Audition

(Disclaimer: I don't own Glee.)

Another school year hit Kurt fast. One minute he was rushing Quinn to the hospital and finding out they didn't place at Regionals, and the next he was getting out of his car at William McKinley High School. To say he was dreading the school year to start was an understatement. Sure he'd get to see his friends, but he saw them over the summer. Really, the only thing he missed was glee. Glee was a place where he could sing and dance his feelings, and people actually seemed to care. During the summer, well he had vented to Mercedes a little more often than not.

The thing he wasn't looking forward to was the constant bullying. The people who made fun of him for his voice being too high, the fact that he liked boys instead of girls, and that he was in glee club. Everything that could get him made fun of, Kurt had to be a part of. He didn't understand why people were so mean, but that's the world he lived in. There were always going to be people who call him names or gave him disgusting, non-approving looks. The fact is…he doesn't care anymore.

Over the summer he grew taller, a couple inches he guessed. He lost some of the baby fat that he had left on his body, and got a new wardrobe. His voice hadn't changed, but he was sort of grateful that it hadn't. He had a countertenor voice; that was rare. He was very happy and ready to take the school year by storm. He was ready to work hard to get new members for glee. He was ready to be himself and not give a damn about what the haters were going to do or say. He was more than ready to show who Kurt Hummel was as a person.

This year was going to be different for him. He was going to fit in more, knowing that he had friends who would back him up in an instant. The main thing that he was looking forward to was to find "the one." Maybe, just maybe, there would be another gay guy at McKinley. They would find each other and fall in love. He was ready for that. He wanted to be like Finn and Quinn or Rachel and Jesse, minus the cheating and the egg throwing. He just wanted to walk down the hall holding someone's hand that was not Mercedes or Tina's; he wanted a male's hand.

It was a big shot, and he knew it, but that wouldn't stop him. He strutted into school, head held high; this was his year. He was going to demand more solos, find his true love, and confront the bullies. Nothing was going to put him down. He kept thinking that until he was spotted by Jacob and chased to the bathroom trying to shut the annoying boy up. He ended up having to go in the men's room for a quick breather. When he was ready and knew what he was going to say to the little creep, he pushed through the door.

"You know what Jacob?" Kurt asked as he stepped out of the bathroom to face the blogger. His anger fueled him. "It doesn't take much courage for people to park their cottage cheese behind their Barcaloungers and log onto the Internet and start tearing people down, does it? But you know what take some courage? Standing up and singing about something. Here's a message for everyone that reads your blog. Next time instead of posting an anonymous comment online, say what you have to say to my face."

A familiar icy chill hit Kurt suddenly like a bag of knives, and he immediately knew that he was slushied. Of course the ridiculous activity hadn't grown old over the summer. He was used to them, but did it have to happen right now?

"Welcome back, Lady!" Azimo yelled, laughing as he and the rest of the jocks strolled by. The Neanderthals high-fived each other and celebrated their victory, even if Kurt wasn't playing.

"I don't suppose there's any way you could just cut out that last part, is there?" Kurt asked after wiping some of his face clean of the icy substance. Jacob shook his head, reaching forward to pick some slushie off of Kurt's jacket and putting it in his mouth. Kurt walked away, leaving the strange boy to his camera.

Maybe doing everything he said he was going to do was an ambitious thought. He got to his locker and pulled out his spare change of clothes. He found Mercedes and Tina on the way, and they hurried him to the bathroom far away from the one he just came from. He had started leaving a change of clothing in his locker when he'd been introduced to slushie facials freshman year.

"You would think that they would get tired of this," Mercedes said with a sigh. They had his leaned over the sink as they washed his hair out.

"They'll never get over it, Mercedes," Kurt said closing his eyes tightly closed. "They will always be idiots and only care for themselves. All I care about is the clothes they might ruin with this ridiculous drink."

"Well if anyone can get rid of the slushie stains it's you," Tina tried, her voice sounding hopeful. "I just can't believe that they did it the first day of school. Like, grow up."

"No, it's how they entertain each other you guys. They will never stop making my life a living hell. I just want these to years to go by as quickly as possible so I can get out of here."

"You'll miss us too much though," Mercedes teased, taking paper towels to dry his hair after they finished. "Who's going to wash the slushie out of your hair?"

Kurt smiled as he turned to the two girls. "I'll miss you two incredibly much. It's still two years, so we have that time to be fabulous together."

"Amen to that," Mercedes smiled.

Kurt changed quickly, because the time was running out before their first class. He emerged from the stalls with a renewed smile. "Thank you guys for the help. I don't know what I would do without you."

"Walk around with red dye in your hair all day," Tina supplied with a smile.

"I'm feeling a hug coming on," Mercedes said holding out her hands. "Let's promise that we will always be there for each other this year. In times of need, we are only a call away."

Kurt smiled and he wrapped one arm around Tina and the other around Mercedes. "What would I do without my lovely ladies? I promise."

"I promise," Tina giggled.

They pulled away and left the bathroom. Kurt didn't have his first hour with the two of them, so they separated with goodbyes. The little chat gave Kurt a new pep in his step. Sure, he was slushied, but it wasn't as bad as it seemed. It was just a slight bump in the year of Kurt Hummel.

-1-

Blaine Anderson stood in front of his mirror the first day of school with his head tilted to the side. He was used to wearing the Dalton uniform. It gave him comfort, and he felt safe with it on. After everything that happened two years ago, and then spending the summer with his father trying to "spend quality time" with him, it was nice to feel safe again. Dalton made sure he could be whom he truly was; it was his savior.

The year before was strange and new. He transferred to Dalton for his freshman year, and starting a new school for high school was scary. The first couple days were hard for him to open up and talk to the other boys. After the incident, it was hard to trust other people. He was terrified that if they found out he was gay, the bullying would start once again. Hearing about Dalton from his mom and dad made it sound sort of too good to be true, so he assumed it would be like a prison. Wow was he wrong. Everything changed when he found the Warblers.

He had walked into the study commons to try and make sense of the stuff he was taught that day. It was a little hard to do when the room was occupied with many guys. No one seemed to notice him, but there wasn't a table in sight, so Blaine tried to slip out unnoticed. That was when several of the boys started to harmonize together. He was so surprised that he didn't realize that he was sitting down on the couch to watch them in awe. He couldn't help but smile because it looked like a lot of fun.

When the boys were done, Blaine stood and clapped, but he was the only one who did so. They turned to him with smiling faces, and Blaine was introduced to Wes, David, Nick, and Thad. They sort of took him under their wings. After many comments about joining, Blaine finally took the plunge and audition to be in their group called 'The Warblers.' He couldn't believe it when he got in. All the boys were incredibly nice and when Blaine finally told them that he was gay, they didn't seem to have a problem with it. He even found out that a few of the Warblers played for his team. It was a nice feeling that he could be himself without worrying how others would react.

Having friends helped him get through the year. At his old school, he hadn't had very many. He ended up fitting right in. Singing became one of his favorite things to do, and performing became his passion. He was very critical on himself though. He never sang a solo or anything, never even auditioned. They had a regular soloist who performed at every performance, but he graduated at the end of the year. The announcement of auditions for a lead soloist sent the group into an excited mess. It was everyone's dream.

Blaine wasn't that concerned though. He was content with singing in the background, but Nick and Trent were trying to talk him into trying out. He just didn't know. Did he have a good enough voice to win the Warblers a competition? It was scary that it could all rely on him, but the idea of being the lead was very intriguing.

"You look fine, Blaine," Nick groaned as he snapped him back to reality. "I swear you take forever to get ready. It's a blazer, not much you can do with it."

Blaine rolled his eyes as he smoothed down his jacket again. "I'm making sure everything is nice and clean. You never know whom you might meet. New school year, new faces. You always want to dress to impress."

"Please don't make me barf. That's just what I need for you to get a boyfriend, and then he'll never leave. We already have Jeff. I swear if I ever walk in and you are in bed with another man, I will ask for a new roommate."

A laugh escaped Blaine's lips as he grabbed his bag from the chair in their room. "If this is what rooming with you is going to be like, I'll move back in with Trent. At least he was nice to me."

They both laughed as they headed out into the hall. "You love me, Blaine and you know it. I'm just kidding, you know. Now let's talk about Warbler practice. They are requesting that everyone who wants to audition for the lead needs to perform a solo. Please tell me that you are going to speak up and audition? I know you want it. No, don't deny it."

"Nick," Blaine sighed, reaching up to run a free hand over his gelled curls self-consciously. "I just don't know about it. I mean, it's a big step to take, going from swaying and harmonizing in the background to the main performer. They probably won't even consider me. I'm not as good as everyone else."

"Have you heard yourself?" Nick asked in disbelief. "I know that you are a little dubious on this big step, but trust me when I promise that you have a talent, a talent that you are wasting by humming in the background. Riley is gone. The council is looking and expecting to find someone who is beyond amazing. Maybe even better than Ry, and I know that person: you."

"I just," he started, looking down at his shoes. "What if they do pick me? I'm going to be the leader of the Warblers. I don't know the first thing about leading anything. They are going to expect me to be this confident guy-"

"Didn't you look into the mirror this morning? You are one of the most confident guys I know, Blaine. You've changed so much in the past year. If you asked me last year, I wouldn't say that, but it's been a whole year. You aren't alone in this. We love you, all of us Warblers. Don't worry about messing up because we will be right there behind you, backing you up. We will be with you through everything." Blaine looked intrigued. "So, does this mean that we can count on you to tryout?"

Blaine looked at him before sighing in defeat. He really wanted to try. What was the harm? "Fine, I'll do it, but if they laugh in my face, I'll put spiders in your bed and tape you screaming like a little girl."

"Deal," Nick agreed before turning to walk down the next hall heading towards his first class. He spun around before entering his class. "Don't worry, Blainey! You'll do amazing, and I'd probably be thinking about a good song to sing. See you after class."

"Bye Nick," he mumbled under his breath before turning to continue on his way. One day he was going to get that boy back. He was nervous about trying out, but maybe this was the start of something new and good? He could do this.

-2-

"Can you believe that Nationals are in New York?" Kurt asked as him, Mercedes, Tina, Quinn, Brittany and Santana looked around the mall for outfits to perform in the next day. "This is going to be amazing. I swear if we don't make it I will go into a serious depression. Vocal Adrenaline doesn't have Jesse this year. We've got a real chance."

"Oh, we will make it," Santana said, something catching her eye. "As long as Frankenteen and the Hobbit keep their mouths closed. The duet they sang last year was so horrible; it's no wonder why we lost. It's always the same thing, over and over and over."

"I didn't think it was that bad," Tina disagreed, looking at the girl as they went through racks of clothes. "It was sorta sweet the way they oozed out love. I think everyone felt it."

"Oh please, excuse me while I barf. What they did was disgusting and just plain boring. Now if lets say Puckerman and I got a solo, we would have been going to Nationals, but no. Mr. Schue doesn't like to showcase everyone else. Everything revolves around Berry and her annoying voice." Santana shot a glare to Tina, warning her against arguing.

"Santana's right," Kurt complied, looking around at his friends. "They had to be a big part of the reason we lost. The group numbers were amazing. Finn and Rachel's duet was mediocre. I've seen it millions of times." He passed a shirt that stood out. "What about this?"

The girls looked up to the shirt he held out. "That is like perfect," Quinn said smiling as she walked over to the rack they were on. "And they have a whole bunch of sizes. It definitely gets our point across, New York City."

As they picked out all the sizes they needed Santana spoke again, "All I'm saying is that it's not going to be the Rachel Berry show like it was last year. I'm ready for new solos in the group, mostly me. My voice was very underappreciated last year."

"And mine," Kurt piped in, grabbing a shirt in his size, as well as Rachel's. "I think all of our voices go unappreciated with Rachel around. I mean the solos we had last year added up don't even come close to Rachel's."

"Exactly," Santana said scowling. "Now if we all stick together, I bet we will be able to stand up against the Hobbit and Mr. Schue, then we can demand more solos."

Everyone shook their heads before Tina spoke, "I wouldn't mind a couple solos."

"All of us need some," Kurt agreed as they finished raiding the rack. "I'm okay sharing the spotlight if it's with you girls."

"Amen, now what about pants?" Mercedes asked changing the subject, looking around the store. "Since the shirts are black we should probably get pants that are the same color."

"That's racist," Brittany said, looking at Mercedes and shaking her head. "Just because you are black, Mercedes doesn't mean you can make fun of your own kind. It's mean and rude."

"What?" Mercedes said, cocking her head to the side and staring at the strange blonde in confusion. Kurt shook his head. Sometimes it was just best to ignore her.

"Anyway," Quinn said, getting everyone back on track. "Pants. Maybe some of these?" She held up sweats and showed them to the group. "They might give us a thug look. People like thugs right?"

They all shared a laugh and agreed on the pants, again getting the group's sizes. Kurt grabbed a black skirt for Rachel, knowing that she would rather have that then the pants. "Now we need accessories," Tina said, making her way to the section finding jewelry, sunglasses, fingerless gloves, belts, shoes and hats. It wasn't long before they had everything they needed.

After saying goodbye to they other girls, Kurt and Mercedes headed for his car. "You know that this year is going to be different right?" she asked, smiling.

"Oh yeah," he agreed as they jumped into his car. "I'm ready to be myself one hundred percent and show everyone how proud I am. I have awesome friends to back me up if I need them to."

"Aw, boo," she cooed, reaching over to take his hand. "If you weren't gay I would so snatch you up." They both laughed and Kurt pulled out of the mall parking lot.

"Oh please don't make another scene like you did last year. I love my baby. I don't think I could just stand and watch you throw another rock and bust my window again."

They giggled together and she leaned over to kissed his cheek. "Never again. Besides I want a man who will love me back. Not that you don't love me, but I need physical contact."

Kurt scrunched his nose, shaking his head. "I don't need that picture. Please keep your mental images to yourself. That would be appreciated."

He loved joking with her; they were best friends after all. The rest of the drive was filled with the radio blaring and them screaming along to the most ridiculous songs at the top of their lungs. "Bye, boo. Call me tomorrow morning with your outfit decision so we don't clash."

"All right," Kurt said as she hopped out of the car. He smiled as he realized that they sounded like a couple. If he couldn't find anyone, he'd be happy with just being with his best friend. They always had fun together.

-3-

Blaine sat on the couch before Warbler practice started, shaking like he had some disease. His stomach was turning and his palms were sweaty. Oh man, he was going to be sick. He had never been this nervous before. Why did he put himself through this? "You look like crap," a voice chirped in his ear.

He turned to see Jeff smirking at him, eyes sparkling with amusement. "Shut up. It's you and Nick's fault that I'm like this. I don't know if I should audition today. What if I make a fool out of myself? I won't be able to live that down!"

"Blaine, you are amazing," Trent piped in, sitting down next to him, rubbing his shoulders. "Stop worrying about what everyone is going to think. Just be yourself and you'll be completely fine."

"How do you know I'm going to be so marvelous?" he asked, throwing his hands up as doubt crept up through him. "You all have never heard me sing ever. I could be horrible for all you know."

"Well, we are taking Nick's word for it," Jeff answered without hesitation, flopping down almost on top of him. "If it's anything like your dancing, it should be amazing. You are a talented guy."

"You guys are trying to give me a pep talk, but it's not really working. I'm still so nervous. Oh god, here comes the council. They are going to tear me apart. It's not too late. I can back down. It's decided, I'm not performing."

"You see as they have tears in their eyes after your amazing performance," Nick answered, sitting down as Wes, David and Thad sat down in their seats. It gave Blaine enough time to give Nick a glare. "You are performing whether you like it or not."

"All right everyone," David said, getting all the boys to quiet down. Everyone turned their attention to the three at the head of the room. "Now we have important business to attend to today. As you all know, Riley, our soloist last year, graduated. We are in search, in our talented group of men, for a new one. Do we have any takers?"

A couple of hands rose, and Trent forced Blaine's up as well. "Alright, we have many auditions to hear today, so why doesn't Cameron go first." They listened as the boy stood and performed, receiving a round of applause after him. The rest of the afternoon went like that and Blaine couldn't help but notice that they weren't as good or even close to Riley. His nerves died down a bit.

"Now, finally we have Warbler Blaine," Thad said, smiling. "Take the floor whenever you are ready."

Blaine took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he stood up. His nerves returned instantly. This was it. He took a few deep breaths before singing. He put everything he had into his performance, letting his voice soar through the room. He saw Trent's jaw fall and Jeff and Nick high-fived. After he finished, everyone was silent until Jeff and Trent jumped up rooting and whistling. Suddenly, his confidence soared. It felt good, great actually. He turned to face the council. He was surprised to see that they had the look of shock on their faces as they took him in. Maybe he could do this?

"Thank you, Blaine," Wes said smiling and slamming his gavel down. "We will let you all know who got the soloist part by the end of the week. Practice is dismissed."

Blaine smiled as his friends grabbed him by his shoulder and led him out of the room. They were congratulating him and telling him he had it in the bag. Blaine couldn't help but feel that this could be the start of the next chapter in his life. He had great and supportive friends, and hopefully the soloist part for the rest of the year and possibly the next. Now he just had to wait it out.

-4-

"Do you think you can help me with the piano?" Mercedes asked Kurt a couple days later. "I have been wanting to do this song, but I would really like to learn how to play the piano if it's not to much to ask."

He smiled and led her into the choir room during their free period, sitting her down. He wasn't the best player, but he still knew his way around the keys. He showed her some of the most common keys and as he was doing a simple melody they got distracted, Kurt's choice of clothing distracted Mercedes.

He smiled up at her as she asked, "So is that a man's sweater?"

The sweater had a girl on it, and Kurt had to purchase it when he saw it the previous weekend. It may have been in the woman's section, but he didn't care. It was still fashion, so that's all that mattered.

"Fashion has no gender," Kurt immediately responded and she nodded. Kurt loved fashion, almost as much as he love singing and performing. Before they could continue with the lesson, Rachel hurried in and shut the door over the keys, smiling at them.

"Ladies, we have a problem," she declared having their full attention. Kurt and Mercedes shared an annoyed look, but Rachel continued oblivious. "There's a new student at this school named Sunshine, who is a Filipino and is shorter than me, which I didn't think was possible and is very unnerving."

"Okay," Mercedes started looking away, Rachel's antics confusing and really just annoying. "So, I'm gonna go now."

"Wait!" she called, holding up her hand so they would listen. Mercedes turned around giving the girl another chance. "And she has a remarkable voice." Kurt and Mercedes were still confused. "Just, I'm very worried. Not for myself, but for my lesser glee clubbers who don't get as many solos."

All at once Kurt understood what was happening. A girl was better than Rachel and that threatened her, so she made up this fake crap trying to clam it was because of them. He looked at Mercedes and the look on her face said that she figured it out as well.

"So, I've paid one hundred dollars to Azimo and Karofsky to brutally slushie us in front of Sunshine's locker, terrifying her and assuring she doesn't sign up." She paused, and Kurt could not believe what he had just heard. He shouldn't be surprised though. This was Rachel. "Okay, so this is the part where you are suppose to be hugging me and thanking me-"

"That's awful," Mercedes cut her off. "You're awful."

"But solos, I mean-"

"Look Rachel," Kurt said, getting the girl to shut up as he stood. "Mercedes and I are about as self absolved as they come, but more than anything, we want to beat Vocal Adrenaline. And if there is someone at this school who can help us do that, they're in."

Rachel looked down before shooting her head up quickly. "You know what?" she asked, waiting for a dramatic pause. Kurt held his breath scared what was going to come out of the girl. "You two are right. It's just so like me to be totally blinded by my concern for the two of you. I-I'll go and talk to Sunshine now and just let her know how truly welcome she really is. Thanks." And then she walked away, leaving Kurt and Mercedes staring after her."

"What?" Kurt mouthed to her, until Rachel was gone. "She's gone completely insane. And plus, you and I know that she will be doing nothing of that sort. That poor girl."

Mercedes shook her head as they sat back down at the piano. "She is absolutely crazy and selfish. That's saying something coming from me. How Finn stands her is beyond me."

"Amen to that," Kurt said smiling. "Now back to the piano." She sighed and listened as Kurt explained the notes for a second time.

-5-

"Hey Blaine!" Jeff called after him on Friday afternoon. Blaine raised an eyebrow as he waited for the blonde to catch up with him. "Did you hear? The council called an emergency meeting."

"Wait, why?" he asked, as they started walking towards the Warbler common. "I hope it's nothing bad, or maybe it's an impromptu performance somewhere on campus. They always like to spring those on us."

"Maybe they decided on our new soloist?" Jeff suggested. "Not that they had much to think about. It's obviously going to be you. No one even came close."

"You are so sure, but what if it isn't me?" he asked, chewing on his bottom lip. The doubt was still there. "Maybe they thought I was too young. I am only a sophomore. It's better to have someone more experienced."

"Oh, please," Jeff said rolling his eyes. "They can't deny talent when it's right in front of them. No matter what grade you are in, you are way more talented than everyone else in the club. Stop trying to dismiss the fact that you are awesome! You are getting it."

"Stop making me blush." They hurried into the room and sat down, obviously the last ones to show up.

"Now that we are all here," David said looking at all the boys. "We have an important announcement to make."

"After reviewing and talking it out with each other," Thad told them smiling. "We have decided on who we want for our new soloist."

There was a dramatic pause, and Blaine felt his heart beating out of his chest in anticipation. "Okay, enough with the anticipation," Wes joked, smiling. "Congratulations, Warbler Blaine!"

He didn't think he heard him right, but before he could say anything Trent and Jeff tackled him into the couch. The others followed after until he couldn't breathe on the bottom of the Warbler pile.

"Thanks guys," he called to all of them, pushing the boys away after a little while. "This is a dream come true. I don't know what else to say."

"Well we are glad that you decided on joining the Warblers and trying out," Thad said with a smile. "It's not everyday that you run into such a talented guy like you."

"You know what?" Blaine asked standing up. "I think we have a real chance at Nationals this year if we try really hard. I promise to do the best that I am capable of to get us there."

After the okay from Wes, the group spent the rest of their Friday night with pizzas and music. It was fun to just hang out with his friends. Now that he was the soloist for the Warblers, he would have to step it up, but he was willing to do that. This year was going to be a good one and he knew it. He couldn't wait to see what awaited him in the future.

-6-

"I can not believe her," Mercedes said as they watch Sunshine walk out of school with Vocal Adrenaline's coach. "All Rachel Berry cares about is herself."

"She pretty much screwed us all over," Kurt muttered, rolling his eyes. "Vocal Adrenaline has Sunshine. We all saw how talented she was yesterday. They are going to beat us whenever perform against them. All because of her."

"Look how upset Mr. Schue is," she said nodding her head over to their teacher and how he looked defeated. "I just don't know how someone can be so self-centered."

Kurt sighed, rolling his eyes. He was just irritated. "That's saying something because I love myself, but I would never do something to make it hard on glee. We already are at the bottom. It's sorta the only good thing in my life."

"But look, it's Rachel we are talking about, Miss Know-It-All. Are we really shocked about her doing something like this?"

"Absolutely not," Kurt answered shaking his head. "We should get to glee. I'm sure everyone is just as peachy about this as we are."

"I hope that is sarcasm I hear?" she joked and they started for the choir room. "All I know is that glee better not be like this the rest of the year. I don't know if I'll be able to handle her. They are going to skin her, and I'll provide the tools."

Kurt snorted walking into the room, Mercedes following behind him. He started to dance with Mike after that, having a pretty great time giving their situation. Rachel wasn't there, and everyone was trying to be upbeat about the whole situation. It was just really nice to be with them. He couldn't help but hope that the rest of the year was just like this.