So here comes chapter 2! It took a while to write due to my lack of ideas. But I think I have a rough outline of the next few chapters. There's a few new characters in this one, but I hope it doesn't confuse anyone. I'll try to keep it simple. I have no idea when the next chapter will be up, but i can promise you that there will be a third chapter.
I'd love some reviews and feedback! Enjoy!
"I'm sick of finding you like this, dude..."
Kurt jumped at the sound of Peter's voice, knocking several items over. He was sitting at his desk, all of his books wide open and with not a clue of how he'd fallen asleep. "What time is it?" Kurt moaned drowsily.
"It's like, half past 10..." Peter was holding two coffee mugs; he stretched his left arm out, offering one of them to Kurt. "Shit... I have to be there in half an hour..." Kurt staggered to his feet, swaying a little, then made his way over to Peter to accept the coffee mug. Kurt quickly picked out an outfit and fixed his hair until it was bulletproof, and set off for school.
The hallways were alive with swarms of students rushing off to their lessons. His first lesson was Performance Workshop with Rachel, who was leaning against his locker when he arrived. They hugged each other, and then walked to class. Rachel went on about how she'd met this guy who was made for him, that he really should start dating, that he was lonely. Kurt really didn't have time to be lonely, let alone date. Besides, why would he need a distraction from his career?
Kurt agreed to at least meet the kid, since Rachel had already set up a date for the two of them. Class flashed by him so fast; he was surprised when the bell rang. He grabbed his notebook and tucked it under his arm. "Hey Kurt!" He turned his head to see a small girl with vibrant red hair, jogging alongside him. "Hey Sarah" Every step he took, she had take two just to keep up with him. "So, em, I was thinking maybe we could go out for coffee sometime? Not as a date. But to, em, just chat? If you'd like, I mean." Her tone was insecure and anxious, she bit her brightly painted lower lip and looked up at him from behind her largely framed glasses. "Em, yeah. Sure, that sounds great, Sarah." He grinned widely at her as her face lit up. "Are you free this afternoon?" She clutched her notebook close to her chest, eyes set on the ground with her lips curved. "Yeah, I finish my shift at the diner at 3. After that, maybe? You can just stop by the diner." They stopped at his locker, and Kurt shoved his notebook inside. Sarah nodded in reply. "See you later, then." She walked off, evaporating into the crowds of people going to their next class.
Kurt walked into his apartment and performed the usual ritual of removing his jacket and shoes. He walked into the kitchen, and headed straight for the fridge. He took out a pot of yoghurt and took a spoon from the drawer and began shovelling it into his mouth. He'd skipped breakfast, and he was heading out to the diner in half an hour. Kurt heard the faint sound of a shower and assumed that it must be Peter, or someone who broke into their apartment, and decided to shower. More likely to be Peter...
He disposed of the yoghurt pot and left the spoon in the sink. Opening the cupboard, he grabbed a cup and poured himself coffee and leaned against the kitchen counter. The sound of the shower had stopped and he could hear the door unlocking. He took a sip and a naked Peter dashed across the hallway, into Peter's room. Kurt stood there, stunned and dazed. He didn't know how to process what he'd just seen. He swallowed a mouthful of coffee and put his cup down on the counter. He didn't know if he should just leave for work early, and avoid all awkwardness, or drink the rest of his coffee in the awkward company of his roommate. A now fully clothed Peter emerged from his room and stopped in his tracks when he caught sight of Kurt. "How...long have you been there?" Peter looked as stunned as Kurt felt. "Long enough." Peter inhaled deeply and walked into the kitchen to make himself some coffee. The silence was uncomfortable and the air was thick with tension. Time seemed to move slower. He couldn't contain it anymore, and Kurt burst out laughing. "Really, Kurt? Really?" Kurt finished his coffee and walked into the hallway to put his shoes and jacket on. "Bye, Hot Stuff!" Kurt shouted before escaping out through the door. He heard Peter tut loudly in irritancy.
"But he sounds absolutely perfect, Kurt! When were you going on your date with him?" Nora's voice was bubbling with excitement. "Nora, please... I haven't even spoken to him. Rachel just set us up..." Kurt was sitting with Nora in a booth drinking coffee after both of their shifts were over. Nora tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear, but the black lock rebelled against her and fell back into its previous stance. "Bloody hair..." Nora gave up trying to fix her hair. "But honestly Kurt, this could be good for you! He sounds amazing, and it wouldn't hurt to date him. As long as you're happy though..." Nora smiled reassuringly at him, her dimples becoming visible and her scarlet lips curving. Kurt returned the smile. "Ugh, Nora. You're brilliant, really." She took one last sip of her coffee, and looked at the clock hanging against the wall. "Well, I'd better be off. I've got heaps of homework to do, when's you're friend meeting you?" Kurt had almost forgotten that he was meeting Sarah. "She should be here soon, good-luck with your homework" Nora nodded and they waved goodbye.
Sarah. Why did she want to have coffee with me? Although Kurt already knew the answer. He wasn't oblivious to the attention he'd been getting from Sarah recently. He wasn't sure if she knew that he was gay, or if she knew that he wasn't interested. Neither did he want to bring up the subject, in case of sounding like a self-absorbed idiot. She was a really sweet girl. She was, after all, one of Kurt's first friends at NYADA, although they didn't really speak much anymore. It was only recently she'd started to reach out and touch his arm when she laughed at his jokes, or compliment him at any given chance. Maybe she'll take a hint... "Hey, Kurt." Kurt snapped out of his daydream and saw Sarah standing at the booth with a small package in her hands. Oh shit...
"Hey, Sarah." Kurt replied, trying to hide anything sign of shock at seeing the package. She sat opposite from Kurt, and laid the brown package on the table in between them. It was shaped like a cube with a small red ribbon wrapped around it. It was about the size of his fist. Sarah noticed Kurt eyeing the package, and cleared her voice to explain. "It's for you. Em, I just saw it and thought that you might like it." She pushed it towards Kurt, her nails, her lipstick, hair and the ribbon were all coordinating in the same bright shade of red. Kurt reached for the package, praying that it wasn't anything expensive. His mind was having a meltdown from the sudden overload of theories on what it could be and also the surge of anxiety. The ribbon came off effortlessly and Sarah glared eagerly at the blur of anxiety and fear that was Kurt Hummel. He ripped open the brown paper and it revealed a scarlet red box, the kind that usually held an engagement ring. For the love of God, please tell me she isn't proposing...
Kurt quickly composed himself and opened the box, to reveal a silver chain bracelet with a letter glued to the roof of the box. He read the letter to himself. "Something to remember me by when you're a big Broadway star. Sarah xoxo" Kurt was speechless. This was definitely not the 1000-dollar watch that his mind had led him to believe. "You don't like it..." Sarah's voice barely processed in Kurt's mind as his eyes flickered from the bracelet up to her. "No, Sarah... This is absolutely gorgeous. You're such a sweetheart. Thank you so much." The sides of his mouth tugged into a smile, as did Sarah's. The look on her face was more of relief, like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Then Kurt's mind reverted back to what he'd been thinking about earlier, about Sarah giving him unwanted attention. Not that this was a good sign, if that were the case. But he decided just to shut up and not spoil the moment.
Sarah shrugged off her coat and laughed shyly at the silence between them. A waitress appeared at the booth, someone new that Kurt hadn't really had the chance to speak to yet. "Can I get you anything?" She was cheerful and polite. "Oh, just a cappuccino for me, thanks." Sarah's order seemed so simple compared to Kurt's usual. So he decided just to order something simpler. "Same for me, thanks." The waitress walked away to get them their orders. "So, Sarah. How are you? I mean, I heard that you were going out with that Jordan guy. He is pretty cute." Kurt put the scarlet box into his jacket pocket. Sarah shook her head. "Oh, no. That was nothing. He- or I- had my eyes set on someone else." Sarah adjusted her glasses that were slipping down the bridge of her nose. "Do tell." Kurt asked curiously, taking a sip of his coffee that was now on the verge of becoming cold. "Oh, it's nothing... I really don't think that it'll become anything..." Sarah shrugged her shoulders and took a deep breath. Kurt reached over the table to hold her hand. Sarah stared in a combination of shock and discomfort at their hands. "You'll find somebody, Sarah." Kurt brushed his thumb over her hand in a gesture of comfort. He pulled away his hand and smiled at Sarah, who was biting her lower lip. "Do you have anyone, Kurt?"
Of course he did. He had Rachel, he had Peter, and he had his dad and Finn. He didn't need a boyfriend. Not right now, not with his life just kicking off. "I'm not looking for anything right now." Sarah just nodded at Kurt with a look on her face that was sort of accepting and non-judging, but shadowed with a look of sadness. As if she was sad that Kurt chose to prioritise work over love, yet it was something that she respected. The sound of a text arriving to Sarah's phone interrupted the silence between them. Sarah looked at her phone and the smile melted off her face, revealing a look of fear. "I have to go, my brother's in hospital." She grabbed her coat and rushed outside to catch a taxi. He watched as her fiery red hair disappeared into a yellow cab. He reached into his pocket to make sure that the little velvet case was still there, before standing up to exit the diner.
Walking through Central Park when the sun had just hidden behind the buildings was one of the most calming and humbling experiences in New York. The leaves were beginning to turn into different shades of brown, orange and red, some of them gliding through the air, towards the ground. Kurt wasn't in a hurry to get anywhere, so he decided to just walk around the Park for a while. He noticed a man with rebellious curly hair sitting on a bench sketching something on a sketchpad that was resting on his leg. He was wearing glasses, unlike the last time they'd met. "Why do we keep meeting in Central Park, Blaine?" Kurt sat next to him. Blaine looked startled, as if he was in his own world and Kurt had just invaded it. "It's probably destiny, Kurt." Blaine lips curved into the most attractive smile, as he closed his sketchpad, probably so that Kurt wouldn't see what he was drawing. "So you're an artist." Blaine grinned in response. "I'm trying to become one. And what about you? What do you do?" Blaine's hazel eyes were focused on Kurt, and it made his heart race. "I'm a student, at NYADA, but hopefully I'll become a performer or actor." Blaine raised his eyebrows. "So I could be speaking with the next big Broadway star. That's pretty cool." Kurt eyed the sketchpad that was resting on Blaine's lap. "No. I never show them to anyone... Besides, it's just scribbles." Blaine shook his head and tucked the sketchpad into his bag that was lying next to his feet. "I'm sure they're all beautiful, Blaine." Kurt stood up and adjusted the scarf he was wearing. "I'd better get going, I guess I'll see you again sometime, Picasso." Blaine grinned at the nickname. He grabbed his bag and swung it over his shoulder as he stood up. "See you later, Kurt." Blaine walked away, and Kurt went in the other direction. Kurt couldn't wipe the smile of his face. Did Blaine always have that affect on people?
Blaine woke up in the middle of the night, again. He pushed himself up off the bed. His body was hot and sweaty as he gasped for air. It was just a dream...
An arm wrapped itself around him and the person began pressing wet kisses again the side of his neck. "Get back to sleep, sweetheart. It's ok, I'm right here..." Blaine surrendered, and rested himself against his pillow. A hand began playing with his hair, when he began to drift off into another one of his nightmares...