Wow, so many new reviews. Thank you everyone and as promised, here's a new chapter. I will be updating A Forever Kind of Love momentarily. I'll be going away for the weekend but I promise to get that updated as soon as I get back. Enjoy!
Chapter 3
Later on that day, Quinn and Rachel were cooking dinner at Quinn's house while Hailey was still playing with the doll that Quinn got her in the living room.
"So do you think that they'll bring the new roommate with them to dinner?" Rachel asked while cutting up vegetables.
Quinn shook her head. "Probably not. I mean, he just moved in so I would assume he would rather be at the apartment unpacking."
Rachel nodded in understanding as she continued cutting. At least she'd be able to see Finn and Sam. They loved Hailey and Hailey adored them. At first, the boys were shocked when they found out about Rachel's pregnancy but they agreed to support her. She and Quinn refused to tell them exactly why she didn't want anyone to know where she was living but when they kept asking about Hailey's father, she had to tell them something. In the end, she decided to tell them that she left the party early to go to another friend's party and that's when she had sex.
It took a lot of convincing to get the guys off her back about telling the father. But she knew that she could never do that and if they found out it was Puck, they would kill him. Once they finally stopped asking questions, they quickly became Uncle Finn and Uncle Sam to Hailey and were good male figures for her life.
"Uncle Finn and Uncle Sam are here!" she heard Hailey yell. "Auntie Quinn, can I open the door?"
"Sure Hail, go ahead." Quinn walked to the doorway to watch as Hailey opened the door and ran to the boys. When she looked closer, she saw Puck getting out of the backseat. Why was he here in New York? More importantly, why was he here at her house? When she snapped out of her thoughts, she realized that Hailey was being picked up and tossed in the air by Finn with Puck looking curiously. This is not good.
When they walked inside, Finn gave Quinn a kiss as he carried Hailey in. "So what's for dinner?"
"Um chicken stir fry for us and vegetable stir fry for Rachel." She looked at Puck. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm paying my old friends a visit," Puck smirked. "Don't tell me you haven't missed me Quinny."
Quinn glared at him. "Don't ever call me that again and you," she looked at Finn before pulling him to the side. "Why the hell did you bring him here?"
"It's a funny story actually," Finn chuckled nervously. "Remember I told you our new roommate is moving in today? Well meet our new roommate."
Before Quinn could respond, they heard Rachel call from the kitchen. "Okay everyone, dinner should be ready in a few minutes!"
Quinn turned back to Finn. "I hope you have fun sleeping at your apartment with Sam and Puck tonight. I'll be in my own bed, relaxing and watching movies."
As she walked away, Finn cursed to himself. Maybe keeping Puck a secret wasn't such a good idea. But he knew that no matter how badly Quinn reacted, Rachel was going to be much worse when she found out.
Meanwhile, Puck stood in the doorway to the kitchen, where Rachel was putting the food into a bowl to set on the table. He smiled at how she still looked the same from the last time he saw her. "Hey Rach."
Hearing that voice, she froze. No, she thought, it can't be. She turned around and felt her heart race. The Mohawk was gone and what was standing in front of her didn't look like the trouble maker from high school she once knew. He was a man now. But he was still the man who left her.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, her voice tight.
Puck shrugged nonchalantly. "Just moved in with Finn and Sam. I decided to tag along for dinner, I hope you don't mind."
Before Rachel could respond, Hailey ran in. "Mommy, can I help you?"
Puck's head snapped towards Rachel in shock. He was wondering who the kid was and why she ran to Finn. But now, looking between her and Rachel and hearing what the little girl just said, he finally understood. Rachel was a mother now. He felt anger and disappointment inside of him but kept quiet to keep it from coming out.
Rachel looked between Puck and Hailey, nervously. "Um sure angel." She picked up a stack of plastic cups. "Think you can carry these cups to the table?"
Hailey nodded eagerly and took them, leaving the room. When Rachel looked at Puck, she could tell he was staring at Hailey. She decided to continue the conversation and get out quickly before he could ask any questions. "To answer your question, I don't mind you being here at all. The more the merrier."
As she walked out, Puck couldn't stop the questions going through his head. Did she have a boyfriend here? Did she elope with someone right out of high school? He wish he could think that she adopted a kid but the girl looks too much like her. What has been going on with her since they graduated?
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Dinner was quiet. Everyone just sat at the table, quietly eating their dinner. Puck couldn't stop looking at Hailey, not being able to believe that Rachel really had a kid with someone. Rachel ate her food, praying that Puck wouldn't realize that Hailey was his and Finn just kept his head down because he could feel Quinn glaring at him. Sam was looking around at everyone, wondering why there was so much hostility and Hailey was just playing around with her vegetables.
Finally, Puck has had enough of the silence. He needed answers and he was going to get them. He looked at everyone. "So what has everyone been up to? I mean, I haven't seen you guys in years."
"For a good reason," Quinn mumbled. Puck looked at her.
"What's your problem with me, Fabray? I haven't been here long enough to do anything and I don't remember ever doing anything to you."
Finn sighed in frustration. "Can we not do this right now? There's a child in the room."
"That's what I was getting to," Puck replied. "Who's the kid?"
"None of your business," Quinn answered. While she wanted Puck to know about Hailey, this wasn't the way to do it. Until Rachel could figure out what she wanted to do, she knew he had to keep Hailey's paternity a secret.
"Can you guys please stop?" Rachel asked, frustrated. She looked at Quinn and motioned towards Hailey, who was staring at them curiously. Quinn sighed and nodded, deciding to stay quiet for Hailey's sake. Rachel turned to Hailey. "Honey, why haven't you eaten your vegetables?"
"Vegetables are yucky," she frowned.
"Hails you like to dance, right?" Sam asked. Hailey nodded. "Well dancers have to be healthy and if they don't eat vegetables, they won't be as strong."
"So I should eat them?"
Sam nodded. "It would be a good idea."
Hailey thought about it and when everyone thought she wasn't going to do it, she picked up the fork and began eating her vegetables. Rachel smiled and mouthed a thank you to Sam while Puck just stared in shock. Was Sam the girl's father? Did he and Rachel have a thing going on after graduation?
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After dinner, Hailey sat in the living room playing with her dolls while everyone else sat on the porch outside.
"So Puck, what have you been doing since graduation?" Sam asked.
Puck shrugged. "I've just been continuing the old pool cleaning business. Had to make money somehow. My mom was starting to charge me for rent so I had to keep working."
"So does that mean you kept screwing the cougars who lived there?"
Puck looked at Rachel before responding, wondering how she would react when he answered. She looked at him curiously and waited for an answer. He nodded. "Yeah, of course. Had to pass the time by somehow."
Rachel shook her head. He really hadn't changed. She was more convinced now than ever that keeping Hailey a secret was the right thing to do. Puck obviously wasn't ready to be a father and there was no way that she was going to put Hailey through that disappointment at such a young age.
Puck looked at Rachel. "So you have a daughter now."
"Yeah, Hailey." Rachel nodded. "She's my world."
"How old is she?" he asked. Rachel froze. If she told him Hailey's age, he might be able to figure out the time around which she was conceived. But she can't lie about her age because then Finn and Sam will be asking questions about why she was lying. In the end, she decided it would be easier to tell the truth.
"She's five."
"Five?" Puck thought about this. He was never the best at math but he could tell that meant that she had to have had Hailey right after they graduated. Maybe Sam was the father.
Quinn could see that Puck was thinking about this and knew that she needed to get them off the topic of Hailey. "So Puck, how long are you going to be living with Finn and Sam? I mean, you three living together is bound to get crazy eventually."
"Just until I get a job and can afford my own place. Don't worry, you can continue your little sleepovers. Just make sure that you lock the door when you two are fucking in the shower. Wouldn't want to walk in on any of that."
Quinn rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Is it possible to give you the money to go find your own place?"
Puck shrugged and smirked. "Maybe. But I think I'd rather hang around my boys for a while. Even if it means I have to deal with you."
Finn cut in. "Okay, enough guys."
Before Quinn could argue, Hailey came outside holding her stomach. "Mommy, my tummy hurts."
Rachel took her into her arms. "How? You didn't eat anything but the stir fry and you're always fine after I make it."
Sam sheepishly lifted his hand. "Actually, I might have snuck her some cake before coming out here. I didn't realize her stomach would react in the bad way. I'm sorry, Rach."
"It's okay, Sam. All we need to do is give her some medicine and she'll be up and running by tomorrow. But I think we should go now so she can rest."
"Are you going to be okay?" Finn asked. Rachel nodded.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll see you guys later. Say goodbye, Hail."
"Bye Auntie Quinn, bye Uncle Sam, bye Uncle Finn." When she got to Puck she paused, unsure what to call him. "Bye person I don't know."
As she started walking away, everyone but Puck laughed. Hailey was known for being blunt and honest, just like her mother. Rachel was the first to stop laughing and finally speak. "I guess we should've gotten around to introducing you to her."
"Yeah, probably." Puck couldn't help but crack a smile at the girl. "I can't wait to see you guys more."
Rachel couldn't help but get butterflies from the way he looked at her. It reminded her of how he looked at her at the party that fateful night. She knew she had to ignore it or else the secret of Hailey's paternity would come out.
"Yeah, bye guys." Rachel gave a small wave before walking out. After they heard Rachel get in her car and drive away, Puck smirked to himself. He knew he affected Rachel but because of the morning after the party, she wants nothing to do with him. But he did notice one thing: Hailey called Sam her uncle, which means he's not her father. But if he's not her father, who is? It was going to be Puck's mission to figure it out.
He looked at Finn and Sam and gave a smug look. "Now was that so bad?"
And there you have it. Puck and Rachel finally saw each other again. Looks like he has some work to do to win Rachel over, though. To clear up any confusion you may have about why Finn, Sam and Puck can't tell that Hailey is Puck's, she looks like a mini version of Rachel. Besides her eyes, any other part of her that looks like Puck isn't too noticeable. Puck was mostly looking at her as a whole so he never zoomed in on that one part of her. Also, because of how Finn and Sam aren't the quickest to catch onto things, they never paid much attention to Hailey's eyes either. Hope this clears things up. Keep the reviews coming. Bye for now :)
