Kurt brought Blaine to his favorite jewelry store, the one that had quirky, fashionable choices and the best discounts in the city. "I'd buy you a ring, but if we want to keep this secret, you couldn't wear it. So maybe something else? A bracelet or a pin or something?"

Blaine considered this. "Everyone would question it if I started wearing jewelry all of a sudden, no matter what it was. Especially if I wore the same thing every day. You might get away with it as a fashion statement, but I wouldn't."

"What about a watch?"

Blaine cupped his left hand around the watch he always wore on his right wrist. "But I already have a watch."

"Does it mean anything special to you?"

He shook his head. "No, it's just a watch."

Kurt smiled. "No problem, then. You're upgrading to a nicer watch."

Blaine unbuckled the strap and put his old watch away in his pocket. "Okay. But I want you to get a matching one."

"Deal."

They chose a simple, minimalist design, black and silver with no markings for the hours at all. "If we were having a ceremony to exchange these," Kurt said as he fastened Blaine's watch around his wrist, "I would have a poetic speech planned. It would be something about time and timelessness, about doing things at the right time and the wrong time, about now and forever and endless love. But it would take days to work out the right words."

"I'll just consider that you've expressed the appropriate sentiment," Blaine said. He picked up Kurt's watch and fastened it around his wrist. "And I'll say, I will love you until the end of time."

"Come what may..." Kurt whispered.

They both sniffled a little, trying not to cry.

They walked out of the shop together, Kurt's left hand holding Blaine's right so that their identical watches were side by side.

"I never told you this," Blaine said hesitantly, "but I bought you a ring one time. An engagement ring."

Kurt turned his head to look at Blaine. "Really? When?"

"When you were visiting Ohio during Regionals. I was going to ask you to marry me, but I ended up not ... I decided it was a bad idea."

"We weren't even together," Kurt said, shocked.

"Well, to be fair, we weren't together when you asked me to marry you yesterday," Blaine pointed out.

"Touche."

"But yeah, that's basically why I didn't ask. I was too afraid you'd say no, and get mad at me. And besides, everyone said it was a terrible idea."

Kurt raised his eyebrows. "You talked to other people about it?"

Blaine blushed a little bit. "Yeah ... Sam and Tina and ... um ... your father ..."

"You asked my father if you could marry me?"

"Yeah ... he said no."

Kurt cracked up. "I bet he did!"

"He said we were too young and I was rushing things and I should grow up."

Kurt nodded and hiccupped a little, breathing deeply and trying to pull himself back together. "All those things are true."

"He also said it would work out in the end."

"That's also true."

"Your dad is a smart guy," Blaine said.

Kurt nodded. "He really is."

"I can't tell whether we're following his advice right now or breaking it."

"Both?" Kurt suggested.

Blaine hummed thoughtfully.

"I hate keeping secrets from him," Kurt said, "but I really do think we shouldn't tell him we got married. He won't understand. He won't really approve, even if he doesn't say anything. And he'd be so disappointed that he wasn't there for the wedding.

Blaine nodded. "It's okay. Nobody needs to know. Like you said before, we'll have a big wedding one day, with all our family and friends, and there's no reason anyone needs to know that's not our official wedding day."

"I feel so stealthy," Kurt said, grinning.

"A secret wedding that nobody knows about except us," Blaine said. "It's kind of romantic."

"Intrigue! Drama! Suspense!"

"Comfort. Happiness. Love."

They didn't even care that strangers were watching them as they kissed in the middle of the crowded sidewalk.