Title: Everything Else (yes, I know. Very original XD ) – sequel to 'Everything', which is on my profile. This will probably make much more sense if you read that one first! :)

Pairing/Character(s): Kurt Hummel/Dave Karofsky; New Directions + teachers, parents, Blaine + Warblers, etc.

Rating: PG-13 in this chapter, NC-17 overall for teenage groping, making out, and maybe even sex in later chapters...

Spoilers: 2x06. Branches off into my own private AU from there on, so no Holly Holiday, no Kurt transferring to Dalton, no Lauren joining New Directions, no Superbowl Episode. But, various events from episodes 2x07-2x16 have and will make it into the fic, so be warned!

Disclaimer: Glee is © of Ryan Murphy and the actors.

Summary: sequel to 'Everything'. Kurt and Dave's relationship continues after receiving 'approval' from the Glee Club. But happily ever after certainly never stays that way, and they'll have to work through the everyday high-school drama in all its forms together.

Chapter One

SPLOOSH.

Dave Karofsky stopped dead in the middle of the hallway of William McKinley High-School in Lima Ohio one Monday morning in late January, reaching up to slowly wipe the remains of a bright-purple, teeth-achingly-cold grape slushy from his face. He'd known it would happen some day. It was only a matter of time, and a question of who would be the wielder of the beverage thrown at him. In fact he'd been surprised it took so long.

The corn syrup was burning in his eyes and the crushed ice was dripping steadily down the front of his T-shirt, and all the students in the hallway had instinctively drawn away from him, so he was standing in a five-foot wide circle of bare floor all alone.

He looked up to see who it had been. Azimio Adams stood in the hallway before him, a Big Quench plastic cup still clutched in his hand. Why the fuck are there even still slushies in the cafeteria? It's fucking January! Dave thought. Several other members of the football team stood behind Azimio, but none of them shared his facial expression. The black boy seemed to be disgusted by Dave, his hand slowly crushing the plastic cup in its grip.

"Faggot," he hissed at the boy who used to be his best friend. "Heard you went and signed up with Nude Erections, along with your little gay boyfriend Hummel. The two of you gonna sing a duet now?"

Dave raised an eyebrow at Azimio, willing his instinctive anger down. He'd known this would happen – he and Azimio had grown apart ever since Dave accidentally broke Kurt Hummel's arm and had been assigned Kurt's personal driver and bag-carrier while his broken arm healed. Kurt and Dave had slowly become friends and then more. Dave had confessed his feelings for Kurt, and Kurt had forgiven Dave for bullying him and in fact discovered that he returned Dave's feelings. They'd been dating ever since December. Dave had pretty much come out to the Glee Club when he asked their permission to date Kurt the previous month by singing a Michael Bublé song to him. And since three of the members of New Directions were also Cheerios, it was only a matter of time before the whole school knew.

It had also helped that Jacob Ben-Israel had somehow managed to get into the auditorium while Dave sang, and had posted a video of the performance on his blog. No-one had teased him about it at school, and in fact several girls had smiled and giggled as he passed them in the hallways. After the cyber-population of McKinley had gotten over their shock, the clip had received some rather nice responses. Kurt had actually found it funny that his boyfriend was a YouTube success. Dave had totally intended to find Ben-Israel and shake the little creep up a bit, but thought better of it. He wasn't that guy anymore.

Dave came back to the present, looking over Azimio's shoulder at the rest of the football team. Andy Trent, a linebacker, raised both his hands in a gesture of 'I had nothing to do with this,' and Daniel Michelson, one of the tackles, pointed at Azimio's back and shook his head as though saying 'not cool, man.'

Dave found his calm. The two of them were probably only there because they had some classes together – apparently only Azimio was out to get Dave and the rest of the football team didn't care about his sexual orientation. Dave thought that was awfully big of them. Half of them were Glee guys anyway, so they'd known already and had his back. He'd already told the hockey team, with whom he was closer anyway, and no-one had given him any trouble there.

"Yo, homo, you listenin' to me?" Azimio was in his personal space by then, shaking the mangled plastic cup in Dave's face. Dave calmly reached up to snatch it from Azimio's hand, and replied in a mild voice.

"No, dude, I'm actually kinda tuning you out, 'cause you keep talking shit. I told you already, I'm done taking crap from you just because you think differently from me."

"What I think," Azimio snarled, pointing a threatening finger at Dave, "is that you're a fag. I knew you hangin' out with Hummel was gonna end in bad shit. That idiot Figgins made you help the fairy and now you've gone and caught the gay from him!"

"Dude," Dave rolled his eyes at him. "I didn't 'catch the gay' from him. I just like him. I've liked him since last year. Why do you think I bullied him so bad? I mean, wake up and smell the slushy." Dave wiped at his shoulder, collecting a handful of purple ice that hadn't quite melted yet. "Yeah, I'm gay. Or actually, I think I might be bi. Deal with it. It's got nothing to do with you and there's nothing you can do to change it. So just leave me the fuck alone, you dick." He hefted the leftover slushy in his palm and calmly smashed it into Azimio's face. Then he turned around to walk down the hall and towards his locker, where he'd stashed an extra T-shirt for hockey practice that afternoon. He guessed he'd just have to use it earlier than he'd anticipated.

He'd gotten less than ten paces away when he heard Azimio shout, "You're going down, Karofsky!" He turned around to see his ex-buddy charge down the hallway towards him, and planted his feet wide apart to receive a tackle or a punch.

But it appeared that Dave wouldn't have to defend himself: someone stepped in between him and Azimio, standing right in the bigger boy's path.

"Oh, no you don't!"

Dave's jaw dropped in shock. It was Kurt, standing tall and proud in what was probably a very fashionable white blazer by some designer whose name Dave couldn't even pronounce, black-and-green pinstriped trousers, and smart black dress shoes. Azimio was so surprised that he actually stopped his charge, skidding one final foot across the floor before halting. Kurt took the last step towards Azimio, one finger raised warningly.

"You are going to turn around, Azimio, and you are going to walk the other way right now, and you are never going to lay a hand on Dave. You got that? Or do I have to repeat the message in monosyllabic words so your sadly underdeveloped brain can process it?"

Azimio seemed utterly astonished that Kurt had intervened. Then shock gave way to amusement, and Azimio threw his head back and laughed. "Are you fucking kidding me, you little fairy? You gonna stand there and tell me not to beat up your boyfriend?"

"You're damned right I am," Kurt stood his ground, a furious expression on his face. "I'd hoped Dave would have his best friend to confide in, but obviously your prejudice towards anyone even remotely different from yourself had him scared so deeply into the closet he was practically dancing with fauns. The least you can do now that he's finally out is not throw more fuel on the fire." Kurt's extended finger moved forward, poking Azimio repeatedly in the chest as he spoke. The bigger boy took a step back, a disgusted look on his face. Then he looked over Kurt's shoulder to leer at Karofsky.

"You gonna let the princess here rescue you, Karofsky?"

Dave was leaning against a wall of lockers, observing the showdown. He seemed entirely unperturbed that Kurt had stepped in to defend him, and in fact wore something of an affectionate look on his face as Kurt dressed Azimio down like he was a misbehaving toddler.

"I don't know, man," he said. "I could have taken you, but this is kind of more fun to watch. Kurt's gonna tear you a new one."

Kurt nodded, poking his finger into Azimio's chest again. "Yes, while I do have better things to do with my time, I don't mind putting you in your place. Gaga knows I have over a year of slushies and swirlies and dumpster tosses to pay you back for."

Azimio smacked Kurt's hand down. "Don't touch me, faggot," he said darkly, then reached out himself. His hand was on Kurt's shoulder, and every student in the hallway knew what was going to happen now: Kurt Hummel was about to be slammed into the lockers. Hard.

Once again, the student population had something else coming to them: Dave had stepped forward while Kurt and Azimio had spoken, and now he grabbed Azimio's wrist in his hand, stilling the large boy's movement before he could shove Kurt.

"Get your hands off my boyfriend," Dave said in a low, dangerous voice. The three boys stood locked in a standoff, Azimio's fingers tightening steadily on Kurt's shoulder while Dave's tightened on Azimio's wrist. Kurt was just about to speak up (he was probably going to have a bruise in the shape of Azimio's hand on his shoulder by lunch) when Coach Sylvester walked by and calmly turned on her megaphone. A sharp electronic whine was their only warning before she lifted the megaphone to her mouth and screamed right at them, advancing down the hallway.

"Break it up, the three of you. There will be no violence in the halls today. Save it for practice. Adams, Karofsky, back off of Hummel. You hurt a Glee kid and Shuester won't shut up in the teachers' lounge, and I don't want to hear his whining any more than I want to pay my taxes." The crowd of students parted for the cheerleading coach as she reached the three boys, and she put down her megaphone. "You all right there, Porcelain?" she asked Kurt when Dave and Azimio had both stepped back. Kurt nodded.

"Yes, thank you, Coach Sylvester." He straightened his blazer with a huff. "You couldn't have arrived at a better time."

"So what's going on here?" She indicated the two jocks. "These two giving you trouble?"

"No, actually, it was just Azimio," Kurt said, glaring at the black boy. "He was harassing Dave."

"And you swooped in to save him like a knight in shining rainbow armor, did you now?" Coach Sylvester looked mildly amused at the notion.

Kurt laughed. "I did, yes, not that he needed it." He put a hand on Dave's arm. Dave instantly stepped closer to Kurt, standing protectively between him and Azimio. "Come on, Dave, let's go clean you up." The two of them started towards the bathrooms at the end of the hall. Coach Sylvester gave Azimio one last dispassionate look before also continuing on her way.

The black boy waited until she turned a corner to shout after Kurt and Dave's retreating backs, "Gonna get it on in the bathroom, homos?"

Kurt and Dave stopped, and Dave gave a long-suffering sigh. He looked at his boyfriend. "Do you wanna, or should I?"

Kurt smirked up at him. "I already started in on him earlier, so I might as well finish it, hmm?"

"Go for it," Dave said, grinning back. He turned to watch as Kurt marched back down the hallway, stepped right up to Azimio, and slapped him hard across the face. Kurt nodded at the jock's undignified yelp of pain, turned on his heel, and walked back to Dave. Together the two of them stepped into the boys' bathroom to clean Dave off.

-glee!-

"That," Dave said as he stripped off his letterman jacket and then his ruined T-shirt in the bathroom, "was awesome."

Kurt laughed lightly. "I haven't felt this good since I managed to fight off those five girls at H&M for the fall collection cardigan in medium forest green last year!"

Dave sniggered at that. "Only you could get into a fistfight with girls while shopping for clothes."

"Well, I take pride in my enthusiasm for fashion," Kurt said in a fake-snotty voice, turning around to afford Dave some privacy as he tried to clean himself of food-coloring stains. Or at least, so he would say if anyone asked why he wasn't looking at his boyfriend's naked chest. In fact Kurt just didn't want to get too... excited, at school; it was amazing what just looking at Dave could sometimes do to him.

"Damn it, there's no more paper towels..."

"I'll go over to the girls' room and steal some," Kurt said, hurrying out of the door and across the hallway. He stepped inside cautiously; no matter how out and proud he was, and therefore obviously uninterested in girls, not every girl in the school knew him, and he'd been shouted and beaten out of the girls' bathrooms before. As it turned out, though, this restroom was empty, so Kurt helped himself to a little stack of paper towels from the dispenser and turned to leave.

He was just at the door when he heard it – sniffling, in the last booth. He bit his lip, wanting to go back to Dave and help him clean off; but he couldn't just ignore the sad sounds of someone crying. He put the paper towels on the nearest sink and moved to push open the door of the toilet booth.

"Hey, are you – Rachel?"

Rachel Berry looked up from her hands, into which she was quietly crying. She was sitting on the closed toilet lid, clutching a wad of tissues to her face and trying to wipe away her tears.

"Kurt? Wha-what are you d-doing here?"

"I'm – never mind that, Rachel, what's wrong?" Kurt squeezed himself into the booth and knelt down next to his fellow Glee clubber.

"F-Finn broke up with me. For good, this time," Rachel sobbed. Kurt tensed; this was bad news for New Directions. It was debatable whether Quinn and Sam were the club's new leading couple, but Rachel and Finn were still extremely powerful performers, and they worked well together. If they were no longer an item, then things could get very awkward in rehearsals.

"Oh, Rachel, why?" Kurt focused on his friend, pushing his concern for the whole club aside for now.

"Be-because he found out that I made out w-with Puck after I found out that he slept with Santana last year." Rachel sniffed, looking up at Kurt. "Doesn't it c-cancel out, though?"

"Oh, Rachel..."

"I'm s-so stupid!" Rachel cried, tearing up again. "I can't believe I did that with Puck, I was just s-so hurt and I wanted to hurt him back –"

"Shhh, shhh," Kurt put his arms around Rachel, hugging her close. He rocked her a little, thinking of what to say. After a minute he stood up, leaning down to brush Rachel's bangs away from her red, blotchy face. "Rachel, I'll be right back, okay? Just sit tight for me for a minute, all right?"

Rachel nodded, and Kurt stepped out of the booth, collecting the paper towels he'd come for in the first place. He crossed the hall and entered the boys' bathroom, finding Dave at the sink, still shirtless, trying to wring out his slushy-stained T-shirt.

"There you are," Dave looked up, concerned. "I was beginning to think Azimio had gotten you or something."

"I'm sorry, Dave, it's just that I found Rachel crying in the girls' bathroom." Kurt handed Dave the paper towels and continued apologetically, "Will you be okay from here? I think she really needs some support right now."

Dave took the paper towels in one hand and cupped Kurt's face in the other. "Sure, babe. Go help your girlfriend. I'll just clean up and we'll catch up after school, okay?" Dave's truck was at the shop for a test, so Kurt had driven him to school that day.

"Thank you, Dave." Kurt smiled at his boyfriend and leaned in for a quick kiss before dashing out and into the girls' bathroom again. Rachel had collected herself enough to step out of the booth and wash her face at the sink; Kurt took it as a positive sign and reached for her hand.

"Come with me, Rachel. I know what to do."

-glee!-

Kurt led Rachel to the auditorium. Students stared at them as they walked through the halls, but Kurt sent most of them scurrying with his patented Back Off, Bitches glare. Rachel kept her head down and made an effort not to burst into tears again until they closed the doors of the auditorium after them.

"K-Kurt, what are we doing here?" she asked as Kurt led her up to the stage. He opened the piano cover and sat down at the bench, patting the space beside him. Rachel sat down next to him, hiccupping.

"We're here so you can let your emotions out. You're hurt and confused right now, and the best thing for you to do is to calm down. The only way for you to get back in control of yourself is to sing. It's what you do best, and it will make you feel better, if only for a little while. So go ahead –" he pointed to the microphone standing in the middle of the stage, "sing. Sing your heart out. I'll accompany you on piano."

Rachel sighed, breathing deep to calm her hiccups. She laid a hand on Kurt's shoulder. "Maybe you're right. Okay, I'll try." She stepped up to the mic and took a second to figure out which song best represented her emotions at that moment. She took one last deep breath, closed her eyes, and began to sing.

"Did I disappoint you, or let you down?
Should I be feeling guilty or let the judges frown?
'Cause I saw the end before we'd begun,
Yes I saw you were blinded and I knew I had won."

At the piano, Kurt began to play. The haunting piano tune of James Blunt's 'Goodbye My Lover' matched Rachel's feelings exactly.

"So I took what's mine by eternal right.
Took your soul out into the night.
It may be over but it won't stop there,
I am here for you if you'd only care."

Rachel took hold of the microphone, one hand wrapped around the stand and squeezing tight, as though it was the only thing keeping her from falling down.

"You touched my heart, you touched my soul.
You changed my life and all my goals.
And love is blind but that I knew when –
My heart was blinded by you.
I've kissed your lips and held your hand.
Shared your dreams and shared your bed.
I know you well, I know your smell.
I've been addicted to you.

"Goodbye my lover,
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one
You have been the one for me.

Goodbye my lover,
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one
You have been the one for me."

Kurt had never heard Rachel sing like this. There was a softness, a frailty to her voice, that he'd never heard before. Rachel was usually a powerful singer, belting out Broadway numbers for the entire world to witness her talent. But this... this was vulnerability. Rachel was hurting, and at this moment, only he was privy to her pain.

"I am a dreamer, and when I wake
You can't break my spirit – it's my dreams you take.
And as you move on, remember me.
Remember us and all we used to be.

"I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile.
I've watched you sleeping for a while.
I'd be the mother of your child...
I'd spend a lifetime with you.
I know your fears and you know mine.
We've had our doubts but now we're fine.
And I love you, I swear that's true.
I cannot live without you."

Kurt felt his heart break a little in his chest. It was strange that he felt so sympathetic for his once-enemy, but he'd long ago given up on Finn as a romantic interest, and any remaining hostility Kurt held for Rachel couldn't stand between the friendship they had built since she offered to sing 'Happy Days Are Here Again/Get Happy' with him after the duets competition.

"Goodbye my lover,
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one
You have been the one for me.

"Goodbye my lover,
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one
You have been the one for me."

Kurt hated the fact that he would have to see Finn that afternoon at home. He didn't quite know who's 'side' he was on, if there even were sides; Finn had lied to Rachel about sleeping with Santana, but Rachel had lied to him about not-sleeping with Jesse. Kurt knew that Rachel was really in the wrong, having made out with Puck while still technically in a relationship with Finn – but he understood her reasons. Hurt, even unintentionally inflicted, was a powerful motive for betrayal.

"And I still hold your hand in mine.
In mine when I'm asleep.
And I will bare my soul in time,
When I'm kneeling at your feet.
Goodbye my lover,
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one
You have been the one for me.

"Goodbye my lover,
Goodbye my friend.
You have been the one
You have been the one for me."

Rachel slowly crumpled onto the stage, taking the microphone stand with her; Kurt bit his lip and continued playing. True to her stubborn nature, Rachel kept on singing, even as she began to cry again.

"I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow.
I'm so, I'm so, I'm so hollow.
I'm so hollow, baby, I'm so hollow.
I'm so, I'm so, I'm so hollow..."

In respect for Rachel's strength in singing all the way to the end, Kurt continued to play too. By the time the last poignant note faded in the air, Rachel was crying in earnest. Kurt moved to the center of the stage and sat down beside her, hugging her close as she cried.

AN: whoo! Here we go with the sequel :) I've got a few chapters written but generally speaking, this is a WIP. Please bear with me. It's going in all sorts of directions right now. The main pairing is Kurt/Dave, but lots of other characters will be getting action, so enjoy! :D

Disclaimer: 'Goodbye My Lover' is © of James Blunt. I chose it for the sad piano tune and the melancholy words, the hopelessness in Blunt's voice, and I thought it could translate well to Rachel's vocal range and sense of the dramatic.