(Skin Deep) Chapter 2: Acceptance/Inked (2/10)

[keeper_of_stars]

Title: Skin Deep
Part: Chapter 2: Acceptance/Inked
Author: Squeeka Cuomo
Rating: PG-13
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Kurt/Puck, Kurt/OMC, OFC, OMC and appearances by the glee kids.
Author’s Note: This fic takes place both in the future and past.
- I know there are tons of spoilers out for the upcoming episodes. Please don’t post them in the comments.
Warning: Everything that has aired is considered fair game. There are spoilers if you haven’t seen through “Original Song.”
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: Seven years after graduation, Puck learns there are some wounds that are more than skin deep.

Skin Deep:


Skin DeepChapter 2: Acceptance/Inked

In which Kurt tries to act put out…

“That…” Puck paused to smirk down at Kurt. “Could have gone way worse.” He quirked one eyebrow before attacking Kurt’s pursed mouth with his own.

But from the look on Kurt’s face, Puck could tell he was not having it.

Putting his hands on Puck’s chest, Kurt pushed him back. Puck snorted, amused at Kurt attempting to look dignified. To Puck though, the effect was spoiled. Kurt was lying on lying on his bed, the top few buttons on his shirt undone and his hair a mess. Puck tried not to laugh at the sight, but he couldn’t help it. Kurt did not do rumpled indignation well.

“Noah! It’s not funny!” Kurt gave another shove on Puck’s chest. But it was half-hearted at best, and Puck didn’t even budge an inch. “You announced to the glee club that we’re sleeping together. Which, if I remember correctly, is not what we’d discussed. So now, of course, the whole school knows!” Kurt’s voice was irritated, but Puck could tell that he wasn’t really mad.

Not anymore anyway.

“But, babe -” When Kurt groaned in annoyance at the nickname, Puck smirked. “It’s totally true. We are.” Puck pressed down against the hands that were on his chest. Kurt didn’t even bother trying to resist. And Puck smiled as Kurt’s elbows bent and his arms slid securely around Puck’s neck. “And why wouldn’t I want everyone to know that you….” He pressed a kiss into Kurt’s forehead. “Are all….” This time, the kiss fell on his cheek. “Mine?” The last was placed against Kurt’s waiting mouth.

For the next few minutes, they simply explored with lips and teeth and tongues. But when Puck felt Kurt’s hands move down to the hem of his shirt, Puck pulled back.

Puck watched as Kurt’s eyes fluttered open in confusion. “Wh… why’d you stop?” His tone was breathy and made Puck want to pick right back up where they’d left off. But he had something else he needed to tell Kurt first.

However, he didn’t quite know how to go about that.

As Puck tried to think of what to say, he watched Kurt’s expression became more and more worried. Puck’s mind reeled as he tried to come up with just the right words. But no matter what he came up with, nothing seemed right. It all just seemed so lame and inadequate.

He wanted to think a little more, but Kurt looked like he was going to scream. So rather than wait any longer, Puck smiled a little. “Guess what?” It wasn’t brilliant, but it would have to do.

“What? Tell me!” Kurt’s words were strained. The slight trace of impending panic amused Puck.

Early on, Puck had learned that Kurt didn’t handle suspense well. It made him twitchy and irritable. And while Puck normally liked to draw things out for that very reason, he decided against it just this once. This was too big of a deal to play around with.

“I got into art school in California.” Puck tried to sound as humble as possible, but that didn’t change the fact that he was proud of himself. “I mean, yeah. Ok. It was open admissions. But still...”

“Noah!” Kurt’s face split into a wide smile, and he placed his right hand on Puck’s cheek. “That’s great. I told you you could do it.” Puck smiled as his boyfriend beamed up at him. “I’m so happy for you.” Puck turned his face into Kurt’s palm and placed a small kiss there. “And we can definitely make California and New York work. It’ll be easy.”

Puck smiled down at his boyfriend, suddenly aware of just how lucky he was to have him. Because if it hadn’t been for Kurt, Puck never would have applied to college, let alone art school, in the first place. No one had ever supported or encouraged him like Kurt had. Not even his own mom. That wasn’t to say that she didn’t take care of him or look out for him, but it just wasn’t the same.

She had to love him. Kurt didn’t.

With Kurt beaming up at him, Puck tried to think of something, anything to say. But nothing seemed right. He’d never been particularly good with words, always being more of a physical being.

Joy was high fives and man-hugs.

Anger was punches and shoving.

But contentment, joy, and pride… those required a different type of reaction.

A type that, when it came to Kurt, Puck only had one type of response for….

Giving up on words, Puck leaned forward pressed his mouth against Kurt’s once again.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
In which the blonde’s name is Biff…

The closer Puck got to Kurt and whoever the other guy was, the tenser Puck became. He could feel his shoulders pulling together and his jaw clenching painfully. At his sides, his fingers had curled into balls, and Puck shoved them into his pockets to hide the fists.

He tried to tell himself that it was unprofessional to let a client see him so worked up. But Puck knew that it had nothing to do with that and everything to do with Kurt’s presence.

Forget the fact that Kurt had stood him up only a week ago.

It had been seven years since they’d seen each other.

Seven. Years.

And yeah, Puck knew that after seven years of not hearing from Kurt or seeing him that he should have been over it. After all, he had a life, a job, an apartment, not to mention exes. He also knew that Kurt had to have the same. They’d both grown up and moved on with their lives after all.

But besides his accomplishments, Puck was a different person now. And most importantly, he liked the man he’d become.

He was no longer the stupid jock everyone feared or the guy that everyone drooled over. Now, he was Noah Puckerman - tattoo artist and all around cool guy. People were no longer afraid of him, and that was fine. And, ok… people did still swoon over him, but he didn’t mind that at all.

But the more Puck tried to convince himself of that…

The harder he tried to tell himself that seeing Kurt had no effect on him…

The louder the tiny voice in his head tried to tell him that he was an idiot. It then reminded him that they’d never officially broken up and that, therefore, their relationship had had no true resolution or ending. But the worst was when it reminded Puck of the fact that he still loved Kurt and that he probably always would.

Still walking, he tried to silence the voice, to tell it to get lost. Puck also tried to tell it that his reaction to Kurt was nostalgia and hormones.

Neither of those, however, explained the flash of pain that shot through his chest when Kurt turned and looked him in the eye.

Kurt’s gaze, clear and bright, caused Puck’s stomach to clench so painfully that his breath caught in his throat. And as he tried to breathe, Puck quickly took in Kurt’s appearance.

He had aged, that was for sure. His cheeks were no longer full and round like a child’s, though his cheeks bones were still tinged with red. Puck couldn’t help wonder if the flush was from seeing him or something that the blonde man with him had just said (or did). Other than that, Kurt’s hair was a little longer and hung in an artfully messy display over his forehead. He also looked a little taller and slimmer, not to mention slightly more muscular than he had been in high school.

And despite or most likely because of the changes, Kurt looked more beautiful than Puck could ever remember him being.

For a few moments, their gazes stayed locked. Puck was frozen in shock, but he could still read the recognition in Kurt’s expression. However, just as Puck opened his mouth to say something, Kurt turned to the man next to him.

Puck watched in silence as Kurt pressed his lips into the other man’s cheek. And even though it had been obvious that they were a couple, it still caused a dull sense of shock, hurt, and jealousy to flood through Puck’s body.

“Well, this here….” When Puck felt Sully’s strong hand clasp his shoulder, it took everything he possessed not to jump. He’d been so caught up in seeing Kurt that he’d completely forgotten that he was supposed to be working. “Is Noah. He’s one of the brightest new artists ever to come through here.” Puck didn’t need to see Sully’s face to know he was grinning with pride.

Normally, Puck would have sucked up that pride like an extra-absorbent sponge. But with Kurt there, looking at Sully, his blue eyes sparkling… Puck could barely stand it. It was like being stripped and laid bare in front of a jury. Because Puck knew that if it hadn’t been for Kurt… he’d never have gone to art school in the first place. And therefore, he’d never have become a tattoo artist.

It was because of Kurt that he was who he was and where he was.

But even though Puck knew he should have been thanking Kurt for that, he wanted nothing more than to run and hide from him and Sully.

He refused to give into the impulse though. He was an adult and a professional, and he refused to let his past get the best of him.

“Hey.” Puck raised his hand in a ridiculous mock wave of introduction. Normally, he’d have stepped forward and shaken his client’s hand. But Puck didn’t think he could handle that in front of Sully and the guy Kurt was with. As it was, Kurt had turned away from him, hadn’t acknowledged him, so Puck didn’t really know how Kurt wanted to handle things.

He was pretty sure though that Kurt intended to act like they’d never met before.

At all.

“Umh… hello.” The blonde man pulled his arm from around Kurt’s shoulders and extended his hand to Puck. With a chuckle he said, “I’m Biff.”

Puck reluctantly stepped forward and shook Biff’s hand, all the while trying not to snort at his name. Because really… Biff? Who named their kids Biff? Except rich yuppies that was.

Surprisingly enough, the blonde’s grip was strong, and Puck matched it with interest before letting go. With grim satisfaction, Puck noticed the man flex his fingers as if they hurt before wrapping himself around Kurt again.

“And this….” Biff gave Kurt’s shoulders a squeeze. As he did, Kurt smiled uncomfortably and dropped his eyes to the floor. “Is Kurt.”

“Cool.” The second the word was out of Puck’s mouth, he felt like a moron. But there was nothing else to say. He also wasn’t about to offer anything more than that to Kurt. “So… who’s here to get tattooed?”

As he asked the question, Puck heard Sully mumble something along the lines of, “You’ve got this,” before walking away. And even though he was still shook up, Puck knew his job and was confident in what he was doing.

When Biff’s face split into a wide (and slightly tipsy) grin, Puck felt himself relax even more. Right when he’d first seen them, he’d assumed that Biff would be the one wanting a tattoo.

After all, when they’d been together, Kurt had been completely against anything that left even a semi-permanent mark on his pale skin. So hickeys, biting, fingernails… they’d all been forbidden. That was why Sharpies had been so perfect. With a little scrubbing, the ink washed away.

It had been a great compromise.

So when Puck heard Biff say, “That would be Kurt,” Puck had to hide his shock.

Clenching his jaw together once, twice, he forced himself to stay calm and collected. It was a task that took almost all of his strength and composure. “Well, Kurt, what did you have in mind?” Even as he said the words, Puck could hardly believe them. For some reason, he almost felt betrayed by Kurt’s desire to mark up his body. Kurt had always been so… protective of his skin even though Puck had wanted nothing more than to see some physical reminder of his presence on Kurt’s flesh. Now here Kurt was, ready to permanently scar himself.

And it irritated Puck.

He knew it shouldn’t, but it did.

“Uh, here….” Puck turned his eyes from Kurt to Biff and watched as he dug around in his pocket. When he pulled his hand back out, he passed a small piece of paper that had been folded in half to Puck. “We found this online.”

Grateful for the excuse to look away from them, Puck unfolded the paper and looked down at it. The design was simple, cliché even - a heart made out of music clefs. Then to an angle off the bottom of the right side was a K that had been drawn on in Kurt’s familiar scrawl. Folding the paper back over and shoving it in his own pocket, Puck could barely believe that he still recognized Kurt’s handwriting.

“Alright. This is a pretty simple design. I don’t need time to make a stencil.” Puck shrugged a little. “I can just draw it on you.”

Puck watched as Kurt’s blue eyes widened fractionally. It was slight, but Puck had seen it. It wasn’t until then that he realized the implications of what he’d said. After all, he free handed designs on people all of the time. A lot of his customers were drunken girls wanting butterflies or hearts, and those were quick and easy to sketch on.

But Kurt wasn’t some cheap drunk girl stumbling around in the middle of the night with her friends. Their past was too deep, too filled with history for this to be casual. So to draw on his skin… to press the tip of the black Sharpie to his pale skin once again after so much time apart…

Puck wasn’t really sure if he could handle it.

And by the look of uncertainty on Kurt’s face, he didn’t look like he would be able to deal with it either.

Taking shallow breaths, Puck stood frozen, unsure of what to do. Well, he knew what she was supposed to do, but he couldn’t seem to make his mind or his feet work. Across from him, Kurt didn’t look any better. His eyes were trained on the floor once again, and his chest was rising and falling with labored breaths.

This time, unlike when they’d been introduced, Biff noticed that something was wrong.

Biff’s brown eyes flickered from his boyfriend to Puck. “You ok, babe?”

Hearing someone else refer to Kurt as ‘babe’ caused a twinge of jealousy to seep into Puck’s bones.

That had always been his name for Kurt, and he hated hearing it coming out of the blonde buffoon’s mouth.

“I have asked you not to call me that.” Kurt’s voice was low and dangerous, and Puck found himself having to fight back a satisfied smirk. “I can’t stand it.” Kurt purposely kept his eyes on Biff. But Puck could tell that he was having a hard time maintaining his focus.

“Sorry, Kurt.” Biff’s tone was embarrassed but not apologetic. “I was just wondering if you’d changed your mind about getting the tattoo.”

“No.” Kurt’s eyes hardened slightly as he looked from Biff to Puck. It was a look of resolve that Puck had seen many times before. Whenever Kurt had worn the expression, it had meant that he was facing a challenge and he wasn’t about to back down for anything.

“Alright.” For just a second, Puck met Kurt’s gaze, hoping to convey… something. He didn’t know what message he was trying to send or even if it was good, bad, or something in between. But he hoped that Kurt got it nonetheless.

By the look of complete ambivalence on Kurt’s face though, he either hadn’t or simply didn’t care.

Puck tried to hide the disappointment at Kurt’s lack of response. He also tried to bury the swirling eddy of emotions that had filled the moment he saw Kurt at the counter. If he managed to hide it though, Puck didn’t know. “Follow me.” Turning away from Kurt and Biff, Puck began the short walk back to his station. With each step he forced himself to swallow his feelings, to bury the past.

“So….” Puck’s voice trailed off as he tried to remember what he was supposed to be doing. It was like the sight of Kurt had erased the past seven years and he was back to being the mindless jock he’d been at McKinley. And he hated himself for it. He wasn’t that person anymore.

He couldn’t be.

“Yeah, so….” Biff’s voice, confused and slightly irritated, cut through Puck’s thoughts. And it wasn’t until Puck picked up on the hint of exasperation on the blonde’s face that he realized he’d been staring.

“Right.” Puck resisted the urge to run his hand over his mohawk, and for the first time in years, he wondered why he still had it. “Umh….” Breathing deeply, he forced himself to calm down and remember what came next. “Well….” He sat down on his stool and thought back to Sully’s lessons. “Where do you want it?”

“On….” The resolve Kurt had gathered up only minutes ago seemed to waver slightly. “On my hip.”

Puck’s eyebrows rose as he watched Kurt take a few steps towards him. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Biff moving, but Puck didn’t care what he was doing.

“Ok.” Puck swallowed. “I need you to undo your pants so I can see the area.” He felt stupid saying the words, because obviously Kurt would need to unzip his pants if he wanted a tattoo on his hip. But Puck had had to say something, and he wanted to try and remain professional. He knew that it was the only way he’d be able to get through this. Keep it clinical, unemotional.

Right?

As Kurt’s hands moved to his belt, Puck forced himself to take slow, deep breaths. He wasn’t seventeen anymore, and he couldn’t let Kurt undoing his pants affect him. But Puck continued to watch as Kurt’s fingers pulled at the strip of leather. But before he pulled it out of the buckle, Kurt’s eyes dropped to the floor. Kurt finished working the leather over the silver buckle, undoing it. Puck tried not to stare, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Kurt. He looked shy as he undid the button and then the zipper, almost as if he was sixteen again.

After sliding the zipper down, Kurt placed his hands on the open waist of his jeans. “Umh…” He tugged at them a little, as if trying to hide behind the fabric. “What, what do I do?”

Those simple movements brought back so many memories.

Memories that had long ago buried themselves in his subconscious.

Puck’s eyes fell to Kurt’s fingers, clutching at his clothing. As he stared, Puck remembered all of the times those same digits had been laced through his or slid beneath his football jersey. “I, uh….” Blinking a few times, Puck forced himself back into the here and now and away from those memories. “Lay down.”

While Kurt climbed onto the bench that Puck had cleaned not fifteen minutes earlier, Puck forced himself to look away. Biff, who had been moving around, apparently looking at the various posters and signs on the walls, had grabbed a stool from a nearby station and was now pulling it up next to Kurt.

Sitting down, Biff smiled at Kurt, and Puck officially decided that he didn’t like him.

At all.

It wasn’t that he was jealous of Biff or anything like that. But the guy’s overly blond hair, pale green polo shirt, and entitled (though drunken) attitude rubbed Puck the wrong way.

Hoping Biff wouldn’t try to start a conversation with him, Puck turned his attention back to Kurt. He was stretched out on the bench, a self-conscious expression on his face. Puck wanted to reassure him, tell him everything would be fine. But he couldn’t. Not just because of Biff, but because of their unresolved history as well. “Can you pull down the top of your pants? So I can get to the area?” As he waited, Puck pulled on a pair of black latex gloves, trying to use the time to clear his mind.

Still looking uncomfortable, Kurt pushed down the band of his jeans to expose his hips and the top band of deep blue briefs. The skin, so fair and soft, almost took Puck’s breath away as he gently swabbed the area, cleaning off excess oils and lotions. The touch, a fact of his job, pulled up reminders of minutes stolen in a broom closet and nights when he’d crawled through Kurt’s window. And as his heart began to race in response, Puck hated himself for not even being able to maintain his cool. After all, he and Kurt had been broken up for what felt like a lifetime.

Cursing himself, Puck spun back to his station. Taking a deep breath, he tossed the wet towel in the trash and grabbed his black Sharpie off of the small counter top.

Not ready to turn back around but unable to put if off any longer, Puck spun back to Kurt and Biff. And without a word, he placed his left hand on Kurt’s waist to steady himself. Taking one last deep breath, Puck pressed the tip of the marker into Kurt’s hip for the first time in seven years.

Chapter 3: Out/Initials

Squeeka Cuomo’s Notes
- I’m sorry about the delay. This was supposed to be up last night. Blame my net for dying and LJ for being lame.
- I’d like to thank everyone read and reviewed (or even just read) the first chapter. I’ve had this idea in my head since July 4, 2010. It’s great to see that people are enjoying it. :)
- Quack: Thank you so much for you dedication. But thank you even more for being such an awesome friend.
- Reviews are love.

Put Me Back Together
Chapter 1: Promises/Seven Years