Serendipitous Tendencies: Prologue and Chapter One
Title: Serendipitous Tendencies
Author: Koinaka
Fandoms: Glee, Queer as Folk
Rating: PG 13 for this part. Will eventually be NC-17
Warnings: AU (timeline of Queer as Folk has been shifted ten years, plus there are other changes to the events of the series) For Glee, it takes place after high school, beginning with Kurt's freshman year of college at Carnegie Mellon.
Pairings (if applicable)mentions of pre-Klaine, Klaine, post-Klaine, Justin Taylor/Kurt Hummel.
Character(s) (if applicable) Justin, Kurt, Brian, Emmett, Michael, Ben, Blaine, maybe other Glee folks along the way
Summary: A series of chance meetings changes everything.
Serendipitous Tendencies
By Koinaka
He and I had something beautiful
But so dysfunctional, it couldn't last
I loved him so but I let him go
'Cause I knew he'd never love me back
Such pain as this
Shouldn't have to be experienced
I'm still reeling from the loss,
Still a little bit delirious
Near to you, I am healing
But it's taking so long
'Cause though he's gone
And you are wonderful
It's hard to move on
Yet, I'm better near to you.
You and I have something different
And I'm enjoying it cautiously
I'm battle scarred, I am working oh so hard
To get back to who I used to be
He's disappearing
Fading subtly
I'm so close to being yours
Won't you stay with me
Please
- Near to You, A Fine Frenzy
Prologue
The first time Kurt saw him, he didn't actually see him. No, he was far too busy having an argument with Blaine over the phone when he ran into a tall - well, taller than him - guy with blonde hair and spilled his non-fat mocha with no whip all over his brand new Alexander McQueen shirt.
"Shit! My shirt!" he exclaimed as he began frantically blotting the darkening spot with some sheet music that he grabbed from his satchel and attempting to balance his iPhone against his shoulder as he did so.
"Look, Blaine, I have to go. I just spilled coffee all over myself. Can we talk about this when I get home?"
"I don't know, Kurt, can we? Are you capable of discussing this like a rational adult, or am I going to have to sit through TheKurt Hummel Drama Hour again?"
He could feel the sting of tears in his eyes before he even had time to speak another word. It was like being slushied back in high school. It didn't matter how often it happened or that you expected it to happen several times a week without fail because every single time was like a slap in the face. You would think that Kurt had grown used to these icy little barbs that he and Blaine throw back and forth, especially considering that it was typically the only verbal communication they shared nowadays, but he hadn't.
"Fuck you," he hissed and hung up the phone right in the middle of what he was certain was just another icy but polite retort.
It was only then that he noticed he wasn't alone. Standing in front of him, wearing a very apologetic look, was the guy Kurt had run into.
"You OK?"
Kurt gave him a wry look. "Isn't that my line? After all, I was the one that ran into you."
The blonde flashed a million-watt smile, and Kurt felt his breath hitch in his throat at the sight. "I wasn't paying attention either, so really, we ran into each other. Sorry about your shirt, though. Can I buy you another cup of coffee to make up for it?"
Kurt hadn't meant to say yes at all because he had a ridiculous number of things to do, but when he opened his mouth to answer, he found himself accepting the offer.
"Great. I know just the place. I'm Justin, by the way."
"Kurt."
Chapter One
Kurt thrived at Carnegie Mellon in a way that he never thrived at McKinley or Dalton. Not only did he thrive there, but he fit in there like he'd never been able to do before. Within a month of classes starting, Kurt had both auditioned for - and obtained! - the part of Friedrich Von Trapp in the school's production of The Sound of Music, and joined the GLBT alliance on campus, as well as gathered a growing circle of friends.
Keeping busy, Kurt discovered, was the only way to keep certain thoughts out of his head. Such as the fact that despite he and Blaine having been friends, and sometimes more, for years and sharing an apartment, they could now barely stand to be in each other's presence let alone exchange a civil word. Such as the fact that Blaine recently began to date again. Such as the fact that because Blaine had recently begun dating again, Kurt had been subject to an ever increasing amount of heartache as he watched Blaine date boy after boy.
The truth of the matter was that keeping busy was becoming increasingly less effective, and as the saying goes, all work and no play makes Kurt a very dull boy. Unfortunately, though, sometimes there was just no time to play. Rehearsals alone took up a huge chunk of his time not to mention classes and homework. He would run from the minute he woke up until the minute he went to sleep with a smile on his face.
Most of the time, that was. Ever since he met Justin and spent the afternoon tucked away in the corner of this tiny coffee shop talking about nothing of any real consequence, Kurt found himself thinking about him progressively more each day. This was a completely frivolous activity because Kurt didn't even know Justin. In fact, the only thing he really knew about him was that he went to Pittsburgh Institute of Fine Arts. Not to mention the fact that he just assumed that he would probably never see the attractive blonde again which was why he was completely blindsided when he actually did see Justin again.
The second time Kurt saw him was on a Thursday. Thursday was typically the one day of the week that Kurt looked forward to. He had no afternoon classes or rehearsals on Thursday, so it was typically a day where Kurt could catch up on homework - and sometimes sleep - that he was deprived of throughout the rest of the week. This was not the case on this Thursday.
He knew it was going to be one of those days when he slept through his alarm and missed his first class. Going through his morning routine caused him to miss his second class. Then, before he had even left his bed, he had received a hysterical call for help from his friend Nathan, a senior who was in charge of costuming, telling him that the director, a near perfect male version of Rachel Berry - and that was being polite! - had torn up his costume designs in a fit of pique.
This was followed by entering the kitchen to discover Blaine and some guy with very questionable hair eating breakfast in an alarming state of undress that indicated they had only just rolled out of bed. Blaine's hair was the way Kurt likes it best: free from product, a mess of dark curls that make Kurt want to run his fingers through it repeatedly. One dark curl fell into Blaine's face as he bent over his bowl of cereal. He of the questionable hair reached over and tucked the errant curl behind his ear. Blaine grasped the hand and pulled him closer until their lips met.
The empty bowl he had been carrying shattered when it hit the floor. The two sprang apart, red-faced. Kurt didn't stay to see what happened next. He fled the apartment without a word, ignoring Blaine's cry of "Kurt!" as he did so. His fleeing was a little less dramatic than he had hoped because he had had to go back fifteen minutes later when he discovered he left his iPhone, but by that time, there was no sign of either man.
After class, he headed to Liberty Diner, where he was supposed to meet Nathan to go over ideas for the costumes. Luckily, for Nathan, Kurt's favorite musical was The Sound of Music, and he had been designing possible costume choices for said musical for years. He should have something that Aidan, their bitchy prima-donna of a director, would like. Nathan was ten minutes late when he called Kurt frantic.
"Change of plans," He said when Kurt answered. "Aidan is having an emergency meeting, so I'm going to be like an hour late. I'm so sorry, but you know how he can be-"
Kurt sighed. He was already ensconced in a booth with pictures and sketches covering the table, but he definitely did know how Aidan could be. "Don't worry about it. It's fine. I'll just stay here and work a bit. I don't want to go back to the apartment in case Blaine is there."
Nathan made a sympathetic noise. "Why don't you sleep over tonight? Chris won't mind. We can eat copious amounts of ice cream and drool over the newest issue of Italian Vogue."
A smile tugged at Kurt's lips. "Sounds good to me."
He ordered lunch from Debbie, the waitress who had said that he looked "just like one of those little Hummel dolls" when he walked in. After eating, he began a new series of sketches. He was in the process of working on his costume when someone leaned over him.
"Wow, you're a singer and an artist, I'm impressed."
A smile stretched across Kurt's face when he turned around to find Justin. His lips curl into a smug little smile. "What can I say? I'm a man of many talents."
"I can see that."
He flushed as Justin's eyes swept over him. "I'm not exactly an artist though. I'm just working on the costume designs for a friend of mine."
"Well, they're good, and I should know. I am a professional. Sort of anyway. I guess I should get back to work. Let me know if you need anything." He gestured to the apron around his waist and the notepad in his hand.
"Oh. Right. Thanks."
Justin flashed him another smile before heading to a booth across the room where a couple was waiting.
His phone vibrated indicating he had a new text from Blaine. He ignored his rapidly beating heart and deleted the message without even reading it.