Prom 2013

Sometime in early May…

Let's be honest.  It wouldn't be a McKinley High school prom, if some major drama filled moment didn't go down.

Which is why, as shocking as it was to see who was having the moment, in the end, no one who witnessed it – not Sam or Tina or Artie, all of whom knew the couple so well, – or any of the other students who wobbled on too high high heels, clad in too tight silk and satin that revealed too much recently spray-tanned skin, or wearing borrowed or rented suits that would be returned slightly wrinkled, and hopefully not too stained from activities surreptitiously planned for later that evening – not one of these students was surprised to see that something was going down.

In the darkness of the evening, Blaine Anderson stood in the student parking lot, fists clenched as he fought to contain the anger he felt towards the one person he couldn't stop loving. 

He'd become so upset at the utter audacity of his ex, that he'd chosen to storm outside, sans jacket, hoping that the cool evening air would help to calm him down.  But instead of taking a hint, Kurt had followed on his heels.  Now the beautiful, porcelain skinned man was standing in front of him, waving his arms around passionately, yelling at him – Yelling At Him – because of whom he chose to bring to senior prom.

The more Blaine thought about it, the more he took in Kurt's choice of outfit: the tightest grey chino pants, cream colored Henley partnered with a darker grey vest that had made his eyes pop even more than normal, the more he realized that Kurt had made these choices because he knew how Blaine would react.  Blaine realized Kurt had chosen to play on Blaine's weaknesses, had chosen to use those weaknesses against Blaine.

Only Blaine was done.  Stick a fork in me, done.  He was done being treated this way – by the person he'd handed his heart to more than two years ago.  The person who now had no regard to how his words and actions not only made it impossible for Blaine to move on, but continually cut him to the core of his being – giving him the faintest bit of hope before dashing it once again on the ground between them.

So who the hell was Kurt “We're Just Friends, Blaine” Hummel to tell him who he could or could not bring to prom as his date?  This was going to stop.  This had to stop.  Now.

“SHUT UP, KURT!” he shouted, surprising them both.  Chest heaving as he tried to control his breathing, he glared at Kurt.  “Who the fuck do you think you are?” he hissed taking a step forward before his date gripped his arm firmly.

“Blaine,” his date said firmly.

Twisting, Blaine tried to free himself from the iron grip of his friend.  “Don't, Sebastian.  Just don't,” he said tightly before swinging back around to focus his rage on Kurt once more.

“Who, Kurt?  You have no fucking claim over me.  None.  You made it perfectly clear we're ‘just friends'.  How many times, Kurt?  How many times did you tell everyone around us that we're ‘just friends'?” he roared, still struggling to break Sebastian's grip.

Looking around, Kurt was beginning to realize the size of the crowd their spat had gathered.  Swallowing hard, Kurt worked to defend his actions.  “I…I. Blaine.  Blaine, you are my friend.  And you're here with Sebastian, Blaine.  He tried to break us apart when he knew we were together.  He tried to blind me and you almost lost your eyesight because of it.  He cheated, Blaine.  Him and the rest of the Warblers.  They cheated.”

“Yes, Kurt.  Funny how I'm actually aware of those facts,” spat Blaine venomously.  “The really funny part is – I forgave him.  It's something people do sometimes.  Forgive.   Sometimes people actually take the time to have a mature heart to heart conversation where they listen to each other and you find out why they did what they did.  And sometimes, rather than letting the hurt and anger tear you up inside, you offer that person forgiveness.  So you both can move on,” he answered heatedly, knowing the words would hit their mark only too well.

Wrapping his arms around himself, in part to ward of the chill of the evening, but also to protect against the rising guilt he felt, Kurt stood up straighter.  “I forgave you,” he insisted, voice becoming tighter with emotion.  “I accepted your apology.  I told you I missed my best friend-”

Blaine cut him off.   “Right.  And that we'd see each other at Christmas, drink hot chocolate and go ice skating-”

“Which we did-” interrupted Kurt.

“Only because your dad flew me up to New York to see you.  Because once again, New York was more important than…than us, Kurt.  You got in to NYADA and suddenly, deja fucking vu, you didn't have time for me.  You couldn't come home because-”

“Because I needed to save money to pay for tuition and rent and food and other things that come along with being in college, Blaine.  I explained all of this to you.  You said you were okay with my not coming home.  You said you understood,” Kurt's voice cracked.

Blaine ran his free hand through his curls.  “What the hell was I supposed to say, Kurt?  Was I supposed to beg you to come home?  Because I spent three months begging you to talk to me only to be shut down again and again and again.  Of course I said I was okay with it.  I would have done anything at that point to have some small piece of you in my life.  You were my life, Kurt.  But fucking face the truth – if your dad hadn't flown me up to see you – it wouldn't have happened.  Because despite your claims that you don't have the money to come home, you've managed to come home for twice since Christmas.  And not once have you ever made the time for that mature heart to heart you promised me,” Blaine choked up, ceasing his struggle against Sebastian's grip as he wiped tears away from his eyes.

Kurt's eyes narrowed, becoming angry at Blaine's insinuations.  “My dad told me he had cancer, Blaine.  I'm sorry that you weren't my priority, just then,” he answered more snidely than he'd really intended.

“I know.  I know, because, hey you met Adam, and why…why even try to patch things up with your high school boyfriend, when some older, more experienced guy with an accent is flirting with you?” Blaine couldn't help that his voice cracked with jealousy at the thought of Kurt being with another guy – even if they were broken up at the time.

“Blaine –”

“No! No, I get it.  I totally understand.  Especially the part where you came down for Mr. Shue's wedding, despite needing to save money for school, and despite you ‘kinda seeing someone', you put your tongue down my throat in the back of your Prius and end up inviting me up to your hotel room   - where we…how did you so eloquently put it…oh, yeah, where we ‘had fun' before you traipsed back downstairs to reassure yourself and everyone else that we were ‘just friends'.  Do you have any idea how that made me feel, Kurt?  Any?”

“No.” Kurt admitted quietly.

Knowing that Blaine's trembling was only due in part to his emotional state, Sebastian slid his wool blazer off of his lanky frame and swung it around Blaine's shoulders to stop the young man from shivering from the cold.

“It's like a razor blade slicing through my heart, Kurt.  Every time you say we're just friends, it's another cut.  Because you're lying to yourself and you're lying to our friends and you're lying to me.  Because we've never ever been just friends and we never will be.  And we both know it – even if one of us is too much of a coward to admit it.  So less than twelve hours after making love with me in a hotel room, you pranced through the halls of McKinley, making a case to Tina that we're just friends.  And how fucked up was that, Kurt.  You cut me to the core.”  Blaine's voice had become raspy from all the shouting and the raw emotions pouring out of him.

Kurt held himself even tighter.  “Why didn't you-”

“Say anything?” interrupted Blaine yet again.  “That's rich, Kurt.  All I've tried to do since last year is talk to you about how I felt.  ‘Please Kurt, talk to me about you moving to New York and me staying here and how is that going to affect us,'” he mimicked painfully.

“But, no, you had it all worked out in your head, so why would we actually need to talk about anything, right?  How'd that work out for us, Kurt?”  He stopped his rant for the space of several heartbeats, almost daring Kurt to answer.  “Exactly.  So let me be clear, Kurt – since you laughed at me when I tried to give you an engagement ring to show you how much you still meant to me – since you clearly have no interest in ever being anything more than my friend, like I said back in March – I can't have you in my life.  It hurts too fucking much.  And the last thing you get to do, Kurt Hummel, is tell me who I can or cannot bring to my senior prom as my date.”

Having pulled a set of keys from his pocket, Sebastian took that moment to reach around Blaine's waist to offer them, palm up, to Blaine.  “Go get in my car, Tiger.  I think you've pulled enough focus for one evening – even for you and Hummel.  Just…give me a second, and then I'll drive us back to Dalton,” he said quietly – although he knew he'd said it loud enough for Hummel to overhear. 

He knew he and Blaine were only ever going to be friends, and Sebastian was okay with that.  But that didn't mean he couldn't feed that flame of jealousy that had clearly brought Hummel all the way from New York to confront Blaine.

Waiting until Blaine had walked far enough away to not overhear, Sebastian shoved his hands into his pants pockets, rocking back on his feet as he stared at Kurt.  “He still loves you.  God knows, I can't figure out why, but he does.”

Kurt frowned.  “What do you know about it, Meercat?”

Sebastian sighed looking over Kurt's shoulder at the students who were trickling back into the school to continue dancing now that the major fireworks were finished.  “Name calling?  Really, Hummel?”  He used his practiced bored tone.

“Look, I could care less what you think of me.  Truly.  But Blaine's been a friend to me, despite everything that went down with the Warblers this year.  And I'm going to tell you two things that I probably shouldn't because he'd be pissed beyond belief at me for sharing them – but, like I said, he's been my friend.  And friends help each other out.”

Taking a deep breath, Sebastian let it out slowly.  “First thing you need to know – if your blond friend there,” he pointed towards Sam, “hadn't lent his shoulder to cry on, I'm pretty positive Blaine wouldn't be here.  On this earth.” 

Hearing the shocked gasps from the other members of New Directions who were still standing nearby, Sebastian included them in his gaze.  “I'm not trying to be dramatic here.  That's how bad it got.  And then he started to get better.  Until right after regionals.  I'm guessing that's when he tried to give you that ring.”  He raised an eyebrow at Kurt, waiting for confirmation.

When Kurt nodded once, Sebastian continued.  “I don't know if any of you noticed, because he's quite the fucking actor when he wants to be, but he started spiraling even worse than when he told you to go to New York, felt like you were ignoring him, cheated, and then manned up and went to tell you in person.  Fuck, Hummel, it's none of my business, clearly, but have you ever, for one second, thought about what that took?  He flew to New York to tell you in person that he fucked up.  Didn't tell you over the phone.  Not in a text.  Hell, he could have never told you – and you'd still be together, none the wiser.  But he's too fucking honest for that.  And he loves you too much to be anything less than 100% honest.  Except when it comes to how he's feeling.  Because you haven't cared about his emotional state in far too long.  I'm overstepping, I know.  Sorry, not sorry.”  Sebastian shrugged.

Pursing his lips, Sebastian finished.  “The second thing I think you need to know is he's not auditioning for NYADA.  In fact, he's turned down every school in New York that's accepted him.”

“What?”

“The fuck are you talking about, Smythe?”

“That can't be true.”

Sebastian ran a hand through his hair.  “It is true.  Last we talked, he was talking about UCLA and USC.  You know, Los Angeles…Southern California.  He said that going to New York would be too painful.  And if he was going to use college as a fresh start, he might as well go somewhere across the country.”

“Look, Hummel, I know you hate me – and you have every right to.  I'm sorry for what I did.  I apologize for being a jackass, and for trying to hurt you physically.  But beyond that – because Blaine is my friend, I just want you to know…he does still love you.  So if my agreeing to be his prom date was the wake up call you needed to realize that you want to be with him again – fine.  Great.  Let him know that.  But you've got a hell of a bridge to repair.  Because after you threw that ring back in his face, he pretty much threw gasoline on the bridge between the two of you and lit it on fire.  You're gonna have to work to get him back, Hummel.  And if you don't…you're a damn fool.  Because what you had with him?  It's a once in a lifetime thing.  And if you don't believe me, then ask any one of your friends here – because they're gonna tell you the same thing.”

Turning away, Sebastian began walking quickly back to his car, before stopping and spinning around one last time.  “Hummel? Yeah, he's coming back to Dalton with me…but we really are just friends.  His heart belongs to you.  Just thought you should know.”

Kurt watched as Sebastian Smythe jogged to his car, got in, and drove off into the night, with the only person who would ever hold his heart.