Author's Note: Thanks so much for all the positive comments. I've never done anything like this, so I'm truly honored that anyone is enjoying this. I realize this is going kind of slow, but I couldn't agree more with the commenter who said that it doesn't make sense for them to have anything "instant".
Rachel felt his eyes on her as she walked away from him. She wanted to look back, but she was afraid he'd be laughing at her. She didn't think she could handle the idea of him laughing at her. "Why do I even care what Noah Puckerman thinks of me?" she asked herself. "He's a bully and two-bit jock who'll never make it out of this town." That thought comforted her for a moment, as she opened her locker to grab her sheet music for "Cabaret". She tried not to notice Finn and Quinn standing less than ten feet away from her, and tried even harder not to scream when Finn gave Quinn that adorable little half smile as he pulled her into a hug. A wave of pain washed over her, as she watched them surreptitiously through her locker mirror. She wanted to walk away, but she couldn't make her feet obey her brain. To make matters worse, Puck was closing in fast on the happy couple.
"Really Quinn?" he said, looking her up and down, "How much longer do think you can pull that outfit off? Cheerio uniforms weren't built for two, you know."
Try as she might, Rachel couldn't hold back the giggle that bubbled up in her throat. She saw Quinn's face crumple, and watched Finn glare at his best friend and then they both hurried down the hall, Finn's arm wrapped protectively around Quinn. Just then, Puck looked in her direction and their eyes met in the mirror. Rachel hadn't for meant for him to see her smile, but it all happened too fast. Immediately she felt guilty, she actually did feel bad bad for Quinn on some level, and what Puck had said was really uncalled for. She had every intention of telling him just that, as she turned toward him, but the look on his face knocked the breath right out of her. He was grinning at her. Well, maybe not grinning exactly, more like... leering at her. She pulled her arms tight across her chest in effort to cover herself, even though she knew full well she was completely clothed.
"Hmm..." he said, tilting his head to the side and peering around her. "Could you turn around again? The view's actually not bad from behind..."
She opened her mouth, but all she could manage to get out was an indignant gasp. She felt her cheeks burn hot with embarrassment and she twirled back to her open locker, hoping he'd just leave her alone. Instead, he leaned closer, and every nerve in her body seemed to fire at the same time. Her head felt fuzzy and his breath was hot on her ear as he purred in a low voice, "I'm not a nice guy, Berry." And with that, he sauntered away.
It felt like an eternity but eventually Rachel's heartbeat slowed and her eyes regained their focus. She closed her locker slowly and headed toward the auditorium, trying to make sense of what had just happened. She was so intent on her thoughts, she didn't even notice Finn as she walked past him. Nor did she realize she realize that she was humming the heartsick melody that had comforted her yesterday.