The next week was the worst Kurt had had since coming back to New York. B seemed to stay late at classes every day and picked up as many extra shifts at the diner as possible. It was getting to the point that Kurt felt like he didnt even have a roommate.

In a desperate attempt to at least see B, Kurt decided hed head up to the diner while B was working Friday evening and have dinner. They really needed to talk. Kurt was still holding on to how he felt about B, but he could at least let B know nothing was going on between him and Elliott.

He asked the hostess to seat him in Bs section and she gave him a knowing smile.

Kurt looked over the menu nervously, even though he knew it by heart; it hadnt really changed since Kurt had worked here himself.

"Welcome to the Spotlight Diner," B said pleasantly as he approached Kurts table. "Can I start you with-" He stopped mid-sentence when he glanced down and saw that it was Kurt sitting in the booth, smiling up at him.

"Hey B!" Kurt said, trying to calm his nerves. He felt like he and B had been fighting, even though that was far from true. They hadnt even seen each other enough recently to fight. Bs smile wavered for a moment, and then he grinned at Kurt.

"Kurt, this is a nice surprise." But his artificial smile didnt make him seemed pleased at all. Kurts stomach dropped. Had he really messed up so badly? Kurt hadnt told B about his feelings for him, but B had never said anything either, and now B was punishing him for going out with some other guy.

"Is it a nice surprise?" Kurt asked. "Because I feel like youve been avoiding me."

"I… I havent," B said, his smile dropping, and Kurt didnt respond, but just kept watching his face, trying to read it. B sighed and stuffed his order pad into the big front pocket of his apron. Then he dropped down into the booth across the table from Kurt. "That was a lie," he admitted, even though Kurt already knew that.

"You have been avoiding me, then?"

B chewed on his bottom lip and glanced down at the table.

When B didnt say anything, Kurt continued. "Because of Elliott."

B looked up, and he seemed on the verge of tears. "Ive been an awful friend, havent I?”

Kurt reached across the table and covered Bs hand with his own. "Youre my best friend, B, and I know youre upset… and I know its my fault, but…" Kurt shrugged. "I miss you."

"It isnt your fault," B said, voice quiet. "You didnt do anything wrong. I was just… Im jealous." He drew in a breath and continued in a steady voice. "Im jealous of Elliott because he gets to date you, but that is so unfair of me, and really, I just want you to be happy, Kurt. I want all the good things in the world for you." Bs smile was a little wobbly, but it was the first real smile Kurt had seen from him all week.

"Oh, B," Kurt sighed as his heart ached in his chest. B had actually admitted he was jealous of Elliott, and that was as close as either of them had gotten to confessing their feelings. "Im not dating Elliott."

Bs eyebrows rose, making his eye patch bob on his face and Kurt smiled because he was just so adorable. "You arent?" B asked in surprise.

"No."

"But you said he was a gentleman and a good date."

"Well, all that is true," Kurt shrugged. "But he isnt, he isnt…" You. "He isnt right for me. I think he and I will be friends. Ive talked to him a couple of times this week and he is performing with his band next Friday. Maybe we could go to the show together?"

"You and me?" B asked as a smile bloomed on his face.

"You and me."

"Id love that, Kurt."

"Good."

"Im sorry Ive been so... aloof this week," B said shyly, looking back down at the table. "Ive missed you too."

Kurt squeezed his hand. "But were good now, right?"

B looked up and nodded. "I should get back to work though."

"Of course. Um… Could I get that cheeseburger I like?"

B got up from the table and flashed him a genuine smile. "I think I could even wrangle some extra fries."

"Well, if you must." Kurt said with a laugh, feeling better than he had since his date with Elliott.

On Saturday, Kurt had arranged to take the day off so he could go to the Smythe Expo as early as possible. He had registered and gotten his welcome packet in the mail. And did it really matter that his name badge read Burt Hummel? He wasnt doing any harm. He just wanted to learn.

B was home, spread out on the sofa in gray sweatpants and a red t-shirt and flipping through an issue of Theater Mania. Kurt walked to the couch and lifted Bs legs and sat down next to him, laying them across his lap. "Good article?" Kurt asked as B lowered the magazine to look up at Kurt.

"Yes, it has an interview with Aaron Tveit on his return to Broadway," he smiled. “You know, someday there will be an interview in here of new up-and-coming Broadway star Kurt Hummel."

Kurts heart sped up and he smiled broadly. "Or maybe an interview with B. You could be like Cher or Ke$ha and just go by one name."

"Ill never be on Broadway, Kurt," B said softly, looking back down at the magazine.

"Why not? Ive heard you sing and…" Kurt could feel himself blush a little as he thought of Bs strong and warm singing voice. "Youre really good."

"No-one is going to hire a droid for the stage. It would be like cheating. I only sing well because Ive been programmed to."

Kurts smile faded. "I dont know if that is true," he said quietly.

"Where are you off to?" B asked, looking over Kurts suit and smoothly changing the subject.

"Oh, I have this event to go to today. Ill be home for dinner though; I could pick something up for us. Maybe that Indian place you like?"

"Sounds good."

Kurt moved Bs feet again and hopped up from the sofa.

"Have a good day, Kurt!" B called as he left the apartment.

Kurt smiled and bit his lip as he walked down to the subway. He needed this expo. He was going to prove once and for all that B wasnt the way he was because of programming. He knew B was…different, Kurt just didnt know why he was different and that was the point of bluffing his way into this expo. Answers.

Kurt arrived at the Javits Center, straightening his tie and making sure he had his lanyard on. He walked to the preregistration desk and had no trouble getting through. They had no reason to believe he wasnt Burt Hummel.

"There is an opening session in the grand ball room at 6:00 pm," the woman at the desk told him. "Charles Smythe will be here himself."

"Great, thanks," Kurt smiled at her as he took his packet of information. From Kurts research, it seemed to be a big deal to have Charles Smythe at one of these events. He had founded Smythe Industries, but had partially retired and left the running of the company to his son Sebastian.

Really though, Kurt wasnt counting on talking to the actual Smythes, he was just hoping to talk to the engineers about their elusive B line androids.

When Kurt walked into the main expo hall, he was stopped short by all that he saw. His jaw dropped as he took in the large open space. It was full of booths and stations and androids and things Kurt had never seen before. Just standing here, Kurt saw more technology than hed even seen in one place.

An android walked up to him. She had clear skin so you could see all of her mechanics inside, but otherwise was wearing a stylish black dress and heels and jewelry, she had a tray in her hand. "Champagne?" she asked, and Kurt just shook his head. "Um... No, thank you."

It seemed like all of the servers were from different Smythe android lines and many droids were running booths as well. Heck, they could all be androids, and how would Kurt even know at first glance?

Kurt wasnt sure where to start. He opened the expo map and glanced at the names for all the booths and who was running them. There were all kinds of engineers presenting this afternoon. He scanned the list; software engineers, optical engineers, memory processor engineers, skin and covering engineers and designers, precision engineers. The list went on and on.

It was all a little overwhelming.

Kurt folded the map, took a deep breath and moved forward. If he wasnt here on a mission, Kurt would have let himself be distracted by all the mechanical wonders around him. It was a pity that his dad wasnt here; hed be drooling over this. Kurt walked up to one display that had a man in a crisp midnight black suit running it. He was standing near a case of artificial eye balls.

"These are incredible," Kurt said, looking down at the eyes. Bs eye looked every bit as real as these did, but as he started to read the specs on them he could see why buying replacement Smythe eyes had been out of the question for Burt. They were seriously impressive and probably seriously expensive.

"Can I ask you a kind of strange question?" Kurt said to the man, who gave him a smile and nodded.

"Of course, what can I answer for you?" the man said placidly.

"Have you ever heard of an android… losing its eyes? Or maybe having them stolen?"

The mans face didnt change expressions at all; he still looked at him with a mild expression. "All Smythe parts have a security upgrade. If by some chance your android did have part of it taken, you could track it."

"So it does happen? Android parts get stolen?" Kurt knew that had to happen, parts were expensive and could be resold, he was just starting with easy questions trying to get this man talking.

"Who wouldnt want a Smythe part?" the man said with the slightest of smiles. "But we have protections for our droids and their owners."

"Right," Kurt said, nodding. He wasnt sure what kind of information he was looking for, but this didnt seem to be helping.

"I see youve met Jeffery." A woman came up to Kurts side, wearing bright red lipstick that matched her form-fitting dress and a bright smile. "Im Candice Fisher." She held out a hand for Kurt to shake.

"Im Burt Hummel," Kurt answered, taking her hand. "Jeffery?" He said, looking back at the man.

"Jeffery is one of our G line androids."

"Oh." Kurt said with a raise of his eyebrows as Jeffery turned to speak with someone else. "I had no idea."

"Thats exactly what we like to hear." Candace said. "Most of our exhibits are manned by both a Smythe employee and an android. The trick is seeing if you can guess who is who." She leaned forward and spoke in a mock whisper. "There is a secret way to always tell the difference though; maybe youll figure it out." She straightened back up and smiled again with dazzling white teeth. "Did you have question about our vision units?"

"Well, more a general question about androids having their eyes stolen?"

"Oh, that. You must have heard the stories."

"Stories?"

"You know, eyeless androids roaming around like zombies looking for their missing parts. Dont worry though." She said quickly at Kurts shocked expression. "It doesnt happen like that. Yes, an android's eyes are the most thieved part. They are extremely valuable and one of the only parts a novice mechanic might be able to remove without damaging the droid. So, yes, there is a black market for them, but… We track all of ours, which is one of the many reasons to buy Smythe. If a droid has its eyes taken, it immediately shuts down and an alert is sent to the owner and to Smythe Industries security. No zombie droids," she said with a laugh.

"Wow," Kurt said, his stomach dropping; he hated the thought of someone using B for scrap parts. It made him feel a little sick. "So then… if I had a droid with missing eyes, could you look them up?"

Candace lifted a brow and smiled at him. "I feel like Im being tested." She nodded to a computer set up behind the booth. "Lets find out."

Kurt followed her and watched as she started typing on the flat clear keyboard. "Im assuming you have your droids serial number."

"Yes. It is B821."

"She stopped and turned back to him. "Oh, it only works if it is a Smythe droid, or did you use Smythe vision units on another manufacturers android? Tsk, tsk." She winked at him. "If you have the serial number for the eyes themselves, I can look that up."

"No, he is a Smythe droid. B line."

Candice shook her head. "Im sorry, Mr. Hummel, but Smythe Industries doesnt make a B line droid."

"Youre sure? Maybe a line that never made it to market? Or for… testing? Or something?"

She shook her head again. "Im sorry, Ive never heard of it."

"Thanks anyway," Kurt said, disappointed, but there were still a lot of other people to talk to.

"Try Dr. Lemaire," Candice suggested as Kurt left the booth. "He has a display in the far left corner. It is big and impressive you wont miss it. He works in Smythe testing and research. If we did have a B line that didnt make it to market he might know. Plus, he is a genius, rarely leaves the lab it is a big deal to have him here with us today."

"Thank you." Kurt said gratefully, heading out and then turning back to Candice with his best flirtatious smile. "You couldnt give me a hint as to how to tell a droid from a human could you?"

Candice laughed good-naturedly. "Its a question, a question a droid never has an answer too. Good luck!"

Kurt mulled that over as he made his way to the far corner of the vast room. He stopped at a few more booths on his way, always asking about B line androids and always getting the same answer. "Smythe doesnt have a B line droid." He was getting a little frustrated. B was a Smythe droid. Why did no one in this company know about him?

He was also trying hard to figure out what question it was that a droid couldnt answer, but all the droids he came across were sharp and had answers ready on their tongue.

Finally, he made it to a large display in the back corner that took up three times the space other booths had. A crowd of people where gathered around listening to an older man, probably in his early 50s, dark-skinned and with graying temples. He was demonstrating some of the more advanced technologies Smythe Industries had to offer. Some of them not even available yet.

Kurt read a description of Dr. Lemaire in the folder hed been given. "Android behavior specialist" and "android thought process expert" jumped out at him. Kurt looked back up at the doctor and chewed his lip nervously. This was it, someone who might actually have answers for him.