Another Point In Time: Chapter 4

As it turned out, Kurt did not actually call, instead he chose to text a meeting time and place, a decision for which Blaine was grateful. He may have been desperate to reconnect with the other man, but he did not trust himself not to say something stupid over the phone again.

And so, Blaine found himself nervously entering a Starbucks a few blocks from his apartment. The shop may not have been the Lima Bean, but it sure brought back fond memories of their frequent high school coffee dates. He would bet his next paycheck Kurt had been there five minutes early and already ordered a grande nonfat mocha.

He scanned the room cautiously, bracing himself for the sight of Kurt. He did not have to search for long; not more than a few seconds passed before his eyes fell upon the angelic face he had come to know well. He was sitting at a table in the corner, a drink in his hand and his phone sitting on the wooden tabletop in front of him. Kurt was dressed the same as always, which is to say, a little more extravagantly than was strictly necessary and clad head to toe in what Blaine assumed was entirely designer clothing. His hair was brushed out of his face, probably sprayed with half a bottle of hairspray to get it to remain in place. At Dalton, there had been a running joke amongst the boys that Kurt would single handedly put another hole in the ozone layer before graduation with all the hairspray he used. Blaine did not doubt it for a moment.

All in all, nothing seemed to have changed. He looked only a little older, a bit tired, as though life had taken a lot out of him already. His eyes remained the same. Still the same beautiful blue green gray eyes with a fire burning behind them that Blaine had tried and failed to memorize. But now seeing them again, it was like the last six years had never happened.

Kurt's familiar eyes met Blaine's. For a long moment the two did not move, locked in each other's gaze. Blaine blinked and the moment was over. Kurt cast his gaze downward towards his phone. With a deep breath to steel his nerves, Blaine walked awkwardly up to the table. "Hi,"

The countertenor glanced back up and tired to smile.

"Hey," he said before gesturing towards the chair opposite himself. "Have a seat,"

Blaine did so, not daring to tear his eyes away from the beauty he saw before him.

"I, uh, ordered your usual already," Kurt muttered, nodding to the cup that was now in front of Blaine, while taking a sip of his own. Somehow he had not even noticed it was there until Kurt mentioned it. Then he added, "Force of habit, I guess."

Blaine flashed him a quick smile. "Thanks,"

There was no more mistaking this for one of their after school coffee dates. The atmosphere was completely different. Stiff and uncomfortable were two words that came to mind quickly.

Shifting in his chair, Blaine started to speak. "Look Kurt, I just wanted to say that I—"

Apparently Kurt already knew what Blaine just wanted to say and he was not ready to hear it. "No, Blaine. Can we just… can we just pretend none of that ever… happened?"

"Um… okay?" Blaine was caught off guard. Six years ago, Kurt would have loved the opportunity to hear Blaine apologize and grovel for forgiveness. The younger boy had called it cute when his boyfriend tried to make amends following a fight.

"I mean, I didn't come here to deal with all of our history. I was kind of hoping we could forget about it." Kurt explained. "At least for now,"

"Then what did you come here for?"

Kurt let out a single humorless laugh. "I don't know. Closure, maybe? A second chance? Maybe I just hoped I would see you again and be able to hate you like I want to. Or…"

His voice trailed off and his eyes wandered desperately around the shop, looking for any chance to change the subject. Blaine was not ready to let him. "Or?"

"Forget it,"

Something in his tone told Blaine he had better drop that line of conversation if he did not want Kurt to stand up and walk away. Not wanting to lose after he had come so far, Blaine decided to leave it alone until the younger man was willing to talk. "So, what have you been up to these past years?"

"Oh, you know," Kurt looked relieved at the new direction their discussion was headed in. "Graduated, left Lima faster than you say 'Marc Jacobs,' went to college, double majored in fashion and musical theater, graduated, got a crappy job, quit said crappy job, got a new job, and now I work for a fashion magazine in New York while auditioning for various productions when I have time."

Blaine blinked. It seemed like Kurt had managed to give his whole life story in a single breath. Somehow, he had forgotten just how much and how quickly the self-proclaimed diva could really talk. Kurt looked a little sheepish when he realized what he done. "Sorry. Mercedes tells me I still talk too much. I've been trying to dial it down so I don't scare people off at work, but sometimes I just get bit too enthusiastic…"

"Hey, it's okay," Blaine grinned. He almost reached over to grab Kurt's hand to reassure him, but just before he did, he remembered the two of them were not dating anymore. They were not even friends again yet, to be honest, and it might make the whole situation that much more awkward. His next instinct was to tell Kurt how much he loved that about him, but again, the rational side of his brain kicked back into effect before that happened. Instead, he opted to move past that entire incident. "What magazine? Anything I've heard of?"

"Probably not. Honestly, it's just starting up, and at the rate we have been going, it won't make it through the next year or so. It's just kind of fun to say I work for a fashion magazine, and hey, a job's a job, and it pays the bills."

"That's cool," he agreed.

"What about you? What brings you to LA?"

"College, remember?" Blaine laughed. Kurt's face became solemn, clearly he did remember. Blaine was quick to continue. "I just sort of never bothered to leave."

In truth, after his obligation to remain in the city ended with his graduation, the only place Blaine had wanted to go had been back to Kurt. He had considered asking a few of their mutual friends where exactly the boy had gone after high school. Although he had heard Kurt talk a thousand times of studying in New York and breaking into the fashion industry or show business, he had no way of knowing for sure that had been what Kurt had done. More than once, he had found himself with his thumb hovering over his phone, poised to call someone and find out. And yet, he never did.

So he stayed.