I NEEDED YOU.
"And if your heart wears thin, I will hold you up…I'll be right beside you."
-"Beside You" Marianas Trench
Puck sauntered down the hallway, ignoring glances from the girls that passed by. This time last year, Puck would be all over those girls, smiling back, winking even. But now he kept walking, keeping his eyes trained forward. He knew what kind of trouble juggling multiple girls could get him in.
"Glee rehearsal in five," Finn called out, as Puck passed by, standing with Rachel at her open locker. That's weird, Puck thought. Where was Quinn? She was usually connected at the hip with Finn, being all weird and possesive like she was. Especially when he was with Rachel.
"Yeah, sure," he muttered, raising a hand in acknowledgement, heading off in the opposite direction of the choir room.
Puck wandered the halls of McKinley, looking through all the faces that passed him by as he were hundreds of faces, but all he really was looking for was just one. The face of the girl that had broken his bad boy exterior, the girl that had pushed him, the girl that had made him really fall in love for the first time. The girl that finally made him care about something other than himself.
But she was nowhere to be found. Weird,Puck thought again. She was usually roaming the halls, parading around with Finn, rallying up votes for Prom King and Queen. Just a week ago, the sight of this made Puck angry. Like Quinn had turned back into the bitch she was before her pregnancy, but after their moment last week, he knew she was just hurting and desperately searching for something else to focus on.
Last week. Their moment on the stage played in Puck's head constantly, even when he should've been focusing on Lauren. If he had known that she had felt the same way that he had for the past year, he would've been there for her sooner. Despite the awful things she said to him, and the way she treated him last summer, he still loved her, and he hated to see her so miserable.
But where was she? She'd been avoiding him more than usual, which made him even angrier. Sure, he understood why she'd ignored him all school year, but now that he'd gotten her to open up to him, it annoyed him even more that she was shutting himout again. He was sick of her acting like he didn't exist.
Artie rolled by, pushed by Brittany, motioning towards the Glee room and suddenly it hit him. He knew exactly where she'd be. Where she always was when she was upset.
"Hey, Q," Puck said, leaning against the doorframe of the Home Ec room. She was standing at the counter, her hands covered in flour, wearing a white dress with lace and a navy sweater over it. He smiled to himself when he saw this. He'd never admit it, but he loved her cute little dresses more than her Cheerios uniform. Maybe because she wore them when they were dating or maybe because she looked so cute in them. Whatever the reason, he'd take a demure dress with a matching cardigan over seeing her legs in that flippy red skirt anyday.
As he stood there in the doorframe, she barely glanced up at him before looking back down at her mixing bowl. "What're you doing?" he asked, walking towards the counter as she responded, "I'm baking." Puck suppressed a smile as he remembered the last time Quinn said this, as Finn asked the same question, standing in the exact spot he was right now.
"What are you laughing at?" Quinn said, still not looking at him, but a small smile played on her face that let Puck know she knew exactly what he was thinking of.
"I just came here to check on you," he said, coming closer to her, getting flashbacks of being cracked on the head with an egg. "I was just seeing how you were doing."
Finally she turned to look at him, the smile wiped from her face, searching his face with her eyes. He could tell she was attempting to figure out his motives, and her famous guard was preparing to shoot back up.
"I'm fine," she said, the icy tones coming back into her voice. "You don't need to worry about me." She turned back to the counter, trying to continue where she'd stopped, but she simply stared at the counter and he could tell she was more flustered than she let on.
"Quinn, you need to stop this," he said, taking the spoon out of her hand and placing it on the counter. "Stop shutting me out." He stared into her eyes, refusing to let go of her hand, even as she tried to tug it away. Her ice queen exterior was still showing in her face, but as he continuted to hold her hand, he could see it soften, slightly.
"What's your angle?" Quinn demanded, looking back at his face, searching it again.
"I just want to talk to you," he promised, finally letting go of her hand, and sitting down in the stool in front of the counter. He tugged on the hem of her dress, pulling her closer. She resisted.
"What's been going on?" Puck asked, willing his voice to remain casual. He wanted so badly to hold her again, to feel close to her, to forget Finn, to forget Lauren and just be there with her. But he kept himself together as he waited for her reply.
"I'm quitting Glee club," she said, flatly, no longer attempting to bake, but still not looking at him. "I don't belong there anymore. With two ex-boyfriends, it's just too much." She stared intently at her hands, and Puck could tell she was fighting tears. He stood up, standing close to her but not touching her.
"You don't have to quit because of me, you know," he said, speaking to her in the soft voice that he only used with her, but she shooke her head.
"Not you," she said, her voice trembling, "Finn. He dumped me," she clarified as Puck's face showed confusion. "He said he can't stand the way I've been acting with Rachel and this whole Prom Quenn thing. And I just kept pretending I'm happy anymore. I just…can't do it, anymore, you know?" At these last words, she turned her head and looked into his eyes. And he saw it for the first time. The pain, the hurt. Not even the last time they spoke did he see this much pain her eyes. As he saw this and felt her wall melting down, he reached for her hand. As he did, she turned and rested her forehead on Puck's chest, and his arm's immediately reached around her.
She cried, less than last time, but cried nonetheless, and he held her, resting his chin on the top of her head, rubbing his hands along her back. "You're going to be ok," he murmered to her, "I'm here, Quinn, I'm right here."
She pulled away, and smiled through her tears. The first genuine smile he'd seen on her in a while. And at the sight her smile, Puck's face erupted in a similar ear-to-ear grin. He couldn't help it. Her smile, like her, was the most beautiful thing he knew of.
****Ok, this isn't as good as the first one and it's a little shorter, but I'll do better for the third! And in my story, the whole Lauren "Lucy Caboosey" thing hasn't happened 'll get to that later. This is basically my story from the Original Songs ep. And anything after that episode didn't happen in my story. Just clarifying. Anyway please review! ****