MONDAY EVENING, JANUARY 7

BLAINE

"Blaine, Blaine? You okay, man?" David asked as he was shuffling through some of the paperwork he had laid out in the studio.

I hadn't realized that I wasn't paying attention to him. Then again, the whole day had kind of seemed a bit hazy, starting with this morning. And dear god, what a morning it had been. I normally hated Mondays, I wholeheartedly agreed with Garfield about hating them, but this morning left me with an unnatural pep in my step. Well, more like a hitch since I was walking a bit awkward compared to my normal stride, but nothing could harsh my vibe this morning.

Wes' interruption – though unexpected – hadn't even done anything to hinder my happy today and though he looked at me with this weird, side-eyed look the entire time Kurt and I ate in their kitchen, I couldn't really think about that now.

All I could think about was Kurt smiling and laughing as the three of us chatted over eggs and veggie sausage at the tiny table in the kitchen he shared with Wes and the stunning way his hair drooped over his face first thing that morning. He hadn't had time to do much other than throw on clothes, but he still managed to look like a thousand bucks.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry, spaced out a little," I replied dreammily, hoping that would cover for my lack of attention this morning. But I couldn't help myself.

Kurt and I slept together. We had slept together and justslepttogether. We had sex and talked and laughed and just... shared.

Considering that I hadn't had sex in, well, far too long to even admit – last night had really taken things to a new level. I wasn't the type of guy to go for one-night stands – though I had at least one on my résumé – so doing something like that meant something. Sex with Kurt meant something.

And it was the most awesome that has ever awesomed.

I realized that made no sense, but can you really put words on having incredible sex with the guy that you love for the first time? Well,timeswould be more accurate. Good lord the stamina we both had was pretty impressive; I certainly would not be upset about that moving forward.

And really, it wasn't even about the stamina we had or our sexual compatibility and chemistry or the fact that I hadn't reached climax with another guy in years... so many years I think another president had been in office when I was last with another guy. It was about the fact that it was more than that.

But aside from what happened last night, it was also the care he took this morning. He was cute first thing in the morning and he even offered to pack me something for lunch since he knew I was trying to bring food from home more often to cut down on relying on Chinese take out so often. It was unnecessary – no one had packed me a lunch since the third grade – but it was sweet nonetheless. But the travel mug of coffee he had offered, I gladly took.

He had held out the coffee to me, kissed me gently on the lips while cupping my face, and whispered, "have a nice day," in the sweetest yet sexiest way I could imagine. It was pretty much the most perfect morning in the world despite the fact that it was a Monday.

But god, thinking about Kurt right now was not making it easy to get anything done or think about anything other than the way he felt on top of me, the way he looked up at me while I...

"I'm guessing your inattentiveness might have something to do with the situation you found yourself in last night and this morning," David added with a wink, interjecting the completely inappropriate thoughts crossing my mind.

Fucking Wes, I thought to myself, hoping that I wasn't blushing. "Uh," I responded dumbly. What could I do? I can't lie to the guy but it's not like David and I shared any form of camaraderie about sexual conquests up until this point. This was primarily due to the fact that we were both virgins and didn't date much (or at all, in my case) in high school, but whatever.

"It's okay, I'm not going to push for details," he replied smoothly, causing me to thank my lucky stars that he was not prone to gossiping about girth and length and other awkward things like Wes probably would be. Poor Kurt. "But I do want to know how things are going with Mr. Hummel these days. Aside from what Wes alluded to this morning, which you have no need to confirm or deny in my book."

I giggled. He was probably a little curious, but I was thankful that he wasn't pushing. "Great," I answered with a wide smile. It was true after all; things were going great - greater than great, even.

It wasn't just the touches and sex and our morning together that made it great. It was the way I felt around Kurt, the way I felt about Kurt, really. He made things seem a little bit better, made me feel a little bit stronger and more sure of myself, and just made me feel wanted in a way I hadn't experienced before.

In my closet full of skeletons in the form of bad relationships, the one thing that had been lacking was me feeling wanted and desired and... cherished, I guess. Guys would use me but they never wantedme; they wanted my money or my connections or the benefits that being in a relationship had, but they never seemed to want or appreciate me.

But Kurt did. Kurt wanted me and he said so – many, many times last night. But he didn't just verbalize it in a sexual format either. He did in the way he would call me every night to say hi, the way he would send me funny things because they reminded him of me, the way he wanted to talk about what "we" were doing that weekend rather than say "here's when I'm available, when can you meet?"

And all that happened thanks to me randomly seeing a guy on the street who I saw again at a bar who I saw again online and the rest, as they say, is history.

While I was thinking about my relationship with Kurt and the somewhat fanciful way it had come together, David interrupted my thoughts. "You know you can tell me about stuff, right? I know that we've only just reconnected recently, but back in our heyday, we were buddies and I hope we can be that way again soon."

I smiled. David really was a great guy; quiet and reserved at times, but well intentioned and seemingly more sane and adult than Wes was these days. Where Wes was goofy and loud, David was demure and it only highlighted why they were a good match as friends. He was invested in his relationships – which is why he was still in a functioning and loving relationship and had been for years – and it was what made him such a valuable resource to have as a friend.

"I know," I retorted. "I tend to be kind of... quiet about dating, I guess? At least in a professional capacity. And I know that we're beyond that professionalism, but old habits die hard I guess. I'm not trying to hide him or anything or the fact that I'm gay if you..."

"No, no. Definitely not what I meant," he interrupted with a smile. "And I'm not trying to spy on Wes' behalf, though I'm sure he wished that I would give him the details since Kurt apparently has been mum all morning about it and it's killing him." I grinned at that. Kurt liked to mess with Wes just as much as I did, but I think he also kept it to himself because it wasn't about Wes – it was about us. At least, I hope that's why he didn't tell him. Other than the fact that Wes would blab about it and it'd end up in the newspaper if he had his way.

"I really just want you to know that someone has your back. And I know you have friends here, but sometimes it doesn't hurt to just know you can shoot the shit with someone from time-to-time. And since I doubt Santana has a high tolerance for any level of shit, I figured I'd put my hat into the ring as well and let you know that I'm here. Ya know?" he said, shrugging on his final question.

I nodded. "I hear you, man. And thanks. It's nice to know you'll be a listening ear if I need it. So, thanks."

"It's all yours," he said, jokingly tugging on his ear for emphasis.

I laughed. "Well thanks. And don't tell Wes what you're up to – he'll think you're trying to usurp him for Favorite Former Warbler status and I don't think his dainty heart can take it."

David chuckled heartily. "Don't worry, this is just between us."

As I was about to give another dig against Wes, the guys came in from outside where they had taken a short break with Jeremy outside; presumably to get some air outside of the somewhat stifling, circulated air in the studio.

"Hey guys," Zach said walking back in. "I know it's quitting time but I think we should keep the party going. And Blaine, you have to come with us."

I whipped my attention to Zach, surprised at him so openly inviting me to something with the band. It wasn't that I hadn't hung out with them before, but I rarely wanted to cut in on their band time or their free time. In essence I was nothing more than a face from the label and kind of, in a way, their manager/boss so up until this point I had kept my relationship with them fairly limited.

"Yeah, B. Come out with us," David insisted, grabbing my shoulder for emphasis as he stood from the chair next to me.

"We were thinking of headed down to the Ace if that's okay with you," Phil, David's brother, said.

I shrugged. "I guess. Are you guys sure I won't be in the way?"

"Of course not, man," Zach stated. "The whole environment there is chill and I think we all have a fairly bad case of the Mondays. Plus Jeremy has to bail, so we need someone normal to keep up with our level of crazy."

I chuckled at his comment. Sure, the guys were young and probably a bit irresponsible from time to time. Plus, from what I heard earlier that morning, they were going to have to pull together a bunch of the requests Santana had asked for about their lyrics over the next couple of days so they had a pretty busy week ahead of them.

And even though I certainly wasn't having a bad case of the Mondays, I couldn't turn the guys down when they were looking at me like eager, hopeful puppies.

"Let's roll."

...

Rather than take the subway, we cabbed it the nearly twenty blocks down to The Ace Hotel, where the hotel lobby's bar was recently established as the newest, coolest place to hang out. I hadn't ever been but had heard about it from various people at work.

Upon walking inside, I could see the appeal. The interior was dark and lush with deep cherry wood paneling and taxidermy animals placed amongst plaid and herringbone-patterned armchairs and sofas. Two large sofa areas surrounded the bar with cowhide blankets draped over, giving it an even cozier feel.

And it wasn't just the atmosphere that explained why people liked it so much; everyone that was there probably could have modeled for some major fashion lines in the city. The men were classic and classy and the women were edgy without looking easy. It was basically Dumbo, Brooklyn transported into a Manhattan hotel's bar.

"The couches in the back don't look reserved, let's weasel our way in," Zach said, patting the back of Pierre – the band's drummer. I nodded and followed the group toward the back and edged my way onto the first available spot on the edge of the couch.

"I'm getting the first round," David stated, earning cheers from the band. "But only for those of you who are legal." This statement yielded him even louder boos. "Which leaves Blaine, Pierre and Zach. What can I get for you?"

"Surprise me," I said with a shrug and the other guys muttered something to David that I didn't really hear. The bar looked small and even though it wasn't busy – it was barely after 7pm – I didn't want to ask for something too complicated or too hard so early into the night.

"Boring beers coming right up. Hey Phil, can you give me an extra hand? I want to be sure I can bring the rest of you guys your milk," David joked, causing his brother to punch him in the arm.

As David and his brother went to the bar, the rest of the guys ended up shifting and talking a bit amongst themselves as I sat in the periphery. This was the part of it that I wasn't thrilled about when they asked me to come out tonight. The guys from Atticus Finch had been friends for years and I was the corporate figurehead merely tagging along. If I was being honest, I felt kind of like a chaperone – especially considering the age difference.

"Right, Blaine?" Zach asked, and I looked over to see Joel, Pierre and Jon all looking at me expectantly.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention. What did you say?"

"We were just talking about how awesome it's been to collaborate with Jeremy so far. He's been a really great guy to work with on this," Pierre stated.

"Yeah, he's pretty awesome. He's really chill and the fact that he's not based in the big city makes him really easy to work with. Some guys – especially the ones from LA – tend to be really pompous and kind of hard to work with. But he's really cool. Must be that Southern charm."

The guys nodded in agreement. "Yeah, he's pretty great," Pierre said.

"And you've been great too, of course," Zach joked as he nudged my shoulder. I rolled my eyes at his compliment but nudged him right back.

"And you guys have been a blast to work with too. I know I don't come out often with you guys, but the few times we've had dinner in the studio and stuff has been great," I affirmed. They really had been pretty easy to work with and their friendship outside of the walls of the studio really lent itself well to a relaxed work dynamic behind the mic.

"This is a dream for us, so thanks for helping that come true," Zach said sincerely.

The guys all nodded with small smiles at their lips. This was always the fun part of the job – the time in the studio just jamming and listening to music and messing around with chords and lyrics and seeing what popped behind the booth. It was very organic and the flow just made you want to make art and help people and do all kinds of amazing and inspiring things.

It was part of the reason I had felt inspired to write songs. Well, that and Kurt. Being around people who were creative tended to give me creative vibes as well, and so far it had paid off to the tune of half a notebook full of songs and the praise of Jeremy Reed and Ed Droste.

"What's your dream, Blaine?" Jon asked, causing me to turn my head quickly to meet his gaze. I hadn't been asked that question in a long time – let alone been asked by someone who wasn't old enough to drink – but it was something I had been thinking about lately.

"I want to do kind of what Jeremy does. Producing and all that. But I also would like to write songs. I've written some lately and Jeremy said they were pretty good.

"And aside from career goals, one day I think I want to get married and do the whole kids thing. That part isn't as well formulated in my mind, but it's something I've been thinking about in my old age," I said, causing the guys to laugh.

And it was true. I had been thinking about the future, but not just because I was getting older. But because of Kurt and knowing that he and I were in love at some point we would either stay together or break up and I knew one day I would want to be married, but did I want to marry Kurt I knew it was way too early to decide on something like that considering we'd only been dating for two months, but I'd be lying if I didn't admit that being in a relationship made me wonder if it would work out in the end.

"I didn't know you wrote songs," Zach said, pulling me from my thoughts of Kurt and marriage and overthinking way too much into something that is still fairly new. "Maybe we can jam some time and work out a new track. I could really use some help on this one we have coming up soon to record since I don't think it's quite right."

"Is it that one that you've been obsessing over since Christmas? Dude, it will be fine. But I'm sure between Jeremy and Blaine, they can put your mind at ease," Pierre said. I could tell Pierre was the oldest of the group since he acted the most like everyone's older brother.

"Thanks man," Zach said as he reached out to high-five Pierre. I chuckled internally remembering something Kurt had said this morning. Wes had made some crass joke this morning at Kurt's expense and, in a typical Barney Stinson move, he tried to high-five me, to which Kurt said "who even high-fives anymore? The bros from the Brooklyn frat houses or something?" Brooklyn wasn't swimming in frat houses, but this situation lent itself well to actualizing what Kurt had said this morning; these dudes definitely fit Kurt's description of the types of guys who high-fived.

"What?" Zach asked curiously, noting that I had been laughing. "Was it something I said?"

"Oh, no. It's nothing," I said. I wasn't super comfortable with openly discussing my personal life with the guys since I thought it would be inappropriate and I couldn't really explain the story without explaining who Kurt was. And knowing that if I started talking about Kurt, I may not ever shut up about him so I just let the topic die.

"Here's the drinks, gents," David announced as he and Phil placed the drinks on the table. He handed what looked like sodas to the underage guys and thrust a beer into my hands.

"Let's raise a toast, shall we?" David proposed. "To Atticus Finch. May this album be a great success!"

"Cheers to that!" I cheered.

"But what about Blaine?" Phil joked.

"He was a Warbler once, and a finch is a bird too. Maybe he's a distant cousin so he counts," David retorted.

"Nah," Zach said. "He's not a distant relative; Blaine's one of us. Welcome to the Atticus Finch family, Blaine," he stated, raising his beer bottle in my direction. I nodded and took a sip, appreciative of his gesture.

"Now, let's have some fun. Who wants to play never have I ever?" Jon asked, causing David and I to groan.

"We're not playing that," David firmly noted. "My brother is here and I do not want to know what he has been up to since I moved out."

I also didn't want to play the game. It could go from professional to way over the line in no time flat knowing what kinds of things twentysomething guys would try to talk about.

"Are you guys scared? Too chicken to play with us?" Zach asked with a devious wink. If there was one thing that I caught from Cooper, it was an insane sense of pride when someone directly questioned my willingness or ability to do something. It only made me want to prove myself more and nine times out of ten, I would try to one up my challenger.

"Now that you said that, it's on. But I have one rule. Nothing sexual," I stated. I was okay with sharing the crazy things I'd done in college and high school, but I was not willing to talk about sex, my sexuality, or anything like that with people who needed to look to me in a professional lens. I may want to be friends with them, but they didn't need to know everything about my life.

"But—" Phil said.

"You heard the man," David said. "PG-13 shenanigans only and nothing involving whatever crazy shit you do in your room with the lights off." Phil rolled his eyes but nodded in consent.

"I'll go first. Never have I ever gone canoeing illegally on the Hudson," Zach said. When everyone except David and me drank, our lack of drinking stating that we hadn't done it, my eyes bulged.

"What did I get myself into?" I asked aloud. God, if these were the kinds of pranks they pulled, everyone was going to be totally hammered by the end of the night.

"You have no idea," Zach chortled.

...

"Are you sure you'll make it back to your apartment, B?" David asked as he and the band stumbled toward the subway.

It was nearly midnight and we'd spent the past five hours at the bar playing Never Have I Ever and just generally shooting the shit and talking. I learned that Phil had the unfortunate middle name of Collins – something that Big Brother David endlessly teased him about, that Jon had a birthmark in the shape of Illinois on the inside of his right arm, that Pierre's real name was Peter but he hated it, and that Zach had been obsessed with NSYNC and Justin Timberlake when he was in middle school. The few hours I'd spent with the guys had built a better picture of them as a group and as individuals and we had already tentatively made plans to get dinner the next night when we wrapped for the day.

"Blaine, are you sure you'll be okay?" Zach asked, steadying himself slightly on my shoulder as we walked toward the station.

"I'll be fine," I said, slurring slightly on my words as the beer seemed to take effect. I wasn't drunk, mainly because these guys were crazy and had done things I had never even dreamed of, but since I was four beers in and hadn't eaten dinner, I was definitely on the drunk side of sober. "I think I'm going to get a cab from here though if that's okay."

"We can wait with you," Pierre suggested.

"Totally," the rest chimed in, with David adding his agreement in last since somehow he had managed to end up the most drunk once his brother started pulling out stupid things he'd done as a kid into the game.

"Nah, I'll be fine. Besides, getting a cab on this street is easy," I said, holding out my hand. Practically the moment I held my hand out, a cab inched to a stop at my feet. "See?" I said, pulling the door open.

"Alright, see you later Blaine," Zach said.

As the symphony of byes droned out as I closed the door, I rattled off my address to the cab driver and sat back in the seat with my eyes closed for a moment in order to get my bearings. I was startled from my moment of peace when my phone rang in my coat pocket.

"Hello?" I said, putting the phone to my ear.

"Hey, what are you up to?" Kurt's voice asked.

I sighed. "Just on my way home. What are you up to?"

"I'm just leaving the theater and wanted to call you and say hi and all that."

"I miss you," I blurted. Apparently Slightly-Drunk Blaine wanted to be overly affectionate tonight.

I could hear Kurt sigh in the adorable way he did every time I gave him a compliment. "I miss you too."

"Do you want to spend the night tonight?" I asked, apparently emboldened by the alcohol in my veins. Normally I wouldn't be so bold to ask, especially since I had just spent last night with Kurt, but I didn't really care at the moment. I wanted to see him again; sooner rather than later.

"Yes," he said breathily. "I'd love to. But I'm starving. Do you have food at your house?"

"I can whip something up by the time you get there, I suppose. Nothing fancy though, if that's okay."

"That's fine by me. I'll see you there in 20?"

"Sounds great," I said. "Hey Kurt?"

"Yeah, Blaine?"

"I don't know if I say it enough, but I love you."

He giggled. "I love you too. And you say it plenty."

"I can always say it more."

"You can if you want to."

"Okay," I said with a snort. "Just try to stop me."

The sound of his laughter only made me laugh even harder. "I won't. Alright, I'm about to head down into the station so I'll lose you. But I'll see you soon, okay?"

"I'll be waiting outside for you so you don't have to wait in the cold."

"But you'll have to wait in the cold, Blaine."

"I'll wait for you."

I could practically hear him rolling his eyes. "You really don't have to do that."

"But I want to. Let me be a gentleman or something like that."

He laughed. "You already are. Alright, for real, I need to go. I'll see you in a bit. Love you."

"Love you too," I replied as I hung up my phone. The short call had sobered me up slightly, even though the drunk part of me had come out through my boldness in inviting Kurt over for the night, but it just reminded me how lucky I was to have a guy like Kurt in my life.

And how lucky I was about to be to have him in my bed again.

Not like that, you pervert. Waking up with him and cuddling him and stuff.

Okay, well, maybe a bit likethattoo.