"David, Help!" Blaine barely even gave his best friend time to say hello before blurting out "I haven't managed to get a single room finished, half my clothes are still in boxes and I have to be at school tomorrow morning at 7am for teacher's conferences."

It was funny, even after 5 years in college, if there was a problem Blaine's response was to call one of his two best friends from High School.

"Blaine … Blaine …. ANDERSON!" David's voice rose with each syllable, trying to get through Blaine's panic. "Blaine, calm down. I know we used to tell you that your middle name was 'hyper' at Dalton, but I hoped you would have outgrown it by now. Now start from the beginning, calmly please"

David had always had a calming effect on Blaine. When he had arrived at Dalton, in October of his freshman year, still broken and bleeding, David was one of the first to take the scared boy under his wing.

"NO" Blaine screamed as he bolted upright in bed, eyes darting around the room, unfocused and filled with tears.

David was across the room in a second, arms wrapped tight around his roommate's chest, whispering "Hush Blaine, It's ok … You're safe … I've got you" over and over in Blaine's ear.

"God David, I 'm sorry. I'm ok, just go back to sleep" Blaine whispered, ducking his head and trying to shift out of David's arms.

"Blaine, you don't have to be sorry about anything. You aren't the first kid to transfer here because of problems. You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to, but I can tell you that I am here if you need a shoulder or for someone to listen. OK? Now snuggle back down and I'll stay here until you fall asleep."

It took more than a few nightmares and weeks of gradual trust, but eventually Blaine had opened up to David about the beating he had taken at his old school. Maybe inviting his best friend to go to the dance with him hadn't been a great idea, but he hadn't expected it to land him in the hospital either. David's honest, caring response had been the opening to a friendship that spanned almost 10 years.

"Ok, back to the beginning huh? I guess I am just getting a bit anxious about tomorrow David. It's going to be my first introduction to most of these people and aside from my student teaching, I've never really been in charge of large groups of kids. What if I screw up, or they don't listen, or something goes wrong with the special ed kids?"

"That was certainly a bit more coherent than yelling Help David." David said with a chuckle "I can understand you're nervous Blaine, I know I was when I started with the firm last year, but you have this. You are dealing with kids here Blaine 5-11 years old. These aren't hardened criminals, they are cute little kids. You teach the younger ones to sing The Wheels on the Bus and the older ones to read music and you will be fine."

"Thanks man, I needed to hear that. It's just crazy though you know, four months ago I was hanging out on campus, trying to finish my independent study and trying to figure out which bar I was going to head to for the weekend. Now here I am and it seems like all of a sudden I am expected to be this adult, and be responsible and … I don't know it's just weird" Blaine looked up at the ceiling fan from where he was laying in the center of his bed as he talked.

"You know what is weird Blaine?" David asked sarcastically "Hearing all of this from the most adult like high school kid I ever met. Blaine, by the time you were a freakin Junior, you were pulled together, polite and better spoken than most adults I know. Now I know that a lot of that was an act and not really you, but if you could pull it off then, you can pretend to be an adult now if you need to. Honestly though, you're dealing with kids, let yourself have a little fun and relax"

"Thanks man, I'm serious. I needed that. I'm gonna go grab some dinner and pull together what I need for tomorrow. I'll text ya or give a call and let you know how it goes."

"Don't tell me you are going to cook Anderson?" David laughed

"Hey don't dis the kitchen skills! I'll talk to ya tomorrow" Blaine replied

"Later Blaine"


Dinner ended up being frozen microwave lasagna, not that Blaine would ever tell David that. Blaine knew how to cook, actually well, but there was a difference between when he used to cook for he and Jon or for the study groups at school and cooking for just himself. Eventually he would have to start cooking, and freezing the rest for later, but right now the microwave was his best friend. Well probably the microwave and his coffee pot, college had turned him into even more of a coffee addict than Starbucks had.

Dinner done, paper plate disposed of and fork thrown in the sink Blaine decided it was time to tackle some more of the unpacking. So far he had been pulling stuff out of boxes as he needed it, and not with any type of system. As a result, there were half unpacked boxes in virtually every room of the apartment. Stepping back into the bedroom Blaine figured that working on his wardrobe would be a good place to start.


4:30 is what the clock on the bed side table read. So far Blaine had seen 1:00, 2:12, 2:56 and 3:40. Normally he slept like the dead, but it seemed like the excitement and anxiety for the coming day had him too on edge to actually sleep. The alarm being set for 5:30 anyway, Blaine decided that getting a start on his day was probably a better decision than trying to get back to sleep … again.

Sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in hand Blaine found himself thinking back on the decisions that had brought him here.

"So Mr Anderson" Professor Jackson began "How are you enjoying Wooster so far?"

"I absolutely love it, honestly. In a lot of ways it reminds me of Dalton. The people are so friendly and welcoming and I love the fact that there are so many musical opportunities. The campus is beautiful"

"I'm glad to hear that. I figured that for our initial meetings we could get to know each other a bit better. Since you applied directly into the music department, I will be your adviser for the next four years so we should get used to each other." Professor Jackson said with a smile.

"Actually Professor Jackson," Blaine replied "That is apt to be five years not four. My plan is to double major in Music Education and Music Therapy and I know that is a five year program."

"I'm impressed Mr Anderson, most incoming freshmen have no idea what they want to major in, much less what they want to do beyond getting a degree. Can I ask what brought you to the decision."

"Well, music has been a huge part of my life. I belonged to the Warblers at Dalton and singing just became a way for me to express myself. I think the deciding factor, or at least the one that started the thought process, was when I was in the hospital for a month before I transferred to Dalton. One of the things that stuck out in my mind from that time is the musicians that used to come in and sing on the ward to us kids. I saw how much music meant to some of the kids that were there and it seems like a way to combine my love of music and help people at the same time."

"I can see how that could be a pivotal memory. Do you mind if I ask about the hospital stay? If I am overstepping just let me know, but I like to get to know my students individually and you are by far one of the most composed and mature freshmen I have had the opportunity to meet."

Blaine hesitated only for a moment, weighing how much of the story to tell. Even four years later he was still a bit nervous about how people would react. "I don't tell many people this story, to be honest, but if we are going to be working closely for the next few years I need to make sure that this isn't going to end up being a problem. My freshman year of high school I came out, both to my parents and my friends at school. My parents kind of chose to ignore it, but school was rough. The kids were cruel, some more than others and it escalated from taunts to physical altercations. Midway through the year a group of the jocks cornered me after school and frankly beat the shit out of me."

"I wake up every morning Mr Anderson and pray that something like that doesn't happen to my son, and I'm sorry that you had to go through it. I do want to let you know that we have a very active GSA here on campus that I am actually the faculty adviser for. We would love to have you join us sometime. We do a lot of outreach in the community as well as coordinate with some off campus groups for meetings and support."

Blaine didn't hesitate at all in his reply "Wow, thank you. Dalton was wonderful and I made some great friends there that accepted me for me, but I would love to get involved with the larger community. Just tell me where and when and I will be there"

Blaine smiled at the memories. Professor Jackson had become a good friend as well as adviser over the years. Spectrum, the GSA, had become a huge part of his life and for the first time he really felt a part of something. The Warblers, in particular David and Wes, had always been wonderful friends but the group he met in college let him realize that there were more people like himself than he had imagined.

Looking down at his watch he realized that it was already 6:00 and that he had to get ready for his first day on the job. Pushing back from the table he stepped towards the bedroom to start getting ready for the next chapter in his life.


AN: I'm torn between shorter quicker updates and writing longer chapters that may only update once or max twice a week. Any thoughts on the subject?

FYI – since the question has been asked: Yes I went to the College of Wooster in Ohio. It is a small private college North east of Columbus. And yes I was involved with the GSA there in the 80s. I actually got elected "public" president cause the actual non-ally members wanted someone straight to represent the group in public. And we had about 8 ppl.

To come: Class schedules, meeting the other teachers and memories of college