Glee
*I do not own Glee or any of the characters or anything remotely Glee related.*
It had been months since Kurt had transferred to Dalton, and the New Directions were concerned. At first, Kurt called and texted almost constantly, came home every weekend, and pretty much stayed in touch 24/7. Back then, they worried he wasn't fitting in, or wasn't adjusting. Now, they barely saw him, barely heard from him. His texts were sporadic, his phone calls cut short, he hadn't been back to Lima in weeks. Finn, being the worried big brother figure he was, decided to rally the glee club for a surprise visit. It was visiting hours on a weekend after all, and he had tried to call, and he knew Kurt was there since Finn had called the office to see if Kurt had checked off campus. They had figured that a surprise visit would allow them to see how Kurt was really doing, without any preparation or falsities. At least, that was what Rachel told Finn, and he trusted her. Her desire to scope out the Warblers as competition may have been a secondary goal, but who was counting? Anyway, the end result was pretty much the entire Glee club driving up to Dalton on a Saturday, determined to see Kurt one way or another.
They had checked in – possibly scaring the secretary in the process – and had made their way up to the main common room, where they had been assured most of the Warblers hung out. They were all a bit intimidated by the fancy décor and the decorum of the students they saw walking the halls – full uniforms, calm demeanors, seemingly studious and serious. Were all Dalton kids like this? How the hell was Kurt dealing with this atmosphere? He was the most unique, individual person, like, ever. They opened the massive double doors to the common room – and instantly relaxed.
In the privacy of the non-public common room, the true nature of the all boys school was revealed. Blazers and ties were discarded, sometimes even shirts. The students were lounging on couches, watching TV, playing video games, chatting and eating. There was raucous laughter and a notable lack of decorum and grace. This was better – not exactly Kurt's scene – but better. Rachel spotted the front man of the Warblers, Blaine Anderson, sitting with a couple other boys playing Call of Duty.
"Excuse me? Blaine Anderson? Hi, I'm not sure you remember me, Rachel Berry, hi. Um, I was – we were wondering if Kurt was around?" Rachel took the lead, approaching the boys. However, it was not Blaine who answered.
"Kurt – you mean Manly? He should be back in a minute, he's out helping Jeff with his car. I'm Wes, this is David, Thad, and Nick." The boy gestured to each with his gavel as he said their names. "And you are the New Directions, I presume. McKinley's up and comers, Manly Man's old group – that right?" He smirked.
"Um – I think so? Yes? Why do you keep calling Kurt manly?" Finn asked, confused.
Suddenly, a door at the other end of the room burst open, and Kurt strode in, followed closely by Jeff.
"Alright, bitches, who's ready to get crushed at COD?" Kurt drawled, oblivious to the New Directioners. He was wearing ripped jeans and a grease stained wife-beater, as well as combat boots and a saucy grin. There was a smudge of oil on his cheek, and for the first time in McKinley memory, he didn't look like he cared about his appearance at all. They all stared at him. He started, finally noticing that they were there, and blanched.
"Shit." He cursed. Kurt cursed. The New Directioners were speechless.
"And that is why we call him Manly Man." David grinned, enjoying the looks on his friend's former classmates' faces.
"Kurt? Damn, what the hell happened to you?" Puck broke the silence.
"Ummmm…" Kurt was blanking, his Warbler friends sniggering at his blatant panic. He turned to them.
"This is your fault! I don't know how, but it is!" The Warblers all laughed, Blaine looking a bit chagrined but still amused.
"What's wrong?" Nick asked, "Do your friends not know what a hunky tough guy you are, Mr. Manly Man?"
"No, actually, why don't you elaborate, hmmm?" Mercedes sidled up to the Dalton boys. They exchanged a look.
"Well, he is the star football player around here. His skills as a kicker pretty much saved the team from utter defeat after our usual guy broke his big toe." Thad chimed in.
"And he is a natural at video games. He tells us that he 'doesn't really play' then sits down and trounces all at COD, GTA, hell, even Mario Kart. We were snookered." Wes complained, "Thank God we didn't bet on it."
"And he is like, the best at cars. He literally just fixed mine. He's like our own personal mechanic! Which is nice because none of the rest of us can so much as change a tire." Said Jeff, happy he didn't have to get his car towed to an auto-shop.
"And he is the ultimate ladies man. His dating advice is invaluable, and he has successfully wing-manned a third of the single guys in the Warblers. It's like he speaks their language. My girlfriend loves him, yet he is kind enough to be gay and leave some ladies for the rest of us." David teased, poking Kurt's side. Kurt had hidden his face in his hands, but his ears were bright cherry-tomato red.
"Ooh! And he saved Blaine's life! Blaine almost fell off the balcony during one of his jump-heavy dance routines, but Manly scooped him into his arms and was all like 'you okay babe?' Total action movie moment." Nick reenacted the event, sweeping Jeff off his feet and looking deep into his eyes while trying to look as macho and smooth as possible. The other boys nodded in agreement, Blaine blushing furiously at the memory.
"I dunno how we ever lived without him! His cooking alone makes me want to propose. And He's a counter-tenor! Do you know how rare those are?" Wes added, obviously pleased at having Kurt in his choir.
"Wow, Kurt. Why didn't you ever show this side of you at McKinley?" Tina finally addressed the subject of their conversation.
"They are all exaggerating! They just started calling me that for no reason. Besides, I am only macho in comparison to these pansies." Kurt glared at his Dalton friends, who just laughed and smirked.
"Well, at least he's fitting in alright." Finn commented to Rachel, who still stood speechless.
"Kurt! There's a spider in my room! Help me!" A boy ran into the room.
"If you all will excuse me, I've got business to attend to." Kurt put his nose in the air and sashayed out of the room.
