My take on how Burt and Finn (and Carole, partially) react to Kurt getting crowned Prom Queen. It takes place both a little during the episode and right after it, after Prom has ended.
Prom night means a great party for Finn and Kurt, and it means a Saturday night alone for Burt and Carole. With both Finn and Kurt in steady relationships, they're out on dates half the evenings, true, but that doesn't mean that Burt and Carole don't take advantage of the fact that the house will be theirs all night. Finn and Kurt should be out until midnight, maybe longer if Puck manages to drag them to some sort of after party. Finn and Kurt are both good, responsible kids, so they have a weekend curfew at 2am. They rarely stay out that long, though, which only encourages Burt and Carole to keep it up, because they'd rather that their boys are allowed to stay out late, and only do it once in a while, that have the boys sneaking out of the house every other night.
Finn leaves for prom first, because he has to drive by Quinn's house and pick her up. Kurt waits for Blaine to pick him up, and he rings the doorbell ten minutes after Finn pulled out of the driveway, and then Kurt and Blaine are off to the prom as well.
Once they're gone, Carole cooks Burt a nice, romantic meal, while Burt has a beer and watches a football match. Once they've finished eating, Burt sends Carole into the living room with a bottle of wine and two glasses, and tells her to pick a movie while he cleans up in the kitchen. Now, Burt may not spend very much time in the kitchen, since he's not a particularly great cook, but he does know where everything goes. And once he's finished, and the kitchen is good and spotless again (which it actually rarely is, because Finn is messy as hell, and Burt isn't always the neatest guy in the world, and Kurt and Carole, understandably, don't always want to clean up the mess), Burt and Carole curl up on the couch, with a bottle of wine, a bowl of popcorn, and Armageddon.
Finn comes home from prom surprisingly early. Extremely early, actually. The movie has barely finished when Finn opens the front door and slams it shut behind himself. He kind of ruins Burt and Carole's romantic night together by already being back, but given how angry he seems, they don't really care much.
"Why are you home so early?" Carole calls out.
"Because Jesse St. James is an ass!" Finn says loudly and storms past the living room. Carole is up in a second.
"Hey, hold up, mister!" she calls after him, and Finn slowly steps away from the stairs and turns back to face Carole and Burt. "You can't just say someone is an ass and not explain why. What happened?"
"Jesse was all over Rachel, and it made me really mad, so I got in a fight with him, and then coach Sylvester kicked us out," Finn explains.
"I thought you weren't into Rachel anymore," Burt says casually from his seat on the couch. Finn blushes.
"I'm not, but I still care about her, and that Jesse is a douchebag," he says, sounding a little uncomfortable. "He'd only end up hurting her again. And besides, it's not like the rest of us really need to see the two of them making out, whether we're into one of them or not."
Burt just nods slowly. Carole turns around and rolls her eyes, which makes Burt smile.
"Did Quinn leave with you?" she asks when she turns back to Finn.
"No. She's nominated for Prom Queen, so she said she'd call her mom and get her to pick her up," Finn explains. He makes to leave again, and this time, Burt and Carole let him. While Finn stomps up the stairs, Carole turns back to Burt again, with a wide smile on her face.
"I'm a little impressed that Rachel still has this much of a hold over Finn," she says.
"Yeah, shouldn't it be Quinn, not Rachel?" Burt says.
"Somehow, I don't think Finn and Quinn will get the chance to run for Prom King and Queen again next year," Carole says and joins Burt on the couch again. "I don't think they'll last that long. We haven't seen the last of Rachel just yet."
"You think she and Finn will get back together?" Burt asks.
"Oh, I'm sure of it," Carole replies.
They put on a new movie while Finn puts on some music in his room. He comes down an hour after coming home, with wet hair and dressed in his pajamas, so he obviously showered. He doesn't say anything, but just walks into the kitchen and makes himself a grilled cheese sandwich and grabs a glass of milk, and then he walks back up to his room. Burt has a feeling that Finn is a little down about getting kicked out of Prom. And possibly, he's also upset about Rachel potentially hooking up with Jesse again.
It's past midnight when Kurt gets home. Carole has already gone to bed, but Burt had gotten caught up with an action movie playing on TV, so he stayed up. It actually has nothing to do with him wanting to wait up for Kurt, but instead has everything to do with his love of Déjà Vu. Finn is still awake, and still hauled up in his bedroom, where he hasn't emerged from, as far as Burt knows, since he got himself that grilled cheese sandwich.
Burt has just switched off the TV when he hears a car pull up outside. He looks out and sees Blaine's car parked by the side of the street, and he can see Blaine and Kurt through the windows. They talk for a few minutes, before Blaine leans in to give Kurt a kiss, and when they break apart again, Kurt gets out and Blaine drives away. Kurt opens the door a few seconds later, and he closes it softly behind him. So far, it seems like Kurt, at least, had a good time at the prom. Burt steps out into the hallway to greet him, and he's very surprised to see a crown on Kurt's head, and he's holding a glittery scepter in one hand.
"Hey, how was the prom?" Burt asks.
"I didn't realize you were still up, dad," Kurt says, and he sounds surprised. "You're not waiting up for me, are you?"
"No, they were showing Déjà Vu, and it just finished," Burt says. Kurt nods, and Burt is happy to see that it looks like Kurt believes him. Which he should, because it's the truth. "So?"
"Oh, right. The prom was great, I had a really good time," Kurt says, smiling widely.
"That's good, I'm glad to hear it," Burt says. "What's with the crown?"
"Yeah, that was a… less pleasant part of the evening," Kurt says and reaches up to adjust the crown a little. Burt frowns. "I was voted Prom Queen."
"What?" Burt exclaims, eyes wide. "Why?"
"Someone's idea of a good prank," Kurt says with a small sigh. "Don't freak out, dad. It's okay. I mean, I was upset at first, but I decided to show them that they can play these pranks on me to break me, but they won't succeed. I held my head high and I got coronated, and I honestly don't think they were expecting that. So it all ended on a good note, and I had a lot of fun with my friends."
"Okay, uh. Well," Burt starts and takes a deep breath. It could've been worse. And Kurt handled it well. "Good. Good for you, that you had a great night."
"Thanks. And now I'm gonna go shower, and then go to bed," Kurt says.
"Alright. Goodnight," Burt says.
"Night, dad," Kurt says back as he bounds up the stairs. Burt sighs and rubs his eyes.
When it came to the prom, Burt had hoped that both Finn and Kurt would have a great time, and he had mostly expected them to as well. But to be completely honest, he also half-expected that someone would make fun of Kurt, because that's what they normally do. He'd even be with his boyfriend here. Even more of a target for the jocks. And when Kurt had revealed his outfit for the prom, Burt had thought it would only add more fuel to the fire. The kilt would only draw more attention to Kurt and Blaine, and they'd be at a higher risk of bullying, or even an outright attack. Of course, Burt knew that Finn wouldn't allow that sort of thing with him around, and neither would the rest of the glee club (and the glee club did include four other football players, even if one of them was in a wheelchair, two divas and apparently also the Queen Bitch of McKinley). But even with all the others, Burt had thought that Kurt would be the first one home, and the only one who was likely to come home early.
Burt certainly hadn't expected Finn to be the one who came home early, and who'd had a bad night at the prom. He's happy for Kurt, he's very happy, but he had honestly expected that the night would be a little awkward for Kurt and Blaine, and he sort of expected that they'd be back a little early. Burt never thought that it would be Finn coming home before Prom was over.
But the surprise aside, Burt is really happy that his son had a good time at his junior prom. He deserves it, after the year he's had so far.
"You got what?" Finn exclaims. Kurt sighs and rolls his eyes at his stepbrother. Carole is standing behind Finn with a hand on his shoulder, the other on her hip, and she looks just as shocked as Finn.
"I got voted Prom Queen," Kurt repeats, and Burt restrains from sighing in disappointment and anger. The other students should be punished for doing something like that. They shouldn't have even thought about doing something as hurtful as vote a guy Prom Queen. Even if Kurt had handled the situation admirably, and had had a fantastic night at the Prom despite the brief humiliation, Burt still wanted to punch someone for it. And what had that principal Figgins been thinking? He shouldn't even have read the name out.
"I can't believe this. How could everyone be that cruel?" Finn says angrily.
"Finn, calm down, it's fine," Kurt says, and both Finn and Carole seem surprised at his attitude.
"How can it be fine?" Carole asks.
"Because I handled it well," Kurt replies. Finn raises his eyebrows, but even with that, he still looks ready to maim and murder. "I didn't let it get to me. I think people were surprised that I let myself be coronated. And it all ended well. I had a really great time at the prom. I danced with my friends, I danced with Blaine, I stood up to my bullies. It was a really good night."
"That's good, honey, but they shouldn't be allowed to get away with this," Carole says.
"Totally," Finn agrees, and he still sounds angry. "Principal Figgins shouldn't even have read the name out! He should have picked someone else, or told them all off for doing something so cruel!"
"I agree with Finn on that," Burt says, but he remains calm. He's had the chance to sleep on all this.
"I appreciate your antics, I really do, but it's not necessary," Kurt says patiently. "And besides, it's not like we can do anything about it now. I did what I could last night, by standing up to them and letting myself get coronated. I don't think there's anything more that can be done. We can't just punish the entire school for voting for me."
"But now they think they can get away with it," Finn says, frustration evident in his voice.
"Well, with a little luck, they won't do it again next year," Kurt says. Finn's eyes widen at that, as does Carole's and Burt's. Now that Burt actually hasn't thought of. This was Kurt's Junior Prom. All the kids that voted him Prom Queen for a sick joke can do the exact same thing next year. They can inspire the new juniors to do the same thing at their prom. It can end up spreading from one class to the next, until it ends up practically a secret tradition to vote a gay kid, or a feminine boy Prom Queen, just for the fun of it. Burt hates the thought of Kurt having to go through this again next year, because the possibility is there, but he gets angry at the thought of this happening to other kids as well. Not everyone is as strong as Kurt in the face of trouble. "But guys, seriously. I don't think the school can do anything. Even if it's a cruel thing to do, they can't pinpoint who came up with the idea, and they can't pinpoint who voted for me, and who didn't. It just… it is how it is."
"I can't believe you're just accepting this!" Finn exclaims.
"Sometimes, you have to learn to pick your battles, and how you want to fight them," Kurt says wisely, and yeah, Burt can see the truth in that statement. And he's proud of Kurt for saying it, but he still agrees with Finn a little. "I think I did what could be done."
Finn sighs loudly. There's silence for a while, as he and Kurt continue to eat their breakfast, and Burt reads the newspaper. Carole moves away from Finn's side and starts cleaning up in the kitchen.
"So, who won Prom King?" Finn eventually asks.
"Karofsky," Kurt replies. Finn's eyes widen, and Burt lowers the newspaper.
"How'd he manage that?" he asks, and he can't help the surprised tone in his voice.
"He's pretty popular," Kurt says with a shrug. "And he's started that new anti-bullying club with Santana, so that sends out a positive message to those who have been harassed by him and his Neanderthal friends that he's changing and fighting for them as well. I'm not surprised he won."
"How did Karofsky react to you being his Prom Queen?" Finn asks, and there's a teasing tone to his voice.
"I was not his Prom Queen," Kurt scoffs. "And he was pretty shaken up by it. When it came to the King and Queen dance, he ran out of the gym."
"He just left you on the dance floor?" Burt asks. It seems mean to do that, to just leave someone alone on the dance floor. Especially when it's someone who has already been ridiculed once that night. But on the other hand, Karofsky seems like he's not particularly fond of homosexuality, or even indifferent about it, even with his new anti-bullying attitude, which Burt still isn't completely sure he believes is real. For a guy like Karofsky, the mere thought of having to dance with another guy was probably enough to make him want to pass out or die from embarrassment. And when he dwells on that thought, Burt gets even angrier at the students who voted Kurt Prom Queen, because it didn't just embarrass him. No, as an added side effect, it humiliated Karofsky when he was asked to dance with Kurt, and he probably felt like he humiliated himself by running away like he did. Those votes didn't just embarrass Kurt, they embarrassed Karofsky as well. And the kids didn't give a damn about it. They probably hadn't even thought more about it that just thinking it would be a hilarious prank to pull on Kurt.
"Yeah, but Blaine stepped in and asked me to dance instead," Kurt says as reply to Burt's question, a wide smile spreading on his face.
"How disappointed was Quinn when she didn't win Prom Queen?" Finn asks, and he sounds genuinely concerned. He might still be in love with Rachel, Burt thinks, but he still cares about Quinn.
"She was more upset than disappointed, as far as I could tell," Kurt replies. "Not that I really noticed, I was too busy crying myself."
Finn reaches out a hand and pats Kurt's shoulder comfortingly. Kurt smiles at the gesture, and they both fall silent again, finishing their breakfast. And bur thinks that even with the football team (minus Sam, Finn, Puck, Artie, and Mike) still on his back for being gay, at least they have to deal with Finn's wrath whenever they cross a line. Well, Finn's and the other glee footballers. Burt has a feeling that even Puck will be ready to beat some kid's brains out come Monday. And he's a little thankful for that.
Man, I really wish I could write longer stories, sometimes. Oh well. I hope you liked it, and I'd love it if you left me a review and tell me what you think of my little Prom story.