Fic: Hangin' Tough (Ch. 4/?) Rated PG-13
Title: Hangin' Tough
Author: adampascalfan and spookykat
Rating: PG-13 (could go higher in future chapters)
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Eventual Klaine, season 4 canon pairings apply
Word-Count: 2,607 for this chapter. approx. 7k over all so far
Warnings: Mild RPF (for X-Factor personalities), mild language for future chapters, epic abuse of 80s/90s music (the likes of which would make Will Schuester weep), Rachel in a non-villainous context, and the special brand of crack only we can deliver.
Summary: Blaine and Kurt are both certain that it will be a long time before they see or speak to each other ever again after Blaine's disastrous visit to New York. Neither one factored in The X-Factor. Or Boy Bands. Or Cooper Anderson.
Author's Notes:
This is a speculation fic. We are fully prepared to be Jossed by the time 4x07 airs, and we are fully prepared to complete this fic as an AU regardless of the outcome. Well, more prepared than we usually are...which means we have a tenuous outline. No copyright enfringement intended. No harm or disrespect is meant in portraying any of the X-Factor personalities featured in this fic. We really don't like writing or reading RPF as a general rule, but this plot-bunny attacked and wouldn't let go.
Happy halloween everyone to those who celebrate!
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
“Oh come on, Rachel,” Kurt said, turning on the kettle he brought from home to brew them a cup of tea. He wanted something stronger, and although he still had his fake ID from Ohio, that would have to wait for later. As it was, he had an early day at vogue.com tomorrow and getting through Chase’s rants about Honey Boo-Boo’s fashion choices would be challenging enough without a raging hangover. “Given our little family, I honestly can’t believe you didn’t get the details when we went back home.”
“Between family obligations and preparing for finals and for the crucial first juries at NYADA, I really didn’t have much time to socialize.”
“You’re telling me you truly don’t know?”
Rachel shook her head. “To be perfectly frank, after Thanksgiving, I kind of lost touch with our friends back home. I heard Finn took over for Mr. Schuester. After I cheated on him, there’s no way they wouldn’t take his side.”
Kurt nodded. “I can sympathize. I was just texting Chandler and everyone decided to tell me in a Whitney Houston song exactly what they thought of that decision. Including you.” Rachel winced. “Technically, you weren’t cheating though. You were just…”
“Abandoning my veganism and trying to show off my apparently non-existent culinary skills for someone whom I knew had feelings for me? We were kissing before Finn showed up, Kurt. He had his tongue down my throat and I wasn’t exactly saying no. Regardless of whether or not Finn was aware of that fact, it’s still cheating. And on top of all that I couldn’t be honest with Finn about what was going on. I just told him we were done, because truthfully, if I’d wanted Finn still, I would’ve refused his advances. Am I already so corrupted by the big, bad city that I can’t be an honest, decent human being anymore?!”
Kurt inhaled sharply, making Rachel flinch. “So you’re saying,” he said as the kettle’s shrill whistle rang throughout the apartment. “It’s Finn’s fault?”
“Kurt why are you…” she gasped. “Did Blaine cheat on you? Is that why you’re so upset right now?”
Kurt nodded as he steeped the teabag with a spoon. “With some random guy he met on Facebook.”
“Oh, Kurt,” Rachel said, handing him the dishrag by the sink.
“It’s just…I’ve been going over our whole relationship in my head a million times since it happened, and I know I was a little…excited about everything when I first came to New York and the internship, but…are you saying I drove Blaine away?”
“I didn’t say that, Kurt,” Rachel said, patting his shoulder. “You know last year how I told you that you make me want to be your boyfriend? Still applies.”
“No, no…maybe I didn’t win any Best Boyfriend Awards these days. I know I can be a little self-absorbed and I know the distance was hard on him. It was hard on me, too.” He sighed, and took a sip of the tea. “We used to share everything, you know? And now all of a sudden, we didn’t fit into each other’s lives. Now I know how Jennifer Anniston must’ve felt. Before she found her current boyfriend, anyway. Great, now I’m going to have to go on Tumblr and Live Journal to post a formal apology and delete everything bad I said about her ever. I just…hate it, you know? I hate feeling like I messed up the one perfect thing in my life and I have stooped so low I’ve become a crazy person on the internet obsessing over a soap opera just to feel like I’m not so alone in the world. The worst part is, it’s just hard to imagine anyone wanting me ever again, because before Blaine, nobody else did aside from Chandler. And that crazy guy on the M Bus nobody wanted to sit near, ” he sniffled. “Now listen to me. I’m pathetic. I sound like Lindsay Lohan at the end of Mean Girls.”
“Oh Kurt,” Rachel said, squeezing his hand. “You’re not pathetic. I just don’t understand why you couldn’t tell me before now.”
“I guess as long as I didn’t talk about it, it made it less real, you know? And I didn’t want to make Blaine the enemy, you know?”
“Kurt,” Rachel said, hugging him. “You’re amazing, you know that? We’re in the most amazing city in the world, and so what if we failed at our first relationships? It just part of the price you pay for being as fabulous as we are.”
* * *
“Thanks for dragging me out of that wig room,” Blaine said as they tried to find the hall. “I’m pretty sure that Beyonce wig was trying to use Jedi Mind control.”
“I’m just glad I didn’t wind up in a magical wardrobe at the mercy of some wicked Snow Queen offering me Turkish Delight. Although if it were me, I wouldn’t be asking for Turkish Delight. I’d be asking for Vanilla Wafers Ooooh! With Nutella. Vanilla Wafers with Nutella with a Caramel Macchiato. I can’t really afford to go to The Lima Bean very often, but once Jake took me and got me whatever it is they call the small size. Aaaand I’m officially rambling.”
“So I take it you have a bit of a sweet tooth?”
Marley grinned.
“Just a little. My mom and I didn’t have much money for presents, so we’d just spend the day baking and watching a VHS of It’s a Wonderful Life. What’s your family like?”
“Let’s see…my mom spends most of her time away on business. Dad’s…a very busy attorney who thinks the best way to “straighten me out’ (he illustrated with air quotations) is to get me to rebuild old cars.” Blaine shook his head. “I’m sorry…I’m not getting the sunshine award any time soon, I know. Kurt’s dad was actually really awesome. Definitely more of a dad to me than my own. I miss going over there and watching the games with him sometimes, you know?”
“I bet if you asked him to do whatever it is guys do, he wouldn’t say no.”
Blaine shook his head. “After what I did to Kurt, I’m actually surprised he didn’t come after me with a sawed-off shot-gun.” Blaine shook his head. “Listen to me. I think I’m embracing my inner Eeyore a lot more than I’d like to lately.”
“Hey,” Marley said, patting his shoulder. “So you made a mistake. You’re going through a rough patch. You don’t have to be Mr. Sunshine all the time, you know? And at the end of the day, I kind of think we get to learn over and over again how to make it right, so it tends to balance out in the end. I know it sounds crazy, but it also doesn’t mean you’re public enemy number one forever, right?”
She cocked her head to one side as they made their way down the hall. “Sounds like Artie finally finished telling about how Cooper became the manager,”
“Oh no…” Blaine said, his face falling. “Look who crashed the party.”
Marley shot him a sympathetic look as Cooper put both of his arms around their shoulders.
“You are way too pretty to be anybody’s beard, little lady,” he leered at Marley, who blushed an interesting shade of read.
“I just got lost going to the bathroom and we sort of ran into each other.”
“Well, you’re just in time!” Cooper announced Everyone was giggling around Artie’s laptop as the opening strains of “Your Kiss Is On My Lips” by Hall and Oates played.
“Cooper…you’re not…” Blaine started, covering his face with his hands.
“Giving them proof that I was born to show you the path to greatness? Of course I am! Look how cute little Blainey was back then you guys!”
“Seriously, this is worse than baby pictures,” Blaine moaned. Marley shot him a sympathetic look.
Blaine could feel his face growing warmer and warmer as a ten-year-old version of himself, lisping through the chorus as he and his brother danced on the leather furniture of their pristine living room. “Your kith, your kith is on my litht….”
The guys were trying hard to suppress their giggles, and Artie couldn’t even succeed. The girls high-pitched chorus of ‘aaaaws!’ made Blaine in that moment he wish Invisibility Cloaks were within his price-range.
* * *
As difficult as it was to relive the horror of Blaine’s last visit to New York, there was still work to be done for Isabelle, and he opened his laptop again, but was interrupted by the buzz of his phone, with ‘Home’ and a picture of Finn, Burt and Carole popped up on the screen.
“It’s a little late for you to be calling, isn’t it? Dad aren’t you supposed to be in Washington?”
“In Ohio campaigning for Obama tomorrow, so I thought I’d come home for a little bit,” Burt said. “How’s the big city treatin’ ya kid?”
“It’s great!” Kurt said a little too brightly. “Rachel and I are having a lot of fun. The internship is keeping me busy…I told you Isabelle ate at Breadstix, right?”
“You did. How are you doing?”
“I can’t really complain. I just…can’t believe how well it’s all worked out, you know? I got this really competitive internship when I didn’t even have a college credit to my name, and Isabelle’s awesome and all my colleagues are cool, and it’s really…great.”
“Actually, I’m calling because Carole told me Blaine was on some damn reality show on the old boob tube earlier, and I was wondering if you caught it?”
“Yeah, Rachel’s kind of obsessed with that show. I thought they did great!”
“So it wasn’t weird for you…seein’ him up there singin’ again like old times?”
“A little…but I went home for the play, you know? I saw him sing then, so it’s not really a big deal.”
“You two warm enough up there?”
“Yeah. It’s actually a great loft. Can’t wait for you guys to come visit sometime! There’s a lot of natural light. I’ve cornered the market in shoestring chic.”
“I have no idea what that means, but I can’t wait to see it either, Kiddo. And you. Carole’s been pesterin’ me to talk to you, so I’m handing the phone over to her. Love you kid.”
“Love you, too, Dad.” There were five seconds of silence.
“Carole, how are you?”
“Oh honey! It’s great to hear your voice! I couldn’t believe it when I saw Blaine and Artie and that other boy…what’s his name? Jim?”
“Joe.”
“Right…Joe…singing in front of all those people and right there for Simon Cowell and everything and they were just fantastic, but honey, is it a little weird for you?”
Kurt shrugged. “He’s up there doing what he does best. And from what I understand, our mutual friends sort of made him, I mean, believe it or not, in New Directions World, this isn’t all that out-there.”
“Blaine’s such a nice young man. We miss having him around. Sam says he’s kind of having a hard time with things. Apparently the only reason he auditioned was because they were trying to find a way to cheer him up over the holidays.”
“I’ll be sure to tell him that if we have an actual conversation.”
“Oh, honey, you haven’t even talked after all this time? I know break-ups are tough, but sometimes the only way to heal is just forgive and move on and try and rebuild a friendship. Take it from me. I was kind of an expert on break-ups before I met your father.”
“I sent him a congratulatory text and he sent a ‘thank you’ in reply,” Kurt said hopefully, finding it hard to believe that Carole was having a say in his love-life, too.
“Good. Keep the doors of communication open, sweetie. It’s not good to keep all that bitterness and anger pent up, you know? Look, I know it’s not really my place to say anything, but I also know nothing hurts worse than your first break-up, but you never know what might happen if you keep the doors of communication open, you know? Send him one of those Facebook messages or something. Tell Blaine and everyone we’re voting for them every chance we get! And give Rachel our love!”
“I will Carole,” he said through a yawn. “I hate to cut this short, but I have an early morning tomorrow. Isabelle’s having me come in early to go over sketches before the regular nine o’clock meeting. Take care of Dad for me give my love to Finn.”
With that he hung up, and even though he really was tired and had to work early, he figured it couldn’t hurt to do a little digging. It’d stung to defriend Blaine-someone he’d called one of his best friends even after those first few weeks during the whole Karofsky thing. Kurt honestly didn’t know how he’d get through the humiliation of being crowned prom queen, and the heartache of leaving everything he’d ever known without knowing Blaine was on the other side of the phone line…then all of a sudden he wasn’t. No more dirty text messages. No more Skype calls. No one to share in his joy of finally being in the city of his dreams.
It was just easier to cut ties that way, but he figured a little Facebook stalking never hurt anyone.
He scrolled down Blaine’s timeline. Congratulatory messages from family members, even Mike, Quinn, Ms. Pillsbury, Puck, and Mercedes. It made him nostalgic for the old days. Not the dumpster tosses or the slushies. Not the isolation, and definitely not being lost in someone’s shadows, whether it be Rachel’s or Blaine’s, but their odd little family, with enough drama to fill two seasons of Days of our Lives that gave him the blessing to be where he is now-yeah, he missed that.
There was one message, though. No picture. Just a light house. Him.
The first time Kurt had the bright idea to stalk Blaine’s page, it had been shortly after Blaine’s confession. Despite what Blaine had said a part of him still swore it had to have been Sebastian. Besides, even if it was Sebastian, there was no way Mr. CW Hair would keep quiet about it.
But he hadn’t seen a message from Sebastian that night. Just this Eli person with a lighthouse picture and the message of “hey sexy”.
Had it really been so horrible for Blaine that all it took was a hopeful icon of a lighthouse to make him stray? It was easy to blame Blaine, but then this…person with the congratulatory message, and Blaine’s reply: “Thank you for the kind words, but I will always look back on what happened with regret. I’m deleting you from my friends-list, and I wish you well, but please respect my decision.”
He did one last thing before shutting down his laptop, and clicked “friend request” below Blaine’s profile picture (this one was Blaine belting out Beauty School Drop-Out with something far more brutal and raw than Frankie Avalon had done in the movie). Kurt knew it was meant for him…Blaine used to be his Teenage Dream. Still was.
But things change. So do people. So do dreams.
What Blaine did was his own choice, but that didn’t mean Kurt didn’t cry himself to sleep at night making list upon list of everything he did to make Blaine feel like all it took was a beacon of companionship to make the loneliness he must’ve felt hurt just a little less.
Author: adampascalfan and spookykat
Rating: PG-13 (could go higher in future chapters)
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Eventual Klaine, season 4 canon pairings apply
Word-Count: 2,607 for this chapter. approx. 7k over all so far
Warnings: Mild RPF (for X-Factor personalities), mild language for future chapters, epic abuse of 80s/90s music (the likes of which would make Will Schuester weep), Rachel in a non-villainous context, and the special brand of crack only we can deliver.
Summary: Blaine and Kurt are both certain that it will be a long time before they see or speak to each other ever again after Blaine's disastrous visit to New York. Neither one factored in The X-Factor. Or Boy Bands. Or Cooper Anderson.
Author's Notes:
This is a speculation fic. We are fully prepared to be Jossed by the time 4x07 airs, and we are fully prepared to complete this fic as an AU regardless of the outcome. Well, more prepared than we usually are...which means we have a tenuous outline. No copyright enfringement intended. No harm or disrespect is meant in portraying any of the X-Factor personalities featured in this fic. We really don't like writing or reading RPF as a general rule, but this plot-bunny attacked and wouldn't let go.
Happy halloween everyone to those who celebrate!
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
“Oh come on, Rachel,” Kurt said, turning on the kettle he brought from home to brew them a cup of tea. He wanted something stronger, and although he still had his fake ID from Ohio, that would have to wait for later. As it was, he had an early day at vogue.com tomorrow and getting through Chase’s rants about Honey Boo-Boo’s fashion choices would be challenging enough without a raging hangover. “Given our little family, I honestly can’t believe you didn’t get the details when we went back home.”
“Between family obligations and preparing for finals and for the crucial first juries at NYADA, I really didn’t have much time to socialize.”
“You’re telling me you truly don’t know?”
Rachel shook her head. “To be perfectly frank, after Thanksgiving, I kind of lost touch with our friends back home. I heard Finn took over for Mr. Schuester. After I cheated on him, there’s no way they wouldn’t take his side.”
Kurt nodded. “I can sympathize. I was just texting Chandler and everyone decided to tell me in a Whitney Houston song exactly what they thought of that decision. Including you.” Rachel winced. “Technically, you weren’t cheating though. You were just…”
“Abandoning my veganism and trying to show off my apparently non-existent culinary skills for someone whom I knew had feelings for me? We were kissing before Finn showed up, Kurt. He had his tongue down my throat and I wasn’t exactly saying no. Regardless of whether or not Finn was aware of that fact, it’s still cheating. And on top of all that I couldn’t be honest with Finn about what was going on. I just told him we were done, because truthfully, if I’d wanted Finn still, I would’ve refused his advances. Am I already so corrupted by the big, bad city that I can’t be an honest, decent human being anymore?!”
Kurt inhaled sharply, making Rachel flinch. “So you’re saying,” he said as the kettle’s shrill whistle rang throughout the apartment. “It’s Finn’s fault?”
“Kurt why are you…” she gasped. “Did Blaine cheat on you? Is that why you’re so upset right now?”
Kurt nodded as he steeped the teabag with a spoon. “With some random guy he met on Facebook.”
“Oh, Kurt,” Rachel said, handing him the dishrag by the sink.
“It’s just…I’ve been going over our whole relationship in my head a million times since it happened, and I know I was a little…excited about everything when I first came to New York and the internship, but…are you saying I drove Blaine away?”
“I didn’t say that, Kurt,” Rachel said, patting his shoulder. “You know last year how I told you that you make me want to be your boyfriend? Still applies.”
“No, no…maybe I didn’t win any Best Boyfriend Awards these days. I know I can be a little self-absorbed and I know the distance was hard on him. It was hard on me, too.” He sighed, and took a sip of the tea. “We used to share everything, you know? And now all of a sudden, we didn’t fit into each other’s lives. Now I know how Jennifer Anniston must’ve felt. Before she found her current boyfriend, anyway. Great, now I’m going to have to go on Tumblr and Live Journal to post a formal apology and delete everything bad I said about her ever. I just…hate it, you know? I hate feeling like I messed up the one perfect thing in my life and I have stooped so low I’ve become a crazy person on the internet obsessing over a soap opera just to feel like I’m not so alone in the world. The worst part is, it’s just hard to imagine anyone wanting me ever again, because before Blaine, nobody else did aside from Chandler. And that crazy guy on the M Bus nobody wanted to sit near, ” he sniffled. “Now listen to me. I’m pathetic. I sound like Lindsay Lohan at the end of Mean Girls.”
“Oh Kurt,” Rachel said, squeezing his hand. “You’re not pathetic. I just don’t understand why you couldn’t tell me before now.”
“I guess as long as I didn’t talk about it, it made it less real, you know? And I didn’t want to make Blaine the enemy, you know?”
“Kurt,” Rachel said, hugging him. “You’re amazing, you know that? We’re in the most amazing city in the world, and so what if we failed at our first relationships? It just part of the price you pay for being as fabulous as we are.”
* * *
“Thanks for dragging me out of that wig room,” Blaine said as they tried to find the hall. “I’m pretty sure that Beyonce wig was trying to use Jedi Mind control.”
“I’m just glad I didn’t wind up in a magical wardrobe at the mercy of some wicked Snow Queen offering me Turkish Delight. Although if it were me, I wouldn’t be asking for Turkish Delight. I’d be asking for Vanilla Wafers Ooooh! With Nutella. Vanilla Wafers with Nutella with a Caramel Macchiato. I can’t really afford to go to The Lima Bean very often, but once Jake took me and got me whatever it is they call the small size. Aaaand I’m officially rambling.”
“So I take it you have a bit of a sweet tooth?”
Marley grinned.
“Just a little. My mom and I didn’t have much money for presents, so we’d just spend the day baking and watching a VHS of It’s a Wonderful Life. What’s your family like?”
“Let’s see…my mom spends most of her time away on business. Dad’s…a very busy attorney who thinks the best way to “straighten me out’ (he illustrated with air quotations) is to get me to rebuild old cars.” Blaine shook his head. “I’m sorry…I’m not getting the sunshine award any time soon, I know. Kurt’s dad was actually really awesome. Definitely more of a dad to me than my own. I miss going over there and watching the games with him sometimes, you know?”
“I bet if you asked him to do whatever it is guys do, he wouldn’t say no.”
Blaine shook his head. “After what I did to Kurt, I’m actually surprised he didn’t come after me with a sawed-off shot-gun.” Blaine shook his head. “Listen to me. I think I’m embracing my inner Eeyore a lot more than I’d like to lately.”
“Hey,” Marley said, patting his shoulder. “So you made a mistake. You’re going through a rough patch. You don’t have to be Mr. Sunshine all the time, you know? And at the end of the day, I kind of think we get to learn over and over again how to make it right, so it tends to balance out in the end. I know it sounds crazy, but it also doesn’t mean you’re public enemy number one forever, right?”
She cocked her head to one side as they made their way down the hall. “Sounds like Artie finally finished telling about how Cooper became the manager,”
“Oh no…” Blaine said, his face falling. “Look who crashed the party.”
Marley shot him a sympathetic look as Cooper put both of his arms around their shoulders.
“You are way too pretty to be anybody’s beard, little lady,” he leered at Marley, who blushed an interesting shade of read.
“I just got lost going to the bathroom and we sort of ran into each other.”
“Well, you’re just in time!” Cooper announced Everyone was giggling around Artie’s laptop as the opening strains of “Your Kiss Is On My Lips” by Hall and Oates played.
“Cooper…you’re not…” Blaine started, covering his face with his hands.
“Giving them proof that I was born to show you the path to greatness? Of course I am! Look how cute little Blainey was back then you guys!”
“Seriously, this is worse than baby pictures,” Blaine moaned. Marley shot him a sympathetic look.
Blaine could feel his face growing warmer and warmer as a ten-year-old version of himself, lisping through the chorus as he and his brother danced on the leather furniture of their pristine living room. “Your kith, your kith is on my litht….”
The guys were trying hard to suppress their giggles, and Artie couldn’t even succeed. The girls high-pitched chorus of ‘aaaaws!’ made Blaine in that moment he wish Invisibility Cloaks were within his price-range.
* * *
As difficult as it was to relive the horror of Blaine’s last visit to New York, there was still work to be done for Isabelle, and he opened his laptop again, but was interrupted by the buzz of his phone, with ‘Home’ and a picture of Finn, Burt and Carole popped up on the screen.
“It’s a little late for you to be calling, isn’t it? Dad aren’t you supposed to be in Washington?”
“In Ohio campaigning for Obama tomorrow, so I thought I’d come home for a little bit,” Burt said. “How’s the big city treatin’ ya kid?”
“It’s great!” Kurt said a little too brightly. “Rachel and I are having a lot of fun. The internship is keeping me busy…I told you Isabelle ate at Breadstix, right?”
“You did. How are you doing?”
“I can’t really complain. I just…can’t believe how well it’s all worked out, you know? I got this really competitive internship when I didn’t even have a college credit to my name, and Isabelle’s awesome and all my colleagues are cool, and it’s really…great.”
“Actually, I’m calling because Carole told me Blaine was on some damn reality show on the old boob tube earlier, and I was wondering if you caught it?”
“Yeah, Rachel’s kind of obsessed with that show. I thought they did great!”
“So it wasn’t weird for you…seein’ him up there singin’ again like old times?”
“A little…but I went home for the play, you know? I saw him sing then, so it’s not really a big deal.”
“You two warm enough up there?”
“Yeah. It’s actually a great loft. Can’t wait for you guys to come visit sometime! There’s a lot of natural light. I’ve cornered the market in shoestring chic.”
“I have no idea what that means, but I can’t wait to see it either, Kiddo. And you. Carole’s been pesterin’ me to talk to you, so I’m handing the phone over to her. Love you kid.”
“Love you, too, Dad.” There were five seconds of silence.
“Carole, how are you?”
“Oh honey! It’s great to hear your voice! I couldn’t believe it when I saw Blaine and Artie and that other boy…what’s his name? Jim?”
“Joe.”
“Right…Joe…singing in front of all those people and right there for Simon Cowell and everything and they were just fantastic, but honey, is it a little weird for you?”
Kurt shrugged. “He’s up there doing what he does best. And from what I understand, our mutual friends sort of made him, I mean, believe it or not, in New Directions World, this isn’t all that out-there.”
“Blaine’s such a nice young man. We miss having him around. Sam says he’s kind of having a hard time with things. Apparently the only reason he auditioned was because they were trying to find a way to cheer him up over the holidays.”
“I’ll be sure to tell him that if we have an actual conversation.”
“Oh, honey, you haven’t even talked after all this time? I know break-ups are tough, but sometimes the only way to heal is just forgive and move on and try and rebuild a friendship. Take it from me. I was kind of an expert on break-ups before I met your father.”
“I sent him a congratulatory text and he sent a ‘thank you’ in reply,” Kurt said hopefully, finding it hard to believe that Carole was having a say in his love-life, too.
“Good. Keep the doors of communication open, sweetie. It’s not good to keep all that bitterness and anger pent up, you know? Look, I know it’s not really my place to say anything, but I also know nothing hurts worse than your first break-up, but you never know what might happen if you keep the doors of communication open, you know? Send him one of those Facebook messages or something. Tell Blaine and everyone we’re voting for them every chance we get! And give Rachel our love!”
“I will Carole,” he said through a yawn. “I hate to cut this short, but I have an early morning tomorrow. Isabelle’s having me come in early to go over sketches before the regular nine o’clock meeting. Take care of Dad for me give my love to Finn.”
With that he hung up, and even though he really was tired and had to work early, he figured it couldn’t hurt to do a little digging. It’d stung to defriend Blaine-someone he’d called one of his best friends even after those first few weeks during the whole Karofsky thing. Kurt honestly didn’t know how he’d get through the humiliation of being crowned prom queen, and the heartache of leaving everything he’d ever known without knowing Blaine was on the other side of the phone line…then all of a sudden he wasn’t. No more dirty text messages. No more Skype calls. No one to share in his joy of finally being in the city of his dreams.
It was just easier to cut ties that way, but he figured a little Facebook stalking never hurt anyone.
He scrolled down Blaine’s timeline. Congratulatory messages from family members, even Mike, Quinn, Ms. Pillsbury, Puck, and Mercedes. It made him nostalgic for the old days. Not the dumpster tosses or the slushies. Not the isolation, and definitely not being lost in someone’s shadows, whether it be Rachel’s or Blaine’s, but their odd little family, with enough drama to fill two seasons of Days of our Lives that gave him the blessing to be where he is now-yeah, he missed that.
There was one message, though. No picture. Just a light house. Him.
The first time Kurt had the bright idea to stalk Blaine’s page, it had been shortly after Blaine’s confession. Despite what Blaine had said a part of him still swore it had to have been Sebastian. Besides, even if it was Sebastian, there was no way Mr. CW Hair would keep quiet about it.
But he hadn’t seen a message from Sebastian that night. Just this Eli person with a lighthouse picture and the message of “hey sexy”.
Had it really been so horrible for Blaine that all it took was a hopeful icon of a lighthouse to make him stray? It was easy to blame Blaine, but then this…person with the congratulatory message, and Blaine’s reply: “Thank you for the kind words, but I will always look back on what happened with regret. I’m deleting you from my friends-list, and I wish you well, but please respect my decision.”
He did one last thing before shutting down his laptop, and clicked “friend request” below Blaine’s profile picture (this one was Blaine belting out Beauty School Drop-Out with something far more brutal and raw than Frankie Avalon had done in the movie). Kurt knew it was meant for him…Blaine used to be his Teenage Dream. Still was.
But things change. So do people. So do dreams.
What Blaine did was his own choice, but that didn’t mean Kurt didn’t cry himself to sleep at night making list upon list of everything he did to make Blaine feel like all it took was a beacon of companionship to make the loneliness he must’ve felt hurt just a little less.