"So what are our plans for New Years?" Blaine asked as we exited the car after arriving back at my house. The lights inside were off, but the porch light was kept on, welcoming us home.

"Well, Rachel's having her annual New Year's Eve karaoke party, so we're invited to that."

"Mhm."

"And then I have to be back in New York by Monday morning for Wicked," I said, fiddling with my keys by the door.

"And today is Wednesday," Blaine stared up into the night air, watching the night sky above us.

"Today is Wednesday."

I moved to unlock the front door of the house, but then heard Blaine's footsteps behind me walking away from the door. He sat down on the top step of the porch, sliding his hands into his pockets and staring out into the sky. My mouth opened curiously as I stood there and watched him for a moment, before walking over and sitting down next to him.

Tilting my head up, I looked at the view above us, trying to see what Blaine saw. The sky was a rich, infinite black, speckled all over with stars and various constellations.

"New York needs stars," Blaine said in a reminiscent voice. "You know, the real ones." I hummed in agreement, getting lost in the endless expanse that was night. New York City definitely does lack that aspect of nature.

"How do you feel about cats?"

I moved my gaze back to Blaine's face and gave him a confused expression. "Well...they're nice...I guess?"

"Do you prefer them over dogs?"

"It...it depends on the cat. I mean, there are nice cats, and there are mean cats. Same goes with dogs."

Blaine nodded, staring off into the distance again. There was a short silence filled with nothing but the hardly-there sound of the winter wind.

"Are you an animorph?"

Blaine laughed, letting his head hang down for a second as he smiled sweetly to himself. "No, I sadly do not possess the power to turn into a dog."

"Cat."

"What?"

"You asked me about cats, so you're obviously hiding some kind of cat secret."

"You see me as a cat?"

"Well you're the one who brought them up first!"

"Kurt, in what kind of sick animated world do you see me as a cat?"

"Alice in Wonderland."

"The..." Blaine let out a confused laugh, turning his head towards me. "The Cheshire Cat? You're comparing me to the Cheshire Cat?"

"I really don't even know anymore."

"That is probably the biggest insult I've ever received in my life."

I laughed quietly to myself, the corners of my eyes crinkling as I turned my head away from Blaine.

"Okay, Okay," Blaine said, smiling and lifting a finger. "What's your biggest fear?"

"The Cheshire Cat," I deadpanned.

"Seriously..."

"Umm...I...sheesh, I don't know Blaine. Does it matter?"

"Yes."s

"I guess it would be something bad happening to my family...that and terrorist attacks." Blaine nodded. "Why the interrogation?"

"Oh, no reason," he replied, leaning back on the palms of his hands and looking back into the night sky. "Stuffed animals or blankets?"

"Blankets, and enough with the questioning, eHarmony."

"Alright, just one more," Blaine smiled, sitting up. "What did the big chimney say to the little chimney?" I furrowed my brow, looking at him questionably. "You're too young to smoke!" Blaine beamed, eyes wide with humorous enthusiasm.

"You are absolutely ridiculous."

"Yes, but you like my ridiculousness."

"Who said that?"

"Your eyes said that," he responded as-a-matter-of-factly, a smirk present on his lips.

"Did they?" I replied, tilting my head. "I think I specifically told them not to."

"Well," Blaine turned towards me. "Eyes seem to have a mind of their own."

I watched as Blaine's gaze flickered down to my lips, my breath stilling as I continued to stare at him. He moved a couple of inches closer, his stare was intense and breathing only got harder at that point.

"What are my eyes saying?" he whispered.

I leaned forward, exhaling through my nose as I captured his lips in mine. Blaine's hand reached up to the back of my neck, fingering through the tips of my hairline. He sucked lightly on my bottom lip, moving his lips over mine in a passionate way. My hand lifted up off my leg, stopping hesitantly in mid-air for a moment before finally settling on his chest. I unconsciously played with the collar of his jacket, rubbing the material softly in between my fingers.

"Correct," he said with a smile once we pulled away for air, his eyes remained closed as he leaned his forehead against mine. Blaine's hand moved from the back of my neck to my cheek, rubbing his thumb softly over the skin before he dropped his hand completely. "Are you cold?"

"I'm fucking freezing."

He laughed, moving up to his feet and tugging me along with him. "C'mon, it's late."

I was about to argue the fact that he was the reason we were out on the freaking porch in the first place, but I didn't. Instead, I simply walked with him up to the front door, unlocking it with this residual smile resting on my face. I could actually feel the smile. It was a weird concept. I thought about the idea of it when we walked through the front door. We stayed silent, as to not wake up the parents who were probably sleeping upstairs.

A warm front had rolled into the Midwest on Thursday, and it was raining outside. The rain mixed with the snow and dirt on the ground to make disgusting, slushy, and completely gross weather. I refused to leave the house, and even went as far as starting a fire in the fireplace. When the fire was started, and the cover was put in front of the fireplace, I curled up on the floor with a huge plush blanket and my laptop, looking through the new Marc Jacobs collection online.

"Hey Kurt?" Blaine called from the kitchen.

"Yeah?"

"How would you feel about me making you my special Candy-cane Cocoa?"

"Do I get to watch?"

"Yes."

"Do I get to drink it by the fire after you're done?"

"Yes."

"And do I get marshmallows?"

"If you behave," he replied. I smiled, getting up off the ground and leaving the blanket on my shoulders. "Can you grab me a few candy-canes from off the tree?" Blaine called again. I picked up my laptop, putting it under my arm before going over to the tree and plucking four candy canes off near the bottom. When I walked into the kitchen, I settled onto a stool beside the island and put the candy-canes down on the counter.

"Thank you," Blaine said, looking over his shoulder from where he was looking through the refrigerator. "Is it okay if I use this?" He held up a gallon of milk.

"Yeah, sure. We can replace it tomorrow."

"Awesome." Blaine pulled a pot out from a cabinet and put it on the stove, and then poured some milk inside it. I opened up my laptop again, looking back onto the Marc Jacobs website.

The sound of rain against the roof became even louder as it began to downpour. Blaine and I both looked up in wonder, listening to the heavy drops fall outside.

"Wow, it's really coming down out there," I said, turning back to my laptop.

"Are you scared of thunderstorms?"

I looked at him curiously, "There's no thunderstorm."

"I know."

"So why would I be afraid?"

"No, I mean, in general, are you afraid of thunder and lightning?" he repeated himself, unwrapping the candy canes and putting them into a food processor.

"Um..." I stared at him from over my laptop strangely, incredibly confused. "Yes, I kind of turn into a pansy during thunder and lightning. Why?"

"Just wondering," he said, pressing the pulse button on the food processor and watching as the candy was chopped into bits.

"Is this another one of your questionnaires?"

"Depends."

"On what?"

"Do you separate the red M&M's from the rest of the M&M's?"

"What?"

"It's a valid question, Kurt."

"No it definitely is not. All M&M's taste the same, no matter what color they are."

Blaine smirked, pouring the bits of crushed candy-cane into a small bowl and reaching for the chocolate. "Well, it's good to know that you're not a racist."

I scoffed, lifting a hand to my face and rubbing my eye a little. "You are so strange."

"But a good strange, right?" he said with a cheeky grin.

"A good strange, yes," I replied, smiling back.

Ten minutes later Blaine was ladling the finished hot chocolate into two mugs. He sprayed a dollop of whipped cream on top of each one and a few more candy cane bits on top of that. "Because you've been good," he said, putting a few mini marshmallows on top of my mountain of whipped cream. I made child-like grabby hands at the mug he was holding, eager for the hot drink. "Nah-ah," he said, walking around me and out of the kitchen. "Bring the blanket, lose the laptop."

I obliged his request, standing up from my stool and following him into the living room with the blanket in my hand. He put the mugs on the floor, lying down on his stomach next to the fire. I joined him, putting the plush blanket over the two of us and getting comfortable on the carpet.

"Oh my god," I practically moaned, after tasting a bit of the Candy-cane Cocoa. "This is absolutely delicious."

"I know." Blaine put on a smug grin as he sipped his drink.

"Where did you learn to make this?"

"Dalton," he replied. "My friend's dad was the head chef in the cafeteria and he would make this on snow days for the kids who lived in the dorms."

"Oh, you boarded there?"

Blaine nodded, taking another sip of his drink and staring into the flames in front of us. My iTunes was still playing softly from the laptop in the kitchen, 'Learn to Be Lonely' from The Phantom of the Opera. He hummed the song to himself as we lied lazily on the ground. I took a moment to listen to the lyrics playing from the other room.

Who will be there for you?
Comfort and care for you?
Learn to be lonely
Learn to be your one companion

"The Phantom or Raul?" Blaine asked suddenly.

"Hmm?"

"If you were Christine, who would you have chosen?"

"I umm..." I put my mug down in front of me, folding my arms and tucking them close to my chest. "I-I don't know." Blaine's head twisted in a shrug, almost as if to give a disparaging 'well then'. Was this one of his question-test-quiz-things? I decided to concentrate harder, giving the question a second-thought.

"I-my heart aches for the Phantom, and the miserable life that he knew. I sort of wish that Christine had chosen him, because I wanted him to be happy. He was a genius and a mastermind of music, and all he had ever known was solitude. I guess I wished that he would be someone's...something. But at the same time, there's this cruelty to the way his mind works, and he did some pretty terrible things. And-and...I just...I don't know. Raul was this handsome 'Prince Charming' from Christine's childhood, but you don't really get to know his character. He seems like a stranger in the story."

"Okay...that was a very extensive way of evading the main point of the question." Blaine replied, looking at me. "Who would you choose?"

"...the Phantom."

Blaine chuckled, "Really?"

"What?"

"The Phantom? But he's so...so...eerie."

I let out an amused huff of air, "You of all people would pick Raul?"

"I bet you just pick the Phantom because of Gerard Butler."

"Okay, while Gerard Butler is everything that is sexy in this world, he has nothing to do with my decision!"

"Oh, yeah" Blaine replied sarcastically. "Sure!"

"That's it!" I said, getting up from the ground. "We're watching it, and I'm proving you wrong."

"Proving me wrong on what?"

"That Christine should have picked the Phantom." I walked over to our DVD collection, picking The Phantom of the Opera out and turning on the TV.

"I never said that I thought Christine should have picked Raul," Blaine smiled.

"You-you said that the Phantom is eerie!"

"Well, yeah, because he is!"

"Then why would you pick him?"

"Because...Gerard Butler."

I laughed, letting my head fall down in exasperation. "You're so ridiculous." My expression was condescending but my smile betrayed me. "We're still watching it though."

Blaine got up from the ground, grabbing our drinks, "Good!" He moved to the couch, where he snuggled himself in the plush blanket. He wiggled his butt into the couch, getting comfortable, and I found myself adoring the incredibly endearing sight in front of me.

"Because it's my favorite movie musical, and I can't pass up this opportunity."

"I understand completely."

"And if you talk while the Phantom is singing," I said, lifting up the blanket and joining Blaine on the couch, TV controls in my hand, "I will end you."

"What about for kisses?" Blaine said, giving me puppy dog eyes. I felt myself blush, but I willed my face to stay nonchalant.

"Not even for kisses."

Guess what?

I let him interrupt the Phantom's singing for kisses.

It was during "Music of the Night", when the Phantom and Christine are in the lair. Blaine sang along with the Phantom, lowly, under his breath.

"Floating, falling, sweet intoxication
Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation."

I was about to shush him, and inform him of the importance of not interrupting the musical stylings of Andrew Lloyd Webber, especially when sung by Gerard Butler. But then his hand touched my cheek, and I turned my head to find his face inches away from mine. Then, I forgot about my rules, and we kissed...

...for a while.

We kissed throughout the rest of the song, lazily and slowly. Our hands stayed by each other's faces and necks, sometimes carding lightly through hair or rubbing thumbs softly against skin. It lasted through the 'Magical Lasso' scene, and through Christine's 'I Remember' solo when she woke up the next day. We finally broke apart when Christine tried to take off the Phantom's mask, startled by the suddenness of the Phantom screaming at Christine.

Blaine and I turned our attention back to the screen, watching the man in the mask throw a fit.

"He has some serious self confidence issues," Blaine muttered.

"Wow," I said, looking out the window. "I'm really sick of this weather."

It was Friday afternoon, and it was still pouring outside. We hadn't done much today; I browsed the internet for extra scholarships, and Blaine just fiddled around on his guitar. Everyone else was at work, and I think it was safe to say that Blaine and I were thoroughly bored.

"That's it," I said, dropping my hands at my sides as I walked into the living room, where Blaine was sitting with his instrument. "I'm taking you out." Grabbing my coat and keys, I gestured him to follow me to the door.

"Where're we going?" Blaine put his guitar back in its case, hurrying to join me in the hallway.

"If I told you I would have to kill you."

He narrowed his eyes, reaching for his jacket which was hanging on the coat rack. "But I'm going to find out anyway."

"Yes, later." I opened the front door, leaving it open for him and walking out onto the porch.

"That sort of defeats the purpose, don't you think?"

"Not of taking you out, no."

"So does 'taking me out' refer to actually like...killing me? Or is this a date?"

I looked at him slyly from over the car as I reached for the handle of the driver's door. "What do you think?"

"Well shucks Kurt, it sure is awfully nice of you to take me on a date," Blaine said with a teasing smile.

"All the easier it will be to kill you." I got in the car, Blaine following very shortly afterward.

"You would never kill me."

I watched him buckle himself into the seat and smiled, "...says the man who will possibly get killed."

In all honesty, I had no idea where the hell I was going to take us. Running on pure instinct, I decided to go with the flow, turning out of the driveway to drive east down my street. I attempted to keep my poker face on, running through all the local places in my mind. There was simply nothing to do; the weather was terrible, everyone was working, and it was the middle of the day.

Suddenly I got an idea, and I drove to a nearby café, a reminiscent smile planting on my face when we arrived.

"Oh, so you're not trying to kill me!" Blaine laughed teasingly.

I looked at him quickly before opening my door. My original plan was to roll my eyes, but when my eyes met his I couldn't bring myself to. All I could seem to do was smile shyly and try to ignore the heat rising in my cheeks.

It was still pouring outside, and I grimaced at the fact that I didn't have a hood or an umbrella. Blaine appeared quickly by my side, his jacket in his hands. He held it up over our heads as we ran to the restaurant, trying to avoid dirty puddles on the way.

"Hello! Welcome to the Willow Café! Table for two?" said an overly cheery greeter as we walked through the door.

"Um...yes, please," I answered, patting my head lightly to see if my hair was wet. The place had redecorated since the last time I'd been there, and I took a moment to gaze around in appreciation. The walls were a bold white, with light green abstract leaves painted in various places. There were also murals of willow trees painted on either side of the café. It was all very cute.

"Follow me please!"

The young waitress brought us to a small booth near the back of the restaurant, and placed our menus on the table, saying that she would be back in a few minutes. Twenty minutes later, I was happily digging into my Greek salad, and Blaine was munching on a turkey-pesto Panini.

"So," Blaine said, taking a break from his food. "Kurt Hummel."

"That's the name."

"Would you rather lose your sight or your hearing?"

I stilled my chewing, looking at Blaine suspiciously, with raised eyebrows. "You're planning to paralyze me, aren't you?"

"Nope, just a question." He smiled.

I nodded, recalling all the odd questions he had asked me lately. "Sight."

Blaine raised his eyebrows, nodding his head in approval. "Okay, now, do you believe in karma?"

Well these questions sure have taken a serious turn. I took a moment to answer, looking at Blaine as I chewed another bite of my salad. Why is he even asking all of these in the first place?

"I've never thought about it."

"How about fate?"

"Well, yeah, destiny makes sense."

"How so?"

I put my fork down, "I'd like to think that I have somewhere that I'm meant to be, with someone that I'm meant to be with. Otherwise, life seems pretty despicable, doesn't it?"

Blaine looked down, fidgeting with the napkin that was resting on his lap. "Do you think you've found that yet?"

"My destiny?" His eyes looked up, meeting mine.

"Yeah."

I tilted my head to the side, looking over Blaine's head in thought. "In some ways, yes."

Blaine's eyes bore into mine, as if they were searching for something in my irises. His stare was more than intense, and I suddenly felt he was unraveling all things that I stored safely in my mind.

"What about love at first sight?"

"What about it?" I asked timidly, my eyes nervously looking back into his.

"Do you think that it's complete bullshit?"

"I um..." I cleared my throat, "I mean, I'm sure it can happen...to people. But I don't think that love always happens instantly, no."

Blaine's eyes finally peeled away from mine, looking back at the napkin in his lap again.

"That's understandable."

"Yeah," I murmured, "understandable."

"You're late!" Rachel said, pulling on my arm and leading Blaine and I down to her basement.

"You never gave me a time!"

"Yeah, but everybody else is already here!" She gestured around the room once we walked in. "That makes you late."

The Berry home basement was filled with former Glee club members. Half of them were at the bar counter, sipping on drinks and watching as Puck did some weird twirly thing with a bottle of Triple-Sec, and the other half were in the middle of the floor, dancing. Mike was on stage, singing "Man...I Feel Like a Woman" by Shania Twain into the microphone while Tina was dancing in the small crowd, belting the lyrics out as well.

I'm just going to assume that they were both drunk.

"They came like that," Finn said, putting his hand on my shoulder as he walked past me. "I think they've been to a couple of other New Year's Eve parties tonight."

I nodded and put a finger to my lips, smiling as I watched the two Asians dance ridiculously from across the room.

"Kurt!" Puck called from the bar. "Kurt, come here!"

I turned around for a moment, thinking that Blaine was still by my side. However, he was over on a couch talking with Sam and Finn. Shrugging, I walked over to the bar where Brittany, Santana, and Mercedes were, and sat down on a stool.

"Okay, Kurt, I'm assuming that you go to crazy New York bars all the time, right?"

"Well not really-"

"Yes, you do. Can you tell me if I'm doing this right?" Puck interrupted, throwing a glass bottle in the air and tossing it in between his two hands.

"What exactly are you trying to do?"

"This thing where you...it's kind of like a juggle type...but just flip it and..." Puck tried to talk and focus on the trick at the same time, which wasn't working very well, if you ask me. The glass bottle slipped in his hands and dropped to the floor with a crash, spilling liquid all around Puck's feet.

"PUCK!" Rachel bellowed from the couch with Finn and Blaine. "WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT TOSSING THE ALCOHOL IN THE AIR?"

"That you understand the dangers but would still let me practice in order to be the best goddamn bartender in the world?"

"NO, PUCK. THAT IS NOT WHAT I SAID! AND YOU ARE REPLACING THAT TOMORROW!"

"Okay, okay! Sheesh! Take the stick out of your ass, will you?"

"THERE IS NOTHING IN MY ASS!" We all giggled at that, and I hid my smile with the side of my hand. "Yes guys, laugh it up, it's very funny." Rachel said sarcastically, taking a swig of wine. "You can keep laughing while Puck cleans broken glass off the floor." She gave Puck a nasty smile, and went back to dancing.

"Rule number one," I leaned my elbows on the bar counter, holding out a finger to Puck. "You do not get drunk-Rachel upset."

"You're a bit too late on that one, but thank you, Kurt," Puck replied.

"Just a head's up for next time." I turned in my chair, looking around the room. "Is anyone else drunk?"

"Nope, just Berry and the Asian twins," Santana said from beside me.

"How are Tina and Mike allowed to get married? Wouldn't that make them like...insects or something?" Brittany asked.

"Are you talking about incest?" Mercedes asked the blond girl. "Have you seriously thought that they were brother in sister this whole time?"

"Mercedes, I'm not dumb..." Brittany defended, turning on her stool, "Mike Chang, Tina Cohen-Chang, they have the same squinty eyes. They're obviously related." Santana looked back at the stage with a quizzical look on her face, tilting her head a bit to the side in thought. I leaned forward, making eye contact and gently shaking my head toward Brittney, mouthing a small 'no honey, no'.

Puck put a red party cup in front of me, and I stared at him, almost scared to touch it.

"Noah?"

"Yup?"

"What is this?"

"A drink."

"What kind of drink?"

"A good one," Mercedes said, smiling as she took another sip of the cup in her hands.

Puck nodded towards her, looking at me. "She is correct."

"What's in it, Puck?"

He let out a sigh and leaned against the counter. "Vodka, triple sec, lime juice, and cranberry juice."

My brow furrowed, and I tilted the plastic cup to take a look inside. "It's pink," I said, a smile forming on my face.

"So what?" Puck said, crossing his arms.

"WHO'S NEXT?" Mike bellowed, walking off the stage. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a couple of the guys walk over to the karaoke machine and I turned my attention back to Puck.

"This is a Cosmopolitan, isn't it?" I was practically beaming by now. The ever-so-manly and dominant Noah Puckerman, had made Cosmos for everyone to drink. This is gold.

"It's my best drink, okay?"

The opening chords of some 90's sounding song played from the stage.

"Noah, if at any time, and I mean anytime, you need to come out of the closet, I will gladly walk you out."

"You know, sometimes, I don't know why,
But this old town just seems so hopeless," Blaine's voice flooded through the room, with a Bob Dylan-like tone.

Puck narrowed his eyes at me, "Do you know how many bridesmaids I make this for? At least twenty a week," he defended. "I make it at least twenty times a week! And god knows it's all I could make with the ingredients that the Berry household has to offer."

"I ain't really sure, but it seems I remember the good times
were just a little bit more in...focus."

"Whatever you say, Noah," I continued to smile, lifting my cup up to lips.

"But when she puts her arms around me,
I can somehow, rise above it."

"Oh, just shut up and watch your boyfriend," Puck said, turning around and looking upset.

I giggled and turned around in my stool to see Blaine holding a microphone in his hands, leaning his body weight onto the stand.

"Yeah man, when I got that little girl standing right by my side,
You know, I can tell the whole wide world to shove it! HEY!" Blaine outstretched his hands towards me ridiculously, eyes closed as he sang with wacky enthusiasm.
"Here comes my girl! Here comes my girl,
Yeah, and she looks so right, she's all I need tonight."

Well this is certainly a silly side of Blaine that I've never seen before. "Has he had anything to drink?" I asked Puck. He shook his head, moving out from behind the bar to go talk to Quinn.

Blaine started the sing-talking part of the song again, being animated, as if he wrote the song himself. "Every now and then I get down to the end of the day
I'll have to stop, ask myself, what've I done?
It just seems so useless to have to work so hard,
And nothing ever really seems to come from it."

He sang again. "But then she looks me in the eyes, says, we're gonna last forever,
And man, you know I can't begin to doubt it.
No, because this feels so good, so free, so right,
I know we ain't ever gonna change our minds about it, HEY!"

I continued to watch his little performance, smiling from where I was perched on a stool across the room. We made eye contact and he smiled back, motioning for me to come towards the stage. I laughed, despite my eye rolling as I got up off the stool and slowly walked my way over to the stage, watching Blaine continue to sing about how 'his girl was coming' and pointing at me.

"Yeah, every time it seems like there ain't nothing left no more,
I find myself having to reach out and grab hold of something.
Yeah, I just catch myself wonderin', waitin', worryin',
About some silly little things that don't add up to nothing.
And then she looks me in the eye, says, we gonna last forever,
And man, you know I can't begin to doubt it.
No, because this feels so good, and so free, and so right,
I know we ain't ever gonna change our minds about it, HEY!"

I finally got up near the stage, where Mike, Tina, Finn, Sam, and Artie were waving their hands slowly in the air. The only thing they needed was lighters. Blaine sang to me, reaching his hands out and clenching his eyes closed outrageously and he finished the song. He reached out for my hand, and I let him drag me up on stage, where he cupped my face in his hands and kissed me sweetly.

"You know I'm a boy right?" I asked.

"Oh I am more than aware of the fact that you are a boy," he responded, smiling before pecking me on the lips again. I leaned forward immediately after he pulled away, wrapping my arms around his shoulders and replanting my lips onto his. Everyone 'whooped' around us and I felt the corners of his mouth twist into a grin.

"Oh god, it's time to think of New Year's Resolutions, isn't it?" Rachel said, face-palming, two minutes before midnight. We were on the couches in the Berry living room, waiting for the ball to drop on the television. Everyone was cuddled up in their partner's arms, with Puck, Quinn, and Artie talking with each other. Our hands held on to small tumblers what were filled halfway with Champagne, watching the TV in anticipation for the countdown.

"What's your resolution gonna be?" Finn asked Rachel.

"Be nice enough to the people of Chicago enough to make a few friends, I hope," I said.

Rachel leaned into my side. "Ha ha, Kurt, very funny."

The countdown on the TV feed of Time's Square began, starting at 60 seconds to midnight.

"What's your New Year's Resolution, Kurt?" Blaine asked from where he sat on the other side of me. I thought about it for a moment, staring at the tumbler in my hands.

"Probably to be more honest to people," I replied. God, there was so much meaning behind that sentence.

30 seconds.

"What about you?" I asked.

"Oh...um..." Blaine shrugged, "probably the same thing, actually."

20 seconds.

We were both silent for a moment, letting our gazes drift back to the TV.

"Kurt, listen, I-"

"TEN...NINE... EIGHT... SEVEN."

Everyone started to count down. Blaine just joined in with everyone else instead of finishing his sentence. I joined in a second or two later as well.

"FOUR... THREE... TWO... ONE. HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

We all cheered and hugged each other, making toasts with everyone and drinking Champaign while 'Auld Lang Syne' streamed into the room from Times Square. I turned to Blaine, who clinked his tumbler against mine with a small smile before taking the glass from me and putting both of our drinks down. After that, he came close, cupping my face in his hands and kissing me enthusiastically. I smiled and kissed back, happy because, well, it was nice to be able to kiss someone at midnight on New Year's Eve. And this was kind of perfect.

"I'm in love with you," Blaine whispered, his eyes still closed once we pulled apart.

What?

My head snapped up, staring at him in shock and confusion. Did he just say...?

"I love you, Kurt," he said more loudly this time, he seemed to smile while he said it, too. Was this...was this a part of the act? Was this for the effect of it all?

"Blaine, I-"

"Please say you love me too, Kurt," he said, his smile fading.

Do I love him? Wait, what? No, what is going on? This can't be real. Why is he doing this? We seemed to have gotten Rachel and Finn's attention, I could see them watching us out of the corner of my eye.

"I-I can't Blaine."

"Do you love me, Kurt?" he said more firmly this time, his eyes tearing into mine again.

"I can't Blaine, I'm sorry. I-I just can't."