It was high time that Blaine was doing some work. Finals were a few weeks away and his motivation had taken a nose dive after meeting Kurt. At least Nick was now in the same boat as he was. His friend could barely go a minute without talking about Jeff: but as Blaine had been the same way once Nick had known the truth, he could hardly complain.

So every time he read something about the Great Exhibition at Crystal Palace or something about Victoria and Albert’s influence on the Industrial Revolution, he was interrupted by Nick.

“He’s amazing, Blaine. Absolutely amazing. When we went out on the river into the bay,” Nick sighed and shook his head. “Indescribable.”

“You said you went on the boat after-”

“He can sing too, you know? He was singing along with the radio when he picked me up the other day. He’s got a beautiful voice.”

“Kurt’s got a beautiful voice too but he-”

“But his car... I could probably fall in love with his car. It’s a Lamborghini, orange but a classy orange. I mean, he’s a model right so everything has to be classy. And I know I drooled a little when I first saw him roll up in that car, then step out and smile at me. Having him as my soul mate is everything that I could have imagined and so much more.”

Blaine had to stop himself laughing. So what that his friend was acting like a teenage girl with her first crush, or more like Sugar would. He knew exactly what Nick was feeling. And that was the best part. When Wes and David connected back in high school, Blaine watched his friends and their soul mates and wondered what feeling like that really was like. Of course he’d been more than happy for them and had endured their talk about their soul mates much like he was enduring Nick’s. But he could never empathise with them, could never really understand what connecting to your soul mate was really like.

Now he could. When Nick spoke about how right it felt with Jeff, how holding his hand made him feel warm and how just being with Jeff made him feel like he was home, Blaine knew exactly what he meant. Because he had the same things with Kurt.

“Nick.” Blaine said after a few more moments during which Nick had covered Jeff’s amazing apartment that was shared with a female model, his scary mother in LA (who Nick was terrified to meet after hearing one story about how she pushed Jeff into modelling) and had spoken at length about the dates he wanted to organise for Jeff. When Nick blinked and looked confused, Blaine leant over and tapped the empty lined paper right in front of his friend. “Come on. Industrial Revolution.”

Nick groaned, his lips curling into a scowl. “I don’t care what happened a hundred or so years ago across the sea in Britain. It happened and we’re better off because of it. Can we move on?”

“I bet a question like that will come up on the exam actually.” Blaine flicked the page in one text book, then reached out and checked a reference in a second. “‘The Industrial Revolution was the turning point for the world. Compare and contrast different opinions stating that it was a beneficial move at the time.’”

“I hope not.” Nick finally turned to his books. They scribbled away, listening to the laughter of children and the wind rustling through the trees. A hard gust of wind had both of them falling flat over their notepads to stop anything flying away and they straightened with a laugh when the wind calmed down.

“Jeff told me something the other day.” Nick said out of the blue a little while later. They’d been silent for so long that Blaine jumped a little in surprise. He looked up at Nick, who was chewing the end of his pencil thoughtfully.

“He said that you and Kurt probably shouldn’t have kept your relationship to each other a secret.”

“Yeah?” Blaine capped his pen and let it roll on the paper until it hit his knee. “Why’s that?”

“He said it’ll make it worse when you do tell people you’re soul mates. He did say that he understood why you did it, and for g-d sakes I am fed up of the stares we get when Jeff and I go out for a coffee or lunch, but the fallout might not be worth the secrecy.”

Blaine sighed. “We knew that before we decided to keep it a secret.”

“I just want to make sure you’re going to be ok when the truth does come out.” Nick’s eyes were earnest as he looked over his friend.

“Oh I didn’t know you were such an expert Mr-I’ve-had-an-interview-with-my-soul-mate-already.” Blaine said with a laugh, nudging Nick’s arm playfully.

Nick blushed and deliberately looked at the ground. “I haven’t had an interview with Jeff. It was his interview. I was just there for it.”

Blaine cocked one eyebrow, then pushed himself up onto his knees and leaned over Nick to grab at his rucksack. Ignoring his friend’s protests, he pulled a thick glossy magazine out of the bag then settled on his bum to find the page he needed.

Clearly his throat with an exaggerated cough, Blaine started to read from half way down the page. A large photo of Jeff graced the page opposite, taken at the fashion that he’d met Nick at.

Closer: I also hear you’ve recently connected with your soul mate. Congratulations.

JS: Thanks. Thanks a lot.

Closer: Do you want to tell us about it?

JS: Sure. Well I met Nick [Nick Duval] at the Jeremy Jacob fashion show that we were just talking about. [Laughing] That’s probably what made it so memorable for me! He was there with a friend and had been invited to the after party so that’s where we connected.

[He looks over at Nick, who’s here with us today, and they share a smile.]

Closer: [To Nick] A friend? That’s a pretty good friend to get you into a fashion show and the after party. Luckily for you. [He nods] We’re quite curious about your friend actually, especially as he always seems to be in the company of one Kurt Hummel [fashion designer who’s just booked Jeff for his upcoming third line].

ND: [Laughing]. He’s a good friend of mine.

Closer: Anything else you want to share about the friend who found you your soul mate?

ND: [Shaking his head]. Nope. Their business is theirs. I’m just happy I went with him to the fashion show so I could meet Jeff.

JS: I couldn’t believe it when Kurt came up to me, asked if he could talk business and then introduced me to Nick. Best night of my life so far, I’d say.

Closer: Even better than the night you first modelled for Keanan Duffty in his revolutionary fashion show?

JS: [Laughing] That was probably the second best.

Blaine closed the magazine with a small smile gracing his lips. He’d seen the article when Nick had burst into his room the previous day, almost throwing the thick magazine at Blaine’s head in his eagerness for his friend to see. Apparently the magazine had interviewed Jeff weeks ago but had asked for a second interview to include how Jeff had just recently connected to Nick. The interview had been rushed to print and now Nick had it pinned to the wall in his dorm and had forced all his friends to read it.

Upon seeing the dismissal of his relationship with Kurt, Blaine hadn’t said anything to his friend. He’d simply dumped the magazine on his bed and gathered Nick into a hug, trying to convey all the gratitude he felt for Nick through the embrace. Nick had dodged the question and kept their relationship a secret without even thinking twice: that was the mark of a true friend.

He and Kurt were playing on borrowed time. More and more pictures had emerged from their trip to Ohio and more and more articles were written that were centred on who Blaine was. Now that Nick and Jeff had connected, they had a legitimate link and eager new journalists were trying to connect the dots. Kurt had told Blaine that his fans would do the same, trying to find catch the inside of either his or Blaine’s palm to prove that they were soul mates.

It was only a matter of time.

--

“I reckon I’m being followed.” Blaine said into his cell as he lay on his bed speaking to Kurt but wishing he was there. Kurt was still at the shop, having just finished a long meeting about how to proceed with advertising for him third line. It was still far from complete: he was just looking at fabric patches now but his entire focus was on the line, when it wasn’t on Blaine.

“Followed?” Kurt sounded worried and he started speaking faster. “By who? Have you gone to the police? My g-d, Blaine-”

“By paparazzi.”

“Oh.” Kurt’s voice stopped for a second. Instinctively Blaine knew what was running through his soul mate’s mind. Kurt was worried about what was happening and the blow up that was due any day now. He was worried that it was his fault. His fame was the cause of all this interest and so if Blaine was being followed and harassed by the paparazzi, then it was Kurt’s fault.

“Don’t think it’s your fault Kurt.” He said, halting Kurt’s thoughts in their tracks. He heard Kurt take a breath to start to rebuff what he was saying, so he spoke right over him: “I wouldn’t give anything we have up for obscurity. So what that people know what I wear when I go to my classes? I’d rather have that and have you.”

Blaine could hear the smile in Kurt’s voice. “Thank you. How do you know you’re being followed?”

“There are pictures of me and Nick in Central Park revising.” Blaine turned the page of the tabloid he’d bought when he’d seen a couple of his fellow students reading it and then looking pointedly his way.

“I’m sorry Blaine.”

“Don’t be.” Blaine pressed the cell closer to his ear. Maybe if he did that, he could be closer to Kurt. “It’s not like you’re the one taking the photos. And maybe I’ll take a leaf out of your book and just go up to one of them someday and tell them that if they point their camera at me again the only thing they’ll have photographs of is the bottom of the river.”

“I never actually said that.”

“You thought it. And then told me afterwards.”

Kurt’s musical laugh sounded through the phone and Blaine couldn’t help but smile. Even though the line went silence, Blaine was completely comfortable. Knowing Kurt was on the other end and hearing him breath, not saying a word, was enough. Of course it would be made much better if he was with Kurt, but for now it would do.

“Rachel is still texting me daily asking when she can meet you.” Kurt sounded completely exasperated now. “I told her that I’d try and organise a lunch for us. At least that way we can have the afternoon to recover.”

“Recover? Is she really that bad?”

The answer was immediate: “Yes. If she doesn’t talk at a thousand miles an hour about herself then simply what she’ll wear will be enough. Rachel Berry is as annoying as she is enthusiastic.”

Blaine chuckled. “I’m used to listening to people talk about themselves.” He stretched over and dumped the magazine on the table near his bed, rolling onto his side and cradling the cell between his ear and the pillow. “Cooper’s like that.”

They talked for over an hour more, ranging from topics of great importance to nothing in particular. Blaine was growing to love these moments, when they could simply be with each other, no worries of keeping their words private or peering around for staring fans. Moments when Kurt could talk about people, specifically industry people, in the way that he wanted to rather than the diplomatic way of talking when in public. Moments when Blaine would just complain about the little amount of teaching he’d been given for one of the American history modules as opposed to the sheer amount of facts he had to learn for the module on British history.

A muffled voice came through the phone on Kurt’s side. Blaine heard Kurt talking to someone away from the phone and then he returned to the conversation.

“I’m sorry, I have to go.” He said, sounding genuinely upset that he had to leave the conversation. “Apparently someone is here to talk to me about my new line.”

Blaine checked his watch. “At ten thirty at night?”

“Fashion never sleeps Blaine, you should know that.” Kurt sighed. “It also doesn’t let me sleep either.”

“Good luck.” After hearing Kurt’s echoing goodbye, Blaine ended the call and threw the phone onto his pillow next to him. He tipped his head back, slipping both arms underneath the pillow to hug it around his head. He wasn’t in the least bit tired but he could stay like that, his phone next to him, for a long time: totally content after a conversation with his soul mate.

--

“Hey Sugar,” Blaine leant on the door frame leading into Sugar’s room and watched his friend type frantically at a computer. They hadn’t spoken for a while, not since before Blaine had left for Ohio and definitely not since the pictures of him and Kurt had sprung up everywhere without avoidance. “How’s your design project going?”

The only indication that she heard him was her nose turning up and a little “humph” she gave once he’d finished speaking. She continued to type away and Blaine moved further into her room, clutching his rucksack over his shoulder. He, Nick and Jennifer were headed to a lecture but having not spoken to his other friend for a while, Blaine had seized the time that he had free for being ready to leave first.

“Sugar? Are you ok?”

“I am not speaking to you, Blaine Anderson.” If her use of his full name didn’t give it away – she mainly used Blainey, which took a long time for Blaine not to cringe at – her unhappy tone of voice made it clear she was being serious.

“What? Why?”

Sugar finally stopped her typing but kept her hands firmly on the keyboard. She gave him a look like he was an annoyance she wished she could remove and suddenly he felt very sorry for all the people who crossed an affronted Sugar Motta.

“You know why.”

Blaine cast his eyes around the room while he ran over a hundred things in his mind. Then he shook his head. “Not really n-”

“Kurt Hummel.” Sugar interrupted. The penny dropped. “You want to tell me about Kurt Hummel, Blainey?”

At least she’s calling me Blainey Blaine thought. He never realised he’d relish the moment that Sugar called him by that nickname. He should have expected this though. Nick had known for weeks now and Sugar wasn’t the most subtle person in the world. She was a good friend but not at all a secret keeper. And now there was unequivocal proof that Blaine knew the very same Kurt Hummel she’d been saying was his soul mate, it was no surprise that she was upset Blaine hadn’t told her first.

“Listen Sugar-”

“The next words better be: ‘I’m sorry Sugar, you were right all along and I’ll invite you to meet Kurt as soon as possible’.” She looked him right in the eye, the large pink bow on her head bobbing slowly. He said nothing but his guilt read in his expression.

After a moment’s silence, she huffed again and turned back to her computer. “Then I’m still not talking to you. You are this close to being uninvited to my post-final party that my daddy is throwing for me soon. Now, I have to finish my designs.”

It was a dismissal that Blaine knew well. He paused at the doorway and looked over his shoulder back at Sugar. “Sugar-” She shook her head and Blaine finally left the room, joining Nick and Jennifer outside.

His other friend had not been impressed but had understood their desire for secrecy. She too had laughed at their attempts at secrecy though, agreeing with Nick that going to a park on a date and then leaving for Ohio together weren’t conducive to a secret relationship. Jennifer was also amongst the camp, along with Cooper, who wanted to meet Kurt although Blaine knew that her reason of ‘making sure he’s good enough for my friend’ was a guise, hiding that she just wanted to meet someone famous.

They stopped by a coffee shop that was on the way to the lecture hall, Jennifer bounding in to check if the barista she’d had her eye on was there that day.

“She’ll come around.” Nick was saying. He had slung an arm over Blaine’s shoulders and they had hung back a little while Jennifer dove through the glass door. Blaine had told both friends what Sugar had said and both of them had looked incredibly guilty: they’d obviously known Sugar wasn’t happy about being kept in the dark.

“She just needs to calm down. Or find another project to set her sights on.”

Blaine shrugged one shoulder, the strap of his bag slipping of it from the movement and he took the time to steady it before slinging it on again. “I didn’t expect her to stop talking to me though. Just bring it up at random times in conversations and hold it over me for a while.”

“Sugar likes to be unpredictable.” They reached the front of the queue. “One latte and a medium drip please. At least, she likes to think she’s unpredictable.”

The barista, not the cute one Jennifer was looking for, held out his hand to their cash and expertly opened the cash register with a flourish and then handed the boys their change. Jennifer was waiting for them with her own hot chocolate and they walked together out of the coffee shop, looking at each other and laughing at the change of conversation to some gossip that Blaine had missed while he was in Ohio.

“Blaine! Blaine!”

Blaine’s head snapped up and he looked around for the unknown caller shouting his name. He flicked his eyes from left to right along the street and was then blinded by a flash of the camera. He raised the arm holding his coffee to shield his eyes from the bright light.

“Nick! Blaine!”

Jennifer was staring with her mouth wide open and her eyes staring at the crowd of photographers who had sprung up out of nowhere. Her facial expression was caught in every picture of the two boys, who were staring at each other in confusion. All Nick was thinking was how the photographers had known to be at this coffee shop at this particular time. He hadn’t realised their routine was so regular.

All Blaine was thinking was how they knew his name.

He turned to Nick, away from the flashing bulbs. “How do they know my name?”

Nick’s reply was only a shrug and then he too cringed when a camera flashed right in his eyes. Blaine looked around the crowd of paparazzi, all of them shouting, all of them shoving cameras in every possible angle.

“Blaine, can you tell us how you and Kurt met?”

“Blaine, are you planning on following Kurt into fashion?”

“Blaine, can you confirm that you are Kurt’s soul mate?”

“Blaine-”

He shook his head. What should he say? What was he going to do to get rid of these people? Kurt would know. Kurt would know exactly what to say to satisfy them without giving them any information and probably throw in a disparaging comment about many of the double denim the photographers were wearing with the jeans and denim shirts.

Nick was staring at the cameras with his lips shut tightly. He had only been in the public eye for two weeks and that was because of a few pictures taken at the fashion show and then what he’d said in the interview with Closer. Blaine knew that Nick had no clue how to deal with this. Nor did Jennifer for that matter, who had just come to a coffee shop with her friends and was now caught in the cross-fire of photographs.

One question seemed to be prevalent and was shouted a hundred times over in different variations of the same question.

“Blaine, are you Kurt’s soul mate?”

“Can you confirm that you’re Kurt’s soul mate?”

“How did you and Kurt connect?”

His coffee cup was already being held in his left hand but Blaine still twisted it around in his hand to make sure his mark was covered up. He turned to face the majority of the reporters and took a deep breath. Was this the right thing to do? Put on the spot like this, it was the only thing that he could think to do.

“Um-” The questions fell silent immediately but the cameras flashed. Out of the corner of his eyes, Blaine saw Nick and Jennifer step closer together, watching and wondering what Blaine was going to say.

“Um, no. Kur-Kurt and I are just friends. Really. Just spending time with each other. As friends.” He looked over the crowd, some scribbling down what he was saying. He would put money on every single person knowing that what he was saying was complete rubbish. He wasn’t even sure if he was saying it convincingly. He doubted it.

“Can you tell us how you two met?” One woman asked, her camera slung around her neck and a notebook open in her hands.

“What about where you two went on your trip last week?” A man queried. He had raised his pen in the air like he was asking permission to speak, like they always did at those official press conferences shown on TV.

Blaine floundered with these two questions. Of course he could tell them how he and Kurt met: by admitting they were soul mates. And of course he could tell them that they went to Ohio but why would a seemingly random friend of a fashion designer accompany him to visit his family? He turned around to send a pleading look towards Nick.

“We have to go to our lecture.” He said in a very fast voice and then reached out with his hand to grab the upper part of Blaine’s arm. Jennifer wound her hand through the curve of Nick’s other arm and he towed both girl and boy away from the crowd of reporters, who started snapping pictures furiously as they went.

“Oh my g-d,” Blaine muttered to his friends when they’d turned the corner and the last of the flashing cameras stopped. Nick dropped his arm and pulled out his phone, typing frantically on the buttons with one thumb.

“Are you texting Jeff?” Jennifer’s voice was very quiet and she looked white.

Nick nodded. “You should tell Kurt.” He didn’t look up at Blaine as he spoke. His voice was also trembling. “That’s probably going to end up in magazine tomorrow and online any time soon.”

--

“Whether his claim that he’s simply a friend of Kurt Hummel’s is true or false, we can run your story without contradicting any official statements, Mr Phillips.” The journalist’s office was brighter in the middle of the afternoon, sunlight streaming through the windows in clear beams formed by the thick panes. The smell of cigar smoke still made Mr Phillips cringe but he kept the outward expressions of disgust to a minimum now that he was getting what he wanted.

“If you’d like,” The journalist continued without even looking at the man on the other side of the desk, "We can conduct the majority of the interview now. If we do that, only editing and pictures and we’re looking at… publishing in two days’ time.”

“That’s online right?” Mr Phillips asked. His voice was croaky after his attempt to barely breathe to keep the cigar smoke from entering his lungs.

The journalist nodded and took a deep drag of his cigar before answering. “Online in two days, print in next week’s edition.”

Liam Phillips nodded. He looked down at the name scarred to his palm. He was a young man, mid-twenties with thin brown hair that flopped over his brown eyes and his short round nose. He had yet to meet his soul mate in person. He had tried to get in contact before now; visiting his store, trying to make enquiries on the website, but he’d had no real luck.

He really hadn’t wanted it to end up this way. He had always sneered at the people who sold their stories to the tabloids but now here he was, sitting in the cluttered office of a journalist who would know his story soon enough. And he would be paid for his story too.

After a moment’s pause where Liam had stared unblinkingly at the name on his hand, he looked up at the journalist. “I’d like to be interviewed now, if possible.”

“Very well.” The journalised stubbed out his cigar (Liam breathed a sigh of relief) and then reached into a drawer of his desk to pull out a tape recorder, a pad of paper and a pen. “Let’s get started.”

--

Nick had been spot on with his timing. By the time they had left their double lecture nearly two hours later, Blaine and Nick were pointed at by members of their class while they held their phones in their hands. Jennifer had taken the hint and checked the internet herself and then breathed a great sigh of relief that she’d been cut out of every photo that had been taken of her with her mouth open.

The articles had been centred on what Blaine had said about how he and Kurt were just friends and not soul mates. Most included the quote that was word for word what Blaine had stumbled over to tell the reporters.

“Why is it such big news?” He’d grumbled while on the phone to Kurt after they’d arrived back in the dorms, people staring at him and Nick from their half-open doors. Blaine had gone straight into his room and closed the door with a loud bang which clearly told people he did not want to be disturbed. “What’s so impressive about someone like me?”

“The public are just really nosy and they want to know everything.” Blaine had texted Kurt to warn him what would be appearing in the gossip columns and to Kurt’s credit, he didn’t say anything about making a statement to the press that could be ripped apart by any journalist and eager fans.

“How did they even know my name?” Blaine flopped back against the pillows and hid his eyes underneath his free hand. “Actually, I know exactly how. They know Nick’s name so all one person had to do was check some Facebook pictures and see who I was tagged as.”

“Facebook?”

“Maybe not just Facebook. I mean my NYU ID has my name and picture on it: someone just needed to check a list of students.”

“Listen,” Kurt’s voice was serious but not hard, “if that happens again, just walk away. It’ll be easier to walk away when it happens all the time but if they ask questions, ignore them.”

“Ok.” Blaine mumbled in a voice muffled by his hand.

“On the bright side, I was with Jeff today. We were planning the pictures for the third line. We’re going very 50s chic with the pictures, like the old pictures of Paul Newman or Marlon Brando. Jeff mentioned-”

“50s?” Blaine was glad for the change in topic. His mind was constantly ticking the event over and over and a distraction was exactly what was needed. “Why the 50s?”

“Because you dress like you’re a 50s heartthrob Blaine.” There was no teasing in Kurt’s voice: he was a hundred percent serious. “So most of my line looks like it will fit in the 50s. I think I’m going to call it something like ‘prep-chic’ or I’ll coin a new term for what you wear and my new line. But, Jeff and I were talking over the ideas and he mentioned that he wanted the four of us to go out. For lunch, or for a coffee or something. I mean, you and Nick are best friends so it makes sense right?”

Blaine hummed a noise of agreement, wondering if Nick knew anything about this. It was a good idea. After having heard so much about his soul mate from Nick, he should probably meet Jeff so that he can have an image of his best friend’s soul mate that wasn’t just a model on a catwalk.

“So is lunch the day after tomorrow good for you?”

Blaine took a deep breath and pushed himself upright. “Of course.”

--

It was said that soul mates complimented each other in every way but Blaine hadn’t believed it fully until he was Nick and Jeff act around each other. Jeff was quite quiet in comparison to Nick but he carried himself with so much confidence that no one could mistake it for shyness. Nick could talk the hind legs off a donkey when he got going but he was more likely to walk into a room with his hands in his pockets and talking to someone so not to make too much of a scene. They would know where each other was at all times and would gravitate unconsciously towards each other. Blaine knew that’s what he and Kurt would do – having been reliably told many times by Finn over the few days they’d spent in Ohio – but he’d never seen it right in front of his eyes before.

“Nick talks about you all the time.” Jeff said to Blaine once they’d sat down and placed their order. Perhaps the waiters and restaurant employees were used to patrons being celebrities as they hadn’t even flinched when a famous designer and a famous model sat at a table. It was a welcome change for Blaine and Nick. Neither was used to the attention that came hand in hand with fame and ever since their ambush by paparazzi together, they had barely gone a moment without being stared at by their peers.

Blaine had laughed and said: “He doesn’t stop talking about you either.”

The small smile Nick and Jeff had shared once the teasing had simmered out gave Blaine a warm feeling inside. They looked perfect together, in sync after so few weeks. Then he turned his head and gazed at his own soul mate.

Kurt had been looking down at his glass filled to the brim with soda. His long fingers were resting on the arm of his chair and he had one leg cross over the other, his foot so near Blaine’s leg that he felt it occasionally brush passed when Kurt shifted in some way.

Were he and Kurt like Nick and Jeff were? So tuned to each other, so in step with everything they did.

When the waiter arrived with their entr�es, Blaine turned his head and saw Nick looking at him with a very similar expression on his face that Blaine had had when watching Nick and Jeff. If that look was any indication, the answer was yes. Soul mates were soul mates for a reason.

“Are you planning on travelling to Europe for the fashion weeks?” Kurt asked. He took a sip of the soda.

“Not Europe,” Jeff rubbed away something on the handle of his silver-plated knife then picked up a small roll to butter, “I’ve been booked for a line in New York. Are you not showcasing your line?”

Kurt shook his head. “Not in this year’s. I think they’ll get me for next September as the line will be newly released. I doubt they’ll want me to showcase my old collections this year if my new one is due out in a few months.”

“If you do happen to go to Europe…” Nick left his question open ended and sent a smile to Kurt and Jeff that shone with cheeky intent. Even Blaine had to smile at his friend trying to get an invitation to a trip to Europe, that might not take place as nothing was concrete at the moment.

“Of course you can come too babe.” Jeff laid a hand on Nick’s and leant over to press a kiss to the corner of his lips. Lips that curled up into a small smile at the sheer affection shown.

Long fingers wound their way through the gaps between Blaine’s and he immediately reacted by curling his fingers round Kurt’s. Their hands were hanging in between their chairs and he felt Kurt’s thumb stroke the back of his hand delicately.

“I mean, Blaine and I will be finished college by next September and we’ll both probably be officially unemployed as well.” Nick cut up a little more of his meal. “So we can carry the bags or help sort out hotels if you need to find us a jobs to do.”

“Offer your services, Nick, not mine.” Blaine pointed at his friend with the fork that held a piece of fish speared on the tines. “I’m quite happy to bask in the good things that come with being the soul mate of a designer.”

A smile crept onto Jeff’s face and was echoed on Kurt’s. Nick floundered for a moment before he said: “Not if you two are still in the dark about your relationship. Then you’ll need a reason to be there.”

Although Blaine sincerely hoped that in a year and a half he could go out to a restaurant and kiss his soul mate without worrying about a thousand pictures being taken of them, the elephant in the room had reared its unwelcome head. They were sitting at the table with soul mates, one famous one not, who had revealed their relationship to the public and the biggest problem so far had been an ambush that was probably just unlucky timing for Nick and lucky timing for the photographers. All the questions thrown their way really proved that they were there to finally corner Blaine and quiz him about who he was to Kurt.

“We should probably think about that.” Kurt was saying, watching Blaine’s face fall from the teasing smile to a far more serious expression at Nick’s words. “Even though you said that we were just friends, they probably know already. At least an official statement from us, coming from my company, will take the heat off you.”

“And put it onto you instead.” Kurt made no reply except for a small shrug of one shoulder. It was clear that he wanted to shoulder the responsibility as he’d dealt with the press before. And as in tune they were as soul mates, that wasn’t something Blaine would let Kurt do alone.

A shrill ring tone rang out of the pocket of Kurt’s pants. He put down his knife and fork and looked confused when he saw the name of the person who was ringing.

“Tina?” He muttered to himself. He looked up at his three companions, a guilty look on his face. “I’m sorry but I should probably get this.”

He walked away from the table, heading towards the door, as he answered the call. Blaine, Nick and Jeff turned back to their meals.

“What’s it like to live in LA?” Blaine asked Jeff a moment later. He’d glanced back to check Kurt: who had taken to pacing up and down the street in small oval shapes. The look on his face was one of mixed shock and anger. Something was wrong. But Kurt would tell him when he came back inside.

Kurt’s phone call took a little while, and all throughout his heated conversation on the phone Blaine was turning around and checking to see if he was alright. Blaine watched as Kurt’s facial expressions changed from the shocked anger mixture to pure anger very soon into the conversation. Blaine also kept one ear on what Jeff was saying and, when the conversation about growing up in LA versus growing up in Ohio ran dry, what Nick was saying about some of the films he was looking forward to seeing once finals were over.

After what seemed like an age, Kurt returned to the table. He placed a hand on Blaine’s shoulder and ran it down his arm while he retook his seat, seeking comfort. Diplomatically, Jeff and Nick turned to each other to debate which would be the better film to see first and Blaine leant closer to Kurt.

“Is everything ok?”

Kurt shook his head. “Not really.” He was staring at the cell in his hand with anger still the dominant emotion in his eyes. “Um, Tina called to tell me that an article was just released about me and my soul mate.”

Kurt took a moment’s pause to lick his lips and gather his thoughts, Blaine internally panicking that someone had talked and had made up some false rumour about the two of them.

“That someone I’ve never heard of before and had absolutely no intention of hearing about has gone to the press and claimed to be my soul mate.”