puckerman-unlv:

Despite the grim situation, having Quinn around again was something he was more than happy about and missed a lot more than he probably should have in just the few days that she’d avoided him. He hadn’t ever been particularly good at comforting people, mostly because the only person he’d ever had to comfort in his life was his little sister, but with Quinn just being together seemed to make things okay for the both of them for a least a little while. He couldn’t help but sigh when she denied his idea to go to court. The not yet seemed like a fair agreement, but he still couldn’t stand the idea of this guy walking around with the idea that he could get whatever he wanted from Quinn. He’d threatened her life on top of dozens of other things, and that wasn’t something he was okay with.

This was her decision, though. And while he didn’t agree with it, he could understand letting things just cool off first. As long as he stayed with her at all times until she went through with testifying and everything, then he could be okay with it. He was already planning on working his schedule around walking her to and from classes. That was if she even went to her classes. If he could, he’d encourage her to do as much as she could online just to avoid him. “Soon. We can’t just let a guy like that walk around like he owns the place. He hurt you. If you don’t do something, it could happen again to another girl in the future.” He sighs and shakes his head. “But I promise, Quinn. I won’t let him touch you. I won’t even let him get near you.” He leaned in close and nuzzled his nose against her temple as he rubbed her sides soothingly. 

She knew that Puck was right, and the thought of the dean doing the same thing to another girl made her stomach lurch involuntarily. She didn’t want to be afraid or vulnerable, but she really couldn’t stop the feeling of nausea coursing through her body. All that mattered was that he was supporting her, and that with his help, she’d be able to move forward in her life and potentially get past all of this. She swallowed the lump in her throat when he claimed he’d protect her, because it was something that she already knew, and yet was more than pleased to actually hear out loud. Quinn didn’t want him going too far in his drive to keep her safe, but it was nice to know that he would if he had to.

The two of them fell into a comfortable silence, her head resting on his shoulder and his arms wrapped securely around her. The shaking had subsided, and she didn’t feel quite so alone. “I’m sorry.” She mumbled quietly, because she still felt ashamed of the fact that she hadn’t told him, and she prayed that he wouldn’t wake up the next morning and realize he was actually angry with her. “I know I should’ve told you sooner. Especially after you sharing your secrets with me. I just didn’t know how.”

(Source: unlvquinn)

puckerman-unlv:

Puck waited almost nervously while Quinn was in the shower. He had to force himself to stay put and not to let his anger get the best of him. It was about Quinn tonight and making her feel okay and all of the hatred pent up towards the dean would have to wait. He was pretty distracted with all of this anyway. He couldn’t help himself but go back and think of all the times where she’s made up an excuse for something to hide the fact that she had to be with the dean. He may have been the slightest bit upset by it, but not towards her in the slightest. She didn’t want this and she’d tried to stop it and that was the most he could ask for. At least now he knew why she’d pushed him away so many times. He had been starting to worry that she really didn’t like him as much as he thought. So even through the darkness of the situation, it was nice to have that little bit of reassurance. 

He contemplated on checking on her when it seemed like she was taking awhile, but he also figured she needed the time to herself to regroup. He waited as patiently as possible, sinking into the couch and tilting his head back while he rested his eyes. It wasn’t until he felt Quinn curling up alongside him that he opened his eyes again, reaching out and pulling her close to him, his fingers running through her damp hair as he looked at her with as much compassion and care as he could muster. Now that she was there it was easier to focus solely on her and not about the situation. Even though it still needed to be addressed. As much as he’d like to put it all behind them, that couldn’t happen until things were sorted out regarding the dean. “You have to take him to court, Quinn.” He murmured gently after a minute. “I know you’re scared, but you can’t let him get away with it, baby.”

Quinn tried to think of the positives in the situation, like the fact that she could be completely honest with Puck about everything, and that now he would be able to help her when she needed him - something she was pretty sure was going to happen more often that not now. And plus, once she got all of her shit together and had a week or two to make sure her life was in order, they could be together. There was nothing stopping them anymore. No guilt on her end, or secrets. Everything was out in the open, and that was something she could honestly be happy about. Bringing her knees up to her chest, she let her tired eyes close as her body rested against his, feeling safe now that he was there. She could only hope that what had happened wouldn’t stem a fear in her of being alone.

“I can’t.” She rasped, shaking her head. There was still so much that he could take away from her. Puck, and school, and her apartment. Everything. She had to keep things under wraps for a while, at least until she graduated, or figured out what she was going to do with the rest of her life somewhere other than Vegas. Maybe she could move to her parents’ place in Florida. But for whatever reason, she felt a certain attachment to the city, and knew it was the boy sitting next to her. “Not yet.” Quinn finished, because she wanted him to know that she wasn’t weak or frail in any way.

(Source: unlvquinn)

puckerman-unlv:

No matter how angry he was, it was definitely impossible to leave Quinn when she needed him the most. After all, he didn’t want to risk things just yet. Having been a cage fighter this long and hating every minute of it, he should realize by now that violence isn’t the answer to this kind of thing. Even though it was totally bullshit for this kind of situation. He definitely intended on giving the dean a piece of his mind and a piece of his fist, but tonight Quinn needed him and he needed to be there for her like she had been for him this whole time. She’d found out his biggest secret weeks ago and she’d been nothing but comforting to him about it, and he deserved the same for what she’d come clean about. There were other ways to take care of the dean, and he’d make sure they were taken care of by the end of tomorrow. 

He let out a deep breath, calming himself down before lacing his fingers in hers and squeezing her hand. “I’m not going anywhere, babe.” He murmured, bringing her knuckles to his lips and kissing gently before carefully guiding her to stand up. He’d been so wrapped up in everything else he’d barely noticed how torn her clothes were and the sight alone made him sick at what the dean could have done to her. “Let’s get you out of these clothes.” He murmured softly, pulling her into his arms again and rubbing her back soothingly before kissing her temple before leading her down the hall to his room. He went to his dresser, fishing through his drawer before taking out one of his band t-shirts and walking it over to her. “If you wanna shower you can. Then you can wear this. I’ll be right here when you get out.” He said softly. He’d have offered to shower with her, but he didn’t want it to turn in to anything sexual. He could understand her just needing him to be there for her emotionally, and he wanted to prove to her that he could be.

A sense of relief washed over her body when he promised he wasn’t going anywhere, because she didn’t think she’d ever needed anyone more than she needed him right then. And the fact that he was being so considerate and gentle with her made her feel one hundred times better. She just wished it was enough to make all of the pain go away. Though, she knew that could potentially happen by the end of the night, just as long as he stayed with her. There was a part of her that worried maybe he’d leave while she was in the shower, but she knew he was too worried about her general safety to leave her all alone. Plus, he wasn’t a complete jackass. Nodding her head slowly, she tried her best to give him a smile, although it was next to impossible. Sniffling, she closed her eyes as he kissed her forehead before turning around and making her way to the shower, the shirt resting tightly against her chest as she walked on shaky legs.

She turned on the shower as hot as it would go, praying that maybe it would wash away all of the shame and embarrassment that she felt. When her entire body was beet red, she curled up in the corner and brought her knees up to her chest, letting her eyes get rid of whatever tears they still wanted to shed since being in Puck’s company. After she was finished, she didn’t bother blow drying her hair, knowing that he wouldn’t care what she looked like tonight. Plus, she didn’t have the drive to stay standing for that long. Shrugging the shirt over her head, she let her hair hang in damp tendrils as she made her way back to the living room, not saying anything as she curled up beside him.

(Source: unlvquinn)

puckerman-unlv:

He watched her carefully once she was able to settle into the couch, anxiously awaiting what she had to say. Before she even said anything, he knew it wouldn’t be good. He could only imagine he’d get upset about whatever it was, but what she’d said was something he really hadn’t expected in the least. He furrowed his eyebrows, trying to let it sink in before reacting. Sure, he might have felt a little bitter that she’d been sleeping with someone else this whole time, but that wasn’t even a minor issue compared to what was really going on. The dean hurt her. He’d been hurting her this whole time, and he’d been too much of an idiot wrapped up in this fantasy of her being impossibly perfect to even realize that anything to this extent could be going on. Everything from her avoiding him to denying him every time he tried to make things official was finally all clicking. But none of that mattered. This bastard had been taking advantage of her and assaulting her all this time and he was getting away with that. He’d made it his mission to protect her, and he clearly hadn’t been doing enough to make sure it was happening.

It took a minute to get over the initial shock and trying to process everything before he could react. He finally looked at her, his eyebrows still knit together before standing up and letting the anger that had been building ready to explode. He ran a hand through his mohawk as she shook his head furiously. “I’m going to kill him. I’m going to fucking kill him.” He growled, because while he knew he needed to comfort her, his instincts were kicking in and his adrenaline was about to go through the roof. He paced for a minute, glancing at Quinn a few times with an expression of both worry and the hint of anger, not at all directed towards her. Just seeing her so broken and hurt made it impossible not to want to strangle the man who’d made her that way. He took a deep breath going back to lean down in front of her, gently taking her cheeks between his hands again. “He’s never going to lay a hand on you again, Quinn. I promise. I’m not going to let him touch you ever again.” He mumbled, kissing her forehead before standing up again and glancing at his jacket, debating actually going to beat the shit out of him for doing this to her.

She hadn’t meant for him to get as angry as he did, and had she known it would happen, she probably wouldn’t have told him at all. She didn’t want to do anything that could jeopardize his own safety, or anything of the sort. He’d worked hard to stay in school, and she knew that beating up the dean like he wanted to would put him at risk to be not only expelled, but arrested. Her worries were mainly for him, but there was also the selfish part of her that knew she couldn’t be without him. She needed him around. Her breath caught in her throat, and suddenly she was frantic again. “You can’t!” She protested, reaching forward to take one of his hands between both of hers, making sure he stayed in place. “He’ll find out I told you.” She cried, shaking her head. 

She wanted to believe him when he said the dean would never touch her again, but she’d found out lately that whatever he wanted, he got. And apparently that was her. All the times he’d told her he loved her, and that he wanted to leave his wife for her; it made her sick to think about it. As if she’d ever even reciprocated those feelings. Puck was standing again, and Quinn swallowed the lump in her throat. ”Please.. stay with me. Don’t leave.” Quinn knew she was acting pathetic and clingy, but she had to do whatever she could to make sure Puck didn’t go anywhere and get himself into trouble.

(Source: unlvquinn)

puckerman-unlv:

Puck didn’t know what to make of his relationship with Quinn anymore. Something that had started out so amazing was suddenly crumbling right before his eyes and he had absolutely no idea why. At first he thought maybe he was just being overbearing, but he knew Quinn well enough to know that there was something going on. He just hated having no idea what it was and that she wouldn’t tell him. The whole thing made him feel guilty when he had no idea what there was to feel guilty for. But she’d been right. She was the only one that believed in him and it killed him to think that he was suddenly going to lose her. He knew that things had happened between them pretty fast, but it didn’t mean he cared about her any less. It almost killed him to think about a life without her. 

The frustration from everything going on with Quinn didn’t prove to be a bad thing, though. He won his fight quickly that night and was home earlier than usual, something he wasn’t complaining about. Although, it didn’t really matter in his opinion. Quinn wasn’t there and sleeping had been a lost cause as she continued to pull away from him. Try as he may, the thoughts of her pushing him away for good and ignoring him wouldn’t go away. Despite that he tugged his shirt over his head and took a deep breath as he collapsed onto his bed, focusing on getting to sleep. Just when he thought there was maybe a chance he heard knocking on the door. He jumped a bit but quickly got up to answer the door, knowing there was only one person who would show up this late at night.

Seeing Quinn when he opened the door was at first a giant wave of relief. That was until he noticed the way her body shook with sobs, her face red and tear stained from the crying. He quickly pulled her into his arms, looking for any way to calm her down before asking any questions. He pulled her into the apartment, shutting the door behind him with his foot as one hand ran through her hair and the other rubbed her back soothingly. “Shhh.” He mumbled softly against her ear, his eyebrows furrowed in utmost concern. When she finally seemed to get a grip on the crying he pulled back enough so he could look at her face. “Q, what happened?” He said in a steady voice, more of a demand than a question. She’d been keeping things from him for too long now and this was enough proof that something serious was going on.

It seemed like as soon as the door was open, the weight that had been heavy on her heart was suddenly lifted. She figured she should’ve known that after the impeccably terrible day she’d been having, just the sight of Puck would make all of it dwindle. Even more so when he immediately pulled her into his arms, his bare skin hot against the thin fabric of her shirt, warming her up in the best possible way. Still, she wasn’t any less terrified, and she didn’t feel any less disgusting about the things that had happened between her and the dean less than an hour before. Quinn melted into his body, her arms wrapping around his neck and her fingers clinging to whatever she could get a hold of, consequently the hair at the back of his neck. She didn’t know how long they stayed in that position - her nose nuzzled into the crook of his neck and her arms wrapped tightly around him, clinging to him for dear life. She knew she had to explain things to him, and that it couldn’t possibly wait any longer. She couldn’t be by herself with it anymore. She needed him to protect her and take care of her and show her any form of comfort.

When she finally got a grip on her sobs, she let out a shaky breath as he pulled away. His palms were gentle against her cheeks, his voice even more so, and she felt her eyes well up with tears once more when they met his. But she was strong, and she knew this was something she couldn’t avoid anymore. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she reached behind them to lock his door, just in case. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d been followed, and that she was putting both of them in danger by showing up. Sucking her bottom lip between her teeth, she led him toward the couch, allowing him to sit next to her. Her head was hung in shame, and she was barely able to get the words out. “What you saw with the dean last week.. it wasn’t nothing.” Quinn started, trying to phrase it properly. “He’s been giving me the tests so I can sell them to students. But he doesn’t do it for free.” She swallowed the lump in her throat once more, feeling worse than ever. “We’ve been sleeping together.” She choked out, looking down at her hands in her lap. “I’ve been trying to end it since I met you, I promise. But he just gets angry.” She was becoming frantic, terrified that he would leave her. “And then today..” Quinn shook her head, another sob leaving her lips as she closed her eyes. “I needed to try one more time because I can’t hurt you anymore. I told him we had to stop, but he just wouldn’t listen. He said he’d kill me if I told anyone.” Her body was still shaking, partially from the fear and partially because of the fact that she was crying. “I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you. I’ve just been so scared.”

(Source: unlvquinn)

Lately, Quinn had been feeling more and more discouraged about the direction her life was ultimately heading in. She’d been so positive thanks to Puck, and now it was almost as if he hadn’t made an impact on her at all, which wasn’t the case. But the fact that the dean had more power over her now than ever only led her to believe that things would never change; Puck would never be able to understand that she was sleeping with someone else, so a relationship could never form between them. She couldn’t tell him what was happening, and she continued to deny him every time he brought up the fact that they were unofficial. Sooner or later, she knew he’d get tired of her games and move on with someone else, no matter how much he seemed to like her. The thought of him with someone else made her stomach churn, to the point where she had almost tricked herself into thinking that it was actually happening. And for whatever reason, this caused her to be cold to him, and shy away from all of his advances. Quinn hated thinking that she was potentially hurting him, but she had virtually no idea what move to make next.

It wasn’t until she realized how unfair she was being to him that she decided she needed to make a change. She was an adult, and she was the only person who was allowed any kind of control of her life. She refused to let someone else take advantage of her. And if she got expelled or he flunked her, she would have to deal with it. It would be the consequences of her own actions, after all. Not to mention the fact that she would have Puck around to pick her up after she fell. The smile on her face as she made her way to his office was almost cynical, because there was nothing happy about what had been going on. But she couldn’t help the fact that she was excited about all of it being over.

Though, the dean had different ideas. When she tried to end things once and for all, he became angry, the same way he always seemed to. One hand wrapped tightly around her neck, he backed her up against the wall. Her clothes laid ripped and tattered on the floor, his free hand covering her mouth to stifle her screams of pain and protest. The only thing he had to say for himself once he was finished was that if she told anyone, he would kill her. That was after he told her she wouldn’t be needed at the tutoring center anymore. Defeated and shaky, Quinn went to the only place she could think of that made her feel safe. Her shoulders shook with sobs as she knocked on Puck’s door, knowing it was late and he was probably still angry with her for being cold with him, but praying he would allow her to come inside.