It took a couple of minutes for Kurt to notice that his dad was hovering in the doorway to the kitchen, watching him bustle about the kitchen fixing dinner. He had been smiling and singing softly while putting together the makings for chicken wraps. His dad loved those and Kurt was still in a celebratory mood after the all-clear cancer diagnosis they had received yesterday.
"Hey, Dad. It won't take long. I cut up some vegetables earlier if you're looking for something to snack on," he said, busily laying out ingredients. When Burt said nothing, he glanced up, hands pausing when he took note of the worried expression on his father's face. "Is something wrong?"
"I don't know," he replied mysteriously. "Kurt, you know I'm not the kind of parent who feels like they have to butt in on their kid's love-life, right? I mean, you can date whoever you want and as long as they treat you right and make you happy, I'll be happy for you."
Kurt's brow furrowed, honestly having no idea where this was going. "Good to know. But…?"
"But are you sure you aren't moving too fast? I mean, like I said, I'm not trying to interfere in your personal life, but a head's up would have been nice."
Wondering whether it had been Rachel or Santana who spilled the beans, given that Kurt had not even updated his Facebook status since he began dating again, he sighed. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to hide anything, and I'm not ashamed of my relationship or anything. Far from it! It's just that you had a lot on your mind and it was all so new that I was afraid to tempt fate by talking about it too soon. After what happened last year, I guess I've been a little gun-shy. I wasn't sure I was ready to tell anyone, even you, that I was taking a chance again."
"I get that. I probably didn't help much at Christmas."
Kurt nodded, cutting up the chicken breast in front of him with just a bit more vigor than strictly necessary. "You really didn't. I knew you meant well, but I just didn't know what to say. You'd just dropped a bomb in my lap and I was still reeling from it, then you send me out to get what I thought was going to be my Christmas present and instead it's him. Then you guys decided that him coming back to my apartment to spend the holiday was a great idea, without even asking me. I wasn't ready for that, Dad. I wanted to spend Christmas with you, not my ex-boyfriend that I was still working on trying to forgive for cheating on me."
Burt looked very much ashamed at those words. "All this time, I been assuming that by 'cheated' you meant he'd kissed another guy at school or something like that. That wasn't all, was it?"
Swallowing down the reflex of pain that immediately choked his throat at the reminder of Blaine's infidelity, he shook his head. "No, Dad. When I said cheating, I meant it. He hooked up with someone else and then blamed it on me for not paying him enough attention. It didn't even take a month before he threw away everything we had together. I've been struggling for months longer to forgive him. I had to. In spite of everything, a part of me still loves him and was miserable without at least being friends with him. That's what made it so hard to move forward."
Walking the rest of the way into the kitchen, Burt gently clasped the back of his neck. "I'm real sorry, son. I'm sorry that happened to you and even more sorry that you were dealing with it all alone. If I'd been a little less distracted by what was going on with myself, I'd have been a lot more observant."
"It's not your fault. I knew you had a lot on your plate." He shrugged. "Honestly, I didn't really want to talk about it. I felt so ashamed, like I should have expected that I wouldn't be enough to hold Blaine when I wasn't right there every day to remind him of what we had."
Burt sighed deeply, taking a seat on a tall kitchen stool. "If he needed the reminder, then you guys weren't as strong as anyone thought anyway. When you really and truly love someone, their well-being is always a top priority in your heart and it doesn't take 24/7 face time to keep them on your mind. That's why I don't understand you two getting back together. Don't you think you deserve better than that? Cause I sure as hell do."
"I know that I deserve … wait a minute. Did you just say back together? As in, me and Blaine?"
Now it was Burt's turn to look confused. "Wasn't that what we were just talking about?"
"Maybe you were," Kurt said slowly, trying to figure out how they had ended up so far from being on the same page. "I thought I was telling you about Adam. He's a guy I met at NYADA my first week there. I asked him out for coffee and we went out a couple of times, just casually, before we decided to try dating exclusively almost a month ago. I'm sorry again for not telling you, Dad, but I needed to be sure I was ready before putting any pressure on this. At Christmastime you seemed to be squarely on Blaine's side and I was afraid you wouldn't give Adam a chance."
Burt looked flabbergasted. "Of course I'd give him a chance, Kurt. If you care about this guy, then naturally I want to meet him, but I'm not going to run him off with a hatchet or something. You know me better than that. As for Blaine, I'm not taking his side. I just don't understand why he asked my permission to propose to you if you guys aren't together."
Kurt's mouth dropped open and it took him several seconds to form a coherent word. Then, a high-pitched, "He what?"
"I said no," Burt added hastily. "Told him you guys were too young and that a proposal wasn't a way to hold on to somebody you love. That he should lay low and have patience, and that … that you loved each other and would be okay with time."
He looked embarrassed at that last admission and Kurt sighed, plunking down onto the stool next to his dad's. "It's fine. You didn't understand what was going on. God, that's crazy though! I mean, he and I did sort of … Well, to be honest, we hooked up when I was back here in February." He blushed at Burt's skeptical expression. "I know, it was dumb and desperate. I kept telling him we were only friends and that it didn't mean we were getting back together but I know he didn't believe me. He was agreeing with me one minute and then pressuring me to admit it meant something the next. As if the fact that we had holiday contact twice in a row was some kind of great cosmic neon sign. After I got back to New York, I felt so stupid. Adam and I were barely dating then, but I was afraid he'd drop me like last season's Gucci when he found out."
"He didn't, though," Burt observed, interest quirking one eyebrow up in question.
Kurt smiled. "No. In fact, he asked me if he'd been a rebound for me and when I said no, he invited me to see a movie with him. Something sappy and romantic. He wanted a fighting chance to win me over. And he's been so sweet, and supportive, and funny and warm, ever since the first day we met. He flirted with no pressure, but he was really persistent in making sure that I knew he liked me."
A grin had formed on Burt's face as he unintentionally started to gush. "Sounds like I might like this kid already. He in your class at that school?"
"He's a senior, actually. He's twenty-two, and I know you're going to say that's too old for me, but…"
"No, I'm not," Burt cut him off, resting a reassuring hand on Kurt's back. "Kurt you're not a kid anymore and three years isn't so bad. It's less than the gap between your mom and me, and even if it wasn't you've always been more mature than most kids your age so I know you could handle it. It's not like you're dating someone twice your age!"
Kurt's stiff posture relaxed. "I'm glad to hear you say that. Because I really like him a lot. We're still pretty new, but I don't think it's too soon to say that we're good together."
"Too bad you didn't bring him back to visit with you," Burt mused. "I'll bet that would have put a knife in whatever fantasy your ex cooked up better than anything else could have."
The two Hummels exchanged a rueful look, neither one quite able to fathom how anyone could take a relationship fantasy so far that they would actually want to propose marriage to a person they weren't even dating.
"I almost did," Kurt admitted. "Bring Adam, that is. He volunteered to come with me for moral support since he's also got the week off for Spring Break. I only refused because I didn't want to shock you or make any big changes that might cause fate to look unkindly on us before your doctor's appointment."
Burt chuckled a bit. "I appreciate all the effort you went to, but you know that what color socks I wore or who I met before seeing the doctor weren't really going to have an effect on whether or not I responded to a medical procedure. You do know that, right?"
Sheepishly, Kurt shrugged one shoulder. "I do now that my rational brain is working again. I was too scared to take any chances before."
Giving him a one-armed hug, Burt squeezed his shoulder and said, "So, take one now." Kurt looked at him questioningly. "Call up your boyfriend and find out if he's still interested in flying down to Ohio for a couple of days. I'll even pop for the ticket."
"You … but Dad!"
"But nothin'! I didn't listen to what you were telling me and flew a guy you didn't want to spend time with out to New York. Least I can do to make up for it is use all those frequent-flyer miles I've racked up going back and forth to DC to bring a guy you do want to spend time with out here." He paused, looked at Kurt carefully. "You do want to see him, don't you?"
A grin broke out and Kurt turned to give his father a full hug. "Of course I do. Are you sure you're ready for this, though?"
"Of course I'm ready. I'm more than ready to see my kid happy with somebody who's got his best interests at heart. And if this Adam is that guy, then I want to get to know him."
"I'll call him right after dinner," Kurt promised, beaming with delight.
Much to Kurt's happiness, Adam had not left New York to spend his break in some place with more sun and fun. He was surprised but very pleased to be invited, and after a little argument and persuasion on Kurt's part, eventually agreed to accept the free ticket. Comparing prices over the phone, and consulting Burt as to which airlines would honor his frequent flyer package, they found a flight that would bring Adam into Columbus the next day at a little after noon.
Thrilling from head to toe, Kurt hung up, hugged his dad again for all he was worth, (He was happy to find any excuse to do that right now.) and skipped upstairs to get Finn's room ready for a guest. He and Adam had not quite reached the sleeping-together stage in New York yet, and even if they had, it would have felt impolite to do so in his parents' house when they were only just meeting his new boyfriend for the first time. Besides, since Finn had entered the University of Ohio: Lima as a mid-year transfer student, and would not be taking advantage of Spring Break, so there was plenty of room.
He barely slept that night, repeatedly waking up with a silly smile on his face and a feeling of anticipation thrumming through his body. He had not felt so nervous or so excited about introducing someone to his dad before.
The next morning flew by, with Kurt fussing and fidgeting until it was time to make the hour and a half drive to Columbus Airport to meet Adam's flight. He made it inside the terminal just in time for his phone to beep with a text saying that Adam was in safely and on his way to baggage claim.
Grinning broadly, Kurt checked the flight directory overhead, changed direction and jogged over to the incoming American Airlines luggage carousel. He only had to wait a few minutes before a familiar shaggy blond head appeared amidst a crowd of other passengers. Adam spotted him just as he began to move towards him and in a few seconds, they were wrapped tightly in each other's arms, feeling as if had been weeks instead of just a few days since they had last seen one another.
"I'm so glad you're here," Kurt breathed, a little shocked by the overwhelming feeling of completion he felt in his boyfriend's strong embrace. "I've missed you."
"I've missed you too, Kurt. Thank you, and your dad, for inviting me. It was really sweet of him to fly me all the way out here. And if I didn't say so before, I'm so very happy for you that he's going to be all right. I was crossing my fingers, toes and every other moving part on his behalf from the moment your flight left on Sunday."
Kurt laughed, hearing it come out a little like a sob as he pulled reluctantly out of the hug. "I appreciate that. I'm sure Dad will think it's funny, he's been teasing me about all the superstitious precautions I was taking on his behalf."
"But it worked and that's what matters?" Adam guessed with a twinkle in his eye.
He grinned. "Exactly. I can't prove that all my rituals helped turn the diagnosis in our favor, but he can't prove that they didn't. Did you have a good flight?"
"An excellent flight," Adam agreed, pointing to the luggage carousel where the first bags were beginning to topple down. He lucked out and his own battered maroon suitcase was one of the first pieces of luggage to come around. "No turbulence, everything was on schedule, and there were no crying babies anywhere in my vicinity."
"Can't ask for more than that," Kurt agreed. "I'm parked over in the short-term lot. I didn't know how long you'd be or how much stuff you'd be bringing. Is this it?"
Adam nodded, fishing his case off the rack and flipping it over so that it could be rolled out. "All set."
His free arm wrapped around Kurt's shoulders as they walked, Kurt's right arm drifting around his waist. He had warned Adam about the intolerance toward gay PDA in Ohio, and was thrilled to discover how little Adam cared about the non-plussed looks they were receiving as he planted a kiss on Kurt's cheek and nuzzled his hair. The other people may as well have not even been there.
They got in Kurt's car, borrowed from his dad for the day, and drove back to Lima frequently holding hands, singing loudly along with the radio and sharing bursts of happy conversation. Adam seemed far less nervous about meeting Burt and Carole than Kurt would have been if their positions had been reversed and he eventually asked about it.
"No, I'm not nervous. They sound like such lovely people when you speak about them. And I know how much your dad means to you, so how could I not want to meet him? I'm sure he wouldn't have asked me to visit if he intended to just send me packing again the moment we'd met. If he's willing to give me a fair shake, then I'm more than willing to meet him halfway. And you needn't worry. I told my mum and dad about you and they're thrilled. You obviously make me happy and that's good enough for them. They're hoping to have the chance to meet you one day, if all goes well."
Kurt smiled and squeezed his hand. "That's really nice. I hope I'll get the chance."
The miles flew by and soon Kurt was pulling into his own familiar driveway again. Retrieving Adam's bag, they went inside through the garage entrance, only to find Burt and Carole lying in wait with expectant looks on their faces. Kurt smiled and quickly made introductions.
"I'm delighted to meet you, sir," Adam said, shaking Burt's offered hand. "Thank you so much for having me and for buying my ticket out. You had my over-stretched college-student purse strings sighing in relief."
Burt chuckled. "Glad to do it. Good to meet you, Adam. And feel free to call me Burt. I appreciate the manners but Sir is a little formal for my taste."
He nodded and then shook Carole's hand. "And you must be the lovely step-mother Kurt speaks of so highly. It's a real pleasure, Mrs. Hummel."
Carole was practically swooning over Adam's accent. "Oh, the pleasure is all mine. Call me Carole, sweetheart, you're family while you're here. Have you had anything to eat? We had a late lunch and there are plenty of leftovers."
"I could do with a bite, if you're certain it's not putting you out," he agreed, grinning at Kurt over one shoulder as Carole immediately seized him by the arm and happily led him away to raid the kitchen, and presumably endure his first grilling session.
Burt chuckled as they disappeared from sight. "Something tells me that guy is going to have Carole wrapped around his finger in no time. He seems nice, son. Where's he from anyway?"
"Essex, originally. He won an international scholarship contest for NYADA in his senior year of prep school and moved out to New York. He just put in for a resident green card a few months ago in hopes of staying in the U.S. permanently." Seeing his dad's expression, he laughed. "No, it had nothing to do with me. He'd already started filling out the paperwork before we met."
Some kind of tension floated out of Burt's frame. "Good. I mean, not that you aren't worth sticking around for. You totally are, but nobody should make that kind of life-altering decision based on knowing somebody for just a few weeks."
"I agree. Sometimes it's hard to know somebody that well after a couple of years."
Burt nodded, understanding perfectly. "You gonna introduce them?"
Kurt bit his lip. "I'd like to take him around and introduce him to everyone. Especially while Mercedes and Mike are still in town. Spending time with them again has been just like old times. Better, actually, because Mike and I never spoke all that much when we went to school together but he's really easy to talk to now. Mercedes and I have been growing closer again, too. They seemed worried about me after I gave them the full scoop on what happened with Blaine. I really want them to meet Adam and know that I have someone special in my life." He shook his head. "I am a little worried about how Blaine will react, though. We're not as close as we used to be, but I do think of him as my friend. I really don't want to hurt him."
"Sometimes a little suffering is necessary if it opens up our eyes to the truth. You and Blaine aren't a couple any more and he's got to realize that. Even if Adam wasn't in your life, you guys aren't the same and that's something he needs to face. It's something I needed to face, too."
"What do you mean?"
Burt smiled a bit sadly. "It's hard to realize sometimes that you aren't that wide-eyed, open hearted little boy I used to know anymore. You've grown up and experienced more life in the last few years than some men do in a couple of decades. That changes a person. I was wearing my Dad blinders so tight that I missed what was right in front of me. You've got a new life, some new friends, and a new guy in a new city. I had no right to try and hold you to the past."
"But sometimes the past isn't something we're ready to let go of, no matter how much we grow up or how far away we live," Kurt told him, looking deep into his eyes.
His father got the message at once. "Thanks, kiddo. I love you, too."
The next day, after prying him away from a busily fussing Carole, Kurt took Adam to the Lima Bean to meet his friends. He'd considered McKinley but was not quite cruel enough to spring over a dozen skeptical strangers on poor Adam. He'd sent a text to Mercedes, who promised to bring Mike. Somehow, Kurt was not remotely surprised to see that Blaine had got wind of the meeting and invited himself along. Oh, well. Better to just rip the band-aid off and have done with it.
"Guys! I'd like you to meet somebody!" he greeted, giving Mercedes a hug as they entered the busy coffee shop. "You asked me about my life in New York? Well, I'd like you to meet a very important part of that life. This is Adam Crawford, my boyfriend. Adam, these are my friends Mercedes Jones, Mike Chang and Blaine Anderson."
Adam nodded a friendly greeting. Mike and Mercedes, after a moment of shocked hesitation, had smiled and welcomed him into their group with no awkwardness showing. Blaine, on the other hand, looked like he'd had his favorite toy stolen right out of his hands. He just gaped at them, looking from Kurt to Adam to their linked hands as if he could not recognize any of what was happening.
"Boyfriend?" he croaked.
"Yeah." Feeling terrible and wondering if maybe he should have updated that Facebook page after all, Kurt nodded. "Remember when I told you I was "sort of" seeing somebody back in February? Well, that somebody was Adam. We recently talked it over and decided that we both wanted to try being exclusive. So, here we are. My dad invited him out to stay for a few days while I'm here."
"He's staying at your house?" Blaine confirmed, looking less shocked now and more angry. "Burt asked him to stay, even after I told him that I…"
He cut himself off abruptly, and Kurt's eyes narrowed. "After you what, Blaine? After you made assumptions about my feelings that you had no right making? After you went to my father to try and arrange my life for me without so much as trying to talk to me first?"
Casting a resentful look toward the now uncomfortable looking Adam, he snapped, "You weren't talking either! You didn't say anything to me about him."
"Why should he?" Mercedes cut in, giving Blaine her best "I'm gonna cut you if you mess with my boy" look, one perfected in the trench-like halls of McKinley high. "Last time I heard, you two weren't together any more. You said so yourself, right here at this table not two days ago."
"You did," Mike confirmed. He sipped his coffee, simply watching the action and waiting for a signal to interfere if necessary.
Throwing his hands in the air, Blaine nearly shouted, "But I didn't mean it! We were supposed to be together, Kurt. You and I are soul-mates! We're meant to be together. There's nobody else for me but you, or you for me."
Seeing that Kurt was getting upset, Adam cut in, "Excuse me for making what seems a rather crude observation, but if that were true then you wouldn't have been buggering some other bloke the moment Kurt's back was turned. If someone is your true love and soul-mate, then he deserves to be treated with respect and affection at all times, and to have his feelings considered of highest import, not thrown away the moment you become a bit starved for attention."
He said the words so calmly, so firmly, every syllable ringing with certainty, that everyone at the table found themselves nodding agreement. Even Blaine, though he caught himself almost at once. He looked again from Kurt to Adam, seeing the bright gaze and loving look in Kurt's eyes directed at someone else, and the fight abruptly seemed to leak right out of him.
"But what about us?"
"Sweetie, I'm sorry. I am, but there is no us. Not anymore. I tried to tell you that at Valentine's but you didn't want to listen."
"I never meant to hurt you, Kurt," he said softly, dark eyes brimming. "Truly. I meant to give you all of those things I promised and more. I thought if you'd only give me a second chance then I could prove it to you. I do love you, you know."
Kurt's eyes welled up too and he reached over to gently grip Blaine's hand. "I know. I believe you mean that, and if you'd said all this to me a few months ago, or better yet talked to me about how you were feeling before doing what you did, things might have been different. They would have been different, Blaine. Now…"
"It's too late," he said, sadness filling every feature.
"Yes," Kurt whispered, letting him go and lacing his fingers through Adam's waiting ones. "You'll be my friend for as long as you want to be, but we're not meant for anything more than that anymore. Some things you just can't come back from, no matter how much you love someone."
Dashing at his eyes, Blaine nodded, unable to lift his eyes to look at them anymore. "I guess I knew that. I just didn't want it to be true. I told myself that if we could get back to where we used to be, dreaming of a future together, then it would be like last October never happened. I've wished so many times that it hadn't."
"You can't erase the past," Mercedes told him gently. "I learned that much with Sam last year. You can only do your best to be true to who you are and learn from your mistakes. Be Kurt's friend, Blaine, and be happy with that. It's a relationship worth having."
He managed a little smile. "I know it is." Managing a quick look into Adam's face, now filled with a lot more sympathy than it had shown a few minutes ago, he said, "Don't ever make my mistake, okay? Kurt deserves the best."
"He does," Adam agreed, giving him a nod. "I'll take excellent care of him, I promise, and he'll take care of me in turn."
Blaine managed a real smile this time, his gaze fixed on Kurt. "I don't doubt that for a minute. I, uh, I'll see you guys later. I don't feel much like coffee anymore and I need to return something I bought before the store closes. Excuse me."
He hurried away from the table and Kurt half-rose, instinctively needing to comfort the obviously weeping boy, but then he slowly melted back into his seat. There was nothing more he could say right now. Blaine would need some time apart, just as Kurt had.
"We'll check in on him from time to time," Mike promised, reading Kurt's expression. "I come back to Lima to visit my parents pretty regularly. I'll make sure he's doing okay."
Kurt smiled at him, hugging Adam's arm and pressing his face against that broad solid shoulder. He looked at Mike and Mercedes, his dear friends who understood his feelings better than he had ever expected them to. "I appreciate that. Thanks you guys, all of you. That was a conversation I wasn't looking forward to having."
"He'll be okay, Kurt," Mercedes assured him. "And so will you. Now, since we are clearly in need of a lighter topic, why don't you tell us all about the two of you! Where did you meet? How long have you been together? Give me some deets, baby! I've been starving for some good gossip."
Smiling gratefully, Kurt and Adam launched into the story of their meeting. Soon the four of them were laughing and chatting like old friends, Adam slotting into the group with the ease of a true people person. And if a slight air of sadness overwhelmed Kurt from time to time, he did his best not to show it and the others did their best to let it go unremarked. They all had experienced painful breakups of their own, and though Kurt and Blaine had officially ended nearly six months ago, it was only now that the final page had been turned.
Watching Adam laugh with his old friends, Kurt felt a surge of love and gratitude. He leaned over and kissed Adam, bringing a happy but surprised look to his face.
"What was that for?" he asked, eyes crinkling in the way that Kurt adored.
"I just felt like it," he said with a smile. "Sorry, continue your story."
As Adam kissed him back and started talking again, Kurt smiled. He knew suddenly that he was ready to embrace this new relationship in full. It was time to begin a new chapter of his life, embracing all of the promise it had to offer.
THE END