There was something about him that made him stand out to me.
What was supposed to be just another day at school, complete with mundane lessons, bizarre lunchtime antics with the guys and another Warbler rehearsal (with Wes’ gavel abuse) turned into something much more.
The Warblers were supposed to put on a little show for the other Dalton guys. It was something we did often. We weren’t treated like royalty – that was left for the football team, or the fake-Quidditch team – but we were certainly respected around school. Nobody picked on us for being Warblers. They congratulated us after performances and competitions, even when we didn’t win. The Warblers fit into the school like any other sporting team did. We belonged at Dalton.
I was just walking past the staircase on my way to the Warbler’s impromptu show when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned to see this beautiful person just standing there, nervously asking for help. He said he was new to Dalton, and anyone knew to Dalton probably wouldn’t understand the way the Warblers just fit in with the school. The beautiful boy just looked at me and I could see the anxiousness in his eyes. I led him to where the Warbler’s little ‘performance’ would be held: in our so called ‘choir room’ that still resembles the sitting room/library of some really old, rich guy.
As I showed the new boy where to stand, I just dropped my bag and joined the Warblers to sing. ‘Teenage Dream’ was something we’d been working on for a while now, and we all knew the harmonies and phrases well enough to rehearse in front of an audience. We knew it would be a crowd pleaser: anything Top 40 usually gets the attention of our fellow students. The council had already elected me to be the lead vocalist for this number, and it was an honour in itself. But this performance was different.
I found myself unable to take my eyes off the new boy, whose name was Kurt, as I found out later. There was just something, something about him that made him stand out to me. I couldn’t pinpoint it. When I took my place with the Warblers, I looked at him and saw him looking at me. His beautiful skin just brightened the room, it seemed. His beautiful eyes had me lost for a moment before remembering that we were performing, and I actually needed to concentrate to sing.
The moment we started performing, I knew Kurt was in shock. His previous question – in relation to our glee club being ‘cool’ – made me think that maybe he was into music at his previous school. He seemed to enjoy the song, but I don’t know if he noticed how I was unconsciously singing to him.
The moment I met him, I felt something. I can’t explain it any more than that. There was a feeling. Deep inside in my stomach, I felt butterflies. I felt warmth in my heart.
And so, when singing Katy Perry’s lyrics, I found myself singing them with a hidden meaning for the first time. It was as if my brain knew how I felt before the rest of me cottoned on. There was emotion evident in every single syllable I sung. I couldn’t believe that within five minutes of meeting someone, I could feel this way. I knew Kurt had made a difference in my life, and so I sung with all my heart and hoped, wished and prayed that he would maybe feel just a fraction of what I felt.