Light filtered through the window dreamily, seemingly much brighter than it had been for the last few days. There was no longer the thundering sound of rain upon the rooftops to wake up to, and birds could be heard once again chirping happily from nearby trees. It seemed the worst of the storm had passed finally.
Blaine felt oppressively warm underneath the blanket, and there was a little snuffling sound close to his ear which he realised was the cause of his waking up. He scrunched his brow in confusion before opening his eyes properly and being greeted by the sweetest sight he had ever seen. Kurt had rolled over to face him at some point during the night but had still managed to stay lodged between Blaine's arms in the process. His lips were parted and the entire right side of his face was crushed into the pillow beneath his head. The little snuffling sound, Blaine realised, was coming from his mouth which he was breathing in and out of instead of his nose. It was the most unabashed Blaine had ever seen him but he knew Kurt would probably be mortified if he knew what he looked like right now. Blaine wouldn't have agreed however, he thought he looked adorable.
Blaine gently lifted his arm so as not to wake Kurt and moved a stray hair off his forehead to tuck behind his ear. His hair really was sticking up in every direction and Blaine couldn't even imagine how long it must take him to get ready every morning if this was how he started out each day. Kurt always looked so put together so it must take an age for him to deem himself acceptable to leave his room. He always fussed whenever Blaine would even touch his hair once he had styled it and now he knew why. He giggled looking at him.
The sound made Kurt stir a little but he did not wake. Blaine kissed him on the nose softly before pulling him even further into his body to hug him tight. When he pulled back his eyes caught on something and he had to hold Kurt at arm's length to fully see what exactly it was. Kurt's front, all the way down to his nipples and then back up his neck to his jaw, was covered in bruises. Bruises that were suspiciously similar to the shape and size of somebody's mouth. Blaine gaped at how much damage he had actually done to Kurt's otherwise flawless skin. He reached forward to touch one and as he pressed his fingers gently into the mark on Kurt's chest, the younger boy stirred again and gingerly opened his eyes.
"Wh…" he murmured, his voice just a light gasp of sound.
"Good morning beautiful," Blaine said with a guilty smile.
Kurt managed to open his eyes fully and it was then that it hit him what had happened the night before. He had shared his bed with Blaine. He had allowed Blaine to see him naked, and Blaine had been naked too. He had been so nervous at first he had thought he might faint from anxiety but once Blaine had reassured him, not once but several times, he had felt so much more at ease. His hand reached to cover his mouth as he stifled a giggle of his own at the memory.
Kurt stretched his arms up and rolled over onto his stomach, feeling all of his muscles regaining life after being so tightly wrapped up in Blaine all night. As he placed his weight down into the mattress he hissed when his nipples contacted it. He rolled quickly back over onto his back and his hand shot up to the sore area. He looked down and his eyes almost bulged out of his head at the deep red colour that was blooming over the majority of his chest.
"Blaine!" he yelped, feeling around his torso for any other sore spots. Blaine gestured upwards towards his neck rather than down towards his stomach where Kurt was prodding. Kurt's hands shot upwards and he tensed when he felt another tender area on the right side of his neck. It was way above where he knew any collars would rest and he knew he was going to be pulling out the cravats again for the foreseeable future.
"I cannot believe you!" he said, pretending to be angry but he couldn't stop the giant smile gracing his face.
"You did not seem to mind last night," Blaine replied cheekily and Kurt jumped at him in mock outrage.
Blaine laughed and wrapped his arms around Kurt's waist before the younger boy could do anything in retaliation and they ended up in a heap of laughter in the middle of the bed. Blaine kissed Kurt again just because he could and the younger boy felt the butterflies start up again in his stomach. He was pressed up against Blaine's naked form and he could feel the other man's arousal pressed up against his thigh, and he was sure his own could be felt in return. They were just starting to become slightly breathless when their door opened so suddenly it reverberated off the wall next to the bed.
Kurt had never jumped off his bed quicker in his life, it was like the thing had gone up in flames and he had chosen to only save himself. His heart was pounding in his chest and he looked at the girl in the doorway in shock before she burst in and ran over to the sofa which was supposed to be Blaine's makeshift bed. It was only after she had busily distracted herself that he realised he was still naked and grabbed a sheet from the bed to wrap around himself.
"Mercedes! What are you doing?" Kurt shrieked as he watched the woman throw the blankets from the sofa everywhere and frantically mess up the pillows. Blaine was looking at her in a mixture of confusion and humour. At least someone was finding this amusing, Kurt thought to himself.
"Your mother is coming to ask you to morning tea and I thought it best that you at least try to pretend you slept separately last night," she replied, gesturing to the sofa which did definitely look like someone had slept on it thanks to her efforts.
Blaine sleepily climbed off Kurt's bed and onto the sofa to keep up their little charade. He pulled the cover right up to his neck to cover up his naked form and burrowed down into the blankets. Mercedes raised her eyebrow at him before looking up at Kurt. Her eyes bulged out of her head as she took in his ravaged chest which was visible due to the sheet slipping down his front. She said nothing but Kurt knew exactly what she was thinking and was mortified at the mere thought.
There was a light knock on the door and the clearing of a throat let Kurt know who was out there. "One second mother," he called, running to his wardrobe to pull his robe on and securing it tightly around his waist. With one more quick scan to make sure his passion marks were covered, he opened the door.
"Good morning," he said cheerily.
"Good morning darling. I need you to join me and Lady Anderson for tea this morning, she would like your final answer with regards to joining them in the city when they leave."
"Yes, alright. Just give me half an hour and I will be ready to join you," he said politely before closing the door and breathing out finally. "Thank you, Mercedes."
"What would you do without me, hm?" she teased, poking him in the arm.
"Get caught probably," Blaine supplied which earned him a scowl from Kurt and a righteous nod from Mercedes.
"Too right you would," she said before retreating from the room and going back to her duties.
Kurt immediately went to start getting ready, combing through his wardrobe for the ideal outfit for the day. When he had finally decided on his favourite plain brown trousers which were folded up at the hem and a simple white button-down shirt, he went to call on someone to bring him water for a wash. Upon his return he found Blaine sitting up on the sofa and regarding him curiously.
"What are you going to tell her?" he asked.
"Who?" Kurt replied.
"My mother."
Kurt looked down and frowned, not sure what answer would be best. He had thought a lot on this since the initial suggestion and he was fairly certain he wanted to go. When he was weighing the pros and cons of going he could think of an easy solution to each problem, except one.
"I want to go, Blaine. Really, I do. But I keep thinking about the fact that you are going to be married. And not just make believe – actually married. And I think about you having to… to lie with her and perform your husbandly duty." He said the words with a sneer and it was the most vicious Blaine had ever seen him look. "And it makes me sick, Blaine. I cannot even picture it, it is so vile. I feel… jealous. And even betrayed. But who am I to feel that way? I am nobody. Your lover. And this all just goes round and round in my head and in no scenario do I come out looking good. Maybe I should just stay as far away as possible."
He was getting more and more tearful the more he spoke, his hands shaking and his bottom lip quivering; Blaine could tell he was on the verge of a breakdown. He rushed over to him and wrapped him up in his arms, placing kisses on his temple and hushing him.
"How many times do I have to tell you, you are more than just my lover?" Blaine said incredulously. "Kurt, you are the love of my life. No one has ever come close to you. Please, please say you will come with us."
"Is that really what you want for me, Blaine? To be your secret?"
Blaine looked hurt. "Of course not. I wish I could shout from the rooftops how much I love you. But you know it cannot be that way."
"Do you know how much it is going to hurt me to see you with her? To see everyone celebrating your marriage? And what about when you have to get her pregnant? God, I feel sick just thinking about it…"
"Do you not think that I feel sick too? Kurt, I am… I am TERRIFIED." His raised voice made Kurt freeze and he looked up at Blaine with watery eyes. "In ten days I have to stand up on that altar and give myself to a woman I barely even know, and frankly don't even like, just because my father wants me to. And you are going to be stood there… watching the whole thing."
Kurt looked down at his feet in shame. He had been so wrapped up in his own feelings of misery he hadn't even stopped to consider how all of this must have been weighing on Blaine.
"You are right. Of course you are. I know how hard this is for you, I know how much you've been struggling. I know it is not what you want. And I am so sorry you are being put through this, Blaine. But that does not make my decision any easier."
Blaine was silent as he contemplated their situation. He wished there was some way he could not get married and return home with just Kurt and no Rachel in tow, but he knew there was no way. His father was so determined on their marriage now, and Blaine knew he suspected something else was going on, he just hadn't found solid proof yet. They couldn't go and dangle their relationship under his nose like that. He was smarter than Blaine wanted to give him credit for.
"Look… just, please. Please come with us. Even if not for me, then for you. You were so excited to study music under the same tutors as I. You wanted to show them your pieces… I have heard what you can do and it is such a great shame you are going to waste here. You can make so much more of yourself than this place, Kurt."
Kurt's heart felt light at the compliment and a timid smile crept onto his lips. He had always thought that the most important opinion he could ever receive on his music would be from that of the professionals he would find in a place like the city, and while he still believed that to be of high value, he was finding that getting Blaine's approval seemed much more important nowadays than anything. Whenever Blaine would show enthusiasm for a new piece Kurt was working on his heart would flutter with joy and he could not imagine a more wonderful feeling. Well until last night at least…
"Okay," he sighed. "I will come. After all, it is only one year. I am sure I can manage one year away."
Kurt was getting changed for dinner that night with a huge smile on his face. His tea with Lady Anderson and his mother had gone swimmingly and he was officially off to the city in just over a month's time. They were still leaving on their original departure date of November 1st despite Blaine's father moving the wedding up so soon, so he would have to endure a month of the newlyweds in such close quarters first. Even that thought couldn't wipe the excitement off his face, however.
Things were looking up for him and as he pulled on his trousers, he was pouring over all of his completed pieces in his head to decide which of the sheets of music he wanted to pack and take with him to his future lessons with Blaine's tutors. He had some favourites, and he knew which ones Blaine preferred, but he didn't want to go in looking cocky with so many finished pieces. What if they thought he was no good? What if he had no talent? He shook his head and tried not to let his anxiety get the best of him. It was all going to be fine, he was sure Blaine was going to talk him up to his tutors beforehand anyway, and with the backing of the heir of the Anderson estate he was sure they would at least spare him the humiliation of telling him he was terrible to his face.
A knock on the door made him jump. Blaine had already gotten ready and gone down to dinner, so he must have forgotten something.
"Come in," he shouted from inside his dressing room, hoping Blaine could hear him from outside the room. He heard the door open but could not hear anything more. Curiosity getting the better of him, he grabbed his jacket and made to turn back into his room.
"What did you forget?" He chuckled, eyes on the ground as he threw the jacket around himself and stuffed his arms in the holes. He was still looking down as he fixed his collar.
"Uh, nothing. Sorry, is Blaine here?"
The unfamiliar voice snapped Kurt out of his ministrations. He looked up in surprise and felt his heart stop as he took in the blonde boy stood before him.