Blaine could feel his heart pounding. Today his life would change. He was pretty good at public speaking in general, but this was an unusual situation. Being asked to speak at this school was an honor, yes, but he didn't feel worthy of it... at least not yet. Nevertheless, he was here and he would do his best to give these kids good advice and share his story. He loaded up his power point presentation and kept it on the first slide, which read:

Becoming the best YOU that you can be.

Blaine Anderson

Attrition Day 2013.

"Um... hello everybody." Blaine cleared his throat. "I'm here to talk to you today about self-actualization."

The kids in the audience ranged from about 11 to 15, and were in various stages of outline and color. A group of bright, vibrantly shaded girls in the fourth row with a haughty air about them looked away from Blaine, as if bored by the assembly they had been forced to attend. The front row was full of barely outlined boys, with defined eyes and mouths, but only a hint of eyebrows, only a vague impression of clothes and hair. They were already hanging on his every word.

"This is my Kurt," Blaine began, advancing the power point to the next slide, showing a photograph of them on a motorcycle together. Kurt looked like himself, and Blaine looked similar to the boys in the front row, except with defined eyebrows and a clear, bright red bow tie. "We met at Theme Park in Attrition a year ago. It hasn't been the easiest relationship, and our timing was a little off at first, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. He is my attrition-mate, and we are in love." Blaine smiled, made sure to make eye contact with people in the audience, and advanced to the next slide, which was a full color picture of Blaine, as he looked now, and Kurt embracing. They wore matching tuxedos and were proudly displaying their wedding rings for the camera.

"Finding your attrition-mate is something that everybody deserves, but it won't just happen automatically. You have to go out and get it. It is important for you all to remember not to let your emotions get in the way of your eventual goal. Always keep a clear head and stick to your approved plan. First, I will go over the process of choosing the right plant ingredients for your specific target. For Kurt, spearmint and sage were crucial. I know this can be a very individualized process, so feel free to raise your hand and interrupt me if you have questions along the way. "

Good start, Blaine thought to himself.

He began to wonder what it had been like for Kurt, in the very beginning.