A/N: Hi, to all of you reading. I hope, by the response i've been getting that people are interested in reading this story. This is the first chapter, and sort of just sets the scene. There's the whole Kurt-Blaine dynamic beginning to happen here, and whilst they probably won't officially start dating till much later in the story, they have to flirt and get to know one another, so i hope i did good here. Thank you for the kind reviews and favourites/alerts, they're much appreciated and welcome. Enjoy this chapter, and the many more to come. Will try to update possibly once a week, depending on my Uni schedule. Thanks. JusticeIsn'tEasy0083. D.
P.S: A couple of people reviewed with questions, I hope these help in the answering of your queries. Enjoy this chapter, and the rest of the story, and if you have anymore questions, anyone, don't hesitate to either PM me, or review. JusticeIsn'tEasy083. D.
Q & A: There had already been plans to move to Philly since the start of the story, hence the already packed boxes - for Bloody-Battle-Bunnies
Q & A #2: Sebastian took the pictures from the apartment so that Holly wouldn't be sad, and also to try and help Kurt move on. Of course, the wedding pictures, Kurt does have photo's with just him and the subjects in them, without Sebastian, but given their relationship, he decided to display those ones... I hope that answers your question/s - for njferrell
Chapter One: A New Life
Monday morning was alot different in the Hummel house, than most normal people. Kurt would wake at six and workout for an hour, before Holly woke up. Rachel had commented once that even though Kurt has a maid and a nanny for the hours he's at work and can't look after Holly, he still likes to cook, and clean things. It's nothing against the people he hires, sometimes he just prefers it that way... it helps him to think. This morning, however, they were running behind schedule, and Holly wasn't even dressed at the time they were meant to be leaving the house to start school. Kurt was rushing around in the kitchen, preparing food, and talking on the phone at the same time, mumbling words under his breath so his brother couldn't hear what he was saying. Holly's pretty smart for her age, and is quite capable of dressing herself, which is what she did this morning, but it makes Kurt's feel like he's not there, and he doesn't like that. He wants to be there for Holly's life... unlike some people... Kurt thought, shaking his head to rid himself of those thoughts... he doesn't need to be thinking of Sebastian right now...
By seven fourty-five, they were out the door, and in the car, heading off towards Haverbrooke Prep. Holly was, once again, talking a mile a minute about how good school was going to be, and how excited she was to be starting her first day... but still managed to throw in that she's still going to miss her daddy whilst she's there, and she hopes that Aunt Rachel and Aunt Quinn are going to be at the house when she gets home... she hasn't mentioned anything about Sebastian yet, which isn't like her... Kurt thought, pulling into the school's car park, and climbing out, moving around to help his daughter with her bag, before turning to face the large building in front of them, remembering to lock the car behind them...
Holly's school was fancy... well it's private, but it looks more like a mansion than a preschool... Kurt held her little hand as they walked past the throngs of other children, wearing the same uniform as Holly, towards the office. Rachel had told Kurt that it may take a few weeks for Holly to become comfortable in this new school. She's only five, and it's not like she's going to be here her whole life. Kurt was following the directions he'd been given by Abbie, the new maid they'd hired before moving here, and managed to find the office alright, knocking on the door, before being called at to enter. The woman behind the first desk, was brunette, and looked like she'd slept in her make-up... it was horrid. Kurt's a fashion designer, and she's absolutely appalling with her fashion sense. The woman, whose name was Mrs. Tiers, gestured at them to wait patiently for Principal Leigmon to be free from his current meeting.
Kurt was considered one of their 'high-class' parents, considering his standing in society, and his reputation, this wasn't surprising, but he didn't want that to be the reason his daughter had been accepted to this school, nor the reason she be treated any differently to the other children. Twenty minutes later, Mr. Leigmon was leading them down yet another corridor, towards Holly's classroom, talking a mile a minute about all the extra-curricular activities they offer, and the parent's nights and whatnot. Kurt was listening intently, trying not to focus on sending his daughter to school, and being without her. To be honest, it kind of hurt to think about it... he shook this off when they reached room 22L.
'This is Mr. Anderson's class. We put Holly in here, because she's quite capable, as she's proven, of handling the work, and because many of the other parents are what we call 'high-class' so their children can relate to your daughter. Excuse me class, if I could have your attention for a moment, Mr. Anderson, this is Holly Hummel she's new to the school, and the area, and this is her father, Kurt Hummel. I'd like you all to make Holly welcome,' Mr. Leigmon said, as Holly shrunk back to hide behind her father, forcing Kurt to bend down, which wasn't the best thing to do in his suit
'Sweetie, I love you remember? I promise I'll be here at three to pick you up. Your teacher looks nice and there are lots of kids your age okay?' Kurt said, smiling
'Are you going to get papa?' Holly asked in her small voice, missing Kurt's sharp inhale... and there it is... the first mention of the traitorous barstard...
'No baby. Papa's not coming home okay. Go have fun, I'll see you at three,' Kurt replied, kissing her forehead, and returning to standing position
'She'll be fine. I'll make sure she's occupied,' Mr. Anderson said, smiling and bringing Kurt out of his... stupor?
'Right, well I best be going. I have a meeting that I can't miss. Mr. Leigmon, Mr. Anderson...' Kurt said, winking at his daughter, before leaving the room.
Rachel, Quinn, Finn, and Puck were in the middle of lunch when they noticed a group of four-five year olds, in neat, navy blue and white uniforms, walking in a line, laughing and giggling. Finn could spot his niece anywhere, and waved when she caught his eye, breaking off from the group to run over to him. Finn lifted her off the ground, tickling her and kissing her, and spinning around, until he noticed that the group, and who he assumed was the teacher, were all watching him cautiously. He walked back over towards the group, and placed Holly on the ground, kissing her forehead, and bumping knuckles... something uncle Puck had taught her... before standing and moving away from the group, back over to Quinn who was watching Blaine cautiously herself. She didn't trust many people around her niece, not even her teacher, who seemed to think that Finn was some creepy stalker or something. Holly waved and re-joined the group, led by Blaine, through the mall. Rachel was hoping that Kurt's meeting hadn't finished, because if he knew that his daughter was out, gallivanting around the country side with her wayward teacher and school group, he'd probably have the man fired. Puck, sensing his wife's... annoyance... kissed her cheek, and took her hand, returning to his previous conversation with Finn about how Mike and Tina were in town, and they should all get together for some kind of New Directions reunion or something. This had been in the works since they graduated highschool... actually, Rachel thinks it may have been developed in their junior year... not that it would matter... they could catch up with anyone at anytime, and calls it a reunion. Just last week, Rachel had been in New York for a performance and had ran into Santana and Brittany, who were there for one of Britt's performances... call it a reunion, or whatever you like... why should we have everyone together if we've hardly seen them in four years... none of them call us... Rachel thought, taking a sip of the water in front of her.
However, against her better judgement, Quinn agreed, but only because she hadn't seen Tina since they moved here, and she needed a distraction... and someone to talk to about pregnancy, that wasn't Rachel Puckerman...Not that she and Rachel are enemies like the used to be, it's just... they're not... as close.. Per say... Like clockwork, Kurt joined them at one, sitting down beside Rachel, brushing imaginary marks off his suit, before pulling out his cell, and turning it to silent, an agreement they had whenever they were at lunch together. Finn and Puck greeted the new addition, by loudly implying that Kurt should host Mike and Tina and the other New Directions members this weekend at the house, considering it's like so fucking huge you could fit New York in there three times over... Ah, Noah Puckerman and his... wayward thinking... I don't know what Rachel ever saw in him... Kurt thought to himself, seriously considering it, just so he could see the old gang again... it had been years... and many of them had lost touch, mostly because they lived on opposite sides of the country... Quinn was asking Kurt about how the store was going, and if headquarters was done yet.
Long ago, when Kurt had first started MerBerry Designs, he promised Quinn he'd hire her, as his assistant/receptionist... and he'd stayed true to his promise... but the companies move to Philadelphia had taken longer than expected, and not all his employees were back at work yet, but he made to assure Quinn that they would be soon enough, and they'll all be getting generous advances... not that any of them would stray, they love working with Kurt... they love working with everyone... the conversations ranged from work, to children, to the apparent New Directions reunion this weekend, to Holly's first day, and back to less depressing topics... like Puck's mow hawk... odd conversationalists we are... Kurt thought, checking his watch, and noting the time... two thirty... Kurt stood, thanking his friends and brother for a wonderful lunch, before heading towards the exit, and out to the car, to pick up Holly. The whole day Kurt had spent in meetings, he'd been thinking about his daughter. How she was fitting in, what she'd been doing, if she'd made any friends... the normal questions you'd ask a child on their first day of school. Kurt made his way to the car, going over and over things in his head. He knew he should not be dwelling on the past, nor should he be daydreaming about a man he's only briefly met, for ten minutes, at his daughter's school... Seriously, he's probably not even gay... Kurt thought, as he merged into the traffic, heading in the direction on his daughter's pre-school.
Just as he'd promised, Kurt was waiting for Holly when she got out of school, running over to her father, and jumping up into his waiting arms, whilst Kurt just hugged her tightly. He should ask if there was any work she needed to do, but he needn't have worried, when Mr. Anderson approached him, smiling and rendering Kurt speechless... which is unusual... especially for Kurt Hummel... What the hell is going on with me today? Kurt thought, placing Holly back on the ground and turning to face her... gorgeous... teacher... What?
'Mr. Hummel, Holly is an exceptional student, lively, funny... she's very bright. I wouldn't expect anything less from Kurt Hummel's daughter though,' Mr. Anderson said, smiling cheerfully... okay, no one is that cheerful after a day of dealing with students...
'Mmm, you wait till she gets in a bad mood... don't want to be around her then. Isn't that right Holly?' Kurt asked his daughter, who just grinned, and took the worksheets Mr. Anderson was holding out for her
'Enjoy the rest of your day Mr. Hummel, Holly I'll see you tomorrow,'
'Oh, as future reference, you can just call me Kurt you know... all this Mr. Hummel crap makes me sound old like my father... 'Kurt replied, smirking when Blaine's eyes widened a bit, and he faltered with his next sentence
'Kurt it is... guess that means you best call me Blaine...'
'We'll see Mr. Anderson,' the designer replied once more, turning and walking back towards the school's exit
Okay Hummel, what the hell was that about? You're taking to flirting with your daughter's teacher now? Since when has this been an important part of your life? You just got out of a terrible four year relationship... besides, what makes you think that Blaine is going to be any different to Sebastian? This was his internal monologue the entire way back to the house, tuning in and out of what his daughter was saying, whilst trying to think of something to make for dinner, since Finn and the others had invited themselves over once again... there were many things going on that Kurt was trying to process, but the thing that shocked him the most, was the almost-attraction he had to Blaine Anderson, the pre-school teacher, who he's only really spoken to twice, and not even a real conversation about anything important... Holly broke him out of his thoughts, by exclaiming loudly that she'd made a friend, and Kurt had to smile and laugh with his daughter, cause she's so happy, and he loves it when she's happy...
Thinking back to the meeting in the hallway, Blaine had come to a conclusion: all he really wanted, was to hear Kurt say his name... two can play at this game... he thought, smiling to himself... damn it Blaine, you're not meant to fall for the parent of one of your students... that's probably worse than falling for the student... not that that will ever happen... Blaine thought, shaking them away and heading back inside to his classroom, all thoughts on his apparently-now-growing attraction to Kurt Hummel and the mystery that surrounds him... Not that there is much mystery. He's constantly in the news for all the things that he does, and he's like, world renound and all that... he's very private though... Blaine thought, closing the door to his classroom, and moving over to his desk, slumping down into the chair, and resting his head on the table. He shouldn't be thinking about this... Kurt's probably not even interested in him like that and he'd hate to scare the man off... maybe they can be friends? It's not like he's never made friends with any of the parents before, and he's certainly not going to get in trouble should it turn into something more, because Kurt's not a teacher, or member of the faculty...
Against his better judgement, Blaine pulled out the folder he keeps all of the children's information in, and flipped through until he found Holly Hummel... it's wrong to get her father's phone number off of this and call him right? Blaine thought, taping his pen against the page, scrunching his eyebrows together in deep thought... Screw it... what's the worst that could happen? Blaine thought, writing down both the home and cell numbers and shoving the post-it note into his bag, before gathering his things and leaving the room... Seriously stalkerish Blaine... his conscience told him as he headed towards his car in the staff parking lot. Usually, on a Monday night he would go out and meeting his friends from highschool, Wes and David at the local bar, Andrews, before heading back to the apartment, and spending the rest of the night, writing music, or preparing the next day's lesson, or just doing something he enjoyed... but tonight, he could stop thinking of the post-it note, with Kurt's number on them, in his bag... Wes and David would give him hell for this...
Kurt walked through the front door, Holly close behind, her bright pink school bag over her shoulder. She was laughing, and talking about one of the other little girls, Renee, who she had spent the day talking to, and playing with. Kurt smiled, and helped Holly unpack her schoolbag, like he'd been teaching her all last year. He couldn't help but think back to the mindless flirting he was doing with Blaine... Seriously Kurt, he's your daughter's teacher... you can't be thinking like that... at all... ever... besides... you don't want to be in a relationship... not after Sebastian... he thought to himself, as Holly kept talking in her melodic voice, about school, and how excited she was. Kurt was happy for her... it's good that she's fitting in so well to her new school, and making friends with people. He's not sure how they're going to react when the find out that he's gay, but he'll leave that for another time... maybe when, or if it's brought up at a PTA meeting or something... wait, Blaine is also gay then, because he was flirting back... I wonder if they know that. Kurt thought, placing Holly's lunchbox on the sink for Abbie to wash, and heading into the study to take a call from the builders at Hummel Co. Building... Ah Kurt, throwing yourself into work, to mask the pain you feel over Sebastian's betrayal... typical... his conscience reminded him so kindly... Holly was in the lounge, obviously watching the TV, because he heard it turned on. He's not going to tell her to turn it off, he's not that kind of parent that works, and forgets all about his child, in the lounge, all alone... sighing, Kurt rested his head on his arms, folded in front of him on the desk, and closed his eyes... Rachel would no doubt give him one hundred and one reasons as to why he's better off without the leech, clinging to him, and dragging him down... but as much as he hates to admit it... he did, somewhere along the line, love Sebastian... otherwise they wouldn't have decided to bring Holly into the world... maybe it's all too much to handle... he was never good a commitment... then again, he stayed with me for five years... what the hell is he playing at? Kurt thought, forehead still resting on his folded arms... through the silence, he head the home-phone ring, but couldn't be bothered answering it, until Holly came running into the study a moment later, holding the handset, and saying that it had disrupted her TV time.
'You're so funny baby. Okay, come here, we'll check to see who it was...' Kurt said, sitting Holly on his knee, and pressing buttons on the phone until it went to 'Recent Caller's'.
'Who was it daddy?' Holly asked, when Kurt started frowning at the phone
'Unknown number baby... I hate when people do this... ' Kurt said, more to himself than his five-year old, but she didn't seem to notice, paying more attention to the screensaver on Kurt's computer... photo's of the two of them on their holiday to Rome last year
'When are Uncle Finny and Aunty Rachel and Uncle Puck and Aunty Quinn getting here?' Holly asked, snuggling into her father, who just kissed her forehead, and smiled
'Oh, we'd better start dinner... come on Holly Hummel, chef extraordinaire... what are we having?' Kurt said, laughing and placing Holly onto the floor, as she started shouting out all of her favourite meals...
When dinner was finished, and Holly had been put to bed, Rachel cornered her best-friend in the study, and demanded to know why he had spent the three hours of dinner, not saying a word, and being distracted. Kurt didn't want to tell her about the apparent crush he was forming on Blaine, nor did he want her to start talking about Sebastian and how he left, and what he was going to do about it... If I start talking about it, she'll probably go make me see Tina, or a therapist... Kurt thought, picking up his cell, and pretending it had rung to get away from talking to the demanding brunette standing in front of her. He's not ready to admit that he might be having feelings for this man, his daughter's teacher, and he's not sure he's even ready to engage in another relationship... Quinn and Puck were talking about options for their New Directions get together and possible trip back to Lima to see Mr. Schuester, who is being inducted as the principal of McKinley... of course, six years after we leave, and he's made the principal... Kurt thought, catching the end of the conversation... Finn was trying to convince them that they should head to LA to see Sam and Mercedes, but Kurt couldn't leave Philadelphia... not with everything he has coming up... the new line, the new office, Holly's school... it's just not the right time... which lead to Finn starting an argument about the fact that he works too much, and that maybe instead of shutting himself off from the world, he should open himself up to it... Maybe your brother has a point... no he doesn't... Quinn eased the tension created by Finn, by telling them the story about her trip to the mall, and how some people are just so rude to the people around them. Kurt was appalled when she said that one woman had called her a slut because she's pregnant... this caused Rachel to spit out whatever she was drinking, and Puck to crack his knuckles, and threaten the person who did it, with bodily harm, even though there was no way of hearing it...
They ended the night with a promise to catch up soon, and to meet up to plan the New Directions reunion, before Rachel, Puck, Finn and Quinn headed out the door, and to their cars, Kurt standing against the balcony railing, waving as they drove off... it's amazing that with all the chatter, Holly hadn't woken up as she usually does... in fact, it's probably the first time she's slept through something like that since she was born... Kurt remembered the first night they had her home, she wouldn't stop crying, and the frantic phone calls to Rachel and two in the morning were killing both of them... eventually though, he managed to get the girl to sleep, playing soft music in the background, but now, she just fell asleep on her own... Kurt would tuck her in, tell her a story, and kiss her forehead, before flicking on her nightlight, and leaving the room...
Slowly, the designer went through the house, cleaning things up, and turning off lights, before heading upstairs and into the master bedroom, flicking off the light and changing in the dark, the welcome feel of a comfortable bed the only calling card for Kurt, who immediately snuggled under the covers, and closed his eyes... only to be woken at three in the morning by the sound of his daughter crying across the hall. Kurt leapt out of bed, almost falling over the rug in his haste to get to his bedroom door, throwing it open and bursting into Holly's room, to find her hugging Teddy to her chest, and sobbing. Kurt sat down on the bed, pulling her into his arms, and hugged her tightly, trying to ignore the stabbing pains in his chest when Holly kept saying that she missed Papa and she wanted Papa to come back to them and asking why he'd left them...
'Sweetheart, listen to me okay? Papa left us, he doesn't love us anymore. He's not coming back okay. I know that's hard, but if he doesn't want to be here with a perfect girl like you, then he's not worth having around,' Kurt said, honestly... he has no secrets from his daughter...
'B-b-but I m-miss h-him, a-a-and I don't w-ant you to b-be mad at me,' Holly managed to get out through the crying
'Sweetie, I'm not mad at you. You're allowed to miss him,'
'Why doesn't he love us anymore?' Holly asked, and Kurt placed a soft kiss on her cheek
'I don't know baby...' he replied... Why don't you love us anymore Sebastian?
Blaine woke at six, heading into his small ensuite bathroom to shower. He shares his small two bedroom Philadelphia apartment with Wes and David, his friends from highschool, who have been dating since senior year. They're the weirdest couple Blaine's ever known, and that's coming from the guy who serenaded a crush at the gap in Westerville in sophomore year. Of course, nothing compared to that debacle with the Warblers, that Wes and David never left Blaine forget about, but their wacky relationship was up there with Nick and Jeff's proposal on top of the Eiffel Tower on the Warblers Senior trip to France, and the sky diving eighteenth that David managed to wrangle his parents into hosting. That hadn't been the best day for Blaine... he's not a sky diver... the highlight of his day would be seeing Kurt again... okay, it would be going to school and seeing all of his students too, but there is just something so... enchanting... about Kurt Hummel that has him intrigued to know the man better. Like, for instance... if he's currently dating anyone, and if he would be interested in getting coffee sometime... two questions that Blaine would probably never ask... only to save himself the embarrassment of being rejected in public... he'd tried calling, but of course, his number would have been unknown, and given Kurt's celebrity standing, he probably would be tracing the number with the PPD or something...
Wes and David were talking about their trip to Alaska when Blaine entered the kitchen, mumbling to himself what he was going to say to Kurt. He's grateful that his friend's haven't said anything yet, but it's only a matter of time until they find out that he's hopelessly devoted to this man, he's only just met, and known for like... a day... besides, someone as fantastic as Kurt... he's surely got a boyfriend... or maybe he's not gay... maybe he's got a girlfriend? Then again, nothing explains the way he was definitely flirting with him yesterday... Pull yourself together Blaine... you're a professional, and so is Kurt... just invite him out for a drink... as two friends, and then see where it leads... and try not to give anything away to Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Dumber... Blaine thought, chuckling at the nicknames he's associated to Wes and David, who simply looked up at him, smirking, before going back to talking about flight plans and hotels and ignoring the fact that Blaine was struggling with his feelings... they're usually so good with this stuff... I'm never good a being obvious with my feelings, and apart from my family, I've never told someone I love them, or wanted them as much as I seem to just want Kurt... Whoa...
Kurt walked Holly into class once more, and as soon as the young girl saw her friend she'd made yesterday, she was off. Kurt shook his head and smiled, waiting until Holly realised she'd forgotten to kiss her father goodbye and running back to him. Blaine watched the whole event unfold, and smiled when Kurt tried to bend down to Holly's level in his suit, which must have been very hard, considering how tightly fitted the pants looked to be... Holly smiled, kissed Kurt's cheek, and ran back to where Renee was sitting at the table, both waving to Kurt, who turned to leave the classroom, only to be stopped by Blaine... this should be interesting... Kurt thought to himself...
'Mr. Anderson, what can I do for you?' Kurt asked, sarcastically cheerful, smirking at the dazed? Look on his face
'I know we've only know each other, what... a day, and I'm Holly's teacher, but I was wondering... if you'd like to grab a drink sometime... with... with me?' Blaine asked, smiling shyly
'I've... sure... um, just... call me and let me know when... I have a meeting right now, but... you have the numbers... just call, and I'll pick up...' Kurt replied, stuttering a little... Just call and i'll pick up? Smooth Hummel... he thought, mentally slapping himself
'Great, I'll be in touch then,' Blaine said, smiling his megawatt smile
'Great... okay... I'll be back to pick my daughter up later then... um... bye,' Kurt said, turning and walking off before he could embarrass himself any further...
You just agreed to go out with Blaine Anderson... are you completely insane? Rachel would frown upon this... and you've only been out of a relationship for what... not even a week? Come on Kurt... he told himself, but then he remembered what Finn said last night... Fuck Sebastian... this could be the start of a beautiful friendship... Kurt had to chuckle at the fact that his mind went in that direction...
A/N: Next chapter: Kurt and Blaine decide to not jump straight into a relationship, but do become friends to "see where it leads". Holly makes a new friend, and Sebastian contacts Finn and Rachel... More on the background and breakup soon. JusticeIsn'tEasy0083. D.