Chapter 4

Kurt's heart is racing as he practically sprints out of the private lounge. He ignores Vince's concerned look as he makes a beeline for the dressing room. His whole body is shaking and his skin is hot and flushed.

Shit! Fuck! What was I thinking?

Kurt starts throwing things into his bag and cursing himself under his breath. His mind is reeling.

Why did I kiss him? Why? Stupid stupid stupid Kurt. Never kiss on the mouth, Viv. It's too personal.

But god he smelled so good, and those eyes. Who has eyes like that? Seriously. And his body. How can anyone that small be that muscular? It's so unfair.

Kurt feels a sudden resurgence of arousal when he thinks of how Blaine's thighs flexed beneath him. He closes his eyes and can almost feel a hot breath at the nape of his neck.

"Fuck!" he says loudly as he pricks his finger on a rogue safety pin. He's sucking on his index finger when Vince comes into the dressing room.

"Kurt, that Blaine kid looks terrified. What happened in there? Do I need to kick him out?"

"No, Vince," Kurt shakes his head. "It's fine." He looks at his finger and the bleeding has stopped. His notices that his hands have finally stopped shaking and he's started to calm down a bit. "It was … uh, just his first lap dance. That's all. I think we both got a little freaked."

"You sure?" Vince asks, not buying Kurt's story for a second.

"Yeah. Really. It's cool. He was harmless just like you said."

Yeah, harmless like an electrical storm, Kurt thinks. Gorgeous to look at and exciting and terrifying all at the same time. Has the potential to do lots of damage. Yep, just like lightning.

"You OK, Kurt? You look a little shook up. Everything alright?" Vince asks.

Kurt looks up at Vince and forces a smile. "Fine. I'm fine," he says, a little too quickly.

"As long as you're sure," Vince says. "I'll be out front if you need me."

When Vince walks away, Kurt sits down on the chair closest to him and pulls out his phone to text Rachel when it hits him. He's seen Blaine before.

Shit!

He can't believe it's taken him this long to put it together. He should have realized it when Blaine mentioned Dalton. I mean, fuck, it's how Kurt picked his stage name in the first place. He thought it kind of ironic to give his gay exotic dancer persona the name of an all-boys private school, especially since its glee club was chock full of crush-worthy guys. And Kurt had that barely-legal school boy thing going on. It was perfect. That is until the Warblers' lead singer walked into Shades, and Kurt gave him a private lap dance.

"Shit!" Kurt said to the empty dressing room. Now he really needed to talk to Rachel. His fingers kept hitting the wrong letters as he tried to type a frantic message to the one person who would understand the intensity of his freak out.

Kurt
U just gave a slop dance to a Warblrr!

Rachel
?

Kurt
Stupid autocorrect! I said… I just gave a lap dance to a Warbler!

Rachel
You did what? To a what?

Kurt
Me + lap dance + lead singer of rival glee club = eternal humiliation

Rachel
Kurt, wait….the really cute one who sang Raise Your Glass at regionals?
:D :D :D OMG!

Kurt
Rachel, this is serious. I'm freaking out right now.

Rachel
But he's sooooo cute! OMG…wait…you did a private? Way to bury the lead!

Kurt
OMG Rachel, focus! It's bigger than that. I'm losing it right now.
Can I come over?

Rachel
Of course.

Rachel
Now I'm freaking out Kurt! Hurry up!

Kurt sets his phone down and finishes packing his stuff up. He's ready to get out of Shades for the night. He's still supposed to do another dance later on, but Mike will gladly take the extra tips and Kurt has definitely earned enough money for the night.

He goes to find the owner, Nate. And the sooner the better, so he can get over to Rachel's and finish dying from embarrassment in private.

Blaine finally pulls himself together enough to face Cooper and stands up. His still shaky legs don't fail him, thankfully, and he heads back out into the noisy club.

He's still not sure what happened in that room, but he wouldn't mind going through it all again. Kurt is absolutely and without a doubt the most beautiful person Blaine has ever seen – and probably the most flexible too, not that Blaine noticed….definitely not. The problem is, he looks so familiar, too.

Blaine can't place it and it's driving him nuts. Surely he would remember seeing someone like that before. Anyone that graceful and stunningly gorgeous, thathe would have remembered.

He remembers how Kurt's blue eyes sparkled in those brief seconds after he kissed him. Kurt kissed him! He still couldn't quite believe it. Of course, he also gave him a lap dance … but the kiss was far more memorable in Blaine's mind. Granted that lap dance was incredibly hot, as evidenced by the erection that Blaine had to wait out in the private lounge.

It took a while because Blaine kept remembering how good Kurt smelled, or how it tickled when Kurt's hair had grazed his chin or how phenomenal his ass looked in his skin-tight jeans or how perfect his smooth chest was under his crisp white shirt, or the curve of his impossibly long neck when he dropped his head back. He couldn't even let himself think about the feeling of Kurt writhing in his lap, or he'd never have gotten out of that room.

But that kiss. It was so simple and so perfect. And it threw Blaine's world into a tailspin. Kurt's lips on his had felt positively electric and he swears he can still feel a slight tingle where they touched. And now all he can think about is being alone with Kurt again.

He's never been absolutely and completely knocked sideways by a kiss before, so he wonders if he hasn't totally lost his mind. He shakes his head trying to clear it some before he faces the one person who can read his facial expressions like a book.

Cooper is sitting at the bar, nursing a drink. Blaine makes his way over, hoping to god he can convince his older brother that he's just had the time of his life instead of the most confusing moment of his embarrassing existence.

"Hey," Blaine says as he approaches the bar.

Cooper spins around on his stool. "So?" he asks wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"What?" Blaine replies, with a slight look of indignation on his face. Well, he didn't have to fake that. He's annoyed that Cooper assumes he enjoyed himself, which he had. But he didn't want to admit it that Cooper was right.

"Oh come off it, Blaine. You know you enjoyed yourself."

"Well, duh."

"Very mature, Blaine," Cooper says. "Always so ungrateful…I don't know why I even bother. I should have just gotten you a gift card to Baby Gap like last year."

"But then how would you blow all of dad's money?" Blaine challenges.

"Fair point," Cooper says. "Soooo….are you going to tell me about it or not?"

"Not," Blaine says, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Oh, come on…tell me something. Please…anything."

"He's even better looking up close?" Blaine says almost like a question, hoping that will satisfy his brother's curiosity for now.

"You don't get off that easy. Tell me something that will make this whole ridiculous night worthwhile."

Blaine sighs. Cooper is really trying and Blaine's being a total jerk about it. It's Cooper, he can trust him with his secrets.

"OK, Coop. Truth? It was the best birthday present you've ever given me," Blaine says.

"Better than the Xbox?" Cooper asks.

"Better than the Xbox."

"Better than the trip to Cedar Point?"

Blaine pauses for a second before replying. That trip was really fun. It was the first time he and Cooper were allowed to go on a road trip together and they spent all day riding roller coasters and eating junk and just talking about nothing and everything. And it was the best day ever. But there was no Kurt.

"Even better than that."

"Whoa."

"Yeah."

"Wait, does this mean you and he…? Cooper makes a lewd gesture with his hands.

Blaine's eyes nearly bug out of his head. He wasn't anticipating that Cooper would think that.

"Shit…no. Nothing like that," Blaine says.

"Well, then what, Blaine? I mean it had to have been more than a lap dance for it to beat the 'best day ever.' So spill."

"Can we at least get out of here first?" Blaine asks, looking around self-consciously.

Cooper, realizing that Blaine is about to share something big, simply nods, sets down his drink and follows Blaine out of the club.

Kurt pulls into Rachel's driveway and turns off the car, resting his head on the steering wheel. He hasn't stopped thinking about Blaine since he left the private lounge. Why did he have to look so sweet and innocent? Why did he have to smell so good? Why did he have to be from Dalton?

Kurt has never really admitted it to anyone, but he's always had a thing for boys in prep school uniforms. After sectionals last year, when they had tied with the Warblers, the blazer and tie combo had made a cameo in many of Kurt's fantasies. He even did a number at Shades where he wore a similar outfit and danced to "Baby One More Time."

Thank god Blaine hadn't seen that!

Giving Blaine that lap dance had hit a little too close to home for Kurt. He's used to keeping everyone at arm's length at Shades. He's never had to worry much about running into someone he knows because the club attracts a primarily gay crowd, and he's the only out kid at McKinley. None of his dad's friends are gay, and Kurt works very hard every night to look as much unlike Kurt Hummel as he possibly can … just in case.

But Blaine, well Blaine is part of Kurt's world. His glee club world. The one where Mercedes and Rachel fight over solos, and Rachel and Quinn fight over Finn, and Puck and Santana fight everyone just because. He's part of the world where it's OK to sing show tunes and Ke$ha and Katy Perry. Where Mr. Schue cares too much and Coach Sylvester tries to tear it all apart. It's his safe haven — well, as safe as it gets at McKinley — and now the two worlds are getting painfully close. It's like a game of six degrees of separation, and Blaine's Kevin Bacon.

Kurt nearly jumps out of his skin when Rachel taps on his car window.

"Shit, Rachel!" Kurt shouts. "Don't sneak up on me like that."

He opens the door and gets out.

"Sorry, Kurt. It's just that I saw you sitting out here, and you'd been here a while, and if you sit there too long Mrs. Curtis next door will call the cops. She's kind of a one-woman neighborhood watch." Rachel's face is a mix of concern and glee. "Besides, I'm dying to know what happened at Shades."

And there it is. If Rachel Berry ever did anything for completely selfless reasons, the universe would implode.

Kurt just sighs and says, "Alright Rachel. Let's go inside."

Rachel claps her hands together and jumps up and down, squealing like a 5-year-old whose just been told there's cake. She practically skips toward the house, with Kurt trailing behind slowly, lost in his own thoughts.

The entire walk to Rachel's room, Kurt's mind is reeling. Only now instead of worrying about the ramifications of his encounter with Blaine, he's thinking about how amazing it felt to be in Blaine's lap, sharing body heat … and that kiss.

So soft and so perfect. Blaine's gorgeous eyes looking up at him, reflecting everything Kurt was feeling. And then he said Kurt's name. How did he manage draw out one syllable like that. Kurt can still hear the way he emphasized the T at the end. He feels like it's the first time he's really heardhis name, which sounds ridiculous even in his own mind, but he doesn't care. It was a perfect moment. And he had to ruin it by running off.

Stupid Vince. Stupid club rules.

Kurt's still not sure why he kissed Blaine. It was a stupid thing to do really — kissing customers is definitelyagainst club rules — but it felt so right in that moment. And it was quite a delicious moment, even if it was cut short.

As usual, Kurt's pensive mood does not escape Rachel's attention.

"Kurt?" she asks tentatively. "Are you OK?"

Kurt looks at her for a moment before deciding to be honest. He needs to talk to someone, even if that someone is his mostly insane best friend.

"No," he says simply. "I don't think I am."

"Oh Kurt," Rachel says, pressing her palms to her chest. Most people would think she was being melodramatic, but Kurt knows that this is just Rachel's way. She is truly concerned about him.

Kurt can feel the tears stinging in his eyes, threatening to spill out.

"Kurt, what happened? Tell me everything."

But he can't seem to find the words. Kurt knows he can trust Rachel, but he doesn't know where to begin.

He opens his mouth to speak, and nothing comes out. Instead he breaks down. Tears begin falling rapidly down his face before he collapses into Rachel's arms.

Smooth, Hummel. Really smooth.