Always a pleasure
FlyingRabbit
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Always a pleasure: Bad reputation


T - Words: 2,492 - Last Updated: May 27, 2012
Story: Closed - Chapters: 47/? - Created: Dec 20, 2011 - Updated: May 27, 2012
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Author's Notes: So... in my mind, this is a somewhat sad and depressing chapter, but maybe you'll think differently. This could probably take place in a couple of end-of-season-1 episodes, but in this one, things seemed a little bit calmer at McKinley than in other episodes. I'm sorry if I got the whole basketball thing completely wrong and that bothers you. Anyway, enjoy!

"You're coming to the game tonight, right?"

Blaine glanced up from his book and smiled. "Of course, Jeff. You've asked me the same question half a dozen times already. And that's just today."

Jeff smiled bashfully. "I guess I just want to be sure."

"What kind of person would I be if I wasn't even going to see my boyfriend's most important basketball match of the season?" Blaine asked rhetorically.

With another smile, Jeff sank down next to Blaine on the couch. "What are you reading? You're not studying, are you?"

Blaine shrugged. "I obviously can't study tonight, what with your game and the subsequent victory party, now can I?"

Jeff hummed, putting his head on Blaine's shoulder, and Blaine hesitantly went back to his reading. It was still so scary, so new. Jeff was Blaine's first boyfriend, and they'd only been together for a little over a week. Still, Blaine definitely enjoyed every minute of it.

Almost ten minutes later, though, Blaine hadn't absorbed anything, so he attempted to push Jeff off of him as gently as possible. When the other boy let out a soft whine, Blaine rolled his eyes affectionately. "I need to read all this for my History essay," he said. "You're distracting me."

"Fine," Jeff mock-huffed. "I'll go see if Nick wants to play Call of Duty with me." After giving Blaine a quick peck, he was out of the room, and Blaine looked down at his book once more. This would be so much easier if he'd actually taken notes in class the past week, instead of dreamily watching the back of Jeff's head and doodling all of the page.

o-o-o-o-o

That night, Blaine was clad in the Dalton school colours as he made his way towards the gym. He knew this would be an important game, but he had no idea what to expect from the other team. He hadn't really thought to ask, and it wasn't as if he knew that much about basketball anyway.

"Hey, lover boy!" someone shouted, and Blaine whirled around. True enough, Nick and Wes were waving him over from their spot in the stands.

"Could you stop calling me that?" he asked Nick once he'd reached them, but the other boy just shook his head.

"Seriously," David commented, shooting Nick a look, "if I wouldn't be a witness of your straightness almost every day, I'd start wondering."

Blaine silently agreed. When he'd first arrived at Dalton, he'd thought Nick and Jeff were together – at least, until he met Nick's then-girlfriend a couple of hours later. In retrospect, he was very thankful that Nick wasn't gay.

"Does anyone know if the other team's any good?" he asked his friends.

"From what I've heard, they aren't," Wes replied, shooting a glance towards the floor. "There aren't many good sports players at that school, so most of them kind of do everything. Once the football season is over, they take up basketball. When that's over, they take up… I don't know."

Blaine nodded. A similar situation had existed at his former school.

"And even if they were any good," Nick continued, glancing at Blaine with a slight smirk, "I bet it wouldn't matter anyway. Jeff will probably be on fire tonight because he feels the need to impress Blaine."

Blaine felt himself blushing. "He knows he doesn't have to do that," he muttered without looking at anyone, but facing the gym floor instead.

"Prepare to be impressed anyway," Nick told him. "Oh, hey, it's starting."

Blaine watched as both teams appeared, and felt another blush coming up when Jeff caught his eye and grinned. He waved shyly, causing Nick to laugh next to him, but he didn't care. He wasn't exactly in love with Jeff (yet?), but he didn't think he could've picked a better first boyfriend.

He tried to keep track of what was happening, but even though this wasn't the first game of basketball he'd ever watched (he'd seen all the previous games as well, seeing as the Warblers council seemed to see these matches as some sort of field trip), soon, he had no idea what was happening anymore. Still, he was determined to cheer Jeff on as best as he could, so he clapped loudly every time his boyfriend scored or was about to score. Nick had been correct when he'd assumed that Jeff would be on fire: he seemed to have even more energy than he normally did, and Blaine was certain that he could've beaten the entire opposing team on his own if he had to.

Before he knew, it was halftime, and while Blaine kind of wanted to go and see Jeff, he knew that he couldn't. Reluctantly staying in his seat, Blaine tried to follow his friends' conversation. That was, until movement on the gym floor caught his eye.

"Are those cheerleaders?" he asked, cutting off David as he was recounting one of Jeff's best manoeuvres of the first half.

"Dalton doesn't have cheerleaders," Wes pointed out, before turning to the floor as well and gaping.

"Obviously, the other school does," Nick said, already letting his eyes rake over the assembling girls.

Right when Blaine was about to comment on this action, he caught someone's eye. A male cheerleader was blinking back at him, and for a moment, Blaine relished in the contact. When the corners of the other boy's mouth rose, however, Blaine was brought out of his stupor and quickly looked away. He wasn't sure what had just happened, but he didn't want to dwell on it for too long. He had a boyfriend, after all, and he didn't think that eyeing another guy – who, admittedly, was attractive enough – was a good idea, especially so early on in their relationship.

Then he realised that the cheerleaders hadn't even actually performed yet.

By now, the cheerleaders had all taken their places, and Blaine realised that there were, in fact, a few male cheerleaders on the squad. However, most of them were standing at the back, and none of them were quite as gorgeous as the one Blaine had just caught himself staring at.

He should really stop this. If not, he'd end up feeling incredibly guilty even though he technically hadn't done anything.

As it turned out, the boy he'd just exchanged looks with was there to sing, along with the girl next to him. Blaine didn't recognise the song, but he did know that they were really good. The other cheerleaders performed an intricate looking choreography, and the two singers occasionally danced along. For the most part, however, they appeared to be doing a routine that didn't have much to do with what the rest of the squad was doing.

"They're amazing," Nick breathed from next to him, and as Blaine glanced sideways, he noticed that his friend's eyes constantly went from cheerleader to cheerleader, never resting on the same girl for longer than two seconds.

"They are," he agreed slightly hesitantly. It didn't help that the male singer was shooting him glances every time Blaine happened to look his way. He liked to think it was a mere coincidence, but deep down, he knew well enough that it wasn't.

He shifted in his seat uncomfortably, and his mind immediately strayed. What would he have done if he hadn't been dating Jeff now? The answer to that question was terrifyingly simple; he would've stayed behind or tried to find another way to get in touch with this boy. From the looks of him, he was probably gay, and he was attractive and a great singer.

But he was dating Jeff, and he was happy. Even before they'd started dating, they'd been friends; they knew each other, and Blaine liked his boyfriend for who he was, inside and out. He didn't know this boy, what he was like. For all Blaine knew, the boy could be a typical bitchy cheerleader who played all the guys he came across, gay, bi, or straight.

Plus, this boy was no Jeff.

That did it. Blaine liked Jeff and wanted to be with him. He wasn't going to screw things up because of a good-looking guy he'd never even spoken to.

Not that he'd been planning to, of course, but this sealed the deal. When this game was over, Blaine was going to leave, make up an excuse for Jeff in case he asked why he'd left early, and get rid of any thoughts about this cheerleader. Which, he imagined, couldn't be all that hard. As pointed out before, he had Jeff as his boyfriend.

So he tried his best not to change any more looks towards the boy, lest he get the wrong idea. This was made rather difficult because of the fact that the boy was dancing around the gym floor, and the girls weren't much to look at either, in Blaine's opinion. The routine in itself, though, was virtually flawless, and Blaine wished he could've enjoyed it more.

Then, the performance was over, much to the dislike of most of the audience. The cheerleaders retreated to the side, and the two basketball teams walked back in. Blaine's eyes instantly found Jeff, and now, he didn't feel awkward when he found himself being stared back at.

As had become obvious in the first part of the game, the other team was still no match for Dalton. A great cheerleading squad their school might have, but their basketball team sucked. Therefore, it wasn't a very big surprise that Dalton's team won with a bigger difference in points than they'd ever had before. Blaine knew they'd probably be celebrating this all night long.

It was a good thing he'd done his homework when he had, no matter what Jeff had said.

While both teams were ushered towards their respective changing rooms, the people in the audience all started leaving, and Blaine was wondering whether he, too, should leave already, or if he should stay behind and wait for Jeff. Having never had a boyfriend before, he was completely new to what he was supposed to do in situations like this. Yes, before, he had decided to just leave already to avoid potentially awkward situations, but now he wasn't so certain anymore. He suspected that normally, he was supposed to wait, but then again, he'd only be going to the dorms, which weren't exactly far away.

"Are you sticking around for Jeff?" David suddenly asked, and Blaine noticed with a start that his friends had all stood up as well.

"Uh," he started, "I guess?"

Wes clapped his shoulder. "We'll see you later, then. Come on, guys."

Blaine figured he might as well get off the bleachers already, but just as he stepped onto the floor, he heard a voice. And seeing as he was the only one left in the gym, they were probably talking to him.

Whirling around, he saw that it was the female singer from the cheerleading squad, now dressed in street clothes. "Uh – hi?" he said uncertainly, not knowing what she could possibly want from him.

She just smirked and beckoned to someone behind her. Naturally, it was the male cheerleader. To his credit, he looked a bit uncomfortable about being here, facing Blaine, as he moved towards his friend slowly.

"Enjoy your talk, boys," the girl said, smiling as she walked away.

Both boys watched her go, and finally, the other boy said, "Hi."

"Hey." If this wasn't the most awkward thing Blaine had ever gone through, he didn't know what it was. "Your… performance was really good."

"You think?" The other boy smiled nervously. "Thanks. I'm Kurt, by the way."

Blaine shook his outstretched hand. "Blaine."

There was an awkward silence that Blaine wasn't sure how to break. In the end, Kurt was the first to crack.

"So… are you a big fan of the game?" he asked curiously. "You seemed pretty into it, from what I could see…" He paused. "Oh, wow, that sounds really creepy."

Blaine smiled flatly, figuring that now was as good a time as ever. "To be honest, I don't know much about basketball," he confessed. "But my boyfriend was playing, so…"

He was certain that, if Kurt's eyes became any bigger, they might consume his entire face. "Your – oh, okay. Right." Kurt chuckled embarrassedly. "Your boyfriend was – yeah. That makes sense." Both Kurt's arms were wrapped around his middle now and Blaine stood there just feeling uneasy about the entire situation. He hated it when people felt bad about something he'd said or done. "Figures, right? First gay guy my age I meet and he's got a boyfriend. Of course, why wouldn't you have a boyfriend?"

"Sorry," Blaine muttered. "Really, I didn't mean – "

"Don't," Kurt told him, more forceful than Blaine would've thought him to be at this moment. "Don't be sorry, seriously." He sighed and smiled sadly at Blaine. "So, who was it?"

"What?" Blaine asked, slightly confused.

Kurt gave him another embarrassed smile. "Your boyfriend," he elaborated. "Which one was it?"

"Oh." Blaine smiled happily before realising what had just gone down between him and Kurt. "Jeff. The tall blond one?"

"The one who kept scoring?" Kurt inquired. "Good catch. Both of you, actually."

"Jeff's pretty great," Blaine agreed.

"That doesn't sound too enthusiastic," Kurt observed. "Sorry. That's none of my business."

Blaine nodded somewhat vaguely. "This is just… kind of an awkward conversation, don't you think?"

This time, Kurt's laugh sounded relieved. "Yeah. Yes, I definitely agree with that." He sighed again. "Do you think your boyfriend would mind if we met up some time? Just to talk, of course, I promise. It would be… interesting, to share experiences, and all that, with someone who's gay too, I think, if you want." He seemed to be slowly shrinking as he spoke. "You can even bring your boyfriend, if you want. The more the merrier, right?"

"I'm not – I'm not sure if that would be a good idea," Blaine said awkwardly. He couldn't flat out say no, and if Kurt would press the matter, Blaine would, most likely, give in eventually. He was all for helping troubled gay teens, not unlike himself, but now was really not the best time for it. God, he was being very egotistical now, wasn't he? Maybe he should just say yes anyway, consequences be doomed.

"Of course," Kurt said, nodding. "That's okay, I get it." He shifted on his feet. "I'll just – oh."

"Hey, Blaine!" Jeff greeted him happily, wrapping an arm around him, and Blaine really couldn't help the smile forming on his face now. "Oh – hi. You're one of those cheerleaders, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am," Kurt confirmed. "I was just – leaving. Uh – bye!"

Jeff looked at Blaine questioningly. "What did he want?"

Blaine shrugged. "We were just… talking. About the game." He didn't know why he was lying – probably because he didn't want Jeff to get any wrong ideas – but he hoped he was somewhat convincing. "Come on," he continued, tugging at his boyfriend's arm. "I assume we've got a party to attend?"

Jeff grinned widely. "We sure do!" As he recounted one of his most spectacular goals, the pair walked out of the gym as well, no longer thinking about the boy on the cheerleading squad with the wonderful voice and the sad eyes.


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Damn it. I guess there had to be one one where Blaine wasn't just Mr. Charming.

Yeah, they couldn't all be happily ever afters :) Hopefully you enjoyed it anyway.