Kurt had always had problems in the field of love.

When he was younger he remembered looking at his parents kissing each other in front of him. He used to react with a grimace that made his parents laugh.

He watched tons of movie about love, but he couldn’t understand what made so grand saying “I love you” or kissing. Mouths colliding, exchanging of saliva and twisted tongues.

Another grimace.

Probably, Kurt couldn’t understand love because he had never been in love, and he never felt anything towards the girls of his age.

Nevertheless, when he was 7 and his friend Mark took his hand to run to the ice-cream parlour, something moved inside of him. No, it wasn’t just his grumbling stomach.

When he realized that all those gestures that Mark did for him made his heart bump, he decided to talk about it to someone. So, now that he was a grown-up, he talked to his dad.

He couldn’t go to his mother because she had passed away a few months before.

Burt, with a lot of patience, explained to his son that, maybe, he wasn’t like the other boys.

At the beginning, Kurt was a bit confused. I mean, it's a lot of news for a 9 years old boy.

Then his father talked about love and the place where children come from, and he started dealing with bugs and flowers. Kurt burst into tears because he couldn’t understand his father’s speech.

When he was alone in his room, laying on his bed, he started thinking.

At the end of the day he had always known he was different from his friends.

An example: girls always hold other girls’ hand. Boys don’t; and Kurt wanted to hold Mark’s hand so badly.

Girls play “Tea-Time”, while boys play at war with their weapons. Kurt had a few too, but they were somewhere, lost in his wardrobe.

Every now and then, when his dad would come home later from the workshop, the old lady who lived  across the street stayed with Kurt and they spent their time drinking tea, reading old magazines and gossiping.

Kurt felt closer to the girls then to the boys.

At the age of 11 he had enough information to know that boys who like boys are called homosexuals, gays. But, if someone wanted to mock them, or hurt them, those name became worse: fagots, butt-boys.

Kurt grew up: his body and his interests too.

He got interested into fashion and he started wearing fancy clothes.

He discovered that he liked singing and wearing fabulous and enormous hats.

Kurt  liked being himself; but not everybody shared his way of thinking.

The other boys pushed him and insulted him.

Every night he used to come home and tell everything that happened to his dad.

Kurt begged him not to intervene because he didn’t want to make things worse.

Burt agreed, but Kurt, in spite of Burt's presence, he felt alone.

***

Kurt Hummel managed to understand what being in love means at the age of 14, when a boy came into his life: Blaine Anderson.

The Anderson family moved next to the Hummels after the Robinsons had gone.

Kurt was happy that they moved to Canada: he didn’t like their son, he was one of those kids who used to push him into the sandbox or made him fall from the swing set saying that he didn’t do it on purpose.

Kurt breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the last box in the truck and waved at the leaving family with a big smile on his face.

But, when the Andersons arrived, the problems became bigger.

 Kurt saw the car’s door opening and a curly short boy running out of the vehicle to catch his dog who had escaped. The boy stumbled swearing to his dog.  Kurt was watching the scene from behind his window and laughed.

In that moment, the dark boy, who was checking at his knee, saw him. His honey eyes met Kurt’s sky ones. The brunet was embarrassed and hid behind his room’s wall and hoped the other boy wasn’t mad at him for laughing.

***

When Burt came home that night he went straight to the neighbours’ to welcome them: Kurt was forced to join him.

To the boy’s relief, the Anderson kid wasn’t at home when they arrived. He knew he would start stammering at his presence.

Kurt didn’t pay much attention to the adults’ conversation, until he heard Melanie Anderson saying “Blaine, our son, will go to McKinley High too. He and Kurt could become great friends, maybe.”

To Kurt’s opinion that was a great idea. After a first moment of shame, they could totally become good friends.

When the Hummels left their neighbours’ house, Kurt went straight to his room to reflect.

Having a new friend would be funny, especially now that he had a new challenge in front of him: High School.

Maybe Blaine was a king guy. They would share their lunch and help each other.

To Kurt that was a hell of a plan.

***

On Sunday morning, when Kurt went out to throw away the garbage, he saw the Andersons’ door opening and a dog running out of it.

“Shane! Wait for me!” Blaine shouted.

Wow! Blaine's voice sounded like heaven to Kurt’s ears.

Shane approached him and began sniffling at his feet. He froze,  terrified: that was a huge Labrador.

“I’m sorry. He never listens to me. Come here boy.” With the bag still in his hands, Kurt looked at the boy who was struggling to put the lash on the dog.

When the mission was over their eyes met for the second time.

“I’m Blaine.”

“Kurt.”

“You are Burt Hummel’s son, right? Do you think he could repair my bike? Unfortunately, it got damaged during the travel and my mom told me that your dad repairs cars, so I thought –”

“I can do it. If you want.”

Blaine exulted and his eyes became even wider. After a few seconds, Kurt realized he was holding his breath.

“My parents also told me that we’ll go to the same school. Cool! At least we won’t be all by ourselves.” Blaine said, always with the same enthusiasm.

“Yep.” muttered Kurt. “Now I really have to go.” and, without waiting for an answer from Blaine, he entered the house slamming the door.

It would have been difficult. Very difficult.

***

The first day of school Kurt couldn’t wait for Blaine. He was too embarrassed because he had spent the night thinking about him. Dreaming about him.

At school, among the people, he managed to find an old friend of his: Rachel Berry, so they decided to have lunch together.

At the end of the lessons, while he was at his locker, Kurt heard someone calling his name.

“Kurt! Hey, Kurt! I didn’t see you this morning.” Blaine approached him holding a huge amount of books in his arms and a pencil stick stuck in his hair. He looked so adorable to Kurt.

“I was late” Kurt answered while he was watching at himself in his mirror.

“Can we go home together?” Blaine proposed. Kurt simply nodded, but his eyes widened when he saw two jocks throwing down Blaine’s books.

“Hey loser, did Hummel infect you?” asked one of the boy laughing. “We meet again lady. Uh? We didn’t have the chance to tease you enough at the middle school, so.. here we are!”

Blaine remained still watching them while Kurt bent down to pick up the books and give them to their confused owner.

“Wh- what did they mean?” Blaine asked smiling at Kurt for the books.

“Nothing… really. We should go.”

Kurt was quite as they were returning home; on the contrary, Blaine told him everything he had done that day. It looked like they attended different schools.

When they reached Blaine’s house the boy invited Kurt inside for a fresh lemonade.

It was September and it was still hot.

“I’m sorry for the boxes but we are still in the middle of the transfer and –”

“Blaine, is it you?” his mother shouted coming downstairs and smiling at Kurt when she saw him. “Hi boys. What are you up to?”

“Kurt and I are gonna have a lemonade, mom.” Blaine said showing her the glasses.

“Okay, take your time and, Blaine, remember to tidy up room.” Her son rolled his eyes under Kurt’s amused gaze.

“Come, I’ll show you my room.” Blaine instinctively took his hand.

Oh! Blaine’s hand was so much better than Mark’s.

“That’s it” Blaine said, ashamed of the disorder.

Kurt stood still for a moment to give a look around: he saw a guitar with a few sheets besides, a box with a printer inside and a computer with the wires still disconnected.

There were some cameras, more than a single boy need, and a large number of awards over a shelf.

A couple of CDs caught Kurt’s attention.

“Katy Perry, P!nk… nice music.”

“Do you like ‘em? Seriously?”

Kurt nodded. Sure he was more a Broadway kind of guy, but this girls’ songs weren’t bad at all.

“What about these?” Kurt asked pointing at a few DVDs, “have you got a younger brother or sister?” he asked looking at Blaine who was scratching the back of his neck nervously.

“nope, they’re mine. I’ve got an elder brother, though. But he doesn’t watch them.”

“Oh” was all that came out from Kurt’s lips.

Blaine smiled at him, gave a shrug and then sat on his bed.

“Kurt, what were those guys talking about? Do you know them?”

Kurt began to stammer a few disjointed sentences that Blaine couldn’t understand.

“Hey Kurt, calm down. I won’t judge you. No matter what you say. Maybe we are more alike then what you think.”

Kurt didn’t catch what he meant, but he decided it was time to go.

“I’m sorry, Blaine. I’ve gotta go. You know, homeworks  to do and… and…” Kurt was already at the front door when he realized he was still holding the glass, so he went back to Blaine’s room to leave it and ran away, again.

Now he knew what “being in love” means.