Kurt pulled into the parking lot at Dalton Academy and chose a regular student spot as far from the building as possible, intentionally avoiding the spots marked "visitor" that sat quite a bit closer. For once the Navigator didn't stick out as it did among all the Toyotas and Volkswagons and battered pickup trucks at McKinley. The Dalton parking lot was decidedly more upscale and his baby, at least, was in good company there.

It was a simple plan. It had been four days since his strangely aborted date with Chandler and Mercedes had still not heard from David. When she refused to leave him any more messages ("The last thing I'm going to do is moon over a guy who doesn't want me!") Kurt had snuck his number from her phone and tried calling himself. But David hadn't answered and Kurt's very tactful message hadn't been returned. So he'd decided on a more direct approach. Because anyone with eyes could see that David had been completely besotted with Mercedes and if she wasn't willing to confront him about what was going on, well, Kurt was perfectly happy to do it for her. And the possibility of seeing Sebastian again had absolutely nothing to do with it.

At least, that's what he tried to tell the nervous butterflies in his stomach.

He climbed out of the car and appraised the building. The main entrance was probably a bad idea. He was hoping to slip in quietly, locate Mercedes' erstwhile boyfriend's room, and have a little chat with him without anyone else being aware that he'd been there. Not even Sebastian. Especially not Sebastian, he told himself fiercely. So the main door was out, but from where he was parked he could see a little door on one side of the building, a side without any windows at all, which was an added bonus as no one would see him approach. He made a beeline for it.

The door wasn't locked, and Kurt slipped into a quiet, dark-paneled corridor. Classes should be out for the day so he'd expected the public areas to be fairly deserted, and they were, but he'd barely gone five feet when he heard the sounds of singing voices echoing from somewhere.

Of course. Warbler practice. This complicated things, although it also made it very easy to find David, he supposed. He followed the sounds around a corner and down a few more hallways until he found their source. A door stood open halfway up the hall - it had to be the Warblers' practice room.

He crept closer and discovered a little alcove near the bend in the corridor with an ornate bench where he thought he'd be safe to sit and wait for the practice to end. Then maybe he could grab David as he left and persuade him to talk. Others would see him, but it didn't seem like that could be avoided now. And his heart absolutely did not lurch with excitement at that thought.

As he settled onto the bench the group in the room finished their complicated warm-up and launched into song. It was a Jackson 5 number - I Want You Back - and the background vocals were so bouncy and upbeat that Kurt, full of nervous energy anyhow, could barely refrain from jumping up and dancing along. Then Sebastian's tenor sailed above the other voices on lead and thoughts of dancing went right out of Kurt's head.

The Warblers had always been good; the Warblers with Sebastian were phenomenal. And it was far too easy for Kurt to imagine Sebastian, with his strong, masculine grace, leading the group in those synchronized dance moves. It was also far too easy to remember how that voice had sounded as Sebastian had come under Kurt's hands, and no, that was the last thing he needed to think about.

"Are you spying?"

The question startled him so badly he almost fell off the bench. He spun around to find a vaguely familiar-looking boy, tall, with blonde hair that looked like it could use a trim.

"I'm just kidding," the boy said with a friendly smile. "I'm Jeff. We met at . . ."

"Right," Kurt said. "I remember you." Honestly, he hadn't recognized Jeff without the other boy wrapped around him.

"You're Mercedes' friend, right?"

"Kurt." He held out his hand to shake. Jeff looked a little surprised as he took it.

"They sound great, don't they?" Jeff inclined his head toward the practice room door. "You don't need to spy to know we're going to give you guys a run for your money this year."

"I'm not spying, I promise."

Jeff settled himself on the bench with Kurt, who was a little taken aback, given that they were on opposite sides of the show choir competition (and also, he guessed, the Mercedes/David situation).

"So is it Sebastian, then?"

"What?"

Jeff grinned at him. "If you're not spying you must be looking for Sebby. Guys are always looking for Sebby."

Kurt ignored the stab of pain that this information caused him. "No." He managed to sound as if the idea was ludicrous. "I'm looking for David. He hasn't been returning Mercedes' calls." Kurt hadn't meant to reveal so much, or anything really, to anyone, but the whole Sebastian thing had thrown him and he found himself talking just to talk. He needed to get back to the plan. "Shouldn't you be in there?" he asked, indicating the doorway.

Jeff nodded his head vigorously. "Yep. But I have a paper due in history class tomorrow, and I was too busy making out with my boyfriend last night to finish it. And I can't finish it tonight because I'll be too busy again." He gave Kurt a sly wink. "Something's got to give and between homework, practice and Nick I'm afraid it's the practice." He stood up then, apparently ready to head off to tackle his paper. "I'm really sorry about your friend." He smiled down at Kurt a little sadly. "I thought they were sweet together. But Seb's usually right about this kind of thing."

Something clenched tight in Kurt's stomach. Jeff started to walk away but Kurt's hand shot out almost of its own volition and grabbed him by the arm. "Seb's usually right about what?" he asked.

Jeff's eyes went wide like he realized he'd screwed up. "Um, well, you know, they're not really in the same - ah, social class?"

"Social class?" Kurt repeated stupidly. "I thought this place was all about acceptance and tolerance?"

"Oh, it is! But, you know, parents and families don't necessarily...I mean, I've been really lucky, Nick's family is totally okay with us but believe me, not everyone would be."

Kurt's confusion must have shown because Jeff hurried to add, "Oh, I'm a scholarship kid. My dad's an electrician. My brothers and sister all go to public school."

"Then why are you here?" Kurt couldn't help asking.

"Bullying." Jeff said simply. "When my collarbone got broken my parents managed to force the district to pay for part of my tuition here on the grounds that the school couldn't keep me safe. And Dalton gave me a scholarship for the rest."

Kurt stared at him, trying to imagine the kid who'd been spread out on a couch at David's party giggling and happily eating his boyfriend's face in front of everyone, spread instead inside a dumpster or under a bank of lockers, gasping in pain with a broken bone.

"Anyway, David's parents are really rich. His grandfather was in on the beginnings of computers somehow, way back when, and he started his own company, and they're all gajillionaires now. Seb was just afraid that Mercedes might not...you know, fit in."

"But why does he get to make that decision?"

Jeff shrugged. "I guess David must have thought he was right or he wouldn't have broken it off."

Or maybe David was just too easily led, Kurt thought. "So that was it? They're just socially incompatible?"

"Well, that, and honestly, it seemed like she wasn't really as into it as he was. We could all see that."

Kurt gaped at him. "And it never occurred to David that maybe you, your boyfriend and Sebastian aren't exactly the best judges of how a girl acts when she's in love?"

Jeff huffed a chuckle. "You do have a point there."

"I mean just because she doesn't climb all over him like . . ." He stopped himself just in time. He really didn't want to judge how Jeff behaved. That would make him just as bad as Sebastian.

Kurt was starting to feel more than a little sick. Sebastian had made David break up with Mercedes. He'd made David believe that Mercedes didn't care about him. Because of money.

"Well, you know, Sebastian and David have been friends a long time. Since before Seb went to Paris. They watch out for each other. I don't think Seb would just tell David something like that if he wasn't really trying to help."

"Oh yes. Selfless and altruistic. That's definitely Sebastian," Kurt muttered.

Jeff was becoming visibly uncomfortable now, and he started to back up away from the alcove. "Anyhow, I've got to get to that paper. Nice to see you Kurt." He turned and hurried away.

Kurt sat stunned for a minute, listening to Sebastian's gorgeous voice coming from the practice room. He was angry. More than angry. Sebastian had told David to break it off with Mercedes. Sebastian had stuck his nose in where it didn't belong, between two people who really liked each other, and who knew how things might have gone otherwise? Mercedes had certainly thought David could be The One, and he'd seemed completely smitten with her. But now Mercedes was heartbroken and David, if his previous happiness was any indication, had to be miserable, and it was all Sebastian's fault.

God, he'd been an idiot. Mooning over Sebastian (and he had been mooning, he had to admit, after they'd demolished those jocks at the mall together) and letting himself imagine - well, things that he had no business imagining, especially in light of what he already knew from George. He'd half convinced himself that since George had turned out to be inconsistent and flighty then maybe his opinion of Sebastian couldn't be trusted. But Sebastian's own friend had just confirmed Kurt's worst suspicions, and Kurt was out of excuses.

All at once Kurt realized that the singing had stopped, and he could hear a jumble of voices coming from the practice room door. Affirmations of jobs well done, admonishments to practice before the next meeting, clearly the session was over and soon boys would be flooding the corridor heading back to their dorms. There was no way he could make it back up the hallway in time to avoid being seen. And he most definitely didn't want to be seen. He couldn't deal with talking to David now, with all this new information still ringing in his ears.

Thinking frantically, he darted across the hall and jerked on the handle of the first door he saw. Thankfully, it was unlocked and he slipped into the empty classroom just as the first Warblers appeared in the practice room doorway.

He hid there, listening, until the thumping of feet and chatter of voices died completely away, then he eased the door open. The coast was clear. He closed the door noiselessly and began to make his way back up the hall toward his exit. But he didn't get more than two steps when he froze in his tracks.

"I don't know, Seb. Are you sure it isn't because of that twink from McKinley?"

The voice came from the practice room, and Kurt's heart raced into overdrive when Sebastian's voice responded, heavy with sarcasm. "Really? You think you're so memorable that the only reason I won't fuck you again is because there's someone else? Come on, Matty, it's like you don't know me at all."

What Kurt needed to do was keep walking, out the door, into his car, but somehow his feet weren't getting the message.

"Keep telling yourself that, Seb. But I've seen how you look at him. Shit, everyone's seen it. It's big fucking news when Sebastian Smythe gets all moony over a boy. Especially one like him." The words were obviously meant to be an attack; the anger in them made even Kurt, safe outside the room, cringe.

Not even wild stampeding rhinos could have dragged him away now. He pressed himself against the wall, as if that would make him invisible if they came out of the room, and (shamelessly, he reminded himself) listened.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Sebastian's voice was cool, biting.

There was a little, derisive laugh. "It's all over the school: Sebastian Smythe hot for a low-rent public school tranny whose dad owns a tire shop."

He's also a congressman, Kurt thought, his face burning.

"He happens to be a congressman," Sebastian said, and Kurt had to suppress a gasp.

"Please!" Matthew scoffed. "My mother's cousin's husband was a congressman and he can barely speak English. And what do you think your parents would say if you brought that cheap RuPaul to one of their fancy fundraisers?"

"First, my parents are fine with me being gay and second, don't project your jealousy onto me. I'm rejecting you because I don't want you, not because I want Kurt."

"There's gay and there's gay, and you know that as well as I do. You say "gay" your parents think Tom Ford or Matt Mitcham. So what happens when you walk in with that on your arm?"

"Oh my God, look. There's not going to be any walking in on any arms," Sebastian's voice was rising and strained with anger. "I fucked him. That's it. Over and out."

A pain stabbed through Kurt. He needed to go, he willed his feet to move but they rebelliously stayed firmly rooted to the spot.

"On second thought," Matthew went on as if Sebastian hadn't even spoken, "maybe you should take him to one of your dad's shindigs. Maybe your grandmother will think he's an actual girl and put you back in her will. Just make sure you fuck him first, get this ridiculous phase out of your system once and for all."

There was noise then, some kind of scuffle, and a grunt, but Kurt couldn't tell who from. The voice that finally spoke, though, was Sebastian's. "We are done here, you understand? You keep away from me and you don't mention Kurt again."

"Does he know about the party?" Matthew's voice sounded a bit strangled, as if Sebastian had him by the throat. "Does he know your dick was in me before it was even cold from him?"

Kurt didn't manage to stifle that gasp, and as his stomach twisted with nausea and a loud crash echoed from the practice room he turned, finally, and ran down the hall, out the little door and back to the safety of his car.

The blood was pounding in Sebastian's ears as he struggled to keep himself under control. How on earth had he ever considered this piece of work a friend? What on earth had possessed him to go home with Matthew after that party? Really, when had he gotten that pathetic?

He had allowed himself to cover up the electrifying feel of Kurt's hands, lips, skin against his own with a half-rate equivalent from a boy he was barely attracted to, simply because he couldn't handle how it had felt to be with Kurt, and seeing Kurt with another guy. Instead of owning up to what he was feeling, standing and fighting for him (and losing, the part of his brain that had definitely been in control that night still argued adamantly) he had run away, hid behind his armor of "Sebastian Smythe, Player Without a Cause" and this was clearly his punishment - forced to stand and listen as some asshole laid out his faults in a neat line.

Well fuck him. Fuck them all; he didn't need any of them, least of all the boy with perfect eyes who seemed to constantly haunt his dreams, leaving him hot and sweaty and in desperate need of a cold shower. He definitely didn't need him, even if "everyone" thought they had seen something different.

He tightened his grip around Matthew's throat, his gaze deadly as he made sure to lock eyes with the slightly taller boy. "I don't know what you think is going on here but you are going to stop talking right now. You knew exactly what the deal was between us, and don't even try and tell me I led you on, because I always tell my fucks where they stand," Sebastian had to pause for a second as his mind flashed back to the other night, with its "one-time only deal", and something incredibly nasty twisted in his gut. Scowling he forced himself back to the present. "So you are going to shut the fuck up, get the hell out of my sight before I do something I seriously regret, and if I ever hear you talk about Kurt again, the fact that I won't tap your sorry ass is going to be the least of your worries. Am I making myself clear?"

He waited, staring Matthew down until the other boy gave a short nod. Releasing his grasp (which really hadn't been that tight, Sebastian had always been more bark than bite) he crossed his arms, tapping his foot as he waited for Matthew to get his books together and, finally, leave him in peace.

"Damn Seb, this one's really gotten under your skin hasn't he?" Matthew muttered sullenly, throwing Sebastian one last derisive glare before stepping delicately over the music stand they'd toppled and stalking out of the choir room. Sebastian closed his eyes and forced himself to count slowly to ten before sinking down into the couch conveniently placed at his back, throwing an arm over his eyes in despair.

When the hell had everything gotten so complicated? He wondered to himself vaguely, knowing full well what the answer was. Kurt. Kurt was the reason that his perfectly balanced lifestyle of "Don't give a fuck" and "Do what makes you happy" seemed to be crumbling around his ears. Kurt was the reason he had come home from Scandals incredibly horny but decidedly alone every night this week. Kurt was the reason he had just had his former friend in a chokehold up against the wall of the choir room and he didn't even feel bad about it. Kurt was the reason Sebastian's blood felt like it was boiling inside his skin every time he closed his eyes, and Kurt was the ghost in his head who wouldn't leave him alone when he jerked off in the shower, coming hard to the thought of long, lean limbs and full, plush lips.

Maybe Matthew was right, maybe he did just need to fuck the boy, get this silly crush out of his system, sweat these ridiculous emotions out of himself through the hot slide of skin-on-skin. Even as the notion popped into his head, though, he was already dismissing it as utter folly. He knew now that one hasty fumble wouldn't be enough for him. He wanted more, he wanted everything, and that idea was possibly not as nerve-wracking at it would have been a week ago, which in itself was truly terrifying. Fuck.

"But what about the fact that he's public school, what about the fact that dating him will put you right in the firing line of every homophobe in this backwater town? Do you really want to put yourself out there like that? For what? A hot piece of ass?" The devil on his shoulder had somehow taken on Matthew's voice, and Sebastian groaned as he sank deeper into the couch. He briefly let his imagination toy with the fantasy of a covert-affair, secret trysts filled with hot and heavy make-out sessions in broom closets, blood thrumming in his veins as the prospect of being caught added to the intense arousal swirling around his body. He could almost picture Kurt, his pupils blown wide and his cheeks flushed as he pushed Sebastian up against a wall, they had to be quick, they had to be silent, the bell for afternoon lessons would ring in just a...

And just like that, the boy in Sebastian's head morphed into somebody completely different. His shoulders grew broader, his jaw squarer, hair darker. All of a sudden Sebastian was a freshman again, with George's hands roaming across his body, and his fantasy was no longer a fantasy but a reality he really wished he didn't have to remember. No, he couldn't do that to Kurt or himself; they both deserved better than some sordid secret.

So no quick fuck, no secret relationship, and clearly just ignoring the problem wasn't working for Sebastian so well right now. Fuck, this was a mess. He was a mess.

Just then the bell calling students to dinner chimed, loud and sharp, startling Sebastian out of his wallowing. Giving a small sigh he pulled himself to his feet. He would deal with this later; right now he needed to check in on David. The boy had missed Warbler practice, and Sebastian knew that if he didn't forcibly drag him out of his room he would probably skip dinner as well. His friend was an absolute wreck, had been ever since "the phone call", and quite honestly Sebastian had no idea how to help any more.

"Case in point; relationships are a bad, bad idea." He muttered under his breath as he collected up his schoolbooks and headed for the door.

Sebastian nudged open the door to his dorm, squinting against the darkness. "Dave?" he spoke quietly, closing the door behind him with a soft click and reaching for the light switch.

"Nrgh," the mound on the bed moaned when artificial light flooded the room, and Sebastian gave a soft sigh. Padding quietly over towards his best friend he perched on the edge of the mattress, giving David's shoulder a soft shake. "Come on Dave, you'll feel better if you come eat something with the guys. They all miss you."

"Don't wanna," David replied petulantly, an arm snaking out to drawer the comforter over his head. It would have been adorable if it wasn't so exasperating, Sebastian couldn't help thinking.

"Okay, enough wallowing, Mister. Up, up, up," he said in a much louder voice, grabbing the edge of the comforter and tugging hard so that it slid away before David had a chance to grab at it. David flailed and bolted upright, shooting Sebastian an impressive death glare.

"Come off it Sebastian, can't you just let me drown in my own misery?"

"Did you let me do that after George?" The name stuck in his throat, thick and glutinous, but he forced himself to speak without his voice quavering. David had been there for him when everything had crumbled around his ears; it was time to return the favor, and sometimes tough love was the only way forward.

David looked mollified, but only slightly. "That was different," he muttered sullenly, his eyes flicking downwards as his fingers toyed with the sheets underneath him. "George was an asshole. Mercedes was the best thing that ever happened to me."

Sebastian sighed, hating how broken his friend looked. "David, come on, we've been over this. The best thing to ever happen to you wouldn't leave you to fend for yourself when you get so drunk you can't even stand up, she would be there by your side making sure you were okay. The best thing to ever happen to you would laugh and tell you you were being silly when you called up to apologize the next day, she wouldn't leave you feeling worse than before you called. You've built her up in your head as this perfect girl, but she isn't, and when you love somebody more than they love you you're always going to get hurt."

"Is that what you tell yourself about Kurt?" David's fingers never ceased in their agitated movements, but apparently even in heartbreak he was still cripplingly observant about the state of Sebastian's own headspace.

Sebastian spluttered slightly, his brain trying to catch up with the sneaky diversionary tactic David had thrown in there. Schooling his features into something he hoped was casually disinterested, he replied in a neutral tone. "Don't try and change the subject Dave, you know Kurt and I are completely different. That was just sex."

"Oh come off it Seb. We've been friends too long for you to try and pull the 'don't give a crap' act with me. You can lie to yourself all you want, but don't lie to me." David's eyes were piercing now, and for the first time in a week Sebastian saw some of the fire back in his best friend's eyes. It was just a shame it had to come at his expense. He wasn't ready to talk about this, not yet.

He sighed, bringing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. "It just wouldn't work, for either of us," he said quietly, his overly chipper voice from before gone. "Society- society wouldn't let it happen."

David gave a short, sarcastic laugh. "I never thought I'd hear Sebastian Smythe bow to society's standards."

Sebastian glared at David. "It's not bowing to anyone, it's being practical. You know you couldn't take Mercedes as your date to your cousin's wedding next month, with everybody already worked up about your mother's health. Could you really bring yourself to upset her like that, really David? For a girl who will probably disappear into the wind in a couple of months anyway?"

He knew he was being harsh, brutal even, but sometimes brutal honesty was the only solution. Somebody had to be sensible; somebody needed to keep David from getting more hurt than he already had been, because David was in way too deep to do it for himself.

David gave a small sigh, his shoulder slumping in defeat. "I know, I know okay. It just really fucking hurts." Twisting his torso he swung his legs over the side of the bed, standing up slowly. "Wait for me while I jump in the shower?"

Sebastian gave a silent nod, shuffling so that he was propped up against the headboard of David's bed. Just before David reached the bathroom he paused and turned, fixing Sebastian with a sad but resolute expression. "But Seb, just because that's my story, doesn't mean it has to be yours as well."