Nothing really changed between them after that evening they got together. The only difference now was that they were free to act on their impulses and express their feelings towards each other. They could greet each other with a kiss on the cheek in the mornings, hold hands whenever the mood struck them, and cuddle up together on the couch instead of watching each other longingly from a distance. Kurt now stood behind Blaine while he washed the dishes, slipped his arms around his tiny waist and nuzzled at the back of his neck, his cool nose brushing Blaine's curls and nudging at his earlobe. Blaine was able to peck Kurt on the lips as Kurt left for work in the mornings, press a chaste kiss to the corner of Kurt's mouth, then another on his lips, before wishing Kurt a good day. It all felt so natural and easy, like second nature. Blaine had listened to some of his friends on the polo team complain about how difficult dating was, how hard it was to know the right things to say and do, especially in the early days of a relationship. Blaine didn't know if it was because he and Kurt had been friends for quite a period before, if it was due to them being more compatible and destined for each other, or if it was simply because they were both men, but he didn't find it hard to be in a relationship with Kurt at all; it was as easy as breathing.

Something that Blaine took great delight in now was calling the lunchtimes he spent with Kurt 'dates'. And they were now a regular occurrence. Each weekday Blaine would take a break from doing his research and head over to Kurt's work for the start of his lunch break. Then, they would either go to a nearby café together or, on nicer days, walk over to the park nearby to eat a picnic lunch that Blaine had prepared. And these were nothing like the dates his friends used to talk about: no formal, awkward dinners at restaurants, no stiffly polite conversations during walks through a park, none of the scrutiny of relatives while joining the dates' family for tea or a meal. These dates were filled with laughter over stories from Kurt's morning at work or something Blaine had stumbled upon in a book or online, Kurt stealing bites of food from Blaine's plate and then kissing away Blaine's feeble protests, and Blaine resting his head on Kurt's shoulder as they watched the world go by. Blaine felt like he was on cloud nine, and his continuing research into time travel turned into feeling like something he was doing out of pure interest only, fuelled by his curiosity of how he got here and not his desire to return home.

They decided to tell Rachel they were together as soon as it was possible to do so. After not checking with her if it was ok for Blaine to move in and keeping the truth about Blaine from her, they both felt she deserved to know right away. But with Rachel leading such a busy life filled with her performances, parties, and other social events, she was hardly home long enough for them to have a proper conversation with her. On the nights she wasn't staying with friends or Finn she returned home late and tired, heading straight for bed within minutes of arriving, and she was always up and gone before Kurt and Blaine were up in the mornings. So it wasn't until the following Sunday when Rachel had the day off that they had the chance to tell her.

She had just arrived back from brunch with Finn, looking relaxed and happy as she dropped her purse on the coffee table and sat down in the armchair, facing Kurt and Blaine on the couch, talking a mile a minute as she told Kurt how his step-brother was doing and how much he was helping one particular kid in one of his classes at the high school where he taught. Blaine sat and listened politely, feeling on-edge and incredibly nervous while he waited for Rachel's story to finish and for them to get a chance to tell her. Rachel was Kurt's best friend and he desperately wanted her to approve of their relationship. He knew she hadn't been too sure of his trustworthiness to start with, but he was hoping her views of him had changed now they had been living together for a while and gotten to know each other better.

When Rachel's description of how wonderful Finn was came to an end, Kurt shot Blaine a loaded look, an eyebrow raised in question, checking that he was ready. Blaine nodded.

"Rachel," Kurt began before she got the chance to start talking about something else.

Rachel's eyes lit up with curiosity and she leant forwards slightly in her seat, a forearm resting on the arm of the chair. Her eyebrows were drawn together into a tiny questioning frown as she picked up on the seriousness of Kurt's tone.

"We have something we want to tell you," Kurt continued. Blaine felt bad for leaving all the talking to him, but whenever he so desperately wanted a particular outcome for something he tended to stiffen up and become tongue-tied as his thoughts jumbled up into a tight ball he couldn't unravel. Right now he was only capable of stammering his way through a nervous ramble that would never get to the point while he blushed and sweated under Rachel's questioning gaze, so he felt it was best Kurt spoke while he sweated and fretted at his side.

Rachel was glancing between them. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Kurt shook his head. "Nothing's wrong," he assured her quickly. "Everything is far from wrong." He exchanged another look with Blaine, this time smiling at him fondly. "Blaine and I are together. We wanted you to be the first to know."

Confusion settled over Rachel's face. "Wait, I thought you were already dating? Wasn't that a date you were on the night I met Blaine?"

Blaine glanced fleetingly at Kurt. "Well..."

"It was," Kurt agreed. "We went on a few dates around that time, but we've never exactly been..." He paused, searching for the right word. "...Exclusive," he finished.

"We've just been friends all this time," Blaine added. As Rachel hadn't reacted badly to their news his nerves had abated enough for his mind to unscramble itself from the mess it had become in his worry and he could now form a coherent sentence and help Kurt in explaining their situation. "We didn't want to jump into things too soon after meeting and we both had our reasons for not wanting our relationship to become romantic too soon, in spite of feelings saying otherwise."

Rachel nodded slowly, her eyes knowing as she looked at Kurt, understanding his reasons for not wanting to rush into a relationship and seeming to accept that Blaine had reasons of his own. She shot Blaine a meaningful, warning look that Blaine blinked at in confusion; he was sure Rachel would explain later, but right now he had no idea what she was meaning. His nerves rose again, churning unpleasantly in his stomach.

"I can't say I'm surprised that you're together," Rachel said, sitting back in her chair. "I mean, I thought you already were dating, and it's rather obvious how you two feel about each other."

Blaine blinked in surprise: he had thought he was being subtle and discrete with his feelings. He was a little bit disappointed that he hadn't been able to hide them, but, then again, with the exception of one or two men he'd once found attractive, he'd had no practice with being around men he was interested in romantically. He had rather hoped years of pretending to be someone he was not had made him a relatively decent actor, but apparently he was still incapable of hiding how fond he was of Kurt.

"Is it?" Kurt asked, also sounding mildly disappointed.

Rachel turned to him with raised eyebrows and a disbelieving smile, an expression which clearly said 'really?'

Kurt grumbled under his breath as Rachel's smile widened, her expression turning smug. Just as Kurt opened his mouth to say something to her, a loud musical sound began playing from beside him, making Blaine jump. Blaine watched with a puzzled curiosity as Kurt turned away from Rachel, muttering indistinguishably as he fumbled for something in his pocket. When he pulled out a slim black rectangle and pressed it to his ear, saying a greeting into it, Blaine realised it was Kurt's phone that had made the noise - he'd never heard it ringing before.

Blaine stared down into his lap while Kurt spoke on the phone, scratching lightly at the stiff fabric of his new jeans and trying hard not to listen in to Kurt's phone call whilst also avoiding catching Rachel's eye - he could feel her gaze on him from time-to-time.

Kurt ended the call after a few minutes, letting out a huff of frustration as he slid his phone back into his pocket.

"Was that your work?" Rachel asked before Kurt had the chance to speak. "Do they want you to go in?"

"Just to drop off some designs," Kurt replied, getting to his feet. "Some schedules have changed and they need them today otherwise they won't be ready in time for the next collection's release." He looked at Blaine apologetically. "Sorry, I know we had plans, but this won't take long."

They didn't have plans, not really, nothing set in stone anyway, just a few vague suggestions of going to see a show and getting dinner.

"I don't mind," Blaine assured him. "Our plans can wait a few hours."

Kurt took a step backwards towards the hallway. "I'll only be a couple of hours; we'll still have time for a show and dinner."

Once Kurt had disappeared to fetch his designs, Blaine became uncomfortably aware of Rachel's presence. He'd never been alone with her before, except for a few minutes here and there, and Kurt had still been in the apartment then, but now he was faced with a couple of hours of her company. He thought of the look she'd given him earlier and hoped she had plans of her own and wouldn't be here wile Kurt was gone. He wasn't sure he wanted to be alone with her right after she'd learned of his relationship with Kurt.

"Ok, I'm off." Kurt strode back into the room, now wearing a dark coat and with a large folder tucked under his arm and his satchel hanging off one shoulder. He walked over to where Blaine was still sitting on the couch, hesitated, his eyes flicking briefly over to Rachel, before pressing his lips to Blaine's in a soft, chaste kiss. "I'll be back soon." He waved at Rachel and left, the door closing quietly behind him.

The room suddenly seemed ten times larger and a lot quieter with Kurt gone. Blaine abruptly felt awkward, shifting in his seat and crossing his right leg over his left, still avoiding Rachel's eye.

"Well, this worked out nicely; I was hoping to get you alone so I could talk to you," Rachel said brightly, her voice loud in the otherwise silent apartment.

Blaine swallowed nervously, making himself look up at Rachel, not looking forward to whatever was about to come.

Rachel's expression gave away nothing about the tenor of what she was about to say. There was a smile on her face, which Blaine was sure was deceiving; there had been a mildly threatening undercurrent to the look she'd given him earlier.

"There's no need to look so nervous," she said. "I just need to make sure you understand something."

"About Kurt?" Blaine guessed.

"About Kurt," Rachel confirmed. Her smile faded, her expression turning serious as she sat forward in her chair again. She paused, seeming to consider Blaine in silence for a moment, her gaze calculative as she studied him. Blaine fought with the urge to fidget under her stare, feeling as though she were strictly judging each tiny movement and expression he made.

"Kurt's been through a lot," she began soberly, surprising Blaine who had been expecting harsher words of warning than the soft, almost sad ones she was using. "I don't know how much he's told you, but he had a rough time in high school with bullies and then there was the whole thing with his last boyfriend..." She trailed off, her eyes hardening slightly as she continued to watch Blaine closely.

"When Liam left Kurt was a mess; it was heart breaking to witness. To start with he was convinced Liam would return and that they could work out whatever the problem was, then came the horrible period where Kurt blamed himself for him leaving. But the worst time was after that when he sunk into this state of worthlessness and shut a part of himself off from everyone; it was painful to watch."

Rachel's eyes, though still fixed upon Blaine, were unfocused, seeing her memories of a deeply hurt and guarded Kurt who avoided the outings with workmates and refused the party invites Rachel offered him which he would have once attended. Blaine had heard enough of what happened with Liam from Kurt to know what had happened and how Kurt had felt afterwards, but hearing it from Rachel's perspective shone a whole new light on it and supplied him with images of a hurt and betrayed Kurt throwing shields up around himself.

"It was months before he started doing something other than working and sleeping, before I was able to convince him to come out to dinner with myself and a few friends. I worried he might struggle with trusting another man again and tried to set him up with some guys I knew who were nice and genuine and who I trusted not to screw him around, but..." She shook her head, her gaze focusing on Blaine again. "He never showed any interest - until he met you and suddenly he was gushing about a guy again, all giddy and excited in a way I hadn't seen him in years. And then I saw you two together and he was lit up in a way I don't think I've ever seen before. He was no longer guarded, withdrawn, or pained; he was Kurt."

Blaine swallowed again, not sure how to respond to this, but before he could decide how best to react, Rachel held up her hands.

"Don't get me wrong," she added. "I'm so happy and relieved he's out of the horrible state he was in, but it's because of you, and I don't know you and after everything I just can't really trust that you won't hurt Kurt."

Biting his lip, Blaine nodded. He honestly had no idea what to say. Assurances that he wouldn't hurt Kurt sounded weak in his own head; nothing he could say now would convince Rachel he could never be like Liam.

Rachel ran a hand through her hair in what appeared to be something close to frustration. "I just need to say this: you better not be messing Kurt around. This better not be a fling to you or a free place to stay while you're in New York and then as soon as you're back in Connecticut you ditch him." There was the slightest apologetic hint to her tone, but otherwise she spoke firmly and with a warning note to her voice. "As his best friend, that's something I needed to say."

Blaine shook his head in violent denial. "I'm not messing him around," he blurted. "I really care about Kurt; you don't know how much he means to me, how long I've been searching for someone like him." His eyes searched Rachel's, frantically pleading her to believe him. He couldn't stand knowing Kurt's best friend didn't trust him. He didn't want someone s close to Kurt to be watching him with narrowed eyes, constantly waiting for him to slip up and prove himself to not be the man he was claiming to be.

"I'm dreading my return to Connecticut," Blaine continued, his voice thick with emotion. "I hate that it soon won't be possible for me to see Kurt every day."

'Or at all,' he added in his head, a wave of despair threatening to overwhelm him at the thought.

Rachel sat up a little straighter, her face lit up with interest. "Speaking of which: when exactly are you going back to Connecticut? I don't think I've ever heard you say how long you're in New York for."

"Uh-" Blaine was lost to panic of not having a clue how to answer her for only a second or two until his brain luckily provided him with a suitable answer.

"I'm not sure how long I'll be here," he told her smoothly, once again only twisting the truth instead of inventing a whole new story. "Learning my friend has moved out of state threw my plans off and as I have Kurt in my life now I want to stay here as long as possible, so..." He shrugged.

When he would leave was by far the trickiest question she could have asked him. He couldn't even guess at a date he may leave on, and with his arrival here being so unpredictable he guessed leaving would be as well. He could be here for another hour or for another ten years - he had no idea, and with no leads on learning about his time travel, he didn't expect to be able to guess at a leaving date any time soon. And this all posed a rather large problem: Rachel would be expecting a leaving date at some point and if he was still here in a few months with no signs of leaving she would get suspicious, likewise if he suddenly disappeared out of the blue.

And that was another thing: what would Kurt tell Rachel when he did leave and he was never able to contact him again?

Reminding himself to talk to Kurt about that later, Blaine turned his attention back to Rachel as she spoke.

"I thought you were at college? Don't you have to be back for that?" She frowned as a thought struck her. "Should you even be away from classes now?"

Once again, Blaine thought quickly. "I took this year off to do some travelling." Hoping to avoid more questions, he added, "I was starting here in New York, but my friend moving and meeting Kurt has thrown a wrench in my plans. I have to return to work in my father's company at some point, but I'm not sure when that will be yet."

Rachel nodded, apparently satisfied with his answer and Blaine breathed a silent sigh of relief. She eyed him thoughtfully.

"I didn't trust you when I first met you, mainly because I didn't know you and worried you would hurt Kurt, but you're proving me wrong and I'll apologise to you every day if you continue to make Kurt as happy as he has been lately. I haven't seen him this happy in years, not since our early days in New York before Liam started behaving all stiff and indifferent. Kurt didn't notice these changes. He jumped into the relationship so quickly and when he gives a piece of his heart to someone it's hard for him to let go," she explained sorrowfully. Guilt crossed her features, drawing her eyebrows down into a frown. "I wish I'd told him of how Liam was changing instead of placating myself with him being happy and forgetting it all when I got caught up with NYADA. I'd seen how it would end back in the early days of their relationship, could see the risk of Kurt getting hurt, but I shrugged it off and it's something I deeply regret." Blaine was startled to see Rachel blinking back tears. He knew she cared deeply for Kurt, but he didn't realise she blamed herself so much for what happened with Liam, or that she was still so affected by it after all this time.

Rachel inhaled deeply through her nose, pulling herself together. "I have to say, though, Blaine: If I see anything like that with you, if I sense Kurt may bet hurt again, I will not hesitate to warn him about it and get him out of the relationship before his life is shattered again. Doesn't matter if Kurt's blissfully unaware, I won't make the same mistake again."

Blaine felt appropriately threatened, and it must have shown on his face for Rachel's expression softened.

"I don't mean to sound so distrustful of you," she apologised, "but I don't want to see Kurt heartbroken and wrecked like that. I can't let him go through that again."

Blaine nodded, guilt creeping into his veins as he thought of how he would be leaving Kurt forever sometime soon and how he was going to do so knowing he hurt Kurt. But Kurt had said he didn't care, he wanted this relationship anyway.

He swallowed thickly. "I promise I'll do my very best to never do anything to hurt him," he told Rachel, trying to ignore the memory of 1920s New York that was lingering in his mind.

They made a new lead in researching time travel when Blaine stumbled upon a website discussing a number of stories of old magic in New York. The stories had mostly been dismissed as old wives tales of fairy tales, but one of them spoke of viewing years into the past or future, sounding awfully like time travel. They were too desperate to leave stories like that unturned, despite sounding far too fanciful to contain much truth, and so Blaine looked into it more, searching through countless websites and taking several large books out the local library to look through. Kurt felt that sick, conflicting, hopeful feeling that Blaine would make some progress towards returning home and, conversely, that he was following another dead trail. But the weekend arrived and Blaine had made little progress with his new findings, unable to find enough information to learn anything useful or to scrap researching it.

They had been trying to take weekends off from researching. Blaine was doing so much during the week and Kurt was helping when he got home from work and as a result by Friday night they were both sick of fruitlessly searching through books and scrolling through websites. Weekends were the time they relaxed, went on dates, had a bit of fun, and soaked up modern-day New York.

Cooking breakfast together on the weekends had become a ritual for them at some point. Every Saturday Kurt would shuffle through to the kitchen to find a tousle-haired Blaine pulling ingredients out of the fridge and cupboards. They would then flow into the seamless routine of making breakfast, moving around each other easily in the small kitchen while sometimes being watched by an amused Rachel. Kurt knew Blaine loved banana on his granola but strawberries on his pancakes, while Blaine always made Kurt's coffee just the way he liked it. They had each other's likes and movements in the kitchen down to a T, and it was so domestic it made Kurt's heart swell just thinking about it.

That Saturday, breakfast was made as usual and they had just sat down to it when Blaine looked across the table at Kurt with a small, hopeful smile, his eyes lit up to the light golden colour of soft caramel.

"I want to cook for you tonight," he said.

Brow lowering into a small frown, Kurt gave Blaine a puzzled smile. "Ok - but you nearly always help with dinner."

"No - No, I meant I want to cook a meal for you for a date," Blaine corrected.

"Oh!" Confusion lifting, Kurt tried to control the huge smile threatening to split his face. Nobody had ever done anything like that for him before; Liam hadn't really been a cook so all their dinner dates had been at restaurants. Having someone take the time to cook a meal for him was both new and thrilling. "That's really sweet of you. Tonight?"

Blaine nodded. "Yes, I thought we could have it tonight seeing as Rachel is out. I'll make a three-course meal and get some nice wine to go with it."

"Sounds perfect," Kurt agreed.

"Which means-" Blaine sent Kurt a coy grin, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes "-you need to stay out the way while I cook and get things set up?"

Kurt stared at him. "What?"

Blaine was still grinning. "Well, you can't be around here, otherwise you'll know what I'm doing." When Kurt said nothing, he added, "It's a surprise."

"What am I supposed to do all day?" Kurt asked, feeling a little lost, the rug of his plans for the day having been pulled out from under his feet.

Blaine spread his arms in a wide, encompassing gesture. "Go for a walk, get a coffee, read a book - take the day off for once and relax, you deserve it."

Kurt took in Blaine's hopeful expression, the delight in his eyes at the thought of his plans for their date. Kurt couldn't say no to him.

"Ok, I'll make myself scarce for the day."

Blaine's smile widened.

"But if you need anything, or if you can't work something in the kitchen call me on this number." He jumped to his feet and snatched up the little notebook they kept next to the phone in case anyone called for Rachel while she was out and he needed to take a message. He printed his cell phone number clearly across the middle of the page and tore it out. "That's for my own phone," he explained, handing the page to Blaine. "Call me if you need anything, ok?"

Staring down at the printed numbers, Blaine nodded. "I should be all right, but I'll call you when dinner is ready if you're not back."

Just under an hour later Kurt was dressed and ready to leave. He paused by the front door, hands stilling in the middle of knotting his scarf. He couldn't remember if Blaine knew how to work the microwave. He turned towards the kitchen.

"Blaine..."

Blaine came out the kitchen and smiled in exasperation when he saw Kurt hadn't left yet.

"Get a wiggle on, Kurt. If you want the dinner I planned today then you need to hurry up and leave." When Kurt hesitated, he made a shooing motion with his hands. "I'll be fine, Kurt - really. And if I need any help I have your phone number."

Kurt nodded. "Ok." He took a step back towards the front door. "Ok. I'll see you later, then."

"I'll see you later," Blaine echoed.

Pulling his phone out his pocket, Kurt turned up the volume on it as he left the apartment and headed downstairs in the elevator, just in case he missed it vibrating if Blaine rang. A giddy thrill was beginning to buzz in his veins in anticipation of seeing what Blaine had planned for their evening and he felt light and bouncy on his feet as he crossed the entrance lobby and left his building. Even the dull, cloudy day outside couldn't dampen his mood and the shiver that ran through him from the chilly wind felt only superficial, the cold not reaching the warmth inside him. He hummed softly as he meandered slowly down the street, no real destination in mind, just letting his feet guide him through the city and allowing himself to relax as Blaine had suggested.

His aimless wandering took him past a coffee shop and the delicious aroma of freshly ground coffee beans lured him inside. As he was waiting in line his gaze drifted over to the wide window at the front of the shop and the urge to walk the streets filled him. Usually whenever he walked through the city he had a set destination in mind and a route mapped out in his head, he'd never simply strolled through the streets. The idea seemed peaceful and calming, a way of centring his thoughts so he was able to think properly; he was beginning to understand why Blaine had suggested it.

He got his coffee to go and left the café with an eager stride that slowed to a steady pace when he hit the street. He sipped at his coffee as he wandered through the streets, observing fellow New Yorkers going about their daily business and wondering if any of them felt as happy - as bubbly, gloriously happy - and content as he did. Letting his mind off the tight leash it was normally kept on, allowing himself to think of things other than work and family and Blaine's research, he created a story in his head for the middle-aged couple arguing as they waited to cross a road, admired the artistic abilities of a serious-faced girl sketching a street scene from her spot outside a deli he passed... He let his thoughts flow like water down a rocky hillside, ever shifting direction and following the influences of the surrounding environment, and he felt the small knot of tension created by a stressful week at work loosen and then untie.

Though it hadn't been his original plans for the day, Kurt couldn't deny this had been much needed, and he wondered how Blaine had known.

He didn't start to wonder how Blaine was getting on until the early afternoon when he sat down in a busy café with a light salad for lunch. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he checked to make sure he hadn't missed any calls, though he knew he would have heard if Blaine had called.

There was nothing.

He stared at the blank screen of his phone musingly, the enjoyable morning not allowing him to worry over how Blaine was doing. Instead, he amused himself while he ate by imagining the possibilities of what Blaine had planned for the evening. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he pictured Blaine - forehead scrunched in concentration, tongue peeking out the corner of his mouth as it sometimes did when he helped cook - meticulously chopping vegetables and stirring saucepans as he prepared the mystery meal. A gush of affection poured warm and sweet into his belly at the thought - Blaine was doing all of this for him.

For the rest of the afternoon his drifting thoughts were replaced by ones of Blaine. He remembered what the other man had been like in the early days of their friendship and surprise flickered through him as he realised how much Blaine had changed since those days. Living in the twenty-first century had influenced him greatly; it would be an entirely different man returning to the twenties.

With his mind now focused on Blaine, Kurt checked his phone regularly as he continued to walk around the city. He knew he hadn't missed any calls, but he still wasn't satisfied with this until he had looked at his phone screen and seen no missed call notification. Excitement built up inside him as time ticked by, and the urge to check his phone strengthened until he was pulling it out of his pocket every five minutes or so, but Blaine didn't call until after six in the evening, just when Kurt was starting to worry he may be struggling.

"Blaine?" he said urgently into the phone once he'd whipped it out of his pocket. "Is everything alright?"

"Everything is swell," Blaine assured him. Kurt could hear the smile in his voice. "I'm just calling to request you come home now because I would like to treat you to dinner tonight."

"You've finished cooking?"

"I've finished cooking."

Spinning on his heel, Kurt turned and strode back down the street he'd just been walking along. He smiled excitedly as he hurried towards the nearest subway. "Do I get any clues about what you've made?"

"I already told you: it's a surprise; you'll see when you get home."

"I'm on my way," Kurt told him hurriedly as he dashed down the stairs to the subway. "I'll be twenty minutes, tops."

"I'll see you in a little while, then."

Kurt said goodbye and hung up, keeping his phone clutched in his hand and throwing himself down the last few steps onto the platform when he saw the train standing there. He just made it: the doors shut and the train pulled out of the station moments after he hurried aboard. Gasping for breath, he leant against the wall by the doors and discretely fixed his dishevelled clothing. For the first time since moving to New York five years ago he mentally thanked whoever had been the driving force behind the installation of the subway system. The journey back home was more than halved and with how impatient he currently was to get home, he had never been more grateful for the technology that enabled that to be possible.

"I'm back!" he sang out as he stepped into the apartment. He rushed eagerly towards the kitchen - and came to an uncertain halt.

He had, inadvertently, been expecting an elaborately laid table, candles and flowers, Blaine in a bowtie greeting him with a soft kiss and a glass of wine, but there was nothing, not even plates on the table.

Blaine bounded through from the kitchen, his eyes bright and his face lit up in anticipation. "Good evening," he greeted, kissing Kurt on the cheek. "Go get changed and we can head up for dinner."

"Up?" Kurt repeated in confusion.

Blaine's smile widened. He placed a hand on Kurt's back and gently pushed him towards the hall leading to the bedrooms. "All will be revealed soon. Go and get changed."

Kurt pondered Blaine's words as he hurriedly changed into a button-down shirt and dark dress pants, but he made no more sense of them. He gave up on trying to figure it out as he tidied his hair, deciding to just let himself be surprised.

"I'm ready," he announced, skidding to a stop in front of Blaine, who was standing waiting for him by the couch. Blaine had also changed and was now wearing a blazer over the button-down and bowtie of Kurt's earlier fantasies. Kurt felt a little breathless at the sight: Blaine was so beautiful he took his breath away.

Blaine smiled at him. "For you," he said, moving his right hand out from behind his back and presenting Kurt with a small bunch of red roses.

"Oh!" Kurt was speechless. Wordlessly, he accepted the sweet-smelling roses and gazed down at their plummy, richly-coloured petals. Adoration for Blaine bloomed inside of him in a warm cloud, the sweet, hopeful smile on the other man's face never failed to be endearing.

Touching a silky petal with his thumb, Kurt found his voice again. "Thank you." He stepped forward and kissed Blaine softly.

"You're welcome," Blaine breathed, his words caressing Kurt's lips before he stepped back.

Kurt began moving backwards towards the kitchen. "I'll quickly put these in water and then we can-" Unsure how to finish the sentence, he waved his hand in an encompassing gesture to mean they could continue their evening. He placed the roses in a vase, gave them one last fond look, and then hurried back to Blaine's side, eager to see the next part of his surprise.

Blaine held out his arm when Kurt reached him. "May I?"

Beaming, Kurt slid his arm into Blaine's and allowed himself to be steered out of the apartment and, to his confusion, into the elevator and up to the top floor. It was only when they were heading towards the stairwell that Kurt realised where Blaine was taking him.

"The roof?" he asked in surprise. Had Blaine actually-

Blaine said nothing, pushing open the door leading out onto the rooftop and leading Kurt outside. Kurt's jaw dropped.

Strings of brightly glowing fairy lights had been hung between tall metal stands so they criss-crossed over a table, looking like little stars that had been caught on a wire. The table itself was set for two with a small candle lamp and a vase holding a single rose as a centrepiece. The white tablecloth rippled in the slight breeze and Kurt, gaping at the scene in awe, took a step forward, his gaze landing on a second, smaller table holding a wine bottle and large covered dish set up close-by the first. Soft classical music was playing from somewhere, sounding above the rumble of traffic, squeaking of brakes, and occasional wail of sirens or blare of horns from the roads below.

"You- You set this up for me?" Kurt said in wonder, his voice coming out higher than normal. He dragged his eyes away from the picturesque scene in front of him to look at Blaine, finding his boyfriend watching him closely.

"You deserve it," Blaine said simply.

Kurt stared at him. "I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything." Blaine tugged gently on his arm. "Let's go eat before the food goes cold."

Obediently obeying the pressure on his arm, Kurt walked with Blaine to the table, still completely blown away by what Blaine had done for him. Now they were closer to the table, he could see the napkins were folded in a way reminiscent of a classy restaurant, the cutlery had been polished to a high shine, and the tablecloth had been pressed until it was crease-free.

Blaine let go of his arm when they reached the table and pulled out a chair for Kurt. "Wine?" he offered once Kurt had sat down.

"Yes, please," Kurt replied absently, his gaze still raking the rooftop.

From where he was seated the city's lights looked like another network of multi-coloured stars glittering below those sprinkled across the sky above him, a sky which was rapidly darkening from the pinkish tones of dusk. It was a breath-taking sight, and somehow made him feel as though he and Blaine were in their own little bubble surrounded by the constellations of lights and stars. He didn't think he could have dreamt up a more perfect location for their dinner date.

"Sorry it's not the most ideal weather for this sort of thing," Blaine said, setting Kurt's glass of wine down in front of him and sitting down opposite him. "This would have been better left to summer months, but I really wanted to-"

"Blaine," Kurt interrupted his babbling, reaching across the table to take his hand. "Stop apologising for the weather. This is perfect, I love it."

"You do?" Blaine's eyes lit up hopefully.

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand. "Of course I do. Look at what you've done for me." He waved his free hand to indicate everything from the flickering candle between them to the stars and lights above. "How could I not love it? I feel like the luckiest guy on Earth right now."

Blaine positively beamed at him, his eyes crinkling at the corners, his nose scrunching up slightly. "Let's hope the food doesn't let tonight down." He stood up and lifted the cover off the large plate on the table next to them, before setting a plate in front of Kurt with a flourish. "For starters: Ricotta cheese and chilli stuffed mushrooms."

"It looks amazing," Kurt said as Blaine sat down with his own plate. "Spicy?"

Blaine shook his head. "Shouldn't be - the chilli should add flavour, not heat." He watched apprehensively as Kurt took a bite.

"I don't think you have to worry about any of the food - this is delicious."

Blaine relaxed in his chair, picking up his own knife and fork and starting to eat.

"Have you got all the food up here?" Kurt asked, reaching for his wine glass.

In the middle of chewing a mouthful of food, Blaine only nodded. He swallowed. "Rachel gave me that thing you have for keeping plates warm. I'm using that for the main course, but the desert is chilled, so that's fine as long as it's covered."

Kurt speared another forkful of mushroom. "Rachel helped you?"

"Just with that. She tried to help with the cooking and recipe choices, but I told her I would prefer to do it myself."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Of course she did."

Conversation flowed smoothly as they finished their starter and moved onto the main course and Kurt was reminded once again how easy it was to talk to Blaine. Blaine understood him in ways Rachel, his friends from college, and even his dad didn't. It had nothing to do with them both being gay, they just both connected as human beings; they had a similar sense of humour, had a lot of common interests, and viewed the world in a similar way. It was so easy spending time with Blaine - it was like being with another part of himself, another half of his own soul.

Desert was a vanilla cheesecake topped with fresh berries and from the moment the first forkful entered Kurt's mouth he was in heaven.

"Oh, my God," he all but moaned, "you have to make this every day." He let the next mouthful of the creamy desert melt in his mouth. "How did you know cheesecake was my biggest weakness?"

Blaine grinned at him. "I could lie and say it was intuition, but Rachel not-so-subtly let slip how much you loved it."

"I'll have to thank her," Kurt said, popping a strawberry piece into his mouth.

"She threatened me while you were at your work yesterday," Blaine said casually. When Kurt's eyes widened in indignation, he added, "If she ever catches the slightest hint that I'm going to hurt you she's going to come after me."

Kurt just sighed. He had been expecting her to do this, but had been hoping she wouldn't. "I've told her I can take care of myself."

"It got me thinking, though..."

Kurt looked up from his plate at the serious tone to Blaine's voice.

"When I leave and return to my own time, you'll be upset, presumably."

"Blaine..." Setting down his fork, Kurt reached across the table again and placed his hand over Blaine's. "I'll be devastated, but it's ok; I want you to go home to your family and your friends and your life."

Blaine swallowed, twisting his hand beneath Kurt's so he could link their fingers together. "I was wondering what you would tell Rachel after I disappear from your life."

Kurt stared at him. "Oh... I haven't thought about that," he admitted. And he hadn't; any time he'd thought about life after Blaine had left (which he tried to avoid doing), he only ever worried about how he would cope and how he could move on despite knowing he could never hear Blaine's voice again. He'd never given a second's thought to what he'd tell the other people in his life who knew Blaine (which, at the moment, was only Rachel).

"I think," Kurt began slowly, absently rubbing the side of Blaine's thumb with his own, "if it's ok with you, I would want to tell her the truth. I wouldn't want to lie and say we broke up or anything like that. But only if you're happy with that."

Blaine nodded. "You can tell her - I mean, I'll be gone anyway and it's not like I'll be able to come back."

There was a question there; a question Kurt didn't want to ask tonight, not when it was all so perfect and Blaine looked so beautiful in the light of the candle and dozens of fairy lights. Discussing the aftermath of Blaine leaving maybe wasn't the best conversation to be having on a date either, but Kurt didn't want to risk destroying their evening by asking the question now planted in his brain.

"And what will we do if I'm still here in a few months' time and Rachel becomes suspicious?" Blaine asked. "I guess we could tell her everything, but- I don't know... What if she doesn't take it as well as you did? What if she demands I move out, or thinks I'm insane?"

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand in reassurance. "We don't have to tell her. If you're still here in a few months I could set you up somewhere else in the city so Rachel will think you've left, or- You told her you'd taken a year off to travel, didn't you?" he checked, referring to their agreed cover story. At Blaine's nod, he continued, "You could just say you've decided to spend your entire year off here."

"I could," Blaine agreed. "Sounds better than having to move somewhere else and sneak around when we want to be together."

Smiling, Kurt patted Blaine's hand, before letting go and scooping up the last of his cheesecake. "It does. So how much do I have to pay you to make this cheesecake every day? I was being serious about that."

And just like that their conversation switched back to painless, carefree subjects.

A while later, when desert was long finished and the sky had darkened deeper, Kurt gave an involuntary shiver. The night air had cooled since they had sat down to dinner, and there was now a chill to the breeze that blew across the rooftop.

Blaine noticed his shiver. "Want to head inside? I've got one last surprise for you."

Trying not to let his mind jump to conclusions or fantasies, Kurt nodded and got to his feet as Blaine stood up and stepped over to him, offering him his arm again.

Kurt took it. "Shouldn't we tidy this up?" he asked as Blaine led him towards the door leading downstairs. He glanced over his shoulder at the dinner set-up they'd left behind.

"It's being dealt with, don't worry." Blaine flashed a grin at Kurt as they headed down the stairs. "I bribed Rachel with some mini vegan cheesecakes to tidy it up before she went out with Finn."

The apartment was almost dark when they entered it. They'd only left on a single lamp and its soft glow was the only source of illumination other than the glow of city lights through the window. Blaine turned on another couple of lamps as he led Kurt over to the old record player he and Rachel played their vinyls on.

Blaine let go of Kurt's hand and fumbled with the controls on the player. "There's a record store not far from here that specialises in old vinyls. I went there and had a good look through their stock; it took me awhile, but I found this."

Curious, Kurt watched as Blaine balanced the needle on top of the record before taking a step back until he was by Kurt's side again.

A waltz began to play, clearly a song from Blaine's time. The tune was almost familiar to Kurt and he wondered if he'd heard it in a movie or on TV somewhere. The crackle of the record player made the music sound even more romantic and looking at Blaine in his suit, bowtie, and slicked down hair, it was almost like he'd been transported back in time, to a time where he and Blaine could have danced to a song like this at a ball - if it weren't for the fact that they were both men.

Blaine held out his hand to him. "May I have this dance?"

Kurt couldn't hide the delighted smile that spread across his face. "Yes," he said breathily, taking Blaine's hand. "Yes, you may."

Blaine led him over to a free space of floor and slid an arm around his waist, pulling him closer. Kurt rested his hand on Blaine's shoulder, sliding it around towards his shoulderblade when Blaine shifted even closer. Their faces were now merely inches apart, and as much as Kurt wanted to close that small gap between them and press his mouth to Blaine's, he resisted, closing his eyes as he began to move with Blaine to the music.

They danced slowly, the sound of their feet upon the floors almost silent. After a moment, Blaine sighed and dropped his head to rest it on Kurt's shoulder, tucking it in the crook of Kurt's neck. He fit so perfectly there, like he was a puzzle piece made of Kurt, and his height made it possible for Kurt to rest his cheek on top of Blaine's gelled curls.

"This is everything I ever wanted," Blaine murmured softly. "Being in a relationship with someone I really care about: it's everything I wished for."

Kurt pressed a kiss to the top of Blaine's head in response. His feelings for Blaine were growing by the day and as they did, he could see the difference between how he felt for Blaine and how he'd once felt for Liam. With Liam it had felt like he'd had to fall in love with him; that because a guy was showing an interest in him and dating him he had to fall in love with him. Doubts had regularly riddled his mind when he'd been dating Liam, mostly plaguing him at night when he was at his most relaxed and unguarded. He'd pushed those back until, several months into the relationship, they muted, before disappearing altogether. With Blaine there was none of this: no doubts, no feeling of needing to follow certain protocols, no forcing himself to feel a certain way. With Blaine everything felt right, and he was falling in love in a way that was most definitely real: slowly, gently, and with an exhilarating pounding of a rejoicing heart.