MONDAY

Blaine awoke with a smile on his face, giddy from his dream about a blue-eyed boy and eager to go snorkeling with his parents. He loved swimming, but getting to swim and look at tropical fish was an extra exciting prospect. This was the thing he was most looking forward to on the trip and he triple checked to make sure his underwater camera had brand new batteries as he was planning on taking pictures of everything he saw. He knocked on his parents’ door a full five minutes before they were to meet for breakfast, anxious to get on with their morning.

“Hey kiddo,” Ethan said as he opened the door to his and Vanessa’s suite. “So, since we have nothing going on this morning, I figured you and your mom can go to the spa while I catch up on some light reading.”

“Daaaaaaaaaaaad,” Blaine groaned as he barged past his father and flopped down on his parents’ bed.

Ethan chuckled at his son’s response to his teasing and tossed a brand new tropical fish guide on the bed next to Blaine’s side. “Don’t forget to put that in your bag for later, yeah?”

A huge smile sprouted across Blaine’s face as he rolled over and grabbed the book. “Is this the…? MOM! You told me they were out of stock!”

Vanessa peeked her head out of the bathroom where she was brushing her teeth. “I lied. Love you, B!” She gave him a wide smile before ducking back into the bathroom to spit out her toothpaste.

Blaine took the book with him to breakfast and was so busy looking through it that his mom had to remind him to eat something before they went back to their rooms to grab their bags and towels before they left the boat. Ethan and Vanessa shared a guilty look with each other. They were so happy to see Blaine happy, but knew his spirit was going to be crushed when they told him about the move and having to switch schools. They knew they should tell him sooner rather than later, but they didn’t want to ruin his excitement over their snorkeling excursion because he had been talking about it nonstop for weeks.

…

Kurt rolled his eyes at breakfast. Finn had been talking ten minutes nonstop about the snorkeling excursion they were about to go on.

“Come on, Kurt! We’re gonna see fish like at that McDonalds we stopped at in Akron after the Vocal Adrenaline concert last year. Remember?!”

With a forced smile, Kurt stabbed at the pieces of French toast on his plate and pretended like he cared. Finn had this childlike wonder about him all the time and Kurt often wondered if he had gotten dropped on his head as a child. This was something he planned on asking Carole at some point, but he figured the day after the wedding was not the best time for that.

As Finn kept talking animatedly, Burt slid an arm around his son and gave him a knowing squeeze. He leaned over and whispered into Kurt’s ear, “Look, I know this isn’t exactly your thing. So, just suck it up for the morning and I’ll make it worth your while, okay?” Kurt chuckled quietly at his dad’s bribe and the Hummel men were in agreement.

…

Those who were going on the snorkeling excursion had to meet at a designated area in Freeport so as to take a van to the beachfront location. The Andersons were the first people there, arriving their usual fifteen minutes prior to the meeting time. Each Anderson had a backpack filled with a water bottle, extra sunscreen, an umbrella, snacks, a first aid kit, a beach towel, his/her passport and other smaller personal items. Knowing he had some time before they actually left, Blaine sat on the ground near his parents’ feet and continued to flip through the tropical fish field guide. Every now and again, he would pull at the collar of his t-shirt, anxious to be rid of it in a little while. Vanessa reached down and ran a hand through her son’s hair, but he was too invested in his field guide to be bothered.

Finn Hudson led his family toward the meeting spot, though he wasn’t carrying anything. Carole and Burt held hands as they walked toward the sign indicating where the van would be picking them up while Kurt brought up the rear, grumbling that if Finn was so excited to be swimming than he should be the one responsible for hauling all their towels and gear.

Once at the meeting place, Kurt unceremoniously dropped Finn’s stuff in a pile at the taller boy’s feet. “That’s the last time I’m carrying your crap, Finn.”

Blaine’s ears perked up at the familiar voice. From behind his sunglasses, he peered over to see that of all the people on the boat who could have gone on the snorkeling excursion, the beautiful boy from the night before was there. Not wanting to come off as too excited, Blaine curled his lips in on themselves and tried to suppress a grin. He could not, however, conceal a chuckle and though he was fairly quiet, Kurt heard someone trying not to laugh through his nose but failing spectacularly.

Kurt turned quickly on his heel to see who was giggling at him, ready to shoot daggers with his eyes. It was too early in the morning and he was not dressed properly to engage in a battle of wits. His fiery gaze turned shocked just as quickly when he saw the boy on the ground who was getting a kick out of his and Finn’s ordeal was a familiar face from the night before.

Blaine looked slightly guilty, having been caught laughing at Kurt’s expense, but he was just really glad to see the other boy so soon and witness up close that the guy Kurt was with was definitely a family member and not a boyfriend. “Hey Kurt.”

Ethan and Vanessa Anderson stopped talking and looked at each other with surprise before directing their attention down toward their son and then over to the boy he just addressed.

The taller boy’s cheeked flushed pink as Finn, Burt and Carole turned toward him since they didn’t know he knew anyone else on the cruise, let alone going on the same excursion as them. “Blaine! Hi.”

Before anyone could say anything else, two vans pulled up to where both families and some other people were standing and honked its horn loudly. A guide in the first van stuck his head out the driver’s window and clamored for everyone who was supposed to go snorkeling to get in.

As Blaine and his parents were among the shortest people on the excursion, they immediately climbed to the back of the van to give the people with longer legs more room toward the front. Kurt ended up squished in between Carole and his dad in the row of seats in front of the Andersons while Finn rode shotgun.

Kurt prayed to a god he didn’t believe in that it was a short ride to the beach when he heard the woman he assumed to be Blaine’s mom whisper to him about how he knew the boy sitting in front of them. He couldn’t make out what Blaine said because Carole was leaning over and asking him pretty much the exact same question. The younger boy’s cheeks flushed pink as he shook his head and mumbled something about the night before. To her credit, Carole realized she was embarrassing her stepson and quickly changed the subject, loudly asking her husband if he remembered to put on sunscreen before they left.

The rest of the van ride was mostly silent. Blaine’s parents talked quietly behind his head about nothing in particular while the youngest Anderson kept his face forward, memorizing the back of Kurt’s head. After twenty minutes of staring, Blaine was familiar with the blond and red strands that highlighted the other boy’s otherwise chestnut colored hair. He smiled to himself as he watched Kurt shift around in his seat a few times, slightly guilty that the other boy knew he was staring but mostly wondering if their roles were reversed if Kurt would actively stare at him too. He thought probably not, but it was something to ponder as the van took them down the bumpy roads to the beach.

…

Once they arrived to their destination, the Hudson-Hummel and Anderson families were instructed to wait in a tent just off the beach until the other van full of excursion goers arrived. The Hudson-Hummels sat down at a picnic table and the Andersons sat at the table next to theirs, while Kurt and Blaine tried to covertly sneak glances at each other.

Carole was still very curious about how Kurt and this other boy knew one another, so she decided to start conversation. Looking at the woman she assumed to be this other boy’s mom as they shared the same eyes and dark, curly hair, she commented on the jewelry around her neck. “That is a gorgeous necklace you have on. Where ever did you get that?”

The other woman smiled as she put a hand up to her neck. “Thank you!” The Anderson men grinned, proud of Vanessa. “I actually designed this.” She reached across the gap between the picnic tables and held a hand out to Carole. “I’m Vanessa, by the way. And this is my husband, Ethan, and our son, Blaine.”

Kurt immediately curled his lips under; uneasy with the fact that in a fraction of a second, he and Blaine were likely going to be questioned openly about how they knew each other.

Carole smiled in return and shook Vanessa’s hand. “I’m Carole and this is my son, Finn.” She pointed to Finn who was busy trying to fix a flip-flop he broke while getting out of the van. Shaking her head and chuckling, she proceeded with the introductions. “This is my husband,” she said with a huge grin, “Burt and his son, Kurt.” She leaned over and whispered loudly to Vanessa. “Burt and I just got married yesterday!”

Blaine couldn’t help but smile, as he already knew about the wedding from his conversation with Kurt the night before. He tried to catch Kurt’s eye so that no one else saw, but Burt saw and couldn’t take it anymore of how this stranger seemed to know Kurt.

“So, Blaine was it? How do you know my son? You two go to school together or something?”

Kurt’s eyebrows shot up, mortified that his dad would just go ahead and ask Blaine that. “Daaaaaaad,” he hissed, but to no avail.

“Um,” Blaine gave Burt a polite smile before quickly glancing over at his own parents, having not told them yet how he knew Kurt despite his mom asking in the van. “Kurt and I met last night.” He looked over at Kurt for support, but was met with wide eyes. “At the, uh, LGBTQ meeting, sir.”

Without batting an eye, Burt nodded his head as if this was actually the most logical thing he could have possibly heard. He had known Kurt was queer as a three-dollar bill since he was a toddler and though this other boy didn’t look or sound like his kid, it didn’t surprise him anymore when he met another gay person. Burt could tell he was terrifying to this other kid and made sure to smile and let him know that he didn’t care one way or another if Blaine was gay or straight or whatever, he just found comfort in the fact that another boy Kurt’s age seemed to be nice. “Cool. Kurt and I go to those PFLAG meetings sometime. It’s nice they got stuff for you kids on the boat.”

Blaine’s eyebrows rose ever so slightly, almost in disbelief that Kurt’s dad – who looked like he drove a truck or something – was so open and accepting. His own father was really great about him being gay, but he had never met another adult who seemed to have absolutely no problem that his kid was gay. With a quick look over at Kurt, Blaine saw that though his cheeks were flushed, he was still able to shrug off Burt’s comments; silently saying “That’s my dad.” At that, Blaine smiled a bit, feeling somehow that though this was all a little weird, this was likely going to be all right and hopefully he and Kurt would have their parents’ permission to hang out some more seeing that everyone seemed to be okay with each other.

Ethan saw the exchange between his son and Kurt and did his best to hide a smirk. Blaine wasn’t one to talk openly about feelings, but he could tell that there was something going on between Blaine and Kurt even if they couldn’t tell it themselves. Turning to look at Burt, Ethan asked, “So, where are you folks from?”

“Ohio. You guys?”

With a chuckle, Ethan replied. “Same. Small world.”

Before anyone else could ask another question, the other van pulled up to drop off the remaining snorkel excursion goers and everyone was required to pay attention to the guide. Both families listened intently at the rules and regulations of the equipment and where they would be swimming. Blaine’s gaze followed the guide’s fingers as he pointed out to a reef off shore. His hands clasped around his backpack, eager to pull out the tropical fish guide, but not wanting to draw attention to himself. Once the lecture was over, everyone was told to grab a pair of fins, a snorkel and mask, and a life preserver.

Kurt hung back a bit as the rest of the people picked up their equipment. He had convinced himself after breakfast that he was determined to enjoy the excursion. But, now that Blaine and their families were both there, he felt eyes on him and this wasn’t the kind of spotlight he enjoyed.

“Bro, come on!” Kurt’s attention snapped toward Finn as the taller boy held up a pink snorkel and mask. “Look, they have your favorite color.”

Blaine was already walking down to the beach with his parents when he looked back and chuckled as Kurt grabbed the snorkel out of Finn’s hand.

“Finn! Stop it. Pink is not my favorite color,” he muttered.

Finn shrugged. “Well, they only had pink or yellow let, and I remember you once said that yellow doesn’t go with your skin tone or something like that.”

As much as Kurt wanted to smack Finn again, he could tell that his stepbrother was trying to do the right thing and it was actually kind of sweet. He grabbed the pink snorkel and mask out of Finn’s hands, and then quickly picked out the remaining equipment he needed before following Finn down to the beach. The only remaining lounge chair left was next to where Blaine was sitting and he instantly wondered if that was on purpose (and if so – whose doing?).

Kurt set his bag and equipment down on the chair before gingerly sitting down. He smiled a little when he saw Blaine was nose-deep into some sort of book, as if he was trying to memorize something before they went in the water.

The guide had already waded in knee-deep and was motioning for everyone to come join him. Burt, Carole, Finn, Vanessa and Ethan began making their way down the beach, leaving the two boys at the chairs, knowing they would catch up soon. Blaine put his book in his backpack and stood up, immediately shedding the t-shirt he had on. He turned around to ask Kurt if he was coming and was met with a blank stare and an open mouth.

Blaine furrowed his brow as he motioned toward the water. “You coming?”

Kurt nodded quickly, hoping that was a good enough answer. He stood up, but refused to remove his shirt before clipping on the life preserver. Though he had already slathered on 100 SPF sunscreen before getting off the boat, Kurt refused to get even one freckle if he could help it. Plus, after seeing Blaine without a shirt, Kurt became even more self-conscious. Puberty was good to him thus far and he knew he wasn’t completely unattractive, but there were a few faint bruises he hoped to keep covered up so his dad wouldn’t get worried. Getting tossed into dumpsters and shoved into lockers at school was still a problem and he didn’t want his dad to have any additional stresses after the heart attack he had a few months before.

Following Blaine down to the water, Kurt tried not to stare at the other boy too much. He kind of couldn’t help it though – Blaine was an attractive person, but the kind of attractive person who obviously didn’t know he was an attractive person, which was the worst kind of attractive person. There was a faint smattering of chest hair covering his upper torso while a trail of dark hair traveled below Blaine’s belly button and into the mysterious abyss that was his brightly colored board shorts.

However, as the boys got closer to the water, Kurt noticed something on Blaine’s back before the older boy put on his life preserver. Near Blaine’s left shoulder, there was a white scar that stood out against his tanned skin. He couldn’t be sure, but Kurt swore it was the letter “F” about the size of his hand. Soon Blaine’s life preserver was on and Kurt quickly followed with his. Both boys slid their snorkel masks onto their heads, but not over their eyes as they both needed to see the guide as he was giving out the last of his instructions.

Everyone was told to put on their flippers and there were a few minutes of people laughing as they tried to balance on one foot and put their fins on in the process. Moments later, all the snorkelers were swimming out toward the reef, each person alone in their little world with his or her head in the water looking at the ocean floor below.

Kurt all but forgot about Blaine’s scar as he took in the sight below the surface of the water. He didn’t know what to expect, but it wasn’t this – there were dozens of brightly colored fish and mazes of coral with various plants sprouting from around them. It was so beautiful and peaceful at the same time. All he could hear was the lapping of the water around him as other snorkelers made their way out further.

Blaine was in heaven. He had to catch himself from smiling too wide else he would end up with a snorkel full of saltwater. Though he had been on several cruises, this was the first time he ever snorkeled and it was definitely living up to his expectations. There were so many fish and he wished that his tropical fish guide were waterproof so he could have it with him right then to look up everything he was seeing. He started snapping pictures, grateful for several gigabytes of memory. It felt so good being out in the sun and in the water, knowing his family was nearby but that he could enjoy the solitude of swimming along at his own pace and taking in as much as he could.

After swimming around for what felt like forever but was only actually 30 minutes, Blaine finally stopped and took his mask off, looking around to see if he was still near the group. He was a few yards away from the closest person, but smiled widely when he noticed the bright white t-shirt and pink snorkel. Contemplating whether he should swim over and meet up with Kurt, he opted not to, seeing that the other boy seemed to be doing just fine on his own and also seemed to be enjoying his alone time.

Another hour passed and all the snorkelers had reached the reef. The guide called everyone to his attention and said that they needed to start heading back to shore because the vans would be back in a couple hours. Before everyone ducked back down into the water, Blaine swam over to his parents and thanked them again for allowing him to pick the excursion. They smiled and asked him if he was having fun and knew they didn’t need a verbal response to tell that he was having the time of his life.

On the swim back, Blaine stopped short because he saw a stingray floating along the ocean floor below him. He took several pictures, hoping to get at least one good one out of the lot. Out of his peripherals, he saw a white shirt swimming a little ways a way. He slowly waved his arm under the water, trying both to get Kurt’s attention and not scare away the stingray. Kurt saw him and made his way over to Blaine. Without a word, Blaine pointed down and Kurt followed his hand to the stingray making its way across some rocks. When it was far enough a way, Kurt and Blaine pulled their heads out of the water and took their masks off. Kurt smiled widely when he saw Blaine grinning like an idiot.

“How cool was that?!” Blaine asked with complete sincerity.

“That was pretty neat,” Kurt replied. “Thanks for pointing him out to me. You having fun?”

Blaine nodded, drops of water raining down from his curls back into the ocean. “This is amazing. You?”

“Yeah. I am.”

…

The boys swam back to shore at their own pace, but still mostly near each other. They had a half hour left before the vans were expected to arrive, so they returned their equipment and then went back to their lounge chairs to dry off.

As Kurt patted his hair dry, Blaine was quick to pull out his tropical fish guide. He called his dad over to point out everything he saw. Vanessa smiled to herself as she watched two of her favorite men talk animatedly as they hunched over Blaine’s book.

Kurt pulled out multiple tubes of sunscreen and called out to his stepbrother. When Finn turned around, Kurt threw him a tube and told him to put some on so he wouldn’t burn. Carole and Burt snuck a kiss as their sons bickered about skincare. It was a great start to their family vacation.

The van ride back to the boat was exceptionally quiet. Blaine fell asleep tucked into his mom’s side, worn out from spending hours swimming in the sun. Finn snored softly from the front seat and Kurt snuggled up to his dad, knowing to keep quiet so as to let the others rest.

“That was actually really fun, Dad,” Kurt murmured as he laid his head on his dad’s shoulder.

Burt smiled. “Glad you liked it.” He placed a kiss on his son’s head. “I’m so proud of you, kid.”

Kurt scoffed through his nose and rolled his eyes. “I didn’t do anything.”

Carole looked over and locked eyes with Burt as he sighed and answered his son. “Doesn’t matter. I love you, Kurt.”

With a smile, Kurt burrowed further into his dad’s side. “Love you too, Dad.”

When the van pulled back into the parking area near the boat, the sleeping boys were shaken awake by their parents before everyone climbed out. After stretching, Blaine and Kurt shyly smiled at each other.

“So, maybe I’ll see you at the LGBTQ meeting again tonight?” Blaine asked Kurt.

Kurt looked up at his dad for silent permission to go again and was met with a nod. With a smile he said, “Yeah, I’ll see you then.”

The Hudson-Hummel clan headed back to the boat first, leaving the Andersons in the parking lot as Ethan dug around in his backpack for his passport.

“He’s cute, Blaine,” Vanessa said gently to her son.

Blaine was still looking at Kurt as the other boy walked further away. “Huh?”

A smile sprouted across Vanessa’s face. “Kurt, B. He seems like a very nice boy.”

Before Blaine could respond to his mother’s comment, Ethan held up his passport. “Found it!”

The Andersons walked back to the boat in mostly comfortable silence.

…

The Hudson-Hummels sat around a table in a corner, eating their lunch and enjoying some more family time. Carole was thrilled how well all her boys were getting along and felt the family growing closer together. Kurt didn’t even bother smacking Finn’s hand away when he snuck a third French fry off his plate. He did kick him in the shin, though, after Finn asked loudly, “So what’s up with you and that Blaine guy?”

After being forced to apologize to his stepbrother for the shin kick, Kurt looked around at the other three people at the table, trying not to answer Finn’s question or at least hoping his dad would change the subject.

Burt didn’t.

“Yeah. What’s up with you and that Blaine guy?”

“DAD!” Kurt was wholly embarrassed and could tell that his dad was actually getting a kick out of it.

“What?” Burt asked. “Can’t a dad know what’s going on in his kid’s life?”

Kurt stabbed a piece of pineapple in his fruit salad and shoved it in his mouth to buy more time. “Nothing,” he said while chewing before swallowing. “Nothing is up. We met last night and it’s nice to have someone to talk to who gets it, okay?”

Carole shot a look at her husband before putting a reassuring hand on Kurt’s arm. “He seems nice, sweetie.”

…

“So, what’s up with you and that Kurt kid?”

Blaine almost choked on his stir-fry at his dad’s seemingly casual question.

Vanessa tried to come to her son’s rescue while he took a sip of water, but she was curious too. “Ethan! You can’t just ask him that while he’s got food in his mouth. At least let him swallow before you grill him.” Over his drinking cup, Blaine shot his mom a look causing her to chuckle. “I’m just teasing, B. We don’t have to talk about this if you don’t want to.”

Blaine put his cup down and cleared his throat a bit. “I don’t really want to talk about it, no.” He played with his napkin a bit, but went on. “I mean, he’s nice but it’s not like we know much about each other or anything. So if you could please not make a big deal out of anything because nothing is up, okay?”

Ethan was surprised Blaine even said as much as he did and knew to back off. He instantly felt bad, knowing this vacation was meant for Blaine to have fun before he found out he was moving and being put back into public school. “I’m sorry, Blaine. You know you can talk to us about anything, though, right?”

With a nod and a small smile Blaine looked between his parents. “I know. Thanks.”

…

After lunch, Kurt and Blaine asked their parents if they could go to the popular culture trivia on the upper deck. Wanting to appease their sons after making lunch awkward for them, they agreed. Finn asked Kurt if he could tag along and Kurt said yes, glad to spend some time with his stepbrother and secretly hoping that he would beat Finn in trivia seeing as the big oaf didn’t know much about popular culture outside of video games and action movies.

Kurt and Finn sat toward the front of the room, grabbing pencils and paper from a table in the center of the aisle. They sat down and talked about a glee club assignment they were supposed to do the following week when they heard someone ask politely, “Um hey guys. May I join you?”

Blaine wasn’t expecting to see Kurt and Finn at trivia, but it was kind of nice seeing familiar faces in a room full of strangers. He had a genuine smile on his face when the other boys turned around after asking if he could sit with them.

“Yeah man, have a seat!” Finn said as he waved Blaine over.

Blaine gave Finn and Kurt an even bigger grin as he walked around the row of booths and slid into an open seat near Kurt. “Thanks! So, you guys like trivia too?”

“Kurt does. He’s probably going to win since he knows a lot about pop culture and stuff.”

Kurt’s eyebrows rose as his stepbrother’s response, not expecting him to answer so candidly.

Blaine chuckled, “Oh is he? Well, we’ll see about that.”

Before they could chat some more, it was time for trivia to start.

Fifteen minutes and twenty questions later, it was time to tally correct responses. Though Blaine and Kurt were seated near each other, each boy kept his answer sheet hidden so as not to let the other one see how well (or not) he was doing.

As the answers were read, smug smirks appeared on both Kurt and Blaine’s faces. Finn was happy he had gotten a handful right, but he snuck a peek at Kurt’s answer sheet and knew Kurt had 18 out of 20.

The cruise staff member asked if anyone got a perfect score and no one answered. Blaine frowned a bit when it was announced that someone got a 19. He knew that the trophy was a piece of crap, but he liked winning things and hoped that his 18 would at least get him a medal.

So, when the cruise staff member asked if anyone got an 18, Blaine smiled and thrust his hand up into the air. His smiled dropped a bit when at the same time, Kurt placed his arm up and said loud and clear, “I did.”

Blaine and Kurt turned toward each other and then quickly eyeballed each other’s score sheet to make sure the other person hadn’t cheated. They were the only two people to get 18 correct, so they were both called up to the front of the room. A medal was placed around each boy’s neck and Blaine couldn’t help but grin as it was explained that the victors could not take the medals off from around their necks, else they would have to sing “I’m a Little Teapot” for anyone who saw them. He didn’t even have to look at Kurt to know the other boy was not looking forward to keeping the crappy medal around his neck for the duration of the day.

When trivia was over, Blaine turned to Finn and Kurt and asked what they were up to. Kurt looked down at his watch and then almost ashamedly back at Blaine and said he needed to go meet Carole for a spa appointment. Blaine was not one for facials or pedicures, but he would never judge anyone who did enjoy that and gave Kurt as friendly a smile as he could to relay the reality that Blaine didn’t think any less of him for going to the spa. Finn yawned and said he was going to go back to their room to nap before dinner. Blaine decided he would go grab a book from his room and read. He knew he would likely find his dad on the Serenity deck and even though he knew it was for people 21 and up, he could probably get away with reading out there too.

The three boys split up with Kurt and Blaine quietly reminding each other that they’d see each other later for the LGBTQ meeting.

…

Kurt was almost embarrassed at the groan that fell from his lips as the masseuse rubbed the tension from his shoulders. He was also glad they were allowed to remain fully clothed.

Carole laughed from the table next to his. “Feel good, sweetie?”

“Oh my god, we need to do this when we get back to Lima.”

There were a few moments of silence before Carole spoke again. “I’m glad we’re getting to do this together, Kurt. It’s nice to get to spend time just the two of us.”

“Me too.” There was a beat before Kurt asked quietly. “Carole?”

“Yeah, bud?”

“You’re not going to get mad at me if I don’t call you ‘mom’ are you?”

Carole stilled and turned to silently nod her masseuse out of the room to give them a minute. The masseuses just shrugged, knowing they would get paid regardless and they left quietly. Kurt sat up and looked around curiously, wondering why the massages stopped. He then saw Carole looking over at him with a very motherly look on her face.

“Kurt, sweetie, you never have to call me ‘mom’ if you don’t want to. I know I’m not your mother and I’m not here to replace your mother, okay?” She waited until he nodded before she continued. “But I hope you know that you can talk to me about anything. Just because you’re not my biological son doesn’t mean I care about you less than I care about Finn.”

With a tear in his eye, Kurt nodded, grateful for the reassurance that Carole didn’t see him as anything less than her own child. Carole got up from her table and sat down on his, wrapping protective arms around him in a loving squeeze. She could feel the tension dropping from Kurt’s shoulders and tried to ease it even more by making a joke about the medal still around his neck.

“So… what event did you win this for?”

Kurt held the medal in his hand and looked down at it. “Oh. Pop culture trivia. I came in second. Well, tied for second with Blaine.”

“Oh,” Carole said with a little surprise. “Blaine was at trivia too? That’s nice.”

“Carole…”

She kissed him on the top of his head and gave him another squeeze. “Kiddo, I’m not going to ask you about him. But if you ever want to talk about boys or anything, I’m all ears.”

Kurt smiled, knowing she was telling the truth. “Thanks.”

…

With his copy of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay in hand, Blaine made his way up to the Serenity deck and confidently walked his way to an open lounge chair near his dad.

“Hey buddy,” Ethan said with a smile as he set down the latest Stephen King book.

Blaine smiled at his dad as he toed off his sandals and laid down. “How’s the book?”

“So far, so good,” Ethan replied. “It’s just nice having some free time to read, you know?”

With a nod, Blaine agreed. “Where’s mom?”

“In the room. She wanted to grab a shower before dinner.”

The Anderson men slid into an easy silence as they both cracked open their books.

Unknowingly, Blaine began to fiddle with the medal around his neck while he read. It didn’t bother Ethan, but after awhile he just got curious.

“What’s with the medal, B?”

“Oh,” Blaine said as he looked down at the medal in his hand. “Trivia. I got second place. Well, tied with Kurt.”

Ethan rested his open book against his chest. “So, Kurt was at trivia too?”

“Dad –”

The Anderson patriarch held a hand up, silencing his son. “I’m not trying to start anything, B.” Blaine rolled his eyes at his dad. “Look, I’m sorry about what I said at lunch. But your mother and I just want you to know that if something is going on with Kurt, or if you wanted to talk about anything, you can come to us, okay?”

 “I know, thanks.”

“We want you to have fun on this cruise Blaine –”

“Dad!”

Ethan laughed. “That’s not what I meant, kiddo. But since your mind went there maybe we should have a little talk later.”

“DAD!”

“Blaine, son, we love you. We trust you. And we know you’re not the kind of kid who would just throw himself around like that. But if you want to spend some time with Kurt, we understand, okay? He’s a nice boy and it seems like the two of you have some things in common.” Ethan sighed, wishing his son didn’t feel like he was always alone when dealing with his problems. “I get it, you know. How it’s easier to talk to people your own age about that kind of stuff. Your mom and I aren’t mad you went to that meeting last night and we’re kinda glad you’ve decided to go again tonight. We’ll even go with you if you want.”

The youngest Anderson was floored. “Wow – I mean, thanks, Dad.  You guys don’t have to go. It’s just that I kinda was going with…” Blaine blushed because he was embarrassed to bring up Kurt’s name again after his dad’s little speech.

Ethan smiled. “It’s fine, kid. You don’t have to explain. Enjoy your book, yeah?”

Blaine nodded dumbly and looked back down at the book in his lap. “Yeah.”

From his lounge chair a few feet away, Burt Hummel smiled knowing the kid his kid was hanging out with seemed to have a good head on his shoulders and a supportive family behind him.

…

Blaine and Kurt laughed as they almost literally ran into each other in the hallway before heading up to the LGBTQ meeting.

“Hey, where’s your medal?” Blaine asked as he and Kurt made their way upstairs.

Kurt shook his head. “If you think I’m singing ‘I’m a Little Teapot’ for you, then you are sorely mistaken. I can’t believe you still have yours on.”

“Rules are rules, Kurt,” Blaine pointed out as they climbed the steps two at a time together, with Blaine having to make a little extra effort since his legs were definitely not as long as Kurt’s.

“That may be, Blaine, but the red, white and blue stripes on the ribbon part did not go with this shirt,” Kurt replied, motioning to the light purple button up top he changed into.

They’re smiles fell when they heard a voice they both wished to forget.

“Hey sexy. Back for round two?”

Kurt and Blaine stopped in their tracks as Sebastian walked toward them just outside the doors to the lounge from the meeting the night before. Once again, Sebastian had his eyes on Kurt and was glancing at him repeatedly from head to toe, sizing him up and mentally making note of where he’d like to see less clothes on the younger boy.

“Please don’t call me that,” Kurt muttered as he brushed past Sebastian with Blaine following right behind him.

Kurt purposefully crossed the room and sat down on a two-seated couch. Blaine quickly slid into the empty seat next to Kurt so Sebastian couldn’t sit next to him.

With a short laugh, Sebastian sat on the arm of the couch by Kurt and draped himself over the back. “Come on, you know you’re hot. What do you say we lose the third wheel and have our own meeting?”

“Hey!” Blaine pivoted himself toward Kurt and glared at Sebastian, hoping the smarmy boy would stop because he was obviously making Kurt uncomfortable. “Stop it. Please?”

“Ooooh, I see someone likes to beg,” Sebastian replied with delight. “Maybe the hobbit wants to visit my Shire, if you know what I mean…”

Before Kurt or Blaine could say anything else to Sebastian, Kyle picked up a microphone and went up to the front of the room. He reintroduced himself in case there were any new people who weren’t there last night and said that that night’s meeting was going to get started. Before he sat down, Kyle told the group to get excited because there was going to be a dance on the last night of the cruise. This announcement made Kurt think of his upcoming junior prom and it bummed him out a bit. He turned toward Blaine to see if he was happy about the dance and instantly became worried. Blaine started breathing really heavy and it looked like he was in some sort of trance. Kurt didn’t know if Blaine was having some sort of health problem or if he needed to alert someone. Sebastian didn’t seem to notice Kurt’s attention was on Blaine when he leaned in front of the younger boy and started telling him that he couldn’t wait to dance with him. Kurt shoved Sebastian away and turned back toward Blaine.

“Blaine? Can you hear me?” Kurt’s voice was loud, but patient.

Blaine’s chest kept heaving in and out with each deep breath he was taking.

Afraid to startle Blaine, Kurt knew he should probably get him out of that room. He gently went to put a hand on Blaine’s back when the older boy suddenly flinched and gasped loudly. He looked at Kurt with panic in his eyes and Kurt felt terrified and confused.

Kurt quietly asked Blaine if he needed to get out of there and though the nod was small, it was good enough for Kurt. He stood up and waited for Blaine to do the same. Together, they walked slowly out of the room, leaving Sebastian to look on in disgust.

When they got to a couch out in the hallway, Kurt stopped and sat down. Blaine slowly eased himself down next to Kurt, but sat as far away from him as possible. It took a few minutes for Blaine’s breathing to even out, but Kurt waited silently the whole time, wondering if there was anything he could do or say to make Blaine feel better. He chose to wait it out silently, hoping Blaine would come around. They still didn’t know each other that well and Kurt didn’t want to do something that would trigger Blaine so soon after whatever just happened.

Blaine got himself under control and felt wholly embarrassed that he lost it like that in front of Kurt. He didn’t usually like to talk about it, but felt that he owed Kurt an explanation.

“Thanks, Kurt. I’m – I’m sorry about that. You probably want to get back to the meeting, but – ”

“Blaine, no!” Kurt was quiet, but insistent. He wanted to reach out and put a reassuring hand on Blaine’s arm, but was afraid to touch him after the whole flinching incident just minutes before. “Please, you don’t have to apologize. I just – well, are you okay?”

Blaine let out a humorless laugh and surprised himself when he answered honestly, “No.”

“Do you want to… talk about it?” Part of Kurt wished Blaine wouldn’t, but a larger part of him hoped he did.

With a half smile as he contemplated his answer, Blaine countered with another question. “Can we get some fro-yo?”

The boys silently walked up a flight of stairs to the twenty four-hour frozen yogurt and soft serve machines in one of the dining areas. Kurt normally would not eat dessert past 10:00pm, but he was more than willing to eat a cone with Blaine if that’s what it took to help the other boy find peace.

After making their cones, Blaine and Kurt walked out onto the deck and found an empty table far away from everyone else. They looked out at the water and up at the night sky, which was nearly pitch black except for the hundreds of stars dotted across the horizon.

The silence wasn’t awkward and Kurt was content to just sit there with Blaine. He didn’t know how his presence could possibly be helpful, but it felt good knowing that maybe, just maybe, him being there was enough for the time being.

Blaine finished his cone first. He sat back in his chair and scrubbed his hands across his face and tangled his fingers in his hair. It was an odd feeling, as he had gotten so used to all the gel. A chuckle escaped his lips even though nothing was even remotely funny.

“I got beat up… after a dance.”

Kurt was chewing on the last bite of his cone and was thankful he had something in his mouth so he didn’t accidentally ask the wrong thing. Instead, he hoped Blaine would continue.

He did.

“It was freshman year of high school. I went to a Sadie Hawkins Dance with my best friend Jackson. He was the only other gay kid I knew. We weren’t dating or anything, we just wanted to go to the dance, you know?”

Kurt nodded as he swallowed the mouthful of cone.

“So, we were in the parking lot waiting for his dad and these three guys, they… they beat the living crap out of us.”

Kurt’s eyes grew wide. He had gotten pushed around, but never beat up.

Blaine chuckled as he kept running his hands through his hair. “The thing was, we didn’t even dance at the dance because we were so nervous. And then these guys… oh, man. One of them had a baseball bat and he just kept swinging. Jackson somehow managed to get away and get help, but I… I mean, I blacked out after they smashed my hip, but I woke up in the hospital with a fractured wrist and some stitches. One of them musta had a knife ‘cuz I have… well, for starters I have this on my forehead.”

With a shaky hand, Blaine pushed back the curls above his left eye, revealing an inch-long scar near his hairline. Kurt felt sick to his stomach, and almost choked when he remembered the scar on Blaine’s back from earlier and how he flinched when Kurt went to touch him. He wondered if that was from the same attack.

Somehow Blaine must have known what Kurt was thinking because he saw Kurt eye his left shoulder and tears well up.

Blaine asked in a soft voice filled with shame, “Did you see it? At the beach, did you see it?”

A tear quickly found its way down Kurt’s cheek as he nodded slowly.

Drips fell down Blaine’s face and onto his thigh as he hung his head down, unable to look up at Kurt. “Yeah. It’s not quite the scarlet letter, but – uh,” another humorless laugh escaped his lips. “It’s not exactly a badge of honor either.” He wiped the tears away from his face before forcing himself to sit up. “At least they didn’t get to the A and the G, right?” Another lifeless laugh rang out in the darkness.

“Blaine,” Kurt murmured.

“I don’t want your pity, Kurt,” Blaine said angrily, though his frustration was not aimed at the younger boy.

“Blaine, please,” Kurt said softly. He knew Blaine was upset, and rightly so. It wasn’t fair that he got beat up for just being himself. Kurt didn’t have pity for Blaine – if anything, he was empathetic. “I get it. Okay?” He waited until Blaine looked him in the eye before repeating himself. “I get it.”

Fresh tears welled up in Blaine’s eyes as he recognized the pain behind Kurt’s. Blaine leaned forward and flung his arms around Kurt’s back and they pulled each other into a tight hug. Both boys needed to be reassured as much as they wanted to reassure the other, so they stayed wrapped in each other’s embrace for a few minutes until both of them managed to calm down.

It was Kurt who spoke up first. “Gosh, we’re a mess, aren’t we?”

Blaine genuinely chuckled as he pulled back and gave Kurt a small smile. He didn’t know why he just poured out his past to someone he only knew for a day, but somehow it felt right. “Thank you.”

Kurt shook his head, “I didn’t do anything.”

“You listened, Kurt,” Blaine explained. “Thank you.”

Kurt looked down at his watch. “I still have a little while before my curfew. You wanna walk around for a bit? Work off those fro-yo calories?”

Blaine smiled and said, “I would love to.”

…

The pair of boys walked aimlessly around the various decks, avoiding other people at all cost if they could. The started talking about nothing in particular, but somehow Blaine managed to get Kurt to open up a bit. When Kurt told him before that “I get it,” Blaine was instantly concerned that he was bullied too.

Kurt was hesitant to tell Blaine what he was dealing with, as it was nowhere near as severe as what Blaine went through. Blaine told him, though, that abuse from kids at school wasn’t something that people can just compare as any bullying was too much bullying and that no one should go through that.

It shocked Blaine at the ease at which Kurt told him about his own personal circle of hell, care of one of the football players on Kurt’s school’s team. Apparently the offender’s name was David Karofsky and he was an in-the-closet case who made it his goal to torment Kurt every chance he got. Blaine felt sick as Kurt recounted when he finally plucked up the courage to confront Karofsky, only to be violently kissed by the football player.

Blaine’s blood boiled even more when Kurt revealed that post-kiss, Karofsky amped up his malice toward him. Locker shoves and dumpster tosses gave way to open threats that Karofsky would kill Kurt if Kurt told anyone about the kiss.

“Kurt, you gotta tell your dad!” Blaine was insistent in his pleading.

The younger boy shook his head. “I can’t let my dad get involved. He had a heart attack a few months ago and he can’t take the stress. Plus, if Karofsky hasn’t killed me yet, I’ll probably be okay.”

“PROBABLY?!” Blaine was getting more animated as his level of disgust increased. “Kurt, you shouldn’t have to put up with this.”

“And you shouldn’t have had the start of a gay slur carved into your back, but sometimes we just have to deal with things, okay?”

Both boys stopped walking as they instantly fell silent.

“I’m sorry,” Kurt apologized quickly. “God, I – I should not have said that.”

Blaine shook him off, “I’m an idiot. I’m sorry too. I can’t believe we’re fighting. I just – I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

“So, you’re sorry?” Kurt asked with a hint of tease in his voice to diffuse the tension.

…

The journey back to Kurt’s room was mostly quiet. The gap between them from the night before was reduced from a foot to mere inches as they walked.

“My family is going to the beach tomorrow morning,” Blaine said as the started down their hallway.

Kurt smiled, “Maybe I’ll see you there. I think my dad and Carole mentioned the beach during dinner. If not, maybe we can try and meet up tomorrow afternoon or something. I wanted to walk around Nassau and get some souvenirs for my friends.”

Blaine smiled, “Yeah, that’d be nice. Though hopefully I’ll see you sooner than that.” He blushed a little as he confessed, “You know, I’m really glad I met you, Kurt.”

Seeing someone blush over him was almost too much for Kurt to handle. He tried to keep his excitement at bay as he replied, “I’m glad I met you too.”

“Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Blaine.”

With another smile, Blaine bit his bottom lip before forcing himself to turn around and walk down the hall to his room. Fighting with himself, he snuck a peek back at Kurt’s door over his shoulder to find the other boy was still half in the hallway watching him walk away. Kurt flashed him a little wave before grinning and ducking into his room. Blaine felt his heart leap as he turned back around, thinking about how much he was looking forward to more time with Kurt the next day.

Once in his room, Kurt was glad Finn was already asleep because he didn’t want to have to explain why he couldn’t stop smiling.