I don't know what's going on with me, but here I am, with another update. I want to thank all of my reviewers for your undying support and encouragement. You guys took my crappy mood and honestly made my smile. So, thank you. I hope you like the chapter.
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Blaine laughed. "I'm kidding, Kurt. But not about laying down. I'd really like you to. So, either take a nap for two hours or we can Join for half an hour."
"Seriously?" Kurt asked cynically.
"Of course. Joining will be more refreshing than a nap any day," he said. "Not to mention it's very enjoyable.
Kurt stared at him. "Um. I'll take the nap option," Kurt said, giving in. He stood and went to throw his paper plate away.
Blaine joined him. "Thank you," he said.
"Why?" Kurt asked.
"For not fighting me on this," he answered.
"Blaine, I snapped at you. That was fighting you if you were unclear," Kurt said.
Blaine smiled as he shook his head. "Yeah, but you stopped and when I gave you two options, you picked the one you could live with. We compromised. I'm very pleased that we were able to avoid an actual fight. So, thank you."
"You're welcome," Kurt said.
After he showered, Kurt lay down on their new bed, one of his throw blankets wrapped around him. He went over their conversation in his mind. Every time he replayed Blaine saying he was very pleased, he got a warm glow inside. He didn't understand it and something told him he didn't want to.
. . .
When Blaine walked by a few minutes later, he smiled. His sub was snuggled under the blanket, one hand curled under his pink cheeks. He was sound asleep. He loved that boy something fierce.
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By the end of the week, the apartment came together with furniture, paint, linens, and Kurt's flawless taste in art. It was now home.
Kurt loved the decorating process, especially because Blaine let him take the lead on it. He was impressed when Kurt would ask him what he liked or needed. Kurt made sure both of their needs were met. They decided Saturday would be their day off to just enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Blaine came in the door that morning with coffee and muffins for them to eat. Kurt had still been asleep when he left, so he'd left a note on the new chalkboard wall in the kitchen. Kurt had found an ingenious type of paint which, when sprayed, turned that surface into a chalkboard. They agreed that it would come in handy since they were going to have different class schedules.
"Honey, I'm home," Blaine called softly in case Kurt was in bed.
"I'm in here," Kurt replied from the living room. "Oh, thank you," he said, taking the offered cup of coffee.
"What are you doing?" Blaine asked seeing the tablet and colored pencil set surrounding Kurt.
"Designing clothes. I figure since Dalton has a uniform, I'm not going to have many chances to look fabulous. So, if I plan ahead, I can have something special for the weekends," Kurt said, humming as he took a deep drink of his coffee.
"I saw the sewing machine when we were packing. I guess it didn't even occur to me that you would be using it. How long have you been designing and sewing?" Blaine asked, honestly interested. His Soulmate was a wonderfully, well rounded individual. He never tired of learning new things about him.
"I've been designing ever since I figured out how to draw a stick figure. Mom taught me to sew when I was six. After she died, I would hang out with Mercedes and her mom and they taught me more. Now they come to me when they have sewing questions," Kurt said proudly.
"Ah, the student surpasses the teacher, young grasshopper," Blaine said with an equally proud grin. "I'm impressed, sweetie."
"Thanks. So, do we have any plans for the day other than our little house warming, party of two later?" Kurt asked. He had noticed earlier in the week that when he asked this simple question, it made Blaine happy. Something about deferring to him to plan the day. Kurt didn't mind and figured if this was one way to give control to Blaine that didn't really affect him, then he'd be fine doing it.
"Not really. I wanted to sit down and discuss some things about our relationship, but after that, I just figure we'll play it by ear and see where the day takes us," Blaine said, giving Kurt his patented 'I'm a happy Dom' smile.
Kurt now realized he understood the meaning of the phrase, 'topping from the bottom'. He smiled to himself. "Okay, sure. Do you want to talk now?"
"Sure," Blaine said. "Did you want to put your art supplies away first?"
Kurt cocked his head to the side. "Why?"
"I don't want to sound all bossy or anything, but I want to be sure our attention stays on the topic. If it wasn't serious, I wouldn't care. But I'd like it if all distractions were put away," Blaine said.
Kurt bit the inside of his cheek, quelling the urge to go off about people thinking he had the attention span of a preschooler. "Sure," he said, gathering his stuff and putting it into one of the baskets he'd found to put on the built in shelves in the living room. Coming back to the couch, he curled his legs up under him and faced Blaine. "My attention is all yours."
Blaine got up and went to the same baskets to pull out a spiral notebook and pen. He settled back in on the other end of the couch, turned toward Kurt.
"I wanted to start working on progressing our relationship. Things are starting to change and I want us to have boundaries and parameters already in place when the time comes. I'm going to write it all down here in the notebook so we can both refer back to it if we have questions. First, I want to talk about chastisements," Blaine said, jotting something down on the paper.
"Chastisements," Kurt responded blankly.
"Yes. I prefer that word to punishment or reprimands," Blaine said. He'd heard the tone in Kurt's voice and hoped that this conversation wouldn't go sour.
"In other words, if I don't act the way you want me to, you are going to punish me?" Kurt asked, his eyebrow in the air.
"We will come up with a set of, not rules, but limits and if those limits are breeched, then yes, we will talk about chastisements," Blaine said, trying to keep his expression neutral.
"Uh huh," Kurt said casually. "And what kinds of limits are we talking about here?"
"Well, to start with, I'd like you to make sure you sleep at least seven hours per night and eat three square meals a day. I need to know that I can trust you to take care of yourself. With our schedules being so different, we may not see each other until the end of the school day. Dalton encourages study groups too, so that also will take time away from us," Blaine said.
"While that sounds reasonable, what kind of chastisement are you planning for something as simple as sleeping and eating?" Kurt asked warily.
Blaine practically saw Kurt's hackles raising. This probably wouldn't end well. "It is simple, but please know that I worry about you all day, every day. It's all part and parcel of being a Dom. I want to make sure you are taken care of and have what you need. Since we won't see each other as often, if I know you are taking care of yourself, that will cut down on my stress level. Can you understand that?"
"Of course, like I said, it's simple. But, again, what kind of punishment are you planning?" Kurt reiterated.
Blaine took a deep breath. "In the Dom class, 'Punishing Through Love', they went over some punishments that would help a sub remember to take their health seriously. For a first time, I would have you write lines. If you kept ignoring your health, I would remove you from your classes and have you do your class work here. Dalton supports Doms who do this. They would have your work brought to you and have you be in touch with your teachers online."
"You would seriously take me out of school because I didn't get the right amount of sleep or eat enough vegetables at dinner?" Kurt asked dubiously. "Doesn't that seem like overkill?"
"For my peace of mind and the health of your body, no. It's not overkill. We're not writing punishments down anticipating that we're going to need it. This is keeping track of our goals so we can make sure we know what we are working toward. You are working toward keeping your body healthy. If you know that you will have consequences, that will encourage you to take good care of yourself. Do you agree?" Blaine asked, hoping that he was getting the message across.
"I do agree. But I think it's asinine to punish me for it if it comes to that point. On the same topic, what about you? What happens if you don't take care of yourself?" Kurt challenged.
"I will take care of myself," Blaine said calmly.
"So will I, but there is no punishment listed for you if you don't. How is that fair?" Kurt asked.
This was not going well, Blaine thought. "You've been through your classes, Kurt. You know that fairness doesn't always come into play in a Dom/sub relationship. There is no punishment for me because there is no chance I will fail. I take care of myself as an example to you, so you can mirror my actions. I will not fail you. You may never fail, but until I know I can trust you, there will be consequences listed. Now, moving on," Blaine said, unwilling to spend any more time on the topic.
Kurt listened as Blaine went over other expectations. Keeping up on laundry, keeping his space tidy, doing his homework on time, cooking dinner. Blaine agreed to handle breakfast and coffee in the morning and they would fend for themselves for lunch. Kurt's expression went arctic when Blaine discussed the punishments for talking back, arguing, and disobedience.
"Stand in the corner? Timeout? Spanking? Seriously, Blaine? How old do you think I am?" Kurt bit out.
"How old are you acting right now?" Blaine replied calmly. "Now, final topic. Claiming."
"I swear, if you tell me I will be punished if I don't have sex with you, I will leave now," Kurt said from behind clenched teeth.
"You need to change your attitude, Kurt. This is your one and only warning. Don't interrupt and assume things, because most of the time, you will be wrong," Blaine said sternly in his Dom tone.
Kurt could feel the weight of that tone, it was almost tangible and seemed to be pushing at him. "Yes, Blaine," Kurt said quietly. "I'm sorry." It just isn't worth arguing, Kurt told himself. This entire conversation is crazy.
"Thank you, Kurt. I'm proud of you for changing your attitude so quickly. Now, the Claiming. There will never be a punishment if we don't make love. What I wanted to discuss was becoming more comfortable with the idea. We have one full month in here where it's going to be just us. At the beginning of August, other Soulmates will start moving in. I would like to set a general goal for the Claiming for the end of July, or sooner if it happens that way. That way there will be no reason to be self-conscious or nervous. Although the walls are sound proofed for that very reason. Every night, I want us to make some move toward intimacy. Kissing, touching, getting used to being nude around each other. That way, it won't seem like something big and scary when we finally do make love. Do you know what the Claiming does for Soulmates?" He asked Kurt.
"I know that if a sub is fully Claimed, the padlock of the Mark will close. What constitutes 'fully Claimed' is a mystery. They didn't teach us a whole lot about the topic, other than how to please our Dom. Since it was a co-ed class, they didn't address gay relationships. So, no, I don't know much more than that," Kurt said. This whole topic was making his stomach twist with nerves.
"A full Claiming means that neither Soulmate is holding anything back while making love. They give their all during the Claiming. They become one. That is why the padlock closes. The Dom has fulfilled the sub in every way possible. It is the closest Soulmates can be. During the first Claiming, Soulmates join their Marks by lining up Marks and holding hands. Once the Claiming is over, the Marks are considered 'open'. The result of that is the ability to feel each other's emotions. It's not like ESP or telepathy, it's a general 'knowing' of what the other is feeling. If you are anxious about a test or get scared over something, I will know. Just as you will sense what I am feeling. I've heard that it feels amazing. Then when we make love, the pleasure is doubled because we feel the pleasure the other is feeling. So that is something to look forward to," Blaine said, giving Kurt a wink.
Kurt wanted to ask what would happen if there never was a full Claiming. What if Kurt always held a part of him back? He didn't bring it up, though.
"Was there anything else you wanted to go over?" Kurt asked. This was all too much. He went from a free thinking individual only responsible to himself to a full on submissive with rules and consequences. His brain was fried.
"No, we're all done. But I would like to know how you're feeling about things. You look a bit overwhelmed," Blaine said, scooting closer and taking Kurt's hand in his.
"That's exactly how I'm feeling," Kurt said honestly. "I'm now facing punishments for anything I do wrong. I don't know how I'll ever be able to relax and just be me."
"The rules are there to keep you safe and happy. You aren't going to be punished all the time. You know the rules and what I expect from you now. Just live within those limits and rules, and you can be free to be yourself," Blaine explained. He had a feeling Kurt wasn't going to believe him on this. He would see, though. "All this talk about Claiming makes me want to steal a kiss. How would that be?" Blaine figured he may as well just go for it.
Kurt's gaze automatically locked onto Blaine's lips. He enjoyed kissing. Blaine was good at it, too. "Okay," Kurt said softly.
Kurt leaned toward Blaine, closing his eyes. Their lips met and softly moved against one another. Blaine tilted his head to one side and ran his tongue along the seam of Kurt's lips. Kurt opened to him, allowing Blaine's tongue to explore his mouth, learn his taste. When Blaine massaged Kurt's tongue with his own, a quiet sigh escaped the sub. Blaine heard it and kept massaging, almost sucking on Kurt's tongue and then his bottom lip. Blaine couldn't help moaning at the sensation. Kurt's lips were made to kiss and he could do this all day. Kurt's hand came up and stroked Blaine's cheek as they put more into the kiss. Their lips slotted together like they were meant to be. Blaine nuzzled his face against Kurt's soft hand, opening his eyes to see that Kurt was smiling before bringing their mouths back together. A few minutes later, they broke apart, both of them out of breath. They shared a smile before Blaine offered to take Kurt out to an early lunch.
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"Remember I said I want to do something every night to move us closer to the Claiming?" Blaine asked Kurt that night.
"Yeah. Did you want to kiss some more?" Kurt asked nonchalantly, though he was hoping the answer was yes.
"That might be part of it. I wanted to work on getting comfortable with each other's body. I was thinking we could take a bubble bath. That way it will be relaxing and we'll still be covered up, sort of. How does that sound?" Blaine asked hopefully.
Kurt stared at him for a moment. Blaine almost moaned aloud when he saw Kurt lick his lips. "Yeah. That sounds good."
"Great. Why don't you get the bath started and I'll get us something to drink," Blaine said.
A few minutes later, Kurt was naked and huddled with his knees to his chest in their bathtub. He looked up when he heard Blaine knock.
"You in the water, sweetie?" Blaine asked.
"I'm in," Kurt responded shyly.
Blaine opened the door and walked in. Kurt saw he was wearing a faded blue robe.
"Do you want me to close my eyes while you get in?" Kurt asked. Blaine had given him his privacy to get into the tub and he wanted to do the same for Blaine.
"Nope, it's okay. I have nothing to hide," Blaine said and dropped his robe.
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Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'm trying to work in rules and stuff that a Dom/sub would have in a relationship. Blaine is working toward being in more control while he wants Kurt to adjust to his sub nature. How'd I do with that? Oh and up next… Kurt learns how to play 'find the submarine' during bathtime! LOLOLOL