Blame it on the Alcohol (1/4)
Title: Blame it on the Alcohol
Rating: Teen/PG 13
Author: Itachi_4_ever / BelgianGleek
Artist: Joshiemae / Lizaye
Category: Slash
Genre(s): Canon (also AU in some aspects), friendship, romance, humour, angst
Pairing(s): Kurtofsky, very mild Brittana, a bit of pre-Klaine
Warnings: Strong language
Spoilers: everything up to the end of season 2
Word Count: 22.438
Summary: Kurt and Dave never expected that a drunk dial in the middle of the night could turn into so much more.
Author’s Note: First of all, I’d like to thank my artist (Joshiemae/Lizaye) because she made a very beautiful piece of art that fits the scene it’s a part of perfectly. Also, I don’t own anything; not the characters or the lyrics of the songs I used in this story. It’s my first long fanfiction, and I hope you guys will enjoy it. I sure enjoyed writing it ^^ Last but not least, I would like to thank Dearthursday, the mod of this Big Bang, for all the hard work she’s done, and for introducing me to the wonderful world of Big Bangs, because it’s the first one I’ve ever been in and it was an awesome and fulfilling experience! And now on to the story : )
CHAPTER 1
Kurt shot awake in bed at 3 am at the sound of Lady Gaga’s Born This Way. Who in his or her right mind would call Kurt Hummel during the middle of the night?! If it was Finn again to ask him whether he should sleep inside his sleeping bag or on top of it, he swore he would drive to the campsite and strangle his brother with the damn sleeping bag Sleepy and irritated, he grabbed for his phone and put it to his ear.
“Look, I don’t expect anyone to understand the dire need of my beauty sleep, but at least have the decency to-“
“Kurt Hummel? Kuuurt yeah Hummel, that you? ’s you, right?”
Kurt was speechless for a moment and more awake than he was before. That definitely wasn’t Finn. More importantly, whoever was on the phone was obviously drunk. “Yes... who is this?”
“Not gonna tell, you know? You’d hang up and I really really don’t want that right now.”
Great, there’s only one person he’d hang up on, so...
“Karofsky???”
“Yup... daamn, now you gonna hang up.”
Kurt sighed audibly into the receiver and rubbed the bridge of his nose in irritation. “Why are you calling me, Karofsky?”
He had no desire to be insulted by a drunk caveman in the middle of the night.
“Needed to hear your pretty voice. And you know what? I really really want you to call me Dave... cuz that’s my name.”
That is not what Kurt had expected. At all. He blushed a bright red at the admission, but then frowned angrily. “I have no time for your petty jokes, Dave.”
“No joke, Fancy. Really pretty voice... even when you’re angry and get all bitchy in my face.”
“That’s it, I’m hanging up now.”
“Nooooooo, come on, Fancy! I just wanna talk.”
“What could we possibly talk about? You got what you wanted, I transferred, so just LEAVE ME ALONE.”
“’S not what I wanted...”
“What?”
“Miss you, Fancy. I miss your pretty eyes and your pretty lips.. You know what I’d wanna do with your lips?
“Oh Gaga...” Kurt whispered, his eyes wide. “Don’t you even dare, Karofsky!”
“I’d kiss them again and again and again till they all red and swollen.”
Kurt’s eyes grew even wider and for a moment, he couldn’t find a witty comeback.
“And then I’d push you against the lockers. Oh yeah, the locker room, like first time. That’d be awesome, and I’d make you moan. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“Okay, stop, stop, just stop! Not another word, ham-hock!” Kurt warned. The nerve of that Neanderthal! He knew he should hang up, but for some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
“You so sexy, Kuuurt. Can’t help it.”
The fashionista gasped “Wait... what was that?”
“Can’t help it?”
Kurt sighed in frustration. “No, before that!”
“You... sexy?”
Kurt nodded, even though the other boy couldn’t see it. “Y-you think I’m ...sexy?” he asked as neutrally as he could manage. Truthfully, his heart was hammering against his chest. He’d felt so upset today when Blaine told him he had about as much sex appeal as a baby penguin. Well, okay, technically he had said it, but Blaine certainly hadn’t denied it and that had left a huge blow to his pride. To know that someone - even if it that someone was Dave Karofsky - thought he was sexy... it was very welcome at this point.
“Hell yeah! Fancy, you so fucking hot and sexy! I wanted to tell the guys ‘I’d so tap that!’ when I first saw you, until... it kinda became obvious you’re not a girl.”
The brunette felt his heart flutter. Sexy was one thing... but hot? Wow, Kurt didn’t think he’d ever had someone telling him such things. “When was that?”
He heard some hesitance on the other end and could swear the drunk jock was probably blushing when he mumbled “P-push it...”
Kurt bit his lip “What was so sexy about that?”
“You kidding me, Fancy???”
“I wouldn’t dare.” Kurt answered, smirking a bit. “Come on, tell me.”
“Won’t get mad? Cuz you’re all prissy and stuff.”
“I am not!” he huffed in annoyance before sighing and relenting. “But fine, I won’t be mad.”
“Promise?”
“Yes, promise, now tell me!”
“Kay, kay, you burned that stage, Kuuuurt, man, you fucking shaking your body like a pro and then crawling across the ground with that hot piece of ass up in the air like WHOA and that smirk on your face. I needed to get to the bathroom... fast.”
Kurt kept silent, his mouth hanging open in disbelief, shock and... something he didn’t want to decipher yet .
“Seeee you mad now... You mad cuz I got a freaking boner!”
“N-no” he squeaked out “Not mad, just shocked... okay?” He tried to calm his racing heart “So you got a ... boner back then from seeing me perform?”
“Yuuup, sure did. Now too...”
Kurt nearly choked on his breath in shock. “W-what? H-how?”
“Thinking about your ass. And the voice, Fancy... freaking hot!”
Kurt knew, he knew that he shouldn’t be excited, but... for the sake of all that’s fashion and glamour, he was only human. Knowing that he made a jock who - once you saw past the bullying and lack of intelligence - was quite handsome so hot and bothered was incredibly thrilling.
“So you kissed me because you think I’m sexy?”
“Nah, kissed you cuz you’re really beautiful when you’re angry.”
“Oh...”
“ ’S that... bad?”
Kurt could hear he’d upset his former bully now. “No... I guess not, just... surprising.”
“I really really like you, Prissy Missy. Hey, look, that rhymes!”
“Dave...” If he had trouble with the nickname, he didn’t show it, but as fun as it was to hear a boy say how sexy he was and practically worship the very ground he walked (or crawled, take a pick) on, this was moving into dangerous territory.
“Didn’t wanna kiss you, cuz I knew you’d be all mad, but...not only sexy Kurt... sexy, hot, beautiful, awesome. You fucking perfect, Fancy. And you were so close... just had to kiss you...”
“Generally, people don’t bully someone they like, David!” Kurt’s tone had gone cold and hard.
“Fuck, that’s hot when you say my name like that!”
“Don’t you dare ignore what I said or I’ll hang up!” he threatened.
“ ‘M sorry...”
“Yeah? Well you should be! Do you have any idea what you’ve done to me?”
“Didn’t wanna hurt you, Kurt... I tried not to! But Z and the others... You dunno how hard it is!”
Oh so now the jock was going to play the victim? Screw that!
“You don’t think I had it hard? You ruined so many outfits, you gave me bruises every single day and you scared the hell out of me!”
“I tried to shove you gently...”
Kurt snorted. Seriously?
“You call that gentle? Wow... I dread to see you violent then. And what was the deal with wanting me dead, huh? Was that supposed to be ‘gentle’ too?”
“ Sorry, so so sorry, Kurt!”
Dave was crying, he was sure of it, and it should bring him some form of satisfaction, but it didn’t. He was glad that the jock felt sorry, but he didn’t find any pleasure in hearing him cry - no matter how many times he’d fantasized about making Dave Karofsky break down and cry.
“Never wanted you dead.” he continued “Just said it to scare you.”
Kurt sighed. “I believe you’re sorry, but... it’s difficult for me to just forget about it, okay? You understand that, don’t you?”
“I understand... I don’t deserve your forgiveness anyway.”
Well... he wasn’t as dumb as he looked after all, Kurt thought.
“No, you don’t, but ... this is definitely a start to earning it.”
“Y-yeah?”
“Yeah... Now, it’s getting really late, and I don’t know if you realise this, but I need a certain amount of sleep to look as good as I always do, so if you don’t mind-“
“Nooooo, please don’t leave, Fancy. I don’t wanna be alone.”
A frustrated sigh “What do you mean ‘alone’? Aren’t your parents home?”
“Nope... I’m not home either.”
Wait... what?
“Where are you?!”
“Left Z’s party earlier to get some air, but now I can’t find it anymore.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Found a bench...”
“You’re not going to spend the night on a bench out in the cold, David Karofsky!”
“Uhm... that was kinda the plan.”
Damn him and his morals! He got out of bed, turned on the light and looked for an outfit to wear. “Where are you, David?”
Dave mumbled some street name and Kurt wrote it down. “Okay, don’t expect this to happen ever again, but I’m coming over to get you home.”
“R-really?”
“Yes, really, but like I said, only once.”
“You’re amazing, Fancy!”
“I know. Bye.” He snapped, ending the call abruptly.
Even if Kurt was going to get Karofsky out of some possibly dangerous situation, it didn’t mean he had to be nice about it. He was bringing himself into a possibly dangerous situation as well. Who knows what David Karofsky was capable of when being drunk. Or it could even be a trap! He wouldn’t put it past all the jocks. Maybe Karofsky was luring him there, and then the others would grab him and -
No, he had to stop being so dramatic. Thinking like this was only going to get him overly paranoid, and waste time. Nevertheless, he put a bottle of pepper spray inside his pocket just in case.
Kurt grabbed his car keys and went downstairs as quietly as he could. It didn’t take long before he found the street he was looking for and saw the jock sitting on a bench looking worse for wear. That eliminated the possibility of all this being a trap. Which was a big relief.
He got out of his car and walked towards him. “Are you ready to go?”
Suddenly he found his arms full of crying jock. Oh dear Gaga, don’t tell me he is the drunk type that’s clingy and gets snot and tears all over you while at it, Kurt thought.
“Get off me, you ham-hock! This is a Marc Jacobs!” he yelled, pushing the bigger boy away and wiping the imaginary dust from his expensive coat.
“Sorry... Was just so happy to see you.” Dave said, smiling goofily. And Kurt would be damned if he admitted that the dopey smile looked cute on him. The only expressions he was used of Karofsky were scowls and creepy smirks.
The world must hate him.
“For your information and for future reference if you decide to jump me with your bulky body again. I. Am. Not.” He said icily and felt almost slightly guilty when Dave’s expression fell. “But since I don’t want your dead or disappearance on my conscience, I had no choice.”
“You can be really mean.” Dave muttered.
Kurt sputtered “That’s rich coming from the worst bully in William McKinley!”
“You don’t have to be a bitch. I just wanted to hug you.”
Kurt’s anger flared “Well excuse me if I’m uncomfortable with you - the person who threatened me and bullied me out of school - touching me!”
“Sorry... “ Dave mumbled, looking at the ground ashamed.
Against better judgement, Kurt nodded and said it was okay. “So... where do you live?”
“Wait...” the jock said, searching in his pockets.“Crap” he muttered, crouching down to the floor and feeling around for something. Kurt was losing his patience, fast. “Kurt, not gonna like this, but... lost my house keys and nobody’s home... And the street’s something starting with an A? Not sure...”
Oh no... it was official; the world really hated him today.
“Charming...” Kurt muttered sarcastically.
“Are you staying here with me?” Dave asked hopefully and it took every ounce of control Kurt had not to shake the dumb oaf. Not that he’d be able to do that, mind, but it would still be a satisfying thing to try.
“No... I guess I have no choice but to take you to my place. Luckily my father and Finn are on a camping trip and Carole is going to leave for work early in the morning.”
Dave smiled. “Kay, thanks, Fancy.”
“I am so going to regret this in the morning.”
***
It took a while to get the drunk jock down in his and Finn’s shared basement room, and when he did, they’d both tumbled on his bed with Dave on top of him, because the other boy had decided to fall asleep right at that moment and Kurt couldn’t hold him up on his own.
“No way! Off! Get off me, Dave!” Kurt whispered furiously pushing and shoving against him until tired and hazy hazel eyes flickered open.
“Heeey, Kuurt, why are you under me?”
“Because you fell on top of me, you big klutz! Move!”
Thankfully, Dave seemed to understand and got up. “Nice room.”
Kurt closed his eyes and counted to ten before opening them again. It was something he had to do a lot with Finn around.
“You’ll sleep in Finn’s bed.” The fashionista said, pointing at the bed on the other side of the room.
“Can’t I sleep with you?”
“No!” Kurt hissed, blushing a bit. He was getting cranky. He needed his beauty sleep, stat!
Dave pouted a bit at that and moved over to Finn’s side of the room. He fell asleep as soon as he hit the pillow.
Thank God! Kurt thought as he fell down on his own cosy bed, not even bothering to take off his clothes or even his boots. When he was about to fall asleep, loud snoring filled the room and Kurt groaned out loud, fighting the urge to get up and strangle the drunk boy.
With difficulty, he finally fell asleep about an hour later.
***
When Dave woke up it was with a throbbing head and a feeling of nausea. He groaned out loud when he opened his eyes and the light hurt like a bitch.
“What the hell...” he muttered, sitting up in his bed. It must have been a crazy night yesterday judging from the way he felt like he’d been run over by a truck. He waited for his eyes to adjust to the light and took in his surroundings.
No freaking way!
He jumped out of the bed, gritting his teeth when his throbbing head didn’t seem to like the sudden movement much.
Where the fuck was he?
His eyes crossed the room and saw the other bed. Frowning, he got closer to see who was on it. Didn’t take him long to figure it out. The designer clothes and slender figure said enough, even if he was faced with the back.
Hummel???
The memories from the other night came rushing back. He couldn’t remember everything, but he’d done some messed up and embarrassing shit. Not to mention that he’d flirted with Kurt Freaking Hummel... Not that he didn’t like it, but...
“Fuck!” he swore out loud. As if Kurt needed even more reasons to hate him.
Fuck indeed. Man... he was never ever listening to Z’s advice again! Why did he always end up in the most fucked up situations!
***
Kurt stirred, startled awake by the loud curse. “Finn... what did I tell you about waking me-“
His eyes widened when he turned around and was face to face with Dave Karofsky. Remembering last night, his eyes narrowed in a glare.
“Not a single word, Karofsky. You kept me up nearly all night and I’m NOT in the mood for this!”
Dave frowned and put up his hands in defense “I wasn’t gonna yell at you or anything, I was just shocked okay.”
Kurt didn’t answer. Instead, he sat up in his bed and moaned pitifully when he noticed that he hadn’t taken his clothes off. “That’s just fabulous... my entire allowance will have to go to the drycleaner’s this week.”
“Just a couple of wrinkles...” Dave muttered, noticing what Kurt was getting so worked up about.
“I’m not even going to answer that.” Kurt said, his hand up in the air in a clear sign of ‘Oh My God!’
Dave rolled his eyes. As if Kurt’s tone hadn’t been obvious enough already.
Kurt didn’t care for the other boy’s reaction. Acting like Dave didn’t even exist, he got up looking through his wardrobe for other clothes to wear.
Dave watched him, not really knowing what to say, but not minding all that much because he had a clear view of Kurt’s ass in those skinny jeans. He swallowed nervously, still not believing that he was in Kurt Hummel’s room.
He could remember what transpired during the night. Every embarrassing little detail of it. He’d made an ass out of himself, but what was the most unbelievable of all that is that Kurt ended up helping him.
“Kurt... I... you... thank you, you know for everything...” Dave said, blushing a bit when Kurt turned to face him.
“I didn’t do it for you. I did it to satisfy my conscience.”
“Same difference.” Dave said shrugging. Whatever, Dave thought. Let Hummel be a bitch if he wants to. Truth is; he helped him and that alone meant a lot to Dave. Reasons be damned.
Kurt sighed “Look, Karofsky, just because I helped you doesn’t mean that we’re friends now.”
“I never said we were.” Dave answered frowning.
“Good!”
“Fine!”
Kurt went inside the bathroom without a single word, leaving Dave in the room. He didn’t want to deal with the jock before he felt as impeccable as he always did. His poor skin needed extra care this morning.
Dave sighed as he looked at the closed door, remembering just how much of an ice queen the other boy could be.
Taking out his cell phone, he tried to call his dad, but no one picked up.
After a quarter of just standing there in the middle of the room, Dave started to walk around and look at things. It’s obvious that the bed he’d slept in was Hudson’s, judging from all the football posters on the wall. He snorted at the picture of Berry on the quarterback’s bedside table. Yup, definitely Hudson’s.
Examining the room further, he went on to Kurt’s side, glaring at the picture of Bland or whatever his name was. What was so great about that guy anyway? His hair was full of gel and his eyebrows looked like bushy triangles... Was that kind of guy Kurt’s type?
If he was, then Dave certainly didn’t have a single shot at him.
Kurt’s bed looked like it came out of Arabian nights or some shit like that and he blushed when he remembered how he’d lain on top of Kurt on it and how nice it would be if that happened again...
He shook his head. He was no fa-... uhm gay, whatever. He... just... Kurt was girly, so... that didn’t count as gay, right?
It was always getting harder to convince himself.
Another picture caught his eye. A family wedding picture of the Hummel-Hudsons. Of course his eyes were only drawn to Kurt who looked so pretty in a suit and his blue green eyes full of happiness. Suddenly he couldn’t help but think of the wedding cake topper he’d hidden under his bed.
That had been kinda creepy of him.
***
After what felt like an eternity, Kurt emerged from the bathroom looking as prim and proper as ever. Dave wanted to say he looked great, but wisely kept his mouth shut about that.
“Dude, that took you more than an hour. What the hell can take so long?”
“It’s really none of your business, but if you insist on knowing; I have a strict morning routine that involves a lot of skin care products.”
Dave just looked at him as if he’d grown a second head. Kurt didn’t need that shit, but he doubted that him saying that would change anything.
Kurt sighed “Yeah... I don’t expect you to understand.”
Would he ever encounter a guy who understood his beauty routine? Probably not. Even Blaine - who was absolutely stylish and fabulous in his own way - didn’t understand.
Dave shook his head “It’s just weird to see another guy spend so much time in the bathroom, dude. I always take only 15 minutes or something.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“What? Dude?”
“Yeah... I hate it. Finn always calls me that too.”
“Hudson calls everyone that.” Dave pointed out.
“I don’t like it.”
“Fine, Fancy, I won’t call you that. No need to get your panties in a twist.”
Kurt just glared at him. He wasn’t in the mood to argue, but honestly... why do all the jocks have an obsession with the word ‘dude’, he thought.
“What now? Can’t call you that either?”
The fashionista rolled his eyes. “Just get inside the bathroom, Dave. The sooner you’re out of here, the more of my sanity will stay intact.”
Dave nodded “Could... uhm, do you have any spare clothes or something? These kinda smell.” He said embarrassedly. Kurt already thought he was a sweaty jock. Great job on convincing him otherwise, the larger teen thought.
As if on cue, Kurt wrinkled his nose in disgust. “I’ll see if my dad has any old clothes.”
No doubt the jock’s clothes made his room smell like cheap beer, and that was a definite no-no in Kurt’s book.
***
When Dave got out of the shower, his head was still hurting like hell, but at least he felt fresh and clean, that was something.
He grabbed the clothes that Kurt had laid out for him and dressed himself.
When he got inside the room, he noticed that Kurt wasn’t there, so he got up the stairs and came into the living room. Kurt wasn’t there either, so he made his way to the kitchen.
It seems Kurt was making some kind of breakfast and for some reason that felt so nice to see. it warmed Dave’s heart for some reason. Still, Kurt wanted him out as soon as possible, so he was going to do just that.
“I’ll just be going then. Thanks again for-“
“You’re not leaving until you’ve eaten first.”
Dave smirked “Your morals again?”
Kurt shrugged “Call it whatever you want.”
He gave Dave a glass of water and a painkiller. “For your hangover.” He added.
“Thanks.” Dave said bewildered. He really couldn’t understand how Kurt could be so bitchy and nice at the same time. But all the same, he liked it, a lot.
The smaller boy continued making breakfast in silence and Dave didn’t mind, because once again, he could look at Kurt’s backside all he wanted.
Embarrassing as his drunk dial had been, he’d meant every word of it, and uh oh, Kurt was glaring at him again.
“See something you like, Karofsky?” Kurt sneered. The fashionista couldn’t believe the nerve of the ham-hock. Leering at him like that, after ruining his night.
Dave shrugged. “You didn’t seem to mind the attention yesterday...”
This time, it was Kurt’s turn to blush and feel embarrassed. “Don’t tell me you remember that!”
The jock nodded smirking. “Shit was embarrassing as hell for me, but... I like knowing I can get you flustered. Fess up, dude, you were totally turned on by me yesterday!”
The blush on Kurt’s face spread to his neck and ears. Dave thought it was incredibly cute.
“I-I do not! I-I just... I-I...” Kurt was at a complete loss of words.
“Calm down, Fancy. It’s not like I’d tell anyone.”
When breakfast was finished, Dave looked at it as if it was poison. Sure it looked...nice, but was that really edible?
“Oh for Gaga’s sake, Karofsky, it’s just a healthy wrap. It’s not going to kill you to eat something healthy for a change.”
Dave frowned “I eat plenty of healthy stuff. Just because I’m a jock, doesn’t mean I eat fast food every day. My mom insists on having variety. She bases all our meals on the different layers on the food pyramid. But I’m just not sure if I can trust another guy’s cooking...”
God knows he’s suffered badly from Azimio making them lunch once. Not to mention that he couldn’t cook either, save for something as simple as an egg.
Kurt felt insulted “Fine, be that way. Starve for all I care! But at least have the decency to take one bite.” The boy snapped, folding his arms across his chest and looking at the other boy pointedly.
The jock sighed. Fine... if he got food poisoning, so be it. He took a bite.
“Fuck!”
Kurt rolled his eyes preparing for a whole explanation of how horrible it was. But his eyes widened when Dave finally started speaking.
“This is really good!” he said taking another bite. Where had Kurt learned to cook like that? His mom had nothing on the kid!
“You got any others?” the jock asked when his wrap was finished. Kurt looked at him in disbelief before nodding and getting the plate from the counter.
“Sweet.” Dave said grinning, and despite all efforts to stop it from showing, Kurt smiled “Take as many as you like. I mostly only eat one or two, and since no one else is here...”
The appreciation for his food was nice. He’d had enough bad reactions from his dad and Finn to last him a lifetime.
“You only eat one or two? No wonder you’re so skinny!”
“Tell that to coach Sylvester.”
Dave looked up in confusion “Don’t tell me she thinks you’re fat!”
Kurt rolled his eyes “She didn’t put it that crudely, no, but she said my hips were pear shaped.”
“Screw that, Fancy. Ain’t nothing wrong with your hips.”
Kurt blushed “Uh... thanks.”
An awkward silence stretched out until Dave couldn’t take it anymore. “Look, Kurt, I know I treated you like shit, and I want you to know that I’m really sorry for that. I also want you to know that I really appreciate what you’ve done for me last night and now.”
Kurt nodded, averting his eyes. “It was only natural. I couldn’t leave you out there in the cold. That would have been cruel. I may be a bitch sometimes, but I’m not heartless , and you’ve been fairly decent to me this morning, so that’s why I haven’t kicked you out yet.”
“I don’t have to pretend here...” Dave mumbled, looking down at his glass of water. ‘Can’t pretend’ would be more accurate. Every instinct inside him told him to act like he always did towards Kurt or anyone else for that matter, but there was no way he could do that after everything Kurt had done for him.
The other boy understood. “What are you doing to yourself, David? Isn’t it tiring to have to keep up a persona all the time?”
“You have no idea. It’s like I have to keep myself hidden behind multiple layers of personalities that I’ve taken over from other people. I can never be just me...”
“What’s so bad about the real you? The real you seems decent and even dare I say... intelligent.”
“Gee, thanks, and yeah, for your information, I do know what a rendering plant is. That was a low blow, Fancy.”
Kurt laughed “What did you expect as a reaction? You named your fist ‘The Fury’... That was just too much not to comment on it. Actually, I should have known that was too incredulous to be true. Even Finn doesn’t name his body parts, and that’s saying a lot, trust me.”
Dave shrugged, but now that Kurt mentioned it, it really was ridiculous. What had he been thinking?
“Aw man, everybody probably thinks I’m even more dense than Hudson or Pierce.”
Kurt looked thoughtful. “I for one thought so, as a matter of fact. More so than Finn at least. Not Brittany... I’m not sure if that’s even possible. But both of them have the excuse that it looks adorable on them. ”
Suddenly - as if he was only now realising that he was fraternising with the enemy - Kurt just sighed in frustration and got up. “I don’t even know why I’m talking to you. I shouldn’t be talking to you! This is so messed up!” he said, dumping the dishes in the sink.
“Kurt...”
“No! No, you are not going to say anything, Karofsky. You bullied me, you threatened me! I’m supposed to hate you!”
“You really hate me?”
“I did!”
After a while, Kurt calmed down. There was no point in pushing the jock away now that he was finally breaking through to him.
“You didn’t answer my question.” he said, while looking at Dave who had gone silent and whose eyes were so sad that Kurt almost felt bad about pressing this issue.
“What?” Dave asked in a small voice. He knew perfectly well what question Kurt meant; he just didn’t want to have to think about it.
“What’s so bad about the real you?”
“thmmay...”
“What was that?”
“That I... I...I’m...” he took a shuddering breath. He couldn’t say it. He was way past the point of actually believing that he wasn’t... you know... gay, but saying it out loud would feel like having no way back. It would be real, and Dave wasn’t sure if he could handle that. Kurt was looking at him in that expectant way of his though. As if not saying it would disappoint him... Dave still didn’t understand how Kurt could care about someone he didn’t like.
Kurt could see Dave mulling things over and knew this must be hard to deal with, but if he was going to have to get along with the jock, he first had to accept himself.
“That you’re what?”
A frustrated sigh sounded from the jock’s lips before he slammed his fists down on the table. “That. I’m. Fucking. Gay!”
Kurt couldn’t contain a pleased smile. He didn’t like Dave, but that didn’t mean that he liked to see him suffering. He knew how hard it was to live inside the closet. With him, it had always been a closet other people could easily see through, but coming out had still been one of the most difficult things he’d ever done.
“Congratulations, you just conquered the first step; admitting it to yourself. How does that feel?”
Dave blinked in shock, panting a bit. He’d said it. He really freaking said the word out loud!
“It feels... good... like a relief... Somewhat.” the jock said, smiling a bit.
“I know.”
Kurt smiled, remembering that feeling when he was 13 and figured it out for himself. It had taken him 3 years to come out to his dad and friends, so he definitely knew how difficult it was and how much of a relief it was to first admit it to yourself and then to others. Not that he’d ever had to hide his own personality though. Throughout it all, he’d stayed completely true to himself.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
Dave truly felt better now. It still wasn’t an easy thing to accept, because everything he had always believed in fell apart because of it, but it was just like Kurt said; the first step was taken, and that felt damn good.
“I guess I should go now. Where are my dirty clothes?”
Kurt snorted “You didn’t expect me to actually keep those, did you? Oh wait, you obviously did. Sorry ham-hock, but I didn’t want the whole house to smell like alcohol, so I threw them away. There were stains on it that would be impossible to wash out anyway, so I’ve done you a favour.”
A sigh “Kay, fine, it’s not like it’s important enough to go and look for through the garbage. What about your dad’s clothes?” he asked, gesturing to the clothes he was wearing.
“You can keep those. My dad won’t miss them, and consider them a trade for the ones I’ve thrown away.”
Dave nodded “Kay, thanks again... and you know... you don’t have to be scared to come back to McKinley... I wasn’t gonna give you shit anymore after getting expelled and seeing how freaking terrified you were, and even if I was, what happened today and yesterday made that totally impossible.”
The fashionista knew Dave was telling the truth, but... could he really go back to that homophobic place? At Dalton, he really didn’t fit in, but at least he was safe from slurs and violence there.
“I - I’ll think about it.”
Dave was ready to leave when Kurt stopped him. “Wait, are your parents home again now?”
“Nope, they get back Sunday evening... Why?”
“Unless you really do live in a cave; isn’t a key necessary to get inside a house when no one’s home?”
“Fuck!”
“Thought so. And could you please lay off the f-bombs? I’m not used to so many profanities.”
Dave rolled his eyes. “Figures. Look don’t worry your little head about it, okay? I’ll find a solution. I can crash in the garden till my parents get back. No big.”
That was apparently the wrong thing to say, because Kurt slammed the door shut before he could get out and was murmuring something to himself that sounded suspiciously like ‘those damn jocks will be the dead of me!’
Considering that Kurt lived together with Finn Hudson, that wasn’t all too difficult to imagine.
“I guess you’ll have to stay here then. Carole will get back around 6 PM and then we’ll see about what we do next. You’re lucky my dad isn’t here.”
Dave didn’t doubt that for even one second. Burt Hummel was freaking terrifying.
Kurt laughed at the pale complexion on Dave’s face. “He’s not THAT bad. He’s just really protective of me.”
“Yeah, I noticed...” Dave muttered, remembering how Kurt’s dad had pushed him up against the wall.
“Okay, I don’t care what you do all day. You can watch TV or play on my Wii, computer or Finn’s Xbox, but I’m going to do my homework and if you’re planning on staying downstairs, you’ll have to suffer through my choice of music. Math is already excruciatingly boring, not to mention difficult on its own, so I need my music to help me through it.”
Dave opened his mouth to say something about Kurt acting like a drama queen, but another part of that sentence caught his attention more.
“I could help you with Math...” he offered.
The other boy looked at him sceptically and he sighed “I think we already established that I’m not as dumb as I look, so is it that difficult to believe that I like Math and am actually good at it?” the jock asked slightly irritated. “I’m not taking Calculus for nothing.”
That seemed to hit home. “What??? But you’re a junior! You can’t take Calculus in junior class... only-“
“Only really good students can get in, yeah. Proof enough that I can help you?”
Kurt nodded beaming. A private tutor was exactly what he needed! The only reason he managed to pass maths was because he was excellent at learning things by heart and Smiths never bothered to make up new exercises for his tests.
“I don’t suppose you want to do my homework for me?”
Dave chuckled “Not a chance, Fancy.”
***
An hour later, Dave could understand why Kurt was bad at mathematics. He was glad he wasn’t a teacher.
“You’re not thinking logically!”
“I did what you told me to!”
“No, you didn’t. This is another exercise. The formula stays the same, true, but you have to switch the elements around in order to make it work.”
“I hate math!”
“Yeah, I can see that. You’re not even trying to like it, but at least you’re doing better than first.”
“How come you’re so good at it?”
“Hell if I know... I just am, and I like it. If I can’t get into pro football or hockey, I’m definitely going to do something with math or science.”
“Ugh...” The fashionista said, folding his arms. Suddenly this Neanderthal turns out to be even smarter than him. It was frustrating. For all he knew, the jock might be interested in fashion or be Liza Minelli’s biggest fan. Screw him, nobody was a bigger Liza-fan than Kurt was!
Dave easily picked up on Kurt’s frustration, and couldn’t help but think it was cute.
“Let me guess, you’re good at languages.”
Kurt nodded, liking the way things were going now. “Yes, especially French and Spanish.”
“Well, I suck at languages. Spanish is okay, but French... I’m surprised I manage to pass that class.”
“Let’s do French next then. What homework do you have?” Kurt couldn’t sound more eager if he tried.
Oh right, Dave had a shitload of homework waiting for him at home. He groaned.
“What?”
“I just remember that I still have to write an essay for English.”
“Oh, yeah, I also got that assignment before I left to Dalton. I finished it months ago. I love Shakespeare!”
“Good for you. Dude and his works are fine, but... on a Sunday evening, I really don’t feel like writing a 2000 words essay.”
“We could do it now, if you want to. After French.”
“Sure.” Dave said smiling. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” Kurt said and couldn’t help but smile back.
“Don’t think I’ve forgotten about your math though, Fancy.”
Kurt sighed, banging his head on his cursed Math textbook. “Damn you!” he said accusingly, but smiled as he heard Dave’s laughter beside him. He’d never heard him laugh like this before. It was a nice sound...
And that’s how they ended up spending the whole afternoon. Dave tutoring Kurt in mathematics and science, and Kurt teaching Dave the language of love - as the fashionista loved to call it - and the joys of Shakespeare.
Dave could have sworn that Kurt was Shakespeare reincarnated. The things he knew without getting it out of books, and the elegance and feeling with which he quoted plays... It was beautiful and Dave found himself watching the smaller boy in awe and fascination, his essay momentarily forgotten.
The only thing Dave knew about Shakespeare was the year he was born and some of his plays. Castle had insisted that they knew at least that. The woman refused to teach them much because she thought they were all stupid. They learned next to nothing in that class. Castle had no idea how dumb that made her look as a teacher. She should have stuck to teaching Astronomy, cause her head was definitely up in the clouds every day.
Berry had practically begged her to teach them something useful a couple of lessons ago. She’d ranted for about 5 minutes without stopping. He could still remember part of it.
“How can I become a Broadway star if I don’t master the English language perfectly? A star needs to know her words and grammar; she needs to look good in the eyes of other people. You as a teacher should know just how important it is to get respect. How will I become a star if people don’t respect me?”
He’d heard Sylvester complain about her many times when he was passing her or Figgins’ office, and he wondered how long it would take her to get rid of Castle. He reckoned a week or two, if she put her mind to it.
Kurt had been in the middle of quoting some lines from ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and ‘Hamlet’ to show Dave just how tragic plays like that really were. Everybody dies, depressing really, but wonderful to read or watch nonetheless.
He felt himself go silent when he saw the jock spacing off a bit. In the past, Kurt would have thought that it meant that Dave was just too dense to comprehend things, but now he knew that the jock was just overanalyzing things. Dave was so easily distracted; it was amusing.
“Let me guess; you’re thinking that I belong in a Shakespeare tragedy and you’re seriously considering asking Ms Castle to do a Shakespearian play.”
Dave laughed. “Close, but I was more thinking along the lines of helping Sylvester get rid of Castle and putting you as a substitute.”
Kurt smirked at that. “I agree. Anyone - even Finn or Gaga forbid Brittany - could do a better job than her.” That woman shouldn’t be allowed to call herself a teacher.
“Seriously though... I’m surprised you’re not in the drama club, what with you liking musicals and plays and all.” Dave said sincerely. “I mean, I get that you like Glee, but you could easily do both.”
Kurt nodded at that. “Honestly, I’ve thought about that, since I am a closet-actor at heart, but... it’s different. Singing is my life and I know that I’m amazing. That gives me confidence. If someone tells me I suck, I don’t even have to listen to it because I know it’s not true. With acting... I don’t know whether I’m good at it or not, and call me arrogant, but I really don’t want to find out if I blow.”
That makes sense, Dave thought, but the argument was still invalid. “You don’t blow at it. Man, all you’ve been doing since we started on this essay is reciting shit like you know the whole damn script by heart. And you totally pulled it off. Wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true. If you sucked, I would be playing Hudson’s Xbox right now.”
Somehow, that sounded really endearing coming from David and Kurt couldn’t help but duck his head a bit to hide his blush. Damn it, no one was supposed to get him flustered this easily!
Pulling himself together, Kurt flashed Dave a smile. “Thanks, I’ll think about it.”
***
An hour later, Carole came home from work, loaded with two bags full of groceries. The moment she set foot in her house, she froze when seeing David Karofsky in front of her. The bags would have been dropped to the floor if Kurt hadn’t taken them over just in time.
Carole’s gaze flickered from her step son to her step son’s bully in confusion.
“What’s going on here?”
Kurt proceeded by explaining everything from the moment Dave called him in his drunk stupor until about 5 minutes ago.
“That’s a whole lot to take in.” Carole muttered, sighing a bit as she regarded Dave, still a little bit suspicious.
“You just be glad your dad isn’t here, young man.” she told Kurt sternly. “I have no problem with Dave staying here. I’ve no doubt that Paul and Diane would do the same for Finn or you if roles were reversed, but Kurt, sweetie, could you give us a moment alone?”
Kurt looked at Carole and then at Dave. Giving Carole a nod and Dave a reassuring smile, he disappeared into his room. He had to moisturize anyway. He took his laptop with him, deciding he could work on that essay a bit in the mean time.
Dave helped Carole put the groceries away in the kitchen. It was silent for now, and he actually preferred that because he just knew that an unpleasant talk was going to follow if he dared to say something.
“Thanks for that, honey.” Carole suddenly said, smiling at Dave. She gestured for him to sit down at the kitchen table and took a seat herself. Dave followed her example.
She looked at him like she was going to say something, but he beat her to the punch.
“Look, ma’am, I know what you’re thinking, and hell, I’d probably think the same if I were you, but I’m not tricking Kurt to hurt him or anything. This isn’t some plan to get back at him for getting me expelled or something. I was drunk as shit yesterday and if it weren’t for him, I’d have spent the whole night on a bench, so I’m grateful to him. He’s like a freaking Gryffindor in those Harry Potter movies!”
Carole looked surprised at first and then chuckled a bit. “Wow, that was a mouthful, huh? I wasn’t going to say something like that at all, Dave. Kurt trusts you and I trust his judgement. But thank you for assuring me anyway.”
Dave relaxed visibly at that. He’d always known that Hudson’s mom was awesome. Before the pubes’ incident, he and some other guys from the football team always played games at Finn’s house.
“Oh, ‘kay, cool.” he said, not knowing what else to say.
It reminded Carole of her own son. Boys will be boys, she thought fondly “I was going to ask if there’s anyone I could call for you. Kurt explained that your parents aren’t home, but surely you’d rather spend the weekend with someone you know instead of here. I’ve got the numbers of parents from the entire football team.”
Dave fidgeted at that. It’d be easy to say yes and to maybe go and crash with Z, cause he definitely didn’t look forward to Burt Hummel seeing him. But this was his one chance to make things right with Kurt, and he would be fucking stupid to let that go.
“I’d prefer staying here, Mrs Hudson, if you don’t mind. I... I have a lot to make up for and this is my chance to do that.” He said simply and he was glad when he saw that she understood.
“Sure, sweetie, you can sleep in Finn’s bed or the couch, but since you’re trying to make amends with Kurt; I’d choose Finn’s bed if I were you.”
In Dave’s mind, there was no choice to make about that, but he nodded anyway. He didn’t want to seem too eager to spend the night in the same room as Kurt, so he was glad that Carole actually gave him an excuse for that.