The next morning, Dave woke up to a text from Kurt.
Hope you have a fantastic morning I won't be in school until the afternoon. Got a doctor's appointment :\ I'll see you in Spanish class.
Dave couldn't help but smile at the morning text from Kurt, something that'll motivate him to get up and ready. He drove to school in high spirits, blasting his radio singing one of the new singles on the radio station. He didn't know who it was but he heard it so many times now he got the words down pat. He pulled up into the parking lot and got out of his car and was whistling the same tune he was just singing.
He walked in to the school about fifteen minutes before the first bell. He was pretty happy at this point seeing as it was the day after he won the hockey team's first game of the season, so he was hoping to get some high fives and claps on the shoulders. However people were looking at him oddly and whispering to each other. Dave thought it was a little odd, but shrugged it off and went to his locker. He turned the corner and saw that the word "FAGGOT" was written in red paint on his locker. Dave stopped dead in his tracks. He could feel his face getting hot with embarrassment.
"Who the hell did this?" he screamed at the onlookers. No one spoke and just kept whispering to each other or slowly walking away. Dave was waiting for a response but no one was giving it to him. He got closer to his locker and noticed pictures were taped on it; they were the same pictures that were on Santana's site. He was furious at this point. He threw off his jacket and tried to rub off the paint but it seemed to have been dry for awhile. He pulled out his phone and texted Santana.
You said you took those pictures off your website! They're plastered on my locker!
Dave went back to frantically rubbing paint off of his locker, trying to get it off before more people saw, however it was a pointless task seeing as news travels fast in high school and it was only a matter of time before everyone knew. Tears started welling up in his eyes as he was working the paint off his locker.
How could this have happened? Everything was going great. I won the first hockey game; Kurt had a great time at my house last night. Who did this to my locker and how the fuck did they get their hands on these pictures? That bitch Santana must have done this. She was the only one who had access to the pictures and the only one who was crazy enough to do this to me. Though she seemed really sorry for what she did so what the hell changed her mind?
Dave's mind was racing all over the place, trying to justify what had happened to him, though he wouldn't call this justice. He'd call this cruel and unusual punishment. Maybe this is karma for what I did to Kurt. I embarrassed him for a year so maybe it's my turn. Dave was starting to sweat with how much effort to get rid of the vandalism; he had hardly gotten the "F" off. Then he heard a familiar male voice behind him.
"So, you're a jockstrap sniffing fairy now?" Dave turned around to see Azimio and the three other football players that chased Kurt, all with smirks on their faces. Except for Azimio who looked downright pissed. His arms were crossed, chin up, and chest out, as if trying to intimidate the gay out of David. Dave stood up, matching Azimio's body language.
"Did you do this to my locker?" asked Dave whose blood was now boiling with rage. Azimio just shrugged and looked to the guys behind him.
"You know what boys? All I hear out of this queer's mouth is 'blah blah blah, I take it up the butt.' Man I suggest you back the hell up before I make you taste pain," said Azimio who was now cracking his knuckles. Dave looked down at the black kid's hands then over at the other football players. I have two options. One, I fight back, get the crap kicked out of me from the four big guys hitting me. Or two, I walk away, don't get hit, but am called more names throughout the day. A bomb threat would be a great distraction right now. Crap, now people are circling up around us to watch. This is just great.
Though Dave really wanted to hit Azimio he just turned around and opened his locker. He grabbed his books for first period and slammed the door shut.
"What, you're not even going to try and prove me wrong? You're actually flamer? Aw hell no!" screamed Azimio, now laughing at Dave. That's it, I am not gonna be laughed at like that. And without thinking, Dave dropped his books turned around and with one swing, Dave's right fist made contact with Azimio's face. Azimio fell to the ground before he realized what had happened. The three other guys didn't know what had happened either seeing as they were concentrating on laughing at Dave. Azimio got up just as fast as he fell and tackled Dave into a set of lockers. The noise was enough to get the attention of teachers who immediately broke the two boys apart before too much damage was done. Azimio just had a bloody lip and Dave's jacket was ripped on the sleeve connecting to the shoulder.
"Break it up!" screamed one of the male teachers who were pulling Dave off of Azimio. They were sent to the principal's office where they were told that they had detention the following Monday. The two boys left separately and were sent to class with notes from Figgins. Word traveled like wildfire as Dave assumed would happen. The news that David Karofsky, the biggest homophobic bully in McKinley, was gay made it to every student by the time it was second period. The fact that Dave was with the kid he bullied traveled just as fast. Everyone knew about the fight between Azimio and Dave right before lunch.
All of this high traffic gossip became an issue once lunch hit. Dave normally just left school and went to Subway or Burger King, but his appetite just wasn't with him. The staring that he was getting and the whispering in the hallways were driving him insane and he couldn't escape them. Everywhere he went someone knew about him. It would have been different if he had told people, but he was forced to come out by Azimio. Dave assumed that Azimio saw the pictures right when they were posted on Santana's site and saved them to his computer, printing out hundreds of copies. Azimio seemed to have also taken a step further and handed out the pictures to students before Dave got to school that day. Dave was sitting on a bench on the main floor, wishing he knew what to do. I wish Kurt was here right now. He'd know what to do. Dave would have texted Kurt immediately hadn't Figgins taken his phone.
Dave's stomach was grumbling, a sure sign that he was hungry, a feeling he never thought he'd dread. He decided that he'll grab something quick from the cafeteria seeing as it was near the end of lunch time, and book it out as quickly as possible. Dave's heart was beating so fast when he reached the double doors of the cafeteria, he wasn't sure if he was hearing his stomach grumble or his heart. Taking a few deep breathes to calm down he opened the door and walked in.
He must have had a huge light around him to signal everyone to turn around at him as he entered. So this is what it's like to feel famous. I'm only thinking this because only famous people can capture the attention of 2500 people at once. God this is awful. I would like it better if it was something positive that kept them interested. Dave walked into the cafeteria, his footsteps echoing as the sound of chatter quieted down, and whispering that started to sound like loud hissing was taking its place. Dave walked to one of the food lines and grabbed a tray of hot food. If I leave now, it's going to look like I'm afraid. If I stay and sit by myself, I'll look pathetic. If I try and sit down with my friends, I might be stared at still and my friends might kick me out. Shit, I may have just killed myself walking in here. What do I do?
As Dave was trying to figure out what to do, he noticed out of the corner of his eye some kid running up to him and without knowing what hit him, Dave's tray was hit upwards from his hands to his face, where he felt hot food cover him. He heard a roar of laughter after that and thought that his best choice was to go to the bathroom. Dave walked quickly out of the once again loud cafeteria and once he was out of sight, he ran to the nearest bathroom.
He was wiping off the food he couldn't identify when he heard the bathroom door open. I swear to God if someone tries to give me a swirly I may have to deck them in the face.
"Are you okay?" Dave turned around and saw Finn.
"It's just food. I'll be fine," said Dave. I do not want pity points right now from Hudson.
"Need help getting that shit out?" asked Finn. He didn't wait for Dave to decline his offer. Finn was already wetting paper towels and handing them to Dave. Dave didn't bother fighting. Right now all he cared about was getting the food out of his ears.
"Thanks."
"No problem. Look man, I'm sorry for what Az and the guys did to your locker. I can't believe he's that into Santana's website," said Finn. Dave looked up at Finn.
"What do you mean?" asked Dave, cleaning out his ears.
"Well, by the time I left Glee yesterday, I was planning on confronting Santana. I went home first and I checked my email, and then decided to go on her site, and I saw the photos were gone. She had them up for like two hours or so, not even. Just shows how Azimio religiously goes on that website," said Finn. Dave thought about it for a minute, and remembered Santana said she got his number from Azimio. He also remembered Azimio has had a huge crush on Santana since the fifth grade so she probably asked him for Dave's number just because she knew she could get it.
"It makes sense I guess. He has a huge crush on her," voiced Dave as he combed food out of his hair with his fingers. Seriously how much food does a school dish out? And why does it feel this mushy? After another painfully silent ten minutes between the two boys and Dave cleaning up, Finn spoke up.
"Why don't you come to Glee this afternoon? Everyone is tolerant about each other and you can get a chance to speak to Santana. You don't have to if you don't want to, but it's sort of a safe haven for those of us who are considered 'losers'," said Finn. Dave thought about it then nodded.
"Alright, I'll think about it. Thanks, for uh, helping me out," Dave said. He left Finn in the bathroom, and headed to his vandalized locker to get his books for his afternoon class. The rest of the day was pretty much the same for Dave. People kept whispering and making short, awkward glances at him. He hated the feeling of people talking behind his back which was a constant feeling that day. Dave was just looking forward to Spanish so he could see Kurt again. Kurt walked in and proceeded to Dave without hesitation.
"Mercedes texted me this morning after you had that fight with Azimio. David, what were you thinking?" said Kurt in a lowered voice.
"What do you mean 'what was I thinking'? That asshole vandalized my locker, publicly humiliated me, and assaulted me. Of course I'm not gonna back down from that. I thought out of everyone, you'd understand what it's like," said Dave. His heart was starting ache, the same feeling that he gets before he starts to cry. I can't cry now, not in class and especially not in front of Kurt.
"Yeah, I do understand. The guy that made me feel that way is looking at me right now. And I have forgiven him, and you'll learn to forgive Azimio, but you can't be using violence. That's just gonna get you in to trouble and create a bigger problem, okay? Talk to me after class," said Kurt. He grabbed Dave's forearm and gave a slight squeeze, somewhat comforting Dave. The slightest touch of Kurt gave Dave chills. Dave nodded and opened his book as Mr. Shue greeted the class. Once the class was over, which seemed like forever to Dave, Kurt signaled him out into the hallway.
"Did you want to back to your place and talk or something?" he asked. Dave shook his head.
"Finn invited me to go to Glee with you guys. I thought that might be cool you know?" he said. Kurt's eyes widened.
"Oh! Okay! Well then, let's head on over to the choir room then," said Kurt who was now rather perky at the thought of Dave coming to Glee. Since Kurt got back home the previous night, all he could think about was how Dave would be an awesome new member to Glee, with his voice strong in country music. But he knew that as long as Dave was in the closet, it would be hard for him to join Glee without explanation. Now that people know about him, Kurt thought that this was a blessing in disguise though he felt guilty feeling this selfish.
The two boys walked into the choir room where everyone in Glee was already there chatting with each other. They noticed Dave walking in and they all got silent.
"Everyone, Dave is joining us today," said Kurt who led Dave to a chair in the back with Kurt. Tina and Mercedes were looking at each other before glancing behind them at Dave.
"What's up dude? So is it true that you kissed Kurt?" said Puck who was leaning over to see Dave. Lauren snorted but Rachel just glared at the two. She turned back to Dave with sadness in her eyes, feeling guilty about what she said about him last week. Santana was feeling a bit awkward was well, shifting her weight not really looking at Dave or Kurt.
"Are you okay?" asked Rachel. They all looked at her, knowing it was odd she was asking how he was doing when she was condemning him not too long ago.
"Yeah I'm doing fine, thanks. Just a bit overwhelmed ya know," he said. Dave's palms were starting to sweat, wondering if there will be a lot more questions.
"He would be better if Santana hadn't been such a nosy bitch," screamed Finn. This was completely unlike Finn. No one had ever heard him call a girl a bitch like that.
"You are so out of line right now!" yelled Santana who turned around and stood up to face Finn. "Listen Frankenstein, I don't know when you suddenly decided to grow a pair, but you have no right to call me out like that."
"Well he's right! If you hadn't snooped around like you always do, Karofsky could have kept it to himself and come out when he wanted to," said Quinn now standing next to Finn.
"Yeah, you could have saved Dave the embarrassment and the fight from this morning," said Mercedes now standing up. Slowly all the Glee kids were standing up to Santana, crossing their arms or putting their hands on their hips. Santana was dumbfounded at the sight of everyone standing up to her. Dave and Kurt on the other hand were still sitting. Dave actually felt bad for her and spoke up.
"It's not her fault. Please don't blame her for this."
"Oh PLEASE! Do not defend me Karofsky! I can handle this myself," but as she said that she grabbed her things and left the choir room just as Mr. Shue walked in.
"Santana?" he turned to her but she didn't bother responding. He turned back to the students who were still standing, minus Kurt and Dave. "What happened?"
"It's nothing Mr. Shue. Santana is just being her normal self and we're all tired of it," said Rachel, who sat down, ready to learn that day's lesson. Mr. Shue wasn't sure if he wanted an explanation but decided against digging deeper. He saw that Dave was in the room and paused before speaking up.
"Uh, David? Can I help you with something?" Dave looked around the room before talking.
"I'm here to see what Glee is about I guess. You guys seem to be pretty good at not caring that you're losers so I thought I'd get a few pointers. Or something," he said regrettably. Mr. Shue thought about what he just said before continuing his lecture for the day.
This is going to be a long afternoon.