Fic: Interludes (prologue/18)
Title: Interludes
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: character spoiler for 3x15
Warnings: implied abuse, bullying
Word Count: ~680
Summary: Blaine has spent most of his life feeling like the only thing people notice about him is that he stutters. He’s working hard to overcome his (mostly self created) roadblocks when he meets Kurt in an online class the summer after his freshman year of college.
Author's Note: I’m not sure where this came from, but in part I blame the kiss scene in Original Song. There’s something about the way Blaine works so hard to find the right words that made me want to write a whole AU. Everything I know about speech pathology/therapy and stuttering I learned on the internet and a book I read in high school. Please forgive any inaccuracies.
Kurt is in the basement of the English building when he hears a familiar tune. He knows there’s a piano down here, but he’s never heard anyone play it before. He follows the tune down a hall and comes to the room that contains the piano. He peers through the window and isn’t surprised to see a dark, curly haired head. Before he can think better of it, he opens the door.
“Blaine?” he says, with a question in his voice. He’s worried how the other boy is going to react. Technically they don’t know each other, but Kurt’s been putting together the pieces and they all just fell into place.
The other boy stands up so fast he knocks over the piano bench with a clatter. When he turns around, Kurt can tell he scared him out of a deep reverie. But he couldn’t pass up the moment.
“Hi,” Kurt feels ridiculous, but he’s going to push through. “I’m Kurt.”
“From online?” Kurt continues, feeling stupid. “From class online, I mean. I just, I wanted to say hi. I guess. I’m sorry to bother you.” Blaine just blinks at him, his jaw clenching and unclenching. Kurt thinks he’s made a terrible mistake.
He’s turning away when Blaine finally makes a noise, deep in his throat like he’s trying to clear a lump the size of a grapefruit.
“H-h-how ddddid you know?” Blaine asks, eyes trained to the far corner of the room.
“I actually wasn’t sure until I just heard someone playing that song and then saw it was you. That’s the tuna salad song, right?”
Blaine actually snorts a quick laugh at this and flicks his eyes towards Kurt. But all too quickly he frowns.
“I ddddddidn’t w-want you to know. To know that I ssstuttered. I w-w...” Kurt can see Blaine’s Adam’s apple bobbing as he tries to get these words out, to explain to Kurt what happened, why everything seemed to go wrong, just when Kurt thought things were starting to get interesting. Blaine lets out a long, slow breath and starts again.
“I knew... I-I-I knew that when I mmmmm-et you, I wouldn’t be able to tttalk. That all mmmmm-my words would get stuck. Blah-blah-ocked.” Blaine is blushing furiously now and Kurt can see the slightest shake to his hands. “Blocked,” Blaine repeats quietly.
Kurt is surprised that Blaine stutters, but it doesn’t change how he felt about him, how he feels about him. It makes sense though, why Blaine seemed to reject all of Kurt’s ideas to meet up or to talk on the phone or Skype, why he was always so wordless when they encountered each other before the summer.
Kurt takes a step towards Blaine and reaches out to put a gentle hand on his shoulder, in hopes that Blaine will look up at him. He pulls away when Blaine tenses up at his touch, not wanting to make the other boy more uncomfortable than he already is.
Kurt wants Blaine to uncurl and unclench and look up and see Kurt standing before him. Blaine runs his hands through his hair and closes his eyes tightly for a few seconds. But then he does look at Kurt, right into Kurt’s eyes.
“Sorry,” Blaine mumbles, “I didn’t mean...”
Kurt waits for him to finish, but instead Blaine shakes his head and gestures to his mouth. Kurt wants to tell him that it’s ok, he doesn’t mind, but he’s sure that almost anything he says along the lines of “I don’t mind” will be met with disbelief. But he needs to say something and he needs to say it in a way that doesn’t convey pity or discomfort. And he needs to say it in a way that makes Blaine believe that it really doesn’t matter to Kurt.
“I won’t think of them as blocks, Blaine. I’ll think of them as … interludes.”
Next
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: character spoiler for 3x15
Warnings: implied abuse, bullying
Word Count: ~680
Summary: Blaine has spent most of his life feeling like the only thing people notice about him is that he stutters. He’s working hard to overcome his (mostly self created) roadblocks when he meets Kurt in an online class the summer after his freshman year of college.
Author's Note: I’m not sure where this came from, but in part I blame the kiss scene in Original Song. There’s something about the way Blaine works so hard to find the right words that made me want to write a whole AU. Everything I know about speech pathology/therapy and stuttering I learned on the internet and a book I read in high school. Please forgive any inaccuracies.
Kurt is in the basement of the English building when he hears a familiar tune. He knows there’s a piano down here, but he’s never heard anyone play it before. He follows the tune down a hall and comes to the room that contains the piano. He peers through the window and isn’t surprised to see a dark, curly haired head. Before he can think better of it, he opens the door.
“Blaine?” he says, with a question in his voice. He’s worried how the other boy is going to react. Technically they don’t know each other, but Kurt’s been putting together the pieces and they all just fell into place.
The other boy stands up so fast he knocks over the piano bench with a clatter. When he turns around, Kurt can tell he scared him out of a deep reverie. But he couldn’t pass up the moment.
“Hi,” Kurt feels ridiculous, but he’s going to push through. “I’m Kurt.”
“From online?” Kurt continues, feeling stupid. “From class online, I mean. I just, I wanted to say hi. I guess. I’m sorry to bother you.” Blaine just blinks at him, his jaw clenching and unclenching. Kurt thinks he’s made a terrible mistake.
He’s turning away when Blaine finally makes a noise, deep in his throat like he’s trying to clear a lump the size of a grapefruit.
“H-h-how ddddid you know?” Blaine asks, eyes trained to the far corner of the room.
“I actually wasn’t sure until I just heard someone playing that song and then saw it was you. That’s the tuna salad song, right?”
Blaine actually snorts a quick laugh at this and flicks his eyes towards Kurt. But all too quickly he frowns.
“I ddddddidn’t w-want you to know. To know that I ssstuttered. I w-w...” Kurt can see Blaine’s Adam’s apple bobbing as he tries to get these words out, to explain to Kurt what happened, why everything seemed to go wrong, just when Kurt thought things were starting to get interesting. Blaine lets out a long, slow breath and starts again.
“I knew... I-I-I knew that when I mmmmm-et you, I wouldn’t be able to tttalk. That all mmmmm-my words would get stuck. Blah-blah-ocked.” Blaine is blushing furiously now and Kurt can see the slightest shake to his hands. “Blocked,” Blaine repeats quietly.
Kurt is surprised that Blaine stutters, but it doesn’t change how he felt about him, how he feels about him. It makes sense though, why Blaine seemed to reject all of Kurt’s ideas to meet up or to talk on the phone or Skype, why he was always so wordless when they encountered each other before the summer.
Kurt takes a step towards Blaine and reaches out to put a gentle hand on his shoulder, in hopes that Blaine will look up at him. He pulls away when Blaine tenses up at his touch, not wanting to make the other boy more uncomfortable than he already is.
Kurt wants Blaine to uncurl and unclench and look up and see Kurt standing before him. Blaine runs his hands through his hair and closes his eyes tightly for a few seconds. But then he does look at Kurt, right into Kurt’s eyes.
“Sorry,” Blaine mumbles, “I didn’t mean...”
Kurt waits for him to finish, but instead Blaine shakes his head and gestures to his mouth. Kurt wants to tell him that it’s ok, he doesn’t mind, but he’s sure that almost anything he says along the lines of “I don’t mind” will be met with disbelief. But he needs to say something and he needs to say it in a way that doesn’t convey pity or discomfort. And he needs to say it in a way that makes Blaine believe that it really doesn’t matter to Kurt.
“I won’t think of them as blocks, Blaine. I’ll think of them as … interludes.”
Next