The following Thursday evening, Kurt looked over the costume he had made and checked every last inch of it over for a second time. He ironed it carefully and put it in the bag he had gotten from a dry cleaners to transport it in the next morning. Even though his classes didn't officially end until the following Friday, the piece he had been working on was being used in a production that opened then. His professor needed time to grade it, fix any potential issues, and have it ready for the production to use in its dress rehearsals starting Monday.
Once it was in the bag he let out a long sigh. "It's done."
"I can't believe you've finished four intricate outfits in six weeks," Sebastian said. He was sitting on the sofa reading his physics textbook.
"I know. It's nuts, but in a 15-week semester, it would have been spread out a lot more. I'm glad that she's had all of them professionally photographed so I can put them in my portfolio."
"Would you have to make that many during a production?"
"Potentially more, but only if I were hired on as part of the production, in which case it would be for quite a bit of money. I'm kind of torn because I love making such beautiful pieces, but I didn't really enjoy the pressure of it. I think I'd have to try it once to know for sure, especially with this just being a really tense time because of having my hand in a cast and making so much less money that I had anticipated making over the summer. At least Isabelle has given me extra hours, and I'm working twice as many hours next week to cover for the week we're going to spend in Florida." Kurt smoothed out the bag he had hung over the spare room door. He tied the bottom closed and stood back up.
"It looks great, babe. Come sit with me."
Kurt went around and sat down with Sebastian, who scooted down and laid his head in Kurt's lap. Kurt began to run his hand through Sebastian's hair, something that he loved to do and Sebastian loved him doing it. "Why do you call me 'babe'?"
"I guess I never really thought about it. It's what my mom calls my dad."
"What does your dad call your mom?"
"Mmm. Different things. Sweetie. Beautiful." He paused. "I guess those two mostly. Does me calling you 'babe' bother you?"
"No." After hearing Sebastian's answer, he let the feeling of it being effeminate slip away. "Oh! I talked to Carole on the way home this afternoon. She and Dad are excited. She's never been anywhere tropical. They were going to go to Hawaii for their honeymoon, but Dad used the money he had saved to send me to Dalton. One day I'm going to save up enough to send them. And maybe we can go too."
"That sounds amazing. I've always wanted to go there."
"She was super excited about them getting to stay the additional days by themselves after Labor Day. It's actually the first time I've heard her sound excited about anything since–"
"Mom told me that she's giving them the master suite the whole time they're there. She got this bed topper that will fasten the two twin beds together to make a king size bed. She and Dad are going to stay in that room so that your parents don't have to switch their stuff around and they can have access to the hot tub."
"That's nice of them. Your parents are really kind."
"They are. I let them down and I regret that. But they helped me when I asked. I should tell them I appreciate them more often than I do. I mean, they gave me this apartment and they give me a stipend to buy groceries."
"It's obvious how much they love you."
"I'm a lucky guy."
"I'm excited for Jillian and Marley to get here tomorrow."
"She's so much nicer now than she was before."
"I think she didn't feel like herself before. Now, she's relaxed. Her parents didn't disown her for not wanting to go to college right away. She changed her style and she's branching out and trying new things. I think she felt like she had to be someone she wasn't, but was too afraid to say so. I think her friends at school loved things she didn't and she was afraid of losing them too. And then she lost them when they went to Lima for the school year, so when she went back, she made sure to do everything to fit in. It was her senior year and she didn't want to be alone again like she had been in Lima." He sighed. "Just my guesses."
"They make sense though. I certainly was a pain when I was unhappy at Dalton when I first came back."
"But now you are sweet."
"Only to you."
"You say that, but I see you with Santana and Dani. You're kind to Chandler and Elliott too."
Sebastian reached out and started caressing the skin right under the edge of Kurt's shorts. "I'm glad this summer session is over, even though I really enjoyed both of my classes. I've never gone to school in the summer before and I'm spoiled. I want some more vacation time before the fall semester starts. More vacation time with my very sexy boyfriend." He sighed happily. "I love it when you pet me and play with my hair. Are you ready to turn Downton Abbey on?"
"We're facing the wrong way to watch."
"I know, but I'm not moving until you're ready to watch. I'm comfy."
X-X-X-X-X
Sebastian slipped out of bed the next morning and made Kurt breakfast. He knew the struggle Kurt faced going to NYADA that morning to turn in his final project. It would be his last official day as a NYADA student. He had his withdrawal papers in his bag to take and turn into Madame Tibideaux afterwards. He knew Kurt was strong, but it broke his heart to see Kurt lose yet another thing that meant so much to him. It was twice as hard knowing that his family would gladly cover the cost for Kurt to stay at NYADA, but Kurt would never accept their generosity. He did his best to understand his reasons, but he just wanted Kurt to have what he wanted. He put the quiche in the oven, set the timer on his phone to vibrate, and went back to bed. He slipped in and snuggled into Kurt's back.
"Missed you." Kurt scooted back to meet him.
Sebastian nuzzled into his neck and kissed him gently. "I'm here."
Kurt hummed happily and went back to sleep.
I'm totally in love with this amazing man in my arms. When his alarm went off, he turned it off and woke Kurt up by kissing all along his shoulders. He rolled onto his back and started to scoot to his side of the bed.
Kurt rolled over and grabbed for Sebastian, lying on top of him to keep him in the bed.
"Come on, beautiful. I made us breakfast."
"Snuggle."
"Nice try, but I at least have to go get it out of the oven so it doesn't burn."
"You cooked me breakfast?"
"I did. Let's go eat it."
"Okay." Kurt got up and stretched. "It smells good. Thank you."
"You're welcome." Sebastian made it around the bed before Kurt moved. He wrapped his arms around Kurt. "Good morning, beautiful."
"Good morning, sweetie."
Sebastian danced them to the kitchen. He let go of Kurt and turned the oven off. He propped the oven door open just a few inches. He turned back and Kurt was gone. He waited for him outside the bathroom. He went in when Kurt came out. He brushed his teeth before he came back out. He found Kurt in their room in the closet. He wrapped his arms around him and began running his hands along Kurt's chest. Kurt's breath hitched each time Sebastian hands touched the most sensitive areas.
"Bas?"
"I love you. You're so sexy and irresistible. Do you want me to stop?"
"No, I just thought we were going to eat."
"We are. I was just in a hurry a few minutes ago because I didn't want it to burn. It's fine now. It will stay warm in the oven for a while." He kissed along Kurt's shoulders and le this hand slip lower. "Is this okay?"
"Mmm hmm. Anything is okay. Just keep touching me, please."
"My pleasure. Here or in the bed?"
"Here, there, anywhere."
Sebastian chuckled. He didn't believe the anywhere for a second, but he turned them to go back to bed. Once he got Kurt there, he stripped down the rest of the way. And asked wordlessly and Kurt nodded. He sat straddling Kurt and ran his hands along his shoulders, down his arms to his hands, which he took. He leaned forward enough to be able to kiss Kurt's knuckles. "I love you. You know that. And I will never push you, but I'm going to ask. You can say no and nothing will change between us. I will still love you just as much."
Kurt nodded.
"Can I blow you?"
"Yes."
X-X-X-X-X
Kurt sat quietly as his professor looked over the costume.
"Kurt, this is absolutely flawless. A+ for sure. And credit, like I had agreed to."
"Thank you."
"I'm looking forward to having you work on the costumes for our fall musical. I'm hoping you'll have time to work on them, even if you get a role, which is what I'm figuring will happen. I've heard you sing," she said with a genuine smile on her face. She put the plastic cover back over the dress and moved it to the rack with the others that had been turned in. "Charlene will be in at lunch to photograph the last set. I'll send you the files to add to your portfolio."
Kurt nodded. "Thank you."
"How's your hand?"
"Not broken anymore, but I have to wear the brace when I'm out and around people where I could get knocked into or fall, which of course means every time I leave my apartment since this is New York City."
She chuckled. "I guess at least you can sleep with it off and get some freedom from it at home."
He nodded. "I'm looking forward to being able to my regular yoga workout. At least I wasn't enrolled in Stage Combat for this session."
"That's true."
He grabbed his bag and stood up. He didn't know exactly how to brooch the subject of taking on jobs, but he just took a deep breath and steeled himself. "Please keep me in mind for anyone looking for costuming work."
"I will Kurt. Enjoy the rest of your summer."
"You too."
"Before you leave, I'm supposed to tell you that Professor Carlton is in his office and wants to speak to you."
Kurt nodded. "Thank you. I'll head there next."
X-X-X-X-X
Kurt knocked twice on Professor Carlton's door.
"Come in."
Kurt opened the door and stepped inside.
"Please come in and have a seat, Kurt."
Kurt closed the door and sat down.
"It's come to my attention that you're leaving NYADA."
The color drained from Kurt's face. He hadn't told anyone yet.
Professor Carlton noticed his response. "I'm aware that you haven't officially withdrawn yet, but since I don't have access to your personal information like your cell phone number or a non-NYADA student email account, I knew I needed to talk to you today before you turned in your forms."
"I don't understand how you know. I don't recall saying anything to anyone here at NYADA."
"How I know isn't relevant. Why I wanted to speak with you is that I would like to continue on as your vocal instructor."
"I'm sorry. I don't have anywhere near the kind of money private lessons with you would be worth."
"I'm not asking for your money, Kurt. I have worked with a lot of students over the years and whether you are still a NYADA student or not, I would like to continue to train you."
"What does that mean?"
"It means that for one hour a week, during my non-office and non-instructional hours, you'll come in and we'll work just like when we did and you were my student."
"And you don't want me to pay you?"
"I do not."
Kurt pulled out an index card from his bag and wrote his name, his personal email address, and his cell phone number on it. He handed it to Professor Carlton.
"Thank you. Do you know your schedule for the fall yet?"
"I took a photo of it, if you'll give a minute to find it."
"No problem."
"But actually, I don't know my work schedule yet. I had to give up one of my jobs because of my hand injury, but I still have the other. Could we arrange the time in a couple of weeks once I get this splint off and see when I have a definitive opening in my schedule?"
"Of course. You can email me at my address and we'll work things out by the end of the first week of classes."
"Thank you. Really."
"You're welcome."
Kurt stood and exited, closing the door behind him. Next on his list was Madame Tibideaux.
X-X-X-X-X
Kurt sat nervously in the waiting area outside Madame Tibideaux's office for what seemed like longer than he had sat to get his x-ray results. He knew he would have to because he had to take what she had available. Finally her secretary called his name. He hadn't seen anyone come out, so he assumed that she had been on the phone.
He knocked and waited to be acknowledged before opening the door.
"Mr. Hummel, please have a seat." She waited. "What can I do for you today?"
He took a deep breath and handed her his withdrawal forms and his request to transfer his credits to CCNY.
"You're leaving NYADA."
"Not by choice."
"Well, you haven't been asked to leave or flunked out, so it appears to be by choice from where I'm sitting."
"My stepbrother died."
"I'm aware. My condolences on your loss."
"My family size decreased by one, as did the number of students in my family. My financial aid options were reduced to asking my parents to take out personal loans to pay my tuition. I can't do that."
"I see. Your father is a congressman, is he not?"
"He is, but as such, he is required to maintain a home in Ohio as well as in DC. He is also a small business owner, so he returns to Ohio frequently and spends every congressional recess there to keep his business running and to stay in contact with his constituents. He's not the hob-knobbing type of representative that stays in DC networking or whatever the right term might be."
"There's nothing that could change your mind?"
"A full-scholarship or enough of one that my family's contributions combined with the scholarship wouldn't leave me working 60 hours a week on top of going to school full-time like I did last spring. I'm not going back to that. No degree from a topnotch school is worth running myself into the ground for. My parents can afford CCNY and I can work and pay my living expenses."
She sighed. "It's NYADA's loss. I am sorry to see you go. But as you say, everything has a cost and some things are worth the cost and others are not. I would like to think that the education that students receive here at NYADA is worth the price tag, but there are always students whose financial situations are unusual and fall through the cracks of traditional student aid."
"I think the school should work harder at getting successful alumni to donate and to lower the tuition significantly. NYADA is a good school, but three years at CCNY will cost me less than a single year here."
She nodded. "I'll get this paperwork processed at the end of term next week. You should expect your credits to transfer without a problem."
He stood. "Thank you. I do apologize for taking up a spot this year that could have gone to someone who would have stayed. That's on me for not doing enough research ahead of time. I'm not sorry for saving my own financial skin, but I will miss being part of the school. I've learned a lot here. Hopefully, I'll benefit in some way from the teaching at CCNY." He left without saying anything else and closed the door behind him. He walked quickly to the closest exit out of the building.
X-X-X-X-X
He walked a brisk pace for several blocks in an attempt to maintain his composure. He had gotten his emotions under control by the time he arrived until he got to his desk and found a vase of daisies from Sebastian with a note that simply said, "I love you." A few tears streamed down his cheeks.
Isabelle stepped across the hall and peeked into his tiny office. "That wasn't the reaction I expected."
"You know that I cry when I'm happy too. It's crazy. I know." He grabbed for the tissue box on his desk and dabbed at his eyes. "It just took me by surprise." Good surprises, he reminded himself. "The last time someone sent me flowers here it was because he had cheated on me and was trying to win me back with gifts."
"I remember. Sebastian won't cheat on you. That boy is head-over-heels for you. You'll be a Smythe and my nephew sometime in the next five years. I'd wager a year's salary on it."
"What if I want him to be a Hummel?"
"That's what hyphens are for, honey."
Kurt chuckled.
"We're still on for Sunday, right? Estate sales, lunch, and then coming back here, so Jillian and her friend… Marley, right?"
Kurt nodded.
Isabelle continued. "So Jillian and Marley can play dress up in the vault while we ooh and ahh over them."
"Yes. Definitely, yes."
"Will Marley fit in the sample sizes?"
"Easily. She's built about the same as Jillian and similar in height."
"Excellent. That will make it easier."
"And then, we're having band rehearsal, which they want to come to, even though I offered to make an itinerary for them. Or get them reservations at a restaurant." Kurt picked up his iPad and began to look through his email and his to-do list.
"Those samples from Dolce & Gabbana are here."
"Right. Right. Let's get to those." He looked through his list as he followed Isabelle.
X-X-X-X-X
Sebastian spent the morning cleaning the apartment. He made room for Jillian and Marley to hang clothes in the spare room closet. He pulled out all four silver chairs and set them up to the table and moved Kurt's vintage chairs to the spare room and put them in front of the window on a slight angle towards each other, where the girls could sit and talk if they wanted to. He moved a few of the winter coats that were in the closet to the coat closet since they wouldn't need to get in and out of it.
A few minutes after he had finished those tasks, the dryer buzzed and he took the sheets out and remade the bed in the spare room first. Making brought a smile to his face because it reminded him of the night that he and Kurt had slept in the bed he'd bought and realized that it was more comfortable, but they liked sleeping in Kurt's room. So, an hour after they'd laid down, they got up and switched the beds and remade them with the right bed linens and went back to bed in the room they were used to sleeping in. When he finished, he moved to their room and put the clean sheets on.
He went through their cabinets and took inventory, making a detailed shopping list. They needed food for a week for four people, but nothing extra that wasn't shelf stable or freezable. He put the list in his backpack. He planned to do the shopping on their way back after surprising Kurt at Vogue because he wanted to stay in the whole afternoon and evening relaxing before their week-long guests arrived. As soon as the delivery he had been waiting on arrived, he set everything up and made sure it worked. Afterwards, he left to go meet Kurt at Vogue.
X-X-X-X-X
When Kurt exited the elevator in the lobby, he saw Sebastian leaning against the wall near the exterior doors. He rushed over to him, carrying the flowers he had wrapped in wet paper towels and put them back in the collapsible plastic vase they had come in. "Bas! What are you doing here?"
"Surprising you, of course." He reached for Kurt and pulled him close. He guided them out the door and took the flowers so he could hold Kurt's hand.
"Thank you for the flowers."
"You're welcome. So, we're going to do our shopping now and then go home and stay there."
"Well, that sounds intriguing. I see you've brought our shopping bags, so you've done your planning and plotting well," he teased. He squeezed Sebastian's hand. He looked over at him and smiled.
Sebastian smiled back at him and winked. "I'm always planning and plotting to get more snuggle time."
"Ooh, is that on the agenda for our extended time at home alone?"
"Definitely. Putting the groceries away is the first thing on the agenda, and in second place is a surprise, and last but not least, in third place is the snuggling."
"Hmm. That must be some surprise you've planned for you to put it ahead of the snuggling." He leaned into Sebastian.
"None of that, beautiful. You're not going to cute your way into getting me to tell you anything about the surprise."
X-X-X-X-X
Sebastian stopped in front of the door after he unlocked and opened it. He removed his backpack from Kurt's back and put it inside the door. "Close your eyes." He guided Kurt into their bedroom. "Stay here until I come back for you. I know you want to help with the groceries, but that won't work. Do you have a project you can work on for a bit?"
"Sure. Can I have a kiss before you leave?"
"Of course." Sebastian kissed him. Once I close the door, you can open your eyes.
Kurt straightened his desk up, putting away small things that had gotten left out here and there while he had worked on his final project.
It didn't take Sebastian long before he was back. He opened the door. "Close your eyes again. I'm just going to lead you to the sofa. And I just want you to sit there with your eyes closed until I say to open them, okay?"
"Of course." He closed his eyes and put his hand on Sebastian's shoulder and followed him out to the living room. He ran his hand along the back of the sofa and walked around the end until Sebastian stopped.
"Turn and sit down. And still keep your eyes closed until I say. Sebastian went to the corner of the room and took a seat on a stool. He pressed the midi controller to start the bass part he had recorded before he left. He began to play the cello part of Rossini Duetto in D Major. When there was a small break in the cello part, he said, "Open your eyes." He went back to playing.
Kurt sat wide-eyed and entranced as he watched and listened to Sebastian finish the song. As soon as it ended, Kurt was up and on his feet. "Oh, my God. That was amazing, Bas. Absolutely beautiful. Can you record the cello part you were playing with the bass part you already recorded?"
"I can if you want me to."
"I definitely do. I have never seen these in person. They are really cool. I like the color of the wood and they look so unusual."
"Well, when I asked my mom about sending my cello and bass here, I got a resounding 'no', which honestly surprised me. She said there was no way on earth my cello or bass were ever going to ride on the subway to perform around the city somewhere. So, she had me pick out these electric versions, which are actually really cool. I played around with them and the midi controller earlier. These electric versions will let me be heard alongside the electric guitar and the keyboard without being drowned out."
"They're perfect. We can each carry one and not break our necks or hopefully be robbed."
"I hope not, but someone tries to steal it, just give it to them. $500 for another electric cello is not a big deal versus you getting hurt."
"Don't I know it?" He rolled his eyes in aggravation just thinking about the medical bills he had to pay recently.
"Not like that."
"I know what you mean, but I'm right too." He picked up an envelope on the table addressed to him. "Oh, I have the weirdest news. Professor Carlton wants to give me weekly 1-hour lessons at no charge."
"Isn't he like the really good voice teacher you were talking about?"
"That's the one."
"You're taking him up on the offer, right?"
"Of course."
Sebastian said, "That was delivered with my instruments and stuff. I had to sign for it."
Kurt opened it and read it. He sat down at the table and read it a second time.
Mr. Hummel,
Sometimes in the biggest of cities, it's still a small world. Mitchell is my good friend's son. When you said his name in my office the other day, I put two and two together. His parents had mentioned several times how they wished they could do something for the man that had saved their son's life.
When I realized you were that man, I told them that I had figured it out from our conversation. Your injuries and your looks fit the description of the man Mitchell described who ran to his aid.
As per doctor-patient confidentiality, they have no idea of your name or any way to identify you. I went with them to the bank and told the teller the name to write on the check with the cash that Mitchell's parents gave me.
From what I was able to determine, hopefully this will be sufficient to cover the cost of your medical bills and your lost wages from not being able to work. Unfortunately, I can't do anything about getting your job back, but hopefully this will be enough to last you until you can find another one.
Please know that will in no way negatively impact Mitchell's family's finances. Even if it did, they would gladly give you every penny of it to have Mitchell alive and well. His injuries were extensive, but he's making a full recovery.
He looked in the envelope and saw the cashier's check. He handed Sebastian the letter to read.
After he read it, he asked, "How much is the check for?"
Kurt showed it to him. "He came very close to the right figure. He's about $500 short, but he probably didn't know about the x-ray they took to make sure I didn't have any fractures near the cut on temple. And when he asked me how many hours I worked the first time I went in, I just said about 20 a week, when it was technically 22. But he was really close and I'm rambling. I'm just shocked." He put the letter and put it back in the envelope.
"So am I, but it's amazing. Now, you won't have to worry about your books and expenses for this semester. You could technically not go back to work anywhere besides at Vogue with Aunt Izzie."
"I liked working at JJ's though. Maybe not for so many hours, but I like fixing things. There's just something really rewarding about taking something that won't work and making it work."
Kurt put the envelope in his satchel before he sat back down on the sofa. "Will you play me another song before we snuggle and make out?"
"Absolutely."
