Chapter Two
As the soft chimes of the doorbell interrupted Kurt's concentration, he aimed the remote at the television effectively silencing the Sky News presenter's voice and headed towards the door. A young man with a pleasant smile stood outside, his arms resting on the handle bar of a heavily-laden serving trolley in front of him.
"Room Service for Mr Kurt Hummel?" he queried and, at Kurt's nod and welcoming gesture, he pushed the trolley into the hotel suite.
'I'll just be a moment, Sir," he informed Kurt and set about laying the dinner table with a white linen cloth which he produced from the bottom tray of the trolley. Kurt watched the precise, practised movements as the young man quickly laid out the silver cutlery and glasses and then proceeded to fold the white linen napkins into perfect cones, earning silent applause from Kurt. Soon, the waiter had set the domed-plates onto the table and, having placed the wine into the room's silver wine cooler, drew it up within easy reach of the dinner table. Expertly, he lit the candles using a lighter he produced from his back pocket. Kurt grinned as the waiter stood back from his handiwork, surveyed the scene and smiled in satisfaction. Then, he turned to face Kurt who nodded in appreciation.
"Excellent! Thank you." Kurt smiled at the young man as he slipped an English banknote into his hand. "I appreciate your efforts." The waiter smiled his gratitude in return and walked towards the door.
"When you're finished, Mr Hummel, you can ring Room Service and someone will be up to clear the plates or you could push everything out into the hallway if you'd prefer not to be disturbed again this evening. Alternatively, you could leave everything just as it is for Housekeeping to deal with tomorrow. Enjoy your evening, Sir." With a final nod and a farewell smile, the waiter left and Kurt closed the door behind him.
Kurt surveyed the room. The dining room table looked inviting and the aroma of the food currently hidden by the domed-lids was deliciously tempting. Kurt realised he was actually very hungry.
"Blaine!" he called out. "Dinner's here."
One of the inter-leading doors opened and, for a brief moment, Kurt's breath caught in his chest as his eyes took in the sight of Blaine, dressed only in the hotel's fluffy white dressing gown, limping through into the living area. Damp curls clung to his forehead and Kurt watched as a few water droplets escaped the curls to race each other down the side of Blaine's face.
"Something smells delicious!" Blaine exclaimed, his voice breaking into Kurt's thoughts and dragging him back into the reality of the room.
"Yeah, yeah it does, doesn't it? I suddenly realised how hungry I am. Come sit down." Kurt gestured for Blaine to take one of the seats at the table.
"How is your ankle feeling?" he asked, concerned. "Did that soak in the tub help at all?"
"It was fantastic!" Blaine gushed. "That bath is like a full-on Jacuzzi with all those jets and sprays and what not. I almost didn't want to get out but then my stomach rumbled."
Kurt sat down opposite Blaine at the table and smiled at the teacher's excitement over jets sprays. He caught Blaine's eyes staring at him.
"What?" he asked.
Blaine blushed. There was no way he was going to admit that he had spent the time in the bath trying to find the right word to describe Kurt's brilliant blue eyes and now, as he watched the candlelight flicker and reflect themselves in those deep blue pools, he finally settled on 'cerulean'.
"Uh, nothing," he coughed. "I guess, I just wanted to say…um…gosh, Kurt, this is all a bit surreal for me but I'm enormously grateful. Wes doesn't have a bath in his apartment – I would have been subjected to a shower this evening. So, … um … I'm really glad you crashed into me earlier."
Kurt's smile was genuine and his eyes contemplative as he reached for his wine glass.
"Me too, Blaine; me too," he responded. Then he raised his glass and gestured for Blaine to do the same. "Here's to a new friendship though it be oceans apart and borne out of sheer clumsiness and excruciating pain."
"I'll drink to that," Blaine seconded the toast and they both took a sip of wine as they stared at each other. The moment was heavy and threatened to become awkward until Kurt returned his glass to the table, clapped his hands twice in anticipation and reached forward to raise the silver dome off his plate.
"Let's tuck in," he invited.
"No, seriously, that's the honest truth," Blaine protested as Kurt laughed at his ridiculous story. "Nick and I both fell for him the day he started high school with us but Jeff made it very clear immediately that he only had eyes for Nick Duval. I, being the gentleman I am, was very gracious in defeat and the three of us have been best friends ever since."
"Although Nick and Jeff were 'best friends with benefits'," Kurt pointed out with a smirk, "whilst you were just … best friends."
"Yeah, something like that," agreed Blaine, shrugging his shoulders with a smile. "Although they never made me feel like I was a third wheel at all."
Kurt reached over to fill up Blaine's wine glass. The remnants of their delicious dinner lay on empty plates around them on the table; the meal was long over but, clearly, the conversation was not.
"Blaine, let me carry our wine over to the sofa and we can chat there so you can rest your ankle again," suggested Kurt.
It took the men a while to get Blaine comfortable on the sofa with his ankle resting on top of a pillow on the coffee table. Kurt had managed to find a channel on the television which played soft background music and the light provided by the candles on the table behind them was enough for them not to need to switch on any more lights.
"What about you, Mr Hummel?" asked Blaine as Kurt settled in on the sofa beside him, turning his body slightly to face Blaine. "What embarrassing high school stories do you have to share?"
"Hmm…" mused Kurt. "There are so many from which to choose. I wouldn't know where to begin."
Blaine giggled at that. "Start with your most embarrassing high school crush," he insisted, "I did."
Kurt laughed out loud. "Yeah, but your crush became a good friend, mine became … my step-brother."
"Shit! Kurt – that had to be awkward." Blaine's eyes were wide in sympathy.
"Swear fine, Hobbit!" admonished Kurt and Blaine groaned.
"Hobbit?" he queried, his voice soft, his eyes wide and his eyebrows raised in curiosity.
"It fits. Let it be," instructed Kurt and waved his hand dismissively. Blaine shrugged, smiled and tried to understand the fluttering in his stomach. Regaining control, he returned to the conversation.
"But seriously, you and your step-brother are okay now? Family dinners are not awkward?"
Kurt's smile faded, he turned his head away from Blaine allowing his gaze to settle on the flickering candles on the dining room table at the other side of the room.
"Yeah, No, it's not awkward anymore. He's … um … he died."
"Shit Kurt!" Blaine held up his hands in apology as soon as the words were out of his mouth. "I mean, I'm sorry – that's rough."
"It was. He was 19 when he died - eight years ago. My dad married his mom in our junior year which-" Kurt paused, chuckling slightly at the memory, "… was my fault really. I introduced them in a scheme to get closer to Finn but when he rejected me flat out, things got messy. After our parents got married, it took a while for us to find our footing but, in the end we were truly brothers. Do you know what I mean?"
Blaine nodded in understanding.
"Nick's the closest thing I have to a brother, so yeah, I get what you mean. Nick and I were inseparable all through middle school and when Jeff joined us in high school we became Southampton High's Fearsome Threesome. We did everything together: fencing, boxing, swimming and when the annual school production came around – our names were always listed numbers 1, 2 and 3. In fact, eventually the Drama Department began to publish the signup sheets with our names already typed in place before they went on the school notice board." Blaine laughed at the memory and Kurt smiled.
"Did you guys fight over parts and solos at all? That's mostly what I remember from my Glee Club years. I was always screaming to be heard and desperate for a solo."
Blaine quirked his eyebrows and Kurt giggled at the sight of the bushy triangular brows which were raised in surprise.
"You sing?" Blaine asked.
"Why yes, Hobbit, I do. You seem surprised," Kurt countered, raising his eyebrows in challenge.
"No, I'm not, actually. I just didn't think … I had you in this … this 'writers box' and didn't ... that was dumb of me. I bet you sound amazing. I should have brought my guitar with me this weekend. We could have sung together."
"Oh, I don't really sing that much anymore really. More focused on the writing, you know."
Blaine listened judiciously to the rushed excuse and then asked, "Did you always want to be a writer, Kurt? Was that your childhood dream?"
Kurt hummed as he reached for his wine glass and took a sip before answering Blaine. "Honestly? No, not really. I always enjoyed writing and knew I was good at it. I ran the school newspaper since sophomore year and produced three annual literary magazines for the school but my dream … my dream was Broadway." Kurt chanced a glance at Blaine as he said that, wondering if the man he'd just met that evening would scoff at him.
"I can understand that – especially if you were successful in Glee Club." Blaine answered and Kurt, sensing no judgement, continued.
"Our Glee club won Nationals in my senior year and I auditioned for NYADA." When Kurt saw Blaine frown at the unfamiliar term, he qualified quickly, "New York Academy of Dramatic Arts." Blaine nodded, appreciating the added information.
"But I didn't get in," Kurt admitted, "So I went to New York University instead. I'm not sorry, Blaine. I understand that my voice is unique and I would have struggled to get the male lead on stage and my life would have been a series of constant disappointments. Now, I'm able to allow my over-active imagination run wild, write it down and people pay me to read it! It doesn't get any better – I don't think."
"I happen to know about a hundred middle-school monsters who are eternally glad you didn't get into this NYADA School. You have made their lives so much richer with your stories, Kurt – you are truly talented." Blaine's praise was so genuine and so heart-felt that Kurt felt overwhelmed and self-consciously laughed it off.
"Right!" he declared loudly. "That's enough about me. I need some hobbit secrets. How about you, Blaine? Are you living your dream? Is teaching it for you?"
"I guess that's fair enough," replied Blaine, and Kurt found it hard not to stare as Blaine thought about his answer while running his index finger lightly around the rim of his wine glass.
"I have always loved music. I play a couple of different instruments and I think for a while in high school I might have wanted to do something with my music. I don't know – form a band maybe, become a musician fulltime. I wasn't too sure where I was headed even when we started at university in Exeter but I met Chad at a Gay Alliance mixer during our orientation week and, through him, I met a group of students who were helping out at a women's shelter on the outskirts of town. The first day we went along, I took my guitar with because … well, in those years it went everywhere with me. Anyway, I ended up playing and singing with the children - teaching them some fun action songs. The shelter organisers asked if I could come back on a weekly basis and work with the children. I agreed and eventually Nick, Jeff and I became a regular feature."
"Not Chad?" asked Kurt quietly, not wanting to seem to be prying.
"No, Chad was very busy that year with Student Council matters, RA duties and his senior year finals. It was just us three and, eventually, when we had to choose our majors, Nick and I chose early childhood education."
"What does Chad do, Blaine?"
"He's a fairly successful property lawyer. Two years ago, just after we got married in fact, he and Sebastian, a mate from university, set themselves up on their own. They've been working very hard and the practice is doing pretty well."
"So, um … Chad… was he your first boyfriend?" Kurt asked curiously because Blaine hadn't mentioned anyone else since his two week crush on Jeff in high school.
Blaine nodded as he took another sip of wine. "He was my first." Kurt couldn't help thinking Blaine was adorable because he blushed when he continued, " … my first … everything. He completely bowled me over at the GA mixer and by the end of the evening we were a couple. How about you? Did the debacle with Finn scar you for life?"
Kurt gave Blaine a 'are you kidding me?' glare before answering. "Far from it, actually," he replied in a mock haughtily tone. "In my senior year, I had a brief fling with Chandler -a crazy nut I met in a music store." Kurt laughed softly at the memory. "But, I suspect he was more in love with idea that I was headed to New York than with me, per se."
Blaine giggled and Kurt paused to enjoy that sound yet again before continuing. "And then, in New York, there was Adam. I met him at CallBacks, a bar for NYADA students. My friend, Rachel from high school – yeah, her audition was successful; she got in and invited me to join her there one evening. She introduced me to her classmate, Adam, who asked me to sing a song with him and well, we just sorta clicked." Kurt trailed off.
"Did it last? Are you still together?" Blaine was curious.
"No it didn't. Eventually we realised we just didn't fit anymore and then the film people came calling about my screenplay so, soon after I graduated, I moved to LA and haven't had the time nor inclination for a boyfriend since."
A strange sort of silence, unsettling and heavy like a quiet thick fog, descended over the two men as they took time to digest each other's stories. Blaine swallowed the rest of his wine and then bridged the silent break.
"Kurt, I'm so glad you bumped into me this evening. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know you. You are one of life's exceptional people – you're brave and funny, talented and smart and I would be honoured to call you friend, if you'd allow me?"
Kurt looked over at Blaine. The latter's hazel-honey eyes were clear and honest in the flickering light and held Kurt's gaze, steadfast and true.
"I think I'd like that very much Blaine," he replied sincerely.
At that moment, Blaine's phone began to ring and, reading the caller ID, he swore as he answered.
"Oh Shit! Wes!"
Kurt got up from the sofa to give Blaine some privacy but as he moved towards the door of his bedroom, he could hear the raised voice full of concern on the other side of the phone.
"Blainers, where the bloody hell are you, mate?"