Chapter Three: What I Am

                Blaine Anderson made sure to apply his BullFrog WaterArmor SPF 50 liberally before snatching up his breakfast bagel and coffee and pushing through the office door to exit on to the pool deck.  This morning was overcast – so much so that the lifeguards didn't think they'd see blue skies today.  Overcast, however, didn't mean it was safe to go outside without protection.  Blaine had learned that lesson his first summer as a volunteer.  He'd worked four hours in the pool on a day much like today sans sunscreen.  The sunburn he'd earned that day was so bad he couldn't wear a shirt or bear the weight of the sheet on his bed for three days.  These days he applied water resistant sunblock before the day began and at every break.

                This morning was warmer that yesterday, due to the cloud cover, so Blaine pulled off his hooded sweatshirt to toss it over the short fence along the bleachers.  Jeff and his younger brother Austin were working on Austin's dives while Nick sat in the lifeguard chair watching the lap swimmers in the pool.  Blaine grabbed a white plastic chair and dragged it over to the edge of the deep end of the pool where he could have a side view of Austin.  He'd promised to help coach the in-coming 9th grader before Kurt's lesson.  Biting into the bagel and chewing slowly, Blaine sat back to watch and give the occasional piece of advice.

                Ten minutes early for his morning lesson, Kurt carefully closed the gate that led on to the pool deck behind him.  He could see Nick sitting in the lifeguard chair watching the lap swimmers in the pool.  Looking around, he spotted Blaine with Jeff and a younger version of Jeff near the diving board.  Keeping as close to the fence as possible, Kurt skirted over towards Blaine to let him know he was here.

                “Morning, Blaine!” he called out.

                Blaine turned in the chair, a bright smile appearing on his face.  “Hi, Kurt!  Is it 8:00 already?”

                Kurt shook his head in the negative.  “I'm early.  I was going to put my things down over by the table if that's still okay?”

                “Why don't you put your bag down there and come over.  We're helping Austin with his back somersault.”

                Kurt reached behind himself to grip the top rail of the fence.  His attention was pulled by Austin launching himself up and off the diving board in a series of twists and turns.  There was barely a splash as he entered the water below.  His gaze was pulled back to Blaine, who was walking over to him.

                “Hey, there.  Nervous?  Don't be.  Or, at least, try not to be.  I'll be right there with you.  We can walk over together and you can sit in the chair.  Would you be willing to try?”  Blaine asked hopefully.

                Kurt glanced down gathering his courage before meeting Blaine's honey colored eyes.  God he had amazing eyes.  “I'll give it my best shot.  But if it gets too much…”

                “Then we'll walk over to the umbrella table – no questions,” reassured Blaine.  He moved to turn when Kurt caught his wrist.  Turning, he noticed Kurt's amused smile.

                “I'm clearly not an expert, Mr. Anderson, but I thought there was a rule about not swimming for at least an hour after eating?” he commented slyly.

                Blaine was curious at the seemingly randomness of Kurt's question.  “Um, well, it kinda depends on the size of the meal and how vigorous the swimming is going to be.  Why?”

                Nodding to show he understood, Kurt reached up slowly to wipe the corner of Blaine's mouth with his thumb catching a dab of cream cheese.  He stared in stunned silence as Blaine caught his hand and brought the cream cheese up to his lips, slowly licking it off with his warm tongue.  Ohmygodohmygod.

                The ear-piercing sound of Nick's whistle split the air.  Lap swim was over.  So was their interlude.

                Both teens jerked back to reality.  Blaine appeared to recognize what he'd done first.  “Oh my god, Kurt.  That was so-”

                “Hot,” exhaled Kurt.

                “-inappropriate,” admitted Blaine.

                “Oh!”

                “Oh!”

                Kurt smirked at the flustered Blaine, dropped his bag to the ground, and brushed past him towards the chair Blaine had left moments before.  Kurt was halfway there floating on a cloud of elation from their intense moment before his fear was able to smash through.  It caused him to halt suddenly, staring at the rolling water.

                Following close behind, Blaine didn't miss a beat when Kurt stopped.  Wrapping an arm securely around Kurt's waist, he sang quietly, “Fathoms below, below, from whence wayward westerlies blow.  Where Triton is king and his merpeople sing, from mysteries fathom's below.”  He was able to coax Kurt closer, and when they reached the chair, Blaine pulled it back away from the edge hoping to ease Kurt's discomfort some.

                “Thanks,” said Kurt quietly, sitting down to watch.

                Blaine reached down to squeeze his shoulder.  “Don't worry about it,” he reassured.  Looking up, he waved towards Austin.  “Okay, Sterling 5.0, let's see what you've got.”  He watched carefully as the youngest Sterling took three steps down the springboard before leaping up hands held high.  He narrated for Kurt, “Once his feet hit the board, Austin'll use the momentum to catapult himself up.  He pulls feet up, touches them with his fingers, then releases and spots the water.”

                Austin didn't make much of a splash as he entered the water.  Jeff wandered over.  “He's looking better, don't ya think?” 

                Blaine nodded in agreement.  “If he keeps working at it this summer, he'll make varsity for sure.  We just need to clean up two or three more dives and he'll take Hunter's place for sure.”

                “And that would be so sad.”  Jeff's tone made it clear he thought the opposite.

                “A travesty of epic proportions to be sure,” Blaine concurred.

                Having climbed down from the lifeguard's chair, Nick joined the others, slinging his arm around Blaine's shoulders.  “What're we talking about?”

                “How tragic it would be to have 5.0 replace Hunter Clarington eye eye eye on the dive team,” explained Jeff.

                Nick laughed heartily.  “We'd have to go into full-fledged mourning for sure.  Pass out black armbands.  Cover the mirrors at Dalton.  Shave our eyebrows.”  Seeing Jeff, Blaine and Kurt's incredulous stares, Nick continued.  “Hey, the ancient Egyptians did it.  And it could shave seconds off our times.  Don't knock it ‘til you try it.  Seriously, Blainers, my love, have you ever considered-”

                In a heartbeat, Nick found himself underwater.  Swimming up, he was momentarily concerned he'd pushed Blaine too far – especially since Kurt was sitting right there.  Surfacing, he knew immediately that Blaine was fine – given the size of his grin, and his answer of “You mock me, sir.”

                Austin had climbed out on the diving board once again.  This time he was facing away from the pool and the heels of his feet hung off the board.  “Count it out,” called Jeff.  The boys could hear Austin's answer of “One. Two. Three. Four” as he moved through the motions of the dive.  His backwards double somersault over rotated and he landed with a loud slap.  Everyone winced.

                Once Austin surfaced he swam over to the ladder near where the boys were gathered.  Kurt could see a bright red patch on his back where he had impacted the surface.     

“You need to have more confidence that you can do it, A,” said his brother.

                Blaine agreed.  “And you need to focus on getting a little more height instead of worrying about distance away from the board.”

                Rebecca's snorted behind Blaine.  “No shit, Sherlock. I do believe I tell you the same thing all the time, now, don't I.”

                “And clearly I have been listening,” argued Blaine.

                “Just not implementing,” snarked Nick still treading water.

                “Hush, Duvall,” ordered Rebecca.  “I hate to break up your morning love fest, but I have to wear the boss hat now.  You, Jeff, and Austin can pull the lane lines out of the pool.  Blaine's got a lesson to give.”

                Blaine held out his hand to Kurt as everyone else moved to do their jobs.  They picked up Kurt's bag and Blaine's sweatshirt before moving over to the shallow end.  Repeating his actions from the previous day, Kurt laid his towel on the back of a chair and grabbed his straw hat.  Blaine was waiting for him in the pool, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

                “Come on, jump in.”

                “Don't think so.”  Kurt climbed down the ladder into four feet of water.  Goosebumps broke out on his arms.  The water itself was warm, but the air temperature made Kurt wish the sun was out.  “Is that why you're jumping like a toddler on ice cream cake?”

                “I love ice cream cake.  Is what why I'm jumping like a toddler?” asked Blaine.

                Kurt walked cautiously towards Blaine.  “Are you jumping like that because it's so cold?”

                “This isn't cold,” remarked Blaine.  “Six a.m. practice in March.  That's cold.  But if you're cold we should move around a bit.  Let's take a stroll.”  With that, Blaine took Kurt's hand and tucked it into the crook of his elbow.  “Let me introduce you to everyone.” 

                Kurt allowed Blaine to lead him across the shallow end of the pool in laps while they discussed the people Blaine worked with.  “I met Jeff and Rebecca Monday,” he offered.

                “So they said at dinner last night,” Blaine replied.  Seeing Kurt's raised eyebrow, he went on to explain.  “Jeff, Austin, Nick, and I live with Rebecca and her fiancé Pete in Nana Sterling's house here in Lima during the summers.  We go to Dalton Academy together – well, we will now.  Austin's starting 9th grade in August with us.  He's a volunteer, so you'll see him on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.  He's also taking my diving class and the junior lifeguard class with Scott.  So, Nick Duvall is my heterosexual life partner.”

                Kurt stopped walking forcing Blaine to look at him.  “Your what?”

                “Heterosexual life partner.  Nick's straight.  But if it weren't for the whole sex thing, we'd be great life partners.  It's like, he's more than just a best friend – and truthfully, he and Jeff are really best friends.  He's my island of calm.  Dalton teams all 9th graders with an upper classman to help with the transition.  They're called your ‘critical friend'.  Sounds great.  It totally depends who you get partnered with.  So, my CF ended up not being comfortable with my being gay.  He wasn't a jerk, never said a bad thing, but I could just tell it made him uncomfortable.  Next thing I knew Nick had traded with me and I was teamed up with 3.0.”

                Having reached one edge of the shallow end, Blaine turned them around to continue.  “David Sterling.  There are five brothers, so their dad started calling them Version 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 etc.  Nick didn't have to do that, and he didn't really ask.  He just knew what I needed.  It makes me miss my brother – except we were never that close.  So I guess is makes me miss what could have been.   Wow, I don't mean to get so deep.”

                Kurt shook his head to show he wasn't bothered by it.  “What about Scott? He goes to OSU?”

                Blaine nodded.  “Yeah.  He's going into his junior year.  He's on the water polo team, which is why he's a little more built than someone who just swims.  He went to Thurston, played ice hockey and water polo.  I think he's majoring in modern history.  I'm pretty sure he's going to earn a teaching credential – teach history and coach.  He'll be great.  We've worked together for, gosh, all five years I've been here.  He's offered to let me room with him if I end up at OSU.”

                Having reached ‘their' corner, Blaine walked Kurt along the edge towards the middle of the pool.  “Hold on to the edge.  We're going to work on your flutter kick.”

                “What about the girls?” Kurt asked.  “Aren't you going to tell me about them?”  He faced the wall and gripped the gutter with both hands.”

                “Patience is a virtue, Kurt,” joked Blaine.

                Kurt shot him one of his ‘bitch please' looks. 

                “We can multi-task.  I want you to let your legs float up, point your toes, and flutter your feet back and forth.  We're not going for a lot of splash here.  This is the kick you'll be using for the back stroke and the crawl.”  Blaine illustrated what he wanted with his hands and then turned towards the wall to model the proper technique for Kurt.

                Once he got Kurt to kick like he wanted, Blaine leaned back against the wall and continued their earlier conversation.  “The girls are Meghan, Jordan and Dani.  Meghan is the one with the impossibly curly hair.  I used to complain about my curls and how unmanageable they were – but then I met Meghan.  She's amazing.  I totally have a non-sexual crush on her.  She's a sophomore at the University of Oregon.  Wants to be court advocate for children.  Has designs on attending Harvard or Stanford Law.  She'll do it, too.  Between the two of us, we teach all of the beginning three levels of classes.  Water Adjustment, Guppy, and Minnows.  Once they can float front and back for 25 feet, blow bubbles, and go underwater, we pass them on to Jeff and Jordan.”

                Blaine had Kurt turn over from his stomach to his back and continue his flutter kicks.  “No complaints now-  this is your workout for the day.  Blaine Anderson: Life guard, swim teacher, personal trainer at your service.”

                “Noted,” Kurt ground out.  His legs were indeed starting to burn from the effort.

                “For your test you're going to have to make it up and back three times.  To quote Debbie Allen: ‘This is where you start paying – in sweat.” 

Blaine nodded towards the umbrella table where two of the female lifeguards were sitting, applying spray-on sunblock.  “This is Jordan's first year lifeguarding.  Brown hair in braids.  She's going in to her junior year at Thurston.  Plays field hockey, swims, and dances competitively.”  Blaine thought for a moment.  “Irish folk dancing I think.  Jeff would know.  They've kinda had this flirtation thing going for the past three summers.  But I don't think either one of them wanted to push it, given Westerville's an hour plus drive, and neither of them had a license.  We'll see.  I'm kinda a romantic at heart, so I'm rooting for them.”

                Kurt finally had to put his legs down.  “I need a break or you'll have to carry me out of here.”

                Blaine smirked.  “You just want me to put my arms around you again, Hummel.”

                Kurt placed his hand flat on Blaine's tan and toned chest.  Staring into Blaine's eyes, he drawled out, “Thinking highly of ourselves, aren't we?” before shoving Blaine backwards into the water.  He watched cautiously as Blaine stood back up and flung the water from his forehead.  “Sorry, Blainers, but you looked like you needed to cool off,” sassed Kurt.

                “You think so?”  Blaine's eyes narrowed as he approached Kurt.  “Can you hold your breath?”

                Kurt rolled his eyes.  “Of course I can hold my breath,” he answered without thinking.

                Wrapping his arm around Kurt's waist, Blaine instructed him, “Then hold it, handsome.”  Without further warning, he allowed his feet to slide out from under him dragging the two of them under the surface of the water.

                Just as quickly he stood them up, wiped the excess water from Kurt's eyes, and waited.

                In his lifetime, Blaine had seen two people start to go into shock.  And while the part of him that enjoyed flirting with Kurt was recoiling in horror that he'd just shoved Kurt over the edge of his limitations, the well-trained lifeguard took swift action.  “Nick!  Meghan!” he shouted, bringing the other lifeguards into the pool with him.

                Eyes unfocused, Kurt's body was turning a dull grey color as the blood was pulled away from his extremities.  Blaine moved to wrap one of Kurt's arms around his shoulder as Nick did the same on the other side.  “What happened?” Nick asked.

                “Panic attack.  He's going into shock.  We've got to get him-”

                As Blaine and Nick mostly carried Kurt towards the ladder in the corner, a part of him became conscious enough to realize his body was immersed in water.  He began flailing about, his elbow connecting with Blaine's nose which began to bleed.

                “Shit!” cried Blaine.

                Nick spun Kurt so he could lift him into his arms.  Clamping down as hard as he could on Kurt's arms, he managed to get to the side of the pool where Scott was kneeling down to lift the slender teen out of the pool.  Seeing Jordan standing there, he called out, “Jordan! Get Kurt some juice and get Blaine some ice.”  Seeing she had run off to do so, Nick turned in time to see Meghan help Blaine out of the pool.

                Scott had already placed Kurt down on one of the girl's towels, and propped his feet up on a plastic chair by the time Rebecca and Jordan returned with the juice and ice.  Rebecca grabbed a couple more towels and Blaine's sweatshirt and tossed them lightly to Scott. 

“Make sure he stays warm,” she instructed.  “Sit!” she commanded Blaine, handing him the ice pack for his nose.  “What the hell happened?”

                Blaine spilled everything he'd done, while painting a broad picture of why Kurt had reacted the way he did.  It wasn't his story to tell, but the others need to have some idea what brought this on.  Nick and Scott continued to take care of Kurt until the other boy could finally sit up and drink some juice.  His first attempt was unsuccessful as it mostly sloshed out due to Kurt's trembling hands.  Scott ended up pulling the bottle away from Kurt and holding it for him.  “Don't worry about it.  It's the adrenaline.  Once your body processes it, the shakes will stop.  Bad car accident when I was 13.  Took three days to stop.  This won't take that long,” he affirmed.

                Eventually they were able to move Kurt inside the pool office, where he was currently lying on the ground with his head in Blaine's lap.  Blaine knew he wasn't in danger of being fired when Rebecca offered to cover his classes so he could stay with Kurt because, “You broke him, you fix him.”  He also knew he wasn't in danger of Kurt hating him forever, since Kurt was holding his hand and sighing occasionally as Blaine ran his free hand through Kurt's hair.  He had his eyes closed, though.  Blaine wasn't sure how to read that.

                Kurt squeezed his hand.  “I'm sorry I bashed your nose.  It was such a nice nose,” he said softly.

                Blaine squeezed back.  “I think it will be okay.  If not, maybe you could give the eulogy?”

                “I could do that,” Kurt's mouth twitched in a grin.  Opening his eyes, he pushed his way into a sitting position, only to immediately flop back into Blaine's lap.  “Oookaayy.  Clearly my body is not ready for a vertical position.  Horizontal it is.  Thank you, Mr. Anderson for taking on the role as my pillow in today's production of ‘101 Ways Kurt Hummel Can Embarrass Himself'.”

                “Hey!” Blaine said forcefully as he carded his fingers through Kurt's hair some more.  “You don't have anything to be embarrassed about.  I fucked up.  I did something really stupid.  And really dangerous.  And I owe you a super ginormous apology with sprinkles, whipped cream and a cherry on top.”

                “Dork,” Kurt muttered under his breath before continuing, “I don't think you need to apologize – but, apology accepted.  Although, if it already has sprinkles, whipped cream and a cherry then maybe, what you need to do, is take me out for an ice cream sundae.  Just thinking out loud here, Anderson.”

                Blaine smiled down at Kurt.  “I like how you think.  Ever been to Farrell's?  I once ate their 30 scoop Volcano sundae – by myself.  I didn't really feel too good after.”

                “Duh.”

                “Shush.”  Blaine pressed his index finger to Kurt's lips only to receive a tiny kiss on it.

                “Don't you need to teach your classes, Blaine?” he asked with concern.

                “Rebecca's got ‘em.  ‘Sides, she's not going to let you leave until she's convinced you're fine.  Which means one of two things.  You can stand up and walk out of here on your own power.  Or, your dad comes to get you.  And truthfully, I don't think I could face your dad right now.  I like my life.  I have a small bucket list I'd like to accomplish before I die at the hands of an angry father.”

                “My dad's all bark, no bite.  What's on your list?”

                “Ride a gondola in Venice.   Swim in the Pacific Ocean.  See the Grand Canyon.  Earn my high school diploma.  Kiss a guy.  Fall in love.  Slow dance at my senior prom.  Take Kurt Hummel for an ice cream sundae.  That's just off of the top of my head – not in order of importance.”

                Kurt closed his eyes and sighed.  “Maybe we could eat ice cream while riding in a gondola in Venice?”

                “I love the way you think.”

                “Admit it, you just love me.  I'm fabulous,” Kurt teased.

                “Ask me again tomorrow.”  Blaine answered back with Kurt's own words from the day before.

                “Flirt!”

                “Again, not denying it.  Is it working?”

                Kurt's only response was to tighten his hold on Blaine's hand and not let go.

                Blaine flung the door to the pool office open, ripped his shirt off, and threw himself into the pool, his anger and frustration giving power to his strokes.  It had been a little over a week since he first met Kurt, and he'd just sat in the office while Rebecca chewed him out for the ‘inappropriate' way he was conducting himself with Kurt. 

                “The bottom line, Blaine, is you need to put the kibosh on your flirt game and start teaching him how to swim.  It's gonna look real bad when he gets through the summer and the only thing he can do is flutter kick on the wall. He's not gonna pass the proficiency test that way.  If he won't move on, then we need to contact his dad to discuss options,” explained Rebecca.  Setting clear expectations and boundaries with people she considered family was always difficult, but she knew Blaine, who wore is heart on his sleeve, was going to take this news especially hard.

                Clenching his jaw, Blaine tried to defend himself.  “You picked me to do this job, Rebecca.  Apparently, two weeks ago you thought I was good enough.  I'm sorry I'm such a disappointment,” he spat.

                “Blaine, that's not what I said,” countered Rebecca.

                “No, it's what you implied.  That I'm too busy flirting with Kurt and staring at his ass to Do. My. Job.  Kurt's got three more lessons paid up.  Why don't you ask Nick work with him?” Pulling the door open, he looked over his shoulder.  “Sorry, I don't mean to presume to tell you how to do your job.”  With that said, Blaine slammed out of the office.

                Kurt had an appointment that morning, so he'd arranged to meet with Blaine during lunch.  When he got there, Blaine was swimming laps.  It didn't take long for Kurt to realize that something was wrong.  Who knew he'd be able to tell someone's emotional state based on how they swam?  Walking over to the umbrella table, he said hi to Nick and Jeff before sitting down with them.

                “What's wrong with Blaine?” he asked.

                Jeff shrugged. 

Nick held up his hands.  “Not sure.  Rebecca called him in to the office, and next thing we know, he comes storming out and starts swimming.  He's pissed at something.  Scott went in to talk to Rebecca, and hasn't returned.”

                Looking around, Kurt noticed the girls were missing.

                “They went to pick up lunch.  We think they didn't want to be around while the shit hit the fan,” offered Jeff.

                Reaching the shallow end, Blaine lifted his head to see Kurt waiting for his lesson.  Pulling himself out of the pool, he padded over to Kurt.  “Hey,” he said softly.

                Kurt reached out to squeeze Blaine's hand, “Is everything okay?” he asked with concern.

                “No.”  Blaine stood in front of Kurt, dripping water, staring at the ground, trying to find the right words to explain things to Kurt.  “Rebecca is concerned about my ability to give you lessons.  She says you aren't progressing and I think she'd like you to have someone other than me give you your last three lessons.”  Blaine finally looked up into Kurt's eyes.  “I think you should give Nick a shot.”

                Kurt's face hardened.  “No! No. No.  No offense Nick,” he shot over his shoulder, “but I agreed to take lessons from you, Blaine.  I'm comfortable with you.  This is bullshit.”  With that, Kurt spun on his heel and strode into the pool office.

                Blaine sunk into the chair Kurt had just vacated, putting his head in his hands. 

                Nick scooted his chair around the table so he was sitting across from Blaine, knees touching.  “What else did she say?” he asked quietly.

                “That I'm spending too much time flirting with him and that's the reason I haven't been able to get him to do anything else.”  He paused for a long moment, “I don't disagree that we've been flirting.  A lot.  But, he's petrified of the water, Nick.  I do it to help distract him from the panic he feels,” explained Blaine.

                “And…because you think he's amazing and hot and the best thing since Katy Perry,” teased Nick gently.

                Blaine sat up and looked at his friend.  Glancing over to the pool door to make sure Kurt was still inside, Blaine nodded.  “Yeah, I do.  I think he's amazing and hot and I've never had a connection with someone like I do with him.  And I'd love nothing more than to actually ask him out on a date-date.  But I haven't because I do understand he's my student.”

                Taking a deep breath, Blaine finished.  “I just wish she'd asked.  What's going on?  Why are you doing this?  You saw him the last time I put him under the water.  I have never, ever been so scared.  Fuck, Nick, I can't watch him have another panic attack like that because I forced him to go further than he's ready for.  That's why I haven't pushed.  But she thinks it's because I'm trying to get in his pants.  F.M.L.”

                The sound of the door opening drew the attention of the boys.  Kurt came striding out, his face a mask.  Kicking off his sandals, he picked up his hat and placed it on his head.  “Are you ready, Blaine?  Because if you don't feel up to giving me a lesson today, we can reschedule.”

                Blaine stood up and looked over Kurt's shoulder towards the office, where Rebecca was standing.  She nodded, before going back inside.

                “What did you say?” Blaine couldn't help but ask.

                Kurt cocked his head to the side.  “I'm not sure I should repeat it.  It wasn't very Disney of me.  Something like: I'm not getting in that fucking pool without Blaine.  So you can either fucking support me or I'll find another fucking place to learn to swim and hire Blaine to work with me there.  Coming?”  Kurt added that last part as he walked over to the ladder and climbed down into the pool.

                “He wishes he was,” muttered Jeff.

                “Shut it, Sterling,” said Nick and Blaine at the same time.

                Blaine looked at his friends searching for an answer to an unknown question.  “Help me out?” he   asked. 

                In answer Nick and Jeff got up from the table and bounded into the shallow end with Kurt.

                “Three lifeguards?  What service,” teased Kurt.

                “We aim to please, babe,” Nick said, winking at Kurt.

                “Heads up!” Blaine called out before tossing three diving bricks into the pool followed by him cannonballing in after. 

                Standing back up, Blaine moved to stand in front of Kurt.  “Straight talk time.  We need to get you comfortable enough to hold your breath underwater.”  He could see Kurt start to lose his color.  “Uh uh.  No freaking out.  You can do this, handsome. I know you can do this.”  Blaine gestured to the other two lifeguards.  “We know you can do this.  You gotta believe it yourself.”

                Nick was studying Kurt intently, worried about the physical symptoms Kurt was exhibiting.  Blaine hadn't been exaggerating.  Kurt really had a problem with the idea of being under the water.  Moving closer, Nick asked to see Kurt's hands.  He was trembling uncontrollably.  “Kurt?” he called softly.  “Take some slow, deep breaths for me.  I need you to close your eyes and picture somewhere you feel safe.  Can you do that for me?”

                The boys watched as Kurt's eyes fluttered closed.  It took some time, but his trembling began to slow.  “That's better,” observed Nick.  “Open your eyes.  This is what we're going to do.  Blaine, Jeff and I are going to have a bit of a contest.  We're going to hold our breaths, and sit on the bottom of the pool for as long as we can.  You, being unbiased, are going to time us.  You can use the clock up on the office door.  Last one up gets lunch of his choice paid by the other two.  Agreed?”  Nick knew Jeff and Blaine would agree to the terms.  They'd been having this same contest for five summers.  Blaine had never lost.

                Seeing each of the lifeguards grab a brick, Kurt asked what they were for.  “It's a diving brick.  It will help weight us down.  The air in our lungs will make us float, and without the brick we have to exert too much energy trying to stay down,” explained Nick, offering his brick to Kurt so he could feel the weight.  “Now remember, we'll be fine.  We've done this lots of time, Kurt.  You just concentrate on keeping the time.  Can't brag about a new record if we don't have an accurate time,” he added with a wink.

                Blaine moved so he was standing shoulder to shoulder with Kurt.  Counting down, Blaine took one last deep breath before slipping below the surface at the same time as the others.  He also slipped the hand not holding the diving brick into Kurt's, so he'd know Blaine was okay.

                Kurt noted the time, then glanced down at the lifeguards.  They all looked so peaceful, air bubbles occasionally trickling up to break the surface.  It was so quiet.  Only the sound of the water spilling into the gutter behind him broke the silence.  It seemed like forever before Jeff broke the surface with a loud inhalation.  “I never win,” he said with little regret. 

                Kurt felt Blaine tug gently on his hand, drawing his attention.  He was looking up at Kurt, grinning widely before blowing him a kiss.  It eased Kurt's nerves a bit to know that Blaine was enjoying this experience, although he'd feel a hundred times better once he was back up here in the air. 

                Nick broke the surface next, muttering about how one day Blaine would end up buying lunch for someone else.

                Blaine looked up at Kurt and tugged on his hand again.  He beckoned with his free hand, encouraging Kurt to come down under the water with him.  It was a long shot for sure.

                Nick could see when Kurt made up his mind as a calmness settled over his expression. Nick reached over to grab Kurt's hat off his head. “Deep breath.  Hold your nose.  Tap Blaine's wrist when you want back up,” he instructed quickly.  He knew Blaine had another 30 seconds of air before he'd be forced up.

                Blaine had closed his eyes, so he was unprepared when another body settled into his lap.  Opening his eyes, he was stunned to see Kurt, eyes tightly shut, one hand pinching his nose closed, wrapping his other arm around Blaine's neck.  Blaine moved to bring his leg up and over Kurt's thighs to help hold him in place.  He began to count in his head.  At twelve, Kurt released the air in his lungs and Blaine quickly let go, pushing him to the surface.

                Kurt stood up, stunned.  Had he actually done that?

                Nick and Jeff were cheering and hugging Kurt, congratulating him on his effort.  Blaine stood by the side, barely able to contain his own emotions.  He was just so…

                Kurt's arms being flung around his neck interrupted his thoughts.

 “I'm so fucking proud of you right now, Kurt,” he voiced hoarsely before wrapping his arms around Kurt's waist and pulling him in close.

                Nick shoved Jeff towards the ladder.  “So, I think our work here is done.  And I swear those girls should be back with lunch by now.  The tummy is calling out for nourishment.”

                “Have fun boys – but not too much fun.  Use protection,” sassed Jeff before picking up a towel and following Nick into the pool office.

                Remembering where he was, Blaine dropped his hands from Kurt's waist, but left his forehead pressed up against Kurt's.  “That was amazing.  You're amazing,” he whispered.

                Kurt still had his arms wrapped loosely around Blaine's shoulders.  “I…that…without you.”  Taking a deep breath, Kurt tried to steady his emotions.  “That's mostly you, Blaine.  No- don't argue with me.  I would not have been able to do that without you.  Without your encouragement.  Your patience.  So thank you.”

                Blaine swallowed his emotions down.  “You're welcome.”  Kurt pulled away from him, and he felt incomplete, like something was missing.

                Kurt walked his fingers up Blaine's arm.  “So, B…”

                “Yes?”

                “You won the breath holding contest, and Nick and Jeff have to buy you lunch.  I was wondering…”

                “Go on,” replied Blaine.

                “Do I get something?  For holding my breath underwater?”  Kurt's voice deepened as he inched closer to the edge of this emotional abyss he was sure Blaine was feeling too.

                Blaine leaned towards Kurt's ear to whisper, “What do you want, handsome?  You're right, your effort should be rewarded.”  Then looking up towards the pool office, he took a conscious step away from Kurt, trying to put physical if not emotional distance between them.

                “See a movie with me?” Kurt asked quietly.

                It hurt.  It hurt so much to hear the hope in Kurt's voice.  To know that Kurt wanted to spend time with him.  That he considered it a reward for his effort.  Why did doing what was right have to hurt so much?  “Kurt, look at me.”  Seeing Kurt's eyes meet his, Blaine pressed on.  “I can't.”

                “Oh,” Kurt muttered glumly dropping his gaze to the water.

                “No!  Look at me.”  Blaine waited until Kurt lifted his head again.  “I said I can't.  Not, ‘I don't want to'.  I can't.  As in, I do not have the ability to.  You're my student, Kurt.  I would lose my job if someone found out I was dating you while being paid to teach you.  So we're going to do this.  We're going to work together until you can pass that swim proficiency test.  And when you do-”

“And when I do…” Kurt echoed.

“All bets are off,” he said with a shy smile.  “I hope you understand.”

“Oh, I understand.  It sucks and I don't like it, but I understand.”

“If it makes you feel better, I totally agree,” offered Blaine.  “Do you feel up to practicing going underwater some more?”

“I guess.  This better be one heck of a first date, Anderson,” Kurt teased lightly.

Blaine turned them so their backs were to the pool office, and positioned Kurt in front of him, back to Blaine's chest. He wrapped an arm around Kurt's waist.  “We're trying for a count of fifteen.  Tap out if you need up earlier.  And do you really doubt me, Hummel?  Ours will be the first date that every other first date you will ever go on will try to live up to, but will crash and burn in the attempt.”

“Confident much?”

“I wish.  It's mostly an act,” Blaine answered honestly.  “Ready?”

“Let's do this.”

Kurt allowed Blaine to pull him under the water over and over that afternoon.  He knew, with Blaine's support, he'd be able to do almost anything.  In the pool or out.

                Saturday night found Kurt at Nana Sterling's house, hanging out with Nick, Nick's girlfriend Tori, Jeff, Jordan, Austin, and Blaine.  Rebecca was out at a girlfriend's house, so it was left to Nana Sterling to chaperone the gathering of teenagers.  It had been Jeff who had left a voicemail for Kurt, inviting him over.  “Hummel, get your butt over to my nana's house.  We're watching flicks.  If you don't come, the only one left to snuggle with Blaine is my brother and that is SOOO not happening.  Bring snackage.”  He followed that up with a text of the address.

                The basement held two large overstuffed sectional couches that could probably hold fourteen people comfortably.  There was a giant flat screen television set on one wall and the coffee table held a pile of chips and candy.  Kurt was worried about his decision to bring a cheese and crackers tray, until Jordan murmured, “Thank you, Jesus.  Someone who understands that man cannot live on salt, sugar and fat alone.”  She took his tray from him, shoving the bags of chips out of the way to place it center on the table.

                “We were waiting for you to start the movie,” explained Jeff dragging Kurt over to Blaine and shoving him into Blaine's lap.  They disentangled themselves, moving to sit next to each other.  Kurt noticed that Blaine wasn't wearing shoes, so he kicked off his own, tucking them under the coffee table where they wouldn't trip anyone accidently.

Nick and his girlfriend were curled up together at the other end of the sectional Kurt and Blaine were seated on, clearly comfortable just being together.  Jeff walked back over to the second sectional, to sit back down next to Jordan - a little closer than necessary.  He picked up the remote and pressed play before leaning back.  Jordan, tired of waiting for Jeff to make a move, grabbed his arm and wrapped in around herself, allowing her to snuggle into his side.  He looked down at her in surprise, then at Nick.

“Told you,” mouthed Nick.

Jeff pulled her a little bit closer.  “Let me know if you get cold, J.  I can get us a blanket.”

                They both jolted as a perfectly tossed throw ended up covering their legs.  Nana Sterling stood behind the couch smiling at the group.  “No funny business, Jeffrey!  Nicholas!  You will be gentlemen,” she said seriously.

                “Yes, ma'am,” answered Nick and Jeff automatically.  This wasn't the first time she'd given the boys this warning.

                She spotted Kurt and moved towards Blaine, eyeing him carefully.  “Blaine Anderson, is this your beau?”

                Blaine blushed profusely.  He would never again laugh when Jeff or Nick faced Nana's interrogations.  “No, ma'am.”  He shrunk as she seemed to stare at him even harder.  “Not yet, anyway.”  Taking a breath he stood up, motioning for Kurt to join him.  “Nana Sterling, I would like to introduce you to Kurt Hummel.  Kurt Hummel, this is Nana Sterling, Jeff and Austin's grandmother.”

                Kurt held out his hand.  Nana stared at it.  “Phissh.  Kurt Hummel, we don't do handshakes in the Sterling household.  Come give me a hug, sweetheart.” 

                After releasing Kurt, Nana turned back to Blaine.  “How do you know Kurt?”

                “We met at the pool.  I'm giving him swimming lessons.”

                Turning to Kurt, she gave him an appraising stare.  “Are you in school?  Do you have a job?  What will you be pursuing as a career?”

                Kurt swallowed hard at the elderly woman's questions.  “Yes.  I'll be a senior at McKinley.  I work at my dad's tire shop.  I'd like to go to college in New York, and pursue a career on Broadway, or in fashion.”

                She seemed to think about Kurt's answers before announcing, “I like you, Kurt Hummel.”  Turning to Blaine, she added, “He's a keeper.  See to it you treat him right, or you'll answer to me, young man.”  She motioned for Blaine and Kurt to sit back down.

                She moved to sit on the arm of the couch next to Jeff.  “What are we watching tonight?”

                “Finding Nemo, Nana.  It's rated G,” offered Jeff.  “Do you want to watch with us?  We wouldn't mind.”

                Nana smacked Jeff on the arm lightly.   “You wouldn't mind.  Mind what, Jeffrey?  It's my house.  If I felt like watching I certainly wouldn't feel obligated to ask your permission.  Wouldn't mind.  It's one of those cartoon movies isn't it?  No, I haven't watched a cartoon movie since your grandfather took me to see that Bambi movie those bastards at Disney put out.  They killed Bambi's mother.  And that's supposed to be a children's movie?  What are children supposed to learn from that?  No thank you.  Does Nemo's mother die?”  Seeing Jordan's nod, Nana continued.  “See?  No, I'll not be watching movies that promote dead mothers.”  Nana made her way to the staircase, “See to it you behave.  I'll let you know when House of Chu delivers our dinner.”

                Austin buried his face in a couch pillow, shoulders heaving with laughter.  At fourteen, he'd yet to face his grandmother's inquisitions.  He felt a pillow hit his head and bounce off.  “Just you wait, A.  You're gonna bring someone home one of these days,” his brother warned.

                He peaked out, tears running down his face.  “Do you think I'm that dumb? I am never bringing someone home.  Ever.”  He couldn't help it.  The giggles burst forth again.

                The seven teens watched Finding Nemo, starting with chapter two – the first day of school – at Kurt's request.  “Another day,” is all he whispered to Blaine in explanation.  After the movie finished, they took a break to eat, diving into the take out containers from the delivery of Chinese food.  Kurt took great pleasure in teaching Blaine how to use chopsticks.  He had even more fun feeding Blaine off of his plate.

                “How is it, Anderson, that you never learned to use chopsticks?” Nick called over from the floor where he was sitting with Tori.

                Blaine rolled his eyes.  “It's all part of my flirt game, Duvall.  This way, the cute boys all want to feed me,” he teased, taking a bite of chicken off Kurt's chopsticks.

                Kurt raised an eyebrow at Blaine.  “All the cute boys, Anderson?  So how many guys have you used this move on?  How'd that work out for you?”

                Blaine couldn't read Kurt.  Not wanting to risk giving Kurt the wrong impression, he placed his plate on the floor and spun on the couch so he was facing Kurt.  He stole Kurt's chopsticks, carefully laid them across the plate, and put it next to his.  He took Kurt's hands in his and answered earnestly.  “It's all talk.  I've never made a move on a guy.  Period.  There's never been a guy I've wanted to make a move on.  Not until recently,” he emphasized.

                “Oh,” Kurt breathed.

                “Yeah, ‘oh',” Blaine whispered leaning forward slowly, hoping to steal a kiss from Kurt.

                Concentrating on not messing this moment up, Blaine failed to hear the basement door opening at the top of the steps.  “Blaine Anderson, what are you doing?” screeched Nana Sterling.

                Nana's question so startled Blaine that he overbalanced, fell on top of Kurt, and, in trying to roll off of him, stumbled and fell off of the couch onto the plates of food he'd carefully placed below.

                “That's karma, Blaine Anderson.  That's what you get for thinking about not being a gentleman,” called Nana before shutting the door again.

                Everyone burst out laughing. 

                “You all suck!” commented Blaine from his position on the floor. 

                Nick stood up and walked over to Blaine, offering him a hand up.  “Come on big boy, let's go get you changed.”  Seeing Kurt about to clean up the mess on the floor, Nick stopped him.  “Uh uh.  You are a guest.  Jeff can clean that up.”

                “Me?” Jeff asked incredulously.

                Nick nodded. “Yeah, impress Jordan with your willingness to pitch in.  I won't even tell her it was my idea,” he added, winking at Jordan who was sitting three feet away.

                “Ass,” muttered Jeff.

                Nick, who had been following Blaine towards the stairs, spun and walked directly over to Jordan, handing her his cell phone.  “The passcode is YODA.  I've got some great pics of Jeff at Dalton.  And by great, I mean totally embarrassing.”

                Looking back up at his best friend, Nick explained, “That was me being an ass – just so you can tell the difference next time.”

                Blaine started to freak out the minute their bedroom door closed.  “I can't believe I did that.  Shit, Nick.  He's gonna think I'm a klutzy idiot, now.  What the hell was I thinking?”  He struggled to remove his shirt and pants without flinging food everywhere.

                Nick stood up from the drawer he'd been digging in.  He held up a pair of grey yoga pants and a Dalton hooded sweatshirt.  “You were thinking, ‘Here's my moment'.  And the guy is head over heels for you.  I'm the straight one in our relationship and I can tell that.” 

                Nick walked over to Blaine and gripped his arm.  “I'm sorry your moment was ruined by Nana.  And I know it was embarrassing when we all laughed.  But it was freaking funny, Blaine.  And the reason I came all the way up here with you is because I know you're gonna get all obsessive and overthink this.  Don't.  This time you need to trust me.  He's totally in to you.  So put on these pants, ‘cause they make your ass look fantastic.  That's according to my girlfriend, by the way.  You're amazing and all, but still not interested.”

                Blaine offered his friend a small smile.  “Noted.  And the sweatshirt?”

                “Brings out the gold in your eyes.”

                “Tori tell you that, too.”

                “Nope.  That one is all me.”

                Nick opened his arms and allowed Blaine to fall into his hug.  “Love you, B.”

                It was three in the morning by the time Pete Sterling dragged his exhausted body home.  He'd put in enough time with the department to have some say in what shift he worked – and he enjoyed working swing.  It did, however, make having a ‘normal' relationship difficult.  Four days a week he left for work before Rebecca got home, and he was falling asleep just as she was getting up.  But the woman who'd stolen his heart seven years ago willingly put up with him, his schedule, and his job.  He was determined to make this work, just like his parents and grandparents had.

                Pete was used to the house being dark and quiet when he came home, so he was surprised to see the kitchen door closed with light peaking underneath.  Opening the door slowly, he peeked in to see Blaine sitting at the kitchen table, coffee mug in hand.  It was clear from the messy state of his curls, that Blaine had run his hands through his hair countless times.  “Hey, B.  Couldn't sleep?”

                Blaine didn't look up from his hands which gripped the mug even tighter.  “No, not really.”

                Pete walked over to the kitchen table, flipped a chair around, and straddled it.  “What's his name?”

                Startled, Blaine looked up. “How'd you know?” he asked quietly before dropping his gaze again.

                Pete chuckled softly.  “Well, we could pretend it's due to my amazing detective skills, given I worked in the detective bureau for three years.  Or, I could say it's because I'm the oldest of five boys – and all four of my brothers have sat here at this table with that same expression on their face due to some matter of the heart.  Hell, B, I had countless talks with my grandfather here about Rebecca.”  Pete was quiet for a few moments, remembering his grandfather fondly.

                “But, truthfully, Nana called me-”

                Blaine blanched.  “Your grandmother called you, about me?”

                Pete reached over and rubbed Blaine's curls fondly.  “Not totally.  She also wanted be to pick up her prescriptions and to stop by and check on Widow Castleman.  But she mentioned you had a friend over.  Said you two seemed smitten.”

                “Smitten?”

                “The woman is 88 years old, Blaine.  Do you really expect her to say you're hot for each other and hoping to hook up?” Pete answered with laughter in his voice.

                Blaine couldn't help but laugh as well.  “His name is Kurt.”

                Pete gestured with his hand for Blaine to continue.

                “He's amazing.  I mean…yeah, just, amazing.  We met at the pool.  He's taking swim lessons from me.”

                Pete leaned back, studying Blaine.  “Aye, and there's the rub.  Rebecca told you to back off while you're his instructor,” Pete stated.

                Blaine glanced up at Pete.  “Did she tell you that?”  He wasn't happy to be the subject of the family gossip train.

                Pete could see annoyance flair up in Blaine.  “Don't be mad at her.  We talk about everything.  No secrets.  She's concerned, that's all.  She said you two have clearly hit it off.  My fiancé wants to be supportive of her favorite Lima lifeguard in his new budding romance.  Your boss doesn't want you to lose your job because someone accuses you of inappropriate behavior or harassment.”

                “Kurt wouldn't do that,” argued Blaine.

                Pete held up a hand.  “It doesn't have to be Kurt, B.  I'm just saying, any one of the parents in the stands could call in with a complaint.  ‘It made me uncomfortable to see them that close.'  ‘They were inappropriate in front of my children.'  If Parks and Rec found out you were being paid to teach Kurt and were dating him – they'd fire you, no questions asked, no chance for rehire.”

                Blaine's head made a loud thunk as he hit it against the table.  “This sucks.”

                “Yes.  It does.  I don't mean to cut to the chase, but it seems to me you either hold off on asking him out, or you quit being his teacher.”

                Blaine's head shot back up.  “I can't quit, Pete.  Kurt trusts me.  He…he…look, some shit went down when he was little, which is why he never learned to swim.  He opened up to me, and yeah, I work with awesome people, but I just don't think he would be willing to share that with someone else.  And I don't mean that in quite the egotistical way it sounds.  Honestly, I think if I asked him to switch to someone else, I'd lose any chance with him – and he'd just give up on learning to swim.”

Pete placed his hand on Blaine's wrist.  “Well, it sounds like you're going to have to wait to put the famous Anderson moves on the boy.”  He saw Blaine smile which was his aim.  “B, if he's as amazing as you say he is, he'll still be there when you finish teaching him to swim.  Four years.  Four years where I only got to spend summers, Thanksgiving, Christmas and spring break with her.”

He knew immediately Pete was talking about his own relationship.  Blaine pressed his lips together in thought.  “Kurt's my Becca?  I kinda like that idea.”

Pete swung up from the chair.  “I thought you might.  Have you told him?  About…”

Blaine knew exactly to what Pete was referring.  Pete had come to Blaine four years ago, shortly after Jeff and Nick had brought him home to the Sterling's house in Westerville, and asked if he was the survivor from the Sadie Hawkin's attack.  Blaine had leaned on Pete for emotional support during the trial, knowing he didn't need to explain things to the police officer.

“No.  Not yet.  We really haven't known each other that long,” he admitted.

                Pete nodded in understanding.  “B- that whole situation seriously messed you up, and it seriously messed you up.  Don't let that boy fall in love with you until you can give him 110% of yourself.  Warts and all, B.  Because the guy you're meant to be with – he's not going to run away, he's going to hold on to you that much tighter.”

                Blaine turned so Pete wouldn't see him wipe away the tears in his eyes.  “Thanks, Pete.”

                “Anytime, B.”