"So… how's practice been going?" Blaine looks up from his plate to his father who is looking at him with an expectant expression. They almost never spoke at the dinner table. In fact, dinners among the Andersons were always rather quiet and awkward. At least they were since… that happened.

"Uhm," Blaine started off nervously as he fidgeted with the fork in his hand. "It's been okay. I mean, I'm not a starter or anything but that's because I'm a junior and I'm the new guy." His father nodded but didn't say anything. Blaine didn't expect him to. Lacrosse wasn't really his thing but it wasn't bad and it gave him and his dad something to talk about. Because outside of that and how well Blaine is doing in school, they don't really talk that much.

Another typical day at McKinley. It's not much different than the school Blaine went to before. The jocks and cheerleaders run the school and anyone who steps into their path gets thrown into the almighty dumpster. Blaine mentally compares it to a castle and popular kids are to the royal family as the dumpster is to the dungeon. Blaine doesn't tell anyone about this comparison. He keeps it tucked away in his mind as he exchanges his A.P. Calc book from his Chem II book.

If things were like they should be, Blaine would be a starting player on the team because he had better grades than more than half the boys on the team. Maybe if he worked a little harder and became a little more athletic…

As he closes his locker, he hears another person's books come clattering to the floor and a body hit the lockers. Blaine flinches as he sees members of the football team high five each other and the boy they shoved sink to the floor. Blaine recognizes the boy. He's seen him many times as struts down the hall way in his tightest jeans, chin high with pride no matter who was yelling what at him. It was something that Blaine found admirable. Blaine personally didn't have a problem with him but he never talked to him. He was afraid that the boy would think he was just as much of an asshole any of the guys who were giving him hell all the time.

Blaine watched as the boy gathered his books up in his arms again, stuck his nose in the air, and disappeared down the hallway before he started to make his own way to class.

Blaine wasn't what anyone around here would call popular. Sure he was well known around the school; he an athlete and the new kid. But he didn't partake in any of the popular kid activities. He didn't go to any parties or throw pee balloons at the other kids or throw slushies in their faces. He mainly just did how own thing.

Blaine walked into the chemistry lab and took his normal seat next to Mike Chang.

"Okay, class," the teacher said clapping his hands together. "Today we're going to do an assignment based on yesterday's lesson with a partner." The class erupted into discussion over who would be whose partner. Blaine glanced over at Mike and they wordlessly decided their alliance.

"No, I don't think so. I'll be picking your partners," the teacher said. The entire classroom groaned in frustration as the teacher started calling off names. Mike was paired with Sam Evans. Brittany Pierce with Tina Cohen-Chang.

"Blaine Anderson and Kurt Hummel…"

Kurt Hummel… Kurt Hummel… Where had Blaine heard that name before? His train of thought was derailed when he saw that the person walking towards him, his partner for class, was the boy from the hallway. The boy that Blaine had a sort of secret admiration for.

The boy sat down in the seat where Mike had been previously. The silence between them was awkward but what was Blaine supposed to say? 'I like how you don't take anyone's crap'? 'You really impress me'? 'You're kind of my hero'?

Blaine finally just settle with, "Hi… I'm Blaine…" Kurt looked over at him. His blues held a gaze that was steely and guarded. Blaine could say that he blamed him. People were awful to him every day.

"I'm Kurt," he finally said. "Aren't you the new kid around here? The one who plays lacrosse?" Blaine gave Kurt a surprised look but he simply waved it off as he flipped to the right page in his text book. "Things get around fast here." Blaine nodded in response as the work sheets were passed out.

"So do you know how to do any of this?" Kurt asked gesturing to their in class work.

"Actually, yes," Blaine said smiling as he scooted a little closer and began to explain how to solve the problems on the page. Eventually the two of them got the page done with a little time to spare.

"See, this is why I'll never be a chemist," Kurt said shaking his head and chuckling a little.

"What do you want to be?" Blaine asked, leaning on his elbow.

"It's going to sound so stupid, but…" Kurt took in a deep breath and sighed. "I want to be a performer on Broadway… in New York."

"That's incredible," Blaine said honestly. "I've never really met anyone who has the ambition to go for that."

"Well obviously, you haven't met Rachel Berry yet," Kurt laughed. "So what about you, Blaine? What do you want to do? Pro lacrosse player, I suppose?"

"Nah," Blaine said waving his hand. "I'm not very good and I don't like it that much."

"Then why do you play?"

"It gives me something to talk about with my dad and I don't not enjoy it. It's just not my favorite." Kurt nodded slowly like he understood what Blaine said but at the same time he didn't. They soon changed the subject and the dismissal bell went off, sending everyone to their next class.

"Listen," Kurt said as he stood up, "I know you might be friends with your teammates and all but if you ever need someone to hang out with or talk to…"

"Oh! That'd be great!" Blaine said with a smile. "Uhm… wanna eat lunch together?"

"Sounds good, I'll see you then," Kurt said with a smile as he walked out of the classroom.

Ending another evening with an awkward Anderson family dinner sans the company of Blaine's older brother Cooper with only the sounds of their steady breathing and the clinking of their spoons on their bowls of soup.

Blaine thought about breaking the silence with talk about school but he knew his parents weren't interested in Blaine making a new friend and he didn't feel like talking about lacrosse or his classes.

For a second it felt like someone was going to say something. Probably because he felt like he was anticipating some kind of conversation for some reason. But his mother finished her food and stood up and was soon followed by his father. Blaine sighed as he finished his soup alone in the empty dining room.