Okay, so I've been on a roll. Last chapter for the night. I'm loving the reviews! Thank you so much!
Disclaimer: I don't own a damn thing. Although - I do own Anna who we will meet at some point. :)
Rachel just finished cooking dinner when the doorbell rang. "I got it!" she yelled from the kitchen. Finn and Puck were still in the process of putting together her bed frame. In the last two hours, Rachel heard all types of obscenities coming out of the two men's mouth.
Opening the door, she greeted Quinn with a huge hug. "Quinny! I'm so happy you're here."
"I still feel so bad about earlier, Rach! I got you a little present." Quinn pulled out Rachel's favorite bottle of red wine.
"Aw Quinn...you didn't have to. Honestly, Finn practically jumped at the chance to take me to Ikea. Him and Puck are actually putting together my bed right now as we speak." Rachel smiled and Quinn laughed.
"I don't even want to know what you had to do to get those boys to do that...but good. I'm glad you were able to finally get some stuff for your room today." Quinn said as she followed Rachel into the kitchen.
Rachel took out two wine glasses and poured some of the wine Quinn bought for the two of them.
As the two girls chatted, Finn and Puck walked out of Rachel's room. "It's finally done!" Puck yelled out. "Hey Q!" He smiled, walking over to the pretty blonde giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"Ugh Noah, you're all sweaty" Quinn wiped his sweat off her cheek.
"Um have you ever put a bed frame together? Let alone IKEA furniture? It's like they don't actually want you to have furniture."
Finn laughed. "Dude, it wasn't that bad. Although Rachel I'm going to suggest buying your furniture fully assembled before it gets here..." He reached in the fridge and grabbed two beers and handed one to Puck.
"You guys are the absolute best. So chivalrous" Rachel smiled but kept her eyes on Finn. He smiled sheepishly. "Thanks...I think."
Puck watching the scene unfolding in front of him, rolled his eyes, but before he could respond, a key was heard unlocking the door to their apartment. The door opened to reveal Kurt and Blaine walking in.
"Dude you don't live here anymore. You can't just walk in whenever you feel like it without knocking!" Puck exclaimed.
"Whoops! Old habits I guess." Kurt responded, looking around the room. He raised his eyebrows seeing the table set with a fully cooked meal sitting ready to be served. "No one told me there would be dinner." Blaine walked in behind Kurt. "I told him not to use the key, but he wouldn't listen!"
"That's because you're early...I thought you were coming over at like 10. Rachel cooked us dinner." Finn smiled, responding to Kurt.
"Oh my God, you guys made her your maid, didn't you?" Kurt looked at Rachel. "Remember that you can leave anytime you want. They have no power over you!"
Rachel laughed. "No such thing! I was simply returning a favor after Finn and Puck helped me out in a dire situation. Who is this..." She looked at Blaine, waiting anxiously for Kurt to introduce her to him.
"Oh silly me! This is my boyfriend, Blaine. Blaine this is Rachel...she's Quinn's cousin." Kurt introduced the two.
Rachel quickly made her way to Blaine, shaking his hand furiously. "Finn said you were on Broadway. I've seen your show! You're a brilliant performer. I have a million questions for you!" Blaine smiled politely at the girl. "Thanks so much...I'd be happy to answer."
"Rach, how about we wait until after dinner for the questioning?" Quinn interjected.
"Of course...and hey, I've made enough food to have leftovers so you two can definitely join us for dinner!" Rachel smiled.
Finn and Puck took turns taking a shower as the rest of the group chatted in the living room. They were waiting for the guys to get ready before they had dinner. Quinn went to go check on Puck, giving Rachel a clear chance to ask Blaine all of her questions, which he didn't seem to mind at all. Kurt was quite surprised as he realize he and Rachel had so much in common. Quinn's cousin isn't so bad after all.
Quinn knocked softly on Puck's door, walking in after he told her to come in. Puck had on his jeans but was looking in his closet for a shirt to wear.
Quinn walked in, watching him amused. "Now how hard could it be for you to choose a shirt?"
"Hey hey! Aren't we going out after this? I just want to look good for the ladies." He gives her his killer smile.
She walked over to him and looked into his closet. "Now all this time I thought you were trying to look all nice for me." She smiled jokingly.
He laughed and wrapped his arms around his waist. "Well you won't have me so I'm just trying my other options." he responded, somewhat jokingly.
"Ohh no! Don't you try that Puckerman charm on me." Quinn laughed, unable to look him in his eyes, and unable to ignore the way his arms felt around her waist.
"Ah you mean it's finally working on you?" Puck lightly tickled her and Quinn giggled softly. She reached into his closet, pulled out a shirt from it's hanger and handed it to him. "Wear this." She handed him a dark grey button down shirt.
He let go of her reluctantly and put the shirt in. "How do I look?" He asked, turning towards the mirror to check himself out. "Oh yeah, the Puckmeister is ready to rock and roll!"
Quinn rolled her eyes playfully. "You look good...the ladies are going to love you tonight. Now come on, dinner is getting cold. I left Blaine and Kurt alone with Rachel...I'm pretty sure she's talking their ear off. We should save them." She grabbed his hand and pulled him out him of his room.
Dinner went off without a hitch. Rachel spent the time learning more about her roommates through stories told by Quinn, Kurt, and Blaine. They all seemed like a close bunch, and Rachel was happy to be accepted by them. Making friends hasn't always been the easiest thing for her. Back in Geneva, Quinn had always been the pretty, popular cheerleader in high school. Rachel didn't have quite the same experience, but her cousin always looked out for her. She looked out for her back home, and now even here in New York. Rachel smiled to herself, thinking she definitely had to get something for Quinn to show her how much she appreciated her friendship and love.
After dinner, the group went out to a local bar not too far from the house. It's apparently a bar they frequented quite often. Sitting at a table, Puck ordered a round of drinks for the group.
"So Finn - what's your conquest going to be tonight?" Puck said, taking a swig of his beer. Finn shifted uncomfortably as he answered, "What are you talkin' about man? I'm just here to have a drink." He could feel Rachel looking at him. He definitely didn't want her thinking he was some sort of man whore.
Puck raised his eyebrow and exchanged looks with Kurt, but let it go. Finn was usually the one to start the conversation about which girl in the bar he'd take home for the night. All of a sudden, he was here for a drink? Yeah, okay.
The bar drew more crowded as the night went on, and soon Quinn, Puck, Blaine and Kurt were on the dance floor, while Rachel went to get another drink at the bar. She was definitely going to need to be drunker if she was going to start dancing.
Finn just came out of the bathroom, seeing his friends on the dance floor, and Rachel at the bar. He walked over to the bar next to her. "Having fun?" he nudged her lightly.
Rachel looked up at him and smiled. "Yeah! This place is great. The music is pretty good too."
"Yeah. We come here pretty often because of the cheap drinks and good music. What are you drinking? Let me get you your next drink." Finn waved the bartender over, something Rachel was having trouble doing. You really couldn't miss a 6'3 guy trying to get a drink.
"Oh thanks Finn! It's just a gin and tonic." Finn ordered her drink and a beer for himself. He handed her her drink and they both sipped their drinks silently.
"You know if you were looking to hook up with someone, please don't feel like I'm going to judge you..." she broke the silence, looking at him. Surprised at her comment, Finn responded "I didn't think you would. I'm just uh, not looking to really hook up tonight." He took another swig of his drink.
"How long have you been single then?" Rachel asked, suddenly getting quite the liquid coverage to ask the questions she's been thinking in her head since she met him.
Finn shrugged. "I've dated girls on and off. I can't say I've ever been in a really serious relationship. Although I did let this girl back in Ohio color in my coloring book in the 3rd grade. Now that is some serious stuff. Her name was Betty Sue...I'll never forget her." Finn jokingly responded, as Rachel laughed, playfully hitting his arm. "You're so silly." He smiled and moved slightly closer to Rachel, as more folks tried to get into the bar to order a drink. "What about you? I can imagine your boyfriend probably wouldn't be happy with the idea of you living with two single guys."
"I suppose he would if I had one..." Rachel laughed. "I broke up with my boyfriend before moving to New York. He wasn't looking to get out of a small town...but I knew I didn't belong there. I knew it wouldn't work out, so I thought it would be best to just end things."
Finn took note that she really didn't look that sad about her breakup. Feeling the conversation getting a little bit on the deep side, he ordered two shots and handed her one.
"Finn! What is this!"
"Hey, it's your first night out in New York City. Forget about back home. You're in the greatest city in the world." He held his shot up to hers. They touched glasses and knocked the shots down.
"Ugh that was so gross..." Rachel made a face. "Let's do another one!" She smiled and waved the bartender down.
Two shots later, Rachel Berry was on the verge of being drunk. "We should dance, Finn! This is my favorite song!"
"You're quite the lightweight aren't you..." Finn laughed, also feeling the effects of alcohol. She grabbed his hand and walked over to the dance floor where the rest of their friends were.
Kurt was shimmying himself in a circle around Blaine, as Quinn danced with her back to Puck, his hands around her waist.
"Rach, I should really warn you...I'm not a great dancer.." Finn told her. "Then just follow me...I'll lead!" Rachel smiled at him, putting her arms around his neck. Finn placed his hands on her hips and followed along to the rhythmic beat. She was so close to him, he could literally smell her. She smelled like...strawberries. Getting the hang of it, he tightened his hold on her hips pulling her closer into him. Rachel continued to dance closer into him, her hips grinding into his.
While Rachel and Finn were in a world of their own, their movements did not go unnoticed by the rest of the group, especially Puck. Luckily Quinn was way too drunk to even realize anything was happening between Finn and Rachel. Puck made a note to himself that he's going to have to have another chat with Finn about Rachel.
"I want pizza!" Kurt yelled out as he stumbled out the bar, as they exited the bar around 4 am. "Oh my God yes...with pepperoni" Blaine agreed with him, putting his arm around Kurt's waist to keep him steady.
"Ugh I have to head home. I need to be up super early to take Anna to ballet practice." Quinn said. Puck nodded and started walking to the street letting her know he'd grab her a cab.
Rachel walked out of the bar, with Finn closely behind her. "Rach, I'll call you tomorrow." Quinn hugged her and said her goodbyes to Finn, Kurt and Blaine, and walked over to Puck.
He hailed a cab and held the door open for her. "Get home safely. Text me when you get home." He kissed her forehead.
"I will." She got into the cab and Puck closed the door behind her and waited as the driver pulled off. Puck walked back to the group as they all walked to get some pizza and then head home, thoughts of Quinn swirling in his head. She was way more touchier with him tonight than she's been in awhile. Come to think of it, she really didn't let him out of her sights the whole night. Not that he minded.
Finn, Rachel, and Puck got back to their apartment by 5 am. Puck quickly went to his room, ready to knock out. As Rachel walks towards her room, Finn call her name softly. She turns around and sees him walking towards her. His room is on the other side of the apartment compared to hers. Her heart starts beating just a little bit faster. "Yes?" she says, looking up at him.
"I had fun tonight." He says, looking back down at her.
"Me too..." she blushed slightly. "You're quite the dancer, Finn Hudson."
Finn chuckled. "So are you."
They stayed quiet for a second, before Rachel moves in closer to him. "Am I anything like the girls you normally bring home?"
Finn licked his lips lightly, shaking his head and he moved in closer to her. "You're the prettiest girl I've ever seen, Rachel." With that, he leaned down, closing the gap in between them, and kissed her feverishly on her lips.
Should they? Shouldn't they? Review and let me know!