Blaine stood in front of the mirror, staring at his torso. This was going to be so embarrassing. He wished he had decided to work out over the past year rather than just sit around like a sack of potatoes. At least then he would have some abs to show off.

He wasn’t normally the type to feel insecure about shallow things like the state of his body, but when it came to Kurt, everything was different. Blaine would do anything to get Kurt back; Even if it meant resorting to taking advantage of the hormones that were prevalent in every young male adult. There was nothing else for it; Blaine was desperate.

He took one last regretful glance in the mirror, and then grabbed his tee shirt, pulling it over his head as he walked out of his bedroom. The photo shoot was in two hours and he had no doubt that things were going to get awkward for those two hours that he had to be devoid of any upper body clothing. Blaine grabbed his car keys and headed out, thinking to kill some time just hanging out in Big Apple.

An hour later, Blaine was looking at Madison Square Garden. He ignored the paparazzi that were eagerly snapping shots oh him every time he so much as blinked. Gazing at the huge cylindrical building, he lost himself in the past, dwelling on the times that had been so dark for him.

Memories swirled up and around him as he remembered the first time he played there. It was a few months after the breakup, and he was a mess. He remembered staring blankly in the mirror, minutes before the concert, and not knowing what he was doing there. He remembered his reluctance to play the heartfelt songs that he had written for the boy that had walked away with his heart. But Kurt never heard the songs that were heard and felt by millions of other people. Kurt never experienced the raw emotions coursing through Blaine’s voice that would eventually mark him as a breakout star. And that night, Blaine had known that he didn’t want anyone else to ever hear the anguished love that he still felt so deeply.

He remembered walking out onto the stage and seeing the crowd; the people who had taken a chance on him and had spent good money to see him perform. That was his wake up call. That moment, seeing all the people cheering for him, was what made him pull himself together. Blaine could pine for Kurt for the rest of the night, but right then, he had to live up to those people’s expectations. From that moment onwards, Kurt was just a dream. And Blaine sang his heart out that night, wishing, hoping, praying, that one day, it would be something more.

And now, as he stood in front of The Garden seven months later, he knew that at last, that wish had come true. Finally, Kurt was more than just a dream. Fate had given Blaine a blessing in the form of coincidence. Blaine finally had another chance, and he refused to let Kurt slip out of his grasp once again.

.:~:.

“Alright, Blaine. We’re going to start the photo shoot soon, so would you take your shirt off so that Kurt can work his magic?”

Immediately, twelve different meanings for that last phrase went through his mind. He tried to dispel them, while one glance at a very flushed Kurt told Blaine that he too was having trouble getting his head out of the gutter.

Heeding Chrystie, Blaine slowly pulled off his shirt, unaware of the effect that his newly revealed tanned skin was having on Kurt. The latter thought he was going to pass out from being over exposed to bare flesh.

“So, what have you got planned for this, Kurt?” Chrystie asked as she walked over to where Kurt was standing.

Kurt immediately lost his grip on his sketchbook and notes as he snapped out of the daze that Blaine’s body had most likely put him in.

Blaine immediately strode towards Kurt and bent over to pick up the files for him.

“Here you go.” He said, mentally wondering over Kurt’s scarlet face.

He smiled back as Kurt grinned nervously at him. “Oh, thanks Blaine. That was... that was nice of you.”

“Anytime. So what did you have planned?”

Kurt fumbled with his folders, nearly dropping them again in his haste to get them out. “Well, I looked at the wardrobe options, and I sketched a few options for you guys. Um, could I... could I have a moment? I have to... call Rachel about dinner tonight.”

Chrystie nodded and shooed him off. “Yeah, yeah, go ahead. Take your time. Blaine and I will look at what you put together.”

Kurt nodded and practically ran away from them, pulling out his phone as he dashed out the doors.

As soon as Kurt was out of sight, Chrystie grabbed Blaine by his arm and pulled him into a dressing room. “Do you like him?”

Blaine looked at her, confusion evident in his expression. “What are you talking about? And why did you pull me in here?”

Chrystie made clawing motions with her hands, frustrated sounds echoing through the small room as she stomped around for a few moments. Finally, she sank down into a couch, sighing. “Blaine. I’m talking about Kurt. Do you or do you not like him?”

Blaine exhaled heavily. He should have known that this was coming. “Okay. Whatever is going on in that crazy mind of you is probably correct. But I don’t just like Kurt; I love him. And I’m not going to give up on him even if the record label says I have to.”

Chrystie’s eyes widened and she slumped further into her soft plush seat. “Finally. I was beginning to think that you were hopeless.”

Blaine’s jaw dropped as he tried to take in this information. “You mean... you mean to say that you’re encouraging me to go after him even if it meant that I could be fired for dating an employee.”

“Blaine,” Chrystie said, running a tired hand over her forehead. “We’re practically siblings. I’ve seen you at your highs and your lows. I was there when you won the breakout artist of the year award, and I was also there holding you over the toilet while you puked up all the shit you drank the night before. And after that disgusting experience, I’ll be damned if you don’t get the fairytale ending that you’ve always wished for.”

Sighing, Blaine slumped down next to Chrystie. “You know I respect what you say, and I know that ‘you’re always right’ and all that, but Kurt just doesn’t like me.”

Chrystie looked at Blaine incredulously. “You seriously think that?”

Blaine nodded. “Of course. However much I wish it was more, he isn’t attracted to me in any way, shape, or form.”

“Blaine,” Chrystie said angrily as she leaned forward to grab Blaine’s shoulders. “Listen to me. Kurt. Likes. You.”

With each word she shook him hard. “I can’t believe you don’t see it, Blaine! You are completely and totally oblivious. Did you see the way he was staring at you when you bent over to get his books? He couldn’t take his eyes off you! And if the quick escape afterwards was any indication, he thought he was going to faint.”

Blaine shook his head, rolling his eyes at Chrystie. “Are you serious? That’s really not making me feel better. Why would I want to know that Kurt was going to faint because of how I looked? Do I really look that scary?”

Chrystie giggled at Blaine’s attempt to change the subject.

“You know what I meant. But seriously, Blaine,” She said, getting up and walking over to the doorway. “Think about what I said.”

And with that, she walked away, leaving Blaine to seriously contemplate what he hadn’t dared to hope in a year.

.:~:.

It seemed that while they had their talk, Kurt had also had a nice long chat with Rachel. When he came back, Blaine couldn’t help but notice that his face suddenly glowed with excitement. There was the Kurt that he knew and loved. There was the Kurt who just wanted to live his dream and do it his way.

As Chrystie started barking orders to the photographers, Kurt came over to Blaine and took his hand. Blaine jerked with surprise, but welcomed the touch. “Come on, Blaine, we have to go get you ready for the photo shoot!”

Kurt’s smile was stunning, and Blaine couldn’t help but stare. When had Kurt gotten so beautiful? Noticing Kurt looking at him weirdly, he quickly nodded and followed as Kurt led him to back to the dressing room.

“Alright,” Kurt said, grabbing a stack of clothes off a table. “These are all the jeans that you’re going to be wearing for the shoot. I have the accessories waiting outside, and everything is good to go. So go get dressed and let’s do this!”

Silently marvelling at the change in Kurt’s temperament, Blaine took the jeans and went to change.

A few minutes later, he was standing outside, having his hair done. Kurt was meticulously giving orders, giving painstaking attention to the slightest of details. Blaine knew that Kurt wanted this to be done perfect. After all, he was a perfectionist.

Hair done, Blaine stood, squirming under Kurt’s appraisal. Normally, seeing Kurt blatantly check him out would have been a major turn on, but the fact that he was in the middle of a room with lots of people watching his every move made him do his best to keep his mind on other thoughts.

Even while he was being photographed, Blaine was hyper-aware of Kurt’s gaze. Through outfit after outfit, pose after pose, Blaine felt the burning gaze that was directed towards him.

With one outfit left, Blaine stumbled out of the dressing room, exhausted by the quick evening. All he wanted to do was to go home and take a nice long bubble bath.

He was just about to go to the shooting area when he was yanked back by the arm. Turning, he saw Kurt standing in front of him with a glare on his face. “Don’t even try to sneak by me.”

Blaine sighed, but obeyed Kurt’s orders. He stood there silently, waiting as Kurt scrutinized him.

Finally, Kurt spoke. “I don’t know... the colour seems right, but something is missing.”

Blaine watched as Kurt ruffled through a huge crate of belts, scarves, and other paraphernalia for a few minutes before throwing his arms up in frustration. “Nothing here suits the bad boy look that we wanted for this look. I can’t think of anything!”

Chrystie quickly came over to see what the commotion was about.

“Nothing’s going to fit, Chrys! He just looks too... preppy or surfer to be bad boy! Nothing short of... nothing short of a...” Blaine and Chrystie snapped towards Kurt as a glazed look came in his eyes. “...Yes, that would be perfect. But what if he got in trouble? But we could release a note that says that it’s fake... not permanent ink... hmmm. Would that ruin me? I don’t really care; it just has to be perfect...”

“Spit it out already. We want to go home.” Chrystie said, done with the whole thing. “What is it?”

“What if...” Kurt breathed. “What if we stencilled a fake tattoo onto Blaine’s hip?”

Blaine stared at Kurt in shock while Chrystie grinned at him with her eyebrows raised.

“I think that’s a great idea. And since you have an idea of what you want it to look like, you’ll have to draw it on.”

This time, Kurt was staring at Chrystie in disbelief while Blaine looked on, only too happy to go with the flow.

“Um... okay. I guess... I’ll do it.”

“Okay!” Chrystie chirped, evidently excited about this sudden development “I’ll get a tattoo art pen. You guys just wait here.”

She flounced off, leaving Kurt and Blaine in a rather awkward silence.

“So, a tattoo, huh?” Kurt looked up as Blaine smirked. “I didn’t think you had changed your style.”

“I most definitely did not change my style!” Kurt began defensively. “This is you we’re talking about. You could actually pull off a tattoo unlike half the men in this world.”

Blaine’s smirk widened as Kurt realised what he had just inadvertently admitted. “At McKinley you told me that the guys who could work tattoos were hot.”

Kurt blushed and ducked his head.

“I just... you know, I wasn’t really saying that. It was just a thought, I mean, ask any of your fans... you know. Yeah...” He mumbled.

Before Blaine had a chance to reply, Chrystie opened the door, armed with a case of tattoo pens. “Okay, Kurt, you’re going to have to do this fast because everyone wants to go home and we’re getting a bit short tempered here.”

She quickly walked back out of the room, leaving the case of pens in Kurt’s arms.

Suddenly, Blaine realised exactly what was going to happen: Kurt would be drawing on his hip. He swallowed hard and looked at Kurt. “Um, so what were you going to draw?”

Kurt mumbled something unintelligibly and pulled out a black pen, his free hand clenching and un-clenching. Blaine wondered what Kurt was trying to decide. After a short pause, it seemed that Kurt had made up his mind, as he delved into the box of pens again, and grabbed a dark red one.

A few minutes later, Kurt was finished with the design. Blaine looked at it and gasped. The design was small and abstract, but was drawn beautifully, the curves and arcs somehow morphing into a shape that could be interpreted in many different ways.

Blaine stared at Kurt who was determinedly looking away. He knew that Kurt had felt what he had felt when he looked at the tattoo. Because there was no doubt about it; the tattoo was a symbol of love.

“Kurt...” He began. “What... what is...?”

He was interrupted by Chrystie before he could finish his question.

“Are you guys done yet?” She asked poking her head around the door. Her eyes fell on the dark marking on Blaine’s hip and she drew in a breath sharply. She stepped forward to get a closer look. “Wow, Kurt. This is beautiful. Seriously, if the whole fashion thing doesn’t work out, you could definitely be a tattoo artist.”

Kurt gave her a forced smile. “Thanks, but let’s hope I do well in fashion.”

Chrystie nodded and quickly ushered Blaine out the door. “I hope so, alright Blaine. We all want to get out of here, so let’s get this last shot done with.”

Blaine looked back at Kurt as he got pulled away. The question he had would just have to wait for later.

.:~:.

After Blaine had changed back into his normal clothes, he met Kurt and Chrystie outside the studio.

“Great job, Blaine. I’m going to head out, now. I’ve got a date that I’ve got to get ready for.”

Blaine smiled at her. “Yeah, have fun. Don’t act easy. Make sure you stay safe.”

Chrystie stuck her tongue out at him. “Yeah, yeah. Enough with the overprotective brother thing.”

Blaine laughed as she started walking away. “Love you too, Chrys.”

He turned back to Kurt who was standing there shuffling his feet awkwardly.

“Um....” He mumbled, unsure of what he wanted to say. “So...”

“Well... That was a... that was an interesting photo shoot.” Kurt said, his voice a little higher pitched than normal.

Blaine watched as Kurt blushed, most likely remembering how his hands had lingered a little longer than necessary. Blaine wasn’t complaining. To tell the truth, he enjoyed every second of the photo shoot. Kurt obviously hadn’t been bothered by his lack of abs. Blaine smiled as he remembered the quick glances that had been thrown his way through the entire two hours of the shoot. If he wasn’t mistaken, he wasn’t the only one having the kind of thoughts that would need major censoring to pass for pg-13.

“Yeah. It was. I mean, it was very interesting. I’m not really used to doing that kind of thing... you know.” Blaine said in response. On an afterthought, he added. “Was it... awkward?”

He watched as Kurt turned a bright red that would rival most lipsticks.

“N-N-No! It wasn’t awkward at all. Everything was just fine. Fine... fine and dandy! Like dandelions! Yeah, exactly like dandelions.” At this point, he must have realised that he was babbling, so he gestured wildly. “I just... I just gotta go. You know, duty calls and all that... Okay bye!”

In one swift movement, Kurt turned around and began to pace away from Blaine, but Blaine caught on to Kurt’s wrist before he could get away.

“Kurt!”

“Yeah?”

“Um...” Blaine let go of Kurt’s wrist, letting it drop back down to swing at Kurt’s side. Blaine had a hard time looking away from it, and he almost forgot what he was going to ask Kurt. Luckily he snapped out of his trance and was able to remember “We’re having a party type thing tonight... Just me and the crew and a few friends... At this bar just down the street. We have it closed off, so it’ll just be all of us... I was wondering if... Maybe... You would like to go?”

“Um...” Blaine searched Kurt’s face for an answer. Kurt looked like he was seriously considering it, which made Blaine’s heart speed up with excitement. Yes, this was happening. “Yeah. Sure. It... Sounds like lots of fun. I’ll be there.”

“Great,” Blaine grinned, relieved. “Then I’ll see you tonight.”

“Yeah... see you.” Kurt offered a gentle smile before turning on his heel and leaving Blaine alone, speechless.