#6

March 25, 2018

“Kurt. Kurt, wake up.” An urgent whisper in the darkness jerked him awake.

“Mmmh? Blaine? What's wrong?” he rasped, still breathless from the intensity of his dream. He felt like his insides were shaking.

“You were screaming in your sleep,” Blaine said, concerned. His hand was on Kurt's shoulder, a comforting weight.

“Oh. Did I wake you? Sorry, I had a nightmare.”

“You did, but it's okay. Friends don't let friends deal with nightmares alone.” Kurt could hear the smile in Blaine's voice. He felt his body relaxing already.

“Thank you,” he murmured. “I'm okay now. You can go back to sleep.”

Blaine didn't move. “Do you remember what we used to do when you had nightmares during sleepovers when we were kids? After your mom died?”

Kurt smiled fondly. “Yeah. You and Rachel would hold me between you for the rest of the night. You called it… what did you call it?”

“A cuddle pile of love.” Blaine chuckled quietly.

“Right. I loved it,” Kurt admitted, settling into the warmth of the bed and the memories. “It worked like a charm, even in those worst months.”

“Okay, scoot over.”

Kurt's drooping eyes snapped open. “What? Why?”

Blaine was already up and tugging at the edge of the comforter. “Rachel isn't here, but I'm still awesome at cuddling the nightmares away. Now move. I'm not that small.”

“But–” He wanted to. He really, really did, but it felt like he shouldn't, like he ought to keep his carefully created distance.

Blaine sat on the edge of Kurt's bed and wiggled his hips to get more room. “Come on. Love pile.”

With an exaggerated sigh, Kurt moved to the other side of the bed, and Blaine immediately slid under the covers, his cold feet finding Kurt's calf. He ignored the ample space he was given in favor of scooting close to Kurt and winding his arm around Kurt's waist.

“Just so you know, you really don't have to–” Kurt tried to protest one last time, but Blaine just rubbed his chin against his shoulder, his voice low and sleepy.

“Shh. Cuddling. No talking. Now sleep.”

*

Kurt woke up early the next morning, overheated and confused. There was another body pressed close against his back and he could feel stubble tickling the back of his neck as the man breathed evenly against his hair. It had been many long months since Kurt last invited anyone over, and he let himself bask in the feeling of being held like this as he drifted slowly to full consciousness.

Which brought him to the memory of his nightmare and Blaine slipping into his bed in the middle of the night. Kurt smiled to himself. So that's why it felt so safe and familiar. He'd known Blaine's embrace since they were six, when Kurt first became friends with the Anderberry siblings who'd moved into the house opposite his. All three of them had been tactile kids, who hugged and tickled one another mercilessly and fell asleep in a pile while watching cartoons during their frequent sleepovers. They were physically very close until well into puberty. And while obviously a lot had changed since then, Blaine's embrace still felt like a favorite blanket that made Kurt feel secure and cared for.

Except now it also made other feelings resurface, so Kurt sighed and moved, trying to disengage himself and get up to start his morning. Blaine's arm tightened around his middle.

“Mm, no. Don't go. I missed you,” he mumbled sleepily.

Oh, how it ached. Kurt bit on his lip to counter the sudden sting in his eyes, and drew a bracing breath. “Blaine–” he said softly. It was only fair to make him realize who it was he'd been sharing the bed with. But Blaine just pulled him in closer, putting his hand over Kurt's heart.

“Stay, Kurt. Please,” he whispered, lips hot against the skin of Kurt's neck, making him warm all over.

So Kurt stayed. And if he fell asleep again and was late to work that morning, he really couldn't be blamed.

*

That night, when Kurt got home, he was greeted with heavenly smells coming from the kitchen. The table was set, complete with a white tablecloth, candles and a bouquet of red and yellow roses in a vase. Blaine was pouring wine into two glasses when Kurt stopped in the doorway.

“Blaine? What's all this?”

Blaine set down the bottle. His expression was soft and a little shy as he walked up to stand in front of Kurt.

“This could be a ‘thank you for being my best friend' dinner.” He paused and bit his lip before adding, “Or, if you want to, it could be a date. Whichever you choose.”

Kurt took him in for a long while – his best friend, his roommate, the boy he'd loved, one way or another, for as long as he could remember. And now, with his heart on his sleeve and hope in his bright eyes, Blaine was offering him something more still, a step in the direction they had both wished for at some point in their lives, but had never had the chance to take.

He took Blaine's hand.

“I'll take option number two.”

Blaine's smile was like the sun. “I hoped you would say that.”

Their first kiss was sweet and slow and much, much longer than first kisses usually last. But that was okay. They had years to make up for, after all.  

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CHAPTER ART by headbandxbowties

Option number two