"I still don't believe that you're actually sick." Serena sighed as she brought Blaine yet another blanket to wrap around himself. "And I have no idea why you would fake this when you're supposed to be going out with Kurt tonight."

Blaine's head shot up to stare at his best friend in feigned surprise. "That's tonight?"

"Yes, genius. You knew that. You came into work yesterday practically singing it."

"I sing a lot of things in a lot of places." Blaine sniffed and tightened the three blankets around his body effectively burying himself deeper into the warmth of the soft fabric. "But I know nothing of said occurrences. It is obvious that I have just all of a sudden contracted something terrible and am most definitely dying. Now I have no choice but to cancel dinner. Too bad."

Serena rolled her eyes, "whatever you say, Blainey. But deadly disease or not, you have 2 hours to get better before you should be meeting Kurt."

"But we never made plans on where to meet or what time..." Blaine whined.

"Wow, you're like, a terrible date planner." Serena laughed.

"It is so not even a date, Serena."

"Sure it isn't." She smirked at him.

"It isn't!" He frowned and crossed his arms across his chest under the blankets.

Serena laughed again and sat on the arm of the couch next to him, tousling his curls as she did. "Oh, Anderson. You know it is. And I don't see why you're denying it. You've been pining over this kid for like, weeks now. Every time he comes in you get all jittery and you put on that stupid infatuated smile and-"

"Okay, Rena, I get it. Thanks."

"I'm just saying!" She threw her hands up in defense. "I don't get why you're all of a sudden denying that you like him."

Blaine sighed. "Because he has a boyfriend."

Serena's eyes widened. "He has a what?"

"Yeah. That guy he always come here to meet... he has to be his boyfriend. The way Kurt looks at him..." Blaine brought one of the blankets over his head so that he wouldn't have to face Serena's incredulous look.

"No. He agreed to go to dinner with you."

"Because you told him I needed a friend."

Serena brought a hand up to cover her mouth. "Oh my god." Her eyes widened. "I friend-zoned you. I totally friend-zoned you! Blaine, I am so sorry, I was just trying to help, I-"

Blaine scooted himself over on the small couch and brought the blankets up to wrap around his friend, bringing her in close to him and effectively shutting her up. "It's okay. It's not your fault. At least now I can get to know him instead of creeping on him every time he walks into the store."

She burrowed down into their shared cocoon of warmth. "If he has any sense at all, he'll fall in love with you."

Blaine closed his eyes. He wasn't so sure. "I guess I should get ready for dinner."

"You should call and ask where dinner is."

Blaine groaned, "I am a terrible date planner!"

Serena lifted her head from its place on his chest and gave him a sly grin.

"Oh shut up." Blaine muttered as he lifted himself off of the couch, leaving Serena in a mess of tangled blankets and pillows.

"I didn't say a word."

Kurt decided that because he was paying, dinner was going to be at a relatively cheap restaurant. There was a small italian place by his apartment that he liked well enough called Bella Notte and it wasn't that bad. He could most definitely take Blaine there.

Kurt sighed and eyed his cell phone screen again, reviewing his itinerary for the evening. He had been planning this all day when he was supposed to be job hunting. But, honestly, all he could do was think about seeing Blaine again.

He knew it was wrong for him to feel like this about seeing someone who wasn't Adam... but Kurt couldn't really help it. Blaine was going to be his friend. He was going to be someone to see New York with and have dinner with out in public. Someone to text when he was feeling particularly down. Someone who would actually text him back. Blaine was going to be someone who could make him laugh when he needed to laugh and someone who he was allowed to talk about his feelings with.

Kurt needed this dammit, and he was not going to feel guilty about it.

His phone began to flash, alerting that he was getting a phone call from a number he didn't have saved, he answered hesitantly.

"Hello?"

"...Kurt?" A curious voice came from the other line.

"Blaine." He smiled into the receiver.

"Oh thank goodness. I was half worried you changed your number to spite me."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "I did, they have to wait 24 hours until my contract is reset though, so you got lucky this time."

Blaine laughed, he actually sounded relieved. "So, I um..." He trailed off.

"Realized we never made any further plans besides tonight for our dinner?" Kurt supplied.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Well lucky for you, I am a bit of a nervous planner. So, I have everything down already. Are you free say... sevenish?" Kurt was grinning.

"Sevenish!" He could hear Blaine probably was too.

"I'd say more like fourish if we're talking about your age." Kurt could vaguely hear Serena's voice muffled in the background.

"Shut up, Serena. But yes, seven. Perfect. Where should we meet?"

"Um. I was thinking... because neither one of us has a car, we-"

"I have a car?" Blaine cut in, confused.

"You do?" Kurt raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah...? Why would you think-" Blaine cut himself off and began to laugh. "Oh! Right! The cab!"

"Yeah... the cab?"

"I just wanted to talk to you." Blaine coughed. "I mean, I didn't drive to work that day either, so, it wasn't like, planned or anything... I'm not like a sexual predator. This isn't all some big plot to-"

"Blaine, stop talking." Kurt rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand.

"S-sorry. I tend to... ramble when I'm nervous."

"What's to be nervous about? I promise I won't bite... I just wanna be your friend." Kurt said sincerely. When Blaine didn't immediately respond, Kurt tried again. "I'm sorry that probably didn't put you at ease at all. I'm awful."

"No." Blaine finally spoke up, his voice a whisper. "I wanna be your friend too. Sorry."

There was another lull in the conversation.

"Uh." Kurt broke the awkward silence. "So, seven. Since you have a car, you wanna drive here and we can walk to the restaurant? It's right by my place... I walk there all the time."

"Alright!" Blaine said excitedly, obviously grateful for the sudden change in subject.

"I'll text you my address?"

"Please do."

"You're so creepy." Serena yelled from the background again.

Kurt laughed. "Bye, Blaine."

"Bye, Kurt." Blaine mumbled as he hung up.

It was 6:50 when Blaine decided he was early enough, but not too early, to knock on Kurt's door. He glanced back down at his phone for the fourteenth time to make sure he had been standing awkwardly in front of the correct door for the last half hour and raised his hand slowly.

He panicked before he could bring himself to knock and just quickly traced his finger over the bronze 3C posted tentatively on the front of the door. He checked with his phone again, just one more time, to clarify that it was in fact a 3 and not an 8, then inhaled sharply. He knocked once.

Nothing.

He knocked again, harder this time and was answered with a crash coming from inside the small apartment.

"Coming!" He heard Kurt yelp from the other side of the flimsy wall, then some rummaging around and finally the click of a lock. The door cracked open. "I'm sorry, is it seven? I'm not ready."

Blaine took in the boy in front of him. Kurt's hair was wet and his face was flushed slightly, his skin still obviously shower fresh. He tried to swallow, but his throat protested. "Oh." Was all he managed to croak out before Kurt was raising his eyebrow at him. "Can I have some water? I'm kind of... thirsty."

Kurt blushed and the flush of his face increased. "I, uh. Oh. Come in first. Sorry." He mumbled and allowed the door an inch or two more open. "Sorry it isn't much... there should be a bottled water in the fridge. I'm gonna go finish getting ready."

Blaine nodded as Kurt ran into what he presumed to be his bedroom. The door slammed closed and Blaine was able to survey the room.

It really wasn't much. There was a small living area and an even smaller makeshift kitchen. Kurt had a mini-fridge and a coffee maker stacked atop one another, a couch and a coffee table. The walls were covered in sketches and magazine clippings, all meticulously organized with labeled dates above them sorted by month. Blaine raised an eyebrow and stared at the September section, strangely empty compared to the rest of the months. Kurt hadn't even put up an October section yet.

Blaine wandered over to the small love seat and smiled when he noticed it matched the curtains. He had half expected the place to be dirty, but for such a dingy building Kurt's apartment was relatively pristine, despite the fact that it was barely filled. Blaine felt himself frowning, Kurt deserved more than this. He deserved a home.

"I'm ready!" He heard Kurt's voice before his bedroom door cracked open and he slipped out without allowing Blaine to peek inside. He felt himself begin to frown again but as soon as Kurt came into his line of sight, his mouth turned itself up into a grin.

"Hi!" His smile widened.

Kurt laughed. "Hi?"

"I like your apartment. Did you do all of these sketches?"

Kurt scoffed. "No one actually likes my apartment. I don't even like it."

"No really. I do. It's so much cleaner and more simple than I thought it would be. It's very you. From what I can tell." Blaine smiled again. "And you didn't answer my question."

"Oh." Kurt's blush was back again. "Yeah. I used to. Did you get the water?" Kurt hastily changed the subject.

Blaine realized he had spent so much time snooping around the room he had completely forgotten how dry his throat was. "Right. No. Sorry. But, I mean, I can do tap water, you don't need to give me a bottle..."

"The only tap water I have is in the bathroom..." Kurt looked at the floor.

"Oh."

"I'm sorry. Can we go now?" Kurt's eyes remained locked on his feet and Blaine nodded.

"Course... I can get water at the restaurant anyway." He held his hand out to Kurt who stared at it for a moment. "You can take my hand, Kurt. I'm not asking you to marry me." Blaine smiled encouragingly.

Kurt looked up and met Blaine's eyes for a fraction of a second before staring at his hand again quizzically. "Okay." He laced his fingers with Blaine's.

"I mean, it's pretty cold outside." Blaine reasoned and squeezed Kurt's hand.

"And I don't have any gloves." Kurt smiled finally and Blaine relaxed.

"Well than this works out perfectly." He took his hand out of Kurt's for a moment to remove the glove he had there and handed it to Kurt.

"What...?"

"It's for your other hand. That way all four are kept warm."

Kurt's smile turned almost sad as he accepted the glove and pulled it over his right hand. "Thank you."

"Don't worry about it..." Blaine was a bit taken aback by the legitimate sincerity in Kurt's voice. He took his left hand into his own again, Kurt's right hand now incased in the other glove. "Let's go."

They walked down the steps of Kurt's apartment in a comfortable silence. Blaine grinned to himself as they reached the chill of the outside air and Kurt's hand instinctively tightened around his own.

He chewed his lip for a moment before getting up enough courage to ask, "so where are you taking me?"

Kurt's mouth twisted up into a mischievous smile and he began to swing their joined hands. "A place."

"Oh, come on." Blaine whined.

"It's really nothing special..."

"I'm sure it's great. C'mon. Where are we going?"

"Bella Notte." Kurt stilled their hands and Blaine frowned. Kurt noticed immediately and set into panic mode. "Oh gosh I know it's not that great, I'm sorry..."

"No, no, that's not why- No. Don't worry. I love italian food."

"Then why did you frown?"

"I didn't!" Blaine grinned wider to prove his point and began to swing their hands again.

Kurt rolled his eyes and they were sent back into their small silence, filled only with the sounds of New York at night.

By the time they reached the restaurant, Blaine's stomach was growling obnoxiously and they were taken to their reserved table.

"Reservations?" Blaine smirked as soon as the waiter left them.

"Nervous planner, remember?" Kurt replied absently.

"I will now."

Kurt had said the place wasn't that great, but Blaine still felt a little weary as he eyed the prices. He decided to settle for a smaller item... just in case.

"So," Blaine set his menu down after deciding. "Why did you move to New York?"

Kurt looked up from his menu but he didn't answer, his face hardened.

"Okay, maybe that's a sensitive subject, how about... When did you move here?"

"When I was 18." Kurt returned his eyes to the menu, grimacing slightly upon seeing some of the prices.

"And how long have you been here?" Blaine asked when he suddenly realized how little he knew about Kurt.

Kurt laughed, "Three years."

"So you're 21 then?"

"Indeed. And you?"

Blaine tried to hold back his smile. "22."

Kurt nodded thoughtfully and began to chew on his bottom lip.

"Almost 23 though." Blaine added with a smile.

"When's your birthday?" Kurt met his eyes.

"December 17th." Blaine held his gaze.

"Must suck to be a Christmas baby." Kurt broke eye contact.

"Never really mattered to me as a kid, my parents weren't big on celebrating either holiday anyway."

Kurt's eyes focused on the menu. "I- I'm sorry..."

"It's okay." Blaine shrugged it off. "When's yours?"

"June 3rd."

"Ah. A summer baby. So how do you like New York in the summer? On your birthday?"

"New York always feels cold. Especially on my birthday." Kurt glanced back up to Blaine, catching his eyes again.

It was one of those moments. The kind where Blaine had literally no idea what to say, so he just held Kurt's gaze for a moment longer, trying to convey some sort of comfort in them, before attempting to change the subject. Moments like these happened rather often during dinner and every time they did, Blaine never pushed forward. There seemed to be a lot that Kurt didn't want to talk about and even more that he left unsaid. But the more Kurt withheld, the more Blaine found himself wanting to understand. He wanted to know Kurt.

Kurt Hummel was an enigma. He seemed so different from what Blaine had imagined. Every time he had watched him smile or seen his eyes light up, Blaine felt himself wanting to figure out how he could get Kurt to do those things. To laugh and smile the way he does when he's around his... boyfriend. Because now, sitting here at dinner together, Kurt seemed distant. He wasn't trying to be though, Blaine could tell Kurt was trying to smile the way he smiled at the coffee shop. But it wasn't the same. Kurt's eyes were a hardened grey for most of the night. He could see the insecurity in them, the uncertainty. Like he was waiting for Blaine to disappoint him.

Blaine knew he hadn't pulled Kurt's life story out of the flashes in his eyes. He knew that seeing them didn't mean he could all of a sudden just understand Kurt, but he did know that the fact that he saw them there meant something.

Blaine decided that he would do anything he could to make sure Kurt knew he wasn't going to disappoint him. As long as it meant he could be the one to make Kurt's eyes sparkle the way he had always imagined.

Even though Kurt didn't like to share much about his past, Blaine did manage to get a tiny bit of insight into the mystery that was the boy in front of him. It wasn't much, but Blaine was fascinated.

"You said you were from Ohio, right?" Blaine asked suddenly.

Kurt's eyes flashed back to the stormy grey they become when he isn't sure if he wants to say anything. He hesitated. "...yes."

"Do you..." Blaine steeled himself, unsure whether this was a wise question to ask or not. "Have family there?"

Kurt immediately tensed and Blaine wished he could pull the words back from the air around them and stuff them into his water glass.

"I do." Was all Kurt said, folding his hands discretely over his knee.

"But you don't want to talk about it?" Blaine guessed, it was a sentence he had heard Kurt say a lot that evening.

Kurt sighed. "I love them. Very much."

Blaine nodded.

By the time the bill came and Kurt placed his card inside the plastic sleeve, Blaine had one more question. It had been burning in the back of his mind the entire day. He knew he needed to ask, but he really didn't want to.

Do you have a boyfriend?

It wasn't hard, it was only 6 syllables, but Blaine couldn't bring himself to ask. He glanced back up to check Kurt's expression. He seemed nervous.

The waiter returned to the table side with Kurt's card in one hand and the check in the other. "Sir, your card has been declined."

Kurt's face drained. "What?"

"I'm sorry, but we tried it with two different processors. The card won't take." The man placed Kurt's card and the bill holder in front of him with an apologetic look before he walked away.

Kurt glared down at the offensive plastic in front of him, refusing to meet Blaine's eyes.

Blaine wasn't sure what to do. Hell. What was he supposed to do? Should he help him? Offer to pay? God. Kurt looked so helpless and... angry.

"Please don't say anything."

"What?" Blaine asked, genuinely confused.

"I'm sorry. I thought I had enough. I know I owed you this. I'm sorry." Kurt sounded guilty, as if he almost expected this to happen, his eyes closed in an attempt not to cry. He whispered again, "I'm so sorry."

Blaine shook his head. "No, no, please don't worry about this. I'll pay. I really don't mind."

Kurt didn't respond. He simply took his card from the table and slipped it back into his pocket without a word.

Blaine was terrified. He gingerly removed the check from in front of Kurt and slipped enough cash inside to pay for dinner and the tip. "C'mon, Kurt. Let's go." He rose from his seat and began putting his jacket on.

Kurt nodded and did the same.

They walked to Kurt's apartment in silence. Blaine's ungloved hand ached from the cold, but he wouldn't dare ask for his glove back. He actually silently hoped Kurt would forget and keep it. At least then he might have a reason to see him again. They reached the front steps of Kurt's building and he finally looked up to see Blaine staring at him hesitantly.

"I'm sorry I ruined this."

"You didn't ruin anything." Blaine was tired of Kurt being upset, so he did the first thing his brain could come up with and wrapped his arms around him, effectively pulling him into his chest. Kurt sniffed slightly, obviously still trying to keep from crying and Blaine tugged him closer. "I actually really like hanging out with you, Kurt."

Kurt wrapped his arms around Blaine then and he could feel Kurt's small smile against his temple. Blaine sighed contentedly. "I really like hanging out with you too. Sorry I can't pay you back properly for anything."

Blaine shook his head. "It's okay. You can pay me back a different way. Maybe I'll make you come listen to my set one night. That would be payment enough."

Kurt pulled away slightly from Blaine's embrace as he eyed him again. "You'd want me to? I mean. You still want to be friends?"

"Of course..." Blaine refused to drop his arms from their place around Kurt's shoulders.

Kurt smiled, it was the smile that Blaine had come to learn meant he had just done something right, the kind where his eyes turned brighter and more sure. It was Blaine's favorite smile. "Well I think I can do that..."

Blaine beamed and pulled him back in for another hug, reveling in the warmth he found there before he finally had to remove his arms and allow Kurt to pull his keys from his back pocket.

He watched him enter the building with a satisfied smile on his face. It hadn't gone as badly as Blaine had thought. In fact, he was pretty sure Kurt wanted to see him again. With that thought, he drove himself to his own apartment that night, instead of Serena's.

As soon as Kurt closed the door to his apartment behind himself the guilt set in. He couldn't stop the feeling once it started, the pang in his chest that even though Blaine just needed a friend Kurt could feel himself wanting more. Kurt had let himself feel things with Blaine tonight. He had talked a lot more than he was used to and he even found himself wanting to talk about things he hadn't even dared to think about since he'd moved to the city.

Blaine was so warm and open it literally made Kurt's chest ache. How was he supposed to feel about Blaine? He had no idea and the thought scared him. For some reason Blaine made him feel safe... and now that he was gone, Kurt felt cold. He didn't know it was possible to feel colder inside his heated apartment rather than outside in the chill of fall, but either way he began to shiver. He glanced down at his right hand, closing his fingers around his still gloved palm. Another sting of guilt coursed through him at the sight. The fact that he still had Blaine's glove made him happy.

Before he even realized what was happening he pulled out his cellphone and scrolled to a familiar number.

To Adam:
Are you home?

"Please, Serena!" Blaine whined. "His card was declined last night at dinner and I thought he was going to cry from embarrassment. You have no idea how scary it was. I offered to pay but nothing actually made it any better and... just, please."

"Blaine, we aren't hiring right now... I already pay 6 people when I can barely afford to pay 5. Small-time coffee shops aren't exactly the most lucrative of corporations, we don't have money to throw around." Serena stated firmly, focusing on the milk she was heating for a drink.

"What if I take a pay cut? What if I go back to earning what I earned before my raise? And the employee of the month money, that could be used to pay salaries instead of uselessly sitting under my mattress..." Blaine was rambling now, he wasn't sure why he cared so much about this. Actually, he wasn't sure why he cared at all. Before last night Kurt was practically a stranger to him. His mind flickered back to the events of the previous night and he clenched his jaw. He was adamant in getting Kurt this job. He had to help somehow. He knew how hard it was in New York, hell, he grew up here. But it's probably even harder when you have to pay rent. Blaine sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

Serena continued stirring the coffee in front of her even though it was well mixed about seventeen twirls ago. She shook her head slightly. "You are in way over your head here, Anderson."

Blaine stared at her in confusion. "I'm what?"

She shook her head dismissively. "Fine. I'll give Kurt a job. He can clean tables off and wash pastry plates. But you're getting that pay cut you offered me." Serena kept her gaze on the now over-mixed order in front of her.

Blaine practically knocked it off the counter in his attempt to hug the blonde girl. "Thank you so much, Rena!" He bounded off into the stock room and whipped his phone out from his back pocket.

To: Kurt
Come to Rush please :D

From: Kurt
Busy

To: Kurt
:( When are you unbusy?

From: Kurt
Idk

To: Kurt
Uh, how about tomorrow?

From: Kurt
K

Blaine frowned down at his phone screen. Was Kurt mad at him for something? Was he still embarrassed from last night?

To: Kurt
I'll see you then!

From: Kurt
K

Blaine heaved a sigh and shoved his phone back down into his pocket. At least he got Kurt to agree. He wasn't sure what was going on between them. He wasn't even entirely sure he knew what he wanted to be going on between them either, but he did know that he did not like the monosyllabic texts he had just received and he would do anything in his power to try and lift Kurt's spirits.

"Who are you texting?" Adam asked as they drove back to Kurt's apartment.

"My brother." Kurt replied on instinct.

"Frank?"

Kurt gave him a look, "who?"

"Your brother?" Adam prompted.

"Oh. Um. Finn. My brother's name is Finn." Kurt replied.

"Right. Frank's your dad." Adam nodded in affirmation.

Kurt sunk lower in the car seat and closed his eyes. "Sure." His phone buzzed again.

From: Blaine
Uh, how about tomorrow?

Kurt couldn't help but smile at the illuminated screen. He wanted to reply and ask for a specific time, a place, what clothes to wear, et cetera, but he couldn't risk Adam going through his text replies and finding that kind of thing. So he kept it simple.

To: Blaine
K

The night before, Adam had found Kurt's phone and seen the last text he had sent Blaine. All it said was "Yes :)" and thankfully Kurt had just deleted his entire message history before that, but it was too close for comfort. What if Blaine had mentioned something about their dinner? What if Kurt had saved Blaine's number before this morning and Adam had read a name at the top? Kurt was a good liar, but he wasn't that good. He just said it was his brother and shrugged it off. But now that Blaine's number was stored in Kurt's phone with a name, he had to be more careful.

"You're texting your brother a lot lately." Adam noted.

"He misses me." Kurt mumbled, pushing down the guilt that accompanied that particular statement.

"You know, I was thinking about something the other day."

"Yeah?" Kurt sat up straighter in the seat again. "What?"

"Maybe we should go to dinner or something tomorrow night." Adam shrugged.

Kurt felt as if his heart almost stopped. "We should what?"

"Er. Dinner. I mean we usually order take out or something if we happen to get hungry, but I dunno, maybe a real dinner one time would be alright." Adam's tone remained even as Kurt's heart nearly jumped from his chest up into his throat.

"Yeah, sure, of course, Adam." He said instinctively. Kurt had literally been waiting for something like this to happen since they met. First the impromptu coffee in the mornings, now an actual dinner? Together? Kurt felt the need to ask, "wait, you want to go out with me... in public?"

Adam seemed to be caught off guard. He raised his hand to scratch at the back of his neck. "Well. Maybe dinner out isn't such a good plan after all. How about dinner in again, but you can pick the place."

Kurt sighed. Of course Adam wasn't ready to be seen with him. He put on a smile anyways, "sounds perfect."

"I tried though." Adam mumbled.

"You did." Kurt leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you."

Kurt stepped into the all too familiar coffee shop and inhaled deeply. Rush always smelled like coffee grounds, hazelnut creamer and warmth. Unlike the cold outside air that always seemed to reek of cigarette smoke and desperation. He wrinkled his nose at the thought.

"Hey, Kurt." Serena greeted him upon stepping up to the counter.

"Is Blaine here yet?" He asked, rubbing his hands together in an attempt to warm them, Blaine's one glove safely hidden in his jacket pocket.

"Yeah, should be, want some coffee?"

Kurt flushed. He didn't have enough money for even a measly cup of coffee. "N-no thanks." He finally said out loud. "I had some instant this morning." It wasn't a lie. Adam had made it. It was terrible. He wasn't sure how anyone could mess up instant coffee, but then he figured out it was really easy to do when you use a coffee filter with a hole in the bottom.

Kurt's mouth immediately tasted bitter and he swallowed dryly.

"Actually, can I get some water?" Water was free.

Serena's smile turned somber as she filled a plastic cup to the brim with ice water. "Here yah go, sweet pea." She said. Kurt smiled appreciatively at her. "I'll go get Blaine. Take a seat, he has something he wants to talk to you about."

Kurt did as he was told, taking a sip of his water in the process in a feeble attempt to wet his sore throat. He shivered when he realized why his throat was so sore.

Kurt didn't understand why he loved Adam, but the sad thing was that he didn't know how to stop. For so long Adam was the only thing that ever made him feel less empty inside. He was the only thing that felt solid and normal and real in his life... He shook his head at himself and took another sip of the water. The cold of the liquid partially numbing the pain upon running down his throat. He sighed.

"Hey there, stranger." Blaine said, his usually bright hazel eyes dimmed with what seemed to be confusion.

"Blaine." Kurt smiled at him despite it, simply saying his name seemed to calm Kurt's shaken nerves.

"Are you okay?" Blaine asked immediately. "Because yesterday your texts-"

Kurt laughed, the action stinging his throat again. "Oh no, I'm fine. Don't worry. I just was in a mood." He lied, taking a small sip from his cup again.

Blaine seemed to accept this, although his eyes didn't brighten the way Kurt had expected them to. "Oh. Okay. As long as you're alright."

"I'm fine, Blaine." Kurt tried to smile again but Blaine frowned in return and Kurt knew it was because he wasn't fooling him. Kurt was not fine, he was... getting by. But no one needed to know that or anything else about him, really. Especially when it made Blaine look so downtrodden. "Please don't sport that wounded puppy look because of me ever again, Blaine." Kurt begged. "I can't take it."

Blaine seemed to perk up slightly at this. "Why would you associate me with a canine?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Because you resemble one?" Kurt said, lifting his glass to his lips once again.

"I do not." Blaine shot back.

"Clever comeback. You're the epitome of eloquent wit."

Blaine smirked, "as long as you admit it."

Kurt only rolled his eyes. "Serena said you had news for me."

"Oh, right!" Blaine met Kurt's eyes and reached across the table to take his hand. Kurt tried not to flinch at the intimate gesture, but Blaine noticed despite Kurt's well practiced blasé attitude. "Serena wanted to know if you maybe..." Blaine paused, "wanted a job here? It's not much, but I mean it's easy. And you wouldn't hate your boss." He smirked. "Plus, I know how tough New York can be."

Kurt immediately retracted his hand from Blaine's and folded them together in his lap, staring down intensely at them. "Blaine please tell me you didn't do this."

Kurt's cheeks burned. Was he that much of a charity case that Blaine not only had to pay for his cab fair and dinner, but he also had to find him a job?

"Why would that be a bad thing?" Blaine finally moved his hand from the tabletop when he realized Kurt would not be returning his to be held again.

"Because, Blaine." Kurt shook his head.

"But..." Blaine sighed. "Think about it?" He tried.

Kurt continued staring at his hands wringing together in his lap.

"I really would like it if you came and worked here... I'd get to see you more." Blaine put in quietly, mimicking Kurt's actions and began watching his own wringing hands as well.

Kurt's head snapped up at that. "What?"

"I-I mean, you're supposed to be my friend. If you worked here too, we could see each other more. I dunno." Blaine's eyes remained downcast.

"Okay." Kurt replied. When Blaine didn't look up again, Kurt slid his hand across the table with his palm up in silent askance. Blaine stirred slightly before moving his eyes to stare at Kurt's offering. He smiled only slightly before looking up at Kurt's face, searching his blue eyes for any sign of hesitance. When he found none, he slipped his hand into Kurt's atop the small table between them, never breaking their gaze. Kurt's eyes, for the first time Blaine had seen them, shone brightly in their small corner of the coffee shop.

And in that moment, neither one of them felt quite as alone in the city as they usually did.