Kurt adjusted his tie for what must have been the twentieth time. He was mere minutes away from a tryout for his first real Warbler solo, last time having been too new to be able to grab the chance. As he turned the corner and passed by the tiny alcove he and Blaine often relaxed in, he spotted said boy waiting for him by the door to the Warblers study. His nervousness roared its head as he accepted a hug from the slightly shorter boy.
"You're gonna do great," his boyfriend stated matter-of-factly. Kurt laughed at that, knowing full well how hard he had practiced for this tryout. "Kurt, baby, even I know the song by now you've practice so hard! You're gonna be fine!" Blaine voiced what Kurt had been thinking before leaning forward and placing a soft, chaste kiss upon Kurt's lips.
The light haired boy had been extra stressed this past week with not only preparing for his tryout but also because of the young neighbor girl Kurt often babysat. Blaine had been told all about Emily and her fight with cancer. The latest news had been about her newest treatment, though no word had come about whether it had started working or not, and Kurt had been at his wit's end waiting for news. Since Emily was born she and Kurt had been almost inseparable, and finding out about her disease had practically killed him. Blaine was lucky enough to have already met the family, and they adored Kurt for everything he had done for their daughter throughout this taxing experience, from tea parties to fairytale dress-ups replayed over and over again.
Blaine suddenly hugged Kurt tightly and pressed another kiss to the edge of his mouth, trying to erase as much tension as he could. "We can stop by the hospital right after you finish here, it'll be no time at all before you can see how she's doing," Blaine assured his pale boyfriend.
"I know, you're right. Thank you, Blaine. You don't know how wonderful you've been to me this past week." Kurt voiced, and laughed as Blaine puffed up with mock pride and responded.
"I know, I'm simply amazing."
While Kurt was giggling away his nerves about the solo, his phone buzzed loudly from his vest pocket, and before he could get to it Blaine had grabbed it up, grinning as he held it away from Kurt.
"Ah ah ah, you shouldn't have distracting cell phones in the tryout room!" Blaine teased, but his smile dropped into a frown as he locked at the caller I.D. display. It read the call was from Emily's mother Theresa. Quickly handing the phone back to Kurt, the fretful boy gave him another nervous glance before answering the phone.
"Hello?" Kurt spoke softly, as though the phone might break if he were to speak normally. Blaine couldn't hear what was being said on the other side of the conversation, but he knew it wasn't good as he watched his increasingly distraught boyfriend. The light haired boy tugged at his hair nervously. "How bad is it?" Kurt asked the voice and nodded before looking unsure and responding to an unheard question. "I don't know." Blaine took Kurt's hand in comfort and Kurt gave him a slight smile before speaking once again. "Into the ocean, by Blue October."
Blaine started; that was Kurt's piece he was singing for the tryout. He wondered why Theresa had asked about it as he peeked into the tryout room to watch Wes and David shuffle papers for a moment. Kurt's tryout officially started at 11:00am sharp, and it was currently 10:57am. His worry about the time drifted away as he looked back toward Kurt who had wandered a little ways away and was trying to fervently reason with Theresa about something pertaining to his song.
Kurt nodded to himself and told the woman to hang on for a moment. He turned to Blaine to give him an apologetic look before moving quietly into the small study alcove and out of sight. Blaine ducked into the tryout room quickly to motion his friends to hold on for a moment, before darting back into the hallway with a worried look. He lowered himself next to Kurt on a couch in the alcove to see the boy slightly bent over his phone resting in his lap with speakerphone now activated.
"Theresa?" Kurt called, and Blaine heard the woman's answer as he sat next to Kurt on the small love seat.
"Yes, I've almost got it…" The boys heard a beep and the noise of a quietly crying girl and her father John's softly spoken words of comfort became apparent in the background before Theresa spoke again. "Thank you for this Kurt, you can't imagine how much this means to us!"
Kurt smiled and turned to Blaine, offering a quiet, "She's in a lot of pain from the new treatment," before turning back to his cell phone. "Emily?" he called gently. "How's my favorite 10 year old doing this morning?" He cringed when he heard Emily sniffling and respond to him.
"Kurty? Where are you? It hurts!" she cried out softly.
"I know, I know it hurts sweetie…hey, how about I sing a song, just for you?" Kurt prompted, shifting nervously in his seat.
"Ok, yes please." Both boys heard the quiet reply amidst more sniffles. Even in pain she was so polite and Kurt took a deep breath to calm down a bit. After a beat he began to sing, his voice strong and melodic as he flowed through the memorized words and notes.
I'm just a normal boy Without a life vest I'd be stuck again Now floating up and down
That sank when I fell overboard
My ship would leave the country
But I'd rather swim ashore
Wish I was much more masculine
Maybe then I could learn to swim
Like 'fourteen miles away'
I spin, colliding into sound
Like whales beneath me diving down
I'm sinking to the bottom of my
Everything that freaks me out
The lighthouse beam has just run out
I'm cold as cold as cold can be
Be
The boys heard a soft whimper and more comforting words from the phone, and Kurt pressed on, trying to make his voice more lulling and peaceful.
I want to swim away but don't know how
Sometimes it feels just like I'm fallin' in the ocean
Let the waves up take me down
Let the hurricane set in motion, yeah
Let the rain of what I feel right now, come down
Let the rain come down
Kurt paused for a bit, used to the piano interlude, and turned to Blaine with misty eyes. He grasped the calmer boys hand while Blaine's other hand ran across his back in comfort. Kurt let his eyes flutter closed as he began singing once more. Both boys were too wrapped up in the song to notice a few warblers gathering outside the opening to the small alcove.
Where is the coastguard Not knowing how to think
I keep looking each direction
For a spotlight, give me something
I need something for protection
Maybe flotsam junk will do just fine
The jetsam sunk, I'm left behind
I'm treading for my life believe me
(How can I keep up this breathing)
I scream aloud, begin to sink
My legs and arms are broken down
With envy for the solid ground
I'm reaching for the life within me
How can one man stop his ending
I thought of just your face
Relaxed, and floated into space
Theresa whispered over the phone that it was working, informing them the young girl was relaxing into sleep as her medicine finally started to take effect.
I want to swim away but don't know how
Sometimes it feels just like I'm fallin' in the ocean
Let the waves up take me down
Let the hurricane set in motion, yeah
Let the rain of what I feel right now, come down
Let the rain come down
Kurt paused once more, clearing his throat in anticipation of the song ending, trying not to dwell on the meaning of the words. He placed his freehand over his face, but made sure his palm wasn't covering his mouth and muffling his voice.
Now waking to the sun
I calculate what I had done
Like jumping from the bow, yeah
Just to prove that I knew how, yeah
It's midnight's late reminder of
The loss of her, the one I love
My will to quickly end it all
Sat front row in my need to fall
When he reached this point Kurt seemed to relax, for he had changed the song a bit to better turn it into an audition piece with the loss of all the repeating lines. He didn't want to say goodbye, so he ended with the chorus.
I want to swim away but don't know how
Sometimes it feels just like I'm falling in the ocean
Let the waves up take me down
Let the hurricane set in motion, yeah
Let the rain of what I feel right now, come down
Let the rain come down
"I thought of just your face…" Kurt tapered off into silence which was soon broken by a beeping sound from his phone signaling Theresa turning her speakerphone off.
Theresa quietly spoke, no longer sounding distant. "Thank you Kurt, it means so much to us that you would take the time to do this."
"Of course," Kurt replied before switching his own phone off of speaker phone and pressing it tightly to his ear. Kurt continued shakily, "I'll try to be there before she wakes up again." Kurt smiled slightly as he listened to her reply. "I love you guys too," he stated with reverence and they exchanged goodbyes before ending the call. He spent a beat just staring at the phone clenched in his hands, trying to hold it together. Blaine reached to encircle him in his arms and provide comfort and Kurt turned toward him, collapsing into his welcoming arms and sobbing into the material of the older boy's Dalton uniform.
Neither boy had yet to notice the small group of Warblers hiding just outside the alcove and said group watched on as Blaine comforted his boyfriend. David was the first to break the silence accidentally.
"That was amazing!" he all but shouted, and then blushed as the two Warblers on the couch jumped and glanced toward him. Wes was trying to simultaneously shush his friend and pull him away from the touching scene. Suddenly Kurt realized he had most definitely missed his scheduled audition, along with the added bonus of finding out the people in charge of deciding had just seen him bawling his eyes out. He felt a blush creeping up his neck and couldn't believe so many people had seen him in such a state.
"Oh god, I'm so sorry!" Kurt hastened to apologize as he buried his face in his hands, extremely embarrassed. Kurt jumped up, mortified, and rushed from the alcove before anyone could say another word. Blaine stood to follow, but was held back by Wes placing a hand on his arm.
"I think it's safe to say," he began before glancing quickly for reassurance from David and the few other Warblers crowded behind him then continued, "that if Kurt is still interested in that solo, then he's got it."
"Thanks guys!" Blaine enthused, shaking Wes's hand before taking off to find Kurt, shouting out an apology to his friends as he rounded the corner.