No comic this week, it was too risky. Kurt started bringing his laptop to school to take notes in class so he wouldn't start absentmindedly drawing something he couldn't take back. And alcohol was his new best friend.

Kurt had drank himself to sleep for 5 days in a row. It was the only surefire way not to dream, and he definitely did NOT want to dream. No guest room, Rachel had said. They had turned it into a music room years ago and guests slept on the couch. This awful sense of being about to fall off a cliff had been following him around all week and he wasn't sure how long he could keep ignoring it. His friends in glee club were worried about his bloodshot eyes and sluggishness, but no one felt they knew him well enough to try and intervene. Rachel might have halfheartedly asked how he was feeling, but she was far too distracted by her most recent love affair.

Kurt was a reasonable person. Pragmatic, logical, realistic. He wasn't superstitious, didn't believe in any deity or anything supernatural. He would watch Star Trek sometimes, but somehow aliens seemed more plausible than ghosts. So considering his sensibilities, this whole Blaine business was way outside his comfort zone. It had happened, but it hadn't. It wasn't his first kiss, but it was his best one, and he wanted it to be real. But if it was real, his entire view of the universe would have to be re-evaluated. So it was better not to dig too deep, to try and forget about it. He was completely unprepared to deal with this...whatever this was.

He finished his homework by 11 and headed to the liquor cabinet. His parents hadn't noticed anything yet, and he figured he would replace it soon. They seemed to be out of gin, and he had killed the vodka the night before. Rummaging around, he saw a bottle of Puerto Rican rum that looked expensive. That one might be difficult to replace, but it was too late to go out and try and get something else. The beer in the fridge might be sufficient, but he didn't want to take any chances. So, tonight would be rum. He poured some coke over ice, added two shots, and a twist of lime. He brought the concoction to his room and got into bed, sipping it as he read the first few chapters of The Half-blood Prince. His eyes fluttered shut eventually, and he happily succumbed to sleep.

--DTYDTY--

He was surrounded by warmth. He nuzzled his nose into a sparsely hairy chest that smelled like body wash and rum. The heartbeat he could feel on his cheek soothed him, and he couldn't ever remember feeling more comfortable or more content. The arms around him tightened a bit, affectionately, along with a murmur that he felt in his hair.

"I missed you so much, Kurt"

"Mmmmm," Kurt replied.

"Did you miss me too?"

"Mmm Hmm," Kurt agreed.

"Kiss me? I love when you kiss me."

So Kurt stretched his arms and legs, before tangling the two of them together again. Kurt started by kissing his fingers and his palms, then slowly up his arms, to his shoulders and neck. Kurt left soft kisses all along his cheeks and forehead and eyelids. Kurt shut his eyes tight, and nibbled at the soft lips that had haunted him for the past week. They tasted like spearmint and pop music.

"Here, chew this."

Kurt, intrigued, took the leaf being offered and gave it an experimental sniff. Ah, a mint leaf. Lovely. He put it in his mouth, chewed and swallowed, then resumed the kiss which tasted even better now.

"I think I'm in love with you. Would you stay here with me?"

Kurt thought about it for a moment and replied with a sleepy smile, "Of course."

--DTYDTY--

Awakening in a panic, Kurt looked at his hands, covered in pencil smudges. Strewn about his bed were about 100 comics, some 4 frames and some 6 frames. It was all Blaine and Kurt. Blaine and Kurt nude in positions that made Kurt blush. Blaine and Kurt in tuxedos wearing wedding rings. Blaine and Kurt at a candlelight dinner with a violinist. Blaine and Kurt Blaine and Kurt Blaine and Kurt. What had he done?

He heard a paper crackling under his pillow and looked, horrified. A neatly folded note in the shape of a heart greeted his sleepy eyes. The front said For my artist. Kurt slowly opened the card. The inside had a sketch of Blaine's beaming face, and the words You are amazing. I will always love you. Yours, Blaine

He was starting to hyperventilate, and tears formed in his eyes. There was no way this was actually happening. He didn't know what he had done in his sleep, but it was pretty pathetic to write himself a love note. He could hear puttering in the kitchen, which was probably his father. Probably? Of course it was his father. Who else would it be? Kurt slowly began to inch toward the door to his room, fully intending to go downstairs for breakfast. The sound of glass breaking in the bathroom attached to his bedroom stopped him in his tracks.