Kurt walked through the house the next morning. Most of the crew and himself were stationed at a nearby hotel and they drove over in groups together. He was one of the first ones to arrive and it seemed that most members of the house were still sleeping. He headed for the kitchen to see who was awake and stopped short in the doorway. Bill was filming; Cooper and Blaine were seated at the kitchen table and it looked like they were getting Blaine’s interview done first.

Kurt stayed where he was, listening. He told himself that it was for the good of the show, because the outcome of the show affected his job and he needed this show do well. He swallowed back the idea that maybe it was because he really wanted to hear what Blaine had to say. Cooper was taking him through the ropes, getting Blaine to talk about his childhood and how he’d been gay bashed as a teen (Kurt had had to muffled actual tears at that point, because Blaine himself had gotten emotional), and onto his love of performing.

“And what made you want to do something like this show?” Cooper asked.

“I’m not really sure,” Blaine replied. “Honestly, I hate being set up. My friends and family all know by now that I don’t like and have stopped doing it. When I was approached about the show, I just… I just decided ‘what the hell’ and here I am.”

“And cut!” Bill called. “Okay, wardrobe change please, and then we’ll do post Meet and Greet interview questions.”

Kurt watched as Blaine was pulled over into the corner of the room, where Cindy was standing with a different colored polo and bowtie. Bill came over to discuss filming with him and Kurt only half listened to him, distracted by the fact the Blaine was changing in the corner. He continued looking as Blaine lifted the shirt over his head (even though he knew he probably should look away) and tried not to blush at how amazing Blaine was shirtless. Blaine pulled the new polo on over his head and took the bowtie from Cindy, tying it with deft fingers.

Blaine took his place across from Cooper again, and the interview began again. “So what do you think about the guys so far?”

“Well, they’re all nice and friendly, from what I can tell. I’m not sure if I’ve got anything in common with some of them, but we’ll see how it goes.”

“Were there any that caught your eye?” Blaine blushed and his eyes suddenly locked on Kurt’s. Kurt knew he should look away but he couldn’t, Blaine’s gaze was so intense. Finally, Blaine answered.

“Maybe one or two,” he hedged.

Cooper laughed. “Care to let the viewers at home know which ones?”

“Well, Eli seems nice and Adam’s accent is amazing,” he stammered out.

“And it seems you already know Sebastian?”

“Yeah.” Blaine laughed. “We went to high school together – which is crazy, because I never expected to run into him in a situation like this.”

“Did you guys date in high school?”

“No,” Blaine told Cooper. “But we were good friends. I guess now we’ll see if there’s more than just friendship there.”

“I guess we will.” Cooper smiled at the camera, and Bill cut the scene.

Blaine’s eyes met Kurt’s again and Kurt forced himself to turn away. He didn’t like where his thoughts kept going where Blaine was concerned. Just because the guy seemed perfect, amazing and gorgeous, did not mean that Kurt was going to risk his entire professional career over him.



Blaine spent the next few days trying to get used cameras constantly being on him. Every interaction, every thought, every moment was recording for potential use. He dined with the guys every night but it was hard to get to know them in such a forum – everyone talked over everyone else and they all seemed to outdo each other in a bid for his attention. Except Sebastian, it seemed. He was Blaine’s respite during the craziness – someone he could talk to and have fun with. There was no pressure with him, though Blaine wasn’t sure his feelings for Sebastian went any farther than friendship.

Finally, the day of their first “group date” arrived. They’d be going for a horseback ride across the property and a picnic if the weather cooperated. Blaine wasn’t looking forward to it – he hadn’t ridden a horse in years. Still, everyone met down at the stables an hour before lunch to be saddled up. There was a trainer who was going to ride with them all and they had a medic on standby.

The ride was nice, once Blaine got used to being in the saddle again. He watched the others, not talking much. He could see that Nick and Jeff were riding near each other once again, laughing and talking. It was nice to see some of the guys actually getting along instead of being at each other’s throats, the way he’d always imagined shows like this were. After all, it was a competition.

Sebastian stayed by his side for most of the ride, the two of them sharing old stories. It was clear that everyone was enjoying finding out about Blaine (especially that time he serenaded a guy in the Gap) but Blaine thought he detected some jealousy from Eli and Chandler. He couldn’t help it – it was nice knowing someone and easy to fall back into the friendship they’d had in school.

A couple of times he thought he caught Kurt’s gaze where he was riding along in the truck with the director and the film crew but he tried not to let a reaction show since the entire ride was being filmed. They finally pulled to a stop in a big meadow on the property, tying the horses off to a nearby fence. The crew unloaded things from the truck and they all sat down for a picnic lunch, the cameras rolling.

They dived into a lunch of sandwiches and fruits, making small talk. Blaine felt like he was on the spot again (he pretty much was), with everyone wanting to know all about him again. He talked about his brother this time – things Cooper and he used to get up to as kids and how much performing was in their blood.

That conversation segued into Broadway and Blaine’s dream roles (Fiyero from Wicked was definitely one, Link from Hairspray was another).

“Grape?” Sebastian asked when there was a lull. Blaine felt the corner of his mouth crook up, remembering when they were in high school and they would have competitions to see who could catch the most grapes in their mouths (Blaine always, always came in second to Wes, much to his chagrin). He grinned and Sebastian chuckled, tossing the grape. Blaine moved fast and caught it in his mouth, chewing it and laughing. The other guys had gone quiet and Blaine knew they were watching. He tossed a grape at Sebastian and Sebastian caught it. Blaine applauded.

Suddenly all the guys seemed to want to try it and there were grapes flying everywhere. Breathless with laughter, Blaine couldn’t help but catch Kurt staring at him out of the corner of his eye. His gaze was dark and intense.

“Come on, Blaine!” Sebastian called, getting Blaine’s attention. Kurt turned away, pointedly not looking at Blaine.

He frowned, wondering if it was something he’d done. Had he upset Kurt somehow? Blaine hoped not. This show was Kurt’s baby and he wanted it to do well and make Kurt proud. Hopefully he’d get a chance to talk to Kurt about it later.

They wrapped up, heading back to the house on the horses. Everyone was a little louder, a little more rowdy as they headed back. Maybe that’s why it happened or how it happened without anyone being able to stop it – as they approached the barn, something spooked Chandler’s horse and it took off at a gallop, tossing Chandler to the ground in a heap. The medics and the crew were on him in a second, someone from the barn running out to track down the horse.

Blaine dismounted, watching as they worked on Chandler.

The rest of the guys joined him and they watched, waiting to see if Chandler was okay. Chandler sat up after a moment, groaning.

Blaine let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding as they helped him up and loaded him into the truck. Kurt walked over to where they were standing. “He’s fine, just had the wind knocked out of him. He’s going to go lie down until the bowtie ceremony tonight.”

Blaine nodded.

“Well maybe if he didn’t ride like a girl,” Evan chuckled behind him. Blaine stiffened with anger and he was glad to see that no one else laughed.

“That’s enough,” Kurt snapped and Blaine looked at him, startled. “I don’t even know where to start with how incredibly offensive that comment was.” He looked at Blaine. “When you’re done putting up your horse, come up to the house and find me. We’re going to meet to discuss eliminations before dinner.”

Blaine nodded as Kurt turned to walk off. He watched Kurt head back to the house, trying not to stare at his swaying hips. Evan’s laugh caught his attention again and Blaine finally looked away from Kurt to stare at Evan.

Tonight’s elimination would not be a hard choice. He already knew who was going home.



Blaine wasted no time finding Kurt and Bill when he went inside. They pulled him into a side room, shutting the door. Cooper joined them and Kurt speed dialed a few of the other producers on the project, so they could all discuss the eliminations. Kurt had told him this would be how it would go – Blaine was just hopeful that they wouldn’t try to fight his decision. Evan needed to go.

Luck was on Blaine’s side and they were fine with sending Evan home. Kurt had even firmly supported Blaine’s decision, surprising him a little with how for Evan’s departure he was.

The meeting wrapped up and Blaine grabbed at the chance to ask Kurt about the look from earlier. “Hey, Kurt?”

“Yeah?” Kurt replied, hanging back as the room cleared out.

“I just wanted to talk to you for a moment,” Blaine said. Kurt’s eyes were looking everywhere but right at Blaine and the sinking feeling from earlier was back. He had upset Kurt somehow. “I was just wondering – did I do something to make you mad at me?”

Kurt glanced at him, startled. “No,” he murmured. “Why would you think that?”

“You were just giving me this look earlier…” Blaine trailed off, feeling silly. Of course he’d just read too much into it – that was the story of his life, basically. “I’m sorry, it’s stupid. I’ll see you at the ceremony.”

He brushed passed Kurt and tried not to think about how his breath caught in his chest or his arm tingled as he did so.



Kurt stood there for a moment, stunned by the hurt look in Blaine’s eyes. He’d been trying so hard to keep himself professional and not act on the feelings he had whenever Blaine was around. He hadn’t realized that Blaine would pick up on it and think Kurt was angry at him. It would probably be for the best to let him continue thinking that but Kurt couldn’t. He dashed out into the hall.

“Blaine, wait,” he called. Blaine turned around, looking surprised. Kurt put a hand on his arm once he was close enough and took a deep breath. This attraction to Blaine had blindsided him and he knew there was nothing he could do about it. “I’m not mad at you, honest. I’m just trying to keep my distance for the show.”

Blaine let out a sigh. “Good,” he replied. “I think I’d done something… and I just… didn’t want to do anything that would upset or ruin the show. I know how much it means to you.”

“You didn’t,” Kurt promised, staring into Blaine’s eyes. He felt breathless. They stood there, looking at each other until someone cleared their throat. Kurt jumped, his cheeks flushing.

Gustave was at the top of the stairs, smirking at them. Kurt took a step back from Blaine, ignoring the empty way his hand felt now that he was no longer touching Blaine’s arm.

“Bill wants some shots of Blaine putting on his tux for tonight,” Gustave said. Blaine nodded and gave Kurt a searching glance.

“I’ll see you at the ceremony.”

“See you then,” Blaine murmured, turning and walking away with Gustave on his heels.



Kurt stood in the back of the room, out of view of the cameras as the bowtie ceremony began. Blaine was in the center of the room, standing next to Cooper as Cooper talking about each of the men and their “week” together. Blaine looked amazing in his tux, his hair slicked back but with some volume. He looked like a movie star from the fifties or something. Kurt tried not to stare at Blaine, but he was finding it difficult.

Finally, the ceremony started and Blaine called the guys up one at a time, offering them a bowtie and a kiss on the cheek. When Chandler approached him, walking stiffly from his earlier fall, Blaine smiled brightly at him.
“How are you feeling?” Blaine asked. Kurt tried not to go weak in the knees. It would be very bad form if he swooned.

“Better now,” Chandler replied, sounding coy. Blaine lifted a bowtie from the silver tray on the side table and lifted his arms up, fastening it around Chandler’s neck. They were using clip-ons – something Kurt had decided on because it would take too long for Blaine to tie ties for all the guys. Blaine kissed Chandler on the cheek and Kurt ignored the pang in his stomach.

The ceremony continued, until all the bowties were distributed. “Evan,” Blaine said as Evan moved toward him. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think we’d be right for each other.”

Evan frowned but nodded. Blaine patted him on the back and then Evan left the room to go upstairs and “pack.” In truth, he’d be going to the nearby hotel to stay with the rest of the crew. He was under contract that he couldn’t talk about the show or what they were doing, but Kurt wanted to keep an eye on all the contestants so nothing leaked before it should.

“And that concludes our ceremony this week,” Cooper finished. “Tune in next week for Blaine’s next group date with the guys – it promises unexpected things.” Cooper smiled. “Until next time, this has been Bowties of Love.”