Blaine knocked on the door to the parlor, spying Kurt through the glass. Kurt's face lit up with a smile when he saw Blaine standing there and rushed to unlock the door. He stood to the side and let Blaine in the shop.

Before Kurt could say anything, Blaine's mouth was on his in a long searing kiss. Blaine had missed him and felt hungry for him in a way he never had with anyone else. Blaine pulled back and smiled up at Kurt, "I missed you."

"I can tell," Kurt said breathlessly. "You're early."

"I was freaking out at the apartment. It was too quiet and left too much room for my own thoughts. I thought it might be better here," Blaine admitted.

Kurt soothed his hand down Blaine's arm. "You'll be fine, I promise. You are in good hands. I just have to get things set up."

Kurt led Blaine through the reception area to a door. On the other side, two chairs and stations were set on each side of the room. Kurt led Blaine to the station on the back right-hand side of the studio. A black, adjustable, leather chair stood next to a shiny metal table and black, rolling stool. There were a few paintings hung on the wall, colorful portraits in such detail that Blaine almost thought they could be actual photographs.

"Why don't you sit, while I get things ready." Kurt told him. Blaine sat in the big black chair while Kurt hustled around the shop, gathering what he needed.

Blaine took the chance to take in the other stations around the shop. Each seemed to have art of a different style: one pin-ups, another beautiful watercolors, the last surrealist, Dali-esque prints.

Kurt saw him examining each station and said, "Starving Artist isn't just a cute name. We all really are artists, even Micah. We each use our own art to decorate our area. Callie is the watercolors, Elliott loves pin-ups and old school design, and Micah does digital art."

"Your portraits are amazing," Blaine said looking up at the paintings in question.

Kurt's eyes drifted to the paintings, too, and a smile tugged at his lips.

"Thank you. It's my dad, my mom, my step-mom Carol, and Finn, my brother."

Kurt turned back to continue setting up his supplies, arranging tiny caps full of ink, his tattoo machine, and a variety of needles. Blaine tried not to eye the needles as he felt his stomach start to churn. He focused instead on the faces of the paintings. An older man with kind eyes, a bright smile and a ball cap tipped back on his head, Kurt's father. A younger woman, sunlight brightening her face, her eyes the exact shade as Kurt's. He could see the same nose, the same high cheekbones, and the same full lips that he knew so well, even without Kurt saying anything he would have known this woman was Kurt's mom. The other woman had a kind face, but her eyes were sad, and she was looking off into the distance. The final painting was of a young man in a red letterman's jacket. His face bore a wide, joyful grin, his face alight with life. It pained Blaine to know that the young man was dead.

"Alright, are you ready?" Kurt asked pulling Blaine's focus from the paintings. His gut filled with ice knowing the time had come at last.

Blaine swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. "I don't know."

Kurt ducked his head to look at him, clearly concerned. "We don't have to do this. If you're not ready, we don't have to."

"No, I want to." Blaine said steeling himself. "I think I just need a minute."

Kurt grabbed Blaine's hand. "Why don't you talk to me, just relax, and forget why we are here. Is your brother still in town?"

"No, he left this morning," Blaine took the distraction Kurt offered. "He was in town for an audition for some soap opera. He said he needed to get back to LA. He had more auditions there this week."

"He's an actor?" Kurt asked.

Blaine couldn't hold back his laughter. "Well, he thinks he is anyway. I swear if it wasn't for his trust fund and working as an extra every chance he can, he wouldn't be able to afford rent there."

"Ah, so you're trust fund brats, then?" Kurt asked smirking at him.

Blaine shook his head, averting his eyes. "No, I'm not. Being the straight actor is okay, but the gay musician just isn't good enough, I was cut off."

"Shit, I'm sorry Blaine." Kurt said tugging on his hand until Blaine looked at him. "Really. I'm sorry., I had no idea. I was just trying to tease you."

Blaine smiled sadly at him. "No, It's fine. You couldn't know. It's just been a weird week."

"Was it at least a good visit?" Kurt asked.

"It actually was, in a strange way," Blaine laughed feeling that ache, he got when thinking about his family begin to fade away. "We never really got along growing up. Cooper was always just enough older than me, that we didn't really have a relationship. He's 6 years older than me, and when we were kids that felt like eons. We were always in different stages of life, and now… it doesn't seem that huge anymore. We are finally on the same page, so it was nice."

Kurt smiled at him again. "I'm glad it went better than you thought. So, do you think you are ready to start?"

Blaine had to think for a second about what Kurt was talking about before he remembered why he was there. He knew he wanted to do this, and putting it off wasn't going to help anything, so he nodded.

"Just tell me what to do," he said.

"Okay first, take off your shirt and stand up. We are going to apply the stencil."

Blaine stood and began unbuttoning his shirt.

Kurt took in a deep breath like he was preparing himself before he spoke. "Okay, before you see the stencil, just remember that this is just the base drawing. It is going to look different when it is finished. It's like if someone gave you a piece of sheet music but without the notations. No piano, forte, or crescendos. Just the notes. It wouldn't be the same."

"I trust you, Kurt," Blaine said, looking him deep in the eyes, hoping he could see just how much he meant it.

Kurt nodded before grabbing a notebook, and pulling out a thin piece of paper, and leading him to the very back of the shop. "Okay first we are just going to decide on placement before I transfer the stencil to your skin."

Blaine watched the concentration as Kurt eyed his chest in a way he knew so well. It was the same intense gaze he had worn so many times. Finally, he placed the paper over Blaine's left pec, before standing back and letting Blaine see himself in the full length mirror. He could barely see the lines through the paper but could tell that the art just belonged there. Kurt had done a great job contouring it to Blaine's body. Blaine nodded.

"It's good?" Kurt asked.

Blaine took in a deep breath, "It seems great."

"Here, let me transfer the ink so you can see better," Kurt said before removing the paper. He then grabbed a bottle and cleaned Blaine's chest with alcohol before grabbing a razor and shaving the little hair that grew there. Next he rubbed something over the area. When he was done, he carefully placed the stencil in the same spot as before.

"Okay," Kurt smiled, "Now is the moment of truth." He slowly peeled back the paper to reveal the design now marking his skin.

The first word that popped into Blaine's mind was vortex. Notes swirled out from a central point just above Blaine's heart. Four distinct sets emerging from a single point. He could feel his mouth drop as he continued to look at the image in the mirror.

"What do you think?" Kurt said, apprehension clear in his voice.

Blaine blinked at himself a moment before asking, "Are they songs?"

"Just notes," Kurt said averting his eyes, clearly nervous.

"I just…" Blaine felt at a loss for words. "It's perfect. I couldn't have come up with a better idea."

Kurt's face bloomed with a smile. "I'm a professional, remember?"

"You're amazing, is what you are." Blaine beamed.

"Okay, well, let's get to work." Kurt said leading him back to the chair, with each step Blaine's fear grew.

"Relax," Kurt soothed. "Just sit down, and I will talk you through everything."

Blaine sat in the chair and watched Kurt as he sat on the stool.

"Just listen to me for a minute," Kurt began. "The beginning is going to be the worst. After that, your adrenaline will kick in, and it will get better."

"What will it feel like?" Blaine asked sounding small even to himself.

"Have you ever used a vibrator?" Kurt asked instead of answering.

Blaine felt his cheeks flush at the question, "Yes, but I doubt it will feel like that."

Kurt chuckled, "The machine itself moves like that. When the motor runs, it vibrates. So first you will feel the vibrations through my hand. Then you feel, almost like a scratch or like a rash, the way they burn."

Blaine nodded, "Is there anything I can do to help."

"Just breathe, steady and deep, and try to relax. The more you tense the muscles the more it will hurt, so just try and relax into it." Kurt said, eyeing him carefully.

"Okay." Blaine said quietly, closing his eyes. He tried to control his breathing as he heard Kurt shuffling around, the pop of latex gloves, and then a warm gloved hand on his chest. His chest tightened for a moment as he heard the buzz of the machine, but he willed his body to relax.

The first scratch of the needle caused a harsh hiss to burst out of his mouth before he forced himself to slowly breathe in.

"You are doing a great job," Kurt cooed.

Blaine wasn't sure how much time had passed, he was so focused on keeping his body relaxed, his breath even and ignoring the pain. He then noticed that the pain was less, still there but now a dull ache. He opened his eyes and watched Kurt as he carefully worked. Kurt turned to dip the needle in a pot of ink. When he turned back he noticed Blaine watching him.

"You are a tattoo artist's dream. You are doing fabulous. How do you feel?" Kurt said.

Blaine smiled, "Better; it isn't as bad as I thought it would be."

From that point on they talked as Kurt worked. The time went by faster and Blaine found it easier to ignore the pain as they talked.

"Well I have been tattooing the longest." Kurt bragged later.

"Wait, I thought you and Elliott started at the same time."

Kurt smirked at him, "We started apprenticing at the same time, but I did my first real tattoo 2 months before he did. I worked my ass off, tattooing anything I could, oranges, grapefruits, honeydew. Pig skins were the best though and I found a butcher near my old apartment that saved most of their skins for me. Elliott liked to party, but Ethan and I would stay home most nights. We would put on a movie, and I would practice."

"Ethan?" Blaine asked. He couldn't remember Kurt mentioning the name before.

Kurt's bit his lip clearly flustered but didn't lift his head from the tattoo. "Oh, yeah. He was my boyfriend at the time. Long gone now."

"Oh." Blaine said feeling small. Apparently, Kurt wasn't always adverse to relationships. He knew it was a long time ago, but the thought didn't make him feel any better.

"Anyway, I like to give Elliott a hard time about it. It's okay, he gives me a hard time about things, too. He doesn't let me get away with shit, for long anyway. He's a good guy. He's my best friend." Kurt sat up, stretching his shoulders before turning to his tray and changing out his needles.

"So Callie is from Illinois, Micah is from Idaho, Baby is from Iowa, and you're from Ohio, Where in the Midwest is Elliott from?" Blaine asked trying to lighten the mood again.

"New Jersey," Kurt deadpanned, "But how did you know I was from Ohio?"

Blaine felt his face flush. "You said you went to high school with Mercedes Jones. I know she grew up in Lima, Ohio. I lived not far from there, in Westerville, growing up. I always love the thought of a local girl making it."

"Small world. Do you go back to Ohio?" Kurt asked.

"Not since I graduated. I have nothing to go back to. My parents cut me off, and now it's just me." Blaine hoped Kurt thought the tear in his eye was from the tattoo.

His hopes were dashed when Kurt looked at him with such compassion and said, "I'm sorry. That must be hard. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have my family."

"It sucks, but I was never close to my family. I always felt… well like I was playing in a different key." Blaine sighed at the thought. It was the perfect way to describe his relationship with his family. It wasn't that they were wrong, or that he was. They weren't fundamentally bad people, they just weren't good together.

"It is a little lonely during the holidays. Everyone is going home to their families. At least New York doesn't stop, and I can always find something to do."

Kurt was quiet for a minute, his face scrunched in a way Blaine wasn't sure how to read. He finally took his eyes off the area he had started adding color to and said, "I wish I knew what to say, except I'm sorry. Last year, I wasn't sure if I would get to go home for Christmas. My parents come here every year at Thanksgiving, but we had opened the shop earlier in the year, and we were struggling. We were barely making enough to cover the rent for the space and supplies. What little money I had left was going to pay my own rent. Credit cards were the only reason I didn't starve. I didn't have enough credit left to buy a plane ticket. It would have been the first Christmas I didn't spend with my dad. I was a mess, but then two days before, I received an email with a ticket confirmation. My dad had paid for me to come home… I just… I admire your strength."

They were quiet for a moment. Blaine wasn't sure what to say. He could feel his chest tightening with emotion. He looked away from Kurt, trying to control his breathing but failing.

"Hey," Kurt's voice came softly, "I need you to breathe for me."

Blaine still couldn't ease his breathing as another tear escaped down his cheek.

"Please look at me," Kurt begged, and Blaine turned his head finding shockingly blue eyes wet with unshed tears looking back at him.

"You are a remarkably strong man. Your parents should be proud to call you their son."

Blaine nodded his head, his heart clenching at Kurt's words.

"Why don't we take a 5 minute break. Do you want a soda or water?" Kurt asked, taking off his gloves and squeezing Blaine's hand.

Blaine was glad when Kurt left to go get him a Coke from the fridge in the backroom. He needed a moment to gather his emotions. Hearing Kurt's praises, outside of the bedroom, meant more to Blaine than he could have imagined. He didn't realize how much Kurt's approval meant to him.

Blaine knew deep down inside that Cooper was right, although he would never admit it to him. While he no longer built dreams on a single coffee date, he was still a romantic at heart. He believed in love, and soul mates, and the magic that came with it. He clung to the idea even harder after finding out his parents love unfortunately came with conditions he couldn't meet.

In the light of a brightly lit tattoo shop, Blaine realized that he loved Kurt. The thought hit him like a train, all at once with full force. He wiped the remaining tears from his eyes. He wanted Kurt to be proud of him in the hopes that one day he could love him back. He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath and pushed his heartache to the past where it belonged. By the time Kurt returned, a can of Coke in his hand, Blaine had a genuine smile on his face.

"Thank you," Blaine said taking the offered drink from Kurt. "Not just for this," he said lifting the can with a smile, "but for what you said. It means a lot to me."

Kurt's arms encircled his waist.

"You really are amazing, and any one that can't see that, should have their heads examined."

Then Kurt leaned down and kissed him long and sweet. When Kurt pulled back, he placed a single kiss on the tip of Blaine's nose.

"Are you ready to get back to it? We are almost done, just the color is left."

Blaine nodded, and Kurt pulled away. As Blaine sat in the chair once more, he popped open the can and took a drink.

As Kurt added the color to his design, they talked about life growing up in Ohio. It was hard for Blaine to picture the shy insecure boy Kurt told stories about, they were so contrary to the Kurt he knew. Part of him wished he could have been there to show Kurt what an amazing person he was.

Blaine was just regaling Kurt with another tale from his glee club days when the buzzing of the tattoo machine quieted, and with a final wipe of the paper towel, Kurt declared, "All finished! Are you ready to see?"

Blaine's voice had caught in his throat. He had refrained from sneaking peeks as Kurt had worked, hoping to avoid seeing the needles piercing his skin. Now the anticipation of seeing Kurt's work was too much. Finally he croaked a "yes".

Kurt led him back to the mirror, standing in front of it so Blaine couldn't see himself. "Ok, god, I hope you like it."

He shifted to the side. For a moment, Blaine's eyes couldn't seem to focus, and then there it was, with vibrant colors standing out against his tan skin. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He understood now what Kurt had meant before about the sketch not being a full representation of the final product. Now colors joined the swirling notes, that now seemed to burst out of his chest. He could now see four distinct waves of notes that fanned out from the central point. Red, blue, yellow and purple, merging into each other.

Blaine stood there blinking, unable to fully grasp that this beautiful art was on his skin forever. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kurt shift nervously.

"It's unbelievable," he finally whispered, still in awe.

He turned to Kurt just in time to see his face burst into the most beautiful, genuine smile.

"Really?"

"Really," Blaine confirmed, "I… it is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen."

He could see the blush painting Kurt's cheek as he tried to contain his smile.

"Let's… get you cleaned up and covered. And then… let's go up to my place."

Blaine swallowed hard before breathlessly saying, "Yeah, ok."