Happy Sunday!

I'm so grateful for your patience and support after yesterday's extremely short chapter. I hope this one will make up for it :)

Thank you to Christine, as always, for being the best of the best.

Enjoy!

By the time Blaine closed the flowershop that day, he felt like he had been on his feet for a hundred hours. After spending the night at the hospital with Cooper, he had stopped by his apartment for a few hours of sleep that had been cut short when Annie called to inform him there had been a problem with one of the orders. So Blaine jumped out of bed after only getting a miserable nap, and showered quickly before heading to the shop. His day had been powered mostly by coffee and sheer force of will. No one could ever say that Blaine Anderson didn't work hard for what he loved. And no one would hear him complain about it, not even once.

He knew the next few weeks would be difficult, with Cooper doing chemotherapy, and he didn't want to be completely burned out after the first session. It was only going to get worse. But hopefully, it would be much, much better afterwards.

"You heading home, boss?" Annie asked, as she watched Blaine lock the shop. "You look like shit."

"Thanks, Annie," Blaine said sarcastically. "And no, not yet. I want to stop by the hospital and see Cooper first."

"Okay. But get some rest, seriously," Annie replied, letting a hint of concern slip into her voice. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"I'll come by in the afternoon to finish up some orders," Blaine confirmed. "Have a good night!"

She waved over her shoulder as she walked away, and Blaine headed towards the subway station. On the subway ride over, Blaine's thoughts were filled with work-related issues: he had at least four wedding orders coming up, and if he wasn't alert, they would slip his mind, tired and anxious as he was about Cooper. He would need to start placing orders for the specific flowers they each had requested, and he was running out of certain colors of ribbons, so he would also need to take care of that...

For the first time in his life, Blaine wished he didn't have to run his own business.

The hospital seemed quieter, as it usually did at night. He knew if he headed towards the emergency ward, things would look and sound a lot more hectic, but here, in the main entrance, and in Cooper's hallway, there didn't seem to be a rush of any kind. He welcomed it, even though he would much rather be with his brother at home, watching a game on TV and eating greasy pizza right out of the box.

Cooper was finishing his dinner when Blaine stepped into the room, his face contorted in disgust as he tried to chew his broccoli. Blaine actually laughed at it – it reminded him of when they were kids. Cooper could never quite stomach his vegetables, while Blaine had always been a diligent eater, always earning praise for eating his greens.

"Oh hey," Cooper said when he saw him, eyes lighting up a little. "You don't happen to have a cheeseburger on you, do you?"

"Sorry, Coop. You'll have to settle for hospital food tonight," Blaine said, dropping his bag on the floor by the door. He let himself fall into his usual seat, and propped his tired feet on the bed next to Cooper's.

"They could've at least given me some salt," Cooper complained moodily. "I'm not a cardiac patient."

"Be nice and I'll bring you a donut tomorrow," Blaine promised, as if talking to his child.

Cooper seemed encouraged by the thought of eating a donut, because he finished all his dinner without another complaint, even the broccoli. As he was trying to down the awful taste it had all left in his mouth by drinking water greedily, he watched his brother. Blaine had his head against the back of the chair, and he was distractedly watching the television. Cooper had been watching a new sitcom, but he was too tired to even try to understand any of the jokes.

"Did you eat?" Cooper asked.

"No. I'll grab something on my way home," Blaine said, and then turned his attention back to his big brother. "Did you have any nausea today?"

"Only from the broccoli," Cooper retorted, making Blaine chuckle.

Cooper asked him about work, so Blaine filled him in on the craziness that had been the shop that day. He immediately tried to apologize for not being there to help him, but Blaine looked at him like he was insane.

"Coop, you haven't worked there for like... ten years, at least. And you've never liked it." Blaine stretched his arms over his head, trying to get rid of the knot in his back, unsuccessfully. "The only reason you accepted to do it was because it made things easier on Grandma. And because she gave you free flowers for all your dates."

"Like you never had the same perks," Cooper huffed, rolling his eyes. "You always wooed all your boyfriends with flowers."

Blaine snorted. "Like it even helped. Also, all my boyfriends? There weren't that many," he protested.

"Well, it's time we find you a new date. You haven't gone out with anyone this week," Cooper said, suddenly looking excited again, which made Blaine fill with dread.

"Not this week," he said quickly, before Cooper could start brainstorming names. "You have more chemo on Thursday, and between that and work..."

"Oh, okay. I get it," Cooper deflated.

It made Blaine feel like shit.

"Maybe this weekend. Let's see how you feel first, okay?" Blaine said, and Cooper's smile returned.

When Blaine was little, and so many times felt rejected by his older brother, he would have never guessed that one day, they would be close enough for Cooper to have him wrapped around his little finger.

It took a while for Blaine to realize Cooper was talking again.

"... but then he didn't come back, so I hope he's okay."

Blaine blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Kurt," Cooper said. "He stopped by to check on me and promised he would come back, but he didn't. Do you think his dad is okay?"

"I hope so," Blaine murmured honestly. "I'll go check on him on my way out."

"Why don't you go now?" Cooper suggested, and Blaine was about to protest, but his brother interrupted: "I mean it, Blaine. You look exhausted. When all this is over, I'm going to be healthy and you're going to be sick. You need to take better care of yourself. I'm not the only one that matters, you know?"

You're the only one that matters to me, Blaine thought.

"And I would really feel better if you went to check on Kurt. If everything's okay, then just go home. If it isn't... will you come back and tell me?" Cooper asked.

Blaine tilted his head, curiosity taking over. "You really like him, don't you?"

"He's a great guy," Cooper said, and then smirked. "Too bad he's taken."

Blaine rolled his eyes. "I'll let him know you're interested in case he becomes available." He stood up. "Are you sure you want me to leave already? I can stay a bit longer."

Cooper arched an eyebrow. "Blaine. I'll be fine. Go home. Eat some dinner. Get some rest. I'll see you tomorrow."

Blaine sighed. He was always reluctant to leave at the end of the day.

Cooper raised a fist and waited, making Blaine huff out a little laugh. He bumped his brother's fist with his own, and headed towards the door to grab his bag.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning, okay?" He said, and after Cooper exaggeratedly blew him a kiss, Blaine once again rolled his eyes and left the room.

The door to Kurt's father's room was closed, and Blaine stood at it, hesitating for a moment. Maybe Kurt was getting some much needed rest, and the last thing he wanted was to disturb him, but Cooper had seemed worried enough to worry Blaine, and so he made himself knock.

Kurt came to the door a few seconds later, looking like his entire world had crumpled around him and he couldn't bring himself to even start picking up the pieces. His eyes were red – whether from crying or exhaustion, Blaine couldn't tell, but part of him guessed it was a mixture of both. Even his skin looked different, as if it had lost its smoothness, its glow. His shoulders were hanging, a clear sign of defeat. Blaine didn't know Kurt had it in him to be defeated.

"Hey," he said, immediately concerned.

"Hi Blaine," Kurt replied, his voice heavy, as if every word was a struggle. "What's up?"

"Coop asked me to come check on you," Blaine explained, leaning against the wall and taking a good look at him at the same time. "He's been worried about you all day. He said you promised to go and see him and then never came back. He just wanted to make sure you and your dad were okay."

"Oh," Kurt let his head fall onto his palm. "God, I forgot. I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's okay," Blaine assured him quickly. "He's fine. But we just wanted to check everything was fine with you."

Kurt let out what had to be the world's longest exhale, and it was obvious he was trying to keep himself together enough to carry on with the conversation. "It's just been... god, the worst day."

"You know, I've been told I'm an excellent listener," Blaine said, giving him a quick smile.

Kurt bit his lip, as if he was pondering his options. It seemed like he really wanted to talk to someone, but he probably didn't want to bother Blaine. "You have enough on your plate..."

"Kurt," Blaine interrupted gently. "I could've walked past your door and not knock. If I did, it was because I care. Because Cooper cares. We're here for you."

Kurt leaned on the door and tilted his head to look at Blaine. He deflated. "I got dumped today."

It wasn't exactly what Blaine had been expecting to hear. Part of him wondered who the hell would ever break up with Kurt Hummel, but then he shook himself back to his senses. "I'm sorry. That's awful timing."

"That's what I said," Kurt replied. "Apparently it was a long time coming and I was just too blind to see it. But it was so nice of him to finally come clean about everything in my father's hospital room while I wait for him to either wake up or..."

He cut himself abruptly, unable to say the words, choking on even the possibility of saying them.

"He'll wake up," Blaine said softly, but with conviction. Kurt smiled at him gratefully, but there was no real strength in that smile.

"Tell Cooper I'm fine and I'll stop by tomorrow, okay?" He said.

Blaine once again studied the paleness of his skin, which only made the dark marks under his eyes more evident. Kurt was near his breaking point, even if he wasn't ready to admit it yet. "Look, can I be blunt with you for a moment?" He waited until Kurt nodded to go on. "You look like you need a break. A break from sitting next to your dad waiting for something to happen, and a break from everything that's gone wrong lately. You know I understand what you're going through, to an extent, even if Cooper's and your dad's situations aren't exactly the same. But I know what it is to sit and wait until you feel like you're going to lose it." He paused to see if Kurt was going to stop him or fight him on this, but he didn't. "So here's what I think, and what I myself had to come to terms with over these past few months: nothing's going to change if you allow yourself to go home and rest and recharge your energies. You're no use to your dad if you're completely spent when he wakes up. He's going to need you to be strong and patient and just... you know, there."

Kurt closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. "I know. It's just... so hard to leave him."

Blaine looked down the hallway, to where he knew his brother was. "I know."

"I guess it's not such a bad idea to go home and sleep in a bed for a change," Kurt admitted at last.

Blaine smiled softly at him. "Yeah. Come on, I was on my way out myself. I'll drop you at your place."

Kurt looked like he wanted to protest, but then decided against it, and simply asked Blaine to wait while he gathered his stuff. Blaine watched from the doorway as Kurt leaned in and kissed his father's forehead, as he whispered something to him. It made Blaine look away – he'd never seen Kurt this vulnerable, this raw.

They hailed a taxi outside the hospital, both too tired to deal with a crowded subway train tonight. He let Kurt give his address to the driver and they sat in silence in the backseat. Blaine wanted to ask him about the break up, wanted to help him open up and maybe feel better, but Kurt was resting his head against the seat and staring out the window, completely closed off.

As the taxi fought the evening traffic, Blaine could see Kurt getting more and more sleepy. By the time it finally stopped at Kurt's building, he was blinking slowly, as if trying very hard to stay awake. Blaine fished some money out of his pocket to pay the driver and slid out of the car with Kurt, who seemed surprised.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I'll walk you up, come on. You look like you're about to collapse," Blaine offered gently, and Kurt was apparently too tired to argue.

It wasn't until Kurt opened the door to his apartment and turned the lights on that he was woken up abruptly. Both he and Blaine stood at the threshold, staring inside in absolute shock.

"Oh my god," Kurt murmured, and that brought Blaine into action.

He took his phone out of his pocket immediately. "I'll call the police."

"Don't," Kurt said, as he massaged his temple as if to get rid of a headache. "I wasn't robbed."

"What do you mean? It's empty," Blaine said, pointing at the apartment, and this was exactly the word to describe it: all Blaine could see was an open space with absolutely no furniture on, only a lamp in the middle of the floor, a large round fluffy white rug, and a few books piled up against the further wall.

"I wasn't robbed," Kurt insisted. "My boyfriend moved out. Ex-boyfriend."

Kurt entered the apartment, and Blaine followed close behind, still shocked but beginning to understand.

"I can't believe he took everything," Kurt whispered under his breath. He grabbed the lamp and brought it over to where the books were piled up. "I mean, most of the furniture... we did buy them when he got his job at the firm, but... we picked it up together."

Blaine waited as Kurt checked the rest of the apartment, his steps echoing in this big, empty space. It was a rather nice apartment, and it didn't feel crowded and small as many apartments in New York City. He could find traces of Kurt – in the art hanging on the walls, the soft colors he had painted said walls, the comfy-looking rug – and imagined what it had been when it was actually furnished.

"Thank god we kept the bedroom set I bought before I started dating him," Kurt said as he came back into what had once been a living room. "Otherwise I would have to sleep on the floor."

"Everything else is gone?" Blaine asked.

"Yes, except for the furniture in my tiny office, everything else is gone," Kurt sighed, tiredly. "I can't believe this is happening."

Blaine didn't exactly know what to say – the words that came to mind would be of absolutely no help in this situation, even though he was sure Kurt's ex-boyfriend deserved each and every one of them.

"He sure was fast," Kurt said. He sat down on the floor, right on the middle of the white rug, and looked around. "He must have planned everything out before he came to the hospital to talk to me. God, how could I be so stupid and blind?"

"You did nothing wrong," Blaine assured him, as he joined him on the floor. "He should have talked to you sooner, find a better time for it. This is... this is just cruel."

"They offered him a promotion about a month ago. He has to move to Chicago for it. But... he didn't even bring it up until today. He just didn't give me an opportunity to be a part of it." Kurt placed his elbows on his knees and let his head fall onto his hands. "He didn't even want to."

Blaine reached out and rubbed his back comfortingly. "Sounds like he didn't deserve you, if you ask me."

"I just..." Kurt let out a long, ragged breath. "He left. What if something happens to my dad? I just don't want to wake up tomorrow or in two days and be completely alone."

Blaine felt his heart constrict painfully in his chest. He knew the feeling. "You won't be alone," he said, without a doubt.

Kurt turned his head to the side to look at him. "You're kind of wonderful, did you know that?"

"It's been a difficult week for me too, so I'll take the compliment. I sort of need it," Blaine said, and nudged Kurt's shoulder with his. Before Kurt could say anything else, Blaine took his cellphone out of his pocket and added: "Alright, this pity party requires some food. I'm starving, and I'm guessing you haven't eaten either, so what do you say we order some pizza and look at furniture online?"

The smile on Kurt's face was small, soft, almost non-existent. But absolutely genuine. "Sounds like my type of party."

Soon they were sprawled on the rug, a box of pizza and Kurt's laptop between them, browsing the internet and arguing about furniture styles and trends. Kurt wanted to keep everything in muted, neutral colors, while Blaine insisted a splash of color would actually be beneficial.

For a moment, as they focused on something that wasn't important at all, they forgot how much they both hurt inside.

After a while, when their bellies were full and their eyes tired from staring at the screen, they pushed everything away and lay back on the rug side by side, to stare at the ceiling. The conversation jumped from new furniture to what Nick had said to Kurt earlier that day, then to Cooper's chemotherapy and Blaine's job, and finally to memories of the good old times. Kurt told him about growing up in Ohio with his dad, of having tea parties in the garden in the spring, of his dad, a big burly man, sitting on a small chair and drinking tea from his tiny princess tea set. He talked about how he should have paid more attention to Burt when he became restless in retirement, how he should have been there for him more, to help him adjust, instead of, as usual, focusing on work and his own ambitions, his own life.

Blaine, in turn, told him about the days when Cooper was a bright healthy young man who would conquer girls and boys alike just with a quick easy smile. He told him about Cooper working at the flowershop making deliveries, and how when he had to make a delivery at a theatre, he would sneak in to try to find the casting director. He talked about how difficult it had been for them at first, to get along as brothers, and how lonely Blaine had been growing up. He told him about Cooper finally coming into himself as a big brother, and playing the part perfectly, never again leaving Blaine's side, in the good or the bad times.

Unbeknownst to them, they had somehow started gravitating towards each other. Their shoulders were touching, sending warmth up Blaine's side.

Both of them were getting sleepy and Blaine knew he had to go home soon, but he didn't feel like moving yet. He hadn't had a night like this in a long time – it felt so much better than any of the dates he'd been on lately.

Not that this was a date, or even close to it. Kurt was just a friend.

He turned his head to tell Kurt he should get going, only to find Kurt's face already turned towards him, his blue eyes sweeping over his profile, his lips gently parted.

Blaine was suddenly mesmerized.

Since Kurt's quick visit to Flora, Blaine had struggled to stop thinking about him. When he closed his eyes to sleep, it was Kurt's face behind his eyelids. When he dreamed, it was Kurt's hands slowly moving across his skin, sending goosebumps all over him. And now, as Blaine tried to remind himself how to breathe, as he looked into those blue eyes, deep like a lake, sparkling like the stars, it was Kurt's lips that were suddenly on his.

Stunned, it took a few seconds for Blaine's body to react. It was a soft, tentative kiss, barely a press of Kurt's warm mouth on his, but it had suddenly ignited every inch of Blaine, so he pressed back. Kurt pulled away briefly, once again looked him right in the eyes, and then shifted until he was hovering over Blaine instead of beside him, his body extended over his, long and lean, so close yet not enough. He surged forward, the kiss more urgent this time, searching, searching for something, but for what exactly, Blaine didn't know. His lips were soft, firm and demanding as they fitted against Blaine's, a hint of tongue touching Blaine's bottom lip and eliciting a guttural sound from deep within him.

He felt hungry. He wrapped one arm around Kurt's waist, pulling him closer until he could feel his hard body against his, and placed his free hand on the back of his neck, keeping him there, because he was sure that if the kiss ended he would melt away, vanish, disappear. He would become dust and float away, because he was suddenly held together only by raw desire and Kurt's lips.

Kurt swiped his tongue swiftly over Blaine's, and then moaned deep in his throat when Blaine sucked on it, pulling it further into his mouth, almost greedily. The sound only made Blaine more desperate, and he deepened the kiss, which had now become messy and uncoordinated, but just perfect. Kurt bucked his hips, his half-hard cock pressing earnestly on Blaine's thigh.

And Blaine, despite feeling like he was about to touch heaven with the tips of his fingers, snapped his eyes open and broke the kiss.

"Wait, Kurt, wait," he said breathlessly.

Kurt stopped immediately, lifting himself up a few inches as not to crowd Blaine anymore. The way he looked after just a minute or two of kissing, completely debauched, his mouth swollen and pink, almost made Blaine groan and raise his hips to get some friction on his own erection.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked, his voice hoarse.

Blaine closed his eyes for a second, willing his heart to go back to its usual speed. Then he opened them and smiled up at Kurt, cupping his face with his hand and watching him as he leaned into the touch. "Yeah, I'm okay. I just... I don't think this is a good idea."

As if the rejection suddenly burned him, Kurt rolled away, returning to his original spot on the rug next to Blaine. He simply stared up at the ceiling, looking absolutely mortified.

"Hey," Blaine muttered, and rolled on his side to face him. "None of that. I didn't mean... I didn't mean I didn't like it. It's just..."

Kurt, biting his already red, swollen bottom lip and making it look even more kissable, turned to him. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be," Blaine said, cupping his face again, loving how Kurt immediately reacted to the touch by leaning into it every single time. "Kurt, I... it's probably the most intense thing I've experienced in a very long time. But I feel like we're doing it for all the wrong reasons. You're upset about your break up and we're both stressed and tired from everything that we've been though..." Blaine shook his head, and swiped his thumb across Kurt's cheekbone. "I don't want to be your rebound guy, Kurt. I think you know I'm not like that."

Kurt swallowed and sighed, probably realizing Blaine was right. "You're right. Of course I know that. I'm sorry," he repeated.

"I care about you," Blaine said, feeling the words being pulled out of him. He didn't want to say the wrong thing, but he didn't want to lie, either. "I really do, and so does my brother. We'll be with you every step of the way, no matter what."

Kurt let out a small, gentle smile, and tucked a stray curl back into Blaine's hair. Or maybe he just wanted an excuse to touch him. Blaine shivered at the thought. "I got so lucky the day I met you," Kurt said, almost in a whisper, but his voice still seemed to echo across the empty apartment. "I meant what I said earlier. But you're more than kind of wonderful, Blaine."

Blaine decided to pull away because if Kurt kept looking at him like that, he would kiss him again, and he wasn't sure he would be able to stop them from doing something stupid this time. He sat up, and Kurt followed suit. "So, are you going to be okay tonight?"

"Yeah," Kurt said, glancing around his place like he was seeing it for the first time. "I'll probably shower and head to bed. I'll... I'll see you tomorrow at the hospital?" He asked, a bit of hesitation in his tone.

Blaine smiled to reassure him. "Of course. Coop and I will see you tomorrow. We can all get some lunch, what do you think?"

Kurt nodded, still looking a bit confused and out of place, but he then stood up and walked Blaine out. "Thank you for keeping me company tonight. I'm sorry I made things weird."

"Again, don't be sorry. Really, Kurt, no hard feelings," he squeezed his shoulder gently in goodbye and then walked away.

He didn't hear the door click shut after him, so he guessed Kurt was still watching him, and it sent a shiver down his spine.

He tried to ignore every single instinct that kept screaming at him that he should have stayed.

I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to hearing your throughts on this chapter :D

Have a wonderful day and I'll see you guys again on Wednesday.

Love,

L.-