"We're never going that long without going to Scandal's again," Kurt states as they wander out of the bar, both of them sweaty and smelling faintly of liquor despite the fact that neither of them had a drink tonight.

            "Agreed," Blaine says, winding his arm around Kurt's waist. "It's fun to just be us without worrying."

Kurt smiles to himself, settling his arm around Blaine's shoulders as they walk back to their cars.

            "So what're you doing tomorrow night?" Kurt asks. "It's too late to do anything else now, but tomorrow's the last day of winter break and I want to see you before we go back to school and have to...you know, pretend."

            "I was actually going to ask you about that," Blaine says. "I...was wondering if you wanted to go on a date. Like, a proper one."

            "You - you want to go one a date with me? Like, out in public?"

            "You make it sound so scandalous," Blaine teases, pressing Kurt up against his car. He dips his head down to kiss Kurt's exposed collarbone, nipping at his skin a bit and causing Kurt to suck in a sharp breath of surprise.

            "Well you know we - ah - you know we don't ever go out anywhere together except for here and Starbucks," Kurt says. He's doing his best to keep them on the subject at hand, but it's hard when Blaine trails his lips up Kurt's neck and further still to capture his earlobe between his teeth.

            "I know," Blaine whispers, "and I want to change that."

            "You do?"

            "I wanna take you out," Blaine says, "like a real boyfriend would. I mean, we still need to keep everything a secret, but I do want to take a step in the right direction and I thought that, you know, doing this might help."

            "You don't need to do something you're not comfortable doing, though," Kurt says. "I eventually do want to go out with you on a real date as real boyfriends, but it doesn't have to be now, not before you're ready."

            "I'm not ready to tell everyone that I'm gay. But that doesn't mean we can't go out and do stuff. The most it might do is lead people on to think that we're friends outside of school and despite what you thought a couple of weeks ago, I don't care if people think that we're friends. I wasn't lying when I said that it's hard to be around you at school and not want to - you know, act like more. To us, though, we know it's more. And that's - that's what matters to me. I hope it matters to you, too."

            "It does," Kurt says softly, resting his forehead against Blaine's. "I just don't want to move too fast for you in - in that way."

            "It's not too fast," Blaine assures. "You need to know that I am working up to coming out. I don't know when that will happen, but I am trying."

            "I know," Kurt says before pressing a kiss to Blaine's lips. "And a date with you sounds wonderful."

-

Their date turns out to be pretty fantastic. They don't run into anyone they know and Kurt thinks it has to do with the fact that the café they go to actually serves food that doesn't clog their arteries. They eat lunch together, sitting with their feet touching beneath the table and Blaine isn't shy when it comes to shooting Kurt those small, secretive smiles that make Kurt blush.

They decide to see a movie, though Kurt has to admit that he doesn't even remember the name of it because the theater is dark and they're the only ones in the back row. Everyone else is closer to the middle rows of seats, and Blaine's the one to lift the armrest so that they can sit even closer together as the movie plays out on the screen. Kurt briefly remembers that it's supposed to be a comedy, but all thoughts of laughter flee his mind the moment Blaine leans over to whisper in his ear, his breath hot and heavy against Kurt's skin.

            "I wanna try something."

Kurt blinks at the screen as Blaine disentangles his fingers from Kurt's, only to slide them over Kurt's knee, up, up, up until those fingers are tracing the juncture where hip meets thigh. Kurt bites his lips together to suppress a gasp. Blaine's lips are still at his ear and quite suddenly his tongue joins as well, tracing the soft shell before dipping down to flick at his earlobe.

            "B-Blaine," Kurt stutters as quietly as possible.

            "Shh," Blaine breathes in a whisper, the sensation causing Kurt to shiver.

He slides his hand further over, the tips of his fingers barely grazing Kurt's now-very-interested dick in his jeans. Kurt grips the armrest on his other side with probably too much force, but then Blaine slides his zipper down and reaches his hand inside Kurt's jeans, palming him through his underwear.

            "I wanna blow you," Blaine states.

            "Oh god," Kurt groans softly, his head falling back against the seat.

They've never done this before; they've definitely never done something like this in a movie theater of all places, and they haven't yet ventured into the mysterious, alluring world of blowjobs either. So when Blaine slides out of his seat and onto what has to be the most uncomfortable floor ever, Kurt is stunned into silence. Blaine's hands roam the planes of Kurt's thighs, blunt fingernails dragging up and down along the inseam of Kurt's jeans. Kurt trembles and attempts to steel himself, which turns out to be a fruitless effort the moment Blaine undoes the placket of his jeans completely and tugs the hem of his underwear down over his dick. The usually frigid cold of the theater is replaced by heat - heat swirling in his belly, heat from Blaine's hands gripping his thighs, and heat from Blaine's breath as his mouth hovers just above Kurt's erection.

And then Blaine wraps his slick, smooth lips around the tip and Kurt has to look. He glances down in the dark, barely able to make out the shape of Blaine's body on the floor, but Blaine's eyes glisten and glow as he looks up at Kurt through his lashes. Kurt's breath leaves him in a rush. Blaine slides his lips down, tongue pressing hard against the underside, swallowing Kurt up in his undeniably perfect mouth. He begins to bob his head and while there's not much of a rhythm, there is plenty of suction and tongue swirling. Kurt's fingers tangle into Blaine's hair in spite of the gel and, as if on instinct, he thrusts ever so slightly into Blaine's open mouth. Blaine doesn't seem to mind, like maybe he'd been expecting it, and holds his jaw open, allowing Kurt to thrust again.

Jesus fuck, it's glorious here. Blaine's mouth is wonderful and his tongue is eager and the entire thing feels so illicit and dirty and holy shit, this is not going to last long at all.

            "Blaine," Kurt whispers, mouth dry and voice weak. "I - I can't - fuck, you look - oh god."

He thinks he feels Blaine moan around his dick and wow, that's another new sensation amidst a sea of new sensations and fuck. Blaine grips Kurt's hips with renewed strength, effectively stopping him from thrusting, and begins sucking with fervor. He squeezes his lips, sucks hard, and twists his tongue around the head and Kurt's orgasm hits him like a freight train with almost no warning at all.

He comes directly into Blaine's mouth.

Blaine coughs but he doesn't remove his lips, attempting to swallow and breathe at the same time. It takes Kurt a few moments to realize what happened as he rides out the last few waves of pleasure, but when he looks down to whisper an apology, Blaine is staring up at him with watery eyes and a broad, pleased smile on his swollen lips.

And there's a drop of Kurt's come on his chin.

            "You're amazing," he finally breathes.

            "Yeah?" Blaine asks quietly, looking entirely too hopeful for someone on his knees with come on his chin. "It was good?"

            "Better than good," Kurt says, sneaking his hand out to brush that stray drop of come off of Blaine's chin. "That was - god, get up here."

Blaine scrambles back up into his seat, though he drapes his leg over Kurt's until he's practically sitting in his lap and promptly plants a messy kiss to Kurt's lips. Fuck, and Kurt can taste himself there and then he can't stop thinking about Blaine licking Kurt's come off of his fingers that one time in the car.

            "I wanna do you," Kurt says quietly, attempting to push Blaine out of his lap so he can repay the favor.

            "Some other time," Blaine replies.

            "But you're-"

            "I know," Blaine says, "but you can do it later."

            "Why not now?"

            "Because that floor is gross and I know for a fact that you would not want to subject your beautiful jeans to that mess. Also, my parents aren't home."

-

            "I don't know how much time we have to hang out," Blaine says as he slides his key into the lock of the front door of his house. "I've got a bunch of homework I haven't done and I know you told your dad that you'd cook dinner tonight and - what - oh-"

Kurt doesn't allow him the chance to finish whatever he was trying to say because the moment they step into the house, Kurt spins and shoves Blaine against the inside of the door. He pins Blaine against the wood, slamming their mouths together and hopefully driving any other thoughts from Blaine's head.

            "You looked so good earlier," Kurt breathes in between kisses, "on your knees and between my legs."

            "J-Jesus," Blaine stammers, head falling back against the door as Kurt begins nipping at his jaw.

            "I couldn't think about anything else after the movie," Kurt continues, licking his way down Blaine's neck. "Even in the car on the way over here."

            "Kurt, god, you - Kurt."

And Kurt thinks maybe it's that image of Blaine's head between his legs in a movie theater, of Blaine's eyes shining so brightly in the darkened room, maybe that's what drives Kurt toward such lust. Or maybe it's the thought that they've never done these things to anyone else. Or maybe it's the fact that even Rachel, Blaine's pretty, perfect girlfriend hasn't had the opportunity to do what Kurt is about to do. Maybe it's because, despite the pretending and the playacting, Blaine wants this: he wants a boy in front of him, he wants a boy to kiss him, he wants a boy to rut against, and he wants that boy to be Kurt, of all people.

Perhaps, Kurt thinks as he drops to his knees and reaches for Blaine's belt, it's a combination of all of it on top of the fact that they've got Blaine's house to themselves for a little while. There's no one around to hear, no one around to question them.

Just an empty house with two boys, yet filled to the brim with teenage hormones.

            "And your lips," Kurt says, and he realizes he hasn't stopped talking; it's just been a litany of lewd things and descriptions from his imagination. "God, your lips, Blaine Devon Anderson. They were made for sucking dick."

Even Kurt is slightly shocked at his words, more shocked than he had been when Blaine mentioned wanting to lick Kurt's come from his fingers. But Blaine seems to be enjoying the filthy words because he's sweating and moaning without restraint, clawing at Kurt's shoulders until Kurt is finally able to free Blaine's dick and yank his jeans and underwear down to mid-thigh.

            "Please," Blaine pants, staring directly into Kurt's eyes, his own already blown and dark with arousal.

Kurt wastes no more time. He never thought his first time giving head would happen in the entryway of someone else's house, but hey, Blaine's first time was on the sticky floor of a movie theater, so he can't complain too much. Kurt licks his lips and leans in to slide his lips over as much of Blaine's dick as he can without choking. The weight of it settles on his tongue along with the salty taste of skin, and Blaine's scent is so dense here, all clean sweat and boy and Kurt loses himself.

When he was younger, Kurt always knew he liked boys more than girls. He never knew why, not precisely, he had just thought they were nicer to look at and he had thought they smelled better than the overwhelmingly sweet scent of pre-teen perfume in middle school. As he grew up, he learned what gay really meant and, more importantly, what it had meant to him as a person. He liked boys. That had been - and is still - a fact. He likes their broad shoulders and the long, firm lines of their bodies as opposed to the soft curves of a girl. He likes their angular jaws, the muscles in their arms, and the strength in their hands. He likes a small waist with a round ass and he likes their lips and the thought of kissing a boy's lips and he just really, really likes boys.

Back then, though, he never gave much thought to what liking boys would mean for his future sex life. He wasn't necessarily thinking about dicks when he was nine or ten years old. He had just known that there had always been a person with a body like his that had haunted his wet dreams.

Now he just happens to have to have the chance to add another layer to what gay means to him and this is definitely something he really, really likes, too. Jerking Blaine off had been one thing, and touching someone else's dick was pretty damn nice, but it still felt similar to touching his own. This, however, with his tongue swiping along the thick vein on the underside of Blaine's dick, with his lips tight and sucking for all he's worth, this is another reason why he likes boys.

Kurt begins bobbing his head with renewed effort, spurred on by his own thoughts and the sound of Blaine mewling above him. Blaine's legs tremble and Kurt winds his hands around to grip Blaine's bare ass, forcing his dick further into Kurt's mouth. It's a bit too much and he thinks he might choke soon, but he ignores his watering eyes in order to focus on the heavy heat of Blaine in his mouth and the taste of pre-come dripping into tongue.

            "Holy fu - Kurt," Blaine whines loudly into the entryway of his house.

Kurt knows it's happening the moment Blaine seems to lose control of his own hips. His jaw aches fiercely, his neck is sore, and the tile on the floor is doing nothing to ease the pain in his knees but Blaine tastes like everything that Kurt never even knew he wanted. He works one hand back around to give a gentle squeeze of Blaine's balls and that does it. Blaine comes, hot and sticky and bitter into Kurt's mouth. Kurt doesn't stop to actively swallow, he just keeps sucking and sliding his lips over Blaine's dick until Blaine is completely spent. By the time Blaine taps Kurt on the shoulder to remind him of the post-orgasm sensitivity, Kurt has spit and come dripping from his mouth and he feels a little messy, but mostly high on the whole experience.

He sits back on his heels and looks up to see Blaine staring down at him with wide, glazed eyes.

            "You-" Blaine attempts to say before sliding one of his hands from Kurt's shoulder in order to wipe at the mess on his mouth. "I've never come so hard in my life."

With that, he tugs up his jeans and underwear and drops to the ground, crawling forward until he presses Kurt down onto his back. The tile is too cool against his over-heated skin, even through his clothes. Blaine straddles his hips and dips down to lick at Kurt's face before kissing him properly, swiping his tongue into Kurt's mouth and sucking at his swollen lips.

            "God, you're perfect," Blaine says against Kurt's lips. "You're just - in every way, I swear."

            "High praise, indeed, Mr. Popular," Kurt teases.

Blaine pauses suddenly, heaving a sigh and pulling back just a fraction.

            "Don't...say that," he says out of the blue.

Kurt frowns, looking up at Blaine's face to see a crease of anxiety between his eyebrows.

            "What? Don't call you popular?" Kurt asks.

            "I don't like being reminded that there's still something keeping us apart."

            "...Your social status isn't what's keeping us from being real boyfriends."

            "This whole thing wouldn't be such an issue if I wasn't," Blaine argues, leaning back to run a hand through his mussed hair. "If I wasn't popular, we could just be together."

            "That's not the issue," Kurt says, sitting up and bracing himself with his hands on the floor. "You're dating a girl. That's what's keeping us apart."

            "If I wasn't popular, I never would've started dating her. She never would've wanted to be with me. You know that's why she wanted to."

            "Maybe, maybe not. Either way, she got her claws into you and she's not going to let you go without a fight. And you can't sit there and tell me that you'd rather be at the bottom of the barrel with someone like me."

            "Is it so wrong of me to want to be liked by people?" Blaine asks, though his voice is too quiet and he looks perfectly miserable.

            "No," Kurt says firmly. "Which is why it doesn't make sense for you to sit there and tell me not to address your social standing when it's nothing but the truth. You like being popular. You like that other people are nice to you. You like having the popular girlfriend and sitting at the popular kids' table at lunch and going to parties and all of that other stuff."

Blaine remains silent. He looks down to see that his jeans are still undone and goes about zipping and buttoning them while Kurt looks on in confusion.

            "Look, there's nothing wrong with wanting to be well-liked," Kurt says. "I'm not condemning you for that."

            "No?" Blaine asks. "Because it sounds like you are."

            "You're the one that brought this up," Kurt reminds. "I was content to make out for another half hour and maybe have another orgasm before we have to go back to school tomorrow and pretend like we barely know each other."

            "I never said we had to pretend like we didn't know each other," Blaine argues. "I told you that it was too hard to be around you without wanting to show you affection. I don't care if people know that we're friends. I wouldn't have taken you out today if I did. I thought you understood that."

            "I do," Kurt says. "It's just - ugh, I don't even know. I do understand, okay? It's just really confusing to have to sit here and listen to you go on about how you wish you weren't popular, even though you really like it, and then I have to see you at school where we're barely able to acknowledge each other's presence. And you did just fine today at the restaurant during lunch, remember? We were hardly affectionate then, I don't see why it has to be any different at school. It can't be that hard to keep your hands to yourself."

            "It is when I have to put my arm around Rachel's waist and see you down the hall looking like a lost kitten. It's easy when we've had all this time together over break. It's not easy when I'm expected to act a certain way toward her in front of everyone, and then I see you and all I want to do is lose myself in you."

            "So...wait," Kurt says as Blaine crawls off of him to sit on the floor. "I'm just - that's what I am? A way to lose yourself? A way to forget that you're expected to date some girl?"

            "That is not what I said," Blaine affirms. "I'm not - look, it's like this. You're my reality. You're truth. At school it's like I'm just some character everyone expects me to play. It's exhausting because I'm putting so much energy into it. It's even more exhausting when I'm alone with her and I'm expected to act like I'm in love with her. So when I look at you at school, it's like I can see my own damn happiness but I'm not even allowed to touch it."

            "You're allowed to be happy," Kurt says gently.

            "For a few hours a week," Blaine scoffs. "It's so frustrating because I'm scared to mix the two - my reality with you and what I pretend to be with everyone else. The shittiest part is the fact that it's my fault."

            "It's not a fault that you're not ready to tell everyone that you're gay," Kurt says.

            "However you want to phrase it," Blaine says, waving Kurt off and standing. "Look, this wasn't how this was supposed to go. I just wanted us to have a good time."

            "I did have a good time," Kurt says, standing as well.

            "I wanted to give you that second orgasm."

            "This isn't about orgasms. Well, sometimes it's about orgasms. Most of the time, though, it's just about being together. But I don't - I don't want to sit on the sidelines watching you feel so terrible."

            "I don't feel terrible," Blaine says. "Just frustrated. It's worse knowing that we have to go back to school tomorrow. I'd rather spend all night with you, orgasms or no orgasms."

            "I know," Kurt says. "I'd rather do that, too. And I'm sorry it's so exhausting for you, having to pretend and all that. But - tomorrow, I want you to remember this. I want you to remember that I understand and you don't have to feel bad about it, even if I look like I'm ready to set Rachel on fire or something."

            "I'll try," Blaine says, wrapping his arms around Kurt and pulling him in for a hug.

Kurt sighs happily the moment Blaine's arms are around him. He always feels like he's home when he's in Blaine's embrace, like nothing bad in the world can touch him.

            "I don't know what I'd do without you," Blaine whispers into Kurt's ear.

            "You'd probably still be trying to have sex with girls," Kurt says seriously. "I'm glad I was able to rescue you from such horror."

            "I'm trying to be romantic, here."

            "My bad. I'll do my best not to interrupt your next attempt at romance with-"

            "Attempt!" Blaine yelps, indignant and adorable as he pulls away to look Kurt in the eye. "Hey, I can be plenty romantic. I did the thing with the hand over your heart, remember? I told you I was always in there."

            "I remember," Kurt says coyly. "That was weeks ago."

            "You just watch yourself, then," Blaine says. "I can totally do romance. Even secret romance."

            "I'll believe it when I see it, Mr. Popular."

            "You're an ass."

-

When Kurt walks into his house and immediately begins pulling out cookware to make dinner, Finn scrambles up on the counter with a bag of potato chips in his hands.

            "...Did you need something?" Kurt finally asks after too many minutes of silence.

            "Where were you all afternoon?" Finn asks through a mouthful of chips. "I thought you were gonna come help us at Burt's shop."

Kurt shrugs.

            "I had plans."

            "What kind of plans?"

            "The kind that didn't involve me going to the shop today," Kurt says in exasperation. "Why does it matter?"

            "You've just been gone a lot over the break," Finn says.

            "Since when do you care if I'm here or not?" Kurt asks. "You spend most of your time avoiding me."

            "No, I don't."

            "Really? Because it sure seems like that when you pretend not to know me at school," Kurt says, feeling a bout of déjà vu after the almost-argument he had with Blaine less than an hour ago. This is really becoming a tiresome subject.

            "That's at school," Finn argues. "Things are different there. You know that. I'm talking about here at home."

            "And again, I have to ask why you care."

            "I just wonder where you've been going all the time," Finn says. "I mean, your only friend is Mercedes and I overheard her telling you that she wouldn't be back in town until tonight."

            "Why do you assume she's my only friend?" Kurt bites out in annoyance. "There are other people in the world besides the cattle that roam the halls of McKinley."

            "...You've been hanging out with someone from another school?" Finn asks.

            "I didn't say that," Kurt says. "But maybe you should consider that the next time you insult me by reminding me that I'm not as popular as you."

            "I wasn't-"

            "Yes, you were," Kurt sighs. "Just - I don't know. Just go do something else. I don't feel like talking to you right now."

            "I just wanna know what you do every day."

            "It's none of your business!" Kurt shouts, tossing a dish rag onto the floor in frustration. "What I do is none of your business! Who I hang out with is none of your business!"

            "You're acting like I don't want you to have any other friends," Finn says, scrunching his brow in confusion.

            "Well, isn't that the point?" Kurt snaps. "You want to keep me in my place, don't you? You want to make sure I stay in the basement with the losers while you're up in some high rise penthouse with your pretty blonde girlfriend and-"

            "Dude, that's so not what I was-"

            "I honestly don't care what you were or weren't. Just go away and let me cook. Unless you think that bag of chips is going to be enough for your dinner."

Finn's eyes widen and he looks into what must be an almost empty bag of potato chips. When his eyes meet Kurt's once more, he looks pretty terrified at the threat and hops off the counter.

            "I was just - I was wondering if you wanted to talk," Finn says. "About...stuff."

            "I don't have anything to talk about," Kurt states. "You can go now."

Kurt decides to ignore Finn's presence and continue gathering ingredients for their dinner, until finally his brother heaves a deep, put-upon sigh and leaves the kitchen. Kurt releases a breath he hadn't know he'd been holding.

That was just plain weird.

-

Kurt drops into his usual chair the next day during Glee and waits for the room to fill with his teammates. Mercedes takes the chair next to him, though she's quiet today after all of the travelling she apparently did yesterday. Finn lumbers in behind her with Quinn at his side, as per usual, and for about the billionth time that day, he shoots Kurt some strange look, as if he expects Kurt to know what it's supposed to mean.

But he doesn't.

So what's the point?

Kurt looks past him just in time to see Blaine stride into the choir room. Rachel has her arm hooked around his.

His smile is so far from genuine that it's actually painful for Kurt to look at him. He sits next to Kurt because that's his usual seat now, but he only has the opportunity to spare Kurt a single glance before Rachel is nattering about their upcoming regionals competition.

            "Alright guys," Mr. Schue announces when everyone is finally in the room, "I hope you all had a good break, but it's time to get back to work. This week we're-"

            "Mr. Schue?" Blaine interrupts with a raised hand.

            "Uh, yes, Blaine?" their teacher asks, just as confused as the rest of them.

Blaine never interrupts Mr. Schuester. That's Rachel's job.

            "I actually - I have a song I'd like to sing."

            "...Now?"

            "If that's okay," Blaine says.

            "Sure," Mr. Schue says, taking a seat in a chair by the piano.

Blaine smiles graciously, tugging his arm out of Rachel's grip in order to stand at the front of the room. His gaze is serene as he looks out at the small sea of faces staring back at him.

            "I know we're about to get ready for regionals," he begins, "so I wanted to do this before we got too busy. This is for someone - someone really special to me."

He looks in Rachel's direction, but Kurt can see how his eyes cut over a bit, just for a second, and he catches Kurt's attention. Kurt sits up a little straighter in his seat. What on earth is going on?

            "I was doing homework last night and I came across this song," Blaine continues. "It might not sound like much, but I hope the message is clear. I felt like...being romantic today."

The majority of the girls in the room coo over Blaine's gesture, and Quinn even reaches over to give Rachel a small nudge. Mercedes rolls her eyes at his side.

One of the band guys begins playing a guitar in the corner. Kurt just stares at Blaine, doing his best to blink as little as possible because he doesn't want to miss a moment of this.

This song is not for Rachel Berry.

It's for him.

Sometimes what you don't say

Makes all the difference

Sometimes you find your own way

Without interference

It's not all darkness

It's not all light

You don't have to fix this

Sit with me tonight

The sound of our breathing

And the TV light

I don't want to fight it

Just sit with me tonight

Kurt can feel the tears bubbling up in his eyes and he's thankful that no one is paying any attention to him. Blaine's voice is sweet and smooth and he looks down at his feet and oh, when he looks back up again, he looks right at Kurt and there's just so much behind it that Kurt thinks he's going to melt right here in this chair.

We pray for acceptance
We pray for deliverance
We pray for understanding
Like it makes all the difference

It's not all the way left
It's not all right
You don't have to fix this
Sit with me tonight

Sound of our breathing 
And the TV light
I don't want to fight it
Just sit with me tonight

Oh, oh, oh, oh sit with me tonight
oh, oh, oh, oh tonight, tonight

When he finishes, everyone applauds, though some applaud a bit slower than others. Kurt wipes at his eyes hastily, hoping to rid his face of any evidence of emotion. When Blaine approaches once again to re-take his seat at Kurt's side, he brushes Kurt's arm with his elbow before sitting down and facing Rachel, who tilts her head as if in question.

            "Well, I didn't think there was anything to fix," she says in reference to the lyrics, "but it was very pretty."

            "Yeah, I thought so," Blaine says, blushing fiercely.

            "Aw, don't be shy," Rachel says, leaning over to plant a kiss on his cheek. "It was sweet. Next time, though, a better-known ballad might fulfill the intent to a more specific degree."

Blaine nods, saying nothing in response, and Kurt wishes he could slap that stupid smile off of Rachel's face. When someone has the courage to stand in front of a crowd and sing anything, the sentiment alone should mean something. Rachel isn't a bad person, but Kurt doesn't understand how she can be so ungrateful when things like this happen.

He forces back his temper.

This isn't about Rachel Berry.

That song was for him. Blaine sang it for him and it was lovely and perfect and so sweet and he wishes he could lean over and thank Blaine with a kiss but he can't and it's not fair. Because Blaine is romantic. He is wonderful at romance and everything that comes with it. Things could be absolutely wonderful for them if they just had the chance, if Rachel wasn't in the picture, if Blaine would just come out of the -

No. No, Kurt won't let himself think like that. Blaine has every right to take his time with this. No one should be forced to come out. And he does understand Blaine's reluctance, he does.

It's just...getting harder.

-

When rehearsal comes to an end an hour or so later and they all file out of the building, Blaine steps in line behind Kurt.

He feels Blaine's palm against the small of his back, just for a brief second, and then he listens to the sound of his own heartbeat.

I'm here, I'm here, I'm here.