A/N – I just want to thank all of you for your ideas, reviews, and alerts! (: I definitely wasn't expecting anything like that. So, Thank You!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own GLEE.

Chapter Two:

Puck expects to be avoided like the plague by Rachel and Santana. Surprisingly, they meet him and Quinn for dinner a couple days after the wedding. The one that is actually avoiding him is his mother. For goodness sakes the woman has been bothering him for forever to settle down, and now that he has, she avoids him? Fucking for real? Well, whatever, he'll deal with her later. Right now, he's trying not to notice Santana's death glares.

The only reason Rachel agrees to this dinner is because Santana told her that acting like it didn't faze her was going to be a 'fucking awesome' way to get back at Puck. Not that she wanted to get back at him; she just wants him to think she's fine. So, when Quinn asks if she and Santana would join them for dinner, she accepts. Sitting at the table across from him, isn't what it used to be. She used to be happy when she sat across from him. Now she just wants to leave his presence. Conversation between Quinn, Santana and her is coming easily; Puck sits with his mouth shut. She catches Santana's eye at one point, and the look on the Latinas face is telling her to keep her cool, they can leave soon. So, she keeps her tone light and airy; and she avoids Puck's eyes.

A couple days later he's pissed at his mother. So, you know, he shows up where she works, unexpectedly. She, of course, knows right away that he's come to cause a scene; and pulls him outside. He screams at her, she screams back, he screams again, and finally the truth comes out. The softly spoken words are still ringing in his ears, 'I just can't believe you went through with it. What about Rachel, Noah? What about the things you guys have had planned since you used to play house, when you were five?' He hadn't said anything back, and, honestly, he doesn't think she expected him to. So, they both walked opposite directions from one another. That's how he finds himself knocking on Santana's door two hours after that.

When Rachel opens the front door to her and Santana's small house, that they now share, she sure as hell is not expecting him to be standing there. She's gotta get on her game face, and she's gotta do it fast. Slowly she steps outside and pulls the door shut behind her. He can't know she was eating ice cream and watching Fight Club, his favorite movie, before he arrived. When she asks what he's doing there, he just stares at her for a minute. Then he asks if she remembers when they used to play house. She closes her eyes against the tears that she can feel filling them, and she whispers a soft 'yes'.

"What happened," are the next words out of his mouth. She reopens her eyes, and she notices the honest confusion on his face.

"High school," she says with a shrug. She's not ready to have this conversation; maybe one day they would have it, but not right now. "Santana will be home shortly, and it's my turn to cook tonight, so," she trails off watching him nod.

"That's cool. I should get home," she watches him walk down the front steps, back across the lawn, and then as he gets into his truck. She knows that he knows she was lying about having to cook. She watches until he turns the corner, then she turns and heads back into the house to finish her ice cream and movie. It makes her feel even worse.

Puck is cleaning out his, and Quinn's, he reminds himself mentally, garage the next day, when Finn pulls up. Puck wonders if he forgot about a day of video games or something, his question is answered when Finn says that Rachel is getting the rest of her shit out of his house. Finn is in that really pissed off stage after a break up, so he doesn't really mean it; but Puck still has to hold himself back from punching the guy out. Instead he just nods his head. Finn starts going through a box, one he knows is Puck's, and he holds up a picture, as if asking what had been going on in it. Puck can't help the smile that covers his face.

"Cupcake fight, dude," he says. Finn gets a funny look on his face as he studies the picture.

"Is that Rachel," he sounds completely confused now.

"Yes, Finn, it is. We used to be really close. You know, when we were little," he tries to explain it down to them only being close then, as children.

"Oh, okay," thank God Finn is still not the brightest crayon in the box. Puck takes the box out of Finn's hand and snatches the picture back and puts them both under his tool bench. Those were their memories. They were special, or some shit like that.

When Rachel goes to get the remainder of her things from Finn's apartment with Santana, it doesn't take nearly as long as she thought it would. Maybe that's because of Santana though; she figures if she hadn't come, Finn would be trying to talk her into staying. He leaves as soon as they get there, and she can't help but be thankful for that. As they pack Santana asks her why she said no if Puck is married to Quinn. Rachel doesn't even pause as she says, 'just because he did something stupid doesn't mean I want to do the same stupid thing. I don't love Finn, I love Puck. Marrying Finn isn't going to change that, and I'm done pretending it will'. Santana seems to accept her words right away, they make sense after all. She also seems surprised that Rachel called him Puck. He's always been Noah. Even after the wedding. This is the first time he's been Puck, and Santana knows it's her defense mechanism.

While he's working, Puck is thinking about what Quinn said this morning at breakfast. She asked him if he ever wanted to have anymore kids, he'd choked on his cereal, and then an, 'I don't know' spilled from his lips. She'd asked him to think about it because, 'I really want a few, and I think we'd be good parents'. That wasn't what she'd said when they were younger. He wants kids. Of course he does. He just isn't sure he wants kids with her. He still dreams about his kids having brown hair, hazel eyes, kick ass little singing voices, and Rachel's nose. He loves that nose. When she walks into the shop to have something on her car fixed he knows his mind is made up about kids.

When Rachel gets home a couple days later she sees Santana talking frantically into the phone. She hangs up as soon as her eyes land on Rachel, and Rachel asks her what's going on. Santana isn't one to beat around the bush, so Rachel knows she won't right now. What she says makes Rachel wish she could take back the last five minutes; because the words 'Puck and Quinn are talking about having kids' are a few words Rachel never expected to come out of her mouth. She puts on her brave face and says that it's wonderful that they're considering it. She then proceeds to make Santana pick up her car when she gets the call that it's ready.

Puck tells Quinn he isn't ready to have kids yet. They fight, because, apparently, she wants one before their first year of marriage is over; and Puck knows he still won't be ready. He doesn't think he'll ever be ready. Not with her. He really flips his lid when she says that all their friends think it's a good idea. Then he's yelling because she told their fucking friends? Who does that shit without telling their husband or wife? He still has trouble thinking of her as that. It's safe to say, he sleeps in the guest room that night.

Rachel sees Mrs. Puckerman in the store about a month after finding out that Puck might be having another baby. Mrs. Puckerman asks how Rachel is doing, and Rachel tells her all about Tyler. Who she's been seeing for a couple weeks now. He's sweet, he opens her door for her, he's never late, apparently he's just wonderful. She tries, and fails, to ignore the voice in her head that tells her that 'he's not that badass, Jewish man that she really wants'. Mrs. Puckerman tells her she's very happy for her to be finding happiness. Rachel sees the sadness in her eyes though. She tells Tyler they can't see each other anymore that night; she's already had a relationship trying to hide her feelings for someone else, she's not doing it again. It will only end in disaster anyway.

Puck wonders if him and Quinn ever actually talked to each other. They hardly say two words to each other, ever. Sometimes, he catches himself thinking about what it would be like if they did have kids together. Would she talk to their kids? Would she be nice to them? He didn't know. His mom isn't ignoring him anymore which is nice. Until she tells him about this Tyler douche Rachel is seeing. Why is she seeing someone? Oh, right, because he's married. Fuck his life.

Rachel is very excited when she gets home from job hunting. She gets to teach little girls ballet! Now, she can help other little girls reach their dreams. She only comes down from her high when she sees Santana looking very put out as she sits on their couch, staring at nothing. Taking the seat next to her, Rachel asks what is bothering her. Santana tells her that, 'Brittany called, said she's coming back to Lima. Rach, I haven't seen her in years, I've finally started to move on, why won't she let me,' Rachel doesn't think she really wants an answer but she offers one anyway.

"San, maybe she's coming back because she knows you two deserve a second chance. Maybe when she gets back you guys can have your happily ever after. Maybe… Maybe you're not supposed to move on," she silently starts to wonder, maybe she isn't supposed to move on either? No, she thinks to herself, I can't be in the way again.

It's been two months since he's seen Rachel last. He doesn't know why he's keeping track; it isn't like they ever talk or anything. They hardly even look at each other. Still, though, he just wants to see her. His wish comes true when he walks into his house; she's sitting there, looking beautiful as ever, talking to Quinn and Kurt, who's home from New York for a couple days. She isn't wearing anything spectacular, jean shorts and a flowly tank top, but still, he can't take his eyes off of her; and for a moment, he stands in the doorway, just looking at her. He glances at Quinn, who's watching him, back at Rachel, who's avoiding his eyes, and says he's going to take a shower. He hears the conversation re-start as he walks away. The last thing he hears is something about how she and Tyler are no longer together. He smiles.

She decides it could be time to hash out everything that went wrong between them. In order for them to be comfortable around one another, they need to talk. She decides this when she tells Santana to do just that with Brittany; to which Santana replies that it's time to take her own advice. So Rachel is going to talk to Puck. Tomorrow. While he's on his break at work, she's got her mind made up. Brittany is coming to their house tomorrow as well, so she and Santana can have their dirty little heart to hearts at the same time. Later on they will probably be upset about it, at the same time.

To say he's shocked when she walks in, when he's about to go on break, and tells him they need to talk, is an understatement. Still, he just nods and leads her outside. No one needs to be involved in this but them. He watches her chew on her bottom lip for a couple minutes, then asks, 'where do we start'? She looks up and says, 'from the beginning'.

Chapter Two.

A/N – Hmm, I don't about this, guys. I really want to be proud of this story when it's finished, so I'm hoping you'll like this chapter as much as the first one.

What Rachel meant by from the beginning is literally from the beginning. When they were little. She wants to go back and talk about everything. – That was just in case you didn't get what my last line meant.

Thank you for reading, I really appreciate it.

Don't forget: send me some suggestions. I'm lucky I got this out of my head.

- Katie.