I don't own Glee.

*/*

She knows he's doing it on purpose. She rejected him the other night and now he's bringing some tramp back to her house. Rachel can hear them laughing in the kitchen. Rachel tries to ignore them but finally drags herself out of the bed when she hears something, or someone, bumping into her bedroom door.

She kind of hates him because he's purposely trying to draw her out of her bedroom. He wants her to see him with someone else, but she really doesn't have time to nurse his bruised ego.

Rachel pulls her door open to find some girl pressing Puck into the wall a little way down the hallway. She ignores the pang in her chest and the tears fighting their way to her eyes when she meets Puck's gaze. He's staring right at Rachel but he doesn't stop kissing whatever woman he found at the bar to bring home.

Rachel barely has her bedroom door closed behind her before the tears are falling down her cheeks. She hates that she's crying but she hates even more that she can hear Puck leading the woman to his room and closing the door loudly behind them.

*/*

Puck is making breakfast when she wakes up in the morning. She really just wants to spend the day in her bedroom before she has to go to work but her stomach growls at her so she quickly dresses for work and trudges into the kitchen. He glances up at her for a second and then he's holding a plate of food out to her.

She almost doesn't take it but it looks really good and she hasn't had a decent meal in weeks.

"Is she gone?" Rachel asks quietly when she sits down at the table to eat.

"I sent her home last night." Puck nods and sat at the table across from Rachel.

"Of course you did," She clips the words out sharply.

Puck chews on his eggs for a few seconds before looking up at Rachel. "I didn't sleep with her, Rachel."

"I saw you," she counters, "in the hallway. You were kissing her."

"I know." He nods again. "But it didn't go further than that. I kept thinking about the other night and how you kissed me. I couldn't, Rachel. So I sent her home."

Rachel thought that over for a second and meets his wary gaze. "You didn't have sex with her?"

He shakes his head meekly. "I think I just wanted to hurt you."

"Well, you succeeded," Rachel whispers. "You let your stupid ego get in the way. I wasn't trying to hurt you the other night. We can't do that, Noah; we can't go there."

"It's temporary?" Puck repeats her words.

"Yes." She ducks her head.

"Well, what if I don't want it to be?" He asks quietly and she draws in an audible breath. "What if I don't want you to pretend like this never happened when you go back to New York?"

"You don't always get what you want, Noah. You knew the rules before you said yes to Matt. You knew this wasn't anything more than some kind of assignment." She pushes her chair back and stands. "I have to get to work. I'll eat breakfast there."

"I'll drive you," He offers quickly.

"No," Her voice sounds pleading. "I think I'll walk today. Sam or Brittany can give me a ride home tonight. I really don't want to be around you right now."

*/*

Rachel doesn't want to be here. She only agreed to let Sam and Brittany take her out to some club because she didn't want to go home and see Noah. She's kind of being childish with this cold shoulder thing but she thinks he deserves it. It's been a few nights since he brought that woman home, but she still hasn't forgiven him yet.

She doesn't mean to get a little drunk. Brittany keeps handing her these really delicious drinks with fruit in them and she only drinks four so she's not all that drunk. But her head feels fuzzy and it keeps her from thinking about Noah and how it felt to see him kissing some other woman so she doesn't refuse when Brittany offers her another one.

The music is loud and Rachel can't remember the last time she did this. The last time she went out with friends and actually had fun. She kind of forces Sam to come dance with her and he's reluctant because he doesn't really like to dance but he's got his hands on her hips while she moves her hips to the beat of the song pounding in her ears.

Rachel can see Brittany a few feet away and she's dancing with Santana, a friend of Puck's that Rachel just met tonight. Santana is really pretty, but Rachel notices the woman is a little uncomfortable because of this scar across her jaw line. Rachel is curious so she asks Sam while their dancing and he just tells her it's a long story and that Santana doesn't really like to talk about it.

So Rachel lets it go and decides she likes the way Sam's hands feel on her hips. His body is warm when she pushes back against him so she gets a little upset when he suddenly pulls away from her in the middle of a song.

She turns to ask him what's wrong but the words don't leave her mouth when she sees Puck walking into the club. Sam shoots her an apologetic look and walks off. Rachel just glares at his back and pushes away the urge to call him a pussy.

Rachel lets Puck pull her to a quiet corner of the club even though she's a bit reluctant, but she knows that if she doesn't let him say his peace, he'll probably throw her over his shoulder and carry her back home.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He hisses through clenched teeth and she rolls her eyes.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She decides to feign innocence and he snorts.

"I just got a call saying my girlfriend was grinding with Evans," He tells her.

"Who—?" She trails off when she follows his gaze to the man sitting in the booth beside Sam. She narrows her eyes because it's Mike Chang, another friend of Puck's she met tonight, and she frowns because she knew he looked sneaky when they were first introduced by Brittany. "It was nothing. And I'm not really your girlfriend so it doesn't matter."

"You and I may know this is some huge ass lie but everyone else in this town needs to think that we're together," He says harshly. "You may think this is some game, Rachel, but there's a reason Matt called a former beret. The guys that want you dead are dangerous, okay?"

"Okay," She nods and ducks her head. "I get it."

"Okay, then," He sighs. "Now I have to go kick Evans' ass. Can't let people think I share my woman with Trouty Mouth, now can I?"

Rachel rolls her eyes, but there's a small smile playing on her lips. "You're a Neanderthal."

"Whatever, Babe," He smirks because he knows they're okay now.

Rachel kind of feels sorry for Sam when she sees Puck leading him out of the club but she turns her attention back to the people in front of her. She's sitting between Santana and Brittany in the booth with Mike across from her and two other guys that just showed up.

One is Kurt and the other Blaine and if it weren't so obvious they were a couple, Brittany whispering that they were gay in her ear would have tipped her off. Kurt, the far more feminine of the two, wastes no time before dissecting the outfit she's wearing and she would have been offended if he didn't wink at her when he says her sweater is hideous.

"It's just a good think you're hot," Santana translates for her. "And obviously you're great in bed or Puck wouldn't be sticking around so long."

"How'd you convince him to move in with you?" Blaine asks curiously. "Puckerman is not the kind of guy that settles down with anyone."

Rachel shrugs. "I guess I'm just special."

"Right," Santana laughs halfheartedly. "There is only one girl in the entire world that Puck thinks is special and that's Beth."

"Beth?" Rachel asks immediately. Did Puck have some ex she didn't know about?

"Santana," Mike warns but now Rachel is determined to find out who Beth is. "Not now."

"She's living with the guy but she doesn't know Beth is?" Santana raises a brow. "Sounds to me she isn't that special if he hasn't told her that story."

"It's not your story to tell," Puck says when he walks back over to the table with Sam. "Do you mind to tell me what the hell your problem is?"

"Who's Beth?" Rachel asks but it seems she's being ignored since everyone is looking back and forth between Santana and Puck.

"I think I need a trip to the lady's room." Santana saunters off and Puck rolls his eyes before taking the seat beside Rachel.

"Bitch," Puck calls after her and Rachel catches Santana flipping him the bird.

"Who is Beth?" Rachel repeats.

"He'll tell you when he's ready," Brittany whispers in Rachel's ear and the smaller brunette woman decides to let the subject drop. For now.

The alcohol is wearing off and now Rachel is starting to get tired. But she doesn't say anything because Puck seems to be having a good time catching up with his friends, some of them he hasn't really seen or talked to since he was eighteen. It isn't until her eyelids are drooping and her head is finding a nice warm spot of Puck's shoulder that Puck tells them he has to go.

She wants to tell him she's fine and that she doesn't mind staying for a little longer so he can hang out some more with his friends but she really is tired and she kind of likes the way he lets her lean on him as they walk out to his car. Puck hums on the way home and it's barely audible over the sound of the motor, but she likes it, and he smiles when she tells him so.