Bonus Chapter
A Call:
-Saturday, call received at 2:47 p.m.-
Call from Rachel Berry to Kurt Hummel
"Kurt, ohmygod, Kurt!"
"Rachel?"
"You will never believe which celebrity just tweeted their support for our campaign!"
"A… celebrity? Rachel, how in the name of Gaga did a celebrity find out about the anti-bullying campaign?"
"I… may have sent out a few copies of the petition and fact sheets, along with a recording of our mall performance."
"You what?"
"Well, I assumed, correctly I might add, that our support would grow if we could get those whom the masses already worship to sponsor the Born This Way Campaign."
"Rachel, please, for the love of all things Gucci, who exactly did you send these packages to?"
"Well, there was, um…"
"Rachel. So help me, I will come over there and force you to eat glass, forever ruining your voice and any chance you might possibly have at fame and general adulation, if you do not tell me who you tried to contact."
"Brad Pitt. Zachary Quinto. Katherine Heigl, Antonio Banderas, Jennifer Anison, Rosario Dawson, Cher, Sir Elton John. And possibly Madonna and Patti LuPone and Liza Minelli-"
"Oh my Gaga, I am going to kill you."
"-and Whoopi Goldberg, Charlize Theron, the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition team, Pink, Nathan Lane, Alan Cumming, Carson Kressley, Robert Downey, Jr., Joan Jett, Jude Law, Cyndi Lauper, Sigourney Weaver, George Clooney, Jamie Lee Curtis, the Indigo Girls, Kevin Bacon, Martin Sheen, Katy Perry, Ellen DeGeneres, Oprah-"
"Cut to the chase, Rachel. I know there's bound to be one you're holding off telling me for as long as you possibly can. Now, who is it?"
"The person who tweeted about it."
"Which is?"
"…LADY GAGA!"
"…"
"…Kurt?"
"…You… and she… I don't…"
"Kurt? …Kurt?"
"Rachel, I think you broke my boyfriend. What exactly did you say?"
"Blaine. All I did was explain my brilliant plan to share our campaign with a list of celebrities, and one of them happened to show a great deal of interest and has pledged their support on Twitter."
"Dare I ask who?"
"Lady Gaga, Blaine! Mother Monster! She tweeted her support and plans to start a similar website within the next year, and she posted a link to the video of our mall performance of Born This Way!"
"…wow. No wonder he looks like he can't breathe."
"Yes, well, he should prepare to be inundated with recognition from such names, as I'm sure they could sense my determination and skill based on the writing of the petition-"
"Rach, your dads were the ones who wrote that, not you."
"Yes, but I was their inspiration, their muse, their-"
"Goodbye, Rachel. I need to go give my boyfriend mouth-to-mouth, now."
"Blaine-!"
A click and the dial tone sounds. Followed by a high-pitched huff, before the second party hangs up as well.
… …
A Letter:
Mr. Hummel,
You're right, this is awkward. Nonetheless, it needs to be said. Thank you for honoring my request in regards to not pushing Quinn and Noah to contact myself and Beth. Also, thank you for the letters. They were-
Well, they were not what I was expecting, but they were touching nonetheless.
Thank you especially for the cd. Beth won't fall asleep at night, anymore, without listening to one of the songs first. She particularly loves Over the Rainbow and To Sir, With Love. The New Directions really is gifted. Your group could be amazing, with the right effort.
I'd like to hold off on informing Noah and Quinn, but Beth and I are going to be moving back to Ohio in the next few months. That's where my mother lives, and she wants to be able to spend more time with her grandbaby. Not to mention I've been offered an easy yet fulfilling position helping to modernize another school's set list and dance routines. I'll still have plenty of time with Beth, and the rest she will be spending with my mother.
Finally, thank you for the home addresses. I was able to send Rachel a birthday card, which I have never done before. And I'm planning to send Quinn and Noah a picture of Beth for Christmas and on her next birthday.
Your good intentions were clear through your letter and gift, and I truly appreciate that. I've included my cell phone number at the bottom of this, though I request that you not share it with any other member of your glee club. If I ever have any questions about Beth's birth parents, I hope I can text you?
Sincerely,
Shelby Corcoran
P.S. Having heard you sing, might I suggest you work on a song that would be the perfect audition piece for any colleges you have an interest in? It's harder to find, but stunning. It's titled The Next Dream, and was performed by Bernadette Peters on the television show Carol & Company. The final note is a high A over C, so you'll have to expand your current range, but I think it can be done. Good luck.
… …
A Therapy Session:
Last Session with Kurt Hummel; Wednesday the 10th at 4:30 p.m.
MC: So you think this will be your last session?
KH: Yes. I think I'm ready to go without this. Although, if it's alright, I'll still keep your number.
MC: Absolutely.
KH: You don't, by any chance, know of anyone in your profession who currently lives in New York, do you?
MC: I have a few names I can send your way before you graduate.
KH: Do you think I'm really ready to do this? To plan for a future in New York?
MC: Kurt, you are sincerely talented. If anyone can make it there, you can. And you seem much more confident now, much more comfortable with yourself and your dreams.
KH: I still occasionally have nights where I wake up, terrified of the future, terrified that no one will stick by me, that no one legitimately likes me. But then I remind myself what you said: that everyone feels that way.
MC: Before our last session is over, can I ask how things are going on the anti-bullying front?
KH: Rachel's insane. That's how things are going.
MC: You sound (pause) surprised. Almost pleased.
KH: I know. Normally, I would be the first one deriding her crazy ideas. But this latest one (pause), it not only worked, it's brought McKinley, the policies and the way the teachers have ignored bullying onto a national stage. One where they look rather ugly.
MC: How so?
KH: She sent copies of the petition, and a video of an informative performance we put on at the Westerville Mall, out to Hollywood actors and famous musicians and artists. And, shockingly enough, some of them have taken the time to go through the materials and announce their support for the campaign.
MC: Anyone I know?
KH: (laughs) The one I'm still reeling about is Lady Gaga. Not to mention Elton John, Liza Minelli, Brad Pitt and George Clooney, and Katy Perry, which sent Blaine into catatonic state for more than an hour.
MC: Wow. That's (pause) that's impressive.
KH: (laughs) I know! It's amazing. And with the videos we've collected from Jacob ben-Israel documenting some of the more extreme and absurd bullying, such as the slushie facials, parents in the district are taking an interest. It's actually coming up to a school board vote within the next month. And if it passes, McKinley and all the other schools, elementary, middle schools and high schools, in the area will officially have a no-tolerance, anti-bullying policy in place.
MC: How have the teachers reacted?
KH: Some are firmly behind it. Mr. Schue, for instance. Miss Pillsbury and Coach Beiste have been among the signers of the petition from the beginning. Even Coach Sylvester has gotten in on it, although she's still more a force of nature than an actual educator. Others are (pause) not so enthusiastic. Particularly those who have not only willfully ignored the bullying in the past, but have egged it on. The U.S. Government teacher, Mr. Thomas, has been making more and more rude, homophobic comments to both me and Blaine, as the campaign draws more attention. That's why we've added an addendum to the petition, which requires authority figures to be penalized for ignoring any instances of bullying they witness, or failing to act when a student comes to them for help with bullying.
MC: What kind of penalties?
KH: The kind they can't ignore. They get two warnings, than their pay is cut. After that, their benefits are removed, and if they still fail to follow the policy, they will be fired.
MC: That sounds harsh, but fair.
KH: We asked Miss Pillsbury for her help in drafting that part, and she was amazingly accommodating.
MC: Is there anything else you'd like to talk about today?
KH: Nothing that I can think of besides (pause) thank you. Thank you for listening and encouraging me, for caring about my life, and pushing me to become stronger.
MC: Kurt, it has been my pleasure. You are truly one of the most amazing individuals I've ever met. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call.
KH: I won't.
… …
A Moment:
A large corkboard hung on the white and grey wall, covered in pictures and programs, scraps of fabric and pieces of music, quotes and stickers, letters and notes. There were smiles and tears and joy and pain.
On the feminine dresser beneath it, which looks like it had been recently repaired, there was a stack of cds, with titles scribbled on them in permanent marker like "Diva Off! Senior Year", "Best Love Duets", "Even More Classic Rock Songs Part IV" (with a sticky note Deliver to Mr. Schue during 10th school reunion.), "Sing Off/Mash Off, Warblers vs. New Directions", "Songs Rachel is NEVER ALLOWED TO SING AGAIN, According to Sue", and "Nationals 2011/2012". Besides these recordings was a tall stack of sheet music, with songs for musicals and operas and rock and rap and pop and even a bit of country, here and there.
The top drawer was full of lost-and-found items from sleepovers, including earrings, bracelets, hair ties, the occasional bra or pair of boxers, several ties (bolo, bow and skinny), a half-empty bottle of purple sparkle nail polish, an assortment of candy, a stolen top hat ("of fate"), two sweaters, four Sharpie markers in various colors, lined papers scribbled with possible lyrics (ranging from the emotionally wrenching -"the bittersweet moment reminds us we're alive"-, to the cheesy –"I'm a pea without a pod and a fisherman without a rod, without you"-, to the utterly absurd –"My duck Ballad is the fliest of the flock/He's friends with the hens, but he doesn't like the cock"-, and three knives confiscated when the owners were drunk and wanting to slash tires.
The second drawer is empty, besides a single photograph of a smiling woman with fragile bone structure and pale skin, her hair long and cinnamon brown with a light curl. The picture is faded, the edges worn away from being held and touched hundreds of thousands of times. The drawer smells faintly like roses and vanilla.
The third drawer is piled high with letters, all with the heading "To Kurt" and ending with "Love Blaine". Among these are a list of "300 Reasons Kurt Hummel is the Only Guy for Me", and a set of instructions topped with the heading "For Bad Days". The first thing it says to do is "call Blaine".
In the final drawer are old photo albums, pictures of a slim brunette woman, a heavier balding man, and a tiny, elfin boy child. They cover eight years, before being continued, with more pictures added over seven years later, now with only the boy, who has grown into a teenager with light, smooth skin and a baby face, and the man, less hair and heavier bags under his yes and more wrinkles on his face and hands. Eventually, two more people are added to the photos, a curvy woman with dark hair and smile lines and warm brown eyes, and an unusually tall, goofy looking teen with the same open smile as the woman.
Now, when Kurt's days are the worst, he doesn't just lie beside the dresser, open the drawers and breathe in the perfume. Instead, he opens the drawers, smiles softly and goes through all the items in each space, remembering each moment and thought and emotion. He pulls out the cds and listens to them, or takes out the sheet music and lets his fingers run across the air as though they are touching piano keys. He studies each picture on the board and smile at the silly poses and cheerful grins. He'll sing and dance until the determination to have even more memories as bright as these overwhelms his melancholy.
Then he puts everything away, placing each thing carefully back in the same spot it was moved from, he'll go outside, and he'll live.
Because, like the song says, he's "got a lot of livin' to do".
the end.