March 16, 2013, 10:21 a.m.
Sweet Little Sixteen: For You
E - Words: 3,894 - Last Updated: Mar 16, 2013 Story: Closed - Chapters: 34/? - Created: Aug 27, 2012 - Updated: Mar 16, 2013 109 0 0 0 0
It was Saturday. Blaine had been gone for six days – Kurt had been lying on the couch for two. It had been two days since the entire school had been plastered in prints of "KURT HUMMEL HAS THE V" and "HOMO-HUMMEL = LADY-PARTS" joined by copies of the photographs from his gynecologists – complete with his name and social security number at the top right corner. The taunting and mocking calls that had met him, the laughter and requests to see "the kitten" had been haunting him ever since.
Kurt hadn't left the house, barely left the couch, afraid to look at his phone, but also afraid to not. When the girls from glee club had found him in the bathroom they had helped him flee through the window and Rachel had driven them all to the Hummel-house.
The entire glee club had refused to attend any classes Thursday and Friday after what had happened. The girls had stayed with him throughout Thursday, Friday he had expressed his wishes to be left alone. He had spent the afternoon watching cartoons with Finn. Now it was Saturday and the entire glee club had shown at his house.
They were all seated in the small living room, sitting close with gloomy and angry expressions filling their faces. Kurt was still in his pajamas, wrapped in his thickest pashmina, uncomfortable and miserable. Quinn was holding her arm around him, the rest of the glee club surrounding them with grave looks on their faces. It looked like the gathering after a particularly nasty funeral. If one had said that this was the bright day where their summer break would begin no viewer would believe it.
"This is garbage! We can't let them drive you out of the school," Puck grumped, his voice as gloomy as the expression on his face. He was slumped down on the floor between Santana's calves. She had found a good place in Kurt's dad's chair with Brittany on the armrest, looking like she didn't have the slightest idea of what was happening around her.
"We can't let him go back there. You saw what they did to him," Quinn argued and squeezed her arm a little tighter around his shoulder. Kurt didn't so much as blink. He was staring into the black screen of the turned off TV, only hearing their voices like they had been very distant.
"I just don't understand... anything," Sam said. His eyes drifted around the room, but when he found no explanation in the faces of his peers he looked back to his hands resting on his knees.
"Are you a... hermaphrodite?" He asked, not daring to look at Kurt.
"Sam!" Rachel burst out in shock, looking ready to slap him.
"You can't just ask him stuff like that," Tina said and the entire room fell silent. All Kurt could hear was his own pulse thumping in rhythm with his stomach turning.
"But uhm... are you?" Tina whispered after a few moments.
"No. I am... I am not a hermaphrodite!" Kurt declared, his voice thick from crying.
"So it's not true? You don't even have a – then why are we all sitting here in stead of beating up everyone until we find out who did this?" Puck asked, ready to burst into flames.
Kurt hid his face against Quinn's arm. His cheeks were on fire and his tears were clogged in his throat. He had told Quinn. It wasn't like they had ever been close, but when the girls had found him in the bathroom she had asked if that was why he had asked that question at their sleepover and he couldn't lie to her. After they had been spending time with Blaine and Sebastian together he felt a bond with her. It was true what she had said; they were sort of family now.
"It's true," she confirmed under her breath and let Kurt melt into her arms, tears back to flowing freely down his face.
He had never in his life felt so ashamed. The entire town would surely know by now. his dad hadn't said anything, but when he came home from the tire shop Kurt could feel that there was something he wasn't telling him.
His dad had been on the phone with Blaine, arguing. Undoubtedly about which method was the most effective to do what was best for Kurt – not to mention arguing about what actually was best for Kurt. More than anything Kurt just wanted to yell at them to shut up, but somehow it was impossible for him to raise his head or open his mouth. He was paralyzed.
Blaine hadn't been able to go home. He had been close to tears when he had been on video-call via Skype to tell Kurt that there was nothing he could do. If he went home he would lose his job. Kurt had cried and said that it was okay, when in reality he wanted to act like a spoiled brat and stomp his feet and accusing Blaine of not loving him if he chose his work over him in such a situation. But he knew it would be unfair and that things weren't as simple as that. That it wasn't Blaine's choice. So he settled for letting Blaine sing him to sleep over the phone while he cried silently into his pillow.
"Oh... now it suddenly makes sense," Santana mumbled, more to herself than to the room.
"What makes sense? Nothing makes sense!" Puck grunted and stared up at her.
"When Hummel said... that he and Mr. Silverscreen hadn't had buttsex," she said, suddenly seeming uncomfortable about the attention from everyone in the room.
"So it actually works down there?" Puck inquired, shooting his glance to Kurt.
"Would you leave him alone? It's hard enough that all of Lima is talking about him, he shouldn't have to deal with that crap from his friends as well," Quinn snapped.
"No. God... no, just – come with all of your questions? It's not like I have anything to hide anymore, and it's better than you guys whispering behind my back," Kurt sniffed, sitting up straight and drying his eyes.
All eyes flew to Kurt, staring at him, gaping mouths and wide eyes as if he had just declared that he in fact was a hermaphrodite.
"Can I see it?" Puck asked, receiving a direct slap to his Mohawk from Santana.
"What? No!" Kurt snapped in horror.
"I thought Blaine was gay," Mercedes commented. That didn't make any sense. Of course Blaine was gay.
"Blaine is gay!" Kurt replied, harshly.
"But if you've... and you never had... but you said that – okay, I'm a little confused," Mercedes rambled.
"To answer more questions than you have been rude enough to ask: yes, Blaine is gay. Yes, we had sex. No, we don't always go anal," Kurt blabbered out, hoping it would kill the worst.
"Always? So you experiment?" Puck asked, sitting up straight leaning slightly towards Kurt's seat.
"Noah, I am not laying down my entire sex-life for you all, so spare me," Kurt sighed heavily, suddenly very tired from everything that had been going on.
He was just about to get up when his phone vibrated, signaling an incoming text. He looked to it on the table, but didn't dare look directly at it. There was a good chance it was someone calling to harass him. He had already seriously considered deleting his facebook and changing his number. Changing his name and moving to another country.
Before anyone could say anything Puck was on his feet, grabbing the phone and looking at the screen. When he did a grin spread over his face and he handed it to Kurt.
"It's from your man. Nothing to worry about," he said.
Kurt felt his heart lighten when he accepted the phone. With shivering fingers he opened the text and read through it. He had to read through the message a few times. It didn't say much, but it made him confused.
"Doll-face. I am so sorry I can't be there with you. Go to this address and hopefully you won't be so lonely anymore."
The address wasn't one Kurt knew. He had never seen it before. It was in Lima midtown, about fifteen minutes in car from Kurt's house.
"Is he coming home?" Quinn asked carefully, watching him.
"No. He still has another week. He just... sent me this address. He wants me to go there," Kurt said, unsure of what to do. He couldn't go out there. Not now.
He had considered going to Blaine's apartment. Hiding there alone until Blaine returned home. Living of take-out and the contents of the liquor-cabinet so he wouldn't have to think or breathe the reality of life. It would be easier, give him a break. But he couldn't put that worry on his dad.
Everyone checked but no one recognized the address. In the end Kurt fought himself off the couch, the pashmina wrapped tight around his torso.
"Will someone go with me?" He asked weakly. He didn't feel like he could ask anymore from his friends, they had already done so much for him.
"I'll go with you," Puck said, already getting to his feet. He was next to Kurt in no time and had a hand on his shoulder. It felt nice. It was good to know that it wasn't just the girls who wanted to support him.
"Thanks," Kurt mumbled and headed for his room to change.
Puck followed but kept his back on Kurt while he changed out of his pajamas and into a decent outfit. He couldn't remember when it was the last time he had settled for a sweater and a pair of jeans, but he didn't have imagination to come up with anything else, and at the moment he wasn't exactly up for fooling around with his clothes.
"Are you sure this is a good idea? Don't you think it would be better for you to wait at home until the worst has calmed down?" Finn asked when Kurt and Puck headed for the door.
"If Blaine says I have to go there it must be important. He wouldn't ask me to go anywhere without reason," Kurt brushed him off. He couldn't deal with it right now, Finn's senseless worrying.
"Then we'll all go with you," Finn declared and everyone were right at his heels.
There was nothing to do; everyone were up and headed for the cars in the driveway.
They drove down the street. Kurt in the backseat of Quinn's car, pressed between Puck and Rachel. No one said a word as they drove, but whenever Kurt was starting to lose spirit and had to hold back a whimper back Puck bumped his shoulder lightly.
They had to park a bit away and Kurt almost panicked by the thought. He couldn't walk down the street with everyone staring at him. He nearly went into shock, but Quinn talked him back to earth while Puck promised him that if anything happened in the least they would all go crazy on the people. That he was safe with them.
After drying his eyes and forcing his breathing calm again he stood tall and walked down the sidewalk, shielded by his friends circling him.
"This is it. I don't understand..." Kurt said and re-checked the address on the phone.
It was a flower shop. That didn't make any sense. If Blaine wanted to give him flowers he would just have them delivered to his house. It would be much easier and it would make sure Kurt wouldn't have to leave the house and face the cruel world that was only waiting to mock him.
"Oh... now I get. Look up, dude," Puck said and grinned as he was staring up at the facade of the store.
A big sign had been put over the previous sign. The letters seemed hand written but were still artistic and neat as they were swirling their way over the sign in dark green letters saying "Kurt's Flowers".
"Oh... oh... what did he do?" Kurt whispered to himself, eyes wide in wonder.
He didn't even think before he left his spot as the center of the group and entered the shop. It was a little store smelling like wet grass and flowerbeds. Shelves and buckets of green and magenta and cyan and all kinds of colored flowers were arranged in beautiful bouquets around the room, taking up the entire space and making the air humid and intruding.
"You're Kurt Hummel?" A lady asked. She was slim and wore a dirt-covered, black apron. He ginger curls were arranged cutely on the back of her head to keep it away from her face as she worked.
"Yeah, I am," Kurt stammered, feeling more and more confused by the minute.
"Alright. Let me just get rid of this and I'll find what Blaine left for you," she peeped, her voice high pitched and girly.
Before Kurt could object or ask any questions she had disappeared again to a back room. It wasn't until then he realized that Puck and Quinn were right behind him. They looked as confused as he felt himself, but they all seemed excited by the mystery of it all. By now Kurt was used to Blaine being mysterious and his love for surprising him, so he had learned that his excitement would have to wait until the right moment.
After a few moments the lady reappeared with a shiny, black box. She had left the apron in the back and washed her hands, only a little dirt left around her nails. She was smiling sweetly and for some reason Kurt felt an urge to hug her.
"So – I had been looking for someone to buy half of my store for a long time. The other morning Blaine called me. He sounded out of himself. I have known him for years. His best friend is my cousin. I've never experienced him like that. He was rambling and was frantic. He told me wanted to buy half of my store – on one condition... he wanted to rename it. For you," she told.
"Over the afternoon his lawyer came over and we fixed all the papers. Everything was settled by dinner. And now... all of this -" she let out an arm, indicating the room full of flowers.
"Is for you."
The lady smiled at him. Kurt felt his heart beat faster and itching spread in his eyes. His cheeks turned red and a sob was throbbing in his throat.
"He wanted me to give you this. You can come over here and have a look," she said and led them towards the counter. She handed Kurt the box and he accepted with a trembling hand.
He turned it around a few times, not sure what he was looking for. It was all black, no card or strings or stickers, nothing but a box with a lid. It wasn't any bigger or weighed anymore than he could have it in one hand.
Biting his lower lip he carefully lifted the lid off the box, revealing a burgundy silk handkerchief. Carefully he removed it and found a pen-drive.
"Here. I have my computer ready for you," the lady said and went behind the counter to lift up a small laptop, putting it in front of Kurt so he could see the screen.
With his heart in hand Kurt put the pen-drive in the computer, waiting for it to be accepted. When the window popped up there was nothing but a video-file titled "DOLL-FACE". For a few seconds he just stared at it, scared of what would be waiting for him when he opened it, but after a deep breath he clicked it.
The video was way too long in opening up, but when it finally did Blaine showed up on the screen. He was tanned, the freckles on his nose more pronounced than usual and he was wearing a purple polo. Kurt couldn't help thinking that this was the first time had seen Blaine in a t-shirt that wasn't something to sleep or walk around in at home, yet he looked put together with his hair gelled as always and his eyes sparkling through the screen.
Kurt's stomach turned and he wanted to throw up from how much he missed Blaine.
"Doll-face. I am so sorry I can't come home to you right now. I didn't imagine this would ever happen to you. I just wanna keep you safe," Blaine paused, his eyes flickering away from the camera before he re-focused.
"I know this isn't anything at all. This won't undo this for you. But I know how lonely you are. Now you will never have to be lonely anymore. Everything in this store is yours. Whenever I'm not around you can just come here and know that each of these flowers, each of these petals, represents how much I love you. It's not nearly enough. I could never tell you, or show you how much I love you. But at least here you can have some physical proof... if you should ever doubt," Blaine closed his eyes. When he opened again his eyes were wet and his lower lip trembling.
"Kurt, when I get home I will turn go through every single person in that shitty town to find out who did this to you. If I didn't know how much you would hate me I would beat them up, kill them. Instead I will sue their ass, make sure they will pay for what they have done. I can't stand knowing that you're hurting," Blaine croaked, voice thick and rasp as he let his hand up. His fingers drifted toward the camera like he was trying to touch Kurt, but retreated when he remembered that it was nothing but a screen.
"I know your dad will take care of you. But it's not the same when I can't keep you safe myself. I am working my ass off to get home to you as quickly as possible. Just... for what it's worth, I love you more than anything in the world, and I would never hurt you. See you, Doll-face," Blaine said. Right as a tear started rolling down his face the connection was broken and the screen turned black.
Kurt felt numb. He was sure it was a defensive mechanism from his body to make sure he didn't break down in the middle of everything and everyone. He realized Quinn's hand was locked around his, and his other hand was by his face, his teeth digging into the nail of his thumb.
"He uhm... he also asked me to give you these," the flower lady said carefully, like she was intruding on crying lovers.
Kurt ripped himself out of his haze where his eyes had been fixated on the screen, not even seeing it anymore. He turned and saw that the lady was handing him an envelope. He nervously took it, suspecting that he would drop it to the floor, but managed to keep it and open it.
Out of the envelope he pulled a plane ticket. Los Angeles. On the back was a post-it with Blaine's handwriting saying:
"If I can't come to you, I'll have you taken to me. I will not leave you alone."
"Kurt, that's incredible," Quinn whispered behind him.
Kurt broke down. Tears were flooding out of his eyes and down his face. Roaring sobs tumbled from his throat and out of his mouth. Quinn and Puck's arms were quickly around him, bringing him closer for comfort.
He let it all out. Couldn't possibly keep it inside any longer. His whole world was falling down around him, and here he was standing in the middle of this flower shop that his boyfriend had bought for him to make sure he would never be lonely, crying into his friends' arms with a plane ticket out of Hell in his hand. If it was ever possible to be filled with both happiness and despair and relief at once this had to be the only time.
Suddenly it was like all the flowers were craving his attention and he wanted to smell and feel and see them all. Every single one of them. They were all for him, after all.
xXx
Lunch with Elle Magazine's editors had been more rushed than usual. Blaine had known the ladies for a few years now and they had been understanding when he had been short and quick in everything they had turned during their meeting. He had started out by saying that he needed to pick his boyfriend up at the airport over the afternoon and that said boyfriend was in a great crisis so he wouldn't be up for much chitchat. Luckily they had been willing to help rush through the date and arranged to meet up again before he left California.
Now Blaine was in the airport, pacing the floors with a nerves on his sleeves as he was waiting for Kurt to come. His plane should have arrived thirty minutes ago and his phone was still turned off. Blaine didn't like that.
Ever since Kurt had woken him up early Thursday morning Blaine had been unable to calm down. He had been constantly scared of what could happen to Kurt. He knew what the guys at his school would do to him when they merely saw him as the only gay kid in school. Now they had much more reason to have their hatred fueled and fumed.
Every time his phone vibrated he rushed to check it, nervous that it would be someone telling him that Kurt had been brought to the hospital after an attack, or maybe that Kurt had done something to himself to escape his ghosts.
Suddenly a sea of people appeared and Blaine was on his toes. He was looking over the heads, searching for some sort of familiarity in the middle of the people he had no care for.
To his relief brown locks and black sunglasses on pale skin appeared like out of the blue. A black scarf was folded around his neck and even though he couldn't see his eyes Blaine could see that he was miserable. So Blaine ran through the people, pushing his way through the masses to throw his arms around his boyfriend, pulling him into his arms with kisses peppered all over his cool skin.
"Blaine. Blaine. I've missed you so much. I need you so much," Kurt cried, letting go of his bag and suitcase to fall into the man's embrace.
"I was so scared and humiliated. I've never felt so alone in my life," he cried, digging his fingers into the back of Blaine's polo, blue this day.
"You're not alone. You're not alone. I'm here, Doll-face. You're with me," Blaine cooed and stroke a hand up and down his back. He squeezed Kurt so tight his head might pop off, but Kurt didn't object. He simply clung himself to Blaine's body, like he was scared it would disappear if he ever let go.
"Please don't ever leave me again!" Kurt sobbed against Blaine's neck, his tears flooding down under Blaine's collar, wetting his neck completely.
"I won't. I promise. The next time I have to go somewhere I'll take you with me," Blaine assured him and kissed his cheekbone.
"Let's go back to the apartment and we'll get you together," Blaine smiled and moved a little back to press a strong kiss to Kurt's mouth. He wiped Kurt's cheeks dry and was happy to see the corners of his mouth twitch for a smile. Blaine picked up his suitcase and bag before he grabbed Kurt's hand and led him out of the airport. Towards safety, towards a place where Kurt could be himself without being afraid.