1: Orientation

"Are we all set?"

Kurt nodded as he looked at the for sale sign on his lawn. He turned to face his father and gave a small smile, motioning that he was ready to go. Even if he wasn't ready, it wasn't like he had much of a choice. It was better to go into this positively than with a negative outlook.

His friends offered to skip class so that they could see him go. It was a few weeks before school ended and everyone hated that Kurt would be leaving McKinley before they could all finish the school year together—before prom, and before nationals in New York, and before they could officially finish as juniors. Kurt hated the idea too, but he and his father were moving to California. Burt had gotten the opportunity of a lifetime, and they couldn't really pass it up. New York would always be there, but the chance for his dad to run a chain of auto shops with his business partner wouldn't just lie idly by and wait.

"We better go, dad."

Burt took another look at his and Elizabeth's first home, sighing as he nodded to his son. This was the place where his son took his first steps and sang his first words. He literally sang them. But it was time to move on.

"Alright, kiddo. Let's get out of here."

….

The ride to the airport had been spent with Kurt responding to text messages, already organizing a day when he'd come back and visit. Burt had been going on and on about how beautiful the neighborhood would be in their new city of Long Beach, and how many things there were to do. Kurt wasn't fond of the beach so that was place number one to avoid. When Burt started talking about how he wouldn't be able to wear flannel anymore because of the warm weather, Kurt smiled. At least something good was coming out of this move.

So this is it. You really don't want to try and see where we go from here? –Chandler

Kurt frowned at the message as the taxi pulled up at the airport. Burt got out first and Kurt followed, going to help with the bags. Burt noticed his son's tense demeanor as he grabbed the last of their things, Kurt slamming the trunk door closed behind him.

"Thinking about Chandler, huh?"

Kurt smiled at him sadly, trying to take his mind off things. "He's not really happy with me right now."

Burt didn't want to hear that. He didn't know much about Kurt's boyfriend, or ex-boyfriend now, but he knew they liked one another. He couldn't help but feel a little guilty about the move, no matter how much it could benefit them in the future. "I'm sorry to rip you away from your relationships, Kurt. Your friends or him—"

"It happens, dad." Kurt led the way into the terminal, followed closely by his father. "Change happens, and I'm sure we'll be happy. I just wish it was a little easier."

….

For some reason, Kurt expected the first night in his new home to be hell. He spent the day unpacking boxes and trying to like his new room, which oddly enough actually happened. Sleep came pretty easy, probably because of the stress of the move. His father went out for pizzas around 6, despite Kurt telling him that he could easily whip up something a little less fattening, and they ate in the terribly plain looking dining room, discussing the trip and how much more there was to get done. Thankfully the new home came fully furnished, so there wasn't too much effort to go into it. At least not on Burt's behalf. Kurt hated the tacky furniture provided and intended to change everything. If he had to live here and be okay with it, he'd live there in style.

The next day, Kurt found himself hanging around the house while his father got situated with the shops. He'd never been so bored in his life, and while there were tons of times Kurt felt alone, this was definitely up there in the top 5. He knew no one in Long Beach; all his friends were in classes in a different state, probably rehearsing for Nationals, and here he was on a dull gray argyle sofa staring at a blank television. He couldn't even watch it until the cable company came two days later.

After a few cat naps and a couple hours of listening to music nonstop, Kurt heard his father announce he was home. He got out of bed and traipsed down the steps, smiling softly at the man in an incredibly old t-shirt and denim shorts.

"Hey, dad. How was your day?"

"Long," Burt smiled, "long but productive. Hey, do you remember my old friend Donald Kinsella? Used to be a good friend of mine back in Lima. Babysat you a couple times."

Kurt nodded, dropping his foot onto the bottom step. "I remember."

"He's our next door neighbor! Small world, huh?"

Kurt smiled, all before it turned into a yawn. He couldn't believe he was tired after spending all day sleeping on and off. "That's nice. Am I gonna get the whole 'oh, he's gotten so big!' speech all old people give?"

Burt gave his son a dry smile. "I've said that before."

"That says a lot, dad." Kurt smiled when his father gave him that firm 'Burt Hummel stare', but the man only pretended not to hear that. "What did you do all day, anyway?"

Kurt rolled his eyes, stepping into the living room. "What is there to do in a town where you only know your father?"

"Let's go to your new job and find out." Burt jingled his keys and headed for the door. He ignored the 20 questions of his hesitant son behind him and headed straight for the vehicle. Kurt huffed and followed behind his old man, hoping to everything that Burt was simply joking.

...

"Look how big he got! He's taller than me now!"

Burt smirked at Kurt, clapping him on the back. "They grow so fast, don't they?"

Kurt tuned out of the conversation to look around the shop he was in. It was called 'Odyssey Sports' and there was absolutely nothing here that appealed to him. The front of the store had roller blades on one side and skateboards on the other. Towards the back were a variety of bikes... hundreds of bikes. Kurt shook his head. His father had to be joking when he said he'd be working here.

Kurt smiled as Donald leant in for a hug and he reciprocated, sharing the small talk that was expected of him: he was doing well in school and would be a senior starting August since that's when school began here and yadda-yadda. After a moment, Donald turned to Burt and they bought up another conversation, busy running their mouths. Kurt strolled through the store, looking at the skater gear; t-shirts and hats, Nike Dunks and G-Shocks. He went over to the protective wear and there were so many different brands of helmets and knee pads it was ridiculous. Kurt tuned back in to his father's conversation and heard the words that sealed his fate.

"I don't want him wasting the summer in the house. This could be an opportunity to get to know some people, you know?"

Donald nodded. "Definitely, Burt. He'll be my repair man when I need one, but for now I kind of need someone to float around out here until I'm finished promoting and setting up for all the tournaments. Believe it or not, the BMX competitions draw a lot of tourists."

Him who?

"I'm sorry," Kurt interrupted, walking a little closer to both men near the front of the store, "I'm seriously going to be working here? Me?"

Donald smiled and Burt gave a guilty grin. "Well, yes." his dad said, "it'll give you something to do. And your back to school clothes and supplies won't pay for themselves come August."

Kurt's mouth was hanging open and he closed it quickly. "I appreciate the sentiment dad, but do you think here is the place for me? I'm not athletic and I don't bike ride or skateboard or wear these types of clothes..." he gestured around, not fond of this idea at all.

"You'll only be out here for a couple weeks at best," Donald told him with a pleading smile, pushing up his glasses and ruffling dark curly hair. "Your dad said you're good with repairs so I intend for you to do that in the back when I return from promoting for the games. People constantly want their dirt bikes, motorcycles, or regular bikes worked on and the demand is high around this season. But in the meantime, I'll have you work out here and get to know the other employees."

Kurt looked like he was about to object but Burt quickly interrupted him. "We appreciate it so much, Don. Kurt will be here whenever you want him to start."

"Tomorrow's good."

Kurt's mouth dropped open again and Burt grinned, "Perfect."

...

"How's training going?"

Blaine grabbed an apple off the table and plopped down next to his uncle on the couch. "We start Thursday. I need a new bike."

Don kicked his nephew's legs away from his coffee table. "Well I would donate you one, but your grades aren't good enough to have me be charitable to you, I hear."

Blaine shrugged, folding his legs and taking a huge bite from the apple. His mother told everyone about his report card, apparently. All that mattered was he finished his junior year and had enough credits to be a senior, so none of it was a big deal. After chewing for a while he finally responded to his uncle. "I've got more than enough money for a new one. You do know I've been kicking ass at every competition for the past 18 months, right?"

"Don't get cocky, Blaine."

"I can afford to at this point," Blaine said honestly. He then smirked and turned to face his uncle, apple flailing about in his hand. "I know it pains you that your nephew's legacy is more prominent than yours but-"

"Your big head is going to cause you to fall right off your bike, Blaine."

The younger man laughed and looked away, but Don continued. "Humility is not something you want to be taught to have. You should humble yourself on your own."

"I know, unc."

Blaine looked over at Don when he didn't respond and nodded obviously, smiling at the look the man gave him. "I'm serious, unc, I know."

Donald shook his head at his nephew and glanced at his watch. "Go home. Your mom worries about you."

...

"How was your first day, kiddo?"

Kurt sat down at the dinner table across from his father, a soft smile on his face. "Don only made me do a couple hours. This guy... Steve… he trained me on register. I did that and folded clothes, which I don't mind, and that was it."

Burt put some takeout on his son's plate. "So you liked it?"

"Not really."

Burt laughed and Kurt smiled as well, shrugging at his dad. "It's just not for me, dad. If I go to a computer store, I want someone who knows something about technology working there in case I had a question. If I got to a sports shop, I expect the same." Kurt took a bite of his lo mein and chewed cautiously. "If I went into Odyssey and needed help, and then I showed up to help me, I wouldn't be too pleased."

Burt raised an eyebrow and laughed. "That was the strangest thing I've ever heard, Kurt,"

"You know what I mean dad."

Burt smiled and poured both of them something to drink. "Stick it out for the couple weeks. After that you'll be in the back fixing engines and tightening chains. You like getting your hands dirty from time to time. It'll be good for you; take your mind off of the people you miss in Ohio for a few hours."

Kurt nodded. He could agree with that much. "Don pays good. That's the only reason I'm sticking around."

Burt smirked at his son. "You're so much like your mother, Kurt."

...

Where are you? We're about to hit the skate park –J

"And don't think that you're just going to ride around all day do nothing, Blaine Alexander. You still do have obligations to tend to at home and I expect them to be done when I get in from work."

Buying a new bike now, bro. See you soon. –B

"Yes, mom. Obligations. Yeah."

His mother scowled at him out the side of her eyes, signaling right and pulling over. "I'm not playing with you young man. If you value these tournaments—"

"Please don't bring that into this mom."

"If you value them," she continued sternly, "you will make sure that everything I've asked you to do around the house is done. Otherwise you will not be participating in any biking competitions."

Blaine sighed, staring out the passenger window. "I said okay."

The brunette woman smiled, shaking her head at her youngest son. "I'm going to work. See you later."

Blaine leant over to kiss her cheek before getting out of the vehicle. The sun was especially hot on this first day of June. Luckily, Blaine wore a blue and white striped tank top and navy cargo shorts to stay cool. He hopped on the curb in front of his uncle's sporting goods store before happily pushing the door open. His eyes found her right away and he wasted no time walking over to make his presence known.

...

Oh great. Kurt frowned as he looked up and saw another customer entering the store. He didn't mind his job when the little shop was empty and he had spare time to sketch outfit designs or browse through fashion blogs, but when people actually came in and wanted help, that's when the job was less than desirable. A guy maybe his age walked in with bouncy curls and a mischievous smile, but luckily he went right over to Kurt's coworker Farrah who stood at one of the front registers. Kurt sighed in relief and looked back down at his sketchpad.

Blaine grinned when he laid eyes on the girl he'd been trying to take on a date for the past few months. Farrah had always played hard to get, at least that's the way he saw it. She claimed to be uninterested completely but Blaine knew he was irresistible. He placed his hands on the counter in front of her and waited expectantly for the brunette to give him her full attention.

"Good afternoon, Blaine," Farrah drawled out tiredly, glancing back down at her magazine, "how are you today?"

"Much better now, beautiful."

"How can I help you?"

Blaine grinned as he stepped back to put his hands in the pockets of his shorts. This had to be the most difficult girl he'd ever met, and Blaine knew his mother to be very difficult. "I came for a new bike. The team is hounding me about practicing for the tournament and—"

The sound of a phone going off behind them made Blaine turn around. His thought was long forgotten once he laid eyes on a guy he'd never seen before—tall, coiffed, blue eyes and pale skin. The boy mumbled beneath his breath before digging around on the counter for his phone. It was only a second or two before he finally answered.

"I can't talk now Rach, I'm at work— yes I have a job—what? No… just, we'll—yes Rachel we'll talk later."

"Who's the new guy?" Blaine questioned, still staring across the shop. The boy shared a few more words before tiredly hanging up the phone and possibly putting it on vibrate.

Farrah glanced over to the new employee and shrugged. "Some guy your uncle hired to give him a little relief out here on the floor. I think he did it as a favor to the guy's dad because he has no clue what the hell he's doing." She kept her voice low, thankfully, but didn't do anything to hide her disapproval of her coworker. "If there happens to be a rush where a bunch of customers come in, it would still be me handling everything. I know he's new but Don is wasting money paying this guy. I might as well be in here alone."

Blaine smiled, shaking his head at Farrah's words. "Did you even try and help him?"

The girl scoffed, pulling black hair away from green eyes and going back to her magazine. "He'll figure it out."

Blaine rolled his eyes at that. If his uncle decided to hire someone, he must've had faith in that person. With a little help it could work out, but someone had to be willing to help him. He turned to face him again and saw the boy busy with a paper and pencil. He seemed harmless enough. Before walking off, Blaine took another glance at Farrah who wasn't paying him any attention. He smirked at the girl's attitude and turned away.

Kurt had just started a new sketch. The last one hadn't ended the way he wanted it to and was now crumpled up in the garbage can in front of the back office. At least this one showed promise.

As Kurt led the pencil over the crew neck of the design he was trying to create, he heard someone approaching his counter. The blue eyed teen looked up and found the customer from earlier giving him a soft smile, ruffling his wild hair in the process.

"Hey."

Great. A customer.

Kurt nodded a hello, putting his pencil down. "Hi." he gave a show smile and prayed that this wouldn't take too much time. "Can I help you?"

"Sure," the boy replied, staring down at Kurt's sketch book. "I don't mean to interrupt… but I need a new bike."

Kurt looked the boy in the eyes skeptically before looking back over to Farah. Why didn't she help him if they were just talking? "I'm not as good at selling bikes as she is—"

"How will you get good at selling bikes unless you sell one?"

Kurt raised an eyebrow at this guy's need to interrupt him, but gestured over to the BMX bikes on the wall. He did have a point, Kurt thought. "Do you have a specific brand in mind?"

Blaine shrugged, leaning on the counter. Kurt watched as the guy smiled up at him. He seemed charming. "Which brands do you have?"

"Well," Kurt looked away and over at the wall. There were hundred on display and he sighed before beginning. "There's—"

"Without looking," he demanded, giving a strict look. Kurt's mouth remained in an 'o' shape before he closed it and returned the look to his customer.

"Are you one of those secret shoppers that turn out to be my supervisor or…?"

He watched the tanned teen smile and shake his head no. "I promise I'm not. So. Which brands do you sell here?"

Kurt took a deep breath and tried to remember the ones he saw. "Um, Eastern Bikes, Grenade…"

Blaine nodded, "Mhm, continue."

Kurt glanced out the side of his eyes to sneak a peek but the guy quickly caught him.

"No looking."

"Oh, I don't know!" Kurt picked his pencil up and frowned, wanting to go back to his drawing. "I just started yesterday and that shift was only a couple hours…"

Blaine stood up straight and smiled, glancing around the store he spent many days and nights growing up in as a kid. "Well do you bike? Skateboard? Waterski? Anything?"

Farrah snorted from where she stood and Kurt glared at her. Blaine waited patiently for an answer, urging Kurt to give him one. The boy only shook his head no.

"Do I look like I do any of that stuff, honestly?"

Blaine glanced over his body and saw an outfit that had to be straight out of a fashion magazine; a pale blue polo made of some fancy material that Blaine probably couldn't pronounce, and from what he could see those mustard jeans were tight as hell. The boy's hair was perfect, not one out of place, and he looked way too delicate to engage in any rough sports. Still, he said what was on his mind. "You don't have to look like you do something to do it. That's a little judgmental, don't you think?"

"You look like you do." Kurt glanced down at the boy's DC sneakers and gave him a look. Blaine gave a light laugh and nodded.

"Touché."

Kurt smiled and took another look up at the bikes. "It'd be a lot easier if you point at what you want and let me go get it for you."

His customer disagreed. "But then you'll miss out on the amazingly informative orientation I'm about to give you."

"I'm perfectly okay with that," Kurt responded seriously, still twirling the pencil in his hand. If there needed to be an orientation, Don would give him one.

He wasn't prepared for his customer to take the pencil from him and place it on the counter, or to grab his hand and pull him out into the open, but that's just what his customer did.

Kurt stumbled from behind his counter and groaned as the stranger had them stand right in front of the long wall, donned with tons and tons of bikes. As a new customer walked in, Blaine began his 'orientation'.

"Okay. This whole area of bikes," he gestured from a divider on the wall to the far end of the store, "would be the best bikes for BMX racing and stunts. As far as brand names go, this brand is the best in my opinion."

Kurt followed the boy's finger to a red and black bike that was labeled 'Colony'. He looked at that specific one compared to the others and didn't see much of a difference. "Why do you think that?"

Blaine smiled and turned to look at the new employee. "It's all in the durability and life of the bike. You know, they have to be able to withstand a lot of shit." Kurt smiled, nodding his agreement as Blaine continued, "My uncle Don, who you happen to work for, had his first Colony Descendant when he was 13. He still has it and it still can get the job done… well with a little maintenance and all. I would put a new chain on and change the tires but he refuses to let me touch it."

Kurt smiled and looked away. He didn't think he'd be too interested in biking or anything of the sort, but this guy made learning about something he couldn't care less about a little tolerable. It helped that he had a gorgeous smile, otherwise Kurt would be confessing that he honestly didn't give two shits.

"So I'm guessing you want a colony? Should I go get you that one?"

"Why are you trying to rush me out of here? Is whatever you're drawing more entertaining than talking to me?" Blaine mocked offense, crossing his arms and resting his weight on one leg. Kurt smiled and rolled his eyes.

"I'm not trying to rush you out... it's just that this orientation is boring."

"Boring? It just started," Blaine told him in disbelief.

Kurt smiled, walking away. "I have to take a customer."

He walked away and over to the counter where a kid and his father waited to be rang up. Farrah had been helping someone choose a surfboard, so Kurt had to go. Blaine watched as Kurt smiled and greeted the two.

"I'm gonna fail you." Blaine announced.

The coiffed teen waved him off, engaging in conversation with the little boy. It was odd how easily he could make a sale on protective gear, convincing the father to add knee pads and cool reflectors that were a glow in the dark color, but when it came to selling the actual bike the boy wanted nothing to do with it.

You're late, Blainers. Hurry it up. We need to start! -P

After a minute or two, Kurt had handed his customers their receipt and thanked them for shopping. He smiled as they left, and once more it was only him, Don's nephew, and Farrah. Don's nephew was looking at him expectantly, rubbing at his shoulder and giving a little smirk, but Kurt made sure to ignore him.

"C'mere."

Kurt shook his head no, looking down at his sketch pad. "No."

He continued to smirk, finally moving to reply to that message on his phone. "Please?"

I said I'll be there soon. -B

Kurt sighed, thinking about it carefully. "Are you going to try and teach me things?"

"Yes."

Kurt rolled his eyes, but eventually gave in. He walked over to where the boy stood and leant against the glass display of sports watches in the center of the floor, whispering to himself about how annoying customers were. Blaine smiled as he joined him, staring up at the wall again.

"I'm not annoying. Where are you from?"

"Ohio."

Blaine nodded. "What were you into in Ohio?"

Kurt thought about it for a minute. "The same thing I'm into here I guess. Theater, clothes, music."

"I see you have no problem selling accessories."

The boy giggled a bit and Blaine smiled at the noise. "I was born to accessorize, honestly."

Blaine nodded his understanding. "Ok. So think of the bike as the core of the outfit. It's the most important part. Helmets and pads— all that other shit only makes the sale better, just like a scarf or jewelry can make the outfit better."

Kurt turned to face the boy next to him. "You're speaking my language."

He smiled when his customers did, and watched the boy motion to something. "I want that one."

Kurt's eyes went wide when he looked up and saw the bike, licking his dry lips. "Um, the almost $700 one?"

"Yeah," Blaine stood up straight and stretched, sighing when his phone's alert went off again. "I gotta get ready for competitions at the end of July. These bastards won't stop texting me," he mumbled the latter to himself and started to type again.

Kurt swallowed hard. He couldn't imagine spending seven hundred bucks on a bike. If he had that type of money he'd definitely be putting it towards a car. "You sure you don't want something a little cheaper? I'm almost positive they all do the same thing."

Blaine laughed and pocketed his phone. His muscles flexed as he reached up to push curls away from his face. "Well, I'm sure that Alexander McQueen clothing does the same thing Wal-Mart clothing does. Doesn't mean you'd buy Wal-Mart, now does it?"

Kurt shook his head. "Why do you have to be right all the time?"

Blaine shrugged. This guy's jeans were really tight, but he pretended not to notice. "I can't help it. Now," he looked up at his future bike and bit his lip, "what color should I get?"

Kurt went to check the label and read them off. "It comes in all black, blue and white, and hunter green." He looked back at Blaine and hummed, "I'd go green if I were you."

Blaine caught eyes with the unique shade of blue-green pools across from as he looked at the employee again. "Hm. That could work. No purple?"

"Eww…" Kurt turned back and shook his head adamantly. "No."

Blaine shrugged. "I like purple."

Kurt gave him a look and eventually Blaine nodded. "Fine. I'll go with green then."

Farrah watched as Kurt gave a satisfied look at his customer's cooperation. "Great. So should I go get it from the back? This is definitely the one right?"

"Definitely. You go do that and I'll go get a new helmet."

Kurt nodded and began to walk away. "If you get a purple one I swear I will not ring you up."

Don's nephew laughed and walked past the t-shirts, over to protective gear. Farrah looked at him curiously, waiting for Kurt to disappear before she spoke.

"What was that about?"

Blaine glanced over at her, mirroring the confused look. "What?"

She smiled obviously at how dumb he was playing. "Really, Blaine? You know he's like… flaming gay, right? Entertaining him probably won't be the best idea. He'll think you like him…"

Blaine picked out an all-black helmet and shrugged, clearly not understanding the big deal. "I do like him. He seems cool to me."

Farrah smirked and looked back down at her magazine. "OK, Blaine. You say that now, but when he takes your kindness for you being in love with him or something, don't be surprised when I say 'I told you so'."

Blaine tried his helmet on and walked over to the mirror, giving a cheeky smile at his reflection. Her ignorant words were long forgotten as he observed himself. "I'm so fucking hot."

Farrah rolled her eyes, stepping from behind the counter to stretch her legs. She started to organize a few snapback caps just to give herself something to do.

Blaine peeked past him through the mirror and smiled at the short shorts the girl wore. He took the helmet off and turned around, walking over to where she stood, wavy black hair going down her back and an annoyed expression taking over her tanned face.

"You wanna go out tonight?"

Kurt came back out with the bicycle and set it up in front of his register. He saw Farrah with the customer and smiled, knowing exactly what he was trying to accomplish. He wasn't the first guy to try it.

"I have plans," she told him, focusing on what she was doing. Blaine sighed and dropped his head, and Kurt smiled at the two of them before returning to his sketching in the meantime.

"Plans with another guy?"

"With my friends."

"Hm," Blaine put the helmet back on and forced his hands into his pockets, "so when can I take you out?"

Farrah turned to face him with a smile, biting her lip playfully and placing her fingers on Blaine's chest. He returned a sexy smile... all until he heard her response.

"You can take me out when you stop flirting with every girl you see."

With that, she walked back over to her station and returned to her magazine. Kurt shook his head at the two of them, continuing the sketch of his shirt.

After thinking of a retort and deciding it wasn't even worth it, Blaine turned to notice Kurt was back with his new bike. He cheered and walked back over, itching to take it to the skate park.

"So," Blaine pointed at the helmet on his head with a smile, "do you approve?"

Kurt observed the helmet carefully and gave a nod. "You can't really go wrong with all black, I suppose. I mean it's no purple but—"

"Don't joke on my purple." Blaine said with a smile, taking the helmet off so that Kurt could scan it. "So what's the damage?"

"$778.51," Kurt handed the helmet back and leant on the counter, "which according to you is absolutely worth it. I hope you're actually good at this whole biking thing…"

Blaine pulled a wad of cash out his wallet and began to count. "I'm the best around here." He stopped at the eighth hundred dollar bill and handed them over to a surprised Kurt who skeptically accepted it.

"You seriously walk around with this much cash on you?"

"I came straight here," Blaine told him, "and like I said, I'm the best, so I win a lot of competitions. They pay in cash so what can I do?"

Kurt nodded, entering the total in the register. "That's pretty cool."

Blaine waited patiently as the employee counted a few bills and coins. He went to speak again but his phone ringing interrupted his train of thought. Blaine mumbled, pressing ignore on the call and looking back up to the guy.

"You're change is $21.49." Kurt told him, "Thanks for the boring lesson."

Blaine smiled, taking the money and stuffing it in his pocket. He tossed the helmet on top of his head and grabbed lazily for his bike's handles. "Thanks for your help. I'll be back to check up on your knowledge every now and again."

"Yeah ok," Kurt said with a smile of his own, reaching for his pencil. He quietly went back to his drawing and Blaine watched him for a while, looking down at the sketch and glancing back up at the artist. His phone began to ring again and Blaine huffed, turning to leave the store. Kurt glanced up at him exiting and smiled. He didn't really know the guy's name, but he sort of felt like he made his first friend in Long Beach.

"Bye Farrah."

Farrah gave the curly haired teen a disinterested wave. Blaine rolled his eyes at her and left. There was no way she could get upset with him talking to other girls when she basically treated him like he didn't exist.

Don walked out of the back yawning, stopping short next to Kurt. "Wanna call the Smith boy for me? Tell him his bike is ready."

Kurt nodded, dropping his pencil and reaching for the message pad. "Sure thing."

"Farrah, you can go to lunch."

"K." the girl grabbed her keys and wasted no time leaving the shop. Kurt felt a little easier without her there. Sometimes it felt like she really hated him.

….

"What in the fuck took you so long, Anderson?" Blaine's tall, lanky friend Peter slapped him upside the head when he finally rode up to the skate park. Blaine nudged his hand away and slapped everyone on his team five before adjusting his helmet. Peter continued after seeing how nonchalant about all of this his friend was. "You do know all the other teams spent all afternoon practicing, right? It's almost 5 now."

"I was busy," Blaine lead his bike over to a ramp as the rest of his friends followed him. There was Peter, his pain in the ass friend from school who happened to be decent at BMX. Not as good as Blaine, of course, but not many were. Peter's blue eyes were dull and his dark hair was stringy. He was about 6 feet tall and skinny, and his butt chin did nothing to make him appealing.

There was Nick, Blaine's right hand man. They had been best friends since 2nd grade and both grew up loving the sport of BMX biking—sharing posters and imitating their idols. They shared chewing gum a few times when they were 8, though neither would admit it, and once dated the same girl. That was against their knowledge though. For the most part, if you could find Nick Duval somewhere, you could find Blaine Anderson.

Jeff was a rambunctious blonde who was a killer on the skateboard. He had won so many competitions it was ridiculous, competing since he was a 11. He wasn't one for doing tricks on a bike but he was sure as hell entertaining to watch. Nobody could fall quite like Jeff could. "If you ditched us for a date Blaine, I just want you to know we forgive you."

Blaine smirked, sitting back on his bike. "I told you losers I needed a new bike. I went to my uncle's shop—"

"Farrah," they all said in unison, smiling between themselves knowingly. Blaine frowned when his other friend Justin added his two cents.

"Did she reject you again bro? You wasted our time because you were trying to talk to a girl who clearly has no problem saying 'no' to the mighty Blaine Anderson?"

Justin was one to talk. He was like a beach god, tall, dark, handsome. His blonde hair and blue eyes made girls, and women, swoon. There was no way he could call Blaine 'the mighty one' when no girl would say no to him if they were paid to. Despite all of this, Justin was one of the realest people he knew.

"I wasn't even talking to her for your information," Blaine half-lied and looked to Peter who gave an obnoxious scoff at his friend's words. "There's a new guy at the shop who has no idea what he's doing, so I walked him through my sale. He's from Ohio… a pretty cool guy."

The four friends exchanged a curious look. "There's a new guy in town?" Nick questioned.

"What's in Ohio?" Peter asked sarcastically, crossing his arms. "I don't even know where that is."

"You don't know how to tie your shoes, stupid," Justin quipped back, shoving his friend away. Peter stuck his middle finger up when the guys laughed. "Does he bike? We need to get him before Shane does." Justin added.

"Nope," Blaine shrugged, "he's like… into fashion and theater and stuff."

Nick quirked an eyebrow at this. "Really? Is he like…"

Blaine nodded, knowing what he was asking.

Peter smirked. "Maybe since Blaine can't get Farrah he settled for what he could have," he rode off before Blaine could punch him in the face, luckily for the dark haired boy. The rest laughed and Blaine rolled his eyes.

"What's his name?"

Blaine looked at Justin and realized he hadn't even gotten his name. "Wow. I didn't ask. We were so busy talking…"

"All of this is sweet, Blaine," Nick hopped onto his bike and headed towards the railings, "but we have training to do, bro. Hurry your ass up."

Jeff dropped his skateboard and went to follow, kick flipping on the way. Justin put his helmet back on and looked at his friend. "C'mon, Blainers. We have a killer 720 to land."

….

Kurt had got off work a little after 6, but had decided to spend a little time familiarizing himself with his new town. First he went downtown and prayed that he wouldn't get lost. His father didn't get off work until 10'ish and wouldn't be able to bail his new shop to go find him.

He tried a few shops. There was a Chanel boutique that was next to a Gucci outlet and Kurt thought he'd pass out when he discovered it. At least he knew where to go when he got his first paycheck.

Next, he took a walk past the beach and noted how beautiful the ocean was. People were surfing and sunbathing, playing volley ball or Frisbee. There were shirtless guys that Kurt found himself staring at until he almost walked into a cotton candy cart, but quickly regrouped.

Living here wouldn't be so bad after all.

Luckily, he didn't get lost. Kurt sat down at a table outside a restaurant near his job, ordering something to drink and calling Rachel back. The talk basically surrounded the glee club's quest for nationals and how much it sucked that Kurt couldn't be there. It also traveled to some Finn drama that Kurt rolled his eyes at. Nothing new there, really. When it had gotten dark, Kurt said goodbye and decided to head home. He did have a shift to get ready for the next day. After paying for the drink, Kurt got up and decided to cut through the park, a shortcut Don had told him about. He walked and texted, enjoying the cool breeze from the ocean on his skin.

….

"Tomorrow at 1, Blaine. Do not be late!"

"I'll be here when I get here, Petey."

Peter glared at his friend as Blaine said goodbye to all of them. They went off towards the beach going to hang out until midnight like they usually did. Unfortunately, he couldn't do that tonight. His mother would kill him if she got home later and those dishes were still in the sink.

She was such a killjoy.

Blaine rode his bike out of the park and out onto the boardwalk. He weaved in and out of traffic, saying hey to people that called out to him and smiling at the girls giving him flirtatious glances. He smirked as he rode past them and had a battle within himself not to turn the bike around. Dishes, he reminded himself.

Blaine's favorite part about the boardwalk was the railing that bordered the staircase leading down to the ground. He had pulled of so many tricks on that thing he could probably get some sort of recognition from Guinness. He stood up and pumped the pedals a little harder, preparing to grind down the railing and finish with a 360. His speed had increased gradually as people cleared the path for him, some even cheering the boy on. What he wasn't expecting was a shrill bark or the dog that darted out in front of his path.

Blaine cursed and cut sharp to his left to dodge the terrier, knowing that if he pumped his brakes he'd go flying off his bike. His only other choice was to go airborne and hope for the best.

The moment Blaine's bike left the boardwalk; he knew it wouldn't end well. Because of the lack of stability he had when he jumped into the air, his balance was completely off. He tried to adjust himself midair but ended up only turning his body half way before he made contact with the ground—his bike going the opposite direction.

Blaine yelped out in pain, clutching at his arm. He heard the dog's barking move further and further away and he cursed, wanting to sit up but wanting to stay still a little while longer. The longer he lay there, the more he realized that a lot more hurt than just his arm. But then he heard footsteps approaching and realized somebody was probably coming to help him. At least he hoped so.

"Oh my god! Are you okay?"

Blaine noticed the familiar voice and opened his eyes, smiling when he saw the same kid from earlier at the shop. "It's you."

Kurt smiled back, relieved that this kid wasn't dead. He nodded his head, confirming the words. "It's me. I'm sure you could've busted your ass this hard with a cheaper bike. McQueen is subject to fading in the wash, too, you know."

Blaine smiled shortly before reaching for his back. "Oh my god my ass."

Kurt looked over the boy and realized there was bleeding on his forearm and elbow. He frowned as he adjusted his bag. "If you don't make fun of me for carrying a first aid kit in my satchel, I'll help you clean this up."

The boy looked as if he was about to laugh and Kurt shrugged, preparing to walk away. Blaine caught himself in time and shook his head no, "Wait! No. Please help."

Kurt nodded, turning back with a smug look. "I thought so."

He threw his bag over his shoulder and held both hands out for the biker to take. Blaine winced as he let himself be pulled up, hobbling onto his feet as Kurt held him as steady as possible.

"Are you good?"

Blaine began to brush himself off with his good arm, frowning at the rip in his shorts. "My leg is a little bloody, too."

Kurt observed the damage and was thankful it wasn't too bad, like a gash or any dislocated body parts. He looked around and noticed seats stationed underneath a couple palm trees. "We should get you over to the benches."

Blaine agreed. He was in a bit of pain. "Can you get my bike for me?"

"Sure," he left Blaine to limp over to the benches himself as he went to get the abandoned bike a little bit behind them. For one thing, this kid had been right. They were durable at least.

After both sat down, Kurt opened the flap to his bag and pulled out a first aid kit, ignoring the snort of the hazel eyed teen he was with. He sanitized his hands and put the cap back on. Blaine held his arm out first after being instructed to, preparing for the sting that came along with the hydrogen peroxide making contact with his skin. It always made him complain.

"Ow."

"Be a big boy for a minute." Kurt continued to clean all the sand away from the scrape as the other boy made little hissing noises.

"You're mean."

"Am not."

Blaine looked at him for a while, observing the way his blue eyes got really keen when he focused on what he was doing. Blaine's eyes then trailed down to how gently he was being taken care of and he realized he was right. This kid was pretty cool. This kid...

"I don't know your name."

Kurt glanced up and found honey colored eyes staring at him expectantly. He smirked and began to open a pack of something or another. "Did you ask for it?"

Blaine smiled, shaking his head no. "What's your name?"

"Kurt," he said simply.

Blaine nodded. Kurt. It seemed simple enough, but somehow it fit. "Kurt what?"

"Just Kurt," the coiffed teen told him with a smile. He applied a bit of ointment and the boy started at the cool temperature of it.

"I'm not going to steal your identity or anything, I promise."

The response elicited a light chuckle. "Kurt Hummel."

Blaine smiled. "Ok Kurt Hummel."

"I prefer to go by just Kurt, though." He pulled out a couple gauze pads as Blaine watched what he was doing carefully.

"Ok just Kurt though."

The boy glared at him and Blaine smiled innocently, watching as Kurt taped the gauze in place. He then ripped off another piece of tape and placed it along the top of the layer. "Are you going to tell me your name?"

Blaine shrugged. "You wanna know it?"

"That'd be nice," Kurt answered. They both shared a glance as his boss's nephew smirked, watching Kurt prepare to clean gently at Blaine's elbow.

"Blaine Anderson." was the response he got. Kurt looked up just to make sure he wasn't getting some sort of alias, and found no trace of insincerity. Kurt nodded understanding.

"Nice to formally meet you, Blaine Anderson."

Blaine smiled. "You too, Kurt."

A while had passed and Blaine was quiet while the boy took care of him. He felt his phone vibrate and ignored it, knowing it was someone harassing him for some reason or another.

"Arm's all done." he padded the Band-Aid over it and Blaine put his leg onto Kurt's lap, whining that his boo-boos hurt. Kurt rolled his eyes and opened up a new soft cloth. "What happened anyway?" the Ohio native questioned.

Blaine sighed dramatically, causing Kurt to laugh as he began to clean the blood from his scrape. "Someone's dog tried to commit suicide. Threw itself in front of my path out of absolutely nowhere."

Kurt gave him an incredulous look, and only ended up shaking his head.

"I swerved hard so that I missed him."

"That was very selfless of you."

"I know. I'm an angel."

Kurt hummed, smirking at the boy with the golden eyes. He was truly something else. "Turn your leg a bit, there's a few cuts behind here." Blaine grumbled but did as was told. "Ouch!"

"At least nothing is broken. It could've been a lot worse."

Kurt cleaned the other cuts, putting all his trash in a pile on the bench next to him. Seagulls passed overhead, and a few people strolled by on their way to the boardwalk.

"I have experience falling," Blaine said after a moment. "I know how to fall so I don't hurt myself too bad. It really could've been worse like you said."

Kurt nodded to the boy reclining back on the bench, watching his surroundings. After a moment, Blaine shifted focus from the beach to the boy next to him.

"So why are you out so late?"

Kurt noticed it was a bit more darker now than it was when he found Blaine groaning on the ground. "I was looking around town and what not," he pulled out his ointment again, "trying to get familiar with places."

"You shouldn't do that alone." Blaine sounded a little concerned and Kurt gave him a questioning look.

"Well I haven't made any friends yet so I just showed myself around."

It was awkwardly silent and Kurt looked up, wondering why the usually talkative boy didn't respond. He saw Blaine mocking before a smirk crossed his countenance. "Well that hurt."

Kurt laughed and recanted. "Besides you, Blaine."

"Better had." They both caught eyes and smiled before Kurt looked away, his focus switching back to what he was doing. Blaine tried to readjust his body because his leg was going numb, but it only made him realize how bad his side really hurt. The guys were going to love to hear about this. "Anyway, I'll be your welcome party. Do you work tomorrow?"

Kurt nodded. "Don't remind me," he joked, "but I get off at 3."

"Ok," Blaine winced some more when the bandages made contact with his scrapes, "We can hang out a bit. I'll introduce you to my friends and show you around… our main hangouts are the park, the diner on Central, and the beach. Then—"

"I don't do beaches." Kurt gently pushed Blaine's leg off his lap, signaling that he was all done. Blaine eased it on the ground and sat back with a smirk, watching Kurt gather up the waste after putting away the first aid kit.

"You will now."

"Nope." Kurt was adamant. "I burn easily."

He smiled when Blaine sighed and shook his head. "You're so difficult, Kurt Hummel."

"You don't have this problem so you don't understand, Blaine Anderson."

"Whatever," he hobbled to his feet and tried to stretch a bit, "Just know that you're going to be on the beach a lot this summer. I suggest you lather up in whatever you need to lather up in."

Kurt rolled his eyes as he stood, looking for a trash bin. "Sure. You're all patched up Evil Knievel." Blaine laughed as Kurt made his way over to the bin beside them, emptying all their garbage inside.

"Thank you."

"You're very welcome."

Blaine pulled off his helmet and attached it to his bicycle, brushing sweaty curls out his face. He saw Kurt check his phone as he began to raise the kickstand. "Where are we heading?"

Kurt returned his phone to his pocket and made sure he had everything. "I need to get home. My dad would freak if he got in before me when I got off hours ago."

Blaine nodded. He got a few lectures in his day. "I'll walk with you."

Kurt smiled but shook his head no. "You don't have to. You should be trying to go home and ice your ass."

"Funny," Blaine smirked and started wheeling his bike away from the benches, Kurt following slowly beside him. "Where do you live?"

Kurt tried to remember his cross streets. "Between Alden and Canady… right next door to Don as a matter of fact."

"Really? Awesome," Blaine gave a wide smile as he turned right to see him, "I stay with my aunt and uncle on the weekend. We can be BFFs!"

Kurt laughed, looking out over the sunset. "You are very weird."

That was something Blaine didn't even bother to dispute. He shrugged and continued to walk… well hobble. This was a little weird; hanging out with a kid he didn't even know. Walking him home and wanting to get to know him. Offering to show him around. Most of Blaine's friend would find it suspicious if they knew, because for one, this kid was gay, but that was hardly on the hazel eyed teen's mind. He just really thought Kurt was cool, and that whole 'because-he's-gay-he's-gonna-flirt-with-you' thing Farrah was on about was completely stupid. Kurt was genuinely nice. "So tell me about yourself."

Kurt hummed, swaying as he walked slowly with Blaine. "What do you want to know?"

"Whatever you want to say," responded Blaine. They approached the sidewalk and began to walk the direction towards Kurt's place as the boy thought about what to say. Where to start, really.

"Well, I'm about to turn 17."

"When?"

"August 1st."

Blaine smiled. "Ha. I'm older. My birthday is in a few weeks."

Kurt shook his head at the words as Blaine stuck his tongue out at him. "A whole month older. Congratulations."

"It still counts."

Kurt ignored him with a smile. "Anyway, we relocated because my dad and his partner opened up a few businesses. Two repair shops in L.A and one out here."

"Awesome. I don't go to L.A nearly enough."

Kurt smiled. He couldn't wait to see the city. "And like I said earlier, I'm into theater and fashion. Don't laugh but I was in the glee club at my old school."

Blaine smiled. "Why would I laugh? My friends Nick and Jeff go to this performing arts school and they're really good. I would probably go if my grades weren't shit," he said, glancing over at Kurt. "But I wouldn't laugh at that."

Kurt looked over as well. "Pace High School of the Performing Arts? I have my audition there over the summer."

Blaine nodded. "That's the one. So are you any good?" he smiled when Kurt scoffed and nodded obviously.

"I'm damn near perfect, Blaine."

Blaine laughed, wheeling his bike along the path. "Ok. So… did you leave a boyfriend behind?"

Kurt nodded, the sour taste of what happened between him and Chandler still lingered in his mouth. He wasn't pleased with the way things ended. "I did."

Blaine bumped shoulders with Kurt as they crossed the quiet street. "You miss him?"

"Of course." Kurt shrugged, "I called things off though and he hated that idea. He thinks I should've been more open to long distance and all of that."

"But it's California to Ohio," Blaine said, "that's thousands of miles away."

"My point exactly."

Blaine hummed in agreement as they walked. It was silent for a while before he spoke again. "My first girlfriend moved away last year, and it was hard because I liked her a lot."

"Where'd she go?" Kurt felt a little better knowing that he had someone who maybe understood what he was feeling, though Blaine's experience in the matter probably wasn't as deep as Kurt would've liked.

"Not as far as you had to go. She's in Vegas with her grandmother. And when she told me she had to go it sucked, because we had just started doing sexual things and—"

Kurt snorted, covering his face, "TMI, maybe? Too much too soon… I've known you for like five hours—"

"And she had just given me my first blow job a few days before—"

"That's great, Blaine," Kurt cut in, trying not to laugh. Blaine smiled and nudged his shoulder. "I'll spare you the details."

"I appreciate it." the blue eyed boy mused, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Anyway, I wasn't into the whole distance thing either." Blaine shook his head as he recounted their conversations. "It's just way too much effort."

Kurt smiled at him knowingly. "You just knew there were girls here willing to blow you."

Blaine smirked. "Not only that… well yeah."

They both laughed and Kurt recognized from a house on the corner of the block that they were close to his own. They crossed another road and Blaine winced as he dragged his bike along.

"So you didn't even want to try with this guy?"

Kurt shook his head in the negative. "He wanted to… but…"

"But you knew there'd be hot shirtless guys here running around on the beach?"

Kurt blushed and looked away, praying he wouldn't stumble over his words. He'd been guilty of ogling a few earlier, but that wasn't his thought pattern. Blaine definitely noticed his pink cheeks and laughed as Kurt explained himself. "Um, no. I'm not as sex hungry as you appear to be. I just think it would be ridiculous for us to do."

"Liar."

Kurt looked over at Blaine and the boy returned a smug look of his own. "You're a teenager, Kurt. You're a guy."

"I'm aware of this, captain obvious," he linked both hands behind his back as they walked, "but I'd hate to feel like I'm holding him back, or that I'm being held back. It's hard to explain I guess, but I want him to feel free. Not tied down to a person across the country.

Blaine nodded. He could definitely understand that. Breaking up sucked, but it was easier than forcing something that probably wouldn't work. "I hear you."

The walk was quiet again, and Kurt laughed at how Blaine said 'ouch' on every step. Blaine rubbed his ass and frowned at his friend's giggles. "It's not funny."

"What's up with you and Farrah?" Kurt smiled when Blaine rolled his eyes.

The boy shook his head and spoke. "I've been trying to get with her for the longest. I'm about to give up."

Kurt smiled. "She'll turn around."

Blaine scoffed, "If you say so."

"I don't think she likes me too much, though."

"I don't know about that," Blaine told him, knowing that it wasn't true. "You're pretty cool."

Kurt nodded his agreement. "I'm very cool, Blaine."

"Don't push it."

He complained when Kurt nudged him in his injured arm and Kurt only did it again harder, laughing at Blaine's lame attempt to kick him. They walked past Blaine's uncle's place and over to Kurt's.

"Dad's truck isn't here yet so I'm not a dead man." Kurt leant against his fence and looked at his new friend. Blaine tiredly lifted his leg over his bike and sat down, frowning at the pain. "You sure you okay?"

"I no longer like dogs."

Kurt laughed, his cheeks tinting pink. "Don't blame the dog because you are horrible at this BMX riding stuff."

Blaine rolled his eyes dramatically and Kurt laughed, looking back at his place. He was about to announce he was going inside when his curly haired friend interrupted him.

"Give me your number."

Kurt's eyebrow went up drastically and he smiled, watching Blaine bite his lip as he waited. "Does that work on girls? 'Give me your number'?"

Blaine waved him off, shaking his head with a smug quip back. "Girls ask me for my number, Kurt. Get it straight."

"Yeah, okay," Kurt laughed, rolling his eyes away. "You're full of yourself."

Blaine stood up, resting the bike between his legs and pulling out his cell. "C'mon."

Kurt smirked but walked over to the older boy anyway. "Fine." He accepted the device and typed his number into the iPhone, complaining when his finger hit the wrong spot on the screen and he had to erase and do it again. "This is why BlackBerrys are better."

Blaine smiled, watching the boy as he tried to successfully type in his phone number. "You're insane for that statement."

"Yeah, yeah." he typed his name in and pressed save, handing the phone back. Blaine nodded and took it, gingerly placing it back in his pocket. "So, thanks for everything again."

Kurt smiled and motioned towards his house. "It was nothing. I'm going to go inside. See you around."

"We'll meet up after your shift tomorrow," Blaine said quickly. Kurt nodded as he walked away, smiling back at his new friend. "Sure. Goodnight."

Blaine gave a head nod and took off slowly, ignoring the pain as he began to pedal. Today had been pretty cool, despite the nasty tumble he took. It seemed like it had the potential to be a pretty good summer.