Blaine is worried. He doesn't think that he'd been as subtle as he had hoped. Singing You Don't yesterday certainly didn't help but Finn did tell him that it will get better so he's pretty sure everyone thinks it was about Kurt. Again.

On some level he's relieved because if people think he sang about Kurt, they won't ask awkward questions—like who he was really singing about—but on another level he can't help but be irritated. Do people really think he's that pathetic? Yes, he was depressed and upset about breaking up with Kurt but it's been months and, what, did they really think he was Bella Swan?

But Sam has been giving him that look again and every time he sees Sam's eyes he can barely keep himself in check. He's afraid that if he even looks at Sam he won't be able to help himself and do something completely ridiculous and inappropriate so he's been avoiding him. For a while he could tell himself that he was just doing what Sam asked and giving him space but he and Sam have not hung out at all except in glee and he's sure that Sam has definitely noticed.

He's going to have to man-up and hang around Sam for a while…

He can't. He can't do that. He could have been Sam's friend and have a crush on him; he could have made that work. But he can't just be his friend anymore. Not when he lo—feels this strongly for him. He won't be able to stop himself. Seeing him hold Brittany's hand, kiss her…no. He was pathetic with Kurt but no more, let it not be said that Blaine Anderson doesn't learn from his mistakes.

Besides, he's pretty sure he and Sam can be friends again. He just needs time to get over this. To get over Sam.

Obviously Sam freaked out, it was too much too quickly. But he offered it freely. And Blaine is only human. But he should have said no. He should have turned him down and now he's lost his best friend.

No tears. No tears. Dammit.

Blaine rushes to the nearest bathroom and starts to breathe deeply. He lets the tears fall but manages not to sob. He walks to the sink to wash his face. When he turns the tap, rusty water jets out and drenches him. He blinks and then notices the "under repair" sign quite clearly placed behind the taps. He lets out a curse. At least he doesn't feel like crying anymore.

Fortunately the locker rooms are nearby. He waits for the bell to ring and decides to skip his next class. He walks the empty corridors to the locker rooms. His Cheerios uniform is drenched but luckily he has some spare clothes: dark jeans and a dark brown sweater. It'll have to do. He takes a shower and takes his time, letting the warm water calm him down. When he's done, he quickly dries off and gets changed. He puts the wet and probably stained uniform inside one of the special laundry bags Coach Sylvester ordered for the team and he makes a mental note to drop it off at the Cheerio-designated hamper near her office. He really starts to curse when he realizes he doesn't have enough gel. He has enough to keep the curls in place but not enough to hold it all back. He'll have to get his hat from his car.

He really just wants this week to end. He feels drained. He was worried at first because Tina seemed to be on to him but Blaine thinks that singing You Don't has made her believe it's about Kurt again. He really doesn't want to talk about it. He just needs a few more days, so he can put it behind him. If he skips out the rest of his classes today, and tomorrow being Friday, he can call in sick…then hide—he can admit it, he'll be hiding—for the weekend. By Monday he would have locked away his feelings for Sam Evans and everything will be the way it was. He's sure of it.

Okay, he has a plan. He'll go home, call in sick. His parents won't be back until Friday evening, they won't even know he didn't go to school. In fact, he'll call his mom now about not feeling well and she'll call the school about him not coming in tomorrow. And if he does it just right she'll even insist on him going home immediately. Sometimes it pays to have Cooper as an older brother.

Plan set, Blaine whips out his phone and starts coughing, roughing up his throat. Calling out a few "hey Mom's" to test out one that sounds sick enough to worry her so she'll insist he go home but not too sickly that she will cut her trip short or become suspicious when he looks okay when they get home Friday evening. He feels a little guilty about skipping school but he's holding down a 4.0 GPA and most of his classes are AP, he figures he can take a break.

He finds just the right 'sick voice' and is about to call his mother when he hears the locker room door open.

"Blaine?"

What was Tina doing in here?

"Blaine, are you in here? You missed class." He can hear the worry in Tina's tone. And while he can fool his mom, there's no way he'll be able to fool Ms. Christina Cohen-Chang.

"Back here, Tina," Blaine says resignedly not even bothered that Tina just walked in the boys' locker room.

"There you are!" Tina says with a smile. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Blaine says, "I got drenched by a faulty faucet and decided to skip class so I can change. No big."

"Okay, well then let's go or we'll be late for glee," Tina

Dammit. He remembered he promised to help Tina sing her song today. Okay he can do this. He's done it the whole week, what's one more day? At least he won't have to deal with it tomorrow.

"Sure, I just need to get my hat from my car," Blaine says getting up.

"What? Why?" Tina actually sounds surprised.

"Um," Blaine says and points at his head. Can't she see how ridiculous he looks?

"Seriously?" Tina says with a grin. "I thought you were trying out a new look. I think it looks great."

"Tina—"

"How different is this than when you sang Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go?"

"That's different, I was performing," Blaine says rolling his eyes, why can't people see how hideous his hair is? "This is real life."

"Blaine," Tina says sternly, looking grim; her change of expression so abrupt that Blaine gets startled. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes." Of course he does. Tina's his best friend. His only best friend now.

"Do you think I will ever make you an object of ridicule or allow people to make fun of you?"

"Of course not," Blaine answers her, where was she going with this?

"So why don't you believe me when I tell you that you look good and that you don't need a hat?" she asks him, her face softening.

"Tina," he starts then stops. "It's just…" Dammit. He takes a deep breath. Okay, Tina's right, she won't do anything that will make people laugh at him. He doesn't like his curls loose but maybe it means that other people might think it's okay. He doesn't think baggy jeans are flattering but other people do. Maybe it's one of those things where people think it's cool because it's so hideous. Besides, he can't hurt Tina's feelings. It's just for glee. He'll go home right after. He'll pretend that he's playing a character that has a mop for hair. He can do this.

"Fine," Blaine sighs. "Let's go."

They are the last to arrive in glee and Tina was just finishing a hilarious story about Mercedes being mistaken for Jennifer Hudson in a nail salon and Mercedes totally taking advantage of it to score some freebies, Blaine can't help but smile. Tina grabs his hand and drags him to two empty seats in front just as Finn walks out of Mr. Schue's office. Blaine has studiously kept his eyes on Tina so he wouldn't have to look at Sam. He feels his smile drop but manages to cover his wince when the chair Tina leaves open for him puts him right next to Sam.

He can do this. It'll be weird if he doesn't greet Sam so he looks up and catches Sam's green eyes but his heart stops when he sees the confusion and sadness there. The confusion and sadness he put there because he couldn't control himself. He forces a smile and says, "Hi Sam."

It sounded weird. Why did that sound weird? His eyes widen as he realizes that's the first time he has initiated a conversation with Sam since the weekend. Dammit. He quickly turns to Tina and whispers, "Are you singing first?" Not really caring for her answer, he just wants to have a legitimate reason to look away.

He forces himself to look at Finn, not really noticing what he's saying but he can feel Sam beside him. He's so aware of him. His heat. The flash of skin. His scent. God, his scent. Dammit.

He sees Tina getting up and he follows. He goes through the performance on autopilot. Harmonizing with Tina and keeping focus on her. He's just support here. He's not avoiding Sam by focusing on Tina, he's merely directing everyone's focus on her. It's his job. Even if he can feel Sam's eyes on him. Dammit.

They finish and they sit down.

"That was awesome!" Finn exclaims. "Seriously you guys, I don't think I've ever heard Bob Marley done that way but it really works! Great job Blaine and Tina!"

"It's mostly Tina," Blaine quickly jumps in, making sure everyone knows that this was all her. "Joe pointed her in the right direction of course but that was Tina's arrangement, I just helped out with the vocals."

Tina smiles her thanks at Blaine and Finn congratulates Tina even more. Blaine is peripherally aware as two more numbers are performed. Brittany sings a folk song and Joe does Katy Perry but even that isn't enough to pull his attention away from Sam. Sam is actually looking at him. He's practically staring! Blaine's got his eyes forward but not seeing the performances. He picks his cues from Tina, he claps when she does, smiles when she does. He has to, his brain is too overwhelmed by the waves of intensity coming from Sam to make any kind of decision.

"Sam?" Finn's question breaks him out of his trance. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah," Blaine flinches at how raw Sam sounds and he realizes that Sam hasn't spoken at all until that moment.

Sam sits behind the piano which actually takes Blaine by surprise. Marley, Kitty and Tina get up and join him, Tina giving Blaine a gentle smile as she joins the other girls. Blaine suddenly realizes that he's all alone in the front row.

Sam speaks up and Blaine can't help but look and he almost gasps as Sam is looking directly at him. He talks to the room but he keeps his eyes on Blaine.

"Someone really special introduced this song to me," Sam says. "I'm still not a huge fan of her music but this song is special to me. I even learned how to play it on the piano," Sam says softly and Blaine realizes that that was for him alone. Sam wanted him to know that. "I wanted to sing this the first day of the assignment but I wasn't ready. I was too scared. I'm not anymore."

Sam starts playing and Blaine's eyes widen. He can't be—

The sky looks pissed
The wind talks back
My bones are shifting in my skin
And you my love are gone

Blaine is stunned. He's singing The Chain. He shifted the key a bit to better suit his voice and Sam's playing isn't perfect but Sam is singing The Chain and he's keeping his eyes on Blaine. They never left him from the moment he sat behind the piano. There is no doubt that he's singing this song to Blaine. Blaine wonders if Sam even knows what this song means?

My room seems wrong
The bed won't fit
I cannot seem to operate
And you my love are gone

He does know what it means. Dammit. Blaine can't help himself and he looks at Brittany and she's sitting there smiling sadly at Sam. She knows. Blaine looks back at Sam as the girls join him in harmony.

So glide away in soapy heels
And promise not to promise anymore
And if you come around again
Then I will take, then I will take the chain from off the door

Blaine's heart lurches. He can't believe it. Is Sam saying this to him for real?

I'll never say
That I'll never love
But I don't say a lot of things
And you my love are gone

Blaine can feel the heat behind his eyes as tears start to gather. He flashes into anger. He was just getting it right! He kept his heart from breaking this time! He had cracks but he held it together and he was ready! He was going to keep Sam safe in a corner of his heart and he—they can be normal again but no, bloody-Sam-bloody-Evans had to ruin it and declare his feelings in song and making sure everyone knows!

So glide away in soapy heels
And promise not to promise anymore
And if you come around again
Then I will take the chain from off the door

Is that what he did? Glide away from him? Oh Sam. And the anger is gone. He abandoned him. No wonder Sam is sad. He really is an awful friend. He was so focused on his feelings and justifying why he should stay away from Sam so he wouldn't be hurt that he forgot that Sam's world just changed, that he was lost and confused and instead of being a friend and help him, he avoided him. He left him all alone. He's such a dick! Blaine couldn't stop it this time and the tears fall down freely and as he looks at Sam and meets his eyes he can see the tears pooling there, too. Sam and the girls hit the round part of the song and their harmony is breathtaking.

So glide away in soapy heels
And promise not to promise anymore
And if you come around again
Then I will take the chain from off the door
Then I will take, then I will take, then I will take the chain from off the door

The room is quiet. Sam is looking at Blaine and Blaine is looking right back at him. Blaine is aware that in the background Tina and Marley are quietly shooing everyone out of the room. He ignores Kitty and Sugar's protestations that they want to see what's going to happen next.

Sam gets up from the piano and walks to Blaine and Blaine pulls himself up to his feet. Sam stops in front of him.

"I'm sorry," Sam says, breaking the silence. Blaine is confused. Why is Sam sorry? Blaine was the one who messed things up!

"Why?" Blaine asks. "Sam you didn't do anything wrong—"

"Then why didn't you talk to me?" Sam's voice is harsh but there's pain there, too. Blaine winces. Sam looks down but immediately looks back up at Blaine. "I know I screwed up. The feelings overwhelmed me and I panicked but you…you wouldn't come near me. You avoided me or ran away. I lost my best friend, Blaine, you took him from me."

"I'm so, so sorry Sam," Blaine feels wretched. He wants to hug Sam, let him know that he would never leave him again but will that be welcome? Does he even deserve it after what he did to Sam? Blaine couldn't help it, he raises his hand to comfort Sam but stops himself but before he can put his arm down Sam reaches out for his hand like it's a lifeline and grabs his hand. Feeling Sam's warm hand on his own sends a bolt of electricity up his spine. "I thought I was giving you space and I guess I panicked, too. I didn't want to crowd you and lose you."

"You think I would let you go?" Sam asks.

"I fell for you," Blaine admits, "that wasn't in the agreement."

Blaine's heart starts beating fast. He didn't mean to say that. But he's glad that he did. It's out there now, for better or for worse. At least whatever happens now they'll move forward this, not this back-and-forth. He hopes that if they can't be together that, at least, they'll move in the same direction.

"I fell for you, too," Sam says and Blaine feels his heart stop. "I didn't plan on it, and I know you didn't either but it happened. It freaked me out, not because you're a boy but because the feelings were…are so strong. I've never felt anything like this before."

"Sam—" but before Blaine can say anything else he feels Sam's lips on his, soft and gentle. Sam pulls back a bit but Blaine pushes forward, after tasting these lips last week and thinking he never would again, Blaine can't help but be a little greedy. Sam returns the kiss strongly and Blaine feels Sam's body press against his and his hand behind his neck, Sam's fingers digging into his curls. Blaine reaches up to hold Sam's head and his other hand holding on to his arm. He feels himself locked into place by Sam's other arm wrapping around his waist.

They finally break the kiss. Blaine looks up at Sam's glorious face and he sees the smile in his eyes. He can feel Sam's thumbs on his cheeks wiping the tears away.

"Hey you," Blaine says. He just wanted to greet Sam. This Sam. Happy Sam. He hasn't seen him in a while and he's been missed.

"Hi," Sam says and smiles. And Sam leans down again and captures his mouth with another kiss.

They need to talk.

But it can wait.


A/N - The song is obviously The Chain by Ingrid Michaelson.

I also want to give my thanks to TheFauxMe (check her profile out, she's an awesome writer) who told me how lazy the original chapter four was and to get my head out of my ass and write it properly. So if you liked this chapter, she's responsible for it.

Thank you for reading.