Kurt watched, halfway stunned, as Blaine tried to struggle out of his blazer. He wasn't quite sure where that order had come from. He'd intended to move much more slowly, maybe asking Blaine to remove his clothing one piece at a time, not all at once. He'd said it without thinking. It was kind of encouraging, knowing that his dom instincts were working. But it was also kind of scary that he hadn't been able to control what he was saying.

He'd been completely caught up in Blaine's willing, eager submission. The way his lips had gently opened up under Kurt's. The way Blaine had tried to leave the room at Kurt's order, an order that wasn't even meant for him, that made no sense as an order to Blaine. An order that was physically impossible for him to even obey, as weak as he was, but that he'd tried to obey anyway, because Kurt had told him to. It was intoxicating, the confidence that flowed through Kurt at seeing how completely Blaine trusted him.

Except that Kurt didn't deserve that trust. He was messing everything up, saying things he didn't intend to say, moving much too fast. He would have to be much more careful than this.

Blaine had managed to take his blazer and tie off and was working on the top button of his shirt. "Wait ... wait just a minute, sweetheart," Kurt said.

Blaine's hands fell to his sides immediately. He looked up at Kurt, waiting, expectant. Kurt's heart melted. He was so trusting. Kurt would work as hard as he could to deserve that trust.

Kurt needed a moment to breathe, so he took Blaine's blazer and hung it on the back of a chair, threw the tie over it, and then walked back to sit near the couch again. "I'm so sorry. I started this up before establishing a safeword. We'll just use the standard ones, okay? Red for stop, yellow for slow down."

"Okay," Blaine said.

"Tell me what the safewords are."

"Red. Yellow."

"Would you like to use one of them now?"

"No."

Kurt looked at him for a minute, trying to figure out what to say next. "You can go back to ... um ... following that order now. I can help you if it's too hard." Kurt winced at the way he'd faltered, but Blaine didn't seem to mind.

Blaine silently undid his shirt buttons, one by one. He shifted, pulling one arm out of the sleeve, then the other. Kurt couldn't help staring. It was incredibly arousing to watch him slowly undress, and knowing that he was doing it at Kurt's command was almost too much to bear. Blaine tried to lift his shoulders to pull the shirt out from behind himself, but he fell back too quickly and it got stuck under his back. Kurt reached out and put his hand carefully on Blaine's shoulder, guiding him up and pulling the shirt free. His fingers tingled at the touch, skin on skin. He folded the shirt and placed it on the chair, and came back to find Blaine's pants undone.

Kurt swallowed hard. "I'll help you with your shoes."

"Thank you, Sir."

Kurt had never been called 'Sir' before. Not by anyone other than store clerks and waiters, anyway, where it was a stand-in for not knowing his name. Blaine called him 'Sir' with a tone of respect and obedience, even a little bit of awe. The word thrilled through Kurt. He felt more alive, more alert, than he had in a long time.

Kurt pulled off Blaine's shoes, one at a time, and his socks, too. He walked over and set them beside the chair. Kurt was a little bit afraid to turn around to look at Blaine again. He knew what was coming next, something had not expected to see anytime soon. He took a deep breath, centered himself in the alertness and not the fear, and turned around.

Blaine was wearing only a pair of navy blue boxer briefs, holding his pants in one hand. Kurt took the pants from him and stood, waiting. Blaine looked straight at Kurt, watching his face as he pushed down his underwear and moved his legs to get them all the way off.

Kurt's mouth was dry. His heart was racing. He couldn't let it show. He couldn't let any of it show. He did everything he could to maintain a neutral expression. Blaine had to think he was confident, or none of this would work. He didn't look down, he kept his gaze on Blaine's face. Carefully, keeping his eyes away, Kurt bent down to pick up Blaine's underwear where they had fallen on the floor.

"Good, sweetheart. Look at you, so beautiful and open for me."

Blaine beamed with pride at his words. Kurt's head spun. The words, again, had seemed to come out of nowhere, even as he had tried to watch only Blaine's face and not his body. His mind was flooded with thoughts of what he could do to that body. What he wanted to do—things he barely let himself imagine in the dark of his bedroom, alone and with the door locked at night. And now he was thinking them here, in a too-bright, too-public room, with a naked boy who would actually let him do those things. It was overwhelming. It was ... hot.

He busied himself folding Blaine's clothes and setting them down on the chair. A few deep breaths. Not looking at the terrifyingly, beautifully naked boy. There were so many options. Too many. Most of them were too scary to even consider seriously. Kurt knew this was going to have to involve an orgasm for Blaine, and probably one for himself as well. But those things could happen in so many ways. There were so many steps before then. So many decisions to make. He needed more input from Blaine, before he did something terribly wrong.

Blaine was taking up most of the space on the couch, leaving an empty strip just a few inches wide along the edge. Kurt perched there, facing out, and then turned his body to look at Blaine's face. He wished they had more space to work with, but this angle at least had the benefit of blocking the more nerve-wracking portions of Blaine's body from his view. "Could you tell me what you want? Things that you would like to do? I want to make sure I know what you're comfortable with."

"Anything," Blaine said. "Anything you want, I'll do anything."

"That's ... very nice," Kurt said. "But what do you want, in particular?"

Blaine licked his lips. "Anything. You. I want you. I want to submit to you. I want to please you, Sir."

"That's not what I asked, Blaine." Kurt said.

Blaine shut his eyes for a moment, then opened them. "I don't know ... I can't think ... I'm sorry. I don't know."

Kurt hummed thoughtfully. He'd never met this boy before. He knew nothing about him. How could he make choices without knowing what Blaine needed or wanted? And on top of that, how could he deal with Blaine not answering a question Kurt had directly asked him? Perhaps that was the place to start. The first task could be making Blaine ask for what he needed.

"Okay," Kurt said. "I'm going to need an answer from you soon. You're not going to get anything more than kisses until you can tell me something specific that you want. So you should think about that. While we're kissing." Oh god, while I'm making out with a naked guy.

Blaine nodded eagerly.

"Okay. You have five minutes to think about this. Starting now. I'm going to kiss you." Kurt groaned inwardly at how tentative and unsure he sounded. His nervousness must be practically plastered across his face. How could Blaine not see it? How could Blaine still want this, when Kurt was making so many stupid, nervous mistakes?

Blaine ... He looked so gorgeous as Kurt leaned over him. His eyes the color of honey, wide and innocent. His lips full and soft, practically crying out to be kissed. His chin tipped up, waiting for Kurt's mouth to meet his. He was irresistible. He was beautiful.

Kurt bent down the final inches and kissed him softly, his hands resting on the pillows beside Blaine's head. Their mouths moved together, opening, deepening the kiss. Confidence surged up inside Kurt, seemingly from nowhere. He could do this. This was how it was supposed to be. This was lovely. Blaine's hands on his shoulders felt so ... wait a minute.

Kurt pulled away. "I said nothing but kisses. Do I need to be clearer? That means no touching."

Blaine's dropped his hands immediately, but the small space meant that his right hand landed on Kurt's thigh instead of the couch. Blaine jerked it away again, shaking, but there was no obvious place to put it. "I'm sorry, Sir," he said, his voice trembling.

Kurt took Blaine's hand and guided it across his chest, placing it carefully on Blaine's left shoulder. He left Blaine's other hand straight down by his side. "Is this a comfortable position?"

"Yes."

"Good. Don't move your hands."

"Yes, Sir. I won't sir."

Kurt leaned down and went back to kissing him.

---------------------------------

It was bliss, to obey. Such a relief to simply follow directions, to have the choices taken away from him, to trust himself to the care of this confident, gentle man. Kurt, who kissed him so beautifully, sending all the blood rushing to Blaine's cock and leaving him dazed and almost unable to think. There were two orders now—don't touch and think of what he wanted—and Blaine tried to concentrate. He'd already failed once, and he hoped it wasn't too much of a disappointment to Kurt. His hands had found Kurt's shoulders automatically, he hadn't even realized he was doing it. But now the order was clear. Don't touch. Don't move hands.

Oh, but he wanted to touch so badly. His fingers twitched and he dug them into the bare skin of his own shoulder, trying to hold himself in place while Kurt worked his tongue inside his mouth. It was so hard, he was aching for more, he needed more.

Kurt pulled away from Blaine's mouth and spoke. "Five minutes is up. Tell me what you want."

It was so simple now, all of a sudden. The one order was the answer to the other. "I want to touch you."

Kurt hummed softly. It sounded like he was considering this. "Where?"

"Everywhere."

"You'll need to be more specific." And then Kurt was kissing his neck, the slightest hint of teeth against Blaine's skin, and Blaine whined at the effort it took to keep his body still, to keep his hands off Kurt's body that he wanted so badly to touch.

"Where?" Kurt asked again.

"Your back. Um, your arms. Shoulders. Your hair."

Kurt laughed. He sounded pleased. "I don't know, I'm pretty particular about my hair. You can touch my shoulders, we'll start with that. You're doing well."

Blaine's hands flew back to Kurt's shoulders practically of their own accord. Kurt's mouth was on his again, and god, Blaine could kiss Kurt forever.

"Keep talking," Kurt whispered. "Tell me more about what you want." He moved to kissing Blaine's neck, leaving his mouth free to talk. His kisses moved slowly up Blaine's neck and behind his ear. It felt so good, making it hard for Blaine to concentrate, but he struggled to think about what he wanted anyway.

"I want ... Can I move my hands? I want to touch your back, please, may I? It would feel so good, and I just want ... oh ... just a little bit more."

"That's a good boy, sweetheart," Kurt said. "You can touch my back, since you asked so nicely."

Blaine groaned with pleasure, sliding his hands down onto Kurt's back. Kurt locked his mouth on Blaine's again, thrusting his tongue inside, deepening the kiss and even rocking his body against Blaine a little bit.

"I want to touch your skin," Blaine said when Kurt came up for air. "Not just your shirt, I want ... I want to touch your body."

---------------------------------

Kurt didn't understand why he had butterflies in his stomach. Taking off his shirt was a completely anticipated turn of events. It wasn't even like it was something private or intimate. Men took their shirts off in public all the time. There was no reason he should be nervous about this.

He even wanted to do it. Making out with a guy—he'd never done it before—turned out to be incredible. He wanted more. The thought of Blaine's hands touching his skin while they were kissing ... it sent shivers of excitement down his spine. This was an easy yes. So why was he so nervous?

He asked Blaine to do it for him. Blaine took off Kurt's tie and started working on the buttons of his shirt one by one. Blaine had the same eagerness he'd had when removing his own shirt, but he fumbled less. He must be feeling stronger already, Kurt realized, and he was relieved. Maybe they'd be able to keep this simple after all. Maybe Kurt wouldn't be forced beyond his comfort level the way he'd feared.

Blaine pushed the fabric of Kurt's shirt back, over his shoulders and down his arms. It nearly fell to the floor before Kurt grabbed it and tossed it onto a nearby chair.

"May I?" Blaine whispered. Kurt nodded, so Blaine lifted the hem of Kurt's undershirt, pulling it up over Kurt's head. He tried to toss it to the chair, but his angle was all wrong and he missed.

"Just a minute, I'll get it," Kurt said. He got up to retrieve the shirt, folded it quickly and set it down with his other clothes.

When Kurt turned back, Blaine was staring at him, eyes wide. He suddenly felt self-conscious. Exposed. Which was ridiculous, because he only had his shirt off, and Blaine was lying there naked.

Blaine. Was lying there naked. In front of him.

Kurt let himself really look for the first time, standing there a few steps away from the couch. His eyes drifted down the angles of Blaine's body, taking in the curve of his muscles, the bit of softness in his stomach, the line of dark hair that started faintly and grew thicker as it went downwards toward ... Kurt made himself say the word in his head ... toward his cock. Blaine's cock, hard and glistening with precome at the tip, pointed up almost to his stomach. He must have been hard for ages, Kurt realized. The poor boy, waiting so long for relief, and Kurt had been making him wait even longer, and ... god, the whole thing was incredibly hot. Kurt felt himself going hard in his pants at the sight of this boy lying there, completely ready for Kurt to do with him whatever he wanted.

Blaine brought his hand to his cock and started stroking himself, and Kurt's reaction was immediate and almost violent.

"No!" Kurt said forcefully, almost shouting. "Don't touch yourself, don't even think about it. That's mine to touch."

Kurt almost groaned out loud as soon as the words escaped his mouth. He was an idiot. An absolute, complete idiot, and he kept making the same mistake over and over again. He kept saying things without thinking them through, giving orders that forced himself into more than he was ready for. Blaine touching himself would have been the perfect solution. Kurt could have ordered him to touch himself. In different ways. Slower. Faster. Kurt wouldn't have had to do anything at all, he could have just stood there and watched. But now that option was closed. He couldn't go back on the order he'd just given. He was trapped. He was going to have to touch Blaine's cock.

Fuck.

And at the same time, it was something Kurt desperately wanted to do. His instinct hadn't been wrong, even if it was something he didn't quite want to admit to himself.

Blaine was talking. What was he saying? It was a stream of begging, Kurt realized. "Yes, yes, please, touch me, I want you to touch my cock, oh please, Sir, won't you touch me, please ..." He went on and on, thrusting his hips up into the air desperately as he spoke.

"Shh, sweetheart, yes, I will," Kurt said, trying to calm Blaine. Trying to calm both of them. "Just let me figure out ... there's not enough room ... let me figure out the best way."

If he sat on the edge of the couch like he'd been doing, he couldn't watch Blaine's face. Maybe if he moved further down towards his feet? The angle seemed precarious, though, and Kurt didn't want to suffer the indignity of falling off the couch halfway through giving a handjob. He could pull a chair up alongside the couch again, but the height of it seemed too awkward. Kneeling on the floor beside the couch would work, but as a dom, he couldn't put himself in that position and maintain respect. He could straddle him, but that felt like a bit much.

The answer came to Kurt all at once. "Here, lift your legs up, I'm going to sit down and then you can put your legs on my lap, okay?" He helped Blaine shift his body a little bit, and then there they were, Kurt not-quite-trapped beneath Blaine's legs, his hands in just the right place over Blaine's naked body ... oh god, this was really going to happen.

Legs. Legs were not so scary. Kurt ran his hand from Blaine's knee up to his thigh, reveling in the texture of the coarse hair on his leg. More hairy than Kurt's own leg, and a darker color against his skin, more noticeable. Blaine gasped with pleasure at the touch, and he was still begging. "Please, Sir, please, I want you so bad, please."

Blaine was unbelievably gorgeous like this, laid out and desperate, writhing on Kurt's lap, his cock hard and leaking. Kurt wanted this more than he had anticipated. He was crazy with excitement, despite his nervousness.

"Okay, sweetheart," Kurt said. "Don't come until I say you can." That was a standard command, wasn't it? To keep in control of the situation. And Kurt definitely wanted to have some warning before that happened anyway.

Blaine nodded his agreement, so Kurt reached out his hand.

---------------------------------

Kurt's hand on his cock was the best thing Blaine had ever felt in his entire life. He could have come immediately, had Kurt not forbidden it. The touch of Kurt's two fingers on the head of his cock, tracing a line down slowly to the base, it was like nothing he had ever imagined. Sure, Blaine had touched himself before, in all kinds of ways, but this was not about the physical sensation. This was about letting himself go, accepting what his dom was doing, accepting whatever his dom would choose to do. It was a relief, it was amazing, and Blaine felt strength pouring back into his body as he concentrated on the order Kurt had given him—don't come—and nothing else.

Kurt was so good to him. Giving him everything he needed and wanted, everything he asked for. The way Kurt took control, so confident and relaxed ... Blaine was in awe of him, of this gorgeous boy who had come out of nowhere to his rescue.

But Blaine had given him nothing. Not nearly enough. Kisses, and Kurt had done most of the work there. Light touches on his back and shoulders, after he had allowed it. Blaine had just been lying here the whole time. It was much too easy. He needed to show Kurt how well he could truly submit. He wanted to be on his knees in front of Kurt, he couldn't just lie here and take and take without giving as much submission as he could.

"Sir," Blaine gasped out. "Please, I want to kneel for you."

---------------------------------

The room seemed to tilt on its axis as the image of Blaine on his knees and naked flashed before Kurt's eyes. It was the hottest thing Kurt could possibly imagine. He had to see it for real.

"Are you strong enough, sweetheart?" he asked.

"Yes, Sir, I'm feeling much stronger now." He did look stronger, Kurt thought. More color in his face. Smoother movements of his arms and legs.

"Okay," Kurt said. "Kneel for me. I'll help you up."

Blaine swung his feet over the edge of the couch, and Kurt pulled his arms to help him to a sitting position. He kept one hand in his, the other hand on Blaine's shoulder, guiding him to a kneeling position. Kurt made sure he was stable before letting go and standing, moving around to be facing him.

It was even hotter than he had imagined.

"God, Blaine, sweetheart, you are so beautiful like this," Kurt said, in awe at the sight. He couldn't think straight, it was too much, all his blood was rushing straight to his cock. It was twitching uncomfortably in his pants, god, he wanted so badly. He didn't even know what he wanted, as long as it was something.

"I want to suck your cock." Blaine blinked, as if the words had been a surprise to him, and then he started to beg. "Please, please, it is the only thing I've ever wanted, please let me suck your cock, oh god, I need it, please, oh god, please."

"Yes. Yes." Kurt gasped, without thinking. His hands flew to his belt and he was unfastening it before he knew what he was doing. He was fighting with Blaine's hands at his waistband, both of them trying to unbutton his pants at once, and then they were open and unzipped and shoved down to his thighs, and then he was trapped because he hadn't even taken his shoes off. The thought appeared in Kurt's head that he had been so careful about taking off Blaine's shoes and hadn't even remembered his own, and then that thought disappeared because his cock was in Blaine's mouth and it was impossible to think about anything at all.

There was no thinking. There was only feeling. The hot, wet stretch of Blaine's lips around him. Blaine's hands grasping desperately around his hips and ass. His fingers in Blaine's hair, sticky with gel and sweat. The tip of his cock tapping against the roof of Blaine's mouth with the small thrusts he couldn't help but make, trying to hold his hips steady enough not to overwhelm him. It was amazing, and Kurt was close to coming within seconds.

"Blaine, sweetheart," Kurt gasped out. "I don't want to come in your mouth. It's too much." There was a small whine from Blaine. "I'm going to pull out, and come on your chest. You're so good, sweetheart. So incredibly good, you're doing so well, you're amazing." There was a choked sob from Blaine.

Kurt pulled back, and then he was coming, hot white streaks all over Blaine's chest, marking him again and again, and Kurt was watching with wide eyes, almost as if it were happening to someone else entirely, not himself, no, this could not possibly be a thing he was doing.

Blaine sat back on his heels, his chest rising and falling with shallow, desperate breaths. He was still hard.

"Blaine ... you haven't come yet? God, sweetheart, why not?"

"You told me not until you said so," Blaine said simply.

Kurt's jaw dropped open. He'd completely forgotten about that. The poor boy. Kurt's stomach twisted. He was such a terrible dom, leaving his sub like this, taking his own pleasure while Blaine suffered. But oh, what beautiful submission.

He practically tackled Blaine, pushing him back onto the couch, laying full on top of him and covering him with kisses. "You're amazing, sweetheart, so incredibly good," Kurt said between kisses. "So good for me, I can't believe how good you've been. I'm going to give you a little bit more, a little bit for you, okay? Because you've been so good. Count to ten, and then you can come. Count it out loud for me."

Kurt didn't wait for Blaine to acknowledge it. He moved down Blaine's body, straddled his legs and gave his full attention to Blaine's cock.

"One," Blaine said. Kurt took Blaine's cock in his fist and circled his thumb around the head.

A long pause. "Two." Kurt's eyes rolled back in his head. He hadn't said how fast or slow to count. Blaine could have rushed through in a single breath, but he hadn't. He was drawing this out voluntarily, making it last longer. Kurt had come already, but he was wild with desire for this boy, this beautiful, perfect sub.

"Three." Kurt leaned down and kissed the tip of Blaine's cock lightly, just a little graze of his lips against the skin.

Blaine drew in a sharp breath. "Four," he said, his voice shaky. Kurt darted his tongue out to taste Blaine's precome, shivered a little at the bitterness of it.

"Fi— oh god, five. Five." Kurt took his hand off so he could lick a stripe all the way up from the base of Blaine's cock to the tip.

"Six." It was so overwhelming. The whole thing was ... Kurt couldn't think straight. He buried his face in the crease of Blaine's thigh.

"Seven." He touched again without looking, his hand stroking Blaine's length gently before he turned his head to watch.

"Eight." Kurt moved his face closer and kissed against the side of Blaine's cock.

Blaine took three deep breaths before he spoke again. "Nine." Kurt lifted his head up and kissed the tip again.

Blaine's voice shook. "Ten." Kurt sunk his mouth over Blaine's cock all at once, before he could lose his courage.

Blaine's whole body spasmed and he came with a shout, clearly not expecting this. Kurt took it all, his eyes wide in shock, tasting, swallowing Blaine's come, mouthing tenderly before letting his softening cock drop free. He sat there for a moment, across Blaine's legs, stunned, until he felt like he could move again.

---------------------------------

Blaine felt better than he'd felt in days. Months, really. Maybe ever. He felt safe and warm and completely, utterly relaxed. He felt himself being nudged to the side, turned, and he remembered that there was very little space here on the couch. He let Kurt roll him to the side, his back pressed up against the back of the couch, now face to face with Kurt. Their legs tangled together, their arms around each other, Blaine's face in the crook of Kurt's neck. They lay together, breathing softly, petting each other's faces and arms and backs, Blaine wasn't at all sure how long.

"How do you feel, sweetheart?" Kurt finally asked.

"Mmmm, wonderful," Blaine said. "Thanks to you."

Kurt stroked his hair gently. "I'm going to go find something to clean us up with, okay? You wait here, I'll be right back."

Blaine nodded. He took a deep breath as Kurt pulled away from him. He wondered whether this was the end of the cuddling, or whether Kurt would lie down again later. He could stay there cuddling for days, he was sure, but the loss of it felt not so terrible now as it would have a few minutes before. He was strong again. He could handle this.

Kurt returned, wearing black pants and black socks and nothing else, his chest glistening with drops of water. He had a cloth in his hand, and as he came closer, Blaine saw that it was Kurt's own undershirt, wet from the sink. He started dabbing Blaine's face with it.

"Kurt, that's your shirt! Don't you need it?"

Kurt shrugged. "Nobody will notice if I don't have an undershirt under my button-down. It's fine." He moved to wiping off Blaine's chest, then his thighs and his flaccid cock. Blaine was slightly embarrassed to be touched like this. They'd just had sex, for god's sake, this shouldn't be embarrassing. But now they were no longer caught up in the moment, and Blaine's head was clear. Now there was actually time to think about what was going on. Kurt seemed so calm and collected, though, so sweet, that it set Blaine almost at ease.

Kurt tossed the shirt behind the couch where Blaine couldn't see, and then stood there for a moment. "Do you want ... should I lie back down and cuddle some more?" he asked.

Blaine desperately wanted to say yes, but it felt like it would be an imposition. He sat up instead. "No, no, you don't have to ... I guess I should get dressed."

Kurt sat down next to him. "Promise me one more thing, before this is over. One last command for you to follow."

"Okay," Blaine said. He couldn't fathom what Kurt could possibly want at this point, though.

"Don't let yourself get this sick again," Kurt said. "Take care of yourself, find a dom before you collapse from it next time. It will be three or four months before you absolutely have to do this again. That should be plenty of time to find someone you're comfortable with. Okay? Promise?"

Blaine smiled sadly. It was so sweet for Kurt to care about his well-being this way. But Blaine still didn't know where he'd find another dom. And even if he did, how could he possibly be as good as this wonderful man who had walked into his life today?

No use worrying about it now. He had months to figure this out. "I promise," he told Kurt.

"Good. You can go ahead and get dressed now."

They averted their eyes as they dressed, suddenly shy after everything they'd shared. Blaine shifted his jacket so that it sat properly on his shoulders, tightened the knot of his tie, smoothed his hands over his hair one last time. He looked up at Kurt, standing there, waiting for him to be ready.

It felt odd, staring at each other in their competing showchoir uniforms. A moment ago they'd just been two boys, together and intimate in their skins. Now they were practically rivals, Blaine in his Dalton blazer and Kurt in this black-on-black ensemble. They were just a few steps away from each other, but it felt like miles.

Kurt closed the distance, put his hand on Blaine's upper arm. "You okay?"

Blaine nodded. "Thank you again. I know this was ... not what you expected to be doing today."

Kurt laughed. "You really are a sweetheart. Can I hug you?"

"Of course."

They put their arms around each other, one last time, holding tight just a minute longer than an ordinary hug would last. Finally they pulled back, smiling softly at each other.

"Okay. Here goes." Blaine walked to the door of the room and opened it.

---------------------------------

Blaine's teammates were, as they'd said they'd be, right outside the door. Kurt shrank back as they swarmed into the room, crowding around Blaine, hugging him, checking to see that he was all right. Kurt wondered how much they'd heard through the door. How loud had they been? He wasn't sure.

It was overwhelming, all these people. All these strangers. Nobody spared a thought for Kurt, so he slipped out unnoticed, into the hallway.

His footsteps echoed loud in his ears as he walked down the empty hall. His heart pounded. What had just happened? He couldn't process it. His mind was racing with sounds, sights, smells, sensations ... It was too much, it was all at once, he hadn't meant for any of it to happen, it had just happened, how could this have happened?

He needed a moment. Just a moment to collect himself. Some water to splash on his face, maybe. There was a men's room up ahead, and he ducked in, found it as empty as the hallway had been. He wanted to lock the door, but there was no lock on the entrance, so he leaned back against the door, blocking it shut in case anyone might happen by.

A deep breath should calm him down, but it didn't. Instead, it shook his whole body, trembling, as he heaved in and out. His legs buckled under him and he sank to the floor, tears suddenly streaming down his face. What was happening to him? What was this? Why couldn't he think? Kurt pressed his forehead to his knees, wrapped his arms around his legs in a fetal position, and against his will, he began to sob.