"Somewhere only we know…"
They were both almost in tears, and Kurt could only look at his boyfriend like that for a few moments before he took a few steps forward, pulling him into a tight hug. "I'm never saying goodbye to you," he said softly, holding him tightly for another moment before letting him go. God, this is the hardest thing I've ever done.
Blaine looked at him longingly for half a second after they pulled away, and Kurt could see the tears forming again as he swiftly turned and walked back to the group of Dalton boys standing on the stairs behind them. They were quick to comfort him, giving him a pat on the back and murmuring words of encouragement to him.
Kurt couldn't take his eyes off Blaine's back, even as he himself was surrounded by his friends. He glanced down at his toes for only a moment as a chorus of "Hello," and "Hi," could be heard from some of the girls. Yet, Kurt wasn't really listening, not even as someone plopped a top hat on his head. Which is, admittedly, fabulous, he thought to himself. He glanced back up, catching Blaine's eyes where his boyfriend had stopped on the steps and was watching him despite his fellow Warblers headed back toward the bus.
As the bell rang, his friends tried to push in closer, yet Kurt wasn't satisfied. Blaine looks so sad, and I feel like I'm going to cry. I need a minute. We need a minute alone. "Hang on," he told everyone, pushing through the group and catching back up to Blaine moments before he made it to the top step. "May I walk you to the bus?" he asked with a nervous chuckle.
"Yeah. I'd like that," Blaine answered softly.
Kurt recognized the tears and emotion hiding behind his voice, and he reached out and rubbed a tentative finger up and down the side of Blaine's hand a few times in comfort. "You know, when I was texting Mercedes last night to tell her I was coming back, she told me that they're doing a Lady Gaga song in Glee today."
"'Bad Romance' again?" Blaine guessed.
"No. 'Born This Way.' Apparently, Rachel's been considering getting a nose job, and they all want to talk her out of it."
"What?" Blaine asked, laughing a little.
Kurt thought he sounded a bit more like himself. I'm glad I decided to walk with him. We both needed a second to just be us again with no audience. "Yeah. I don't know. Apparently, some crazy things have gone on since I was gone." He shrugged. "Who knew? Anyway, that's not what I wanted to tell you."
Blaine stopped walking and turned to look at Kurt. "I'm listening," he told him quietly.
"She asked me if I wanted to participate so she could make me a shirt. Apparently, part of Mr. Schue's lesson is about accepting the parts of you that you don't love, and they're wearing shirts with the thing they have a hard time accepting about themselves printed on the front."
"So, what did you tell her? Are you going to sing? I know how much you love Lady Gaga."
Kurt blushed. "Of course, I am. Can you guess what I had her put on my shirt?"
Blaine shook his head. "I can't imagine. Every part of you is perfect."
Feeling his cheeks color a darker shade of pink, Kurt shook his head. "You're sweet. I had to put something, though. So, I had her put 'Likes boys.'" He heard Blaine suck in a gasp of air and whisper, "Kurt…" To silence him so he could finish, Kurt held out his hand. "I know. I know. With Karofsky coming back, too, it could be dangerous. Still, I feel brave. I have courage." He made sure to look Blaine directly in the eyes as he said the next part, reaching out one hand to lay it over Blaine's heart. "Because of you."
This time, it was Blaine's turn to blush. "I don't know what you mean."
"Before I went to Dalton, before I met you and shared that perfect first kiss with you, I didn't like that part of myself. I felt different, too different, like I would never have a place to belong or someone to love." He chuckled dryly. "In fact, not too long before we met, I told my dad I just wanted someone's hand to hold at prom or walk down the hallways with, and I was afraid I'd never find someone. And then you found me, and I realized that I didn't dislike that part of myself. I loved it because it was the part of me that helped me find the best thing that ever happened to me, Blaine. You."
There were tears in both their eyes again as they stood for a moment under the warm sun rays, just looking at each other.
Seeing a tear slide down Blaine's cheek, Kurt reached up to swipe it away with his thumb, cupping Blaine's cheek for just a moment, feeling him press against his hand. "Thank you for being my courage. I know we're both unhappy about not being together all the time anymore. We're going to text each other all day, every day, though, and we'll see each other every weekend and go on dates. I'm not going to lose you, Blaine Anderson."
"I'm not going to lose you either."
"Coming, Anderson?" someone called from the bus.
Blaine hung his head in defeat. "I guess that means I have to go."
Kurt nodded, pulling Blaine into another tight embrace. "Text me later?" he asked.
"Always. You're going to kill that song. I just know it. Break a leg."
Kurt gave him a small half smile. Watching his boyfriend climb onto the Dalton Academy bus was one of the hardest things he'd ever done. What would I do without Blaine Anderson in my life? he pondered as he watched the shadow of Blaine's form walk down the aisle and take a seat by the window. Then, his face appeared, and he waved at Kurt until the bus was out of sight. I'm so glad I found him. I don't know what the future holds for us, but I know it's going to be something wonderful. Courage, Kurt. You can do this. So, Kurt turned on his heel, straightened his shoulders, and held his head high. He was headed back inside to change into his t-shirt for the Glee performance later before heading to class. He thought first, though, that he'd stop by the stage. He felt like he needed to sing before he would be brave enough to proudly proclaim that he "Likes boys." Courage, Kurt. Courage.