A/N: This take places right where the first half left off. If anything doesn't make sense, it's my fault.
Can't believe I already have a response on this story so soon after writing it! You readers are all amazing.
Kurt checked his watch. He was due for a break so he should have enough time to drop Blaine off wherever it was that he needed to go. And honestly, even if he hadn't, he would have made the time.
"Just let me change clothes and let the others know I'm taking off and then I can drive you wherever you need to go," he informed the other boy.
"Sure, no problem. I'll just continue to creepily stare at the car posters."
Kurt laughed. "Yeah, you do that."
Blaine smiled at him and Kurt had to force himself to turn away.
He rushed through getting redressed, not that he would ever admit it, and checked his hair in the bathroom mirror before leaving the room and grabbing his car keys. Blaine stood waiting in the lobby, eyes glued to the car posters as he'd promised.
"Ready to go?"
Blaine turned and nodded.
They left the shop together, Kurt waving goodbye to Kevin who had come to stand at the doorway. Apparently Burt's protective streak over his son had rubbed off on his workers.
"Which one is yours?" Blaine asked once they reached the sidewalk.
Kurt pressed the unlock button on his car remote and let the resounding beep answer Blaine's question for him. It was always more fun to see people's reactions when they didn't know what to expect. He fondly remembered Rachel squeaking the day she had spotted Kurt pulling up in his baby when he had driven to school after his sixteenth birthday.
Blaine let loose another admiring whistle, much like the first one from earlier, and walked over to the spotless and gleaming Escalade. He ran his hands down the driver's side door and turned to smile at Kurt over his shoulder. "Is everything you own as immaculate as you are? Or is there an exception?"
Kurt returned the smile and shook his head. Blaine was entirely cheesy, but he kind of loved it.
Kurt stepped closer to the vehicle and swatted Blaine's hands away. "It won't be immaculate if you keep touching it."
Blaine lifted his hands in the universal sign of surrender. "Sorry."
"Forget about it," Kurt replied. "Luckily for you there doesn't seem to be any noticeable damage."
"I just touched it," Blaine whined defensively. "It's not like I licked it."
Kurt repressed a laugh and faked a shudder. "Ew."
"Shush," the other boy retorted. "Get in the car and let's go."
Kurt rolled his eyes but complied, climbing into the driver's seat as Blaine did the same on the passenger's side. "Where are we even going, Mr. Bossy Pants?"
"Mr. Bossy Pants? Really?"
"Don't judge me. I might just leave you on a deserted highway."
"You wouldn't."
"How do you know? I might even be a serial killer who serendipitously ran into a victim who's just my type."
"So I'm your type, am I?" Blaine teased.
Kurt ignored him, putting the key into the ignition and bringing the car's engine to life with a reassuring purr. "Where am I taking you?"
"To answer your previous question, I know you wouldn't ditch me because you're too nice for that."
"Which leads me to reiterate my earlier point: How do you know?"
"You emanate compassion, Kurt."
The way Blaine said his name, the way he pronounced so carefully with a emphasized "t" at the end like a fragile, cherished thing, had Kurt's stomach dropping and his heartbeat picking up. This is so stupid, Kurt mentally grumbled. All he did was say my name and I'm already turning into mush.
"I'll let you think that," he quipped, hoping his voice sounded as strong and casual aloud as it did in his mind.
"The Lima Bean."
Kurt put his foot back on the brake pedal and turned to stare at Blaine like he had suddenly sprouted three heads and a pair of wings. "What?"
"That's where you'll be taking me. The Lima Bean."
"Oh."
"Do you know where that is?"
"Yeah, my friend Rachel and I got there often. it's the only local place with decent coffee."
"Great. Drive on then , partner."
"Partner? Really?"
"Don't judge me."
"Why The Lima Bean?" Kurt asked ten minutes into the drive.
The coffee shop was still a good fifteen minutes away, depending on traffic. He had be a gentleman and let Blaine choose a radio station. The other boy had decided on a top 40 station and quietly sang along to basically every song, which made Kurt smile even when he didn't really enjoy the songs themselves. Blaine had a beautiful voice and it seemed like he was a natural performer, tapping his toes and dancing as much as his seatbelt allowed him. Kurt stole glances every now and then, torn between complimenting Blaine's enthusiasm and just laughing at the adorable faces the other boy made. He felt good though that Blaine seemed comfortable enough to be himself.
"Supposed to meet some of my friends there on the way home."
"That's nice. Do they all sing as well as you do?"
Kurt smirked victoriously when Blaine blushed self-consciously and turned his face away to look out the window at the passing scenery. Now Blaine could know what Kurt had felt like earlier beneath the relentless flirting and teasing.
"I guess that depends on who you ask," Blaine eventually mumbled in reply.
"I'm asking you."
"In my opinion, yeah. The Warblers are all talented dudes."
"The Warblers? Is that a name you gave yourselves like The Marauders?"
"Actually it's the name of our school a cappella show choir. But the Marauders are cool too."
"You have a Glee club?"
"Yeah. Why, do you?"
Kurt nodded, the fond exasperation he felt for New Directions flooding his chest. "Yeah."
"Ooh," Blaine cooed excitedly. Kurt could hear him turning in his seat to see Kurt's reactions firsthand. "What's it called?"
"New Directions."
"Nude Erections? What kind of name is that?"
Kurt laughed despite himself. "No, no. New, as in the opposite of old. Directions, as in north and south."
"Oh. Sorry."
"You're not the only person to hear it that way at first," Kurt consoled. "It's an inside joke of the club's too, at any rate."
"If it makes you feel any better, once at a family gathering when I was explaining my extracurricular activities an aunt asked if we Warblers actually yodeled. Apparently warbling and yodeling were synonymous in her day."
Kurt shared a laugh with Blaine and slowly pulled to a stop within the Lima Bean's tiny parking lot. "We're here."
"You should come in with me," Blaine remarked. "I can buy you a coffee for fixing my car."
"I haven't even started working on it yet," Kurt argued. "Which I should probably get back to the garage and start doing."
"Please," Blaine insisted. "It's the least I can do."
"That seems to be your catchphrase today," Kurt quipped.
"I want to," Blaine persisted. "Come on."
Somehow the sincerity in Blaine's voice and the hope in his eyes won Kurt over, and before he really knew what he was doing, he was parking his baby and stepping down from his car to walk into the Lima Bean by Blaine's side.
"Wouldn't I be intruding?" Kurt wondered aloud as they stepped over the threshold, a light tinkle of the bells overhead acknowledging their entrance into the establishment. "You said you were meeting your friends here."
"Not at all," Blaine promised. "They won't be here for another ten minutes or so anyway. Jeff and Nick have a tendency of being late to everything."
"If you say so."
The line was relatively short today so within a few minutes they had their turn at the counter. Blaine ordered a medium drip and a chocolate biscotti before turning to Kurt with a questioning glance.
"Oh, no, you don't have to," Kurt stumbled. He wasn't used to cute boys buying him coffee. Being with Blaine had been easy and natural until now, but in that moment it felt too much like a date, which upset Kurt's balance a little. He'd never been on a date.
"I told you, I want to." Blaine gave Kurt a silencing look when Kurt opened his mouth to object. "What's your usual order here?"
"Grande nonfat mocha latte," Kurt conceded after a few seconds of pointedly staring Blaine down. The boy definitely had a backbone, because usually people would back down after a few seconds of the infamous Hummel glare.
"And one grande nonfat mocha latte," Blaine added to the barista standing behind the register. She smiled at Kurt - she knew him as a regular customer - and Kurt sighed dramatically to show he really had no choice in that matter. At that, Blaine turned to playfully scowl at him.
After Blaine had paid for their order, despite Kurt's insistence that he could pay for himself, the duo stepped off to the side in order to await their drinks.
"You didn't have to do that," Kurt maintained for the fifth time.
"I know. I wanted to," Blaine emphasized, also for the fifth time. "Are you this cranky with your friends?"
"I'm not being cranky," Kurt retorted. "I'm just stating a fact."
"As am I," Blaine replied. "I wanted to buy you coffee, so I did."
"You're incorrigible," Kurt muttered.
"I know," Blaine chirped.
"Kurt and Blaine!" came from the direction of the counter, breaking the two from their debate.
"I'll go get it," Blaine stated. "You find us a table."
"Whatever you say, Mr. Bossy Pants."
Blaine chuckled and went off on his way, leaving Kurt to scan the room in search of a free table. Most of them were already taken, by a group of teenagers catching up or a businessman or businesswoman here and there working away on their laptops or smart phones while taking intermittent sips of their drinks. Finally Kurt spotted an empty table for two tucked away in the back corner of the café, shielded from view by two potted shrubs.
He made his way over and sat down, keeping an eye out for Blaine in case he hadn't seen where Kurt chose to sit.
Blaine stood where he had left Kurt, eyes roaming the room for any sign of the coiffed hair he had come to associate with his beautiful mechanic.
"Over here," Kurt called out when he realized Blaine hadn't seen him yet, waving his arm in the air as an added aid.
Blaine's eyes locked onto him and then the curly-haired boy was sitting down across from him, sliding one steaming cardboard cup over the table's surface into Kurt's waiting hands.
"Thank you," Kurt said demurely before taking a sip and sighing delightedly while the rich flavors rolled down his throat.
"No problem," Blaine responded as he took a sip of his own drink.
They sat in mutual silence for a few minutes. Kurt tried to think of something interesting to say, anything at all really, but Blaine beat him to the punch.
"What kinds of music do you like?"
"I love Broadway, adore Lady Gaga, and of course The Beatles are iconic. What about you?"
"Broadway, check. Beatles, I can appreciate their music, sure." Blaine paused to take a bite of his dessert pastry and Kurt tried not to admire the way Blaine's lips wrapped around the stick of chocolate cookie. "I guess I'm the type who just listens to whatever's on the radio, unless something really moves me and I just have to check it out myself."
"I can understand that," Kurt replied. "There are certain artists I like that are out of my usual comfort zone, simply because I feel like I can relate to their music on a personal level."
"Exactly," Blaine agreed.
They continued to chat about little things: favorite colors and who did the most chores at home, who had more homework and whose friends were the crazier ones, their first solos and their most recent favorite fashion trends, among others. Kurt realized he and Blaine had a lot in common for two boys who were complete strangers.
"Oh wow," Kurt exclaimed when his phone began vibrating in his pocket. His dad was calling him. It had been an hour since he left the garage!
"Is something wrong?" Blaine asked, his brow scrunching in concern.
"No, I don't think so," Kurt assured. "One second."
"Hey Dad. No, no I'm okay. I'm at the Lima Bean… with a friend. No, not Rachel or Mercedes. You don't know him, Dad. Yes, the boy Kevin saw me leaving the garage with earlier. No, nothing like that. We just got to talking and I lost track of time. No, I didn't think I would be out this long. I'm sorry for worrying you. Yeah, I'll head home in a minute. Okay, okay. I'll head home now. Love you too. See you soon."
"Are you in trouble?" Blaine asked when the one-sided conversation (to him anyway) ended.
"No, my dad just wants me how to start on dinner. You know he can't cook to save his life."
Blaine chuckled. "Yeah, you've said as much. So, you're sure you're not in trouble?"
"I'm not. He was just worried since Kevin told him I had left an hour ago for my break and didn't come back."
"I'm sorry. I should have been paying better attention to the time."
"It's not your fault. But I do have to get going." Kurt rose from his seat, grabbing his now long empty cup with one hand and extending the other in Blaine's direction. "It was nice meeting you."
Blaine stood as well and took Kurt's hand in his. Kurt felt that same tingling feeling from before take over. "Likewise." They stood wordlessly, hands grasped, and Blaine quietly uttered, "We should do this again sometime."
"What?" Maybe Kurt had misheard. Sure he and Blaine had gotten along swimmingly, but they were total strangers. And Kurt hadn't even fixed Blaine's car yet! Oh God Dad's going to kill me.
"I'd truly like to get to know you better, Kurt, and I hope you feel the same. I was hoping we could maybe hang out again sometime. We could exchange numbers, if that's okay?"
"Um, sure. Yeah. I mean, that would be wonderful."
Blaine's smile grew and Kurt swore it was so bright it could light up an entire village for a day. Kurt smiled in return.
"Great! Here, let's just trade phones. It'll be easier and save some time." With that Blaine removed his hand from Kurt's, leaving Kurt feeling a little empty if he were being honest, to reach into his satchel and pull out his phone to hand to Kurt. Kurt took it from him and took his own phone out of his pocket to hand to Blaine.
Within seconds they had exchanged numbers, the wonders of advanced technology, and were saying their last goodbyes. Well, not really "goodbye." More like "I'll see you later." Because they would see each other again, Kurt was sure of it.
A/N: And there it is! All written within a two hour time span and off the top of my head. Gotta love the mysterious ways in which Klaine work.
My mom and I giggled over how adorable these two are. They're such dorks.