A/N: Almost done! I must say, I did NOT expect there to be nearly as many reviews for this as there are, and I'm sure, by tomorrow, there will be about a hundred, which is phenomenal! So thank you, everybody; thank you all SO incredibly much for sticking with this wacky ride! There is just one more left to go. ;D
14. Falter.
On graduation night, everyone is in red gowns and caps, everyone is dressed up and glowing with anticipation and excitement, and some girls cry with relief and joy and sorrow of leaving their friends and the school, and through it all, couples tell one another things, or choose to break up, or groups of friends either promise to stay in contact or lie and say they will but never plan to. And there is a lot of hugging involved, and a lot of goodbyes and congratulations.
Teachers, students, and anyone else who touches the hearts of someone else comes and go as they please before the ceremony, saying words of encouragement or farewell, and it's all a torrent of high emotions like a roller coaster with nothing but higher and higher hills to climb and twists and loops to complete.
Kurt falters when it comes time to go through with the actual ceremony. He's separated from Dave – they are a 'K' and an 'H,' which isn't too far, but it's far enough that they can't speak to one another – and he feels lost in the sea of identical red outfits of varying heights. He takes the steps, the seats, and the paces it takes to go through with it all, and by the end, people are whipping out Silly String from under their robes to spray across the crowd of graduated students and cheering family members.
Dave had faltered, too, when it came time for he and Rachel Berry to give their Valedictorian speeches in the near-beginning, before the names were called for the diplomas to be handed out. Still, despite his hesitation, Dave's speech had been heartwarming and sentimental and tear-inducing, and it moves Kurt in ways he will never be able to express openly.
In the end, the night was a blast of fresh air, marking the ending of so much, as well as the beginning of that much more.
