After the Kiss
A/N: Hi, kids.I'm jumping on the 5-year Klaine first kiss anniversary train.How the time flies!Here's my take on what happened in that infamous scene when we were so rudely interrupted by Mercedes' song.We'll start with a little opening recap, of course, because really, can we relive that scene too often?
"Kurt, there is a moment when you say to yourself, 'Oh, there you are. I've been looking for you forever.'"
Kurt watched Blaine struggle for his words, but he sat quietly, letting him say what was on his mind. Inside, he could hear his heart begin to pound in his ears. No, he thought. This can't be going where I think it is. Then Blaine put his hand on Kurt's, and everything changed.
"W-watching you do Blackbird was a moment for me…about you. Y-you move me, Kurt, and this duet would just be an excuse to spend…more time with you."
Kurt couldn't believe what he was hearing. He looked searchingly into Blaine's eyes, not knowing what to expect and trying desperately to think of what to say while wondering where his command of the English language had gone. Blaine leaned in, rising slightly from his chair and moving toward Kurt slowly. He rested one hand on Kurt's thigh for balance. Before Kurt could register that sensation, Blaine's lips were on his. Blaine inhaled softly and reached his free hand up to caress Kurt's cheek.
Kurt was overwhelmed. His emotions were soaring, his heart was pounding – every cell in his body seemed to vibrate all at once. He took a sharp breath through his nose, flexing his fingers in an attempt to expel the excess energy. All of a sudden, his brain took a back seat and his body took over, reaching a hand up to cup Blaine's jaw and tilting his head slightly, moving his lips gently against Blaine's.
Surely, this was the best feeling in the world.
All too soon, they broke apart. Kurt heard a loud thump, and realized it was his own hand falling to the table. He apparently no longer possessed the strength to hold it up. Blaine returned to his seat, looking down shyly and running a hand quickly across his face in an attempt to hide the blush he could feel rising. He let out a breath and looked down at the table, smiling and stuttering out, "We should – we should practice…" He was trying to regain his composure and was praying that he hadn't overstepped. His prayers were answered with four breathless little words from the gorgeous boy next to him.
"I thought we were." God, he's cute when he's flustered, Kurt thought.
Blaine looked up to see Kurt smiling widely at him. Relieved, excited, and happy, he crashed their lips together once more, this time with more force and urgency. Where their first kiss had been soft and hesitant, this one expressed all of the feelings that had been building up between them. Blaine was out of his chair again, but this time he slipped an arm around Kurt and pulled him up to stand. Kurt's hand was on Blaine's jaw at first, but once they stood, he slipped both arms around Blaine's neck as Blaine's arms wound around Kurt's waist to pull them close together.
Blaine could feel Kurt relaxing into him as they continued kissing. One of them tilted his head a fraction of an inch to the right, the other switched his focus from upper lip to lower – they were just finding their way with each other in this new and amazing experience. Eventually, when the necessary evil of breathing returned, Blaine pulled back, thrilling at the little whine he heard from Kurt as he tried to chase his lips. Smiling uncontrollably, Blaine bobbed forward to peck at Kurt's lips, then his cheek, before pressing his cheek to Kurt's and holding him tightly. They were both breathless and panting a little, Blaine instinctively running a hand up and down Kurt's back while Kurt's fingers worked their way up the back of Blaine's neck and twisted around a couple of curls he was able to break free from the gel. They weren't sure when they'd begun swaying slightly, or when they had shifted to rest their heads on each other's shoulder.
When their breathing had calmed, Kurt lifted his head and pulled back to look Blaine in the eyes. His gaze flicked to Blaine's lips for a moment, then back up as he blushed at the realization of what they'd just done. "Hi," he whispered, smiling bashfully.
"Hi," Blaine replied softly. He slid his arms from Kurt's back and reached to take Kurt's hand. "Come over here," he said, walking toward one of the plush couches in the room. "Sit with me for a minute." He silently thanked whoever decorated this school for adorning it with a plethora of comfortable couches. Fleetingly, he thought of making good use of as many of them as possible with Kurt, but he shut down that train of thought immediately. Now was not the time.
Settling down next to each other, knees touching and fingers entwined, the two boys looked at one another. Kurt couldn't believe how in one short moment, everything he'd been wanting for months had finally been handed to him. He was afraid of waking up and finding it all to be a dream, but even in his dreams, it hadn't felt this amazing.
"I'm so sorry, Kurt," Blaine began, and Kurt's heart dropped to the floor.
Oh, god, this is it. He's going to say it was all a mistake, he thought. He could feel the color drain from his face as his hand slackened in Blaine's as he pulled away. "Y-you're sorry for kissing me?" he said, angry with himself for the way his voice cracked with emotion.
"What?" Blaine exclaimed, his eyes going wide as he realized how his statement sounded. "No, Kurt, no no," he rushed, reaching out both arms and pulling Kurt to him. He held him close for a minute, kissing his temple and giving him one last squeeze before releasing him. He put his hands on Kurt's shoulders, squaring to face him and looking him pointedly in the eye. "Kurt, kissing you is the best thing I've ever done. Don't ever doubt that," he said with conviction.
Kurt sighed with relief. This was all so new, he still couldn't quite allow himself to believe it was real. However, this boy in front of him, looking him in the eye with such caring and compassion, sure made it easy to start giving in to the belief.
They settled again on the couch, hand in hand, and Kurt prompted Blaine to continue. "So, what are you sorry for, then?"
Blaine took a breath, hesitating. He looked down, focusing his attention on their joined hands. Without looking up, he continued, "I'm sorry it took me so long to figure this out. I'm sorry I didn't see it – that I didn't see you, Kurt."
Kurt shook his head and huffed out a laugh. "It's okay," he said reflexively.
"No, it's not," Blaine responded, still speaking quietly but looking up. "You were right here - right in front of me this whole time. You even told me a month ago at Valentine's Day that you thought I was going to ask you out." He paused and his eyes grew wide. "Oh, lord, Kurt!" he said in horror. "What I made you – what you did…" he trailed off, leaving Kurt confused.
"What do you mean, Blaine?" Blaine had turned away and was covering his face with his hands. Kurt gently took his wrists, tugging lightly to both remove them and turn Blaine back towards him. Ducking his head to meet his eyes, he prompted, "Tell me."
Blaine looked miserably at Kurt before managing to say, "The Gap. Kurt, I had you sing backup while I serenaded another guy. Oh, I'm the worst person in the world," he moaned, trying once again to hide his face, this time by planting it in the back of the couch.
Kurt shook his head again and smiled. "Okay, so you might owe me for that one," he said with a little sass as he poked Blaine in the shoulder with one finger. Blaine lifted his head to find Kurt smiling at him, and let out a short sigh of relief. "You'll just have to find an appropriate way to make it up to me," Kurt added.
"I think that can be arranged," Blaine said, leaning over to Kurt and pushing him back slightly to lean against the arm of the couch. He hovered over him for a moment, his eyes sweeping over Kurt's face before looking in his eyes again for confirmation that this was okay. He didn't need to be concerned with that, however, as Kurt took the opportunity to lean up and capture Blaine's lips himself, slipping a hand to the back of his neck and leaning back as Blaine took the hint and followed.
Several glorious, breathless minutes later, they parted once more, spending a few seconds quietly enjoying each other's presence. Kurt broke the silence this time. "You know," he began, tracing a finger along Blaine's jawline, loving the way Blaine's breath hitched ever so slightly at the simple contact, "we should probably really start practicing that duet you mentioned."
Blaine smiled ruefully. "Killjoy," he muttered, giving one last nip to the tip of Kurt's nose before sitting up and pulling Kurt up with him. "Before we do that, however," he went on, "we should do one other thing."
Kurt raised an eyebrow in question, but said nothing. Blaine rose from the couch, taking Kurt's hand to follow. "Well," he said with a roll of his eyes, "there is a room full of Warblers down the hall that we should probably go see." Kurt didn't like the guilty tone in Blaine's voice.
"Um, and why is there a room full of Warblers down the hall, exactly?" Kurt inquired. It wasn't a usual practice time.
"They might have been having a special meeting to discuss the set list," he paused as Kurt's eyes closed while he realized where this was going, "and they might have sent me down here to get you and bring you back."
"So they're waiting for us?" Kurt said, the volume and tone of his voice rising as the reality set in. "Blaine, we've been in here for, like, twenty minutes!"
"Almost thirty," Blaine chuckled, absentmindedly starting to straighten Kurt's tie and running his hands over Kurt's cardigan to sweep away its now somewhat rumpled appearance.
"Not helping," Kurt said under his breath. "So you picked this precise moment to make your declaration to me – when you were supposed to just fetch me and bring me back? What were you thinking? What will they think?"
Blaine's hands stilled, coming to rest on Kurt's shoulders. He stepped forward an inch or two, and answered Kurt seriously. "What I was thinking was that I'd waited far too long to find someone who makes me feel the way you do, and I didn't want to wait anymore to tell you." He gave Kurt an affectionate smile and a light kiss on the cheek. "As for what they'll think, I figure they'll all be so happy, they won't really mind. And if they think we were making out a little…" he shrugged and winked as Kurt lightly slapped his shoulder.
Kurt playfully rolled his eyes. "Well," he said with an exaggerated sigh, "I suppose I can take a few whistles and catcalls if you can." Taking Blaine's hand, he began to stride toward the door. "Come on, Loverboy," he said over his shoulder, internally cheering when he saw Blaine flush a bit, "let's go face the music."
The Warblers didn't mind their absence at all. When Blaine hadn't returned within a few minutes, they'd pretty much figured out what was happening. As the couple walked in, hands joined and irrepressible smiles on their faces, they were met with cheers and applause and more than one call of "It's about damn time!"