Retrospection

“It’s great to see you again, Mr. Anderson,” the barista smiled as she walked behind the register, “the usual?” she asked raising her eyebrow up at him. The man nodded stripping off his gloves and shoving the pair into his suit pocket. The girl grabbed a plastic cup and headed to the coffee machines as Blaine studied the little shop. This was his place, comforting warm and always welcoming. His eyes stopped at a stack of neatly folded local newspapers that begged to be read. Blaine reached towards the stack and handled a copy skimming over the cover. He lifted his head to watch his approaching coffee that carried a steam of smoke behind it. He sniffed and rubbed his nose adjusting to the warmth of the shop.

Blaine folded the newspaper and tucked it under his arm taking the steaming cup of coffee he purchased from the barista. He twisted the cup of coffee in his hands and took a careful sip as he settled at an empty booth in the corner of Lima Bean. A shot of warmth soaked his tongue and sent a boost of energy through Blaine’s veins as he melted into the heat, pulling his scarf closer to his neck and taking another long sip of coffee. He pulled the newspaper from under his arm and rested it on the table looking through the window next to him that was framed in a coat of frost barely able to allow him the watch the thick snowflakes that gracefully fluttered down from the foggy sky. Blaine pushed his dark glasses farther up his nose and pulled his attention to the paper. He unfolded the sections and started skimming the articles

Nothing much has been going on in Lima. Everyone seemed to be talking about an upcoming fashion show around the workplace lately but other than that; nothing. At least nothing Blaine had to look forward to. He was focused on carrying his family business that he was forced to be in after his music plan didn’t do as well as he thought. He couldn’t deny it; he was very good at his job. The only problem was that sitting in front of a computer and answering phone calls wasn’t exactly what Blaine imagined for his future but as long as it paid the bills, that was enough for him. All of his friends were finishing college by now but after Blaine’s job started, he hasn’t had enough time to have a social life. He hasn’t even talked with his Warbler’s in years and for some reason, he didn’t really care.

The curly headed man flipped through the newspaper reading the bold articles titles quietly to himself, “‘New Barber Shop…’ blah, ‘McKinley High School Reunion…’ ugh, ‘Researchers Found a New Type of Cheese,’ seriously? ‘Kurt Hummel’s Creations…’ wait, what?” Blaine gasped to himself and read the words closely running his fingertips over the fresh ink of the newspaper that wrinkled under his clenched fist. That name, he thought to himself, I haven’t heard that name in… years, Blaine rubbed his thumb over the black and white picture of the designer and stared at it closely, He was the terrible spy who came to Dalton Academy, he giggled to himself but as the memories started rushing back, a deep frown settled at his cheeks. Memories of how Kurt went back to McKinley before Blaine had a chance to say goodbye or that- that he lov- No, he was just- just a great friend, he thought to himself pushing away the confused feelings he hasn’t felt since his junior year in high school. Gosh, his junior year of high school. The year Blaine had to force himself not to punch one of Kurt’s stupid boyfriends. The year he tried so hard to not shove Kurt against the wall and kiss him roughly whenever he would model his personally made designs in front of Blaine, a really great friend. He flooded himself with memories of how their friendship dwindled into nothing after Kurt graduated and started his designing career.

Kurt Hummel’s Creations for Upcoming Fashion Show Gets Lost on Plane

Young fashion designer, Kurt Hummel, has been preparing for the Fashion show at Columbus, OH, for over two months. “The models wouldn’t stop raving about the designs,” and insider says. Hummel’s creation has become one of the most highly anticipated collections of the year after last season’s crowd-pleasing collection in Chicago. Hummel’s designs are famous for their classic and simple look with a twist. “The thing I love about Kurt’s designs are that they are amazing on the runway and very wearable outside of magazines and fashion shows. Kurt’s creations take lots of time and effort to make the collection fluid yet it keeps every outfit unique in some way I certainly think the next collection will become a big hit and maybe even trend sending,” a designer from Marc Jacobs says. After recent news, maybe there won’t be a collection to even show.

Somehow, Hummel’s flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City to Port Columbus International Airport in Columbus, Ohio, lost Hummel’s collection on a different plane. When he arrived at Columbus, he was asked if he was going to postpone or cancel the show, he answered, “Oh, God no! I would never do that! Though I’m not thrilled with the situation, if I have to sow my designs in a week in order to be ready for runway, then I will”. After he sent one of his assistants to shop for fabrics, he quickly grabbed a cab and went to his hotel room to sow the designs. No worries for those who were looking forward to the fashion show, Hummel himself has confirmed that there will be no postponements or cancelations due to the situation. The fashion show is on January 16th at the Columbus Heyman Talent Agency.

Blaine slumped a little more in his seat setting the newspaper down trying to comprehend what he just read. Blaine took a long sip from the scolding coffee not believing it. Kurt. Kurt Hummel was back in Ohio. Blaine smiled to himself as a memory flashed in front of his eyes.

“Blaine, I need to ask you something,” Kurt said biting his lip and clinging onto his sketch pad in his arms.

“Mmkay,” Blaine said looking up from his homework that was scattered all over Kurt’s bed. Kurt scooted closer and hesitantly opened his sketch pad revealing his designs to Blaine. He flipped through the pages nervously pointing out some of the ideas for the outfits he designed. The other boy smiled and touched the colored drawings then looked up at Kurt closing the book. “What did you need to ask?”

Kurt tapped his fingers on the cover of the sketch pad then sighed, “I need a model, so I can, you know, make these drawings come to life,” Blaine nodded as Kurt opened the sketch book and settled at a page of a man in a striped suit, “I was wondering if you could help”.

Blaine widened his eyes and looked at the drawing in front of him then gave a breathy laugh, “Me?” Kurt lowered his head and gave a little nod in embarrassment, “No, Kurt. I mean, I would love to do it, but you don’t need to be ashamed of wanting to become a designer”.

Kurt looked up at the other boy with hopeful eyes as Blaine’s heart skipped a beat. Kurt was so innocent, his hair delicately molded into place and flawless skin gleaming like porcelain. He was so… beautiful. Blaine took a deep breath to keep himself from doing anything he would regret as Kurt grinned and pulled himself off of the bed reaching for rolls of fabric that he kept in his closet. Blaine pushed himself off the bed and followed behind him helping the other boy carry the rolls to the middle of the room. They rested the bundles of fabric on the floor then straightened staring at the design Kurt propped up on the easel. Blaine ran his fingers over the drawing as Kurt studied the other boy tilting his head to get a better angle. Blaine rested his hands to his side and stared back at Kurt nervously. The other boy picked up a roll of thick fabric and held it up to Blaine, “Warbler, you need to take off that dreaded blazer,” Kurt turned away to grab his sewing kit as Blaine clucked his tongue.

“You love the blazer,” he said as he slipped the blazer, tie, and collared button down shirt off until he was in only a tight under shirt.

As Kurt turned towards Blaine keeping his head to the floor as he set the kit down, then straightened lifting his head then widening his eyes at the model standing before him. Blaine furrowed his eyebrows at the confused boy then touched a hand to his cheek, “Is- is there something on my face?”

Kurt shook his head and gave a small smile, “Just- not bad,” he said gesturing to Blaine’s figure.

The other boy dropped his hand blushing bright red, “So, uh, what do, er, you do next?” he said rubbing the back of his neck and staring hard into the ground. Kurt cleared his throat and broke away from his gaze and draped the fabric around Blaine’s shoulder and pinned accordingly. Blaine bit his lip to keep him from quivering as the other boy pressed a hand on his side as he pinned the fabric around Blaine. Kurt stood straight and grinned at the fabric that clung tightly to the other boy.

Blaine let out a long sigh and stared in Kurt’s deep blue eyes that exploded with happiness. Kurt gripped a pair scissors and began snipping some of the loose ends then jerked his up at Blaine. The other boy looked down at Kurt’s glare that gasped, “Oh, sorry,” he said lifting his arms from his side so that Kurt could snip a loose strand of fabric.

“Done,” Kurt giggled excitedly eyeing the jacket. “Now I just have to sow the rest together. So, Blaine, what do you think? How does it feel? Should I use this fabric for the strips or this?” Kurt rambled then dropped his head and frowned, “Oh, who am I kidding, this design is awful! Just look at you, you’re itching to get out of it, I can tell. Maybe you should go and I’ll through it way and become a hobo”.

Blaine laughed rested a hand on Kurt’s shoulder, “Kurt, you’re such a drama queen!” Kurt looked up at the other boy sadly, “These designs are amazing, Kurt. I’m sure once you sow them together, you’ll think the same”.

The other boy gave a small smile, “You make me want to be your boyfriend,” he laughed nudging him.

Blaine forced a laugh as Kurt backed away and reached for his phone. “Speaking of boyfriends…” Kurt smiled at his phone then dialed a number sitting at the end of his bed. “Hello, darling, I see you left me seven voicemails, I told you I was studyi- stop it!” Kurt blushed and giggled clutching his phone closer to his ear. Blaine lowered his head and clenched his fists tightly in jealousy listening closely. “Babe- yeah, uh… Robbie! He’s right here!” Kurt chuckled crossing his legs and turning beat red. “Tonight? No, my parents aren’t ho- Rob!” Kurt bit his lip listening to the other line, “yeah, I will, love you too”. Kurt grinned and shoved his phone in his pocket then awkwardly stood keeping his legs crossed. Blaine took off Kurt’s design and dressed himself quickly back into the Warbler uniform.

“Blaine, I wanted to thank you for doing this,” Kurt said giving a small smile and packing Blaine’s books in his backpack.

Blaine bit his lip trying hard not to stare at Kurt’s growing problem, “Yeah, uh, no problem,” he said taking his bag from Kurt and slid the strap on one of his shoulders. “Kurt, if you ever need me to, uh, model for you again, I would gladly do it,” he said his eyes firmly on the ground.

“Really?” Kurt asked as Blaine gave a small nod. The other boy pulled a grin and wrapped Blaine into a tight hug, “Thank you, Blaine!” he cheered then gasped as their groins touched. Kurt backed away blushing furiously and stared at Blaine in shock, “Oh God, I’m so sorry”.

Blaine dropped his head and forced a smile, “It’s okay, it- it happens to the best of us”.

Kurt chuckled and studied the other boy, “I’m really lucky to have you as a friend,” Blaine lifted his head to look at the other boy. Kurt’s flushed cheeks over his flawless skin, his eyes burning with emotion. This man could be the definition of beautiful. His singing voice could set anyone to tears, his creative imagination could write a book, talent seeped through every pore. Kurt was probably the single most interesting kid in all of Ohio. His dreams were as far as the Sun yet he would never give up. He was an inspiration that Blaine couldn’t live without. He needed a dreamer to balance out his realism, without Kurt, Blaine mind as well go straight into the family business. No, Blaine wouldn’t settle for ‘easy’ he would fight for his dream with Kurt by his side, he needed Kurt.

“I have to tell you something,” Blaine said inching closer to the other boy.

Blaine folded the newspaper and tucked it under his arm as he stood holding his coffee and walked out of the shop into the crisp January weather ignoring the flakes of snow that stuck to his dark curls. He fumbled with his keys and quickly opened the car door settling in and pulling out of the parking lot and onto the road. Blaine kept one hand on the wheel and the other searching through a compartment of CD’s. His hands found a dusted over mixed CD that firmly held a post-it note to it. ‘Blaine, you need to explore your horizons and listen to ACTUAL music – Kurt H.’ Blaine pulled a bright smile remembering the day Kurt gave him the CD and opened the case, pushing the disc into the slot. Blaine tried hard to bite back a smile as the Kurt’s music filled the car. “Some people can be content playing bingo and paying rent. That's peachy for some people, for some hum-drum people to be, but some people ain't me!” he sang. Blaine stared hard at the road in front of him and lifted the coffee cup taking a long sip before licking his lips and scrunching his face in confusion. Now what were the directions to get to Columbus again?

Kurt rushed into the hotel dropping his suitcase on the ground and setting up his easel. The assistant burst into the room a few minutes later, slamming the door while her arms were filled with multiple rolls of fabric. She breathed heavily quickly running over to Kurt and dropping the bundle at his feet. “How the hell do I make a collection in a week?” Kurt snapped tapping the eraser of his long pencil against his lip and studying the blank piece of paper propped on the easel in front of him.

The assistant grunted resting her hands on her hips, “Do I get a ‘thank you’?” she muttered flopping onto the nearest couch.

“I’m sorry, Quinn, this is- this is just a big mess,” he let out a nervous laugh and began outlining a figure. He retracted his pencil from the paper not getting any spark of inspiration, “thank you,” he mumbled glancing at the almost sleeping Quinn. The girl lifted her head trying to wake herself up by turning her attention to Kurt’s lack of interest to the easel in front of him.

“Remember when you transferred to Dalton Academy and were forced to wear those ugly blazers?” She sighed pushing herself further into the couch. I loved the blazers, Kurt thought smiling as he lifted the pencil and began working. This is why he asked Quinn to be his assistant. She always knew how to get Kurt back on track, had a great sense in style, and was the perfect portable model Kurt had. Quinn tuned he head to a comfortable position the closed her eyes falling into a deep sleep. Another perk to this ordeal was that she was a very heavy sleeper, “Some people can be content playing bingo and paying rent. That's peachy for some people, for some hum-drum people to be, but some people ain't me!” Kurt sang quietly tracing his design then picked up several of the fabrics Quinn bought and draped them over the easel.

He squinted and stoked at the red fabric he held up to the drawing then grabbed a pair of scissors from his sewing kit and began cutting the fabric into a shape of a bird. Kurt smiled at the small design and knelt down thumbing through more fabrics that were scattered on the floor until he picked out every piece to go with the outfit. As his hands set out to work, Kurt was in a zone, blocking out everything around his pushing all of his focus to creative thoughts for his designs. Hours slipped by as he cut and sew the designs together while jotting down ideas on the side of the paper as he went along. After he was content with a few of the outfits he designed, he sighed and draped some of the fabrics for his next outfit over his shoulder. His eyes landed on Quinn’s sprawled body that snored softly.

He gripped a roll of yarn and threw it at his sleeping assistant. “Uugh,” she groaned wiping her drowsy eyes and curling her body into a ball trying to fall back to sleep. Kurt giggled at the flopping body and handled another roll of yarn and threw it harder at her. The girl jerked her head in Kurt direction, “What the hell?” she growled gripping onto the couch tightly.

Kurt walked over to her as she sharply glared at him while he tugged lightly at her loose fitting clothes, “I need my model right now,” he said calmly.

Quinn grumpily swung her legs to the side of the couch stomping her feet onto the carpeted floor and stood pulling off some of her layers and stood in the middle of the room tapping her toe impatiently, “Be glad you’re paying me for this”.

Kurt pulled the thick fabrics up to her body and cut them according to her size. Quinn yawned as the boy held several needles with his lips and pinned the fabrics to tightly fit her body. “I swear, if this makes me look fat-,”

“You won’t,” Kurt interrupted lifting his head to Quinn assuring, “trust me”. Quinn scuffed her feet and attached a hand firmly to her him. The boy let out a long sigh, “Arm’s out,” he ordered sowing a bird to the side of the navy blue blazer. Quinn obeyed shuffling her feet on the ground, “Geez, Q, will you ever sit still?” he ask annoyingly.

Quinn glared at Kurt before replying, “Will you ever be finished? You’ve been pinning these stupid birds on me for eons,” she grumbled gesturing to the couple of birds that were sown to the blazer.

Kurt straightened and gave Quinn a worried look, “Are the birds too much?” the girl broke into a smile.

“Kurt, no, the birds are fine; I’m just tired and hungry from the flight”. Kurt sighed in relief and began pinning again, “You know how I get when I’m hungry,” she warned letting out a soft chuckle.

Kurt giggled and slipped pulled more pins and stuck them in his mouth, “Oh I know,” he mumbled giving a muffled laugh around the pile of pins that were tightly held between his lips as he knelt down to pin Quinn’s skirt.

A knock sounded at the apartment as Kurt accidentally pricked himself with a pin. “Ouch! Just a minute,” he called lifting himself to his feet and speed walking to the door on the other side of the large hotel. Kurt stumbled to open the door and gave a smile while the pins were still tucked into his mouth. Kurt’s mouth dropped and set the several pins to the ground as he saw the man behind the door, “Blaine?”