Into Junior Year

Having initially dreaded the prospect of being at Dalton, Nick was sad when the summer vacation began. It meant that he would be away from his friends on a daily basis - and his parents would expect him to be at home several days a week in only their company. He had introduced all of them to his folks, but none of them seemed to meet up to what his father expected his friends to be like. Blaine was the one they liked the most, as he was interested in football and quiet. Jeff was too lively for their liking, Trent too quiet and as for Kurt… Then, to make matters worse, his elder sister announced that she would be coming home for the last two weeks of his holidays. He loved Grace, he really did and the eight year age gap had never been an issue. It was just that by coming home, he would be cut off from his friends for those two weeks completely.

The final straw seemed to come when his mother informed him three days after school ended that she and his father would be taking a vacation of their own, and as he was still too young in their eyes to be left alone, he would be going to stay with his father's sister in Chicago. It would be a nice change for him - he could even catch up with his old friends. 'Yeah,' thought Nick. 'It's not like Aunt Helen lives on the opposite side of the city or anything from Woodstock.' He was feeling quite down when he went to meet Jeff as arranged at the Lima Bean. He poured out his tale of woe and was shocked when his friend started to laugh. "When do you go?" Jeff asked. "Monday. For three weeks. I might as well resign myself to not seeing you guys until next term. It sucks."

"I know. My folks are sending me away whilst they take a break too. I leave on Monday, for my Uncle Alan's…..in Chicago. He lives in the south side of the City and from what you've said before, I'll be about eight blocks from you."

Nick was flabbergasted. Suddenly, what had seemed to be a disaster was turning into a delight. Those three weeks were some of the best of his life so far. He saw Jeff every day, spent a lot of time showing him the sights. Their relatives, it turned out, knew each other. Those three weeks made up for the rest of the vacation being a virtual washout.

The start of Nick's junior year at Dalton was at first been no different to the end of the previous year. Jeff was constantly at his side, making him laugh and smile between classes - he was always more disciplined during them, as he knew the faculty would separate them if they misbehaved. Trent seemed a little more confident that year, no longer feeling so alone. Blaine was still hung up on Kurt, texting him several times on that first day, before disappearing as soon as the day ended for a coffee date at the Lima Bean. The next day, he seemed so pensive, and through the first Warbler meeting of the year, he might as well not have been there, much to the consternation of the two remaining members of the council, Thad and David. Wes was much missed, and this was only the first meeting. After much discussion Flint was voted in to the final council position.

Afterwards, Nick sought Blaine out and found him staring off into space in the school library. "Ok, Blaine, spill. Something is going on, and I am not going anywhere until you tell me. Just be warned I am supposed to be meeting Jeff in twenty minutes, and you know how hyper he can get if people don't show. Do you want that on your conscience?" Blaine smiled, and spoke. "Hypothetical question for you. If something you loved more than anything else in the world was taken away from you, just how far would you go to get it back? If it meant leaving your comfort zone, would you do it?" "Would I give up everything I knew for love? If I was sure that the thing in question was the key to my future happiness, then yes, I would leave everything behind to be with them…. It's Kurt, isn't it? It's not a hypothetical one at all - you're thinking about going to McKinley to be with him…" Blaine looked at his friend with shock. "It is so obvious Blaine. You need him, you barely function without him. Do you even know who was elected to the Council just now?" Blaine shook his head. "People say you should go with your head - but sometimes, you need to follow your heart, Whatever you decide to do, I'll be here for you - whether it's here at Dalton, or at the end of the phone from McKinley." After giving Blaine a hug, Nick left to meet Jeff, keeping what he knew to himself.

Two days later, Nick walked into the school and was confronted by a sobbing Jeff and a heartbroken Trent. That Blaine had left to go back to public school was still a shocker, even though he had known that it was coming. That he had not spoken to him to confirm his decision had at first hurt, but he understood the reasons behind his decision. He didn't tell his two other friends about his encounter with Blaine. He had pretended to be as oblivious as everyone else when he had appeared, dressed in his own clothes, at the start of the next Warblers meeting to explain why he had left. They could all understand his reasoning, but as Thad stated, it put them in a difficult position. If Blaine joined the New Directions, he became a competitor. Still their friend, but no longer privy to their secrets. He had nodded, and left the room, planning to meet them all for one last coffee in the refectory when they had finished. Little was discussed at that subdued meeting. They had auditions to prepare for, and a new lead soloist to select. If nothing else, thought Nick, his departure might mean that I will get more solos - and maybe I could aspire to the lead…

At auditions, one guy stood out above all the others. He was not completely new to Dalton, having been there at the start of Trent and Jeff's freshman year. He had left halfway through as his parents had to move with work to Paris. He had been a member of the Warblers then, and now he was back. The Council insisted that he had to audition again, but Nick could tell by the smiles on their faces that he was going to get in. His voice was good - nowhere near as good as Blaine's, he thought loyally, but certainly better than his. He knew at that moment that he had no hopes of being the lead soloist. It was certain to go to the newbie. The vote was almost unanimous - he noted with gratitude that Jeff and Trent had voted for him. He had not bothered to vote for himself. The needs of the group had to come first.

Sebastian Smythe wasn't as easy to handle as Blaine, and was certainly more self-centred. Nonetheless, Nick made an effort to befriend him, as he still wanted an occasional chance to be a soloist, and being on good terms with the lead was essential to achieve that. For all his snarkiness and his putdowns, Sebastian became a friend. Once again Nick found that he had made friends with a gay guy, only a far wilder one than the others. The stories he told about his conquests in Paris made them all blush. It was his promiscuous sexual behaviour that had caused his parents to send him back to Ohio and away from the fleshpots of gay Paris. One night, Sebastian insisted on taking them all out. He dragged Nick, Jeff and Trent to a club called Scandals….that had been an eye-opener in more ways than one. Firstly, that they would so easily serve alcohol to all of them, even with the really poor false ID that Sebastian supplied. Then Nick found himself having to stand up to a guy who was pestering Jeff and wouldn't take no for an answer. When a slightly drunk Jeff had hugged him and kissed him on the cheek to say thanks, he had thought nothing of it. It was just a part of how close they all were as friends. He didn't even flinch when Jeff kept whispering "I love you Nicky" in his ear on the drive home. The next day Jeff had been mortified at his behaviour, and so scared that Nick would hate him. "That will never happen," had been Nick's response. He liked Jeff too much to let a drunken mistake ruin everything.

Things were going so well for them all that year. The Warblers aced Sectionals, partly down to a solo by Nick; he felt confident at Dalton and was getting good grades; and he had a group of friends that he could rely on. Then Sebastian nearly destroyed everything. Nick was not unaware of the attraction that Sebastian had towards Blaine. He saw the way that Kurt glowered at him. Then the whole issue of Michael Jackson songs had erupted. Had Nick been in charge, he would simply have compromised and chosen to take the high road and let the New Directions perform them. He was sure that if Wes had been around, he would have agreed. But the Council seemed to be in thrall to Sebastian, and agreed to his idea of a sing off showdown for the right to sing the songs.

It was a reluctant Nick who went along to the underground car park. If they were going to have a sing off, then why not in an auditorium or a choir room? He could see that his two best friends were also a bit unnerved by the situation. As they were walking to the venue, Sebastian asked him to carry a bag for him. It seemed such an innocent request at the time; he didn't consider what was inside, even though he could feel the cold coming through the paper. He still had no idea what was in the bag when he handed it to Sebastian. The aftermath had left him feeling sick. He wanted to stay, as did Jeff and Trent to see that their friend was alright, but they had been dragged away by the others. The next day, the three of them retreated to a quiet corner at Dalton and had almost immediately burst into tears. They had sent a text message of apology to both Kurt and Blaine the night before, but had received no response.

In the end, it all turned out ok. They had almost resigned themselves to the end of their friendship with Blaine and Kurt, particularly when they discovered the extent of his injuries. They decided that if things could not be fixed, then they would quit the Warblers in protest at the actions of both Sebastian as an individual and the Council for not reprimanding him. They had all been relieved when they were invited to McKinley, where they had been given a chance to show that they were against Sebastian. Trent had been the first to jump up on stage, Nick and Jeff only moments behind him. That had been enough to convince Kurt of their sincerity, and both he and Blaine had forgiven them. On top of that, they had found new friends in Santana and Brittany. In fact, all of the New Directions seemed pretty friendly afterwards. Trent had been disappointed that they had not had longer to chat, as he had missed the chance to talk to one guy in particular. A nice little Irish boy. But something else was on the horizon that was going to test their friendship, and once again, Sebastian was right in the centre.