Title: The Proposal

Author: vastlimitless

Pairing: Kurtbastian

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: None

Disclaimer: Glee belongs to a bald, yellow-hatted man-troll named Ryan Murphy and The Proposal belongs to Anne Fletcher and Pete Chiarelli, the movie's director and writer.


Summary: A young, demanding boss forces his naïve assistant to marry him in order to keep his Visa status in the U.S. and avoid deportation back to France, his home country.


It didn't take long for Kurt to regain his composure.

"You're – you're a pig," Kurt retorted, albeit with a hint of uncertainty to his sharp tone. After all, Sebastian was his boss, and despite the fact he hated having to drag himself out of bed every morning only to deal with Sebastian as his reward, this was his job. It was a damn good one too – a better offer than he had gotten from any place else – which was mainly why he couldn't just up and quit like his parents advised him to do. He received a fairly decent paycheck and he was learning how publishing companies really operated, which was important if he ever wanted to get his book published.

He didn't want to put his job even further on the line than it already was with the suddenly very real, looming threat of Sebastian's deportation to France and Nick Duval's possible reign over Smythe Publishing, but he was being forced to choose between his dreams or his pride – both of which he held in high regards.

"Stop looking at me like that," Kurt snapped, peering into the elevator door's reflective surface and attempting to style his hair again. He knew that yelling in his boss' face and snapping at him like he was now likely wasn't the brightest idea, but he was now expected by Sebastian's boss (and apparently, childhood friend) to marry Sebastian Smythe. It hardly mattered how long they would be tied to each other, or why – just that he had actually agreed to go through with the plan.

"You know, Wes has always been so desperate to set me up with someone who I'd have an everlasting commitment of love to, and even though he's known me for years and he knows perfectly well who I am, it was a piece of cake convincing him we were not only dating, but engaged to be married," Sebastian started, completely disregarding Kurt. In fact, when Kurt's eyes met Sebastian's in the reflection of the elevator doors, he looked highly amused.

"Convincing the incompetent fools on our floor –" Kurt bristled at that and muttered, more to himself than Sebastian about how they were all working underneath the biggest fool of them all (clearly Sebastian didn't care what came out of his mouth, actually seeming to enjoy being sassed instead of pampered), "– might be a more difficult task, though I suspect Mrs. Dixon sent out an email the second those doors closed. They'll be welcoming us with whispers and stares, and if any one of them says anything to Nick Duval that leads him to believe we're telling anything but the truth, that could mean trouble." Sebastian said, pressing a button and sending the elevator on its descent again.

"I suggest you keep that pretty little head of hair mussed up like that. It'll give us an edge, and it's actually not a bad look for you, doll face." He added with an extravagant wink. Kurt's face warmed as his mind drifted back to their position a few minutes ago, and consequently to that night where Sebastian had drawled similar sentiments at him.

He couldn't help thinking that if it hadn't been a Thursday night all those months ago, and if he hadn't have had work the next day, he might have very well gone home with Sebastian.

The only difference was that now, whereas he had been slightly more affected by Sebastian's lines in the beginning, Kurt had been given the opportunity to get to know Sebastian while they were both completely sober, and didn't that change the entire game.

"By the way, just because we're getting hitched doesn't mean I'm going to stop having my fun."

Kurt took a deep breath, reminded himself not to let his temper get the best of him again (it was practically second nature by now after working under Sebastian for a year), and let his head fall against the wall with a thunk.


Sebastian had been right; once the elevator doors slid open to reveal a slightly flustered Kurt and a smug-looking Sebastian, whispers erupted. Kurt caught the eye of his good friend Trent, who merely gaped at him like a fish. He received a similar reaction from Thad, who had managed to mouth, 'Him? Really?'

They didn't know the half of it.


After narrowly escaping being bombarded with questions about the latest gossip, Kurt fell into step beside Sebastian as the two walked to the immigration office from Smythe Publishing in silence. He was secretly grateful that Sebastian was who he was – he didn't want to do this any more than Kurt did, or so it seemed, and if what he said earlier about 'having his fun' was anything to go by, maybe this short-lived marriage wouldn't even affect either of them that much. They would go about life as usual until they could divorce, and then… Then what? Kurt asked himself. My first husband will be someone who I can hardly stand, who belittles me, who my family despises, but then after we divorce he'll go back to being my Satanic boss? How is that fair?

By now Kurt had decided that the latter had only been trying to get a rise out of him in the elevator, to persuade him to see things his way and not leave him to his own devices. Definitely unfair. God forbid Sebastian Smythe actually had to do something himself. He couldn't even go to the immigration office alone – although Kurt supposed that if they were going to get married, it was probably important he was there to make the case more convincing.

He was also grateful that Sebastian continued to tap away at his phone, presumably still working despite Wes' words. In the back of his mind, Kurt had known that Sebastian was from out of the country – he'd had to sort out some of the paperwork about his Visa that Sebastian hadn't deigned to fill out – but he never expected anything like this to happen. When Sebastian waved him away with the paperwork, Kurt had always assumed he had it under control. He dealt with large, pressing amounts of paperwork at times and he had always pulled through when it came to a deadline, but there they were, stepping into the immigration office because Sebastian couldn't be bothered to sign his name on a sheet of paper.

Kurt groaned inwardly at the sight he was greeted with. The waiting room was packed, and he wasn't entirely sure where the line ended.

"Come on," Sebastian said, pushing past those in line until he made it to the front. Sebastian walked with such conviction that these grumbling people made way for him, and even Kurt believed he had somewhere more important to be. However, all they had waiting for them after this hurdle was more work and a wedding neither wanted to attend, so he knew better. It took Kurt longer to push through the line as he wasn't nearly as aggressive about it as Sebastian was, but he reached the front desk by the time Sebastian turned around to verify he was behind him before striding into the back of the building.

"We're supposed to meet a Mr. Figgins," Sebastian announced, peeking into open windows of small offices before finally leading Kurt into one. "This is it." He added, moving to the side to allow Kurt in. Kurt promptly plopped down into one of the chairs in front of the desk, noting the way Sebastian remained where he was, standing as far away as possible from Kurt and the chair juxtapose to him.

A few awkward beats of silence later, Kurt spoke up, nervously wringing his hands on his lap as they waited for the arrival of Mr. Figgins. "I have a bad feeling about this," He murmured, glancing around the office that was so littered with manila folders and papers stacked tall upon file cabinets. "If you really think about it –"

"Think about what?" A voice asked, the door opening to reveal a short, stocky, Indian man. A weird smile stretched across the man's lips, and Kurt couldn't help thinking how he reminded him of his high school principal. Luckily, Sebastian stepped in to Kurt's rescue (though Kurt figured he really just wanted this to be over with already, having wasted ten minutes already as it was) and greeted Mr. Figgins with a firm handshake, brief introductions, and polite words about his being here. Sebastian could be so full of it.

"Now, let us get this show on the road. Just one question before we begin – are you two committing fraud to avoid Mr. Smythe's deportation back to France so that he may keep his position as executive editor in chief at Smythe Publishing?" Figgins asked, settling down at his desk and leafing through a thin file that was presumably theirs. Kurt gulped and glanced at Sebastian fleetingly.

Sebastian almost looked affronted. Kurt suppressed a chuckle, though let one filter through as though in disbelief, feeling like he had to contribute at least something to this performance. He didn't participate in all of that community theatre for nothing.

"Where did you hear that?" Sebastian asked, shaking his head and crossing his arms. "Was it a Nick Duval?" He added, and Kurt resisted the urge to say anything. He didn't trust himself not to blurt out the truth.

"That was the gentleman's name, I believe," Figgins nodded.

"Oh, Nick. Poor, poor Nick," Sebastian sighed, running a hand through his hair. He looked genuinely distraught to someone who had no clue what was the truth and what was not. "I'm so sorry about that. Nick was actually let go of not too long ago. It was a bittersweet goodbye, though I'm sure he's dropped the 'sweet' since then. Again, I apologize." Kurt nodded his head in agreement, trying to convey sympathy with his eyes.

"Is that all, Mr. Figgins? We wouldn't want to monopolize too much of your time," Sebastian said, edging towards the door. Figgins smiled and gestured to the empty seat beside Kurt, which Sebastian graciously took.

"Now, young men, here is how this is going to work. Step one is an interview, in which I will ask each of you a separate set of questions that a couple, such as yourselves, should know about one either. Step two is the digging – I go through your phone records, I talk to your family and friends and neighbors and coworkers. If the answers in either of your interviews don't add up or match exactly, I will be forced to deport you, Mr. Smythe, and as for you, Mr. Hummel, well. You will have committed a felony, young man. A $250,000 fine and five years in federal prison, where I have heard the inmates can be rough." Kurt bit his tongue then, and noticed Sebastian tense in the corner of his eye.

"Not as rough as Sebastian, I'm sure," He murmured, and Sebastian laughed loudly. Figgins simply smiled, giving nothing away as he leaned forward. "Mr. Hummel, do you have anything else to say?" Kurt shook his head slowly, letting his anger abate at Figgins' slight. "You've been awfully quiet this whole meeting. Are you sure you don't have something to tell me?"

Kurt met Figgins' gaze steadily, his head still shaking side to side slowly, not quite sure what Figgins was seeking from him. If they made it past Figgins' evaluation, Sebastian would have his Visa renewed for however long and Kurt would divorce him after the set amount of time and life would return to normal. For all of this, Kurt was essentially receiving nothing in return. He typically wasn't one to give and expect to receive, but Sebastian had driven him insane for a year and now he was forcing him to marry him – whether or not either of them wanted to. He didn't see why Sebastian couldn't have lied about being engaged to someone else, someone who wasn't Kurt, but he had. And staring in the face of an enormous fine and five years of imprisonment, Kurt had a grand idea.

"The truth…" He sensed Sebastian shifting in his seat, turning to look at him expectantly. Oh, he'd love this, Kurt would make sure of it. It was the least he could do for all of the humiliation he put Kurt through. Even if it didn't necessarily happen, it would still be worth it to watch Sebastian squirm at losing exactly what he was fighting for. "The truth is that Sebastian and I… We weren't looking for a relationship when we started. We weren't looking for anything at all, but here we are, a year later, about to – about to get married this weekend with my family, to make this everlasting commitment of love official," Kurt smiled. "We couldn't tell anyone we worked with about the engagement. We even faked hating each other, can you imagine? It was hard, but we couldn't or else it wouldn't seem appropriate with the promotion coming up and all."

Figgins and Sebastian both raised their eyebrows at him.

"Your promotion?"

"We felt that it would be incredibly inappropriate if it were ever revealed we were dating, much less engaged, and that Sebastian's plans were to promote me to editor," Kurt nodded. Figgins seemed to accept that, and Kurt cheered as he took note of the way Sebastian's smile had grown especially false.

"What about your families? Do they know?"

"My parents are dead. Both of them. No siblings either," Sebastian answered with a shrug.

"Are your parents dead?" Figgins turned to Kurt with a sarcastic expression on his face. Kurt felt his earlier bravado slowly slipping through his fingers as his satisfaction at catching Sebastian off guard faded away.

"Of course not, they're alive. Very much alive and breathing. Healthy, too," Sebastian interjected. Kurt resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he regained his confidence after Figgins took his attention off of Kurt. He didn't know what it was – the blatant lying, Figgins' suspicion, or the whole stress of the situation – that made Figgins appear so daunting and intimidating.

"Like I said, we're getting married this weekend and my whole family will be there, along with some friends –"

"For his Aunt Anne's fortieth birthday. His aunt hates birthdays, so we thought we might brighten the occasion a little with the prospect of a wedding starring her favorite nephew. Plus, it's Thanksgiving break." Sebastian finished.

"Oh?" Figgins said, clasping his hands together on his desk and looking as though this would be his only source of entertainment all day. He was certainly milking it. "Where will this birthday bash slash wedding take place?" Kurt narrowed his eyes at Sebastian imperceptibly, still trying to decide how creepy it was on a scale of one to ten that Sebastian actually listened to him when Kurt rambled on about nothing on the days they were working on paperwork and such together in Sebastian's office. Kurt had mostly only talked to prevent Sebastian from opening his mouth, afraid he would have torn all the papers into shreds if Sebastian provoked him.

"At Kurt's parents' home, of course," Sebastian shrugged, casting a second-long glance at Kurt that screamed 'help me.'

"Where's that again?" Figgins pressed, his lips curling up into a grin. Kurt could practically hear him cheering in his mind at catching Sebastian off guard as well, and Kurt suddenly felt protective. He had worked for this asshole for an entire miserable year, and no one was going to embarrass Sebastian in this situation but him.

"Lima, Ohio," Kurt cut in casually, patting Sebastian's shoulder.

"Ohio?"

"Ohio," Sebastian confirmed. "That's where my – uh, my honey hails from," He said, his voice taking on a sweetness to it that was too foreign for Kurt's taste. He was used to cold and calculating threats, or irritating, god-awful sexual innuendos. Sebastian reached out and brushed his knuckles across Kurt's cheek, catching his eye and silently warning him that whatever events occurred within this room were not to be spoken of outside of its confines.

"Oh, bee," Kurt sighed dreamily, silently mocking him. Figgins shook his head minutely and began putting up the contents of their file.

"I see. I see how this is going to go," He said, lifting a brow challengingly. "I will see the two of you on Monday morning after the break, bright and early at nine am. I must say, I am looking forward to this!" Figgins added, scribbling the date down onto a Post-It note and sticking it to Sebastian's hand when he reached for it.

"Happy Thanksgiving!" Figgins called out cheerfully, though Kurt detected a hint of falsity in his parting words.

"You too," Kurt replied for the second time that day, as Sebastian tugged him through to the exit.


A/N: I want to thank every single one of you who has read or reviewed! I followed that scene in the immigration office pretty closely compared to the other scenes in the movie that have happened. I can't answer many questions without giving anything else away though. I have to say though, it would seem as though there's a mutual attraction there, don't you think? ;) I've also noticed a lot of you are irritated by Sebastian, but I hope to turn it around in the near future. I'm watching different chunks of the movie as I write (I'm using it as a sort of outline) and tweaking things so that not everything is all so predictable, but Kurt will be bringing Sebastian home. I can only imagine what Burt will have to say about that.

Another thing: I've noticed that I've developed a pattern where I take a break for about a day and then write the next chapter, so that these updates keep coming every two days. My plan is to keep that up, but don't hold me to it! More than likely that's what will continue to happen, however, seeing as summer has just begun for me. I might also begin posting chapters to tumblr as well. Thank you again for reading and I hope you've enjoyed this story so far!