You all said there was a lot of fluff...

Chapter 12

"Why'd you lie to me, Kurt?" Mercedes asked, leaning against the locker next to his.

"About what?" Kurt sprayed his hair one final time. "The fact that those earrings you bought yesterday were cute?"

"No, actually," she appraised him, a diva look on her face, "about what you were talking to Blaine about yesterday."

"Excuse me," Kurt tried to stop the involuntary smile that spread onto his face at the mere mention of the boy.

She rolled her eyes, "It takes eleven months for a mother horse to stay pregnant so the baby is born healthy. Eleven months. Danielle's horse did not have a baby. So what's going on? And don't lie to me this time."

"How'd you know that?" Kurt closed his locker and mentally kicked his own butt for not thinking of a better lie.

"Wikipedia. But don't divert. What was that phone call about?" Mercedes fell into step with him. "I'm worried about you, Kurt."

"Promise me you won't freak out. Or tell anyone…" Kurt started, looking down at the girl.

Kurt sighed, he knew he shouldn't mention it.

"Go on," Mercedes bumped into him, "You know whatever it is, I'll be there for you boo."

Kurt leaned against the doorway to her classroom, "Blaine and I are…kind of…dating each other."

"You're dating each other?" Mercedes stood there, staring at him. "Kurt…that isn't a good idea."

"Why not? I like him, he likes me. He's a good kid." Kurt could feel his temper rising. Blaine was already a really personal topic. He also felt like he was starting to sound like his father.

Just as Mercedes was going to answer, Kurt felt a blow to his side and fell into the classroom. He sat up, wincing, just in time to see Karofsky sidling down the hall, a smirk on his face as he glanced over his shoulder.

Mercedes looked down at Kurt and stuck out her hand, "Kurt…can't you just wait? We graduate in two years."

Kurt grabbed her outstretched hand and pulled himself up. "No. I can't wait, Mercedes. I really, really like Blaine. I know he isn't what you pictured me with. Hell, he isn't what I pictured me with. But he's what happened."

With that, Kurt marched down the hallway towards his calculus class.

At lunch, things didn't fare better for him. He was attempting to enjoy his parfait when he heard the approach of Mercedes and Rachel.

"Kurt, we need to talk," Rachel sat down across from him, folding her arms primly in front of her. "It's about Blaine."

"Wow, so much for not telling anyone," Kurt hissed at Mercedes, "that was our business. Blaine isn't even out."

"Exactly why he isn't a good choice for you, Kurt," Mercedes spat back, "I'm worried about you. If you're going to get a boyfriend you might as well make him someone who can at least protect you from Karofsky."

"Maybe if I had friends that stood up for me, I wouldn't have to worry about Karofsky, " Kurt finally grit out, his head starting to pound.

Mercedes sat back and just looked at him, "Kurt, I don't know what you want us to do about him. We can't do anything."

"You could have listened to me when I said he was bothering me! You could have let me know that I wasn't facing him alone." Kurt went to stand but Rachel grabbed his hand and stopped him.

"Kurt, sit down, please." She looked up at him, her eyes somehow having a friendlier look in them than usual.

He sat slowly, "Talk."

"I know you like Blaine," she said quietly, "and I know how you might feel like you are lost in this. But you have to realize, Kurt, he isn't going to leave Ohio. You are setting yourself up to be heartbroken in the end. You want to go to New York, you want to have a life there. I don't want to see you stop your dreams because of a boy at home. I know it seems like a long way off, but it isn't. We'll be together in New York really soon." Her eyes pleaded with him.

"Kurt played with his hands in his lap, "I know what you're saying. But it isn't like I went searching for Blaine, I just found him. He is so important to me already. I don't know what would happen if I just decided not to be with him."

"But Kurt, your dreams…." Rachel put her hands up, glancing at Mercedes.

"What about them, Rachel? Sure, they're my dreams, but they are also a year and a half away. Blaine is right here, and right now, and he's what I need. He's my best friend." Kurt wanted them to see it his way, he wanted them to know that the future didn't even matter to him in the moment.

"Wow," Mercedes said, "he's your best friend?"

"You know what I mean, Cedes, don't blow that out of proportion." Kurt thought about trying to grab her hand, but decided against it.

Rachel pulled them back into focus, "Just promise me you won't let him keep you here."

"Rachel, I asked him to be my boyfriend yesterday!" There was a cough behind him and he turned to see Karofsky walking by, an odd look on his face.

"So maybe if you take it back now, you two can still be friends," her face read far too excited for Kurt's liking.

"What don't you two understand? I don't know why you don't like Blaine, because if I remember properly, and I do, when he came to the party you both wanted to be all over him. I think you're both jealous because you don't have boyfriend right now. Because you," he rounded on Rachel, "decided that your ambition was greater than your need to be someone. I don't judge you for that, but that is your choice, not mine. And you," he turned to Mercedes, "are too afraid to put yourself out on a limb."

With that, Kurt turned and ran out of the cafeteria. He had to get out of the school and go somewhere, anywhere so that he could cry and think.

Because even though Rachel was wrong, she raised many points.

Kurt just about made his way to the door, he heard a noise, "Kurt."

He turned, "What do you want Karofsky?"

"It's true? You got yourself a boyfriend?" Karofsky leaned against the wall, sipping a slushie.

Kurt nodded, figuring it wouldn't matter, if Rachel knew, all of New Directions would soon know, and then all of the school would know. "I do. But he doesn't go here, so you don't have someone new to torment."

Karofsky looked at him and then went to open his mouth, "Yo, Karofsky…" Azimio walked in, "Oh man, we get to decorate Hummel today!" he rubbed his hands together.

Karofsky looked at Kurt, pulled his arm back, and threw the purple slushie at him. Kurt felt the initial iceberg shock and didn't even flinch. He wiped the syrupy ice away from his eyes, "And that's why it would never, ever be you," he said quietly to the boy, making sure Azimio didn't hear. He turned and walked out of the door, leaving a trail of grape ice behind him.

Kurt didn't even care about the interior of his car, he wanted to get to Blaine as soon as possible. He didn't obey speed limits, lights, or stop signs if he could avoid it as he made his way to the country. Kurt was positive he could make the drive to Blaine's house in his sleep.

It took him fifteen minutes to get to the outskirts of Lima, then another fifteen to get to Blaine's house, a new personal record. Kurt pulled into the grass outside of the house, his heart racing, because he hadn't thought this through.

What would Blaine's parents think about him coming over in the middle of day, sopping wet with slushie, and latching onto their son.

"Kurt," Blaine knocked on the window, causing Kurt to jump across the seat. He could only see the very top of Blaine's head, but he already felt calm. "Kurt, what's wrong?" Blaine looked at the wetness seeping into Kurt's hair and he sighed, "Karofsky?"

"And Rachel, and Mercedes," Kurt sobbed, hoping Blaine could hear him through the window.

"Kurt, come out here," Blaine yelled, trying the door to find it locked. "Let's talk. My parents aren't home and neither are Danni or Connor."

Kurt opened the door slowly, "Where are they?" he sniffed.

"They both had dentist appointments today, and Ma wanted to get out of the house. Kurt, what's wrong," Blaine took his face into his palm and leaned in, kissing him gently. "You taste like grape," he giggled.

Kurt smiled despite himself, "I'm gross."

"You are gorgeous," Blaine tucked some of Kurt's hair behind his ears. "Do all public schools do this to boys like us?"

Kurt shook his head, "I don't think it's because I'm gay so much. Or, at least it wasn't at first. But now it's pretty much a weekly occurrence. Sometimes daily."

Blaine's face reddened, "You shouldn't have to deal with that, Kurt."

Kurt sighed, "It's part of my life, at least it is for a year and a half until I leave for New York."

Blaine winced a little, "It shouldn't be that way, though. Isn't there something you can do?"

"No."

Blaine wrapped his arm around Kurt's waist, "How about we get you in the shower, and we put some fresh clothes on you. Then we can talk."

Kurt allowed Blaine to lead him towards the house, "I can't go in the house like this. Your Ma will kill me."

"My Ma?" Blaine smiled a little and ducked his head, "I like hearing you say that."

"It slipped," Kurt mumbled, trying to hide his face.

Blaine still smiled, "Just wait, I'll go get you a robe." He disappeared into the house, and Kurt heard him bound up the steps, then right back down them. He emerged holding a blue robe, "Sorry, this is all we have. It's mine, but I promise I only wore it once and I laundered it."

Kurt stared at the robe, and tried not to imagine it touching Blaine's body. "It's fine, Blaine. Just, turn around."

Blaine turned and crossed him arms, "You know, I gave you my robe, the least you can do is let me see the goods."

"The goods?" Kurt quickly stripped off his hands and winced at the syrup rolled down his legs. "Are you sure no one is going to drive up?"

"There is less of a chance the quicker you dress," Blaine turned to say, and immediately moved back into his position, but Kurt could see the tips of his ears redden.

"I said no peeking!" Kurt quickly took his shirt off and then put the robe on. He loved the way it still smelled like Blaine, just from being in his room. "I'm decent."

"You are far more than decent," Blaine held out his hand, "Give them to me."

"What?"

"Your clothes, silly. I'll try to wash the slushie out." Blaine moved his arm.

Kurt couldn't imagine Blaine washing his boxer briefs, "Uh…"

Blaine grabbed them, "Look, I'm not going to stare at them much. I just don't them to stain. You know where everything is in my room, right? You can borrow any of the clothes you want. All of the shower supplies are in the bathroom. Use anything."

Kurt nodded and opened the door, moving quickly to the upstairs. He walked into Blaine's room and was surprised to find it a little messier than usual. There were clothes scattered all over the floor, most of it looked like dress clothes, and Kurt wondered if Blaine was as bad at getting dressed as he was. Kurt walked to the drawer and pulled out a pair of sweatpants and a Dalton t-shirt. He smiled and wondered if Blaine would mind if he kept that. He might even find a way to wear it around the New Directions.

Kurt was about to leave when he turned and saw a box under Blaine's bed – it was marked "Dalton."

Kurt decided Blaine wouldn't notice if he poked around a little bit, so he peeled back the lip of the box, attempting to get a glimpse into his boyfriend's past.

He pulled out a file folder stuffed with papers written by Blaine. Kurt held them in his hands, staring at them. Every single paper had an A+ written on top.

Sure, Blaine had said that he was good at English, but he never said he was this good. Flipping through the top paper, which was about twenty pages long, Kurt glanced at the note from the teacher.

Mr. Anderson, it looks like you could have another publishable work here. You need to look through and do some more fine tuning on the topic of female agency in the play, but you raise some good points that I'm not sure others have thought of yet. If you want to discuss, you are free to come visit me during my office hours.

Kurt looked at the words "published again" and his heart stopped.

Someone who was published wouldn't get thrown out of a school for a lousy physics grade, would he?

Kurt continued to look through folders, finding more writing, some song lyrics, and a pile of math homework.

He had everything correct and all A's on his math tests. Kurt was frantic and looked through the box until he came upon a stack of what appeared to be report cards. Kurt bit his lip and looked around, he knew Blaine would give him privacy, but he was still nervous. He slipped the first one off the top and looked at it.

All A's in every subject, except biology, where he got a B+.

Kurt shuffled to the final report card, thinking that maybe Blaine became lazy.

The report card was marked Spring, and a glimpse at the date told Kurt that it was only from a year ago.

What he saw next to the grades surprised him even more.

English Honors: A+ upon withdrawal

AP United States History: A upon withdrawal

Physics: B upon withdrawal

Pre-Calculus: A- upon withdrawal

Phys Ed : A upon withdrawal

Music: A+ upon withdrawal

Psychology: A upon withdrawal

Spanish III: A upon withdrawal

Upon withdrawal? What did that even mean? Kurt looked through the rest of the box and found nothing that suggested that perhaps Blaine was forced to leave Dalton.

He withdrew.

At the very bottom of the box Kurt found a few pictures. There was a picture of a boy he recognized as Jeff, both of them standing around a birdcage. Another was a picture with a blonde boy, both of their hands clasped between them – that had to be Jeremiah. The final picture was one of Blaine with a tall, dark boy, their mouths open as they both laughed at something.

Kurt looked at Blaine, his hair was perfectly styled and he was dressed in a blazer and tie. What would have caused this boy to leave a school that obviously made him happy?

"Kurt, are you okay up there?" Blaine yelled up the stairs.

"Yeah, sorry, I was attempting to uh, remove some of the gunk from my hair before I got it in your shower." Kurt quickly shoved everything back in the box and pushed it under the bed.

He ran to the bathroom and took the quickest shower of his life, it didn't even bother him when he had to use Head and Shoulders on his hair. It took him a minute to style his hair when he finally emerged. The sweatpants he borrowed were a little too short for him, so he pushed them lower on his hips than normal. "I'm clean and not sticky," he announced as he went down the steps, smiling at Blaine.

Blaine grinned up, stirring a huge spoon in a pitcher of lemonade, "Everything better?"

"Yeah," Kurt looked at the lemonade, "Did it take you that entire time to make the lemonade?"

"No," Blaine put his hands on his hips, "I cleaned out your car, washed out your clothes, hung them to dry, made some sandwiches, and now I'm making lemonade."

"You are perfect," Kurt laughed. Except when he lied about getting kicked out of Dalton.

"That Dalton shirt looks good on you," he said, as if reading Kurt's mind. "And so do the sweatpants." He stared for a few seconds longer than someone normally would, and Kurt looked down to see a thin strip of his skin showing. He immediately pulled the shirt down.

Blaine sighed but grabbed a plate, "Can you carry the lemonade and two cups out? It's a nice afternoon, we might as well use the porch."

Kurt followed Blaine out to the porch and Blaine settled on the white bench swing. "That thing is going to break if I sit with you," Kurt warned.

"No it won't. I put it up myself," Blaine patted the seat next to him, "Come on. You need to eat."

"I ate a parfait at lunch," Kurt countered, sitting gently on the bench. Apparently it was in better than he thought.

Blaine handed him half of a sandwich, "Tell me what's going on."

Kurt bit into the sandwich and chewed slowly. He tried to stall answering the question. Eventually he had to swallow. "Rachel and Mercedes think it isn't a good idea for us to be…boyfriends."

Blaine nodded slowly, taking his own bite of his sandwich, "Did they tell you why?"

Kurt bit his lip, he really didn't want to go into specifics.

Blaine seemed to pick up on his hesitation, "They think I'm going to ground you here, right? They think I'm never going to leave and that I'll make you forget your dreams?"

Kurt looked up from his sandwich, a look of shock on his face, "How…did you know that? They didn't contact you, did they?"

Blaine sighed, "No, it just isn't the first time I've heard that. Kurt…what if they have a point?"

"They don't," Kurt assured him.

"Kurt, I don't think we did this right the other day. I don't think you would have come here so upset if there wasn't a part of you that thought they were right. I want you to sit and listen to me, okay?" Blaine took Kurt's hands into his own, the plate of almost eaten sandwiches forgotten. "What they said is a very realistic fear. I think they are looking out for your best interests. There is a chance that we will both get too deep into this, and neither one of us will want it to end. But Kurt, eventually it will. You want to go to New York and act on the Broadway stage and I want you to do that. I want every single crazy dream you've ever had to come true. You make me want to be a better person, Kurt, and people who do that need to show the world how amazing they really are. I'm telling you now, Kurt, the time will come when you will have to leave me behind. But I want you to know that I am going to care about you until that very day, and even beyond it. I also want you to leave here. I'm stuck here, Kurt. This is my life. When you came into my life, a small piece of me that I didn't even know I was missing came back. You have no idea what having to leave Dalton did to me. Heck, some days I wake up and it still isn't okay. But you have to know that when your time comes to leave, you are going to go. You will be bigger than this place, and I will just be a blip in your past."

Kurt looked away, "So basically you want us to get together even though you know eventually it will end?"

"I want us to be together because I can't stand to not be around you, Kurt. I'm crazy about you! But you have to know how this will end. If you don't want to deal with that, if you can't push it aside in your mind, then we can be friends again. But you have to be in my life. If we can't be boyfriends then we can be friends. I won't turn away from you, Kurt."

Kurt gripped his hand tighter, "So that's it, though? We get a year and a half and then I have to leave you here? You can't leave?"

"I can't leave," Blaine echoed.

Kurt nodded, "Blaine…I want us to be boyfriends. You make me feel like every single day isn't going to be a walk through hell and back. You showed me that there is someone out there who is going to love me. I don't know what the future holds, Blaine. I don't know if I'll be a sales attendant at the Lima Macy's, or winning Tony's in New York. But I want this time with you, even if I know it might end. I'm not going to say it is, Blaine, because neither you nor I know what the future holds. But I want you right now, Blaine."

Kurt watched as a tear fell from Blaine's eye, "I was so terrified you'd say you just wanted to be friends, or worse, that you never wanted to see me again."

"Why are we so emotional?" Kurt laughed, wiping a tear away from his eyes. "I don't think it's supposed to be like this."

"You're right." Blaine nodded, "It's supposed to be more like this," he leaned over and kissed Kurt, moving forward between Kurt's legs. Kurt deepened the kiss, curling his fingers into the hair at the nape of Blaine's neck.

Kurt leaned back, and Blaine fell on top of him, but Kurt didn't let him break the kiss. He pressed them together more, trailing his hands down Blaine's back. Blaine broke the kiss, but started kissing his way down Kurt's neck, alternating between sweet kisses and soft nibbles that caused Kurt to arch his back off of the swing. Blaine's hand trailed under Kurt's shirt, fingers tracing a pattern into Kurt's side.

"We should stop," Blaine muttered, moving his lips back onto Kurt's, "my parents will be home soon."

Kurt whimpered, "I don't want to."

"I don't either," Blaine attacked Kurt's neck again as Kurt dared to move his hands lower, cupping Blaine's butt through his pants, and causing him to press against Kurt.

Kurt wanted to keep going, but he knew if he let it go much further, they'd do something they would both regret. "We really should stop," he sighed.

Blaine pushed himself up on his arms, causing the swing to jerk and throwing both boys onto the hard wood of the porch.

"Ouch!" Blaine yelled, slapping the porch. "That hurt."

Kurt, who was cushioned by Blaine during the fall, started laughing. "Oh my god, we were asking for that!"

Blaine grumbled something that resembled, "Not funny," under his breath.

Kurt kept laughing, so much so that his abs began to hurt, "I don't know why this is so funny," he said between gasping breaths.

"I don't either. Because it clearly isn't." Blaine attempted to move Kurt off of him, but Kurt proved too strong to move. Instead he gave in and started laughing with Kurt, until both of them didn't even remember why they'd started in the first.

You can't be mad at me...it's my birthday in 45 minutes. :)

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