Title:Slushied
Chapter: 5 (Relieved)
Genre: Friendship/ Hurt/ Comfort/ Romance
Pairings: Puckleberry, Sam/Quinn, Finn/Quinn/Rachel/Sam/Puck friendship,
Word Count: 2013 words
Summary:As much as they hated it, slushies were a significant part of their lives in Mckinley High.

Puck turned the engine of his truck off and took a quick glance at the girl beside him, her head on the window with her eyes closed. She was still shaking though, and not for the first time, Puck wanted nothing more than to pummel Karofsky to the ground. He shuddered to think of what might have happened had he just walked out as he had originally planned and left Rachel alone. Sam and Finn had been too engaged in hurting each other and Quinn had totally been kicking Ericson's ass with the Black chick who reminded him of Jennifer Hudson every time she opened her mouth.

Making as little noise as he could, he got out of his truck and went over to her side, opening the door and awakening her in return.

"Noah?" her groggy voice was like music to his ears and for the first time in a long while, he smiled at her. He nodded and slipped his arms around her, carrying her out of his truck and into her house. He was surprised at how quickly Rachel took to making him her pillow as she leaned her head against his chest.

Never had he felt so right holding a girl in his arms. As slowly as he could, he laid her on her bed, drawing her blankets before running his hand through her hair. He watched as her shaking slowly ceased and a peaceful smile, small yet one that made his heart soar, before kissing her on her forehead. He withdrew his hand and just as he was about to leave, a small voice called out.

"Noah," she looked at him through sleepy eyes, holding out a hand. "Please don't leave."

He could not deny her anything any longer. He'd put her through so much these past few weeks and the least she deserved was an apology from him. It was time he stopped acting like the asshole his father would have been proud of and started being Noah, the boy Rachel saved from his father with her big eyes of doom and her heart of gold. It was time to start being Noah, the boy who was worthy of Rachel Berry.

And so, he nodded as he closed her bedroom door, slipping onto her bed beside her. Noah put his arms around her and as he felt her breathing against him, he closed his eyes and hugged her closer. And it was then he realised that with Rachel Berry in his arms, he was not Puck, he was Noah. And being Noah felt really good.

xxx Slushied xxx

Sam followed Quinn into the Berry household later that day, smiling when he saw Puck's truck in the driveway. It was about time Puckerman got his head out of his ass. Sam made his way into the kitchen, raising his eye at Quinn when she made him sit on the table. The blonde rolled her eyes at his obliviousness and took a pack of ice out of the freezer.

"You know, you really should cut Finn some slack," she said as she pressed the pack of ice gently over his bruised eyes.

"I will when he does," Sam retorted, frowning when Quinn sighed. "Why is it so important to you anyway? I mean, it's not like you're best friends or anything."

"He's still my friend, Sam," she said softly. "He was there for me when no one else was."

"Yeah, and so was Rachel and Puck. And what about me? I've been there for you too," he could hear how jealous he sounded even to his own ears. Quinn pressed the pack of ice even harder and Sam winced, muttering a quick apology when he saw her condescending look.

"I'll always be grateful for what you've done for me, Sam," she said softly as she made herself comfortable on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her, ice pack forgotten, as he looked into her gorgeous green eyes. "You're the reason I've never been happier in my life. But I had a life before you came into McKinley. And I've done things I'm not proud of and I've suffered the consequences for it. Finn was there for me when I had to suffer those consequences."

Sam sighed as he leaned his forehead against hers. It wasn't the first time Quinn had mentioned her life before him. He knew it wouldn't be the last but now that he knew that Finn had been there when no one else was, the least he could do was cut the guy some slack. Even if Finn was a total asshole to him.

"Are you ever going to tell me?" he asked.

He watched as she gulped and his heart ached at the thought of her not trusting him enough even after all they had been through. Slowly, as she raised her eyes to look into his, he saw the resolution in her eyes, the trust she had for him as she gave him the smile he hoped was only for him.

"When I'm ready," she promised. "I'm just not ready to face the past yet."

He hated the way she looked away to hide her tears and put his fingers to her chin and made her face him. He wiped away the tears himself and put his hand on her cheeks.

"Well, I'll be here when you're ready," he reassured her and before he even realised what was going on, they were both leaning in.

Their lips met in a gentle lip lock and Sam could not help but feel like the luckiest guy in the world. When they finally pulled away, their eyes met and they both grinned.

xxx Slushied xxx

Rachel woke up the next morning to a familiar set of arms around her and she smiled as she buried her head into his chest, enjoying the safe haven she felt she was in. She heard Noah chuckle and looked up at him, eyes shining with hope and she beamed when he smiled his special smile at her.

"I see you've come to your senses," she said matter-of-factly and raised her eyebrows when Noah had the decency to look ashamed. He opened his mouth to, no doubt, apologize but Rachel just shook her head. "Forget it, Noah."

"Rach, I was being a jackass. You didn't deserve any of what I did," he said and Rachel got up from her bed, putting her hands on her hips as she looked at him sternly.

"I think you made up for it by saving me from that buffoon yesterday," she shrugged. "What do you want for breakfast?"

"You have every right to be mad, Rachel," he said softly and Rachel felt her smile slip off her face. She looked at him, heart racing as he looked at her apologetically. "You believed in me when I didn't believe in you. That was not fair to you and you have every right to be mad at him, even if you think I saved you yesterday."

Silence engulfed the room as Rachel continued staring at him, and slowly, she felt the tears well in her eyes as she remembered the harsh words he had said to her, the slushy attack he had sat by and watched and things he did to push her away. Slowly, she felt the rush of anger flowing through her and she glared at him, eyes watering with angry tears.

Watching the tears in her eyes well up, Noah cursed inwardly as he took a step towards her. He knew he deserved everything she was going to throw at him and he was prepared for it. What he was not prepared for was the hurt in his heart at the sight of her tears. He watched as she struggled to find the words to hurl at him, her eyes betraying how angry and hurt she was. Man, he felt like shit.

"Hey guys, how does scrambled eggs sound for breakfast?" Quinn barged into the room and Noah heaved a sigh of relief. The blonde gasped as she saw the way Rachel looked and rushed to her friend's side, glaring at Noah accusingly the whole time. "Rach, what's wrong?"

"Noah Puckerman!" her scream was loud and shrill and suddenly, Noah wished he was anywhere but with her. Because damn, Berry was scary when she was mad. His eyes widened and he bolted from the room as she charged after him with her cordless microphone, ignoring Quinn's attempts to stop her from yelling like a mad person. "Stay out of this, Quinn!"

He ducked behind the couch as she threw her microphone at him, eyes wide as microphone banged onto the wall behind him. "Damn it, Berry! This was not what I meant!"

"You frustrating Neanderthal!" her voice choked as she glared at him, setting her hands on her hips after angrily wiping her tears. Puck sent a pleading look to Quinn, glaring at Sam when the blonde quarterback just held her back, a smirk etched on his 'you-totally-had-this-coming-you-bastard' expression.

"I know I deserve your anger," he said softly, his eyes never leaving her angry, but beautiful, face. "Fuck, Rach, I know you deserve so much more. I never meant to hurt you."

Rachel gave a sarcastic laugh at that, a sound so unlike her it made his heart sink. Even Sam, who had previously been enjoying Rachel's anger at him, frowned while Quinn just looked sad. Damn it, this was not turning out well for any of them.

"Two months, Noah. Two fucking months!" she shrieked, finally letting out her bottled up feelings. Feelings she never once told anyone, not even her best friend. Feelings she thought would weaken her resolve to get Noah to realize that he was worth more than the pathetic loser he deemed himself to be. "Two months I had to deal with your stupid insecurities and worries about how you'd end up like your father. Two months I had to deal with your insensitive comments that made me insecure about things I've been sure about my whole life. Two fucking months without you in my life was like two lifetimes because that's how much you mean to me now."

She was panting, tired from her rant even though she knew half the things she said probably did not make sense. Across the room, Noah was looking at her as though he was looking at her for the first time. His gaze made her heart race, like it always did, but she was too angry to care about how sorry he looked too.

God, how stupid he was to think he was even remotely like his father. Noah cared, he loved and he was worth way more than his father. How she wished she could convince him of that. But the look in his eyes told her that he still doubted himself, still thought that one way or another, he was going to end up as a Lima Loser, just like his father.

As her anger ebbed down, Rachel walked towards him, her hands reaching for his face. "You are so much more than your father ever was, Noah. I don't know how else to prove it to you. You saved your mother and sister from him. You protected them. You're not going to end up like him. I won't let you."

He believed her. For the first time in such a long while, Puck believed every word she said. God, he had been so stupid. He let the tears cloud his eyes, knowing that if anybody deserved to see them it was the beautiful girl in front of him. Slowly, he reached for her and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her head as she cried into his chest, the stress of the past two months finally relieved.

"I'm sorry," he muttered. "I'm so sorry."

Behind them, Sam and Quinn smiled at each other as they left the living room so that both Puck and Rachel could be alone, happy that the drama was over. For now, at least.

A/N: Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm so sorry for the totally late update but I promise that it won't happen again now that my exams are over! Yeah, so there'll be more time for writing and updating and all the other things I have been putting off for a while. Keep reviewing if you're still interested please! :)