Notes: The final chapter has arrived! Once again I want to thank everyone for reading and for having patience, and say that writing this story has been a joy. Much love!


On the first day, a little over two years ago he'd still had some bruising around his left eye as well as a cut along the side of his healing nose, because the plaster had fallen off at some point on his way to the new school. The doctor had said it might look a little uneven after the swelling had gone down, and he could already see that it was practically crooked, right there, in the middle of his face.

He spent a lot of time worrying about how ugly he'd become.

When the doctor said a plastic surgeon could correct it with a simple procedure, his dad had coughed something about his son not having any nose jobs and ever since then, they'd never discussed it again.

But that didn't mean that Blaine didn't think about it. All the time.

About a night that was supposed to have been a good time. About a boy who he wasn't even necessarily interested in, but who he'd still said yes to and maybe even blushed a little when asked if he wanted to go with him.

About how warm he'd felt inside, when a nervous hand had slipped into his as they walked out the doors of the school to the sound of generic pop music escaping through the halls because it was the first hand ever to hold onto his.

And sometimes, when he looked into the mirror with an involuntary frown on his face at how nobody would probably ever want to hold it again, he thought about how cold it got when the hand had slipped away.


"Ladies. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

The sarcasm in Sebastian's voice wasn't exactly subtle as he stood in the doorway to his dorm, impatiently regarding the sight of his friend and not-so-close acquaintance disturbing him from his Sunday noon beauty sleep.

Sam winced at the sight, noting that the black eye was significantly more protruding in the light of day when someone impatiently bumped his shoulder.

"Tell him…" Blaine urged.

The blond teen cleared his throat. "Sebastian, I wanted to apologize…"

"For…?-" An encouraging nod almost shook the stale, gelled curls loose from their iron hold.

"-For punching you. In the face. I was… dealing with some stuff and I didn't mean to take it out on you."

"Huh." Sebastian nodded in impressed approval, tapping a slipper clad foot against the doorframe. "Apology accepted."

"Uhm, Ok? Thanks."

"It's cool. Where are you watching the game next weekend?"

Blaine blinked, stepping to the side to look up at the two tall boys all of a sudden chatting casually in the hallway about football with a dumbfounded expression on his face, as he unzipped the front of the oversized sweatshirt he was wearing.

Because maybe he was a little overdressed for the warm, spring Sunday noon slowly but surely defrosting Ohio under a clear blue sky, but apparently in hell degrees were quickly falling to zero and below.


Blaine had simply asked one thing of him. "Just tell him you're sorry."

"Do you have any idea how few other out, gay guys there are around here?"

And apparently, it wasn't even easier said than done.

In the early evening, he had no idea where he'd been for the last couple of weeks if not even months, and he wished somebody could shake his shoulders and tell him where the hell he was going because in all honesty, he didn't have a clue. But for some reason, for the first time in forever he wasn't scared of where this place was, because somehow he knew just who'd be right there with him once he'd get there.

And even though in that moment, there was no place he'd rather be but right there next to him, he knew that there was someplace else he needed to be.

A knock, and what felt like an eternity.

And then the door opened.

"Sam?"

"Hi… Can I come in?"

"Of course. Of course you can."

"So. How are you?"

Brittany looked at the hallway floor, because the sight of the look in Sam's eyes alone was enough to make the tightest set of lips tremble. "I'm good. Are you Ok?" Almost hesitantly, she looked up again.

Sam laughed nervously, scratching his head as he shook it. "Believe it or not, I'm a lot better than I've been in a really long time."

Instantly knowing, sparkling eyes filled up with foggy tears even though her mouth was smiling. "That makes me happy." It was now her time to let out a shaky, nervous laugh, fiddling with the charm bracelet clinging onto a freckled wrist before a warm hand gently grabbed onto it. Her eyes focused on the thumb brushing against the polished piece of silver making out the shape of half a heart. "Santana said she's looking into moving out of the dorm and getting a bigger place next year. For two."

He smiled, the action causing enough movement on his face to let an apparently there tear fall down on his left cheek. "That makes me happy, too." And then, all he felt was the warm presence of the body of a dancer all around him, slim arms embracing the shoulders aching from having been carrying around so much for such a long time just to finally have let it go.

"You're just like me." The strangled noise came from somewhere next to his right year, even though it sounded like it was far away. "But there's nothing wrong with us, I promise."

"I know." He said. "Or at least, I'm trying to learn."

She leaned back a little, just enough to be able to look into his eyes. "We just love too much." A shrug, and then the first tearstained laugh he'd heard in far too long that wasn't nervous in even the slightest of ways.

"Probably too much for this world."

"But why in the world would that be wrong?"


"Don't stop…"

As much as he wished he'd never need to, Sam was afraid he wouldn't be able to last much longer.

So instead he leaned closer, his chest flush against the heat radiating from Blaine's back as he reached a hand around and soon, he didn't need to last anymore.

The breaths of heaving chests eventually returned to normal, at which point they swiftly cleaned up the evidence of what had just happened just in case someone were to sneak in during the early morning hours to get the hamper of laundry standing in the corner.

"Your mom looked at me funny during dinner."

Sam chuckled, grabbing onto Blaine's hand resting on top of the covers.

"Do you think she knows?"

"I don't know." The taller teen shrugged. "Probably. She knows everything."

Nodding, Blaine turned his head carefully as concerned eyes searched for Sam's face in the darkness of the room without much success. "Does it bother you?"

"Nah." Just in time for the thick cloud obstructing the moon somewhere in the sky outside the window to finally move along, Sam's eyes fell into and got lost in sparkling, moonlit ones.

The shadow dancing along the side of his face resting on top of the pillow highlighted a slightly crooked nose that Sam hadn't noticed since the first time he'd seen him because at the time, it had been covered by a nasty cut. He brought a hand up, his thumb gently stroking down a barely noticeably bent bridge. "You're perfect."

Chuckling at the confession, Blaine shook his head free as he looked down. "I thought you wouldn't lie to me again."

"I'm not."

He nodded in response, letting the words sink in as he was preparing to open his mouth to say something not even remotely close to the words that fell out as he raised his head and looked into Sam's eyes. "Thank you."

The window was wide open, letting in an occasional cool spring breeze lowering the temperature of the room and even though apparently hell had frozen over, in his chest Blaine couldn't feel anything but warm.

He sighed, curling up closer to lay his head on top of Sam's naked chest. "Where the hell have you been all this time..?"

"I just think, if I put myself out there maybe I'll, you know…. Meet someone."

Sam looked down for a moment, and if Blaine didn't have a hunch of just how much their friendship meant to both of them he'd think the other boy almost seemed a little jealous. "I think you're looking in the wrong place, Blaine."

"Then just exactly where would you suggest I look?"

"Right here, I guess." Sam chuckled, letting a heavy arm circle around Blaine's shoulders and leaning down to leave a kiss, soft and sweet on the top of a head of curly hair before turning a little somber. Closing his eyes, he took in the scent Blaine and sleep and freshly washed sheets. He held him just a little tighter than before, a minute away from drifting off to dreams that, for once in his life, couldn't even compare to that day and all of a sudden it was as if he finally knew where he was going.

"At least that's where I'll be."

THE END