One of the first things I had learned about Dalton was that on Friday afternoon the dorms turned into a zoo. By now though, I was an expert at maneuvering through the dorm hallways, dodging whoever and whatever might be flying through them. Still, by the time I reached my dorm I was more than ready to slip inside and shut the insanity out.
Juggling my stuff in one hand, I pulled out my key. While ducking a flying jockstrap, I didn't even want to know, I turned the key and pushed the door open. Stepping inside, I kicked the door shut with my foot causing the door to shut with a bang. At his desk, Kurt jumped at the loud, unexpected noise and I silently cursed myself.
"Sorry," I told him, walking over to my bed and dumping my things onto it.
"It's no big deal," Kurt replied, his voice still shaky as he continued to stare at the textbook in front of him.
Like Blaine, Kurt had come to Dalton looking for refuge. Unlike Blaine he didn't have any visible reminders of that. In his neatly pressed uniform, and styled hair, Kurt easily blended in with the other students, whereas Blaine's bruises had served as a reminder to all of us that the world outside of Dalton was much harsher. Perhaps that was why Kurt was having a harder time fitting in. It was easy to forget why he had come to Dalton. Easy to forget how jumpy he was due to the emotional abuse he had suffered at his own school.
The abuse hadn't been limited to emotional abuse either. Though Kurt hadn't volunteered much information of what had taken place at McKinley, I had gotten a look at the physical reminders from what he had gone through one day in PE class when he was changing his shirt. The ugly multicolor bruises in different phases of healing that covered his back and sides reminded me of the fading bruises Blaine had borne when he came to Dalton.
"Yes, it is," I said, not about to let Kurt brush it off. Not dealing with things wouldn't help him heal and I refused to let him do that. "Not only am I your roommate, I'm your friend, and I should be mindful of your feelings. Though in my relief to escape the zoo out there I forgot that loud noises startle you. I promise to be more mindful of that."
"Thanks," Kurt murmured, shooting me an appreciative look over one shoulder. "It is kind of a madhouse out there though. Is that normal?"
"For Friday afternoon, yes. After being released from class no one knows what to do with themselves and wants to blow off some steam. Personally, I tend to hide from that craziness," I said pointing toward the closed door. "Things calm down after dinner."
"Good to know," Kurt replied, a small smile coming to his face. It was the first smile I had seen out of him all week.
Like Blaine, I hoped that Kurt would find the safe place her at Dalton that he had come looking for. Once again, I knew I planned on doing everything I could to help him accomplish that, though it was nice knowing I had help this time around.