A/N Nothing to warn you about this time...pretty tame...for now.

Still own nothing. Still wish I did. I'd love to get ch 18 up tomorrow or over the weekend.

I hope you'll take a minute to review. To anyone who writes, it means the world to us if you take the time to say a few words, even if they're not all flowers and butterflies.

Thanks for reading!

CHAPTER 17

"Seriously, Mercedes, I was getting worried! I haven't heard from you in almost two weeks, and we both know that's not right! I kept calling and getting your voicemail….I thought you were dead!"

"Kurt, I'm sorry, I don't even know what to say, but that my phone is gone and I don't know where I left it. It could be here in the apartment somewhere, just dead, so I can't hear it ring. It could be in the damn garbage can at the mall, Boo, who knows? So I'm going to have to go out and get a new one! And you're such a drama queen, Kurt! Dead? Really?" Mercedes laughed.

"Well, I'd be lying if I said I'm surprised. Is this the second or third one you've misplaced this year?" Kurt laughed. "I'm just glad to hear from you! I can't wait for you to visit. Cedes, this is the most beautiful apartment…..I love it so much, and my little neighborhood is quiet and the guy in the next apartment plays beautiful music all day long on his keyboard or guitar, and with the windows open it just drifts in…..I love it here!"

"I can't tell you how good it is to hear you say that! You sound so different, Kurt. You've only been gone, what… a matter of weeks? And you already sound like a new man!"

"It's this place! New York is…..well, it's a place where I think I can be me again. I went to the grocery store today and the stock boy literally banged into me and I barely flinched and …..well, for me it's a big step." he grinned.

"I'd hate to see you pass out in the store because of some stock boy! Was he cute?"

"God I miss you, Cedes!" he laughed. "And yeah, he was cute, but he was no Adonis, that's for sure!"

"Ok, seriously, when are you going to either take out an ad in the paper, rent a billboard or get one of those planes to drag around a banner? You HAVE to find this guy, Kurt. He's making you goofy!"

"I know, I know. He's in my dreams almost every night, now. It's weird, the more I try to convince myself that I'll never see him again, the more my mind says 'oh, but you will!' and won't let me ditch the vision of his beautiful, perfect face. Oh my God, I said that out loud!" he laughed.

"Adonis….I freaking love it! Have you gone back to that same coffee shop again at the same time?"

"Mercedes, you and I both know that was a total fluke. The likelihood of me EVER being up and out of the house for coffee at 7 am on a Sunday morning is crazy. A pipe dream. Not going to happen. But then again, if I knew HE was going to be there, I'd set a freakin' alarm, honey!"

Kurt considered telling her that for the past two Sundays he HAD actually set his alarm and gone to the same Starbucks for coffee at 7 am, just on the off chance that perhaps Adonis would be there. Unfortunately, it wasn't happening. Telling Mercedes this, however, put him in "stalker" status, so he refrained.

Mercedes laughed and Kurt talked, then they switched roles, each giving accounts of what had been going on in the days that they hadn't been in touch. She made a promise to come visit him soon, probably before the end of the summer. He promised to send her pictures of his apartment once he got all the painting done. They said goodbye and hung up, each vowing to call within a day or so.

Kurt sat on his sofa reading a book….well, trying to read a book, when he realized he'd read the same page three times already. He couldn't focus, couldn't make his mind do what he wanted it to, which was to get away from anything work related and relax a little bit. It was screaming for him to draw. It was going it's own way, and he figured the only way to silence it was to go that way, too.

Kurt tried to sketch out some new designs and tweaked a few old ones, but his mind wouldn't behave and he finally gave in. He grabbed his largest sketch book and some pencils. Kohl would be too bold for this one. He had talked himself out of this so many times, but he couldn't deny it anymore. It was his mind driving him toward it.

He moved his easel out into the living room in front of the windows, which were cracked open and letting in the fresh spring air. He'd taken to leaving the living room windows open at least a little bit because those were the windows that were closest to the other apartment. He could hear the music best from the living room or from the spare bedroom, so he spent a lot of time in those spaces, generally smiling at the beautiful sounds coming from next door.

Kurt grabbed his easel and set up his sketch pad, the largest one, and began putting in basic lines, the shape of the face, the head, the cheeks. He drew in ears and began filling in details. He used a wide range of pencils and some soft pastels for the background to set off Adonis' skin tone. The whole living room was littered with art supplies and he was covered in lead and colors from his fingertips to his nose. He sat that way, hunched over his drawing for hours until he was finished and stepped back to look at his work. His eyes became heavily lidded and he wanted to just sink to the floor. He'd done it. He'd captured him perfectly. The beautiful eyes, the amazing half grin he'd seen, the perky pink lips dying to be kissed and nibbled.

He grabbed a few of his Prismacolors and put in some detail…the honey of his eyes, more pink on his bottom lip, the highlights on the curls in his hair. Kurt wasn't so much into lots of details on the body when he drew clothing. After all, his work was about the fashions on the model, not the model themselves. But this time, he knew he had to find the perfect balance of detail and imagination for Adonis. When he finished, it was getting late and quite dark outside. He heard a door close and feet moving down the hall toward the stairs, and consequently, toward his door. Curiosity got the best of him and he jumped up, falling over his portfolio and his art box, thudding to the floor in a heap with his left leg totally asleep from sitting on it crossed beneath him. Laughing and giggling, he scrambled quickly over to the door and looked out the peephole. He saw someone descending the stairs, but his back was already turned to Kurt. Rachel was right, he did resemble Adonis….from the back anyway. He wondered, idly, if that was Blaine, Anthony or Smythe? Whoever it was had a fantastic ass.

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Blaine decided that a bunch of teenage girls lived in apartment two. As he was leaving for work tonight, he heard someone, or more than one someone it sounded like, scramble around in the apartment and then a thump. The giggling that followed caused him to grin, but what really got him was the shock that shot through him when he heard it. It was as if he'd been dragging his feet across the carpet in the winter for hours, then bam! He even paused at the top of the stairs to listen closer, and was certain that whoever was in the apartment was standing right on the other side of the door. He stood there for a minute with a smirk on his face, wondering if he should pull a Sebastian and turn and wink at the door. In the end, he decided not to…..at least until he found out who was actually inside!

It was Wednesday night and he was making his way to work as usual. He didn't mind walking, and in fact he preferred it to taking a cab. The exercise was always welcome, and since he had missed his afternoon at the gym with Kyle, he was glad for a little bit of exertion. He and Kyle and become friends pretty quickly, hanging out at the gym and even making plans for the next day to grab a coffee and some lunch. Kyle was doing some work in their neighborhood and invited him to meet him. Blaine wasn't sure where it was going, if anywhere, but he was glad for the companionship and the conversation. Kyle was a good guy and he was easy to talk to and get along with. He was so down to earth that it was a breath of fresh air to be around him. He had invited Kyle to the party Friday night and he said he'd try to make it, although he had tickets for something already and hated to see them go to waste, even if he wasn't thrilled about going to the event. Apparently a bunch of people from work were going and Kyle got sucked into it, and now he was regretting it. Kyle would much rather spend the evening with Blaine.

Work was fun, now. Blaine was used to the shenanigans from the patrons, and he and Davina had become quick friends, laughing, now, at Davina's antics on Blaine's first night. Turns out he (or she, depending on how Davina was dressed for the evening) was quite good on the piano himself, and a decent singer, and he and Blaine would do a rocking rendition of Meatloaf's 'Paradise By The Dashboard Lights'. Everyone absolutely loved it and even the band would howl and cheer them on when they sang it.

Blaine was lost in thought, walking to work, thinking about how just a few short months ago he'd been miserable. He'd been stuck in Ohio, bored out of his mind. He couldn't find a job he thought he'd enjoy at all, and he hated being around his dad…..even if it was within miles of his dad. Since he'd come out to his parents, his father had treated him like he had the plague. It stung, mostly because he and his father had been very close when he was younger.

He wasn't afraid of telling his parents when he realized he was gay. He was sure they'd support him in any way. They loved him, right? He'd never been more wrong. His mom didn't bat an eye. She'd clearly known, or strongly suspected. Apparently she had had time to come to terms with it. His dad, however, had completely stunned him with his immediate hatred and hurtful words. The thought threatened to bring his mood down, so he quickly changed tactics and mentally prepared himself for the party on Friday.

Tomorrow he would meet Kyle for lunch and then head to the store for food and booze, as he was sure there would be a demand for both. Tomorrow night Jeff and Trent were arriving, and he was so excited about that he nearly squealed like a little girl. He missed them more than he missed anything about Ohio and he couldn't wait to see them, especially Jeff. They'd been friends for so long, and he couldn't remember ever being apart this long. "Thank God for technology", he thought. It promised to be a helluva weekend, and the only downer was that Nick was leaving in the morning to go home and see his family. He still hadn't commented on anything about Jeff being there, and Blaine was glad, because he didn't want to see his friend depressed. This was just another reason for Jeff to come to New York again soon!

Blaine walked into work and into the break room, hanging his jacket in his locker. He checked the mirror on the wall, shoved a curl back into place and took a deep breath. It was still fairly early, and he was going to help Mickey stock the bar before anyone came in. He grabbed a pad of paper and a pen and noted anything he'd need to bring up from downstairs. After a couple of hours had gone by, the bar was thoroughly cleaned, stocked and ready to go. Mickey was happy, Mac was coming in tonight, and the guys were starting to show up, setting up their instruments. Then Nick walked in.

Blaine gave him a playful glance from beneath his lashes and shook his head with a grinning smirk.

"What? What's up?" Nick grinned back.

"Nothin' at all, Romeo. What's up with you?"

"So you've talked to him" Nick said, blushing so much that Blaine knew, without asking, how he felt about Jeff. Suddenly his demeanor changed and he just couldn't stop smiling. Blaine thought it was adorable, how bashful he was being. Nick's eyes were on the floor and he was pink from his hair to his shoulders. His smile was infectious.

"Oh, I talked to him, alright." Blaine teased. "Lucy, you have some e'splainin' to do!" he kidded Nick.

"What's to explain?" Nick said, hiding his broad smile. "I texted him, we did that for awhile, then he called me and we talked for awhile."

"Awhile? Really? Awhile. That's what you call that?"

"Um…yeah…I guess." Ok, Blaine had to stop teasing him or Nick's face would surely split in half.

"So you like him, huh?" Blaine asked, his chest tight, just waiting for Nick's answer, knowing in his heart what it would be. It surprised him, however, when Nick didn't answer right away, and a completely different expression took over his face. It almost looked like panic. He shuffled around the stage, removing his guitar from it's case and setting it up in it's stand. Blaine started to wonder if he was going to answer, and if so, what he felt about Jeff. He clearly thought he knew Nick's feelings, but perhaps he was wrong?

Without ever answering, Nick grabbed Blaine by the arm and dragged him through the back room and out the back door into an alley that ran between the buildings. He began to pace and almost looked worried. His face had lost much of it's color and he was clearly upset about something. Blaine was really confused now.

"Hey, man, I didn't mean anything by it. It's your business….." Blaine began. Suddenly he was worried that perhaps he'd had it all wrong. Maybe Nick wasn't feeling the same way about Jeff? Maybe he was a little worried at what had gone on?

"No….Blaine, I…..no. I want to talk to you about this. I NEEEEED to talk to you about it. You ok with that? I don't want to put you in the middle of anything, but who else can I talk to about him?"

"Um..yeah, absolutely. Ok…."

"You guys are close?" Nick asked, running the fingers of both hands through his hair.

"As close as two guys can get that haven't been intimate…." Blaine answered. "There are few, if any, things I don't know about Jeff. Why?"

"If what I tell you is going to freak him out, you need to tell me, because I can't…I don't want to….." Nick sighed. "I don't want to lose him, Blaine."

"Oh. Ok, wow. Alright…what is it?" Blaine said hesitantly.

"Blaine….I know you and I have just met. I know we don't know each other very well, but I know you're a good guy…I can see it when I look at you, and I feel it when I talk to you. You're down to earth, you're kind, you're intelligent. I find that, in life, most people tend to stick to people like themselves….in which case, I knew Jeff was going to be a lot like you since you guys are best buds and you get along so well. What I wasn't counting on was….is…" Nick paused, looking as if he were going to be sick.

"Nick, man, you're kinda freaking me out here….unless you're a vampire or a member of the mafia…or you're going to confess your undying love for ME or something, you have to just spit it out, cause this is totally confusi-….."

"I love him, Blaine. I LOVE him….already. So much it hurts to hang up the phone. So much I almost stepped out in front of a bike messenger this morning because I was so spaced out thinking of Jeff. It's as if God Himself picked out this angel of a man and said 'Ok, Nick Duval has done something right in his life, so let's send him Jeff….' My God, Blaine, I can't explain it. My chest…it just…hurts, it's going to explode, you know, man? I want to give him something….everything. Anything in the world he wants, I want to give it to him, be that for him. I never, ever want to see sadness in his beautiful eyes or worry on his angelic face. He's…..he's…so fucking perfect, Blaine." Nick paused. "Word vomit, right?" Nick said worriedly, finally looking up at Blaine who stood gawking at him.

Suddenly Nick was nearly knocked over when Blaine threw his arms around him and hugged him as if his life depended on it. "God I love you guys!" he crowed.

"Blaine, if you think it'll freak him out, you have to tell me. I can't…..I can't tell him any of this if it'll send him running for the hills. I can't lose him. I….." Nick rambled.

"Nick! Stop, man, you're gonna hurt yourself!" Blaine teased. "I think it's…it's the best damn thing I've ever heard. You should tell him. You have to tell him!"

"But what if he doesn't feel the same way….about me? What if…."

"Nick, tell him. Believe me, TELL him. The sooner the better." Blaine laughed.

"Do you know something I don't, Blaine?"

"Just. Tell. Him." Blaine smirked.

"Ok, I'll…..I'll tell him. Thanks" he smiled, turning to walk inside. "Member of the mafia…." He laughed. "Not exactly….." but Blaine didn't hear him.

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Kyle and Blaine sat at a small table in a deli a couple of blocks over from Blaine's building. They'd ordered sandwiches and were sitting down to eat lunch. Kyle was mid story about work, and they were snickering about the antics of his co-workers.

"So he swung the 2x4 around and nearly took Stan's head off. That didn't go over very well, even though it was an accident, and Stan started yelling and all hell broke loose! It was a madhouse, and I just clocked out and got the hell out of there until things calm down. I was here a little early….so no, you're not late!" Kyle smiled.

"Good, I was so busy making lists and trying to clean that I lost track of time and had to run almost all the way here!"

"Blaine, it's only two blocks!" Kyle laughed.

"I know, I know, but I absolutely HATE being late. It's just not something that I do. When I was little, my dad was either late for everything or he just didn't show up at all. I don't know what was worse, sitting there waiting to see if he'd actually show or when he didn't bother. I hate to keep people waiting, though!"

"No worries here….let's dig in."

They chatted through lunch, Kyle admitting that his mom asked after 'Anthony and Jackass' often. Blaine laughed at this and shook his head.

"I kind of thought we might see her around the building more, but I guess she has better things to do. I'd like to speak with her again. She made me laugh, and let's face it, anyone who immediately refers to Cooper as 'jackass' is good in my book!" Blaine laughed.

"She's a nut, that's for sure." Kyle answered with a wry grin on his unshaven face. He was still sporting yesterday's 5 o'clock shadow. "She's been busy, actually. Her brother, my uncle D, he has some new idea…some new business venture that he's putting all of his energy into. He stops by the house to hang out with her several times per week, but with all this new stuff going on, he hasn't been able to. He's needed on site, so he's invited her to hang out there with him sometimes. I don't know if we ever talked about it, but mom was a hell of an interior designer in her day!" Kyle bragged. Hanging with Uncle D….it gets her out of the house, gets her some exercise, gets her out of my sister's hair for a little bit!" Kyle laughed. "He's her youngest brother….she's the oldest of 7…and they've always been quite close even though there's quite an age difference between them. Mom's 75 this year and I think Uncle D is only in his early 50's. You should hear the two of them go at it, though. Seriously entertaining!" He laughed.

"You're lucky….your mom's such a character. My parents are very reserved and uptight. My dad especially. When I came out, he said 'Jesus, Blaine, could you have done anything more demeaning to your family?' It was the last civil sentence he ever spoke to me, although the looks I got from there on out screamed a lot of what he was thinking. His actions were much, much louder than his words. A few times I had the bruises to prove it."

"Oh my God, Blaine!" Kyle whispered, horrified. "No wonder you moved up here!"

"Yeah, well…that's when I was much younger. He wouldn't dare do that now." Blaine blushed, unaware of why he'd spilled so much personal information. "You get used to it, I guess."

"You shouldn't have to, though" Kyle said with such kindness in his voice that Blaine looked up to meet his eyes. Kyle tentatively reached across the table and laid his hand over Blaine's, giving him a reassuring squeeze. Blaine froze, unsure what to do with that. Kyle felt his tenseness and let go, but still gave him a slight smile. They finished lunch, making plans to meet at the gym after Blaine's houseguests were gone.

"I might see you tomorrow night though, we'll see! Maybe after the performance? Will you guys be up late?" Kyle asked.

"Oh, I can pretty much guarantee it…." Blaine laughed. "One way or another. My brother mentioned maybe hitting a club or two later, when everyone is sufficiently buzzed."

"Ok, then, I might stop by!" Kyle said, waving and walking in the opposite direction, back to work.

With that, Blaine headed back towards home, stopping only at the local grocery for party snacks. Booze was going to require a cab, and he didn't want to do all that yet. Satisfied with his haul, he headed home to take a quick nap before the guys arrived, well aware that they'd probably be up til all hours of the night talking and watching movies.