Chapter 3

After weeks of Kurt going through the hell of not singing more than scales in glee club, he was relieved to be finally on the coach on their way to the Sectionals competition. He just wished that the other members of the group would let him sit with them as opposed to being forced to the back with his headphones in to stop him from singing during the road trip. He was in the middle of feeling sorry for himself when Rachel walked over and decided to make the rest of the trip a living hell.

“I can't believe it!” When she realised that Kurt was trying to ignore her, she ripped the headphones out of his ears which forced him to pay attention to her rant. “Mr Schue has decided to have Sam and Quinn sing the romantic ballad instead of Finn and I, and he's given the Valerie solo to Santana! He expects me to just sing backup and sway in the background.” Kurt tried not to release his inner diva on the girl but couldn't contain a small sarcastic comment.

“You mean similarly to how you expected me to sit in the corner of the choir room and not sing at all? Maybe for once you could just back down and take one for the team like I was forced to do.” Rachel's mouth fell open and Kurt was worried she was going to start catching flies in it.

“This is completely different and you know it. I wouldn't be giving away our secrets, I would just be taking my rightful place on centre stage!” Rachel replied with a hurt but determined expression.

“You know, I could still refuse to get on that stage with you and just get a lift home with my dad who is coming to watch us perform. Then not only would you still not have a solo, you would also not have enough members to perform.” Kurt decided after this point not to listen to anything Rachel said and just grabbed his headphones back and started listening to his Gaga playlist. He did however notice Rachel go back to the front of the coach and presumably tell them that she would give up her solos, as Mr Schue, Sam, Quinn and Santana looked ridiculously happy whilst Rachel was looking particularly annoyed.

When the group got into their backstage area they decided not to watch the other groups perform but just focus on their own last minute practice. However, Rachel decided that she couldn't stand the suspense anymore and sent Puck off to the wings of the main stage to check out the competition. As he got to there he could see a group of boys standing in formation on the stage talking quietly with each other before the curtain went up. Puck noticed the guy standing in front was slightly shorter than all of the others and as he stared at the navy and red uniforms, the short, curly haired boy caught him staring and sent a sly wink his way, as the Dalton Academy Warblers from Westerville, Ohio were introduced and the curtain went up.

 After once again having to sit out of rehearsal, for what Kurt hoped was the last time, he let his mind wander and a song wormed its way into his head. The whole group went silent in fear as they noticed Kurt singing but they all relaxed when they noticed he was alternating between singing and humming along to Hey Soul Sister by Train.