Kurt groans in his sleep and pulls the blanket up to his chest but surprisingly doesn't wake up when Blaine carefully extricates himself from Kurt's grasp. Kurt's eyelids flutter a little and Blaine freezes, watching the sleeping man's face carefully.

Kurt's face when sleeping is like a blank canvas. When awake, it is alive and constantly painted with thousands of complex expressions. But unconscious, the curve of his smirk, the softness of his pout, or even the pulled lines of his judgment disappear. The worry lines that sometime furrow his brow are smoothed over and every once in a while, a small smile can be seen in the corners of his lips. Blaine likes to think that on those nights, Kurt is dreaming of them. He watches Kurt's nose scrunch up and the corners of his lips tilt up, and knows that last night was such a night.

Blaine breathes a sigh of relief as Kurt rolls onto his stomach, burying his face into Blaine's pillow. He reaches out to run his fingers gently over one of Kurt's shoulder-blades, jutting out from the angle of his arm thrown over his head, and Kurt hums contentedly before burrowing further into the bed.

Blaine decides against risking waking up Kurt by running the shower and when he turns on the faucet to splash some cold water on his face, the squeak of the knob and the whine from the pipes has Kurt stirring and Blaine is forced to forgo shaving as well.

Unable to help himself, he moves back to Kurt's prone form and plants a kiss on his cheek, pleased when the man still doesn't wake. He must be really exhausted after last night, Blaine thinks. Kurt is usually a terribly light sleeper.

As he makes to head out the door, however, he hears Kurt blearily ask, "Where're you going?"

Or he was just faking it.

Blaine moves back to place a warm hand against Kurt's cheek, and brushes his hair out of his face, "Well, I was going to go get you breakfast from that café across the city you love so much, but you seem to have ruined the element of surprise." Blaine frowns a little, and hopes Kurt is too tired to see past the fib.

Kurt seems to contemplate this for a moment, then smiles.

"What?" Blaine asks, amused.

"Mm, don't like surprises anyway," Kurt blinks slowly, "And I've decided that's a decent reason for abandoning me in bed," Blaine has enough time to laugh before Kurt pulls him in to place a kiss on his forehead, "Hurry back."

"I always do," Blaine places another kiss to the corner of Kurt's eyebrow, his hand lingering in Kurt's hair, before he shrugs on his jacket and heads out into the cool light of an early New York morning.

"Rough night?" Mercedes asks with a knowing smirk as she hauls her suitcase into the back of the car Blaine had rented for the weekend.

When Blaine had gone to pick up Rachel from the station, she had blazed right past him, expressing her undeniable disapproval at not only her lodgings over night, but the tube ride up, as she shoved each suitcase unceremoniously into the trunk of the rented sedan. When she had finished, her tone immediately changed, her face lighting up in delight as she proudly exclaimed that she at least had new inspiration for a song.

When Blaine finally realized that she expected him to react, he simply stated that he didn't know she still wrote, to which she briskly replied, "It's incredibly cathartic. You should know that, Blaine."

Mercedes, on the other hand, gave Blaine a once-over the moment she stepped out of the airport. Her eyes traveled from the broken-in moccasins on Blaine's feet all the way to the over-night scruff on his face and his rumpled hair, with an eyebrow arched in appraisal all the while.

Blaine grabs her duffel bag before she can, lifts it into the back of the car, and closes the trunk before turning to the woman and smiling sheepishly.

"You could say that," his tries for coy, and ends up with ‘Oh yeah, I totally had sex last night.'

Mercedes just pulls him in for a tight hug. For a moment, Blaine is overwhelmed with memories; the scent of her perfume taking him back to the high school choir room, bustling hallways, and a boring Math class. "I've missed you," she says as she pulls away.

"Missed you, too," he sighs. The whole time, Rachel has been standing with them, concentrating on staring at the screen on her phone and at the silence she looks up, and Blaine isn't really surprised to see unshed tears in her eyes. It feels cheesy, but Blaine has always been a big proponent of cheesy, so he pulls the two of them in for another hug.

Blaine's phone buzzes in his pocket and it pulls him out of his nostalgic haze. It's from Kurt, wondering where he is, and Blaine realizes he's been gone longer than would normally take to get breakfast, even from that café across the city.

Shop was busy, then ran into traffic due to construction down 5th Avenue. Should be there soon

Blaine sighs, there is no way Kurt will not be at least somewhat suspicious at this point. Luckily for him, there is actually minimal traffic on the way back to the flat.

"Remember, Kurt isn't fond of surprises so it's probably best that I go in first-" Blaine tries to explain as they walk down the hallway, but Mercedes snatches the keys out of his hands.

"Nuh-uh, lover boy, I haven't seen my Kurt in much too long. He's getting the full-on fabulous invasion. The moment I step into that apartment he's mine for the day, got that?"

Blaine begins to protest but she throws up a finger, wagging it in his face. She arches an eyebrow as if daring him to say more.

Blaine sighs and picks up one of Rachel's suitcases, "Got it."

Mercedes gives him a wide grin, jingling the keys in his face, "Good."

She puts the key in the lock, then turns back to give Blaine and Rachel a conspiratorial smirk, before bursting through the door, calling, "Kuuuu-uuuurt, I'm home!"

There's a shriek and a clatter and Blaine rushes past Mercedes to find Kurt standing in the kitchen, looking like he just got slapped. A cup of milk lay spilled at his feet and then Blaine's stomach pulls in embarrassment and guilt because yeah, now Kurt is never going to like surprises.

There may be no use crying over spilled milk, but Kurt Hummel has every right to shriek over the fact that he's only in his faded Likes Boys T-shirt and bright-red underwear.

"OH MY GOD!" he shouts, horrified, before running to hide behind the side of the couch. "What is going on?!"

"Um, ‘morning, baby," Blaine says gently, dropping Rachel's suitcase to his feet and pointedly ignoring Mercedes' laughter. "Surprise?"

Kurt fixes him with a metal-melting glare and makes to open his mouth but Mercedes cuts him off. "Kurt, go put some pants on so I can hug you."

Kurt snatches the blanket off the back of the couch and wraps it around himself before darting into the bedroom and slamming the door.

"Oh my god," Blaine grinds out. "He's going to kill us."

"'Us'? What ‘us'? You're the one who wanted to surprise him," Mercedes replies, still chuckling.

"I didn't think he'd be half-dressed," Blaine says incredulously, looking at the bedroom door where he can hear drawers slamming. He starts to clean up the spilled milk on the floor while Mercedes and Rachel get their things situated.

"That seems to be dress-code here," Rachel comments, rocking on her heels as she inspects a photo of herself and Kurt from Junior Prom. She clicks her tongue, "I hope it doesn't happen again tomorrow."

Mercedes picks the cup off the floor, "Oh man, if it does, can you take pictures or something? If that's how Hummel reacts to just us in his undies, I can't imagine what that'd be like."

"He must not have told you about that time senior year, then," Blaine mutters, just as he hears the bedroom door open behind them.

"I totally forgot about that!" Mercedes squawks, and Kurt stops just outside the doorway, his arms folded across his chest.

"Forgot about what?" he asks stonily.

"Forgot to give you a hug, silly!" Rachel covers quickly, and at this Kurt can't help but let his face break into a smile as Mercedes and Rachel tackle him in a hug.

"Oooh, I missed you!" he says, rubbing their backs before pulling apart and giving them each a once-over. "God, you both look so good."

"I know," Mercedes teases, flipping her currently wavy hair over her shoulder.

"And London has treated you well, Rachel," Kurt allows, appraising her outfit choice-not quite as questionable as they have been in the past.

"Oh Kurt, you'd love it," she gushes. "The culture, the... je ne sais quoi... it just-it just fills the soul. So inspirational."

"I bet! You'll have to tell me all about it," Kurt says excitedly, grasping both girls' hands in his own.

"And Kurt, you're looking pretty good yourself," Mercedes winks and Kurt blushes. "You have a nice... healthy glow about you."

Kurt doesn't miss the tone behind her words, "Yes. Well. A nice vacation will do that, I suppose."

The whole time Blaine has been watching this exchange fondly, silently hoping that all the excitement will have gotten him out of trouble. As Kurt finishes his last words, though, his eyes flicker toward Blaine and Blaine can see the recognition as they narrow.

"No more surprises I should be aware about?" he asks.

"Well, if I tell you then they really aren't-"

"Blaine."

"Oh, lay off him, Kurt. He schemed this whole thing up. If it weren't for him, Rachel and I wouldn't be here," Mercedes offers helpfully, rubbing a hand up and down Kurt's arm.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you guys because I am, seriously, but why are you here?"

"Blaine called us and said that you have been working really hard lately," Rachel says from her new position on the couch. Mercedes nods in agreement.

"And you have. I know how much you've missed them and I figured why not, you know?" Blaine shrugs, giving Kurt a smile. "Plus, you've got to be sick of me after spending four whole days in a row with me, right?"

Kurt feigns indifference, "Eh, a little bit," but ends up smiling warmly at Blaine. "Thank you," he adds quietly.

Blaine waves his hand in the air, "No, don't thank me. I mean, they're my friends, too."

There's a beat where Kurt and Blaine just stand there smiling at each other before Mercedes heaves a loud sigh and claps her hands together, "Well! Now that we've gotten that out of the way, Kurt you might want to change. We have a full day ahead of us."

Kurt looks at her quizzically, "Oh? And what are we doing?"

Rachel jumps up from her spot on the couch, exclaiming excitedly in a sing-song voice, "It's a girls' day out!"

"Shopping, spa, disgusting amounts of caffeine and sugar," Mercedes adds, fanning her hands out in front of her for emphasis.

Kurt arches a brow at his friends, "And how are we affording this?"

"Don't you worry your pretty little head about it," Mercedes says just as Rachel bounces up next to her, nodding excitedly.

"You guys can't-I'm not going to let you just pay for everything," Kurt shakes his head.

"Well, okay, how about since we already got the show a few minutes ago you can at least buy us dinner later?" Mercedes smirks.

Kurt blushes and looks down at his feet, "Deal." He turns to Blaine, "And are you joining us?"

Blaine shakes his head, "Oh no, this is all for you."

Kurt's eyebrows shoot up in bemusement, "Oh? And what are you going to do all day?"

Blaine shrugs, "I have a few things to take care of. I think I can keep myself entertained. Maybe I'll clean." He has some time to kill until he needs to start doing errands. Shopping with Kurt guarantees he'll be out for six hours at the very least.

"I'm going to hold you to that," Kurt says, pointing a finger at his boyfriend before making his way back to the bedroom.

They pass the time while waiting for Kurt to get ready by listening to Rachel recount her recent exploits in an underground production of Annie, leaving Blaine dumbfounded and slightly in awe by the time Kurt breezes back into the room.

"Shall we?" he says as he messes with one of the buttons on his shirt.

While the girls grab their purses, Blaine pulls Kurt in for a kiss. "Have fun," he says when they part.

"The kitchen needs cleaning," Kurt answers with a wink, before following the girls out the door and leaving Blaine alone in their apartment for the first time in days.

The silence and emptiness of the apartment hits Blaine in an unexpected way as he stands sort of helplessly in the middle of the flat.

The thought comes to him out of nowhere, but Blaine is suddenly reminded of the first day back at Dalton without Kurt. Blaine is aware of how random it is yet the corners of his mouth turn down at the memory. He shakes his head and sighs, forgetting about the silly moment, before resorting to getting some actual cleaning done.

Blaine hits play on the stereo on the counter, immediately noticing that it must be Kurt's iPod in the dock as Lady Marmalade blasts through the speakers. He just smiles and takes the sponge off of the sink, wiggling his hips as he scrubs the counter.

"Voulez-vous coucher avec moi, ce soir?" Blaine half sings, unable to stop the laugh that bubbles past the words. The phrase is inexorably associated with Kurt for more than a few reasons and as the music shuffles to a Beatles song-Love Me Do-Blaine's mind inevitably starts to wander.

He's glad to be doing something with his hands at the moment; the anxiety over finalizing the details for the weekend later on has him feeling restless. But the idea of getting to spoil Kurt is pushing a giddiness toward the forefront of his thoughts. He imagines Kurt somewhere across the city, shopping bags in hand and Rachel and Mercedes in tow, with that fantastic smile spread across his face and Blaine can picture it so clearly.

He loves how he has Kurt's face memorized so perfectly that he can just close his eyes and see his boyfriend before him, clear as day. It isn't nearly as good at the real thing, but Blaine's daydreams and fantasies certainly have never complained, especially on those too-often-occurring days where he barely gets a chance to see Kurt at all.

One picture of Kurt in his mind shifts to another and there's a flash of Kurt's attentive expression in the lecture hall of the English class they shared last year (a class that was admittedly difficult to concentrate in-the way Kurt chews on the tip of his pen when he's concentrating is more than distracting.) The image of Kurt nibbling on his pen changes slightly and Blaine frowns at the thought of Kurt on the phone in their bedroom, attempting to manage the preparations for his dad's heart surgery from miles away, chomping furiously on his pen and poring over his well-worn notebook.

Blaine thinks about the past few days and isn't really surprised when he feels the twist in his chest. There's a quiet nostalgia for the ‘simpler' days of high school when they took for granted how much time they were able to spend with each other. There's the still ever-present feeling of gratefulness and disbelief that he's there in New York of all places and living-actually living-with Kurt, his high school sweetheart. That thought of course takes him to thoughts of the future; of getting to spend more time with Kurt. Even for the rest of his life-a thought that he finds himself contemplating more and more often these days.

He's jarred out of his reverie when his cell phone on the table starts ringing and skirring across the surface. Blaine wipes his hand on a rag before going to pick it up, seeing that it is Wes calling. Blaine checks the time-an hour and a half had passed much faster than he'd realized.

Blaine answers the phone, just barely squeezing in a, "Hello," before Wes bulldozes past him.

"So, everything is set up. You're in the book. But Tabitha has insisted on having lunch with you today. She says it's so she knows who she's doing a favor for," Wes sounds dubious as he says the last part.

"It isn't?" Blaine tucks his phone against his shoulder as he puts away the cleaning supplies, surveying his work and is somewhat confident that it will pass Kurt's infamous white-glove-test.

"Doubtful. She's a sucker for anybody with a story. I'm surprised she manages to run that place at all, much less keep it so exclusive. No, she just wants to meet the ‘Mystery Man of Romance,' as she has started to refer to you. Bit annoying, really," Wes adds with affectionate irritation.

Blaine can't help but laugh, "Aww," he coos, "When are you going to make it official?" Blaine hasn't had the pleasure of meeting Tabitha, but with how much Wes talks about her he feels as if he already knows her and they'd have no problems getting along.

"Warbler Blaine, I have no idea what you're talking about," Wes chides, but Blaine can hear the smile in his voice.

"Mhmm, okay. Anyway, when and where?" Blaine asks, heading into the bedroom to start getting ready.

----------

Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Kurt, Rachel, and Mercedes are stopped for a coffee break after a marathon of shop-hopping.

"Okay, spill," Kurt says as he sits down across from the two girls. It is the first time he has actually had the opportunity to talk to his best friends since they started that morning and he's been itching to interrogate them.

"Spill what?" Rachel asks innocently, but conspicuously glancing at Mercedes.

"Blaine is up to something," Kurt narrows his eyes at the pair of them, scrutinizing their sudden lack of expression.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you not to look a gift-horse in the ear or however that goes," Mercedes says before nonchalantly sipping at her caramel macchiato.

"Really, Kurt," Rachel chimes in, "Are you always this suspicious of Blaine?"

"This coming from the girl who on several occasions has been caught on pseudo-stake-out sessions across Lima," Kurt mutters into his coffee. He isn't bitter over everyone's (completely misguided, albeit well-intentioned) suspicions of his and Blaine's relationship all those years ago, but he still finds it amusing that Rachel has since gotten a taste for sleuthing.

"I'm attracted to the drama of it all," Rachel says matter-of-factly, waving her hand in the air. "Besides, if you're counting that time outside of your house senior year I'll have you know that wasn't a stake-out. I was merely making sure that Finn got home safe after tutoring that chess club girl."

Almost in unison, Kurt and Mercedes arch an eyebrow at this. And Kurt still thinks the idea of Finn tutoring anyone at anything other than beer pong is amusing. But the boy has a knack for statistics, who would have thought.

"You're all terrible liars," Kurt says. Although, he has to hand it to Rachel; her ability to keep a secret has certainly improved since high school.

"Well, you're no good with surprises," Mercedes counters, smirking a little at the memory of earlier that morning.

"Excuse me for wanting to know when I should be decent for company."

"Well," Rachel says, "You're going to want make sure to be presentable tomorrow." 

Kurt narrows his eyes over his cup at her, "For what?"

Kurt cannot really find it in himself to be surprised when Rachel simply makes a zipping gesture over her lips before throwing away the ‘key.' That doesn't stop him from being ever the more frustrated, however.

Blaine finds himself outside the Waverly diner an hour later, standing nervously on the sidewalk with his hands shoved in his pockets as he waits for Tabitha to get off for her lunch break. 

A few minutes later, he spots an olive-skinned woman with shoulder-length black hair striding toward him, a large grin on her face and Blaine can only assume that this is Tabitha.

"Blaine!" she exclaims, bypassing the hand Blaine proffers to envelope him in a friendly and tight hug, as if they'd already known each other for several years. When she pulls back, she keeps a firm grip on his shoulders, studying his face carefully before breaking out into another wide smile. "My Mystery Man of Romance, it is a pleasure to meet you."

Blaine returns the smile, shrugging shyly, "The pleasure is all mine. I really cannot thank you enough for-" he's cut off when Tabitha puts a hand up, signaling for him to stop talking.

"I will have none of that. It is all already taken care of. Don't go making me reconsider," her voice rings with laughter and she throws Blaine a wink before walking into the restaurant. Blaine just laughs to himself and follows her inside.

After they are seated, Tabitha immediately orders them both iced teas at Blaine's nod of approval. "I love this place. Good food and just the right amount of distance away from work," she sighs. "I do love a good clam chowder, don't you?" She leans in conspiratorially and motions for Blaine to do the same, "Between you and me, this place serves the best chowder in the whole city. But you didn't hear that from me." She gives him another wink and leans back, settling into the squishy cushion of the booth.

Blaine learns quickly that Tabitha is a talker and at first he wonders how she and Wes get along at all. Wes can be long-winded once you get him going but Tabitha's energy is no match for that. She dominates the conversation, pausing only to exchange pleasantries with their waiter when their drinks and then their food arrive. 

Her banter isn't boring or obnoxious in the least, though, as she talks enthusiastically with her hands about work and then about how she and Wes met. Her eyes light up as she details how he came in with "a bunch of suits" and made an absolute mess of himself each time she came around-spilling things and stumbling over his words. Blaine's eyebrows shoot up at this recounting of very un-Wes-like behavior.

"He's not like the others," she waves her fork, nearly flinging the piece of lettuce speared there as she gestures with her hands. "I saw that immediately," she sets down her fork to take a drink, looking at Blaine over the rim of her glass, "From what I've heard, you had a similar experience. With Kurt?"

Blaine can feel himself flush at her words and under that knowing gaze she has. "Something like that," he says, smiling more to himself than to her.

"Tell me about it," she says with a new glint in her eye.

Blaine just laughs, "Where do I begin?"

"How about at the beginning?"

So Blaine does. From the staircase to McKinley to their acceptance to NYU and right up to the present. As he speaks, Blaine hadn't realized just how much his and Kurt's story included. Their current life is a far cry from the halls of Dalton or even McKinley. All the in-between makes him feel as if he's telling some sort of fairy-tale; complete with a prince and villains and obstacles and quests. Tabitha's expression of wide-eyed rapture only adds to this experience; she drinks in Blaine's tale with a dreamy look, reacting at all the appropriate moments and only interrupting a few times.

When he finishes, Tabitha smiles from where her chin is resting on her hands, "Wesley didn't do you two justice," she says simply, leaning back again.

"I'm sure I made it sound like much more than it is. I'm a little biased," Blaine says sheepishly. The waiter returns with their cards, breaking the conversation temporarily.

"Kurt is a lucky man," she comments as he leaves and Blaine can't stop himself from blushing again. "I feel honored to be a part of this."

Blaine chuckles, "I know you said not to say this, but I really am grateful."

"Anything for Wesley. And you. And Kurt," she makes a wide gesture with her hands. "I'm just curious how you're going to top yourself after all of this? Starting with the bar raised pretty high, aren't you?"

"Kurt says I'm getting better with the romance thing. I think I'll figure something out."

"Oh, I don't doubt that," she says sincerely, giving him another dazzling smile. Just then, her phone beeps and she jumps at the sudden sound. She checks the text with a laugh, her smile only turning down a little as she reads. "That would be work. I've found that if I'm gone longer than an hour the place falls apart."

She chuckles at that and Blaine joins, nodding with understanding. Blaine stands to help her out of the booth. "Shall we?" he gestures for her to walk before him and she just laughs.

"Ever the gentleman. You and Wesley, both. Are you sure that school of yours didn't brainwash you?" she asks, shouldering her purse and stepping past him.

"It's possible."

They step outside into the bright sun and crisp March air. She turns to him, "Well if Kurt is anything like you, I am more than glad to have you two."

"He's better," Blaine smiles and moves to kiss her on the cheek.

"See you on Saturday, Blaine," she gives him one last wink as she turns briskly on her heel and walks down 6th Avenue.

Blaine watches her go, shaking his head a little in awe and disbelief before flagging down a cab.

"Kuuu-uuurt, don't," Rachel whines from her seat next to him. After exhausting themselves from shopping, they all decided to wind down at a spa. On either side of Kurt are Mercedes and Rachel, all of them enjoying luxurious manicures and pedicures.

"Yeah, Kurt, this is our day. I think you can go a little bit longer without lover-boy," Mercedes chimes in, pointedly glaring at the cell phone in Kurt's hand.

"I just want to check in on him and make sure he isn't too bored," Kurt answers as he hits the speed-dial button and presses his ear to the device. This is partly true. Mostly, he just misses Blaine's voice. He knows it's a little silly and a lot clingy, but he cannot help himself or bring himself to care. When it comes to Blaine, he allows himself to be ridiculous about it all. Not that he would admit this.

"I'm sure he's fine," Rachel mutters and she kicks her feet in the bath, wiggling her toes in the soothing warm water.

Kurt just sticks his tongue out at her as he listens to the rings, counting each as they go. At the fourth one, Blaine picks up with a surprised-sounding, "Uh, hi, dear."

Kurt can hear a lot of voices in the background; it sounds like Blaine is in a crowded place. "Blaine? Where are you?"

From his left Mercedes coughs a little too conspicuously and Kurt looks over at her only to see her staring expressionless into her copy of People.

He glares at her as he listens to Blaine's response. "Decided to go for a walk," there's the sound of several cars honking. "I cleaned the kitchen. Spotless," Blaine adds enthusiastically.

"Did you decide to take a walk in Times Square?" Kurt asks, thoroughly wary of Blaine's weird attitude. Seriously, they're all terrible liars.

"Look, babe, I have to go. Just enjoy your time with Rachel and Mercedes. I'm sure they're about to take away your phone right now," Blaine is right, of course. Rachel is staring determinedly at Kurt, gesturing wildly for him to get off the phone.

"I'm onto you, Blaine Anderson."

Blaine just laughs on the other end of the line, "Love you, too."

"Yeah, yeah. Love you..." Kurt returns reluctantly.

Blaine laughs again, the sound cut off by the sound of a woman over a loudspeaker. "Bye, Kurt!"

"Wait, Blaine-you!" Kurt doesn't have the chance to say what he wants because the call cuts off and he's left staring at the screen of his phone. "He's going to pay for this," Kurt mutters, shoving his phone back into his pocket.

He is thoroughly annoyed at them all now. Kurt really does not like surprises. Blaine knows this. Mercedes and Rachel know this. Hell, Finn knows this.

Mercedes sets down her magazine. "Kurt, do you not trust us at all?"

"Yes, Kurt, I'm hurt," Rachel presses her palm over her heart theatrically.

"Right now I'm not so sure," Kurt tells them.

Mercedes leans forward to look at Rachel, "After all this time you think he would know by now."

Rachel nods but Kurt just looks confused and he raises an eyebrow. "Know what?"

"That we're awesome," Rachel says matter-of-factly. Kurt rolls his eyes at them.

"You're all ridiculous. I don't know why I bother to keep you around."

"Oh, please. Like you would get rid of us," Mercedes says.

"How do you know we don't keep you around?" Rachel teases.

Kurt just raises an eyebrow at her again and Rachel immediately leans back, laughing. "Oh, right. Of course." Mercedes just laughs with her.

"I love you, but you're all insane. You do know that, right?" Kurt teases.

"We'd have to be to put up with you," Mercedes teases back and this time, Kurt joins in on the laughter.

"Now, come on," Rachel tries to straighten out her expression. She wiggles her toes in the water again, "What color do you think would complement my eyes?"

By the time Blaine gets home, it is nearly 9oclock and Kurt, Rachel, and Mercedes are not back yet. He collapses onto the couch and kicks off his shoes, turning on the TV just to have some background noise.

After his lunch with Tabitha, he had spent the rest of the day taxiing around the city, doing some shopping of his own as he collected what he needed for the weekend. He'd stopped once at the apartment to switch to the rental in order to make another trip to JFK then played chauffer and tour guide for a few hours. 

And now here he is, trying to contain his excitement as he unseeingly stares at the television. He knows somewhere in the back of his mind that he shouldn't feel so anxious. He has been planning this for a month and his time with Kurt this weekend only cemented his feelings that this was a good idea. It should not seem so daunting but Blaine thinks that maybe since he has never done anything like this before-he has never done anything this romantic on such a level-that it's making his nerves go haywire.

Blaine chuckles to himself, thinking that he really isn't cut out for this romance stuff. It is hard work. Kurt makes it all worth it, however. His smile earlier in the morning at seeing Mercedes and Rachel just proves that. Blaine thinks he would willingly do this every day if he could, just to see Kurt smile like that.

Just as he's dozing off in the blue glow of the television, he hears the door open, Kurt laughing along with Rachel and Mercedes, and then the sound of rustling shopping bags.

Before Blaine fully registers all of that, though, Kurt's lips are at his ear, kissing his temple and whispering, "Hi, baby."

Blaine yawns and stretches his arms above his head; hooking them around Kurt's neck from where he's bent over Blaine behind the couch and pulling him back down again for a proper kiss. "Mmm, hi," he sighs when they break apart.

"What have you done that has you so adorably worn out?" Kurt asks, collecting a few bags from the entryway. Rachel has wandered off to the bathroom while Mercedes is now sitting on the chair, sipping at a glass of water.

Blaine yawns again, "Stuff."

Kurt purses his lips a little, "You're not going to tell me, are you?"

"Nope," Blaine shifts on the couch so that he is facing Kurt, giving him a smug little smirk.

"I hate you," Kurt says as he places all his bags in the bedroom.

"Well that's just not true. You love me," Blaine drags out the word and Mercedes snickers at him.

"Fine. I do. I hate surprises," Kurt whines, flopping onto the couch next to Blaine and immediately tossing his legs over Blaine's knees.

Blaine instantly goes to rub at Kurt's feet-part as a means to placate Kurt, part because after three years he knows how Kurt's shopping sessions are on par with a day at the gym.

"You'll like this one. I know you already like the first part," Blaine smiles up at Mercedes just as Rachel walks back in to join them.

"Do you guys want to watch a movie?" Rachel asks.

"I'll get the popcorn!" Mercedes exclaims, standing up to go to the kitchen.

"Pajamas?" Blaine inquires, tapping at Kurt's leg and then looking up at Rachel.

"Oh, yes, please," Kurt says. "Rachel, blankets are in the ottoman."

Several minutes later find the four of them huddled on the couch under a stack of blankets, the bowl of popcorn nestled between Blaine and Rachel and Chicago playing on the television.

They've all seen it so many times that the viewing is interrupted several times by conversation. The setting is nearly identical to a tradition of ‘Movie Musical Mondays' they had set up senior year of high school. Except now, they are in New York and Finn's not there snoring in the corner. The nostalgia hits Kurt in a shallow wave, but as Blaine tucks himself underneath Kurt's arm he finds he doesn't wish to be anywhere else but there.

Three-quarters of the way into the film, Mercedes and Rachel are passionately singing along, not even noticing how Blaine has dozed off, his head lolling back against Kurt's shoulder. Kurt lets him sleep and just enjoys holding Blaine, burying his nose into Blaine's curls and enjoying the familiar scent. 

When the credits start to roll, Rachel and Mercedes get up to get ready for bed and Kurt gently nudges Blaine. Of course, all Blaine does is groan and bury himself deeper against Kurt's chest.

"Blaine, honey, we should go to bed," Kurt whispers to Blaine, nudging him a little firmer this time, causing Blaine to jump slightly then stretch out along the length of the couch.

"Aww, is it over?" Blaine mumbles, attempting to push himself up into a sitting position and flopping a little so that Kurt has to prop him up. He looks blearily over at Kurt to find his boyfriend smiling fondly at him.

"Yeah," Kurt nods, patting at Blaine's thigh and offering to help him up. "You need to help me pull out the bed. Think you're up for it?"

Blaine shakes his head but gets up anyway and manages to help.

By the time Mercedes and Rachel are situated on the pull-out mattress-Rachel muttering about how it is much more acceptable than a frat-boy's questionable couch-Kurt wishes the girls a good night as Blaine ushers him into the bedroom, telling him that he'll be right behind him. Kurt throws him a dubious look but complies.

A few minutes later, Kurt hears the bedroom door click closed. "Should I even bother asking what you were talking to them about?" he asks from his spot on the bed, already buried beneath the blankets.

"Nope," Blaine says, climbing in onto his side of the bed, immediately wrapping his arms around Kurt's waist and pulling him closer.

"I'm sad they're only staying until Friday night," Kurt sighs and turns on his side so he can face Blaine. The light remaining in the bedroom from the window is dim, but Kurt can just barely see the contours of Blaine's face and the slight sparkle of his eyes.

"Life calls," Blaine says quietly before hooking a foot over Kurt's shins.

"Yeah..." Kurt yawns and then sputters a little when Blaine leans in for a kiss. They both laugh quietly before Blaine tries again, cupping Kurt's cheek as he goes back in, their lips sliding against each other lazily.

Blaine's hands slide down over Kurt's back to grip at his ass and Kurt pulls away from the kiss. "We are not doing anything while Rachel and Mercedes are in the other room, Blaine." Kurt can already feel that Blaine is half-hard-their bodies are pushed so close together.

The thought seems to make Blaine pause for a moment, as if he really has to consider the pros and cons of their predicament. Blaine is not exactly fond of the idea himself, if he's honest. But if he's being honest, he knows there is no way he would even try this tomorrow. Right now though, with Kurt pressed warm against his skin, Blaine wants to take advantage of the moment.

"Blaine," Kurt chides, chuckling a little at his boyfriend. He can practically hear the cogs turning in Blaine's horny little brain.

Blaine seems to make up his mind and Kurt's breath hitches as Blaine squeezes his ass again to pull their hips flush together. Kurt's body responds instantly, unable to help himself.

"Ugh," Kurt groans. "Your timing is terrible." Kurt inwardly curses his inability to resist his boyfriend. His handsome, warm, adorable, sexy boyfriend.

"Please," Blaine begs, rolling his hips up, causing Kurt to grip onto Blaine's arms tighter. "I missed you all day."

Kurt can hear the pout in his boyfriend's voice, tinged lightly with neediness. He reaches up and affectionately runs the pad of his thumb over Blaine's lower lip, "I missed you, too."

Blaine's tongue swipes over the tip of Kurt's thumb that is all it takes-Kurt is lost to it now. Blaine pulls Kurt in and he follows willingly, chasing after Blaine's mouth as he places several slow kisses onto his parted lips.

It is going to take all of Kurt's well-practiced efforts at keeping a straight face in the morning. He cannot even imagine the sort of teasing he will get if somehow Mercedes finds out. Heaven forbid they hear them. The thought is almost lost on Kurt as Blaine starts placing open-mouthed kisses down his neck and licking at his collar bone beneath his cotton T-shirt.

"We're going to have to be quiet," he pants. Blaine bites down on Kurt's shoulder and Kurt can't stop the moan that pulls out of him.

Blaine laughs quietly against Kurt's skin, "You mean you'll have to be quiet." Of the two of them, Kurt is considerably noisier than Blaine. Though Blaine makes it his mission to keep it that way. Kurt's keening and moaning only ever spur him further.

Kurt finds Blaine's lips again and kisses him deeply, sucking on Blaine's tongue and nipping at his bottom lip. "Shut up and roll over," he whispers against Blaine's lips.

"Bossy," Blaine teases before complying with a parting kiss on the corner of Kurt's mouth.

Kurt traces a finger down Blaine's back and over the curve of his ass, watching Blaine shudder at the touch. His brain focuses solely on the body next to him, at each sensation and how with every one of his touches he is instantly rewarded with Blaine's reactions.

Until he's broken out of his trance at the sound of the mattress squeaking just outside their door. 

Underneath his hand Kurt can feel Blaine shake as he tries to stifle his laughter. Kurt leans down to rest his head on Blaine's back, cracking a smile against the soft material of his shirt, "I don't think I can do this."

"Think of it as just like old times," Blaine's voice is muffled slightly by the pillow and he props himself up on his shoulders to look back at Kurt. "Except I don't have to worry about your father coming at me with a baseball bat."

"You never had to worry about the baseball bat," Kurt says, kissing at Blaine's back. "It was the tire iron you had to watch out for."

Blaine's body shudders again as he tries to laugh quietly. But his voice is much deeper when he speaks this time, "Shut up and kiss me."

Kurt does him one better and rucks up his shirt, licking a stripe up the ridge of Blaine's spine, causing Blaine's head to immediately fall forward back into the pillow. Kurt spares no time and goes to tug Blaine's pajama pants down past his knees, but lets his hands linger over the back of Blaine's thighs. Kurt runs a hand from the back of one of Blaine's knees to the upper part of his thigh then down again, rubbing his palm into the finer hairs there.

Kurt slides his hand up to get a handful of Blaine's ass and Blaine makes an unintelligible noise in response. "Kurt I don't-" Blaine cuts himself off when Kurt leans down to quickly bite at the base of his spine.

"What, love?" Kurt asks against Blaine's bare skin as he traces circles in one of the dimples of Blaine's back.

"Can you just-I don't need much-" Blaine pushes his ass into the air a little and Kurt isn't sure if it's done consciously or not. And he isn't sure which turns him on more, especially once he understands what Blaine is trying to say.

The playfulness of just a few minutes ago falls to the wayside and Kurt moves back up to kiss Blaine fiercely. He couldn't care less about the awkward angle, instead just tilting Blaine's head even more so he can deepen the kiss. 

They get lost in the kiss, Kurt's hands roaming freely over the expanse of exposed skin beneath him, until breathing becomes necessary and they both pull apart, panting harshly against each other's lips. Kurt is now fully aware of how hard he is and pulls away from Blaine, causing Blaine to whine at the loss of contact and its heat, to rid himself of his own pajamas.

Kurt returns quickly, bottle of lube in one hand and a towel in the other. Blaine complies as he slips the towel beneath his stomach before moving to straddles Blaine's thighs. Kurt can see Blaine's back heaving as he breathes heavily with anticipation and the rush that they probably should not be doing this right now. That rush of adrenaline, they are both finding, is addictive.

Kurt sits up straight and squeezes at Blaine's ass, loving just how perfect it feels beneath his palms. It's a silly thought, but Kurt sometimes thinks Blaine's ass was molded to fit so perfectly in his grasp; that every inch of him was designed to slot next to his own like a puzzle piece. 

Blaine pushes his ass up again impatiently and Kurt remembers Blaine's words earlier. He teases Blaine a little, running his fingers up and down his back, nails scratching slightly. He even leans forward to suck at what skin he can reach, rolling his hips as he does so and relishing the way Blaine buries his face into the pillow to muffle a whine.

There's another rustle from outside the door and Kurt stills for a moment. "Oh god, what if one of them needs to use the bathroom?"

"What?" Blaine bites out a little more impatiently than he originally intended. Although, he finds it a little difficult to concentrate when his boyfriend is absently running his fingers up and down the crevice of his ass.

"They're girls and I mean-"

"Is that really what you're thinking about right now?" Blaine bucks his hips up, nearly off-balancing Kurt from his perch over him.

Kurt groans at the friction Blaine's movement causes, "No-mmm-no, it's not." Kurt continues his movements, finally dipping his fingers to rub over Blaine's hole, causing Blaine to bite the pillow to contain his moan.

Kurt grabs the lube and coats two fingers, wanting to just tease Blaine a little longer-he enjoys having Blaine falling apart at his hands too much. It has been a long time since they have had the option of forgoing preparation due to routine sex and for a moment Kurt just lets himself languish in their fortune this break. The moment quickly passes and soon Kurt is pushing both fingers in, smiling a little smugly at Blaine's gasp.

"Kurt, I said-" Kurt immediately curls his fingers, searching for Blaine's prostate and hitting home. "Just-no time-please."

Kurt leans forward so that his mouth is near Blaine's ear and he speaks low, "We're already doing this, why not do it right?" But he pulls his fingers away anyway and quickly coats his cock, breathing a little raggedly.

Kurt pulls Blaine closer by his hips, lifting him up so that Blaine is angled slightly on his knees. Kurt slips in just the head of his cock, pulls back a little and then buries himself inside Blaine and unable to stop themselves, they both let out a moan. Perhaps they have gotten a little too accustomed to living on their own. Kurt flinches at the sound but doesn't still his movements, having realized that this probably isn't going to last very long at all.

Blaine matches Kurt with every thrust and not for the first time Kurt is grateful that he bought a good mattress that doesn't squeak. Sweat is beading on his forehead already from exertion and way too soon he can feel the pressure building inside of him.

Blaine pushes back and rolls his hips against around Kurt's cock and yet again he cannot stifle his moan. Kurt isn't sure, but between harsh pants of breath he thinks he can hear Blaine attempting to laugh. Kurt just leans forward and palms Blaine's leaking cock, loving the feel of Blaine's muscles shuddering at the touch.

"Faster," Blaine breathes. "Kurt, I'm so close."

Kurt attempts to shush him, but it comes out as a hiss instead as he speeds up his pace; thrusting into Blaine harder and pumping Blaine's cock with quick strokes.

Kurt is biting his lip in concentration and in an effort to silence himself, but when his orgasm hits him like a wall he cannot stop the keen that slips past his lips. He continues rocking into Blaine a few more times until he feels Blaine's body seize up and Blaine is coming onto the towel placed on the sheets and his face presses further into his pillow.

Kurt rolls off of Blaine, keeping one hand over Blaine's lower back and allowing them both to come down. For a few minutes, there is just the sound of their harsh breathing and a shuffling of the blankets as Blaine turns to face Kurt. At the sound of the terrible sofa-mattress creaking outside their bedroom door, the both of them collapse into giggles.

Kurt throws an arm over his eyes to hide his blush despite the darkness of the room. "Oh, god, they heard everything, didn't they?"

Blaine pulls Kurt's hand away and kisses his knuckles, "Probably." He chuckles again. "I told you to be quiet," he teases.

"I can't help it."

"I know. And I missed that voice of yours all day," Blaine yawns and wraps his arm around Kurt as he moves in closer.

For a moment they lay in silence yet again. Kurt mulls over whether he should even bother asking, but his curiosity gets the better of him. "Since I played along-"

"You wanted that as much as I did," Blaine cuts in.

"Doesn't matter. Point is, do I even get a hint as to what's in store tomorrow?" Kurt whispers.

"Not a chance, darling," Blaine says calmly but Kurt can clearly hear the smile behind his words. Blaine is fully aware of how much Kurt does not like not being in control-surprises might as well be the bane of Kurt's existence. That and Crocs, but those are an entirely different crime.

"You're so lucky I'm in love with you," Kurt snuggles against Blaine's chest even more.

"I know," Blaine whispers and finds Kurt's hand to twine their fingers together. His thumb instantly rubs over the back of Kurt's hand and Kurt hums contentedly. He knows Kurt is teasing but the words hold so much truth sometimes for Blaine. Before drifting off to sleep, he hopes that this week shows Kurt just how grateful he is.