Blaine slammed his bedroom door. He knew he was being childish but he had so many reasons to be this morning. He walked over to the closet and slid the door open. This apartment was way too pristine for Blaine Anderson to be living in; he lifted a hand to run through his hair, but cringed and removed it immediately when he remembered how much gel he’d squeezed onto his curls just to get them to sit right.

“Make the right image, Blaine. Don’t let our family down.” his father had drilled into him over and over and over again. Blaine could hear his voice in his head, “You’re our only chance at making our family name in this city. Don’t let us down.”

“Don’t let us down, don’t let us down” Blaine mimicked under his breath over and over again as he readjusted his tie for the 7th time in 10 minutes. He fastened the button on his blazer and took a look at himself in the mirror on the door of his closet. He almost laughed at himself, but he picked up his bag and left his bedroom.

“Wow son, you look…so smart. I’m so proud of you.” His dad commented as he fixed his tie one last time.

“I look like an asshole, let’s just go already.”

“Blaine, watch your language.” He commented, placing a newspaper into his briefcase before fastening it. He seemed bored with telling his son to behave himself, and the way that Blaine scoffed at the comment made it clear that neither of them were necessarily bothered with his manners.

“I’m gonna go. I’ll see you later.” Blaine flung the door open and took a step outside. He started towards his car but his dad yelled before he could get there.

“No Blaine, I’ll drive you today. It’s an important day. I don’t think you understand what I’m risking, getting you into Dalton Academy.”

“Oh please, it’s all I’ve heard for the past 3 months, I can drive myself. I have my own car.”

“Stop arguing with me, the last thing I need today is you wandering off. Get in the car.”

Blaine pulled the car door handle of the back seat open and dropped his bag inside; he slammed the door and opened the passenger’s door. Sliding inside, his dad watched with a small smile.

After his dad was backing the car out of the driveway, the lecture began.

“I want you to behave yourself, Blaine. I know what you’re like. Don’t get distracted with fencing, or singing, or…boys. Just please focus on your education. I’m risking everything with you coming to this school, and I’m not going to have you putting our family name in jeopardy.”

“No fencing, no singing, no boys, got it.” Blaine murmured, gaze focused out of the window.

He tuned out of the conversation then, knowing how the next 20 minutes went. Singing isn’t your calling, son. I know you’re good and I know you enjoy performing but it’s not a suitable career path. You have so much potential, I know what you’re capable of and I know what you can achieve. Blah blah. Blaine was sick of it.

They arrived at Dalton after what seemed like an hour and Blaine jumped straight out of the car, grabbed his bag and walked into what he guessed was the main building. It looked like a castle, but he’d been here once before to transfer his paperwork over. Fighting his way through crowds of lacrosse players wasn’t exactly what he had expected, but he wasn’t complaining either. He was about to turn into the reception area, when a tall, tanned boy caught his eye. He threw a smile straight in Blaine’s direction and Blaine returned it without hesitation, licking his lips unconsciously, but the other boy noticed. He walked towards him, and Blaine felt himself heading towards the wall, taking them away from the crowds of people.

“You look lost, new kid.” The other boy was still smiling, his blatant flirting coming off sort of charming to Blaine.

“Not anymore.” Blaine returned, another lick of his lips.

“Blaine.” He offered his hand out.

The other boy looked at it gingerly before taking it in his own, giving a firm, secure shake. “Sebastian.”

Blaine smiled and straightened out his bag strap.

“And this, is Marc.” Sebastian gleamed, arm wrapping tightly around the waist of a slightly shorter boy who was slipping easily under his arm. His short blonde hair was the first thing to grab Blaine’s attention, he was sure he would recognise that hair anywhere. The second thing he noticed was the way that he looked at Sebastian, and the way that Sebastian looked back at him. It was too clear to Blaine that they were in love, it made his heart melt a little bit. He was such a sucker for romance.

“Nice to meet you Marc,” Blaine spoke, reaching his hand out again.

Marc eagerly shook his hand whilst Sebastian explained that Blaine was new and looking a little lost.

“New to Dalton or new to the city?” Marc asked on their way to the main reception. They’d both offered to escort Blaine there, to make sure he didn’t get too lost. Dalton was a huge school after all.

“New to everything really. I lived in Lima until about 3 months ago when my dad decided New York was his greater calling.” Blaine explained as the two boys, with their arms wrapped amongst each other, listened intently.

Blaine liked Sebastian and Marc, he decided. They seemed like good friends to have as well. On their short walk he found out that Sebastian was captain of the Dalton lacrosse team and they had just got back from winning the first game of the season. Blaine was somewhat proud, even though he barely knew him.

“Here we are…” Marc said as they approached the large wooden desk.

“If you need us, here’s my number…” Sebastian added, scrawling several numbers onto a piece of paper before handing it to Blaine.

“Have a good day, new kid.” Marc said as they smiled and turned away.

Spotted: Minions joining forces with the new kid?

The rest of the morning went surprisingly fast. He wasn’t required to go to any of his lessons until French after lunch, so he took himself on a tour of the campus, trying to familiarise himself with the place that he’d be spending most of his time. He walked past the dorms, not paying too much attention as he knew he couldn’t stay there. His dad had told him that they couldn’t afford it, that they could barely afford the school tuition fees itself so he’d have to live with staying in the family home for now. Blaine wasn’t particularly bothered. At least at home he had his own bedroom, he knew that everyone shared in dorms and well, he liked his own space.

He wandered past several huge glass greenhouses which were filled to the brim with big green leaves and he thought he noticed some plump red tomatoes. He’d never had any particular interest in plants so he kept on walking, through the fields, across the lacrosse pitch. He worked his way back into the main area of the campus, and stopped outside two grand doors. He cautiously pushed one open, trying to be as quiet as possible, and he slipped inside.

Spotted: Marc and Sebastian sipping coffee discussing the latest man candy to join Dalton.

Sebastian slipped into the free chair opposite his boyfriend. He placed two coffees onto the table and gave his winning smile.

“Heard anything else from Blaine?” Marc questioned.

“Nope, I don’t think he has to go to lessons until after lunch, well I know that’s usual practise.” Sebastian replied, stirring his coffee slowly.

“Okay. I think we should keep an eye out for him, he’s not from the Upper East Side, and you know what’ll happen when Kurt finds out there’s fresh meat on the block…”

“Kurt’s too busy with manipulating his way into getting that internship at Vogue.” Sebastian grinned.

Marc laughed and took a sip of his coffee. “Why’s he even bothering? His dad is the editor in chief for In Style.
Why doesn’t he just work there?”

“With his dad? Come on. Burt’s a great dad but we all know that they drive each other crazy.”

Marc nodded and smiled. “So Bradley’s going home tonight to see Heather. So my dorm’s going to be free…”

“I’ll be over at eight.” Sebastian winked, taking Marc’s hand in his own.

———————————————————————————————————-

Blaine shut the door with a near silent click and turned to take in the rest of the room. He inhaled subtly, trying not to draw too much attention to himself. From what he could see, the rest of the room was moderately empty however he wanted to keep the silence. It was serene and undisturbed. Everything he didn’t get at home.

He stepped further into the room, heading down an isle to the left. He ran his fingers along the binds of the books resting on the shelf as he tried to memorise as much of everything he could.

Libraries were always kind of Blaine’s thing. His ‘special place’ in Lima that he’d run to when he was upset was his old school’s library. But that was nothing in comparison to this. This was the most extravagant library he’d ever seen in his life, and he never wanted to leave. As he took a few more turns further into the maze of shelves, he came across a small dark brown leather sofa, resting in a dark corner, with nothing but a small table and bedside lamp.
He looked around, making sure no one had reserved it or was already occupying it, and he took a seat. His fingers ran along the edge of the sofa, feeling the groove of the leather beneath his fingers. Amongst the sofa and the books, he was sure this was the happiest he’d been since moving to the Upper East Side.

Hushed voices alerted Blaine from his thought path and he looked up to find 2 guys with untucked shirts and loosened ties walking hand in hand through the isle in front of him. He looked down at his watch, straining to see the time under the low light, but made out that it was almost 12:30. He lifted himself up and headed back through a new isle, taking in as much as he could. When he came back to the grand doors, he turned his head to gaze at the world he had yet to explore further. A small smile tugged at his lips, and he left without another look.

———————————————————————————————————-

Blaine found his French class pretty easily. As it turned out, the school was pretty much laid out in sections and as long as he was in the right section he could find his lesson. Everything seemed centred around the Library, so if all else failed, he could just go find a book to escape in for a few hours. A plan he was sure he would use in the future. When he walked in, he realised that he must be early because the classroom was empty – bar a tall, brunette lady holding a French dictionary by the front desk. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and she was wearing a simple black pencil skirt with a tucked in white shirt, opened just enough to give the impression that she wanted to be looked at. Blaine walked into the classroom a few steps, and then coughed to make his appearance known.

“Bonjour monsieur, �tes-vous Blaine, non?”

Blaine’s jaw dropped slightly. Shit. He didn’t know French, at all. It had always been the subject he’d flunked at his old school. He always managed to get it to clash with Glee rehearsal or Fencing practise or he would be taking a guy on a date and just never turn up to his lessons.

“Uh…hey. I’m Blaine.” He winked, hoping his charm would be enough to win her over.

“Front desk.” She demanded, dropping the dictionary purposely hard onto it. The noise made him flinch but he walked over, dropped his bag on the floor and sat down in his seat, leaning far back to straighten his legs under the table.

Blaine was thankful when she turned her back to him, scrawling some French grammar onto the board. He couldn’t be bothered to argue with his teachers today. His dad had told him to keep out of all the shit he was in before, so he thought he might as well try.

The rest of the class filed in pretty quickly, Marc taking the seat next to Blaine. Blaine smiled appreciatively at the gesture, and Marc handed him a pen and some spare paper. Blaine just nodded but was happy that he’d made at least one friend today. Two giggling boys sat behind them, and Marc turned quickly to talk to them.

“-name’s Blaine. He’s new. Moved from Lima, Ohio.” He heard Marc say.

“He’s hot.”

“Jeff!”

“What! It’s true. I still love you; don’t worry your pretty head.”

He heard Marc scoff and then turn back towards Blaine.

“Blaine,” Blaine turned to face Marc, and the two other boys.

“This is Jeff-” he pointed to an over excited tall blonde boy, “and Nick.” and then to the slightly shorter, yet just as excited brunette, whose hands interlocked on top of the table. Blaine couldn’t help but notice how everyone in this school seemed to be paired off.

“Hey Jeff, Nick.” Blaine smiled.

“Hey man” Jeff replied. Nick just smiled.

Marc smiled at the pair again and then turned to face the doorway when he heard the door slam and a familiar voice calling his name.

“Marc, what’s going on?”

Blaine looked up at the boy standing at the end of his desk; there was something that made Blaine’s breath hitch. He looked at how the boy had traded the usual Dalton uniform trousers for tight black skinny jeans, tucked into high leather boots. Blaine gulped, how the fuck did he get into those jeans? His eyes continued scanning up. The usual Dalton shirt was tucked in, enunciating his abs and his blazer was unbuttoned, leading Blaine’s eyes up to his pecks, collarbone, neck, and then to his eyes. Deep blue but sharp. His lips were slightly pink, as if he’d just finished kissing someone. Blaine licked his lips but was knocked out of his trance by the kid’s bag being slammed onto the desk directly in front of his face.

“You’re in my seat.” He stated.

Blaine stuttered. “W-w-er.” but before he could properly
respond, Marc leant forward in his seat.

“Kurt, this is Blaine. Blaine’s new, Jeanette told him to sit here.”

“Right. So you chose to sit here because…” Kurt asked a serious bitchy sound to his voice.

“Because Seb told me to look out for him.” Blaine was surprised by this. Sebastian and Marc seemed to care for him, this was…different.

“You know what Marc? It’s fine. Sit with the new kid.” He quipped, and then turned to Blaine. Blaine gulped, unsure of what to expect, but Marc relaxed back and that had to mean something. Marc seemed to know this Kurt kid well.

“Have a nice day, Blaine.” Kurt winked and then disappeared to the back of the room.

Spotted: Kurt sitting alone in French class?

The rest of the lesson went seemingly quick for Blaine, but he found himself turning around and talking to Nick and Jeff a lot, just so he could look at Kurt. He wasn’t sure what it was but there was something about him, and he wanted to know more, he wanted to know everything. The professor picked on Blaine a few times until she realised that he really knew absolutely nothing and then seemed to give up altogether, to Blaine’s approval. The class ended quite quickly, but as Blaine was packing up his things, he saw Kurt move to the front of the classroom to talk to the professor.

“Au revoir.” He said to her as he passed her desk; they seemed to get along quite well.

“Goodbye”

“Kurt, un moment?” She replied, looking up briefly as she packed away her work folder.

“Kurt, one moment?”

“…coute, je demande ton assistance pour ce gar�on. Il est tr�s mauvais. Il ne parle rien.” She scoffed and looked a little in Blaine’s direction, but Blaine figured it was because he was taking so long to pack away a pen and a sheet of plain paper.

“Listen, I need to ask your help for this guy. he’s really bad. he doesn’t speak a thing.”

“Je comprends, mais-” Kurt sighed, but he was cut off.

“I understand, but-”

“Tu re�ois une bonne note.” She seemed to look hopefully at Kurt. Blaine moved slowly and zipped up the last of his bag.

“You get a good grade.”

“Je peux trouver une bonne note sans aider ce gamin.” Kurt seemed to be becoming impatient.

“I can get a good grade without helping this kid.”

“Kurt, tu ne comprends pas, il a besoin quelqu’un et il te regardait pour les 20 derni�res minutes.”

“Kurt, you don’t understand, he needs someone and he’s been staring at you for the last 20 minutes.”

“Bon, il est obs�d� par moi. Cela ne pas signifier que je devrais l’aider.” Kurt looked directly at Blaine, and
Blaine looked down immediately, slowly rising from his seat, but spending extra time making sure his blazer and tie were straight.

“Good, he’s obsessed with me. This doesn’t mean that I should help him.”

“Si tu le fais, je donnerais un recommandation pour un stage � la Vogue. Tous les professeurs ont leurs accointances, Monsieur Hummel.”

“If you do, I’ll give you a recommendation for an internship at Vogue. Every teacher has their connections, Mr. Hummel.”

“… D’accord.” Kurt sighed and walked towards Blaine’s desk.

“Ok.”

Blaine met his gaze and stood more upright. Kurt grinned at him, but it wasn’t the same grin he gave Nick or Jeff or Marc, or even the professor. It was a grin that intimidated Blaine, but made him feel wanted at the same time.

“Get a move on new kid,” he commented, and then turned on his heel to leave the room.

“I am going to punch the next person who calls me that.”
Blaine spat as he pulled his bag onto his shoulder.

Kurt laughed under his breath and turned to look over his shoulder, back at Blaine.

“You’d have to catch me first, new kid.”

Blaine watched as Kurt walked out of the door, and then looked over at the Professor who was looking pointedly between Blaine and the doorway. And then he just ran.

He ran until he saw Kurt looking over his shoulder with the biggest grin on his face, and then Kurt ducked into a nearby classroom. The boys, who were floating around him, continued walking, as if unaware he’d disappeared. Blaine slowed down, and his conscious hit him. Why did he run? Kurt seems to be the kind of guy who has hundreds of guys chasing him, and Blaine didn’t chase. Ever.

Just as Blaine’s thoughts were getting into order, a hand gripped his tie and pulled him into a classroom, the door slammed, and just as fast his back was pressed against it. Lips pressed against his, tongue seeking entrance and hands roamed his chest and then found a solid grip on his hips. Blaine let himself relax into the kiss, opening his mouth to suck hard on the other boys bottom lip, and just as quick as the pressure was there, the hands and lips were off him. He looked up, and saw Kurt wipe the corner of his lip with his finger and then he nudged Blaine’s shoulder with his hand, and left the room, slamming the door again behind him.

Spotted: Kurt Hummel straightening his tie after emerging from an empty classroom?

Kurt walked into the common room, and sat down in the empty leather chair opposite the occupied sofa. He sighed and threw his head back, and then looked around the room, as if already bored with their company.

“I hear you met the new kid then Hummel.”

A smiled tugged on Kurt’s lips. “Yeah, we met. I hear you told Marc to look out for him.”

Sebastian wrapped his arm tighter around Marc’s shoulders.

“Didn’t want him running into, the…wrong people, I guess.”

Marc leant up and pressed a kiss to Sebastian’s cheek.
Kurt grinned a sly smile.

“Whose saying he hasn’t already ran into the…wrong people.”

Sebastian glared at Kurt, his eyes narrowing. Kurt responded with a cocky smile.

“What did you do?”

“Just…introduced myself. That’s all.”

“Fucking hell Hummel. The kid’s new to the city, are you really making a move on him on the first day?” Marc commented.

“I’d apologise if he wasn’t the one who stuck his tongue down my throat.” Kurt added.

Marc coughed over a laugh, but Sebastian glared at Kurt.

“Give him a chance, Kurt. Let him settle in…at least.”

Kurt leaned forward, hands clasping together in his lap.

“At the end of the day Seb, he practically moaned like a whore when I kissed him, and I’m not one to chase. You know that. The only way he’s gonna have me as a problem is if he follows me like a puppy.”

Kurt sat back in his seat, crossing one leg over the other and picking up a fashion magazine from the table next to him. He flicked through a few pages as Sebastian and Marc sat in silence.
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Blaine wandered through the corridors, trying to find his way to the cafeteria to buy something to eat. He saw
Professor Jeanette at the end of the corridor, and she beckoned for him to come to speak to her. He sighed, knowing she was going to lecture him about how he needs to try harder, but he walked over nonetheless.

“Blaine, I have a proposition for you.” She explained. He nodded but didn’t saying anything. “I have asked the most…progressed member of the class to tutor you. I understand that you are clearly struggling in the subject, and may need an extra helping hand.”

“Marc?” Blaine suggested, hopefully. He knew that Marc was good at French, and hoped that he’d be paired with someone he knew well already. He felt that he and Marc could become good friends.

Professor Jeanette pursed her lips. “Not Marc. I’ve asked Kurt Hummel to help you. He’s very fluent, as he spends all of his holidays vacationing in Paris.”

Blaine felt the heat rising to his face at the mention of Kurt. He wasn’t exactly sure where they stood, even if they were friends. He nodded. “Thank you, I’ll see you in class tomorrow.” He added.

“Ah, I think it best if you and Monsieur Hummel actually use our lessons as a tutor period, just until you are slightly more fluent. I’ll make sure Kurt keeps on top of the work.” She added with a smile, before turning on her heel and walking away.

Blaine stood in the hallway for a moment. His mind tried to remember as much of his timetable as he could. If he was having a tutor period with Kurt every French lesson, that was at least 4 and a half hours a week. He sighed and then licked his lips, recalling the way that Kurt’s tongue had slipped so easily between them. He grinned to himself and turned to walk back towards the library. Maybe Dalton wasn’t so bad after all.

Easy there new kid, life in the world of Dalton Academy may seem like a holiday, but when Kurt Hummel knows your name after your first day, that’s not necessarily something to take in your stride.