Finn's at Fort Benning, and even though at parties he usually just sat in the corner and grinned, everyone moves awkwardly without him there, like they're missing a limb instead of a person. They're at Blaine's because Finn never set foot there, but it still doesn't help. They all avoid the corners anyway.
Rachel's drinking with the kind of determination that Kurt had previously only ever seen dedicated to her singing, slugging back absurdly bright pink cocktails as fast as Santana can hand them to her. Kurt can't decide if it's a good thing or not that Blaine's parents probably won't even notice the missing alcohol.
Blaine, the goober, hasn't even finished his Mike's Hard Lemonade to give him at least a pretense of drunkenness before he starts shouting about how much he loves everybody and oh my god guys it's Mike's Hard Lemonade, and it's yellow and it's totally Mike Chang's Asian Hard Lemonade guys. Kurt makes them matching origami crowns so they could be the Lemonade Kings out of the rejection letters that he hadn't been able to let go of after all this time. He feels like he's drifting away without them sitting like a stone in his pocket, and it's not until Tina sits in his lap that he realizes that that's probably because he's rocking back and forth, fingers flying across the interesting textures of the carpet. They're different in different places; over here is thinner, and over here it feels a little damp. There's a story there and if Tina would just get off of him he'd be able to read Blaine's history through his carpet.
But then she giggles and points to where Blaine and Mike are commandeering the Karaoke machine from Puck, who'd gotten to 37 Bottles of Beer On The Wall before Santana finally snapped and screamed that she was "gonna go all Lima Heights on your ass Puckerman! Tu madre ni siquiera le reconocen cuando llego con ustedes! You will be shitting my stilettos for a week!". Present Blaine is even better than Past Blaine (and soon all he'll have is Past Blaine, while he's learning the history of the carpets in New York) so he pets her hair absently and watches his boyfriend drape himself all over her boyfriend.
"I think–I think our boyfriends are going to miss each other more than us." Kurt squints at the stage, where Blaine and Mike are sobbing into each other arms that they would walk 500 miles more just to be the man who walked a thousand miles to fall down at your door.
Tina giggles hysterically in his lap, her head falling back to smack him in the nose. Kurt preens through the pain, before remembering that Tina had giggled hysterically when she realized that her nail polish matched her socks. God. Giggly drunks.
"Y-yup" Tina hiccups brightly, once she recovers enough to start breathing in oxygen instead of laughing gas. "You'd never have guessed youwere the one he had a crush on." Tina snorts into her cup, "Maybe he just likes the way you've rubbed off on Blaine." And that of course sends her into another peal of laughter.
Kurt laughs too, his skin buzzing with her laughter and the sips of lemonade he's snuck from Blaine's cup. It takes him a good several minutes to realize what she's actually said.
(It's not his fault. It's the goddamn lemonade's fault. It makes his brain all fuzzy)
"Wait. Mike didn't have a crush on me." He gestures vaguely towards where Blaine and Mike are practically drooling over each other. "I mean. If Mike wasn't straight he'd totally be-"
Tina blinks up at him, and Kurt's distracted into silence by the way her tinted eyeshadow catches the light. "Why do you think Mike's straight?"
He flaps his wrist at her. "Well, you're a girl." He squints at her, "I mean, you're unique but you're not Unique. Are you?"
"I'm not." She confirms, which is kind of a huge relief. Kurt's not sure he could deal with Tina telling him Mike had a crush on him and that all in one night. At least, not without even more lemonade. "But Mike's not. Straight I mean."
"But." Kurt blinks. "You." He says eloquently.
Tina spreads out like a cat in his lap and for a second Kurt remembers when Brittany stopped talking and would only meow sadly at him when he looked at her. "Mike's not trying to hide or anything, so I'm not that girl, but... Mike's so sweet." She grins up at him, and the love in her smile is so bright she could sell toothpaste, "He loves everybody in Glee. But he especially loved you." She reaches out to touch his hair and he jerks back automatically. But because she's Tina she turns it into carefully arranging his bowtie to make it lie even flatter against his carotid. "You let him dance. How could he not fall in love?"
Kurt can feel his bones where Tina presses against his skin. It doesn't feel like there's anything between him and her words, just skin stretched like a tent across his finely ground bones. "I didn't - I mean." He's furious at himself, at Mike's Hard Lemonade, at Tina, at everybody. His words are everything, and he's so thrown he can't gather them around him like his chicks, like his armor.
"I thought he was joking about the sashay." He finally manages breathlessly.
Tina laughs, the sound vibrating across his brain and shaking out the cobwebs.
"I knew those drinks Santana made were toxic. You've already started to go crazy." He giggles, shaking her so that her hair flies around her like she's in a tornado. "He meant distracting in the same way that Rachel's insistence that hot pink and mustard yellow go together is distracting!"
"Oh my god, yes, that is so distracting!"
"Especially when it gets paired with knee socks!" He starts to say 'it's like a Japanese porno had an illegitimate love child with a Pollock knockoff' before he remembers that he really does love Rachel Berry now, occasionally heinous clothing choices aside. Besides, she's doing much better now that she let Kurt take a blowtorch to her animal sweaters.
"It's like a Japanese porno had an illegitimate love child with a Pollock knockoff!"
Tina shrieks with laughter.
Rachel signed up to be judged when she decided to be his best friend and and not let him pick out all her clothes everyday. If he's going to be sitting next to her everyday then the least she can is not offend his retinas during it. Kurt loves Blaine too, but he doesn't go around telling people that he approves of when Blaine attempts to take new levels of Grandpa Chic.
Mike flops down next to them, pulls Tina out of Kurt's lap and into his. "What are you laughing about?"
Tina pinches his nipple (wait, when did he lose his shirt?) and grins at him. "About your old crush on Kurt."
"No! We were talking about Rachel's terrible fashion choices." Kurt looks desperately at Blaine, who's wobbling over to them with a hard lemonade in one hand and a sparkly purple microphone in the other. He'd like to pretend it's Rachel's, but he knows his boyfriend better than that.
"I liked her tuxedo sweater." Blaine smiles sloppily. "But I like your shirt even better." He plants a wet smacking kiss on the collar of it. It sends more sparks down Kurt's spine than if Blaine had landed it on his skin. He remembers the way Blaine had kissed every button he undid after everyone had gone home after their subdued graduation party, had made love to Kurt's clothes before Kurt's body and how Kurt had been so saturated in Blaine that he never felt naked.
Which is why he totally misses the next few minutes of conversation, only tuning back in when he hears Mike and Blaine commiserating about how distracting his shimmy is.
"Excuse me?" His voice goes all high and strangled, but he thinks he has a perfectly legitimate reason for it in this case.
"It really is Kurt." Blaine tells him sadly. Mike nods like a bobble head. "I had to stop going to Booty Camp because of..." He giggles. Kurt's dating a five-year-old.
"Your booty." Mike mutters, then looks shocked like he totally didn't mean to say that out loud. He probably didn't, he's even more of a lightweight than Blaine.
Kurt has to fight off the urge to cover said booty with his hands, never mind the fact that he's sitting down. He curses the heat wave for what has to be the millionth time; any other time of year and he'd have a sweater or scarf to hide behind like a veil, to wrap around his waist to shield his... booty.
"So sorry to have inconvenience the two of you." He snipes, picking at the carpet and determinedly not looking at any of them. He doesn't know how to deal with this. Nobody like-liked him, nobody found him attractive , not until Blaine. That's his story. What are they doing going around changing it. He flicks a bit of dust as viciously as he can. He should sue them for causing unnecessary memoir rewrites.
"Hey, hey. Kurt." Because it's Blaine, Kurt lets himself be tugged into a hug. "You're just really hot sometimes. Usually when you don't even mean to be. You know, when you're just being you." Blaine's fingers tap out love in morse code against Kurt's thigh. Kurt nods furiously to try and ward off the sudden wave of embarrassingly powerful adoration welling up from the pinpoints of Blaine's touch.
"It's true." Mike says, but he's not even looking at Kurt so Kurt's not sure how to take that. He's staring at Tina like he's trying to memorize her. "You're really beautiful."
"Oh god, you two are worse than a hangover." Kurt kicks at them. "Go make out in the corner or something and leave my fragile stomach alone."
"I'd like to see you two make out." Tina drawls. "You and Mike I mean. Although I wouldn't say no to you and Blaine."
Kurt makes a noise that usually can only be heard by dogs. "Did that hair dye finally melt your brain?"
Tina waves an airy hand. "You know I haven't dyed my hair in ages, that was weak."
"Excuse me if I'm not on top form considering you just said you wanted me and your boyfriend to cheat right in front of you for your entertainment!" Kurt snaps "Gay fetishization is-"
And then of course Blaine has to cut him off before he can really lay into Tina and make sure she never so much of thinks of Kurt kissing anybody ever again.
"That sounds kind of hot."
Kurt's mouth closes with an audible click. He looks at his boyfriend in exasperation. "What is wrong with you? You want me to cheat on you?" The words Chandler and Sebastian hang between them unsaid.
"No." Blaine ducks his head into the crook of Kurt's neck. "Never." He pops back up before Kurt can decide whether he's supposed to apologize or stay righteously silent. "But it would be hot."
"Super hot." Tina agrees.
Mike opens his mouth. Closes it again. Blushes.
Kurt watches in a kind of transfixed fascination as the blush goes all the way down to his abs. He rubs the pad of his thumb over his hand to steady himself and glances at Blaine, who's watching him watch Mike, and feels giddy with something.
"Want me to go first? Warm him up?" Blaine grins at him lazily, but there's something tentative behind his eyes that lets Kurt know that if he looks away, the subject will be dropped. Forever.
He swallows, his eyes suddenly itchy. He wishes, idiotically, that he could ask Blaine how he's supposed to react to this. He... did not prepare for his evening to go this way. He slides a finger along the comforting scratch of his belt and finally manages to choke out,"You... and Mike. Making out?"
Blaine nods. His Adam's apple bobs slowly in the corner of Kurt's eye.
Blaine's a good kisser. A really good kisser. And well, judging by how rumpled Tina looks after 'study hall' he would put down money that Mike is too. And they're both so handsome and good...
Kurt's dick gives an interested twitch as he imagines the gorgeous contrast Blaine's olive hands would make against Mike's pale abs.
"Do it." Kurt's honestly as surprised as anyone by his answer, but he nods firmly when Blaine tilts his head questioningly.
"Okay." Blaine slips out of his arms to crouch unsteadily next to Mike. Mike puts his hands around Blaine to steady him, and Blaine melts into the touch.
Kurt rolls his eyes at Tina and surreptitiously crosses his legs.
Blaine's tentative at first, gentle presses against Mike's lips as Mike's fingers tighten around his waist. Then Mike makes a tiny whimpering noise that goes right to Kurt's crotch. Kurt can see Blaine realize what he needs to do in the tightening cords of his neck.
Blaine fists a hand in Mike's hair, tilting his head back to kiss deeper. Blaine's shirt crumples under Mike's hands as Mike yields. Kurt can see flashes of tongue between their mouths, can hear the ragged gasps of breath cut short by greedy mouths. He's never been able to see Blaine kissing before. He'd always been rather occupied by being kissed.
It's so hot.
Kurt can feel himself start to harden as he watches Blaine smirk into the kiss, his hand fanning out against Mike's stomach like a brand. Mike clutches at it like a lifeline as sucks on Blaine's bottom lip.
Tina moans softly next to him, and it breaks the spell. They break away, still breathing heavily.
He could slap her.
Blaine runs a hand through his curls. They'd been falling out before, and Mike's hands had gone nowhere near them, but somehow they look so much more... disheveled now. His shirt's rumpled, his lips are bitten red; he looks just like he always does when he's been thoroughly kissed and the fact that Kurt knows what that looks like so well sends another spike of lust through his veins.
"So, uh." Blaine coughs nervously. "Was that okay?"
Kurt twists the ends of Blaine's bowtie around his fingers, tugging him into a searing kiss. Blaine opens for him eagerly, and Kurt chases the taste of Mike in his mouth. He sucks Blaine's lower lip into his mouth, swirling his tongue to try and get every last bit of Mike. Blaine doesn't taste any different but Kurt knows that Mike's tongue had been in his place just seconds before and god, it was so hot. He buries his free hand in Blaine's hair and Blaine whimpers helplessly. "So hot." He pants into Blaine's mouth. "You were so good to Mike."
"Tried to be like you." Blaine says hoarsely, dragging his lips along Kurt's jaw. "You're always so good to me." Kurt shivers as Blaine's scruff scratches along his face. His skin is so sensitive, hickeys and beard burn show up like brands. He doesn't know whether he or Blaine like that fact better.
Blaine tries to pull away half a dozen times, always darting back in for one last kiss, before he manages to turn to look at Mike. Who's currently receiving similar silent ovations from Tina.
"Oi." Blaine clears his throat, but his voice stays deep and scratchy. He sounds like he does after he's had Kurt's cock in his throat, and goddoes that do things to Kurt. "Mike. It's your turn."
Kurt stiffens slightly. Watching his boyfriend make out with his very hot, very taken, friend was one thing. Him making out with said friend is quite another.
"It's okay." Mike says kindly. "Don't worry about it Kurt. Ignore them."
Which is of course why Kurt grabs his shoulders and launches himself at him.
It's clumsy, especially since he's still got a lapful of Blaine and Mike wasn't expecting it at all. It's really not even a kiss, more like a particularly determined head bump. Their lips are practically not even in the same zip code.
Kurt lurches back to shove Blaine off of him. Blaine scrambles over to sit by Tina, who's got her legs crossed and keeps muttering something about this fantasy being 'so much better than being Rachel.' Blaine waggles his eyebrows at Mike, and Kurt has to roll his eyes fondly at his boyfriend's blatant ridiculousness.
When he turns back to Mike, Mike's already tilting his head back for him. He freezes, because the movement is so incredibly sexual and so obviously not Blaine that for a second Kurt's mind goes white. Mike crawls toward him, slow and careful, and drapes himself over him, hovering over Kurt's lap.
"Good boy." He mutters, mostly to himself but Mike bucks up, gasping, and something in Kurt just clicks.
He presses fluttering kisses all around Mike's lips, who keeps craning his head to get at Kurt's mouth. Kurt always hovers until he can feel Mike's breath mixing with his own, can feel the hitch of Mike's breath, before darting away and pressing another close mouthed kiss to Mike's skin. Mike moans piteously, and Kurt settles one hand on his shoulder, thumb rubbing tentative circles into the base of Mike's neck.
Mike pushes back into Kurt's fingers with a quiet gasp. Kurt rewards him with a deep kiss, plundering Mike's mouth for every taste of Blaine. That belongs to Kurt. He sucks on Mike's tongue to silence the startled groan, pressing his thumb in just shy of deep enough to leave a mark. He knows that Tina signed off on kisses, but marking like that would be a whole different story, and he doesn't really want to break off long enough to get permission.
Mike drags in a ragged breath. "Kurt."
Kurt presses his other hand into the small of Mike's back, reveling in the taught muscle beneath his fingers. Mike arches easily at the touch, bending so far back that he pulls Kurt in with him. Kurt's breath catches at all the quiet power quivering under his hands, coiled tight in every muscle. He trails the tips of his fingers across Mike's back, taking in all the different ways his muscles can contract at the touch. Before he can get too lost in it however, Mike wraps one long leg around Kurt's waist and pulls-
"HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY EVERYBODY!"
Kurt jumps as Rachel starts screaming The Star Spangled Banner into the microphone. Typically, even trashed out of her mind she's perfectly on-key.
He'd forgotten that there were other people there.
He abruptly drops out of that space and back into the real world with a disconcerting thump. He focuses on removing his hand from Mike's collar one finger at a time.
"Come onnnnn Kurt." Tina whines at him, but she's grinning, "He likes it when you bite his lip."
Blaine laughs. "Go Mike! Kurt's really sensitive behind his ears."
Kurt claps his hands to ears and gapes at his boyfriend.
Tina lands on the floor with a wheeze. "Be careful with his nipples Kurt! He's kiiiiinda ticklish there!"
"Oh my god, one time when I accidentally touched Kurt's ticklish bit on his side while I was going down-"
"Blaine!" Blaine is never allowed to drink again. Ever.
"Mike tastes like lemonade" Blaine whispers, his breath a sickly sweet gust of air that sends goosebumps up Kurt's neck. "All sweet and bright."
"I wonder why." Kurt rolls his eyes and tries to cross his legs as discreetly as he can. Judging by Blaine's half-lidded gaze he wasn't as discreet as he'd hoped. "What do I taste like?"
"You taste like fireworks." Blaine nuzzles against his neck.
"You're so original." Kurt mutters, but his snappy tone was belied by the fact that he stretches out to give give Blaine more room, "I can't imagine where you got that impression on Fourth of July." He very pointedly does not look at the TV currently tuned to the New York City firework display. He can hear the sharp pop of their explosions in his bones, and he knows with deadly certainty that next year he won't have to watch it on TV.
"You always taste like fireworks."
"Your Katy Perry is showing."
"Baby you're a firework." Kurt's skin fizzes with lust as Blaine sings softly against his ear. Kurt gasps as the tip of Blaine's tongue darts out to trace the shell of his ear. "Yeah" The puff of air against his wet skin makes the room sway around him. "You taste like... celebration. Glittering and colorful and brilliant." Blaine's smiling at him sappily now, and that lovesick look makes Kurt want to drag him down onto the floor even more than his lustful one. "Lighting up the darkness."
"Come on, let your colors burst." Kurt sings under his breathe, and he feels Blaine harden against his leg. They never could resist each other singing.
"Make 'em go oh oh oh" The words are whispered more than sung, Blaine's breath hot against Kurt's lips. Kurt blinks heavily, the beat of the Karaoke machine thrumming through his bones. "You're gonna leave 'em falling down."
Kurt doesn't remember anything else about that night except for the heavy thud of his heart and the taste of music on Blaine's lips.
xx
Santana is saying: "your mother won't even recognize you when I get through with you!"