Kurt’s head pounded with the thumping bass of some rap song blasting in Isobel Vincento’s huge senior room. Isobel’s dad owned a major music supply company, so she got state-of-the-art speakers and whatever DJing equipment she could fit into her on-campus apartment.

Isobel was also kind of a bitch.

“Here, Kurt, have a beer!” Candi shouted over the music. If it could be dignified with such a term, Kurt thought.

“No, thanks!” Kurt waved the beer away. He really didn’t feel like drinking and doing something stupid tonight. The last thing he needed after the day he had was to wake up with his head pounding and puke all over his clothes.

“Aw, c’mon Kurt! You can’t break your stupid no-drinking rule for one little night?” Candi asked imploringly.

“No, Candi! I’m just not in the mood to drink right now, alright?” Kurt snapped before he could stop himself.

Candi narrowed her eyes. “Fine. More for me! Have fun being boring all night!” With that she popped the cap off of Kurt’s beer, took a swig, and stormed off, presumably to find Max.

Kurt sighed and sat down on one of Isobel’s three leather couches, suddenly feeling very alone despite the fact that he was surrounded by a good fifty students in varying stages of drunkenness.

“KUUUUUUUUUURT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” a shrill voice pierced Kurt’s eardrums as a tall brunette wearing a sequined dress plopped ungracefully on the couch next to him.

Kurt sighed again. “Hi, Isobel.”

“Are you having fun??????”

Judging by the appletini in her hand and her overly cheery demeanor, Isobel was already halfway to drunk. Not surprising, Kurt thought.

“Yeah, I’m having fun,” he responded tiredly.

“Wanna beer? Or maybe a martini to match your outfit?” she giggled into her hand.

“No thanks. I’m not drinking tonight.”

“What a party pooper!! Kurt, you need to have fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Kurt rolled his eyes. “I just don’t want any alcohol. I promise I’ll have fun, okay?”

“Okayyyy,” Isobel waved sloppily at someone behind Kurt and tottered off in her three-inch heels. Kurt had been to enough of Isobel’s parties to know that she acted like an overexcited five year old when she got tipsy, and a whiny brat when she was full-on drunk. He wasn’t looking forward to it.

Suddenly, Isobel’s voice echoed over the microphone she had somehow managed to install in her dorm room without the RA catching her. “EVERYONE IN A CIRCLE, WE’RE PLAYING TRUTH OR DARE!!!!!!!”

Kurt felt a hand clamp around his forearm.

“You don’t have to drink, but you are playing Truth or Dare with the rest of us,” Candi informed him, dragging him off the couch to where a good twenty students had gathered in a circle.

“Truth or Dare? Are we in third grade?” Kurt asked in disbelief.

“Oh, lighten up! It’s fun!”

Kurt shrugged. “Fine, I’ll play.” There was really no fighting Candi about stuff like this.

The first few minutes of the game passed without incident, unless you counted Isobel flashing the security cameras in the hallway as an incident, which Kurt did not because it wasn’t exactly a rare occurrence. But then it was Candi’s turn to pick a victim.

“Kurt. Truth or dare?”

Kurt hesitated. He wasn’t in the mood for a dare, but he didn’t much feel like talking about himself, either. On the other hand, it was probably the lesser of two evils.

“Truth.”

“Who was the last person you kissed?”

“My dad,” Kurt answered, relieved.

“On the lips!”

“Are you three? And you can’t change the question after it’s already been asked!” Kurt said defensively.

“Oh, come on, Kurt!”

“Dare.”

“You can’t just avoid the question, that’s not how the game works,” Candi argued.

“Dare!”

Candi pouted, realizing she wasn’t going to win this argument. “Fine. I dare you to have a beer. Maybe then you’ll lighten up a bit.”

Kurt glared at her, but he was secretly relieved. Candi’s dares were usually a lot worse than that. “Fine. Pass me a beer.”

“You have to actually drink it,” she clarified as a beer was passed into the circle.

“I know. I’m not stupid.”

Kurt popped the top off the beer and sipped. It was warm and tasted nasty, but Candi was now shouting, “CHUG! CHUG! CHUG!” and pretty soon half of the room had joined in, so Kurt obeyed, finishing off the beer in three gulps. Candi applauded, throwing a smirk in Kurt’s direction.

“Your turn!”

***

Kurt paused outside the door of the Lima Bean, unsure if he really wanted to go inside. He hadn’t seen him in almost a week. But he had to do this. He needed closure. He couldn’t hold on to the past like this.

Kurt pushed open the door and scanned the busy coffee shop, quickly spotting Blaine, who was sitting at a table, facing the door, deep in conversation with someone in a familiar Dalton blazer. He looked more gorgeous than Kurt could ever believe. He felt his resolve wavering.

No. This had to be done.

Kurt steeled himself, then marched determinedly to Blaine’s table. Blaine glanced up, his eyes landing on Kurt. His face turned white.

“K-Kurt?”

The boy in the blazer turned around, and Kurt felt his heart drop into his stomach.

“Sebastian.”

Suddenly, Kurt felt lightheaded. He grabbed the nearest chair to steady himself.

“Kurt, how… nice… to see you,” Sebastian said in a tone that implied it was not nice to see Kurt at all.

“And you, Sebastian. Tell me, has Blaine here decided to defend you in all future criminal trials now that he wants to be a lawyer?” Kurt practically spat the last word out, shooting a glare at Blaine.

“Oh, that won’t be necessary, though I’m sure Blaine will look wonderful in a suit,” Sebastian slid a hand over Blaine’s and flashed Kurt a winning grin.

Blaine shifted uncomfortably. “What are you doing here, Kurt?” He didn’t exactly sound hostile, but he didn’t sound happy to see Kurt, either. The absence of his usual warmth made Kurt’s mind up for him.

“I came to give you this.” Kurt slid the ugly promise ring from his peacoat’s pocket, dropping it on the table in front of Blaine. “Maybe you should give it to Sebastian,” he added, choking back his tears as he spun around and fled the coffee shop.

***