CHAPTER FOUR

FRIDAY

KURT

Tonight was the night that I started working on Broadway. On. Broadway.

I couldn't believe it. Working for the touring company of Bring It On! The Musical was pretty great. We got to start off in Atlanta for a few weeks as we fine-tuned the show before we brought it to the rest of the country to see what they thought. But having it - and me - on Broadway meant things were looking up. I didn't think I'd be doing anything behind the scenes on Broadway since I always thought I would be a star, but this seemed like a good way to mesh both of my passions and still feel extreme satisfaction and joy in my job.

Besides, working on Bring It On! meant that I could use my experience in the Cheerios, my love for clothes, and being involved in Broadway. It was a win-win-win in terms of being able to utilize my talent to the fullest.

I lagged my pace and took my time as I got ready for work. Call tonight was at 5 for me since it was my first day and I'd mostly be observing so I had plenty of time to prepare myself for the day. I woke up at around 10:30 and leisurely went about the day; watching TV, snacking when I felt like it, took a long bath, checked up on Facebook, and spent a lot of time thinking about the date I was going to have on Monday. It seemed a little forward on James' part to ask me out straight away, but after we messaged a bit back and forth, we agreed that we could take this weekend to learn a little more about each other before Monday so the initial awkwardness of the way in which we met would hopefully go away. We also decided that if at any point we didn't want to meet up on Monday that we would just tell the other person; no harm, no foul.

It seemed like a pretty mature way to go about things - something I wasn't used to. I hadn't had a boyfriend since William and that ended right before I turned 21, so I never really had experience about what it was like dating and being in a relationship as a real adult. It was certainly something I was enjoying thus far.

Pulling myself away from my email, I looked at the clock.

4:30PM

Shit. I had half an hour to make it to the theater. I still wasn't completely dressed and I hadn't packed up my stuff for the night. I scrambled around the apartment looking for various things before shoving my cell phone in my pocket, grabbing my bag, and running out the door.

Once I got to the street, I looked at my phone to check the time again. 4:45PM. I had managed to pull everything together in 15 minutes? A new record! I dug around my bag for my headphones before realizing I left them inside. Since I hadn't gotten down the block, I figured another minute or two to grab my headphones wouldn't hurt. Until I realized that I must have left my keys inside.

Dammit. Irritated, I grabbed my phone out of my back pocket and dialed Wes' phone number. Thankfully, he answered right away.

"Kurt?"

"Hey Wes. Where are you?"

"I'm just leaving the office on my way to the Blockheads off 50th. Why?"

"I, uh, left my keys in the apartment. Since Blockheads isn't far from the theater, can I borrow yours? I should be home by the time you're done hanging out with your 'bros' tonight so I wouldn't leave you up the creek without a paddle."

He laughed. "Sure thing. I should be there in about 5 minutes. Do you think you can make it there by then?"

I groaned. "I'll be cutting it close. I'll take the train and walk up that way. Ugh, I hate being late. And it's my first day! You know this is so unlike me. What if they-"

Wes interjected. "Chill out, Kurt. Just explain what happened. It's not like it'll be a habit. But yes, you can come and grab the keys. Just come find me when you get here."

"Perfect. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I said as I hung up the phone and descended the staircase into the subway.

Thankfully the train arrived seconds after I walked onto the platform and I was up and back on the street with 10 minutes before I was due to report at the theater. It would take about 5 minutes to reach the restaurant and maybe another 5 to make it back to the theater. I might make it on time if I really booked it.

I rounded the corner and texted Wes to make sure he was there. Thankfully within seconds of me texting, he replied in the affirmative, noting that he was in the outdoor seating area. Within two minutes, I was walking up to the restaurant and found Wes and one of his friends nursing a pitcher of margaritas. As I approached with a wave, Wes acknowledged my presence with a nod and started rummaging in his pockets for his keys.

"David, this is my very forgetful roommate Kurt," he said as he pulled the keys from his pocket. I turned to David and shook his hand.

"Hey David. Sorry to meet you and run, but I'm going to be late if I don't get out of here soon," I said as Wes placed his keys in my hand.

David smiled and shrugged. "Well, it's nice to meet you. Hopefully we'll actually get to talk sometime soon. I can't believe in all this time I'm just now meeting Wes' fabulous roommate."

I laughed. "Wes is giving me far more credit than I deserve, I assure you. Well, gotta run." I turned to Wes, "And thanks," I said as I turned on my heel and bolted back down 50th.

"You're welcome!" I heard him yell after me. As I rounded the corner with the keys still jingling in my hand, I ran straight into a guy heading into the restaurant, dropping Wes' keys in the process. I grunted and adjusted my bag on my shoulder before bending down to pick up the keys, only to find them in the hands of the man who I'd collided with.

"Here you-" he said.

Without looking up I grabbed the keys, yelling "thank you, and I'm sorry!" over my shoulder in his general direction as I continued down the path toward the theater.

BLAINE

I was thankful that I didn't end up activating my online dating profile right away - this week had taken so much out of me, I didn't even want to imagine how trying to be active on that site would have played into my schedule. Before we can approach a band with a contract, there's so much we have to work out; agreements with the label, ensuring that the band's name doesn't match other one in the music industry, press plans, marketing briefs - the works. And that's even before we can actually sign the band. We have to know that we have the resources in place first before we can pull them in for the ride of their lives.

By Friday night, I was exhausted but really looking forward to meeting up with David. Turns out, David was indeed my old friend from Dalton and had been living in New York for a few years. He managed Atticus Finch as a favor, his younger brother was in the band, but he was interested in pursuing a career in band management but had settled on working at a marketing firm in the meantime to get office experience until something in his field of interest presented itself. Without realizing it, I might have made the guy's year. His band would have to record an album and possibly tour to promote it - requiring him to quit his current job and take a full time role with the band, complete with great pay thanks to the advance and future royalties from the band's record.

I was more than happy to help him in that way, even if it had been on accident. David was a great friend back at Dalton but he and I lost touch since he was a senior when I was a sophomore and the minutiae and business of life took over and phone calls and emails became few and far between.

In order to kick off our professional interactions as well as rekindle our friendship, I invited David out to dinner on my side of town at Blockheads near Times Square since it was near home, the office and the venue where tonight's gig would take place. Though it was a little chilly, their outdoor seating area meant we could enjoy the autumn air and split a pitcher or two of margaritas before we ventured out to Atticus Finch's show later that night. Besides, who could ever say no to a burrito?

My thoughts on the walk to the restaurant found me reminiscing about my days as a Warbler and the fact that I hadn't seen David in about 10 years since he didn't come home from UCLA very often due to the price in airfare. I really did miss David and his former counterpart Wes. Those guys made my sophomore year at Dalton amazing; taking a chance on me to perform when they could have just as easily held the position of soloist themselves. They were always gracious, caring, and charming and I hoped that hadn't changed over the years.

I was jolted from my thoughts as I neared the restaurant and was pummeled by a man who was very obviously in a hurry who hadn't seen me in his path. He groaned and I noticed he had dropped his keys. Stooping down and picking them up, I held them out for him.

"Here you- "

He hurriedly grabbed the keys from my hand and ran off. I shrugged and kept walking, only to hear the man yell "thank you, and I'm sorry!" as he jogged down the street. He must not be from around here; most New Yorkers would have just yelled at me for being in their way even if they were the ones who ran into me.

I looked into the patio area of Blockheads and found David who was frantically waving at me. I waved back meekly and walked over to the table. As I got closer, the other guy sitting at the table turned toward me and I stopped, shocked at who it was.

"Wes?!" I gasped.

"Hey man! Long time no see," he exclaimed as he reached in for a hug. I hugged back enthusiastically - I couldn't believe it! I was just thinking about how the two of them were a dynamic duo and here they both were, back in action again.

"It's like the three amigos all over again," David said with a chuckle as he stood from his seat and hugged me.

"It's so crazy. I was literally just thinking about you as I was walking over here," I said, looking as Wes as we all took our seats around the table. "Thinking about how you guys made my sophomore year awesome and I hoped that neither of you had changed since I saw you last. Which, when I did the math, I realized was 10 years ago. When did we get so old?"

Wes shrugged as he poured me a margarita in the remaining glass on the table. "We're not older, just wiser. I refuse to grow up."

David rolled his eyes. "Wes, you're a lawyer. Growing up is about to hit you full force, my friend."

He scoffed and took a sip of his drink before turning to me. "So, Blaine, you're in the music business - not that I'm surprised. Tell me what's been going on since I saw you last."

I sat and thought for a minute. "Geez, I have to summarize the last 10 years into a short conversation. That will be rough," I chuckled.

He shrugged. "Just try, I guess. Don't worry, I'll be sure that David and I do the same. It's only fair."

I nodded. "Well, the last two years at Dalton were great. Ended up as lead soloist and head member of the council once you jokers left." They laughed as I continued. "Kept Trent and Nick in line. Not much to say other than that for the end of Dalton. Got a good scholarship to Marymount Manhattan and I majored in business management and minored in music. Ended up getting an internship at Rialto my senior year and got hired once I graduated. It's kind of weird how it all happened, really. I didn't even know that I wanted to work in artist development until I got the internship and ended up loving it so much."

David smiled. "That's great, Blaine. You were always a really dedicated person. The amount of time you spent working on your solos made the rest of the guys look like slackers."

"Well, thanks. I certainly did try. I still sing every now and then at open mic nights and karaoke, but I'm happier developing the talent of others for now."

"You made a really good mentor at Dalton, I'm sure that's still true now," Wes added. "So, what about your life in New York? Now that we have the back story, what's going on now?"

"I live in Hell's Kitchen in a studio apartment. It's small - like everywhere else in New York - but I love my neighborhood."

"What about friends? Or, more specifically, aboyfriend?" David asked, eyebrows arched in interest.

I shook my head. "No boyfriend. But friends, I definitely have. I'm really good friends with one of the girls I work with - Santana. She and I have been friends for years since we both started as interns at Rialto at the same time. And I made friends in college that still live in the city, but I don't see them much. My work keeps me pretty busy, but I'm trying to get myself out there more and meet people."

Wes laughed and drained his margarita glass. "I don't get it, Blaine. You were the one guy in high school we were sure was going to be a major heartbreaker. You had - well, still have - the looks, charm, kindness, moves. But no guy right now? This might be pushing it a bit, but when was the last time you had a boyfriend?"

I practically stared a hole into the table, trying to avert my eyes from David and Wes. "Uh, probably four or five years ago?"

David placed his hand over mine. "There's nothing wrong with that, B. Don't let Wes being an ass make you think less of yourself. You still are all of those things and I know you'll find someone, when the time is right." I smiled, thankful for the reprieve.

"Sorry, Blaine. I'm not trying to be mean about it, but you are just like my roommate - you guys both don't realize how amazing you are and I want both of you to be snatched up by Mr. Perfect sooner rather than later."

I looked at him over the salted rim of my glass. "I didn't know you had a roommate, Wes. I never thought you'd be the type to have to share with anyone." David laughed at my comment and Wes scowled as best as he could before laughing his head off.

"Believe it, dear sir. Yeah, my roommate is pretty great. David actually met him a few minutes ago. He works for a theater and his first day is today."

"Oh," I said, surprised. I never would have imagined that Wes would live with an actor. Wes was never the type of person to deal with the theatrics of overly emotional or needy people, which most actors personified to a tee.

"Speaking of my roommate," Wes continued, "maybe you could do what he did. He joined an online dating site and it seems to have worked out for him. He already has a date lined up for Monday night."

I laughed heartily then realized that David and Wes were staring at me, perplexed. "Oh, sorry. I - uh - actually just joined an online dating service too. My friend Santana met her girlfriend online and said I should give it a shot. I haven't fully activated my profile yet since I wanted to be sure that a certain band's contract was firmed up before I could pounce on the available men of New York City," I said, winking at David who was chuckling under his breath.

"Well, before we get to the contract, let's hear what you guys have been up to for the last 10 years," I said, sitting back in my chair, eager to hear what my former classmates had done with their lives.