“Why would you EVER close those eyes and hide them from the world?” was all Kurt could think about as he continued to stare right at Blaine. His eyes were this delicious shade of honey brown, and they actually twinkled under the glow of the Christmas lights strung above the stage. All of his dark features only highlighted the sheer sparkle even more. And the best part of his eyes? They hadn’t moved at all from Kurt’s for what was now feeling like an eternity, not that Kurt minded in the slightest.

Blaine had this strange look in his eyes. Kurt felt like he was looking directly into his soul. He’d just poured out his soul on that stage, and Kurt wanted to know every thought that was crossing Blaine’s brain at that very moment. He wanted to know every memory that had brought him to that place. He wanted to know his hopes and dreams. Basically, he wanted to know everything that was Blaine Anderson.

When Brody’s voice echoed in the room, Kurt finally broke his gaze, and quickly spun around to the bar. Had he just made that up in his head? There was no way he’d just witnessed the world’s sexiest man sing and play a Katy Perry song. It’s as if those ridiculously corny lyrics were ringing true. Kurt’s heart really had stopped when he looked at him, and now he really couldn’t look back. He stared down at the napkin his diet coke had been resting on, and watched as the condensation pooled around the bottom. He tried to collect his thoughts, but the only thing there was Blaine. He had to get to know this boy.

“Hey kid, you alright? You’ve been staring at that napkin for like 2 solid minutes now. Why aren’t you up there gracing us with another one of Streisand’s greatest hits?” The bartender said, effectively bringing Kurt out of his trance.

“Oh, yeah, sorry. Just a lot on my mind.”

“Well, if you’re gonna blow us away tonight, you better do it soon. It’s 11:45, and we’ve gotta run you kids out at midnight.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Kurt had kinda forgotten all about the fact that he was actually going to sing tonight.

“Can you believe that Blaine guy? Seriously, amazing. Oh, but like, you are SO much better Kurt, seriously, don’t even worry about it!” Rachel said, noticing that Kurt looked to be quite flabbergasted. Did she really think he was just worried about competition? The idea that Blaine was still competition hadn’t even crossed his mind.

“Yeah, amazing.” What an understatement, he thought.

“So…what are YOU going to sing tonight?”

Kurt had been so moved by Blaine, that the thought of going on stage and giving anything less than a stellar performance was out of the question. He wanted, no, needed, to impress Blaine. The whole night he’d been worried about making the perfect impression on all the new students, but now he could really care less. Who cared if Blonde boy #1 thought he was Broadway worthy? All he really cared about was impressing the boy with the black hair and golden eyes.

“I think I’m gonna go with one of my Beatles classics.” Kurt said, after mentally cataloging all of his favorite songs to sing, finally settling on “I Wanna Hold Your Hand.” After all, it was the perfect song to sing to the person that had now captivated your every thought.

“Oh my gosh, I have chills! You know how much I love your Beatles voice! Ok, you gotta let me introduce you, and let everyone know how much I love you!” Rachel said, leaning up and kissing him on the cheek.

Kurt steeled his nerves, stood up and smooth out his shirt and pants, and prepared for what could be his most important performance ever.

“Hey guys, Rachel Berry again! I’d like to welcome my best friend in the world to the stage, Mr. Kurt Hummel!”

Kurt walked on the stage, a few claps and cheers from his NYADA acquaintances, but all he could do was scan the room for Blaine. Was he over talking to Brody? No, not there. Could he be talking with Laura and the girl at the door? Nope. Where was he? “I have been zoned out at the bar for a while. Maybe he went to the bathroom.”

Kurt began the song, but soon his thoughts took him captive. “How cute would it be for Blaine to hear me while he’s washing up in the bathroom, and come walking lovingly up to the stage, and take me by the hand…”

He began to sing louder, with more passion. Blaine had to hear him, right? The walls weren’t that insulated. Even if he didn’t know it was him, surely he wanted to know who the voice was coming from. But as loud as he got, Blaine never came out.

Kurt sang along, never missing a note or a beat, but he was on complete auto-pilot. His eyes had scanned the room 20 times or more, and there was absolutely no sign of Blaine. The man of his dreams had disappeared, practically into thin air. Maybe he really had been dreaming all along. Was he asleep right now, simply making this whole night up in his head? It wasn’t the first time his imagination had gotten the best of him, and it had been a pretty long day. But then there was applause, and Rachel’s body wrapped around his. No, he was still awake, just not quite in the world at the moment.

“You sounded gorgeous, as usual, but are you okay? Your eyes look a little glazed over.” Laura said as she was grabbing her coat, and following Kurt and her friends out the now closing bar.

“Yeah, sorry…guess I’m just tired. Big day tomorrow.”

Kurt just wanted to go home and sleep. His nerves were wild. Why did Blaine leave? Was he really that freaked out that Kurt was looking at him? “I bet he’s not even gay. Oh God, and he’s from Ohio…oh God…” Kurt thought about how all the other guys he knew from back home had reacted when Kurt’s glances lingered for longer than they deemed acceptable. Obviously, Blaine had to be disgusted. He’d obviously ran away as fast as he could. Yep, what felt like the best experience of his life had just turned into a night mare.