"You look great," Blaine reassures, smoothing down Kurt's collar. "I'm not going to lie and tell you that tonight will be the best, but you'll be fine."
Blaine's grip tightens around his shoulder and Kurt nods, not quite trusting his voice.
The buzzer rings and Kurt tenses even more. He's just sonervous.
"Your parents are here, Mr. Anderson," Henry's tinny voice comes through the intercom.
Blaine reaches out his hand to Kurt. "Ready?"
"I love you," Blaine says quietly before he lets to of Kurt's hand to open the car door. Well, limousine door. Kurt tries to keep his jaw from dropping, figuring he'll probably be doing a lot of that tonight.
Blaine effectively blocks Kurt's view of inside the limousine, greeting his parents. When Blaine pulls back to straighten his legs Kurt catches up with the conversation. "Now, where do we pick this boy of yours up?" It's a voice he's heard before; usually on TV, never in person. Kurt's hands start to sweat.
"Of course," Blaine says, remembering himself. He steps into the vehicle and gestures for Kurt to follow. "Mom, dad, this is Kurt. Kurt, these are my parents, Simon and Helena."
Kurt falls into the seat next to Blaine and offers a quiet "Hello" along with a nervous wave, hoping he doesn't have to shake any hands. He doesn't. Mrs. Anderson offers him a tight lipped smile and Kurt can see her critiquing his outfit. He resists the urge to squirm, he knows he looks fabulous and he was prepared for his.
Mr. Anderson nods at him sternly before he speaks. His voice isn't as friendly as Kurt would have hoped. "Kurt. So we actually don't know much about you, do you live close?"
Kurt eyes fall to Blaine, Mr. Anderson really isn't kidding when he says he doesn't know much about him.
He clears his throat. "Actually, I live in Ohio," he says, not expanding on that. Not only is he meeting his boyfriend's parents for the first time, but they also happen to be famous. Kurt isn't sure how he's still breathing.
At Mr. Anderson's confused look, Blaine thankfully comes to Kurt's aid. "He's staying with me for the summer and then he'll be over here permanently. Attending NYADA."
"He'll be staying with you then?"
"That's something we haven't really discussed yet."
"Staying in New York free of charge, huh. That's something."
Blaine shifts next to him.
The rest of the drive is silent, almost painfully so. Kurt stares out of the tinted windows, trying desperately to avoid eye contact with anyone. He stops himself from audibly sighing in relief when the limousine pulls up outside of a restaurant.
It's everything Kurt expected; extravagant interiors, menus with no prices, jazz playing quietly in the background, and probably a three month, if not more, waiting list. He tries hard not to feel intimated, but tonight's running theme seems to be intimidation.
They're ushered to a five seater table in the best location in the restaurant, and that seems to remind Blaine of the same thing it reminds Kurt.
"When's Cooper getting here?"
"He's running a little late but he shouldn't be too much longer. It'll give us time to get to know Kurt a little better." It's the first time Kurt has heard Blaine's mother speak. She looks at him with warm eyes, but still nothing about her gaze seems friendly. "And by the way, that is a fantastic tie, Kurt."
Maybe he had judged her a little too quickly, expecting a cold exterior for the owner of a fashion magazine. His face splits in to a huge smile. "Thank you, it's actually last season Valentino, but I added blue and green accents to compliment my eyes."
He hears Mr. Anderson sigh in a way that can only be described as rude, but his smile doesn't falter when he sees Mrs. Anderson elbow him slightly. "I love it," she says with a smirk.
Kurt holds down a squeal at the fact that Helena Anderson, fashionista extraordinaire, is complimenting his clothes.
"Kurt always looks amazing," Blaine says from beside him.
Kurt can see Mr. Anderson's jaw harden, but before he gets to say anything the waitress arrives at their table.
"Hi, I'm Emma and I'll be your -" She stops speaking as she looks up and sees who is sitting at the table. Her eyes seem to flicker between Kurt and Blaine before she looks around the entire table. Kurt is sure he hears her whisper "Oh my god, oh my god," under her breath.
Emma clears her throat but her voice comes out more high pitched than it was before. "Can I get you anything to drink?"
Once she leaves the table after she's taken their orders, and what Kurt assumes is Cooper's, Mr. Anderson says, "So unprofessional." But Kurt can sympathize with her.
Suddenly, a loud smashing sound disrupts the stillness of the restaurant. Everyone's eyes jump to the scene and Kurt can see a brown-haired man apologizing profusely to the waiter he seemed to have knocked into, making him drop plates of food.
But then the brown-haired man looks up and Kurt is struck once again with how attractive Cooper Anderson is.
"Little brother!" Cooper all but shouts, bounding over towards Blaine and grabbing him up in to a hug. "This your boyfriend?" he asks once he's let his brother go. At Blaine's nod, Kurt is engulfed in a hug, too.
"Cooper, sit down," Mr. Anderson chastises.
Cooper throws him a wink and sits in the empty seat next to Blaine. "So, Squirt -"
"Don't call me that."
"How did you manage to bag such a hottie?"
Kurt blushes as Cooper wiggles his eyebrows at him.
"I'm still asking myself that. Luck, I guess," Blaine answers, hand finding Kurt's leg. Kurt's face only heats up more.
The waitress comes over with the drinks and takes their food orders, stuttering and blushing every time she looks at Kurt or Blaine.
"That was weird," Cooper remarks once she's gone.
"Incompetent staff. Really." Mr. Anderson huffs, superiority rolling off him.
"She didn't look at me once," Cooper continues. He turns to Blaine. "Did you know her or something? She couldn't stop looking at either of you."
Blaine just shrugs and Kurt takes the silence as his cue to make conversation. "Thank you very much for inviting me out to dinner, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson," he says politely.
"Call me Helena, dear," Helena answers and Kurt smiles, pleased he has done something right to win his boyfriend's mother over.
"We didn't really have you in mind when we made these plans," Mr. Anderson starts but Blaine interrupts.
"Dad."
"Let me finish. It's only because we haven't heard much about you."
"Oh, well." Kurt stutters and struggles for something to say. Blaine's hand squeezes his leg in what he assumes is a silent apology, Blaine did warn him this wasn't going to be easy.
"And now we find out that you're living with him," Mr. Anderson says and Kurt doesn't know how to respond to that either.
"Come on, dad, it's not that important. It's only for the summer," Blaine tries to reason.
"You're too nice, Blaine. Have you not learned your lesson?"
What is that supposed to mean?, Kurt thinks, but he doesn't interrupt.
"Yes, dad, I know, you're always telling me. Will you ever let me live that down? It was one time. Kurt didn't even know he was staying with me until he got here, and he didn't even know who my parents were until way after that." Blaine is nearly red in the face from what seems to be frustration and anger once he's finished talking. Kurt grabs his hand under the table.
"Blaine, calm down. Dad, stop being a dick," Cooper says as he leans back in his chair, taking a sip from his scotch.
"Cooper!" Helena gasps and Cooper rolls his eyes.
It's silent for a while and Kurt needs a chance to get away and breathe. "If you'll excuse me, I'm just going to powder my nose," he tries to joke but only Cooper manages a laugh, Blaine smiles.
Once he makes it to the bathroom, he splashes his face with cold water. His phone vibrates in his pocket and he takes it out.
From Mia:
Having a nice meal?
Confused, he replies.
To Mia:
What? How did you know?
He waits a while for the reply, and two texts come at once.
From Mia:
It's all over Tumblr.
Some girl is there at the restaurant and posting about you two. Having a nice family meal? Oh yeah, and why didn't you tell me he was related to HELENA AND SIMON AND COOPER...?
"Oh god," he whispers into the empty bathroom.
To Mia:
I'll catch you up later, gotta get back to the table!
He checks his reflection, smooths down his outfit and heads back in. He catches the end of the conversation as he nears the table.
"I'm just trying to look out for you, son," Mr. Anderson says in a softer voice than Kurt has heard yet.
"I know, but you got to trust me, Kurt is perfect, I love him, dad," he hears Blaine reply
"Okay, alright. I'll back off," Mr. Anderson says before he catches Kurt's eye and gives him a nod.
Kurt sits down and is pleased to find that the atmosphere at the table seems to have calmed down. Once everyone is caught up in their conversations, Kurt beckons Blaine close.
"They know we're here," he says quietly.
"What?" Blaine asks.
"Tumblr. Someone here is posting about us." Blaine snickers beside him. "Hey, it's not funny!"
"Why not? We're sitting with celebrities yet people are posting about us. You don't think it's the waitress do you?"
"Oh my god, it's the waitress?"
"What's the waitress?" Helena asks, and Kurt looks up, started. Luckily, he sees his excuse walking towards them.
"Here, the waitress is here."
"Finally," Cooper says.
Emma fumbles with the tray and Kurt is surprised that it isn't all over the floor yet.
"Thank you ever so much, Emma," Blaine says charmingly as she places his food in front of him.
She turns to him, shocked - starstruck, dare Kurt think it. "Y-you remembered my name," she breathes. "You're w-welcome, Blaine."
Kurt's is the last plate to be given out, and when Emma places it in front of him, she says quiet enough so only he can hear, "You two are amazing together. I love you so, so, so much."
He bites his lip to hide a huge smile. Acceptance from anyone is amazing, something so foreign to him only a few months previously. "Thank you," he tells her, but he's not sure if she hears.
"Enjoy your meals."
Kurt and Blaine share an amused smile before they start eating.
Conversation at dinner flows nicely; Mr. Anderson's mood seems to have changed for the better, and Helena isamazing. Kurt enjoys watching the dynamic between Cooper and Blaine the most; the way they bounce off each other, and what Kurt is sure is mock-annoyance on Blaine's part at the majority of the things his brother says. But Kurt can see that they really love each other.
Emma returns once more to collect their dishes once they're done and to enquire about desserts, which no one wants. Mr. Anderson asks for the check and Kurt doesn't even want to think about what it could have totaled to.
"That was amazing, thank you, Helena, Mr. Anderson. And it was great to meet you, Cooper," Kurt says.
"Why don't I get a 'Mr. Anderson'?" Cooper asks and Blaine swats him lightly.
Helena smiles warmly at him. "It was a pleasure, darling."
Kurt holds his breath as he waits for Blaine's dad to reply.
"Call me Simon, Kurt. It was good to have you here. Don't hurt my boy," Simon says seriously.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
When everyone is leaving the table, Kurt notices Blaine hanging back a little, so he does the same. As everyone is walking out, Blaine quickly grabs a pen and writes at the bottom of the bill Thank you for being an amazing waitress this evening, Emma! Love, Klaine xxx.
Kurt laughs. "You huge dork, she's going to die when she sees that."
Blaine just winks at him and they rush to catch up.