On autopilot, Blaine would've kissed back. Sadly, his autopilot was freaking out.

"Whoa!" Blaine practically shrieked, scrambling away.

Kurt looked absolutely wrecked, tears welling up in his eyes. "I'm sorry!"

Blaine's eyes closed, running a hand through his hair agitatedly.

"Kurt…we…you're married."

"If I wasn't, you'd have no objections, would you?" he asked, staring up at Blaine seriously.

"I…that's not the point!" Blaine cried. "You're married, you have a husband who loves you and…"

Kurt looked horrible, staring at his hands, sobbing silently. "Can we just pretend?" he whispered. "Pretend we can go back in time to where we're teenagers and we don't have commitments and we're in love?"

Blaine closed his eyes. "Kurt…"

"Just while we're in the apartment…and then we can be friends and we can be happy…but…"

"Kurt…"

"It wouldn't have to be anything. We wouldn't have to do anything…just…"

"…just comfort." Blaine said softly, and Kurt's eyes lit up.

"Yes! Just…just so we can…not be lonely anymore."

Blaine looked at the ground, his eyes closing.

"I don't like this."

"But you want to?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah…"

Kurt gave him a weak grin, and his phone buzzed. His eyes widened and he pulled it from his pocket, his face draining of colour.

"I…I have to get home." He stuttered nervously, and Blaine watched him with concern.

"You okay?"

"Yeah…I just…David's getting home early and I have to be there when…I mean, I want to be there when…" Kurt trailed off and sighed. "I have to go. I'll…I'll text you, okay?"

Blaine nodded and showed him the door.

"Why don't you find comfort in David?" he asked softly, and Kurt shot him an exasperated look before leaving.

Blaine waited until he had started down the stairs before letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding. What had just happened?

For seven years, Blaine thought that Kurt hated him – that they would've ever have a future together, even in friendship…and now he was practically cheating on David for him.

And Blaine was trying not to care, because just being in Kurt's presence again was exhilarating. A rush of something Blaine hadn't felt in seven years.

But could he really let Kurt do that? Could he really let him cheat on his husband?

He finally shut the door and sunk onto one of his couches, running his hands through his hair. Was this safe? Was this right?

No, it wasn't. That was the plainest fact.

But Blaine was willing to question it – was willing to ignore it, if he was able to spend time with Kurt – to re-establish the love that they once had…

Blaine sighed. He would have to sleep on it.

^.^

(05:26) Are you still keen for this?

Kurt rolled over and glared at his phone, but when he saw the text was from Blaine, he reached for it eagerly.

Are you implying that you're keen?

David was still sleeping soundly, and Kurt quickly slipped out of bed, wincing a little at his sticky stomach. He waited for a reply as the shower warmed up.

(05:31) Possibly.

Kurt sighed. I need to know you're on board for this…because if David finds out, we're going to get into trouble, and it'll be hard.

He swallowed hard and sent the text. He knew it was wrong – but what David was doing was worse. David had no right at all to hit him – it had only happened a few times when he was really pissed, but it was still horrible. Kurt stepped into the shower and spotted a new bruise in the mirror – a handprint around his arm...

The memory slowly came back as he washed his hair – he didn't want to tonight, but David did. He grabbed him roughly and forced him into the wall. Kurt sighed as tears pricked his eyes.

Crying again. If Kurt wasn't drunk, he was crying.

It was pathetic, and he hated it.

His phone beeped, and he rinsed his hair and finished in the shower, stepping out and grabbing a towel before looking at the text.

(05:34) I'm on board. I'm worried, but…we both need comfort at the moment.

Kurt sighed to himself, wondering if Blaine thought it could ever be anything more.

And when you don't need comfort anymore?

(05:37) I'll wait until you don't need it, and then I'll go back to New York.

Good.

Kurt felt as if a weight was lifted from his chest, and he crept back into the bedroom, glaring at Karofsky's form under the covers. In a way, it was his form of payback, but Kurt didn't really want to think of it like that.

He quickly pulled on some clothes and headed downstairs, texting as he went.

Dave has work from seven thirty until five. If he comes home early, he generally tells me, because he likes me to have dinner ready. I work from home, unless they really need me, but that won't be a lot. What's your schedule like?

Blaine frowned at the text. He likes me to have dinner ready. There was something awfully wrong about that sentence, but Blaine didn't bother commenting. He rolled over in bed and stretched lazily.

I'm not on a schedule at the moment. I've got a shitload of inheritance savings that I can probably live on for about a year and a half, and I don't expect this to last this long. If I need to, I can record and send some songs to my publicist, and she can get them released. I can also get some job if I'm running low on funds. But that won't be for a while.

Blaine stretched again before getting up, pulling on a clean shirt and blearily stepping into his living room. The morning sunlight was harsh and stupid, and Blaine retreated into the kitchen before it woke him up properly.

He set up a coffee before practically nuzzling it, sitting in his favourite chair, facing away from the sun.

(05:42) Alright. So if I turn up around eight, leave around three…?

Blaine grinned.

Perfect.

^.^

It was five to eight, and Blaine was freaking out. He didn't know what to expect, and he didn't know if he should wait for Kurt to direct him.

He was hurriedly cleaning his couch when the doorbell rang, and Blaine was close to yelping. He rushed to answer it, and Kurt stood there.

"Hi." He whispered, seemingly nervous.

Good. At least Blaine wasn't the only one. "Hey."

Kurt swallowed hard and strode into the room. "Hi."

Blaine snorted. "You said that."

"Yeah. Well…"

They stood in an uncomfortable silence, and Blaine faltered.

"So…beer?"

"Oh god, yes please."

Blaine grinned to himself and headed to his kitchen as Kurt sat down.

"So how was your night?"

Kurt shrugged. He wasn't ready to delve into the details.

"Not horrible." He said carefully. "Yourself?"

"Kind of boring." Blaine said as he came back into the room, tossing Kurt a bottle. Kurt opened it, sculling half the contents as he leant back against the cushions. "I mostly just…slept, and watered the plants."

Kurt laughed. "It still gets me every time. I never thought you to be a plant person."

Blaine shrugged, collapsing down next to Kurt. "How's life at home?"

Kurt got that guarded look on his face, but Blaine didn't want to backtrack.

"It's fine." He said curtly, and Blaine raised an eyebrow.

Finally, Kurt let out a small sigh. "David…treats me like his wife." Kurt said cautiously. "He expects me to cook and clean while he works." Kurt shrugged. "But mostly I don't mind. He's…I love him…"

"And that's why you're on my couch, looking for comfort?"

Kurt's eyes narrowed. "Blaine, please…"

"Yeah, I know…but it just doesn't make sense…"

Kurt sighed. "It doesn't have to. Can you please just take it for granted?"

Blaine sighed as well. "I just might have to." He said softly. "I really missed you."

Kurt looked down at his hands. "I missed you too."

"For the whole seven years?"

Kurt let a grin escape. "Sadly, no…it was only a year after the wedding that I went a day without thinking of you…" Kurt laughed. "And then I scolded myself for thinking about you after just almost not thinking about you. But then it got easier, and up until that night you sent me the email, I had forgotten you existed."

Blaine looked almost hurt, and Kurt tried to amend his statement.

"Not forget…but merely…I had tried to shut you out. To protect my emotions."

Blaine bit his lip and nodded. "What made you read the email? What made you respond? What made you…what made you meet me for coffee?"

Kurt stared at his inbox, not even daring to believe what had just come up in a new message.

Blaine Anderson.

Was it…could it…

Really?

Kurt closed his mouth from where it had dropped open and clicked the email, devouring the sentence over and over again. Blaine Anderson. Blaine…

Kurt hit the reply button, but he didn't type anything. What could he type? Thanks for making my life a mess for a year? Thanks for destroying everything we had built? You want to be friends, really? After what you did?

Kurt couldn't say any of those things, because he really didn't mean them. Blaine…sure, it was a surprise to see his name pop up, but nothing happened – no repressed feelings finally free. Just the weird sense of familiarity.

It couldn't hurt to go meet him again…

Kurt laughed. "I guess I just missed you…"

They sat in sweet silence for a few minutes longer, until both their beers had been finished.

Finally, Blaine drew up enough courage to ask what was on his mind.

"What do you want from this?" he asked softly, and Kurt blinked at him.

"What?"

"Yesterday…you kissed me. But I have the feeling this isn't going to be you cheating on David. So what exactly do you want from this?"

Kurt blushed. "Look…I'm sorry I kissed you. But I want to go back to that moment on…on the staircase. When we just met and we were building a relationship. I don't want you to be that casual hook up. I want us to fall in love. Like we did when we were teenagers. For now…movies on the couch sound about right."

Blaine mulled it over for a second, his heart pumping dangerously heavily in his chest. Kurt wanted them to be in love. But Kurt wanted them to be teenagers. Kurt wanted them back to how they used to be.

Kurt didn't make sense.

But Kurt was looking for closure, and Blaine had offered to be the one to provide it.

"Hey Kurt…" Blaine whispered, and Kurt looked up sheepishly.

To be honest, he truly thought Blaine was about to throw him out of the apartment.

"Yeah?"

"Since we're teenagers…we need to have a Disney marathon!"