Septembers and Mays
[][][] – 09-19-12 – [][][]
"Three years," Kurt said, as he laid his head on Dave's shoulder as they moved in time with the music.
Dave kissed the side of Kurt's neck. "Three years. An amazing three years."
When the song ended, Kurt stepped back. "Ready to eat?"
"Yeah."
They served themselves portions of the lasagna they had made together and sat down at the table.
"Four weeks of college classes finished," Kurt said matter-of-factly. "So what do you think?"
"I think it's pretty much the same as last year, except I don't spend the mornings at Roosevelt."
"I already told you how completely different everything is, but I've finally gotten my footing I think. The hardest part is never seeing you. I knew, but I didn't. I know that makes no sense. I knew how much seeing you brightened my day, but I think I never realized how much of a difference it made. No matter how hard things were or even when they were good, seeing you just boosted my mood. It's not that I don't like my classes because I do. I really do. I just miss you."
"It took me about a third of the semester to get used to it last year. It's not that I don't miss you – because I do. I just didn't want to bother you or make you feel like I was checking up on you all the time or something."
"I wouldn't feel like that."
"Surely there's at least one time somewhere near lunch that we both have free. We can talk for a couple of minutes at least."
Kurt nodded. "Okay. I miss the kids from summer camp too. I would have loved to go to a camp like that when I was younger."
Dave chuckled.
"Fine. I love going to camp, period. I'd love to do that year round, but kids have to go to school. We should make school more like summer camp. The kids would do better and learn more."
"Most schools do make learning particularly tedious and boring."
"It shouldn't be that way. Kids actually love to learn. Schools squeeze the enthusiasm right out of them."
[][][] – 05-06-13 – [][][]
"Who was the crazy person that signed me up for an adolescent psychology class for the next eight weeks?" Kurt asked sarcastically while lying on his side with his head on Dave's shoulder.
Dave chuckled. He tipped his head down and Kurt's chin up and kissed him. "That would be you, Mister Studious. You said you wouldn't have anything to do between the end of our classes and the beginning of the summer camps so you should take an interesting class that would make you think and you'd have time to actually focus on." He kissed him again.
"And you didn't step in and intervene and say, 'Kurt, you're going to want to lie in my arms and cuddle every morning in May and June. You're not going to want to get up and go to class."
Dave's smile grew even larger and he was laughing silently, his chest moving up and down. He tried to sound contrite. "I'm really sorry, Fancy. I should have definitely spoken up in defense of my irresistibility."
"You should have. I mean it. I don't want to get up. I want to stay in bed until at least 9:00 making out with you."
"Well, then let's get to it then. You might only be able to stay until 8:00, but it's just 7:00 right now. That gives us time to…"
He was cut off by Kurt moving swiftly to pin him to the bed and start kissing him.
"Mmm. Much better," Dave said between kisses.
[][][] – 09-01-13 – [][][]
Kurt nearly squealed when he read the email. "I got it! I got it!"
Dave looked up from his desk. "The internship?"
"Yes. I got the internship at Longacre Theatre. I can't believe it."
"How will you fit it into your schedule?"
"That practicum is a filler. Anyone who doesn't get an internship has to stay in the practicum the whole semester and do projects for the theatre department."
"I remember you saying something about that. So, when do you start?"
"Wednesday. Oh, my God. I'm going to get to meet Zachary Levi. I have to get myself together before Wednesday. No acting like a crazed fan."
Dave laughed.
"This is going to be amazing. I'm going to get to work in a real Broadway theater. It doesn't even matter if I'm just a glorified go-fer. I'll get to see how everything works." Kurt sent an email to Burt and Mercedes letting them know he had gotten the internship he had most wanted.
[][][] – 05-05-14 – [][][]
"I wish there wasn't such a long gap between when we get out of school and when the kids get out."
"You just want camp to start."
"Yeah. I am looking forward to my class though. At least this time I had the sense to take one later in the morning. And you're coming too. That will make it more fun. I'm actually really looking forward to the whole summer. It's just that transition between spring semester and the summer camps starting that feels like…"
"Unscheduled."
"Yeah. My schedule gets ingrained into my head the second week of the semester and then when it's over, I feel like I'm not doing something I'm supposed to do. It takes like two weeks after it's over to readjust."
"I get that. I feel that way too. Shouldn't I be working on some project for next week? Did I miss the group meeting?"
"Exactly."
"But we don't have any schoolwork, so scoot closer."
"I don't think I can get any closer."
"I'm sure you can think of a way."
[][][] – 09-19-14 – [][][]
Friday afternoon at 4:00, Quinn and Nick met up with Judy at the park to oversee the wedding preparations. Mercedes and Azimio showed up a few minutes later. The rental company arrived about 10 minutes later and started to set everything up. Everyone joined in and helped.
An hour later, the east end of the park shelter had six rows of black chairs set up with two chairs, an aisle, three chairs, another aisle, and another two chairs. At the front, the two openings between the supports were covered with earthy gray colored curtains. Turquoise flowers were woven into vining greenery across the top and draping down in a similar fashion to icicle lights. The stone fireplace in the center had been decorated with more vines with flowers as well.
Behind the back rows of chairs on the left was a keyboard with some guitars on stands behind it and one speaker. To the right was a drum set with the other speaker.
All of the tables had been set up on the west half of the shelter. They had deep turquoise cloth napkins and black tablecloths with glass hurricane centerpieces with battery-operated pale turquoise fairy lights in them. The buffet tables had been set up along the end of the pavilion to simplify the catering. They were covered with black tablecloths and alternating smaller deep turquoise and pale turquoise square table coverings placed on the diagonal.
Quinn looked around once they were done and said, "I think it looks just like they want it to."
Mercedes nodded. "I think so too. I saw Kurt's drawings. I think they'll be pleased."
Jeff, Sebastian, and Paul got ready for the ceremony early and arrived just in time to keep an eye on everything while the others left to go get ready. They went back to the house and used the studio since Burt, Carole, and Finn were staying in Quinn's apartment for the evening.
Everyone in the wedding party dressed in outfits of their own choosing in black with deep turquoise accents.
As the bridesmaids, Quinn and Mercedes were wearing '50s-inspired dresses with cap sleeves, fitted tops, and full skirts that didn't flair. They were similar, but not identical. They also wore small silver hoop earrings and silver necklaces with genuine turquoise pendants that Kurt and Dave had given them as gifts.
Once they were back at the house, Quinn helped Mercedes get her hair up into a side swoop with a chignon. Quinn had her hair cut in a bob with long bangs still with blonde highlights. She had opted to get a loose wavy perm to even out her slight natural waves to eliminate the constant need to use a curling wand to style it.
Once they were all ready, everyone returned to the pavilion. When they got there, the guests were starting to arrive as well. By ten minutes before the ceremony was set to start, everyone they had invited was there. They were all seated and ready to start on time.
Sebastian, Quinn, and Nick lined up behind the left rows. Azimio, Mercedes, and Jeff lined up on the other side.
Kurt and Dave arrived last and took their places at the ends of the rows of attendants. They each wore a black suit, tailored by Kurt to suit their builds. Kurt wore a white, black, and turquoise paisley shirt with a deep turquoise vest, and a black tie. Dave wore a black, turquoise, and white paisley shirt with a black vest and a deep turquoise tie.
When the music began to play, Sebastian and Azimio stepped into the aisles and walked towards the front, followed by the other two pairs. They stood in a flattened V at the front leaving room for Kurt and Dave.
The officiant took his place in the center when those in attendance were focused on Kurt and Dave coming up the aisles. They came up the aisles together and took the center positions facing each other. Their attendants turned to face them.
The officiant began to speak. "A wedding is a time when people gather from far and near to witness two people make a lifelong commitment to each other. We have the honor of having been invited here to celebrate the union of these two men. Some of us have always been a part of their lives and others of us are more recent additions to their lives and stories. Today marks five years that these two men have been together. In those five years, they have already weathered some tough storms and they have come through them more determined to protect their love and what they have together. Both Kurt and Dave already know that a relationship can flourish or wither, based on how it is cared for. In their five years together, they have already shown that they know how to keep their relationship strong. Today they come and stand before those of us here to publicly declare their lifelong commitment to each other. They have written the vows they wish to make to each other."
They reached toward each other and joined hands.
Kurt spoke first, knowing that he would struggle to not cry when Dave made his vows. "Dave, you already know that the day you asked me out, I wondered if we'd have anything to talk about for more than 30 minutes. It didn't take long to figure out that we did. Here we are five years later and you're my still favorite person to talk to. I remember asking you if you wanted to help me make soup for dinner and you said you had burned a grilled cheese the week before, but you'd be willing to be my trainee. Just three months later, you made me the most exquisite turtle cheesecake. That gesture of love touched my heart. You had put so much time, effort, and love into making something special for me. I already knew I loved you before that, but it took me a little longer to build up the confidence to tell you. You've been there for me through some really hard times. I don't take that for granted and I'm grateful every day for your unwavering support. You are the sweetest, most gentle, and loving man. I am amazed every day at how much you care about me. I love you so much. I promise to continue to love you for the rest of my life. I will be attentive, faithful, honest, trustworthy, and kind. I look forward to spending the rest of our lives together."
"Kurt, we had both just turned 15 the first time I saw you. I was too afraid to say anything to you. I knew I'd say something totally stupid and get tongue-tied. I thought I had done a good job of hiding my reaction, but as I found out later, Z saw right through my efforts. I said nothing and things went downhill from there. A year later, a mistake on your part led to me confessing how I felt about you. Rather than rejecting me, which is what I had expected, you offered me your friendship and you agreed to go out with me. I could not have been more surprised and thrilled. You've been there for me through some really hard times. I love you more than I can say. Being with you fills me with a sense of calm and joy I never knew was possible. I promise to listen to you, to be there for you in the good times and in the hard times. There has never been anyone besides you and there never will be. I promise to be faithful and honest, and to love you for the rest of my life." He squeezed Kurt's hands gently.
"We have heard the vows Kurt and Dave have made to each other. By the power vested in my by the State of New York, I now pronounce the two of you legally wed. You may kiss each other."
They both took a step forward and kissed while continuing to hold hands.
"I now present to you Kurt and David Hummel-Karofsky."
The two of them turned towards their guests, their hands intertwined between them.
Kurt spoke. "We're so glad that all of you came to celebrate with us. If you wouldn't mind, please grab your chairs and move them to the tables. We're having dinner next. Afterwards, we'll use this space for dancing."
The photographer assembled the wedding party for pictures and took them while everyone else was moving the chairs and getting in line to go through the buffet. Once they finished with the photos, the wedding party went to get in line. Burt stood behind Paul in line.
"I told you that day with the cheesecake," Burt said.
"I know, I know. He was already head over heels before he got up the nerve to ask Kurt out. They're great together."
"They are. I apologized a couple of years ago, but I still feel bad for everything that went on back then. I'm glad he stood his ground. I was in the wrong. They're so happy together."
"They really are."
Dave and Kurt hung back a bit and looked around the room and saw their friends and family chatting with each other and enjoying themselves. They moved to the end of the line to get some food. Dave wrapped his arms around Kurt from behind and kissed him on the neck.
"I love you."
Kurt leaned back into him. "I love you."
After they finished eating, the band set up. Finn sat down at the drums. Jeff picked up the electric guitar. Sam took the acoustic guitar. Noah sat down at the keyboard. Braden had brought his sax with him. Nick and Sebastian each grabbed microphones.
Sebastian said, "Kurt and Dave are going to share their first dance as husbands. After the song, everyone is welcome to join them on the dance floor."
The intro started and Kurt stepped into Dave's arms. People joined in and the dancing went on for quite some time. Kurt and Dave eventually took a break to get a drink and cut the cake. After they cut the cake, they opened up the mics for people to sing while the dancing continued.
By 10:00, people started to head out. Kurt and Dave stopped dancing and thanked people for coming, hugging people as they left. Once everyone had left besides the wedding party and their dates, Kurt and Dave picked up the basket where people left the cards they had brought.
Kurt got their attention. "We want to thank all of you. It was perfect. Everything was perfect. We're going to get going."
There were a lot of hugs before they made it out of the pavilion.
Kurt reached for Dave's hand as they walked to the truck. They slipped their suit jackets off before they got in. Kurt slid to the center spot. Dave headed out of the park and out to the highway. Dave put his hand on Kurt's thigh.
Kurt smiled and put his hand over the top. "It was beautiful."
"It was. But you were the most beautiful part. Today was a dream come true. Maybe more of a fantasy come true. Either way, I love you so much."
"And I love you. I'm looking forward to me and you and a private beach for two days."
"Me too. We'll lie out on the beach and relax."
"Beach snuggles while we watch the waves. We'll collect some shells if we find any. We'll think of something cool to do with them."
"If we find ones the right size, we could put them around the frame on the mirror in the living room."
"That would be pretty."
An hour later, they had taken everything in, showered, and opened the high windows along the ceiling in the bedroom that was at the back of the beach house. They stood in the dark room looking out through the patio door into the darkness. They could see the waves rolling in by the light of the moon. They stood just watching and listening for a few minutes before they got in bed. They snuggled up, limbs all entwined, and fell asleep as they listened to the calming sound of the waves rolling in.
[][][] – 05-25-15 – [][][]
Kurt climbed into the 2-person hammock swing they had hung from the large oak tree in the back yard. "Frannie is nice. I'm glad that she and Judy and Quinn have finally made up. People are so weird. I mean how weird it is that in order for Frannie and Luke to come to their senses, she had to not be able to have kids? And all of their friends turned their backs on them, telling them that if they just got 'right with God' that they'd be able to have a baby."
"People are definitely weird."
"The fact that he loves her and wants to stay with her made both of them finally realize what a mess their belief system was. So, they've been married like ten years or something without her having a baby and it's because they're sinful? But Quinn got pregnant out of wedlock and she was sinful too? The rules of sinfulness are confusing."
"Well, we already knew that. We'll be seeing more of them now since Luke sold his UPS store and bought the one in Suffern. It's just a half-hour from here. And Frannie got a job as a teacher there already, starting in the fall. Hopefully, they'll like it here."
"You have another sister and a brother-in-law now."
"I do. I'm glad they're going to go see Dr. Matthias. He helped me a lot. I think he'll be able to help them too. A month of house guests," he chuckled. "Quinn will be ready to toss them after two days. What do you want to bet?"
"Maybe not. Frannie seems to really want this to work, so maybe she'll put in the effort to get to know Quinn again. They haven't really seen each other or talked in what? Four years? Quinn's 21 now. She's not a kid anymore."
Kurt pushed with his feet to make them swing more again. "I like the new swing. How about you?"
"I do." He leaned towards Kurt and kissed him. "When did they say they'd be back?"
"At 3:00."
Kurt checked his phone to see the time. "We've got another 30 minutes before we need to get the grill started for the cookout then. Any idea how we could spend 30 minutes?" Kurt raised his eyebrow and smirked.
"I know just the thing." He got up and pulled Kurt to standing. He kissed him, let go of one of his hands, and took off jogging towards the back entrance into the garage.
[][][] – 09-04-15 – [][][]
"Camp ended. Summer is officially over." Kurt leaned into Dave, who was leaning against his truck in the driveway waiting for Kurt to get out of the Navigator.
Dave wrapped his arms around Kurt. "I know, but we've got a fun weekend planned."
Kurt took a deep breath and nuzzled into Dave's neck. "Mmm hmm. I'm looking forward to that. You, me, the beach house…"
"Everything's in my truck. All you have to do is get in."
[][][] – 05-08-16 – [][][]
Mercedes called graduation evening to congratulate both of them. She put her phone on speaker so that both she and Azimio could talk to Kurt and Dave.
"I can't believe the two of you are going back to school again in the fall. Did you both change your minds and decide that you want to be students as your career?" Azimio asked. "You two are nuts."
"Be nice, Azimio. If they want to stay in school forever, that's their business. But y'all are crazy," she teased.
"Maybe we are," Kurt said. "But we're doing it anyway. I got a full scholarship and I'm going to go for it. I really want to do this."
"That's what matters," Mercedes said. "You already made it on to the Broadway stage. Whenever we manage to make it to New York, seeing you in Hamilton is at the top of my tourist destinations."
"I'm just in the chorus."
"You never know. You might work your way up to a featured role by the time I can manage a trip out there."
"Maybe. But I hope it's sooner than later. It's been too long since we've seen you two."
"Well, we do have something else to tell you," she said.
Azimio said, "I asked my beautiful girlfriend to be my beautiful wife."
Kurt squealed. "Oh, my God! Congratulations!"
"About time," Dave teased. "You two have been together for six and a half years."
Kurt asked, "Did you set a date? Where are you getting married?"
"Some time late this summer in Lima."
"Let us know as soon as you can. I'll have to let the show know I'll need off. I probably won't be able to be in town long, but the sooner I know, the better chance I have."
"We'll let you know first. You're the first people we've told besides our parents. There's one other thing."
"What?" Kurt asked.
Mercedes said, "My solo album is going to be released this fall. I'm going into the studio starting next week to record all of the tracks."
Kurt squealed, "Mercedes! That's amazing! You did it. I knew you could. I will need an autographed copy of the CD."
She laughed. "Of course you will. The second part of that is that I'm going to go on tour. A real live tour with a tour bus and everything. Azimio is quitting his job and signing on as my personal security."
"Mmm hmm. Makes sense," Dave teased.
"Oh, and Noah has agreed to be one of my sound engineers. He'll be flying out next week after he gets everything settled in Columbus."
"That's perfect," Kurt said. "Sarah and Carlos will be starting high school this fall. It's hard to believe."
"He's going to keep my crew and me in shape too as our personal trainer."
Dave said, "He's been making decent money doing that on the side while he's been in school."
"And we heard that Sam is headed your way," Mercedes said.
"That's true," Kurt said. "He got into NYU's Art Therapy program."
"Oh, Rachel says to say 'hi'. She came by the studio the other day to take me to lunch. I never know what to think of her. She's graduating from UCLA next weekend. Jesse too. He took a couple of semesters off when he got that role on that TV show for one season."
Kurt said, "Well, good for them. I hope they find roles. You can tell her 'hi' back from us."
"Do you ever hear from Tina and Artie?" Mercedes asked.
"Just from seeing things on Facebook occasionally," Dave said. "They seem to like it in Vancouver. They've both got one more year of school left, but from what I've seen, they're planning on staying."
"Well, we're about to go have dinner. We'll talk again soon," Mercedes said.
"Have fun," Kurt said.
"We will," Azimio said. "It's our first dinner as fiancés. See ya."
[][][] – 09-06-16 – [][][]
"It's weird having our together time in the mornings," Kurt said. "I'm used to getting up early for camp."
"It is, but I'm just glad that I convinced them that I could do my job from 6:00 to 10:00 just as easily as noon-4:00 or I'd never get to see you, like it was all summer. I still won't see you enough when we're not studying." He pulled Kurt closer and kissed him on top of the head. "I miss you."
"I know. We talked about me quitting the show, but you didn't want me to do that."
"I don't. You worked hard in school and moving up to playing a featured character like George Washington, is what you worked hard for."
"We just never really took into consideration long-term scheduling conflicts. Being a stage performer is always going to have me gone every evening, except Mondays. Even once we're both out of school, if I keep performing, I won't be home in the evenings. And if you work days at any point in time, we'll only see each other on Monday evenings, weekend mornings, and Sunday evenings."
"I'll need to continue to work late afternoons and evenings so that we have time together. We'll find a way to make it work."
"I'm beginning to wonder whether I can do this. Doing a show and going to graduate school is going to be really tough. Maybe I should have just kept my part in the chorus. Or I could go back to working in a garage."
"You know that's not what you want."
"I know, but maybe I shouldn't have applied to graduate school, but I like my classes and I want to do this."
"I like mine too. We're just going to have to muddle through. You signed a 6-month contract a month ago. If it's too much, you can opt not to re-sign when it's up."
"That's true. But I don't want you to feel ignore and neglected."
"I'll miss seeing you as much, but I'm not a toddler. I know you love me. We've been together almost seven years. We've stayed together without fighting and hurting each other when you worked so much when we were in Lima and when you had that internship in the city along with your classes and this summer when you worked at the camp all day and still did Hamilton. We can make it through this too."
"You're right." Kurt tipped his head back and turned Dave's face toward him and kissed him. He rearranged more so they could continue to kiss more easily. After a few minutes, he lay back on his side and closed his eyes.
They lay there silently enjoying just being together for a while.
"I'm interested in seeing how Sebastian's program is different from mine."
"Aren't you meeting him for lunch one day this week?"
"I am. That's what made me think about it. It's so weird that all of us except Quinn are still in school. And having Sam as our neighbor for the school year will be strange at first." He lay quietly for another few minutes, and then said, "Going back to Lima for the day was weird. Finn was nice at our wedding, but him being nice in Lima was super weird, but he did send that apology note all those years ago and he said he'd be different if we ever came back to Lima for anything. So, he kept his word. Seeing everyone was nice. That's the other thing I hadn't considered when I first wanted to be on Broadway."
"What's that?"
"That I'd never have any time off. It's not the kind of profession that allows for vacations. I make good money, but I can't take a vacation without upsetting people. And I understand that. If I buy a ticket to see a show, I want to see the leads playing their roles. But I guess I just never considered the flip side where I'd be the lead that people would want to see and that I'd never get a vacation. We couldn't even stay in Lima for more than 24 hours."
"Well, if we weren't still students, we could have stayed longer than we did. We had to come back so we could go to class this morning."
"We'll have to work on it somehow," Kurt said. "Maybe this Sunday morning we can try to get some time carved out for ourselves that's more than the little bit of time we have before we have to get up and study."
"We have to keep our Sunday evenings free. That's what's always helped keep us grounded and strong together."
"I would honestly rather have a Sunday evening show than a Sunday matinee, but I know that people who come in to the City for the weekend don't stick around for Sunday evening shows because they have to fly back."
"We'll be okay." Dave kissed him. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Me either." Kurt snuggled in tighter.
"So, now that Mercedes and Azimio got married, we have one down and four to go. Sam and Becca haven't been together than long yet, but I think they'll get married eventually too."
[][][] – 05-30-17 – [][][]
"That was a fun afternoon," Dave said, as the two of them lay in the hammock together.
"It was. It's always a lot of fun when everyone is home and they come over like when we were in high school. I miss them being gone so much during the school year, even though they do come home a couple of weekends a month. It's rare to have all of them here the same weekend."
"We've seen all of them on the wedding weekends."
"That's true. We've been to five weddings since last summer. Mercedes and Azimio in September. Jeff and Angel in October. Nick and Quinn at Christmas. Sebastian and Marcel in March. And Braden and Nina at the end of April."
"Like you said last fall, there's just Sam and Becca left now."
"I like having Sam living in Quinn's place and Sebastian spending the weekends out here with Marcel when Quinn doesn't come home and Sam goes to Becca's for the weekend. It reminds me of the good part of being in Lima, when we had Sam, Quinn, Azimio, Mercedes, Tina, and Artie over."
"You've made some new friends."
"I've made new acquaintances that I'm friendly with – people I go to school with and work with on a professional level, but I haven't really clicked with anyone to make close friends at school, but part of that is probably because I already have you. And a best friend – Sebastian. Another best friend – Quinn. Another almost best friend – Sam. And a really close friend who's my best friend's husband – Marcel. And two other close friends – Nick and Jeff. And I'm friends with Angel, Becca, Braden, and Nina. So, I already have 10 friends. Plus, I left out Mercedes and Azimio, but we're still friends with them too. I'm not sure I have room for any more."
Dave chuckled. "Your friend card is full?"
"I think so. I mean Marcel slipped in stealthily a few years back and now we're closer than anyone besides me and Sebastian. And then Angel came along. I like Becca a lot too. She's really funny like Sam. So, I guess there's a remote possibility of adding others, but I think 12 is enough."
"12? 12 friends? But last year you had 12 and Becca's new."
"Alright, Dudley. Who did I leave out?"
"ME!" he teased.
"I named you first. I said I have YOU, and then I started naming people. You're always at the top of my favorite people list." He tipped his head up and gently turned Dave's face toward him and kissed him. "Only you get kisses because you're special."
[][][] – 05-04-22 – [][][]
Five years later, Burt said, "It's about time you graduated," He put his hand on Kurt's shoulder. "You've been in college for 10 years." He pulled him into a hug.
"I know, Dad." Kurt smiled from being teased.
"Now, my son's got some fancy letters to put behind his name. Ph.D. Dr. Kurt Hummel-Karofsky. I can't say that I ever expected you to become a psychologist."
"It wasn't something I had considered when I was younger. That first summer I worked at the camp, I saw all of the kids who needed someone to talk to. They just needed someone to listen to them. And Dr. Matthias helped Dave so much, and me too. And I thought about how much it would have helped to have that when I was young and really needed it. I'm still putting my theater skills to use, just not on Broadway anymore. I like working at the theater here in town better. I love the 3-week runs where we do five shows a week. And then we have a month or two between big shows."
"Well, as long as you're happy, that's what counts."
"I am happy. How about you?"
"I'm good. Finn's doing a good job running the shop. He finally got his head in the game and went through with getting his certifications so he could be foreman. He's got his own place now. Carole and I are happy."
"That's what's important. I have good news. I hadn't had a chance to tell you yet because I wanted to do it in person."
"What's your good news?"
"I've been hired as the school district's psychologist. I start in August."
"Really? That's great. I'm so proud of you."
Paul called out. "The food's ready!"
Everyone walked towards the back porch. Paul and Andrew were standing together. Paul motioned for Burt to step up onto the porch with them.
"Today we're celebrating that Kurt and Sebastian have both completed their Ph.D. programs and passed all of the required tests and jumped through all of the required hoops to become licensed psychologists. So, now I now present to you Dr. Kurt Hummel-Karofsky and Dr. Sebastian Laurent-Smythe."
Kurt and Sebastian stepped up onto the porch, still in their robes from the ceremony they had just returned from.
Kurt spoke first. "I've been offered and I've accepted the position as the school district's psychologist. I'll start in August. I'll still be working at the theater camp this summer."
Sebastian said, "I've been offered and accepted a position at Dr. Matthias' office here in town. His partner is retiring and I will be taking his place in late July. We'll be transitioning his patients starting in June. As our graduation gifts to ourselves, Kurt, Dave, Marcel, and I are going to France for a month."
Kurt and Sebastian went inside and took their robes, stoles, and caps off, and changed into casual clothes.
"We did it," Kurt said. He pulled Sebastian into a hug.
"We did. And we're going to make our other plans come true too. It will just take some time."
They went back outside together. Sebastian headed to where his parents and Marcel were sitting. Kurt went back to where Burt was standing and talking to Dave.
"Dave was telling me about how he runs the football camp. It sounds a lot like that camp he worked at for middle-schoolers a while back."
"It is. I run the high school camp pretty much the same way. I want them to be ready to be recruited to good schools or to be ready to attend good colleges, even if they don't play a sport in college."
"It's a good idea," Burt agreed. "I saw firsthand what letting the jocks slide did at McKinley. It did them no good whatsoever. At least once Coach Beiste came, she ran the team well. It's taken time, but they're doing better at teaching the students."
"That's good," Kurt said. "I'm going to go grab some food. I'm starving."
Burt, Carole, and Dave followed him over to the table with the food on it. They sat down together and continued talking.
[][][] – 05-04-24 – [][][]
Two years later, the twelve board members plus their parents stepped into the foyer of the Hope Community Center for the first time in its Grand-Opening-ready state. They stood in front of the large bulletin board that spread across eight feet of the wall that had events for the center posted on it reading the different flyers and posters. The board was painted red on the left and moved through the color spectrum to violet on the right end. Along the top each board member's name was posted next to a small 5x7 photograph – six names to the left and six names to the right with Hope Community Center in the center.
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Nick Duval
B.S. Neuroscience (2016) Yale University
M.S. Occupational Therapy (2018) Mercy College
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Quinn Duval
B.A Theater Studies (2016) Yale University
Steps on Broadway Dance School (2016-present)
Off-Broadway and Local Actor (2016-present)
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Becca Evans
B.F.A. Graphic Design (2016) FIT
M.A. Art Therapy (2019) NYU-Steinhardt
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Samuel Evans
B.F.A. Art (2016) Ohio State University
M.A. Art Therapy (2019) NYU-Steinhardt
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Braden Franklin
B.A. Computing and the Arts (2015) Yale University
Ph.D. Music Technology (2020) NYU-Steinhardt
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Nina Franklin
B.A. English (2016) Yale University
M.A. Playwriting (2018) NYU
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David Hummel-Karofsky
B.S. Business Administration, Sports Management (2016) Mercy College
. Math and Physical Education (2018) Mercy College
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Kurt Hummel-Karofsky
B.F.A. Musical Theatre & Costume Design (2016) SUNY-Purchase
Equity Broadway and Local Actor (2016-present)
Ph.D. Psychology (2022) Pace University
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Marcel Laurent-Smythe
B.S. Neuroscience and Behavior (2016) Columbia University
Ph.D. Optometry (2022) SUNY School of Optometry
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Sebastian Laurent-Smythe
B.S. Psychology (2016) Columbia University
Ph.D. Psychology (2022) Columbia University
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Angel Davis-Stirling
B.A. Architecture (2015) Yale
M.S. Design and Urban Ecologies (2020) The New School-Parsons
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Jeff Davis-Stirling
B.S. Neuroscience (2016) Yale University
Ph.D. Physical Therapy (2020) Mercy College
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Mr. and Mrs. Duval, Mr. and Mrs. Stirling, Mr. and Mrs. Davis, Paul and Judy, Andrew and Claire, Mr. and Mrs. Laurent, Mr. and Mrs. Franklin, Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright, Burt and Carole, and Dwight and Mary looked through the events posted on the large bulletin board.
"I understand the whole alphabetical order thing, Kurt" Sam said quietly when he was standing between Kurt and Sebastian. "But you two should have put your names at the top or something. "This place was your idea."
Kurt said, "I don't need my name at the top. I just want this to be a place where kids can come and get the help they need."
"My name is fine where it is," Sebastian said. "Kurt and I had the idea, but all of us together have worked to make this a reality. We've all invested in this and we're all playing a part in it becoming a real place for real help and hope. Let's take the tour and show everyone all of the spaces."
Kurt spoke loudly enough to get everyone's attention, "Let's go this way first." He reached for Dave's hand as he stepped towards the doors.
He led them through the hallway with the therapy rooms on each side. All of the doors were open, so they could see inside as they walked past. "These rooms will be for physical and occupational therapy clients. That first room we walked past is the waiting room. This room to the right is for our group art therapy classes and our regular group art classes. The room to the left is for our kids' choir and group music therapy. We have another waiting room here to the left on the other side of the hall. Past it are the rooms for individual music lessons and music therapy. These rooms to the right are for individual art lessons and art therapy sessions. Down farther on the right, we have a room for basic eye exams and vision therapy."
They turned and walked back towards the second waiting room.
Sebastian said, "Down this hall, we have two larger rooms to use for group activities, including a full kitchen for cooking and nutrition classes. Let's go back to the lobby." He wrapped his arm around Marcel's waist and he did the same.
Kurt started to talk again as they got to the doors on the other side of the lobby. "On this side we have a small studio and gift shop where our artists will be able to display their works and the ones who wish to sell them can do so in the gift shop. Half of the proceeds will return to the center for funding and the other half will go to the artist. The shop will have limited hours and will be run by volunteers. We also have an auditorium on this side of the building and several classrooms for our theater and drama groups to use for writing, composing, and performing, which will double as dressing rooms for performances. You can't see them from here. You have to go up the stairs on each side of the stage to get to them."
Jeff and Angel slipped out while the others walked through the area and looked around.
"We'll add more to the auditorium area as we get funding or donations of items we need," Kurt said. He led them farther down the hall. "We have a gymnasium in the back with dance studio rooms along the sides. We'll be able to have martial arts classes, dance classes, aerobics, and some basketball games on the weekends when there are no classes."
Mr. Cartwright said, "I was impressed before I came tonight with what Becca told me you all were doing, but this is really just phenomenal. How did you even get this started?"
"This warehouse had been abandoned and the owners owed a lot of back taxes that were never going to be paid. The city gave us the building in hopes that we could get donors to help renovate it and turn it into something to benefit the community rather than it just sit here as an eyesore like it had for the last ten years or so," Kurt said.
Sebastian continued. "We just started by coming here on in our free time and cleaning it up. Angel did the architecture work by drawing up plans that could be completed in stages. We did the framing ourselves. We had to bring in an electrician and plumber. We did the dry walling ourselves. And over the years, we've gotten places to donate things like office furniture and kids desks when they were replacing things. Since we have so many separate rooms, needing furniture that matched wasn't an issue. Once we had enough stuff to start filling the rooms, we just divided up what we had into similar styles and worked with what we had to paint each room and give it a theme. We bought closeouts for the flooring for each room because we only needed enough for each room since we had decided to go with the eclectic look. Becca and Sam did a lot of the artwork and planning. Kurt did quite a bit as well. The rest of us just painted inside the lines they drew. They came along behind us and did the details and shading and made each room look amazing. We've been working to make this happen for a long time." He led them back to the front lobby.
Kurt added, "As we got each area functional, we began to bring in therapists who had been working with the birth-three program, which is done in-home. We gave them a place to expand their clientele to older preschoolers. They already had their own toys and therapy items. So, at first we just offered them the space. Over time, we've just expanded. And now, that we've finished the gym and the auditorium, basically the right side of the building, we're ready to open to the community. We still have one empty space, but we're hoping that once the community sees what we've done, we can raise the money we need to build an indoor playground in the back left corner of the building since there's no way to get playground equipment donated the way we have toys and furniture. The city has agreed to match funding donations for the playground, so we're hoping to get people or companies interested in donating."
Sebastian said, "One of our other goals is to somehow get nurses on staff, but we haven't figured out how to do that yet. We're hoping that once people see the place that perhaps we can get about 15 nurses who will volunteer to work one 6-hour shift every other week. We don't need a nurse here until the kids start arriving after school."
Mrs. Laurent said, "I think that's a reasonable goal. Nurses work shifts already, so your idea would fit in with the way they get scheduled."
Kurt nodded and pointed to the bulletin board. "With that poster and the flyers, hopefully we will attract some nurses. I forgot to mention that some of the therapy rooms will be used for tutoring in the later afternoon for the lower grades and we'll have time for the older kids in the early evenings. You probably saw the sign-up sheets for high school volunteers to work as tutors."
"We've gotten donations from several local grocery stores to provide snacks for our open house later this afternoon," Sebastian said. "Hopefully, we'll have a big turnout. We sent out flyers to the local schools."
"And please don't think that Sebastian and I did this ourselves," Kurt added. "All 12 of us have worked on this. Sebastian and I were just elected to be the tour guides tonight."
Nick opened the door for Jeff and Angel, who were carrying five pizzas each.
Kurt continued. "Unless anyone wants to see some part of the building again, we can head back to the kitchen area and eat lunch."
"Before we do that, can I get all 12 of you to stand in the center of the wall?"
Burt and Paul took the pizzas from Jeff and Angel so they could do what Claire had asked.
Claire arranged them. "Nick, Dave, Jeff, Sebastian, Sam, and Braden – in the back row. Quinn, Kurt, and Angel stand in front of your husbands, slightly to their left. Marcel, Becca, and Nina stand in front of your husbands, slightly to their right. Now, everyone turn just slightly to the center. Guys in the back row, put your hand closest to me on your partner's waist. Everyone that was in the front, clasp your hands together in front of you. Now, look this way." She took several shots and then looked through them. "Thank you. I'll print the best one out and give each couple a copy. I'll also offer the photo file to the newspaper to run with the article about the Grand Opening this afternoon."
"Thanks, Mom," Sebastian said.
She smiled and nodded.
They all made their way back to the kitchen area. They sat around and discussed more of the planning and their vision of the center while they ate. Once they finished eating, they all helped set up the snacks for the Open House.
A few hours later, over a hundred kids and their families turned out tour the center.
[][][] – 09-04-29 – [][][]
"Ian Robert Hummel-Karofsky. Will you please come out here?" Kurt called out.
Dave mirrored his tone of voice, "Logan Ethan Hummel-Karofsky. You too, please."
Ian came out of his room. "Yes, Papa?"
Logan peeked out. "What, Daddy?"
Kurt asked, "Which one of you decided to break the 'No markers on the walls' rule?"
Logan shut his door quickly.
"Not me, Papa."
"Okay, Ian. You can go back to whatever you were doing," Kurt said.
He went back into his room.
Kurt and Dave opened Logan's door. Having nearly 4-year-old twins kept them on their toes.
"I won't do it again. I wanted the hallway to look more better. It's boring."
Kurt knelt down and looked him in the eyes. "Logan, you knew better, so you'll help paint over the marker. If you thought it needed to look nicer, you needed to tell me and Daddy so that we could help you make a plan without hurting the walls."
"Yes, Papa. I'm sorry. I didn't know the walls would get hurted."
"I have an idea, though. If you want to decorate the hallway, Daddy and I can get some paint that you can draw on, but only with chalk. No markers. Can you do that? Can you only use chalk on the walls?"
"Yes, Papa."
Kurt opened his arms and Logan stepped into the hug he was offered. "We love you, Logan. We forgive you, but you still have to help fix the wall."
"Alright, Papa. I'll fix the hurted wall."
"Let's get Ian and we'll go to Lowe's and get some supplies."
"Can we stop at Hope and play on the playground first?"
"Sure thing, kiddo. Daddy will get Ian ready. Let's get your shoes and jacket on."
Dave and Ian were waiting by the door at the bottom of the stairs just a couple of minutes later. Kurt stopped and leaned in and kissed Dave before he opened the door for them to go outside.
Ian asked, "Daddy, where are we going?"
Logan answered. "I hurted the wall with the markers and I have to fix it."
"Oh."
"We're going to play at Hope first though."
"Yay!" Ian took off running around the side of the garage and then stopped when he got to the driveway.
Logan chased after him and stopped to.
"Good job, both of you," Kurt said. "Waiting for us at the edge of the driveway is exactly what you needed to do."
Dave scooped Logan up and put him in the back seat. "Papa's right. Fasten yourself in."
Kurt picked Ian up and put him into his booster seat and waited for him to clip the harness together before he got in the passenger seat.
Ian asked, "Can we frozen yogurt too?"
Kurt looked at Dave and knew he was going to give in and agree to it. He just shook his head slightly and smiled.