Online and Anonymous - Part 15

[sunmontue]

Title: Online and Anonymous

Pairing: Kurt Hummel/David Karofsky
Rating: PG18
Word count: ~2,000/85,000 words
Warnings: None. 
Summary: By day Dave is a quiet attentive school student, but by night he's a smut-writing fanfic-writer who ships Johnlock. Kurt's never heard of fanfiction before Blaine tells him about it but he's about to be exposed to a whole new world.

Author’s note: If you didn’t think you needed to read the JohnLock chapter you’re wrong. Sorry. You can read ahead, but prepare to be a bit confused. If you haven’t read Chapter 14 then you’re going to be even more confused.

Dave writing

Kurt writing

PART 1   PART 2   PART 3  PART 4   PART 5   PART 6   PART 7   PART 8    PART 9   PART 10   PART 11
PART 12   PART 13   PART 14

What would he do if he were John?

He’s confused, because if he were John he’d just tell Sherlock. It’s not that hard surely? It’s not like John and Sherlock were having an affair or cybersex or… oh. Oh. HookedonHope is John. He’s pretty sure that’s right, he’s discovered the identity of someone, one of his online friends, and wants to know what to do… Oh. He feels a spike of jealousy, or disappointment, that he’s not the only person that HookedonHope has been talking to, but knows that’s futile and ridiculous. He can’t monopolize anyone’s time like that, as much as he would like to.

He reads the last message from HookedonHope again, then the author’s note and then the title catches his eye again. Unmasked. Who exactly has been unmasked? Sherlock. Because he’s no longer The Stranger, but… He’s confused as to why HookedonHope wants his opinion. He likes the story, is really intrigued and really wants to know how it ends, and being left hanging there is cruel, but… Oh god. He’s Sherlock. And HookedonHope is John. And John has figured out who Sherlock is which means… HookedonHope has figured out who he is? How in the hell has he done that? Unless they already know each other?

He pushes himself away from his laptop and stares at it in shock. What the hell? Is he reading this right? Hope to see you on the flipside. He’s pretty sure he is. HookedonHope knows who he is. Which means they know each other. Who is he? How long has he known? How did he find out? Oh god, it’s equal parts exhilarating and terrifying. Shit. Are they friends? He doesn’t think so, but he’s been careful… he needs to talk, and he really wants to be able to ask HookedonHope what he means, who he is, but he hasn’t just told him. I’ve come to enjoy his friendship more than I ever thought possible.

He heads downstairs, because with the lack of HookedonHope he’s going to talk to the next best thing. His Dad. He sits quietly, mind racing, waiting for his dad to either mute the TV or ask him what’s wrong and why he’s willingly sitting in the room while a football game is on. HookedonHope plays football. Could even be watching this game, except for the fact he’s probably sitting in front of a computer waiting for a reply.

“Dad?”

“Mmm…”

“You know how I told you about the friend online? The one that writes the stories?”

“Yeah…?” His dad’s eyes don’t leave the TV.

“I think I know him. In real life.”

“Oh yeah? Who is it?”

“I don’t know…”

His dad presses the mute button and turns to him, looking confused.

“You know him but you don’t know who it is?”

“Yes.”

“Kurt, that makes no sense.”

“Yes, it does. He… augh. It’s confusing. But he kind of implied that he knows who I am, and well, I think he asked me what he should do about it? I think…”

“You think? I’m lost. I don’t get what you mean. Could the guy be yanking your chain?”

He stops and thinks for the briefest of second and shakes his head emphatically.

“No. Definitely not. He wouldn’t do that. I kind of get the impression he’s worried… I mean. He didn’t tell me as such, he just kind of wrote this story and asked me what the guy in the story should do. But I think I’m Sherlock.”

“What?”

“Like I said. Confusing. But focus dad, he knows who I am… I need to figure out who he is…”

His dad looks skeptical, which is probably understandable, because he sounds kind of crazy to his own ears and he actually kind of understands what is going on.

“Why don’t you just ask him?”

“I… it’s not that simple. I mean, if he wanted to tell me he would have. Plus I don’t think he’d tell me if I just asked. I don’t know that for certain, but…  I kind of feel like I need to figure it out. I mean, he’s told me he knows me, and he didn’t have to do that. He could have just… kept it to himself. But he hasn’t. I need to know who he is.”

“Tell me about him, maybe you can figure it out that way,” his dad says, eyes drifting to the TV.

“I… okay. Well. He’s a senior like me. He has an older sister and drinks his coffee with a lot of sugar. He has a good sense of humor, likes reading books and writing. He’s smart. He’s going to New York to study as well…”

“Sounds like you like him.”

“I…yeah. I kind of do I suppose,” and that’s not the half of it, because there’s all the other details, like the fact that he’s a virgin but knows more about gay sex than Kurt does himself.

“Anything else? Because with all the time you’ve been spending with your laptop I kind of expect you to know the guys family history…”

“I… know more stuff. It’s just, there’s so much of it, all jumbled together and I need to line everything up. He plays football and hockey and he’s kind of come out to a couple of people in the last few weeks. Um. He’s just moved in with his dad permanently.”

“What?” His dad asks, stiffening and eyes suddenly focusing on him intently rather than flicking to the TV every other second.

“He moved in with his dad permanently. Dad? What?”

“Um… nothing. Just… keep telling me about this guy.”

Kurt frowns as his dad turns the TV off, because ‘hello odd behavior!’ but he sifts through their conversations, keeping an eye on his dad.

“He’s ambidextrous and has a really caring nature, like worrying about me when I was sick and telling me to sleep tight. He’s the one that recommended the books…”

He freezes. The books… the ones he bought only hours ago and the knowledge floods though him. David. David who had looked at him funny when he’d insisted on real fiction, and oh god, had gone pale when he’d said he wasn’t with Blaine anymore. Shit. He’d figured it out then and there and had been dropping hints as big as houses. He’s going to New York. He likes writing.

“Kurt? You alright?”

He hasn’t realized his breathing has become rapid and shallow and he looks at his dad, eyes wide and nods wildly. Oh god. Breathing. It’s important. Oh shit. He’s been talking to David. He’s… oh god. He fans his face, because he can’t tell his dad stuff like this.

“Head between your knees buddy, slow breaths…”

“I’m not hyperventilating dad!” Lies. He might be.

“Oh, really? It’s hard to tell sometimes. So, you uh... figure it out?”

He turns his head sharply, because the tone of his dad’s voice is just… weird.

“Dad? Why do I have this feeling that you’re not telling me something?”

“Uh…” his dad stalls, and he likes the soothing hand on his back, rubbing gentle circles, but his dad is crap at lying.

“Dad?”

“I… think I know who you might be talking about…” He’s talking deliberately, a tiny pause between each word as if he’s testing each of them out before saying them out loud and he bats his hand away.

“Who do you think it is?”

“Uh… his dad came into the garage a couple of times…”

“His dad? How often has he visited?”

“Uh, a couple of times… a month.”

“You’re friends with Mr Karofsky?”

His dad lets out a massive sigh and seems to instantly relax, and he doesn’t understand.

“I am… kind of. He came by over a year ago, to apologize for Dave’s behavior, and ask me some questions. We get on. Have a beer. Talk.”

“What? About your gay sons?”

“You don’t seem shocked about the fact that he’s gay… when did you know?”

“Before I went to Dalton. I found out, and that’s what freaked him out so much. It’s his biggest fear, being outed in school…” Flashes from prom last year flash and he must have been terrified.

“Oh. Okay. Well, sometimes we talk about you two. He thought that Dave might be gay, but couldn’t figure out how to broach it with him. I told him to just ask.”

Kurt laughs, and it has a hysterical edge, and he still feels light headed from the rush of oxygen from breathing so fast. This is getting ridiculous and he really needs to get back to his room and hide under his pillow until the world makes sense again.

“Kurt? You okay?”

“Yeah, just… I’m kind in shock. You knew that he moved in with his dad. Oh my god… he’s David.”

“Is that… a problem? I kind of figured you’d forgiven the guy.”

“I have. I just… I never thought… I mean… Valentine’s Day…” Oh god… Valentine’s, with that guy, obviously the one that just asked him this week if he was gay, the one he was at the movies with last night.

“What about Valentine’s Day? I thought you were with Blaine then…”

“I was… David just…” he lets out a little laugh. “David pretty much showered me with gifts. For the entire week. Blaine didn’t get me anything…”

“What? Why not?”

“Not the point dad! The thing is I wasn’t upset that Blaine didn’t get me anything, which made me kind of examine our relationship and led me to break up with him… We’re much better as friends.”

“And now you’ve discovered the same guy who was showering you with gifts three months ago is… what? Not your type? Just a minute ago you said you liked the guy.”

“I… I do Dad. I actually do.” He blinks, because it’s kind of a shock to say it aloud, and with what he’d thought this afternoon, coupled with discovering HookedonHope’s true identity he needs to read. Read everything from the start, now that he knows it is David. “I’ve got to go. I’ve got to go and read… he’s told me so much, and I want to read it again, knowing who he is… I just need to go.”

His dad gives him a concerned look as he gets up to leave and he feels a hand on his arm, halting him.

“I love you Kurt.”

“I know dad. I love you too.”

He runs to his room, suddenly desperate to read all their previous messages together, and it shocks him that they’ve only been talking for three weeks. It feels like they’ve been chatting for months. Known each other for months. He reads over the conversations, bites his lip in embarrassment when he reread their flirting, because if he’d known it was David he would never have been so… flirty. As he reads so many things fall into place, it’s so blatantly obvious that it’s David and he feels like an idiot for not spotting it. Seeing David yesterday, admiring him before even realizing who he was, and then the arms, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, glasses, combined with the fact that Dave had looked like he was about to pass out. That had been his moment of realization, when he’d known Kurt was the guy he’s been talking to everyday. He wants to talk to him now.

He just wishes he knew what to say and now he knows exactly how John feels…


PART 16