Fic: The More You Give {Part 3}
Title: The More You Give
Rating: NC-17
Warnings Age!kink, but both parties are over the age of 18.
Summary: When Blaine Anderson gets a fresh start at McKinley High in 1997 thanks to his best friend Rachel Berry, her parents, Emma Pillsbury, and the group of misfits that would become the New Directions, the last thing he expects to gain from playing it straight and dating Quinn Fabray is a daughter at the age of sixteen. Fast forward to present day, where Blaine is raising Sugar as a single dad in the same sleepy town of Lima he grew up in. When Sugar is recruited at the beginning of her sophomore year by Will Schuester to join New Directions and falls deeply in love at first sight with one of the co-captains, Blaine isn’t sure what to think, especially since Kurt Hummel is quite out of her league, being three and a half years older and, well, gay.
Little did he realize how much Kurt would end up turning Blaine’s own life upside down in the year ahead - a story of Blaine’s struggles to find his true self as his daughter grows up herself and his personal journey to realize age is just a number.
Rory asked Sugar out on a first official date the following week, to dinner and a movie on Friday night, and once Sugar told Blaine about her second, much more realistic love interest, she couldn’t stop talking about him. She was rambling to Blaine about what they’d each had for lunch, now that they were sitting at the same table, Blaine tuning out a bit but snapping back to attention when he heard Kurt’s name. “I just don’t know why he’s in such a funk - how am I supposed to get ready for my first real date without my fashion advisor?”
Blaine swallowed his food quickly before speaking. “Well, did he say he had plans, sweetheart? You can’t expect him to clear his schedule.”
“No, that’s the thing! He was going to come after school, and then changed his mind but didn’t give me an excuse. I just hope I didn’t make him angry, or anything.” Sugar pushed her food around on her plate as she moped.
Blaine felt awful, because he knew it wasn’t anything Sugar did. It was all his fault, and he couldn’t very well tell her that, could he? “Maybe … the last time he came over to help, it was a little bit crazy here,” Blaine started, improvising as he went along. “Lots and lots of people helping you.” Sugar mulled over his words, still not eating her food, so Blaine went one further.
“I have to drive out to Westerville tomorrow afternoon. I’m not sure if I’ll be back in time to see you before you go - I wonder if you asked Kurt nicely, told him you were going to be alone, he’d reconsider?” Blaine didn’t really have to drive to Westerville tomorrow afternoon - it was on the agenda to get done before the holidays, nothing urgent, but if it would help.
Sugar looked conflicted - what if Kurt said no and she really was alone? “Look, if he really can’t come, I’ll rearrange my plans and you and I will pick out an outfit that will knock Rory’s socks off. But it’s worth a shot, right?”
Unsurprisingly, Kurt had no problem agreeing when he heard Blaine was out of the picture.
The problem with driving to Westerville was that it gave Blaine plenty of time to think, time he hadn’t allowed himself previously. He hadn’t told Rachel about Kurt’s comment at Sugar’s party, and he hadn’t seen Kurt the rest of the night. He’d luckily been able to occupy his mind with other things up until now.
He hadn’t told Rachel, because he knew exactly what she would say - Kurt was right. Regardless of what Blaine thought of Kurt, he did deserve to get swept off his feet. He’d never really had that before, maybe a little bit when he and Sebastian first got together, but Sebastian was hardly a romantic. Blaine was never very good at romance himself, but he appreciated it at least.
After futzing around the Lima Bean in Westerville, speaking with the manager and surveying the store and checking stock, Blaine got back in his car for the ride home and realized something - Kurt had been sweeping Blaine off his feet without even meaning to. Without even trying. The idea of being with Kurt had slowly and surely weaved its way into Blaine’s brain and he needed to do something about it.
He had no idea what, exactly.
Blaine pulled up to his driveway at a quarter to six. Rory was picking up Sugar at six exactly, and Kurt’s Navigator was parked out front. Blaine could have driven around the block a few more times, but it was snowing and he was tired from the drive and well, the whole doing something plan.
“Daddy, you’re home in time!” Sugar announced when he walked through the door, Kurt sitting on the bottom steps of the stairs. “How do I look?” She twirled for him, wearing a pair of jeans, her black boots, and a white, furry cropped jacket. “Kurt thinks the jacket is too much.”
“It is too much,” Blaine said, laughing as he took off his coat and hung it on the rack. “Sometimes you need a little too much, though.”
“He has a point,” Kurt said, giving both of them the tiniest of smiles. Sugar’s phone buzzed at that point with a new text and she squealed in excitement.
“Okay, he’s in the driveway! Thanks, both of you!” Sugar grabbed her purse from the table and went for the door.
“What kind of gentleman doesn’t come to the door?” Blaine teased, and Sugar groaned in response.
“It’s snowing, Daddy, he’s keeping the car warm for me. Bye, boys!” She rushed out the door without another word, and Blaine peeked through the blinds to watch her climb into Rory’s sedan.
“If he’s an exchange student, does that mean he doesn’t have a driver’s license?” Blaine wondered aloud, grinning when Kurt started laughing. “I probably shouldn’t ask questions I don’t want to know the answer to, right?”
“Probably not,” Kurt said, wrinkling his nose at the thought. Blaine walked over and sat down on the steps next to Kurt, and he heard him breathe in sharply.
“Can we talk?” he asked, resting his elbows on his knees, and before he could say another word, Kurt started rambling.
“Blaine, I am so, so sorry for what I said to you at Sugar’s party. It was completely out of line and should be none of my business and I don’t know what I was thinking, I obviously wasn’t, that’s the whole point.” Kurt was talking to the ceiling, avoiding Blaine’s gaze at all costs.
“It wasn’t that out of line,” Blaine pointed out, leaning against the wall to give Kurt a little more space. “It was kind of true.”
Kurt turned towards Blaine, finally actually looking at him, brow furrowing in confusion at his words. His mouth dropped open, and then promptly shut, as if Blaine had thrown him for a curveball and he didn’t know what to say next. “Either way, it was really inappropriate, and I apologize. It won’t happen again, promise.”
“I don’t know. I could really use someone to call me out on my bullshit from time to time.” Kurt narrowed his eyes at Blaine, as if he still had no idea what was happening.
There was a beat of silence, and then, “Why do you always have to be so nice to me?” Kurt's voice had taken on an accusatory tone and it was Blaine’s turn to look confused. Kurt turned back around, facing away from him. “You’re already gorgeous and unobtainable, and then you have to be nice to me all the time on top of it. There is literally nothing wrong with you.”
“Oh, Kurt, there is plenty wrong, trust me,” Blaine breathed out, and this was getting messy quickly, but he kind of didn’t care - this was better, everything out in the open.
“Nothing that matters. At least not to me.” Blaine’s stomach flipped, actual goddamn butterflies, and he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had that feeling. “I know what I’m feeling for you is insane and wrong and one-sided and I’m getting all of my signals crossed, and I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop to prove that I’m right and it never does.”
Blaine could barely think over Kurt’s words echoing in his ears, the pounding in his head - everything was happening so fast. When Blaine didn’t say anything, Kurt peered over his shoulder at him. “Oh god, I’ve sufficiently freaked you out now, I’m going to -“
Blaine reached out to stop him from leaving, a feather light touch on his forearm, and Kurt froze, eyes widening as if he couldn’t believe Blaine was actually touching him. “The other shoe never drops because it’s not one-sided.” Kurt’s eyes widened even more, as if he didn’t believe what Blaine was saying, his lips dropping open just enough to let the tiniest gasp slip between them. Blaine's eyes trailed to Kurt's full, pink lips, just the way they had so many weeks earlier, the desire to kiss him even greater now.
Blaine figured there was no turning back at this point, giving in to temptation, surging forward and actually kissing him. It wasn’t perfect, but it was real, hearing the little gasp Kurt made just before their lips touched, feeling the way Kurt’s hand grappled for something, anything to hold onto and finding the sleeve of his shirt, marveling over how soft and smooth Kurt’s lips were even though they were right in the middle of the dead of winter.
When they broke, Kurt’s expression told Blaine he was in complete awe of what just happened, which was exactly how Blaine felt. Blaine had thought about kissing Kurt, sure, but he wasn’t positive he’d ever really let himself cross that line, and he certainly hadn’t been planning on it that night.
Their faces were still close, so close, and Blaine took a deep breath. “I have no idea what I’m doing, Kurt,” Blaine told him on the exhale, and Kurt simply murmured, “I beg to differ,” before pressing their lips together once more. This time it was Blaine who made a surprised whine against Kurt’s lips as they touched, Kurt’s mouth sliding effortlessly against his - for someone who hadn’t had a real kiss, he sure was a quick learner.
Kurt laughed lightly when they broke again, burying his head against Blaine’s shoulder, and somehow, he had ended up almost in Blaine’s lap, his back still flat against the wall next to the stairs. Blaine wasn’t sure when that had happened and how he had missed it, but soon he was laughing along with Kurt. “This is insane,” Blaine said in between laughs, and Kurt just shrugged impishly before untangling himself and retreating to his side of the stairs, his ankles still draped over Blaine’s.
“Stop thinking so much,” Kurt said, nudging Blaine’s thigh with the toe of his boot, when he fell silent, and he was right, Blaine’s mind wouldn’t shut up about how fucked up all of this was and how he couldn’t believe he let himself kiss Kurt, no matter how strong his feelings had become, how he was supposed to be the responsible one here, the one with a clear, accountable mind.
Blaine looked over to find Kurt still glancing his way, mildly amused. “Ah, but see, there’s something that’s wrong with me. I think and think and think and over think.”
They stared at each other momentarily before Kurt gave him a slightly shy, but mischievous smile and replied, “We can work on that?”
Blaine paused at Kurt's words, wondering what Kurt was thinking. He wondered if Kurt thought he'd kissed him on impulse or if he had any idea where they would go from here. He ducked his head, trying not to laugh again at Kurt's boldness, looking up at Kurt through his eyelashes instead. “I just want you to know - I really have thought about this. A lot. There was a lot of angsting going on in my brain.”
“I’m pretty sure more was going on in mine,” Kurt said with a chuckle, “but someone once told me not everything is a contest.”
“Touché.” Blaine still had no idea what he was doing, no freaking idea - but per Kurt’s suggestion, he could try and worry about it less, at least in his presence. “Do you have anywhere to be? Do you want to stay? We could … watch a movie or something.”
“I think I’d like that, though I don’t know how much of the movie we’ll watch. You’re far more interesting,” Kurt said grinning, getting up and looking really, truly happy, and Blaine could stand to keep making Kurt happy for as long as he kept smiling like that.
As he followed Kurt to the living room, Blaine tried to wrap his mind around the fact that all of this was really happening. As much as Kurt had told him not to think so much - he couldn’t help it. This was huge for him, not just the fact that he hadn’t been in a relationship since Sebastian, but the fact that it was Kurt, wonderfully stunning Kurt, and all of the possible issues that might arise with that - he was almost positive it would be worth it, though.
They settled on ‘Pride & Prejudice’ which was playing on one of the movie channels - and, Kurt was right, it didn’t matter one bit, because the whole movie ran and they didn’t pay any attention to it, focusing on each other instead, talking in hushed tones about everything and absolutely nothing - Blaine was eager to learn more about Kurt, now that they were actually doing this. He couldn’t get enough of the way Kurt’s face lit up when he talked about things that weren’t depressing, like many of their previous conversations had been. He’d seen a glimpse of it before when Kurt had talked about his dad months ago, back when Blaine was trying to ignore the feelings building up in his mind. Now that Blaine wasn’t trying to ignore his attraction, he was falling harder and faster than he thought possible, and he had to pat himself on the back for the amount of willpower it took to ignore what had been right in front of him. In between their talking, they traded tentative and lazy kisses all night, stopping before things got too heated.
“I want more than this, you know, more than just talking and kissing on my couch,” Blaine said quietly during another such break. At the quirk of Kurt’s eyebrow, he quickly continued. “I mean, I want this to be real. I’m horrible at romance, and I have no idea how we’ll make any of this work, but I’ll try if you’ll let me.”
“Maybe you just haven’t met someone yet who appreciates your romantic gestures. Cuddling with Jane Austen? How can you top that?” He placed a quick kiss to Blaine’s lips. “Well, not actually cuddling with Jane Austen since she’s been dead for almost two hundred years, but you know what I mean.”
Blaine finally made them get off the couch when Kurt’s stomach started to rumble, ransacking the refrigerator for odds and ends to eat. “This isn’t romantic,” Blaine said, popping a grape in his mouth as Kurt checked his phone.
“Details,” Kurt said with a wave of his hand. “It’s probably for the best we came in here, their movie is over. I told Sugar I’m still here watching movies - were we - what should I say to her?”
Blaine ran a hand through his hair, trying to smooth where it was sticking up in the back from the couch cushions and the way Kurt’s fingers had twisted in the strands as they kissed. “It’s up to you. I haven’t dated anyone in a while, but usually I wait until things get a little serious before I tell her. The last time we had that conversation though, she was eleven - I honestly don’t know what I’d do if it wasn’t you.”
“We can wait a while,” Kurt replied, typing furiously on his phone as he did. “I like that plan.”
By the time Sugar returned home, they were both on the couch with mugs of tea and the movie on HBO had switched from ‘Pride & Prejudice’ to ‘Batman Begins.’ “I’m home!” Sugar sang as she walked through the door. “Why … why are you watching Batman?” she asked suspiciously when she saw what the TV was playing.
“Christian Bale,” Blaine replied, Kurt saying, “Bale in tights, duh,” at the same time.
Sugar blinked at them. “You guys are freaky in sync. I thought you were watching ‘Pride & Prejudice?’”
“It just switched over,” Blaine explained, getting up to greet her. “Did you have fun?” he asked with a grin.
“It was wonderful,” Sugar said with a heaving sigh, batting her eyelashes dramatically, and Blaine squeezed her shoulders.
“Good. I’m going to take a shower and go to bed and give you some privacy to tell Kurt all about it,” Blaine said with a wink and he headed up the stairs, stopping on the middle landing to eavesdrop a tad.
“Why are you even still here?” he could hear Sugar ask as she bounced on the couch.
“I was drawn in by the perfection of Keira Knightley, shut up and tell me about your date, I saved you the phone call.”
“Well …” Sugar started and Blaine could picture her now, just beaming with everything she wanted to say. “I guess I should thank you because Rory gave me a good night kiss on the doorstep, and if you hadn’t been here, my dad probably would have been looking out the window.”
At the sound of her subsequent squealing, Blaine made it the rest of the way up the stairs, retreating to his bathroom to take a long, hot shower - Sugar and Rory had shared their first kiss on the same night Kurt and he had. The juxtaposition of that was too much for his mind to handle.
***
Kurt had texted him late Saturday night, saying he was finally leaving and asking if he could call when he got home to say goodnight, since they hadn’t been able to when Blaine had gone upstairs. They ended up talking until the wee hours of the morning, Blaine not being able to remember the last time he’d spent so much time on the phone with someone, aside from Rachel (who he’d known almost his whole life).
Blaine figured they should put down some ground rules - mostly, not talking about Sugar. Blaine didn’t want to put Kurt in any awkward situations, since he still was Sugar’s friend. Also, Kurt had decided he wasn’t going to say anything to his dad yet. Blaine wasn’t particularly okay with that idea, but he wasn’t telling Sugar yet either, so he decided he wasn’t in any position to push the issue.
Due to his late night, Blaine emerged late from his room Sunday morning, and Sugar was already sprawled out on the couch, homework in front of her but watching the television instead and engrossed in her phone.”Hi, Daddy,” she said, not looking up from the phone, and he ruffled her hair as he passed in search of coffee.
He finally returned with a steaming mug, depositing himself on the end of the couch and patiently waiting for her to look up from her phone. She slowly did, raising just her left eyebrow as if she knew something she wasn’t entirely ready for was about to happen. “So,” Blaine started, taking a sip of coffee to fortify him. “You going to tell me about this kiss?”
“Daddy! You eavesdropped!” Sugar squealed, hitting him with one of the throw pillows, which wasn’t exactly prudent given his full coffee mug. Thankfully, none was spilled.
“You weren’t exactly quiet about it, sweetheart!” he replied, grinning wildly. “You’re going to see Rory again, I presume?”
“Yes,” she said, her cheeks flushed scarlet, mumbling something about how it wasn’t even her first kiss - and Blaine knew that one already too (it was Andrew Jenkins on the playground in fourth grade).
“You should invite him to dinner - oh, fine, not right away,” Blaine recanted at Sugar’s horrified face. “But soon. After we get back from New York. And I don’t want you guys sneaking off in cars to make out or anything, you all are more than welcome to hang out on the couch here, just like you and the rest of your friends do. I won’t bother you. Much.”
“Oh my god, Daddy, it was one kiss,” Sugar sighed, groaning and burying her head in the throw pillow she’d assaulted Blaine with.
“I’m happy for you,” he pointed out, though his voice wasn’t exactly sincere, and she smacked him again. “I’m just saying. First boyfriend. Kind of a big deal.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” Sugar said, finally relenting, and she leaned over to hug him. “Thanks, Daddy, you’re the best.” Blaine grinned, because that’s all he ever wanted to hear.
***
Blaine started Tuesday off with a surprising call. He almost didn't answer - he had a habit of letting numbers he didn't know go to voicemail - but his fingers accidentally swiped over 'answer' instead of 'ignore.'
"Blaine, this is Emma Schuester from William McKinley," the soothing voice on the other end said, and Blaine immediately started to panic at the formality in her voice.
"Emma? Is Sugar okay?" he asked quickly, his heart racing.
"She's fine. Everyone is fine, this isn't an urgent call," Emma corrected, and Blaine heaved a sigh of relief. "I do wonder if you have any free time today. I think we need to talk."
"I - I have to drive to Dayton this afternoon, but I have the morning free. What is this about?"
"I'd rather not say here at school. Actually, I'd rather not meet here at school. My lunch break is at eleven fifteen, is there any way I could meet you somewhere? Somewhere with some privacy?"
What in the hell was going on? "You can stop by my house if that works?"
"Perfect, you're still on Elm?" Blaine confirmed he was, and as soon as he hung up the phone, it hit him - there was no way this was about Sugar. This was about Kurt.
Replaying the conversation with Emma back through his mind, there was no way she wanted to talk about anything else. Emma was another person Blaine wished he had kept in contact with the last few years, because suddenly he felt like the same seventeen year old kid who used to sit in her office, pouring his heart out, and he had no idea why.
***
Blaine's house wasn't far from the school, so Emma knocked primly at his door at eleven-thirty. "You promise everyone is okay?" Blaine asked as she wiped her shoes on the doormat and pulled off her coat, hanging it up on the rack by the door. He half-wondered if her OCD had improved since he’d last seen her, or if what she had to say about Kurt was just that important to show up at an unfamiliar house.
"Yes, and I know this is highly unorthodox, so thank you for seeing me, especially on such short notice." Blaine led her to the living room and she sat down in the armchair in the corner, Blaine choosing to sit on the sofa. "I'd like to talk to you about Kurt Hummel."
Blaine swallowed thickly, nodding for her to continue. No surprise there. "This is the first time I've broken the confidentiality of my students, and I'm only doing it because I know you Blaine, I know you well enough to know you won't use any of this information against him, and in reality, you already know all of it. In fact, I'll be telling him we talked, unless you do yourself, and I'm hoping you take me up on that suggestion."
Out of everyone who'd been in Blaine's life during his high school years, Blaine had to admit Emma had probably known him the best, deep down. He'd been in her office at least one afternoon a week during most of high school after he found out Quinn was pregnant, and as he told Kurt, he really wasn't sure where he'd be without her. Because of this, Blaine also knew how hard it must have been for Emma to come to him. "Okay, how can I make this easiest for you? Just to let you talk?"
"I think that would be best," Emma replied, folding her hands in her lap. "Kurt came to me about a month ago, per your suggestion, though it's my understanding you suggested he come to me long before then. He told me about the situation from last year, and I'm so extremely saddened that he thought he couldn't come to me sooner, when I would have been able to do more." Emma fidgeted with the hem of her skirt, and Blaine could tell she was taking that one hard - perhaps this was her attempt to make something right for him.
"Emma, don't beat yourself up over that. You didn't know, stuff falls through the cracks all the time, but you are good at what you do. I think I'm proof of that," he added with a sheepish smile, and she returned it.
"Yes, well," she said, trying to get back on track. "After that, I asked Kurt to meet with me on a bi-weekly basis. Even though he assured me things are better now, I don't want to miss anything else. He's been through enough. Since he didn't have things of that nature to report, our session topic quickly turned ... to you."
Blaine's heart started beating fast again, though he wasn't quite sure why. He certainly hadn't done anything wrong, but he wasn't sure how to feel about Kurt talking to Emma about him. He was confused, to say the least.
"He didn't mention your name, though it was easy enough to gather who he was talking about since I know you, and I don’t know anyone else in this town that would fit the picture he painted for me. He's ... he's developed a bit of a crush on you."
"I know," Blaine said quickly, and Emma replied just as fast.
"I figured as much, seeing as when he showed up in my office yesterday afternoon, he was positively giddy, talking about how he’d been wrong all along! How the person who he had a crush on liked him back, and that he’d kissed him!” Emma’s voice grew more and more frantic with each word, and she paused to collect herself while Blaine sat there speechless. “I’m guessing since you’re not openly denying it, it’s true.”
“Emma,” Blaine started, his voice coming out pained and desperate, but she held up a hand to stop him.
“Kurt’s eighteen, so I’m not here to judge you,” she said, her voice returning to its usual calm manner. “Of all people, I know neither of you has had it easy here, especially you.” Blaine was probably projecting too much, but he could see the pity in Emma's face, and he wasn’t sure if disappointing and judging would have been easier to swallow.
Emma uncrossed and recrossed her legs, adjusting in the chair. “I just want to make sure you’re doing this for the right reasons, Blaine. I don’t want you to lead him on.”
“I’m not,” Blaine replied quickly, leaning against the arm of the couch. “I know it’s crazy, and I can’t explain it, but I like him. It’s not just attraction, I actually think he’s the single most interesting person in all of Ohio, and I’m so terrified of screwing this up.”
“Oh, Blaine,” Emma said, patting Blaine’s knee where he was resting his elbows, resisting the urge to bury his face in his hands. She got up from her chair and sat beside him on the couch, placing her hand on his back for comfort, and he figured he must have really looked pathetic for her to do that, actually make contact with his skin, even through the various layers of his clothing. “You can’t - if you want this to work, you can’t keep thinking like that. It’s not fair to you or Kurt. You’re just setting yourself up to fail.”
“I know,” Blaine repeated, his voice suddenly sounding very small.
“Talk to him. Tell him how you feel and then let it go, okay? Be honest and put it out into the universe, and then don’t obsess over it anymore.” Emma awkwardly patted at his back before returning her hand to her lap. “I know you haven’t been a student for a very long time, Blaine, but I wasn’t kidding when I told you before you graduated that I’ll always be here if you need me.”
“I know,” Blaine said once more, and he had to stop the broken record bit. He looked up from the floor to face her. “Thank you, Emma.”
She smiled at him brightly. “Nothing can be perfect, remember that. You’ll do alright. You have so far - you should be very proud of the lovely young woman Sugar’s grown up to be.” Blaine noticed Emma eyeing the clock up on the mantle that was inching closer and closer to twelve.
“You probably have to get back, don’t you?” Blaine asked, getting up off the couch when Emma nodded. “Thanks again for everything.”
Emma dug in her purse, pulling out a business card and writing something on the back. “I’m serious. If you need to talk, my cell phone number is on there.” Blaine put the card in his shirt pocket, walking Emma to the door and telling her goodbye and happy holidays. He collapsed on the couch once he was alone again, pulling out his cell phone to text Kurt.
Are you doing anything tomorrow night? Can I take you out to dinner? I know you have school Thurs
To his surprise, Kurt called him moments later. “Aren’t you in class?” Blaine teased, and he heard Kurt scoff into the phone.
“I just left, I’m headed to lunch. I - I’m definitely free tomorrow night.” Blaine could hear the grin in his voice.
“Good. I know this weekend will be crazy with Christmas - I just wanted to see you before we leave.” Blaine refrained from telling Kurt he wanted to talk, because he didn’t want him to panic. He and Sugar were flying out Friday to spend the holidays in New York with Cooper and Rachel and her family - after Quinn died, the Andersons and Berrys began the tradition of celebrating Christmas together, even though the Berrys were Jewish and the Andersons weren’t overly religious. It had become the one day a year all eight of them would be together, no matter what.
“Me too,” Kurt admitted, and Blaine could hear the bustling McKinley hallway in the background. “My dad works late on Wednesdays. He doesn’t get home until after ten, so as long as I’m home before then, it’s fine. I don’t have any more midterms on Thursday, my last one is tomorrow.”
“Pick you up at five?” Blaine asked, disconnecting the call after Kurt confirmed and said he had to go since he’d arrived in the lunchroom.
Blaine’s trip out to the Dayton Lima Bean that afternoon was just as uneventful as when he checked on the Westerville one, and he arrived home to Sugar already there and cooking dinner.
“That smells wonderful, sweetheart,” Blaine said as he walked into the kitchen. Sugar wasn’t much of a cook, but she knew how to make a few things on the off chance Blaine wasn’t home for dinner - most of them breakfast dishes left over from the weekends in middle school when she still insisted on getting up at six am. She grinned at him, sliding an omelet on a plate and passing it to him. “What’s the occasion?”
“No occasion, Daddy, just - I won’t be home for dinner tomorrow, Rory and I are exchanging Christmas gifts!” She turned to grin at him again before grabbing her own plate and sitting down at the table next to him.
On one hand, this worked out well, because Blaine wouldn’t be around either. On the other hand, the slow progression of his fledgling relationship with Kurt was highlighting the headway in Sugar’s and Rory’s and … he was going to have to talk to Sugar at some point about that. “What did you get him?” Blaine asked as he cut into his omelet.
“I went to the mall with Mercedes today and I found the best thing! Rory’s been talking about missing home a lot and he also mentioned how his room at Brittany’s is super cold or something, so we were at this one store and they had handmade blankets from different parts in the world, and they had one from Ireland!” Sugar cut into her own omelet, seeming quite proud of herself.
“That’s a perfect gift, honey. Very thoughtful.” Blaine grew quiet then, studying his daughter as she ate, trying to figure out if she looked older since her birthday and obtaining a boyfriend, and he couldn’t decide.
“You’re doing the weird thinking thing, Daddy,” she finally said, taking a drink of milk from her glass. “Oh my god, is this about Rory? Are … are we going to have to have a really awkward sex talk again? Can I just tell you that Rachel and I talked about things and Rory’s a nice guy and I promise that’s like … not on anyone’s radar?”
Blaine bit back a chuckle, because the one time they’d had an official talk, Sugar was in seventh grade and they both wanted it to be over as soon as possible. It had been somewhat easier since, Blaine throwing out random comments or questions when appropriate - it had never been a secret Sugar had been born to teenage parents. “I would hope not, you’ve only been dating what, like a week and a half? You told me it was just a kiss a few days ago!” Sugar rolled her eyes and Blaine resisted the urge to comment on it. “I wasn’t thinking that, just - you really like him, don’t you? He makes you happy?”
“He does,” Sugar gushed, and Blaine noticed the tiniest blush on her cheeks.
Blaine waited until Sugar was on the phone herself before calling Rachel - he realized he hadn’t even told her about Kurt, and it was days later. She was going to kill him.
First things first though.
“When did you talk to my daughter about sex?” Blaine nagged when Rachel answered the phone.
“Well, lovely to talk to you too, Blaine, on Sunday when you ignored my call, that’s when.” No wonder Sugar was a little gun-shy, that was recent.
“You called too early. I was … up late.” There was a pause, as if Rachel was digesting this information.
“Sugar said you went to bed early. What were you doing up late?” Blaine could hear slamming drawers on the other end, Rachel taking out her aggression on her dresser. “I thought maybe I’d somehow fallen out of your good graces.”
“I was on the phone.” He could tell she was about to blurt out a question of 'with who,' so he just got on with it. “With Kurt.”
Another pause before, “Finally.” Blaine told her the abbreviated version of what happened with Kurt, Emma, and his impending date the following day, Rachel thankfully keeping her mouth shut for most of it.
“So, the real reason why I called is that I need advice,” he said, ignoring Rachel’s mutter of ‘of course you do.’ “Do I - it’s Christmas,” he said dumbly, running his fingers over his comforter as if it somehow possessed the ability to allow him to speak in coherent sentences again, hoping she’d be able to pick up on what he was asking. The last thing he wanted was to buy Kurt some overly lavish gift and come across as too forward.
“Everyone likes presents, Blaine,” she pointed out. She was being no help, why had he called her?
“Be nice to me. I’ll be in your presence in just a few days, and I hear you have a new boyfriend.”
“Likewise, and if I recall, your whole family doesn’t even know about yours.”
Touché. “Rachel,” Blaine whined, and she sighed.
“I forgot how adorably helpless you are at the beginning of a new relationship. Aren’t you doing some shopping tomorrow? If you see something that speaks to you, get it, if not, I wouldn’t worry. It’s awful timing, but you’ll live. Better? Be happy I'm not teasing you about having a teenage boyfriend. I'm saving that for in person!”
“Okay, okay,” Blaine answered even though it hadn’t helped him at all, finally sucking up his pride and asking her about Jesse.
***
Blaine ran by one of the Lima Beans on the outskirts of town that morning, finishing up the last bit of paperwork that needed to get done before the holidays, and he stopped by a small, family owned jewelry store he sometimes frequented on the way back. Since they were traveling, Blaine didn’t want to buy anything too huge to carry on the airplane, and jewelry definitely fit the bill. He’d picked out earrings for Sugar and necklaces for Rachel and his mom when he spotted a case of brooches and pins, one in the back catching his eye.
It was small and circular, a bronze tree with branches and roots stretching out and connecting in the middle, two tiny golden birds among the branches. Kurt often accessorized his shirts and jackets with pins, and Blaine could instantly imagine it on the military jacket he’d been wearing lately. “Okay, this one too,” Blaine said quickly before he could change his mind, asking the cashier to wrap it for him.
Blaine kept himself busy the rest of the afternoon by attempting to organize his suitcase, and finally around four, he let himself get ready, keeping his navy pants on but changing into a nicer shirt and sweater and adding a tie. He found Kurt’s street easily once he left, feeling a tad anxious as he pulled onto it street - what if Burt was home? He certainly didn’t approve of Kurt not telling his father about who he was dating, but at the same time, the last thing he wanted to be greeted with was an awkward situation at this very moment.
Obviously, the time would come, and he wasn’t terrified of the man (Burt Hummel seemed like a reasonable enough guy after all), but he was anxious enough about talking to Kurt; he didn’t need anything else to worry about. He spotted the house at the end of the street, pulling into the driveway a few minutes before five. Before he could text Kurt to let him know, he saw him coming out of the door, looking stunning as usual in a plaid blazer and tight jeans and waving.
“Don’t you look wonderful tonight,” Blaine commented as Kurt slid into the passenger seat.
“I could say the same for you,” Kurt mused, buckling his seatbelt. “Where are we going?”
“I thought we could get real Italian food. Not that Breadstix isn’t lovely,” Blaine replied, wiggling his eyebrows in Kurt’s direction. “It’ll probably be less crowded too.”
Even though the restaurant in question was further away than Breadstix, the time passed quickly, both of them sharing what had happened in their lives since they last saw each other. Kurt told him a little about the New Directions holiday party that was planned for the following night (though he’d heard some from Sugar about it as well); Blaine told him about their upcoming trip to New York. By the time they’d been seated and ordered their food, he figured he should tell Kurt about Emma.
“So … Emma Schuester showed up at my house yesterday,” Blaine said slowly, stirring a packet of sugar into his iced tea, and he noticed Kurt pale. “It’s okay!” he blurted out. “She didn’t … tell me anything. Aside from asking me if I was really intending to date you.”
The color continued to drain from Kurt’s face (what little he had), and Blaine said, “I told her I was.”
“I didn’t even use your name,” Kurt muttered, twirling his straw wrapper around his fingers. “I shouldn’t have said anything at all.”
“She really didn’t tell me anything. You should keep talking to her - about us, about anything that’s on your mind.” Kurt said nothing, setting his jaw, smiling tersely when the waitress brought them garlic rolls. Blaine grabbed one from the basket before pushing it in Kurt’s direction. “You can talk to me too, you know. I know we did a lot of talking last time, but we didn’t really talk about … this.”
Blaine munched on his roll, waiting, and when Kurt didn’t speak, he did. “Alright, I’ll start. I’m really scared of screwing this up.” That got a reaction out of Kurt finally, a glance that silently asked if he was insane. “I have a tendency in my life to screw up things that are important to me, and you’re important to me, Kurt.”
“Even things you screw up have wonderful outcomes, though. Look at Sugar.” Kurt smiled at him then, still weaving the strand of paper through his fingers. Blaine wanted to tell him that Sugar was the exception to the rule, but he kept his mouth shut in favor of finding out what was bothering Kurt instead. “I’m afraid you’re going to wake up one day, and realize this is too difficult, that I’m just this eighteen year old kid that you have nothing in common with -“ Kurt stopped abruptly, turning to stare at the wall of their booth. “I’m afraid I won’t be good enough for you.”
Blaine’s heart broke a little then, because he realized at the heart of it, they were both worried about the exact same thing. Blaine wanted to kiss him then, but he settled for reaching his hands across the table to take Kurt’s in them. “I can assure you that you’re too good for me, Kurt Hummel, so never worry about that.” Kurt’s eyes found Blaine’s at his words, the irises growing brighter as he sat up taller, his mouth parting as if he was going to protest, but turning into a soft curve instead as his chin jutted outward. Blaine almost thought he believed him.
Blaine mentioned the one piece of advice Emma had given him - not to let their insecurities get the best of them and set themselves up for failure. After silent recognition that they would attempt to do so, the conversation turned lighter, back to New York, Kurt recounting the New Directions failed trip to Nationals that spring, why he wanted to go back, why NYADA - Blaine had no doubt about it, Kurt would be able to do anything he put his mind to. Blaine could hear the passion in his voice when he spoke, and he half wondered if Kurt sounded the same way when he talked to Emma about him.
There was dessert and coffee after dinner, and Blaine felt as if he needed to be rolled out to the car. It had begun snowing while they were inside, so they bundled back up before heading outside - scarves, coats, gloves. Their shoulders kept brushing as they left the restaurant, hands bumping against each other, and finally, Kurt took Blaine’s in his own and squeezed. The drive back to Kurt’s house was quiet, Blaine not wanting to wreck the car in the snowy night, and when they pulled into the driveway, Kurt reached for Blaine’s hand again. “Do you want to come in for a bit?” he asked after Blaine put the Prius in park. “My dad won’t be home for another hour, at least, and it’s probably stupid, but I got you a present.” Kurt ducked his head bashfully as he spoke, but he was grinning.
“I might have a little something for you as well,” Blaine replied as he turned off the car, and the look of surprise that crossed Kurt’s face was worth the price of the brooch entirely.
Kurt’s room was in the basement of the house, and Blaine was shocked to see that it was stunningly decorated - better than his entire house over on Elm Street. It was like Kurt’s own little underground apartment, complete with his own seating area. Blaine was thankful for Kurt's interior design skills, because it almost made him forget about the fact that his boyfriend had a bedroom in his dad's place, while Blaine had his own home. Blaine watched as Kurt ducked in his closet, pulling out a small gift bag before walking over to the sofa.
“Like I said, it’s kind of silly,” Kurt said, offering him the bag. Kurt’s own present was tucked safely inside Blaine’s jacket, so he pulled his jacket off and retrieved it as Kurt sat down next to him.
“Mine’s kind of silly too,” Blaine assured him. “I just saw it today and thought of you.” Kurt motioned for Blaine to go first after accepting his box, so Blaine pulled the pieces of tissue paper out of the bag, finding something wrapped inside one of them. It was a mug, but far nicer than the one Kurt had broken and certainly not from the Lima Bean. No, this was handmade, but beautifully done, a few squared off edges to make it just a tad imperfect, but just as stunning, the cool porcelain glazed the most perfect wash of bluish green, which reminded Blaine of Kurt’s eyes. A handwritten tag was attached: Sorry for the untimely demise of your other mug, but now you’ll just have to think of me every morning when you drink from this one. :) xx, Kurt
“I told you not to replace it,” Blaine teased, but Kurt’s note was correct - he’d definitely be drinking from this mug every morning. “I love it though, thank you.” Blaine placed a hand on Kurt’s knee where his leg was bent underneath him, and he squeezed appreciatively. He waited patiently while Kurt unwrapped the box and took the lid off, discovering the tree and bird brooch underneath.
“Oh,” Kurt breathed out, pulling it from the box to turn it over in his hands.
“Like I said, I saw it and thought of you. I thought it would look nice on the jacket you sometimes wear the airplane pins on.” Blaine watched as he inspected it, not saying another word until he was throwing himself across the couch, wrapping his arms around Blaine’s shoulders and hugging him fiercely.
“It’s amazing. You’re amazing,” he whispered, his hands curling into Blaine’s sweater, and he pulled back just far enough to kiss Blaine, but not like the chaste kisses they’d shared the last time they were on a couch together. One of Kurt’s hands came up to cup Blaine’s cheek while his lips parted just slightly, enough for Blaine to slip his tongue into Kurt’s mouth. It took Kurt by surprise even though it was second nature for Blaine, and it was a bit sloppy at first, until Kurt figured out what to do with his own tongue, but when he did, Blaine couldn’t believe how incredible it was. If Blaine let himself think too hard about things, nothing made sense - he’d been with far more experienced men and here Kurt was, for all intents and purposes having never been kissed, yet taking his breath away.
“Well, I’m going to have to surprise you like that all the time if that’s the thanks I get,” Blaine teased him afterward, a blush riding high on Kurt’s cheeks.
“All you have to do is ask,” Kurt whispered, a smile curling on his lips. “I wish my dad wasn’t coming home so soon,” he added, sadly, and Blaine ignored the twinge of guilt he felt at Kurt's words, wondering if Kurt felt one too.
“I should probably get home and pester Sugar to start packing anyway,” Blaine replied, picking up his mug, and leaning back over to give Kurt one last kiss. Kurt wasn’t expecting that either, and giggled halfway through, Blaine laughing along with him.
They headed back up the stairs, and Kurt asked, “When do you get back? The thirtieth?”
“Yeah, Sugar wanted to make sure she’d be here for Mercedes’ New Year’s party, which I’m sure you’ll be attending.” Kurt nodded as Blaine pulled back on his coat and scarf, starting to say something about skipping it, but Blaine protested. “No, you shouldn’t break your plans. Sugar said something about spending the next night over at Tina’s - I’m pretty sure after a week with her family, I’m going to see her as little as possible for the remainder of winter break. Do you have something already planned for the first?”
“I do now,” Kurt replied, pursing his lips as he straightened the ends of Blaine’s scarf out, tugging them evenly. “It’s a date.”
Blaine covered Kurt’s hands with his own and smiled. “Good.” Blaine let Kurt open the door for him and follow him out, even though Kurt wasn’t wearing a coat, and kissed him goodbye in the front doorway with snow whipping up around them, hoping it was too cold and windy for any nosy neighbors to be spying. “See you next year, Kurt,” Blaine said, leaning up on his toes to give him one final kiss on the forehead before getting into his car and driving off.
***
Blaine sat on Rachel’s couch the day after Christmas mindlessly watching the TV, having gone out earlier with Rachel and Sugar to check out some of the post-holiday sales. Everyone else was still out doing shopping or sightseeing of their own aside from Jesse, who’d come over once they’d returned home. He and Rachel were curled up in her loveseat, whispering and laughing quietly, and Sugar was engrossed in her phone on the other end of the couch. Blaine’s own phone buzzed, and he pulled is from his pocket to find a text from Kurt.
Did you have a nice Christmas? Can’t wait to see you :)
Blaine couldn’t help grinning, not really caring who saw. I did, and same. You? Any ideas for our date? he replied, before exiting to the main screen of his phone.
While he waited for Kurt to text back, Sugar climbed over to his side of the couch and threw her arms around him, smiling herself. “You seem happy, Daddy.”
“I am happy, sweetheart,” he replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and grinning even harder, because as stupid as it was, for the first time in a long time, he felt truly content.
Part 2 // Part 4
Rating: NC-17
Warnings Age!kink, but both parties are over the age of 18.
Summary: When Blaine Anderson gets a fresh start at McKinley High in 1997 thanks to his best friend Rachel Berry, her parents, Emma Pillsbury, and the group of misfits that would become the New Directions, the last thing he expects to gain from playing it straight and dating Quinn Fabray is a daughter at the age of sixteen. Fast forward to present day, where Blaine is raising Sugar as a single dad in the same sleepy town of Lima he grew up in. When Sugar is recruited at the beginning of her sophomore year by Will Schuester to join New Directions and falls deeply in love at first sight with one of the co-captains, Blaine isn’t sure what to think, especially since Kurt Hummel is quite out of her league, being three and a half years older and, well, gay.
Little did he realize how much Kurt would end up turning Blaine’s own life upside down in the year ahead - a story of Blaine’s struggles to find his true self as his daughter grows up herself and his personal journey to realize age is just a number.
Rory asked Sugar out on a first official date the following week, to dinner and a movie on Friday night, and once Sugar told Blaine about her second, much more realistic love interest, she couldn’t stop talking about him. She was rambling to Blaine about what they’d each had for lunch, now that they were sitting at the same table, Blaine tuning out a bit but snapping back to attention when he heard Kurt’s name. “I just don’t know why he’s in such a funk - how am I supposed to get ready for my first real date without my fashion advisor?”
Blaine swallowed his food quickly before speaking. “Well, did he say he had plans, sweetheart? You can’t expect him to clear his schedule.”
“No, that’s the thing! He was going to come after school, and then changed his mind but didn’t give me an excuse. I just hope I didn’t make him angry, or anything.” Sugar pushed her food around on her plate as she moped.
Blaine felt awful, because he knew it wasn’t anything Sugar did. It was all his fault, and he couldn’t very well tell her that, could he? “Maybe … the last time he came over to help, it was a little bit crazy here,” Blaine started, improvising as he went along. “Lots and lots of people helping you.” Sugar mulled over his words, still not eating her food, so Blaine went one further.
“I have to drive out to Westerville tomorrow afternoon. I’m not sure if I’ll be back in time to see you before you go - I wonder if you asked Kurt nicely, told him you were going to be alone, he’d reconsider?” Blaine didn’t really have to drive to Westerville tomorrow afternoon - it was on the agenda to get done before the holidays, nothing urgent, but if it would help.
Sugar looked conflicted - what if Kurt said no and she really was alone? “Look, if he really can’t come, I’ll rearrange my plans and you and I will pick out an outfit that will knock Rory’s socks off. But it’s worth a shot, right?”
Unsurprisingly, Kurt had no problem agreeing when he heard Blaine was out of the picture.
The problem with driving to Westerville was that it gave Blaine plenty of time to think, time he hadn’t allowed himself previously. He hadn’t told Rachel about Kurt’s comment at Sugar’s party, and he hadn’t seen Kurt the rest of the night. He’d luckily been able to occupy his mind with other things up until now.
He hadn’t told Rachel, because he knew exactly what she would say - Kurt was right. Regardless of what Blaine thought of Kurt, he did deserve to get swept off his feet. He’d never really had that before, maybe a little bit when he and Sebastian first got together, but Sebastian was hardly a romantic. Blaine was never very good at romance himself, but he appreciated it at least.
After futzing around the Lima Bean in Westerville, speaking with the manager and surveying the store and checking stock, Blaine got back in his car for the ride home and realized something - Kurt had been sweeping Blaine off his feet without even meaning to. Without even trying. The idea of being with Kurt had slowly and surely weaved its way into Blaine’s brain and he needed to do something about it.
He had no idea what, exactly.
Blaine pulled up to his driveway at a quarter to six. Rory was picking up Sugar at six exactly, and Kurt’s Navigator was parked out front. Blaine could have driven around the block a few more times, but it was snowing and he was tired from the drive and well, the whole doing something plan.
“Daddy, you’re home in time!” Sugar announced when he walked through the door, Kurt sitting on the bottom steps of the stairs. “How do I look?” She twirled for him, wearing a pair of jeans, her black boots, and a white, furry cropped jacket. “Kurt thinks the jacket is too much.”
“It is too much,” Blaine said, laughing as he took off his coat and hung it on the rack. “Sometimes you need a little too much, though.”
“He has a point,” Kurt said, giving both of them the tiniest of smiles. Sugar’s phone buzzed at that point with a new text and she squealed in excitement.
“Okay, he’s in the driveway! Thanks, both of you!” Sugar grabbed her purse from the table and went for the door.
“What kind of gentleman doesn’t come to the door?” Blaine teased, and Sugar groaned in response.
“It’s snowing, Daddy, he’s keeping the car warm for me. Bye, boys!” She rushed out the door without another word, and Blaine peeked through the blinds to watch her climb into Rory’s sedan.
“If he’s an exchange student, does that mean he doesn’t have a driver’s license?” Blaine wondered aloud, grinning when Kurt started laughing. “I probably shouldn’t ask questions I don’t want to know the answer to, right?”
“Probably not,” Kurt said, wrinkling his nose at the thought. Blaine walked over and sat down on the steps next to Kurt, and he heard him breathe in sharply.
“Can we talk?” he asked, resting his elbows on his knees, and before he could say another word, Kurt started rambling.
“Blaine, I am so, so sorry for what I said to you at Sugar’s party. It was completely out of line and should be none of my business and I don’t know what I was thinking, I obviously wasn’t, that’s the whole point.” Kurt was talking to the ceiling, avoiding Blaine’s gaze at all costs.
“It wasn’t that out of line,” Blaine pointed out, leaning against the wall to give Kurt a little more space. “It was kind of true.”
Kurt turned towards Blaine, finally actually looking at him, brow furrowing in confusion at his words. His mouth dropped open, and then promptly shut, as if Blaine had thrown him for a curveball and he didn’t know what to say next. “Either way, it was really inappropriate, and I apologize. It won’t happen again, promise.”
“I don’t know. I could really use someone to call me out on my bullshit from time to time.” Kurt narrowed his eyes at Blaine, as if he still had no idea what was happening.
There was a beat of silence, and then, “Why do you always have to be so nice to me?” Kurt's voice had taken on an accusatory tone and it was Blaine’s turn to look confused. Kurt turned back around, facing away from him. “You’re already gorgeous and unobtainable, and then you have to be nice to me all the time on top of it. There is literally nothing wrong with you.”
“Oh, Kurt, there is plenty wrong, trust me,” Blaine breathed out, and this was getting messy quickly, but he kind of didn’t care - this was better, everything out in the open.
“Nothing that matters. At least not to me.” Blaine’s stomach flipped, actual goddamn butterflies, and he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had that feeling. “I know what I’m feeling for you is insane and wrong and one-sided and I’m getting all of my signals crossed, and I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop to prove that I’m right and it never does.”
Blaine could barely think over Kurt’s words echoing in his ears, the pounding in his head - everything was happening so fast. When Blaine didn’t say anything, Kurt peered over his shoulder at him. “Oh god, I’ve sufficiently freaked you out now, I’m going to -“
Blaine reached out to stop him from leaving, a feather light touch on his forearm, and Kurt froze, eyes widening as if he couldn’t believe Blaine was actually touching him. “The other shoe never drops because it’s not one-sided.” Kurt’s eyes widened even more, as if he didn’t believe what Blaine was saying, his lips dropping open just enough to let the tiniest gasp slip between them. Blaine's eyes trailed to Kurt's full, pink lips, just the way they had so many weeks earlier, the desire to kiss him even greater now.
Blaine figured there was no turning back at this point, giving in to temptation, surging forward and actually kissing him. It wasn’t perfect, but it was real, hearing the little gasp Kurt made just before their lips touched, feeling the way Kurt’s hand grappled for something, anything to hold onto and finding the sleeve of his shirt, marveling over how soft and smooth Kurt’s lips were even though they were right in the middle of the dead of winter.
When they broke, Kurt’s expression told Blaine he was in complete awe of what just happened, which was exactly how Blaine felt. Blaine had thought about kissing Kurt, sure, but he wasn’t positive he’d ever really let himself cross that line, and he certainly hadn’t been planning on it that night.
Their faces were still close, so close, and Blaine took a deep breath. “I have no idea what I’m doing, Kurt,” Blaine told him on the exhale, and Kurt simply murmured, “I beg to differ,” before pressing their lips together once more. This time it was Blaine who made a surprised whine against Kurt’s lips as they touched, Kurt’s mouth sliding effortlessly against his - for someone who hadn’t had a real kiss, he sure was a quick learner.
Kurt laughed lightly when they broke again, burying his head against Blaine’s shoulder, and somehow, he had ended up almost in Blaine’s lap, his back still flat against the wall next to the stairs. Blaine wasn’t sure when that had happened and how he had missed it, but soon he was laughing along with Kurt. “This is insane,” Blaine said in between laughs, and Kurt just shrugged impishly before untangling himself and retreating to his side of the stairs, his ankles still draped over Blaine’s.
“Stop thinking so much,” Kurt said, nudging Blaine’s thigh with the toe of his boot, when he fell silent, and he was right, Blaine’s mind wouldn’t shut up about how fucked up all of this was and how he couldn’t believe he let himself kiss Kurt, no matter how strong his feelings had become, how he was supposed to be the responsible one here, the one with a clear, accountable mind.
Blaine looked over to find Kurt still glancing his way, mildly amused. “Ah, but see, there’s something that’s wrong with me. I think and think and think and over think.”
They stared at each other momentarily before Kurt gave him a slightly shy, but mischievous smile and replied, “We can work on that?”
Blaine paused at Kurt's words, wondering what Kurt was thinking. He wondered if Kurt thought he'd kissed him on impulse or if he had any idea where they would go from here. He ducked his head, trying not to laugh again at Kurt's boldness, looking up at Kurt through his eyelashes instead. “I just want you to know - I really have thought about this. A lot. There was a lot of angsting going on in my brain.”
“I’m pretty sure more was going on in mine,” Kurt said with a chuckle, “but someone once told me not everything is a contest.”
“Touché.” Blaine still had no idea what he was doing, no freaking idea - but per Kurt’s suggestion, he could try and worry about it less, at least in his presence. “Do you have anywhere to be? Do you want to stay? We could … watch a movie or something.”
“I think I’d like that, though I don’t know how much of the movie we’ll watch. You’re far more interesting,” Kurt said grinning, getting up and looking really, truly happy, and Blaine could stand to keep making Kurt happy for as long as he kept smiling like that.
As he followed Kurt to the living room, Blaine tried to wrap his mind around the fact that all of this was really happening. As much as Kurt had told him not to think so much - he couldn’t help it. This was huge for him, not just the fact that he hadn’t been in a relationship since Sebastian, but the fact that it was Kurt, wonderfully stunning Kurt, and all of the possible issues that might arise with that - he was almost positive it would be worth it, though.
They settled on ‘Pride & Prejudice’ which was playing on one of the movie channels - and, Kurt was right, it didn’t matter one bit, because the whole movie ran and they didn’t pay any attention to it, focusing on each other instead, talking in hushed tones about everything and absolutely nothing - Blaine was eager to learn more about Kurt, now that they were actually doing this. He couldn’t get enough of the way Kurt’s face lit up when he talked about things that weren’t depressing, like many of their previous conversations had been. He’d seen a glimpse of it before when Kurt had talked about his dad months ago, back when Blaine was trying to ignore the feelings building up in his mind. Now that Blaine wasn’t trying to ignore his attraction, he was falling harder and faster than he thought possible, and he had to pat himself on the back for the amount of willpower it took to ignore what had been right in front of him. In between their talking, they traded tentative and lazy kisses all night, stopping before things got too heated.
“I want more than this, you know, more than just talking and kissing on my couch,” Blaine said quietly during another such break. At the quirk of Kurt’s eyebrow, he quickly continued. “I mean, I want this to be real. I’m horrible at romance, and I have no idea how we’ll make any of this work, but I’ll try if you’ll let me.”
“Maybe you just haven’t met someone yet who appreciates your romantic gestures. Cuddling with Jane Austen? How can you top that?” He placed a quick kiss to Blaine’s lips. “Well, not actually cuddling with Jane Austen since she’s been dead for almost two hundred years, but you know what I mean.”
Blaine finally made them get off the couch when Kurt’s stomach started to rumble, ransacking the refrigerator for odds and ends to eat. “This isn’t romantic,” Blaine said, popping a grape in his mouth as Kurt checked his phone.
“Details,” Kurt said with a wave of his hand. “It’s probably for the best we came in here, their movie is over. I told Sugar I’m still here watching movies - were we - what should I say to her?”
Blaine ran a hand through his hair, trying to smooth where it was sticking up in the back from the couch cushions and the way Kurt’s fingers had twisted in the strands as they kissed. “It’s up to you. I haven’t dated anyone in a while, but usually I wait until things get a little serious before I tell her. The last time we had that conversation though, she was eleven - I honestly don’t know what I’d do if it wasn’t you.”
“We can wait a while,” Kurt replied, typing furiously on his phone as he did. “I like that plan.”
By the time Sugar returned home, they were both on the couch with mugs of tea and the movie on HBO had switched from ‘Pride & Prejudice’ to ‘Batman Begins.’ “I’m home!” Sugar sang as she walked through the door. “Why … why are you watching Batman?” she asked suspiciously when she saw what the TV was playing.
“Christian Bale,” Blaine replied, Kurt saying, “Bale in tights, duh,” at the same time.
Sugar blinked at them. “You guys are freaky in sync. I thought you were watching ‘Pride & Prejudice?’”
“It just switched over,” Blaine explained, getting up to greet her. “Did you have fun?” he asked with a grin.
“It was wonderful,” Sugar said with a heaving sigh, batting her eyelashes dramatically, and Blaine squeezed her shoulders.
“Good. I’m going to take a shower and go to bed and give you some privacy to tell Kurt all about it,” Blaine said with a wink and he headed up the stairs, stopping on the middle landing to eavesdrop a tad.
“Why are you even still here?” he could hear Sugar ask as she bounced on the couch.
“I was drawn in by the perfection of Keira Knightley, shut up and tell me about your date, I saved you the phone call.”
“Well …” Sugar started and Blaine could picture her now, just beaming with everything she wanted to say. “I guess I should thank you because Rory gave me a good night kiss on the doorstep, and if you hadn’t been here, my dad probably would have been looking out the window.”
At the sound of her subsequent squealing, Blaine made it the rest of the way up the stairs, retreating to his bathroom to take a long, hot shower - Sugar and Rory had shared their first kiss on the same night Kurt and he had. The juxtaposition of that was too much for his mind to handle.
***
Kurt had texted him late Saturday night, saying he was finally leaving and asking if he could call when he got home to say goodnight, since they hadn’t been able to when Blaine had gone upstairs. They ended up talking until the wee hours of the morning, Blaine not being able to remember the last time he’d spent so much time on the phone with someone, aside from Rachel (who he’d known almost his whole life).
Blaine figured they should put down some ground rules - mostly, not talking about Sugar. Blaine didn’t want to put Kurt in any awkward situations, since he still was Sugar’s friend. Also, Kurt had decided he wasn’t going to say anything to his dad yet. Blaine wasn’t particularly okay with that idea, but he wasn’t telling Sugar yet either, so he decided he wasn’t in any position to push the issue.
Due to his late night, Blaine emerged late from his room Sunday morning, and Sugar was already sprawled out on the couch, homework in front of her but watching the television instead and engrossed in her phone.”Hi, Daddy,” she said, not looking up from the phone, and he ruffled her hair as he passed in search of coffee.
He finally returned with a steaming mug, depositing himself on the end of the couch and patiently waiting for her to look up from her phone. She slowly did, raising just her left eyebrow as if she knew something she wasn’t entirely ready for was about to happen. “So,” Blaine started, taking a sip of coffee to fortify him. “You going to tell me about this kiss?”
“Daddy! You eavesdropped!” Sugar squealed, hitting him with one of the throw pillows, which wasn’t exactly prudent given his full coffee mug. Thankfully, none was spilled.
“You weren’t exactly quiet about it, sweetheart!” he replied, grinning wildly. “You’re going to see Rory again, I presume?”
“Yes,” she said, her cheeks flushed scarlet, mumbling something about how it wasn’t even her first kiss - and Blaine knew that one already too (it was Andrew Jenkins on the playground in fourth grade).
“You should invite him to dinner - oh, fine, not right away,” Blaine recanted at Sugar’s horrified face. “But soon. After we get back from New York. And I don’t want you guys sneaking off in cars to make out or anything, you all are more than welcome to hang out on the couch here, just like you and the rest of your friends do. I won’t bother you. Much.”
“Oh my god, Daddy, it was one kiss,” Sugar sighed, groaning and burying her head in the throw pillow she’d assaulted Blaine with.
“I’m happy for you,” he pointed out, though his voice wasn’t exactly sincere, and she smacked him again. “I’m just saying. First boyfriend. Kind of a big deal.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” Sugar said, finally relenting, and she leaned over to hug him. “Thanks, Daddy, you’re the best.” Blaine grinned, because that’s all he ever wanted to hear.
***
Blaine started Tuesday off with a surprising call. He almost didn't answer - he had a habit of letting numbers he didn't know go to voicemail - but his fingers accidentally swiped over 'answer' instead of 'ignore.'
"Blaine, this is Emma Schuester from William McKinley," the soothing voice on the other end said, and Blaine immediately started to panic at the formality in her voice.
"Emma? Is Sugar okay?" he asked quickly, his heart racing.
"She's fine. Everyone is fine, this isn't an urgent call," Emma corrected, and Blaine heaved a sigh of relief. "I do wonder if you have any free time today. I think we need to talk."
"I - I have to drive to Dayton this afternoon, but I have the morning free. What is this about?"
"I'd rather not say here at school. Actually, I'd rather not meet here at school. My lunch break is at eleven fifteen, is there any way I could meet you somewhere? Somewhere with some privacy?"
What in the hell was going on? "You can stop by my house if that works?"
"Perfect, you're still on Elm?" Blaine confirmed he was, and as soon as he hung up the phone, it hit him - there was no way this was about Sugar. This was about Kurt.
Replaying the conversation with Emma back through his mind, there was no way she wanted to talk about anything else. Emma was another person Blaine wished he had kept in contact with the last few years, because suddenly he felt like the same seventeen year old kid who used to sit in her office, pouring his heart out, and he had no idea why.
***
Blaine's house wasn't far from the school, so Emma knocked primly at his door at eleven-thirty. "You promise everyone is okay?" Blaine asked as she wiped her shoes on the doormat and pulled off her coat, hanging it up on the rack by the door. He half-wondered if her OCD had improved since he’d last seen her, or if what she had to say about Kurt was just that important to show up at an unfamiliar house.
"Yes, and I know this is highly unorthodox, so thank you for seeing me, especially on such short notice." Blaine led her to the living room and she sat down in the armchair in the corner, Blaine choosing to sit on the sofa. "I'd like to talk to you about Kurt Hummel."
Blaine swallowed thickly, nodding for her to continue. No surprise there. "This is the first time I've broken the confidentiality of my students, and I'm only doing it because I know you Blaine, I know you well enough to know you won't use any of this information against him, and in reality, you already know all of it. In fact, I'll be telling him we talked, unless you do yourself, and I'm hoping you take me up on that suggestion."
Out of everyone who'd been in Blaine's life during his high school years, Blaine had to admit Emma had probably known him the best, deep down. He'd been in her office at least one afternoon a week during most of high school after he found out Quinn was pregnant, and as he told Kurt, he really wasn't sure where he'd be without her. Because of this, Blaine also knew how hard it must have been for Emma to come to him. "Okay, how can I make this easiest for you? Just to let you talk?"
"I think that would be best," Emma replied, folding her hands in her lap. "Kurt came to me about a month ago, per your suggestion, though it's my understanding you suggested he come to me long before then. He told me about the situation from last year, and I'm so extremely saddened that he thought he couldn't come to me sooner, when I would have been able to do more." Emma fidgeted with the hem of her skirt, and Blaine could tell she was taking that one hard - perhaps this was her attempt to make something right for him.
"Emma, don't beat yourself up over that. You didn't know, stuff falls through the cracks all the time, but you are good at what you do. I think I'm proof of that," he added with a sheepish smile, and she returned it.
"Yes, well," she said, trying to get back on track. "After that, I asked Kurt to meet with me on a bi-weekly basis. Even though he assured me things are better now, I don't want to miss anything else. He's been through enough. Since he didn't have things of that nature to report, our session topic quickly turned ... to you."
Blaine's heart started beating fast again, though he wasn't quite sure why. He certainly hadn't done anything wrong, but he wasn't sure how to feel about Kurt talking to Emma about him. He was confused, to say the least.
"He didn't mention your name, though it was easy enough to gather who he was talking about since I know you, and I don’t know anyone else in this town that would fit the picture he painted for me. He's ... he's developed a bit of a crush on you."
"I know," Blaine said quickly, and Emma replied just as fast.
"I figured as much, seeing as when he showed up in my office yesterday afternoon, he was positively giddy, talking about how he’d been wrong all along! How the person who he had a crush on liked him back, and that he’d kissed him!” Emma’s voice grew more and more frantic with each word, and she paused to collect herself while Blaine sat there speechless. “I’m guessing since you’re not openly denying it, it’s true.”
“Emma,” Blaine started, his voice coming out pained and desperate, but she held up a hand to stop him.
“Kurt’s eighteen, so I’m not here to judge you,” she said, her voice returning to its usual calm manner. “Of all people, I know neither of you has had it easy here, especially you.” Blaine was probably projecting too much, but he could see the pity in Emma's face, and he wasn’t sure if disappointing and judging would have been easier to swallow.
Emma uncrossed and recrossed her legs, adjusting in the chair. “I just want to make sure you’re doing this for the right reasons, Blaine. I don’t want you to lead him on.”
“I’m not,” Blaine replied quickly, leaning against the arm of the couch. “I know it’s crazy, and I can’t explain it, but I like him. It’s not just attraction, I actually think he’s the single most interesting person in all of Ohio, and I’m so terrified of screwing this up.”
“Oh, Blaine,” Emma said, patting Blaine’s knee where he was resting his elbows, resisting the urge to bury his face in his hands. She got up from her chair and sat beside him on the couch, placing her hand on his back for comfort, and he figured he must have really looked pathetic for her to do that, actually make contact with his skin, even through the various layers of his clothing. “You can’t - if you want this to work, you can’t keep thinking like that. It’s not fair to you or Kurt. You’re just setting yourself up to fail.”
“I know,” Blaine repeated, his voice suddenly sounding very small.
“Talk to him. Tell him how you feel and then let it go, okay? Be honest and put it out into the universe, and then don’t obsess over it anymore.” Emma awkwardly patted at his back before returning her hand to her lap. “I know you haven’t been a student for a very long time, Blaine, but I wasn’t kidding when I told you before you graduated that I’ll always be here if you need me.”
“I know,” Blaine said once more, and he had to stop the broken record bit. He looked up from the floor to face her. “Thank you, Emma.”
She smiled at him brightly. “Nothing can be perfect, remember that. You’ll do alright. You have so far - you should be very proud of the lovely young woman Sugar’s grown up to be.” Blaine noticed Emma eyeing the clock up on the mantle that was inching closer and closer to twelve.
“You probably have to get back, don’t you?” Blaine asked, getting up off the couch when Emma nodded. “Thanks again for everything.”
Emma dug in her purse, pulling out a business card and writing something on the back. “I’m serious. If you need to talk, my cell phone number is on there.” Blaine put the card in his shirt pocket, walking Emma to the door and telling her goodbye and happy holidays. He collapsed on the couch once he was alone again, pulling out his cell phone to text Kurt.
Are you doing anything tomorrow night? Can I take you out to dinner? I know you have school Thurs
To his surprise, Kurt called him moments later. “Aren’t you in class?” Blaine teased, and he heard Kurt scoff into the phone.
“I just left, I’m headed to lunch. I - I’m definitely free tomorrow night.” Blaine could hear the grin in his voice.
“Good. I know this weekend will be crazy with Christmas - I just wanted to see you before we leave.” Blaine refrained from telling Kurt he wanted to talk, because he didn’t want him to panic. He and Sugar were flying out Friday to spend the holidays in New York with Cooper and Rachel and her family - after Quinn died, the Andersons and Berrys began the tradition of celebrating Christmas together, even though the Berrys were Jewish and the Andersons weren’t overly religious. It had become the one day a year all eight of them would be together, no matter what.
“Me too,” Kurt admitted, and Blaine could hear the bustling McKinley hallway in the background. “My dad works late on Wednesdays. He doesn’t get home until after ten, so as long as I’m home before then, it’s fine. I don’t have any more midterms on Thursday, my last one is tomorrow.”
“Pick you up at five?” Blaine asked, disconnecting the call after Kurt confirmed and said he had to go since he’d arrived in the lunchroom.
Blaine’s trip out to the Dayton Lima Bean that afternoon was just as uneventful as when he checked on the Westerville one, and he arrived home to Sugar already there and cooking dinner.
“That smells wonderful, sweetheart,” Blaine said as he walked into the kitchen. Sugar wasn’t much of a cook, but she knew how to make a few things on the off chance Blaine wasn’t home for dinner - most of them breakfast dishes left over from the weekends in middle school when she still insisted on getting up at six am. She grinned at him, sliding an omelet on a plate and passing it to him. “What’s the occasion?”
“No occasion, Daddy, just - I won’t be home for dinner tomorrow, Rory and I are exchanging Christmas gifts!” She turned to grin at him again before grabbing her own plate and sitting down at the table next to him.
On one hand, this worked out well, because Blaine wouldn’t be around either. On the other hand, the slow progression of his fledgling relationship with Kurt was highlighting the headway in Sugar’s and Rory’s and … he was going to have to talk to Sugar at some point about that. “What did you get him?” Blaine asked as he cut into his omelet.
“I went to the mall with Mercedes today and I found the best thing! Rory’s been talking about missing home a lot and he also mentioned how his room at Brittany’s is super cold or something, so we were at this one store and they had handmade blankets from different parts in the world, and they had one from Ireland!” Sugar cut into her own omelet, seeming quite proud of herself.
“That’s a perfect gift, honey. Very thoughtful.” Blaine grew quiet then, studying his daughter as she ate, trying to figure out if she looked older since her birthday and obtaining a boyfriend, and he couldn’t decide.
“You’re doing the weird thinking thing, Daddy,” she finally said, taking a drink of milk from her glass. “Oh my god, is this about Rory? Are … are we going to have to have a really awkward sex talk again? Can I just tell you that Rachel and I talked about things and Rory’s a nice guy and I promise that’s like … not on anyone’s radar?”
Blaine bit back a chuckle, because the one time they’d had an official talk, Sugar was in seventh grade and they both wanted it to be over as soon as possible. It had been somewhat easier since, Blaine throwing out random comments or questions when appropriate - it had never been a secret Sugar had been born to teenage parents. “I would hope not, you’ve only been dating what, like a week and a half? You told me it was just a kiss a few days ago!” Sugar rolled her eyes and Blaine resisted the urge to comment on it. “I wasn’t thinking that, just - you really like him, don’t you? He makes you happy?”
“He does,” Sugar gushed, and Blaine noticed the tiniest blush on her cheeks.
Blaine waited until Sugar was on the phone herself before calling Rachel - he realized he hadn’t even told her about Kurt, and it was days later. She was going to kill him.
First things first though.
“When did you talk to my daughter about sex?” Blaine nagged when Rachel answered the phone.
“Well, lovely to talk to you too, Blaine, on Sunday when you ignored my call, that’s when.” No wonder Sugar was a little gun-shy, that was recent.
“You called too early. I was … up late.” There was a pause, as if Rachel was digesting this information.
“Sugar said you went to bed early. What were you doing up late?” Blaine could hear slamming drawers on the other end, Rachel taking out her aggression on her dresser. “I thought maybe I’d somehow fallen out of your good graces.”
“I was on the phone.” He could tell she was about to blurt out a question of 'with who,' so he just got on with it. “With Kurt.”
Another pause before, “Finally.” Blaine told her the abbreviated version of what happened with Kurt, Emma, and his impending date the following day, Rachel thankfully keeping her mouth shut for most of it.
“So, the real reason why I called is that I need advice,” he said, ignoring Rachel’s mutter of ‘of course you do.’ “Do I - it’s Christmas,” he said dumbly, running his fingers over his comforter as if it somehow possessed the ability to allow him to speak in coherent sentences again, hoping she’d be able to pick up on what he was asking. The last thing he wanted was to buy Kurt some overly lavish gift and come across as too forward.
“Everyone likes presents, Blaine,” she pointed out. She was being no help, why had he called her?
“Be nice to me. I’ll be in your presence in just a few days, and I hear you have a new boyfriend.”
“Likewise, and if I recall, your whole family doesn’t even know about yours.”
Touché. “Rachel,” Blaine whined, and she sighed.
“I forgot how adorably helpless you are at the beginning of a new relationship. Aren’t you doing some shopping tomorrow? If you see something that speaks to you, get it, if not, I wouldn’t worry. It’s awful timing, but you’ll live. Better? Be happy I'm not teasing you about having a teenage boyfriend. I'm saving that for in person!”
“Okay, okay,” Blaine answered even though it hadn’t helped him at all, finally sucking up his pride and asking her about Jesse.
***
Blaine ran by one of the Lima Beans on the outskirts of town that morning, finishing up the last bit of paperwork that needed to get done before the holidays, and he stopped by a small, family owned jewelry store he sometimes frequented on the way back. Since they were traveling, Blaine didn’t want to buy anything too huge to carry on the airplane, and jewelry definitely fit the bill. He’d picked out earrings for Sugar and necklaces for Rachel and his mom when he spotted a case of brooches and pins, one in the back catching his eye.
It was small and circular, a bronze tree with branches and roots stretching out and connecting in the middle, two tiny golden birds among the branches. Kurt often accessorized his shirts and jackets with pins, and Blaine could instantly imagine it on the military jacket he’d been wearing lately. “Okay, this one too,” Blaine said quickly before he could change his mind, asking the cashier to wrap it for him.
Blaine kept himself busy the rest of the afternoon by attempting to organize his suitcase, and finally around four, he let himself get ready, keeping his navy pants on but changing into a nicer shirt and sweater and adding a tie. He found Kurt’s street easily once he left, feeling a tad anxious as he pulled onto it street - what if Burt was home? He certainly didn’t approve of Kurt not telling his father about who he was dating, but at the same time, the last thing he wanted to be greeted with was an awkward situation at this very moment.
Obviously, the time would come, and he wasn’t terrified of the man (Burt Hummel seemed like a reasonable enough guy after all), but he was anxious enough about talking to Kurt; he didn’t need anything else to worry about. He spotted the house at the end of the street, pulling into the driveway a few minutes before five. Before he could text Kurt to let him know, he saw him coming out of the door, looking stunning as usual in a plaid blazer and tight jeans and waving.
“Don’t you look wonderful tonight,” Blaine commented as Kurt slid into the passenger seat.
“I could say the same for you,” Kurt mused, buckling his seatbelt. “Where are we going?”
“I thought we could get real Italian food. Not that Breadstix isn’t lovely,” Blaine replied, wiggling his eyebrows in Kurt’s direction. “It’ll probably be less crowded too.”
Even though the restaurant in question was further away than Breadstix, the time passed quickly, both of them sharing what had happened in their lives since they last saw each other. Kurt told him a little about the New Directions holiday party that was planned for the following night (though he’d heard some from Sugar about it as well); Blaine told him about their upcoming trip to New York. By the time they’d been seated and ordered their food, he figured he should tell Kurt about Emma.
“So … Emma Schuester showed up at my house yesterday,” Blaine said slowly, stirring a packet of sugar into his iced tea, and he noticed Kurt pale. “It’s okay!” he blurted out. “She didn’t … tell me anything. Aside from asking me if I was really intending to date you.”
The color continued to drain from Kurt’s face (what little he had), and Blaine said, “I told her I was.”
“I didn’t even use your name,” Kurt muttered, twirling his straw wrapper around his fingers. “I shouldn’t have said anything at all.”
“She really didn’t tell me anything. You should keep talking to her - about us, about anything that’s on your mind.” Kurt said nothing, setting his jaw, smiling tersely when the waitress brought them garlic rolls. Blaine grabbed one from the basket before pushing it in Kurt’s direction. “You can talk to me too, you know. I know we did a lot of talking last time, but we didn’t really talk about … this.”
Blaine munched on his roll, waiting, and when Kurt didn’t speak, he did. “Alright, I’ll start. I’m really scared of screwing this up.” That got a reaction out of Kurt finally, a glance that silently asked if he was insane. “I have a tendency in my life to screw up things that are important to me, and you’re important to me, Kurt.”
“Even things you screw up have wonderful outcomes, though. Look at Sugar.” Kurt smiled at him then, still weaving the strand of paper through his fingers. Blaine wanted to tell him that Sugar was the exception to the rule, but he kept his mouth shut in favor of finding out what was bothering Kurt instead. “I’m afraid you’re going to wake up one day, and realize this is too difficult, that I’m just this eighteen year old kid that you have nothing in common with -“ Kurt stopped abruptly, turning to stare at the wall of their booth. “I’m afraid I won’t be good enough for you.”
Blaine’s heart broke a little then, because he realized at the heart of it, they were both worried about the exact same thing. Blaine wanted to kiss him then, but he settled for reaching his hands across the table to take Kurt’s in them. “I can assure you that you’re too good for me, Kurt Hummel, so never worry about that.” Kurt’s eyes found Blaine’s at his words, the irises growing brighter as he sat up taller, his mouth parting as if he was going to protest, but turning into a soft curve instead as his chin jutted outward. Blaine almost thought he believed him.
Blaine mentioned the one piece of advice Emma had given him - not to let their insecurities get the best of them and set themselves up for failure. After silent recognition that they would attempt to do so, the conversation turned lighter, back to New York, Kurt recounting the New Directions failed trip to Nationals that spring, why he wanted to go back, why NYADA - Blaine had no doubt about it, Kurt would be able to do anything he put his mind to. Blaine could hear the passion in his voice when he spoke, and he half wondered if Kurt sounded the same way when he talked to Emma about him.
There was dessert and coffee after dinner, and Blaine felt as if he needed to be rolled out to the car. It had begun snowing while they were inside, so they bundled back up before heading outside - scarves, coats, gloves. Their shoulders kept brushing as they left the restaurant, hands bumping against each other, and finally, Kurt took Blaine’s in his own and squeezed. The drive back to Kurt’s house was quiet, Blaine not wanting to wreck the car in the snowy night, and when they pulled into the driveway, Kurt reached for Blaine’s hand again. “Do you want to come in for a bit?” he asked after Blaine put the Prius in park. “My dad won’t be home for another hour, at least, and it’s probably stupid, but I got you a present.” Kurt ducked his head bashfully as he spoke, but he was grinning.
“I might have a little something for you as well,” Blaine replied as he turned off the car, and the look of surprise that crossed Kurt’s face was worth the price of the brooch entirely.
Kurt’s room was in the basement of the house, and Blaine was shocked to see that it was stunningly decorated - better than his entire house over on Elm Street. It was like Kurt’s own little underground apartment, complete with his own seating area. Blaine was thankful for Kurt's interior design skills, because it almost made him forget about the fact that his boyfriend had a bedroom in his dad's place, while Blaine had his own home. Blaine watched as Kurt ducked in his closet, pulling out a small gift bag before walking over to the sofa.
“Like I said, it’s kind of silly,” Kurt said, offering him the bag. Kurt’s own present was tucked safely inside Blaine’s jacket, so he pulled his jacket off and retrieved it as Kurt sat down next to him.
“Mine’s kind of silly too,” Blaine assured him. “I just saw it today and thought of you.” Kurt motioned for Blaine to go first after accepting his box, so Blaine pulled the pieces of tissue paper out of the bag, finding something wrapped inside one of them. It was a mug, but far nicer than the one Kurt had broken and certainly not from the Lima Bean. No, this was handmade, but beautifully done, a few squared off edges to make it just a tad imperfect, but just as stunning, the cool porcelain glazed the most perfect wash of bluish green, which reminded Blaine of Kurt’s eyes. A handwritten tag was attached: Sorry for the untimely demise of your other mug, but now you’ll just have to think of me every morning when you drink from this one. :) xx, Kurt
“I told you not to replace it,” Blaine teased, but Kurt’s note was correct - he’d definitely be drinking from this mug every morning. “I love it though, thank you.” Blaine placed a hand on Kurt’s knee where his leg was bent underneath him, and he squeezed appreciatively. He waited patiently while Kurt unwrapped the box and took the lid off, discovering the tree and bird brooch underneath.
“Oh,” Kurt breathed out, pulling it from the box to turn it over in his hands.
“Like I said, I saw it and thought of you. I thought it would look nice on the jacket you sometimes wear the airplane pins on.” Blaine watched as he inspected it, not saying another word until he was throwing himself across the couch, wrapping his arms around Blaine’s shoulders and hugging him fiercely.
“It’s amazing. You’re amazing,” he whispered, his hands curling into Blaine’s sweater, and he pulled back just far enough to kiss Blaine, but not like the chaste kisses they’d shared the last time they were on a couch together. One of Kurt’s hands came up to cup Blaine’s cheek while his lips parted just slightly, enough for Blaine to slip his tongue into Kurt’s mouth. It took Kurt by surprise even though it was second nature for Blaine, and it was a bit sloppy at first, until Kurt figured out what to do with his own tongue, but when he did, Blaine couldn’t believe how incredible it was. If Blaine let himself think too hard about things, nothing made sense - he’d been with far more experienced men and here Kurt was, for all intents and purposes having never been kissed, yet taking his breath away.
“Well, I’m going to have to surprise you like that all the time if that’s the thanks I get,” Blaine teased him afterward, a blush riding high on Kurt’s cheeks.
“All you have to do is ask,” Kurt whispered, a smile curling on his lips. “I wish my dad wasn’t coming home so soon,” he added, sadly, and Blaine ignored the twinge of guilt he felt at Kurt's words, wondering if Kurt felt one too.
“I should probably get home and pester Sugar to start packing anyway,” Blaine replied, picking up his mug, and leaning back over to give Kurt one last kiss. Kurt wasn’t expecting that either, and giggled halfway through, Blaine laughing along with him.
They headed back up the stairs, and Kurt asked, “When do you get back? The thirtieth?”
“Yeah, Sugar wanted to make sure she’d be here for Mercedes’ New Year’s party, which I’m sure you’ll be attending.” Kurt nodded as Blaine pulled back on his coat and scarf, starting to say something about skipping it, but Blaine protested. “No, you shouldn’t break your plans. Sugar said something about spending the next night over at Tina’s - I’m pretty sure after a week with her family, I’m going to see her as little as possible for the remainder of winter break. Do you have something already planned for the first?”
“I do now,” Kurt replied, pursing his lips as he straightened the ends of Blaine’s scarf out, tugging them evenly. “It’s a date.”
Blaine covered Kurt’s hands with his own and smiled. “Good.” Blaine let Kurt open the door for him and follow him out, even though Kurt wasn’t wearing a coat, and kissed him goodbye in the front doorway with snow whipping up around them, hoping it was too cold and windy for any nosy neighbors to be spying. “See you next year, Kurt,” Blaine said, leaning up on his toes to give him one final kiss on the forehead before getting into his car and driving off.
***
Blaine sat on Rachel’s couch the day after Christmas mindlessly watching the TV, having gone out earlier with Rachel and Sugar to check out some of the post-holiday sales. Everyone else was still out doing shopping or sightseeing of their own aside from Jesse, who’d come over once they’d returned home. He and Rachel were curled up in her loveseat, whispering and laughing quietly, and Sugar was engrossed in her phone on the other end of the couch. Blaine’s own phone buzzed, and he pulled is from his pocket to find a text from Kurt.
Did you have a nice Christmas? Can’t wait to see you :)
Blaine couldn’t help grinning, not really caring who saw. I did, and same. You? Any ideas for our date? he replied, before exiting to the main screen of his phone.
While he waited for Kurt to text back, Sugar climbed over to his side of the couch and threw her arms around him, smiling herself. “You seem happy, Daddy.”
“I am happy, sweetheart,” he replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and grinning even harder, because as stupid as it was, for the first time in a long time, he felt truly content.
Part 2 // Part 4