It's a Quarter After One

AN: I love music. This two-shot (yes, I've progressed past one-shots) is brought to you by Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now". I'm not gonna put the lyrics with this, except for one line that inspired this whole mess. But, trust me, it's a beautiful song that I've been listening to on repeat for two days now. So, here y'all go. BTW, I don't own Glee or "Need You Now". Oh, and I decided that while Puck may be badass, something tells me he'd be a friendly drunk.

It's a quarter after one

I'm a little drunk

And I need you now

Buzz…buzz…buzz…

Rachel groggily sat up, grasping for her phone. A glance at the clock showed it to be 1:14 am. Who would call her at this hour?

"Whoever this is, you should know that you have interrupted my REM cycle and I am already greatly displeased with you."

"Damn, Berry, I didn't catch a word of that."

"Noah?"

"What's up?"

"Is there any particular reason that you've decided to contact me in the middle of the night?"

"I'm on your front porch."

"Excuse me?"

"I started going over to Finn's, but then I remembered that he still doesn't like me, and that Quinn's still there, and that would have been a mess. And then, I figured out that I probably shouldn't be driving at all, and then I saw your house."

"I'm coming." Rachel sat up, grabbing a hair tie from her bedside table. Once her hair was pulled up and her slippers were on, she trudged to the front door. Upon opening it, she saw Puck sitting down, half leaning against the doorframe.

"Hey there, Berry!"

"How much did you have to drink?" She asked, pulling him to his feet.

"Um…"

"That much, huh?" She towed him into the house and sat him down on the couch.

"You know what's trippy? You dress like a normal person when you're not at school." Rachel looked down at her outfit. She was wearing a black tank top and red sweat pants.

"You consider pajamas normal dressing? I no longer have any difficulties understanding your ridicule of my wardrobe."

"Most days, Berry, you confuse me. At least drunk your big words are funny." She rolled her eyes and tugged him back up.

"Come on, Noah. Shower, water, then bed. You understand that?"

"Sure." He followed her lead up a set of stairs to a room down the hall. She pushed him in and turned on the light. As she started to close the door, she heard him ask, "Aren't you gonna help me undress?"

"Pig." After a few moments and a few thumps, she heard the shower start. She headed to the kitchen and gathered her supplies: Two bottles of water, a bottle of aspirin, and the spare waste can. She was setting up in the guest room when the water stopped. Waiting by the door, she contemplated covering her eyes, worried that with his attitude and current inebriation he might come out naked. Her fears were nullified when he came back out in his jeans and t-shirt. She silently took his hand and led him to the guest room.

"Aw, not your room, Berry, I'm disappointed."

"Noah, as I have asked you multiple times, please call me Rachel. Unlike you, I prefer my given name." He flopped down on the bed, which he was pleased to find was a double. "There's water and aspirin next to the bed, which I'm sure you'll need in the morning. The trash can is next to the bed. Please don't vomit on the sheets." She turned to leave.

"Rachel?" His voice sounded different. "Can you stay for a bit?" She sighed.

"Sure." It always started that way, didn't it? She took a seat next to where he was laying and then reached over and grabbed a water bottle. "Drink this. So, what was the cause behind your current state?"

"Who says there's a reason?" He asked, before chugging half the bottle.

"Parties tend to be after sporting or social events. Neither of these occurred tonight."

"Always thinking, aren't you?" She stayed silent, waiting for his reason. "Fine, I guess I owe you since I'm in your guest room. I," He paused, "Quinn texted me. She and Finn are talking again."

"He's still not speaking to you?"

"Not a word."

"Have I mentioned how poorly I feel for my involvement in the disclosure? Sometimes my logic tends to get in the way of my reason." She was surprised to hear him laugh.

"That one I got. You can be pretty funny when you're trying. And not using words I'd only hear in a spelling bee." She chuckled back. "Hell, I wanted Finn to know. I'm no deadbeat. That's my kid. But… she said that she's grateful for my help, but she still 'considers' Finn the father."

"Noah…"

"Damn girl won't let me be a father. I guess I don't care if she decides to put her up for adoption, but until then, it's my job!" He held his head, his shouting inducing a headache.

"Shh, you'll hurt yourself." She took the now empty water bottle from him and tossed it into the waste can.

"I lied earlier."

"Hm?"

"The second she texted me, I planned to come here. I knew you'd listen, because while you may make me want to light myself on fire at times, you're just crazy enough to believe the best in people."

"Was that a complement?"

"Yep. You believed in me during our kinda dating thing and you didn't yell at me or ignore me after the whole baby thing. And you were nice to Quinn. And, I heard about that one time you slapped Finn, and as much as he's my boy, he deserved it. You do the right thing, Rachel." The speech was touching to Rachel, even though he slurred half the words and yawned halfway through.

"Go to sleep, Noah."

"While I'm awake, why don't I have one of your fathers in my face?"

"Every now and then they take a weekend away. I stay home and watch West Side Story and eat ice cream."
"Cool." He rolled over and was quiet for a bit. Rachel didn't know if she should leave or not. She moved a little, and was startled when he spoke again. "How do you know how to handle drunk people?"

"A few summers ago, my uncle died." She shifted so she was lying down as well. "My two cousins and my aunt came to stay with us. My cousin Abigail was 16, and Nathan was 19. He came in drunk and she took care of him. It wasn't her first time having to do so. That summer we had to take care of him a lot."

"Well thanks." They stayed there in silence. After a bit, Rachel heard his breathing even out. She sat up to take a look at him. When he was sleeping, he looked softer. Without thinking, she leaned over and kissed him gently on the forehead. She almost stood up, but then she chose to lie back down.

When he awoke the next morning, Puck reached for the water and aspirin without looking. After downing a few pills, he opened his eyes and was surprised to see a sleeping Rachel Berry next to him. He had faint memories of talking to her, but he hadn't expected her to stay with him. He blamed the hangover when his hand reached out and gently traced her cheek. She was pretty when she wasn't freaking out over something. He decided to head home, since his mom was probably concerned about where he was. He slowly made his way out of the room and downstairs. Not wanting to seem like an ungrateful jerk, he headed to the kitchen to leave her a note. He laughed when he saw there was a note waiting for him.

Good morning, Noah. I figured you'd leave before I was up. It's fine. I should have had you call your mother last night. Take some aspirin, if you haven't already, and sleep this weekend. And, if you ever need to talk, feel free to call or come over. Drunk or sober. :-) Rachel

He smiled. Maybe, just maybe, he'd break his asshole streak and be friends with Rachel Berry.

AN: Well, I hope you enjoyed Drunk Noah as much as I have. There will be a part two to this, in which our own Rachel Berry will be drunk. Trust me, you don't want to miss it!! It'll be up probably sometime Sunday, at latest Monday.