It was ten to eleven, and Blaine was nervously pacing in the dressing room. He wore a simple black, button down with his dark blue skinny jeans – the fifty in his pocket with a bottle of lube and a few condoms.

He was freaking out.

But Broadway.

"Bambi? What are you doing in here…dressed! You should be dancing!" Avalon was hurrying through the room, her eyes widening when she saw Blaine.

Blaine's eyes widened. "I…uh…I have a date?"

"I hope by date, you mean a man you're going to fuck for money." She said plainly, picking up a few vests from the costume rack.

Blaine nodded, blushing a little, and Avalon gave him a kind smile. She cupped his cheek gently, staring into his eyes. She was taller than him (who wasn't) and she was quite intimidating, but her green eyes shined warmly at him.

"Eager to fuck, are you? Well, I'll let you off this once – since it's your first time – but tomorrow night you get off at eleven. Not before." She laughed.

Blaine nodded hurriedly, apologizing. She just smiled, and hurried back out to the dance floor, carrying the vests and a couple of handcuffs.

"You don't have to do this, you know." Snaps said gently from the corner, where he was sucking down a bottle of water.

Blaine jumped, despite knowing that he had been standing there. He was really on edge tonight.

Blaine frowned, whipping around to face him. "What?"

"If you don't want to be a whore, then quit."

"I have to." Blaine shook his head. "I earn…hundreds a night…I need it. I'd be on the streets otherwise…and I can't deal with that."

"You'd rather sell your body?"

"I have to start somewhere." Blaine gave a resigned sigh, and Snaps shook his head angrily.

"You shouldn't. I don't know why you are!"

"You're one to talk!" Blaine snapped. "I've made my choice, and you of all people should at least support me. Please…please don't make me feel any worse about this than I already do."

"I'm twenty-five years old, and I want to be here. So don't go on about 'me of all people', because you're just bullshitting yourself. I love this. I love the attention, I love fucking someone new every night. But you're not like that Bambi, and you don't have to be. I don't understand."

"You have even less of a reason to criticize me then. You have no idea what I want, and you have no dreams, Snaps. If you want to work here, then good for you, but you're not working towards something. I have a future somewhere else. But I've got to make-do with this."

"Bambi…"

"I don't need it Snaps. I've got a date."

Blaine stormed out, mumbling to himself as he slipped into the dining area, finding the table that Kurt had been at.

He wasn't there, and neither were his friends, and he frowned. Maybe Kurt had changed his mind. Maybe Blaine wouldn't have to do this tonight.

A hand was suddenly on Blaine's hip and an arm snaked around his waist, making Blaine jump slightly.

"You made it…" Kurt's gorgeous voice whispered hotly into his ear. "Are you ready?"

Suddenly it was like someone opened the floodgates, and all Blaine's nerves spilled into his stomach. All he could do was nod, letting Kurt grind behind him for a bit. They didn't have to have sex – he could grind all night. Blaine didn't care.

But Kurt turned Blaine around. "Coming Bambi?"

Blaine nodded wordlessly, and Kurt took his hand, dragging him outside into the fresh air. Blaine didn't know what he was doing. Not really. He was grateful when Kurt didn't hesitate in hailing a cab, before throwing out the address to a motel Blaine knew was only a few blocks away.

They were silent, and it was getting awkward. Blaine was fidgeting, and he couldn't seem to make up his mind. Finally he did, and sidled towards Kurt, resting his hand on his thigh and stroking it gently, flashing what he hoped was a smoldering look at Kurt.

Kurt smirked at him, but didn't make a move to do anything. Thankfully, the taxi pulled up at the motel, and Blaine's hand slipped off Kurt's thigh as they got out.

"Do you want me to pay fo…" Blaine fished for the fifty, but was cut off as Kurt ignored him and paid.

"No. It's on me tonight."

Blaine blanched at the obvious innuendo, trying his hardest not to blush as he followed Kurt to the reception. They booked in, ignoring the awkward look from the staff, and Kurt paid for that as well.

So this was it. This was the start of Blaine's new life as a stripper-whore.

At least his first experience was going to be good. Kurt seemed nice, at least – and he had offered to pay for the hotel and the cab ride. And it wasn't like he was bad-looking or anything. And obviously experienced. Blaine shut his eyes. These weren't the thoughts he wanted to be having.

They headed up the foundation stairs and Kurt unlocked the door, his hand still clutching Blaine's.

They stepped in, and Blaine glanced around. It was fairly small – nothing special – with a door leading off to a bathroom, a tiny bench with a microwave on it, and a large double bed in the center. Perfect for a whore. Like he was.

He turned to Kurt, who was putting his bag down. Blaine fidgeted slightly. How did he start? Should he make the first move or-

"Take off your shirt."

Kurt seemed to know that Blaine was new to this, and Blaine was eternally grateful. He awkwardly undid the buttons, letting them fall open as Kurt watched him. An amused smirk graced his gorgeous face, and Blaine closed his eyes shamefully, letting his shirt fall off his shoulders.

Kurt surged forward, his hands suddenly everywhere, raking up and down Blaine's bare chest. Blaine managed a smirk, trying to pull it off sexily, but really he was just nervous. His hands were practically shaking.

He needed something to do.

Kurt was fixated on his chest, his lips millimetres away, so Blaine took that as an invitation and leant forward, pressing his forehead against Kurt's and seeking his lips.

But Kurt paused.

"What are you doing?" he breathed, and Blaine frowned.

"Kissing you?"

Kurt let out a short little laugh and pulled back completely.

"You can put your shirt back on."

Blaine's eyes widened. "No…no! I'm sorry. I didn't…look, this is my first time…doing this kind of thing. I thought…come on. Please. I won't try and kiss you again."

Kurt's eyes closed, his smile growing.

"Hey, relax. I just…I want to talk to you…and I'm sure you'd rather talk with your shirt on."

Blaine was still panicking. "I…"

"Bambi, please."

Blaine took a deep breath and nodded, picking up his shirt and doing up a couple of the buttons, before drumming his fingers nervously. His face felt like it was on fire – and it probably was. Dear god, he was going to die.

"I had a feeling this was your...first run." Kurt said softly.

He was facing the door, his head tilted slightly as he tried to word his thoughts properly.

"It was that obvious…?" Blaine flushed.

"Whore's don't kiss, Bambi." Kurt said softly. "Kissing means feelings. Whore's don't have feelings."

He had only said the word twice, and yet it stung like a fresh bitch slap to the face. Blaine collapsed on the bed, staring at his hands, still blushing like mad and regretting ever coming to New York in the first place.

"So…are you going to teach me…?" Blaine shook his head. What an awkward thing to say.

Kurt laughed. Apparently he thought so too.

"No. I'm not going to teach you. You shouldn't need to know."

"What?"

"I wasn't lying…back at the club. You're…beautiful. You shouldn't be…selling yourself."

Blaine frowned. "Look…I get enough of this from my subconscious. I'd rather not get it from a stranger. Can we just get on with this?"

Kurt's eyes widened. "Bambi, I don't want to have sex with you."

Blaine faltered. "Then why are we sitting in a motel?"

Kurt shook his head, another smile gracing his features.

"I'm here to offer you a choice."

Blaine's eyebrows rose. Maybe he was crazy. He was pretty sure he picked up Kurt from the strip club, right?

"I'm a talent scout." Blaine's jaw dropped. "And…I've written a musical. It's been funded and picked up, and I need actors. I'm a part of this theatre group…we're trying to find kids who wouldn't really have a chance at…a lot. You're a fantastic dancer…and we need dancers. If you…if you accept, I'll take you back to the theatre and introduce you to the rest of the cast and the choreographer."

Blaine's mouth was still on the floor. He couldn't.

"The second I saw you on stage…I knew you were different from the rest. You have raw talent – you're young and you still have life and passion behind your eyes. Even if you hate what you're doing, you still have the decency to look like you're enjoying yourself."

Kurt was rambling now.

"You're better than the other dancers, and that's why I picked you. If you say yes, you'll be given an apartment – you'll be sharing it with me and some of the other cast members. You'll be paid just for being a part of rehearsals – which will cover the rent and basic living expenses for six months, while we're still putting it together. Depending on popularity, the show will run for another six months…and hopefully, you'll be picked up by some casting agency. If not…well, I always need extras for my productions…"

Kurt paused, going through a mental checklist, before nodding to himself.

Blaine still hadn't said anything. He was stunned, dumbfounded, speechless, amazed, scared – all these things at once.

Surely not though. This couldn't – shouldn't – be happening to him. He was a stripper. A whore-y stripper. Not…not musical/play/Broadway worthy. He was working towards that…it shouldn't have just fallen into his lap.

He opened his mouth to speak, but hesitated. What if this was Snaps, or Thumper, playing a trick on him. How stupid would he look?

Kurt seemed to understand his hesitance. "Bambi…look…I know it's a lot to take in, and I'm sorry for misleading you when we came here…but I needed to get you away from…who you were while you were there."

Blaine frowned.

"Look." Kurt pulled out his wallet, producing a card from one of the sections. "This is my card – it has all the information, including my number. If you have any questions, you can call me."

Blaine took the card, scanning it quickly. His last name was Hummel. Good to know.

Kurt smiled at his dumb expression. "It was nice meeting you Bambi. If you accept, you're going to need to quit your job tomorrow and meet me at the same table tomorrow night. If not…I'll understand. It's a big step."

Blaine nodded wordlessly, and Kurt pulled a big wad of cash from his wallet. "Six hundred, right?"

Blaine frowned. "What?"

"For sex? You charge about six hundred?"

"I don't…I…you don't have to…I mean…I didn't, and you…"

"Bambi, close your mouth and take the money. Make up some story about our wild night together, and brag about something. You deserve it."

Blaine just nodded, taking the cash and blinking stupidly. Kurt smiled at him, gently ruffling his hair and standing up.

"See you tomorrow night, maybe?"

Blaine nodded again and Kurt smirked, heading to the door.

"Thanks Bambi…for the great night." He laughed before opening the door and disappearing, shutting it behind him.

Blaine just nodded at the door.

He was still…

He was still something.

He just couldn't figure out what it was.

Broadway. Musicals. Plays.

It was everything.

Everything he dreamed about – everything he wanted.

And now it was there, waiting for him to take.

But…

How could he leave his friends?

Avalon…Cinnamon…Snaps…Thumper…Kandy. They were all such a big part of his life – he was essentially throwing away five years of his life.

If he did this, he would have to tell Avalon.

Talking to her was scary enough in itself – telling her that he was quitting…

But Broadway.

He shucked off his shirt again, shaking his head and letting the smile that had been lingering to turn into a full blown grin. He laughed, jumping onto the bed and wrapping himself up in the blankets.

Life was finally taking a step forward.

He laughed again, letting his eyes shut.

Broadway.