GQ: Not only have you skyrocketed to enviable fame in such a short amount of time, but you've also signed some of the most sought-after models in the circuit yet.

BA: Yes.

GQ: Blaine Anderson, the man who can do anything.

BA: Oh, I wouldn't say that. I still can't bake worth a damn.

GQ: Well, from what I hear, you certainly know how to woo properly. Rumors have been going around that you've been seeing someone.

BA: I can tell you right now that they aren't rumors. [Laughs] I am seeing someone. Someone very special.

GQ: Care to elaborate?

BA: I won't say much, but I will tell you that we're very much in love, and I'm so happy that I've found him.

GQ: So it is also true that he's a great deal younger than you?

BA: Age is just another number. When you see someone and your day instantly brightens, or you hear their voice and wonder how you've gone all this time in your life without it, that's what matters. Not how old or how young they are. Kurt makes me happier than I've ever been. He is my home and my light and everything else I've been missing in my life, and I wouldn't trade that for the world.

----

"Do you remember how last week we were talking about our dream vacations?"

Kurt takes the mocha Blaine offers him, their fingers brushing. A tiny jolt of electricity surges through him and Kurt shivers pleasantly, taking a sip. The thick chocolate taste is heavy on his tongue, and the warmth is pleasant as it burns down his throat. Blaine takes a seat across from him, chair legs scraping across the floor as he pulls his chair back. His hands are wrapped around his own cardboard cup.

After Blaine's GQ interview where he'd finally admitted to seeing someone, they've been going out more and more. They had before in the past, but now there is no pretense, no front to put up for the public eye. They can hold hands and kiss in more than just secluded Central Park locations. Kurt loves Blaine and Blaine loves Kurt. It's simple, real, theirs, and no one can ever ruin what they have.

"Yes," he says in response, putting his coffee down and looking at Blaine suspiciously. Blaine's lower lip is drawn into his mouth and he's got that look, the one Kurt's seen countless times before. "Why?" he asks, cautionary and hesitant. He'd mentioned always wanting to go beachfront, while Blaine had talked about exploring the English countryside more, but he hadn't taken much stock by the conversation—it isn't unusual, not by a long shot, for Blaine to ask questions like that, and Kurt knows that he's probably storing them away somewhere to surprise him with later.

Blaine waits a moment, taking a sip of his coffee, before he reaches for his wallet. Kurt watches him, breath held, body tense in anticipation. He isn't sure what Blaine's going to pull out; Blaine can be as unpredictable as they come. It could, honestly, be anything.

What Blaine does pull out after a moment is a lightly-creased brochure that he hands across the table to Kurt. Kurt leans forward, takes it, and stares, uncomprehending, at the clear blue water, the brilliantly blue sky, the golden sand and bright green palm trees. "Why did you give me a brochure for Hawaii?"

Blaine's smile grows wider, and he holds out his hands as his eyes crinkle up. "Surprise!"

Kurt blinks. It still isn't dawning on him that in March in New York City he's holding this brochure for this warm, exotic location. He looks down, then up, then down again, until, finally, it does. He gasps, clapping a hand over his mouth. The brochure falls to the table, and Blaine's smile grows, if possible, wider and fonder.

"Oh my god, Blaine," Kurt breathes. "You didn't."

"We need a weekend to get away. Just us," Blaine says. He takes Kurt's hand, squeezes. "One weekend in Hawaii in the best resort there is. It's right on the oceanfront, and the entire suite gives you a view of it. You're gonna love it. And before you say anything, I called Isabelle and you can go. That woman owes me so many favors, not to mention I'm the one who gets her most of the models for the shoots."

Kurt opens his mouth, speechless, and almost argues. He can feel it on the tip of his tongue, insistent—this is way too much, you didn't have to, I'm fine here—but he pushes it back, sighs and smiles warmly at Blaine. "You really know how to take care of me, don't you?"

"I like to think of it as my other job."

"Well, I do hear that you're the best at what you do," Kurt teases. He plays with Blaine's fingers, looks down suddenly shy. "Thank you."

"Nope, no need to thank me," Blaine says. "We both need a break from the city grind, and going to Hawaii with the love of my life is going to be so much better than when I went alone all of those times before."

"Am I really?"

"What, the love of my life?" Kurt nods, and Blaine shakes his head, like he can't believe that Kurt had even thought that it was a question, and leans forward, pulling Kurt in for a short, sweet kiss that tastes of coffee and chocolate. "Of course you are. And if you're still unsure I guess I'll just have to spend all of next weekend reminding you how very special you are to me."

"Mmm." Kurt stands up, Blaine following suit, and drains the last of his coffee before tossing the cup into the trashcan. "All weekend?"

"The entire weekend," Blaine promises, stepping forward and taking Kurt's hand to lead them out of the coffee shop. Once the door closes and the chilly winter air wraps around their bodies Blaine crowds close to Kurt, kissing him soundly. "You, me, the sun and sand, skinny dipping at night in the ocean." His voice drops when he pulls away, twining its way seductively around Kurt's head. "There are so many things that we can do, baby."

Kurt inhales sharply, squeezes Blaine's biceps through his heavy wool coat. "Then I guess I need to start packing."

----

Rachel takes the news exactly as Kurt had imagined it: with a lot of loud noises.

"Hawaii!" she screeches, grabbing onto Kurt's arms. He winces at the dig of her nails but says nothing. "Oh, I'm so happy for you! Jealous, but also really, really happy! Oh, Kurt." She hugs him tightly and he awkwardly pats her on the back, staring over her shoulder until she finally lets him go.

"Sorry that it's such short notice," Kurt apologizes. "I would have liked more of a heads-up myself, but that's Blaine for you."

"Just be thankful he's taking you!" Rachel looks out of one of their gloomy windows at the gray sky. "I wish I could see some sun for more than two hours at a time."

"You know I'd take you if I could." It's a complete lie: Kurt doesn't want Rachel anywhere near what's his first actual vacation, much less his first vacation with his boyfriend.

Rachel turns to look at him and scrunches up her nose. "And listen to you two have sex all night? I think I'll endure lonely New York by myself."

Kurt turns bright red as he splutters, "No—what—we don't—I mean—"

"What, are you going to say that you don't have sex often?" Rachel purses her lips and looks Kurt up and down so thoroughly that he begins to feel violated. "I don't believe it for a second. You've been spending an awful lot of nights at his place."

"Because it's better than staying at this dump," Kurt snaps. "He has a really nice bed."

Rachel raises an eyebrow, and it's eerie how similar that look is to the one Kurt's perfected over the years. They've been spending way too much time together, apparently. "And that's it?"

"I like sleeping next to him, okay? It's comforting. I sleep better there than I do here."

"Aww, Kurt." Rachel holds out her arms. "Do you want me to cuddle with you at night? Because I will."

"Ew, no!" Kurt says it, but he's laughing as he does, fending off Rachel's flailing arms as she tries to wrap him up in a bear hug. He runs away, darting around the couch and calls over his shoulder, "If you stop asking questions I'll bring you back something nice!"

He goes into his bedroom, waiting for the inevitability of Rachel following him, and when she doesn't he gives a sigh of relief. He unbuttons the coat he hadn't had a chance to take off yet and hangs it up. From his nightstand he grabs a pen and a pad of paper, sitting down on his bed to begin planning what outfits he's going to want to take. He's only got...he looks down at his phone. Five days to go.

----

Five days, two flights with Blaine withholding information, a lot of reading and a lot of handholding later, Kurt finds himself in what feels like an entirely different world.

Kona International is bright and bustling and so unlike New York in its busyness that it takes Kurt a wide-eyed moment to adjust. The air is comfortingly warm and smells sweet, and when he and Blaine step outside to search for the car to take them to their hotel, the cloudless blue skies and bright, golden sun feels like the first time Kurt's ever seen or felt it.

They'd both dressed casual, Blaine in a cream-colored Ralph Lauren polo and jeans, Kurt also in jeans but with a thin black sweater with the sleeves pushed up. When Blaine reaches under the seat and pulls out two colorful leis, one for him and one for Kurt, Kurt laughs, ducks his head to let Blaine slip it on, and touches one of the fake flowers gently. "I can't believe you."

"I seem to get that a lot," Blaine quips, nudging Kurt gently with his shoulder. "I think you need to start believing, because you're stuck with me whether you like it or not."

"Oh, I think I like it." Kurt looks towards the front and reminds himself that this isn't Roy, that maybe he and Blaine should be more careful, but his train of thought is abruptly ended when Blaine grabs his collar and tugs him in for a deep, languid kiss, the slick sounds of it echoing in the otherwise-silent car.

"I think we really need to learn to control ourselves," Kurt breathes, casting a glance at the driver.

"Who could control themselves around you?" Blaine's eyes are dark, hungry, and he looks at Kurt like he's the best thing he's ever seen. His hand lands high up on Kurt's thigh, and Kurt sucks in a breath, looks down at it. "We have three whole days of just us. Three days to learn some things about each other, and three days where no one will disturb us unless we ask them to."

Kurt swallows hard, cups Blaine's cheek and says, "That sounds romantic."

Blaine's hand covers his own as he smiles. "Very."

"Will we get to swim in the ocean?"

"If you want."

"Use room service?"

"If you want."

Kurt scoots closer, feels and hears the rustle of the leis around their necks. His lips are centimeters from Blaine's, the slick, sensitive skin brushing when he whispers, "Will you take me as soon as we get into our room?"

Blaine shivers, letting out a soft moan, and his eyes slide shut as he says, "God, yes."

----

That, however, is completely forgotten the moment they've dragged all of their luggage to the second floor of the Hilton Waikoloa's Lagoon Tower. Kurt opens the door with their electronic key, and he isn't sure which hits the floor harder faster: his jaw, or his heavy carryon.

It isn't a room; it's a suite, and the first thing Kurt sees when he opens the door is the staircase leading up to the next level. The floors gleam with high polish, even more than Blaine's at his penthouse, and Kurt doesn't even feel like he's staying in a hotel.

Blaine shuts the door, picking up both of their bags and heading towards the stairs. He looks back at Kurt when he reaches the bottom step, raising an eyebrow in amusement as he says, "The bedroom's upstairs. Are you coming?"

The bedroom offers a view of the bright blue of the ocean and sky and the emerald of the grass. Blaine sets their luggage down by the flat screen TV, taking his lei off next and setting it onto the dresser. He looks unsure for a moment, that way he always gets before he presents Kurt with something new, and it's so endearing by now, the fact that Blaine, who's twenty years Kurt's senior, is the one who gets anxious most of the time. "So, uh, what do you think?"

Kurt doesn't even feel the need to hesitate when he says, "It's perfect, oh my god. I've never felt so...important before." He giggles, biting the inside of his cheek, and Blaine smiles, running a hand over his hair and stretching.

"What do you want to do?" Blaine looks around, like the more-than-likely uber expensive suite is boring him. "I was thinking we could just order room service tonight and go out to eat tomorrow night. Is that okay with you?"

"It sounds perfect." Kurt steps forward and pulls Blaine into a hug, then a kiss. "Thank you again," he says, feeling the strong ripple of Blaine's muscles under his hands.

"Anything for you," Blaine replies, and his voice is soft, intimate, and Kurt wishes that he could just curl up in this moment forever. When he thinks about it, three days is nowhere near enough time. They'll have to leave early Sunday afternoon to get home in time to unpack and unwind before work on Monday. He's only been in Hawaii for a few hours, but already Kurt never wants to leave, wants to be here, with Blaine, forever.

And you can. If everything works out and Blaine feels the same way you do, this happiness doesn't have to come with an expiration date.

"Let's go swimming," Kurt says, and he feels giddy at the thought, at the knowledge that he's here, in Hawaii, with the most gorgeous man he's ever seen. He's free to do whatever, whenever, and he's never been to the beach, hadn't ever thought that he'd actually get the opportunity to.

Blaine grins, says, "That sounds like a great idea."

----

They have an umbrella, just in case, when they get down to the beach, but Kurt hopes that they won't need it. the sand is hot under his feet, and the trade winds mixed with the sun beating down on his back gives him that same sense of comforting, pleasant warmth of a bed warmed up to just the right temperature when you wake up in the morning: cozy and something you never want to leave.

Kurt can't help but keep stealing glances at Blaine every so often, the still-sharp cut of his hips and the faint lines of his abdominals. Blaine's hair is loose and unstyled today, falling curly around his forehead and temples, and his black-and-white Diesel swim trunks fall just perfectly on his hips and high up enough on his thighs to show off the sturdiness of his muscle. Kurt's wearing last season's Hugo Boss swim trunks and the Ray-Bans Blaine had bought him, and Blaine is wearing a matching pair, a completely unintentional happenstance that had made them both laugh.

There's a quiet spot at a tiny inlet, the waves lapping gently at the sand, and when Blaine lays down the towel Kurt holds out a bottle of sunscreen, saying, "I burn easily."

Blaine takes it, says, with a smile, "I never would have guessed."

Kurt hits Blaine's shoulder and Blaine laughs, saying, "Sorry, sorry. I couldn't resist. You know I love your skin. You're perfect."

Kurt rolls his eyes even as his cheeks heat up; he lays down on his stomach, stretching out so that his toes dig into the hot sand as the towel sinks into it with the pressure points of his elbows and knees. "Oh, just put the sunscreen on before I crisp."

He gasps when the first cool drops of the lotion hit his skin, and when Blaine begins kneading it in, working with nimble fingers, he finds himself letting out a pleased moan and sinking boneless onto the towel. "Ugh, yes. That feels so good."

Blaine's hands move from his shoulders, down the backs of his arms, and his middle back. Kurt giggles and squirms when Blaine runs his hands over his sides, and he can't help but tense up a little when Blaine reaches his lower back above the waistband of his trunks.

He tries to focus on anything else, but when Blaine pushes the waistband down a little and rubs over the skin there, Kurt startles as his body gives a tingling jolt and his cock gives a twitch. This moan he bites back as he sits up, looks over his shoulder to see Blaine straddling his hips, sunglasses falling down his nose.

"Blaine, honey, I love you," Kurt says, voice pinched, "but don't turn me on because I will not have sex with you on this beach. As alluring as From Here to Eternity made it seem, I'd prefer not to get sand in my ass."

Blaine pouts but doesn't say anything, just moves down to Kurt's calves before asking Kurt to flip over. Kurt takes the bottle from him, slapping at his hand when he tries to take it away. A breeze comes by, ruffling Kurt's hair as he says, "Nuh-uh. No exhibitionism, and I know you."

"Oh, do you?" Blaine climbs onto Kurt's lap, pushing him down onto the towel. Kurt squeals, fighting at Blaine's hold, but finds it useless as Blaine just presses him down harder. His breath hitches at the suddenly defenseless position, and Blaine must clue in on it as he backs off a little but still keeps his face close to Kurt's. his glasses slide down a little further with the thin sheen of sweat on Blaine's nose, and Kurt finds himself staring into half-hazel, half lense. Blaine's freckles are more prominent in the sunlight, the liens in his forehead and face a little deeper. "Don't tell me that you don't love the idea of me making you come right here, right now. No one else is on this beach. It'd be our little secret."

Kurt whines in the back of his throat, eyes closing behind his sunglasses. He pushes his wrists against Blaine's hands again, says, "Fuck, Blaine, c'mon."

And then Blaine is gone, up in a flash with only the spicy scent of his cologne lingering. Kurt sits up, blinking in surprise, and finds Blaine halfway down the beach, running towards the surf. For a moment, Kurt doesn't move, just admires: Blaine is, in Kurt's eyes, the most youthful person he's ever seen. He's spontaneous, eager, and so ready to live life no matter what that Kurt envies him a little, for being so upbeat even when everything seems like it couldn't possibly get any worse. In all the months that they've been dating he hasn't heard Blaine complain once, even when Kurt himself is attacking him. And as Blaine looks back, calls out, "C'mon!" Kurt knows that he's fallen in love with the right person.

----

Eating dinner alone on their balcony overlooking the water is nicer than Kurt had thought it would be: room service hadn't held back, and the bottle of champagne is sweating in its ice bucket as Blaine fills first his glass, then Kurt's, and winks when he hands it to him and says, "Don't tell your dad."

Kurt takes a sip and lets the rushing of bubbles slide down his throat. "He doesn't even know I'm here, so I think I'd prefer not to tell him. He's just beginning to like you, and I'm sure finding out that you've whisked me away for the weekend would be higher up on his list than giving me some champagne." Feeling bold, he adds, sultry, "Besides, I don't need to be drunk to want to get you out of those clothes."

"My, my, Kurt Hummel," Blaine says, cutting into his salmon as Kurt takes a delicate bite of his spiced ahi sashimi. "Who turned you into this insatiable creature?"

"It couldn't possibly be the man sitting across from me trying to play footsie under the table," Kurt says evenly, hooking his foot around Blaine's ankle. "What are you, five?"

"And a half," Blaine replies, cocking his head and grinning. He spears a delicately pink bite of salmon with his fork and holds it out. "Here, try this."

Kurt leans across the table and is reminded of their first date, the nerves he'd felt in his stomach as each second had ticked by and he still hadn't screwed it up. They maintain eye contact while Kurt takes the piece of meat, sits back in his chair and chews, and that same Pepsi-bubble feeling returns, though this time it's sharper, champagne bubbles, and he squirms in his seat.

"It's delicious," he affirms.

"I like when you don't argue about me buying you things," Blaine teases.

They share their dessert—Neapolitan cheesecake—feeding each other and laughing and kissing more than actual eating. When Blaine thumbs off a crumb from the corner of Kurt's mouth Kurt leans in, suddenly hungry for more than food, and kisses Blaine deep and dirty. The legs of his chair scrape over the concrete as he gets up, and Blaine pushes away from the table, their contact hardly breaking, to give Kurt room to sit on his lap and wrap his arms around his neck.

"Think it's too early for that skinny dipping you promised me?" Kurt asks.

Blaine lets out a low growl and easily picks Kurt up, hefting him bridal-style. Kurt clutches closer, afraid of falling but trusting Blaine, and Blaine's voice is deeper, rougher, when he says, "It's never too early for skinny dipping, baby."

----

Kurt is certain he's still dreaming about last night, the memory of Blaine's mouth on his cock with the waves lapping at their bodies that are nothing more than silhouettes in the silvery moonlight, but as he slowly blinks awake, the soft white of the sheets tangled around him and wrapped around one arm, he realizes that he's not dreaming and Blaine is there, cheeks hollowed around his cock and hair an early-morning mess from going to bed with it wet.

Kurt groans, low and slurred, and Blaine blinks his eyes open, bobs his head a few more times before sliding off with a sucking sound, his hand still working the base as he says, "Good morning, beautiful." He licks a stripe up the side of Kurt's cock and Kurt lets his head fall back to the pillows, gripping tight onto Blaine's hair.

It isn't that he hasn't been woken up by morning blowjobs before, because he has, but last night is still fresh in his mind: the thrill of skinny dipping, then them tumbling barely-clothed into the bedroom, water dripping everywhere as Kurt had begged Blaine to fuck him.

Blaine sucks hard just as Kurt remembers Blaine turning him over onto all fours, and the moan he lets out is whining and wanton, and he grabs at Blaine's hair, arches up off the bed. "Fuck, oh god, fuck, B, like that."

Blaine hums, sinks lower, and Kurt squeezes his eyes shut, feels the pounding of his heart and the trembling of his thighs. He can still feel the tight grip of Blaine's hands on his hips; hear the smacking of their skin as Blaine had pounded into him until he was screaming into a pillow. He's never let go that much before, but it had never felt as good as it had last night.

"I'm gonna come," he gasps as he feels the slippery slick of Blaine's tongue trail along the length of his cock. He grabs more of the sheets, clenches his teeth before letting his jaw fall slack as he pants. "Oh god, oh god, Blaine, Blaine."

He comes into Blaine's mouth, trembling and moaning and tugging on Blaine's hair. The sound of Blaine swallowing echoes in the room, and Kurt feels his cock twitch; he turns his head to stare out the window at the sunny sky and aqua waves and doesn't turn back until he hears Blaine moving on the bed, scooting up until the firm clamp of his thighs is around Kurt's torso.

He turns, and Blaine's cock is inches from his face, heavy and flushed red and so slick. Kurt doesn't hesitate to lean up, gripping the backs of Blaine's thighs as he licks at the head, then sinks down. Blaine grips onto the headboard, groaning low and deep, and Kurt's eyes blink up to look at Blaine, the wide-eyed wonderment as Kurt bobs his head and sucks more of his cock into his mouth.

One hand comes down to cradle the back of Kurt's skull, and Blaine's voice is lower still as he groans, "Fuck, that's it, baby, so fucking good."

Says, "Wanna fuck your mouth so badly, pretty baby, wanna watch you take my cock over and over."

Kurt moans, squeezing his eyes shut as Blaine moves his hips hesitantly, sliding only centimeters of his cock in and out of Kurt's mouth. It's thrilling, sending electric shivers up and down Kurt's skin, and his nails dig hard into the backs of Blaine's thighs as he moans, hollows his cheeks and bobs his head faster until Blaine's groaning out a warning and coming hot and thickly bitter into Kurt's mouth.

Blaine pants, body curving as he slumps, and his cock falls with a wet noise from between Kurt's lips as he slides down, smiles and tilts Kurt's head up with a finger under his chin. Kurt clutches at him, kissing back with just as much early-morning fervor as he can muster.

"I have big plans for today," Blaine says, and Kurt can feel his smile, feel the excited energy coursing through his body. "So we should shower."

"The shower in this suite is built for two," Kurt muses, and Blaine grins, leaning down to kiss him again.

----

"Dolphins?!" Kurt asks, eyes going wide as he finally sees where Blaine is taking him. It's the same little inlet he could see from their suite, clear water lapping at sad and nestled with black rock. There are two women in wetsuits standing on the ring of beach, and a group of parents and their children.

Blaine looks unsure for a moment and hesitates as he says, "Is this okay?"

"Yes," Kurt answers immediately. He tugs at his trunks, smiles at Blaine before kissing him on the cheek. "I've always wanted to swim with dolphins."

Kurt watches Blaine relax a little, and his smile is easier as they walk toward the rest of the group. "I do this every time I come here," Blaine says. "It's just so..."

"Amazing?" Kurt finishes. They stop next to a little girl who can't be any more than ten, and she looks half-frightened as she crowds close to her dad. Her hair shines buttercream in the sun, and her eyes are pretty and green.

"Are we all here?" one of the trainers asks. When she gets the affirmative she blows her whistle and Kurt watches as six sleekly gray shapes swim up through the water before poking their long snouts out of the water.

Kurt's never imagined himself doing this, and he watches all the demonstrations with amazement, even helping the shy little girl next to him touch one of the dolphins. Blaine is off to the side with the other trainer, barely within earshot, and Kurt is just petting the slick skin of one of the dolphins with Cora, the little girl, when he hears the trainer speak to Blaine.

"It's so nice of you to bring your son here," she says, and Kurt bites his lip, unsure if he wants to be offended or amused. "I know how tough single parenthood can be, especially the bonding part."

The dolphin blinks at Kurt, its beady black eye glistening in the sunlight, and he can hear the faint amusement in Blaine's voice when he says, "Oh, Kurt's not my son. He's my boyfriend."

Kurt can't help himself as he turns in the cool water and calls out, "Are you going to come in anytime soon, honey? You promised me you would!"

"In a minute, baby," Blaine replies, and this time the amusement is much more audible as the trainer looks from one to the other, jaw slightly dropped. It isn't disgust, or offense, just surprises, and he'll take it, Kurt thinks. When Blaine wades into the water Kurt can't resist leaning in to give him a peck on the lips, and Cora, who's still petting the dolphin, says, "Are you two married?"

"No," Blaine says, taking Kurt's hand. There's something in his voice, something Kurt can't place, but Blaine's still smiling so he shrugs it off and adds, "We're just dating."

"You should get married," Cora says in that simple way only a young child can do.

"Er, we aren't sure yet," Kurt says, looking at Blaine to try and gauge his reaction. "We're kind of taking things slow."

The dolphin swims away, disappearing under the water, and Cora disappears back to her parents, leaving Kurt and Blaine standing in the shallow water, unsure what to think.

----

"I'm really glad you brought me here," Kurt says that night as they stand on their balcony to watch the sunset. He takes Blaine's hand where it rests on the railing, presses a kiss to the back of it. "It was the best weekend of my life."

Blaine turns, smiles, and his features are highlighted by the sun, subtle brushstrokes of scarlet and purple and navy over twin sunspots of golden. "I'm glad you didn't try to fight me on this one."

"Nah, I think I'm done trying to fight you. I'm just glad that you're still here."

"Hey." Blaine's voice is soft, and his lips are softer when he leans in. "I'm always going to be here, okay?" he says as he rests their foreheads together.

Kurt nods. "Okay."

Blaine bites his lip, and the silence stretches on, broken only by the faint crashing of the waves and the sounds of the other tourists in their resort. The TV is on in their bedroom, faint through the half-closed sliding glass door, and Kurt focuses on these subtleties.

As much as he loves New York and the life it's brought to him—and it's brought him to Blaine—Kurt's going to miss the laid-back quiet and warmth of Hawaii. He's going to miss waking up next to Blaine, not having to worry about work or bills or anything.

He knows that he could have this life, that he's already waist-deep in it, and hearing Cora yesterday, so blasé in her young wisdom, had made him realize what's been just under the surface this whole time. But he can't ask—he has to wait until Blaine is ready.

He hears his father's words in his head, "you're prepared to take on responsibilities if this thing gets serious?"

He wants things to get serious. But he also remembers how Blaine had broken off one engagement before, and though he'd told Kurt that it was because he hadn't been in love with Jeremy, just the idea of love, Kurt still feels the little niggling sense of fear that that's all Blaine is experiencing, too, some mid-life crisis and Kurt has been crazy and desperate enough to fall for it this entire time.

Like he knows what Kurt's thinking Blaine says, sudden, "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Silence, then Blaine sighs and looks out over the ocean. "I'm going to miss this place."

"I'm going to miss spending every day with you."

Blaine turns to him, looking guarded and shy for a moment before it passes. "Have you ever...thought about maybe moving in?"

Kurt's heart lodges itself somewhere up in the middle of his throat, and his next inhale is choked-off in surprise, saliva going down his windpipe as he gasps. He coughs, lets go of Blaine's hand, and waves him away with an I'm fine as he tries to inhale a proper lungful of air.

"Do you mean it?" Kurt asks when he regains his breath. He's sure his heart can be heard by their neighbors a floor above them.

Blaine looks at the concrete. "Only if you want to. I've been thinking about it for awhile, and I know it's a huge step, but I really do love you, Kurt."

That's all Kurt needs to hear. He hugs Blaine tight, kisses him soundly on the lips, and feels his cheeks stretching into a stupidly ridiculous grin. "I'll have to think about it, and ask Rachel, but I really, really want to."

Blaine squeezes his waist, smile slowly unfolding, and he nuzzles Kurt's nose before breathing out, "God, I love you so much."

Here, in Blaine's arms with another possible chapter of their life waiting to be explored, Kurt's never felt more at home.