Author's Note:

For Halloween, Kurt dresses up as Loki, and Blaine as Gaston. Are you drooling yet? You're welcome!

Chapter 5: Halloween Party

"In my opinion, the younger son of an earl can know very little of either. Now seriously, what have you ever known of self-denial and dependence? When have you been prevented by want of money from going wherever you chose, or procuring anything you had a fancy for?"

(An excerpt from Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

Not even five minutes after his tirade, Blaine felt like a crushed cockroach.

Without so much as raising his voice, Kurt had torn apart Blaine's whole reasoning and proved to him that he'd been completely wrong in attacking the brides.

Blaine had ruined the atmosphere and perhaps the entire wedding by throwing a tantrum like a sleep-deprived toddler.

Well, the sleep deprivation fits… Still, I'm old enough to deal with that issue in a more mature way!

Cooper, bless him, did his best to smooth things over, but Kurt wasn't having it, addressing Blaine again and defending his choice to plan a wedding for his friends.

A silly romantic, is he? Me too. But now he'll certainly never give me the time of day. Still. I should apologise.

So apologise Blaine did, but Kurt's eyes flashed in a way that showed he wasn't forgiven yet. He would need to grovel.

When Cooper put on the charm again and flirted with Kurt, the both of them whispering conspiratorially and winking, Blaine's heart sank straight into his shoes.

Yeah, Kurt was out of his league. Totally. He didn't even make a blip on Kurt's radar.

But he had something to make up for, so he allowed himself only the briefest wallow in self-pity before he went to help Kurt out with clearing the tables and doing the dishes.

Kurt seemed surprised he would stoop to that, and Blaine cursed himself for his outburst. Now Kurt and his friends would think he was a total snob!

There was nothing to do but try to repair the damage, so Blaine washed dishes diligently, humming Frank Sinatra under his breath as he worked and stealing glances at Kurt whenever he dared.

By the time they were done, Kurt had thawed out a little, and offered Blaine another piece of cake as thanks for his help. Well, he was not going to say no to that!

They moved to the sofa with their plate, Blaine praising the cake to the high heavens, and Kurt smiling at him and offering to share the recipe.

Blaine's cake was soon gone, and he looked towards Kurt to take his plate, too, and bring it to the kitchen.

But Kurt's cake wasn't finished. There was still a piece on his fork, and a bigger piece on his plate, which was teetering off his lap, in danger of falling. And Kurt? Kurt was fast asleep, his head lolling to the side and his expression serene.

Blaine smiled at him, and then carefully took away Kurt's plate and fork.

Kurt snuffled and turned, his arm flinging over Blaine's belly and his head landing half on Blaine's arm and half on his chest.

Blaine froze for a moment, and then stretched out his free arm to put the plates and forks on the coffee table. When that was done, he curled his arm protectively around Kurt, to keep him from falling off the sofa if he turned around again, and then just basked in the moment.

With his mouth half open and a thin line of drool making its way down his chin, Kurt was still no less than stunning. And he didn't only look good, he also smelled divine. His cologne was woodsy, with a slight hint of something sweet. What was it?

Blaine sniffed surreptitiously. Vanilla. Yes. Probably because Kurt had done the baking for the wedding.

Kurt smacked his lips and slid his head a bit further onto Blaine's pecs, making a soft purring noise that made Blaine melt.

There was no-one in the loft but them at the moment, so Blaine didn't feel any qualms about letting Kurt sleep all cuddled up to him. What wouldn't he give to have a man like this for real… To get to sleep with him tucked into his side, or spooning him…

Blaine must have fallen asleep picturing a life with Kurt by his side, because the next thing he knew, his brother was shaking him awake and telling him that it was time to go.

Still half asleep, Blaine griped at Coop, and then remembered he had to be quiet for Kurt, who was asleep next to him.

Too late… He'd already woken him up with his whining. Well, maybe that was a good thing, seeing as Kurt could now move to his bed.

But apparently, Kurt slept on the sofa whenever Santana had Brittany over. Huh? They didn't have beds for everyone living here? Oh, they were saving up for it?

Blaine frowned, and before he could stop to think, he'd blurted out that it was silly of the newlyweds to ask for an expensive pet pavilion when they didn't even have basic necessities like a bed.

Kurt seemed suitably chagrined about that, and explained that the idiotic cat stuff had all been Brittany's idea. He told Coop to cancel the order. "We've been feeling awful about that."

Blaine's mouth ran away with him again, and he wondered out loud how the newlyweds had been able to afford the wedding.

Kurt looked murder again, and no wonder. Blaine REALLY shouldn't have said that.

Still, Kurt explained how they had managed. Basically, he'd worked his ass off to give his friends the wedding of their dreams. No wonder he'd fallen asleep just now. He probably hadn't slept properly in weeks. Blaine envied the brides that they had such a fierce and loyal friend.

Kurt's eyes flashed when Blaine gave him nothing but a mute nod in reply to his explanation.

Uh-oh, I've messed everything up again. Why couldn't I have held my tongue?

Cooper came to the rescue again, assuring Kurt that the wedding had been wonderful in every way, that they weren't to worry about the gifts he'd bought, and that he hoped to see Kurt again soon for another party.

That coaxed a smile out of Kurt, and thawed him enough to shake hands with Blaine as well.

Blaine took the opportunity to apologise again for behaving like an idiot. Kurt's impassive expression made him slink off with his tail between his legs.

On the way home, Coop berated him for his rudeness. "Seriously, squirt, what was up with you? I could tell you were totally into Kurt, and then you go and say all the wrong things. He's going to think you're a total tool!"

Blaine hunched up and mumbled, "I am. And now I've ruined my chances with him forever."

Coop clapped him on the shoulder. "Hey now, don't be like that. There's always next time. Kurt promised to invite me again, didn't he? And I'll take you as my plus one, and you will pour on that Anderson charm, and he won't be able to resist you."

Blaine heaved a sigh that seemed to come straight from his toes.

Did he want to go to another party where Kurt fawned over Coop and paid no attention to him? Yes, he did. Clearly, he loved torturing himself.

K&B

Two months later, Cooper came bounding into the living room yelling, "Guess what?!"

Blaine, who was working for school, was so startled he dropped a book on his toe. "Ow!"

"Guess what, guess what, guess what?"

Cooper danced around the table like a kid who'd eaten too much candy.

"What? You have a hot date and want me out of the house tonight?"

Coop rolled his eyes. "Nope. Try again."

"You met another celebrity?"

"Nope. Try again."

Blaine sighed and raked a hand through his hair. "Coop, I've got no time for this. Just tell me outright, please."

Coop handed Blaine a card. It showed a black cat lying on a large pumpkin, while three witches were stirring in a kettle nearby. The message read:

"Something wicked this way comes!

Halloween Party at the loft on Friday the 31st of October, starting at 8 p.m.

Dress up like a villain and bring your own booze."

Blaine frowned at the invitation. What on earth…?

"It's from Kurt!" Coop beamed. "He invited us to his Halloween party. Awesome, right? You get to see Kurt again! So figure out a good costume, and make sure you're on your best behavior this time, okay?"

Blaine felt nerves slam into his gut. Yes, he'd be happy to see Kurt again, but would he manage not to make a fool of himself or offend Kurt at this party? Chances of that were slim.

"I was thinking of Dorian Gray."

Blaine quirked an eyebrow at Cooper.

"For my costume, squirt, keep up! I get to wear fancy old duds and look handsome, and all I have to do is put a tiny portrait of myself in my inside pocket, where I'm looking all ugly and aged up, and show it to people asking who I'm supposed to be."

Blaine tilted his head to the side. "That's brilliant, actually."

Cooper bowed and doffed an imaginary hat. "Thank you, thank you. I have my moments."

"So what are you going to take to the party?" Blaine asked.

"What do you mean?"

"As a gift to the host."

Coop grabbed the invitation and perused it. "It says to bring your own booze. I'll bring a nice bottle of whiskey or something."

Blaine shook his head. "That's just a waste of money. Students drink to get drunk. Fast. They're going to down big glasses of your top shelf whiskey in one go without so much as tasting it. You'd better give them something useful. Remember how Santana doesn't have a bed or even a decent sofa bed?"

"Huh. Right. But wouldn't they have saved up for it by now?"

Blaine shrugged. "I doubt it. There are always emergencies eating up your savings."

Cooper gave him a quizzical look. "Yes… That's true. I know that from my early days in LA. But how would you know that, Mr. Silver Spoon? You've never lacked for anything a day in your life."

Blaine felt his cheeks heat up. "Um… I might have… done some research?"

Now Cooper's gaze became even more piercing. "You've got it bad!"

Blaine looked down. Yes. That was always his curse. He fell for someone instantly. Head over heels. No looking back. That hadn't ever worked out well. People took advantage of him, and then threw him out like yesterday's garbage. Telling him he was too intense. Too clingy. Too much.

Not that Kurt would ever give him the time of day, regardless. Last time, he'd been civil to Blaine only for Cooper's sake.

Still, Blaine wanted to help somehow. He felt so ashamed of what his reactions had been at the wedding. It's easy to criticize, yes, but it's far more commendable to stay positive and make the best of the situation you were dealt. Kurt was quite right about that, and Blaine admired him for his pluck. Among other things.

"So what do you suggest? That we have a sofa bed delivered the day of the party, when they're busy getting everything ready? Or that we bring two delivery men carrying a sofa when we go to the party?"

Blaine laughed at that last suggestion, shook his head and looked up at Cooper beseechingly. "We could bring the sofa bed a few days in advance maybe?"

Coop grinned. "So that you would get to see Kurt twice? I'm on to you, mister!"

Blaine didn't deny that was his intent.

"Okay, I'll call and ask if we can go drop it off somewhere this week. All right?"

"All right. Look, this one has a memory foam mattress, and it looks classy."

Coop got his credit card, sat down next to Blaine and ordered the sofa bed.

Then he called the RSVP number on the Halloween party invitation.

Kurt must have been waiting to hear from Coop, 'cause he picked up the phone after only three rings, and seemed happy that Coop and Blaine were coming.

When Cooper told Kurt he'd like to give him a decent sofa bed as a host gift, and could he have it dropped off sometime this week, there was silence on Kurt's end for a while. Then he said, his voice weirdly strangled, "You don't need to do this. Really. We didn't ask you to the party because you're obscenely rich. We asked you because we enjoy your company."

Coop grinned. "That's nice to hear. I'm still giving you the sofa bed, seeing as I already bought it. What would be the best day and time for it to be delivered to the loft?"

Kurt took a while to answer. Then he said, slowly, "Seriously, this is not necessary. All our other friends are just bringing some cheap beer or wine. Or even nothing at all, if I know Puck."

Coop laughed. "I thought of bringing a nice bottle of whiskey, but Blaine said that I had better give you something useful. Always the practical one, my brother."

Kurt sighed. "The thing is that I don't want you spending a lot of money on our behalf!"

"Oh, the sofa bed costs far less than the whiskey I wanted to buy," Cooper reassured Kurt.

From the new prolonged silence, Blaine inferred that Kurt didn't find this reassuring in the least.

"So, what day would suit you best?" Cooper pressed.

Kurt laughed. It was short, and didn't sound amused so much as exasperated. "All right, then. If you insist…"

"I do."

"Then Wednesday would be the best day. In the afternoon. I don't have class and my shift at the diner doesn't start until seven."

"Wednesday at two p.m. it is. See you then!"

"Um… You'll… You'll be there, too?"

Coop grinned. "Of course. I need to make sure they bring you the right stuff, and not something substandard because it's a delivery to somebody else than me. Got cheated once when I bought my mom a brunch basket for Mother's Day. Half of the things that were supposed to be in the basket were missing. Thank heavens she took a picture and sent it to me. I fixed that soon enough. Nobody pulls the wool over my eyes!"

"Um… All right then. See you on Wednesday. And… Thank you. This is… Thank you."

"You're most welcome. Looking forward to the party. Will there be pumpkin pie? That's my favourite."

Kurt laughed again, but this time it sounded happier. "There will be now! I'll make sure of it. Thanks for the heads-up."

Cooper rang off with a huge smile on his face. "And he makes pumpkin pie! You better marry that guy, or I will!"

That resulted in a brotherly scuffle, with Blaine telling Coop to "get his own".

"Just telling you, squirt! Don't let this one get away!"

"Not planning on it."

Coop, his hair a mess and his clothes wrinkled now, grinned at Blaine. "You have the ring and the house and the dog and the schools for the children picked out already, don't you?"

Blaine bit his lip. "Maybe."

Coop threw his head back and laughed.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Blaine said sourly.

Coop clapped him on the back. "Hey, don't be like that. I'll be the best wingman there ever was, I promise."

Blaine sighed. "I'm sure he wishes YOU would date him. And marry him. The way he fawned over you last time was just…"

"Discouraging?"

"Yes."

"I'll talk you up as much as I can. And I'll mention that I'm a commitment phobe, shall I?"

Blaine poked Coop in the side. "You are NOT. You've just had a couple of bad experiences that have made you wary of commitment, that's all."

"Aww, you put that so nicely. Instead of saying that I'm an idiot who can't tell a gold digger from someone who actually likes me for me. Thanks again for helping me dodge that bullet!"

"Anytime."

K&B

That Wednesday, Blaine knocked at the door of the loft at precisely two p.m. The truck had arrived five minutes earlier, and two burly men had carried the sofa bed upstairs.

Kurt rolled the door open, dressed to the nines in a black sword print shirt with a white vest on top and very tight black jeans.

Blaine smiled at Kurt. "Delivery for Mr. Hummel."

"Come on in, sir."

Blaine's heart sank into his shoes at the formal reply. Clearly, Kurt hadn't recognized him.

Kurt turned around and gestured to follow him. The ratty sofa they'd napped on at the wedding was gone, and Kurt had cleared the space all around too.

"He doesn't even remember you from the wedding," Coop whispered in Blaine's ear. "That's bad!"

Blaine rolled his eyes. "I'm aware."

The delivery men installed the sofa, and then Blaine showed Kurt how to turn it into a bed.

When Kurt thanked him, still overly formal, Coop came up behind Blaine and threw his arm over Blaine's shoulder. "My little bro knows his stuff, doesn't he?"

Kurt smiled. "He does. Do you work in the sofa business?"

Blaine looked at Kurt wide-eyed. "Um… No. I'm a student. NYU. Music composition."

"Oh, me too. A student, that is. I go to NYADA. I want to be on Broadway."

Blaine grinned. "Let me guess… As the MC for Cabaret? Evan Hansen? Tony from West Side Story?"

Kurt grimaced. "They'd never give me Tony. In high school, I auditioned for that role and I was laughed away. They said I wasn't manly enough."

Blaine tilted his head to the side and gave Kurt a slow once-over. "Are they nuts? You look all man to me."

Kurt's cheeks coloured, but a small smile showed that he appreciated Blaine's comment.

"You do," Coop chimed in. "Look at your cheekbones. And shoulders. Anytime you want to star in an ad of mine, you just say the word and I'll make it happen."

Kurt's smile widened. "Really? Santana's done lots of commercials, but she's gorgeous, of course."

"So are you," Blaine assured him. "Absolutely stunning."

Kurt side-eyed him.

Uh-oh. Was that too much? Did I put my foot in it again?

Coop nodded. "You are! Just say the word, and you're in. I have a jeans campaign coming up you'd be perfect for."

Kurt went back to beaming, and promised to get in touch with Coop for the campaign.

Coop and Blaine left soon after that, telling Kurt they looked forward to attending the party.

Coop whistled happily as Bill drove them back home, but Blaine didn't know whether to be sad or elated about his second meeting with Kurt.

Kurt hadn't recognized him, and had fawned over Cooper again. But on the plus side, he had talked to Blaine. Without any snark or bite. And Blaine would be working on the jeans campaign too, so he'd get to see Kurt again, and hopefully make more of an impression.

Blaine sighed, and resolved to try again on Friday. His costume was all sorted out, and he'd made it as sexy as possible. Operation Charm Kurt Hummel was a-go.

K & B

That Friday night, Coop and Blaine followed the noise again to the loft. The door opened to a colourful chaos. The place was packed with people in all sorts of costumes, and a bass was pounding so loud it gave Blaine an instant headache.

A green witch came to greet them. "Welcome, welcome! As you can see, I'm not Rachel Berry today but Elphaba. *Dramatic sigh* My dream role!"

"I'm sure you'd rock it," Blaine told her, and she beamed as if he'd just made her day.

"Come! Kurt and Santana are here somewhere, I saw them just now… There! Come with me!"

Rachel tucked Blaine's and Cooper's arms under her elbows and tugged them towards her roommates.

"San! Kurt! Look who's here!"

"I told you, Rach, it's Malificent today," Santana drawled, and yes, she wore the horned hat and the cloak with the pointy collar, and very red lipstick. Brittany, on her lap, was dressed as Catwoman, and another pretty girl sitting next to them portrayed Poison Ivy.

"Niiiiice!" said Cooper, giving her a once-over.

Santana rolled her eyes. "Let me guess, now you're going to ask me what I'm wearing underneath? That's always the follow-up to 'Niiice!' when someone sees my costume."

Coop threw his head back and laughed. Then he mimed zipping his lips.

Blaine laughed along with his brother, but his chuckle petered out when he took in Kurt. Or should he say Loki? Yep, Kurt was sporting long black locks, a horned helmet and a long Asgardian coat. Its green accents did wonderful things for Kurt's eyes.

"Who are you supposed to be, anyway?" Santana asked, and Coop got out his Dorian Gray portrait to explain.

She hummed, not very convinced, and then turned to Blaine. "And you are?"

Blaine's face fell. He'd looked at himself in the mirror before they left and thought his costume was really good and self-explanatory. Wasn't it?

He looked at Coop uncertainly, and his big brother winked at him and started singing.

"Gosh, it disturbs me to see you, Gaston

Looking so down in the dumps

Every guy here'd love to be you, Gaston

Even when taking your lumps"

Rachel laughed delightedly and clapped her hands, and Kurt cracked a smile too.

Blaine beamed at Coop. Now this, he could work with!

Together, the two brothers hammed it up, and by the time they'd finished, they'd drawn quite the crowd. Someone had turned down the music, and everyone was singing along with the refrain, and applauded enthusiastically at the end.

"I didn't know we were doing karaoke at this party of yours, Kurt!" Rachel said. "But I'm all in favour! Let me go fetch my pair of microphones, and we can sing. I'm Elphaba tonight, so we MUST sing For Good. We sound so good together in that song!"

And off she was.

Santana rolled her eyes and mumbled something like, "There we go again!"

Then, she turned to Kurt, holding her hand out with the palm up. "Pay up, Hummel. I said less than an hour, and it hasn't even been half an hour!"

Kurt sighed, fished out his wallet and gave her ten dollars.

Blaine quirked an eyebrow.

"We took bets on how long it would take for Rachel to suggest karaoke," Kurt explained. "I thought – well, hoped – she'd at least wait an hour. But then you guys started to sing, and, well…"

He gestured towards Rachel, who hurried towards them holding the two bedazzled pink microphones Blaine recognized from the wedding.

"I asked Sam and Elliott to set up the stage!" she beamed, and sure enough, a tall guy dressed like Jafar and another dressed like Jaws from James Bond were putting together a small wooden stage.

Rachel tugged Kurt up from the sofa. "Come on, Kurt!"

K&B

Hearing Kurt sing was a revelation. Blaine was sure his jaw was hanging open unattractively, but really, you couldn't spring something like that on him and expect him to keep his cool.

Kurt was a countertenor! He had a fabulous range, and he and Rachel sounded wonderful together. Blaine clapped until his hands were raw when the duet was finished.

Rachel beamed and curtsied, and was about to sing another song when a friend of hers took the mic from her with the admonishment, "Now, now, Rach, we said no hogging the mic, remember? Give everyone their turn!"

It was the most fun Blaine had ever had at a party. Fun people, stellar food, and karaoke! With people who actually sounded good!

He kept thinking that until a girl called Sugar went on stage to perform. As soon as she opened her mouth, the whole audience cringed. Good heavens, what a hideous singing voice! And she seemed to actually expect praise after her performance!

"Well, that was a very good impression of a velociraptor," Cooper said loudly. "You've got that screech down pat. Maybe stick to the human register next time, though? Give our ears a break?"

Sugar gave him a disdainful sniff and stalked off.

Blaine rolled his eyes at his brother, but couldn't help grinning.

"What? You know I'm right!"

"You are, too!" Santana concurred. "Ugh, she sounds awful. And she didn't even dress up as a villain!"

Blaine quirked an eyebrow. "She didn't? I took her to be Regina from Mean Girls. She's dressed all in pink, isn't she?"

Santana shrugged. "Sure, let's give her the benefit of the doubt. And let's keep her off the stage from now on!"

Everyone concurred with that, and made sure to ply Sugar with drinks and conversation. When it was Blaine's turn to talk with her, he found that she always said exactly what she thought. Which was that Cooper was so way more handsome than Blaine that she wondered whether Blaine was adopted.

"We're half-brothers, really. Cooper has another mom," Blaine explained. The twitting of his looks stung. Yes, Cooper was more striking, everyone said so, but Blaine had been called good-looking by many people too, so there.

"Aah, that makes sense. So when are you gonna make your move? You've been panting after Hummel for hours now!"

"Um… I'm sorry, what?"

"Kurt! Why are you here with me and not chatting him up?"

Blaine eyed her uncertainly.

Sugar flapped her hands at him. "Go, go, go! Shoo!"

So Blaine obediently drew closer to Kurt, and offered him a drink.

They'd just struck up a conversation about the remake of A Star Is Born starring Lady Gaga, of whom Kurt seemed a big fan, when the music was shut off and a nervous throat-clearing made everyone look towards the stage.

"Mercedes, could you come here please?" the guy dressed up as Jaws asked, and when she did, he sank down to one knee and proposed to her.

Blaine snuck a look at Kurt, who was smiling and tearing up. His face was open and soft, and though he was clearly happy for his friends, there were other emotions at play too: envy, wistfulness, and a bare-faced longing that took Blaine's breath away.

"You know, I don't think I'd have the confidence to propose to someone dressed like a terrifying villain," Blaine remarked off-hand. "I'd be too afraid to be turned down flat."

Kurt laughed. "Yep, he looks a fright with those metal teeth. And Mercedes still said yes. And is kissing him. It must be true love."

Blaine stuck close to Kurt from then on, determined to cheer him up again. He even managed to dance with him, though not as closely as he would have wanted. Kurt laughed at Blaine's dorky moves, but Blaine was buzzed enough by now not to care.

When Cooper came and told him they were going home because he had a photoshoot the following day, Blaine pouted.

"Oh, don't you use those puppy eyes on me! We've already stayed a few hours longer than I intended to, because I saw you were enjoying yourself. But I really want to get some sleep or I'll mess up the shoot. So say goodbye to your crush and come along, squirt."

"Never!" Blaine declared grandly.

"All right, then."

Blaine grinned at his brother stupidly, thinking he'd won himself some time, but then cringed when Coop hollered, "Bye, everyone! Thanks so much for the invite! We had a great time!"

Amid a chorus of byes and see yous, Coop took Blaine by the arm and led him out of the loft and down the stairs, where the town car was already waiting for them at the curb.

They got in fast, Blaine sighing and looking behind him one last time before he closed the car door.

"Well, squirt? When's the wedding going to be?"

Blaine rolled his eyes. "Don't call me squirt, please. And hold your horses. I'm working on it, okay?"

"Okay. Just don't wait too long, or you won't be pretty anymore. Think of the wedding pictures."

Blaine's eyes glazed over as he pictured it in his mind. Hmm, Kurt in a grey or black tuxedo, with a sleek silver waistcoat and a white flower corsage, coming towards Blaine or waiting at the altar for him with a glowing smile on his face.

"Hey! Earth to Blaine!"

Coop waved a hand in front of his face.

"What?" Blaine snapped.

"A little less daydreaming and some more action, please. I got you another chance to see Kurt by booking him for that jeans campaign next week, but it's up to you to grab that opportunity and turn it into a success. Make sure you don't blow it. Be on your best behavior, and charm the guy's pants off!"

Blaine saluted Coop cockily. "Aye, aye, sir! Might be hard with those tight jeans he'll be wearing, but I'll try!"

Coop rolled his eyes at his tipsy brother. Then his expression softened. "Your man throws good parties, doesn't he?"

Blaine nodded, grinning. "The best."