Blaine was in the field again. Why he came to this field time and again, he couldn’t explain. The field was special to him. It brought back memories of a better, sometimes simpler, time. But, since he always came here when he was depressed it only made him feel more depressed.

It made him miss Kurt.

They had made love in this field, on a lark. It started as a picnic and watching fireworks. It ended with Blaine in Kurt’s lap coming undone. They awoke at sunrise the next morning in a tangled heap of limbs, scurrying to get back to the Navigator before the farmer found them.

It was in the past now. It was exactly 15 years later. The sun was going down and Blaine would watch the fireworks alone from the same spot in the field. Maybe he enjoyed torturing himself or maybe the acute pain was better than the pervasive numbness he so often felt. It had been years since he last saw Kurt in person. Intellectually he knew that he should be over him by now. Too bad his heart didn’t agree.

The last time he had seen Kurt had been a disaster. They were placed at the same table at Mike and Tina’s wedding five years ago. The conversation had been stilted and uncomfortable, so much hidden behind the awkward silences and witty remarks. Kurt had still taken his breath away.

Blaine thought back to his senior year of high school. It had been such a crazy time for him. Kurt had left for NYADA less than two months after their romp in the field. Blaine had been so proud of him it physically hurt. At least part of that pain was the ache of missing him. McKinley just wasn’t the same without Kurt Hummel walking its halls.

They had used just about every form of communication available to them that year. They spent hours on Skype and continued their nightly skin-sloughing ritual. The only times they missed were when one of them was in the middle of finals. The few precious times Kurt came home they spent every minute they could together, talking and touching. Blaine thought that if he could just get enough touch it would sustain him until the next time they were together. It did and it didn’t.

Things were better the summer after Blaine had graduated. They felt like a normal couple again. They both were working full-time to earn money for fall semester. That summer had been ideal. Blaine scoffed at himself as he remembered how na�ve he was. He thought that summer was indicative of the rest of their lives together.

Blaine was now lying on the earth looking up at the darkened sky. As fireworks exploded overhead he found himself wishing he could go back to that summer before his senior year, to a time when things weren’t so complicated and he hadn’t known the damn ache in his chest.

~Klaine~

Blaine emerged slowly from sleep. His first awareness was that he was in a super uncomfortable position. The second thing he was aware of was soft hair tickling his face. He realized he was naked as he bolted upright, eyes wide open.

“Oh my god!” he yelped. He looked down to find a very, very naked Kurt Hummel beginning to stir. What the hell was going on? He scrambled off the blanket and searched frantically for some clothes he could put on.

“That’s a nice view,” a voice behind him teased.

He gave a strangled cry as he hurriedly pulled on a pair of too tight boxer briefs that he really, really hoped were his.

“Put your clothes on, please,” he said while still facing away from the naked form on the ground.

“Blaine? What’s wrong? Are you scared were going to get caught? You sound weird.”

It was getting lighter by the moment. He heard Kurt shuffle around getting dressed while he finished doing the same. The clothes didn’t fit quite right, but they would have to do.

He slowly turned back around. “What are you doing here? I don’t…I don’t understand.”

“Blaine, don’t you remember coming here last night?” There was worry creeping into Kurt’s voice. He took a few steps closer, as if acting on instinct to soothe Blaine, when Kurt gasped.

“Blaine! What happened to you? You look so…so different.” Kurt looked young and stunningly beautiful. He looked the same way he had that summer before heading off to NYADA.

“Kurt,” Blaine began helplessly, “I don’t know what’s happening.” Blaine sank down to his knees in the soft earth and tears stung his eyes.

“Let’s get in the car. We can’t get caught like this.” Blaine felt ice spread down his spine and quickly helped gather Kurt’s belongings and jog to the car.

His mind was working in stops and starts. His head hurt and he wondered aloud if this is what a panic attack felt like. Blaine was scared. Everything went black.

The next thing he knew he was sitting in Kurt’s old Navigator with his head down between his knees and Kurt’s long fingers running through his hair.

“Shhh, just breath slowly. It’s okay. Shhhh, you’re okay.” It was just too much. What the hell was happening? By this time Blaine had decided he was either in the past or in a very vivid nightmare. He was not happy with either prospect.

“That’s better. There you go. Good job,” Kurt was still cooing words of encouragement and petting his hair. It felt so damn good, he wanted to live in this moment forever and not think about his predicament. When his body felt somewhat normal again he slowly sat up and dared to look at the young man in the seat next to him.

“Blaine, can you explain why you look different than you did last night because I'm kinda freaking out here?” Kurt asked gently.

“Kurt…uh, Kurt.” Okay so that wasn’t very eloquent. “This is going to sound ridiculous…no, insane.”

“Just say it.” Kurt gripped his hand and looked at him expectantly.

“Okay. Okay. This is what I look like as a 33 year old man. I grew another inch my senior year of high school and I’ve gained about 20 pounds.”

“You don’t look like you’ve gained 20 pounds,” Kurt said with the corners of his mouth turning up into a small smile.

“Uh, it’s mostly muscle, I guess,” Blaine could feel the heat rising in his cheeks, and damn if he wasn’t blushing like a schoolboy.

“Oh…that makes sense,” Kurt said weakly. “So, this is really happening? How?”

“It seems so. I came here last night…15 years from now…and woke up here, now, with you.”

“Wait. Do we come here every year or something, like a tradition? Blaine, that is really romantic. Does that mean the future me is in the future field with high school you? This is so weird.”

“No. Kurt, stop. I come here alone sometimes. It’s not like that. I don’t know what happened to high school me, but you’re not...” There it was; that ache deep in his chest that flared up from time to time. “I don’t belong here. I need to get back to my time.”

“Blaine? What happened to my Blaine? Where is he? Is he alone?” Kurt’s voice had gotten progressively higher with each word.

“Kurt, calm down. We’ll figure this out, okay?”

“But, if you were alone then my Blaine must be alone in the field in the future and, god, and scared. Blaine, why were you in our field alone?” Kurt is on the verge of tears now and Blaine just hurts seeing him like this.

“Space-time continuum!” Blaine blurted.

“What?!”

“I am pretty sure I can’t talk about the future because it would destroy the fabric of the space-time continuum or something like that,” Blaine’s words sounded silly to his own ears.

“Oh my god, you are such a nerd, Blaine,” Kurt said blinking back the tears.

~Klaine~

Kurt couldn’t believe what was happening. He couldn’t keep his eyes off the man sitting in the passenger seat of his Navigator. He was his Blaine and also not his Blaine. He was about ten times hotter than his Blaine, if that was even humanly possible. He was still sweet and nerdy and adorable. It made him excited for the future. They must be a very handsome couple.

Kurt hadn’t let go of Blaine’s hand since grabbing onto it earlier. It felt different and yet, still so right.

“People can’t see me like this, Kurt. I’m not sure what to do. I’ve got to figure out how to get back to my time.”

“Agreed. I need to get my Blaine back. We’ve got to get you switched back…assuming that you two are switched.” Kurt straightened his shoulders and took a deep breath. He was going to get his boy back if it was the last thing he did.

“I guess I need a place to hide-out while we work on a plan.”

“My place. Everyone is in D.C. for the week. You’ll have to convince your parents…Oh! Tell your parents that you’re going on a camping trip with Trent, Nick and Jeff. That’s worked before,” Kurt said blushing at the memory. The last fake camping trip he’d gone on had been very, very enjoyable. He watched Blaine’s throat move as he swallowed and it took his breath away.

“Okay.”

“What do you remember from last night? We’ve got to figure out how this happened. That’s what always works in the movies,” Kurt said urgently. Blaine groaned.

“If only this was a movie, Kurt. I just was laying in the field watching fireworks and wishing that…wishing that I could be back in high school, I guess.” Blaine sounded like he wasn’t telling everything, but Kurt wasn’t going to push him. Not yet, anyway.

“Looks like your wish came true,” Kurt said dryly. Blaine was looking down, his thick eyelashes fanning out against his face. It was so hard to keep from kissing him when he looked so open and vulnerable…so like his own Blaine. And his own Blaine was out there somewhere with nobody and Kurt couldn’t do a damn thing about it. He would, though. He would.

“What did you have on you before the switch? Will Blaine wake up with your cell phone and wallet and car keys, at least?” Kurt was proud of how controlled his voice sounded. Grown up and under control.

“Yeah! I had all that and I didn’t bring it with me, obviously. If I…er, high school Blaine…woke up with all my stuff then he should be able to figure out where I live and drive himself there. He will be safe if he just does that.” Kurt felt relief spread throughout his body causing him to slump back in his seat.

“Perfect! Then future me will be able to help him and it will all be okay,” Kurt said happily. He felt much better knowing that his future self would be there to help Blaine be safe while they worked on a plan to get them switched back. Kurt’s smile faltered, Blaine was looking around nervously and biting his lower lip
.
“Blaine, what are you not telling me?”

“It’s nothing. I just don’t feel so well. Can we get back to your place, please? I think I need to lie down.”

Kurt put the truck in gear and drove the familiar route back to his house. Blaine was sleeping against the window by the time he pulled into the garage. He laid his hand on Blaine’s shoulder and told him they were home.

“Fuck!” Blaine hissed as he jumped, banging his head on the door frame. Kurt shrank back. That was different. He had never heard Blaine say that word in all the time they had known each other.

“Sorry,” Blaine mumbled.

“No, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you,” Kurt apologized. “You use that word now?”

“Not often, started in college,” Blaine explained as he got out of the vehicle. Kurt was starting to get an uneasy feeling that prickled the skin at the back of his neck. Something was really not right. It wasn’t the swearing, Kurt didn’t care about that, it was the physical reaction. Blaine had never startled from Kurt’s touch, even in sleep. He usually melted into it. It made him miss his Blaine all the more.

“Let’s get you back to bed. Maybe you have time-travel lag or something,” Kurt tried to joke, but it came out flat. He guided Blaine up to his room and gave him sweatpants and a thin t-shirt to change into. Kurt’s breathe caught in his throat when Blaine came out of the bathroom looking so much like the Blaine Kurt knew. It was only when he looked closer that he saw the changes. Time had chiseled his features into something exquisite, his body was broader and he carried himself a little differently. It was the little glimpses of pain in his eyes that bothered Kurt. It was haunting. Where had it come from? What had time taught this man? Kurt wanted nothing more than to hold him, okay he did want more than that, but that would probably be inappropriate.

Kurt walked up and enveloped him in a hug trying to give him all the comfort he could. Blaine smelled like Blaine, that heady scent of musky skin and spicy soap. It would be so easy to just close his eyes and pretend it was his Blaine in his arms.

“You should try to get some rest. I’m going to Google,” Kurt said. Blaine got into bed wearily and closed his eyes. Kurt resisted the urge to climb in beside him and turned his computer on.

He was not finding much helpful information on Google. Kurt couldn’t figure out how the switch had been made without a time-machine. All the stories of time switching that involved your whole body moving to the past or future seemed to include a portal or machine or gadget to make it happen. As far as Kurt knew, Blaine hadn’t used anything of the sort.

Blaine had started mumbling in his sleep. It was adorable. Kurt supposed that some things never changed. He smiled as he watched Blaine sleep.

“Kurt…le’s try ‘gin…mphf…please don’t leave me again…need you, Kurt.” Blaine was clutching at the sheets and his face was contorted with pain. Kurt felt his heart shatter into a thousand pieces. Kurt’s cheeks were wet with tears that trailed down and splashed onto his hands. The strange comments, the guarded looks and now this, it all made sense now. They weren’t together in the future. How was that even possible? Blaine was…Blaine! He was so gentle and warm and caring. Did Kurt do something horrible, had he ruined everything?

“Why are you crying?”

Kurt blinked until he could properly see the man in his bed.

“What happens to us in the future? Tell me now,” Kurt demanded. Blaine looked at him like a deer in the headlights.

“I can’t tell you about the future,” Blaine said stubbornly.

“Now, Blaine. I have a right to know. I don’t give a damn about the time fabric thing!” Kurt was on his feet now with clenched fists at his sides. Blaine was chuckling, which was really not the response he was going for. It made his heart ache even more.

“You would remember the ‘fabric’ part of what I said. God, you always were so cute.”

Kurt stood his ground and waited. When nothing more happened he tried a different tack. He crawled up in the bed and took hold of Blaine’s face. He could feel Blaine tremble.

“Please, Blaine. You have to help me understand. It might even help get you switched back. Please. I need my Blaine back. I love him so much it hurts sometimes. Please…god, just please,” he pleaded. He felt a shift in the air and thought for a moment that Blaine was going to kiss him. Instead Blaine removed his hands from his face and sat up straight.

“We broke up in college, during my sophomore year. It was mutual, we both chose it. I just…I just never thought…” his voice sounded so hollow and everything he was saying was just so wrong, “look, I never got over you. I thought I would move on, but I was mistaken.”

They were both crying now, each wrapped up in his own pain.

“This isn’t right. I can fix it. I’ll change it so that we’re together like we’re supposed to be,” Kurt said with determination.

“Kurt. That’s sweet, but you can’t just wave a wand and make it magically better. It’s history, you can’t change what’s already happened.” Blaine reached into the top drawer of his nightstand to get them each a tissue. Kurt felt his skin grow hot. Certainly Blaine remembers what they keep in that drawer. And, yeah, he does because now he won’t look Kurt in the eye as he hands him his tissue. Kurt feels a tug low in his stomach. He isn’t sure how much more he can take of this. This grown man is still so much Blaine, so much so that it makes Kurt ache to his core. It’s strange to want two men who are really one in the same.

“Have you forgotten who you are talking to? I am Kurt Hummel. I can hit a high F and I can twirl sia swords, so stop questioning my abilities. I can fix this. You have to trust me. I’m going to fix this, I promise.” He was reassuring himself as much as Blaine. He was determined, but he was also terrified.

“I haven’t forgotten who I’m talking to, Kurt,” Blaine said, brushing his knuckles across Kurt’s cheek. “So, how am I going to switch back? Find anything from your Google research?”

“Ugh, not really. Are you sure there wasn’t any kind of portal or object or something you used to get here?”

“I just wished for it and then fell asleep, I guess. I remember lying on the ground looking at the fireworks and wishing to be back to that day with you. That is the last thing until I woke up.”

“Okay, so we just need to recreate that. Unfortunately there won’t be a fireworks display until next year.” Kurt’s mind was working furiously to think of a way for this to work.

“Sparklers! We’ll get some sparklers and take those with us. Wait…wait. Okay, this is going to work. I am going to remember exactly what we do and then my future self is going to be able to help my Blaine do the exact same thing. We’ll do it tomorrow night so that both sets of us have enough time to do it right.” Kurt was practically vibrating with excitement. He knew this would work. It had to work.

“Kurt, I already told you…”

“Don’t! Just don’t. I will be there in the future. I know it.”

~Klaine~

Kurt gulped. He couldn’t have looked away even if he had wanted to. Blaine was standing in his kitchen in a tank top and workout shorts.

“I’m going to go for a run.”

“Where did you get those clothes?” Kurt squeaked. He cleared his throat, thoroughly embarrassed.

“You think I’d forget where you keep my stash of emergency clothes?” Blaine said with a knowing smirk. Kurt thanked the universe he was sitting down because he was quickly becoming aroused. He could see Blaine’s strong, defined thighs below the hem of the deliciously short shorts. His shoulders and chest had filled out very nicely. Kurt briefly wondered if he could commission a marble statue in his likeness.

“Okay, bye then. Make sure no one we know sees you, please.”

Blaine walked over and leaned down inches from Kurt’s ear. His warm breath tickled his ear as he said, “I will.”

And then he was out the door and Kurt could breathe properly again.

~Klaine~

Blaine loved how the pavement felt under his feet. The steady rhythm of his feet always seemed to comfort him. He often found solutions to his problems during his runs, too. So, it was no coincidence that he was currently running down an empty street of Lima, Ohio like his life depended on it.

He spent the first half of the run berating himself for getting so close to Kurt, for touching him at all. Just because he was horny as fuck didn’t give him the right. Kurt was still young and he wasn’t his Kurt anymore. As the older of the two, which was weird, it was his responsibility to keep things appropriate.

He thought about his predicament for about a half a mile. Kurt seemed to have hatched a plan that would work, if life was anything like the movies. He would just have to trust him. Even if they weren’t together he felt sure that Kurt would try to help his younger self anyway. That’s what kind of man Kurt was.

And then finally his mind was free and it was just his body moving along the street.

~Klaine~

This had been a really bad idea, a bad idea of epic proportions. They were in bed together. Clothed! But still, they were in bed together. Blaine was smiling at him and it was the same smile his Blaine always gave him in private moments. It was that look that said more than words ever, ever could. It was ‘I love you’ and ‘I’m yours’ and ‘take me’ and so much more. It sent Kurt’s pulse racing. He reached out and rubbed his hand over Blaine’s arm.

“You can’t look at me like that,” Kurt whispered.

“Like what?” Blaine asked curiously.

“With those heart-eyes! You can’t do that.”

“Heart-eyes? What does that even mean?” Blaine laughed.

“God, Blaine, when you look at me like that I can see…it’s like I can see hearts in your eyes. It makes me want you. We can’t…” Kurt was pleading with him now.

“I’m sorry, Kurt…I’m sorry,” Blaine said sincerely as he pulled Kurt into a hug. How was Kurt going to make it for 24 more hours with this insanely attractive version of his Blaine?

~Klaine~

Somehow they did manage to make it to the next evening. Kurt’s anxiety was growing by the hour. This had to work, it just had to! They packed the supplied in the Navigator and headed for the field, their field.

“Oh my god!” Kurt said suddenly.

“What’s wrong?”

“Uh, well, what if we have to have sex for it to work? That’s what me and my Blaine were doing. What if that is an important part of it, Blaine?” Kurt was freaking out now because, no, that just couldn’t happen. Right? Right, it just couldn’t.

“Kurt, breathe. No, it couldn’t be part of it because I was by myself. Your plan is perfect,” Blaine assured.

“Okay, let’s wait until it’s a little darker before we set up. I don’t want to push our luck.”

They sat in silence until the moon and stars were the only lights in the sky. Blaine grabbed the picnic blanket and Kurt clutched the thin box of sparklers and checked his pocket for the lighter. Maybe it was too simple. His plan wasn’t much really. At exactly 10 o’clock they would lie in the field and light the sparklers and Blaine would wish himself back. That was it. Then it would either work or not.

Blaine spread out the blanket in the same spot they had woken up at 2 days ago. They sat down and watched the sky until 10.

“Ready?” Kurt asked.

“As I’ll ever be.”

Kurt lit them each a sparkler. He used his to write words in the air just like he had when he was a little boy. Blaine just stared at his. Kurt could see his mouth moving a little bit and figured he must be concentrating on his wish. Kurt wrote ‘I love you’ and ‘Blaine’ before the sparklers burned out.

They lay down to wait.

“Blaine. You have to promise me that you’ll forgive me when I do stupid things. I’m going to fix this, but you’ve got to help me. Please, just…just remember that I always love you and if I hurt you I don’t mean to and we can fix it. Okay? Promise?” Kurt didn’t know what was going to happen and he hated not having control over every little thing.

“Kurt, I always love you. I forgive you, always. Promise,” Blaine leaned over and sealed his promise with a kiss. Kurt wrapped his arms around him and crawled in his lap. They sat like that for a long time, just kissing and holding.

~Klaine~

Blaine dragged himself up the stairs to his apartment. He was in a foul mood. It was bad enough that he had woken up in a damn field, but then he had found a car parked in his spot when he pulled into the parking lot. Maybe he’d go down to the gym and punch something until he felt numb again.

He jiggled the lock until the door popped open. He noticed something was different immediately. His heart hammered in his chest and he got into a fighting stance. Someone was in his apartment. When he saw the man he fell against the door and sank down to his knees, a sob ripping from his throat.

“I told you I keep my promises,” Kurt said simply. His eyes were sparkling with unshed tears as he joined his lover on the floor of their apartment. He held Blaine tight while old memories were replaced with new, until Blaine didn’t know why they were on the floor clinging to each other with wet faces. He just knew it was where he belonged.