Disclaimer: I don't own anything. This chapter title comes from the song "I Will Believe" by Sheryl Crow.


Finn stood outside of Anne's Café and watched Rachel. They didn't have very many costumers at the moment, so Rachel was sitting at the counter. She wasn't doing anything; she was just staring at her hands. Her skin was pale and Finn could see the bags and puffiness under her eyes, revealing that she had probably spent most of the night crying.

Finn knew that he had been a large reason for her crying, and that made his heart hurt. He had never felt like this about anyone before, but it upset him that Rachel was feeling so awful. And it upset him even more knowing that he had caused a large part of it. He wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and make everything better, but she wouldn't even talk to him.

But that wasn't going to stop Finn from trying. He entered the café and made his way over to the counter, taking the seat next to Rachel. She looked up at him and her eyes widened, but she didn't say anything.

"Rachel," Finn finally said. He reached out a hand out but thought better of it at the last second. He supposed that it was miracle that she was letting him sit next to her in the first place, so he better not push his luck. "Will you let me take you to the hospital?"

Her emotions had been volatile in the first place because of her fight with Puck. Finn might not have liked his half-brother, but he had to accept that Puck was Rachel's best friend and he was going to be in her life no matter what. He was willing to accept that, and he wanted to kick himself for trying to play mind games in the first place. Things were so much clearer now. Rachel had truly helped to make him a better person, and he needed her in his life.

Rachel mutely shook her head and stared down at her hands. As usual, Finn could read Rachel like a book. She felt guilty because of the fight she and Puck had and now she was afraid that they would never get to make up. Puck was practically like a brother to her, and she had somehow twisted this whole situation and felt that it was her fault. Guilt was a funny thing.

"Come on, Rachel. You know that Puck would want to see you."

That made Rachel's head snap up, her eyes fiery with anger. "Don't act like you know what Noah wants!" she snapped. "You don't even like him, Finn. How would you know what he wants?"

This time, Finn reached out and took Rachel's hand. He held it between both of his and ducked his head down so that he could look into her eyes. "Because you're in his life. And I know what it's like to need Rachel Berry in your life. You're too important."

Rachel's shoulders slumped at that and her eyes filled with tears. She pulled her hand from Finn's and covered her mouth with it, her shoulders shaking. Finn wanted nothing more than to wrap her in his arms, but then Rachel jumped up from her chair.

"I can't go." She shook her head with jerky movements as she backed away from Finn, and he ached for her. "I can't."

Finn was left sitting at the counter at Karen's Café, wondering what the hell he was supposed to do next.


Quinn shifted her weight from foot to foot. "I wasn't aware that you were such good friends with Rachel Berry," she said.

Santana shrugged her shoulders and took a moment to inspect her nails before speaking. "She's not bad," the Latina finally said. "And she's Puck's best friend. You said that she hasn't been to visit Puck?"

Santana should know the answer to that question, since she had been by Puck's bedside ever since the accident. It certainly made for an interesting first meeting with Anne—especially when she had discovered the tattoo on her son's arm. But Anne was amused by Santana more than anything else, and had taken pity on the young woman for the lack of parental guidance in her life.

"She hasn't," Quinn said, forcing her thoughts back to the task at hand. "They, uh… they got into a fight, I think." Quinn certainly knew what that fight had been about, but it wasn't like she was going to share that with Santana. She didn't have a death wish, after all.

"Exactly," Santana said. "I mean, if she's feeling too upset to visit Puck, we can at least show Rachel what's going on. That way she can still feel close to him."

Despite the turmoil of her feelings, Quinn smiled. Santana could certainly be abrasive and downright rude at times, but she truly did think of other people. Rachel and Santana had never been close, but she was taking into account Rachel's feelings during this whole situation. Thinking about what a good person her best friend was only made Quinn feel worse about what she had been doing with Puck behind Santana's back.

Thankfully, Rachel chose that moment to open the front door. She stood there for a moment, staring at the pair in surprise. It wasn't every day that Santana Lopez and Quinn Fabray showed up at her front door.

"Uh… hello." Rachel's hand was still on the door handle, as if she had expected this to be a short visit and nothing more than that. "What's going on?"

Santana clapped her hands together loudly, causing Rachel to jump. "Come on, Tutor Berry! Let's get going. We're taking you to the River Park." Without waiting for Rachel to respond, she pulled the shorter girl from the house and shut the door behind her.

Rachel looked towards Quinn, her brow furrowed in complete and utter confusion. "But… why?"

"You'll see," was all that Quinn said.

Despite her slight uneasiness, Rachel went with Quinn and Santana. They walked over the River Park, and Rachel's mouth dropped open. She didn't think that she had ever seen it this crowded before. Mike, Dave, and Matt were standing off to the edge, watching with the same dumbstruck awe that Rachel was feeling.

"What's going on?" Rachel repeated for the second time that day.

There was a blacktop situated next to the field at the River Park, surrounded by some dilapidated basketball posts. Almost the entirety of the football team was spread out over that blacktop, all with a piece of chalk in their hands. Upon closer inspection, Rachel saw that everyone was writing some sort of message to Puck.

"Oh my God," Rachel whispered.

"Amazing, right?" Santana asked. "I came here earlier today and found all of them here. I'm not sure who started it, but they've been coming and going all day. And it's not just the boys from the football team. People from school have been leaving messages, too."

Rachel stared at the group of people gathered at the River Park. Her heart warmed and she felt incredibly sad all at the same time. Instead of thinking about it, Rachel snatched up a piece of chalk and began to look for a clear spot. She had no idea what she was going to write, but she had to put something down.

She did eventually find a spot that hadn't been drawn on yet, and Rachel took a moment to inspect the messages around the area. She was completely shocked once again when she saw some familiar, messy scrawl.

Finn's message was short and simple: "Get well soon, Puck." And it was signed with his name. That's it. But it was the fact that Finn had taken the time to write something that was really affecting Rachel. He had taken it upon himself to go to the River Park and write that small message even though he and Puck didn't get along.

In that moment, Rachel knew that she couldn't be mad at Finn Hudson. God knows she wanted to be, but she couldn't.

Before she dropped down next to Finn's message to write one of her own, Rachel looked up and saw the familiar red letterman jacket. Finn's amber eyes were intent on her, but he remained on the other side of the blacktop.

Rachel took a shaky breath and began to write.


Hospital room 2033.

Finn couldn't believe that he was standing in front of Noah Puckerman's room at the hospital.

He cautiously pushed the door open. For once, Santana and Anne weren't in the room. As it had been for the past day and a half, Puck eyes were closed and he was attached to several monitors that beeped quietly. Finn stepped into the room and let it shut behind him.

He was doing this for Rachel, but he couldn't stop his wince when he saw just how battered Puck was. There was a bruise on his forehead and his shoulder was wrapped up in sling. Apparently it had become separated in the accident; surely, that meant Puck's football season was over. Finn may not have liked Puck very much, but he wouldn't have wished that on anyone.

Finn made his way towards the vacated chair by the side of the bed. He took a seat and stared at Puck for several long moments. The quiet and steady beeping of the heart monitor cut through the silence, and Finn tried to figure out what to say. Would Puck even hear him? He didn't know, but he had to say something.

"You know," Finn began slowly. "I used to be jealous of how close you and Rachel are. I kind of get it now. You're not just her best friend… you're her family. The two of you are like brother and sister, and it took me a really long time to understand that. I didn't want to share Rachel with anyone, much less you. But I get what it's like to need her in your life. I need her."

Finn rubbed his hand over his hair, causing the front to stick up even more. "You need to wake up so you guys can solve your fight. It's tearing Rachel up and I know that it probably bothered you just as much. If she hears that you're awake, she'll come visit you."

Finn leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. He had never imagined anything like this happening. A scary accident like this really put things in perspective.

"I always thought that you were the lucky one," Finn admitted quietly. "I'm sure you've figured out by now that Chris isn't… easy to live with. It sucks that he abandoned you, but you also never had to deal with him. You had your mom and Burt… and you had Rachel. You could make your own choices, and that's probably why I hated you so much."

Just as the last word left Finn's mouth, he heard the sheets rustle as the bed shifted. Finn lifted his head and watched Puck intently. He hadn't imagined it; Puck's brow was furrowing and his eyes fluttered. Eventually, he slowly opened them.

He stared at Finn, as if he wasn't sure that what he was seeing was actually real. His eyes were cloudy, but they cleared up after he blinked several times.

"Hey," Finn offered hesitantly.

Puck swallowed and then spoke, his voice tired and scratchy. "Water," he mumbled. He would deal with his surprise at finding Finn Hudson sitting next to his bed in the hospital later. He was in some desperate need of some water.

Finn scrambled to grab Puck a cup. His shoulder was too messed up for him to lift the cup up himself, so Finn held it while Puck drank from a straw. It could easily go down as one of the weirdest experiences in both Puck and Finn's life. For once, they weren't threatening or insulting each other. And Finn could tell by the look in Puck's eyes that he had heard everything he said. The two estranged half-brothers stared at each other and then Puck slowly nodded his head.

Some sort of truce had been reached in that moment. Finn left the room not long after that with the intent of getting Anne. She was just reaching the room with a steaming cup of coffee in her hands. She looked surprised to see Finn coming out of Puck's room, and it would have made Finn laugh if the situation hadn't been so serious.

"Hi, Ms. Puckerman," Finn greeted. It was somewhat awkward for sure, because of course Anne knew of the problems Finn had caused for Puck. But all of that melted away when Finn told Anne what was going on. "Puck just woke up."

Anne's mouth dropped open and the cup of coffee slipped from her hands. The liquid splashed all over the floor, but Anne didn't notice as she was too busy scrambling into her son's room. Finn caught a glimpse of Anne throwing herself into Puck's arms and crying, and he smiled.

Finn left the hospital not long after that. He had someone that he needed to bring over for a visit.


Finn only paused to say hello to Rachel's fathers as he passed them when he entered the Berry house. He barely waited for them to return the greeting before he was bounding up the stairs and entering Rachel's room without knocking.

She let out a surprised yelp when Finn pushed her door open. Rachel was laid out on her bed, reading a book in an attempt to keep herself busy. Finn didn't even wait to hear what she had to say. He just strode over to the bed and lifted her up, setting her on her feet. He quickly threw her jacket over her shoulders and then began to tow her from her bedroom.

Rachel attempted to yank her arm from Finn's hold, but Finn kept his grip just strong enough that she couldn't easily slip away. "Finn Hudson!" Rachel screeched, her eyes flashing with anger. "What in the world are you doing?"

"I'm taking you to go see Puck," Finn said firmly. His tone of voice left no room for argument. But Rachel being Rachel, she insisted on that argument. She dug her feet into her carpet, trying her best to force Finn to come to a stop. She even went as far as to let out a little huff.

"Absolutely not," Rachel snapped. "I—"

Finn didn't wait to hear Rachel's lame protests. She had to get over her unnecessary guilt and the only way that was going to happen was if she talked this out with Puck. Puck had heard everything Finn said in the hospital, even though he had been unconscious. Puck clearly regretted the fight just as much as Rachel did.

So, cutting across Rachel's excuses, Finn said, "Puck is awake."

Rachel stopped her struggling immediately and froze, staring at Finn with wide eyes. "What?"

"Puck is awake," Finn repeated. "So let's go."

Rachel allowed Finn to tow her along after that. Quinn was approaching the Berry house as they were leaving, and Finn gestured for her to follow them. "Puck woke up!" he called over his shoulder as they climbed into his car. Quinn stared at them, her mouth agape before she scrambled into the backseat of Finn's car.

The ride over to the hospital was filled with silence. Rachel bit her lip and twisted her hands together. Finn had barely parked the car before both she and Quinn flew from it. Finn jogged to catch up with the two girls, as they were gone before he had even turned the car off. When he finally caught up with them and reached Puck's room, he saw that Quinn was waiting in the doorway and Rachel was standing hesitantly at the foot of Puck's bed.

Puck's eyes slowly opened and he smiled at Rachel. "Hey," he said, his voice still scratchy from not being used.

Rachel's lower lip wobbled and she ducked down, hugging Puck tightly. He returned the hug, looking a little unsure as he patted Rachel's back. She might have been his best friend, but that didn't mean he knew what to do with a crying girl. It was almost comical, but it was also pretty touching.

"That's nice," Quinn said quietly.

Finn sent her a sidelong glance. She as watching Puck with such longing and sadness; Finn imagined that that was the way he watched Rachel when she had refused to talk to him. "Have you been to visit him at all?"

Quinn released a slow breath and shook her head, her eyes never leaving Puck's form. "Not yet," she admitted. "I haven't been able to… Not after everything and with Santana…"

Finn looked between his ex-girlfriend and the guy he had once considered his enemy. Despite the mess Quinn had managed to find herself in, Finn didn't think he had ever seen her this happy. She certainly hadn't had that light in her eyes while she had been dating Finn—but then again, neither had he. Quinn and Finn never had been right for each other. It had been a relationship of convenience, and Finn regretted letting it go on as long as it had. It hadn't been fair to either one of them.

"You love him, don't you?" Finn asked.

Quinn sent Finn a knowing smile. "As much as you love Rachel," she countered.

A smile spread across Finn's lips and Quinn nudged him in the side. She shook her head at him, but she was really only teasing. She was glad to see that Finn was so happy. Her love life may have been in shambles, but Finn and Rachel deserved all the happiness in the world. Accidents such as the one Puck had been in really made things clear.

"I can't believe you almost ruined this whole thing with your big mouth," Quinn stated.

Finn ducked his head down, embarrassed. "I know. I'm just lucky that she's still talking to me."

Quinn smiled. Finn really had changed, and for the better. It was sweet how much he cared for Rachel, and Quinn could see that Finn loved Rachel as well.

"You know, you should probably tell Puck that you want to do things officially," Finn pointed out. If Quinn was going to offer up relationship advice, Finn figured that he could at least return the favor.

Quinn waved her hand, but she knew that Finn was right. "Yeah, yeah."

They fell into silence then, content with watching the people they loved.


Puck sat on his bed and looked around the room. Santana was standing in the corner, watching him with an uncharacteristically anxious face. Puck managed to send a small smile her way, but it wasn't long before he was sending a disdainful glare to the sling that was on his shoulder.

"I might not be able to play football for a long time," he grumbled.

Santana stepped forward, her fingers playing with the zipper on her jacket. "I know, and that sucks. But I think I have something that can get your mind off of it."

Santana slowly unzipped her jacket and let it fall to the ground, revealing a strappy and see through piece of lingerie. Puck's eyes widened and he could only gape at Santana as she crawled over him on the bed.

She kissed him deeply, straddling his lap and grinding against him. Puck's good hand fell to her shoulder, but it wasn't to pull her closer. Instead, he gently pushed her away. Santana looked surprised by his actions and tried to kiss him again, but Puck held her at arm's length.

"Santana… we probably shouldn't," he said. "I'm not cleared to have sex yet." It was true. In addition to banning Puck from football, the doctor had also stated that he wasn't to have sex for at least a week. That didn't exactly thrill Puck, given that a large portion of his relationship with Santana consisted of sex.

Santana shrugged her shoulders but remained on Puck's lap. "That's okay. We can just hang out." She touched his face with her fingertips, almost as if she was afraid of hurting him. "We haven't really had the chance to do that lately."

Puck shifted uncomfortably. Rachel's words and the look on Quinn's face were constantly flashing through his mind, and he couldn't push it away like he had in the past. The words came tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

"I think we should break up."

Santana froze. Her hands slipped off his shoulders and she stared at him, as if she hadn't fully comprehended what he said. "What?"

Puck swallowed hard. Despite it all, he did truly care about Santana. But this needed to end. "I just… I don't think we should do this anymore."

Santana climbed off of Puck's lap and zipped her sweater up. "I'm not really sure where this is coming from, considering that I've spent the last two days at your bedside waiting for you to wake up. And I've never given you a reason to break up with me, so what's going on?"

"We're going different places, Santana. Right now, I just don't think that this is what I want." Puck was pretty proud of himself for being pretty coherent and managing his words well. He normally wasn't like this, but he truly didn't want to hurt Santana any more than he had to. "But Santana, that doesn't mean—"

Santana thrust a finger in his face. "If the words 'we can be friends' come out of your mouth, I will punch you in the face."

Puck stopped talking and simply nodded his head. He was a dick, and he knew it. He was in love with Quinn Fabray, but he spent all of this time dating her best friend. There wasn't anything more that he could say, because there wasn't anything that could make this better.

Santana stared at him, waiting for him to say something—anything—else. When he didn't, she made a disgusted noise in the back of her throat and left the room.

Puck flopped back onto his bed, careful not to jar his shoulder. He sighed heavily and closed his eyes, wondering when the things in his life would be simple again.


Finn groaned and rested his head in his hands. It was the safest alternative to banging his head against the wall, which is what he felt like doing. He felt his girlfriend's small hands on his back and shoulders, and her fingers kneaded at the knots in his neck.

"They won't stop fighting," Finn mumbled. "They constantly argue about who I'm going to live with."

Rachel kissed the side of his face and combed her fingers through his hair. He leaned into her touch and allowed his body to relax. He didn't know where he would be if Rachel wasn't keeping him steady. They hadn't exactly talked about what had happened before Puck's accident, but Rachel had let him back into her life with open arms and Finn wasn't going to question it.

"You know that you have options, right?" Rachel asked. "They don't get to choose. You're old enough to do that for yourself."

Finn peered at her over his fingers. "I do?"

"Of course! You can have control over this, Finn. And maybe if you do this, you can have more control over what you want to do." She hated that Finn felt as if he couldn't make his own choices. Chris was so controlling and harsh that it was often just easier to go along with what Chris wanted. That way, Chris could keep his focus on Finn and not turn his ire on Carole. His mother had a gentle soul, and it had already been damaged enough by Chris. Finn didn't want to see that happen anymore.

Finn nodded his head slowly. It was obvious that he was going to live with Carole. If Chris thought that Finn was going to pick him, then he was even more insane than Finn had originally thought. There was absolutely no way that was going to happen. But he was going to have to do this carefully, so Chris wouldn't have a chance to manipulate anything.

But Finn didn't want to think about his parents' failed relationship any longer. Deciding to steer the conversation in a completely different direction, Finn tugged on Rachel's hand and pulled her into his lap.

"Thank you," he murmured as he pressed his lips to her cheek and jaw. He brushed her long hair out of the way and kissed the side of her neck as well.

Rachel sank back against him and closed her eyes. "What for?" she asked. Honestly, she was distracted by the feeling of Finn's lips on her skin and his fingers holding on to her waist.

"For being here. For listening. For forgiving me."

Rachel opened her eyes and looked over her shoulder. Finn's amber eyes met with hers, but they were filled with sadness. It had killed him that he had hurt Rachel so badly, and he hadn't been able to forgive himself yet. Rachel shifted in his lap so that she could face him and brought her hand up to his cheek.

"Stop that," she ordered gently. When Finn didn't look at her, so placed her other hand on his opposite cheek and tilted his face up towards her. "I'm serious, Finn. Don't think like that. I knew this was going to be difficult from the very beginning, but you were right that night. Things are different now."

Finn finally mad full eye contact with Rachel. She was completely sincere and the smile on her lips was one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen. "You're right," Finn agreed.

Rachel kissed him gently and then stood up, taking both of his hands in hers. "So does that mean you'll come and visit Noah with me, then?"

Finn made a face, but he managed not to comment. Rachel considered that progress, so she didn't comment on his expression. Eventually, Finn nodded his head and allowed his tiny girlfriend to move him along.

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the Puckerman house. Puck was just waking up from a nap, and Rachel frowned at him when he appeared. Anne had left them alone to catch up, even though Finn had a feeling she wanted to hover like a mama bear.

"Noah, you look awful," Rachel said disapprovingly.

Puck narrowed his eyes in a glare at her. "Aren't you supposed to say something nice to me? We're supposed to be best friends."

Rachel made a clucking noise. "This is me being nice. Aren't you listening to your mother? You need to be getting some rest."

"I'm trying," Puck insisted. "But I… I broke up with Santana."

Finn let out a low whistle. "You're a brave man, Puckerman. I would not want to get on Santana Lopez's bad side."

A horrified look overcame Puck's face, and it made Rachel laugh. "Don't tell me that you've dated Santana too."

Rachel answered that question for him. "He never dated Santana, thank God. Just hooked up with her one time a long time ago."

"We don't talk about it," Finn mumbled. They had that discussion—the whole "who else have you been with" talk. There had been a lot of red-faced moments on Finn's part, but he had managed to get through the whole thing. Rachel, thankfully, had been very understanding, but she had also blushed quite a bit.

Puck laughed outright at Finn's comment, and he rolled his eyes but didn't say much else. Rachel looked between the two brothers, her eyebrows arched in interest. Puck was basically having a laugh at Finn's expense, and Finn wasn't getting defensive or angry about it. Rachel didn't dare to think that they would suddenly become best friends, but this was definitely a step in the right direction.

Before either her best friend or her boyfriend could ask her what she was thinking about, Rachel decided to completely change the subject. "Has your mom started talking to Burt yet?" she asked.

Puck sighed. His mother's anger with Burt was just another added complication to his problems with Santana and Quinn. Puck had already completely forgiven Burt—it had been just an accident, after all. But it had scared Anne so much that she had stopped speaking to Burt at all.

"She's not giving," Puck finally said. "But I hope things will get better soon."


Puck looked up, his eyes widening in surprise when he saw that the person who had just entered his room was Quinn Fabray. He opened his mouth to greet her and ask what was going on, but she didn't even give him a chance to say anything. Instead, she ran forward and pushed Puck back on the bed, pressing her lips firmly to his.

Momentarily surprised, Puck simply lay on his bed as Quinn climbed all over him, her lips pressing to every available part of his face. When her mouth moved back towards Puck's, he finally caught up with what was happening and kissed her back.

Puck's hands fell to Quinn's hips and he pulled her on top of him. There was a twinge of pain in his shoulder, but Puck ignored it. Was this actually happening right now? Was Quinn Fabray in his bedroom, kissing him?

Whatever was happening, Puck wasn't going to question it. Quinn spent another few moments kissing him deeply, her hands sliding under his shirt. Finally needing to catch her breath, Quinn pulled away and pressed her forehead to his.

"What is happening right now?" Puck asked. He was breathing hard and he refused to let go of Quinn's hips. She seemed fine sitting right where she was, on his lap.

Quinn reached up and held his face between her hands. "I couldn't stay away, Puck," she whispered against his lips. She pressed her lips to his between every sentence. "I need you."

Puck reached up to tangle his fingers in Quinn's blonde hair. He held her tighter against him, pressing his lips to hers again.


Rachel smiled at her boyfriend when he extended a warm cup of chai latte towards her. When he took a seat next to her at the table in the courtyard, she slid close to his side and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"Thank you, Finn," she said sweetly.

His lips turned up in the adorable crooked smile, and he slid his hand over her knee. "You love those things so much. The people at the coffee store know exactly who I am when I go in. I think they might start having our orders ready when we go in."

Rachel giggled and took a sip of her drink. "It's not my fault that chai lattes with soy are so amazing." Finn was always stopping to pick one up for her because he knew it was her favorite. She kissed his cheek again in thanks, and he squeezed her hand.

"She's got you whipped, man," Puck said as he slid into the seat opposite the young couple at the table. Rachel laughed while Finn merrily looked amused. Rachel considered this huge progress, however—ever since Puck's accident, Finn and Puck had been more willing to at least be in the same room again.

Finn shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, I don't mind." He didn't really mind Puck's teasing. Plus, he knew that it made Rachel happy to be as civil with his estranged half-brother as he could.

Puck nodded his head, a newfound respect for Finn in his eyes. Rachel grinned as she looked between the two. Even so, this truce was new and was still a little precarious. Spotting Quinn walking across the courtyard, Rachel gestured her over to them. It was probably better to be around more people, anyway.

Quinn made her way over to them, her eyes on Puck the entire time. Of course, Rachel noticed the development between her best friend and the love of his life. Her eyes darted back and forth between Quinn and Puck before she kicked her best friend under the table. Tearing his eyes from the blonde cheerleader, Puck scowled and rubbed his leg.

"What the hell, Berry?" he grumbled. The look on his face instantly disappeared when Quinn took the seat next to him, sitting closer than strictly necessary. Finn noticed this as well, and he sniggered under his breath.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who could be whipped," he muttered. Rachel dissolved into giggles, because Finn was definitely telling the truth. Quinn had had Puck whipped since elementary school.

Puck only made a face at his best friend and her boyfriend. Quinn just smiled and said, "What's going on?"

Before anyone could answer, a loud shriek ripped across the courtyard. Alarmed, the four friends at the table looked to find Santana Lopez stalking towards them. Quinn stood to greet her best friend, worry written all over her face. She didn't think she had ever seen Santana look so upset before.

"Santana?" Quinn asked. "Oh my God, what's wrong?"

Santana didn't answer. Instead, she reached out and shoved Quinn hard, causing her to stumble back. Puck jumped up, catching her before she could fall over. He turned an intense glare on Santana, not realizing that he was still holding Quinn to him.

"What the hell, Santana?" Puck demanded. "What do you think you're doing?"

"What do you think you're doing?" Santana repeated. Her eyes flashed in anger, and she thrust an accusing finger towards Puck and Quinn. "You do know that she's my best friend, right? How long have you been fucking her?"

A sinking feeling developed in Quinn's stomach, and she immediately stepped away from Puck. "Santana, I—"

"You knew how I felt about him!" Santana exclaimed, her voice growing hysterical. They had attracted a crowd at this point. Rachel slipped out of her seat to go stand by her best friend, hoping to lend some support. Even though she didn't agree with some of the choice Puck had made recently, he was her best friend and she was going to stand by him.

Puck sighed and pushed Quinn behind him. "Santana, this is about you and me. Don't drag Quinn into this."

"I'll drag whoever I want into this!" Santana shrieked. She thrust her index finger into Puck's chest, poking hard. He let her do it, knowing that she needed to get some anger out. He felt horrible that this happened, but he wasn't about to let her attack Quinn.

"Santana, please," Quinn pleaded. Tears formed in her eyes and she tried to blink them away. Santana laughed humorlessly and shook her head, her hands planted on her hips. Her eyes held no sympathy at all, and Puck knew that another attack was coming.

"You're a real bitch, you know that, Quinn? Everyone thinks you're this perfect cheerleader, but you're not! You've been fucking around with my boyfriend behind my back and then you act like we're still best friends!"

Rachel absolutely hated that her best friend and Quinn were attacked like this, but she couldn't think of anything to say. And honestly, part of her knew that Puck and Quinn had got themselves into this mess.

She was surprised when she felt Finn's hand wrap around hers. Feeling his familiar strong fingers instantly made Rachel feel so much better. Her fingers tightened around his and she took a deep breath, preparing herself for the fallout of what was about to happen.

Quinn reached out to Santana, hoping to calm her in some way. "Santana, we are best friends!" she told her. "I'm so, so sorry."

Santana shoved Quinn's hand away. The look that she gave Puck and Quinn was so full of animosity and hatred that Quinn recoiled back. There was a long moment of uncomfortable, heavy silence where they all just stared at each other.

"I'm done with you," Santana stated. Her voice was calm now, and it was almost like she hadn't been shrieking a few minutes before. "Both of you. Don't ever speak to me again."

With that, Santana left. She pushed her way through the group of people that had gathered around them. Quinn and Puck just kind of stood there, their faces slack and dazed. Sensing that something else was about to happen, Finn glared at the group of students around them.

"Leave," he commanded.

With that one simple word, everyone scattered. That left Rachel, Finn, Puck, and Quinn standing in the courtyard. Rachel was still at a complete loss for what to do, so she just held Finn's hand tighter. Quinn had tears streaming down her cheeks, and Puck reached for her.

Quinn backed away from Puck, however. She held her hands up, looking at him with tear-filled eyes. She shook her head slowly before she turned and ran, leaving Puck standing by himself.

Pucks' brow furrowed in confusion. He was at a complete loss for what had just happened, and he didn't even know how to react, let alone what to do next. Rachel's heart ached for her best friend. They had been through the normal trials in their young lives, but nothing compared to this.

Rachel squeezed Haley's head and he nodded his head in understanding, smiling down reassuringly at her. Rachel fell a little bit more in love with Finn then. Even though he didn't get along with Puck, Finn understood that he needed her.

Rachel walked over to Puck, and the expression on his face didn't change. He still looked lost and confused, so Rachel did the only thing she could do: she hugged her best friend tightly.


Finn headed into the kitchen to see if his mother needed help with dinner. He was still a little thrown by what had happened earlier in the afternoon with Puck, Quinn, and Santana. It wasn't as if Finn didn't know how Quinn was—he dated her for a year, after all.

Finn hadn't been a good guy when he dated Quinn. They fought all the time, he messed around with other girls, and he wasn't that great of a boyfriend. He hadn't even been a good friend, for that matter. On the flip side, it wasn't as if Quinn had been an angel, either. She was whiny and demanding and was constantly complaining about Finn, no matter what he did.

Still, that didn't mean she had deserved the verbal whipping that Santana had dealt to her today. Quinn had somehow found happiness with Puck, just as Finn had found happiness with Rachel. They were both better people because of it.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Finn finally entered the kitchen and found his mother at the counter, where she was chopping up some vegetables. Carole seemed oddly distracted as she sliced up some peppers, and Finn was immediately concerned.

"Mom, are you okay?" he asked.

Carole set aside the night and looked towards her son with puffy eyes. Finn walked further into the kitchen and reached out towards his mother, taking her hand. She took a deep breath and lifted her chin.

"Finn, there's something that I need to tell you. And you need to know before your father tries to tell you."

Well, that sounded pretty ominous. "Mom…"

Carole took a deep breath and stepped away from Finn. "I had an affair," she stated without any preamble. "It was one of my business trips and it didn't mean anything, but it did happen. Your father has held it over my head ever since and had threatened to try and get custody of you."

"Mom," Finn repeated, but he didn't know what else to say. He could honestly say that he wasn't very surprised by what she had revealed. But he had no idea what to say in return.

"I was a coward," Carole continued. "I stayed married to your father so he couldn't get full custody of you, but I also stayed away so I wouldn't have to deal with him. I left you alone with him for years and I apologize for that. You deserve so much better than that, Finn."

Finn slowly shook his head. When he was younger, he had resented his mother for taking long business trips one after another. But the older he got, the more he understood it. If Finn had the chance, he would have taken trips just like those in order to get away from Chris. Finn was happy just when he got to see his mother. And with everything that had been happening lately, Carole was around much more.

"It's fine, Mom," Finn finally said.

Carole blinked at Finn in surprise. "What?"

Finn shrugged his shoulders. "It's fine." When Carole opened her mouth to protest, Finn held his hands up to stop her. "It probably wasn't the best choice that you could have made, but I understand why you did it. Chris isn't a good guy, Mom."

Instead of looking relieved by Finn's acceptance, Carole just looked sad. "I wish it didn't have to be like this," she murmured.

"Like what?" Finn asked curiously.

Carole smiled sadly. "You said Chris's name instead of calling him you father."

Finn pressed his lips together. He hadn't even realized that he had done it; it had just sort of slipped out. There were often times when Finn had wondered what it would be like if Chris had gone back to Anne and Puck instead of staying with Carole and Finn. Then Finn would be the one calling Chris Hudson by his given name while Puck would be calling him a father. The name had been just a slip, but of course his mother had picked up on it immediately.

"I didn't mean it," Finn said quietly. Even so, his voice was a little unsure. Carole nodded her head in understanding but otherwise let the subject drop. Finn hugged Carole tightly, and when he pulled back he said, "I'm going to choose you, Mom. There's no way that I'm living with Dad."

Carole nodded her head slowly. "I had a feeling you might. Don't worry, Finn. We'll fight him together."


Rachel sat down in the seat across from Puck at the café. He was staring forlornly at the sling his arm was in, and Rachel tapped her fingers on the table to get his attention. He managed a smile when he looked up at his best friend.

"So listen," Puck said before Rachel could start in on him for how bad he looked. "I'm still going to the Classic so I can watch the guys. Did you want to come with me?"

The Classic was a series of tournament games that all of the local high school football and cheerleading teams went through each year. It was a favorite of event of many students, given that the it was surrounded by so much fun. Rachel nodded her head eagerly.

"Sure!" she exclaimed. "I'd love to go. But Noah, you know that you have to—"

"I know, I have to rest," Puck gave Rachel a mildly amused look. "Trust me, I'm resting. My mom is making sure of it." Without giving Rachel a chance to continue scolding him (because she totally knew that he was training on the side), he continued, "Has Quinn said anything to you lately?"

Rachel bit her lip. That was certainly an awkward question. While Puck and Quinn's relationship had fallen apart, Quinn and Rachel had become even better friends. So Puck was constantly asking Rachel how Quinn was and if she had said changed her mind about her and Puck's relationship.

Thankfully, Rachel felt a familiar hand on her shoulder, and she turned just as Finn's lips pressed to her cheek in greeting. "Hello!" Rachel said. "How are you, Finn?"

For the first time in several days, Finn felt fully relaxed and stress-free. He grinned at Rachel and linked their fingers together under the table. "I'm good," was all he said, but he meant it.

Rachel squeezed Finn's fingers and gave him a bright smile. She sighed, however, when she caught sight of the sullen look on Puck's face. Finn noticed it as well, and he gave Rachel a questioning look.

"It's Quinn," Rachel explained. "Noah still isn't giving her space."

"I am so giving her space!" Puck exclaimed indignantly. "I haven't tried to talk to her, have I?"

Finn sniggered at Puck's childish outburst, and Rachel whacked him lightly in the chest. "Noah, if you're constantly asking about Quinn then you're not really giving her the room she needs. She just got into a huge fight with her best friend. Things are going to be a little rough for a while."

Puck crossed his arms over his chest and grumbled under his breath. Deciding to let him wallow for a little bit, Rachel turned towards her boyfriend and tugged excitedly on his hand. Finn gave her an indulgent look and gave her his full attention.

"Guess what?" she exclaimed.

"What?" Finn responded when Rachel didn't continue. He should have known that he would have to prompt her to reveal her obviously exciting news.

"I get to go to the Classic with you!" Rachel clapped her hands in glee and Finn grinned at her. He pressed a short kiss to her lips in celebration. He assumed correctly that Puck was the one who had invited her.

Before Finn could even thank Puck, however, the door to the café opened and Chris Hudson stepped in. He looked around for a moment with an expression of disdain on his face before he spotted both of his estranged sons. He smirked and made his way over to the table.

Finn sighed and his shoulders tensed. The playful mood that had been there just moments ago vanished, and Rachel slipped her hand into Finn's. She hoped to offer silent support, and she was encouraged when Finn's strong fingers wrapped around hers.

Chris didn't bother to greet any of them. Instead he said, "Finn, I wanted to know what time you would be moving in. I have your room all ready for you. I even had a weight room set up." Currently, Chris was renting out a nearby house as Carole had kicked him out of their home. She had even gone as far as to make sure that the locks had been changed so Chris couldn't enter the home at all.

Finn sucked in a long breath through his nose in an effort to calm himself. Keeping his voice as even as possible, he said, "I'm staying with Mom."

Obviously, Chris hadn't been expecting Finn's blunt answer. He blinked in surprise, but then the look was quickly masked. "I don't think so," Chris stated.

Finn didn't let his father's words try and sway him. He stood up and still kept his voice carefully measured. "Actually, I am going to live with Mom. You see, we did some research. And it turns out that I can pick where I want to go." When Chris opened his mouth to protest, Finn held up his hand to stop him. "And don't even try and say that you'll tell the judge Mom cheated on you. All I have to do is tell them how you kept me up practicing until three in the morning when I was thirteen years old, and the judge will let me go to Mom without any argument."

Chris's jaw clamped shut and his eyes flashed with anger. His nostrils flared and he stared Finn down. Finn remained unwavering, and then Chris turned his eyes of steel towards Rachel.

"This is your fault," he declared.

Puck shot out of his chair to stand next to Finn just as Finn snapped, "Don't you dare speak to her like that ever again!"

Chris just smirked again and stared between his two sons. Rachel stood up as well and slipped her hand into Finn's. She nudged Puck with her hip, and she was relieved when both acknowledged her with a smile. Chris just snorted before he shook his head and left the café.

As soon as the door shut behind Chris, Rachel exclaimed, "That was amazing! Both of you stood up to Chris!"

Finn sank down into his chair and pulled Rachel onto his lap. "That's not the end of it," he said. "I'm sure that he'll do something to try and screw this up."

Rachel kind of had the feeling that this wasn't the last they would see of Chris, either. So she distracted Finn by kissing him, smiling against his lips. Puck let this go on for a few moments before he started making gagging noises.

Rachel blushed but made a face at Puck. In response, he said, "Just because I'm okay with the two of you going out or whatever, doesn't mean I want to see you guys sucking face all the time." Waving off Rachel's retort, Puck looked at Finn and said, "That was pretty cool, though."

Finn stared Puck in the face and noted the complete sincerity there. An understanding passed between the two young men. Finn was willing to defend Rachel—especially against his own father. No matter what else happened between them, Puck knew that Finn would always be there for Rachel.

Finn nodded his head. "Yeah, it was."


"No no no! This cannot be happening right now!"

Santana ran down the hallway and banged on everyone's doors. There had to be someone—anyone—who could take the place of their missing cheerleader. Of course one of them would get food poisoning at the last second. The routine had to be done with ten cheerleaders, because that's how many people were registered.

Santana banged on the door next to hers and then immediately wished that she hadn't. It was Quinn's room. Normally, they would have been rooming together; it had been like that for the past two years at the Classic. But this year, Santana had refused to be anywhere near Quinn, let alone share a room with her.

"Hi Santana," Quinn said quietly. Even though her voice was small, she stood strong. Santana didn't bother to acknowledge that, however.

Santana sniffed. "I was going to ask for help, but I doubt that you could do anything," she said. But she happened to peer into the hotel room and caught sight of Rachel Berry sitting on one of the beds. Her eyes lit up and she blew past Quinn, immediately reaching for Rachel's arm.

"Tutor Berry!" Santana exclaimed. "You do the whole singing and dancing thing, right?"

Rachel was startled but Santana's sudden entrance into the hotel room. Ever since the big fight in the courtyard, Rachel hadn't had very much interaction with Puck's ex-girlfriend. Still, it was clear that Santana didn't hold any ill will towards her.

"Yes…" Rachel responded cautiously. She didn't really like the gleam that suddenly appeared in Santana's eye. And she really didn't like it when Santana yanked her off of the bed and began to tow her towards the door. She did this all without so much as acknowledging Quinn's presence.

"Santana, where are you taking me?" Rachel demanded as the Latina continued to drag her down the hallway.

"To where we're rehearsing for the Classic, of course! Layla got food poisoning, so she'll be out. You're good and dancing and all that shit, so you have to help us. I'm going to teach the routine to you and then you can perform with us!"

Rachel blinked in surprise as Santana pushed her into the room where the Titan cheerleaders were practicing. "Santana, I don't know—"

Rachel didn't even get the chance to politely decline Santana's offer. The cheerleader whipped around to face Rachel, her dark ponytail swinging wildly. But she looked at Rachel with pleading eyes, and she got the feeling that Santana Lopez didn't do this very often.

"Rachel, please," Santana implored. "I've been going through a lot of shitty stuff recently and I just really need to win the Classic, okay? I need to."

Rachel softened, to her complete surprise. She really and truthfully did feel bad for Santana Lopez. With a resigned sigh, Rachel nodded her head. Santana clapped her hands together and pushed her towards the cheerleaders that were gathered on the platform.

Rachel blew her bangs out of her face with a huff and walked towards the spot designated to her. This was going to be a long night.


Puck was laughing hysterically when Finn entered their hotel room. Beiste was the one who made the room assignments, and of course she thought she was being funny when she assigned Puck and Finn to the same room. They were managing, however. So far, there had only been one altercation over how loud the television was.

"What's so funny?" Finn asked.

Puck wiped at his eyes. He had been laughing so hard that he had actually been crying. "Did you hear what Santana convinced your girlfriend to do?"

Finn considered it an improvement that Puck wasn't sulking over Santana and was instead laughing. However, he also knew that Santana had a weird, twisted mind and had probably talked Rachel into doing something interesting.

"What?" he asked carefully.

Puck sniggered again. "They needed a new cheerleader because one of them got sick or something. So Santana got Rachel to…" Puck trailed off again because he was laughing so hard.

Catching on with what was happening, Finn's eyes went wide. "Are you serious?" he asked.

Puck nodded his head and fell back against the bed, clutching his stomach as he laughed. But all Finn could picture was Rachel and how she would look in a red and white cheerleading uniform. Leaving Puck in the room, Finn left and hurried down the hallway and to the room where he knew the cheerleaders were practicing.

Finn found Rachel just as she being fit into her cheerleading uniform. His eyes went wide as he took in the sight of the LHS emblazoned across Rachel's chest and the short skirt that flirted about her thighs. Rachel's hair was pulled back in the customary tight ponytail, and she turned around just Finn entered the room.

Her cheeks flushed bright red and she bit her lip. She tugged at the hem of the very short skirt and wiggled the fingers on her free hand at Finn. "Hello Finn," she greeted.

"Rachel," Finn breathed, unable to tear his eyes from her. She was unknowingly filling one of his fantasies. Right now, Finn's main concern was doing his best to keep himself from dragging Rachel to the nearest empty hotel room.

Santana rolled her eyes when she caught sight of the look on Finn's face. "Fine, you can borrow her for a few minutes. But I swear to God, Hudson. If you fuck up her hair at all, I will come after you."

Unfazed by Santana's threats, Finn reached for Rachel's hand and pulled her out of the rehearsal room and into the hallway. Before Rachel even had a chance to speak, Finn had her pressed up against the wall with his lips covering hers.

Rachel's arms slid around Finn's neck and her fingers locked in his thick hair. She returned his kiss with just as much fervor and passion, pressing herself against his body. Finn lifted her up, holding her under the thighs and Rachel was thankful that she was wearing a skirt. She could easily cradle Finn between her thighs.

"God, Rach," Finn groaned when he finally tore his lips from hers. He kissed down her neck but was careful not to leave any marks. He didn't need Santana killing either of them. "Do you get to keep the uniform?"

Rachel giggled and pressed her lips to the corner of Finn's mouth. "I take it that you like my new look, then."

"Rach, I always like the way you look," Finn told her honestly. "You're gorgeous, you know that?"

Rachel's cheeks turned pink again and she bit her lip. Finn growled (he actually growled) and tugged her lower lip out from between her teeth. He gently nipped at it and Rachel giggled.

Of course, Santana decided that it was the perfect time to ruin the moment. "Okay, I get that you guys are into each other or whatever, but Tutor Berry needs to get back in here so she can finish practicing with us. Now finish sucking faces and get in here."

Finn rolled his eyes, but he waved his hand as a way to let Santana know that they would be finished soon. Santana gave them a genuine smile before she disappeared back into the rehearsal room. Reluctantly, Finn set Rachel back down on her feet.

She smiled at him and stood up on her tiptoes, drawing him towards her again. Lacing her fingers behind his neck, Rachel brought Finn down to her level so that they could kiss once again. He had a goofy grin on his face when she pulled back that made her giggle.

"Hey Rach," he called just as she was about to into the rehearsal room.

Rachel turned and saw that Finn's eyes were very obviously focused on her exposed legs. When she laughed, Finn immediately returned his gaze to Rachel's face. "Hmm?" she prompted with an amused look.

Finn gave her that adorable half smile. "Do you think you might actually stay a cheerleader if this works out?"

Rachel took a moment to seriously contemplate her boyfriend's question. "I hadn't really thought about it," she said honestly. Then she blew Finn a kiss before she went back to rehearsal.

It was kind of nice to lose herself in the dance and pretend that they were all normal teenagers for once.


I'm thinking that there might be one more chapter for season one and then we'll finally get into season two! I have some pretty big ideas for that one. :)