Chapter Eight-The Phone Call

"If this doesn't pan out we can always be strippers." Santana said to the teen that had been up since midnight, cradling his phone like it was the most precious thing in existence. It was the end of the week, and he was waiting for that call. The only time he let go of the phone was to join the praying circle to Allah that Liz had set up in his honor. He wasn't taking any chances.

"I'd make a horrible stripper." Kurt replied absently, voice hollowed. Spending the night knowing that one phone call could shape one's whole future really did something to a person. Kurt had tasted failure in the past and it was not pleasant. It tasted like Finn's tears after a complicated dance routine would probably taste like.

"Hummel? I've seen you do some borderline wanky stuff during practices" She responded as if discussing the pros and cons of metal-ring binders versus plastic. "You'd be a great stripper."

Kurt felt his face going red, and he turned to Santana with a bitch glare, although slightly diluted. She simply laughed in response. She never passed up an opportunity to mess with the kid; his reactions were always pure gold.

"Let's not forget that time you were in those knee-high leather boots, and those skin-tight…"

"Santana Lopez!" Kurt said, cutting her off and hiding his face into the nearest pillow.

Santana had succeeded. She had gotten him to quit stressing over that stupid phone-call. She had tried to get him to eat, but for some reason his twisted, malnourished little brain concluded that focusing all his energy onto the phone would make the call come quicker; would ensure good news.

Santana was just in the mood for a freaking good burger; never mind good news.

"Problem? I bet if Blaine says it-" she started, and Kurt's head immediately emerged from the pillow.

"Blaine wouldn't say it in so many words." Kurt replied with a confident smirk and Santana could simply not have that.

"Kurt; please don't talk to me about your private life. All I can picture is a baby penguin and a puppy wrestling." she quipped.

Kurt was getting ready to equate Santana's to that of a giraffe giving a koala a piggy back ride when his phone began to ring. His mind went blank for a split second; the shrill sound filling up the whole apartment. He stared at it as if he just happened to come across a bomb during his morning routine.

"Well answer it, doofus!" Santana yelled at him and he picked up the phone—nearly dropping it three times—before pressing the answer button.

"Hi!" he said too excitedly and Santana shook her head at him. He cleared his throat, lowering his voice. "I mean, hello." He was a bit calmer, but she was rolling her hands, urging him to keep going. "Kurt Hummel speaking." She gave him a thumbs up.

"Good morning, Mr. Hummel. This is Brenda, from C.C. Styles." said a very chipper voice that Kurt would probably be able to recognize even a decade later. He held onto the phone even tighter, and ignored the weird looks his roommate was giving him. He sat down on the nearest chair, bracing himself for whatever news was about to come to him.

They wouldn't have called him personally if he didn't get the job, right? They weren't that cruel. They'd have sent it via email or even sent an automated voice message of sorts. But he was certain the busy business did not have time to make out personal phone calls for all its failed applicants.

I think I got the job, Kurt daringly thought.

"You didn't get the job." The voice on the other line deadpanned, and Kurt heard nothing after that but white noise. Because nothing else mattered because he didn't get the job because he was a failure because he didn't have the proper education because he didn't have a back-up plan because he dared to think he was someone fucking special-

"She's still talking." Santana interrupted the vicious turn his inner monologue was taking, picking up the phone that Kurt didn't even remember dropping. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that?"

Santana conversed on the phone with the woman for a few more moments before hanging up, turning to her roommate with a rare grin.

"She said they like you. A lot. You don't have the job yet, but they want you to come in again. To meet some chick named Ms. Vahn." she explained to him.

"What?" Kurt asked blankly, blinking up at her as if she were speaking another language.

"She said-" Santana started but before she could even finish he had her in a bone-crushing hug. Damn. For someone who's arms looked like wet noodles she was having a lot of trouble breathing in his grasp.

"Oh my god oh my god oh my god." was all that was coming out of Kurt's mouth, like a mantra of sorts. He pulled away from Santana to do a cross. "All hail Allah."

Santana couldn't help but laugh out loud at that. "The cross is catholic, nimrod. And you sound more like your bowing to a British monarch."

She was happy for Kurt, and not in the obligatory sense. She genuinely felt joy for the young guy across from her; indisputably so. And that was a very rare thing for most people, especially her. But she couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy, for Kurt's successes served to highlight her failures.

Kurt called Blaine, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, akin to a little child awaiting entrance into a theme-park.

"Hey, what's up?" Blaine asked brightly enough. Kurt could call at one in the morning and that would be the response.

"I got a callback!" he yelled, and was met by Blaine's confused laughter.

"That's great…I didn't know you auditioned for anything." Blaine said.

Kurt realized that in his moments of excitement he slipped right back into theater terminology. It was going to take a while to beat that out of him. "I mean, they want me to come in for another interview. So that means they don't hate me."

"As if anyone could ever hate you, Kurt." Blaine said softly into the phone, and Kurt's excitement slowly started to die down. He began to feel a familiar tugging in his chest.

"I miss you." He said, and meant.

"I miss you, too." Blaine said, and Kurt found himself wishing that Blaine was there with him. He knew Blaine would have already begun to help him decide what to wear that day, he would have celebrated with a late night of Full House marathons. It was in times like this that Kurt didn't miss Blaine the boyfriend, but Blaine the best friend.

Kurt began to get another incoming call, and a glance at his screen let him know it was Rachel, who he hadn't really talked to in weeks. He felt a bit guilty about it, but was sure that his little starlet was too busy caught up in her own world to even notice. Plus, his piece of gossip should be enough to distract her.

"I have to go." Kurt informed him. "Skype later?"

"Wouldn't miss it." Blaine replied, and he could hear the smile in his voice.

They exchanged goodbyes and Kurt switched lines before Rachel would throw a fit at him for ignoring her calls.

"Hey Rach-"

"Heeeeeeeeeeeeey KURTSIE WURTSIE. How's my angel sweet snookums doing?" Rachel screeched at top volume, causing even Santana to overhear and look at Kurt curiously. Kurt helplessly shrugged.

"I'm alright. Question is: How are you doing?" He asked.

"M'fantaaaastic. I'm here with some reeeeally great people. EVERYBODY SAY HI TO KURT." And then Kurt heard an echo of several variations of 'Hi Kurt' creating a Doppler-effect due to delayed responses.

"Are you…are you drunk?" Kurt asked, highly amused. It was early morning and if Rachel Berry's extended syllables and outrageous volume were any indication, she was already thoroughly intoxicated. Santana raised an eyebrow at him and he shrugged again.

"No no no, of course not, silly. I have SELF CONTROL." Kurt winced as Rachel's volume varied extensively throughout any given sentence. "I just…had a few drinks. Needed to loosen up, you know?"

The Rachel that Kurt knew would cringe at the idea of loosening up in front of a bunch of other people who Kurt figured to be her NYADA friends, otherwise her competition. But who was Kurt to judge? She was clearly having a blast.

"Yes. Yes, I can tell. Is there any reason you called?" Kurt asked.

"Can you escort me home? NOT THAT I'M drunk. It's just BETTER safe THAN SORRY." Kurt could feel his own headache coming on, one that would be sure to rival the devilish hang-over Rachel was sure to have in a few hours.

"If you stop yelling." He told her, taking out a pen to jot down the address.

Kurt knew instantly that he was being driven into the good part of New York City. Santana would have tagged along with him but she was too busy going job hunting because "We all know who the bread winner is in this relationship."

When the taxi stopped in front of his given address, he called Rachel.

"Rach? I'm outside of the apartment. If you could-" he started, but then she was already next to him.

"KURT!" she yelled, latching onto him and laughing although no one told a joke. A very odd, and very intoxicated crowd of people were watching from the doorstep.

"Philip, this is Kurt!" Rachel was yelling to the whole crowd like they were not only a few feet away from her.

"I thought Kurt was in Ohio." the guy who was apparently Philip yelled back.

"No, that's Finn, my boyfriend." Rachel clarified in a surprisingly sober tone. Kurt figured now was not the time to correct her. "But this one's still as cute as a button." She pinched his cheeks and leaned in closer.

Now, Kurt loved him some Rachel Berry, but with her history of making out with gay men when she was intoxicated, he wasn't taking any chances. He ducked the moment she puckered her lips, moving to the other side of her and latching his arm around hers.

"You need to get some sleep." Kurt said, heading back to the taxi that was waiting for him by the curb. In a matter of moments they were headed back to Kurt's apartment, and he'd be lying if he said that he wasn't looking forward to the look on Santana's face when Rachel Berry stumbled into their apartment.

A/N: I apologize for the really short update. Think of this as an interlude chapter, to link the events of Chapter Seven to what I have coming up in the next chapter. Of course, I could have just melted this chapter and the next chapter together, but that would simply ensure a longer wait for an update.

Anyway, thanks for reading

-Jessy