Sometimes Goodbye…

"All right Noah," Bright blue eyes, almost hidden behind smudged wire rim glasses, looked at him across the wide desk. Paperwork, file folders, pencil holders and wire racks all vied for space with a blotter, keyboard and mouse pad, not to mention a monitor that could have doubled as an elephant's paperweight. At first glance it looked messy, disorganized, and a second glance might not correct that impression. But the man behind the desk knew where everything was without question and not much got past him. "What did you want to discuss?"

"Thinkin' a quittin' school," Puck admitted, straightening up in his chair. "Not that I don't wanna finish but trying to deal with…everything… it's gettin' to me."

Mister Schwartz was nobody's fool even if he did look like the quintessential accountant crossed with a grumpy librarian. "Teachers still ignoring you, I take it?"

"Like I don't exist 'til something goes wrong, then I musta done it," Puck groused. "I know I'm no saint, but I can't cause a dumpster fire on the opposite end of the school with the power of my mind."

"Ah," Schwartz nodded his understanding. "And your classmates?"

"Rachel, Santana, Mike…and Tina, an' Artie too sometimes, they're all pretty cool, trying to help me keep my grades up," He ran a hand over his head, feeling for the mohawk that wasn't there anymore. "Rachel's always checkin' on me during the day," A half smile quirked the corner of his mouth upward. "Her an' Mike, they got honors classes together, an' they try to help me keep up with my regular classes."

"The guidance counselor hasn't arranged for alternative reading materials or tutoring," Puck's probation officer noted the absence of the paperwork regarding that in his file. "None of the teachers either?"

"I've been passing by the skin of my teeth since first grade," Puck shrugged. "They all just think I'm stupid. Got my grades up enough to play football and basketball but…you know how it is." When everyone thinks they know what the problem is, nobody looks around for another answer. Everyone knew that Noah Puckerman was a lazy, troublemaking, slushy tossing kid and that wouldn't ever change. Everyone knew that Puckerman didn't do well on tests except in math and would sleep through class whenever he could. He'd do homework but it would always be a mess. Like that line from MIB, 'think of what you'll know tomorrow'.

"I'm aware of the…blind spots of the school system," Schwartz nodded. "You think you'd do better to test out or take the GED?"

"I was thinkin' the Army or the Air Force maybe," Puck admitted. "You said they've got tests to figure out what I'd do best at and programs that could help me with the issues I've got."

"They do," Schwartz agreed and pulled open a drawer, looking through it to find several pamphlets which he handed over. "You're mechanically inclined, judging just by how well you've done with repair work and keeping your truck running. You're not afraid of hard work."

Puck nodded, "And I'm a year older than the rest of the kids in my class."

Schwartz eyed him shrewdly and nodded, "Now what's the real reason? Because last week you were okay with everything. Frustrated but you were still willing to work within the system. That's part of why we're still seeing each other, your record will be expunged so long as you keep up with your rehabilitation programs."

Puck sighed. Here it went. "Friday my ma told me that I'd be eighteen in a month and she was sick of dealing with my shit. She threw me out. I've been crashing at Rachel's place. My truck is packed up with all my stuff."

He watched as Mister Schwartz sighed and shook his head, then grabbed a new set of forms. "All right. Are the Berry's okay with giving you house room until we can get you squared away?"

"Mister and Mister Berry don't know my ma kicked me out. I think Rachel's figured it out though," Puck admitted.

"And you don't think there's any chance your mother will reconsider?"

Puck shook his head, "Not considering she packed everything she could fit into a moving van, hitched the car behind it and took off."

"I'm assuming she took your sister with her?" Mister Schwartz paused in his writing to look up at Puck when the teenager didn't respond immediately.

"You know how Lior's been sick?" Puck rubbed the back of his neck.

"I thought she was improving?" The probation officer regarded him in concern.

"Yeah, she is, Doctors…well they didn't tell me anything, but the nurses said the pneumonia's almost cleared up," Puck took a deep breath. "She's still in the hospital. Ma just left her there. Landlord told me that I've got a couple days to get Lior's stuff out of her room."

"So we'll need to get your sister assigned a social worker until your father can be located," Schwartz grabbed another form.

"Don't bother with him," Puck shook his head. "He won't help. He took off, was living with some waitress for a while, then he took off again, he's long gone. Pops up when he needs money and thinks he can squeeze it out of me. Last couple years I haven't had anything so I haven't seen much of him."

"So…not an option for Lior's guardian." Schwartz sighed. "It's an all too common tale I'm afraid. What about your grandparents?"

"Well, my Dad's parents threw him out, I think," Puck shook his head. "Not sure. We never heard anything from them. Ma's parents… they might take Lior, she's a good kid. They think I take after my dad too much to take me. They're in Lima though."

"We'll contact them," Schwartz began to fill in the forms. "Unless you want to assume guardianship of your sister? Since you'll be eighteen soon?"

"What? So I can screw up her life the way I screwed up mine?" Puck shook his head. "She's my sister and I want to look out for her. But I barely have a clue about how to take care of myself, let alone an eleven year old."

"Sensible," The probation officer nodded. "If your grandparents take custody of her, you'd like to be able to visit though?"

"Well yeah," Puck scowled at the idea that he wouldn't. "If I go into the Army or whatever, I might be able to help out some. So my grandparents aren't footing the bill for everything."

"That's a concern," Schwartz frowned.

"They're on social security," Wide shoulders lifted in a shrug. "It's enough for them but for a kid too?"

"Well they'd be given a subsidy from the state to help with her care," Schwartz noted something down on his paperwork.

"But it'd be better if I can help out," Puck nodded. "I could join the army and then study for the GED right?"

"You could, but you wouldn't be eligible for any enlistment bonuses and you'd be considered a low quality recruit," The answer wasn't what he wanted to hear but Schwartz never had been the type to sugarcoat anything.

"Figures," Puck sighed. "Do they have GED books for idiots like me?"

"You're not an idiot Puckerman," Schwartz looked at him in irritation. "I don't waste my time on idiots."

"Right," He sighed again. "So what do I do?"

The answer, typically, hadn't been anything he wanted to hear but he'd sucked it up and went to Rachel's to talk with her and her dads. He hadn't enjoyed the conversation, but the result was that he had a place to crash for the rest of the year and he could bring Lior to the Berry's if his grandparents didn't want her. Hiram and LeRoy loved kids and they'd be happy to have Lior around. They'd made a note of Schwartz's name and number so they could call him.

He'd never have thought a classy couple like the Berrys would go so far as to become foster parents but that's just what they were planning on. Lior might end up in a group home for a while, until the Berrys could be assessed, unless they were able to convince the assigned social worker that they were friendly enough with the Puckermans that Lior would be comfortable.

Rachel had insisted he unload his truck and put his things in the cabinets lining one of the basement rec room walls and after that she'd made him drive over to the hospital to see Lior.

Part of him chafed at the feel of charity but at the same time, if he didn't suck it up he wouldn't be worth much to the Army or whatever.

"Noah you never said," Hiram looked over at him. "Why was it your mother held you back a year in school?"

"Wasn't really her choice," Puck shrugged. "Between my dad beating up on the two of us, me missing school because of it, and the fact that I couldn't pass anything but the math parts of the grade, the school decided, not her."

"But you're smart," Rachel frowned. "How could you not pass?"

"Got hit in the head once too many times," He lifted one shoulder uncomfortably. "I have a hard time remembering what I just read. I gotta read something over and over before it sticks. And back then, I couldn't remember stuff fast enough to name things in class. I mean, I'd look at a picture of a cat and be like, oh yeah, it goes meow, it's soft, got claws, but I couldn't think of the word cat. So they held me back. That got better at least but for a while I looked and sounded like a genuine idiot."

"Didn't your teachers help?" LeRoy was frowning now too. "There are educational programs developed for that purpose."

"Second time through first grade the teacher figured me for a troublemaker," Puck half smiled. "And I figured out that if I got sent to 'think about what I'd done' in the hallway, I had more time to figure out the stuff I didn't know."

"All those naps in the nurses office," Rachel realized. "You're not napping."

"Nah," Puck shook his head. "Sometimes I need to read something more before stuff sticks in my brain and I don't always have time before class. So I do my homework and hand it in before class is over. They mark me down but not so much that I fail."

"But you're good at math," Hiram observed. "You're better at calculus than Rachel."

"Numbers don't change," Puck explained simply. "You can throw formulas or whatever in there but numbers are solid."

"How do you remember the music for Glee," His hot little Jewish American princess wondered.

"Different side of the brain," He shrugged. "Music is like numbers. It's easy."

"None of your teachers ever caught on," Hiram marveled and Puck wondered if it was over the stupidity or his sneaky ways.

"They got pretty used to ignoring me," He shrugged again.

"Does Lior have similar difficulties?" LeRoy glanced at his husband and Rachel, "If she does we should make sure to address the issues."

"Nah," Puck shook his head. "Our dad wasn't around to hit her when she was little. I'd've kicked his ass."

"You meant it literally," Hiram realized. "You have acquired dyslexia, it's not genetic."

"Yeah, I mean, I was pretty normal until about October or November, I think," He thought back trying to track when he'd started having trouble. "I just remember by Thanksgiving that year I had trouble remembering anything in books except numbers."

"And your teacher didn't notice," LeRoy's scowl was a scary thing to behold for someone who had such a friendly face.

"She didn't much like me," Puck shook his head. "She was always telling me to pay attention anyway." There was some angry muttering from the Berry dads and Rachel had a determined look on her face.

Well life wouldn't be boring until graduation at least.

Telling his little sister that their mother had taken off and left them was the hardest thing he'd ever done. Promising her that he wasn't going to do the same thing was a little trickier, because it meant that he had to explain about the Army, their grandparents, Rachel's dads and all that.

She didn't like it but if there was one thing the two Puckerman kids had in common it was understanding that life dealt them a shit hand and all they could do was work with what they had. Busting ass to make something better was another thing they had in common. Lior was studying like crazy so she could skip grades and qualify for college scholarships.

If anyone could help her with that it was LeRoy and Hiram Berry. And it was a good thing that the Berry's were willing because their grandparents weren't in any shape to take on Lior full time. His grandfather had Emphysema and their grandmother was so arthritic and frail that she could barely take care of herself. Social services had arranged for the two of them to have help come in daily. A nurse for his grandfather and a kind of aide to help his grandmother around the house. Their yard was overgrown and the trees were brushing against the roof, which meant ants and other bugs in the summer.

That was something he could at least fix, so with LeRoy's permission Puck borrowed some of his tools and went over to clean up the yard and trees. The aide was a huge black guy who came out with a broom looking like he'd use it as a club if he thought Puck was starting trouble. "Hey," Puck greeted him as he (carefully) hauled the mower out of the bed of his truck. "I'm Puck."

"Yeah, that doesn't tell me much," The big aide shook his head warily and Puck shrugged.

"This's my grandparent's house," He told the guy. "Our mom took off, wouldn't ever let us come over to see them. Just found out they aren't doin' so well."

"Yeah," Wary should be this guy's middle name, not that Puck really blamed him.

"Well," Puck set the mower on the ground and moved down the cracked and broken walk towards the tiny front porch. "I don't have much money. And what I've got is pretty much going towards taking care of my little sister. But the people we're staying with lent me some tools. I figured I can at least take care of the yard, cut off the tree branches so they don't touch the roof."

"Yeah they've had a problem with ants," The aide nodded. "I'm Jonathan. I help out with the house, make sure your grandmother doesn't hurt herself trying to do too much."

"Rabbi ain't sent anyone over to help at all?" Puck frowned. "That ain't like him."

"Your grandmother said something about your mother," Jonathan shrugged

"Ma's real good at soundin' she's like she's the victim when she's the one who's in the wrong," Puck sighed.

The huge man cast a cautious look over his shoulder as he stepped forward and down the porch steps, "Between you an' me an' the gatepost, your ma ain't alone in that." He shrugged, "I'd say it's a skill gets passed down, mother to daughter. Although your grandmother isn't terrible about it at least."

"Shit," Puck shook his head. "Now I guess I'm glad they couldn't take Lior," He eyed the roof. "I figured I'd mow the lawn an' then work on those tree limbs. After that I'll swing by the synagogue an' talk with our Rabbi. He'll get some help organized for them."

"They're makin' it okay on social security but your grandfather…" The big aide hesitated and seemed to come to some sort of decision. "He's got weeks, not months. And once he's gone…your grandmother… She's living for him. Whatever faults she has, she loves him. More each day."

"So…" Puck took a deep breath and looked around. "What you're telling me is I need to get the place fixed up so when they're gone the place can be sold."

"Pretty much," Jonathan nodded. "I figure you got maybe five months."

"Well, that figures," Puck sighed. "How bad's the inside?"

"Dated," Jonathan shrugged. "Wallpaper, linoleum, carpet…" He wrinkled his nose. "Two bedroom, one bath, walk up attic and walk down basement."

"Neither of 'em finished I'll bet," Puck took a deep breath but whatever he might have said was interrupted by a skinny white haired woman wearing an outfit straight out of the seventies.

"Jonathan what have I said about leaving the door open," Dark eyes that reminded Puck uncomfortably of his mother stared at the two of them accusingly.

"I'm sorry Missus Albrecht," Jonathan shook his head. "Heard this fella out front and just wanted to make sure everything's on the up an' up."

"You're Esther's boy," She wasn't slow in the mind even if she could only move an inch per hour in any direction. "What're you doin' here?"

"Ma took off," Puck shrugged. He wasn't going to lie to her about her daughter. "Me an' Lior're stayin' with the Berrys'. They mentioned your yard and trees could use some work so I figured I'd come take care of it. Ma ain't around to stop me after all."

"Hmmph…" That pursed mouth wrinkled tighter but she nodded. "Got an axe in the garage; we could use the wood for the fireplace if you can. You can call me Nana Marie. Your grandfather's not able to speak anymore but if you'll come in when you're done, I'll have a warm drink for you and you can say hello to him." She gave him a smile, tiny but it warmed her eyes, "So long as we have our loved ones, everything else is just details." She began to turn, her walker pushed in front of her, "Jonathan, if you don't come in and help I'm never going to get this bread done."

"Yes Missus Albrecht," Jonathan smiled and gave Puck a wink as he turned to go. "She's got her faults but she ain't bad." He murmured as he headed back up the stairs to hold the door.

Puck shrugged and began to clear some of the larger fallen branches out of the yard. They could sit in the gravel drive until he was ready to chop them. But if he didn't get the grass down to a manageable level they'd end up getting cited by the neighborhood grass monitors. He doubted a two hundred dollar ticket would help their finances any.

"So, how's it going," Knowing blue eyes gleamed at Puck from behind smudged lenses.

"You know how it's goin'," Puck rolled his eyes. "Same as last week. Nana's happy as a clam to have Lior over after school until me or Rachel can pick her up. And Nana's miserable because Grandpa's maybe got a month left and no one expected him to last this long. He's on borrowed time and she knows it."

"I mean your grades," Mister Schwartz shook his head. "Still studying for the GED?"

"Oh yeah, that," Puck reached down and pulled a book out of his bag. "Passed it." With a smirk he knew was just this side of shit eating he handed the book and the test results over to his probation officer.

"So, planning to attend school still or just giving it a miss?" Schwartz wondered as he began copying the results for his files.

"I'm thinking of going a little longer," Puck admitted. "Until my grandparents pass, talked to the counselor about goin' part time. That way I can work too."

"Still interested in the Army or Air Force?" Schwartz was still making notes.

"Yeah, I think the Army really," Puck rubbed the back of his neck. "Rachel's been helping me look into the different programs they have."

"You don't think you could finish out school, and maybe get a football scholarship," The probation officer asked thoughtfully.

"I don't think I've got the patience," Hazel eyes met blue honestly. "I'm eighteen, but even if I finish out this year, I've still got a year to go and I can't live with the Berrys forever. If I want out of this town, the Army is my best bet. About the only thing I'll miss is the Berrys, my actual friends and my sister."

"Well you've got your GED so I'd say your next step is talking to a recruiter and explaining your situation," Schwartz told him. "Start with telling them that you've got acquired dyslexia and your school's been ignoring it. Give them my card, explain that and tell them to get in touch."

"Oh this is gonna be fun," Puck groaned.

"You screwed up. Now you're trying to get your life on track," Mister Schwartz shrugged. "A little embarrassment along the way is a fairly normal side effect. It would be worse if you weren't trying to get your life together."

"You sure," Puck sighed. "Because if I wasn't I could go on in blissful ignorance of how screwed up everything is for real."

"That's not all on you," The probation officer reminded him. "You had a lot of help with some of it."

"Feels like one big cliche you know?" Puck scrubbed his hands through his crewcut and sighed for his abandoned mohawk. "Join the army to get away from the mess of my life."

"If that's what you're doing, then yes, it most certainly is," Schwartz shook his head. "But I was under the impression that you want to join the army to actually make a start on a new life. Put some of that untapped potential to good use."

"Yeah," Puck frowned thoughtfully. "Still feels like a cliche."

"It could be worse," Schwartz reminded him.

Well that he knew.

When his grandfather passed he knew it was just a matter of time. But at least his Nana had the support of the Rabbi and the rest of the community. He and Lior sat Shiva with Nana and afterwards had a talk about what would likely happen next.

He'd been talking to the Army recruiter too, Mister Schwartz had gotten a call from the man and helped Puck explain the circumstances that had Puck wanting to join the Army.

LeRoy had come by their Nana's while she was at the Synagogue and helped Puck go through the house, letting him know what they'd need to fix up, bare minimum, in order to sell the house once his Nana passed. Nobody wanted to think too much about it but everyone knew it was coming.

Part of what his Nana was talking to the Rabbi about was her wishes for after she died. Hiram had put her in touch with a lawyer who also helped with estate planning and between the lawyer and Rabbi Abbrams they'd help her get everything squared away.

Rachel had a quiet chat with Mike, Tina, Santana and Artie after Glee one day and the Sunday afterwards they'd all shown up at his Nana's house with the Berry's and Lior. Puck had bought the paint and other supplies and by the time it was too dark to work anymore the front yard fence and the house were all looking a lot better. Finishing up on Monday afternoon took him barely anytime at all.

"Noah it looks wonderful," His grandmother came out on the front porch and carefully made her way down the steps. "That sweet LeRoy stopped by and made some suggestions for fixing up the house the other day."

"He's pretty cool," Puck agreed. "You want, I could start working on the inside of the house after I'm done with work?"

"That's what I want to talk with you about sheyfele," Nana Marie took his arm. "Let's have some tea." In spite of all her quirks Puck found himself really liking his Nana. Too bad he hadn't gotten to know her sooner. But at least he and Lior knew her now.

Author's Note: So I split this up because I use a different perspective in the second part and this was a good stopping point. Hope you're enjoying. The next part will be up next week.