"There you go," the barista says while handing Kurt his coffee with a smile. He smiles back, grateful that she took pity on him and added the milk for him when she saw how loaded he was. He hoists his giant pile of folders and notebooks further up against his body, clutches the coffee cup and inhales the rich aroma through the hole in the lid. Coffee. Finally. He takes a deep breath and turns around, ready to face the rest of this day and whatever re-designs his adviser has suggested, and the next thing he knows there is scalding heat across his chest.
"Oh shit, I'm so sorry, I'm so, so, sorry, I–— Kurt?" Kurt looks up at the mention of his name, and it takes him a few seconds to place the face, because it's out of place, out of uniform, out of evilness. He doesn't think he's ever heard Sebastian Smythe actually call him Kurt before.
"Sebastian," Kurt says, acknowledging him; he's surprised at how calm he sounds. He doesn't have to look to know that he has angry red splotches across his chest, his shirt is completely soaked, and so are -
"Oh, HOLY FUCKING HELL!" - the folders and notebooks. Kurt doesn't even care that he sounds shriller than he ever has before, that the whole café is staring at him, because this is his final project and Sebastian has ruined it. "I…" Kurt begins, but he can't finish the sentence. He's speechless, in front of Sebastian. He throws the now empty styrofoam cup in the trash can next to the door. Kurt briefly considers just dropping down on the floor to cry, because final project, but he can't. He's supposed to be a responsible adult, so he sits down at an empty table instead. He drops the pile of paper on the table with a thump, and slumps down in a chair. Half of the café is still staring at him, but he really can't bring himself to care. It's his first term, his first final project. Sebastian fucking Smythe has managed to turn up and ruin it.
Before he can bury his face in his hands and pull himself together, someone shoves a wad of napkins in front of him. He looks up – Sebastian. Kurt sighs.
"What do you want?" he asks, but he shrugs out of his coat, accepts the napkins, and grabs the top notebook. He flips to the first page, and realizes it's a lost cause. The pages are soaked in the brown coffee. None of the designs are visible. Kurt swears on his life to never buy non-chlorine bleached, non-treated notebooks ever again. He reaches for the next notebook, it's a bit better off, but there's not much to save. His most important designs are in the top book, the rest of them are just notes, extras and fabric samples.
"I… those were for you. You're wet." Kurt looks up, and Sebastian is still standing next to the table. Kurt narrows his eyes.
"Are you… you are Sebastian, right?" he asks, because honestly - he's not sure. "I would ask if you're his evil twin, but seeing as Sebastian would be the evil one, I won't."
"Yeah gayface," Sebastian (now confirmed) smirks. "It's me."
This is where Kurt would breathe out an exaggerated sigh of relief, if it wasn't for final project. He looks at the soaked pile of paper. He buries his face in his hands, moaning in misery.
"The shirt is salvageable," he says into his palms, not knowing and not really caring if Sebastian is still there. "Final project, however, is not."
"Shit. That was your final project?" Sebastian asks, and Kurt looks up at him again.
"Why are you being nice?" he asks. "You're never nice."
Sebastian shrugs. "You look like a wet cat; I like animals."
"You hate everything that moves in a non-sexual way," Kurt states. He glances down at the table again. He might as well just accept that he'll have to retake this course.
"Cats are sexy. What are you doing in New York, anyway?" Sebastian asks, and - what? Why does he - ? "I thought you didn't get in to NYADA?"
"I didn't," Kurt confirms, but doesn't give him more than that. Sebastian sighs and flops down in the seat opposite of Kurt.
"Is it really your final project?" he asks, eyes flickering over the notebooks. Kurt nods. "I'm sorry."
Kurt looks at him. Sebastian sounds genuinely sorry, and he's not even smirking. Kurt shrugs.
"Not much to do about it now, is there? I'll just have to retake the… oh fuck." He buries his face in his hands again. He can't just retake the course next year, because if he fails now, he's not qualified for the next term. He has to pass if he wants to continue his education.
"Fuck my fucking life," he mutters. Kurt notices Sebastian's raised eyebrow at his language, but doesn't care. He flips through the first notebook again, handling the wet pages with care. Nothing is left untouched.
"Is there…anything I can do?" Sebastian asks. Kurt opens his mouth, but gets interrupted by the barista, who's now standing by their table.
"Here," she says, handing him a fresh cup of coffee. "I saw what happened, so I thought… you're wet," she says. Kurt bites his lip to prevent himself from rolling his eyes. He is the one who's sitting in a soaked shirt, he's aware of how sodden he is. He accepts the coffee with a grateful smile nonetheless.
"Yeah, I know," he says. "But since I won't be able to go on to next term now, I guess I'll have all the time in the world to do laundry."
The barista looks at him with a pitying expression.
"I'm sorry," she says. Kurt gives a little shrug and puts on a charming smile.
"Not your fault. Sorry about the coffee though, I'm sure it was excellent. Thanks for the new one."
"Ah, well. Good luck," she says and smiles again, before she disappears behind the counter.
"You can't go on to next term?" Sebastian asks when Kurt takes a sip of his coffee. She's added the milk this time too, and it is excellent.
"I need to pass this course to be qualified. And I know you know nothing about fashion, but the whole 'naked and covered in coffee' look is not a look that will be in anytime soon."
Sebastian smirks again. "I wouldn't complain if it was," he says with a wink. Kurt rolls his eyes.
"Whatever, it's not a collection that will make me pass the course," he sighs.
"Were these your only copies?" Sebastian asks. Kurt glares at him.
"Yes. I just got them back from my adviser. I didn't really count on you pouring coffee over all of it."
"I'm sorry," Sebastian says again. "Look, is there anything I can..," he trails off this time, but Kurt gets what he's offering. Not that it helps, because he doesn't think Sebastian can come up with a complete spring collection in just a couple of weeks, and the assignment was either a complete collection on paper, or two or three pieces in… Kurt looks up, focuses his critical eyes on Sebastian.
"Stand up," he says. Sebastian does, and Kurt is too far gone to feel surprised about that too. "Spin." Sebastian spins. Kurt stands up abruptly, grabbing his coat.
"Come on," he says, handing half of the pile of papers to Sebastian. "You're coming with me." Sebastian looks dumbfounded for a moment, but quickly finds himself.
"Hummel, what I said about naked and covered in coffee doesn't really apply to you, you know?"
His trademark smirk is back. Kurt knows that it's just a game, that he should have seen it coming, that he walked into it, but still. He's not sexy. He's unattractive. He doesn't even hold up to Sebastian's standards, and that's saying something. He already knew that, but it still hurts. Kurt loses his footing for a moment, and he knows that Sebastian can see him momentarily lose his game.
"In your dreams," he quips finally, and it's the lamest reply ever, but whatever, he's had a rough day.
"What are we gonna do then?" Sebastian asks. "Since sex is out of the question?" Kurt presses the pile of papers into Sebastian's hands, forcing him to grab them.
"The only one of us who will undress is you. I have no idea what you're doing with your life, and I don't care, but for the next few weeks, you're modelling."
"Mode- what? Sebastian stares at him. "I have to study!" Kurt eyes his bag. Probably something theoretical, like Freshman Economy 101 or whatever they teach at Douchebag University.
"Alex can help you," he says, hoisting his own half of the papers in his arms and grabbing his coffee. "He doesn't do anything worthwhile anyway."
"Who's… ask him then?" Sebastian says, confused, as he follows Kurt out of the door. Kurt doesn't reply, he just hurries along the sidewalk, leaving Sebastian to stare after him outside the café.
"Hey lady!" Sebastian shouts. "What'll you do if I refuse?"
Kurt stops dead in his tracks. He closes his eyes, he doesn't want to see if people are staring at him due to the nickname. He knows, logically, that none of them knows about him, that it's impossible for them to even guess, but it feels like he's the emperor with new clothes. He breathes in deep, opens his eyes, and turns around to face Sebastian, who's now caught up with him.
"If you refuse, I'll find out where you live, break in, and then proceed to drown your clothes and books in coffee. And possibly murder you in your sleep." His voice is perfectly level and clear, and he keeps his gaze locked with Sebastian's.
"Why do you even want me?" Sebastian asks. And it's a legitimate question. He's just going to stand around throwing insults, but…
"You have nice measurements," Kurt tells him. "And I'm equipped with pins and needles. And safety pins," he adds, flicking his eyes up to Sebastian's mouth.
"You think I'm hot?" Sebastian asks, gleefully. Kurt rolls his eyes and turns around to start walking towards the apartment again.
"Nice measurements," he calls over his shoulder. "They don't impact your face. Or hair." Sebastian catches up with him again, and starts to walk beside him.
"That's because they're already flawless," he says. Kurt doesn't even dignify that with a response.
"Hi honey!" Kurt shouts into the apartment as he unlocks the door. Alex answers with a hi sugar! from the living room, and Kurt drops his notebooks on the floor with a loud bang before taking off his coat and unlacing his boots. When he's done he looks at Sebastian, who hasn't moved further than into the apartment. Kurt grabs the notebooks and folders from his hands and drops them on top of the rest, and says
"Take off your coat and shoes."
"Aw, honey, I'm not really in the… oh my GOD what happened to you?!" Alex has turned the corner and is now staring at Kurt in horror. Kurt looks down on where his light blue button-up is still damp and clinging to his chest.
"Him," Kurt answers, nodding towards Sebastian. Alex looks at him, then back at Kurt.
"And so you brought him back here to…slay him?" he asks, one eyebrow raised.
"Yes, exactly," Kurt nods. Alex laughs and steps forward to kiss him on the forehead.
"Good, 'cause we're almost out of food. I'll go get the knives ready," he says and turns to the kitchen. "And also, the light bulb in the bathroom broke, can you change…why are all your project files on the floor?" He turns around again to look at Kurt, who sighs.
"Ask Sebastian," he says, and walks past Alex into the living room. "I have to change, can you keep an eye on him for one minute?"
"I'll keep him entertained for the ten minutes it'll take you to choose a new shirt that doesn't clash with any of the clothes you're already wearing, and then soak that one," Alex replies with a sweet smile. Kurt flips him the finger over his shoulder before closing the bedroom door.
It only takes him five minutes to pick out a new one, and he doesn't care about the ruined one enough to take care of it immediately, so he grabs a measuring tape, a box of pins, a pen and a paper from his desk before he walks out into the living room again. Alex and Sebastian are sitting next to each other on the couch, Alex staring at Sebastian in incredulous wonder.
"Kurt, where did you find this guy?" he asks when Kurt emerges. "He's clueless." Sebastian looks offended, and Kurt smirks.
"I know. Long story. What did he do?"
"He asked why you couldn't just redraw your designs."
"Oh, dear god."
"But why?" Sebastian interrupts, sounding genuinely confused. Kurt shakes his head.
"Just… stand up, please." He points to the carpet next to the couch and the coffee table. Sebastian does, and Kurt takes his first really good look at him, out of his uniform, out of high school. He's dressed in tight dark blue jeans, a light grey knitted cardigan, and a black t-shirt underneath, the collar peeking through the V of the cardigan. He looks good, Kurt hates to admit it, but he does. He seems to have gained some sense of style since last year at Scandals, which is the first - and until now only - time Kurt has seen him out of the Dalton uniform. He doesn't say this to Sebastian, though. He's not that stupid.
"Raise your arms, please," he says instead, twirling the measuring tape between his fingers as he steps forward. He turns to Alex, asks "Can you…?" and he doesn't have to finish the sentence before Alex reaches for the pen and paper in Kurt's hand. Kurt stares down at the pins. He doesn't need them if he's only going to take measurements, but then again, he can use them to stick into Sebastian's thigh if the guy gets to obnoxious. Kurt rattles the box, looking pointedly at Sebastian, and then proceeds to measure him.
Sebastian keeps quiet, much to Kurt's surprise, and he's done pretty quickly. He stands up from where he's been kneeling at Sebastian's feet (and he tries not to read too much into that position, and he doesn't look up to see if Sebastian's smirking at him or not). He grabs the paper from Alex, scanning through the numbers. This actually shouldn't be too hard.
"Nice," Alex comments from over his shoulder. Kurt nods, then looks over at Sebastian again.
"You can go now," he says. Sebastian looks between the two of them as if trying to figure out if they actually are going to slay him or not. "We're not gonna eat you, Sebastian," Kurt adds after a moment, and Sebastian snaps out of it and glares at him.
"Whatever, gayface," he mutters, and turns towards the hallway. Kurt feels Alex tense beside him, but he shakes his head. Not worth it.
"Wait!" Kurt says then, following Sebastian. "I need your phone number." He hands over his phone, lets Sebastian put in his number, and then takes it back to save it. "I'll call you when I need you for the first fitting," he says.
"I don't actually-" Sebastian begins, but Kurt interrupts him.
"Coffee. On all your things," he says. Sebastian presses his lips together.
"Fine," he bites out. Then he grabs his bag and walks out the door without even saying goodbye. Kurt cannot say he's surprised.
"Soo," Alex says, coming up behind him and putting his arms around Kurt's shoulders. "Care to tell me who that was, exactly?" Kurt sighs, leaning into the touch, enjoying the comforting warmth of another body.
"I'm actually not sure," he says.
"Well, you can think about it while you change the light bulb in the bathroom," Alex says, brightly. "I'll make dinner."
"I thought you were the male in this relationship," Kurt teases while he opens the hallway closet to get the spare light bulbs.
"No, but really Kurt, who is he? I can't…he seems…weird?" Alex says as he pushes his plate away and leans back on the couch. Kurt sighs and sets his plate on the coffee table, imitating Alex's position on the other end of the couch.
"Yeah," he agrees. "I can't really place him either. He…he was seriously evil when we were in high school, but now he seems to have…changed." Kurt frowns as he says it, because he doesn't really believe it, but he can't make anything else from Sebastian's silence and lack of insults today. That he even excused himself in the first place is getting too much for Kurt to handle right now, it feels like his whole world has been turned around.
"I think he likes you," Alex says, and Kurt stares at him before he bursts out laughing. It's not funny, it's so not funny. Sebastian brings back bad memories; memories of Blaine, and Kurt's insecurities about not being enough, about Blaine wanting to just get together with Sebastian instead because Sebastian was normal, and it is not funny. Kurt still can't do anything other than laugh at the suggestion that Sebastian Smythe likes him.
Alex looks confused. He puts a hand on Kurt's back as he waits for him to calm down and catch his breath. Kurt wipes his eyes and takes a deep breath, willing away the residing giggles.
"He doesn't like me," he says finally. Alex starts rubbing his back, and Kurt leans into the touch. "He doesn't…I'm not totally sure why he's even doing this, but I guess he just feels genuinely sorry for what he did?" He slumps back on the couch again, forcing Alex to remove his hand. "God, I'm just so confused right now. I don't even know if he'll turn up when I call him for the first fitting."
"We'll just have to wait and see. Would be nice if he did, though. He does have nice measurements."
They fall into a comfortable silence. This is the thing Kurt enjoys most about living with Alex, he knows how to be silent.
When Kurt first came to New York at the beginning of term, he'd dragged himself between Rachel's dorm room floor and Santana's couch once every few days for a couple of weeks. Late admission meant no dorm, and he didn't know anyone else. Then he'd been paired up with Alex for a project in social studies, and the two of them had hit of immediately. Alex's girlfriend had just dumped him and moved out of the apartment, he needed someone to split the rent with, and Kurt needed somewhere to live. Almost two months into the arrangement, they are getting along pretty well. Alex is there for comfort when Kurt is feeling down, and Kurt changes light bulbs and kills spiders.
And, apparently, brings home evil enemies to the apartment to make them model for his final project.
"I have no idea what I'm doing," Kurt says, addressing the room at large. Alex snorts beside him.
"Join the club. Unfortunately, we're out of cookies."
