Mercedes came home for a couple of days in July, and Kurt couldn't wait to spend time with her. She'd been his best friend in high school and now she lived on the West Coast, so Kurt didn't get to see her as often as he would have liked. He was getting ready to go out and meet her for dinner, B sitting cross-legged on his bed, keeping him company.

Throughout the summer, Kurt had spent more and more time with B. Not just working in the shop, but inviting B over as often as he could. Burt and Carole didn't mind, and Kurt didn't feel nearly as lonely as he did when he first got here. They spent time watching movies, or reading or just hanging out. B loved musicals, and mystery and fantasy books.

At first every new little thing B did amazed Kurt: an android that liked Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Project Runway, and with Kurt's help learned to make cookies one day. But the more time they spent together, the less shocked Kurt became. He didn't even really think of B as an android that often. He was just someone Kurt really enjoyed spending time with. A friend.

Since B started wearing the eye patches Kurt made him, people reacted to him much better. He still got the odd look because you don't see that many people walk around with eye patches, but otherwise things were easier and B noticed it right away.

They were running some errands for the shop one day when an elderly lady was having trouble getting her groceries into her car. B ran up to her and offered to help. She smiled and thanked him and called him "such a nice young man". She wasn't nervous around him at all.

Afterwards he smiled at Kurt, excitement all over his face. "She wasn't even scared of me!"

"She wasn't," Kurt said, his stomach filling with butterflies. He must have been staring at B or something, because he scrunched up his nose and tilted his head.

"Did I do something wrong, Kurt?"

"No. No." Kurt shook his head and looked away. "It's just that… you are such a nice young man." Kurt grinned and winked at him and B blushed up to his ears. Being kind to people was just second nature to B. Kurt thought that must be part of the reason he hated it so much when people where scared of him, because he just wanted to make everyone smile.

He certainly made Kurt smile.

The only time after B started wearing the eye patches that they had any trouble had nothing to do with B being an android. Kurt had invited B to join him at the movies and as they were leaving Kurt reached for his hand, as he often did, liking the weight of it in his own hand.

Some teenaged boys behind them started laughing and then shouting. "Hey F*gs!" We don't want to see that stuff here! Gross!"

Kurt just squeezed B's hand harder. Years ago, a reaction like that would have made Kurt drop B's hand immediately, but after living on his own in New York and building more confidence, he tried not to let ignorant people bully him. B looked startled though. He kept a hold of Kurt's hand, but when they got to the car he looked at Kurt with wide eyes.

"Why did those men think we were gross?" he asked. "What did we do wrong?"

"Nothing," Kurt said, turning in his seat to face B. "We didn't do anything wrong. Some people just don't like to see two men together."

"But… They were all men and together."

"Yes, but they thought we were on a date, and they don't like gay people."

"They don't like people just because they are gay?"

Kurt sighed. He hated that this was something B had to learn about the world. "Yes."

"People are scared of things they don't understand," B said, remembering the words Kurt had told him before.

"Yeah, and sometimes people don't want to understand."

B was quiet for a moment and Kurt watched him closely, trying to determine what he was thinking. Slowly, a smile grew on B's lips.

"They thought we were on a date?"

Kurt rolled his eyes and laughed. "That's what you got from what just happened?"

B shrugged and smiled. "I don't mind people thinking we were on a date."

Kurt cleared his throat, the car feeling too warm all of a sudden. "Um, yeah… I… Yeah."

Kurt had to keep telling himself he wasn't dating B. They hung out, they enjoyed each other, they were friends. And he was so grateful to have met B this summer. But being friends with an android was one thing, dating him… That seemed like crossing a line.

Kurt almost invited B to join him and Mercedes for dinner that evening, but it had been so long since he'd seen his friend he decided it would be better to give Mercedes his full attention.

"You look nice, Kurt," B said from the bed, flipping through a copy of Vogue, but really watching Kurt get ready to go.

"You think so?" Kurt said, turning to face him. "Mercedes is kind of a big deal these days with her recording contract and everything, and I just don't want to look like a… yokel."

B lifted his eyebrows and then burst out in a laugh.

"What?" Kurt said seriously. "I don't want to look small-town or boring!"

B kept laughing.

"B," Kurt scolded, "I'm serious." But he couldn't help laughing a little himself.

B calmed himself down. "Kurt, are you crazy? You're the single most interesting person in all of Ohio."

Kurt smiled and sat down on the bed next to B. "You don't even know that many people in Ohio, B."

"Well, I'm an android. I did the math."

Kurt elbowed him playfully. "You did not. But you're sweet." He leaned in and placed a short, sweet peck on B's cheek before he realized he probably shouldn't have done that. He got up from the bed quickly and pretended not to notice B's awed expression or his blushing cheeks. It was hard keeping in check his own growing feelings for B and B's obvious crush on him. He didn't know what to do about any of it, so he opted to ignore it.

"I guess I shouldn't worry about it anyway," Kurt said taking one last look at his reflection. "Mercedes is my friend."

"And you're beautiful," B said, and Kurt turned to look at him in surprise.

"What?"

"Hum?" He looked up from the magazine like he hadn't just called Kurt beautiful. "Your outfit is great. I like those maroon pants on you. And the bumblebee brooch is just cool."

"Um, right," Kurt said, turning back to the mirror to finish his hair. "Feel free to hang out in my room if you want," Kurt said, grabbing his jacket on his way out. "You don't have to just go back to the workshop and shut down yet if you don't want to."

B smiled at him. "Thanks. Have a good time!"

Mercedes was one of those friends that even when Kurt hadn't seen her for months they just fell back together easily, like no time had passed. They talked about California and New York and how weird it felt to be back home, but how it also still felt like home. They talked about Mercedes' singing career and how Kurt was doing at NYADA. And about Mercedes' boyfriend "Tank".

"What about you, Kurt?" Mercedes asked playfully. "The last time I heard of you having a boyfriend was that guy Adam. What happened there?"

"He just wasn't the one, Mercedes."

"That was over a year ago, haven't you been seeing anyone since then?"

Kurt shrugged. "I've been on some dates, but nothing serious."

"Uh huh. So no-one special at all?"

"Not really."

"Kurt. Do you realize that every other thing you've said tonight has something to do with B?"

"No, it hasn't!" Kurt denied, but as he thought about it, B had come up a lot.

"The last time I heard you talk about a guy so much was in junior year, when you had a crush on Sam Evans."

Kurt groaned just thinking about his habit of crushing on straight boys in high school. He didn't really know if androids had sexual orientations, but that wasn't even the point. He wasn't crushing on B, not really, but if he was, it would fall into his pattern of liking guys he had no future with.

"It's not like that, Mercedes. B is an android."

"I know, but he doesn't sound like an android when you talk about him."

"That doesn't change the fact that he is metal and wires, and not flesh and blood. Dating him would be… wrong."

"Okay, okay." Mercedes lifted her hands in surrender. "Just wondering." She smiled and changed the subject.

After dinner, Kurt hugged Mercedes goodnight and made her promise that she'd try to make it to Sam's end of the summer party next month. All the way home, he couldn't think of anything but what she had said about B. Kurt didn't have a crush on him, he just didn't. But oh, if B was a human. Kurt felt giddy just thinking about that. Yeah, if B was a human, Kurt would be head-over-heels for him.

He got back home late, so he made sure to be quiet going up to his room. He creaked open the door and flipped on the light near his bed, shrugging his jacket off and then freezing. B was lying curled on his side, one hand pillowed under his head and the other tucked close to his body. His eye was closed and his chest moving as if he was breathing softly in sleep. Kurt had seen B in sleep mode plenty of times, but he'd always been flat on his back lying on his metal table, never curled up with his lips parted and his eye patch a little crooked and his eyelashes softly brushing his face.

Kurt felt a shiver drag down his spine. B must have tried to stay up to wait for Kurt to get home; this must be what he looked like when his sleep mode kicked in without setting it. Kurt's stomach felt empty and his heart pounded in his chest. B looked so peaceful and gorgeous and he was lying on Kurt's bed.

"Oh god," Kurt whispered to himself. "I am in so much trouble."

Kurt softly sat down next to him and carded his fingers through B's curls. "B? Hey, sweetie."

B hummed a little and shifted in his sleep.

"B, time to wake up."

Kurt's breath caught in his throat as B's eye fluttered open. He looked up at Kurt. It seemed to take him a moment to remember where he was, but then he smiled. "You're home," he said softly.

"You fell asleep."

B sat up and stretched, the polo shirt he was wearing riding up a little and Kurt looked quickly away from the pants slung low on his hips and the firm smooth tan skin of his stomach. B hummed again. "Sorry. I didn't mean to go into sleep mode, but I'm programmed to sleep some every day."

"It's okay," Kurt said, trying to hide his smile.

"Did you and Mercedes have a good time?"

Kurt nodded. "I really miss her. I miss all my friends. I hate thinking about going back to New York and living in the dorms for another year, surrounded by people who I know but aren't really my friends."

B frowned folding his hands on his lap. "Would it be better if you had your own place? Or lonelier?"

"I didn't say I was lonely," Kurt responded quickly.

"No… I mean… I wasn't trying to say..." B looked down nervously. "I just worry about you going back to school. I know you love New York and it sounds amazing, but…" He glanced back up, looking through the lashes of his one good eye. "I worry about you going back and being alone."

Kurt studied his sincere face for a moment before he let out a breath, his shoulders slumping. "I worry too. I just need to make more of an effort to get to know people this year, but yeah, I do think I might get my own place." Kurt smiled. "There aren't many seniors staying in the dorms and I don't want to be that guy."

B smiled too. "I'm sure you'll be fine. If you gave people a chance I know everyone would love you."

Kurt chuckled. "I don't know about everyone, I can be a little difficult. But thanks B. I appreciate it."

B smiled and yawned tiredly before getting up off the bed. "I guess I should go to bed. See you in the morning?"

"See you then," Kurt said, and watched the droid leave the room. He got up and readied himself for bed before climbing under the covers and switching off the lamp. As he fell asleep, he wondered what it would be like to bring B back to New York with him.