Hoped You'd Be Reminded (past Dave/Kurt, Dave/OMC)
Title: Hoped You Be Reminded
Author: kosherrainbow
Rating: PG/PG13
Characters/Pairings: Dave/Kurt, Dave/OMC, brief mention of past Klaine
Warnings/Spoilers:
Length: 2716 words
Disclaimer: Don't Own Glee or The Adele Song the Title comes from *Someone Like You
Summary: Future one-shot. Dave and Kurt had their moment, but Kurt messed up. Dave moved on. And now its too late to fix anything.
Notes: This was original posted to ff.net...Here I've done some editing (for this this story its mostly grammar/spelling). Feel free to comment here on through the Link to Original Post
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Kurt stands still for a moment, staring at the modest suburban house he hasn't seen in nearly four years, before the thunder rolled and the sky broke open. Of course it was raining; though he’s thirty-three years old his first concern is how it could ruin his shirt and ruin his hair. However, his inner flair for the dramatic assures him that the downpour sets the mood perfectly. Sighing, he makes his way up the driveway passing the delivery man who seems too upset formaking such a late delivery to acknowledge him. Sarcastically he remarks to the universe at large that it would have been easier if he could have just brought the box which had just been delivered it himself, yet he supposes situations like this didn't really work like that.
From the other side of the front door he can hear a pair of dogs barking and he couldn't help but smile as the familiar voice rang out, "It's probably just that package. I'll be right back. Bummer! Sasquatch! Babe, can you call them?"
Kurt's smile fades as another voice could be heard before the door swung open. He is able to catch the last glimpses of the dogs disappearing to the back of the entrance hallway.
"Kurt?" The sound of disbelief is clear while both take in the sight of the other.
"Hi." It’s been a while since Kurt had felt this nervous; time had been good to Dave Karofsky despite the high school speculation Kurt had long ago retracted.
"Wh..What are you doing here?" Dave's voice sounded full of some odd emotion and there was a slight hint in his voice that he was on way to being slightly choked up.
Kurt shrugs slightly and Dave shifts his position to lean against the front door, hands stuffed into pockets for lack of a better purpose.
"You kept the house."
"Didn't have a lot of choice at the time...We're thinking of selling it soon,though."
The rainfall seems to get heavier and lightning flashes in the seeable distance. Dave's eyes leave Kurt to observe the weather behind him.
"This feels familiar doesn't it?" The home owner eye's meets that of his visitor's and there's a brief, shared smile at the memory.
Eighteen year old Kurt shuffles the box in his hands as he heard the sound of celebration coming from inside of the Hummel-Hudson house. He had been invited of course to join the party for the New Direction's second National win, but he had wanted to avoid one new member in particular so he had agreed to a date with Blaine. And now he was holding the remnants of that date in his hands scattered among the other memorabilia returned to him from their fourteen month relationship. Not that he hadn't been sort of expecting this with college fast approaching, he just now felt less in the mood than ever to partake in any happy occasion. So, despite the rain Kurt plops down on the front stairs, putting at his feet with enough disdain at this point he doesn't really care what gets ruined. He's by himself for a few moments before the door opens behind him so he hides he face in his hands. But no one goes around him, instead he feels the rain stop pattering on him (though he can still hear that its raining) and when he opens eyes he is met with a box of tissues.
"Why do the best feelings in the world have the worst repercussions?" Kurt asks, still unaware of his company's identity, but considering there's plenty of people in there he like to talk to chances are its one of them. There's a scoff of agreement and the mysterious Samaritan is starting to sit beside him still holding the umbrella high enough to cover him. Kurt takes the umbrella gratefully, until he catches a glimpse of ...chances never had a history of running in his favor.
Trying to think of an excuse to run they sit in silence as the rain pours around them.He's just about to get up with Dave's voice breaks the silence. "I guess we keep doing it...the whole love thing on the off chance it actually lasts."
Kurt gapes momentarily before he catches himself. He had hear rumors the Neanderthal had grown up, but he's guess Karofsky deserves a little more credit than he'd been giving his former bully for that little moment of wisdom. Not trusting himself to speak, mostly in fear of ruining a decent moment by turning it into a fight, he nods and the slip into silence once again. There's a lot be said in the silence between them though, that was something the jock had always been good at. But for once it wasn't fear, it's was words of cowardice, and what Kurt now knew was denial. It was support, and an apology Dave couldn't find words to give verbally and it was enough to keep Kurt seated. There was a beeping from the larger boy's watch and the athlete moves to get up.
Dave is nearly out of sight before he reappears again in Kurt's line of vision forcing the Dalton boy to look up. "I know it sucks now. And I'm sorry it's over with you two...I heard how much you liked him. But I think it might be true what the say." Dave swallows nervously before explaining, "About it being better to have loved and it not working than to not even try. Not knowing what could have happened, it sucks more."
With that Dave Karofsky disappears before Kurt can process all the words and what exactly they mean coming from that particular source.
Dave looks down at the packing tape wrapped cardboard box sitting between their feet."So, that's it?"
"That'sit. Though I don't know why you would want some of that...it's been four years since we even really spoke." Kurt lets loose unintentionally spiteful, and bites his lips as the grunt is emitted from the other man. There was no need,especially when it was Kurt's fault in the first place
Dave's temper has calmed considerably since high school so the grunt is his only response, feeling partly responsible for the silence between the two of them,though he'll never admit it out loud. "What all is in there?"
Another shrug, "The things you requested, and some stuff they thought you'd like to have. I think that stupid scrapbook is even in there."
"Its not stupid."
Kurt laughs lightly, "You hated that scrapbook."
"I did not." He did, but now he's only grateful for it.
Twenty-five year old Kurt watches with amusement from the door frame as his boyfriend sings (and moves) to the music while painting the wall of their tiny apartment bedroom in one of the approved colors. He stands there for a few moments staying silent to enjoy the few moments of observation. Its the seconds like these that Kurt realizes that he's grateful he got to see the Dave Karofsky that Dave himself had been afraid of showing. It wasn't all roses and puppy dogs, after all, having started the way they did the only thing that may compete with how they love each other is how well they fight with each other (though now they're adults, and know enough to save that particular skill for only most appropriate topics).
He's pulled out of his thoughts as the still unaware Dave moves to adjust his jeans not realizing he had paint on his hands. Kurt stifles the laugh rising and lifts the camera up to snap a few pictures of the paint smearing across Dave's jean covered rear. Dave turns as the flash goes off by accident, his smile betrays the slightly annoyed tone his voice tries to take.
"What are you doing?"
"For the scrapbook." Kurt feigns innocence only to receive a genuine groan.
"Then take a picture of something more photogenic." Dave sees the frown forming on his boyfriend's face, they had the remnants-of-his-low-self-esteem-phase discussion on multiple occasions and he doesn't want another one, "I think you just want an excuse to get out of unpacking."
"That's not what I'm doing."
"Kurt, we've been together six years and you've just now gotten camera happy." David deadpans, but Kurt's not focused on the proof of his guilt.
"How many times are we going to discuss this? It's only been three years…" He hated the embarrassed guilty feeling he got when people asked and they responded with two different answers.
"Practically six."
"No. Three….We were not 'together' when I had that little relapse with Blaine…and we were not 'practically together' when you were with Ian or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named'."
"Come on, Kurt…those were just minor technicalities." Dave pouted slightly,"And Graham looked nothing like Voldemort."
Kurt pursed his lips tightly in a display that he obviously disagreed with that statement, but chose not to pursue that particular argument. Instead he raises the camera again, "Well, I am the one making the scrapbook for our posterity. I get to decide."
A slightly mischievous grin slowly broke across his boyfriend's face, "Posterity, huh? You want to have posterity with me?"
Kurt's face blushed, the subject of children had been discussed as someday and never committed as those children being theirs, but his voice remained slightly indignant, "Yes, I want posterity with you. And I want to show them a scrapbook full of pictures of you painting."
"You just want pictures of my ass."
The two of them share a laugh at the memory before Dave reaches down to open the box. He's about to open the letter taped on top when Kurt stops him, "Don't open that yet. It'll spoil the moment."
Dave complies and tucks it into his pocket as he pulls the tape back. "There it is." There's a smile in his voice as he pulls out the aforementioned scrapbook. Setting aside he briefly shifts through the other items. His hand lands on a card rubber banded around a small velvet box. He holds it up for Kurt to see it.
"Its about time you got that back."
Dave nods sadly his mood falling slightly, "I always thought if you held onto it you'd change your mind." He pulls out the box and peeps inside before his attention is turned to the piece of card stock. "and the card?"
"My congratulations on your wedding and my regrets on missing it."
This confuses the former athlete, "We already got the card."
"Yes." Kurt draws out, "You got the tactful, I'm-happy-you're-happy version edited by Carole. That's the version I wrote while stupidly drunk making scathing remarks on how quickly you bounced back before pleading for your forgiveness and confessing that I have never and will never stop loving you." The shorter man lets out a weary laugh, " Yeah, it might be best if you just trash that card. I never wanted you to see that."
Dave lets the confession sink in, letting it tear at is heart before it constricts tightly at the emotional weight, "Kurt, you said..."
"No, I never said no."
Twenty-eight year old Kurt should have seen this coming. After all they had been together for six, or nine if you asked Dave, years; either way at this point he should have been able to respond faster to the man who appeared to be moving from stand into that inevitable kneeling position. It wasn't like he had thought about it, he was Kurt Hummel after all, he dreamed of 'the one' and had planned his wedding down to the dark raspberry chocolate place cards
"Kurt, you know I'm not that great with words…"
He really should have seen this coming. Dave had been talking kids and two car garages since the day he had let the word 'posterity' slip. Dave had been teasing Finn about who was going to settle down first. The house he wanted Kurt to look at. He had gone along with it, agreeing to all the tings David had wanted, of course, but now he had to commit to it on the same day he had just gotten the biggest opportunity of his career (and out of all the days, it had been this day Kurt had said "No, you tell me first."), not before they had done all those little things they talked about.
"I love you and I want you to know…."
Truth be told he had gotten comfortable, which was surprising because he had never expected it to have gotten this far. But hanging out with a couple of movies had turned into a couple of dates, couple of dates turned into a couple of years, a couple of years had turned into six. He knew how to multiply the years safely, this going along with life at its own pace, never forcing any rules on it…he liked it like that.
"Kurt, will you marry me?"
Why was he freaking out? He loved Dave. Enough to give everything up? He didn't have to give everything up; they'd figure it out. He couldn't just make Dave quit his job for him. They were twenty-eight, they still had plenty of time for kids, and weddings…just later when they were ready, when Kurt really wanted it and just wasn't saying it for Dave's sake.
"Kurt?" Dave had asked, his smile only faltered a moment, hoping to believe that Kurt had just been too shocked to respond.
Kurt gaped for a moment. He felt frozen, all the thoughts running around, all the words on the tip of his tongue.
"I got a job offer from the London office."
"I didn't say 'no'," Kurt repeated.
"I think moving across an ocean pretty much said it for you."
Kurt allowed his voice to get louder, "I just wanted to wait a little longer, until I got back from London."
"I would have gone with you, if you would have let me."
"Made you give up everything you loved over here and had you hating me for it? You've moved on, remember? You don't love me anymore." Kurt's shouting over the thunder silences the other man, but it Dave's face that does the most damage. That familiar expression the one Dave wore when Kurt stopped him from going in for the second kiss.
"Kurt, that's not true. I just thought…"
"I know." Kurt says, just above a whisper. "I just never did…move on…and I when I heard you had…I wanted to come back, but it was too late. And now, now it definitely too late. I love you, though, I just wanted you to know that."
Dave struggles to find his voice when he hears his name from behind him. He turns to see his husband of eight months standing in the door. "Dave, hun, are you okay? What's taking so long?"
Quickly he turns back to the door, but no one is standing there. There's no one on the driveway. No car pulling out of the neighborhood. The rain's stopped. Dave's eyes close as he the realization hits him. Opening his eyes he closes the door and picking up the box, "Yeah, I'm fine. I'll be there in a minute. I'm just going to take this down stairs."
His husband nods before returning to the kitchen. Dave makes his way down the flight of stairs and places the box on the basement counter deciding he'll go through it later. The sound of the dogs being let back inside almost drags him immediately back up the stairs. But his hand finds his pocket and the letter he tucked in there earlier. Unfolding the letter, he eyes whelm at the scroll of Carole's handwriting.
~Dave~ I just wanted to thank you once again, from Burt, Finn, and myself for all your help since Kurt's death. I know it was just as hard on you as it was for us. And even as you move on know that you'll always be a son to us; and that you and your husband will always be welcomed in our home…It was hard to finally go through his room, and the boxes he never got to unpack. Here are some of the items we thought you might want and the scrapbook…I think you should know that it was in the bag he had with him that night. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call.~Carole
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The END
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