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Here's a quick filler chapter as I won't be updating this weekend since I'll be staying with a friend. Hope you enjoy.
Chapter 11-The Ouchy Place
Almost as if Karofsky knew that the AV club had set up cameras and that Coach Sylvester and Miss Pillsbury were eager to rid the school of his bullying presence, he didn't hassle Kurt or indeed anyone over the remainder of the school week. In fact, he played the role of redeemed bad boy who had seen the error of his ways incredibly well. If Kurt didn't know Karofsky and had only just met him, he himself would have been fooled by his act.
As for what had happened between Karofsky and Azimio in the auditorium after he and Sam had left, Kurt could only guess. Both bullies bore a bouquet of bruises suggesting that they had continued to talk to one another by means of their fists, but as to what else went on was a mystery. The two former friends didn't acknowledge one another in the hallways or out on the football field, nor did Azimio out Karofsky to the rest of the school. They both just acted as though the other didn't exist.
"Maybe Karofsky brainwashed him or something." Sam suggested as the Gleeks sat together in the cafeteria, watching Azimio move along the line of the lunch queue.
"Get real," Santana told him with a roll of her eyes. "This is real life, not one of those dorky sci-fi things you're obsessed with. It has to be blackmail. Karofsky must have some serious dirt on Azimio to keep him quiet."
"Something more serious than sexuality?" Tina asked doubtfully. "That doesn't seem likely."
"Perhaps they discussed things like mature young adults and came to an agreement to give each other some space for a while and not spread vicious rumours or truths about one another." Rachel said.
"You do realise you used the word 'mature' when referring to Karofsky and Azimio right?" Quinn asked. "That's not an accurate description of either of them."
"Not unless it has 'im' in front of it." Brittany said. "Immature." She explained in case any of them didn't understand.
"Who knows?" Artie asked. "They used to be friends. Maybe they care enough not to deliberately hurt one another past a few cuts and bruises."
"Oh please," Mercedes scoffed. "Dudes like that don't care about anyone but themselves."
"But something must be keeping Azimio quiet." Mike said. "The guy is a complete douche; it isn't in his character to protect someone other than himself."
"Especially now he knows of Karofsky's true sexual orientation." Kurt added. "Azimio is a total homophobe, he should have told everyone about Karofsky by now and led the troupes to beat him up, cover him in slushie and throw him in the dumpster."
"Maybe Karofsky's paying him to stay quiet." Finn shrugged.
"Karofsky must be rich if he can silence homophobia." Kurt said.
"Or maybe Karofsky kicked Azimio's ass and he's scared of him." Finn offered as he scoffed down his food.
"Hey, Frankenteen, it's called chewing." Santana said pointedly. "And have you even looked at Karofsky today?" She asked him glancing to the other side of the room where Karofsky was seated with a few hockey jocks. "He's even less attractive than usual, Azimio clearly gave as good as he got, no way is he scared. And why is Finn welcomed back to our table so easily? I didn't hear him give Kurt a proper apology for being such a moron."
"Well for Finn that would be like apologizing for breathing." Kurt remarked scathingly and Finn's brows furrowed in confusion as he tried to work out what Kurt had meant.
"Give Finn a break," Rachel defended half-heartedly and Kurt strongly suspected the two had been quarrelling a fair amount recently. "He made a mistake, we all do and we forgive each other, so please, let it drop."
"No, Santana's right." Sam said. "Finn owes Kurt an apology."
"I'm sorry ok." Finn mumbled through a mouthful of food.
"Oh that was really heartfelt," Santana commented sardonically. "I'm touched and I'm sure Kurt is too."
"I just said sorry." Finn complained.
"Just forget about it." Kurt sighed. "As much as he denies it we all know popularity is important to Finn, even more than friendship and relationships, so let's just move on from Finn's friendship with Karofsky and talk about something more interesting and light-hearted."
"Lord Tubbington managed to climb the stairs by himself yesterday." Brittany told him. "Then he fell asleep for three hours so I had time to hide my diary. He'll never find it now."
XXX
That afternoon, after Kurt collected Maya, it was time to watch more of the duets. Finn and Rachel performed as well as Sam and Quinn. Personally, Kurt felt that the two blondes performed better and that they had more chemistry and charm. The duet between Rachel and Finn was obviously tentative and strained and it was clear that the two weren't as loved up as usual.
"Guys, what's wrong?" Mr. Schue asked after they'd performed. "Your singing was great and it was an excellent song choice but I didn't believe you like I usually do. It didn't seem like you two felt what you were singing. Is everything ok between you two? Finn, do you need to talk?"
"I don't know." Finn shrugged. "Rachel's just yelling at me all the time lately."
"The truth is Mr. Schue; things have been awkward in the Glee Club ever since you welcomed Karofsky into the group." Rachel said shooting a look to the boy who was sat alone on the back riser. "As Finn was spending so much time with him, against the wishes of everyone else, our relationship has suffered a little and unfortunately it has affected our performance today."
"Guys, come on." Mr. Schue said addressing them all. "What have I been trying to teach you in this room since last year? Acceptance." He said enthusiastically. "I want you all to accept yourselves but I want you to accept other people too. I don't think you're being fair to Dave. Rachel, I think you owe him an apology."
"Excuse me?" Rachel asked looking scandalised. "You want me to apologise to him? He's thrown more slushies at me than anyone."
"It's ok, Mr. Schue." Karofsky chipped in. "Rachel is under no obligation to apologise. I should be the one making amends for the awful way I've treated her in the past. I'm sorry, Rachel. I do hope that one day you can forgive me."
"See, that's the kind of maturity I want to see in this room." Mr. Schue praised moving over to Karofsky and clapping a hand on his shoulder. "You can all learn a thing or two from Dave here. Now Rachel, do you have something you want to say?"
"I will never apologise to him." Rachel stated stubbornly before turning on her heel and storming out, the action proving more dramatic as she hadn't done it in at least two weeks.
The rest of the rehearsal went by without incident. Karofsky remained polite and focused on leaning the dance moves and singing songs. To an outside observer, it would seem very much like Karofsky was just misunderstood and that Rachel had been behaving like a brat. Without knowing what was really going on, it would be easy to conclude that Karofsky was trying his best to make peace with everyone and that they were responding childishly and holding grudges. From that perspective, Kurt supposed Mr. Schue's continued defence of Karofsky was understandable. There was no way Mr. Schue could truly know what was really going on, and he probably dismissed the rest of the Gleeks telling him about Karofsky's behaviour as tales concocted to exclude him from the club.
"Why does Schue have to see the good in everyone?" Mercedes asked Kurt as they left school together, Maya skipping along behind them. "Even if there isn't any good there?"
"I don't know. That's just the way he is I suppose." Kurt shrugged. "To be fair, we shouldn't stay angry at Schuester. Inviting Karofsky to join the Glee Club in the hopes that our issues would be resolved would have been a good idea if he wasn't a complete psycho. You witnessed Karofsky's behaviour in there just now as well as the rest of us. He's playing the good guy so well, it's no wonder Mr. Schue's been fooled. Not to mention that Rachel can be… you know?"
"Yeah, we all know Rachel can be… well, Rachel-like." Mercedes said. "But this is some serious business going on here. Karofsky is dangerous."
"Why is he dangerous?" Maya asked clutching hold of Kurt's hand. "Has he hurt you? Do you want me to kick him in the ouchy place? I'm good at it. I do it to Noah all the time."
"That's alright, Little Lady." Kurt told her. "There's nothing for you to worry about, so there's no need to mention it to anybody ok. It'll be our little secret."
"Kurty, I think you should tell Papa Burty." Maya replied giving him a serious look that made her resemblance to her older brother suddenly striking. "He'd want to know about whatever's going on."
"I know, but my dad still isn't one hundred percent better." Kurt explained. "Hearing about this would make him very angry and upset. That kind of stress could make him ill again and we don't want that."
"You're just using that as an excuse." Maya stated knowingly. "You just don't want to tell him because you're being a silly proud and stubborn boy. That's why girls are better. We're smart enough to admit when we need help, and then we sit back and relax while the men fix everything." She grinned.
"May, sweetheart," Kurt said crouching to her level and resting his hands on her shoulders. "Just promise me that you won't tell anyone about this Karofsky situation. Promise me."
"Fine," she sighed. "I promise."
"Good girl." Kurt smiled in relief pressing a kiss to her cheek. "Come on, let's get you home."
To Be Continued
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Love and Hugs, IceQueenRia xxx
