One week later Cooper was laying in his bed replaying his conversation with Burt in his mind.  He had started to pay close attention to the things Blaine would say when he talked about Kurt.    He remembered when Blaine was about four years old and broke one of the kitchen glasses when he was trying to get a drink of water; Blaine walked around for a whole two days jumpy as ever, and every time he talked his stories wouldn't line up until, finally, Tom was able to force the story out of him.  Now Coop listened for the same kind of gaps in his stories when he talked about Kurt; any moments he may stumble upon his words or tell a story differently two times in a row.  But Blaine's stories all matched and Blaine was always happy as ever when he came home from staying at Kurt's house.

Cooper was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Blaine whimper from his bed across the room.  Coop rolled on his side to look at the clock, it was 2:30.  There was no way Blaine was still awake.  Trying to forget the sound, he pulled himself back into his memories to piece together what could be wrong with Kurt but Blaine made a noise again.

Blaine had never been a sleep talker; Cooper of all people would know because they had shared a room their whole lives.  He quietly got out of his bed and tip toed over to where Blaine was sleeping.  Blaine's eyebrows were furrowed together and his lips were moving as if he were talking silently to himself.  Just as Blaine was about to roll over and start crying again Cooper reached down to shake his shoulders.

"Hey, B, wake up."

Blaine slowly opened his eyes to look up at him.

"Is it time to get up?"

"No. Were you just having a nightmare?"

Blaine took a moment to think back to his dream.

"No. Not really..."

"Oh, okay."  Cooper furrowed his eyebrows not knowing what to think of the situation before he turned and went back to bed.  Behind him, Blaine didn't lay back down.  Instead, he lifted his right hand and began to scratch uncomfortably at his wrist until it began to turn red.

"Coop?"

"Yea, B?"

"Can I come sleep in your bed?"

Cooper rolled on his side using his elbow to prop his head up.

"I thought you didn't have a bad dream."

"I didn't!" Blaine spoke back almost defensively, "I just... never mind.  Goodnight."

Cooper was quiet for a moment before giving into his little brother.

"Come on over here."  He pulled the covers up and scooted back against the wall giving Blaine more than half of his bed.

Immediately Blaine was out of his bed tip toe running across the room.  After he crawled in bed he planted a light kiss on Cooper's cheek.

"You're the best big brother I could ever have."

"Ya, ya. Now get to sleep, Squirt, before I change my mind and kick you out."

"You wouldn't do that."

"Oh really? And what makes you say that?"

"Because you love me."

Cooper was surprised by Blaine's answer.  He wasn't sure where Blaine's response had come from.  He still remembered his innocent little brother who liked to play house and choo-choo train but apparently there was more to him than just that.  Cooper wrapped his arm around Blaine and pulled him close hoping to keep him young and innocent for as long as possible.

Even months after Liz's death Burt still struggled to find his way around the grocery store.  He looked down at his list and realized he still needed chicken nuggets, and, of course, Kurt was still going through the phase of only eating the dinosaur shaped ones.

As he not so gracefully turned his cart down the frozen foods aisle he almost ran right into none other than Tom and Tracy Anderson.  Burt was so glad that Cooper and offered to stay at the Hummel's house and watch over the boys while he went to the store.

"Burt! Hi, how are you?"  Tracy wore a big smile on her face and stepped out in front of Tom to pull Burt into a quick hug.

"I'm doing well. How about yourself?"

"Well, you know." She shrugged at him knowingly, "It's nice to have the boys home again for summer.  Speaking of, is Kurt here?"

Tracy immediately wanted to withdraw her question.  She knew perfectly well that Kurt and Blaine were hanging out right now.  She had caught on to Cooper and Blaine the very first night they started meeting up at the Hummel's house, but Tom still had no idea.

Burt took a moment to look at Tom; he remembered all of the things he had put Kurt and Blaine through.  Forcing the boys to separate when they both needed each other the most, having to watch Kurt come home from school each day and spend every weekend so heartbroken over the fact that his best friend didn't want to see him anymore, the pure joy on both of the boy's faces the day Cooper and Blaine appeared on their doorstep two weeks ago.

"No, Kurt isn't here." Burt didn't want to lie to Tom and Tracy anymore.  He wanted their boys to have the freedom of going outside of the Hummel's house to play together.  He didn't want to have to teach either of them that lying was okay, but he sure as hell was not going to risk them getting split up again.  That didn't mean he couldn't try putting a little guilt in their chests.  "Kurt hasn't been doing so well.  He had a hard last part of the school year after Liz died."

He could see Tom's very slight shift in demeanor and decided to keep going. Besides, he wasn't really lying; all of this did happen before Blaine came back.

"I'm not exactly sure what's wrong.  He doesn't have any friends from school and he spends most of his time locked up in his room.  I only leave the house when necessary now because he refuses to go anywhere besides the shop.  Our neighbor is looking after him now."  Burt realized he got a little carried away towards the end of his guilt trip but it didn't really bother him that much.

Tracy turned back to Tom and said she was going to go find some fruits they needed before quickly walking away. Burt could have sworn he saw her wink as she walked by him.

"So Kurts not taking it so well...."

"Would you be?"  Burt stared directly at Tom hoping that if he just pushed a little harder Tom would give in and let Blaine see Kurt again.  "I mean, if your mother died and suddenly everyone important to you was gone do you think you would be okay?"

"No. I suppose not." Tom looked awkwardly over his shoulder hoping that Tracy would come walking around the corner again.  "You could always try to help Kurt meet new friends."

"No." Burt closed his eyes shaking his head, "I'm not going to force my boy into doing anything that he doesn't want to do. What kind of father would? All I want is for my boy to be happy again and believe me when I say I would go to the ends of the world to see a smile on his face."

All Burt wanted to do was rub their secret right into Tom's obnoxiously large head.  Let him know that Kurt was the reason Blaine was happy again, not some mystery friend.  But he knew that if he did that the chances of Tom taking Blaine away were high; too high to risk.  So instead, Burt grabbed the handle of his cart firmly and pushed it down the aisle only stopping to grab a bag of dinosaur chicken nuggets before heading for the check out.

At the Hummel's house Cooper had managed to tire the boys out enough until they both fell asleep on the couch.  It had been years since Cooper had to put Blaine down for a nap; he always hated doing it, too.  Blaine was picky and would never just go to bed.  He would get up and keep asking Coop to re-tuck him in.  Now, however, he and Kurt were leaning against each other on the couch with intertwined fingers.

Cooper sat in the chair and just watched the two sleeping for a while.  He thought back to everything they had done that day or the way the boys moved around each other.  He had never really thought anything of it before because they were, well, Kurt and Blaine, but now that he was thinking of it Cooper couldn't help but notice how... different their friendship was.

Cooper sat there trying to remember when he had his first crush on a girl. It had to have been eaerly elementary school, right? He promised himself that when he brought Blaine home from Kurt's house later he would ask Blaine if he had a crush on anybody.  He also promised himself that no matter who Blaine said, he would be happy for him.  Maybe even a little upset if it wasn't Kurt.

Just then he heard the garage door start and open and he knew that Burt was back from his day of errands.

"Here, let me help you." Cooper quietly took the bags from Burt's arms and headed into the kitchen.  "The boys fell asleep probably about fifteen minutes ago."

"Oh, good. I don't think Kurt slept very well last night."

"Neither did Blaine, it was weird."

"But they always seem fine when they're together."

Cooper awkwardly shifted his weight between his feet, he didn't want to over step on asking Burt about Kurt and Blaine but at the same time he needed to know.

"Have you ever thought that..." Cooper began to tap his fingers on the table while he searched for the right words.

"That this whole thing could turn into more than a friendship?" Burt interjected while filling two cups with lemonade.

"Ya." Cooper's stomach turned while he waited for Burt's answer.  What if Burt wasn't okay with it? What if he got mad at Cooper for even bringing it up?

"I have thought about it."

"And...?"

Burt walked over and handed one of the glasses to Coop before sitting down across from him at the table.

"And I want Kurt and Blaine to be happy, and whatever that means I will stand behind them 100%.  Liz and I, we talked about this a lot; especially after she got sick.  We've both kind of assumed for a while, but we didn't want to say anything.  We wanted Kurt to figure everything out on his own.  It's my job to love my son no matter what the future brings.  I feel that way about you and Blaine, too.  You all just need to do what makes you happy and just know that I will be there to back you up."

"Do you think that's what has been bothering the two of them?  Do you think they're scared cause maybe they realized they might have a crush on the other one or something?"

"Don't you think they're too young for that?" 

Cooper started laughing and almost choked on his lemonade.

"Burt, I'm pretty sure I had my first crush on a girl in like, first grade.  Cynthia Johnson."  Cooper smiled to himself before he looked over at Burt eyeing him. "Sorry."

Burt simply smiled, shook his head, and took a sip of his lemonade before looking at Cooper straight on.

"Do you think we should, like, talk to them?"

"I'm going to talk to Blaine.  I know my parents won't, and even if they do I don't want them to discourage anything.  You're right; they deserve to be happy."

"Maybe I will talk to Kurt, too."

Cooper smiled as he got both him and Burt some more lemonade.

"Speaking of your parents, I saw them at the store today."

"Really? That had to have been awkward."

"It was.  I tried to guilt your dad into letting Blaine see Kurt again so we could stop lying to them.  It didn't work."

"Honestly, I'm not surprised.  My dad is kind of an ass like that."

"Hey!"

"What? You can't disagree."

Burt just rolled his eyes before getting up to put the rest of the groceries away.

"So, Kurt, we haven't really gotten the chance to talk about how school ended."  Kurt practically froze in his seat.  Did his dad find out about Dave?  "I was thinking that maybe this year for the Fourth of July we could have some of your friends over?"

"Like Blaine?" Kurt relaxed a little but he knew this conversation was going somewhere.

"Of course Blaine can come but what about any of your friends from school.  Is there anybody you want to invite?"

"How about we invite Blaine and Cooper, and maybe Cooper can bring his girlfriend."

"Well, I think Coop already has his own plans. But while we're on the topic of girlfriends, got your eye on anybody, kiddo?"

Kurt found himself freezing for the second time that night.

"No, Dad. All the girls in my class are gross."

"Well, what about any of the boys?" Burt's voice came out a little more hesitant than he had planned.

"Boys? But..." Kurt put his head in his hands rubbing his face while he took a deep breath, "But I'm a boy.  Are boys supposed to like girls?"

"They don't have to.  People can like whoever they want.  It all just depends on who makes you happy, and who cares about you."

"Oh."  There was only one person that popped into Kurt's head when Burt said that; Blaine.  Blaine had always been there, except when his dad wouldn't let him.  Blaine was the only one Kurt trusted to talk to about Dave, the only one who didn't make fun of him for liking clothes, and he was the only one who held his hand and helped him when he had nightmares.

"So, uh, is there somebody, Kurt?"

"Ya, Daddy, I think there is."  Kurt put on a smile that Burt knew well: the Blaine smile.

"So, Squirt, any crushes?"

"What?" If Blaine hadn't been wearing a seat belt he was sure he would have fallen out of his seat.

"You heard me.  Who do you like?"  Cooper reached over and ran his fingers through Blaine's hair.

"I don't even know what a crush is."

"Well," Cooper tried to keep the topic light hearted but serious at the same time, "A crush is when someone makes you feel special.  Like maybe when you look at them you can't stop smiling, or you always want to be around them.  They may even give you butterflies in your tummy."  With that Cooper tickled Blaine tummy until he started to giggle.

"But if you have a crush on someone and they have a crush on you, is that how you get a girlfriend?"

"That's how I got my girlfriend, yes."

Blaine remembered his and Kurt's talk last year on Fourth of July.  If neither of them ever got girlfriends they would be able to continue to hold hands.  Besides, once he started thinking about all the girls in his class he couldn't think of a single one that made him feel special.  Tina had shared her cookies with him at lunch one day, and that seemed pretty special, but that was almost a whole month ago.  Now that Blaine was always playing with Kurt he didn't really have any girls that made him feel special and he definitely did not want a girlfriend.

"Nope. No crushes."

"Am I going to have to tickle it out of you, B?"

"No!"  Blaine scooted over in his chair until he was safely pressed against the door, "I'm serious.  I don't have a crush on anyone."

"I don't believe you."

"Why not?"

"Because you're always holding hands with Kurt."

"Ya, but Kurt is a boy."

"So?"

"So..." Blaine didn't like this topic anymore.  He was really confused.  Boys had girlfriends and girls had boyfriends; it was that simple. "Kurt can't be a girlfriend if he is a boy. That would make him a boyfriend."

"And you don't want a boyfriend?"

"Hello! I'm a boy! I can't have a boyfriend."

"Who told you that?"

Blaine was caught off guard by Cooper's reaction.  Of course boys can't have boyfriends, that'd just be weird... right?

"Nobody. I just don't want a boyfriend."

"Okay, fine.  We'll drop the subject."

"Thank you."

Blaine turned to look out the window.  He was more confused than he had ever been.  All those things about crushes that Cooper had said made him think of Kurt, but isn't that how friends are supposed to feel for each other, too?  Blaine couldn't have a crush on another boy, he just couldn't.  In his head he ran through the list of girls in his class one more time.  Nope, definitely no crushes.

"Blaine, have you ever had a crush?"  Kurt and Blaine sat in Kurt's backyard picking at the grass.

"My brother just asked me that! Why does everybody want to know?"

"Well, my daddy just asked me about it, too, and I guess I was just curious.  You don't have to tell me if you don't wanna."

"Of course I'm going to tell you, Kurt.  You're my best friend, remember?"

"Ya."  Kurt smiled shyly up at Blaine, "So, do you? Have any crushes I mean."

"No.  Cooper explained what a crush is but there are no girls in my class that I want to be my girlfriend."

"What about any boys?"

"I think it'd be weird for a boy to have a boyfriend.  That's not how it's supposed to be."

"Oh," Kurt felt his heart drop into his stomach.  What if Blaine thought Kurt was weird for having a crush on a boy?  What if he didn't want to be his friend anymore?

"Ya, I mean, it's like only girls are supposed to have crushes on boys."

And then everything clicked in Kurt's head.  He thought back to all the times that Dave had called him a ladyboy or told him he was girly or weird.  Kurt made a connection between Dave and Blaine.  He didn't want Blaine to start pushing him in the halls or kicking dirt on his new clothes.  Kurt just wanted Blaine to be his friend; he couldn't lose him again.

"You're right.  It is weird.  I don't have any crushes either."

Later that night, Kurt and Blaine were sitting on the couch watching a movie.  Blaine reached over and took Kurt's hand like he had millions of times before, but this time Kurt felt all the blood rush to his cheeks where his skin turned a few shades pinker.

Hiding this crush was going to be harder than he thought.