After Blaine manages to pull himself together, wiping his hands on his jeans three times to dry his sweaty palms, he heads into the loft they're using for the photo shoot and sets out to find Ben. He needs to give him Yvonne's notes for the day and try to get organized for the shoot.

Blaine finds the stylist crouched down on the ground in front of one of the models, who has his back to Blaine. Ben is hemming the pair of grey trousers the model is wearing, and as he pulls and tugs at the crisp fabric, Blaine's eyes are drawn up the model's long leg to the curve of a perfectly formed backside. It's the kind of ass worthy of passionate worship, given time and the right circumstances. Embarrassed by his momentary indulgence, Blaine clears his throat quietly, as if that might clear his head of his more nefarious thoughts.

Ben looks up at the sound and waves when he sees Blaine.

The model turns his head to follow Ben's gaze. And, of course … it's Kurt. Blaine's intake of breath is so sharp that he has to cough to cover the sound. Because Kurt Hummel is even more beautiful in person.

Blaine stares open-mouthed for a minute.

Kurt purses his lips and raises both his eyebrows when he sees Blaine standing in the doorway, obviously confused by his presence, or perhaps annoyed at the blatant ogling that Blaine is indulging in. He looks down to Ben, giving him the same questioning look.

"This is Blaine, our art director for the day," Ben mumbles around the pins between his lips.

Blaine steps forward and smiles. "Yvonne's got the flu," he says, unable to think of anything else to say.

"I know," Ben replies. "She fill you in on the concept?"

Blaine nods. He walks around behind Ben and takes in the full outfit: skinny-legged grey trousers and a jacket that looks to be a cross between a leather bomber and a straightjacket. It looks amazing on Kurt.

"Hi," Blaine says, extending his hand to Kurt.

Kurt looks down at it like it might burn him and slowly drags his eyes back up to Blaine's face.

"Charmed," he says with a lifted eyebrow. He leans forward to look in the mirror, attempting to fix his already flawless hair. It's swooped up in a '50s-esque pompadour, that should look ridiculous. But Blaine thinks it looks perfect, and he almost says so before he realizes he's still holding his hand out and Kurt has completely left him hanging.

Blaine slowly withdraws his hand and shoves it unceremoniously in his pocket. "Likewise," he mumbles under his breath.

Yvonne wasn't kidding. This kid's an ice queen. It's kind of annoying to be honest. It's also kind of hot.

"Zach here yet?" Blaine asks.

"I think he's setting up some lights over by the east-facing windows." Ben jerks his head over his shoulder and Blaine heads off in that direction.

"What did I do to get saddled with the newbie?" Kurt says just loud enough to be sure Blaine hears it.

"Play nice," Ben replies, not bothering to conceal his chuckle.

Blaine tries to settle his nerves as he helps Zach finish getting set up. But between his apprehension at directing his first shoot and the ire he'd drawn from Kurt, his nerves are positively frazzled.

By the time they call Kurt in for a few test shots, Blaine's heart is racing and he's certain his hands are shaking. But he's afraid to look. He closes his eyes and takes a few calming breaths before Kurt appears on set. When he opens them, he feels, not calm necessarily, but at least he's somewhat composed.

"Ben, I think one of the pins came undone in the back," Kurt says as he enters Blaine's periphery.

And just like that, Blaine's heart starts beating out a rapid tempo again. He tries to discreetly wipe his hands on his jeans, but if the scornful look he gets from Kurt is any indication, he was unsuccessful in hiding it.

Ben hurries to fix the back of Kurt's jacket, a mess of clothespins and binder clips keeping it snug to his body, while Kurt stands perfectly still. Blaine is again reminded of a Greek statue. He's just so beautiful standing there in the warm, filtered sunlight, being poked and prodded as he waits patiently to be photographed.

Once Ben is finished, he nods to Zach, who says he's sure he's got the lighting right now. And Zach starts shooting rapid fire. Kurt moves around so smoothly it's like he's rehearsing an elaborate ballet. He's all long limbs and strong lines. It makes Blaine's breath speed up, as he's overtaken by his own nerves. He hasn't the slightest idea what he's doing. And Kurt … Kurt is perfect.

He considers offering up a comment or two when the angle doesn't seem quite right. He wants to say something about how Kurt's face would look better lit from the left side, but he's not sure if that's what Yvonne normally does. He's been on photo shoots before, but only for home goods catalogs. The "models" don't really move that much. It's set up a shot, take a few frames, move on. This is an entirely different animal. And Kurt is there, looking all gorgeous and judgmental. And Blaine can't feel his feet.

"Blaine, I'm going to start losing the natural light soon. Is any of this working?" Zach asks, dropping his camera to his side and glancing over his shoulder at Blaine.

"You'd think an art director would offer his opinion," Kurt sniffs, lifting his head just a little higher.

Kurt's venom pulls Blaine out of his daze. He clears his throat and gives Kurt a pointed look, suddenly spurred to action.

"Yes that's good, Zach, but we need him to seem taller," Blaine calls out. "Can we try it maybe from this angle?" He crouches down a little and mimes holding a camera. "Might make his legs look longer. And see if you can get more light on his left side."

Kurt's face falls a little before he schools it into a stony expression. "My legs are fine," he says. "Not that you'd know the difference, Gidget."

"Maybe it's the pose, then," Blaine replies, standing up. "Could you try something less…bitchy, perhaps?"

"Excuse me?" Kurt says, no longer resembling a high-end model, but instead a belligerent teenager with the way he's looking down his nose at Blaine. "If you'd just direct this shoot instead of worrying about my mood, we'd all be better off. If you want poses that make my legs look longer, all you had to do was fucking say so."

"Gentlemen!" Zach shouts. "Let's focus, please. We only have this location for one day."

"Fine," Kurt huffs. His face relaxes and he falls effortlessly into a new pose. All signs of petulant child are instantly gone, the professional façade once again drawn over Kurt's features.

"Fine," Blaine echoes.

If Blaine didn't hate to lose an argument, he might compliment Kurt on the choice. Because it does make Kurt's legs look longer, and, if it's possible, his face more striking. Combined with the angle Zach's shooting from, it just might work.

The rest of the shoot goes more smoothly and Blaine starts to find his footing, suggesting poses for Kurt and helping Zach to move his lights while Ben gets Kurt ready in the second outfit. Two other models show up after lunch – David and Mike – and Blaine has better luck befriending them.

They chat about their hobbies – David, a muscular black man with a friendly smile, likes to play rugby, having lived in the UK until he was seven; Mike, who is quiet and definitely of Asian heritage, used to be a professional dancer, but gave it up when he found out modeling paid better. He still tries out for chorus roles on occasion to keep his feet wet.

Kurt, however, still tall and mysterious as ever, sulks in a corner in between shots, eyes glued to his phone while he sips a Perrier. Blaine shoots him sidelong glances periodically, wondering why he's so distant. Kurt looks pretty lonely compared to everyone else. The crew, the models, Blaine. They all chat animatedly, laugh at each other's jokes and in general, seem to get along. But Kurt hardly interacts with anyone. It makes Blaine's heart ache in an odd way. Why should he care?

He shrugs it off more than once that day.

By the time they wrap at the end of the day, Blaine is feeling like an ass for blowing up at Kurt. Even if Kurt had been short with him, it was no excuse to bite back so harshly. It was unprofessional and really not like Blaine at all.

He finds Kurt near the back of the loft, packing up a leather satchel and looking even more stunning in his street clothes. David and Mike seem to be making plans for the weekend, but either Kurt is ignoring them, or they're ignoring him. David smiles at Blaine and winks. Blaine returns his smile and clears his throat out of nerves.

Kurt must hear him because he looks up. His expression is warm and inviting until he sees who it is. When he makes eye contact with Blaine, he sighs and rolls his eyes before returning to his task. Blaine wonders who he saves those friendly looks for and finds himself really wishing it was him.

"Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot…"

"Did we?" Kurt replies. "I think you pretty much put your foot in it." He doesn't look up from his bag and continues to pack up his belongings. When he finishes, he shrugs it over his shoulder and winds a lightweight scarf around his neck. "We done here?" he asks.

"Uh….yes?"

"Is that a question, or can I go?"

"Um, you can…you can go," Blaine says, eyes wide in shock.

"Wonderful." He gives Blaine a tight-lipped smile heads for the door. "See you on Thursday, Ben," he calls out over his shoulder. And then he's gone.

Blaine is left feeling raw and jittery and something else he can't quite put his finger on.

"Zach sent us the proofs from yesterday's shoot. Yvonne's still out, so I'm going to need you to edit them down before the end of the day."

Blaine swallows the bite of turkey sandwich he had been chewing and coughs a little as the still too big pieces catch in his throat.

"Is that a problem, Blaine?" Lorelei asks. "I could always ask Marcus to do it and you could finish up that Crème de la Cuppe logo."

Blaine shakes his head. "No, Lorelei. I'm on it. Really."

She smiles victoriously. "That's what I thought."

Blaine turns to finish his lunch, just as she points her pen at him and adds, "Oh, and I need them before my four o'clock meeting with Jan West."

Blaine hurries to finish his sandwich and heads back to his desk. He opens up the files with the previous day's date and his desktop fills with thumbnails from the loft shoot. About two-thirds of them are Kurt. Blaine didn't realize how much time they'd spent shooting with him. He remembers Zach really getting into a couple poses and Ben restyling one of the suits at least twice. But how had he managed to dominate the shoot with two other models there for half the day?

He throws out a couple where Kurt's eyes are closed or where his hands are covering the belt and focuses on the rest of the shots.

It's obvious in his posture that Kurt really feels above everything when he's modeling. And he is. But he's also a bit of a puzzle because there are some images where he just looks different. The first five from the second restyle of the suit look altogether different from the rest – softer, emotional almost.

Blaine tries to remember what was going on when they took those shots. He had been talking to Zach about moving the chair in the background of the shot. And Ben had been holding up different ties to the suit while he chatted with Kurt. Something about his family.

"How's your dad doing?" he asked.

"Better," Kurt said. "Still gets tired easily."

"A chink in your armor Mr. Hummel," Blaine says to himself, filing that away for later. Something to talk about maybe when – if – he gets another chance.

In the next shot, Kurt is looking to his right. Just a quick glance, and it's only captured in one frame. What is he looking at? Blaine wracks his brain. He had been goofing off a bit, singing, dancing around, joking with Mike and David. Had Kurt seen them?

Something in his eyes for those few frames convinces him that there's more to Kurt than snark and disdain. Why is this gorgeous man so angry? Who or what has hurt him so deeply that he has no choice but to attack the world before it can attack him? Why is he so detached from everyone and everything?

Suddenly, Blaine is hit with an overwhelming urge to know Kurt. To truly understand him, know what makes him tick. Take him under his wing and teach him to laugh again. He looks like he hasn't laughed in ages.

"He looks taller."

Blaine starts when he sees Lorelei appear over his shoulder. She leans in toward his screen.

"Yeah," Blaine replies. "I uh…had Zach try some new angles, and I told Kurt to try to elongate his legs as much as possible."

"Kurt?"

"The model." Blaine points to the screen. "His name is Kurt." His face feels suddenly warm.

"I see," Lorelei says, tilting her head to look at Blaine. She raises an eyebrow and then glances back at the screen. "Jan likes them to have long legs. Good thinking. I mean, this kid's got some nice stems, but he looks eight feet tall here. She's going to love it."

She lays a hand on his shoulder and pats it. Blaine's shoulders relax as he turns back to his screen. Kurt really does look taller. The shots are good.

Blaine smiles. "Thanks."

"Nice work, Blaine. Maybe we should have you art direct more often."

She nods once and heads back to her office.

Blaine gets back to editing the photos and wonders if Kurt's legs are as strong as they look. Is he a runner? Does he do yoga? Maybe both.

The more shots of Kurt Blaine edits, the more he's intrigued by him. Kurt's an undeniable enigma, and Blaine really wants to break through his hardened exterior. If he ever sees him again, that is.

Yvonne returns to work on Monday, still slightly sniffly, but mostly back to her normal self.

"Looks like you made an impression," Yvonne says, blowing over the top of her coffee mug.

"On…?"

"Lorelei," she says with a smirk. "I just came from her office and she wants me to take you with me on the One West shoot next week."

"She what?"

Blaine turns in his chair to face Yvonne, eyes wide.

"Yep, and I saw those shots, Blaine. You fucking killed it. That Kurt kid looks even better than on the first shoot. Legs for days." She bites into her bagel and grins as she throws a sideways glance at Blaine. "Not to mention, he looked hot in that suit."

"Stop."

"What?" she says blinking her eyes in fake innocence as she licks cream cheese from her bottom lip. "You don't think he looked hot?"

"That's beside the point," Blaine replies. He turns back to his desk. "And anyway, you were right. He's a bitch."

"He definitely has an attitude. Did he do the eyebrow thing?"

"God…yes." He spins around in his chair.

"And it makes you want to slap him and kiss him at the same time didn't it?"

"Kind of," Blaine says. "What is that?"

"Models," Yvonne says, taking another sip of her coffee. "They're all the same. Hot as hell….and they know it."

"I don't think Kurt's like that," Blaine says.

"Oh?"

"Yeah." Blaine twirls a pen on his desk. "There's something — I don't know … different about him."

"Oooh, does wittle Blainey have a crush?"

"Shut up," he says. "I don't know why I talk to you."

"Because we share an office," Yvonne says. "And I'm your boss. You don't have a choice."

She puts down her bagel and gives Blaine a serious look. "This guy really got to you, huh?"

"No," Blaine says.

"Uh-huh…sure."

"He didn't," Blaine insists. "It's just … Okay. Have you ever just had a feeling about someone? Like you just need to know more."

"Wow…you've got it bad, Romeo."

"It's not like that," Blaine says, turning back to his screen. "I just feel like he needs a friend maybe. He looks lonely." Blaine tilts his head to one side.

"Then why is he working so hard to keep everyone at arm's length?"

Blaine bites his lip. "Good question," he says.