The one and only Noah Puckerman at your service. You can currently find me checking out the beautiful sandy beaches of Bora Bora for a few weeks as I rock out this wedding with everyone. After that my life is up in the air. I do know one thing, I won't end up stuck back in Lima. Nineteen years was more than enough. I need to live someplace with more fun, a lot more sun, and of course more women in bikinis. Hell, maybe I'll claim this grass hut I'm currently staying in as my own for more than just a vacation. Now those memories come back to haunt me they haunt me like a curse Is a dream a lie if it don't come true Or is it something worse
GENERAL NOTES → I can say the same right back to you.
Slowly opening his eyes, Puck blinked a few times as he attempted to adjust to the vast amount of sunlight he was greeted with. Even under the cover of the trees that they couldn’t escape, the sun shown brightly threw. It was a stark comparison to the dark cold night he’d seen last before he’d closed his eyes. Forcing his body to sit up, every ache and pain was a quick reminder of the situation that they were still in. Day two of the living nightmare, and he still hadn’t found a way to wake up from it. Rubbing the back of his hand over his eyes, he tried to wipe away the sleep that not only clouded his vision but his mind. The previous day had left him so spent, that even the hard cold ground hadn’t kept him from falling asleep. Everything about him, mind, body, and spirit, had been completely exhausted. Rolling his head from one side to the other, Puck tried to stretch out and limber up his muscles in even the slightest way. As it turned out, a handful of hours spent sleeping on the ground, didn’t cure everything that hurt on him, not in the slightest. Every muscle in his body was sore, not to mention the gash on his arm that he knew he needed to find a way to close up somehow. The t shirt that he’d tied around it, would only work for so long. It was temporary at best, but until he and Harmony were able to stumble across a first aid kid, it was all he had.
Harmony. The second she popped into his head, Puck quickly turned to look over at the spot she’d been laying in the night before. After walking until the sun had all but abandoned them for the day before, they’d been forced to set up camp in order to get some much needed rest and start their search fresh the next day. Without any real food supply, their water limited to what had fallen from the sky the night before, and no real way to get the medical attention they could both use, they desperately needed the day to go better than their last. “Harmony?” he called out when he saw the spot vacated. He could only assume that she was much more of a morning person than he was, even considering the less than normal situation that they found themselves in. “I’m really hoping you’re whipping up some breakfast that you’re going to serve me in bed.” Puck was mostly talking to himself as he didn’t immediately spot the brunette, but he had a feeling that was because he’d only managed to look in a five foot radius around where he’d been laying. Pushing himself to his feet, he felt like he was at least three times his age as his body screamed out in protest with every move. He mentally added finding a much more comfortable place to sleep to the every growing list of things they needed to locate.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony had always been a morning person. Every day of high school, she’d begun the morning by waking up before the crack of dawn then doing her typical vocal warm ups, mile run, and ballet tendus and battements. She’d continued her routine over the summer to keep it engrained in her body which meant that, after finally managing to will herself asleep, she woke up to see a still dark sky, light only just beginning to seep through. The moment it hit that she wasn’t, in fact, in her own bed, and her back was killing her because she was sleeping on the forest floor, tears threatened to spill over. This was some sort of sick nightmare, right? One that was lasting far too long. Stretching her arms over her head, Harmony attempted to move her body without adjusting her still pained leg more than necessary. How long was she going to be able to keep going with this messed up leg? Her other cuts would possibly be able to heal if she kept them clean, but they’d need a substantial water source for that to happen. Rolling over to her uninjured side, Harmony slowly eased herself up with the use of her walking stook and took one look at Puck’s sleeping figure before figuring that she should let him sleep. Puck didn’t seem like he’d be an early riser.
Once she was steady on her feet, Harmony decided that she should set out for water and something to eat. The day before hadn’t been very successful between Brittany embarking on her own and not being able to find water that wasn’t mixed in with mud, but they had managed to bury Finn. Sort of. Pointedly avoiding the makeshift mound of dirt near by, she began walking, making sure to go straight and not make any turns in case it got her lost. She didn’t know what she was expecting to find but all she saw were trees. And mud. And more trees. Could they eat leaves? Probably. At least, they might be able to if they knew which ones weren’t going to kill them or at least make them extremely ill. Okay, so maybe she should wait on trying to find food until Puck was with her. But water. Water was more important anyway. Wasn’t it true that a person could go almost a week without food but only a few days without water? Or something like that. Harmony wasn’t sure. She never thought she’d actually need to know that kind of thing. But looking for water wasn’t much better. The only water in sight was on the ground, creating mud or in the smallest puddles which were drying up rapidly. Harmony hadn’t been walking long when she heard a voice calling out through the trees, yelling something that vaguely sounded like her name. Puck.
Slowly but surely, Harmony made her way back to where she’d hopefully find Puck. Though she couldn’t move quickly, she tried to move as fast as possible, so he wouldn’t think she wandered off and got herself lost. Or killed. “Puck!” She called back, following the direction of his voice. Fortunately, she hadn’t gotten herself too off track, because before too long, she found herself back in the clearing where they had set up camp. “I tried to find food or water,” She explained, leaning against a tree to rest her leg and catch her breath from hauling herself back. “But I didn’t want to wake you.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Hearing Harmony’s voice call back to hi was a big relief. He silently wondered if she’d be offended if he told her it was the best sound he’d heard in a while. People seemed to compare her to Rachel often, and he knew his fellow Jew would have launched into a lecture about the many times her voice had shown her a wide range with perfect pitch. He was even starting to miss those lectures. It’d only been a day, but with the circumstances surrounding them, it felt more like weeks. He had no idea how much longer it would drag on, and the worst part was, he had no idea how much longer they could last. They were in serious need of supplies, but as long as he had Harmony there with him, at least he wasn’t alone. “Did you find anything?” he asked hopefully when he was able to talk at a more normal volume. As he turned to look at her once he heard her approach even more, he got the answer for himself. He tried to keep on a brave face. They’d find something. He had to believe it, but the longer it went on, the harder it was to.
“It’s alright. Just glad you’re still around.” Puck rubbed his hand over the back of his neck in another failed attempt to work out some of the soreness he felt. “I figure we should get going. We can cover more ground before it gets even hotter. Maybe we can find part of the plane. You know, more people, supplies, food, all that sort of thing.” He was really hoping for every last bit of it as he could have used a good break coming their way instead of how things had been going. “We’ll probably be able to find Brittany again too.” While he wanted each word to sound positive and like they had an achievable goal that was within reach, it was increasingly hard to do with how hungry and thirsty he was, not to mention tired, sore, depressed, and just over all completely miserable. Optimism was yet another thing that was hard to come by. “How’s your leg holding up?”
HARMONY JONES:
“Not really,” She admitted, her shoulders drooping slightly. It was disheartening enough that she’d be unable to find anything, but now that Puck and Harmony would be working together - at least for now - she didn’t like to feel like she was letting him down. Of course, she never dealt well with letting herself down, so how was she supposed to not be hard on herself when her life - and someone else’s as well - depended on it? Clearly, perfectionists were not meant to be stranded on an island. Shifting her weight, Harmony leaned back on the tree more, her leg resting lightly on the ground. She’d never expected to hear Puck say that he was grateful that she was around. Of course, she hadn’t expected to be so thankful for his existence either. As Puck spoke, she nodded slowly. This was nothing neither of them didn’t know, but at least this way, they had a game plan and could focus on something other than how miserable they currently were and how they could be dead in a matter of days.
Harmony had always prided herself on her optimism. After all, so many had criticized her for being too positive. Oh, if they could see her now. She knew Puck was trying to stay hopeful, but when he ran through the list of supplies they needed, she knew he had to feel as hopeless as she did. “It’s…” She trailed off, observing the burnt flesh of her thigh. Honestly, it was like something out of a horror movie. Or some melodramatic medical show that she never had the stomach to watch. But she settled on a weak “Alright”. Focusing on how badly her leg hurt or how horrifically disgusting it looked wasn’t going to change anything. It wouldn’t help them find any medicine or bandages. Before he could ask her any follow up questions about her injury, Harmony asked, “How are you? Are you doing any better?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck heard her answer and the saw the look on her face as she gave it. Their situation wasn't getting any better, and they both knew it, but whether it was pure determination or just being incredibly stubborn, he could tell he wasn't alone in trying to try his mind into thinking it was going to be alright. Something had to be going their way soon. It just had to. Nodding his head, Puck pretended to believe her claim, and even if he hadn't, it was obvious that she wasn't leaving it up for discussion. There wasn't much he could say, or even that he could do to help if she did admit to the obvious pain that she was in. The girl was incredibly tough, he'd give her that one. "Yeah, I'll be fine. It's just a scratch," he said with a shrug. In this case a scratch was more like a giant gash that was in desperate need of being stitched up. The few hours sleep had done little to dull the pain or regain much of his strength in his left appendage, but like her, he wouldn't let himself focus on it.
"So, you were that direction when you came and found me..." he let his voice trail off as he tried to figure out which was was most likely to lead to finding everyone else and the help they were after. "And then we found Brittany...it looks like this is our best direction. This forest is dense, but it's got to end somewhere, or have some kind of fucking river running around here. If we can just find our way our of all these trees, someone will find us in no time at all." Picking up a long stick to help knock the brush out of the way when they began to clear the path he'd chosen, he decided he had to have something to focus on. If he didn't, his mind would only repeatedly tell him his stomach was going to eat itself with no food, and he a million worse thoughts than that one. Instead he tried his best to instill even the slightest bit of normal into their day. "What's the first thing you're going to do when we find everyone hanging out just waiting for us to turn up?" he asked to give himself something to think about, and also keep the hope alive as they began to cover more ground on their search.
GENERAL NOTES → It’s nice to get to mix in some good feels.
Waiting at the end of the pier, Puck drummed his fingertips on the support pole as he kept glancing down to see if he could spot Quinn walking his way. Knowing what they wanted to do, Puck took the time to already set up their excursion. Nearby the boat and parasail we waiting for them to be strapped inside it. While Quinn wasn’t late, his excitement for the whole afternoon had him feeling antsy. “Hurry up,” he teasingly yelled at the first sight of her. “You’re keeping everyone waiting.” Everyone meaning him since the people in charge of their adventure were getting paid no matter what. Pushing himself off the wooden beam he’d been leaning against, Puck smiled at Quinn so she’d know his comments weren’t serious if his tone of voice hadn’t given him away already. “Or maybe I should be thanking you for not chickening out on this one.”
QUINN FABRAY
Bora Bora was easily the most beautiful place Quinn had even seen. After watching the Kardashians (she was a reality TV junkie, obviously) go to Bora Bora on a family vacation during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, she immediately placed Bora Bora on her bucket list. The white sand, the Palm Trees, and the sparkling, clear water was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Plus, the idea of having your own hut with just one other person was something Quinn was very fond of. And, it went without much thought that Quinn and Rachel would pair up to be roommates. The two girls had finally reached a common ground and seemed to be getting along better than anyone could have ever imagined. However, there was one little complication - Finn and Rachel. While it was nice having Rachel as a roommate and a partner for all island explorations, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with the duo spending more and more time in their hut.
The only good part of that situation was the mere fact that Finn’s roommate was someone that Quinn knew all too well - Noah Puckerman. Their relationship was complicated at best, but she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t have a big soft spot for the most important boy from her past. A wide smile grace her lips as Quinn caught her first glimpse of Puck by the pier. It was safe to say that the sun was doing wonders for his skin, as she can’t remember time he had ever looked better. Shaking the thoughts off with a laugh, Quinn rolled her eyes. “Are you ever going to learn you manners, Puckerman? You’re lucky it’s me coming with you and not Rachel. Can you imagine having to be up there with a screaming Berry?” Laughing quietly as the picture of Rachel screaming her head off entered her mind, Quinn took the last few steps over to the where he was standing at the end of the pier. “Alright, let’s do this.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck couldn’t help but to laugh when Quinn called him out on his lack of manners. It wasn’t the first time, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. It was a lot easier to be teased when it came with her smile attached to it. “You’re the one who is making people wait. Where’s your manners?” he countered with a smirk. Of course his argument didn’t actually hold up at all given she wasn’t actually late, but he wasn’t going to let a little detail like that stop him from attempting to make a point. “And there aren’t enough earplugs on the island for me to manage that one,” he added with an easy smile on his face. Getting Rachel on a jet ski had been a big enough accomplishment for him, and he was sure that was only because Rachel wanted something to do to keep her mind off of Finn. “Besides, she’d want to bring Jesse with her since they are apparently inseparable now. I’d rather do anything than be a third wheel to those two. Can you imagine? I’d just unhook myself and take my chances with the free fall,” he said as he shook his head like he could more easily clear the thought that way.
“And then that would leave you all alone and so bored without me today. Face it, you need me.” Puck began walking in the direction of the setup that was waiting for them, and glancing over at her beside him as he did. He was feeling much more like his normal confident, or cocky as some might say, self these days, and he had Quinn to thank for a lot of that. It wasn’t like he was looking to get into that heart to heart confession at the moment, not when they had much more fun things planned to do instead. So far things were working out perfectly for him. He had a great day planned, and the perfect person to spend it with. As they approached their destination, one of the workers met them right away and began explaining safety rules and precautions with them. In other words, Puck stopped listening shortly after the hello, and instead started using his foot to push sand onto Quinn’s just to see how much he could get away with before she tried to retaliate. He figured he knew all he needed to already anyway: get strapped in and enjoy the view.
QUINN FABRAY
Almost immediately, Quinn flashed her infamous eye roll. “Have you ever heard of a thing called ‘fashionably late’, Puckerman?” She asked, her eyes quickly checking out his outfit with a small late. “Well, obviously not, considering the things you choose to wear every single day. We oughta change that soon, yes?” Quinn shook her head, not even able to begin thinking about the love triangle between Finn, Rachel, and Jesse. It was practically insane to her that Rachel and Finn could be so in love one day, and then she’d be buddy buddy with Jesse again the next day. Of course, she was in no room to judge, for she was never the best person in relationships anyways, but the concept of those three was as confusing as her and Puck had managed to get. “I just… I don’t understand. And, I feel like I’ve barely seen Finn at all this trip. I hope he’s alright.” As much history and uneasy feelings there had been between Quinn and Finn, all she wanted was the best for him - and for a while, she was certain that was Rachel. It’s almost funny how fast things change.
“Oh? Is that so?” Quinn challenged, her eyebrow raising out of curiosity. “You think Ineed youfor entertainment? You are out of your mind, Noah Puckerman. Completely out of your mind.” She laughed, lightly slapping his arm as she walked past him. It was safe to say that there were far more rules for this whole activity than Quinn had ever imagined, though the thought of them caring for the safety of others was something that settled her mind into ease. As per usual, she was the only one out of the duo that had paid close attention to the rules and instructions. The warm sensation trickled onto her toes, and it took all but everything in her not to burst out laughing. Her eyes remaining on the instructor in from them, who was now turned around and pointing to things on the harness, Quinn quickly grabbed a fistful of sand, throwing it into the chest of the out of control boy next to her.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck scoffed as he looked down over what he was wearing. Even though she had a point, a picking out a pair of swim trunks to wear wasn’t hard given he only had a couple pairs anyway, but he wasn’t about to admit that. “I can’t help it that I’m just naturally this hot. Some of us don’t have to take hours.” He walked a little taller with his chest puffed out to prove his point in his own mind. “Yeah, he’s…I don’t know.” Puck tried to figure out the right words to explain the whole mess of a situation. For once, he was glad he had nothing to do with that tangled web of people. “He’s dealing with it his way. This whole romance island probably isn’t helping things. He’ll be alright though. You should drag him out of the hut to do something. I know it’s hard to believe, but he might be tired of seeing my handsome mug all the time.” Puck looked over at Quinn with a cheesy grin on his face. He knew it couldn’t be easy for Finn to sit back and watch Rachel move on so quickly, no matter what the reasons behind the breakup were. He kept trying to encourage the guy to step up and make a move before he lost his chance, but there was only so much pushing he could do from his spot.
As Quinn stood with a seemingly straight face and listened to the safety lecture all while her foot was getting buried, Puck thought he was smooth. It wasn’t until the guy turned to grab a couple life vests and Quinn retaliated that he realized it wasn’t that simple. “Hey!” he protested as a hand full of sand bounced off of his chest. Just when he was about to retaliate, preferably in any way possible that would make him out to be the winner in their little sand battle that he’d started, the instructor turned around again. The last thing Puck wanted was for the guy to start his safety lecture over from the start. The idea of being stuck listening to all sides of the crazy, mixed up, love triangle sounded better than that, so Puck tried to quickly think on his feet. “I was just gonna say, ‘Hey you’re really good at explaining all of this stuff…” Judging from the guy’s face, he didn’t buy it one bit, but since he didn’t start things over but instead handed them both a life jacket to put on, Puck considered it a win. “You should keep an eye on her. She’s chicken.” After dusting the sand off of his chest and flicking it from his fingertips in Quinn’s direction, he pulled on his life vest and made his way to their parasail that was waiting for them.
QUINN FABRAY
“Please,” Quinn retorted, a laugh rising through her throat. “You’re the only person on this island that thinks you’re hot. Besides Sugar, maybe. I always thought she had a little crush on you.” The way Puck talked about Finn was so genuine that it ran a string of pain and jealousy through her body. Finn and Puck were the absolute best of friends. Wherever one was, you were bound to find the other somewhere close in distance. They were peas in a pod, and absolutely everyone who was anyone knew that. No matter what kind of obstacles they had been pushed through or what kind of history they had, they had always managed to find some sort of way to push right through it - like it was nothing, like it never happened. It was safe to say that Quinn Fabray was more than a little jealous of the friendship. While she had close friends like Santana and Brittany, she had never had a friend as close as they were to each other. Flashing a knowing smile towards Puck, Quinn nodded. “Maybe I’ll see if he wants to go for a swim or something.”
Pride welled in Quinn’s chest as she watched Puck was seemingly caught in the act. “I’m not chicken!” She protested, her hands thrown into the air as if it were convincing the instructor in any sort of way. Following suit, Quinn rose from her seat and pulled the snug life vest around her torso. She quickly bumped Puck to the side with her hip as she sidled past him, to the landing dock on the boat where the instructor had told them to go. After being harnessed and latched into a million locks, in which Quinn was sure that it was making sure they were completely safe against any situation, a quiet squeal escaped her mouth. “Remember when I said I wasn’t scared?” Quinn asked Puck, raising her voice to be heard over the sound of the starting of the boat engine. “Well, I lied.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Who can blame her? Apparently she’s the only person on the island with working eyes if that’s true,” Puck said with a teasing smirk as he didn’t let Quinn’s comment phase him. If anything, it just convinced him that she was living in denial. There were a few things Puck knew for absolute certainty no matter what: Lima, Ohio was the suckiest place in the world to live, he was incredibly easy on the eyes, and Finn Hudson was always going to be his best friend. Other things could come and go, but those three remained the same. When Quinn agreed with him, even if it was about hanging out with Finn and not how incredibly hot she thought he was, he couldn’t help but to smile in return. She just had one of those smiles that when it was genuine and pointed in his direction, he felt like he was on top of the world.
“Oh, you definitely are a chicken,” he repeated even as he had no real basis for it. Facts weren’t exactly important in that case, and he was curious to see if she was going to prove him wrong. As she breezed past him with a quick hip check, he shook his head and laughed to himself. Chicken or not, at least she wasn’t backing down. Quickly catching up to her, Puck fastened all the straps and belts every which way until he was securely fastened inside the harness. Looking over at Quinn when he heard her voice over the boat engine as it roared to life, the know it all smirk wasn’t far behind. “I knew it,” he teased as he reached his hand over to set it on top of hers as she held on. “It’s going to be so badass,” he reassured her as he gave her hand a soft squeeze. The words had barely left his mouth before the boat began to accelerate away from the docks and it began their ascent into the sky at the same time.
QUINN FABRAY
“Oh, my gosh.” Quinn whined, her hands instantly flying up to cover her eyes as she shook her head. To say the very least, Puck was the absolute perfect person to go to if you were ever in a bad mood or just having a bad day all together. There was a certain unique quality about him that made it nearly impossible to be around him andnotbe laughing and smiling every single second. His joy was infectious, and Quinn wished there were more people like that… Especially on this crazy island.Especiallywhen they were cornered by people they cared about dearly, but people who had been known to get in more than a few arguments with each other.
“Oh, whatever.” She retorted quietly, fear quickly taking over her body. It wasn’t like Quinn wasn’t a fan of high intensity activities, because she was always one of the first people in the group to race for the roller coasters at an amusement park, but with her recent track record, she wasn’t necessarily sure that this was a good idea after all. Sure, the car crash had been a huge part of her fault, seeing as how she had insisted on texting Rachel back to calm the bride’s nerves as she paced back and forth in the bridesmaid’s dressing room. Rachel had become her friends, and even if Quinn had disagreed with the idea of them getting married and not being able to follow their dreams, she was going to be there and give them all of the support she could. The car crash left a lasting effect on Quinn, and the negative outcomes of parasailing took over. It wasn’t until Puck’s hand was gently placed on her own that the nerves sooth.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
With as many crazy things that Puck had tried in his life, parasailing had never been one of them. His extreme sports had been limited to the feet mostly on the ground variety. Okay, so technically his feel left the ground when he’d attempt to surf on the top of someone’s car, but at least the the fall was only a few feet and not the dozens that they were currently climbing as the boat sped off through the crystal blue water. The feeling in the pit of his stomach as his feet could no longer reach the ground was one he hoped to have much more of. Squeezing Quinn’s hand slightly in his, Puck glanced around at the amazing view that was coming into focus. He’d seen the same sandy beaches and water from his villa, but soaring high above it was something else entirely. “Hell yeah,” he shouted out to express even the slightest bit of excitement that he was feeling. Flying above the water in Bora Bora by being strapped to an over-sized kite with Quinn at his side was never something he’d dreamed of happening in a million years, and yet there they were.
“Look at this view,” he said with the amazement showing through in his voice. As he tore his eyes away from the scene in front of them, he turned his eyes over to Quinn. “You seeing all this?” he asked as he brushed his thumb along her knuckles as he kept his hand on hers. He knew she was hesitant when their adventure was coming closer to being a reality, but he didn’t want her to miss the breathtaking view by closing her eyes to it all. “It’s freaking amazing.” He decided to keep it to himself that even as he stopped looking at the bird’s eye view they had, and had his eyes on Quinn instead, that the view was still beautiful. With the wind blowing through her hair and without all the problems of life weighing down the moment, she looked a lot more carefree than he’d seen her in a long time. He knew that a lot of his friends deserved the vacation of a lifetime that they were currently on, but he felt like Quinn might just deserve it most of all after the year she’d had.
QUINN FABRAY
If there was any place in the world that could be considered ‘heaven on earth’, there was no doubt in Quinn’s mind that Bora Bora would be the first option on the list. There was something about the way that you could see all the way through the clear water to the bottom of the body of water. It was crystal clear, an aqua blue that could only be seen before in animated movies. The weather was practically perfect. While it had definitely been a bit more hot than she was used to back in Lima, Ohio, it was nothing she could even complain about. The sun had turned her skin into a sunkissed pink color, and it had brought out the natural blonde highlights in her hair. Her skin had cleared due to the UV rays, and it was safe to say that Quinn had felt more confident than she had in more than a long while.
That feeling, however, did not stop there. She could feel Puck’s stare on her face, and her cheeks instantly burned at the thought. Even after all this time, after everything they’ve been through, Puck never failed to make Quinn blush and be flustered time after time. It was something that drove her crazy to this day. Puck was, after all, the only guy Quinn had fallen truly in love with, despite her many many protests. He had found a way to force himself into her locked off heart, and he hadn’t left since. He was her first love, and she had always been a firm believer of your first love being your forever love Almost forgetting that they were high up in the air and attached to a boat, Quinn turned her head towards Puck, her face instantly brightening up at the sight of him. “Thank you.” She mouthed, squeezing his hand tightly once more.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Looking over at Quinn as they sailed high above the water down below, he knew it was one of those moments he’d always look back on. Not only was the place completely perfect, but he was with Quinn. So many of his big moments in life had her involved in them, and he liked it that way. She made him want to be a better person, the type of guy that deserved someone like her. She was easy to fall for. He was sure that was why so many people did. She was beautiful, smart, popular, and all the obvious reasons, but it went so far beyond that for him. He’d never seen anyone tougher than she was. Zizes might have been able to pin guys to the mat and make them cry, but Quinn had a different kind of strength. It was the kind where no matter how much life threw at her, she just kept going. Not only that, but she managed to convince most people that it was easy. He had a feeling that most people would have buckled under the pressure a long time ago.
As he got caught staring at her, Puck didn’t bother trying to hide it. It was too late to anyway. He could have blamed the height for his lack of subtlety, but he would have been just as obvious if they were on the ground. Reading her lips as she mouthed a couple words to him, brought a smile to his. He gave her hand a soft squeeze as he nodded his head. He felt like he was the one who should be thanking her for joining him. As much as he loved hanging out with Finn, it just wouldn’t have been the same experience if he’d made his best friend tag along. By some minor miracle, Puck was able to take his eyes off of Quinn for some of their experience, and even pointed out some of the sights they got a better view of. That wasn’t to say he didn’t look over at her as well. He told himself it was just to make sure she was having a good time. “How much do you think we’d have to pay ‘em to let us go up again?” he asked as they were being lowered back into the boat after what felt like only a few minutes but was a lot closer to an hour. The saying about time flying when having fun took on a temporary double meaning.
QUINN FABRAY
A wave of nostalgia raced through Quinn’s body as she and Puck shared an undeniable moment. In a lot of ways, it reminded her of all the other times her heart had raced at the mere sight of him. How when she first saw him, he was all she could think about for the next week. (She had told Finn she was just nervous about the upcoming cheerleading tryouts). She remembered the first night they had gotten together, behind Finn and everyone else’s backs. How she was nervous and excited all balled into one, how it was the first time she was feeling alive. How they babysat together and performed a mini concert for the little boys. How Beth came along and he barely left her side at the hospital bed. How he admitted that he loved her -especially now. How he pulled her back into reality after she went off the deep end again and again. How he was always there, and a nagging thought told her he’d never be away.
Parasaling was not just another moment she could savor as one of her favorites with Puck, but a favorite overall. It was just an added bonus that he was along for the crazy ride as well. It had seemed that just as soon as it started, the ride was over and they were floating back down, her toes skimming the water before being carefully placed back on the boat. Instantly, she cursed herself for not bringing her camera along.This moment, along with many others on the trip, were practically picture perfect and would make for great photos to hang on her dorm wall. His voice brought her out of her trance, causing her to turn her head towards him once more. “What?” She questioned, a teasing smile forming across her lips. “One time wasn’t enough for you, huh?” While the idea was obviously very inviting, Quinn bit her bottom lip and shook her head. There were a few things she had promised herself she’d do before she jetted off to Connecticut for college at Yale, and an important conversation with Puck was a the top of her list. “Come with me,” She began, her voice low as she unbuckled herself from the contraption. “Let’s go explore a little more while we still have this time.” Turning her back away from him before he could even begin to change her mind, she stepped off the boat and onto the path. The sun was beginning to go down slowly, and Quinn wondered what everyone else was up to. Where was Rachel? How was Finn? Were they ever going to make it out of this trip without one of them doing something majorly drastic? The noise of Puck catching up to her send a jolt throughout her. The silence was oddly fitting, and Quinn seized the moment to poke at the topic looming over everyone. “So,” She said, sitting down on the dock overlooking the water. “This is kind of it, huh?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
"No. Pretty sure I could stay on that thing all day," he admitted as he unhooked the buckles to free himself from the harness that connected him to the giant kite they'd been dangling from for the better part of the afternoon. While the view and the whole experience was amazing, it wasn't what had him mentioning a second trip above the water. Puck wasn't ready for his day out with Quinn to end yet, and claiming it was from his new found love of parasailing easier in a way. While Puck didn't normally have trouble expressing his feelings or going after the things that he wanted, Quinn was different. She always had been. Hearing her tell him to follow her, and then stepping off the boat before he could agree or disagree, he laughed to himself. It was obvious he was going to follow along, but he liked to pretend he wasn't quite as predictable as he actually was in that moment.
Dumping the rest of his borrowed equipment, Puck hopped off the boat and along the peer to catch up to her. In a way, he got what he wanted without having to be held up by a bunch of straps and latches for any longer. "Yeah, I guess it is," he agreed with a hint of sadness in his voice as he sat down beside her with his feet hanging off the side and dangling over the water's edge. It was true in a couple ways as their trip wouldn't be lasting forever, and in the bigger sense of Lima no longer being considered as home. "Think you'll miss it?" he asked as he glanced over at her for a second before looking down at the water again as what he really meant was 'do you think you'll miss me?' With Yale and thousands of new people for Quinn to come in contact with, was they both started new chapters in their lives, he knew things weren't going to be the same anymore. It was exciting in so many ways, and scary in even more.
GENERAL NOTES → I can say the same right back to you.
Slowly opening his eyes, Puck blinked a few times as he attempted to adjust to the vast amount of sunlight he was greeted with. Even under the cover of the trees that they couldn’t escape, the sun shown brightly threw. It was a stark comparison to the dark cold night he’d seen last before he’d closed his eyes. Forcing his body to sit up, every ache and pain was a quick reminder of the situation that they were still in. Day two of the living nightmare, and he still hadn’t found a way to wake up from it. Rubbing the back of his hand over his eyes, he tried to wipe away the sleep that not only clouded his vision but his mind. The previous day had left him so spent, that even the hard cold ground hadn’t kept him from falling asleep. Everything about him, mind, body, and spirit, had been completely exhausted. Rolling his head from one side to the other, Puck tried to stretch out and limber up his muscles in even the slightest way. As it turned out, a handful of hours spent sleeping on the ground, didn’t cure everything that hurt on him, not in the slightest. Every muscle in his body was sore, not to mention the gash on his arm that he knew he needed to find a way to close up somehow. The t shirt that he’d tied around it, would only work for so long. It was temporary at best, but until he and Harmony were able to stumble across a first aid kid, it was all he had.
Harmony. The second she popped into his head, Puck quickly turned to look over at the spot she’d been laying in the night before. After walking until the sun had all but abandoned them for the day before, they’d been forced to set up camp in order to get some much needed rest and start their search fresh the next day. Without any real food supply, their water limited to what had fallen from the sky the night before, and no real way to get the medical attention they could both use, they desperately needed the day to go better than their last. “Harmony?” he called out when he saw the spot vacated. He could only assume that she was much more of a morning person than he was, even considering the less than normal situation that they found themselves in. “I’m really hoping you’re whipping up some breakfast that you’re going to serve me in bed.” Puck was mostly talking to himself as he didn’t immediately spot the brunette, but he had a feeling that was because he’d only managed to look in a five foot radius around where he’d been laying. Pushing himself to his feet, he felt like he was at least three times his age as his body screamed out in protest with every move. He mentally added finding a much more comfortable place to sleep to the every growing list of things they needed to locate.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony had always been a morning person. Every day of high school, she’d begun the morning by waking up before the crack of dawn then doing her typical vocal warm ups, mile run, and ballet tendus and battements. She’d continued her routine over the summer to keep it engrained in her body which meant that, after finally managing to will herself asleep, she woke up to see a still dark sky, light only just beginning to seep through. The moment it hit that she wasn’t, in fact, in her own bed, and her back was killing her because she was sleeping on the forest floor, tears threatened to spill over. This was some sort of sick nightmare, right? One that was lasting far too long. Stretching her arms over her head, Harmony attempted to move her body without adjusting her still pained leg more than necessary. How long was she going to be able to keep going with this messed up leg? Her other cuts would possibly be able to heal if she kept them clean, but they’d need a substantial water source for that to happen. Rolling over to her uninjured side, Harmony slowly eased herself up with the use of her walking stook and took one look at Puck’s sleeping figure before figuring that she should let him sleep. Puck didn’t seem like he’d be an early riser.
Once she was steady on her feet, Harmony decided that she should set out for water and something to eat. The day before hadn’t been very successful between Brittany embarking on her own and not being able to find water that wasn’t mixed in with mud, but they had managed to bury Finn. Sort of. Pointedly avoiding the makeshift mound of dirt near by, she began walking, making sure to go straight and not make any turns in case it got her lost. She didn’t know what she was expecting to find but all she saw were trees. And mud. And more trees. Could they eat leaves? Probably. At least, they might be able to if they knew which ones weren’t going to kill them or at least make them extremely ill. Okay, so maybe she should wait on trying to find food until Puck was with her. But water. Water was more important anyway. Wasn’t it true that a person could go almost a week without food but only a few days without water? Or something like that. Harmony wasn’t sure. She never thought she’d actually need to know that kind of thing. But looking for water wasn’t much better. The only water in sight was on the ground, creating mud or in the smallest puddles which were drying up rapidly. Harmony hadn’t been walking long when she heard a voice calling out through the trees, yelling something that vaguely sounded like her name. Puck.
Slowly but surely, Harmony made her way back to where she’d hopefully find Puck. Though she couldn’t move quickly, she tried to move as fast as possible, so he wouldn’t think she wandered off and got herself lost. Or killed. “Puck!” She called back, following the direction of his voice. Fortunately, she hadn’t gotten herself too off track, because before too long, she found herself back in the clearing where they had set up camp. “I tried to find food or water,” She explained, leaning against a tree to rest her leg and catch her breath from hauling herself back. “But I didn’t want to wake you.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Hearing Harmony's voice call back to hi was a big relief. He silently wondered if she'd be offended if he told her it was the best sound he'd heard in a while. People seemed to compare her to Rachel often, and he knew his fellow Jew would have launched into a lecture about the many times her voice had shown her a wide range with perfect pitch. He was even starting to miss those lectures. It'd only been a day, but with the circumstances surrounding them, it felt more like weeks. He had no idea how much longer it would drag on, and the worst part was, he had no idea how much longer they could last. They were in serious need of supplies, but as long as he had Harmony there with him, at least he wasn't alone. "Did you find anything?" he asked hopefully when he was able to talk at a more normal volume. As he turned to look at her once he heard her approach even more, he got the answer for himself. He tried to keep on a brave face. They'd find something. He had to believe it, but the longer it went on, the harder it was to.
"It's alright. Just glad you're still around." Puck rubbed his hand over the back of his neck in another failed attempt to work out some of the soreness he felt. "I figure we should get going. We can cover more ground before it gets even hotter. Maybe we can find part of the plane. You know, more people, supplies, food, all that sort of thing." He was really hoping for every last bit of it as he could have used a good break coming their way instead of how things had been going. "We'll probably be able to find Brittany again too." While he wanted each word to sound positive and like they had an achievable goal that was within reach, it was increasingly hard to do with how hungry and thirsty he was, not to mention tired, sore, depressed, and just over all completely miserable. Optimism was yet another thing that was hard to come by. "How's your leg holding up?"
GENERAL NOTES → It’s nice to get to mix in some good feels.
Waiting at the end of the pier, Puck drummed his fingertips on the support pole as he kept glancing down to see if he could spot Quinn walking his way. Knowing what they wanted to do, Puck took the time to already set up their excursion. Nearby the boat and parasail we waiting for them to be strapped inside it. While Quinn wasn’t late, his excitement for the whole afternoon had him feeling antsy. “Hurry up,” he teasingly yelled at the first sight of her. “You’re keeping everyone waiting.” Everyone meaning him since the people in charge of their adventure were getting paid no matter what. Pushing himself off the wooden beam he’d been leaning against, Puck smiled at Quinn so she’d know his comments weren’t serious if his tone of voice hadn’t given him away already. “Or maybe I should be thanking you for not chickening out on this one.”
QUINN FABRAY
Bora Bora was easily the most beautiful place Quinn had even seen. After watching the Kardashians (she was a reality TV junkie, obviously) go to Bora Bora on a family vacation during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, she immediately placed Bora Bora on her bucket list. The white sand, the Palm Trees, and the sparkling, clear water was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Plus, the idea of having your own hut with just one other person was something Quinn was very fond of. And, it went without much thought that Quinn and Rachel would pair up to be roommates. The two girls had finally reached a common ground and seemed to be getting along better than anyone could have ever imagined. However, there was one little complication - Finn and Rachel. While it was nice having Rachel as a roommate and a partner for all island explorations, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with the duo spending more and more time in their hut.
The only good part of that situation was the mere fact that Finn’s roommate was someone that Quinn knew all too well - Noah Puckerman. Their relationship was complicated at best, but she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t have a big soft spot for the most important boy from her past. A wide smile grace her lips as Quinn caught her first glimpse of Puck by the pier. It was safe to say that the sun was doing wonders for his skin, as she can’t remember time he had ever looked better. Shaking the thoughts off with a laugh, Quinn rolled her eyes. “Are you ever going to learn you manners, Puckerman? You’re lucky it’s me coming with you and not Rachel. Can you imagine having to be up there with a screaming Berry?” Laughing quietly as the picture of Rachel screaming her head off entered her mind, Quinn took the last few steps over to the where he was standing at the end of the pier. “Alright, let’s do this.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck couldn’t help but to laugh when Quinn called him out on his lack of manners. It wasn’t the first time, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. It was a lot easier to be teased when it came with her smile attached to it. “You’re the one who is making people wait. Where’s your manners?” he countered with a smirk. Of course his argument didn’t actually hold up at all given she wasn’t actually late, but he wasn’t going to let a little detail like that stop him from attempting to make a point. “And there aren’t enough earplugs on the island for me to manage that one,” he added with an easy smile on his face. Getting Rachel on a jet ski had been a big enough accomplishment for him, and he was sure that was only because Rachel wanted something to do to keep her mind off of Finn. “Besides, she’d want to bring Jesse with her since they are apparently inseparable now. I’d rather do anything than be a third wheel to those two. Can you imagine? I’d just unhook myself and take my chances with the free fall,” he said as he shook his head like he could more easily clear the thought that way.
“And then that would leave you all alone and so bored without me today. Face it, you need me.” Puck began walking in the direction of the setup that was waiting for them, and glancing over at her beside him as he did. He was feeling much more like his normal confident, or cocky as some might say, self these days, and he had Quinn to thank for a lot of that. It wasn’t like he was looking to get into that heart to heart confession at the moment, not when they had much more fun things planned to do instead. So far things were working out perfectly for him. He had a great day planned, and the perfect person to spend it with. As they approached their destination, one of the workers met them right away and began explaining safety rules and precautions with them. In other words, Puck stopped listening shortly after the hello, and instead started using his foot to push sand onto Quinn’s just to see how much he could get away with before she tried to retaliate. He figured he knew all he needed to already anyway: get strapped in and enjoy the view.
QUINN FABRAY
Almost immediately, Quinn flashed her infamous eye roll. “Have you ever heard of a thing called ‘fashionably late’, Puckerman?” She asked, her eyes quickly checking out his outfit with a small late. “Well, obviously not, considering the things you choose to wear every single day. We oughta change that soon, yes?” Quinn shook her head, not even able to begin thinking about the love triangle between Finn, Rachel, and Jesse. It was practically insane to her that Rachel and Finn could be so in love one day, and then she’d be buddy buddy with Jesse again the next day. Of course, she was in no room to judge, for she was never the best person in relationships anyways, but the concept of those three was as confusing as her and Puck had managed to get. “I just… I don’t understand. And, I feel like I’ve barely seen Finn at all this trip. I hope he’s alright.” As much history and uneasy feelings there had been between Quinn and Finn, all she wanted was the best for him - and for a while, she was certain that was Rachel. It’s almost funny how fast things change.
“Oh? Is that so?” Quinn challenged, her eyebrow raising out of curiosity. “You think Ineed youfor entertainment? You are out of your mind, Noah Puckerman. Completely out of your mind.” She laughed, lightly slapping his arm as she walked past him. It was safe to say that there were far more rules for this whole activity than Quinn had ever imagined, though the thought of them caring for the safety of others was something that settled her mind into ease. As per usual, she was the only one out of the duo that had paid close attention to the rules and instructions. The warm sensation trickled onto her toes, and it took all but everything in her not to burst out laughing. Her eyes remaining on the instructor in from them, who was now turned around and pointing to things on the harness, Quinn quickly grabbed a fistful of sand, throwing it into the chest of the out of control boy next to her.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck scoffed as he looked down over what he was wearing. Even though she had a point, a picking out a pair of swim trunks to wear wasn’t hard given he only had a couple pairs anyway, but he wasn’t about to admit that. “I can’t help it that I’m just naturally this hot. Some of us don’t have to take hours.” He walked a little taller with his chest puffed out to prove his point in his own mind. “Yeah, he’s…I don’t know.” Puck tried to figure out the right words to explain the whole mess of a situation. For once, he was glad he had nothing to do with that tangled web of people. “He’s dealing with it his way. This whole romance island probably isn’t helping things. He’ll be alright though. You should drag him out of the hut to do something. I know it’s hard to believe, but he might be tired of seeing my handsome mug all the time.” Puck looked over at Quinn with a cheesy grin on his face. He knew it couldn’t be easy for Finn to sit back and watch Rachel move on so quickly, no matter what the reasons behind the breakup were. He kept trying to encourage the guy to step up and make a move before he lost his chance, but there was only so much pushing he could do from his spot.
As Quinn stood with a seemingly straight face and listened to the safety lecture all while her foot was getting buried, Puck thought he was smooth. It wasn’t until the guy turned to grab a couple life vests and Quinn retaliated that he realized it wasn’t that simple. “Hey!” he protested as a hand full of sand bounced off of his chest. Just when he was about to retaliate, preferably in any way possible that would make him out to be the winner in their little sand battle that he’d started, the instructor turned around again. The last thing Puck wanted was for the guy to start his safety lecture over from the start. The idea of being stuck listening to all sides of the crazy, mixed up, love triangle sounded better than that, so Puck tried to quickly think on his feet. “I was just gonna say, ‘Hey you’re really good at explaining all of this stuff…” Judging from the guy’s face, he didn’t buy it one bit, but since he didn’t start things over but instead handed them both a life jacket to put on, Puck considered it a win. “You should keep an eye on her. She’s chicken.” After dusting the sand off of his chest and flicking it from his fingertips in Quinn’s direction, he pulled on his life vest and made his way to their parasail that was waiting for them.
QUINN FABRAY
“Please,” Quinn retorted, a laugh rising through her throat. “You’re the only person on this island that thinks you’re hot. Besides Sugar, maybe. I always thought she had a little crush on you.” The way Puck talked about Finn was so genuine that it ran a string of pain and jealousy through her body. Finn and Puck were the absolute best of friends. Wherever one was, you were bound to find the other somewhere close in distance. They were peas in a pod, and absolutely everyone who was anyone knew that. No matter what kind of obstacles they had been pushed through or what kind of history they had, they had always managed to find some sort of way to push right through it - like it was nothing, like it never happened. It was safe to say that Quinn Fabray was more than a little jealous of the friendship. While she had close friends like Santana and Brittany, she had never had a friend as close as they were to each other. Flashing a knowing smile towards Puck, Quinn nodded. “Maybe I’ll see if he wants to go for a swim or something.”
Pride welled in Quinn’s chest as she watched Puck was seemingly caught in the act. “I’m not chicken!” She protested, her hands thrown into the air as if it were convincing the instructor in any sort of way. Following suit, Quinn rose from her seat and pulled the snug life vest around her torso. She quickly bumped Puck to the side with her hip as she sidled past him, to the landing dock on the boat where the instructor had told them to go. After being harnessed and latched into a million locks, in which Quinn was sure that it was making sure they were completely safe against any situation, a quiet squeal escaped her mouth. “Remember when I said I wasn’t scared?” Quinn asked Puck, raising her voice to be heard over the sound of the starting of the boat engine. “Well, I lied.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Who can blame her? Apparently she’s the only person on the island with working eyes if that’s true,” Puck said with a teasing smirk as he didn’t let Quinn’s comment phase him. If anything, it just convinced him that she was living in denial. There were a few things Puck knew for absolute certainty no matter what: Lima, Ohio was the suckiest place in the world to live, he was incredibly easy on the eyes, and Finn Hudson was always going to be his best friend. Other things could come and go, but those three remained the same. When Quinn agreed with him, even if it was about hanging out with Finn and not how incredibly hot she thought he was, he couldn’t help but to smile in return. She just had one of those smiles that when it was genuine and pointed in his direction, he felt like he was on top of the world.
“Oh, you definitely are a chicken,” he repeated even as he had no real basis for it. Facts weren’t exactly important in that case, and he was curious to see if she was going to prove him wrong. As she breezed past him with a quick hip check, he shook his head and laughed to himself. Chicken or not, at least she wasn’t backing down. Quickly catching up to her, Puck fastened all the straps and belts every which way until he was securely fastened inside the harness. Looking over at Quinn when he heard her voice over the boat engine as it roared to life, the know it all smirk wasn’t far behind. “I knew it,” he teased as he reached his hand over to set it on top of hers as she held on. “It’s going to be so badass,” he reassured her as he gave her hand a soft squeeze. The words had barely left his mouth before the boat began to accelerate away from the docks and it began their ascent into the sky at the same time.
QUINN FABRAY
“Oh, my gosh.” Quinn whined, her hands instantly flying up to cover her eyes as she shook her head. To say the very least, Puck was the absolute perfect person to go to if you were ever in a bad mood or just having a bad day all together. There was a certain unique quality about him that made it nearly impossible to be around him andnotbe laughing and smiling every single second. His joy was infectious, and Quinn wished there were more people like that… Especially on this crazy island.Especiallywhen they were cornered by people they cared about dearly, but people who had been known to get in more than a few arguments with each other.
“Oh, whatever.” She retorted quietly, fear quickly taking over her body. It wasn’t like Quinn wasn’t a fan of high intensity activities, because she was always one of the first people in the group to race for the roller coasters at an amusement park, but with her recent track record, she wasn’t necessarily sure that this was a good idea after all. Sure, the car crash had been a huge part of her fault, seeing as how she had insisted on texting Rachel back to calm the bride’s nerves as she paced back and forth in the bridesmaid’s dressing room. Rachel had become her friends, and even if Quinn had disagreed with the idea of them getting married and not being able to follow their dreams, she was going to be there and give them all of the support she could. The car crash left a lasting effect on Quinn, and the negative outcomes of parasailing took over. It wasn’t until Puck’s hand was gently placed on her own that the nerves sooth.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
With as many crazy things that Puck had tried in his life, parasailing had never been one of them. His extreme sports had been limited to the feet mostly on the ground variety. Okay, so technically his feel left the ground when he’d attempt to surf on the top of someone’s car, but at least the the fall was only a few feet and not the dozens that they were currently climbing as the boat sped off through the crystal blue water. The feeling in the pit of his stomach as his feet could no longer reach the ground was one he hoped to have much more of. Squeezing Quinn’s hand slightly in his, Puck glanced around at the amazing view that was coming into focus. He’d seen the same sandy beaches and water from his villa, but soaring high above it was something else entirely. “Hell yeah,” he shouted out to express even the slightest bit of excitement that he was feeling. Flying above the water in Bora Bora by being strapped to an over-sized kite with Quinn at his side was never something he’d dreamed of happening in a million years, and yet there they were.
“Look at this view,” he said with the amazement showing through in his voice. As he tore his eyes away from the scene in front of them, he turned his eyes over to Quinn. “You seeing all this?” he asked as he brushed his thumb along her knuckles as he kept his hand on hers. He knew she was hesitant when their adventure was coming closer to being a reality, but he didn’t want her to miss the breathtaking view by closing her eyes to it all. “It’s freaking amazing.” He decided to keep it to himself that even as he stopped looking at the bird’s eye view they had, and had his eyes on Quinn instead, that the view was still beautiful. With the wind blowing through her hair and without all the problems of life weighing down the moment, she looked a lot more carefree than he’d seen her in a long time. He knew that a lot of his friends deserved the vacation of a lifetime that they were currently on, but he felt like Quinn might just deserve it most of all after the year she’d had.
QUINN FABRAY
If there was any place in the world that could be considered ‘heaven on earth’, there was no doubt in Quinn’s mind that Bora Bora would be the first option on the list. There was something about the way that you could see all the way through the clear water to the bottom of the body of water. It was crystal clear, an aqua blue that could only be seen before in animated movies. The weather was practically perfect. While it had definitely been a bit more hot than she was used to back in Lima, Ohio, it was nothing she could even complain about. The sun had turned her skin into a sunkissed pink color, and it had brought out the natural blonde highlights in her hair. Her skin had cleared due to the UV rays, and it was safe to say that Quinn had felt more confident than she had in more than a long while.
That feeling, however, did not stop there. She could feel Puck’s stare on her face, and her cheeks instantly burned at the thought. Even after all this time, after everything they’ve been through, Puck never failed to make Quinn blush and be flustered time after time. It was something that drove her crazy to this day. Puck was, after all, the only guy Quinn had fallen truly in love with, despite her many manyprotests. He had found a way to force himself into her locked off heart, and he hadn’t left since. He was her first love, and she had always been a firm believer of your first love being your forever love Almost forgetting that they were high up in the air and attached to a boat, Quinn turned her head towards Puck, her face instantly brightening up at the sight of him. “Thank you.” She mouthed, squeezing his hand tightly once more.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Looking over at Quinn as they sailed high above the water down below, he knew it was one of those moments he'd always look back on. Not only was the place completely perfect, but he was with Quinn. So many of his big moments in life had her involved in them, and he liked it that way. She made him want to be a better person, the type of guy that deserved someone like her. She was easy to fall for. He was sure that was why so many people did. She was beautiful, smart, popular, and all the obvious reasons, but it went so far beyond that for him. He'd never seen anyone tougher than she was. Zizes might have been able to pin guys to the mat and make them cry, but Quinn had a different kind of strength. It was the kind where no matter how much life threw at her, she just kept going. Not only that, but she managed to convince most people that it was easy. He had a feeling that most people would have buckled under the pressure a long time ago.
As he got caught staring at her, Puck didn't bother trying to hide it. It was too late to anyway. He could have blamed the height for his lack of subtlety, but he would have been just as obvious if they were on the ground. Reading her lips as she mouthed a couple words to him, brought a smile to his. He gave her hand a soft squeeze as he nodded his head. He felt like he was the one who should be thanking her for joining him. As much as he loved hanging out with Finn, it just wouldn't have been the same experience if he'd made his best friend tag along. By some minor miracle, Puck was able to take his eyes off of Quinn for some of their experience, and even pointed out some of the sights they got a better view of. That wasn't to say he didn't look over at her as well. He told himself it was just to make sure she was having a good time. "How much do you think we'd have to pay 'em to let us go up again?" he asked as they were being lowered back into the boat after what felt like only a few minutes but was a lot closer to an hour. The saying about time flying when having fun took on a temporary double meaning.
GENERAL NOTES → It’s nice to get to mix in some good feels.
Waiting at the end of the pier, Puck drummed his fingertips on the support pole as he kept glancing down to see if he could spot Quinn walking his way. Knowing what they wanted to do, Puck took the time to already set up their excursion. Nearby the boat and parasail we waiting for them to be strapped inside it. While Quinn wasn’t late, his excitement for the whole afternoon had him feeling antsy. “Hurry up,” he teasingly yelled at the first sight of her. “You’re keeping everyone waiting.” Everyone meaning him since the people in charge of their adventure were getting paid no matter what. Pushing himself off the wooden beam he’d been leaning against, Puck smiled at Quinn so she’d know his comments weren’t serious if his tone of voice hadn’t given him away already. “Or maybe I should be thanking you for not chickening out on this one.”
QUINN FABRAY
Bora Bora was easily the most beautiful place Quinn had even seen. After watching the Kardashians (she was a reality TV junkie, obviously) go to Bora Bora on a family vacation during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, she immediately placed Bora Bora on her bucket list. The white sand, the Palm Trees, and the sparkling, clear water was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Plus, the idea of having your own hut with just one other person was something Quinn was very fond of. And, it went without much thought that Quinn and Rachel would pair up to be roommates. The two girls had finally reached a common ground and seemed to be getting along better than anyone could have ever imagined. However, there was one little complication - Finn and Rachel. While it was nice having Rachel as a roommate and a partner for all island explorations, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with the duo spending more and more time in their hut.
The only good part of that situation was the mere fact that Finn’s roommate was someone that Quinn knew all too well - Noah Puckerman. Their relationship was complicated at best, but she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t have a big soft spot for the most important boy from her past. A wide smile grace her lips as Quinn caught her first glimpse of Puck by the pier. It was safe to say that the sun was doing wonders for his skin, as she can’t remember time he had ever looked better. Shaking the thoughts off with a laugh, Quinn rolled her eyes. “Are you ever going to learn you manners, Puckerman? You’re lucky it’s me coming with you and not Rachel. Can you imagine having to be up there with a screaming Berry?” Laughing quietly as the picture of Rachel screaming her head off entered her mind, Quinn took the last few steps over to the where he was standing at the end of the pier. “Alright, let’s do this.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck couldn’t help but to laugh when Quinn called him out on his lack of manners. It wasn’t the first time, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. It was a lot easier to be teased when it came with her smile attached to it. “You’re the one who is making people wait. Where’s your manners?” he countered with a smirk. Of course his argument didn’t actually hold up at all given she wasn’t actually late, but he wasn’t going to let a little detail like that stop him from attempting to make a point. “And there aren’t enough earplugs on the island for me to manage that one,” he added with an easy smile on his face. Getting Rachel on a jet ski had been a big enough accomplishment for him, and he was sure that was only because Rachel wanted something to do to keep her mind off of Finn. “Besides, she’d want to bring Jesse with her since they are apparently inseparable now. I’d rather do anything than be a third wheel to those two. Can you imagine? I’d just unhook myself and take my chances with the free fall,” he said as he shook his head like he could more easily clear the thought that way.
“And then that would leave you all alone and so bored without me today. Face it, you need me.” Puck began walking in the direction of the setup that was waiting for them, and glancing over at her beside him as he did. He was feeling much more like his normal confident, or cocky as some might say, self these days, and he had Quinn to thank for a lot of that. It wasn’t like he was looking to get into that heart to heart confession at the moment, not when they had much more fun things planned to do instead. So far things were working out perfectly for him. He had a great day planned, and the perfect person to spend it with. As they approached their destination, one of the workers met them right away and began explaining safety rules and precautions with them. In other words, Puck stopped listening shortly after the hello, and instead started using his foot to push sand onto Quinn’s just to see how much he could get away with before she tried to retaliate. He figured he knew all he needed to already anyway: get strapped in and enjoy the view.
QUINN FABRAY
Almost immediately, Quinn flashed her infamous eye roll. “Have you ever heard of a thing called ‘fashionably late’, Puckerman?” She asked, her eyes quickly checking out his outfit with a small late. “Well, obviously not, considering the things you choose to wear every single day. We oughta change that soon, yes?” Quinn shook her head, not even able to begin thinking about the love triangle between Finn, Rachel, and Jesse. It was practically insane to her that Rachel and Finn could be so in love one day, and then she’d be buddy buddy with Jesse again the next day. Of course, she was in no room to judge, for she was never the best person in relationships anyways, but the concept of those three was as confusing as her and Puck had managed to get. “I just… I don’t understand. And, I feel like I’ve barely seen Finn at all this trip. I hope he’s alright.” As much history and uneasy feelings there had been between Quinn and Finn, all she wanted was the best for him - and for a while, she was certain that was Rachel. It’s almost funny how fast things change.
“Oh? Is that so?” Quinn challenged, her eyebrow raising out of curiosity. “You think Ineed youfor entertainment? You are out of your mind, Noah Puckerman. Completely out of your mind.” She laughed, lightly slapping his arm as she walked past him. It was safe to say that there were far more rules for this whole activity than Quinn had ever imagined, though the thought of them caring for the safety of others was something that settled her mind into ease. As per usual, she was the only one out of the duo that had paid close attention to the rules and instructions. The warm sensation trickled onto her toes, and it took all but everything in her not to burst out laughing. Her eyes remaining on the instructor in from them, who was now turned around and pointing to things on the harness, Quinn quickly grabbed a fistful of sand, throwing it into the chest of the out of control boy next to her.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck scoffed as he looked down over what he was wearing. Even though she had a point, a picking out a pair of swim trunks to wear wasn’t hard given he only had a couple pairs anyway, but he wasn’t about to admit that. “I can’t help it that I’m just naturally this hot. Some of us don’t have to take hours.” He walked a little taller with his chest puffed out to prove his point in his own mind. “Yeah, he’s…I don’t know.” Puck tried to figure out the right words to explain the whole mess of a situation. For once, he was glad he had nothing to do with that tangled web of people. “He’s dealing with it his way. This whole romance island probably isn’t helping things. He’ll be alright though. You should drag him out of the hut to do something. I know it’s hard to believe, but he might be tired of seeing my handsome mug all the time.” Puck looked over at Quinn with a cheesy grin on his face. He knew it couldn’t be easy for Finn to sit back and watch Rachel move on so quickly, no matter what the reasons behind the breakup were. He kept trying to encourage the guy to step up and make a move before he lost his chance, but there was only so much pushing he could do from his spot.
As Quinn stood with a seemingly straight face and listened to the safety lecture all while her foot was getting buried, Puck thought he was smooth. It wasn’t until the guy turned to grab a couple life vests and Quinn retaliated that he realized it wasn’t that simple. “Hey!” he protested as a hand full of sand bounced off of his chest. Just when he was about to retaliate, preferably in any way possible that would make him out to be the winner in their little sand battle that he’d started, the instructor turned around again. The last thing Puck wanted was for the guy to start his safety lecture over from the start. The idea of being stuck listening to all sides of the crazy, mixed up, love triangle sounded better than that, so Puck tried to quickly think on his feet. “I was just gonna say, ‘Hey you’re really good at explaining all of this stuff…” Judging from the guy’s face, he didn’t buy it one bit, but since he didn’t start things over but instead handed them both a life jacket to put on, Puck considered it a win. “You should keep an eye on her. She’s chicken.” After dusting the sand off of his chest and flicking it from his fingertips in Quinn’s direction, he pulled on his life vest and made his way to their parasail that was waiting for them.
QUINN FABRAY
“Please,” Quinn retorted, a laugh rising through her throat. “You’re the only person on this island that thinks you’re hot. Besides Sugar, maybe. I always thought she had a little crush on you.” The way Puck talked about Finn was so genuine that it ran a string of pain and jealousy through her body. Finn and Puck were the absolute best of friends. Wherever one was, you were bound to find the other somewhere close in distance. They were peas in a pod, and absolutely everyone who was anyone knew that. No matter what kind of obstacles they had been pushed through or what kind of history they had, they had always managed to find some sort of way to push right through it - like it was nothing, like it never happened. It was safe to say that Quinn Fabray was more than a little jealous of the friendship. While she had close friends like Santana and Brittany, she had never had a friend as close as they were to each other. Flashing a knowing smile towards Puck, Quinn nodded. “Maybe I’ll see if he wants to go for a swim or something.”
Pride welled in Quinn’s chest as she watched Puck was seemingly caught in the act. “I’m not chicken!” She protested, her hands thrown into the air as if it were convincing the instructor in any sort of way. Following suit, Quinn rose from her seat and pulled the snug life vest around her torso. She quickly bumped Puck to the side with her hip as she sidled past him, to the landing dock on the boat where the instructor had told them to go. After being harnessed and latched into a million locks, in which Quinn was sure that it was making sure they were completely safe against any situation, a quiet squeal escaped her mouth. “Remember when I said I wasn’t scared?” Quinn asked Puck, raising her voice to be heard over the sound of the starting of the boat engine. “Well, I lied.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Who can blame her? Apparently she’s the only person on the island with working eyes if that’s true,” Puck said with a teasing smirk as he didn’t let Quinn’s comment phase him. If anything, it just convinced him that she was living in denial. There were a few things Puck knew for absolute certainty no matter what: Lima, Ohio was the suckiest place in the world to live, he was incredibly easy on the eyes, and Finn Hudson was always going to be his best friend. Other things could come and go, but those three remained the same. When Quinn agreed with him, even if it was about hanging out with Finn and not how incredibly hot she thought he was, he couldn’t help but to smile in return. She just had one of those smiles that when it was genuine and pointed in his direction, he felt like he was on top of the world.
“Oh, you definitely are a chicken,” he repeated even as he had no real basis for it. Facts weren’t exactly important in that case, and he was curious to see if she was going to prove him wrong. As she breezed past him with a quick hip check, he shook his head and laughed to himself. Chicken or not, at least she wasn’t backing down. Quickly catching up to her, Puck fastened all the straps and belts every which way until he was securely fastened inside the harness. Looking over at Quinn when he heard her voice over the boat engine as it roared to life, the know it all smirk wasn’t far behind. “I knew it,” he teased as he reached his hand over to set it on top of hers as she held on. “It’s going to be so badass,” he reassured her as he gave her hand a soft squeeze. The words had barely left his mouth before the boat began to accelerate away from the docks and it began their ascent into the sky at the same time.
QUINN FABRAY
“Oh, my gosh.” Quinn whined, her hands instantly flying up to cover her eyes as she shook her head. To say the very least, Puck was the absolute perfect person to go to if you were ever in a bad mood or just having a bad day all together. There was a certain unique quality about him that made it nearly impossible to be around him andnotbe laughing and smiling every single second. His joy was infectious, and Quinn wished there were more people like that… Especially on this crazy island.Especiallywhen they were cornered by people they cared about dearly, but people who had been known to get in more than a few arguments with each other.
“Oh, whatever.” She retorted quietly, fear quickly taking over her body. It wasn’t like Quinn wasn’t a fan of high intensity activities, because she was always one of the first people in the group to race for the roller coasters at an amusement park, but with her recent track record, she wasn’t necessarily sure that this was a good idea after all. Sure, the car crash had been a huge part of her fault, seeing as how she had insisted on texting Rachel back to calm the bride’s nerves as she paced back and forth in the bridesmaid’s dressing room. Rachel had become her friends, and even if Quinn had disagreed with the idea of them getting married and not being able to follow their dreams, she was going to be there and give them all of the support she could. The car crash left a lasting effect on Quinn, and the negative outcomes of parasailing took over. It wasn’t until Puck’s hand was gently placed on her own that the nerves sooth.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
With as many crazy things that Puck had tried in his life, parasailing had never been one of them. His extreme sports had been limited to the feet mostly on the ground variety. Okay, so technically his feel left the ground when he'd attempt to surf on the top of someone's car, but at least the the fall was only a few feet and not the dozens that they were currently climbing as the boat sped off through the crystal blue water. The feeling in the pit of his stomach as his feet could no longer reach the ground was one he hoped to have much more of. Squeezing Quinn's hand slightly in his, Puck glanced around at the amazing view that was coming into focus. He'd seen the same sandy beaches and water from his villa, but soaring high above it was something else entirely. "Hell yeah," he shouted out to express even the slightest bit of excitement that he was feeling. Flying above the water in Bora Bora by being strapped to an over-sized kite with Quinn at his side was never something he'd dreamed of happening in a million years, and yet there they were.
"Look at this view," he said with the amazement showing through in his voice. As he tore his eyes away from the scene in front of them, he turned his eyes over to Quinn. "You seeing all this?" he asked as he brushed his thumb along her knuckles as he kept his hand on hers. He knew she was hesitant when their adventure was coming closer to being a reality, but he didn't want her to miss the breathtaking view by closing her eyes to it all. "It's freaking amazing." He decided to keep it to himself that even as he stopped looking at the bird's eye view they had, and had his eyes on Quinn instead, that the view was still beautiful. With the wind blowing through her hair and without all the problems of life weighing down the moment, she looked a lot more carefree than he'd seen her in a long time. He knew that a lot of his friends deserved the vacation of a lifetime that they were currently on, but he felt like Quinn might just deserve it most of all after the year she'd had.
Harmony. The second she popped into his head, Puck quickly turned to look over at the spot she'd been laying in the night before. After walking until the sun had all but abandoned them for the day before, they'd been forced to set up camp in order to get some much needed rest and start their search fresh the next day. Without any real food supply, their water limited to what had fallen from the sky the night before, and no real way to get the medical attention they could both use, they desperately needed the day to go better than their last. "Harmony?" he called out when he saw the spot vacated. He could only assume that she was much more of a morning person than he was, even considering the less than normal situation that they found themselves in. "I'm really hoping you're whipping up some breakfast that you're going to serve me in bed." Puck was mostly talking to himself as he didn't immediately spot the brunette, but he had a feeling that was because he'd only managed to look in a five foot radius around where he'd been laying. Pushing himself to his feet, he felt like he was at least three times his age as his body screamed out in protest with every move. He mentally added finding a much more comfortable place to sleep to the every growing list of things they needed to locate.
Along with the wound on forehead, cuts littered her arms and legs although, judging by the dried blood, most had stopped seriously bleeding some time ago. The worst of all, though, was the deep gash on her collar bone. Harmony bit back the urge to vomit at the vile smell of blood and burnt flesh and set to ripping her the bottom of her t-shirt apart. The long piece of fabric was used as some sort of make shift headband, wrapping around her head and tied in a large knot at the spot of the cut to soak up the blood. Harmony pressed the collar of her shirt against the other gash and kept her hand there, hoping the pressure would stop the bleeding.
Carefully wiping her bloody free hand on her left thigh, not daring to touch her burnt one, she began to try to pull her aching body when she heard an indistinguishable noise. Frozen in a half sitting, half crouching position, she strained her ears and listened again. But…nothing. The silence was all consuming, deafening even. She was probably just imagining things. Wishful thinking. With another small whimper, Harmony continued the excruciating task of pushing herself up. Then there it was. A yell. A deep, low yell. There was someone else out there. Someone who was alive.
In a knee jerk reaction, Harmony practically jumped up, only for a searing pain to shoot through her right leg. “Shit!” She exclaimed in the least ladylike manner possible, immediately pushing all her weight onto her left leg. Even though only her thigh was burnt, it was like her entire leg was on fire. Just as Harmony was ready to get back on the ground, crawl into a ball, and die, she heard the voice again. Groaning in frustration, she stuck her free arm out, the other still holding her shirt to the her wound to steady her balance, and began to hobble her way in the sound of the screams. “Help!” She screamed at the top of her lungs before taking another step. Well, hop. “Please!” Her voice cracked, sounding even more pathetic and desperate than she knew it already did.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to be doing, if anything, so she kind of was settling to just sit and wait for whatever to happen, happen. She was trying to think about what dying could be like, if it hurt or if it was easy. Hell, she was already so hurt, her back impossibly broken probably, not being able to see, dying couldn’t be worse than how she was already feeling, she assumed. Except, shoot, what if she wasn’t able to see ‘the light’ since her vision was so bad? Would they still let her into heaven? Now she was a little bit worried.
There was no point in trying to stand up, Brittany couldn’t see where to go even if she was able to stand, so she’d probably end up hurting herself even more by trying to move. Like she’d decided, there wasn’t any use in trying to do anything when she had already let herself be so defeated by life. Nothing was worth it anymore, not unless Santana found her. Not unless Santana was even alive.
It wasn’t until Brittany heard someone else that maybe she realized that she couldn’t just completely give up, not that she even could tell who was asking for help. “Hello?” Brittany shouted back, looking around, but that doing no good since she couldn’t see to begin with. She sniffed, her nose clogged from crying and her voice raspy from screaming for Santana, “Where are you?? I can’t really help because I can’t see or get up but… wait can you walk?” she shouted again, wondering if whoever was out there could just come to her, that’d be easier, at least Brittany wouldn’t be alone when she died.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony took another one footed jump forward, stumbling slightly before catching herself on a nearby tree. Hissing in pain, she looked down to see that the tree trunk had left minor cuts on her palms - but hey, what was another few scratches at this point? She was busy wiping the dirt off her hands when a voice, another voice, broke through the forest. A second voice. Another person. “What?” She screamed. When the second voice answered back with unintelligible words, Harmony yelled, “Wait. Just…just stay there!”
“Plan…Okay, I need a plan…” She mumbled, her mind running a million miles a minute. There were two other people nearby. Possibly dying. Most likely dying. Okay. She needed to find them both. Then they needed to find water. Clean water. Then figure out where the heck they were. Then food. And shelter. But first, find these people. Harmony took one hesitant hop in the direction of where the first voice had come from, but her balance was off and she flailed madly before steadying herself. If she fell, there was no way she’d be able to get back on her feet. She surveyed the area as if a cane or a pair of crutches would appear out of nowhere before her eyes fell on a nearby stick. Hobbling her way over to the stick, she picked it up in her free hand and instantly relaxed now that her weight was more balanced.
Harmony limped along for what seemed like hours, periodically shouting out to those around her, mostly to know she was going in the right direction but partially to make sure they were still alive. Seeing as she was squeamish about blood, she couldn’t imagine stumbling upon a dead body. The thought itself made her shiver. Finally, Harmony saw movement between the trees. “Hello!” She called out, ready to cry tears of joy. She didn’t even know who it was, but it was someone, and that was good enough for her. “It’s Harmony!”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Slowly working his way towards the trunk of the tree to attempt to climb lower, Puck froze the second he heard a voice calling out again. It wasn’t the same shriek he’d heard earlier, but instead a couple different voices volleying back and forth. He couldn’t tell who it was, or even what was being said, but it was more people. It wasn’t much hope, but it was some. He wasn’t the only one living out the grizzly nightmare that he wished he could suddenly wake up from. His friend were fine. He was going to get out of the tree he was in, and everything was going to be fine. Puck repeated the same thought on an endless loop in his head as he tried to force himself to believe it. There was no room to let the doubts and panic take over. Things were bad enough as they were.
Reaching the trunk of the tree, Puck winced as he had to use his left arm to grab onto a branch to lower himself to the one below it. As a kid Puck could spend hours climbing trees and daring his friends, usually Finn, to see who could climb the highest. He felt invincible as he climbed near the tops without a care in the world, but now all he wanted was for his feel to land safely on the ground again. He missed the ground.
“Oh shit.” Puck quick grabbed onto another branch as the one his feet were planted on began to crack beneath his weight. Having it break completely would have offered a much faster way to the ground below, but a painful one. “I swear I’m going to chop you down when I’m out of here,” Puck complained at his new wooden enemy just to keep his mind focused on something instead of lightheaded feeling he refused to acknowledge. Hearing a voice a lot closer than the last time he had, Puck found steady footing and tried to twist and turn to see below him and catch a glimpse of who it belonged to. “Harmony?” he repeated when he heard what she said. “Thank fuck. Are you alright? Is anyone with you?” He knew he’d heard someone else before, but at that moment he was so thankful to see another living soul that he wanted to grab her and never let go. Of course that meant finding a way down to the ground first, but it was proving a lot harder than he would have liked for it to.
HARMONY JONES:
“Puck?” She sputtered out, skidding to a sudden stop when she saw Noah Puckerman of all people stuck up in a tree. She didn’t even think to chastise him for his course language, though, because at that moment, she was overcome with the desire to give him the biggest, tightest hug she could muster. “I-I’m fine.” Which reminded her to check if the gash on her collar bone was still bleeding. Thankfully her t-shirt seemed to have mopped most of it up, and only dried blood was smeared across her chest. “I have a burn on my leg, and it feels like I’m being stabbed every step I take,” She explained, gesturing to her one legged stance and walking stick. “But I can walk, and I’d say that’s an accomplishment at this moment.”
“Someone else is out there,” Harmony continued, glancing briefly back in the direction of the other person. “I don’t know who it is, but it’s a girl, and she’s hurt, and we need to go find her.” She didn’t have the heart to add ‘before we find her dead’. While she had evaded that scenario with Puck, Harmony wasn’t so sure she’d be as lucky the second time. Since Puck was currently on unsteady footing several feet above the ground, though, there were a few things they needed to take care of before going on another person search. “But I guess we need to get you out of this tree first…”
Automatically her mind started racing for a solution, anything that could be in any way helpful, but surprise, surprise, a ladder did not appear out of thin air. She wasn’t anywhere near tall enough to help him out herself, and even if Puck could ease himself down a few branches, there was still a good four or five foot drop that would have to be jumped. And if he felt half as bad as she did, jumping was in no a viable option. Maybe he could…Or maybe…Nope. She had nothing. Fantastic.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck shifted around until there was no more branches to climb down onto, but it offered him a better view of Harmony. He could see that their definition of fine had already shifted considerably as the dried blood that caked her clothes as well as the burned state of her leg were visible from where he stood. If she was fine, he didn’t want to know what people who weren’t looked like. As soon as the thought entered his mind, he tried to shake it off. He knew what they would be like even if he didn’t want to. “Yeah, it’s coming from that way,” he said as he pointed off in the opposite direction from where Harmony had come from. “I heard them earlier, but then I haven’t in a while.” He was sure his mind wasn’t the only one that jumped to what that could have possibly meant, but instead of focusing on it, Puck moved his attention back to getting on solid ground.
“Don’t suppose you carry a spare ladder or a rope around with you,” he said as he looked at the drop he had ahead of him. From where he stood, he figured he had two choices. He could jump and risk breaking a leg which could make finding everyone else a lot harder, or he could attempt to hang from the lowest branch to at least cut the fall in half. The choice would have been a lot more clear if every flex of his left bicep didn’t send a shooting pain through his arm as well as more blood to soak his makeshift tourniquethe’d created with part of his shirt. “Okay, stand back.” Standing there and weighing his options anymore was a giant waste of time as far as he was concerned, so instead Puck sat down on the branch he’d been standing on. It was still higher up than he wanted to manage, but there was no changing it. Grabbing onto the branch with both of his hands, he turned and pushed himself off of it. The second his muscles flexed in attempt to hold his weight, the pain multiplied to insane levels and he let go, immediately falling the remaining six feet to ground with a thud.
Puck groaned the second the air returned to his lungs after it had all been forced out from the fall, and he pushed himself up so that he was sitting. The stinging sensation on his back alerted him for the first time that it was burned or possibly scraped from earlier. “Fuck that hurt, ” he said as casually as he could mange as he pushed himself up to his feet and getting his first good look at Harmony’s leg and just how badly it was burned. It obviously needed to be cleaned and walking on it couldn’t have been easy, but they didn’t have a lot of options. Whoever else they’d heard was nearby and it sounded like they were in a lot of pain. “I’ve never been so happy to see you in my life,” he said honestly as being stuck alone and not know where anyone was, was not a good feeling. “Come on, let’s go find everyone else.”
HARMONY JONES:
“No,” She replied, smiling weakly at Puck’s attempt at a joke. She might have even forced a chuckle if she didn’t know how dire their situation actually was. Whoever out there couldn’t move and might even be dead. She was limping her way along with a muddy stick for a crutch. And he was stuck in a freaking tree. They needed medical attention, clean water, food…Geez. Just thinking about it made Harmony want to curl up and wait to die. How were they ever supposed to survive? This was like some sick kind of Hunger Games except Harmony wasn’t Katniss, but one of the goners in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.
Harmony’s mind was so busy figuring out her Hunger Games metaphor that she didn’t notice Puck preparing himself to jump out of the tree until he warned her to get out of the way. “Wait, don’t!” She exclaimed at the exact moment he jumped. When he landed on the ground with a loud thud, Harmony gasped and rushed forward, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg. “Puck?” She asked as he laid in a motionless heap, his chest moving up and down slightly as the only sign that he was living. “Puck, are you okay?” Instead of answering her question, he cursed and pushed himself up. She was going to take that as a ‘yes’. “Consider the feeling mutual,” She replied in response to Puck’s comment. Even if she didn’t know Puck very well, he was a somewhat familiar face, and she already felt a hundred more times comfortable having him as company in the situation.
Puck seemed to be able manage walking, at least more comfortably than herself, so they set off, Harmony still doing her best to keep any weight off her right leg, calling out to the stranger who was nearby. When their calls were returned, reassuring Harmony that the person was still alive and even better, close by, they pointed themselves in the right direction. Suddenly, between the trees, there was a flash of movement and more noticeably, straw colored hair. “Look! I see someone!” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. There was no way the higher pitched voice belonged to Sam or Jeff, but it could be Quinn or… “Brittany!” Harmony yelled, finally being able to make out the girl more clearly.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany had no idea where the other voices were coming from and it’s not like she could make anything out around here, not really anyway. Unless things were close up, she couldn’t entirely tell what anything was since her vision was so blurred. She wished she could see the other people who might need help, because it was within Brittany’s nature to do whatever she could to try and help them, but there wasn’t anything she could do, she knew that, and it all was making her feel so much worse.
She was still crying when she heard them getting closer. Brittany wasn’t really usually the kind of person who was too proud to cry, she’d been Santana’s friend forever and Santana obviously had taught Brittany that it was good to let it out when needed. Emotions and crying were good things to show other people. Or so Brittany used to think, now she wasn’t so sure and as she heard her name called, she sniffed and stopped herself from letting anymore tears fall.
“It’s Brittany!” she shouted the best that she could, taking in a deep breath, “I can’t really see, or walk, anyway, I’m not sure I can,” Brittany added, looking down into her lap, or what she figured was her lap. Honestly without some kind of help there was going to be no way for Brittany to get up herself and walk, not only that, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk unassited even if she could get up. To her, she felt like a lost cause.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Walking through the trees and often times dense brush, Puck tried to keep his pace as slow and steady as he could. Every instinct he had was telling him to hurry up and find the person on the other end of the voice, and everyone else that had been on the plane with them. Patience was never one of Puck’s stronger virtues, and the situation he currently found himself in was only escalating it. He wanted it all figured out and fixed. The sooner, the better. Unfortunately for him, things didn’t work out that way, and not only were they lost in the forest somewhere with no food, no water, and no clue which was was even the right way to go for help, but it was also obvious that Harmony was already doing everything she could to try and walk on her leg the way that it was. Going any faster was highly unlikely, but they ventured on. Giving up wasn’t an option.
While it wasn’t a big break, the fact that whoever it was could at least answer back to their calls helped to aim them in the right direction. Without it they could have spend hours wandering around in circles and never have even known it. “Look! I see someone!” Hearing Harmony’s words, Puck’s heart began to race. Pushing through the brush, Puck got the same glimpse of blonde hair that Harmony had, and just for a split second he thought it was Quinn. If it was wishful thinking or pure desperation, he wanted it to be true. He needed her to be alive. Hell, he needed everyone to be alive, but in that moment he realized just how much. Maybe there was something to Quinn’s whole bonded for life after going through so much together claim. He didn’t get to think about just how much she’d like being right, because as quickly as he’d thought it was Quinn, it was gone. The moment was fleeting, and instead he realized it was Brittany they’d managed to track down.
If there was funny about being in an airplane that literally just fell out of the sky, it was that had a way of making every other problem seem completely meaningless. The fact that he’d spent a great deal of their trip in Bora Bora annoyed at how stubborn and unable to take a joke Brittany could be didn’t even register. The only thing that did was complete relief at seeing her and hearing her as they approached. “You can’t walk?” he asked with the concern dripping from his voice as he and Harmony pushed through the last bit of brush and were able to completely reach the other girl.
Kneeling down at her side, he tried to quickly survey the injuries she had. His love of extreme sports had him familiar broken bones and things like it. He couldn’t fix them, but he’d gotten good at slapping something together until he was able to get to the hospital. It wasn’t perfect, but nothing about their current situation was. But as he looked at Brittany’s legs, he was relieved to see they were both going in the right direction and no bones were sticking out. It was a start at least. “We’re going to get you out of here,” he said with as much confidence as he could manage. “We’ll figure this out.” Puck looked over to Harmony as he tried to figure out what they were going to do. “You okay?” While the obvious answer was no, of course she wouldn’t be, he knew they’d be even worse off if Harmony couldn’t go any longer on her leg.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany’s mind was so clouded between thinking about her pain, worrying about Santana, and wanting it all to be over that she didn’t even care to figure out who was actually coming to help her, if there was even anything anyone could do at that point. She only realized it was Puck because of his voice, she couldn’t see him, her vision didn’t seem to be getting any better at the time went on. Everything was discouraging her and as much as she wanted to pretend to be her normal, silly, happy self around Puck, she couldn’t find it in herself to even try.
“I can’t do anything,” Brittany replied, annoyed, her little spat with Puck over the shark issue earlier that week already forgotten in her mind. Little things like that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Puck was alive and for that Brittany was thankful, “My back hurts, I crawled over to this tree trunk, I think I fell out of that tree over there,” she pointed, squinting trying to see the tree, if it was even a tree that she was pointing at, “And I can’t see, you guys might as well leave me here.”
Sighing Brittany closed her eyes and leaned her head back, wincing at how even moving her neck seemed to strained whatever was wrong with her back. Brittany licked her lips and closed her eyes tightly, “I’m sorry,” she muttered, “For being mean to you last week, but I’m happy you’re alive.” For some reason she really felt like she had to tell that to Puck, all the things she’d never said before seemed to be more important, life was too short to keep things to oneself, it was better to share. “You’re one of my favorites because you’re silly, I like it,” Brittany added, her eyes still closed, “If you guys run into Santana… if she’s not… can you tell her that I really, really loved her? She’s my boothang, I want her to know that, even if sometimes I’m not the smartest and I know it’s annoying… I really tried to be a good girlfriend.”
She’d given up, it was as simple as that, and frankly Brittany wouldn’t even mind if Puck, and the girl she still couldn’t make out, ended up leaving her there like that should. Brittany had seen those survivor shows enough to know that she was going to weigh everyone down. She wasn’t smart enough to be of any use, especially if she couldn’t see or get up from the ground.
HARMONY JONES:
As Puck and Harmony slowly but surely made their way into the clearing Brittany was in, Harmony couldn’t help but notice her red and puffy eyes, obviously from crying. That was when she realized that she herself had yet to cry. Maybe Jeff was right and she was a lot tougher than she thought. Or maybe she shouldn’t think about this situation too hard, because then she’d start crying and never stop. Forcing those thoughts out off her mind, Harmony leaned against a nearby tree to keep her burnt leg off the ground while Puck attempted to examine the blonde’s injuries.
Harmony focused on catching her breath (walking basically one legged was tiring, okay?) while Brittany started going on in what very much seemed like swan song fashion. She wished she could say something, but she barely knew Brittany, and she definitely didn’t know Santana, her girlfriend that she clearly loved (even though Harmony didn’t exactly know what ‘boothang’ meant). It wasn’t her place to say anything, but then again, that had never really stopped her before. There was no way Puck and Harmony were going to leave her out here to die like she was making it sound. For whatever reason, they were put in this situation together, and they were going to get out of it together. There was no way a person could survive falling out of a burning plane and not be meant to make it out of here alive. They could have stumbled upon her best friend or her worst enemy, and Harmony would have felt that way.
“Come on,” Harmony started, taking and hopping over to lean on Brittany’s tree. “We’re not going to abandon you, Brittany.” She crouched down as best she could to be face to face with her. “It’s Harmony, by the way,” She added since the girl had mentioned not being able to see clearly. “The, uh, Gerber Baby.” (Oh, God, she thought. That’s how I’m going to be remembered. The Gerber Baby. Not Harmony Jones, the Broadway star.) “I wouldn’t do that. Puck wouldn’t do that. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.” She hoped that the girl, even if she was unable to see how seriously she believed that statement, could at least hear it in her voice. “Now,” Harmony said in her typical Unitards Captain voice, standing up straight and wobbling slightly due to being off balance. “Are you bleeding anywhere? If so, we need to stop the bleeding immediately.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
As soon as Brittany started talking, it was obvious she’d basically given up. He wasn’t sure what exactly she’d given up on, if it was life, being rescued, both, or something else, but Puck wasn’t having any part of it. He knew there was no way that they could leave her behind. While the latest obstacle could slow them now more, going on without anyone wasn’t even an option. Finding their way around the forest without getting lost was close to impossible, and it wasn’t like he had a pocket full of bread crumbs to leave as a trail. Not to mention that he had no idea what kind of wild animals, snakes, or bugs were crawling around in the woods to begin with. Puck wasn’t even going to consider it, so he began shaking his head no before Brittany had even finished talking. He didn’t want to hear her message to pass along to anyone, because he wouldn’t allow himself to believe that she wouldn’t be able to say all those things herself.
When Harmony spoke up and echoed some of Puck’s own thoughts, he switched from shaking his head to nodding in agreement. “Harmony’s right. We’re not going to leave you. Can you imagine how much Santana would kick my ass if I did that?” he asked to try and get Brittany focused on the positive side of things. Anyone who knew Brittany and Santana for more than five minutes knew how much they meant to each other, and that was true even before they’d added an extra layer to their relationship. He knew Brittany was more likely to listen to Santana than anyone else, and since she wasn’t there with them, he had to make do with what they had.Since she seemed to have trouble seeing, Puck slid his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze to let her know that he was there, and he wasn’t going to go without her. “And you know she wouldn’t want you sitting out here alone. She’d remind you that you’re the toughest chick she knows.” Puck glanced over at Harmony as he could tell by the tone of her voice she was just as determined as he was to get them out of there. Focusing on what they had to do was the only way to stop the ‘what ifs’ from creeping in. “If she can’t walk, we have to figure something else out”
Puck was only half listening as Harmony made sure to see if Brittany was bleeding any worse than minor cuts and scrapes. He silently hoped that she wasn’t as they really didn’t need a terrible situation to get even worse. “I can carry her for a while,” he spoke up and offered. He knew it would hurt like hell to have anything pressed up and rubbing against his burnt back, but with his left arm the way that it was, he knew piggy back was his only choice besides tossing her over his shoulder, but with Brittany’s back hurt the way that it was…. Puck rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration as he realized they wouldn’t be able to get very far that way. He chose not to share his current train of thought, and instead jump to the next one and hope it worked out better. “What if we find a couple long branches and then, I don’t know, tie ‘em together or whatever. We can make something she can lay on, and I can drag it.” It sounded better than his first idea to him, even if he was missing huge details like their complete lack of supplies to actually build the thing. He wasn’t about to let that stop him. “We’ll have to avoid the thicker brush, but we can do it.” They had to make something work, and since it was the only idea he had at the moment, he decided to get behind it completely. “See what I mean? We’re going to be fine. We’ve got this. No giving up,” he said as he turned back to Brittany to try and get her spirits back up.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
It was hard for Brittany to really comprehend the entire situation at hand so it had been easier to go right into giving up and letting it all work its own course. Puck was right though, Santana would be so disappointed in her if she just sat there against that tree to die. Brittany knew she’d want Santana to be fighting, so she also knew she had to take that advice herself and fight the best she could too. “Okay,” she nodded, squeezing Puck’s hand and smiling, in what she hoped was, Harmony’s direction. “We’ll find, San, right?” Brittany asked, that still being the top thing on her mind, “We’ll find Santana and Quinn and then everything will feel better.” She was mostly talking to herself, trying to talk it all up so she could get into a better mindset, if not for her own sake, but for Puck and Harmony since they were so much more determined than Brittany was to be alright at that point.
Brittany squinted and tried to make out her surroundings, though everything was still seeming to blend together. It was more frustrating because she’d always had such good vision before then, not being able to completely see was going to hold them all back even more. “I have some scrapes, but I’m okay,” she replied when asked about bleeding, “Nothing I can’t handle, I’m used to them form motocross, whenever I’d wipe out I’d get a lot of scrapes just like these.” That was a positive thing for Brittany to hold on to as well, the scrapes really didn’t bother her like they could have been. Her problem really was in the troubles she was having with her back.
“I’m heavy, though,” Brittany cringed, knowing it was true because of her height, dragging her might end up doing more harm than good in the long run, “Maybe… we could make crunches?” she suggested, not even knowing she’d gotten the word completely wrong, “You guys could help me stand and maybe I can walk. I crawled over here, I just can’t stand up myself. When I pulled my hamstring they gave me crunches and I was pretty good at them.” She knew anything was really a long shot since they had nothing, were all injured, and she was really dead weight for both Puck and Harmony in the entire situation.
HARMONY JONES:
When Brittany’s mood seemed to have lifted and she said with a determined glint in her eye that they were going to find her friends, Harmony didn’t have the heart to tell her that they may not be able to find the others. Or they might find them dead, the thought of which made Harmony feel queasy. And she couldn’t even fathom how Brittany would crumble at the sight of her deceased friends. Actually, Harmony could. She could imagine how gutted she would be if she saw Chandler or her mom…but that was not what Harmony needed to be focused on. She needed to be focused on zero in on getting their basic needs fulfilled. Get up, get moving, get water.
Fortunately, Brittany wasn’t bleeding and seemed to be on board to try and move. That being said, there was no way Puck could give her a piggy back ride for an extended period of time without being in serious pain. And Harmony really didn’t want him to get even more injured by trying to help. They wouldn’t even be able to switch off carrying her, because Harmony had zero upper body strength. And with Brittany being several inches taller than her, trying to carry her would be asking for a disaster. Dragging her was a possibility…but again, with Puck’s arm, was that worse the risk?
“Crutches could work,” Harmony agreed, gesturing to her own. “Mine’s worked out pretty well.” It was hardly the fastest way to get around, but Puck was the only one out of the trio that could walk somewhat normally. Harmony didn’t know how far they would have to travel to find a water source, but she hoped that when they did, they would be able to set up camp there for a little while to rest and heal. There was no way any of them would be able to explore the area and try to find others in their condition. Surveying the fallen trees branches and limbs, she pointed out a few that might be long enough and sturdy enough for Brittany and hopped over to pick up the closest sticks. She left them leaning against the tree then looked towards Puck. “How should we help her stand?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Of course we’re going to find her,” Puck said without hesitation. Not only was he sure it was what Brittany needed to hear, but it was what he needed to believe for himself. The alternative wasn’t what he wanted to deal with at the moment, no matter how close to reality it could possibly be. Focusing on what little positives they had going for them was what he chose to do. For example, Brittany gushing blood anywhere, so that went in the good column as far as he was concerned. When she seemed more determined to walk with the aide of crutches, he mentally chalked down another point in the small victory column.
“If you’re up to it, let’s give it a shot.” As Harmony went to grab a couple sticks that would hopefully help Brittany enough to get her mobile, Puck stood up from the spot he’d been standing in so that he could help her up. “Are you ready for this?” he asked Brittany when Harmony returned with the best crutches they could do under the circumstances. “It might hurt, but you have to push through.” Going to find some kind of help was the current goal on Puck’s mind. He could only hope that through a few more trees they’d find more of their friends, some kind of stream to clean their wounds, or better yet, a freaking hospital full of medical staff just waiting to treat them. He knew some where more likely than others, but as long as they still had some daylight left, they had to try.
“Try and keep her steady and hold up that stick for her to grab.” With Harmony barely able to hold her own weight with her leg in the condition it was, he didn’t want her to take on more than she could. “And Brittany, I’m going to help pull you up, alright?” He gave her hand that he was still holding a little squeeze before he moved it so that she could hold on to what would soon be her crutches. “On the count of three, you’re going to dig deep and be that tough badass I know you’ve got hiding in there. Give it everything you’ve got, and stand up.” Puck got himself in position so that he could use his right side to help with the lifting, which his left arm only had to help her with balance. “One…” He took a breath as he kept his eyes on Brittany to make sure she was ready and not going to back out. “Two…” Readjusting his grip on her arm and his other around her waist, Puck began to lift her up the second the word, “Three,” left his lips.
BRITTANY PIERCE;
The quicker it led up to Brittany having to try and stand the more apprehensive she got and the more she continued to want to sit there. Sure, she’d crawled a little to get to where she was in the first place, but even that probably took hours with how much pain Brittany was in. All she could think about was Santana. What if Brittany could fight through some of the pain and find Santana? What if Santana needed her help somewhere? All of that was keeping her going, even though she wanted to give up. Crutches weren’t going to be easy with her back as bad as it was, especially when they weren’t even real crutches to begin with, but she had to try.
Brittany only nodded, she wasn’t ready for anything they were going to have to do, but there wasn’t really any kind of choice. Ready or not it was either try, or sit there and die, and with people there counting on her, people potentially needing her help, there was no choice in her mind except try. She was trying her best to brace herself for what she knew was going to be a very painful journey. If not for herself but for her friends and for Santana. Brittany knew if it was up to her she wouldn’t be moving at all, but now there were people there with her, people counting on her, and in true Brittany fashion she wasn’t going to let them down.
She closed her eyes tightly when Puck began counting, trying not to think about much, most focused on making sure she could block out as much pain as possible once she was up and standing to the best of her ability. She nodded again, and took in a deep breath to hold once Puck got to three. Pain shot throughout her entire body, her back seemingly useless, once up all the way, tears threatening to fall from her eyes, she blindly reached for a hold of the stick which she put all of her weight on. The pain wasn’t unbearable but it certainly wasn’t comfortable either, “I don’t,” she choked, “I don’t know how long I can do this,” Brittany said honestly, wanting to try and get somewhere, but really not knowing if she had the strength to hold on for too long standing upright.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony nodded when Puck instructed her on helping Brittany and moved closer to Brittany in order to give her the crutches and make sure she would be steady on her feet. When Puck readied himself to lift her, she winced when she saw the muscles and veins in his injured arm stick out. Ouch. Then she cringed even more when Brittany began to pulled upright but forced her eyes to stay open to make sure she’d be able to help in case of emergency. It was like Brittany’s body was useless to her, and Harmony couldn’t even imagine how badly it hurt when tears filled the blonde’s eyes. She wanted to not watch this, to make this stop, but if they didn’t do this the first time, there was no way Brittany would want to try again. Setting the crutches in place, Harmony kept them still when Brittany got situated on them. Once she was, Harmony let out the breath she’d be holding and took a small step backward, her hands still outstretched to help if Brittany suddenly stumbled.
“It’s fine,” She said gently, careful not to touch the unsteady blonde as she got used to the sticks. “We’ll rest every few minutes.” Now that they had actually gotten her up and ready to move, she would have promised anything to the girl to keep her from wanting to give up like when they’d found her. Plus Harmony would need that rest, too, - maybe not as frequently - but she didn’t want any of them hurting themselves further. They needed all their strength if they were going to set up camp, and they were already more ragtag than she would have preferred. Although she felt kind of bad forcing Puck to travel at their snail pace, she was confident in her belief that he wouldn’t want to explore too far by himself. At least not right now. He’d just have to deal.
“Okay!” Harmony exclaimed, forcing her voice to sound bright and cheerful when she clapped her hands together. “First thing we need to do is find water. By the water source, we’ll set up some kind of camp to rest and tend to our injuries for the night. And we’ll need to find something to eat. Do any of you know anything about plants?” She was rambling at this point, and she didn’t even know where most of this survival plan was coming from. Sure, she’d been a Girl Scout for a few years, but that was so long ago, and the closest experience she had with this experience was reading the Hunger Games. But maybe if one of them had a plan and acted like they knew what they were talking about, Harmony wouldn’t feel like crying every few minutes. She took a breath and clapped her hands together, saying, “Now if everyone’s ready, let’s move out!”
THE WILDCARD:
Moving out seems like a really great idea, same with setting up camp but you never know what’s lurking in the jungle. Unknown to group one, the moment you go forth twenty feet, chances are you’ll be greeted by a sincerely overdone Finn Hudson who is more than a little dead and impaled by the jagged trunk of a broken tree.The smell of burnt flesh won’t be for the faint of heart, nor will the sight of a charbroiled Finn.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
When he reached the count of three, Puck didn’t hesitate to pull Brittany up to her feet. He knew it was going to be painful, but it was the only choice they had. They had to get her mobile, and using a couple sticks as crutches was the only working plan that they had at the moment. Once Brittany was standing, Puck kept his hand on her back to make sure she had her balance and could actually continue to stand on her own without crumbling back to the ground. “We’ll take it slow,” he said to agree with Harmony. He would have loved to have been able to do more, but seeing the look of pain in Brittany’s face as she got her used to standing again, he could tell that slow and steady was all they were going to get for a while. Hearing Harmony’s run down of things they needed to do, he nodded his head. It was hardly the time to argue, and since it was a lot of the same things on his mind, he had no reason to. He had the feeling that she was trying to hold it together in her own way, and seeing as her breaking down would only slow them down more, he wasn’t going to derail her efforts.
“We’ve still got a lot of daylight,” he commented as he looked up to find the sun’s position in the sky. He wasn’t a human sundial by any means, but he could see it high enough in the sky to know that it wouldn’t be setting just yet. Sunlight meant they could explore and hopefully run into the rest of their friends. They’d been able to find Brittany after all, he assumed they’d be able to find others the same way. “Let’s go find everyone. They’ve probably got a whole camp set up as they wait for our rescue to get here. Bet they’re already chilling together with all the clean water and food that you could want.” Once he was sure that Brittany had her balance under control, he took his hand back and surveyed where they were to make sure they weren’t going to leave in the same direction they’d arrived. They already knew there wasn’t anything that direction. “And I know plenty about plants.” Sure it was more along the lines of which ones where poison ivy or poison oak, but he figured it was better than nothing. Being confident and sure of himself wasn’t anything new. He was used to actually believing it more when he said it, but letting them know just how scared he was, wouldn’t help anything. “I got this covered. We’re going to be fine.”
Before anyone could disagree or decide they should take a break before they even started moving, Puck chose a direction and began walking in it. If they were going to make it, they had to push on no matter how much it hurt. It was easy for him to think that way given the fact that each step they took didn’t heighten the pain in his body, but with the blood he’d lost, he was feeling far from perfect himself. Finding something, anything at all that would help them, was all he wanted to do. They’d hardly gotten far at all when Puck began to regret the direction he’d chose. The smell was like nothing he’d come across before, and nothing he ever wanted to. The more they walked, the stronger it got until he pushed a branch out of the way and saw exactly what was causing it. Suddenly the rancid smell wasn’t the only thing churning his stomach as Puck laid eyes on the burnt legs of a body on a jagged tree trunk.
“Fuck…” While logic told him there was absolutely no hope to help the person, Puck rushed closer anyway. He tried to close his mind off to the horrible smell and the even worse thought of exactly what was causing it. It was the last thing he’d wanted to find, and as he got closer in his ridiculous attempt to somehow help the person, or what was left of them, things got worse. When he thought it was a stranger it was bad enough, but as Puck got his first look at the victim’s face, his mind slammed down into denial. “No, no, no,” he repeated, each word getting more and more desperate, like he could somehow change the outcome if he wanted it bad enough. “NO. This isn’t…We have to get him down.” Closing what space had been between himself and his best friend, Puck tried in vain to lift him up off the tree trunk that he was stuck on. “We have to get him down!” he frantically shouted in Brittany and Harmony’s direction as he pushed again to try and free the lifeless burned body. The tears stung his eyes, and it was more than the smell and gruesome sight that was turning his stomach as reality threatened his tight hold on denial.
“We have to do something!” Puck didn’t bother to look at the two people he was with as somewhere in his mind he knew there was nothing that any of them could do. Finn was dead. His best friend in the world, and the closest thing he’d ever had to a brother was laying there, and nothing he could do could fix it. They were supposed to always have each other’s backs. Through everything that had happened in their friendships, all the ups and downs, it was Finn who he knew he could count on. When life got to be too much, and he had to ask for help or get pulled under by it all, Finn was the one he went too. Life was definitely too hard now. Everything about it was too much, and the last thread that had been holding Puck together was long gone. Grabbing onto the trunk of the tree, the anger boiled to the surface. Tightening his hold on the remaining wood, Puck’s arms flexed under the strain as his fingertips dug into the bark. Tired of feeling helpless and desperate, tired of things getting worse when he already felt like he couldn’t take a single second more, tired of living this nightmare, Puck snapped and began ripping at he fractured tree truck until sobs racked through his body. Falling to his knees, Puck buried his face in his hands as he continued crying and couldn’t stop.
HARMONY JONES:
At Puck’s mention of daylight, she leaned on her walking stick and tilted her head back to see the sun peaking through the leafy canopy created by the trees. They’d definitely have a few hours before losing the light, and even at their slow pace, they might even be able to make it out of the forest. At least, Harmony hoped so. She wouldn’t say she was afraid of the dark, but this was not a normal situation. Who knew what else was lurking behind every tree? Or up in them? She’d much rather be in an open space where nothing could jump out and surprise them. Unless the island was all forest… Then they’d be stuck watching their backs every step they took until… Well, she didn’t know when. Whenever they got rescued.
Which Puck said would be coming for them shortly with food and water and able to fix them up, no problem, and be completely fine (although she was starting to question what exactly his definition of ‘fine’ was), but some sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her that would not be the case. While she didn’t know how large this island was, other than the two of them, Harmony hadn’t heard anyone or anything since coming to. This didn’t mean that no one else was nearby, of course, but they were probably not in a condition you would want to see them in. As if on cue, some wretched smell wafted into the air, causing Harmony to crinkle her nose in disgust. “What is - ” She cut off her own question, though, when she recognized the smell. It was just like her own burnt flesh. Only a hundred, million times worse. Which could only mean one thing… Sure enough, by a tree trunk, lay part of body, burnt to a crisp.
Harmony opened to her mouth to speak (or vomit, she wasn’t quite sure), only to be cut off by Puck’s curse. The older boy rushed towards the corpse and immediately began a full fledged freak out. He began to shout things at the two girls, and Harmony stared back helplessly, unsure of what was happening. Puck had always come as a very cool and smooth guy yet here he was having a melt down. Craning her neck to see around him as he tried to lift the body, she caught a glimpse of the now disfigured face to see that it was Finn Hudson. “Oh, God,” She gasped quietly, covering her mouth with her hand. Harmony didn’t know much about him and had never even formally met him, but from the show choir gossip, she knew he was New Direction’s vocal lead and co-captain. The Golden Boy. The leader. And based on his reaction, Noah Puckerman’s very close friend. After exchanging a glance with girl to her left, Harmony continued to watch as Puck, a boy she hardly knew but one that obviously had a tough exterior, on the verge of tears, dig into the bark of the tree trunk, ripping the wood apart. She wanted to do something to make him stop hurting himself, but he was so angry and upset and truly scary. She didn’t think he’d ever hurt her on purpose, but if he was this upset…
Finally, Puck broke down and began to sob. Hesitantly, Harmony stepped forward and carefully rested a hand on his uninjured shoulder. She was never the best at consoling people (her blunt honesty kind of killed that ability), and this situation was a million times worse than anything Harmony had ever encountered. She could only imagine what she’d if she found Chandler’s body… At least she hoped she’d only have to imagine. She’d be absolutely gutted. Inconsolable. Weeping uncontrollably. The whole nine yards. Just thinking about it made her feel like vomiting and crying and listening to Next to Normal for the next five years.
In short, Harmony had no freaking clue what to say to Puck. Still crouched down next to him, she spared a glance and looked at the deceased Finn Hudson. His body was entirely burnt to the point of being almost unrecognizable, and the stench itself made her eyes water. “Puck,” She said quietly. “I am so, so sorry.” She paused, hoping something brilliant to say would come to mind that would fix everything. No such luck. “He didn’t deserve this. But…he’s in a better place now, right? He’s not in pain. Wherever he is” - since Harmony’s not positive on what after life includes or even what Puck even believes in, if anything - “he’s happy.” She didn’t even know if what she’d said was helpful or comforting, but she genuinely believed it was true, and that was better than nothing, right?
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany listened and heard everything that was being said around her, but that was as deep as it got. She wasn’t comprehending anything at all because all of her focus was on not falling down and hurting herself, or someone else, more than she was already hurt. She remembered reading The Little Engine That Could and as they began to walk all she repeated over and over in her mind was “I think I can, I think I can” because she knew if she let herself get distracted even for the slightest bit of a moment that she wasn’t going to be able to stand anymore and keep herself up right. There was a lot of things they had to do if they were going to fight for their lives and Brittany knew that she had to have her head in the game rather than all over the place.
More and more Brittany wished she knew more about plants since that was one of the first things that was brought up, but she wasn’t going to be any help with that since she couldn’t see. Brittany knew a lot about berries though from her times during motocross when her and the rest of the team would wonder around some of the woods around the tracks… but if she couldn’t see the berries she didn’t know if that would help her at all. “I kind of know things about berries,” she said in a strained tone, the pain evident in her voice, “We used to eat a lot of them sometimes in motocross, the ones that grew on bushes and stuff…” she wasn’t trying to get their hopes up, but keeping her small knowledge about them to herself wasn’t going to help either. Brittany had to do what she could and it meant continuing to keep her mind in survival mode.
However, keeping her head straight didn’t go over very well because she quickly began to get confused at Puck’s frantic shouting. Brittany couldn’t see anything and the only way she was following Puck and Harmony was by making out the colors of their shirts since they were close to her. As for whatever they could see, Brittany was clueless. She squinted and squinted, but there was nothing she could do to help herself see anything. Brittany knew that Puck was crying and that something bad was in front of them, someone was dead and Brittany was scared to ask who it was. No one was saying any names, yet instead they kept referring to them as ‘he’. All Brittany could do was let out a deep sigh of relief that it wasn’t Santana, as bad as that sounded, Santana was the only reason Brittany was fighting so hard to stay alive and since it wasn’t Santana they found dead, she would be alright.
Or well, no, she wouldn’t be alright, none of them were ever going to be alright again, but she would be able to push it aside for a while because it wasn’t Santana. “It’s not Santana,” she said to herself out loud, “You’re okay because it’s not Santana.” Brittany was losing touches with reality and couldn’t let herself be sad by finding people dead. Someone was going to have to keep really strong and since Brittany couldn’t see anything, she figured it was better to pretend nothing bad was there since she couldn’t see it, “We have to keep moving,” she whispered, hurt by hearing the way Puck was upset, “We can’t stop, we have to keep moving.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Feeling a warm hand on his shoulder, Puck wasn’t thinking about how weak he must seem or how he was trying to hold it together and be positive about their situation. There was some things that could take down even the most badass, and coming across the body of his best friend was definitely one of those things. Even as Puck tried to listen to Harmony’s words and let them soak in, it was doing little to make him feel better about the situation. Puck needed him. He needed his best friend not only to be there with him to try and figure out who to fix the impossible situation they found themselves in, but in the world. There was so much they were supposed to do together no matter which direction their life took them, but that’s how it was supposed to go. Life was supposed to happen. Puck had never imagined it would ever go this way. He knew he was the screw up. He was the one always getting himself in trouble. No one expected much from him, but Finn? Finn was the type that always got it together in the end. He was always the leader and the person people turned to whether it was the football team or the New Directions. Finn was the one that took that leadership role, and now he couldn’t, and the realization left Puck feeling more lost that he ever imagined possible. So while Finn could end up somewhere happier, it was hard to believe that as Puck looked up to see his burnt body through the tears in his eyes.
When he heard Brittany’s voice, he turned to look over at her as if he didn’t know better, he never would have thought it was her. Brittany was a lot of things, but cruel, uncaring, and completely cold had never been words he would have chosen to describe her. Not until that moment. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” he spat out with absolutely zero care to how harsh his voice was. “Finn’s dead and all you can fucking say is it’s fine because it’s not Santana?” Puck’s heart was racing not only from the emotional freakout he’d had, but from the anger that now remained. He was angry at where they were, at how things kept getting worst, at God or whatever for seeing fit to take Finn, and now at Brittany for not giving a shit. Only one of those things was standing in front of him right now and could actually hear his words. “It’s not fine. None of it is fucking fine. That’s so great for you that the one person in the world you care about isn’t the one we stumble across, but some of the rest of us have hearts. Unless you have something good to say you can shut the fuck up.”
Less than two minutes ago both he and Harmony had told her they wouldn’t just walk away and were doing anything to think up some way to make sure they could stay together, and it was clear Brittany had only one thing on her mind. Nothing and no one else mattered, and Puck was sick of it. With his nerves already frayed from everything, he had no patience left. In normal situations he would have tried to be more understanding and realize that they were all scared, but today wasn’t that day. Sure he wanted to find Santana. He also wanted to find every single other person that was on their flight. So many of them were his friends, both new and old, and some were a lot closer to family. That was what New Directions claimed to be after all, but it hurt every time he learned the word didn’t have the same meaning for other people as it did him.
Puck turned his back to Brittany again as he didn’t want to look at her anymore. She was disgusting him as much the sight of Finn was. Finn deserved better in every way possible. He didn’t deserve to die, and he didn’t deserve one of his so-called friends to not even bat an eye that he was no longer with them. “I’m not going anywhere,” he said calmly as he looked over to Harmony. He hoped she could understand where he was coming from, and also that it wasn’t up for debate with him. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he didn’t do everything he could for Finn to give him a peaceful place to lay. He wasn’t going to fail him in death like he did in life. “I’m getting Finn down, and I’ll bury him or something. I won’t leave him like this.” Puck forced himself to take a deep breath and try and stop the tears and pull himself together. “I can’t.” He exhaled a big breath like it was a way to cut off all the pain he was feeling. He pushed himself up so that he was standing and offered the hand from his good arm to help Harmony up with him. “You can rest your leg for a while.” Looking at Finn’s body without the shock and desperation of trying to save him, he tried to come up with a way to get him down. His mind was made up, and he didn’t leave it up for debate. “I can do this on my own.”
BRITTANY PIERCE:
“Don’t yell at me,” Brittany screamed back, the best she could anyway since her voice was already so strained from crying, “I can’t even see, I can’t see anything, if Santana was dead I wouldn’t even be able to see her because my eyes are freaking broken!” she yelled, frustrated, “And we were in a crash a really bad crash and I might be stupid but I know that means people are dead. A lot of people are dead and we’re not and that’s all we can worry about because we can’t fix dead people but we can help fix ourselves.” Brittany was frustrated and was positive that she had never yelled at anyone the way she was yelling at Puck right then. It’s not like Puck even took into consideration that this was happening to everyone, not just him, he wasn’t the only one who had to deal with knowing some of their friends were dead and in Brittany’s mind that was selfish of him. Brittany was just as sad and upset as Puck was vocalizing, except she was keeping it inside because breaking down mentally would only cause her to break more physically as well and that wasn’t something they could afford, Puck though, Puck was being selfish with all of it.
She was angry that she couldn’t see because part of her wanted to walk away, as far as she could to where there was water at least, so she could wait there and hope there was help being sent to them. Being around people wasn’t something she wanted, hell, just a while ago she wanted and was waiting to die. Brittany wasn’t herself anymore and that was hurting her more than anything else. She didn’t like being not herself. She didn’t like being the kind of person who would yell. She didn’t like being the kind of person who wanted to die. And she sure as hell didn’t like not being able to see and having people talk down at her like they had all her life. Brittany wasn’t going to let someone like Puck put her down anymore. For all Brittany knew they were all going to die and at that point if she was going to die it was going to be with some dignity. Brittany might not be very smart, she might not know or understand many things, but out in a forest somewhere that didn’t matter. She could be whoever she wanted to be, and she was going to be strong.
“You can’t stay here yourself, you’ll die,” Brittany pointed out the obvious, “and we can’t waste time getting him down or we’re all going to die… it’s super sad that Finn’s dead, but we don’t even have a big enough shoe box to bury him in, that’s what we always did with my fish anyway…” she squinted, hoping that she was looking over in Harmony’s direction, “I don’t want to die anymore,” Brittany spoke honestly, “If we stop now… I don’t think I’ll be able to get back up and… and I don’t think Finn would want that, I think he’d want us to find and help the other alive people because he liked to help people…” even when they didn’t need help she thought, remembering back to him forcing Santana to come out before she was ready, “I don’t want to die, we have to keep walking, please, please?” Brittany knew she couldn’t get anywhere herself with not being able to see and knew that Puck needed to realize they had to keep going. They had to.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony waited for Puck to say something, but upon hearing the blonde speak, saying something about Santana being fine, she raised her eyebrows. She knew she wasn’t the best at comforting people, but Brittany’s comment was downright insensitive. She knew this wasn’t a normal situation, but she would have thought that since Brittany and Finn were probably friends as well, she wouldn’t have been so… blunt.And apparently Puck thought so, too, because in a flash, he was up and screaming at her. Even though he wasn’t yelling at her, Harmony jumped back as if she’d been burned and took a few steps backward to stay out of the line of fire. While she generally wasn’t afraid to speak her mind, this was one argument she was more than willing to stay out of. Not only was this not her business since she barely knew the people involved (the ones arguing and also the people in discussion), but she wasn’t about to say that Puck was wrong for being angry or Brittany was wrong for trying to stay strong, even if it could have been expressed in a better way. For once, Harmony decided to keep her mouth shut.
When Puck turned his back on Brittany, seemingly shutting down the conversation, she let out a small sigh of relief, and gratefully let him help her up. She understood why he wanted to bury Finn’s body. After all, it was the least he could do for his best friend and furthermore, Finn’s family. It would be wrong to abandon the body, leaving it to be destroyed by the elements and whatever animals were in the forest. Just the thought made her shudder. There was no way they couldn’t bury the body, no matter how much Brittany wanted - and needed - to keep moving. “Brittany,” She said quietly, limping over to where the blonde girl stood and hopefully out of earshot of Puck. “I know you want to keep going, but we can’t leave Finn here like this. Puck needs this closure, and Finn’s other friends and family need to at least know that he was honored in whatever way they could be in this situation.” Her voice dropped lower when she added, “You know we’d do the same if it were Santana.”
With that, Harmony moved back to where Puck was still trying to get Finn’s body down and asked gently, “Do you want any help?” Although she barely knew the deceased boy or even Puck and the idea of touching the body freaked her out, she could imagine how crushed she would be to find someone she cared for in this condition, and she hoped that someone else would be understanding enough to know that she needed closure, no matter how small. And even if Brittany was right about needing to keep moving, Harmony didn’t have the heart to do that to Puck and more importantly, Finn. His life had already been unfairly ended. He deserved this.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“We’re not going to die, and I’m not going to leave him,” he said evenly as he wasn’t about to have a huge fight over it. They had enough going on without starting a big argument in the middle of the woods, even if it was often what the members of the New Directions did the best. With his mind was already made up, Puck let Brittany say what she had to without responding to it. It was obvious that emotions were running high, and he couldn’t see that stopping anytime soon. The situation they currently found themselves in was something straight out of a nightmare. No one could have imagined it would happen, and no matter how much Puck tried to wake himself up from it, he just couldn’t. As Harmony walked over to talk to Brittany, he took the chance to walk around the tree trunk to try and find the best way possible to get his friend’s body down. Even the thought of it that way, his friend’s body, turned his stomach, but he tried to power through. Focusing on what he needed to do was the only way he could manage. Finn deserved some peace, and Puck was going to give it to him. He knew it was going to be hard enough to look Kurt in the eye and tell him that his brother didn’t make it without having to add that they’d left him impaled on a tree to it. The same with for Rachel and every other person the plane. They’d lost one of their own, and he wanted to at least be able to say they tried to honor that.
“I think if I just pull on this…” Puck began to say as Harmony had walked back over to where he was. Grabbing onto a piece of the tree trunk, he grimaced as he began to pull as hard as he could to attempt to break the jagged wood apart. Adding his foot to the bottom of the trunk to steady himself, Puck managed to put more of his weight into it and it finally snapped off sending Finn’s body tumbling to the ground, and Puck stumbling back the opposite direction. Covering his mouth with the back of his forearm as a new wave of burnt flesh reached his nose, Puck willed himself to swallow the taste of bile that was rising up in his throat. He couldn’t throw up and get sick. He needed to be tough and make things happen. “You could find something so we can mark his grave. Maybe a flower or a freaking cool looking stick or something. Finn’s always…Or, I guess he used to always like stupid stuff like that. One weekend we spent like four hours straight watching the Discovery channel talk about fish that looked like rocks.” Talking about Finn in the past tense like he wouldn’t be able to do any of those things again wasn’t something he wanted to get used to doing. Then again nothing that had happened since their plane began falling from the sky was something he wanted to get used to.
Taking a breath and trying to clear his mind before it started wandering down a path that would make everything harder again, he shook his head as he looked over at Harmony. “You can save your energy, especially with that leg of yours. Maybe you can keep Brittany company. She’s normally not like this.” Puck glanced in the other girl’s direction briefly before he picked up the jagged piece of the tree trunk he’d broken off and began to dig as best he could. It was slow work, and would be virtually impossible to turn into a six foot long and few foot deep hole, but as he jammed the makeshift shovel of a stick into the ground again and again, at least it was a good way to burn off the anger he felt. It was the first little thing he could control, digging a hole. That part didn’t take thinking, and as long as he kept reminding himself that it was for Finn, he was able to temporarily block out the physical pain that went along with it.
HARMONY JONES:
Thankfully, Puck appeared to have calmed down and instead of snapping at Brittany again, he spoke quietly and evenly, shutting down any possibility of an argument erupting. She watched him begin working on getting Finn’s body down, not wanting to distract him, but when Brittany decided that she would keep moving on her own, Harmony moved back over to Puck. The smell of burnt flesh washed over her again, stronger this time, and she blinked to keep her eyes from watering even more. Swallowing the desire to gag, she nodded at his suggestion and gathered a handful of nearby flowers and decided she’d make a small wreath out of them like one of the flower crowns from Alice in Wonderland. Sure, it wasn’t the most manly thing in the world, but it seemed like a more appropriate grave marker than a muddy stick. Easing herself onto the ground and leaning against a tree for support, Harmony stuck her injured leg out in front to rest and begun working on the flower crown. “Um, Brittany decided to go off on her own,” She explained hesitantly, focusing her attention on weaving the flowers’ stems together. She understood why the blonde wanted to keep searching for water and possible shelter, but Harmony felt very uneasy about her going off on her own. There was no telling what was lurking behind every tree, and almost worse than that, there was a strong possibility they could stumble upon someone in the same condition as Finn. Someone she cared for even more than the male lead of New Directions. Chandler. Her mom.
At the horribly morbid thought, Harmony spoke quietly, “Hey, Puck?” She glanced up from the thin stems and delicate pedals to see him, something of a shovel in his hand, going to town on the dirt. He was working at a steady pace, the hole growing with each dig, but they were going to be here quite a while before it’d be large enough to fit Finn. “Do you think anyone else is alive?” She asked. The moment the question slipped out of her mouth, she instantly wished she could take the words back. Both of them had been thinking it, she was sure, but saying it made the situation a thousand times more real. She still couldn’t believe that Finn Hudson was dead. It hadn’t hit her despite the fact that she was currently making a grave marker for him. Then again, she didn’t know the boy. But actually having to consider the possibility that others, specifically those she was close to, were also dead… The thought made her uneasy. And honestly, even though she’d asked, Harmony really didn’t want to know the answer. “Don’t answer that,” She said immediately, her gaze dropping back down to her work. Who actually asked something like that? She couldn’t bring herself to look Puck in the eye, instead focusing on her muddy hands braiding the flower stems together.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
The more Puck began dig into the ground, shoveling scoop after scoop of dirt, the less progress he seemed to be making. Logically he knew it wasn't true, but he couldn't help but to feel that way. Maybe it was just easier to focus on something as trivial as digging a hole than to have to think about what it was for, but it was the only thing on his mind. It was for that reason that he hadn't even noticed Brittany had gone until Harmony spoke up about it. Glancing over his shoulder to the spot he'd seen her standing in last, Puck saw it had been completely vacated. He hardly thought Harmony would have decided to lie to him about it, but it would have made as much sense as Brittany leaving to take off on her own did. Santana was going to kill him, he knew that much. He could just imagine them tracking down Santana and whoever else only to have to add in, 'oh by the way, Brittany went wandering off on her own. Don't worry though, she had a couple of good crutches.' He shook his head at the thought, but it didn't seem so bad even if it earned him a slap or two from his hot temped friend. At least then they'd have found someone alive and well.
"How the hell is...." Puck stopped himself from even finishing his question. It wasn't like Harmony would have any of the answers to it either. There was no telling what was going on in Brittany's head outside of what she'd already told them. She wanted to leave and that was exactly what she'd done. Anything beyond that would have been guessing, and with everything else they already had to figure out, he decided to save his energy. "We should be able to catch up with her later," he stated instead as he went back to digging the grave he'd been working on. Finn was a tall guy, Puck had joked about it tons of times after all, so he knew he had a long way to go. Even as his muscles began to burn and ache from all the work, Puck kept digging. In his mind, he had no choice but to. Burying Finn gave him the smallest bit of control in a situation where everything was spinning so wildly out of control. Given the chance he would have gladly given that up if it meant having his friend back, but since that wasn't going to happen, he forced himself to focus on what he could. Each handful of dirt brought him ever so slowly, a little closer to his goal.
Hearing Harmony's question that echoed the ones he had in his head, Puck froze for a moment. It was the big question after all. The one that loomed overhead unspoken until that moment. They'd been able to find Brittany alive, but that was because she'd been able to call out for them. Finn obviously hadn't been so lucky. "They are," he answered even after she told him not to. He had to believe it himself, and somewhere in his mind he thought if he could get her to as well, that it made it more likely to be true. Puck kept his eyes trained on the dirt pile he'd created next to the shallow grave he'd managed to hollow out so far. He couldn't have his own doubts show through, not when he knew how important it was to have some hope to cling to. "They're out there, and we're going to find them." He forced himself to glance over in Harmony's direction even as her eyes stayed trained on what she was doing. "The rest of them probably landed together, you know? I bet they're all organizing search parties and waiting until all the rescue teams get here and shit." It was what he wanted to believe, even if his gut told him otherwise. He'd seen plane crashes covered on the news before and how there were always teams swarming to cover it. Each channel had their own view of the wreckage, but as he looked up at the sky between the branches of the trees, he didn't see any choppers hovering to get the best view. He saw nothing but blue sky littered with white clouds.
Sitting back completely exhausted, Puck down looked at the moderate sized hole he'd managed to make. It was far from perfect, and in an ideal situation he could have made it a foot or so deeper, but it was already a miracle he'd been able to make the one he had. Of course it wasn't the type of miracle he would have liked, but apparently it wasn't the sort of thing to choose. Forcing himself to stand up, Puck walked over to Finn's body, and he tried not to think about it as he slid his arms under the lifeless corpse and pulled it towards the waiting grave. He tried not to think about the smell, or how Finn's burnt flesh felt against his fingers, even though he knew neither was something he would ever be able to fully forget. None of this ever would be. Laying Finn down in the freshly dug grave, Puck stepped out of it and tried to keep himself together as he began the equally slow process of covering him up with the leftover dirt. Needing something to distract his mind, he glanced over at Harmony again. For better or worse, he knew it was better to have someone there than be alone. "Thanks for sticking with me," he said as he turned back to what he was doing. "You didn't have to, and it means a lot."
GENERAL NOTES → It’s nice to get to mix in some good feels.
Waiting at the end of the pier, Puck drummed his fingertips on the support pole as he kept glancing down to see if he could spot Quinn walking his way. Knowing what they wanted to do, Puck took the time to already set up their excursion. Nearby the boat and parasail we waiting for them to be strapped inside it. While Quinn wasn’t late, his excitement for the whole afternoon had him feeling antsy. “Hurry up,” he teasingly yelled at the first sight of her. “You’re keeping everyone waiting.” Everyone meaning him since the people in charge of their adventure were getting paid no matter what. Pushing himself off the wooden beam he’d been leaning against, Puck smiled at Quinn so she’d know his comments weren’t serious if his tone of voice hadn’t given him away already. “Or maybe I should be thanking you for not chickening out on this one.”
QUINN FABRAY
Bora Bora was easily the most beautiful place Quinn had even seen. After watching the Kardashians (she was a reality TV junkie, obviously) go to Bora Bora on a family vacation during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, she immediately placed Bora Bora on her bucket list. The white sand, the Palm Trees, and the sparkling, clear water was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Plus, the idea of having your own hut with just one other person was something Quinn was very fond of. And, it went without much thought that Quinn and Rachel would pair up to be roommates. The two girls had finally reached a common ground and seemed to be getting along better than anyone could have ever imagined. However, there was one little complication - Finn and Rachel. While it was nice having Rachel as a roommate and a partner for all island explorations, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with the duo spending more and more time in their hut.
The only good part of that situation was the mere fact that Finn’s roommate was someone that Quinn knew all too well - Noah Puckerman. Their relationship was complicated at best, but she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t have a big soft spot for the most important boy from her past. A wide smile grace her lips as Quinn caught her first glimpse of Puck by the pier. It was safe to say that the sun was doing wonders for his skin, as she can’t remember time he had ever looked better. Shaking the thoughts off with a laugh, Quinn rolled her eyes. “Are you ever going to learn you manners, Puckerman? You’re lucky it’s me coming with you and not Rachel. Can you imagine having to be up there with a screaming Berry?” Laughing quietly as the picture of Rachel screaming her head off entered her mind, Quinn took the last few steps over to the where he was standing at the end of the pier. “Alright, let’s do this.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck couldn’t help but to laugh when Quinn called him out on his lack of manners. It wasn’t the first time, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. It was a lot easier to be teased when it came with her smile attached to it. “You’re the one who is making people wait. Where’s your manners?” he countered with a smirk. Of course his argument didn’t actually hold up at all given she wasn’t actually late, but he wasn’t going to let a little detail like that stop him from attempting to make a point. “And there aren’t enough earplugs on the island for me to manage that one,” he added with an easy smile on his face. Getting Rachel on a jet ski had been a big enough accomplishment for him, and he was sure that was only because Rachel wanted something to do to keep her mind off of Finn. “Besides, she’d want to bring Jesse with her since they are apparently inseparable now. I’d rather do anything than be a third wheel to those two. Can you imagine? I’d just unhook myself and take my chances with the free fall,” he said as he shook his head like he could more easily clear the thought that way.
“And then that would leave you all alone and so bored without me today. Face it, you need me.” Puck began walking in the direction of the setup that was waiting for them, and glancing over at her beside him as he did. He was feeling much more like his normal confident, or cocky as some might say, self these days, and he had Quinn to thank for a lot of that. It wasn’t like he was looking to get into that heart to heart confession at the moment, not when they had much more fun things planned to do instead. So far things were working out perfectly for him. He had a great day planned, and the perfect person to spend it with. As they approached their destination, one of the workers met them right away and began explaining safety rules and precautions with them. In other words, Puck stopped listening shortly after the hello, and instead started using his foot to push sand onto Quinn’s just to see how much he could get away with before she tried to retaliate. He figured he knew all he needed to already anyway: get strapped in and enjoy the view.
QUINN FABRAY
Almost immediately, Quinn flashed her infamous eye roll. “Have you ever heard of a thing called ‘fashionably late’, Puckerman?” She asked, her eyes quickly checking out his outfit with a small late. “Well, obviously not, considering the things you choose to wear every single day. We oughta change that soon, yes?” Quinn shook her head, not even able to begin thinking about the love triangle between Finn, Rachel, and Jesse. It was practically insane to her that Rachel and Finn could be so in love one day, and then she’d be buddy buddy with Jesse again the next day. Of course, she was in no room to judge, for she was never the best person in relationships anyways, but the concept of those three was as confusing as her and Puck had managed to get. “I just… I don’t understand. And, I feel like I’ve barely seen Finn at all this trip. I hope he’s alright.” As much history and uneasy feelings there had been between Quinn and Finn, all she wanted was the best for him - and for a while, she was certain that was Rachel. It’s almost funny how fast things change.
“Oh? Is that so?” Quinn challenged, her eyebrow raising out of curiosity. “You think Ineed youfor entertainment? You are out of your mind, Noah Puckerman. Completely out of your mind.” She laughed, lightly slapping his arm as she walked past him. It was safe to say that there were far more rules for this whole activity than Quinn had ever imagined, though the thought of them caring for the safety of others was something that settled her mind into ease. As per usual, she was the only one out of the duo that had paid close attention to the rules and instructions. The warm sensation trickled onto her toes, and it took all but everything in her not to burst out laughing. Her eyes remaining on the instructor in from them, who was now turned around and pointing to things on the harness, Quinn quickly grabbed a fistful of sand, throwing it into the chest of the out of control boy next to her.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck scoffed as he looked down over what he was wearing. Even though she had a point, a picking out a pair of swim trunks to wear wasn’t hard given he only had a couple pairs anyway, but he wasn’t about to admit that. “I can’t help it that I’m just naturally this hot. Some of us don’t have to take hours.” He walked a little taller with his chest puffed out to prove his point in his own mind. “Yeah, he’s…I don’t know.” Puck tried to figure out the right words to explain the whole mess of a situation. For once, he was glad he had nothing to do with that tangled web of people. “He’s dealing with it his way. This whole romance island probably isn’t helping things. He’ll be alright though. You should drag him out of the hut to do something. I know it’s hard to believe, but he might be tired of seeing my handsome mug all the time.” Puck looked over at Quinn with a cheesy grin on his face. He knew it couldn’t be easy for Finn to sit back and watch Rachel move on so quickly, no matter what the reasons behind the breakup were. He kept trying to encourage the guy to step up and make a move before he lost his chance, but there was only so much pushing he could do from his spot.
As Quinn stood with a seemingly straight face and listened to the safety lecture all while her foot was getting buried, Puck thought he was smooth. It wasn’t until the guy turned to grab a couple life vests and Quinn retaliated that he realized it wasn’t that simple. “Hey!” he protested as a hand full of sand bounced off of his chest. Just when he was about to retaliate, preferably in any way possible that would make him out to be the winner in their little sand battle that he’d started, the instructor turned around again. The last thing Puck wanted was for the guy to start his safety lecture over from the start. The idea of being stuck listening to all sides of the crazy, mixed up, love triangle sounded better than that, so Puck tried to quickly think on his feet. “I was just gonna say, ‘Hey you’re really good at explaining all of this stuff…” Judging from the guy’s face, he didn’t buy it one bit, but since he didn’t start things over but instead handed them both a life jacket to put on, Puck considered it a win. “You should keep an eye on her. She’s chicken.” After dusting the sand off of his chest and flicking it from his fingertips in Quinn’s direction, he pulled on his life vest and made his way to their parasail that was waiting for them.
QUINN FABRAY
“Please,” Quinn retorted, a laugh rising through her throat. “You’re the only person on this island that thinks you’re hot. Besides Sugar, maybe. I always thought she had a little crush on you.” The way Puck talked about Finn was so genuine that it ran a string of pain and jealousy through her body. Finn and Puck were the absolute best of friends. Wherever one was, you were bound to find the other somewhere close in distance. They were peas in a pod, and absolutely everyone who was anyone knew that. No matter what kind of obstacles they had been pushed through or what kind of history they had, they had always managed to find some sort of way to push right through it - like it was nothing, like it never happened. It was safe to say that Quinn Fabray was more than a little jealous of the friendship. While she had close friends like Santana and Brittany, she had never had a friend as close as they were to each other. Flashing a knowing smile towards Puck, Quinn nodded. “Maybe I’ll see if he wants to go for a swim or something.”
Pride welled in Quinn’s chest as she watched Puck was seemingly caught in the act. “I’m not chicken!” She protested, her hands thrown into the air as if it were convincing the instructor in any sort of way. Following suit, Quinn rose from her seat and pulled the snug life vest around her torso. She quickly bumped Puck to the side with her hip as she sidled past him, to the landing dock on the boat where the instructor had told them to go. After being harnessed and latched into a million locks, in which Quinn was sure that it was making sure they were completely safe against any situation, a quiet squeal escaped her mouth. “Remember when I said I wasn’t scared?” Quinn asked Puck, raising her voice to be heard over the sound of the starting of the boat engine. “Well, I lied.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
"Who can blame her? Apparently she's the only person on the island with working eyes if that's true," Puck said with a teasing smirk as he didn't let Quinn's comment phase him. If anything, it just convinced him that she was living in denial. There were a few things Puck knew for absolute certainty no matter what: Lima, Ohio was the suckiest place in the world to live, he was incredibly easy on the eyes, and Finn Hudson was always going to be his best friend. Other things could come and go, but those three remained the same. When Quinn agreed with him, even if it was about hanging out with Finn and not how incredibly hot she thought he was, he couldn't help but to smile in return. She just had one of those smiles that when it was genuine and pointed in his direction, he felt like he was on top of the world.
"Oh, you definitely are a chicken," he repeated even as he had no real basis for it. Facts weren't exactly important in that case, and he was curious to see if she was going to prove him wrong. As she breezed past him with a quick hip check, he shook his head and laughed to himself. Chicken or not, at least she wasn't backing down. Quickly catching up to her, Puck fastened all the straps and belts every which way until he was securely fastened inside the harness. Looking over at Quinn when he heard her voice over the boat engine as it roared to life, the know it all smirk wasn't far behind. "I knew it," he teased as he reached his hand over to set it on top of hers as she held on. "It's going to be so badass," he reassured her as he gave her hand a soft squeeze. The words had barely left his mouth before the boat began to accelerate away from the docks and it began their ascent into the sky at the same time.
Along with the wound on forehead, cuts littered her arms and legs although, judging by the dried blood, most had stopped seriously bleeding some time ago. The worst of all, though, was the deep gash on her collar bone. Harmony bit back the urge to vomit at the vile smell of blood and burnt flesh and set to ripping her the bottom of her t-shirt apart. The long piece of fabric was used as some sort of make shift headband, wrapping around her head and tied in a large knot at the spot of the cut to soak up the blood. Harmony pressed the collar of her shirt against the other gash and kept her hand there, hoping the pressure would stop the bleeding.
Carefully wiping her bloody free hand on her left thigh, not daring to touch her burnt one, she began to try to pull her aching body when she heard an indistinguishable noise. Frozen in a half sitting, half crouching position, she strained her ears and listened again. But…nothing. The silence was all consuming, deafening even. She was probably just imagining things. Wishful thinking. With another small whimper, Harmony continued the excruciating task of pushing herself up. Then there it was. A yell. A deep, low yell. There was someone else out there. Someone who was alive.
In a knee jerk reaction, Harmony practically jumped up, only for a searing pain to shoot through her right leg. “Shit!” She exclaimed in the least ladylike manner possible, immediately pushing all her weight onto her left leg. Even though only her thigh was burnt, it was like her entire leg was on fire. Just as Harmony was ready to get back on the ground, crawl into a ball, and die, she heard the voice again. Groaning in frustration, she stuck her free arm out, the other still holding her shirt to the her wound to steady her balance, and began to hobble her way in the sound of the screams. “Help!” She screamed at the top of her lungs before taking another step. Well, hop. “Please!” Her voice cracked, sounding even more pathetic and desperate than she knew it already did.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to be doing, if anything, so she kind of was settling to just sit and wait for whatever to happen, happen. She was trying to think about what dying could be like, if it hurt or if it was easy. Hell, she was already so hurt, her back impossibly broken probably, not being able to see, dying couldn’t be worse than how she was already feeling, she assumed. Except, shoot, what if she wasn’t able to see ‘the light’ since her vision was so bad? Would they still let her into heaven? Now she was a little bit worried.
There was no point in trying to stand up, Brittany couldn’t see where to go even if she was able to stand, so she’d probably end up hurting herself even more by trying to move. Like she’d decided, there wasn’t any use in trying to do anything when she had already let herself be so defeated by life. Nothing was worth it anymore, not unless Santana found her. Not unless Santana was even alive.
It wasn’t until Brittany heard someone else that maybe she realized that she couldn’t just completely give up, not that she even could tell who was asking for help. “Hello?” Brittany shouted back, looking around, but that doing no good since she couldn’t see to begin with. She sniffed, her nose clogged from crying and her voice raspy from screaming for Santana, “Where are you?? I can’t really help because I can’t see or get up but… wait can you walk?” she shouted again, wondering if whoever was out there could just come to her, that’d be easier, at least Brittany wouldn’t be alone when she died.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony took another one footed jump forward, stumbling slightly before catching herself on a nearby tree. Hissing in pain, she looked down to see that the tree trunk had left minor cuts on her palms - but hey, what was another few scratches at this point? She was busy wiping the dirt off her hands when a voice, another voice, broke through the forest. A second voice. Another person. “What?” She screamed. When the second voice answered back with unintelligible words, Harmony yelled, “Wait. Just…just stay there!”
“Plan…Okay, I need a plan…” She mumbled, her mind running a million miles a minute. There were two other people nearby. Possibly dying. Most likely dying. Okay. She needed to find them both. Then they needed to find water. Clean water. Then figure out where the heck they were. Then food. And shelter. But first, find these people. Harmony took one hesitant hop in the direction of where the first voice had come from, but her balance was off and she flailed madly before steadying herself. If she fell, there was no way she’d be able to get back on her feet. She surveyed the area as if a cane or a pair of crutches would appear out of nowhere before her eyes fell on a nearby stick. Hobbling her way over to the stick, she picked it up in her free hand and instantly relaxed now that her weight was more balanced.
Harmony limped along for what seemed like hours, periodically shouting out to those around her, mostly to know she was going in the right direction but partially to make sure they were still alive. Seeing as she was squeamish about blood, she couldn’t imagine stumbling upon a dead body. The thought itself made her shiver. Finally, Harmony saw movement between the trees. “Hello!” She called out, ready to cry tears of joy. She didn’t even know who it was, but it was someone, and that was good enough for her. “It’s Harmony!”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Slowly working his way towards the trunk of the tree to attempt to climb lower, Puck froze the second he heard a voice calling out again. It wasn’t the same shriek he’d heard earlier, but instead a couple different voices volleying back and forth. He couldn’t tell who it was, or even what was being said, but it was more people. It wasn’t much hope, but it was some. He wasn’t the only one living out the grizzly nightmare that he wished he could suddenly wake up from. His friend were fine. He was going to get out of the tree he was in, and everything was going to be fine. Puck repeated the same thought on an endless loop in his head as he tried to force himself to believe it. There was no room to let the doubts and panic take over. Things were bad enough as they were.
Reaching the trunk of the tree, Puck winced as he had to use his left arm to grab onto a branch to lower himself to the one below it. As a kid Puck could spend hours climbing trees and daring his friends, usually Finn, to see who could climb the highest. He felt invincible as he climbed near the tops without a care in the world, but now all he wanted was for his feel to land safely on the ground again. He missed the ground.
“Oh shit.” Puck quick grabbed onto another branch as the one his feet were planted on began to crack beneath his weight. Having it break completely would have offered a much faster way to the ground below, but a painful one. “I swear I’m going to chop you down when I’m out of here,” Puck complained at his new wooden enemy just to keep his mind focused on something instead of lightheaded feeling he refused to acknowledge. Hearing a voice a lot closer than the last time he had, Puck found steady footing and tried to twist and turn to see below him and catch a glimpse of who it belonged to. “Harmony?” he repeated when he heard what she said. “Thank fuck. Are you alright? Is anyone with you?” He knew he’d heard someone else before, but at that moment he was so thankful to see another living soul that he wanted to grab her and never let go. Of course that meant finding a way down to the ground first, but it was proving a lot harder than he would have liked for it to.
HARMONY JONES:
“Puck?” She sputtered out, skidding to a sudden stop when she saw Noah Puckerman of all people stuck up in a tree. She didn’t even think to chastise him for his course language, though, because at that moment, she was overcome with the desire to give him the biggest, tightest hug she could muster. “I-I’m fine.” Which reminded her to check if the gash on her collar bone was still bleeding. Thankfully her t-shirt seemed to have mopped most of it up, and only dried blood was smeared across her chest. “I have a burn on my leg, and it feels like I’m being stabbed every step I take,” She explained, gesturing to her one legged stance and walking stick. “But I can walk, and I’d say that’s an accomplishment at this moment.”
“Someone else is out there,” Harmony continued, glancing briefly back in the direction of the other person. “I don’t know who it is, but it’s a girl, and she’s hurt, and we need to go find her.” She didn’t have the heart to add ‘before we find her dead’. While she had evaded that scenario with Puck, Harmony wasn’t so sure she’d be as lucky the second time. Since Puck was currently on unsteady footing several feet above the ground, though, there were a few things they needed to take care of before going on another person search. “But I guess we need to get you out of this tree first…”
Automatically her mind started racing for a solution, anything that could be in any way helpful, but surprise, surprise, a ladder did not appear out of thin air. She wasn’t anywhere near tall enough to help him out herself, and even if Puck could ease himself down a few branches, there was still a good four or five foot drop that would have to be jumped. And if he felt half as bad as she did, jumping was in no a viable option. Maybe he could…Or maybe…Nope. She had nothing. Fantastic.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck shifted around until there was no more branches to climb down onto, but it offered him a better view of Harmony. He could see that their definition of fine had already shifted considerably as the dried blood that caked her clothes as well as the burned state of her leg were visible from where he stood. If she was fine, he didn’t want to know what people who weren’t looked like. As soon as the thought entered his mind, he tried to shake it off. He knew what they would be like even if he didn’t want to. “Yeah, it’s coming from that way,” he said as he pointed off in the opposite direction from where Harmony had come from. “I heard them earlier, but then I haven’t in a while.” He was sure his mind wasn’t the only one that jumped to what that could have possibly meant, but instead of focusing on it, Puck moved his attention back to getting on solid ground.
“Don’t suppose you carry a spare ladder or a rope around with you,” he said as he looked at the drop he had ahead of him. From where he stood, he figured he had two choices. He could jump and risk breaking a leg which could make finding everyone else a lot harder, or he could attempt to hang from the lowest branch to at least cut the fall in half. The choice would have been a lot more clear if every flex of his left bicep didn’t send a shooting pain through his arm as well as more blood to soak his makeshift tourniquethe’d created with part of his shirt. “Okay, stand back.” Standing there and weighing his options anymore was a giant waste of time as far as he was concerned, so instead Puck sat down on the branch he’d been standing on. It was still higher up than he wanted to manage, but there was no changing it. Grabbing onto the branch with both of his hands, he turned and pushed himself off of it. The second his muscles flexed in attempt to hold his weight, the pain multiplied to insane levels and he let go, immediately falling the remaining six feet to ground with a thud.
Puck groaned the second the air returned to his lungs after it had all been forced out from the fall, and he pushed himself up so that he was sitting. The stinging sensation on his back alerted him for the first time that it was burned or possibly scraped from earlier. “Fuck that hurt, ” he said as casually as he could mange as he pushed himself up to his feet and getting his first good look at Harmony’s leg and just how badly it was burned. It obviously needed to be cleaned and walking on it couldn’t have been easy, but they didn’t have a lot of options. Whoever else they’d heard was nearby and it sounded like they were in a lot of pain. “I’ve never been so happy to see you in my life,” he said honestly as being stuck alone and not know where anyone was, was not a good feeling. “Come on, let’s go find everyone else.”
HARMONY JONES:
“No,” She replied, smiling weakly at Puck’s attempt at a joke. She might have even forced a chuckle if she didn’t know how dire their situation actually was. Whoever out there couldn’t move and might even be dead. She was limping her way along with a muddy stick for a crutch. And he was stuck in a freaking tree. They needed medical attention, clean water, food…Geez. Just thinking about it made Harmony want to curl up and wait to die. How were they ever supposed to survive? This was like some sick kind of Hunger Games except Harmony wasn’t Katniss, but one of the goners in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.
Harmony’s mind was so busy figuring out her Hunger Games metaphor that she didn’t notice Puck preparing himself to jump out of the tree until he warned her to get out of the way. “Wait, don’t!” She exclaimed at the exact moment he jumped. When he landed on the ground with a loud thud, Harmony gasped and rushed forward, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg. “Puck?” She asked as he laid in a motionless heap, his chest moving up and down slightly as the only sign that he was living. “Puck, are you okay?” Instead of answering her question, he cursed and pushed himself up. She was going to take that as a ‘yes’. “Consider the feeling mutual,” She replied in response to Puck’s comment. Even if she didn’t know Puck very well, he was a somewhat familiar face, and she already felt a hundred more times comfortable having him as company in the situation.
Puck seemed to be able manage walking, at least more comfortably than herself, so they set off, Harmony still doing her best to keep any weight off her right leg, calling out to the stranger who was nearby. When their calls were returned, reassuring Harmony that the person was still alive and even better, close by, they pointed themselves in the right direction. Suddenly, between the trees, there was a flash of movement and more noticeably, straw colored hair. “Look! I see someone!” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. There was no way the higher pitched voice belonged to Sam or Jeff, but it could be Quinn or… “Brittany!” Harmony yelled, finally being able to make out the girl more clearly.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany had no idea where the other voices were coming from and it’s not like she could make anything out around here, not really anyway. Unless things were close up, she couldn’t entirely tell what anything was since her vision was so blurred. She wished she could see the other people who might need help, because it was within Brittany’s nature to do whatever she could to try and help them, but there wasn’t anything she could do, she knew that, and it all was making her feel so much worse.
She was still crying when she heard them getting closer. Brittany wasn’t really usually the kind of person who was too proud to cry, she’d been Santana’s friend forever and Santana obviously had taught Brittany that it was good to let it out when needed. Emotions and crying were good things to show other people. Or so Brittany used to think, now she wasn’t so sure and as she heard her name called, she sniffed and stopped herself from letting anymore tears fall.
“It’s Brittany!” she shouted the best that she could, taking in a deep breath, “I can’t really see, or walk, anyway, I’m not sure I can,” Brittany added, looking down into her lap, or what she figured was her lap. Honestly without some kind of help there was going to be no way for Brittany to get up herself and walk, not only that, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk unassited even if she could get up. To her, she felt like a lost cause.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Walking through the trees and often times dense brush, Puck tried to keep his pace as slow and steady as he could. Every instinct he had was telling him to hurry up and find the person on the other end of the voice, and everyone else that had been on the plane with them. Patience was never one of Puck’s stronger virtues, and the situation he currently found himself in was only escalating it. He wanted it all figured out and fixed. The sooner, the better. Unfortunately for him, things didn’t work out that way, and not only were they lost in the forest somewhere with no food, no water, and no clue which was was even the right way to go for help, but it was also obvious that Harmony was already doing everything she could to try and walk on her leg the way that it was. Going any faster was highly unlikely, but they ventured on. Giving up wasn’t an option.
While it wasn’t a big break, the fact that whoever it was could at least answer back to their calls helped to aim them in the right direction. Without it they could have spend hours wandering around in circles and never have even known it. “Look! I see someone!” Hearing Harmony’s words, Puck’s heart began to race. Pushing through the brush, Puck got the same glimpse of blonde hair that Harmony had, and just for a split second he thought it was Quinn. If it was wishful thinking or pure desperation, he wanted it to be true. He needed her to be alive. Hell, he needed everyone to be alive, but in that moment he realized just how much. Maybe there was something to Quinn’s whole bonded for life after going through so much together claim. He didn’t get to think about just how much she’d like being right, because as quickly as he’d thought it was Quinn, it was gone. The moment was fleeting, and instead he realized it was Brittany they’d managed to track down.
If there was funny about being in an airplane that literally just fell out of the sky, it was that had a way of making every other problem seem completely meaningless. The fact that he’d spent a great deal of their trip in Bora Bora annoyed at how stubborn and unable to take a joke Brittany could be didn’t even register. The only thing that did was complete relief at seeing her and hearing her as they approached. “You can’t walk?” he asked with the concern dripping from his voice as he and Harmony pushed through the last bit of brush and were able to completely reach the other girl.
Kneeling down at her side, he tried to quickly survey the injuries she had. His love of extreme sports had him familiar broken bones and things like it. He couldn’t fix them, but he’d gotten good at slapping something together until he was able to get to the hospital. It wasn’t perfect, but nothing about their current situation was. But as he looked at Brittany’s legs, he was relieved to see they were both going in the right direction and no bones were sticking out. It was a start at least. “We’re going to get you out of here,” he said with as much confidence as he could manage. “We’ll figure this out.” Puck looked over to Harmony as he tried to figure out what they were going to do. “You okay?” While the obvious answer was no, of course she wouldn’t be, he knew they’d be even worse off if Harmony couldn’t go any longer on her leg.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany’s mind was so clouded between thinking about her pain, worrying about Santana, and wanting it all to be over that she didn’t even care to figure out who was actually coming to help her, if there was even anything anyone could do at that point. She only realized it was Puck because of his voice, she couldn’t see him, her vision didn’t seem to be getting any better at the time went on. Everything was discouraging her and as much as she wanted to pretend to be her normal, silly, happy self around Puck, she couldn’t find it in herself to even try.
“I can’t do anything,” Brittany replied, annoyed, her little spat with Puck over the shark issue earlier that week already forgotten in her mind. Little things like that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Puck was alive and for that Brittany was thankful, “My back hurts, I crawled over to this tree trunk, I think I fell out of that tree over there,” she pointed, squinting trying to see the tree, if it was even a tree that she was pointing at, “And I can’t see, you guys might as well leave me here.”
Sighing Brittany closed her eyes and leaned her head back, wincing at how even moving her neck seemed to strained whatever was wrong with her back. Brittany licked her lips and closed her eyes tightly, “I’m sorry,” she muttered, “For being mean to you last week, but I’m happy you’re alive.” For some reason she really felt like she had to tell that to Puck, all the things she’d never said before seemed to be more important, life was too short to keep things to oneself, it was better to share. “You’re one of my favorites because you’re silly, I like it,” Brittany added, her eyes still closed, “If you guys run into Santana… if she’s not… can you tell her that I really, really loved her? She’s my boothang, I want her to know that, even if sometimes I’m not the smartest and I know it’s annoying… I really tried to be a good girlfriend.”
She’d given up, it was as simple as that, and frankly Brittany wouldn’t even mind if Puck, and the girl she still couldn’t make out, ended up leaving her there like that should. Brittany had seen those survivor shows enough to know that she was going to weigh everyone down. She wasn’t smart enough to be of any use, especially if she couldn’t see or get up from the ground.
HARMONY JONES:
As Puck and Harmony slowly but surely made their way into the clearing Brittany was in, Harmony couldn’t help but notice her red and puffy eyes, obviously from crying. That was when she realized that she herself had yet to cry. Maybe Jeff was right and she was a lot tougher than she thought. Or maybe she shouldn’t think about this situation too hard, because then she’d start crying and never stop. Forcing those thoughts out off her mind, Harmony leaned against a nearby tree to keep her burnt leg off the ground while Puck attempted to examine the blonde’s injuries.
Harmony focused on catching her breath (walking basically one legged was tiring, okay?) while Brittany started going on in what very much seemed like swan song fashion. She wished she could say something, but she barely knew Brittany, and she definitely didn’t know Santana, her girlfriend that she clearly loved (even though Harmony didn’t exactly know what ‘boothang’ meant). It wasn’t her place to say anything, but then again, that had never really stopped her before. There was no way Puck and Harmony were going to leave her out here to die like she was making it sound. For whatever reason, they were put in this situation together, and they were going to get out of it together. There was no way a person could survive falling out of a burning plane and not be meant to make it out of here alive. They could have stumbled upon her best friend or her worst enemy, and Harmony would have felt that way.
“Come on,” Harmony started, taking and hopping over to lean on Brittany’s tree. “We’re not going to abandon you, Brittany.” She crouched down as best she could to be face to face with her. “It’s Harmony, by the way,” She added since the girl had mentioned not being able to see clearly. “The, uh, Gerber Baby.” (Oh, God, she thought. That’s how I’m going to be remembered. The Gerber Baby. Not Harmony Jones, the Broadway star.) “I wouldn’t do that. Puck wouldn’t do that. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.” She hoped that the girl, even if she was unable to see how seriously she believed that statement, could at least hear it in her voice. “Now,” Harmony said in her typical Unitards Captain voice, standing up straight and wobbling slightly due to being off balance. “Are you bleeding anywhere? If so, we need to stop the bleeding immediately.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
As soon as Brittany started talking, it was obvious she’d basically given up. He wasn’t sure what exactly she’d given up on, if it was life, being rescued, both, or something else, but Puck wasn’t having any part of it. He knew there was no way that they could leave her behind. While the latest obstacle could slow them now more, going on without anyone wasn’t even an option. Finding their way around the forest without getting lost was close to impossible, and it wasn’t like he had a pocket full of bread crumbs to leave as a trail. Not to mention that he had no idea what kind of wild animals, snakes, or bugs were crawling around in the woods to begin with. Puck wasn’t even going to consider it, so he began shaking his head no before Brittany had even finished talking. He didn’t want to hear her message to pass along to anyone, because he wouldn’t allow himself to believe that she wouldn’t be able to say all those things herself.
When Harmony spoke up and echoed some of Puck’s own thoughts, he switched from shaking his head to nodding in agreement. “Harmony’s right. We’re not going to leave you. Can you imagine how much Santana would kick my ass if I did that?” he asked to try and get Brittany focused on the positive side of things. Anyone who knew Brittany and Santana for more than five minutes knew how much they meant to each other, and that was true even before they’d added an extra layer to their relationship. He knew Brittany was more likely to listen to Santana than anyone else, and since she wasn’t there with them, he had to make do with what they had.Since she seemed to have trouble seeing, Puck slid his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze to let her know that he was there, and he wasn’t going to go without her. “And you know she wouldn’t want you sitting out here alone. She’d remind you that you’re the toughest chick she knows.” Puck glanced over at Harmony as he could tell by the tone of her voice she was just as determined as he was to get them out of there. Focusing on what they had to do was the only way to stop the ‘what ifs’ from creeping in. “If she can’t walk, we have to figure something else out”
Puck was only half listening as Harmony made sure to see if Brittany was bleeding any worse than minor cuts and scrapes. He silently hoped that she wasn’t as they really didn’t need a terrible situation to get even worse. “I can carry her for a while,” he spoke up and offered. He knew it would hurt like hell to have anything pressed up and rubbing against his burnt back, but with his left arm the way that it was, he knew piggy back was his only choice besides tossing her over his shoulder, but with Brittany’s back hurt the way that it was…. Puck rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration as he realized they wouldn’t be able to get very far that way. He chose not to share his current train of thought, and instead jump to the next one and hope it worked out better. “What if we find a couple long branches and then, I don’t know, tie ‘em together or whatever. We can make something she can lay on, and I can drag it.” It sounded better than his first idea to him, even if he was missing huge details like their complete lack of supplies to actually build the thing. He wasn’t about to let that stop him. “We’ll have to avoid the thicker brush, but we can do it.” They had to make something work, and since it was the only idea he had at the moment, he decided to get behind it completely. “See what I mean? We’re going to be fine. We’ve got this. No giving up,” he said as he turned back to Brittany to try and get her spirits back up.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
It was hard for Brittany to really comprehend the entire situation at hand so it had been easier to go right into giving up and letting it all work its own course. Puck was right though, Santana would be so disappointed in her if she just sat there against that tree to die. Brittany knew she’d want Santana to be fighting, so she also knew she had to take that advice herself and fight the best she could too. “Okay,” she nodded, squeezing Puck’s hand and smiling, in what she hoped was, Harmony’s direction. “We’ll find, San, right?” Brittany asked, that still being the top thing on her mind, “We’ll find Santana and Quinn and then everything will feel better.” She was mostly talking to herself, trying to talk it all up so she could get into a better mindset, if not for her own sake, but for Puck and Harmony since they were so much more determined than Brittany was to be alright at that point.
Brittany squinted and tried to make out her surroundings, though everything was still seeming to blend together. It was more frustrating because she’d always had such good vision before then, not being able to completely see was going to hold them all back even more. “I have some scrapes, but I’m okay,” she replied when asked about bleeding, “Nothing I can’t handle, I’m used to them form motocross, whenever I’d wipe out I’d get a lot of scrapes just like these.” That was a positive thing for Brittany to hold on to as well, the scrapes really didn’t bother her like they could have been. Her problem really was in the troubles she was having with her back.
“I’m heavy, though,” Brittany cringed, knowing it was true because of her height, dragging her might end up doing more harm than good in the long run, “Maybe… we could make crunches?” she suggested, not even knowing she’d gotten the word completely wrong, “You guys could help me stand and maybe I can walk. I crawled over here, I just can’t stand up myself. When I pulled my hamstring they gave me crunches and I was pretty good at them.” She knew anything was really a long shot since they had nothing, were all injured, and she was really dead weight for both Puck and Harmony in the entire situation.
HARMONY JONES:
When Brittany’s mood seemed to have lifted and she said with a determined glint in her eye that they were going to find her friends, Harmony didn’t have the heart to tell her that they may not be able to find the others. Or they might find them dead, the thought of which made Harmony feel queasy. And she couldn’t even fathom how Brittany would crumble at the sight of her deceased friends. Actually, Harmony could. She could imagine how gutted she would be if she saw Chandler or her mom…but that was not what Harmony needed to be focused on. She needed to be focused on zero in on getting their basic needs fulfilled. Get up, get moving, get water.
Fortunately, Brittany wasn’t bleeding and seemed to be on board to try and move. That being said, there was no way Puck could give her a piggy back ride for an extended period of time without being in serious pain. And Harmony really didn’t want him to get even more injured by trying to help. They wouldn’t even be able to switch off carrying her, because Harmony had zero upper body strength. And with Brittany being several inches taller than her, trying to carry her would be asking for a disaster. Dragging her was a possibility…but again, with Puck’s arm, was that worse the risk?
“Crutches could work,” Harmony agreed, gesturing to her own. “Mine’s worked out pretty well.” It was hardly the fastest way to get around, but Puck was the only one out of the trio that could walk somewhat normally. Harmony didn’t know how far they would have to travel to find a water source, but she hoped that when they did, they would be able to set up camp there for a little while to rest and heal. There was no way any of them would be able to explore the area and try to find others in their condition. Surveying the fallen trees branches and limbs, she pointed out a few that might be long enough and sturdy enough for Brittany and hopped over to pick up the closest sticks. She left them leaning against the tree then looked towards Puck. “How should we help her stand?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Of course we’re going to find her,” Puck said without hesitation. Not only was he sure it was what Brittany needed to hear, but it was what he needed to believe for himself. The alternative wasn’t what he wanted to deal with at the moment, no matter how close to reality it could possibly be. Focusing on what little positives they had going for them was what he chose to do. For example, Brittany gushing blood anywhere, so that went in the good column as far as he was concerned. When she seemed more determined to walk with the aide of crutches, he mentally chalked down another point in the small victory column.
“If you’re up to it, let’s give it a shot.” As Harmony went to grab a couple sticks that would hopefully help Brittany enough to get her mobile, Puck stood up from the spot he’d been standing in so that he could help her up. “Are you ready for this?” he asked Brittany when Harmony returned with the best crutches they could do under the circumstances. “It might hurt, but you have to push through.” Going to find some kind of help was the current goal on Puck’s mind. He could only hope that through a few more trees they’d find more of their friends, some kind of stream to clean their wounds, or better yet, a freaking hospital full of medical staff just waiting to treat them. He knew some where more likely than others, but as long as they still had some daylight left, they had to try.
“Try and keep her steady and hold up that stick for her to grab.” With Harmony barely able to hold her own weight with her leg in the condition it was, he didn’t want her to take on more than she could. “And Brittany, I’m going to help pull you up, alright?” He gave her hand that he was still holding a little squeeze before he moved it so that she could hold on to what would soon be her crutches. “On the count of three, you’re going to dig deep and be that tough badass I know you’ve got hiding in there. Give it everything you’ve got, and stand up.” Puck got himself in position so that he could use his right side to help with the lifting, which his left arm only had to help her with balance. “One…” He took a breath as he kept his eyes on Brittany to make sure she was ready and not going to back out. “Two…” Readjusting his grip on her arm and his other around her waist, Puck began to lift her up the second the word, “Three,” left his lips.
BRITTANY PIERCE;
The quicker it led up to Brittany having to try and stand the more apprehensive she got and the more she continued to want to sit there. Sure, she’d crawled a little to get to where she was in the first place, but even that probably took hours with how much pain Brittany was in. All she could think about was Santana. What if Brittany could fight through some of the pain and find Santana? What if Santana needed her help somewhere? All of that was keeping her going, even though she wanted to give up. Crutches weren’t going to be easy with her back as bad as it was, especially when they weren’t even real crutches to begin with, but she had to try.
Brittany only nodded, she wasn’t ready for anything they were going to have to do, but there wasn’t really any kind of choice. Ready or not it was either try, or sit there and die, and with people there counting on her, people potentially needing her help, there was no choice in her mind except try. She was trying her best to brace herself for what she knew was going to be a very painful journey. If not for herself but for her friends and for Santana. Brittany knew if it was up to her she wouldn’t be moving at all, but now there were people there with her, people counting on her, and in true Brittany fashion she wasn’t going to let them down.
She closed her eyes tightly when Puck began counting, trying not to think about much, most focused on making sure she could block out as much pain as possible once she was up and standing to the best of her ability. She nodded again, and took in a deep breath to hold once Puck got to three. Pain shot throughout her entire body, her back seemingly useless, once up all the way, tears threatening to fall from her eyes, she blindly reached for a hold of the stick which she put all of her weight on. The pain wasn’t unbearable but it certainly wasn’t comfortable either, “I don’t,” she choked, “I don’t know how long I can do this,” Brittany said honestly, wanting to try and get somewhere, but really not knowing if she had the strength to hold on for too long standing upright.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony nodded when Puck instructed her on helping Brittany and moved closer to Brittany in order to give her the crutches and make sure she would be steady on her feet. When Puck readied himself to lift her, she winced when she saw the muscles and veins in his injured arm stick out. Ouch. Then she cringed even more when Brittany began to pulled upright but forced her eyes to stay open to make sure she’d be able to help in case of emergency. It was like Brittany’s body was useless to her, and Harmony couldn’t even imagine how badly it hurt when tears filled the blonde’s eyes. She wanted to not watch this, to make this stop, but if they didn’t do this the first time, there was no way Brittany would want to try again. Setting the crutches in place, Harmony kept them still when Brittany got situated on them. Once she was, Harmony let out the breath she’d be holding and took a small step backward, her hands still outstretched to help if Brittany suddenly stumbled.
“It’s fine,” She said gently, careful not to touch the unsteady blonde as she got used to the sticks. “We’ll rest every few minutes.” Now that they had actually gotten her up and ready to move, she would have promised anything to the girl to keep her from wanting to give up like when they’d found her. Plus Harmony would need that rest, too, - maybe not as frequently - but she didn’t want any of them hurting themselves further. They needed all their strength if they were going to set up camp, and they were already more ragtag than she would have preferred. Although she felt kind of bad forcing Puck to travel at their snail pace, she was confident in her belief that he wouldn’t want to explore too far by himself. At least not right now. He’d just have to deal.
“Okay!” Harmony exclaimed, forcing her voice to sound bright and cheerful when she clapped her hands together. “First thing we need to do is find water. By the water source, we’ll set up some kind of camp to rest and tend to our injuries for the night. And we’ll need to find something to eat. Do any of you know anything about plants?” She was rambling at this point, and she didn’t even know where most of this survival plan was coming from. Sure, she’d been a Girl Scout for a few years, but that was so long ago, and the closest experience she had with this experience was reading the Hunger Games. But maybe if one of them had a plan and acted like they knew what they were talking about, Harmony wouldn’t feel like crying every few minutes. She took a breath and clapped her hands together, saying, “Now if everyone’s ready, let’s move out!”
THE WILDCARD:
Moving out seems like a really great idea, same with setting up camp but you never know what’s lurking in the jungle. Unknown to group one, the moment you go forth twenty feet, chances are you’ll be greeted by a sincerely overdone Finn Hudson who is more than a little dead and impaled by the jagged trunk of a broken tree.The smell of burnt flesh won’t be for the faint of heart, nor will the sight of a charbroiled Finn.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
When he reached the count of three, Puck didn’t hesitate to pull Brittany up to her feet. He knew it was going to be painful, but it was the only choice they had. They had to get her mobile, and using a couple sticks as crutches was the only working plan that they had at the moment. Once Brittany was standing, Puck kept his hand on her back to make sure she had her balance and could actually continue to stand on her own without crumbling back to the ground. “We’ll take it slow,” he said to agree with Harmony. He would have loved to have been able to do more, but seeing the look of pain in Brittany’s face as she got her used to standing again, he could tell that slow and steady was all they were going to get for a while. Hearing Harmony’s run down of things they needed to do, he nodded his head. It was hardly the time to argue, and since it was a lot of the same things on his mind, he had no reason to. He had the feeling that she was trying to hold it together in her own way, and seeing as her breaking down would only slow them down more, he wasn’t going to derail her efforts.
“We’ve still got a lot of daylight,” he commented as he looked up to find the sun’s position in the sky. He wasn’t a human sundial by any means, but he could see it high enough in the sky to know that it wouldn’t be setting just yet. Sunlight meant they could explore and hopefully run into the rest of their friends. They’d been able to find Brittany after all, he assumed they’d be able to find others the same way. “Let’s go find everyone. They’ve probably got a whole camp set up as they wait for our rescue to get here. Bet they’re already chilling together with all the clean water and food that you could want.” Once he was sure that Brittany had her balance under control, he took his hand back and surveyed where they were to make sure they weren’t going to leave in the same direction they’d arrived. They already knew there wasn’t anything that direction. “And I know plenty about plants.” Sure it was more along the lines of which ones where poison ivy or poison oak, but he figured it was better than nothing. Being confident and sure of himself wasn’t anything new. He was used to actually believing it more when he said it, but letting them know just how scared he was, wouldn’t help anything. “I got this covered. We’re going to be fine.”
Before anyone could disagree or decide they should take a break before they even started moving, Puck chose a direction and began walking in it. If they were going to make it, they had to push on no matter how much it hurt. It was easy for him to think that way given the fact that each step they took didn’t heighten the pain in his body, but with the blood he’d lost, he was feeling far from perfect himself. Finding something, anything at all that would help them, was all he wanted to do. They’d hardly gotten far at all when Puck began to regret the direction he’d chose. The smell was like nothing he’d come across before, and nothing he ever wanted to. The more they walked, the stronger it got until he pushed a branch out of the way and saw exactly what was causing it. Suddenly the rancid smell wasn’t the only thing churning his stomach as Puck laid eyes on the burnt legs of a body on a jagged tree trunk.
“Fuck…” While logic told him there was absolutely no hope to help the person, Puck rushed closer anyway. He tried to close his mind off to the horrible smell and the even worse thought of exactly what was causing it. It was the last thing he’d wanted to find, and as he got closer in his ridiculous attempt to somehow help the person, or what was left of them, things got worse. When he thought it was a stranger it was bad enough, but as Puck got his first look at the victim’s face, his mind slammed down into denial. “No, no, no,” he repeated, each word getting more and more desperate, like he could somehow change the outcome if he wanted it bad enough. “NO. This isn’t…We have to get him down.” Closing what space had been between himself and his best friend, Puck tried in vain to lift him up off the tree trunk that he was stuck on. “We have to get him down!” he frantically shouted in Brittany and Harmony’s direction as he pushed again to try and free the lifeless burned body. The tears stung his eyes, and it was more than the smell and gruesome sight that was turning his stomach as reality threatened his tight hold on denial.
“We have to do something!” Puck didn’t bother to look at the two people he was with as somewhere in his mind he knew there was nothing that any of them could do. Finn was dead. His best friend in the world, and the closest thing he’d ever had to a brother was laying there, and nothing he could do could fix it. They were supposed to always have each other’s backs. Through everything that had happened in their friendships, all the ups and downs, it was Finn who he knew he could count on. When life got to be too much, and he had to ask for help or get pulled under by it all, Finn was the one he went too. Life was definitely too hard now. Everything about it was too much, and the last thread that had been holding Puck together was long gone. Grabbing onto the trunk of the tree, the anger boiled to the surface. Tightening his hold on the remaining wood, Puck’s arms flexed under the strain as his fingertips dug into the bark. Tired of feeling helpless and desperate, tired of things getting worse when he already felt like he couldn’t take a single second more, tired of living this nightmare, Puck snapped and began ripping at he fractured tree truck until sobs racked through his body. Falling to his knees, Puck buried his face in his hands as he continued crying and couldn’t stop.
HARMONY JONES:
At Puck’s mention of daylight, she leaned on her walking stick and tilted her head back to see the sun peaking through the leafy canopy created by the trees. They’d definitely have a few hours before losing the light, and even at their slow pace, they might even be able to make it out of the forest. At least, Harmony hoped so. She wouldn’t say she was afraid of the dark, but this was not a normal situation. Who knew what else was lurking behind every tree? Or up in them? She’d much rather be in an open space where nothing could jump out and surprise them. Unless the island was all forest… Then they’d be stuck watching their backs every step they took until… Well, she didn’t know when. Whenever they got rescued.
Which Puck said would be coming for them shortly with food and water and able to fix them up, no problem, and be completely fine (although she was starting to question what exactly his definition of ‘fine’ was), but some sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her that would not be the case. While she didn’t know how large this island was, other than the two of them, Harmony hadn’t heard anyone or anything since coming to. This didn’t mean that no one else was nearby, of course, but they were probably not in a condition you would want to see them in. As if on cue, some wretched smell wafted into the air, causing Harmony to crinkle her nose in disgust. “What is - ” She cut off her own question, though, when she recognized the smell. It was just like her own burnt flesh. Only a hundred, million times worse. Which could only mean one thing… Sure enough, by a tree trunk, lay part of body, burnt to a crisp.
Harmony opened to her mouth to speak (or vomit, she wasn’t quite sure), only to be cut off by Puck’s curse. The older boy rushed towards the corpse and immediately began a full fledged freak out. He began to shout things at the two girls, and Harmony stared back helplessly, unsure of what was happening. Puck had always come as a very cool and smooth guy yet here he was having a melt down. Craning her neck to see around him as he tried to lift the body, she caught a glimpse of the now disfigured face to see that it was Finn Hudson. “Oh, God,” She gasped quietly, covering her mouth with her hand. Harmony didn’t know much about him and had never even formally met him, but from the show choir gossip, she knew he was New Direction’s vocal lead and co-captain. The Golden Boy. The leader. And based on his reaction, Noah Puckerman’s very close friend. After exchanging a glance with girl to her left, Harmony continued to watch as Puck, a boy she hardly knew but one that obviously had a tough exterior, on the verge of tears, dig into the bark of the tree trunk, ripping the wood apart. She wanted to do something to make him stop hurting himself, but he was so angry and upset and truly scary. She didn’t think he’d ever hurt her on purpose, but if he was this upset…
Finally, Puck broke down and began to sob. Hesitantly, Harmony stepped forward and carefully rested a hand on his uninjured shoulder. She was never the best at consoling people (her blunt honesty kind of killed that ability), and this situation was a million times worse than anything Harmony had ever encountered. She could only imagine what she’d if she found Chandler’s body… At least she hoped she’d only have to imagine. She’d be absolutely gutted. Inconsolable. Weeping uncontrollably. The whole nine yards. Just thinking about it made her feel like vomiting and crying and listening to Next to Normal for the next five years.
In short, Harmony had no freaking clue what to say to Puck. Still crouched down next to him, she spared a glance and looked at the deceased Finn Hudson. His body was entirely burnt to the point of being almost unrecognizable, and the stench itself made her eyes water. “Puck,” She said quietly. “I am so, so sorry.” She paused, hoping something brilliant to say would come to mind that would fix everything. No such luck. “He didn’t deserve this. But…he’s in a better place now, right? He’s not in pain. Wherever he is” - since Harmony’s not positive on what after life includes or even what Puck even believes in, if anything - “he’s happy.” She didn’t even know if what she’d said was helpful or comforting, but she genuinely believed it was true, and that was better than nothing, right?
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany listened and heard everything that was being said around her, but that was as deep as it got. She wasn’t comprehending anything at all because all of her focus was on not falling down and hurting herself, or someone else, more than she was already hurt. She remembered reading The Little Engine That Could and as they began to walk all she repeated over and over in her mind was “I think I can, I think I can” because she knew if she let herself get distracted even for the slightest bit of a moment that she wasn’t going to be able to stand anymore and keep herself up right. There was a lot of things they had to do if they were going to fight for their lives and Brittany knew that she had to have her head in the game rather than all over the place.
More and more Brittany wished she knew more about plants since that was one of the first things that was brought up, but she wasn’t going to be any help with that since she couldn’t see. Brittany knew a lot about berries though from her times during motocross when her and the rest of the team would wonder around some of the woods around the tracks… but if she couldn’t see the berries she didn’t know if that would help her at all. “I kind of know things about berries,” she said in a strained tone, the pain evident in her voice, “We used to eat a lot of them sometimes in motocross, the ones that grew on bushes and stuff…” she wasn’t trying to get their hopes up, but keeping her small knowledge about them to herself wasn’t going to help either. Brittany had to do what she could and it meant continuing to keep her mind in survival mode.
However, keeping her head straight didn’t go over very well because she quickly began to get confused at Puck’s frantic shouting. Brittany couldn’t see anything and the only way she was following Puck and Harmony was by making out the colors of their shirts since they were close to her. As for whatever they could see, Brittany was clueless. She squinted and squinted, but there was nothing she could do to help herself see anything. Brittany knew that Puck was crying and that something bad was in front of them, someone was dead and Brittany was scared to ask who it was. No one was saying any names, yet instead they kept referring to them as ‘he’. All Brittany could do was let out a deep sigh of relief that it wasn’t Santana, as bad as that sounded, Santana was the only reason Brittany was fighting so hard to stay alive and since it wasn’t Santana they found dead, she would be alright.
Or well, no, she wouldn’t be alright, none of them were ever going to be alright again, but she would be able to push it aside for a while because it wasn’t Santana. “It’s not Santana,” she said to herself out loud, “You’re okay because it’s not Santana.” Brittany was losing touches with reality and couldn’t let herself be sad by finding people dead. Someone was going to have to keep really strong and since Brittany couldn’t see anything, she figured it was better to pretend nothing bad was there since she couldn’t see it, “We have to keep moving,” she whispered, hurt by hearing the way Puck was upset, “We can’t stop, we have to keep moving.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Feeling a warm hand on his shoulder, Puck wasn’t thinking about how weak he must seem or how he was trying to hold it together and be positive about their situation. There was some things that could take down even the most badass, and coming across the body of his best friend was definitely one of those things. Even as Puck tried to listen to Harmony’s words and let them soak in, it was doing little to make him feel better about the situation. Puck needed him. He needed his best friend not only to be there with him to try and figure out who to fix the impossible situation they found themselves in, but in the world. There was so much they were supposed to do together no matter which direction their life took them, but that’s how it was supposed to go. Life was supposed to happen. Puck had never imagined it would ever go this way. He knew he was the screw up. He was the one always getting himself in trouble. No one expected much from him, but Finn? Finn was the type that always got it together in the end. He was always the leader and the person people turned to whether it was the football team or the New Directions. Finn was the one that took that leadership role, and now he couldn’t, and the realization left Puck feeling more lost that he ever imagined possible. So while Finn could end up somewhere happier, it was hard to believe that as Puck looked up to see his burnt body through the tears in his eyes.
When he heard Brittany’s voice, he turned to look over at her as if he didn’t know better, he never would have thought it was her. Brittany was a lot of things, but cruel, uncaring, and completely cold had never been words he would have chosen to describe her. Not until that moment. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” he spat out with absolutely zero care to how harsh his voice was. “Finn’s dead and all you can fucking say is it’s fine because it’s not Santana?” Puck’s heart was racing not only from the emotional freakout he’d had, but from the anger that now remained. He was angry at where they were, at how things kept getting worst, at God or whatever for seeing fit to take Finn, and now at Brittany for not giving a shit. Only one of those things was standing in front of him right now and could actually hear his words. “It’s not fine. None of it is fucking fine. That’s so great for you that the one person in the world you care about isn’t the one we stumble across, but some of the rest of us have hearts. Unless you have something good to say you can shut the fuck up.”
Less than two minutes ago both he and Harmony had told her they wouldn’t just walk away and were doing anything to think up some way to make sure they could stay together, and it was clear Brittany had only one thing on her mind. Nothing and no one else mattered, and Puck was sick of it. With his nerves already frayed from everything, he had no patience left. In normal situations he would have tried to be more understanding and realize that they were all scared, but today wasn’t that day. Sure he wanted to find Santana. He also wanted to find every single other person that was on their flight. So many of them were his friends, both new and old, and some were a lot closer to family. That was what New Directions claimed to be after all, but it hurt every time he learned the word didn’t have the same meaning for other people as it did him.
Puck turned his back to Brittany again as he didn’t want to look at her anymore. She was disgusting him as much the sight of Finn was. Finn deserved better in every way possible. He didn’t deserve to die, and he didn’t deserve one of his so-called friends to not even bat an eye that he was no longer with them. “I’m not going anywhere,” he said calmly as he looked over to Harmony. He hoped she could understand where he was coming from, and also that it wasn’t up for debate with him. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he didn’t do everything he could for Finn to give him a peaceful place to lay. He wasn’t going to fail him in death like he did in life. “I’m getting Finn down, and I’ll bury him or something. I won’t leave him like this.” Puck forced himself to take a deep breath and try and stop the tears and pull himself together. “I can’t.” He exhaled a big breath like it was a way to cut off all the pain he was feeling. He pushed himself up so that he was standing and offered the hand from his good arm to help Harmony up with him. “You can rest your leg for a while.” Looking at Finn’s body without the shock and desperation of trying to save him, he tried to come up with a way to get him down. His mind was made up, and he didn’t leave it up for debate. “I can do this on my own.”
BRITTANY PIERCE:
“Don’t yell at me,” Brittany screamed back, the best she could anyway since her voice was already so strained from crying, “I can’t even see, I can’t see anything, if Santana was dead I wouldn’t even be able to see her because my eyes are freaking broken!” she yelled, frustrated, “And we were in a crash a really bad crash and I might be stupid but I know that means people are dead. A lot of people are dead and we’re not and that’s all we can worry about because we can’t fix dead people but we can help fix ourselves.” Brittany was frustrated and was positive that she had never yelled at anyone the way she was yelling at Puck right then. It’s not like Puck even took into consideration that this was happening to everyone, not just him, he wasn’t the only one who had to deal with knowing some of their friends were dead and in Brittany’s mind that was selfish of him. Brittany was just as sad and upset as Puck was vocalizing, except she was keeping it inside because breaking down mentally would only cause her to break more physically as well and that wasn’t something they could afford, Puck though, Puck was being selfish with all of it.
She was angry that she couldn’t see because part of her wanted to walk away, as far as she could to where there was water at least, so she could wait there and hope there was help being sent to them. Being around people wasn’t something she wanted, hell, just a while ago she wanted and was waiting to die. Brittany wasn’t herself anymore and that was hurting her more than anything else. She didn’t like being not herself. She didn’t like being the kind of person who would yell. She didn’t like being the kind of person who wanted to die. And she sure as hell didn’t like not being able to see and having people talk down at her like they had all her life. Brittany wasn’t going to let someone like Puck put her down anymore. For all Brittany knew they were all going to die and at that point if she was going to die it was going to be with some dignity. Brittany might not be very smart, she might not know or understand many things, but out in a forest somewhere that didn’t matter. She could be whoever she wanted to be, and she was going to be strong.
“You can’t stay here yourself, you’ll die,” Brittany pointed out the obvious, “and we can’t waste time getting him down or we’re all going to die… it’s super sad that Finn’s dead, but we don’t even have a big enough shoe box to bury him in, that’s what we always did with my fish anyway…” she squinted, hoping that she was looking over in Harmony’s direction, “I don’t want to die anymore,” Brittany spoke honestly, “If we stop now… I don’t think I’ll be able to get back up and… and I don’t think Finn would want that, I think he’d want us to find and help the other alive people because he liked to help people…” even when they didn’t need help she thought, remembering back to him forcing Santana to come out before she was ready, “I don’t want to die, we have to keep walking, please, please?” Brittany knew she couldn’t get anywhere herself with not being able to see and knew that Puck needed to realize they had to keep going. They had to.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony waited for Puck to say something, but upon hearing the blonde speak, saying something about Santana being fine, she raised her eyebrows. She knew she wasn’t the best at comforting people, but Brittany’s comment was downright insensitive. She knew this wasn’t a normal situation, but she would have thought that since Brittany and Finn were probably friends as well, she wouldn’t have been so… blunt.And apparently Puck thought so, too, because in a flash, he was up and screaming at her. Even though he wasn’t yelling at her, Harmony jumped back as if she’d been burned and took a few steps backward to stay out of the line of fire. While she generally wasn’t afraid to speak her mind, this was one argument she was more than willing to stay out of. Not only was this not her business since she barely knew the people involved (the ones arguing and also the people in discussion), but she wasn’t about to say that Puck was wrong for being angry or Brittany was wrong for trying to stay strong, even if it could have been expressed in a better way. For once, Harmony decided to keep her mouth shut.
When Puck turned his back on Brittany, seemingly shutting down the conversation, she let out a small sigh of relief, and gratefully let him help her up. She understood why he wanted to bury Finn’s body. After all, it was the least he could do for his best friend and furthermore, Finn’s family. It would be wrong to abandon the body, leaving it to be destroyed by the elements and whatever animals were in the forest. Just the thought made her shudder. There was no way they couldn’t bury the body, no matter how much Brittany wanted - and needed - to keep moving. “Brittany,” She said quietly, limping over to where the blonde girl stood and hopefully out of earshot of Puck. “I know you want to keep going, but we can’t leave Finn here like this. Puck needs this closure, and Finn’s other friends and family need to at least know that he was honored in whatever way they could be in this situation.” Her voice dropped lower when she added, “You know we’d do the same if it were Santana.”
With that, Harmony moved back to where Puck was still trying to get Finn’s body down and asked gently, “Do you want any help?” Although she barely knew the deceased boy or even Puck and the idea of touching the body freaked her out, she could imagine how crushed she would be to find someone she cared for in this condition, and she hoped that someone else would be understanding enough to know that she needed closure, no matter how small. And even if Brittany was right about needing to keep moving, Harmony didn’t have the heart to do that to Puck and more importantly, Finn. His life had already been unfairly ended. He deserved this.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
"We're not going to die, and I'm not going to leave him," he said evenly as he wasn't about to have a huge fight over it. They had enough going on without starting a big argument in the middle of the woods, even if it was often what the members of the New Directions did the best. With his mind was already made up, Puck let Brittany say what she had to without responding to it. It was obvious that emotions were running high, and he couldn't see that stopping anytime soon. The situation they currently found themselves in was something straight out of a nightmare. No one could have imagined it would happen, and no matter how much Puck tried to wake himself up from it, he just couldn't. As Harmony walked over to talk to Brittany, he took the chance to walk around the tree trunk to try and find the best way possible to get his friend's body down. Even the thought of it that way, his friend's body, turned his stomach, but he tried to power through. Focusing on what he needed to do was the only way he could manage. Finn deserved some peace, and Puck was going to give it to him. He knew it was going to be hard enough to look Kurt in the eye and tell him that his brother didn't make it without having to add that they'd left him impaled on a tree to it. The same with for Rachel and every other person the plane. They'd lost one of their own, and he wanted to at least be able to say they tried to honor that.
"I think if I just pull on this..." Puck began to say as Harmony had walked back over to where he was. Grabbing onto a piece of the tree trunk, he grimaced as he began to pull as hard as he could to attempt to break the jagged wood apart. Adding his foot to the bottom of the trunk to steady himself, Puck managed to put more of his weight into it and it finally snapped off sending Finn's body tumbling to the ground, and Puck stumbling back the opposite direction. Covering his mouth with the back of his forearm as a new wave of burnt flesh reached his nose, Puck willed himself to swallow the taste of bile that was rising up in his throat. He couldn't throw up and get sick. He needed to be tough and make things happen. "You could find something so we can mark his grave. Maybe a flower or a freaking cool looking stick or something. Finn's always...Or, I guess he used to always like stupid stuff like that. One weekend we spent like four hours straight watching the Discovery channel talk about fish that looked like rocks." Talking about Finn in the past tense like he wouldn't be able to do any of those things again wasn't something he wanted to get used to doing. Then again nothing that had happened since their plane began falling from the sky was something he wanted to get used to.
Taking a breath and trying to clear his mind before it started wandering down a path that would make everything harder again, he shook his head as he looked over at Harmony. "You can save your energy, especially with that leg of yours. Maybe you can keep Brittany company. She's normally not like this." Puck glanced in the other girl's direction briefly before he picked up the jagged piece of the tree trunk he'd broken off and began to dig as best he could. It was slow work, and would be virtually impossible to turn into a six foot long and few foot deep hole, but as he jammed the makeshift shovel of a stick into the ground again and again, at least it was a good way to burn off the anger he felt. It was the first little thing he could control, digging a hole. That part didn't take thinking, and as long as he kept reminding himself that it was for Finn, he was able to temporarily block out the physical pain that went along with it.
GENERAL NOTES → Bro time + sharks? I love it already.
Sitting on the beach a few yards away from where their whole shark adventure was set to start, Puck waited for Blaine to show up. The truth was, he was glad Blaine had asked. As much as he loved hanging out with Finn all the time, some change was good. After all, Blaine had been one of the guys to really step up and offer a helping hand in studying when he needed it, and while their efforts didn’t help him to actually pass the damn test, it still let him know who his friends were. To Puck that was almost worth more, or so he could claim since he had a high school diploma to go along with it. Squinting into the sun, even his sunglasses couldn’t completely knock it out, he spotted someone walking up that he was pretty sure was Blaine. “There’s the man I’m looking for. I thought you and Hummel might have gotten a little….distracted,” he said with a teasing smirk like it wasn’t already obvious what Puck thought the distraction could be. “Glad you made it.”
BLAINE ANDERSON:
There really weren’t words that could possibly express how completely stoked Blaine was for not only bro time with Puck, but to swim with sharks. It seemed like exactly the thing to do when you came to a tropical island, and surprisingly, he really wasn’t that scared. These things happened every day here and it was routine, not only that, but it was hard to see anything going wrong when it even became routine to the sharks, and he had no idea how over fed they actually were. Blaine had reluctantly crawled out of bed and pulled on his shorts only to be summoned by Kurt once again… And maybe once after that, but eventually with a few minutes to spare, he’d managed to clean himself, and head down to the beach to meet Puck.
The thing about Bora Bora was … Most of it was beaches so it had taken a bit of time to locate the exact spot, but he’d managed to find it. The sun was beaming down and the light breeze only made him smile more. There hadn’t been a single thing Blaine didn’t love about this place. Briefly he found himself adjusting his aviators before jumping off the wooden walk way, only satisfied when the white sand infiltrated his flip flops. Normally that was annoying as hell, but there wasn’t a single thing Blaine wasn’t going to savour at this point.
After heading down the beach a bit more, he’d seen the signs and Puck sitting in the sand. A broad grinned pushed over his lips as Puck finally spoke. Laughing lightly, he nodded. Were Kurt and him that predictable? He really hoped not, but then again, part of it could have just been Puck being Puck. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Distractions or not, we’ve got some sharks to swim with, can’t keep ‘em waiting, right?” Another laugh came as Blaine stopped a foot away from him, holding out his hand to help Puck up out of the sand. “Really, I just had to convince him I was going to come back with all my limbs and if I don’t… I’m not ever going to hear the end of it.” He was joking obviously, but the sun and everything around him was pushing him deeper and deeper into an incredible mood. “Ready to get this show on the road?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
"I knew it, dude. You guys are the closest thing New Directions has to an old married couple now." Since Finn and Rachel had split, it didn't exactly wipe out all the competition for New Direction power couple, but it did eliminate a big one. They had been engaged after all, and while he probably shouldn't have been surprised that it didn't work out, they were teenagers after all, he still thought they'd had a chance at it. "Or Mike and Tina," he added in after a little bit of thought. It was understandable that the couples would all be hanging out and taking advantage of the romantic vibes the place had, but it just made the fact that Blaine chose to hang out for some bro bonding time, mean even that much more to him.
"Maybe the shark will take your ear, and then you won't be able to hear it anyway. It will make wearing sunglasses a lot harder to do." Puck took Blaine's hand when he offered it, and used it to pull himself up from his temporary seat in the white sand. If Puck hadn't seen the beaches with his own eyes, he would have sworn sand that white and beaches that clean just didn't exist. Having the chance to turn into a complete beach bum over the next couple weeks was exactly what he needed. "Or I can just make sure and bring you back in one piece. It's probably easier that way." Puck patted Blaine on the back as he walked with him over to their guide as well as a small group of other tourists that he assumed would be swimming with them. Apparently swimming with sharks came with some instructions, or as Puck saw it, a way for the place to cover their ass from lawsuits in case Jaws gets pissed off.
"I wonder how many we'll see swimming around out there," he commented as he leaned over to talk to Blaine without disrupting everyone around them. The rules sounded self explanatory to him. Don't taunt the sharks. Don't reach out and try and pet them. Don't be a complete idiot. He'd made the last one up, but it would have saved the instructor time and summed them all up if he'd started with that one first. Taking a pair of goggles and a snorkel when they were handed up, Puck's adrenaline started pumping as he knew it wouldn't be much longer and he'd be able to find out for himself.
GENERAL NOTES → It’s nice to get to mix in some good feels.
Waiting at the end of the pier, Puck drummed his fingertips on the support pole as he kept glancing down to see if he could spot Quinn walking his way. Knowing what they wanted to do, Puck took the time to already set up their excursion. Nearby the boat and parasail we waiting for them to be strapped inside it. While Quinn wasn’t late, his excitement for the whole afternoon had him feeling antsy. “Hurry up,” he teasingly yelled at the first sight of her. “You’re keeping everyone waiting.” Everyone meaning him since the people in charge of their adventure were getting paid no matter what. Pushing himself off the wooden beam he’d been leaning against, Puck smiled at Quinn so she’d know his comments weren’t serious if his tone of voice hadn’t given him away already. “Or maybe I should be thanking you for not chickening out on this one.”
QUINN FABRAY
Bora Bora was easily the most beautiful place Quinn had even seen. After watching the Kardashians (she was a reality TV junkie, obviously) go to Bora Bora on a family vacation during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, she immediately placed Bora Bora on her bucket list. The white sand, the Palm Trees, and the sparkling, clear water was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Plus, the idea of having your own hut with just one other person was something Quinn was very fond of. And, it went without much thought that Quinn and Rachel would pair up to be roommates. The two girls had finally reached a common ground and seemed to be getting along better than anyone could have ever imagined. However, there was one little complication - Finn and Rachel. While it was nice having Rachel as a roommate and a partner for all island explorations, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with the duo spending more and more time in their hut.
The only good part of that situation was the mere fact that Finn’s roommate was someone that Quinn knew all too well - Noah Puckerman. Their relationship was complicated at best, but she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t have a big soft spot for the most important boy from her past. A wide smile grace her lips as Quinn caught her first glimpse of Puck by the pier. It was safe to say that the sun was doing wonders for his skin, as she can’t remember time he had ever looked better. Shaking the thoughts off with a laugh, Quinn rolled her eyes. “Are you ever going to learn you manners, Puckerman? You’re lucky it’s me coming with you and not Rachel. Can you imagine having to be up there with a screaming Berry?” Laughing quietly as the picture of Rachel screaming her head off entered her mind, Quinn took the last few steps over to the where he was standing at the end of the pier. “Alright, let’s do this.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck couldn’t help but to laugh when Quinn called him out on his lack of manners. It wasn’t the first time, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last. It was a lot easier to be teased when it came with her smile attached to it. “You’re the one who is making people wait. Where’s your manners?” he countered with a smirk. Of course his argument didn’t actually hold up at all given she wasn’t actually late, but he wasn’t going to let a little detail like that stop him from attempting to make a point. “And there aren’t enough earplugs on the island for me to manage that one,” he added with an easy smile on his face. Getting Rachel on a jet ski had been a big enough accomplishment for him, and he was sure that was only because Rachel wanted something to do to keep her mind off of Finn. “Besides, she’d want to bring Jesse with her since they are apparently inseparable now. I’d rather do anything than be a third wheel to those two. Can you imagine? I’d just unhook myself and take my chances with the free fall,” he said as he shook his head like he could more easily clear the thought that way.
“And then that would leave you all alone and so bored without me today. Face it, you need me.” Puck began walking in the direction of the setup that was waiting for them, and glancing over at her beside him as he did. He was feeling much more like his normal confident, or cocky as some might say, self these days, and he had Quinn to thank for a lot of that. It wasn’t like he was looking to get into that heart to heart confession at the moment, not when they had much more fun things planned to do instead. So far things were working out perfectly for him. He had a great day planned, and the perfect person to spend it with. As they approached their destination, one of the workers met them right away and began explaining safety rules and precautions with them. In other words, Puck stopped listening shortly after the hello, and instead started using his foot to push sand onto Quinn’s just to see how much he could get away with before she tried to retaliate. He figured he knew all he needed to already anyway: get strapped in and enjoy the view.
QUINN FABRAY
Almost immediately, Quinn flashed her infamous eye roll. “Have you ever heard of a thing called ‘fashionably late’, Puckerman?” She asked, her eyes quickly checking out his outfit with a small late. “Well, obviously not, considering the things you choose to wear every single day. We oughta change that soon, yes?” Quinn shook her head, not even able to begin thinking about the love triangle between Finn, Rachel, and Jesse. It was practically insane to her that Rachel and Finn could be so in love one day, and then she’d be buddy buddy with Jesse again the next day. Of course, she was in no room to judge, for she was never the best person in relationships anyways, but the concept of those three was as confusing as her and Puck had managed to get. “I just… I don’t understand. And, I feel like I’ve barely seen Finn at all this trip. I hope he’s alright.” As much history and uneasy feelings there had been between Quinn and Finn, all she wanted was the best for him - and for a while, she was certain that was Rachel. It’s almost funny how fast things change.
“Oh? Is that so?” Quinn challenged, her eyebrow raising out of curiosity. “You think Ineed youfor entertainment? You are out of your mind, Noah Puckerman. Completely out of your mind.” She laughed, lightly slapping his arm as she walked past him. It was safe to say that there were far more rules for this whole activity than Quinn had ever imagined, though the thought of them caring for the safety of others was something that settled her mind into ease. As per usual, she was the only one out of the duo that had paid close attention to the rules and instructions. The warm sensation trickled onto her toes, and it took all but everything in her not to burst out laughing. Her eyes remaining on the instructor in from them, who was now turned around and pointing to things on the harness, Quinn quickly grabbed a fistful of sand, throwing it into the chest of the out of control boy next to her.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck scoffed as he looked down over what he was wearing. Even though she had a point, a picking out a pair of swim trunks to wear wasn't hard given he only had a couple pairs anyway, but he wasn't about to admit that. "I can't help it that I'm just naturally this hot. Some of us don't have to take hours." He walked a little taller with his chest puffed out to prove his point in his own mind. "Yeah, he's...I don't know." Puck tried to figure out the right words to explain the whole mess of a situation. For once, he was glad he had nothing to do with that tangled web of people. "He's dealing with it his way. This whole romance island probably isn't helping things. He'll be alright though. You should drag him out of the hut to do something. I know it's hard to believe, but he might be tired of seeing my handsome mug all the time." Puck looked over at Quinn with a cheesy grin on his face. He knew it couldn't be easy for Finn to sit back and watch Rachel move on so quickly, no matter what the reasons behind the breakup were. He kept trying to encourage the guy to step up and make a move before he lost his chance, but there was only so much pushing he could do from his spot.
As Quinn stood with a seemingly straight face and listened to the safety lecture all while her foot was getting buried, Puck thought he was smooth. It wasn't until the guy turned to grab a couple life vests and Quinn retaliated that he realized it wasn't that simple. "Hey!" he protested as a hand full of sand bounced off of his chest. Just when he was about to retaliate, preferably in any way possible that would make him out to be the winner in their little sand battle that he'd started, the instructor turned around again. The last thing Puck wanted was for the guy to start his safety lecture over from the start. The idea of being stuck listening to all sides of the crazy, mixed up, love triangle sounded better than that, so Puck tried to quickly think on his feet. "I was just gonna say, 'Hey you're really good at explaining all of this stuff..." Judging from the guy's face, he didn't buy it one bit, but since he didn't start things over but instead handed them both a life jacket to put on, Puck considered it a win. "You should keep an eye on her. She's chicken." After dusting the sand off of his chest and flicking it from his fingertips in Quinn's direction, he pulled on his life vest and made his way to their parasail that was waiting for them.
Along with the wound on forehead, cuts littered her arms and legs although, judging by the dried blood, most had stopped seriously bleeding some time ago. The worst of all, though, was the deep gash on her collar bone. Harmony bit back the urge to vomit at the vile smell of blood and burnt flesh and set to ripping her the bottom of her t-shirt apart. The long piece of fabric was used as some sort of make shift headband, wrapping around her head and tied in a large knot at the spot of the cut to soak up the blood. Harmony pressed the collar of her shirt against the other gash and kept her hand there, hoping the pressure would stop the bleeding.
Carefully wiping her bloody free hand on her left thigh, not daring to touch her burnt one, she began to try to pull her aching body when she heard an indistinguishable noise. Frozen in a half sitting, half crouching position, she strained her ears and listened again. But…nothing. The silence was all consuming, deafening even. She was probably just imagining things. Wishful thinking. With another small whimper, Harmony continued the excruciating task of pushing herself up. Then there it was. A yell. A deep, low yell. There was someone else out there. Someone who was alive.
In a knee jerk reaction, Harmony practically jumped up, only for a searing pain to shoot through her right leg. “Shit!” She exclaimed in the least ladylike manner possible, immediately pushing all her weight onto her left leg. Even though only her thigh was burnt, it was like her entire leg was on fire. Just as Harmony was ready to get back on the ground, crawl into a ball, and die, she heard the voice again. Groaning in frustration, she stuck her free arm out, the other still holding her shirt to the her wound to steady her balance, and began to hobble her way in the sound of the screams. “Help!” She screamed at the top of her lungs before taking another step. Well, hop. “Please!” Her voice cracked, sounding even more pathetic and desperate than she knew it already did.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to be doing, if anything, so she kind of was settling to just sit and wait for whatever to happen, happen. She was trying to think about what dying could be like, if it hurt or if it was easy. Hell, she was already so hurt, her back impossibly broken probably, not being able to see, dying couldn’t be worse than how she was already feeling, she assumed. Except, shoot, what if she wasn’t able to see ‘the light’ since her vision was so bad? Would they still let her into heaven? Now she was a little bit worried.
There was no point in trying to stand up, Brittany couldn’t see where to go even if she was able to stand, so she’d probably end up hurting herself even more by trying to move. Like she’d decided, there wasn’t any use in trying to do anything when she had already let herself be so defeated by life. Nothing was worth it anymore, not unless Santana found her. Not unless Santana was even alive.
It wasn’t until Brittany heard someone else that maybe she realized that she couldn’t just completely give up, not that she even could tell who was asking for help. “Hello?” Brittany shouted back, looking around, but that doing no good since she couldn’t see to begin with. She sniffed, her nose clogged from crying and her voice raspy from screaming for Santana, “Where are you?? I can’t really help because I can’t see or get up but… wait can you walk?” she shouted again, wondering if whoever was out there could just come to her, that’d be easier, at least Brittany wouldn’t be alone when she died.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony took another one footed jump forward, stumbling slightly before catching herself on a nearby tree. Hissing in pain, she looked down to see that the tree trunk had left minor cuts on her palms - but hey, what was another few scratches at this point? She was busy wiping the dirt off her hands when a voice, another voice, broke through the forest. A second voice. Another person. “What?” She screamed. When the second voice answered back with unintelligible words, Harmony yelled, “Wait. Just…just stay there!”
“Plan…Okay, I need a plan…” She mumbled, her mind running a million miles a minute. There were two other people nearby. Possibly dying. Most likely dying. Okay. She needed to find them both. Then they needed to find water. Clean water. Then figure out where the heck they were. Then food. And shelter. But first, find these people. Harmony took one hesitant hop in the direction of where the first voice had come from, but her balance was off and she flailed madly before steadying herself. If she fell, there was no way she’d be able to get back on her feet. She surveyed the area as if a cane or a pair of crutches would appear out of nowhere before her eyes fell on a nearby stick. Hobbling her way over to the stick, she picked it up in her free hand and instantly relaxed now that her weight was more balanced.
Harmony limped along for what seemed like hours, periodically shouting out to those around her, mostly to know she was going in the right direction but partially to make sure they were still alive. Seeing as she was squeamish about blood, she couldn’t imagine stumbling upon a dead body. The thought itself made her shiver. Finally, Harmony saw movement between the trees. “Hello!” She called out, ready to cry tears of joy. She didn’t even know who it was, but it was someone, and that was good enough for her. “It’s Harmony!”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Slowly working his way towards the trunk of the tree to attempt to climb lower, Puck froze the second he heard a voice calling out again. It wasn’t the same shriek he’d heard earlier, but instead a couple different voices volleying back and forth. He couldn’t tell who it was, or even what was being said, but it was more people. It wasn’t much hope, but it was some. He wasn’t the only one living out the grizzly nightmare that he wished he could suddenly wake up from. His friend were fine. He was going to get out of the tree he was in, and everything was going to be fine. Puck repeated the same thought on an endless loop in his head as he tried to force himself to believe it. There was no room to let the doubts and panic take over. Things were bad enough as they were.
Reaching the trunk of the tree, Puck winced as he had to use his left arm to grab onto a branch to lower himself to the one below it. As a kid Puck could spend hours climbing trees and daring his friends, usually Finn, to see who could climb the highest. He felt invincible as he climbed near the tops without a care in the world, but now all he wanted was for his feel to land safely on the ground again. He missed the ground.
“Oh shit.” Puck quick grabbed onto another branch as the one his feet were planted on began to crack beneath his weight. Having it break completely would have offered a much faster way to the ground below, but a painful one. “I swear I’m going to chop you down when I’m out of here,” Puck complained at his new wooden enemy just to keep his mind focused on something instead of lightheaded feeling he refused to acknowledge. Hearing a voice a lot closer than the last time he had, Puck found steady footing and tried to twist and turn to see below him and catch a glimpse of who it belonged to. “Harmony?” he repeated when he heard what she said. “Thank fuck. Are you alright? Is anyone with you?” He knew he’d heard someone else before, but at that moment he was so thankful to see another living soul that he wanted to grab her and never let go. Of course that meant finding a way down to the ground first, but it was proving a lot harder than he would have liked for it to.
HARMONY JONES:
“Puck?” She sputtered out, skidding to a sudden stop when she saw Noah Puckerman of all people stuck up in a tree. She didn’t even think to chastise him for his course language, though, because at that moment, she was overcome with the desire to give him the biggest, tightest hug she could muster. “I-I’m fine.” Which reminded her to check if the gash on her collar bone was still bleeding. Thankfully her t-shirt seemed to have mopped most of it up, and only dried blood was smeared across her chest. “I have a burn on my leg, and it feels like I’m being stabbed every step I take,” She explained, gesturing to her one legged stance and walking stick. “But I can walk, and I’d say that’s an accomplishment at this moment.”
“Someone else is out there,” Harmony continued, glancing briefly back in the direction of the other person. “I don’t know who it is, but it’s a girl, and she’s hurt, and we need to go find her.” She didn’t have the heart to add ‘before we find her dead’. While she had evaded that scenario with Puck, Harmony wasn’t so sure she’d be as lucky the second time. Since Puck was currently on unsteady footing several feet above the ground, though, there were a few things they needed to take care of before going on another person search. “But I guess we need to get you out of this tree first…”
Automatically her mind started racing for a solution, anything that could be in any way helpful, but surprise, surprise, a ladder did not appear out of thin air. She wasn’t anywhere near tall enough to help him out herself, and even if Puck could ease himself down a few branches, there was still a good four or five foot drop that would have to be jumped. And if he felt half as bad as she did, jumping was in no a viable option. Maybe he could…Or maybe…Nope. She had nothing. Fantastic.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck shifted around until there was no more branches to climb down onto, but it offered him a better view of Harmony. He could see that their definition of fine had already shifted considerably as the dried blood that caked her clothes as well as the burned state of her leg were visible from where he stood. If she was fine, he didn’t want to know what people who weren’t looked like. As soon as the thought entered his mind, he tried to shake it off. He knew what they would be like even if he didn’t want to. “Yeah, it’s coming from that way,” he said as he pointed off in the opposite direction from where Harmony had come from. “I heard them earlier, but then I haven’t in a while.” He was sure his mind wasn’t the only one that jumped to what that could have possibly meant, but instead of focusing on it, Puck moved his attention back to getting on solid ground.
“Don’t suppose you carry a spare ladder or a rope around with you,” he said as he looked at the drop he had ahead of him. From where he stood, he figured he had two choices. He could jump and risk breaking a leg which could make finding everyone else a lot harder, or he could attempt to hang from the lowest branch to at least cut the fall in half. The choice would have been a lot more clear if every flex of his left bicep didn’t send a shooting pain through his arm as well as more blood to soak his makeshift tourniquethe’d created with part of his shirt. “Okay, stand back.” Standing there and weighing his options anymore was a giant waste of time as far as he was concerned, so instead Puck sat down on the branch he’d been standing on. It was still higher up than he wanted to manage, but there was no changing it. Grabbing onto the branch with both of his hands, he turned and pushed himself off of it. The second his muscles flexed in attempt to hold his weight, the pain multiplied to insane levels and he let go, immediately falling the remaining six feet to ground with a thud.
Puck groaned the second the air returned to his lungs after it had all been forced out from the fall, and he pushed himself up so that he was sitting. The stinging sensation on his back alerted him for the first time that it was burned or possibly scraped from earlier. “Fuck that hurt, ” he said as casually as he could mange as he pushed himself up to his feet and getting his first good look at Harmony’s leg and just how badly it was burned. It obviously needed to be cleaned and walking on it couldn’t have been easy, but they didn’t have a lot of options. Whoever else they’d heard was nearby and it sounded like they were in a lot of pain. “I’ve never been so happy to see you in my life,” he said honestly as being stuck alone and not know where anyone was, was not a good feeling. “Come on, let’s go find everyone else.”
HARMONY JONES:
“No,” She replied, smiling weakly at Puck’s attempt at a joke. She might have even forced a chuckle if she didn’t know how dire their situation actually was. Whoever out there couldn’t move and might even be dead. She was limping her way along with a muddy stick for a crutch. And he was stuck in a freaking tree. They needed medical attention, clean water, food…Geez. Just thinking about it made Harmony want to curl up and wait to die. How were they ever supposed to survive? This was like some sick kind of Hunger Games except Harmony wasn’t Katniss, but one of the goners in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.
Harmony’s mind was so busy figuring out her Hunger Games metaphor that she didn’t notice Puck preparing himself to jump out of the tree until he warned her to get out of the way. “Wait, don’t!” She exclaimed at the exact moment he jumped. When he landed on the ground with a loud thud, Harmony gasped and rushed forward, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg. “Puck?” She asked as he laid in a motionless heap, his chest moving up and down slightly as the only sign that he was living. “Puck, are you okay?” Instead of answering her question, he cursed and pushed himself up. She was going to take that as a ‘yes’. “Consider the feeling mutual,” She replied in response to Puck’s comment. Even if she didn’t know Puck very well, he was a somewhat familiar face, and she already felt a hundred more times comfortable having him as company in the situation.
Puck seemed to be able manage walking, at least more comfortably than herself, so they set off, Harmony still doing her best to keep any weight off her right leg, calling out to the stranger who was nearby. When their calls were returned, reassuring Harmony that the person was still alive and even better, close by, they pointed themselves in the right direction. Suddenly, between the trees, there was a flash of movement and more noticeably, straw colored hair. “Look! I see someone!” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. There was no way the higher pitched voice belonged to Sam or Jeff, but it could be Quinn or… “Brittany!” Harmony yelled, finally being able to make out the girl more clearly.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany had no idea where the other voices were coming from and it’s not like she could make anything out around here, not really anyway. Unless things were close up, she couldn’t entirely tell what anything was since her vision was so blurred. She wished she could see the other people who might need help, because it was within Brittany’s nature to do whatever she could to try and help them, but there wasn’t anything she could do, she knew that, and it all was making her feel so much worse.
She was still crying when she heard them getting closer. Brittany wasn’t really usually the kind of person who was too proud to cry, she’d been Santana’s friend forever and Santana obviously had taught Brittany that it was good to let it out when needed. Emotions and crying were good things to show other people. Or so Brittany used to think, now she wasn’t so sure and as she heard her name called, she sniffed and stopped herself from letting anymore tears fall.
“It’s Brittany!” she shouted the best that she could, taking in a deep breath, “I can’t really see, or walk, anyway, I’m not sure I can,” Brittany added, looking down into her lap, or what she figured was her lap. Honestly without some kind of help there was going to be no way for Brittany to get up herself and walk, not only that, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk unassited even if she could get up. To her, she felt like a lost cause.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Walking through the trees and often times dense brush, Puck tried to keep his pace as slow and steady as he could. Every instinct he had was telling him to hurry up and find the person on the other end of the voice, and everyone else that had been on the plane with them. Patience was never one of Puck’s stronger virtues, and the situation he currently found himself in was only escalating it. He wanted it all figured out and fixed. The sooner, the better. Unfortunately for him, things didn’t work out that way, and not only were they lost in the forest somewhere with no food, no water, and no clue which was was even the right way to go for help, but it was also obvious that Harmony was already doing everything she could to try and walk on her leg the way that it was. Going any faster was highly unlikely, but they ventured on. Giving up wasn’t an option.
While it wasn’t a big break, the fact that whoever it was could at least answer back to their calls helped to aim them in the right direction. Without it they could have spend hours wandering around in circles and never have even known it. “Look! I see someone!” Hearing Harmony’s words, Puck’s heart began to race. Pushing through the brush, Puck got the same glimpse of blonde hair that Harmony had, and just for a split second he thought it was Quinn. If it was wishful thinking or pure desperation, he wanted it to be true. He needed her to be alive. Hell, he needed everyone to be alive, but in that moment he realized just how much. Maybe there was something to Quinn’s whole bonded for life after going through so much together claim. He didn’t get to think about just how much she’d like being right, because as quickly as he’d thought it was Quinn, it was gone. The moment was fleeting, and instead he realized it was Brittany they’d managed to track down.
If there was funny about being in an airplane that literally just fell out of the sky, it was that had a way of making every other problem seem completely meaningless. The fact that he’d spent a great deal of their trip in Bora Bora annoyed at how stubborn and unable to take a joke Brittany could be didn’t even register. The only thing that did was complete relief at seeing her and hearing her as they approached. “You can’t walk?” he asked with the concern dripping from his voice as he and Harmony pushed through the last bit of brush and were able to completely reach the other girl.
Kneeling down at her side, he tried to quickly survey the injuries she had. His love of extreme sports had him familiar broken bones and things like it. He couldn’t fix them, but he’d gotten good at slapping something together until he was able to get to the hospital. It wasn’t perfect, but nothing about their current situation was. But as he looked at Brittany’s legs, he was relieved to see they were both going in the right direction and no bones were sticking out. It was a start at least. “We’re going to get you out of here,” he said with as much confidence as he could manage. “We’ll figure this out.” Puck looked over to Harmony as he tried to figure out what they were going to do. “You okay?” While the obvious answer was no, of course she wouldn’t be, he knew they’d be even worse off if Harmony couldn’t go any longer on her leg.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany’s mind was so clouded between thinking about her pain, worrying about Santana, and wanting it all to be over that she didn’t even care to figure out who was actually coming to help her, if there was even anything anyone could do at that point. She only realized it was Puck because of his voice, she couldn’t see him, her vision didn’t seem to be getting any better at the time went on. Everything was discouraging her and as much as she wanted to pretend to be her normal, silly, happy self around Puck, she couldn’t find it in herself to even try.
“I can’t do anything,” Brittany replied, annoyed, her little spat with Puck over the shark issue earlier that week already forgotten in her mind. Little things like that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Puck was alive and for that Brittany was thankful, “My back hurts, I crawled over to this tree trunk, I think I fell out of that tree over there,” she pointed, squinting trying to see the tree, if it was even a tree that she was pointing at, “And I can’t see, you guys might as well leave me here.”
Sighing Brittany closed her eyes and leaned her head back, wincing at how even moving her neck seemed to strained whatever was wrong with her back. Brittany licked her lips and closed her eyes tightly, “I’m sorry,” she muttered, “For being mean to you last week, but I’m happy you’re alive.” For some reason she really felt like she had to tell that to Puck, all the things she’d never said before seemed to be more important, life was too short to keep things to oneself, it was better to share. “You’re one of my favorites because you’re silly, I like it,” Brittany added, her eyes still closed, “If you guys run into Santana… if she’s not… can you tell her that I really, really loved her? She’s my boothang, I want her to know that, even if sometimes I’m not the smartest and I know it’s annoying… I really tried to be a good girlfriend.”
She’d given up, it was as simple as that, and frankly Brittany wouldn’t even mind if Puck, and the girl she still couldn’t make out, ended up leaving her there like that should. Brittany had seen those survivor shows enough to know that she was going to weigh everyone down. She wasn’t smart enough to be of any use, especially if she couldn’t see or get up from the ground.
HARMONY JONES:
As Puck and Harmony slowly but surely made their way into the clearing Brittany was in, Harmony couldn’t help but notice her red and puffy eyes, obviously from crying. That was when she realized that she herself had yet to cry. Maybe Jeff was right and she was a lot tougher than she thought. Or maybe she shouldn’t think about this situation too hard, because then she’d start crying and never stop. Forcing those thoughts out off her mind, Harmony leaned against a nearby tree to keep her burnt leg off the ground while Puck attempted to examine the blonde’s injuries.
Harmony focused on catching her breath (walking basically one legged was tiring, okay?) while Brittany started going on in what very much seemed like swan song fashion. She wished she could say something, but she barely knew Brittany, and she definitely didn’t know Santana, her girlfriend that she clearly loved (even though Harmony didn’t exactly know what ‘boothang’ meant). It wasn’t her place to say anything, but then again, that had never really stopped her before. There was no way Puck and Harmony were going to leave her out here to die like she was making it sound. For whatever reason, they were put in this situation together, and they were going to get out of it together. There was no way a person could survive falling out of a burning plane and not be meant to make it out of here alive. They could have stumbled upon her best friend or her worst enemy, and Harmony would have felt that way.
“Come on,” Harmony started, taking and hopping over to lean on Brittany’s tree. “We’re not going to abandon you, Brittany.” She crouched down as best she could to be face to face with her. “It’s Harmony, by the way,” She added since the girl had mentioned not being able to see clearly. “The, uh, Gerber Baby.” (Oh, God, she thought. That’s how I’m going to be remembered. The Gerber Baby. Not Harmony Jones, the Broadway star.) “I wouldn’t do that. Puck wouldn’t do that. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.” She hoped that the girl, even if she was unable to see how seriously she believed that statement, could at least hear it in her voice. “Now,” Harmony said in her typical Unitards Captain voice, standing up straight and wobbling slightly due to being off balance. “Are you bleeding anywhere? If so, we need to stop the bleeding immediately.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
As soon as Brittany started talking, it was obvious she’d basically given up. He wasn’t sure what exactly she’d given up on, if it was life, being rescued, both, or something else, but Puck wasn’t having any part of it. He knew there was no way that they could leave her behind. While the latest obstacle could slow them now more, going on without anyone wasn’t even an option. Finding their way around the forest without getting lost was close to impossible, and it wasn’t like he had a pocket full of bread crumbs to leave as a trail. Not to mention that he had no idea what kind of wild animals, snakes, or bugs were crawling around in the woods to begin with. Puck wasn’t even going to consider it, so he began shaking his head no before Brittany had even finished talking. He didn’t want to hear her message to pass along to anyone, because he wouldn’t allow himself to believe that she wouldn’t be able to say all those things herself.
When Harmony spoke up and echoed some of Puck’s own thoughts, he switched from shaking his head to nodding in agreement. “Harmony’s right. We’re not going to leave you. Can you imagine how much Santana would kick my ass if I did that?” he asked to try and get Brittany focused on the positive side of things. Anyone who knew Brittany and Santana for more than five minutes knew how much they meant to each other, and that was true even before they’d added an extra layer to their relationship. He knew Brittany was more likely to listen to Santana than anyone else, and since she wasn’t there with them, he had to make do with what they had.Since she seemed to have trouble seeing, Puck slid his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze to let her know that he was there, and he wasn’t going to go without her. “And you know she wouldn’t want you sitting out here alone. She’d remind you that you’re the toughest chick she knows.” Puck glanced over at Harmony as he could tell by the tone of her voice she was just as determined as he was to get them out of there. Focusing on what they had to do was the only way to stop the ‘what ifs’ from creeping in. “If she can’t walk, we have to figure something else out”
Puck was only half listening as Harmony made sure to see if Brittany was bleeding any worse than minor cuts and scrapes. He silently hoped that she wasn’t as they really didn’t need a terrible situation to get even worse. “I can carry her for a while,” he spoke up and offered. He knew it would hurt like hell to have anything pressed up and rubbing against his burnt back, but with his left arm the way that it was, he knew piggy back was his only choice besides tossing her over his shoulder, but with Brittany’s back hurt the way that it was…. Puck rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration as he realized they wouldn’t be able to get very far that way. He chose not to share his current train of thought, and instead jump to the next one and hope it worked out better. “What if we find a couple long branches and then, I don’t know, tie ‘em together or whatever. We can make something she can lay on, and I can drag it.” It sounded better than his first idea to him, even if he was missing huge details like their complete lack of supplies to actually build the thing. He wasn’t about to let that stop him. “We’ll have to avoid the thicker brush, but we can do it.” They had to make something work, and since it was the only idea he had at the moment, he decided to get behind it completely. “See what I mean? We’re going to be fine. We’ve got this. No giving up,” he said as he turned back to Brittany to try and get her spirits back up.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
It was hard for Brittany to really comprehend the entire situation at hand so it had been easier to go right into giving up and letting it all work its own course. Puck was right though, Santana would be so disappointed in her if she just sat there against that tree to die. Brittany knew she’d want Santana to be fighting, so she also knew she had to take that advice herself and fight the best she could too. “Okay,” she nodded, squeezing Puck’s hand and smiling, in what she hoped was, Harmony’s direction. “We’ll find, San, right?” Brittany asked, that still being the top thing on her mind, “We’ll find Santana and Quinn and then everything will feel better.” She was mostly talking to herself, trying to talk it all up so she could get into a better mindset, if not for her own sake, but for Puck and Harmony since they were so much more determined than Brittany was to be alright at that point.
Brittany squinted and tried to make out her surroundings, though everything was still seeming to blend together. It was more frustrating because she’d always had such good vision before then, not being able to completely see was going to hold them all back even more. “I have some scrapes, but I’m okay,” she replied when asked about bleeding, “Nothing I can’t handle, I’m used to them form motocross, whenever I’d wipe out I’d get a lot of scrapes just like these.” That was a positive thing for Brittany to hold on to as well, the scrapes really didn’t bother her like they could have been. Her problem really was in the troubles she was having with her back.
“I’m heavy, though,” Brittany cringed, knowing it was true because of her height, dragging her might end up doing more harm than good in the long run, “Maybe… we could make crunches?” she suggested, not even knowing she’d gotten the word completely wrong, “You guys could help me stand and maybe I can walk. I crawled over here, I just can’t stand up myself. When I pulled my hamstring they gave me crunches and I was pretty good at them.” She knew anything was really a long shot since they had nothing, were all injured, and she was really dead weight for both Puck and Harmony in the entire situation.
HARMONY JONES:
When Brittany’s mood seemed to have lifted and she said with a determined glint in her eye that they were going to find her friends, Harmony didn’t have the heart to tell her that they may not be able to find the others. Or they might find them dead, the thought of which made Harmony feel queasy. And she couldn’t even fathom how Brittany would crumble at the sight of her deceased friends. Actually, Harmony could. She could imagine how gutted she would be if she saw Chandler or her mom…but that was not what Harmony needed to be focused on. She needed to be focused on zero in on getting their basic needs fulfilled. Get up, get moving, get water.
Fortunately, Brittany wasn’t bleeding and seemed to be on board to try and move. That being said, there was no way Puck could give her a piggy back ride for an extended period of time without being in serious pain. And Harmony really didn’t want him to get even more injured by trying to help. They wouldn’t even be able to switch off carrying her, because Harmony had zero upper body strength. And with Brittany being several inches taller than her, trying to carry her would be asking for a disaster. Dragging her was a possibility…but again, with Puck’s arm, was that worse the risk?
“Crutches could work,” Harmony agreed, gesturing to her own. “Mine’s worked out pretty well.” It was hardly the fastest way to get around, but Puck was the only one out of the trio that could walk somewhat normally. Harmony didn’t know how far they would have to travel to find a water source, but she hoped that when they did, they would be able to set up camp there for a little while to rest and heal. There was no way any of them would be able to explore the area and try to find others in their condition. Surveying the fallen trees branches and limbs, she pointed out a few that might be long enough and sturdy enough for Brittany and hopped over to pick up the closest sticks. She left them leaning against the tree then looked towards Puck. “How should we help her stand?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Of course we’re going to find her,” Puck said without hesitation. Not only was he sure it was what Brittany needed to hear, but it was what he needed to believe for himself. The alternative wasn’t what he wanted to deal with at the moment, no matter how close to reality it could possibly be. Focusing on what little positives they had going for them was what he chose to do. For example, Brittany gushing blood anywhere, so that went in the good column as far as he was concerned. When she seemed more determined to walk with the aide of crutches, he mentally chalked down another point in the small victory column.
“If you’re up to it, let’s give it a shot.” As Harmony went to grab a couple sticks that would hopefully help Brittany enough to get her mobile, Puck stood up from the spot he’d been standing in so that he could help her up. “Are you ready for this?” he asked Brittany when Harmony returned with the best crutches they could do under the circumstances. “It might hurt, but you have to push through.” Going to find some kind of help was the current goal on Puck’s mind. He could only hope that through a few more trees they’d find more of their friends, some kind of stream to clean their wounds, or better yet, a freaking hospital full of medical staff just waiting to treat them. He knew some where more likely than others, but as long as they still had some daylight left, they had to try.
“Try and keep her steady and hold up that stick for her to grab.” With Harmony barely able to hold her own weight with her leg in the condition it was, he didn’t want her to take on more than she could. “And Brittany, I’m going to help pull you up, alright?” He gave her hand that he was still holding a little squeeze before he moved it so that she could hold on to what would soon be her crutches. “On the count of three, you’re going to dig deep and be that tough badass I know you’ve got hiding in there. Give it everything you’ve got, and stand up.” Puck got himself in position so that he could use his right side to help with the lifting, which his left arm only had to help her with balance. “One…” He took a breath as he kept his eyes on Brittany to make sure she was ready and not going to back out. “Two…” Readjusting his grip on her arm and his other around her waist, Puck began to lift her up the second the word, “Three,” left his lips.
BRITTANY PIERCE;
The quicker it led up to Brittany having to try and stand the more apprehensive she got and the more she continued to want to sit there. Sure, she’d crawled a little to get to where she was in the first place, but even that probably took hours with how much pain Brittany was in. All she could think about was Santana. What if Brittany could fight through some of the pain and find Santana? What if Santana needed her help somewhere? All of that was keeping her going, even though she wanted to give up. Crutches weren’t going to be easy with her back as bad as it was, especially when they weren’t even real crutches to begin with, but she had to try.
Brittany only nodded, she wasn’t ready for anything they were going to have to do, but there wasn’t really any kind of choice. Ready or not it was either try, or sit there and die, and with people there counting on her, people potentially needing her help, there was no choice in her mind except try. She was trying her best to brace herself for what she knew was going to be a very painful journey. If not for herself but for her friends and for Santana. Brittany knew if it was up to her she wouldn’t be moving at all, but now there were people there with her, people counting on her, and in true Brittany fashion she wasn’t going to let them down.
She closed her eyes tightly when Puck began counting, trying not to think about much, most focused on making sure she could block out as much pain as possible once she was up and standing to the best of her ability. She nodded again, and took in a deep breath to hold once Puck got to three. Pain shot throughout her entire body, her back seemingly useless, once up all the way, tears threatening to fall from her eyes, she blindly reached for a hold of the stick which she put all of her weight on. The pain wasn’t unbearable but it certainly wasn’t comfortable either, “I don’t,” she choked, “I don’t know how long I can do this,” Brittany said honestly, wanting to try and get somewhere, but really not knowing if she had the strength to hold on for too long standing upright.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony nodded when Puck instructed her on helping Brittany and moved closer to Brittany in order to give her the crutches and make sure she would be steady on her feet. When Puck readied himself to lift her, she winced when she saw the muscles and veins in his injured arm stick out. Ouch. Then she cringed even more when Brittany began to pulled upright but forced her eyes to stay open to make sure she’d be able to help in case of emergency. It was like Brittany’s body was useless to her, and Harmony couldn’t even imagine how badly it hurt when tears filled the blonde’s eyes. She wanted to not watch this, to make this stop, but if they didn’t do this the first time, there was no way Brittany would want to try again. Setting the crutches in place, Harmony kept them still when Brittany got situated on them. Once she was, Harmony let out the breath she’d be holding and took a small step backward, her hands still outstretched to help if Brittany suddenly stumbled.
“It’s fine,” She said gently, careful not to touch the unsteady blonde as she got used to the sticks. “We’ll rest every few minutes.” Now that they had actually gotten her up and ready to move, she would have promised anything to the girl to keep her from wanting to give up like when they’d found her. Plus Harmony would need that rest, too, - maybe not as frequently - but she didn’t want any of them hurting themselves further. They needed all their strength if they were going to set up camp, and they were already more ragtag than she would have preferred. Although she felt kind of bad forcing Puck to travel at their snail pace, she was confident in her belief that he wouldn’t want to explore too far by himself. At least not right now. He’d just have to deal.
“Okay!” Harmony exclaimed, forcing her voice to sound bright and cheerful when she clapped her hands together. “First thing we need to do is find water. By the water source, we’ll set up some kind of camp to rest and tend to our injuries for the night. And we’ll need to find something to eat. Do any of you know anything about plants?” She was rambling at this point, and she didn’t even know where most of this survival plan was coming from. Sure, she’d been a Girl Scout for a few years, but that was so long ago, and the closest experience she had with this experience was reading the Hunger Games. But maybe if one of them had a plan and acted like they knew what they were talking about, Harmony wouldn’t feel like crying every few minutes. She took a breath and clapped her hands together, saying, “Now if everyone’s ready, let’s move out!”
THE WILDCARD:
Moving out seems like a really great idea, same with setting up camp but you never know what’s lurking in the jungle. Unknown to group one, the moment you go forth twenty feet, chances are you’ll be greeted by a sincerely overdone Finn Hudson who is more than a little dead and impaled by the jagged trunk of a broken tree.The smell of burnt flesh won’t be for the faint of heart, nor will the sight of a charbroiled Finn.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
When he reached the count of three, Puck didn’t hesitate to pull Brittany up to her feet. He knew it was going to be painful, but it was the only choice they had. They had to get her mobile, and using a couple sticks as crutches was the only working plan that they had at the moment. Once Brittany was standing, Puck kept his hand on her back to make sure she had her balance and could actually continue to stand on her own without crumbling back to the ground. “We’ll take it slow,” he said to agree with Harmony. He would have loved to have been able to do more, but seeing the look of pain in Brittany’s face as she got her used to standing again, he could tell that slow and steady was all they were going to get for a while. Hearing Harmony’s run down of things they needed to do, he nodded his head. It was hardly the time to argue, and since it was a lot of the same things on his mind, he had no reason to. He had the feeling that she was trying to hold it together in her own way, and seeing as her breaking down would only slow them down more, he wasn’t going to derail her efforts.
“We’ve still got a lot of daylight,” he commented as he looked up to find the sun’s position in the sky. He wasn’t a human sundial by any means, but he could see it high enough in the sky to know that it wouldn’t be setting just yet. Sunlight meant they could explore and hopefully run into the rest of their friends. They’d been able to find Brittany after all, he assumed they’d be able to find others the same way. “Let’s go find everyone. They’ve probably got a whole camp set up as they wait for our rescue to get here. Bet they’re already chilling together with all the clean water and food that you could want.” Once he was sure that Brittany had her balance under control, he took his hand back and surveyed where they were to make sure they weren’t going to leave in the same direction they’d arrived. They already knew there wasn’t anything that direction. “And I know plenty about plants.” Sure it was more along the lines of which ones where poison ivy or poison oak, but he figured it was better than nothing. Being confident and sure of himself wasn’t anything new. He was used to actually believing it more when he said it, but letting them know just how scared he was, wouldn’t help anything. “I got this covered. We’re going to be fine.”
Before anyone could disagree or decide they should take a break before they even started moving, Puck chose a direction and began walking in it. If they were going to make it, they had to push on no matter how much it hurt. It was easy for him to think that way given the fact that each step they took didn’t heighten the pain in his body, but with the blood he’d lost, he was feeling far from perfect himself. Finding something, anything at all that would help them, was all he wanted to do. They’d hardly gotten far at all when Puck began to regret the direction he’d chose. The smell was like nothing he’d come across before, and nothing he ever wanted to. The more they walked, the stronger it got until he pushed a branch out of the way and saw exactly what was causing it. Suddenly the rancid smell wasn’t the only thing churning his stomach as Puck laid eyes on the burnt legs of a body on a jagged tree trunk.
“Fuck…” While logic told him there was absolutely no hope to help the person, Puck rushed closer anyway. He tried to close his mind off to the horrible smell and the even worse thought of exactly what was causing it. It was the last thing he’d wanted to find, and as he got closer in his ridiculous attempt to somehow help the person, or what was left of them, things got worse. When he thought it was a stranger it was bad enough, but as Puck got his first look at the victim’s face, his mind slammed down into denial. “No, no, no,” he repeated, each word getting more and more desperate, like he could somehow change the outcome if he wanted it bad enough. “NO. This isn’t…We have to get him down.” Closing what space had been between himself and his best friend, Puck tried in vain to lift him up off the tree trunk that he was stuck on. “We have to get him down!” he frantically shouted in Brittany and Harmony’s direction as he pushed again to try and free the lifeless burned body. The tears stung his eyes, and it was more than the smell and gruesome sight that was turning his stomach as reality threatened his tight hold on denial.
“We have to do something!” Puck didn’t bother to look at the two people he was with as somewhere in his mind he knew there was nothing that any of them could do. Finn was dead. His best friend in the world, and the closest thing he’d ever had to a brother was laying there, and nothing he could do could fix it. They were supposed to always have each other’s backs. Through everything that had happened in their friendships, all the ups and downs, it was Finn who he knew he could count on. When life got to be too much, and he had to ask for help or get pulled under by it all, Finn was the one he went too. Life was definitely too hard now. Everything about it was too much, and the last thread that had been holding Puck together was long gone. Grabbing onto the trunk of the tree, the anger boiled to the surface. Tightening his hold on the remaining wood, Puck’s arms flexed under the strain as his fingertips dug into the bark. Tired of feeling helpless and desperate, tired of things getting worse when he already felt like he couldn’t take a single second more, tired of living this nightmare, Puck snapped and began ripping at he fractured tree truck until sobs racked through his body. Falling to his knees, Puck buried his face in his hands as he continued crying and couldn’t stop.
HARMONY JONES:
At Puck’s mention of daylight, she leaned on her walking stick and tilted her head back to see the sun peaking through the leafy canopy created by the trees. They’d definitely have a few hours before losing the light, and even at their slow pace, they might even be able to make it out of the forest. At least, Harmony hoped so. She wouldn’t say she was afraid of the dark, but this was not a normal situation. Who knew what else was lurking behind every tree? Or up in them? She’d much rather be in an open space where nothing could jump out and surprise them. Unless the island was all forest… Then they’d be stuck watching their backs every step they took until… Well, she didn’t know when. Whenever they got rescued.
Which Puck said would be coming for them shortly with food and water and able to fix them up, no problem, and be completely fine (although she was starting to question what exactly his definition of ‘fine’ was), but some sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her that would not be the case. While she didn’t know how large this island was, other than the two of them, Harmony hadn’t heard anyone or anything since coming to. This didn’t mean that no one else was nearby, of course, but they were probably not in a condition you would want to see them in. As if on cue, some wretched smell wafted into the air, causing Harmony to crinkle her nose in disgust. “What is - ” She cut off her own question, though, when she recognized the smell. It was just like her own burnt flesh. Only a hundred, million times worse. Which could only mean one thing… Sure enough, by a tree trunk, lay part of body, burnt to a crisp.
Harmony opened to her mouth to speak (or vomit, she wasn’t quite sure), only to be cut off by Puck’s curse. The older boy rushed towards the corpse and immediately began a full fledged freak out. He began to shout things at the two girls, and Harmony stared back helplessly, unsure of what was happening. Puck had always come as a very cool and smooth guy yet here he was having a melt down. Craning her neck to see around him as he tried to lift the body, she caught a glimpse of the now disfigured face to see that it was Finn Hudson. “Oh, God,” She gasped quietly, covering her mouth with her hand. Harmony didn’t know much about him and had never even formally met him, but from the show choir gossip, she knew he was New Direction’s vocal lead and co-captain. The Golden Boy. The leader. And based on his reaction, Noah Puckerman’s very close friend. After exchanging a glance with girl to her left, Harmony continued to watch as Puck, a boy she hardly knew but one that obviously had a tough exterior, on the verge of tears, dig into the bark of the tree trunk, ripping the wood apart. She wanted to do something to make him stop hurting himself, but he was so angry and upset and truly scary. She didn’t think he’d ever hurt her on purpose, but if he was this upset…
Finally, Puck broke down and began to sob. Hesitantly, Harmony stepped forward and carefully rested a hand on his uninjured shoulder. She was never the best at consoling people (her blunt honesty kind of killed that ability), and this situation was a million times worse than anything Harmony had ever encountered. She could only imagine what she’d if she found Chandler’s body… At least she hoped she’d only have to imagine. She’d be absolutely gutted. Inconsolable. Weeping uncontrollably. The whole nine yards. Just thinking about it made her feel like vomiting and crying and listening to Next to Normal for the next five years.
In short, Harmony had no freaking clue what to say to Puck. Still crouched down next to him, she spared a glance and looked at the deceased Finn Hudson. His body was entirely burnt to the point of being almost unrecognizable, and the stench itself made her eyes water. “Puck,” She said quietly. “I am so, so sorry.” She paused, hoping something brilliant to say would come to mind that would fix everything. No such luck. “He didn’t deserve this. But…he’s in a better place now, right? He’s not in pain. Wherever he is” - since Harmony’s not positive on what after life includes or even what Puck even believes in, if anything - “he’s happy.” She didn’t even know if what she’d said was helpful or comforting, but she genuinely believed it was true, and that was better than nothing, right?
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany listened and heard everything that was being said around her, but that was as deep as it got. She wasn’t comprehending anything at all because all of her focus was on not falling down and hurting herself, or someone else, more than she was already hurt. She remembered reading The Little Engine That Could and as they began to walk all she repeated over and over in her mind was “I think I can, I think I can” because she knew if she let herself get distracted even for the slightest bit of a moment that she wasn’t going to be able to stand anymore and keep herself up right. There was a lot of things they had to do if they were going to fight for their lives and Brittany knew that she had to have her head in the game rather than all over the place.
More and more Brittany wished she knew more about plants since that was one of the first things that was brought up, but she wasn’t going to be any help with that since she couldn’t see. Brittany knew a lot about berries though from her times during motocross when her and the rest of the team would wonder around some of the woods around the tracks… but if she couldn’t see the berries she didn’t know if that would help her at all. “I kind of know things about berries,” she said in a strained tone, the pain evident in her voice, “We used to eat a lot of them sometimes in motocross, the ones that grew on bushes and stuff…” she wasn’t trying to get their hopes up, but keeping her small knowledge about them to herself wasn’t going to help either. Brittany had to do what she could and it meant continuing to keep her mind in survival mode.
However, keeping her head straight didn’t go over very well because she quickly began to get confused at Puck’s frantic shouting. Brittany couldn’t see anything and the only way she was following Puck and Harmony was by making out the colors of their shirts since they were close to her. As for whatever they could see, Brittany was clueless. She squinted and squinted, but there was nothing she could do to help herself see anything. Brittany knew that Puck was crying and that something bad was in front of them, someone was dead and Brittany was scared to ask who it was. No one was saying any names, yet instead they kept referring to them as ‘he’. All Brittany could do was let out a deep sigh of relief that it wasn’t Santana, as bad as that sounded, Santana was the only reason Brittany was fighting so hard to stay alive and since it wasn’t Santana they found dead, she would be alright.
Or well, no, she wouldn’t be alright, none of them were ever going to be alright again, but she would be able to push it aside for a while because it wasn’t Santana. “It’s not Santana,” she said to herself out loud, “You’re okay because it’s not Santana.” Brittany was losing touches with reality and couldn’t let herself be sad by finding people dead. Someone was going to have to keep really strong and since Brittany couldn’t see anything, she figured it was better to pretend nothing bad was there since she couldn’t see it, “We have to keep moving,” she whispered, hurt by hearing the way Puck was upset, “We can’t stop, we have to keep moving.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Feeling a warm hand on his shoulder, Puck wasn't thinking about how weak he must seem or how he was trying to hold it together and be positive about their situation. There was some things that could take down even the most badass, and coming across the body of his best friend was definitely one of those things. Even as Puck tried to listen to Harmony's words and let them soak in, it was doing little to make him feel better about the situation. Puck needed him. He needed his best friend not only to be there with him to try and figure out who to fix the impossible situation they found themselves in, but in the world. There was so much they were supposed to do together no matter which direction their life took them, but that's how it was supposed to go. Life was supposed to happen. Puck had never imagined it would ever go this way. He knew he was the screw up. He was the one always getting himself in trouble. No one expected much from him, but Finn? Finn was the type that always got it together in the end. He was always the leader and the person people turned to whether it was the football team or the New Directions. Finn was the one that took that leadership role, and now he couldn't, and the realization left Puck feeling more lost that he ever imagined possible. So while Finn could end up somewhere happier, it was hard to believe that as Puck looked up to see his burnt body through the tears in his eyes.
When he heard Brittany's voice, he turned to look over at her as if he didn't know better, he never would have thought it was her. Brittany was a lot of things, but cruel, uncaring, and completely cold had never been words he would have chosen to describe her. Not until that moment. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" he spat out with absolutely zero care to how harsh his voice was. "Finn's dead and all you can fucking say is it's fine because it's not Santana?" Puck's heart was racing not only from the emotional freakout he'd had, but from the anger that now remained. He was angry at where they were, at how things kept getting worst, at God or whatever for seeing fit to take Finn, and now at Brittany for not giving a shit. Only one of those things was standing in front of him right now and could actually hear his words. "It's not fine. None of it is fucking fine. That's so great for you that the one person in the world you care about isn't the one we stumble across, but some of the rest of us have hearts. Unless you have something good to say you can shut the fuck up."
Less than two minutes ago both he and Harmony had told her they wouldn't just walk away and were doing anything to think up some way to make sure they could stay together, and it was clear Brittany had only one thing on her mind. Nothing and no one else mattered, and Puck was sick of it. With his nerves already frayed from everything, he had no patience left. In normal situations he would have tried to be more understanding and realize that they were all scared, but today wasn't that day. Sure he wanted to find Santana. He also wanted to find every single other person that was on their flight. So many of them were his friends, both new and old, and some were a lot closer to family. That was what New Directions claimed to be after all, but it hurt every time he learned the word didn't have the same meaning for other people as it did him.
Puck turned his back to Brittany again as he didn't want to look at her anymore. She was disgusting him as much the sight of Finn was. Finn deserved better in every way possible. He didn't deserve to die, and he didn't deserve one of his so-called friends to not even bat an eye that he was no longer with them. "I'm not going anywhere," he said calmly as he looked over to Harmony. He hoped she could understand where he was coming from, and also that it wasn't up for debate with him. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't do everything he could for Finn to give him a peaceful place to lay. He wasn't going to fail him in death like he did in life. "I'm getting Finn down, and I'll bury him or something. I won't leave him like this." Puck forced himself to take a deep breath and try and stop the tears and pull himself together. "I can't." He exhaled a big breath like it was a way to cut off all the pain he was feeling. He pushed himself up so that he was standing and offered the hand from his good arm to help Harmony up with him. "You can rest your leg for a while." Looking at Finn's body without the shock and desperation of trying to save him, he tried to come up with a way to get him down. His mind was made up, and he didn't leave it up for debate. "I can do this on my own."
Along with the wound on forehead, cuts littered her arms and legs although, judging by the dried blood, most had stopped seriously bleeding some time ago. The worst of all, though, was the deep gash on her collar bone. Harmony bit back the urge to vomit at the vile smell of blood and burnt flesh and set to ripping her the bottom of her t-shirt apart. The long piece of fabric was used as some sort of make shift headband, wrapping around her head and tied in a large knot at the spot of the cut to soak up the blood. Harmony pressed the collar of her shirt against the other gash and kept her hand there, hoping the pressure would stop the bleeding.
Carefully wiping her bloody free hand on her left thigh, not daring to touch her burnt one, she began to try to pull her aching body when she heard an indistinguishable noise. Frozen in a half sitting, half crouching position, she strained her ears and listened again. But…nothing. The silence was all consuming, deafening even. She was probably just imagining things. Wishful thinking. With another small whimper, Harmony continued the excruciating task of pushing herself up. Then there it was. A yell. A deep, low yell. There was someone else out there. Someone who was alive.
In a knee jerk reaction, Harmony practically jumped up, only for a searing pain to shoot through her right leg. “Shit!” She exclaimed in the least ladylike manner possible, immediately pushing all her weight onto her left leg. Even though only her thigh was burnt, it was like her entire leg was on fire. Just as Harmony was ready to get back on the ground, crawl into a ball, and die, she heard the voice again. Groaning in frustration, she stuck her free arm out, the other still holding her shirt to the her wound to steady her balance, and began to hobble her way in the sound of the screams. “Help!” She screamed at the top of her lungs before taking another step. Well, hop. “Please!” Her voice cracked, sounding even more pathetic and desperate than she knew it already did.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to be doing, if anything, so she kind of was settling to just sit and wait for whatever to happen, happen. She was trying to think about what dying could be like, if it hurt or if it was easy. Hell, she was already so hurt, her back impossibly broken probably, not being able to see, dying couldn’t be worse than how she was already feeling, she assumed. Except, shoot, what if she wasn’t able to see ‘the light’ since her vision was so bad? Would they still let her into heaven? Now she was a little bit worried.
There was no point in trying to stand up, Brittany couldn’t see where to go even if she was able to stand, so she’d probably end up hurting herself even more by trying to move. Like she’d decided, there wasn’t any use in trying to do anything when she had already let herself be so defeated by life. Nothing was worth it anymore, not unless Santana found her. Not unless Santana was even alive.
It wasn’t until Brittany heard someone else that maybe she realized that she couldn’t just completely give up, not that she even could tell who was asking for help. “Hello?” Brittany shouted back, looking around, but that doing no good since she couldn’t see to begin with. She sniffed, her nose clogged from crying and her voice raspy from screaming for Santana, “Where are you?? I can’t really help because I can’t see or get up but… wait can you walk?” she shouted again, wondering if whoever was out there could just come to her, that’d be easier, at least Brittany wouldn’t be alone when she died.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony took another one footed jump forward, stumbling slightly before catching herself on a nearby tree. Hissing in pain, she looked down to see that the tree trunk had left minor cuts on her palms - but hey, what was another few scratches at this point? She was busy wiping the dirt off her hands when a voice, another voice, broke through the forest. A second voice. Another person. “What?” She screamed. When the second voice answered back with unintelligible words, Harmony yelled, “Wait. Just…just stay there!”
“Plan…Okay, I need a plan…” She mumbled, her mind running a million miles a minute. There were two other people nearby. Possibly dying. Most likely dying. Okay. She needed to find them both. Then they needed to find water. Clean water. Then figure out where the heck they were. Then food. And shelter. But first, find these people. Harmony took one hesitant hop in the direction of where the first voice had come from, but her balance was off and she flailed madly before steadying herself. If she fell, there was no way she’d be able to get back on her feet. She surveyed the area as if a cane or a pair of crutches would appear out of nowhere before her eyes fell on a nearby stick. Hobbling her way over to the stick, she picked it up in her free hand and instantly relaxed now that her weight was more balanced.
Harmony limped along for what seemed like hours, periodically shouting out to those around her, mostly to know she was going in the right direction but partially to make sure they were still alive. Seeing as she was squeamish about blood, she couldn’t imagine stumbling upon a dead body. The thought itself made her shiver. Finally, Harmony saw movement between the trees. “Hello!” She called out, ready to cry tears of joy. She didn’t even know who it was, but it was someone, and that was good enough for her. “It’s Harmony!”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Slowly working his way towards the trunk of the tree to attempt to climb lower, Puck froze the second he heard a voice calling out again. It wasn’t the same shriek he’d heard earlier, but instead a couple different voices volleying back and forth. He couldn’t tell who it was, or even what was being said, but it was more people. It wasn’t much hope, but it was some. He wasn’t the only one living out the grizzly nightmare that he wished he could suddenly wake up from. His friend were fine. He was going to get out of the tree he was in, and everything was going to be fine. Puck repeated the same thought on an endless loop in his head as he tried to force himself to believe it. There was no room to let the doubts and panic take over. Things were bad enough as they were.
Reaching the trunk of the tree, Puck winced as he had to use his left arm to grab onto a branch to lower himself to the one below it. As a kid Puck could spend hours climbing trees and daring his friends, usually Finn, to see who could climb the highest. He felt invincible as he climbed near the tops without a care in the world, but now all he wanted was for his feel to land safely on the ground again. He missed the ground.
“Oh shit.” Puck quick grabbed onto another branch as the one his feet were planted on began to crack beneath his weight. Having it break completely would have offered a much faster way to the ground below, but a painful one. “I swear I’m going to chop you down when I’m out of here,” Puck complained at his new wooden enemy just to keep his mind focused on something instead of lightheaded feeling he refused to acknowledge. Hearing a voice a lot closer than the last time he had, Puck found steady footing and tried to twist and turn to see below him and catch a glimpse of who it belonged to. “Harmony?” he repeated when he heard what she said. “Thank fuck. Are you alright? Is anyone with you?” He knew he’d heard someone else before, but at that moment he was so thankful to see another living soul that he wanted to grab her and never let go. Of course that meant finding a way down to the ground first, but it was proving a lot harder than he would have liked for it to.
HARMONY JONES:
“Puck?” She sputtered out, skidding to a sudden stop when she saw Noah Puckerman of all people stuck up in a tree. She didn’t even think to chastise him for his course language, though, because at that moment, she was overcome with the desire to give him the biggest, tightest hug she could muster. “I-I’m fine.” Which reminded her to check if the gash on her collar bone was still bleeding. Thankfully her t-shirt seemed to have mopped most of it up, and only dried blood was smeared across her chest. “I have a burn on my leg, and it feels like I’m being stabbed every step I take,” She explained, gesturing to her one legged stance and walking stick. “But I can walk, and I’d say that’s an accomplishment at this moment.”
“Someone else is out there,” Harmony continued, glancing briefly back in the direction of the other person. “I don’t know who it is, but it’s a girl, and she’s hurt, and we need to go find her.” She didn’t have the heart to add ‘before we find her dead’. While she had evaded that scenario with Puck, Harmony wasn’t so sure she’d be as lucky the second time. Since Puck was currently on unsteady footing several feet above the ground, though, there were a few things they needed to take care of before going on another person search. “But I guess we need to get you out of this tree first…”
Automatically her mind started racing for a solution, anything that could be in any way helpful, but surprise, surprise, a ladder did not appear out of thin air. She wasn’t anywhere near tall enough to help him out herself, and even if Puck could ease himself down a few branches, there was still a good four or five foot drop that would have to be jumped. And if he felt half as bad as she did, jumping was in no a viable option. Maybe he could…Or maybe…Nope. She had nothing. Fantastic.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck shifted around until there was no more branches to climb down onto, but it offered him a better view of Harmony. He could see that their definition of fine had already shifted considerably as the dried blood that caked her clothes as well as the burned state of her leg were visible from where he stood. If she was fine, he didn’t want to know what people who weren’t looked like. As soon as the thought entered his mind, he tried to shake it off. He knew what they would be like even if he didn’t want to. “Yeah, it’s coming from that way,” he said as he pointed off in the opposite direction from where Harmony had come from. “I heard them earlier, but then I haven’t in a while.” He was sure his mind wasn’t the only one that jumped to what that could have possibly meant, but instead of focusing on it, Puck moved his attention back to getting on solid ground.
“Don’t suppose you carry a spare ladder or a rope around with you,” he said as he looked at the drop he had ahead of him. From where he stood, he figured he had two choices. He could jump and risk breaking a leg which could make finding everyone else a lot harder, or he could attempt to hang from the lowest branch to at least cut the fall in half. The choice would have been a lot more clear if every flex of his left bicep didn’t send a shooting pain through his arm as well as more blood to soak his makeshift tourniquethe’d created with part of his shirt. “Okay, stand back.” Standing there and weighing his options anymore was a giant waste of time as far as he was concerned, so instead Puck sat down on the branch he’d been standing on. It was still higher up than he wanted to manage, but there was no changing it. Grabbing onto the branch with both of his hands, he turned and pushed himself off of it. The second his muscles flexed in attempt to hold his weight, the pain multiplied to insane levels and he let go, immediately falling the remaining six feet to ground with a thud.
Puck groaned the second the air returned to his lungs after it had all been forced out from the fall, and he pushed himself up so that he was sitting. The stinging sensation on his back alerted him for the first time that it was burned or possibly scraped from earlier. “Fuck that hurt, ” he said as casually as he could mange as he pushed himself up to his feet and getting his first good look at Harmony’s leg and just how badly it was burned. It obviously needed to be cleaned and walking on it couldn’t have been easy, but they didn’t have a lot of options. Whoever else they’d heard was nearby and it sounded like they were in a lot of pain. “I’ve never been so happy to see you in my life,” he said honestly as being stuck alone and not know where anyone was, was not a good feeling. “Come on, let’s go find everyone else.”
HARMONY JONES:
“No,” She replied, smiling weakly at Puck’s attempt at a joke. She might have even forced a chuckle if she didn’t know how dire their situation actually was. Whoever out there couldn’t move and might even be dead. She was limping her way along with a muddy stick for a crutch. And he was stuck in a freaking tree. They needed medical attention, clean water, food…Geez. Just thinking about it made Harmony want to curl up and wait to die. How were they ever supposed to survive? This was like some sick kind of Hunger Games except Harmony wasn’t Katniss, but one of the goners in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.
Harmony’s mind was so busy figuring out her Hunger Games metaphor that she didn’t notice Puck preparing himself to jump out of the tree until he warned her to get out of the way. “Wait, don’t!” She exclaimed at the exact moment he jumped. When he landed on the ground with a loud thud, Harmony gasped and rushed forward, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg. “Puck?” She asked as he laid in a motionless heap, his chest moving up and down slightly as the only sign that he was living. “Puck, are you okay?” Instead of answering her question, he cursed and pushed himself up. She was going to take that as a ‘yes’. “Consider the feeling mutual,” She replied in response to Puck’s comment. Even if she didn’t know Puck very well, he was a somewhat familiar face, and she already felt a hundred more times comfortable having him as company in the situation.
Puck seemed to be able manage walking, at least more comfortably than herself, so they set off, Harmony still doing her best to keep any weight off her right leg, calling out to the stranger who was nearby. When their calls were returned, reassuring Harmony that the person was still alive and even better, close by, they pointed themselves in the right direction. Suddenly, between the trees, there was a flash of movement and more noticeably, straw colored hair. “Look! I see someone!” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. There was no way the higher pitched voice belonged to Sam or Jeff, but it could be Quinn or… “Brittany!” Harmony yelled, finally being able to make out the girl more clearly.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany had no idea where the other voices were coming from and it’s not like she could make anything out around here, not really anyway. Unless things were close up, she couldn’t entirely tell what anything was since her vision was so blurred. She wished she could see the other people who might need help, because it was within Brittany’s nature to do whatever she could to try and help them, but there wasn’t anything she could do, she knew that, and it all was making her feel so much worse.
She was still crying when she heard them getting closer. Brittany wasn’t really usually the kind of person who was too proud to cry, she’d been Santana’s friend forever and Santana obviously had taught Brittany that it was good to let it out when needed. Emotions and crying were good things to show other people. Or so Brittany used to think, now she wasn’t so sure and as she heard her name called, she sniffed and stopped herself from letting anymore tears fall.
“It’s Brittany!” she shouted the best that she could, taking in a deep breath, “I can’t really see, or walk, anyway, I’m not sure I can,” Brittany added, looking down into her lap, or what she figured was her lap. Honestly without some kind of help there was going to be no way for Brittany to get up herself and walk, not only that, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk unassited even if she could get up. To her, she felt like a lost cause.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Walking through the trees and often times dense brush, Puck tried to keep his pace as slow and steady as he could. Every instinct he had was telling him to hurry up and find the person on the other end of the voice, and everyone else that had been on the plane with them. Patience was never one of Puck’s stronger virtues, and the situation he currently found himself in was only escalating it. He wanted it all figured out and fixed. The sooner, the better. Unfortunately for him, things didn’t work out that way, and not only were they lost in the forest somewhere with no food, no water, and no clue which was was even the right way to go for help, but it was also obvious that Harmony was already doing everything she could to try and walk on her leg the way that it was. Going any faster was highly unlikely, but they ventured on. Giving up wasn’t an option.
While it wasn’t a big break, the fact that whoever it was could at least answer back to their calls helped to aim them in the right direction. Without it they could have spend hours wandering around in circles and never have even known it. “Look! I see someone!” Hearing Harmony’s words, Puck’s heart began to race. Pushing through the brush, Puck got the same glimpse of blonde hair that Harmony had, and just for a split second he thought it was Quinn. If it was wishful thinking or pure desperation, he wanted it to be true. He needed her to be alive. Hell, he needed everyone to be alive, but in that moment he realized just how much. Maybe there was something to Quinn’s whole bonded for life after going through so much together claim. He didn’t get to think about just how much she’d like being right, because as quickly as he’d thought it was Quinn, it was gone. The moment was fleeting, and instead he realized it was Brittany they’d managed to track down.
If there was funny about being in an airplane that literally just fell out of the sky, it was that had a way of making every other problem seem completely meaningless. The fact that he’d spent a great deal of their trip in Bora Bora annoyed at how stubborn and unable to take a joke Brittany could be didn’t even register. The only thing that did was complete relief at seeing her and hearing her as they approached. “You can’t walk?” he asked with the concern dripping from his voice as he and Harmony pushed through the last bit of brush and were able to completely reach the other girl.
Kneeling down at her side, he tried to quickly survey the injuries she had. His love of extreme sports had him familiar broken bones and things like it. He couldn’t fix them, but he’d gotten good at slapping something together until he was able to get to the hospital. It wasn’t perfect, but nothing about their current situation was. But as he looked at Brittany’s legs, he was relieved to see they were both going in the right direction and no bones were sticking out. It was a start at least. “We’re going to get you out of here,” he said with as much confidence as he could manage. “We’ll figure this out.” Puck looked over to Harmony as he tried to figure out what they were going to do. “You okay?” While the obvious answer was no, of course she wouldn’t be, he knew they’d be even worse off if Harmony couldn’t go any longer on her leg.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany’s mind was so clouded between thinking about her pain, worrying about Santana, and wanting it all to be over that she didn’t even care to figure out who was actually coming to help her, if there was even anything anyone could do at that point. She only realized it was Puck because of his voice, she couldn’t see him, her vision didn’t seem to be getting any better at the time went on. Everything was discouraging her and as much as she wanted to pretend to be her normal, silly, happy self around Puck, she couldn’t find it in herself to even try.
“I can’t do anything,” Brittany replied, annoyed, her little spat with Puck over the shark issue earlier that week already forgotten in her mind. Little things like that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Puck was alive and for that Brittany was thankful, “My back hurts, I crawled over to this tree trunk, I think I fell out of that tree over there,” she pointed, squinting trying to see the tree, if it was even a tree that she was pointing at, “And I can’t see, you guys might as well leave me here.”
Sighing Brittany closed her eyes and leaned her head back, wincing at how even moving her neck seemed to strained whatever was wrong with her back. Brittany licked her lips and closed her eyes tightly, “I’m sorry,” she muttered, “For being mean to you last week, but I’m happy you’re alive.” For some reason she really felt like she had to tell that to Puck, all the things she’d never said before seemed to be more important, life was too short to keep things to oneself, it was better to share. “You’re one of my favorites because you’re silly, I like it,” Brittany added, her eyes still closed, “If you guys run into Santana… if she’s not… can you tell her that I really, really loved her? She’s my boothang, I want her to know that, even if sometimes I’m not the smartest and I know it’s annoying… I really tried to be a good girlfriend.”
She’d given up, it was as simple as that, and frankly Brittany wouldn’t even mind if Puck, and the girl she still couldn’t make out, ended up leaving her there like that should. Brittany had seen those survivor shows enough to know that she was going to weigh everyone down. She wasn’t smart enough to be of any use, especially if she couldn’t see or get up from the ground.
HARMONY JONES:
As Puck and Harmony slowly but surely made their way into the clearing Brittany was in, Harmony couldn’t help but notice her red and puffy eyes, obviously from crying. That was when she realized that she herself had yet to cry. Maybe Jeff was right and she was a lot tougher than she thought. Or maybe she shouldn’t think about this situation too hard, because then she’d start crying and never stop. Forcing those thoughts out off her mind, Harmony leaned against a nearby tree to keep her burnt leg off the ground while Puck attempted to examine the blonde’s injuries.
Harmony focused on catching her breath (walking basically one legged was tiring, okay?) while Brittany started going on in what very much seemed like swan song fashion. She wished she could say something, but she barely knew Brittany, and she definitely didn’t know Santana, her girlfriend that she clearly loved (even though Harmony didn’t exactly know what ‘boothang’ meant). It wasn’t her place to say anything, but then again, that had never really stopped her before. There was no way Puck and Harmony were going to leave her out here to die like she was making it sound. For whatever reason, they were put in this situation together, and they were going to get out of it together. There was no way a person could survive falling out of a burning plane and not be meant to make it out of here alive. They could have stumbled upon her best friend or her worst enemy, and Harmony would have felt that way.
“Come on,” Harmony started, taking and hopping over to lean on Brittany’s tree. “We’re not going to abandon you, Brittany.” She crouched down as best she could to be face to face with her. “It’s Harmony, by the way,” She added since the girl had mentioned not being able to see clearly. “The, uh, Gerber Baby.” (Oh, God, she thought. That’s how I’m going to be remembered. The Gerber Baby. Not Harmony Jones, the Broadway star.) “I wouldn’t do that. Puck wouldn’t do that. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.” She hoped that the girl, even if she was unable to see how seriously she believed that statement, could at least hear it in her voice. “Now,” Harmony said in her typical Unitards Captain voice, standing up straight and wobbling slightly due to being off balance. “Are you bleeding anywhere? If so, we need to stop the bleeding immediately.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
As soon as Brittany started talking, it was obvious she’d basically given up. He wasn’t sure what exactly she’d given up on, if it was life, being rescued, both, or something else, but Puck wasn’t having any part of it. He knew there was no way that they could leave her behind. While the latest obstacle could slow them now more, going on without anyone wasn’t even an option. Finding their way around the forest without getting lost was close to impossible, and it wasn’t like he had a pocket full of bread crumbs to leave as a trail. Not to mention that he had no idea what kind of wild animals, snakes, or bugs were crawling around in the woods to begin with. Puck wasn’t even going to consider it, so he began shaking his head no before Brittany had even finished talking. He didn’t want to hear her message to pass along to anyone, because he wouldn’t allow himself to believe that she wouldn’t be able to say all those things herself.
When Harmony spoke up and echoed some of Puck’s own thoughts, he switched from shaking his head to nodding in agreement. “Harmony’s right. We’re not going to leave you. Can you imagine how much Santana would kick my ass if I did that?” he asked to try and get Brittany focused on the positive side of things. Anyone who knew Brittany and Santana for more than five minutes knew how much they meant to each other, and that was true even before they’d added an extra layer to their relationship. He knew Brittany was more likely to listen to Santana than anyone else, and since she wasn’t there with them, he had to make do with what they had.Since she seemed to have trouble seeing, Puck slid his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze to let her know that he was there, and he wasn’t going to go without her. “And you know she wouldn’t want you sitting out here alone. She’d remind you that you’re the toughest chick she knows.” Puck glanced over at Harmony as he could tell by the tone of her voice she was just as determined as he was to get them out of there. Focusing on what they had to do was the only way to stop the ‘what ifs’ from creeping in. “If she can’t walk, we have to figure something else out”
Puck was only half listening as Harmony made sure to see if Brittany was bleeding any worse than minor cuts and scrapes. He silently hoped that she wasn’t as they really didn’t need a terrible situation to get even worse. “I can carry her for a while,” he spoke up and offered. He knew it would hurt like hell to have anything pressed up and rubbing against his burnt back, but with his left arm the way that it was, he knew piggy back was his only choice besides tossing her over his shoulder, but with Brittany’s back hurt the way that it was…. Puck rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration as he realized they wouldn’t be able to get very far that way. He chose not to share his current train of thought, and instead jump to the next one and hope it worked out better. “What if we find a couple long branches and then, I don’t know, tie ‘em together or whatever. We can make something she can lay on, and I can drag it.” It sounded better than his first idea to him, even if he was missing huge details like their complete lack of supplies to actually build the thing. He wasn’t about to let that stop him. “We’ll have to avoid the thicker brush, but we can do it.” They had to make something work, and since it was the only idea he had at the moment, he decided to get behind it completely. “See what I mean? We’re going to be fine. We’ve got this. No giving up,” he said as he turned back to Brittany to try and get her spirits back up.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
It was hard for Brittany to really comprehend the entire situation at hand so it had been easier to go right into giving up and letting it all work its own course. Puck was right though, Santana would be so disappointed in her if she just sat there against that tree to die. Brittany knew she’d want Santana to be fighting, so she also knew she had to take that advice herself and fight the best she could too. “Okay,” she nodded, squeezing Puck’s hand and smiling, in what she hoped was, Harmony’s direction. “We’ll find, San, right?” Brittany asked, that still being the top thing on her mind, “We’ll find Santana and Quinn and then everything will feel better.” She was mostly talking to herself, trying to talk it all up so she could get into a better mindset, if not for her own sake, but for Puck and Harmony since they were so much more determined than Brittany was to be alright at that point.
Brittany squinted and tried to make out her surroundings, though everything was still seeming to blend together. It was more frustrating because she’d always had such good vision before then, not being able to completely see was going to hold them all back even more. “I have some scrapes, but I’m okay,” she replied when asked about bleeding, “Nothing I can’t handle, I’m used to them form motocross, whenever I’d wipe out I’d get a lot of scrapes just like these.” That was a positive thing for Brittany to hold on to as well, the scrapes really didn’t bother her like they could have been. Her problem really was in the troubles she was having with her back.
“I’m heavy, though,” Brittany cringed, knowing it was true because of her height, dragging her might end up doing more harm than good in the long run, “Maybe… we could make crunches?” she suggested, not even knowing she’d gotten the word completely wrong, “You guys could help me stand and maybe I can walk. I crawled over here, I just can’t stand up myself. When I pulled my hamstring they gave me crunches and I was pretty good at them.” She knew anything was really a long shot since they had nothing, were all injured, and she was really dead weight for both Puck and Harmony in the entire situation.
HARMONY JONES:
When Brittany’s mood seemed to have lifted and she said with a determined glint in her eye that they were going to find her friends, Harmony didn’t have the heart to tell her that they may not be able to find the others. Or they might find them dead, the thought of which made Harmony feel queasy. And she couldn’t even fathom how Brittany would crumble at the sight of her deceased friends. Actually, Harmony could. She could imagine how gutted she would be if she saw Chandler or her mom…but that was not what Harmony needed to be focused on. She needed to be focused on zero in on getting their basic needs fulfilled. Get up, get moving, get water.
Fortunately, Brittany wasn’t bleeding and seemed to be on board to try and move. That being said, there was no way Puck could give her a piggy back ride for an extended period of time without being in serious pain. And Harmony really didn’t want him to get even more injured by trying to help. They wouldn’t even be able to switch off carrying her, because Harmony had zero upper body strength. And with Brittany being several inches taller than her, trying to carry her would be asking for a disaster. Dragging her was a possibility…but again, with Puck’s arm, was that worse the risk?
“Crutches could work,” Harmony agreed, gesturing to her own. “Mine’s worked out pretty well.” It was hardly the fastest way to get around, but Puck was the only one out of the trio that could walk somewhat normally. Harmony didn’t know how far they would have to travel to find a water source, but she hoped that when they did, they would be able to set up camp there for a little while to rest and heal. There was no way any of them would be able to explore the area and try to find others in their condition. Surveying the fallen trees branches and limbs, she pointed out a few that might be long enough and sturdy enough for Brittany and hopped over to pick up the closest sticks. She left them leaning against the tree then looked towards Puck. “How should we help her stand?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
“Of course we’re going to find her,” Puck said without hesitation. Not only was he sure it was what Brittany needed to hear, but it was what he needed to believe for himself. The alternative wasn’t what he wanted to deal with at the moment, no matter how close to reality it could possibly be. Focusing on what little positives they had going for them was what he chose to do. For example, Brittany gushing blood anywhere, so that went in the good column as far as he was concerned. When she seemed more determined to walk with the aide of crutches, he mentally chalked down another point in the small victory column.
“If you’re up to it, let’s give it a shot.” As Harmony went to grab a couple sticks that would hopefully help Brittany enough to get her mobile, Puck stood up from the spot he’d been standing in so that he could help her up. “Are you ready for this?” he asked Brittany when Harmony returned with the best crutches they could do under the circumstances. “It might hurt, but you have to push through.” Going to find some kind of help was the current goal on Puck’s mind. He could only hope that through a few more trees they’d find more of their friends, some kind of stream to clean their wounds, or better yet, a freaking hospital full of medical staff just waiting to treat them. He knew some where more likely than others, but as long as they still had some daylight left, they had to try.
“Try and keep her steady and hold up that stick for her to grab.” With Harmony barely able to hold her own weight with her leg in the condition it was, he didn’t want her to take on more than she could. “And Brittany, I’m going to help pull you up, alright?” He gave her hand that he was still holding a little squeeze before he moved it so that she could hold on to what would soon be her crutches. “On the count of three, you’re going to dig deep and be that tough badass I know you’ve got hiding in there. Give it everything you’ve got, and stand up.” Puck got himself in position so that he could use his right side to help with the lifting, which his left arm only had to help her with balance. “One…” He took a breath as he kept his eyes on Brittany to make sure she was ready and not going to back out. “Two…” Readjusting his grip on her arm and his other around her waist, Puck began to lift her up the second the word, “Three,” left his lips.
BRITTANY PIERCE;
The quicker it led up to Brittany having to try and stand the more apprehensive she got and the more she continued to want to sit there. Sure, she’d crawled a little to get to where she was in the first place, but even that probably took hours with how much pain Brittany was in. All she could think about was Santana. What if Brittany could fight through some of the pain and find Santana? What if Santana needed her help somewhere? All of that was keeping her going, even though she wanted to give up. Crutches weren’t going to be easy with her back as bad as it was, especially when they weren’t even real crutches to begin with, but she had to try.
Brittany only nodded, she wasn’t ready for anything they were going to have to do, but there wasn’t really any kind of choice. Ready or not it was either try, or sit there and die, and with people there counting on her, people potentially needing her help, there was no choice in her mind except try. She was trying her best to brace herself for what she knew was going to be a very painful journey. If not for herself but for her friends and for Santana. Brittany knew if it was up to her she wouldn’t be moving at all, but now there were people there with her, people counting on her, and in true Brittany fashion she wasn’t going to let them down.
She closed her eyes tightly when Puck began counting, trying not to think about much, most focused on making sure she could block out as much pain as possible once she was up and standing to the best of her ability. She nodded again, and took in a deep breath to hold once Puck got to three. Pain shot throughout her entire body, her back seemingly useless, once up all the way, tears threatening to fall from her eyes, she blindly reached for a hold of the stick which she put all of her weight on. The pain wasn’t unbearable but it certainly wasn’t comfortable either, “I don’t,” she choked, “I don’t know how long I can do this,” Brittany said honestly, wanting to try and get somewhere, but really not knowing if she had the strength to hold on for too long standing upright.
HARMONY JONES:
Harmony nodded when Puck instructed her on helping Brittany and moved closer to Brittany in order to give her the crutches and make sure she would be steady on her feet. When Puck readied himself to lift her, she winced when she saw the muscles and veins in his injured arm stick out. Ouch. Then she cringed even more when Brittany began to pulled upright but forced her eyes to stay open to make sure she’d be able to help in case of emergency. It was like Brittany’s body was useless to her, and Harmony couldn’t even imagine how badly it hurt when tears filled the blonde’s eyes. She wanted to not watch this, to make this stop, but if they didn’t do this the first time, there was no way Brittany would want to try again. Setting the crutches in place, Harmony kept them still when Brittany got situated on them. Once she was, Harmony let out the breath she’d be holding and took a small step backward, her hands still outstretched to help if Brittany suddenly stumbled.
“It’s fine,” She said gently, careful not to touch the unsteady blonde as she got used to the sticks. “We’ll rest every few minutes.” Now that they had actually gotten her up and ready to move, she would have promised anything to the girl to keep her from wanting to give up like when they’d found her. Plus Harmony would need that rest, too, - maybe not as frequently - but she didn’t want any of them hurting themselves further. They needed all their strength if they were going to set up camp, and they were already more ragtag than she would have preferred. Although she felt kind of bad forcing Puck to travel at their snail pace, she was confident in her belief that he wouldn’t want to explore too far by himself. At least not right now. He’d just have to deal.
“Okay!” Harmony exclaimed, forcing her voice to sound bright and cheerful when she clapped her hands together. “First thing we need to do is find water. By the water source, we’ll set up some kind of camp to rest and tend to our injuries for the night. And we’ll need to find something to eat. Do any of you know anything about plants?” She was rambling at this point, and she didn’t even know where most of this survival plan was coming from. Sure, she’d been a Girl Scout for a few years, but that was so long ago, and the closest experience she had with this experience was reading the Hunger Games. But maybe if one of them had a plan and acted like they knew what they were talking about, Harmony wouldn’t feel like crying every few minutes. She took a breath and clapped her hands together, saying, “Now if everyone’s ready, let’s move out!”
THE WILDCARD:
Moving out seems like a really great idea, same with setting up camp but you never know what’s lurking in the jungle. Unknown to group one, the moment you go forth twenty feet, chances are you’ll be greeted by a sincerely overdone Finn Hudson who is more than a little dead and impaled by the jagged trunk of a broken tree.The smell of burnt flesh won’t be for the faint of heart, nor will the sight of a charbroiled Finn.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
When he reached the count of three, Puck didn't hesitate to pull Brittany up to her feet. He knew it was going to be painful, but it was the only choice they had. They had to get her mobile, and using a couple sticks as crutches was the only working plan that they had at the moment. Once Brittany was standing, Puck kept his hand on her back to make sure she had her balance and could actually continue to stand on her own without crumbling back to the ground. "We'll take it slow," he said to agree with Harmony. He would have loved to have been able to do more, but seeing the look of pain in Brittany's face as she got her used to standing again, he could tell that slow and steady was all they were going to get for a while. Hearing Harmony's run down of things they needed to do, he nodded his head. It was hardly the time to argue, and since it was a lot of the same things on his mind, he had no reason to. He had the feeling that she was trying to hold it together in her own way, and seeing as her breaking down would only slow them down more, he wasn't going to derail her efforts.
"We've still got a lot of daylight," he commented as he looked up to find the sun's position in the sky. He wasn't a human sundial by any means, but he could see it high enough in the sky to know that it wouldn't be setting just yet. Sunlight meant they could explore and hopefully run into the rest of their friends. They'd been able to find Brittany after all, he assumed they'd be able to find others the same way. "Let's go find everyone. They've probably got a whole camp set up as they wait for our rescue to get here. Bet they're already chilling together with all the clean water and food that you could want." Once he was sure that Brittany had her balance under control, he took his hand back and surveyed where they were to make sure they weren't going to leave in the same direction they'd arrived. They already knew there wasn't anything that direction. "And I know plenty about plants." Sure it was more along the lines of which ones where poison ivy or poison oak, but he figured it was better than nothing. Being confident and sure of himself wasn't anything new. He was used to actually believing it more when he said it, but letting them know just how scared he was, wouldn't help anything. "I got this covered. We're going to be fine."
Before anyone could disagree or decide they should take a break before they even started moving, Puck chose a direction and began walking in it. If they were going to make it, they had to push on no matter how much it hurt. It was easy for him to think that way given the fact that each step they took didn't heighten the pain in his body, but with the blood he'd lost, he was feeling far from perfect himself. Finding something, anything at all that would help them, was all he wanted to do. They'd hardly gotten far at all when Puck began to regret the direction he'd chose. The smell was like nothing he'd come across before, and nothing he ever wanted to. The more they walked, the stronger it got until he pushed a branch out of the way and saw exactly what was causing it. Suddenly the rancid smell wasn't the only thing churning his stomach as Puck laid eyes on the burnt legs of a body on a jagged tree trunk.
"Fuck..." While logic told him there was absolutely no hope to help the person, Puck rushed closer anyway. He tried to close his mind off to the horrible smell and the even worse thought of exactly what was causing it. It was the last thing he'd wanted to find, and as he got closer in his ridiculous attempt to somehow help the person, or what was left of them, things got worse. When he thought it was a stranger it was bad enough, but as Puck got his first look at the victim's face, his mind slammed down into denial. "No, no, no," he repeated, each word getting more and more desperate, like he could somehow change the outcome if he wanted it bad enough. "NO. This isn't...We have to get him down." Closing what space had been between himself and his best friend, Puck tried in vain to lift him up off the tree trunk that he was stuck on. "We have to get him down!" he frantically shouted in Brittany and Harmony's direction as he pushed again to try and free the lifeless burned body. The tears stung his eyes, and it was more than the smell and gruesome sight that was turning his stomach as reality threatened his tight hold on denial.
"We have to do something!" Puck didn't bother to look at the two people he was with as somewhere in his mind he knew there was nothing that any of them could do. Finn was dead. His best friend in the world, and the closest thing he'd ever had to a brother was laying there, and nothing he could do could fix it. They were supposed to always have each other's backs. Through everything that had happened in their friendships, all the ups and downs, it was Finn who he knew he could count on. When life got to be too much, and he had to ask for help or get pulled under by it all, Finn was the one he went too. Life was definitely too hard now. Everything about it was too much, and the last thread that had been holding Puck together was long gone. Grabbing onto the trunk of the tree, the anger boiled to the surface. Tightening his hold on the remaining wood, Puck's arms flexed under the strain as his fingertips dug into the bark. Tired of feeling helpless and desperate, tired of things getting worse when he already felt like he couldn't take a single second more, tired of living this nightmare, Puck snapped and began ripping at he fractured tree truck until sobs racked through his body. Falling to his knees, Puck buried his face in his hands as he continued crying and couldn't stop.
Brittany’s mind was so clouded between thinking about her pain, worrying about Santana, and wanting it all to be over that she didn’t even care to figure out who was actually coming to help her, if there was even anything anyone could do at that point. She only realized it was Puck because of his voice, she couldn’t see him, her vision didn’t seem to be getting any better at the time went on. Everything was discouraging her and as much as she wanted to pretend to be her normal, silly, happy self around Puck, she couldn’t find it in herself to even try.
“I can’t do anything,” Brittany replied, annoyed, her little spat with Puck over the shark issue earlier that week already forgotten in her mind. Little things like that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Puck was alive and for that Brittany was thankful, “My back hurts, I crawled over to this tree trunk, I think I fell out of that tree over there,” she pointed, squinting trying to see the tree, if it was even a tree that she was pointing at, “And I can’t see, you guys might as well leave me here.”
Sighing Brittany closed her eyes and leaned her head back, wincing at how even moving her neck seemed to strained whatever was wrong with her back. Brittany licked her lips and closed her eyes tightly, “I’m sorry,” she muttered, “For being mean to you last week, but I’m happy you’re alive.” For some reason she really felt like she had to tell that to Puck, all the things she’d never said before seemed to be more important, life was too short to keep things to oneself, it was better to share. “You’re one of my favorites because you’re silly, I like it,” Brittany added, her eyes still closed, “If you guys run into Santana… if she’s not… can you tell her that I really, really loved her? She’s my boothang, I want her to know that, even if sometimes I’m not the smartest and I know it’s annoying… I really tried to be a good girlfriend.”
She’d given up, it was as simple as that, and frankly Brittany wouldn’t even mind if Puck, and the girl she still couldn’t make out, ended up leaving her there like that should. Brittany had seen those survivor shows enough to know that she was going to weigh everyone down. She wasn’t smart enough to be of any use, especially if she couldn’t see or get up from the ground.
HARMONY JONES:
As Puck and Harmony slowly but surely made their way into the clearing Brittany was in, Harmony couldn’t help but notice her red and puffy eyes, obviously from crying. That was when she realized that she herself had yet to cry. Maybe Jeff was right and she was a lot tougher than she thought. Or maybe she shouldn’t think about this situation too hard, because then she’d start crying and never stop. Forcing those thoughts out off her mind, Harmony leaned against a nearby tree to keep her burnt leg off the ground while Puck attempted to examine the blonde’s injuries.
Harmony focused on catching her breath (walking basically one legged was tiring, okay?) while Brittany started going on in what very much seemed like swan song fashion. She wished she could say something, but she barely knew Brittany, and she definitely didn’t know Santana, her girlfriend that she clearly loved (even though Harmony didn’t exactly know what ‘boothang’ meant). It wasn’t her place to say anything, but then again, that had never really stopped her before. There was no way Puck and Harmony were going to leave her out here to die like she was making it sound. For whatever reason, they were put in this situation together, and they were going to get out of it together. There was no way a person could survive falling out of a burning plane and not be meant to make it out of here alive. They could have stumbled upon her best friend or her worst enemy, and Harmony would have felt that way.
“Come on,” Harmony started, taking and hopping over to lean on Brittany’s tree. “We’re not going to abandon you, Brittany.” She crouched down as best she could to be face to face with her. “It’s Harmony, by the way,” She added since the girl had mentioned not being able to see clearly. “The, uh, Gerber Baby.” (Oh, God, she thought. That’s how I’m going to be remembered. The Gerber Baby. Not Harmony Jones, the Broadway star.) “I wouldn’t do that. Puck wouldn’t do that. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.” She hoped that the girl, even if she was unable to see how seriously she believed that statement, could at least hear it in her voice. “Now,” Harmony said in her typical Unitards Captain voice, standing up straight and wobbling slightly due to being off balance. “Are you bleeding anywhere? If so, we need to stop the bleeding immediately.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
As soon as Brittany started talking, it was obvious she’d basically given up. He wasn’t sure what exactly she’d given up on, if it was life, being rescued, both, or something else, but Puck wasn’t having any part of it. He knew there was no way that they could leave her behind. While the latest obstacle could slow them now more, going on without anyone wasn’t even an option. Finding their way around the forest without getting lost was close to impossible, and it wasn’t like he had a pocket full of bread crumbs to leave as a trail. Not to mention that he had no idea what kind of wild animals, snakes, or bugs were crawling around in the woods to begin with. Puck wasn’t even going to consider it, so he began shaking his head no before Brittany had even finished talking. He didn’t want to hear her message to pass along to anyone, because he wouldn’t allow himself to believe that she wouldn’t be able to say all those things herself.
When Harmony spoke up and echoed some of Puck’s own thoughts, he switched from shaking his head to nodding in agreement. “Harmony’s right. We’re not going to leave you. Can you imagine how much Santana would kick my ass if I did that?” he asked to try and get Brittany focused on the positive side of things. Anyone who knew Brittany and Santana for more than five minutes knew how much they meant to each other, and that was true even before they’d added an extra layer to their relationship. He knew Brittany was more likely to listen to Santana than anyone else, and since she wasn’t there with them, he had to make do with what they had.Since she seemed to have trouble seeing, Puck slid his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze to let her know that he was there, and he wasn’t going to go without her. “And you know she wouldn’t want you sitting out here alone. She’d remind you that you’re the toughest chick she knows.” Puck glanced over at Harmony as he could tell by the tone of her voice she was just as determined as he was to get them out of there. Focusing on what they had to do was the only way to stop the ‘what ifs’ from creeping in. “If she can’t walk, we have to figure something else out”
Puck was only half listening as Harmony made sure to see if Brittany was bleeding any worse than minor cuts and scrapes. He silently hoped that she wasn’t as they really didn’t need a terrible situation to get even worse. “I can carry her for a while,” he spoke up and offered. He knew it would hurt like hell to have anything pressed up and rubbing against his burnt back, but with his left arm the way that it was, he knew piggy back was his only choice besides tossing her over his shoulder, but with Brittany’s back hurt the way that it was…. Puck rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration as he realized they wouldn’t be able to get very far that way. He chose not to share his current train of thought, and instead jump to the next one and hope it worked out better. “What if we find a couple long branches and then, I don’t know, tie ‘em together or whatever. We can make something she can lay on, and I can drag it.” It sounded better than his first idea to him, even if he was missing huge details like their complete lack of supplies to actually build the thing. He wasn’t about to let that stop him. “We’ll have to avoid the thicker brush, but we can do it.” They had to make something work, and since it was the only idea he had at the moment, he decided to get behind it completely. “See what I mean? We’re going to be fine. We’ve got this. No giving up,” he said as he turned back to Brittany to try and get her spirits back up.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
It was hard for Brittany to really comprehend the entire situation at hand so it had been easier to go right into giving up and letting it all work its own course. Puck was right though, Santana would be so disappointed in her if she just sat there against that tree to die. Brittany knew she’d want Santana to be fighting, so she also knew she had to take that advice herself and fight the best she could too. “Okay,” she nodded, squeezing Puck’s hand and smiling, in what she hoped was, Harmony’s direction. “We’ll find, San, right?” Brittany asked, that still being the top thing on her mind, “We’ll find Santana and Quinn and then everything will feel better.” She was mostly talking to herself, trying to talk it all up so she could get into a better mindset, if not for her own sake, but for Puck and Harmony since they were so much more determined than Brittany was to be alright at that point.
Brittany squinted and tried to make out her surroundings, though everything was still seeming to blend together. It was more frustrating because she’d always had such good vision before then, not being able to completely see was going to hold them all back even more. “I have some scrapes, but I’m okay,” she replied when asked about bleeding, “Nothing I can’t handle, I’m used to them form motocross, whenever I’d wipe out I’d get a lot of scrapes just like these.” That was a positive thing for Brittany to hold on to as well, the scrapes really didn’t bother her like they could have been. Her problem really was in the troubles she was having with her back.
“I’m heavy, though,” Brittany cringed, knowing it was true because of her height, dragging her might end up doing more harm than good in the long run, “Maybe… we could make crunches?” she suggested, not even knowing she’d gotten the word completely wrong, “You guys could help me stand and maybe I can walk. I crawled over here, I just can’t stand up myself. When I pulled my hamstring they gave me crunches and I was pretty good at them.” She knew anything was really a long shot since they had nothing, were all injured, and she was really dead weight for both Puck and Harmony in the entire situation.
HARMONY JONES:
When Brittany’s mood seemed to have lifted and she said with a determined glint in her eye that they were going to find her friends, Harmony didn’t have the heart to tell her that they may not be able to find the others. Or they might find them dead, the thought of which made Harmony feel queasy. And she couldn’t even fathom how Brittany would crumble at the sight of her deceased friends. Actually, Harmony could. She could imagine how gutted she would be if she saw Chandler or her mom…but that was not what Harmony needed to be focused on. She needed to be focused on zero in on getting their basic needs fulfilled. Get up, get moving, get water.
Fortunately, Brittany wasn’t bleeding and seemed to be on board to try and move. That being said, there was no way Puck could give her a piggy back ride for an extended period of time without being in serious pain. And Harmony really didn’t want him to get even more injured by trying to help. They wouldn’t even be able to switch off carrying her, because Harmony had zero upper body strength. And with Brittany being several inches taller than her, trying to carry her would be asking for a disaster. Dragging her was a possibility…but again, with Puck’s arm, was that worse the risk?
“Crutches could work,” Harmony agreed, gesturing to her own. “Mine’s worked out pretty well.” It was hardly the fastest way to get around, but Puck was the only one out of the trio that could walk somewhat normally. Harmony didn’t know how far they would have to travel to find a water source, but she hoped that when they did, they would be able to set up camp there for a little while to rest and heal. There was no way any of them would be able to explore the area and try to find others in their condition. Surveying the fallen trees branches and limbs, she pointed out a few that might be long enough and sturdy enough for Brittany and hopped over to pick up the closest sticks. She left them leaning against the tree then looked towards Puck. “How should we help her stand?”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
"Of course we're going to find her," Puck said without hesitation. Not only was he sure it was what Brittany needed to hear, but it was what he needed to believe for himself. The alternative wasn't what he wanted to deal with at the moment, no matter how close to reality it could possibly be. Focusing on what little positives they had going for them was what he chose to do. For example, Brittany gushing blood anywhere, so that went in the good column as far as he was concerned. When she seemed more determined to walk with the aide of crutches, he mentally chalked down another point in the small victory column.
"If you're up to it, let's give it a shot." As Harmony went to grab a couple sticks that would hopefully help Brittany enough to get her mobile, Puck stood up from the spot he'd been standing in so that he could help her up. "Are you ready for this?" he asked Brittany when Harmony returned with the best crutches they could do under the circumstances. "It might hurt, but you have to push through." Going to find some kind of help was the current goal on Puck's mind. He could only hope that through a few more trees they'd find more of their friends, some kind of stream to clean their wounds, or better yet, a freaking hospital full of medical staff just waiting to treat them. He knew some where more likely than others, but as long as they still had some daylight left, they had to try.
"Try and keep her steady and hold up that stick for her to grab." With Harmony barely able to hold her own weight with her leg in the condition it was, he didn't want her to take on more than she could. "And Brittany, I'm going to help pull you up, alright?" He gave her hand that he was still holding a little squeeze before he moved it so that she could hold on to what would soon be her crutches. "On the count of three, you're going to dig deep and be that tough badass I know you've got hiding in there. Give it everything you've got, and stand up." Puck got himself in position so that he could use his right side to help with the lifting, which his left arm only had to help her with balance. "One..." He took a breath as he kept his eyes on Brittany to make sure she was ready and not going to back out. "Two..." Readjusting his grip on her arm and his other around her waist, Puck began to lift her up the second the word, "Three," left his lips.
GENERAL NOTES → It's nice to get to mix in some good feels.
Waiting at the end of the pier, Puck drummed his fingertips on the support pole as he kept glancing down to see if he could spot Quinn walking his way. Knowing what they wanted to do, Puck took the time to already set up their excursion. Nearby the boat and parasail we waiting for them to be strapped inside it. While Quinn wasn’t late, his excitement for the whole afternoon had him feeling antsy. “Hurry up,” he teasingly yelled at the first sight of her. “You’re keeping everyone waiting.” Everyone meaning him since the people in charge of their adventure were getting paid no matter what. Pushing himself off the wooden beam he’d been leaning against, Puck smiled at Quinn so she’d know his comments weren’t serious if his tone of voice hadn’t given him away already. “Or maybe I should be thanking you for not chickening out on this one.”
QUINN FABRAY
Bora Bora was easily the most beautiful place Quinn had even seen. After watching the Kardashians (she was a reality TV junkie, obviously) go to Bora Bora on a family vacation during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, she immediately placed Bora Bora on her bucket list. The white sand, the Palm Trees, and the sparkling, clear water was everything she had ever dreamed it would be. Plus, the idea of having your own hut with just one other person was something Quinn was very fond of. And, it went without much thought that Quinn and Rachel would pair up to be roommates. The two girls had finally reached a common ground and seemed to be getting along better than anyone could have ever imagined. However, there was one little complication - Finn and Rachel. While it was nice having Rachel as a roommate and a partner for all island explorations, she knew that she would eventually have to deal with the duo spending more and more time in their hut.
The only good part of that situation was the mere fact that Finn’s roommate was someone that Quinn knew all too well - Noah Puckerman. Their relationship was complicated at best, but she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t have a big soft spot for the most important boy from her past. A wide smile grace her lips as Quinn caught her first glimpse of Puck by the pier. It was safe to say that the sun was doing wonders for his skin, as she can’t remember time he had ever looked better. Shaking the thoughts off with a laugh, Quinn rolled her eyes. “Are you ever going to learn you manners, Puckerman? You’re lucky it’s me coming with you and not Rachel. Can you imagine having to be up there with a screaming Berry?” Laughing quietly as the picture of Rachel screaming her head off entered her mind, Quinn took the last few steps over to the where he was standing at the end of the pier. “Alright, let’s do this.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck couldn't help but to laugh when Quinn called him out on his lack of manners. It wasn't the first time, and he was sure it wouldn't be the last. It was a lot easier to be teased when it came with her smile attached to it. "You're the one who is making people wait. Where's your manners?" he countered with a smirk. Of course his argument didn't actually hold up at all given she wasn't actually late, but he wasn't going to let a little detail like that stop him from attempting to make a point. "And there aren't enough earplugs on the island for me to manage that one," he added with an easy smile on his face. Getting Rachel on a jet ski had been a big enough accomplishment for him, and he was sure that was only because Rachel wanted something to do to keep her mind off of Finn. "Besides, she'd want to bring Jesse with her since they are apparently inseparable now. I'd rather do anything than be a third wheel to those two. Can you imagine? I'd just unhook myself and take my chances with the free fall," he said as he shook his head like he could more easily clear the thought that way.
"And then that would leave you all alone and so bored without me today. Face it, you need me." Puck began walking in the direction of the setup that was waiting for them, and glancing over at her beside him as he did. He was feeling much more like his normal confident, or cocky as some might say, self these days, and he had Quinn to thank for a lot of that. It wasn't like he was looking to get into that heart to heart confession at the moment, not when they had much more fun things planned to do instead. So far things were working out perfectly for him. He had a great day planned, and the perfect person to spend it with. As they approached their destination, one of the workers met them right away and began explaining safety rules and precautions with them. In other words, Puck stopped listening shortly after the hello, and instead started using his foot to push sand onto Quinn's just to see how much he could get away with before she tried to retaliate. He figured he knew all he needed to already anyway: get strapped in and enjoy the view.
“No,” She replied, smiling weakly at Puck’s attempt at a joke. She might have even forced a chuckle if she didn’t know how dire their situation actually was. Whoever out there couldn’t move and might even be dead. She was limping her way along with a muddy stick for a crutch. And he was stuck in a freaking tree. They needed medical attention, clean water, food…Geez. Just thinking about it made Harmony want to curl up and wait to die. How were they ever supposed to survive? This was like some sick kind of Hunger Games except Harmony wasn’t Katniss, but one of the goners in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.
Harmony’s mind was so busy figuring out her Hunger Games metaphor that she didn’t notice Puck preparing himself to jump out of the tree until he warned her to get out of the way. “Wait, don’t!” She exclaimed at the exact moment he jumped. When he landed on the ground with a loud thud, Harmony gasped and rushed forward, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg. “Puck?” She asked as he laid in a motionless heap, his chest moving up and down slightly as the only sign that he was living. “Puck, are you okay?” Instead of answering her question, he cursed and pushed himself up. She was going to take that as a ‘yes’. “Consider the feeling mutual,” She replied in response to Puck’s comment. Even if she didn’t know Puck very well, he was a somewhat familiar face, and she already felt a hundred more times comfortable having him as company in the situation.
Puck seemed to be able manage walking, at least more comfortably than herself, so they set off, Harmony still doing her best to keep any weight off her right leg, calling out to the stranger who was nearby. When their calls were returned, reassuring Harmony that the person was still alive and even better, close by, they pointed themselves in the right direction. Suddenly, between the trees, there was a flash of movement and more noticeably, straw colored hair. “Look! I see someone!” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. There was no way the higher pitched voice belonged to Sam or Jeff, but it could be Quinn or… “Brittany!” Harmony yelled, finally being able to make out the girl more clearly.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany had no idea where the other voices were coming from and it’s not like she could make anything out around here, not really anyway. Unless things were close up, she couldn’t entirely tell what anything was since her vision was so blurred. She wished she could see the other people who might need help, because it was within Brittany’s nature to do whatever she could to try and help them, but there wasn’t anything she could do, she knew that, and it all was making her feel so much worse.
She was still crying when she heard them getting closer. Brittany wasn’t really usually the kind of person who was too proud to cry, she’d been Santana’s friend forever and Santana obviously had taught Brittany that it was good to let it out when needed. Emotions and crying were good things to show other people. Or so Brittany used to think, now she wasn’t so sure and as she heard her name called, she sniffed and stopped herself from letting anymore tears fall.
“It’s Brittany!” she shouted the best that she could, taking in a deep breath, “I can’t really see, or walk, anyway, I’m not sure I can,” Brittany added, looking down into her lap, or what she figured was her lap. Honestly without some kind of help there was going to be no way for Brittany to get up herself and walk, not only that, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk unassited even if she could get up. To her, she felt like a lost cause.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Walking through the trees and often times dense brush, Puck tried to keep his pace as slow and steady as he could. Every instinct he had was telling him to hurry up and find the person on the other end of the voice, and everyone else that had been on the plane with them. Patience was never one of Puck’s stronger virtues, and the situation he currently found himself in was only escalating it. He wanted it all figured out and fixed. The sooner, the better. Unfortunately for him, things didn’t work out that way, and not only were they lost in the forest somewhere with no food, no water, and no clue which was was even the right way to go for help, but it was also obvious that Harmony was already doing everything she could to try and walk on her leg the way that it was. Going any faster was highly unlikely, but they ventured on. Giving up wasn’t an option.
While it wasn’t a big break, the fact that whoever it was could at least answer back to their calls helped to aim them in the right direction. Without it they could have spend hours wandering around in circles and never have even known it. “Look! I see someone!” Hearing Harmony’s words, Puck’s heart began to race. Pushing through the brush, Puck got the same glimpse of blonde hair that Harmony had, and just for a split second he thought it was Quinn. If it was wishful thinking or pure desperation, he wanted it to be true. He needed her to be alive. Hell, he needed everyone to be alive, but in that moment he realized just how much. Maybe there was something to Quinn’s whole bonded for life after going through so much together claim. He didn’t get to think about just how much she’d like being right, because as quickly as he’d thought it was Quinn, it was gone. The moment was fleeting, and instead he realized it was Brittany they’d managed to track down.
If there was funny about being in an airplane that literally just fell out of the sky, it was that had a way of making every other problem seem completely meaningless. The fact that he’d spent a great deal of their trip in Bora Bora annoyed at how stubborn and unable to take a joke Brittany could be didn’t even register. The only thing that did was complete relief at seeing her and hearing her as they approached. “You can’t walk?” he asked with the concern dripping from his voice as he and Harmony pushed through the last bit of brush and were able to completely reach the other girl.
Kneeling down at her side, he tried to quickly survey the injuries she had. His love of extreme sports had him familiar broken bones and things like it. He couldn’t fix them, but he’d gotten good at slapping something together until he was able to get to the hospital. It wasn’t perfect, but nothing about their current situation was. But as he looked at Brittany’s legs, he was relieved to see they were both going in the right direction and no bones were sticking out. It was a start at least. “We’re going to get you out of here,” he said with as much confidence as he could manage. “We’ll figure this out.” Puck looked over to Harmony as he tried to figure out what they were going to do. “You okay?” While the obvious answer was no, of course she wouldn’t be, he knew they’d be even worse off if Harmony couldn’t go any longer on her leg.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany’s mind was so clouded between thinking about her pain, worrying about Santana, and wanting it all to be over that she didn’t even care to figure out who was actually coming to help her, if there was even anything anyone could do at that point. She only realized it was Puck because of his voice, she couldn’t see him, her vision didn’t seem to be getting any better at the time went on. Everything was discouraging her and as much as she wanted to pretend to be her normal, silly, happy self around Puck, she couldn’t find it in herself to even try.
“I can’t do anything,” Brittany replied, annoyed, her little spat with Puck over the shark issue earlier that week already forgotten in her mind. Little things like that didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Puck was alive and for that Brittany was thankful, “My back hurts, I crawled over to this tree trunk, I think I fell out of that tree over there,” she pointed, squinting trying to see the tree, if it was even a tree that she was pointing at, “And I can’t see, you guys might as well leave me here.”
Sighing Brittany closed her eyes and leaned her head back, wincing at how even moving her neck seemed to strained whatever was wrong with her back. Brittany licked her lips and closed her eyes tightly, “I’m sorry,” she muttered, “For being mean to you last week, but I’m happy you’re alive.” For some reason she really felt like she had to tell that to Puck, all the things she’d never said before seemed to be more important, life was too short to keep things to oneself, it was better to share. “You’re one of my favorites because you’re silly, I like it,” Brittany added, her eyes still closed, “If you guys run into Santana… if she’s not… can you tell her that I really, really loved her? She’s my boothang, I want her to know that, even if sometimes I’m not the smartest and I know it’s annoying… I really tried to be a good girlfriend.”
She’d given up, it was as simple as that, and frankly Brittany wouldn’t even mind if Puck, and the girl she still couldn’t make out, ended up leaving her there like that should. Brittany had seen those survivor shows enough to know that she was going to weigh everyone down. She wasn’t smart enough to be of any use, especially if she couldn’t see or get up from the ground.
HARMONY JONES:
As Puck and Harmony slowly but surely made their way into the clearing Brittany was in, Harmony couldn’t help but notice her red and puffy eyes, obviously from crying. That was when she realized that she herself had yet to cry. Maybe Jeff was right and she was a lot tougher than she thought. Or maybe she shouldn’t think about this situation too hard, because then she’d start crying and never stop. Forcing those thoughts out off her mind, Harmony leaned against a nearby tree to keep her burnt leg off the ground while Puck attempted to examine the blonde’s injuries.
Harmony focused on catching her breath (walking basically one legged was tiring, okay?) while Brittany started going on in what very much seemed like swan song fashion. She wished she could say something, but she barely knew Brittany, and she definitely didn’t know Santana, her girlfriend that she clearly loved (even though Harmony didn’t exactly know what ‘boothang’ meant). It wasn’t her place to say anything, but then again, that had never really stopped her before. There was no way Puck and Harmony were going to leave her out here to die like she was making it sound. For whatever reason, they were put in this situation together, and they were going to get out of it together. There was no way a person could survive falling out of a burning plane and not be meant to make it out of here alive. They could have stumbled upon her best friend or her worst enemy, and Harmony would have felt that way.
“Come on,” Harmony started, taking and hopping over to lean on Brittany’s tree. “We’re not going to abandon you, Brittany.” She crouched down as best she could to be face to face with her. “It’s Harmony, by the way,” She added since the girl had mentioned not being able to see clearly. “The, uh, Gerber Baby.” (Oh, God, she thought. That’s how I’m going to be remembered. The Gerber Baby. Not Harmony Jones, the Broadway star.) “I wouldn’t do that. Puck wouldn’t do that. We’re in this together, for better or for worse.” She hoped that the girl, even if she was unable to see how seriously she believed that statement, could at least hear it in her voice. “Now,” Harmony said in her typical Unitards Captain voice, standing up straight and wobbling slightly due to being off balance. “Are you bleeding anywhere? If so, we need to stop the bleeding immediately.”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
As soon as Brittany started talking, it was obvious she'd basically given up. He wasn't sure what exactly she'd given up on, if it was life, being rescued, both, or something else, but Puck wasn't having any part of it. He knew there was no way that they could leave her behind. While the latest obstacle could slow them now more, going on without anyone wasn't even an option. Finding their way around the forest without getting lost was close to impossible, and it wasn't like he had a pocket full of bread crumbs to leave as a trail. Not to mention that he had no idea what kind of wild animals, snakes, or bugs were crawling around in the woods to begin with. Puck wasn't even going to consider it, so he began shaking his head no before Brittany had even finished talking. He didn't want to hear her message to pass along to anyone, because he wouldn't allow himself to believe that she wouldn't be able to say all those things herself.
When Harmony spoke up and echoed some of Puck's own thoughts, he switched from shaking his head to nodding in agreement. "Harmony's right. We're not going to leave you. Can you imagine how much Santana would kick my ass if I did that?" he asked to try and get Brittany focused on the positive side of things. Anyone who knew Brittany and Santana for more than five minutes knew how much they meant to each other, and that was true even before they'd added an extra layer to their relationship. He knew Brittany was more likely to listen to Santana than anyone else, and since she wasn't there with them, he had to make do with what they had.Since she seemed to have trouble seeing, Puck slid his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze to let her know that he was there, and he wasn't going to go without her. "And you know she wouldn't want you sitting out here alone. She'd remind you that you're the toughest chick she knows." Puck glanced over at Harmony as he could tell by the tone of her voice she was just as determined as he was to get them out of there. Focusing on what they had to do was the only way to stop the 'what ifs' from creeping in. "If she can't walk, we have to figure something else out"
Puck was only half listening as Harmony made sure to see if Brittany was bleeding any worse than minor cuts and scrapes. He silently hoped that she wasn't as they really didn't need a terrible situation to get even worse. "I can carry her for a while," he spoke up and offered. He knew it would hurt like hell to have anything pressed up and rubbing against his burnt back, but with his left arm the way that it was, he knew piggy back was his only choice besides tossing her over his shoulder, but with Brittany's back hurt the way that it was.... Puck rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration as he realized they wouldn't be able to get very far that way. He chose not to share his current train of thought, and instead jump to the next one and hope it worked out better. "What if we find a couple long branches and then, I don't know, tie 'em together or whatever. We can make something she can lay on, and I can drag it." It sounded better than his first idea to him, even if he was missing huge details like their complete lack of supplies to actually build the thing. He wasn't about to let that stop him. "We'll have to avoid the thicker brush, but we can do it." They had to make something work, and since it was the only idea he had at the moment, he decided to get behind it completely. "See what I mean? We're going to be fine. We've got this. No giving up," he said as he turned back to Brittany to try and get her spirits back up.
Harmony took another one footed jump forward, stumbling slightly before catching herself on a nearby tree. Hissing in pain, she looked down to see that the tree trunk had left minor cuts on her palms - but hey, what was another few scratches at this point? She was busy wiping the dirt off her hands when a voice, another voice, broke through the forest. A second voice. Another person. “What?” She screamed. When the second voice answered back with unintelligible words, Harmony yelled, “Wait. Just…just stay there!”
“Plan…Okay, I need a plan…” She mumbled, her mind running a million miles a minute. There were two other people nearby. Possibly dying. Most likely dying. Okay. She needed to find them both. Then they needed to find water. Clean water. Then figure out where the heck they were. Then food. And shelter. But first, find these people. Harmony took one hesitant hop in the direction of where the first voice had come from, but her balance was off and she flailed madly before steadying herself. If she fell, there was no way she’d be able to get back on her feet. She surveyed the area as if a cane or a pair of crutches would appear out of nowhere before her eyes fell on a nearby stick. Hobbling her way over to the stick, she picked it up in her free hand and instantly relaxed now that her weight was more balanced.
Harmony limped along for what seemed like hours, periodically shouting out to those around her, mostly to know she was going in the right direction but partially to make sure they were still alive. Seeing as she was squeamish about blood, she couldn’t imagine stumbling upon a dead body. The thought itself made her shiver. Finally, Harmony saw movement between the trees. “Hello!” She called out, ready to cry tears of joy. She didn’t even know who it was, but it was someone, and that was good enough for her. “It’s Harmony!”
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Slowly working his way towards the trunk of the tree to attempt to climb lower, Puck froze the second he heard a voice calling out again. It wasn’t the same shriek he’d heard earlier, but instead a couple different voices volleying back and forth. He couldn’t tell who it was, or even what was being said, but it was more people. It wasn’t much hope, but it was some. He wasn’t the only one living out the grizzly nightmare that he wished he could suddenly wake up from. His friend were fine. He was going to get out of the tree he was in, and everything was going to be fine. Puck repeated the same thought on an endless loop in his head as he tried to force himself to believe it. There was no room to let the doubts and panic take over. Things were bad enough as they were.
Reaching the trunk of the tree, Puck winced as he had to use his left arm to grab onto a branch to lower himself to the one below it. As a kid Puck could spend hours climbing trees and daring his friends, usually Finn, to see who could climb the highest. He felt invincible as he climbed near the tops without a care in the world, but now all he wanted was for his feel to land safely on the ground again. He missed the ground.
“Oh shit.” Puck quick grabbed onto another branch as the one his feet were planted on began to crack beneath his weight. Having it break completely would have offered a much faster way to the ground below, but a painful one. “I swear I’m going to chop you down when I’m out of here,” Puck complained at his new wooden enemy just to keep his mind focused on something instead of lightheaded feeling he refused to acknowledge. Hearing a voice a lot closer than the last time he had, Puck found steady footing and tried to twist and turn to see below him and catch a glimpse of who it belonged to. “Harmony?” he repeated when he heard what she said. “Thank fuck. Are you alright? Is anyone with you?” He knew he’d heard someone else before, but at that moment he was so thankful to see another living soul that he wanted to grab her and never let go. Of course that meant finding a way down to the ground first, but it was proving a lot harder than he would have liked for it to.
HARMONY JONES:
“Puck?” She sputtered out, skidding to a sudden stop when she saw Noah Puckerman of all people stuck up in a tree. She didn’t even think to chastise him for his course language, though, because at that moment, she was overcome with the desire to give him the biggest, tightest hug she could muster. “I-I’m fine.” Which reminded her to check if the gash on her collar bone was still bleeding. Thankfully her t-shirt seemed to have mopped most of it up, and only dried blood was smeared across her chest. “I have a burn on my leg, and it feels like I’m being stabbed every step I take,” She explained, gesturing to her one legged stance and walking stick. “But I can walk, and I’d say that’s an accomplishment at this moment.”
“Someone else is out there,” Harmony continued, glancing briefly back in the direction of the other person. “I don’t know who it is, but it’s a girl, and she’s hurt, and we need to go find her.” She didn’t have the heart to add ‘before we find her dead’. While she had evaded that scenario with Puck, Harmony wasn’t so sure she’d be as lucky the second time. Since Puck was currently on unsteady footing several feet above the ground, though, there were a few things they needed to take care of before going on another person search. “But I guess we need to get you out of this tree first…”
Automatically her mind started racing for a solution, anything that could be in any way helpful, but surprise, surprise, a ladder did not appear out of thin air. She wasn’t anywhere near tall enough to help him out herself, and even if Puck could ease himself down a few branches, there was still a good four or five foot drop that would have to be jumped. And if he felt half as bad as she did, jumping was in no a viable option. Maybe he could…Or maybe…Nope. She had nothing. Fantastic.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Puck shifted around until there was no more branches to climb down onto, but it offered him a better view of Harmony. He could see that their definition of fine had already shifted considerably as the dried blood that caked her clothes as well as the burned state of her leg were visible from where he stood. If she was fine, he didn’t want to know what people who weren’t looked like. As soon as the thought entered his mind, he tried to shake it off. He knew what they would be like even if he didn’t want to. “Yeah, it’s coming from that way,” he said as he pointed off in the opposite direction from where Harmony had come from. “I heard them earlier, but then I haven’t in a while.” He was sure his mind wasn’t the only one that jumped to what that could have possibly meant, but instead of focusing on it, Puck moved his attention back to getting on solid ground.
“Don’t suppose you carry a spare ladder or a rope around with you,” he said as he looked at the drop he had ahead of him. From where he stood, he figured he had two choices. He could jump and risk breaking a leg which could make finding everyone else a lot harder, or he could attempt to hang from the lowest branch to at least cut the fall in half. The choice would have been a lot more clear if every flex of his left bicep didn’t send a shooting pain through his arm as well as more blood to soak his makeshift tourniquethe’d created with part of his shirt. “Okay, stand back.” Standing there and weighing his options anymore was a giant waste of time as far as he was concerned, so instead Puck sat down on the branch he’d been standing on. It was still higher up than he wanted to manage, but there was no changing it. Grabbing onto the branch with both of his hands, he turned and pushed himself off of it. The second his muscles flexed in attempt to hold his weight, the pain multiplied to insane levels and he let go, immediately falling the remaining six feet to ground with a thud.
Puck groaned the second the air returned to his lungs after it had all been forced out from the fall, and he pushed himself up so that he was sitting. The stinging sensation on his back alerted him for the first time that it was burned or possibly scraped from earlier. “Fuck that hurt, ” he said as casually as he could mange as he pushed himself up to his feet and getting his first good look at Harmony’s leg and just how badly it was burned. It obviously needed to be cleaned and walking on it couldn’t have been easy, but they didn’t have a lot of options. Whoever else they’d heard was nearby and it sounded like they were in a lot of pain. “I’ve never been so happy to see you in my life,” he said honestly as being stuck alone and not know where anyone was, was not a good feeling. “Come on, let’s go find everyone else.”
HARMONY JONES:
“No,” She replied, smiling weakly at Puck’s attempt at a joke. She might have even forced a chuckle if she didn’t know how dire their situation actually was. Whoever out there couldn’t move and might even be dead. She was limping her way along with a muddy stick for a crutch. And he was stuck in a freaking tree. They needed medical attention, clean water, food…Geez. Just thinking about it made Harmony want to curl up and wait to die. How were they ever supposed to survive? This was like some sick kind of Hunger Games except Harmony wasn’t Katniss, but one of the goners in the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.
Harmony’s mind was so busy figuring out her Hunger Games metaphor that she didn’t notice Puck preparing himself to jump out of the tree until he warned her to get out of the way. “Wait, don’t!” She exclaimed at the exact moment he jumped. When he landed on the ground with a loud thud, Harmony gasped and rushed forward, ignoring the pain that shot up her leg. “Puck?” She asked as he laid in a motionless heap, his chest moving up and down slightly as the only sign that he was living. “Puck, are you okay?” Instead of answering her question, he cursed and pushed himself up. She was going to take that as a ‘yes’. “Consider the feeling mutual,” She replied in response to Puck’s comment. Even if she didn’t know Puck very well, he was a somewhat familiar face, and she already felt a hundred more times comfortable having him as company in the situation.
Puck seemed to be able manage walking, at least more comfortably than herself, so they set off, Harmony still doing her best to keep any weight off her right leg, calling out to the stranger who was nearby. When their calls were returned, reassuring Harmony that the person was still alive and even better, close by, they pointed themselves in the right direction. Suddenly, between the trees, there was a flash of movement and more noticeably, straw colored hair. “Look! I see someone!” She exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. There was no way the higher pitched voice belonged to Sam or Jeff, but it could be Quinn or… “Brittany!” Harmony yelled, finally being able to make out the girl more clearly.
BRITTANY PIERCE:
Brittany had no idea where the other voices were coming from and it’s not like she could make anything out around here, not really anyway. Unless things were close up, she couldn’t entirely tell what anything was since her vision was so blurred. She wished she could see the other people who might need help, because it was within Brittany’s nature to do whatever she could to try and help them, but there wasn’t anything she could do, she knew that, and it all was making her feel so much worse.
She was still crying when she heard them getting closer. Brittany wasn’t really usually the kind of person who was too proud to cry, she’d been Santana’s friend forever and Santana obviously had taught Brittany that it was good to let it out when needed. Emotions and crying were good things to show other people. Or so Brittany used to think, now she wasn’t so sure and as she heard her name called, she sniffed and stopped herself from letting anymore tears fall.
“It’s Brittany!” she shouted the best that she could, taking in a deep breath, “I can’t really see, or walk, anyway, I’m not sure I can,” Brittany added, looking down into her lap, or what she figured was her lap. Honestly without some kind of help there was going to be no way for Brittany to get up herself and walk, not only that, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to walk unassited even if she could get up. To her, she felt like a lost cause.
NOAH PUCKERMAN:
Walking through the trees and often times dense brush, Puck tried to keep his pace as slow and steady as he could. Every instinct he had was telling him to hurry up and find the person on the other end of the voice, and everyone else that had been on the plane with them. Patience was never one of Puck's stronger virtues, and the situation he currently found himself in was only escalating it. He wanted it all figured out and fixed. The sooner, the better. Unfortunately for him, things didn't work out that way, and not only were they lost in the forest somewhere with no food, no water, and no clue which was was even the right way to go for help, but it was also obvious that Harmony was already doing everything she could to try and walk on her leg the way that it was. Going any faster was highly unlikely, but they ventured on. Giving up wasn't an option.
While it wasn't a big break, the fact that whoever it was could at least answer back to their calls helped to aim them in the right direction. Without it they could have spend hours wandering around in circles and never have even known it. “Look! I see someone!” Hearing Harmony's words, Puck's heart began to race. Pushing through the brush, Puck got the same glimpse of blonde hair that Harmony had, and just for a split second he thought it was Quinn. If it was wishful thinking or pure desperation, he wanted it to be true. He needed her to be alive. Hell, he needed everyone to be alive, but in that moment he realized just how much. Maybe there was something to Quinn's whole bonded for life after going through so much together claim. He didn't get to think about just how much she'd like being right, because as quickly as he'd thought it was Quinn, it was gone. The moment was fleeting, and instead he realized it was Brittany they'd managed to track down.
If there was funny about being in an airplane that literally just fell out of the sky, it was that had a way of making every other problem seem completely meaningless. The fact that he'd spent a great deal of their trip in Bora Bora annoyed at how stubborn and unable to take a joke Brittany could be didn't even register. The only thing that did was complete relief at seeing her and hearing her as they approached. "You can't walk?" he asked with the concern dripping from his voice as he and Harmony pushed through the last bit of brush and were able to completely reach the other girl.
Kneeling down at her side, he tried to quickly survey the injuries she had. His love of extreme sports had him familiar broken bones and things like it. He couldn't fix them, but he'd gotten good at slapping something together until he was able to get to the hospital. It wasn't perfect, but nothing about their current situation was. But as he looked at Brittany's legs, he was relieved to see they were both going in the right direction and no bones were sticking out. It was a start at least. "We're going to get you out of here," he said with as much confidence as he could manage. "We'll figure this out." Puck looked over to Harmony as he tried to figure out what they were going to do. "You okay?" While the obvious answer was no, of course she wouldn't be, he knew they'd be even worse off if Harmony couldn't go any longer on her leg.
