They'd started living together again a few months ago, and already the tension was at its peak. It was small things, like whose turn it was to do the grocery shopping, or who forgot to do the laundry. Maybe one of them over-adjusted the thermostat and it was too hot for the early days of June. It was always minor things like that, but it built up. They both tried to forget about the almost-fights the next day, but it continued to build the longer they ignored it all.
Finally, it was an alarm clock that caused the cord to snap.
Blaine was half-asleep, smiling drowsily as he curled his body around Kurt's. He loved mornings like these, where he could just enjoy the warm comfort of cuddling with his fiancé.
The moment was cut off much too soon, however, when Kurt woke up, checking the time before gasping and sitting up. Blaine slumped on the bed with a huff, looking over at Kurt in confusion. Why was he so upset? It was early; they still had time to… He looked over at the clock and his eyes widened fearfully. Oh no.
"Kurt…"
"How could you forget?!" Kurt exclaimed, turning to face him, his expression wild and, honestly, quite terrifying. "I told you I needed you to set your alarm because mine is broken. I told you, over and over again, that I couldn't be late to this meeting! And you forgot?"
He sat up, careful not to say the wrong thing. Kurt was tired and stressed and he didn't want to make it worse. "Kurt, I… I am so, so sorry—"
"Sorry doesn't change the fact that the meeting starts in ten minutes!" Kurt cried. His eyes were wide and panicked. "I… I have to hurry. I cannot miss this meeting," he muttered to himself, jumping out of bed and speed-dressing. "They'll have me fired for sure."
Blaine wanted to comfort him, tell him that they'd be crazy to fire him at Vogue; remind him that he was one of the best they'd ever had. But he didn't want to add fuel to the fire of an already delicate situation.
How could he have forgotten? He'd even set an alarm to remind himself to set the alarm for Kurt's meeting. And he could've sworn he set the alarm. But apparently he'd forgotten. Otherwise Kurt wouldn't be panicking in the bathroom as he hurried to do his hair.
He just hoped he hadn't ruined everything.
Blaine shuffled into the kitchen, anxiety building in his chest. He really felt horrible for making Kurt late to his meeting. It was incredibly important to his fiancé and he knew that. But he couldn't change it now, so he figured he could at least make some coffee for Kurt to save him some time.
He heard the bathroom door open and he turned around to see his fiancé fiddling with his hair with one hand and adjusting the strap on his bag with the other. He looked so frazzled and Blaine hated that it was because of something he'd done.
"I made you some coffee," he offered tentatively.
Kurt said nothing, stalking past him and snatching up his cup of coffee. The tension in his shoulders didn't even relax when the first gulp was swallowed. That worried Blaine even more. "Honey, I really am sorry. Is there anything at all I can do?"
"Not unless you can turn back time," Kurt muttered. Blaine immediately picked up on the anger there and his own shoulders tensed.
"I—"
"Just stop," Kurt snapped, meeting Blaine's eyes for the first time since he'd entered the kitchen. "I'm so freaking angry at you right now and I don't want to say something I'll regret, so can you please leave me alone?"
Blaine drew in on himself instinctively. He knew that tone. He'd heard his grandfather use it so many times just before he lashed out. He'd heard it from his uncle just before the drunken man's hand struck his face, unseen by the rest of the people at the Anderson family gathering. He'd heard that particular tone directed at him several times, but he'd never heard it from Kurt. And it scared him.
"I just want to help," he said in a small voice.
Kurt glared at him. "If you wanted to help, you would have set that stupid alarm!" Once again, he stomped past Blaine and rushed to gather the things he needed for the meeting. He adjusted his bag again and went to grab his laptop, groaning when it wasn't on the table by the door. "Where is my phone? I need the file that has all my designs!"
"I-I think I saw it on your nightstand."
A few seconds later, Kurt returned from their bedroom with his laptop in hand. Blaine hated the all too familiar feeling of guilt curling in his gut. "Kurt, I'm so sorry… I didn't mean to—"
"You didn't mean to?" Kurt exclaimed, turning to face him. "You didn't mean to? That's funny, because you also didn't mean to forget about the laundry. And you didn't mean to forget about your turn to make dinner while I was at work. You didn't mean to do any of those things, but they still happened! And now you might as well have just flushed my career down the toilet with how much this meeting with Isabelle's bosses meant to me! How can I be engaged to someone who I can't even rely on to do something as simple as set an alarm?"
Blaine flinched, tears coming to his eyes. "Kurt, I'm—"
"I know, you're sorry. Well, I'm pissed! I hate that this keeps happening! And I hate you!"
Blaine's breath caught in his throat and he stared at Kurt, horrified. "You…" He choked out a sob and shouted, "You promised!"
Kurt's face fell, all his anger slipping away, and his eyes widened as he realized what he'd said. "Blaine…"
Before he could say anything else, Blaine turned away and ran into the bathroom, locking the door behind him.
"Blaine!" Kurt cried, chasing after him. "Honey, please open the door. I'm sorry…" He felt a stab of dread in the pit of his stomach and he hit his hand against the door a few times. "Blaine, please. I didn't mean that. You know I didn't. Please open the door."
Blaine's sobs quieted for just a second before the lock clicked and Kurt opened the door carefully. He rushed over to Blaine who was sitting up against the wall, wrapping his arms around him and holding him tight. "Blaine, I'm so sorry. I know that's not good enough and it doesn't make up for what I said, but I am so sorry. I love you. I could never hate you."
Blaine sniffled against his chest. "You… you promised you'd always love me. You promised."
"I haven't broken that promise. I still love you, and I always will. I was mad, but that's no excuse, and it doesn't change anything. I love you so much, Blaine."
"I love you, too," Blaine whimpered, clinging to his fiancé and burying his face deeper into his chest.
A few minutes passed before Blaine sat up, suddenly looking panicked. "You need to get to your meeting. Y-You're already late. I—"
"It's okay," Kurt stopped him. "Isabelle will cover for me. And if not, it's not the end of the world. I have my band, I have the diner, and most importantly, I have you." He wiped away a tear as it slid over his cheek, smiling softly at his fiancé. "And you are more important than some meeting. I should have realized that earlier, and I'm sorry. And I'm not mad at you anymore. I never should have overreacted."
Blaine stared at him for a moment, not sure what to say, and then cuddled into Kurt's chest again. "I forgive you," he whispered after a few minutes of silence.
Kurt smiled, kissing the top of Blaine's head. "Thank you." He paused, rubbing Blaine's back. "You know, since I'll be staying home today after all, we have plenty of time for some awesome cuddling," he said, smiling teasingly as Blaine looked up at him.
Blaine smiled, biting his lip. "Is that your way of saying make-up sex?"
"Maybe," Kurt drawled, laughing when Blaine poked him in the shoulder. "Okay, so maybe I wouldn't mind if the cuddling didn't involve clothes."
Blaine laughed, then, and surged up to kiss his fiancé, cupping his face with both hands. When they broke apart, Blaine touched his forehead to Kurt's and smiled. "Maybe I wouldn't mind, either."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Kurt asked, relieved and grateful all at once that he'd been able to fix things between them.
Sure, they'd have more fights. They'd have hundreds of them in their lives. But at the end of the day, they both knew that none of it mattered. What mattered was that they had each other and they always ended the night with a kiss and a whispered "I love you."
And that would always be the most important thing.
