Two cups of coffee in hand, Kurt turned to where Blaine was sitting at a table by the window, face tilted towards the sun. “Here you go. One medium drip, as requested. I didn’t know if you used any, so I just swiped you a few of all the condiments,” he said as he took the handful of single serve packets out of his pocket and put them on the table.

“Oh, thanks,” Blaine said, turning to look at Kurt. “I usually only add a bit of sugar, and maybe some cinnamon if I’m feeling fancy.”

“Noted. I’ll remember that for next time.”

Hearing Kurt offhandedly mention a possible next time when their first date had only just started filled Blaine with courage, and he laid his hand on top of Kurt’s. “No, really. Thank you. I know we didn’t exactly kick this off in a conventional way, and you would have had every right to ghost me after that awkward first meeting. I really appreciate you giving me a chance. I hope that, even if we don’t hit it off romantically, we can at least be friends. I think you’re fascinating, and I would love to get to know you in whatever way you’ll let me.”

Kurt blushed and tucked his chin in. Too many years of romantic disappointment had left its mark, and while he was hesitant to jump in straight away, hearing Blaine speak so openly and honestly about his feelings made him feel things he had almost given up hope of feeling again. 

Feeling brave, Kurt turned the hand that Blaine was still holding and interlaced their fingers. He gave Blaine’s hand a gentle squeeze and, with a soft smile lighting up his face, said, “I don’t know what the future will bring exactly, but I think you’re off to a good start. I would love to be your friend, but I think I would regret it for the rest of my life if we didn’t give this a try.”

“I’m really glad to hear that,” Blaine said, smiling bashfully and fiddling with the sleeve of his coffee cup. “One of my clients is performing this weekend, and they always give me two tickets. Would you maybe like to go with me?”

At that point, Kurt would have said yes to hiking across a swamp if Blaine asked him to, so he wasted no time to respond, “I would love to! Who’s playing?”

“I don’t wanna spoil the surprise, but you’ll definitely have heard of them, and I think you’ll really like the show.”

“I can’t wait.”