Prompt: Season 1
Characters: Blaine and Nick (Ready to Fly verse)
Words: 607
Date: March 6, 2013
He wandered the halls of Dalton Academy in a daze, as he always did after a visit home. Blaine was used to the tension, the fear, and the hurt that always came with being home. What he wasn't yet used to was letting it all go when he returned to the freedom of these halls and the camaraderie of the boys who embraced him despite everything he was and all he'd been through. Of course they didn't know it all, but they knew enough.
He'd been tutored at home for the rest of the year after the attack, but the rigorous demands of Dalton Academy didn't match his public high school education. His father had wanted to send him back but his mother had insisted, had even threatened to leave if he made Blaine stay, and so he finally relented. It became clear he couldn't go back to public school and much to the Colonel's shame, military school was out of the question.
So he started again in the ninth grade, a little older, a lot more mature, but somehow right where he needed to be. Joining the Warblers had been the best thing he'd ever done. He'd always known he could sing. He and Cooper used to light up the neighborhood with impromptu performances. But he hadn't realized how much he would enjoy it and how much he would learn.
He learned from Wes and David that it was possible to lead with respect and a gentle hand. He learned from Trent and Jeff how to let go and just have fun. And from Nick, the boy who became his best friend, he learned how to trust. The Warblers taught him what it meant to be a family, what it meant to look out for one another, and how to protect his brothers. He thought he had known what loyalty was. Loyalty had always meant keeping secrets and hiding his pain to protect the people he loved. But now he was starting to wonder if maybe in the process he was neglecting the loyalty he owed to himself.
He'd been asked out a couple of times by out and proud Dalton boys who were fascinated by the adorable and reserved charmer. But Blaine politely refused while his heart raced inside of him. It wasn't easy being surrounded by boys who were learning what it meant to love and to be loved while being denied the same right. But Dalton was becoming much too important to him to risk it all just for a kiss.
"Word on campus is that a certain someone is going to be voted lead vocalist for the spring concert," Nick crooned as he came up beside his friend.
Blaine snapped out of his haze and shook his head at Nick. "That's ridiculous, I'm just a freshman. They wouldn't choose me when there are so many upper classman who are even more capable."
"You underestimate yourself," Nick chuckled and fell into stride with Blaine, as they headed off to their first class after February break. "And when you do become lead vocalist, the guys will just be lining up to date you."
"You know dating is not for me Nick," Blaine reminded him, his voice growing sad.
"Someday you'll find the right boy and all that will change," Nick reassured him.
Blaine just hid his head as they walked across campus, the cold air cooling the heat in his cheeks, and the fire burning in his heart. If he had any hope of staying at Dalton then Someday would be dreadfully far away.
But he was very much looking forward to that day.
Author's Note:
It is with sadness that I announce that this will be my last chapter of Between Friends. I have had an amazing time with this project and I have loved each and every ficlet that has come out of it. But I have much to do on my other stories and I am falling too far behind. I want to thank everyone who has read these and everyone who has been involved with Between Friends. I will miss it tremendously, but the time is right, and I hope those left will carry on! Love you all!