Simply put, Wes was in a bad mood. Late last night, Lilly had phoned and broken up with him, after confessing to cheating on him, successfully keeping him up till 4 o'clock in the morning. Of course, then he'd woken up late, and had had to dash down to narrowly avoid missing his first period. Next, he was swarmed by the sheer amount of work (he was sure that all the teachers at Dalton, however nice, agreed beforehand to give the students all their homework, tests and hardest lessons all in the same week). At lunch, David had made an extremely racist joke about the Chinese, though the African-American didn't realize it. Wes was sure he'd gotten a super low (by his standards anyway) mark in the AP Calculus test, and then he'd had to listen all through Physical Ed about Blaine's friend- and recent transfer student- Kurt Hummel.
Ah, yes, speaking of the Hummel boy… due to Wes's extremely bad day, everything had been grating on his nerves, and thus the councilman had been unnecessarily harsh and rude to Kurt today during Warbler's practice. He felt very guilty, afterwards; but it was already too late to apologise. He just hoped that the gorgeous (he unwillingly admitted that) and charming boy would forgive him if he said sorry tomorrow?
Wes emitted a loud sigh. While methodically shovelling food into his mouth, he glanced down at his to-do list surreptitiously. He was faintly aware of the mindless chatter of the Warblers around him, but Kurt's high, melodious voice stood out a bit. Hummel was with Blaine- again. Wes didn't know why it bothered him though. Maybe he thought that Kurt should venture out more, make more friends other than Blaine? Ah, well. Do laundry. Check. Finish 15-page long History essay. Check. Arrange 8-part harmony for Hey, Soul Sister. Check. Do background check on Kurt Hummel. Chec- wait what?He didn't remember adding that, must've slipped his mind. It wasn't that he was suspicious of the new kid (though admittedly he was a bit, Hummel had been from New Directions after all), it was mandatory for all new members just in case they had some sneaky past that would potentially jeopardize the group safety. Hmm, guess he'd just found himself a new assignment for the day.
He left the table, nodding and smiling at the guys who said goodbye, though most didn't bother and carried on stuffing themselves. Kurt was among the ones that had acknowledged his departure, picking at his (barely finished) plate of food. Wes frowned internally at the sight, was Kurt anorexic? He would find out soon enough.
In his (thankfully single) dorm, Wes quickly set up his laptop and browser and typed in: Kurt E. Hummel. Soon enough he was browsing through Facebook posts and YouTube videos of the New Directions. Turned out that the E. in his name stood for Elijah, but Kurt himself changed it to Elizabeth to honour his mother, who died from cancer when he was only eight. Wes felt oddly unhappy after reading that piece of information, and he would say oddly because after going through this checking procedure many times and reading a fair amount of sob stories along the way, he'd yet to feel so sentimental about one of them. Maybe it was the fact that thinking about a young, soft Kurt unprotected and without his mother, made Wes's protective side kick in… maybe? Anyway, his birthday (9th December- thank g-d, they were still in time to help him celebrate!), current family (Burt Hummel, Carole Hummel-Hudson and Finn Hudson), friends (a bunch of New Direction members- and Wes noted that only New Direction members) and previous performing experiences were slowly revealed. Wes was shocked to find Kurt's rendition of Pink Houses, turns out that he could reach so low as well… jeez, how much hidden talent could a guy have?
Apparently, a-friggin-lot. Wes had just been about to end his search, due to lack of fresh info, until a link caught his eye. What in the world did a cheerleading site have to do with Kurt Hu- Oh My Lord.
The title was 4 Minutes, and in the thumbnail some barely-clad cheerleaders were doing a routine. But what truly caught Wes's eye, was the handsome, downright sexy boy standing next to a familiar dark-skinned girl, both in Cheerio uniforms. Was this what Wes thought it was? He clicked on it.
Hot-friggin-DAMN! What the-? Was tha-? How in th-? Wes was having trouble forming coherent sentences he was so stunned. And turned on. Yes, Wes knew he was bisexual, but did he have to get…get that, solely from watching Kurt's hot performance? Another link… this one was nearly 15 minutes long. Wes greedily clicked on it, settling back to watch it.
Eargasms upon eargasms upon eargasms. French plus Kurt equals Wesley like. Wes could feel his mouth drying up, and blood rushing south. Oh my…he would have a hard time looking at Kurt tomorrow without getting a… you know.
And that was the highly inappropriate time when Niff decided to burst through the door. Wes lunged for his laptop, hurriedly slamming it shut; in the process knocking over a small stack of books and nearly spilling his coffee all over the place.
"Say, Nicky-"
"Yes, Jeffy?"
"I wonder what was on that screen that made our beloved leader morph into a graceless bumbling idiot?" Wes glared at the chortling blonde, hissing at his bluntness.
"I don't know, Jeffy," Nick said in mock sadness, "I honestly don't know."
"Do you thin-"
"And what wayward mission are you two on this time, that has caused you to intrude into my dorm on this wonderful night? Or is it simply my charm and charisma that has attracted you, like bees to honey?" Wes snarled, righting his stack of books and picking up his copy of How to Handle a Bunch of Teenage Boys Who Think They're Still Toddlers from the floor. Nick smirked at his best friend (whom Wes thought would eventually end up his boyfriend).
"Well, we were bored, so we wanted to see if you would join us and a few others in the common room to play Just Dance 3-"
"NO."
"Aw… but David and Trent and Kurt and Blaine and Thad- well not Thad because-"
"Wait, hold up… Kurt?" Wes's ears pricked up a bit at the name. Jeff looked confused and a bit annoyed that he was cut off. Nick just looked smug.
"Yes, Kurt. Curious, are we, Montgomery? And pray tell, what was that we saw on your screen when we came in? Was that…a Cheerio uniform?" the brunette pushed. Wes decided that the troublemaker was sometimes too clever for his own good.
"What does cereal have to do with all this? Anyways, still no. I need to do… stuff. Now, thank you and goodbye," the Warbler councilmen replied flippantly, pushing the pair out the door.
"But-" SLAM.
Wes settled back in his chair, and continued watching his precious Celine Dion Medley.
Wes was nervous when he went down to breakfast. Actually, nervous was a bit of an understatement; he was terrified. After drooling over Kurt Hummel for most of night, he wasn't sure how he would be able to react to the real deal this morning.
"Hello, Wes."
The voice nearly electrocuted Wes from head to toe. After hearing it for almost the whole night in countless videos, he was still caught off guard by the near angelic quality of the brunette's voice. It was so beautiful, and pure, and all things good and holy… oh he hadn't responded yet.
"Uhhhhhhh, morning," Wes muttered incoherently, still dazed. Kurt frowned a bit, and Wes didn't like the little crease between those beautiful eyes… how had he not noticed those eyes yet? They were... blue? Green? Grey? A gorgeous and breath-taking mix of all those three, Kurt's eyes were utterly indescribable.
"Okay. Um, are you ok?"
"Yeah, just perfect." Wes admitted his tone came out a bit sarcastic. He couldn't help it though; here he was, being an utter idiot in front of his crush-
Wait, crush? Kurt was his crush now? It sounded childish and girly, but incredibly accurate.
"Childish and girly," Wes reminded himself under his breath. Kurt was not his crush- he was just… admiring the Hummel boy. And said Hummel boy must have heard him, because Kurt whipped around.
"What did you just call me?"
"N-nothing. Absolutely nothing."
"Humph," and with that indignant sound, Kurt stalked off. Wes wondered why he seemed annoyed; maybe he'd just woken up on the wrong side of bed this morning? Aaaand now Wes was imagining Kurt with sexy bed hair. Dammit. He was already trying to not openly gawk at Kurt's swaying hips as he was walking away.
"Hey-"
"Wesley!"
"How are-"
"You this fine morn'?" Jeff finished off Nick's sentence. Wes glared.
"Nice try, Wessy, but we've already experienced the full Hummel glare. You might want to step your game up if you want to terrify us into submission."
"The full Hummel glare? As in Kurt?" Wes tried to remember if his guidebook covered dealing with hostile toddlers- the ones who would bite one of your fingers off if you got too close? He'd have to check later.
"Duh. And why are you still standing out here? Breakfast! It calls to me!"
"To us!"
"To the three six mafia!"
Niff rambled on about some random thing, but Wes only listened to them half-heartedly. He needed a plan. A plan that would mask his so friggin obvious attraction to Kurt was in order. He tuned in for a moment to the Niff channel- they were talking about the plot of some sappy rom-com- and caught the end of some long winded speech about how Nick thought that the main character shouldn't have treated his love interest so harshly when they first met, how it made the girl character so oblivious to the guy's feelings when he finally understood that he liked her, yada yada ya- wait.
He was going to get over this stupid little rush of feelings towards Kurt eventually, he was positive of that. So all he had to do, was mask his feelings till that time… and what better way to mask his feelings than to be hostile to Kurt?
Wes was a genius.
"Sorry, Kurt, but I don't think your voice is quite suited for this song… maybe you should sit out?"
"Wes-"
"Shut it, Thad."
"But we need a countertenor for this song! Or else your glorious 12-part-harmony will be reduced to a sucky 11-part-harmony!"
"David, I can clearly see that Kurt is worn out, after all, he's only been here for less than a month and is still getting used to Dalton's workload… we should let him sit out."
"Dude, he's been here for nearly three months now."
"Shut it, Thad."
"But-"
"It's alright, gentlemen," Kurt's melodic voice rang through the room, cutting David off. "I can clearly know when and where I'm not wanted. Since practice is nearly over anyways, and Wesley insists that I take some rest, I'll just be in my dorm, if anyone wants me," and with the sneer still in his voice sashayed out. Wes's gaze lingered on his hips.
"Great. Now we've lost our countertenor because Wes throws a hissy fit-"
"Shut it, Thad."
"You mock me, sir. I propose that we end rehearsals now, seeing as Kurt's already left and Niff is MIA."
"Rehearsal dismissed," Wes banged his beloved gavel on the desk with a sigh. He couldn't help but feel guilty about Kurt, but he couldn't help it, could he? No matter how hard he tried, he still had to deal with his little friend (W. ) every time Kurt did something remotely provocative.
As the rest of the Warblers trickled out of the room, only four remained. Wes started to get increasingly uncomfortable under the intense glares of Trent, Thad and David.
"What?"
"Wes… we know that you feel the need to have everything under control and order, but just because Kurt's a little… out there doesn't mean you have to pick on him like that. He's had a hard time, and the last thing he needs is you reminding him of his old bullies," David frowned, and Trent nodded his assent vigorously.
"Yeah, Wes. Kurt even asked me if I was sure that there was a no bullying policy at Dalton. From what I've gathered he feels unsure of it because someone keeps acting like one, even if you don't hurt him physically," Trent bit out. Kurt and he had bonded over talking about the latest trends and Vogue, so he himself was a bit shocked to learn that the extremely likable brunette felt threated by the (usually) friendly Asian.
"Look, Wes," Thad added his two-cent's worth, "we don't know what happened, or what bone you've got to pick with him; but your disagreements are starting to mess up the group dynamic, big time. And I recall that it is you who keeps on drilling us about group unity or whatnot. So you better sort this out, and soon. I don't give a rat's ass about the fact that you're chairman; our only countertenor, who is absolutely precious in every sense of the word, may leave us any day now just because of the tension between you two."
"Talk to him," David said gently. They left after that, leaving Wes to think in silence. Well silence until Kurt burst back in, fury etched into his features (Wes added a mental note that when he was angry, he just got more sexier).
"OKAY SO WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM? Ever since I've been here, well except for the beginning, you were halfway civil then, you've been insulting me backhandedly with every chance you got. You have been biased towards me in rehearsals, giving dirty looks in between classes, and refuse to even hold a civilized conversation with me!"
"I-"
"Because I've been hearing all over campus about how nice and fair and friendly you've been to the whole student body, I've been hearing how you've managed to single-handedly build up and take care of the Warblers, I've been hearing so many civilized things about you! Then why do you treat me differently? If there's nothing wrong with you, then THERE MUST BE SOMETHING WRONG WITH ME!" The chestnut-haired boy snarled.
"Yeah well, you don't understand-"
"Understand what? How different I am from the rest of the school, so financially challenged? How much I stick out from the crowd? How much I keep on ruining the whole group mojo thing of the Warblers?" At this point Kurt looked like he was about to combust, rage was visibly pouring off him. But there was an audible edge to his voice that hinted that he wasn't as angry much as he was devastated.
"No, it's not-"
"Of course it's not. I know why, th-then. It's b-because I'm not good enough. I don't d-deserve any of this, not this education, or my D-dalton friends, or my position on the Warblers. I don't deserve my Dad, or my f-family, or any of the N-new Directions. E-everyone says you've got good judgement… so I g-guess it m-means… it m-means…" Kurt collapsed on one of the couches, (sort of) silently breaking down. He hated showing this weakness, especially in front of Wes Montgomery, because he was sure the boy hated him and would feel no compassion or pity for him whatsoever.
So needless to say, he was stunned into temporary silence when a pair of strong, safe and warm arms wrapped hesitantly around his shoulders. He stiffened, but all he got in response were the arms hugging him tighter, flush against the very nice body of one Wes Montgomery.
Wes's head was spinning. On one hand, he couldn't believe that it was his dick attitude that made Kurt break down like that. Had he known that it would affect the beautiful boy so drastically, he never would've done the whole act. On the other hand… he was hugging Kurt friggin Hummel. He could feel the warmth emanating from the boy, feel the surprising hardness of defined muscles underneath the blazer; smell the delicious mix of a little cologne, lemon conditioner, and simply Kurt. In other words he was in Heaven.
It took a while, but eventually only sniffles were heard sporadically throughout the room. Wes stroked Kurt's face with one of his hands, and nuzzled his face into the crook of his neck. When Kurt made to move, the chairman gave a strangled cry of protest.
"W-wes?"
"Hmm?"
"Why're y-you cuddling me? I thought you didn't like me."
With a resigned sigh, Wes shifted so that he could look the countertenor in the eye. Their faces were nearly touching. Time to bare his attractions, to the subject of his attractions (awkward).
"I never "didn't like" you. If anything, I liked you too much." Kurt pondered that for a moment, his shrewd brain quickly turning gears. He wasn't as oblivious as Blaine; thank Lord for that, so he quickly grasped the implied meaning. His eyes widened, and his whole body stiffened. He wrenched himself out of Wes's hug, and quickly plopped down on the couch opposite.
"H-huh. S-so liking me really is that h-horrid… I should have l-learnt by now," his ever-changing eyes puffed up and watery. Wes hated that even though Kurt was hurt, he still looked gorgeous.
"No, Kurt, don't ever think that," Wes immediately sprang out of his seat, and hated himself a bit more when Kurt cringed into the couch, but nevertheless he settled a gentle hand on the countertenor's knee and stared straight into his eyes. Black bore into stormy blue, and Kurt could see the truth emanating off the other boy.
"It was never you, it was always me. I know I'm not worthy of you, and you deserve better. You deserve someone who won't just tie you back down in Ohio, Kurt. You deserve to be free. I know you want to go to New York, and I swear there will be guys lining up at you door waiting to take you out. And I've been so stupid, for acting like a bully… you didn't need that- please don't leave Dalton! I'll stay away from you, I swear!" he babbled on. Then he frowned.
"What did you mean, you should have learned by now? Has this- has this happened before?"
Kurt took a deep breath. Then another one, trying to calm himself down. Closing his eyes, he debated whether to tell the chairman about… Karofsky.
"Yes. At my old school," he breathed out, too immersed in his emotions to really form a coherent thought. It was chaos in his head, the hurt and horror and whyislikingmesobad, dejection and all around fear consuming him. It was as if his heart was being ripped to pieces, not as bad as the Karofsky situation, but it hurt so much nonetheless. So what Wes was telling him was that yeah he was attractive… but horrible enough that liking him would be a bad idea?
"I'm sorry, Wes, but I c-can't. I need to go," the countertenor burst out as he rushed from the room, leaving one shocked Asian. Said Asian buried his head in his hands. His heart was wrenching apart, and he was simultaneously angry (at himself), startled, horrified, scared, devastated and guilty. But mostly guilty. How could he have subjected Kurt to that kind of behaviour? He was so f-ing STUPID! And here Kurt had just admitted to having experienced this at his old school, the one where he was chased from… and Wes understood now.
Meanwhile back at his dorm, Kurt was huddled his closet. In no way was it as large as the one back home, but he still relished in the feeling of the enclosed space. It reminded him of nights spent wrapped in his mother's arms as they sat in her large wardrobe, listening to her stories and songs. It was their secret place, a little room where everything outside was unreal, and the whole world was just that little box with no one to be afraid of.
"D-deep breaths, Hummel. Deeeep breaths. Okay, you can do this. Wes doesn't know about Karofsky, he was just kind of a dick by himself… he wasn't trying to dredge up those memories," he mumbled. Then he remembered something and frowned. Hadn't Wes had a girlfriend when they'd met before? Oh g-d the whole thing felt like a replay of Karofsky, except Wes wasn't a physical tormentor and was much cleverer. Pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes, he shook a bit. All his insecurities washed over him, and he did his damndest not to relive that horrifying day. G-d he did not need this, his birthday was fast approaching and all he wanted to do was celebrate it in peace! But now all he could feel was the violent press of Karofsky's lips on his, the harsh grip of the calloused hands on his face, the sheer panic of being violated. No, no, no, no, no…
"Kurt?" a distant but familiar voice came. It seemed like whoever it was was standing outside his dorm door.
"K? Open up, please? Are you okay?" Another voiced drifted in. Thad? And now Kurt could place the other voice, Trent. What were they-?
A door opened (damn, he'd told Trent where he kept his extra dorm key) and footsteps resounded outside the closet. Kurt held as still as he possibly could. He didn't want his newfound friends to see him in this state, they'd probably feel that he was weak and leave him- like they always do - and then he'd have no friends at all. He wasn't that close with the rest of the school, New Directions and he had fallen out due to his sudden transfer (only Finn was currently speaking to him) and Blaine had been very, very distant lately (Kurt suspected he might be crushing on a guy in their shared AP Calculus class, and he fully supported the crush but Blaine didn't know that yet, so lately conversation was stilted and awkward between them since he'd told Blaine a month ago about his feelings for him). He couldn't handle being alone…
"Is he in the bathroom?" Trent asked.
"No, but where could he be? I swear Wes was close to hyperventilating, so I'm sure he had a reason for screaming us to find K. I'm worried man, Wes hasn't been very pleasant to K, so maybe they had a fight? Damn, d'ya think that he hurt K?" Thad mused worriedly. Kurt stiffened a bit at the mention of Wes, and tried to take in silent gulps of air. Wes was hyperventilating? And had screamed? Why would he do that- unless he was worried? No, he probably wanted to find Kurt and tell him to shut up about the chairman's revelation, or maybe he-
"If he did, I'm going to cut him," Trent hissed, " I swear, Warbler chairman or not if it boils down to Kurt and Wes, I'm so leaning towards Kurt- no offense I know you and Wes are close."
"None taken, and honestly I'd choose K too. Wes has been an asshole t'wards Kurt for too long, so he wouldn't really deserve my support on this issue. Anyways, try calling Kurt again? And maybe we should check the planetarium?" and with that Thad's voice trailed off as the two boys left the room. Kurt had his hand pressed to his mouth in faint shock. Thad and Trent would choose him, over someone they'd known for three years? He suddenly felt warmth flow through his heart, even if he did feel kind of sorry for Wesley. Pulling out his phone he was surprised to see 35 missed calls: 7 from Jeff, 9 from Trent and 19 from Wes himself.
About to crawl out of the closet (oh the irony of that statement), the countertenor froze again as the door opened (had Trent locked the door? Probably not). There was the sound of paper rustling, pen scratching across paper, then the soft click of a closed door. Cautiously, Kurt shoved the wardrobe door open, and found a post-it note taped to the headboard of his bed.
Kurt,
I understand if you never want to talk to me ever again. I swear I will leave you alone if you refuse this invitation, but tomorrow night at 7 could you join me in the Dalton Garden to talk? We, and by we I mean I, need to sort this situation out once and for all. Just know that I am so, so sorry for what I've subjected you to, and if you're uncomfortable with meeting me then you don't have to. Just do what you want, yeah?
-Wesley Montgomery
Dubiously, Kurt studied the note again. He already knew that he would go, but the fact that Wes hadn't once mentioned his admittance to his former McKinley bully made him wary. What would the talk be about, aside from an apology? Well, guess he'd just have to find out.
Wes tapped his foot nervously, and tried to ignore the little box in his inner jacket pocket. Would Kurt show? He honestly wouldn't be surprised if Kurt, beautiful, funny and alluring Kurt decided that he wasn't worth the wonderful countertenor's time and gave a no show. Hell, if he were in Kurt's shoes he wouldn't have shown up to talk to his bully.
Another pang resounded in his heart. A bully was what he was, and what he'd always be to the glasz eyed boy. Wes really didn't deserve to be called nice and friendly.
"Hey."
Wes jumped and whipped around; bringing a hand to his chest to clutch at his heart. It was beating faster than usual, and it sure wasn't because he was startled.
"Kurt, hi. I just-"
"So what-"
They started at the same time and paused awkwardly. Wes motioned for the other to go first.
"So what did you want to talk about?"
"I just… wanted to apologize, again and in person," Wes rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at his shoes, "I'm not looking for forgiveness, because that would be uncalled for after all that I've put you through. I just figured… that maybe you'd want closure? As to… why I did the things I did?" He glanced up quickly at the countertenor's face and tried to gauge his reaction. He was sure that his chances with Kurt were totally shot, but maybe, just maybe, he'd be willing to give his friendship? Kurt's face however, gave nothing away. Wes took a deep breath, here goes nothing, he surmised, he'd be graduating in four months so he could survive (though just barely) with minimal interaction with Kurt.
"Um, well you see, it started with some videos and a bit of lust- but ended with me falling in love with you."
Kurt could only sit stunned in the garden, twisting a box between his fingers. He peered up at the night sky, filled with stars and hopes and dreams. He wondered again, why this boy had crashed into his life all of a sudden, bringing with him so much pain and hatred that had all of a sudden morphed into love. Kurt shook his head- he knew that he wasn't strong enough to accept this love, not yet, so much like David's yet so unlike in so many ways. Strong enough to maybe eventually forgive, but never enough to totally forget.
"-It ended with me falling in love with you. It's not just how you sing and dance and cheer, it's the little quirks and character you have. It's the spitfire that burns in your eyes when you face off with me, and the calmness when you consider, and your drowsiness when you haven't had your first cup of coffee. It's your dryness when you snark with Thad, and your excited passion when you talk about those you love, and the gentleness when you receive a text from Blaine. It seems like I'm stalking you, and I admit I may have been observing you, but I can't help it… you just stun me, Kurt Hummel. I've never seen anyone as beautiful as you, inside and out. I might have started this as a silly little lustful endeavour, but it evolved into something much, much more when I really truly saw you for the first time."
"…And w-when was that…?"
"It was after a long talk I had with one of your former classmates. His name was David Karofsky."
Kurt stared at the night stars and wondered long and hard. He wondered about shoves and dirty glares and muttered insults; of cold detachment and poorly masked animosity. And he wondered about love, of gentle kisses on your forehead and cheek, and strong hugs that squeezed your very soul. The two things didn't add up, and Kurt didn't understand.
"K-Karofsky?! You- Oh Gaga I need to sit down please."
"Whoa! Kurt, take it easy. I, um, saw him lurking around our dressing room at Sectionals, and I got extremely suspicious. When I confronted he refused to tell me what he was to you, but basically just told me to cherish you. After that talk I started seeing you in a different light, and soon enough, even though I tried not to, I fell for you."
"-Tried not to?"
"In the light of full disclosure-"
"Tell me about it. I can handle the truth…"
"At first before I really saw you, it was only lust, you know. You were gorgeous, and talented and wonderfully flexible. I couldn't let myself fall in love with someone only based on their looks, so I started being mean to you to get rid of a short-term crush I was sure wouldn't last. But you are seriously special, Kurt Elizabeth Hummel, and the more I tried to run from you the more I fell. I couldn't drop the act by then, because I really meant what I said in the practice room. You deserve better than someone who's graduating soon, and after graduation will probably stay in Ohio for college, and after that will stay in Ohio to work, and who'll probably never step outside the state line once. You, Kurt, are a star whose talent is too big to fit this state. So just you wait," and at this Wes's eyes had suddenly burned fervently, Kurt recalled, "You are destined for the city, and you will succeed there."
Kurt wished hard, so hard for his mom to be here, for her to tell him what to do, because she'd always been wise like that. He knew that deep down, he'd already forgiven Wes, and maybe he was a masochist like that, he knew he'd be willing to friends with the older boy. So like Karofsky, yet so different is so many ways. Kurt could only wait and see, to see if his shaky trust would be misplaced yet again. But as he glanced down at the little box in his hands, he fervently hoped that this could play out for the better.
"I'm not asking you to forgive me, but I just wanted you to know why. So, um, here," and the box was given to him, "it's for your birthday next week, I won't be here to celebrate it."
"Why?"
"College interview. Um, so, yes- I'm sorry. Truly am, and always will be."
"Thank you for the explanation. Do you mind, um,"
"I'll leave you for some space and time to think. Goodbye, Kurt Elizabeth Hummel, you are beautiful inside and out."
And Wes had left Kurt to sit on the bench and think, with a gorgeous pocket watch, design a replica of his mother's locket- Wes must have seen the pictures he showed the Warblers and heard about the locket. But the gift was thoughtful, and the night stars were quietly shining, and Kurt was just being.
So the story continued. Kurt's birthday was celebrated with laughter and hugs and songs, a certain chairman empty from the mix. It made Kurt's heart twinge a bit. The following months were a strange cordiality between the two, Wes keeping a careful distance, even in Warbler rehearsals when Kurt got the solo for Regionals and won it for them (no surprise there, Wes mused afterwards), but the Warblers sadly didn't win Nationals after making the top 10, beaten by VA. Wes graduated soon afterwards to medical school, and Kurt finished his senior year in Dalton on a high, graduating and moving to New York for NYADA.
The story continued yes, when Wes, training to be a urologist, met Kurt once again with Burt Hummel in a clinic, a few years later, and again and again as the Hummels came for check-ups together during the holidays. Kurt felt surges of gratefulness every time he saw Wes in the clinic, conversing with his father as Burt was prepped for examination. Then finally when Wes hesitantly asked Kurt out after a Warbler reunion party at Nick and Jeff's house, did their stories entwine once more.
"Hey Kurt," Wes smiled softly over the top of his wine glass.
"Hello Wesley," Kurt returned shyly.
"How's your Dad doing?"
"He's been doing great, thanks for asking, how've you been doing?"
"Um- I, um, really, really great…" Wes trailed off abashed.
"Oh?" Kurt arched an eyebrow at that.
"Yeah, the guy I've liked for approximately 5 years straight now is um, giving me a chance, one that I'd never hoped to have," the Asian swallowed and looked down. Kurt felt a jolt of surprise, but the statement was welcome- everyone likes to be flattered. He covered Wes's hand with his own.
"All this time, huh?" he whispered as he drew out the pocket watch he wore most of the time.
"I um, read some where that it takes 3 seconds to say the words I love you, 3 hours to explain it, and a lifetime to prove it. Even though I'm still not worthy of you, and one day when you find the perfect one for you I'll step back, would you let me into your life again, to prove the statement that still holds true 5 years ago?" Wes asked hopefully.
"I'm only scared that the flame you have is held for the version of me 5 years ago. I've changed in 5 years," Kurt stated seriously.
"Sweetheart, you've always exceeded everyone's expectations. Why stop now for me? You of all people, only get more beautiful with experience, I know that for a fact," Wes grinned.
And so the stars shined some more, through the long distance relationship and fights, through the break ups and heartbreaks, through their hugs and reconciliations. And of course on their wedding day (Kurt popped the question) who else but Sue Sylvester would barge in to make a speech on how all she did was beneficial to her Cheerios and mankind?
End
AN: I started off happy about the story, but gah! I despise the ending. Thanks for reading this awfully long one-shot Maybe review so I know what to improve?