AN: It's been over two months and I feel horrible for not updating sooner. However, my other story is finally finished so I'll try to do better now.

We're jumping forward a bit and pick up the story in early February.

1x09: Love is in the air

Previously on 'NYADA – Freshman Year'. Kurt and Blaine went back to Ohio for Christmas. Kurt and Finn got into a fight after Finn called Blaine Kurt's boyfriend in front of his dad and said some not so nice things about Kurt attending school in New York. The boys buried the hatchet though when they banded together to throw a New Year's Eve party and Blaine got the Finn Hudson stamp of approval. A drunk Rachel outed Kurt and Blaine at the party but promises were made to keep it a secret. In another part of Ohio, Mr. Anderson invited Kurt to dinner and Kurt left with the Michael Anderson stamp of approval. Break's over though now and it's time for the boys to head back to school. And that's what you missed on 'NYADA – Freshman Year'.

Kurt woke up the morning after his and Blaine's three months anniversary with a huge smile on his face. He knew that three months wasn't that long for most people, but because it was his first relationship, it felt huge for him.

They hadn't really celebrated but had gone to a nice restaurant Blaine had discovered the previous year, before retiring to Blaine's room for a movie, the door kept open a few inches in case someone checked up on them, now that the school was aware of their relationship.

Things had quickly gone back to normal once they had returned to school and most of January he had been busy with new projects and assignment as well as the mountains of homework he had to deal with in some classes.

He and Blaine had gone to see 'How to succeed' on Broadway – Kurt's Christmas present for Blaine – Blaine with a Gryffindor tie around his neck while Kurt wore Slytherin's because it matched his eye color. Afterward they had waited outside the stage door in the freezing cold so Blaine could get his playbill signed and catch a glimpse of one of his favorite actors.

His boyfriend had turned into an adorable fan boy as soon as 'Harry' stepped outside and Kurt had snapped gazillion pictures of Blaine and Daniel Radcliff which now plastered the wall in Blaine's room.

In acting class, Ms. Corcoran had announced the choice for the spring semester musical and Kurt couldn't wait to audition because 'Rent' was one of his favorite musicals.

He stopped his internal recap of the past month when his phone alerted him to a new text message and Kurt giggled when he saw that Mercedes had texted him to demand details about his anniversary date last night.

Before he could reply though, the door was flung open and San, Britt and Quinn barged into the room. A groan came from the other bed and Kurt could see Jeff burying his head further underneath his pillow to get back to sleep.

"San, you can't just barge in here. What if I was just getting dressed?" San's eyes raked over his body and Kurt quickly pulled the sheet up to his chin, because her gaze made him feel naked even though he was fully dressed underneath it.

"Oh chill. You're definitely lacking the things I like," San drawled before throwing him a pair of jeans and a shirt.

"Come on, get dressed. I needs to get my shopping on and you have proven to have good taste. Bring the hobbit if you want."

Kurt rolled his eyes before he quickly grabbed the garments and rushed into the bathroom to get changed. He really didn't understand why Santana insisted on calling Blaine a hobbit when he was shorter than Blaine and Santana herself wasn't much taller. They were all teenagers after all and his growth spurt could happen any day now, or so he prayed.

When he got out of the bathroom after fixing his hair and brushing his teeth, he sent a quick text to Blaine asking him to meet them for lunch, but not inviting him to the shopping trip because he knew Blaine wasn't a huge fan but would come with nevertheless just to make Kurt happy. And he found Santana scary.

"Alright ladies, let's go. I still need to get Blaine a birthday present anyway – and no, Santana, I don't want to hear your suggestions."

Blaine at some point stopped counting how many people had congratulated him on being nearly legal. It was only his seventeenth birthday after all, nothing special. He still couldn't vote or get married or go to bars legally. It just made him two years older than his boyfriend who looked even younger than his age.

Maybe he shouldn't have consumed the champagne Wes had brought along to the party if he was thinking those things again, he chastised himself and put his glass down.

Kurt and his friends were dancing in one corner of the club Wes and David had rented for his party and Blaine looked on fondly while his boyfriend gave his all, shaking his butt in tight jeans that looked painted on. He shook his head again, because his mind apparently felt the need to jump from 'my boyfriend looks super young' to staring at his ass. He was so blaming teenage hormones for that.

Of course Wes and David caught him staring and for the next ten minutes he had to do his best to assure him that no, his plans for Kurt were not to unwrap him like the presents he'd gotten.

"Come on, Blaine. You obviously find him hot. You can't tell me you haven't thought about doing stuff with him. I've been seventeen once too," David teased him after Blaine assured his friends again that his thoughts about Kurt were totally gentlemanly.

Yeah, well. Of course he had thought about it, but that didn't mean he would act on them. "I promised myself I wouldn't do anything with him until he turns sixteen. I'm too young for jail," he retorted, causing David to role his eyes.

"And too pretty," Wes added, fluttering his eyelashes coquettishly and Blaine finally had enough of his friends teasing. "I think someone just called me. I need to go," he said, before pushing past them to join Kurt and the girls on the dance floor.

"There's the birthday boy," Kurt yelled when he spotted him and threw his arms around Blaine's neck. Kurt was swaying lightly on his feet and Blaine thought that it was probably time to get him back to school before Kurt would get into trouble for getting back drunk.

They had all gotten permission from their parents to stay out later for the party, but the school still wouldn't look too kindly at them if they all came back completely wasted, seeing as neither of them was twenty-one and Kurt's friend Brittany had only turned fifteen three days ago.

"We should had back," he yelled, because the music was really loud in the club, but Kurt just pouted at him before smashing their lips together, disregarding all the other people around them.

Blaine wasn't exactly sober himself and also a teenage boy so he kissed back for a bit, before he decided he had to be the mature one of the two of them and make sure things didn't get out of hand.

"I just want to have you to myself for a bit," he pleaded, using his best puppy dog eyes and Kurt immediately relented, saying goodbye to his friends and pretty much yanking Blaine out of the door.

No cabs were in sight when they exited the club, but it wasn't too far away from school and temperatures had climbed a bit over the past few days, so they decided to walk back to campus.

Blaine was hoping it would sober them up a bit, because Kurt was acting really out of character and seemed even more wasted than he was at the party they met.

"What did you drink?" he asked, because he had been sure Kurt wasn't drinking much. "Don't know," Kurt shrugged. "Some girl from school got it for me. It tasted really sweet and not strong at all and was really colorful."

Blaine raised an eyebrow and frowned. He really needed to have words with some of the older students so they wouldn't give his boyfriend cocktails again. Kurt's friends had looked pretty out of it as well, so he quickly took out his cell phone and texted Wes and David, telling them to make sure the girls got back to the dorms all right.

Luckily, no adults were around when they finally made it back to the dorms and Blaine led a still giggling Kurt to his room. After Kurt nearly fell over trying to unlace his Doc Martins, Blaine told him to sit down and unlaced them for him before putting a glass of water and Tylenol on his nightstand.

"You okay?" he asked his boyfriend who was struggling with the buttons of his shirt, either not caring that Blaine was still in the room or not realizing it.

"I'm awesome," Kurt replied and Blaine chuckled. "Yes, you are. There's water for you and a pill you should take before you go to bed. Hopefully, Jeff will be back soon, so he can help you if you need something."

"You're leaving?" Kurt asked, not looking too happy about the prospect but Blaine nodded. "You know I can't spend the night here. We'll both get into trouble."

Kurt pouted again before he finally nodded and puckered his lips. "Kiss goodnight?" Blaine took a step forward and briefly pressed his lips to Kurt's, pulling back before his boyfriend could deepen the kiss. Apparently he had created a monster after the kiss on New Year's Eve because lately, Kurt wanted to nothing but make out with him. Not that he was complaining. You know – teenage boy.

After making sure that Kurt was properly taken care of, he finally went upstairs to his own room, where he collapsed on the bed as well, after taking off his own shoes and drinking some water.

Two presents were lying on his nightstand – one from Cooper and one from his dad, but again nothing from his mom. Sometimes he wondered why he still cared when she so obviously wanted nothing to do with him anymore.

After Blaine's birthday party, Kurt had woken up with an awful hangover, causing him to vow to never drink again, so instead of trying to come up with ideas for Valentine's Day, he and Jeff had wallowed in their misery and had watched 'Hangover' together, while Blaine was taking care of Wes and David who hadn't come home till early in the morning.

Now, four days before V-day, Kurt was getting desperate because he had no idea what one was supposed to do on their first Valentine's Day with one's first boy/girlfriend.

Fortunately, the Jones had bought a new computer over Christmas and so he invited his four best girls for a brainstorming session that evening that Mercedes was joining via Skype.

"Ladies, the reason I asked you here is because Blaine and I are celebrating our first Valentine's Day together and I want it to be perfect. Unfortunately, my brain is stuck right now, so I'm asking you to present your suggestions," he explained once the girls were seated on his and Jeff's beds and Mercedes had joined them on Kurt's laptop.

Britt clapped her hands together excitedly. "You should make him a card with lots of hearts and give him a stuffed animal so he has someone to cuddle with when he can't have you. Or give him one of your shirts – San wears my clothes all the time. Or maybe you can take him to Coney Island and win him a stuff animal," his friend spouted off idea after idea and while a card was definitely a good idea, he had no intentions to drag Blaine to an amusement park, he was pretty sure was closed this time of the year.

"Thanks Britt. Next."

Santana smirked and Kurt knew whatever she was going to say, he wasn't going to like it.

"How about you and him in a nice room at the Waldorf Astoria. And instead of giving him chocolate you can put it on him and lick it off," Santana suggested, seemingly enjoying when his face turned bright red.

"Blaine doesn't like chocolate," he stammered, trying to keep his mind from going there and envisioning it. Damn it, when had he turned into such a typical teenager?

"Doesn't matter. I hear whipped cream is even better," Santana tried to rattle him again but this time he kept himself under control and just shook his head at her before turning to Quinn.

"Quinn?"

The other blonde dropped the phone she was texting with and raised a newly pierced eyebrow at him.

"Men are pigs and Valentine's Day was invented by the flower and sweets industry," Quinn replied icily before picking her phone up again.

Kurt knew that Quinn hadn't had much luck with dating so far either. It wasn't that she didn't find people who wanted to go out with her, but most of them weren't really interested in dating her but only hooking-up.

They had all agreed it was okay for people to casually hook up but only if both people were on the same page, and well, Quinn wanted to be more than just a hook up. So he understood why she might be a little jaded as the only single one in their group of friends,

"You just haven't met anyone yet who deserves to be with you," he quickly assured her, though he wasn't sure she was even paying attention to him.

From the corner of his eye he spotted Mercedes staring with wide eyes and he was glad he had introduced her to his new friends before, because otherwise she probably would be even more confused.

"Please tell me you have a good idea?" he asked her because the other girls hadn't been much help.

"I don't know Kurt. Sam and I, we are just going out to dinner and maybe watch a movie later at my house. Nothing special."

There weren't any big romantic gestures but if he were quite honest he had to admit he'd rather just spend time with Blaine as well than make a huge spectacle out of their relationship.

He told the girls he would consider all their suggestions before they switched to idle chit-chat and Mercedes entertained them with her stories of life in a public high school in Ohio.

At some point Jeff and Nick came in to get one of Jeff's Playstation games and Kurt grinned when he saw that Quinn was checking Nick out.

"So what's his deal?" she asked once the boys had left again. "I know he's not dating Sterling though they are joined at the hip, so who does he like. Boy or girl?"

Kurt shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. I don't think he really cares as long as he connects with someone, but I guess you have to ask him yourself if you are interested," he replied and Quinn studied her fingernails.

"I'm not. Just curious."

Kurt didn't buy it for a second and in his head he immediately started making plans to get Quinn and Nick together.

Mercedes excused herself a bit later because she still had homework to do, and at eight sharp the girls returned to their own rooms and Kurt walked upstairs to hang out with Blaine for a while.

He still wasn't a hundred percent sure about his romantic plans, but had gotten reservations for a small restaurant his aunt had recommended as backup plan. The rest would hopefully come to him eventually.

Meanwhile, Blaine was facing a similar problem and had asked Wes and David to come to his room to help him out.

"Oh, no. It must be serious. His hair is all over the place," David immediately stage whispered to Wes when the two entered his room and Blaine rolled his eyes. With their antics he didn't understand they had been surprised their girlfriends had both dumped them at pretty much the same time. Sometimes he questioned his own sanity when it came to his friends.

"As you know it's Valentine's Day in a few days and I have no ideas at all," he moaned. "I just suck at romance."

"Then you've come to the right people. We are great with romantic gestures." Well, he couldn't refute this claim because while they were still dating their girlfriends, the girls had always gushed about his friends' romantic gestures.

"Well, Katherine used to love it when we went and had a picnic. Sounds like something Kurt might enjoy as well," David suggested, but Wes shot him an incredulous look.

"Dude, it's February and the city is covered in snow. Do you want them to get pneumonia right before the auditions for the musical."

David looked sheepish for a moment before he turned to Wes. "Then pray tell, oh great Wesley, what is your amazing suggestion?"

Blaine had to jump out of the way when his friends started to mock wrestle over David's use of the dreaded name Wesley.

"I'm sorry, I take it back," David finally surrendered and Blaine offered them both a hand to get them back on their feet.

"What's your idea?" he asked Wes now that he had their attention again.

"Okay, so Tania really liked it when I cooked us dinner. All you need are a few candles and voilà – romantic dinner for two."

Blaine's eyes lit up, because that was a great idea. They had a small kitchen in the dorm building the students were allowed to use as long as they cleaned up after them and it couldn't be too hard to follow a recipe, right?

"That's a great idea, Wes. I could but a blanket down on the floor and we could have a sort of picnic indoors with the food I made."

Both of his friends suddenly looked horrified though. "Do you want to give Kurt food poisoning?" David exclaimed and Blaine huffed.

"No, seriously, Blaine. You can't cook," Wes added. "Then why even bring it up," he asked, glaring at his two best friends.

"I was going to add that in your case it would be safer to have food delivered when you interrupted me," Wes shot back, a horrified look still on his face.

So yeah, maybe he wasn't the best cook, but he was certain his skills didn't warrant this kind of reaction.

"Well, I'm going to prove you all wrong. I'll make something simple but I'm going to cook Kurt dinner," he decided before ushering them out of the room because he had to google a few simple dishes.

He could still hear them mumbling 'poor boy' under their breaths when they left the room, but Blaine didn't let their attitude discourage him.

Kurt would be happy with him even if he wasn't some amazing chef, because it was the intent that counted, right?

And maybe after dinner he could tell Kurt three little words that had been floating around his mind and had been trying to escape for a few weeks now.

When V-day finally arrived, Kurt took his time getting ready. Only after his hair was styled to perfection and he had selected the perfect outfit – Blaine's favorite pair of jeans, knee high boots, burgundy button-up and silver vest – did he take a moment to go over his plans again.

They had agreed to meet in Blaine's room at seven for a surprise Blaine had planned and after he would take Blaine to the small restaurant where they would have a romantic dinner, which was his surprise.

Jeff was already gone, having his own plans with his girlfriend, when he finally deemed himself completely ready and at ten to seven he made his way upstairs to Blaine's room.

He didn't get far however, because he was suddenly grabbed by Blaine's best friends and dragged into the opposite direction.

"Hey, let me go. I'm own my way to see Blaine," he told them as he struggled to get out of their grasps but the boys didn't let go.

"We know, but this is an emergency."

Kurt rolled his eyes and wondered not for the first time if people would still call him a drama queen if they ever met Wes and David.

He got even more confused when they dragged him down a corridor that led to the kitchen but dug his heel into the floor when he saw smoke coming out of the door.

Wes and David yanked the door open and pulled him inside and Kurt stopped in his tracks when he saw a frantic Blaine trying to get the smoke out of the window.

"It's okay. It's under control now. Do you think those are still edible," his boyfriend asked, turning around and waving a fork full of burned pasta in front of him until he spotted Kurt and immediately dropped it.

"Kurt, what are you doing here? Dinner isn't till seven," Blaine exclaimed, dear caught in headlights look on his face.

"I'm going to state the obvious here and say dinner isn't happening," David retorted and Blaine turned bright red, before he whispered "surprise", looking like a kicked puppy when his friends started laughing.

"Well, I think it's good I made reservations for us," Kurt deadpanned before he took in his boyfriend's appearance.

His hair looked like he had run his hands through it repeatedly, glasses were perched on his nose and he was wearing sweatpants and a NYADA hoodie.

"Why don't you get upstairs and get ready to go out while I and the boys take care of the kitchen," Kurt suggested and glared at Wes and David when they started to protest.

"Kurt, no. I made the mess, I'll clean it," Blaine protested as well, but Kurt shook his head. "If we don't want to lose our table you don't, so shoo."

Blaine hung his head, but apparently accepted defeat because he left the kitchen after assuring him he would hurry.

Half an hour later they finally left campus, their intertwined gloved hands swinging between them.

"So what was your surprise supposed to be?" Kurt asked as they were walking toward the restaurant.

"I thought I would cook us dinner and we'd have a romantic dinner in my room," Blaine explained, still looking a bit down and Kurt squeezed his hand and quickly dropped a kiss on the corner of Blaine's mouth.

"That was such a sweet idea. But I'm starting to think we should have talked about our plans before we made them because you were trying to surprise me when I was trying to surprise you."

Blaine nodded before he wrapped his arm around Kurt's waist and pulled him closer. "Maybe next time we could cook dinner together just to make sure I don't burn it again," he suggested because he liked the domesticity of the idea. Maybe he was indeed an old soul trapped in the body of a teenager.

"I can't believe you managed to burn the pasta. Granted my dad did the same after my mom died because he didn't realize you had to cook water first before you put the noodles in."

Blaine snorted next to him and Kurt could stop his own laugh from escaping either. It was easier now to laugh about his dad's attempts at managing their lives after his mother had passed, now that time had passed and it didn't hurt so much anymore.

"Well, at least I knew to heat up the water first, but yeah, I think you should teach me some things."

"Deal," Kurt replied because it sounded like a nice idea, cooking dinner together. "Just out of curiosity. The food at your house over Christmas didn't taste too bad. Is your dad a better cook than mine?" Kurt continued and Blaine shook his head.

"God, no. All the Anderson men are hopeless in the kitchen, so my dad mostly eats out or orders in and Cooper relies on his roommate to feed him. We ordered the food from a restaurant and all I did was heat it up," Blaine confessed.

"Well, maybe I should give you all cooking lessons the next time your family is in town," Kurt joked but Blaine looked pensive. "You know, I think my dad would actually go for it if he found the time in his busy schedule. He did say he wanted us to more things together.

"Have you told him about the musical yet?" Kurt asked because if Blaine's dad was really trying he should come to see his son perform without Blaine having to lie about the performance.

"Not yet. I thought I'll call him when I know if I got cast."

"You will. You are amazing."

They shared a brief kiss before entering the restaurant they had reached while they had been talking.

Kurt felt really grown up during dinner, as he was on a romantic date with his boyfriend just like all the other people in the room. The place was small and cozy and they ended up in a table in a corner because another couple had cancelled last minute.

When Kurt saw they had spaghetti with meatballs, he was tempted for a moment to order them just to reenact a scene from one of his favorite Disney movies but Blaine had changed into a white dress shirt and he was afraid to spill sauce on him accidentally.

In the end he settled on lasagna while Blaine ordered pasta arrabiata and they shared a few breadsticks before the main course arrived that tasted a lot better than they did at Breadstix back in Lima, which for some reason was famous for its breadsticks.

They talked about everything and nothing during dinner, only letting go of their joined hands when their food arrived and when Kurt wiped a bit of sauce from the corner of Blaine's mouth, Blaine looked back at him – dare he hope – lovingly.

Kurt had never been in love before, so he wasn't sure if that was what he was feeling, but he knew that right now he couldn't imagine his life without Blaine. That had to be love, right? But when was the right time to say it and who should say it first? And what if Blaine didn't feel the same about him and thought he was childish and naïve for thinking what they had was love?

He didn't stop mulling those questions over until he nearly dropped a piece of lasagna into his lap, which made him pay attention at his surroundings again.

"Any other surprises I should be aware of?" Kurt asked after he had paid for both of them, after reminding Blaine that he had paid for their last date, and they were ready to leave.

"Well, I wanted to make good on my promise and take you on a carriage ride through Central Park, but they were all pretty much booked by the time I asked, so I figured we would just stay in after dinner and watch a movie together."

"Then it's probably time to tell you that I might be a tiny bit afraid of horses so you won't make good on your promise in the future;" Kurt replied as he let Blaine help him get his coat back on.

"I sense a story there." They intertwined their hands again as they left the restaurant and Kurt nodded. "One I'm sure my dad will tell you one day."

Blaine didn't point out that the statement only was true if Kurt told his dad about them for which he was grateful and instead changed the subject. "So where too? Or do you just want to head back to school?"

"Maybe we can just take a walk through the park. It's so beautiful covered in snow like this," Kurt suggested and Blaine immediately agreed.

They wrapped their arms around each other again once the cold got to them, a few snowflakes descending onto them when they reached Bow Bridge and Kurt cuddled up as closely to Blaine as possible to keep them warm.

He could feel Blaine's eyes on him when they stopped for a moment the night sky illuminated by the full moon.

"What?" he asked when Blaine wouldn't look away. "I, I'm really happy to be with you," Blaine replied after a moments hesitation and for one second Kurt had been sure Blaine was going to say something else and his heart had stopped.

But he hadn't so he returned the sentiment because he couldn't imagine a better person than Blaine to spend this day with.

"You're shivering and it's getting late," his boyfriend said after another moment of them gazing into each other's eyes and Kurt realized that Blaine was right and that the cold was getting to him. "Let's get you home."

They sped up on the walk back to the dorms, briefly considering hailing a cab but without his regular income from his dad's shop he just didn't have the money anymore to waste it on things like cabs.

Blaine walked him back to his room, just in time for his curfew and when they saw the light shine through under the door alerting them to Jeff's presence, Blaine wrapped his arms around him and soundly kissed him good night.

"Good night, Kurt. Sweet dreams," Blaine whispered before he pulled back but Kurt pulled him back in, not ready to let him go yet, not before another kiss.

"Good night. Love you," he finally whispered and it took him a moment to realize what he had just said. "I mean, I," he quickly tried to back peddle because Blaine looked shocked but Blaine cut him off before he could finish his sentence.

"I love you too, Kurt." "Wow." His brain to mouth filter was apparently taking a nap because he couldn't stop himself from saying the things he only allowed himself to think about usually.

"Wow, indeed. I'm so glad I came to my senses because look at how much I gained."

They both sounded like the cheesiest teen romance novels, but Kurt couldn't care less. And who could blame him – after all that was were he had learned everything about love and relationships. If people on TV could get away with saying things like that, so could he.

They shared a few more passionate kisses in front of Kurt's room until one of the teachers on dorm duty cleared his throat behind them and told Blaine to say good night.

His face was still bright red when he went into his room, but when Jeff smirked and asked if he had a good date, all he could do was nod and smile even wider.

Because he loved Blaine and Blaine loved him back.

The next morning he was woken up by his phone ringing on his nightstand and Kurt quickly picked it up as to not wake up Jeff. Jeff's bed was empty though and Kurt wondered how long he had slept.

"Hello," he mumbled sleepily. "Long night last night, kiddo?" his dad's voice came through and Kurt sat up straighter and tried to get his still sleep addled brain to properly function.

"Not really. Just hung out with a few of the other singles watching movies," he replied, his heart clenching as he was hit by the guilt, like it had since Christmas every time he lied to his dad about what was going on in his life.

He knew he couldn't go on like that and he was trying to work up the courage to tell his dad the next time he saw him over spring break. Not about Blaine, but about himself, because he wanted to know first how his dad felt about him being gay, before he dropped the boyfriend bomb.

He wasn't in any kind of hurry because Finn's glee club had kept their promise and hadn't spilled his and Blaine's secret to anyone. He might have reached a point in his life where he just wanted to get it over with but he needed to do it face to face so could see his dad's reaction.

"What about you and Carole? Did you do something nice for her?" he asked to get the focus off of him and his dad swallowed it up and immediately launched his tale about how he had wooed his wife.

"The evening might have ended nicer if we hadn't found your brother fooling around on our living room couch with his girlfriend, but I'd say the evening was a success," his dad concluded and Kurt rolled his eyes because for some reason Finn always managed to get caught when he wasn't around to help him out.

"That's not something I need to worry about with you, right?" his dad asked after a beat. "Fooling around with someone on our living room couch. No, I don't think so," Kurt joked hoping his dad would drop the subject because he knew he wasn't asking about that.

"Alright, I get it. You are a teenager and you don't want to tell your old man everything about your life. Just, make good choices, okay. You are still young, there's no need to rush things."

And the guilt was back full force. "I know dad. And I'm doing my best, but I know I won't always get it right."

His dad sighed on the other end of the line before he responded. "I know. I wish I could make sure you never made any mistakes but just know I'm there for you if you need me."

And stabbed him in his heart. A single tear trickled down his face and he knew he had to get off the line before he started crying for real.

"I love you, dad."

"I love you too, kiddo. Let me know how that audition of yours goes."

"I will."

"Are you sure you don't want to reconsider. You'd be the perfect Angel to my Collins because if you were my stage partner I wouldn't have any problems to show the proper emotions when Angel dies," Blaine tried again on their way to the auditorium where auditions for 'Rent' were being held.

"I'm sure. I'm not ready for this."

He wasn't just saying this because he was afraid to fail, but because he knew he wasn't there yet. Being able to sing the songs wasn't an issue, he was certain he could do that, but he'd only had acting lessons for one semester and he didn't feel ready to tackle a role like this.

There were so many talented people in this school and he knew his time would come as well when he was ready, but for now he would let the older students have their chance.

He was perfectly fine with being part of the ensemble if he got cast, because there was nothing wrong with being part of it for one, and secondly, he had always liked the small characters in 'Rent' and the different roles the ensemble performed in the musical.

"Well, at least you are still singing 'I'll cover you' with me," Blaine conceded. "Just don't be surprised if Ms. Corcoran asks you to read for Angel."

She didn't and Kurt was perfectly fine with it. After all she was his teacher and was aware of his abilities.

Blaine was great as always when he acted out Collins part in the title song and Kurt didn't see any reason why he shouldn't get the role. But then again, he might be slightly biased because Blaine was his very handsome boyfriend who loved him.

Sometimes he really wanted to call up all the jerks in Lima who had called him a freak who no ones was ever going to love and tell them about Blaine just to prove them wrong.

After Blaine had finished his audition, they waited outside for Santana who had decided to audition as well, because 'she was born to play Mimi'. She certainly looked the part Kurt thought and she was one of the best in their acting class, not counting their Shakespeare assignment because they had all sucked in this one.

As far as he knew most of their Vocal Explosion teammates were auditioning which delighted Alyson because it would make it easier for her to arrange their rehearsal schedule if they all were involved in the same musical.

The cast list went up on the last day of February and Kurt was happy to see that Ms. Corcoran had given him the part of the waiter of the Life Café and a few other small parts. Unfortunately that meant that he couldn't be part of the life support group. 'Will I' was one song he would really have liked to sing.

Blaine hugged him tightly after he checked out the list as well and Kurt congratulated his boyfriend for getting the role he wanted, though he had never doubted Blaine in the first place.

Their celebrations were interrupted by Wes and David who immediately started to tease his boyfriend. "Well, Blaine. I know you've wanted to plant one on me for years so now you finally get the chance to do it," Wes joked, as he had been cast as Angel.

"Just don't get jealous Kurt, okay." Kurt ignored his remark because the only one he would have had a problem with was Sebastian, who to his surprise had been cast as Roger. Rehearsal was definitely going to be interesting because Santana wasn't a fan of his either, but had to play his own stage love interest. He'd have to talk to Britt and Quinn later so they could properly celebrate Santana's success.

All other major roles had been filled with members of VE as well as predicted – Alyson as Maureen, David as Mark, Nick as Benjamin and Sunshine as Joanne – and so they soon retired to their allocated rehearsal space to celebrate their successes.

Blaine and Alyson disappeared somewhere at some point so Kurt hung out with the girls in the mean time, watching as Britt bounced up and down happily between kissing and hugging Santana.

When his boyfriend returned a while later he had an even bigger smile on his face than before. "What did she want?" Kurt asked, curious to know what had caused Blaine's reaction.

"Alyson told me she wants to endorse me for team captain at the end of the school year and asked me to help her prepare for Regionals so I can learn the ropes. So now that I have an in, I could help you get a part for the competition."

Kurt immediately shook his head. "That's sweet Blaine, but if they ever pick me for a solo I want it because I earned it, not because I'm dating the captain."

"You are so selfless and I love that about you," Blaine replied and Kurt decided they had stayed at the impromptu party long enough and it was time for them to take advantage of his empty dorm room for a bit.

After all, kissing Blaine was his favorite hobby nowadays.

Blaine still felt elated when he came back to his own room, after spending the better of the past hour kissing Kurt, and it was probably his endorphin high that made him dial his father's number.

"Hello Blaine," his dad answered and at least he didn't sound too busy. "How are you?" "I'm good dad. You?" "I'm well. Lots of work but yeah," his father trailed off.

"Was there a reason you called? Not that I'm not happy to hear for you, but I was about to head out for a charity dinner."

"Oh, I don't want to hold you up. I just wanted to tell you that I got a lead role in the spring musical and I was hoping you would come to New York to see it. It's in late April but I don't know the exact date yet."

The line went silent for a moment and Blaine was steeling himself for one of his father's usual excuses. His answer surprised him though.

"I wrote it down in my calendar, but please let me know the exact date as soon as possible." "So you are really coming, even though it's just a musical?" Blaine asked incredulously.

"You told me it's important to you and you did convince me you are good at what you are doing. So yes, I will try to make it. I love you and I'm proud of you even when you don't follow the path I laid out for you."

Blaine swallowed hard because hearing his dad say he was proud of him was something he always wanted to hear. "Love you too, dad," he replied, trying to keep his emotions in check.

"Well, I got to go. You and Kurt still seeing each other." "Yes." "Good, then give him my regards. I take the two of you out for dinner the next time I come to New York."

Blaine was still staring at his phone long after his dad had hung up because his dad was finally saying the right things. Being honest about who he was might have cost him his mother, but he felt better about his relationship with his father than he ever had.

AN: A little bit of a filler episode, but some content set up the final arc of the season. Three more episodes after this one.

PS: And in case you were wondering why I keep calling the chapters episodes. I started writing this in script form with an HBO/Showtime format in mind, before I found out you couldn't post formats like this on here. So yeah, in my mind this is still a Kurt centric TV series, influenced by my European upbringing (in case you were wondering why the teens party and drink a lot ;) )

PPS: The pasta thing – true story. I guy I went to HS with actually tried to cook pasta without putting water into the pot first. That taught his mom to stop coddling him and teach him some life skills.