So Throw Those Curtains Wide

Finn feels bad. Like, really freaking bad.

He realises - and knows deep down in that icy ball of self-loathing in his gut - that forgetting your boyfriend's birthday is an unbelievably shitty thing to do when you've been in a tumulous, unforgettable, uncomporable relationship for the past three months,

Two days ago, he should have been kissing the hell outta Kurt awake in the morning, handing him Broadway tickets that he'd bought him to Wicked, making sure that none of the jock-jerks (which he still feels ashamed to have been part of once) toss Kurt in the dumpster or grape-slushie him in his face and taking him out to dinner.

In the slightly less guilty part of his brain, he knows that he's been stressed beyond reason recently. There's been Glee and Nationals and basketball now that football season's over and a bitch of an essay that's been festering away on his desk for three weeks now and which he should have been writing and have done by now.

But forgetting his boyfriend's birthday... he suspects moodily that even Mahatma Gandhi (whoever he was - Rachel and Ms. Pillsbury and occasionally Sylvester preach about him from time to time) would have trouble forgiving him. It's like... a million bad karma points. He's going to get reincarnated as a snake, he knows it. Or something small and irritating like a gnat.

When he passes the day by with barely a kiss on Kurt's cheek, Finn doesn't even give it a second thought. Until the next morning that is, when actually wakes up and checks the date on the charity calender of posing firemen that Kurt'd gotten him jokingly as a New Year's gift (seriously Kurt buys gifts for any occasion - he remembers the cupcakes in Glee for Mercedes passing her driving theory test and the new gloves for Tina's hamster's giving birth) that he realises.

And thunks his head against his wall painfully. Several times.

That day is hell at Glee: he keeps getting evil glares that could spit acid at seventy metres from Mercedes and Tina. He gets slushied in the face with cherry-red syrup and sees Puck at the other end of the corridor. Nobody sits near him at lunch and even during his classes, he curls up and wants to die a little bit. Okay, die a lot.

The worst part is that Kurt is nowhere. Rachel - and Finn realises just how bad this when Rachel is glaring daggers at him - informs him coldly that Kurt didn't come in and according to a reliable source (he suspects Mercedes), he's spent the day in furious tears.

Finn skips his last period, goes home and curls up on his bed. He doesn't cry. He feels too bad to cry.

He comes up with a plan after about three hours. He asks for help from Mercedes and Tina and after pleading and promises of cake and declarations of his eternal, undying love for Kurt, they agree. Artie agrees with Tina.

From then on, the Glee gang are more willing; Quinn agrees and persuades Brittany to help despite her protectiveness of Kurt. Santana does whatever Brittany asks her to do. She's so whipped, Finn muses.

Mike and Matt help out anyway and Puck agrees to Finn's plan because even though Finn's face is still slightly sticky and will smell of synthetic cherries for days, Finn needs his help.

The plan comes together at five in the morning after. Mercedes knows Kurt well enough that he's probably in his pajamas at this point and watching Next Top Model with his weird face-cream stuff on that Finn guesses costs more than his job at Cost-U-Buy pays in a month.

He throws pebbles at Kurt's window and a few moments later, Kurt's opening the door and rolling his eyes at Finn. Not the affectionate, "you're being dumb, honey" eye-roll he's gotten used to seeing; this one's annoyed, written with undercurrents of pissed-off and upset.

"Don't say it." Kurt cuts him off before Finn even opens his mouth. "I can get it that you're worked and overstressed from everything. But... that was shitty what you did. It was..."

Then Kurt spots the others behind him. He shuts up - as Artie opens up his iPod speakers and starts playing. It's Elbow.

"What made me behave that way?" Finn sings. He's looking deep into Kurt's eyes, trying every part of Jedi-fu mind trickery that he's seen to make him look up. Apparently God like guys trying to apologise vehemently to their boyfriends because Kurt looks up, blue eyes watery.

The others are chanting in now and they sound like the equivalent of the hallelujah choir behind Finn, pushing him on towards hope and salvation and fresh desire bubbling away.

Finn's singing from his heart, his gut, the raw place inside his chest that's singing a single, relentless mantra...

"'Cause holy cow, I love your eyes and only now I see you like. Yeah, lying with me half-awake... stumbling over what to say." Finn's locked onto Kurt now, cautious shuffling steps as the crescendo chorus behind him soars. "Well anyway, it's looking like a beautiful day."

His arms touch Kurt's wrists tentatively. Kurt looks up and Finn doesn't think he's ever been happier to see Kurt's small, sweet smile. He can feel fresh hope and joy rushing through him like fire and he bends him head, whispering words.

"So throw those curtains wide... one day like this a year will see me right." The lyrics tingle along the shell of Kurt's ear. Behind him, Finn can hear the smiles of everyone but leans forward and kisses Kurt.

It's not their hottest kiss or their most passionate. But it's the one Finn'll remember for years to come. The one brimming with joy and hope and renewed ownership. Finn wraps an arm tight and possessive around Kurt's waist as the others continue singing.

The song reaches it's epic crescendo of optimism. Kurt nestles into Finn's side, forgiveness wrapped around his gestures akin to Finn, wrapped happily around Kurt's manicured little finger.

The sun rises along the top of the hill. It's a beautiful day.

Fin