It was only a few days after Trevor Live that Blaine called him asking if he wanted to meet for coffee the next day at a small café that Blaine visited regularly. Kurt had agreed to the meeting without a second's thought and now he was walking along the street on which the coffee shop was located, on his way to meet Blaine. He could barely believe it; he hadn't really expected Blaine to call him like he had promised.

The street was less crowded than the main roads in the city; the road wasn't choked with the usual clog of taxis, buses, and cars, and there were fewer pedestrians on the sidewalk. Blaine had said that the coffee shop was small, but he hadn't anticipated how tiny it would be and he almost walked right passed it. It was a hole-in-the-wall café with only a few tables inside and a small service counter with a glass-fronted display of cookies and cakes. It was so small that Kurt could see Blaine sitting at a table in the far corner from outside the shop. After quickly checking his hair in his reflection in the window, he pushed open the door and entered, breathing in the warm, coffee-scented air that greeted him. Seeing that Blaine already had a coffee sitting in front of him, Kurt stepped up to the counter and got himself his usual coffee - a grande non-fat mocha - before joining him.

Blaine was bent over an open notebook covered in writing, some of which had been crossed out with annotations written in above. He was frowning slightly down at the page, unconsciously tapping the end of his pen gently against the corner of his mouth, but he looked up at the sound of Kurt's approach, the frown smoothing out and replaced with a smile.

"Hey, Kurt!" he greeted him cheerfully, setting his pen down. "I got here early so I was just working on a song."

Kurt set his coffee down on the table and slid into the chair opposite Blaine. "What's the song about? If you don't mind me asking." He took a sip of his coffee.

"Uncertainty," Blaine said, running a finger down the page of his notebook over his penned lyrics. "Not knowing quite where you stand and wanting to take the risk, but being too afraid to brave the plunge."

Kurt wrapped his hands around his coffee cup. "Sounds intriguing. I can't wait to hear the final product."

Blaine smiled, glancing up at him through lowered lashes. "I'll give you a preview once I've worked out all of the rough spots." He closed the notebook and slid it and his pen into the satchel that rested against the leg of his chair. "So how's the show going?"

Kurt shrugged, his thoughts clouded from the intense look Blaine was giving him. "It's fine, nothing too exciting has happened since you were on."

"Of course I was your most exciting guest," Blaine said, smirking. "How did you get into that line of business?" he asked, serious again.

"It was a bit of luck, really. When I was in high school I had dreams of attending NYADA and becoming a Broadway star, but I didn't get into the school. I was determined to come to New York though and I really wanted to do something in the entertainment industry. I ended up doing a degree in Fashion Design at Parsons, but I kept on the lookout for something to do with acting or singing or anything like that." He drummed his fingers on the lid of his coffee cup. "An opportunity came up to intern backstage at The View and I ended up getting to do a small segment on the show. Someone in the business saw me and asked if I would be interested in doing my own show - I guess they thought I had a bit of a flair for it - and things just sort of blew up from there." He shook his head as he swallowed a mouthful of coffee. To this day he still couldn't quite believe that all of that had actually happened.

"I can see why they thought you would make a good talk show host. The interview with you was the most enjoyable one I have ever done and I'm not just saying that." Blaine smiled at him.

"Thanks," Kurt said a little bashfully - it was strange how shy he was around Blaine; he was never normally like this, even with guys he had had crushes on in the past. "You've already told me the story behind your rise to fame, so how about we talk about something other than our careers. Tell me something you haven't shared with a reporter or your fans before. After all, we're no longer just a talk show host and a celebrity guest, are we?"

Blaine's eyes were unreadable as he gazed steadily at Kurt across the small table and Kurt started to panic internally, worried that he was reading more into their relationship than Blaine was.

"No, we're becoming friends now, aren't we?" Blaine replied and a tiny part of Kurt cursed the other man for answering his question with a question, throwing the task of defining their relationship back onto his shoulders. Blaine fidgeted with his coffee cup and it hit him then that Blaine was just as shy and uncertain about this as he was.

"Friends," Kurt said firmly, a smile spreading across his face at the sight of Blaine's grin.

"I'm performing here in the city on Friday night and I was wondering if you would like to come to the show? You would be backstage and can watch the show from side stage." Blaine eyes searched his as he waited for an answer.

Kurt didn't keep him waiting long. "I'd love to!" he said enthusiastically.

Blaine smiled widely at him. "I'll let them know to expect you then."

When Kurt, humming cheerfully, let himself into his apartment, it was to find a tired-looking Rachel sitting on the couch with the script for her latest musical, which was still in rehearsals, in front of her. She glanced up at him briefly before returning her attention to her script. "Someone's awfully chipper," she commented, having managed to pick up on his good mood after only sparing him a second of her attention.

Kurt just shrugged nonchalantly, trying to hide his smile by turning away to look out the window. "It's a nice day."

"You're not fooling me, Kurt Hummel," Rachel said, no longer poring over the script and giving him her full attention. "I've known you for years, I can tell when something's up. You've met someone, haven't you?" She peered at him keenly, her eyes bright. "A guy?" she probed.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Kurt countered. It was taking all his self-control to hold back a telling smirk.

Rachel never gave in easily. "What's his name?" she pressed.

Knowing she would continue to pester him until she got the answers she wanted, Kurt crossed the room to the couch with a sigh of surrender, though part of him was looking forward to being able to gush over Blaine with her to an extent. He flopped down next to her, scattering sheets of paper everywhere, but Rachel was too intent on him to care that a good portion of her script now lay on the floor.

"His name is Blaine," Kurt said carefully, reigning in his natural instinct to tell Rachel absolutely everything right down to every facial expression Blaine had ever made around him. He wanted to avoid revealing Blaine's full identity if he could. It wasn't that he didn't trust Rachel not to go blabbing to everyone, but he didn't want her freaking out over it all when he and Blaine had only met a few times and were barely friends.

Luckily, Rachel wanted more important questions answered than what his surname was. "What does he look like? Is he hot?"

Kurt blushed. "Very hot." He could picture Blaine now, the way he had looked in the coffee shop earlier: dark curls escaping from his gel; lips curved upwards in a smile; large, golden eyes peering up at him through long eyelashes - his breath caught.

"He has dark curly hair, a gorgeous smile, tanned skin, and these beautiful hazel eyes that are almost golden." He smiled dreamily, still seeing Blaine rather than the apartment. "He's quite short, wears bowties a lot, and gels his hair down which makes him look younger than he is."

Rachel was watching him closely. "Oh, how old is he?"

"Twenty three, so only around a year younger than me." Not that Blaine had ever told him his age, that was just something that millions of people, both fans and non-fans of his, knew.

Then Rachel asked a tricky question. "Where did you two meet?"

"Oh, um-" He cast his mind around. It landed on the coffee shop meeting with Blaine a few hours ago. "In a coffee shop."

"When?" Rachel asked eagerly.

"A few weeks ago," he replied vaguely.

"And you saw him again today." It was a statement, not a question. "Was it a date?"

"No, we're just friends." He couldn't stop the sigh that escaped him. "I don't even know if he likes me that way."

Rachel's excitement had died down a little. She patted his knee. "He would have to be crazy not to." Seeing her script scattered all over the floor, she sighed and bent to pick it up, trying to reorganise it. "Clearly, I am crazy for putting up with you for all these years."

Kurt swatted his friend's arm as he crouched to help her. "What about me sticking with you through all the drama queen episodes and near-constant singing? What does that say about my sanity?"

Rachel stuck her tongue out at him. "You love me for it."

"I must do," Kurt replied with a grin as he began to help her put her script back into order.

Although the show was not due to start for another couple of hours, the backstage area was bustling. Lighting, sound, and music technology engineers hurried between the stage and backstage areas as they got the venue set up for Blaine's performance. Instead of sitting in the dressing room with his band like he usually did, Blaine was pacing a small stretch of floor near the door leading from the maze of backstage corridors through to the rest of the venue. It was relatively quiet here, with only the occasional crew member passing by, none of them sparing Blaine more than a split-second glance as they went about their jobs.

Despite being removed from all the hectic rush of the preparations for the show, Blaine was stressing, nervously fretting over whether Kurt would show up or not. He kept cycling through phases of ‘What if he doesn't come? What if he doesn't like me and was only being polite all this time? Maybe it was obvious that I have a crush on him and he doesn't want to see me again because he's not interested in me' to relaxing and assuring himself ‘No, he'll come, he was excited when I asked him and we had a great time when we had coffee together. He was interested in me, and not just famous musician Blaine, but the real, average guy Blaine. He said he had been hoping to run into me at Trevor Live. He will come.'

The door through to the rest of the venue opened and Blaine swung around halfway along the invisible path he had been pacing to find Kurt just stepping through the door. He looked amazing; dressed in tight jeans and a well-fitted shirt which clung to his chest in all the right ways and with his hair in a slightly messy coif. Blaine was almost drooling as the other man smiled at him. He couldn't form a coherent thought as Kurt greeted him and walked further away from the door and the first thought his brain managed to scramble together wasn't something he could say out loud.

"Y- You look nice," he eventually managed to stutter out.

Kurt blushed, glancing down at his outfit and brushing lint off his jeans. "Thanks, so do you," he said shyly.

To try and stop himself from staring at Kurt, he led the way through to the dressing rooms where his band sat talking amongst themselves and drinking some of the bottled water that had been placed on a table.

"These guys are my band," Blaine told Kurt as everyone in the room looked up and then came over to greet Kurt.

"Guys," Blaine said to the room at large, "this is my friend, Kurt."

They all shook Kurt's hand and introduced themselves. George was the last one to do so. "You're that talk show host, aren't you?" he asked once he'd shaken Kurt's hand. "You're Kurt Hummel."

Kurt nodded. "Guilty."

George glanced between Blaine and Kurt. "I didn't realise you and Blaine knew each other before Blaine was on your show."

"Oh no, we didn't, we only met when he came on my show, but we saw each other at Trevor Live and have had coffee together since then."

George smiled at him and then the bass player - Seth - began asking Kurt about his show and they spent the next hour talking about Kurt's show, performing, and touring. A knock on the door came and one of the crew members appeared to inform them that they were due on stage in ten minutes, and the band hurried off to get ready.

Blaine stood up and held out a hand to pull Kurt to his feet. "Come on, I'll show you where you can stand to watch the show."

Kurt accepted his hand and got up from the couch. Blaine led him from the room and through the labyrinth of corridors backstage, not letting go of his hand. His nerves tingled and his heart thudded from the contact and it was with great reluctance that he let go when they reached a corridor that opened out onto the stage, from which there was an excellent view of the stage and part of the excited crowd beyond.

"I have to go and get ready," Blaine told Kurt, who turned his head from looking out over the crowd to face Blaine. The musician smiled at him. "Enjoy the show!"

He hurried off to meet up with his band, who were waiting to go out on stage. Adrenaline was already coursing through him from being with Kurt and he was pumped up and ready for the show.

"One minute," a crew member warned him as he jogged towards where he stood with his band. He grabbed his guitar and shot George a smile when he noticed the blonde man eyeing him. "I'm ready," he announced to no one in particular.

Stepping out onto the stage to a roaring crowd never failed to remind Blaine of why he loved performing and tonight was no exception. There was something special about sharing his music, of connecting with a large crowd of people who were all, for the duration of the show, united in their love of music. He winked at Kurt as he took his position behind the microphone and greeted the screaming crowd.

He threw himself into his performance and gradually felt unruly curls spring free of the gel, some of them clinging to his sweaty forehead. His face split into a huge smile every time he broke off singing and he encouraged the crowd to sing the lyrics instead, their voices rising in harmony, singing the words that he had written.

Throughout the show he kept glancing over at Kurt with a smile, often catching the other man singing along or bobbing along to the music. The sight made his stomach swoop.

"Thank you, New York City!" he shouted into the microphone at the end of the encore song. "Goodnight!"

He walked off the stage after one last wave at the crowd before the lights on stage went off.

"You were amazing!" Kurt enthused when Blaine reached him and handed his guitar to a tech guy who had just appeared.

 "Thanks." He grinned at Kurt's hair, which was slightly more mussed than it had been before the show. "It looked like you were enjoying it as well."

Seeing where Blaine's eyes were focused, Kurt raised a hand to touch his hair. "Oh no," he groaned, "is it a mess?"

Blaine shook his head. "It's adorable." He started to lead the way back through to the dressing rooms. "Besides, I know my hair is a lot worse."

They reached Blaine's deserted dressing room. Kurt sat down on the couch whilst Blaine grabbed a bottle of water before joining him.

"Sorry," he said as he sat next to Kurt on the small couch, "I'm all sweaty."

"You look sexy sweaty."

Blaine looked up at Kurt in surprise, wondering if he had heard correctly. As Kurt's cheeks were rapidly staining pink and he was avoiding Blaine's eyes, he realised he obviously hadn't misheard. He felt heat flood to his own face.

"I- really?" he stammered out.

Kurt was now looking at him steadily, his face still pink, but resolute. "Yeah, normally I think of being sweaty as gross, but somehow you make it look attractive."

"You think I'm attractive?" Blaine asked in disbelief.

Kurt nodded. "Of course I do. Haven't you been called a heartthrob enough times to know that you are good looking?" His expression softened. "But it's not just your looks that are attractive, your personality is too: you're smart, funny, sweet, interesting to talk to..." He trailed off, smiling at him. It felt like his blue eyes were gazing right into Blaine's soul, into his very being.

"You're very attractive, Blaine," he said softly.

The space between them had lessened without Blaine noticing, he must have been unconsciously inching closer to Kurt whilst they talked. There were only a few inches between them now and Blaine could smell Kurt: cologne, hair and skin products, and something that was uniquely Kurt. He breathed out shakily and his eyes fluttered shut as the gap closed between them and their lips met.

It started slow and soft, Blaine reaching to gently cup Kurt's face with his hand and his thumb caressing his cheekbone lightly. And then Kurt's hands slid up to tangle in his curls and his mouth opened under the pressure of Kurt's. He groaned softly as Kurt's tongue slid against his own and he was pulled closer to the blue-eyed man. He could feel Kurt's rapid heartbeat through his shirt and the taste, smell, and feeling of him was sending Blaine's body into a whirlwind of sensation.

When they broke apart, they both stared at each other for a moment, breathing heavily and with flushed faces, before nearly identical smiles spread across their faces.

"I didn't get to return your compliment," Blaine said once he was able to speak. At Kurt's puzzled look he elaborated. "You said I was attractive. Well, I think you are beautiful; I've thought so since the first time I saw you."

The expression on Kurt's face changed and Blaine's breathing hitched under the look Kurt was giving him and his heartbeat - which had been beginning to slow down from its rapid pace - took off at top speed again as Kurt grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him in for another kiss.