Chapter 2

"So, Chris, I heard for the movie settings, you actually drove aimlessly around in America and filmed wherever Ryan Murphy wanted to."
Chris Colfer nodded, leaning back into the slightly uncomfortable seat. The interviewer, quite a newbie he thought when he watched her fidget a bit and look at her cards a bit often, gave him a shaky but encouraging smile. Laura, as she insisted he´d call her, reminded him of a lost deer and he decided to help her a bit by being extra chatty and nice. "Right, right. One day the whole crew went out to a field trip through America and after hours and hours of pointless driving around, he finally said he found the perfect corn field for the scene.""What was special about it?"He smiled, crossing his legs."I actually have no idea. He just came storming into the bus me and another actor slept in and shouted ´Get up. This is it. This is our cornfield. It was made for the movie.´. Whatever he saw that we didn´t, it seemed to have worked well."The interviewer nodded a bit too often and smiled too widely, before she realized that she needed to ask the next question to not let the interview run too long without a conversation. "Uhm-" A shuffle of her cards here and there, then she found the right one. "Indeed it has. One week in and ´Don't ever look back´ is predicted to be the movie of the year. Thousands of people have already seen the movie and loved it. One thing that has been mentioned in almost every critique was the incredible chemistry of you and your co-actor Darren Criss."A small laugh escaped Chris´ lips as he nodded as if he had heard that several times. "How would you describe the situation of you two on set? A lot of your fans really want to know if the chemistry between you two is merely that of your characters Kurt and Blaine, or if there is more."Suddenly she seemed to be very interested in his answer for what appeared to be personal reasons. She even leaned forward, capturing him with her widened eyes."Darren is a great actor and I consider him a close friend. Hearing that people think the characters we play have the effect they are supposed to, shows that our hard work has paid off though. That was what we were aiming for.""So there is nothing more than friendship between you two?"
____________________________Blaine couldn´t believe that he was actually sitting in a red Chevrolet, ´A 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza´ as Kurt had unkindly informed him. Next to him was the boy he had helped with the theft of Twinkies, not saying a word while they listened to a Country radio station. It had taken the whole way to Kurt´s car to convince the boy to keep him some company, at least for a while. Whenever Blaine presented new arguments in favor of them being a team, he was shot down. What exactly it was that had made him change his mind , Blaine wasn't sure, but he wouldn´t pay that too much attention. For now he was content with being alone with his thoughts. He glimpsed over to Kurt, whose eyes were fixed on what was in front of him, while an unlit cigarette dangled between his lips, courtesy of Blaine. The situation he found himself in was tricky. On the one hand he wanted to have a friend after being alone had choked the social boy more than once, on the other hand he didn´t know how to act.There was no way he wanted to go back to the boy named Blaine Anderson, with his gel and bowties and discussions over Vogue. He just wasn´t sure if by changing his attitude, he would build this unusual friendship on a foundation of lies. That was a big reason why he was grateful that Kurt wasn´t in the mood to talk, even if country music was not the alternative Blaine would have chosen.What would the new Blaine have chosen? Rock music? Was rock badass enough? Did rock fit the image of a runaway and thus not the image of an Anderson? Again he found himself looking over to Kurt, at the jeans that did not seem purposely ripped up close and the leather-jacket that was barely held together with mismatching stitches. But if this was what a badass runaway should look like, why did they listen to country right now, Blaine wondered. With the shake of his head he tried to clear his thoughts to have this soliloquy at a later time.

"That your car?" He was asked and forced himself to focus on his surroundings again.

There at the side of the cornfield that now appeared to be orange in the light of the setting sun, stood his own car. It was black and he probably should have known from what firm, but he didn´t. Former Blaine hadn´t really cared about cars, he had merely been happy that it looked okay. Manly, as his father would have put it. "Yeah." Blaine undid his seatbelt and was about to get up, when he noticed that Kurt hadn´t moved an inch yet."Are you not going to come too?"Kurt still looked at the street in front of his eyes, before reluctantly raising his head to meet his gaze."What for?""Well for, I don´t know. We could talk and get to know each other. Maybe come up with some plan on where to go from here on. I have a tent that would barely fit two people but we could make it work until we find a better solution."

"We already have." Kurt said.

"What?" Somehow he doubted he did a good job at hiding his true nature. It was all Kurt´s fault he decided. That damn boy with this air of mystery around him and that badass behavior Blaine unsuccessfully tried to mirror."We already have a plan. Get your car and follow me."Kurt had so much authority in his voice that Blaine was tempted to comply, but then he got a grip on himself. "Wait, what is our plan? Why not talk this over and do it tomorrow after we know more of each other than just our names?""The plan is that you do what I say, because you have had the nerve to beg me to stick together. So you damn well better follow me, or you can go back to being alone. Your choice." Kurt lit his cigarette, again with a lighter burrowed from Blaine and blew the smoke right into his face. He coughed and considered really staying away from Kurt and all he entailed. He´d find someone else he could be friends with, he told himself. Despite of that, he finally went over to his car, checked if everything was still where he had left it and then he followed Kurt who sped ahead. Because deep inside of him, he wasn´t as sure that he would find someone else. At least not someone like Kurt and it had yet to be determined if that was a good or a bad thing.After a short drive through the most uninhabited parts of the southern US, Blaine noticed Kurt slowing down at what seemed to be a motel straight out of a ghost town. Its gray façade threatened to give in under all the cracks and the windows were dirty and milky instead of see through. The motel sign had seen better days and in the last rays of this days sun, the block letters glowed to let anyone know that this was in fact a:_ O_EL. There was no way he would pay for something that was even worse than a night in a tent. Kurt could do whatever, he would not set a foot in that building as he was in no way suicidal.Ten minutes later, he found himself inside the lobby having given in to the persuasion of Kurt. He sighed at being played so easily, causing Kurt flash him a knowing smile. Asshole. Definitely a good thing there was just one Kurt Hummel.

"Hey, whaddya want?" The man behind the wooden counter asked. He had long, greasy grey hair and a beard that matched its lengths. With sunken eyes he looked between the two of them.

Blaine opened his mouth to answer, but Kurt was faster. "A room for two for the night. A shower and dinner.""Can ya pay?"Kurt nodded, suddenly shoving Blaine a bit forward."Of course. Brad, pay with the money mum gave us."Startled at the fake name and the mention of his mother, he pulled out his wallet."What will it be?""20...no 30.""20, don´t mess with us." Kurt said. Then he snatched the wallet out of Blaine´s hands, handed the owner his money and returned it. The key he was handed indicated that they had to get upstairs to room number 341. With no luggage, both of them made their way up, ignoring the homophobic slurs of the owner.The inside of room 314 was as the outside had promised it would be. Small, shabby, the double bed barely able to fit both of them and the TV was ancient enough to make him doubt it would work. Kurt did not seem to think the same thing, as he sighed while throwing himself on the bed. "A bed. Finally." Kurt sighed.

"I am honestly not sure if this is worth 20 $. My 20 $ I might add."

Kurt looked at him funnily, his expression sad before he seemed to contain himself and was back to his nonchalant and dismissive demeanor. "Well not everyone has the luxury of a tent and a car with a rooftop that works. Do you have any idea how my back aches after a night in my car?"Blaine nodded, remembering Kurt´s car. "Then why not save my money by sleeping in the luxury that is my tent?""Don´t question me." He then got up and passed the room."I´ll go shower, while you order our food."And like that he was gone, leaving Blaine wanting to punch something and preferably Kurt. The bed squeaked when he sat down and picked up the telephone that surprisingly worked. There was no point in mulling over all the reasons that screamed at him to get lost. The two hours, just two hours really, he had known Kurt, he came to understand that his need to belong was bigger than his displeasure with the irritating boy. Blaine wasn´t stupid though. If Kurt turned out to be the asshole he came off as without more to him than that, he´d be gone for good. The voice at the other end of the line was undoubtedly the motel owner´s, who promised to be up with their dinner in twenty minutes. Then he hung up on him.Waiting for Kurt´s return and the surprise that would be the dinner, he lay down. The ceiling had many stains for no apparent reason, but a coppery brown one was what worried him the most. He gulped at the thought of the possibility that someone had died in here and was relieved when Kurt entered the room. Looking at him though, only dressed in his underwear, made Blaine gasp. Kurt rolled his eyes at his reaction and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "What? Has your erectile dysfunction been cured by me already?"

Blaine shook his head, sitting up."No. But you-"

"You look awesome? Geez, thanks. I am almost sorry to disappoint you that this view will only be available for a limited time span. I just didn´t have a towel and need to dry before I can put my clothes back on." Kurt explained, before leaning against the wall. There was a moment for everything, Blaine knew that, and right now was not fitting to tell a stranger he wanted to befriend that he looked like a skeleton. He just hoped he would have this moment, before Kurt really ended up as dead as he looked."Okay. Our dinner will be up in a few minutes. Want to get to know each other meanwhile?"Kurt raised brow that reached up to his wet bangs that clung to his forehead. His arrogant demeanor crumbled a bit at the edges, making his casual stance into one of self-protection. "And how do you suggest we do that? You telling me when you are on your period and I tell you I don´t have one, or what?"Blaine snorted, obviously surprising Kurt at that. "No. We could do the legendary twenty question thing. You ask me, I answer and then I ask you and you need to answer.""Lame."Kurt feigned to yawn."There is no challenge in that. It wouldn´t make me want to tell you anything."As if the scarce interior of the room could help, Blaine scanned his surroundings for an answer. Apparently he thought long enough to bore Kurt, who put on the same jeans he had worn before. Without knowing so, that was what triggered a new idea in Blaine´s head. A one that was more ´challenging´."Okay. How about we have to fulfill a dare for every answer we demand?"

Kurt cocked his head in confusion and Blaine hurried to give further details.

"For example: Whenever I ask you a question that you have no problems answering, you challenge me to do something simple. If I complete the task, you have to answer truthfully. That way we won´t step over each other's boundaries, because harder task are much more difficult to do and when we fail, we won´t get any reply." A few seconds passed that increased the doubt in Blaine, but finally, Kurt nodded. He even had a small smile on his face that ultimately fit better than the frown he frequently wore."Okay, but no cheating. Easy task for easy questions, otherwise it doesn't make much sense." Again, Kurt nodded.Both were seated on the small bed, looking at each other in the dim lighting of a lamp that flickered from time to time. Kurt still didn't wear anything on top, making it harder for Blaine to avoid looking at the sharp angles of his bones, but also at the tempting milky skin."Let me start." Kurt said, this time actually a question mark in his voice. Blaine gave an affirmative sound. "Since when do you live on the streets?"That was an easy one, so Blaine said: "Put on your shirt and I will tell you.""Why such an easy task?" Kurt asked, having put on his blue sweatshirt."No-uh. It´s my turn to ask. But the answer to the actual question is: A month now. Happy anniversary to me. Yay."While Blaine smiled at his attempt to make his situation lighter, Kurt seemed almost angry. He was quick to loosen the tension by continuing. "Where are you originally from?""Thirty push-ups!""Are you kidding? Thirty?""Thirty or no answer" Kurt replied.In the end he did his thirty push-ups, just to prove a point and waited for his answer while he tried to control his breathing. "I was born in Texas, but the past 4 years before running away, I lived in Ohio." Blaine nodded, not wanting to blurt out that was from Ohio too. "Have you ever done anything remotely against the law?" "If you manage to guess the first letter of my second name on eight tries, I will tell you." Blaine answered. A big part of him hoped he wouldn´t win that challenge, because telling someone who looked as badass as Kurt, he felt ashamed. Blaine had never been a big trouble maker. In fact he was the opposite with how he always thrived to please his father and be the angel his mother wanted to see. Only once he had stepped out of line and that was not something he could brag with to someone like Kurt. "Challenge accepted. According to your girly surname, no offense, I think your second name starts with a fancy Q." Blaine shook his head. "Well, alright. A B? For Blaine Blaine? That would actually be sort of a cool gangster name. Like Bling-Bling." Kurt looked at him, smiling when he saw the confused look on his face."No? O? T? Oh come on. P? E?" "Only two tries left." He said, laughing at Kurt´s angry expression. "S? Fuck you. This bet was lame." Blaine nudged him a bit and Kurt seemed to be deep in thought. He looked at Blaine, as if he could guess his second name that way, before opening his mouth for the last try."Drumroll! It is an L?""Ha!" Blaine pointed at him and suppressed a laugh when he was met with a sour face. "You have lost this one. Now you will never know of my criminal record." Kurt shrugged, picking at his nails. Being used to winning, Blaine was also used to the faces of the competition that had lost. And Kurt was not a good loser. "Hey, don´t be unfair at the next round just because you are not a good guesser, alright? My next question is actually more of a task. Ready? Write a short poem about your topic of choice. But it has to rhyme." "Fine." Kurt stood up, grabbing a pen. "Before I do that, you need to tell me your second name." He should have known that Kurt would do exactly that. Well, he wouldn´t be as stupid as to fall for it even if it meant, and that hurt him deeply, losing. "Forget it! I won´t make it that easy." "Your choice. No poem from me then. And you have missed the opportunity of a lifetime, since I happen to be a great poet." Kurt said. "Sure." He decided to continue before Kurt could close off again. He liked seeing the man joke, even though it was a little on the crude side. "Ask way.""Okay. Why did you reject me in the store?"Blaine blushed, remembering the way his body had turned warm under Kurt´s lustful gaze. He didn´t want him to know, because the truth would probably insult Kurt. "Do a headstand and tell the alphabet backwards in under 60 seconds." Kurt nodded, a confident smirk on his lips. Then he went over to the next wall and tried to do a headstand, using the wall for support. Fortunately for Blaine, he wasn´t even able to do that, using up all his time while trying to balance his weight on his head and palms. Blaine would have laughed if it weren´t for the shirt that slipped down, revealing the fragile body that indicated the reasons for Kurt´s less than stellar performance. Having lost this challenge, Kurt returned to the bed, his teeth grinding.Blaine hurried to move on. "I guess it´s my turn again. And I want to know what the most important object to you is right now? Like, the thing you grabbed when you ran away because you couldn´t leave it behind?""Pff. We can´t all be sentimental crybabies, Blaine." Kurt answered, his smile slowly returning with the insults he knew how to throw. Blaine rolled his eyes."If the answer is that easy, just give me an easy task." "Fine. I want you to go down to the car and grab your cigarettes, because I can´t handle a whole evening with you without nicotine to calm my nerves. And while you´re at it bring the Twinkies. I feel like a pregnant lady with a serious case of the munchies." Well, you don´t look like one, Blaine thought before doing the task. He couldn´t suppress the disappointment when he saw Kurt´s relaxed shoulders tense once he returned. The room was filled with an awkward silence, before the loud tearing sound of Twinkie wrappings disturbed it. It was a good thing that Kurt´s mood seemed to brighten with something in his stomach. "If you laugh about this, I am going to make sure that you won´t be able to chew solid food afterwards." Kurt swallowed the pastry, intently looking at the floor. "When I ran away, I had to be quick and it was sort of a compulsive act. So I couldn´t take much of value, or use thereof, but I grabbed this." He held his left arm up, showing Blaine the cable that was wound around and around his arm, the isolation jacket stark red against his pale skin. Kurt must have applied it again once Blaine had been outside since he couldn´t have taken it with him to the shower. "What sort of wire is that?" Blaine asked, ignoring his own one question only policy. Kurt didn´t seem to bother though. "Taken from a Car." "Why a car?" "It just is, okay?" He snapped, glaring at Blaine. There was more to the cable than he would probably ever tell him, but for now Blaine was okay with it. He had secrets himself.Their game was interrupted by a knock and by the revelation of the food prepared for their dinner. It was some sort of soup that Blaine took a sip of and then blenched at. Kurt was not as picky, eating the soup even though his face did nothing to hide his disgust. Blaine blushed in shame when Kurt looked at him as if he were nuts for declining a warm meal. There it was, the difference between someone who had lived on the streets for a month and someone who must have been homeless for a longer time. It made Blaine wonder if he would be the same in a few months. They played for a while, slowly warming up to each other, laughing and joking around. Hey didn´t talk about the dinner, he just brightened Kurt´s mood in offering his portion and it worked. After an hour Blaine knew that Kurt´s favorite band was The Beatles, that his first kiss had been with a girl in kindergarten who later turned out to be an annoying overachiever, that his biggest injury had been a gaping wound caused by him accidentally stepping into a bear trap in the woods and that he was an only child. The tasks he had to fulfill to get those replies ranged from ridiculous to strenuous. He once had to lick the wall three times, avenging it by making Kurt sniff up some dust. In exchange Blaine revealed that he was slightly superstitious, his biggest weakness was naivety, which Kurt believed in an instant, that he was still a virgin and yes, he did masturbate. For the last ones he had hoped that Kurt would not actually go next door and fake being a salesman of sextoys. Well he did, and Blaine couldn´t stop laughing at what obscene words he used while describing some of the product to a couple who actually did seem interested. They were even disappointed when he said it was a joke. Blaine was still lying on the floor, laughing hard, when Kurt returned. With a raspy voice he answered the question, somehow not feeling as weird about admitting his hands-on performances after Kurt´s act. Both of them lay side by side on the floor, holding their stomachs, sated with the feelings of endorphins flowing through their system. Forgotten was the heaviness of some of their other topics. "My turn, my turn." Blaine giggled, turning to Kurt whose face was suddenly so close to his own."What do you want to be when you grow up? Or have you just had a revelation of you wanting to be a sextoy salesman? Sex and approaching people seem to be your forte." Despite his joke, Kurt sat up, looking somber. It was like he had flipped a switch and was back to the boy he was before their questioning game. Blaine suddenly felt everything around him again, the dirty floor, the stained ceiling and the knowledge that they were not in fact friends. They were not even acquaintances yet."Jump out of the window for that answer."Blaine huffed, having expected something along the line."Fine. You don´t want to answer that." "No. And maybe we should stop. This is getting boring." Kurt then said. "What? One question you don´t want to answer and it makes you close down again? That was not the purpose of this. Are you always going to run away when you don´t feel comfortable?""I said this was getting boring, so shut it.""No." Blaine got up and stood in front of Kurt, poking him once before he flinched because he had felt a bone. "If we want to do this, you cannot treat me like your dog. I am not going to obey every order of you. And if this is your plan of how to get rid of me and to go back to being a lonely criminal, it seems to be working." It felt like the first time Kurt looked at him. Really looked at him, without lust or disdain. He seemed surprised at what he saw and Blaine wondered why. He followed him when he sat back down on the bed again, running his fingers through the now dried and clean hair."I need a cigarette for this." He said and wordlessly Blaine gave him one. While Kurt spoke he did not once look at him, his eyes fixated on the door.
"Don´t assume I will tell you my whole sob story now. I actually don´t really need you. I was fine before you came along." He paused, inhaling once and twice. "It´s just that it would feel wrong abandoning such a puppy like you. Probably would go to hell for that if you died." Another pause. "I´ve been living on the streets for almost a year now. There were months I thought I would starve or freeze and there was the summer I actually found myself wanting to end it all. Living on the streets does that to you." The cigarette landed on the floor, adding to its dirty appearance instead of disturbing anything. No one commented on it when Blaine placed his hand on Kurt´s one, but he saw the corner of Kurt´s mouth twitch. Then he continued telling his story, or at least the parts he wanted to reveal.
"I was not always...who I am now. You would probably laugh at my old me. I was into the whole gay musical things and baking and fashion and stuff. Oh god. Someone like the old me would never have survived out here, so I changed. I became this and there is no way I could go back. But I am not sure I want that to happen to you. When we met today, I thought you were insane for helping me and then even demanding to stick together. I still think you are by the way. No one I know would have followed me."
"Everyone deserves a chance." Blaine interrupted.
"Well yeah. Just not people like me."
They were silent and Kurt did not seem to have any more to say. Blaine gave his hand a squeeze.
"What now? Where do we go from here?"
Kurt finally looked at him, not hiding his puzzlement. "You still wanna go with me?" He raised one eye-brow when Blaine nodded. "Even if I remain the mean old witch you met today? Don´t think I will suddenly turn into a fluff ball.""I wouldn´t dare dream of it.""I will still smoke away all your cigarettes." Blaine laughed. "Go ahead, I don´t smoke." "I am a thief. And I will only leech on your money." He felt the hand under his threaten to pull away, so he only held on tighter. Blaine did not understand why Kurt would list all of his flaws in order to get Blaine to leave until he saw his eyes. In those blue eyes he saw the emotions displayed as if the iris was a clear sea he could see the bottom of. Kurt was afraid. He was afraid to get attached just to lose again. A feeling that Blaine had never considered having before he lost his family. He knew how badly commitment hurt if it was one-sided. And he couldn't let that happen to Kurt. Whatever he did, Blaine would figure out a way to deal with it. He knew that they couldn´t go on with Kurt´s ways, stealing was no option for him and he wasn´t sure if Kurt sold his body. That had to stop and Blaine would see to that one problem after another. What he would not do was leave Kurt under any circumstances. In order to do that he had to set his own sake on the line, but Anderson or not, Blaine had always won the things he had set his mind on. He would help Kurt and himself. "Kurt, stop. I know you are not flawless, because neither am I. Please believe me when I say that I will never let you be alone again. Ever." Kurt did not seem to trust his words, but he didn't fight them either and that was enough for now. His rigid stance didn´t loose for the rest of the night, but he didn´t pull his hand away. For the night they shared a bed, their backs pressed together to fit into the tiny space. Even at that Blaine could feel Kurt´s sharp shoulder blades and decided to make sure they´d at least had something to eat in the future, if nothing else. "What are our plans for this week?" As hoped, Kurt gave a real answer this time."We´re going to visit a friend of my family who lives in New Orleans and take it from there." "Why?" Blaine didn´t move, afraid anything would break the fragile state they were in."What are we trying to do? Find jobs and someplace to stay there?" "No. We´re looking for someone I have lost." "And then-?" Kurt cleared his throat."Then we´ll find our home." There was no way Kurt could see with his back to him, but Blaine nodded. His eyes were now closed, ready to dream of the promise Kurt´s voice held. He was just about to drift off, when he heard him say something. It made both of them laugh and loosen their hard muscles a bit. "Don´t try anything, Blaine. No one gets away with turning me down. Even though I would understand if you´d have trouble resisting my hot piece of ass." In response, Blaine delivered a light kick to the legs behind his own after they had calmed down. "Goodnight, pervert." "Goodnight, virgin Mary."