True love. Kurt has been thinking about it a lot since his chat with Rachel. He's always believed in love, it's the closest thing to a higher power that he thinks exists. But true love, he never really can figure out where that fits into the equation. How it differs from regular love, what made it better. After some time he determines that only one thing matters; all love is true love. People try to make their love seem better by saying its "true" but love is already the most powerful thing in the world. There's no way to one-up it.

But what even is love? Love isn't obsession, infatuation, lust, although they are often mistaken for it. Love is being able to be completely honest. Love is feeling safe in their arms. Love is saying "I want what's best for you" and actually meaning it. Even if what's best for them interferes with what's best for you.

After Kurt figures this all out he realizes that no, he is not in love with Blaine Anderson. Not yet, anyway. He thinks he could be though, and that it won't take very much more. But for now, Kurt doesn't know him well enough. There are things he is hiding and until Kurt knows what they are, or at least why they are being hidden, he can't be sure of anything. He has to be able to completely trust Blaine and that's something he just can't do yet.

&&&&&

About a week before Halloween, Blaine asks Kurt if he wants to help him babysit his neighbors. Blaine doesn't actually need any help, but the kids go to bed early so the parents encourage Blaine to have someone over to keep him company. Kurt has only gone a couple of times before but he really likes going. The family has a comfy couch and lots of movies but, more importantly, it gives Blaine and him time to just talk.

After Kurt found out that Blaine hid from him the fact that he was being bullied, he realized just how good he is at hiding things. He doesn't like to talk about himself or his past and often steers to conversation away from it when Kurt brings it up. For example, he has never once mentioned his father. Kurt doesn't want to pry, but it's not good to keep all of your feeling pent up.

When he pulls up to the Crawley's house, Blaine's car is already there. He is just about to step onto their porch when Mr. and Mrs. Crawley coming bustling out the door with a haggard but relieved look on their faces. They smile at him and wish him good luck as they continue on their way.

Kurt won't lie. After helping Blaine out the first time, his set in stone plan to have two kids, a boy first and then a girl, wavered a bit. It was a lot more work than he imagined and that was just watching them for a few hours. His plan to have kids had always been a pretty abstract one, considering he had never really been around them before. After babysitting, he realized that he's definitely not ready to have kids for some time.

"Hey Kurt! We're in the basement!" Blaine calls as he hears Kurt walk in the front door.
Kurt toes of his shoes and heads downstairs, almost tripping on a matchbox car ramp that is in the middle of the stairway.

"Be careful!" the littlest boy (Kurt's pretty sure his name is Carson) says as he moves around it.

"Sorry," Blaine says with a chuckle. "They've been working on this all day and they're very proud of it."

Kurt hums and looks around the room, admittedly impressed by the intricate track the kids have set up. He spends the next hour watching Blaine play with them and refusing multiple offers to join in. He could have just come after the boys have already gone to bed but he likes seeing Blaine interact with them. It's adorable he way his face lights up when the cars crash together or when his wins the race. He's like a big kid.

Eventually it's their bedtime and they go up with minimal protesting. After Blaine takes them up and tucks them, he bounds down the stairs and plops down next to Kurt on the couch.

"Thanks for coming," he says with a grin. "It gets pretty lonely here without you."

"What are friends for?" Kurt says smiling.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" Blaine asks.

When Kurt nods, he goes over to the movie cabinet and begins rifling through them. After a moment, he turns to Kurt and says, "You choose. Anything particular you want to watch?"

Kurt thinks for a moment and then asks, "Do they have When Harry Met Sally?"

Blaine quirks his eyebrow at this and can't stop a smirk from appearing on his face.

"What?" Kurt asks defensively. "It's a classic."

"I'm just teasing," Blaine assures him, laughing a little as he puts the movie in.

On the way back to the couch, he grabs a blanket and drapes it over him and Kurt. They're sitting close, there's about a half inch in between their thighs and their feet are propped up on the foot rest, just barely touching. Kurt has an overwhelming urge to rest his head on Blaine's shoulder but he doesn't.
They sit quietly, not talking much, until about half way through the movie. Kurt turns to Blaine, takes a deep breath, and just comes out with it.

"Blaine, why don't you ever talk about your dad?"

Blaine visibly stiffens. He glances over at Kurt but quickly turns back to the TV and gives a half shrug.

"Is-is he dead?" Kurt asks quietly.

"No. Although I wouldn't know that except for the child support checks that come once a month," he mutters darkly.

"I don't mean to pry…" Kurt trails off trying to gauge Blaine's reaction. When none comes he continues "But I'm here. If you want to talk I mean."

He doesn't pause to movie but he does shift so he's half facing Kurt. "There's not much to tell. My dad left when I was a sophomore and hasn't been back since. It took my mom a while but she eventually realized she was better off without him. He sends child support checks which help, but they're not enough. Dalton was too expensive and that's part of the reason we moved out here, my mom didn't want me to go back to the school where those kids beat me up. And that's it."

Blaine rattles off the information so quickly and efficiently that it almost seems like it's rehearsed. He then turns back towards the movie and turns up the volume a bit, signaling that the conversation is over. Kurt frowns. He still has some questions, like why his dad left in the first place, but he decides those can wait.
It's a little bit awkward after that until the scene where Meg Ryan fakes the orgasm in the restaurant comes on. The scene itself makes them so uncomfortable that after it's over, the relief they feel makes the previous awkwardness disappear.

It's not too much later that Kurt feels his eyelids begin to droop. The next thing he knows, Blaine is gently shaking him awake and the Crawley's are walking into the room.

"Hey, Kurt, it's time to go," he says softly.

It's then that Kurt notices his head is on Blaine's shoulders and he hastens to sit up. He blushes slightly and wipes at his mouth, really hoping that he wasn't drooling.

"Oh well aren't you too just the cutest couple," Mrs. Crawley practically coos.

This quickly wakes Kurt up and he's stuttering about how they're just friends when Blaine calmly interrupts, "He's right. We're just friends."

"Sure," she says with a wink, obviously not believing them.

Even Blaine doesn't have a response to this so they just stand up and wait for her to write the check.

"Thanks boys. We'll be sure to call you next time we're going out."

They smile and agree to see them soon before slipping on their shoes and leaving.

"Sorry I fell asleep. I guess I didn't really make this any more fun for you," Kurt mumbles once they walk outside.

"Nonsense. Things are always better when you're around," Blaine says looking at Kurt with such intensity that he has to look away.

Before he can formulate a response Blaine is waving goodbye and walking towards his car. Kurt shakes his head and goes to his own car guessing that those golden eyes will once again be haunting his dreams.

&&&&&

It is three days before Halloween and Kurt is freaking out because he has yet to put together a costume. Usually he doesn't care too much, considering he stays at home and hands out candy. This year, though, Rachel's dads are out of town so she's throwing a party. Her party last year was fun even though the whole of the New Directions, apart from him and Finn, got roaring drunk. Kurt plans to enjoy the party sober again, because after his brief experience with alcohol sophomore year, he swore off the stuff for good.

Kurt is scouring the sales rack at Charlotte Russe and muttering about the state of the economy and what it has done to clothing prices when Rachel joins him.

"Come on Kurt, just be a cat. That way you can wear those new black skinny jeans that you got. They make your ass look great, and I know you're looking to impress a certain someone," Rachel says with a wink.

Kurt flushes but smiles nonetheless. His ass does look good in those jeans, and it was the precise reason he bought them. After a few more minutes of searching he gives up.

"Fine, even though it's incredibly clich� and an excuse girl's use to wear as little clothing as possible, I'll do it."

Rachel squeals in delight and tugs Kurt over to the other side of the room where the tight, black turtleneck is.

"Just wear this with the black jeans and you can borrow the cat ears and tail I have leftover from last year's production of the Arisitocats."

Kurt nods. They are heading over to the register when he asks, "Oh, did Blaine talk to you about bringing his friends to the Halloween party?"

"Yeah I told him of course they could come so they are. One's name is Jeff and the other I forget. Mitch? Nick maybe?"

"It's Nick," Kurt says.

"Right, yeah well I think we should try to set one of them up with Mercedes. I mean who wouldn't want to date a cute, preppy singer?"

"I don't know… it seems to me that she has had her eyes on Sam for a while," he responds.

Rachel's face lights up like a Christmas tree at this information and Kurt starts to regret telling her.

"But I don't know anything for sure so don't do anything drastic," Kurt says, backpedaling fast.

Rachel shoos away his concerns and says, "Of course, of course."

Kurt sighs and shakes his head but lets the topic drop as they walk out of the store. On the way home, Rachel talks nonstop about how much fun the party is going to be, and Kurt can't help but become a bit excited himself.

&&&&&

It's Halloween night, and Kurt is currently freaking out because Blaine and his friends will be here in less than half an hour. What if they hate him? What if they tell Blaine he should stop hanging out with him? The worry must show on Kurt's face because Mercedes walks over and tells him to calm down.

"It's going to be fine Kurt. Now lighten up, this is a party after all," she says.

Just then, Rachel bursts into her bedroom and asks Mercedes to braid her hair. She's going as a princess and her costume is a hideous bubblegum pink gown that reaches her feet. Also included is a cheesy wand with a star on top that she insists on carrying everywhere.

"I set out the bowl of candy on the front steps so trick-or-treaters won't bother us," Rachel informs them.

After Mercedes does Rachel's hair, she goes to the bathroom to put the finishing touches on her costume. She's being a diva which includes a sparkly gold dress accompanied by a black feather boa and a fake microphone headset. A little while earlier, Kurt was quite shocked to find out that Sam and Mercedes had a summer fling. They ended it because Sam was suppose to move away because his father got a job in Kentucky. However, at the last second, his dad found a job in town so they stayed. Recently, they've started hanging out again but nothing is official yet.

Rachel begins chattering about the party at this point. Kurt tunes her out as his thoughts drift back to Blaine. He wouldn't tell Kurt what he was dressing as because he wants it to be a surprise. So Kurt, in turn, didn't tell Blaine what his costume was either.

Eventually Rachel says they should move to the basement where the party will be held to wait for guests. They're not down there five minutes when the doorbell rings and Rachel goes to get it. Puck, Sam, and Finn come bounding down the stairs and Puck goes immediately to the liquor cabinet. He's dressed as a cop which Kurt finds ironic considering how often he complains about them. Sam has on a cowboy costume and in the two minutes since they've arrived, Puck has already made multiple Brokeback Mountain jokes. Kurt rolls his eyes and turns to talk with Rachel but she's busy chewing out Finn.

"Finn," she practically whines, "You're supposed to dress as something different than what you are. You play football so that's not even really a costume!"

Even though Finn has practically two feet on Rachel, he's cowering under her stare. The doorbell rings a second later, and Kurt goes up to answer it. Standing at the door are Santana, Brittney, and Sugar who are all very scantily dressed. Santana and Brittney are in candy striper uniforms and Sugar is wearing a red leotard with nothing else but pointed ears. Kurt assumes she's a devil.

Santana hums in approval after looking Kurt up and down and says, "If that costume doesn't make Anderson get his head out of his ass and into yours, I don't know what will."

Kurt blushes as Santana's words bring completely inappropriate, but not totally unwelcome, images to his mind. He doesn't grace her comment with an answer and instead ushers them downstairs. Within ten minutes, the entire Glee club minus Blaine has arrived and except for Kurt, Mercedes, and Sam, everyone is on their way to being drunk.

When the doorbell rings again Kurt hustles to answer it knowing it must be Blaine. He pauses once he gets to the front hallway, taking a moment to compose himself, before he opens the door. When he does he sees three firefighters standing on the doorstep, he blanches for a moment before Blaine takes off his helmet.

"Hi!" he says with what can only be described as puppy-like enthusiasm. His entire face is lit up with a grin and his hair is already starting to curl despite the gel.

As Kurt moves to let them in, Blaine seems to notice his costume for the first time. His eyes widen as they roam up and down Kurt's body. He swallows hard.

"And these are…" Kurt prompts looking at Jeff and Nick.

"Oh, right, yes, this is Jeff," Blaine says nodding to his left, "and this is Nick."

His flustered tone makes Kurt giggle and he's glad Rachel convinced him to wear this costume. Jeff and Nick take off their helmets too and he notices Nick is shorter with dark hair where as Jeff is a little gangly and has a mop of blond hair.

"And guys, this is Kurt," Blaine says.

"Ah...the infamous Kurt," Jeff says with a mischievous glint in his eye. "We've heard a lot about you."

"Only good things I hope," Kurt responds with a nervous laugh.

"Oh my gosh Kurt is so amazing! He's funny and nice and a great singer and fashionable and just everything he does is so wonderful!" Jeff says in a mocking, high-pitched tone.

"Shut up," Blaine says as he shoves Jeff.

Nick laughs and says, "Come on Blaine, we've never had anything to tease you about before. Well, besides the gap-attack last year."

Blaine flushes profusely at this statement, and Kurt makes a mental note to ask him about that later. Kurt leads the boys to the basement and when they enter, Blaine clears his throat to make an announcement.

"Everyone, these are my two friends Jeff and Nick."

The Glee club nods in acknowledgment and Jeff immediately runs over to the booze table. Nick sulks off after him grumbling about the woes of being the designated driver. Jeff comes back a minute later and hands a drink to Blaine before pulling Kurt's fake tail hard causing him to yelp in surprise. He laughs wildly before running off again to go talk with Puck.

"Sorry about that," Blaine says, "he can be kind of crazy."

Kurt raises an eyebrow. "Kind of?"

Blaine laughs at that. "By the way, I really like your costume."

Kurt practically preens at the compliment and subconsciously stands up straighter. "I like yours too. How did you get one that looks so authentic?"

"Nick's dad is an actual firefighter so he let us borrow a couple of the old suits they had."

"Very cool. So are you planning on drinking a lot tonight?" Kurt asks nodding at the drink in Blaine's hand.

Blaine laughs again and shakes his head. "Nah, what about you?"

"Definitely not. After a not so fun experience with alcohol sophomore year, I swore off the stuff at least until I'm in college."

Blaine opens his mouth the respond but suddenly Rachel is there and she's pulling Kurt away.

"Come sing with me!" she says while continuing to drag him towards the stage.

"Already Rachel? The party just started."

If Rachel hears him she pays no attention to it because she's already on stage and popping a CD into the karaoke machine.

"Fine," he resigns, "what are we singing?"

"4 minutes."

Kurt raises an eyebrow in surprise because this is an unusual song choice for Rachel but as a huge Madonna fan he is not complaining. The music starts and Kurt is instantly at ease even though most eyes are on them. Kurt starts off standing in one place, as he usually does, but by the end of the song he is really getting into it. He struts around the stage singing loudly and even does a few dance moves. When the song ends there are whoops from his friends and one catcall that he thinks came from Santana. Kurt searches the room and smirks when he sees Blaine leaning up against the back wall, his eyes as wide as saucers. He hands Rachel the microphone and hops off the stage to make his way over to Blaine.

"So how'd you like it?" Kurt asks feigning innocence.

Blaine gulps and stutters, "It-wow um, that was fantastic. Really just great-uh...singing I mean."

Kurt fights back a laugh at his response and Blaine excuses himself to go to the bathroom a moment later. Rachel and Mercedes had spent a good part of the afternoon telling Kurt that Blaine had a huge crush on him.

"You guys hangout all the time and he's always looking at you," Mercedes had said and Rachel agreed.

He wasn't convinced at the time but after tonight he's thinking they might be right. Blaine seems like the type of guy who isn't afraid to show his feeling and since Blaine's never made a move before Kurt assumed he didn't like him like that. Now he's not so sure but the question is why wouldn't Blaine just tell him?

He shakes his head of the thoughts and decides to revisit them later. The party continues on and only gets more rowdy the drunker people get. A very wasted Jeff and Puck, who seem to have really hit it off, actually get up on stage and sing Lucky by Jason Mraz. Kurt thinks he sees Nick videotaping it and laughs while thinking that is probably the most powerful blackmail ever. Rachel even gets Blaine to get up and sing a surprisingly good rendition of Don't You Want Me.

After the song Rachel gets up and announces that they're going to play spin the bottle so everyone goes over to one corner of the room. Kurt declines to play because the only person in the room he wants to kiss is Blaine and he doesn't want it to be a drunken kiss. Well, a drunken kiss on Blaine's part that is. About an hour ago, Blaine threw the idea of not getting drunk out the window and now he is positively smashed. The game ends after two rounds anyways because Rachel's spin lands on Puck and they proceed to make out in front of a very angry Finn.

"Get off my girlfriend!" Finn roars and pushes Puck away.

"Not my fault you can't keep her satisfied," Puck says as he saunters away to get another drink.

Blaine suddenly comes up behind Kurt and grabs his hand pulling him to the middle of the dance floor. Sometime during the last five minutes, Blaine took off his fireman coat because now he is in a sweat soaked wife-beater that leaves nothing to the imagination. Kurt can't help but let his eyes wander all over Blaine's chest and stomach.

"Come on let's dance!" Blaine shouts over the music.

Their dancing is crazy and sloppy but fun. They stay a reasonable distance away from each other, nothing like the raunchy dancing that is going on in the corner between Santana and Brittney which looks like it's on its way something Kurt really doesn't want to see. After a few more songs, Kurt and Blaine collapse on the coach covered in sweat and breathing hard. A very annoyed Nick comes over a few minutes later dragging Jeff, who only appears to be half conscious.

"Come on man, I can drop you off on our way," Nick says to Blaine.

"Wait you're not staying at Blaine's house?" Kurt asks.

"No, Jeff's grandmother lives not too far from here and she's out of town so we're going to crash there for the night. We have to get up really early tomorrow morning in order to get back to Westerville."

"I can just take him home. I live right down the street anyways."

Blaine, who hasn't said a word during this conversation, slings an arm around Kurt and slurs, "Really? You would do that for me? You're the best friend ever!"

"Thanks Kurt, you're the best," Nick says looking relieved that he only has to drag one drunk friend home.

"Come on," Kurt says once Nick and Jeff have cleared out, "let's get you home."

Blaine makes it to the car without too much help from Kurt and although he looks slightly green the entire ride, he doesn't throw up which is something Kurt is incredibly grateful for. They pull up in front of Blaine's house, and Kurt notices that all of the lights are off.

"Is anybody home?" he asks Blaine.

Blaine shakes his head and says, "My mom and sister are staying over at a friend's house."

Kurt helps him out of the car and Blaine leans a lot of his weight on him as they walk to the door. When they get there, Kurt tries to open the door but it's locked.

"Blaine, where's your key?"

Blaine shrugs in response and says something Kurt can't hear.

"What?"

"I don't know," he mumbles.

"Well what the hell are we going to do?" Kurt asks a little panicked.

When Blaine shrugs again Kurt huffs loudly before walking back to the car with him.

"Let's just go back to my house, you can crash there."

By the time they get to Kurt's house Blaine is almost completely out so Kurt has to lug him into the house virtually on his own.

"Shit!" Kurt hisses quietly when he bumps his knee on the side of the staircase.

They make it up the rest of the stairs relatively unharmed and when Kurt enters his room he practically shoves Blaine onto his bed. Blaine falls asleep literally the second his head hits the pillow so Kurt is left with a decision. On one hand his dad will be furious if he finds out they slept in the same bed together but on the other, if Kurt's not there when Blaine wakes up he's going to be completely confused. It's the prospect of having to walk all the way downstairs to the guest room in the basement that makes the decision for Kurt.

He lies down gingerly on the left side of the bed, as far away as possible from Blaine. Even though he's not doing anything but sleep, being in the same bed as Blaine without his permission somehow feels like he's taking advantage of him. Kurt doesn't think he'll be able to fall asleep with all his thoughts about Blaine racing around and the fact that he is less than a foot away and in the same bed, but the next thing he knows he's being woken up by the sounds of his dad making breakfast.