He spent enough time staring at that perfect, perfect face. He'd know it anywhere. Even if the eyes were greener than usual, even if the hair was almost white, even if the fashionable outfits were replaced by a - oh, God - skin-tight full-body superhero suit, it was still Kurt Hummel.
It was Kurt that had just tackled him to the ground before flying - fucking flying - away to beat the shit out of whatever had come out of his dad's basement this time.
It didn't quite register at first that Kurt had probably just saved his fucking life (Kurt, who he had bullied every day for as long as he could remember for being a "sissy little fag boy") because Kurt had just fucking tackled him, fuck, boner, fuck, fuck, fuck! His back heated up where Kurt's body had pressed against his.
Dave wondered what would be a worse idea; staying where he was and putting himself in danger, or moving and showing off his spectacular hard-on. He wasn't quite sure his legs worked, so he just stayed where he was for the moment, lying on his stomach on the asphalt, looking up at an awkward angle to see Fancy Phantom and some giant bird-ghost-thing.
"I'm not going back there!" Kurt shouted, red light streaming from his hands. "I'm not one of you!"
The bird flew at Kurt, who disappeared for a moment, then reappeared as the bird stopped and turned around behind him.
Dave noticed two things. One: He had a really, really nice view of Kurt's ass. Two: The bird-thing had seen him and was probably about to kill him. Wonderful.
Suddenly, the one bird was twenty birds, and then the twenty birds were twenty teenage boys and since when was someone stepping on his back-
The sidekicks (and Dave really should have seen through "Porsche" and "Barbara" a long time ago) finally showed up, breathing heavily and pointing their odd hairdryers at the group currently terrorizing Kurt, sucking them in as was the custom, before turning towards Dave. He saw them falter, then look at Kurt, who put his hands over his mouth and took a step forward, as if to run towards him.
Dave felt a hand on his head before a voice - his voice, fuck everything - whispered condescendingly in his ear. "Tell me how it feels to have me inside you."
He'd been possessed before. He hated the feeling - no matter how much he protested, the ghost had complete power over him. Dave could see everything that was happening and could think freely and he hated this type of possession more than the type where he blacked out and when he came back to the world, someone hated him. In that situation he wouldn't have seen the betrayal on someone's face. With this, he had to watch. And it fucking hurt.
It hurt as Blaine tried to capture Kurt in one of those plasma cages that Kurt could never quite get the hang of. It hurt as Blaine used Dave's body as a shield from the freaking hairdryer things. It most definitely hurt when Kurt decided to fight back by kicking Dave square in the balls (and really, Kurt should know better than that by now; Dave could still feel every fucking bit of that pain) but that was a whole different kind of pain and it still didn't drive Blaine out at all.
"You weren't like this before, Blaine!" Kurt shouted, deflecting Blaine's attacks. "You used to be good!"
"I changed," Blaine said through Dave in an ugly mixture of their voices.
If I had known gay breakups came with all this fucking baggage I would have kicked your ass a long time ago, Dave thought, and he wondered what Blaine would have to say about that. He found out pretty quickly, as Blaine flew his body right into a wall before taking over completely.
Dave's vision went black and one by one his other senses shut down until he was just floating.
When he regained consciousness, he felt wind on his face and smelled that Kurt smell that he could never forget mixed with the ever-present smell of decay that came with his ghost half. He opened his eyes and looked down; they were a couple hundred feet in the air. Dave passed out again.
000
Bright lights and muffled beeping and pain greeted him the second time he woke up.
"He's up, he's up!" Kurt yelled out the door, but Dave barely heard it. Kurt came back over and grabbed his hand. "Are you feeling okay?"
All Dave managed was a scratchy "Ow," and he instantly regretted it as worry took over Kurt's face.
Kurt squeezed Dave's hand. "I was really worried." It took Dave a few confused moments to figure out what Kurt had said.
"You're him, aren't you? You're the Phantom." Dave's voice came out raspy and far too quiet.
Kurt nodded. "I didn't want to tell you because I was worried this would happen. I had no idea what he would have done to you. He used to be a good guy, I don't know what went wrong, but new evil is so unpredictable… I can't believe he tried to use the Wail while he was possessing you-"
Dave lost track of what Kurt was saying pretty quickly. "Who-? The what-?" He still couldn't speak properly. Dave tried clearing his throat, and winced; it burned. Oh. The Wail. Well, that explained that.
"Oh, no-" Kurt kissed his forehead. Dave tried not to look shocked. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"
"No, don't be," Dave whispered. "You didn't do it."
"But it's my fault! I shouldn't have tried to join them. Just because I could use the Wail, too…"
"I was the one that made you want to leave and go to that ghost world in the first place. It's my fault, I deserve this."
"No, never-"
There were footsteps outside, and Kurt pulled back and spun around just before Mercedes and Rachel came in.
"How's he doing?" Mercedes asked. Rachel stayed back by the door, glaring at Dave; she still didn't trust him, and he didn't blame her.
"He's got severe throat and inner ear damage," a nurse said, reading off her clipboard as she walked in, "a few fractured ribs, a minor concussion, bruised genitals, and he had some minor cuts and scrapes. The throat and ear damage is really the only thing we're worried about; his vocal chords might not fully repair, and his ears never will. He'll be able to talk, but we're not sure about singing, and if he's not completely deaf by twenty it'll be a miracle." She then told him how long he'd be out of school - there was definitely a plural of some sort, and he hoped it was days and not weeks - before leaving to alert his parents that he had woken up.
Kurt stared at Dave from across the room. He loved Dave's voice. It was the perfect complement to his own, and it was incredible regardless. To lose it…
Dave turned on his side, away from Mercedes' concern, from Rachel's slowly waning distrust, from Kurt's growing friendship that I don't deserve and I never will…
They got the message and left him alone with his thoughts. Or, rather, only one thought.
I might never hear Kurt sing again.
000
When Dave was finally released from the hospital two weeks later (unfortunately benched for the rest of football season, and probably forever), his first visitor at his house was Kurt. Dave's parents had come to expect Kurt after they had gotten closer over the summer, and after Dave came out to them a month before the accident they had stopped asking questions.
There was no 'hello,' no 'how are you doing;' just cool hands pressed to Dave's neck. A blinding white light interfered with Dave's vision and he recognized the decaying smell of ghosts, but the fingers trailing up and over his ears left a burning path. When Kurt removed his hands, the pain in Dave's throat was gone. Only a tickle remained, but Dave swallowed compulsively and it left, along with the scent of decay that escaped with the breeze out the open window.
"I have healing powers," Kurt explained, and Dave almost cheered that he could hear Kurt perfectly. "I would have done this before, but I didn't want anyone to know I'm the Phantom. Sing something for me; I want to make sure it worked."
Dave cleared his throat; it wasn't even scratchy. "What do you want me to sing?" Dave was shocked at his own voice; it was the first time he'd heard it properly in a month.
"Anything," Kurt breathed.
Dave searched his brain for the perfect song, looking straight at Kurt. His eyes were fading back from green to gray-blue, as they always did after he used his powers. Dave had watched him enough in the past few weeks to notice it.
The words came almost reflexively. "So excuse me forgetting, but these things I do… You see, I've forgotten if they're green or they're blue… Anyway, the thing is, what I really mean… Yours are the sweetest eyes I have ever seen."
He saw Kurt's tongue poke out to lick his lips, but he didn't really register what was about to happen until those lips were on his own. Kurt's hands rested on Dave's cheeks and his fingers curled slightly around the back of Dave's neck, pulling him in desperately in a mirror of Dave's surprise kiss only a year earlier. Dave lifted his arms and wrapped them around Kurt's waist, pulling him closer. Kurt got the message and moved even closer, gasping as their hips came in contact. Kurt pulled away regretfully.
"Your parents are downstairs," he said almost sadly before laughing. "Last year, I'd be running out of the room if that had happened - and I don't mean kissing you. I mean… that last bit." Kurt took his hands off Dave's face and rested them on his shoulders, tucking his head into Dave's neck and breathing deeply.
Dave ran his fingers through Kurt's hair - just as soft as he remembered - and decided he may as well throw it out there. "I love you. I've been in love with you for years."
Kurt looked back up at him and smiled. "I know. Think you can handle loving someone who will probably have to cancel almost all of our dates last-minute?" His eyes blazed green with the last few words, a silent reminder of his secret job.
Dave grinned, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "I wouldn't want anyone else, Fancy."