Family

"At least you're done with those completely tacky outfits," Kurt reasoned as he walked hand in hand into the choir room with his best friend.

"Well, until next fall," Puck reasoned. "And you know you're the only one who finds them tacky out of everyone who has been on the team. Speaking of, maybe we'd be playing in some of the championship games if you hadn't quit," he added with a playful push of his shoulder. Kurt just shrugged and laughed with him.

"Now I get to support your games and actually see some nice, toned leg in the basketball shorts," Kurt said with a feral grin.

Puck threw his head back and let out a barking laugh. "I should've known you only supported my sports career for the eye candy," he said with mirth as they sat down. Kurt leaned his head onto Puck's shoulder as he waited for class to start, both of them being even more overtly touch-y during Glee club since there was less judgment in that group (well, Santana not withstanding).

"Look at who my best friend is," Kurt said simply, eying his nails right before Mr. Schue came in for the lesson.

When Mr. Schue announced they were going to do "Defying Gravity" for Sectionals, Kurt's eyes brightened and his whole body perked up, Puck smiling and rubbing his shoulder, excited for his best friend. As soon as he announced that Rachel would do the solo, Kurt froze and Puck could see the slightly serial killer look coming out of his eyes. Except for his stiff posture, though, very few people could tell he was upset over something.

"It's so not fair!" Kurt exclaimed as he sat down at his lunch table, Mercedes and Tina already there. Puck plopped his sack lunch and sat down in the same manner, chewing into his sandwich as he lazily watched Kurt trying to kill every grape as he had on his plate. "Rachel gets every solo and never has to audition or compete for it! How is that fair?"

Mercedes shrugged, "Mr. Schue picks favorites, it's really not fair at all."

"Exactly!" Kurt said, pointing and using his fork as he talked. "It's so unfair! Glee club is about 'opening ourselves to joy' and how am I supposed to be joyful if I can't even get the opportunity to audition for a solo in one of my favorite songs of all time?"

"Kurt, you didn't even ask if you could audition, you just assumed he wouldn't let you," Puck said simply, not even looking up from his sandwich.

For his part, Kurt opened and closed his mouth multiple times in an attempt to think of something in response. Eventually he just took a bite of his salad, looking pensively into space as he thought over his best friend's words, wondering if Mr. Schue would actually agree to it.

—

"You're a fag," Karofsky said into the phone before quickly hanging up and laughing with Azimio. Puck rolled his eyes as he changed out of his gym uniform.

"Yo, Puckerman, your turn!" Azimio called out.

Puck shook his head. Those two didn't seem to get that his best friend was a gay guy and that he had no problem with gay kids (and that he was bi or something, but no one besides Kurt knew that). Normally he could just give them a look and they'd stop, but ever since he joined Glee, he was losing all sorts of powers like that. The guys who normally left him alone about his friendship with Kurt were starting to speak up and Karofsky and Azimio were starting to challenge his position of power all the time. And as if losing respect from his peers wasn't enough, he had the whole Quinn situation to deal with: trying to convince her to let him help financially, convince her he should be involved in the kid's life, convince her he was a good guy…

He had a lot on his plate.

"Why aren't you joining, huh? Don't want your boyfriend hearing about you calling out those freaks?" Karofsky asked, an intense looked in his eyes that Puck couldn't identify.

"No, I just don't see the point of doing anything like that," Puck said simply, buckling his belt, his body clenching in rage. That word was already bad enough; it hurt Kurt like nothing else could, and then that dating thing…

"Bull shit," Karofsky said, but he backed off, grumbling as he went to join Azimio back on the bench. "Obviously fairy is contagious, and he's the first one hit after all his time with Hummel," Karofsky said loudly.

Puck glared at him as he put on his shirt. When he was all dressed he grabbed his bag and left.

He did not need all of this right now.

—

"Oh my God, Noah, what happened to your…your everything?" Kurt gasped, his best friend covered with various cooking ingredients.

"Baking," Puck said simply as he grabbed his change of clothes. "With Quinn," he added grimly.

Kurt watched him walk away with a raised eyebrow. Heterosexual baking was definitely not something he ever wanted to see.

—

"He didn't even give me a chance!"

"I know, Kurt, I know," Puck sighed, patting him on the back. They walked into Hummel's Tire and Lube and sat down, Puck laying down the donuts they had brought onto the table in front of them. Kurt sat down and Puck leaned against the table, watching his crestfallen best friend look at the ground, his arms crossed. He wished he had more to say, more help to offer, but all he could do was think about Quinn and his baby. "She won't even let me help her," Puck muttered, closing his eyes, "And she fucking flirted with me."

Kurt sighed, "The world is just hitting us both down, isn't it?" Puck nodded and the boys went back to their brooding.

Despite what most people would assume, Puck actually really wanted to help Quinn as best as he could, even if only financially. Finn couldn't help at all, unable to find a job…so he was going to do whatever it took to get her money. That's why he was at Burt's car shop, hoping to get a few hours to get some cash now that winter was nearing and his pool business was done until next summer.

He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't even notice Burt approaching. "Looking for some work?"

Puck snapped out of his thoughts and looked over at Burt. "That'd be great, yeah." Burt gestured for him to go change and Puck thanked him, going straight to the locker room.

"Where's my jelly cream center?" Burt asked as he opened the box, not taking in his son's penseive look.

"Sorry, dad, we must've forgotten," Kurt said, finally looking up from the floor slightly.

"What's up with your brain today? Y'know, I think it's going soft from all that stuff you put in your hair," Burt said, sitting down next to Kurt as he grabbed a donut from the box.

"It's organic, I'm fine," Kurt said monotonously, having repeated that phrase to his dad many times whenever he expressed that concern. Burt took a bite as he waited for Kurt to talk. Finally, Kurt sighed and said, "Sorry, it's just a Glee club thing."

Burt took another bite and said, with a mouthful of food, "It's not about a guy, is it? Because…" Well, he wasn't sure if he was ready for Kurt to date guys. And he wasn't sure how he would respond if Kurt had realized he loved Noah because Noah sure as hell wasn't ready to admitting he liked Kurt as more than a friend.

"At least you don't have to worry about me getting someone pregnant," Kurt said with an awkward laugh. His dad made a face and Kurt bit his lip, "Okay, I always wanted to say that to you but given the mess Noah's in this probably wasn't the time or place to do it…" Burt nodded and put down the donut, not wanting to think about Kurt with a guy or girl. Kurt sighed, "No, it's not about a guy…we're doing this song for Sectionals, a personal favorite of mine, and Mr. Schuester won't give me the opportunity to sing it."

"Why?"

"It's traditionally sung by a girl," Kurt said hesitantly.

"Well, you sing like a girl," Burt responded, then added, "Y'know, in a good way." Kurt nodded to let him know he wasn't upset at his dad's words. "Look, Kurt, I don't know much about this music thing—I'm kind of exclusively attached to my Mellencamp—but isn't there more crossover nowadays? Girls doing construction, guys wearing dress shoes with no socks?" Kurt made a face but Burt continued, "Didn't that girl from your school just join the wrestling team?"

"Yes, but her parents had to sue the school," Kurt replied.

Burt stared at Kurt for a moment before Puck came back in with his coveralls on, "Yo, Burt, what do you need help with?"

"Uh, oil change, spot number 4," Burt said, pointing over to the red Honda in the garage. Puck nodded and jogged over to the car. Burt watched him go and thought for a moment. He turned back to Kurt and clapped him on the shoulder, "I got this covered, kid, don't you worry."

—

"So apparently he told Principal Figgins, 'You can't discriminate against my kid because of his sex, religion, political affiliation or the fact that he's queer as a three dollar bill and I won't accept it,'" Kurt said, doing a fairly accurate impression of his dad. "And you heard the rest; Mr. Schue is holding an audition and…and…I have a chance, Noah!" Kurt exclaimed, his hands clasped together. "It kind of makes the whole having to be in a wheelchair thing better," he added, putting his hands back on the wheels as he rolled along with Puck.

"Uh-huh," Puck muttered, watching Quinn berate Finn for something.

Kurt frowned as Puck watched the blonde. He always managed to stare at Finn and still pay attention to Puck, yet as soon as the blonde was in his sightline lately, all he did was watch her. As Puck watched her leave in a huff with a heartbroken look, Kurt gently put his hand on top of Puck's nearest one. "She'll come around," Kurt said softly.

Puck snorted and shook his head, wheeling ahead of Kurt to reach the also wheelchair-bound Finn. Kurt frowned as he raced off but soon rolled on so he was just far enough behind them to hear what they were saying.

"…Sell your XBOX, rob a bank, go all Robin Hood on this join, whatever it takes," Puck exclaimed. Kurt frowned even more as he realized Puck was lecturing Finn in taking care of Quinn financially.

"Dude, all you ever do is whine about how hard it is for you, but what about her?" Puck nearly yelled, stopping Finn's chair with his own.

"You don't know what I'm dealing with," Finn fired back. Kurt could see a red flush on the back of his neck from anger as Puck berated him.

"All I know is that you're a punk who doesn't deserve having Quinn as his girlfriend," Puck snapped. Kurt's eyes widened as Finn shoved Puck. Then the shoves turned into Puck launching himself at Finn and Kurt eeped, his hands going to his mouth as he was frozen in his place. Noah was in fight club, sure, but he never fought anyone outside of the underground meetings, and to see Puck so out of control…it was unsettling.

"Noah, Finn, stop!" he said through his hands as he got out of his chair. His words fell on deaf ears, however, as the two kept fighting. Finn was on top of Puck, ready to punch his face when—

"Break it up, break it up!" Mr. Schue yelled, pulling apart the two teens, ignoring their shouts over who started it as he got them off the ground. Both boys stared daggers at each other as Kurt went around the teacher to Puck's side, his eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"Now you guys are best friends," Kurt cleared his throat and Mr. Schue amended, "Close friends. What the hell is going on?"

"I'm just really stressed…about the bake sale," Puck said. Kurt raised an eyebrow (Puck had made better excuses when he was eight, for crying out loud). "I just really like Artie, okay?"

Kurt gave him a sympathetic half smile for a second, knowing Puck wanted to say Quinn's name in place of Artie's. He reached out for his best friend but he stomped off, ignoring Kurt's slight gasp and hurt look.

After a few moments the rest of the hallway went on with normal activity. Will tentatively put a hand on Kurt's shoulder, but Kurt immediately moved away, turning to face him. He opened his mouth as if to say something but no words came out. Instead, he marched over to his abandoned chair and quickly rolled off, doing his best to focus on the solo, not how Quinn was tearing apart the most important friendship in his life.

—

"Hey, I don't think I'm going to go to the shop today; I wanna lift some weights and just clear my head for a bit," Puck said to Kurt as they wheeled off the stage after Glee club practice ended. Kurt nodded, not looking at his friend as they rolled to the choir room to store the chairs. Puck sighed slightly and stopped Kurt's chair with his own, not unlike how he stopped Finn's earlier that day. "I'm sorry for storming off earlier. I just have a lot on my plate right now." He brought Kurt's face up with his hand, making his friend hold eye contact with him. "I really want you to win that contest, though. I'm voting for you no matter what," he whispered, a small smile on his face.

Slowly, Kurt smiled back as well. "Thanks, Noah. I'm actually going to go practice for a while, make sure I can hit that note for sure."

Puck smiled widely, "It'll be no problem for you, I just know it." Kurt smiled in thanks as the two boys continued on to the choir room.

When Puck left, after bidding Kurt goodbye, he had to wonder why being with Kurt was always so much easier than being with Quinn. Why couldn't he just date Kurt? He laughed slightly and shook his head at his thoughts—why were they always so weird?

He wasn't smiling or laughing when his thoughts went back to Quinn. He just liked her so much. And she totally liked him back. Why didn't she just let Hudson off the hook already? Why wasn't he good enough for her? Why couldn't he have a family with her? Because of his frustrated thoughts, he yelled slightly and kicked the nearest wall, the material hurting his foot. He let out a groan and put his arm on the wall, leaning his head against his flesh as he took calming breaths.

"Yo, Puck, what's wrong?"

Puck lifted his head up and turned slightly to see Artie wheeled up by him. He scoffed slightly, "Nothing you care about."

"Aw, but I always care about people who like me enough to have a throw down against Finn Hudson for me," Artie said with a teasing smile.

Puck gave a slight laugh and said, "Alright." He sat down at the bench nearby as Artie wheeled up to face him on the other side of the hall. "Since you wanted to know…" Artie nodded for him to continue. With a sigh, Puck said, "I…I like this person. A lot…"

"Yeah, I can totally relate," Artie nodded.

"Accept Tina totally likes you back—and don't give me that look, it's so obvious you want in her pants," Puck said with a slight smile.

"No way…thanks, man," Artie responded. Then he shook his head slightly, "This is about you. Now, what's the problem?"

Puck sighed, "It's just…I like them so much and it's just…they have to like me back. I'm the Puckasaurus, who doesn't want a piece of this? Okay, but really, we flirt all the time, and we have this great chemistry and…we have so much fun together. But they apparently like someone else. And it's frustrating. It's like I'm being led on. Why can't we just be together, screw the other guy, y'know?"

Artie smiled at the rant. "Puck, I'm pretty sure they like you, too, don't worry about it. And don't give me that look, it's obvious who you want in your pants," he added.

Puck looked up at him, his elbows on his thighs. "You think so?"

"No doubt," Artie replied with a nod. "And I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who realizes you like each other, so don't flip out. Being in a wheelchair just makes you recognize things others don't, I guess. So, just give it time, y'know? Kurt just needs to accept tha—"

"Wait, what?" Puck asked, his eyebrows scrunching together.

"Just because Kurt's gay doesn't mean he automatically accepts liking all guys. I mean, you've always been friends, so it must be weird—"

"I don't like Kurt," Puck yelled as he stood up. "What the hell, Artie, why would you even think that?" Artie tried to say an explanation but Puck immediately cut him off, "God, Artie, I thought I could trust you with this and you turn out as stupid as the jocks…" Puck trailed off as he groaned in frustration, a hand running through his Mohawk in an attempt to calm himself down (that simple touch always calmed him down and he never knew why).

"Hey, Puckerman, whatchyu doing with the cripple?"

Puck's bottom jaw thrust out and his hands clenched into fists as he turned around. "You guys kind of have the worst timing. Just beat it."

"Aww, giving us the lines the faggot gives you at night?" Azimio laughed, Karofsky immediately high fiving him.

"Don't you call him that," Puck said through gritted teeth.

"Why not, don't want us insulting your boyfriend?"

Puck felt blood rush to his head until he could only see red, his fists clenching and his heart hammering. "I am not fucking dating Kurt, you fucking assholes. Do you want proof? Is that it? Do you fucking idiots need me to be dickwads like you for proof? Is that it? Well fine. I will fucking prove it to you in your own fucking backwards way. Gimme that."

He took Karofsky's phone that was resting his hand and called a familiar number. He put it on speaker as it rang, Artie, Karofsky, and Azimio all watching him with looks of fear, curiosity, and confusion.

"Hummel's Tire and Lube, who is this?"

"Your son's a fag," Puck said before hanging up.

He handed the phone back to Karofsky as he slowly realized what he just did. Karofsky and Azimio had looks of shock on their faces (Karofsky looking a bit hurt even; when fuck did he get a heart?) whereas Artie looked disappointed.

"I…I…I told you I didn't like him," Puck muttered. He hurriedly put his bag on his shoulder and walked out of the hall, his hand running through his Mohawk all the while. What the fuck did he just do?

—

"I hit it! The high F!" Kurt said breathlessly as he helped his dad with the coffee maker. "The magical note I need for 'Defying Gravity'. It means I'm going to win!"

"That's good for you, just how long until the damn coffee's ready," Burt asked rhetorically, hitting the machine as he walked away.

"What's wrong?" Kurt asked, still on a bit of a rush from hitting the note.

Burt turned back to face his son, "I got a phone call this morning. The anonymous kind." Kurt's face deflated and Burt hated being the cause of it. "Telling me my son was a fag."

"Oh…well, that's not a big deal; I get that all the time," Kurt said, not understanding the issue past the world being full of jerks.

"Yeah, but I don't. And Kurt I…I try to do right by you, it's what a father should do, but I don't want you to get hurt," Burt said, avoiding the most troubling part of the call.

"So…so you don't want me to audition?"

"No, no, let me be clear, no one pushes the Hummel's around, not even…not even cowards on the phone. Sometimes I just wish your mom was around…she was better at handling everything," Burt sighed, not sure what he was saying. "But…congrats on your cool A or High C or whatever." Kurt corrected him quietly and Burt gave a nod, walking away.

When Burt reached his office, he collapsed into his chair, rubbing his temples. Noah must have just been working around him so much he was hearing his voice everywhere. There was no way he was the one who made that call…

—

"Welcome everyone to the Glee club's first official Diva Off!" Mr. Schue said. He brought up Rachel and Kurt and re-explained the rules of the competition before letting Rachel open it up.

Kurt watched Rachel closely. She had an amazing voice, there was no denying it, but she lacked the emotional depth of it. The notes came out with ease but there was no struggle, emotion, no need to defy gravity.

Kurt had that.

But his mind was made up. And not even wanting to outdo Rachel, to show her he could convey emotions and hit a high F could stop him.

When he started the piece, he saw Mercedes smiling up at him. He gave a weak smile back and started the piece, purposefully not looking at Noah in case a look at him would convince him not to blow it.

He found it strange how hard it was to actually blow off the note, to close his throat up so the sound was caught in his larynx. It took lots of practice the day before to perform the song fine up until the climax. It was difficult, it was hard, it hurt his throat and heart, but when the note came, he let it tear at his vocal chords.

When he finished, he gave a small smile but looked at no one as he sat down primly with Rachel, her eyes studying him as if she knew. Kurt simply crossed his legs and stared into the wall, not even blinking when Mr. Schuester announced that Rachel won.

The bell rang shortly after and Kurt left before anyone could ask what happened.

—

Now if Puck actually went to a psychologist, he or she would've told him how when he got upset, he started to rely more and more on the illegal deeds and the reputation he had and less on people like Kurt and his family. But Puck didn't go to a psychologist, so he just stole the money from the bake sale without a moment's thought. When he got Quinn's attention near her locker, he said, "I got this for you. Well, it's for it."

"It is a she," Quinn said slowly, watching Puck's face.

"Cool," Puck said, a smile slowly forming. Quinn had to admit to herself it had to be one the most blissful looks she had ever seen. "Told you I wasn't a deadbeat…and I can get more! I can get more and…and we can get a house…and a crib…furniture…we can be a family."

"Finn is one of your closest friends—"

"We're not that close," Puck interrupted. "Just because we're both in Glee and in sports doesn't mean we're close."

"Well, maybe so, but you are close to Kurt; Kurt's your family," Quinn responded quietly. "He's been your friend for years and he knows more about you than your mom or sister do, I'm sure. You have a sister, a mom, and a surrogate father and the most reliable best friend in the world. Why do you want this baby so bad?"

Puck studied her as he tried to figure out what to say. "Kurt's my best friend, yeah, but I don't want to see my kid grow up without his real father just like I had to. Just take the money, Finn will be relieved when he realizes he doesn't have to do this stuff."

Quinn looked at the money and realization hit her. "You stole from the cupcake fund!"

"No I didn't," Puck said immediately. One eyebrow raise from Quinn cracked him, "Fine, I did, but when I get my pay check this week I'll pay part of it back. But I made those cupcakes. I'm all about being a team player but my family comes first."

Quinn looked at Puck sadly. "I'm sorry…for calling you a Lima Loser. You aren't one. But we can't steal money from our friend in a wheelchair," Quinn said, fixing his shirt. "Now go help Kurt. He needs it."

—

"Hey, Dad, what are you doing?"

"Making biscuits, what does it look like I'm doing?" Burt answered as he looked up from the tires in front of him. "How'd the audition go?"

"They gave the part to Rachel," Kurt said, dreading the explanation he was going to have to make. Before his dad could get too far, he simply said, "I blew the note."

Burt couldn't believe what he was hearing. "I stuck my neck out for you and you blew the note? Are you kidding me?" He sat down and looked at his kid in disbelief. "This isn't Noah pressuring you or anything, is it?"

"What? Dad, no, of course not, why would it be his doing?" Kurt took a deep breath and started, "I've known who I was since I was five, Dad, and I've adapted. Being different has made me stronger. Those times when Noah wasn't there to help me, when he was getting in trouble or doing sports and I was by myself, I grew into it and became stronger from being different. It doesn't hurt when people call me names because of that. And you never had to do that."

"I can handle myself."

"No you can't," Kurt said simply, keeping his eyes locked with his dad's. "That phone call yesterday is just the start of it, especially if I go up in front of a thousand people to sing a girl's song. When I saw you after the phone call and you were so hurt…so upset…it just killed me.

"I'm not hiding in the closet; I'm proud of who I am. I just love you more than I love being a star," Kurt finished.

"You are your mother, you know that? She was always the strong one…" Burt stood up and said shakily, "Wanna help me put a 195 on this bad boy?"

"Just let me put on my coveralls, this is a McQueen," Kurt said, turning to go to the changing room. Then he turned back and asked, "Why did you ask about Noah earlier?"

"It's…it's nothing, Kurt," Burt stuttered.

"No, Dad, it's obviously something. Why don't you trust him? I thought you were one of the few people who trusted him in this whole town, who knew his true heart. I thought you even accepted him getting Quinn pregnant," Kurt said. "You're not turning your back on him when he needs it most, are you?"

Burt rubbed his eyes and said, "I'm not, Kurt."

"Then tell me why you asked…please," Kurt whispered, worried.

Burt sighed and went back to sit in the chair he was in earlier, gesturing for Kurt to sit down opposite him. "The call we got yesterday? Well, we don't have caller ID or anything here, but that doesn't mean I don't recognize voices and…and that sounded a hell of a lot like Noah."

Kurt felt his world crash down to the ground. He was suddenly slightly dizzy and his stomach felt ready to vomit everything he had for lunch. His eyes stung and his face was cold, all blood leaving his face in shock and pain. It made sense why Puck had avoided him the whole day but…

"No," Kurt whispered. Burt looked up at him. "There's…there's no way. Noah would never hurt me—or you—like that. No. Y-you're wrong."

"I might be, Kurt, I'm just saying—"

"He wouldn't hurt me like that. No. He loves me, he's my best friend, he…he…" Kurt bit his lips into a thin line, holding back his tears. Standing up quickly, he said, "I-I got to go. I…I just need to…" He took his keys and left without another explanation, wiping his eyes on his hand as Burt watched him helplessly.

What was he supposed to do when one of his son's biggest support systems crashed around him?

—

Puck answered the door without looking at who it was. When he found Kurt hugging himself, his face scrunched up from holding tears, he almost wished he hadn't answered at all, a sense of doom in his stomach. "Kurt, come in, Ma and Sara aren't here—"

"Noah. Dad said he go a phone call yesterday, the anonymous kind. The kind the pointed out the obvious that his son is a faggot," Kurt spat out the word, not looking up. Puck winced at Kurt's emphasis but didn't interrupt, as much as he wanted to hold him, make it better, make him know he was above that word. "It's why I blew the note today. It's why I let Rachel win something that I wanted more than anything. But my dad…he says that the voice sounded like you." He finally looked up and made eye contact with his best friend, his blue-green eyes piercing into Noah like they always did. "Now why would my dad think that?"

He wanted to lie. He wanted to tell Kurt that it must've been someone else. He wanted to say that the caller must've been some idiot jock.

He wanted to say that Kurt wasn't best friends with a complete idiot.

"I…It was me," Puck whispered, the eyes of his best friend wearing him down so much that he had to look down at the floor.

A broken sob left Kurt's mouth before he could stop, soon followed by tears and shuddering breaths as he fell completely apart. Puck watched and felt a few tears at his own eyes; he hadn't seen Kurt that hurt, that broken since his mom's funeral. And then Puck realized something: he had become such an important person in Kurt's life that they really were family. And he had broken himself out of that family by his actions. He was as dead as Kate Hummel.

Puck reached out and grabbed Kurt's arm, wanting to somehow make it better, but Kurt threw him off. "You fucking asshole," he cried out. Puck's blood ran cold; Kurt never swore like that, and definitely never at him. "Don't you ever touch me, Puck." Another cold stab hit Puck's heart; Kurt never called him Puck unless he was joking. He wasn't even Noah to him anymore, he was now the idiot, Lima Loser jock named Puck.

"Kurt, I'm sorry, I am—"

"I don't care, Puck," Puck felt the stab in his heart again, "I was the only one who always believed in you, who always loved you, who never judged you. And you repay me like this. Just…fuck you, Puck." He gave a hollow laugh, "I'm so mad I can't even use your full name." Kurt sniffed slightly before leaving the doorway, not looking back as he got in his car and drove away.

—

"Kurt, you have a visitor," Burt called down into the basement.

"They can come down here," Kurt called back, not wanting to leave his bed. He barely had since he got back from Puck's the day before anyways.

Burt looked over and Kurt's friend and called back down, "Uh, not really."

Kurt raised an eyebrow at this but managed to pull himself out of bed. For once he didn't care how he looked, his eyes puffy and red, his hair sticking in all directions, and his pajamas askew on his body. When he reached the top of the stairs, he did a double take. "Artie?"

"Hey, Kurt," Artie greeted. "I thought I'd see what was wrong when you didn't show up for school today."

"…I'll leave you two alone," Burt muttered after an awkward silence.

"Artie, what are you doing here?" Kurt asked as he sat down on the couch, Artie wheeling himself over to face him.

"I want to talk to you about Puck."

Kurt immediately closed his eyes, "No. I'm not talking about him."

"No, Kurt, seriously, hear me out," Artie said, holding out his hands. "I…I was there when the call was made."

"Artie—"

"He didn't want to make it. He was being rash. He was upset and I was trying to comfort him and help him but I just made him angrier—I really think only you know how to comfort him," he paused as Kurt gave the faintest of smiles, Kurt oddly proud that only he knew how to comfort his best friend. "And then Karofsky and Azimio came in and being their usual selves but Puck was so frustrated that he just took their phone and made the call just like they'd been egging him on to do all week from what I gathered. And I know what he said was wrong—trust me, I know what it's like to have slurs thrown at you for something you can't control—but he looked so…crushed afterwards. And he was miserable today. He didn't even take the offers Santana kept throwing at him. He regrets it more than you could believe."

Kurt thought silently for a few moments before finally voicing, "What do you want me to do, Artie?"

"Forgive him," Kurt scoffed at him so he continued, "I know what he did was wrong—he does, too—but are you really going to throw away how many years of friendship, years of being damn near a family over a stupid mistake?" When Kurt remained silent, Artie said, "You can always hold this over his head to get a few bribes out of him."

Kurt gave a slight laugh. "Artie…I'll think about it."

"All I needed to hear," Artie said with a smile. "Well, my dad is waiting for me, I got myself a date."

"Tell Tina I said hi."

Artie shook his head with a smile, "Puck guessed, too." For two people who didn't know how in love they were they sure could tell relationships between their friends.

"Good luck," Kurt said, smiling as Artie wheeled away, his dad opening the door for him. After he heard the front door close, he yelled out, "So, what do you think, Dad?"

Burt chuckled slightly at Kurt knowing he was eavesdropping; his son knew him too well. Sitting down with Kurt on the couch, he wrapped an arm around him. "I think you need to do what feels right…but you also need to forgive Puck. He's never messed up this big before. Don't get me wrong, I'm going to give him a whole lecture on not using those words, but it's hard for me to stay mad at him after all you've been through. And at least he wasn't saying them to you." Burt sighed, "It's complicated."

Kurt nodded next to him, thinking over his words. "Well," Burt said, standing up and patting Kurt on the leg, "I'm ordering pizza for dinner."

A beat or two later, Kurt called after him, "Low fat cheese and only get ham if you want meat." Burt laughed. Yeah, his son was going to be okay.

—

"Kurt," Puck said in surprise when the boy greeted him at his locker.

"Hey…can we talk?" Puck nodded and was soon led to an empty classroom.

They stood in silence for a moment before Kurt finally said, "What you did was wrong."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"And I can't just let it slide completely."

"Of course not."

"But I don't want to lose my best friend over this. You're too important to me and I already lost my mom. I don't want to lose you. You're family to me, Noah."

Puck smiled at the sound of his first name in Kurt's voice. It sounded so much better than Puck did in his lyrical voice. "You're family to me too, Kurt. I'm sorry I didn't realize how much until now."

Kurt smiled at him, "Just know that you're buying the Blockbuster rentals for the next few months…maybe years."

"Whatever it takes," Puck said sincerely. They both smiled at each other for a few moments until Puck finally pulled him into a hug. When they pulled apart, Kurt hit Puck upside the head.

"You're an idiot."

"I know."

Kurt laughed slightly at Puck's straightforward answer and grabbed his hand, leading him out of the room. "Come on. You're buying me lunch."

—

A/N: This had to be one of the hardest chapters to write. But I hope you guys enjoyed it on some level. I owe so much in this chapter to the wonderful Erika at Sevvy101. You should try checking out her stories, they're amazing.

Love,
xLessxThanx3x