It wasn't easy for Kurt to fall asleep that night. He tossed and turned on the bed endlessly, as what Blaine had told him earlier kept replaying in his head.

He felt like crap. He had been a judgmental moron. Yes, he had brought Blaine into his home and offered him help, but hadn't he spent the first two days completely convinced that the second he turned around, Blaine would rob his apartment? He was no different from the people who had turned their backs on Blaine when he needed a job or when he needed a place to live. He was just as bad as them.

He rolled onto his side and grabbed a pillow, hugging it to his chest tightly. For a moment, he wished it was Blaine. He wished he could cuddle Blaine close and give him all the love he clearly needed and had been denied… and then he realized what he was thinking and pretty much threw the pillow halfway across the room in dismay.

Kurt knew himself way too well and he knew where those thoughts would lead if he let them run free. He couldn't fall in love with Blaine. It was way too complicated. The last thing Blaine needed was a relationship. And Kurt's relationship track-record wasn't exactly encouraging. No. Even thinking about it was dangerous.

Kurt huffed at himself, annoyed, and turned over once again, now lying on his back and staring at the ceiling. He needed to find a way to help Blaine. Giving him a place to sleep and some food wasn't enough anymore.

Sighing, Kurt realized that maybe it was already too late to avoid getting involved with Blaine. He already wanted to give him everything.

The next morning, Blaine felt so much better. It was as if an invisible weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Kurt had been right. Talking about what had happened to him had been very helpful.

He still didn't have a solution and he probably wouldn't have one any time soon, but there was one thing he had now that had been missing from his life for years: a friend. Kurt was an amazing friend. He was generous and selfless and so compassionate. The way he had opened his home to Blaine made him feel warm inside. It made him feel human again. He wasn't used to people being polite. He was used to being looked at as if he was about to attack someone, as if he was sick, or worst of all, as if he didn't even exist.

The phone rang next to Blaine, where he sat on the couch, making him put down the book he had been reading. He looked back to the hallway, wondering if Kurt could hear it or not. Maybe his bedroom door was closed.

Blaine grabbed the phone and hurried down the hall, hoping it wouldn't stop ringing in the meantime. Kurt's door was half open and Blaine didn't even think about knocking before pushing it open all the way and rushing into the room.

Kurt was standing by the bed, studying several different combinations spread on the bed, trying to put together an outfit.

He was wearing nothing but a towel, wrapped low around his waist with his hair hanging into his face still damp from the shower.

Blaine's heart stopped.

The phone kept ringing.

Kurt turned around to face him and Blaine did his best to cover his eyes.

"Oh my god, Kurt!" He exclaimed, mortified. "I'm so sorry for barging in like this! I didn't know!"

Before Kurt even had time to open his mouth, Blaine turned to rush out of the room blindly. He tripped on the much-too-long pants that belonged to Kurt's brother and stumbled, walloping his head against the edge of the door before falling face first onto the floor.

"Blaine!" Kurt said, worriedly, as he hurried to help him. He leaned over him to turn him over. "Are you okay?"

Blaine blinked, expecting to see stars circling over his head. Then his eyes settled back on Kurt: his smooth, lightly muscled chest; the patch of hair that trailed all the way down to his stomach and beyond; the way the towel hung loosely around his hips, sliding lower and lower and…

"Oh," Kurt caught the towel just in time, before it came completely unwrapped and tucked it tightly around himself again, but not before Blaine caught a glimpse of a muscular, beautiful thigh. "Blaine, you need to say something. Are you still with me?"

Blaine blinked again. "The phone is ringing."

"Not anymore, sweetie," Kurt corrected him, and Blaine gasped for a moment at the endearment. His confused, bruised head wondered for a moment if there was someone else that Kurt called that, if it had slipped out of his lips unintentionally. If maybe he had only imagined it and he actually had a concussion. "Do you think you can stand up?"

"No. Yes. Yes, I can," Blaine babbled.

"Let me help you up…"

"No!" Blaine said, maybe a little too loudly. It was much better if he didn't touch Kurt while he was naked. "Thanks. I can do it myself. I'm fine."

"Okay," Kurt answered, taking a step back to give him space. He was looking at him suspiciously, as if he was seriously wondering if Blaine had been knocked silly.

Blaine swayed a little on his feet, but managed to stand without toppling. He took one look at Kurt's eyes, before he turned around and left the room as fast as he could.

He could hear Kurt from the bedroom as he walked away. "Put some ice on your head! I'll get dressed and be there in a minute!"

Why was it fair that Kurt wasn't only the kindest man he had ever met in his life, but he was also the most gorgeous he had ever laid eyes on?

For one crazy moment moment, Blaine considered climbing into the freezer and let his overheated body cool down. But then he realized he would have to explain what he was doing to Kurt and that would only make things even more awkward.

Kurt walked out of his bedroom five minutes later, completely dressed (Blaine reminded himself he was not disappointed that there wasn't any more skin on display) and approached Blaine with concern in his eyes. He removed the ice pack Blaine had been pressing to the part of his head where he had hit the door and then brushed some of his curls back to get a better look.

No, of course Blaine didn't shiver, that was ridiculous.

And his breath didn't hitch when Kurt leaned closer. What kind of stupid idea was that?

"It looks like you'll live, to me," Kurt commented at last, taking a few steps back and letting Blaine press the ice back on his head. "I guess it sounded a lot worse than it was. I thought at first that you had cracked your head open."

"I'm so sorry I walked in like that," Blaine muttered, shyly. "I never thought you'd be…"

"Oh, don't worry about it," Kurt said dismissively. "I've been naked on stage multiple times. This was nothing." But he was still sort of flushed, so he wasn't very convincing.

Blaine simply nodded, trying not to imagine how Kurt would look, naked on stage with all those lights reflecting on his perfectly pale skin…

"So, the call I missed was from work," Kurt commented happily as if nothing had happened. "I'm going to have a few days off! I honestly can't remember the last time I had any kind of vacation."

"That's actually great," Blaine smiled.

"I have a lot of time in my hands right now," Kurt continued as he pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and took a sip. "I feel like shopping. And you're coming with me."

Blaine's smile faded. "I'd… really rather not, Kurt."

"Ooh! Come on!" Kurt grabbed his hand and started tugging at it until Blaine was on his feet and following him down the hallway again. "It's so boring going shopping alone!"

"I won't be very entertaining…" Kurt turned to pout at him, and Blaine felt his resolution melting away. "Okay, fine… I'll go with you."

Kurt smiled and clapped his hands, as he seemed to do every time he was excited about something. "Wonderful. Let's get you dressed."

"Oh, no, no," Blaine stopped, stubbornly, before Kurt could drag him back into his room. "No, Kurt. I'll wear the same clothes I wore yesterday. I don't want you to give me any more of your clothes."

"But…" Kurt tried to protest.

"No. Please." Pleading hazel eyes stared into Kurt's blue ones. "I just used them for our walk. They're clean and they fit. That's all I need. Really."

Kurt very obviously didn't agree with him, but conceded grudgingly and allowed him to wear the same clothes anyway.

Once Blaine was ready, he stood in the sidewalk, waiting for Kurt as he went to the parking garage next door to get his car. He could feel the doorman scrutinizing him from the hall, but he didn't look back. The man was probably trying to decide if the well-dressed, clean guy could possibly be the filthy homeless tramp Kurt had taken home a few nights ago.

A shiny black BMW coupe stopped right in front of him and Blaine could feel his eyes popping out of his head as Kurt pushed the passenger side door open for him. Blaine climbed hesitantly into his seat and looked around, amazed.

Kurt wove through the heavy New York traffic, but he turned to look at Blaine every now and then. "Are you okay? Are you getting car sick or something?"

"No, I'm fine," Blaine shook his head, still a bit distracted. "I'm actually trying to remember the last time I was in a car. I think it was probably my dad's, after my graduation, when he drove us home…"

Kurt didn't even think before reaching across and grabbing Blaine's hand in his. "I bet my car's cooler than his, though," he said, trying to lighten the mood.

He felt it was a victory when Blaine actually chuckled. "It's true. He'd hate that. He was never the kind of guy who could spend money on a car like this, but he wanted to be that guy."

Blaine noticed Kurt didn't pull his hand away from his. He had to admit he liked how they fit together, like puzzle pieces.

Blaine wasn't sure he had ever fit so well with anyone in his life before.

It didn't surprise Blaine at all that Kurt wanted to go into all the designer stores. Blaine would've felt more uncomfortable (the sales ladies would've had a stroke if they knew they had a homeless person in their workplace), but seeing the enthusiasm in Kurt's eyes was too distracting to even worry about what they thought of him.

Kurt seemed delighted as he went through the hangers and the shelves full of beautiful clothes. Every now and then he would grab a especific item, examine it with a critical eye and then, if he was satisfied, hand it to the girl that was assisting them, whose arms were already full of pants, shirts and sweaters Kurt had approved of.

"Oh my gosh, Blaine, don't you love this colour?" Kurt would say every now and then.

"Beautiful," Blaine would answer, but his gaze was fixed on Kurt's eyes, the blue, green and grey swirling there, making them so enticing.

Blaine hesitantly walked to a shelf where some bowties were displayed and reached out to gently caress one, but he took a step back when he caught sight of the woman at the counter, narrowing her eyes at him, suspiciously. Could she maybe know about him somehow? Had he ever slept outside the store? What was it that gave him away?

"Do you like those, sweetheart?" Kurt said as he approached him from behind and once again that warm sensation travelled down his spine at the endearment.

"They're very nice," Blaine shrugged and cleared his throat. "I used to have one that looked a lot like that green one when I was a kid."

"I'm sure it looked great on you," Kurt offered with a radiant smile. For a moment, it looked like he was going to lean closer and kiss Blaine's cheek, but the soft touch of lips never came. Blaine told himself he wasn't disappointed. "What do you say we go have some coffee, now? You must be tired of following me into stores."

"I'm actually having fun," Blaine said timidly, and he was. Even if he wasn't doing much, just being around Kurt was a joy.

"Good," Kurt smiled even wider. "But I think I need a caffeine fix before I do anything else." Kurt looked out of the store. There was a Starbucks right across from it and it looked quite full. "Would you mind getting in the line while I pay for all of this? It will save us some time."

"Of course," Blaine nodded, before walking out of the store and into the coffee shop.

Being there alone for a moment, surrounded by people minding their own business, gave Blaine some time to think about Kurt. He still couldn't understand why Kurt kept him around, why he refused to let Blaine go back to the streets. It seemed to be something a lot more complex than just being a good person who wanted to help someone. That might be one of the reasons, but it certainly wasn't the reason. He just wished he could understand…

Blaine was almost at the front of the line (he was starting to panic because he had no idea what Kurt wanted and he didn't have any money, either) when Kurt joined him, grinning happily and with at least five bags hanging from his arm.

"The girl at the counter was the slowest I've ever seen," he commented. "I thought I'd be there forever." He eyed the list of coffee at the back of the counter, as if he was deciding what to get. "So… are you a latte kind of guy? Espresso? Cappuccino?"

"I'm a I-won't-order-anything kind of guy," Blaine anwered, feeling the discomfort creeping up on him again.

"You really are no fun," Kurt teased, but when Blaine remained serious, he sighed and nudged him with his shoulder. "Please? If you really don't feel like having coffee, then fine, you don't have to. But please don't do this just because it's on me."

"Kurt…" Blaine muttered, even though he wasn't sure what he wanted to say exactly. Was he trying to beg Kurt to not make him feel any worst? To warn him about not upsetting him? Was he just saying his name because it felt so good rolling off his tongue?

"Listen," Kurt said, with an optimistic tone and clearly ready to present a good counterpoint. "There's something I would like to talk to you about and I think it would be better if we did it with a nice cup of coffee between us. Just… say yes, Blaine?"

Blaine didn't have time to reply as the barista looked at them with his most friendly smile. Kurt quickly squeezed Blaine's hand for a moment before turning his attention to him.

"Hi. I'd like a grande nonfat mocha, please."

"Grande nonfat mocha, okay," he mumbled as he scribbled the order on the cup. He looked at Blaine. "And for you?"

There it was again, Kurt's hand sliding into his for the briefest of moments…

"Just a short latte will be fine," Blaine said in a choked voice.

Kurt was still smiling brightly as they sat at one of the few empty tables. He carefully put down all his bags on the extra chair and wrapped his fingers around his paper cup.

Blaine was feeling uneasy and it didn't even have to do with the coffee anymore. "So… you said you wanted to talk to me?"

He changed his mind. This is his way of telling me nicely to get the hell out of his house. Or maybe one of those women back at the clothing store asked him if I was the same guy who once slept in the alley beside the store. Maybe they embarrassed him. Or he realized he's crazy for letting a total stranger into his life. Or he's tired of dealing with all my crap. Maybe I scared him with what I told him yesterday.

He was so busy freaking out that he didn't realize Kurt had already started talking.

"… because everyone deserves a second chance, Blaine," he looked so happy as he talked. As if he had put a lot of thought into what he was saying and couldn't wait for Blaine to hear all about it. "And I know maybe you think it's a little late for yours, but I don't. I think you're right on time."

"Wait," Blaine was definitely confused. "What are you talking about?"

"You said yesterday that what made it harder for you to find a job when you got to the city was the fact that you had nowhere to live," Kurt continued, just as enthusiastically. "And since that is, you know, solved, at least for a while," Kurt looked away for a moment and Blaine tried to understand what had suddenly made him shy, but then he was back to normal, "I was thinking that maybe you could apply to a few places…"

Blaine's eyes widened. He honestly hadn't expected that from Kurt.

"Not that I want you to work to pay me back or anything like it," Kurt added, quickly, as if he didn't want Blaine to make wrong assumptions. "I'm saying this because you complained several times about feeling useless and because I think you can still live your life they way you've always wanted to live it."

Blaine wasn't sure if what he was hearing was his imagination or not. It sounded way too good to be true.

"What makes you think someone will want to hire me?" He asked, still a bit shocked.

"I don't see why not," Kurt shrugged, nonchalant. "You'll have to start from the bottom, of course. Maybe as a waiter or something like that. But I think it would be good for you…"

Blaine wanted to believe that, too, but he wasn't sure how it would work out. For starters, if anyone asked him what he had been doing since he had finished high school, since he hadn't had a job or gone to college… what was he going to say? What kind of explanation would he give?

Kurt apparently sensed his concern. His smile became warmer. "I can pull some strings, call some people. Make sure they won't ask any questions that may make you uncomfortable."

"Kurt," Blaine shook his head before leaning it into his hands. His elbows were resting on the table and his latte was between them, forgotten. "I can't possibly ask any more from you."

"You're not asking. I'm offering," Kurt took a sip of his mocha.

Blaine peeked at him from between his fingers. "What if it doesn't work out? What if someone finds out who I am? What if I end up embarrassing you?"

"Why are you so worried about embarrassing me?" Kurt tilted his head to the side, as he tried to comprehend. "What are you planning to do? Are you going to dance around naked or something like that?"

If it was supposed to be a joke, Blaine didn't find it funny. "You know exactly what I mean."

"And why do you care if I don't? Shouldn't I be the one worried about that?" Kurt said sweetly, peeling Blaine's hands off his face. "I think you're a wonderful guy, Blaine. I have faith in you."

Blaine hadn't known how much he had needed to hear those words (for so many years, so many) until they left Kurt's lips. He nodded absently and, after giving him a reassuring smile, Kurt started talking about something else.

Blaine was grateful for how easily Kurt seemed to understand him. He didn't know how that had happened, what had changed in these last few days, but it made Blaine feel comfortable for the first time in a very long while.

They went to a few more stores before going back home. It was getting late and dinner time was getting closer. The entire backseat of Kurt's BMW was covered by his shopping bags and Blaine was sure he had never seen anyone shop like that in his life.

He couldn't deny he'd had a wonderful time, though. Just being around Kurt was always the highlight of his day.

As soon as they entered the apartment, Kurt dropped down on the couch and kicked his boots off, wiggling his toes happily. "My feet were killing me."

Blaine looked down at the mess of bags all over the floor. "Do you want me to carry all of this to your room for you?"

Kurt hummed, closing his eyes and getting a bit more comfortable against the cushions. "Don't worry about the Gucci ones,just leave them there. But you can take the rest to your room, if you want. Those are for you."

Blaine was already picking everything up, but at Kurt's words, he stopped and looked at him, horrified. "Kurt…"

"Don't even start. I know precisely what you're going to say," Kurt said, still relaxed. "But if you're going to go to job interviews, you'll need some decent clothes."

"I don't want any of this," Blaine put the bags he had picked up back on the floor. He looked indignant.

Kurt opened his eyes and peered at him, sighing as if he was dealing with a stubborn child. "Blaine…"

"You could've at least told me what you were doing! There are like twenty bags in here and they're all from designer stores!" Blaine snapped. He couldn't believe Kurt had done that to him. Didn't he know how much he'd humiliated him? "Even if I get a decent job, which I seriously doubt, I'll never have enough money to pay you back for all of this!"

Kurt straightened up a bit and looked at Blaine with what he hoped was a soothing smile on his face. "I just wanted to help."

"I know, but you're actually making it worse," Blaine's voice cracked a bit. He knew he had no right to get mad at Kurt. It was so ungrateful of him to act like this… but what was he supposed to do? "Do you have any idea how small this makes me feel? How insignificant?"

Kurt's face fell and he seemed to get it for the very first time. "I'm sorry, Blaine. That wasn't my intention. I just…"

"How do you expect me to believe you when you say I'm not some charity case, Kurt?" Blaine said and he sounded so miserable that Kurt felt tempted to throw every single bag into the garbage. "Do you think it's easy for me to just accept everything you give me? Do you think I enjoy being the poor indigent who can't even afford a cup of coffee?"

He could feel the tears stinging in his eyes. Gosh, he didn't want to cry in front of Kurt, but his feelings were so overwhelming…

Kurt stood up and it seemed as if he was going to come closer to Blaine, maybe give him a hug. Blaine couldn't have that now. If Kurt touched him, he would shatter into pieces.

"I-I need a moment," he muttered, retreating backward a step and causing Kurt to freeze. "I'm sorry, Kurt. Just… give me a moment."

And without saying another word, Blaine turned around and walked to the guest room, with his jaw tensed to hold back the tears until he was safely behind closed doors.

Kurt took a deep breath before knocking softly on Blaine's bedroom door. It had been almost two hours since Blaine had hidden in there. Kurt wasn't sure if he should give him some more time, but the anxiety felt like it might kill him.

"Blaine?" He called gently. "I'd like to come in, okay?"

When he didn't get an answer, he thought maybe Blaine had fallen asleep, but he pushed the door open anyway. Blaine was, in fact, awake and sitting against the headboard in the bed, with his hands lying on his lap dejectedly.

"I was hungry so I ordered some Chinese food," Kurt showed him the little white boxes he was carrying as if they were a peace offering. "I thought you might be hungry, too."

Blaine didn't answer. His throat bobbed visibly as he swallowed. His eyes were still fixed on his hands.

"Do you mind if I sit here with you while we eat?" Kurt asked. His hands were sweating. He hadn't felt that way in a very long time.

Blaine gave a noncommittal shrug, so Kurt decided to take that as a yes. He settled on the other side of the bed, leaving a considerable space beween them, and put some of the boxes within Blaine's reach. He opened the one he wanted and unwrapped a pair of chopsticks.

At first, the strained silence and the lack of conversation made Kurt's stomach twist in a very unpleasant way. Then he decided to take matters into his own hands.

"Blaine, I…" He took another deep breath. He needed it. "I'm so sorry. I feel like the biggest jerk in the world right now."

"No, I'm sorry," Blaine finally said, his voice hoarse with emotion. "You've been nothing but amazing to me, and this is how I show you how grateful I am? By yelling at you in your own house?"

"Gosh, no, Blaine. Please, don't apologize to me," Kurt shook his head. "I knew how you felt about me buying things for you and forcing my help on you and I did it anyway without caring about the consequences. I should've at least asked you if you were okay with me buying you a few outfits instead of just dragging you into every clothing store in New York pretending I was shopping for me. I'm a douchebag and I'm sorry. Really, really sorry."

"You don't have to apologize, either…" Blaine smiled sadly at him. "I shouldn't have overreacted the way I did. I've never liked it when people pity me. Once I actually chased an old lady down the street to give her back the five bucks she had thrown at my feet while I was sitting in the subway station."

"I didn't lie when I said you're a wonderful guy, Blaine," Kurt put a hand on his knee and squeezed reassuringly. "You really are. And a million times better person than I'll ever be. So I'm sorry if I screwed up. I will, every now and then. I'm not perfect."

"You're sort of perfect to me," Blaine admitted with a blush. "No one could be better than you. Especially not me."

Kurt felt his heart stopping for a moment and then continuing to beat even harder than before. "We could spend the rest of the night arguing about who's better than who or we could just have dinner and talk about nice things."

"I like the second option better," Blaine whispered shyly.

Kurt grinned and pushed a few of the boxes with food towards him. "Come on, then. Eat something before it gets cold."

Blaine accepted one and opened it. The delicious smell of food instantly hit his nose and he moaned in pleasure. He really was starving. "Mu shu pork is one of my favorite things ever."

"Then I made a good guess," Kurt nudged him with his shoulder, scooting a little closer to Blaine. "Would you like an eggroll?" He added, offering his own box as he stole some of Blaine's pork.

Blaine tried not think about how intimate sharing food like that with someone was and just decided to enjoy it. It wasn't as if he'd had many chances to do so in his life.

When they were done eating, Kurt stood up, picking up the empty boxes. He hesitated, but shoved his hand into his pocket and pulled something out, extending it to Blaine, biting his lip anxiously.

It was the green bowtie he had seen in that store earlier, the one he'd told Kurt reminded him of one he'd had when he was a kid.

"I know you don't want to accept anything from me. You don't have to wear any of the clothes I bought for you. I'll just hide them in my closet and you won't have to see them again," Kurt's eyes were so bright that Blaine was unable to look away. "But, please, can you keep this? I want you to have something to… to remember me by."

A sudden rush of emotions threatened to make Blaine choke. He hesitantly took the bowtie from Kurt, as if he was afraid something would happen to it if he wasn't gentle enough.

"Thank you," he muttered.

Kurt nodded before turning around to walk out of the room. He was almost in the hallway when Blaine called his name.

"Kurt?"

Kurt looked over his shoulder. "Uhm?"

"I-I don't think I need something to remember you by. I'm pretty sure you're unforgettable."

If Kurt almost broke down and hurried back to Blaine to kiss him, no one could've blamed him.

Luckily, he managed to hold himself back.