Kurt let himself into the apartment and laid his coat over the chair closest to the door. Sam was there in a heartbeat, pulling into hug and just holding him. "I'm here."
"Thank you. I'm going to go shower, and then we can talk."
Sam cleaned his art supplies up, hung up Kurt's coat and waited for Kurt in the bed.
Kurt came out, turned off the last light and climbed in bed and lay flat on his back.
"I know you need time to decompress before you talk, but is it okay if I hold your hand?"
Kurt reached across the center of the bed and took Sam's hand and intertwined their fingers. They lay there silently for a long time.
Eventually, Kurt spoke. "He lied to my dad about why we broke up. By only telling my dad that I broke up with Blaine, but not why, I left it open for speculation. Blaine told him it was because we couldn't handle the distance and that it was just temporary until he moved to New York."
"That doesn't even make sense."
"I know, but all my dad heard was that it wasn't over, it was just temporarily on hiatus. He thought I still loved Blaine. He wanted to bring him here to make me happy. I'm not angry with my dad. I should have told him the whole truth from the beginning. It was just so humiliating. Blaine went nuts accusing me of cheating when I spent a few days texting Chandler and then he lets a random fuck him when I'm gone for two weeks. That's not the type of relationship I want to be in."
"I remember. I wanted to ring his neck about that. He humiliated you and then you took him back. Do you think he slept with someone to get you to go back to Lima? You had only been here 2 weeks. I wonder if he thought that if he could convince you that it was your fault, that you'd come back to Lima and wait for him to graduate."
"I don't know. I don't even care anymore. It's over. He's never going to be part of my life."
"So, your dad is sleeping in the loft. How long is he staying?"
"You know, I never even got around to asking. We went to the show, got hot chocolate, he told me he has cancer, we went back to the loft, he told me to go pick up my gift - Blaine, I brought him back, I told Dad the truth, he marched us to the airport, we came back, we talked, and I came back home. He never said how long he was staying. I just assumed for the weekend."
"The best part of that whole long thing was that you said you came home."
"We made this our home this past week. Our combined effort can be seen everywhere in this place. I'm really tired. Can I sleep on you?"
Sam lifted his arm and made room for Kurt to scoot over and lay on him. He wrapped his arm around Kurt and kissed him on the top of the head.
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Kurt woke up before Burt called. He gently woke Sam up with a kiss. "We need to talk a bit more before I go bring my dad down here."
"Um, okay." Sam stretched and then wrapped his arms back around Kurt. "What did you want to talk about?"
"Us. What do you want my dad to know about us? He already knows that we are living here together, that you are going to finish high school, and that you are sleeping in my bed. He has no idea that we are together. Do you want him to know?"
"Well, given how things have gone from you keeping secrets from him, it seems to me that it would be in our best interest to tell him the truth."
"That would mean coming out to him."
"Kurt, I'm out. It may not seem like I'm out because I'm not posting it on Facebook or calling up all of the old Glee members and telling them. They aren't really part of my life. I don't feel the need to tell any of them, but I am not hiding who I am here. We've walked around all week holding hands. The dude at the hardware store knows were together. The people you work with know. The people I will be going to school with will figure it out if they spend any time talking to me. We're together. I want to be with you. I'm not hiding who I am. I'm your boyfriend. End of story. If people don't like it, that's their problem, not mine."
"Okay then. Do you want to tell him anything first or do you just want me to tell him before I bring him down?"
"Why don't you let me go bring him down and I'll just tell him myself?"
"Okay."
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Sam stepped inside when Burt opened the door.
"You're not Kurt."
"No, I'm not, but I wanted to talk to you, so here I am."
"So, sit. We'll talk. I wasn't thrilled when you just vanished. I assumed you had gone home. That's sort of the way the letter read that you left behind."
"I did go home. Just not in the way you think. About mid-October, I was in a real funk. I was repeating my senior year. Everyone I was friends with was gone. And Kurt had been gone about a month. I did a lot of soul searching. Deep soul searching. I realized that I was in love with Kurt. I realized that I'm gay and I'm in love with Kurt. I would have never made a move, if he had stayed with Blaine. But Blaine was terrible for him. I never liked Blaine and the feeling was mutual, until this year when he started acting like we could be best bros. Like he was sort of coming on to me. It was super gross, not because he's a guy, but because I don't like him at all."
"Well the feeling's mutual on that one, kid. So, you're gay and in love with Kurt. That's interesting because he liked you from day one. He came home the day you joined Glee in an upbeat mood. He told me about wanting to sing with you and I discouraged him. I took Finn's side. I don't know whether that was the right or wrong thing to do, but it was a long time ago. He thought you might be gay, but I told him to find someone who was out and proud like him. That was bad advice. He should have chosen someone who cared for him over choosing someone who was out. He would have been better off in a relationship with someone who truly loved him than someone who treated him the way that grease stain did. If you're that guy, then good."
"I would never cheat on Kurt. I really do love him. He and I have been friends for over two years. I know his strong points, his weaknesses and I'm completely aware of his faults and idiosyncrasies. I lived with you all for nearly 14 months, 11 of them with Kurt there. I've seen him melt down, be hyper, bake excessively, mope, you name it. I still love him. I missed him so much when he left. I would have come here to be with him, even if he didn't want to date. He really is the best friend I've ever had."
"Does he know that you love him?"
"I haven't told him yet, no. He knows though. I know he knows."
"Well, I appreciate you being honest with me. Shall we go down and decorate this tree I brought?"
"Excellent idea. I'll carry it down. I have the key. I can lock the door once you're out. So, you go first. Just one more thing, first."
"What's that?"
"You can tell Carole, but please don't tell Finn about me being here. Kurt and Rachel have some sort of secrecy pact going until she gets up the nerve to tell Finn that she has a new roommate. Kurt says it's not his place to tell Finn - that it's Rachel's. But if Finn finds out that Kurt has moved out, he'll start asking questions about Rachel and I don't want that blow up to get blamed on me."
"I got it, kid. Kurt already told me that I can't tell anyone that he moved out except Carole. I figured you being here was part of that. But you're not hiding your relationship with Kurt around here are you?"
"No. Not at all. People are going to find out. I'm not hiding anything. I'm just not broadcasting my current location to nosy people who feel like it's their business to tell Kurt or me how to live our lives. I want a chance, a real chance with Kurt. I really do love him and I don't want everyone we know trying to butt in. But here, no one has an agenda of interfering. I can only imagine what Blaine would try to do. He won't give up. I'll tell you that. He thinks that he and Kurt are soulmates."
Burt picked up the small box of ornaments and stepped out the door. Sam slid the door shut and locked it and headed down the stairs. Burt followed.
"Soulmates, my ass," Burt said on his way down the stairs. "You don't cheat on your soulmate."
Sam unlocked the door and opened it to let Burt go through first.
"Hey, Dad. Let's put the stand over between the windows and set the tree up there."
Burt put the box of ornaments on the table. He put the tree stand down on the floor and Sam held the tree in place while Burt adjusted the stand. Kurt gave directions on which way to lean the tree until they got it in straight.
Burt took a look around the apartment. "It looks really nice in here. So, give me the tour."
Kurt excitedly started the tour. "So, here is the kitchen. We added the cabinets, the countertop and the shelving ourselves. Sam built the shelf. To this side with have the dining area with a table we refinished. A bookcase we built. Over in this empty spot will be the couch that we're picking up tomorrow. We built this room divider to give us a separate bedroom area. In there is the bathroom." Burt leaned in to have a look. Sam and Kurt stepped into the far corner of the bedroom. "And this is the bedroom. We built the bed frame. Sam built the shoe caddies underneath that side and the shelf here under the window. I made the curtains and fabric pieces for the room divider. We refinished these dressers. And of course, all of the paintings are Sam's creations."
"Well, this place is great. You two have done a bang up job on getting it looking fantastic in what, less than a week?"
"About a week yes. We didn't get everything moved in until Monday, but we started building on Saturday - a week ago," Kurt answered.
"Well, it looks fantastic."
"Thanks," Sam said.
"How long are you staying?" Kurt asked.
"I'm flying out Monday morning, pretty early. I didn't want Carole to have to come pick me up in the dark Sunday night. You know how she doesn't really like driving in the dark that much. We'll go out for a nice breakfast and then drive the rest of the way to Zanesville from there. We'll head back to Lima on Wednesday."
"Well, Rachel won't be back until early January and her roommate won't be back until after that. So, there's no issue with you staying in the loft."
"Well, that saves me a lot of money on a hotel, so thank you. Is there anything else you boys need that you haven't gotten already? I don't see a TV anywhere."
"Rachel got the TV in the 'divorce' as my boss calls it." Kurt laughed.
"Seems like she got most everything."
"Well, I got $1000 cash for her keeping my half of the stuff. So, that's what we've been using to fix this place up and build and buy what we needed. We've got money left from that. We were going to hit some pawn shops and thrift stores today. Sam needs a winter coat and boots since he'll be walking to school."
"Well, don't let me stop you. We'll go grab my coat and go out for breakfast and shop."
"You want to go shopping with us? Now, that's a surprise." Kurt laughed.
"I just want to spend time with you. I came here to be with you. If you'd rather not go out, we can go back up to the loft and you can cook for me and we can sit around and talk more."
"You're serious. You'll go out with us to pick out a used TV and a coat and boots?"
"Sure. I was serious. Let's go grab my coat."
Sam handed Kurt the loft key and grabbed his vest and Kurt's coat and they headed out the door.
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"Let's look around."
The three of them looked in different areas.
"Hey, Kurt." Sam waved him over to look. "The DVDs are 3/$10 and the series are just $6 for each season. They have all of the Stargate SG-1 seasons."
"Pick them up. I'll be right back."
"Excuse me." Kurt asked the guy behind the counter. "Do you ever give discounts on bulk buys? The DVD series back there are $6 per season, but let's say I buy all 10 seasons of a particular show, would you go for $50 for all of them?"
"You buying a TV?"
"Yes."
"Then, yeah. I'll knock $10 off the DVDs."
"Thank you!"
Kurt walked back over and took the whole stack of DVDs out of Sam's arms and carried them back up to the counter. He went right back to the TVs they were looking at.
"So how about this TV?" Burt asked. "It's not huge, but it's got a nice picture and the price is decent."
"Sounds good."
"Let's see if they've got a DVD player."
They looked around some more and found a few. Kurt picked one up and took it to the counter and got in line.
"Can you hook this up and show us that it works?"
"Sure." He took it from Kurt's hand and plugged it into a TV behind the counter and stuck a DVD in it and played it.
"That looks good," Kurt said. "Do you have one of those cables you're using to hook the DVD player to the TV?"
"Yeah."
"I'll take one of those too, please."
Burt walked up behind him and said, "Ring that DVD player up separately. I'm paying for that."
The guy nodded. He gave Burt his total and he paid.
Next, he gave Kurt the total and he paid. He stuck the cord in the bag and carefully carried the TV and the bag of DVDs to the door. Sam grabbed the DVD bag and opened the door for Kurt. They put the TV in the back seat and drove back to the apartment to put it inside since it was so cold. Sam put the bag of DVDs and the DVD player on the table next to the TV.
"You didn't have to buy those DVDs."
"I know. I wanted to. I know how much you like the show and I like it too. I've never seen all of them. We'll watch them together." He hugged Sam and kissed him. "It's a present for both of us to enjoy together." Kurt locked the door back. He kissed Sam again and took his hand and went back out to the car where Burt was waiting for them until they came back outside. They were walking to breakfast and the thrift store.
"Thanks for the DVD player, Dad," Kurt said, as he opened the car door and Burt got out.
"Well, I think it was a much better gift that my first one."
"So, breakfast?" Kurt asked, ignoring the reference to Blaine.
"Yes. Let's go eat and then find Sam a real coat before he turns into a popsicle in that vest."
Sam laughed. "I'll make it for a little while. We're having a warm spell."
"It's 35 degrees outside."
"That's warmer than 20 with a foot of snow."
"I'm sure that's coming in January some time," Burt said.
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Kurt carried one of the chairs from the loft down to their apartment so they could all eat dinner at the table together. Burt sat in the leather chair that Kurt had kept for himself and Kurt and Sam moved the vintage chairs that normally sat up to their table over into the living room area while they were talking.
"So, because it's a holiday, we're going to order a pizza - a good one from my favorite place. I'm going to go call it in."
He came back. "They said 45 minutes. So, let's put on some Christmas music and decorate the tree while we wait."
Kurt and Sam strung the set of lights on the tree first, and then they put on the ornaments. Burt or Kurt told the story of each of the ornaments that he brought with him. Not long after they finished, there was a knock at the door.
Burt answered the door and gave the driver a tip. "Thanks. Merry Christmas!"
Burt put the pizza on the table and opened the box. Sam grabbed napkins and poured them some drinks and put them on the table. Kurt grabbed plates, and then moved the two chairs back over to the table.
"This is really good," Burt said.
"I thought you'd like it."
After they finished eating and cleaned everything up, Kurt turned all the lights off and they admired the tree.
"It looks great, Dad. Thanks for coming and bringing the tree and the ornaments."
"I'm glad I came."
Sam got his guitar out and the three of them sang a few Christmas songs before Burt headed back upstairs.
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Kurt and Sam got up early the next morning and went grocery shopping. They hadn't been in so long that they decided to take Sam's car and drive to a large grocery store and stock up. They had just about gotten everything put away when Burt called saying that he was up.
Kurt left Sam to finish up and he went upstairs to meet Burt and lock the loft before they came back down. "Just grab your coat now, in case you need it later."
"Come in for a few minutes. I want to talk to you."
"Okay." Kurt sat down on the couch and Burt sat in the chair facing him.
"I just want to ask you a few questions. You didn't just decide Friday night to defer your enrollment did you?"
"No, I had already decided that. I just hadn't told you yet. I'm not 100% certain that NYADA is where I want to go and I can't see spending that much money if I'm not sure. I've visited some other schools in the last month that I really liked. I sent in several applications for fall admission. We'll see what happens. I'm going to spend my afternoons off each week visiting the schools I applied to. I'm going to scope out the classes and the instructors. I want to make sure I'm making the right choice for myself. It's a big commitment of time and money."
"Okay. I just wanted to be sure. The other thing is Sam. He told me yesterday morning that he's gay and the two of you are dating now. I'm fine with that, as I'm sure you've already figured out."
Kurt nodded. "I assumed so. You didn't act upset about it. I knew he was going to tell you yesterday morning."
"I know you two have been friends for a long time, but do you actually like him romantically?"
"Yes, Dad. I had a crush on him way back when. That only went into the 'can't have that' file. It didn't go away. It's like when you see one of those trucks you'd love to have. Wanting it doesn't go away just because you know you could never spend $60,000 on a truck. I never stopped liking him. I just didn't do anything about it. Now, that I know he likes guys and me in particular, the 'can't have that label' got taken off. Just like if someone changed the price on the truck you want to $1. You'd get right in line to get one. He's really super sweet. He always has been. If he had realized he was gay back then, I'm not sure what I would have done because I wouldn't have wanted him to be treated the way I was. Maybe a secret boyfriend - I don't know. And it doesn't matter. He's here now. We're both adults now. What other people in Lima think doesn't matter anymore. I hope he doesn't get bullied at his new school, but I don't think it's that likely. The school has pretty strict rules."
"Do you love him?"
"Yes."
"Okay then, let's go eat whatever you're making for breakfast." He grabbed his coat and Kurt locked the door and followed him down the stairs.
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"Well, I guess I'm having whatever Sam is cooking because it smells good," Burt said as he walked through their apartment door.
"Well, it's eggs, turkey bacon, and toast."
"Sounds perfect," Burt said as he sat down at the table.
Kurt plated his food and took it to him. He walked back over to where Sam was cooking. "Thanks for starting everything."
"You're welcome. How do you want your eggs?"
"Scrambled is fine."
Kurt took over cooking the rest of the bacon.
"When did you boys go shopping? This place was barren last night."
"Oh, we got up early this morning and took Sam's car to a big grocery store and stocked up. Usually I just go to the small market down the street because it was too hard to go so far away just to save a little money. Trying to carry stuff back in a backpack along with carrying bags in my hands on the subway or while walking a long ways is hard to do. But since he brought his car with him, we'll be able to go out like once a month and stock up, and then just fill in with stuff from the place down the street."
"So, what's the plan today?"
"Well, we need to leave about 12:30 to take the subway to Soho and pick up the rental truck. We'll drive it to the loft where we're getting the couch. We'll bring the couch back here in the truck, and then return the truck to the drop-off in Bushwick and walk back home."
"Okay."
"So, we'll be back with the couch about 2:45. And then by the time we walk back home again, it will be about 3:30."
"How about I come and then I'll stay when you take the truck back."
"You want to go on the subway with us to Soho?"
"I want to see your life here, Kurt. I want to know about what it's like for you. So, yeah, I want to go with you on the subway."
"Alright then."
Kurt cleared the dishes and washed them once everyone had finished.
"So tell me about working at Vogue."
Kurt started talking and didn't stop until it was time to go to the subway.
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Burt held the door open for Kurt and Sam as the carried the couch in from the U-Haul. Then he went up the stairs and unlocked the door to the apartment and went right back down to sit in the truck. They brought the couch up and sat it down where they wanted it. Kurt grabbed a clean rag and got it damp and wiped the couch down quickly. Sam went back out to the truck to switch places with Burt.
Burt came in the room. "That's really nice couch."
"I like the way it looks. I hope it's comfortable. You can try it out while we're gone. We'll be back as soon as we can."
Kurt was out the door and back down to the truck in a flash.
He slid to the center position, even though Burt wasn't in the truck anymore. He squished right up against Sam. Sam gave him a questioning look. Kurt took his opening and kissed him.
"I see. Taking advantage of no dad around."
"Exactly."
"Good idea." He kissed Kurt again before he started to pull out to take the truck back. "Tell me which way to go. I don't know where the return location is."
"Why don't we just switch positions? It will be easier."
Sam put the truck in park and got out and went and got in on the other side and Kurt scooted over into the driver's seat. He pulled out and drove straight to the U-Haul lot. They got out, went inside to pay the bill, and left hand in hand to walk back.
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They got back to the apartment about 3:30, like Kurt had figured. Burt was napping on the couch when they got back. He woke up when they shut the door.
"Sorry, Dad. I didn't mean to let the door slip."
"It's fine. I don't want to sleep while you're here. The couch is comfortable. It's really nice." He sat up and let them sit down too.
"I like it."
"Me too. It's long enough to lie down on. And the cushions are pretty deep. I don't feel like I'm sitting on one of those kid-sized couches," Sam said.
"It's a man-sized couch," Kurt said in a deep voice and then started laughing.
"Well it is," Sam said elbowing him in the ribs, but not hard.
"So, what do you do around here for fun?" Burt asked Kurt.
"Well, fun usually costs money, so I avoid having any," Kurt teased. "Well, I'm me still, Dad. I read books. I read magazines. I watch makeover shows online. I do odds and ends alterations for people for extra cash. I watch British TV shows. A lot of the same stuff I did in Lima."
"You don't go out to, I don't know, dance clubs or anything?"
"Well, Rachel likes this place called 'Callbacks', but I don't care for it. You know I'm not the get drunk and party type. And I totally despise being groped, so I don't go out to dance clubs alone. I might go to an 18 and up place now that Sam's here, if he wants to go to one."
"So, what's the big deal about being here instead of being in Lima if you mostly sit at home and do the same things you did in Lima?"
"Well, I guess part of it is the freedom of being myself. I could wear the craziest outfit I've ever come up with and go out walking around and be assured that someone would be wearing something even crazier. I can walk around holding a guy's hand and I might get some looks, but overall people are more tolerant. I'm sure there are places and areas that are completely unsafe for gay people. I don't know exactly. I may not stay here forever. I may stay here long enough to go to school and then move on. I applied to a few places in upstate New York. I might go there if offered the right financial package. I just needed to go out into the great big world and be myself for a while."
"I heard how much fun you're having at Vogue, but why there instead of working as a mechanic where you could make so much more money?"
"Same thing. I wanted to try something new. This position is only for the school year. They hire new interns every fall. So, unless I get offered a regular position next fall that pays more, I'll more than likely go back to working on cars because I'll need to make more money working fewer hours. The lease here ends in August just like the one I had in the loft. The person who was living here broke their lease. The Super doesn't want leases that start at different times of the year, so we signed a 8-month lease with these two weeks in December as pro-rated for the time we've been here."
"I see."
Kurt got up and moved to the kitchen to start prepping dinner. Sam saw what he was doing and went to help. They all kept talking while Kurt and Sam prepped and cooked everything. Burt saw them working together as well as they always did at home. He smiled. Seeing Kurt happy made him happy.
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"Well, that was delicious, as always, boys. So, are we going to watch Miracle on 34th Street or some other Christmas movie?"
"Why don't we see what's on Netflix and Amazon? Sam can you set the whole thing up while I wash the dishes?"
"Sure."
A few minutes later, Burt was looking through the choices. "We haven't watched this one in ages. How about Frosty or there's The Santa Claus or Rudolph. There's a bunch."
"The Santa Claus is funny. We haven't watched that one in ages."
"The Santa Claus it is, then." Sam left it up on the screen to click as soon as Kurt was ready. He went in the kitchen to help him finish.
Sam pressed play. Kurt turned off the lights and they both sat down on the couch. Kurt reached over and took Sam's hand and intertwined the fingers.
When the movie finished, Sam turned everything off.
"Well, it's been great being here with you two this weekend. Thanks for all of the great meals. I'll be heading out before breakfast in the morning. I'll be eating once I meet up with Carole and Finn, like I said before. I have a cab scheduled to come at 5:00."
"We'll be up to meet you and walk you out," Kurt said.
"Are you sure?"
"I'll have to lock the loft door when you leave. There's no way to lock it without the key."
"Alright then."
"I'll walk you upstairs too. Come on." Kurt grabbed Rachel's chair and took it with him. He unlocked the door to let them in. Burt walked in first. Kurt put the chair back up to the table.
"I'm really glad you came, Dad. I know it was a rough start, but I want to know about your treatments and how things are going. I'll try to do better about being more open about what's going on, but you have to do the same."
"I will." Burt pulled Kurt into a big bear hug. "I promise."
"Get some sleep. We'll be up here at 4:50 to walk you down and wait with you."
"Good night, kiddo."
"Night, Dad."
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They got up at 4:40 and walked up to the loft. Kurt locked the door behind them. Sam carried Burt's suitcase.
They waited outside for the cab to arrive.
"I'm glad we found that coat Saturday, Sam. I feel better knowing that you aren't going to freeze while walking to school," Burt said.
"Me too. It's really warm."
The cab arrived on time. Sam put Burt's suitcase in and Burt hugged both of them again and then got in the cab. They waved as he rode off.
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They hung up their coats, took off their boots and got back into bed. "Will you sleep on me like I sleep on you sometimes?"
"Won't I squish you?"
"I don't think so. You're only a little taller than me and I bet you only weigh like 20 pounds more than I do. Everyone thinks I'm so skinny, but I'm not. I just wear clothes that are a lot more form fitting than the rest of the guys, so I guess it just seems like I am a lot smaller. Some time, I'll show you."
"Is that a promise?" Sam teased.
"Whenever you're ready," Kurt teased back.
"Is that so?"
"It is. Come on. Please come over here and sleep on me. If you squish me, I'll say so."
"Okay." Sam scooted closer and lay on Kurt like he wanted.
"Mmm." Kurt wrapped his arms around Sam. "I like this."
"Me too."
"Don't worry. You're not squishing me."
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"Kurt, wake up." Sam kissed him on the cheek. "You're going to be late for work. You forgot to set your alarm when we went back to sleep."
"Sam, sweetie, lie back down. I'm off today. Snuggle me," Kurt said sleepily.
"Your wish is my command," he said.
"Oh, really?" Kurt asked provocatively.
"Maybe. I guess it depends on the wish, now that I think about it."
"I see, a conditional genie," Kurt laughed. "Maybe my luck improves if I rub the lamp."
Sam blushed.
"I'm just teasing you."
"I know."
"I'm so glad you are here. My life is just better when you're with me."
"Mine too." Sam kissed Kurt and the intensity built quickly. Kurt ended up on top of Sam, full on making out. Sam was bucking up.
Kurt pulled himself together enough to ask, "Do you want me to move off of you? I will if you want me to."
"Stay." Sam went back to kissing Kurt.
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Kurt's arms and legs were all wrapped around and intertwined with Sam's. Sam was very quiet and still.
"Are you okay?"
"So much better than okay. That was amazing!"
"You had me worried. You were so quiet."
"Just enjoying everything. I've never, well you know I've never done that with anyone."
"Me either. I've never done most of the stuff we've done. Snuggling, lying like this. Sleeping on someone. The spontaneous kissing and handholding."
"But you and..."
"Yeah, well he scheduled everything and we went the first 8 months with nothing more than barely more than chaste kisses."
"And then you know about the pact. He got drunk at Scandals and tried to force me in the back of his car."
"Oh, God. I didn't know."
"I know you didn't. I'm sure he would have been sporting a black eye at some point if you had found out."
"Damn right."
"No one else knows. He spent that whole evening dancing and flirting with Sebastian. I caved the next night because I was afraid of losing him. I was alone. I was back at McKinley where supposedly I was so 'wanted' that Santana bullied Dave into the Bully Whips to get me back. But once I was back, it was back to the usual 'ignore Kurt' status quo that had always been. He had taken Tony from me. Rachel was running against me for class president. I was at rock bottom. I was convinced I was destined to play the duly devoted supportive boyfriend role to my more desirable, less gay but still gay, boyfriend who was inherently more talented than I was and I felt like I had to do whatever it took to keep him. Sebastian took great pleasure in constantly reminding me that Blaine was too good for me - that he was going to seduce him away from me. I was too gay to be accepted by another gay teen. Sebastian was the second out gay teen guy I had met. He was as unaccepting as the straight jocks had been at McKinley. My self-esteem was pretty much gone. Right before the Jackson-off, he walked into the Lima Bean. Blaine, Artie, Santana, and Rachel were there with me. He walked straight up to us and one of the first things he said was something like, 'I almost didn't recognize you there, Kurt. You're wearing boy clothes for once.' Blaine said nothing. None of them did. That had gone on in private for months - since the week of the Scandals incident. He hung out at the Lima Bean just to harass me. And the taunts always included how Blaine was too good and I was going to lose him."
"Kurt..."
"I know. I know. I didn't stand up for myself enough. I mean I did snark back. I didn't just take his insults lying down, but unfortunately they burrowed into my mind, always there at the back nagging me that I wasn't good enough. Then Blaine stepped in front of me with the slushie. He dove. If he had just stayed out of the way, it would have hit my clothes, which were leather. It wouldn't have done much damage. I could have cleaned and conditioned it. But it hit him in the face and he had to have surgery. I didn't hear the end of how he sacrificed for me. Blah, blah, blah. Did you know he never got slushied at McKinley? I lost count after a hundred when I was a freshman. He stepped in front of what was supposedly a regular slushie once and he was a hero in his own mind."
"Wow."
"You know all of those cards, gifts, and flowers I got, and the Gorillagram for Valentine's Day?"
"Yeah, I remember."
"Those weren't from Blaine."
"What? Who sent them?"
"Dave."
"Karofsky?"
"The one and only. That's another long story I'll tell you sometime, but I've gotten way off track. Everything with Blaine was scheduled. There was nothing romantic or spontaneous or really 'fun' about it. All of this with you is amazing. We flirt, we tease, we laugh, we snuggle. You let me sleep on you. You seem to like being close to me."
"I do. So much. So, so much. I have a hard time keeping my hands to myself."
"Don't keep your hands to yourself on my account," Kurt teased again.
"Is that so?"
"It is. I happen to like your hands on me."
Sam moved to put his hands on Kurt. "How about here? Or here? Or maybe here?" Sam was moving his hands around random places and Kurt started laughing. And Sam started kissing him.
"Ooh. And your lips. I like them on me too," Kurt added.
Sam started kissing him everywhere. Kurt was wearing long sleeves and long pants pajamas, but Sam kissed him all sorts of places making Kurt laugh even more. "How about here?" Kurt's elbow. "Or here?" Kurt's temple. "Or here?" Kurt's bicep.
"Definitely all of those places." Kurt laughed even harder.
He moved to straddle Kurt and pushed his shirt up and blew raspberries on his stomach right after he asked "How about here?" again. He pushed his shirt back down and went back to kissing him on the lips. They started making out all over again and this time Sam ended up on top of Kurt.
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"Okay, okay. I have to catch my breath. Oh, my God. That was as amazing as the first time. You're going to be the death of me."
"Oh, I think you're young and strong and I think you're going to be just fine," Kurt teased.
"Oh, I'm way more than fine. But my pajamas aren't. And neither are yours. I need a shower."
"Me too, but you can go first."
Sam got up and went in the bathroom. When Kurt heard the water turn on, he went into the bathroom too.
"You need any help in there?"
"I'm pretty sure I've got it covered. I've been doing this all by myself for about 14 years or so."
"But it's so lonely doing it all by yourself," Kurt said coyly. "I'm sure it would be much more interesting if you let me help you."
"I've let you help me twice this morning already. That's how I ended up in here."
"Well, if you're sure, I'll just be outside waiting until it's my turn."
Sam pulled the curtain back a bit and Kurt saw his finger indicating for him to get in the shower.
"I don't want to pressure you. I was really just playing. I mean I do want to get in there with you, but I'm okay with waiting if you don't want me to or you're just not ready."
He was still being summoned. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. I was just playing around. Come on."
Kurt took his pajamas off and climbed in.
"You're right. You're not scrawny. You're all lean muscle. You just have narrower shoulders, probably from never lifting weights. You're gorgeous."
"I'm glad you think so. You are beautiful. Inside and out. Can I wash your hair?"
"Sure." Kurt took the shampoo and lathered Sam's hair up and massaged his scalp.
"God, you make everything sexy. How can you washing my hair be such a turn on?"
Kurt turned him so the water was flowing through his hair. Once the shampoo was out and his face free of residual shampoo, Kurt stepped forward and started kissing him.
"You can do mine, if you want."
Sam washed Kurt's hair next.
"Wow, that feels amazing." Kurt turned and stepped back to rinse the shampoo out.
"Were you serious that I can touch you?"
"Yes, of course. We might have been horsing around, but I wouldn't say something if I didn't mean it."
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"Clearly, we didn't think this through. It's super warm in here and totally freezing out there and we have no clothes to put on in here," Kurt laughed.
"Well, we don't have to wear clothes to get back in bed."
"True. Are you proposing we spend all day in bed?"
"Well, maybe not all day. But maybe just the morning."
"Alright. I'm going to run for it." Kurt darted out the bathroom door and got under the covers. "I'm not sure we have enough covers for sleeping without any clothes on."
"We'll just have to cuddle," Sam said as he followed Kurt and got under the covers, but he was still on his own side of the bed.
"It's a good thing that my new favorite thing to do is cuddle."
"Oh, really?" Sam scooted closer.
"Definitely. I had no idea how much fun it was. And I bet naked cuddling is even better."
"I don't know. I've never tried it." Sam scooted even closer.
"Me neither."
"I'm game if you are." Sam kept scooting closer.
Kurt kissed Sam, and then flipped over on his side. "I'll be the little spoon first."
Sam scooted up behind him. "This okay?"
"Better than okay. Way better."
They lay that way for a few minutes, but Kurt flipped back over. "I like being able to see you better." He scooted up as much as he could and wiggled to intertwine their legs and wrapped his arms around Sam's neck. He started kissing him again.
"I don't think I can go a fourth round in one morning."
"Kissing doesn't have to lead to that. I just like kissing you." The kissing resumed.
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"So how many days are you off?" Sam asked while they were eating lunch.
"Just today and tomorrow. I'm off next Tuesday as well. It won't be so bad once school starts. You'll have something to do again. Maybe you can go out and look for a job while I'm at work."
"I definitely have to do that. I have a month to find one. Hopefully, it won't take that long."
"So, are you ready for a Stargate marathon?"
"Definitely. I'll clean this up and you can set everything up."
Sam washed the dishes and Kurt set everything up and brought the pillows and comforter from their bed and put them on the couch. Kurt started the DVD and snuggled up with Sam on the couch to watch. They spent the whole afternoon like that. It was the most enjoyable and relaxing afternoon they could ever remember having.
"If you died your hair back, you could totally cosplay as Daniel," Kurt said. "You'd need the right glasses though."
"It would be fun to go to one of the cons sometime."
"A future idea. Maybe we can save up and find a fun one to go to. You know I love to dress up."
"Do you want to watch more episodes or do something else?"
"Let's make cookies. We haven't baked together in a long time."
"Mmm. Christmas Eve Cookies. Good idea."
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They spent Christmas Day cuddled up on the couch binge watching Christmas movies until mid-afternoon.
"So, are we ready to make our first Christmas dinner together?"
"Completely ready. We got the stuff we needed Sunday morning - chicken, cheese, mushrooms, carrots, potatoes, broccoli. And we made cookies last night. I'm pretty sure we're set."
"Umm. There was something missing from your list."
"Really? What did I forget?" Kurt was legitimately concerned and started looking in the fridge.
Sam walked up behind him, pulled him back gently and shut the fridge. "I was being silly. You forgot the kisses."
"Oh, I didn't forget those. I have those with me here at home. I don't need to get them somewhere else." Kurt turned and kissed Sam. "See. Best kisses ever, right here at home."
Sam smiled and kissed him. "I see. I'd have to agree with your assessment of the quality of the home kisses."
"More cooking, less kissing or we'll never get dinner done."
"Kissing while we cook?"
"Deal."
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"I'm stuffed. We are good cooks, if I do say so myself," Sam said.
"I agree. Let's pack the rest of this stuff up and you can eat it for lunch this week."
Sam was being more of a distraction than a help, but Kurt was enjoying his affection too much to care. He has his arms wrapped around Kurt's waist while Kurt was attempting to put the food in some storage bowls.
"I'm going to go out tomorrow after you leave and look for a job."
"Okay. There are a lot of small shops around here. Maybe one of them is looking for someone. It would be a lot better than all of the commuting I'm doing. Some days, I really think I should just go to that repair shop about 8 blocks from here and apply for a job. It's not what I want to do, but I'd make more money doing it."
"Well, I guess it's always an option if something happens with the job you have. I think you have a lot of fun where you work now and that's worth something too."
"You're right. It is." He turned and wrapped his arms around Sam's neck and kissed him. "Having fun is actually a lot more important than I had realized."
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Sam waited about an hour after Kurt had left for work and then went out looking around the neighborhood to see if anyone had "Hiring" or "Help Wanted" signs up. He found a couple of places and he took applications and put them in a folder in his backpack. They both only paid minimum wage, so he was going to keep looking for a couple of days.
He went to the odds and ends store that he had gone to with Kurt. He looked through boxes for a long time and eventually found one flannel fitted sheet and one flannel flat sheet and a warm blanket the right size for their bed. He figured he couldn't go wrong for $20. He also found a couple of battery operated "candles". He grabbed those too. He took everything back to the apartment and stripped their bed and washed both sets of sheets and the new blanket. When they were dry, he folded the original sheets up and put them under the bed in one of the storage boxes. He remade the bed with the flannel sheets and the new blanket.
He went to the library that afternoon and got his own library card and checked out a few audio books, some music CDs, and a couple of painting techniques books.
He made big salads for dinner and kept them in the fridge. When it was close to time for Kurt to come home, he cooked some spicy chicken and shredded it. He had everything ready to serve when Kurt walked in. He put on his English butler persona that always made Kurt smile and laugh. He took Kurt's coat and bag and put them away for him.
"I'm so glad you're home. Dinner's ready whenever you want to eat." He gave Kurt a big hug and held him close. Kurt relaxed and hugged him back.
"Thank you. You spoil me by cooking for me."
"Nah. I just have plans that I'm excited for and I want to get to them sooner. By having dinner ready, I can speed up the process."
"Sounds intriguing. Let's eat then."
Sam pulled their salads out and put them on the table. They ate and Sam told him that he picked up a couple of applications and Kurt talked about his day at work.
"Speaking of jobs - I had told Isabelle that you were looking for a job. And today she pulled me into her office and told me about a friend of hers who has a cousin who apparently lives somewhere near here who is looking for someone to watch her son after school from 3-6 every day."
"Okay. That sounds okay, if the person is going to pay enough for me to pay my share of the bills here."
"Well, the situation is unusual, so she's not found anyone yet. Margaret is the child's mother's name. She is a student - I didn't catch where. Blaze is 8. Margaret has not needed childcare very often up to this point because she's been able to take all of her classes while Blaze was at school. But this upcoming semester, she has to take do some type of internship or something and she has to do it from 2-5 every afternoon. So, she needs someone to pick Blaze up from school and provide care until 6:00, when she can get home."
"Sounds okay still."
"The reason she hasn't been able to find anyone willing to watch Blaze so far is because Blaze is transgender. He will be attending a new school this semester as a boy. None of the kids at the new school will know. The school has individual bathrooms in the classrooms, so that will not be an issue."
"That doesn't bother me."
"I knew it wouldn't. So, do you want to call them and meet Blaze and see if you two hit it off and talk to Margaret about the pay?"
"Sure."
"Okay. I'll tell Isabelle tomorrow and see when we can arrange to meet them."
Kurt picked up their bowls and took them to the sink and washed them. Sam grabbed them and dried them and put them back on the shelf.
"I'm ready for whatever it is that you had planned." Kurt was right behind him and bouncing up onto his toes like he did when he was anticipating something.
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"Wait here for a minute and close your eyes," Sam said. He left the kitchen and went in the bathroom and turned the candles on that he bought earlier. He had already set up the music before Kurt came home. Sam turned all of the lights off. "Keep your eyes closed." He took Kurt by the hand and led him to the bathroom.
"What you have planned is in the bathroom?" Kurt asked when he heard Sam open the bathroom door.
"Open your eyes."
"Oooh, cool candles. What are we doing in the bathroom?"
"Showering."
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"We have the same problem as the other morning, now."
"Not exactly. Take one of the candles and go get in bed." Sam grabbed the other one and got in bed too.
"Ooh. You got flannel sheets. They're soft."
"Not as soft as you."
"Sweet talker."
"Truth teller. There's an extra blanket between the top sheet and the comforter too. So, now we can sleep without our pajamas." Sam leaned over Kurt and started the music. "I went to the library and checked out some CDs and some audiobooks. Music first though."
Kurt wrapped his arms around him before he could get back to his own side of the bed. "Gotcha."
"You did. Now what are you going to do with me?"
"Kiss the stuffings out of you," Kurt said as he squeezed him a little and kissed him.
"You already did that in the shower," he teased.
Kurt laughed. "I suppose I did." He kissed him again and let go of his tight hold.
Sam scooted back to his own side of the bed and lay on his side. "You're not giving up on your plan are you?"
"Definitely not." Kurt turned on his side and resumed the kissing.
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"What audiobooks did you get?"
"Well, I got the first Lord of the Rings book to start tonight." He climbed out of bed and switched the CD quickly and pressed play and got back into bed. He also turned off the candles.
"So your planned activity for the night is listening to books naked?"
"Seemed like a good idea at the time. Do you not like it?"
"Oh, I like it. Maybe too much. I may never want to do anything else in the evenings. It might be a bit hard to keep a straight face the next time someone asks me my favorite hobby though."
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Thursday evening, Kurt, Sam, Margaret, and Blaze met at the skating rink. Kurt squelched down the flashback of Friday evening's unwanted gift. Margaret rented skates for Sam and Blaze. They headed out onto the ice while Margaret and Kurt found a place to sit and watch them.
"So you and Sam live in Bushwick. How long have you lived here?"
"I moved here the middle of September. Sam just came here almost 2 weeks ago."
"Oh. I figured the two of you had been together for a long time. You're really comfortable together. Not like a new dating situation."
"Well, that's because we've been good friends for 2 years. He lived with me and my family for over 10 months before I came here. He was still living with them until he came here 2 weeks ago."
"So, he's in high school."
"Yeah. He'll graduate in May. He's 18 already though."
They sat and watched as Sam showed off and Blaze tried to imitate him.
"He's good with kids, it seems."
"He has a little brother and a little sister. They're about 7 and 9. He used to take care of them a lot."
"What else can you tell me about him?"
"Well, he's a really good artist. He's applied to several art schools. It's just the wait and see game now. He's also really good singer and he plays the guitar. I guess one thing that might make a difference for you is that he's dyslexic. So, if you're looking for someone to tutor Blaze in addition to just caring for him, Sam might not be the guy you're looking for."
"Actually, Blaze is ahead academically, but he does want to learn to play the guitar. And he draws comics."
"I bet Sam would be willing to teach him to play. And I know he'd love to draw with him." Kurt pulled up a few photos on his phone. "Here are a few of Sam's paintings."
"Oh, he is really good."
Kurt nodded. "Oh, look. He's gotten Blaze skating backwards a bit."
Margaret laughed. "I'm the worst skater, ever. He always wants to come here, but I'm no fun for him to skate with because I just hold on to the edge trying not to break my neck."
Kurt laughed. "I love to skate too, but I figured this would give them a chance to see how they get along."
"I think Blaze is easy to get along with. He's outgoing and willing to try just about anything, which is scary as a mom."
"I bet."
"I have to ask the hard question. How much are you offering? Sam has to find a job that will pay his half of the bills on our apartment. So far, he's just found a couple of places hiring at minimum wage and not enough hours."
"Well, honestly, I'm not the one paying. But if you tell me what Sam has to make, I will do my best to get Blaze's dad to agree to whatever. He doesn't want to be a part of Blaze's life. But legally, he has to continue to support him financially. So, the whole thing is on a hush-hush basis anyway because he doesn't want anyone to know he has a kid."
"So, it's not because Blaze is trans, he just doesn't want anyone to know he has a kid at all?"
"I had an affair, not really an affair, Blaze's dad, Tom, wasn't married. But he was a professor and I was a student. I got pregnant at 19. He wants to keep his squeaky clean reputation. I just want Blaze happy. So, Tom usually just gives me whatever I ask for since I never ask for unreasonable things like a Mazerati or something. If I tell him that Blaze wants a guitar, he'll just buy him one. More than likely, he'll just give me whatever I ask for so that I can finish my PhD this semester. He pays his child support on time every month. He's the perfect non-existent dad."
"That's unusual."
"I know. I'm just glad that he does it. He knew I didn't want to have an abortion. He lived up to his end of the responsibility. So, you didn't answer about how much Sam needs to make."
"Well, at least $700 a month."
"That's doable. Would he ever be available on the weekends or evenings?"
"Possibly, especially if you don't mind if I'm with him. Do you have a problem with Sam being gay? Or me being around?"
"Nope. Blaze could use some guy time."
"Well, I'm definitely not the 'guys' guy' type. I work at Vogue and I'm planning on majoring in musical theatre or something similar."
"That doesn't make you less of a guy."
"Blaze is lucky to have you as his mom."
Sam and Blaze came skating up to the side of the rink near where Kurt and Margaret were sitting.
"Mom, I want Sam to be the one to watch me. He's cool."
"Let's go back to the apartment and you can show him your drawings and we'll talk about it, okay?"
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"So, this is Shara and her super power is that she can make dinner out of anything and it tastes good."
"Oh, I would definitely want her to travel in my group if I had to go on a quest. Anyone that could make bugs and snakes and weeds taste good would be someone I'd want in my group. Who's this?"
"That's Aldridge. He's blind, but he can read people's minds."
"Ooh, that's a scary good superpower."
"What do you mean scary good?"
"Well, I think it would be scary to be able to hear other people's thoughts all the time. But he could use the power to do good things."
"Hmm. I think you're right. Hearing what other people think COULD be scary, especially if the other person is a bad guy."
"Who's this?"
"That's Yohan. His super power is that he can tell when people are telling the truth."
"Good super power."
Margaret and Kurt were watching their interactions the whole time and smiling. She stepped backward a bit, "He's perfect."
Kurt just nodded and stepped inside the room and went to look at the drawings too.
"This one is Setrina. Her super power is that she can sing any song."
"That's a superpower?" Kurt asked.
"Sure, why not? It's something that hardly anyone or no one else can do. That makes it super."
"You're right. Absolutely right," Kurt said.
"Did you know that Kurt might rival Setrina's power?" Sam responded.
"Really?" Blaze asked completely intrigued by the possibility.
Sam nodded. "Ask him to sing something."
"Umm. Sing the Rudolph song."
"You known Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixon. Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen. But do you recall the most famous reindeer of all?..." Kurt kept singing until he finished the song.
"Sing the song about Santa Coming to Town."
"You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout. I'm telling you why. Santa Claus is coming to town..." Kurt sang the whole song.
"Mom, mom. Kurt can sing like Setrina," Blaze turned and said excitedly. "Did you hear him?"
"I did. He's very good."
"Can I ask you a question?" Blaze looked straight a Kurt.
"Sure."
"You're a boy, right?"
"Yes."
"But you sound like a girl when you sing."
"I can sing lower, more like a boy normally sounds. But my voice type is called counter tenor."
"Sing lower."
"Let me think for a second." Kurt paused before he started to sing. "Hey, clear the way in the old bazaar. Hey you, let us through! It's a bright new star. Oh, come be the first on your block to meet his eye. Make way. Here he comes! Ring bells. Bang drums. Are you gonna love this guy! Prince Ali, fabulous he. Ali Ababwa. Genuflect, show some respect. Down on one knee..." During the sections with different voices, Kurt changed his voice to match the ones from the original song.
"That was AWESOME. I think you're Setrina's twin brother or something."
"I guess anything's possible," Kurt said smiling.
"I hate to break up your fun, Blaze, but you need to get ready for bed. Sam, Kurt, and I are going to go talk in the living room."
"I have one more question, Mom."
"What?" she asked.
"You're both boys." He looked at each of them. "And you are boyfriends?" he asked Sam.
"Yes," Sam answered. "Kurt and I are both boys, and Kurt is my boyfriend."
"Neither one of you like girls?"
"Well, I like girls as friends. But not the way I like boys," Kurt answered.
Sam nodded in agreement.
"Okay. Bye, Sam. Bye, Kurt."
"Thanks for showing us your comics. They're really good," Kurt said as they left the room.
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Margaret quickly shared with Sam what she had told Kurt at the skating rink. She went on, "I'll talk to Tom after you leave. I'll call you later, if that's okay."
"Sure. We're usually up until 10:00 or 11:00, sometimes later."
"And just so you know, Blaze is very curious. Feel free to tell him that his questions are too personal or that you'd rather him ask me the question."
They both laughed. "We'll keep that in mind."