"Kurt?"
Kurt glanced away from his American Idol marathon to meet his stepbrother's gaze. "Yes, Finn?"
Finn looked unsettled, and he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I... um... ah... your bird's making weird noises."
Muting the television, Kurt leapt up from the sofa and rushed up the stairs, Finn close on his heels.
"What's up, Pav?" Kurt knelt carefully by the canary's cage. Pavarotti cocked his head curiously, ruffling his feathers and twittering. "He seems okay," Kurt frowned, checking the bird's food and water. He glanced back at Finn, who was hovering near Kurt's bed. "What sort of noise was he making?"
Finn shook his head and shrugged. "I dunno, man; I don't speak Bird." He planted himself on Kurt's desk chair and looked at Pavarotti through the cage bars.
After a few moments of Kurt stroking the canary's feathers, Finn said, "Rachel wants me and her to get back together."
Kurt started at the change of topic. It occurred to him that Finn possibly made up the story about Pav just to talk to him, and he set the bird back down in his cage. "Oh, really?" He wasn't really surprised.
"Yeah," Finn replied to the floor. "She's been acting kind of weird but then today she just marched up to me and said it."
Kurt blinked. "And what did you say?"
Finn shook his head. "I just looked at her and said, 'Rachel, I can't,' and got out of there." He sighed. "I really have no idea what to do, you know?"
Nodding, Kurt asked, "do you want you two to get back together?"
"Yeah, sure I do," Finn answered, after a moment. "But she acts like, when we're together, my opinion means nothing. Do you know what I mean? She has to have the final say on everything."
Kurt definitely did know what Finn meant. Being Rachel's friend was more effort than it was worth a lot of the time; he couldn't even imagine what being her boyfriend would be like. He shrugged. "Well, I don't have the answers, Finn," he said. He vaguely wondered what Blaine would say if he were here. "Have you tried singing about it?"
"Huh?"
"That's Mr Schue's solution for everything, right?"
"I guess so," Finn replied, "but I wouldn't know what to sing."
Kurt thought for a moment. "Well, how about I go first, and then you can think about it for a bit?"
Finn shrugged awkwardly. "If you like."
Reaching under his bed, Kurt pulled out a keyboard and rested it on his lap.
"I didn't know you had that," Finn commented.
"There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Finn."
"Oh yeah? Like what?"
Kurt began playing without answering Finn's question. He'd heard the song on the radio the other day and it had stuck in his mind.
Have I been on your mind?
You hanging on every word I say?
Lose yourself in time
At the mention of my name.
Will I ever know
How it feels to hold you close
And have you tell me
Whichever road I choose, you'll go?
Kurt hadn't even noticed Finn watching him in surprise. The lyrics and melody of the song had completely distracted him.
I don't know why I'm scared,
I've been here before,
Every feeling, every word,
I've imagined it all.
You'll never know if you never try
To forget your past and simply be mine.
Underneath all of his love issues, Kurt was secretly proud of this performance. He sounded good and he knew it. He took a deep breath and belted out the chorus.
Well, I dare you to let me be yours,
Your one and only,
I promise I'm worthy
To hold in your arms.
So come on, and give me a chance
To prove that I'm the one who can
Walk that mile, until the end starts.
Nobody's perfect
Trust me, I've learned it.
Nobody's perfect
Trust me, I've learned it.
Nobody's perfect
Trust me, I've learned it.
Nobody's perfect
Trust me, I've learned it.
It sucked that he couldn't sing more than one thing at once. Blaine would totally appreciate his harmony if he were here right now.
So, I dare you to let me be yours,
Your one and only,
I promise I'm worthy
To hold in your arms.
So come on, and give me a chance
To prove that I'm the one who can
Walk that mile, until the end starts.
Kurt was breathless after the performance. He pushed the keyboard off his lap onto the bed and lay back against the sheets, breathing deeply.
"Woah, dude," Finn said, shaking his head in surprise. "Maybe I should be the one bringing you milk in the evenings. Not that I'm offering," he added hastily. "Kurt – are you crying?"
Kurt sniffed and wiped his eyes. "Maybe a little," he admitted, and sighed.
"Is this still about Blaine?" Finn asked.
Finn couldn't worry about both of their love lives, Kurt decided. He didn't read enough magazines for that. "No, I'm fine," he responded airily. "Seriously, Finn, don't worry." He then carefully switched the conversation around to focus on Finn and Rachel until Finn decided he'd had enough talking for the evening and left.
Kurt sighed again and shut his eyes. He clearly had far too many Blaine-related issues. Maybe he'd fall asleep and wake up to find them all solved.
It was worth a try, anyway.