Another chapter! Who's ready for Blaine? Me too. It will still be at least a few chapters before Klaine comes in as anything more than casual friends. Kurt's in a fragile place and isn't looking for a boyfriend yet. But, soulmates will always win out over anything else.

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Disclaimer: don't own any of the people or places just the story line.

Enjoy!

Kurt's dry eyed and finished setting up his side of the room when Nick and Jeff come back to the room. Based on the fact that it's been just less than two hours since they left, and the new hickey visible on Jeff's collar bone, Kurt assumes they did more than just have lunch while they were gone. He decides to call them out on this, for his sake and theirs, in the politest way he can. "Need some concealer Jeff?"

Jeff and Nick both blush brightly while Kurt offers them the tube of makeup. "Dang it! I thought this shirt covered it." Jeff mutters. Kurt helps him cover it properly. "Sorry. We were…"

"I don't want to know what happened." Kurt stops the taller boy.

"Right." Jeff blushes. "Well, your room looks nice."

"Thanks."

"Do you want to do something with us this afternoon?" Nick asks. "I've got some games. Or we could watch a movie."

"You have a TV?" Kurt asks. Watching TV at home had been a good distraction.

"In the lounge. Or my laptop." Nick says.

"Lounge?" Kurt shakes his head in question.

"Yeah. Didn't Roy show you? It's downstairs. The second floor has a lounge and kitchen in place of six bedrooms in the center of the building. C'mon come check it out."

Kurt allows himself to be led to the lounge by his roommate. It is nice. Plush chairs and couches and tables are scattered through the room; a TV with a Blu-ray player and some video game consul Finn would know the name of are on one wall; a full bookshelf is on the other; and the wall, opposite the door Kurt, Nick, and Jeff had entered, is the kitchen. Kurt takes a mental note to check that out later. There are a few boys playing a card game on one table and a couple reading books in their own chairs. They all glance up when the three of them enter, they cast their glances back down just as quickly but come back for a double take when they realize they don't recognize Kurt.

Nick and Jeff ignore the stares and pull Kurt to the TV. "We can watch any movie rated PG-13 or lower." Jeff rambles on explaining. "Do you want to watch something?"

"Yeah."

The settle on watching the Princess Bride, to satisfy the romantic in Kurt and Jeff's desire for action. A few other boys join them throughout the film and after: some of Nick and Jeff's friends, who introduce themselves to Kurt. He does his best but can't keep their names straight; Cameron, Flint, David and Richard. The names get muddled in his tired mind.

After the movie all the guys want Kurt to play games with them. They keep tossing out ideas. most of them are outrageous, weird, or embarrassing; like truth or dare, spin the bottle, and strip poker; Puck would love these guys. Kurt sits there feeling uncomfortable at the suggestions the boys bombard him with. Nick intervenes on his roommate's behalf. "Hey guys, shut up. How about we play something that isn't going to freak him out and make him think we all belong in an asylum?"

"We could play 'Would You Rather'." Kurt is pretty sure the boy who speaks is named Flint.

Nick agrees that it is tame enough and they decide to play it. "Okay Flint you start."

"Okay. Cameron, would you rather always wear pants that are two sizes too small or shirts that are two sizes too small?"

"Shirts. So, I can show off my pecs and abs and not crush my junk." Laughter rings through the room. "Jeff, would you rather have your hair dyed permanently green or make out with a girl?" Cameron asks.

"Um, what girl?"

"The most horribly feminine, opposite to Nick girl with huge boobs."

Jeff's nose wrinkles and his lips purse. "The hair. As long as Nicky still loved me with green hair."

"I love you no matter what your hair looks like, baby." The two boys kiss sweetly.

"Moving on." Someone says.

"Nicky. Would you rather marry me or be a millionaire?"

"I don't care how much money I have as long as I'm with you." Nick says.

The rest of the boys gag as the couple kisses again. "Good answer." Jeff says.

The game continues on with random questions. Kurt can't find it in himself to enjoy it. He feels a bit on the outside as the others can personalize their questions to torture each other and can't do the same for him. Not that he needs to be put through anymore torture. "Kurt would you rather go back in time to some other point in your life or go forward in time to your future?"

"Back in time." Kurt says with no doubt. Two weeks ago, his answer would have been different. "Um Richard? Would you rather go bald or never cut your hair again?"

"Um. I don't know do you guys think I cold rock Rapunzel hair?" Richards asks.

The group laughs but have mixed answers. Some are very "Yeah totally" and others are "No, never".

"Um I think I'd rather be bald, I'd just have to find some awesome hats to wear." Richard says. "Okay David, would you rather get wacked in the head repeatedly by Wes' gavel or never kiss a girl again?"

David's face pales and his eyes go wide. "You are a terrible person, Richard. Um…um… how many hits exactly?"

"Four strikes from the gavel. Or no kissing girls ever again." Richard says.

David looks horribly conflicted. It makes Kurt wonder who Wes is and what's up with his gavel. "Ooo. That's harsh." A dreamy voice speaks from the doorway. "But I suggest never kissing girls again. Don't know why you'd want to in the first place. And you still have Wes to make out with."

"Blaine!" All the boys except for David and Kurt cheer. Kurt because he doesn't know him. And David is instead protesting that he doesn't make out with Wes.

Kurt looks up at the incoming boy. He's really cute. Flawlessly tanned skin, adorable small ears, two moist rosy lips and a perfect row of snowy pearls, handsome bone structure, and glistening golden brown orbs, topped with a suave swoop of over-gelled curls. And if Kurt was his old self, he'd be chasing after this boy in no time. But, he isn't his old self. So that has to remain a 'maybe one day', in the distant future, when the pain has dulled and he can feel good things again.

"I thought you were spending the entire weekend at home." Jeff says.

"I was going to." Blaine takes a seat in the circle. "But my dad decided it was a good day for insulting my sexuality and I wasn't going to put up with that so Mom brought me back."

Most the guys murmur in understanding. Kurt just stares at the boy. "How many of you here are gay?" he asks.

Nick and Jeff laugh. "There's quite a few of us." Nick says.

Blaine leans over the circle and offers a hand. "Hi, I'm Blaine."

"Kurt." He accepts the handshake.

Blaine smells faintly of raspberry and coffee. It's intoxicating. So much so that Kurt misses what Blaine asks him. Fortunately, Nick saves him from embarrassment by answering it. "Yeah, he moved into my room today."

"Cool. I'm Jeff's roommate. We're over in Dewy." Blaine says to Kurt. "And you have an awesome bowtie."

Kurt has to look down to remember which one he is wearing. "Thanks"

"Seriously, where did you get that? I want one." Blaine says.

The other boys scoff. "Blaine, we need to host an intervention for your bowtie obsession." David says.

Blaine gives his friends a pouty glare. Kurt is finding this group stranger by the second. But, really who is he to judge, he came from the New Directions. Oh, he misses them so much. "It was a gift from my best friend. I don't know where she got it." Kurt says in response to Blaine's question.

"Weren't we playing would you rather?" Cameron asks.

Richard jumps on the chance to get away from the direction the current subject is going. "Yes. What is your answer David?"

"Ugh. I choose the gavel." David says. "Blaine, would you rather give up the hair gel or never sing again?"

Blaine looks affronted. "You deserve to be hit with the gavel." He says. "I can't live without singing. But forsaking the gel will probably kill everyone else." The boys roll their eyes and laugh. Blaine glares at them. "I choose the gel, you can all die for laughing at me." they just keep laughing. "Hey new kid, Kurt, since you asked about our sexualities. Would you rather kiss a boy or a girl?"

Kurt blushes. "A boy. I'm gay too."

"Good to know." Blaine smirks back.

Kurt's cheeks are still very pink. Is this guy flirting with him? "Nick, would you rather…" they played a few more rounds until the hourly bell rang from the Dalton clock towers signaling that it is six o'clock.

The group goes to dinner. Kurt isn't really hungry despite the fact that he's only eaten breakfast both of the past two days. Still, he gets dragged along and they help him find his way around the cafeteria. He only eats a little. They meet up with some other boys there, including that 'Thad' whom Kurt had met in the dorm. Kurt lets them do most of the talking, only commenting when asked a direct question.

After dinner the group, which has swelled in numbers, decides to return to the lounge. Save Kurt, he sneaks back to his dorm room. They're nice and he's sure they'd make great friends but he can't handle any more people tonight. No one notices him leave, his fairly certain of that.

He sits in the adjoined bathroom to the dorm and for the first time in days is able to do his full moisturizing routine. He knows that he's not been sleeping enough and that he is super stressed out. Both of those things are terrible for his skin. Washing out his pores feels great. And the routine calms down the anxiety he's had in the chaotic changes he's suffered through. He changes for bed and crawls under the covers.

Soft and very comfortable as the bed is, Kurt again is unable to sleep. He lays curled up tight on the bed. Nick comes in a while later. "Kurt?" He calls quietly. "You awake?"

Kurt shift to look at him and makes a small noise of acknowledgement.

"You alright? I know it got really crazy and maybe you aren't used to that. The guys are just excitable. And everyone felt bad when you disappeared after dinner. We didn't mean to freak you out."

Kurt faces him and feels a little bad for upsetting him. "No, it wasn't you guys. I'm used to crazy. My friends back home are worse than you. I'm just tired. It has been a long day."

"Really? That's good. Cause we thought maybe you didn't like us. You didn't seem to be having much. You seemed kinda sad or something." Nick says.

"I'm fine." Kurt has said that so many times lately that it has become his reflex response. He didn't want to explain to anyone his thoughts and feelings. "It's just a big change and I'll need some time to adjust to everything."

"Yeah I get that. But, it seemed like more."

"There's nothing. I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine. And I won't pry but I want you to know that you can talk to me if you need to. We live together now so we should be friends and trust each other."

Kurt doesn't deny again that there is something else wrong. He doesn't say anything. He rolls over on the bed, facing away from the rest of the room; more specifically his roommate. The silence is heavy and maybe a bit awkward, Kurt can't guess what Nick is thinking about it. He doesn't care. Both of them just lay on their respective beds. With a distance of not only space, but communication as well, between them that Kurt is more than fine with.