Anniversary
Kurt checked his phone one last time, reading his most recent text message and sending off a quick reply before pocketing the phone in his jacket. Everything was set. Now if he could just keep himself from jumping out of his own skin for another twenty minutes, he'd be perfect.
"Blaine!" he called across the apartment. "Come on, we've got to go!"
Blaine strolled out of the bedroom, straightening his bowtie and looking as dapper and handsome as Kurt had ever seen him. "You know," he began, slipping his hands into his pockets and sauntering toward Kurt once he noticed the appreciative look on his husband's face, "this may be a new first for us." He stopped in front of Kurt and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "You look incredible tonight," he whispered.
Kurt flushed slightly, feeling amazed that such a simple gesture could still fluster him. "Thank you, sweetheart. You do, too," he replied, giving a reciprocal peck to punctuate the compliment. "Now what's this about a first?"
"Simply that I can't recall you ever being ready before me, that's all," Blaine joked. Kurt rolled his eyes, took Blaine's arm and dragged him to the door. "Very funny, very funny. Now walk."
They were heading out for a special anniversary. While they always celebrated their wedding anniversary, of course, they had also made a point of celebrating another important date in their lives – the day they first met. This year was especially momentous, as it had been ten years since that meeting on the steps of Dalton Academy. In some ways, it seemed like a million years ago, with all that had happened in between, but there were times when they looked at each other and it felt like it was just a minute ago.
A special dinner uptown was planned, but Kurt had asked that they walk through Central Park first, just to make an evening of it. Blaine was happy to comply – they'd spent many a happy hour in Central Park since moving to New York. They approached Bethesda Terrace and began descending the stairs toward the fountain. A few steps from the bottom, Kurt halted, stopping Blaine with him.
"I want to give you your present now," he said, stepping in front of Blaine and looking up at him from one step below him. Blaine's eyes lit up with curiosity. "Here?" he asked.
Kurt smiled, glancing down almost bashfully, then looking back up, putting his hand on Blaine's arm and saying, "Now if you'll excuse me for a moment…" With that, he ran down the last few stairs and disappeared around the corner into the adjacent tunnel. Blaine barely had time to think of what to do before Kurt reemerged, straightening his jacket and buttoning the top button. He had shed his stylish dinner jacket and had donned a blazer that was all too familiar – navy blue with red piping and an emblem of the letter "D" on one side. Blaine started to step down towards his husband, but Kurt held up a hand, stopping him on the last step. "Kurt, what are you…" he trailed off as Kurt made a quick motion with his hand in the direction of the tunnel and Blaine heard voices starting to sing.
"Dum dum dum dum…" they began, as a crew of men in identical Dalton blazers emerged from the tunnel and filled in behind Kurt. Blaine's hand flew to his mouth as he exclaimed, "Oh my God!" There in front of him were nearly all of his original Warbler brothers: Wes, David, Jeff, Nick, Thad, Trent – almost everyone who had been in that room the day that Blaine first sang for Kurt. Quickly enough, the intro passed by and Kurt began to sing lead:
You think I'm pretty without any makeup on
You think I'm funny when I tell the punchline wrong
I know you get me so I let my walls come down, down.
Before I met you, I was all right
But things were kind of heavy; you brought me to life
Now every February, you'll be my Valentine, Valentine.
They continued through the song, not only singing every line the same way, but doing the exact same choreography as they had done precisely ten years ago. It was incredible.
Let's go all the way tonight, no regrets, just love
We can dance until we die, you and I will be young forever
You make me feel like I'm living a teenage dream
The way you turn me on, I can't sleep
Let's run away and don't ever look back, don't ever look back.
My heart stops when you look at me
Just one touch, now baby I believe
This is real, let's take a chance and don't ever look back, don't ever look back.
A small crowd had gathered, both on the Terrace and on the bridge above, while many people just walked past like nothing unusual was happening – this was New York City, after all. Blaine stood enraptured, not knowing when his hand had moved from covering his mouth to resting over his heart, watching his beautiful and amazing husband perform with men who had been (and still were) like brothers to him.
Let you put your hands on me in my skin-tight jeans
Be your teenage dream tonight.
At the sound of the last note, Blaine surged forward to hug Kurt so hard that they nearly fell over. He pulled back just enough to take Kurt's face in his hands and kiss him soundly, not minding the hoots and hollers from the former Warblers as he did so.
"Happy Anniversary, baby," Kurt said breathlessly once they had parted.
"Kurt…I…how did you…God, I can't even form a sentence right now," Blaine laughed. Kurt laughed with him, and quickly explained how he'd gotten in touch with Wes three months earlier, hoping he would help to get the Warblers back together for this surprise. Wes was in wholeheartedly, and they'd managed to get almost everyone to NYC for the event, making it a sort of mini-reunion weekend. Jeff and Nick remembered the choreography the best, so they recorded themselves going through the routine and sent the recording to everyone. Kurt had been practicing whenever Blaine wasn't around, as well as at Rachel's when he'd go to visit.
"I just wanted to make this day special for you, the way you made it special for me ten years ago," Kurt said, brushing a tear from Blaine's cheek with his thumb. "And besides, I figured I owed you at least one musical number after the way you proposed."
Blaine kissed Kurt's cheek softly, then rested their foreheads together. "Thank you, Kurt. This means the world to me. I love you so much."
"I love you, too," Kurt responded, and now it was Blaine's turn to wipe away a tear. "Oh, and Kurt? About owing me for the proposal?"
"Yeah?" Kurt said, his voice sounding a little emotional.
"Took you long enough."