Kurt woke up to a soothing twirl of fingers on his neck and shoulder, the gentlest of touches and a pair of lips soon started to cover the places fingers had travelled first. He sighed.

"Good morning beautiful," Blaine murmured against his skin as he felt Kurt stir.

"Good morning," Kurt sighed again, "This is the best way to wake up."

"Lying next to you proved to be too much temptation," Blaine said, the murmur of his voice causing vibrations along Kurt's skin. They were hidden under most of the covers but the tops of both their heads could be seen. The temptation to touch more, to go further hung around them like a haze and Blaine could feel himself harden. He begrudgingly took his lips from their desired position by Kurt's ear and let out a groan of frustration.

"How long do we have left in the house?" Blaine moaned. Kurt was still close enough so that when he chuckled Blaine could feel it against his chest.

"We're only half way through," Kurt said laughing. Looking at Kurt's flushed cheeks against the pillow, his skin warm and lined from the sheets, he looked so beautiful, Blaine's breath almost hitched. Kurt's eyes shone blue and clear and he smiled at the warm honey that was staring back at him. Blaine leaned in to kiss along his cheek and eventually captured his lips until he could take no more and he sat up abruptly.

"Blaine?"

"You're too beautiful," Blaine said sighing, "If I stay in bed any longer I don't think I'll be able to control myself." He could feel his fingers tingle with desire, he wanted to touch so much but he fisted them instead and placed them securely on his own knees.

"Why don't we go make breakfast?" Kurt asked sweetly, stroking along Blaine's back as he sat on the side of the bed. Blaine's eyes fluttered closed.

"Ok, but first I need to go to the bathroom." Kurt chuckled a little as Blaine practically hopped to the toilet. He waited for his own arousal to lessen before he padded to the kitchen.

He was a little surprised to see Bradley already up and nursing what appeared to be his second cup of coffee.

"You're up early," Kurt said, coming to the kitchen to pour his own drink.

"I have morning issues," Bradley said shamefully, his head down though Kurt could see the blush on his cheeks. "Faye doesn't even know what she does in the middle of the night."

No more needed to be said but Kurt smiled in understanding and nodded.

"We have the same issue," Kurt whispered, laughing with his back turned.

"You do?" Bradley said surprised. He'd never had any gay friends and had never thought too much about it all but it was nice to hear someone else had the same problem in the house and he wasn't a perve.

"Of course," Kurt said laughing at Bradley's expression. "We're two guys which makes it even worse."

They sat sipping coffee for a while, eating croissants and enjoying the silence until Kurt spoke.

"You and Faye have been getting on really well."

"Yeah she's awesome," Bradley said, his eyes instantly up to look at Kurt, his smile infectious. "I didn't think I'd make friends with a Christian let alone date one but here I am." He shrugged his shoulders as if to say he was done for but didn't mind. It would be a glorious way to die.

"It's strange dating in the house though isn't it?" Kurt asked, even the term 'dating' couldn't possibly describe their situation in the house. Never alone, always with the cameras on or housemates watching, Kurt had started to feel like it was all a show, nothing real.

"Yeah, we try to keep at least an inch apart at all times," Bradley said nodding his head in seriousness. "It helps that she's great to talk to. I mean she's already my best friend, I could talk to her for hours."

"I know, I've seen," Kurt said laughing.

"But she really listens too," Bradley said, excited that he could share Faye's awesome qualities with someone else. "We've spoken about everything and she already knows me so well. I know I'm not gonna have this much time on the outside to really talk to her, really listen. Dates are great and everything but they're too short. At least in here I can really talk to her and I can't help but love everything that comes out of her mouth."

Wow, Kurt thought, Bradley had it bad. He had to smile.

Blaine walked in then, his cheeks flush but now fully dressed, he looked like he had finally conquered something and was dapper Blaine again. Controlled, charming and sweet. He came up to Kurt in the kitchen and kissed him on the cheek. Kurt smiled but his eyes soon wandered to Bradley who was smirking slightly. He knew.

"Anyone fancy pancakes?" Kurt asked, his voice shaky.

"Yeah that'll be great," Bradley said still amused by the awkward situation. Blaine seemed completely oblivious and nodded in agreement. Pancakes would be awesome.

Later on that day they were asked to assemble on the sofas to hear what their new task would be. The black screen blinked awake so only the eye appeared.

"Good afternoon housemates," the voice said, "Today's task will require patience and as a reward, if you win the task, you will be allowed to budget and plan for a party for tomorrow night."

The housemates looked around and murmured their appreciation. Eyes on the screen again they listened to what was being asked of them.

"In pairs one of you will be tied in a strait jacket for 24 hours, your partner will have to do everything for you and help you with tasks that you might need assistance with." It seemed the voice was secretly laughing at the imagined situations. Kurt could only hope they could choose their partners.

"Please decide your partner now and Kurt may you get the jackets from the diary room."

Kurt looked quickly to Blaine, who nodded vehemently, as he collected the jackets. They definitely had to be partners. Faye paired with Bradley just as quickly and Nicola decided El would be her best choice as Anisa chose Heidi. Kurt returned with the jackets and as each pairing looked over the restricting item of clothing, it only just dawned on them how awful it would be to be so dependent on another person. No one wanted to wear it.

"I'll wear it Kurt," Blaine said confidently, "I know you'd hate it and I don't mind as long as you look after me." He winked and Kurt suddenly changed his mind.

"No I'll wear it," he said, "I think I need the challenge." Blaine was a little surprised but he nodded.

"There is no way I'm wearing that," El exclaimed shoving it at Nicola and she was so vehement that Nicola sighed.

"Ok fine," she said, looking over the offending item. Kurt looked curiously at El though and wondered what had made her so against it. Faye offered to wear the jacket and Heidi said she didn't mind. They were instructed by the television screen to start the process of tying the jacket on to the person wearing it and Blaine helped Kurt, kissing him sweetly on the cheek when he was finished.

"Are you sure you don't want me to wear it?" Blaine asked. Kurt shook his head.

"No I'm fine."

Talking on the sofa area proved to be acceptable though Kurt suddenly found the only thing he could thing of, as Blaine spoke to the room, was touching. Touching his hands, stroking his cheek, squeezing his waist. Not being able to use his hands made him itch to touch and he had never wanted something so much. Blaine seemed oblivious as he spoke, laughing at things Nicola was saying and Kurt found himself feeling like a child in need of attention. As Heidi was talking Kurt leant over to whisper in Blaine's ear.

"I really need the toilet," he hissed and Blaine's eyes widened. He hadn't thought of this situation. Blaine nodded.

"Back in a minute guys," Blaine said, ever the gentleman.

They made their way to the bathroom and looked at the cubicles, the only private area in the house. There were cameras in the bathroom area, mainly over the sinks and bath but Kurt knew their microphones would still be on so nothing could happen. He wiggled his fingers inside his jacket anyway.

Blaine closed the cubicle door behind them and looked down at Kurt's pants.

"How are we going to do this?" he whispered.

"You'll have to unzip me," Kurt said blushing that Blaine would be able to hear him go to the toilet. Romance was dead.

Blaine did as he was instructed, wrapping his arms around Kurt from behind, Kurt's back pressed against Blaine's chest. He unzipped him and gently took his cock out so Kurt could pee. Kurt was glad Blaine couldn't really see his face, he was mortified but Blaine's cheek was pressed against Kurt's and he could feel its warmth.

"Don't be embarrassed," Blaine said and after a while he could hear Kurt start to pee. Blaine dried him off and tucked him back in, zipping Kurt back up carefully. "We'll be doing this when we're old and grey I'm sure." Blaine chuckled.

Kurt turned slowly after flushing and looked at Blaine carefully.

"You think about that?" Kurt asked quietly, "You think about our future?"

"Of course," Blaine said, "I think about how we'll own a place in New York, have a dog for me and a cat for you, adopt two children and live out our dreams."

"What else do you think of?" Kurt whispered, his eyes shining at the pictures in his head.

"I think about how you'll make pancakes every morning with a pot of coffee while I'll make dinner and stroke your feet and we have to have a real fire so we can curl up beside it and..." He wasn't allowed to finish. Kurt captured his lips and Blaine sank into the kiss, a smile hovering over his lips.

"I so want to touch you at the moment," Kurt said moaning, wiggling his arms inside his jacket, his hands itching to escape. Blaine smiled.

"We have all the time in the world to touch," Blaine said, "But just because you can't touch me, doesn't mean I can't touch you." He winked and unlocked the cubicle door, holding onto Kurt's waist to lead him back to the sofa areas. Conversation continued but this time Blaine opened his arms wide so Kurt could wriggle in and his back was stroked and Kurt could feel the press of Blaine's lips on his hair.

Faye and Bradley made dinner a little later, Bradley wrapping his arms around her waist so he could be her hands. They laughed and Bradley pressed little kisses on her neck every so often.

"Urgh," Nicola moaned from her place on the sofa. Wrapped in her jacket she had never looked so frustrated. El laughed.

"Jealous?"

"No I just miss Amber," she said quietly. El nodded in understanding. She stretched because she could and Nicola looked over her arms in envy that she could move so easily. Her eyes alighted on white lines underneath her upper arms.

"What are those?" Nicola asked, her eyes full of concern but El acted like she'd been electrically shocked, her back suddenly rigid and her eyes full of panic.

"Nothing."

"That's not nothing," Nicola said. She eyed Faye and Bradley who were still in the kitchen, Anisa and Heidi lying on beach towels in the garden and Kurt and Blaine tucked together on the sofa on the opposite side, completely oblivious to their conversation. Nicola moved closer to El anyway. El hugged her arms to herself, looking crossly at her then walked to the bedroom. Kurt looked up from where his head was resting on Blaine's shoulder.

"Is she ok?" he asked.

Nicola shrugged and followed her to the bedroom.

"Don't you get a hint?" El said exasperated when she spotted Nicola had followed her, "Or do you need to use the toilet? Otherwise I know I need to help you but they didn't say I have to spend 24 hours with you."

Nicola said nothing, just sat crossed legged on the bed next to El's bed. She waited.

'What?" El said after a while, no hiding the annoyance in her voice. "Why are you here if you're not going to speak?"

"You'll tell me when you want to," Nicola said simply. El just huffed in annoyance. She looked at her after a while to work out if she could trust her. She decided she could and started to speak.

"I cut myself years ago, ok?" she said, "Nothing to worry about."

Nicola nodded, knowing there was more.

"And you don't now?" Nicola asked.

"Of course not, they're not fresh."

Nicola nodded again.

"Gosh you're infuriating," El said getting up but not leaving the room. "What do you want to know?"

"Why did you do it?"

El sat back down and sighed.

"I don't want to say on television although I doubt he'd be watching," she laughed without humour. A man then, Nicola thought, it was always a man.

"What did he do?"

"Something dreadful as I grew up," El said, leaving the idea hanging in Nicola's mind, nothing concrete but she could guess and the thought made her feel sick.

"Where is he now?" she said angrily.

"In jail," El said simply, no emotion in her voice. Nicola let the silence hang for a while.

Nicola understood the need to bite back a little control, to claw it back so there was at least something they couldn't take away from you. She sat on El's bed, coming closer so El could see more clearly. She couldn't reveal her own thin scar on one of her wrists, her arms struggling in the jacket but she told her nonetheless. El looked up in shock.

"But you're so fierce," she said in awe that even Nicola would struggle.

"Of course I am," Nicola said with a smile and a glint in her eye, "That doesn't mean I don't need something else."

"Why did you do it?"

"It was getting too much at home, my mum bordering on alcoholism, letting any old man touch her, anything to dull the pain of losing Dad. I couldn't bear to watch her stoop so low. She made me hate her and it was good to know that this is something I could have, something that I could do to make it all go away. I didn't have to think, I didn't have to miss Dad, I could just feel. I only did it once," she said. Her arms settled within her jacket.

"Why just once?" El said, knowing she hadn't been that brave. She had carried on too many times.

"Because," Nicola said, her eyes kind and knowing, "I knew if I carried on I wouldn't want to stop and I couldn't let them win. I knew I was worth way more than that, so I looked in the mirror, decided who I was to be and I was it."

El nodded her head in admiration. She had stopped years ago, had needed counselling but she had done it. She never referred to it, never let anyone that close and now glancing at the camera she knew she had revealed all to someone she didn't really think she would like, as well as the whole country. She took a deep breath.

"I guess having scars makes you human," she said to Nicola, who looked up and smiled.

"I think it does," Nicola said.