Blaine slept in, a good deep sleep after another busy week. Getting up, he pulled on a t-shirt so he wouldn't be only wearing his boxer briefs. But the apartment seemed empty again besides Blaine. 

Having the apartment empty wasn't anything new. Ever since the photography day, there had been a tension, a lack of easiness between Kurt and Blaine. No longer did they share some wine and easy conversation at the end of the day. In the mornings, it seemed as soon as Blaine entered the kitchen to grab some coffee, Kurt was grabbing his mug and taking it with him into his bedroom. They were civil, but had hardly said more than a few sentences to each other. 

Maybe it was just that their work schedules seemed to have doubled as things ramped up for the album. When they were home, they were grabbing quick meals and crashing. Maybe being so tired made them less talkative. 

But Blaine was pretty sure he'd overstepped with Kurt in that damn dirty men's bathroom. How tacky. Who was he, George Michael? But when Kurt had undone the top half of that uniform and had stood there, bare-chested, while he fussed around with the material, Blaine couldn't do anything but stare at all that beautiful exposed alabaster skin. Finally, he was seeing Kurt's chest, arms and shoulders. All those muscles that he hadn't had back in high school. He was still lean, and his muscles weren't bulky, but they suited this new, older version of Kurt.

When Kurt had turned around, Blaine wasn't even thinking as he stepped forward and caught Kurt's lips with his own. Looking back, it was surprising that he hadn't pushed Kurt hard against wall, grinding their hips together as he kissed Kurt deep and hard. He'd been fantasizing of doing that for ages. Still did. 

Kurt hardly spoke to him anymore. Hardly even stayed in the same room anymore. Obviously, Blaine had fucked things up completely. Maybe if he acted normal around Kurt for the next little while, Kurt would realize it was a one-off thing, an error, and relax around Blaine again. If it didn't get better soon, Blaine would have to find somewhere else to stay. This was just too awkward. Blaine sighed loudly and went into the bathroom.

After splashing water on his face, he ran his hands through his curls and tried to tame them a little with his damp hands, with limited success. He poured a huge cup of coffee, sending a silent thank you to Kurt for making a pot before he headed out, and settled on the sofa to enjoy it. 

Pondering if he should actually bother to cook up some eggs or just grab a bowl of cereal for breakfast, his deep thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. 

Blaine put down his coffee and went to the door, but peering through the peephole revealed a guy he didn't know. 

He opened the door. “Hi.” The guy was an attractive young blond, looking over Blaine with surprised ice blue eyes. Blaine blushed a little at the look, thinking that answering the door in underwear and a tee maybe wasn't the smartest thing he'd ever done. 

“Ah… hi. Is, um, Kurt home?” The blond smirked, clearly enjoying Blaine's look of discomfort. 

Blaine shook his head. “No, sorry, he's out and I don't know when he'll be back. Was he expecting you?” 

The blond held out his hand, and good manners had Blaine shaking it by instinct. “Taylor. Kurt said I could come by anytime to pick up my old boxes.”

Blaine opened the door wider. “Oh, Kurt mentioned that. I'm Blaine, an old high school friend of Kurt's staying here for a bit.” 

Taylor walked through the doorway, and looked at the boxes stacked against the wall with a big sigh. “Shit, this isn't all going to fit into the car on one trip.” He reached down a grabbed a couple, balancing them in his arms. 

“Hey man, let me throw some clothes on and I'll help you load up your car.” 

The blond smiled gratefully. “That would be awesome, Blaine. I'll take these down and be back in a minute.”

Blaine went to his room and threw on some old jeans and some shoes. Grabbing a couple boxes, he took them down to the lobby just as Taylor was returning to the elevator. Taylor grabbed the boxes, and Blaine repeated this with a couple more trips. 

“I think that's all that will fit this time.” Taylor panted, struggling to balance the last boxes. 

Blaine helped him straighten them. “Hey, you are looking a little hot from all this work. Want to come up after you put those in the car and have a cold drink, rest a little?”

Taylor nodded. “Sure, that sounds good. See you in a bit.” 

Blaine went back upstairs, leaving the door slightly ajar for Taylor to come in. Going to the bathroom, he grabbed a brush and took a minute to straighten his hair up a little better. Not great, but not sticking up as much. 

“Hello?” Taylor called from the door.

“Hey Taylor, come on in and relax on the couch.” Walking into the kitchen, he opened the fridge. “Water, orange juice, or some green drink stuff?”

Taylor laughed. “Oh god, not Kurt's freaky kale juice shit. Orange juice is fine.” 

Passing a glass over, Blaine settled on the other end of the sofa. “Forgive my curiosity, but those boxes were really heavy. What do you have in them? Books?”

“No, they are some classic vinyl.” Taylor smiled. “I've missed my babies. The other boxes are just pots, pans and clothes. Those things can wait a week or two.”

“Wow, a whole car load just of records? That must be some collection.” Blaine was impressed.

“Yeah, my Dad and I used to spend weekends going to garage sales and flea markets, hunting out great finds. He taught me about so many genres of music, made me love all sorts of obscure shit that nobody else knows.” He shrugged. “I'm a music geek.”

Taylor's face glowed, and Blaine could tell that his music was his passion. He could easily recognize it, after his years of music in college and working in the industry since. Taylor was one of his people. 

Blaine nodded, smiling. He asked Taylor about his favorite records of his collection, and enjoyed hearing Taylor rhapsodize about his subject with zeal. While listening to Taylor, he could tell why Kurt had been attracted to Taylor, and that they probably worked well as a couple, at least for a while. He was attractive, with a slim but muscular body, and his coloring had a bit of a Nordic look, with the light blond hair and sharp cheekbones. He seemed in his early twenties in appearance, but spoke with intelligence and maturity. 

“Shit, Blaine, I've been going on and on. You must be bored stupid. Sorry.” 

Blaine shook his head. “No, no, it's all interesting to me, really.”

Taylor tilted his head to the side, assessing Blaine. “So, what kind of work do you do?”

Blaine shifted on the sofa, crossing his legs. “I'm a musician actually. Currently, I'm working on a songwriting project.” 

The blond nodded. “Ah, now seeing that guitar over by the couch makes more sense. What kind of project is it?”

“Working with Elliott Gilbert.” Blaine wasn't sure if Taylor knew Elliott through Kurt or not.

Taylor nodded. “Kurt and Elliott go way back, but he was never around when I was here. Isn't his newest project supposed to have a Bowie sound to it?”

“It's in the early stages, but we are exploring in that area to see what works.” 

Taylor looked off, his expression distant. “I know it's a bit of a tangent, but I heard Seu Jorge is playing in a couple days at a little place I check out occasionally. Are you familiar with his stuff?”

Blaine nodded enthusiastically. “Oh yeah. Love him.”

“He came to mind because of that Life Aquatic soundtrack. All those Bowie covers done in Portuguese.” Taylor gave Blaine a sideways glance, and smiled. “Well, if you are interested, I'll be going to see him and it would be fun to go with a fellow fan.”

Blaine grabbed his phone. “Yeah, Taylor, that sounds good. Give me your number and send me the details. I should be able to come as long as work doesn't run too late.” It was always good to find people to check out live music with. 

Taylor quickly inputted the information, and got up off the couch. “Well, I'd better head out. It was great talking to you, Blaine.” 

They walked to the door, and Blaine opened it. “Good seeing you too. Any messages for Kurt I should pass on?”

Taylor shook his head. “Nah, nothing really. Tell him I'll be back in a week or so to get the rest.”

***

Blaine ended up making eggs after all, and then had a long, hot shower. As he was leaving the bathroom with just a towel around his waist, he noticed Kurt standing in the living room.

“Oh hi, you're back.” Blaine grabbed the towel at the waist, making sure it wasn't going to slip. If he thought Kurt was going to be around, he would have taken some clean clothes into the bathroom with him. He didn't want things to be any more awkward than they already were. 

Kurt was looking at his chest, and then his gaze went downwards, over the towel and to Blaine's strong bare legs. The look was pretty fast, but when his gaze met Blaine's, he blushed a little, caught. Blaine tried not to show a reaction on his face, but he was inwardly pleased. He'd noticed Kurt enough lately. It was nice to be noticed back.

“Ah, yeah. I had brunch plans.” Kurt turned away, sorting through the mail on the side table.

“Did you notice that the box mountain is more of a hill now?” Blaine waved his free hand towards the wall.

Kurt looked over, nodding. “Oh, that's what felt different in here. I've gotten so used to all the boxes there.”

“Taylor said he'd be back in a week or two for the rest.” Blaine turned and headed to his room to dress, missing Kurt's narrowed eyes on his retreating back.

As soon as Blaine closed the door, Kurt had his phone out, texting.

So, you were over here grabbing boxes, I see. – K

Yeah, got all those heavy boxes of records out of your way. – T

You are lucky Blaine was here when you came by. Next time, text me to make sure someone's home first. – K

Blaine was great! He even helped me lug the boxes downstairs. –T

I just bet he did, Kurt thought to himself.

He's a helpful kind of guy. – K

Um Kurt… would it be weird if I went out with Blaine? With our situation and Blaine being an old friend of yours and everything. – T

Kurt didn't know what to reply. He stared at the screen.

Hmmm… look, if it's weird, we can just forget I brought it up. No worries. – T

Kurt sighed, and then started typing.

No, it's not weird. It's like Dan Savage is always saying… - K

What? ‘It gets better?' or ‘Be GGG'? ;D - T

Haha, no. I meant when he talks about how the gay community is too small for us to consider friends dating ex-boyfriends off limits like straight people do. I don't mind at all. – K

OK, cool. I don't know if he's interested or anything, but we had a great talk about music… - T

Say no more. I know that's your kryptonite, cute boys who know their music. – K

Kurt went into the kitchen and made a salad for lunch. But the whole time, the idea of Taylor and Blaine dating lingered in his mind, bugging him. Why was the thought of them together so disturbing? Taylor and he had been over for months, but the relationship had faded before that point. It had been a very amicable break-up, no hard feelings on either side. Sometimes feelings just sputtered out, and you were left feeling more like friends and roommates than a romantic couple. Taylor had only lived in the apartment for six months total. 

Blaine came out of his bedroom, hair still in damp curls. He was wearing khaki shorts with a red t-shirt that showed off his muscular arms and chest. When he turned and got a glass out of the cupboard, Kurt found himself admiring Blaine's ass in those shorts. Still so round, touchable. Images from the past ran through his mind… of touching that ass, digging his fingers into his skin. 

Shit, thought Kurt. He realized that he was more bothered about the idea of Blaine dating someone than he was about Taylor dating. It was crazy. He and Blaine hadn't been together for almost a decade. Since then, they had both casually dated dozens of men, and had several relationships during that time. 

But was it actually being around Blaine when it was going on, was that the difference? Instead of an abstract idea, it was right in his face, seeing it happen. And then came a scarier thought. 

Was this just old feelings being stirred up, or new feelings towards Blaine? 

***

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N:
***The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou soundtrack features Seu Jorge. Clips from the movie are here.

*** Dan Savages free podcast on iTunes, called Savage Lovecast. Fantastic sex advice. Great 42 second clip of him on Real Time with Bill Maher here.