Tina knocks on the open door before peeking her head into Blaine's office. "Can I come in?"

Blaine looks up from the computer screen, blinking his eyes as if it takes him a moment to be completely back in the present, back in his own office with its large window and brown walls. "Oh, yeah, sure."

His mind is still whirring over the jewel thief's arrest, even though it was hours ago. Their first case with Kurt was solved in record time, and it already seems that bouncing off ideas with Kurt works better for Blaine than it does for him with anyone else. Somehow, despite their differences, they get each other. Kurt throws him the ball and he throws it right back, observations leading to discoveries, and it makes Blaine feel more alive than he ever has before. Sure, he has always liked his job, has always got a certain kick from the thrill of the chase, from the intellectual level present in most white collar crimes, from leading his own team – but with Kurt it's like electricity coursing through his veins, like he's running forward with no way to stop. With no need to stop.

The FBI has always been about rules for Blaine, about the law, about doing things by the book, about what's illegal and what's not. Working with Kurt, however, seems to mean bending the rules or at least realizing that Kurt will want to bend them ("Just lie to her about who you are." – "I can't lie to her about who I am if I'm questioning her about the theft, Kurt." – "Fine, then I'll question her." – "What?"). Kurt dances through it all, playing by his own unique rules, already expecting Blaine to be there when he goes too far, and it's... exhilarating.

"What is it?" Blaine asks when Tina shuts the door behind her.

"Oh, nothing really, I just..." Tina glances back at the lower level of the office space where all the other agents have their desks a few steps down from Blaine's own office, the conference room and the interrogation room. "He's doing well, isn't he?"

Blaine follows Tina's line of sight and notices Kurt leaning against his desk near the doors, explaining something to Sam and a few of the probationary agents that have gathered around him. Kurt was so surprised at getting his own desk when they arrived at the office earlier today, practically stroking the surface of the desk in quiet reverence when Blaine pointed it out to him. Now his gestures are confident and calculated instead, accentuating the right parts of the story, and as Blaine watches he seems to deliver the punch line of the story, several of the probies suddenly chuckling or rolling their eyes.

"He is," Blaine says with a smile. He looks back at Tina. "What do you think?"

"Me?" Tina brushes a strand of hair behind her ear and thinks for a while. "I... I think he's doing alright. I mean obviously he's an asset, it's not like you would've suggested the deal to him if he wasn't –"

Blaine looks away, swallowing roughly. If only she knew all the reasons he had...

"– and he seems to enjoy this side of the things as well, but..." Tina stops, biting her lower lip.

"But what?" Blaine asks, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest.

"I don't know if he's really enjoying this or if he's just putting on a show," Tina admits, not meeting Blaine's eyes. "I can't read him."

Blaine's arms loosen, falling to his lap. "You can't read him? But he's..." His sentence trails off and he gestures towards Kurt, not really knowing the right word to describe him.

(The defeated slump in Kurt's shoulders when Blaine found him the second time, the brief glimpses of vulnerability Blaine has seen. And then the accomplished grin when Kurt found out that he was right about Montgomery, the light in his eyes when he asked if Blaine would like to get lunch with him, the way he was practically bouncing on Blaine's doorstep this morning, the little excited kick his feet did under the conference room table when he and Blaine made the last connection about the case over take-out lunch... All those gestures and expressions just brimming with genuine feelings, so visible and readable to Blaine – and Tina says she can't read Kurt?)

"Look, Blaine," Tina says, taking a step towards him. "I'm not saying that you're wrong or that you made the wrong choice with this deal. It's obvious that he helps us solve cases, but I just..." She finally looks up, meeting Blaine's confused gaze. "He's still a con-man, Blaine, and you tend to make impulsive decisions every now and then. I just want you to be careful."

Blaine gapes at her, even more confused than he was before. She gives a small smile and then turns her back on him, walking to the door and grabbing the handle.

"I am being careful, Tina," Blaine calls out after her.

Tina stops and glances at him over her shoulder. "Are you?" she asks, walking out of the office and closing the door behind her.

---

A few hours later, Tina's words still echoing in his mind, Blaine shuts down his computer, shrugs on his coat and clicks off the lights in his office. The white collar unit's floor has already quieted down, and most of the probies and younger agents headed home at least an hour ago. Blaine jogs down the few stairs to the lower level, straightening his tie and briefly patting his hair with his hand. Tina gives him another small smile as he passes her desk, and he just nods back at her, not knowing what to say.

Kurt is still sitting at his own desk, his back hunched over a pile of papers and his right hand tapping a pen against the knuckles of his left hand in a slow rhythm. He looks up when Blaine stops in front of his desk, the corners of his mouth quirking up in a grin.

"All done for the day?" he asks.

"Yes." Blaine can feel Tina's eyes on him from the other side of the room. "I was wondering if you needed a ride home?"

Kurt blinks, surprised. "Oh. Oh, it's fine, I can walk. Or take the subway."

"It's no bother, Kurt, it's on my way home."

Kurt purses his lips, contemplating for a while. "Alright then," he agrees eventually. "Let me just put these away?"

"Sure." Blaine checks his pockets for his keys, phone and wallet as Kurt starts arranging the papers on his desk, putting them in neat piles and making sure they're all in the right order. Blaine watches him, trying not to stare too much, still aware of the way Tina keeps glancing at them, of the words be careful circling around inside his head.

(But what does it mean to be careful around Kurt Hummel?)

Sam walks by them, clapping Blaine's shoulder on his way. "See you tomorrow, Blaine." He stops and looks at Kurt. "You too, Kurt."

Kurt lifts his head. "Oh, yeah, you too, Agent Evans. Have a nice evening."

Sam grins and reaches over the desk to give Kurt's shoulder a small shove. "It's Sam. You're part of the team now, Hummel."

Kurt's shoulders tense up at the touch at first, but then they relax, slumping down. "Thanks, Sam," he says, giving him a smile.

"Ready to go?" Blaine asks, trying to damp down the smile that Sam's reaction brought out. It's nice to know that at least one member of his team seems to be completely okay with Kurt.

Kurt arranges the last papers, looks at his desk for a moment and then nods. "Yes, ready." He grabs his own coat and straightens the dark blue bowtie he's wearing today, Blaine's eyes unconsciously following the movement before he shakes himself out of it and opens the door for Kurt.

They're already in Blaine's car, driving towards Kurt's apartment, when Kurt brings it up.

"It's a shame you don't wear bowties at work," he says from the passenger seat, smoothing his finger over his own bowtie again, visible between the lapels of his coat. "I mean, don't get me wrong, your ties are very nice, but I bet you'd look good in a bowtie."

Blaine glances at Kurt but returns his eyes quickly back to the road, confused by the sudden conversation starter after the quiet that fell between them when they left the office. "They fit me alright," he says, shrugging a little.

Kurt leans back in his seat. "They probably attract the attention of the opposite sex as well?" he asks, his voice purposefully nonchalant.

Blaine freezes, his fingers gripping the steering wheel a little more tightly. "Um." He swallows, staring right ahead. "I wouldn't know about that," he manages to say.

"Oh?" Blaine can see from the corner of his eye how Kurt straightens his back and stares at him. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I'm..." He pauses. Does he really have to come out to his new CI? He thought that his sexuality was pretty much common knowledge by now – everyone at the office knows it, or even if they don't it's not really their business anyway, and Kurt himself has shown time and time again that he knows more about Blaine's personal life than Blaine ever expected. Kurt, who has charmed both men and women during his own cons.

"I'm gay," Blaine says eventually, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Oh." Kurt shifts in his seat. "So the FBI doesn't have a policy –"

"That was the military a few years ago," Blaine interrupts, a little harshly. "We don't ask, we don't care."

"Sorry," Kurt says in a low voice.

Blaine sighs, loosening his grip on the steering wheel. "No, it's – it's alright. I just assumed that you knew already. You knew about Perry and about everything else even though we've never really talked about our personal lives, so I just..."

He thinks about some of the reactions he's had to face; a few of his older and more conservative superiors questioning his skills when they found about his sexuality, the disgusted looks he got from one of the probies who ended up quitting the white collar unit after a few weeks. His team and most of his bosses have always had his back, but somehow those bad memories still stay with him, as a reminder that the world isn't as right and fair as Blaine hopes it to be.

"I am too," Kurt says after Blaine has trailed off. "Gay, I mean."

"Oh." There's a weird sense of quiet understanding in Kurt's voice, and after a moment Blaine blinks, slowing to a red light. "Even though you charm –"

"Even though I charm women as well, yes," Kurt finishes for him, and the amused grin is back in his voice, making Blaine relax against his seat. "I charm anyone I have to, even if I personally prefer men."

Blaine remembers Tina's words and swallows. "I guess that's a requirement in your line of work."

"Yes," Kurt admits. "But I have a new line of work now. Right?"

Blaine looks over at Kurt with a smile, their eyes meeting over the center console. He can be careful, can keep himself in check and remember that Kurt conned a lot of people – but perhaps he doesn't have to be too careful. Kurt still seems to get him, seems to genuinely enjoy this new partnership they have, solving cases and catching other criminals. And Blaine can read him, even if Tina can't; he can read the lines and barely noticeable reactions on Kurt's face, can construct their meaning. Even if he tries to resist his personal impulses most of the time, he has never ignored his professional instincts, and he's not going to start now.

"Right," he repeats. The light changes from red to green, and he presses the accelerator until the car starts moving again.

Kurt hums. "You know, I had a hunch that you were gay."

Blaine laughs. "No, you didn't," he counters. "You were talking about attracting the opposite sex less than five minutes ago."

"I was just making sure." Kurt sniffs, a little indignant. "Making sure about my hunch."

"Sure," Blaine says, grinning. He glances at Kurt, seeing that he's smiling as well, his posture relaxed in the car's dim lighting. "You know, I had the same hunch about you as well," he confesses.

"I would've been disappointed if you hadn't," Kurt says.

"What?" Blaine asks, frowning. "Why?"

"Oh, it's nothing." Kurt waves his hand in the air and turns to look out of the window, a secretive smile lingering on his lips. "Nothing at all."