need your help. I fucked up bad tonight and I need to get Rachel to forgive me."

"What did you do to fuck up so grand this time to cause you to need your girlfriend's forgiveness?" Jesse asked, clearly sounding amused on the other end of the phone.

"I dumped her because I'm a huge jackass. We got in a fight and I told her I wanted a break before leaving. It only took an hour for me to realize that was a giant mistake and I don't want to be on a break at all. Of course, she's not going to forgive me like that, especially after last time."

"So how am I supposed to help with that?"

"Because you're good at this kind of stuff. Please Jesse. I need to make her forgive me. She means everything to me. I need to show her I'm sorry."

Jesse let out a sigh on the other end. "Alright, I'll help. And lucky for you, I know just what to do to get your back in Rachel's good graces. Now listen closely. This is going to take some work."