Hello? You still here?

Life got in the way, in a lot of good ways after I made some important changes in my life and got rid of things that poisoned me, and replaced it with things I love, but it took time from writing, I'm trying to carve out that time again.

So, a little recap: Blaine and Kurt are at Dalton, and their graduation as Seniors is approaching, so of course they are thinking about their future. Kurt was dead set on staying behind in Lima to work in his dad's garage, not thinking he had anything to accomplish anywhere else, not feeling confident enough to apply for college, not knowing what to do with his life after his old dreams of performing disappeared. He's slowly rebuilding himself, and finding things to look forward to, but he still doesn't know what he can do. His depression is still lingering, sabotaging himself, but in last chapter we saw he realized he truly wanted to honour his promise to Blaine - given mid-orgasm - to go with him to New York, and he sat down with his family to figure out how it could be done practically and financially.

In the meantime, Blaine went to visit his family to tell them about his plans for college. His father has always had a plan for him, wanting him to work under him in the company's satelite office on the west coast, and Blaine didn't dare to object to his intimidating father, even if he had no desire at all to work as a lawyer. Fortunately, Cooper saw and knew his brother, so he convinced him to have his own little revolution, and apply to the schools he'd go to if he could decide on his own and ignore his own obstacles with the aftermath of the Sadie Hawkins-attack, his anxiety and shyness. So he did, and was even accepted to some - including NYADA, which surprised him a lot considering he'd never even heard of the school and most definitely not applied to it. Turns out, Cooper had been Facebook-stalking Blaine's boyfriend and his friends, and through Rachel discovered the existence of NYADA. A few phonecalls and a forged signature later, and Blaine had applied to NYADA.

And that' what happened!

"Enter!"

The sweet trill of Kurt's voice floats through the door in response to Blaine knocking, and with a genuine smile to his face he opens the door and steps inside. Cooper drove him to Dalton this morning, after they had a late bro-night last night with music and goofy choreography, winding down after the heavy conversations with their parents. Blaine hasn't seen Kurt today, their schedules not matching at all.

Kurt is sitting in his bed, resting against every pillow he must have found – including Jeff's, judging by his half-naked bed. The familiar notebook is resting in his lap, and when Kurt sees Blaine he smiles at him and moves the book to his desk.

"C'mere," he grins uncharacteristically wide, and waves Blaine over. Blaine doesn't need to be asked twice, and crosses the room with a few long strides, toes off his shoes, and facedives on top of Kurt's bed.

"I missed you," he exhales, and feels the mattress shift under him. He turns his head towards Kurt, and opens the eye not squished against the bedcover, watching his stunning boyfriend wiggle until he's lying down along Blaine, scooting over as closely as possibly.

"You're here now," Kurt murmurs, and kisses him deeply. It's a little awkward, with their faces halfway hidden in thick beddings, but they make it work. Even when it's sloppy and off-centre, it's still perfect to Blaine.

When they've kissed enough to still some of the urgency, they settle in more comfortably, weaving arms and legs together until they are both relaxed and close.

"How was your weekend?" Blaine asks, and listens with a fond smile as Kurt tells him about the premature graduation-party with his McKinley-friends.

"And Finn got in touch with Rachel about New York, so apparently she's now planning in detail my ten first days as her new roommate. I don't know why I'm surprised, I haven't even said yes to live there yet."

"You… You want to live with Rachel?" Blaine asks, and tries not to feel too disappointed. He'd gone off and dreamed again, without including Kurt in their alternatives.

"Well, it would be with Rachel and Santana; they share a loft, and apparently there's enough space to make a third bedroom for me."

"Well… That's… Great?" Blaine says, unable to find a more enthusiastic response.

"I told her I had to talk with you first," Kurt says calmly, but gives a little squeeze to Blaine's hip where his arm is resting. "If I'm doing this, if we're doing this…" Kurt audibly swallows, and Blaine looks at him more closely. "A part of me is still petrified of moving, and I don't want to risk drowning in New York and losing you. I need to know that… Maybe, if we plan this together, then maybe I'd… I know you have everything set up, with a school and dorms and excitement. I can't bring much more than curiousness, some fear, and a hope for a new start, to our relationship-table. But if we at least talked things through with each other, I wouldn't feel inferior to you…"

"Kurt!" Blaine whispers, because he's never ever seen Kurt as inferior, and doesn't he know all the great things he is and has, just by coming to New York with him? Doesn't he realize how alone and scared Blaine would be if he had to do this on his own? "I need you by my side, as my best friend and as my boyfriend. That's all I need from you. I don't need a five or ten year-plan or a set career path. I just need you."

"Okay," Kurt murmurs, and smiles crookedly. "I know I'll have to bust my ass off with at least one if not two jobs to cover basic life, but I want there to be time for an 'us' too."

"Do you perhaps think it'd be easier to find time for each other if we lived together?" Blaine asks, trying to sound nonchalant, but his heart is beating a rapid tattoo.

"I don't have access to dorms," Kurt shakes his head.

"No, but what if we found a place of our own? What if I this weekend was promised an apartment in Brooklyn if we want it?" Blaine tries to curb his enthusiasm, because he realizes Kurt might not want the same. But he wants Kurt to know their options and alternatives. And he so desperately wants Kurt to want the same as he does.

"What the hell happened this weekend?" Kurt shakes his head, and looks at him with confusion.

"My mom happened," Blaine laughs, and Kurt scoots impossibly closer and hugs him tight. Relaxing in the comfort of his boyfriend's embrace, Blaine gives Kurt a recap of what happened the last few days, beginning with finding his big brother on the doorstep when he came to their house.

"I guess our Friday night was pretty normal. We had a family dinner," Blaine tells Kurt, and cringes because their dinner is nothing like the family dinners at the Hudmel's. They sit close around a table, talk loudly, are genuinely interested in listening, prepare the food together like a team, and do the dishes together. While the Anderson family feels a bit like the stiff home of Rory Gilmore's grandparents, with Blaine's parents sitting at each end of a long table, Cooper and Blaine sat opposite each other around the halfway mark, and a maid – yet a new maid, because the previous couldn't live up to Mr. Anderson's standards – brings them their food. They don't talk, unless their father asks them something. It's depressing that it's normal, especially now that Blaine's experienced how it can be with his boyfriend's family. He found a new normal in their home.

He skips the parts of his father disappearing to his office as soon as the coffee and the avec was drained.

"I could see Mama wasn't feeling too well, but she insisted she was fine, so Cooper and I played Italian Scrabble with her. It was fun!" Blaine giggles. No matter how much Mama had tried, she'd never managed to get Cooper beyond a mostly basic level of Italian. Her English was much better than his Italian, but it was out of the question to play the game in any other way – Blaine had a lot of fond childhood memories playing board games with his Mama as a way to increase his vocabulary. Watching Cooper being a sore loser was just an added bonus now that he's a teenager.

Blaine's not sure if it was fake or real, but after losing two rounds in a row, Cooper claimed to have an important phone call to make, and excused himself.

"It was so nice to see Mama again," Blaine murmurs. He always misses her when they live on the west coast, and loves when the climate in Ohio finally gets warm enough for her to come back. "She told me I looked the happiest she's ever seen me," he smiles, and nudges Kurt's foot with his own. He is perfectly aware of what – or who – makes him this happy. "And, you know, she was being all nostalgic and parental, claiming I'm not a little boy anymore, but growing up too fast. Really silly," he chuckles, because growing isn't something he's done for some time, if he's going to be obtuse.

"She sounds lovely," Kurt hums, and pushes his foot in between Blaine's. "I'd love to meet her one day."

Blaine stops breathing, and looks at Kurt. He too would love to introduce Kurt to his family. Or at least to some of them. Kurt still smiles, and pecks his lips, startling Blaine out of his thoughts of gathering all the people he loves for a big party.

"We'll have to make sure that happens soon," Blaine answers, and clears his throat before he continues. "She asked me, in that way only she can, so gentle, but still in a way that just makes me want to tell her things, what I wanted to do after summer. She didn't ask what I planned or what I intended to do, but just what I wanted. You see the difference?"

"She loves you a lot," Kurt nods.

"She does," Blaine agrees, and it feels good to have people who care about his opinions on his side. It's not something he's been used to, it still feels refreshingly new. "So I ended up telling her everything. She obviously knew about father's plans for me, and I've never really tried to object to him, or told Mama that I wanted something else. But it's as if she knew."

"Blaine, honey, you don't really scream the corporate attorney-type. Anyone who knows you, and cares enough to really see you, will agree with me there," Kurt says firmly, and cups his jaw, his thumb running across the smooth skin of his apple cheek. "You are one of a kind, not a dime a dozen-lawyer."

"Thank you…" Blaine closes his eyes, because watching the sincerity on Kurt's face is a little bit overwhelming. He doesn't see Kurt lean in to kiss him, but welcomes the tender brush of lips against lips regardless.

"So you told her about Cooper and you scheming?" Kurt asks playfully, and Blaine opens his eyes again, and sees Kurt's happy smirk.

"Yes!" he grins. "She knows everything now, also which schools I've been accepted to, and that I have decided to go to NYADA."

"You look too happy for her reaction to have been bad," Kurt observes.

Blaine just nods, and giggles. He even makes kicky-feet, jostling Kurt in the process. Kurt quirks an eyebrow at him, but his eyes and lips are smiling.

"She cried," he shakes his head in disbelief. "She actually cried. And told me to get her tickets to every performance I'll be in, because quote unquote she can't wait to see me shine proudly after hiding for too long."

"Oh, Blaine…" Kurt wraps his arm around Blaine's waist, and pulls him even closer. "And then what? I'm still curious about the apartment in Brooklyn. Is she some kind of real estate-fairy, and waves her sparkling wand?" he winks.

"Yes," Blaine deadpans, but shakes with supressed laughter. "My mom is in fact a real estate-fairy, and I hope you realize it makes me half magical."

"But one hundred per cent fairy," Kurt wiggles his eyebrows, and kisses Blaine's nose.

"That I am," Blaine guffaws. "God, maybe she is magical, I still can't fully comprehend everything that happened. Did it really happen?" he wonders, and rolls over on his back. Kurt adjusts until he's on his back next to him. He laces their fingers together.

"On Saturday, after breakfast, Father wanted to talk with me in his office. And…" Blaine hesitates, because he isn't sure if Kurt can understand how big what happened next is, when he hasn't been privy to the family dynamics of the Anderson's. "You know he's old-fashioned. He expects respect, not just from me and Coop, but also from his wife. I don't want to speculate about their marriage, what it is these days. They have separate bedrooms," Blaine muses, and it's one of the saddest things to think about now that he knows how wonderful it is to wake up next to the one you love. "I've never seen them fight, but I've never seen them communicate a lot either. And as Mama's gotten sicker, it's as if he's subtly pushed her more and more to the side, you know?" he says, and Kurt squeezes their linked hands. "We've never had family meetings like you have," he says, and smiles sadly at the thought of Finn and Carole sitting down to help Kurt plan his move to New York.

"He doesn't see her as his equal," Kurt comments softly.

"No," Blaine swallows. "No, and it pisses me off. I obviously haven't been home a lot the last few years, so I don't know for sure, but it's as if he's cancelled her membership to this family. And she isn't always strong enough to even have a normal conversation. I couldn't imagine how she'd be able to just put her foot down and tell him to end the bullshit."

"You couldn't?" Kurt asks, with emphasize.

"No," Blaine grins. "Previously, in past tense, I couldn't. Gosh, you should have been there. She was amazing. She said that as my mother she expected to be part of any conversation he was having with me. She reminded him that she was the one to carry me in her womb for eight months, and then she spent two months in and out of hospital before I was big and strong enough to come home – all the while Father was away for work and Cooper needed her too," Blaine beams.

Kurt turns to his side, elbow prodded in the mattress to rest his head in his palm. Blaine looks at him and smiles.

"She was so calm. Her voice isn't the loudest, but I've never heard her so determined. I think it shook Father too, because he quickly stopped objecting. He tried to say it was business talk, bullshitting about confidentiality, and therefore not something she could listen in on. But she just said that as far as she knew, her son wasn't hired in the firm, and therefore anything he could have to say would be for her ears too."

"I think I love your mom," Kurt hums.

"Me too!" He gives himself a moment to just think about how surprised and proud he'd been of his Mama. "Father has this annoying habit of using big words when he talks with Mama, as if he's trying to trip her because her vocabulary isn't as rich as his. Sure, she's lived in the States for almost 25 years, but she's mainly been his armcandy, working with charity and those clichés, until she got sick and spent more and more time alone at home. He plays dirty. She's not stupid, she hardly has an accent anymore, but even I don't always know the five syllable-words he pulls from his sleeve. I bet he has an app for 'your daily obscure word' just to get an upper hand…"

"I'm sorry," Kurt whispers.

"Anyway," Blaine shakes his head, trying to get back to the very good mood he was in. "She didn't falter, and so Father had to let her take part in the meeting. Even Cooper tried to charm his way into Father's office, but that was obviously a limit. But he pointed at me while he tapped the other hand over his heart, and for some reason it made me feel better."

"Your brother is a little bit weird," Kurt chuckles.

"Just a little bit," Blaine deadpans. He swallows heavily, and closes his eyes, and is instantly back in his father's office, every sound and vision as clear as if he was standing there. He just doesn't know how to translate the whirlwind that happened to a few sensible sentences for Kurt. "It was… Father… And Mama…" he tries to gesticulate the words he can't say, and shit, now he's crying too.

"Hey, hey," Kurt says gently, and tugs at Blaine until he's turned to his side and flush against Kurt's chest. He cradles the back of his head, and Blaine wraps an arm tightly around Kurt.

"I promise, I'm happy," he chokes.

"I know, Babe, I know," Kurt murmurs, and rocks him a little.

"Babe?" Blaine snorts, and then sniffs. Damn tears and runny nose.

"You're a total babe," Kurt promises, and Blaine laughs.

"So are you. And we're moving to New York, we're gonna live together in Brooklyn, and everything's going to be so much better."

"Because your Mama is a magical witch who cast a spell on your Father," Kurt says seriously, and kisses the crown of his head.

"She might as well be. It was amazing!" Blaine gushes, and waves a hand to emphasize. "I did go home to tell them about my plans for after graduation, but Father managed to ambush me, and confronted me with a strategy I hadn't expected. It turned out he'd called his alma mater to make sure I had been accepted; he wanted to double check when I claimed I hadn't heard from them yet. And that's when he found out, and he'd made a hell of it all, and somehow they had managed to matriculate me even after all deadlines."

"Wow…"

"He hadn't told Mama, and it was as if that was her last drop or something. I swear she grew two inches, and I've never seen her like that. She was so calm, but so strong. She reminded Father that I am in fact over 18 years old, so he doesn't have the right to make any decisions for me, and if needed she'd get a lawyer to make sure I could go to the school I've chosen. Kurt, you should have seen her! I'll forever remember this. I've never seen her stand up to Father before, but now she did, and she did it for me," Blaine chokes up again, and Kurt pulls him even closer, just holding him, and kissing his hair.

"I'm so happy for you," Kurt whispers softly, and Blaine nods dumbly against his chest.

"Cooper," Blaine sniffs, and feels cold when Kurt turns away from him, but he quickly returns to the embrace after picking up some paper napkins for Blaine. He wipes his nose, and then continues. "Cooper fought his own battles; he was strong enough, and even if Father tried to prevent him, he just up and moved, went to Hollywood on his own to prove that he'll do what he wants. He just refused to obey, and Father didn't know what to do with him. That's when he intensified his grooming of me; I guess he needed to make sure I'd be the pawn he needed in the chess game he'd planned," Blaine says dramatically.

"You are strong too," Kurt insists. "So strong."

"It's the boxing," Blaine jokes.

"Blaine, seriously," Kurt sighs, and sits up, pulling Blaine with him. "You are strong," he says punctuated and clearly. "The boy I met almost two years ago is so far from the boy I see now. You're still the boy I fell for," Kurt says shyly, and Blaine can't help but smile at him. "But it's as if now you are brighter, clearer, more vivid. I think you came out of the fog. You're more vibrant. You're more you."

"Thank you," Blaine murmurs, and tries to believe it. "You know I think the same of you, right? You show so much courage, and I admire you. You're brave, and I know you're scared of moving to NY. But you still do it."

"Yeah, yeah," Kurt shrugs, "we're both amazing. Now tell me, what more happened in that office?"

"Ooh, yes!" Blaine beams. "So, Father asked me which school I had chosen, and it sounded as if he couldn't quite believe I'd managed to make a decision without him. And Mama, she just smiled at me, and I knew she would back me up. So I told him about NYADA, how I wanted to work in the arts, and how being accepted to one of the most prestigious schools in the country would benefit me hugely."

"Then what?" Kurt asks anxiously, and he's worrying his lower lip between his teeth.

"You know he's never hit me or anything? He's not cruel, just selfish. Or maybe his ambitions and determination prevent him from seeing the rest of his family as individuals…" Blaine trails off. "Anyway," he shakes his head, "he looked surprised, and I don't blame him. He eventually got up from behind his desk, poured himself a glass of whiskey, and made me feel like my life is a cliché. He even offered Mama a glass, which is stupid, because he should know her pills can't be mixed with booze. He sat down," Blaine narrates, remembering this clearly, everything playing in slow motion before his eyes. "He slowly drank while looking from me to Mama and back to me again," Blaine murmurs, and he can still hear the faint clinking of ice cubes against the glass each time Father took a sip. "And then he told us we were dismissed."

"You were dismissed?" Kurt chokes in disbelieving laughter. "That's…"

"That's Father," Blaine nods.

"Wow…" Kurt whistles, and wraps an arm around Blaine's waist, pulling him closer. Blaine readily lets himself be manhandled until they're sitting against all the pillows again and he's resting with his head over Kurt's heart. Kurt runs a comforting hand slowly up and down his back, not quite ticklish, just nice, and Blaine gets two fingers in between two of the buttons in Kurt's shirt just because it's nice to feel the warm, naked skin.

The rest of the day had been weird. Father had been busy in his office, not even coming out for lunch. Blaine and Cooper had made a mess in the kitchen, but managed to whip up a nice omelette with a green salad for their Mama. The maid had the weekend off, so they could experiment without bothering her, as long as the kitchen was spotless by Monday morning.

"Cooper wanted to make macaroons," Blaine giggles out of nowhere, and Kurt hums. They had spent hours in the kitchen, entertaining their Mama both with their antics and with stories, while trying to make that delicious pastry and agreeing on fillings. "Oh, I forgot, I brought a box with some of them, they're in my room if Wes hasn't found them," Blaine suddenly remembers, and moves to get out of bed.

"Get back here!" Kurt orders, and Blaine grins as he falls back in Kurt's embrace. "Good boy," Kurt pets his back, making Blaine snort, but he stops when Kurt kisses him, turning it dirty from the second inhale.

"Oh wow," Blaine exhales when they part, lips spit-slick and eyes blown.

"Sorry," Kurt shrugs, not sounding or looking sorry at all, "you were just particularly irresistible now."

"I didn't know you were this passionate about macaroons," Blaine teases.

"Yes," Kurt deadpans, but grins. "In fact, your up until now secret macaroon-skills is my only reason to come with you to New York."

"I love you."

"Love you too."

Blaine gets comfortable in Kurt's arms again, and slips a hand under the shirt that somehow now is rucked up from his slacks.

He tells Kurt snippets from the weekend. Some funny anecdotes Cooper had shared from life in LA. How they ordered pizza for dinner in their Father's name, so it wouldn't be a sacrilege to their Italian heritage. How they binge-watched M*A*S*H because Cooper is hot for Major Hooligan, Blaine thinks it's kind of groundbreaking that Corporal Klinger usually wore dresses even if it was in the hopes of being sent home, and Mama thinks Radar is a sweetheart.

It wasn't until after lunch on Sunday that Father had summoned Blaine to his office again, and this time he invited Mama to join before she could object.

"I was a bit nervous," Blaine admits in a whisper. "I didn't know what to expect."

He probably never would have been able to imagine what actually happened.

"He gave me a year," Blaine laughs. "He said I have this year to get it all out of my system, all expenses paid, and then he expects me to return to his original plan, or I'll continue on my own. Apparently, the firm has a couple of apartments in New York, I think it's cheaper than using a hotel whenever they have overseas visitors, big meetings and such; I didn't ask. But he made a deal with whoever so we get one of those apartments for a year," Blaine says excitedly. "And he'll pay for school for one year. You move in with me, and we can save up as much as possible from our jobs to pay for an apartment the second year, and it's all going to work out," Blaine both sobs and laughs.

"Wow…" Kurt says, looking overwhelmed. "And he's okay with me moving in?"

"I guess?" Blaine shrugs. "He told me to do whatever I want this year, but next year he has conditions. Which he can obviously shove, because I'm staying in New York."

"We need a solid plan," Kurt nods.

"Yes, of course," Blaine waves it off. "But for now I have freedom, don't you realize? I've gone behind Father's back, gone against his will, and I won't be in trouble for it."

"Everything's going to be all right," Kurt whispers, sounding awed.

"Everything's going to be all right!" Blaine nods eagerly. "It feels as if we should celebrate somehow."

Kurt lifts his phone from the bedside table and looks at the time, and then he looks at the door. With a mischievous grin, he straddles Blaine's lap.

"We have fifteen minutes before Jeff returns for curfew. Twenty if he's busy with Nick. Think we can manage?" he smirks.

"God, yes!" Blaine hisses, and grabs at Kurt to get his damn pants off, off, off.