Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

Kurt switched off his alarm clock that morning in a drowsy haze. He had never been a morning person. Ever a creature of habit, he pulled off the sheets and stumbled into his bathroom. One of the perks of Dalton; single rooms and your own bathroom. Staring into the mirror he frowned. He looked a wreck. As he should. It was six o’ clock in the morning and he hadn’t slept well last night, his dreams full of memories he had tried to forget.

Kurt switched on his iPod hopped into the shower. The voices of Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel filled the room, his hidden guilty pleasure. Kurt had a bit of a reputation as music went. Being the lead singer of The Warblers, Kurt was expected to keep up on all the current artists. As time progressed, Kurt had developed a reputation for only listening to hot, sexy music. But behind closed doors, that was the farthest from the truth. Kurt actually loved sweet songs. He adored Broadway and showtunes.  And as far as current songs went, he was more of an Adele or Goo Goo Dolls fan. Sure, he sang about sex, but Kurt could never actually act on something like that.

Stepping out of the shower thirty minutes later, he felt more in a right mind and started his morning skin regimen. Kurt probably had more skin products than any one drugstore.

He threw on a fresh button down shirt and pair of grey slacks. He tied his Dalton red and blue striped tie and tugged on his blazer, ready for school. Grabbing his books, he headed out the door, knocking over a box he used as a bookend on his desk and spilling its contents everywhere. With a grumble, Kurt bent down to pick up the mess.

Huh. There were a lot of odd things in the box. An Aladdin VHS, an old grape lollipop wrapper, a bunch of old photos he just didn’t have the time to look at, and…

His blue friendship bracelet. The one that Blaine had given him at Blaine’s tenth birthday party. Even after his father told him that Blaine had passed away, Kurt wore the bracelet every single day for years. It wasn’t until the end of the past school year that he had finally decided to take it off.

He smiled fondly at the small plastic piece of jewelry. He slipped it onto his wrist, admiring the way it complemented his skin tone. It was pretty cute and the color really did match his eyes, just as Blaine had said all those years ago.

Kurt quickly closed the box and placed it back on his desk. He grabbed his books again and headed to his class.

First class: Advanced European History.

Kurt took pride in his schoolwork. Since his freshman year, he had made sure to take the hardest classes Dalton could offer. Sure, at first it was to keep his mind off the loss of his best friend and later his mother, but eventually, it became one of the few things Kurt actually cared about. All of the teachers, well, doctors mostly, were very strict with their workload and would not tolerate excuses. Lucky for Kurt, other than glee club, he didn’t have anything else to occupy his time with, so teachers tended to like him for the most part.

But being a “teacher’s pet” didn’t come without problems. Dalton may have technically had a zero tolerance bullying policy, but that didn’t completely stop it from happening. It was a school full of teenaged guys, after all. There was far too much testosterone for there to ever be complete peace. Kurt, never having missed an assignment and having the highest grade point average, was typically the recipient of the harassment.

Kurt put up a pretty good front, fighting back with witty comments and sarcastic remarks. But underneath all the layers, Kurt couldn’t have been more alone.

But Kurt could live with being alone if it meant he wouldn’t get hurt again. After hearing of Blaine’s death and then his mother soon after, Kurt stopped trying. He couldn’t handle more heartache.

Kurt headed through the crowded halls of Dalton later that day, making his way to his last class of the day. Boys talked together with their friends or boyfriends as they went to their classes. Kurt walked alone. He happened to make eye contact with a tall boy heading in the opposite direction. The boy winked at him and he rolled his eyes heavenward. Guys didn’t hit on him often; it must have been his complete lack of allure that kept them away.

Kurt had officially come out the fall of his sophomore year, around the same time he joined the Warblers. It was never a big deal at Dalton to hear of yet another boy coming out and his father had been incredibly accepting of him, so that was never really a big issue for him.

But when he came out, people did treat him differently. Not negatively, well more negative than usual, just different. A few guys actually hit on him. But one guy in particular was the most persistent. His name was Robin, a senior at the time. He had a head of messy dark hair and a strong chin. Kurt supposed he was cute; he kind of had a thing for dark hair. They dated briefly late that spring. Kurt knew that he shouldn’t get too attached to Robin; he was a senior after all and would be leaving for college in the fall. During their time together Robin taught Kurt how to accentuate his natural good looks with hair products and the right clothing. Kurt found that he actually had a knack for that sort of thing and it soon became a hidden passion of his. Not that his talents for fashion could be used in a place like Dalton and its, let’s be honest, clich� uniforms.

Kurt broke it off with Robin soon after his graduation, knowing all too well that Robin would have done it sooner or later. Kurt was unfazed by the break up. He had never put much emotion in to the relationship to begin with. After Robin, Kurt dated no one, deciding to keep his walls up permanently. Eventually, Kurt became a shell of the boy he used to be, trapped behind the stress of challenging courses, a competing choir, and his own insecurities.

That was, until Blaine came along.

Blaine. His Blaine from childhood had suddenly materialized back into his life. But, this meeting was completely different from the last time he had seen Blaine. Though he was still shorter than Kurt by a few inches, Blaine had matured a lot since then. His hair, though comically gelled back, was no longer that mop of curls from their early days. His jaw had grown strong and prominent, with an equally inviting Adam’s Apple. And his eyes. His eyes were still that beautiful liquid gold that even as kids, sent his heart into frenzy but with an added new feeling that Kurt couldn’t quite place. All in all, Kurt found Blaine attractive. And not just attractive, but attractive.

Kurt hadn’t felt this way about anyone since, well, since Blaine back when they were kids.

“Mr. Hummel?” scolded his teacher.

“Huh?”

“The answer, if you please.”

“Uh,” he scanned the board frantically, doing the problem in his head, “F equals four X cubed plus one all over the square root of two X raised to the fourth plus two X minus one.”

His professor blinked at him, shocked, “Oh, well, yes, that’s correct. Just, try to pay, uh, pay attention…”

Kurt smirked. Sometimes having no social life and being a know-it-all paid off.

Suddenly Kurt felt something hit the back of his head and fall into his lap. He picked up the small piece of paper and unfolded it.

Lucky guess, loser. See you at practice.

Kurt turned in his seat to see Emmett Adams grinning at him, then turning to give Collin Able a high five.

And sometimes, having no social life and being a know-it-all didn’t pay off.

After Warblers practice that afternoon, Kurt drove himself to the Lima Bean to meet Blaine. Blaine had texted earlier to invite him and really, how could he refuse? But if Kurt was being honest with himself, he was extremely nervous. Why should he be? It was just Blaine. It was just a coffee date with his old best friend that he hadn’t seen in years because he had presumably died then showed back up in his life out of nowhere.

Oh. Maybe that was why.

Kurt hadn’t been “out” anywhere in a long time. Every once in a blue moon, one of the Warblers, usually Jeff, his across-the-hall neighbor, would convince him to make an appearance at a bonfire the boys made in the back woods behind the school. But he would regret it almost instantly when he ended up sitting alone on the edge of a log, watching everyone talk.

But this was different. This was Blaine. He was different. Wasn’t he?

As Kurt pulled into the parking lot, he just about turned right around and left.

But then he saw him. Blaine, sitting by the window, waiting for him. He had his head turned toward the inside, not seeing Kurt yet. He took a deep breath and ventured into the coffee shop.

From his inside view, Blaine looked perfect. His beautiful long lashes spread out over his cheeks as he looked down at the table, spinning a quarter between his fingers. Kurt noticed that his hair was not gelled back this time, allowing his naturally curly hair, though shorter than when they were children, to curl in small locks across his forehead. As soon as Blaine saw him, his entire face lit up like the Fourth of July.

“Kurt!” He said, moving to greet him. They stood awkwardly for a moment. What were they supposed to do? Shake hands? Hug? Instead, Blaine gestured toward the counter so they could order their coffees.

Oh right, that would make sense. It was a coffee date after all.

No, not date. Kurt had to keep telling himself that. He was simply catching up with his old best friend Blaine. That was all.

“So, how was school?” Kurt asked awkwardly.

“Fine,” Blaine said, advancing in the line, “I’ve got a test in English coming up this Friday and I am so not prepared for it.”

“What’s on the test?”

“It’s on Hamlet. Puck just told me to rent the movie. Yeah, hi, I’ll have a medium drip please. Thanks,” he said to the pretty barista behind the counter.

“Oh don’t do that!” Kurt squeaked. Blaine gave him a look. “I, mean about Hamlet. Don’t just watch the movie. Hamlet is a wonderful story. I love Shakespeare. Besides, the movie version doesn’t do it justice and it leaves out some really important scenes. Yes, I’ll have a Grande nonfat mocha, thank you very much.”

“Oh, well if you say that it’s good, maybe I will read it.” Kurt blushed straight to his hairline, “What about you? How’s school?”

“Fine too, I guess.” He said, trying to be nonchalant, “I, too, have a test this week.”

“What in?”

“Advanced Calculus.”

Blaine almost dropped his cup in amazement, “Oh! So you’re like, super smart then?!”

“Why so shocked, Blaine?” he asked coyly.

“No, no, not shocked,” he stuttered, “Just impressed… but not surprised.”

“By the way,” Kurt said as they headed back to the table, “I noticed your hair isn’t gelled today.”

“Oh yeah, well that was more or less an attempt to fit in at Dalton for the day.”

“Good choice, there are a lot of guys there that use gel like their hair is going to fall off their head if they don’t glue it down.” Blaine laughed. “But I like it this way, the curly way. It- it suits you.”

“Oh hey!” Blaine said, setting down his cup and digging his hand into his pocket, “I’ve got something for you.”

Blaine quickly put his hands behind his back, grinning at Kurt expectantly.

“I don’t get it.”

“Pick a hand!”

Kurt gave him a quizzical look but pointed to Blaine’s right hand. His smile widened even more, if that was even possible. “I knew you would pick that one.”

Blaine pulled his right hand into Kurt’s view, revealing what he held in his hand. It was a single red lollipop, cherry flavor. Kurt’s eyes grew the size of saucers.

“Cherry,” he murmured.

“Yeah, it’s your favorite. I remember. And look,” Blaine showed him his other hand. “And this one is grape, my-”

“Your favorite. I remember.”

Blaine smiled at him as Kurt took the lollipop from him with a simple thank you. Blaine pulled off his leather jacket, hanging it over the back of the chair. Kurt practically gasped. This was the first time Kurt had seen Blaine in short sleeves in years. It was sinful. The way the light green fabric clung to his arm made Blaine’s bicep look enormous and completely inviting.

Not fair, Kurt thought.

As his eyes traveled down his arm, Kurt’s breath hitched in his throat. There, on Blaine’s right wrist was the golden beaded bracelet that Kurt had given him back when they were kids. His hand unconsciously moved to his left wrist where his blue bracelet burned through his blazer sleeve.

Blaine, noticing Kurt’s obvious staring, cleared his throat. Kurt looked back up into his eyes, flushing bright red.

“Sorry!” he yelped.

“I never took it off, you know. The bracelet, I mean.”

“You- you didn’t?”

“No. Not once,” Blaine said, looking fondly at the piece of jewelry on his wrist. “I guess it was just something to remember you by, a little piece of you that I got to hold on to… I- I’m sorry, that sounds dumb.”

“No,” Kurt interrupted, pulling up his blazer’s sleeve to show his bracelet, “It doesn’t.”

To Kurt, the smile on Blaine’s could have easily ended wars throughout the entire world. It was the purest, most genuine smile he had ever seen and just being in its glow set Kurt’s heart into over drive.

You know, Kurt thought, despite everything, I don’t think today could be any better than this.