A/N: I made a couple of timeline errors in the previous chapter, which I have now fixed. Basically what you need to know is: It is now December 2011, 6 years since Blaine has seen or spoken to Burt and Kurt. Blaine is 29 years old and Kurt recently turned 17. Kurt has just completed his junior year. I hope that clears everything up. If you happen to spot any other mistakes please let me know so I can fix them :) Hope you guys enjoy the chapter!

Don't Keep Your Distance: Changes

Blaine anxiously tapped his foot on the floor as the pilot announced the descent of his private jet into Ohio. He was in a terrible mood because, not only was he scared as hell of seeing the Hummels after everything he had done, he also hadn't had a drink in several hours. He wasn't used to going more than an hour or so without something to tide him over, and he found himself growing increasingly agitated. A part of him wished that he could have had some of the mini bottles of alcohol they usually kept on the plane, but Sebastian had confiscated them before the flight. Blaine felt another stab of nervousness at the thought of not having access to alcohol when he got to the Hummel's house. He really wanted to sober up and get his life back on track, but the thought of doing that was terrifying – or rather, the thought of trying his hardest and still failing was terrifying. He didn't want to fail. He really, really didn't want to fail.

Blaine leaned back in his seat, concentrating on his breathing and willing his churning stomach to settle down.

By the time the plane landed, Blaine was wiping sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. He quickly got out of the plane and was informed that there was a jeep to drive him off the tarmac and around to the back of the airport, where Burt would be waiting for him. Sebastian had insisted that Blaine try his best to stay off the radar in Ohio, and Blaine had agreed with him, which meant that he needed to avoid being recognised in the airport terminal. If he kept his location under wraps, he and the Hummels could avoid the stress of dealing with the media, who would no doubt want to follow his every move. Sebastian had said that he would be personally releasing a statement later that week, claiming that Blaine was attending a rehab centre in an undisclosed location until he felt ready to return to his music.

Blaine clambered into the jeep and, after a short drive, it began to slow down. Blaine glanced out the window and saw a man leaning against the side of a grey car, his familiar posture causing a jolt of recognition.

Aside from being a little thinner and balder, Burt looked exactly the same as he had the last time Blaine had seen him, 6 years ago. And he was smiling, as if he were actually excited to see felt a lump beginning to form in his throat. He hadn't realised just how much he'd missed him until now.

As soon as the jeep stopped, Burt began walking towards it. Blaine climbed out cautiously, not quite sure what to expect. He opened his mouth to say "hi", but before he could get anything out, he was pulled into a tight embrace. He froze in shock for a moment before melting into the hug, and a familiar scent of motor oil and aftershave invaded his nostrils, filling him with a feeling of warmth and contentment that he hadn't felt in years. He felt a hot tear slide down his cheek.

With a soft chuckle, Burt pulled away and Blaine was surprised to see that the man's eyes were also shining with tears. He quickly wiped them on his sleeve.

"God, kid," Burt mumbled as he squeezed Blaine's shoulder affectionately, "it's so good to see you."

Blaine swallowed around the lump in his throat, trying to at least retain some semblance of composure. "You too," he whispered, and Burt pulled him into another hug.

Blaine twisted his fingers together as he gazed out the window of the car, watching the scenery fly by. They had been driving for 10 minutes now, and Burt hadn't said a word. He had a feeling that the man was waiting for him initiate conversation, but after everything that had happened, he felt oddly shy – like he and Burt had to re-learn how to be around each other again.

Blaine cleared his throat nervously. "So…" he asked, "how have you been? How's Kurt?"

Burt smiled brightly, clearly pleased that Blaine had finally decided to break the silence. "Wow, where do I start?" He said. "Kurt's….he's good, I think. He hasn't exactly had it easy at school. Some of the kids give him a hard time because he's different – you'd know all about that."

Blaine swallowed guiltily.

"Having said that, he joined his school's Glee club last year and since then things have gotten a lot better for him, I think. He's made a lot of friends and he really enjoys singing and performing. He's brilliant at it, too."

Blaine nodded. "He always was. I remember him completely upstaging Aurora at Once Upon A Dream."

Burt chuckled. "I remember how you two used to sing all the duets from those old Disney movies - I don't think I'll ever be able to forget the lyrics to those songs. Kurt's definitely moved on from his Disney Princess phase now, though. He turned 17 not long ago, and he's probably taller than you at this point."

Blaine breathed in sharply.

Seventeen.

He knew, of course, that 6 years had passed since he had last seen Kurt, but he still thought of him as a little boy. The years that had passed were barely noticeable on a man of Burt's age, but he was struck by the realisation that Kurt was now a teenager – very nearly an adult, in fact. And – oh, god – he'd probably hate Blaine for the way he had abandoned him. How could he not? They had been so close. Blaine had been a friend to Kurt, and a mentor – the closest thing that he had to a brother growing up, and without so much as a 'goodbye', he had cut the boy out of his life. If the situations were reversed, he would be furious.

Burt seemed to pick up on Blaine's fear, and he reached across to pat him on the knee reassuringly. "Kid, calm down before you give yourself a panic attack," he said. "He couldn't hate you if he tried."

Blaine's stomach churned with guilt. He just felt so much guilt, all the time. He wondered if there would ever be a time when he wasn't plagued by it. As a child, he felt guilty for not being the son his parents always wanted. He felt guilty when Elizabeth Hummel died and he had to watch Kurt cry himself to sleep, all the while knowing that he still had a mother who he barely even spoke to. He felt guilty when he had to leave the Hummels so soon after the tragedy to selfishly pursue his own ambitions. He felt guilty that he hadn't visited as often as he should have, and he felt guilty for having so much money and not trying harder to convince Burt to take some of it. He felt guilty for drinking and for being a burden and a disappointment and for shutting out everyone who cared about him and for daring to come back, after everything. He had no right to be here. He had no right to ask for a single thing more from Burt or Kurt.

"You okay, bud?" Blaine startled at the question, and nodded, although Burt didn't seem convinced. In an attempt to distract himself, he attempted to steer the conversation back to safer topics.

"You've lost weight," he stated, and Burt laughed loudly.

"Yeah, that'd be the crazy diet Kurt put me on. All bloody organic whole-grain low-fat rubbish. But, if it stops me from having another heart attack, I guess I better learn to deal with it."

"WHAT? YOU HAD A HEART ATTACK?"

"Relax, I'm fine! It was earlier this year, but the doctor said that just as long as I stick to my diet and exercise regularly, there's no reason for it to happen again."

Blaine breathed a small sigh of relief. "Have you considered becoming a vegetarian? It might help you lower your cholesterol -"

"Oh god, not you too! STOP! I'm a man, not a rabbit!"

"Okay, okay! I was just suggesting…" Blaine amended quickly. He should have realised that Burt would never give up steak and sausages.

Burt reached up to scratch his head and something glinted in the sun, catching Blaine's eye. Blaine stared at the ring on Burt's finger for a few seconds before registering its meaning.

"OH MY GOD!" He shouted suddenly, pointing at Burt's hand. Burt jumped at the sudden loud noise. "BURT, THAT'S A WEDDING RING!"

"Jesus, are you trying to give me another heart attack?" Burt grumbled, rubbing his chest.

"YOU'RE MARRIED?"

Burt's face lit up. "Yeah, I'm married," he said. "Her name's Carole. "You'll love her, she's amazing. She makes me really happy."

Blaine squealed and clapped his hands excitedly, before he suddenly realised what he was doing and lowered his eyes, blushing bright red. Burt laughed loudly.

"Kid," he said, smiling at Blaine fondly, "you really haven't changed a bit."

As the area became more familiar, Blaine grew more and more nervous. His hands were clammy, and he felt faintly nauseous as they passed by McKinley High. It was now empty of students, but it didn't stop Blaine from wincing at the sight of the dumpsters which he had become well-acquainted with during his time as a student there.

"Blaine," Burt said, "There's something I should probably tell you. Carole knows about you, and she's fine with you staying with us, but after you became famous Kurt insisted that I don't tell anyone about how close we used to be. If people had found out about how well we know you, they would have hassled Kurt to get them concert tickets and stuff like that. Finn, Carole's son, doesn't know anything either, 'cos from what I know he's not exactly the best at keeping secrets. We'll obviously have to explain things to him tonight though."

"Fair enough," Blaine said. "I understand why you wouldn't want to be associated with me."

"Blaine, it's not that -"

"No, no, it's fine," Blaine said, waving his hand dismissively. "I am fully aware of my reputation. It makes things easier, anyway. It means it's less likely that someone will find out where I am and tip the media off."

Burt looked like he was going to argue further, but he seemed to decide against it. "Well, I ahh…I sort of haven't exactly told Kurt that you're coming back, either."

"WHAT?"

"Well, I only found out myself last night, and Kurt was staying over at his friend Mercedes' house…I didn't want to tell him over the phone, so I figured you could surprise him when he gets back today."

"I really don't think that's such a good idea."

"Blaine, seriously, I don't think you understand how much Kurt missed you when you left. He'll be ecstatic to see you."

He had a hard time believing that.

Blaine was surprised when they drove right past the Hummels' old house. "We had to upgrade when Carole and I moved in together so Kurt and Finn could have their own rooms," Burt explained. "The house is much better, there's a lot more space. We even have a guest room, so you don't need to worry about sleeping on the couch." Blaine was glad that he'd have his own room. He knew that he'd probably be experiencing strong withdrawal symptoms soon, and he really didn't want anyone to have to see him in that state.

They soon pulled into the driveway of a beautiful white Victorian-style house. "Nobody's home right now," Burt said. "Carole works until 5, Kurt's probably still gonna be at Mercedes' house for a couple of hours, and Finn's spending time with his girlfriend."

Burt parked the car, and Blaine followed him into the house.

"Wow," Blaine said, looking around at the amazing décor. "This place is beautiful."

Burt chuckled. "Yup, that would be Kurt's doing."

"He always did have an eye for style."

"Don't let him hear you say that, he'll take it upon himself to give you a personal makeover."

Blaine was suddenly struck with the memory of a five-year-old Kurt searching meticulously through Blaine's bowties, telling Blaine which ones went with which outfits, and which ones were 'crimes against fashion'.

"Hey, earth to Blaine."

Blaine blinked. "Sorry," he said. "I got a little nostalgic for a second there."

Burt smiled understandingly. "Come on," he said. "I'll give you a tour of the house and you can unpack your stuff."

A couple of hours later, Blaine had finished unpacking, and he and Burt were seated on the living room couch watching a football game. Blaine was silent, his mind pre-occupied, but Burt was as vocal as always, shouting out advice (and abuse) at the teams. When he called one player an "ass-faced douchenozzle", Blaine couldn't hold back a giggle. Burt looked over at him with a raised eyebrow, and that just set Blaine off again. Burt soon joined in, but their laughter was cut off when Blaine heard shuffling outside the front door. He froze before jumping to his feet.

There was the sound of a key turning in a lock. The door swung open.

A boy walked into the house, and hung up his coat on one of the hooks inside the door. He turned around, and noticed Blaine immediately. As soon as their eyes met, Blaine's stomach lurched as though the earth had dropped from beneath his feet.

There was no doubt that this was Kurt. He had the same stunning glasz eyes that he'd always had. He had retained his cute upturned nose, and his lips were exactly the same shape as they'd always been. He was, unmistakeably, Kurt.

But my god, he had changed. Burt had been right – he did appear to be slightly taller than Blaine. He had lost all traces of baby fat, and Blaine gulped as his eyes trailed over the boy's lean, sculpted figure, accentuated by his skintight black jeans and cinched waistcoat. The freckles that had once dotted his face had disappeared, his skin perfectly pale and smooth. His once round face was now all defined cheekbones and angular jawlines, and his dark coiffed hair only accentuated his chiselled features. He was, to put it simply, absolutely stunning.

Blaine didn't have a whole lot of time to think about the implications of his observation before he was snapped out of his trance by Burt's firm grip on his shoulder. He jumped slightly, glancing quickly over to the man before returning his gaze to Kurt, whose eyes were now narrowed dangerously and blazing with an intensity that made Blaine's breath catch in his throat.

He decided he should probably say something.

"Kurt, I -" he started, but he was cut off suddenly when Kurt spun on his heel and walked straight back out of the front door, slamming it behind him. Blaine's heart sank. The house was silent, and Blaine could hear Kurt starting his car outside and driving away. Blaine could still see Kurt's glare, and it was even worse than he'd thought it would be – he had seen nothing but pure loathing in the boy's eyes. He was flooded by yet another wave of guilt, coupled with overwhelming fear and sadness. A part of him had dared to hope that Burt might be right – that Kurt would throw himself into his arms and hug him and cry and tell him how much he'd missed him and assure him that all was forgiven. He now realised just how stupid, and unrealistic it was, to even contemplate such a possibility. He didn't realise that he was shaking until Burt pushed him back down onto the couch and sat next to him.

"Blaine, you need to calm down," Burt said, stroking his back soothingly. "Kurt will come around, he's probably just in shock. Or mad at me for not telling him you were coming so he could wear a fancier outfit." Burt chuckled, but it sounded forced, and Blaine just dropped his face into his hands. He knew the truth.

He sat there for a while, too busy wallowing in his misery to hear the door open a second time.

"Oh my god."

Blaine looked up to see that another boy had entered the house. This boy was freakishly tall, and clad in a (highly unfashionable) plaid shirt and vest combo. The boy was standing in the middle of the lounge staring at him in shock, and he realised that this must be Finn.

Finn turned to Burt, open-mouthed. "There's a famous singer dude on our couch."