Happenchance

Kurt Hummel does not believe in fate. 

He does not believe in love at first sight, and he definitely does not believe in soulmates.

These ideologies were completely illogical and so he dismissed them all at a very young age.

What he does believe in is hard work and discipline; everything he has achieved has been a direct result of good old sweat equity, perseverance and a lot of ass kicking.

That is why happenchance is the last thing on his mind as he boards his red-eye flight to New York. 

xxx

As the Hugo Boss team liaison between east coast and west coast designers, it's Kurt's job to travel back and forth between Los Angeles and his home base in New York. He has been in Los Angeles for a week, collaborating with his team and putting the finishing touches on the presentation for the upcoming launch of their spring collection.  It has been a worthwhile trip – lots of progress was made, but there was still a shitload of work to be done and he was going to take advantage of the 5 hour night time flight to get it finished.

Finding his window seat, chosen specifically so no-one would be bothering him with bathroom visits, he stowed his jacket and carry-on in the overhead compartment and sat down to organize what was to become his work space for the duration of the flight.  He brought his laptop out of the messenger bag and all the accessories he would need and lodged it in the pocket of the seat in front of him, along with his bottle of water and his sleep mask, in case he ended up having time for a quick nap. With his iPhone out, he took advantage of the limited time he had before he would have to power down, and sent off some quick text messages and even quicker emails to work colleagues, filling them in on the status of the designs and letting them know he’s on his way back.

He noticed so far, no-one had claimed the seat next to him, and was getting hopeful that it would remain that way so he could really spread out.

Satisfied that he had contacted everyone necessary, he powered down his phone, buckled his seatbelt and leaned back into his seat, closing his eyes while taking some deep breaths.

He didn’t mind flying per se, but he was always nervous at take off.  Once in the air, with no apparent signs of crashing, he would relax and get to work. But for now, he’d just focus on his breath…

Voices carried up and down the aisle of the aircraft as the passengers continued to board.  Kurt could hear it but his eyes remained closed and he paid no attention until he felt the unmistakable dip in the seat beside him, indicating that the seat had been claimed.

“Damn”

A hard hit to his right arm jolted him out of his trance, and he opened his eyes to see a large messenger bag half in his lap and half in the other seat while a man struggled to get his carry on secured overhead. Feat accomplished, the man looked down and saw with horror how his bag had found a home on Kurt’s lap.

“Oh my god… I’m so sorry.  Here let me get that off of you.  I’m really sorry.” he apologized as he grabbed the bag, putting it down on the floor of the plane while settling himself in his seat. "Please accept my apologies” he asked.

“No worries” Kurt assured him, closing his eyes again, not noticing anything of the man except in general terms he seemed to be around Kurt’s age, and small in stature. A feature, he noted, that made for an excellent plane companion.

“I always find it nearly impossible to get settled on a plane quickly while you have people behind you trying to get by.  It’s worse than rush-hour traffic in LA” his flight companion joked with a chuckle.

“Hmmmm” Kurt smiled faintly, still keeping his eyes closed but not wanting to be rude.

“Oh I’m sorry.  You’re meditating or something aren’t you?” the man noticed. 

Kurt nodded slightly.

“Mouth shut…...  zipped… You won’t hear another word from me” the stranger promised, breaking it almost simultaneously as he punched in a number on his phone.

“Yeah, hey, it’s me.  I’m on the plane now, so I should be in New York by 7am your time?  I’ll grab a cab to the hotel. – will you meet me there?....Great, OK…. Yeah…… no, my flight to DC is in the afternoon, so I’ll have time for that.  OK – talk to you when I land. Yeah, me too!” he concluded the conversation.

Kurt took in the whole conversation, his imagination conjuring up the scenario:

Pretty, chic girlfriend… maybe a fuckbuddy… in SoHo meeting up with him for a morning fuck before he flies away again… 

He smiled to himself.

Oh, but no, the “yeah, me too”… hmmm…. must have been in answer to an “I love you” from the callee…   hmmm…   maybe in committed long distance relationship.

Kurt decided that the random fuckbuddy was much hotter. He was sticking with that one.

As the plane taxied to the runway, he vaguely heard the drone of the flight attendants advising on exits and oxygen masks and whatever else they were required to divulge. He breathed in deeper, holding on to the arms of the seat, singing broadway tunes to himself in his head.  He could feel the g-force pushing him further into his seat as the engines revved and the plane accelerated forward beginning the take-off. It was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time; racing down the runway and then… liftoff… the ground noise instantly being left behind as the plane noses high into the sky with the landing gear retracting back into the plane.

The ascent begins. 

After a few minutes, the bell dinged indicating that the captain has turned off the fasten seatbelt sign, and the plane leveled out for, what the captain assures them, will be a smooth and uneventful flight to the east coast.

Exhaling a deep breath, Kurt opens his eyes, immediately relaxing his arms and giving his head a slight turn from side to side.

“Wow – I’ve never seen anyone do that before!”

Kurt turns his head, and only now really takes in the person beside him… and wow…... he was right in his first impression.  The man was around his age and small in stature, but he missed a whole bunch of other fine details; like, how absolutely adorable he was.  Curly dark hair framing his face, full lips, a bit chapped, and the most amazing eyes that he’s ever seen; hazel, with flecks of green and caramel, and so expressive; right now with an expression that he can’t determine. 

Do what?” Kurt asked turning slightly to better converse with the man.

“That!” the stranger elaborated, gesturing his hands wildly for lack of other words.  “The whole eyes closed, breathing deeply while repeating a mantra while we take off thing.  That was amazing!”

Kurt continued to size the man up, trying to determine if he was making fun of him or not, but he didn’t appear to be.  Yes, definitely the most beautiful eyes that Kurt has ever seen.  They sparkled. 

How does anyone actually make their eyes sparkle?

“Well, thank you. And it wasn’t a mantra” Kurt lifted his chin with attitude. “It was Defying Gravity if you must know.”

“Hah!” the stranger barked out in laughter. “ that’s funny.”

When Kurt frowned at him, he quickly explained “You know… defying gravity… while we’re taking off in an airplane…. kind of ironic don’t you think?” he continued, looking and hoping that Kurt will catch on to the humor.

Kurt let him off the hook with a smile. waving his hand vaguely, “Well, when you put it that way it is kind of funny.... Funnier still that I never clued in to that myself.” he confessed.

They were interrupted by a flight attendant who came over and leaned down to the adorable man, speaking to him in quiet tones.

“Oh, yeah, by all means.  Of course…that would be fine” he agreed, and she smiled and left.

Kurt busied himself, getting his laptop out of the pocket and putting his tray down, he was able to get his workstation in order.  He pulled out the charger and plugged it into the port available to him, and proceeded to buy his wifi with his credit card.  Laying his phone down, he scourged his bag for his earbuds, and once found, he felt he was all set to get some work done.

In the meantime, a girl of about 14 years came up the aisle and was talking to his companion. Kurt noticed that he signed something that she held out for him and spent a couple of minutes talking and laughing with her until she left for her seat.

Interesting.

The flight attendants eventually came along for drink requests, and Kurt ordered a tomato juice, no ice.  The man beside him decided that sounded really good and ordered the same.  Noticing that Kurt’s space was pretty much taken up with his electronics, he offered to keep Kurt’s drink on his tray. It was an offer that Kurt kindly accepted.

“Not to be nosy or anything, but you are really organized aren’t you” he asked Kurt, with a quizzical look.

Kurt chuckled “Well, I have a lot of work to catch up on, and I find these red-eye flights to be great for that as its normally nice and quiet once everyone settles down to sleep.”

“What is it you do? If you don’t mind me asking.” 

“I’m a fashion designer for Hugo Boss” Kurt acknowledged proudly.  “Based in New York, but I have a team I run in LA as well, so I’m back and forth a lot – especially when we're nearing a launch. We’re just finalizing the spring line right now.”

“Wow, I am impressed.  Fashion designer. Well you certainly fit the bill” he complimented Kurt, noting how put together he was, especially for a long haul flight.

“I tend to try and dress for comfort when I’m flying” the man shared, almost apologetically noting that he was woefully understated, wearing jeans rolled at the cuff, with a graphic tee and boat shoes.

"Ah yes, but you are wearing one of my jackets” Kurt noted.

"I am?” he squirmed around trying to look for a label.

“Yes. Last year’s... but it was a favourite of mine.  And you wear it well” Kurt added with a wink.

“Thank you!  That’s very nice of you….???”

“Kurt… my name is Kurt” Kurt held out his hand.

"Kurt, it’s nice to meet you.  I’m Blaine” the man introduced himself, shaking Kurt’s outreached hand.

“It’s nice to meet you too Blaine. Please… I hope you don’t think I’m rude, but I’ve got some work to do and I better get it started”

“Yes, of course, by all means.  Don’t let me distract you.  I’m just going to watch a movie for a little while and then catch up on some sleep” Blaine said as he settled in his seat, smiling at Kurt.

Hmmmmm… adorable…

A couple of hours later Kurt finally closed his files. He’d finalized the last cut of which designs they were going to go with.  Now finished, he felt confident in his choices and would reward himself with a break.

True to his word, Blaine had watched a movie for a while, and then curled himself up to take a nap, using his Hugo Boss jacket as a blanket.  It was cold on the plane, Kurt realized, and the jacket wasn’t enough, noting Blaine’s arms were bare and had goosebumps.

That’s what you get wearing boat shoes with no socks on a plane.

Kurt reached down in his bag and pulled out a pashmina that he kept just for such occasions. He always traveled with two of them never wanting to use airline blankets.  He wrapped it carefully over Blaine, covering up his arms and resting it just under his chin.

Blaine must have noticed the warmth immediately as he hummed a small sound of approval, wrapping it more tightly around himself and curling up even more, if that were possible.

Kurt smiled over at him as he finished his tomato juice, handing the empty cup over to the attendant who was collecting trash.

Putting his worksheets away, Kurt  brought up his facebook page to catch up on everyone. 

Rachel of course noted on his wall how she was up for another role, and her audition was tomorrow. ‘Wish me luck!’ was her message.

“Good luck” Kurt murmured, as he read other messages. 

He had some email to check on; notably one from his Dad; who was just checking in to say hello, and to ask him if he had any plans on going home for a visit. Honestly Kurt couldn’t see that happening until the spring fashion week was over, but hopefully after that, he could head back to Ohio for a week or so.  He hadn’t seen Finn and his wife Sandy since Thanksgiving and the twins must be almost one.

Yes, his Dad confirmed.  They were indeed coming up to their first birthday and just started walking.  Burt sent some pictures of them, probably in hopes that it would convince Kurt to book a flight back for the family birthday party.

A soft voice broke his train of thought.

“Awww…. they’re adorable.  Are they yours?”

Kurt looked over to see that Blaine had woken up and was looking at the pictures on Kurt’s screen.  He was still wrapped up in the pashmina and looked himself to be a child, all sleepy with his hair mussed up.

“They’re my niece and nephew” Kurt said proudly.  “It’s coming up to their one year birthday and my Dad is trying to convince…'cough cough'… coerce me to come home for the party.”

“Where’s home?” Blaine asked sleepily.

“Ohio” Kurt answered.

“No kidding, I’m from Ohio; Westerville to be exact.”

“Westerville?” Kurt exclaimed a little too loud.  “I’m from Lima” he shared. 

Blaine looked surprised “Wow and I’m guessing we’re probably close to the same age, so it’s funny that we never met.  Did you play any sports or anything in high school?”

Kurt snorted… “Sports?  No not ever…. Well except one short brief stint as the kicker for the football team”

Blaine sat up a bit. 

“Oh, and a much shorter stint as a cheerleader” 

Blaine raised his brow with a smile.

 “But no” Kurt concluded “No sports but I was in Glee.  New Directions.  We won Nationals the year I graduated.”

“New Directions?  I remember you!” Blaine shoved off the blanket as he reached over to hold Kurt’s arm.  “We competed against you guys.  I was with Dalton Academy.”

“Dalton Academy Warblers?  I think I remember you too.  Weren’t you the lead soloist? You used to keep your hair gelled back?” Kurt furrowed his brow, trying to piece the memories together.

“Yeah. That was me” Blaine admitted with a blush. 

“You were good” Kurt recollected.  “You were really good.  I remember thinking you were so talented that you’d probably be a star one day.”

“Aw… well thanks.  That’s very kind of you to say.  But we didn’t win.” Blaine pointed out, poking Kurt back in the arm again.  “You guys did. You were amazing.  You did original songs if I remember correctly.”

Kurt nodded his head in agreement.  “Yes we did for that performance.  It was great. And we did Paradise by the Dashboard Light for our national win.  My boyfriend and I had a small duet together” Kurt shared, thinking back to a time when life was so much simpler.

“Boyfriend?  So… you’re….. gay? Blaine questioned softly, curling back up into the pashmina, resting his head on his arm as he gazed at Kurt wide-eyed.

“Yes, I am.”

“Me too” 

“Oh?”  Kurt answered, thinking back to his headcanon where Blaine was meeting pretty girlfriend in hotel for morning sex.  Ok... exit pretty girlfriend, and enter hot boyfriend.

“Was it as hard for you in school as it was for me?” Blaine asked.

Kurt twisted in his seat to face Blaine.  What was the look in his eyes?  sorrow?.... remorse?... sadness?…. all of the above… with a dash of melancholy?

“It was hard…for sure” Kurt confided, “Not always, but a lot of the time.  I was bullied and harassed, but it only made me stronger in the end. But I had good friends who looked out for me. My Glee friends were like family to me.”

Blaine nodded solemnly. “I know exactly what you mean.  My fellow warblers were the same.  Some of them remain to be my best friends even now after all these years.”  He took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly “It’s been a long time since I’ve thought about all that” he shook his head with a small grin.

Changing the subject back to the infants Blaine nodded back over to Kurt’s laptop “So…. Uncle Kurt… you should go back to Ohio for those adorable babies’ 1st birthday.  It only happens once!” he reminded him with a wink.

Kurt looked at the two smiling munchkins on the screen “Yeah, you’re right.  I think I will” he decided, looking back up at Blaine with a smile.

Blaine reached out and put his hand on Kurt’s forearm.  “Good.  Cuz family matters.”

God, his hand feels amazing…

Kurt didn’t notice when he had placed his own hand on top of Blaine’s, but suddenly it was there and he was rubbing Blaine’s arm gently. Blaine settled himself in more, closing his eyes, humming “that’s nice” as he fell back asleep.

Kurt continued to stroke Blaine’s arm softly as he felt himself get sleepy and the last thing he remembered before nodding off was how he really wanted that damn pashmina that was still in his bag. 

xxxxxx

Instinctively, like waking up two stops before your own on the subway, Kurt wakes up when he feels a plane begin its descent. 

However waking up this time was very different than others.

Somehow within the last couple of hours, he had managed to weave his body with Blaine’s, and they were now sharing the one pashmina between them.  The armrest between them had been raised, and Blaine has scootched over so that his head was resting on Kurt’s shoulders with Kurt’s arm tucked around him. His other hand intertwined with Blaine’s under the shawl.

What on earth??

Eyes blurred, Kurt felt the warmth of Blaine’s breath on his neck.  The heat from his body emanating on to Kurt, and in all honesty, Kurt had never felt such intimacy before…ever….  It felt wonderful and strangely like being home, if that made any sense at all, and he was already regretting when Blaine would wake up and pull away from him.  He rubbed the top of Blaine’s head with his cheek, and with a smile, he closed his eyes and nodded off again.

The flight attendant’s voice woke the both of them up together.  They were beginning their descent into New York and would need to put their seats in the upright position and secure their belongings under the seat in front.

Jolted back to reality, they both grinned bashfully as they let go of each other, unwrapping themselves from the pashmina, with Blaine moving back to his seat. 

“I’m sorry. I tend to cuddle.  I hope you didn’t mind” he said apologetically.

“Clearly I didn’t mind Blaine.  I had my arms around you if you didn’t notice.” Kurt quipped with a raised brow.

“I did notice.  It was nice”

They smiled again at one another.

“So Kurt…?  Blaine began a little hesitantly ‘I know we really don’t know much about each other, but we’re going to be getting off the plane in a few more minutes and I have to ask….  would you like to maybe exchange contact info – phone numbers?   Maybe you have a boyfriend? ... I don’t. ... But even if you do, I think it would be cool if we could get together again one day – even for coffee…. I live in LA but I come to New York a lot for work, and well, its visa versa for you right? So between the two cities, maybe we could become friends? he babbled with hopeful eyes.

Kurt licked his lips before replying with a slight grin, “Let me see if I can answer all that in order – cuz that was a lot to remember. Yes, I would like to exchange contact info.  No, I don’t have a boyfriend. Yes, it would be great to have coffee with you.  Yes I live in New York but I’m in LA at least once a month, and yes, I would like to be friends with you Blaine.  I would like that very much” his grin broadened to a full smile.

They exchanged phones and fed in their numbers and email addresses before handing back to one another, pausing ever so slightly as their hands touched.

Tingles…. I swear my hand is tingling.

Grabbing their carry-ons, they exit the plane, heading up the ramp to the gate.  Shifting his messenger bag on his shoulder Kurt realizes that he doesn’t know anything about Blaine, other than he was a warbler.  They had kind of skipped that whole “So, Blaine, what is that you do?” conversation.

“So, where are you going?  I overheard you in LA say something about DC?” Kurt asked.

“Yeah” Blaine ducked his head.  “I’m going to the inauguration!” he said enthusiastically.

“The inauguration?.... Oh right, that’s on Monday isn’t it” Kurt said, counting the days in his head.  “So you flew all the way out for that?  Most people just watch it on TV Blaine” he teased him bumping shoulders.

“Well, yeah I’m a big fan I guess you could say.” Blaine blushed.

“You certainly are!” Kurt stopped by the stairwell to the subway. “Well, this is where I say good-bye.  I’m going down to the subway from here.  So, have fun in DC...say “hi” to the President for me!” he joked winking at Blaine.

“Ok, I will Kurt….” Blaine promised, pulling Kurt in for a small hug, which was as much as they could do what with all the luggage between them.

“Call me!” Kurt called out as he headed down the staircase.

Blaine smiled. 

xxxx

It was a bright sunny Monday when the President was inaugurated into office for a second term.  There had been parties all throughout DC the entire weekend; balls and galas galore.  Kurt had watched the inauguration with pride, but paid little attention to all the hoopla, as it honestly wasn’t his interest, but Rachel had the TV on and was watching her favorite celebrity news show highlighting the glitz and glamour of the various events.

As Kurt walked through from his bedroom to the kitchen, he glanced up to the TV and to his surprise he saw Blaine on screen.  He stopped mid-step.

“That’s Blaine!” he told Rachel pointing to the TV.

“Yeah I know that’s Blaine” Rachel replied rolling her eyes.

“What do you mean, you know that’s Blaine?  How do you know that’s Blaine?” Kurt asked walking over to the TV to get a better view.

“What I mean is that I KNOW that’s Blaine.  Blaine Anderson.  He’s a star on that tv show about the highschool glee club… .you know”….  she snaps her fingers trying to remember the name and can’t.  “Anyways, he’s the lead actor that everyone’s in love with.  I gotta give him credit though – he is talented…and hot!” she admits.

“Rachel – that’s BLAINE!” Kurt interrupts her, hysterically pointing at the TV.  “That’s the guy I met on the plane that I told you about.  He’s the one that cuddled with me while we slept.” He crashed down in the sofa as his legs felt weak.

"Ohhhhhh....." Kurt lets out remembering now the girl in the aisle on the plane. 

He was signing an autograph.....

 “Oh my god Kurt! Are you shitting me? He’s the one you were holding hands with?  That’s like…. unreal… And he told you he was gay?”

Kurt nodded transfixed on the TV where the interviewer was asking him what it was like playing for the President.

“Well it was unbelievable of course!” Blaine answered. “He’s such an inspiration to me.  He’s campaigned tirelessly for equal rights, and same sex marriage amongst other things and its just such an honor and privilege to be a part of this.  I’ll remember it for the rest of my life” he stated humbly with a smile.

“Blaine Anderson” Kurt murmured to himself. “Well, fuck, I really need to start watching television every once in a while” he decided with a slap to his legs.

xxxx

The next day Kurt was back at work, putting the final touches on his spring collection portfolio when he heard his phone vibrate. He smiled when he saw who was texting him.

BLAINE

So it would seem that I’m back in New York for a couple of days before I head back to LA.  How about that coffee? 

BLAINE

Or better yet – dinner?

Kurt smiled reading the texts.  Quickly answering back

KURT

Dinner would be lovely.  As long as you’re not all tuckered out from singing to the President?

BLAINE

Ah…busted…Who told you?

KURT

No-one.  Saw you on TV.  And btw – very dashing in your tux ;)

BLAINE

It was Hugo Boss :)

KURT

Really?

BLAINE

:P Haha... Right.  So dinner tonight?  7ish?  Send me your address and I’ll pick you up.

KURT

Its in my contact info.  On your phone.

BLAINE

Why so it is.  See, you are so organized. Shud I be frightened?

KURT

Yes you shud. see you at 7.

BLAINE

OK.  And Kurt….

KURT

Yes?

BLAINE

The President says “hi” back ;)