Chapter 1: Upon Meeting

* * *

When he stepped out of the almost empty parking lot and into the prison-like environment of high school, Blaine knew he’d only focus on one thing for the rest of the year. When could he get the fuck out of here?

From the way he looked at it, there are different outcomes. Getting the fuck out of high school implies that Blaine either graduate or drop out. Despite the black leather jacket curling around his torso that screamed otherwise, dropping out was not a viable option for Blaine. He wanted—no, needed—to get out of here and actually do something with his life.

Just two more years. Two more years and he could finally escape to someplace where he could make real friends and stop pretending to be someone he’s not. Blaine would be the first to admit that the whole “bad boy” superiority complex was not him. In fact, Blaine didn’t really know who the heck he was anymore. All he knew was that when he wore this leather jacket and the piercings in his ear and on his tongue, no one dared to hurt him or get close enough to do so in the first place. When he wore this leather jacket, it didn’t even matter that he was gay or in the show choir or anything else that made him a “target.”

He was just thinking about all of that crap as he walked the vacant hallways of the high school in the early hours of the morning. School wasn’t supposed the start for another couple of hours or so, but Blaine preferred to get there before everyone else. It was also nice for him to get out of the house sooner than later, considering the deafening silence at home that only made him feel more lonely than ever.

Accustomed to his everyday, dreary morning routine, Blaine was on autopilot as he turned the corner to his locker and bumped into someone else in the hall. He sent them tumbling down to the floor and a notebook flying out of their hand.

“Watch where you-“ Blaine almost barked out. Then he looked down and he couldn’t have finished that sentence if he wanted to, because the gasp that wanted to make its way past his lips suddenly lodged itself in his throat. Below Blaine was the most beautiful man he had ever seen. He looked like someone who couldn’t possibly be from this planet, in this horrid high school because he was simply too pure. The man’s silky chestnut hair was coiffed perfectly, and his great blue orbs swirled with greys and golds as he stared up at Blaine.

But those eyes were wide and his body was rigid. Probably from the way you just ran into him, and then aggressively shouted at him, Blaine thought wryly. He didn’t look scared, though. Only defensive, as though he expected Blaine to hurt him.

“Shit, I’m- I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean-“ Blaine was rambling. Fucking rambling, what was wrong with him?

Blaine could feel the blush crawling up onto his face as he rushed to help the boy up. The blue-eyed teen took his hand gracefully, and when their hands met and they were eye-to-eye, Blaine forgot about his embarrassment completely.

“My name’s Blaine.”

* * *

“Alright, kiddo. You ready for your first day of school?” Burt Hummel asked his son, signing along with his hands. Kurt’s eyes darted from his lips to his hands and back up, reading both his lips and his sign language at the same time.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Kurt replied in the same manner, with his hands mimicking his spoken words.

Yeah, Kurt was deaf. He wasn’t always like this, but he was now and he had been for a long time. So he learned how to deal with it. After nine years, you sorta get used to being stared at in public, and the looks of pity, and the “Sir, can I help you with that?” So now, in his junior year, Kurt was finally ready to attend a normal school where he wasn’t surrounded by people “like him,” and constantly remind of his disability.

Kurt’s father continued telling him about his first day, “You’re scheduled to get your papers and all that from the guidance counselor at seven o’ clock, bud. You should get goin’.”

“Alright,” Kurt replied. “Thanks for dropping me off so early, Dad.”

“No problem,” Burt reassured sincerely. He could sense his son’s nerves at starting again in a public school, despite how he was trying hard to hide them. Nothin’ gets past Papa Hummel. Not a thing. “And text me if you need anything, okay?”

“I will, Dad,” Kurt rolled his eyes slightly. “Don’t worry so much. I’m ready for this.”

Much like Kurt’s nerves couldn’t be hidden from his dad, his confidence could not be hidden from anybody at the moment. He was ready for this, and Burt had to accept that.

Burt sighed in defeat. The look of strength and preparedness in his son’s eyes told him everything he needed to know. “Alright. Okay. I know you are, Kurt. You are,” he took a deep breath and refused to let his fear for his son’s well-being control his happiness. “Love you, kiddo.”

“Love you too, Dad.” And with that, Kurt climbed out of his dad’s truck, slammed the door shut, and made his way to the entrance of the school.

* * *

Kurt walked through the halls of McKinley, looking at each and every door’s number as he passed. While he didn’t expect any students to be there a good hour before classes were supposed to start, the vacancy still felt eerie. Kurt’s heart began to beat faster as he imagined all of the things that could go wrong with today.

Someone could pick on my because I’m deaf, he thought in horror. Then he immediately regretted being fearful of something so petty. It wouldn’t be the first time, remember. And that’s true, it wouldn’t be the first time he was bullied. But it would be the first time it happened in his own school, considering the fact that he had attended an all-deaf school for as long as he could remember.

Some fucking homophobe could pick on me for being gay. Now that thought just made him angry. Kurt silently told his subconscious to please shut the fuck up, and proceeded on making his way to the guidance office.

The teen decided in would be best to pull out his small, pocket-size notebook. He always carried the little book with him, in case he found himself unable to speak properly and the people around him didn’t sign. As he was reaching into his backpack to grab it, he turned a corner and bumped into someone else.

“Watch where you-“

Kurt had just made out the words that formed on the man’s lips but the movement was gone just as soon as it came. He was faintly aware that he was on the floor and his elbow sorta hurt from where it hit the tile but… that was it. As soon as he looked up, he was completely mesmerized.

The back of Kurt’s mind registered that this guy had a lot of piercings in his ears, but once he caught sight of the other boy’s eyes staring down at him, he couldn’t look any place else. There was something so different about the way he looked at him. He didn’t feel bad for him, didn’t look like he wanted to hurt him, wasn’t disgusted by him in any way.

There was a change of mood when both boys seemed to come back to their senses. Kurt could see that this dark-haired, honey-eyed man was stumbling over his words, which did make it a bit harder to read his lips, but Kurt understood that he said:

“Shit, I’m- I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean-“ Which, really, was a sharp contrast to the piercings and leather and ripped clothing.

After apologizing, the boy helped him up, and Kurt found that he didn’t question himself as he took the hand. It kinda felt like he was staring straight into the sun when he saw the stranger’s face up close. His smile was hopeful and vibrant, and foreign, as though it didn’t take up residence on his face very often.

“My name’s Blaine.”

“Kurt.”