Author's Note: Endless thanks to Miranda for simply being there to correct my not so stelar writing. I really owe her a great deal by simply agreeing to me.

Anyway, I believe this was the Chapter I posted last before I finally found a beta. So I hate to say this but a new Chapter will be posted in February 28, there's none today. I still try to stick with my weekly schedule which is Sunday unless things get busy in real life. Guess that's it, see ya!

Chapter Three: Roommate

Dormitory

Doltore, Crystalvale

30-Sep-2019

9:46 PM

Blaine was exhausted by the time he was hanging the last article of clothing in the closet. After the eventful tour, their small group went for dinner. Instead of walking all the way to the cafeteria where they had eaten lunch, Nick showed them another one much closer to their dorm. When dinner was finished, they separated to get settled. It turned out, not only were Finn and Mike lucky enough to be roommates, Wes and David were sharing a room which was opposite to Nick's who had Blaine as a roommate.

When he stepped out of his walk-in closet, Nick was laying on his own king size bed. He was wearing sweatpants and his suitcase was thrown open at the foot of his bed. Unlike Nick's side, which remained bare, Blaine's already had a poster of Rent, the musical, next to his mahogany study table, his beatdown copy of the Harry Potter series and, on a whim, he had brought one of his acoustic guitars. The bedroom was big as expected. By now it dawned on him that Dalton Institute of Arcane was fond of things which were either big, or grand, or even both. The room had bottle green wallpaper, a large window and hardwood flooring. Each of them had their own study table and walk-in closet, a shared en suite bathroom, and a long leather couch with coffee table set between the two beds.

Blaine plopped down onto his bed, groaning appreciatively at the soft duvet. His head tilted to Nick's side whose face was buried in a pillow. Blaine didn't know how to broach the subject. Nick might appear unaffected during dinner but Blaine wasn't a fool. Nick was bothered by it. His theory was the mohawk haired guy was jealous, a plausible explanation because he didn't have an earring.

He sighed and let his mind drift a little, perhaps to a boy with chestnut hair, porcelain skin, pinkish lips and a very captivating set of glasz eyes. Blaine's face cracked into a smile, he shamelessly had googled Kurt's eye color on their way to dinner. He wasn't being creepy, he just liked to be informed. Besides, his mind was more than capable to supply the exact image of Kurt at any given time. So Blaine was more than willing to indulge himself. Also, he could appreciate a beauty when he saw one. And Kurt Sterling was a sight to behold.

Sterling his mind reiterated and Blaine's smile disappeared. He gingerly raised his left arm and traced the name on his left wrist - Kurt E. Hummel. A sudden wave of humiliation assaulted him, and he suppressed the image of Kurt Sterling in his head as if doing so would redeem himself from his previous thoughts. Then he brought his wrist to his lips and gave it a featherlight kiss.

Blaine shifted his gaze back to Nick's side and found him unmoving. Desperate to stop his mind from venturing to Kurt Sterling, he used Nick as a distraction.

It's not even the official first day and it's getting to be too much already. Will I even survive a year?... Damn Duval! You should have considered homeschooling… I'm not a coward!... Idiot Nick! Idiot! Of course everyone hates you!...Idiot! Idiot!

"Stop psyching yourself out. It won't help, you said it, it's not even the first day." Blaine blurted out. The last thing he wanted to experience was seeing his roommate meltdown.

Nick snapped his head up. He squinted his eyes at the sudden brightness before looking at his roommate. "You're a mind reader."

"Does it bother you?" countered Blaine.

Nick shook his head. "No, it doesn't. Just don't do it to other people you don't know well. You have seen how welcoming people in Dalton can be."

"Like Santana and Tamara?" Blaine used his hand to support his head as he watched Nick turn pensive.

"Perhaps. Listen Blaine, in general, people don't like it when you listen to their thoughts. Also, try not to offend anyone."

He chuckled. "Is this your survival skills class?"

Nick sat up, his expression serious. "I'm a returning student here. It's up to you if you listen to me or not. Stay under the radar if you can and try not to break any rules."

"Do you know how creepy you sound?" Blaine laughed nervously, his eyes darting back and forth between the door and Nick. His bed was near the door so if Nick was going to do something suspicious Blaine could flee to Wes and David's room.

The older boy saw Blaine's reaction, he huffed and let himself fall face down in his pillow. He said his goodnight as to not spook his roommate any further.

Class A - First Year

High School Building

Doltore, Crystalvale

01-Oct-2019

9:00 AM

Blaine and Nick arrived at their class in time for the bell to ring. Thanks to Finn's frantic wave, they found available seats in front of Mike and him. David and Wes were sitting in the same row as Blaine and Nick, but their desks were on the left, close to the window. Blaine hadn't decided yet what to do with Nick. However, when he had found him waiting patiently this morning, he made a decision to get to know the older boy first before he wrote him off.

"First day of classes and you two are almost late." David leaned across the aisle and poked Nick.

Nick pointed at Blaine who was rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hands.

Blaine stretched his legs under the table, head moving side to side eliciting a popping sound in the process. "I overslept. Those beds are too comfortable, makes me want to sleep all day."

"The feeling is mutual." Finn lamented. If it wasn't for Mike, he definitely would be in bed sleeping.

Mike and Wes exchanged a look before shaking their head. First day of school and this was happening. Wes had the same scenario with David and he's pretty sure his method of waking his roommate was far more cruel than the two combined.

The buzzing excitement in the class died down upon hearing a beep followed by the opening of the glass door. A brown haired man entered the room, he was wearing a plaid button down shirt, lavender vest, a woven mustard tie and khaki trousers. "Good morning class."

Everyone settled on their seats and greeted their teacher.

"Today marks the official first day of class, and just like any other first day an introduction is a must." The teacher started brightly. "I'm William Schuester your AP Psychology slash Class adviser." He wrote his name on the whiteboard before pointing the marker at the student seated in the first row closest to the door. "You're next."

The introductions lasted for awhile, sometimes Mr. Schuester asked a student a little bit more about themselves if the said student barely shared anything. And Nick was one of them.

"Nicholas Duval, seventeen years old. I attended Dalton during middle school." Nick shrugged and was about to sit when Mr. Schuester stopped him.

"Are you the same Mr. Duval who tied with Mr. Smythe in first honor when you graduated in middle school?" Mr. Schuester's eyes were shining. He remembered such an event because it became a big scandal when Sebastian Smythe didn't attend the graduation ceremony.

"Yes sir." Nick fidgeted.

"Ah, welcome back. I hope to see such a fine student rise on top once again."

Nick mustered a crooked smile. The attention both thrilled and scared him. "Thank you sir." He's barely seated when their teacher was quick to follow.

"When did you get evaluated Mr. Duval?" He asked out of curiosity.

Nick's insides turned cold. With an effort he managed to say. "A week after middle school graduation sir."

"Once?"

"Yes sir."

There were murmurs. Nick sat stiffly on his chair. Blaine's eyes widened as he stared at his roommate. A fourteen year old and he had managed to pass an evaluation on one try- it was unheard of. Blaine was left speechless and it took three times for Mr. Schuester to get his attention to make his introduction. Everyone's introduction paled next to Nick's.

After making sure everyone finished introducing, Mr. Schuester exited the room and was back in seconds with the Hummel siblings.

"Attention class. I assume you already met Jeffrey and Brittany Hummel - The Prefects' President and Vice President, respectively. They're here to meet the First Year Representative. Yes, you heard it right. The Representative is from this class." The teacher raised a white envelope with a Dalton seal. A teasing smile plastered on his lips. "In here is the name of the lucky student who scored the highest in the entrance exam last June, and is going to be this year's Representative."

Jeff and Brittany stood right next to Mr. Schuester. Both scanning the first year students' reactions. Jeff was twirling the badge which would soon be given to its rightful owner between his fingers. He didn't smile as his eyes were now staring at a specific student.

Meanwhile, Brittany at least tried to look happy for whoever the student was. Her eyes travelled to every face before recognizing a certain student in the crowd. She shifted her gaze to her brother and saw Jeff looking at the boy as well. She grabbed Jeff's hand and squeezed it. "Breathe."

"I moved on." Jeff's tone was flat as he retracted his hand from his sister.

Brittany sighed then looked to the freshmen.

Wes sat straighter. He might not have an earring but he was quite sure he had a shot at the position. He had received his test result around summer break and was proud to see seven mistakes. Being a Prefect early in the game would train him for the position of President in his senior year. He admitted he was an overachiever. He liked to accomplish things that could help him find a good sponsor before graduating high school.

Blaine and Nick came to an agreement that they did good but not good enough for a Class Representative standard. Blaine was somehow dubious. Nick was so mysterious and the way Mr. Schuester had praised him, he probably was being modest as to not hurt Blaine's ego.

Mr. Schuester opened the envelope, eyes remained on the anxious faces of his students. He was grinning, feeling mischievous as he slowly pulled the paper. He read the content in silence. "Are you ready?" When his students eagerly nodded. "Kurt Sterling?" He called, uncertain who the person was.

He reread the paper, afraid he had missed anything or read it incorrectly. There's no student who goes by such a name. When he looked around, he realized there's an empty desk right next to the window in the front row. He remembered right then that his class had fifty one students while the other class had fifty. It dawned on him that the said student was absent.

Jeff and Brittany had worried faces. It was odd enough for them to be sent here to meet a First Year Representative, when previous years The Prefects would meet the Representative after school. Supposedly, it's a voting system to elect a First Year Representative by the freshmen and not based on a test score.

"Shit!" Unable to hold his temper, Jeff cursed. The badge he was holding suddenly felt heavy in his hand.

Brittany's knuckles turned white. "He won't like this."

"He will hate this."

As if on cue, there was a beeping sound followed by the door opening.

Blaine's breathing stuttered when Kurt Sterling emerged from the door. There was the boy who could look perfect in any clothes he wore. Instead of a Dalton blazer, Kurt was wearing the navy blue Dalton cardigan. His mouth watered when Kurt's backside was in view, he wasn't sure if Kurt's pants had been tailored to showcase his pert ass or were just a size smaller - either way he was beyond thankful. Kurt and Mr. Schuester were discussing something but Blaine couldn't seem to focus. He crossed his legs as something was stirring awake down there.

Kurt bit his tongue to stop himself from lashing out at his stupid teacher. He turned around, face impassive and eyes fixed on the wall. "Kurt Sterling." His tone annoyed. Kurt planned to skip today's class, tomorrow, and if possible, the whole year.

Jeff winced hearing Kurt's tone. He had no time to stop Mr. Schuester as the teacher prodded.

"Where did you graduate? How old are you? What's your interest? You can share something about you in class Kurt."

Kurt remained silent, he looked at the ceiling, pondering. Mr. Schuester smiled a little, giving Kurt time to answer. Jeff braced himself while Brittany clutched onto her brother's arm, both sharing a terrified expression.

"As I mentioned awhile ago, I'm Kurt Sterling, fourteen years of age and graduated in this fairytale like school called Dalton with a C on all of my subjects. Is that good enough, Mr. I-don't-care-who-you-are?" Kurt turned to the teacher who wass now slack-jawed.

"Kurt." Jeff admonished.

Kurt crossed his arms over his chest. "He asked for content of an introduction is made by the speaker's discretion, not to mention introducing is done on the person's own volition."

"Kurt." Jeff drawled, seemingly tired this early in the day. He was aware of their audience but he's more afraid that if he let this go before the day's end, the younger boy would be sent to the Headmaster. "Just…. try?"

Kurt rolled his eyes so hard it looked painful.

Mr. Schuester coughed awkwardly. He tried to convince himself that the transition of being a middle school student and the pressure of being in high school was too much for Kurt so he would let it past. "We were discussing earlier about the First Year Representative and it turns out you scored the highest during the entrance exam."

"Representative?" Kurt shot daggers at the two blondes. They were tense which only fueled Kurt's irritation. He remembered his test result because for the first time in years he had taken seriously an exam. He did his best, worked hard for it and seeing a perfect score somehow made him feel better about himself. On the other hand, a Representative's position never fancied him. "You never mentioned this." He accused Jeff.

Jeff was apologetic. "We never knew, I swear, if I was aware I would have told you." He's too aware of the students stares. "Let's talk outside."

The freshman shook his head. "I'm not taking it." He addressed the teacher.

"This is a good opportunity-"

Kurt raised his hand. "I'm capable of judging what's good for me. Your opinion doesn't interest me. I don't need an outsider to meddle in my business."

Mr. Schuester was baffled. Kurt was overstepping and it was high time for him to put his foot down.

Brittany who was silent had to do her part in diffusing the tension. "Kurt Sterling vetoed his position. Mr. Schue please read the student's name who is next in line if the elected isn't available." Her voice formal. This was another side of Brittany Hummel, The Prefects' Vice President. A side not frequently seen but that surfaced when needed.

Wes had deflated in his seat when his name wasn't called. However it was not enough reason for him to not listen. In contrary he was more attentive, waiting who see who had managed to top his score. It didn't surprise him when he heard Kurt Sterling, the student living on the sixth floor. What came as a surprise though was his introduction. A former C student emerged on top, and Wes wasn't sure if he should be insulted or delighted. The way he was treating Mr. Schuester and Jeff was also unfitting for a leader.

"Mr. Wesley Montgomery, please come forward."

Wes's bitterness was replaced with joy as he approached them. He might have ranked second but he knew how to be appreciative.

[space]

[space]

Blaine couldn't remember what happened in their Psychology class. However he knew how many times Kurt Sterling stifled a yawn - six times, crossed and uncrossed his legs - four times, looked out the window - eighteen times, and checked his cell under his desk - two times. Kurt was sitting in the front row next to the window and he didn't have a seatmate. Blaine and Nick's desk was in the fourth row and he had a good view from where he was. He was sure Nick had a better view of Kurt but it would be too obvious to switch seats with the older boy. Not that he hadn't attempted once. Nick was firm on not allowing him.

The class was buzzing again as they waited for their next teacher. Some students were looking at Kurt before whispering to their seatmate. Blaine disliked their malicious stares. He understands Kurt's introduction was far from polite, he deliberately humiliated Mr. Schuester. Normally, Blaine wouldn't condone or try to justify such poor behaviour but he believed Kurt wasn't really a bad person.

"Dude what is Nick doing?" Finn said in panic. He jostled Blaine to get his attention.

Blaine realized Nick had abandoned his seat. He was walking down to the front, then he settled next to the empty chair beside Kurt. Blaine watched carefully as Nick told him something, Kurt's glasz eyes slowly becoming scarlet.

"Fire bearer," whispered Blaine.

"I'm so sorry." Nick repeated, his hands gripped the hem of his blazer. He looked everywhere but Kurt.

Kurt's initial reaction was to mock him and call out every bullshit he did. However he couldn't, at some point he understands him. He was doing the same thing in a different approach. In his memory, the boy he remembered was shorter, younger, had a small amount of baby fat, and far more happier. This boy asking for forgiveness appeared to grow a few inches, he got rid of the baby fats and was now leaner, and duller. Yesterday when he saw him in the crowd he wanted to hurt him so bad he had to leave.

"You're telling it to the wrong person, Nicholas."

"I can't." He swallowed thickly. Hands twisting, eyes glued on the floor. "I-I hurt him."

His statement made Kurt's blood boil. He was known as a short tempered individual because apparently it's one of the bonuses that came with his gift. "At least look at me in the eyes when you apologize."

Nick met Kurt's gaze. His eyes misty, ashamed of himself. It's the first time this amount of anger was directed at him by Kurt. Kurt and him weren't friends. In fact, he didn't actually know what they were. He wasn't sure himself what Kurt's impression of him was. "I'm so sorry."

Kurt's left palm rested on the table while his right index finger jabbed Nick's chest as he made his point clear. "I won't judge you because I don't know your side of the story. All I know is that you owe Jeff an explanation. He paid a very expensive price for it so he deserves one, don't you think?" He was panting when he finished. His eyes glowing red and a black handprint was created on his desk.

Nick averted his gaze. Guilt gnawing his very core. He knew how true Kurt's words were. He had dared to apologize but halfway through it, he chickened out. How could someone explain an intentional avoidance for two years. It's even worse because he had abandoned Jeff during the time when he needed him the most.

Nick couldn't do it. Two years had passed but he was still clueless on how to make it right. It wasn't that simple like Kurt or everyone was trying to believe. If he wanted to repair the damage, they should start from the root of it. All of them must revisit two years ago. They must accept the fact that no one had managed to get away unscathed, not a single one.

High School Building

Doltore, Crystalvale

01-Oct-2019

12:15 PM

Kurt was on his feet as soon as the bell rang which announced the end of third period. It was impossible for him to find the heart to like his classes this year. The first three hours almost lulled him to sleep, it was boring not to mention the syllabi he had were all dreadful. The only thing stopping him from fleeing his classes was that Jeff had asked him to try.

He made a detour to his locker all the way to the other end of the hallway. Kurt was one of those unlucky students who had a locker at the opposite side. It was a real pain to avoid the sea of hungry students making their way to the cafeteria as second floor was for freshmen and sophomore classrooms.

He fluidly fit himself in the gap between two female sophomore students before they could herd him back in the crowd. He was suddenly thankful only half of the sophomores were on lunch break.

Long lines of cherry wood lockers were at the end of the hall. Kurt stopped in front of a locker with fading scorched 2828. He manipulated the wooden combination lock while his other hand retrieved from his bag the books from the previous classes. When he finally opened his locker, a neatly folded paper was waiting for him. Kurt dumped the books inside and swiftly took the paper. He somehow expected this note though it never failed to sour his mood every time he saw it. Kurt slammed his locker, frustrated. A quick scan of the the written content showed See Mr. Hopkins at Elemental Room, ASAP.

Kurt rolled his eyes. He crumpled the paper with much more force than necessary before leaving, only to smack into someone.

"Goddamit!" Kurt cursed.

"Sorry, I'm so sorry!" Blaine hurriedly apologized, his left hand caressing his forehead.

Kurt glared at the person as he too was holding his aching forehead. "Stop blocking the way."

Blaine opened his mouth to reason but immediately shut it. Kurt was fuming and Blaine couldn't help but to feel concerned. He neither wanted to see his crumpled eyebrows nor the anger visible in his eyes. Those gorgeous eyes that haunted him in his dreams last night. Blaine probably spaced out for awhile because Kurt's eyes turned to scarlet. "L-Locker… My locker…" He recovered lamely, pointing at the locker just below Kurt's - 2829.

Kurt rolled his eyes then left. Someone was watching him, he could sense it but he went on his way. A few meters away he found a trash bin where he tossed the crumpled note. It was also a good opportunity for him to look back and find whoever was watching him. He casually turned around just in time to catch Mr. 2829 staring at him. He might not have predicted Kurt's move because he scrambled for his locker lock with the tip of her ears going red.

Another eye roll before Kurt continued to his destination. The hallway was almost empty with students and this made it easier for him to navigate around. As he descended the spiral staircase, his peripheral vision caught sight of the hologram announcement section. Like always, he left the building without checking it.

He could hear the steady chatter of students around campus. Students darted past him from both sides as he watched with an impassive face those who were happily making their way to the cafeteria. Kurt's gaze shifted to the courtyard on his left side where picnic tables were set. Students were milling around, trays in hand, probably escaping the too crowded cafeteria brought about by the middle school students who chose to have lunch with students in high school.

"Mr. Sterling, I was right to find you myself."

Kurt stopped. His eyes went to the entrance of the cafeteria back to the graying haired man leaning against the wall.

"This won't take long. I'm Mr. Hopkins."

Kurt remained silent. It was easy to deduce who he was since he had an earring, very few in the entire faculty of Dalton had it and two of them he had already met in person.

Mr. Hopkins regarded Kurt for a minute before he nodded. "Mr. Puckerman had his this morning and I thought to hand it early to you as well instead of waiting for you in Elective." He retrieved a black envelope in his coat. There was a very familiar little gold wax with a cursive H stamp on it - the Headquarter's seal - and written at the front in silver ink was Kurt E. Sterling. "Take it." He ordered when Kurt didn't budge.

Kurt glared at the offensive item but accepted nonetheless.

Mr. Hopkins sighed. "It's up to you to decide what to do with it."

"Good, less people to deal with." Kurt spat. He was about to leave when Mr. Hopkins spoke.

"I judge someone based on what I've seen and not what I've heard. Have a good day Kurt, I'll see you in class." Mr. Hopkins shuffled to his feet, his left hand gripped his cane to support his bad leg. "Nice to see you around Mr. Smythe."

Sebastian groaned in acknowledgement, his eyes trailing at Mr. Hopkins right leg before huffing. When he looked back, Kurt was watching the old teacher. Sebastian caught sight of the black envelope, "Hey Casper, getting cozy with our teacher, are we?" He smirked.

Kurt's gaze fell on the older boy who was approaching. He was the epitome of a posh student; his uniform worn impeccably, his brown hair styled with the right amount of product, his body posture was like that of a model, and to complete the package he had a very foul mouth. He was much taller than Kurt, his green eyes had this mischievous glint in them. Kurt's nose wrinkled at the sight of Sebastian drinking a venti iced latte. "Who drinks an iced latte in this awful weather?" Kurt fell into step beside Sebastian.

"9.2 degrees celsius is just the right temperature, besides we're not as dainty as you are." As if to show his point, he made a long obnoxious drinking sound. Things he would do just to rile up Kurt.

"Dainty." Kurt mumbled to himself.

Sebastian was silent as he watched Kurt light up a fire at the corner of his invitation. It was uninteresting by now for Sebastian having seen it countless of times. The steady crackling of fire and the smell of smoke didn't scare him anymore, though he couldn't say the same for the other students in the cafeteria. Students shared the same alarmed faces and as every step Sebastian and Kurt made the crowd seemed to part for them.

"Would you look at that."

Sebastian and Kurt looked over their shoulder to see Santana, Puck and Tina trailing behind them. Puck happily chattered with an obviously agitated Tina as he was waving his own black envelope.

"You're saying, Sha-queer-ra?" Sebastian's irises changed to blue.

"Defensive are we? If only I never caught your twinks like every summer, I would really believe virgin boy here is your soulmate." Santana gave Kurt a once over followed by a meaningful smile at Sebastian.

Sebastian barked a laugh though never commented on it. Kurt checked out on the conversation before the two even began talking. Tina and Puck also left the two, unwilling to hear about their sex life.