A/N: my pal Aki missed my Kurtofsky stuff. So I whipped up this quick drabble for her. X3

Dave's not looking for him, not technically.

(Okay, so, he is, but that isn't the point. It's not bad just to look for someone, especially when you're instructed to.)

But he finds who he's looking for anyway. He enters the auditorium from the side, down by the stage. Kurt is up there, looking straight ahead, and seemingly practicing a song. It sounds beautiful; and Kurt looks beautiful, up there in the stage lights with a shimmer of sweat from the spotlight on his skin trickling down the side of his sideburn in front of those adorable ears –

Dave shakes his head to will himself out of his daze. He had a purpose here. Right, right…

And besides, Kurt's his friend now, isn't he? He shouldn't be thinking things like this.

Coughing into his hand, Dave marches forward, up onto the stage. "Kurt!" he addresses a little loudly to cut off the music. Kurt turns and looks at him oddly, one of his eyebrows raised. Dave glances away, uncomfortable. "…Hey. Um. Sorry to interrupt, but –"

"What is it, David? I was rehearsing for the solo Mr. Schue is giving me for Regionals," Kurt frowns, clearly irritated with being cut off. He raises a hand to wipe some of the sweat on his brow. His eyes flicker back to his friend. "…Well?"

Dave jerks slightly. He doesn't know why he feels so timid all of a sudden. It's just this stage, that's all. This stage reminds him of too many things, like seeing Kurt perform that Lady Gaga song about being born or something, or even before that, when Dave was dancing on this stage with the other footballers last fall.

"Uh, it's just… They're looking for you. It seemed pretty important. And I wasn't doing anything, so they sent me to come get you –" Dave tries again, hands shoving into his pockets. This is so weird. It's weird being part of the Glee Club, it's weird talking to Kurt causally, and it's weird when New Direction trusts Dave enough to send him after the same person they didn't trust him with in the past. "So, uh. You can practice later, I guess? They want to vote on something, and you're part of the club, so they want you there."

Kurt nods like this is very common, but Dave wouldn't know. He hops down from the stage, nods to the band to take a break, and then comes up alongside his recent friend. "Do you know what they're voting on?"

"Something about Regionals, I guess. I dunno; I wasn't paying attention much," Dave grunts, shoving his hands into his pockets as he walks with Kurt up the stairs near the seats of the auditorium, and then through the doors at the top. "Does it matter? I mean, you kinda have to go anyway. That's how things work, right?"

"Essentially, yes. But I was curious," Kurt says offhandedly. He peers over at Dave, and the jock looks away. "Something wrong?" Kurt asks, stopping in the empty hallway to look at the taller boy with concern."

"'S nothing. Don't worry about it. I mean, why do you even worry about me? I can take care of myself," Dave retorts, softly at first, but then his old macho-gusto is back, and he frowns a little and starts walking brisker than before.

"Look, I didn't mean to offend you or anything," Kurt says, grabbing Dave by the arm to slow him down. David stops dead in his tracks instead, slowly panning his hazel gaze to lock with Kurt's aqua one. "You just seem off today. Well, more off than usual. Something's out of place, and I make it my business to know what's going on with my friends."

"Since when are we officially friends, anyway? I walk you to your classes for a week last year. I apologize. I join Glee when you catch me singing along with my iPod in the parking lot. But that's about it, Kurt; we don't hang out, we don't even sit together at lunch, and I'm still in the freaking closet. So how are we friends?" Dave challenges, and he tears his letterman from Kurt's grasp because it just feels way too good to have that pressure and warmth around his bicep and inner elbow like that. A shiver runs down his spine and he pretends that he isn't watching Kurt's lips part before he speaks.

"…We're friends because I forgave you and you did join because I asked, and we're friends because you need me to be," Kurt answers firmly. His eyes search Dave's face, and God, it feels like the fashionista can peels away all Dave's layers with his eyes alone, and see straight into Dave's freaking heart. It stings, and aches a little, and makes Dave's heartbeat kick up a notch. "Why can't you accept that?"

"And why can't we just get to the damn choir room already and get this voting thing over with? Then you can go back to rehearsing your song or whatever, and I can avoid this entire conversation, 'cause it's pretty pointless," Dave retorts, and he starts walking again.

Kurt huffs indignantly and clenches his fists at his sides as he storms after the other boy. "Hey, now wait just a minute!" he tosses back. He falls in step with the jock's long strides, his breathing a little harsher as he works his legs, and Dave tries to ignore how a part of him finds this adorable. "What the Hell is your issue, David?"

"It's none of your business, Fancy, so drop it."

"…None of my… And you're back to 'Fancy' again, really? Wow, David. Who knew you would stoop so low," Kurt snorts, and stops walking. Dave does, too.

Dave whirls around. "Why are you making such a big deal out of this? It's seriously nothing, so really, drop. It!" and he punctuates each word.

Kurt stands, staring, a bitchy expression on his face. "It's never 'nothing' with you, Dave Karofsky. So either you spill the beans or I'm going to blow off returning with you and let them pin the blame on you for my lack of presence."

"…You wouldn't," Dave scowls. "You know that they just barely like me, even after all these months!"

"Precisely. So if I were you, I would tell your friend what's eating at you."

Dave's face loses its edge and he almost smiles. "I gotta hand it to you, Kurt, you're one sneaky bastard."

Kurt grins without his teeth showing. "I try. Now out with it, Dave: why are you acting so strangely?"

The jock sighs jaggedly, bringing up one hand to rub his forehead. "You're going to kill me for saying this."

"I highly doubt it. I didn't even wish death upon you when you were tormenting me, so I don't think a thing you say now will change my mind," Kurt shrugs, leaning his weight on one foot.

Dave blows air out his mouth, glances up at Kurt, and then twists his hands into his pockets, clenching the fabric inside, feeling his nails dully scrape the skin of his thigh. "I sorta have this developing crush on you. But it's, like, no big deal, okay? I won't try to take you away from your perfect boyfriend or whatever. I'll just be awkward around you 'n' shit for a while. – So can we go, now? I really just want Glee Club to be over with today."

Kurt stares, gaping openly at the taller boy. He blinks. He licks his suddenly dry lips, and slowly nods, beginning to walk again. "Oh. Oh, uh… All right. Th-thank you for telling me, David. I – That must have taken a lot of courage to say, and that – that's respectable. And… flattering. Ah. We're here," he says, turning the corner and stopping in front of the open door, standing just out of sight of it. He nibbles his bottom lip, and Dave frowns at the action.

"…What?" the jock questions, raising one of his catlike brows.

Without thinking much about it, Kurt leans up on his toes and presses a feathery-light kiss to Dave's cheek. Then, swiftly, he turns around and dashes into the choir room. No one saw the act, and Dave is dumbstruck because of it. It takes the former bully a full minute to remember how his brain works and for the tingling warmth in his cheek to die down.

Then, slowly, Dave smirks and walks into the room, head held higher than usual; and all of his previous odd behaviors have vanished, but no one except Rachel really notices, and while the brunette can't put her finger on why this change in the fellow Glee clubber occurred, she leaves it be for after Regionals to figure out.