We're really nearing the end. I think we have one or two more chapters before our two closing chapters. Enjoy!
Though everyone demanded that Kurt tell them what he meant, he simply stated that he had 'nothing left to lose and 'no reason to confess anything' and stayed smugly silent. Eventually, they gave up questioning him and went to sit comfortably in the Main Hall, carrying Kurt's chair in with them just in case he managed to escape the bonds.
They talked quietly about everything that had happened, curling up under blankets.
"Look Blaine, I've got to say I'm sorry." Finn said suddenly. Blaine looked startled.
"Oh, no that's okay Finn." He said.
"It's not." Finn pressed. "I jumped to conclusions and hurt you for no reason. What's more I got Puck to turn against you. And that's not okay."
"I would have done the same thing if I thought you were the killer." Blaine tried to comfort him. He was very aware of everyone watching them with fond and slightly baffled smiles.
"No you wouldn't have." Finn sighed, running his hands through his hair. "You were always respectful, even when you were terrified."
"That's still no reason for you to feel guilty." Blaine insisted.
Puck laughed suddenly, and the girls were no longer able to supress their own giggles. When Blaine and Finn turned to them with puzzled expressions, Quinn rolled her eyes.
"Just hug and be done with it." She chortled.
Finn laughed as well then, and pulled Blaine into a bear hug before clapping him on the shoulder and coughing awkwardly.
"Love you two." Rachel crooned, nestling into Finn's side as he sat back again. Blaine smiled shyly.
"Well that was sickening." Kurt sneered.
The air turned sour, but Santana determinedly avoided the change in mood by speaking in a loud bright tone over the top of Kurt.
"So Quinn and Puck, you finally got your act together I see." She smirked as she noticed Kurt's annoyance out of the corner of her eye.
Quinn blushed and run her fingers over the hand Puck had draped over her shoulders.
"I finally opened my eyes to what was right in front of me." She laughed at herself.
"I knew you'd come around to it eventually." Puck planted a kiss on the crown of her head.
"Yeah, I figured you knew since you never gave up." Quinn titled her face up for a quick peck on the lips. Blaine and Santana exchanged a rueful glance. Blaine looked over at Kurt and his eyes pricked with tears again.
The quiet conversation turned to memories of Puck and Quinn back in their first year of Glee Club. Blaine kept watching Kurt as subtly as he could. He had noticed something odd in Kurt's demeanour. Something tweaked at the edge on his consciousness.
"Hey Santana," he whispered when she had finished laughing at the tale of Quinn and Puck 'baking' cupcakes and ending up covered in the ingredients. Santana tilted her head toward him subtly. She noticed Kurt's narrowed eyes as he watched them whisper, not able to hear a word they were saying. The lack of control obviously annoyed him to no end. The corner of Santana's mouth turned up in a smile at the idea that they were getting to him.
"Do you notice something… off? About Kurt?" He asked.
Santana's eyebrows flew up.
"Um, other than the fact that he killed all our friends?" She asked sarcastically. Blaine didn't laugh. He could tell that under her joking tone, she was very upset.
"I mean his whole look. The way he moves. It's not Kurt." He said.
Santana's face was filled with pity.
"I know honey, that's because he's an actor. He'd been lying this whole time, okay?" She gave his hand a squeeze. "His whole personality was just made up. He's never been the person we thought he was, of course he looks different."
Blaine's brow furrowed. He peered across at Kurt again. The boy glared back at him, and he felt himself blush.
"Yeah I know that I just thought…" he trailed off, shaking his head. "Yeah, I guess,"
Santana became absorbed in the conversation again, and though Blaine joined her, his expression remained slightly distant the whole time. He would occasionally steal a glance at Kurt, who was still watching them with disdain.
For once no one seemed tired. They talked about anything and everything with light, lazy joy. They talked about their friends without agony, remembering the lives they had lead. Santana even managed to share a story about Brittany with only tear-filled eyes and sad, fond laughter. No one broke down again. They were propelled on by their joy at catching the killer.
When Blaine looked back at him after an hour had passed, he realised that even villains must get tired, because Kurt had fallen fast asleep.
Usually when Kurt slept, his forehead became smooth of wrinkles, his perfect full mouth moved slightly in his dreams, and whole body flowed with peace. But this time his brow remained furrowed, and he looked distasteful even in slumber. Blaine missed his old Kurt so much, but he had to realise that Kurt had only ever been a product of fiction.
"Kurt's asleep." He said aloud.
The kids turned and stared, realising Blaine was right.
"Wow I didn't think he'd leave his guard down." Quinn gasped.
"Well he does have 'nothing left to lose'." Finn's tone was mocking, his expression harsh and unforgiving.
"He's shivering." It was Blaine who noticed. Slowly, he stood and grabbed a spare blanket from the sofa behind their heads.
"Woah dude, this Kurt we're talking about. You know, the crazy murderer." Puck protested.
"I know," Blaine looked a little ashamed, but he went to Kurt's side and laid the blanket over him, tucking it around him. "But I still care about him."
"Blaine," Rachel was full of sympathy.
"No it's okay, I understand how evil he is. I'll just never be able to hurt him." Blaine re-took his place between Santana and Rachel, snuggling back into the warmth. "I have to be honest with myself. I'll always care about him, even now that I despise him for what he did to us. He's still him and I can't hate him. I can't hate Kurt. Not after seeing what hate turned him into. He used to seem so pure, and now look at the corruption underneath. I think by showing him kindness, I'm making sure he'll never break me. I'll never lose myself to him."
Rachel threw her arms around him.
"You're amazing, Blaine." She told him. There were murmurs of affirmation all around.
"I think-" Blaine paused, considering. "I think Kurt feels like a fictional character to me now. I love him, and I always will. But really Kurt was just an actor, and his entire personality was made up. But I'm still in love with the lie. I'm in love with the person he pretended to be. So it's like being in love with the fictional character really. Though I hate the actor. I will always love my Kurt."
"Literally the perfect explanation." Puck agreed.
They watched Kurt sleep for a while. Santana started talking about getting off the island and how long it might take. Because they were supposed to have a whole week more before the bus came to pick them up and realised something had gone wrong; possibly by finding the dead bodies of the old couple who had owned the island. Finn seemed a little distracted though. He was staring at Rachel instead. Suddenly, he kicked off his blankets and turned around, kneeling in front of her.
"Dude you're already engaged." Puck said as Finn took Rachel's hands in his.
"Rachel, I know we're already engaged." He said, echoing Puck's words without even glancing at him. "But I don't think I fully understood what that meant until now. Rachel, I want to marry you. I want to be with you forever. To protect you through thick and thin. I want to be your protector, and I want you to support me like you have now."
"Finn," Rachel looked startled.
"Marry me Rachel," Finn said eagerly. There were already had tears in Rachel's eyes as she reached out a hand and cupped his face.
"I want to go to New York with you, and I don't care what we do there so long as I'm by your side. I'll do anything for you. You can go to NYADA and I'll look after the apartment and work and have dinner ready when you get home. I'll do that for you." He kissed her palm.
"Finn, you can't do that. You've always been too special to be doing nothing." Rachel said. "I'll wait for you in Lima, I'll help you until you find something to do."
"No, it's fine." Finn smiled. "I was thinking of joining the army, but I don't want to anymore. This has been enough of a battle for me. I don't mind being a house husband. It actually has nobility to me now. I'll get a small job I enjoy. Maybe I'll get Burt to help me open a shop in New York."
Rachel reached up to brush off her tears. "You really love me that much?"
"I love you with everything in me." Finn promised her.
"I love you too." Rachel said. "And that's why I won't let you do this. Okay, open a shop in New York if you want to. That sounds perfect. But wait a year. Stay in Lima with me, I'll defer my acceptance to NYADA until then. That way we can set up the shop properly, and wait until Blaine graduates, and everyone can come with us."
"Alright," Finn gave in to Rachel's pleading eyes and she beamed at him as he turned to Blaine. "Blaine do you want to do that?"
"Yes, if- if that's okay." He breathed.
"I'm coming too in that case." Santana quickly said. "I'll go to college for a year like Mum wants me to. I'll get some small qualifications. And then I'm coming to New York with all of you."
"This sounds like bliss." Finn said, turning back to Rachel. "What do you say?"
"Yes," Rachel gasped, dropping to her own knees and kissing him hungrily. "Yes."
"Okay time for us to go!" Quinn nudged Blaine to his feet as soon as their lips touched, and everyone followed her out to give Rachel and Finn some alone time.
…
"That was cute." Santana admitted, laughing. Her smile transformed into a wicked grin "This plan will actually work out. We can all live in New York together!"
"I agree," Quinn smirked. "I got into Yale, and I'm going to Yale, but we all need to stick together. So here's what I think. We'll wait in Lima for a year, or go to college or whatever. I'll go to Yale, Rachel and Finn can get married and get their funds together. Blaine can finish school. Puck can do his pool cleaning thing. Then you guys should all get an apartment in New York together the next year. I'll finish my degree, but I can visit you all the time. And after I've got my degree I'll move in too. We have to stick together."
"Yes!" Santana enthused. Even when Finn and Rachel get married, they could just move into an apartment next door. It'll be like Friends, you know, the tv show."
"Perfect," Blaine grinned. "Thanks for waiting for me."
"As soon as Finn and Rachel are done we've got to pinkie swear." Quinn teased, wiggling her little finger.
"Okay, but I'm coming to Yale with you." Puck said abruptly. Quinn's mouth dropped open.
"Don't be stupid Puck."
"I'm not. I can clean pools in the area and flat with you while you go to school. I can't stand being apart from you Quinn. Not after last night." His face was full of sincerity. Quinn smiled and ducked her head.
"You're crazy, but okay." She agreed.
Santana whooped, and then ran to the door, hammering on it before she swung it open.
"Come on, detach your lips and get in here. We're going to have some breakfast and we have a plan for the future."
Finn and Rachel pulled apart with a wet smack and a giggle. They came to join the others with star struck eyes and clasped hands.
"So," Santana said as they gathered bowls and filled them with cereal and milk. "What's going to happen is that when we get back we'll all spend one year getting sorted after we get back. I'll do some classes at Lima's little University and Quinn and Puck will go to Yale, though Puck won't be attending classes. Blaine will finish school, and you two can get your wedding planned and your lives sorted. Then the next year we'll all move to New York. Blaine and I will share an apartment, Finn and Rachel can live next door since they'll be married. When Quinn's done at Yale, her and Puck can move in with us as well, and I guess I'll have to buy some noise cancelling headphones. And we can live out our days in the city we all love."
She beamed and sat back, splashing a last bit of milk into her bowl before she looked up at them.
"What?" She didn't get where their soppy smiles had come from.
"That's the perfect plan!" Rachel said.
"Yeah it really is the perfect summary of my perfect plan." Quinn stuck out her tongue, but looked too content for her annoyed manner to be taken seriously.
"I was just making sure Flubber and Queen Berry agreed with the plan." Santana shrugged.
"Well we do." Finn agreed, elated. "That's the life I've always wanted."
"Okay now we have to pinky promise." Blaine teased, holding out his hand.
His friends all leaned in and somehow managed to hook their little fingers together.
"We promise that after a year of getting out lives together, we will all move to New York and live as Santana described, like one big happy family." Puck summarised.
"And if we see other people and get married or anything like that, we'll always love each other and visit often." Quinn added.
They smiled widely and together they said it.
"I promise."
….
Kurt woke up to the rustling sounds as the Glee Club came back into the Hall and started digging around in their bags. He watched them through narrowed eyes as they withdrew toothbrushes and toothpaste
"Morning Kurt," Blaine's soft voice made him glare at the boy. Blaine still seemed really timid, but no longer terrified. That pissed him off to no end. Blaine was supposed to be terrified.
"Good morning." He spat in response.
Blaine just gave him a sad smile and followed Santana out the door to the bathrooms.
"Guess you don't have a hold on Blaine anymore." Puck's voice surprised him.
"Oh I have a hold on Blaine" Kurt protested, turning his death stare on his former friend.
"Not anymore." Quinn said from beside Puck, her own smirk matching Kurt's changing expression.
"That's what you think." Kurt declared.
"Funny, that's the second time you've said that, but I don't see any evidence that what we think isn't true. I think you're bluffing." Quinn looped her arm through Puck's and leaned contentedly against his side, knowing the show of affection would disgust Kurt.
"He's still broken-hearted that I betrayed him. That's enough of a hold. He'll never get over that." Kurt said.
"Oh sure we know that. He'll never forget you. But he knows now that his Kurt was never real. He said it's like loving a fictional character. He knows you're just an actor." Puck explained. To his surprise, a panicked look flew across Kurt's face before he quickly composed himself. It happened so fast he might have thought he imagined it, if Quinn hadn't shot him a confused glance that meant she had spotted it too.
"He said those exact words? He said I was just an actor?" Kurt asked carefully. His expression was guarded.
"Yeah, and he said he'd always be in love with the person you pretended to be. But he hates you. He hates what you are now. But his loyalty to that lie means he'll never be mean to you. He'll take care of you for the sake of his Kurt, for the fictional character he still loves." Quinn watched Kurt's reaction carefully. There was a small moment of what might have been relief in the way he breathed out.
"He said that too? He said that the old Kurt was entirely false, made up by me?" Kurt asked.
"Yup," Puck grinned, thinking he was getting the better of Kurt. He felt like Kurt was finally understanding that Blaine was still going to have a good life, even after the torture of his first love. It made Puck cocky.
"He may say that." Kurt said. "But he's just making sure none of you worry about him. It still kills him that I betrayed him. He'll never be able to love again. I was his soulmate. He won't forget that."
"But that person was never real. His 'soulmate' wasn't real. He doesn't need you anymore." Quinn was getting exasperated with Kurt by now.
"No, he was the one bluffing." Kurt was as confident as ever now. "He's in love with me. As soon as I get back into character, he'll be falling apart again. Every time he sees a glimpse of that Kurt, it's a stab in the heart for him. He knows I'm the killer now. But he still loves me. And Blaine has a huge guilt complex. He'll be blaming himself, deep down. And I know just how to make him feel more guilty. He's accepted that he won't be able to stop loving me. That's why he seems happy now. He seems happy because he's decided that he can't change things. He plans to send me off to jail, and live his life with bittersweet memories. But he knows, and you and I know, that he'll be scarred forever."
Then more he said, the more uncomfortable they looked. They realised that Kurt was right.
"And Blaine will be able to 'move on', because he knows that in jail I'll be punished without being harmed. That's what he cares about. He still loves me. He might even visit me in jail in the hopes of getting a glimpse of his Kurt. Won't that be hilarious? He'll spend his whole life looking for his Kurt in everyone he meets. You'll all miss me as much as everyone I killed. But he'll never find the whole of his Kurt. Never again." Kurt grinned. Quinn and Puck both tightened the grip around their clasped hands. They couldn't stand it, but they knew Kurt had the whole situation correctly interpreted.
"You're crazy." Puck said anyway.
"Finally, something we can agree on." Kurt gave them a toothy smile and then flicked his eyes back towards the door that the others had left out of. "And you two both know how Blaine feels, because you feel the same way. To a lesser extent, but still."
"We don't feel that way." Quinn protested. It was way too obvious that she was lying.
"Well as lovely as this is, I think I hear someone coming to find you. You'd better go. Don't forget that I wuv you too." He voice was dripping in sarcasm as he watched Puck gently lead Quinn to the door.
As they shut the door they heard Kurt's laughter ring out behind them.
…
"I was just coming to find you." Rachel had her toothbrush hanging out of her mouth as she approached down the hallway. "What's wrong?"
"Just Kurt being a dick." Puck said.
"Don't listen to him." Rachel reassured them. "It's not like he can do anything now."
"We know. It's just that, he's so good at reading us all." Quinn sighed. "It creeps me out."
"What did he say now?" Rachel asked, curious despite herself.
"He was just saying that Blaine will never get over him. That sort of stuff. We told him that Blaine realises he's an actor now, but he said…" Quinn exchanged a worried glance with Puck. They knew how close Rachel was to Kurt. Quinn wasn't sure if she should tell Rachel. She didn't want to make her feel worse.
They had reached the bathroom by this stage, and they could hear voices inside. Rachel leaned on the door.
"Tell me, and then we can go in." She demanded.
"He just told us all this crap about how we'd look for parts of him in everyone we'd meet and how we still didn't want any harm to come to him. He said we'd always love the other Kurt and we'd miss him as much as we'll miss everyone he killed." Puck summarised.
Rachel looked between them and sighed.
"Well I guess he's right then." She said. Her voice was small, and Quinn quickly reached for her hand and pulled her into a hug.
"It's okay to feel that way, Rachel." She said. "It's only human. And unlike Kurt, we still have each other. We win in the end."
"No one wins this." Rachel said, leaning close. "We lost so many people."
"They had happy lives. Despite all the bullying at school, they still had us - a family - before they died." Quinn said. Then she laughed softly. "Look what you're turning me into Rachel. This sounds so cheesy."
"It's good to be a little cheesy." Rachel sniffled. Quinn realised she was crying. Puck stroked back Rachel's hair over Quinn's shoulder so they could see her face, smiling fondly.
"Don't worry Rachel, we're getting out of here." Puck said.
"Kurt said he was going to kill again." Rachel's brown eyes flickered between Quinn and Puck. "What if he succeeds?"
"I don't see how he can." Quinn swore, pulling back and opening the bathroom door. "C'mon we'll be okay."
Rachel and Puck followed her in. Finn, Blaine and Santana were laughing about something, and the sight warmed Rachel's heart. Maybe Quinn was right. Maybe Kurt really couldn't do anything else.
"Kurt looked pretty desperate when we told him Blaine was doing okay." Puck said in an undertone to Quinn, pulling her back toward him as he shut the door. Unfortunately for him, the room went silent at that exact moment, and everyone turned to him. Blaine looked especially curious to hear what he was talking about.
They were all quiet a long time. Puck blushed despite himself.
"Of course he's desperate." Blaine laughed nervously, looking around. "He's captured and he can't control any of us anymore."
"That's what I'm saying." Puck decided he may as well speak to the whole room. "I think we actually have the upper hand. We can last a week with Kurt tied there. We'll feed him and- and take him to the bathroom while making sure he can't escape. He can sleep in the chair. And at the end of the week we'll be rescued. Kurt will go to jail where he belongs, and we can live our lives. He's desperate because he realises that."
There was a spark of something else in Blaine's eyes. It was more than just curiosity.
"Puck what did you tell him right before he looked all desperate?" Blaine asked slowly. Everyone looked a little confused. The relaxed atmosphere seemed suddenly filled with the excitement radiating from Blaine.
"Puck, what did you say?" Blaine asked again, rocking forward on the balls of his feet.
"Um,"
Puck seemed a little put off, so Quinn answered for him, "Just that you knew he was an actor now, and you-"
"Exactly that?" Blaine asked. "That I knew he was an actor?"
"Yes," Quinn was baffled as Blaine grinned wildly, and flung his toothbrush under the tap, washing it off.
"Okay I have a plan." He laughed slightly. "It might not be accurate but it's worth a try, if you'll help me."
"Of course we will." Santana said, pulling herself up and perching on the edge of the counter. "What is it?"
"First, you'll have to let me talk to Kurt alone. Just to make sure-"
"No way!" Finn and Puck said at the same time, but Santana held up a hand and shot them a glare. She nodded at Blaine to continue.
He took a deep breath, and told them what he thought.
…
Kurt was furious to hear laughter from the bathroom. He needed to keep his power here. If proving to them that they wouldn't get over him wasn't enough, he needed another thing to make them grieve.
There was his secret, the one only Artie knew. And oh it had been fun to torment Artie with the idea before he'd killed him. But Kurt wasn't willing to let that secret go just yet. He still wanted to put the Glee Kids through agony in other ways first. He had plans to remind them of how they used to love him. He had plans to press all their buttons and make them feel the need to protect him. He needed them to stay confused.
The laughter ended and Kurt strained his ears, but of course he couldn't hear anything. He huffed to himself. He hated not knowing what they were doing. He had to make a decision.
He would wait a few days. If he didn't find a way to emotionally scar them any further in those days, then he would reveal his secret and a whole new kind of agony.
Kurt nodded to himself. It was the only way.
So he turned towards the shelf that he could see from where he sat, and smiled smugly.
What do you think Blaine's planning? And what about Kurt? What's his secret? And who does he want to kill? Please review I'd love to hear what you think!