Fic: Starlight, Chapter 40 by Sapphire (PG-13)

[sapphireej]

Series: 'Starlight'
Disclaimer: I am just borrowing them for the fun of writing, BUT I do own the plot, ideas and original characters.
A/N: I edited this chapter, so all mistakes are mine.
A/N2: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D

~*~

A/N3: Keep in mind, within this AU... There is no Puck/Quinn, no Finn/Rachel, Quinn is NOT pregnant at all, Puck's dad never left when he was a kid and Puck will be OOC so yes, totally AU, though you'll see similarities to the episodes. A/N4: There will be a lot of shifting from Noah in California to Rachel in Ohio. A/N5: I've tried to format the awards so it's mostly from the point-of-view of Rachel and TV viewers (the show being in italics), but I added in some more details to certain things to make it a little more real for Noah and his point-of-view during the performance with Neil.

~*~

Spending the next two hours on the Grammy stage, practicing and perfecting their performance for the next day, Noah, Neil and everyone else was confident that they would have a flawless time.

After finishing up on stage, Deborah asked for some pictures, so for the next little while, they posed for pictures. Noah, Neil and the band first, then Tim took Deborah's camera and snapped some of the Puckerman's with Neil before they parted ways until the next day.

Noah, Ethan and Deborah, though ready to go back to the hotel, still had to go shopping for what they were wearing, so after a quick lunch, they headed off to one of the local malls and got started.

~*~

Being at the mall with friends, Rachel seemed to stay pretty calm and relaxed, as long as they stayed in the group and didn't split up. Arin stayed with her, making sure she was okay and a few times when the group separated to go into a different store, Rachel was a little more nervous than when it was the larger group. Carly noticed the change and also stayed with Rachel and so did Quinn, not wanting Rachel to get upset.

Rachel really appreciated Carly, Quinn and Arin staying close and slowly she was opening up and being more herself; more talkative and comfortable in public, so the day was turning out to be a success.

Since no one had a specific reason to be shopping, they all wandered in and out of various stores, making small purchases when they found something they liked and after spending a few hours at the mall and no one really ready to leave yet, the whole group headed for the food court for a late lunch and Finn, Matt and Mike came from basketball practice to join them, the three guys telling Rachel they'd be over the next day for the awards as well.

During lunch, Rachel glanced at her phone and found some pictures from Deborah of Noah and Neil together and Rachel tried to contain her excitement, because she didn't want to ruin the surprise. Thanking Deborah for the messages, Rachel returned to the discussion the group was having and once they were all done eating, they looked around in a few more shops, but now being tired from the day and Kurt's caffeine high slowly crashing, the large group said their 'goodbyes' and promised to see each other the next day at Rachel's.

Returning home, Rachel and Arin talked with her dads and they were happy Rachel had such a good day at the mall. Rachel admitted that she was far from over what happened, but it was a good step and hoped she continued to get over everything. She also told them about the messages she'd gotten from Deborah, showing the pictures to Arin, Alan and David, glad she could now express her excitement.

~*~

As the day ended for Rachel and Noah, they talked on the phone and as much as he wanted to surprise her with singing 'Someone To Fall Back On' at the awards, he also wanted her blessing and she gladly gave it, assuring him it would sound amazing and they'd always have the memories of her hearing it for the first time and while they were talking, Noah emailed the song and lyrics to Elliott, so he didn't forget.

They talked about their day and Noah was glad she had done well at the mall, wishing he had been there, but knew he would be home in just a few days and she assured him she understood why he was gone. Rachel mentioned she had invited their friends over for the next day and also called Will and Emma to extend the invitation, unsure if they'd come or not. Also during their conversation, Rachel asked him about working with Neil Diamond.

"It was amazing. Definitely a dream come true," Noah admitted.

Rachel smiled, "did you know he's done a duet with Barbra Streisand?" She wondered.

"I did know that. 'You don't bring me flowers'," Noah replied, "she'll be at the awards tomorrow, so I'm gonna try to meet her, but I'm not making any guarantees."

"I know. It would be amazing if you could, but I'm sure things will be busy tomorrow, for everyone," Rachel commented, trying not to beg for an autograph from her idol.

"You're trying really hard to not get excited, aren't you?" Noah asked.

"Yes, I am," she blushed, laughing lightly, "you could tell?"

"Well, yes, but it's also because I know how much you love her," he told her, "I do remember things like that."

"Which makes you an amazing boyfriend, because a lot of guys don't even know their girlfriend's favorite color," Rachel responded.

"Purple," he replied, grinning.

"It is," she smiled, "see, you're definitely an amazing boyfriend."

~*~

Talking for a little longer, the couple eventually hung up, so Rachel could get to sleep. She'd been off her usual sleep schedule and wanted to get plenty of sleep so she could be ready for everyone coming over the next day.

Waking up Sunday morning, Rachel felt refreshed. Spending time with everyone at the mall and talking to her boyfriend that night seemed to help her sleep better; her dreams weren't as vivid and she managed to keep the tossing and turning to a minimum.

Getting ready for the day, Rachel, Arin, David and Alan came up with a plan and got to work. Alan went to the grocery store to pick up some necessary items and Arin and David helped rearrange the living room so they could get a few more chairs in there for everyone to have a view of the TV.

Rachel hadn't spoken to Noah yet that day, but she knew he was sleeping in as late as he could and a car would pick them up at three to take them to the awards.

~*~

Hearing knocking on his door, Noah rolled over and focused on the clock, seeing it was ten-thirty in the morning, "yeah?" He called out, not sure who was trying to wake him up.

Deborah pushed the door open, "are you going to get out of bed sometime today?" She asked with a grin.

"Yeah, I guess," he replied, sitting up, "didn't figure I'd need to get up too early. I finished my homework last night after I got off the phone with Rachel and it doesn't take me that long to get ready," he explained.

"Have you written an acceptance speech, yet? Just in case you need it?" She wondered.

Noah's eyes widened, "I've been so into my homework and the performance, I didn't even think about writing something!" He groaned.

"I'll order something for you from room service. Get up, shower and it should be here by the time you get done. Once you're ready you'll have plenty of time to work on it," she said, resting a hand on his arm, "just relax."

"Thanks mom," he smiled.

"You're welcome," she replied, standing up and moving towards the door.

"Hey mom?" He waited for her to stop, "do you think if I ordered flowers for Rachel, they could be delivered today?"

"I'm sure they could be. Ask your dad. He sometimes sends flowers when you guys are gone."

"Oh, that's right! Cool, I'll talk to him when I get out of the shower," Noah replied.

Deborah nodded, "whenever she gets them, she'll love the surprise."

Noah smiled, "I hope so. I just want her to know that I'm thinking about her, even when we're not talking on the phone or texting."

~*~

Even with a cast on her arm, Rachel was active in helping get things ready and just after four-thirty, the first few friends showed up and by five Will, Carole, Finn, Quinn, Carly, Ryan, Kurt, Mercedes, Artie, Tina, Mike, Brittany, Matt and Santana, along with Arin, Rachel, David and Alan were all gathered around in the living room, snacking on finger foods and watching the 'E! News - Red Carpet' special. Rachel knew that Noah and his parents would not arrive until around six-thirty Ohio time, so they had some time before they'd see them, so they spent the time talking about the fashion of the people there and listening to their favorite groups or singers get interviewed by Ryan Seacrest or others along the red carpet.

The Grammys is an annual awards event, celebrating and honoring those who stood out in the music industry, from all generas of music, not just a select few. During the live broadcast only a portion of the awards would be given out, so during the red carpet, a lot of news was being announced on who had won awards in the categories that wouldn't be shown.

At just six-pm, everyone had given up on eating for a while and were settling into conversations, when someone rang the doorbell. Not expecting anyone else, Alan got up and went to answer the door, while everyone returned their focus to the TV.

As Alan pulled the door open, he found two women, each holding a vase of flowers, "oh, wow! Hello."

"Hello! We have deliveries for a Rachel Berry and an Arin Puckerman," one of the women said.

Alan glanced into the living room, "Arin, Rachel, you have a delivery," he said with a smile.

Exchanging glances, Arin and Rachel got up and moved over to the door, both surprised at the flowers staring back at them. Once they found who each one was, one woman handed Arin the one addressed to her and Alan took Rachel's vase, and after thanking them, Rachel closed the door and stared at their flowers. Arin received a dozen large sunflowers, settled into a tall clear blue vase and Rachel's clear vase had two dozen multicolored roses inside.

"Wow! Those are awesome!" "Nice flowers!" "I bet we can figure out who they are from!" "What does the card say?" Were some of the questions and comments made by the guests as they saw what the girls had received.

Rachel, Alan and Arin moved into the living room and set their vases on the coffee table and Rachel picked up the card from hers, took it off the stem and opened the envelope, pulling out a card with a typed up message, reading it out loud, "Rach - thinking of you, even when we're not together. Wish you were here; miss you like crazy! See you soon, lots of love, Noah," she smiled, wiping her eyes, "they're gorgeous," she said honestly, leaning forward to smell the sweet scent, then looked at Arin's, "what does your card say?"

Arin picked hers up and looked at it, "Arin - we know you're enjoying your time with the Berrys, but we wish you were here. One day you'll get to come along, promise! Miss you! Love always, mom, dad and Noah," she read out loud. "They're really pretty," she added.

"Yes they are," Rachel agreed, slipping her arm around Arin and hugged her.

Returning the hug, Arin nodded, "but it makes me miss them more," she said softly.

"I know what you mean, but they'll be home soon," Rachel promised.

"Yeah, but I still miss them. I can't wait for them to get back," she replied.

Rachel leaned forward and picked up her phone, "why don't you pick up your flowers and I'll take a picture and then we can send it to them and thank them. Maybe they'll get it before we see Noah on the red carpet," Rachel suggested, wanting to help get Arin's mind off missing her family.

Snapping a photo of Arin holding her flowers, with Rachel's camera and her phone, they switched and Rachel held her flower's vase as best she could to get a few photos and she sent one of each her and Arin to Noah, curious when he'd get the message.

Relaxing back into their spots on the couch, the group got back to watching the pre-show. At about six-thirty, Rachel's phone beeped loudly in her hand, causing her to jump in surprise. Glancing at the message she saw it was from Noah, so she opened it to see, "welcome! Glad you liked. At center, about to get out of the car. Will be chatting with Ryan soon and will text when I can. Love ya both! Say 'hi' to everyone!" She smiled, "Noah says 'hi' and they just got to the center, so keep an eye out for them," she said, handing the phone to Arin to read the rest of the message.

"Say 'hey' back." "Tell him we're all watching for him." "What are they wearing?"

Rachel heard the replies to his message and when she got her phone back, she replied to him with, "love you, too! Everyone says 'hi' and we're all looking for you. Hope to see you. Send pictures and messages when you can!" Sending the message, she joined everyone in watching TV.

Every five to ten minutes there was a commercial break and Rachel was worried that they'd miss glimpses of Noah, Deborah or Ethan, or Noah's interview, and after the second commercial break, Tina swore she saw him, but wasn't sure because the last time she'd seen him, his hair was longer. Rachel responded that he'd shaved his head since arriving in California, so it was much shorter than before, and by the time she finished her words, a camera panned across the crowd and they easily could see Ethan, Deborah and Noah standing near near the E! News areas, where Ryan Seacrest was interviewing arrivals.

Just as they all got a chance to see them clearly, E! went to a commercial, making everyone throw a fit, but after a short break, the show returned with more wide shots of the carpet and this time, Noah, Deborah and Ethan were no where to be seen.

"Did we miss them?" Arin asked.

"I hope not," Rachel replied, trying not to throw something at the TV.

"And we're back to the red carpet of the 52nd annual Grammy Awards show," Ryan Seacrest said to the camera, "we've talked to many of the nominees tonight and still have many more to come. Right now, joining me is someone I just saw a few days ago," Ryan paused as the camera panned out a little, showing Noah standing next to him, "Puck, you look totally different today. What was with the hair change?" Ryan asked him.

Noah laughed lightly, "honestly, it's easier to deal with. If it gets any longer it'll curl," Noah replied, "mom helped me to shave it off the other night."

Rachel was glad they hadn't missed Noah's interview. He was right, his hair was still there, but really short, instead of the few inches it'd grown out to since he'd last had it trimmed. He looked like he had when they first met and started dating, so she couldn't help the smile that grew from memories of the whirlwind first few days of their relationship.

"Fair enough," Ryan agreed, "I see you dressed casual today, too."

The camera panned down Noah's outfit, showing deep navy blue jeans, black skate shoes with white sole and red and green squares on each side of the shoe, along with a black v-neck t-shirt and a black dress jacket, "yeah. To be honest, I'm not much of a dress up kind of guy. I wanna be comfortable," he admitted.

"So, you're nominated for five awards tonight, do you have a favorite you really want to win over the others?" Ryan asked.

Noah thought for a moment, "it's an honor to be nominated for any awards and I would love to win any of them, but 'Best Pop Vocal Album' is a big one for me and even more so is 'Album of the Year'," he replied.

"The ones for you album, any specific reasons why?" Ryan wondered.

"My album, 'Who I Am' is very special to me. Half of the songs on it, either I wrote myself or my dad and I wrote together, so to have our work be honored like that would mean so much. Just the nominations are amazing, but to win them would be so awesome," Noah told him.

"Speaking of your dad, he's here with you tonight and who's the woman with you. Your older sister?" Ryan wondered.

Noah smiled at her, seeing Deborah blush at the compliment as the camera panned to them, standing a few feet away, but the two moved closer, "my mom and dad came with me today. Mom has actually never been to any awards shows, so this is a special day for us."

Ryan shook Ethan hand, commenting that he'd met before and when he shook Deborah's hand, he smiled at her, "it's nice to meet you, Mrs. Puckerman, you're looking lovely this evening. I bet you're so proud of your son," Ryan said to her.

"We are very proud of him," Deborah admitted, blushing at the compliments.

"Mom looks so pretty," Arin said, seeing Deborah dressed in a long, simple, yet beautiful emerald gown, her hair pulled back lightly and a white gold and emerald necklace and bracelet to match.

"Yes, she does," Rachel nodded, "I've never seen her dressed up before."

"I haven't either," Arin replied.

"So this is your first awards. Why is that and what is your reaction so far?" Ryan asked her.

"Noah has a younger sister, so I opt to stay home with her, and we watch the awards together, with friends of ours. It's kind of how we've split things so Noah has his dad along with him and I'm home with our daughter. As for my reaction, it's a lot to take in, that's for sure. Very busy and loud, but it's so great to be here."

"Well, we're happy to have you all here. Puck, you're performing tonight, right? Anything you can tell us about that?"

Noah smirked, "I can say it's going to amazing. I'll be playing a few of my songs, a very new one and my current single, along with a favorite from my childhood. Also, a very special guest will be joining me on stage tonight, too. It's a total dream come true."

"Wow! Any hints you can give us? Who is it? What is this 'very new song' you're talking about?"

"You'll just have to watch and see," Noah smirked.

"I guess we will have to," Ryan nodded, "you're here for the awards and then tomorrow, I hear you're going to be a part of the 'We Are The World' recording, is that right?"

"I am," Noah nodded, "a lot of us from the awards tonight will be joining together tomorrow to record it, for the twenty-fifth anniversary of it's first recording and when it's posted online, all the proceeds will go to the relief efforts in Haiti. It's an honor to be asked to be a part of this and I'm definitely looking forward to working with all of them."

"Now, you're only seventeen, so you weren't around when the song was first done. Have you heard it? Do you know your part? How is it going to work?"

"Well, I have heard the original a few times and know my part for this one. As for how it's going to work, I'm not quite sure. I'll find out tomorrow," Noah explained.

"Alright, well, I'll let you get on with your night. It was great talking to you again, Puck. Nice to meet your parents and good luck on your awards, tonight," Ryan said, shaking Noah's hand, "anything you want to say to the viewers at home?"

Noah turned to the camera, "hey everyone watching at home," he waved at the camera, "thank you to all of my fans for all of the support over the years. Also huge shout out to all my friends and family back home. Arin, love ya, sis. Rach, love ya, babe. See you all soon!"

The room filled with 'awwws' at Noah's words and Arin and Rachel both blushed, a little embarrassed, but also excited from the personal shout out.

Rachel reached for her phone and sent Noah a text message, "love you, too, sweetheart. Good luck!"

"Okay, what is Noah keeping from us? Who is he singing with tonight?" Mercedes asked.

"We can't say. Noah wants it to be a surprise," Arin said.

"What? You guys now?" Kurt gasped.

"We've known since New York, but Noah couldn't really say anything to many people because of contracts and what not, but he's allowed to tell a few people," Rachel explained, "we were it, aside from his parents."

"I understand and am used to it," Finn said, "Noah is 'contractually obligated' to follow rules and can't release a ton of information about things like this. His parents, sister, and now Rachel and her dads hear the news first, but that's it until the live broadcast."

"I get it," Carly commented, "it's like spoilers about a TV show. Even if someone knows the truth, like actors and actresses on a show, they could be slapped with a huge fine if they announce what happens until the show airs," she added, "I've heard about it in some of the fan places I am involved in online."

Rachel nodded, "exactly."

~*~

After seeing Noah on TV, Rachel wasn't sure if she'd hear from him before the awards started, but just after seven, she got a picture message from him with the words, "my sister will love these," and two photos under the text. This first photo was Noah and Taylor with Miley and the other was Noah, Ethan and Deborah with Miley.

"That's so cool!" Arin grinned, seeing the pictures, "I wonder who else they've met!" She replied, passing Rachel's phone around to show the pictures to the others.

"I don't know, we can ask," Rachel replied, getting her phone back and replying to the message with that question.

A few minutes later she got a response with another picture, this time with a picture of Noah and LL Cool J, "Special Agent Sam Hanna on NCIS LA aka LL Cool J. Get to work with him tomorrow. Seen lots of people. Many pics on mom's camera. Will show you when I get home." After she read that one to everyone, a second one came from him, adding, "at our seats now. Taylor is sitting behind me. They're trying to get everyone to their seats now, have a few minutes, but not long."

Rachel read the message to everyone and they all understood he couldn't text a lot during the show, so they settled in to watch the rest of the pre-show. As it got closer to eight, some went to gathered more snacks to watch the show and Rachel changed the channel to CBS, the network broadcasting the awards and everyone waited for them start.

~*~

Since a lot of the awards had been given out before the live broadcast, there were only about twenty to give out that night, focusing on the most popular categories, R&B, Country, Pop, Rock, Alternative and the overall awards - 'Song of the Year', 'Record of the Year' and 'Album of the Year'.

During the first hour of the awards being on, the focused on the Rock and R&B categories. Beyoncé won almost every R&B award, except 'Duo or Group' and 'Male Performance'.

They had several performances, including Lady Antebellum performing their single 'Need You Now', who was introduced by the Jonas Brothers and Jennifer Lopez introduced Green Day, along with the cast of their Broadway musical 'American Idiot', performing '21 Guns'.

Watching the awards, everyone at the Berry's celebrated when one of their favorite acts won an award and they sang along to some of the performances. Rachel, Kurt, Mercedes and a few others, those familiar with Broadway, were shocked that Green Day had put together a Broadway musical, but liked to see the mix of Broadway and popular music.

Moving on to the second hour of the awards, Miley Cyrus started it out by introducing The Black-Eyed Peas, who sang 'Imma Be' and 'I Gotta Feeling' and then they moved onto the Alternative and Country categories. Taylor Swift won all three awards she was nominated for: 'Best Country Song' and 'Best Female Country Vocal Performance', both with 'White Horse', and her album 'Fearless' won 'Best Country Album. Also during that hour, Sheryl Crow introduced Bon Jovi, who came out and started with 'We Weren't Born To Follow' then, Jon introduced Jennifer Nettles, joining him to sing their duet 'Who Says You Can't Go Home'. As the song ended, everyone thought the performance was over, but Jennfier started talking about the fans voting on a song and 'Livin' On A Prayer' won, so the guys played that as the last song of their set.

Nearing the ten-pm hour, everyone was beginning to get impatient because none of the awards Noah had been nominated for were announced yet. "Wow! I didn't realize they'd save Noah's performance until the last hour," Finn commented.

"Or any of his awards," Rachel sighed.

"It seems like they're doing the awards in groups, so maybe they're saving their best awards until the end," David said.

"Save the best for last," Carly added, using the cliché.

"Maybe," Rachel admitted, "they do always leave a few of the awards until the end, like 'Song of the Year', 'Record of the Year' and 'Album of the Year', but the others could have been done earlier," she glanced at Arin, "are you going to be okay to stay up any later? I didn't realize it, but it's already pretty late," she said, concerned that Arin would have problems in the morning.

"I will be okay," Arin nodded, "as long as I go to bed as soon as the awards are over."

When the commercials ended and returned to the awards, the female announcer introduced Taylor Lautner, and the cameras panned to him standing on the front of the stage by a single microphone set up.

Taylor waved at the crowd and let them settle down a little before he began to speak, "this next performer is an extremely talented singer and songwriter. He has the ability to write meaningful songs from experiences and feelings he's had, putting his heart and soul into each word. He's an amazing son, brother, friend and boyfriend and I'm honored to call him one of my best friends. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome 'Album of the Year' nominee Noah 'Puck' Puckerman!"

~*~

Sitting on the piano bench, on the darkened stage, Noah listened to Taylor's introduction, smiling at his words, "the feeling is mutual," he thought, taking a deep breath as screams, cheers and clapping began to echo over the center, fans and celebrities cheering him on.

A single spotlight landed on him and he laid his hands on the keys and without hesitation, started the beginning bars of Rachel's song, "Rachel, this is for you," he said into the microphone, as his words and the piano's notes flowing out over the center, calming the cheers from everyone. Focused only on the piano and an image of Rachel he had in his mind, he relaxed and began, "I'll never be a knight in armor with a sword in hand, or a kamikaze fighter. Don't count on me to storm the barricades and take a stand, or hold my ground. You'll never see any scars or wounds. I don't walk on coals, I won't walk on water. I am no prince, I am no saint, I am not anyone's wildest dream, but I will stand behind and be someone to fall back on..." Continuing the piano, he took a deep breath and purposely skipped towards the end of the song, not having time for the whole thing, "and I'll be that: I'll take your side. If I'm the only one, I'm used to that. I've been alone, I'd rather be: the half of us, the least of you, the best of me, and I will be... I'll be your prince, I'll be your saint, I will go crashing through fences. In your name, I will, I swear - I'll be someone to fall back on! I'll be the one who waits, and for as long as you'll let me, I will be the one you need. I'll be someone to fall back on... One to fall back on..."

The lights came up in the center, revealing his band and they began to play an extended beginning of 'Sweet Caroline', giving Noah time to put his acoustic electric guitar on and clip his microphone into the stand, "ladies and gentlemen, please help me welcome a musical Jewish icon... Mr. Neil Diamond!" Noah smiled into the microphone, jumping right into playing the song on his guitar.

As the center erupted into cheers, Neil walked out and at the right moment, began singing, "where it began, I can't begin to know it, but that I know it's growing strong."

Noah stepped up to his microphone and sang the next few lines, "wasn't the Spring and Spring became the Summer, who'da believed you'd come along?"

"Hands... Touching hands... Reaching out... Touching me... Touching You..." Neil continued on, then Noah joined him for the chorus, "oh, Sweet Caroline, good times never seemed so good. I've been inclined to believe they never would..."

"Oh, Sweet Caroline, good times never seemed so good... Oh, I've been inclined to believe it never would, oh, no no," Noah ending the song and without missing a beat, his band began 'Live Like We're Dying'.

"Sometimes we fall down, can't get back up. We're hiding behind skin that's too tough. How come we don't say 'I love you' enough, till it's to late? It's not too late," Noah sang, jumping right into the song, "our hearts are hungry for the food that won't come and we could make a feast from these crumbs. And we're all staring down the barrel of a gun, so if your life flashed before you, what would you wish you would've done?"

Neil knew most of the song, so he joined in every few lines of the first verse and then helped out with the chorus as Noah sang it all, "yeah, we gotta start looking at the hands of the time we've been given. If this is all we got and we gotta start thinking if every second counts on a clock that's ticking, gotta live like we're dying... We've only got 86,400 seconds in a day to turn it all around or to throw it all away. Gotta tell them that we love them, while we got the chance to say. Gotta live like we're dying."

Moving right into the next verse, Noah was trying to stay calm, but couldn't believe someone he grew up listening to was singing his song, with him, "and if your plane fell out of the skies, who would you call with your last goodbye? Should be so careful who we let fall out of our lives, or when we long for absolution, there'll be no one on the line," taking a deep breath, as planned, Noah skipped over the chorus and went right to the bridge, "you never know a good thing till it's gone. You never see a crash till it's head on. Why do we think we're right when we're dead wrong? You never know a good thing till it's gone."

Heading right into the final chorus, Noah smiled, glancing at Neil who was still keeping up, "yeah, we gotta start looking at the hands of the time we've been given. If this is all we got and we gotta start thinking if every second counts on a clock that's ticking, gotta live like we're dying... We've only got 86,400 seconds in a day to turn it all around or to throw it all away. Gotta tell them that we love them, while we got the chance to say. Gotta live like we're dying..." Noah trailed off and as they slowed the beat down, "live like we're dying," Noah finished, his band stopping when he finished talking.

The center erupted into loud cheers as Noah and Neil bowed and waved towards the screaming fans, then the two, along with Noah's band walked off the stage, while the next presenter went up on stage.

~*~

As soon as Taylor began speaking, it was easy to figure out who he was introducing, so Rachel turned the volume of the TV up a little.

When Rachel saw her boyfriend on the screen and heard him say 'Rachel, this is for you,' she couldn't help the tears fall from her eyes; he was dedicating the performance to her. Even though she was aware that he was going to sing the song he wrote for her, she still got choked up at what he was doing and wiped her eyes, noticing the confused glances everyone was giving each other.

"That is, Noah, right?" Mercedes asked, looking at the screen, "because I know 'Puck' songs like the back of my hand and that's not one of them."

"Nothing I've heard," Finn agreed.

"He wrote it for me," Rachel whispered, unable to hide the tears that continued to fall.

Though they were shocked at what she said, they didn't get a chance to ask any questions, before Noah finished up that song and moved to a microphone stand and introduced Neil Diamond, "he's performing with Neil Diamond?" Carole gasped.

"That's who Arin was trying to say yesterday!" Kurt added, looking at Rachel and Arin.

Rachel nodded, "yes. Noah wanted it to be a surprise to all of you."

"And I forgot," Arin admitted, blushing as she watched her brother.

"Wow!" Will smiled, "this must be a dream come true for him."

"It definitely is," Finn replied.

Rachel smiled, glad they didn't seem to be upset about Noah keeping that from them. Returning her attention to the TV, she listened to Neil and Noah move onto Noah's current single, which brought back happy memories of when they were filming the video in New York. The words also hit her differently than they had before; they had a deeper meaning now, because when they filmed the video, she hadn't been abducted, and that was kind of a life altering event that brought out a lot of feelings, that were explained into the song, to the surface.

When the performance ended, the room erupted into cheers and clapping, along with the audience at the Staples Center, and Rachel reached for her phone, "Noah, you and Neil were amazing! I'm so proud of you! Love you so much! Did you really dedicate your performance to me?" She typed, sending the text message to him, unsure when he'd get it, but wanted him to have it to be there when he did check his phone.

~*~

After Noah's performance, Taylor Swift won 'Best Female Pop Vocal Performance' with 'You Belong With Me' and the 'Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group' was presented and the awards went to a commercial.

Coming back from the break, the award for 'Best Pop Collaboration' was given out and then Colbie Caillat came out to present the award for 'Best Male Pop Vocal Performance', one of the awards Noah was nominated for. His song 'Don't Tell Me' was nominated against Jason Mraz, John Legend, Maxwell and Seal, and the screen was split into five sections, each showing the nominees, so they could catch the winner's reaction.

~*~

Arin grabbed onto Rachel's hand and squeezed it and Rachel took a deep breath, "please be Noah," she thought, focusing on the TV.

~*~

"...and the Grammy goes to... Puck for 'Don't Tell Me'!" Colbie called out, reading his name from the folded card.

Noah gasped in shock and jumped up, turning to his parents to hug them tightly for a moment before pulling away to hug Taylor, and then made his way towards the stage. As he walked along the aisle, many celebrities, actors and performers, stood up and clapped and cheered for him, which made him even more nervous than he was, but smiled and tried to stay relaxed.

Hearing the fans screaming in the background, Noah climbed the stairs to the stage and waved at them as he reached Colbie, who was standing with a girl holding his award. Noah accepted the award from the girl and Colbie gave him a quick hug and handed him the card she'd opened with his name on it, then the two stepped aside, giving Noah the stage.

Looking at the award, he smiled as he walked up to the microphone and waited a brief moment for everyone to settle down before he began, "wow! Thank you! I'm shocked," he took a deep breath, "I'd really like to thank my fans, because without you guys I wouldn't be here," he smiled as they screamed at that, "this song means a lot to me and I'd also like to thank my family, my friends, my girlfriend and her family for all of their support and thank you to my band and everyone who had a part in making this song a success," he finished, knowing he didn't have a ton of time to talk.

~*~

"He won!" Several in the living room exclaimed as they all cheered in excitement from Noah's win and Rachel and Arin hugged tightly, then everyone settled down to listen to his speech.

When Noah walked off stage, Rachel grabbed her phone to send him a congratulations text and so did several others in the room, but quickly returned their attention to the TV to see what the next award was.

~*~

LL Cool J was introduced as the next presenter and it was for 'Best Pop Vocal Album', another one Noah was nominated for. His album 'Who I Am' was up against albums by The Black Eyed Peas, Colbie Caillat, Kelly Clarkson and Pink. Like with the other awards, a camera was pointed at each nominee to catch their reaction and this time Noah was backstage with Colbie, because they had to wait until break to return to their seats, so both of them had cameras pointing at them as they waited for the announcement.

Opening the card, LL Cool J smiled and read the result out loud, "the Grammy goes to... 'Who I Am' by Puck!" He called out, clapping.

Noah was shocked at the win, but accepted hugs from Colbie and Taylor Swift, because she was waiting to do her performance, and then moved out to the stage, where he shook LL's hand and did the guys 'hug' before taking the award and card from who was holding them, "oh my God. I am just stunned," he admitted, talking into the microphone, "thank you to my fans for everything, my band and all of the people who worked on my album, my dad who helped me write a few songs on it," he took a deep breath trying to gather his thoughts, "to my friends, my family, my beautiful girlfriend, thank you..." He nodded and ended his speech, not thinking clear enough to say anything more.

~*~

"Two wins in a row! Go Noah!" Matt said clapping along with the others who were cheering for Noah.

Rachel grinned, tears of joy coming to her eyes as she hugged Arin and then sent Noah another congratulations text message, "I'm so happy for him!" She exclaimed.

~*~

Instead of going to a break, Taylor Swift went on to her performance with Stevie Nicks, which gave Noah a chance to talk to LL Cool J about the next day, and he asked Noah to be a part of the rap during the 'We Are The World' recording. Noah was shocked, but said he'd be honored to join them.

When Taylor and Stevie finished their performance, the awards went to their next break, and Noah returned to his seat, getting hugs and congratulations from the people who mattered more, his mom, his dad and one of his best friends, Taylor and told them about his offer from LL Cool J. They were happy for him and Noah was definitely excited to work with everyone the next day.

As the award's break ended, they returned with the presentation of 'Record of the Year'. Noah was nominated, along with Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, The Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga. Taylor Swift's 'You Belong With Me' ended up winning and Noah stood and clapped for her, not upset he lost to her at all.

After Taylor accepted her award, Adam Sandler walked on stage to present the award for 'Song of the Year'. Noah's 'Home' was nominated and so was, Taylor Swift's 'You Belong With Me', 'Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)' by Beyoncé, 'Poker Face' by Lady Gaga and 'Use Somebody' by Kings of Leon.

Since Beyoncé had won several awards already for her song, Noah really thought she'd win again, but Adam announced 'Home' by Puck as the winner. Gasping in shock again, Noah hugged his parents and Taylor, then headed up to the stage to get his award, saying about the same he had in the last two speeches, shocked and thankful to everyone. Walking backstage, Taylor Swift met him, since she was back there from her win and the two congratulated each other with hugs as Ryan Seacrest went out on stage to present the next and final award of the night.

Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, The Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga and 'Puck' all had albums in the category and though Noah was hopeful, he had a feeling he wouldn't win, so he was half focused on the TV screen and half on Taylor, expecting her to be the winner.

"...and Album of the Year is..." Ryan paused, grinning, "'Who I Am' by Puck!"

Noah's mouth fell open in shock, and Taylor could tell he was frozen, so she gave him a quick hug and kind of nudged him towards the stage. He quickly recovered, walking out to the entire center cheering for him. Celebrities from all generas were standing and clapping for him, and though briefly he thought it was from the news of the past few weeks, he pushed it aside and met Ryan, hugging him and accepting the award. He held it up and waved a little, the roar continuing. As the sounds began to settle, he stepped to the microphone, "thank you... thank you so much," he started, his heart racing like crazy, "to say I'm shocked is an understatement. I have nothing but respect for the others in my category and I honestly didn't think I'd win tonight. This is such an honor to be up here, accepting this award, for an album that means so much to me," he continued on, thanking those he had previously, which ended his speech.

~*~

When Ryan announced Noah's album, the entire living room at the Berry's was noisy from cheers of excitement. Everyone jumped up, hugging each other from the news. The girls closer to Noah, Rachel, Arin and Carole, were crying from happiness and Alan helped calm everyone down so they could listen to his acceptance speech. When he walked off the stage towards the audience, the credits rolled, so Rachel reached and turned the TV off with the remote.

"I'm so proud of him," Carole said honestly.

"Me too!" Arin nodded.

"We all are," Finn added, looking around and getting nods of agreement from everyone.

"What do you think they're doing right now?" Arin asked, looking at Rachel.

Rachel thought for a moment, "honestly, I don't know."

~*~

Instead of going backstage after accepting 'Album of the Year' and making his speech, Noah went down the stage stairs to find his parents. The awards were now over and the center was beginning to get noisier and busier with people moving around in all different directions, trying to leave. Noah didn't want to lose his parents in the crowd and as he walked down the aisle he passed a lot of people and they all congratulated him. He politely thanked them and finally reached his parents, Taylor and his dad.

"Mom, dad," he smiled, wrapping his arms around his mom.

Deborah was crying from joy and Ethan put his arms around both of them, "we're so proud of you," Deborah said after a few moments, trying to dry her tears; glad she hadn't worn eye make-up.

"Thanks... I'm still shocked. I don't think it's really hit me yet," he admitted, pulling away and looking at the award in his hand.

"You deserve it man," Taylor told him, patting him on the back.

Noah turned a little, "thanks," he replied, giving him a quick hug.

Though Taylor and his dad wanted to stick around, they knew that Noah had things to do because he was an award winner, so they said their goodbyes, knowing they wouldn't see them again before they returned to Ohio.

Waving at them as they walked away, Noah noticed a blond woman coming down the aisle towards him and his parents, but didn't think she was coming towards them until she reached them, "hello, Puck," she waved in greeting, "you probably don't know know me, because you're so young but..."

As soon as she spoke, Noah knew exactly who she was, "It's an honor to meet you, Ms. Newton-John," he said, holding out his hand.

She smiled brightly, shaking his hand, "you do recognize me. It's nice to meet you. Please, call me Olivia."

"Yes, as soon as you spoke I realized who you were. My girlfriend is a huge fan of Broadway musicals and movie musicals, so we've watched Grease many times... And I watched it some when I was a kid, too," Noah explained with a smile.

"Wonderful! It is an always current movie, if you look past the clothing," she admitted.

"Very true," Noah nodded, "Olivia, these are my parents, Ethan and Deborah," he said, motioning to them.

Shaking their hands she smiled, "it's nice to meet you both, as well. You have raised a very talented son," she told them, then turned to Noah, "congratulations on your wins, tonight. You deserve them."

"Thank you," Noah blushed, "that means a lot to hear. I didn't realize you were familiar with my music."

"Well, my daughter, Chloe (1), is a huge fan and I admit I haven't heard all of your music, but I know your singles and your current album. From what I've heard and after listening to your performance tonight, I'm definitely a fan. You were amazing tonight," she explained.

"Thanks, that means so much coming from you," Noah smiled, "it was such an honor to sing with Neil."

"I bet! And that song at the beginning was very emotional. I imagine it's directed towards your girlfriend? I heard what happened and I'm so sorry you had to go through an ordeal like that," she told him.

"It's definitely been a rough few weeks, but we're all slowly getting over it. I'm just so glad she's home safe and sound. I actually wrote the song for her a few weeks ago and sang it to her right before we came out to LA. She loved it," he admitted.

"Oh wow! That's wonderful!" She smiled, "well, I won't keep you long. I know you have things to do, but I wanted to come over, meet you and say I'll see you in a few weeks."

"A few weeks?" Noah eyed her oddly, "what do you mean?"

"Oh! You haven't heard?" She gasped, "myself and Josh Groban will be two celebrity judges at your show choir's regional competition in Detroit in a few weeks. Good luck, I look forward to seeing what your club has come up with," she smiled at him.

"Alright," he nodded calmly, "that's cool. I hadn't heard that, but I also haven't been in school since earlier in the week so I may have missed the announcement," he replied, "so I guess I'll see you in a few weeks."

She nodded at him, "see you then."

"Before you leave, could we get a picture with you?" Noah asked.

"Oh, of course!" She smiled, "my husband can take it," she motioned to the man standing near her.

For the next few moments, Olivia's husband took pictures with Noah's cell phone and Deborah's camera to make sure they got a few good shots. Deborah stood on the end with Olivia next to her, Noah was on Olivia's other side with Ethan next to Noah and Noah had his hand behind Ethan's back with his award, not wanting it to take away from the picture. When her husband had taken the pictures, he handed back their cameras and Noah glanced at the picture and slid the phone into his pocket, while Deborah glanced at hers and when she was satisfied with the picture, they thanked them, shared hugs and soon Olivia and her husband were walking towards the exit.

Once they were far enough away, Noah's shoulders fell, "we're going to have celebrity judges at Regionals?" Noah gasped, "we're fucked."

"Noah Aaron Puckerman, watch your language!" Deborah snapped at him, trying to keep her voice low.

"Sorry, mom, but..." he sighed, "what are we going to do? I know there is no way Will or anyone at McKinley knows about them coming," he told them.

"Well, when we get home and you have your next Glee meeting, you can tell them. It'd be better to tell them in person, rather than over the phone," Deborah said.

"Yeah, in person will be the best," Ethan agreed.

"I know, but... Rachel and I are supposed to be singing lead on a song from Grease, remember?" Noah asked, looking at Ethan.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot," he nodded, "well, you picked it way before you knew she'd be a judge."

"That's not the point," Noah took a deep breath, "my point is, that if she's a judge... Do you know how nervous I was to be singing Neil Diamond's song with Neil tonight? Imagine not being a celebrity and singing a song in front of the person who originally sang it... The entire club could have a nervous breakdown," he admitted with a sigh.

"Okay, I see what you're getting at," Ethan agreed, "but let's not worry about that right now. Let's get your awards, and head back to the hotel. You've got a big day tomorrow and then it's back home where we can deal with that," he suggested, trying to get Noah's focus back on what they needed to do at that moment.

"Yeah, you're right. I can't do anything right now and a few days won't be a big deal," he agreed, relaxing a little.

~*~

Signing for and picking up his awards, Noah wanted to get out of the center and go back to their hotel; he wanted to talk to his girlfriend, but he still had to go through the press photos, which would be a while.

Standing in line, Noah finally got his chance to climb up onto the small stage with his four awards in his hands, posing for pictures and answering some questions from the press, mostly about his awards and plans. He kept things simple and vague, not wanting to give anyone any ideas and in just a few minutes he was done.

Meeting up with his parents, the three of them made their way to the exit and found their ride and soon they were on their way back to the hotel. Pulling out his phone, Noah got a chance to look over his text messages from the night and smiled at all the 'congratulations' messages he'd received from friends and family, replying to his family's messages, then friends saving the best message for last, Rachel's. "Performance was for you. Thanks for the congrats. Still hasn't hit me. We're on our way back to the hotel. If it's not too late, would love to talk to you!" He wrote, sending it to her, realizing it was almost twelve-thirty in the morning in Ohio.

~*~

After the awards, everyone started to leave. Rachel thanked them for coming over and promised to pass on congratulations to her boyfriend when she talked to him next. Finn, Carole, Quinn and Carly stayed the longest, helping Alan and David clean up a little before they left, while Rachel helped Arin get ready for bed and talked to her until she fell asleep.

Just before midnight, the others left, leaving David, Alan and Rachel in the kitchen, but soon they were hugging each other, saying 'goodnight' and going to their rooms. Rachel didn't plan to go to sleep right away, hoping to get a chance to talk to her boyfriend.

Laying her phone on her desk, Rachel moved around her room, changing into her pajamas and then went onto her computer for a little while, checking her email and glancing at a very large 'Puck' fan site that already had high-quality pictures posted of Noah on the red carpet. Saving a few she liked, she closed her computer and stood up, just as her cell phone beeped. Not expecting it, she jumped a little, but recovered quickly and saw the message was from her boyfriend, so she read it and responded with, "you're welcome and you were amazing tonight! I'm still up and definitely want to talk to you. Call me when you can!"

Getting up with her phone, Rachel walked over to her bed and pulled back the blankets, sliding in, just as the phone in her hand began to sing Noah's ringtone. Smiling, she hit the answer button, "hey handsome."

"Hey, baby. I'm handsome, huh? I take it I get the stamp of approval?"

"You do. I just went online to see some of the official pictures from the awards. You look great," she blushed, "it makes me miss you even more," she added.

"I'll be home in less than forty-eight hours," he promised, "how are you doing?"

"I'm okay," she nodded, taking a deep breath as she laid back in her pillows, "this weekend has been pretty good. I had fun at the mall, even though I was a little nervous and then today, with everyone over... I'm slowly getting back to myself... but enough about me. I wanna hear about you. How are you feeling?"

Noah took a deep breath and smiled, "I'm doing alright. Relieved. There's no more waiting and wondering how things will go. The performance was great and winning the awards was amazing. The only thing that would have made tonight even better was if you and my sister had been here, too."

"There's always other awards to go to. We'll all get there one day," she assured him. "I'm so happy for you. One award was awesome... but four? Noah, that's epic! We have to celebrate when you get home."

"We will, babe, we will. We're just getting back to the hotel now, so if I lose you, I'll call you back once we're in our room. Have to get on the elevator," he explained, as the driver pulled up in front of the hotel.

"It's alright. I'll be here. Everyone loved your performance. They were pretty shocked at your song and who you got to sing with," she told him.

"Oh yeah? They weren't mad that I didn't tell them?" He asked hopeful.

"No, they weren't. They understood," she assured him, "and even though I knew what you were going to sing, I didn't know how you would, so it was really cool to see the final product," she added, "you guys were amazing."

"Thank you," Noah smiled, "I'm glad you liked it."

"More liked 'loved it'," she admitted, feeling her body relax, "you can't fall asleep, Rachel," she thought, realizing that laying down was probably not the best idea, so she shifted and sat up.

"What are you doing?" He asked, hearing the rustling of blankets and mattress springs.

"Trying to get comfortable, but not enough that I fall asleep," she admitted. "It's almost one in the morning."

"Oh, yeah, I hate this time difference. If you need to get to sleep, I understand. We can talk tomorrow sometime," he paused, "I don't know when, actually."

Rachel took a deep breath, "because you'll be in the studio all day?"

"Yeah," he nodded as he followed his parents into the hotel lobby and over to the elevators. "LL Cool J asked me to be a part of another portion of the song, so I need to look over the music again, but I think I'll be okay with it."

"That's wonderful, Noah! It sounds like you'll be quite busy tomorrow," she commented.

Stepping onto the elevator, Noah hoped he didn't lose his signal and replied to Rachel, "I hope I won't be too busy, but maybe. I hear there may be some downtime between recording, depending on when everyone comes in and how long it takes them to record."

"Sounds like an all day event, but it's for a good cause," she replied, "I'm excited to hear it."

"I doubt I'll be able to bring home the final edit, but I should have it in a few days. I think they want to release it officially at the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada," he admitted, "which I think is the weekend we're going to Regionals, in a couple of weeks."

"Oh wow," she sighed, "I didn't realize it was so soon," she bit her lip.

"Rach, don't even worry about it. We've got plenty of time," he assured her, not wanting her to get worked up about Glee or Regionals.

"But we only have," she jumped up and moved to her desk, flipping her calendar up to February, "we're supposed to be in Detroit for Regionals in less than two weeks!" She gasped, "the awards were on January thirty-first and now it's after midnight, so it's February, and we're supposed to be on our way to Detroit by the twelfth!"

Stepping off the elevator, Noah had his hands full, holding his phone to his ear with his shoulder, "baby, calm down, relax," he said softly, following his parents to their room, "our routine hasn't changed since you disappeared and we're sticking with it... and on top of that, remember Sectionals? Remember how we managed to pull off three brand new songs without much time to practice? We'll be fine! If you don't go back to school this week, then maybe next Monday you can and that still gives us plenty of time to work out any problems we may have."

Hearing his voice, Rachel tried to relax, her mind beginning to race with fears and worries, "but... I have a cast now and what about our costumes? And we haven't practiced as a group for weeks, you're gone and what if we don't place? Everyone is going to blame me!"

"No they're not," he replied quickly, "Rachel, just calm down. We're going very casual with everything and Kurt has your clothes. I'm surprised he didn't mention it while you guys were out yesterday or even tonight, but I'm sure he will," he added, moving into his room and setting the few awards he had in his hands down on his bed, "we've got plenty of time, I promise."

Closing her eyes, Rachel took a deep breath and then walked over to her bed, sitting down on the edge, "I really want to believe that," she admitted softly, "but I just can't help worrying. You know me."

"Yes, I do. But I also know that I'm dating an amazing young woman who is extremely talented and very determined. I know she won't have any problem with our performance," he said honestly, "I'm not lying to you, babe. We've got plenty of time," he said again.

"Thanks, Noah," she smiled, blushing at his compliment. Sliding back under the blankets, she glanced at the clock, "you always know what to say to make me smile."

"Besides it being the truth, like you said, I know you," he smirked, taking a seat on his bed, "your voice changes tone slightly when you're insecure or worried and even though I tell you all the time, you still blush at my compliments about how beautiful you are," he explained.

"Noah, you are an amazing boyfriend. I don't know how I managed to snag you, but I'm not letting you go," she said honestly, "I love you."

"I love you, too, Rachel. Want me to stay on the phone until you fall asleep?" He asked, knowing she was in bed already.

"I'd love that," she replied, "but you don't have to."

"I want to," he assured her, smiling and shifting out of his jacket he'd worn that night, "I could even sing to you, if you'd like."

"No," she shook her head, "I'll start crying if you sang to me."

"Okay, no singing. I'll save that for when I do get home," he grinned.

"Sounds like a plan to me. Goodnight, Noah."

"Night, Rach."

~*~

References, notes about what Puck looked like at the awards and performance information here! (The post was too long to put it all here!)

~*~

A/N6: I hope you guys enjoyed. I've had this awards chapter in my head since July 2010 (I wrote the Olivia N-J scene then) and am so glad I have been able to share it with you all. Review and let me know!
A/N7: Out of the Blue just had it's second birthday in mid-October, which was my first ever Puckleberry fic written and I have many more to come. To all of my readers, thank you for everything! For supporting my writing, for reading, reviewing, praying for my family when we were going through rough times, your words of encouragement; all of it! I honestly can't thank you enough for how you guys have helped me out these past few years! You all are amazing, I love you and I hope you all will continue this journey with me!
A/N8: Any Terra Nova watchers out there? I love it and am shipping Reynolds and Maddy, Reynon. I just wrote and posted a short one-shot called 'Alright' and am going to continue to write fics for them, too, but I promise it won't take away from my Puckleberry fics; I just love them enough to write fics for them, too.

~*~