�� The ride over to the pet store was loud. Kurt was blasting show tunes, while they sang along. They laughed at each other and had a fight with the pretzels Blaine had brought along as a snack. In the hour and a half long drive, they both found a lot out about each other, random stuff like how Kurt had had a pet turtle named Captain when he was eleven, and that Blaine found out he was allergic to latex during a frog dissection, and that they both were huge dorks when it came to musical theatre, Harry Potter, and a good bow tie. Blaine felt himself falling for Kurt just a little, and flirting a small amount, at least until they reached the pet store.�
�� At the pet store, Kurt looked at the canaries, while Blaine looked at him. Kurt moved gracefully from cage to cage, humming along to the songs being played over the store's sound system. �He was wearing white skinny jeans and black boots, coupled with a dark grey coat that looked ridiculously expensive. Kurt's hair was styled to perfection, and his entire demeanor radiated confidence. He was a completely different person than the trembling boy from an hour or so earlier. Blaine wondered briefly why Kurt had gotten so upset over the bird's death. He had just gotten Pavarotti after all, and they hadn't formed an immediate bond from what Blaine had seen at practice.�
�� Still, the boy had been driven to tears by Pav's passing. He was probably a little on edge from whatever happened to make him transfer, Blaine reasoned. After all, judging by the sheer number of bruises on him, Kurt had been bullied pretty severely.�
�� The thought of someone pushing Kurt around made Blaine tense up with rage. He was so...amazing, that the thought of someone hurting him for all the reasons Blaine thought he was fantastic made him almost sick with anger. Blaine took several deep breaths to calm down. After all, Kurt was safe now at Dalton. Even now, Kurt laughed and started singing loudly to the latest song being played. Blaine sang along, mainly because when Kurt was dancing and singing to canaries, his enthusiasm was so infectious that it made Blaine just want to kiss him.�
���
�� Wait.�
Wait just one second.�
Where did THAT come from?

�� Blaine shook his head. Kurt was his friend. Just a friend. Plus, anyone who had been abused by bullies like Kurt had probably wasn't looking for a relationship, and Kurt was already, after only a few hours, too important for Blaine to lose, he thought as the song faded out and Kurt calmed down and went back to bird hunting.�
�� "Blaine! Look at this little guy!"�
Kurt cooed to the canary, breaking his reverie. The canary was Pav's spitting image. Blaine grinned at Kurt.�
�� "You have excellent taste in birds. " Blaine said in mock seriousness. Kurt pushed him playfully, rolling his eyes.�
�� "I have excellent taste in everything. " Kurt reminded Blaine.�
�� "Cut me some slack! I've known you for about three hours. In that time I've seen you in all of two outfits: the one you have on now, which IS stunning, and a bold towel-and-avocado ensemble. " Blaine replied with a grin. Kurt pretended
to look deeply offended.�
�� "For your information, I put a lot of time and effort into that outfit. It was the pride of my entire wardrobe. "
"Including the Alexander McQueen sweater I caught a glimpse of?" Blaine asked, waggling his eyebrows.�
�� "No! I can't joke about my McQueen sweaters! They're like my children! " Kurt exclaimed, in a way that Blaine suspected�to be only half joking. Blaine fist-pumped in celebration, whooping loudly. �Kurt looked mortified.�
�� "You're insane, you know that, right?"
�� Blaine simply shrugged. "Towel and avocado, Kurt. Towel and avocado. "
�� Kurt sighed dramatically. "You aren't ever going to let me forget this, are you?" he said resignedly.�
�� "What? No! Course I will! " Blaine said earnestly. "Just as soon as you commit a worse crime against fashion, or do something even more embarrassing, the towel will be long gone. "
�� Kurt stared at him. "You are insufferable, Blaine. "
�� "But that's why everyone luuurrrvveeeesss me!!" Blaine sing-songed, making big puppy dog eyes as Kurt made his way to the cashier to pay for Pav 2. He thanked the cashier and put Pavarotti's replacement in the new cage Blaine had found.�
�� "Anyway, I did want to apologize for ruining your blazer. Those avocado stains are going to be impossible to get out. "
Kurt said as they exited the store. They started walking towards Kurt's Navigator.�
�� "Don't worry, it isn't mine. " Blaine reassured him. "I just commandeered one of David's. �Lord Tubbington ate mine, so I'm going to have to actually wash my other ones. "
Blaine groaned in faux disappointment, then grinned at Kurt.�
�� Kurt looked shocked. Blaine's smile faded at the sight of his expression.�
�� "Are you all right, Kurt?" Blaine asked, a little worried as to what he might have said.�
�� "Did you say Lord Tubbington ate your blazer? Brittany Pierce's Lord Tubbington?"
�� They had arrived at the car, and Blaine leaned against the side of the vehicle, confused.�
�� "Yes, Brittany's Lord Tubbington. How do you know that? "
Kurt's face transformed from shocked to a small smirk.�
�� "We went to school together at McKinley. She was an ex-girlfriend of mine. " He said nonchalantly, hopping into the driver's seat and revving the engine.�
�� Blaine's heart imploded. God, how could he have been such an IDIOT. Kurt was straight. Those bruises were probably from too much football practice with too little pads, not getting beat up. �Blaine slunk in next to Kurt, trying not to let his disappointment show.�
�� "Wow, dating a cheerleader. Must of been a jock, huh?"
Blaine said, trying to make light of the whole awful situation.�
�� "Oh yeah" Kurt said, still smirking. "I actually was on the football team. I scored us the winning points in our only victory that season. "
�� Blaine then decided that he would be spending the upcoming weekend watching Disney and eating ice cream by the tubful.�
This was absolutely awful. Completely embarrassing.�
�� "Luckily, I eventually came to my senses, dumped Brittany, quit the football team, got rid of the plaid," Kurt shuddered at the memory, obviously disgusted. "And came out of the closet once and for all. "
�� He glanced over at Blaine, barely holding back laughter.�
�� "Oh come on Blaine. You didn't honestly think that I was straight? "
�� Kurt chuckled to himself as they pulled out of the parking lot and headed towards the parking lot, singing along to the Wicked soundtrack he had playing.�
�� Blaine suddenly felt a lot better. Insanely better. Go sing in the shower, dance in the rain, kiss a stranger in the streets of New York better. Kurt was gay! Blaine-1 World-0

�� . . .

Blaine was still riding high off of Kurt's declaration when they arrived at the coffee shop. Kurt left to find a seat after telling Blaine his coffee order. Blaine waited in the atypically long line, thinking about Kurt. Blaine was, if he was being completely honest, more than a little attracted to him. With Kurt's lithe form, impeccable style, chestnut hair, and amazing personality, who wouldn't be? He was absolutely gorgeous, and he had the most beautiful eyes.�
�� His eyes. Blaine was pretty sure that he hadn't ever seen the color blue done justice before he saw Kurt's eyes. There was a shine to them, a sparkle that said, "Here I am! Look at me world! I'm ready for you!"�
�� Blaine loved that sparkle.�
But on the other hand, Kurt had obviously been recently hurt. Physically and probably emotionally. He couldn't be ready for a relationship so soon, especially not with someone he just met. What Kurt needed right now was a friend, Blaine thought as he placed the order and left to wait for it to be ready. He needed someone to listen and to be there for him. He didn't need a boyfriend, and he most definitely didn't need all of the baggage that came along with having Blaine as a boyfriend.�
�� So, Blaine reasoned with himself, maybe in a year or so. When the bruises heal and the memories fade and the scars are forgotten he would try for Kurt. In a year or so he would try for those blue eyes and that biting sarcasm and that sweet, sweet boy. But for now, Blaine decided, he would try and heal Kurt as a friend.�
�� Blaine grabbed their coffee and headed off to look for Kurt in the uncharacteristically crowded coffee shop. He finally saw Kurt sitting in a corner next to a burly boy wearing what looked to be a McKinley High letterman's jacket. They were laughing and talking, so Blaine assumed that it was Finn, Kurt's stepbrother. At least, he did until he saw the boy lean over and kiss Kurt.�
�� Until he saw that Kurt was kissing him back.�
���