Author's notes : Mid season 5, with minor canon tweaks: Kurt and Blaine moved out of the loft together, and are still trying to make their engagement work. The episode "Bash" does not exist in this universe.
A Tumblr collaboration fic by daftydraw and JWMelmoth.
Kurt leaned over the basin to peer at his reflection in the small bathroom mirror critically. Not as flawless as he would have liked, but acceptable given the circumstances. And he'd be damned if he missed out on his single night off because of some sleepless nights.
Kurt's self-imposed work-, study- and training schedule was ruthless, but every time slot filled had its reasons; after his NYADA classes, he clocked in as many hours as he could at Vogue to keep his internship, as many as needed at the diner to pay for rent and food, and as many at the gym as he had to to compensate for the quality of that food. He made his homework on the subway and studied at night, often at the price of sleep.
One single night a week, he reserved for himself - not that he had much of a choice, as Blaine and his new bff Sam had declared it their weekly "bro" night and often crowded Kurt and Blaine's small apartment with inane games, loud movies and 'freestyle poetry BLAMs'. Kurt usually made sure he was gone before Sam arrived, and home long after Blaine crashed.
Tonight, he would be trying an Italian bistro he'd found in a New York tour guide book and an LGBTQ cocktail bar he had read about online. Kurt went to a new place every week, enjoying his anonymity and trying to see and meet as many handsome, interesting and free-minded New Yorkers as possible. He'd dance, sing if they had karaoke, flirt a little, pocket and discard phone numbers, and go home feeling a little better about himself. A small concession to the big city dreams of a small town boy; even if nothing else so far had gone as he had imagined it would, at least the community was glamorous.
The alarm on his phone went off, and he knew it was time to go. Blaine's entertainment tonight was something involving masks and capes, and he'd rather not know.
x
Sebastian smiled flirtatiously at the two girls sat at the bar and placed two expertly made pornstar martinis in front of them, following quickly with the complimentary shots of prosecco. It was unusual for girls to come to Satire. It was a gay club that mainly catered to men, and there were plenty of other LGBT bars around the area that catered for other groups. As such most people kept to their own venues, but once in a while there was the odd tourist or two looking for a night out, who saw Satire as somewhere they could go to have a good time without being targeted. They usually tipped well too.
The girls grinned back and the darker haired of the two slid a $20 bill across the counter to him.
"Keep the change, hot stuff," she said with a wink. Sebastian nodded back at her with a smile and unfolded the money so he could place it in the cash register. He suppressed a chuckle at the sight of the note hidden inside the bill and lifted it up to read more clearly.
"Thank you, Crissy," he said, holding the small slip of white paper between his second and third fingers.
"Use it…if you ever get lonely," she said with a coy smile.
"Thanks," Sebastian said. "But not your team."
"I figured, considering the place, but you never know...give me a call if you're curious." She winked at Sebastian and she and her friend picked up their glasses and wandered off to one of the booths on the other side of the club.
He glanced over at them quickly to make sure the girls had moved out of sight before pulling out Marc's spare lighter from under the counter and setting fire to the slip, throwing it into the sink. He'd never just throw it away…not in a city like New York.
Sebastian opened the register and slid the twenty into its compartment, counting out the change and dropping it into the collected tip jar. That made $20 in tips so far tonight and he was only 3 hours into his shift.
I may not like girls, he thought to himself, but if putting on a flirtatious smile and a few winks gets me tips, then I'll do it.
x
Two hours later, Kurt was definitely in the right mood to dance. The bistro had been amazing, and he was already a little warmed up from the wine he'd had with dinner.
He looked around the bar, pleased to find it looked just like the pictures on the website. The rhythm of the music set his shoulders in motion. A few people were already dancing. Kurt decided to join them for a bit to allow his dinner to settle before getting a drink - he had to be economic with his funds. In a way, dancing was an extension of his classes and exercise routine, but with one major difference: in a place like this, he didn't need to hold back. Kurt shimmied and spun as much as he liked, throwing in everything he remembered from Sam's brief attempt to teach the Glee club some moves. He wondered if Sam even remembered it was his best "bro" who told him off for that.
He danced for the next half hour or so, reveling in the attention he received from the people around him. It was a heady feeling, being the object of so much attention. It had been so long since he felt confident in his own appeal that this was a welcome boost. Shortly before midnight, having worked up a bit of a sweat, he headed to the bar to cool off a little.
"Can I get a Cosmopolitan, please?" he asked politely, raising his hand with a little wave in hopes of getting the bartender's attention. Kurt hated it when patrons at the diner just yelled their order at him like it was his name.
Sebastian, having just turned away a couple of kids who had clearly broken out their fake IDs, was scanning the bar for his next customer when he noticed someone waving at him. In the dim light of the club it was hard to make the man out though there was something familiar about him. Then the man spoke in a voice that went straight through him.
He'd know that voice anywhere. With incredulity he slid in front of the man and spoke. "Kurt Hummel, as I live and breathe. Sure you don't want a Shirley Temple instead?" A grin spread across his face.
Kurt stared, his hand still half raised. All the times he had fantasised about seeing Sebastian Smythe again flashed before his eyes. In his fantasies, Kurt was always blindingly successful, academically as well as professionally- and in love. He'd be able to show Sebastian that he had made it out of Lima, with Blaine by his side, despite what the other boy had said when they were still in school.
Yet here Kurt was, all alone at the bar, and none of his rehearsed victory speeches seemed to want to come out of his mouth.
Instead, Kurt felt his cheeks flash hotly, and an odd sense of guilt crept up on him, like he had just been caught doing something naughty. He quickly lowered his hand and tried to regain his composure.
Sebastian grinned at the expression on Kurt's face as he took Sebastian in and could practically hear the cogs turning underneath the perfectly coiffed hair.
"I'm sure," he replied. "A cosmopolitan, please, without steroids. Or STDs, if you can."
At Kurt's remark he felt the familiar walls rise on instinct, his grin turned into a leer and he winked.
"Sure thing, princess, I'm afraid I'll need to see some ID though."
Kurt frowned. "I am 21. They checked at the door."
"Yes, but we have a policy to challenge people's age if they look like a fourteen year old girl," Sebastian said with a wink. He didn't really mean it, in fact Kurt looked far from it, but he couldn't help bring out the old banter they'd had between them. Kurt had always been able to meet him insult for insult. It was how they communicated. Sebastian trapped the tip of his tongue between his teeth and awaited Kurt's reply, hoping for a laugh.
Kurt felt his cheeks redden, and hated that after all this time, Sebastian still had the power to get a rise out of him. He longed to give back, but that would probably mean he wouldn't get served, and paying the cover fee for another bar just because he couldn't take an insult seemed a waste.
He offered his old nemesis a thin smile, and pulled out his wallet.
"Fine. Here." He held out his ID card and watched Sebastian's face as he looked at it. To block any comments about his picture, he quickly asked: "Are you even 21?"
Sebastian's smile dimmed at the lack of a response and he took the ID off him. He stared at the white card for slightly longer than necessary before handing it back to Kurt.
"That seems to be in order," he said, avoiding Kurt's question about his own age.
Sebastian set about making the requested cocktail, making a point of showing off his mixology skills. He threw the shaker up in the air and caught it behind his back before twisting his arm around and throwing it again.
Kurt saw the flairtending for what it was; a distraction, and bit the inside of his cheek to refrain from laughing. He watched closely as Sebastian mixed his drink, afraid that if he blinked, he might miss what the cook at the diner called a 'special ingredient'. Yet none of that happened. In fact, the skills Sebastian was showing off were actually kind of...impressive, in a young Tom Cruise sort of way.
Sebastian finished by pouring the vibrantly coloured drink into a tall martini glass and topped it with a spiralised slice of lemon. He placed the glass in front of Kurt on top of a small napkin with a smug grin.
Kurt waited until Sebastian was done before releasing his cheek and grinning.
"You're not 21 yet, are you?" he said gleefully. "You can serve me a drink... but you can't have one yourself," he concluded triumphantly.
Sebastian blushed a little but looked at Kurt defiantly.
"So what if I'm not," he started. "You only just turned 21 yourself last month, so don't act like-" he broke off when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Who's your friend, Seb?" It was his supervisor, Marc. He was a couple of inches shorter than Sebastian but his presence shut Sebastian up instantly.
"He is not my friend," Sebastian said affirmatively.
"That's right, I'm not," Kurt agreed. He looked at the handsome man in the Satire apron and concluded he was probably Sebastian's boss. "We just knew each other back in high school."
"Oh, high school sweethearts, huh?" Marc said, winking.
"No!" Kurt protested, at the same time as Sebastian let out a scandalised: "Never!"
"We were in rival school choirs," Kurt explained, "And I had a boyfriend, who is now my fiancé." He raised his chin a little and looked at Sebastian to challenge this brief history.
Marc smiled warmly. "Good for you. I can highly recommend married life." He raised his hand, showing Kurt an elegant gold ring.
Kurt looked at it admiringly. "You're married?"
The man nodded. "As soon as they let us, my doctor put a ring on it," he said, grinning. "But we'd been together for almost a decade before that."
Kurt smiled. He loved hearing stories like that. It gave him hope.
Sebastian yawned in a fake over-exaggerated way and rolled his eyes.
"Relationships are lame." He scoffed. "Only getting to fuck one person for the rest of your life? No thanks."
"That, my dear, depends on the fuck," Marc replied smoothly, winking at Kurt. "A bout of monogamy might do you good, Seb."
Kurt snorted. "I'm not sure Sebastian would even know what that means," he said scathingly. "He always used to brag about his twenty-minute relationships."
Marc smirked. "I hope his stamina improved a little since then..."
Sebastian scowled and stepped away from Marc, crossing his arms over his chest. "My stamina is amazing, thank you very much!"
"Um... can I get a Pina Colada, please?" A tall man said, taking a seat next to Kurt. He nodded at Marc in greeting, who smiled. The man winked at Sebastian. "And you don't have to make it last twenty minutes, honey. It'd make the ice melt."
Kurt, who had just taken a sip of his drink, had to cover his mouth with his hand to stop from spilling it all over the bar.
"Fuck you all," Sebastian said grumpily, stomping off to the end of the bar to grab the right glass.
Marc chuckled at Sebastian's storminess and shook his head.
"Was he like this when you knew him at school?"
Kurt smiled. "I think his fellow students were easier to impress," he said. "A few well-placed tales about Paris, coffee Courvoisier, and fake IDs, and everyone thought he was quite the man." His smile dimmed a little. "Including my boyfriend, actually."
"People can be jerks when they're kids..." Marc said cautiously. Sebastian had told him a bit of what he was like in school and had expressed his regrets. If he had said or done something to undermine Kurt's relationship, Marc was pretty sure it had been a bad joke gone wrong, or a case of misplaced jealousy. Sebastian didn't seem like the kind of person who'd hurt people on purpose. More likely, his behaviour had been a cry for attention- no matter what kind.
From the young man's attitude, Marc suspected Kurt didn't know that, but it wasn't for him to go about telling other people's stories, particularly to strangers. Sebastian had earned the right to tell his story himself whenever he was ready.
Marc glanced at his newest colleague who was putting on a bit of a show for a group of newcomers and smiled.
"I don't know what history there is between you...but he's not the person he was when he started here a few months back, so I'm guessing that also means he's changed a lot since you last saw him," he said to Kurt.
"Yes, maybe..." Kurt said pensively, watching him talk to his customers while finishing the Pina Colada with a flourish. Before Kurt could blink, bottles were already flying through the air again for a next order. Sebastian's audience cheered and whooped.
Sebastian was good at his job. Charming, attentive. Kurt shook his head a little, amazed at himself using such words for a man he had listed in the Hummel dictionary under ‚vile', ‚sleazy' and ‚selfish'.
So far, Sebastian had treated him exactly like he had in school. But hadn't Kurt jumped on the opportunity to lash back out, too?
"I have to get back to work," Marc said, pulling Kurt from his thoughts. "Should I tell Seb to make you another one of those?"
Kurt looked down on his half-finished Cosmopolitan. He'd definitely had worse Cosmos. Like the ones that Blaine sometimes tried to mix at home.
At the thought, Kurt repressed a shudder. They were sticky, always way too sweet, and no drink was worth the intolerable noise that was Blaine's sodastream. Kurt wondered what would happen if he told Blaine that Sebastian Smythe made better cocktails... the tantrum would almost be worth it.
"Maybe in a bit," he said, non-commitantly.
Marc watched him for a moment. "Give him a chance," he said finally. "He's not a kid anymore." And with that he walked back down to his own section.
Sebastian finished serving the sudden influx of customers and made his way back down the bar to Kurt, noticing that he'd almost finished his drink.
"Top up?" he asked reservedly.
"Yes, please," Kurt found himself saying. Maybe Sebastian did deserve another chance.
Then, he nodded at the other patrons at the bar. "It seems you have fans."
Sebastian glanced at the group of customers he had just served and grinned smugly.
"Putting on a show means I'm within more chance of getting tips." He said with a shrug. "You seem to have some fans yourself." Sebastian added nodding behind Kurt to the group of guys blatantly checking him out. "Who knew Kurt Hummel would be such a hot commodity outside of Lima..."
And just like that, Kurt's shields were back up.
A dozen mean-spirited quips about what kind of shows would get Sebastian even more tips filled Kurt's head, and his inner voice sounded eerily like Santana. But Kurt actually counted two men in such professions as his friends, (even if Sam often forgot about him, and Brody avoided Rachel and everyone around her since losing his TA job), and they had taught him a thing or two about prejudices. Most sex workers were just trying to pay rent, just like the rest of them. Kurt sternly reminded himself that Sebastian's personal life, however he chose to live it, was his own business, and not the basis of a joke.
Besides, if Kurt considered Sebastian's words carefully, they hadn't really been that mean. Perhaps he just meant what he'd said. It was true that Kurt hadn't exactly had many admirers in Ohio.
Kurt checked the mirror behind the bar to look at the men behind him. He recognized a few of them from the dancefloor. Some of his confidence returned.
"I've always known I was hot stuff, stuck in the wrong town. Why do you think I was so desperate to get out?" he replied smoothly.
Out he most certainly was. Sebastian observed the man in front of him and couldn't help but admire his lean frame, broad shoulders and square jaw. He was a far cry from the boy he'd known in school. He had grown into his own style, which itself had been tamed slightly - for the better, definitely for the better.
"Well you are definitely out now...speaking of, what is a guy like you doing in a place like this?" Sebastian grinned. He was curious to know what brought Kurt Hummel out to a gay bar on a Tuesday night on his own, but he also knew the line would get a rise.
Kurt rolled his eyes. Sebastian was definitely filling his bartender role well. Kurt could just imagine him asking that same question every night. He wondered how often it 'worked'.
Later, Kurt would also wonder what it was exactly that made him answer truthfully instead of just giving a well-rehearsed line in return. Nostalgia? Curiosity? Morbid self-pity? Whatever it was, it turned a light-hearted chat into... something else.
"I always leave the apartment when Blaine has his best friend over. There's only so many times I can hear the mashup of their names used as a verb before puking."
As soon as the words had left Kurt's mouth, he busied himself with his drink, finishing it and pushing the empty glass over to Sebastian without meeting his eyes.
Sebastian took Kurt's empty glass and put it in the wire rack under the bar. From Kurt's sudden downcast expression, he sensed an underlying issue but knew it wasn't his place to pry - pressing where it hurt was a game of the past. Also, after the little stint of teasing earlier, he wasn't sure if further questioning would be welcome.
"Isn't that what all you Nude Erections used to do? I believe you and Blaine were known as 'Klaine', right?" He picked up a Martini glass. "Same again?"
Kurt let out a small, bittersweet laugh. He hadn't heard that old pun since Finn died. His stepbrother and Puck used to find it hilarious.
Somehow, he didn't feel Sebastian Smythe had the right to use it.
As for ‚Klaine'...that had always sounded awful, no matter who said it.
"I guess the others still call us that," he said, making a face. "I never liked that much. I mean, we're not fused at the hip. But hey," he looked up at Sebastian, "at least I'm in a relationship, right? So I already exceeded your expectations."
There. A small part of Kurt's prepared speech "in case of Smythe" had returned. It didn't feel as good as it ought to. In fact, reminding Sebastian of a taunt between them in Kurt's senior year felt a little pathetic. Petty. He sighed.
"Yeah, I'll have another Cosmo," he added. "Please."
"Coming right up." He said, grabbing a bottle of vodka and twirling it round his wrist as he picked up a silver cocktail shaker. He poured the vodka into it from a height. As he set to work mixing the cocktail, he watched Kurt stare at the bar, tracing the grain of the wood with a slim finger. He felt like he should say something to break the tension, but what do you say to someone you have a messy history of hatred with?
Though, had it been hatred? If he really thought about it, the answer was no. He'd never hated Kurt...he'd just been..there, in the way of his plans for Blaine
He scowled at the memory of his past behaviour. He'd worked so hard to forget about that and yet here was a living breathing reminder of his teenage screw ups.
"One Cosmo," he said, placing the glass down on the counter with a napkin. He spoke with a little more force than he had intended to but couldn't help it. He hated being reminded of who he used to be.
He sighed and shook his head, deflating a little.
"The trick about exceeding people's expectations, is to make sure no one has any of you." He picked up his glass of lime and soda water from under the bar and held it up to Kurt. "It's always worked for me...cheers."
Kurt needed a moment to recover, but then something about Sebastian's words lit a spark inside of him.
"You already exceeded mine by getting a job," he said with a pleasant smile that belied the venom behind it, accepted the drink and chinked it to Sebastian's. "Enjoy your sparkly water."
Sebastian smiled despite himself. "See? It's that easy." He sipped his drink and placed it back under the counter.
"I may not be able to drink legally in this place, but I bet I could drink you under the table," he grinned in challenge.
Kurt feigned an excited gasp and clapped his hands. "Oh my god! We should totally have a drink-off at my place!" he said in a preppy voice. "It'd be super -fun!"
He wiped the smile off of his face. "Too bad we're not friends." He shrugged a little. "Oh well. C'est la vie."
"Too bad..." Sebastian mused, slightly stung. "You're just scared I'd win," he volleyed back.
He tried to ignore the jibe. Kurt was right. They weren't friends, and that was his fault.
"We'll never find out, I guess," Kurt replied, and drained his cocktail, making sure to lick his lips.
For a moment, he enjoyed a feeling of triumph.
Then, he noticed the subtle changes in Sebastian's composure, the way he wiped at the same spot of the bar he'd already cleaned, and how he somehow seemed lost in thoughts. Thoughts that didn't look pleasant.
Maybe he had gone too far. He remembered how hollow it used to feel after someone had landed a proper insult. Sticks and stones...but words definitely could hurt.
He pushed his glass towards Sebastian as a peace offering. "Could you make me another? I give you full permission to pick the sleaziest sounding one.
At Kurt's words Sebastian looked up from the cloth in his hand and felt himself smirk despite the intrusive thoughts swimming round his brain. A mirage of cocktails flooded his mind and swept all else from it.
He huffed a laugh as the right one came to him and he began picking up bottles deftly. He made a proper show of mixing the drink, juggling the bottles up in the air and spinning them around his wrists.
He poured equal amounts of each bottle into a shaker and cupped it off, he shook the shaker a little before spin throwing it up in the air and catching it behind his back. He was showing off and he knew it, and only part of it was because it was his job.
He knew what Kurt thought of him, knew what he must think of him working in a place like this, and he wanted to prove him wrong. He was damn good at his job and he wanted to show that.
Kurt had watched Sebastian mix the drink in fascination. Every grip, every spin and throw was accurate, like a well-rehearsed choreography. But the most interesting was how happy Sebastian looked doing something he knew he was good at.
Moments later, he got his drink, served in a short tumbler over ice with a purple umbrella.
"There you are Hummel, that should spice up your sex life. A Cock Sucking Cowboy," Sebastian said with a smirk that was only half forced. "Yee Har."
Kurt's jaw dropped. He knew the worst was coming, but he still felt a little scandalized. "Oh. My. God," he laughed. "Is that a real thing or are you just making that up?"
"It's actually a real drink!" Sebastian replied, pleased that the drink he picked had the desired effect. He slipped Kurt the laminated cocktail menu which was slightly sticky from multiple drink spills.
"I believe you," Kurt said, looking at Sebastian instead of the menu and raising the glass to his lips. "Cheers."
It was good, and Kurt nodded appreciatively, taking small sips to make it last longer. It was going to be the last one for the night, because he couldn't afford another. Tips for juggling ketchup bottles at the diner weren't that great.
Kurt could probably get one or two free drinks from the guys on the dance floor, but something kept him tethered to the bar. He wasn't even sure what.
He couldn't really say he'd missed Sebastian. He could have done without the extra insecurity and upheaval Sebastian had brought into his life back in school, especially when it came to Blaine, but as he was noticing more and more of late, Blaine was perfectly capable of making him feel inadequate without the help of a third party.
Yet seeing Sebastian here, in a neutral place, without Blaine to worry about, made Kurt feel like maybe he was really being given a second chance, like Sebastian's boss had said.
Kurt watched him serve a few other customers, observing how he had an easy, open smile and genuine attention for all of them, a joke or a few flirty words, and it was clear to see that his approach was working. He dropped several bills in the tip jar on his way back to Kurt, but not before separating them from a few handwritten notes and a business card, which he stuffed in his jeans.
As he returned, the alcohol had already begun to give Kurt a bit of a buzz.
"So what do you do during the day?" he asked curiously. "Apart from kicking a few hung-over patrons from your bed?"
Sebastian looked at Kurt apprehensively at his question, searching for a trace of venom or judgement and to his surprise saw nothing but open curiosity. He still felt defensive. He knew he deserved the verbal attack earlier, after the way he'd treated Kurt in the past.
But he'd changed damnit, he'd grown up and sorted his life out. He was working and paying his own bills, he'd made friends and a whole life for himself in the city. He'd finally started to let go of his past when Kurt fucking Hummel showed up and threatened to up end it all with a few choice words.
Here of all places.
But he could also see that Kurt was trying, so he reluctantly met Kurt halfway with his answer.
"I'm studying Literature and History at NYU, so when I'm not here I'm either in class or studying," he shrugged. "Or if there's a good exhibition on somewhere me and my friends might check it out."
Usually, Kurt tried to keep an open mind and give people the benefit of the doubt. But after their past, and the way Sebastian had attacked him right from the start, Kurt had a hard time seeing him as anything but the villain in his story.
A backstory with a night time job, alcohol and easy hook-ups fit the narrative. Sebastian as a student, working hard and spending his downtime contemplating works of art...did not.
In fact, it was so unlike the Sebastian Kurt used to know- who might have only been interested in art if it had naked people in it, or was something expensive he could brag about- that Kurt snickered. "Right," he said, more than a little ironically.
Sebastian felt Kurt's snickering response like a slap to the face, which he guessed he deserved too. But that didn't mean he had to take it lying down.
He glanced around the bar and saw Marc talking to a couple of guys over the other side. He turned back to Kurt with a scowl.
"You know what, fuck you Kurt," he spat. "I know I was an ass to you back in school but I was seventeen. Whether you want to believe it or not, I have changed, and I do actually have a life outside of the one you've probably created in your head for me." He placed his hands on the bar, arms straight, and glared at him. "Just as I'm sure you have a life that's different to the one I've created in my head for you, or do you actually live in an ivory tower with cellophane wrap on all your furniture and sing Doris Day songs out of the window?"
Kurt's cheeks burned. He refused to consider what Sebastian had said, blocking out his words except from a few filtered phrases.
He knew he should be above petty insults by now, after having to listen to them for the larger part of his life. But he had come to this bar specifically to be away from such taunts, to be himself among like minded people. And right in the middle of it was Sebastian, echoing the words of his bullies. So what that he'd only been seventeen? Kurt had already heard a lifetime of such words before his twelfth birthday.
He put his glass down on the bar, no longer thirsty. "Tell yourself whatever helps you sleep at night, Sebastian," he said, with a calm he did not feel.
Just at that moment, Marc looked their way and saw the exchange. He excused himself on his side of the bar and walked over.
"Is everything okay here?" he asked.
"Fine," Kurt said coldly. "I was just leaving. I'd like my check please."
Sebastian and Kurt were glaring daggers at each other.
Marc surveyed Sebastian and saw the subtle signs of distress. He was shaking silently and trying very hard to breathe calmly and not lose his temper. Kurt wasn't faring any better.
"Seb, why don't you go take your break and I'll ring this young man up."
Sebastian looked at Marc, who raised his eyebrows. Sebastian deflated a little and nodded, he took off his apron, threw it down on the floor and left the bar without acknowledging Kurt.
Marc turned around to ring up the till and printed off a receipt. He placed it on a silver tray and handed it to Kurt.
He looked at Kurt, who appeared to be on the verge of tears. He subtly slid a napkin across the bar to him.
"You alright?" He asked.
"I'm fine," Kurt said again, though his shaky voice belied his words. "He said nothing I hadn't heard before."
Marc nodded, glancing in the direction of the break room. "And what did you tell him?" he asked neutrally. He looked back at Kurt.
Kurt paled and swallowed. "Nothing he hadn't heard before," he said crossly, but then corrected himself, feeling awful under Marc's scrutinising eyes. "I guess I made a few assumptions." He shrugged awkwardly.
Marc sighed. He nodded at Kurt's drink. "Aren't you going to finish that?"
Kurt shook his head. He handed Marc a few bills, rounding up his check with a moderate tip. Not much, but he didn't want to be the guy who took out his issues through other people's wages, not even to Sebastian. He'd worked in such professions too long himself.
Marc took the money and counted off the tip to put in their jar. "Thanks," he said. He paused.
"Look, it's none of my business, but...first impressions can fool you."
"Yeah," Kurt said quietly, and slipped of the bar stool. Maybe if he went home on foot instead of taking the subway, BLAM night would be over.
Marc watched as Kurt left and sighed. His eyes swept the club and was pleased to see it was quieting down a bit.
He picked up the radio behind the bar and clicked it on.
"Danny, how's it going over there?" He asked his colleague who had been manning the smaller bar area on the other side of the club. It wasn't normally open mid week but there had been a private function booked.
"It's pretty much died out, I was just restocking and cashing up," came the smooth voice on the other end.
"Can you leave it for now and just lock it all down? I need you to come man the main bar." Marc asked.
"Sure thing, I'll be right over."
"Thanks."
Marc put the radio down and shook his head. Kids. He did not miss his youth in the slightest.
He served another customer and by the time he was done, Danny was walking along the bar towards him.
"Everything okay?" He asked as he approached.
"Yeah, I just gotta go check on Seb, he had a run in with an old school-...whoever he was and he's pretty wound up."
"I can go see him if you want?" Danny offered.
"Nah it's cool, just man the bar please," Marc said, already walking towards the staff room.
Inside, he saw Sebastian stomping around the room, throwing cushions and cursing under his breath.
Marc stepped into the room and shut the door softly behind him.
"You okay?" He asked evenly.
"That fucking asshole..." Sebastian started the instant he had someone to vent to. "It's been nearly two years since I saw him and he's still walking around as if he owns the fucking joint...all holier than thou and as if everyone else is beneath him...he hasn't changed at all, but I have Marc, I have and he just waltzes in here..."
"...looking for a place to dance and have a good time with his peers, like the others who come to this bar?" Marc finished. "I don't think he came here to give you a hard time. He seemed friendly enough."
"Oh yes he seems friendly enough but he's still a judgemental ass. The second he saw me, he attacked, he didn't even give me a chance."
"And knowing you, you gave as good as you got," Marc replied, raising an eyebrow. "He looked pretty upset when he left."
He took off his glasses and ran a hand over his face and through his hair. "Look, I'm not gonna tell you he wasn't out of line. Just...maybe you both were?"
Sebastian huffed and crossed his arms over his chest.
"I've changed, Marc...I'm not the kid I was back then. But seeing him of all people, here , made me feel like I was. Made me feel like I had something to prove..."
"Prove what? That you can make a grown man cry?"
Marc shrugged. "I'm sorry if I encouraged him. But you were acting a bit childish. Which is not -" Marc stressed, walking up Sebastian to put a hand on his shoulder, "the way I know you are. I know you've changed. And you can show him that too, when he comes back."
"If he ever comes back, you mean..." Sebastian sighed, his shoulders slumping. He'd really fucked up, again.
Marc smiled. "He'll be back."
He squeezed Sebastian's shoulder. "And next time, you'll be prepared."
Sebastian bit his lip and awkwardly shrugged out of Marc's grip.
"We should probably get back out there and help Danny..."
"Danny's fine. You know he loves it to play the boss around there," Marc said fondly. He wanted to say something to make Sebastian feel better.
"Don't beat yourself up about it, ok? I think it happens to everyone. People from our past just...remind us of it. When Paul has his buddies from med school over, I always ask for the double shift here. I mean, the guy's almost fifty but around them, he's like a frat boy. It drives me crazy." He smiled. "Paul says I'm different too, when my mom comes over. I don't notice it, but... I'm sure he's right."
Sebastian smiled a little despite himself.
"I never even thought I'd see this guy again...and whatever you say, I probably never will, and I shouldn't care what he thinks...I don't care what he thinks. But I hate the reminder of who I used to be...it's like I can't shake it."
Marc gave him a sympathetic look. He couldn't help but feel that Sebastian protested a little too much. He clearly cared what Kurt thought about him; and the rest of them too.
"You have a choice though. You can let him make you that guy again, or just be you."
He grinned. "The world's worst kept secret: we all fuck up when we're young. And when we grow up, we make up a presentable version of it to tell our kids." He chuckled. "Well, someone's kids, anyway...Now come on. Before Danny thinks he really runs the bar."
Sebastian chuckled. "Thanks Marc."
"Don't sweat it kid." He said cupping the back of Sebastian's neck.
They headed back out into the club and Sebastian mused over the events of the evening.
If I do see him again , Sebastian thought to himself, I'll try harder .