CHAPTER 3

Kurt paced around the room, biting his nails like he does when he's anxious while Blaine sat with his head in his hands, both looking troubled and seriously confused. They just got home after spending the entire day outside because Blaine insisted that they go back to Battery Park and find the old woman again but she was really gone. Kurt chanced a glance at Blaine, the poor guy was probably wracking his brain for answers about his life and Kurt could only imagine what was running through Blaine's mind at the moment.

"So," Blaine finally broke the silence, running a hand through his hair and letting out a frustrated groan. "I'm a character from a book." He said quietly, trying to wrap his mind around it. Kurt could swear he heard Blaine mumble something along the lines of "That's fucking ridiculous".

Kurt sighed, sitting opposite him. "Yeah." He replied simply.

"And you've been reading about me in this book called?"

"Between The Pages." Kurt filled in. "I haven't even reached half of it but if you have any questions—"

"I do." Blaine cut him off. "What exactly was the book about?

"About you and your romantic endeavors so far." Kurt easily answered.

"How much do you know about me and my life?" He asked, curiously.

Kurt thought for a moment, considering his words. He knew a lot about Blaine and he loved the book so when he gets started about telling it to people, he can't stop. And before he knew it, he was telling Blaine everything he knew.

"You're Blaine Devon Anderson, 22, studying performing arts in Dalton University with your best friends "The Warblers". You're from Westerville, Ohio and I don't know who you parents are 'cause they were just mentioned once in the book. You love Vogue and musicals as much as I do and you have a passion for Disney as well as superheroes. You're head over heels in love with the most handsome guy in Dalton, Stefan Morrell, which I really don't get since it's clear that he's just playing you because he's an attention seeker and he's manipulating you to—"

"Whoa there. Alright,enough." Blaine stopped Kurt from saying anything more, a bit of frustration in his voice. "Stop bad-mouthing Stefan, you don't know him." Blaine defended the guy, a frown gracing his already tired features. Kurt rolled his eyes once Blaine had buried his face in his hands again,of course.Blaine shrugged, finally sitting properly. "Okay, so you do know a lot about me." He said. Everything Kurt had said has been spot on.

Kurt watched as Blaine ran his hand through his gelled hair; some of his curls were already hanging loose because of the sweat from all the walking and running around Battery Park earlier that day.

Blaine let out an exasperated sigh, "God, how can this be possible? I'm just a normal college kid." He complained.

"Believe me, I was too."

Blaine finally looked up at Kurt, a question forming in his mind. "Earlier today when we saw that old lady, she said something."

"What?" Kurt scrunched his nose as he tried to think, a little bit lost. "She said a lot of ridiculous things that didn't help our—"

"Why did you wish for me?" Blaine blurted out, cutting Kurt off mid-sentence.

Kurt blinked, surprised. He was caught off guard. "Excuse me?"

Blaine sat upright, suddenly all his attention was on Kurt and the other man felt like Blaine was drilling holes into his skin as he continued to stare. Kurt tried to force down the blush that was creeping on his cheeks; sometimes he hates being pale.

What would he say? That he was so attached that he wished he had someone like Blaine in his life. No, who was he kidding? He definitely wished that he hadBlainein his life. He can't tell him that.I'd rather get swallowed by a whale.

"Kurt?"

Kurt snapped back to reality, clapping his hands as if he had thought of something brilliant. He needed to steer them away from that topic of wishing. "You know what, we won't solve anything if we stay sitting here like this." He started, standing up.

Even though Kurt knew that Blaine was fictional and that this was overall crazy and would probably end soon enough, he still didn't want him to know what he felt about him.No Kurt, you don't feel anything. Just a bit attached, that's all.

Kurt shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"But you didn't answer my—"

Kurt turned to him, arms crossed over his chest and lips pursed to a tight smile. "I have an idea. Why don't we—uhm," He stumbled with his words, unable to think of anything in one snap. "—we can, we can try to look for the book again?" Kurt finished uncertainly.

Blaine gave him a curious look, sighing and giving up his previous question. "Alright. I guess that would get something done." Blaine agreed after a long pause and Kurt let out a relieved breath. Although he was sure that Blaine hadn't let go of that question just yet.

Blaine got up from the couch and stretched, ready to have a go with Kurt's idea. Kurt found himself staring at Blaine, he couldn't help it; he looked really good in that Dalton uniform. "Where have you last seen it?"

"Seen what?" Kurt distractedly asked. Then, as if realizing what he's doing, he blinked and snapped back to reality. "Oh. Oh, right!" He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I fell asleep with it the other night and when I woke up, it was gone. So, maybe it's somewhere in my room. We can start there." Kurt replied.

Blaine nodded. "Okay, let's get to it then."

Kurt led the way and they started a mad search for the novel. They looked under the bed, in the drawers, in all the corners of the room but they found nothing. Soon, they were searching the whole apartment like some policemen searching a crime scene.

Somewhere along the way, some clothes got discarded as they started sweating from the summer heat and from lifting furniture to find the book. By the time they finished checking every part of the room (and cleaning it too because Kurt insisted "now that we're at it"), they were still bookless.

"I can't believe it's not anywhere." Kurt grumbled and he heard a sigh coming from Blaine.

He looked around to see that he had just finished looking under the sofa in the living room. And again, Kurt found himself staring at Blaine. How can someone fictional look so incredibly hot? Literally. Blaine was sweating through his white uniform—his blazer and tie discarded— and Kurt was having a hard time trying not to ogle. Also, he has a nice butt.

Kurt averted his gaze from Blaine when the guy started to turn around. "Well, it might be gone now. Maybe I'm the book. I mean, maybe I think the book changed into me." Blaine voiced out and Kurt could just see how crazy he thinks this is.

"Maybe. That's a good point, seeing as you're already out of it. Let's add more crazy into the story." Kurt agreed.

Blaine started to walk towards and Kurt awkwardly shifted on his feet, his side facing Blaine as he washed the dirt off of his hand. Blaine leaned back on the kitchen counter and stared ahead, his hands on either side of him.

"So, what do you suppose we do now?"

But before Kurt could answer the question, Rachel walked into the apartment looking tired but well-fed, unlike the two of them who—now that Kurt thought about it— forgot to eat dinner.It's that late already?

"Kurt! Kurt, you should have been there! Tanya was being a diva and I swear I—oh." Rachel finished her sentence all of a sudden when she saw that Blaine was still in the apartment. "Hi Blaine?" She tried.

Kurt rolled his eyes, trying not to laugh at Rachel's pathetic attempt to hide her surprise. He saw her give him a look that made him shrug. "He knows, Rachel."

"Knows what?" Rachel tried indifference but as Kurt said, Blaine already knew so she didn't need to try so hard.

"That I'm not real. Well, I am but you know what I mean." Blaine answered for her, trying his best not to tear his hair off for how crazy it still sounds. He rubbed his forehead instead. "It's all true, Iama fictional character." He ended as Rachel stared at him, dumbfounded.

She directed her eyes from Kurt to Blaine and back. "No way, that's not possible." She said in a voice barely above whisper and Kurt wouldn't have heard her if not for the fact that he's used to her shocked voice.

"Well, apparently it is and here we are." Kurt sarcastically said, opening his hands and shaking it as if presenting a very glamorous gift. "We've tried to look for the book all over the apartment but it was nowhere to be found." He explained.

Rachel tutted, walking towards the living room and slumping down on it. Clearly, she didn't enjoy the summer heat as she got rid of her cardigan, fanning herself in the process.

"If that's the case then you need to forget about the book for a moment because it's nearly the end of the day." Rachel finally said after a long pause. Kurt was taken aback.

"Excuse me? Forget about it? Rach—"

"Wait! Hear me out okay?" Rachel kneeled on the couch and faced them both, bouncing in the process. Both Kurt and Blaine went quiet as they waited for her to voice out her thoughts. "Clearly Blaine's not going anywhere if you guys can't find the book and since it was your—" She pointed at Kurt, "—fault that he's here anyway because you own that book, you need to take care of him."

"Wait, that's not—"

Rachel cut him off. "Blaine's not from here. Well, technically he is but he doesn't know anybody. He doesn't have a place to stay and I believe that he's got no money with him too. Although we can't cover for that for a long time 'cause it's really hard with all our expenses so..."

Kurt drowned out Rachel's words as he thought to himself. That's right, it was his fault anyway so he really should take care of Blaine. Poor guy doesn't even have any of his things with him, Kurt should lend him some clothes or something. He could literally hear Blaine's mind working as he felt him turning his head to look at him, probably realizing that Rachel was right.

Rachel's voice came back and Kurt heard her say, "So, have you thought about living arrangements?" She smiled, too excited for Kurt's liking.

Blaine finally found his voice. "You're right." He agreed, much to Kurt's chagrin. Blaine looked back at Kurt again, his eyes pleading and how the hell could Kurt turn that face down? "But it still depends on what Kurt thinks." He said.

Kurt found himself cornered between his best friend and the guy who accidentally stumbled into his life. "I—" He started.

"Kurt?" Rachel grinned, looking like she's ready to throw a party. Kurt narrowed his eyes at her.

Kurt gave Blaine a smile and a clap on the back. "Can you wait here for a moment? I just need to talk to Rachel." A look of horror crossed Blaine's face as Kurt said those words. He sighed, "Don't worry, I'm not going to kick you out. I'm not that heartless. I just need to clarify things with her."

"Okay. Please, think about it. Please." Blaine said, clearly scared at what all this might entail. Kurt nodded and walked over to Rachel, grabbing her by the arm and dragging her to his room. Blaine was left alone to his thoughts.

"What are you playing at woman?" Kurt hissed once they were out of earshot. Rachel shrugged and gave him a sly smile.

"You have to take responsibility."

Kurt made a face. "Dear god, please don't make it sound like I got somebody pregnant." He shuddered at the thought. Rachel giggled. "But seriously Rachel— I mean, I'm not opposed to it although this whole thing is very disconcerting—is this okay with you?"

Rachel nodded. "Yeah it is. As long as he doesn't kill me in my sleep." She paused. "But please keep the volume at the minimum when you get to that base." She winked.

"OH MY GOD." Kurt blushed, hitting Rachel on the arm. "I knew it had to be something like that! It's not going to happen Rachel and you know it." He sternly said.

"What? He's a here, he's real now. Maybe he may even do the things on your romantic chekclist." She giggled. "Haven't you watched Enchanted? You saw what happened there!" She chuckled.

"Rachel, that was a movie. And he's already got his betrothed in the book, Stefan remember?" Kurt tried but Ms. Berry was already waltzing him around the room, singing at the top of her beautiful, Broadway voice.

"I've been dreaming of a true love's kiss—"

"Rachel, stop it. Are you drunk?"

"And a prince I'm hoping comes with this—"

"He's not a prince. Please st—"

Rachel continued singing, ignoring Kurt's attempts to stop her and eventually, he grew tired of her. He threw his hands up, giving up and walking away from her. He ignored her, "Aww, come on Kurt. I was having fun!" and she burst in a fit of giggles.

Kurt went back to Blaine who has now vacated the kitchen and was sitting on the couch. He looked up at Kurt with the same look—the lost puppy look— on his face so Kurt gave him a sincere smile. Because seriously, he's not going to throw him out just like that.

"So, what's the verdict?" Blaine nervously asked. It finally dawned on him how serious all this was, for him at least. He's in a familiar yet foreign place and he doesn't know anybody but these people who he woke up with and he's not going to take his chances and leave them, especially when they're being nice. Might as well stay and figure things out in this apartment than be killed or starve on the streets.

Kurt huffed. "If you're asking about Rachel's sanity, it flew out the window and I don't think it's ever coming back, so there's that." He said and thankfully, that made Blaine laugh and lifted his mood a little.

"From what I observed from her, she functions just fine without it." Blaine joked. He snapped his mouth shut as if realizing that he shouldn't be acting familiar yet because they're not that close. Yet.

Kurt sat down next to him and bumped their shoulders, gazing at Blaine. "Alright, time to loosen up. We both need it after what went down today." He said and Blaine nodded. "You're going to stay here for the time being until we figure things out, you clearly need company and I'm not going to allow you to wander the streets around here. Not with all the drug deals I see going down every day." Kurt said.

Blaine let out a breath of relief. "That's a relief. I thought for a moment that you'd kick me out."

"I told you, I'm not heartless." Kurt smiled.

Blaine reached out and touched Kurt's hand, surprising Kurt as they stared at each other. Kurt remembers the book and how it describedHis long lashes accentuated his hazel eyes, conveying every emotion he was feelingand it amazes him how accurate it was. Kurt felt his cheeks heat up.

"Thank you, Kurt. You don't know how much this means to me." Blaine sincerely said and Kurt could only nod. There was a long pause but the atmosphere wasn't awkward unlike earlier that morning. Blaine cleared his throat as he realized that he was still holding Kurt's hands. "I promise I won't be a bother. I'll get a job somehow, I swear." He said.

"I'll hold on to that." Kurt told him. "But for the mean time," He stood up again, walking towards his room and coming back out with clothes in his hands. "I'll lend you my stuff. Please take care of them, they're very dear to me." He said seriously.

"Of course. Thanks again Kurt." Blaine repeated.

"Go on and change out of those dirty clothes, it's hot and you're sweaty. You can wash them tomorrow. We can go and grab dinner after we've changed. As for sleeping arrangements—"

"Don't let him make you sleep on the couch. It's uncomfortable especially in this season." Rachel screamed as she walked to her room with a huge grin on her face.

"Berry!"

Rachel replied with a loud laugh and a "good night!". Kurt turned to face Blaine, muttering a "sorry".

Blaine smiled at him, "It's alright, she's fun to be around. Never a dull moment huh?" He said. Kurt nodded grimly in agreement. "I can sleep on the couch, it's fine." Blaine told him.

Kurt shook his head, "No, no. Rachel's right as always. I can't let you sleep there, your neck will suffer in the morning, I'm sure of it." He said. "You can sleep in my room—"

"No, Kurt, it's okay. I don't want to further impose—"

"You can use my duvet, I only use it in winter anyway, and you'll sleep on the floor. It's better than sleeping on this small couch." Kurt insisted even though his mind is filled with thoughts offirst guy to sleep in my room, first guy to sleep in my room. "And besides, I literally woke up with you next to me this morning. It's okay."

"I can sleep on the floor here." Blaine tried again and Kurt could see that he was blushing.Finally, the boy blushes!Kurt shook his head to clear his thoughts and to refuse Blaine's insistence.

"No way, I'm not going to let you dirty my duvet. At least I know the floor on my room is clean." Kurt finally said. "Enough about this. Go on, take a shower and get dressed. I'm starving."

Blaine finally gave it up. "Okay then. I'll only take a minute." He said and Kurt nodded one last time before Blaine vanished towards the bathroom.

Kurt slumped down on the sofa, massaging his forehead. This is definitely going to be a long week. Kurt was staring at the ceiling when Blaine finally emerged from the bathroom, drying his now gel free curls.

"Are you trying to melt the wall? Because it's not working." Blaine said, getting Kurt's attention.

"Oh, you're done. So, dinner?" Kurt asked, standing up.

Blaine nodded. "Dinner."

The next few weeks passed by without much happening, just the usual and a bit more because finals are coming as the Spring semester ends. The first few days, Kurt would tag Blaine along when he goes to school, not fully trusting to leave the house to a stranger but after the fourth day, Blaine assured him that he won't run or steal anything and the look on his face told Kurt that he was being honest.

From the day forth, Blaine was always left to the apartment when Kurt and Rachel goes to college or for work. This left Blaine to his thoughts, thinking of ways to stop being a burden to the two people who showed him this much hospitality.

He would clean the apartment or try to earn money by singing in the streets but that's as far as he goes. He'd cook for them and they'd be grateful for it because Blaine really does know how to cook. These past few days, however, Kurt and Rachel took turns in staying at the apartment with Blaine. With finals, they've been practicing a lot for their respective performances.

Blaine was in the middle of finishing the dishes for dinner when the door opened. "Hey." Blaine greeted, pouring the soup to a nearby bowl and placing it on the dining table. They've gotten closer over time and it felt like they knew each other for a long time already.

Blaine realized that he had a lot in common with Kurt and that made the awkwardness go away. Kurt would open up to him and he would open up to Kurt as well (avoiding topics revolving around Stefan because that seems to piss Kurt off in a whole new level).

"Hey!" Kurt greeted back with a huge smile on his face. "That smells good." He complimented, placing his bag on the couch and walking to the table. "What did Rachel get yesterday?"

"I made her a salad." Blaine replied with a smile. "You get meat." He smiled. Kurt nodded appreciatively, sitting down on one of the chairs.

"Where do you get all these? Last time I checked, we didn't have these much stock of food." Kurt said as they started to dig in.

"Take it as my gift to you guys for letting me stay here every day." Blaine smiled. Kurt hummed an okay. After a long pause, Blaine finally asked. "So, how's the musical going?"

Kurt gulped down his food and smiled. "It's going great even if we're all tired. Oh that reminds me, I think Rachel and I can't be here tomorrow. We're going to stage it on Saturday so we need to be at rehearsals all the time." He paused. "Can I entrust the apartment to you?" Kurt teased.

"Of course you can my good sir. I am your loyal servant." Blaine chuckled.

"That's great soldier." Kurt played along. "Anyway, we've reserved a seat for you on Saturday. You know how to go to NYADA right? Rachel wants you to be in the front seat." Kurt smiled.

"You can count on it." Blaine replied. Another pause and Kurt was the one to initiate the conversation.

"So, how are you doing? Any clues on how to get back?" Kurt finally asked. They talked about it from time to time and still they don't know how to solve the problem. Although Kurt had gotten used to Blaine, he still wanted him to find his way back. He didn't want him to be stuck in this world he didn't really know.

"Nothing. It sucks because as much as I miss them, I can't do anything to get back." Blaine honestly said. "No offense, I am having fun here but you know, they're my..."

"Your family. Basically your whole life. And none taken." Kurt told him. "We'll get you back, I promise. I'm the one that caused this anyway, I'll help you." He said.Oh no, Kurt, that'll promptthequestion. "Anyway, have you found a job yet?" He asked before Blaine could ask him about why he did wish for him in the first place.

"None yet but I'm doing okay singing in the streets. I could use a guitar though or a piano but for the meantime, I'm fine with this." He smiled.

They continued their talking and dinner ended happily. They fell into their usual routine when they're together; eat dinner, wash the dishes, nightly moisturizing routine, criticizing reality TV shows and getting in bed. It was fun having someone to share all these things with, at least for Kurt.

"Good night B." Kurt said as he rolled towards the night light. He accidentally called him that one and been so used to it since that it has become his personal nickname for him.

"Night." Blaine replied, settling in the duvet on the floor.

"Lights?"

"Lights."

Kurt turned the night light on and they both drifted off to sleep.