"Someone from the show is supposed to meet us, right?" Burt nervously inquired as they moved into the LaGuardia terminal. He was excited for Kurt, but the excitement was tempered by concern for their safety in such a big city, concern that things might not work out the way Kurt envisioned them, but most of all, concern that regardless of his statements to the contrary, Kurt would be absolutely devastated if he wasn't selected to be on the show. Burt knew all too well that it was one thing for Kurt to�say�everything would be fine and that he would be happy just to spend a little time in New York, but quite another for him to actually�feel�that way when faced with the stark reality of rejection. Burt resigned himself to hoping for the best, and silently resolved not to let his fears spoil their trip.

"Yes, Dad," Kurt confirmed yet again, bouncing on his toes as he floated down the jetway. "Someone will be waiting for us in the baggage claim area. I sent them the flight number, the arrival time, and the airline as soon as we made the reservations." Kurt had used their carry-on allowance for his laptop, his sketchbooks, and the single outfit he was allowed to show, wanting to avoid any chance of losing them through misdirected luggage, especially since they had changed planes in Baltimore. Everything else except Burt's medications had been checked in the huge suitcase he had gotten as a high school graduation present. "We need to go this way." He pointed at the moving walkway heading to the baggage claim area.

They had gotten up at 4:30 in order to make their early morning flight, and Burt was a little tired, but Kurt was still full of energy. He had talked and sketched non-stop throughout both flights and during the brief Baltimore layover. He had insisted on bringing healthy snacks along, but Burt was ready for some real food and someplace quiet to sit for a while. He hoped they would get to the hotel soon. He was delighted and relieved to see the pleasant-looking guy standing just outside the baggage claim area, holding up a�Project Runway sign. "Kurt, can you get the bags, please? I'm going over to speak to this nice young man," Burt said, suiting his actions to the words.

The kid (anyone under 30 was still a kid to Burt) was neatly dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and dress pants, and his curly dark hair was obviously under the influence of some kind of product. Burt didn't know designer clothes like Kurt did, of course, but the garments looked well-made and were flattering on him. He looked thoroughly professional, except for the bright green bow tie he was sporting. Burt extended his hand. "Hi, I'm Burt Hummel."

"Blaine Anderson," the kid said with a grin taking the proffered hand in a firm grip. "I'm so happy to meet you. I'm an assistant with�Project Runway and I'm here to take you into the city and help you get settled. The baggage carousel sounded a tone and started moving. "It looks like your suitcases should be here momentarily. Can I help you with them?"

"No, I think Kurt can handle it. We just have one bag." The kid, 'Blaine'�Burt reminded himself, was young, but he seemed to know what he was doing. Maybe Kurt was right and the�Project Runway staff was going to take good care of them. He certainly hoped so. Burt wanted Kurt to enjoy the experience, but more than anything, he hoped that Kurt would get to meet some people with whom he had something in common. After all, every contestant was interested in fashion. That was a good starting point. At least some of them (more than half, if past seasons were any indication) would be male, and probably some of them would be gay. He wasn't necessarily hoping Kurt would form a romantic relationship, although that would be nice, but he really wanted Kurt to make some friends who had been through some of the same things. Even if Kurt didn't make it onto the show, he would get to know some new people with different backgrounds, people with more cosmopolitan attitudes, people who should be accepting of him.

"You two are the only ones coming in this morning, so as soon as we have everything, we'll head out. By the time we get you settled it will be nearly noon, so if it's okay, I'll take you both to lunch. Then it's back to the airport for me, but the two of you will have a few hours to yourselves. The first meeting isn't until this evening at 5:00. All the contestants and families will have supper together, followed by a Q&A session. I'm sure you'd like to know a little more about what all this entails."

Kurt had snagged their bag from the carousel and was making his way over toward the two men, struggling to balance the huge suitcase, his laptop, briefcase and the garment bag. As soon as Blaine realized what was happening, he rushed to take the handle of the suitcase from Kurt's hand. "Hi, I'm Blaine," he said to the startled man. "You must be Kurt. I recognize you from your video," he explained, seeing the look of confusion on Kurt's face. Kurt gave him an appraising look.�Hmm... Not too bad. The shirt has obviously been tailored to fit him, and those shoes look vintage. He needs to do something different with his hair and lose the bow tie, but not too bad overall.

"So, do I pass inspection? I won't offer to shake your hand, since both of them seem to be occupied right now, but I'm one of the many assistants at�Project Runway, and I'm very pleased to meet you," joked Blaine. "Let's join your dad and I'll go over the program for this afternoon."

"I was … I was just admiring your shoes," stammered Kurt.�Great. I've made a fool of myself during the first five minutes. I just hope he doesn't have anything to do with the selection process."Are they vintage? They look it."

"Yes, they are. If you're interested, I can show you this quirky little thrift shop over on oh, that's right, it's Thanksgiving weekend. They won't be open while you're here. Maybe some other time."

"So you buy a lot of vintage things?"

"Yes, I can only think of three ways to have one-of-a-kind items: design them myself, have a great designer for a friend, or go vintage. Since I'm not a designer and don't know any, …." His voice trailed away.

"I would think you knew lots of designers, working on�Project Runway," ventured Kurt as they went through the revolving doors onto the sidewalk.

Blaine shook his head. "I'm pretty small potatoes. Let's just say I know their coffee orders." He stepped over to SUV waiting at the curb. The driver got out and began to put the bags into the back. Blaine opened the front passenger door and motioned for Kurt to get in.

"Is it okay for me to sit up front?" asked Burt. "I'd like to see where we're going."

"Sure," replied Blaine. "Do you mind sitting back here with me, Kurt?"

"Not at all."

Blaine kept up a running commentary during the 20-minute drive, talking about neighborhoods and points of interest. Kurt and Burt did their best to take it all in. "That's Calvary Cemetery on the left. It has the most interments of any US cemetery. We're getting ready to go through the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. It was opened to traffic in 1940, and you may have seen it in�Men in Black."

"Oh, yeah, when the car is driving on the ceiling. That was this tunnel? I love that movie!" enthused Burt.

"When we come out, we'll be on Manhattan Island. The United Nations Headquarters is to the right as we get out of the tunnel, but you won't be able to see it from here. In this part of town, the streets run roughly east-west in numerical order, and the avenues run roughly north-south. Some are numbered and some have names. The grid is tilted about 29� clockwise, so 'north' is really 'north-northeast', but you can think of uptown as north and downtown as south. We're on East 37th Street. This is Park Avenue we're crossing now, and Madison Avenue will be next, followed by 5th Avenue. Bryant Park is just a few blocks uptown on West 40th Street, well within walking distance, and the New York Public Library is there, as well. It's got a lot more than books, and it's well worth a visit."

"What's your favorite thing in the library?" asked Kurt, curious to learn a little more about this sophisticated man.

Blaine blushed and looked uncomfortable for the first time since Kurt had met him. "It's kind of silly, I know, but … have you ever heard of Christopher Robin?"

Kurt stared at him in surprise. "Of course. My mother used to read me the�Winnie-the-Pooh�stories and�When We Were Very Young�was my first book of poetry. Have you ever heard�Hoppity?"

A huge grin spread across Blaine's face. "Christopher Robin goes Hoppity, hoppity, Hoppity, hoppity, hop. Whenever I tell him Politely to stop it, he Says he can't possibly stop,"

Kurt chimed in immediately, and they finished the poem together. "If he stopped hopping, he couldn't go anywhere, Poor little Christopher Couldn't go anywhere … That's why he�always�goes Hoppity, hoppity, Hoppity, Hoppity, Hop," shrieking the last line triumphantly, much to Burt's amusement.

"I can't believe we just did that!" Blaine exclaimed. "Well, anyway, the library has Christopher Robin's original stuffed animals."

"They have Winnie-the-Pooh? Dad, we've got to go there!"

"Even better, Kurt. They have Eeyore and Piglet and Kanga, too. Oh, and Tigger." Blaine was very glad he'd taken the risk of getting laughed at. At least in this respect, Kurt appeared to be a kindred soul.

"What hotel are we staying in?" asked Burt.

"Didn't they tell you? It's not a hotel. The show already had some apartments under lease for when production starts in a few weeks, so the contestants are staying there." Blaine paused at Kurt's gasp. "And here we are," he said as the SUV pulled up to the Atlas New York.