Well…it's been a while, hasn't it?

Let's not focus on that. Let's focus on the new chapter.

GLEE

"- Sam and the other boys did Justin Bieber songs today," said Kurt. "Actual Justin Bieber songs, Blaine. It was horrendous. I told Mercedes that she had to snap her man out of this."

"That does sound awful," laughed Blaine over the Skype webcam. "They didn't do their hair -"

"Yes!"

"Oh god."

Kurt and Blaine dissolved into giggles until Blaine turned away from the screen for a moment. "That's my phone. I'll be right back. I think it's in my blazer…" Blaine stood and disappeared from the screen, reappearing a moment later on his cellphone. He muted his microphone.

Kurt watched idly as Blaine nodded a few times, talking, and then reached for a notebook. It looked like he read off a few things to the caller, then closed the book. He laughed and nodded. A few moments later he hung up and turned his sound back on.

"Sorry! Dave needed our assignment for math," said Blaine.

"Hmmm, Dave? David didn't seem like the time to go by a shorter name," said Kurt, picturing the tall black boy that Blaine mentioned a few times. He was the boy on Blaine's right at Sectionals, apparently.

"Oh, no," said Blaine, his smile dropping. "Uh, that was a different guy…he just goes by Dave…" Blaine trailed off nervously, coughing. "So. Besides the unfortunate teen sensation invading Glee club, what else happened today?" he asked quickly.

Blaine had changed the subject. Quite blatantly and rather quickly.

Huh.

Kurt brushed it off and continued to tell Blaine about his day, Blaine chiming in with his experience and opinions.

Kurt figured they were lucky. Since last week and his confessions of having a crush on Blaine, they were still good friends. There was no awkwardness at all, really. It was nice.

After about thirty more minutes of conversation, Kurt had to hang up to go down to dinner, so he said goodbye and hurried down stairs (Burt was calling him).

"Nice of you to join us," said Burt when Kurt finally slid into the dinning room; everyone was already sitting down. Finn looked like he was going to die if he didn't get his hands on the piece of fried chicken in front of him in the next five seconds (the rule was they had to wait for everyone to sit down before eating).

Kurt blushed and sat down. In that moment, Finn launched into eating.

"He was probably busy talking with his boyfriend," said Quinn, a devious expression on her face.

"You know good and well he is not my boyfriend," said Kurt primly.

"Are you sure he doesn't like you, Kurt?" asked Carole sweetly. "He is gay, and you spend so much time together. He's very sweet."

Kurt blushed, looking away from both Carole and Burt. "No, we most certainly does not. We've talked about it. We're just friends."

Carole smiled. "I'm sure you'll find someone, honey."

"Not in Ohio, I won't," said Kurt with an eye roll. "It's ok. When I got to college in New York, maybe I'll be beating the guys off with a stick." Kurt laughed at the very idea.

"I'll beat them with a stick," muttered Burt, in the same tone he used when he was feeling particularly protective of Quinn with boys. Kurt felt touched by it, actually.

The usual dinner table conversation started, asking everyone about their days as Finn inhaled everything in sight (sometimes Quinn would lean over and whisper to Kurt, "What on earth did I ever see in him?" and Kurt would giggle.)

The next few weeks passed in the same way as the ones before Valentine's had passed. Kurt and Blaine met frequently for coffee, and when they couldn't, they talked even more on Skype. Kurt was glad that there was no remaining awkwardness from Valentine's day.

Regionals loomed closer and closer. As it did, Rachel began to criticize Kurt's friendship with Blaine, once again. Quinn was sure she didn't really mean it - Kurt and Blaine had been friends for a long time, and not once did they ever spy on each other's Glee clubs for competition.

"You know how she gets," said Quinn, rolling her eyes. "I'll talk to her. Don't worry." Then she hurried off to find Rachel.

Kurt rolled his eyes and started out to the parking lot to wait in the car for Quinn after she had talked some sense into Rachel (if that was in fact, possible). He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Blaine.

"Rachel is being insane," said Kurt the moment Blaine picked up. "I can't believe Regionals are so close. She insists that you are a spy, bent on our defeat." Kurt didn't mention that they were probably going to be writing original songs for the competition - that would file under things you shouldn't tell your competition. Rachel would have his head.

Blaine just laughed. "She means well. Sometimes Wes is disapproving of my friendship with you, so really, I understand."

"Anyway," said Kurt, opening the door to their car. He spotted Finn talking to Puck across the parking lot. "We should get together tonight or something. Coffee?"

"Usual place and time?" asked Blaine with a hint of amusement.

"Obviously. I'll see you then. Quinn is coming so we're about to leave. See you in a bit," said Kurt, handing up the phone.

A little over an hour later, Kurt and Blaine were sitting down in the back of the Lima Bean with their coffees in hand.

"I love my family, I really do," said Kurt as they sat down. "I will always be grateful to Burt and Quinn - and Carole is really, really kind. Her wardrobe has also improved after gaining me as a stepson, thank-you-very-much. And Finn has his moments - but I swear, living in a house with that many people can be exhausting." Kurt sighed and sipped his coffee. "My coffee breaks with you keep me sane. I'm sure of this."

"Well, I don't know about the sane bit…" said Blaine with a smirk.

"Hey!"

"So how has school been lately?" asked Blaine, leaning back in his chair and taking a bit of his biscotti.

"Quite well," said Kurt. "After winning the football game, the slushies surely lessened. Major bullying has been on a decrease ever since Karofsky was expelled." Kurt paused and frown slightly, missing a look from Blaine. "Only a few of the meaner football players really ever make fun of us anymore."

Blaine smiled softly. "I'm glad, Kurt. You don't deserve the stuff you go through."

Kurt looked down at his coffee, smiling and not sure what to say exactly. "It's been better since Karofsky left…I mean, I'm sad he had to leave all his friends…Azimio hasn't even heard from him lately, apparently." Kurt looked up and frowned. Blaine's expression was nervous and slightly pale. "What's wrong?"

"Well…" Blaine said, stretching out the word. "I just…there is something that I've been wanting to tell you for a while now…but I just hope you're not angry at me for not saying something earlier. I just…it wasn't my information to tell."

Kurt felt suddenly confused and a strange feeling settled itself in his stomach. "What…what is it?"

Blaine set is coffee down and scooted into the table more, leaning over the table and tapping his fingers nervously. "Well. Obviously Dave Karofsky was expelled from McKinley. When you're expelled from a public school, sometimes it's hard to be accepted at another, and there isn't even that much of a choice of were to go in Lima or Westerville." Blaine continued to tap his fingers. "Dalton…isn't like that. They don't care if you were expelled, as long as you can pay tuition and follow the rules of the school…"

Kurt's eyes widened as he connected the dots that Blaine was setting down. "Oh my god."

"Dave goes to Dalton," said Blaine. "He has since he left McKinley." Blaine looked scared. "I knew who he was the moment he transferred, obviously, but I didn't want to alienate him because I knew why he was expelled. You don't talk about that sort of thing at Dalton. After a few weeks, though, I decided I should talk to him a bit, along with Trent - he's another gay student in the Warblers."

"You and…Karofsky…are friends?" Kurt choked out. He couldn't breathe. He was back in the locker room suddenly, his breath being forcibly taken by another person, lips bruising and crushing down.

"No," said Blaine quickly. "I mean, we go to school together and speak. We're in the same classes and he's in the Warblers so -"

"He's in the what?"

"The Warblers. He's a very good baritone," said Blaine absently. At Kurt's shocked face, he grew more seriously. "Kurt. I know what he did to you is inexcusable. You should have never kissed you without your permission," he said lowly. "But he's different. He's grown up. Dalton is a safe environment and he's really come out of his shell."

Kurt's eyes widen at his choice in words. "By 'come out of his shell' do you mean…you can't mean…he's come out?"

"Yes, about a month ago," said Blaine, almost proudly. "Trent talked him through it. His parents already knew and accepted him, so there isn't really that much to be afraid of after that. Dalton is accepting, with it's zero tolerance policy on bullying, so really, after a while Dave warmed up to the idea. Plus he joined the Warblers about a month after coming to Dalton."

"He…sings?" asked Kurt, still not quite believing it.

"Yes," said Blaine, a small smile on his face. "His voice has a unique quality. But anyway, I think the performing really helped him. Plus, we don't have football, so he needed to join some sort of club or activity."

"But…" Kurt couldn't understand. "He's a bully. He pushed me into my locker everyday, Blaine. I…I was scared of him."

"He was a bully," said Blaine quietly. "If he still was, he wouldn't last long at Dalton. He also enrolled in anger management therapy, according to Trent. He really regrets what he did to you, Kurt."

"Wait," said Kurt slowly. "Does that mean…he knows that you're my friend?" Fear shot through Kurt suddenly.

"Yes. He's known for a while now. He didn't want me telling you…" Blaine sighed. "But Kurt…he really wants to apologize to you. Formally. But he didn't want to just appear at your door. He doesn't want to scare you."

"So he asked you," said Kurt, his throat dry.

"Kurt, I hope you're not angry at me," said Blaine, worried. "I just…I didn't want to keep this from you. I didn't."

Kurt looked away from Blaine and stared at the table. Realistically, he knew that it wasn't Blaine's fault. He wouldn't want someone blabbing his secrets to another friend, obviously. But at the same time…this was personal. Karofsky…he hurt him. So much. Then there was that fact that Karofsky got to go to school with Blaine, while Kurt was stuck over an hour away from Blaine at all times.

Kurt looked up at Blaine for a moment. He looked heartbroken.

Then Kurt realized that he could never really be mad at Blaine - at least for something like this.

Kurt loved him too much for that.

"I'm not mad," muttered Kurt. "Like you said, it wasn't your secret to tell. I get it. It just…hurts."

"I know," said Blaine. He looked relieved. "And about Dave talking to you…"

"Can we just…hold off on that for a while?" asked Kurt. "I just. I need time to think about this more. I haven't seen Karofsky for months. Since…"

"I understand," said Blaine quickly. "Really, take your time." Kurt nodded. Blaine let out a long breath. "So, have you seen the newest cover of Vogue?"

And like that, the awkward moment had passed.

Over the next few days, Kurt thought a lot about Karofsky. He the incident in the locker room - a moment he mostly tried to push out of his mind on a day to day basis. Mostly, though, he thought about Karofsky's face after it had happened, when he had confessed to his father.

He had been sorry. Vulnerable.

Maybe Blaine was right and he had changed. Maybe going to Dalton had been the best thing for him. They boy was apparently in a Glee club, something he had teased all the glee club members for back at McKinley. Maybe he was better, now.

Maybe.

Kurt knew that the more adult, mature thing would be to see Karofsky. Speak to him in a civil manner.

But mostly, he was scared.

He couldn't help it. Every time he thought of Karofsky, a spike of fear flew through him. The other boy had taken something special to him - his first kiss. That would be what he remembered for the rest of his life. He really, really wanted to hate Karofsky for it, too, but he was mostly sad.

After going over it in his head dozens of times, Kurt decided that he should meet Karofsky.

With some stipulations.

"I'll meet up to talk to Karofsky," said Kurt on the phone to Blaine. Blaine's silence told him that he was shocked, but recovered, asking Kurt if he was sure. "I'm sure. But…there is something that I want before then…"

"What is it?"

"I don't want to go alone," said Kurt slowly. "I mean, I will talk to him alone, because I'm sure he wouldn't want someone hanging right next to me. It is personal. But I don't want to be anywhere around him without someone I know with me. So can you…well, just come with me? Maybe we can have it at the Lima Bean. Publicly and all."

"That sounds completely reasonable, Kurt," said Blaine gently. "Trent will probably come, too. He and I can sit a few tables over. Far enough away to not over hear everything, but close enough for you to give me a look if you want to leave, ok?"

"Thank you for understanding, Blaine," said Kurt, completely relieved.

"Of course. I'll talk to Dave and then I'll tell you when we can all meet up, ok?" Kurt agreed and hung up his cell phone, falling into his bed with a low groan.

The next afternoon, Kurt found himself sitting in the Lima Bean, his untouched coffee in front of him. Really, he was jittery enough without the unnecessary caffeine. Kurt's eyes moved to the entrance every few minutes, his stomach dropping each time he heard the faint 'ding' that told him that someone had just opened the door.

Blaine told him that himself, Karofsky and this other boy, Trent, would be here in just a few more minutes, much to Kurt's utter dismay. He was still far to nervous about this whole thing.

The door rung again and Kurt's eyes moved toward it on reflex - his heart suddenly falling out of his chest and to the ground at his feet. Blaine was entering, Dalton tie loosened, with two other boys behind him.

The first was a boy just a little taller than Blaine, with a darker complexion and tidy black hair and a cute round face. He wore the same Dalton uniform as Blaine, his tie notably absent, however.

And finally Karofsky followed behind the both of them, looking strange in the same uniform that Kurt saw on Blaine constantly.

Kurt had to admit that the other boy looked just as nervous as Kurt himself felt. His face even paled (much like Kurt was sure his did) when he saw him.

Blaine looked at Kurt, nodded, then turned to Karofsky and gestured back to Kurt, then to an empty table three over from Kurt's. The other boy, Trent, sent a comforting look to Karofsky and followed Blaine over to the empty table. Karofsky stood still in the middle of the mostly dead coffee shop for a long moment, then slowly walked over to Kurt.

Kurt's heart beat wildly in his chest. All he could think about was Karofsky's lips, stubbornly attached to his own.

Karofsky finally stood only feet from him, nervously looking from Kurt to the chair across from him.

"Fabr- I mean, Kurt," said Karofsky. "I - I -" Karofsky swallowed and shook his head. "Can I sit?"

Kurt somehow nodded his consent, his hands tightening on the coffee cup in front of him. Karofsky sat, setting his bag down next to his chair and putting his hands on the table top. He tapped the table top with his hand nervously.

They sat in a heavy silence for a few long minutes, not sure where to even begin. Finally, Karofsky sighed.

"Look….Kurt," he said in a soft voice that Kurt had never heard from him before. "I just…I'm not good with words. This is really hard, but I needed to do this. I needed to talk to you and put all this behind me. My therapist, she says that even though I'm making progress, I can't go anywhere without talking to you first."

Kurt blinked at the other boy - therapist? Blaine had mentioned that Karofsky was in anger management. Did he mean that, or something different?

"What…what do you mean?" Kurt found himself asking.

"I needed to tell you how sorry I am," said Karofsky simply. "I should have never kissed you. It was wrong for me to - to - assault you like that. And how sorry I am for taking out every bad thing I was feeling on you."

"What?" asked Kurt, staring at him with wide eyes.

"I only bullied you because…I don't know, I was afraid. You were…out," said Karofsky. "The only other person like me…" His eyes looked over to where Blaine and Trent were sitting, talking lightly it seemed, but Kurt could see that Blaine's eyes looked over at them every so often. "It scared me. Everyone hated you. It made me sure that I couldn't ever come out - because the same thing would happen to me. But besides that…"

Karofsky hesitated. "I was almost jealous of it all. You didn't even care what other people did to you. You didn't care if they hated you. You just kept on walking and didn't let it get to you - even when your parents threw you out. You just…you were confident and all that. I was like, the polar opposite and I couldn't be like that."

Kurt's mouth was dry. He had never really thought through why Karofsky had done what he had. And really, he hadn't put together the bullying with the kissing. He hadn't wanted to think of either thing to much.

"That's not true, though," said Kurt before he really thought about it. Karofsky looked at him with a confused expression. "I'm not…confident. I mean, I am, I guess, sometimes. But it doesn't mean that the bullying I go through at school doesn't get to me. It really, really hurts. And as for my parents…that was the worst night of my life. But I just…I'm not the brave one - I have my friends and new family to thank for keeping me…fighting, I guess."

His eyes wandered toward Blaine once again. He swallowed the lump that was forming in his throat.

"It doesn't matter," said Karofsky tiredly. "I just…I'm here to apologize to you, Kurt. For every bad thing I've ever done to you. I'm…trying to be better."

Kurt looked at Karofsky for a long moment. His face was one of utter sincerity and racked with guilt.

This wasn't the mean jock that Kurt had last seen a few months ago. That much was certain.

"Blaine tells me that you're in the Warblers," Kurt decides to say. He had never been good at accepting apologies, at least vocally. Really, they were so awkward. "You must be good."

Karofsky's face colors. "Yeah, well, Trent was the one that told me I should. Heard me singing in the showers one day. It's fun."

"Too bad New Directions couldn't have snatched you up. Maybe more of the jocks would have respected us," said Kurt, in what he hoped was an idle way.

Karofsky laughed - actually laughed. "Yeah."

"And…you're out," said Kurt. He smiled, just a little. "What was that about not being brave?"

Karofsky shrugged. "I owe it to Trent. And Blaine, I guess. They were good for talking to me. And Dalton…it's better than McKinley by lightyears. I almost wish you could have gone there, instead of me. It would have gotten you away from people like me."

Kurt also shrugged. It wasn't like he hadn't thought about going to Dalton. The fact that Blaine was there only would sweeten the deal. But it wasn't possible. Dalton was much too expensive and Kurt couldn't ask the Hummels to do that for him.

"You like Blaine."

"What?" said Kurt, suddenly straightening up in his chair. He must have been lost in thought for too long.

"Blaine. You keep staring at him," said Karofsky. "You like him?"

"To be perfectly honesty, I don't feel comfortable talking to you about that, Karofsky," said Kurt through gritted teeth. "I might forgive you for what happened but…I can't."

"I get it," said Karofsky. "And you can call me Dave. If you want."

Kurt nodded.

"But if you do like him," said Karofsky - Dave - suddenly. "You should go for it. I mean, he's nice. And he talks about you often enough - me must like you." Kurt sat silently and Dave shrugged. "Maybe if you two got together, we could all double date. Trent isn't big on going into town alone. Not safe. Even though we go to Dalton, it's still Ohio, after all."

"Wait - what?"

"What?"

"You just - you and Trent?" asked Kurt, looking over at the table again.

"Uh, yeah," said Dave, his face coloring. "We haven't been together that long. Not till I came out officially at school." Dave paused. "I like him a lot."

"That's, well, that's good," said Kurt, still a bit shocked.

Dave Karofsky had gotten a boyfriend before him.

What was happening?

Their conversation sort of fizzled out from there. Not for any reason other than the fact that it was just awkward. Dave and Kurt weren't friends. They probably would never be. They just didn't have much in common, besides the fact they were gay (and sang, apparently).

"You do forgive me, thought?" asked Dave as he stood up.

"Yeah, I do," said Kurt, surprising himself. He hadn't been sure he could forgive David.

"I can't even believe that," said Dave, putting his bag on his shoulders. "I wouldn't forgive me."

"You sell yourself short," said Kurt. Dave smiled at him and said goodbye. Trent was standing up from his table, too. When Dave met up with him, he slipped his hand into Trent's and spoke to Blaine for a minute before walking out of the Lima Bean.

Blaine came over to Kurt's table. Kurt himself was suddenly very tired.

"That went better than I thought," said Blaine, taking the chair that Dave had just vacated.

"I guess it did," said Kurt. He laughed.

"You ok?" asked Blaine, genuinely concerned. He reached out and put his hand over Kurt's.

Kurt knew he didn't do stuff like this on purpose, per se. Touch Kurt in such a casual, but charged way, or flirt with him, or be so sweet and nice that Kurt just wanted so much.

"I'm fine," said Kurt. "I needed that, I think. It's more closer than I got a few months ago, anyway."

"Come on," said Blaine, standing and slipping his hand off of Kurt's, only to reach out and offer it again to help Kurt from the table. "I'll buy you some dinner."

TBC

Yeah, so I know it has been forever since I have updated. School started and thinks are slightly crazy. I have a lot of homework still, so it might be a while till the next chapter - again. D: I'm sorry! Hope you like this chapter, though.