Rachel and Brody were both highly amused by the fact that Kurt had somehow secured anywhere from one to infinite additional dates with Sebastian. They had met for breakfast the morning after both boys' dates to discuss what had happened. Brody claimed he had been a perfect gentleman with Dinah until the end of the date, when she asked him to not be one. They were going out again the next weekend.

"But that's normal," Kurt said. "Girl likes boy, girl and boy go on date, girl and boy go on more dates, girl and boy live happily ever after."

"Let's not take it that far." Brody held up his hands as if that would stop Kurt's story in its tracks. "One date does not a happily ever after make."

"That's not the point," he said, picking at his omelet. "Your story makes sense. How many stories start with 'boy hates boy, boys go on date under strange circumstances,' and also have a happy ending?"

"A large portion of romantic comedies," Rachel reminded him, "although they usually have heterosexual couples in the main role instead of more diverse pairings. And didn't you once tell Blaine that your relationship with him was like When Harry Met Sally?"

"I don't remember which one of us told you that, but I wish we hadn't."

"Just look at it through the same frame as the first one. It's more dates with a decent and attractive guy, except now he'll be paying for half of them."

"Exactly. Society demands that any upcoming dates with Dinah should be paid for out of my pocket. Take advantage of it," Brody said.

Kurt tuned out the beginning of Rachel's lecture on how to balance being a gentleman with allowing a woman to be an independent and equal partner in the relationship (her women's studies elective had created some interesting results) in favor of checking his buzzing phone. A text from Sebastian lit up the screen.

From: Sebastian
What do your Tuesday nights look like?

Kurt started typing to tell him they were free, but paused to look at Rachel. "We have that mandatory sophomore address with Carmen Tibideaux on Wednesday morning, right?"

"Yes, any classes cancelled from eight to ten," she said, before returning to her speech, even though Brody's eyes had glazed over slightly and he was paying more attention to his bacon than to her. Kurt turned back to his phone.

To: Sebastian
Usually free, but there's something for me to be present and awake at early this Wednesday, so I'd need to be in bed at a decent hour.

He fired off the text. At least Sebastian was being considerate of when he was free to plan this date. He had half-expected to end up kidnapped in the middle of the night and dragged to some seedy rave down by the docks. Then again, Sebastian had classes too. His phone buzzed again.

From: Sebastian
I could have you in bed at a decent hour, but you wouldn't be sleeping. ;)

Kurt almost choked on his hash browns, intent on sending back a strongly worded message to let Sebastian know that would not be happening, when another one came in on its heels.

From: Sebastian
Kidding, although I'd kill to see your face right now. How does next Tuesday night sound?

Ignoring the temptation to be difficult and say no because of the first text, he sent an affirmation and told Sebastian to text him more specific details later. He needed to rescue Brody from a Rachel Berry Lecture Coma.

Over the next week, small specifics about the upcoming date found their way onto Kurt's phone. They would meet up near Sebastian's dorm and walk to their destination together. The place opened at five, but Sebastian wanted to get there sometime before nine, so Kurt should pick a time accordingly. They would pick up dinner on the way. Wear something hot. Bring an ID. By that point, Kurt had his suspicions about what they were doing, but he trusted Sebastian to remember that they both had to have fun for him to win.

Kurt found himself walking past various NYU buildings at six o'clock Tuesday night when he spotted Sebastian sitting on a bench. He was wearing a tight black t-shirt and gray jeans that would probably accentuate his features when he stood. Kurt suddenly felt over dressed in his button down dress shirt and vest, even if it was paired with a simple pair of blue jeans.

When Sebastian caught sight of him, he sighed deeply and stood, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket. "Come on, I've got something in my room you can wear instead."

"Excuse me? You said to wear something hot, and I thought this was plenty flattering."

"I'm not saying you don't look hot," Sebastian said as he let them into the building, "but unless you're okay with getting the sweat of a thousand different guys on that, I don't think you want to wear it tonight."

Kurt signed in as a guest quickly. They were quiet as they took the stairs up three floors, and Sebastian let them into a room halfway down the hall. "I have the single part of a three-person suite," he explained. "It's not the worst situation, but I still have to share a bathroom." He strode over to a dresser tucked against the wall, asking Kurt to strip off his shirts. Kurt hesitated, then obliged, keeping the white t-shirt he wore as an undershirt on. Sebastian dug around in the bottom of a drawer, his arm almost disappearing into the piles of folded clothes. "All the too-small stuff is at the bottom, but…" He glanced back at Kurt and paused. "You know what? I think you pass anyway. You can just leave your stuff here and pick it up later."

"Why would I leave my clothes in your dorm room?"

"Why would I leave my cake in your apartment?"

"It wasn't actually your cake."

"That's what you think." Sebastian ended the discussion by tossing Kurt's clothes onto his bed and grabbing his wrist to lead him out. He locked the door behind him and, still not letting go, pulled Kurt back towards the exit.

Outside, Sebastian looked around for a second. "Let's go this way for dinner. You like falafel?"

"I've never actually had it," Kurt admitted.

Sebastian looked scandalized, then shook his head. "We will fix this. Soon. I'm taking you to the best falafel cart this side of Broadway."

"There's a better one on the other side of Broadway?"

"Oh, absolutely. Rick likes to stake out Third Avenue, but Tony has Fifth as his territory and he gives me discounts sometimes." He smiles, an actual smile. "Benefits of being a repeat customer."

The guy at the falafel cart does in fact seem to know Sebastian and gives him what he calls "the daily special" at two for one when Sebastian asks him to surprise them. They walk a little further and find another bench to perch on and eat, Kurt devouring his own order after the first tentative bite. Their spot allowed them to people watch while they ate, coming up with more and more ridiculous scenarios with each passing person. By the time Sebastian had concocted a story about a woman walking her poodle being in the secret Westminster Kennel Club mafia, Kurt was barely holding in his laughter. The time came though when the food disappeared and it was on to the entertainment portion of the evening. Tossing their paper plates in a nearby trash can, Sebastian offered his hand again and Kurt took it.

"So Chaz Donaldsworth, ready to go?"

Kurt laughed. "That ID is stashed in the bottom of a box in a storage unit in Lima, only to see the light of day as an amusing memory. However, Kirk Hudmel is ready."

"Let me see that." Kurt pulled out his wallet and flipped it open to the rather nice Ohio driver's license. According to it, his name was Kirk Hudmel, a 23-year-old from Cincinnati. "How did you get one this good?"

"Puck gave it to me as a graduation gift. Apparently all the other New Directions guys had gotten one over the years, but he wanted to wait until I looked less like a milkmaid before he took the picture to order one for me."

Sebastian tilted it back and forth, examining the workmanship. "This is good. Really good. Give props to him for me. I'm impressed."

"I'll be sure to let him know that Dalton Draco is impressed with his craftsmanship." A look of confusion crossed Sebastian's face. "Puck is fond of the idea that Dalton is gay Hogwarts. Blaine's vague resemblance to Harry Potter didn't do much to dissuade him. The few guys he knows from there have earned related nicknames. As the jerk with a powerful father who attacked his Harry Potter, you get to be Draco Malfoy."

He squinted at Kurt for a moment, then smiled brightly. "I'm oddly proud of that. Especially since everyone knows Harry and Draco had to have hooked up at some point."

"That's why I tried to talk him out of that designation, but he doesn't listen well. If he did, I would be Neville Longbottom."

"Why would you pick Neville?"

"The guy everyone picks on for years that ends up being the one to save the day? Why wouldn't I want to be him?"

Sebastian nodded. "So who are you?"

Kurt muttered under his breath, praying Sebastian wouldn't hear him.

"Sorry, didn't catch that," he said. "Try again?"

Taking a deep breath, Kurt said, "Hermione Granger, okay? And I don't want to hear any girl jokes."

"I wasn't going to make any," Sebastian said sincerely. "I can see it, actually."

"Then enlighten me, because Puck certainly never did."

"The perfectly put-together, rule-following know-it-all everyone picks on, who turns into a strong, confident person that doesn't take crap from anyone, not to mention being a complete badass? Sound familiar?"

The silence following his comment hung between them as they walked. Kurt broke it, saying, "I may need to call Puck and thank him."

"Later, we're here." Kurt looked at the building in front of him. Music poured out the door and the bouncer at the door was missing his sleeves.

"Where's here?"

"Welcome to Splash." He gestured expansively. "Best part is, we're here on gay college Tuesday. They'll let you in even if you're eighteen, but you still have to be twenty-one to drink, thus the ID."

"You do remember the last time we were in a gay bar together, right?" Kurt asked as they joined the short line. "That didn't end well for anyone involved."

"That was two years ago," Sebastian dismissed. "Splash is not Scandals, and there is more hot, gay, twenty-year-old male in there than there has ever been in Lima, Ohio. Besides, we're not engaging in a passive-aggressive battle over a guy, which removes the majority of the problem right there."

Kurt didn't want to admit it, but he had a point. Just by taking the Blaine of it all out of their relationship, he and Sebastian were on good terms. It made him wonder if they could have been friends outright if it hadn't been for Sebastian's attraction.

"So what will we do when we're in there?"

The mild shock was plain on Sebastian's face. "You do know what to do in a club, don't you?"

"Dance, drink, and be merry, not that hard," Kurt said waving a hand. "I mean do we have a buddy system of sorts?"

"Oh." Sebastian thought for a moment. "I thought, since I was taking you on a date here, we'd dance together, occasionally dance with other guys, and I'd pay your cover and for all your drinks at the bar."

Nodding, Kurt stepped forward and showed his ID to the bouncer. Sebastian presented his alongside it and they passed without comment, a crisp twenty pressed into the doorman's hand.

Inside, it was dark and loud. Jessie J blared from the speakers as the dancer pulsed with men. Kurt's eyes were wide as they carefully made their way to the bar, hands linked so they didn't lose each other in the crowd. The place he'd gone to with Brody looked like Scandals compared to this. He felt a little lost, despite Sebastian's hand warm and slightly sweaty in his.

"What do you want?" Sebastian called over the music.

Kurt glanced at the bar and smirked at Sebastian. "Not a Shirley Temple."

Laughing, Sebastian nodded and let go of Kurt's hand, picking his way through the happy hour crowd to reach the bar. Kurt hadn't expected to feel the loss of him as strong as he did. Sure it wasn't much, a faint tickling of "I hope he comes back soon," but even that was odd.

He put it down to their shaky new friendship. Even though this was a date by name, he didn't really expect Sebastian to treat it as such. Paying cover and drinks was part of the deal, but he'd fully expected to be turned loose while Sebastian went in search of a bathroom hookup. But Sebastian returned, bottle of Miller in one hand glass of what Kurt quickly discovered was white wine in the other. They sipped slowly, chatting at the edge of the dance floor while the music played. Eventually, Lady Gaga blared over the speakers and Kurt smiled fondly, thinking of the girls' number at Nationals his senior year.

Sebastian tapped his bottle against Kurt's glass and tipped it up to finish it once he had Kurt's attention. Kurt took the hint and drained the rest of his glass, setting it on the table behind him. Leaving the beer bottle next to it, Sebastian led Kurt to the dance floor, settling his hands on Kurt's hips and pulling him close.

The Bambi incident was long behind, but Kurt was still something of a lightweight. He knew it and he was careful of it. With a rather large glass of wine generating a buzz and the music pulsing through the crowd, Kurt allowed himself to get lost in the beat. Any self-consciousness about his dancing and Mike's long ago comment about his shoulder shimmy was forgotten with his hands above his head and Sebastian's thumbs brushing his hipbones.

They danced like that for a while, Kurt eventually settling his hands on Sebastian's shoulders to balance them. They moved together, but kept a respectable distance between them, and Kurt was distantly reminded of old sitcoms with a middle school dance and parent chaperones demanding the couples leave room for Jesus. The DJ cycled through Katy Perry's latest hit and "Pon de Replay" made an appearance. Then he'd apparently decided to have a laugh because the Macarena was blaring out and almost everyone was pushing onto the floor for a bit of nostalgia.

Wiped from the energetic dancing and wanting to rest his recently stepped on feet (the dance floor was too crowded for that song), Kurt dipped his head to the side and indicated he was leaving to Sebastian. Sebastian started to follow but Kurt stopped him. "You can keep dancing if you want to."

"You sure?"

"It's not like this is a real date, Sebastian." He didn't notice as the other boy's face closed off. "You don't need to keep an eye on me at all times. I'm a big boy, I can take care of myself."

"Right," Sebastian said shortly. "I'll come find you later."

He disappeared into the dance floor again and Kurt turned his back on the mob, heading to the slightly emptier bar and getting a glass of water to rehydrate. He sat there for a while, waiting for his head to stop spinning from the combination of wine, music, dancing, and boys. One boy in particular. Something about Sebastian was just intoxicating in its own right, be it his charm or the joy he found in simple things.

Kurt danced with a few other boys that asked him, but always returned to the bar, not quite feeling like faking a connection with them. It wasn't until almost two hours had passed that he realized he hadn't seen Sebastian once that entire time. He'd expected the other boy to check in once in awhile, which was why he'd stuck to the bar area, even when he was dancing. Unfortunately, he had no idea where Sebastian had gone off to, and actually searching for him in the crowd would most likely result in them missing each other. The easiest thing to do would be plant himself in a single spot and wait for Sebastian to come to him.

Another hour later, and Sebastian hadn't approached the bar at all, even from a distance. Kurt was beginning to worry. Even though they were both adults, it was just a safety thing to check in with each other once in a while and make sure nothing was wrong. He didn't even have his phone to call and ask Sebastian where he was.

Given that it was closing in on ten and he had class in the morning, Kurt went looking. If Sebastian wanted to stay, that was fine, but he was going to do him the courtesy of letting him know he was leaving.

Rather than dive right into the crowd, Kurt began circling the edge of the dance floor. He couldn't see very far inside, but Sebastian was bound to come out for air sometime. On his third loop around, Kurt was getting tired and frustrated. He rounded the corner and had a clear view of the hallway leading to the bathrooms. Halfway down, he caught sight of an arm sliding from head height to around hip level. When the muscles in said arm began moving back and forth, Kurt realized what he was seeing and determinedly averted his eyes as he walked past.

That is, until he heard a moan last heard around a bite of chocolate cake in his apartment.