Title: Scene from a Mall
Summary: When Kurt and Mercedes hang out at the mall one day, secrets are revealed, friendships are tested, and relationships are defined. Post-season 2. With K/M friendship, S/M romance and K/B romance.
Location in the timeline: Set in the summer between Seasons 2 and 3. Speculative fic that is about to become AU. We'll miss you, Sammy.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that you recognize.
It was a few weeks into summer vacation, and Kurt and Mercedes were finally getting in some long-delayed Best Friend Time, just the two of them alone for the first time that summer. Accordingly, they were at the local mall to indulge in a combination of their favorite activities: shopping and gossiping. They had driven separately, met at Macy's, and had now worked their way through most of the stores and all of the recent dramas of their acquaintances and several celebrities.
Kurt tossed an empty coffee cup into the trash receptacle and tramped determinedly towards Nordstrom's. "I just need to check something. I saw the most amazing shirt here last week, and hopefully it's on sale now."
Mercedes trotted along after her friend as he zoomed toward the aforementioned shirt, which sadly was not yet reduced in price. Kurt replaced it reluctantly.
To cheer him up, Mercedes asked, "So, your mystery date yesterday with Blaine... Where did he end up taking you?"
"Oh! He drove up to the lake, and we had a picnic there at sunset. It was so lovely. Especially since my awesome and thoughtful boyfriend actually hauled lawn chairs and even a little table out there for us. Well, I helped and carried the table, but he was still awesome to be prepared because he knows that I would prefer not to sit on the ground in my favorite pants."
"Sounds like it would have been worth a little ground-sitting, though. That's so sweet."
Kurt smirked smugly, "Well, yes, it would have been worth it. But I wouldn't like to, and thankfully I didn't have to."
"I take it that your relationship with Blaine is still going strong," Mercedes probed with a laugh, picking up an animal print top and discretely trying to shield it from Kurt's view with her purse.
"Yep, things with Blaine are awesome."
Mercedes waited for the usual geyser of starry-eyed saccharin that typically followed any query about his boyfriend, or their relationship, or anything, really, that reminded Kurt that he had a boyfriend named Blaine Anderson. However, Kurt just smiled an inscrutable soft smile and drifted toward the sale racks.
Mercedes smelled a story and honed in on her oblivious target, only to be brought up short when Kurt's cell phone rang. He checked the caller ID, flashed her a sheepish smile, held up a finger for a moment, and answered it.
"Well, hello there! ...Actually, I'm with Mercedes right now. We're at the mall. ...Nooo, I have not spent my entire paycheck yet. I'm rationing it so I can take out my awesome boyfriend on his next day off. Plus, you know that shirt that I want, it isn't on sale yet and I'm keeping my eye on it. So I haven't bought anything. ...We've been here for about three hours. ...Yes, I'm feeling okay. Why do you ask? ...Oh, I get it. Not funny, really. ...You're lucky you're cute. ...Well, yes, you're awesome as well, but that goes without saying, given whom you are dating. ...Listen, I gotta go. ...You're ridiculous. But, yes, I love you, too. ...Okay ...Definitely. See you then!"
Mercedes' brain had braked to a screeching halt near the end of that one-sided conversation. She stared in surprise at Kurt, as he idly tapped a few buttons on his phone and returned it to his pocket.
As if from a long distance, she heard herself ask, "Kurt, who was that?"
Kurt had commenced an in-depth analysis of two shirts, one a medium charcoal, the other a cornflower blue. With a frown on his face, he held each up in a nearby mirror to determine its impact on his skin tone.
"Sorry, what?" he said distractedly, tugging on buttons and squinting at seams.
Mercedes tried again, "Who was that on the phone? I thought that you were talking to Blaine."
"Oh, I was. He says 'hi.' He also said that you should definitely put back that zebra-print halter top."
"He did?" she asked weakly.
"Well, no, not actually. But I am confident that he would, if he saw it."
Mercedes growled faintly at that, mostly from habit. Her best friend's abhorrence for her beloved animal prints was a well-known fact. The unofficial rule was that Kurt was permitted a single snarky comment each time she offended his eyesight with such a garment. Two comments, if the print was also an unnatural color.
She gathered herself, remembering that right now there were more important things to discuss than sartorial freedom of choice. "Did you just tell Blaine that you love him?"
Kurt had replaced both shirts and was now nose-deep in a rack of pants, presumably looking for his size. His methodical search didn't falter at her question, though he did take a somewhat longer time to respond than normal.
"Yes, I believe that I did."
Confirmation burned off the shock and left a plethora of questions. "When did that start? Why didn't you tell me? Who said it first? Oh my god, I bet it happened during your picnic at the lake yesterday! And at sunset, that's so romantic..." she gushed.
Kurt abandoned the pants and faced her, hands on his hips and a carefully blank expression on his face. "No, it didn't happen yesterday. Or at sunset. Or outside at all, for that matter."
She sensed some sort of tension in the air but couldn't fathom why. "Then, when? And, again, why didn't you tell me! That is the kind of information that you are obligated to share with your best friend," she coaxed. Kurt didn't look particularly obligated at the moment, so she tried to think of a reason for his reluctance. "Oh geez! It didn't slip out when you guys were fooling around or something, did it?" she whispered with a giggle.
Kurt seemed to have come to a decision. "No, nothing so dramatic. It happened at the coffeeshop, right after we got back from New York. I was telling him about everything that happened, and then... I don't know, he just said it. And I managed to swallow my coffee, luckily, and said it back." He smiled that cryptic smile again. "It was kinda awesome, actually. Simple, sweet, and honest." The smile was abruptly replaced by a cunning look. "The way I like my relationships, as it happens. And also, as it happens, this all took place just seconds before you and Sam came in together."
Mercedes suddenly felt an unseen trap begin to swing shut around her.
Kurt continued mercilessly, "After serendipitously meeting in the parking lot. That's what you said, right? You ran into each other? You know, it seems as if you guys do that a lot. Like when you bumped into one another and ended up going to the Lima street fair. Like when your hands bumped into each other at the movie theater last Tuesday. It took quite a long time to untangle them. Good thing the movie was so long or you would have been stuck holding hands even after the credits began to roll and we all went for ice cream. That could have gotten messy. Ice cream everywhere."
Kurt took advantage of her numbed state and snatched the aforementioned zebra-print top from her hand. He then stalked over to the appropriate rack to replace it with its brethren. His humanitarian work completed, he stood in front of her with arms crossed and eyes hardened.
"What else exactly is on that list of 'the kind of information that you are obligated to share' with your friends? Does the list include when you start to date someone new, especially when that someone is your first real boyfriend ever? When that someone is a mutual friend, as well? Is there any sort of friendship obligation involved in that?" His voice broke slightly at the end of that sentence, and her panicked gaze finally saw through his stony expression to find the hurt hidden underneath.
"Kurt... I-I..."
"Oh, save it. I'm just tired of pretending to be as big of an idiot as you apparently think I am. Or is it that you just don't care about our friendship anymore? ...Never mind. Right now, I'm the one that doesn't care. See you around. We'll probably run into each other, I'm sure."
And with that, Kurt spun around and executed a perfect Angry Storm-off.
Mercedes stared after him, long after he vanished from view, wondering just when and how her fun afternoon of catching up with her best friend had descended into this mess. She pulled her phone out of her purse and felt her heart clench harder when she realized she had a very limited number of friends that she could call for advice about this particular problem. She gripped her phone tightly, marched toward the mall exit, and called the one person who would understand.
"So, Kurt was mad because he found out about us?" Sam asked, rubbing her shoulder comfortingly.
The two were sitting closely on a bench in a mostly deserted little park on the outskirts of town. Mercedes had called him in a froth about some fight she'd had with Kurt, and he was still trying to sort out the details. It was something about obligations and friendship and lies and coffee and stupid shirts that she really liked and was going to buy and to hell with Kurt's stupid opinions on the matter.
"No!" Mercedes wailed, jumping up from the park bench to resume pacing. "He's mad because I didn't tell him about us!"
"Oh." Sam pondered the difference in phrasing for a moment, then nodded. "But I thought you'd already told him."
"What? Why? I thought we agreed not to tell anybody about us. Wait, who have you told?" she demanded suspiciously.
Sam replied calmly, "I haven't told anyone except my family. But on Monday when I went over to play video games with Finn, Kurt asked me if I'd seen you lately with this, like, knowing look on his face. And it's not as if we've been very subtle when we're around him. We were holding hands at the movies last week, for Pete's sake. I just assumed that you had told him."
Mercedes frowned. "Why would you think that? Is it because people think I can't keep a secret? That is so wrong! I mean, I haven't said a word to anyone about what I saw Mr. Davis doing in the school furnace room with that stuffed giraf—"
"Stop! Seriously, I don't want to know," Sam interrupted. "No, that's not why I thought Kurt knew. It's just... he's your best friend. I thought you guys talked about everything."
"Apparently not. He and Blaine boarded the L-train weeks ago, and he never said a word to me." Mercedes caught Sam's perplexed look and explained, "They said 'I love you.' To each other."
"Wow, that's cool. They make a pretty great couple, you know?"
"Yeah, they're awesome," Mercedes sneered. "But the point is: Kurt didn't tell me."
"Um, I suspect that was his point, as well." Sam flinched at the look that comment inspired but pushed onward. "I'm just saying, you guys are supposed to be the best friends that tell each other stuff. You're supposed to be that outstanding friendship that shows the rest of us what real friendship is actually supposed to be like. I've always been envious of what you have with Kurt. With Tina and even Rachel, too, but especially with Kurt. You guys are so close, sometimes it's like you share a brain. Oh wow, it's just like that old TV show I watched last week, see, there's this guy—"
"Babe, pleeeease. Dial it back in, for right now."
"Right, sorry. It's just... it must be really nice. I don't have that kind of friend here. Even with my buddy Tom back in Tennessee, we weren't like that. And these days Tom and I barely even connect on Facebook. You and Kurt stayed pretty close even when he was at Dalton. I wish I had someone like that to talk to."
"Yeah, it is nice. Or it was. Dang, I am such a horrible friend. You're right, Kurt and I did stay good friends when he left McKinley, mostly because he made a point of making time for me. Even though he had crazy schoolwork and long drives and had become close with Blaine and Finn and even Rachel. And when he and Blaine finally got together, he literally drove straight to my house from Dalton to tell me first. He didn't even go home to change out of his uniform."
"Wow, he must have been really excited," Sam deadpanned in an attempt to lighten the moment.
Mercedes didn't notice. "But I couldn't have told him. I promised you that I'd keep us a secret."
"I didn't mean from everyone! We told our families, right? I don't care if Kurt knows. I mean, I know firsthand that Kurt can keep a secret," Sam stated. "I trust him."
"Great, so now we're back to me being a sucky friend," Mercedes sighed.
"I didn't mean it like that. Anyway, it doesn't matter because he knows already. The question now is how to fix your friendship with Kurt. And maybe... well, maybe we can talk about us, too. And about telling everyone else."
"What? I'm confused; I thought we didn't want to tell anyone. Because we didn't know each other that well and New Directions is like a PG-13 version of musical chairs and we didn't want to deal with all the drama until we knew for sure that we really got along and wanted to date each other and all that."
Sam gripped the edge of the bench with his fingers. "Mercedes... It's been over a month since we said that. I-I think that we've gotten to know each other pretty well since then. Are you really... I mean, do you need more time to figure out if you want to date me?"
Mercedes blinked at him, then gently eased onto the seat next to him and pried his closest hand loose to clasp it in her own. "Sam, of course I want to date you. I mean, we are dating. And it's amazing. I've been mentally calling you my boyfriend for weeks."
"Then... the second thing that you need to do right now is tell your best friend about us."
"You're right. He should be home now; I'll head right over there." She leapt to her feet, while Sam rose more slowly. "Thank you, babe!" She gave him a quick hug. "Wait, you said 'the second thing.' What's the first thing that I should do?"
Sam slid his hands down her arms and meshed their fingers. "Kiss your amazing boyfriend, of course."
Mercedes steeled her nerves and knocked on Kurt's front door. The door opened to reveal his father Burt Hummel, who smiled in greeting and simply opened the door further to invite her inside.
"Kurt's in his room," he said pleasantly and ambled back toward the kitchen.
She walked to Kurt's shut bedroom door and knocked again, hearing the faint sound of music from within the room.
"Come in," he called.
As she entered, she saw that he was lying on his bed and typing feverishly on his laptop. When he apparently completed his thought and looked up to see her standing awkwardly in the doorway, his face closed off in a manner that she recognized but rarely saw directed at her. She gulped hard and realized that she should have better prepared for this confrontation.
"Kurt, I'm not sure how to say this, any of this, but… You were right, okay?" she fumbled.
Kurt raised an eyebrow and stated primly, "Well, I agree with you so far. But perhaps you could elaborate on my correctness."
Mercedes, already a nervous wreck, was taken further aback by his cold tone.
Kurt sighed at her appalled look, pushed himself to his feet, and gestured for her to take a seat on the bed. He then turned off the music and sat on his chair with legs crossed and hands folded neatly.
Mercedes tried again. "You're right, I should have told you about Sam and me. We had our reasons for not telling everybody about us right away, but you're not everybody. I mean, you're my best friend, and I so wanted to tell you, but…"
He bowed his head for a moment, avoiding her eyes. "I wasn't exactly blameless, either. I have no right to jump all over you for keeping secrets when I don't tell you everything that happens in my life."
Mercedes' newshound instincts perked up at that remark, but she reminded herself to focus on the current conversation. Nonetheless, a tiny corner of her brain started a tally sheet of things to discuss with Kurt at a later time.
He continued, "It was cute, at first. A secret romance. But then, as time went on and you didn't say anything, I guess that I felt left out. But I should have just asked you about it. I shouldn't have waited until it all simply exploded, like I seem to always do, like I did with that whole Karofsky debacle in the locker room," he muttered darkly.
Mercedes made a note of that little comment, too, for later.
He straightened his posture and added brightly, yet with a wry smile, "Lately I've been working on expressing myself by using more constructive methods. But it's a work in progress, as you may have noticed." Kurt's face grew serious again, and he asked, "So why exactly have you two been keeping this a secret from everybody?"
She took a deep breath and began to explain, "Sam and I… We'd never really hung out much until recently. But prom night, we started talking, and we just really seemed to connect. But he didn't want to rush into a relationship again, and I didn't want to add to all the drama, what with Nationals and everything. So we agreed to spend some time together privately before we went public." She scrunched her nose as she thought for a moment. "It made sense at the time. But I don't really know why we kept it a secret for so long. I guess Sam was still self-conscious because he doesn't have much money to spend on dates, even though I've told him repeatedly that I don't mind paying. I think on some level I wanted to keep it a secret to prove that I could. I know that I don't have the best record when it comes to keeping things on the D.L. And it was just really nice, for once, to have something that was about me. Once everyone knows, it'll become about Puck's innuendo and Quinn's dirty looks and Santana's bitchy comments. And... and I was afraid that..." she trailed off, averting her eyes.
Kurt seemed to understand what she couldn't say. "Oh, Mercedes. You have nothing to worry about with Quinn and Santana. They're both selfish little girls that cheated on him, used him, and hurt him. You're worth a thousand of them, and I'm sure that Sam knows that. If he doesn't, I will be informing him of it on a daily basis until he gets it."
"But they're prettier than me, and you know it. He knows it. They know it."
"Balderdash."
"Kurt—"
"I mean it! That's ridiculous. Yes, they're both very pretty girls, no question, but neither of them have your gorgeous eyes or, more importantly, that smile that comes straight from your beautiful heart and makes the whole miserable world instantly seem a lot brighter. Neither of them are you, Mercedes. You have nothing to worry about."
Mercedes smiled shyly at him. "I'm not completely convinced, but I thank you for the sentiment. And I'm pretty sure that Sam appreciates me on several levels, as well. So don't worry about that." She giggled as Kurt raised an eyebrow in interest.
He then held up a hand to stop her from elaborating and raised the original issue again. "But why didn't you at least tell me? I wouldn't have said anything."
Her face fell. "I know you wouldn't. I guess… I think that I've been feeling left out, too. And it's not your fault, either, so don't you dare apologize to me. You've got Blaine now, and a full-sized family, and two whole Glee clubs of other friends… I guess on some level I missed the old days when it was just you and me and we were together constantly. Plus, I think I was a little jealous of your relationship, especially back when I didn't even have anyone to crush on. But things are so much better for you these days, and I'm so very happy for you, truly. Anyway, I got my own man now, so people ought to start being jealous of me!" she ended with a sassy hand wiggle.
Kurt grinned at her zeal and hopped back on the bed, leaning into her. "Speaking of your man, I need details. Tell me all about this guy that you're seeing."
"Oh, I suppose I could," Mercedes teased. "Unless there's something else that you and Blaine have been up to lately..."
Kurt flushed slightly and stammered out a denial. Mercedes made another note on her list of things about which to interrogate her best friend later.
But first she had some amazing news to share.