A/N: I just realized that I've been a very bad girl as I often forget to make a disclaimer. So, here it is: Fox and Mr. Murphy may own the Glee characters, but the storyline and OCs are mine!

Reunited and it feels so good
Reunited 'cause we understood
There's one perfect fit
And, sugar, this one is it
We both are so excited 'cause we're reunited, hey, hey

—Reunited by Peaches and Herb

"Uh, yeah. Hey, Berry. It's been a while." Noah said shyly.

Rachel let go of the staircase rails and rushed towards Noah, pulling him into a hug. "Wow, it's been such a long time! I never thought I would ever see you again," she breathed as she looked into his eyes.

Noah had to look away in fear of getting lost in her chocolate orbs. "Yeah, I'm sure. I was talking to Quinn at Artie's party a few days ago, and she told me you were in London. I figured it would be nice to meet up with you, since I'm here on business."

"That's great! I'm so excited. Come, come," Rachel said as she pulled Noah towards the couch. He sucked in a breath as he felt something spark when she grabbed his hand. "Tell me how everything has been for you. We haven't really talked since… Wow. I just realized the last time I saw you was during winter break sophomore year of college! We really need to catch up."

"Well, I was kind of hoping that I could take you out to dinner tonight," he said uncertainly.

"Oh, sure. But would you mind if Gwen tagged along? She and I had plans to go out for dinner tonight," Rachel said.

"Is Gwen the girl that opened the door?"

"Yeah, she's my roommate."

Noah didn't see the harm in it, so he agreed.

The trio made small talk as they walked to the Indian restaurant Namaste, where the roommates dined every Friday and that Rachel insisted had the most "orgasmic" food she had ever had the pleasure of consuming (That's an image I really did not need, Noah thought).

They were greeted by the maître d', with whom the girls were on a first name basis. The restaurant had a casual atmosphere that was so welcoming and warm that Noah had no problem seeing why Rachel loved it here. The color scheme was bold with personal touches everywhere, and there was even a wall for pictures of celebrities that have dined there. And, of course, there was a picture of Rachel in all of her West End glory and a gold star next to her autograph.

They were led to the girls' usual table by Sanjay, the waiter. After they were seated and promised that their usual orders would arrive (Noah agreed to have whatever they were having), Rachel sighed in relief and turned to Noah. "Honestly, I don't know what I would have done if there weren't Indian restaurants in England. They are the only places that have food with any flavor. Seriously, everything else is so incredibly insipid and bland."

Gwen snorted. "Oh please, Rachel. You've barely been anywhere else." She turned to Noah as well and said, "She's become quite the domestic you know. After a few weeks of living off of only sandwiches and Indian food, she insisted on learning how to cook for the both of us."

Rachel waved away the comment and continued. "So, Puck, how have things been?"

He grinned sheepishly and said, "Well, for starters, I no longer go by Puck. I've had to learn to become a professional and I've accepted the use of my given name. Plus, I recall someone telling me that Puck is the name of a fairy."

"Oh, yes. I remember that," Rachel replied. "But it was the truth. Noah is such a wonderful name. I never understood why you refused to be called as such."

"Well, I was young and immature and way too full of myself back then," he said. "I've changed a lot since then."

Rachel looked at him thoughtfully, resting her chin on her hands. "I've noticed. But then again, we've all changed."

"Yeah, you sure have," he said wistfully (wistfully, I tell you!). Noah caught himself and said, "I mean, like, I have never seen you more mellow in my life, Berry. It's almost like aliens abducted you and gave you a lobotomy."

She stuck her tongue out at him and giggled. "After some self-examination, I became conscious of the fact that my brash self-confidence could be viewed as arrogance or obnoxiousness. So I decided to…tone it down a bit. I realized that people would probably not want to work with me if I carried on as I did previously, and that would simply not do for my success."

"And now, she has quite the loveliest of personalities," Gwen interrupted.

However, Noah didn't really believe Rachel. He had a nagging feeling that it was less about work and more about Dean, but he kept his thoughts to himself.

The group chatted amicably throughout their dinner about Noah's and Rachel's respective past eight years. After dinner, Rachel headed to "the loo," leaving Noah and Gwen to make small talk.

Or, so Noah thought it would be until he realized how intense Gwen really was.

"So. How long have you been in love with Rachel?" she asked.

He blinked, not expecting such a blunt question. "What?"

"You heard me. I've been observing you all night," Gwen said. "You can't stop making goo-goo eyes at her."

Noah sighed and realized that there was no way out of it. "Caught me, have you?"

"Yup."

"Well, I'm not in love with her," he insisted. At least I don't think so…

"Uh-huh. And I'm a wizard," Gwen said, rolling her eyes.

"It was just a high school crush. Nothing more. Except for that one time when we were together for less than a week, but that's something completely different…" He trailed off.

Gwen smirked. "I'm sure. She told me about your adorable rendition of "Sweet Caroline," you know. Look, I can tell that you like her and that it's genuine. But you're going to be leaving soon. Lord knows that I want her to be happy, and I think that you are capable of doing that. However, she's barely healed from a broken heart and—"

She saw Rachel heading back to the table and then quickly said, "So you better think carefully of what your next move is going to be because if you hurt her, I'll hurt you. Got it?"

Noah didn't know what to say, so he just nodded. "Yeah."

Right then, Rachel plopped back down in her seat and smiled brightly at her two friends. "So, who's ready for dessert?"

After walking home from the restaurant, Gwen left the two former Glee clubbers alone on the doorstep to say their farewells.

"So…" Noah drew out. His hands were once again stuffed in his pockets as he rocked back and forth on his heels.

"So…" Rachel repeated.

He wasn't quite sure of what he should say as he left her on her doorstep. Noah couldn't quite say goodbye just because he couldn't bear the thought of losing her again.

"Um…this was fun."

"Yes, yes it was," Rachel agreed. "We should hang out again before you return to the States."

Noah smiled. "That's exactly what I was thinking. Or rather, I was thinking that since I'm stuck here for an undetermined amount of time, we could hang out more. How does tomorrow look?"

Rachel bit her lip in that cute way that got him every time. "Okay, I guess so. I'm free for most of the day, but I do have a show in the evening. I can take you for a tour, and then maybe you can come see my show?"

"Yeah," he said, grinning. "That sounds great."

Shooting him a mega-watt smile, Rachel twisted her key in the lock and said, "Great. I'll text you later about the details?"

"Sure."

Rachel paused for a moment in the doorway, staring at him as if contemplating something. She quickly stepped back and softly kissed Noah on the cheek. After stepping inside, she turned around again and smiled shyly. "I really missed you, Noah. It's really good to see you again."

"Same here."

The door was an inch away from being closed when she softly said, "Bye."

Noah just stood there in awe of what just transpired.

Damn, he was in trouble.

Author's Note: YAY! Another chapter! Thanks for all of the love and support I've been getting from my readers. However, after receiving way more story alerts than review alerts, I made an impulsive decision: I'm probably not going to update until I hit 60-65 reviews. I know, it's kind of a lot to ask for, but I really feel weird writing this and not getting a lot of feedback. So please show some more love!

But you can content yourself for my new Puckleberry story Maybe (Not), which should be posted up soon. I know that it's horrible of me to start a new story when I'm not even finished with this one, but my muse hit me hard and fast. It's completely AU. In a nutshell, it's about Rachel going to college and working hard to make a success out of herself. However, after meeting the bad boy roommate of her new kinda crush, something begins to develop slowly but surely and hitting her hard.

Here's a preview:

"STOP!" Rachel yelled, throwing her hands in the air. She took a deep breath and calmly continued with, "I'll be fine. My roommate will not be psychotic, and I will most definitely not be living with my dads in Ohio for the next thirty years. I feel that it is to your and my best interest that I go to school here, where I believe that I will work the hardest and be the most successful. This is for the best."

They took turns hugging her and reminding her to call at least once a day. As they exited the room, the two fathers turned and glanced back one last time at their newly independent daughter, who was smiling and waving goodbye.

After her dads were gone, Rachel closed her door and slid down to the floor against it. Looking at her new home after a few peaceful moments, Rachel smiled.

This is it, she thought. A fresh start. New people, new experiences. Leave the innocent and ignorant Rachel Berry back in Lima, Ohio. It's time for a new genesis.

College was going to be so much fun.