Written after I read the article in The Hollywood Reporter. I heart Hummelberry/Kurtchel friendship. And, before you all start complaining I did skip the first few lines of the song. But I didn't think they fit with this so get over it.
She can't believe that they managed to sneak into the Gershwin Theatre. They're standing onstage…the same stage that Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth have performed on. She looks at Kurt and sees the smile on his face at the thought of someday performing on this stage…she knows because she's had the same thoughts.
She catches his eye and she's transported to a place over a year and a half earlier. They weren't friends then...in fact they didn't really get along. They were competing for the same solo…from Wicked. And she realizes how much things have changed…because they are friends now…and she's learned how to share not only the solos and the spotlight…but the part of herself she kept hidden away. The part of herself that had always hidden itself unless there was something in it for her and now she knows it was foolish to do that.
The song lyrics tumble out of her mouth before she can stop them. He looks at her funny because he knows (and he knows that she knows) it's not the start of the song. But this is her way of apologizing for the Diva-Off and letting him have his moment to shine as Elphaba.
I've heard it said
That people come into our lives
For a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are lead
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well I don't know
If I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed
For the better
Because I knew you
I have been changed for good
He can't believe that they're there either. He's standing on a stage that so many amazing performers have stood on and he knows that he'll join their ranks some day. They both will. They have the drive, the determination, and Julie Andrews knows they've both got the talent to get to the top and stay there. She catches his eyes and he knows that she's thinking about their Defying Gravity Diva-off. If you had asked him then if he was upset over losing…he'd have responded that of course he was upset…he just lost out on one of his favorite solos. But now if you asked him…he'd have to respond no…because Rae is Elphaba and he is Galinda.
She starts to sing and he can't stop himself from looking at her funny. Because they both know that this isn't the start of the song. But after a minute he realizes that she's trying to say something with this song and also he revels in the fact that he gets to be Elphaba. He knows this song so well that he doesn't need the music in the background to hear the exact moment that his part starts.
It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever
Way our stories end
I know you have rewritten mine
By being my friend
Like a ship blown from it's mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a sky-bird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed
For the better
But…because I knew you
Rachel smiles when Kurt starts his part and wishes for a moment that someone else was there with them. Then they could have a picture of this moment forever. But she's also glad that no one had wanted to go with them for breakfast in front of Tiffany's this early in the morning. Because this really is just for them…it's their dream to be this stage and right now its just the two of them. She knows she'll have to write down every detail of this moment later so that neither of them ever forgets it. She listens to him hit each note perfectly and is proud to join in and mix her voice with his.
Because I knew you
I have been changed for good
And just to clear the air
I ask forgiveness
For the things I've done
You blame me for
But then I guess
We know there's blame to share
And none of it seems to matter
Anymore
Like a comet pulled from orbit
Like a ship pulled from its mooring
As it passes a sun
By a wind off the sea
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Like a seed dropped by a bird
Halfway through the wood
In the wood
Who can say if I've been changed
For the better
I do believe I have been changed
For the better
And…because I knew you
Because I knew you
Because I knew you
I have been changed
For Good
They are silent after because no words are needed to express anything. The song said it all. Their hands are clasped and they can each see the tears glazing the others eyes even though they are smiling. The silence is interrupted by the sounds of both their phones ringing and they laugh because it's easy to tell who is calling who.
Kurt is the first to reach his phone and when he presses the answer button on the touch screen "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" stops playing. Rachel answers her phone a moment later and Kurt can vaguely hear "And I Am Telling You" stop playing from her phone.
"Hello, Finn." He says
"Dude, where are you and Rach? We have practice in twenty minutes."
"We went for breakfast at Tiffany's. We just happened to get a little sidetracked. Tell Schue we're fine and we'll meet you all at the Lincoln Center."
"Alright. You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah." Kurt responds looking over at Rachel who has just finished talking to Mercedes.
He hangs up without a goodbye and walks over to Rachel. They walk out silently each with only one look back and a significant nod at the other. They'll be there together someday…because they have changed each other. For Good.