Title: The First Day of the Rest of Your Life

Author: Icicle33

Pairings: Kurt/Blaine, Rachel/Finn (side)

Rating: T

Warnings: Season 2 AU, m/m slash, adult language, angst, and some slight Finchel bashing

Disclaimer: Glee characters are the property of Ryan Murphy and Fox. I do not own them in anyway and no profit is being made from this story. Don't sue me!

Summary: Kurt's 17th birthday is approaching. He knows that things are going to be different this year, better. Something good is coming his way, hopefully in the form of a new Warbler boyfriend. He's counting on his best friends to make his birthday unforgettable.

Author's note: Thank you so much to everyone who has read, followed and reviewed the first chapter of this story! I was so happy with the response so far that I decided to update early.

Remember, that in this AU Kurt never transferred to Dalton. Carole and Burt are already married, but Finn and Kurt still have some issues to work through. Mercedes is already dating Shane, and although Rachel already thinks of Kurt as a friend, he secretly can't stand her.

Enjoy.

Part 2: The Worst Birthday Ever

: : : :

Kurt didn't show up to school until five minutes before the first bell rang. People watching at the Lima Bean alone was not as amusing as he would have liked it to be. However, he didn't want to get to school too early and ruin whatever surprise his friends were planning. Knowing Mercedes, she was probably decorating his locker with glitter, Diva pictures, and feathers. Always feathers.

For about a minute, Kurt would pretend to be offended and lecture Mercedes about stereotypes (even if he secretly loved the glitter and feathers), but then he'd thank her and they'd take pictures with tiaras and boas. Kurt needed a new facebook picture anyway. It was going to be fabulous.

Holding his head high, Kurt strolled down the hallway and toward his locker. He hadn't been this excited to go to school since the first day of Glee. Not even the group of annoying jocks he met in the hallway soured his mood. He flashed them a brilliant smile and even said, "Good Morning." The confused looks on their faces were worth whatever retaliation he'd have to deal with in the future.

As he reached his own locker though, his grin faded. It was gray, bare, just like all the other lockers. Not a single decoration in sight—as if it were any other ordinary morning. The only difference was that Finn and Rachel were hanging out by his locker. Well, more like making out by his locker. Finn had Rachel pinned up against the locker adjacent to his, and Rachel had her hands around his neck, both of them trying to eat each other's tonsils.

Even though he no longer had feelings for Finn, his stomach still protested at watching them slobber all over each other. He walked up behind them and cleared his throat loudly.

"Ahem. You might want to think about getting a room. Some of us are actually here to learn."

Finn and Rachel detangled themselves almost instantaneously. Finn tilted his head back and laughed, but Rachel looked horrified. Two deep scarlet patches formed on her cheeks.

"Sorry man," Finn said, still smiling. "We were actually looking for you."

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "You were?" he asked, surprised.

"We were," Rachel said with a sheepish grin. "Happy Birthday Kurt!" she added, in a singsong voice.

Finn stepped closer to Kurt and then slapped him on the back. "Yeah, Happy Birthday, bro."

Kurt tried not to flinch from Finn's touch, instead holding his breath. Finn may be his brother now, but Kurt still avoided touching him whenever possible and felt even more uncomfortable when Finn initiated the touch. Yes, Finn had apologized several times for their argument last year, but even if Kurt had forgiven him, he would never be able to forget.

"Don't touch me," is not the type of response he ever wanted to hear from his brother or any of his male friends. It reminded him of how different he was, how much of a freak he was, and how no one loved him. Yet, he tried not to make a big deal about it with Finn. Ever since their fight, Finn had been trying hard to be a good brother and friend. It was Kurt's issue not his.

Before Kurt could respond, Rachel threw her arms around him. "Since your seventeen now, which is a very special birthday—and we're friends now...I got you a present," Rachel mumbled into Kurt's neck.

Kurt wanted to laugh. Although he might tolerate Rachel and respect her talent, they were definitely not friends. She was still the most annoying girl on the planet, with that grating, nasal voice, and her overbearing diva complex.

"Thanks," Kurt said, when Rachel finally released him. She thrust a neatly wrapped silver box at him, pink bow and all.

Rachel beamed and nodded at him, urging him to open the gift.

Kurt unwrapped the package, no longer feeling so resentful of Rachel, until he saw what was inside.

"A picture...of you." Kurt held up the picture of a smiling Rachel.

Rachel beamed even wider and Finn smiled too, gazing at Rachel with a besotted look. Damn, Finn had it bad too, if he really thought this was an appropriate gift.

"Not just any picture of me, silly," Rachel explained. "It's in a star frame because I'm a star. And you can be too, Kurt. If…you put your mind to it." She paused. "Think of it as inspiration. You can hang it in your locker."

Finn nodded stupidly, clearly approving the bizarre present.

Kurt pursed his lips and tried to keep his face expressionless. "Thank you."

Rachel threw her arms around his neck again, squeezing him tighter. "I'm so glad we're friends now, Kurt Hummel."

"Right."

"Well, we better get going," Rachel said, "so we're not late for homeroom."

Kurt tried to twist his lips into a fake smile. Strike two. First, no breakfast with his father, and now no decorated locker. His 17th birthday was not turning out like he planned. At all.

: : : :

The rest of the school day passed by excruciatingly slow. Kurt tried not to be too upset that none of this other friends had remembered his birthday. No one else had brought it up since Rachel and Finn.

Mercedes had been suspiciously absent from homeroom and even late to first period. He supposed that her tardiness was the reason why his locker was undecorated, but even during lunch, Mercedes had not mentioned his birthday. The only possible explanation was that she had been pretending to forget on purpose. Perhaps she was hiding a surprise that was going to happen during Glee.

He was almost dying of anticipating. Glee rehearsal could not come quickly enough.

When it was finally time for Glee, Mercedes and Kurt walked side by side to the choir room. A big yellow sign greeted them, messily scrawled and half hanging off the door.

Glee Rehearsal Canceled

"What?" Kurt asked. "Where's Mr. Shue?"

"I think he's sick," Artie said, who wheeled up behind him and Mercedes. "At least that's what the sub said in Spanish class."

Kurt tried not to act too distraught. The universe really was against him. Whatever surprise the Glee club had set up for him was ruined.

"Yeah, he didn't look that hot yesterday." Mercedes shrugged. "Oh, well. At least we get the day off."

"Absolutely not," a high-pitched annoying voice said behind them. "Just because Mr. Shue is not here does not mean we can slack off. We have songs to work on. New numbers to be written!"

"Yeah, right." Puck leaned on the doorway of the choir room and rolled his eyes, trying much too hard to be the bad boy his reputation preceded. "Count me in."

"Where did you come from?" Rachel asked.

He winked at her. "Your dreams, baby."

Rachel wrinkled her nose. "Gross."

"Come on, don't be that way. We were hot…once upon a time. Two hot Jews—"

"I wouldn't touch you with a ten foot—"

"Puckerman, back off! That's my girlfriend you're talking about." Finn appeared behind Rachel and put a protective hand on her shoulder.

"I was just kidding, man. No harm done." Puckerman offered Finn his most innocent smile.

"Boys, boys, there's no sense—"

A tug on Kurt's arm distracted him from watching the drama unfolding. This was better than the afternoon soaps he was recording.

"Come on," Mercedes said, tugging on his arm a little harder, "let's go out of here before those three notice."

"But shouldn't we?"

"No." She smiled at him wickedly. "Let's go to the diner. I've got the car today. I have to talk to you."

Without a second glance at the newest Finchel drama, Kurt walked away, being thankful that his best friend was saving the day.

: : : :

Driving to the diner was uneventful. The weather was pleasant, cloudy but warm, so Mercedes rolled down the windows of her truck. Kurt wasn't fond of Mercedes' truck, "The Green Goblin", as they had named it, but the rolled down windows was the closest that he'd ever come to having wind fly in his hair from a convertible. Not many people had convertibles in Lima.

Mercedes grinned as she put on the radio. She shuffled through the awful radio stations that Lima had to offer and finally settled on a year old Kelly Clarkson song, which was playing on the Today's Newest Hits Station.

Newest hits my ass, Kurt thought.

The song choice didn't appear to bother Mercedes though, she started singing at the top of her lungs, blowing Kelly out of the water, and making Kurt laugh. He still wasn't sure why Mercedes was acting so strange. But at least it was amusing.

He tried to ask. "What do you want to talk about?"

But she dismissed him. "Not yet. At the diner."

Kurt's heart started fluttering against his chest again, his stomach flip-flopping. What was left of his hopes were starting to lift, but at this point, he didn't want to risk anything.

When they arrived at the diner, they sat at their usual booth and Mercedes quickly ordered them two strawberry milkshakes.

"Don't you dare protest, Hummel, your scrawny ass could use the calories." Mercedes smacked her lips. "Besides, today is a special occasion."

Kurt blinked rapidly. "Really now?"

"Absolutely." She called after the waitress. "Actually, can you bring us a plate of disco fries too."

"Gross."

Mercedes scoffed. "It's not my problem you don't know good food. Cheese and gravy on fries is delicious."

"Right...so what did you want to talk to me about?" Kurt asked, playing coy.

"Well, it's about Shane."

Kurt frowned, creasing his forehead and brow. He knew that Mercedes was head-over-heels for Shane, but really, he didn't want to talk about him. Again.

"Yeah, well, we're getting really close. And—I think it might be time to..."

"Seriously?" Kurt crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Enough with the games, Mercedes. Every other word out of your mouth has been Shane lately. We talked about him all during lunch. I know you're trying to trick me or whatever, but that's enough. Where's my surprise?"

Mercedes looked confused, blinking her dark deep-set eyes. "Surprise?"

Kurt scoffed. "Come on, that's really enough. I'm dying to know. You've kept me on edge all day. Where is it? I can't wait a second longer." Kurt waved his arms, gesturing around the entire booth. "My big birthday surprise."

Mercedes eyes grew owlish and her jaw dropped. "Birthday?" she squeaked. "What are you talking about today's only the twenty—"

"Twenty-seventh."

"It can't...I didn't—" Mercedes reached across the table and cupped Kurt's hand. "I'm soooo sorry, Kurt. I can't believe I forgot. I've been so distracted—"

"Stop it," Kurt cried, cringing at how desperate his voice sounded. "This isn't funny. Joke is over. Bring the surprise."

Mercedes closed her eyes. "It's not a joke. There is no surprise. I wish I could tell you that I was." She shook her head and sighed heavily. "I'll make sure to make it up to you tomorrow. I promise."

Kurt snatched his arm away from Mercedes, retracting as if he had been scalded by a hot beverage. Tears threatened to fill his eyes; his chest started to throb. It couldn't be. This wasn't happening. Strike Three.

He heard what Mercedes had said; the words couldn't be clearer. But it couldn't be true. His friend, his best friend in the entire world, had been so busy with her new boyfriend that she had forgotten his birthday.

When he thought that the Glee club had forgotten his birthday, he'd been upset, but he never imagined that Mercedes of all people could have forgotten. This was devastating.

"I can't believe you! I thought...I thought..." Kurt closed his eyes and choked down the tears. "Forget it," Kurt growled. "Just go back to your boyfriend and leave me alone. I don't want anything tomorrow. My birthday is today not tomorrow."

"Kurt, wait..it's not like that."

"It's exactly like that, Mercedes. You haven't had the time for me in ages. I've been supportive because you're my friend. But I thought—today of all days—we could actually spend some time together. Stupid me."

He got up from the booth and threw a balled up five dollar bill on the table.

"Thanks for the milkshake," he grumbled. "Call me, when you aren't too busy sucking face with your boyfriend."

Before the tears welled up in his eyes, Kurt ran out of the diner, hoping his exit was more of a diva storm out than childish hissy fit.

: : : :

Kurt ran. As fast as he could. Regardless of his uncomfortable shoes or the possibility of messing up his hair. For someone who was always concerned about his appearance, Kurt hated running and exercise in general. He hated getting sweaty and gross, and never found any pleasure in that ridiculous runner's high that everyone always talked about.

But none of that mattered. All he could think about was getting as far away from Mercedes and that diner as possible. He ran and ran and ran until he made it home. Luckily, Carole and his father were still at work. Finn wasn't in his room either, probably still sucking face with Rachel or beating up Puck. Thank God. For once, he was thankful that he was home alone. Sometimes the solitude felt suffocating, but right now it was freeing and welcoming.

He ran up the stairs, changed out of his birthday outfit, and plopped down on his bed, hiding beneath the warmth and comfort of his down comforter and pillows. None of this made sense. He couldn't believe it was happening. Again. He thought that things were different in High School—that he had friends, people who cared about him—but the truth was that 17 or not, he was the same loser he'd always been.

His own best friend had forgotten his birthday. That was how little Kurt mattered, how little impact he made on anyone at school. The tears that he had been choking down, holding in as fiercely as he could, finally spilled. Hot tears clouded his eyes and streaked his cheeks.

Some birthday. Happy Birthday to me. La fucking da.

His entire mind filled with self-deprecating thoughts that he usually tried to ignore. Thoughts about not being good enough, about how no one could love a fag, not even the only other gay boy he knew wanted him.

When he couldn't take it anymore, he ruffled through his bed covers, looking for his stereo remote control. Once he finally found it, he blasted the Les Mis soundtrack, which he had on speed play on his iPod. He closed his eyes and started humming along, tears still silently falling and staining his pillowcase.

A nap and Les Mis could fix anything. Or at least that was what his mother always used to say. He hoped she was right.

To be continued...

A/N: Thank you so much for reading and supporting my first Klaine fic! Don't kill me for making poor Kurt suffer. I promise things will get better for him and the Klaine is coming! I'll post a new chapter next week.

If you're celebrating any holidays this weekend, have a wonderful holiday.

Reviews make my day!

~Icicle

Guest Review Responses (ch.1):

If you leave me a signed/registered review, I'll make sure to respond by pm. However, if you leave a guest or anon review, I'll respond at the end of the next chapter.

Gleekz4life: Thank you for your comment! You can definitely give Kurt a hug. I want to give him one too. You'll probably want to give him another one after reading this chapter.

Guest 1: Thank you for taking the time to comment!

Guest 2: Thank you for taking the time to comment! I'm glad you are enjoying it and I hope I posted the next part quickly enough for you.