WEDNESDAY - PART II

Outside, Blaine felt a little better once he was able to take deep breaths of fresh air. He felt a little foolish for breaking down like he did, but he just had so much stuff running through his head and he was going into panic-mode. But, Kurt was like an anchor and with his strong hand holding Blaine’s; Blaine felt like maybe he could be okay.

They walked hand in hand down the street, trying to be content being in each other’s presence, but constantly thinking about their relationship’s likely deadline. When they found themselves in front of the homeless shelter once again, Blaine tugged Kurt’s hand and the other boy stopped, no questions asked.

“I need to go in,” Blaine explained, “but I want you to come with me. Is that okay with you?” Blaine’s eyes begged Kurt to say yes and Kurt nodded, ready to agree to just about anything at this point just so he could stay by Blaine’s side.

Blaine held the door open for Kurt and then followed him inside. The woman behind the desk was the same person who Blaine had been dealing with the past two days. Her frown immediately righted itself. “I know you keep saying you’re coming back, but somehow I never seem to believe you even though I should know better by now. How ya doing today?”

“Fine, thank you,” Blaine replied, a wide smile on his face. “Sally, this is Kurt. Kurt, this is Sally, she helps run the shelter.”

Kurt honestly had no idea what Blaine’s tie to the shelter was (only that he wasn’t homeless), but he smiled warmly at the woman and held his hand out. “It’s very nice to meet you, ma’am.”

Sally smiled and shook Kurt’s hand. “Nice to meet you too, Kurt,” she said, addressing him before shifting her attention back to Blaine. “So, kid, what can I do for you today?”

Blaine smiled and waggled his eyebrows, “I believe it’s more of what I can do for you.” He stuck a hand into his front pocket and pulled out a wad of cash from busking in the park earlier. “I have $68 from this morning and even though I can’t come tomorrow, I promise I’ll be back with another check on Friday before I go.”

“Sweetie, I don’t know who you are or why you’re hear, but God bless ya.” She pulled an envelope from the drawer and handed it to Blaine. “You know the drill.”

Blaine mock-saluted Sally, “Yes ma’am.” He put the money in the envelope, sealed it and then wrote a quick note on the back before handing it to Sally. She read it and smiled, shaking her head all the while.

A puzzled expression had spread across Kurt’s face. Blaine reached over and squeezed his hand, giving him a look that said he would explain later. Kurt nodded and gave Blaine a small smile. He didn’t know anyone else who would just walk into a homeless shelter and give money – especially if they weren’t from this area or didn’t have anything to do with the shelter.

From down the hall, Kurt could hear children giggling and someone tapping keys on an off-key piano. He watched Blaine smile as the older boy turned to face him. “You wanna go play for a little bit?” Kurt cocked his head in confusion, but Blaine was quick to answer his unasked question. “Sally said if I ever had time, I could go play some music for the kids. I know what we’re up against, but I thought maybe we could do this together. Just for a little bit?”

Kurt’s heart melted at Blaine’s generosity. “I’d love to.”

Blaine beamed and grabbed Kurt’s hand. Together, they walked down the hall and the sounds of laughter got louder as they approached a makeshift playroom.

Neither boy really knew what to expect, having never been in a shelter before. They squeezed each other’s hands one last time before mutually letting go right before they stepped through the door. It was one thing to not know anyone in the room they were about to enter, but it was another for them to walk in there holding hands and expect for everyone to be okay with it.

Upon entering the room, Kurt and Blaine turned toward each other and smiled. There were a dozen children between the ages of five and fourteen and all of them seemed preoccupied with whatever they were doing that they didn’t notice the newest additions to the room. Children were playing on the floor with hand-me-down toys, while others were seated in a corner, reading stories from a slightly tattered book. The piano playing the boys had heard from the front desk was care of a little girl who was maybe six years old. She was seated on the piano bench; using her pointer finger to tap on whichever keys she pleased.

As Blaine set his guitar case down, Kurt walked slowly toward the little girl at the piano. He crouched down next to her and she could not be bothered. “Hello, sweetie. I’m Kurt,” he said as if he were introducing himself to an adult. “May I sit with you?” Without looking at him or stopping what she was doing, she nodded. Kurt looked over at Blaine and shrugged as he stood up and walked around the bench so he could sit next to her. “Can I teach you a song?”

The little girl stopped playing and looked up at Kurt. He smiled at her and she gave him a wide smile back before crawling into his lap.

“Oh!” Kurt reacted, at first shocked, but then he broke into giggles while she settled herself. “Well then, are you ready?” He looked down at her and she gave one final wiggle to make herself comfortable before she nodded. Kurt couldn’t help but laugh. “All right, let’s play. I’m going to put my hands over top of your hands, okay?” Nodding quickly, Kurt slid his palms over the back of her hands and positioned them over the keys.

Blaine was just about in shock from the adorableness of it all. The little girl had just made herself right at home in Kurt’s lap as if it were the most logical thing to do. And Kurt – Blaine was in awe of how he completely dove right in, introduced himself to her and immediately made her feel at ease.

Kurt started moving his and the little girl’s hands up and down, tapping out the beginning of “Heart and Soul.” Blaine slowly walked over to the piano bench and put a gentle hand on Kurt’s back. The younger boy didn’t miss a beat as he turned his head and looked up at Blaine. They shared a private smile that was so intimate it should have been overwhelming, but somehow it just felt right. Kurt nodded toward the empty seat on the bench next to him and Blaine was more than happy to oblige.

As he sat, the little girl looked over at Blaine and gave him a wide smile. He smiled back as she swayed back and forth, her hands tucked carefully underneath Kurt’s. After a few more moments of watching Kurt and the little girl play, Blaine brought his hands up to the keys and joined in with the main melody of the song. Kurt’s eyebrows slid up as he watched Blaine play, but then remembered that Blaine said he minored in music and he played the guitar, so it really shouldn’t have been a surprise that he could play the piano too. Though the piano was out of tune, all three of the pianists were grinning as they made music together.

By time they finished the song, most of the children in the room had gathered around the piano to see who the new people were. Blaine looked around and smiled at the kids. “Hey guys!” Trying to gauge their reaction, he wasn’t sure if they would even want Kurt and him in there. “So, I’m, uh, Blaine and this is my… um… Kurt, and we wanted to see if we could play with you all for a little bit.” Not getting any reaction, he started to ramble. “We can read stories, or play the piano, or I have my guitar if you wanted to sing some songs or something –”

Blaine was cut off when he felt someone tugging at his hair. He turned and saw the little girl in Kurt’s lap smiling up at him and reaching to grab another handful. “You talk a lot,” she said, giggling as she pulled his hair and let it go, watching it bounce back into place. “And your hair is silly,” she stated matter-of-factly.

Kurt had one arm wrapped around the little girl’s waist to keep her safe on his lap, but he quickly brought his free hand up to his mouth to try and suppress a chuckle at her bluntness. Blaine’s cheeks flushed red as he shot Kurt a look that was a cross between “I hate you right now” and “I am so falling for you.”

Trying to cover up the fact that he was laughing at Blaine, Kurt brought his hand down from his mouth and ran it over the little girl’s braids. “Well, sweetie, not everyone is lucky to have pretty hair like yours.” He looked back up at Blaine and gave him a small wink, hoping Blaine would realize that he was just saying that to draw the attention off him. “So, you guys want some stories, or what?”

The little girl thought for a minute and looked around at the other kids who were standing around the piano, to get a general consensus. Some of the kids wanted to read stories, while others wanted Blaine to play his guitar. So, the two boys went to opposite sides of the room and sat down on the floor along with their companions for the next half hour.

The little girl who had sat in Kurt’s lap while at the piano once again snuggled up to him while he read some old Berenstain Bears books to the children who wanted to listen. Every so often, especially when he had to break briefly in the story to turn the page, Kurt would look over at Blaine and he couldn’t help but smile as he watched the older man show some of the older kids how to play different chords on his guitar. Blaine was not only extremely patient, but also sincerely enthusiastic about sharing the gift of music with these kids. He caught Kurt looking at him several times and smiled brightly each time; thrilled they were able to share something good and pure together. Though Happily Ever Afters were far from either of their minds – especially when they honestly didn’t know what was going to happen with them past Friday – both boys were completely smitten by the other’s nurturing ability and had brief glimpses of what a family could look like.

When the kids surrounding Blaine started laughing louder than Kurt was reading, the children who were being read to slowly migrated over toward the others. The little girl in Kurt’s lap looked up with him with her big brown eyes. She scrunched her nose and tilted her head before asking, “Is it okay if I go with them?”

Kurt gave her a warm smile, but before he could finish saying, “Of course, sweetie,” she was scrambling out of his lap and across the room. He chuckled as he stood up and brushed off his pants before walking over toward Blaine and the rest of the kids. Everyone was laughing and Kurt realized it was because Blaine was making up silly songs and making goofy facial expressions – doing anything in his power to keep those kids smiling.

After a particularly enchanting ditty about flying socks, Sally ducked her head into the room and told the kids that it was time to clean up. They groaned as Blaine thanked her and went to put his guitar away.

“Sorry guys, but rules are rules,” Blaine said as knelt on the floor and latched his case shut. Seeing their sad faces, he gave them a small smile, “I’ll try and stop in again on Friday, okay?”

The little girl who had favored Kurt earlier walked over to Blaine. Kurt watched as she reached up and gave a softer tug on his hair that before. Looking Blaine straight in the eye, she asked, “Can you bring your boyfriend?” Hand still grasping Blaine’s hair, she turned and looked at Kurt, who was blushing at being called Blaine’s boyfriend. “You read stories real good, so you can come too.”

Kurt crossed over to the girl and crouched down next to her. “Thank you, my dear. I’ll try and come Friday too.” He reached his arms out toward her. “May I have a hug, please?” She immediately let go of Blaine’s hair and flung herself into Kurt’s arms, almost knocking him over.

After saying multiple goodbyes to the kids, Blaine grabbed his guitar case in one hand and reached his other out for Kurt to take. The younger boy slotted his fingers between Blaine’s as if they had been doing that for years and they walked back down the hall and passed the front desk. With a smile to Sally and a wholehearted promise to return Friday, the boys walked out of the shelter.

It was only nearing four, but Blaine asked Kurt if he was hungry and wouldn’t mind joining him for an early dinner. Kurt agreed, glad they would have time to sit and talk as there was still so much he wanted to know about this seemingly wonderful man who was holding his hand.

Blaine was glad that Kurt was excited for the Thai place he tried to look up on his phone earlier. They settled into a booth in a far corner, giving Blaine somewhere to keep his guitar case out of the way from other patrons, as well as some privacy so they could talk.

Kurt looked around at the interior, trying to busy himself to keep from staring at Blaine, but his eyes always found their way back to this familiar stranger. He couldn’t help but smile as Blaine repeatedly thanked the server who filled their water glasses and handed them menus. Handsome, great manners, the most adorable smile… Kurt was having a hard time believing that someone could actually be this good of a person.

They looked over their menus quickly, falling back on favorite dishes so they could spend more of their time talking instead of hemming and hawing over what they should order. Once the server came back and they told her what they wanted, the boys turned to each other and grinned. They finally had a few moments to themselves to just enjoy each other’s company. Time was ticking and they only had a little over two days until Blaine was on a flight back to New York City.

Blaine gave a quick scan around the room, and finding that no one was paying attention to them, he put a hand palm-up on the table as an invitation for Kurt. The younger boy immediately placed his hand over Blaine’s and the two of them closed their fingers on each other, grateful for the contact.

“You were so cute at the shelter today,” Kurt said with an admiring smile. “I’ve never seen a group of kids giggle so hard at a grownup singing a song about socks.” He chuckled at the recent memory before assuming a more curious tone. “Do you have a lot of experience doing that kind of thing?”

Blaine shrugged, “I mean, I used to babysit when I was in middle school and high school for the kids down the street. I like kids. They have this innocence and sense of joy that is so in the moment.” His lips twisted up into a small smile. “Those kids at the shelter are just so brave. It was just nice to see them laughing, you know?”

Kurt nodded his head in agreement. For as rough as he had it sometimes with bullies and loneliness at school, he had a family who loved him and a dad and stepmother with solid jobs. He couldn’t imagine living in a shelter and wondered why Blaine was so keen to spend so much time there this week when knew he wasn’t going to be around long. If he didn’t ask now, he knew he never would, so Kurt ran his thumb over Blaine’s knuckles and summoned some courage to ask what had been on his mind since the day before. “Blaine?”

“Mmm?”

Kurt took a deep breath. “You don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but I was wondering… why did you do… that?”

“Do what?”

Cheeks threatening to flush pink, Kurt tried to put it delicately. “The homeless shelter?” Blaine gave him a confused look, not entirely sure where Kurt was going with his question. “I mean, you’re only here for a week, right?” Blaine nodded. “And you don’t have any ties to this city except for your brother?” Blaine nodded again. “So why did you spend time with those kids. Why did you give them money? I see other students playing in the park and they pocket their money or use it for weed or at the bar. I just…” Kurt sighed, “I just want to know who you are. What makes you tick. Why you’re so… so… you.” He was looking at the table by this point, too embarrassed to look Blaine in the eye. He was afraid Blaine would be able to see how far he was falling and they hadn’t even known each other two days.

Blaine smiled as he shook his head. “Kurt,” he started, “you are making me out to be someone special when really,” he chuckled, “when really it was the first place I came upon the other day when I was walking.” He waited for Kurt to look up at him before he continued. “To tell you the truth, that afternoon after you ran off to class, I was sitting under a tree and just playing my guitar. Before I knew it, a few people had tossed some money into my case. I was honestly just playing for fun to clear my mind, but it was too late. So, that day after I packed up, I walked around town, trying to find somewhere to give the money to and the shelter was the first place I saw. But, when I went in there, and heard that piano, I knew I was in the right place.”

“But why?” Kurt still couldn’t fathom why someone in their twenties would just give away money. He knew he was barely making it by, even with the scholarships he received. He wasn’t broke, and knew his dad could help him out in a bind, but Kurt took any spare money he earned and kept it for a rainy day. But Blaine – Blaine just gave it away, and that made Kurt’s heart ache for him even more.

Blaine blushed. He never had money troubles growing up, as his parents were rich like their parents before them. “I didn’t need the money, Kurt. Between my trust fund and my job, I just… I didn’t need it.” He looked at Kurt with a pleading look in his eyes, almost apologetic for being financially stable at such a young age.

Kurt nodded. He understood Blaine was just trying to do something good with money that was never supposed to be his. He did earn it, but accidentally. In that moment, Kurt admired the other boy so much. He squeezed Blaine’s hand and wordlessly, they agreed to change the topic.

Blaine asked Kurt how his classes were going and Kurt was happy to oblige the lighter topic. He recapped his Calculus test from earlier, making Blaine laugh with an exaggerated tale of the convoluted word problems his teacher insists are awesome, but really just confuse everyone further.

Their food was delivered when Kurt was starting to talk about his acting class. They reluctantly let go of each other’s hand, but smiled and thanked their server. The two exchanged a smitten look at each other before taking a bite of their dishes, each pleased with what they ordered.

“So, acting?” Blaine prompted, wondering if Kurt would say anything about his brother.

Kurt covered his mouth as he swallowed his bite of rice and took a sip of water. “It’s probably my favorite class of the semester. My teacher, Mr. Anderson, is amazing. He used to be in these, like, credit card commercials. And just by looking at him, you’d think he’d be kinda douchey, but he’s so not.” Kurt took another forkful of rice and chewed thoughtfully before elaborating. “He’s really patient with us, and always telling us to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones. His class is really intense, but it’s completely worth it.”

Blaine smiled widely; glad his brother was making a positive impact on his students. He knew Coop was a great teacher even though he often teased his older brother on some of the methods he used. “That’s really amazing, Kurt. I’m so glad you love what you’re doing.”

“Speaking of acting class,” Kurt said before leaning over and digging around in his satchel for his wallet. Blaine watched the other boy set his wallet on the table and then look up at him with expectant eyes. “You asked yesterday if I was free tomorrow night and I said I wasn’t because I had to see my acting teacher’s brother’s piano concert.” Kurt shook his head, knowing full well he had just rambled a lot of information at Blaine. “Anyway,” Kurt picked up his wallet and pulled out a ticket. “I was wondering if you’d like to come with me?”

Triangular eyebrows rose slowly as Kurt nervously slid a ticket toward Blaine. His own name stared back at him, daring him to say something significant. “Um… I can’t.”