Fic: "One Song Glory" 3/?
Title: One Song Glory
Author: Joyful
Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor Queer as Folk, and I make no money from this.
Summary: The Novotny-Bruckners move to Lima, and Hunter begins to attend school at William McKinley.
Rating: R (mostly for Hunter's dirty mouth and some mild sexual situation)
Spoilers/Timeline: Starts at the beginning of season 2, and will include some but not all plot points from season 2. It's going to deviate some from the canon plot of season 2. Matt didn't leave, so New Directions has 14 members.
Pairings: Hunter/Brittany and eventual Kurt/Sam, with various background pairings thrown in.
Notes: In case you don't know who Hunter is, watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ffy6bhdtl3E
All previous chapters can be found here:
http://www.tthfanfic.org/Story-24011/Joyful+One+Song+Glory.htm
Notes: This chapter is way too long, because I couldn't for the life of me figure out where to end it!
*****
Chapter 3
*****
Saturday was decent. Puck, Mike, Matt, Artie, Sam, Finn, Tina and Mercedes all showed up pretty early to help out. Rachel had family plans, and Kurt and the other girls all had cheerleading practice. Mercedes said she couldn't really care less about comic books, but she liked hanging out with her friends. She and Tina sang a lot while they moved stuff around, and the boys joined in when they knew the lyrics. Michael and Ben interacted with the kids some, but for the most part, they just talked about stuff. Hunter kept rolling his eyes every time Puck talked about how bad-ass he was. On one hand Hunter knew that Puck would get is ass kicked if he lived on the street or landed himself in juvie, and was tempted to tell him so. On the other hand, he didn't think he could bring it up without revealing his past.
“You think you're bad-ass?” Hunter asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Uh, duh. Nobody questions the badassness of the Puckasaurus,” Puck said. He was rewarded with a snort from Mercedes.
“Last year you shaved off your mohawk, and instead of dumpster-tossing nerds, they all ganged up and threw you in the dumpster. You had to date me to get your mojo back,” Mercedes pointed out.
“And I threw them all in the dumpster in return. Nobody dares question my bad-assness,” Puck said, crossing his arms.
“You're not bad-ass, you're just an asshole,” Hunter snapped at Puck. “You wouldn't last a night on the street before begging someone to take you in. You wouldn't last a day in the system, or in juvie. You're a fucking pathetic, entitled sorry excuse for a bully.” Hunter practically spat at Puck before catching Michael's eyes. He'd heard the fight and was coming over to intervene. “Michael, I'm taking a break. Can I have a cigarette?”
“You tell Ben I gave it to you and I'll ground you,” Michael said, pulling a pack from his pocket and handing it to Hunter. Ben knew his husband and son smoked occasionally, but still threw out any cigarettes he found in the house. He watched Hunter storm out, and considered following his son.
“He's not wrong,” Michael said. “You're exactly the kind of guy Hunter's been raised to stay away from. You're a jock and a bully. I'm considering throwing you out of my store, but I know you kids are teammates, so you'll have to work together. But if you say anything about throwing people into dumpsters again I will not hesitate to throw you out and ban your from the store.” He turned, and decided to join his son for a smoke.
“What did I do?” Puck asked. “All schools have a pecking order.”
“Dude,” Sam said. “When I was here for dinner, Kurt and Rachel were talking about dumpster tossing then, and Hunter and his grandma freaked out. Apparently, back in Pittsburgh, one of Hunter's friends was murdered and his body was thrown in a dumpster.”
“You idiot,” Tina said.
“It's not like I knew that,” Puck said.
“It's still a stupid thing to brag about, though,” Artie said. “Brag to the new kid and his gay dad that you like to bully people? You know how much Rachel gets bullied, you didn't think it would bug them?”
Ben Bruckner came inside the comic book shop with several bags of Chinese food. Tina and Sam quickly ran to help with the bags.
“So, has anyone seen my husband and son?” Ben asked.
“They went out back,” Finn said.
“Are they smoking?” Ben asked, rolling his eyes. “Never mind, don't bother telling me. Seriously, sometimes I think I have two kids.” Ben looked around the room and noticed the awkward tension. “Okay, kids, what happened?”
“Puck said some stuff about throwing nerds in dumpsters and Hunter blew up at him,” Sam explained.
“Which one's Puck?” Ben asked, looking around. Matt and Finn quickly pointed at Puck.
“I'd prefer you not talk about dumpsters in front of my son. He had a bad experience back in Pennsylvania, in which a good friend was found raped and murdered in a dumpster. Violence is very real to Hunter. You need to remember, when you make new friends, that not everyone has the same sense of humor as you, and it's respectful to learn about your friends,” Ben lectured, every bit his usual professor self. “You know, Lima is a very safe town, it's part of the reason we moved here, but violence, specifically violence born from bigotry, is very real for Hunter. For all of us. A couple of years ago, there was a bombing at a gay rights benefit we were at, and Michael was very nearly killed. Earlier that year, a friend of ours was brutally gay-bashed walking to his car, just because he was a drag queen. Hunter's friend Jason was raped, killed and thrown into a dumpster because he was gay. Hunter's little sister's lesbian moms moved to Toronto just so they'd feel safer, not long after the bombing. Hell, we moved here because people wanted to take Hunter away from us, just because we're gay. Now, Hunter tells me that at your school, the glee kids are at the bottom of the social ladder?”
“Yes, sir,” Mercedes said. “We all get teased.”
“Then you should understand how much it completely sucks, and not tease each other,” Ben pointed out as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. The kids looked at him like they'd never thought of such a thing before. “Now, who wants lunch? I got a whole bunch of different dishes.”
*****
“Dude, sorry I was such an ass before,” Puck said.
“It's alright,” Hunter said, “I'm an ass too. I just really don't like dumpsters, and I think throwing people in them is the stupidest thing ever. This town is really weird. Since when is it cool to brag about bullying nerds? I mean, with most of the people I know they'd brag about how many people they've fucked, or the weirdest place they've gotten laid. Or what celebrities they know, of the craziest shit they've ever done, but who the fuck brags about throwing kids into dumpsters or throwing fucking slushies at people?”
“You swear a lot,” Tina observed before Puck had the chance to speak up.. “I mean, you seem really nice and really smart, and you helped me on my history paper, but you curse a lot.”
“Girl's got a point, Hunter. Watch your fucking mouth,” Michael advised.
. The statement served as an tension-breaker and everyone laughed.
“So who's this Rage character I keep seeing everywhere?” Artie asked, changing the subject.
“He's the Gay Crusader,” Ben said, “Michael writes the comic book.”
“A gay superhero?” Finn asked, “Really?”
“Yeah. Do you remember Captain Astro?” Michael asked, and Finn furrowed his brow, while Matt and Artie nodded. “Well, he was sort of ambiguously gay. And gay kids need heroes too, right?” Michael asked.
“Duh,” Tina said, smiling.
“Anyway, after they killed off Captain Astro, people kept coming into my shop looking for a gay hero to replace him. This is before the Runaways and Young Avengers were well-known, and I didn't have a gay superhero to point them towards. So my best friend's partner is an artist, and he and I came up with the idea of Rage, who'd based on my friend,” Michael said.
“What kind of stuff does he do?” Tina asked. “Is he like Batman?”
“He has mind control powers and some gadgets and things. He rescues kids from gay-bashers and keeps Gayopolis safe,” Hunter grinned.
“Mr. Bruckner,” Mercedes said, “What do you do for a living?”
“Please call me Ben,” he insisted, smiling at the girl. “I write books, and I'm a university professor.”
“What do you teach?” Tina asked.
“Well, this semester they've got me covering English 101 and a creative writing workshop, in addition to a class on Queer Theory,” Ben smiled. “Have you kids started thinking about colleges yet?”
“They're just juniors, Ben,” Michael said. “Don't push. They don't really want to talk to us anyway.”
“But we're the cool dads, right?” Ben asked.
“You'd be a lot cooler if you raised my allowance,” Hunter said. “Then I could maybe take Brittany somewhere nicer than the roller rink.”
“But the roller rink is awesome,” Tina said, and Mike and Finn agreed.
“Where the hell did we move to?” Michael asked, “Stepford?”
Everyone laughed. After they finished their Chinese food they went back to arranging the store. Hunter got back to work organizing comic books when the cover of a Spiderman comic slipped and sliced through Hunter's index finger.
“Ben,” Hunter said, his voice guarded. “I need a tissue. Paper cut.”
“Put your finger in your mouth,” Tina suggested, “That's what I do.”
“Do you have any idea how much bacteria is in your mouth?” Ben asked as he quickly showed up next to Hunter with some tissues.
“There's a first aid kit in the bathroom,” Michael said, “Go get a band-aid.”
“There's bacteria in your mouth?” Finn asked, worried.
“The human mouth is filthy,” Ben said. “Even if you brush your teeth four times a day, if you get saliva in a cut you can get an infection.”
“That's really gross,” Mercedes said.
“Humans are disgusting creatures,” Ben agreed. Hunter came back out of the bathroom with his finger wrapped in a band-aid, and nobody noticed Ben carefully pick up the comic book and take it into the next room where he put it in a plastic bag, along with the bloody tissues.
Everyone continued working at organizing the shop until Kurt, Brittany, Santana and Quinn showed up when their Cheerios tasks were completed.
“Ben, Michael, I want you to meet Brittany,” Hunter introduced. “Brittany, these are my dads.”
“Hi!” Brittany smiled.
“So, Brittany, you're a cheerleader?” Ben asked. Obviously she was, since she was still wearing her cheerleading uniform. At the other side of the store, Michael was paying the kids who'd come to help out. Santana and Puck were making out under a giant poster of the X-Men, Quinn and Mercedes were talking, and Kurt was talking to Sam about something.
“Yep,” she said, giving him a big smile.
“Where are you two going tonight?” Ben asked.
“Just to the movies, then out to dinner,” Hunter said. Ben handed him some money.
“Do you have your cell phone?” Ben asked. Hunter held it out as proof before sticking it in his pocket. “You have condoms?”
“Yes, Ben,” Hunter nodded.
“Home by 2,” Ben directed.
“Got it,” Hunter grinned, slipped his arm around Brittany's waist and headed out the door,
“Your dad just asks if you have condoms and then lets you stay out until 2?” Santana asks as he walks with Brittany out to her car.
“Yep,” Hunter said. “Come on, Brittany, let's go.”
“Okay,” Brittany said.
*****
Their date was pretty awesome. Hunter liked to listen to Brittany talk. She wasn't the smartest girl in the world, but she was really creative, and if you just let her speak without interrupting her some really beautiful things came out of her mouth, especially when she described her perception s of things. It turned out, he learned after talking to her, that she wasn't as stupid as people thought she was, but that she had a sensory-processing condition called synasthesia, which caused her senses to mix things up, so that her mind interpreted different sounds as feeling and saw different shapes as colors, and other things like that.
“I'm not stupid,” Brittany said firmly, “Though I say dumb things sometimes. I just see things differently.”
“I think you're seriously awesome,” Hunter said. After the movie and dinner, they made their way back to the backseat of Brittany's car again. They made out for a while, getting seriously hot and heavy before Brittany's hand moved to the bulge between Hunter's legs.
“Brittany, before we do that, I have to tell you something,” Hunter said.
“What?” Brittany asked.
Hunter took a deep breath. He really liked this girl, but he knew he had to tell her if he wanted to have sex with her. “I'm positive.”
She cocked her head to the side. “Really? I thought I was positive once, but then Santana told me that you can't take a pregnancy test with apple juice even if you don't have to pee. But...wait, you're a boy. You can't get pregnant.”
“No, Brittany, I'm not pregnant,” Hunter said. “I have HIV.”
“What's that?” Brittany asked.
“It's a disease in my blood. I'm not sick right now, but if we have sex we have to use condoms, or you could get it too,” Hunter explained, finding himself concerned that a sixteen-year-old, sexually active girl didn't know what HIV was.
“Oh, okay,” Brittany said. “But you're not sick?”
“Not right now. But I'll get sick someday, so I don't want to give it to you. Can you keep this a secret?” Hunter asked.
“Sure,” Brittany said. “How did you get it?”
Hunter looked at her. He had kept this from Callie, and she'd broken up with him over it. He didn't want to get serious with Brittany only to have her find out later and break up with him then. Best to put all the cards on the table now.
“Before Ben and Michael adopted me, I lived on the street. I didn't have any money, and I couldn't get a job, so I had sex for money,” Hunter explained.
“Like Pretty Woman?” Brittany asked.
“Kind of,” Hunter said. “I used to fuck guys for money. I'm not gay, though, I really like girls, and I really like you, Brittany. Are you seriously grossed out?”
“Why would I be?” Brittany asked. “I like you. And sex is fun, and nice, and if you can get paid for something you do well, what's so wrong about that? And I have sex with girls sometimes, but I'm not gay.”
“You know, you're seriously the most amazing girl I've ever met,” Hunter said. “Wanna be my girlfriend?”
“Well, let's have sex first,” Brittany said. “'Cause if the sex is really terrible than we might not want to be exclusive. But if the sex is good, I'll be your girlfriend.”
Hunter couldn't argue with her logic so he kissed her again. Brittany was pretty much the most perfect girl he'd ever met. She was hot, talented, interesting, sexually-liberated, and she didn't care about his past. Hunter lost himself in her kiss. Afterward, they both agreed that the sex was pretty damn good, and Brittany happily agreed to be Hunter's girlfriend. It was a good arrangement for both of them: Brittany promised not to tell anyone that he was HIV-positive, or that he used to be a prostitute, and Hunter promised not to laugh at her when she told him her deepest thoughts, even if they were weird. It was a match made in heaven.
*****
Hunter was unimpressed when Finn wanted to sing about Jesus. He wasn't surprised when Kurt spoke up, and agreed with what Kurt had to say about church. Sam also looked uncomfortable at the mention of singing about spirituality. But before Hunter had the chance to speak up, Puck was on his feet, singing a Billy Joel song. When Puck hit the first chorus, Hunter leaned over to whisper in Kurt's ear.
“Think of it this way. According to their philosophy, you and I will live forever.”
At least Kurt cracked a smiled. Brittany pulled him to his feet to dance with her, although Hunter definitely didn't dance the same way the glee kids did. Of course, before glee club the only dancing Hunter had done was at Babylon.
“I'm not really into church either,” Hunter said to Kurt as glee practice let out.
“You're not?” Kurt asked.
“Me neither,” Sam said. “I went when I was little, but I don't really know what I believe in now.”
“Hey babe, walk me to Cheerios?” Brittany asked Hunter, slipping her hand into his.
“Sure,” Hunter smiled, walking his girlfriend down the hall, leaving Kurt and Sam alone in the glee room.
*****
When Hunter heard about Kurt's dad, he was really worried about the guy. He knew that it was just Kurt and his dad at home, so he called Michael during lunch and asked if Kurt could stay with them. When he got to glee club, the occasional desire he had to punch Finn Hudson was back again. Then Mercedes asked to sing a song for Kurt, about God. Hunter kind of wanted to punch everyone. When Kurt said he didn't believe in God, Hunter was surprised at how angry everyone seemed. Was it that much of a shock?
“Hey Kurt, wait,” Hunter said, as Kurt started to storm out.
“What, Hunter?” Kurt asked.
“Um, since your dad's in the hospital my dads said you should come stay with us until he's better, okay?”
“Um, okay,” Kurt said, surprised by the offer.
“I don't have swim practice today, so let's go to your house and pack a bag so you can come stay at mine.”
“Okay,” Kurt said.
“Can we take your car?” Hunter asked.
“Sure,” Kurt said. He seemed a little more relaxed with a firm destination in mind. They went to Kurt's house and packed some things before stopping at the hospital to check on Mr. Hummel. Then they went to the Novotny-Bruckner household where Ben had made one of his health food concoctions that Hunter turned his nose up at, and Kurt seemed to enjoy.
“We've made up the guest room for you, Kurt,” Ben said. “And I want you to feel welcome here as long as you need to.”
“Thank you, Mr. Bruckner,” Kurt said.
“Please, call me Ben,” he smiled.
“So, how was school today?” Michael asked.
“Well, nobody bullied me today, so that's a start,” Kurt said.
“I don't know,” Hunter said. “I think forcing God down our throats in glee club should count.”
“Forcing God down your throats?” Ben asked.
“Some of the Glee kids want to spend the week singing about Jesus and God and stuff,” Kurt said. “They got mad when I said I don't believe in God.”
“Ignore them,” Hunter said.
“What really sucks, is that I could really use my BFF right now, but she's too busy being offended that I don't believe in her Jesus,” Kurt sighed into his salad.
“Look, Kurt, we're not going to tell you 'everything's going to be okay',” Ben said, “Because nobody knows that for sure, and we know that better than anyone. But we'll be there for you. If the worst happens, know you have a home with us if you need one. But have faith in your dad. He's gotta be a strong man to have raised such a great kid. Have faith in him.”
“Thanks,” Kurt said.
Hunter's watch alarm beeped, and Hunter stood up, leaving unexcused. When he came back, he looked at Kurt.
“Do you shower in the morning or at night?” Hunter asked Kurt.
“In the morning,” Kurt said.
“Okay. I'll shower before bed, then, to leave more time for yours. Brittany's coming over, though, so I can help her with her homework.”
“Brittany does homework?” Kurt asked, surprised.
“Of course,” Hunter said. “She's not stupid, she just sees the world differently.”
“If you say so,” Kurt shrugged. “I have a lot of homework yourself, though, can you point me toward the guest room?”
“Sure,” Hunter said. HE showed Kurt to the guest room, then Brittany came over and Hunter helped her with her History homework. Then they cuddled on the couch for a while, watching American Idol, and Kurt joined them. Eventually Brittany went home and Hunter went off to take a shower before bed.
*****
The next glee practice all hell broke loose. Coach Sue had registered a formal complaint about Mr. Schue pushing religion at public school using Kurt as the basis of her complaint. And Kurt's friends weren't happy about it.
“Look, Kurt,” Mercedes said. “We're sympathetic to what you're going through but siding with Miss Sylvester isn't going to do anyone any good.”
“Oh no?” Hunter asked. “Tell me, Mercedes, what good are you doing Kurt? What good is your God doing Kurt? Did anyone stop and ask Kurt where he was sleeping while his dad is sick? Who was feeding him? How he was feeling? No, you're too busy worrying about his soul.”
“Hey, believing in God helps people. I had a very rough years,” Quinn said again, “And my faith and prayers got me through.”
“Good for you,” Hunter said. “You got yourself through your pregnancy, Quinn, not God. Prayer doesn't do shit.”
“You don't know that, Hunter,” Mercedes said. “And I think you're being rude.”
Hunter could not take these preppy Jesus girls any longer. They didn't know a damn thing about anything. And as much as Hunter had planned on keeping his 'troubled past' to himself, he just couldn't do it anymore.
“Where was God when I was ten years old, and my mom, high off her ass, decided to lock me in a closet for a week because I kept asking for food? Where was God when my bitch of a mother stabbed my father for cheating on her? Where was God when my foster father beat me so hard he broke my arm? Where was your precious God when I was fourteen years old and living on the fucking street? Sleeping under park benches and in stairwells and doorways in the middle of winter? Huh? When I prayed, over and over again that God would save me, would get me out of the fucking hell I was living in?” Hunter was screaming in Mercedes' face, and he knew he needed to stop. She pissed him off, yeah, but she didn't deserve all of his anger. Mercedes looked like she had just been slapped. Brittany looked at him like a deer in the headlights. Quinn and Tina looked like they wanted to cry. Sam got between Hunter and Mercedes, putting his hand on the other boy's shoulder to calm him down.
“C'mon, dude, it's okay,” Sam said. Rachel ran to the side of the raging teen, though Finn tried to stop her.
“Hunter, calm down,” Rachel said. “Maybe you should go home.”
“Maybe,” Hunter said, taking deep breaths. “Yeah, home. I'll go do that.” He stopped and leveled his eyes at Quinn, then Finn, Tina and Mercedes. “If you guys want to believe in God or Jesus go ahead, it's your life, believe what you want. Just don't try to push that stuff at me because I know it's bullshit. Besides, the law says you can't push that shit at school.” Hunter took a deep breath and walked out of the room. Kurt left not long after, and Sam followed him.
“Did you know that stuff about Hunter, Rachel?” Mercedes asked.
Rachel nodded. “His life was, like, really bad before Uncle Ben found him. Like, Lifetime movie of the week bad, but I'm not supposed to bring it up unless he does first. And I'm not supposed to tell anyone either.”
“We won't ask you to violate Hunter's trust, Rachel,” Mr. Schue said. “But he's not wrong. I understand that you'd like to explore your spirituality and beliefs, but this country does have separation of church and state. So if Kurt and Hunter don't want to believe in God, don't try to make them, okay?”
*****
“Hunter, want a lift home?” Kurt asked as he and Sam followed after the other boy.
“Okay,” Hunter said. “Everyone must think I'm crazy now, huh? I shouldn't have gotten in Mercedes' face like that.”
“It's understandable. What you said...” Sam trailed off. “Most of the kids here are pretty sheltered. I'm slightly more worldly but only 'cause I'm a Brat and I've moved a lot. These kids live in suburban Ohio, their only connection to the stuff that happened to you is watching movies and stuff.”
“I know. I just wanna text Brittany, so she knows I'm not mad at her,” Hunter said, taking out his phone. “I'll apologize to Mercedes later. I was out of line.”
“Let's just take you home,” Kurt said. “You wanna come with us, Sam?”
“Sure. I could do with hanging out a bit before football tonight. And I can walk back to the school from Hunter's house, it's not far,” Sam said.
As they walked down the hall, Hunter noticed Sam put a hand on Kurt's shoulder. Kurt flinched away at first, but then turned his head and gave Sam a smile. Hunter hoped that Sam had the guts to come out soon, because he and Kurt were good for each other.
“Are you guys going to come to the game tonight?” Sam asked as they climbed into Kurt's Navigator.
“I need to stop by the garage, and then I'm going to sit with my dad,” Kurt said. “The acupuncturist is going to give it another try. But I should be at the game in time to cheer.”
“I'm coming,” Hunter said. “Brittany's cheering, so I should be a good boyfriend.”
“Brittany's different with you,” Kurt mused. “I mean, we all thought she was just going out with you to keep her perfect record, but you really like her, don't you?”
“I do,” Hunter said. “She has some really awesome theories about stuff. I love listening to her talk.”
“Most guys don't want a relationship with her, because she's “easy,”” Kurt pointed out.
“I don't care about that,” Hunter said. “I grew up in the gay community, my dads and most of their friends have been with dozens, and even hundreds of partners. I know a guy who's literally slept with thousands of men. The fact that she's kissed all the boys in school and most of the girls honestly doesn't bug me. I think it's kinda hot. As long as all the sex she has is her choice, more power to her for being so sure of herself.”
“I like how you think about things, Hunter,” Kurt said. “Brittany loves her perfect record. Actually, Sam, I'm, surprised Brittany hasn't tried to kiss you yet,” Kurt said.
“She did,” Sam said. “The first week at school. I gave her a quick peck, but I wasn't interested in more.” Sam stared a Kurt while they drove. Kurt pulled into the Novotny- Bruckner driveway. He turned off the ignition and stared back at Sam.
“That's it,” Hunter said, grabbing his bag and opening the door. “If the two of you don't shack up by Homecoming I am busting down that closet door, Sam, and pulling you out forcibly. Stay, in the car, both of you, and talk.” Hunter didn't turn back to look at the two boys, who he knew were both blushing. It was obvious to anyone who looked clearly that they liked each other. Hunter didn't get why Sam was so scared.
*****
Sam sat in the car looking at Kurt.
“I do like you,” Sam said. “I'm just not sure how yet.”
“Sam, do you have any desire to date any of the girls at school?” Kurt asked.
Sam shook his head.
“Have you ever wanted to make out with a girl?” Kurt asked quietly.
Sam shook his head again.
“Do you want to kiss me?” Kurt asked quietly.
Sam nodded.
Kurt leaned forward slowly, and pressed their lips together. Sam kissed him back gently, and then they broke apart.
“I'm not ready to come out,” Sam said. “But that was nice.”
“It was,” Kurt agreed. “I'm not going to wait forever, Sam, but I can wait a little while.”
“Thanks,” Sam smile. “I'm gonna go hang out with Hunter. Go visit your dad.”
“Okay,” Kurt said. “I'll see you at the game tonight.”
“Yeah,” Sam nodded. He leaned over and gave Kurt another quick kiss before getting out of the Navigator and going into Hunter's house. Sam heard the car pull out as he opened the door.
“Well, you look like the cat that ate the canary,” Hunter said.
“We kissed,” Sam said, his face bright red.
“Good for you,” Hunter said. “Why are you so scared of coming out, anyway?”
“My dad,” Sam said. “He's a big tough Army man. Always pushing me to be a man.”
“I know the type,” Hunter said. “But let me just tell you, the world won't end if you say, 'I'm gay,' out loud. I promise.”
Sam looked around, it was just him and Hunter in the living room. He looked at Hunter. Hunter was older, and apart from the freak-out he'd had during glee club today always seemed to know what was going on. Hunter had been a good friend to him since he started at McKinley. Hunter wouldn't beat him up. Sam looked at Hunter and took a deep breath.
“I'm gay.”
“I know,” Hunter said. “Wanna work on English homework until the game?”
“Sure,” Sam said. And he felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders.
****
Hunter honestly didn't care that much about football. He understood the rules because Drew Boyd and Carl had explained them to him. And he loved watching the Cheerios shake their asses on the sidelines. Brittany was so flexible, Hunter's mind was racing full of ideas of things they could try in bed. Hunter knew that he probably had more sexual experience than Brittany, Santana and Puck combined, but it had almost all been with older men. He looked around at his new friends: Tina, Rachel and Mercedes in the stands, Mike, Matt, Sam, Puck, Finn and Artie down on the field, Quinn, Santana, Brittany and Kurt on the Cheerios. Would they still want to be his friend if they found out he used to be a prostitute? If they knew he was HIV-positive? If his secrets became exposed, would he become a pariah here, like he had been at his old school? Hunter didn't know, but he was also pretty sure he didn't want to find out.
Hunter watched Brittany dance around some more. He saw two of the male Cheerios throw her up in the air, and she did a back-flip before landing perfectly on her feet with her hands in the air. He knew she wasn't a super-genius or anything, and she was, to use the common vernacular, 'kinda slutty' but she genuinely liked him, and he really liked her. She always made him feel good, and when she smiled at him, his stomach twisted in knots. Hunter was thinking about Brittany when one of the opposing team members slammed into Sam, and Sam didn't get up again.
*****
Hunter wanted to hit Mr. Schue when he congratulated Finn for being quarterback again. Sam was sitting in the back of the room with his arm in a sling, looking miserable. But then Kurt showed up and started singing for his dad. Hunter felt his heart break for the boy. Hunter's own relationships with his parents were complicated. His biological dad was a drunken, abusive asshole who used to beat both him and his mother. His mother was an abusive, crazy, druggie who tried to kill his father, and pimped Hunter out starting at the age of 12. Hunter thought that if his parents died, he'd actually be relieved. But if he had loved his parents, like Kurt loved his, it would probably be hard. Hunter imagined losing Ben or Michael, and immediately had to push the thought aside. Too scary.
*****
“Mercedes wants me to go to church with her on Sunday,” Kurt said over dinner.
“Do you want to go?” Ben asked.
“I don't know,” Kurt said. “She's my best friend, and I hate that there's this distance between us. But I can't pretend to believe in a God I don't believe in. But I told her I'd go, and I'm a man of my word.”
“I hate church,” Hunter said. “It's all a bunch of bullshit.”
“Believing in God helps people get through things,” Michael said.
“I just hate those people who try to tell you everything happens for a reason,” Hunter glowered into his food.
“Agreed,” Kurt nodded.
“Well, when I was sick, prayer and meditation helped me,” Ben said.
“When were you sick?” Kurt asked.
“A few years ago,” Ben said. “I'm HIV-positive. I got really sick a few years ago, but I'm doing okay now.”
“Oh,” Kurt said. “I didn't know.”
“Well, it's not something I advertise, but it's not a secret.” Ben smiled at Kurt.
“That really sucks,” Kurt said. He looked at Michael, “Do you have it?”
“No,” Michael said. “We're very careful. I get tested regularly, and so far, knock on wood, I'm still negative.”
“I don't really know what to say, other than that really sucks,” Kurt said.
“That's the standard reaction,” Hunter said.
“If you don't mind,” Kurt said, “I'm going to go visit my dad for a bit. The nurses usually let me stay past visiting hours.”
“Understandable,” Ben said, and Michael agreed.
“Your phone's buzzing again,” Hunter said.
“Just texts from Sam. I swear, his spelling is even worse when he only has one hand to use,” Kurt said.
“I think that explains the internet,” Hunter said, and everyone laughed. Then Kurt go up to text his dad.
*****
When they got the news that Burt had woken up, Hunter was really happy for his friend. And he was glad that Kurt and Mercedes had made up, even if Mercedes bugged him sometimes. Hunter was very glad for his friends. The whole glee club was cool, but Hunter was starting to develop quite a kinship with Kurt, Sam and Brittany. Rachel was family, and a pretty decent friend, and Hunter was even getting used to Finn, though it bugged Hunter that Finn didn't seem to realize how homophobic he could be. Oh well, straight guys, what could you do? It struck Hunter as odd, from time to time, that even though he was dating a girl, and having lots of sex with said girl, he didn't usually think of himself as a 'straight guy.' Oh well, that was a ponderance for another day.
*End 3*
Author: Joyful
Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor Queer as Folk, and I make no money from this.
Summary: The Novotny-Bruckners move to Lima, and Hunter begins to attend school at William McKinley.
Rating: R (mostly for Hunter's dirty mouth and some mild sexual situation)
Spoilers/Timeline: Starts at the beginning of season 2, and will include some but not all plot points from season 2. It's going to deviate some from the canon plot of season 2. Matt didn't leave, so New Directions has 14 members.
Pairings: Hunter/Brittany and eventual Kurt/Sam, with various background pairings thrown in.
Notes: In case you don't know who Hunter is, watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ffy6bhdtl3E
All previous chapters can be found here:
http://www.tthfanfic.org/Story-24011/Joyful+One+Song+Glory.htm
Notes: This chapter is way too long, because I couldn't for the life of me figure out where to end it!
*****
Chapter 3
*****
Saturday was decent. Puck, Mike, Matt, Artie, Sam, Finn, Tina and Mercedes all showed up pretty early to help out. Rachel had family plans, and Kurt and the other girls all had cheerleading practice. Mercedes said she couldn't really care less about comic books, but she liked hanging out with her friends. She and Tina sang a lot while they moved stuff around, and the boys joined in when they knew the lyrics. Michael and Ben interacted with the kids some, but for the most part, they just talked about stuff. Hunter kept rolling his eyes every time Puck talked about how bad-ass he was. On one hand Hunter knew that Puck would get is ass kicked if he lived on the street or landed himself in juvie, and was tempted to tell him so. On the other hand, he didn't think he could bring it up without revealing his past.
“You think you're bad-ass?” Hunter asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Uh, duh. Nobody questions the badassness of the Puckasaurus,” Puck said. He was rewarded with a snort from Mercedes.
“Last year you shaved off your mohawk, and instead of dumpster-tossing nerds, they all ganged up and threw you in the dumpster. You had to date me to get your mojo back,” Mercedes pointed out.
“And I threw them all in the dumpster in return. Nobody dares question my bad-assness,” Puck said, crossing his arms.
“You're not bad-ass, you're just an asshole,” Hunter snapped at Puck. “You wouldn't last a night on the street before begging someone to take you in. You wouldn't last a day in the system, or in juvie. You're a fucking pathetic, entitled sorry excuse for a bully.” Hunter practically spat at Puck before catching Michael's eyes. He'd heard the fight and was coming over to intervene. “Michael, I'm taking a break. Can I have a cigarette?”
“You tell Ben I gave it to you and I'll ground you,” Michael said, pulling a pack from his pocket and handing it to Hunter. Ben knew his husband and son smoked occasionally, but still threw out any cigarettes he found in the house. He watched Hunter storm out, and considered following his son.
“He's not wrong,” Michael said. “You're exactly the kind of guy Hunter's been raised to stay away from. You're a jock and a bully. I'm considering throwing you out of my store, but I know you kids are teammates, so you'll have to work together. But if you say anything about throwing people into dumpsters again I will not hesitate to throw you out and ban your from the store.” He turned, and decided to join his son for a smoke.
“What did I do?” Puck asked. “All schools have a pecking order.”
“Dude,” Sam said. “When I was here for dinner, Kurt and Rachel were talking about dumpster tossing then, and Hunter and his grandma freaked out. Apparently, back in Pittsburgh, one of Hunter's friends was murdered and his body was thrown in a dumpster.”
“You idiot,” Tina said.
“It's not like I knew that,” Puck said.
“It's still a stupid thing to brag about, though,” Artie said. “Brag to the new kid and his gay dad that you like to bully people? You know how much Rachel gets bullied, you didn't think it would bug them?”
Ben Bruckner came inside the comic book shop with several bags of Chinese food. Tina and Sam quickly ran to help with the bags.
“So, has anyone seen my husband and son?” Ben asked.
“They went out back,” Finn said.
“Are they smoking?” Ben asked, rolling his eyes. “Never mind, don't bother telling me. Seriously, sometimes I think I have two kids.” Ben looked around the room and noticed the awkward tension. “Okay, kids, what happened?”
“Puck said some stuff about throwing nerds in dumpsters and Hunter blew up at him,” Sam explained.
“Which one's Puck?” Ben asked, looking around. Matt and Finn quickly pointed at Puck.
“I'd prefer you not talk about dumpsters in front of my son. He had a bad experience back in Pennsylvania, in which a good friend was found raped and murdered in a dumpster. Violence is very real to Hunter. You need to remember, when you make new friends, that not everyone has the same sense of humor as you, and it's respectful to learn about your friends,” Ben lectured, every bit his usual professor self. “You know, Lima is a very safe town, it's part of the reason we moved here, but violence, specifically violence born from bigotry, is very real for Hunter. For all of us. A couple of years ago, there was a bombing at a gay rights benefit we were at, and Michael was very nearly killed. Earlier that year, a friend of ours was brutally gay-bashed walking to his car, just because he was a drag queen. Hunter's friend Jason was raped, killed and thrown into a dumpster because he was gay. Hunter's little sister's lesbian moms moved to Toronto just so they'd feel safer, not long after the bombing. Hell, we moved here because people wanted to take Hunter away from us, just because we're gay. Now, Hunter tells me that at your school, the glee kids are at the bottom of the social ladder?”
“Yes, sir,” Mercedes said. “We all get teased.”
“Then you should understand how much it completely sucks, and not tease each other,” Ben pointed out as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. The kids looked at him like they'd never thought of such a thing before. “Now, who wants lunch? I got a whole bunch of different dishes.”
*****
“Dude, sorry I was such an ass before,” Puck said.
“It's alright,” Hunter said, “I'm an ass too. I just really don't like dumpsters, and I think throwing people in them is the stupidest thing ever. This town is really weird. Since when is it cool to brag about bullying nerds? I mean, with most of the people I know they'd brag about how many people they've fucked, or the weirdest place they've gotten laid. Or what celebrities they know, of the craziest shit they've ever done, but who the fuck brags about throwing kids into dumpsters or throwing fucking slushies at people?”
“You swear a lot,” Tina observed before Puck had the chance to speak up.. “I mean, you seem really nice and really smart, and you helped me on my history paper, but you curse a lot.”
“Girl's got a point, Hunter. Watch your fucking mouth,” Michael advised.
. The statement served as an tension-breaker and everyone laughed.
“So who's this Rage character I keep seeing everywhere?” Artie asked, changing the subject.
“He's the Gay Crusader,” Ben said, “Michael writes the comic book.”
“A gay superhero?” Finn asked, “Really?”
“Yeah. Do you remember Captain Astro?” Michael asked, and Finn furrowed his brow, while Matt and Artie nodded. “Well, he was sort of ambiguously gay. And gay kids need heroes too, right?” Michael asked.
“Duh,” Tina said, smiling.
“Anyway, after they killed off Captain Astro, people kept coming into my shop looking for a gay hero to replace him. This is before the Runaways and Young Avengers were well-known, and I didn't have a gay superhero to point them towards. So my best friend's partner is an artist, and he and I came up with the idea of Rage, who'd based on my friend,” Michael said.
“What kind of stuff does he do?” Tina asked. “Is he like Batman?”
“He has mind control powers and some gadgets and things. He rescues kids from gay-bashers and keeps Gayopolis safe,” Hunter grinned.
“Mr. Bruckner,” Mercedes said, “What do you do for a living?”
“Please call me Ben,” he insisted, smiling at the girl. “I write books, and I'm a university professor.”
“What do you teach?” Tina asked.
“Well, this semester they've got me covering English 101 and a creative writing workshop, in addition to a class on Queer Theory,” Ben smiled. “Have you kids started thinking about colleges yet?”
“They're just juniors, Ben,” Michael said. “Don't push. They don't really want to talk to us anyway.”
“But we're the cool dads, right?” Ben asked.
“You'd be a lot cooler if you raised my allowance,” Hunter said. “Then I could maybe take Brittany somewhere nicer than the roller rink.”
“But the roller rink is awesome,” Tina said, and Mike and Finn agreed.
“Where the hell did we move to?” Michael asked, “Stepford?”
Everyone laughed. After they finished their Chinese food they went back to arranging the store. Hunter got back to work organizing comic books when the cover of a Spiderman comic slipped and sliced through Hunter's index finger.
“Ben,” Hunter said, his voice guarded. “I need a tissue. Paper cut.”
“Put your finger in your mouth,” Tina suggested, “That's what I do.”
“Do you have any idea how much bacteria is in your mouth?” Ben asked as he quickly showed up next to Hunter with some tissues.
“There's a first aid kit in the bathroom,” Michael said, “Go get a band-aid.”
“There's bacteria in your mouth?” Finn asked, worried.
“The human mouth is filthy,” Ben said. “Even if you brush your teeth four times a day, if you get saliva in a cut you can get an infection.”
“That's really gross,” Mercedes said.
“Humans are disgusting creatures,” Ben agreed. Hunter came back out of the bathroom with his finger wrapped in a band-aid, and nobody noticed Ben carefully pick up the comic book and take it into the next room where he put it in a plastic bag, along with the bloody tissues.
Everyone continued working at organizing the shop until Kurt, Brittany, Santana and Quinn showed up when their Cheerios tasks were completed.
“Ben, Michael, I want you to meet Brittany,” Hunter introduced. “Brittany, these are my dads.”
“Hi!” Brittany smiled.
“So, Brittany, you're a cheerleader?” Ben asked. Obviously she was, since she was still wearing her cheerleading uniform. At the other side of the store, Michael was paying the kids who'd come to help out. Santana and Puck were making out under a giant poster of the X-Men, Quinn and Mercedes were talking, and Kurt was talking to Sam about something.
“Yep,” she said, giving him a big smile.
“Where are you two going tonight?” Ben asked.
“Just to the movies, then out to dinner,” Hunter said. Ben handed him some money.
“Do you have your cell phone?” Ben asked. Hunter held it out as proof before sticking it in his pocket. “You have condoms?”
“Yes, Ben,” Hunter nodded.
“Home by 2,” Ben directed.
“Got it,” Hunter grinned, slipped his arm around Brittany's waist and headed out the door,
“Your dad just asks if you have condoms and then lets you stay out until 2?” Santana asks as he walks with Brittany out to her car.
“Yep,” Hunter said. “Come on, Brittany, let's go.”
“Okay,” Brittany said.
*****
Their date was pretty awesome. Hunter liked to listen to Brittany talk. She wasn't the smartest girl in the world, but she was really creative, and if you just let her speak without interrupting her some really beautiful things came out of her mouth, especially when she described her perception s of things. It turned out, he learned after talking to her, that she wasn't as stupid as people thought she was, but that she had a sensory-processing condition called synasthesia, which caused her senses to mix things up, so that her mind interpreted different sounds as feeling and saw different shapes as colors, and other things like that.
“I'm not stupid,” Brittany said firmly, “Though I say dumb things sometimes. I just see things differently.”
“I think you're seriously awesome,” Hunter said. After the movie and dinner, they made their way back to the backseat of Brittany's car again. They made out for a while, getting seriously hot and heavy before Brittany's hand moved to the bulge between Hunter's legs.
“Brittany, before we do that, I have to tell you something,” Hunter said.
“What?” Brittany asked.
Hunter took a deep breath. He really liked this girl, but he knew he had to tell her if he wanted to have sex with her. “I'm positive.”
She cocked her head to the side. “Really? I thought I was positive once, but then Santana told me that you can't take a pregnancy test with apple juice even if you don't have to pee. But...wait, you're a boy. You can't get pregnant.”
“No, Brittany, I'm not pregnant,” Hunter said. “I have HIV.”
“What's that?” Brittany asked.
“It's a disease in my blood. I'm not sick right now, but if we have sex we have to use condoms, or you could get it too,” Hunter explained, finding himself concerned that a sixteen-year-old, sexually active girl didn't know what HIV was.
“Oh, okay,” Brittany said. “But you're not sick?”
“Not right now. But I'll get sick someday, so I don't want to give it to you. Can you keep this a secret?” Hunter asked.
“Sure,” Brittany said. “How did you get it?”
Hunter looked at her. He had kept this from Callie, and she'd broken up with him over it. He didn't want to get serious with Brittany only to have her find out later and break up with him then. Best to put all the cards on the table now.
“Before Ben and Michael adopted me, I lived on the street. I didn't have any money, and I couldn't get a job, so I had sex for money,” Hunter explained.
“Like Pretty Woman?” Brittany asked.
“Kind of,” Hunter said. “I used to fuck guys for money. I'm not gay, though, I really like girls, and I really like you, Brittany. Are you seriously grossed out?”
“Why would I be?” Brittany asked. “I like you. And sex is fun, and nice, and if you can get paid for something you do well, what's so wrong about that? And I have sex with girls sometimes, but I'm not gay.”
“You know, you're seriously the most amazing girl I've ever met,” Hunter said. “Wanna be my girlfriend?”
“Well, let's have sex first,” Brittany said. “'Cause if the sex is really terrible than we might not want to be exclusive. But if the sex is good, I'll be your girlfriend.”
Hunter couldn't argue with her logic so he kissed her again. Brittany was pretty much the most perfect girl he'd ever met. She was hot, talented, interesting, sexually-liberated, and she didn't care about his past. Hunter lost himself in her kiss. Afterward, they both agreed that the sex was pretty damn good, and Brittany happily agreed to be Hunter's girlfriend. It was a good arrangement for both of them: Brittany promised not to tell anyone that he was HIV-positive, or that he used to be a prostitute, and Hunter promised not to laugh at her when she told him her deepest thoughts, even if they were weird. It was a match made in heaven.
*****
Hunter was unimpressed when Finn wanted to sing about Jesus. He wasn't surprised when Kurt spoke up, and agreed with what Kurt had to say about church. Sam also looked uncomfortable at the mention of singing about spirituality. But before Hunter had the chance to speak up, Puck was on his feet, singing a Billy Joel song. When Puck hit the first chorus, Hunter leaned over to whisper in Kurt's ear.
“Think of it this way. According to their philosophy, you and I will live forever.”
At least Kurt cracked a smiled. Brittany pulled him to his feet to dance with her, although Hunter definitely didn't dance the same way the glee kids did. Of course, before glee club the only dancing Hunter had done was at Babylon.
“I'm not really into church either,” Hunter said to Kurt as glee practice let out.
“You're not?” Kurt asked.
“Me neither,” Sam said. “I went when I was little, but I don't really know what I believe in now.”
“Hey babe, walk me to Cheerios?” Brittany asked Hunter, slipping her hand into his.
“Sure,” Hunter smiled, walking his girlfriend down the hall, leaving Kurt and Sam alone in the glee room.
*****
When Hunter heard about Kurt's dad, he was really worried about the guy. He knew that it was just Kurt and his dad at home, so he called Michael during lunch and asked if Kurt could stay with them. When he got to glee club, the occasional desire he had to punch Finn Hudson was back again. Then Mercedes asked to sing a song for Kurt, about God. Hunter kind of wanted to punch everyone. When Kurt said he didn't believe in God, Hunter was surprised at how angry everyone seemed. Was it that much of a shock?
“Hey Kurt, wait,” Hunter said, as Kurt started to storm out.
“What, Hunter?” Kurt asked.
“Um, since your dad's in the hospital my dads said you should come stay with us until he's better, okay?”
“Um, okay,” Kurt said, surprised by the offer.
“I don't have swim practice today, so let's go to your house and pack a bag so you can come stay at mine.”
“Okay,” Kurt said.
“Can we take your car?” Hunter asked.
“Sure,” Kurt said. He seemed a little more relaxed with a firm destination in mind. They went to Kurt's house and packed some things before stopping at the hospital to check on Mr. Hummel. Then they went to the Novotny-Bruckner household where Ben had made one of his health food concoctions that Hunter turned his nose up at, and Kurt seemed to enjoy.
“We've made up the guest room for you, Kurt,” Ben said. “And I want you to feel welcome here as long as you need to.”
“Thank you, Mr. Bruckner,” Kurt said.
“Please, call me Ben,” he smiled.
“So, how was school today?” Michael asked.
“Well, nobody bullied me today, so that's a start,” Kurt said.
“I don't know,” Hunter said. “I think forcing God down our throats in glee club should count.”
“Forcing God down your throats?” Ben asked.
“Some of the Glee kids want to spend the week singing about Jesus and God and stuff,” Kurt said. “They got mad when I said I don't believe in God.”
“Ignore them,” Hunter said.
“What really sucks, is that I could really use my BFF right now, but she's too busy being offended that I don't believe in her Jesus,” Kurt sighed into his salad.
“Look, Kurt, we're not going to tell you 'everything's going to be okay',” Ben said, “Because nobody knows that for sure, and we know that better than anyone. But we'll be there for you. If the worst happens, know you have a home with us if you need one. But have faith in your dad. He's gotta be a strong man to have raised such a great kid. Have faith in him.”
“Thanks,” Kurt said.
Hunter's watch alarm beeped, and Hunter stood up, leaving unexcused. When he came back, he looked at Kurt.
“Do you shower in the morning or at night?” Hunter asked Kurt.
“In the morning,” Kurt said.
“Okay. I'll shower before bed, then, to leave more time for yours. Brittany's coming over, though, so I can help her with her homework.”
“Brittany does homework?” Kurt asked, surprised.
“Of course,” Hunter said. “She's not stupid, she just sees the world differently.”
“If you say so,” Kurt shrugged. “I have a lot of homework yourself, though, can you point me toward the guest room?”
“Sure,” Hunter said. HE showed Kurt to the guest room, then Brittany came over and Hunter helped her with her History homework. Then they cuddled on the couch for a while, watching American Idol, and Kurt joined them. Eventually Brittany went home and Hunter went off to take a shower before bed.
*****
The next glee practice all hell broke loose. Coach Sue had registered a formal complaint about Mr. Schue pushing religion at public school using Kurt as the basis of her complaint. And Kurt's friends weren't happy about it.
“Look, Kurt,” Mercedes said. “We're sympathetic to what you're going through but siding with Miss Sylvester isn't going to do anyone any good.”
“Oh no?” Hunter asked. “Tell me, Mercedes, what good are you doing Kurt? What good is your God doing Kurt? Did anyone stop and ask Kurt where he was sleeping while his dad is sick? Who was feeding him? How he was feeling? No, you're too busy worrying about his soul.”
“Hey, believing in God helps people. I had a very rough years,” Quinn said again, “And my faith and prayers got me through.”
“Good for you,” Hunter said. “You got yourself through your pregnancy, Quinn, not God. Prayer doesn't do shit.”
“You don't know that, Hunter,” Mercedes said. “And I think you're being rude.”
Hunter could not take these preppy Jesus girls any longer. They didn't know a damn thing about anything. And as much as Hunter had planned on keeping his 'troubled past' to himself, he just couldn't do it anymore.
“Where was God when I was ten years old, and my mom, high off her ass, decided to lock me in a closet for a week because I kept asking for food? Where was God when my bitch of a mother stabbed my father for cheating on her? Where was God when my foster father beat me so hard he broke my arm? Where was your precious God when I was fourteen years old and living on the fucking street? Sleeping under park benches and in stairwells and doorways in the middle of winter? Huh? When I prayed, over and over again that God would save me, would get me out of the fucking hell I was living in?” Hunter was screaming in Mercedes' face, and he knew he needed to stop. She pissed him off, yeah, but she didn't deserve all of his anger. Mercedes looked like she had just been slapped. Brittany looked at him like a deer in the headlights. Quinn and Tina looked like they wanted to cry. Sam got between Hunter and Mercedes, putting his hand on the other boy's shoulder to calm him down.
“C'mon, dude, it's okay,” Sam said. Rachel ran to the side of the raging teen, though Finn tried to stop her.
“Hunter, calm down,” Rachel said. “Maybe you should go home.”
“Maybe,” Hunter said, taking deep breaths. “Yeah, home. I'll go do that.” He stopped and leveled his eyes at Quinn, then Finn, Tina and Mercedes. “If you guys want to believe in God or Jesus go ahead, it's your life, believe what you want. Just don't try to push that stuff at me because I know it's bullshit. Besides, the law says you can't push that shit at school.” Hunter took a deep breath and walked out of the room. Kurt left not long after, and Sam followed him.
“Did you know that stuff about Hunter, Rachel?” Mercedes asked.
Rachel nodded. “His life was, like, really bad before Uncle Ben found him. Like, Lifetime movie of the week bad, but I'm not supposed to bring it up unless he does first. And I'm not supposed to tell anyone either.”
“We won't ask you to violate Hunter's trust, Rachel,” Mr. Schue said. “But he's not wrong. I understand that you'd like to explore your spirituality and beliefs, but this country does have separation of church and state. So if Kurt and Hunter don't want to believe in God, don't try to make them, okay?”
*****
“Hunter, want a lift home?” Kurt asked as he and Sam followed after the other boy.
“Okay,” Hunter said. “Everyone must think I'm crazy now, huh? I shouldn't have gotten in Mercedes' face like that.”
“It's understandable. What you said...” Sam trailed off. “Most of the kids here are pretty sheltered. I'm slightly more worldly but only 'cause I'm a Brat and I've moved a lot. These kids live in suburban Ohio, their only connection to the stuff that happened to you is watching movies and stuff.”
“I know. I just wanna text Brittany, so she knows I'm not mad at her,” Hunter said, taking out his phone. “I'll apologize to Mercedes later. I was out of line.”
“Let's just take you home,” Kurt said. “You wanna come with us, Sam?”
“Sure. I could do with hanging out a bit before football tonight. And I can walk back to the school from Hunter's house, it's not far,” Sam said.
As they walked down the hall, Hunter noticed Sam put a hand on Kurt's shoulder. Kurt flinched away at first, but then turned his head and gave Sam a smile. Hunter hoped that Sam had the guts to come out soon, because he and Kurt were good for each other.
“Are you guys going to come to the game tonight?” Sam asked as they climbed into Kurt's Navigator.
“I need to stop by the garage, and then I'm going to sit with my dad,” Kurt said. “The acupuncturist is going to give it another try. But I should be at the game in time to cheer.”
“I'm coming,” Hunter said. “Brittany's cheering, so I should be a good boyfriend.”
“Brittany's different with you,” Kurt mused. “I mean, we all thought she was just going out with you to keep her perfect record, but you really like her, don't you?”
“I do,” Hunter said. “She has some really awesome theories about stuff. I love listening to her talk.”
“Most guys don't want a relationship with her, because she's “easy,”” Kurt pointed out.
“I don't care about that,” Hunter said. “I grew up in the gay community, my dads and most of their friends have been with dozens, and even hundreds of partners. I know a guy who's literally slept with thousands of men. The fact that she's kissed all the boys in school and most of the girls honestly doesn't bug me. I think it's kinda hot. As long as all the sex she has is her choice, more power to her for being so sure of herself.”
“I like how you think about things, Hunter,” Kurt said. “Brittany loves her perfect record. Actually, Sam, I'm, surprised Brittany hasn't tried to kiss you yet,” Kurt said.
“She did,” Sam said. “The first week at school. I gave her a quick peck, but I wasn't interested in more.” Sam stared a Kurt while they drove. Kurt pulled into the Novotny- Bruckner driveway. He turned off the ignition and stared back at Sam.
“That's it,” Hunter said, grabbing his bag and opening the door. “If the two of you don't shack up by Homecoming I am busting down that closet door, Sam, and pulling you out forcibly. Stay, in the car, both of you, and talk.” Hunter didn't turn back to look at the two boys, who he knew were both blushing. It was obvious to anyone who looked clearly that they liked each other. Hunter didn't get why Sam was so scared.
*****
Sam sat in the car looking at Kurt.
“I do like you,” Sam said. “I'm just not sure how yet.”
“Sam, do you have any desire to date any of the girls at school?” Kurt asked.
Sam shook his head.
“Have you ever wanted to make out with a girl?” Kurt asked quietly.
Sam shook his head again.
“Do you want to kiss me?” Kurt asked quietly.
Sam nodded.
Kurt leaned forward slowly, and pressed their lips together. Sam kissed him back gently, and then they broke apart.
“I'm not ready to come out,” Sam said. “But that was nice.”
“It was,” Kurt agreed. “I'm not going to wait forever, Sam, but I can wait a little while.”
“Thanks,” Sam smile. “I'm gonna go hang out with Hunter. Go visit your dad.”
“Okay,” Kurt said. “I'll see you at the game tonight.”
“Yeah,” Sam nodded. He leaned over and gave Kurt another quick kiss before getting out of the Navigator and going into Hunter's house. Sam heard the car pull out as he opened the door.
“Well, you look like the cat that ate the canary,” Hunter said.
“We kissed,” Sam said, his face bright red.
“Good for you,” Hunter said. “Why are you so scared of coming out, anyway?”
“My dad,” Sam said. “He's a big tough Army man. Always pushing me to be a man.”
“I know the type,” Hunter said. “But let me just tell you, the world won't end if you say, 'I'm gay,' out loud. I promise.”
Sam looked around, it was just him and Hunter in the living room. He looked at Hunter. Hunter was older, and apart from the freak-out he'd had during glee club today always seemed to know what was going on. Hunter had been a good friend to him since he started at McKinley. Hunter wouldn't beat him up. Sam looked at Hunter and took a deep breath.
“I'm gay.”
“I know,” Hunter said. “Wanna work on English homework until the game?”
“Sure,” Sam said. And he felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders.
****
Hunter honestly didn't care that much about football. He understood the rules because Drew Boyd and Carl had explained them to him. And he loved watching the Cheerios shake their asses on the sidelines. Brittany was so flexible, Hunter's mind was racing full of ideas of things they could try in bed. Hunter knew that he probably had more sexual experience than Brittany, Santana and Puck combined, but it had almost all been with older men. He looked around at his new friends: Tina, Rachel and Mercedes in the stands, Mike, Matt, Sam, Puck, Finn and Artie down on the field, Quinn, Santana, Brittany and Kurt on the Cheerios. Would they still want to be his friend if they found out he used to be a prostitute? If they knew he was HIV-positive? If his secrets became exposed, would he become a pariah here, like he had been at his old school? Hunter didn't know, but he was also pretty sure he didn't want to find out.
Hunter watched Brittany dance around some more. He saw two of the male Cheerios throw her up in the air, and she did a back-flip before landing perfectly on her feet with her hands in the air. He knew she wasn't a super-genius or anything, and she was, to use the common vernacular, 'kinda slutty' but she genuinely liked him, and he really liked her. She always made him feel good, and when she smiled at him, his stomach twisted in knots. Hunter was thinking about Brittany when one of the opposing team members slammed into Sam, and Sam didn't get up again.
*****
Hunter wanted to hit Mr. Schue when he congratulated Finn for being quarterback again. Sam was sitting in the back of the room with his arm in a sling, looking miserable. But then Kurt showed up and started singing for his dad. Hunter felt his heart break for the boy. Hunter's own relationships with his parents were complicated. His biological dad was a drunken, abusive asshole who used to beat both him and his mother. His mother was an abusive, crazy, druggie who tried to kill his father, and pimped Hunter out starting at the age of 12. Hunter thought that if his parents died, he'd actually be relieved. But if he had loved his parents, like Kurt loved his, it would probably be hard. Hunter imagined losing Ben or Michael, and immediately had to push the thought aside. Too scary.
*****
“Mercedes wants me to go to church with her on Sunday,” Kurt said over dinner.
“Do you want to go?” Ben asked.
“I don't know,” Kurt said. “She's my best friend, and I hate that there's this distance between us. But I can't pretend to believe in a God I don't believe in. But I told her I'd go, and I'm a man of my word.”
“I hate church,” Hunter said. “It's all a bunch of bullshit.”
“Believing in God helps people get through things,” Michael said.
“I just hate those people who try to tell you everything happens for a reason,” Hunter glowered into his food.
“Agreed,” Kurt nodded.
“Well, when I was sick, prayer and meditation helped me,” Ben said.
“When were you sick?” Kurt asked.
“A few years ago,” Ben said. “I'm HIV-positive. I got really sick a few years ago, but I'm doing okay now.”
“Oh,” Kurt said. “I didn't know.”
“Well, it's not something I advertise, but it's not a secret.” Ben smiled at Kurt.
“That really sucks,” Kurt said. He looked at Michael, “Do you have it?”
“No,” Michael said. “We're very careful. I get tested regularly, and so far, knock on wood, I'm still negative.”
“I don't really know what to say, other than that really sucks,” Kurt said.
“That's the standard reaction,” Hunter said.
“If you don't mind,” Kurt said, “I'm going to go visit my dad for a bit. The nurses usually let me stay past visiting hours.”
“Understandable,” Ben said, and Michael agreed.
“Your phone's buzzing again,” Hunter said.
“Just texts from Sam. I swear, his spelling is even worse when he only has one hand to use,” Kurt said.
“I think that explains the internet,” Hunter said, and everyone laughed. Then Kurt go up to text his dad.
*****
When they got the news that Burt had woken up, Hunter was really happy for his friend. And he was glad that Kurt and Mercedes had made up, even if Mercedes bugged him sometimes. Hunter was very glad for his friends. The whole glee club was cool, but Hunter was starting to develop quite a kinship with Kurt, Sam and Brittany. Rachel was family, and a pretty decent friend, and Hunter was even getting used to Finn, though it bugged Hunter that Finn didn't seem to realize how homophobic he could be. Oh well, straight guys, what could you do? It struck Hunter as odd, from time to time, that even though he was dating a girl, and having lots of sex with said girl, he didn't usually think of himself as a 'straight guy.' Oh well, that was a ponderance for another day.
*End 3*