'You matter, Kurt. Don't throw yourself around like you don't matter.'

Curse you, dad. Curse you and your sex talks.

Even though Kurt had been embarrassed all those years ago when his dad decided to sit down with him and have the sex talk, what his dad had said had resonated with him. Kurt didn't want to have his heart broken over some summer romance.

Even if that summer romance would have been with the most incredible guy Kurt had ever met.

But in the meantime, Kurt and Blaine remained best friends... who slept in the same bed every night. But they decided to just overlook the fact that that wasn't exactly normal for two gay best friends to do. They just pretended that it was more like a sleepover... like on Dawson's Creek or something. But they both knew the truth behind it. They just wanted to be as close to one another as possible.

Blaine's next two shows went effortlessly. He stuck to his original set, a bit too heart broken to sing anything else to Kurt for the time-being. Kurt would always watch backstage, supporting Blaine's every move.

Every now and then, after shows, a fan would come up to Kurt, saying that they saw him in the magazines and asked him if he was really Blaine's boyfriend. Kurt would always regretfully respond with a no, resisting temptation to add, "but I wish I was."

Between shows, Kurt and Blaine spent every waking and sleeping moment together. They went to movie theaters, went to parks, went sight-seeing in every new city, and stayed up late talking into the night about their lives, their hopes, their dreams. All-the-while, they tried to push their feelings to the side.

And now it was the day of Blaine's fifteenth show. And it was in Lima, Ohio of all places. Blaine was a bit reluctant to play a show here, but figured he owed it to his friends who had cared about him from the start.

They were now three-fourths of the way through the tour. Blaine could see the end in sight. He didn't want to see the end. He couldn't stand the thought of Kurt leaving him at the end of all of this.

Kurt would try to reassure Blaine, saying,

"Hey. Haven't you seen technology these days? We can text. We can call. We can skype. No worries. We'll stay in touch. I could never forget this summer."

But that wasn't enough for Blaine. He knew there just had to be an answer to them being together. But he didn't have an answer right then, so all he could do was focus on his show- focus on the here and now.

The show was great, and Blaine made sure to give a shout-out to his old friends from the Warblers who had come to watch him. Kurt couldn't help but notice from backstage that quite a few old members of New Directions were there as well, including Finn, Puck, Quinn, Tina, Mike, Brittany, Artie, and Santana. They hadn't spotted him yet, though. Kurt was excited to see his old friends, but knew it would be difficult explaining to them why he was there.

Afterward, Blaine was practically jumping up and down in his excitement to see the Warblers. Kurt decided to hang back, making his way around backstage to find his New Directions friends and surprise them.

"Wes! David! Nick! Jeff! Thad! I'm so pumped you guys came to see me! What'd you think of the show?" Blaine called out, running over to them, taking turns hugging each of them.

"Well, I see now why you got all the solos in high school. That was fantastic." Jeff said, patting Blaine on the back.

"It really was. We're all so proud of you Blaine. You deserve it." Wes added.

Then the old friends spent a while catching up, but Blaine couldn't help but constantly look over his shoulder at Kurt, who had found his friends and seemed to be in deep conversation with them.

"Kurt? Oh my gosh what are you doing here? We thought you weren't coming home to visit this summer!" Finn cried out as soon as he spotted his brother. Finn grabbed the New Directions and pulled them over to Kurt.

"Well... it's kind of a long story." Kurt said.

"We've got time. Spill! And what are you doing backstage? Have you met Blaine yet? Isn't he dreamy?" Tina said.

Kurt opened his mouth to respond, but Blaine chose that moment to call Kurt over.

"Hey Kurt! Come here! I want you to meet some old friends of mine!" Blaine shouted, smiling over at Kurt.

Kurt nodded, then turned back to his friends, who were all staring at him in shock, mouths hanging wide open.

"Like I said. It's kind of a long story. Follow me."

So Kurt and the New Directions made their way over to Blaine and the Warblers.

"Guys, this is Kurt. He's my groupie." Blaine joked. Kurt shoved Blaine's shoulder playfully. The Warblers and New Directions exchanged glances, wondering what was going on between the two men, because, obviously, there was something there.

"But in all seriousness, Kurt and I met at my first show this summer, then I took him on a date, then his car broke down so I invited him to ride on the tour bus with me, and now..."

Blaine paused. What about now? Blaine wasn't exactly sure what was happening now. Now he was in love with the young man? Now they slept in the same bed every night? Now he couldn't dream of a life without him?

But luckily, Kurt cut in, saving the day.

"And now he couldn't get rid of me if he tried." Kurt joked, observing the expressions on his friend's faces, laughing at how confused they all looked.

"It's nice to meet you guys. And Blaine, these are some of my friends from McKinley. You guys, this is Blaine." Kurt said, introducing everyone to each other

"Wait, you guys weren't part of New Directions, were you? You guys slaughtered us at every singing competition." David said, talking to Kurt's friends.

"How is that even possible? We had Blaine freaking Anderson!" Nick added.

And then the Warblers and New Directions set off away from Kurt and Blaine, talking to each other, swapping stories from glee club and high school.

Only Santana broke away from the group, running back over to Kurt quickly, whispering into his ear so that Blaine wouldn't hear.

"Kurt, I don't know what's going on between you two, but there is some obvious chemistry. You better get up on that before I take him for myself."

Kurt blushed, then quickly whispered back,

"Don't even think about it, sweetheart. He's just as gay as I am."

Santana smiled at him, scanned Blaine quickly with her eyes, nodded her approval at Kurt, then ran back to the New Directions.

"What was that all about?" Blaine asked, looking after the young woman who had just run off.

"Don't worry about it." Kurt replied, grabbing Blaine's hand. Blaine immediately intertwined their fingers.

"Let's get away for a little while." Kurt said, leading Blaine through the exit.

"You have another day off tomorrow before we have to travel again, right?" Kurt asked, hoping he would be able to follow through with his plan that he had come up with the previous day.

Blaine nodded.

"Cool. Then we're not going back to the tour bus tonight." Kurt said, a smug smile on his face.

"Oh really, now?" Blaine asked, curious and excited to see what Kurt had planned.

"Really, really. I've made us dinner reservations at Breadstix. It's normally closed by now, but you being so famous has its perks. All I had to do was mention your name and they were more than ready to let us in. Then there's someone I would like for you to meet. If that's alright?"

"That sounds perfect." Blaine said.

And then the two began their walk to Breadstix, never once letting go of each others hands.

"You know, I've eaten at Breadstix a few times in the past. The Warblers even performed here once on Valentine's day. But I've never actually been here with someone. Which is kid of depressing, considering it was very much a place to go to on dates." Blaine said, making conversation with Kurt as they approached the restaurant.

"I was there when the Warblers performed! I can't believe I don't remember seeing you there. You would think that I would have remembered that. I must have just been too depressed at being single. I've never been to Breadstix on a date before either."

"It's crazy what a small world this is." Blaine said, silently rejoicing at the fact that Kurt had picked up on his hint and called it a date. They were on another date!

And then they had arrived. Kurt knocked on the locked doors of the restaurant, and a waitress peered through the window, instantly recognizing Blaine, and eagerly unlocked the doors, all but throwing herself at Blaine as soon as they walked in.

"Oh my gosh I can't believe it's really you! It's such an honor to meet you! I heard that you were from here but I never thought I'd actually meet you!" The waitress practically screamed at him.

Kurt leaned over and whispered into Blaine's ear as they sat across from one another in a booth,

"I see what you mean now about how me not screaming in your face was kind of a turn-on. This chick is scary."

Blaine chuckled.

They quickly ordered their food, sharing amused expressions over the excitement of the waitress every time she came by the table, which was way more often than should have been necessary. But they didn't mind. They were just happy to be there together, enjoying a nice meal over a candlelit table.

"So you said you never came here on a date... how is that even possible? I mean, you're... you. You're awesome. I figured a guy like you should have gone through multiple boyfriends by now." Blaine questioned.

"Well, like I've said before. This is Lima, Ohio. The city's not exactly swarming with gay guys. Maybe if I had met you in high school things would have ended up differently." Kurt blushed at the boldness of what he just said. But Blaine just smiled at him and reached, taking a hold of Kurt's hand.

"Oh, I know things would have been different if I had known you back then." Blaine replied. Kurt looked up from where he was staring down into his lap, embarrassed, and smiled back at Blaine.

"I wish I had known you in high school, Blaine Anderson. My life was a living hell here. I hate being back. Of course, I wouldn't change a minute of it... my past is what got me to where I am today. I just wish I could have met you sooner."

"So do I, Kurt. So do I." Blaine replied, sincerely.

"It looks like you two are done eating. Can I bring you your check?" The waitress asked a startled Kurt and Blaine, who instantly broke apart where they were holding hands over the table, and began glaring at the waitress for ruining their moment. This had to have been the waitress' fiftieth time coming over to their table that night.

Blaine was a bit reluctant for the dinner to end, but he was excited to see what Kurt had planned next, so he nodded his head, never once taking his eyes of off Kurt.

When the waitress brought the check over, Kurt reached out to take it, but Blaine stopped him, placing his hand over Kurt's again.

"No way. I've got this." Blaine said.

"But I'm the one who asked you out." Kurt retorted.

"Well I'm the one the waitress left her number for on the check. Therefore, it belongs to me."

Kurt gave Blaine a confused look, then glanced down at the check. Sure enough, the waitress had left Blaine his number. Kurt couldn't help but burst into laughter, and decided to give in to letting Blaine pay.

"Waitress! Here you go! Thanks for staying open late for us! And I'm flattered... but, not your team." Blaine said to the waitress as she came over to take the check from them.

And with that, Blaine took Kurt's hand in his, helped him out of the booth, and they set off on their way to their next destination, which was still a surprise to Blaine.

Kurt had called a taxi earlier that night, telling it to meet them outside of Breadstix, so the two men crawled into the backseat of the cab that was sitting outside waiting for them.

"So are you going to tell me where you're taking me? Or is it still a surprise?" Blaine questioned.

Kurt had kept Blaine waiting long enough and decided it would only be fair to tell him where they were headed next.

"Ok, ok. I'll tell you. So... I know this might be a little weird. But I really want you to meet my family. Especially my dad, not that Carole isn't awesome or anything, but... my dad means the world to me. And I just really want to see him while I'm here. And I want him to meet you."

Blaine was shocked. But a good kind of shocked. Kurt cared about him enough to introduce him to the most important person in his life.

"Not weird at all. I would love to meet your family, Kurt." Blaine said, wrapping an arm around Kurt's shoulders, pulling his best friend in closer.

"Oh good! I called dad yesterday and told him I might be stopping by and spending the night. He doesn't know I'm bring you, though, because I wasn't sure if you would agree to it once I told you. But... good. Yay!" Kurt said, practically buzzing in excitement.

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, both men excited about seeing Kurt's family. Kurt snuggled up even closer to Blaine, resting his head on Blaine's shoulder. After all, he was pretty tired. It was past midnight at this point. Kurt felt bad for making his dad wait up so long to greet them, but he knew his dad would be happy just to see him at all. Kurt hadn't visited home since Christmas. Like he said to Blaine earlier, he loved his dad, but he hated being back in Lima.

The taxi pulled up to the front of Kurt's house, and this time it was Kurt who payed the driver, arguing to Blaine that if Blaine got to pay for dinner, Kurt got to pay for this.

Then Blaine reached out and grabbed Kurt's hand, hoping that he wouldn't mind showing such affection in front of his dad, and they made their way to the front door. Burt opened the door before they could even knock, though. Apparently, he had been standing by the window, waiting excitedly for his son's return home.

"KURT!" Burt cried out, snatching his son up in a tight hug, which forced Blaine to let go of Kurt's hand. Burt hadn't even seemed to really notice Blaine yet. Looks like Blaine didn't have to worry about Kurt not wanting to show affection in front of his dad. His dad hadn't even noticed it.

"Dad! I missed you!" Kurt said, hugging his dad back just as eagerly.

When they let go, Burt finally seemed to notice Blaine.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't notice you there. Kurt, you didn't tell me you were bringing anyone with you. Not that I don't mind. It's nice to meet you, young man. I'm Burt, Kurt's father. And you are?" Burt said, reaching out a hand to shake Blaine's.

"I'm Blaine, sir. It's nice to meet you." Blaine replied, reaching out his own hand to shake Burt's.

"Kurt, this your boyfriend?" Burt directly asked his son. Kurt blushed.

"No, dad. This is Blaine Anderson. As in, famous singer, Blaine Anderson."

"Never heard of him" Burt replied, shrugging.

Blaine was relieved. This meant that Burt hadn't seen all the paparazzi shots of him and his son together. Because, trust him, the paparazzi had gotten many more shots of the two together since that first one... usually just of the two men holding hands... nothing too serious. But still. Also, this mean that Blaine had no unrealistic expectations to live up to. He could just be himself and start from scratch in gaining the man's respect.

And wow... Blaine was surprised at how much he wanted to impress Kurt's dad. Especially considering he and Kurt weren't even dating. But still, he was in love with Kurt. And maybe... one day...

But Blaine's thoughts were interrupted when Kurt grabbed his hand and pulled him inside, taking him on a tour of the house. Kurt called out over his shoulder,

"Hey dad. Where's Carole?"

"She's already sleeping. It's pretty late, so I'm actually going to go to bed too. You two boys be sure to get some rest. And no funny business. We'll catch up in the morning."

And then Burt was heading upstairs, and Kurt and Blaine were left alone.

"Sooo... this is my childhood home. What do you think?" Kurt asked, leading Blaine around the house.

"It's lovely. You decorated it, didn't you?" Blaine asked.

"How could you tell?"

"Just a lucky guess. Anything this fabulous had to be done by you. Soo... where's your room?"

"It's right upstairs. But remember, no funny business." Kurt joked, leading Blaine up to his room.

"As great as that sounds, I'm much too tired tonight, anyway." Blaine responded, completely serious. And now Kurt was blushing again.

"Yeah, me too. But I hope you had fun tonight. And I'm so excited for you and dad to talk tomorrow. He likes the Buckeyes, too. You like them, right? I thought I remembered you saying that once."

"I did say that. I can't believe you remembered. And yes. I had a blast tonight. Dinner was lovely. And so is your home. And I'm so flattered that you want your family to meet me. But now, let's just go to sleep."

Kurt complied. They both silently changed into pajamas. Blaine didn't have any on him, so he borrowed a pair that was in Kurt's drawer from when he lived at home. When Kurt wasn't looking, Blaine quickly pulled the shirt up to his nose, inhaling the scent. It smelled like Kurt.

The two men crawled into bed and were asleep instantly. They next thing Kurt knew, he was being woken harshly by the sound of Burt's voice.

"I thought I said no funny business!" Burt exclaimed loudly, burstin into Kurt's room.

Kurt woke first, groggily looking around to locate the source of the commotion. But when he went to turn, he found that he couldn't move an inch because Blaine was currently wrapped around him, holding him down to the bed. Their legs were intertwined and they were holding hands. Blaine's head was resting on Kurt's chest, and Kurt's head was resting on top of Blaine's head.

"Dad? What are you talking about?"

"I come in here to wake you up for toast and I find you wrapped up in the arms of some guy who isn't your boyfriend?"

"Dad. It's not like that. Like you just said...we're just friends. Nothing happened. Look- fully clothed."

Burt was hesitant to believe him, but he knew Kurt wouldn't lie to him, so he nodded his head and left the room, giving Kurt a minute to wake Blaine up.

"Blaine. Blaineeeee. Wake up!" Kurt whispered gently into Blaine's ear. But Blaine just snuggled closer. This was not an uncommon occurrence, waking up wrapped in a tight embrace. And Kurt learned quickly that Blaine was a deep sleeper. It was practically impossible to wake him.

"Blaine! Come on! Get up! There's breakfast!" Kurt shouted the last part. And yep, that did it. Blaine jolted awake.

"Breakfast? Where? Let's go!" Blaine said, hopping out of bed eagerly.

"You're impossible..." Kurt muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"Nothing!" Kurt quickly lied, getting out of bed, himself.

"So my dad walked in on us cuddling. He wasn't too happy. So put on your most charming face because you've got some work to do." Kurt said, smirking at Blaine.

"Wait... are you serious? Please tell me your joking. I wasn't even thinking last night. I should have slept in a guest bedroom or on the couch or something. Oh my god I'm so embarrassed. He's going to hate me now. Oh my-"

"Blaine. Shut the fuck up. Please. I wouldn't have you sleep anywhere other than in my arms. Now finish getting dressed and let's go downstairs and eat." Kurt said, stopping Blaine mid-rant.

And Blaine was completely silent now. In fact, he was all smiles. Kurt said that he enjoyed sleeping in Blaine's arms. Even though they weren't together, this still made him impossibly happy.

The two men silently finished getting dressed and walked downstairs together. Blaine purposefully kept his distance from Kurt today, not wanting to make Burt any more uncomfortable.

"Morning boys. Sleep well?" Burt asked, glaring at Blaine on the last part.

"Yes, dad. Leave Blaine alone. He's a friend, not an enemy."

"If he's sharing a bed with my son, he's the enemy." Burt said, but Blaine was sure he detected a bit of humor in his voice. He relaxed a lot at that.

"Kurt! Welcome home!"

Kurt turned and was greeted with a warm hug from Carole, his step-mom.

"Carole! Oh, it's so good to see you!" Kurt exclaimed.

"So what's this I hear about your sleeping with a boy? Your father came storming into our room this morning ranting on about holding hands and boys and I don't even know what else. Is that handsome young gentleman behind you your boyfriend?" Carole questioned.

Kurt and Blaine both blushed.

"No ma'am. I'm just a friend. My name is Blaine. Blaine Anderson." Blaine introduced himself, holding out his hand to shake Carole's, but Carole wasn't having that. She walked swiftly over to Blaine and hugged him.

"It's so nice to meet you Blaine- wait... did you say Blaine Anderson? As in famous singer Blaine Anderson? My son went to see your show last night with some of his and Kurt's friends."

"Yes. That's me. I met him last night. He seems like a very nice young man. Where is he today?" Blaine questioned.

"Oh, he moved out about the same time as Kurt. He lives with his friends Puck and Mike now. You might have met them, too"

Blaine nodded.

"So tell me. How did you and Kurt meet?" Burt questioned, wanting to learn more about the man standing in his house who so obviously had feelings for his son, even if they refused to acknowledge their chemistry.

So Blaine and Kurt set out into the long story, taking turns in their explanation. They left out details about dates, saying that they simply hung out instead. They figured it would be best to not complicate the story more than need be.

By the end of the tale, everyone in the Hummel household had relaxed visibly and Blaine was being treated like one of the family. Burt and Blaine moved onto a long conversation about football, and then Blaine talked to Carole about everything from favorite band to favorite laundry detergent. He had completely charmed them both.

After a few more hours of visiting, it was about time for the two young men to head back to the tour bus and hit the road again. But first, Burt wanted to have a private talk with Blaine.

Kurt reluctantly left them be, shooting Blaine an apologetic look before going off to gossip with Carole in the living room for a while, leaving Blaine alone to follow Burt upstairs.

"I'm sure you know that I have an obligation to ask what your intentions are with my son." Burt said bluntly when he and Blaine were alone in his room.

Blaine hesitated before responding.

"Honestly... I don't really know. I'm not going to lie to you. I really care about your son. I know we haven't known each other for that long, but we've spent a lot of time together this summer. I feel like I really know Kurt. And he really gets me, too. I enjoy spending time with him. I've told Kurt that I care about him, and he's told me that he returns the feeling. But we've decided to remain friends for the time being, because we don't know what will happen when this tour ends. But, if there is any possible way for me to be with Kurt for longer than this summer, I will do everything in my power to make that happen."

Burt was not expecting that much honesty from Blaine. He could tell that he really cared about Kurt, but he was in shock from the amount of sincerity in Blaine's voice.

"Well, son. I guess I have nothing to do but give you my approval. It's obvious that you truly, deeply care for Kurt. Just... don't break his heart."

Blaine nodded, and the two men made their way downstairs.

As they entered the living room, Blaine caught the end-tail of Kurt's conversation with Carole.

"I really, really like him, mom. I just... I don't know. I wish it could work out. But I promise to keep you updated on anything that might happen with Blaine."

"What about me?" Blaine questioned innocently, making his presence known.

Kurt startled at Blaine's sudden appearance.

"How much of that did you hear?" Kurt questioned, blushing a deep shade of red.

"Nothing I didn't already know. Don't worry." Blaine reassured Kurt, winking.

"Well, dad. It's getting late. We should really be heading out if we're going to make it to the next city in time for Blaine's next show. I hate to rush out like this..." Kurt said, standing from the couch and making his way over to Burt.

"It's fine. I'm just glad I could have you for today. I missed you, son. Don't be a stranger." Burt said, hugging his son goodbye.

"And as for you Blaine. Remember what I told you upstairs."

Blaine nodded, then was surprised when Burt pulled him into a hug goodbye as well.

The young men then took turns hugging Carole and departed from the Hummel household, getting onto the tour bus that Blaine had called to pick them up.

"Your family is nice, Kurt. I see where you get it from." Blaine said, taking a hold of Kurt's hand as they boarded the bus.

"Get what from?"

"Everything that is good about you... which just happens to be all of you."

"Thank you. That's so... that's so sweet, Blaine. So what did you and my dad talk about?"

"You. He told me not to break your heart. And I promised him that I wouldn't. I fully intend on keeping that promise."

Kurt stared down at Blaine in shock before pulling him into a tight hug. Kurt could not believe how much he loved this man. He was determined to make the best of the rest of this tour.