Blaine woke the next morning to the sound of his mother yelling.

“Blaine? Are you still sleeping? You have to leave for school in twenty minutes!”

He bolted upright and grabbed his glasses off his nightstand. He looked at the clock and gasped when he saw the time: 7:21. He usually left for school at 7:40, giving him plenty of time to drive to school and organize his books in his locker before heading to his first class. Leaping out of bed, Blaine tried to pull his head together, but he was scrambling. He threw on some clothes he didn’t think he’d worn recently and ran to the bathroom. He sighed when he saw his hair. Usually his curls got gelled back, but he didn’t have time for that today. He’d have to let them out of their cage. He quickly brushed his teeth, gathered his books, and ran into the kitchen. His mother handed him his lunch, a granola bar, and a mug of coffee. She smiled sympathetically as Blaine grabbed his keys and ran out to the car. He was running ten minutes late now and had to run through the school in order to get to his first class on time.

He ran into English right as the bell rang and slid into his seat in the front row. He grabbed his books and finally took a sip of his coffee. It was cold. Blaine scrunched his nose and sighed.  Coffee was his addiction, and now he’d have to go an entire day without it. He groaned quietly and looked up at the teacher.

His second class didn’t go much better after Blaine realized he’d left the previous night’s homework sitting on his desk at home. By the time he got to his third class Blaine had already labeled the day “The Worst Day of My Life. Ever.” He nearly cried when his history teacher told him they’d be discussing the Holocaust that day. That Rachel Berry girl was in his class and every year when this topic came up she’d spend the entire class lecturing about the injustice of it all. As if everybody else didn’t already know. He let his head thunk to the desk when he heard her voice begging for attention from a few rows back. He spent the entire period willing the ceiling to fall on his head and crush him.

The bell rang mercifully and Blaine all but ran out the door. He kept his pace as he went towards his locker, anxious for the respite of lunch. Not that he ever sat with anybody at lunch or anything, but today that was why he was excited. A full 35 minutes with no teachers, no annoying classmates, no forgotten homework, nothing. A full 35 minutes he got all to himself.

He bent down at his locker and started placing his old books inside. Just as his hand touched his first book for the afternoon, he heard a voice. Blaine froze.

“Um, hello?” The voice said again. “Are you Blaine Anderson?”

Blaine stood up and looked at the source of the voice. It was him. Kurt Hummel was standing at his locker, saying his name. Blaine’s eyes went wide and his cheeks reddened. He felt the strain in his voice before he even attempted to speak.

“Y-yes,” he said, and then cursed himself for how pathetic he sounded. Kurt gave him a concerned look but continued.

“I’m Kurt Hummel. I’m in chemistry this term and, well, I’m not doing very well. Mrs. Peterson told me you’re the one to come to for help?”

“Y-yes.”

“So, will you help me? I’m usually an excellent student, but chemistry…” Kurt trailed off, biting his bottom lip and looking intently at Blaine.

“Y-yes,” Blaine stuttered. Again. “Yeah, yeah I’ll tutor you. I did really well in chemistry.” Kurt seemed to relax once Blaine stammered out a full sentence.

“Good,” he said. “I don’t have glee after school today so do you want to meet in the library after classes?”

“Y-yes. Sure. I’ll see you there, Kurt.” Satisfied, Kurt turned and walked away. Blaine, however, stood rooted to the spot. Oh my gosh, Blaine thought. I’m going to help Kurt study in the library. I’m going to help Kurt. I’m going to spend time with Kurt. He grabbed up the rest of his books before heading to lunch, making a note to himself to do something about his hair after his last class.

            Blaine stood outside the library taking deep breaths to calm himself. He had fixed his hair a little bit, but he couldn’t do anything about the outfit he had picked out so hastily. The stress of the day hadn’t done much to help him, either. He knew he looked like crap, and he was not happy about it. He wanted to impress Kurt, and this might be his only chance. He groaned in frustration before taking one final breath and stepping inside the library. He found Kurt immediately, sitting in the corner with his books spread out and a look of confusion already on his face. Blaine felt his shoulders tense as he approached the table. He cleared his throat.

“Oh, Blaine, thank god!” Kurt gestured for Blaine to sit as he pushed his assignment toward him. “I don’t understand anything. She gave us this assignment but I think it has to do with whatever we were tested on last week. I didn’t really get that either.”

            Blaine looked down at the sheet and smiled—acidity. Feeling more comfortable, he picked up Kurt’s pencil and started explaining. He scribbled on the paper and in the notebook, having to go back a little to help Kurt understand. Kurt and Blaine spent an hour together bent over the chemistry notes and never once broke their concentration. Finally Kurt was smiling and the stress of the homework had disappeared from his face.   

“Wow, Blaine. This totally makes sense now,” Kurt smiled at him. Blaine swooned. “I don’t know what I’d do without you!”

“It’s no problem, Kurt. I’m happy to help.” Blaine flashed what he hoped was a flirty smile before blushing and looking down at his hands.                                                                                             
            “Do you think you could tutor me again next Monday? I’d really like to keep up with this class.” Kurt looked at Blaine hopefully.

“Yeah, of course. I’d love to help you.”

“Here, let me give you my number,” Kurt said as he picked up Blaine’s phone. He tapped his phone number into it as he spoke. “Is it okay if I text you if I have any problems?”

“A-absolutely. I’ll text you quickly so you have mine, too.” Blaine’s eyes went wide at the boldness of his statement, but Kurt didn’t seem to notice. Perhaps he was just being paranoid. That wasn’t too forward, was it? Kurt’s phone beeped and he smiled when he saw Blaine’s number pop up.

“Perfect. I’ll see you around, Blaine. Thanks again!” And with that, Kurt walked out of the library, leaving Blaine stunned and blushing in the corner. They hadn’t strayed from homework, but Blaine thought it had gone well. He hadn’t made a fool of himself, and Kurt actually seemed grateful for his help. They exchanged numbers, and Kurt wanted to see him again. Blaine couldn’t help the smile on his face as he gathered his books and ran out of the library.