Something seems to be wrong with the email notifications at the moment, as I updated yesterday but don't think a notification got sent out. So, if this one does get sent out, just in case, there's one previous chapter you may not have read - go check before reading on so you don't miss anything :)

31st December 2019

Kurt tried his best to wipe away his tears and make himself look presentable. Given how much his mind was buzzing, he was finding it pretty difficult but, seeing as the cab was just about to stop at the party, he knew that he needed to pull himself together pretty quickly.

Blaine had invited him to a New Year's Eve party that was being held by a college friend of his, Jacob. Kurt wasn't going to know anyone else there and, ordinarily, that would've freaked him out but, that day, it made him feel free and empowered. It meant he could really let loose, act however he wanted to act and he didn't have to care because none of these people would ever see him again. He absolutely needed it.

The cab pulled up to the block of apartments and he could already see Blaine standing and waiting for him. He took a deep breath and got out of the cab, hoping that Blaine wouldn't notice he'd been crying. Blaine grinned as he noticed him for a second before his face fell and worry was instantly etched across his forehead.

"Kurt, what's wrong?" Blaine asked, noticing his reddened cheeks immediately.

"Nothing." Kurt mumbled looking to the ground, hoping that by the time he looked back up again, Blaine's worried gaze would have gone. It wasn't and Blaine lightly held his arm, pulling him to one side from the door, into a small alcove, so that other people could get in.

"Don't lie to me, Kurt," Blaine said sternly. "You look awful, what's happened?" Kurt bit his lip and shook his head gently as a few tears fell to the ground.

"L… Liam and I… w…we broke up…" Kurt stuttered across his words, trying to catch his breath from how upset he was. Blaine instantly scooped him up into a tight hug. He managed to keep a hold of the grin that was threatening to appear across his face at the idea of Kurt finally being single again because he needed to be there for him. Although he couldn't deny his joy at the thought, it absolutely broke his heart to see Kurt so upset.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He murmured gently into Kurt's ear.

"No…" Kurt shook his head.

"Do you want me to get you supremely drunk?"

"Yes please." Kurt sniffed gently before pulling away. "Thank you." Blaine wiped the tears off of his face gently with his thumb, grabbed his hand and pulled him into the building, pressing the button for the lift. They stood in silence for a few seconds, just Kurt's sniffs echoing around the foyer, gradually dying down, until the lift came. As they walked in Blaine pressed the button for the penthouse.

"Penthouse?" Kurt said, raising his eyebrows, "I didn't realise your friend's party was in a penthouse, Blaine. I feel better already…" he joked as Blaine smiled at him. He paused before continuing, "I'm sorry I look so awful for meeting your friends, they're probably going to have such a bad first impression of me." Kurt bit his lip as Blaine stepped towards him.

"Look at me for a second," Blaine said. Kurt obediently lifted his head to look at him. "You look great." He smiled.

"No I don't," Kurt mumbled, seeing himself in the elevator mirrors. "My eyes are all puffy and red!"

"Ok," Blaine stepped closer to him and placed his fingers on the tip of Kurt's nose, pressing tightly to make the blood rush to it.

"Ow!" Kurt grumbled as an ache shot through his nose. "What the hell, Blaine?" He rubbed his nose gently and watched in the mirror as it reddened slightly.

"If anyone asks, tell them you've got a cold." Blaine said kindly.

"You're a genius." Kurt smiled.

"I know," Blaine shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

"And so modest too…" Kurt laughed. "Tell me how you're single, again?" He joked before stopping himself. He knew exactly why Blaine was single and he'd known it since they'd seen each other at the Lima Bean years ago. Blaine never really wanted to talk about it with Kurt but, they both knew that he never looked for anything serious in a relationship. In fact, the second any relationship got even the slightest bit more than a fling, Blaine would pull away and break up with them. Kurt had never felt it to be a good idea to delve too deeply into the emotions behind that, assuming that it was something left from the awful breakdown of Blaine's parent's relationship.

"I don't know," Blaine joked, not catching on to Kurt's train of thought.

"So tell me, what happens when it fades?" Kurt said, gesturing to his face. "You're not going to keep pinching my nose all evening to keep the effect there, are you?"

"No," Blaine laughed, "by that time they'll all be too drunk to notice." And he was right. The cold excuse had worked like a charm, even to the point of Kurt and Blaine pretty much being left alone for most of the evening, no-one else wanting to catch Kurt's cold. They were both fine with that, however, because Blaine wasn't sure he wanted to focus on anyone other than Kurt, and Kurt wanted to get hideously drunk without other people getting in his way.

They spent the evening dancing and drinking together, laughing and just enjoying each other's company. Every so often one of them would brush up against the other and, whereas they would normally suddenly move to decrease the contact, this time neither of them did, allowing the feeling of celebration wash over them and making all of the small winks and flirty gestures acceptable.

Blaine could feel himself relaxing around Kurt even more than he normally did, not needing to watch what he said and worry about if he was coming on too strongly. Sure, usually he could joke with Kurt about being attracted to him, and he could tell him he looked good if he was asked for his opinion, or if Kurt needed cheering up but he couldn't just compliment him seriously. He never felt like he could just sit and tell him how beautiful, smart or funny he was. How every time he walked into a room, it was like the contrast had been turned up and how, no matter how hard he tried, Blaine was completely and inexplicably drawn to him in every way possible.

However, that night was different, special. Even if it went wrong, even if Kurt shot him down, he could explain it away by saying he was drunk or that he was just trying to cheer him up. It mean that, when they'd been dancing together, he didn't feel too afraid to pull Kurt closer to him, wrapping his arms around his waist as they shimmied around the room, Kurt's back pressed tightly against Blaine's chest as their hips swayed together in time to the music. He'd taken the opportunity to bury his face into the crook of Kurt's neck, running his nose along it lightly, allowing himself the chance to make Kurt feel, hopefully, good and so, so wanted. So when, at five to midnight, Kurt had wrapped his arms around his neck and told him that he must look like a mess at that moment, Blaine didn't hesitate in telling him that he thought he was stunning.

Kurt paused for a second and pulled back from Blaine, looking him in the eyes. The alcohol in his system buzzed around his body making everything seem electric and glittery. He'd noticed how much Blaine was complimenting him and how much he'd been flirting with him all evening and, in his drunken state, he'd liked it. It was nice getting some male attention and having someone finally say nice things to him. Liam didn't compliment him much at all anymore and their argument earlier had been stupid. It was a stupid break up based around them both being too busy and too stressed but it was still a break up nonetheless.

"Thank you," Kurt said seriously, about the compliment. Blaine blushed gently and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well, you are."

"I need a rest," Kurt said suddenly because they'd been dancing so hard for most of the evening. "Plus it's almost midnight…" He glanced at the clock and pulled Blaine to the balcony of the apartment to get some fresh air and alone time.

The apartment looked out across Central Park and, as they watched the empty streets below, Kurt rested his head on Blaine's shoulder, taking deep breaths to try and clear his head from the alcohol in his system. He felt Blaine's arm wrap around his waist and press their sides together tightly. Blaine turned his head slightly and kissed the top of Kurt's head.

"I'm so glad you chose to spend tonight with me." He said quietly into Kurt's hair.

"Me too." Kurt smiled before taking another deep breath, his heart pounding. "…Can I tell you a secret?" Kurt asked, quietly.

"Of course," Blaine kissed his head once more.

"I had a huge crush on you in school," he said before laughing gently at how ridiculous it had sounded out loud. He felt Blaine stiffen underneath him and he lifted his head off of his shoulder suddenly feeling incredibly awkward. "I'm sorry," he said, misunderstanding Blaine's reaction and assuming he'd made him feel uncomfortable, as he could hear the countdown for midnight starting in the apartment.

10, 9,

"I shouldn't have said anything."

8, 7,

Blaine, shocked, turned to look at him directly in the eyes and moved closer, not smiling and shaking his head.

6, 5,

He placed his hands on Kurt's hips, leaning towards him so that he could feel Kurt's warm breath on his mouth.

4, 3,

"We should go inside," Kurt whispered when their lips were mere millimetres apart.

2, 1!

"Ssh," Blaine said before closing the gap between them and kissing Kurt so strongly that he would've fallen backwards if it wasn't for Blaine's hands cradling his back. Kurt breathed in gently, feeling overwhelmed at the feeling of Blaine's lips on his own. This time it wasn't to try and comfort him or as a favour, this time it was a kiss purely driven by lust. Neither of them realised that the other one's lust was years old and neither of them stopped to consider it either as the kiss became more desperately passionate. Blaine's hands slid down Kurt's back and rested on his ass, pulling him in closer as Kurt's arms tightened around his shoulders. Kurt whimpered faintly into Blaine's mouth, a sound which travelled directly to Blaine's cock and made him buck his hips towards Kurt, having to hold back a growl in response. He pushed his tongue into Kurt's mouth, exploring it and massaging Kurt's tongue with his own. Kurt curled his fingers into Blaine's hair, tugging gently and started to suck and nip on Blaine's lower lip causing Blaine to groan loudly. He had to almost physically hold himself back from pushing Kurt up against the wall on the side of the balcony and grinding into him until the sun came up.

He pulled back from the kiss, both of them breathing heavily, and stepped away from Kurt, knowing that if he didn't he wouldn't be able to stop himself ever. They both paused for a few seconds, neither of them sure what to say. Blaine leant against the balcony rail, a shocked smile falling from his lips before he could stop it.

"So…" Blaine broke the silence after a few minutes, once he'd pulled himself together, and managed to will his erection to go away, "do you wanna go back inside and get another drink?"

"No." Kurt said certainly, shaking his head. "…I want to go to your place." Blaine tried frantically to stop himself from grinning like a maniac as the words spilled out of Kurt's mouth.

"Ok." He said breathlessly, not breaking eye contact with Kurt as he grabbed his hand and started to pull him through the penthouse. They quickly rushed out of the apartment, into a cab and straight to his hotel room.

As they reached Blaine's room, Kurt surprised Blaine by quickly spinning him round by the hips and pressing against him, kissing him passionately against the door as Blaine tried to blindly fumble with his key card to let them in. After a few failed attempts, Blaine wrapped his free arm strongly around Kurt's waist and spun them around so that he was facing the door. He pulled away from the kiss to try and get the door unlocked and instantly felt Kurt's lips trailing along his neck, stopping to suck gently on his Adam's apple. Blaine groaned quietly, desperately trying to focus enough to get the door open. Finally the green light flashed to show it was unlocked and Blaine quickly kicked the door open, returning his lips to Kurt's and pushing him through it. He slammed it shut as he passionately shoved Kurt up against the wall, allowing another groan to escape his lips as he roughly sucked Kurt's mouth, strongly gripping Kurt's hips. He'd wanted all of this for so long that it felt like it was 7 years' worth of kissing spilling out onto Kurt's lips all at once, feeling like there was no way he could stop now, no way he could hold back and be gentle.

He growled as he placed his hands on Kurt's ass and lifted him up, letting Kurt wrap his legs around Blaine's waist, and pushing him even tighter up against the wall. Kurt hummed into his mouth, both of them breathing heavily and surrendering to their desire, letting it wash over them. Kurt started nibbling along Blaine's jaw and kissed the spot just under his ear, making him thrust up against him shamelessly and moan loudly. Still holding on to his ass, Blaine carried Kurt further into the hotel room where the bed was as Kurt started to suck on his ear lobe.

He dropped Kurt onto the bed and fell on top of him with a grunt before pushing his tongue into Kurt's ear and pulling his shirt out from his pants, earning him a soft gasp from Kurt that only spurred him on. He moved and started to suck the skin at the bottom of Kurt's neck, where it joined the shoulder and he moved his hands underneath Kurt's shirt and ran them along the warm, soft skin on his stomach.

"Fuck Kurt, want you so bad," Blaine mumbled against Kurt's skin as he couldn't help but roll his hips down into Kurt, practically begging for more friction, for more of everything. He heard Kurt hum gently in response. As he moved his hands along Kurt's torso and his lips along Kurt's neck, something felt strange, different. Kurt gradually became less responsive to his kisses and rough touches, his breathing becoming deeper and more regular. Blaine paused for a second and glanced over to Kurt who had his eyes closed.

"…Kurt?" Blaine whispered gently, his heart still pounding in his chest. Kurt murmured gently in response. "…Are you asleep?" he whispered again.

"'m no' 'sleep…" Kurt mumbled again as his head fell gently to one side. Blaine sighed, letting his head fall in despair onto Kurt's chest. He'd been waiting so long to be this close to Kurt, to be allowed to kiss, touch and hold him, exploring his body and discovering all of the different ways he could turn him on, that he couldn't help but feel incredibly frustrated at having to stop. Of course the first, and possibly only, time he'd get that opportunity, Kurt would fall asleep.

Blaine unsteadily got to his feet, the alcohol and lust coursing through his veins making him uncontrollably dizzy. He practically fell into the bathroom, his erection feeling intensely uncomfortable as it pressed against his zipper. He locked the bathroom door, just in case, quickly undoing his pants and letting them fall around his thighs. He wrapped his hand around his hard cock, leant back against the door and started roughly pumping it, not able to stop thinking of Kurt's hot breath on his neck. After what seemed like hours but was in actual fact only a few minutes, Blaine felt his body tense up tightly. He smacked his head back against the bathroom door as he came hard over his still pumping fist. He quickly shoved his palm into his mouth, stifling the scream that was threatening to spill out of his mouth as he breathed through the intensity of his orgasm.

He cleaned himself off before poking his head out of the bathroom door, hoping that Kurt hadn't heard him. Seeing that Kurt had turned onto his side but was still definitely asleep, Blaine exited the bathroom, crouching down by Kurt's side of the bed and watching him for a few moments before folding over the other side of the duvet to cover and wrap him up. He moved a hair out of Kurt's eyes, and knew that it was undeniable that he was still completely in love with Kurt, now even more than before.

Blaine sighed and laid down on the duvet-less side of the bed, finally letting sleep start to wash over him. He allowed himself another look at Kurt before rolling away from him, not having a clue about what would happen the next day and, really, not caring. Even being able to be close to Kurt like this just for that evening was better than nothing at all; at least that was what he'd continue to convince himself until he fell into a deep, drunken, sleep.