The three of them made their way through the crowd and then Blaine spotted Kurt waiting near the exit. The grin on Kurt’s face matched his own, Blaine was sure. He moved faster until he was close enough to drop his bag and pull Kurt into his arms, lifting him off the ground a little. Kurt laughed, kissing him lightly before Blaine let Kurt’s feet touch the ground again.

“Hi,” Kurt breathed.

“Hi,” Blaine replied. They stayed that way for a moment, foreheads touching as they held each other. Kurt seemed to remember where they were after a moment, and shook his head.

“Come on,” Kurt said. “Dad and Carole and Finn are waiting for us.”

“Oh?” Blaine asked as the four of them now headed for the car rental place. Wes and David would be renting the car, following behind Kurt and Blaine in Kurt’s car.

“Yep,” Kurt replied, smiling as Blaine picked up his bag and took Kurt’s hand. “Carole’s been cooking all morning. A feast awaits us.”

*

Blaine passed his time during the week by helping out Burt at the shop (before Dalton, Blaine and his dad had once rebuilt a car. Blaine always wondered if it was an attempt of his father’s to make him straight – like if Blaine got his hands dirty enough, it’d make him a real man. Either way, he was able to put the knowledge to good use), joining Kurt at glee club practices (which were in full swing for both prom and Nationals), and working on procuring an apartment or condo in New York for him and Kurt. Finn would possibly be living with them too, though Rachel was planning on living in dorms at NYADA. She and Kurt were still waiting on their final letters, the letters that said if they’d truly been accepted or not.

All of the tension and charged atmosphere had left Kurt on edge, and it was hard to know what would set him off from one moment to the next. Blaine was always there to calm Kurt down, though, and he knew Kurt appreciated it.

Blaine was just coming in from the shop, anxious to shower and get the grease off him before Kurt got home from school when his phone rang. He didn’t bother to check the ID, just answered it.

“Hello?”

“Blaine?” Blaine stopped short at the sound of his father’s voice.

“Father?” he squeaked out, shocked. Blaine cleared his throat. “Is – is something wrong?” Worry shot through Blaine. The only reason he could think of for his father to call him would be if something happened to his mother.

“No, no,” Carl was quick to assure him. “No, nothing’s wrong.”

“Then to what do I owe the honor?” Blaine asked. His father sighed.

“How is your eye?” he asked.

“Do you care?” Blaine wanted to know, getting angry. “Where were you when I was in the hospital and maybe going blind?” he snapped. “Look. Let’s just save us both time and cut to the chase. What do you want?”

“I want my son back,” Carl spoke so quietly Blaine was sure he’d heard his father correctly.

“What?”

“You heard me, Blaine,” his father replied.

Blaine sat down on the edge of the couch, his head spinning and his entire body going limp.

“Wha –what…” Blaine struggled for words. “What does that mean, exactly?”

*

“So he just… called you out of the blue and said he’s changed?” Kurt asked. He and Blaine were cuddled up on his bed, a movie playing. Neither of them was watching it though. A freshly showered Blaine had gone into his room to change only to find Kurt, naked in his bed and the rest of the house empty.

They made effective use of that time, necessitating another shower (which they took together, indulging in shower sex for the first time) and now they were discussing his father’s phone call under the pretense of watching TV.

“I guess,” Blaine shrugged, his head pillowed on Kurt’s chest. Kurt had his arms wrapped tightly around Blaine.

“Do you believe him?” Kurt’s voice was soft.

“I want to,” Blaine said, his voice cracking a little. “God, Kurt, I want to believe him so badly. He’s my father.”

“I know, sweetie,” Kurt comforted, his fingers finding their way into Blaine’s hair, stroking along his scalp gently.

“All I ever wanted was for him to love me,” Blaine sniffled, and he felt a tear escape from the corner of his eye. “He said that he did. He told me he loved me and the reason why he was so critical is because he doesn’t understand why I’m attracted to men and because he’s terrified something will happen to me because I’m gay and I’m out and everyone knows.”

His father had made a disturbing kind of sense when he’d explained it to Blaine, but Blaine didn’t know if he could ever truly forgive him for the things he’d said and done.

“Do you want to try?” Kurt tilted his chin so that Blaine was looking him in the eye, and Blaine realized he’d said that last part out loud.

“Maybe,” Blaine murmured. “He said that my mother is going to come for your graduation and while she’s here, she’s going to take him to a PFLAG meeting.”

“Wow,” Kurt uttered, clearly amazed.

“I know,” Blaine sighed. “I guess we’ll wait and see if he actually goes.”

“You don’t have to decide anything today.”

“I know,” Blaine smiled softly. “What would I do without you?”

“I don’t know,” Kurt told him. “Let’s never find out.” Blaine let Kurt pull him into a kiss and resolved to put his father out of his mind for the next few days and focus on prom. Only time would tell if his father was telling the truth.

*

It was finally prom night. Kurt had expressed some discontent at attending after the prom queen incident the year before, but he really had no choice, as Kurt was reigning Prom Queen and had to crown the new queen. He was also required to be there as Class President, since he was in charge of the event and had to make sure everything went off without a hitch.

Blaine knew the other members of New Directions were performing, just like last year, but Kurt hadn’t volunteered to sing.

This year, instead of kilt, Kurt came down stairs wearing black suit pants, a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and some of the buttons unbuttoned, and a top hat perched jauntily on his head. Blaine thought he looked amazing, and if the kiss Kurt gave him before they exchanged boutonni�res was any indication, Kurt liked the way he looked in his tuxedo.
Multitudes of pictures were taken, of him and Kurt as well as Rachel and Finn, and then the four of them were off to the prom in limo driven by Wes and David. The two bodyguards entertained them by sharing stories of funny times guarding Blaine and they pretty much laughed all the way to the school.

Much like last year, Wes and David kept a sharp eye out for trouble makers, but they didn’t really have anything to worry about this time. He and Kurt danced, drank some questionable punch guarded by Coach Sylvester, and everything went well.

Blaine held his breath all through the crowing of the Prom King and Queen. There was a dark moment, when the principal mentioned the winner was a write in nominee, where Blaine (and Kurt, from the look on his face) thought Kurt might have been picked again.

It was Rachel, however, who won, and Kurt placed the crown on her head with a smile.

They spent the rest of the night dancing and then eating at Breadstix until the wee hours of the morning. They collapsed into bed just as the sun was coming up, forgoing the usual prom clich� of having sex – Blaine just tangled himself into Kurt’s arms and together they drifted off to sleep.