Disclaimer: I am just borrowing them for the fun of writing, BUT I do own the plot, ideas and original characters.
A/N: Thank you so much to my beta, Heather! (Bookgurrrl)
A/N2: This story is mostly AU after Mash-up (1x08), but with some of the topics discussed in the later episodes and music used, I may sneak in a conversation, cover the same topic, or use the same song, but I will put my own twist on it and may use some of the music.
A/N3: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D
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HUGS STORY! OMG 'Out of the Blue' is my first born and I've missed it so much! After I posted the previous chapter, I took some time away to write my Support Stacie Author Auction fic 'Became the Summer' and now that it's complete, it's back to my babies. While I had a blast writing 'Became the Summer', I sure missed my others. I had hoped I'd be able to write them all, but I chose to strictly focus on the auction fic and I'm glad I did because it's done and I feel very proud about how it came out. If you haven't read it, check it out; I'd love to hear what you all think.
...
After many long years apart, several years of emails and phone conversations and a five month engagement, Deborah and Ethan finally said 'I do' again, on what would have been their seventeenth wedding anniversary; had they stayed together.
No one knew, except Deborah, Ethan and Brianna, that Brianna gave them a two night stay at Castaway Bay, the hotel she worked at in Sandusky, starting the night of their wedding, so once the guests had finally gone and it was just their close friends and family that were helping out, the newlyweds told them they were leaving and would see them on Monday evening. Though everyone was shocked, Puck told them they needed some time alone.
It had been a long time since Deborah and Ethan had really been alone. After he and Deborah got engaged, he came to visit on the weekends, but she didn't get much time alone with him; Arin was around, or Puck and Rachel were around, and then when he had officially moved to Lima for good, it was hard to find time to be alone when you're living in a house with a ten-year-old girl, a seventeen-year-old boy, his sixteen-year-old girlfriend and their newborn daughter, so the parents found themselves using the few hours at night in their room before bed for time to be alone, so the weekend away after their wedding was a great gift.
Puck and Rachel took care of the house, Arin and Abby while they were away and things went well; the young couple saw that they could manage living in the house alone; even if their parents were living across the street.
Once Deborah and Ethan got back from their mini-honeymoon, they went back to focusing on the house and in less than a week, they got all the flooring and carpeting laid down; the only thing they needed to do now was move in.
It was decided that they would buy new furniture for the new house, letting Rachel and Puck keep their house as it was and then over time they could update the furniture with what they wanted, so while the guys were finishing up the flooring and installing the major appliances that they'd bought and couldn't install until the flooring went in, Deborah, Arin, Rachel, Abby, Quinn, Carole and Kurt went shopping for furniture.
By the end of July, Deborah and Ethan's bedroom was set up, along with Arin's room and the living room, so they took a break. Ethan would be going back to work on the first Monday in August and they reached their goal of having the house completed before he did, so now it was just a matter of moving belongings into those rooms and getting the rest of the furniture bought and set up, but they were taking their time; they gave themselves another goal of having Arin, Deborah and Ethan moved into their house by the end of the August, before the kids went back to school, so they had some time; especially since Rachel would be gone for a week with her dads in early-August, so they would focus their moving after they got back.
...
The first Sunday in August, also the first of the month, they threw Finn a big eighteenth birthday party; his birthday wasn't until the second, but since it fell on a Monday and most of the adults and some of the teens had to work, they chose to do it the day before, so along with his large extended family, the rest of the Glee Club, including Will and Emma, came over for to the Puckerman's for a big bar-b-q. Finn enjoyed his birthday; the last few years he'd celebrated mostly with his mom, Deborah, Puck and Arin, and then Quinn had been there, but this year was major compared to the past years.
The party ended around seven and Ethan got to bed early that night; he had to start work the next day, so he would be up at four-thirty in the morning. When his alarm did go off that morning, he and Deborah both got up, but she planned to go back to bed for a few hours. He emerged from their room, wearing almost the same uniform that he had in Detroit; the typical black SWAT uniform with slight differences for the Lima Police Department, instead of SRT in Detroit.
"Promise me you'll be careful," Deborah said softly leaning against the kitchen counter when he came in.
"I'm always careful," he promised, wrapping her up in a hug, "I've got a reason to come home," he assured her.
He ate breakfast and they talked until he had to leave, and she walked him outside, but stayed on the porch, "tell the kids I'll see them this afternoon," he said, "well, I'll see Noah tonight," he admitted, knowing Noah would be heading to work at the time he was getting home.
She nodded as she gave him a hug, "I'll tell them," she pressed a kiss to his lips, "see you later."
He wrapped her up in a tight hug as they kissed, the newness of their marriage still strong, "I'll be counting down the hours until I can see you again," he murmured, "got kind of spoiled these past few months being home all day."
"Me too," she admitted, not wanting to let go. "I love you," she told him.
He pressed his forehead against hers for a moment before kissing her lips, "I love you, too. See you this afternoon, babe."
Pulling away, he finally waved at her and headed out to his jeep and got in. Deborah waited until he was down the street before she went back inside, locking the door behind her and heading back to bed for a few hours of sleep; she knew this would take some getting used to and she hoped she did, because his job was dangerous and every day he went to work, scared her; even if Lima's crime rate wasn't as high as Detroit's, there were still things that went on that held dangers for law enforcement.
...
Abby woke Noah up about eight in the morning; she was finally starting to sleep through the night, but usually woke up between seven and eight, so it was hard to sleep-in anymore, but at least she wasn't waking them up several times a night, so that was an improvement. Pulling from Rachel's arms, Puck got up and padded towards the door, but midway there, he kicked something that wasn't normally there, "son of a bitch!" He hissed, reaching to flip on the light on to see what he'd kicked, glaring at the familiar suitcase sitting there. He pulled the door open a little harder than normal and went to get Abby and tried to ignore the pain in his foot as he changed her diaper and then went downstairs with her to get a bottle before returning to the bedroom to find his girlfriend sitting up, awake.
"I'm sorry about that," she whispered, "I thought I left it further away from the door so you wouldn't kick it."
He sat down on the bed and settled Abby in his arms and began to feed her, "I can't wait until we move into the master bedroom," he admitted, "so we have more room. Out of all the time we've been living in here, I can't believe that's the first time I kicked something."
"I'm usually pretty good about making sure our stuff is out of the way so that doesn't happen," she said softly, "are you mad at me?"
He stared at her, "no, I'm not mad at you," he assured her, "though that did hurt."
She shifted and pressed a kiss to his lips, "I am sorry about that, is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" She asked looking down at their daughter and then pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"You want to make it up to me?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, "you know, it does hurt still, I mean, it could be broken," he told her with a serious look in his eyes.
Rachel's eyes widened and she looked down towards the end of the bed, but his feet were covered up by the blanket, so she pulled them back and quickly moved to inspect his toe.
Noah looked at Abby with an 'I can't believe she thinks I'm serious look' and smirked, "hey baby," he wiggled his toes, "they're fine, but, while you're down there, I think I know a way you could make it up to me," he commented casually.
"Noah!" She gasped, a deep blush crossing her cheeks. "That's... I..."
He grinned, "what? You did ask if there was anything you could do to make it up to me," he replied. "And you are getting ready to leave for a week, so I'm going to be pretty lonely while you're gone," he added sadly.
Rachel had been avoiding that topic for a while; in less than two days she and her dads were leaving for New York for a week and as much as she was excited to be going; continuing their summer traditions, she was terrified to leave. She'd be leaving her boyfriend and their daughter for the first time and she wouldn't be gone just a night; she'd be gone a whole week, so as he said that, the emotions she'd bottled up finally surfaced and she began sobbing, "don't say things like that!"
His eyes widened as he looked at her; she'd just done a complete one-eighty and he was a little worried, "like what? What did I say?" He shifted a little, getting Abby on his shoulder so he could burp her, which also freed one of his hands, "babe, what's wrong?" He asked, taking her hand in his.
She took a deep breath and tried to calm down, but the tears kept coming and she couldn't stop crying.
Seeing that she wasn't talking and he had Abby, he squeezed her hand, "I'm gonna go put Abby down and then we're gonna talk, okay?" He asked. She nodded at him and shifted to stare at the window, her feet hanging over the edge of the bed now.
Getting up, he glanced at her and saw her shoulders shaking and he knew she was really upset about something and then it dawned on him as he was walking into the nursery to lay Abby down; she was scared to leave them. Moving back into their room he got back into bed and reached for her, "come here, babe," he said holding out his hand to her.
Rachel took his hand and slid back into bed with him and then pulled the blankets up and over them, "I'm so sorry, but I'm... I don't know... I don't think I can handle leaving," she whimpered as she wrapped her arms around him.
"You'll be just fine," he whispered, "you want to go," he told her.
"I know I do, but how can I... How can I go and enjoy anything if all I'll be doing is thinking about you and Abby?" She sobbed, burying her head against his chest.
"Of course you're going to be thinking about us, we're your family, but so are your dads and Abby and I will be fine. I'm going to miss you like crazy, but you'll only be gone for a week and you don't need to worry about Abby, because she will be taken care of," he assured her.
"But what if-"
"What if nothing," he said firmly, sinking down in bed so he could look her in her eyes, "Rachel, you and your dads are going for a little father-daughter vacation for a week. You're going to miss us as much as we'll miss you, but you're going to have fun and enjoy your trip. You need this break to relax. You've taken on a lot in the past few months and there has been a lot going on, so please, baby, don't get upset about this trip. I promise you, we'll be fine and so will you and when you leave, a week later you'll be back in my arms like you never left," he promised her, pulling her against him and kissing her gently.
Rachel let out a shaky breath as they pulled from their kiss, her arms still tight around him. She'd been doing her best to tell herself the same thing her boyfriend had just told her, but as the date got closer to her actually leaving, the nerves and worries grew stronger. This was the breakdown she'd been trying to avoid, but his words seemed to calm her down and she slowly relaxed again, believing he was right; realizing she just needed the reassurance of what she already knew.
He knew she was soaking in what he said and chose to let her be the next one to talk, so he gently rubbed her back and kissed her forehead, her cheeks and her lips, already noticing that the tears had stopped and she had calmed down a lot.
"I'm sure I just ruined the mood," she muttered, needing him closer to her than she had.
He gently pressed her back into the mattress, hovering over her and nipping along her neck, before responding, "you tell me, babe," he whispered, knowing she'd feel him, "I think it's safe to say you didn't," he assured her.
Rachel wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him against her, kissing him, "I'm going to miss you so much," she whispered.
"I'm going to miss you, too, Rachel, it's not going to be the same without you here, but it'll only be for a week and when you get home," he paused, kissing her gently, "how about we really do go away for a weekend," he suggested, "just you and me and a couple of days in a hotel room."
She smiled, "I'd like that, but what are we going to do?" She asked softly.
Puck noticed the twinkle in her eye and he pressed a kiss to her lips, "I'll give you a little demonstration," he murmured.
...
When the couple emerged from their bedroom, Rachel went to get Abby, while Puck headed downstairs to find food for them. Walking into the kitchen, he found his mom sitting reading the morning newspaper with coffee, "hey, you just getting up?" He asked.
"For the second time," Deborah responded, "I got up with your dad, but went back to bed and woke up to you cussing," she admitted.
He blushed, "sorry about that. I stubbed my toe on Rachel's suitcase," he responded. "How are you doing?" He asked curiously.
Deborah shrugged, "I'm fine, Noah," she got up and pressed a kiss to his cheek before moving across the kitchen to get more coffee, "just nervous."
He raised an eyebrow at her, "nervous about what? I was teasing you to see if you've had any morning sickness, yet."
"Noah!" She laughed a little, "I'm not pregnant."
He smirked, "well, that you know of," he commented.
Rachel entered the kitchen with Abby in her arms and Arin right behind her, "Noah, stop teasing mom about that. If she gets pregnant I'm sure she wouldn't hide it from us, but that doesn't mean you need to be on her about it all the time," she said honestly.
"Thank you, Rachel," Deborah smiled at her and then looked at her son, "I wouldn't hide it from you guys, but I'm nervous because this was your dad's first day of work," she explained.
"Oh," Noah plopped down at the table with a coffee cup, "it's nothing he hasn't done before."
"Right, but this is the first time I've been here to watch him leave. Before when he was still in Detroit, I wasn't there every morning, watching him get ready to leave and wondering if he's-"
"Don't finish that sentence," Puck said getting up and moving to his mom, resting his hands on her shoulders, "mom, he's going to be fine, don't worry about that. That's no way to live if all you're going to be doing is worrying about 'what if' scenarios," he said truthfully.
Deborah nodded, "I know, but I can't help it. It's a dangerous profession, which I think is why he never said anything to me about his job when we first started talking and then just never did, until we found out in December. He even managed to hide it when he came down when you were in the hos-" Her hand flew to her mouth and she stopped mid-sentence, her eyes wide in shock.
"Please finish that sentence," he said curiously, crossing his arms over his chest, wondering what she had slipped on, but he thought he knew.
"...When you were in the hospital in October," she said softly.
"What? He was here?" Puck asked staring at her. "Why didn't you say anything? All this time and you kept that secret, how?"
Deborah moved back to the table and sat down, taking a deep breath. "We were never going to tell you at least not then. When we got to the hospital and you were rushed into surgery, I called him before Will got Rachel and Arin up there. He said to keep him posted and he'd be on his way as soon as he could. I knew you'd be in the ICU for a few days, so when you got out of surgery and I got to see you in recovery before they moved you to ICU and before I came back to everyone, I called him and told him the news, he was already on his way down. He got there sometime after we left and from the time he got there until Monday morning, he was in your room with you, even if you didn't know it. We talked about telling you guys, but we agreed that it wasn't the right time. I could have gotten Rachel or Arin into ICU, but with him there, we thought it best not to do that, so I didn't. This gave me a chance to process and deal with what happened and it also gave us some time to talk in person," she admitted, remembering those conversations, "that accident didn't just bring you two closer," she looked at Rachel and Puck, "it brought Ethan and I closer together again, too. I think that's what kick started everything," she admitted softly. "When you and Ethan began to talk and your relationship began to grow, your dad wanted to tell you, but he didn't know how to bring it up, so we just kind of figured we'd never tell you and Brad had promised not to say anything."
Puck blinked his eyes at his mom's explanation and sat down in a chair, stunned, processing that large chunk of information, "why... why wasn't he there when I woke up?"
Deborah took a deep breath, "Monday morning they started talking about moving you out of ICU because you were doing well and Brad expected you to wake up in the next few days, so we knew that Rachel would want to visit and Arin and others, and we felt that it wasn't the time for him to be meeting everyone. He didn't want to leave, but Brad, your dad and I talked and we agreed that when you woke up, if he was there, it could do more harm than good; you two hadn't spoken for ten years and you still hated him, so that would be an even bigger stress on you. When they moved you up to a regular room, we promised each other we'd figure out how to get back together and he went back to Detroit."
Rachel was leaning against the counter across the kitchen from them and she saw her boyfriend's eyes flash several emotions from shock and anger, fire, hurt, but then they softened as he thought about everything.
"You know in all the TV shows and movies, when they say if someone is in a coma they still can hear you? Well, it's the truth, because I heard him talking to me. I didn't know it was him at the time, but within seconds I knew it was him calling my phone back in December and there is no way I could have picked up on that so quickly without hearing his voice recently," he explained, "everything makes so much more sense now," he admitted rubbing his hands over his face. "Why were you never going to tell me?" He asked a little hurt.
"At the time you wouldn't have wanted to hear it and then as you two started talking and your relationship grew, you began to forgive him, it never come up. It's not easy to see one of your kids laying in a hospital bed, let alone you being unconscious with the injuries you had," she admitted, "and it's also not easy to talk about it, so we figured we wouldn't tell you and I just blew that," she finished with a sigh, wondering if he would be upset.
"Wow," he muttered, trying to figure out just what to say. "You're right, at the time I would have been pissed, but now... I wondered when he found out about me getting hurt," he said softly, "and honestly, it doesn't change anything except makes me love him more for knowing that he did come," he looked at his mom and smiled, "I'm glad you slipped up."
Deborah exhaled a worried breath and nodded, "that's good to hear. I was worried you'd be upset we didn't say anything," she admitted.
"I am a little, but I get why it never came up so I can deal. The fact that he came down here even when he knew I hated him means more than anything," he replied, getting up and moving to his mom, hugging her, "don't beat yourself up because you told us," he added.
As he hugged her, she stood up and nodded, "I won't," she assured him, "and you should be the one to tell dad," she said kissing his forehead before moving over to the fridge.
"I'll tell him," he nodded moving over to hug his sister and his girlfriend before taking Abby from Rachel so he could take care of her while Rachel helped Deborah with breakfast.
...
After an interesting conversation that morning, Rachel helped Deborah with breakfast, and the four sat and chatted lightly over the meal before getting on with their day. Rachel really needed to pack, but needed to pick some things up at the store, so Deborah offered to watch Abby while Puck and Rachel headed to the local Wal-Mart to get what she needed and when they got back, they headed for their room. He plopped down on the bed and cracked open his study guide for the test he needed to take and Rachel set her suitcases on the bed and began to pack.
"I'm surprised you waited this late to pack," he commented, glancing up as she was staring at their closet.
"I would think after this morning, you'd know why," she said grabbing a few tops from her part of the closet and moving to fold them up and lay the in the larger suitcase.
"You were seriously thinking of not going? I mean I figured you'd get upset, but you gave them the trip, so I didn't think you'd back out," he said truthfully, sitting up a little.
"No," she sighed, "I don't know," she laid the shirt in her hand down in the suitcase and looked at him, "I do want to go; it's been a tradition for years, at the time I gave it to them, I was sure we'd still go, but as it got closer and I needed to pack, I started to worry about things and I wasn't sure I'd be able to go. Thank you for this morning; for telling me things would be okay; I knew they would be, but I think... I think I needed someone else to tell me it would be before I could start to believe it," she admitted.
"You're welcome," he nodded at her holding out his hand to her. She took it and he guided her around to the side of the bed he was on and once she was close, he gently pulled her down for a kiss.
As their lips met, her hands moved to rest against his cheeks and when they pulled away, she smiled, "I love you," she murmured.
"I love you, too," he replied shifting so she was now standing between his legs, his hands resting on her hips, "so don't forget to bring me back a t-shirt," he smirked.
"Noah!" She giggled, swatting him playfully, "for that I shouldn't bring you back anything," she commented crossing her arms over her chest in a huff.
"Even if you did come back empty handed, I'd still know of one thing you'd bring home that I would enjoy," he wiggled his eyebrows, "so don't miss your flight home," he added with a grin.
She leaned down and kissed him lovingly, "I wouldn't dream of it," she whispered, her hands trailing down to his shoulders and then to his upper arms, where they squeezed his toned muscles, "because I'm definitely going to miss you and your lovely guns."
He flexed his muscles and grinned at her shocked expression, "you like? Because there's plenty more where that came from," he assured her.
Her eyes flicked to the clock and saw what time it is, "we don't have time or I'd take you up on that offer. I guess we'll have to hold off until you get home from work tonight and I can give you a massage," she pressed a kiss to his lips before reluctantly stepping away.
Shifting back on the bed, he nodded, "I'm holding you to that, Ms. Berry," he smirked and went back to reading.
Rachel continued to move around the room; collecting clothes to pack. Getting to a few things, she debated on a blue item or a pink one and turned around, "Noah, which one should I take? The blue one or the pink one?" She asked holding them both up.
He'd been reading through his book and at her question, he didn't look up, "you look great in blue," he replied flipping to the next page.
"Are you even looking?" She asked noticing he hadn't even looked up.
"Huh? What?" He looked up this time and saw what she had in her hands; a blue silk chemise and a pink cami top. His eyes widened and quickly marked his place in his book before getting up and crossing the room, taking both out of her hands, "what the hell do you need with these, in New York, when your dads are in the other room and you're sleeping alone?" He asked quickly putting them back into her drawer.
Rachel put her hands on her hips, "Noah, it's hot in New York this time of year; what am I supposed to sleep in? Nothing?" She asked curiously, biting back a laugh; she knew it would rile him up.
He moved over to the closet and grabbed one of his baggy t-shirts and tossed it to her, "so at least if I'm not with you, you'll think I am," he said seriously.
She held the shirt in her hands for a moment before folding it up and laying it into her suitcase, "you're always with me," she held up her left hand to show him the ring she wore, "and your shirts are more comfortable than my things are," she grinned.
"Were you planning that the whole time?" He asked sitting back on the bed.
"Maybe," she winked at him, "I knew you wouldn't like my choices, since we'd be apart, and I had planned all along to sleep in one of your shirts, but you saved me from having to pick which one," she admitted.
"Sneaky, but now I have all these wonderful images of you sleeping in my shirt," he commented, opening his book again to try and finish the section he was on before he had to get ready for work.
Rachel watched him for a moment as she continued to pack, "Noah, can I ask you something?"
He looked up, "sure, what's up?"
"How come you didn't tell me you had an appointment with the recruiter, but you told dad?" She asked softly.
"You're asking because I didn't tell you until the night before and it's a big deal that we, as a family, need to talk about, right?"
"Yes, I mean, it is a big deal that you can't hide and while you did tell your dad, you didn't tell me and here I'm supposed to be supporting you and I didn't even know," she said truthfully.
Closing his book he stood up and went over to her, resting his hands on shoulders, "I never meant to keep this from you, but you and mom weren't home when I got the email back from the recruiter about the appointment time and dad was home so I told him. After that it just kind of slipped my mind with what was going on that weekend until Nate called. It also," he looked down, "it was kind of nice to share something with dad; to talk to him about it. I've talked to him a lot about the Navy and being a cop, I mean, he is one. For the first time in a very long time, I have my dad to talk to about this stuff and I knew this meeting wouldn't be anything more than what it was, so there was nothing we needed to 'discuss'. When I start going more and take the test and all that, sure, you'll be the first one I tell, but right now there is nothing going on except me talking to him about it," he explained. "The last few times we've talked about me joining, we've had some pretty heated discussions about it and I didn't want to bring you down, since you were in the middle of planning the reception and all that, so I'm sorry that I didn't tell you until the last minute," he added, noticing a slight hurt look in her eyes.
She looked up at him, her hands wrapping around his wrists until he moved his hands from her shoulders so she could hold his hands, "I'll admit I was hurt when you told us the night before, yet your dad knew before us, but now that you explain, I do understand. Your dad is back in your life and you can talk to him about things like this, so it makes sense, and I never thought about it that way. I think what really bothered me the most wasn't that he knew; it was that here we're talking about our lives together, our daughter, being a family and then you don't tell me; this isn't like buying a new car, it's a big decision that we, as a family, need to be able to talk about, and I don't just mean you and I, our family is our parents and your sister, and our close friends and the family you have close by," she said softly, "please tell me you get that."
"I do baby, I totally get that," he said pressing a kiss to her forehead, "I know this is a big decision our family has to make and we will; you and Abby are the start of our family and yes, our parents and my sister, and some of our close friends, need to be part of those discussions, too, but this is only the very beginning and we have time to talk about it. I promise you, I won't keep anything from you."
Rachel nodded slipped her arms around his waist, "good to know," she murmured, relaxing against him; glad she had asked him, because now she felt better about why he didn't say anything right away. "I love you, Noah."
Puck wrapped his arms around her, holding her close, "I love you, too, Rachel," he replied kissing the top of her head as they stood in the middle of the room.
...
After Rachel and Puck's talk, she got back to packing and he went back to his book until two-thirty rolled around. He didn't have to be at Burt's until three-thirty, but started to get ready, then he sent a text message to his dad. He knew that Ethan got off at three, and didn't want to bother him at work, but he didn't want to wait until that night to talk to Ethan about what his mom had slipped up on that morning.
Ethan wasn't quite sure why his son wanted to talk to him that day, but obviously it was important enough that it couldn't wait, so he told him where to meet him at three and as Ethan leaned against his SUV, he saw his son's jeep pull into the parking lot of LPD and pull in next to him, "hey kid, what's up?" Ethan asked curiously.
Puck moved around to his dad and smiled, "so mom said something interesting this morning, on accident," he started.
Looking at him for a moment, he raised an eyebrow, "what did she say?"
"That about nine-and-a-half months ago you came to visit," he said with a grin.
Ethan thought through the calendar and his eyes widened, "she told you? What did you... Uh," he rubbed his neck nervously, "you're not mad?"
"Hell no, why would I be?" He asked, "I always wondered when you found out, because I knew you knew, I just didn't know you'd come down. It makes more sense now," he admitted. "I knew someone was talking to me that wasn't mom and then in December, I knew it was you who called me and I wouldn't have really guessed so quickly unless I'd heard your voice recently," he explained. "It also means a lot, knowing that you came down, even if at the time you knew I, um, uh, hated you," he added truthfully.
Nodding, Ethan looked at him, "there was no doubt I'd come down; I left the office and went home long enough change and grab some stuff for the weekend. Whether you hated me or not, you're still my son and I wanted to be there," he told him honestly.
"I know, and this makes me love you even more," Puck admitted.
"I love you, too, son," Ethan replied wrapping his arms around his son.
Puck hugged his dad, and as they pulled away he looked at him, "um, I'm sure Alan and David are coming over for dinner, but can you make sure they're there when I get home? I want to talk to you guys," he said.
Ethan eyed him, "everything alright?" He asked concerned.
"Yeah, just have something I want to talk to you all about and it's easier to do it all at once," he said.
"Okay, I'll make sure they stick around. Does Rachel know?"
"Know what I want to talk to you all about? No," he shook his head, "and after the conversation we had this afternoon, I'm telling everyone at once and not sharing. She was a little hurt that you knew about me going to the recruiter and I didn't tell her until the night before, so we talked about it and to avoid that again, everyone is going to hear what I have to say, at the same time."
Ethan smirked, "I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so," he laughed.
"I know you did," Puck chuckled, glancing at his watch, "crap, I gotta go, but I'll see you tonight," he told him.
"Alright, see ya then," Ethan nodded at him. "And don't speed!"
Puck walked around his jeep and smirked as he slid into the driver's seat. Starting the engine, he waved at his dad and backed out of the parking spot and headed out of the lot with just enough time to get to the garage before he was late.
...
Walking into the door of the shop with two minutes to spare, Puck quickly got to work once he clocked on and after numerous oil changes, tire changes, break inspections and other things, Puck finally clocked out and went home, pulling up at the house about eight-thirty that night. David's SUV was parked along the street, so he knew they were still there. Going inside, he took his boots off once he was inside and went upstairs to shuck off his dirty clothes and hopped into the shower long enough to wash off the oil and grease residue, then dressed in clean clothes and headed to the kitchen, meeting his girlfriend and daughter in there, "hey babe," he said moving right over to her and wrapping his arms around her, "and baby," he added kissing his girlfriend's lips and then pressing a kiss to Abby's forehead.
Rachel gasped at first, unaware that he was home. "Noah! I didn't know you were home yet," she said admitted relaxing in his arms.
"You guys were all outside, so I figured I'd shower before I came out," he explained looking down at her, "so where are you going?"
"I was going to go put Abby down for the night," she replied. "She's had her bath and been fed and changed, so just time for bed."
"I'll take her," he carefully took Abby from her and settled her together, "haven't seen her for hours," he whispered.
Rachel nodded, familiar with this routine. "I'll warm up dinner for you," she told him.
"Thanks beautiful," he pressed a loving kiss to her lips, before stepping away and headed back upstairs.
Stepping into the nursery, Puck took his time changing her into her pajamas and playing with her as he did; he could tell she was tired, but she never refused to play when dad was around. Usually the nights when he worked, he'd get home about the time she was going to sleep or had just gone to sleep. He hated the nights when he'd come home and she was already asleep, but the nights she was still awake, he'd take care of getting her into bed so he had those few minutes of bonding with her.
With a kiss goodnight, he laid her in her crib and turned on her mobile, waiting a few moments as she focused on the light music playing before he stepped out with the baby monitor in his hand and headed back downstairs to find everyone in the dining room; his sister waving at him and passing him to go into the living room. He smirked, "I take it the mosquitoes won?" He asked with a laugh.
"Yes, and it's getting darker out," Rachel admitted, coming from the kitchen with a plate from dinner for him.
"Thanks babe," he said taking the plate and sitting down at the table.
Rachel sat down next to him and before he could get the first bite into his mouth, she looked at him, "what did you want to talk about?"
He smirked, "let me guess. Dad said I met him before I went to work and asked him to make sure Alan and David stuck around so I could talk to you all and you're dying to know why?" He asked with a grin.
"Yes, considering you didn't say anything this afternoon about it, so what's going on?"
"Truthfully, I didn't really think about it until I was on my way to work, so dad was the first person I saw after I thought of it, anyway, I wanted to talk about work, actually," he said.
"What work? At the garage?" Deborah asked from her spot at the table.
"Yes," he nodded, "last year when I started working for Burt, I had gotten hurt, so I couldn't play basketball, and football was over, so aside from Glee after school two days a week, those were my days off and I could work the other five. In about two weeks football practice is starting again and in four weeks school starts. When school starts I'll have football practice and Glee Club after school every day during the week, so that isn't going to give me any time to work, except on the weekends, and I really don't want the only free time I have with my family to be taken up by work. I guess what I'm saying is I want to quit working at Burt's. If I tell him now, I can work until school starts, which gives him plenty of time to find someone to replace me. I really hate doing it, because he really helped me out when I needed a job, but I only have about ten months before I could be leaving and I want to spend as much of those months with my girlfriend, our daughter and our families. Rachel and I have a large portion of the money dad gave us still and it would cover us for at least a year; my medical is separate from work, so I'll still have that for Abby once I quit, and Rachel and I are still covered under our parents medical, so I guess what I wanted to talk about was what you guys thought of it and what are we going to be paying you guys for the house?" He asked looking at his parents.
"Nothing until you guys have both graduated," Ethan responded.
"What?" Rachel stared at them, "you can't be paying for two houses," she said.
"We're not paying mortgage payments on either one," Deborah said, "so other than utilities, cable and phone, we can manage paying them, which is our plan. You kids may be parents and be living here and Arin, Ethan and I will be living across the street, but you're still our children, and not even out of high school, so we don't expect you to pay rent or anything like that," Deborah said.
"And that's something we've all talked about," David explained.
"You make a valid point about work, and I think I speak for all of us when I say that it sounds like quitting Burt's is the best thing to do. Working two days a week, when it's your only break from school, is not going to give you any time with your family," Alan explained, "and as long as you've got money to take care of your expenses then do it."
Puck had heard from the parents in the room and they seemed fine with his choice, so his eyes turned to look at his girlfriend.
Rachel had listened to what he said and then as their parents spoke up, she relaxed more at the thoughts. She'd been concerned for a while about his job interfering with school and sports, knowing he'd be playing football and basketball and still be in Glee, and they had the funds to live for at least a year with the money Ethan had given them, but she didn't want to say anything, because she didn't want to sound selfish for suggesting he quit to spend more time with the family. Reaching over, she took his hand in hers and squeezed it, "I've thought of that for a while, but I didn't want to sound selfish for suggesting that, so I kept quiet about it. I'm alright with that, if that's what you want to do," she smiled at him and then turned to look at their parents, "and about the house; we can't live here free of charge. We should pay something," she told them.
"You wouldn't be living free of charge, but you wouldn't be paying us anything," Ethan explained, "you'd still have to buy groceries and the necessities to keep you guys going, so you'll be taking care of that. Your cell phones are still on our plans, but if you guys wanted to, you could take your numbers onto a new plan and pay that bill monthly, but it's up to you," he shrugged, "and there's no hurry on that."
"Wow," Puck muttered, looking at his girlfriend and then to their parents, "this went over better than I thought it would."
"You figured if you suggested quitting we'd have an issue?" Deborah asked,but she didn't need an answer, "when you first started working for Burt it was because you needed money to help Quinn with medical bills and you had the time after school to do it. Now you don't have either and you did get a large sum of money from your dad that you both have been very wise about dipping into, so had things worked out differently, we probably would have, but not this time. We get that and I think Burt is expecting you to quit, too, because he knows from Finn and Kurt what the practice schedule will be like for both football and Glee."
Puck nodded, "but it's still not going to be easy to talk to him about quitting," he admitted, "I feel bad putting him in a bind."
"He'll understand, Noah," Ethan assured him, "and with the economy the way it is, I'm sure there are a lot of people out there who really need the job, more than you do right now."
"Alright, I'll talk to him Wednesday. The sooner I tell him, the better," he replied, "oh and while you guys are gone I'm gonna take a practice test at the recruiters and before school starts I'll take the real one," he said.
"So soon?" Rachel exclaimed, "you've only been studying for a month! That's not enough time to really know what you're taking!"
Puck laughed, "that's why it's called a practice test, babe. I'll have an idea where I stand on it before I take the real one. If I get a low score, I've got time to study more and take another practice test before I take the real thing, but I'd like to do it all before school starts so I can be done with it," he explained, grinning at her immediate concern for studying.
The major discussion had ended, and while David and Alan would have normally stayed longer, they still had to finish packing before they left and were both working the next day, so they didn't have much time to finish, so they said 'goodnight' and headed home.
Arin was asleep on the couch, so Ethan scooped her up and carried her upstairs and the others followed him. Deborah took Arin's shoes off and Ethan laid her down on her bed, letting Deborah throw a blanket over her, knowing she'd probably wake up in a few hours to change into her pajamas and go back to sleep.
Her parents moved out into the hallway and all said 'goodnight' and shared hugs before they headed off into their respective bedrooms.
Once in their bedroom, Puck shut the door behind him and stripped down to his boxers, before kicking back on the bed, watching Rachel as she moved around the room. Soon she changed into a skimpy silk nightie and moved to his side of the bed, "roll onto your stomach," she smiled.
He narrowed his eyes in confusion for a moment, but rolled over, "I know I said I'd hold you to that massage, but you don't have to if you don't want to," he explained.
Rachel crawled on top of him, straddling his hips and leaned over, pressing a kiss to the base of his neck, "I want to, Noah, and I would love to feel your talented hands all over me after," she murmured.
He groaned deep in his throat as he nodded, "oh you got it. You know I love getting my hands on you," he grinned, wrapping his arms around a pillow as he relaxed, already feeling her hands massaging out knots.
This wasn't the first time she'd done this, and they both enjoyed it. Starting at his neck and shoulders and working her way down his back, her soft, petite hands expertly felt for the knots she knew were there and slowly worked them out. As her hands reached his waist, she removed them and heard him groan in complaint, but she tugged off her nightie and tossed it to the end of the bed and then slowly leaned forward pressing herself against his back, her hair falling around her face and brushing against him, "what was that about getting your hands on me?" She asked in a whisper, pressing a kiss to his neck.
He smiled and let go of the pillow, turning his head to press a kiss to her lips, "I love my hands on you," he murmured, "lay down and I'll show you," he promised.
Soon her massage turned into them making love. He helped her relax and for that moment, she forgot all about the emotions of the day and the butterflies she felt for the upcoming trip disappeared. He soaked in the feelings he was getting, knowing he'd miss her like crazy, but the welcome home would be great.
Coming down from their high, he sat up a little and pulled the blankets over them before wrapping his arms around her, "I love you," he murmured pressing a kiss against her lips.
She smiled contently as she snuggled against him, "I love you, too," she replied.
...
As Ethan left early in the morning, Deborah took a chance at seeing something she didn't want to see and opened up Rachel and Puck's bedroom door and slipped inside, taking the baby monitor, but as she did, it bumped the lamp and Noah woke to the noise. "Mom?"
"I'll take care of Abby, go back to sleep and sleep in if you want," she whispered.
He nodded sleepily and relaxed, falling back to sleep before she even got out the door.
...
Several hours later, Puck woke again, surprised to see it was almost ten in the morning and Abby hadn't woken them up yet, which is when he remembered his mom's visit that morning to get the baby monitor. Shifting in bed, he stared down at the brunette in his arms, and smiled at the relaxed and peaceful look she had on her face, studying her features to remember this moment, so every morning he woke up without her, he'd have that memory to tide him over until she got home.
Rachel stirred moments later and her eyes fluttered open, smiling when she saw him, "good morning, Noah."
"Good morning, beautiful," he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her lips, "moms taking care of Abby so we can sleep in," he whispered, wanting to explain why Abby hadn't woken them up, in case she got worried.
She nodded sleepily and remained against him, "can we just stay here for a while, then?"
"Of course," he murmured, his free hand brushing her hair back from her face.
...
Rachel, Alan and David were leaving Lima that night, but were staying in a hotel in Columbus and then flying out the next morning. David and Alan figured it would be easier on everyone if they drove to the airport and left their car there; the hotel they were staying in offered a deal that if they stayed in the hotel the night before their flight, they could leave their car in the hotel's parking lot for free, for as long as their trip lasted, so by doing this, it saved a family member from having to drive, alone, back from Columbus after dropping them off or to Columbus to pick them up.
Alan and David were both working that day, so they could take time off after their return from New York, so they weren't leaving until later in the evening, Puck asked for the night off, so he could be home to see them off, knowing Rachel would be upset, no matter how calm she tried to be.
...
The young couple remained in bed until ten-thirty, when they finally got up for the day. Rachel had finished packing the night before while Noah was at work, and aside from a few necessities that she added after using them that day, she set her bags by the front door and tried to go about the day without getting emotional.
They had lunch about noon and then Quinn and Finn came by around three; Burt and Carole were working, and Kurt had agreed to help his dad out at the shop, so Deborah had invited them over for dinner and Ethan arrived home about three-fifteen.
Without anything to do, the teens sat outside on the lawn furniture, talking, with Abby in her bouncer.
"So what are you going to do when you get to New York?" Quinn asked.
"We always go to a few shows and do the tourist thing," Rachel admitted, "Statue of Liberty, Broadway, oh and we didn't go last year, but we've been before and I think we'll go back this year to Saint Patrick's Cathedral."
"What's that?" Finn asked.
"The largest Catholic Cathedral in the United States," Ethan commented, having walked out onto the deck to start the grill, as they had been talking and heard everything.
Rachel nodded, motioning to Ethan, "what he said. It's also across from Rockefeller Center on Fifth Avenue and has some beautiful architecture," she explained.
"But you're Jewish," Finn said looking at her.
"Yes, but just because I don't share the same religion of that building doesn't mean I can't go to see it," she replied, turning to look at Ethan, "have you seen it before, dad?"
Ethan nodded, "yeah, but I was your age when I was there. Well, then and about eight, almost nine years ago, I went there for, um, well, it's nothing I want to talk about," he admitted.
Seeing him get a little uncomfortable, they didn't press him, so the teens continued their conversation, and Puck was happy to see that Rachel was able to talk about her past trips without getting upset, so he hoped that would continue, but when Alan and David got there just after five, she shut down; she stopped talking and over dinner she wouldn't let go of her boyfriend's hand.
As dinner came to an end, Finn and Quinn knew they'd be leaving soon, and wanted to give them some private time, so they said 'goodbye' to everyone and left the house.
Puck and Rachel moved into the living room with Abby, sitting together on the couch with their daughter for a bit before they left, with Arin just a few feet away.
"I hate doing this," David murmured from the kitchen doorway to Deborah who was closest.
Deborah nodded, "yeah, but this will be good for them," she admitted softly, "and if Noah decides to join the Navy, for sure, he's going to be gone a lot," she added sadly.
"I was thinking about that. If he leaves around July, about this time next year he could be graduating from boot camp," he commented, "I could have sworn that it was just Christmas that he mentioned he might join. Where did the time go?"
"Good question," Ethan agreed as he slipped his arm around Deborah's shoulders.
Alan slipped his arm around his husband, "pretty soon our kids will be graduating from high school; hard to believe it's almost here."
...
Rachel had Abby in her arms, holding her close as Puck sat with his arm draped around her shoulders, so she was leaning against him, "it's just a week, while I've been trying to tell myself it's just a short time, this week is gonna suck," he admitted.
"It is," she agreed, "but it is only a week. I... I haven't really thought much of this, but considering that you're joining the military, a week apart will be nothing compared to how long we could apart," she whispered.
He closed his eyes, nodding, silently keeping that detail in the back of his mind, but since she brought it up, he pressed a kiss to her forehead, before looking at her, "then let's make a pact right now," he said softly, "no matter where I am, we don't go any more than a month or two apart, okay? Even if only for a night or two, you come to wherever I am with or without Abby," he told her, "what do you say?"
Rachel pressed a kiss to his lips, "I say that's a pact to keep," she replied, kissing him one more time, "sealed with a kiss," she added with a smile, feeling a heavy weight lift off her shoulders, now knowing that they wouldn't go months apart, she could deal with a month or two; she would have school and Abby to keep her busy, but she would miss him terribly and this pact would at least give them some time, if only a night, to be together and to keep their relationship alive.
He pressed his forehead to hers and smiled, "sealed with a kiss," he agreed brushing his hand along her cheek, "I love you, Rachel."
"I love you, too, Noah," she responded, settling against him again, pressing a kiss to Abby's forehead.
Reluctantly, the parents came into the living room; it was almost seven and the sooner they got out of Lima the sooner they could get to their hotel in Columbus, "um, we hate to do this, but it's time to go," Alan said softly.
Rachel looked up at their parents and nodded sadly, "alright," she whispered. Standing up, she hugged Abby tightly and kissed her on her cheek, "mama loves you, Abigail. I'll miss you," she whispered to her before gently laying her down in her bouncer.
The adults had said their goodbyes to each other in the kitchen, so as Rachel settled Abby down, Arin and Puck got up and went to hug David and Alan before the two dads each grabbed one of Rachel's suitcases, "we'll take these out to the car and meet you out there," David said nodding at Puck, Ethan and Deborah.
Stepping over to her family, Rachel hugged Arin, Deborah and Ethan, and the three Puckermans stepped into the living room to give Puck and Rachel a few minutes.
Puck picked up Rachel's final bag and motioned to the open door. She silently stepped out on the porch and he followed her, slipping his arm around her shoulders as he walked her to the car.
Rachel took a deep breath, "don't forget when you bathe Abby that she still doesn't like a lot of water on her face, so you'll have to wash her face with a wash cloth, and don't get the water too warm. When you put her in her crib, make sure you turn on her mobile, it will help her get to sleep easier, and-"
Stopping by the car, Puck pressed his lips to hers, his free hand brushing against her cheek and moving to rest on her shoulder, "I know, babe, I've got it all under control," he promised. "Don't worry about anything."
She nodded and wrapped her arms around him, "I know, I just... I wanted to make sure you knew, even though I'm sure you did know," she was babbling and she knew it was from nerves, so she closed her mouth and just relaxed against him.
"Babe, it's time to go," he told her sadly, "I love you and I'll miss you, but I'll see you soon," he tightened his arms around her briefly to hug her, but reluctantly let go and opened the back door of the car.
"I love you, too," she replied kissing him on the lips one more time, "miss you," she added before taking her bag from him and slipping into the back see, "I'll call you when we get there."
He closed the door and she rolled down the window, so he stepped forward, "text or call whenever you want," he told her, "I'll answer if I'm not working," he promised.
"Okay," she smiled at him and reached out of the window.
He too her hand in his and squeezed it gently before pressing a kiss to the top of it, "have a safe trip," he said letting her hand go and nodding at Alan and David.
Alan started the car and took the nod from Puck as a sign that it was okay to leave, so he shifted the car into gear and pulled away from the curb, and started down the street.
Puck watched them leave and saw Rachel turn around and wave at him. He returned her wave and as the car turned onto the main road from the street, he took a deep breath and moved inside the house, closing the door behind him. "I miss you already, Rach," he thought moving over to Abby, who was currently laughing as Deborah tickled her face with a stuffed animal.
No one asked if he was 'okay', which he was thankful for, they all just quietly sat in the living room playing with Abby for a short time before Puck set to work on daddy duty and got her ready for bed, hoping Abby would get through the week without having problems with Rachel being gone, because he knew he would have problems with her gone; he now understood what couples meant when they say their spouse is their 'other half'. Even after being gone just a short time, he felt like a part of him was missing and he knew that she has been and always will be his other half.
...
A/N4: So sorry it it has taken me so long to update; the Author Auction fic took some time away, but now I'm back. Lots of stuff going on in this chapter. So many ideas for future chapters :D Please review and let me know what you think.
A/N5: Happy 28th Birthday, Cory Monteith! Today, May 11th, is his birthday.
A/N6: For those of you who remember the 'Deadliest Catch' stuff and the Ballard Locks that I mentioned way back when the kids went to Seattle for Nationals... Well... On Saturday, May 1st, I was lucky enough to be able to go to the Deadliest Catch Convention 'CatchCon' in Seattle and I had a blast! Unfortunately, I didn't get to meet everyone I wanted to, but I was able to meet all the captains and a few deckhands and catch up with some fellow DC fan friends that I've met in the past few years. That's the most major excitement in my life, right now, lol. Thank you all for sticking with me and again, I'm so sorry it too so long for me to get this updated.
A/N7: The Glee awards is still open for nominations until the 15th of May, so if you like any of my fic (Out of the Blue, Starlight, Became the Summer, Gotta Start Somewhere), head on over to ( http :/ community . livejournal . com/ gleeawards/ ) and find out how you can nominate them.
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