About two weeks before the start of Winter break, Blaine sat hunched over a desk, marveling at what he thought was the best gum-wrapper-ring ever.  The pieces went together seamlessly, perfected after countless attempts that ended with a wad of wrappers angrily tossed aside.  This one, however, was flawless.  Blaine allowed himself a moment to smile at his own creation, thinking, Kurt will love it.

As he stared longer, however, Blaine became unsure.  It's too simple, he thought.  All it contained was a chain of folded wrappers; there was no pattern, no message, no meaning.  Of course, he had made sure the gum was Kurt's favorite, Wrigley's, but it needed something more.  Blaine watched it closely, as though the ring would whisper the answer to him, but alas, he was stumped.

That entire week, Blaine couldn't get the ring out of his mind.  He watched Kurt even more closely than usual, scrutinizing his boyfriend's every move in search of a clue on the perfect addition to his ring.

The solution came on Thursday when the pair decided to study at Blaine's house.  Of course, books were closed as soon as they had been opened, and school drifted from both their minds.  They chatted about the day and flirted shamelessly, smiles never fading from their faces.  Blaine watched from his bed as Kurt wandered around the room, rifling through Blaine's every possession.  He did it every time he was in Blaine's room, and Blaine always found it funny how Kurt found his trivial possessions so endlessly amusing.  If it were anyone else, Blaine would have been embarrassed as Kurt sifted through the endless memorabilia from Blaine's childhood, but he said nothing.  He and Kurt shared everything, and had no secrets to hide.

Eventually, Kurt got to Blaine's dresser, and opened the first drawer, revealing a large, organized collection of bow ties of every color and design.  At this point, Blaine got up to stand next to Kurt, snaking an arm around his boyfriend and securing him with a light tug, so their hips bumped together.

"I see you have revealed the key to my beauty."  He grinned.

Kurt giggled.  "And here I was thinking that you got all pretty from working out."  Then, he grabbed one bow tie from the bunch.  It was smaller than the rest and solid.  "What's this little one?"  he asked.

Grabbing it from Kurt, Blaine answered, "That, my dear, was li'l Blaine's first li'l bow tie."  Blaine held it over the one he had on and flashed Kurt his best model smolder, earning another laugh.  "I supposedly wore it when I was baptized.  Not that the baptism was that big a deal--I mean, I don't even remember it-- but you've got to admit that the bow tie is pretty cute."

Kurt nodded.  "Is there any other sentimental neck wear in here?"

Blaine proceeded to go through all the bow ties he never wore to school.  He showed Kurt the first bow tie he bought with his own money, which was a bit smaller than his others and covered with smiley faces.  He showed him bow ties from his grandparents, a bright pink one signed by Katy Perry, the one he wore to his first music recital, and of course, his lucky bow tie, which was reserved for only the most pressing circumstances.

Kurt watched Blaine in loving silence as he told his stories.  Everyone knew that Kurt held clothes in the highest of regards, but the light in Blaine's eyes as he recalled tales of his youth was far more enticing than any of the facts Kurt could spew about his own designer items.

"I love how devoted you are to your bow ties."  He noted, and as foolish as it was, he couldn't help but smile as the word love glided past his lips.

Blaine nodded.  "Yeah, well, they're not all high-end like yours, but I think they're pretty nice."  To emphasize his point, Blaine put the smiley-faced bow tie up to his collar.  

Kurt tugged each end of the bow tie, letting his hands linger on Blaine.  "While I'm sure that's true, it's not even about that.  I love your bow ties is that they have stories.  You can keep them after they go out style, and they will never stop being special."  he smiled.  "My bow ties may be made from fabulous fabrics, but none of them are special like yours."

At that moment, Blaine knew what to add to his ring.  Blaine would give Kurt a bow tie, and it would have the best tale yet.

Their first Christmas together.

His first promise.

Their first love story.