Chapter Eight
Noah and Kurt walked the streets in silence. Noah wasn't sure where they were going but as long as Kurt didn't tell him to get lost he had no intention of leaving. True, the evening didn't pan out the way he'd planned but that didn't mean he wanted it to be over.
"So," He started somewhat hesitantly, "Do… Do you want to talk about it?" Kurt, who was walking hunched into himself and looking bristled like an angry cat, drew further into himself,
"No." Noah nodded, he didn't really expect Kurt to be very chatty right now but he really didn't know what to say to make things better. Kurt turned his head to look at Noah, seeing his pinched expression and sighed- he was acting like a douche, and he really didn't want to be a douche to Noah, who actually stuck with him when he could have his pick of any guy he wanted back in the club. "I met him at 'Vicious'," he started, burrowing his face deeper in his scarf so that his words came out slightly muffled, "We hit it off right away, we liked the same things, music, fashion, coffee. For a while I actually thought we could make it the long run." Looking back at things Kurt found it hard to believe he ever thought he and Blaine were compatible, sure they liked a lot of the same things but Blaine was the sort of selfish guy he'd always warned Mercedes against and now he hated himself for not trusting his instincts back then. "All my friends saw right through him but I guess it was easier for me to ignore the fact that he was selfish and self-absorbed and a really lousy boyfriend who was basically just using me."
"What changed?" Noah tried to keep his voice neutral but inside he just wanted to track that Blaine down and finish what Kurt had started! How dare this asshole treat someone like Kurt so badly? Sure, he could be sarcastic and prickly when he was angry but when he smiled it was like the room lit up and Noah wanted to do everything he could to see that smile as often as possible. Boy, did he have it bad…
"He didn't show up for my birthday party and somehow it became my fault." Kurt answered flatly.
"That sucks." He said, kicking himself for not being able to come up with something better. True, dealing with someone else's drama and emotional baggage was one of the main reasons Noah avoided relationships as much as possible, but when someone did manage to stick around he never ignored them or forgot their birthday! Noah prided himself on being a very gracious and thoughtful gift giver. He made a mental note to ask Finn when was Kurt's birthday.
"Yeah, I finally realized I was better off alone than letting him control my life like that." Kurt said truthfully, hoping he didn't come off as too needy and clingy that he couldn't stay a second without someone. It was just he'd spend so much time alone as a kid, just him and his dad whenever he had time, that sometimes it felt like he was trying to compensate by working too hard to maintain relationships that were doomed from the start. "The only problem is, he refuses to get the message into his thick skull." Hopefully tonight's punch will do the trick, because if not- he was definitely going to call Finn for a restraining order!
"Look, I'm really sorry the evening was such a bust." He apologized, no matter what you call it- this evening was bad! And Kurt felt responsible, after all he was the one who called in the first place inviting Noah to a movie, and instead he got stuck at work and ended up giving his costumers a show as well as drinks. Noah cast a side-glance at Kurt,
"It was actually kinda fun." He confessed with a crooked smile that did really strange things to Kurt's stomach. Though it was nowhere near how Noah pictured their night going- if he had it his way they'd be in bed right now, naked, after at least two rounds of mind-blowing sex and possibly fighting over which Wolverine is hotter, he couldn't say the night was a total loss. Seeing this new, darker side of Kurt had been just as exciting as watching the X-men. Kurt snorted,
"I have a feeling that watching the X-men would have been a whole lot more fun." For a brief second Noah wondered if Kurt was picturing their evening ending the same way he did- gods, he hoped so…
"Then watching you kick your ex's ass?" Noah shook his head, "I seriously doubt it." Kurt rolled his eyes and did that cute bashful shrug of his and Noah decided to go for and give into the urge that been plaguing him all night to kiss Kurt, when the other man opened his mouth to talk,
"And I made you work on your night off, I'm really sorry." Noah stuck his hands in the pockets of his coat and took a step backwards, trying to swallow his disappointment at Kurt's obliviousness,
"Hey, I asked you to take me there, besides," He added with a shrug and a smirk, "I made nearly three hundred bucks in like an hour!" Kurt smiled back, this was definitely the best part of working in a bar, coming home with a nice pile of green bills that felt, oh so good inside one's wallet. "Plus, all those guys falling over themselves to get my attentions can't be bad for the ego." Noah added with a wriggle of his eyebrows that pulled a hearty laugh out of Kurt. This was the second best thing about working in a bar.
"I knew it!" Kurt cried out gleefully, "I knew you wouldn't be able to resist all that male attention!" Sobering up a little he added, "You should be careful though, that sort of thing can mess with your head."
"Like with that asshole Blaine?" As soon as he heard the words coming out of his mouth Noah knew he fucked up real good. Reaching for Kurt, whose expression turned stony, he tried to salvage what was left, "Shit, Kurt, I'm so sorry, I don't know why I said that." Kurt shrugged, feeling so cold all of a sudden,
"It's ok," He said stiffly, "You're right. I was lonely and I paid for it." Noah was just about ready to kick his own ass for his insensitivity when Kurt withdrew further into himself, "I should get home, it's late." His voice was flat and Noah could feel the evening slipping between his fingers, and he really didn't want Kurt to leave angry, or at all.
"Kurt, I'm really sorry…" He began desperately, but Kurt waved a hand at him,
"It's ok, I'm just beat, and I need to get up for work tomorrow. Good night Noah." He said, his voice was cool and distant and he didn't even bother to look at Noah, which hurt more than what he was actually saying.
"Good night, Kurt." He replied softly, knowing he dug his own grave and therefore conceded defeat, "We'll be in touch, ok?" Kurt nodded absently, already turning to walk towards the nearest 'L' station. Noah watched him disappear, and rubbed his face tiredly,
"Fuck!"
..oo00oo..
Kurt walked through the halls engrossed in the papers he received and tried to make sense of them. If it wasn't for his father he'd never spend his day off trying to get a tax refund for 160 bucks. Sure, 160$ were nothing to sneeze at but after the harrowing morning he just had, Kurt was wondering if it was worth all the waiting, form filling, waiting, running around from one clerk to the next and then some more waiting. Probably not.
All he wanted to do right now was to go home and spend the rest of his day off contemplating calling Noah. When he left Noah on Saturday he had been genuinely upset- even though Noah apologized, right then and in the 5 calls Kurt let go to voice mail, it still hurt, mostly because he thought Noah was different. The last thing he needed was another insensitive jerk like Blaine in his life.
Mercedes had told him he was overreacting, but she was biased to Noah's abs, and even Sam put in his two cents and told Kurt he should give Noah a second chance, and Kurt had seen Sam's abs so he knew that couldn't be the reason for his concern. He probably should give Noah a second chance; after all, Saturday panned out so differently from what either of them originally planned he probably just caught Noah unprepared and still giddy from the ego boost he got at the club.
Walking towards the elevator Kurt lifted his head and groaned, of course he'd run into literally the last person he wanted to see, because that just was the way his life went. How could he have forgotten that Blaine's mom was some hot-shot in the tax office? Blaine was probably here to borrow some money and bitch to mommy about how mean Kurt was to him. Kurt contemplated taking the stairs down, just to avoid Blaine, not because he felt guilty for punching him, but because his day had been so annoying so far he had a feeling he might punch Blaine again if he opened his mouth. On the other hand, the idea of walking down 15 flights of stairs was even less appealing so Kurt took a deep breath and stepped to stand beside Blaine.
"Hummel." Blaine greeted him with a sneer and Kurt fought the urge to roll his eyes, last names? Wow. Resisting the urge to hit the elevator button repeatedly to lift some of his frustration he opted to stare at the red numbers above the elevator door signaling the floors and ignoring Blaine completely. He could feel Blaine seething next to him, and Kurt waited for the moment he exploded,
"You're not even going to apologize, are you?" Kurt bit the inside of his cheek, forcing himself to keep a neutral expression, before turning to face Blaine,
"What for?"
"This!" Blaine turned his head and pointed on the left side of his face, where a quite impressive shiner had formed and Kurt couldn't help but feel a surge of satisfaction shooting through him at the sight.
"No." He said calmly and turned back towards the elevator, whose doors just opened up with a whoosh. Stepping in he remarked behind his shoulder, "You deserved it." Blaine gaped behind Kurt's back before he too stepped into the elevator, looking pissed,
"Why?" Kurt turned and calmly pushed the button for the ground floor, damn he should win an Oscar for this… He never actually thought he could play it so cool but the more Blaine got mad, the more he felt calmer and in control. Plus, Blaine getting upset was always funny; he was like a little angry troll doll, only with lots more hair gel.
"You were insulting my friend." Blaine crossed his arms over his chest, sticking his bottom lip out in a childish pout,
"You never defended me against your friends." He grumbled,
"That's because you did most of the insulting." Kurt replied, he really wanted Blaine to shut up, right now! He cast a side-glance at the elevator only other occupant, a young man dressed in a smart business suit who was doing his best to pretend he wasn't listening to their argument.
"They never liked me." Blaine said with his best hurt expression, and Kurt closed his eyes and took a deep breath,
"They never had a particularly good reason to like you; you were acting like a jerk."
"They were snobs!" Kurt took another deep breath, it was truly amazing how Blaine could just go on and on about this mess when a. they were no longer together, and b. he got his ass handed to him by Kurt only a couple of days ago! It was like he had a death wish or something!
"Whatever, I'm done talking about this." And for most people that would have been enough of a brush off to realize the conversation was over, but not for someone like Blaine Anderson!
"You always do that," He told Kurt nastily, "You always deflect, then shut off!" Kurt balled his fists, he will not lose control this time, there were only a few more floors to go before he was free, he will not lose control!
"What do you want from me Blaine?" He cried, knowing his grip on his calmness was slipping fast, "Whatever we had is over! I don't care if my friends were snobs or if you hate them, I just came here to fix something and I just want to go home and enjoy the rest of my day off so for the next couple of floors, please, please be quiet!" Well, at least he didn't punch Blaine again, though he was really asking for it.
"I just…"
"No!" Kurt cut his ex mid-sentence, he was being very specific, why can't Blaine understand?! "I don't want to hear it, so just shut up!" He tried accentuating the words, maybe Blaine developed temporary deafness and reading Kurt lips was the only way he would understand. Four more floors, he told himself, four more floors.
Suddenly an ear splitting metal screech was heard and the three of them were thrown back against the walls and the elevator stopped mid-floor. Kurt looked at the elevator's console in disbelief, seriously? Oh gods, "Seriously?"
Pushing himself off the wall he strode angrily to the console and started jabbing the alarm button, "Help! The elevator is stuck, help!"
"Yelling isn't going to solve anything, you know." Blaine was so glad to see Kurt finally crack, this calm façade of his was downright freaky. Kurt turned and fixed Blaine with a smiting glare, until the shorter man cowered back a little against the wall.
"W-what's going on?" Kurt turned to look at the stranger, who he completely forgot was also in the elevator with them. The man was as white as a sheet, so white in fact that it made Kurt feel tanned in comparison, his eyes were darting around the small space and his breathing became labored, small beads of perspiration forming on his forehead. Kurt could recognize a panic attack from miles away- Gaga knows he suffered enough of them as a teenager.
"Are you ok? Do you need some water?" He asked the man and started rummaging in his bag for his bottle, good thing he never went anywhere without one. Offering it to the guy he was about to suggest he sit down when Blaine, who was leaning against the wall this whole time jumped into action,
"Here, you should sit," He said and guided the unresisting man to the floor, "Let me loosen your tie for you." Kurt rolled his eyes, was Blaine really trying to get him jealous by hitting on a half-comatose guy? This was pathetic!
"Sir?" Kurt leaped towards the console, pressing the alarm button again,
"The elevator is stuck!" He repeated,
"Sir, please remain calm," The woman on the other side refused to lose her calm, and Kurt wanted to stab her- it was very easy for her to say 'stay calm', she wasn't the one stuck in a frigging elevator with her super annoying ex! "We are working on fixing the problem."
"How long will that take?" He asked, not even bothering to mask the anger in his voice, this was a government building after all, you'd expect they'd be more efficient with their elevator system!
"Please sir, I need you to remain calm, we are working on fixing the problem." Kurt gritted his teeth, he really wanted to hit the console right now, but he had a feeling neither he nor Chef Sylvester would be much happy with the results. Instead he slumped down on the floor, leaning against the wall.
An hour and a half later found the three of them pretty much in the same state. Kurt had just finished playing every single game on his i-phone, and was starting to wish he'd let Mercedes talk him into taking a sandwich with him, because the apple he ate while waiting upstairs was not going to last much longer and he really didn't want his stomach to start making noises right now. Though if it did, it would probably be easier to ignore what was going on the other side of the elevator where Blaine was murmuring against the guy's ear, who's head rested on Blaine shoulder like he'd been drained from repeated outbursts of panic attacks. Kurt wasn't entirely sure what Blaine's angle was right now, but he had a sneaking suspicion it was still to get a rise out of him, because even if the stranger was gay- he was in no shape to respond.
There was a loud noise from above, but before Kurt had a chance to panic that the whole elevator was going to crash with them in it, a square on the roof of the elevator opened and Noah's smiling face showed in the hole, upside down.
"Help is here!" He declared and Kurt shook his head to himself, wasn't it just great… Lady luck was one fickle mistress and could sure turn into a mega-bitch when you pissed her! Noah was lowered into the elevator and dropped to the floor, looking full in his element and Kurt couldn't stop the want pooling in his stomach, because damn, he was hot. "Hey Kurt," Noah said, his smile only wavering slightly, "We really have stop meeting like that." Kurt tried his hardest to keep a straight face but a crooked smile was escaping him, causing Noah's eyes to sparkle and his grin to widen.
"Come on," He said briskly, "Let's get you out of here."
"You should start with this guy," Kurt said, pointing at the poor man sprawled on the floor, "He's claustrophobic."
"No problem," Noah said cheerfully as he moved to help the man onto his feet, his shirt now grey instead of white after being soaked through with sweat and his legs wobbling as if made of jelly. Noah quickly strapped him into the harness he used to get down and shouted for his mates to pull him up. Kurt couldn't help but being impressed by Noah's efficiency and how the whole situation didn't faze him one bit. When the harness came back down empty Noah turned to Blaine,
"You're up, Blake." He said and Blaine shot him a venomous glare. He hated the guy with passion, even though he met him for like a minute altogether and was never formally introduced, but it was enough to see the way Kurt's eyes lit up at the sight of that oaf to convince Blaine he loathed the man.
"It's Blaine!" He snapped, still leaning against the wall, "And I don't want you touch me." Noah crossed his arms over his chest; thoroughly enjoying the situation- even if Kurt wasn't there, he was pretty sure this would have been one of the best work days ever. Having Kurt's ex, who was insulting him only two days ago, completely and utterly at his mercy was the best thing that could have happened and he was going to exploit the situation to the full.
"Fine, then you can just stay in here." Blaine glared at him once more, but he knew he had little choice, because even if he asked Noah would never get someone else to come down here instead of him. Kurt watched the two of them locked in a staring contest and rolled his eyes. He knew this had nothing to do with the elevator and everything to do with who's got the bigger cock and frankly this was ridiculous! Before he had a chance to step forward and yell at them both for being stupid Blaine pushed himself off the wall, conceding defeat- he really had enough of being cooped up in this 4X4 space.
To Kurt it seemed that Noah was purposely rough when he buckled Blaine in, but he couldn't prove anything, nor did he much care- hell, if it was him he'd probably start with knocking Blaine out altogether. As soon as Blaine's head was out of the elevator Noah turned to Kurt, and suddenly Kurt felt uncomfortable. It was the first time since he ditched Noah in the middle of street that the two of them were completely alone and now there was literally no escaping, and no he had to face the fact he's been ignoring Noah throughout the weekend.
"Hey," Noah said softly, coming to stand in front of Kurt, who pushed further back against the wall,
"Hey." For a moment Kurt worried his lip looking uncertain, but the truth was, Noah being here actually saved him an embarrassing phone call. "I'm sorry I didn't answer your calls." Noah shrugged,
"It's ok, I understand why you didn't." Kurt let out a sigh, why was Noah being so understanding? It was like someone tapped into Kurt's dreams of the perfect guy and then went into the lab and concocted Noah because hell, he couldn't be for real! "So, how was your day?" He asked with a crooked grin and Kurt let out a small laughter, rolling his eyes dramatically,
"I must have done something really horrible in past life to earn this…" He lamented softly, "Not only getting stuck in an elevator, but being stuck in one with Blaine? I don't get it! What a nightmnn…" Throughout Kurt's speech Noah was getting steadily closer to the other man until he was pushing Kurt further into the wall. One hand rose to caress Kurt's cheek as he swooped down to take his mouth in a kiss. For a second or two Kurt was too stunned to respond but he soon got on with the program and deepened the kiss, grabbing Noah's neck as if afraid the other man would slip away if he let go. When they pulled back for air, Noah pressed his forehead against Kurt's, his heart doing a happy little dance and congratulating him for finally going for it.
"If you wanted me to shut up you could have just said so." Kurt said breathily, still not believing he was standing in an elevator and making out with the man of his dreams.
"I don't want you to shut up." Noah said and started placing soft kisses on Kurt's neck before Kurt grabbed his face and brought it back up for a proper kiss, so what if he just spent the last couple of hours stuck in here- if Noah kept dishing those amazing kisses he really didn't mind staying here all day even.
"Puckerman! Do we really need to have the time and place talk again?" Kurt felt the heat rising to his cheeks so fast he hoped he wasn't about to faint. Burying his face in Noah's shoulder the firefighter could actually feel the heat through his shirt. Turning around to face Mike, whose head was poking through the elevator roof he rolled his eyes. He was being unprofessional and he knew it but damn it Kurt was so hot he couldn't resist himself. "Hey, you must be Kurt, Noah talks about you all the time, nice to meet you, I'm Mike by the way." Kurt lifted his head slightly, his whole face still flushed but he managed a small wave from behind Noah. Mike seemed like a really nice guy, but Kurt knew that from now on he'd be blushing like mad whenever he saw the guy, "Come on, let's get you out of here before the whole thing collapses." Mike said cheerfully,
"What?" Kurt gasped in shock; nobody said anything about the elevator collapsing!
"He's kidding!" Noah said quickly, sending a warning glare at Mike, who grinned and disappeared, leaving Noah to deal with the freaked out Kurt. Noah pulled Kurt towards the harness and helped him to put it on, trying to sneak in a few extra touches but Kurt's mind was too busy with flashing every elevator crash scene he's ever seen in a movie or television to notice.
As soon as Kurt's feet touched solid ground he felt like he could breathe again. Suddenly the hall, which seemed stuffy only a couple of hours ago was filled with light and air, he saw the guy from the elevator sitting by the window, a mug of steaming beverage in his hands, looking out through the open window and gathering courage, Kurt suspected before he braved the stairs. Kurt turned his eyes to Blaine, who now had a roomful of gorgeous men to hit on instead on one guy who couldn't even register his presence and Kurt, was shamelessly flirting with anyone who even looked his way.
"Hey." Kurt jumped a little, turning his head to see Noah standing by his side, smiling wide, looking very pleased with himself. Kurt wondered if he always looked that way when a mission was successful or was it because Kurt was there. Either way Noah was so damn yummy Kurt had to stuff his hands into his pockets so he won't give into temptation and jump Noah's bones- even though he knew it was ok to that now, there were quite a lot of Noah's colleges around and though Kurt didn't really know much about the ranks in the fire department he was pretty sure at least a couple were Noah's superiors and they will not look kindly at him making out with one of the people he just rescued,
"Listen, I really need to get back to work." Noah said, his voice kind of regretful and he looked pensive for a moment, and Kurt was suddenly scared he might suggest bailing work just to spend some time with Kurt. Before Noah could say anything to ruin his career Kurt blurted,
"Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?" A slow grin spread over Noah's face that made Kurt blush all over again,
"I'd love to." Kurt nodded, making quick mental calculations as to how much time he had and what he could possibly cook in that time,
"Is 8 o'clock good for you?"
"Perfect."
..oo00oo..
A/N: I hate elevators, I'm claustrophobic, but even I draw the line at walking more than 10 flights of stairs…
Finally, some action! YAY!
