Time passed quickly, yet somehow not quick enough to satisfy Kurt. He hated the thought that his Spring Break was almost over but he wanted it to be Friday already. Fortunately, his cousins were also on their break and were able to stay in Palm Desert with him. On Wednesday, his grandparents gave them a choice of Disneyland or Magic Mountain. After some serious discussion they all decided to go to Magic Mountain. While Kurt loved everything Disney and while some might say he had a passing resemblance to Pinocchio, he wanted the fast-paced thrill that Magic Mountain provided.

The weather was beautiful in Southern California and they all enjoyed their day at Magic Mountain. His grandparents had even surprised them all by actually riding the Colossus and Revolution roller coasters. Jonathan had been a pilot in the Air Force so the twists and turns were nothing compared to the gravitational force found while flying, but Marissa along with Kurt screamed the whole ride although both denied doing so afterwards.

The next few days passed by in a blur. They spent one day strolling along Indian Avenue in Palm Springs and enjoying the warmth and the shopping. When Kurt left Ohio there had still been a bite in the air but here the temperature was a perfect 80 degrees. Palm Springs was home to one of the largest gay communities in the nation and Kurt was in awe of the fact that gay couples were able to walk openly hand-in-hand without a second thought. He couldn’t stop staring and wishing for someone to hold his hand. As if reading his mind, his grandmother reached over and squeezed his hand in silent support. “Someday,” she whispered. Kurt just nodded and swallowed the lump in his throat.
xoxoxoxxoxox

“It’s Friday, Friday
Gotta get down on Friday
Everybody’s lookin’ forward to the weekend, weekend…”

Kurt was humming along with Rebecca Black as he finished up his moisturizing routine. He had to be extra careful whenever he was in the desert. He didn’t want to end up looking like one of those chamois towels his dad used around the shop by the ripe old age of 25. He couldn’t stop singing and dancing though. His uncle was supposed to pick them up at 7:00am in order to get to the Empire Polo Grounds in Indio early enough to set up for the 10:00am ceremony.
Everything had to proceed like clockwork, especially when the military is involved. The Thunderbirds were on a tight schedule and it was pretty hard to reschedule a squadron of F-16s because someone was running late.

His uncle finally arrived and he was dressed in his “Dress Blues” uniform looking sharp and regal. Kurt’s critical fashion sense could find nothing wrong with the uniform. He did appreciate a man in uniform.

“Okay everyone let’s get on the road. We are going to park at the Indian Wells Tennis Gardens and take a shuttle from there to the Polo Grounds. Make sure you grab everything you need since we won’t be able to get back to the car until the afternoon. Kurt, grab your sunscreen since I know you will be slapping that stuff on continuously throughout the day. Make sure you have on your wristbands and try to not get separated from each other since my troops have reported that the crowds are unbelievable even at this early hour.”

Everyone piled into cars and sure enough the drive that should not have taken more than 10 minutes became a 30 minute drive. Had they not been in the specially marked military shuttle and a police escort they would still have been stuck in traffic.

Traffic was in some instances stopped. People were literally hanging out of their car windows drinking water and who knows what else just waiting for traffic to move. The lines at the gates were outrageous and the clothing some of these people were wearing even more so. Kurt prided himself on being a forward fashion thinker but some of the outfits on display made even him blush. He had actually dressed rather conservatively knowing how somber the opening ceremony was going to be but he couldn’t wait to see what Lady Gaga would be wearing. He was going to loiter somewhere near her and have Sariah snap a picture with his iPhone so he could show his friends in the Glee Club.

Last night while talking to his dad during their nightly chat Finn had asked to speak to Kurt.

“Dude, you are soooo lucky you get to go to Coachella Fest!”

“I know!” exclaimed Kurt. “I wish you guys were here to enjoy it as well but I will make sure to take a bunch of pictures and maybe some videos to share when I get back home.”

“Have fun Kurt,” he said giving the phone back to Burt who told him to be careful and stay close to his grandparents at the festival before hanging up.

When they finally arrived at the Polo Grounds and found their way to the staging area Kurt and his cousins were told they could wander around but to stay together and to make sure they were back in place by 9:30. His uncle disappeared to make sure everything was going without a hitch and his grandparents staked out a place in the bleachers. Seats were filling up fast and they wanted to make sure they had seats available plus they knew that the kids didn’t want to wander around with a couple of old fogies hanging around them.

The fest was set up into tents and stages. The opening ceremony was being held on the Coachella Stage which is one of the main stages. Normally, music is continuously being played on all the stages/tents but since this was a special ceremony only the Coachella Stage would be on at this time. Since it was Lady Gaga the area was soon packed with all her little monsters and it soon became impossible to move around.

Kurt and his cousins were making their way back to their grandparents when he felt his phone buzzing. He was surprised to see his uncle calling him.

“Kurt, where are you guys?” he asked.

“We are headed back to the bleachers were grandma is saving us a seat,” he replied.

“Can you hurry? I need to ask you for a big favor.”

“On our way,” he said as he hung up the phone.

“Wonder what dad needs?” asked Steven.

“Not sure but let’s hurry and find out,” answered Sariah.

They pushed and shoved their way through the crowds and finally arrived back to see their grandparents looking for them. They sat down and Kurt could see his uncle hurrying to their side.

“Kurt, can you come with me?”

“Sure, what’s wrong?”

“I just got a call from one of my troops. It seems there has been an accident and Corporal Hinson is being taken to Desert Regional Medical Center. She is alive but there is still no news as to the extent of her injuries. It seems there was a carload of kids heading to the festival and they had already started drinking. The driver lost control of the vehicle and swerved out of his lane and sideswiped the vehicle Corporal Hinson was riding in. The kids are all fine just bruised up but no major injuries. However, I am now short a singer. I’ve heard you sing Kurt and I am wondering if you can perform the National Anthem.”

“Um…yeah…I think so,” he replied. It wasn’t that he was nervous about performing. He had performed for crowds before – he was nervous about performing in front of Lady Gaga.

“Thank you Kurt. Let’s go get you ready you go on right after I say a few words and introduce you,” he said as he led Kurt to the staging area. Kurt started humming and warming up his voice as they walked around the stage. He was so engrossed in his warming up that he sensed rather than saw someone walk up to him. His instincts kicked in and he whirled around coming face to face with none other than Lady Gaga.

Of course, his brain registered who it was about 5 seconds after he screamed like a 13 year old girl!