AN: So this is it! I'm so sad it's over and once again, a big thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed this story. You are all wonderful! As always, the clothing from this chapter is posted on my Polyvore account (the link is on my profile).

Three and a half years later

"Seriously, can you believe she kept us for the whole final period? We were done over an hour ago! She just wanted to torture us that little bit longer because she's a bitch. I'm so glad I'm done with her forever," Rachel ranted as she and Marissa, one of her theater friends, left their final 'Acting Styles: Acting on Camera' class with Professor Susan Peppers. It was also their last class of college forever. As of tomorrow, they would be graduates of UCLA and on their way to bigger and better things.

"She does that every year. I remember Jesse telling me that Peppers is a psycho who makes you stay the whole time, even after everyone finishes their performances." That was how Rachel and Marissa had become friends sophomore year. Marissa began dating Jesse St. James, so she and Rachel automatically began spending time together. They started spending more time once both their boyfriends graduated, and as seniors, they did most things together. Rachel had introduced Marissa to Sam, Quinn, and Kurt, making their foursome a quintet.

"Well, we're done with her forever. Can you believe we're graduating tomorrow?!" Rachel squealed as the two girls headed towards their cars in the parking lot.

"It still doesn't seem real. Maybe when I get my diploma tomorrow it will, but I doubt it will feel real even then," Marissa left, pulling her keys out of her bag. "So what time does Puck get in?"

Rachel looked down at her phone. "Half an hour, which gives me enough time to drop all my stuff at my apartment before leaving for LAX to pick him up." Rachel fingered the key necklace she was wearing, a three-year anniversary gift from her boyfriend. "You coming tonight?"

Marissa shook her head. "No, Jesse gets in late and I'm sure he'll be so jet lagged that he'll just want to go to bed. We'll be at your graduation party tomorrow, though," she promised. "And obviously I'll see you at the ceremony nice and early tomorrow morning. You sure you're going to be awake for graduation if you're going out tonight?" Marisa teased.

"I'll be exhausted and hungover, but I'll be there," she promised, waving as she climbed into her car, putting the key in the ignition and turning the car on, driving the short distance to the apartment she shared with Quinn. Sam and Kurt, who also shared an apartment, were two down from the girls. Marissa lived in the Alpha Delta Pi sorority house with the rest of her sorority sisters. On paper, she was the kind of person Rachel would hate. But for some reason, they got along.

Rachel pulled up to her apartment complex and parked in her spot, grabbing her bag out of the back and headed inside. She and Quinn lived on the second floor of their building, meaning it was only one flight of stairs up.

Rachel unlocked the door to their apartment and headed inside, finding Quinn sitting on the counter in the kitchen while Finn stood over the stove, making macaroni and cheese from the looks of it.

"Hey doll," Quinn greeted with a smile, waving to Rachel. "How's it feel to be officially done with everything?"

"Amazing," Rachel said, setting her bag down on the couch. "I don't know what to do with myself now."

"I'm sure you'll have lots to do in an hour once you and my brother get back here," Quinn teased.

"Quinn Fabray, did you just make a sex joke?" Rachel laughed, heading to her room and grabbed her Tory Birch bag, throwing her wallet and keys into it.

"Maybe I did. You'll never prove it diva," Quinn laughed, poking Finn with her foot. "Would you hurry up and finish cooking? I'm starving."

"You want it done fast? You cook then. I'm doing my best here, woman. I've been living off takeout and Easy Mac for the past few months," Finn grumbled, stirring the macaroni in the pot.

"Don't remind me. You ordered Chinese when I came up to visit you in April and thought that was fine dining. You better spend the next three years while I'm in law school learning how to cook a proper meal for when I finally move in with you. Fabulous attorneys don't each chicken chow mein for dinner," she stated.

"Yeah, well if you had just decided to go to law school in California, you could learn to cook and do all the cooking for us. I don't see why you have to go all the way to Connecticut when I work in Sacramento. There are plenty of great schools here in the greatest state in the world."

"Excuse me, Yale is the number one law school and I got in. I'm not turning that down to play house with you and go to a mediocre law school. Besides, you could have tried to find a job on the east coast instead. You'd be closer to Mama Hudson if you did," she reminded him.

"Just because she married Burt and moved to the middle of nowhere Ohio doesn't mean I'm doing that too. I like California, babe. It's our home. Plus she and Burt come out here enough to visit since Kurt's still in school out here."

Rachel quietly left the apartment and the bickering couple, realizing she was going to be late picking up her boyfriend if she didn't. Rachel climbed into her car and jumped on the freeway, following the traffic to LAX.

After Puck had graduated, he'd gotten a job offer in Chicago working for the Bulls (their basketball team) as a sales representative, handling all season ticket accounts and managing the people who worked in the sales division.

Of course, it also meant he had to move out of California and to Chicago, away from his family, his life, and his Rachel.

The summer he started his job, Rachel spent it with him in Chicago. She would stay at his apartment or explore the city during the day while he was working, then spend every night with him. Of course, her amazing summer had to come to an end when she went back to school in California and he stayed in Chicago.

At first he tried visiting as often as he could, but he soon realized he needed to save that money he was spending on plane tickets to Los Angeles so he could afford things like an engagement ring and a house. That ended up restricting their time together to holidays and Rachel's school breaks, all of which she spent in Chicago with Puck.

Rachel followed the exit for LAX, driving to the cellphone waiting lot where she parked, waiting for Puck to call and let her know he was outside and waiting to be picked up. His plane wasn't due to land for another ten minutes, meaning she was probably going to be sitting around for a bit. Rachel started thinking about her graduation party the next night, something she was very excited about. Her fathers had rented a ballroom at the Beverly Hills Hotel where Rachel, her family, and all her friends would be partying all night after her graduation ceremony.

She and Kurt had gone on multiple shopping trips, trying to find the perfect graduation outfit for each of them. Three days ago, Rachel had finally the perfect dress. It was a pink, strapless Monique L'Huillier dress that fit her perfectly. Even Kurt, who wasn't the biggest fan of pink, had to admit that it was perfect. She was accenting the dress with plenty of bling. She was determined to sparkle at her party.

Rachel jumped when she heard her phone ringing. She reached out for it and slid her finger over the screen, answering it as she placed the phone against her ear. "Hello?"

"Hi love. I'm waiting outside," came the voice of her boyfriend. Rachel felt the butterflies in her stomach, something that hadn't gone away in the almost four years since they'd been together.

"Okay, I'll be right there," she said before hanging up her phone. Her car roared to life and she backed out of the spot she was in, following the signs to arrivals. She slowly drove her car around the bend, her eyes searching for the tall and muscular guy whose body she knew better than her own. She spotted him resting against a pillar, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with the sunglasses she'd gotten him for his birthday shading his eyes.

Puck spotted her car and waved her down, as if she didn't see him the minute she rounded the corner. Rachel pulled up to the curb and unlocked her door, watching as he tossed his suitcase in her trunk before climbing into her car. Without a word, he leaned over and placed a kiss on her lips, his hand going to the side of her face to pull her closer.

Rachel felt herself melting against his touch, as usual. Eventually, she broke away when she heard the car behind her lay on the horn. She reached her hand out of her window and waved apologetically before putting her car in drive, heading back to her apartment where she prayed Quinn would be gone. She really wanted some alone time with her boyfriend right now.

"Good flight?" she asked as she got onto the freeway, heading back towards the campus.

Puck shrugged his shoulders, pulling a bottle of water out of his briefcase, taking a swig from it. "No crying babies who spit up on me this time," he laughed, reaching over to place a hand on her bare thigh. "How'd your last final go?"

"Eh," Rachel said, making a face. "The performance itself was flawless as usual, but the bitch made us stay for the whole period even though we were done with more than an hour to spare. She just wanted to torture us."

"Well, it's over," Puck said, continuing to rub her thigh as she headed back to her apartment. Rachel pulled into the parking lot, turning her car off before climbing out. Puck grabbed his suitcase from the back before taking her hand, the two of them heading to the second floor and down the hall to the apartment Rachel shared with Quinn.

She unlocked the door, finding the place empty. She did a small cheer inside her head before shutting and locking the door, dropping her keys onto the counter before turning and facing her boyfriend.

"So, what's the pl-" Puck started to ask before being cut off mid-sentence by Rachel leaping into his arms, her mouth secured over his. Puck laughed against her lips, lifting her into the air and heading towards her room, shutting the door with his foot.

"Hmm, it seems depriving you of sex makes you a freak between the sheets," Puck teased, pressing a kiss to Rachel's bare shoulder. The two of them were lying in her bed, the sheets bunched around their naked bodies. Rachel's phone was plugged into her iHome (her having gotten rid of her ancient stereo after Kurt 'accidentally' spilled water on it), gentle music coming out of it.

"Yeah well, we won't be having that problem soon," she laughed, rolling onto her back as she pulled his face down, pressing her lips to his. "Soon we'll be able to have as much freaky sex as we want whenever we want."

"Ah, the advantages of living together. Remind me why I didn't stay in LA after I graduated to get an apartment with you?"

"Because you had a job in Chicago waiting for you, and even I'm not that selfish to keep you from that," she stated, stretching her arms over her head.

"Right, good point," he said, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. "So what's the plan for tonight?" he asked, making no move to get out of her bed. "I assume we're not just staying in here and slumming it like a couple of hooligans."

"No, because I'm positive Kurt would strangle me if I said that's what we were doing. We're all going out to O'Hara's for happy hour and karaoke. You know, our last big night as college students. Then we come back here and snooze for a bit before I have to graduate completely hungover tomorrow. Remember, only take pictures from my left side," she said, pointing her index finger at him.

"Noted," he said, stifling a yawn.

"Rach, you back?" Rachel heard Quinn call out in their apartment.

"In my room," Rachel yelled back, snuggling against Puck with her head resting on his bare chest. She wasn't sure if she'd ever get over how perfect his chest was. It wasn't something she really wanted to get over, honestly. She loved how she got instantly wet every time he pulled his shirt off.

"You almost ready? Because Kurt said he wants to get there by eight so we get a good table and a good spot on the-oh god, you could have warned me you two were naked in bed before telling me you were in your room," Quinn said, making a face.

"Please. I've caught you and Finn in worse positions this month alone, so spare me the lecture," she said, looking over at the time. "Alright, I need to shower fast and get ready. How about we meet you over there? That way Kurt can stop hyperventilating and get the table he wants and I don't look like a swamp creature."

"Okay, fine by me. I'll get doofus to drive us," Quinn said, referring to her boyfriend. "He's raiding our fridge right now, by the way."

"Whatever. Most of my stuff I was just going to toss, anyways. He's welcome to it," she said before waving Quinn out of the room. Once she and Puck were alone again, Rachel got up from bed, grabbing a towel from her closet, setting it on the bed before pulling her bathrobe on. "I'm going to shower and start getting ready. You should get dressed soon because even though Kurt loves you to death, he won't hesitate to kick your ass if we're late because you were still naked in my bed," she laughed, kissing his cheek before leaving the room, heading towards the bathroom.

Puck stayed in her bed for a few minutes, enjoying the room that he hardly got to see anymore. Rachel's freshman and sophomore years, he was always in her room. Of course, it was awkward with his sister always there, but he was always with Rachel which was what mattered.

Once he moved, he hardly got to see her ever. Sure they Skyped and texted, but it wasn't the same as sleeping next to her. That was what he was most excited about moving to New York. He and Rachel were going to be living together in the same apartment. He was going to get to fall asleep and wake up to her every day.

He eventually climbed out of bed, grabbing a new pair of jeans and a new shirt, putting on some deodorant before pulling the clothes on, relaxing back on her bed, his head resting on her pillow.

The next few weeks were going to be crazy. Tomorrow, the two of them left for a week in Hawaii, a graduation gift for Rachel from her fathers. At first, he had assumed that meant they were coming too, but they promised him they weren't. This was a trip for Rachel and Puck, which he was more than stoked about. Once they got back, they were going to move all her stuff out of her apartment and into a trailer they were attaching to her car. After that, they were headed to Chicago to get his things before stopping in Lima for two weeks.

Then they made the drive to New York to move into their apartment before flying down to South Carolina for Sam and Brittany's wedding. A week later, they were heading back to California for Mercedes and Shane's wedding. Puck wished they could have just skipped them, but Rachel was a bridesmaid in both, so that option was off the table.

At least there would be free booze there.

After what felt like an eternity, Rachel walked back into her room, still in her bathrobe but now with her hair and makeup all finished. He'd heard his sister and Finn leave almost twenty minutes ago, meaning he and Rachel were definitely going to be the last people to arrive.

Puck watched her from the bed as she pulled on a pair of distressed shorts and a white t-shirt. "You're going very simple tonight," he commented, used to seeing her in dressed and heels.

Rachel shrugged her shoulders, pulling on a pair of brown cowboy boots. "I want to be able to dance and walk without worrying about breaking my ankle the night before graduation," she said, searching her closet before pulling out her brown jacket. She put on some jewelry before tossing her phone, wallet, and keys into her brown back, turning her focus on Puck who was still on her bed. "You ready?"

"Been ready. Let's go," he said, popping up to his feet. He held his hands out for her car keys and she handed them over, following him down to the parking lot. Rachel climbed into the front seat, holding Puck's hand as he drove them over to O'Hara's, the place she spent every Thursday her freshman year. December of her sophomore year, Will and Emma had gotten married, and she found out she was pregnant about a minute later. With Will about to be a dad, they all decided it was best to break up the band.

Now, Thursdays were karaoke night at O'Haras, and Rachel along with her friends were frequently there. Puck pulled into the parking lot at O'Haras, finding it crowded like usual. Rachel climbed out and waited as Puck moved to her side, putting his arm around her. They headed inside, searching for Kurt and the rest of the group. They found them easily. After all, they were the group with about ten tables pushed together.

"Diva! Manslut! Over here!" Kurt called, waving over to them. Rachel rolled her eyes at her best friend as she headed over towards him, Puck still with his arm wrapped around her. "Finally you get here. I was terrified I was going to have to pick your song out for you tonight," he said as Puck pulled up a chair, taking a seat before pulling Rachel onto his lap, his hands draped around her waist.

"Right, like I'd let that happen," Rachel said, leaning back against her boyfriend to give him a quick kiss. "I have my entire set list already decided on, you're not screwing with that," she said.

"Whatever diva, let's just get some alcohol," he said, looking over at Blaine who was on his other side. Lat Rachel had heard they broke up (again), but were still hooking up. Rachel guessed they'd be back together by next week. After all, Kurt was staying out in California since he'd gotten a job in LA. "Can't you just jump behind the bar and get us something?"

"I'd probably get arrested since I haven't worked here in two years, so no. Just get up and order something if you can't wait two minutes for someone to come over and see what you want," Blaine laughed.

"Hey Anderson, where's your brother and my other former bandmate?" Rachel asked, referring to Cooper and Will. "I thought they were coming tonight."

"Coop and San were still pretty tired. Barcelona's a nine-hour time difference from here. They wanted to make sure they were awake enough for tomorrow since Coop said they'd feel kind of shitty if they had to bow out early for not getting enough sleep. Danny's still getting over the chicken pox, so Will and Em are home with him. Plus, Em said she's still not ready to leave Zoey with a sitter who isn't you or Quinn. They all said they'd be there tomorrow, though," he promised.

"Fine, whatever," Rachel said as a server came over to their table, getting orders from everyone. "Marissa and Jesse aren't coming, either. Marissa said he was going to be tired after his flight and probably just want to sleep for tomorrow."

"Sleep my ass," Quinn said from across the table. " She just wants to bang the shit out of him since they haven't seen each other since Christmas. Just like you two today," she said, giving Rachel a look.

Rachel flushed under Quinn's gaze. "I don't make comments about your sex life. Why do you feel the need to make mine public knowledge?" Rachel asked as everyone started laughing.

"Relax Rach," Sam said, his arm around Brittany. "We're just having fun. Besides, just remind everyone of my lack of a sex life and that'll make them all forget." Sam and Brittany had decided early on in their relationship to wait until they were married, and they had. Of the virgin club the four friends had formed their firs week of school, Sam was the only remaining member, though not for long. He and Brittany were going to be married in a month.

"You're just so easy to tease, we can't help it," Blaine said, sending a wink her way.

Rachel made a face, though Puck giving her a soft kiss seemed to make her a bit happier, as well as the arrival of her drink at their table. Let the night begin.

"Rachel, time to get up," Puck whispered into her ear, still lying beside her in bed. The two of them had been out until almost two in the morning with everyone, Rachel and her friends performing songs while continuing to get more drunk as the night went on. Puck finally decided he needed to get her home if she was planning on making it to her graduation the next day. Who would have thought one day he'd be the responsible one in their relationship?

"Go. Away," she muttered, her pillow over her face.

"It's almost seven. You need to get up now if you were planning on showering and not wearing your pajamas to graduation," he reminded her, his hands resting on her waist as he attempted to coax her out of bed. "It's almost showtime."

"Fuck off. My head hurts," she whined.

Puck started laughing, pulling her pillow away. "I told you that tequila shot was a bad idea," he reminded her, giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Come on, you need to look flawless or all your pictures are going to look bad."

That seemed to catch her attention. She opened her eyes, but they were narrowed at her boyfriend. "You're mean," she finally said before climbing out of bed and heading for the bathroom. He'd already heard his sister up and showered, meaning the bathroom would now be free for Rachel.

Puck climbed out of bed, pulling on a pair of khaki pants and a sweater before heading to the kitchen, deciding to search for something to eat before they headed over to the basketball stadium for her ceremony. Finn, who was also up and dressed, greeted Puck in the kitchen of the girl's apartment.

"Rachel a monster to get up this morning like your sister was?" Finn asked, pulling two pieces of bread from the toaster before spreading some butter on them.

"You have no idea. Tell me we weren't that bad in college waking up after a night of partying," he said, pouring some cereal into a bowl before searching the fridge for the milk.

"Nah, we drank enough that we knew how to stop the hangover from coming. Lots of pizza the night before," he laughed.

Puck nodded his head in agreement. "So true. The woman at Tony's Pizza always used to have our slices ready on Friday nights. She just knew we'd show up at some point," he laughed before nodding his head towards the television. The two boys headed over to the couch, longing while eating and watching Comedy Central as their girlfriends got ready for their graduations.

By 7:45, both girls were dressed and ready to go. Rachel stood in a hot pink strapless dress, her dark hair curled in ringlets which fell down her back. Quinn had on a red strapless dress with silver sandals, the top half of her blonde hair pulled back.

Both Puck and Finn showered compliments on their girlfriends until they were forgiven for waking them up early to get ready. Rachel and Quinn, seemingly happy with what had been said to them, took the arms of their boyfriends and headed down to the parking lot of their building where they all piled into Rachel's car.

Rachel handed the keys to Puck, having him drive instead of her. Rachel and Quinn sat in the back, talking excitedly about the graduation plus the party later. The guys looked back every so often, rolling their eyes at Rachel and Quinn's excitement.

"Were we this excited when we graduated?" Finn muttered to Puck, trying to remember that day two years prior. He was positive he was just relieved it was over.

Puck shook his head. "Don't think so. I was just glad I didn't sleep through the ceremony," he laughed, remembering being out almost all night before the ceremony. In fact, there was a good possibility he was still half drunk when he showed up for graduation, something his mother had not been happy about.

Puck pulled Rachel's car into the parking lot, dropping the girl off near the entrance before going to park the car. Rachel and Quinn waved to the guys before vanishing through the doors that lead to where all the graduates were supposed to meet prior to the ceremony.

Rachel and Quinn walked in, their gowns and caps draped over their arms. The room was filled with the future alumni of UCLA, half the people already in the caps and gowns, the rest holding them like Rachel and Quinn still were. Rachel waved to Quinn before heading over to the section for the theater school, finding Marissa sitting with her cap and gown already on.

"Hey," Rachel greeted, pulling her graduation outfit on before taking a seat next to her.

"Rach! You're not dead or still asleep," Marissa teased, tossing her blonde hair out of her face as she leaned over to give Rachel a hug. "I was worried about you," she laughed as the two fell into conversation until it was time for the graduation to begin.

One of the professors from the communications school instructed everyone on what to do and soon they were walking into the arena, sitting in the folding chairs on the floor.

Everything seemed to be going in fast forward. One minute Rachel was sitting waiting for the ceremony to begin, the next she was walking up with the rest of the graduates from the theater school to receive her diploma. When they called her name, she could hear the cheers coming from one area in the stands, meaning that was where her dads were sitting.

She was back in her seat for Quinn's turn, cheering loudly when her roommate and best girl friend of the past four years walked on stage and received her diploma. Rachel watched Quinn flash a smile in the direction of where her family was sitting before waving towards them.

Then it was over. Rachel walked out of the arena with the rest of her fellow alumni and that was it. She was officially a college graduate. She didn't feel any different, though maybe she would tomorrow when she woke up.

Once she was back out of the arena, Rachel searched the crowd until she found Quinn. "We did it!" she squealed, hugging her friend tightly. There were two more pairs of arms around them. Rachel turned her head where she found Kurt and Sam surrounding them, both of them smiling widely.

"Diva! Blondie! We're grads!" Kurt shouted, causing some of the other graduates to look over at them with questioning looks on their faces.

Rachel ignored them, letting go of Quinn so she could throw her arms around Kurt's neck. She kissed him on the cheek as he swung her around while Sam and Quinn watched the two best friends with amusement. "Glad to see you two haven't grown up much from freshman year," Sam joked as Rachel pulled Kurt's cap off and tossed it in the air.

"I don't think we ever will," he said, setting Rachel down before retrieving his cap. "Though we should head out and find the parental units before party time!" he laughed, throwing an arm around Rachel's shoulders. "Because seriously, this party is going to kick ass!"

Rachel walked alongside Kurt with Quinn and Sam following the two of them, arms around each others waists, the group of four heading outside. There was a huge group waiting for them which included all of their parents, boyfriends, fiancees, friends, and everyone in between.

First, they were all greeted by their families and showered with congratulations. Then came pictures. Everyone felt the need to take picture after picture of them. Finally, after they'd been there for almost an hour, Leroy reminded everyone that they needed to get a move on or everyone else was going to get there before the people hosting the party.

Rachel and Puck, along with Kurt, Sam, and Brittany, made their way over to her car, where they promptly got stuck in all the traffic trying to get out of the parking lot. Eventually, Puck got them out and headed over to the hotel, Rachel talking about absolutely nothing the entire time. After almost four years together, he'd learned to look like he was paying attention but not hear a single word she said.

Eventually, they got to the hotel and Puck pulled her car around front, deciding to let valet take care of it. Her dads would probably pay for it anyways, so it didn't matter how much it actually cost (though he figured it wasn't cheep).

He followed Rachel into the hotel, seeing a sign by the stairs in the lobby which proclaimed, "Berry Graduation Party - Crystal Ballroom". Puck made his way up the stairs, following the signs until he walked into the Crystal Ballroom, his jaw dropping.

Her dads really had gone all out. The room was full of round tables with beautiful flower centerpieces on them. The place settings were already done up, ready to be used. A long buffet lined the far wall with incredible food, Puck assumed. The middle of the room was clear with a dance floor all laid out. Behind it was a DJ booth, already playing the type of music Rachel loved.

Rachel was squealing and gasping as she took everything in, running around the get a look at things before everyone else showed up. Brittany was chattering to Sam about how amazing everything looked and asked if they had assigned seats or if they could sit anywhere they wanted to because her feet were hurting and she really wanted to sit down and relax.

Not seeing seat cards, Sam figured they could just take a seat, so they chose a table close to the dance floor. Puck followed them, figuring Rachel would want to sit with her friends.

People started steadily arriving not long after, all of them dropping gifts for Rachel off in the back before finding a table to sit at. Will and Emma showed up with their two children. Winter break of Rachel's freshman year, they got engaged and were married by May. Their son was born the following winter and their daughter only six months ago.

Will, who was now teaching at a local high school, was always asking Quinn and Rachel to babysit for them so he and Emma could go out every so often. The girls, who loved their kids, were always willing to help out. Emma, dressed in a light teal dress with Zoey in her arms, walked over to Rachel, giving her a hug and kiss on the cheek, congratulating her before taking a seat at the next table over, warning both her husband and son to behave.

Cooper and Santana were the next to congratulate her. The two had moved to Barcelona two years ago and were loving every minute of it. Cooper was even fluent in Spanish now and was teaching while Santana worked as a counselor to young girls. According to Blaine, Cooper had asked her three times to marry him, and each time she said no. She claimed she wasn't the marrying type while he claimed he wasn't the type to give up. Despite her rejecting his proposals, they were still very much together and expecting a daughter in four months. The bump was definitely noticeable under Santana's white maxi dress.

All of Rachel's friends were there, most of them on the floor dancing. Rachel had even invited a group of Abby's friends so she wouldn't feel out of place. They were all jut thrilled to be at a college party before actually going to college (even though they'd all be freshmen in the fall). They had their own table next to the table where all the parents were seated.

He saw his mom talking to Leroy Berry, happy to know that his and Rachel's parents still got along just as well as they had the first time they met.

"Aunt Rachel!" A voice rang through the room as a young brunette boy ran towards Rachel, jumping into her arms as she turned to stop dancing for a moment. Another little boy joined them a moment later, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Rachel was laughing, trying to pull them off her. "Luke, Mark, you two are going to pull my dress off if you don't stop pawing at me," she joked as Shelby and her husband walked in, watching their sons both attempt to capture Rachel's full attention, both of them waving envelopes in her face.

"Boys, knock it off and let Aunt Rachel breath," Shelby scolded, leaning over to give her daughter a hug. Rachel and Shelby didn't exactly have a typical mother-daughter relationship, but they were close. Rachel's dads had even started forming a relationship with the woman who gave them the greatest thing in their life.

"We made you cards, Rachel," Mark, who was eight, declared, handing her the envelope he was holding.

"Yeah," Luke, who was ten, agreed. "We got you a present too, but Mommy paid for it because I didn't make enough watching Mr. Hudson's dogs."

Rachel laughed, giving them both a kiss. "I'm sure it's lovely," she said as Mark grabbed the box from his mother, pushing it into Rachel's hands, insisting she open it right that second. "Alright, come down a second," she said, unwrapping the box as both boys watched her intently. Rachel pulled out a simple necklace with a gold star pendant hanging from it.

"We knew you liked gold stars," Mark said, looking up at her. "Do you like it?"

Rachel smiled at him, unclasping the necklace to put it on. "I love it. In fact, I'm going to wear it all night and tell everyone I see about it," she promised.

"Really?" Luke asked.

"Really," Rachel promised, mouthing a 'thank you' to Shelby who just nodded. "Now, I bet you two are pretty hungry. You see those tables over there?" she said, pointing to the far wall. "They have lots and lots of yummy food on them. In fact, one of those tables is only desserts." The boys both gasped and grinned. "But the rule is you have to eat all your dinner before you can go to that table. Now go find a table so you can get something to eat. I'll see you guys later. Maybe you can convince Noah to give up one of his dances to you two," she teased, watching as the two boys ran off with their parents.

Puck leaned over, wrapping an arm around her waist as he pulled her close to him, planting a kiss on her cheek. "Like hell I'm giving up any dances with you," he murmured in her ear, causing Rachel to laugh.

"Noah!" she chided, playfully hitting him on the chest. "I already promised Kurt a dance. You going to hog me from him too?" she teased, turning in her seat so she was facing him.

"Of course. You're only mine to dance with," he laughed, placing a kiss on her lips, feeling his heart race a little. He was definitely nervous about tonight and about the little black box in his pocket. Rachel leaned her head against his chest and smiled, glancing across the table. Kurt and Blaine were already with the small group of people on the dance floor. Quinn was sitting next to Marissa and talking while Jesse had moved so he was next to Finn, showing him something on his phone. Sam and Brittany had already gotten some food and started eating.

After about an hour, Rachel finally convinced Puck to leave their table and join the rest of their friends on the dance floor. By then, they were the only people left at the table, and Rachel was sick of just sitting when everyone else was laughing and having a fun time.

"You know I hate dancing," he muttered in her ear as she placed his hands on her waist, her head leaning back against his shoulder.

"I know. But I also know you love me and you'll do anything to make me happy," she teased, her back pressed against his chest. She managed to get him to dance with her for two songs before Sam came over, pulling Puck away from her with a quick apology. She was about to protest before Leroy got up and asked for everyone's attention.

"So it's a bittersweet day for us," he said as everyone made their way back to their seats, all eyes on him. Rachel noticed Finn, Sam, and Puck were missing from the table, but she had no idea where they'd gone. Probably out doing something stupid. "We're glad to see her all grown up and moving on to bigger and better things, but we're going to miss her. After all, she's our only daughter. So Rachel, please don't kill us, but your father and I put together a little slideshow of your life."

Rachel looked up at the screen as pictures of her started flashing by to Barbra Streisand's "Memory". Her dads really did know her too well. There were pictures of her as a kid from dance recitals, pictures of the three of them on vacation, Rachel and Kurt together through all the years they'd been friends. There were pictures from every single musical she'd been in during high school. Once the slideshow got to her college years, there were almost no pictures where Puck wasn't by her side.

By the end of the slideshow, Rachel was wiping tears from her eyes, looking next to her at Kurt who was trying to act like he wasn't crying either. Even though her dads introduced it as a slideshow for her, there were almost as many pictures of him in it.

"And now, we have a surprise performance courtesy of Rachel's boyfriend and a few of his friends," Hiram said as everyone started clapping. Rachel looked up and saw Sam, Puck, and Finn on the stage, all of them with a microphone in their hands.

Puck looked to Sam and nodded before the music started and Puck began singing.

You're insecure,
Don't know what for,
You're turning heads when you walk through the door,
Don't need make-up,
To cover up,
Being the way that you are is enough.

Rachel covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing as she heard One Direction coming out of her boyfriend's mouth. From the moment they started dating, Puck had never once stopped making fun of Rachel for liking the band. He always said how they were terrible and not very attractive, yet here he was, singing One Direction at her graduation party.

Everyone else in the room can see it,
Everyone else but you.

Sam had stepped up, singing the next line of the song. Rachel watched him, his eyes on Brittany as he sung. She watched the blonde's face turn red before she started giggling, her hands reaching up to cover her face.

Baby you light up my world like nobody else,
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,
You don't know,
Oh, oh,
You don't know you're beautiful.

All three of the boys started singing, each of them reaching out to their girlfriends as they did so. They walked so they were standing right in front of the table where the three girls were seated, serenading them as Quinn, Rachel, and Brittany continued giggling and turning red.

If only you saw what I can see,
You'd understand why I want you so desperately,
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe,
You don't know,
Oh, oh,
You don't know you're beautiful,
Oh, oh,
That's what makes you beautiful.

Puck walked over to Rachel, pulling her to her feet and spinning her around as he sung. He placed a kiss on her cheek before setting her down in another chair that was in the center of the dance floor. She covered her face as she kept laughing.

So c-come on.
You got it wrong.
To prove I'm right
I put it in a song.
I don't know why
You're being shy,
And turn away when I look into your eye-eye-eyes.

Rachel could barely keep it together as Finn started semi-rapping the next part of the song, placing his left foot on the seat of her chair. She could hear the rest of the people in the room laughing as well.

Everyone else in the room can see it,
Everyone else but you.

Baby you light up my world like nobody else,
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,
You don't know,
Oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful.
If only you saw what I can see,
You'll understand why I want you so desperately,
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe,
You don't know,
Oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful,
Oh oh,
That's what makes you beautiful.

All three boys were dancing around her as they sang. Rachel looked over at Kurt who was clearly enjoying the show being put on for them. Rachel was loving it as well. Puck hardly ever sang or danced, even when he went out to karaoke bars with Rachel and her friends. It was such a shock seeing him sing like this, but she was loving it.

Na na na na na na na na na na
Na na na na na na
Na na na na na na na na na na
Na na na na na na

Puck sauntered towards Rachel, microphone still in his hand. He pulled her to her feet and took her hand in his as he raised the mic to his lips to sing the next part of the song directly to her.

Baby you light up my world like nobody else,
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,

Sam and Finn came up on either side of her, both of them joining in with Puck to sing again.

You don't know,
Oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful.

Baby you light up my world like nobody else,
The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,
But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,
You don't know,
Oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful (Oh).
If only you saw what I can see,
You'll understand why I want you so desperately (desperately).
Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe,
You don't know,
Oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful,
Oh oh,
You don't know you're beautiful,
Oh oh,
That's what makes you beautiful.

Puck dropped down to his knee and reached into his pocket, pulling out the small velvet box that had been in it all day. He opened the box to show Rachel the sparkling diamond ring he'd been saving for the past two years to afford.

He heard everyone cheering and a few gasps, but he was only focused on Rachel right now. She'd sunken back down into the chair and had her hands clasped over her mouth, a few tears forming in her eyes. He realized people were waiting for him to say something, so Puck put the microphone he was holding to his lips.

"I knew you were the one from the moment I walked into your dorm and heard you sing about how you had the best ass into your hairbrush." Rachel flushed a deep shade of red as everyone laughed. "Okay, maybe I shouldn't have brought that up with your dads right here since I want them to keep liking me, but it's true. I knew you were the girl I was going to fall in love with from the moment I met you, but you didn't make it easy for me. I had to work to get your love and keep it, and somehow I mostly have with a few screw ups along the way." Puck had taken her hand in his while Rachel was wiping away tears from her eyes. "I know I don't do the right thing or say the right thing most of the time, but I do know that you're the one for me. So I'm kind of rambling, so I'm just going to ask you: will you marry me?"

There were cheers while Rachel was still wiping her eyes. Finally, when she realized she still couldn't find the words to answer his question, she nodded her head. Puck grinned and slipped the ring onto her finger before pulling her into his arms and planting a long kiss on her lips.

There were lots of cheers and a few whistles as Puck set Rachel back down on her feet, giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Alright, this is a party. Let's get the music started back up," he said. The DJ nodded and music started pumping out of the speakers once more.

Rachel was still holding onto his chest as she looked up at him, the people around them congregating on the dance floor. "So, we're really engaged?" she squealed, practically jumping up and down. "This isn't a dream or some kind of sick joke?"

Puck laughed, leaning down to kiss her again. "No, it's not a dream, and certainly not a joke. I really did just propose to you, which means tonight is going to be some of the best sex of your life," he muttered into her ear, causing her to laugh softly.

"Please shut up, my dads are just over there," she laughed, poking him in the chest as their friends circled them, showering them with congratulations while Quinn threw her arms around Rachel, squealing about how they were finally going to be sisters.

"You have to let me help pick out your wedding dress!" she insisted. "You should totally go to Kleinfeld's so we can be on Say Yes to the Dress and become reality stars," she joked, still hugging Rachel tightly. "Ohmigosh I'm so excited for you two! Now you just have to tell my brother to tell Finn to start looking at rings," she whispered in Rachel's ear.

"Back off Blondie," Kurt scolded, squeezing himself in between the two girls before pulling Rachel into his arms. "Diva you're engaged!" he laughed, spinning her around a few times.

"Careful Kurt, I already had a cupcake and I don't think you want me hurling on your expensive sports jacket," she joked, laughing as he set her back on the ground, kissing her once on the cheek.

"You just don't understand how excited I am for you. This means we've got to start planning your wedding if you plan on getting married within the next eighteen months. I mean, there's flowers, dresses, the menu, cake, invitations..."

"Kurt, shut up. Can you just let me enjoy being engaged for two seconds before coming up with a laundry list of things I have to do?" she asked, punching him in the shoulder. Puck appeared back at her side, his arm wrapped around her waist, not willing to let her get more than a few feet away from him.

The song changed and a slow song came on, one of Rachel's favorites. "Come on, let's dance," Puck murmured in her ear.

Rachel looked up at him with a smile and nodded her head, taking his hand as he led her to the dance floor. Rachel draped her arms around his neck, his around her waist. They started swaying slightly to the music while the rest of their friends joined them in the dance.

"So, are you really sure about this?" Puck asked, looking down at her as they danced. "I mean, I'm positive you could do so much better than me."

"Would you shush with that already? It's been almost four years. If I was going to find someone better, I would have found them already. I'm positive you're the one I want to marry, even if Kurt makes it sound like planning the wedding is going to be a nightmare," she laughed, resting her face against his chest.

"I'm sure you'll handle it expertly. But how about for now, we don't talk about the wedding or moving or anything. How about we just dance and enjoy being with each other?"

Rachel smiled up at him, snuggling against him as they dance. She couldn't help realizing how perfect the moment was. Rachel held onto Puck tighter as they continued dancing, enjoying the first day of the rest of their lives together.

PS - In addition to finishing my other stories that I have essentially put on hold to finish this story, I have another AU Puckleberry story in the process of being written. It's going to be called The Wedding Date and the first chapter should hopefully be up sometime in the next two weeks! Here's a brief summary: Coincidence brought them together, each of them needing something from the other. They both told themselves it wasn't real, yet they're the only two who can't see they're really perfect for each other.