His phone buzzed back almost immediately, "Sounds good. I might call if I get lost."

Blaine wanted to make some smartass comment about how it was near impossible to get lost because his apartment was only down the street from the coffee shop that he frequented so much, but he replied with a simple "Okay."

Blaine glanced in his mirror at his messy hair and toyed with the idea of doing anything with it, but decided against it. As much as he wanted to look nice, he kept reminding himself that he wasn't trying to impress anyone.

This is a "just friends" thing.

Blaine then walked to his bed, where he had a couple of different shirts laid out. He decided to go with a simple black v-neck (because once again, he wasn't trying to impress anyone) and threw a dark red cardigan over it. It was only nine and he mentally kicked himself for getting ready so early because now he'd have to wait. Blaine took a deep breath before turning off his bedroom light and heading into the living room, where Trent was sitting; probably ready to give him a speech about not getting to drunk around Kurt.

Sure enough, when he sat down on the couch, Trent tore his eyes off of the TV and looked Blaine up and down, "You look nice."

"Is that a bad thing?" Blaine joked, knowing where the conversation was heading.

Trent shrugged, "No. You never know. Maybe you'll meet someone while you're out."

Blaine toyed with the idea of it before replying, "I fucking hope so."

Trent laughed, "So when are you leaving?"

"Actually, Kurt is meeting me here."

"Oh really?" Trent asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Yes really," Blaine retorted, "And will you stop treating me like I'm making a bad decision? I'm a big boy."

Trent smiled, "I know. But I'm your friend. It's my job to give you a hard time."

Blaine rolled his eyes, "Gee, thanks." The two finally stopped bickering and turned back to the TV, and Blaine willed the hour to go by quickly. There was nothing he hated more than waiting.

Finally, it was ten, and Blaine was expecting Kurt any minute. And sure enough, there was a knock at the door almost exactly on time, and Blaine got up to get it. He opened the door, revealing Kurt standing on the other side. He was wearing a pair of tight gray jeans, what looked like a purple shirt, and a black peacoat. His hair was immaculate, as usual, and Blaine had to stop himself from staring.

"Come in really quick," Blaine said, stepping aside, "I just have to grab a coat."

As he fished out a jacket from the closet, Trent must have gotten up to get a beer, because he heard the fridge close and then, "Hey Kurt. I didn't think you were going to show." The tone in his voice was obviously joking, but it still caused Blaine to freeze.

He turned and shared a wide-eyed glance with Kurt before the other boy cleared his throat and spoke up, "Well, I'm here."

Trying to spare himself and Kurt more embarrassment (because apparently his roommate didn't have a filter) he darted from the closet back to the open door where Kurt was standing, "I'll see you later, Trent."

He waved in response, "Have fun tonight, kids."

The two of them left the apartment and paused outside the door, sharing another glance. Kurt was the first to break the silence, smiling, "Hey."

Blaine smiled back, "Where to?"

Kurt led the way through the chilly fall air to the bar. When they walked inside, Blaine assumed that his friends were already there, because he heard someone squeal, and then a blonde girl was wrapping him in a hug and telling him excitedly how glad she was that he made it. He introduced the birthday girl, Ashley, and all of her friends to Blaine and then ordered the first round of drinks for the group.

To Blaine's surprise – because once again, Kurt didn't really seem like much of a drinker – he seemed to handle his liquor pretty well. His friends also turned out to be really nice and funny, and before long, the group of them were laughing and drinking around the bar, enjoying eachother's company. It had been a while since Blaine had just let loose, and he was glad that Kurt had decided to bring him with. He needed it. He glanced at Kurt, who was separated from him by a couple of the girls, and their eyes met for a moment. Kurt, who had been listening to someone, seemed to forget about it and smiled warmly at Blaine before lifting his beer toward him and taking a drink. Blaine smiled back and mimicked his actions.

"So how do you know Kurt, Blaine? And why has he been keeping you from us?" Ashley asked, half hitting on Blaine and grinning when the conversation had died down.

Blaine shared another quick glance with Kurt before answering, "Actually, we only met about a month ago. I work at this coffee shop he goes to."

"Aww, how cute," She replied, nudging Kurt, still smiling. She had obviously had more to drink than the rest of the group, and Kurt held onto her arm to steady her.

The group eventually migrated to another bar down the street a few minutes later, and Kurt and Blaine walked side by side behind everyone, taking their time. "Sorry about her," he mumbled quietly, "It's her twenty first, and she doesn't really drink much."

Blaine laughed, "It's fine. Everyone has to go through it."

Kurt hummed in response and looked at Blaine, his cheeks somewhat rosy from the alcohol. He hadn't had much to drink, but he was at least buzzed. "I'm glad you came tonight."

Blaine smiled at him, "I am too."

By twelve-thirty, the majority of the group was drunk; some of the girls had wandered off or had started talking to other people at the new bar, while Ashley and the remaining girls had found a group of guys to mingle with. Blaine and Kurt, on the other hand, were sitting mostly by themselves and talking. Blaine was definitely feeling his alcohol, despite his promise earlier in the day to Trent not to drink too much, and by the way that Kurt was slurring a word every once in a while, he was too.

"I have to ask," Kurt said, breaking a silence that had formed between the two of them as they watched the rest of their group, "Why did you decide to come tonight?"

Blaine raised an eyebrow at the question, not quite sure what Kurt was getting at. "What do you mean?"

"I mean…" Kurt slurred, taking a second to put together his words, "I was an ass to you."

Blaine laughed, "You were not."

"I definitely was, Blaine."

He watched Kurt as he tried to figure out what to say in response to him. He wasn't quite sure what the point of the conversation was, but he was sure they were only having it because they were both a little tipsy, and he didn't want to say anything he'd regret. He finally shook his head, "You have a boyfriend, Kurt. The way you acted was completely justified."

"It's not your fault that I didn't tell you…" Kurt mumbled under his breath, and Blaine pretended not to hear it, hoping that would be the end of the conversation. Kurt on the other hand, was still trying to figure out why Blaine was being so nice and civil about it. He had every right to at least be a little upset, but instead, he was taking all of the blame. Once again, Kurt found himself wondering why he did that, only this time, he had enough courage to ask. "Why do you do that?"

Blaine looked up, "Do what?"

"Blame yourself," He offered, "You're doing it right now. I was an ass to you. You had every right to be upset with me, but instead to just took it. Why?"

Blaine was surprised at the question. Nobody ever questioned why he acted the way he did, and in the past, it caused him to get walked over a lot. Somehow, Kurt had seen right through it. He shrugged, "I don't like confrontations."

Kurt shook his head, "I may not know you that well, but I know that's not it."

Blaine raised his eyebrows. He planned out his next words carefully before speaking, "Kurt, are you sure you want to have this conversation while we're at a bar? And while we're drunk?"

Kurt almost looked offended at the words, "I'm not drunk. I'm buzzed." When Blaine just laughed in response, Kurt leaned forward, "Seriously, Blaine. Why?"

Blaine sighed and figured it was going to be near impossible to get Kurt to drop the subject, especially now. He really didn't want to get into a heavy conversation with him, not here, not now, but he didn't really see any other way around it. He hated talking about his past or his exes, but he didn't have any other choice. He sighed, "I've been in a few shitty relationships. My last one, for instance, was this guy Shawn. I was with him for a few months when I learned that apparently, I wasn't the only guy he was seeing. He had been cheating on his boyfriend of over a year with me."

Kurt raised his eyebrows, and Blaine continued, "I figured that I could have gotten mad and hurt by it and confronted him. I could have yelled at him, called him a piece of shit, or even tried to get even by telling his boyfriend about us. But I didn't. Getting angry or getting even did nothing for me because at the end of the day, I was still the loser who had really thought that I was in a serious relationship with a guy who had just been using me. So I just let it go." Blaine shrugged, "I don't see what getting mad does for anyone."

"When I came out," Blaine continued, even though he didn't have to, "My dad was really mad, for quite a while. He was a big reason why I wanted to get out of Ohio. His anger ended up tearing him and my mother apart. They're still together, but you can tell that she doesn't look at him the same way anymore because of the way he treated me. I just don't want to end up like him…" Blaine hadn't noticed that he was on the verge of crying and he looked up to stop the tears that were threatening to spill over.

"You're not your dad… And you're not a loser," Kurt managed to get out, to which Blaine just scoffed. Kurt shook his head, "That's not right, Blaine. You shouldn't just take shit like that. That's not fair."

"Yeah, well, life isn't fair," Blaine let out, and suddenly, Kurt saw a little bit of the vulnerable, angry side of him. Before, he had this wall up, he was protecting himself. Kurt wasn't sure how he had done it, but he had gotten Blaine to let a little bit of that wall down.

"Just because it isn't fair doesn't mean you should stop feeling," Kurt tried, and Blaine, who had been looking down, met his eyes. Kurt's heart clenched at the emotion in them, and it was like the first time seeing Blaine, even if it was just a little bit. He was suddenly overcome with an urge to kiss Blaine, to tell him that he was okay, but he settled with a hug, which he gladly returned. The touch of the Blaine's skin was hot on his own, and Kurt realized that it was the first time that they had shared something like this. His face was buried in Blaine's curly hair, and he inhaled deeply without thinking about it and was suddenly surrounded by the smell of coconuts and boy and he didn't want to let go. His heart sped up at Blaine's smell and his skin and his touch, and just as fast as he was there, he was gone, and Kurt was breathless.

When the two boys parted, Blaine smiled softly at him, "I feel like this just got way too intense."

Kurt laughed nervously, trying to will his body to come down from its high, "Yeah… Sorry about that."

Blaine shook his head, "No… it's okay." He never really opened up to anyone besides Trent, and it felt nice, especially with Kurt.

They sat in silence for a moment before Kurt spoke again, this time calmly, "Do you want to leave?"

Blaine glanced around the bar, quickly spotting some of the girls they had been with. "What about everyone else?"

"Ashley's a big girl," He shrugged, "Besides, it's almost one." That seemed to be enough of a reason for Blaine, and as soon as they paid their tab, they were wishing Ashley a happy birthday and heading out the door and into the cool fall air again.

"God, I love New York," Kurt breathed, watching as his breath rose, illuminated by the streetlights, then disappeared into the night sky.

Blaine nodded in agreement, "I couldn't ask for a better place to live."

Without thinking about it (maybe because he did it with Rachel so much or maybe because he just really wanted to touch Blaine again) Kurt linked their arms together as they walked. When he realized what he had done, he looked at Blaine, who was walking and looking straight ahead, and Kurt took that as a sign that he didn't mind.

They walked like that, arms linked down the sidewalk together, and Kurt sighed. For some reason, being with Blaine, even if they weren't talking, made him feel comfortable. He couldn't deny that fact that he had feelings for the boy whose arm was linked with his own, and he wanted so badly to show Blaine that not everyone was bad. He knew that there was probably more to his story (at least more than he had told him at the bar) but Kurt was willing to listen. He wanted to spend as much time as possible with Blaine, but even as the thought crossed his mind, a little voice was nagging at the back of his head.

You have a boyfriend.

He shook the thought from his head. Even if he and Blaine couldn't be together, he could be his friend. He could still be his friend and listen to him, and help with him, and walk with him down the street, arms linked. Right?

But you don't want to just be his friend.

Kurt tried again to shake the little voice out of his head, but it was persistent.

You have feelings for Blaine.

Before he knew it, they were standing in Blaine's apartment building, in front of his door. Kurt let go of his arm and Blaine stood there awkwardly, kicking his foot out. "I had fun tonight."

Kurt smiled, "Yeah, me too."

He was about to say goodbye and let that be it. He really was. But then Kurt's eyes met Blaine's and he couldn't. He wasn't even aware of what he was doing until his face was inches away from Blaine's and his hand was cupping his cheek. His other hand had somehow found its way to Blaine's and their fingers had intertwined, and if it weren't for the hot breath hitting his lips, he would have thought he was in a dream. "Kurt?" Blaine's voice was soft, breathy. Had it not been silent in the hallway, he wouldn't have heard it. But he did. The end of his own name rang in his ears as he looked into Blaine's confused eyes, and before he had a chance to think, he was closing the gap.

Blaine's lips were warm and soft against his own, and he was immediately met with the welcoming scent of boy again. He sighed out through his nose as his body relaxed and took over, and everything was in slow motion. Their interlocked fingers tightened, his hand moved to the back of Blaine's neck, and he tilted his head slightly, deepening the kiss. Everything was buzzing, and before he knew it, the kiss was over, and Blaine was in front of him again, breathing heavily.

As much as the kiss had taken him by surprise, it was gone before Blaine knew it, and he wanted more. He locked eyes with Kurt, and when there was no doubt to be found, he stepped forward, initiating the second kiss. His body curved naturally with Kurt's as they kissed for the second time, more heated. The hand that had been at their sides was wrapped around Blaine waist and the other was tangled in his hair and Kurt sucked gently at his lower lip before taking it into his mouth. A small whimper escaped Blaine's mouth and his hand found its way around Kurt's waist and the other was gripping his shoulder as they kissed. The second was longer, more drawn out, and after a minute they parted, gasping for breath.

Blaine smiled slightly at Kurt as they stood together in the silence, just breathing, and Kurt's voice almost made him jump when he finally decided to speak, "I should get home. It's almost two."

Blaine nodded, suddenly aware of what had just happened and that fact that it wasn't a dream, but it was very, very real. "Yeah. Text me when you're home."

Kurt looked down, took Blaine's hand, and squeezed it before replying. "I will."

And at that, they parted. Blaine waited until he was out of sight to let himself into his apartment, and once he was inside he made his way, zombie like, to his bedroom. He kicked his shoes off, head still spinning, and found his way out of his clothes and into a pair of sweats before collapsing onto his bed.

Blaine had almost been asleep when his phone, which was still in his hand buzzed. It was a text from Kurt.

"Home."

Blaine typed out a response then reached over to plug in his phone and turn off his light.

"Goodnight, Kurt."

His phone buzzed again and he glanced at it one more time before closing his eyes.

"Goodnight, Blaine"