¡Author's Note!
During songs: Italic= Anna, Underlined= Other, Bold= Combined
I don't own Glee or any of the songs; but Anna and Brad are mine
New Kid
I really hate being late. Like, REALLY hate it. It makes me feel so, I don't know, rushed. So when I heard the bell ring and still had no idea where my Spanish classroom was, I started freaking out a little. I managed to find it, eventually. Unfortunately, the period had started almost ten minutes prior, so I got to do the 'new kid walk of shame' into the crowded room. I slunk in as quietly as possible, but as soon as the door clicked closed almost everyone's eyes were on me. I looked away as soon as possible, heading to the teachers' desk. It looked like there was a test or quiz or something out, so I tried to talk as quietly as possible. "Hi, um, I'm Anna. I'm really sorry I'm late. It's my first day, and um this school is huge." He smiled and stuck out his hand for me to shake, I did. "Hola, Anna. I'm Mr. Schuster, it's nice to meet you." He seems nice enough. "Likewise." I love Spanish, and I'm pretty good at it. I can tell already that this will be one of my favorite classes. "We should be wrapping up this pop quiz shortly. Why don't you take a seat over there, near Kurt." I followed the trajectory of his finger to the seat next to a very well dressed boy. He's adorable really, I liked how his ears went a little pointy at the top. I sat down as quietly as possible, and caught myself examining his petite profile. I dropped my gaze before he could catch me looking, I didn't need to be labeled as one who stares.
As foretold, students slowly began handing in their quiz papers one by one. Kurt was one of the first, striding confidently to the front of the room to place his quiz in the wire basket. By the look of it, he was tall. I might be taller though. That's something I'm used to; six foot is a little tall for a girl. It makes me about the same height as an average man, which doesn't tend to work well in my favor romantically. He sat back down and surprised me; first, because he actually spoke to me, second, because his voice was so high. It was unique, I liked it. "Hello, I'm Kurt Hummel. Are you new here?" "Hi, um, yeah I'm new. My name is Anna." My fingers immediately went through my hair, something I do when I get nervous. "Where are you from?" He smiled, he actually looked interested. "New York." His face lit up, absolutely lit up. I have no idea how I didn't notice before, but his eyes are grey like mine. They were almost identical to mine, actually; a constantly shifting grey, blue, grey, green, grey, hazel. "Are you serious? New York? That's incredible!" I smirked, boy was he in for a surprise. "Not the city. I lived in Central New York. It's all farmland." He looked both confused and disappointed. I get that a lot when I talk about where I'm from. "There are farms in New York?" Wow, you catch on quick. "Yeah, the whole middle of it is rural." While he puzzled over that, I checked around me. Most of the students were still working on their quiz, though we were at least halfway through the period. "Don't get your hopes up, we're not doing anything productive today." I was a little surprised to hear the bitterness in his tone. "Half the people in here are probably still struggling to get their names written." Well that was just mean. The disgust must have shown on my face, because he quickly explained himself. "I know that sounds bad, but it's true. McKinley isn't exactly the cream of the crop." I let that sink in for a moment. I might actually be a 'smart kid' here! I wonder what else they have to offer. "Do you guys have any clubs or anything? I mean, my old school was too small and poor to keep many programs outside of sports going." He nodded sympathetically, then smiled a little. "Do you like to sing or dance?" I nodded quickly, "I love both! I'm not great at it, but that's because I haven't had much practice." His face split into a huge grin. "Excuse me." He then walked to the front of the room and began a hushed conversation. I averted my eyes, not wanting to be caught staring if one happened to look my way. Kurt returned before too long, smile even wider. "If you'd like, the Glee Club invites you to audition for a position with us. Five o'clock in the choir room." That was both exciting, and terrifying. "Audition? What does that involve? What do I have to do?" Okay, I might have panicked a little. "Hey, relax. It's not really an audition, everyone who wants to join gets in. This is more like a test drive, so we can all see where you'd best fit in. Usually, you do a solo, then we applaud and welcome you aboard." I felt my eyes go a little wide. "I don't think I can do that." He raised an eyebrow at that. Wow, his eyebrows are perfect. "Why not? Do you get stage-fright? You know we're a group of performers, right?" "No, no it's not that. I just don't have any experience singing solos. I've been trained as a harmonizer, not a soloist." He thought for a minute, checked the clock, then left his seat once more. I looked, twenty minutes left in the period. The periods here are longer, but there are fewer of them. He walked halfway back to me and gestured for me to follow him out. I followed, giving Mr. Schuster a sheepish smile to return the huge grin he was giving me.
As soon as the door was closed Kurt started talking again, this time at normal volume. "So let me get this straight. You have all your musical experience ooh-ing and aah-ing in the background, and you like it there?" I nodded and tried to keep up with his brisk walk. I am a little taller, but he's a whole lot faster. "Um, yeah, I mean sometimes there was a solo in my range that I'd try out for because I liked it, but I've never been given one. I don't really need one, I just like singing." As he walked quickly and looked around the empty halls nervously, in a way that made me glance over my shoulder. Before I could think too much on it, he led me into what I could recognize as a choir room. I stayed on his heels as he paced to the piano and sat down. I stood behind him, off to the side a little as he fussed with sheet music. "What's your range?" I honestly didn't have a good answer to that. "Limited, mid- range alto." I confessed, moving to the opposite side of the piano to face him. He nodded and started leading me through some drills to both warm me up and test my range. He sang with me, so I felt more confident about it. He stopped and looked up after the last run, where I had launched into a shaky falsetto to try to reach the note that he played. "That was good. You're not as limited as you think." I know I blushed, and chose that moment to re- tie my shoelaces. "What do you have next hour?" I stood up and pulled my schedule from my pocket. "Study Hall." He grinned hugely. "Excellent. If you'd like, I'll help you prepare something for your audition. We can do a duet, so it's not so intimidating." I really like this kid, he's just the sweetest thing. "That's really nice of you, do you have any ideas?" His smile turned into a smirk. "It's your audition." Fair enough. "Okay, um, I have a couple songs I like, but I don't think you'll like them." He rolled his eyes. "And why's that?" Wow, sassy much? "Because they're all country. I don't take you as that type." He giggled, he actually giggled at me. I wrapped my arms around myself protectively. He stopped when he saw my change of demeanor. "I'm sorry, don't be mad at me. Just think though, I just found out New York had farms twenty minutes ago. It was just another surprise to hear you say that you listen to country too. Trust me, it's all my dad listens to in his shop." Okay, fair enough. I chastised myself for being so thin skinned. "Do you know Broken Road by Rascal Flatts?" He seemed pleased. "Excellent choice! That's a really tight harmony. If we can pull that off it will be a perfect display of your talent." He just said I have talent, that's new. We spent most of the hour perfecting my audition piece. I wasn't surprised when he offered to take the higher part. When we were warming up he gave me a quick display of his range. It had taken some prodding, he didn't want to show off. Let me just say, he's incredible.
"You're going to be a great addition to the club. Your voice is beautiful, and you might be the first person to join that won't start drama." I felt the blush creep up my neck. He was really nice and flattering, in a distinctly not- hitting- on- you kind of way. "Thanks, but why do new members start drama?" He folded his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, still perched on the piano bench. I could never figure out how people were comfortable sitting like that. "They don't start drama, they just spark it within the club. There are a few people that feel that they are entitled to always have the lead and start problems when people join. They feel threatened by talent. I don't think you'll start this problem if you make it clear that you're not looking to steal anyone's spotlight." He thought for a moment before adding, "You're talented though. And I will make it my personal mission to make sure you get experience with a solo. When you feel ready, let me know." The bell rang before I could say much in return. He stood up and offered me his arm, grinning. "Let's go to lunch, I'll introduce you to some of the gang."
"Got a name, White Girl?" The first person to join us at the table Kurt had picked was a short black girl. She's big, not as big as I used to be, but big. She has a big mouth too. "I'm Anna, and you are?" "Mercedes." She forces out around a mouthful of tater tots. Another girl joined and asked nearly the same question, in the same demanding tone. I answered and learned that her name was Rachel Berry. Next to her sat a huge boy, easily taller than me. I guess he's Kurt's stepbrother, his name was Finn. Once the idle chitchat had died down, I prayed. When I looked up to start eating, all eyes were on me. "What are you doing?" Kurt actually sounded a little offended. "Praying, you know, thanking God for the meal." That seemed to rattle everyone, Kurt especially. "Okay, great, I guess I should give you the option to leave now then." Rachel and Mercedes were glaring daggers at me and I couldn't figure out what I'd done wrong. "You don't like Christians?" That was hurtful. I thought Kurt was really nice. "No, Christians don't like gays. That's the problem." I looked between the four of them. "Who's gay?" Wow, if looks could kill… "I am." Kurt looked defensive after the confession, and the others just looked mean, ready to defend their friend. "Okay." I felt myself flush under the angry gazes. Cautious looks were passed around. "You're okay with that? And you're a Christian, like, you believe in God and the Bible and all that?" I nodded, "Yeah, I know the church has a habit of not being very accepting, but I try to be. I mean, it's not like, a choice. I try to love everybody for who they are. God doesn't make mistakes." I must have said something right, because everybody relaxed visibly and Rachel stood up. "I'm going to hug you now." I nodded and accepted the sentiment and tried to calm my breathing. I thought about slipping to the restroom to use my inhaler, but Rachel changed the subject and I could feel my heart rate begin to even out. The rest of lunch went by fairly uneventfully, aside from having to explain that New York is not all city, again. As the bell rang, Kurt promised to pick me up outside the locker room after lacrosse and walk me to Glee. Then he sent me with Mercedes to my next class, which we apparently had together. Once he was out of sight Mercedes hooked our arms, just as Kurt had, and dragged me down the hall. "Girl, I hope you know you got a couple of big brothers now. They're gonna defend you until they die. Bet the other guys feel the same way when they meet you." Great, no boyfriend, but I get a bunch of brothers.
"How was practice?" Just as promised, Kurt picked me up outside the locker room after practice. "Rough, it's a lot harder than field hockey. But I like it." He scrunched his nose. I had just showered, I can't smell. "What's field hockey?" Oh, okay. "It's kind of a New York sport. I'll tell you about it sometime." He chuckled, "Okay, just don't go all jock on me." We walked arm in arm into the choir room. All eyes were on me again when we entered, great. Kurt dragged me over to the piano and we took our positions from practice earlier. Mr. Schuster (turns out he's the instructor) had me tell the group a little about myself and then gestured for us to perform. After I mumbled out some things about New York and why I wanted to join the group, I made eye contact with my patient partner and he nodded in response. Kurt's long fingers glided across the keys, producing the introduction effortlessly. I took a few breaths during the opening measures and tried to focus on the words and notes, instead of how badly my heart wanted to beat out of my chest.
I set out on a narrow way many years ago,
Hoping I would find true love along the Broken Road
But I got lost a time or two, wiped my brow and kept pushing through.
I couldn't see how every sign pointed straight to you.
And every long lost dream lead me to where you are.
Others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars,
Pointing me on my way, into your loving arms.
This much I know is true; that God blessed the Broken Road
And led me straight to you. Yes he did.
I think about the years I spent just passing through.
I'd like to have the time I'd lost, and give it back to you.
But you just smile and take my hand. You've been there, you understand.
It's all part of a grander plan that is coming true.
And every long lost dream lead me to where you are.
Others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars,
Pointing me on my way, into your loving arms.
This much I know is true; that God blessed the Broken Road
And led me straight to you.
That God blessed the Broken Road, and led me straight… to you.
It went okay, Kurt was wonderful. He had insisted that we each take a verse for ourselves so that I could be heard on my own. I wasn't thrilled, but he wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. I got nervous and messed up a little, but not nearly as bad as if I'd had to do it all alone. We nailed the harmony in the chorus and it sounded pretty good. Just as foretold, there was applause and welcoming into the group before Kurt and I took our seats. Rachel's hand immediately went up and Kurt huffed, lounging in the plastic chair as she squawked about a solo she'd prepared. I was already starting to see what he meant about the power hungry attitude of the group.
The next morning I found out that I was only a couple of lockers down from Kurt, so we chatted before heading to first hour. Apparently he was also in my geometry class yesterday, but neither of us had noticed. That meant that I could be with him the whole first half of my day. What's more, he seemed just as excited at the revelation. He actually likes me, and we don't have to worry about the awkward 'does he 'like- like' me, or is he just nice?' situation. We chatted about Glee over our math assignment and were both in good spirits when we left, but on our way to Spanish something happened. We rounded the corner and I was hit in the face, hard. It was cold and scratched my face, my eyes burned and I couldn't see. "Welcome to Loserville! Population: You!" I wiped at my face and tried to open my eyes, but it burned. Kurt's hand wrapped around mine and he dragged me through a nearby door. He guided my head down and water started running. We were in a bathroom, which meant that either he was in the girl's room, or I was in the boy's room. The burn in my eyes reminded me that I didn't care at the moment. I started washing my face. "Are you okay?" He sounded angry. "It burns. What happened?" I heard him shuffle through his bag and set things on the counter next to me. "The burning will stop, that's the dye. You got a slushy facial. The neanderthal jocks think it's hilarious to throw slushies in people's faces." He handed me a towel and I scrubbed my face. At least I can see now. I groaned when I looked in the mirror. My hoodie was covered in red dye and clumps of ice, my hair looked worse. "Do you have a shirt under the hoodie?" I nodded before thinking. "Then why don't you take it off so we can soak it while I wash out your hair. That stuff is a bitch to get out if it dries in. It's even worse to get out of your hair if you use product." I do use a lightweight gel that keeps my natural curls from getting too wild. I turned my back to him to remove the garment and throw it in the next sink down, turning on the hot water. I know it's useless, but I wrap my arms around myself. I sit in the folding chair that he's pulled over and lean my head back into the sink as instructed. If he notices my arms, he doesn't say a word about it.
It feels weird, letting him rinse and comb slushy out of my hair. I've honestly never had someone so willing to help me, but he didn't seem to feel uneasy in the least. "You've done this a lot, haven't you?" He was way too prepared for this for it to be a freak thing. "Yeah, you get used to it though. You're lucky your hair's so short. The other girls have it a lot rougher." My hair is cut into a pretty standard bob, shorter than most styles I see around the school. "So these guys go after new kids?" I figured something like this would happen eventually, and even though I'm a 'new me' I was prepared for people to find a reason to hate me here. "Not exactly, their favorite target is us." "Who's 'us'?" He was hesitant to answer that, stalling as he focused extra hard on working a clump of ice from a knot. "Us: Glee kids."
He seemed to hold his breath, like he was waiting for me freak out. In his distraction he knocked one of his combs off the counter. Before I could think, my hand snapped out and caught it. I offered it to him. As he took it I felt his other hand brush my forearm, momentarily tracing the ravaged landscape of criss- crossed overlapping scars. I directed my gaze back to the ceiling and yanked my arm away, wrapping it back around myself. He worked the rest of the corn syrup out of my hair silently while my mind ran wild. Now he's going to ask questions, he's going to know what a freak I was. He'll never talk to me again. I wanted to cry. No one was supposed to know and now it's going to be out in the open on my second day. Bravo, loser.
Before too long he had me sit up straight and offered to do something with my hair. I agreed, which seemed to thrill him out of the awkward silence. He chatted distractedly about my blonde roots showing through the auburn hair dye as he styled away. It looked good when he was done. As he packed up, I wrung out my hoodie. 'It might be save- able', I thought as I watched the red- stained water drain from the sink. I turned back to where he was now perched on the folding chair. "Thank you, I'm really sorry you had to waste your time doing that." He had a kind of sad smile on his face. "No trouble at all, that's what we do for each other. As long as you do the same, every person in that club will have your back." I nodded, a little awkward now that there was an elephant in the room. I felt my cheeks heat up under his gaze, I stared at the tile floor, arms wrapped so tightly around myself that it almost hurt. The floor tiles were faded, ugly shades of yellow, green, and pink. He had brought me into the girl's room, and seemed perfectly at ease there for that matter. "The bell just rang not too long ago. Why don't we go explain to Mr. Schue why we weren't in class, then we can go to the choir room and talk." I nodded numbly in agreement, but dragged him to my locker with me to get my spare hoodie and leave the other hanging to dry. I don't need anyone else to know.
"What's going on, guys?" Mr. Schue greeted us with a knowing look. Kurt puffed up to rant about the recent indignation, but I cut him off, plastering on a goofy smile as I did so. "I've been initiated!" They both looked at me like I was growing an extra nose right before their very eyes. "What?" My smile only got bigger. That's it, pretend you're not falling apart. That always works sooo well. "Being slushied is part of being in Glee, right? I guess I'm officially in." Kurt touched my hand. "You don't have to do that. It's okay to be upset with them. It hurts and it ruins your clothes and-" I shook his hand off and covered his mouth. "Oh, I'm angry. That's going to get old, fast. However, it also makes me happy. They have now officially acknowledged that I am part of something special. If I'm a target because of it, so be it." That put an end to that pretty quickly. Neither of them seemed quite convinced, but I didn't leave room for argument. As Mr. Schue explained what they'd talked about in class, my heart was in my throat. I actually had to remind myself to breathe. It's irrational to panic about the consequences of a conversation that has yet to happen, but try telling my brain that. I wish you the best of luck on that one. The curly haired instructor handed me and Kurt an assignment sheet and we were on our way.
The choir room seemed to be the 'safe zone' for Glee clubbers, and is always left open for them. The room looked different than it did the night before; all of the chairs were stacked in the corner instead of lined up on the risers. Kurt mumbled something about starting choreography. I sat in the top corner and curled my knees to my chest, wrapping my arms around them. It's not comfortable, but it's protective. I slid my hand into my bag and grabbed the necessary object on the first try. As discretely as possible, I took two long pulls from the inhaler and focused on breathing steadily. Kurt sat one riser down facing me, mirroring my position. I felt his eyes on me, but he didn't say anything. I stuck the plastic lifesaver back into my bag. When I pulled my hand out Kurt took hold of it, cautiously, like I would hit him or something. I let him. He was gentle as he slid the baggy hoodie sleeve up to my elbow. Delicate fingers traced every line, slowly, sadly. I couldn't look at him. I didn't want to see the disappointment on his beautiful features. I hid my face in my knees. His fingers finally reached the crook of my elbow. The scars went higher, but he didn't. He gently eased the sleeve down and settled on holding my hand. "You're a long way from Central New York." Not really what I was expecting. I leaned back against the wall, looking straight ahead. "My Dad got a job out here, I came with him." He hmm'd at that, rotating my hand to inspect my fingernails, which were covered in chipping purple polish. "At lunch yesterday you were telling us about your twin brother. Did he come too? I would love to meet him." I wish, "No, he stayed in New York with my mom." I stretched my legs out, unable to stand having them curled up like they were. I fidgeted for a moment, before settling on sitting cross- legged. "How did you guys do it? Splitting up your family must be awful." And now we get to the sore spots. I took a moment to keep my breathing in check. I knew he wasn't going to hurt me or anything like that, but every fiber of my being was telling me to run. "Dad got a great job out here and Mom had a great job back home. Zach was popular at school, he had friends, and he was doing fine." He squeezed my hand. "I- I wasn't. I didn't used to be like this." I had to stop, had to take a few deep breaths. This was supposed to be a secret, no one was supposed to know about any of this. I got a little teary- eyed as I berated myself for being so careless, for throwing away my fresh start.
"I used to be heavy. I used to be really, really heavy. I was disgusting, and everyone reminded me every day." A couple fingers slipped up my sleeve, feeling the lowest of the abominations. It was slow, like reading braille, reading me. I was shaking all over, waiting for him to decide that I wasn't worth it anymore. "Things got bad. I finally dropped out and my parents paid for a tutor for a year, my freshman year to be exact. I spent the year dropping weight. I ran and dieted and worked out so hard I was hospitalized. Lack of- of blood didn't help much." The fingers slid higher, I'm not even sure he was paying attention to what he was doing anymore. Just like reading braille, he was reading me. I wondered how much of my story he could really feel in the ravaged flesh. I wondered if all he felt were the marks of a quitter, like I did every day. A few tears slid out without my permission. I used my free hand to rub them away quickly. If it was any other boy, anyone really, I would have taken my arm back. I didn't though, it helped. I don't know why, but it worked this way. "I thought everything would be better when I came back a new person, but it wasn't. My old school was small, there were only about five hundred kids in the whole middle and high school combined. Everyone knew me from before. They didn't care that I looked better, they didn't care that I'm a good person. All I was to them was a fat slob. I don't want to be that here. I want to be everything I couldn't there. I love sports, I love music, and I love people. No one cared though. So when dad got the job offer I moved out here with him. Mom is waiting until Zach graduates, he's doing really well." It was quiet for a long time. The fingers on my arm stilled. I took my hand back, gently though. I curled back up and waited for him to say something I waited for him to mock me for being so weak. He just looked thoughtful.
"I get it. Labels stick to you pretty tight, don't they?" I nodded in agreement. I knew he won't tell anyone, but I couldn't stop shaking. "Do you want to meet a friend of mine? He knows a thing or two about running from the past." I couldn't really focus on much more than stopping my tears and slowing my heart rate. He wants me to tell other people? "Why can't we just keep this between us?" I reached out to him as though he were a lifeline, and he took my hand again. "Because I want you to put this behind you. I don't want you to feel like it's following you around or hanging over your head. The Glee club loves you, but wouldn't you rather have this out in the open than have them jump to their own conclusions? Wouldn't you rather have them know that you're healing than have them make it more painful by trying to help what they don't understand?" His thumb slid in little circles over the back of my hand. "How would they find out? This is why I always wear sleeves." He sighed, not in an impatient way, but a frustrated, thoughtful way. "Let's just say that none of the competition costumes I've ever seen have involved sleeves, not for the girls at least." I stood up. I couldn't take the nervous energy anymore. I paced around the room, trying to shake off the tension in the air. I can't run from this. "They're all going to know how weak and stupid I was. They're never going to look at me the same again. I know what happens when people see these. They start watching you and treating you like you need a babysitter." I had gotten louder, that happens every time I don't pay attention. I clamped my mouth shut, fixing my hand over top of it and turning from him. Kurt stayed still, perfectly calm. "That's not true. They'll just realize that you're going through something tough. They'll have your back. They had mine, they had Quinn's, I think we've had everybody's at some point." Mercedes has told me how bad things had once been for Kurt, how Quinn had gotten pregnant, how they'd stayed together through love, crushes, and affairs. She told me that even Mr. Schuster wasn't exempt from the club's protection. "There's no need for secrets, it just makes drama." I sat on the piano bench. "How will your friend help me with this?" He smiled and stood up. "Let's put it this way. Show him your scars and he'll show you his. It's a little exercise in sympathy, empathy, sharing, and trust. You were going to meet him eventually anyways, but now I have a good reason."
"Kurt! It's great to see you!" After I'd calmed down a little, Kurt had driven the two of us out of town. We ended up at a cute little coffee shop, The Lima Bean. We got coffee and sat down, waiting for Kurt's friend. He made idle chit chat the whole time, trying to bring me back from the edge of panic that I had been hanging on. "Hey Blaine! I've missed you!" Blaine; the mystery boy now had a name and a face. They greeted each other with a hug. Blaine was shorter, not by much, but I felt like I towered over him. "Who's your friend?" I felt myself blush when attention shifted to me. I folded my arms over my chest self- consciously. "I'm Anna, it's nice to meet you." So, I thought Kurt looked perfect. This guy is amazing though, not to mention how incredible his voice sounded. It was so unique that it almost sounded as if he had some sort of personalized accent. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well. I'm going to grab a coffee, then we can go to my house. My parents are away on business, we will definitely have privacy to talk." That smile though, wow. To say I was dazzled would be an understatement. Once he was out of earshot Kurt turned to me excitedly. "What do you think?" The look on his face told me everything I needed to know about how he felt about that boy. "He seems great, Kurt." I watched as he paid for his drink and moved to stand in the next line. Everything he did was poised and deliberate. Kurt filled me in about Dalton Academy while we waited, explaining the uniform and unnaturally, excessively polite demeanor. Blaine strolled back a few minutes later, coffee in hand. "Shall we?" Kurt nodded excitedly and ushered us both to his car.
"You played field hockey?" I nodded, feeling a little too shy to do much else. We'd been talking for close to an hour and I was still was having a hard time warming up. Blaine seemed like a great guy. A great guy with some sad stories, but I had yet to figure out why Kurt thought he would be so helpful. "You know what field hockey is?" Kurt hung on Blaine's perfectly enunciated words. Oops, guess I forgot to explain field hockey. "Yeah, it's pretty hard core. I bet Anna has some good battle stories from it." I had to grin at that, nodding in agreement. Finally, Kurt decided to get to the point. "So Blaine, I was hoping you wouldn't mind telling Anna how you ended up at Dalton. She has a similar problem." That looked like it upset him. Not because of what Kurt had requested, but the last part. He actually looked like he was worried about me. "Sure, no problem."
He shrugged out of his jacket nonchalantly and began loosening his tie. "When I came out it was rough. My parents weren't supportive and everybody at school was beyond ignorant. At one point I said 'screw it, I am who I am'. I brought a date to my school dance." At that moment, he stood up. I adverted my eyes when he started unbuttoning his uniform shirt. Finally, he removed it all together. I looked and was surprised to see the skin completely ravished. He began tracing individual scars, hand moving with nearly every word. "We were jumped when we left. Some of these are from the fight. Not that you can call ten on two a fight. Some are from medical procedures I had to have as a result. And some are from when I had decided I wasn't worth it, and all the haters were right." He pulled his shirt back on and kept talking. "I ran away. I found safety behind a blue blazer. I tried to hide what had happened. Dalton has a zero tolerance policy for bullying, so I didn't have to bother hiding how I am. I only had to hide my past, I had to be normal. It seems like hiding things is hard though, harder than it should be. It's time consuming and nerve wracking. What's worse, if someone sees a piece of the puzzle without knowing the whole picture, they form their own conclusions. So, I rolled up my sleeves without thinking once and someone noticed the scars. They saw some of the ones from me, and some other ones. Suddenly, I couldn't be trusted. I was considered dangerous and unstable. It took a lot of work to fix my reputation, even after starting out scott- free." He sat back down next to Kurt, who was hungrily absorbing his every word, despite having heard the story before. I took a few deep breaths, it's my turn. "So what brings you all the way to Ohio?" Blaine's voice is silky and reassuring. I could hear 'you're with friends' in the careful tone. I stood up reluctantly, Kurt nodding in encouragement. I started talking and removing layers. "I used to be very heavy. Bad genes, childhood habits, and lack of self- control resulted in a rather unhealthy figure." My hoodie was off, I slowly pulled at the tee shirt underneath. "The verbal stuff was bad, I would leave school feeling more worthless than I thought possible every day. The isolation sucked even more. I guess you can't have friends, or even talk to people if you're not pretty and thin enough. But the worst part was when the soccer team attacked me. It was after field hockey practice. I was taking a little longer to get out of the locker room because I had to lay out my goalie equipment to dry." I stood there in my cami, arms folded across my chest, staring at the carpet beneath me. "They ambushed me. Cleats, hands, and feet: nothing was off limits. The worst part was that most of my team was still there and no one helped me. That's when I dropped out. I spent a year being homeschooled. I used the time to transform myself. I worked so hard I was in and out of the hospital. I'm still on the anxiety meds, they gave me a rescue inhaler because the pills never worked fast enough. I haven't had an attack in a while though, I guess it's mostly because I have that." I released a shaky breath, still refusing to look at either of them. I turned around, knowing what they would see; jagged purple and silver stretch marks covering my shoulders. I lifted the hem up so they could see the same mark around my waist. I turned slowly to face them, exposing more of my torso as I went. "These are the scars I went in with." I dropped my shirt and bared my arms to them. "These are the scars I left with. You can't see all of them, but that's the gist of it." I couldn't stop shaking as I hurried to re- dress. As I pulled my hoodie on, I heard chairs move. When I emerged from the cloth, Blaine stood before me with Kurt right behind him. He grinned and held out his arms. I hesitated, but eventually walked into them. Kurt hugged me next, whispering in my ear before letting me go. "I'm proud of you." I teared up a little, but blinked it back as quickly as I could. We sat back down and I knew I was flushed from the whole ordeal. Blaine was the first to speak. "Kurt and I operate around a word. It's our personalized way of telling each other to keep their chin up, especially when things get tough. It's been extended to New Directions and the Warblers both. The word is 'Courage', and we know it's hard, but you have it. It's simple, but it works." We exchanged numbers and talked a little while longer. Finally, Kurt mentioned that if we wanted to get to Glee on time we had to leave. Blaine agreed, he had Warbler practice as well. Kurt and I said goodbye and went back to his car. Blaine had said that he would call a friend at school to pick him up so Kurt didn't have to backtrack. Halfway back to McKinley my phone buzzed with a text from Blaine. 'Courage'; I knew it was going to say that, but it still made me smile like a fool. "You feel stronger, right? You feel loved." I nodded, but then squeaked out an affirmative noise, remembering that Kurt was driving. "That's how it works."
Three times in one day, I can't do this. "I can't do this." Kurt took my hand. "Yes, you can. Courage, Anna." Courage or not, I was still shaking in my shoes. Most of the club was here, we were just waiting for Mr. Schue. Kurt told me to tell them the exact same thing I told Blaine. Showing Blaine and Kurt my stomach was a little different from showing a crowd of straight guys and catty girls. I let him know as much, but he brushed it off. Just as I was about to find a better argument, or pass out, the curly haired instructor strode into the room. "Okay guys, let's get to work!" He let out a sigh as Kurt's hand shot in the air. From what I've gathered, Kurt can be just as attention seeking as Rachel at times. "What Kurt?" Kurt stood up and pulled me with him. "Anna would like to tell you all a little about herself. It's not an easy thing to say, but she has been in the same position that a lot of us have." Great, now they were all looking at me and there's no turning back. I was half inclined to grab Kurt's shirtsleeve when he let go of my hand and sunk back into his seat, but I didn't. "Okay, the floor is all yours." I was shaking so hard, I barely made it down the risers. I took the place in front of the piano, front and center, great. "Um, hi. So, you all know I'm from New York and I moved here with my dad. Well, I know new kids get a lot of attention. I don't need the wrong kind of attention, the kind of attention secrets will attract." From there, I started the same routine I did at Blaine's. It was hard, but not as hard as I thought it would be. By the time I had gotten down to my cami it was silent on the risers. When people talk about giving speeches and testimonies they always say that it gets better the longer you talk, you ease into it. It didn't quite work out like that for me. My speech got choppier and my legs got shakier. I was a mess, but I pushed on. I did the same slow turn, exposing my shoulders and torso. "These are the scars I went with, and these are the scars I left with." I extended my arms, flinching a little at the astounded gasps. Blaine's battle wounds were more plentiful, but my self- harm had all of his scars outnumbered. It was a shocking sight, so I didn't blame them for their reaction. "I just didn't need anyone to see them and jump to their own conclusions. I moved here to be the person no one would let me be back home, myself. Here I want to be the person who loves sports, music, people, and learning. I don't want to be the girl with the scars, secrets, and skeletons in her closet. I'm getting better. I'm still on medication for anxiety, and I'm not a fan of wearing anything short sleeved, but I'm better than I used to be. I hope this doesn't change anyone's opinion about me." I pulled the tee shirt on and folded the hoodie over my arm. When I looked up, Mercedes was right in front of me. From there I proceeded to accept the hugs and words of encouragement from almost everyone in the club. Finally I made it back to my seat and Mr. Schue said a short piece, then proceeded to segway into our choreography lesson.
As it turns out, I'm a good dancer. My involvement in sports gave me quick feet, rhythm, agility, grace, and balance. I chuckled a little at the praises that were tossed in my direction, wait until they see what a klutz I can really be. After practice I was feeling pretty good. I had left my hoodie over in the corner at Kurt's request. During some of the more hands on dancing I wished I was wearing it, but no one made me feel specifically uncomfortable about it. I was about to head out when Rachel and Mercedes pulled me aside. "Tomorrow is Friday, the third Friday of the month." Rachel rattled off the statement and stared at me like it should mean something. "Yeah, I guess it is." Frustration and surprise flashed across both faces. "Kurt didn't tell you? That was his job!" Kurt, hearing his name, slunk over behind the two. "My apologies, but what exactly have I failed at this time?" They jumped, but expanded our circle to include him. He slid between the two of them and draped himself on their shoulders. "You sir, forgot to tell Anna about diva night." A look of mock horror and devastation molded itself to his face. "My deepest regrets, I have indeed failed." Rachel swatted his chest and Mercedes shoved him off. "In my defense, we were awfully busy today. She had her first slushy facial, we went to meet Blaine, and the whole-" "You went to see Blaine without us?!" They both looked beyond offended. "It was so she could practice what she was going to say to all of you. She met him, he told his story, gave her a little courage, and now we're here." The two 'divas' rolled their eyes. "Whatever, you can tell Blainey boy that he's not getting away from us that easily." Kurt's turn to roll his eyes, "Noted, 'Cedes." I raised my hand sheepishly. Rachel spotted it and smiled. "Oh, right, sorry. We have a 'Diva Night' on the third Friday of every month; karaoke, facials, manicures, fashion, junk food; the works." They all looked at me expectantly. "That sounds like fun." I didn't know what else to say to that. They grinned brightly at me. "Good, because you're coming. We meet at Rachel's house after Glee, no exceptions." I honestly didn't know what to say, I'd never been included in something like this before. True to my most awkward form, I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind. "What do I wear?" Another round of giggling at my expense followed. "Wear something comfortable, but change- able. We are going to have to work on your style. I'm honestly surprised Kurt hasn't broken out in hives from spending so much time with you dressed like this." Coming from Rachel, I thought that was pretty rich. She dresses like a five- year- old. At least I look like a teenager. Besides, I'm perfectly comfortable with the way I dress. It's what I'm used to; a hoodie, jeans, and either sneakers or my Carolinas. I know it's a little country, but it's comfortable, flattering, and functional. "I can show you some basic makeup too. You don't need it, but I think we can transform you from adorable to breathtaking." I nodded, not sure what else to do, I was flattered. No one had ever taken so much interest in me before. Kurt's eyes lit up at the prospect of the challenge. "Can we take pictures? If I can start building a portfolio for applications that would be amazing." Rachel giggled. "Pack for two days ladies, this is going to be a Diva Weekend!" The whole idea of this wasn't super appealing to me, I'm not a 'girly- girl' but I guess I could give it a shot.
The next day I managed to make it through lunch before getting slushied. It was grape this time, I hate grape. At least I managed to close my eyes. I had taken Kurt's advice and brought a towel, combs, and gel to keep in my bag. Unfortunately, I don't have his experience and ended up completely washing my hair in the sink to get it all out. My hair didn't look nearly as good as it did after Kurt had styled it, but I wasn't too concerned. I darted to my locker to switch hoodies and grab my books for my last class. Rachel caught up to me before I got there. "You look like a drowned rat. What flavor was it?" I grinned and rolled my eyes. "Grape, I hate grape." She smirked at my reaction. "Do you mind cutting your last class? I know the lacrosse team has the night off, so if you really can't then we'll just have to make the trip after school. That will cut it really close to Glee though." Missing English twice wasn't a big deal. I'm strong in the subject, and I'm still getting the new kid treatment. "Why?" She smiled brighter. "Kurt insisted on grabbing some supplies to suit you." I wasn't quite sure what that meant, but I agreed. She gave a little squeal of excitement and dragged me to where Kurt was waiting by his locker.
Obviously the two have plenty of experience with this sort of thing. When we got to the mall Kurt gave Rachel a specific list of beauty items that she was to get, and a second list that was up to her 'artistic interpretation'. Meanwhile, he and Mercedes took the list with measurements Mercedes had taken of me back at the school. "Where are they going?" I was learning quickly that the only way these guys traveled was hooked together. Kurt and Mercedes had strolled off arm in arm and Rachel had wasted no time latching to me and dragging me toward her designated mission. "To get some clothes for the photo shoot, you can't have a transformation without a new wardrobe." She dragged me into a cosmetic store and made a beeline for little things of beige colored liquids and powders. Foundation, apparently it goes all over your face. "I appreciate what you're all doing, but I don't have the money for all this." She had snatched my hand and was putting little smears of liquid on it. "Sweetie, we have you covered. No offense, but Kurt has officially made you a project. That means that he sees every penny spent on you as an investment toward his future career. Don't give me that look! He loves you and you're our friend, that's why he feels comfortable enough to ask you to do this." She held my hand in the better light and made her selection. She snagged the two colors she liked best and set them in the little shopping basket that she grabbed on her way in. She pulled me through isle after isle and added a bunch of weird stuff to the basket, all while either mumbling about what she and Mercedes already have that will work on me, and how exciting this all is. The worst part was when she had gotten the eye products and colors that had been specifically requested and moved on to the 'artistic' portion. She held palette after palette up to my face. Eventually she grew frustrated. "I don't know what he wants from me. You're eyes are worse than his. His are paler, and only go between pale blue, grey, and pale green. Yours are darker; I'm getting solid blue, solid green, solid grey, and light hazel. It's all going to depend on what you wear." She finally chose a few palettes after texting with Kurt at a furious speed for a few moments. She then pulled me to the next product.
Rachel's room is about as childish as her wardrobe. It's a little sickening, but cute. All three of them were on pins and needles during Glee practice, wanting to get done as quickly as possible. They wasted no time in setting the room for a photo shoot once we got to Rachel's. Kurt griped about lights and everything else, but finally had me step into the little studio they had made by hanging sheets. I followed his directions as best I could, but sometimes Rachel or Mercedes had to step in and fix my position. Once the 'before' pictures were taken I was pushed into an office chair in front of Rachel's pink vanity. Without arguing, I let Kurt put layers and highlights in my hair, not saying a word while he 'touched up' and styled to his heart's content. He went through three or four different styles, taking a ton of pictures with each, before straightening it and pulling it back.
Next step was makeup. I don't wear makeup. I've just never really cared enough. Rachel had an 'amazing idea' while Kurt pawed through her purchases. That resulted in the mirror in front of me being covered. While he worked on my face he explained exactly what he was doing and how I could adapt it for everyday use. I didn't want to offend him, but I probably won't do this every day. He was chatting happily about contouring and drop- shadows while Rachel and Mercedes had long since slipped away to prepare the bathroom as a dressing room. "Kurt, I don't think I can do all of this." His hand never faltered as he lined my 'waterline', as he called it. I never knew makeup was so technical, but the past twenty minutes had expanded my vocabulary quite unexpectedly. "Sure you can, with some practice it'll be easy." This is going to be fun. "No, it won't. I'm shade- blind, I won't be able to do any of this." He stopped mid- stroke with the mascara brush, backing up to look me in the eye. "Shade blind? Like, you can't see colors?" I shrugged. "I can see most colors, just nothing subtle." That seemed to bother him but he shrugged it off, swooping back in for the finishing touches. "We can work with that after the photo shoot. You have excellent complexion and bone structure. You're beautiful without makeup, but we can make you stunning with a few simple products." I heard the door open and the other two rejoined us. "Kurt, you are amazing!" Their gasps and awes made me irrationally excited to see myself.
It took another fifteen or twenty minutes, but Kurt finally finished, took his pictures, and handed me over to Mercedes. The mirror in there was covered too. "Before I show you what you'll be wearing, you need to promise that you'll trust me." That doesn't sound good. "It's just for the photo shoot?" She smiled hugely, thrilled that I was willing to cooperate. "These clothes are all yours, we're just showing you how they work. We can't force you to change your style, but we want you to know how nice your body is and how hot you can look." She pulled back the shower curtain to reveal a second suspension rod that was functioning as a clothes hanger. They all looked way too flashy, but I kept my mouth shut and let her hand me something skintight and shiny. When she was done she lead me out, across the hall and back into Rachel's room. Jaws dropped, literally. I didn't believe it either, but eyes popped and jaws dropped. "We're geniuses." Kurt breathed and a lot of hugging happened. I was forced to behave for more outfits and pictures when finally, on the very last outfit I was allowed to look. I was astounded, I could barely recognize myself. I was gorgeous, but it wasn't me. I told them as much. I told them all that they were talented and I look amazing, but it's not me. I assured them that I would enlist their help for special occasions though.
The second day in my first 'Diva Weekend' entailed Kurt teaching me some different ways to achieve 'diva' with only eyeliner and mascara. I agreed to try and use them once in a while and they seemed satisfied enough to let it rest there. The rest of the day involved gossip, vogue, and nail care. They all went insane when they learned about my soft- spot for nail polish and such. I felt proud that I was able to give a few good manicures in return for all the work that they put into me the night before. I silently thanked God that 'diva night' only happened once a month. It's not that it's not fun, but it's not the way I would choose to spend my free time on a regular basis. I decided to go home before bed so I could be fresh for church. I hugged them all goodbye and promised to see them Monday.
A few months passed and I got used to the slushies, sports, school work, diva time, and Glee. To be honest, I love it here. Kurt had showed Blaine my sections of his portfolio which he praised highly, making me feel good. As predicted, the Glee clubbers had no problem with me. I can sing, dance, and blend in. That's why I surprised everyone, including myself when I found myself raising my hand in Glee club. The topic of the week was passion. We'd suffered though a Rachel ballad, a Mercedes funk, another ballad from Kurt, and something odd that Puck and Finn had thrown together. Same old same old, but I was bored. It was Friday and we still hadn't made progress. Don't get me wrong, the performances were incredible, they always were. It all reeked of 'been there, done that' though. Mr. Schuster was in the middle of some lecture about digging down deep and finding our passion when I swallowed my reservations and stuck my hand in the air.
"Anna?" Heads snapped in my direction. "Español son la lingua de pasión." I had an idea, and it was good. "Huh?" Mr. Schue looked confused, but interested. Almost everyone did, actually. Usually when I raise my hand it's to ask a stupid question about notes or rhythms. Kurt eyed me suspiciously as I stood and made my way to the front. I beckoned Brittney and Santana to join me, whispering in their ears. I felt proud as smiles spread across their faces. I was nervous, but I knew this is what I wanted. I removed my hoodie, proving that I had been following some of Kurt's advice. I wore dark- wash jeans with a tight white tee shirt tucked into them. The thick leather belt was my touch. I pulled my hair down to reveal that I'd straightened it. It had grown to about shoulder length and looked fierce, and I'd actually used my eye liner and mascara. I looked good, and I was going to use it. I tossed the hoodie off to the side while my backup conversed with the band. Something happened as the music welled beneath me. I transformed into something wild, sexy, passionate. My heart and soul went into the performance. I didn't have choreography, so I just moved to the music. I have no idea when I decided I needed to channel my inner Shakira, but it was too late to turn back now.
Suerte que en el sur hayas nacido y que burlemos las distancias
Suerte que haberte conocido y por ti amar tierres extreñas
Yo puedo escalar los Andes solo por ir a contar tu lunares
Contigo celebro y sufro todo mis alegrias y mis males
Le ro lo le lo le, le ro lo le lo le
Sabes que, estoy a tus pies
Whenever, wherever. We're meant to be together
I'll be there and you'll be near, and that's the deal my dear.
Thereover, hereunder, you'll never have to wonder
We can always play by ear, but that's the deal my dear.
Suerte que es tener labios sinceros para besarte con mas ganas
Suerte que mis pechos sean pequeños y nos los confundas con montañas
Suerte que herede las piernas firmas para correr si un dia hace falta
Y estos dos ojos que me dicen que he de llorar cuando te vallas
Le ro lo le lo le, le ro lo le lo le
Sabes que, estoy a tus pies!
Whenever, wherever. We're meant to be together
I'll be there and you'll be near, and that's the deal my dear.
There over, here under, you'll never have to wonder
We can always play by ear, if you really feel the way I feel.
Standing ovation? I think yes! It was awesome, intoxicating. I felt so powerful, so sexy. "Ladies and gentleman, I think we have our opening number for Regionals!" My jaw almost hit the ground at Mr. Schue's statement. Me, preform a solo in front of a crowd, for competition? In Spanish?! No way, no way, no way. I returned to my seat, letting the information sink in. Mr. Schue's follow up rant went in one ear and out the other as I processed what I'd just done. I'm a threat now. I did exactly what should never be done, and that's steal Rachel's spotlight. I'm not really diva enough have their brand of protection. Will our friendship be enough? I wrapped my arms around myself protectively and refused to meet the glances that I knew were being thrown in my direction.
Glee let out and I tried to leave quickly, head down. My plan was thwarted, however, when Kurt grabbed my shoulder. He had my hoodie. I took it gratefully and pulled it on. I felt safer once the extra protection was in place. "Where in the name of Gaga did that come from?!" The awe in his voice made me proud and nervous. I touched the pocket of my backpack, feeling better when I felt the outline of my inhaler. "I- I don't know, I'm sorry. I know you wanted to help with my first solo but I was sick of all the same stuff and I had an idea and it just kind of, took me over." He still looked shocked, but surprised me by wrapping me in a hug. "Never apologize for being incredible." A giggle of disbelief bubbled out of me and I hugged him back. Kurt called for celebratory hot chocolate at his house. Not the Divas; just me, him, and Blaine. Then when I asked why Blaine was coming and the girls weren't, his response shocked me even more. He then told me to think of it more as a double date and this was just a really good excuse to have it.
I was freaking out. They were hooking me up with someone. I asked over a dozen times if I should change into something nicer or if he could fix my hair or makeup, but he refused. He said he wanted this boy to meet me, not 'Kurt's Model'. I flushed at that. I think I paced the floor a dozen times before nearly running down Kurt's dad, who had innocently wanted a coke (that Kurt denied him, handing him a bottle of water instead). Kurt was like the eye of my storm, always calm and collected in the midst of my nervous energy. I berated myself for leaving my inhaler in my bag in the other room. I didn't really need it right now, but I liked having it close by. "Sit down." The cool tone startled me from my train of thought. Kurt was standing, gesturing for me to sit. I complied, not wanting to irritate him further. Once I was seated he disappeared, returning moments later with a brush. He had me close my eyes and take slow deep breaths while he ran the instrument through my hair methodically. I slowly stopped my nervous fidgeting as I followed his command.
Neither of us heard the door open so I was rightfully startled when Blaine's voice came from right behind us. "Hey guys! Kurt, Anna's going to stop coming over if you treat her like a Barbie doll every time she's here." I jumped at the unexpected noise, but Kurt's brushing didn't falter. "Hush you. For your information, Anna sang an amazing solo in Glee today. That, coupled with you bringing a friend to meet her had her a little wound up. I'm just helping." I rolled my eyes and slid away from Kurt's touch. "I'm still here guys!" I chuckled as I hugged Blaine. He gasped in excited surprise at Kurt's statement. "You sang a solo? Like, on purpose?!" I punched him playfully in the arm. "Yeah, and guess what; that baby penguin has a wild side!" We both laughed as Kurt projected his usual persona unto me. He, and many others, agreed that the two of us were in the same boat as far as sex appeal went. 'Cute, adorable, cuddly,' and all sorts of other endearing terms could be used to describe us; but never anything like 'hot' or 'sexy'. "No way!" I couldn't help but grin like a fool, drunk with pride. "Yes way! And she's now our opening act for regionals! Prepare to eat it, Blaine Warbler!" Kurt's excitement only heightened mine. "I look forward to it." Blaine punctuated the sentiment by poking me in the sides, where he knows I'm ticklish. After the excitement died down a little, Blaine excused himself back out the kitchen door. He returned with a boy in an identical blue blazer. He was taller than me, with pale pink eyes and startlingly white hair. He looked at me nervously, like he was trying not to stare. I smiled, he was so cute. I had to try not to stare too; I'd honestly never met an albino. "Anna, this is Brad. He's our newest Warbler." We exchanged a shy 'hello' and the other boys looked like they were going to explode with excitement.
Kurt sat us all down at the island in the kitchen and set the kettle on. He put Blaine and Brad on one side with me across from Brad and himself across from Blaine. I was still caught up in the excitement of my day and decided to lead the awkward conversation. "Where are you from, Brad?" He ran his fingers through his snowy hair nervously. "Tennessee. How 'bout you, miss?" I almost melted under the power of the accent. "Central New York." I managed to respond, before Kurt piped in; "She lived in the country, New York isn't all city." Blaine chuckled and shushed him playfully. "That sounds nice. What brings you all the way over here?" I decided to save the details for later. "My dad was offered a really good job, and I was more than willing to leave my old school. I was having a really tough time at my old school. I used to attract a lot of negative attention, as well as a lot of labels. You?" He smiled, as though it was funny that I asked. "My mother was also offered a job in the area. When we first moved here she heard a group of school boys perform in the mall. I was struggling at the public high school, like every high school I've ever been to. She looked up Dalton after talking to one of the performers and found out about their 'zero tolerance policy' and all they had to offer and jumped at it." I had to remember how to shut my mouth. I had heard about the 'Gap Attack' and how it hadn't turned out as planned, despite the epic performance. Blaine flushed at the mention of the incident.
Kurt served hot chocolate amidst pleasant chatter and suggested watching a movie. "Can it be Disney?" Blaine was such a little kid sometimes, it was great. "Sure, what are we watching?" "Mulan!" I don't know who turned redder, me or Brad. We have the same favorite Disney movie, this could work. We piled into the sitting room and Kurt popped in the requested movie. It didn't take long to realize that if Kurt and Blaine were any cuter together I would die. The two were wrapped around each other while the movie played on. Kurt snarled indignantly at the men's treatment of the women, especially when Mulan's secret got out and they wanted to kill her. Blaine chuckled and cuddled him closer. Brad and I sat shoulder to shoulder at the other end of the small couch, it was honestly really comfortable. I had expected it to be awkward, but it was actually really nice. We had all gotten permission to stay the night at Kurt's and were making the most of the night. By which I mean copious amounts of Disney, junk food, and cuddling (or 'almost cuddling' for some of us). We had gone through Mulan, Mulan II, and were about to put in The Lion King. The whole thing was a giant sing along to all of us and as it turns out, Brad and I sound really good together. We got more and more comfortable with each other as we gave in to the sugar coated, musical high that we were all experiencing. Kurt had protested at first, but The Lion King is Blaine's favorite movie and Kurt is useless against puppy eyes. "I honestly like the Lion King II better. Can we watch that next?" I could have kissed him. "I like the second one better too." He smiled and we both looked away nervously. By the time Simba was searching the dust for his dad, Brad brushed my hand. He obviously wanted to hold it, but was a gentleman and gave me the option. I wrapped my fingers around his. By the end of the second Lion King, we had mellowed out and stopped singing, except for Kurt, who lasted through The Little Mermaid (his favorite). I don't know when exactly, but I fell asleep somewhere in the middle of The Jungle Book. I woke up later to hushed snickering. "Shh, Blaine. You're going to wake them up." My eyes cracked open and I realized that I was asleep on Brad's chest, while he snoozed with his head atop mine. I jumped in surprise, startling Brad who jumped to his feet disoriented, throwing me to the ground as a consequence. Kurt and Blaine howled with laughter at the spectacle. I grumbled something to the effect of 'shut up' while Brad unleashed a slew of apologies and helped me up. After Burt called for quiet, we sheepishly laid out the bedding that Carol had left out for us. The guys insisted that I sleep on the couch, I wasn't going to argue. I smiled to myself as I watched Kurt and Blaine settle into their sleeping bags and lock fingers before drifting off.
Come Monday, Rachel and Mercedes weren't happy that we had a sleep over without them, even less impressed with me for not warning them about my solo, and downright pissed with Kurt for hooking me up with a Warbler. I couldn't care less though. Brad was one of a kind, he made my heart flutter in a way that I'd never felt before. I know it sounds annoying and girly and teenager-y, but I couldn't get enough of him. They, of course, needed all the details. And by 'all the details' I mean every- last- one. They asked some questions that I honestly didn't know people were curious about. After a while I just sighed quietly and they stopped prodding, but I had given them a pretty good look at how it went.
I told them that we had all gone to the mall to waste our Saturday, which resulted in Brad and I getting to know a lot about each other and our personal styles. Kurt and Blaine had gone off somewhere, leaving the two of us to talk and meander through stores. We all met up for a quick and kind of flirty lunch and spent the rest of the day travelling as a small pack, each of us holding our respective partner's hand. All this seemed to be enough to satisfy the never ending curiosity of my diva- girls. And by the way, I had never been in a mall that you could happily spend all day at. The malls where I'm from suck and you only go out of necessity, and the one we went to before my first Diva Night was much like that. My favorite part was the pet store. Turns out, Brad loves animals as much as I do. (Score!)
Regionals were approaching and Kurt said we both had to lay off our Warblers. I was disappointed, but Kurt brought up a really valid point. None of us need the hassle of looking like we're conspiring with the enemy. I reluctantly agreed to temporarily end visits and limit texts and calls between us. Turns out Blaine had given Brad the same lecture anyway. That was all going well until a certain basketball game landed me in the hospital. I wasn't being a klutz this time either, it was a legit injury.
We were playing one of the toughest teams in the league and I was getting thrown around a lot. Typical game plan, take out the biggest threats. That usually meant the biggest, the fastest, and the high scorer. I'm used to it, I know I'm big and look like a threat. Honestly, I'm a gentle giant and can take a beating without getting too flustered. Not this game. I was getting beat down time after time, hard. My temper was starting to flare, despite my best efforts at keeping it in check. I'm pretty slow to anger, but this was getting ridiculous, and I was getting angry. They were blatant fouls and the refs weren't calling anything. I was banged up pretty bad when I actually started fighting back, but it wasn't doing me any good. New Directions was a supportive group and just as they did for our male athletes, they did for me. That's right, they were all watching as I got the snot beat out of me. I was holding my own against the abuse for a while after I started dishing back, until one play. I drove in for a lay- up, charging headfirst into the swarm of arms and legs. As I got airborne, I was caught around the middle and slammed into the ground. I felt my head crack against the floor and blacked out.
I woke up to the sound of beeping. I felt like I was in a fishbowl, everything sounded all echo- y. I tried to sit up and open my eyes, only to have a pair of hands push me back down. "Easy Anna, don't stress yourself." My vision was too foggy to make anything out, but I knew that voice. "Blaine?" I winced as a stabbing pain shot through my head. "Shh, yeah it's me. Nice to see you don't have amnesia, guess you sure hit hard enough for it." My mind was only taking in half of what he was saying. Hit hard? Amnesia? "What happened?" I closed my eyes, it hurt too much to keep them open. "From what I hear, you had a pretty rough basketball game." I moaned, it came out as a whimper, but I assure you it was a moan. Aren't you supposed to get medicine for pain in hospitals? "Are you sure I wasn't hit by a truck?" He chuckled and I felt him pick up my hand and intertwine our fingers. "No, just covered in bumps and bruises from head to toe and sporting a second degree concussion." I let that sink in for a minute. Dad is going to flip when finds out.
He went to New York for the week to help pack. I forgot to mention before but, my mom and brother are moving to Ohio with us! As soon as Zach finishes his finals they're heading out. We all miss each other way too much to wait until Zach and I graduate to be together. When I told him how cool living in the city was, and all the cool stuff there is to do at such a huge school, Zach had agreed right away to move over the summer. I was so excited, he even said he'd think about trying Glee club! That would be great, Zach is a natural performer.
"My parents are going to freak out." I sighed, not wanting to think about the reaction I'd get. He ran his free hand up and down my arm soothingly. "Yeah, they did." I sprang up at the news. "What?!" My voice came out higher than normal. It probably would have been amusing if it hadn't sent stabbing pains through my skull. I immediately regretted the fuss and lie back down. "Well, you've been out for almost eight hours. Kurt called your dad around eleven when you still hadn't woken up. It's all worked out. As soon as you're cleared Burt will sign the paperwork to get you out and you'll stay at Kurt's place until your dad gets back." My head was spinning again. "What day is it?" I couldn't tell if it was a good question or not, I was so confused. "Two am, Tuesday morning." The game was Monday night, oh yeah, he said it was only eight hours ago. "It's two in the morning? Why are you still here? You must be exhausted." My own voice hurt my head. "I'm still here because Kurt had to drive your vampire home. I'm leaving when he gets back."
I was surprised when I first heard about the Warblers calling Brad 'Vampire', and even more disappointed with Blaine for allowing it. I couldn't complain for too long though, Brad grew attached to the nickname due to the lighthearted nature of it. Brad also lived a good thirty minutes away from Dalton, closer to McKinley really. His mother had insisted that he didn't board until his second year, just in case the 'zero tolerance policy' wasn't made good on. He swears up and down that he doesn't mind, but I know it's a little tough to bond with your team when you can't ever see them outside of the professional setting.
"Why were Kurt and Brad here? Who else was here?" I was trying to fill in blanks and make a mental picture. It felt odd holding a conversation with my eyes closed like this. I wanted to see Blaine, see something more than the blurry shapes of when I woke up. "Kurt was at the game, he actually rode with you in the ambulance. He called Brad to let him know what happened and I picked him up and drove him here. I was obviously worried and would have come anyways. Most of New Directions was here when I got here, Kurt said almost everyone had gone to the game. Most of them left between ten and midnight though." I opened my eyes a crack, then a bit more, and a bit more after that. I squeezed Blaine's hand tighter. "What's wrong? Are you in pain?" This couldn't be happening. I tried to catch my ever dissipating breath. "Did you turn the lights off?" I felt him tense. "No, why?" This is bad, this is so bad. "Blaine, I can't see." The hand around mine got tighter. I knew my eyes were open, but all I could see was black. "Hey, you're awake!" I turned my head toward the direction of Kurt's voice, panic welling inside me. I heard Blaine speak in a very practiced, controlled tone. "Kurt, will you please go tell a nurse that we need a doctor in here as soon as possible." He must have had a look that said 'don't ask' because Kurt didn't. Blaine began to mumble little things at me that I wasn't really hearing. It was as if all of my senses had been plunged into a cold, detached darkness. Finally, his voice broke through, "Anna breathe, you're okay." I hadn't realized that I was holding my breath before, but I did what I was told and tried to let his voice guide me back to the 'here and now'.
"Can you follow my light with your eyes?" I wanted to scream. Test after test after test and I still couldn't see a damn thing. Kurt had sent Blaine home a while ago and boy was that a fight. Apparently he was harder to get rid of than Brad, who only left to avoid his mother's wrath. The dapper Warbler finally left after kissing me on the forehead and whispering 'courage' in my ear. I almost burst into tears after that. I'd been on edge of an anxiety attack since the initial revelation of my sightlessness, both had been a huge help in keeping me calm and collected. Apparently no one had grabbed my bag on the way out, so I was without my inhaler. Not that I couldn't have been given something if it got too bad, but Kurt and Blaine made it their mission to keep me in a descent mental state. Finally, after brain scans, failed sight tests and multitudes of questions, the doctor declared that he would review the results and get back to me as soon as he could. Kurt let me know when all other parties had left and we were alone. "What time is it?" I yawned and cringed at the pain in my head. The nurse said the fresh painkillers would kick in soon. "four- thirty." He yawned too. He told me that he had told Burt and Carole not to expect him home hours ago, and that he had no intention of leaving my side. That made me feel, well, it's kind of indescribable. "Kurt?" He hmm'd and took my hand. "Can you- can you stay with me?" I further explained my question by patting the space next to myself awkwardly. I felt stupid, but it was terrifying not being able to tell where things were. I felt his weight on the bed and shifted until I felt the bedrail against my side. He slid beneath the covers and tucked us in. "Get some sleep." He recollected the hand closest to him. "You too." After barely a moment of silence later, "Kurt?" "Hmm?" "Thank you, for everything." "Courage, Anna. Go to sleep."
After nearly a week in the hospital my sight still hadn't come back. I'd had some false alarms, seeing blurry shapes and shadows, only to be plunged into darkness the next time I blinked. That was frustrating beyond comparison. If ever something made me feel violent, this would be it. The pain from the concussion had reduced considerably, with the help of bed- rest and pain meds, but I still wasn't feeling up to par by any stretch of the imagination. I had visitors every day which lead to excessive amounts of flowers, cards, gifts, and pep talks. Not to mention small bouts of tears and anger thrown in.
The Glee clubbers had been great about it; no one had even mentioned Regionals. My dad came back in time to sign me out and take me home. It was a little awkward at first, but Kurt, Rachel, and Mercedes volunteered to take turns coming over in the mornings and help me get ready. Kurt, Blaine, and Brad had all been there when I was diagnosed; they were always with me. The doctor said that when I hit my head I most likely disturbed my occipital lobe, the part of the brain responsible for sight. He said that none of the scans they took led him to believe it would be permanent, but if it lasts more than a month than we should come back so he could refer us to a specialist. My, lately inconsolable, temper flared at that. "I can't be blind for a month! Regionals are in three weeks." A hand held my left one and another rested on my right shoulder. I'd gotten really good at telling who was touching me pretty quickly. Brad was holding my hand and Blaine's hand was on my back. "Courage, we'll get you through this." Despite his words, Kurt's voice had risen to that pitch it likes to settle at when he's uncomfortable.
My first day back had been eventful. Kurt and Mercedes had come over after my father left for work, picked out clothes so I could get dressed, did my makeup (all of which was done to my style, under threat of death), and Kurt drove us to school. I linked arms with Kurt and he guided me to geometry. No one was really prepared to deal with a blind kid, so I mostly listened to the lecture and tried not to zone out. That worked for about, I don't know, five seconds. When the bell rang we locked arms again and headed to Spanish. He chatted about how we could work on the numbers for Glee in study hall and how excited he was for regionals and how we had to go back to 'icing the opponent' which is his fancy way of saying 'ignore our boyfriends'.
Spanish was really tough. It made me think of regionals. My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and slid it to Kurt. "Is it my dad?" I heard some clicking while he operated the device. He thinks it's a crime that I don't have an iPhone. "No, Brad says 'Courage'." My face split into a huge smile. He patted my shoulder and put my phone in my hand. I felt like I was floating for the rest of the class period, being held up by the supporting word. The minute the bell rang however, the anger and uncertainty flooded back.
"How am I supposed to perform when I can't see? I'll fall off the stage or something." We were in the choir room, just like we always were when we had free time. Kurt wanted me to work on my solo, but I wasn't feeling it. "We'll think of something. Don't forget, you might be better by performance time." I heard him walk my way and settle on the risers with me. "Can I tell you something?" He made an affirmative noise and I felt his fingers in my hair. Honestly, I was thrilled beyond compare that I had friends who felt comfortable enough with me, and I with them to exchange effortlessly loving gestures. It helped a little, knowing that he was right there.
"Last night I- I-." I took a deep breath and tried to get my voice to stop shaking by willpower. "Last night, for the first time since I got here, I thought about picking up the blade again. I didn't, but it was tempting. I did have to use my inhaler though, I couldn't calm down. I tried though, I really did." His hand moved from my head to my hand. "It's okay, I can't imagine how hard this must be. Just remember, there are a lot of people who love you and are here for you. I reset your speed- dial at the hospital." I took out my phone, running my thumb over the keypad. Rachel had made some modifications so I could successfully navigate the numbers. I couldn't text, but I could call. "Your dad is two, Brad is three, I'm four, Blaine is five, Mercedes is six, Rachel is seven, Zach is eight, and Finn is nine." I tried to keep up, but the people and numbers were getting jumbled. "I'm never going to be able to remember all that." He chuckled, "Yes you will, but it doesn't really matter." I looked at him, not that I could see him, but it was instinct. "Why doesn't it matter?" He took my hand and pressed it to his face, letting me feel his smile. "It doesn't matter because no matter what number you dial on the other end will be someone who's willing to help you, no matter what." I smiled and opened my arms for a hug. He accepted, "Why Finn?" I giggled into his ear. "Finn loves you too… And in case you really can't get ahold of anyone he should be able to track me down."
The next couple of weeks flew by. I got pretty good at navigating the choir room, my house, and Kurt's house. A couple of times I thought I was really getting my sight back. I would see shapes like when I was in the hospital, but they would get sharper and clearer until I could almost say that I was 'seeing' it. It never lasted long though. And every time I found myself staring into darkness again I wanted to break something, or scream, or anything. I had long ago stopped telling people about the little episodes, and they were now far more annoying and distracting than exciting. Mr. Schuster had devised a way for me to perform without getting hurt. The plan was to do exactly what I did when I first performed it, just move to the music. It was Kurt's job to set me up center stage and tell me how much room I had without being in danger. Brittney and Santana were trained in subtle ways to reposition me if I got too far off course. After my number I'm going to be led to the background where they put me between Finn and Puck and we execute some painfully basic, but crisp choreography. I was grateful, I really was. They could have easily given the solo to somebody else. They could have cut me out altogether, but they didn't. They actually refused to cut me out, or let me back out. Believe me, after the first really rough couple of practices I offered to stand down, but the thought was almost unanimously rejected. Can you say 'warm fuzzy feeling'?
The most incredible thing though, was when they sang to me. I'd been told several times by several people that the club handled all of its joys and anxieties through song. I was still surprised when Mercedes led me into the choir room, sat me down in a chair, and told me to 'stay put' and that they had a surprise. When the music started my first thought was 'this isn't happening', which quickly changed to 'Oh my goodness, this is really happening'. By the time Artie's voice rang out with the first line I was on the edge of my seat, and before long the rest had joined in.
It's like a storm, it cuts a path
It breaks your will, yeah it feels like that.
You think you're lost. But you're not lost,
Or on your own. You're not alone.
Cuz I will stand by you, I will help you through
When you've done all you can do and you can't cope
I will dry you're eyes, I will fight your fights
I will hold you tight, and I won't let go.
You feel like a candle in a hurricane
Just like a picture with a broken frame
Alone and helpless, like you've lost your fight
But you'll be alright, yeah you'll be alright.
Cuz when push comes to shove you taste what you're made of
You might bend til you break, cuz it's all you can take
On your knees you look up, decide you've had enough
You get mad, you get strong.
Wipe your hands, shake it off
Then you stand.
It hurts my heart to see you cry
I know it's dark, this part of life
It finds us all when we're too small
To stop the rain…
But when push comes to shove you taste what you're made of
You might bend til you break, cuz it's all you can take…
And I will stand by you, I will help you through
When you've done all you can do, and you can't cope…
From your knees you look up, decide you've had enough
You get mad, you get strong, wipe your hands, shake it off…
Then you stand…
…And I won't let go.
I wiped at my eyes shakily. Seriously, what did I do to deserve these people? A pair of slender fingers brushed mine away and slid under my eyes. Leave it to Kurt to be concerned about running mascara at a time like this. I stood up and wrapped him in a hug, then did the same to the next closest person. Once I had made my way through what I assumed was everybody, I had an idea of how to reciprocate the gesture. I can rock Rascal Flatts too, even if I could never top an RF mash- up. That was a scarce form of genius that I simply never possessed. I could, however, let them all know how much everything they're doing for me means to me.
I felt around until I found a chair and dragged it out onto the floor. I did my best trying to center up and face the group when I sat down. I tell you, our pianist is some kind of mind reader/ genius because he was starting with accompaniment before the first line was all the way out of my mouth.
You could have bowed out gracefully, but you didn't.
You knew enough to know to leave well enough alone, but you wouldn't.
I drive myself crazy tryin' to stay out of my own way
The messes that I've made, but my secrets are so safe
The only one who gets me, yeah you get me, it's amazing to me
How every day, every day, every day you save my life.
I come around all broken down and crowded out, and you're comfort.
Sometimes the place I go is so deep and dark and desperate I don't know, I don't know
How every day, every day, every day you save my life
Sometimes I swear I don't know if I'm comin' or goin'
But you always say something without even knowin'
That I'm hanging on to your words with all of my might
And it's alright, hey I'm alright. For one more night.
Every day, every day, every day
You save my life.
More hugs and tears were passed around and Mr. Schuster finally decided it was time to call it a day. He said he was proud of all of us, and that he was confident that we would make it out of all of this on top as long as we keep taking care of each other.
Before we knew it the week of regionals was upon us. My episodes of 'almost seeing' were more frequent, but that actually made the whole thing more discouraging. The club was great about it, despite how many people's heads I must have bit off the past couple of weeks. I tried not to, I know it's not their fault, but I've never done well with stress and this was over the top. The only plus side was that I hadn't gotten slushied in weeks. I had gotten one within my first couple of days back. I didn't take it personally, it's how they always treat me, treat us. They didn't know I was blind so it's not like they were just being cruel. Rachel, who was escorting me to English wasn't as calm about it. That evening in practice she made a point of mentioning it to Finn, rather loudly. From what I heard Finn, Sam, and Puck all had some 'business' to take care of after that. Yeah, slushies have stopped.
The absolute last straw happened on Friday. Yup, the day before the competition I lost it. I was getting fed up with going to school every day to be towed from room to room and never really accomplish anything. Someone actually asked me why I even bothered. I tried not to let it get to me, but it dragged me lower and lower as the day went on. Somebody had closed the choir room doors half way, causing me to walk into it on my way in. Kurt had chastised me for rubbing at my eyes. I said I didn't, but I guess the eyeliner on one was really messed up, disproving my story. I felt the pressure in my chest building with frustration. Rachel tried to give me pointers on my dancing, saying that I was getting a little sloppy, and then Sam had loudly questioned whether or not they should just pass the solo to Quinn. To say the least; I was on edge. I was on the edge of tears, hyperventilation, and majorly freaking out. What broke me was the stupidest though. We were running choreography for the second song when I had an episode. I got distracted, trying to gain as much focus as I could and drifted too far over. That, coupled with Finn's timing being a little off (as usual), sent me sprawling on the floor and snapping me back into pitch black darkness.
I assume that I looked even more ridiculous than Rachel when tried to storm out. Let's just say, blind and dramatic don't mix. After I left the room I had no idea where I was or where to go. Just wanting to get away, I settled on fast- walking with my arms stretched before me. I had wandered through several halls before the idiocy of what I was doing hit me. I felt for a wall, sat against it, and curled up. I tried to calm myself, but I couldn't and just sat there crying. Luckily, I stayed composed enough to avoid an anxiety attack though. That would have sucked. My inhaler was in my bag in the choir room, and I didn't have a clue how to get back to it. Before too long I heard footsteps, I couldn't really care less though. Despite the fact that I had no idea where I was and had no idea how to get back, I didn't want to be found. Unfortunately, that wasn't my choice. I heard the steps stop right in front of me and whoever it was sat down.
Whoever it was, they were quiet for a long time. I tried to calm down and stop making a fool of myself, but I couldn't. I felt a rough, calloused hand take one of mine, placed something in my palm, and withdrew. I wrapped my fingers around my inhaler and tucked it in my pocket. I couldn't tell you when they moved, as they were silent about it. Next thing I know though, there's an arm around my shoulder. The person was bigger than who I had expected, they pulled me into their arms and let me cry. I stopped as quickly as I could, feeling awkward, but still safe in the other's embrace. "I'm sorry I tripped you." Finn's voice wasn't what I was expecting to hear, but I didn't mind it. "It's not your fault. I wasn't where I should have been." I tried to right myself, but found that I was trapped under the frankenteen's arm. "Are you okay?" I didn't have an answer. I couldn't even figure that out for myself. Am I okay? "I know how Kurt and Blaine and everyone are with all that 'courage' stuff. It's cool, what they're trying to do, but that doesn't fix problems. A person can only be strong and brave for so long. I think what they need to remember is that sometimes it takes more courage to let people know that you're hurting, than to put on a brave face." One of his hands moved across my back. He didn't have the same perfect rhythm that others did, but it was soothing just the same. "It's just so frustrating, just when I think I'll be okay the lights go out again." I vented, trying to sound more angry than hurt and pathetic. I felt him nod and we sat for a minute. "You know, Kurt was gonna go after you, but I didn't let him. I didn't want him trying to brush this off with a 'courage' pep talk and all that. I want to make sure that you know it's okay to be upset. I don't think I'd have the guts to get on stage without being able to see. I don't think most of us would." I wasn't really sure what to do with that. I was upset, but there was a lot riding on me being strong. "I guess what I'm saying is, we've done these numbers a thousand times. Why don't I drive you home so you can sort some stuff out and come back fresh for competition tomorrow." I sniffled and scrubbed at my eyes. It was a little pathetic, but I guess that's what this has come down to. "That actually sounds like a great plan. Thank you, Finn." He grunted something in response and stood up, pulling me with him without hesitation. "Stay here, I'm going to get your stuff."
"Find my Warbler." After Mercedes had helped me into our costume (some kind of strapless dress, just as Kurt had predicted) and Rachel had fixed my hair and makeup I had clung to Kurt's arm and demanded to see Brad. He didn't argue much, he missed Blaine just as badly. He maneuvered me through crowds and finally stopped. He whispered in my ear, "We're with all the Warblers, no funny business." before shouting 'Hey, Vampire!' into the crowd. I thought his quip was interesting. Brad and I hold hands and stuff, but we've never even kissed. Finally, I felt his arms replace Kurt's and wrapped him in a big hug, ignoring all the chatter around us. "Are you ready for this? Everyone is excited to see your wild side." He mumbled into my ear, mouth so close that it could have been mistaken for a kiss. "You better believe it." He tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. "You look amazing." He pulled me back into a tight hug and held me there. After far too short a time, our space was invaded. "Showtime for the vampire, say 'goodbye'." The owner of the voice clapped us both on the back, I bet it was David. To my surprise, Brad pecked me on the cheek as I breathed 'break a leg' in his ear, and then he was gone. We all took our seats to watch the performance. It was incredible, like always. I grinned when I heard Blaine belting out the lead part. I was so proud of everyone, but I really wished I could see Brad. I wished I could see anything more than fuzzy grey blobs, for that matter.
"Ten paces all around, you have plenty of room. Santana and Brittney are at five paces on either side of you. This is going to be great." I calculated the information Kurt was mumbling into my ear, but couldn't focus very well. I was having another sight episode. This one was different though, it's lasted since I got thumped on the back. I kept waiting to be plunged into black again, but I didn't. Things were taking shape. I took a few deep breaths and blinked. Red, the curtain is red! I looked down, my shoes are black! I can see, I can really see. Before I could alert the others the curtain started opening and the music started playing. A strange, heady mix of passion and adrenaline surged through me and I threw myself out there. It was insane! I even finished how Rachel had instructed, by facing the audience and announcing "Thank you, we are New Directions!" I looked into the massive audience to see all of the Warblers on their feet, cheering in frantic excitement. I also managed to find my dad, who was also standing and cheering next to an equally excited Burt Hummel.
As soon as we left the stage I was swarmed. "That was incredible! That was even better than the first time!" I waited for the excitement to die down before making my announcement. "Guys, guys!" They hushed up, a first for this group. "I can see again!" Dead silence, like, you could have heard a pin drop. "Really, someone patted me on the back before showtime and it came back. I thought I was just having one of those 'false alarm' moments, but it got better and better and now I'm actually seeing you all right now!" Chaos is the only word I could use to describe the explosion of energy that followed. Soon enough we were called to stand on stage for the winning school to be announced.
"And the runner up for this year's regional competition is… the Dalton Acadamy 'Warblers'!" Applause filled the air as the boys in blue blazers accepted their trophy for their remarkable performance. It was all too tense a moment later. "And the champions, going on to nationals will be…" I thought my heart would burst out of my chest at any moment, no matter what that card said, I was going to cry. "…the McKinley High 'New Directions'!" Screams and cheers filled the auditorium as Mr. Schue accepted the trophy. It was huge I tell you, huge! Half of us were crying, half of us were laughing. It was a mess, but it was the happiest moment of my young life. It was only moments after we exited the stage when our group and the Warblers collided. Congratulations were thrown about and I know it's not very sportsman like, but none of us sought out the third school. I would be lying if I said we cared, we were all too excited to be around each other. I couldn't find Brad in the crowd and started looking around. In all the excitement I had forgotten that the Warblers still didn't know that I could see again. That's why I was a little surprised when Blaine broke off of Kurt and raced to help me make it through the wild mob. He grabbed one arm and Kurt held the other, making sure he didn't lose his man whilst I tried to find mine. "That was incredible, Anna! That was one of the best performances I've ever seen!" Blaine's compliments made the bubble of excitement in my chest swell.
By the time we spotted Brad I was smiling so hard my face hurt. He spotted us at the same time and rushed over. "Anna, Brad is right in front of you." If it was humanly possible, I would have smiled harder. "I know." I hugged him tight. Before I could explain, Kurt beat me to the punch. The news gushed out of him in excited gasps. After the whole story was out and almost calm feeling settled over us. We were happy without being high off it now; it was a really good feeling. Brad lifted my chin to look in his eyes, I had missed seeing him so much. He leaned in, but paused as if waiting for permission. My lips closed the rest of the distance and we shared our first kiss. We broke apart quickly, both turning deep red at obnoxious whistles and other such noises from our teammates. You'd think they'd have better things to do than watch us. He rested his forehead against mine. "I'm so glad you're better, you did an amazing job on stage." I couldn't help but smile, turning red at the compliment. "Thank you; you did a great job too." He grinned, eyes shining. "Thank you for staying with me through all of this, it means a lot to me." He smiled bigger. "That's what people do when they're in love." I actually had to remember how to breathe. "I- I love you too."
Our moment didn't last long. Pretty soon I was being bombarded with Warblers and New Directioners both, sharing hugs and accepting congratulations on both my performance and getting my sight back. I only heard about how epically cliché it was that I could miraculously see again just before the performance, I don't know, a million times or so. I didn't really care. We won the competition, I could see again, my boyfriend loves me and I love him, and I had friends who were awesome.
Everyone kept telling me that the last party Rachel hosted was a really conflicting mix of success and failure. For this reason, this was going to be an alcohol- free event. I had agreed to let Kurt and Mercedes doll me up for the evening, not that I had much of a choice. Okay, I never really agreed to it, I wasn't given a choice. To their merit they kept it low- key, which I had not expected. By the time they had dragged me into Rachel's basement our entire Glee club and most of the Warblers were already there. I found my 'vampire' and we linked hands. We probably weren't separating any time soon.
Pretty soon the party was in full swing. Most people were talking, laughing, eating, and dancing to the music that throbbed through the sound system. Brad was in the middle of trying to teach me some intricate cross- step when I caught Kurt looking at me from over Blaine's shoulder. He winked and I reciprocated the gesture, time for some fun. I saw him mutter in Blaine's ear and I told Brad that I'd be right back. We met on the makeshift stage at the 'front' of the room and signaled to Rachel to cut the music. She did so quickly and all party- goers turned expectantly toward us. Kurt stepped up to the microphone. "As you all know this year has been, for lack of a better word, special. As life has a way of doing, it has led us through a winding adventure. Meeting new people, gaining new friends, starting new romances, and discovering new talents is what high school is all about. I wouldn't trade a day of this year for anything in the world." A couple glasses raised at the sentiment. "Anna and I have both found love among the challenges set before us. We would like to dedicate this song to our Loves." I took a deep breath, it's show time.
I'm booking myself a one- way flight
I've gotta see the color in your eyes
Telling myself I'll be alright
Without you baby is a waste of time
Our first date boy the seasons changed
It got washed away in a summer rain
I can't undo a fall like this
Cuz love don't know what distance is
Yeah, I know it's crazy,
But I don't want 'good' and I don't want 'good enough'
I want can't sleep, can't breathe without your love
Front porch and one more kiss
It doesn't make sense to anybody else
Who cares if you're all I think about?
I've searched the world, and I know now
It ain't right if you ain't lost your mind.
I don't want easy, I want crazy
Are you with me Baby? Let's be crazy!
I wanna be scared, don't wanna know why
I wanna feel good, don't have to be right.
The world makes all kinds of rules for love
I say you gotta let it do what it does.
I don't want just another hug and a kiss goodnight
Catching up calls and a date sometimes
A love that revels and we still believe
We're the kind of crazy people wish they could be.
Yeah, I know we're crazy
But I don't want good and I don't want good enough
I want can't sleep, can't breathe without your love
Front porch and one more kiss
It don't make sense to anybody else
Who cares if you're all I think about?
I've searched the world and I know now
It ain't right and if you ain't lost your mind
Yeah, I don't want easy, I want crazy
Yeah, look at us baby
Tonight the midnight rules are breaking
There's no such thing as wild enough
Or maybe we just think too much
Who needs to play it safe in love?
Let's be crazy!
I'll admit it, I love the sound of applause. Honestly, the look on Brads face is what really made it worth it though. He looked like I felt every time someone did something for me while I was blind. It was a look that said; 'no one has ever done something this nice for me in my entire life.' And I was proud to be the one that put that look there. By the force of several completely ecstatic men, both Blaine and Brad were shoved on stage. Kurt and Blaine immediately curled up on one another, and Brad gave me a sly smile. We managed to sneak out of the basement when Blaine grabbed the mic and declared it to be 'his turn' to be romantic.
It was cool outside, but not cold. Brad and I strolled around the house hand in hand. Finally, when we were behind the house where the streetlights cast no more than a faint glow, we embraced. It was one of those really good hugs, my head on his chest, and his head on mine. He finally broke the calm trance by placing a kiss on my forehead, and then on my lips when I looked up. I'd never made out with anyone before, but I sure as hell wasn't going to let that stop me now. Our lips locked and it was good. I knew this was just the beginning of something really great. As his tongue slid over my bottom lip I couldn't help but say a prayer silently. I thanked God that I was finally happy, and I wouldn't give the feeling up for anything in the world.