When I'm In Love, It Isn't Silly At All

by: a quirky little tune

Happy Valentine's Day/Single Awareness Day!

Blaine sat perched on a couch in one of the many common rooms at Dalton. His hands were loosely linked, resting on his thighs as he stared intently at a random spot on the table before him. The only signs that gave away the chaotic nature of his thoughts were the twitching of his fingers and the slight, near unnoticeable bouncing of his right leg. Blaine himself hadn't seemed to notice any of that yet.

Wes and David shared a look, then approached their friend. They took seats on either side of him, Wes slapping a gentle hand over Blaine's fidgeting fingers and David nudging the jittery leg. Blaine sighed, allowed his shoulders to finally relax, and tugged almost nervously at the collar of his button-up.

"We're sorry about Jeremiah," David began sympathetically. He hadn't liked the idea of using the Warblers as Blaine's personal Valentine's card, especially in such a public place as the GAP, but knew how Blaine could get when it came to his crushes. His friend tended to fall for a million and one wrong guys, each crush genuine, but short lived. It probably didn't help that Blaine was a dorky romantic, whose 'romantic' ideas often turned out to be poorly thought out, big productions that tried to shout his feelings across when a simple "Will you go out with me?" would probably suffice.

Wes removed his hand from Blaine's fingers and ran them through his short dark hair. "Maybe he'll come around, you know?" After he finds a new job, Wes thought to himself.

Blaine shook his head slowly, brow furrowing, as if they had just reminded him of an issue nearly forgotten. He spoke quietly, "Jeremiah isn't what's got me so wound up… I mean, yes, it didn't really go as planned and it all blew up in my face, so I am upset about that, but –"

"But…?"

Blaine looked searchingly at Wes, then David, as if trying to see an answer to a silent question on their faces. He opened his mouth, closed it, thought better of it, then resituated himself on the couch to give himself the impetus to just say what he really wanted to say. "Kurt told me he was hoping that I would sing to HIM on Valentine's Day."

"So?"

He had obviously expected them to act as confused or surprised; he stared at them blankly, and when they didn't offer any more of an answer, stuttered, "Well, that means that, you know, Kurt likes me."

David scratched his head and sent Blaine an unreadable look. "You seriously didn't know?"

Blaine looked somewhat frustrated. "Know what?"

"That Kurt thinks you walk on water," Wes filled in.

This took a moment to fully process. "Really?"

"It's not like he's really trying all that hard to hide his opinion of you. Everyone can see it on his face whenever you sing at practice or help him catch up with his school work."

"Of course he idolizes me a little," Blaine tried to reason. "I'm like a novelty to him – the first openly gay boy he's met in Ohio who is proud of his identity and who doesn't have to fight tooth and nail to be himself. Kurt's never really had anyone he could share his experiences with, who understands what he's going through, who he can ask for advice. It's only natural for him to ignore my faults and think that I'm some sort of Super-Mentor or something."

"Blaine, yesterday, he complained about your excessive sweet tooth."

"And then he poked fun at your miserable attempts at French."

"And then he lectured you for a good twenty minutes about proper nightly skin care."

The lead Warbler raised an irritated brow. "So?"

"So," Wes pointed out deliberately, "he sees your faults. He even criticizes you. He doesn't think you walk on water because you're older and wiser – he thinks you walk on water because he's sweet on you."

Blaine's lips thinned.

"Look, this isn't that difficult." David rolled his eyes. "You stepped into Kurt's life at a very low point and gave him a reason to feel good about himself. You're a talented performer, you're extremely supportive, and you're confident in every aspect of yourself, including your sexuality. Maybe it did stem from a bit of hero-worship, but hero-worship doesn't last this long. He's gotten over that aspect of it, I promise you."

Blaine blinked. "David, that's probably the nicest thing you've ever said to me." His friend shoved him good-naturedly.

"Plus, you always make eye contact with him whenever you're singing any of the Warblers' love songs. Especially tonight during the 'Silly Love Songs' number tonight," added Wes knowingly.

"Kurt mentioned something like that, too," Blaine sighed tiredly and started bouncing his leg again. "Honestly, I didn't really think much about how I acted around Kurt until he laid it all out for me earlier today. It really sounds like I was flirting with him all this time…"

Wes looked genuinely surprised. He asked, "Weren't you?"

"I – no. I didn't even think of Kurt in that light until recently, to be quite honest."

David mouthed the word 'obtuse' and Wes nodded sagely while Blaine glared miserably at the table. Smothering a smile, David said, "Maybe not actively, but Blaine, I've got to admit, I've seen you with new students and new Warblers and you do not sing romantic songs with them, or give them your orange every day at lunch because they insist they need certain vitamins to maintain their skin care, or text them the word 'courage' over and over again the day after you've met."

It was hard to argue with that. Blaine swallowed audibly, rubbed the back of his neck, and gave what his friends were saying some serious thought. His composure and self-awareness were things he had worked extremely hard to gain over the years, so it was difficult to admit that he had been sending such mixed signals to Kurt without his own knowledge.

He really didn't realize what he'd been doing all this time, David realized. Kindly, he offered, "Okay, don't think about what you've been doing these past couple of weeks. Think of what you're going to do now, since Kurt has laid his cards on the table and you… well, and you've finally realized that you're actually playing the game."

Blaine sighed loudly and put his face into his hands. "Except that I told Kurt that I didn't want to mess up our friendship right now. I mean, isn't preserving our friendship more important than going out with him?"

"Ah, the classic argument," Wes said knowingly. "But let me ask you this – why do you think a relationship with Kurt will ruin your friendship?"

The look Blaine shot him was dry and very out of character. "I know I've never really been anyone's boyfriend before, but come on Wes. Even I know that breakups can be messy and that a lot of couples stop talking after they separate."

"Seriously, Blaine, you need to stop defining what your experiences will be like by comparing them to other peoples'." Wes groaned. "I know you, and even if things don't turn out the way you hope they will with Kurt, you aren't the sort of person to let a break up destroy your connection with him."

Blaine let his head fall back into his hands and tried to let Wes' words sink in; there were just so many doubts and awful 'what-if's swimming around his mind that it was hard to really listen to what his friends were saying. Softly, he asked, "What do you think I should do?"

David shot him an affronted look, though Blaine couldn't see it. He didn't want Blaine to start a relationship with another boy simply because his friends thought it was a good idea, and was a little annoyed that it had come to this. "Blaine, that's not a question you should ask other people. Make your own decision here."

"What he meant to say," Wes cut in sharply, reaching over Blaine's hunched form to punch David's shoulder, "is that we can't tell you how to feel. You have to figure out if you have any feelings for Kurt, or if you could ever see him as a potential-boyfriend, on your own."

"Okay. Okay, you guys are right." Blaine sat up straight and took in a deep breath. He hated feeling out of control or lost in any situation and knew that sorting out this predicament would be most beneficial to both himself and Kurt. "Kurt is… I mean, he's… when I first saw him…" The words refused to come to him; he sent a pleading look in Wes' direction.

Wes stifled a laugh. "Okay, so Kurt makes you speechless. Is that because there isn't much to say or because you want to say too much?"

The main soloist's brow furrowed. "I think… I think it's the latter."

David pounced on that admission with enthusiasm. "Great! Great, this is great! So, now you know the attraction is there – are the feelings there, too?"

Blaine closed his eyes and saw it all. Kurt's depreciating little chuckle he let loose whenever he made an awkward gay joke that he wasn't sure he wouldn't be beat up for. How his clothing always seemed impeccable. His confidence in his identity, though he knew that not everyone would like that identity. His smile and his dimples. All the wonderful things about Kurt that he had stored away, the small details he had noticed and held close without even knowing it.

"Yes," Blaine said without doubt, feeling lighter than he had in hours.

Both Warbler councilmen got to their feet. "Now that you've got that settled, off to Kurt's room we go!" David tugged Blaine into a standing position.

"I'm sorry?" Blaine asked incredulously, yanking his hand free. "I just came to this huge realization two seconds ago – can't we, I don't know, wait a few days or something? What's the rush?"

Without even replying, Wes grabbed his friend's wrist and pulled from the front while David pushed from the back.

"Hey, seriously, wait a minute – GUYS!"

They stopped at the edge of the grand staircase in Dalton's lobby. David muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "It is way too late to have to deal with this crap," while Wes spun around and said clearly, "Look, you know how teenagers are. We can move from crush to crush in the blink of an eye. You may never get this timing ever again. You like Kurt, don't you?"

Hesitating, Blaine nodded jerkily.

"Say it," Wes encouraged.

"I… I like Kurt."

David piped in, "And you don't want to see Kurt with another guy, do you?"

This time, Blaine shook his head strongly and immediately.

"You don't want to miss out on this relationship just because of a little inexperience and misunderstanding, do you?"

Blaine bit his lip, but after a moment, seemed more confident. "No, I definitely don't."

Wes and David shared a relieved smile and David even bowed, extending his arm toward the stairs. "After you, Mr. Silly Love Songs. You'll make it just in time for the end of Valentine's Day." Blaine tried to ignore the small bit of heat gathering under his collar and in his cheeks as he resumed walking.

They rounded the corner and a part of Blaine felt somewhat panicked when he realized that Kurt was definitely awake in his room; his door was open and light was spilling out into the hallway, which was the classic Dalton invitation for friends to come in and hang out. Another part of him – the part of him that noticed Kurt's smile, his emotions while performing, his proud posture; the part of him that he had oftentimes put on mute – was buzzing with excited anticipation. They were only a few steps away when a new thought struck Blaine like lightning and he had to dig his heels in to stop their progress.

"What if I'm actually taking advantage of –"

"NO."

"GET IN THERE."

And with that, both Wes and David rolled their eyes, planted their hands against Blaine's shoulders, and shoved their shorter friend through the open doorway.

I really needed to write some Blaine/Kurt after 2x12. I mean, their conversation after the failed 'When I Get You Alone' scene is just brilliant - it somehow gently broke my heart and patched it back together in the span of five awkward, kinda-romantic, semi-hopeful minutes.

This story is definitely just as much a character story as it is a romance (probably more character-driven than anything else). One, I wanted to try my hand at Wes and David. I've read a lot of stories lately that have them as goofballs or regular teenagers, essentially. And while I do think they probably cut a little loose when they're not sitting behind that Warbler Council table, I don't think they're just your average high school boys. I think their seriousness and composure are integral parts of their personality, not just part of a mask they wear. Let me know what you think.

Two, 'Silly Love Songs' gave us some juicy Blaine tidbits to work with now! We see he's a bit of a romantic, who doesn't necessarily always come up with the best plans when it comes to emotions. He's inexperienced, a little awkward, but always genuine. I'm glad they're really starting to flesh out his character more and more.

Please leave me some feedback and, as always, thanks for reading! If any of you by chance read my Kingdom Hearts stories, I SWEAR, I'm working on them! Fan Number 61 is almost ready to go, I promise!

Sincerely,

a quirky little tune

AN: I do not own Glee or 'Silly Love Songs'