Given the short duration of most Hollywood relationships, it has often been wondered which is better: to date someone within the entertainment industry or outside of it? Dating someone inside the business has definite advantages, since the partner understands the demands of the job and is less likely to be upset by the physical intimacy required for on-screen love scenes. But there are perils to be had also, as jealousies over success and money have been the downfall of many a celebrity couple. Those stars who date 'normal' people, like actor Kurt Hummel, who recently announced his relationship with nanny Blaine Anderson, have to deal with a significant other who never signed up to live under the celebrity microscope and who may not be comfortable with the attention and notoriety that follows. In some cases, like that of Anderson, there may also be speculation that the star is being taken advantage of, being used by their non-famous companion in order to gain fame or a career for themselves.

No matter which path they choose, the romantic lives of famous personalities are not easy ones. — thebeatandthebuzz, November 28th, 2018

=^..^=

Blaine dreamt that he was a farmer caring for an entire herd of tea cup pigs. They ran here and there on tiny little legs and were as hard to contain as cats. When he finally caught one he picked it up and it opened its mouth and beeped at him over and over. The dream broke apart and Blaine began to swim up into consciousness, but the beeping remained. Finally, he was awake enough to realize that the noise came from his phone, tucked into the pocket of his jeans that were draped over the chair next to the bed. He moved an arm towards it, careful not to disturb Kurt, who was spread out over his chest. He was finally able to snag the material with his fingers and pulled the pants close enough so that he could fish out the offending device. He silenced the alarm and groaned, remembering that he had an appointment that morning that he couldn't miss.

His company required that all employees undergo regular testing and certification for a laundry list of skills and today was Blaine's physical evaluation. He had notified Bev and they had agreed that Kurt could stay home by himself as long as he promised not to leave the house. Kurt had grumbled something about people in prison having more freedom, but he hadn't really tried to argue. Blaine looked at his phone again, seeing that he only had 20 minutes before the car was going to come pick him up. He had planned on driving himself, but Kurt had insisted that he let Bill drive him where he needed to go instead, saying that Bill had a grandkid on the way and could use the extra hours. Blaine scooted Kurt to the side gently and slipped out of bed, kissing him on the forehead before slipping out to his own room to dress. Kurt woke enough to smile softly at him and watched him go. After dressing, Blaine returned to Kurt's room and kissed him awake again, reminding him of the appointment and promising to be back before Kurt needed to leave for a costume fitting at the studio.

After a little small talk with Bill, Blaine let his thoughts wander as he stared out the window of the car. He couldn't stop replaying the events of the previous night in his head. It had been amazing, mind blowing, incredible, astonishing, and a thousand other superlatives that all boiled down to it being one of the best nights of his life. The chemistry between them had been nothing like he'd ever experienced and it made him regret all the time that they had both fought their attraction. Neither one of them had said anything yet, but he was sure that there were feelings involved on both sides and he couldn't wait to get home to talk to Kurt about it. The thoughts of Kurt made him reach for his phone, so that he could send Kurt a quick message, but after patting his pockets several times he realized he had left his phone on Kurt's bedside table. Oh well, it could wait.

Bill pulled up to the front door of the testing facility and Blaine hopped out, promising to call when he was ready to be picked up. As he changed into his workout clothes he pushed all thoughts of Kurt aside. He had tests to ace.

Hours later, Blaine arrived back at the house and dropped his keys and a small paper sack on the entry table before hanging his coat up in the closet. He looked at the clock on the wall and grinned; the tests hadn't taken as long as he had expected, so he was back a few hours early. Maybe Kurt was up for a repeat performance before they had to leave for the studio.

Kurt's door was open slightly and it sounded like he was on the phone, so Blaine paused, not wanting to interrupt. He was about to turn away when Kurt said something that stopped him dead.

"I think the fact that you were okay with me being by myself today proves that I don't really need a daily bodyguard anymore. It's been over a month since the thing with the car and that was probably just the last gasp of an overblown crush. I bet we never hear from them again." Kurt paused, obviously listening to the response of the person on the other end of the line. "I just…Bev, this whole bodyguard thing makes me so uncomfortable and the close quarters is leading to some…misunderstandings." There was another pause. "No, he hasn't done anything wrong. It's just – just not working out, that's all."

Blaine felt the bottom drop out of his stomach as the air rushed out of the room. Kurt thought their night together had been a mistake and he obviously couldn't wait to get Blaine far, far away from him. Once again Blaine wasn't good enough, wasn't worth keeping around. He felt a pressure behind his eyes as tears threatened. Why had he expected anything different?

Well, at least this way he got the news all at once, like a Band-Aid ripped off in one swift pull instead of the long drawn-out 'maybe they'll love me if I'm smarter, stronger, better' drama he'd experienced with his parents. It shouldn't hurt so much, given how new the turn in his and Kurt's relationship was, but it felt like a huge loss, maybe because it wasn't just the loss of a 'something', but a loss of a 'could have been'. Blaine braced himself against the wall with one hand, his head dropping down until his chin hit his chest. It was for the best then that they hadn't talked about feelings or the future. It would have hurt all the more to have his feelings thrown back in his face.

This was his fault really. It had been so unprofessional to get involved with a client, especially one he was living with. It compromised his ability to protect Kurt and led to —what was the word Kurt had used? Ah, yes — misunderstandings.

He had two options, really: he could resign and let Bev hire someone else to protect Kurt or he could stay and ignore everything that had happened the night before. Leaving would be the responsible decision; another bodyguard would almost certainly do a better job given the circumstances and it would be the better thing for Kurt, who obviously didn't want him there any longer. He'd just call Bev in the morning and let her know. He'd give her a few days to find a replacement and help them craft a story explaining his departure.

After a few moments it registered that Kurt was still talking with Bev and it sounded like she was unwilling to grant his request to relieve Blaine of his position. Blaine backed up silently, picked up his keys and bag and left the house, closing the door behind him. He counted to a hundred then walked back through the door, making sure to make a lot of noise this time, professional mask tightly in place.

=^..^=

Kurt hung up the phone and was suddenly overwhelmed with relief that Bev hadn't taken his suggestion.

Things had started out smoothly that morning. He'd fallen back asleep after Blaine left and had woken up an hour later to the strange feeling of being alone in the house for the first time in almost three months. He'd been halfway out of bed when memories of the night before flooded over him and he'd fallen back onto the mattress and rolled around, screaming into his lilac-sprigged silk comforter like a teenage girl. After five minutes (okay, ten minutes) of writhing around with a stupid grin on his face, he'd finally gotten up and put on a favorite outfit that always made him feel good (even more so after having seen the "Kurt's Ass Looks Great In These Jeans" gif set on Tumblr). The jeans were distressed just enough to be fashionable without looking like he was trying too hard and the light pink Henley was tailored to perfection and skimmed nicely along his biceps. The gray wool vest was vintage from the 1940s and the whole thing was topped off by an exquisite gray tie dotted with little cog wheels, like the inside of an exploded clock.

Then things had started to go wrong. Left to his own devices he'd had too much time to think and began to panic and second guess himself. He knew the situation was different, but it still felt too much like the one-night-stands in his past, when a guy he'd been with practically left behind a man-shaped hole in the door in his hurry to leave after the deed was done. Many of those too had started out with a seductive dance that led to an almost wordless hook-up. As he spiraled into a pit of self-doubt he kept hoping for a call or text from Blaine, anything to reassure him, but nothing came. I told himself that Blaine was busy and that the silence meant nothing, but it didn't help.

In the end, all he could picture was Blaine coming back from his meeting and telling Kurt that while it had fun, their night together had been a mistake and that Kurt wasn't what he was looking for. Caught up in his doomsday scenario he'd found himself with the phone in his hands, looking to head off the heartbreak he just knew was coming. Thankfully unlike him, Bev was a calm, rational person and had categorically denied his request.

He heard the door open and the sound of keys hitting a hard surface and his heart began beating loudly in his ears. Blaine was back earlier than expected and the combination of excitement and the residual fear he still hadn't been able to shake made his limbs tremble as he walked out to greet him. He came around the corner and found Blaine hanging his coat up, his sweater riding up to expose that wonderful rear end that had been one of the first things Kurt had noticed about him. "Welcome back," he called out softly. "It seemed so strange to have the house all to myself today."

Blaine didn't look up as he began sorting through a pile of mail that he must have picked up from the post office while he was out. "I'm sure you made good use of your time," he said tersely as he separated the mail into two piles.

Kurt frowned, a little taken aback at how distant Blaine was being. There was no eye contact, no warmth, nothing. If he didn't know better he would have thought he had imagined the previous night. "Did the tests not go well?"

"They were fine. Passed with flying colors." Blaine picked up the smaller pile of mail and walked towards Kurt.

Thinking that Blaine was coming to him, Kurt reached out to grasp his hand, but Blaine shied away before they touched and continued off down the hallway. Kurt watched him go in confusion, trying not to be hurt by the rejection. He followed Blaine to his room and watched as he toed his shoes off, kicking them into the closet. "Is something wrong? Did we get another letter?"

"No, everything's fine, but I have to shower before we leave for the studio, so if you don't mind?" Blaine herded Kurt back through the door, shutting it in his face. Kurt stood motionless in the hallway until he heard the shower start.

For a minute Kurt wondered if he had been right in his earlier paranoid thoughts. Maybe Blaine was rejecting him, but since they worked together he wanted to pretend as if things hadn't changed between them. He replayed the last few minutes in his mind. Blaine's attitude wasn't so much one of disinterest as one of anger and hurt. Had he done something to make Blaine mad at him? Kurt retreated to his room, not wanting to push things. If Blaine didn't want him he wasn't going to push it. He would play along and try to act like nothing had happened, like his heart wasn't slightly cracked.