I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the response to Cry for Deliverance. Over 200 reviews, and 80+ Favorites. O_O. After all that, how could I not continue on with my promise of a sequel? I don't think this one will be quite as long or span as extended of a time frame as the original (although my muse has thrown me a curve ball or two from time to time, so who knows), but I hope you all enjoy the journey with me.

I know I usually write from Kurt's perspective, and some of you have missed Dave's POV. Well, he turned out to be a very talkative boy in this chapter, so hopefully you'll like it. ;-)

Chapter 1

Kurt looked over at the other boy sitting at the end of his living room couch. They had been meeting for a little over a month now, usually in public places like the coffee shop, diner or even the study rooms at the Lima Public Library. They had some serious and deep things to discuss, but they both knew you just didn't jump into that sort of thing right away. So without expressly discussing it, they first began meeting to do homework together and discuss how things were going for each of them in general. Kurt discovered that Dave had his own Dr. Vetter, though he was an older man with grey hair named Dr. Steldt. He also discovered that Dave was really, really good at math, Kurt's weakest subject. Dave learned from Kurt that Mr. Schuester had promised him solo at Regionals, since neither of the other the other two glee clubs had a countertenor. He also learned that Carole had accidentally broken a framed picture of Kurt's mother while cleaning, and Kurt had inexplicably cried quietly in his room for nearly 15 minutes over it. They traded off tales of the mundane and important for a few weeks, building trust and establishing a certain degree of comfort with each other.

Finally, Kurt felt that they had gotten to the point where he felt could broach the subject of last November with Dave, but knew they'd need some degree of privacy to do so. Fortuitously, Finn had been invited by some scouts to check out Ohio University's campus in Athens, and being 3 hours away, Carole and Burt had accompanied him there for an overnight trip. Kurt had begged off; partially because discussing football extensively was painful for him, but mostly because he saw it as an opportunity for him and Dave to have their first truly private conversation. Kurt thought there might never be a better time to make an initial overture into the heavier subject matter, so he invited Dave to his home for the first time. The Hummel-Hudsons knew that Kurt and Dave weren't uncomfortable around each other at school, but none of them knew the two boys were meeting one-on-one on a regular basis. Dave's parents were equally clueless.

Kurt had heard the phrase You could cut the tension with a knife before, but had never really experienced it until this moment. He and Dave sat awkwardly on opposite ends of the couch, Kurt with a throw pillow in his lap that he toyed with the fringe on. He sighed; this was his idea, so it was really only fair for him to make the opening salvo. "Dave?" he asked. "I think I'd like to…talk about it. If it's okay with you, of course."

Not looking at Kurt, Dave responded. "Yeah, it's okay. What do you want to know?"

Kurt closed his eyes, gathering courage. "Why did you kiss me? In the locker room, that day?"

Dave finally glanced over. "Are we going for full on honesty here?" he asked. "I mean, I'm fine with that, but I need to know if I can tell you everything, or if I should be watching what I say."

The great thing about having a conversation with someone else who had been through extensive therapy was that it really cut the bullshit to a minimum sometimes. It may not have been fun, but it sure as hell sharpened your communication skills and sense of self-awareness. "You can be totally honest. I can't promise I'll be happy with what you say, but I'll try my best to understand," Kurt said. "But I think I need to hear it, and I think maybe you need to tell me." Dave nodded and opened his mouth to speak, but Kurt put up a hand to stop him. "And while we're on the subject, it goes both ways. You can ask me anything you want, and I'll answer you honestly." He put his hand down.

"The short answer is because you pissed me off," he said. "You insulted me, and you were shaking your finger in my face like I was a dog who just peed on the carpet. I wanted to shut you up."

"And the long answer?" prompted Kurt

Dave sighed. "I wasn't like you, Kurt. I didn't always know I was into guys. In fact, I don't think I was always into guys. It wasn't until middle school that I even found myself attracted to one, this really good-looking teacher I had. Up until then, I thought girls were pretty, and they appealed to me just fine. Even up until last year, I could make out or have sex with a girl, and it didn't feel gross or wrong. But around my freshman year of high school, other boys were more and more what caught my attention, and what I fantasized about exclusively when jerking off." He looked at Kurt. "I don't know if that makes me gay or bi, but Dr. Steldt says I really shouldn't worry too much about labeling myself right now. Anyway, my point is, it was way confusing for me because it wasn't black and white, not at all. It made me feel like it was something I could change, if I just tried hard enough. And when it didn't work, I started getting really angry - at myself, and at any guy I thought was hot."

He paused for a moment, checking for Kurt's reaction. Kurt wore a fairly neutral expression; weirdly, he found it kind of fascinating to hear about how different Dave's experience had been from his own. The only other gay person Kurt had ever talked to about the subject was Blaine. And like Kurt, Blaine had only been interested in other boys since he could remember having a preference.

Dave continued. "Then two years ago, you came to McKinley. I noticed you right away, and was positive you were gay. I had a problem with you immediately, because unlike me, it was pretty clear you weren't confused at all about what you were. Or ashamed." Dave looked at the floor. "But it wasn't just that. You sure you want to hear this?" he asked, looking up.

Kurt swallowed, and nodded.

"You were wearing a light blue dress shirt, and a tie with some kind of figure on it. I'd never seen anyone wear a tie to school before, not unless it was picture day. You just looked so…neat. Kind of prim and proper, and all covered up. It made me want to know what the parts of you I couldn't see looked like. Like your arms, and your chest. I also wondered what your hair would look like all messed up, instead of not having a strand out of place. And that was the start of it."

"It?" said Kurt, mouth slightly dry.

"My…preoccupation with you. Not that I knew the word at the time, but Dr. Steldt used it and it's probably the most accurate one to use. I couldn't stop thinking about you. Most of the time I convinced myself that it was just because you were so disgustingly out at school, and anything abnormal disturbed me back then. If everyone would just act normal, then no one would ever know where was something wrong with me. It was easier when other people were around, like Azimio, because I could see how a regular guy would think and act around you, and do the same thing. But it was harder when I would see you in the halls and I was by myself. Or if I was home alone. Because when I thought about you then, all I could think about was how much I wanted to touch you."

I said I wanted to know, Kurt thought. I said I would try to understand. He remained silent so Dave could keep speaking.

"Of course, I couldn't touch you, not like I wanted to. But I thought I might go crazy if I didn't, so I tossed you into dumpsters and shoved you into lockers."

You couldn't try flowers? Kurt thought, helplessly.

"I threw slushies at you because I wanted to see you all flushed and messy. It turned me on, and later on I'd picture you that same way, but for a different reason."

Kurt's face burned. You wanted to know…

"You probably noticed that I was getting worse and worse, those couple of weeks before the locker room thing. I started looking for you instead of just running into you by accident. And I started to avoid trolling the halls with Azimio, because I didn't want to have to laugh or make jokes when I slammed into you. I wanted to just...feel what I was feeling when my body touched yours. It was about the worst thing I could have started doing, because the more I did it the more I wanted to. It was almost freeing, in a really fucking sick way. And then you had to decide to stand up to me, and follow me into that locker room. And fate, because she's a numb bitch, arranged it so the place would be deserted. You were telling me that I was ugly, that I disgusted you. But then you put your face so close to mine, I could feel your breath on me. You pointed that damn finger, and it was the first time you had willingly put your hand anywhere near me. I felt like I was getting mixed signals from you."

Kurt was astonished, and not a little offended. He what? He started to object, but Dave cut him off.

"And before you say anything, believe me, I know how stupid that sounds. I'm sure it should have been very clear that you were nothing but completely pissed off at me, but I wasn't exactly thinking straight at the time." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "It was all mixed up in my head. I was furious and I wanted to punch the living shit out of you, but being so close to you was getting me excited just as much. I realized I was getting hard, for Christ's sake, and I knew I needed some kind of release from all those feelings. Honestly, I didn't know whether I was going to choose the punch or the kiss until my lips were on you. I think my brain could have gone either way, but my body knew what it wanted to do. So I kissed you."

Dave sunk back into the sofa cushions, finally out of words. Well, that was a whole lot of truth, thought Kurt. Plenty for me for tonight, thank you very much. He was trying to think of what to say next, but Dave beat him to it.

"Can I ask you a question now?" he asked. "About the kiss?"

"I said you could ask me anything you wanted, so I guess that means yes." Kurt said.

"After we kissed, did you feel anything besides shocked and repulsed? I mean, not that you liked it, I know you didn't. But was there anything else?" he asked. His expression gave nothing away, but Kurt could see the vulnerability in his eyes.

"Can I ask why you'd ask me that?" Kurt wasn't trying to avoid answering, but he wanted to know what would make Dave wonder that, all this time later.

"Because when you pulled back, you looked stunned. But not disgusted, or nauseous. It's why…" he trailed off.

Kurt looked at him questioningly.

"It's why I tried again. Went in for another kiss, I mean. I've just always wondered if I completely misread you on that, or if maybe…I don't know." He gave a shaky laugh. "You know what? Maybe we should just forget I asked."

He stood up and turned to leave the room. Somehow Kurt found himself on his feet too, snagging the corner of Dave's sleeve. "Wait," Kurt said. As Dave turned to face him again, Kurt pondered his question. Dave had been completely honest and open with him, and he felt he owed him the same.

He'd talked to Dr. Vetter about this kiss, of course, but in the context of everything that had happened since coloring his recollection and feelings. He tried to think objectively back to that moment, so long ago. He remembered the relief of finally being able to scream rage at his tormentor instead of cringing and hiding like all the times before. But he also remembered the little voice chanting in the background over his yells, Oooooh, you are in so much trouble, Kurt. He's going to beat the crap out of you, what the hell are you doing… Then he felt strong, nearly painful pressure on the sides of his head, and his mouth was being crushed against something hard and unyielding. He didn't even realize that Dave had actually kissed him until he heard the sucking noise of their lips detaching. He remembered numbly hearing Dave whimper, a sound he would have previously doubted the lumbering jock was even capable of. He had stared at Dave, trying to understand what had just happened, feeling the other boy's fingers linger near his ears and at the back of his neck. He vividly recalled not being able to pull away or move any part of his body at all. And he remembered how Dave's face softened in awe before his eyes closed and his face moved towards Kurt's, spurring him out of his frozen state so he could shove Dave away. And it was really easy to push him off, Kurt thought, even though he was so much stronger than me. He realized for the first time that it was because Dave didn't have his hands on him at all the second time.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been standing there, but when he brought himself back to the present he saw that Dave was still studying him, the look in his eyes gone from vulnerable to outright sadness. He licked his dry lips. "Right after you first kissed me, I wasn't repulsed, no." Dave looked at him like he couldn't believe what he was hearing, and started to move towards Kurt. The smaller boy stiffened and thrust out his hand in the universal symbol for STOP. "I was paralyzed, Dave. Completely freaked the fuck out. I didn't have time to make it to grossed out, because you tried again so quickly and that's what snapped me back."

"So I do remember that part correctly, then." Dave said.

"Yes." Kurt replied. "Thinking about it from your perspective, I guess I can see why you thought trying to kiss me again might work out. Especially since I think you were going to be a lot more gentle the next time. You didn't even try to grab me again. He steeled himself against what he sensed was hope in Dave's hazel eyes, and spoke bluntly. "But I need you to know, Dave. None of my hesitation was because I was trying to figure out if I had enjoyed it, even a little. Because I didn't. I was shocked, but I wasn't conflicted in the least."

Dave backed up a step, and Kurt dropped his hand. He thought he spied the glaze of tears before Dave blinked them away. "I know you weren't, Kurt," he said, and it sounded like he was trying to convince more than just Kurt. "I was the one who was confused, and conflicted. Who was able to feel anger and desire at the same time, hate and lo-" he stopped, cutting off the last word abruptly.

The misery on Dave's face was troubling to Kurt. He realized that both the healing process they had both been through, and their attempts to reach out and connect with each other had borne a strange fruit. Kurt cared about Dave, and felt compelled to seek to ease his pain. He wasn't going to lie to Dave, but he also didn't want him to suffer any more than necessary. He looked at Dave sympathetically. "I wasn't conflicted then, Dave," he said. "But that doesn't mean I don't know what it's like to feel that way. About you."

Dave stared at him. They looked at each other for some time, until the corner of Kurt's mouth quirked up in a half smile. Dave returned it. He went over to the couch to grab his coat and book bag, and Kurt walked him quietly to the door. Kurt waited until Dave had opened the door before speaking. "Goodnight, Dave," he said. "Drive home safe."

Dave turned back to him. "G'night, Kurt," he replied, before walking out the door and closing it. Kurt peeked out through the curtain and watched until Dave's car left his driveway. He turned then, resting his back against the cold door. He shook his head slightly, smiling, before heading off to the kitchen to see what Carole had left behind for him to eat.

I am forever in debt to TheUnknownSoul on LiveJournal; his/her frame by frame screencaps were the foundation I built Kurt's memory of the kiss on. I could have never done it without the reference. And thanks so much to boldlikeblack for introducing me to them.

It's funny that I'm actually a little glad that Glee's on hiatus until February. I really want to finish this story before the writers mess with the Kurtofsky even more, and since I'm starting a new job on Monday, I probably won't be able to update this one as frequently as I have with my previous stories. I will try not to let too much time go between chapters, though. Let's hope the muse cooperates (she loves reviews, hint hint hint).