Our Love Song (Klaine)

Chapter Four: Blaine

Kurt wasn’t too pleased with the fact that I was keeping where we were headed a surprise.

“The zoo?” Kurt asked, as I slowed down, right next to a sign by the side of the road that read “Dunn Family Zoo”. At first I couldn’t tell if he was questioning it or making fun of me, but that question was soon answered when I saw the smirk on his face.

“Yeah. The zoo. They have animals and stuff.” Kurt elbowed me in the shoulder and we both laughed.

I’d wanted to take Kurt to the zoo before we were even officially together. The truth was that I practically grew up at this place. I used to live just down the road, so whenever I was feeling particularly lonely or upset, I would just grab my bike and just come here. The whole staff knew me very well when I was younger, and some of them still do. I knew my way around the place like the back of my hand, and I knew all of its secrets. And I was thrilled to finally get to share them with Kurt. Now that it was summer, my first summer with Kurt, sharing my childhood with him was something that I was looking forward to more than anything.

I pulled into the parking lot and drove towards the back entrance, reserved for staff. I smiled to myself at Kurt’s face became puzzled.

“Wait, why are you-”

“Just hang on a sec, Kurt. I’m going to make a quick phone call.” I pulled my phone out of my pocket and quickly dialled a number. The phone barely rang once before it was answered.

“Blaine!” a cheery female voice answered me, talking a mile a minute. “Long time no see! I miss you a bunch. Hey, you should totally come visit. Wait. Hold your hippos, it's a Saturday during the summer. You must be here. Are you here?”

“Yeah, I’m out back. I have someone I want you to meet,” I said, glancing sideways at a thoroughly confused Kurt.

“Oh my God, fantastic. Give me a bit, I’ll open up the gate. See you in a few!”

“Who was that?” Kurt asked, now nervously fiddling with his tie and fixing his hair as I’m sure he realized we were going to be meeting someone.

“A friend,” I said, dismissively. “Come on, let’s go. And you don’t have to look perfect, you know. It’s a zoo.”

“A crowded zoo filled with cruel toddlers and judgmental parents,” Kurt ignored my hint, glancing in the mirror once again.

We got out of the car and I led Kurt to the gate labeled “employee entrance”. Almost the exact second we reached the gate, it was flung open and before I could comprehend what was happening, a short, blonde girl had her arms flung around me. Ava.

“Blaine!” Ava squealed. “Blaine, I’ve missed you so much! You haven’t been here in forever! So much has happened here since the last time, oh my God. I just can’t wait to tell you all about everything! Come on, we got a new monkey a month or two ago, and he is just the most precious thing you ever did see. We’ll have to hurry though, they feed in ten or so minutes. His name is Pluto, he’s only two months old, but-”

I interrupted her rant early on, because I knew how long she could ramble on. “Woah, there. Easy, Ava.”

I looked behind my shoulder and saw Kurt walk around the front of the car, cautious and confused. I grinned at him, motioning him over to where I stood with Ava. He approached us slowly, the corner of his mouth lifting into an awkward smile.

“Kurt, this is my best friend, Ava. Ava has been working at the zoo since I was little. Her dad owns the place,” Ava grinned, nodding excitedly. “And Ava, this is Kurt Hummel, my boyfriend.”

“Hi,” Kurt’s cheeks flushed as he offered his hand for Ava to shake, and Ava, predictably, ignored it and pulled Kurt into a gigantic hug.

“Hey, Kurt! Blaine has told me so much about you! Well, kind of. I knew you were his shiney new friend. But not his boyfriend last I checked. Now. When did this happen, and why is this the first I’ve heard of it? I've never met one of Blaine's boyfriends before. Although I don’t know if he’s had any. Unless he’s keeping secrets. Oh, Kurt. You're going to have to tell me every detail about everything. I’m Ava, by the way! I’m eccentric. And I really like your hair, by the way. It's so fluffy and perfect and I think I’m kind of extremely jealous of it.”

Kurt’s expression was completely priceless. He was shocked, to say the least. However, in retrospect, his first encounter with Ava was fairly mild. Nick and Jeff almost died the day they met Ava.

“I try my best...” Kurt squeaked. “But... do you mind letting go of me? I can’t breathe.”

Ava released Kurt, smiling even bigger than before, if it was even at all physically possible. I took Kurt by the shoulders and pulled him close to me, and mock-whispered in his ear, loud enough so that Ava could still hear.

“Get used to that. She tends to talk a lot.”

“It’s true, I really do. I just get excited easily. It’s a bad habit. And really, why shouldn’t I be excited? Blaine freaking Anderson is back at my zoo with his fancy new boyfriend! Oh, Blaine, everybody will be so thrilled to see you. It’s been way too long. Your new school must be really tough. It takes up all your time these days. You barely come to visit anymore... Hey, Kurt. Do you go to Dalton too?”

“No. I mean, yes, I did. That’s where I met Blaine. But I transferred back to my old school.”

“Oh, bummer. But you and Blaine still seem pretty close, which is fantastic. Blaine needs someone like you to keep him sane. Or insane, I can't tell which is better for Blainers. So yeah, about the monkeys. We should hurry if you still want to go. I mean, it’s cool if you don’t! I totally understand if you want to ditch me for your pretty little boyfriend. I mean, he sounds like a cool dude. And he has pretty awesome boots that I kind of want... Where did you get them? Do they make those for girls? How much were they? I wouldn’t mind taking up another shift at the snack bar if they are too much for me at the moment. I think--”

“No, it’s fine, Ava. We can go see the monkeys,” I interrupted, laughing fondly at her. Kurt laughed along with me, and I smiled, because I was beginning to feel that they would get along.

Ava was just over twenty-six years old. I met her when she was a teenager, working small jobs at the zoo. Her dad owned the place and had her working in some capacities here and there since she was around ten. Ava has been more than a best friend for me when I was growing up. She was really supportive of me when I was discovering myself in full. Not just my sexuality, but my personality, hopes, and dreams.

And I certainly helped her a great deal, as well. Ava is a firecracker. She is always incredibly energetic, and she has this passion about absolutely everything that she does, which is one of the best things about her. But sometimes, her passion leaks into insanely obsessive, and there are some people that have really given her crap for it. She is a lot like Kurt and I in that she loves musical theater more than anything in the world. It has become such a passion in her that it's all she can think or talk about. Sure, we all have moments like this, but this is Ava's life. Her so-called friends at school teased her and called her obnoxious because of it, and there were points in her life where she felt like just getting rid of her personality completely. That's where I stepped in. I helped Ava learn to accept herself, and now, she's a lot happier.

"Yeah, okay, sure. Let's go!" Ava grinned, grabbing my wrist and dragging me towards the gate. I clutched Kurt's wrist too, dragging him along behind me so the three of us were linked, stumbling forward in a clumsy jog. Kurt chuckled happily, and I couldn't help but do the same. He was going to have a great unofficial first day of summer, I just knew it.