A Friggin Horse

Fandom(s): Glee
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Summary: Kurt is losing the control over his emotions and Puck is there to pick up the pieces. Sort of.
Spoiler: 3x02 I Am Unicorn
Pairing/ Character(s): Kurt, Puck (Puckurt, if you squint)
Warnings: hurt/comfort
Rating: PG
1st Note: I've had bad luck with beta readers concerning my Glee stories, they tend to say 'yes, of course I'll read your stuff!' and never write back~ So this is, again, not beta read. I apologise for the inconvenience!
2nd Note: The episode left a very, very bad taste in my mouth. It feels like they're destroying Kurt's dreams and why aren't people (his friends) taking him seriously? Especially Miss OCD Guidance Counsellor? Or Arty? And anyway, I don't like Blaine, so Puck is Kurt's hero in this little snippet (and all other snippets).

Kurt walked quietly away from the balcony shrouded in darkness and into the hallways of McKinley. He blinked to adjust his sight to the sudden change of light and tried to ignore the other reason why his eyes might hurt. So it seemed he wouldn't get the lead role after all. Not that he'd had much hope after the disaster that was Romeo and Juliet. He had really thought that the people sitting in the jury would at least respect him to such an extend as not to make fun of him. And Rachel.

He knew he wasn't really masculine but he thought he would be appropriately manly for singing male lead in a musical. Apparently not.

And now that Brittany was running for class president herself, it didn't seem very likely that he would make in on that front either. Who would vote for the resident gay kid when they could have the hot Cheerio? Yeah, right. Being a unicorn was starting to be too much again. After talking to his dad he had thought that he could salvage this situation, but sawing off his horn seemed way more attractive right about now.

A shuddering breath shook his slender body and he made his way towards the ladies room. He could use a few minutes of hiding and getting his act together. He didn't want to get all bitter and teary around Blaine. He was genuinely happy for him.. somewhere inside, or he thought he could be, when he wasn't so upset any more. The countertenor didn't want West Side Story of all things to drive a wedge between them.

Kurt entered the bathroom, sighing, and went straight to the mirrors. One look told him that his appearance was still utterly perfect, but the treacherous stinging behind his eyes heralded the inevitable breakdown. Hopefully he would make it home before that happened.

The sudden flushing noise coming from one of the cubicles had him stiff and poker-faced in one millisecond. He was seriously off his game if he hadn't noticed that he wasn't alone. Mentally preparing himself for either some bitchy remarks or a warm smile, he was completely unprepared to face the person that came out of the cubicle. He felt his masks crumble.

"Puck?"

Their eyes met in the mirror and both of them stopped for a moment. It took all of Kurt's strength to tear his gaze away from the mohawked teen. Questions swirled through his already confused and stricken mind; what was Puck doing in a girl's bathroom? Especially since there was not one girl in sight that could be of interest to the sex shark.

"'s up," grumbled his glee mate quietly. Out of courtesy, Kurt suspected. He listened to the sounds of Puck washing his hands and patiently waited for the other to leave the ladies room so he could burst into tears in private. This encounter had somehow unsettled him deeper than he would have suspected, probably because it was an event he hadn't planned for.

Kurt continued to stare at his clenched hands, while the silence only grew longer and Puck still hadn't left, and why was he even here in the first place?

After a while, Kurt risked a glance towards the other boy and realised that he shouldn't have. Puck's dark eyes drilled into him painfully perceptive and when had Kurt started to become transparent to the young delinquent? Even though his face remained impassive, he knew that his own eyes were giving him away. They always did.

"You okay there, Hummel?"

Puck sounded almost kind in his rough, bad-ass kind of way. Although, if rumours were true, the other boy was slowly giving up his bad boy image to be with his daughter.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Kurt asked, and hated how weak and girly his voice sounded.

Puck shrugged.

"Rachel told everyone what happened," he muttered unhurriedly.

"Of course she did." He couldn't keep the slight sneer off his face.

After a moment he decided that he really didn't want to do this. Maybe he should just skip the rest of the day and lock himself into his room, singing along to the saddest songs he could find, and maybe indulge in some low-fat ice cream. He turned away with every intention of leaving the other boy to his own devices.

"Need a shoulder to cry on?" asked Puck, and for once he seemed to mean it. There was no trace of sarcasm or humour in his voice. Still. Kurt wasn't feeling desperate enough to cry on anyone's shoulder just yet. He couldn't lower himself to such a blatant display of emotion. Especially not with Puck, who's new persona was frighteningly appealing. His stomach was filled with fluttering feelings that shouldn't be there. He knew what they meant. Puck had been awfully cordial towards him ever since he came back from Dalton and he somehow seemed to get him like no one else did these days. It was best not to dwell on it for too long.

"Thanks, but I'll pass."

He glanced over his shoulder and saw the mohawked teen nod in agreement.

"Their opinions suck anyway."

Kurt blinked. This wasn't what he'd expected at all.

"I beg your pardon?"

Puck studied him again, but this time, Kurt realised, he was able to meet his gaze without falling apart. Whatever it was that's gotten into his glee mate lately, it made him say the right things to stitch Kurt back together without really trying. Or maybe he did try, the male diva couldn't be so sure about that.

"Dude, who knows more about musicals and shit than you?" Puck asked as if it was obvious.

Kurt let out a surprised laugh. He couldn't really argue with that, though Rachel Berry's name floated insistently through his mind until he shoved it to the back of his head. Sometimes denial was a blessing, he figured and resolved to take full advantage.

"True," he allowed and tried to suppress an amused smile.

Kurt inclined his head towards Puck – who looked far too smug and accomplished for his taste – and finally left his safe haven. Puck didn't follow immediately and for that Kurt was grateful. The boy had managed what even his dad had been unable to do. He'd returned his confidence, Kurt realised with a growing warmth in his chest. Maybe it would turn out alright in the end. He'd just have to wait and see. But everyone knew that patience wasn't one of his virtues.