Dalton

Episode 17: Explorers

Knock. "Kurt?"

No answer.

Knock. "Kurt...?"

Still no answer.

Carefully, Finn pushed open the door and peered into the white and navy room, cautious for any sign of half-dressed boys that had thrown him for a loop the last time he entered his stepbrother's room. Fortunately, the only sign of life came from the breathing lump under the lush comforter on the bed.

Kurt had arrived early—or late, depending on what you thought of the time—last night. The New Year had barely been out when he appeared on their doorstep, looking tired from the flight but unbelievably happy. He hardly said anything more than "hello, Happy New Year", "I'm back", "I'm going to my room and then I'm going to faint", and "good night" before he went in and was never heard from again. His dinner was left uneaten, which was fine for Finn as that meant he got third helpings.

It was already past ten am, and out of a request he could not refuse, he now had to wake him. Finn crept silently over the carpet, standing over Kurt. He shook him carefully. "Hey. Hey, Kurt?"

At his touch, Kurt suddenly sat up in bed, pulling from under his pillow a huge Nerf gun, now aimed directly at Finn's face.

"Whoa! Don't shoot! It's me!" Finn leaped backwards instantly, almost to the wall.

Kurt blinked blearily, saw that it was indeed his stepbrother and lowered the gun with a roll of his eyes. "Geez, Finn, I told you, don't just barge in..."

"I knocked!" Finn protested. "Twice!" He frowned at the Nerf gun. "That's twice already, why do you keep that thing on you?"

"Force of habit... At least I didn't actually shoot you this time," Kurt rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "What do you want?"

"The girls want to see you outside," Finn grumbled as he went out of the room.

Kurt watched him go, confused, then down at the gun on his bed. He shoved it back under his pillow, rolling his eyes. Windsor was starting to get to him. And what would the girls want with him now? He pushed himself up from bed and picked up his phone from his bedside table.

Just got back to Windsor. Everyone else is moving back in—it's crazy again. When are you coming back? – B

Kurt couldn't have stopped smiling even if he tried. He answered,

I'll be back by tomorrow. If you miss me so much, come visit. – K

He smirked to himself, possibly unaware of what he may have just done, and put the phone back onto his table. He rose and began to attempt looking less bedraggled, tugging with him his primping kit crammed mostly with the presents he'd received from Reed.

It was still cold and he hugged himself as, after a while, he went downstairs. Shrugging on the new McQueen trench that the Twins had given him for Christmas, he said a bleary "good morning" to his family as he passed them at the kitchen. The front door was open, and as he stepped out, he stared.

The girls stood there with cold stares, arms crossed. Rachel was staring hard at him. Mercedes and Quinn were raising eyebrows. Tina looked at him with suspicion. Brittany looked as blank and expectant as ever, but Santana was looking at him with the barest trace of a questioning smirk on her face.

"What?" Kurt asked, staring at them.

No answer. They just kept staring. Mercedes, on the other hand, held up her phone that still had one of Kurt's messages on the screen, and pointed silently at it without so much as changing expression.