Chapter 10
It felt weird to be together again. They had spent the majority of the last week apart. And now… Kurt could think of things and feel things he didn't before. Like anger towards Blaine. Or a strange sympathy towards someone else… but he couldn't seem to pinpoint who it was. Other Kurt was really good at hiding. Every time Kurt seemed to get close, he would abruptly think of something else. Clothing, his family… he was easily distracted.
Rachel had been so overjoyed about Blaine being there that she seemed to miss everything else. Kurt didn't know how long they'd be able to pull this off without her finding out. She was bound to notice at some point. What if she'd been the one to enter the apartment yesterday? And then Kurt came home?
He'd think about that later. Right now he was more focused on Blaine.
Kurt had to talk about this with someone. He was too excited and nervous. Everything seemed different now. They were really going to work it out.
"Hey, Kurt," Rachel called out. "How'd everything go with Blaine?"
Kurt went to join her in the other room. "Good."
"Good how?" she asked. She put down the magazine that was in her hands to look expectantly at him.
"I kissed him," he said softly.
He was completely unprepared for the squeal Rachel made. "Oh, tell me everything! Was it romantic? Are you two back together? Can I start naming your babies?"
"Whoh, calm down. There're definitely no babies in the immediate future. And um… I kissed him at the airport. Before he left."
"So you're back together?"
"Maybe."
"Kurt. You kissed him. You want to be with him, right?" Rachel prodded.
"Yes."
"Then what's the problem?"
"I don't know. I do want to be with him. We just never… we never explicitly stated if we were dating again or not. I think we need to work through some things, but come Christmas… I think… well, we can't spend Christmas apart."
Rachel got up and hugged him. "Oh, Kurt. I'm so proud of you. I know it's difficult to forgive what he did, but I know you're both strong and you'll get through it. Blaine would definitely never do something like that again."
"I know," Kurt said. He better not. Kurt shoved that feeling away. He wouldn't.
He felt like all his conversations with Rachel went like this lately. Her telling him how great Blaine was. Kurt already knew. He knew how much he missed him and loved him and wanted to be with him. He also knew how much more work they needed to do to move on. They had to deal with the underlying issues that started all this.
"Well, I'm happy for you two. And if you need anything, Kurt, I'm here. If you want to talk or..."
"I'm okay, thanks," Kurt said.
She nodded and started getting ready to go. It was back to work and school for them today. The weekend was over and so was their break. Back to the daily grind.
Kurt had to wonder what he was doing. Rachel seemed so happy at NYADA, despite how often she complained about Cassandra or her classes. She truly loved it. But Kurt had gone with her to a couple classes to check it out. He was not cut out for that. Sure, he loved the vocal classes, but dance? He didn't know if he was up to speed there.
He loved to sing. He truly did. But maybe not as a career.
Isabelle had been amazing to him at Vogue. She had been letting him sit in on meetings and offer his opinions. He wasn't just answering phones all the time. Maybe he could actually make something of himself there. Maybe not. But he felt comfortable there for now, and didn't feel like making any big decisions toward his career. He had too many personal issues to work through first.
He finished getting ready for work, collecting all of his things, before grabbing his phone and walking out the door.
Kurt's life was pretty uneventful for the next few days. He got up, went to work, came home, went to bed. He and Blaine exchanged texts and calls throughout the day. He kept his phone as close to himself as possible, because he wasn't going to miss another call or message.
It was another day at work, where he was positively swamped. He was on the phones again and it was his lunch hour, but they wouldn't stop ringing. Everyone else was in a meeting, so he knew he was stuck. He wished desperately he'd thought to bring lunch with him that day but he happened to be running late that morning and didn't have time.
So he sat, answering phones, and his stomach kept rumbling.
He kept answering and then he felt it. He looked up, knowing exactly what he'd see. There was Other Kurt.
"I'll grab us some lunch," Other Kurt said.
Kurt smiled his thanks, as he was still on the phone. Other Kurt could be helpful at times and Kurt preferred when he was. It was much easier to deal with.
Kurt watched as Other Kurt strode off down the hallway. It was only when he was finally gone that Kurt wondered why he got to get lunch and Kurt had to stay and work.
Other Kurt strode out of the office, thankful to have some time alone for once. It was nice to join back up with Kurt for a while. He knew they had probably been apart way too long, and being together again was as if he recharged his batteries. He felt relaxed.
He breathed in the fresh air outside and walked. His mind finally felt free. His phone buzzed in his pocket for a moment and he frowned, pulling it out. He noticed there were a bunch of missed texts and a couple voicemails. That was weird; no one really knew this number.
He opened his phone and saw that they were all from the same number. Some guy called Dan. It took him a moment but then he remembered. He changed Sebastian's name to Dan. So if Kurt ever found his phone, he wouldn't know it was Sebastian.
Other Kurt felt horrible about the way he talked about Sebastian to Kurt. But he just couldn't tell him the truth about what was going on. Instead he hid who Sebastian was and made him sound like some sort of charity case, someone who needed him to help him. And because of that, Kurt agreed. They couldn't let down someone in need.
He didn't know why he was hiding this so much. Well, he did. They'd both hated Sebastian before all this. But now, Other Kurt could see he was different. After what he told him… he couldn't let Kurt ruin any of this before it started. Maybe there was something there… but even if there wasn't, Sebastian needed someone to be there for him. And Other Kurt was going to help.
He sighed as he kept walking. Kurt would be so mad when he found out. And he would definitely find out. There was no way Other Kurt could keep this big a secret from him. It would come out eventually. And it made him feel horrible. He was screwing with Kurt. He had essentially agreed to date or see Sebastian, while he told Kurt he wouldn't.
He truthfully couldn't believe he told Kurt all of that anyway. He didn't mean to tell him at all. And he lied at the end. He had absolutely no desire to get back together with Blaine.
It was all a giant mess and Other Kurt was in the middle of everything. That's why he figured he might as well be nice and suck up to Kurt for a while. Maybe then he wouldn't be so upset when he found out what he was doing.
Because maybe not right now, but in the future, they were going to be dating two people.
He finally flipped through the messages he had from Sebastian. The first few were flirty. "Miss seeing you." "You free later today?" The next couple were dirtier. "I want you inside me." "I'm so hard for you right now." The few after that were worried. "Kurt? I didn't scare you off, right? I was just joking." "Did something happen? Are you alright? Or do you never text back normally?"
The voicemails were filled with a worried Sebastian asking if he had gotten kidnapped or mugged or something and wondering if there was any other way to contact him.
Other Kurt sighed and sent a text back. "I'm fine, sorry. My phone ran out of battery and I forgot to charge it." He bit his lip before sending another. "I miss seeing you too."
He didn't know where all the feelings were coming from. But there was something inside him that surprised him. He truly did want to see Sebastian again.
He got some fast food and made his way back to Vogue. He stopped at a coffee shop on his way.
"Two grande non-fat mochas, please," he said to the lady at the front.
"Well, look who it is. I thought you fell off the face of the Earth or something."
Other Kurt turned around and saw Sebastian. Huh, just who he was thinking of.
"Sebastian," Other Kurt said, his lip curling up. "Are you stalking me now?"
"Just trying to see if you were still alive, or if you were just ignoring me."
Sebastian had a cocky smile on his face but Other Kurt could also see the uneasiness there. Shit. Other Kurt had promised not to hurt him and then hadn't answered any of his messages in the last few days.
"I just messaged you. I'm sorry. Phone issues. It was nothing personal."
"Uh huh," Sebastian replied.
"Really. I promise you. I didn't mean to ignore your messages."
"Right. Well, you're going to make it up to me now by having lunch with me."
Other Kurt bit his lip. He did want to. "I can't. I'm working right now. Just grabbing some lunch." He held up the bag of food to show Sebastian.
"Oh. And not just for you."
"Just for someone in my office. We're swamped today, sorry, Sebastian," Other Kurt apologized.
"No, I get it," Sebastian said, backing off.
"Hey. I'm not trying to dismiss you. We can meet up later? Maybe when I'm off work?"
"Sure," Sebastian said.
"I'll give you a call or something, okay?"
"Okay," Sebastian said.
And then Other Kurt really had to go. He was hungry and he knew Kurt was hungry and he had to make it back before the others got out of their meeting, or they would definitely be spotted.
He waved again at Sebastian and head out, making his way back to the office. He snuck inside and saw Kurt, putting the food down.
"Lunch, voila!"
"Why did you bring two coffees?" Kurt asked.
"One for me, one for you, of course," Other Kurt said with a laugh.
Kurt raised an eyebrow. "We can't stay separated here like this." And as he said it, Other Kurt could hear the meeting dissipating.
"Shit. Right. Fine, you get two coffees and ton of food. Well, we get two coffees and a ton of food. I definitely wasn't thinking."
Kurt laughed for a moment and then Other Kurt shrugged. And then he merged back.
The rest of the work day passed quickly for Kurt. He ate his food, answered calls, and got through the day.
And Blaine called him. Kurt picked up the call as soon as he could, ignoring the other lines that were ringing. He was sure to get in trouble for it but he couldn't miss another call of Blaine's.
"Hi!" Kurt exclaimed excitedly.
"Hi, Kurt," Blaine responded.
Kurt could feel himself squirming and his eyes darted around, taking in the people walking around him. He felt uncomfortable for a moment and then a bit of frustration took over before it was gone. Other Kurt definitely wanted out. But there were way too many people watching.
"How are you? How's Ohio treating you?" Kurt said.
"Same as usual." Blaine chuckled. "I'm not interrupting you at work or anything… am I?"
Kurt glanced at all the other phone lines ringing. "Of course not. I'm glad you called."
"Good. That's… good."
Kurt chewed on his lip as he asked the next question. "How's school?"
"Not much different there either."
"Right."
Blaine chuckled. "Is it weird that I miss you already?"
"No. I miss you too."
"Okay, good. And I'm glad we're trying this again… at your pace. But I can't stop thinking about that kiss."
"I'm sure there'll be more where that came from," Kurt said.
Blaine was silent for a moment and Kurt could just imagine him blushing. "So, how's Vogue?"
"Well, I don't want to bore you. I'm getting to give more input which is good. Oh, and Isabelle asked me to look over the layout on the new segment of the web page and I have to say it's simply amazing. Of course, I'd add something more to it if it was me, but…" He was talking too much again.
"That's great. I'm glad you get to do more. I got your Christmas gift. I mean, I know it's really early for that still, but I couldn't help myself."
"Oh, Blaine, you didn't have to," Kurt said. He really had to start looking for something for Blaine.
"Of course I did, silly. I'm looking forward to seeing you again. It'll make it the best Christmas ever."
"Even better than when we filmed the Christmas special?"
"Even better," Blaine agreed.
"But really, Blaine. How are things there? Is everyone treating you okay? They're not still ignoring you, right?"
"It's getting back to normal. Maybe it had to do with the craziness of sectionals before. I hung out with Sam and Artie yesterday."
"Good. That's good."
The other phone lines kept ringing and Kurt saw Isabelle heading toward him.
"Blaine, it's been so great to talk to you, and I can't wait until Christmas. I'll call you again soon, alright?"
"Sure."
"And you can always call me, like I promised. I'll always answer, okay?"
"Okay. I love you, Kurt."
"Love you too, Blaine," Kurt replied.
They lingered on the line for a moment before hanging up.
Isabelle gave him a smile. "Ah, did you two get back together?"
Kurt may have spoken about Blaine just a little bit to Isabelle before. He couldn't help it. And she'd helped him so much through his anger and sadness over what Blaine did to him.
"Yeah. No. Maybe. It's complicated. But I think we're going to. We both love each other, and it's probably inevitable."
"Well, I'm rooting for you two," she said. "Here, if you have a chance, could you give this number a call? They're late on their delivery."
"Alright," Kurt agreed.
The rest of the day passed quickly and soon Kurt was packing up his things to go home. The office had cleared out and he was one of the last ones there.
Just as he was leaving he cringed and saw Other Kurt standing there, glaring at him.
"What's your problem now?" Kurt asked. Just earlier, he had been helping out by getting food.
"You're going to get in trouble if you talk to Blaine all the time during work."
"Isabelle likes me and she likes Blaine. I'll be fine."
"She's never met Blaine."
"So, she knows him enough!" Kurt exclaimed. He did talk about Blaine a lot.
Other Kurt glared again. "But what did we agree on? I don't want to talk to him!"
"Well I can't help that. If we're here together like this at the office, there's not much we can do."
"Then maybe we shouldn't be together at the office. Or maybe he shouldn't call here. Can't you call him after work?"
"Well what if I do? What if I call him after work and Rachel's home, so you can't go anywhere anyway?"
"You know what? I don't care. I'm out of here. I'll see you later." Other Kurt turned on his heel and stormed off.
"Where are you going? What is this going to accomplish?" Kurt yelled after him.
He threw his hands up in defeat. Other Kurt was secretive, bossy, and didn't feel like working. And he was really starting to get on Kurt's nerves.
Other Kurt stormed off in anger. He had to listen to that conversation Kurt had with Blaine earlier, and they'd discussed this already. Kurt wouldn't talk to Blaine like that while they were still one. He had no opportunity to separate! The office had been full again after the meeting and there was always someone walking around.
He huffed, angry at that, and tried to figure out what to do.
Well now that he was separated, he could meet up with Sebastian again. But what to do? They could go for dinner again… or maybe watch a movie. Or maybe go back to Sebastian's again. No, they weren't going to do that. They were going to talk and get to know each other.
Other Kurt pondered this as he tried to figure out what to do. He wandered a bit as he was thinking until he came across that coffee shop again. The one he seemed to frequent when he was thinking about Sebastian. He looked around before he decided, why not? He was tired, and needed to think, and coffee was always a good start.
He walked inside and got in line, making his way to the front. He fiddled with his phone, starting to type out a message to Sebastian.
He had just placed his order when he heard a chuckle behind him and turned around.
"You're definitely stalking me now," Other Kurt said.
Right behind him was Sebastian. Well, he didn't have to text him anymore. Other Kurt knew for a fact this coffee shop was nowhere near Sebastian's dorm. He had no idea what he was doing way out here or how he knew where to find him. So maybe he was stalking him. As long as he didn't find his way back to the apartment.
"Not stalking you. I think you have a problem," Sebastian said with a smirk.
"Oh, I have a problem?"
"Yeah, a coffee addiction is nothing to be taken lightly."
"What are you talking about?"
"I mean I know you had two coffees earlier, but again today?"
"I told you, only one was for me."
"But you're having more now."
Other Kurt couldn't deny that. "Well, then what does it say about you? You're having coffee again too."
Sebastian looked down at his cup as if just realizing that then back up to Other Kurt. "Well then, I guess we both have coffee addictions. We can go to rehab together."
Other Kurt rolled his eyes as Sebastian reached forward to pay for both their coffees. "You don't have to do that."
"I know, but I want to. Hey, I figured, I found you twice in one day after not hearing from you for a few, so I can't let you escape again."
Other Kurt motioned for them to move so they did, grabbing a table and sitting down.
"So, this is your new coffee hangout?" Sebastian asked.
"I have a thing for coffee hangouts," Other Kurt replied.
"I know. Lima Bean, the other coffee place, this one. You seem more familiar here, though."
"I come here more often. Sometimes before work, sometimes after."
"Ah, so I could probably find you here."
"Probably," Other Kurt said with a laugh. "But isn't it a little far from your dorm?"
"Company's worth it," Sebastian replied.
They sipped their coffee together in silence for a while.
"How did you find me here anyway?" Other Kurt asked.
"Would it be creepy if I said I followed you?"
Other Kurt blinked. Yes, definitely creepy. And what if he saw Kurt. What if he saw both of them? They would have to be way more careful.
Sebastian snorted. "I didn't follow you. I had to pick something up out here. My crazy roommate decided he couldn't do it and told me if I did he'd give me fifty bucks. So here I am. I just happened to see you after that."
"How kind of you, coming all this way for money."
"Why of course," Sebastian said.
They sipped their coffees and Other Kurt noticed Sebastian staring at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing."
"Oh come on," Other Kurt tried.
"I was completely wrong about you. I have to say that you're actually kind of sexy."
"What?' Other Kurt sputtered.
"Well, we did have sex, so it should have been obvious then."
"You're telling me I look sexy here, sipping my coffee."
"Yup."
"Sebastian." Other Kurt laughed. "Is this some sort of date?"
"Could be. You want it to be?" There was that look again in Sebastian's eyes, like he was afraid of being turned down.
And there was also the guilt inside Other Kurt. He did say he wasn't going to date Sebastian to Kurt. But he said he was to Sebastian.
"Sure, it's a date."
"I have a feeling we're going to have a lot of coffee dates," Sebastian said, nodding.
"Oh you do, do you?"
"Well, I know this place now, where you seem to frequent and I may happen to show up here."
"I don't think I'd be opposed."
He was rewarded with a huge smile from Sebastian. "Good. So tell me, what did you end up doing today after lunch? Did you make it back to work in time?"
"I did. And I managed it without spilling the coffee. It was a busy day."
"Working as an intern for Vogue, right? And what do you do exactly?"
"Today? Answer calls. Brainstorm, design, things like that. Go to meetings."
"Right."
"And what did you do, Sebastian?"
"Went to class. Met you at the coffee shop. Met you at this coffee shop."
"Sounds enthralling."
"Very much so," Sebastian said, his eyes narrowed.
They looked at each other and burst out laughing. Their banter was quick witted and back and forth. But they weren't doing much more than amusing themselves.
Finally Other Kurt shrugged. "You know, you don't have to keep up the act with me."
"Huh?" Sebastian asked.
"What you talked about, the other night?"
"Oh, right. What if I like arguing with you?"
"This isn't really arguing. It's more play fighting."
"True," Sebastian responded. "I like spending time with you. There, that better?"
"Much. And in case you were wondering, I like spending time with you too."
Sebastian nodded and then looked around for a moment. He seemed to see what he was looking for, or not looking for, and he leaned forward, pulling Other Kurt toward him over the table, kissing him gently.
"What was that for?" Other Kurt asked, as they pulled back apart.
"Felt like it. This is a date, right?"
"Don't you normally wait until the end of the date?"
"Maybe on the first date. But we've already had that. And we've already had sex. So in my opinion, it doesn't matter."
"Very true."
They stayed at the coffee shop for a while, talking, laughing, and exchanging kisses. By the time Other Kurt and Sebastian left, it was well past dinnertime.
And it continues… As always, let me know what you think!
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