One

Blaine sat down in the back of the Chemistry room on the first day of school, prepared to be bored for the rest of the semester. He settled onto his stool, laying his elbows on the cold counter top and propping his chin on his hands. The other students slowly filed in, until the only seat open was the one next to himself, but Blaine didn't mind. He knew that no one would want to sit next to him, being the new kid and all. Blaine sat up straight when he caught sight of the final student stepping into the room.

He was facing away, waving to someone out the door, then turned around, searching for a seat. He looked surprisingly young, seeing as this was a Junior class. He was wearing cargo pants, a t-shirt and a red zip-up sweatshirt. A baseball cap adorned his head, where Blaine could see light brown hair underneath, and as he walked toward him, Blaine noticed that one of his shoes was untied. The boy sat on the stool next to his, and Blaine looked to the front of the room, trying not to stare.

“Alright, you silly little children,” their teacher, Mr. Edwardson said where he stood at the front of the room. “For some reason, as America's future, you need to know all about balancing chemical equations and ionic compounds. Prepare to learn things you don't care about, but you'll need to get into college. Prepare to suck it up. If anyone wants to leave now, well too bad, you don't have a choice.”

The teacher's face was stern, and his little speech had been intimidating, until he broke out into a wide grin. “I'm just messing with you,” he said. “I generally try to make this class as fun as possible. And for your first day back at school, we're going to make s'mores!” A few random kids cheered. “Yes, but first, the ever-present roll call. I'll stop doing it out loud as I learn who you are, but for now, be quiet so I can hear. Blaine Anderson!”

“Here,” Blaine said, raising his hand. He waited for the boy next to him to have his name called. God, Blaine didn't even know his name yet, but he was entranced. The boy was tapping his pencil against the counter. The eraser barely made a noise, but his long fingers twisted gracefully as the pencil rolled between them.

“Kurt Hummel.”

“Here,” the hand Blaine was staring at rose into the air. His voice wasn't very low, a little gravely, and Blaine thought it sounded a little forced.

Kurt. Kurt Hummel. Kurt went back to playing with his pencil, roll call continued, and Blaine tried to distract himself with the sink next to his elbow.

“The person you are sitting next to will be your lab partner for the rest of the semester, so I hope you chose wisely,”

The entire semester? Chemistry just got a lot more interesting.

Fifteen minutes later, Kurt and Blaine were sitting on their counter, legs crossed and facing each other, roasting marshmallows over a Bunsen burner. Blaine now had a chance to look at Kurt more closely without seeming creepy. He had pale, soft-looking skin, ice blue eyes, and careful hands that carried out every task with precision. Blaine even noticed how his ears were just a little pointed.

All in all, he was the most attractive boy Blaine had ever seen.

“So, tell me about yourself,” Kurt said, slowly turning his marshmallow over the flame. He seemed kind enough, not as stand-offish as most of the kids Blaine had encountered. Despite his very casual attire, his clothes seemed to be well taken care of, and Blaine noticed the way he had checked his nails briefly before jerking his head away, as if he weren't supposed to do that.

“Well,” Blaine started. “My name if Blaine Anderson, and my family just moved here from Jackson Township. My dad got a job offer at St. Rita's. I have and older brother who's attending University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and a younger sister in the third grade. I enjoy playing the piano, the harmonica, the guitar, and the kazoo, my favorite color is teal, I hate wearing socks and I have a dog named Iago.”

Kurt just looked at him for a moment, as if surprised that he had such an elaborate answer.

“Iago like Othello, or Iago like Aladdin?” he asked, and Blaine smiled.

“Aladdin.” Kurt nodded.

“My name is Kurt Hummel, I've lived here in Lima all of my life, my dad owns Hummel's Tires and Lube, and my stepmother also works at St. Rita's. I have a stepbrother in our grade, I took piano lessons as a kid, but I don't really play anymore, my favorite color is coral, I don't mind socks, and I don't have any pets.”

Kurt lifted his marshmallow away from the flames. It was perfectly golden, and when he mushed it between his chocolate and graham crackers, he held it up to Blaine.

“To a long year of things we'll probably never use after college,” he toasted.

“Yay,” Blaine smiled and tapped his own s'more against Kurt's. “Cheers.”

---

A week later, Blaine sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees and face in his hands. He should have known from the beginning that it was a bad idea to be interested in Kurt Hummel. It didn't matter that he was smart, funny, and had an amazing laugh. Not to mention the fact that he was stunning. Even after just one week of school, Blaine was smitten. He was nearing a head-over-heels stage, and it was going to be hard to stop it.

It shouldn't have been such a surprise to him. Sure, Blaine hadn't seen Kurt much outside of chemistry class, but the boy was just so obvious about it. Blaine was stupid to think he had a chance.

It had been the end of the day, and he was heading towards the parking lot, homework in his backpack, and ready to go home, walk his dog, and relax. As he was making his way through the halls though, he caught sight of a boy leaning back against a locker. Standing in front of him was a pretty, blond Cheerio girl. The boy had his arms around her waist, holding her close to his body. When Blaine looked at his face, he was shocked to find out it was Kurt.

When Kurt noticed him, he lifted a hand off of the girl's hips to wave to him, giving him a smile. Blaine waved back, attempting a smile as well, but he's not sure how well it had worked. As soon as he'd gotten into his car, he'd slammed his forehead against the steering wheel. How could he have been so stupid?

Now here he was, sitting on his mattress with Iago pushing his head into his thigh, whining and wanting to be taken out. Blaine decided that a walk would probably be best for both of them.

Iago was trained well, not needing a leash. He stayed close to Blaine on the sidewalk, never straying into the street, and only occasionally stopping to smell a mailbox. They got to the field a mile or so away from Blaine's house, and the dog looked toward the expanse of grass longingly.

“Go ahead,” Blaine told him, and the dog took off, leaping through the field and dropping low to the ground, smelling everything.

Blaine sat himself on a convenient tree stump, still tearing himself up for falling for another straight guy. Blaine needed to vent, and he only knew one person who would put up with him whining about boys. Pulling out his phone, he dialed his brother's number, hoping that he wasn't in class or busy with something.

“Hello?”

“Hey, are you busy?” Blaine asked, leaning down to pick up the stick Iago had brought him and fling it back into the field.

“Not really, just starting an essay. How does this title sound: 'Ten Reasons Why Cooper Anderson Hates This Class'?” his brother laughed.

“Sounds like you're going to get kicked out,” Blaine said with a smile.

“Ha, yeah right. They're too scared of Dad to do that. Anyway, what's up?” Blaine sighed, picking up the stick again as his dog brought it back to him.

“He's straight, Coop,” he said, throwing the stick as hard as he could.

“Who, Johnny Depp? Blaine, we've been over this. I know—”

“No, not him, Blaine interrupted. “Kurt.”

“Who's that?”

“A boy in my chemistry class.”

“Oh, so you have chemistry together?” Cooper asked suggestively.

“Cooper, not helping.” Blaine said, throwing the stick for Iago again and putting his head in his free hand.

“Sorry,” Cooper apologized. “What did you do last time you fell for a straight guy?” he asked seriously. This is why Blaine always called his brother with things like this. He was the only person he knew who was completely comfortable with Blaine's sexuality. Sometimes he was more comfortable with it than Blaine was himself.

“You know what I did. I holed myself up in my room for three days until you came in and beat me with a pillow.”

“Oh, right. Well, you're not in your room right now, are you?”

“No, I'm out with Iago.”

“Well, that's a start. Why don't you take Madison into town while Mom and Dad are off doing whatever they do? Take some money off Dad's dresser, go get some dinner, eat desert first, and explore. Find out what there is to do in Lima, Ohio. Distract yourself.”

“That sounds... really nice, actually,” Blaine said.

“Doesn't it?” Cooper laughed. “Call me if you need anything, but I really have to get working on this essay.”

“Alright. And Cooper?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks,” Blaine said.

“Of course. Bye, Blaine.”

“Bye, Cooper.”

Blaine hung up the phone and stuffed it in his pocket. Sticking two fingers in his mouth, Blaine whistled, long and shrill, and Iago came running towards him.

The night went fabulously. Blaine and his eight year-old sister got delicious, homemade ice cream at a local shop, had dinner at a place called Breadstix, and went bowling. It was Karaoke Wednesday at the alley, and Maddie convinced him to sing a song with her.

However, he didn't know that one Kurt Hummel was also at the bowling alley that night with his family, watching him fondly.

---

“You've got quite the voice on you,” Kurt said to him the next day as Blaine was pulling out his homework from the night before. He looked over at Kurt confusedly, trying not to get lost in his eyes the way he sometimes did.

“What?”

“You're sister's adorable, too. She looks just like you,” Kurt said with a smile, turning towards the front of the room.

“It seems that you forgot to mention that you're a stalker when we introduced ourselves.” Kurt laughed.

“I saw you at the bowling alley last night,” Kurt said, leaning over to compare his answers with Blaine's.

“And you didn't come say 'hi'? I'm offended,” Blaine replied. Kurt rolled his eyes.

“I was with my family. They get a bit...clingy when we all go out together,” Kurt said, and Blaine nodded.

“Understandable.”

“Anyway, back to my main point. You should join Glee Club.”

“Glee Club?” Blaine asked.

“Our show choir,” Kurt explained. “It's an awesome thing to be a part of. It makes this hell-hole a lot more bearable. You'll have to audition of course, but it's pointless, really. Anyone who auditions gets in. Well, except for Sugar. But she sort of... bought her way in. You won't need to, though, if last night's performance was any indication.” Kurt was rambling, obviously nervous, and fidgeting in his seat.

“You sing?” Blaine asked.

“Well, I'm definitely not there just to dance,” Kurt laughed, blushing.

Blaine thought about it. If he joined Kurt's club, he would probably make more friends other than Kurt and the one kid in his English class, he'd have something to do after school, and he really did enjoy singing.

“Where do I sign up?” Kurt's head whipped around, smiling widely.

“Really?” he asked. Blaine nodded.

“Yes! Just come to the choir room at 3:05, we just tack it on as another class hour, and Mr. Schue will let you audition right then and there, if you like. Or, we can wait a little while and set up something spectacular in the auditorium. But either way we'll have to choose a song and find some sheet music to give to the band, and...”

Blaine listened to Kurt chatter on, butterflies swirling in his stomach. He really hoped he didn't regret this.

They eventually decided that Blaine would audition in the choir room that afternoon. After deciding on a song, Kurt and Blaine met in the library during lunch, scouring the shelves and the internet for sheet music. After classes Kurt practically dragged Blaine into the room and began handing out the music to the band members.

“I found us a new member!” Kurt said excitedly as Blaine stood awkwardly in the doorway. Fourteen heads swiveled to look a Blaine, who waved a little. Looking around the room, he recognized a few kids from some of his classes, and then he noticed the blond girl Kurt had been wrapped around in the hall the day before. Great.

“Who's this?” the teacher asked as Kurt sat down next to his girlfriend.

“My name's Blaine Anderson, and Kurt pretty much forced me into this after—”

“Hey, you're the kid from the bowling alley last night!” a boy on the back riser interrupted him. At Blaine's confused look, Kurt elaborated.

“That's the stepbrother.” Blaine nodded.

“Anyway,” he said. “I'll be auditioning with Queen's The Show Must Go On.”

“Alright, Blaine,” the teacher—Mr. Schuester, Blaine remembered Kurt calling him—said. “Show us what you've got.”

A few violins started playing, and the music began.

Empty spaces,
What are we living for?
Abandoned places,
I guess we know the score.
On, and on, does anybody know what we are looking for?

As the song continued, Blaine's confidence grew. He wasn't so much singing anymore as he was performing. He put as much energy and emotion into the song as he knew how. As he sang the final run, Kurt jumped from his seat, tearing his hand out of the blond girl's and clapping for him wildly. The rest of the class joined him a little more slowly.

“Well, Blaine,” Mr. Schuester started as the applause died down. “Welcome to the New Directions!”

---

Blaine liked being in Glee. They were all very welcoming and seemed excited for him to be there. That Friday, Blaine was walking down the hall with Rachel Berry attached to his arm.

“I just know our voices are going to be very compatible,” she was saying. “I have a feeling that if we can find a number that just blows the socks off everyone, they'll have no choice but to give us the duo lead for sectionals because our talent—”

SPLASH.

Blaine was suddenly hit with a wave of cold... something. He wiped off his eyes as best as he could, and when he opened them he found he was covered in something blue and sticky.

“Welcome to Gay Club, fairy boy!” a boy in a letterman jacket laughed, continuing down the hall with his friends. Blaine opened his mouth to speak, and a fake blue-raspberry taste invaded his mouth.

“What just happened? Is this slushy?” he asked Rachel, who was standing beside him, shocked.

“Azimio and Karofsky,” Kurt's voice sounded from his other side. “I'll take care of him, Rachel.”

Before Blaine could ask any more questions, he was being pulled into the nearest bathroom. Kurt locked the door behind them, and then reached into his bag, pulling out a hand towel and wetting it in one of the sinks. Blaine was still standing there, dripping flavored ice off of his skin and clothes.

“I'm sorry,” Kurt said as he began wiping off Blaine's face. Kurt was standing so, so close, and his heart began to race in his chest. If he didn't know any better, he would be afraid Kurt could hear it. “I would have told you about this, but I didn't think you would join if I did.”

“Does this happen often?” Blaine asks, ignoring the way his pulse stutters and his chest tightens as Kurt moves the towel down his neck.

“Yes, to all of us. It happens at least once a week to a random member of the club. I'm so, so sorry, Blaine, please don't quit. I-I know they all call it g-gay, but it doesn't mean anything. Being in Glee Club doesn't make you gay, and—”

“Kurt,” Blaine interrupted, grabbing his hand where the towel trembled against his cheek. “Kurt, seriously, calm down. I'm not going to quit Glee, I'm just going to start keeping a spare change of clothes in my locker. And if they want to call me gay, then fine. They simply guessed correctly.” Kurt looked up at him, eyes wide.

“You're gay?” he asked. Blaine nodded.

“Is that a problem?”

“No, not at all,” Kurt said, taking his hand off of Blaine's face. “Uhm, I can tell Mr. Edwardson that you went home to change if you'd like. Or, if you want, you can borrow the spare clothes that I have.” Blaine fidgeted a little.

“Could I? If I went home and my parents saw me like this, they'd probably pull me out of the school,” Blaine said nervously. Kurt looked at him questioningly for a moment, but he didn't ask. He just nodded and headed out the bathroom door to retrieve his extra clothes.

When Blaine was changed into too-long jeans and a slightly snug shirt, he and Kurt made their way to their first hour. Mr. Edwardson understood why they were late and didn't mark them tardy, and the pair took their seats. When they were given time towards the end of class to work on an assignment, Kurt turned to Blaine.

“So, our assignment this week is to do a duet with one of the other members. Brittany wants to do Fly with Santana, so I'm out my usual partner. Winner gets dinner at Breadstix on Mr. Schue.” he said. Brittany, Blaine had found out, was the girlfriend. “Want to sing with me?” Kurt asked. He bit his lip, and he looked so nervous and simply adorable, that there was no way that Blaine could say no.

“Sure,” Blaine said with a smile. Kurt grinned widely and turned back to his equations.

I am so, so screwed, Blaine thought.

---

That afternoon, Kurt went over to Blaine's house, which was empty save for himself and his sister. They had decided on Bob Marley's Redemption Song, Blaine busting out his guitar and working out the chords.

The two rehearsed for a few hours, working out harmonies and dividing the parts. Their version was a less reggae than the original, but it worked wonderfully. When it was nearing seven-thirty, they decided to do one more run-through before Kurt left.

Kurt stood close to Blaine's side, holding up the sheet music so that they could both see while Blaine played his guitar. As they came up to the second chorus, Kurt suddenly stopped singing. Confused, Blaine let his last chord ring out into the air. When he turned his head to look up at Kurt, he was surprised to find the other boy staring back at him intently.

“W—” But Blaine didn't get to finish his question, because one of Kurt's hands was suddenly locked behind his head, and Kurt's lips were pressing down over Blaine's.