Chapter 3

When Finn woke up the next morning, Kurt was already awake and sitting on his bed, typing away on his laptop.

"Good morning," Finn yawned. "Is it really late?"

Kurt looked over and smiled at Finn. "Good morning. No, I've just been awake for a while. I couldn't really sleep last night."

Finn frowned at Kurt. "That's no good. Are you okay?"

Kurt nodded. "I'm fine. I did sleep, a little."

"Maybe you should try to sleep on the bus again today?" Finn suggested.

"Yeah, I think you might be right," Kurt said. "Think you and Dave can find something more to talk about today?"

"I'm sure we can," Finn said. "Maybe we can borrow your laptop to watch a movie?"

"Sure, I don't see why not," Kurt said. "I hate that I'm missing so much of the scenery, though."

Finn shrugged. "We're still having lots of fun, though, right?"

Kurt laughed. "We are. Thank you again for bringing me along."

000

Once everyone was settled on the bus again, this time Kurt stretched out across two seats across from Dave and Finn, Finn pulled out Kurt's laptop.

"I thought we could watch a movie today," Finn suggested to Dave.

Dave shrugged. "Sure. What do you have?"

Finn opened the laptop and passed it across the aisle to Kurt so he could log in. Then he passed it back to Finn. Finn laughed as the background screen loaded; it was the picture of the day before of Finn, Kurt, and Dave inside one of the fairy tale castles in St. Goar.

"Look," Finn said to Dave, pointing out the picture.

"Aww, it turned out really good," Dave said. "He must have changed it right away last night or earlier today."

"To be fair, it was probably still a picture of Blaine or him and Blaine," Finn admitted.

"True," Dave agreed. "This is much better."

Finn opened the folder of movies Kurt had on his laptop, and began scouring the list. "What about the new Sherlock Holmes movie?"

Dave nodded. "Sure." Dave shifted a little in his seat, turning slightly and leaning back against Finn so they both could see the screen. "Is this okay?"

Finn's mouth felt a little dry, and his skin felt stretched a little tight over his body, but he nodded anyway, not exactly wanting Dave to move away. "It's fine."

They watched the movie in mostly silence as the bus rolled on to the next destination. When the movie finished they were only about half way to Munich. Kurt was fast asleep across the aisle from them. Finn could hear his soft little snores sometimes. He watched Kurt, sometimes turning his head to look at him, sometimes just sneaking glances out of the corner of his eye, while Dave continued to sort of lean against him and they talked in hushed tones.

"Do you have any plans for the fall?" Dave asked. "Anything you might want to do?"

"I guess I'll just work at the shop for now, at least until I figure something else out," Finn said. "I mean Burt would probably be happy to train me and show me everything so I could one day take over full time. I don't think he's exactly expecting Kurt to ever come back and take on the shop. And I'm sure he'd like to know it was going to still be around, you know. He built that business from the ground up by himself; it's his legacy."

"Sounds like you've given it some thought," Dave mused. "I'm sensing a but though."

Finn snorted. "No offense to Burt, he's an amazing guy, and he raised Kurt for so long on his own and Kurt's pretty spectacular too. It's just... I think I hoped I'd do more with my life. I think my mom had higher hopes for me, too. And I don't want to disappoint her."

"Do you think you're likely to do something closer to home, maybe stay in Ohio but move to Columbus or something? You could own Burt's shop if you had a good crew of workers working for you."

Finn sighed. "That's probably true, but Kurt could do the same from New York, and he is Burt's actual son. I think it's different if I actually stay in Lima, versus if I leave. I'd hate for it to be something that came between Kurt and me at some point. Like, maybe he'd feel Burt chose me over him."

"You could share it," Dave suggested.

Finn nodded. "It's an idea. We should probably discuss it at some point with Burt and my mom." Finn was quiet for a few moments. "It's not going to be the same when he leaves. I don't think he'll stay in Lima long, especially now that he and Blaine have split up."

"What do you mean?"

"It's going to be different at the house," Finn explained, searching for the right words to express what he was feeling. "The house is going to be quiet. I mean, between Kurt and me, and Rachel and Blaine, Puck and Mercedes and Sam, there was a lot of singing last year. Now it's pretty much going to be just me and my drums at home. I'm going to miss all the music."

"Maybe you should look at doing something with music," Dave suggested. "Nobody's telling you you couldn't start your own band, right?"

000

Later that evening, after arriving in Munich and visiting some of what it had to offer, the group descended upon a beer hall down the street from the hotel to sample many local brews, the local cuisine, and to enjoy the atmosphere of the town. Dave found himself crowded into a booth with Finn, Kurt, and Devon having dinner and enjoying some beer.

"Obviously you're enjoying the beer more than the wine last night, Finn," Dave joked.

Finn snorted. "Not even a contest, Dave." He smiled large, his eyes twinkling, his cheeks a little flushed, as he leaned a little into Kurt. "You're enjoying the beer too though, right, Kurt?"

"Surprising, but yes, I am," Kurt said. "What about you Devon? The wine last night or the beer tonight?"

"Um, both? Either?" Devon replied laughing. "Is this what high school was like for you guys all the time?"

"Only when April was around," Kurt muttered. "Actually, no, high school was nothing like this."

"Do you think you still would have tried to set up our parents if I hadn't been blackmailed into joining glee club?" Finn asked Kurt.

"That is a good question," Kurt said. "Maybe. It's not like the reason for it didn't already exist. I think the real question is if I would have asked you to help me join the football team if you hadn't joined glee club."

"Why did you set your parents up?" Devon asked. "If you don't mind sharing, that is."

"Uh, well," Kurt said, looking to Dave. Dave shook his head. It probably wasn't a smart idea to bring that all up again.

But Finn was already answering. "Kurt wanted us to spend more time together. And we did. Not always willingly. And then there was the basement incident that we don't speak of."

"Oh my God Finn, shut up, shut up," Kurt laughed, leaning his head onto Finn's shoulder. "I admit, it was like a dream come true when our parents decided to move in together. We were even going to have to share a room."

"Until I started calling everything in the room faggy and his dad kicked me out," Finn said. "Devon, dude, you don't ever cross Burt Hummel, or threaten his kid. Dave and I have both been there."

Devon turned and looked at Dave. "Really, Dave?"

"I wasn't always the nicest person in high school," Dave said. "I had some issues I needed to overcome. I like to think I have for the most part."

"What did Kurt ever do to you?" Devon asked.

"Honestly, nothing," Dave replied. "And that was the worst part."

"Oh, but it wasn't just Kurt," Finn said. "Remember when you and Az ripped my letterman jacket in half?"

"And you never fought back?" Devon asked.

"Not really," Finn said. "I'm more a lover than a fighter."

Dave shook his head. "That's not entirely true. You don't fight back for yourself, but you fight back for others."

"Oh, that's true Finn," Kurt agreed. "Remember the fights you and Puck had over Quinn and Beth?"

"Oh, yeah. And the stuff with Jesse about Rachel," Finn said.

"And Kurt," Dave said. "You've fought for Kurt."

"Yup, I guess I fight for the people I love."

Devon looked at Finn. "You love Kurt?"

"Of course I do," Finn said, planting a kiss to the top of Kurt's head. "He's my Kurt. I can't even imagine my life without him at this point."

"Awww Finn, so sappy," Kurt teased.

Devon leaned into Dave. "You still think there's nothing going on between the two of them?"

"This is pretty much how they always are," Dave said. He looked around the bar, for anything that might provide a distraction. Kurt and Finn were leaned into each other, whispering things and laughing softly at each other. "Oh, they have darts! Does anyone know how to play?"

"What's darts, dude?" Finn asked.

"It's a throwing game, you might actually be pretty good at it," Dave said. "Want to come learn?"

"Sure," Finn said standing up.

"Wait, don't you need sharp, pointy, missile type things to play?" Kurt asked.

"Yes," Dave said.

"Are you sure it's a wise idea to give Finn those?" Kurt teased.

"Always so mean to me, Kurt," Finn said, laughing, as he followed Dave away from the table.

000

"So you played on the football team with Finn and Dave?" Devon asked Kurt.

"For a little while, just a couple of games really," Kurt said. "I was the kicker. It was before I came out to my dad. I just wanted him to be proud of me. He's a really big sports fan."

Devon nodded. "You said something about Finn helping you get on the team. Did you not have a kicker?"

"No, they did, but he sucked like a lot of the rest of the team," Kurt said. "We only ever won that one game and I kicked the winning point."

"So Finn taught you how to kick?" Devon asked.

"No, he didn't really need to," Kurt said. "I had a bit of a strategy that worked for me. It was a little unorthodox, but it worked."

"Ok, now I need to know, what was it?"

"Single Ladies," Kurt said. "Have you ever seen the video? The dance Beyonce and her dancers do? I'd do that, kind of as a warm up, on the field, right before I'd kick."

"You're kidding me, right?" Devon said. "I'd pay money to see that."

Kurt looked at Devon. "How much money would you pay to see it?"

"Twenty Euros?"

Kurt shook his head. "No, it's not going to happen for twenty Euros."

"Fifty?"

Kurt nodded. "I'll do it for fifty. Help me move some of these tables away."

Devon and Kurt cleared away a couple of tables. Kurt shook his head, not quite believing he was going to do this. He cued up the song, which he still kept on his phone - it was a sentimental favorite after all - and then he began to dance along.

000

"I'll throw a couple first, to show you the general idea," Dave said. He had gone to the bar and gotten a set of darts and he and Finn were at one of the boards. Dave's darts landed around the board as he showed Finn the different scoring areas. He pulled them from the board and handed one to Finn. "You wanna try now?"

"Sure," Finn said. He tried to wrap his fingers around the dart the same way Dave had and was about to throw it when Dave stopped him.

"Wait," Dave said. He stood behind Finn, guiding his fingers to how they should be on the dart. "Like that, okay? That's the grip. Now, you're going to want to pull your arm back about this much, and then throw, following through and trying to stay as straight as possible."

Finn could feel the breath Dave expelled against his neck with every word he spoke because Dave was standing right behind him. In fact he was so close, he was almost pressed up against Finn's back. It was different from having Dave leaning back against him on the bus, but it wasn't entirely unpleasant. Perhaps it was the beer buzz he still had going on, but Finn thought it was possible he was a little attracted to Dave Karofsky. He was feeling a little turned on for sure. This is not a problem I'm going to be able to take care of while I'm sharing a room, much less a bed, with Kurt here in Europe.

Finn threw the first dart, successfully, and then Dave put another in his hand. Again he used his own fingers to wrap Finn's around the dart. He used his hand to guide Finn's arm movement. All the while, he was talking softly to Finn. The second one was successful as well. Then Dave stepped away, to allow Finn to throw the next one completely without help.

Finn was about to throw the dart when the strains of a familiar song began. Finn turned around, looking for where the music was coming from. Just as his eyes spotted Kurt, Finn heard Dave beside him.

"Oh, he's not," Dave whispered.

"He is," Finn said softly. "He really is."

"How'd I forget about this until now?" Dave asked.

"I don't know," Finn said. "How could anyone forget this?"

Finn and Dave stood together, watching Kurt go through his Single Ladies routine. When Kurt finished, there was quite a bit of cheering and applause.

Finn walked over to Kurt, his eyes still wide. "What was that? Why did you do that here?"

"Devon paid me fifty euros to see it," Kurt said. "That's a little extra money to make sure I can pick myself up something nice when we get to Paris." Kurt looked up at Finn. "Did you like it? Do you remember the first time I did that?"

"I do," Finn nodded. "It's a little different now."

"Different how?" Kurt asked.

"You're different," Finn said. "You look different. Taller, older, not in your sweater falling off one shoulder and your red football helmet."

"You know, whenever I put on something red, I think about how you said it was my color that day," Kurt said.

Finn grinned. "Really?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Are we going to continue our dart game?" Dave asked.

Finn looked from Dave to Kurt and then back to Dave. Part of him wanted to stay and reminisce with Kurt a little more. But he was also wanted to finish the game with Dave.

"I'll come find you when we're done?" Finn said to Kurt.

Kurt reached out and put his hand on Finn's arm. "I'd like that. Good luck with your game, boys."

000

Dave and Finn finished their game of darts, and by the time they finish there was a small group around them, some of the other guys wanting to play against Karofsky for money. Finn stayed and watched as Dave won against the first guy, but then he went to look for Kurt. He found him still sitting with Devon, but there was now a dozen or so other guys and a handful of girls sitting with them. Everyone, it seemed, was trying to talk to Kurt.

One guy in particular, sitting beside Kurt, kept trying to put his arm around him, but Kurt kept shrugging it off. When Kurt looked up and spotted Finn finally, he smiled.

"Finn," Kurt said cheerfully. "Come sit."

Finn pulled over a chair to sit at the table but then Kurt stood up, and it might have been a combination of the beers and all of the people and legs around, but Kurt stumbled forward, landing face first into Finn's chest.

Finn chuckled softly as he reached down to steady Kurt. "I think maybe you've had enough for tonight."

"Maybe," Kurt agreed.

"Come back, Kurt," the man beside him said.

"Oh, but I want to sit with Finn," Kurt said.

The man reached out to tug on Kurt's arm, throwing Kurt off balance again when Kurt tried to pull himself away.

Finn reached out for Kurt again and then, feeling fueled by a surge of protectiveness, a delightful beer buzz, and raging hormones, Finn picked Kurt up by the waist, and threw him over his shoulder. "Sorry ladies and gentlemen, I think Kurt has had enough to drink for tonight. I promised his dad I'd watch out for him, so I'm going to take Kurt to his room now."

"Finn, put me down," Kurt said laughing, hitting Finn playfully in the back.

"Nuh-uh, I think you've had enough for tonight," Finn teased. "Back to the room for you."

"Do you plan on carrying me the whole way back?" Kurt asks.

"I could," Finn admits.

"Put me down, I'll go back to the room willingly," Kurt said.

Finn put Kurt back down on the ground, but put an arm around his shoulder, pulling his body in close to Finn. They walked back to the hotel quickly, and quietly. Once they were in the elevator alone though, Finn picked Kurt up again and put him back over his shoulder.

Finn walked them to their room, unlocking the door and throwing Kurt down onto their king sized bed again. He leaned over Kurt, both of them laughing again and a little breathless.

"What was that all about, Finn Hudson?" Kurt asked.

"The guy sitting beside you was totally hitting on you," Finn said.

"Was he?" Kurt asked, like he hadn't noticed.

"C'mon, Kurt, you knew," Finn said. "You knew it and you liked it."

Kurt nodded in agreement, a smile on his face.

"But he was really drunk and I was afraid he wouldn't take no for an answer," Finn said. "I promised I'd take care of you."

Kurt looked up at Finn, his blue-green-grey eyes staring into Finn's brown eyes intently. "I'm not sure you know how," he joked. Kurt arched off the bed slightly, forcing his groin into contact with Finn's.

"Fuck, Kurt," Finn hissed. He dropped his body slightly, not quite making contact with Kurt's body, and pressed his lips to Kurt's. Finn continued to kiss Kurt who kept thrusting his body up against Finn's, seeking any and all friction. On one of Kurt's thrusts' up, Finn ground down against him, and for a second little sparks of pleasure exploded all over the place.

Finn's eyes flew opened in alarm. "Shit, Kurt!" Finn pushed himself up off Kurt and the bed. He shook his head a couple of times. "I'm sorry Kurt, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to do that."

Kurt reached out, to pull Finn back to him, but Finn was already out of reach. "Finn, please, come back."

"I - I can't Kurt," Finn apologized. "I'm sorry. I've gotta go."

000

Finn walked down to the front desk and asked where the nearest Internet cafe was. He wanted to check in online, maybe talk to someone back home. Finn really wanted to talk about what had just happened but he didn't think there was anyone he could talk to that would understand or not mock him. Finn walked the three blocks to the nearest cafe, paid his initial fee, ordered a ginger ale to settle his stomach, and sat down at a computer.

Finn first logged into his email, and surprisingly found nothing. He sent a quick email to his mom and Burt, telling them how Dave had taught him to play darts and Kurt had managed to make money off Dave's roommate by doing a repeat performance of Single Ladies. Finn didn't dare tell them anything else. He logged out of his email and then into Facebook.

In his feed, Finn saw Kurt had posted the picture of him, Finn, and Dave at the castle from yesterday, and had also changed his profile picture to one of him alone on the ferry from Dover, and his cover photo to one of all the many bottles of wine at the underground wine tasting. Finn noticed many of their friend had commented on the photo of Finn, Kurt, and Dave, including Puck, Mercedes, and their parents. But Blaine's comment, the last one, was the one that struck Finn.

If I had doubts before, I see now that there is a lie he tells himself. One he refuses to be honest about.

Finn noticed that, like his email, there was no contact or comment from Rachel on his page, nor on the picture. A quick look showed that the only recent comments from Rachel, other than her own about New York and the things she is doing with her fathers, is a 'dislike' on Blaine's change in relationship status. Finn is not sure what exactly he was expecting, but he did hope they could get past this and be friends again at some point. Maybe it was just too soon.

Just before his session expired, Finn logged out of Facebook and left the cafe. He walked back to the hotel slowly, still not sure what to do. Finn found himself knocking lightly on the door to Dave and Devon's room.

Dave seemed startled when he opened the door. "Finn. What are you doing here?"

"Can we talk?" Finn asked. "I had a fight with Kurt and then I saw something on Facebook…" Finn shook his head. "Things just feel weird."

Dave nodded, "Sure, c'mon in. Devon's not back yet." He moved away from the door allowing Finn to pass. "That's my bed," he said, indicating the one nearest the windows.

Finn sat on the bed, resting his hands in his head.

"What's going on?" Dave asked. "You and Kurt seemed ok when you picked him up and carried him out the bar."

"Yeah, I think I took that joke a little too far and now Kurt's upset with me," Finn said. "And to make things worse, we're stuck in another king room tonight. Ugh! Can I talk about the other thing first though, the Facebook thing?"

Dave nodded. He sat down next to Finn, leaning back on his hands.

"Kurt posted the picture of all of us at the castle on his page," Finn explained. "There are a couple of comments from our friends, my mom, Burt, nothing bad, actually they're all good. Except the last one. The last one is weird. It's from Blaine." He turned to look at Dave. "Did Kurt tell you any more about why they broke up?"

Dave shook his head. "Did he tell you?"

"No," Finn said sadly. "And it's weird. Kurt says Blaine broke up with him, but Blaine makes it seem like Kurt did something to him. And that just doesn't seem like Kurt. Right?" Finn waited for Dave to agree before he continued. "His comment said something about 'a lie he tells himself and isn't honest about.' What does that even mean?"

Dave shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think you are going to get the answers until you talk to Kurt."

"Oh, he's not going to talk to me about this now," Finn sighed.

"What happened?" Dave asked.

Finn took a deep breath and was about to try to explain to Dave how he'd kissed Kurt. How he'd wanted to kiss Kurt. But the door to the room opened and Devon came in, stopping when he saw Finn sitting with Dave.

"I thought you left with Kurt," Devon said.

Finn nodded. "I did, but we had an argument. So I'm hiding out here for a bit. Speaking of, since we're fighting, and if there is anything I know after a couple of years of living with Kurt, it's that I need to give him his space, so can I crash here tonight?"

Dave looked at Devon who shrugged. "It's fine by me."

Devon looked at Finn and then Dave. "We don't have enough room to bring a cot into the room."

"I'll sleep on the floor or whatever," Finn said. "As long as I don't have to face Kurt right now."