"Kurt Hummel."
The gymnasium froze, silence washing over the crowd of anxious teenagers and Prom King and Queen candidates.
Kurt's brain had completely stopped working at that moment, finding itself unable to process what Principal Figgins had just announced, and as the bright white spotlight moved over to him, landing on his face, he wished that, for once in his life, that the spotlight wasn't on him right now.
He remained frozen, his arm still hooked with Blaine's, but he refused to make contact with his date (though they weren't dating, Blaine had immediately agreed to go with him so that he wouldn't be the pathetic gay guy who couldn't get a date; plus, Kurt Hummel was asking him to Prom), as he worriedly and confusedly looked over at him.
Some idiot in the back of the crowd tried to cat-call and wolf-whistle, which only embarrassed Kurt further as he looked around at the hateful stares around him that seemed to say, 'You idiot, you actually thought we had changed, didn't you? That we didn't have a problem with you after all? That's pathetic. We're still the same. And you're still a fag.'
Kurt stepped back.
Someone else tried his hand at clapping, but it died down when no one joined in, their eyes still locked on Kurt hurtfully, and Kurt slowly dropped Blaine's arm, taking another step back.
Kurt took one last look around at the glares before ducking his head and running as fast as he could through the crowd, holding back tears of utter humiliation and betrayal.
"Kurt!" Blaine called worriedly, hatefully pushing through the crowd and running after his best friend. "Stop! Kurt!"
Kurt heard Blaine's voice and the footsteps behind him, but he just didn't want to look at him, not at anyone, he couldn't bring himself to — he was far too ashamed.
He slammed the door shut behind him, and the New Directions all looked after the pair sadly as the silence carried on.
Kurt kept running, finally letting the tears show through the slightest bit, hot tears threatening to stream down his cheeks.
Blaine turned the corner and ran faster. Hearing him, Kurt choked out a dry sob, still running. "This is humiliating—"
"Stop!" Blaine called after him sadly, trying to catch up. "Stop, Kurt! Please, just stop, come on..." Blaine said soothingly as Kurt came to a stop, his back to Blaine.
Kurt whipped around. "Don't you get how stupid we were?" He said, caught between anger and humiliation that Blaine was seeing him like this. "We thought that, since no one was teasing us or beating us up tha-that no one cared." He sobbed. "L-Like some sort of, progress had been made. But it's still the same." He covered his mouth with his right hand, not having felt this vulnerable since the Karofsky incident.
Blaine looked at him sadly, and wanted nothing more than to wrap him in his arms and tell him that everything was going to be alright, because, God, Kurt was so gorgeous, but so vulnerable, when he cried, but he knew better than that. He knew that right now, Kurt didn't want someone to hug or to hold him. Right now, he someone to listen to him as he let it all out.
He needed a friend.
"It's just a stupid joke..." Blaine offered, trying to comfort his crying friend.
"No it's not." Kurt said firmly. "All that hate, they were just afraid to say it out loud. So they did it by secret ballot." He said angrily, his voice shaking with sobs. "In one big anonymous practical joke." He threw his hands down, walking past Blaine and turning away.
"Kurt, please." Blaine reasoned, taking a step towards Kurt. "Just calm down..."
"No, I can't. I'm sorry..." Kurt said, though his tears began to cease. He sighed and turned from Blaine, starting to pace back and fourth. "I'm not going back in there." He said, shaking his head. "No way..."
Blaine sighed and let his back hit the lockers, sliding down into a sitting position as he watched Kurt pace in front of him.
Kurt kept mumbling to himself, deep in thought, and it killed Blaine to see him like this. "Would you at least, sit down?" He asked worriedly, gesturing to the ground next to him.
Kurt kept pacing.
"Do you wanna go?" Blaine asked, thoroughly furious at the people who voted for Kurt — for the people that had embarrassed him to the point of shame and silence. "You don't have to go back out there." He assured him.
Kurt turned to face him. "Wasn't this Prom supposed to be about redemption?" He asked, fire in his eyes. "About taking away that lump you had in your throat for running away?" Blaine sighed. "If we leave, all it's gonna do is give me a lump, too." He reasoned.
Blaine looked up. "So what do you wanna do?" He asked.
Kurt looked over at the doors of the gymnasium and froze. He thought about all the hatred in those eyes, all staring at him, all telling him that he's not worth anything.
What did he want to do?
But then Kurt thought of Blaine. Sweet, darling, wounded, frightened Blaine. He thought about how Blaine ran away from his old school to escape the terror. He thought about all the scars on Blaine's back that he had shown him. He thought about how Blaine was putting everything on the line just so that they could be together. He thought about how Blaine had run after him.
He thought about how Blaine suddenly didn't care about the bullies.
How he didn't care, because he had Kurt, and that was all he wanted.
Kurt knew what he had to do.
And he would do it for Blaine.
He took a deep breath. "I'm gonna go back out there, and get coronated." He said. "I'm gonna show them, that it doesn't matter if they are yelling at me, or whispering behind my back; they. Can't. Touch me." He said, the words rolling off of his tongue, and Blaine sat up as Kurt moved closer. "That they can't touch us." He said, kneeling down, and Blaine smiled at him. "Or what we have." He finished, blushing a little when he realized what he had said.
And Blaine didn't know what he meant by that, but it sure as hell made his heart do a flip.
Blaine shook his head. "You are the most courageous person I've ever met." He said, making Kurt smile a little. "You have so much more courage than I ever did." He said, and Kurt looked down shyly. He hooked his thumb under Kurt's chin and lifted his head up. "I have never been more proud of anyone in my life." He said, and leaned in to press a single, chaste kiss to Kurt's lips.
Kurt gasped, and his eyes widened, but he quickly squeezed them shut and leaned into the kiss, deepening it and allowing their tongues to meet.
They broke apart, and Blaine slowly opened his eyes to smile sadly at Kurt's beautiful, tear-stained face. "And no." He said. "They can't touch what we have." He said, eliciting a small, breathy laugh from Kurt.
Kurt swallowed and sniffed, and Blaine pulled out a packet of tissues, holding them out to Kurt. Kurt took one and Blaine stood up, dusting off his hands, and held one out to Kurt.
Kurt looked up, nervousness in his eyes, but Blaine just smiled down at him. "You ready for this?" He asked, and Kurt smiled the smallest bit, taking his hand.
"Wait." He said when he stood up, and Blaine stopped, turning to Kurt. Kurt bit his lip and kissed Blaine quickly for a moment before pulling away, and then smiled. "Now I'm ready." He said, and Blaine smiled back.
The rest of the night was as perfect as it could be. Blaine watched proudly as Kurt was coronated, taking the crown with pride, and he laughed as Kurt cracked a joke about Kate Middleton, applauding wildly.
He slow danced the night away with Kurt, and no one even so much as glared at them for the rest of the night, because Kurt had shown them that they couldn't bring him down.
Him or his boyfriend.
-.-
Reviews would be lovely:) Starting next chapter I will write out suggestions, so keep them coming!