The sun had already moved past its highest point in the sky by the time they left Las Vegas, and from the scenery and the highway signs they passed, Blaine assumed that Santana and Rachel were taking him straight back to LA. They drove in silence. The radio had been on when they started out but Blaine's head had started to pound before the song had even made it half way through. At least Rachel had come prepared this time, and the two Advil and bottle of water helped to ease his discomfort. For the rest of the journey, Blaine was content to just rest his head in his arms on the backseat of their car and let the hum of the engine lull him into a much needed sleep.

"You should wake him up," he heard Santana say. "We're nearly there."

Blaine wanted to pretend that she hadn't spoken. This new concept called sleep that he had just discovered was actually quite a good thing. But it was too late, the more he tried to hold onto it, the quicker it left him. Blaine lifted his head and blinked sleepily at his surroundings. Surprisingly, they were in the middle of the LA, he wasn't too sure exactly where, but definitely back in LA. He had slept the entire journey.

"Do you remember Kurt Hummel?" Rachel suddenly asked sweeping round to look at him from the front seat.

Did she just say the name Blaine thought she had just said? "Kurt Hummel?" he asked.

Rachel nodded her head impatiently, "Yes."

Blaine's heart did a mini spin inside his chest. "Of course I remember Kurt Hummel," he replied with a cracked laugh.

"You know," Rachel began eyeing him closely, "those couple of days that you were with him, I hadn't seen you that happy since, since," Rachel thought for a moment, "well I can't remember since when, but you had a smile on your face that no one could wipe off and that same devilish twinkle in your eyes that used to sweep everyone off their feet when we were kids. It was there and I haven't seen it again." Rachel gave him a warm smile as she remembered. "You were happy. Look Blaine, I know before you lost your phone, you were afraid to call Kurt, which means I know you really liked him because you are not a man who is usually afraid of talking to other men when you're just picking them up. Heck, I've seen you in action and..."

"What's the point to all this, Rachel?" Blaine asked cutting her off. He crossed his arms over his chest. Yeah, so he had liked Kurt, but as usual, he had been an idiot and now he had no way of contacting him.

Santana pulled the car up to a stop and Blaine looked about uncertainly. He didn't recognize the street and there was nothing striking about it for him to want to remember it.

"Where are we?" He was starting to feel frustrated. The four or whatever hours sleep he had managed to grab in the car had been far from enough, and it teased Blaine promising him more where he could hide from the world, and yes, dream of a place where he and Kurt Hummel could lie in each other's arms.

Rachel flashed Santana a smile and she turned to face Blaine again unable to hide her excitement any longer. "The building across the road is where Kurt lives."

Blaine's face dropped and he quickly sat up, "What?! How?! What the hell Rachel?"

Rachel quickly explained, "Santana and I went back to the bar where you picked him up from five months ago. I remembered that you said it was close to his home. We were just really lucky. The day we went he was in the bar with some of his friends."

Blaine couldn't speak. He just sat there staring at her in stunned silence.

"Mercedes was spot on with her timing," Santana quipped. She pointed down the road and Blaine quickly spied Kurt walking with two other people.

KURT!

Blaine leaned forward and rested his arms on the front seats to get a better look. Nerves shot through his stomach as he drank in the sight of the tall, slender man. This was happening all too fast. Was Kurt really just that short distance away from him?

"Oh, don't worry," Rachel plowed ahead mistaking the concern on his forehead. "Santana has confirmed with Mercedes that the other guy with him is definitely not his boyfriend."

"Mercedes?" Blaine asked. Santana had just said that name and it rolled around in his head. He had heard it somewhere before.

"His best friend," Rachel replied impatiently as if Blaine was moving too slow to keep up.

They continued to watch as Kurt and his two friends walked closer down the street. And then, all of a sudden, Blaine lost control as the panic set in. "Why the hell did you bring me here, Rachel?" He was in a state. He looked horrible. How the hell was he meant to make a good impression on someone when he was far from being on form?

"We brought you here so you can talk to him," Rachel said simply.

"I can't believe that you did that," he gasped shaking his head back and forth wildly. "Look at me! I'm a mess!"

"OOOOHHHH!" Santana laughed. "Only now you notice just what a shambles you have become Sir Blaine!" She gave him a playful wink, "Because honey, we've known that for a long time."

Rachel gave her a reproachful glance before she returned her attention back to Blaine. "I know this has happened really quickly, but it was a matter of just getting you out of Sebastian's and Hunter's clutches while we could. We saw an opportunity and we took it." She handed him a comb. "At least brush your hair, and here." She handed him a bottle of mouthwash.

"Oh, you're so hopeful," Blaine exclaimed sarcastically. "I don't think I can work my magic that fast. I don't even know if Kurt will let me in the front door!"

"I wasn't expecting you to get that far! But Blaine," and Rachel tried to say this next part kindly. "Your breath stinks! I don't know what you were drinking back at the hotel but it was nasty."

Blaine nodded, "Duly noted."

All three sets of heads focused on the apartment building on the other side of the road again where they quickly spied Kurt, Mercedes and the tall football player looking guy turning into their apartment building.

"Mercedes is expecting you."

Blaine's heart pounded with excitement and worry. He couldn't believe that after so long he was actually laying his eyes on Kurt again. Not only did he want to go over there and sweep the man off his feet and fuck him into the wall to get rid of the past five months of angst, but he also wanted to run over there and ask Kurt out on a proper date. He wanted to romance him, make him swoon and then take him home and do every delectable delicious thing that Kurt wanted Blaine to do to him in the bedroom.

But then fear raged through Blaine's body. Would Kurt even talk to him after all this time? And he was hit by a wall of shame. What if Kurt had seen some of things that he had done on the TV or the internet? He didn't want to even begin to think of what Kurt might think of him if he had.

Blaine sighed. There was only one way to find out.

He left the car, his legs shaking underneath him and his head spinning from the lack of sleep, food, and the last remnants of alcohol he had drunk on an empty stomach. He waited for it to subside and once he was sure he was going to be able to make it across the street without passing out, he began on his way.

"Oh, and by the way," Santana called out and Blaine stopped. "If Mercedes kept to her word, Kurt doesn't know anything about this."

Blaine's jaw dropped.

"And whenever you want picking up, just text one of us. Good luck!" He heard them both call but Blaine didn't answer, his eyes just focused on the apartment building before him and he tried to walk as casually as possible over the road.

"So anyway," Kurt drawled, "the guy then had the nerve to try and tell me that I still hadn't made his coffee right." Mercedes didn't say anything but reached into her pocket for her keys and flashed a smile to Finn. "I mean, come on dude," and Kurt exaggerated the word 'dude' because it really wasn't a word that he used, "it's not rocket science. I know how to make a damn skinny, half strength almond latte with a drop of caramel for goodness sake."

Mercedes laughed. She liked this Kurt. It was the old sassy Kurt who never took crap from anyone. This was the Kurt that she had grown up with, the one she loved, the one she missed and it was the one she had seen come back ever since... she tried to put her finger on it. Oh crap, it had been ever since he had met Kevin in the bar. It had also been amplified since their first date two nights ago.

Mercedes tried to ignore the guilt that raced through her. She knew she was definitely in dangerous waters here, tampering and messing around with Kurt's potential happy love life, but there was just something about the way that Blaine had made Kurt come alive. Her eyes fleeted nervously towards Kurt. But so had Kevin, she thought and Mercedes couldn't disregard that.

Apparently, ignoring her guilt was going to be a lot easier than she thought because it was at that moment that her eyes fell on the luxury car parked on the other side of the street. Was it them? Was Blaine Anderson in that very car?

Mercedes jiggled her house keys in her hand uneasily. She had no idea whether Kurt was going to hug her or kill her once he found out she had been part of this set up. And then she caught her breath because even though she knew it was silly, she was filled with her own excitement because she had always been a Blaine Anderson fan too. Mercedes squinted but the windows of the car were too dark. If it was them, they weren't ready to show their faces just yet.

Finn and Mercedes walked straight to their building door while Kurt, still talking and complaining about the annoying customer, stopped at the letter box to check their mail. It was filled with only junk. He pulled the brochures free and turned to follow them up the stairs.

"So by this time, I was...."

"Kurt! .... Kurt!"

Kurt stopped behind Mercedes and turned around wondering at just who would have the gumption and nerve to interrupt his story. His eyes fell on the person who had just called his name and he froze, froze like a statue that had been stuck to the concrete steps of his apartment building.

What. The. Hell?

His eyes were playing tricks on him. He was sure of it! He blinked, then blinked again and began to take a step down, but then paused again mid-step uncertain as to what he should do.

"Blaine?" he asked carefully, afraid to say his name out loud as if the mere sound of it would cause Blaine to vanish into a puff of smoke.

Kurt's eyes swept over the rock star. He had memorized every inch of his face, every tiny little detail but the man in front of him was slightly different to the pictures and the memories he had of the man inside his mind. He couldn't be one hundred percent sure. "Is that really you?"

Blaine pulled his sunglasses down his nose a little to allow Kurt a better look. He squinted at the glare from the sun. Fuck his hangover! It probably wasn't the smartest thing for him to do.

Kurt gasped, loudly. What the hell was Blaine Anderson doing on his doorstep? His mind buzzed in shock. In fact, he was so thrown his brain couldn't take it any longer and flat lined. There was nothing going on inside of his head, nothing. Nothing at all!

And then, his brain kick-started again and Kurt tried to think of a rational explanation for what was happening.

Blaine Anderson could not possibly be standing only inches away from him. That's it! He had finally lost the plot and was imagining things. Yes, for reasons he was yet to understand or discover, he was making up images of Blaine. That was the only way to explain it.

Kurt stepped down the first step and strode over to Blaine where he lifted his hand, pointed his finger and poked him hard in the chest.

"OW!" Blaine cried. "What did you do that for?"

'Oh my fucking god! He's real!'

Kurt didn't know what to do. He didn't know what to say.

They stared, drinking up the sight of each other, remembering all of the tiny little details that had captured them before.

Blaine offered a wary smile and stared over and beyond Kurt's shoulder towards where Mercedes had quickly disappeared with Finn. "Can I come in?" Blaine pulled his glasses further down his face and he looked over the top of their frame. "I think it might be wise before someone recognizes me."

The sentence snapped Kurt out of his daze and he spied a woman stop just a short distance away eyeing Blaine suspiciously. The last thing Kurt wanted was a crowd of people to suddenly appear and mob him, not when it was the first time that he had seen Blaine in five months.

Kurt gave a short nod and turned back towards the front door.

They climbed the three floors to his apartment in silence, Kurt continually looking over his shoulder to ensure that Blaine was still really there. Sure enough, Blaine was hot on his heels each and every time that Kurt looked down at him.

"Come in," Kurt told him shakily looking over his shoulder when they reached his door. He stepped back and watched Blaine walk over the threshold.

Their apartment was only small and once Blaine walked through the door he was pretty much in the middle of the lounge room. Blaine's eyes swept over the room, taking in their modest but comfortable living arrangements. His shoulders dropped and he relaxed, feeling nothing but comfortable in the midst of it all. He spun in a slow circle and his eyes, unable to resist, fell in the direction of what had to be the kitchen, his nose having picked up the distinctive aromatic smell of something cooking. Blaine's stomach growled.

Kurt cringed, he loved his home. It was humble and cozy but it would definitely not be what Blaine was used to. He continued to watch him cautiously while he took his jacket off and hung it on the wall. Kurt still couldn't speak. He needed a moment, time to recollect his thoughts and gain some sanity. He folded his arms across his body and gave Blaine a wide berth while he backed up towards the bathroom door all the while never taking his eyes off the man. He had no idea where Mercedes and Finn had disappeared to. They were either hiding in Mercedes' room or the kitchen.

"Can you give me a moment?" Kurt asked when his hand reached the bathroom door. "I just got home from work and I need to ahh..." he frantically tried to find an excuse.

"Sure!" Blaine answered. The sight of Kurt edging away suddenly made him feel overtly uncomfortable. What happened in Kurt didn't want him there and was just being too polite to tell him to go away?

Kurt quickly slammed the bathroom door behind him. Oh My Fucking God! OH MY FUCKING GOD! He rushed over to the mirror above the sink. Stay calm! Stay calm! He cried to himself. 'It's only Blaine Anderson.

Who was Kurt kidding?

It's only the gorgeous hunk of a guy that you've been swooning over for nearly half a year and He. Is. In. Your. Lounge. Room!!!

Kurt's romantic, gypsy free-loving heart was galloping away from him. His feet came alive beneath him and he did a little dance, but then, his rational side took over.

Stop it Hummel! He chastised himself and his feet stopped moving. 'He's dangerous! Don't you remember what he's gotten up to over the past couple of months? He can't lead to anywhere but trouble.

His other side argued back.

'But's he a cute, gorgeous hunk of a dangerous man with one fantastic perky butt and knows how to fuck me hard.'

It doesn't matter. You had a lovely date the other night with Kevin that ended with a very promising, romantic kiss. What could Blaine Anderson want from you but just another fuck?

"But no matter what," Kurt spoke out loud but softly so only his own reflection would hear. "Whatever Blaine wants, he's going to have to work for it."

Kurt squared his shoulders, fixed his collar, and winced at the sight of his coffee shop uniform. He couldn't change out of it now. Blaine had already seen it. Kurt took a deep breath and believing that he was finally somewhat composed again, headed towards the door.

Kurt entered the lounge room half expecting to find that Blaine had disappeared. Surprisingly however, Blaine hadn't and he was still standing in the middle of the lounge looking completely out of place no matter where he stood or how he tried to pose. No that it would have mattered to Kurt, Blaine was drop dead gorgeous no matter what angle he gazed at him.

Terrified, Kurt tiptoed to the other side of the lounge and positioned himself behind the end of the sofa. It seemed like the safest place to be.

They both paused, a stillness hanging above their heads.

"It's good to see you again," Blaine finally braved into the silence. Their eyes met fleetingly before Kurt looked away nervously. He ran a hand through his hair trying to think of a suitable response, but he couldn't resist and with his heart pounding in his chest he dared to look at Blaine again.

Kurt examined him. Compared to several months ago, where Blaine had been on form and on fire, he now looked tired, drawn and run down. He noted Blaine's significant weight loss and how his dark eyes and scruffy appearance now only added a wild and out of control look to him. "You don't look too good," Kurt spoke at last. Why would you say that? Kurt wanted to slap himself for being too direct.

Blaine laughed, "Always telling me how it is, Kurt." He looked away, "and like before, you're correct."

They were silent again both wondering just what the hell they should say. It was Kurt who braved to speak next unable to stop himself from saying the obvious. "I've seen that you've had a rough couple of months," he mentioned vaguely. Blaine let out a short sarcastic laugh but flicked his eyes to Kurt's sheepishly. "Yes," Kurt eyes wandered up and down Blaine's body. "It looks like you haven't slept in two days, haven't had a decent meal in a week and haven't had a shower in a month."

Blaine smiled to himself. It was amazing how accurate Kurt was. "Actually apart from the sleep I had in the car on the way here, it's been three days since I've slept, two weeks since I've had a decent meal and I had a shower..." Blaine had to think a moment. "I had a shower yesterday, I think."

"You think?"

An uncomfortable pause hung in the air yet again, but it wasn't only just because of the unease between the two of them, a noise had come from the kitchen and they were both blatantly aware that Finn and Mercedes were trying to hide quietly in there. Kurt looked over Blaine's shoulder to the kitchen's entrance.

"The least you two could pretend that you're not eavesdropping!" Kurt yelled and the sound of a nervous giggle met their ears. "Bang a fucking pot pan or something."

Blaine and Kurt listened as muffled whispers were exchanged, and then, all of a sudden, the kitchen door was slammed shut.

Blaine's fingers fiddled with the throw rug at the end of the sofa. "I know I said I was going to call."

Kurt shrugged. "It wasn't like I was waiting with bated breath for it."

"Oh, I know, I know," Blaine responded quickly. "I never expected you to."

The clock ticked on the wall, Blaine's fingers still fiddled with the rug and Kurt ran a hand through his hair again, and still they just stared.

Kurt swallowed uncomfortably. In all his wildest dreams, his reunion with Blaine had never been as terrible as this. God, why was he being such an ass? He didn't mean to sound so short, but he didn't want Blaine to think that he had been thinking about him every moment of the day....even though it wasn't far from the truth.

Kurt had to find out Blaine's real intentions before he could do anything else.

"Blaine..." Kurt paused just fractionally, "what are you doing here?"

"I'm kind of just figuring that out for myself as well. It was actually a surprise for me too. Rachel and a friend of mine picked me up this morning and dropped me off at your door step."

"Oh," Kurt frowned and a stab of disappointment filled his stomach. So he hadn't come here on his own accord.

Blaine saw it.

"Don't get me wrong," he added hurriedly. "I really wanted to call you after the tour finished..." He stopped again. They both knew full well what had happened at the end of the tour. Blaine wouldn't have had a moment to breathe let alone worry about trying to call someone.

"Wait?" Kurt suddenly cut in. "How does Rachel know where I live?"

"You'll have to ask Mercedes," Blaine said with a raised eyebrow. "Seems that this has been quite the little set up."

Kurt's thoughts went back to the kitchen. If what Blaine had said was true, then Mercedes had a lot of explaining to do.

Blaine glanced around the room. He had expected some kind of awkwardness but Kurt was obviously put out by his sudden arrival. And how could Blaine be upset about that? Apart from their brief encounters five months ago, Blaine really didn't know anything about Kurt and it was clear that Kurt had his own life to live. How could they all assume that Kurt still even thought about him? Blaine however, could only go by what he was feeling, and if he for once listened to his heart, he could not mess this first meeting up.

He would start a conversation at a safe place.

Blaine admired the room's simple yet comfortable and cozy décor again. "You have a nice place," he offered.

"Well, it might not be what you're used to but it's home to me and Mercedes," Kurt answered curtly. Crap! Why was he being so defensive?

Oh, shit! Obviously Kurt had taken that the wrong way. "I meant it," Blaine said taking an uncertain step closer around the back of the sofa. "It really does feel like home." He really wasn't lying and he decided to elaborate. "You know it's just that some of the huge fancy homes, they're sterile, or feel like they're a display home. They're nothing like this. This is snug and warm." Blaine nodded to himself as he glanced about the room again. "And like I said before it feels like a home. You decorated it yourself?"

Kurt glanced about feeling a sense of pride that he hoped didn't show on his face. "I did actually."

Their eyes met again and Blaine coughed uneasily desperately trying to find something else to continue with. Why was he acting like this? He never had problems talking with men in the past, so what the hell was happening now? His throat felt dry preventing the words from sliding out. He was getting worried. Had he lost his mojo?

For the first time since Blaine had arrived, Kurt caught Blaine's discomfort and wanted to slap himself over the head. He might want to keep his defenses up but it didn't mean he had to be completely rude in the process.

"Would you like a drink?"

"No, I don't think I'll be having any alcohol while I'm here, kind of still recovering from last night." Blaine put his hand over his stomach and pretended to gag. It was meant to be a joke but it wasn't funny, and Kurt certainly didn't laugh or remotely smile. Blaine regretted his words instantly.

"I was thinking more along the lines of coffee."

"Oh!" Blaine nodded. "Coffee is good. I could do coffee, actually might wake me up a bit."

Kurt didn't answer and gave him a long, unreadable look, but eventually he walked out from the back of the sofa and headed towards the kitchen. Blaine couldn't help himself. He had to do something. He snatched his hand out just as Kurt was walking past and placed it on Kurt's chest. Their eyes met fiercely and Kurt held his breath, his heart pounding, Blaine's hand moving rapidly up and down with Kurt's ribcage. Without a doubt, Blaine's bad boy image still had disastrous effects on him.

"I meant what I said before, Kurt," Blaine told him, his voice deep and husky. "It really is good to see you again."

Kurt nodded slowly and tried to steady his nerves. "It's good to see you again too, Blaine," he breathed.

Kurt stepped away and Blaine smiled to himself. Good, he still had his mojo and now he wasn't so worried. He had seen the affect that he had just had on Kurt and he guessed that if he played his cards right, he just might have an opportunity to see him again.

"Finn, I'm not just doing this for Kurt," Mercedes argued with her hands on her hips. "I'm doing this because there is a man in our lounge room that looks like a wreck and looks like he could do with a healthy homemade dinner."

Kurt closed the kitchen door behind him and shushed at them, "Would you quiet down! He'll hear you!"

Finn and Mercedes both appeared furious and before Kurt could even ask what was going on, Mercedes continued. "Kurt hasn't even mentioned whether he's interested in Blaine anymore but the least we can do is help the man. He's a mess!"

"The guy's trouble, Mercedes," Finn argued back. "Kurt's had enough shit go down and now you want to risk him getting hurt by this guy. He shouldn't be here."

"It doesn't matter," Mercedes argued back. "We need to step up and do the right thing."

"Okay, guys!" Kurt demanded placing his hands on both of their arms to separate them. "Calm down!"

"Mercedes wants to ask Mr 'I-think-I'm-so-cool' out there to stay for dinner," Finn spat.

Kurt raised his eyebrows, "Really?" But he couldn't deny the way his heart sped up at the thought, the idea that he might be able to have Blaine around for the evening? Oh, it was too good to be true!

"He looks awful," Mercedes cried. "I'm only thinking of Blaine here, I'm not playing at anything."

Kurt crossed his arms over his chest. "I know you're not completely innocent, Mercedes."

She feigned ignorance, "What are you talking about?"

"Oh stop it!" Kurt sassed back, "Blaine's already told me that you conspired to help set this whole thing up with Rachel." He was far from amused. "Mercedes it's a lovely gesture but I just don't know whether it's Blaine's scene, you know. He's Hollywood, we're... we're..." He turned to Finn struggling to find a word.

"Normal," Finn stated sarcastically.

Kurt rolled his eyes, "I appreciate the whole big brother thing you've got going here Finn but I can look after myself."

"Obviously," Finn cried sarcastically and Kurt's lips pursed in anger. "Look at the mess that happened last time!"

"Finn!" Mercedes scolded. "Leave him alone. Kurt," she said firmly taking control of the conversation, "dinner is ready so if you want to invite him, you better go do it now."

Kurt nodded to himself. Mercedes was right. Blaine had just said in the lounge that he hadn't had a decent meal for nearly two weeks. It was the least they could do. And in his dreams, he would pretend that it had actually been a romantic dinner for two.

Kurt swallowed the nervous lump in his throat. He just hoped Blaine wasn't going to think that they were too pathetic in their simple ways.

"I like your books," Blaine said as Kurt walked back into the room. He was standing beside the bookcase, his fingers running over the spines of the books as he browsed their selection.

"Thanks."

"Ahh, I see you're into interior design." Blaine picked up on the of the heavy hardback coffee table books and began to flick through its pages. He shrugged at some of the pictures and twisted the book to get a better look at others.

Kurt paused just a short distance away from Blaine too nervous to stand directly beside him. He assumed that Blaine's next comment was going to be about the book he was currently holding, but it wasn't, he must have heard their exasperated and excited voices coming from the kitchen. "Everything okay," he asked nodding his head towards the kitchen and then he glanced at Kurt's hands. "Did you forget the coffee?"

Kurt decided to ignore both questions and be brave, "Do you want to have dinner with us?"

Blaine's eyebrows went up in surprise. He had tried to ignore the smell of the cooking that had been wafting out of the other room but his stomach hadn't been able to do so. Whatever was brewing in there smelt like good old home styled cooking and his mouth had been watering.

"I wouldn't want to be any trouble," Blaine answered his eyes betraying him as they wandered off in the direction of the kitchen.

"Blaine you're nothing but trouble," Kurt's voice was low and sexy. He stopped short. He had just flirted with Blaine, and Blaine knew it.

A delighted smile tugged at the side of Blaine's mouth, "Sure, dinner sounds nice."