BLAINES POV

The wind rustled the trees as Blaine walked past and he pulled his jacket closer to him, willing it to warm his body, although it didn't do much help. It was a cold crisp September morning in Seattle and Blaine had begun his usual route to campus from his apartment all the while he was wishing he had brought a bigger coat. Although he had been going to college in Seattle for almost four years the weather never ceases to surprise him. But he couldn't blame the weather anyway because he always did dress for the destination and not the weather outside.

Blaine rounds the nearest street corner and crosses the grassy mall finally reaching his building. He climbs the flight of stairs that take him to his classroom on the third floor, finding a seat in the front row he lays out his notebook before taking a steadying breath. He was nervous and excited at the same time. Excited about finally having his degree but nervous about what to do with it once he had attained it. It's all a little nerve-wracking but he's handled worse things.

When his first class is dismissed he moves onto his second and then his third class of the day, eventually getting back into the college rhythm of things since summer break had put a halt to his education. Just after two o'clock, his third class came to an end and before he knew it he was on his way home just to repeat the cycle all over again.

Arriving at his apartment door he grabs the keys from his bag and turns them in the lock. When he pushes open the door he stops in the frame, hearing a series of coughs resonate from the living room. Blaine walked in further and drops his coat on the back of one of the kitchen chairs before he makes his way to the noise.

When he left this morning Wes was feeling a little under the weather. Of course, at the sight of him, Blaine had rushed to find any antibiotics they had randomly scatted in the kitchen cabinets before he headed off to his first class. But now as Blaine could see his roommate's body sprawled out on the couch a mound of tissues at his feet, he realized it was worse than he imagined.

"Hey, Wes, how you feeling bud?" He asked softly, taking a seat in the chair opposite him.

Wes raised his head, opened his mouth to speak, let out a series of coughs, gave Blaine a pitying look and then answered "Not too great,"

"I'm sorry man, you look awful, is there anything I can do?" Blaine asked, pitying his longtime friend. At his words Wes perked up, to which Blaine leaned sat back in his chair, awaiting his answer.

"I'm so *cough* glad you asked Blaine," Wes answered. "Because I kinda *cough* need your help with a midterm *cough* assignment." Wes clutched his chest and throws himself into a fit of coughs, through it he manages to point to his laptop which is open and displaying a class syllabus.

Blaine takes the laptop and scans the assignment, intrigued on how Wes could already need help on midterm assignment when it's not the middle of the term? It's just the beginning.

"Wes, it's a midterm assignment," Blaine says expressing his thoughts, "You have half of the semester to get it done and I really don't think you will be sick for that long", he cocks his head at Wes who looks defeated after coughing so much, but sits up anyways and gives Blaine an explanation.

"It is a midterm *cough* assignment, but my professor who is already a bit of an ass *cough* told me when I emailed him and said *cough* I was sick that I had to fast track the first part *fit of coughs* of the assignment so that I'm not behind when I return," he finishes slumping back on the couch.

Blaine wants to ask what the first part of the assignment is but seeing how worn out Wes looks he forces his eyes to scan back the document, looking for an overview of some kind. And then he finds it.

Part one: Interview someone from the provided list (emails are given beside the name) and ask them a series of questions about their profession, personal life, and job experience which will be used later to comprise an article, these articles will be the basis of the entire assignment and will help you along on step two.

"Wow," Blaine said after reading it all, "That's a lot, but I'm still confused on what you are asking me to do,"

Wes lifts his head off of the couch and gives him a really dude? kind of look and Blaine just shrugs.

"Blaine, listen it's *cough* simple, I already emailed the guy from the list *cough cough* we've set a date, I've written the questions *cough* all you have to do is strut your little behind *cough* into his office and interview him."

Blaine laughs, "You know for someone so sick you think you would be focused more on your health and not my ass,"

Wes waves his hand in the air signaling defeat, and Blaine laughed some more. "Will you do it or not?" Wes pressed.

"Yes, of course," Blaine says instantly. Wes had done so much for him throughout the years he really couldn't say no. But he could feel his anxiety level rising, he's so shy and introverted this is going to be a lot of work for him.

"Well the dates today so...*cough cough* I was hoping you would say yes," Wes comments shyly, and then he catches sight of Blaine facial expression. "You will be okay Blaine *cough* it's just an interview. You can *cough* call me after,"

A knowing smile creeps across Blaine's lips, Wes had dealt with his many panic attacks and awkward mannerisms for so much of his life that he knows exactly what he is worried about. This solidified his need to do this for him.

Blaine let out a breath, "You going to give me the details?"

"Yes!" Wes bounded as he scrambled, his hands searching through the many papers on the coffee table. Finding the right ones he hands Blaine a notebook presumably with the questions written in it and a torn sheet of paper with an address and a name. Blaine carefully read the name printed there.

"Kurt Hummel?" He whispers, more to himself than to Wes but he answered anyway.

"Yeah, I don't expect you to know him. The class fulfills my fine arts requirement so it's all about the fashion industry and the list of names are people from said industry who help out with the assignment every year,"

Blaine nodded, signaling he wanted to know more so Wes continued, "He's apparently a big wig. I'm surprised I even got him. He's big, he's gay and he's perfect for my article. So really try not to screw it up," Wes teases.

But Blaine can't even think straight right now. The more Wes describes the man the more nervous he becomes. It was really going to take all his might not to freak out before he even starts the interview.

"Okay, well that's reassuring." He jokes. He huffs out a breath as he stands to pull on his coat

"You sure you will be able to get there. I can write better directions, not just the address?" Wes asks.

"Wes, I do have a GPS," he pauses, "and a 4.0 GPA, I think I can handle it." Wes howls with laughter and Blaine smiles.

"Feel better Wes, I've got it covered, don't worry." He calls on his way out the door. He tucks the notebook under his arm as walks to the parking garage, locating his cherished beetle Voltswagon and hopping in.

The address Wes had handed him took him to a rectangular building and as he approached the front he pulled his car right up to it and parked on the curb. He shot a quick text to Wes telling him he had arrived safe and sound and then he allowed himself to sink down into his seat as his stomach began to twist. Why was he so nervous about this. Wes had done all the work all he had to do was present it.

He reached up and dropped down the tiny car mirror, looking at his hair. His curly untamed mop was out of control. He used his fingers to smooth it down making it a little better. He looked down at his outfit. A green and purple checkered shirt and a green bow tie, it wasn't his favorite look but it would have to do. He took one more look at his hair before getting out and paying the meter. He felt a slight drizzle not uncommon for Seattle and rushed to the front doors in an attempt to save his hair from frizzing out.

Once he entered he got a better look at the place. Everything was sleek and clean. The walls had a metallic theme which made everything reflective and intimidating. He spotted the receptionist to the left of him and began walking in her direction. She smiled as he approached, and he told her he had an appointment for an interview with Mr. Hummel.

She smiled once more and he was beginning to think it was a little tiring smiling so much, she ducked her head and typed furiously on the keyboard. Moments later she popped back up, "Wesley Davidson?" She asked in question. Blaine opened his mouth to correct her but she quickly spoke over him, "Mr. Hummel will see you now,"

She gestured her hand towards the right and another woman appeared, her complexion almost identical to the receptionist. "Andrea will show you the way," she piped up again when he didn't move.

Blaine thanked her and hurried to follow the blonde woman into the large elevator. The ride was quick and once they had reached the top floor she turned right and led him down a long hallway. When she reached the end she stood by the center door and motioned for him to open it.

He paused a beat and then he tentatively reached up and pushed on the door. But before had a chance to take in his surroundings he felt his feet catch under themselves and the next thing he knew he was on the floor, notebook sprawled out in front of him. He didn't want to get up. He wanted to lay there and die of embarrassment but then he heard feet shuffling and a soft worried voice say "Oh no, are you okay?" Blaine then realized he would have to get back up and continue on with civilization.

He pushed himself up into a sitting position and that's when he caught sight of a hand held out to him, which he took to help pull himself up. The contact was brief but he could have sworn his hand started tingling. Once he corrected himself and his embarrassment faded a little he allowed himself to make eye contact with who he assumed was Mr. Hummel. His blue eyes bore into his as Blaine took in his appearance. Sleek white button down, black jacket and oh so tight black pants. He had to avert his eyes quickly from lingering on the other man's junk for too long. Mr. Hummel really was the picture of beauty.

"You okay Mr. Davidson? I retrieved your notebook off the floor," he said, gently placing the notebook between them. This snaps Blaine out of his thoughts as he feels the need to correct his mistake.

"Actually, my names Blaine, Blaine Anderson, Wes-or uh, Mr. Davidson is my roommate. He's got the flu so he asked me to fill in for him," he explained, grabbing the notebook between them.

"Oh," is all Mr. Hummel says as he turns on his heels and makes his way back to his desk, sitting at it and gesturing for Blaine to take the seat in front of him. Blaine makes his way over. Feeling his nerves climb back up to maximum capacity again, he sits and opens his notebook to the first page. He reads and then rereads it again until it's memorized, he keeps his head down a little longer though as he takes a couple deep breathes in order to stop his rapidly beating heart.

"Whenever you're ready," the man prompts. And Blaine nods, reading the question one more time before he finally opens his mouth.

"So you are at the top of the fashion ladder, but no one ever makes it to the top alone, so I would like to ask to what do you-"

"To what do I owe my success?" Mr. Hummel interjects with a knowing smile.

"Yup," Blaine ends with a pop, damn Wes and these stupid overused questions. His hands start to shake, he quickly balls them into fists and shoves them under his legs.

Blaine watched as Mr. Hummel chuckled softly, getting up from his desk and rounding it to occupy the seat next to Blaine.

"I think you need to rephrase the question to say "to whom do I owe my success" because then I can give a more accurate answer. Which would ultimately be my Dad, he helped me so much early on in life and through all the rough parts in the middle that I would never have been able to even think about making it higher up in the fashion industry or I'd even go as far to say I would have never even thought about going to college and living a successful life without his guidance."

Blaine sat mesmerized by his answer, so much so that he forgot he actually had to write it down. This man sitting before him is so beautiful and humble and just everything Blaine admired, but it's a silly pipe dream so he stashes it deep down in his mind. As he catches the tail end of the answer he jots a few things down, "dad, success, tough life," Yes, he thought I can decipher that when I get home.

When he's finished writing he sneaks a peek at Mr. Hummel to find he's already staring at him, this makes him blush slightly as he flips the page and reads the second question.

KURTS POV

This interview that was supposed to be a waste of his time has seemingly turned his day around. From the moment Blaine Anderson stumbled into his office and he realized it wasn't another fashion student eager to quiz their idol he began to relax a little. But with the younger boys blush and awkward interview skills he realized he was much more than just a fill-in, and maybe just maybe Kurt was a little attracted to him. It had been a long time since Kurt was in any real relationship. Maybe Blaine stumbling directly into his office was a sign. He takes advantage of this as the boy begins reading over the second question.

"So, Mr. Anderson," he begins and he watches the younger man's head snaps up, his face showing confusion and then settling on a strange emotion, curiosity.

"I think it's only fair that since you are getting to know me, that I get to know you."

Blaine's face lit up with surprise, and then he settled back down into his shy state, "I-I don't understand, why would you want to ask me questions, I'm just a fill-in," he closed his mouth, and then a thought registered across his face and he says "You can call me Blaine, just Blaine." he looks down and frankly all around the room just anywhere other than at Kurt's face.

Kurt could see how much unease he was causing the boy and he knew this was no way to get to know another person. He cursed himself for making Blaine uncomfortable, all he wanted to do was wrap him up in a hug which was at the moment highly unprofessional. He thought for a quick minute and then remembered an interview strategy he learned in his training to become a CEO.

"Well Blaine, interviewing is never easy, especially if you are not even supposed to be asking the questions in the first place so I thought maybe if we make this interview a conversation it would flow easier and make you a little more comfortable," he eyed Blaine, willing him to believe his ploy, which would ultimately kill two birds with one stone. Getting to know Blaine and making him less nervous.

Blaine seemed to believe it as his shoulders un-hunched and he leaned back a little it in his chair, but all he said was "Okay," but then again that was really all Kurt needed.

"You can call me Kurt if that makes it less formal," Blaine nodded and he continued, "So why don't you tell me your major I assume since your roommates still in college you are as well?"

Blaine cleared his throat, "Yes, I am. I'm in my last semester, I'm majoring in Literary Studies. I want to become a Publisher." he finishes with enthusiasm, which tells Kurt he was really passionate about it, and this for some reason makes him really happy.

BLANES POV

Blaine feels more relaxed already as they flow into an easy conversation about each other. Blaine talks about his love of book and Kurt listens to him when he babbles on about his favorite authors. Kurt tells him how he got started in the fashion industry and Blaine tells him he admires his Dad and he wishes his family was a little more accepting of his lifestyle choices. Kurt was right about the strategy as it made Blaine relax more and more as talked openly and eventually he totally forgot about the written questions he was supposed to be answering, that was until there was a knock on the office door.

Blaine watched annoyance stretch across Kurt's face before he yelled for whoever was at the door to come in. Andrea, the lady who helped him earlier made an appearance.

"I'm sorry for interrupting Mr. Hummel but you've got a 3:00 that's been waiting for quite some time," she says timidly and Blaine gets the impression that Kurt runs a tight ship around the office.

He watched as Kurt looked at him briefly and then back to the woman, "Cancel it, I'm not done here," Blaine could tell Andrea was surprised by his answer, but nodded her head anyway and ducked out of the door.

He felt immediate remorse for the waiting appointment. He never wanted to keep anyone waiting or take up Kurt's time just because he was a little scared to ask simple questions.

Blaine stands and is surprised when Kurt automatically stands with him. "Kurt, you don't have to do that, I think I have enough I can go, I don't want to take up any more of your time," he says nervously beginning to head towards the door.

Kurt catches him on the back of the arm stopping him and he felt himself tense at the touch even though the contact felt good. He knew Kurt could sense his tension but he keeps his hand in place and uses it go around Blaine, to face him. "You only have one question answered Blaine, that's hardly finished."

Blaine found it hard to be face to face with Kurt and tell him no, he also found it harder to jerk his arm away but he did. "I'm sorry I have to go," he managed to squeak out before he turned on his heels and made a beeline for the elevator. Halfway through his escape, he realized he left his notebook on the table and he felt so ashamed for letting Wes down like this but he was so overwhelmed. Kurt was so nice and forgiving and accepting of his problems and he just wasn't used to it.

He reached the elevator and dashed in. The doors took an extremely long time to close and in that time he saw Kurt step in front of them. His face was in shock, and he realized that his own face must look pretty bad if Kurt's looked like that.

"Blaine," he spoke, his voice needy and slightly out of breath.

"Kurt," Blaine whispered back, just as the doors came to a close.