Kurt sighed a little as he peered into the mirror, taking in his less fabulous than usual appearance. His favorite Monday sweater had been forsaken for his brand new Dalton suit jacket and tie. It could have been worse, he thought. They could be actual school uniforms rather than nicely accented jackets. Still, Kurt had never been much of a man for navy and resented the style conformity.

He had combed his hair neatly, tied his tie, and buttoned up his jacket. Outwardly, Kurt appeared to be well-polished and confident. Inwardly, he was shaking with nerves. His transfer to Dalton had been so quick that he hadn't been able to take everything in just yet. Only a few days ago he had been standing in the practice room, saying goodbye to McKinley forever. In a flash he was packing up half of his things and shipping them to the Dalton dorms.

It wasn't just that he was going to miss McKinley. Kurt was equally terrified of his new school. The guys from Dalton Academy just seemed so comfortable with each other, and he wasn't sure he would be able to break into that. He didn't have a lot of experience being close friends with guys either, but Blaine had assured him that he would find his niche.

That boy was another matter entirely. Feelings for Blaine had been coursing through Kurt since they met, and until his move to Dalton, Kurt was fairly sure he would be able to keep them from getting out of hand. The last thing he wanted was another Finn, and he certainly didn't want to lose Blaine as a source of inspiration, or as his only friend at a new school. Now that they would both be attending Dalton, Kurt was terrified. He wasn't just terrified of catching a glimpse of Blaine in the communal showers, or sitting too close to him at lunch. Kurt was terrified because he would be living in the same room as Blaine.

Yes, fate had done a number on Kurt. Blaine's roommate had moved to Vermont the preceding weekend after his parents caught him having sex with a girl from the local Catholic school in their bed. Kurt had known this before making the transition to Dalton, but would have never imagined he would be placed in that vacated bed. He had been sitting at home watching Meet Me In St. Louis with Mercedes that Saturday when he received a text from the dark haired boy.

Hey, roomie. :)

Kurt barely believed him until his father received the same information the following day. The idea initially thrilled him. What could a previously closeted boy want more than a sexy, muscular, and openly gay roommate? Then it occurred to Kurt that while it seemed great in theory, falling for his newest best friend and roommate would probably end in heartbreak. Though he resigned himself to that fact, it would be incredibly difficult for him to control his eyes roaming over Blaine's strong, taught body whilst living so close to him.

A familiar buzzing came from the other side of Kurt's bedroom. Kurt picked up his phone and smiled when he saw the text.

You'll be fine.

Blaine had a wonderful sense of timing when it came to texting him. It seemed like the minute his stomach started to flip with worry, Kurt would get the kind of reassurance that it seemed only the older boy could provide. He sighed and replied, telling Blaine he would be there in just over an hour.

Kurt took one last look in the mirror and grabbed his last bag, heading down up the stairs to the living room. Finn's mom was cooking breakfast and his own father was waiting patiently by the door, holding his keys and looking somewhat gloomy. Carole gave Kurt a supportive smile and a hug.

"We'll be visiting next weekend- it'll go by like that."

Kurt returned her smile a bit uncertainly and proceeded to the door with his father.

"Well, Kurt, are you ready?"

The hour ride to Dalton Academy went by as slowly as time could. Kurt's nerves were on high and not even his expansive musical recording collections could quell his butterflies. His dad was oddly silent. He usually tried to make awkward conversations with his son, attempting to gain a little insight into his world, but it seemed today he had decided Kurt had enough going on in his mind.

Kurt's fingers kept nervously pawing at his navy pants, picking at a stray thread. Every few seconds his eyes would flicker to the empty seat beside him where his phone sat. He had texted Blaine just minutes before letting him know that they had almost arrived and was anxiously awaiting his reply. Almost the instant Kurt managed to stop thinking about it, his phone buzzed.

Meet me in our room, your stuff's up here :)

Kurt's heart fluttered. Our room. Though the context was wrong, the words still sounded nice. Burt pulled up to the front of Dalton just a second later, and Kurt's chest began to pound. The campus was still quiet- they had elected to move him in early Sunday, and the sun had just crept over the horizon, creating a glow over the grounds. It was certainly peaceful, he thought as he took his first steps as a Dalton student. He was worried, of course, but not in the same way he was when his car pulled up to McKinley. His anxiety was centered around something else than a closeted bully, and Kurt thought that was nice for a change.

It was a short walk to Blaine's dorm, with Burt leading the way. When the two Hummels reached the front of the building, he stopped and turned to Kurt.

"Okay, I'm going to leave you here now. Be okay?"

Kurt bit his lip and nodded quickly, leaning in to give his dad a quick hug before taking hold of his bag and stepping inside. He had to gasp as he walked into the living quarters. He had seen the rest of Dalton but assumed the dorms would be like any others- barely furnished and painted uniformly white, but he was pleasantly surprised. The walls were ornately carved wood, and the floors were covered in a rich, red carpet. He could see around a corner that there was a room filled with comfortable armchairs and a wall lined with bookshelves and paintings.

"A lot of money must have gone into this place," Kurt mused to himself.

Before him was a long hallway, rooms on either side. He quickly checked his room number and proceeded to the last room on the left. He inhaled deeply before knocking swiftly on the door. There was a brief shuffling inside before the door swung open and Kurt had to remind himself to breathe.

Blaine was standing before the younger boy, with messy hair and his token cheeky grin in place. Kurt couldn't help letting his eyes slide down a little to take in the rest of Blaine. He had on a plain white t-shirt and low-hung pajama pants.

"Kurt…Why are you wearing your uniform?"

His mouth opened, closed, and opened again. Blaine chuckled.

"I mean, I know you like being presentable but you're pretty dressed up for a Sunday morning when we don't even have class."

The younger boy quickly recovered and snapped back, smirking.

"Wasn't it you who told me never to show up without my jacket?"

Blaine only smirked devilishly, and stepped aside to let Kurt enter.

"You're killing me, Hummel."

Without a thought to it he took Kurt's bag from his shoulder and laid it on his desk.

"So," he said, twirling around, "this is it."

Kurt stepped further into the room and took in his new surroundings. The room was rather square, and barely big enough for two, but the furniture and walls were gorgeous. The two beds were parallel, both with desks at the end. Kurt was a little surprised when he saw his stuff already lined up along his desk and his bed made up.

"I took some liberties arranging your things. It was just too weird with this side of the room being so empty. Feel free to yell at me, you've been too quiet since you got here."

Blaine was smiling sheepishly up at him from the edge of his bed. Kurt smiled and rolled his eyes.

"Thank you. It saves me the trouble," He did a quick review of the room, "But I'm still a better decorator than you."

Blaine just laughed. "So, what do you think?"

Kurt breathed in deeply and sighed out a chuckle.

"This will do just fine."

Kurt spent the next few minutes in the adjoining bathroom changing out of his uniform and into blue skinny jeans and a gray sweater. When he returned, Kurt found Blaine had dressed and was reclining on his bed. The younger boy's stomach fluttered when he noticed the way Blaine's t-shirt hugged his body.

"Blaine?" Kurt inquired, announcing his presence.

The dark haired boy grinned up at him, inspecting Kurt's appearance. "Much better now. We have to wear those things enough during the week."

Kurt didn't mind so much. Or at least he didn't when Blaine was the one wearing them. There was something about that tailored, trimmed suit jacket that made Kurt want to rip it off of him.

His pleasant thoughts were interrupted by his roommate.

"Have you had breakfast yet?"

The Dalton grounds were even more beautiful with the sun fully in the sky, and Kurt was taking in the view and crisp air on his way to a café across the street with Blaine. He initially had only wanted to try to cafeteria, but Blaine had insisted on taking him out for his first meal as a Dalton student and Kurt couldn't resist those deep, brown eyes.

"So what exactly is this place?"

Blaine turned to Kurt and smiled, "The best French food you'll ever eat. Of course, they have American food, too…"

"…But I'll be getting the fancy French food?" Kurt finished, smirking.

The brunette chuckled and winked at Kurt, "Nothing but the best for my new roommate."

They both smiled once more at each other before approaching the restaurant door.

"After you, sir." A beaming Blaine offered an open door to Kurt, who sauntered through it as if he were used to being treated to breakfast by a gentleman every day. Intense, flavorful smells begin to waft under Kurt's nose and he took his eyes off of Blaine for just long enough to take in the scenery around him. It wasn't a particularly expensive looking restaurant, but it certainly had a unique charm to it. They were ushered into a booth by a kindly looking older woman who left them with a smile to look over their menus.

"Their crepes are delicious," Blaine pointed out. "You might want to start there."

Kurt laughed.

"Start there? I think one serving will be enough."

The older boy shook his head, chuckling. "I don't think you understand, Kurt. This place is like an orgasm for your mouth."

Kurt laughed nervously, crossing his legs and trying to think about anything but Blaine, mouths, and orgasms. And it was so hard when the older boy was across the table from him, licking his lips. Of course, he was staring at the menu- but Kurt could pretend.

Blaine looked up from the menu briefly, his eyes making contact with Kurt's. The latter blushed, a little worried he had been caught staring. The other just smiled and returned his eyes to the list of crepes. Kurt's knees were already a little bit like jelly from the walk over. A few times their hands had brushed, eyes had locked, and even though Kurt knew these accidental things didn't warrant him imagining Blaine wanting him back, it was still nice. Still, it scared him a little that spending time with Blaine always led to him imaging them kissing. But how could he not? It was difficult enough to keep the muscular teen out of his imagination while he was sitting at home. To have the real thing in front of him was almost too much for Kurt. At some point he became aware of the waitress coming to take their orders, handing them their drinks, and stepping away again. The air rushed right back out of Kurt's lungs when they were alone again. Blaine sipped at his drink and stole a faux bashful glance up at Kurt before clearing his throat.

"So should we possibly talk about our living arrangements?" Blaine's tone was whimsical and a bit mischievous, Kurt thought.

"What about them?"

"Well…" He trailed off. "Roomie rules."

Kurt smirked.

"You mean like if we can bring girls back to the room?"

Blaine chuckled. "Well, no. But visitors, yes. As well as our respective policies on bedtime, partying, and all the other wonderful things we get to argue about now that we're roommates."

"Well," responded Kurt, "I have to get my beauty rest. Ten pm on school nights."

Blaine nodded.

"Okay, that's reasonable. What about overnight guests?"

Kurt nearly choked on his soda. Blaine smiled slightly.

"I'm talking about Claws."

Kurt's brows furrowed. He never imagined his competition for the brunette would be so crudely named. Blaine grinned.

"He's my cat, Kurt."

The younger boys' eyes closed and opened to find a highly amused Blaine looking at him, with an incredibly self-satisfied look on his face.

"Were you worried I was going to bring home some tattooed gang member with really sharp nails every night?"

Kurt could see the smirk from Blaine's mouth to his eyes. Not a single part of his face didn't scream adorable sarcasm. It took all the strength he could muster not to collapse into a puddle when Blaine's intense, brown eyes found his. He instead collected all of his energy up into a deadly eye roll.

"Am I going to have to put up with this every day?"

Blaine smiled.

"You bet your sweet ass."

By the time their food came, Kurt and Blaine had fallen out of their sarcastic moods and were eagerly conversing about his new school. As nervous as he was about his roommate, Kurt was still somewhat focused on his new life at Dalton. He had never been to a private school before, and while Kurt was smart, he wasn't sure he would stack up against his new classmates. Blaine was perfectly willing to contradict this idea.

"Kurt, you wouldn't have gotten in to Dalton if they didn't think you were intelligent enough to be here."

The younger boy shook his head.

"I went to school in Lima, Blaine. Do you really think my grades are reflective of my intelligence? It's not exactly hard to stay an A student. Brittany is passing. I think that says something."

Blaine gave him a reassuring smile.

"You're brilliant, Kurt. You're going to be fine. But," he sat back, crossing his arms and smirking, "if you want to stay up all night trying to learn everything, I'll help you stay awake."

There was something sparkling in the brunette's eyes and Kurt blushed. Luckily, Blaine seemed not to notice his roommate's embarrassment, and Kurt eagerly switched topics.

"What about fitting in? I know you said there's a zero tolerance policy for bullying, but how many of us are actually here?"

Blaine creased his brows adorably. "Us?"

Kurt leaned a little closer and whispered a single word: "Gay."

The older boy leaned back and thought for a moment, eyes closed. Kurt couldn't help by notice the unshaved shadow on Blaine's jaw and his thumb and forefinger stroked. Obviously he liked Blaine when he was clean cut, but he was entranced seeing the boy with facial hair for the first time.

"Well, I don't know everyone at Dalton, but I'm aware of a couple of other guys. I mean, it's not like we're in New York or anything… but it's a supportive community and there are plenty of opportunities to meet other gay people."

The strong, clear way Blaine said the word 'gay' made Kurt smile a little inside. He had been afraid to use it himself, fearing the repercussions he would have received at McKinley, but it hung in the air for a few seconds and no one around them said anything. They just kept picking at their dinners and conversing.

Kurt shook his head, and looked down. "No, that's wonderful. I think it's great that there are even a couple of others here. I'm just glad I'm not going to be alone anymore."

He looked up and locked eyes for a second with Blaine, who smiled softly and gently placed his hand on top of Kurt's.

"You haven't been alone for a while, Kurt. Not since I got here."

At the familiar thumping in his chest and the eventual empty feeling when Blaine's hand leaves his, Kurt realizes he has gotten himself into quite a situation.