"Hello designers, and welcome to season 16 of Project Runway!"

It's different from how it looked on TV obviously- the biggest thing being the cameras, lights, and crew all the visible to Kurt- but it doesn't make Tim's words any less sweet. Those are the words he's been waiting to hear for so long.

Heidi Klum took over from there, uttering all the necessary pleasantries and introductory instructions. A girl to Kurt's left was openly staring at one the cameras, mouth a little agape, and Kurt turned away, cringing. He hoped the producers would have the brains to edit that out because talk about unprofessional.

"Alright designers," Tim said after Heidi had finished, "let's head to the workroom where today's challenge will be explained."

After a few seconds the head cameraman gave the all clear and everyone relaxed, a few even talking quietly with the people around them.

"But first," Tim announced with chuckle, "we're going to eat breakfast! We couldn't show that on film, we can't have people thinking we're going easy on you." His finished with a wink which pulled laughter out of couple people but Kurt just scowled. This stupid breakfast would only waste precious time that could be spent working.

As they walked to a little breakfast diner that was on the way to Parson's, Tim assured them all this was just a one time thing; a celebratory introduction. Kurt didn't talk to anyone as they went and not many others were feeling chatty either. Instead, most people were just eyeing each other suspiciously.

Once everyone settled in and the food had been ordered, the floodgates of conversation opened a bit. Tim and Heidi sat at the table with them but mostly talked amongst themselves. This was obviously set up so the designers could get to know each other a little better.

Kurt spoke for a few minutes with Stephan about what they thought today's challenge would be and as it dwindled down he caught a pair of eyes looking at him. Raising his eyebrows, he settled on a dark-haired boy sitting diagonal to him. He seemed around Kurt's own age and his friendly smile widened as he met Kurt's gaze.

"Blaine Anderson," he offered, looking completely unalarmed that he'd just been caught staring.

"Kurt Hummel."

"So I noticed you didn't look too happy to be coming to eat here..." Blaine teased, a grin tugging at the corner of his lips.

"I came here to design, not eat breakfast," Kurt deadpanned.

Blaine didn't look offended though, if anything his smile grew, and it dug under Kurt's skin. Blaine wasn't his usual type (blond and lanky), but he was alarmingly cute, especially when he smiled.

"Fair enough."

The food came at this point and Kurt figured their conversation, if you could call it that, was over, but Blaine opened his mouth again.

"So are you anxious to see the workroom? Find out where all the magic happens?"

Swallowing his bite of omelet, which was delicious he had to admit, Kurt responded, "Oh I've already seen all that. I went to Parson's after all."

Blaine nodded and hummed but for a quick second, right beforehand, Kurt swore he saw a grimace light his face.

"Where'd you go?" Kurt asked.

"Uhh," he hesitated, looking slightly uncomfortable, "I didn't go anywhere. I mean," he continued quickly, "I went to school, NYU, but I didn't study design or anything."

Now it was Kurt's turn to hum and nod and while he fought to keep a look of casual interest on his face, his stomach twisted nervously. Blaine must be good, really good, to get here without any formal training.

He wanted to ask what Blaine did study instead, but he decided to keep things focused on the competition. "So where did you learn it all?"

"My mom," he answered. "It's a hobby for her, but she's amazing at it."

Images of a younger Blaine working side-by-side with his mother went through his mind and it brought the familiar ache to Kurt's chest. His mom had taught him how to sew, but that was more so he could fix up his own clothes when they ripped because she was getting too tired to do it. Plus, although it went unsaid, Kurt knew a lot of what she taught him those last few months was because she knew he would need those skills once she was gone.

"What about you, do you come from a family of fabulous fashionistas?" Blaine tone had changed from the soft affection he'd used a second ago back to the lighthearted... flirting perhaps.

An involuntary bark of laughter tumbled out of his mouth at the thought of his dad and fashion and to Blaine's questioning expression he said, "My dad is probably the least fashion conscious person I know. He thinks jeans without holes is dressing up. And my mom died when I was little and while I remember her clothing in a positive light, I may have been biased."

As Kurt knew it would, Blaine face dropped and took on a mournful quality. "Oh, Kurt, I'm so sorry."

Kurt just shrugged awkwardly and said, "It's fine, it was a long time ago."

Blaine opened his mouth as if to say something else but no words ever came out. If he was polite Kurt would change the subject so they could end their conversation on a lighter note but he didn't do that. It's not that he wanted Blaine to feel bad, he just didn't have anything else worthwhile to say.

And besides, what does he care about Blaine's feelings? He's just his competition. In fact, maybe this will distract him, throw him off his game. Even as Kurt thought it though, he knew it wasn't, unfortunately, how he felt.

&&&&&

The first challenge was revealed to be create a garment that shows the judges who you are as a designer. This didn't come as a surprise to Blaine or anybody else as it was pretty typical of the first project to be something along those lines.

For most designers this was the one they loved the most; there was so much freedom and it was a topic they felt passionate about. Blaine, however, felt the opposite way. Dresses were his thing but beyond that he didn't really know. He usually just went in whatever direction his mind took him that day and the result was his portfolio being a wide variety of things.

The trip to Mood had been a disaster until he saw a little girl with a big red bow in her hair. It reminded him of Mally, his next door neighbor when he was growing up. Blaine babysat her quite often because of the frequency their parents went out together. She was almost like a little sister to him.

Mally was always fascinated by his mother's clothing and sometimes Blaine would sneak into his parents room with her so she could look at the clothes. Blaine never let her wear any of them (not that they would have fit anyway) which resulted in good-natured pouting which led to an "undesired" on Blaine's part game of dress up.

Blaine had always dreamed of making her a dress, especially as he got older and more adept at creating things, but he never got around to it. So this challenge, he decided, would be to make the dress he never did for Mally.

Trashing his original sketch, Blaine began work on his new design and had it down within the hour. They had quite a bit of time for this challenge- the rest of that day and the entire next day too- but Blaine didn't like to be rushed. Of course, he knew this show was all about the rush, so he'd better get use to it.

&&&&&

Kurt knew what he wanted the moment he stepped into Mood: gold and black charmeuse. Not that obnoxious, cartoonish gold, but one with a tint of grey to it. He found it easily and had checked out with twenty minutes still left to shop. Smiling smugly, he watched with crossed arms as the other designers ran around like chickens with their heads cut off.

Blaine wandered by at one point and while he had nothing in his hands with only ten minutes left, he didn't look all that panicked. Then, as if he'd been struck by lightning, he straightened up, face glowing, and tore off in the opposite direction.

On the journey back to Parson's Kurt tried to sneak a glance in the other designers bags but he couldn't really get more than a glimpse. He did notice, however, that Blaine had something at least, and Kurt was glad he had gotten it together. He didn't want to win by default, or because the other designers made horrible things, he wanted to win because he was better than the best.

After a few hours of diligent work, Kurt decided a break was in order. He grabbed one of the complementary salads and settled down at an empty table in the lounge room attached to the workroom.

Two girls, one with spiky blonde hair and tattoos that covered every inch of visible skin and the other a stick thin, dark haired girl who resembled a raven, sat across the room and were deep in conversation.

A cough to his left startled Kurt and he looked up to see Blaine standing there with a salad of his own. "Mind if I sit here?"

"Go ahead," Kurt said with a gesture to the seat across from him.

Blaine sat and dressed his salad before saying, "I saw your piece as I walked in here. It's really pretty. The draping is fantastic already."

Kurt narrowed his eyes and tried to discern any sarcasm behind the words and when he found none he thanked him. It just didn't seem normal, his competition complimenting him. Maybe later down the road when they'd gotten to know eachother better, or when a camera was around so he'd look like a good guy, but not now.

"I know mine's a little boring right now, but don't you worry, I'm going to spice it up."

Hiding his smile at Blaine's enthusiasm by taking a sip of water, Kurt tried to remember if he saw what Blaine had been working on. It took a few seconds but then he remembered the seemingly generic white dress and he hoped Blaine was serious about spicing things up.

"I'm sure you will," Kurt said not unkindly as he stood up. "Sorry to dash out on you but I really should get back to work."

"No worries," Blaine said brightly. "I'll talk to you later?"

His expression was borderline hopeful and Kurt didn't like it one bit. Originally he said he wasn't even going to talk to any of the other designers and while he knew that was extreme, it would make things easier in a lot of ways. Kurt didn't want this, he didn't want to befriend anyone here, but there was only response he could have in this situation. "Yeah, definitely."

&&&&&

Tim Gunn was, in Blaine's opinion, the most important person on Project Runway. He's the one who really got to know the designers because he saw the inner workings of the design process. Plus, it seems whichever pieces Tim like the judges like too.

So in conclusion, you always listen to Tim Gunn.

On the second day of work, around noon, Tim entered the workroom and said he would be making his rounds. He started on the opposite side of the room from Blaine so he was able to ignore him at first. As he got closer, however, Blaine found himself more and more distracted.

Or maybe he was distracted because he was talking to Kurt.

Kurt Hummel. Just the name made him smile. It was ridiculous because he barely knew the guy, and because they were grown men and Blaine was acting like a child, but he couldn't help it. Kurt was so confident and put together and sure of himself. He had real vision as a designer, Blaine could tell. And beyond all that he was kind and witty and forgiving. (After bringing up his mom like that Blaine wouldn't have been surprised if he never talked to him again. Especially considering he didn't seem to be a very chatty person)

It was pretty safe to say that Blaine had, for lack of a more mature word, a crush.

He watched Tim talk to Kurt and from the look on Kurt's face it seemed to be going well. Once Tim moved on Blaine tore his gaze away and tied a few practice bows as he waited for the man to reach his station.

"Hello Mr..." he paused, looking down at his clipboard, "Anderson. Tell me about your piece."

Blaine tried not to be nervous but not only was it Tim but an entire camera crew in his face. They'd been walking around the entire time but they were never this close before.

"Well, I really like making fun, wearable things so that's where this dress is heading. I want it to remind you of something you wore as a child but be more sophisticated."

Laughing, Tim said, "I'm not sure it's something I personal wore as a child but I understand your sentiment. Although I have to wonder, is this really going to show the judges who you are as a designer?"

"Um, I hope?" Blaine said with a forced chuckle.

Tim gave him his famous worried look but said nothing further on the subject. Instead he just looked at it for a few minutes before asking, "What are you planning to do with the back?"

"I want to incorporate some of this," Blaine said, holding up some thick but light silver chains, "as well as another bow maybe."

A thick red ribbon tied around the waist of the dress and stopped with a large bow in the back so Blaine knew that was were the focus was going to be. The chains, he thought, would stand out well against the simplicity of the other fabrics and he hoped Tim would agree.

"Ooh I like those," Tim exclaimed and Blaine let out a sigh of relief. "The only things I would caution against is making sure it isn't too safe and doesn't look too childish." He paused for another few seconds before nodding one last time and saying, "Make it work!" as he walked away.

New levels of excitement coursed through Blaine as he brainstormed ideas for his design. His original had been to keep the dress completely backless as that would rid it of the childlike nature but now he thinks it's not enough. Then an image came to him that absolutely perfect... a present! He would criss-cross the chains in an x formation on the back and put a bow in the middle. It was the perfect way to keep it true to his original vision while giving it some sex appeal.

With a large smile on his face he began measuring at the ribbon for the bow and for the first time since the competition started, Blaine felt like he really had made the right choice by coming here.

&&&&&

Kurt hadn't sat down, or even taken a deep breath for the last two hours. His model, Aria, had to be all ready and out the door in less than ten minutes.

Truthfully, she had been reading for the last hour, but there were always little things to touch up. Right now he was trying desperately to get the folds of the dress to fall in the exact way he wanted. Logically he knew they would move and shift before Aria even reached the runway but it was something to keep his mind of the terror of this first show. There was excitement there too, but right now it wasn't making a very good case for itself.

What if's were running through Kurt's head a mile a minute (What if they hate it, what if they just laugh at him, what if he gets sent home) and Tim's warnings about the dwindling time they have left only makes things worse.

Finally time was up and the designers were ushered out of the room and led down the hallway to another, larger room where the catwalk was set up.

After whispering some quick last minute advice to his model, Kurt followed everyone else to sit alongside the stage. On the other side sat the judges, Heidi Klum, Michael Kors, and Nina Garcia, and Kurt watched as they got their makeup touched up and flipped through their cards which he guessed has all the designers names on them.

It took longer than he expected, around ten minutes, but finally the lights dimmed, the spotlight came on, the music started, and the show began.

The first half of the show was a blur to Kurt with only a few really bad things (a hideous pink dress that was so puffy it looked like it was inflated with air and a brown dress ,that may or may not have been Gary's, which honestly looked like a potato sack) and one good thing (a short black dress that bumped out around the waist but tightened back at the thighs which had an asymmetrical line of red button going up the front) sticking out.

Then his dress entered and time slowed down.

Kurt had used the gold charmeuse to make the majority of the dress while he outlines the bodice and collar, which was high and tight around the neck, with the black charmeuse. The bottom had an especially intricate set of layers that were flowing wonderfully as Aria strutted down the runway.

He was so out of it that he almost didn't hear one girl near him whisper shit in a worried tone as his model turned around and walked the other way. But the girl's awe and Stephan's quiet congratulations from beside him were only the icing on the cake because even without them Kurt knew how well it had gone.

It was a lot easier to enjoy the show after that and Kurt payed a bit more attention to the last six or so pieces. One was an impeccably tailored pantsuit that managed to be feminine yet practical at the same time and Kurt would be shocked if it didn't make top three.

The second to last piece to come out was Blaine's dress and while the front was a little bland, the back was unexpectedly beautiful in it's simplicity. There was something very visually appealing about the color combination of the deep red bow, the sparkling silver, and the model's tan skin. But, it didn't give Kurt a sense of what Blaine was all about. It was a cute dress, one many girls would love to wear, but beyond that it fell flat.

Once the last model walked the designers left their seats and walked out onto the now empty runway and lined up in front of the judges.

Heidi cleared her throat as if everyones attention wasn't already on her. "Will the following designers please step forward... Gary, Harry, Sam, Lana, Kurt, Chantelle. If I have not called your name congratulations, your scores have qualified you to move to the next round. You may leave the runway."

Most look relieved but there were a few disappointed faces as the designers who weren't called shuffled off the stage.

"The six remaining designers have the highest and the lowest scores. One of you will be named the winner and one of you will be out. Let's bring out your models."

The models came out to stand in front of their respective designer and Kurt was relieved to see that Gary's dress was in fact the sad looking brown one and Lana's was the puffy pink monster. He had no doubts now that his was in the top three, perhaps even the best of them all.

"Chantelle, let's start with you," Heidi said.

After a multitude of excuses and a long-winded defense of her over-the-top accessorizing, the judges finally moved on. Next up was Harry and his admittedly fabulous pants suit. It was the only non-dress which made it stand out even further. It was fitted to perfection, the deep v neckline showed just the right amount cleavage, and the faint, navy lines that ran diagonally on the jacket gave it that extra oomph.

The judges loved it and Kurt's jaw clenched as Harry preened. He didn't even have to meet the guy to know he was a pompous ass.

Sam's half shredded, apocalyptic looking dress was also deemed in the top but it received no where near the praise Harry's did; she was more complimented on following directions and showing her personal style than the quality of her garment. Then Gary and Lana were both destroyed by the judges, and Michael delivered a serious blow to the former with a sure to become famous one liner, "If that piece truly represents you as a designer then this will be the easiest decision we've ever had to make!"

And then finally, finally, it was Kurt's turn. "And lastly, Kurt," Heidi said sweetly. "Tell us how this represents you as a designer."

"Okay well, the first thing I knew I wanted to include was layers of some kind because that's sort of my signature if you will. Heaven forbid you ever find photos of my highschool days," Kurt began, pulling a chuckle from the judges, "but if did you would see that even back then I loved to incorporate them. And beyond that, I wanted my design to be feminine, but not in the overly stereotypical way."

To this day Kurt still gets comments on his feminicity and while the intentions often leave him hurting, the actual words don't bother him. He learned long ago that fashion has no gender and that's something he tries to bring to the table in his clothing.

"Women don't need to flash their chests or wear bows in their hair to look amazing, and that's what I wanted to show."

"Well Kurt," Heidi paused, drawing out the answer. Of course Kurt knew for sure he was in the top three now, but to the degree of their liking he wasn't sure. "I for one loved this dress. It's absolutely stunning, and there was such great movement!"

"Yes!" Michael chimed in. "The skirt flowed beautifully as it walked down. But what really got me is the bodice. The back outlining is fabulous and- what is it made from?"

"Charmeuse," Kurt answered. "The entire thing is made out of it actually."

"Wow," Nina said with raised eyebrows as she scribbled down something on her notepad. "That's quite a difficult fabric to work with."

Kurt nodded and smiled but didn't say anything. He was so happy he was actually having a hard time keeping his composure. They liked- no, they loved it! Actual icons in the fashion world were looking at something he made and liked it. They weren't judging him as his teachers had, like he was a student, a beginner, but as a real life designer which, he supposed, he now was.

"And the collar too, just fantastic," Heidi said. "Okay, we've heard what you've had to say," Heidi started, now addressing the group, "now we're going to have a little chat before calling you back. Thanks, you may leave the runway."

As the six of them entered the waiting room the other designers were quick to sniff out who was in the top and bottom. Well, there was no sniffing necessary when it came to Harry because he felt the need to announce to the group that he was the most likely candidate to win.

"I mean, they liked Kurt's," he conceded with barely a glance in his direction, "but I don't think it was in any competition with how well they liked mine."

Kurt refused to stoop to his level, especially with a camera watching because it would do him no favors in the industry if he became known as a hot head, so he settled for an eyeroll. On the tail end of it he caught Blaine's gaze and he matched with an eyeroll of his own which had Kurt biting back a smile.

Half an hour later Tim came into the room and told the six of them to go back out there because the judges had made their decision. Kurt had been surprisingly calm during the break but now his heart felt like it was about to explode out of his chest.

Once they lined up again, Heidi spoke the famous words, that would be accompanied by the dramatic music when the show aired, "One of you will be named the winner and one of you will be out." Then, after a pause, "Sam, you're in, you may leave the runway."

Okay, that's what Kurt expected, it was always between him and Harry.

"And now for the winner of this challenge. Congratulations..." Kurt was afraid he wouldn't even be able to hear Heidi's response because his heartbeat was so loud in his ear but then, "Kurt! You are the winner of this challenge and will have immunity and cannot be eliminated next week. Thank you, you may leave the runway."

"Thank you," Kurt breathed out, later wondering if the judges even heard it, and he left the stage.

Taking a deep breath, he reached for the door that led to the waiting room. He couldn't even describe what he was feeling right now, all he knew is that it was one of the happiest moments of his life.

The designers looked at him curiously as he walked in and suddenly Kurt was reminded that they didn't yet know who won. "I won," he said, and the words made his smile grow even bigger. Blaine was halfway off the couch and looked as if he was going to make his way to Kurt when another pair of arms caught him by surprise.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, and over Stephan's shoulder he saw Blaine sit back down.

"Congratulations," Stephan said in his ear before pulling away.

"Thanks!" Kurt responded. There was an empty seat next to Blaine and after a quick internal debate he walked towards it, nodding his thanks to other people along the way.

"Great job," Blaine said with a grin as soon as he sat down. "Your dress definitely was the best."

"The judges thought so too," he responded happily, determined to soak up it all up before tomorrow. Tomorrow would be a new day with a new challenge and even with immunity Kurt couldn't let his guard down for a minute. He came here to win the entire thing, not one challenge.

Blaine laughed quietly at his response and said, "I'm just glad you won because if you hadn't then Harry would not have shut up all night."

A laugh the bubbled up inside him and Kurt must be more affected by the win than he originally thought because honestly the comment wasn't all that funny.

Chantelle came in then, clutching at her chest and thanking the lord that she was in, and she sat next to a subdued Harry who must have slunk in when Kurt was distracted. Lana came in next and with the tears in her eyes everyone thought she was a goner but it turned out they were tears of joy. So it was Gary, who entered a minute later, looking properly dejected, that got sent home.

"Gary, we're going to miss you," Tim said as he pulled the man into a hug."Now I have to send you to the workroom not to clean up your space, okay?"

"Okay, thank you, goodbye everyone!" Gary called as he left the room.

Everyone followed a few minutes later and by the time they made the quick walk back to the apartment, the only feelings Kurt had in regards to Gary was relief that he would have his own bedroom from now on.