CHAPTER 10
"Guys, they broke up. The wedding's off…" Quinn stated in shock. Sam slapped Finn on the upside of the head.
"Wait, what? Is it because of me?" Finn asked. Quinn nodded.
"Yeah, and her dad already paid for this huge wedding! Using her words, if the wedding doesn't go through, her dad is going to kill you. And then she's going to kill you."
Suddenly, Quinn's phone started ringing and Finn picked it up and answered it.
"Uh, Quinn's phone." He said.
"Finn, where's Quinn? I need to tell her about these awesome shoes I just bought." Santana asked, cheerfully.
"Uh, Quinn's busy."
"Oh, okay, well, I just wanted to say they're gorgeous and Finn is going to love them."
"That's great! I'll tell Quinn to tell… me. Uh, listen, I really want to keep talking but um… now's not a good time, so I'm really excited about tomorrow. Okay, bye."
Finn hung up the phone and turned to Sam and Quinn.
"Crap!" He exclaimed. "Santana bought some expensive shoes. She's really looking forward to this. Do you think she's into me?" Finn asked.
"Finn, focus!" Sam snapped.
"Well, I'm meeting Claudia at the bar downstairs now." Quinn said.
"Oh, I feel terrible." Finn groaned.
"Well, feel terrible later. Right now, we gotta fix this. Quinn, you go down to the bar and comfort Claudia. Finn and I will go and try to talk some sense into Stuart."
Finn and Sam grabbed their coats and as they were about to head out the door, Finn turned to Quinn.
"Um… tell Claudia I'm sorry. Did she seem pissed at me?" He asked.
"She said if there's no wedding tomorrow, you owe her father $400,000."
Finn's eyes widened.
"What say we get these crazy kids back together?!"
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That afternoon, Claudia sat in McLaren's bar when suddenly, someone walked up to her. It was Puck.
"Hey, sad eyes. What's got you down?" He asked, gently, in a tone he only used when hitting on crying girls.
"Stuart and I just broke up." Claudia wept.
"Oh, God, I'm so sorry!" he exclaimed. "Two vodka cranberries, please." He asked the bartender.
"You remembered I drink vodka cranberries." She sniffed.
"Remember? When it comes to you, how can I forget?" He said. She smiled at him and when she turned away, he turned to the bartender and smirked. "They all drink vodka cranberries." He remarked. The bartender rolled his eyes. He then turned back to Claudia. "So… is there anything else you need… sweetie?"
"You got $400,000?" She chuckled. Puck sighed.
"No. But I do have a hug." He replied. She collapsed into his hug and Puck looked up at the heavens and winked.
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Meanwhile, Sam and Finn had just arrived at Stuart's house, where Stuart was packing up all of his stuff into boxes.
"Stuart, I-I don't know what to say." Finn stammered. "If I caused this in any way…"
"Finn, for all I know, you did me the biggest favor anyone's ever done me." Stuart replied.
"Oh, come on, man, you don't mean that." Sam said.
"No, I do…. This whole thing has made me realise I miss being single. I miss staying out late, making messes and not cleaning them up. I miss owning porn."
"Dude, who doesn't?" Sam laughed.
"And you know, I'll see some super-hot model chick, and I'll think why am I with Claudia? I could be with her!"
Finn couldn't even stifle his laugh. Claudia was a thousand times more attractive than Stuart and it was a wonder that Claudia was with him.
"That's just crazy!" Finn laughed before realising his mistake. "I mean… you're the luckiest… you and Claudia both…"
"The point is I want to get married. I want to settle down but right now, that's just not who I am. I'm not a commitment guy; I'm a single guy."
"Stuart, you don't have to be one or the other. Everybody feels this way sometimes. Relationships aren't easy; they're hard work. It's about compromise, growing together, all that Dr. Phil crap." Finn said.
"How would you know? You're not even married." Stuart stated. Finn nodded and turned to Sam.
"Okay, ask this guy. Seven years he's been with Quinn. He's the pro - this guy knows relationships. Tell him, Sam."
"Stuart, don't get married." Sam blurted out.
"Dude…" Finn snapped.
"Look, I'm sorry, but being in a couple is hard. And committing, making sacrifices, it's hard. But if it's the right person then it's easy. Looking at that girl and knowing she's all you really want out of life, that should be the easiest thing in the world and if it's not like that, then she's not the one. I'm sorry."
"You know I don't have 400k, right?" Finn growled at Sam.
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"Maybe we got together too young. Maybe that's what the problem was!" Claudia cried. "I mean, I'm 28 years old, and I've really only ever been with one man."
Puck whimpered in mock-sympathy.
"That's just, that's… TWO MORE VODKA CRANBERRIES, PLEASE!" He shouted. "Claudia… it's all gonna be okay."
"Oh, thanks for listening, Puck. It really means a lot to me." She said, holding his hand.
"Isn't it weird that we run into each other like this?" Puck remarked. "Two souls, of equal levels of attractiveness, both fitting together like two pieces of a very attractive puzzle."
Suddenly, Puck felt himself being dragged by the ear and yanked away from the booth. He looked up and saw Quinn with fury in her eyes.
"Claudia is getting married tomorrow, and so help me God, if I catch you even so much as breathing the same air as her, I will take those peanuts you're trying to pass off as testicles, and I will squeeze them so hard your eyes out, and then I'll feed them to you like grapes!" Quinn shouted. Puck gulped in fear.
"Wait, my eyes or my testicles?" He stammered."
"Um… one of each!" Quinn shouted.
"All right! All right!" He exclaimed. Suddenly, Stuart walked into the bar, followed by Finn and Sam.
"Claudia?" Stuart said. Claudia spun around and saw him, leaping to her feet.
"Stuart! I'm so sorry." She cried.
"I'm so sorry, too. I love you." He said. "Sam and Finn set me straight. And when Sam told me not to marry you, it made me realise…"
"Woah, woah, woah! SAM SAID WHAT?!" She screamed, lunging at him. Stuart held her back.
"Claudia, Claudia, he made me realise how much I love you! These guys got us back together!" Stuart exclaimed.
It took three more vodka cranberries to subdue Claudia but eventually, she graciously agreed to let me bring Santana. Santana opened the door as Finn knocked and Finn saw her in her gorgeous dress. He was, once again, breathless as he saw her.
"Still wow." He remarked.
"Wow yourself." She remarked, looking him up and down in his tux. "Look who else brought it."
"Oh, yeah. I thought about leaving it at home, but I figured I don't want to get there and realise I need it and have to go all the way back to get it, so yeah, I brought it." Finn joked. Santana giggled and suddenly, her phone rang.
"Oh, sorry." She murmured and she picked up the phone. "Hello? Oh, my God. Tonight?! You're kidding!"
Santana put down the phone and turned to Finn.
"They want me to anchor the news tonight!" She exclaimed, before lifting the phone back to her ear. "Like anchor anchor?" She asked. "What happened to Sandy. Okay. Okay. What time do you need me to… right now?! Oh."
She turned to Finn, an unsure expression on her face.
"Do it. Do it." Finn smiled. Santana beamed at him and nodded. She then lifted the phone again.
"Okay, I need like five minuted to change, and, um… I'll call you from the cab…"
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So Finn ended up going to the wedding alone. During the reception, as many of the couples danced, Finn sat next to Puck and watched as Sam and Quinn slow danced.
"So, admit it." Sam said to Quinn. "This wedding is both indoors and amazing."
"I'll give you the crab puffs. The crab puffs are good." Quinn admitted.
"No, the crab puffs were incredible." Sam corrected.
"We should totally have them at our wedding." Quinn suggested.
"Definitely… wait a second! We just agreed on something." Sam realised.
"Did we just start planning our wedding?" Quinn grinned.
"I think we did. Ooh, and the red sauce was, like, awesome!"
"My God, were you born without taste buds?!" Quinn exclaimed. Sam chuckled and smiled at her. "What?" She asked.
"I love you." He said. Finn watched the two of them and sighed.
"Man, you know, Stuart's my new hero." Puck remarked. "If that dude can bag a nine, I got to be able to bag, like, a 16."
"What's a 16?" Finn asked.
"Those two eights right over there." Puck replied. Finn glared at him. Suddenly, Claudia and Stuart walked over to him.
"Hi, Finn." Claudia said. "We just wanted to get a picture with the woman who almost ended our relationship."
"Yeah, where is she?" Stuart asked. Finn blushed.
"Um… she couldn't make it."
Claudia laughed hysterically.
"What's so funny?" Finn asked.
"Oh, plan a wedding. You'll see." Claudia replied. Finn turned to Puck and pointed at Sam and Quinn.
"You see that? That's how it's supposed to be. That right there. Easy, simple. It's just not like that with Santana. It's not easy, and on some level, it has to just be easy."
Puck nodded and smirked.
"Speaking of easy… bridesmaids, Finn! Bridesmaids!"
Just then, Claudia walked back over to them, a slip of paper in her hands.
"Oh, Finn, I almost forgot. We found this." She said, handing the paper to Finn. He looked at it and realised that it was the invitation and he had signed it as 'coming alone.' Finn's eyes widened.
"I didn't check plus one. You were right." Finn said to Puck.
"Of course I was right." Puck responded.
"I'm single. Maybe that's just who I am. And you know what? I like being single." Finn murmured. Puck grinned.
"Yeah! Being single is the best!" Puck exclaimed. "Yeah, stay out as late as you want, answer to no one, the whole world full of endless possibilities, never having to go to a farmer's market."
So there they were, two single guys doing their usual single-guy thing. For whatever reason, he had let himself believe that this night would be a turning point, that this was the night his life… his real life… would finally begin. The funny thing is… he wasn't totally wrong. He looked around the room and saw a gorgeous brunette sitting alone at her table. For that night was the night he would meet Rachel…