A/N:

Hello fellow Gleeks and Klaine-shippers!

Here's my first attempt at a Klaine fic (or at any sort of creative writing since dinosaurs roamed the earth). I was torn between wanting to write a summer/senior year fic and going back to revisit Klaine's relationship through Season Two. This might sound redundant since I know a lot of you out there have already written Season 2 fics (and yes, my heartfelt thanks to all of you for the inspiration!). But since I suck at imagining completely new plot lines, I went with the second option. I see this as a way to make more sense of Klaine, now that we all know what happens. So, if there is still interest out in the fandom in Klaine Season 2, I'll write my way backwards from the New York episode back to NBK.

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, or any of its fantastic characters and story lines.

Ch. 1 - And Just to Clear the Air

I love you too…

These words kept replaying in Blaine's mind. It happened on Monday, New Directions' first full day back from New York since the Show Choir National Championships. Kurt could not have waited a moment longer to recount all his adventures to his boyfriend. Blaine was thankful that there were no classes at Dalton Academy on that particularly day, due to a pedagogy workshop for the elite private schools' staff. This allowed him to meet Kurt for a lunch hour latte, a luxury not normally afforded on a school day. Unlike most after school coffee dates, when he was still clad in his oppressively neat Dalton uniform, he could wear regular street clothes this time. Secretly, Blaine preferred his blazer because it meant he wouldn't have to put his atrocious fashion sense out for the world to see. But for Kurt's welcome home coffee date, he wanted to try extra hard. He wanted all of him, including his outfit, to scream, "Hello, beautiful! Welcome back I've missed you so much and am SO happy to have you back at my side again now please never ever leave me again for this long because I missed you so much I almost died and did I mention again that I'm so happy you're home because I am I really am now tell me everything!" He selected a pair of tight fitting jeans that accentuate his muscular legs and a plaid shirt with a red cardigan, a color that matched his bright mood.

The Warblers' lead singer gushed with admiration when Kurt, blue-green eyes sparking with excitement, described in meticulous detail the events of the weekend. The brunette countertenor, who possessed a competitive streak that a seasoned Olympic ski champion would find intimidating, did not seem the least bit upset at his glee club's placement at Nationals. The boy with the immaculately styled curls leaned into his palm and stared dreamily at his…boyfriend? No, he thought, that wouldn't do, not even close! Kurt was so much more to him than just a boyfriend, more than even a high school sweetheart. That quirky young man was his compass and his anchor. He was the gentle breeze that caressed his curls and the cool autumn air that refreshed his lungs. He was the medium drip that enervated his core. In fact, he thought Lima Bean's coffee tasted a lot like Kurt (no matter how much Wes and David insisted it was just the hazelnut syrup). A wave of adoration washed over Blaine, and the words flew out of his mouth before he even knew they had come out.

In the days that followed, the boys met for their after school rendez-vous as they had always done since Kurt's transfer back to McKinley. Yet something about these coffee and dinner dates seemed different. Blaine had watched Kurt swallow his coffee a bit awkwardly at the three little words. He had seen the look that flickered through Kurt's eyes for a brief second before the fashionable singer echoed in response. Blaine still could not quite place what that look was. Shock? Anxiety? Uncertainty? Blaine felt he should be happy that Kurt had said "I love you" back, and told himself that Kurt's reaction was exactly what he should have expected. Yet his stomach knotted up every time he thought about the way Kurt had so quietly made his announcement. The boys had kept up their normal flirtatious banter, late night text messaging and went about their routines exactly as they had done before that Monday. This was preciously it, though. They had not reiterated their declarations of love, as if neither were completely willing to come to terms with the raw emotions that accompanied those vows.

It was now Saturday evening, a few days after Kurt and Blaine had exchanged "I love you"s. The boys were lying side by side on a blanket spread out on a grassy knoll, with their fingertips just brushing, watching the first star appear in the night sky. Both were eerily silent. Finally, Kurt sat up.

"Blaine?"

"Hmmm?"

"We…we need to t-talk," Kurt said, barely above a whisper, absentmindedly brushing the fuzz off his white designer denim jacket.

The stammer caught Blaine's attention. He propped himself up on his elbows and angled his body to face the other boy. "Mmmkay, what about?"

Kurt locked eyes with Blaine before he continued. "It's about what we said to each other, after I came back from Nationals…" His voice trailed off as he looked down at his hands, which were clasped together so tightly that his knuckles began turning white.

Blaine now pulled himself into a sitting position. He started to reach his hand out to Kurt, but then withdrew it, and instead he wrapped his arms around his knees. He inhaled and exhaled nervously. "You mean when we said…"

Kurt closed his eyes, and drew a deep breath before reconnecting his gaze with Blaine. "Y-yeah, about that. It's just, you know, those are really important words, and we haven't talked about it at all –that we said it to each other, and what it all means for…for us."

"Oh, Kurt-"

"Now, just let me finish…I know you're not good with words and saying what you feel, and I know you're always torturing yourself over what to say and when to say it. But this is a big deal. I feel like things have somehow been different for us in the last few days…"

Kurt shifted awkwardly, throwing his knees to one side and bunching the picnic blanket in his fists. He looked down at his lap. "Ugh, I don't know what I'm trying to say…" He squeezed his eyes shut in frustration.

When Blaine heard the tremor in Kurt's voice, his heart began to pound. What could this possibly mean? A million thoughts flooded his brain. Was Kurt reprimanding him for his lack of romantic timing? Was he taking their relationship too fast? Was he feeling coerced into something more than he can handle? Was he, heaven forbid, having second thoughts about them?

"Oh Kurt, I am so sorry. I don't know why I said I love you when I did. I mean, I do love you, and I meant it when I said it, but I had always thought I'd have a much more special way of saying it to you instead of just out of nowhere like that. I have no idea what got into me," He reached out to grab Kurt's hands and began rubbing them lightly. "Please, I hope you understand that I wasn't trying to pressure you into saying it back. I really did want you to know, at some point or another, how I truly feel about you, but just know that I would have understood if you didn't want to say it back right away…or ever, even…"

It was Blaine's turn to stare at his lap. His eyes began to well up at the thought that Kurt might never love him. If it hadn't been pitch black, Kurt would have seen the color drain from his boyfriend's face. This is it, Blaine thought to himself. This was finally the time when Kurt would admit that he didn't really feel the same way about him. Ever since he worked up the nerve to tell his best friend how he really saw him, his carried out his daily routines with zeal. He did not just walk to his classes; he sprang to them. His thoughts were constantly occupied by the memory of Kurt's lips whenever they touched his, and the color of the gorgeous boy's eyes when they fixed their gaze on his own. He felt like he was floating in the clouds most of the time. The couple was in their honeymoon phase, but now, Blaine supposed it was all coming to an end. Kurt had just come back from New York and seen what the world outside of Ohio could offer – freedom to be his fabulous self, opportunities for stardom, and dashingly handsome guys in the fashion or theater business who would line up at Kurt's door just for a chance to go on a date with the porcelain skinned heartthrob. He knew that Kurt would eventually figure out that there were many more fish in the sea. How could Blaine, a hobbit of a boy from the Ohio backwater, possibly measure up to expectations?

Blaine felt Kurt's hands slide up his arms to grab him by the shoulders. "Oh, Blaine, oh goodness no!" Kurt exclaimed. "Don't be sorry! I should be the one who's sorry!" Kurt brushed the back of his hand by Blaine's moist cheek. He then cupped his hand underneath the boy's jaw, and gently lifted his chin.

"Look at me, and listen. I'm sorry that I didn't sound very convincing when I said I love you back." Kurt ran his free hand through Blaine's curls. "I meant it, and I still mean it now – I love you. It's just…well, it's the most exhilarating and most frightening thing at the same time. Does that make any sense at all?"

Blaine took the hand that was on his chin and kissed it gently. "Y-yeah…I think so," he whispered, squeezing the hand softly.

Kurt spoke again, this time with more confidence. "A year ago I never thought I'd have any of this. I just resigned myself to the fact that I will never really be happy until I get out of this little town. And then you came into the picture. I never told you this, but after we sang together at Christmas I admitted to Mr. Schue that I'm in love with you, and that you being actually being gay was considered progress enough for me. I kept telling myself that unrequited love from my best friend would be the most I could ever hope for. I never, ever thought you could love me the same way I love you. And I am afraid that one day I'll wake up, and all of this will just have been a silly dream."

"Kurt, I've loved you since the day we met." Blaine let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "There you were, so defiant and confident, and at the same time so…broken. I wanted to just hold you, say sweet things to you and get rid of everything that was hurting you. When you cry it breaks my heart because there isn't anything I can do to keep you from suffering. And when you laugh I feel like we can fly far, far away to a land of rainbows and unicorns. It just took me forever to realize that all this was love. Darling, you are my everything. If you walked off the edge of the earth, I'd be right there with you because I can't imagine a world without you." He cast his glistening eyes at Kurt's, silently professing his undying love with his intense look.

"Oh, Blaine, that's how I feel about you. You gotta know, this isn't just some meaningless teenage thing. When I'm with you, I feel it with all my heart that it's where I'm meant to be. No matter how bad things get, I just know that everything will be okay as long as I have you. I – love – you." Kurt pulled his boyfriend into a close embrace. "More than these three little words can ever show, my dear. You, more than anything else, give me a reason to wake up every morning," he murmured into the other boy's ear. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I will never let go of you." Tears streamed down Blaine's face as he wrapped his arms around the body that was pressed against his. He buried his head into Kurt's shoulder, and both boys finally unleashed their emotions into each other through sobs and sighs.

The pair pulled apart when their breathing had steadied. Blue-green eyes gazed into hazel ones. Mouths lifted into shy smiles that reaffirmed love, friendship and loyalty. Two pairs of lips melted into passionate kisses while stars twinkled ever so brightly in the dark sky. To the couple entangled in each others arms on a grassy knoll, everything in the world was just right.

A/N 2: I apologize profusely for grammar, syntactical and other such silly errors. I am the worst proof-reader on this planet, and would understand completely if you gave up and stopped reading because of my boo-boos. But if you stuck with this chapter through to the end, please do review! I would really appreciate the feedback!