Title: Breakaway, Part 4/?
Spoilers: This part to '3x16 - Saturday Night Glee-ver'; whole series will be through the Glee season 3 finale.
Disclaimer1: I don't own Glee, so I'm just borrowing the characters and ideas for the fun of writing, *but* I do own the original characters, original plot and other original ideas.
A/N1: I edited this, so all mistakes are mine.
A/N2: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D
Disclaimer2: Title from one of my favorite Kelly Clarkson songs 'Breakaway'. Just borrowing. I don't own!
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Disclaimer3: Any familiar lines from the episode listed have been underlined... Just borrowing them! I don't own!
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3x16 - Saturday Night Glee-ver
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It all started with Blaine. They'd recently found out that the theme for Nationals would be 'Vintage', so he, Mike and Brittany put together a dance routine to 'You Should Be Dancing' and performed it on a Thursday for the rest of the Glee Club. Will loved it, because when he was in Glee Club in the 1990s, they went all the way to winning Nationals with disco hits, but almost all of the New Directions members hated the idea.
Most of the teens had been against disco, every time Will had suggested it in the past and they hoped they'd heard the last of the music, but as Monday rolled around, the teens found the choir room had been taken over by a very large light-up dance floor.
"Did someone steal our floor?" Brittany asked as they began to gather around the odd floor.
"Don't worry, we'll have it back by the end of the week," Will promised, "but right now, Sue is letting us borrow..."
"My very own, personal, one-of-a-kind, shatter-proof Plexiglass dance floor. Modeled, of course, on the dance floor immortalized by a young John Travolta and the legendary dance-ical, Saturday Night Fever," Sue said, looking over at the teens.
As soon as she said the movie's name, everyone groaned, "Coach Sylvester, while we applaud your proper use of the terminology we've already told Mr. Schue that we do not support disco in this room," Rachel commented, knowing no one else would stand up to them.
"Some of you do," Will admitted, moving to pick up something and came back with a record album of the movie's soundtrack, "so for this week's assignment we're going back in time to the songs of Saturday Night Fever."
"Didn't we already agree last week that disco sucks?" Puck asked, motioning to his perfectly chosen black t-shirt with 'Disco Sucks' written on it in silver print.
"Well this album, funny hair teen, is one of the best selling soundtracks of all time," Sue chimed in, "and let's be honest, everyone, you've been out of ideas since Madonna week, two years ago," she added, having said the same thing to Will the previous week and she meant it.
"Look guys, I know you don't like disco, but honestly, the main character's story in the movie is a lot like yours. He's working in a dead-end job, struggling to figure out his life. The only time he feels sure about himself is when he's performing on the dance floor. He had a dream to get out of his old neighborhood in Brooklyn and get to New York City and by the end of the movie, that's what he'd done. He turned his dream into a plan," Will explained, looking at everyone.
Groans echoed through the room again, but they all realized their coaches wouldn't give up until they'd agreed, so Kurt was the next one to speak up, "so why the dance floor?"
"Because we're going to start with a dance-off and the winner will receive a replica of John Travolta's iconic white polyester suit," Sue explained, reaching to get a small figurine wearing the suit she was talking about.
The reaction from the teens was exactly what the coaches wanted; a little competition between them, but Puck was still against it it, "I would totally put that suit on... eBay."
Rachel glanced at Puck, who was next to her and laughed lightly, "come on, Noah. Have a little adventure," she murmured.
Puck sighed, but squeezed her hand, "alright, for you."
"Great!" Rachel smiled leaning into him a little as Sue and Will stepped up on the dance floor to start them off.
...
The finalists for the dance-off ended up being Mercedes, Santana and Finn. The three were confused and quickly figured out why they had been chosen; the 'contest' had been rigged. Will was concerned about the three of them, because of the soon-to-be graduates of New Directions, they were the only ones who hadn't really been thinking about their future. Will hoped that with the story and music of the movie, Saturday Night Fever, it could help them in their quest to find out what they wanted to do with the rest of their lives. Each of them were expected to perform one song from the soundtrack that week and see if they could settle on a direction for their life.
...
"I hate disco," Puck muttered, plopping down on the piano bench in the auditorium while he and Rachel were hanging out during lunch.
"I know. I'm not a huge fan of it either, but at least we don't have to perform any songs from the movie, unless we want to," Rachel admitted, taking a seat next to him.
"Yeah, I'm glad for that," Puck agreed, "can we focus on some music that isn't disco?" He asked, motioning to her music folder.
Rachel laughed lightly, but reached for it, "I think that could definitely be arranged," she replied, pulling out the sheet music to one of her songs, "how's this?"
Puck glanced at it and nodded, "perfect."
...
Since it was Monday, the day Rachel usually got a message from her 'Secret Admirer' by the end of the day, she wasn't surprised when she found another note in her locker when she got to it after school. "You're gonna shine brighter than the sun!" It read and she couldn't help the smile and blush that grew on her cheeks.
Her messages were never more than a sentence, but the words held so much meaning to her. She knew, somewhere in McKinley, there was someone who believed in her and knew she'd be a star one day, which encouraged her to continue her focus on her audition to NYADA, but 'the song' just hadn't stood out to her yet. She wasn't sure if it was because she just couldn't make a choice or if it was because her mind kept wondering what was going on in Puck's head and she knew she wouldn't be able to wait much longer to find out.
When she asked Puck to join her in New York, he said he'd consider it, but since then, she couldn't help wishing, hoping and praying he'd decide to. She made an agreement with herself that she wouldn't continually to ask him, giving him some time and space to figure out just what he wanted to do, but she hoped soon she'd find out. He'd been such an amazing friend to her in the last few months and knew that their relationship would continue to grow, along with her romantic feelings for him, and she just wanted to experience New York with him, no matter what their relationship grew into.
Pushing aside her thoughts, for probably the thousandth time, Rachel gathered her things and went to meet the person she was thinking about, to continue practicing. She knew her audition was coming up in a few weeks and she needed all the time she could get, especially because she still hadn't picked the right song.
...
When Tuesday rolled around, Mercedes was the first person to entertain everyone with a song from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. She'd picked 'Disco Inferno' and did an amazing vocal rendition, while dancing with Santana and Brittany as back-up. She admitted at the end that she did have a dream, a big one. She wanted to be a singer, as famous and successful as Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, who had just passed away recently, but she didn't know the first thing about getting there. She also had a dad who was a dentist and didn't believe her dream was possible. She felt like she was stuck, scared to move across the country to California to try to make it, but knew that would be her first big step in making it.
Rachel reminded her that she was moving to New York, but Mercedes quickly added that Rachel had parents who supported her. Mercedes didn't know the first thing about becoming the singer in LA and even though she knew she was a 'star' within the club, she didn't think she could be as big of a hit outside of the club, so she was lacking some of the self-esteem that she needed to push herself to her stardom.
Though not everyone in the club was looking at being a star, all of them, either currently or in the past, had struggled with that same problem. They were all scared of their future, unsure if they were making the right decisions, scared of moving to a new place and scared of what real life could throw at them, which is why some of them hadn't made any major decisions on their future, even though graduation was approaching quickly.
...
After listening to Mercedes' speech and hanging in out with Rachel during lunch and after school, Puck spent the rest of the day and night continuing to think, like he had been for the past few weeks. After Rachel asked him to consider moving to New York, he'd been thinking about it a lot and now with Will's ulterior motive for bringing disco into the club, he'd finally made a decision and now needed to talk to Finn.
As morning arrived, Puck found Finn at his locker before Glee, so he walked up to him, "hey, Finn," he greeted.
"Hey, man, what's up?" Finn asked, closing his locker and looking at him.
"Well, it's been a few weeks since I asked you about going to LA. I know you need to think on it and honestly, I did, too, and um," Puck rubbed his neck, "I need to let you know that I'm..."
"Look, Puck," Finn cut him off before he could continue, "I really appreciate that you asked me to be your business partner and I think you've got a great idea going for you. I wish you all the best of lucky with that, but I can't make a move like that. We'll always be friends, but I just can't go to Cali with you."
A few weeks prior, Puck would have been upset that Finn turned him down, but now that he had his own new direction, Puck was relieved and felt like a weight had lifted off his chest, "good. I'm glad," he admitted and seeing Finn's confused and hurt expression, he quickly continued, "no, not like that!" He assured him, "yeah, we will always be friends. I just mean that I'm glad you didn't plan to go, because I've changed my mind, too. I'm not going to Cali, either. I've gotten a better offer that I'm gonna take. It's got better opportunities for advancement," he explained.
"Oh yeah? What is it?" Finn wondered.
"I haven't quite decided all the details, yet, and I haven't told the person who offered it to me, so I want to do that before I say anything," Puck admitted. He would have told him right away, but he didn't want to push his luck. He knew Finn would be jealous the moment he found out and Puck also wanted Rachel to be the first one to know.
"Oh, alright. That makes sense," Finn held out his hand to him, "I wish you luck in whatever you end up doing, man."
"Thanks, Finn," Puck smiled, shaking his hand, "and I hope you figure out what you wanna do, too. I guess Lima isn't too bad, if you wanted to stay around here for a while longer."
"That's what I was thinking. Lima is home and I'm just not ready to leave," Finn said honestly.
"Then don't. Just because we're graduating doesn't mean you have to leave home and know exactly what you'll do with the rest of your life. We're only eighteen. We've got tons more living ahead of us before we have to figure everything out," Puck told him.
Finn smiled as his shoulders relaxed, "I'm trying to tell that to Mr. Schuester, but he doesn't seem to get it."
Puck rolled his eyes at Will's 'lesson' for the week, a way to help Finn and some others find a dream, "I think Mr. Schue is just trying to help us find a direction, but you can't let anyone force you to pick out your future until you're ready," Puck told him, "if you want to stay in Lima for a few more months or years after school, do it. It's your choice, your life."
Finn nodded at him, "thanks man."
...
Heading off to Glee, the teens listened to Santana singing 'If I Can't Have You', another song from the soundtrack picked for the week. At the end, Will thought her message helped her, not only to sing to her girlfriend, but also to show she was looking for marriage equality for everyone and was heading off to law school to be one step closer to it. Santana admitted that she wanted marriage equality for everyone, but she really only wanted to be famous and didn't care how she did it.
"Then I have to say I'm disappointed in you. Fame is not something to aspire to," Will commented.
Santana rolled her eyes, "how about you save the lecture for the theater nerds that are gonna starve in New York while desperately trying to tap dance their way to fame?" She replied, "no offense, Hummel and Berry, and everyone can stop their hating because you all want to be famous, too. The only difference is that I'm a thousand-percent sure that I am actually going to be famous," she added, looking around at the other teens.
Kurt and Rachel exchanged glances and sighed, and Puck noticed the hurt looks on their faces, "just because you're so sure of yourself, doesn't mean you can insult other people's dreams," Puck snapped. She just rolled her eyes and Puck turned his attention to Will, "and not everyone needs to know what they're gonna do with the rest of their lives, today, Mr. Schue," he told him, "some people might want to stay here for a while after graduation before figuring out their lives. We don't all have to know right now."
Will thought for a moment and sighed, "I suppose you're right, but I see potential in all of you and I don't want you guys to end up stuck here."
"This is our home, Mr. Schue. Most of us were born and raised here and it's like you're forcing us to leave it. Some of us are just not ready," Finn said.
...
Rachel had seen Puck and Finn talking in the hallway before Glee and after hearing what they both said to Will, she got a sick feeling in her stomach that Puck was going to stay in Lima and not go to New York. They met like usual during lunch, but didn't want to get into a huge conversation with him, so she tried to ignore the feelings, but wasn't sure how well she was doing about them.
Puck noticed Rachel was a little unfocused while they were in the auditorium, but before he could ask her, lunch was over, so he told himself he'd talk to her after school. When school was finally over, he got his things and headed to the auditorium and waited for her to join him. It wasn't long before she was walking up on the stage and laying her backpack on the piano.
"Hey, Rach," he commented, surprised she hadn't said anything yet.
"Hello, Noah," she replied simply, taking her music folder out of her bag.
"She's pissed," he thought, getting up and moving towards her, "look, if you're pissed at me for standing up to Santana in Glee and telling Mr. Schue that today, I'm sorry."
Rachel's shoulders fell and she shook her head, "no, that's not why I'm upset," she replied.
"Then why are you mad?" Puck asked, his mind racing as he tried to figure out what he did to upset her.
Closing her eyes for a moment, she gathered her thoughts, "I appreciate that you stood up to Santana and you were right with what you said to Mr. Schuester. Not everyone has to know what they're going to do in their future right now," she replied, "and I gathered from that, that you've made your decision and won't be going to New York," she added softly, looking at him, "which I think is a big mistake, because you have so much potential, Noah."
Puck narrowed his eyes in confusion and then realized the issue, "I was only saying that because when I talked to Finn this morning, he said that Mr. Schue is on his case to figure out his future and Finn isn't ready to do that. He wants to stay here for a while before he makes that choice," Puck told her, closing the distance between them and gently resting his hands on her shoulders, "I went to talk to him earlier to tell him that my plans for Cali are gone. I have a better plan. I didn't tell him what it was, because I wanted to tell you first. I've decided to go to New York," he grinned, when her face turned to a bright smile and her eyes widened a little, "I don't know what I'll do yet, but I'll figure it out. I've realized that I really enjoy hanging out with you and I want that to continue and New York does have a lot of things we could do together."
All the worries building in Rachel's body subsided as she heard his words, and nodded at his last sentence, "yes, there is a lot to do," she agreed, "we're going to New York!" She exclaimed, jumping up and throwing her arms around his neck to hug him tightly, "I promise, Noah, you won't regret this decision!"
Reacting when she jumped up, he wrapped his arms around her and grinned, "honestly, if I'm with you, I don't see how I could regret anything," he replied, knowing he made the right decision.
Rachel pulled her head back a little to look at him, "you mean that?" She asked and when he nodded, she smiled, "Noah, I have..." She couldn't help the blush that grew on her cheeks, "I need to ask you something, but I need you to do something for me," she admitted.
Puck eyed her, confused at what she was talking about, but gently set her back down on the floor, "um, should I be worried?"
"No, well, I don't know," she admitted, taking a deep breath and reaching for her music folder, "I know most of us are against disco and usually I'd agree, but I looked up the songs online from the movie soundtrack that Mr. Schuester and Coach Sylvester assigned us this week and I couldn't help be attracted to one song. I think... Well, it's something I need to say and to know," she pulled a few sheets of paper out of her folder and handed it to him, "I found the piano music online and I cut off the name, because I don't want you to know it before I get through the song."
"Alright," Puck glanced over the music and reluctantly moved to the piano bench again, "so, you just want me to start playing this and you'll sing it?"
"Yeah," she nodded, nervously pushing a piece of hair behind her ear, "well, here it goes nothing," she thought taking a calming breath and smiling at him.
Puck placed his fingers on the keys and was definitely confused at what he was about to play, but began pressing the keys in the correct combinations, while keeping a partial eye on her.
When the song reached the right spot, she began to sing the words she had in front of her, having not memorized the whole thing yet, "I know your eyes in the morning sun. I feel you touch me in the pouring rain and the moment that you wander far from me, I wanna feel you in my arms again and you come to me on a summer breeze. Keep me warm in your love, then you softly leave and and it's me you need to show... How deep is your love?" She paused, familiar with the chorus, so she was able to look at him to continue, "I really need to learn, 'cause we're living in a world of fools, breaking us down when they all should let us be, we belong to you and me."
As Rachel had started singing to the slow melody, Puck didn't think too much of it, until the words began to sink in when she looked at him to sing the chorus. While he listened to the words, the feelings he'd had for her grew even more and he realized she was asking him how deep his feelings were for her, because she had them for him and was curious how he felt. "She really has feelings for you, man. This is awesome!" He thought, staring at her when he could, between glancing to the sheet music in front of him.
Moving to stand beside him, she slipped her left arm around his shoulders and looked at him, as she continued with the next verse; the one she'd memorized, "I believe in you. You know the door to my very soul. You're the light in my deepest, darkest hour. You're my savior when I fall and you may not think, I care for you, when you know down inside that I really do and it's me you need to show," she stopped, reaching out to gently still his hands, so he wouldn't keep playing and said the next few words, the question she had for him, "how deep is your love?"
When Rachel reached out and stilled his hands, to say the last few words, he couldn't help the smile that grew on his face. He gently turned his hand over, that was covered by hers, and laced their fingers together, but before he could speak, she began talking.
"Noah, before you say anything, I know that 'love' is a super strong word right now, but I really like and care about you as a friend, but also as more than that. I have a lot of feelings for you that I've never felt before and I just wanted you to know. I've been keeping them to myself for quite a while, because I really do enjoy the friendship we've formed and I understand if you don't feel the same way, but I needed to tell you. And you choosing to go to New York is not the only reason why I'm doing this now," she explained, wanting to clarify things before he responded to her. Seeing his smile and the twinkle in his eye, she hoped they, along with him joining their hands together was a good sign.
Letting her talk, Noah didn't move, but as she finished, he let go of her hand, stood up and stepped around the piano bench so he could face her. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her close to him, pressing a long, overdue kiss to her lips. He hoped that for those few moments while their lips connected, she'd feel the same sparks he was and would help her understand that he felt the same way. Snaking one hand up to brush through her hair gently, he rested it on her cheek as he broke their kiss and smiled at her again, "I feel the same way, Rachel," he whispered, locking eyes with her.
Relief washed over her body as his words sunk in, "oh Noah, you don't know how good that feels to hear you say that," she said honestly, tears she'd held back finally falling from her eyes, "I'm so glad," she added, slipping her arms around his waist.
"Me too," he agreed, "I've been keeping my distance because I knew you'd just split with Finn and have your audition coming up. You needed space and I didn't want to give you any added pressure."
"I appreciate that, I really do, and I was partially doing the same, but every time I see or talk to you, I'm more drawn to you and I just didn't want to wait anymore," she told him, "and in a way, it kind of was a pressure, by not expressing myself to you. Now that I have, I feel relieved and like I can focus more, now. Does that make sense?"
Puck nodded, "yeah, totally. You've been thinking about this for a while and it's been distracting you, hasn't it?"
"I've drifted off into space several times because of it, yes," she admitted with a blush.
"Well, now you don't have to hide it anymore," he replied with a grin.
"You're right," she nodded, leaning her head against his chest for a moment as they continued to hug. "So, what does this make us?"
"Whatever you want us or are ready for us to be," he replied honestly.
"Well, I want to take things really slow and... I know you've said it before, but um... your business," she bit her lip.
"I gave up the additional activities a long time ago," he assured her, "so I'm all yours and only yours, if that's what you want. I want you to focus on your NYADA audition and I'll continue to help out anyway I can, so I'm cool if you wanna keep things just as they are until then, and maybe we could add a few dates or dinners in during the week and hang out on the weekends a little," he suggested, "I'm okay with going at whatever pace you want."
"That sounds like a great idea," she smiled, "and I did believe you before, I just wanted, to um, be clear."
"I know and it's cool. No hard feelings," he leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips.
As they kissed, sparks ignited all over her body, a feeling she'd never experienced with Finn and she soaked in the moment as long as she could.
After months of his building feelings and the ones he'd had for her in the past, Puck was glad to finally be able to hold her in his arms, kiss her and feel her close to him. The sparks that went off throughout his body helped him realize he wasn't dreaming and they were really together. He wasn't worrying about her cheating on someone and he definitely didn't plan to rush her, but he was looking forward to the day they could take their physical relationship beyond the simple touches. Until then, he settled to enjoy their building romance and allow everything to happen naturally, "this feels amazing," he whispered as their lips broke apart.
"It does," she smiled, "can this mean we're boyfriend and girlfriend?"
"Without a doubt," he nodded, then smirked, "but on one condition."
Rachel raised a curious eyebrow at him, "what is it?"
"That you let me cop a feel anytime I want and not snap at me for it," he winked.
"Noah!" Rachel blushed, swatting him playfully in the chest, but took a moment to think on it seriously, "I suppose that would be alright, as long as you're tasteful about it and we're not in public. There are some things I'd rather keep between us."
"Sounds fair to me," he admitted in surprise, fully expecting her to be against it or give him a hard time about it, "girlfriend."
"Boyfriend," she replied, relaxing in his arms, relieved that she finally got to talk to him about her feelings and to find he felt the same way about her. She knew they'd have a lot of things to talk about over the next few weeks and months, but for the moment, she wanted to just enjoy their time together and see how their relationship continued to grow.
...
Walking into McKinley the next morning, Rachel was on cloud nine. Months of wondering how Puck felt was over and both of them had finally expressed their feelings, and were starting to build their romantic relationship. Since they considered each other boyfriend and girlfriend and because they were taking things slow, they decided to hold off on telling their friends for a while. They wanted some time to be together, without all the outside comments, and possibly accusations from Finn, either that Rachel was cheating on him with Puck before they split up, that Puck stole his girlfriend, or something like that, because they weren't sure just how Finn would feel about it, even though it'd been months since their break-up.
After practicing the day before, they went to dinner and enjoyed some extra time together, before they went their separate ways that evening; since both had vehicles at school to deal with. It was one of the few times they'd gone out without others and Rachel liked being outside of school with him, and was definitely looking forward to doing that more.
Rachel usually never saw Puck until just before Glee, so she wasn't surprised she hadn't seen him all morning, but when she got to her locker to drop her things off before heading to the choir room, he never showed up. She waited a few extra minutes, but realizing he wasn't coming, she headed for the choir room, thinking he'd be waiting for her there.
Stepping into the classroom, Rachel was surprised again, that he wasn't there. "This is not like him," she thought, glancing at her phone and seeing no missed calls or messages from him. "He never said anything about not being here today. I'm sure he would have told me."
Artie and Quinn were already in there, so she greeted them and moved to take a seat in her usual spot in the front row.
"Where's Puck?" Quinn wondered, "you two have been coming into Glee together, lately," she commented.
Rachel nodded, trying not to blush at her words, "yes, we usually do, but I haven't seen him today. I'm not sure where he is," she admitted. "And we hung out yesterday after school and he didn't make any comments about not being here today," she added.
"I haven't seen him either and I usually pass him in the halls in the morning," Artie chimed in, "and he never is sick, so I can't believe he'd be out because of that."
Hearing Artie's comment, Rachel pulled up her text messages and wrote one to Puck, "Noah, where are you? You didn't say anything to me about being absent today. Are you skipping? I hate to ask, but I'm worried. Are you okay?" Sending the message she glanced up, "I just sent him a message. I hope he replies soon. I'm worried about him."
"I'm sure you have nothing to worry about," Quinn replied, wheeling over to her, "he's been pretty good this year with actually going to class, so he's not skipping and probably has a good reason."
Rachel took a deep breath, "I hope so."
...
Putting her phone away, Rachel tried to push her concern away as others began to come into class. Will and Finn were the last to enter, Finn caring a large stack of pamphlets and booklets and she quickly recognized them as college information packets. Part of her was glad he had at least talked to Ms. Pillsbury about them, but she had an idea that Finn was only doing it because Will talked him into it.
With no performances for that day, the time in Glee passed by everyone talking about the week and the upcoming weekend. Mercedes and Kurt commented that Saturday was Vocal Adrenaline's Regionals competition, but they didn't go into too much detail on how they found out, other than that one of it's members had visited them because he was a big fan of theirs. They also added that Jesse St. James was now their coach. Rachel knew he'd gone to UCLA, but when he'd returned at prom time the year before, she realized from things he said that he wasn't a college person and would rather be performing or coaching. With Vocal Adrenaline's coach position open again, she wasn't surprised to find they'd hired him, since he was their former lead, who helped them win numerous first place trophies in the past.
As Glee came to an end, Rachel checked her phone and still didn't find a response to her message. "No, Rachel, don't send another. There is nothing that happened last night that would have upset him or scared him away. I'm sure he has a perfectly good reason for missing school. Maybe his sister is sick or something happened at home. Just let him respond to you when he's ready. He won't keep it from you and you don't need to be spamming him with messages or he might get mad."
The day continued to pass and it wasn't until she was in the auditorium after school that she got two messages reading. "Sorry I've been out of touch. Been at hospital since last night. We had to take my nana there. Nothing life-threatening. Long story. Exhausted. Going home to sleep. Won't be at school tomorrow. Will tell you everything this weekend. I promise."
Rereading his message, part of her was relieved to finally hear from him, but another part felt bad and worried for his nana. She didn't know much about his family, but she knew they were close with his grandma, so she hoped everything would be alright. Hitting the reply button, she began typing her reply, "So glad to hear from you, but I do understand! I was worried when you weren't at school. I'm sorry to hear about your grandma. I hope everything works out. Do you need anything?"
After sending her response, Rachel realized she wouldn't be able to focus on her music, so she decided to go home early and work on it there, if she did decide to. Gathering up her things, she began making her way towards the exit when her phone beeped again, so she glanced at Puck's reply, "No thanks, but I appreciate the concern. Right now just need sleep. Come over Saturday afternoon?"
Smiling at his offer, she quickly sent back, "of course. Let me know when you'd like me to come over. Miss you!"
"Miss you, too. Later, babe... Girlfriend ;)'," he quickly replied and Rachel blushed at it, before pocketing her phone and heading out to her car.
...
Rachel's dads were surprised she'd gotten home so early from school, but after explaining why, they offered to help her with her music and the three Berrys spent the evening working on both of her songs.
When Friday arrived, Rachel was at least relaxed, now knowing why Puck had been absent and wasn't surprised when she didn't find him that day. She knew he'd gone back to the hospital that morning, but didn't know the reasons why. He'd promised he'd explain everything when she came over the next day and she was looking forward to seeing him. She definitely missed him and having him play the piano for her; she loved her dads, but they just weren't the same.
During Glee, Finn noticed that Puck was missing again and Rachel explained all she knew, that his grandma was in the hospital, but she didn't know anything else and wouldn't find out until the next day. Several of them felt bad because they thought he was skipping because he'd had enough of the disco music that week, and Rachel assured them it wasn't because of that, but she admitted the thought had crossed her mind the day before when she was wondering where he was.
Rachel's day passed uneventfully and after school, she went right home. She still had yet to decide on which of the two songs she wanted to use as her audition song, but Hiram helped her pick the one that would allow her to show her vocal range and they worked on it, while LeRoy made dinner.
...
By Saturday morning, Rachel was excited. She hadn't seen her boyfriend for a few days and aside from a few text messages they'd exchanged since, she was missing him. He'd been at the hospital most of the day before, so she couldn't talk to him on the phone, so she agreed to head over to his house around noon on Saturday so they could hang out.
Pulling her car up to the small two story house just before noon, she parked and headed up to the front door. She had been there a few times, but usually it was only when they were going somewhere after school and he wanted to drop his stuff off, so she'd only been in his living room. Knocking on the door, she waited anxiously and then heard footsteps on the other side. As the door opened, she smiled, "hey, Noah!" She greeted, happy to finally see him, even though he looked half asleep.
"Hey, babe, come in," he motioning inside, "how are you?"
Rachel moved into the house, "hug first," she replied, slipping her arms around his waist.
Puck smiled, pressing a kiss to her cheek as he wrapped her up in a tight hug, "definitely missed you," he admitted, "I could have probably gone over to your place last night for a few hours, but I was still tired from the other night and I'm not sleeping the greatest."
"It's okay, Noah. You've had other things going on," she assured him, standing up on her tip toes to press a kiss to his lips, "and I've missed you, too."
"So, how are you?" He asked again, closing the door and motioning to the couch nearby.
"I'm doing alright," she shrugged, more concerned about him, "so what's been going on? What happened?" She asked, as they both took seats on the couch.
Puck rolled his eyes and sighed, "we had to take my nana to the hospital. She's diabetic and her blood sugar got really low. It's not the first time it's happened, so we've had to take her before; even a few times we've had to call the paramedics. Anyway, while we were in the ER, they got her blood sugar up, but it went up too much and they didn't like her blood pressure and so they're keeping her a few days to make sure things can get back to normal. I've been staying with her during the day, because mom couldn't get time off work and we didn't want her to be alone. That's why I haven't been at school."
"Oh, that makes sense," she admitted, "so she's going to be okay, right?"
"Definitely," he assured her, "but I don't know how long she's gonna be in there. She's stubborn and set in her ways when it comes to how much insulin she takes and doesn't like change, so until she can break her habits and change a few things, she might be there another few days. My mom and sister are with her right now."
"I'm glad she will be okay," Rachel smiled, leaning in to press a kiss to his lips, "how long do you think you'll be out of school?"
"I don't know. Depends on how long she's in the hospital and if she'll need any help when she gets home," he shrugged.
Rachel nodded, snuggling up to him, "I definitely understand. Family is important, but I do miss you. School isn't the same without you."
Puck smiled, "you missed me that much?"
"I did. When you didn't meet me at my locker the other day before Glee like you usually do, it was weird. I'm so used to you walking with me in the halls or sitting next to me in Glee, that when I looked next to me and you weren't there, I missed you. If we hadn't started dating and this happened, I still would feel the same way," she told him truthfully.
"Wow," he murmured, leaning in to press a kiss to her forehead, "that means a lot to hear. No one has ever told me they missed me before; well, not counting family."
Rachel lifted her head to look at him, "really?"
"Yeah, really," he nodded. "You know I haven't had the best track record with girls and sure, some of the 'cougars' I've had flings with 'missed' me, but that was more because of their lives and thinking I was hot, or whatever," he shrugged, "when you say it, I know you mean it."
"I definitely mean it," she assured him, "you mean a lot to me and I missed not having my friend and boyfriend around and I will miss you until you get back to school."
Puck ran a hand through her hair and smiled, "I'll be back soon. Just not sure how long that will be," he leaned in and pressed a kiss to her lips, "so we've got the house to ourselves. Anything you'd like to do?"
With the way he said that, a thought came to her, "Noah, are you hiding me from your family?" She asked, teasing him mostly, but part of her was curious.
"No," he shook his head quickly, "not like you think. My mom... She's always wanted me to get a girlfriend, you know? Not have relationships like I've had in the past, short ones or by just sleeping around. I know I've grown up a lot and now that I have an amazing girlfriend, she's going to love you, because you're the type of girl she's always wanted me to be with."
"I know," Rachel nodded, "I remember you telling me, when we dated before, that she wished you'd find a Jewish girl," she bit her lip and motioned between them, "this isn't just to make her happy, right?"
"Of course not. I like you for you, yes you are Jewish, but that's not why I wanted to be with you," he promised.
"Okay, good. Sorry I asked. I don't want you to think I don't trust you, but part of me couldn't help wondering, same about why I haven't officially met your family, yet. I have met them, at temple in the past, but never as your girlfriend," she admitted.
"You will, I just need some time, okay?" He asked softly.
"Okay," she smiled at him, "time I can give you."
"Speaking of parents knowing, do your dads know about us?"
Rachel nodded happily, "yes, they do. They actually thought we'd get together at some point, ever since you came over and invited me to that Valentine's Day party a few months ago," she blushed.
"They did? Wow! Well, I had hoped we might date, but you and Finn had just split up, so I wasn't gonna push anything," he admitted.
"I know," she nodded, "and I really appreciate that you gave me the space I needed to get through my break-up. Well, you were still around. I mean I'm just glad you were willing to just be friends with me until I was ready," she explained, shifting a little so she could face him better.
"You're welcome. I wanted you to be the one to come to me, when you were ready and you did. I was surprised, but I'm definitely glad," he explained.
Rachel leaned in and pressed a kiss to his lips, "me too."
...
Spending the afternoon and part of the evening at the Puckerman's house, Rachel met his mom and sister when they got home from the hospital. Even though Puck had wanted to wait to tell them, it wasn't easy to say they were just friends, when they walked into the house and found Rachel and Puck curled up on the couch watching a movie, so Puck introduced her officially as his girlfriend.
Rachel stayed for dinner and while they ate, both were asking Rachel questions to get to know her. Puck could tell his mom liked Rachel from the comments she was making as they talked, so he took that as a good sign and joined the conversation once and a while, but they did most of the talking.
When dinner was over, Puck and Rachel went back to the living room to hang out, but before it got too late, she decided to get home and after saying 'goodbye' to his mom and sister, Puck walked her out to her car. "I hope they weren't too much for you tonight," he admitted, "I honestly didn't think they'd be home when they were."
"It's okay, Noah. They were great. I like them both," she assured him, "they're just curious about me because I'm your girlfriend. I, um, almost slipped we were going to New York. I didn't know if you'd talked to your mom about going with me, so I didn't say anything."
"Thanks. I'm glad you didn't. I haven't had a chance to talk to her. I'm sure she's gonna be shocked and freak out because she won't know how I'll be able to go there and live without much for savings. I guess it's something I'll have to figure out," he admitted, rubbing his neck nervously.
"Well, since NYADA is such a small school, they don't have 'dorms' like a typical college has. They have a deal with a few apartment complexes near the school to give students a discount on rent. The plus with that is we don't have to move out completely after the end of a school year. It'll be ours for as long as we want it," she explained, "and since it's off-campus, we can have non-student roommates, so if Kurt and I both get in, we've talked about getting a two-bedroom to share. You could live with us," she explained.
"Whoa," Puck murmured, his eyes widening in shock, "you'd be willing to live with me? Your boyfriend?" He wondered, trying to wrap his head around what she said.
Rachel nodded, "yes. I don't expect you to move to New York and live in your own place just because we're dating, while Kurt and I live somewhere else. Yes, we would all have to talk about a lot of things, but I trust you and I'd like to think our relationship would get to a point where we're comfortable sleeping together. I also think it would save us a lot of money if we split rent. I'm pretty sure we'll have to get jobs, but at least none of us would have to get some big full-time job or anything. We could have part time jobs a few days a week to pitch in. I don't know. It's something to discuss with Kurt and our parents, and," she sighed, biting her lip, "neither of us even know if we're going to get into NYADA."
"Rachel, you're amazing and if they don't accept you, they're fucking idiots," Puck commented truthfully, stepping closer to her and resting his hand on her cheek, "you'll get in."
"Thank you," Rachel smiled, leaning into his simple touch, "I'm just getting nervous. Our auditions are not far off," she said softly.
"Yeah, and we'll work as hard as we can, every day, to make sure you're ready," he assured her.
Gathering her thoughts, she smiled, "you're going to play piano for me, right?" She asked looking at him, "I know you've been recently, but I... I want you on stage with me," she told him with a smile.
"I'll definitely be there, if that's what you want. I'll do anything I can to help you out," he promised.
Rachel slid her arms around his waist and hugged him, "thank you, Noah. This means a lot. No one else has even offered to help on my audition. I mean, I know my dads would, but none of our other friends. I don't count Kurt, because he's working just as hard on his audition. It just really makes me happy that you're there for me."
"I'll always be there for you, Rachel, I promise," he smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head, "but can I ask you something?" He wondered, having been curious about it for a while.
"Sure?" She lifted her head and looked at him, "what is it?"
"Why only NYADA? There's tons of performing arts schools in New York. Why are you both only focused on NYADA?"
"Because it's one of the best," she replied easily.
"Yes, 'one of the best', which means there's more than one. I don't know a lot when it comes to this, but shouldn't you have a back-up plan? Like NYU? I hate to admit this, but maybe Blaine's brother was kind of right. Maybe college is wasting time. I don't know, but by going to school for another what? Four years? That's four more years you'll have to wait until you can attempt Broadway and isn't acting all about emotion, feeling and practice; things you already do? Why do you need some fancy school to train you in things you already know? I guess what I'm getting at is wondering why you and Kurt have both only focused on getting into NYADA and not applying to other schools, too," he explained, "since you both seem to want to go to college after high school."
Rachel opened her mouth to respond, but then closed it, realizing she didn't have a secondary school picked out, "you're right," she nodded, taking a deep breath, "I suppose at the beginning of the year, when Ms. Pillsbury mentioned to us that Julliard didn't have musical theater, she suggested NYADA. She said they were ranked number one for musical theater in the nation and are really competitive, so when we went to a meeting with prospective students, we put our focus on NYADA. It is one of the best schools for what we want, but there are others. I get what you mean about maybe not going, but by having the 'education' of a well-respected school, someone stands out more to a casting director or is taken more seriously, than if we just start auditioning for everything we can find. At least I would think that. Unfortunately, I think it's too late to apply to other schools. Most needed applications turned in way before now to even be considered for the upcoming school year, so if I don't get into NYADA, I don't know what I'm going to do."
Puck listened to her and rubbed her back gently, "we can still move to New York. Can't you apply to get in like in the middle of the year? You can't tell me that every single graduating Senior is automatically gonna start school in late-August or early-September after they graduate high school. We can find part-time jobs and you two can work on getting into school in the middle of the year," he explained.
"That could work," Rachel admitted, "getting into school late is possible. I guess I just thought it's traditional that if someone is going to go to college or university after high school it's usually right after."
"Yeah, I get that. I'm also not saying you guys won't get into NYADA, so don't think that. I've just been curious about this and it doesn't hurt to have a back-up plan, just in case," Puck added.
"I understand and you're right," she said again, smiling at him, "thanks for mentioning it."
He leaned down, pressing a kiss to her lips, "no problem."
...
Rachel appreciated what Puck brought up Saturday night as she was leaving his house and it gave her something to do on Sunday. She began researching 'performing arts schools' in New York City and found several with long lists of famous alumni, both in TV and movies and ones from Broadway productions. Printing out some information for herself, she also got a sheet with the school's data to give Kurt.
When Monday arrived, Rachel knew Puck wouldn't be back. His grandma was still in the hospital, so during the morning between classes, she went in search of Kurt and found him just walking away from Mercedes, who was now walking with Sam the opposite way down the hall, "Hey Kurt, just the person I was looking for," Rachel smiled, coming to a stop in front of him.
"Oh really? Good, cause I wanted to talk to you. You go first," Kurt said, slipping his arm through hers, "what's up?"
"It's about our plans for New York," she started, as they began walking the way Kurt had been.
"If this is about Puck, I kind of already figured he'd be living with us. They're off-campus apartments, so he doesn't have to be a student to live in them and we'll still get the discount and I'd be okay if he lived with us," he replied, thinking that was what she wanted to bring up.
"That's not it, though that is something I was going to talk to you about soon," she admitted, looking at him, "Noah is going to join us in New York and I'd like him to live with us, so I'm glad you'll be okay with that, but what I wanted to talk to about is a back-up plan. While I was with Noah this weekend, we were talking and he asked me if I had one, just in case I don't get into NYADA, and I don't. Do you?"
"Back-up plan? Why would we need one? We're gonna get into NYADA," he said firmly.
Rachel took a deep breath, "yes, I'm hopeful we will, too, but have you even considered that we might not? You heard Ms. Pillsbury at the beginning of the year. They're a very competitive school and what if one of us gets in and the other doesn't? Or what if neither of us do? Ever since she told us that Julliard didn't have a Musical Theater department, we've been solely focused on NYADA. Don't you think we should have applied to other schools, just in case?"
Kurt stepped to the side of the hallway where it was less crowded and turned to look at her, "I suppose we have been thinking of just NYADA, but it's too late. Applications were due by the end of 2011," he admitted, "what are you thinking of as another school?"
"Well, I did some research online and I found this school," she pulled the piece of paper out of the binder she was holding, "it's called New York Film Academy(1). They offer one-year and two-year degrees in musical theater, and also have other degrees, too. I was looking at their list of alumni and I found a whole bunch I've seen on TV, in movies or in theater productions, so it seems like a legitimate school. I thought I'd give you that and let you look at it yourself. Their degrees, time wise, start in September or January, so if we didn't get into NYADA, we could still move to New York, find part-time jobs and get into school by January," she explained.
"Wow," Kurt glanced over what she showed him and liked what he saw, "this seems like a cool place. I'll definitely look into it, but I'm pretty sure we'll both get into NYADA," he added, slipping the paper into his bag.
"I am, too, but it doesn't hurt to have options," she admitted.
Kurt contemplated what she said, "yeah, you're right."
"So what did you want to talk to me about?" She wondered.
"Remember last week when Mercedes and I said that one of the members of Vocal Adrenaline came to us because he was huge fans of ours?" He asked and when Rachel nodded, he continued, "well he wanted to see what we thought about him going on stage for their Regionals, Saturday, as his alter-ego 'Unique', a woman. At first we told him it wasn't a good idea. Then Coach Sylvester talked us into telling him it was a good one, because she thought if he did, people might not like it and then Vocal Adrenaline would lose, which would basically give us a huge shot at winning at Nationals," Kurt took a deep breath and sighed, "we went along with her, but then didn't feel we should let him go on as Unique, so we went to talk him out of it, but Jesse stopped us before we got a chance to talk to him. He went on as Unique and Jesse was pissed, but VA ended up winning anyway. We were really surprised, but now it looks like we're competing against Jesse and Vocal Adrenaline at Nationals."
Rachel's eyes widened, "wow! He dressed as a woman? That's not seen around here often, but more power to him! He's gotta be himself and if that's who he wants to be, then he should be," she admitted, "and as soon as you guys said Jesse was their coach, I had a good feeling we would be competing against him," she said truthfully.
Kurt nodded, "yeah, I'm glad he was himself," he agreed, "and I guess the only way to be the best is to beat the best, so we'll see at Nationals just who is better."
"Exactly!" Rachel replied, "and we will beat them!"
...
Moving into Glee that day, they found out that Mercedes and Santana 'won' the previous week's competition and both came out of the office dressed in white polyester suits just like John Travolta wore in the movie. Will also had another surprise; enough suits for everyone to wear and he wanted them all to dance to 'Stayin' Alive' in the auditorium.
At first, no one was willing to, but after a little persuasion with the promise that he wouldn't bring up disco again, Will got the teens to change into their costumes and everyone moved to the auditorium. On stage, the band played the music and Will, Sue and a few others who knew some of the 'disco' steps, showed them how to dance and soon they were all singing along and dancing to the song.
Rachel missed Puck being there and several of the teens made comments about it not being the same without him there, or his comments about hating disco. Rachel explained why he wasn't there and everyone felt bad, but hoped his grandma was okay and Will suggested she take Puck's suit to him, just to see what he said. The others thought it was a great idea, so Rachel agreed to take it after school and get pictures of him wearing it.
As promised, when the school day ended, Rachel got her things, picked up her and Puck's suits from Will's office in the choir room and headed out to her car. She'd messaged Puck that afternoon and asked if she could stop over and he said he'd be home by then, so she could. It didn't take too long to arrive at his place, so she got his plastic wrapped suit from her trunk and headed up to the front door, knocking as she reached it.
When he answered the door, she grinned, "hey, Noah. I have something for you," she held out the suit, "each of us got one."
"What the hell is that?" Puck asked, reaching for the item and looking at it.
"It's a replica of the suit that John Travolta wore in Saturday Night Fever," she explained, "we all wore them today and danced to Stayin' Alive. I know you're not a huge fan of disco, but would you at least put this on so I can get pictures and then you can take it off?" She asked curiously.
Puck raised a curious eyebrow at her, "oh hell no! I'm not getting into that thing!" He shook his head and held it out to her, trying to hand it back, "not a chance!"
"Oh come on, Noah! It's not going to hurt you. Please? For me?" She stepped closer and reached out, grabbing his shirt and tugging him toward her, "please? I'll even put mine on if that will change your mind," she added, batting her eyes and purposely sticking out her lower lip a little.
"Don't do the lip and eyes," he murmured, having a hard time saying 'no' to her when she was looking at him like that and begging. "You're not gonna give up until I do, are you?"
"Nope," she shook her head and stood up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his lips, "please?"
"Fine," he sighed, "but only if you put yours on, too."
"Great! I'll go get it!" She turned around and skipped out of the open door and went back to her car.
Glaring at the suit hanging from a hanger on his hand, he sighed again, "I should have known I wasn't gonna get out of the rest of disco week," he muttered, glancing up to see her returning with a smaller version of his suit, "the things I do for you, babe."
Rachel grinned brightly, stepping closer to him when she walked inside, "I appreciate it and this isn't just for me. Consider it team unity," she added, leaning up and pressing a kiss to his lips.
"Alright, fine, the things I do for 'team unity'," he smirked, slipping his arm around her waist and kissing her again, this time, letting his tongue brush gently along her lips, "then maybe afterward we can work on another type of unity?"
She couldn't help the blush that grew on her cheeks at his words, and though they were a new 'couple', they had been together before, so being close to him wasn't scary for her; she trusted him, but just wasn't ready to go 'all the way' yet. Gathering her thoughts, she smiled up at him and winked, "maybe I'll let us get to second base."
Puck couldn't help licking his lips, at the thoughts he was having and smiled, "if you're ready, I'm definitely up for it."
...
Lyrics used: 'How Deep is Your Love' by the Bee Gees. Song is on the soundtrack for Saturday Night Fever and even though I didn't like Rachel singing the song to Finn in the show, I definitely loved hearing Lea sing it.
1. New York Film Academy - ( nyfa . edu )
According to their list of alumni, Chord Overstreet is an acting grad and Naya Rivera is screenwriting grad.
...
A/N3: Another episode down. Hope you all enjoyed! Please review and let me know. I'm only getting a few per chapter and I totally appreciate each one I get, so I'm not gonna be one of those authors who begs for a certain amount of reviews before updating again, but I'm curious how you guys feel. Even if it's just a 'loved it!' comment, I'd be cool with that. At least so I know you still are enjoying it.
A/N4: I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that every part is gonna be a new episode from here on out. I thought I'd be able to get both 3x16 and 3x17 into here, but I wasn't able to (I limit myself to 20 pages per part in any of my fics), so I figured I'd just stick to one episode per part.
A/N5: On a more personal level, I'm having some abdominal pain and a lot of symptoms pointing to gallbladder problems. I'm going to the doctor in a few days to have it checked out and knowing from experience with friends who have had theirs out, my only real option to fix it is to have it removed. I guess the surgery isn't too bad these days, but it still freaks me out for so many reasons! I shouldn't go MIA for too long, but in case you don't see as many updates from me in the near future, that could be why. I may take a break on this fic to start working on some of my other WIPs, to let my readers on them know the same thing, because I know not everyone reads all of my WIPs. Anyway, just wanted to let you all know what's going on!
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