Once again, I apologize for the long gap, and as much as I'd like to make excuses, none of them are actually good. Regardless, I hope you enjoy!
XXXVI. Precious
They were enveloped in each other before the front door closed behind them: Blaine backing Sam into the wall, fingers twisting in hair, teeth gently scraping skin…
It was just one of those days, you know?
"Aw, isn't that precious!"
Blaine made a muffled choking sound and jumped away from Sam, who had frozen and shot his eyes open at the unfamiliar voice.
"Cooper!" Blaine's voice was breathless, and he stepped in front of Sam in an oddly protective gesture. "What are you—weren't you—I mean, I thought—"
"Aren't you going to say hi? And introduce me to your…friend?"
Blaine tried and failed to calm the rapid beating of his heart. But he could deal with this, this was okay. After all, it was only Cooper; it could have been worse. Much worse.
"Hi, Coop," he said with a sigh. "This is my boyfriend, Sam. Sam, this is my brother Cooper."
"Nice to meet you, Sam!"
Blaine withheld a groan as Cooper traversed the room and swept Sam into a bear hug. It was just how his brother operated, everything grandiose and all, but that didn't make it any less embarrassing.
"Uh, you too," Sam said when Cooper finally released him. "I've, uh, heard a lot about you."
"Well, I'd hope so. It's good Blaine talks to at least one of us."
At his pointed look, Blaine only shrugged, shifting his feet. Uncomfortable.
"I'm sorry, things just got really busy, you know how it is…"
"Too busy to email? Or Facebook? Or tweet?"
"Well apparently you didn't, either." Blaine's eyes narrowed into a glare, and he felt Sam shift beside him.
"Should I…go?"
Without looking at him, Blaine grabbed Sam's hand and squeezed it, seeking comfort, seeking familiarity. Sam squeezed back, a wordless reassurance: it's okay. I'll stay.
"So did you guys have any…plans for this afternoon?" Cooper waggled an eyebrow in indelible Cooper fashion, and Blaine had to fight the urge to groan out loud.
"No," he said curtly. "Nothing planned."
"Great! Come on, then."
Cooper brushed past them towards the door, swinging a key ring around his finger.
"And go…where?"
He paused in the doorway, eyebrow raised. "Out to lunch, duh. It's about time you and I caught up, little brother."
"But Sam and I—"
"What, are you stupid? He's coming, too." With that, Cooper flipped his sunglasses down from his forehead to the bridge of his nose and disappeared outside.
Blaine sighed and turned to look at Sam. "I guess having Cooper as a third wheel isn't all that bad if he's paying, right? Let's go."