"I'm coming to get you tomorrow."
"But--"
"No buts, Blaine. You are going to the ball whether your parents say you can or not," Wes interrupted. It was Friday and they had been having this argument since the beginning of the week when the invitation had arrived.
"But my chores---"
"You'll have the whole day to get your chores done while your family is at David and Adam's game on Saturday."
"What if--"
"They're not going to catch us." Wes assured him. "Besides, the princess decided to make it a masquerade ball now, remember? We'll be wearing masks, they'll never find us."
"Yeah and what if I can't find him either?" Blaine mumbled.
"What? Are you still worried about that guy? Mr. Killer Blue-Eyes? I'm sure you'll find him if he really is from around here, and if not, we're still going to have a good time, I promise."
"Mr. Killer Blue-Eyes? Really, Wes? Nicknames?" Blaine rolled his eyes as the bell rang signaling the end of lunch.
"We don't know his name. Gotta call him something," Wes shrugged, picking up his lunch tray and heading over to the trash can. Blaine got up and followed.
"Fine, I'll go," Blaine muttered, following Wes closely so no one would hear their conversation. "But don’t tell anybody. I don't want it getting back to Dave and Adam."
"Do you have therapy today?" Wes asked moments later, changing topics since they were now in a crowded hallway.
"Yes, don't remind me."
"Want a ride? It's raining."
"Yeah, thanks, just--"
"Don't tell, I know." Wes finished, stopping at his locker. "See you later," he called as Blaine continued down the hall towards his own locker.
"See ya."

"I think I've narrowed it down to these three, but I really need my gay brother's opinion to pick one for the ball," Santana batted her eyes and smiled at Kurt.
"That one," Kurt pointed after just moments of deliberation. "It'll match your dress perfectly and bring out your eyes."
"Are you sure?" she asked, picking up the velvety mask and pressing it to her face to look in the mirror. Kurt came up behind her and took it from her, tying it on.
"Yes, I'm sure. It'll look perfect."
"Thanks, now, have you decided what you're wearing?" she asked him, slipping the mask off and placing it back onto the dresser before turning to let Kurt unzip the back of her dress.
"I dunno, San, I can't decide. I really wanna look good."
"You always look good, brother," she turned to him, confused. "Is this about that guy?"
Kurt blushed slightly. "I just--I've never--I want him to like me. If I can find him."
"You're going to find him and he's going to think you are just as gorgeous as you think he is, I'm sure," Santana placed her hands on his shoulders, shaking him slightly. "You are hot stuff, brother. There's no way he wouldn't like you."
Kurt bit his lip nervously. "This mask thing has me worried, though. I only saw him the one time, what if I don't recognize him with a mask on?"
Santana shook him a little more harshly. "Stop freaking out. Just, stop. You are going to look gorgeous, you are going to find your dream man and you are going to have the night of your life. Stop worrying so much!" She let go of him and walked back into the closet, coming back moments later with shoes on and her purse. "Now, we are going shopping. It will make you feel better."
Kurt rolled his eyes and followed her out of the bedroom. "Are you sure Dad'll let us go?"
"I'll be persuasive," his sister shrugged. With that, she turned, clicking her way down the hallway to their father's study and knocking purposefully on the door.
"Enter," their father's voice comes from the other side.
Santana opens the door and takes a few steps inside, "We were going to go to the mall, if that's alright."
"Occasion?" the king asks from the desk, barely glancing up from his paperwork.
"Kurt's pining over a boy that he's never met and I'm trying to distract him," Santana blurts out before Kurt can stop her. Kurt flushes as his father looks up, shocked.
"What boy?" he asks, trying to mask the threatening tone in his voice.
Kurt glares at Santana, refusing to answer as he avoids his father's stare.
"It's nothing. Yet. We were going to see if we could find him a mask for the ball on Saturday," Santana answers, ignoring the rising tension in the room.
"I suppose that's alright," Burt responds after a moment. He looks at Kurt again, who looks the other way, and then goes back to his paperwork. "Make sure a couple guys go with you--" he pauses and looks back up. "I expect to know about this boy if things progress."
Kurt flushes bright red and stares determinedly at the floor as he mutters, "Of course."
"Thanks, Dad!" Santana turns and pulls Kurt out the door with her.
"I can't believe you just did that," he says as they descend the stairs. "He did not need to know anything. I don't know if I'm ever going to see this guy again."
"It's fine, he won't do anything. He doesn't even know who he is, since you don't."
"That's not the point," Kurt muttered.

"Here," Wes shoved a plain black mask into his hands before pulling away from the curb. "It's a masked ball, gotta have a mask."
"Thanks, man," he paused, nervously. "Don't forget we have to---"
"Leave by eleven to get back before your family, yes I know, you've told me a million times."
"I just---"
"I know, but it's going to be fine. We'll go. We'll have a good time. You'll hopefully track down Mr. Blue-Eyes and we'll leave. Hopefully after you've gotten his phone number or something," he grinned.
"You know I can't---I mean, I just--" Blaine sighed. "I wish I was allowed to just have a relationship with a guy and it not be such a big deal."
"You've just got to make it through this year and we'll be graduated and you can do whatever you want after that. You can stop going to those ridiculous therapy sessions and start having a real life."
"Yeah, I can't wait. I don't even care where I go. Just as long as it's away from that house."

"I'm going to let both of you blend in tonight. Since you're wearing masks anyways I don't think you want to be introduced."
"Thanks, Dad," Kurt sighs, relieved.
"I'll stick with you and welcome the guests. It's supposed to be my ball, right? I don't think I should stay anonymous," Santana replies and the king turns to Kurt with raised eyebrows.
"Sorry, I just want one night without being bowed to and hearing 'your highness' over and over, I just want one night of blending in," Kurt explained to his father. "As soon as people know that I'm in line for the throne, they treat me totally differently."
"It's okay, son," Burt patted his son's shoulder, comfortingly. "I understand. It ends after tonight though. We're going to have to start finding you a man soon, though, don't forget that." He gave Kurt a meaningful look.
Kurt blushed, "I know, Dad, I know."
"That's kind of what tonight is actually intended for, if you've forgotten."
"I know, I'll keep my eye out."
"For that hazel-eyed boy of his dreams, yes he definitely will," Santana grinned.
Burt flushed slightly at the comment. "Looks aren't everything, son, remember that."
"They sure don't hurt, though," his daughter added, smirking at his discomfort.
Burt cleared his throat. "There are rules with you being anonymous. You have to stay within sight of security at all times, no disappearing without informing someone of where you're going."
"Okay, Dad, I promise."
"Alright, both of you enjoy yourselves tonight," he smiled.
"You, too, Dad, don't worry about us so much," Santana replied, leaning in for a hug.
"Yeah, Dad, enjoy yourself," Kurt leaned in for a hug as well before turning in the opposite direction. "Okay, if I'm going to blend in, I'm going to have to go downstairs through the servants’ stairway to blend into the crowd."
"Alright, have a good night," Burt said in farewell.
"I hope you find your prince--err, soon-to-be prince? Whatever, I hope you find him," Santana smiled at him and waved.

"We definitely have good timing, it looks like almost everyone's here and the king and princess haven't come down yet," Wes commented as they made their way into the castle's ballroom. Blaine looked around in awe at the beautifully decorated room that was probably the size of their entire school, if not bigger.
"I never thought I'd get to see the inside of this place," he commented to Wes as he was led around the edge of the room.
"If we go over this way, I think we'll be able to see them come down the stairs better," he replied to Blaine's questioning stare.
Suddenly a door on Blaine's left opened and a man just slightly taller than himself ran into him, causing him to bump into the woman on his right.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, ma'am," he immediately apologized as he righted himself. "Are you alright?"
"I'm perfectly fine," she replied with a smile. "You barely bumped me."
Blaine quickly turned to see if the man who had bumped into him was alright. He appeared to be fine, but had frozen, staring at Blaine. He looked up, the boy was a couple inches taller, and realized he had seen those eyes before. Blaine paused, debating what to say.
"Sorry, didn't realize it'd be so crowded outside this door," he hesitantly smiled. He was wearing a charcoal colored mask with silver trimming and several black feathers standing up on the right side above his eye.
"Come on," Wes suddenly interrupted, grabbing his hand. "The princess and the king should be coming any minute."
On a spur of the moment decision, Blaine grabbed the strangers hand and repeated Wes's 'come on' and pulled him with them around the room. They stopped just to the left of the staircase, behind a couple of girls that were already standing there, giving them a good view of the staircase.
"Hi," Wes said when they stopped, turning to the young man. "I'm Wes."
"I'm C-Chris," the man replied hesitantly. He seemed a bit nervous. Blaine had let go of his hand as soon as they had stopped, but he had felt like his heart had done a somersault when he'd grabbed it.
"Nice to meet you, Chris," Blaine offered his hand to shake. "I'm Blaine. I think I might've seen you at McKinley the other day." Blaine couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth, but he thought it probably had something to do with the fact that the man--Chris---was shaking his hand and his heart was back to doing cartwheels and he wasn't sure why.
"Oh," Chris blushed and paused. "I was touring the school a bit. Thinking about transferring." Blaine noticed his voice was high, some might even say feminine, though Blaine thought it was sexiest thing he'd ever heard. He seemed to barely keep his eyes off of Blaine, to Blaine's pleasure.
"Oh, do you go to Dalton?" Blaine asked, thinking he seemed like the private school type.
"Oh, no, uh, homeschooled."

He couldn't believe he'd ran into the gorgeous guy as soon as he had reached the ballroom. Surely that was fate slapping him in the face? And when the guy had grabbed his hand to pull him through the room, he could feel the electricity in just touching him.
"Have you ever met any of the royalty, Chris?" Wes asked. Kurt couldn't believe he had lied about his name, but he didn't think he'd blend in very well if he stuck with his own.
"Yeah, I met the princess at a charity event I went to with my parents," Kurt lied. "She's gorgeous and sweet as can be." He was going to end with that, but at Blaine's confused look about his sister's gorgeous looks, he figured he better go ahead and confirm he was gay in hopes that Blaine was too. "I saw the prince once before, too. He's totally hot."
"Yeah, I've heard that, although I haven't seen a picture of him in the papers since he was like seven, so I don't have first-hand experience. If he's anything like I imagine a prince to look," Blaine purposefully gave Kurt a once-over. "He's drop dead gorgeous."
Kurt flushed, for a moment thinking he'd been caught, but then seeing the glint in Blaine's eyes, realized that he was flirting with him.
"Too bad he's probably straight as an arrow," Blaine shrugged dramatically. Kurt tried to hide his smirk. If only he knew how 'straight' the prince really is.
"Good thing not all of us are," Kurt grinned.
A hush fell over the room as his father and Santana appeared at the top of the stairs. Blaine raised his eyebrows at Kurt with a glance. "She's beautiful," he leaned over to whisper in his ear, Kurt flushing slightly at the close proximity. "I wonder where the prince is."
"May I present, his majesty, King Burt," a man with a microphone at the bottom of the stairs announced. "And her highness, Princess Santana."
The entire room went into a bow, acknowledging their rulers. Kurt was only a moment behind, forgetting momentarily that he was 'blending in' tonight, luckily no one noticed his slight hesitation.
"Welcome to our home," his father spoke from the bottom of the stairs. "My daughter has been looking forward to tonight all week, so I hope you all don't disappoint," he chuckled. "I've claimed her first dance, but she'll be free the rest of the evening. Please, enjoy yourselves and thank you for coming." With that, the band started playing and his dad led his sister onto the dance floor. They danced alone until the song reached the chorus and they were slowly joined by other couples from around the room.
There's gonna be a heartache tonight
A heartache tonight, I know
There's gonna be a heartache tonight
A heartache tonight, I know
"They didn't even mention the prince, I wonder if he's sick or something," Wes commented.
"Yeah, maybe," Kurt nervously replied.
"Darn, I was hopin' to get a glance of our 'future king'," Blaine said, watching the king dance with his daughter.
"It's alright, Blaine," Wes nudged him. "He'll be forced into the press soon. He's about to turn eighteen. He'll be looking for a wife and the paparazzi will follow him the entire time, I'm sure. You'll have lots of time to ogle him."
"Shut up!" Blaine shoved him, blushing. "You know I wouldn't."
"Well, no, not with your family watching your every move. They'd probably force you into shock therapy or something."
Kurt was watching them, confused. Shock therapy? What the heck does that mean?
"Sorry," Wes told him, noticing his confusion. "Blaine's family is very against his being gay."
Now this night is gonna last forever
And last, and last all summer long
Some time before the sun comes up
The radio is gonna play that song
Kurt hesitantly looked at Blaine, "I'm sorry, that sucks."
"It's not that bad. I graduate in May and I'll be outta there."
"Where're you going?" Kurt asked, genuinely curious.
"College or I'll move out with Wes and find a job."
"I'm going to check out the food and maybe see the odds of getting a dance with the princess," Wes suddenly said, looking over at the line for the food. "You coming?"
"I think I'll stay here, I doubt the princess'll want anything to do with me anyways," Blaine shrugged. "Make sure you tell her she looks gorgeous if you do get to dance with her."
"Oh, I will," Wes grinned, walking away. "See you later! Enjoy yourself!"
"You two seem close," Kurt said with a small wave to Wes.
"He's kind of my only friend, so yeah, we are."
"Just friends?" Kurt had to ask.
Blaine rolled his eyes and smiled. "He's as straight as I am gay, so, yeah."
"In that case, would you like to dance?"
Blaine hesitated, glancing around nervously. "I would--it's just--I'm kind of not supposed to be here."
"What d'you mean? Everyone is supposed to be here."
"My dad and stepmother kind of forbid me from coming and as Wes said, they're very homophobic, so if they saw me---"
"They don't have to see you," Kurt interrupted, smiling and grabbing Blaine's hand to lead him over to a door off to their left which led to an empty hallway. "Now may I have this dance?" he grinned.
"Are we supposed to be here?" Blaine anxiously eyed the open door they had come through.
"It's fine, promise. No one will find us, we can still hear the music, and I met this cute boy that I would like to be able to dance with tonight if he would just let me."
"Oh, well, I should let you go find him, then," Blaine teased, starting to make his way back to the door.
Kurt quickly grabbed his arm, "Get back here, you." Blaine blushed slightly and smiled. Kurt placed Blaine's hand on his waist and intertwined his other hand with his own.
Lying here with you so close to me
It’s hard to fight these feelings
When it feels so hard to breathe
Caught up in this moment
Caught up in your smile