Apart from the fact that Nick and Jeff would most likely tease them mercilessly, Kurt had had no idea what could possibly change about his daily routine at Dalton. Sure, it had taken them some convincing to get Burt off of their case because of their shared room. But they had somehow managed to make him understand that whether they shared a room or not would have no influence on their decision to take things slow. So unless someone would report them to the faculty, they could stay in their dorm for now. They didn't want to hide their relationship, so it would probably be just a matter of time until they'd have to room with someone else (Kurt couldn't deny that the thought of having someone who wasn't his father or Blaine be such a big part of his private life made him rather uncomfortable, even if the faculty would let him room with Jeff or Nick) but they would enjoy the time they had together until then.

So it came as a surprise when Kurt realized just how much had already changed on that first day back at Dalton after their surreal weekend at Kurt's.

For one, there was the fact that they arrived together on the parking lot. The minute they were out of their respective cars, Blaine was back at his side, twining their hands and offering him a smile so wide Kurt thought his cheeks had to hurt with it. He still beamed back at him just as brightly. Kurt didn't notice the looks they were getting until they crossed the entrance hall to get to their first lesson, though he assumed that the few other freshly arrived boys in the parking lot had stared as well, as all eyes seemed to be on them; he'd just been too busy staring into Blaine's sparkling hazel eyes and grinning back dumbly to notice.

As soon as it registered that they undeliberately had everyone's attention, Kurt shrunk in on himself, pressing closer to Blaine's side and trying to subtly remove his hand from where their fingers were linked. He could feel his ears pressing flat to his scalp, his tail coming up around his legs and curling there as if to hold him together, completely still except for the restlessly twitching tip. He probably looked like a cornered animal - and that was exactly how he felt.

Blaine noticed, of course he did, tightening his hold on Kurt's hand and throwing him a worried glance. Kurt bit his tongue, quickly looking away from those wide orbs, trying to suppress the instinct that told him to run and hide. He knew that Blaine would leave with him in an instant if he told him how trapped and on display all those eyes on them made him feel. But that would be no solution to the problem and Kurt knew he had to learn how to power through that kind of situation on his own. He'd made a decision and now he had to face the consequences.

It wasn't long until they reached their destination, even though it seemed like centuries filled with staring eyes had passed. He swallowed harshly when the door came into view. Being on display for everyone to see in a room full of people he couldn't just leave behind at his leisure - not an agreeable thought. Blaine looked about to pull him into a more secluded corner to talk this through with him again, worry etched on his face, when the first bell rang.

"We should better hurry," Kurt breathed out, voice unnaturally high and shaky even to his own ears. His grip on Blaine's hand turned white-knuckled and he ignored his sound of protest, pulling him along into the classroom, figuring that just getting it over with would probably be for the best. He deliberately ignored the fact that he was very well aware that their chemistry teacher had never been any less than fifteen minutes late.

"Kurt," Blaine whispered, an urgent tone to his voice, as they sat down in their usual seats in the front. As soon as the excuse of having to shrug out of his coat and arrange his things allowed him to, Kurt pulled his hand out of Blaine's, but the eyes remained fixed on them. He tried to distract himself from the uncomfortable chills running up and down his back by looking through his notes from their last lesson, but unseeingly staring at the same piece of paper for over five minutes could only fool anyone for so long.

"Kurt," Blaine repeated, looking even more concerned as he gently nudged Kurt with his elbow to get his attention. Kurt's eyes remained fixed on the paper in front of him for another moment as he took a deep breath and tried to convince his subconscious that Dalton was not McKinley, that no one here would make a big deal out of two boys holding hands. He didn't have much success and his shaking hands and the roar of the restless whispering and murmuring behind him didn't really help.

With a resigned sigh, he looked up at Blaine, knowing he'd be able to read every emotion from his face right then.

"Oh Kurt," he murmured softly, reaching out for his hands. Kurt thought that it was pretty admirable that he only hesitated for a second before he held them out for Blaine to take.

"If it makes you that uncomfortable we can always leave, or I could talk to the boys and tell them to lay off with the murmuring behind our backs," Blaine offered, smiling softly at him. The idea of Blaine telling his friends to stop talking about them because Kurt was too sensitive to handle the situation was even more embarrassing than simply leaving, though, and Kurt blushed at the mere suggestion. He was just about to take the first option when, for the first time since Kurt had transferred to Dalton - and judging by the shocked gasps from all directions probably even longer than that - their teacher actually arrived on time. Now he had no choice but to stay because there was no way Kurt Hummel would stay up during class and just leave.

At first it seemed to get better as the whispering died down. But unfortunately, Mr. Gordan appeared to be rather distracted on that particular day. The pupils caught on quickly and as soon as he turned his back to them to write down some formulas on the chalk board, they were back to the quiet chatter from before. Kurt started to squirm in his seat, feeling at least twenty pairs of eyes boring into his back. He almost jumped out of his chair when a tiny, folded note landed on the table in front of him. Curiously, he turned it around only to find it labeled with his name in Blaine's almost unreadable scrawl. He shot him a suspicious glance, eyebrows raised questioningly, but Blaine just motioned for him to read it with a silly grin. Rolling his eyes fondly, Kurt slowly unfolded the slip of paper.

We could still leave if you want to. I could pretend to be sick and needing your help to get to the school nurse.

Kurt looked up from the note, shaking his head subtly, as their teacher had turned back around to face the class. A small smile tugged at his lips and he was already starting to feel a bit more relaxed, knowing that Blaine would be at his side no matter what.

The second Mr. Gordan turned his back to them again, there was a new note on his table.

Mind telling me what exactly has you so anxious?

Kurt gave him one of his patented ‘Are we really doing this right now?'-looks but picked up a pen to reply nonetheless when Blaine just raised an equally unimpressed eyebrow.

I feel like a 6th grader, passing notes like this. I can't imagine Dalton Academy would be very impressed by you, Blaine.

Blaine quickly stuck out his tongue at him when the teacher didn't look in their direction, making Kurt giggle quietly.

You're trying to distract from the topic. Should I take this as a ‘You don't want to talk about it'? Because you got me a bit worried here.

D'aw, Blaine. You worry too much. I'm better already.

Kuuuuuurt.

Oh, fine. It's just... having everyone stare at us and whisper behind our backs makes me really uncomfortable.

Please tell me you know they don't mean any harm, baby. They're just a huge bunch of gossips and they don't have all that much to talk about most of the time.

I know, Blaine. I don't really expect anyone here to jump us for being gay. I guess it's just that old habits die hard. Also, baby, Blaine? Really?

Good, because they all accept us and love you. We'll just have to work on getting rid of those old habits of yours, we have time. And yes, really. Or do you want me to call you something else?

Well, good luck with that. And I think you're mistaking me for you. After all, you're the lead singer of the Warblers. What happened to Kurt? Or is my name no longer an acceptable way of addressing me?

Do I detect a little bitterness there, Mr. Hummel? And no, I'm not mistaking anything. Everyone who's ever talked to you so far has been entirely charmed. And of course it is, I just want something to call you when... How do I say that? When I can't just take your hand or pull you into a hug or press a soft kiss to your cheek or your lips, so I need to convey a bit of that with my words instead. I just don't think your name is quite doing that job.

Maybe? Blaine Devon Anderson, you didn't really question all your friends what they think of me, did you? Because that would be really creepy. Also, stop making me tear up in class, there's already enough eyes on me.

I just wonder who it's directed at. And maybe? How much would you mind that level of creepiness? Sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry. It's just how I feel when you call me honey. It's like a... verbal caress, I guess. I just want to be able to give that to you, too.

I don't know. The poisonous atmosphere at my old school? Myself for still thinking that way. My stupid instincts for telling me to run and hide all the time. Does that sufficiently answer your question? I guess I can live with that. Just barely. And it's okay. It's the good kind of emotional. The kind I really enjoy that you're able to make me feel. I don't know, just come up with something? Please not baby, though. And if the words ‘cat' or ‘kitty' are involved I won't hesitate to scratch you.

Kurt. It's okay to be mad at the ignorant idiots at your old school, they clearly deserve no better when they were unable to appreciate you the way you should be appreciated. As everyone does around here. But please don't think like that of yourself. It's not your fault that your instincts work and you're doing an amazing job not giving in. If you were anywhere else their advice might even be appropriate. And that way of thinking can't be pushed aside as easily as you'd wish to. It took me weeks to finally get into my head that I didn't have to brace myself for being shoved into a wall every time someone passed me in the halls when I first came here. Some days I still want to duck and hide. But it's getting easier, so don't be mad at yourself. Give yourself some time, it'll all be good. I'm really glad that I'm able to make you feel that way, too. How about sweetheart? And you just sort of contradicted your own argument.

Blaine. I'm pretty sure that while the better part of Dalton's pupils doesn't dislike me, appreciate is a bit much. I'm sorry, honey. I never noticed when you had one of those days. Did you just not have them since I came here or are you just that good at hiding it? And most importantly, why hide it from me? And I'll try. You know patience is not really my forte, though. I'm also really happy that I get to make you feel that way. Also a) god, please no, b) no I didn't. I'm just playing my best cards.

Hey, it's got you to laugh and that is all I can ever wish for :) Apart from you calling me honey because it really makes me feel unfairly good. To answer your question, yes, I did have them a few times since you came here and I did my best to hide it. I didn't want to discourage you from trying to find your own way of dealing with those by showing you that even after more than a year it sometimes still catches up with you. I'll have to try to talk some patience into you, then ;) You always make me feel good, Kurt. Always. Why do you resent sweetheart so much?? It's a lovely endearment. What about darling?

Blaine. No tears in class, remember? And since when are we down to emoticons? I'll file that away for later, honey. Blaine, I expect you to share those days with me, too, from now on. It's okay, I never expected to be perfectly fine after a few weeks. Maybe helping you deal with it will make it easier to deal with it myself. Try your best but you're not the first to do so and you probably won't be the last to fail. Aw, Blaine. You too. And I don't know, I just don't like it? Darling is much better.

Sorry. And I'm always down to emoticons if you let me ;) You're going to use that against me one day, won't you? We can try that. I don't like hiding things from you, though I'm not particularly fond of the idea of making you sad by sharing, either. Kuuurt. Now you made me emotional as well! Oh, okay. We'll skip that one then. Darling it is or should I come up with more?

Such a dork. Why do I even put up with you again? And of course I will. I promise to keep my sadness in moderation and just be happy that you're sharing. Good, Blaiiiine, that was my aim. I don't know. You could always try others but you can stick with darling for now if you really need to.

Blaine was just about to reply when the bell rang. Neither of them had noticed the hour passing - or anything the teacher had said or written down, at that. Knowing they'd probably regret spending that whole class passing notes like little children instead of paying attention when exams would come closer, they shuffled out of the room with the rest of the students, heads held down sheepishly and fingers linking automatically once they were out of the classroom. Blaine smiled down at their hands, swinging them lightly between them.

"What is it?" Kurt asked, nudging him playfully with his shoulder.

"I like that we don't even have to think about this anymore," he replied, grinning broadly and nodding down towards their entwined hands. "We're just doing it automatically and we don't even have to look, they just fit together like puzzle pieces."

Kurt felt another heady rush of affection coursing through him, coloring his cheeks bright pink and tugging his lips up into a wide smile of his own.Blaine really needed to stop doing that to him constantly. Especially in school.

"I like it, too," Kurt breathed, leaning a bit more heavily into Blaine's side. They headed over to Kurt's French class like that, not saying anything more. They had exchanged enough words for now during the silly notes that Kurt so most definitely would put into a notebook of their own once he got back to their dorm. What with how close they were walking, Kurt noticed immediately when Blaine started to get fidgety once they approached the right door.

"Blaine? Is something wrong?"

"I- No," Blaine hurried to say, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes for a second before completely turning to Kurt. "I- Tell me if I'm being too forward or if that's something you'd never consider but... Oh God, that sounds so silly now that I try to put it into words... But this weekend was so perfect and I didn't have to leave your side for a second and now it's going to be an endless, boring class without you and I- I'm going to miss you, Kurt."

"Blaine," Kurt breathed, eyes a bit misty, a hand automatically coming up to Blaine's cheek. Blaine leaned into the touch on instinct, blinking up at him through slightly wet, impossibly long eyelashes. "I'm going to miss you too." In the back of his mind Kurt was aware that they sounded like the corniest romcom of all times but he really couldn't care less in that moment in time. He hardly even noticed that they were in a hall full of people that had all stopped what they were doing to watch them.

"What I wanted to do is- If that's okay with you of course I don't want you to do anything you don't-"

"Blaine!" Kurt giggled, feeling Blaine's lips stretch into a smile under the finger he'd pressed to them to shut up his rambling. "Just tell me what you wanted to do, I'll let you know if I don't want to do it."
"Okay," Blaine nodded, still looking rather unsure but taking a deep breath to power through it. "I just wanted to ask you if it would be okay if I gave you a kiss goodbye before class. On the cheek, of course!" He looked hilariously shocked by the idea that his suggestion could have been taken for anything else.

For a second, Kurt hesitated. He'd never been a fan of the vomit-inducing public displays of affection some of the couples at his old school had deemed necessary. He was pretty sure he'd never become one of those Let's-practically-have-sex-in-the-hallway-right-before-every-single-class people. But even though he couldn't really prove it Kurt was certain that it looked much more aesthetically pleasing and much less emotionally scarring when he and Blaine were kissing than those tongue wrestling matches he'd had to witness at McKinley, anyway. And a simple kiss on the cheek? He thought he could do that. With a smile, he waited for Blaine to look at him and nodded softly. Blaine smiled back at him and just as the first bell rang, he gently pressed his lips to Kurt's cheek, lingering a few seconds more than necessary, soft skin brushing against soft skin and making Kurt shiver a bit.

"I'll see you at lunch," Blaine whispered into his ear before pulling away and making to head for his own class before he'd be late.

Neither of them had exactly expected the round of applause that greeted them when they finally took their eyes off of each other.

"About goddamn time!" Nick hollered from where he was spontaneously choreographing some kind of triumphant celebratory dance with Jeff.

"If you're still not officially boyfriends I'm going to look you into the choir room until you are!" Wes threw in in passing as he headed to History.

There were catcalls and whistling and Kurt simultaneously wanted to vanish into the ground and grin at all of them. He didn't like to be the center of so much attention for anything that wasn't a performance, but he couldn't help but be enamored that apparently the better part of the Dalton students had rooted for them and seemed pretty invested in their relationship. It was such a huge difference from what he'd have been met with had he done the exact same thing at his old school that he just couldn't help the content grin on his face.

"See? I told you," Blaine leaned in to whisper into his ear one last time before he pulled back and made to push his way through his friends. The short walk took a lot longer than it usually would, as he was pulled into a hug every other step or clapped on the back by a grinning Warbler. Kurt watched him go and laugh with them with a content smile, turning to head into the classroom, immediately being flanked by Nick and Jeff.

"Don't be disappointed with the lack of back claps and hugs," Jeff muttered to him.

"Yeah, we told them they're not allowed to do that because you would have our heads if we let a group of people storm towards you and just pull you into their arms. But they love you, too," Nick added, nodding towards the sea of faces that grinned at him the exact same way they had grinned at Blaine. Kurt just smiled back and linked arms with Nick and Jeff.

In the course of the following hours, Kurt's insecurity and discomfort turned into annoyance. Of course, he was happy that everyone was happy for him and Blaine but it started getting on his nerves that wherever he went, people grinned at him as if he'd just invented a cure for cancer. Everyone wanted to know what happened and gave him the saddest puppy eyes when he said it was between him and Blaine. Sure, they were too well-mannered to pry but Kurt could tell by their expressions that they'd try again until they'd get an answer eventually.

It was even worse when he was actually in Blaine's vicinity. Whenever they had to part for a class, everyone was hovering around them as if they had bets on whether they would kiss again or not. All that attention had even Blaine shifting uncomfortably and they were almost ridiculously careful around each other. The moment when Blaine had leaned over Kurt during lunch to get the salt and everyone else had held their breath, staring at them as if they had expected a kiss instead, would probably be burnt into their minds forever. It had been so silent you could have heard a fork drop on the other end of the room.

So they kept the physical affection to a minimum. They held hands in between classes, but there were no kisses or long, lingering glances as they parted. Kurt would have missed that under normal circumstances but with a whole audience behind them he'd rather cut down on the romance. Someone hollering behind them would ruin the moment, anyway.

After a whole day of eyes following him expectantly everywhere he went, he finally had enough during Warblers practice that day. Sectionals was that very week but everyone seemed much more interested in staring down Kurt and Blaine than actually learning the choreography. Kurt had been able to put up with the round of applause they had been met with when they'd entered the choir room. He'd grudgingly dealt with everyone throwing them very much not subtle glances whenever the choreography forced him and Blaine to be close. He'd held back at the sight of the smug smirks they were wearing whenever Blaine turned around to look at him during the corniest lyrics with a smile.

He'd had enough when they sat down for a few minutes to talk about the setlist one last time and everyone avoided the huge five-seat couch to crouch together on the two-seater opposite him and Blaine, staring at them expectantly.

"Are you serious now?" he growled, eyes narrowing into his patented death glare. "I would very much appreciate it if you guys could stop treating us like some kind of exotic zoo attraction. We're not about to make out in the choir room, especially not with all of you staring at us like that. And I'd very much like to be able to take Blaine's hand without being stared down or faced with a sea of stupid smirks, okay?"

Immediately, everyone's faces dropped, efficiently making Kurt feel horrible about his little outburst.

"We're so sorry, guys!" Thad declared with the saddest expression known to mankind. "We never meant to make you uncomfortable!"

"Yeah, we were just sort of getting fed up with all that constant sexual tension between you two. I guess we're just happy that you can finally stop staring longingly at each other across the choir room," David shrugged, earning him another death glare that had him sinking down further into the leather of the couch.

"Not to mention all the bets we have going," one of the other new additions to the Warblers threw in from the back rows, which resulted in everyone turning on him hissing threats within the second. Kurt's ears pressed flat to his head and his tail started flicking threateningly as he rose from the couch.

"Bets?" he growled, baring his teeth just enough that some of the Warblers flinched and tried to hide behind each other.

"Uhm..." They swallowed harshly, everyone avoiding his eyes.

"What kind of bets?" Kurt repeated, a slight hiss slipping in, eyes fixed on the frightened-looking newbie.

"I- um- I-," he stuttered, trying to look away but unable to remove his gaze from Kurt's glare. "On when you'd finally get together and how it would happen and some firsts..." he hurried to get out when Kurt took another step closer, sweat breaking out on his brow.

Kurt let his unimpressed gaze wander over the Warblers that were shrinking in on themselves in front of him. The picture sent a strange thrill of power through him.

"No more bets," he announced, voice clear and cutting. "If I catch anyone exchanging money over something that is entirely not your business in regards to our relationship - which, for your information since you don't seem to be aware of that, is our whole relationship - you really don't want to face the consequences. Now stop staring and start acting like normal people again, we have Sectionals to practice for."
The Warblers nodded sheepishly, scrambling to pull back up into more appropriate sitting positions when Kurt turned his back on them to head back to Blaine. He couldn't help but answer his proud grin with a smirk of his own, another thrill running through him. When he sank down on the couch again and cuddled up to Blaine's side, no one dared to spare them more than a second look for the rest of practice. Kurt and Blaine had to bury their amused grins into each other's hair or shoulders every now and then and the moment Wes declared them done for the day everyone was out of the door in a blink.

The whole way to their dorm room they had to suppress their laughter, sure that the Warblers were running around school warning everyone to keep to themselves this very second. The second they made it through the door they collapsed onto Kurt's bed and just laughed until they couldn't anymore, tears streaming down their cheeks and sides aching with it.

Once they had calmed down a bit, they simply turned around to lay on their sides facing each other, exchanging silly grins until Kurt wound Blaine's tie around his hand and pulled him in for a fierce kiss. With a chuckle, Blaine melted against the mattress, pulling Kurt on top of him as he traced his tongue over his bottom lip. Kurt went just as pliantly, carefully keeping their hips apart before diving in for a deep kiss, opening his mouth for Blaine's tongue and allowing him a short moment of triumph before taking charge of the kiss and exploring the roof of Blaine's mouth at his leisure. Their tongues tangled and Kurt lowered himself enough for their chests to brush, thrilling at the wanton moan that slipped from Blaine's lips. He held the kiss for another few moments, playfully licking behind Blaine's teeth and nipping at his bottom lip before finally releasing it and pulling back with a smile. Blaine smiled back at him breathlessly, before pulling him back down on his side to cuddle. As he closed his eyes to listen to Blaine's soothing breathing and revel in his body heat, even noticeable through all their layers of clothing, he decided that this development was definitely worth the whispering Dalton students, especially since he expected it to last much longer than their interest in them.