As soon as Blaine's grandparents and Cooper left, the vacation really began, at least for Kurt.  Once again he was free to just relax at Shelby's house, now with Blaine stealing kisses and cuddles whenever they were left alone.  

Not that Shelby didn't pick up on the fact that their relationship status had changed.  The instant Cooper had walked in on them engaged in lip locking, he made sure that everyone knew.  Blaine's grandparents were less than impressed, Blaine's step-dad was confused because he thought they already were involved, and Shelby apparently just grinned and said “About time”.

A little voice inside Kurt kept telling him that this was the way things were supposed to be between two people, usually whenever he realized how foreign his interactions with Blaine were.  He had been with a lot of men, more than he'd ever care to admit, but this whole thing with Blaine was all new.  Kissing, snuggling, enjoying one another without having to talk or do anything else.  He may as well have been a blushing teenager when it came to all this, and he was definitely feeling like one.

Now he could watch Blaine swim in the pool without having to make it seem like he was merely staring into space and Blaine just happened to be in his field of view.  Boyfriends were allowed to look at one another after all, at least that's what the websites Kurt had been consulting had said - not that he'd ever admit to looking at them.  He needed a frame of reference though, and since had no other place to ask, the internet served that purpose.  Kurt needed to know what was normal, what wasn't, and, for his own comfort, when he should expect different relationship milestones to occur.

Since kissing Blaine, Kurt had felt like he had released some other person from within him.  Someone who could appreciate romance and gentle touches - and he got his share of those.   Blaine's hands were almost always on Kurt now.  Not in any kind of demeaning way either.  He would have a hand at the small of Kurt's back, or clasp their hands together.  The night before Blaine had traced the outline of Kurt's jaw as they snuggled.  Again, it was all new to Kurt and he could scarcely believe that such simple touches could make his heart feel so light and his skin feel so hot.

He hated leaving.

Unfortunately, Wes had decided their apartment was going to be the site of a party on New Years Eve, which meant Blaine and Kurt had to pack up the morning of the 31st and head back to New York City.  Shelby gave them both hugs and even kisses, whispering to Kurt to take care of her baby boy which prompted Kurt to roll his eyes but agree all the same.

The benefit of being back at their place though was that they could spend the first couple hours home just making out on the bed without feeling guilty about ignoring Blaine's mom though.  There is no worry about being walked in on as they languidly press their lips together time and time again until their lips are swollen and numb and they've tried every angle possible from which to kiss in, including some that had them awkwardly bumping noses together.  

Blaine seems happy to take whatever Kurt is willing to give, the irony of course being that Kurt blew him in the alleyway just under a year ago.  But this is all different.  There's no money, there's no desperate need to get a fix or unnecessary pride causing him to make stupid choices.  He knows he's going to see Blaine the next day, and the one after that, and for as many days as Blaine will have him.   The Kurt that did that seems alien to him now and even though he has those memories, it doesn't feel like him.   It doesn't seem like something he'd do, especially not now.

So it's good that he can take things slow now and do things the right way, whatever that may be, because Kurt has become timid.  Now that this “thing” is an actual “thing”, he doesn't want to screw it up.  In this world, Blaine has more experience than he does, even if it was with the small dicked wonder of Sebastian.  

When they do manage to part themselves, their hair is disheveled and Kurt swears there's a twinkle in Blaine's eyes that wasn't there before.   They tidy up the apartment, which in truth is quite alright since Kurt has been adamant about keeping it clean, and Blaine goes to get some groceries while Kurt rearranges the furniture to make it more open for their guests.  When Blaine returns, they work together in the kitchen, purposely bumping into one another and sharing kisses as they move past one another even though Kurt has memorized every small peak and valley of Blaine's lips by now.  This is a kind of intimacy he can't get tired of.

Then the guests arrive and Kurt introduces them all in turn.  There's David and his girlfriend Vanessa, Thad and his girlfriend Janice, Trent and his girlfriend Lorraine… and from there Kurt has a hard time memorizing them all.  How did so many people from Ohio end up in New York for New Years?

Finally Wes shows up and compliments Kurt for a job well done on the food and musical selection that's humming in the background of all the intermingled conversations.  That's when Kurt hears Rachel and Blaine arguing.

“You don't show up at mom's but you show up here?!  Uninvited?” Blaine's voice becomes pitchy when he's upset and Kurt looks over at the brother and sister.

“Actually, I WAS invited little brother.” She states smugly and that's when puzzle pieces connect in Kurt's mind, slightly ahead of Blaine who doesn't realize what's going on until Wes comes up alongside Rachel and sets a hand on her back.

Well that makes no sense and a lot of sense all at once.  It explains why Wes was so eager to see her perform but upset at the date Blaine setup for the event, why the pair of them were so comfortably engaged in conversation at Thanksgiving… and it also explained why Wes wasn't allowed to come near a sick person, even if it was his best friend.  Rachel is notorious for avoiding the ill so she never had to worry about letting her understudies perform.

“I need a drink.” Is how Blaine reacts to the situation, and Kurt grabs him a beer and pops the cap for him right away.  For the most part Blaine avoids alcohol, and Kurt isn't sure if that's to support his own need to stay sober, or because Blaine just isn't interested in drinking as a pastime, but tonight Kurt can definitely forgive him for partaking.

“You don't even want to know how we got together?” Rachel asks with a tinge of sadness in her voice, clearly wanting to tell the tale.

“No.” Blaine and Kurt answer together, eliciting a laugh from nearby friends.

“Are you upset?” Kurt asks of Blaine when they're back in the kitchen, getting freshly baked snacks and refilling dishes for the coffee table.

“About Rachel and Wes?  No… actually… surprised… yes… but not upset.  It's… it's just weird.”

Kurt smiles to himself.  Weird is an understatement.  “Have you told them about us?”

Blaine shakes his head, “No… I was kind of thinking they could figure that one out on their own after the countdown.”

Countdown… Kurt takes a moment to process that and then grins to himself.  Fair enough.

Even though they all live in New York, everyone gathers around the TV for the countdown, counting along much too loudly as the ball descends in Times Square and then, along with the rest of the city, everyone yells and whoops and kisses their significant others, and if anyone is even watching Kurt and Blaine as they kiss, it goes unnoticed by Kurt because he doesn't register anything else but Blaine's lips on his own and Blaine's hands around his waist.  

Well, except of course for Romeo whining at his feet.  The dog will have to just get used to being a third wheel.  

While everyone else continues to yell “Happy New Year” out the window and to one another, Kurt leans up against Blaine who keeps an arm around him.  That's when Wes and Kurt make eye contact and when Wes gives Kurt a thumbs up which Kurt just rolls his eyes at.  That man is meddling… and he and Rachel definitely deserve one another.

The party continues long after midnight, with some of the guests opting to use the guest bed or couch instead of finding their way home on the subway.  Kurt excuses himself to the bedroom well before that though - there's still only so much socialization he can take at once, even though he's been working his way up to more.  Blaine is by his side not long after, and they cuddle together.  Something about the way they lay together is different now, even though it must look the same.  They've been sleeping together for months, but now that they can kiss freely, Kurt feels like he's even safer than he knew he could be with Blaine there.

“I want to try something.”  He announces to a bleary eyed Blaine who looks at him questioningly from where he's already laying back in bed.

Kurt slowly peels his hoodie off, making a point not to look at his own arms, and then lays down in his usual place.  Without a hoodie, there's a lot less fabric separating his body from Blaine's, and Blaine immediately takes advantage of it, running his hands up and down Kurt's freed arms.  

“You're so smooth…”  

Kurt chuckles and pulls the blanket up over them both, though Blaine is still drunkenly fascinated by Kurt's arms and keeps stroking them up and down, sending goosebumps up them and shivers down Kurt's spine.  No one has ever touched him like Blaine has.  With luck, no one ever will but Blaine.

Maybe he's getting ahead of himself with thoughts like those, or maybe he's just making up for the kind of love he should have had in his teen years, but he can't imagine anyone else being as comforting and safe.  It feels disgraceful to even consider it.  

He gives Blaine one last kiss, which turns into a good half hour worth of kissing as they reacquaint themselves with one another's lips since it's been at least half a day since they have spent any dedicated time making out at this point.  All the while Blaine's hands move from his arms, to the small of his back, to his face, his neck, and then begin the cycle again until there isn't one part of Kurt's exposed flesh that Blaine hasn't touched before they fall asleep in one another's arms.  Kurt makes a mental note to do the same to Blaine - so long as he can figure out how to focus on more than just Blaine's lips when they're kissing.  

And at the foot of the bed, Romeo just whines - probably remembering a time when he was the center of Kurt's affectionate world.