Whenever you're away from me

Wherever you go

You're never far away from me

I want you to know

I only have to close my eyes dear

And suddenly I'm where you are

You better never stray

Cos I'll never be far away

"Sam! Hey, Sam!" Blaine called, running down the hallway to catch up with his friend. "Hey! I need your help!"

"Wha'd'ya need, bud?" Sam asked, turning to face his friend.

"Um, do you remember how you said that your dad would be willing to drive us to New York so we could visit some colleges?"

"Yeah...?"

"Well, do you think he'd let us visit our friends, too? Rachel? And...Kurt?" A wide smile spread across Blaine's face at the mention of his boyfriend.

"Yeah, dude! My dad's cool! I'm sure he'll let us go see them. So, you wanna go now? What happened to having other plans?"

"I just really miss Kurt, and I had this other awesome idea planned for him for Valentine's Day, but I think I'd rather go and see him." He gave Sam an apologetic smile. "Sorry for not telling you right away."

"It's fine, dude," Sam said, clapping him on the shoulder. "I'm just glad you decided to go anyway. You gonna tell Kurt?"

"No, I think I want it to be a surprise. I was actually kind of hoping that you could help out with that," Blaine said, beginning to walk back down the hallway again.

"Help how?" Sam looked suspicious. "I don't really want to get involved with any of you and Kurt's sex stuff. I mean, you're my best friend, but that's just too much for me."

Blaine shot Sam a confused look. "It's nothing like that. I'm just not very good at keeping secrets sometimes, so if he asks you, you have to play dumb, act like you don't know anything is going on. Can you do that?"

"You're going to New York?" Sam asked with a goofy grin, already playing dumb.

Giving him a thumbs up, Blaine asked one more question. "Do you think your would be cool with letting me stay with Kurt instead of a hotel with you guys?"

"I'm sure it will be fine. He's just driving us; it's not like he's your dad or something."

"I know. I just don't want to upset him since he was so nice to offer to take me out there with you."

"It's cool, dude. I have to go to class. I'll catch you later!" He made finger guns in Blaine's direction before disappearing into his next class.

Blaine was pumped that he was going to get to see Kurt that weekend. Even if it wasn't Valentine's Day, and he wouldn't get to send him all the little romantic gifts that he wanted to, he knew that seeing Kurt and spending time with him was way better than any superficial joy that either one of them would feel from exchanging gifts.

It had been a hard six months since Kurt headed to New York for college. Long distance relationships were a lot more work than either boy realized, especially when they were used to seeing one another practically every day. There had been some big adjustments and some rocky moments over the past few months, but they were still going strong, as in love as ever.

Blaine knew that it was going to be very difficult to keep his plan a secret from Kurt on their daily Skype calls. He had a hard enough time keeping little surprises from him, like whenever he'd send a little gift or show him something that he'd made for him. Then, a horrible thought leapt into his brain. What if Kurt had already made plans for that weekend with Rachel? What if they were going out on the town, and he wouldn't even be home for him to surprise?

Hurrying into the bathroom, Blaine pulled out his cell, dialing Rachel's number. He knew he really should be in English right now, but this was too important to wait.

Rachel picked up on the fourth ring. "Hey, Blaine," she greeted easily.

"Rach, you and Kurt aren't doing anything this weekend are you?" he asked, getting right to the point.

"Well, that was pretty rude. But no, we aren't doing anything. Just staying home and watching old musicals I think. Why?"

Blaine bit his lip, not really wanting to let her in on his secret but really having no other choice. "If I tell you a secret, can you promise not to tell Kurt?" he asked.

"As long as you didn't, like, cheat on him or something, yeah. I can keep a secret."

"I'm surprising Kurt by coming to New York this weekend."

Rachel screeched into the phone."That's great, Blaine! He'll be so excited! When are you coming? What are you going to do? Should I find a reason to leave the apartment?"

"Friday. I'm not telling you. No."

"Oh, come on. Please tell me what you're going to do?" Blaine could practically see the pout on her face through the phone.

"No. The last time I did that, there was disaster."

"It wasn't a disaster! It was just less of a surprise because I maybe told him what was going to happen."

"That would be a disaster, then," Blaine reminded her. "Besides, it's none of your business."

"Fine. But this is the last secret I'm keeping for you, Blaine. You can't keep asking me to keep things from my best friend. It's not nice."

He chuckled at that. "Whatever you say, Rachel. Thanks for doing this. Sam's dad is going to-"

"Sam's dad is coming?"

"Yes? He's driving us up there to do some college visits with Sam. I'm going to be staying at the apartment with you and Kurt." Realizing too late that he'd said too much, he added, "And don't you dare tell him that. It's part of the surprise."

"I won't!" Rachel sounded almost offended. "Well, I have to go to this awful ballet class. The teacher just absolutely hates me. She-"

Blaine cut her off. "I have to go, too, Rachel. Thanks again." He hung up without letting her say good-bye. If he talked to her any more, he'd miss all of English.

His teacher gave him a severe look when he snuck into class, head down, sliding into the last seat at the back. "Some of us like you to be in class on time, Mr. Anderson," she said, stopping her lesson. All eyes turned to him.

"I know. I'm sorry. I had to take care of something."

"Did you get a pass from that teacher?"

"No, ma'am. I forgot."

"Don't let it happen again, or there will be Friday detention."

Blaine nodded, swallowing hard. He couldn't have a Friday detention, not this Friday anyway.

Somehow, he managed to get through the rest of the day without further incident, though he missed most of the lessons that day due to daydreaming about his surprise. He kept pulling out his notebook, jotting down things he'd like to do with Kurt, what he wanted to say, but mostly everything that he missed about his adorable boyfriend. He missed his beautiful eyes and smile, his soft skin, and his kisses. He sighed. He only had to wait two more days.

Mr. Evans left with Sam and Blaine bright and early that Friday morning at 6:00 am. He wanted to get there in plenty of time for Sam to visit one school that day, and then they would be attending a new student day all day Saturday. Mr. Evans planned to do some sight-seeing with Sam on Sunday morning before they headed back. While he had been disappointed that Blaine wouldn't be joining them on their college tours or sight-seeing, Sam must have explained that he really needed to see his boyfriend, because Mr. Evans asked him on several occasions if he was excited to see his friends.

Blaine felt a little bit bad that he was using Mr. Evans like that, but if Sam was sure it was okay, he wasn't going to worry about it too much. He had other things to worry about. Like why he was so nervous to see Kurt. He'd managed to keep his arrival a secret the past two days, and now that the moment was getting closer and closer, he was nervous. He knew he shouldn't be. Kurt hadn't changed. Nothing was different about their relationship. But for some reason, when he thought of seeing Kurt, his hands began to quaver just a little.

Thankfully, Kurt had no classes that Friday afternoon, so when Blaine arrived, he'd be at his apartment, probably studying. He was hoping that he'd be able to sneak into the apartment, with Rachel's help, and into his boyfriend's room before Kurt figured out what was going on.

It was just his luck, though, that with only about an hour left in their drive, Kurt Skyped him. The notification lit up his phone, and he began to panic.

"Sam! Sam!" he hissed at the boy passed out next to him in the back seat. "Kurt's calling me! What do I do?"

"Answer it," Sam said, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "He'll know something's up if you don't, dude!"

"Ugh!" Blaine exclaimed. Thinking quickly, he scrunched himself down deeper into the seat and flopped the hood of his sweatshirt over his head before swiping to answer the call. "Hey," he smiled.

"Hey!" Kurt replied. It took you a long time to answer your phone."

"Yeah. I was in the bathroom," Blaine replied hurriedly, immediately regretting the words. "And my phone was on my bed. I just caught the end of the call." He didn't like lying to Kurt, but he was so close to surprising him that he didn't want it to be ruined now.

"Okay," Kurt grinned. Then, "I miss you."

"I miss you, too. I wish you could come back to Lima soon." Good one, he thought to himself.

"I do to. I'll come back there soon. I need to see my dad, and I can't stay away from you long." Kurt waggled an eyebrow at Blaine.

"So what are you doing?" the curly-haired boy asked, trying to keep the attention off of himself for a bit.

"I was studying, but this English lit class is so boring," Kurt replied, holding up his textbook for proof. "Then I started thinking about you, and I got sad that I'm not going to be able to see you for Valentine's Day this year. So, I decided to call you."

"I'm bummed about that, too," Blaine sympathized.

"Where are you?" Kurt asked, squinting his eyes at the screen. "It looks like you're moving."

"I—I'm not moving," Blaine sputtered, brain working in overdrive to try to come up with a believable story. "I'm in my room," he said lamely.

"Don't you have school today?" Kurt asked, puzzled. "I honestly didn't think you'd answer when I called."

"It's a teacher day," Blaine replied, feeling a bit more confident now that Kurt had dropped the whole "moving" thing.

"I miss those days," Kurt sighed, giving his boyfriend a knowing smile. "We used to spend those days in one of our rooms, kissing and cuddling."

Blaine began to panic. He wasn't wearing headphones, and there was no way he wanted Sam's dad to hear any of this. "Um, I have to go!" he said quickly, interrupting Kurt.

Scowling, Kurt asked, "Why?"

"Mom asked me to do something for her. I forgot about it until just now, and she's going to be home really soon. Don't want to get into trouble!" He tried to smile at Kurt, but he could tell it was strained.

"Okay," Kurt replied, not believing him. "Will you call me back later? I really want to talk. I miss you." He flashed Blaine his best puppy dog eyes.

"Yeah. I will," Blaine assured him, glad that he was going to get off the phone. "I love you."

"Love you, too." Then the screen went dark.

"Phew. That was close," Sam whispered, leaning in closer to his friend. "My dad almost heard way more about your sex life than he'd want to know." He nudged Blaine's side, grinning. "That would be awkward."

"I don't even want you to hear that," Blaine agreed, glancing at the man in the driver's seat.

Mr. Evans showed no sign of having overheard anything unpleasant.

Blaine sighed with relief. "I'm going to try to nap," he told Sam, leaning his head against his friend's solid shoulder.

"Great idea, dude. It makes the trip go so much faster."

The two boys drifted off to sleep quickly, and the next thing that Blaine knew, someone was shaking his knee.

"Wake up. We're here," came Mr. Evans' gentle voice.

Blaine groaned, stretching and letting out a massive yawn.

"We're here," Mr. Evans repeated. "We're at your friend's apartment."

"Thanks," Blaine replied, grabbing his backpack off of the floor next to his feet. Turning to Sam, he said, "I'll see you Sunday afternoon, right?" He looked to Mr. Evans for confirmation. When he got a nod in reply, he turned to Mr. Evans, grabbing the door handle. "Thanks for the ride," he said sincerely. "See you Sunday." He left the car without another word.

Standing on the street in front of Kurt's apartment building, he felt another wave of nerves wash over him. What was he nervous about? Maybe it was less about seeing Kurt and more about whether or not he would like the surprise. Looking up, he realized that Kurt's building wasn't as big as he'd thought it would be. With some tall skyscrapers in the background, his building almost seemed like a dwarf.

As he grabbed the door handle, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed Rachel's number.

"Hello?" he heard over the phone speaker.

"Hey, Rach," he said. "I'm here. What apartment are you guys in?"

"Fourth floor, apartment 16." She sounded tired.

"Did I wake you up?" he asked, already heading for the elevator.

"Yeah. But it's fine." Then, in a whisper, "Kurt's going to be so thrilled. I mean, he has no idea. I've done such a great job keeping it a secret this week; he doesn't suspect a thing."

Blaine punched the fourth floor button before answering. "Thanks, Rach. I appreciate that. I'm a little bit nervous."

She scoffed into the phone. "Don't be. He's going to love that you're here."

"And once I'm in, you'll leave?" Blaine asked, clarifying.

"Yeah. I'll sneak out. You won't even know I've left. But don't worry. I won't come back until about ten tonight. Okay?"

"Thanks," he said, smiling. The elevator dinged, announcing that he'd arrive at the correct floor. When the doors opened, he searched the hallway with his eyes for number 16, finding it quickly. "Okay. I'm at the door," he said into his phone, then hung up.

A second later, the door before him slid open, and he slipped inside.

"He's back there," Rachel whispered, pointing her finger to a curtained off area at the back of the apartment. Before he could run off, though, Rachel pulled him into a squeeze. "It's so good to see you," she said into his ear before letting go and giving him an encouraging smile.

Blaine grinned. "You, too," he whispered back. Then, turning tail, he headed toward the back of the apartment. Pulling the curtain back just a bit, he peered in. Kurt was sitting in front of his laptop, typing away on a Word document.

At the sound of the curtain, Kurt said, "I thought I told you not to bother me, Rachel. I'm studying."

Blaine smiled at the familiar annoyance in his boyfriend's voice. "Good thing I'm not Rachel then," he said softly.

Kurt whirled around in his chair, staring at Blaine in disbelief for a few seconds. "Blaine?" he asked, his eyes filling with tears. "You're here?"

Blaine nodded, rooted to his spot. He wanted to run to Kurt and throw his arms around him, but his legs felt too heavy to move.

Kurt had no such problem however, rushing from his chair to pull Blaine into a tight embrace. "I can't believe you're here!" he said, emotion lacing his voice.

Blaine chuckled. "Surprised?"

"Of course I'm surprised! But you're a horrible liar."

"Not if you believed me," Blaine teased, pulling back to look at Kurt's face before leaning in to kiss him firmly.

"Brat," Kurt replied after the kiss, swatting Blaine's chest. Taking his boyfriend's hands, Kurt led them over to the bed. "How long are you here? How did you get here?"

"Sam brought me. I'll be here until sometime Sunday afternoon."

"What do you mean, Sam brought you?"

"He and his dad came up for some college visits. They offered me a ride to come and see you. I said yes."

"I'm so glad you're here."

"Me, too. Happy Valentine's Day."

"It's perfect. Thank you," Kurt said, curling himself around his boyfriend.

They laid together for a long time, hands intertwined, stealing small gentle kisses every once in a while. Finally, Kurt whispered, "What should we do?"

"Whatever we want," Blaine replied, shifting on the bed. "Rachel left."

"She did? Why?" There was a pause, then Kurt said, "You told her you were coming, didn't you?"

Blaine grinned. "She said she did a good job keeping the secret from you this week."

"She did," Kurt said, shaking his head. "I had no idea." He looked at his boyfriend, taking in the adorable smile. "We can do anything we want?" he asked.

Blaine nodded.

"Then come here, you," Kurt said, pulling Blaine toward him.

"Coming," Blaine mumbled against Kurt's lips.