Kurt looked up, confused at the sudden opening of his door. Jeff stood just inside the doorway looking at him completely seriously – a performer's straight face.
"I'd trade my soul for a wish
Pennies and dimes for a kiss
I wasn't looking for this,
But now you're in my way."
A second voice joined the first as Nick stepped in, trying his hardest to contain himself. Sometimes he got a little excited and burst out in fits of uncontrollable laughter and yelling, in which case the only thing to do was to wait for them to subside. Thankfully this was not one of those instances. Kurt put his books aside watching the two as they started harmonising, standing in their normal performance stance.
"Your stare was holdin'
Ripped jeans, skin was showin'
Hot night, wind was blowin'
Where you think you're goin' baby?"
At the last second, Nick and Jeff parted and in jumped – Wes? Well, this was...unusual. it wasn't really his style... Kurt brushed away the thought; he loved the Warblers' impromptu performances and listened as the whole group spread around Nick, Jeff and Wes.
"Hey, I just met you
And this is crazy
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
How in the world, Kurt wondered, did David manage to fit beat boxing into almost every song they performed? He never thought it would work but somehow it always just did.
"It's hard to look right
At you baby
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
Kurt never stopped being amazed at these boys' talent. The passion with which they performed made almost any song choice attention-catching. But Kurt wasn't usually the one being sung to...it felt strange. Everybody was looking at him. Just him. He was feeling the pressure not to look stupid and tried his hardest not to go red – which, of course, just made him go red. He tried to ignore the ever-embarrassing heat which gave away the colour of his cheeks and stood up watching the Warblers doing their simple flash-mob-style, super-staged dance moves.
"Hey, I just met you
And this is crazy
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!
And all the other boys
Try to chase me
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
Kurt was watching Blaine out of the corner of his eye, glancing at him every now and then. Wes was watching Kurt intently, smiling slightly strangely; a combination of stage face and something else...but Kurt didn't notice over all the movement and noise and...other distractions. The boys quietened down for the second verse and Wes stepped back to give Thad the spotlight. Thad always made funny faces when he was singing the main part; Kurt wasn't sure if it was intentional or he just concentrated oddly.
"You took your time with the call
I took no time with the fall
You gave me nothing at all,
But still you're in my way."
Blaine pouted when he saw Kurt looking at him and grinned widely when Kurt raised his eyebrows. Kurt shook his head trying not to smile. Blaine exaggerated his next actions dramatically. Kurt just avoided melting at his facial expressions.
"I beg and borrow and steal
Have foresight and it's real
I didn't know I would feel it
But it's in my way."
This performance was becoming better yet weirder at the same time. Kurt just wanted to be out of the spotlight and know exactly what was going on. Blaine stood straight with the rest of the Warblers but somehow he still stood out in the crowd of black and red trimming. He followed the lead of Thad as they headed towards the chorus. Kurt thought he could hear Blaine's individual voice in the group but then wondered whether he was just imagining it because of his usual lead singing.
"Your stare was holdin'
Ripped jeans, skin was showin'
Hot night, wind was blowin'
Where you think you're goin' baby?"
Wes had his eye on Kurt waiting to spot the moment when he finally realised what was happening and kept and ear on Blaine, certain he could hear his voice rising over the rest. Sometimes being the leader of the Warblers was good.
"Hey, I just met you
And this is crazy
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
Jeff was excited. He was excited but nervous. What if nothing came of this? What id Kurt didn't even get it? What if it all went to waste? Jeff hadn't really been keen on the song choice in the beginning and his doubts were starting to show.
Nick had no issues. He wasn't even thinking about the things that could go wrong, he was enjoying the song too much – something he never thought he'd say about Carly Rae Jepson. He seemed to have even more energy in those few minutes than he usually did in a whole day. He was watching Blaine, who was diagonally in front of him and to the right, and silently hoped the poor guy wouldn't make a fool of himself after all the preparation – mental and physical – he'd made to work up to this. He concentrated on the dance moves and not jumping into anyone.
"It's hard to look right
At you baby
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
David could sense Blaine's nerves despite how very well he covered it up while performing. Even when they were practising and discussing the performance Blaine tried to be as 'normal' as possible, but David could tell how anxious he felt. Whether he could tell because Blaine gave off a vibe or David knew how he would feel doing something like this, or perhaps purely because of the length of time he had known Blaine, he wasn't sure, but David could just feel it from the boy singing next to him.
"And all the other boys
Try to chase me
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
Thad stepped aside and turned around to finally give Blaine the spotlight. He looked straight at Kurt, who looked straight back at him. Blaine would never intentionally show it but he felt like he was about to throw up. Either that or explode. He could have sworn his insides were hot acid filled with death-evading super-worms. Except his heart. That was definitely still solid. Thumpingly, throbbingly-full-of-adrenalin solid. His legs were about to give way, but thankfully they weren't standing still so there was less chance of that actually happening. He saw David look at him sideways and give him a little encouraging nudge. It was in that moment when he heard the Warblers properly for the first time, and all the effort they were putting in for him completely voluntarily – even though this wasn't originally his idea – gave him all the courage and assurance he'd needed. He focussed back on Kurt putting on his most suitable expression and listened to all his friends singing behind him.
"Before you came into my life I missed you so bad
I missed you so bad
I missed you so, so bad"
Kurt had watched as Blaine made his way to the front, but he hadn't thought about why. He held his gaze with Blaine trying not to back down. Blaine always looked so comfortable, so confident, so in control; Kurt felt like a child for not being able to even look directly at him at times. Blaine smiled at him, starting to sing. Kurt realised just what he was saying while looking straight at him. Kurt's heart stopped, then sped up, then felt like it was trying to break his ribs. He swallowed nervously. His mind was trying to process so much at once that he didn't go red or even feel embarrassed. Blaine kept his eyes on him almost the whole time. The others Warblers drowned out to background noise and Kurt could definitely hear Blaine then.
"Before you came into my life I missed you so bad
And you should know that
I missed you so, so bad."
There was a break as the group did their background singing and Kurt watched them, breaking his gaze with Blaine to look at everybody else.
Jeff was concentrating on his part.
Nick seemed to be quite excited...still.
David looked as though he was about to faint from lack of oxygen.
Wes was looking around at everybody else to make sure everything was going well.
Thad was watching Blaine.
And finally, Blaine was watching Kurt with a face like a little boy, a best friend, a brother and a performer. He looked like he really wanted to say something but couldn't. He looked away for the next line and smiled at the guys next to him.
"It's hard to look right
At you baby
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
Kurt stood there, still trying to mentally pick his jaw up off the floor. He didn't dare to think any further than he already unintentionally had into what all this was for. He stared at the Warblers awestruck and tried not to think about it.
Blaine kept the lead trying not to show his nerves and disappointment about Kurt not seeming to enjoy it.
"And all the other boys
Try to chase me
But here's my number,
So call me maybe!"
It was a stupid idea. He hadn't thought it all through properly; it wasn't going to work. Kurt was just going to think he was weird and –
"Before you came into my life I missed you so bad
I missed you so bad"
-and creepy and-
"I missed you so, so bad
Before you came into my life I missed you so bad"
-and it would get really awkward and Kurt would never-
"And you should know that
So call me maybe!"
-never want to speak to him or even see him again, he thought as the boys finished singing and stood still in the ringing, echoing silence.
Kurt, meanwhile, was stunned into silence. He looked around at the group several times, always coming back to Blaine. He wanted to say something but didn't know what, so he just stood there kind of thinking about everything that had just happened. It wasn't shock, exactly...perhaps surprise? Of course he hadn't expected this to happen – not that this was what the song was really about: Kurt was just assuming. Stupidly, naïvely assuming something that couldn't possibly be true because, of course, Blaine didn't...he didn't...he couldn't – feel – that. Because Blaine was...Blaine. he wasn't an average person. He was more than that to Kurt, who watched as he looked around at the other Warblers, panting slightly, and smiled and nodded subtly at them. He watched them leave quietly, undoubtedly tired from their performance, Kurt thought. But as soon as they got down the corridor and through a few closed doors they were as loud as children in a playground after nap time.
"That was awesome!"
"We totally nailed it!"
"I hope Blaine does okay..." Jeff added, after joining in the initial cheering.
"Dude, he'll be fine: it's Blaine."
Kurt breathed in, mentally berating himself over how he was reacting to the performance. He thought he probably looked like a blubbering fish to Blaine, who was now approaching him – OH GOD, BLAINE WAS COMING TOWARDS HIM AND HE LOOKED LIKE A BLUBBERING FISH. Kurt composed himself – mentally and physically – as Blaine made his way towards him. He seemed to be frozen to the spot right in front of his bed, and looked down at his feet expecting to find super-strength spider webs trapping them to the floor, but saw only his (expensively stylish, highly polished) black school shoes. He inwardly thanked God for the beauty of leather and pulled his eyes back up to look at Blaine.
Blaine waited until Wes had followed the other Warblers out of the room and closed the door before he looked at Kurt. His face looked stunned and confused, as well as, almost, calculating. Blaine paused, wondering whether this was a good idea. Then Kurt's face changed, looked more neutral, calmer, and his intentions were reassured. He stopped in front of Kurt and smiled charmingly.
"Hey," he said casually.
"Hey," Kurt replied, looking like he was letting out a breath he'd held for the whole performance. "That was – something."
Blaine nodded, laughing quickly. Kurt noticed his bashful attitude and took a little – albeit guilty - joy in the realisation that Blaine was nervous.
"Yeah, yeah, that was...something, alright." He coughed awkwardly to avoid the silence and Kurt took a sudden interest in the contrast between his shoes and the carpet.
"I was wondering-"
"So what've you-"
"Oh," they both said at the same time, "You go first- no you-"
They both stopped and laughed awkwardly.
"You start," said Kurt, smiling politely.
"Thanks, uh..." Blaine fidgeted briefly and opened his mouth to say something but couldn't. Kurt wondered whether something was wrong.
"Are you alright, Blaine? Is...everything okay?" He tried not to jump to conclusions and freak out that he'd done something wrong without even saying much.
Blaine looked surprised. "Wh- oh, no- I mean yes, everything's fine. I just wanted to know – I mean, I just wondered if you'd like to..." He fiddled with a button on his blazer and took a deep breath as Kurt's heart hammered so loudly he could join a rock band. "...if you'd like to join the Warblers?" He smiled hopefully.
Oh. Kurt's heart sank, along with his body, through the floor – metaphorically, of course – and landed somewhere in a crevice in the depths of 'Friend Zone'.
"O-oh, I, uh- yeah, sure! I'd love to!" Kurt tried to be honestly excited – and he would have been, if his fragile, unshared hopes hadn't just been crushed. Joining the Warblers was something he'd seriously considered but hadn't had the guts to talk to anyone about.
Blaine smiled suddenly and cut off Kurt's ongoing blabbering.
"Kurt – I was kidding. What I really meant to ask was whether you might possibly, conceivably, by any chance, want to come have a picnic with me in the park."
He looked out the window taking another breath.
"Like a date."