In the morning it was his headache that woke Blaine. A dull throbbing in his temples and a throat so dry it seemed he hadn’t had any water in months. He opened his eyes and saw he was still on the floor where he fell asleep next to Kurt. He was quite sure they’d made out before going to sleep, but the previous night was a little hazy.

Kurt was gone, and so was the sheet that covered their improvised fort. Blaine groaned, partly because of the hangover he was suffering from, and partly because he wished he’d woken up with his best friend by his side.

‘Look who woke up,’ Kurt’s voice came from the small table by the window, and not half a minute later he was kneeling on the floor between the beds with a glass of water and a couple aspirin in his hands. ‘I bet you need these.’

‘Yeah, I do,’ Blaine mumbled, rubbing his forehead and sitting up with some difficulty. He grabbed the water and pills, swallowing everything in one huge gulp.

For a moment they stayed silent, Blaine trying to establish whether the sensation of Kurt’s lips kissing his and Kurt’s hand cupping his neck to hold him closer was true, not just a strangely realistic dream. Meanwhile, Kurt was thinking hard to find a way to find out whether his friend remembered what happened.

‘I guess I’m gonna have to keep a closer eye on your alcohol consumption,’ he said finally, glancing sideways at Blaine.

‘What do you mean?’ Blaine’s heart began racing frantically in his chest, making him feel even worse.

‘Do you know the last two times you got drunk?,’ he asked cautiously.

Blaine took a moment to recall the instances Kurt referred to and nodded.

‘And do you remember what they had in common?,’ Kurt prodded again.

‘Not really,’ he mumbled, his brain not quite linking the facts.

Kurt sighed. So Blaine didn’t remember. Those kisses, those roaming hands, the abandonment of all inhibitions, they were all a side effect of all the beers Blaine had drunk the night before. It wasn’t a sign of Kurt’s love being reciprocated. It was just a stupid thing they did when Blaine wasn’t in full control of himself. Kurt should’ve guessed that.

‘Well... It seems that whenever you’re drunk, you- You kiss people,’ he said.

‘So we- kissed?,’ Blaine asked, already knowing what the answer was going to be.

‘Yup. But it’s fine,’ Kurt hurried to assure him. ‘I don’t mind at all. We’re fine.’

Telling him how much it hurt to hit the ground after flying up as high as he did the previous night was pointless. It was a mistake that Kurt hadn’t stopped Blaine earlier. It was stupid to kiss him back at all. They were not going beyond being friends, and Kurt had to finally stop pining. Otherwise, he was sure he’d explode, sooner or later.

Blaine thought he could just as well have been stabbed in the heart. The hangover was nothing in comparison to how Kurt’s words hurt him. He was sure Kurt didn’t intend it, but that didn’t make the heartbreak any less painful.

‘I’m sorry, anyway. I shouldn’t have,’ he mumbled. ‘I’m never getting drunk again.’

‘Never say never,’ Kurt said, getting up to his feet. ‘Only next time make sure there’s someone you really want to kiss around.’

Before Blaine could react, Kurt disappeared in the bathroom, tears building up in his eyes.

‘But I really wanted to kiss you,’ Blaine whispered, staring at the closed door that separated him from Kurt.

***

They were supposed to meet Cooper at the Santa Monica Pier. It was one of the stops they wanted to make in California anyway, and Blaine didn’t mind having his friends around for moral support, just in case.

It was almost noon and the sand was scorching hot from the sun. The ocean wasn’t quite as picturesque in the full glare of a summer sun, and the beaches crowded with half-naked people. Neither Kurt nor Blaine seemed anywhere near as happy as they were last night. Rachel was watching them closely, wondering what had happened that made them this sad.

Finally, when she and Kurt were left a little behind in picking their way through the beach, she grabbed his arm to slow him down.

‘What’s going on?,’ Rachel asked in a hushed voice.

‘What? Nothing’s going on.’ His gaze drifted automatically to Blaine, which Rachel did not fail to notice.

‘Kurt, I can see you’re upset. You and Blaine.’

His eyes snapped back to her in shock.

‘Okay, I might be upset, but he’s just hungover,’ Kurt said.

Rachel wasn’t going to leave it at that.

‘So what happened?’

‘Rache, it doesn’t matter, okay?’

She halted, her grasp on Kurt’s arm not loosening one bit.

‘Tell me.’

Kurt bit his lip, glancing ahead at their friends some meters ahead of them.

‘We kinda- made out.’

Rachel’s eyes bulged.

‘What?! Why are you sad then?’

‘Rachel, he was drunk. He kissed you when he was drunk, did you think it meant something?,’ he asked.

‘But you’re not me, Kurt! He was drunk, which means that he probably didn’t think about possible consequences, and he just really wanted to kiss you! Didn’t you think about that?’

For a moment, he could only stare at her. He had thought about that, only to dismiss it within a couple of seconds. It didn’t really count for a true consideration of that, so he shook his head.

‘See? It doesn’t have to be the end of the world. He might actually like you back.’ Rachel smiled widely at him.

‘Okay. I told you. Now, come on, we have to catch up with them.’

***

‘Squirt!,’ Cooper yelled from many feet away, and Blaine could feel a deep blush creeping onto his cheeks.

‘Hey, Coop,’ he said, when his brother trotted up to them and caught him in a bear-hug.

‘Still no growth spurt, huh?’ Cooper took his little brother by the shoulders and studied him for a second. ‘And still lots of gel?

Blaine nodded uncomfortably; he knew exactly what his flaws were, thank you, very much, bro. He turned around to wave his hand at his friends.

‘These are my friends, Kurt, Finn, Rachel, Puck, Santana and Brittany,’ he recited pointing everybody out.

Santana and Brittany were staring with a mixture of awe and shock.

‘You’re the guy from those commercials, you know- free credit, blah, blah,’ Santana said.

‘You’re like a prince,’ added Brittany.

‘Thanks.’ Cooper flashed his ridiculously white teeth. ‘Want an autograph?’

Blaine was already tired of his brother’s self-absorbedness. A minute of that was enough.

‘Coop, maybe later, okay? We haven’t seen each other in- years, really, so-‘

‘Sure, Blainey.’ He turned to the whole group. ‘How about Pacific Park, guys?’

Enthusiasm was unanimous, as they started making their way down the crowded pier to the amusement park. Finn and Puck ran straight to the arcade, while Brittany and Santana made their way further into the park. Kurt hesitated.

‘Blaine, do you want me to stay? I guess I should give you and your brother some time,’ he said quietly.

‘Okay, I’ll find you later,’ Blaine mumbled, his attempt at a smile faltering.

Kurt squeezed his arm to reassure him and turned to Rachel.

‘Wanna go to the rollercoaster?,’ he asked her.

She took a glance at the Anderson brothers, then back at Kurt.

‘Are you sure he’ll be fine?’

‘Yes. They have issues, but I have a feeling they need to talk. He can talk to me later, if he needs to.’

***

The pier was a longer walk than Blaine had expected. Or maybe it just seemed that way because of the silence persisting between him and Cooper and he was beginning to regret he let Kurt leave.

‘So... How’s living with Aileen?,’ Cooper asked at last.

‘Cool. She’s been- really great, actually.’

‘Blainey, why did you even move out?’

It was obvious the whole story must have gotten lost in the mail, and it made Blaine snort. That was so much like his parents he’d be surprised if they had told Cooper everything.

‘What did Mom and Dad tell you?,’ Blaine asked.

Cooper shrugged, his eyes focused at the horizon before them.

‘That you wanted to switch schools, ‘cause you had friends in Lima,’ he said.

‘That’s true. Though back then it was more like a friend.’

They reached the end of the pier and Blaine leaned on the railing. A soft breeze was blowing from the ocean, making the sun a little more bearable.

‘Kurt? He was that friend?’

Blaine turned hastily back to Cooper.

‘Yeah, how did you know?’

‘I know we’re not really close and there’s the age difference and all, but I know my brother. You looked totally smitten.’ Cooper grinned at him.

Blaine rolled his eyes.

‘We’re friends, Coop, not boyfriends.’

‘Right. And I’m Elvis. Even if you’re not together now, you will be.’ He paused, a corner of his mouth twitching up. ‘Sooner rather than later.’

‘You think so?,’ Blaine asked quietly.

‘Sure, squirt, he’s head over heels for you.’ Cooper chuckled. ‘He didn’t really look at me for more than a second, because he was too busy staring at you.’

At this point Blaine had almost forgotten he hadn’t seen his brother since his move to LA, and everything between them was just the way it used to be. Cooper was still self-centred and cocky, but deep down cared about his baby brother, even when he dropped those annoying reminders of all his shortcomings in front of his friends.

‘You still haven’t told me why you moved out,’ Cooper prompted.

‘Why do you think?,’ Blaine snorted.

‘Dad was being an ass about you being gay?,’ the older brother ventured.

‘Sorta.’ Blaine shrugged, but there was no way of convincing Cooper his brother wasn’t still hurt by that, even if just a little. ‘Dad was an ass, Mom acted like nothing was ever wrong, and I wanted to be around people that cared about me.’

For once, Cooper was completely serious.

‘So it’s better now?’

‘It is. I mean, some pretty bad things happened, but you know, nothing out of the ordinary for Ohio.’

Cooper frowned.

‘You mean... Like that Sadie Hawkins?’

‘No, not that bad, but kinda- yeah,’ Blaine muttered. ‘They didn’t tell you that either, huh?’

‘No, they didn’t.’ Cooper put his hand on his brother’s shoulder in a comforting gesture. ‘I’m not really surprised you moved out, to be honest.’

Blaine looked up at him in shock; that was probably the last thing he expected to hear from his brother.

‘Seriously?’

Cooper leaned on the railing next to Blaine, fixing his eyes again on the faint line where the ocean met the sky.

‘They weren’t always like that, you know?,’ he began. ‘I remember Mom staying with me when I had chicken pox, and she wouldn’t leave me alone for longer than a few minutes. She did that with you, too, at first.’ He glanced at Blaine, who was anticipating a continuation. ‘But then, I don’t know if it was her choice or she simply had to take more hours at the hospital. Dad was rarely home back then, too, but she was home a lot. Until you were like three or four. I never really asked them how that happened. I was just a stupid kid, so I didn’t really pay attention much. Kinda wish I had.’

‘You couldn’t do anything. It’s not your fault our family went to shit,’ Blaine said reassuringly.

Cooper nodded and they fell back into silence, but now it was much more comfortable.

‘Blainey, how about we stay in touch from now on?

Blaine smiled up at him.

‘I’d like that.’