A.N: So this is it! I want to thank to EVERYONE who's been following this for the past six months. When I started writing this fic, I never expected it was going to be so welcomed. It was not my first fic, but it was my first in the Glee fandom and I have to say I enjoyed a lot making so many amazing friends, and meeting so beautiful people.

I'm sorry for posting this late, not on Sunday as I should. I could have done it earlier, before going to work, but I would have to do it rushedly and I wanted to at least, have the time to write a proper "Thanks" to everyone who's been so supportive with me, with my poor English, with this insanely long chapters and with this stubborn Puck that waited 28 chapters to tell Kurt he loved him.

A.N2: I know I promised a fanmix, I'm working on that. Not to make excuses, but I've got this new job that is driving me insane. Plus, I'm on college and I'm writing a thesis, aside of having my finals. I always tried to do my best not to let work, studies or life mess with the fic but it's getting hard right now.

A.N.3: So once again, thanks to all of you, guys! To Claire who betaed most of this fic, to Takachu who took care of it when Claire couldn't, and everyone who took the time to read this crazy huge fic. My intention was only to entertain you all, so knowing I've done that, makes me feel more than achieved.

A.N4: Enjoy!

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Day 572

Earlier in his life, Kurt thought of Prom as this extraordinary event in every teenager's life. But Kurt had had enough of this particular event last year when he was crowned Prom Queen. He had no intention to go to Senior Prom, but everyone insisted he had to go, so here he is, waiting for Carole and his father, who are looking for a camera while Kurt just wants to leave. The sooner he gets started with this, the sooner it will be over.

And he doesn't plan to stay too late.

"C'mon, bro. It won't be that bad," Finn tells him, when he sees Kurt with his arms crossed over his chest and tapping his foot.

"There's nothing as tacky as prom. Do you know the worst feedback any fashion designer can get? It's that their dresses look like prom. Oh, my, just let me," Kurt steps closer to his brother since he's been watching him try to get his bowtie right for the last five minutes.

"I don't get it. Are you pissed at the dresses that the girls are going to wear or about prom?" Finn asks.

"It's all the same. It's just a big fest of bad fashion and teens trying to get wasted on beverages with no alcohol."

"It's Senior Prom, Kurt. Don't be so bitter."

Kurt shrugs. "I'm not bitter."

"Is it because you're going alone? We're not leaving you alone, you know?"

Kurt rolls his eyes. "I don't mind going alone, Finn. I actually think it would be much worse to go with a date, if I had a boy to go with, I'd get terrible stares, and if I went with my girlfriends I'd be the pathetic gay kid that got a pity date with a girl since I couldn't manage to get a date with a person of interest to me."

"Err… what?"

Kurt sighs, tiredly. "If you didn't have Rachel now, and you didn't have a date, would you feel comfortable going to prom with Puckerman, or Sam, or Artie as your date?"

Finn frowns. "If I didn't have Rachel, I would get some other girl."

"Hypothetically, Finn. I'm not doubting of your skills to get a date," Kurt explains, half annoyed. "If you didn't find a girl to go with, would you go with a guy?"

"No."

"Then why should I go with a girl?"

"'Cause girls are your friends."

"And the guys are your friends as well, and surely you'll have a great time talking about action movies and sports, and eating some junk food with no manners, but you still wouldn't go with them, right?"

"I guess."

"Done," Kurt announces, finished with the mess that Finn had made of his bowtie.

"Aw, you two look so gorgeous!" Carole squeaks, walking down the stairs and already flashing a picture of them. "Finn, you need to ask Rachel to send you the pictures her parents take of you two."

"Yeah, mom."

Carole and his father make Finn and Kurt stand together side by side for the next ten minutes, taking a ridiculous amount of pictures. His father looks just alright, but Carole has never been so ecstatic. She's told Kurt that, unlike last year's prom, this one is special because it's their last year of high school, and she even wept a little, more than once, saying things like 'time flies by,' or 'you're growing so fast!'.

"Mom, I need to go to Rachel's," Finn tells her, obviously as sick of pictures as Kurt is.

"Oh, right. Sorry, sorry," Carole says, giving her son a tight hug. "Have fun, alright? I love you lots."

Finn says goodbye to Burt and his mother, and tells Kurt they'll see each other in a few, since Kurt is not leaving with Finn –the last thing Kurt wants is to be the third wheel of Finn and Rachel. Once he's left alone with Carole and his dad, Carole snaps another picture of him.

"Carole, I really appreciate how you want to document my fabulous Dior tux for the future, but don't you think you've got too many pictures?"

Carole lets out a dreamy sigh. "You look so handsome, Kurt. And this is your last prom ever. I wish I could get a picture of you with a date, you know?"

Kurt quirks an eyebrow. "Well, I'm sorry I couldn't get a date," he says, not knowing if he should feel offended. Of course there's a certain boyfriend that could be getting a picture with Kurt, but Kurt wouldn't let Puck do that.

"I know, honey. But think about it… Wouldn't it be lovely to have a picture of you and, I don't know, a boyfriend, the two of you dressed up for prom and-"

"Carole, please," Burt intercedes dryly.

"Stop being so grumpy, Burt," Carole replies. "Well, I'm going to start making dinner, since after all this it got a bit late. You come say goodbye before leaving, okay?"

"Sure," Kurt assures, being left alone with his father who's staring at him grumpily and has his arms crossed over his chest.

There's a reason his father is grumpy and that's because of Kurt's plans after prom. A friend of Mrs. Puckerman from work went on a trip and asked her if she could watch her house and feed her cat as often as she could during the two weeks of her trip. Said friend also knows Puck –and thankfully she met him after his stay in juvie, so she only knows the good behaved Puck and not his former delinquent self– and said that he was also welcome in the house, as long as he fed the cat. And since Mrs. Puckerman is working a lot, it's usually Puck who goes to feed Whiskies almost every day.

So, while most students go bowling or something after prom, Kurt is going to continue his night solely with Puck. They are going to spend the night at Mrs. Puckerman's friend's house, and Kurt did tell his father this.

His dad was obviously not thrilled about it, but he and Puck have been dating for over a year and a half, and they are also moving to New York together within the next two months. In addition, Kurt's eighteen years old, so he thinks he's old enough to spend the night with his boyfriend, for the supposedly first time. Kurt told his father this, and his dad couldn't argue much.

"So you're still staying with Puckerman tonight?" Burt asks, huffily.

"Yes, dad. I'm staying over at my friend's house. The same one I tutor for Math. I told you," Kurt replies loudly, since Carole is right in the kitchen and his father is not exactly being subtle.

"You know what I think about that."

"Yes, dad. But we talked about this already so I guess you'll understand that I'm not changing my mind. And I should get going now. I'll see you tomorrow," he says, grabbing the keys of his SUV and kissing his dad on the cheek.

"I'm not going to say have fun."

Kurt snorts. "I didn't expect you to."

He kisses Carole goodbye as well, and then leaves the house.

Half and hour later Kurt finds himself in a very similar place to the one he was in a year ago. Principal Figgins is, as usual, willing to spend as little money as he can, so all the decoration are from the previous prom, and Kurt figures they're going to be used for the next one as well.

The Glee club is, yet again, performing, but Kurt has no songs to sing, and neither does Puck this year, so Kurt doesn't have much in mind other than showing off his perfect Dior black tux. He's obviously the only one with so much fashion, and more than surely he's the only one wearing designer clothes.

Unlike the last year, Kurt's outfit is very simple and elegant. Classic tux will always be trendy. He's not wearing a bowtie but a slim black tie, and he feels dressed to win an Academy Awards.

Kurt hangs around with his girlfriends for a little while. Everyone is extremely excited, and to look excited as well Kurt keeps in mind the incredible night he's going to spend with his boyfriend. Puck and Kurt already dropped by Mrs. Puckerman's friend's apartment yesterday, to leave some food and clothes and all the things they could need to have an awesome night.

With that in mind, it comes out more natural when he says, "Oh, this night is going to be incredible!"

Artie is the first one singing on the stage, and everyone starts dancing. Quinn looks nervous, since it's her last chance to become Prom Queen, and she immediately takes Sam to the dance floor to show themselves off a little.

"She'd better win this year, or she's going to have a nervous breakdown," Mercedes points out, as they watch her and Sam dancing.

"Well, I had to resign to be Prom Queen for her," Rachel states, sounding disappointed. "I really think that Finn and I could have had a chance this year. Thankfully, Finn didn't mind not to running for Prom King so he wouldn't interfere in their campaign."

Kurt and Mercedes exchange a quick glance, since Rachel is delusional. Finn could get crowned, but Rachel? Prom Queen? No one in the Glee club ran for Prom King and Queen. Not even Santana, and it had been hard to talk her out of the running. It wasn't so bad in the end, since everyone knows that, deep inside, being Prom Queen is not as important to anyone as it is to Quinn.

"As the current elected Prom Queen, I can assure to you that it's not a big deal," Kurt points out. "But I get where she's coming from."

Rachel takes Mercedes to the dance floor and Kurt rolls his eyes. Where are their men? The romantic activity of this year has been equal to the that of a cheap afternoon soap opera.

Rachel and Finn broke up and got back together again almost every week, even Sam and Quinn went through a 'time alone' period. During the course of the year, Mercedes proved that she could be quite a heart-breaker and got two different boyfriends. Her date tonight is her new and third boy, a guy who transferred during their senior year who's quite handsome and popular.

Kurt thinks that they could totally win Prom Queen and King if they were running for it.

Santana finally grew the ovaries she needed to come out and date Britt publically, and even if people gave him hard time –you couldn't expect different from McKinley's students– she certainly faced every single person who dared to say anything to them with her scary Lima Heights attitude. Eventually, people stopped bothering them, at least to their faces, just to avoid a confrontation with the Latina.

Obviously, this new couple meant that Artie lost his beloved girlfriend, but as time went by he stopped pining after Brittany, and now he's even happy for the two girls. Deep inside, everyone knew the two of them were meant to happen, or at least everyone in the Glee club thought so.

Mike and Tina are probably the only ones who remain with a perfect relationship, along with Puck and Kurt, but no one knows about them.

Speaking of the devil, Kurt can't spot Puck anywhere. Hopefully he's not getting himself in trouble. Kurt sees Finn and Mercedes's new boyfriend talking at one side of the dance floor and walks towards them.

"Oh, here are the gentlemen. Probably talking about football while their girlfriends are dancing with each other due to the absence of their men."

They both blink at him.

"We were just saying that that girl in red is almost undressing Artie with her eyes," Finn says, pointing at a cute girl in a quite okay red dress, standing in front of the stage, not taking her eyes off Artie.

Kurt smiles to himself. Apparently everyone is going to have a happy ending tonight. "It doesn't change the fact that you're ditching your girlfriends. Go dance with them."

"But dude, you're going to be alone. Everyone's dancing with someone," Finn tells him, almost sounding wretched.

Kurt rolls his eyes. "I was alone when Rachel and Mercedes went to the dance floor, Finn. I'm not a kid, I don't need people around constantly, and I think my girlfriends are going to be upset if you don't dance with them just because you're keeping me company."

"Puck's arrived," Mercedes's boyfriend announces. "How come he comes alone, man? He's banging like, all the cougars in town."

Kurt laughs inside. "I think it would be very sad for any women above their twenties to come to a high school prom as the date of an eighteen year old boy."

Kurt turns around and watches Puck walking among the people and sitting at an empty table. He twitches his face in disgust as he sees Puck drinking a glass of something that someone left on the table, but Puck doesn't seem too bothered by that. Instead, he keeps the glass as he watches Artie perform.

"I guess you're right," Finn says.

"You go with your girls. I'm going to say hello to Puckerman," Kurt tells them, since he really wants to do that. Puck looks very nice tonight, in a black suit and a dark red shirt. Kurt's the luckiest guy in this whole place.

"What, no, Kurt," Finn states with pleading eyes.

"Why not? Can't I greet my fellow Gleemate? I thought you didn't want me to be alone. He's alone as well, and I'm just going to say hi."

"Last week Mercedes had to stop you from throwing your notepad at him after you started fighting over Lady Gaga, yet again. He didn't know who the chick was, okay? And the week before we had to keep you both from jumping at each other after arguing about the feathers you suggested for our costumes for Nationals. I seriously thought you were going to fight, like, for real."

Okay, Finn has a point. They are really getting a bit carried away with their staged fights.

"Finn, we're both adults, and while we do have our little disagreements, we can say hi to one another without trying to rip each other's heads off."

Finn looks worried and Kurt can't blame him. He even feels a little guilty, but thankfully Rachel and Mercedes show up and literally drag their respective boyfriends to the dance floor. Kurt grins and starts heading to Puck's table.

"Looking hot, Puckerman," Kurt says, sitting down across from his secret boyfriend. The music is loud and no one is paying attention to them enough to hear what they're saying.

Puck looks up, smirking at Kurt. "Could say the same about you."

They clap as Artie finishes his song and Santana comes on stage with Tina for the next performance. Another dance song that everyone dances along to.

"Remember all that anniversary shit?" Puck asks him, in a low but audible voice.

"What about it?"

"A year ago, we were getting crowned Prom King and Queen," Puck states, with a grin. "People sucked, but depending how look at it, we actually became the couple that ruled this school. If we were out, we'd totally rule this shit for real."

Kurt tilts his head, considering it. "I guess. But thankfully school will be over within three weeks. We still have Nationals to win, and I truly believe we'll win this time, so I don't really care what these countrified rubes think about me."

Puck laughs. "You and your weird words. I say we blow this joint and go straight to our prom night together, just the two of us, as it's supposed to be."

For the love of Dior, Kurt wishes they could just do that. "We can't disappear from here right now. The party just started."

"So? You don't have a date, and I don't have one either since we're each other's secret dates," Puck reasons. "So, as your date, I wanna fool around with you some. Can't do it here, so we'd better go somewhere where we can. We have all night for ourselves, Kurt. We don't get a chance like this very often; a place where we can stay the whole night and not worry about having to dress before leaving the bedroom… Why waste time here?"

Kurt laughs. "You just want to go to the apartment to play with Whiskies," he mocks his boyfriend.

He always guessed that Puck was the kind of guy who loved dogs and hated cats, but Kurt has seen Puck really enjoying playing with the cat.

"Dude, that cat's rad. He chased a bird the other day, and caught it! And then he brought it to the house. Freaking insane. I think I'm gonna tell my ma's friend he ran away and take him home with me. But I'm totally changing his name to Shotgun or Tank or something more manly than Whiskies."

"The things I have to hear… and don't call me dude, I've told you that like a billion times already. Oh, and by the way, my dad is still not happy about tonight, but, well…"

Puck is the one laughing now. "I seriously think he stills believes you're a virgin. So he probably thinks I'm taking your big V tonight." Kurt nods, agreeing with Puck. "If he only knew that far from being a virgin, his son is all crazy in bed."

Kurt blushes furiously. "Stop being so crude for once!"

People start clapping and they immediately clap along, noticing that Santana and Tina's song has just ended. Quinn and Sam are next; Quinn asked Mr. Schuester if they could perform a slow love song, since that could help their campaign. Kurt actually thought it was a good move: singing a love song together in public so others can dance all cozy while they show themselves as a happy and in love couple.

"Hey!"

They both turn around to find Finn and Rachel standing next to them. Obviously they are checking on them, just to see that they're not trying to kill each other.

"Sup, Hudson. Berry," Puck greets, and Rachel waves her hand at him.

"Kurt, want to come with us? We're going to grab something to drink."

Kurt can see how Rachel is staring at the dance floor, obviously badly wanting to dance to this song with her boyfriend. He and Puck don't need babysitting; everyone can see that they are talking in a very civilized manner.

"I think Rachel would like it better if you danced to this song with her."

Rachel immediately turns around as she hears her name. "Oh, no, not at all. I just- come with us, Kurt."

"Dude, I'm just talking with your brother," Puck intercedes, sounding mildly mad and quickly getting what's going on here. "We're not fighting or any shit."

"I know, but-"

"Finn, I really appreciate your concern, but we're fine. So do please be a good boyfriend and dance with Rachel."

"But-"

Puck chuckles. "Just get lost, Hudson. For once, you're the one pissing me off instead of your brother."

After Puck's classy invitation to leave, Finn and Rachel actually walk away from them. Rachel looks concerned for one second, but extremely happy as she's wrapped in her boyfriend's arms.

"My, you such manners," Kurt grits between his teeth. "He's your best friend, remember? No need to be so rude."

"Best friend or not, he was being annoying."

"You can't blame him. We fight a lot in front everyone, and every time it's worse."

"Pft, they love having something to talk about," Puck states, with his eyes fixed on the stage.

Kurt does the same. He watches Quinn and Sam perform, and they are doing very well. The important thing is that all the students are dancing with their arms wrapped around their partners, and Kurt assumes that slow dancing is the obvious way to get a little physical, therefore no matter how sappy people consider these kind of songs, they all definitely take advantage of them.

Puck suddenly stands up and extends his hand to Kurt. Kurt stares at his boyfriend, then at his hand, and frowns. "What?"

Puck rolls his eyes. "Dance with me."

Kurt gapes. "Are you out of your mind? Everyone's here and the badass of the school slow dancing with the resident fairy is certainly going to catch people's attention."

It doesn't seem to bother Puck, since he snatches Kurt's arm and pulls him onto his feet. Luckily, Puck doesn't drag him to the dance floor. Instead, they stand near their table. Puck has his arms wrapped tightly around Kurt, clearly figuring out Kurt's intentions to break free.

"What are you doing?" Kurt grits between his teeth, getting very nervous and trying subtly to break free.

"Stop struggling or they'll think I'm molesting you."

Kurt clenches his jaw, but he stops trying to release himself from Puck's grip. Puck grins smugly, leading Kurt into a very slow dance. By instinct, Kurt moves along and keeps his eyes fixed on his boyfriend's, mostly not to see the other people who are probably staring at them.

"Oh, and to answer your question, I'm just dancing with my boyfriend," Puck muses coolly.

"In front of everyone!"

Kurt's heartbeat starts picking up. Their secret… their biggest secret! They've been keeping themselves from everyone for nineteen months and Puck has suddenly pressed against him, in a place full of students and… oh, my, the things they're going to say!

"Don't freak out," Puck says quietly with a smile on his face.

"You're practically outing us," Kurt whispers, completely mad. Puck cannot do something like this without even telling him before! Kurt hates unplanned things, he hates not having any control of the situation, and it seems that right now is going to be one of those moments that Kurt can't be in charge of in the slightest.

"We're just dancing, babe."

"People are watching us," Kurt says, nervously, as he catches some students staring at them, completely disconcerted. He clutches Puck's shirt under his jacket just to stop himself from falling to the floor in the case he feels like fainting.

Puck chuckles. "Would it be too bad if they knew?"

"Of course!" Kurt mutters, angrily.

"Why? We've been laughing in their faces for over a year, babe. Wouldn't it be amazing to see the product of our tricks? Like, 'Ha ha, we've been together for ages under your noses and you never realized? Yeah, we're screwing around and you just didn't notice.'"

"We're not screwing around, Puck," Kurt states, aggravated. "We're moving in together. I think that qualifies as something more than screwing around."

"Whatever. The thing is, wouldn't you love to see their faces if they knew we're an item, and that we're even going to New York together?"

"But-"

"Who cares if they know now? I don't think they'll dare to give us much hell, but even if they do, we can handle it. There's only three weeks more of school, then summer break and we'll be in New York while these people are still going to be here trying to figure out why the fuck we're making out."

"Making out?"

Kurt gives Puck a long stare. He hears the song ending, but no one's clapping. Kurt subtly looks around, and everyone has turned to watch them. Puck is not moving anymore, and neither is Kurt. There's a deafening silence that seems to last forever, but really only lasts two seconds, the kind of seconds that are long enough to get a billion of thoughts running through your head.

Kurt never planned to come out with Puck. Maybe Kurt was going to tell Finn and Carole once school was over; maybe he was going to wait until they left for New York and were far from Lima; he doesn't know. He just never thought much about it. Kurt was waiting for the moment that wouldn't leave them any other choice but coming out, to prolong their secret as much as they could.

But coming out in front of everyone has an element of excitement that Kurt has never considered before. Depending how you see it, it means having control of the situation. Surely they won't be able to control the repercussion of coming out, but they are deciding to let people know about them; they also are deciding when and where. This is not someone walking in on them; they control their relationship, they decide what to say or not.

And what's even better is that it's Puck's idea. If Puck doesn't mind being out with him, then Kurt shouldn't mind either.

They've been through all kinds of ups and downs during the past nineteen months, and from every fall they could have had, they only got back on their feet, stronger than before. Next Monday is probably not going to be the easiest day in their school life, but Kurt is sure that it's not going be something they won't be able to handle.

Nothing can touch them. Knowing or not knowing, it will still be just him and Puck, and fuck the rest.

"Mercedes is going to be pissed," Kurt whispers, trying not to laugh.

"And your brother's going to faint. Let's melt some faces," Puck says, leaning over him, and Kurt grins.

Puck doesn't just peck him on his lips though. Of course he doesn't. What Puck does is shove his tongue in Kurt's mouth, ravishing him. Kurt is obviously surprised at first, but only at first, since he doesn't waste a second kissing Puck back in the same eager way. Everybody gasps at the same time and Kurt smiles against Puck's lips, loving that sound.

"Let's call this off," Puck mutters to him with a huge grin on his face when they break apart.

Kurt nods eagerly and feels like his heart is going to jump out of his chest. Puck holds him by his hand and starts walking fast towards the doors of the school's gymnasium, and people literally move out of their way, still looking at them in complete shock. The only sound that's heard is Kurt's and Puck's steps, and also Kurt's ridiculous giggling.

When they reach the doors, Kurt turns around, and the only familiar face he can spot is Rachel's. Her mouth is hanging open, and Kurt tries not to laugh.

"Yo! Vote Evans-Fabray!" Puck shouts, and Kurt catches Sam and Quinn staring at them in disbelief, but Quinn smiles nervously and waves her hand at Puck after his words.

Then they leave, and Kurt starts laughing out loud as soon as they are outside the gymnasium, Puck doing the same.

"Man, did you see their faces! Told you it was going to be amazing, babe," Puck says, cupping Kurt's face with his hands and placing a soft kiss on his lips.

"I can't believe you made me do that," Kurt replies, holding Puck's hand as he starts running towards his SUV. "We'd better disappear from here now. I'm sure that our friends are going to start looking for us, demanding answers."

"I didn't make you do any shit," Puck retorts. "You totally loved that."

Kurt presses his lips together, trying not to laugh. He could start jumping like a little kid who just got the biggest present from Santa on a Christmas morning. "I did enjoy it," Kurt admits, happily unlocking his car.

They both get in, and Kurt quickly drives away, checking his rearview mirror to see if someone went out looking for them. Right before he turns in the corner he catches Rachel, Mercedes, Tina, and Mike rushing outside.

Once again, Kurt feels guilty, but not that much.

"Monday is going to be a very interesting day," Kurt says as his phone starts ringing. He takes his iPhone out of his pocket and sees Mercedes is calling him. "It's 'Cedes."

"You better turn that thing off. Guys will be calling non-stop," Puck suggests, and right then Puck's phone starts ringing as well. "Shit. It's Sam. I'll text him to say we're alright and that we'll talk to everyone tomorrow or Monday or something."

"Can you do that with mine? I don't want to text and drive," he asks, handing his iPhone to his boyfriend.

Kurt is on his way to Mrs. Puckerman's friend's apartment when he realizes he left his moisturizing routine kit back home. He groans, catching Puck's attention.

"You alright?"

"I forgot my skin care routine back home," Kurt tells him, pained. He doesn't really want to drive to his place, but at the same time, the idea of going to bed without a facial routine… he won't be able to be at peace with himself.

Puck sighs loudly. "Then let's go to your place to get it. Otherwise, that's the only thing you'll be thinking about tonight."

"You wouldn't mind? It will only take me five minutes or less."

Puck shrugs. "We left prom much earlier than we planned, so why not? We have lots of time."

Kurt is not completely thrilled about the idea of going back to his place. It's very likely that his father and probably Carole as well will still be up, and as soon as they see him home they will start asking questions. They'll surely assume that something went wrong, since he only left for prom around an hour ago… and Kurt will have to give some explanations, at least to his father… Dear Gaga, he was just about to start his night with Puck! Why did he have to forget his skin care kit?

But Kurt drives to his place anyways. Puck is right and he won't be able to stop worrying about not being able to get a moisturizing routine in for such a long time. And Kurt really wants to enjoy his time with his boyfriend, free of preoccupations.

"Your friend is pissed," Puck announces, reading an incoming text on Kurt's iPhone.

Kurt rolls his eyes, already knowing what happened. "You actually texted her being all yourself, right?"

Puck glares at him, like he's an idiot. "Well, duh. You told me to. She says, 'What the hell, Puckerman? Your boy? Put Kurt on the phone or I'll hunt you down and beat your ass. I don't care how scary you can be, I'll be ten times scarier!' Woah, she's quite fierce," Puck laughs.

"I expected you do that like I was the one texting her, Puck!" Kurt replies, snatching his phone out of his boyfriend's hands. As soon as they stop in a red light, Kurt searches for the sent messages and reads what Puck texted to Mercedes.

Sorry Aretha, my boy's driving. Yeah, we kissed, we're together, yada yada. Tomorrow he'll explain everything to you. Now we're off to have some fun together, so don't disturb. Peace. Puck.

"You're an idiot! How can you tell her that, now she's going to ask even more stuff!"

In fact, his iPhone vibrates in his hand and receives four more texts: one from Finn, another from Rachel, yet another from Mercedes, and the last one from Santana. At the same time he can hear Puck's phone announcing new messages.

Kurt quickly writes: I'm sorry for that last text, 'Cedes. Everything is alright, I know you have lots of questions and believe me, tomorrow I'll drop by your house and tell you everything. Please, don't be mad.

He's aware that Mercedes and everyone else have the right to be confused, mad, and even upset. It's going to be really hard to explain to their closest friends why they kept such a big secret for so long. In their defense, no one in the Glee club knows how to keep a secret, let alone a big one.

Kurt continues driving as texts continuing coming in. He really doesn't have any other choice but to turn his phone off if he wants to spend a night in peace with Puck. Maybe, coming out like that tonight, wasn't their brightest move.

When Kurt parks his SUV in front of his house the amount of text messages has escalated to thirty, along with seven missing calls. Kurt asks Puck to stay in the car, promising he'll be back shortly, and gets out of the car.

On his way to the entrance door, Kurt decides to come clean for once, and sends a message, copying the entire Glee club's contact, saying: Puck and I are together. Tomorrow, 4:30 at my place, we'll answer all your questions. Stop worrying, as I said, everything is fine. I'm turning off the phone now. Sorry.

He presses 'Send' and like he said, turns off his iPhone.

Kurt runs into his father as soon as he walks inside the house. Burt, who was on his way to the living room, carrying a glass of juice, stops still, giving his son a worried glare.

"Kurt? Why are you back so soon? Something happened? Are-"

"I'm fine, dad," Kurt hurries to answer, in order not to worry his father. "I forgot my skin care kit. I can't spend the night away from home without it."

Burt frowns. "I don't get it. You only left an hour ago… shouldn't you be in the middle of your prom?"

Kurt sighs. "Prom ended for us a bit… earlier than we expected."

His father doesn't look very thrilled. "Explain?"

Since he can't see or hear Carole anywhere close to them, Kurt swallows hard and nods, deciding to tell his father what just happened. "Puck decided that it would be good if we came out, if we let everyone know we're together."

Burt quirks an eyebrow, obviously trying hard not to look impressed. "He did?"

Kurt's aware that there's nothing his father wants the more than Puck and him to be public. His father doesn't like them to keep secrets and having to lie to everyone. Obviously, what Kurt's telling him now is something that his dad will find very interesting.

"He did. So he took me to the dance floor and kissed me in front of everyone."

Burt presses his lips together, nodding gravely. "No one tried to hurt you, right?"

Kurt snorts. "I think my friends will try to. Everyone was too shocked, I guess. We left before somebody could say anything about it, but we've got like a billion calls and texts from our friends asking us what the hell happened. They won't be very happy when they find out how much we lied to them, but well... it's the way it is."

Much to his surprise, his father shakes his head in disbelief and then he laughs. "Honey! Honey, come down, you have to hear this!"

"Dad!"

Kurt blushes furiously, and can already hear Carole's footsteps coming down the stairs. "Burt? Everything's- Kurt? What're you doing here?"

Carole is wearing her pajamas and her robe, and Kurt can't believe he'll have to come out to Carole right now, since it's obvious that his father is going to tell her everything right now.

"Puckerman and Kurt are out. Everyone knows now, since the punk kissed my son in front of everyone at the dance."

Carole gapes at her husband and Kurt blushes furiously. Doesn't his father have any tact! You just can't deliver such news like that! Still, Carole turns around to face Kurt, whose facial skin starts showing all shades of red, and then she lets out a loud squeak.

"Finally! Oh, God! That's fantastic, honey, I'm so happy for you!" she exclaims, giving him a tight hug.

Kurt doesn't understand what the hell is going on. How come she's not asking why Puck kissed him like everyone else? Or what he was doing with Puck or… oh. Kurt glares at his father over Carole's shoulder.

"You knew?"

Carole breaks the embrace, and Kurt has never seen her smiling so broadly. "Of course I knew!"

Kurt stares at her, then at his father, then at Carole again.

"Sorry, kid. I couldn't keep it from her," Burt says, shrugging and not looking guilty in the least.

Kurt frowns. His mouth opens and closes repeatedly, until he finally figures out what to say. "But… since when?"

"Since you told your father," Carole tells him with a sympathetic smile. "He called me after you two argued and, well, he told me everything. I tried to calm him down. I thought I had to come back to be with you two, even if you didn't know I was aware of all that happened. And… then he told me about your second argument…"

Kurt blinks as he puts two and two together. Everything makes a lot of sense now. "You talked to him… you made him change his mind, didn't you?"

He can remember like it was yesterday how his father refused to listen to him, or to like Puck at first. Kurt also remembers how his dad gradually started behaving in a more amiable way, until he finally agreed to keep the secret for them.

His father throws an arm around Carole's waist. "You bet she did. I've never been thrilled about this, but she convinced me to do that for you."

Kurt swallows hard. "But why? I mean, Finn doesn't know," he exhales deeply, feeling suddenly overwhelmed. Carole knew about everything during all this time? Everything?

"I didn't tell him," she replies, quietly. "I agree with your father, and we shouldn't keep secrets from each other, but… something you said made me think that we should, at least in this case."

"What did I say?"

Carole shrugs quietly. "That our lives wouldn't be different regarding your relationship with Noah, but yours would radically change if people found out. I know how hard it gets for you sometimes, to be who you are. It makes us sad, and it hurts us a lot, but at the end of the day, it's you who suffers through all the things that people throw at you. You wanted to preserve this special thing you had, and I understood that, Kurt."

Before he can help it, a tear runs down his face, and gives Carole another hug. "Thank you so much. Believe me, out of all the people I felt bad for having to lie to, you were on the top of my list."

Carole lets out a loud laugh. "Well, I'm glad to hear that!"

Burt walks towards the window and peeks outside. "Puckerman's here with you," he points out.

"Of course he is."

"Burt! Go and get Noah! I'll have to get the camera! I'll finally be able to take a picture of you!"

Kurt blushes harder, if that's even possible, and groans as his father walks outside. "So earlier tonight you were only wishing I was taking a picture with Puck."

Carole laughs again. "Well, yes! He's your boyfriend, Kurt. Oh my, I have to call Norah right now! She'll be thrilled when she hears this!"

Kurt's face falls. "What?"

"You two are damn secretive! Ever since Burt told me, of course I called Noah's mom. She's been my friend for years you know? And since you always tell your father so little about you two, and Noah is not much different with his mother, then we phone each other all time to exchange information."

Oh, for the love of Dior, this is incredibly mortifying! Mrs. Puckerman and Carole have been keeping each other updated on his and Puck's movements? He can just picture the two women on the phone saying things like 'Noah told Kurt he loves him!' and giggling like teenage girls.

If Puck thought it was embarrassing having to tell his mother about them, Kurt can't wait to see his face when he tells him what his mother and Carole have been up to.

Then Kurt wonders if Mrs. Puckerman have ever told Carole that Puck usually stays the night with him. He's not sure if Carole knows or not, and just not to compromise Mrs. Puckerman, Kurt decides he won't ask. After all, what's sure is that his father never found out. His dad would never be able to act like nothing happens if he knew that 'Puckerman' is sleeping in his son's bedroom.

And what's important here, it's his father never finding out about that. If Carole doesn't know, that's alright. And if she knows and says nothing to his dad, that's alright as well.

Carole seems to be thrilled though, so Kurt can't even manage to feel too embarrassed, until he remembers last summer break. "Oh, my. You planned the trip to Akron on purpose, didn't you?"

Carole looks like a little child who has been caught doing something naughty. "Norah kept telling me that Noah was doing nothing but sulking around the house, missing you. You were exactly the same, so I felt like I should do something."

"I knew you were the one who was going to be the happiest about us."

"Happy? I was ecstatic! The day you told your father? God, Burt was barking at the phone while I was only thinking 'Oh my God, Kurt and Noah? This is so wonderful!' I would have never guessed that Noah would date a boy, but I was so happy because I know he has… a questionable past, but I've known Noah since he was seven, and I know he's a wonderful kid, even if your dad has hard time accepting it."

Kurt snorts. "Tell me about it…"

Carole rubs his arm. "Burt likes him, Kurt. He'd never admit it, but he's fond of Noah. He just has hard time accepting you're growing up."

Burt comes back inside, along with a very confused Puck. Carole immediately approaches him, embracing him tightly, and Puck sends Kurt a quizzical glance over her shoulder.

"Aw, Noah I'm so proud of you two! And so happy!"

"Er... thanks, Mrs. H.," Puck replies awkwardly.

"She knew. All this time, she knew," Kurt explains. "I'll tell you everything later."

"Oh, I see. Well, thanks, Mrs. H.," Puck says again, with more conviction this time.

"I'll go get my skin care routine," Kurt announces and turns to Carole. "You can get the camera, we'll take the pictures, and then Puck and I will leave you alone."

Carole nods, rushing upstairs as Kurt rushes to his bedroom. It doesn't take him much to find his kit, since he left it ready on his vanity. He was just too stupid to forget about putting it inside the bag. Kurt takes it and starts to head upstairs when he sees his father coming down.

"Dad, I was just heading back up."

Burt nods. "It's okay; I just wanted to have a few words with you before you leave."

Sweet Dolce, what now? "Sure," Kurt replies.

His father sits on his son's bed, and motions Kurt to sit next to him. For some reason, Kurt guesses that he's not going to like what his father has to tell him.

"So, Kurt. You're growing up," his father begins, looking very awkward. "You're eighteen now, you're almost graduating… you have a boyfriend… and, that's fine."

Kurt wants the ground beneath his feet to open and swallow him whole. "Dad, this is not about me spending the night with Puck, is it?"

"I'm not stupid, Kurt. I know what kids, or rather couples, tend to do after prom," Burt continues, like he didn't hear what Kurt said. "And the truth is that I can't really stop you from doing… what you're going to do."

Kurt wonders is someone can die from mortification. This is clearly the perfect situation to do so in.

"There's no need to talk about this," Kurt says, almost pleading. If his father is trying to have a chat about sex, they are like fourteen months too late for that.

"No, let me say it. I need to, okay? I just want to say that, you and your boyfriend have the right to be… intimate with each other," his father says uncomfortably, and Kurt bites his lower lip, wanting to die. "It's going to happen eventually."

"Dad, I'm not a virgin," Kurt whispers. It's embarrassing having to say this, but it could save them both from a very mortifying moment.

"It's going to happen eventually," Burt repeats, completely ignoring Kurt's words, and Kurt nods. Okay. If his father wants to remain in such denial, Kurt's not going to rain on his parade. "And all I ask you is to be safe. You're a wonderful kid, Kurt. I wouldn't want you to get hurt because you're doing this irresponsibly. You matter a lot, son. I just hope you will be taken care, and respected. Just like I hope you'll do the same in return."

It's quite funny that his father is saying that. Kurt thinks Carole is right, and his dad is in denial. He and Puck have been together for a over a year, they just came out together in public, and they even bought a house together. Well, not technically a house, but a small apartment. Eight months ago, they finally got the compensation from the accident; it was a very good sum of money, and obviously Puck got even more money since his injuries were more serious. Kurt wanted Puck to invest that money in his future education, but there was no way to convince Puck of that. Instead, Puck decided to give half of that money to his mother, and with the other half he wanted to buy a place where they could live without worrying about paying rent. Puck still prefers to work and try community college, since he's not sure what career he wants and he doesn't want to invest money in something he'll just abandon later.

Back then, it scared Kurt how serious was Puck about their relationship. Buying a house was a very big step to take together. But technically, the apartment is Puck's, and in the case they don't work out, Kurt will move to the dorms of his college. Kurt doesn't think they won't work out, though, and they did get a very modest and cozy one bedroom apartment in Brooklyn. Puck, his mother, and Sarah traveled to New York a few months ago to sing the papers, and even if they saw pictures of it on the internet, Puck took a lot more pictures of their new house. And he, Puck, and his father also had a serious meeting to discuss this subject. His dad was very impressed, so Kurt can't really understand why, after all they did together, he still needs to be reassured regarding how serious Puck takes him.

Kurt nods at his father. "We do. We will," he corrects himself, reminding himself that, no matter how obvious it is that he and Puck do have sex already, his father seems happier thinking they don't.

"Good. Now go upstairs; Carole is dying to get a picture of you both."

The two of them go back to the living room, where Carole is happily talking to Puck. Puck doesn't seem to mind Carole's ecstatic mood, and Kurt thinks it's a shame he got to find out just now that Carole always knew about them. If he knew that Carole was going to keep their secret, he would have loved to be able to share with her some stuff about him and Puck. It would have been much better than having to share with his father; Carole is much more receptive.

"Picture time!" she exclaims, and Kurt quickly approaches Puck, throwing an arm around his waist. Puck holds him back and they smile for the camera. "Aw, I can't believe this! I'm sending copies to Norah right now."

Puck gives Kurt an annoyed glare, and Kurt shrugs. They can't do much about it.

After getting several pictures, Kurt says. "Can we go now? Tomorrow we'll continue with this family moment."

"Of course!" Carole says. "I expect Noah to have dinner with us soon!"

"Anytime, Mrs. H."

They say goodbye to his father and Carole, and with his skin care in one hand, and Puck's hand in the other, Kurt and his boyfriend leave the house. They sigh at the same time when they close the door behind them; Kurt looks up Puck, who was already looking at him with a grin on his face.

"Well, that was interesting," Puck says as they start walking towards the car.

"Isn't this odd?"

"What?"

"Walking hand-in-hand, out in the open?"

Puck glances at their hands locked together, like he didn't realize they were doing it. "It's cool, huh?"

Cool? Kurt thinks it's incredible. It's a very small gesture, but it means so much to Kurt… It's the culmination of an incredibly long, exciting, tortuous, fun, and emotional journey. There was a time when he and Puck were nothing but strangers. But then they became acquaintances, and Kurt fell in love. They almost died in a car crash, which brought them even closer together. They became lovers, then boyfriends, and then Puck returned his feelings. They have a little apartment waiting for them in New York, a place they already call home when they talk about it.

Until tonight, everything they had had been for themselves. Yet now, they're holding hands out in the open. A tiny gesture compared to all the things he and Puck have shared together, but that tiny gesture holds huge significance: they kept themselves away from people in the past, but from now on, they're going to share what they have with everyone.

It's as terrifying as it is exciting.

They get in the car, and Kurt says, "Tomorrow the whole Glee club is coming. I expect you to be with me to face the wolves. They're going to want blood."

Puck snorts. "You just can't stay away from me, right, Hummel?" he asks, cockily.

"I can't. I just love you so much that the mere idea of coming back tomorrow afternoon and not having you with me until you come for the meeting with our friends makes me want to cry. So many hours without your graceful presence… I don't know how I'm going to handle it."

"Aw, no need to cry, babe," Puck says, and kisses Kurt on the cheek. "I'm gonna fuck you so good tonight that you'll be able to feel me for the rest of the weekend."

Kurt turns the engine on and glares at Puck. "Is there ever going to be a day when you tell me something pretty?"

"I tell you pretty stuff all time."

"Telling me that my ass is meant to be banged for days is not pretty," Kurt quotes his boyfriend. "Or saying, 'Great legs, what time do they open?' is a terrible pick up line that I wish you'd stopped using. Or that I have amazing cock sucking lips. Or so many other things you usually say that are far from being nice ways to compliment your boyfriend."

"Those are great!"

"It's crude!"

Puck sighs. "You wouldn't want me saying corny stuff like, 'Oh, your eyes shine like the moon' or some sappy shit like that. You love me, and that includes my straightforward and accurate compliments."

It's impossible to argue with Puck so Kurt decides not to do it. Instead, he starts driving away from home. "Whatever."

"Ha! I win. See? You totally love me."

Kurt snorts. "You love me more."

Puck lets out a long sigh. "True."

Kurt shakes his head in disbelief, but smiles. They have gotten so far together that sometimes it's hard for Kurt to believe this is his life now. But then, he can't even remember how his life was when he didn't have Puck.

It doesn't matter anyways, because Puck is right there next to him and they are going to have their very last moment of peace before facing everyone to explain the truth. Kurt doesn't worry. He and Puck have been through so much together that Kurt is no longer scared of what tomorrow might bring, because yesterday already brought it in some other form.

Whatever they have to face tomorrow, the following day, or the next year, Kurt is sure that they'll face it well, together.

Future… just bring it on!

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