Kurt woke with a snoring Blaine on him. He heard the door in his living room slide shut and the voice of his best friend and her boyfriend in the other room.

Uh oh.

He slid Blaine off him and hopped out of bed. Pulling on his pajamas and running out to the living room.

"Cedes. Sam. Hey, what are you guys doing here?" Kurt's voice was low, and Mercedes gave him a strange look.

"Uh. It's Friday and noon. Why are you not ready for Fried Food Friday?"

"Seriously man, I just gone done with that big photoshoot. I'm ready to pound some onion rings."

Kurt walked to the kitchen and started brewing coffee.

"I guess I just slept in. Why don't you guys go ahead, and I'll catch up in a bit?" He tried to sound casual.

"We can wait, just don't spend an hour on your hair." She followed Sam toward the couch before adding, "Though it looks like it could use it."

"Seriously guys its fine. I'll meet you there." Kurt's voice was hushed and panicked.

Mercedes watched Sam push a jacket and shirt out of the way before sitting down. She tilted her head at the clothes before turning back to Kurt and glancing from his messy hair to his bright red face.

"Oh my God he's here!?" She hissed. Running over to Kurt and grabbing both his arms. "Kurt, did you do—"

"Kurt. Is that coffee I smell?" Kurt whipped his head over to the curtain and watched a hand pull it aside. Please be wearing something. Kurt prayed in his head. Luckily, Blaine had managed to at least find his boxers before walking through the curtain.

"Oh." He stopped and stared at Mercedes.

"Holy shit. Kurt you got it on with Blaine Anderson?" Blaine became aware of a blond man sitting on the couch to his left.

"Well this is awkward."

"Sweatpants are in the third drawer." Kurt urged.

Blaine slowly backed away, "It was lovely meeting you all." As soon as he was in the room he quickly pulled the curtain closed.

Mercedes slowly turned back to Kurt. "I thought you were over him."

Sam sprung from the couch, "Seems more like he was under him." Mercedes slapped his arm as he approached.

"Sam Evans, now is not the time."

"We talked it through. I didn't have all the facts."

"So you talked for what ten minutes then went straight to the bedroom."

"Actually, if I may." They all turned to Blaine who had walked back out wearing a pair of Kurt's sweatpants and the tank top he'd had on the night before. "I would like to explain. You must be Kurt's friends, Mercedes and Sam." Blaine stuck his hand out and Mercedes just glared at him. Sam happily shook it and Blaine gave him a small smile. "My manager apparently came to Kurt and tried to get him out of my life, as I explained to Kurt last night, my manager is horrible, and I will never forgive him for what he did to Kurt or me."

"So we're just supposed to believe that you're going to dump your manager off so you can be with Kurt."

Blaine looked down. "I wish that were the case, but he is contracted through the release and tour of my upcoming album so unless I want to go through a horrible and very public legal battle, he has to stay my manager."

"So what does that mean for you and Kurt?"

"We actually haven't had a chance to discuss it. But I had some ideas." Blaine turned to Sam. "Aren't you the model for the Happy Trails campaign?"

"You know who I am?" Sam was starstruck. Kurt hid a laugh. Mercedes kept her glare.

"I only recognize you from the bus photo. But—" Blaine's look was conspiratorial. "Would you mind snapping a photo with me real quick?" Blaine held his phone up.

"Sure, don't you want to put something else on?"

Blaine laughed. "No, where this photo is going it's probably best that I look like this."

Sam smiled for the picture and Blaine let his face smoulder.

"Okay, I'm confused." Kurt looked between them.

"Boy, what are you pulling?" Mercedes grabbed Sam's arm and pulled him back toward her.

"My manager Sebastian wants me to uphold a certain image. An image that doesn't fit who I am. The best thing to do is make it look like he's won me over."

"Are you going to send that to Sebastian?" Kurt smiled, he'd just begun to piece it together. Blaine nodded as he tapped away on his phone. Kurt walked around and looked down at the message.

Blaine: Sorry I didn't respond last night. I was busy doing something…

Blaine: *Attached Photo

Blaine: By the way here is something ;)

"Oooo throw him off our trail, I like it."

Mercedes looked between the three boys standing by her. She watched as Blaine and Kurt stood nearly on top of each other. Sam was still staring at Blaine with a less than hetero desire on his face.

"Wait. Did you just make it look like you were sleeping with my boyfriend?"

"Dude. You're cool. But I'm not into you like that."

"And I am not into you like that. But if my manager sees that I'm supposedly fooling around with random guys, Kurt will be safe. From him, from the media, and from my crazy life. And now I also have a cool photo with a new friend hopefully."

"Blaine Anderson." Mercedes stepped closer to him and Kurt backed away. He had seen Mercedes angry and even he couldn't save Blaine now. Blaine only inched away as she approached, a finger pointed directly at him. "I don't understand your life. I'm not sure I want to. But Kurt is so head over heels for you I don't think I get a choice but to try. So keep your hands off my boyfriend. Keep Kurt safe and maybe you and I can get along." She pressed her finger into his chest. He looked down at it and gulped prepared to be mauled by Kurt's overprotective best friend. "Now both of you get dressed. Blaine is joining us for Fried Food Friday."

"Yess." Sam pumped his fist.

Mercedes smiled a little at Blaine and pulled him into a hug. "Come here little rockstar."

He was hesitant, but he smiled and hugged her back. "Thank you." He whispered.

Kurt gave Blaine a McKinley sweatshirt to wear so that he wouldn't draw too much attention. He pulled it on and asked for Kurt's approval. It took a minute to pull Kurt off him after he pushed him into the wall.

"So it looks good?" Blaine laughed.

"You look sexy."

"WILL YOU TWO PLEASE JUST GET READY FOR THE LOVE THERE ARE NO WALLS HERE!" Mercedes shouted from the living room which was only a thin bookshelf away.

Blaine threw on his jeans from the night before and turned to Kurt who had quickly changed into a cashmere sweater, a patterned scarf, and tight striped pants.

"Beautiful." Kurt grabbed his arm and pulled him out the door.

"Let's get going I'm starving." Kurt shoved everyone out the door. He shoved Sam extra hard after he responded with, "I bet."

The place they usually occupied on Fridays at lunch time was just a few blocks down. Blaine pulled the hood of the sweatshirt up over his head and slid his sunglasses on.

"Oooo look who's all incognito." Sam elbowed Blaine. "You look cool man."

"Thank you, Sam." Blaine smiled proudly. He always thought he looked like a dork when he had to hide himself away like this. Blaine had his hands in his pockets and Kurt looped an arm through his elbow.

They walked on with just a little chatter, Mercedes, still a little upset, leading the way.

"Hang on just a second guys." Blaine said then sprinted across the street.

"What is he doing?" Mercedes turned to Kurt as if to prove to him that his boyfriend was messed up.

Kurt watched Blaine smile and walk up to a flower vendor on the corner. It gave Kurt an idea. He remembered seeing Blaine squat down next to the homeless man and give him cupcakes. Kurt took his phone out and snapped a picture as Blaine handed his money to the woman and took a bundle of flowers from her.

He sprinted back across the street. He pulled a few of the flowers out of the bundle and handed them to Kurt. "My love." He whispered as Kurt accepted them and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Mercedes." He smiled at her, lowering his eyes and handing her the rest of the roses.

Sam patted his girlfriend on the arm and gave her a crooked grin. He frowned a little and turned away.

"Oh come on, Sam you think I would fake hook up with you and not even get you a flower?" Blaine pulled a hand out from behind his back and handed Sam a single rose. It made Mercedes laugh and Sam jumped up and down before realizing how girly he was being.

"Thanks, man." He said clearing his throat. They all turned and headed toward the restaurant.

"He's so damn charming." Sam whispered to Mercedes much louder than he had meant. Kurt and Blaine started cracking up.

"I think you're winning them over." Kurt stage whispered to Blaine and Mercedes turned and stuck her tongue out at them.

"We are not that cheap, boy. But you're headed in the right direction."

Blaine just smiled mischievously, and Kurt knew 'not cheap' was not the way Mercedes should have phrased it.

The owner of the restaurant gladly sat them in the corner without asking any questions, they were his most loyal and persistent customers he would have murdered someone for them if they promised they would be in next week.

"So, I must know." Blaine began, placing his menu flat on the table. "What are Fried Food Fridays and how did they begin?"

"Well when we first got to New York we were always super busy. We were all spread out. We never had time for each other." Kurt let his hand fall to Blaine's thigh, and he rubbed it up and down as he spoke.

"Friday during lunch time was the only time I could get off from my job at the church."

"I moved my schedule around so my assistant manager, Brittney, would handle all operations on Fridays."

"And I'm a model. So my job really only takes a few hours."

Blaine nodded. Okay but I mean why Fried Food?" He looked at all of them as they stared at him like he was an idiot.

"Because it's delicious." Kurt stated simply.

"Also, because my photoshoots are usually Thursdays so I'm basically starving by Friday and I don't need to be whipped back in shape until the next Thursday."

"Thus, Fried Food Friday." Mercedes finished.

"This is amazing." Blaine laughed. Kurt sensed a sadness and it occurred to him that he probably never partook in any sort of tradition like that. Kurt kicked Mercedes's foot under the table.

"I'm glad you think so." She reached out and placed a hand over Blaine's on the table. "Blaine Anderson, would you like to become an official member of Fried Food Friday?"

He grinned wider than humanly possible. "I would be honored." He looked down at the menu. "How many baskets of mozzarella sticks is too many?"

"There are never too many." Sam answered in all seriousness.

Blaine's phone buzzed and he opened it so he and Kurt could read Sebastian's response.

Sebastian: Okay stud ,you win this time. You don't have to come to the meeting. But next time you get a piece of ass that just so happens to be a model, try having someone else take your picture. If you do it, it's too personal.

Sebastian: Don't get me wrong though. You've done well and if Blondie needs a rebound, I'm open;)

The four feasted on an array of mozzarella sticks, onion rings, French fries, and every other imaginable appetizer. They swapped stories and sauces and Sam and Mercedes were ecstatic to find out what it was like being a rockstar.

"And that is the story of how I accidentally set a recording studio on fire." Blaine finished, jamming a french fry in his mouth.

"Was the song that bad?" Blaine nodded at Kurt. "That you had to set it on fire in a trashcan?"

"It didn't deserve to see the light of day anymore."

"What a tortured artist." Mercedes mocked. Blaine laughed at his own foolishness.

"So who is this Sebastian guy and what is his deal anyway?" Sam stole an onion ring from Kurt and awkwardly pulled it apart, his tongue trying to catch the dangling onion. Mercedes looked at him with love and pity in her expression.

"We used to date in high school. I hired him because I thought we were friends and I trusted him as a manager and marketer. He was conniving even then, but I thought that would help sales."

Kurt rubbed Blaine's shoulder as he kept on. "I'm starting to think that he did all this just so he could have me back. That's the only reason I can think of why he would treat Kurt the way he did."

"So what's his deal anyway? Is he gay? Bisexual? Didn't you just tell a story where he took two chicks home with him because they were being creepy with you?"

"Officially he is gay. But with Sebastian it's different. It's not that he's bisexual." Blaine tried to choose the right wording. "He's just sexual. One time when he was drunk, he hit on a particularly curvy potted plant."

Mercedes gagged. "Ew."

"Yeah. He flirts with literally everything that walks in his path. Including, I guess, me."

"I'm actually glad this was brought up." Kurt sat back against the wall, so he was turned toward everybody. "I think I have an idea for you to be the performer you want to be without getting on Sebastian's bad side."

"I'm all ears." Blaine admitted truly hoping that Kurt had a plan to accomplish what he himself had failed to do for months.

"After there was a picture of you giving money and time to a homeless man, you and your team blew up your twitter with a bunch of words about how you were a bad boy or whatever." Blaine nodded along. "Then when the picture of us on the boat got released and it showed you tender and vulnerable, the same thing happened. Sebastian tweeted that you wanted to hook up." Blaine was trying to piece together what Kurt was getting at.

Kurt looked around waiting for the recognition to hit, but it didn't so he kept going. "They say a picture is worth a thousand words." He pulled his phone out and showed Blaine the photo of him buying flowers from a street vendor. "If photos of you being the man I know keep getting released and your team scrambles to correct them but can only use words people will believe the pictures more than the words."

"You want him to discredit his own social media?" Mercedes asked a little surprised.

Blaine was still looking at the photo of him smiling at the woman as she handed him the roses. He remembered what was running through his mind when it was taken. He thought about how happy it would make his new friends.

"Kurt's right." Blaine finally looked up at everybody.

"Won't that mess with your fans if they can't believe your posts?"

"I mean only the gossip has to be false. Sebastian and Santana can write what they want about what supposedly happens in my personal life. All the information about concerts and signings and everything will remain true and I will still respond to direct messages without them interfering."

"It's kind of genius." Sam grinned.

"It really is, Kurt." Blaine tapped his chin meditatively. "Now how do we get these kinds of pictures out there without drawing it back to you?"

"Anonymous account." Kurt was tapping away on his phone and Blaine looked over.

"You've already made one?" Kurt looked up briefly.

"Yeah you all are just jumping on board, I knew this was a genius plan a few minutes ago." Blaine smiled and kissed him on the cheek."

A flash went off and Blaine and Kurt whipped toward it. Mercedes slowly put her phone down. "That one isn't going online. I'm just saving it for your wedding album.

Kurt rolled his eyes and Blaine fluttered his lashes at him. "Aww. I like her."

"Okay living or dead if you could meet one singer who would it be?" Blaine was walking backwards in front of everyone as they made their way back to the Lima Bean.

"Aretha Franklin. I R.E.S.P.E.C.T. her talent." Mercedes wagged her finger as she sang out. Blaine chuckled.

"Sam? What about you?" He took a minute to think it over.

"I guess I would say Johnny Cash. I love country and he is a classic. Plus, he seems like a cool guy."

"Kurt?" Blaine turned toward him and smiled.

"Blaine Anderson."

"Aw really?" Blaine leaned into Kurt, before Kurt spoke up again.

"Except I've already met you so June Dolloway."

"I guess that's fair." Blaine frowned a little before turning back around to fall in step with Kurt.

"What about you, rockstar?" Mercedes chimed in, secretly hoping he had a story about meeting Jay-Z in the bathroom at the Grammy's or something.

"Freddie Mercury." Blaine smirked. "I love his talent, he was an outstanding songwriter, and overall stood for something important."

"Plus, you gotta love those skintight jumpsuits." Kurt poked Blaine, wondering how he would look in a typical Freddie Mercury outfit.

They turned the corner and Kurt held the door for everyone as they all made their way inside the Lima Bean.

"Unicorn you're here!"

"Britt, I told you not to call me that in front of customers."

She glanced over at Blaine. "But he's not a customer he's Blaine Anderson."

"Shhh." Kurt, Mercedes, and Sam all shushed her at the same time, grouping around her and pulling Blaine in to hide him from the people lounging around the café.

"Britt. How did you know that?"

She was about to answer when the doors to the kitchen swung open. "I'd heard such great things about this place I thought I would check it out for myself. And I must say, Blaine you weren't wrong." Santana pushed past the swinging doors on the counter and walked up to him.

"Shit! Santana what are you doing here?"

"Well when Sebastian showed me the picture of you and trouty mouth over there, I knew it was a cover. Despite the lady lips and the not entirely heterosexual look on his face, I could tell that the crotch hair model and you didn't sleep together. Sebastian was too busy touching himself under the conference table to realize it."

Santana walked over and stood next to Brittney. "Anyway, Britt here was oh so helpful in filling me in on what was happening."

"She was?" Kurt asked unconvinced. Brittney was the only one of his close friends that didn't know anything about it.

"She said she saw you and the contrasts in every way couple take Blaine to your usual Friday joint. She told me if I waited for a while you guys would come back here like you always do."

"Listen Santana, I know what it looks like but Kurt and I are just—"

"Let me finish Blaine." She said it softly and it concerned Blaine who had only ever heard her yell and rant.

"I get it. I know you and Kurt like each other or whatever. And to be honest, I want you to be able to have like an actual human relationship. You're only 19 and Sebastian is throwing you around like a Sunday morning fishing hook with a raw hotdog on it." Kurt cringed at the metaphor.

"Okay, then why did you come here?" Blaine knew she was plotting. Mostly because Santana was always plotting, but also because she had a distinct furrow in her brow when she was thinking of something evil.

"I would like to think you and I are friends, Blaine. But also, I am very motivated by money and if this album does well, I will get a lot of it."

"Classy." Blaine mumbled.

"I don't think the direction Sebastian is trying to take is working." Blaine raised an eyebrow, she had always seemed so on board with selling the bad boy image. "I think it's over played and pointless. If people wanted to see rich people constantly fuck up their life they can watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians. You write soulful music, so it makes sense that you would have a soul."

"What are you proposing?"

"Look it's pretty clear you're in love. Anybody with at least one good eye could see that. You will perform better if you perform what you're feeling."

"All of the songs on the album are about heartbreak and parties."

"Yeah. It's a shame, if only you had two weeks before the final edited album has to be in and an entire notebook of unrecorded love songs that you pretend to hide from us."

"Sebastian isn't going to let me scrap an entire album and re-record it full of love songs."

Santana smiled and stepped up to Blaine. "I sent him to Europe to spend two weeks scoping out stages for your tour over there."

Blaine's glance flicked over to Kurt at the mention of the European tour. He hadn't brought it up yet to him. It would mean he would be gone for a few months and there was no way Kurt could leave the coffeeshop for that long.

"Santana. I don't know what to say. Uh thank you." She ruffled his hair then slapped his face.

"You're welcome. Now you're coming with me. We have an album to redo." She winked at Brittney then started for the door. She paused and turned to Kurt, "Good work with the photo of him buying flowers, by the way. Keep those up." She pushed past the door and headed to her car.

"I better catch up with her or she'll throw a fit." Blaine pointed a thumb toward the door. "It was great meeting you guys, seriously thanks for taking me in like that."

Mercedes smiled at him and Sam punched his shoulder, "Anytime man."

"Oh Kurt, your sweatshirt." Blaine started to remove his jacket, so he could take off the sweatshirt.

Kurt put his hands up. "No keep it. It looks good on you. Plus, it gives me an excuse to see you sometime soon, so I can get it back."

"I'll call you later." Blaine leaned in and gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek. The public eye was not a great place to land a passionate kiss on the mouth.

He ran out the door in Santana's wake, smiling like a child. He was finally starting to get control of his life.