Sorry it's a day later than I was expecting. I got overrun yesterday. Time to brag: I saw Darren in concert this week! If anyone else saw him, I hope they enjoyed it as much as I did.
Also, this chapter is completely unbetaed. So help a girl out and (politely) point out any mistakes you come across. I'm no stranger to editors, and I always love a second glance!
"Have you ever had a boyfriend?"
They're sitting in their dorm, each on their own respective beds, eating Chinese takeout from the carton and catching up on homework. They've been exchanging easy conversation—nothing too deep or serious, nothing that requires too much concentration. Just shooting the breeze while they get rid of some of the work that's been stacking up.
"I uhm," Blaine mutters, face growing rosy. This isn't a conversation he wants to have with Kurt. Kurt, who he knows has had sex. He knows because he's seen Kurt's box of condoms, and one time a few weeks ago Kurt never came home at night and when he showed up in the morning he muttered something about needing to shower off the grossness of a guy named Rob. "I haven't, no," he sighs. He's not embarrassed about never having had a boyfriend. But he is a bit embarrassed about his complete lack of sexual and dating experience and knowledge. He's well versed in the ways of self-pleasure, but he sometimes wishes that he could pop his cherry, so to speak.
Kurt just nods, writing some words down on his worksheet. He's bouncing his head to the music that's coming out of one of his headphones—the other is hanging limply against his chest.
"Have you?" Blaine manages to ask, keeping his eyes on his book in front of him.
"Yeah. Just one, though. In high school."
Blaine nods his head as if in understanding. He wants to ask more. Wants to ask what it felt like. Wants to ask if he's ever had anal sex, and if he has, how it felt. But instead he continues doing his homework, sitting in companionable silence.
When a few minutes pass without conversation, Blaine assumes that they are done talking. At least about the topic at hand. But then Kurt interrupts.
"It didn't work out," he blurts, then looks up at Blaine and smiles a shy smile. "Obviously," he laments.
Blaine nods dumbly, not quite sure how to continue.
"It was fun while it lasted, though," Kurt sighs.
"Do you miss him?" Blaine asks hesitantly, refusing to tear his eyes away from Kurt's, which are staring right at him.
"No," he says firmly.
"So how's it going with Kurt?" Charlie asks.
They're sitting in the park. It's late afternoon and the sun is shining. It's not too cold out yet, the perfect fall weather keeping the air around them mostly warm and the breeze nice and light.
"It's not," Blaine replies.
Charlie has quickly become his best friend at school. They run in the same social circle, yet are a part of completely and totally different majors, classes, and extra-curriculars. He's never had a friend so different from him. But he loves Charlie, and Charlie seems to love him, too. He's definitely the only person in school Blaine feels comfortable telling his deepest thoughts and emotions to.
"Why not?" Charlie asks, picking at the grass around them.
Blaine considers this question. He and Kurt have recently made great strides in their friendship. They hang out more often; Kurt's even come to a few gatherings with Blaine and his friends. In return, Kurt had invited Blaine out to a party at Kurt's friend's house the weekend before. It was fun and low-key; just a lot of people drinking wine from the bottle around a fire pit in a house off campus.
"We're becoming friends," he decides on. "Good friends."
There's a pause in the conversation before Charlie says, pushing his sunglasses back up his nose, "Friends is good. Friends you can work with." He lets out a sly smile and Blaine has to shove his shoulder, laughing through his grin.
"Friends first, boyfriends second," he declares.
They hang around the park for a few more minutes before Charlie has to leave for his next class.
It's harder making the move from friends to boyfriends, though. Blaine has no experience in divulging his feelings to his crushes. And the further into the semester they go, the better friends he and Kurt become. When Thanksgiving break comes around and they are forced to spend a week apart, they text nearly every day. From small nothings like, how was your day, to inside jokes, oh my god, it's like Jenna Anchovie all over again, and fond messages of friendship, at this store and I totally just found something that reminded me of you; Blaine and Kurt have undeniably grown closer.
Their reunion after break ends involves a tight hug that lasts a second longer than it should. Blaine tries to surreptitiously breathe in Kurt's smell when his head is resting against Kurt's shoulder, but Kurt catches him and just laughs.
"Like what you smell, Anderson?" He smirks.
"You know it," Blaine flirts back, trying to be seductive but failing miserably when he tries to throw in a sexy wink. They dissolve into laughter and fall onto Kurt's bed. They spend the rest of the night drinking vodka cranberry, half-watching whatever's on TV, and talking about what happened while they were on break.
The rest of the week goes similarly. Through an unspoken agreement they almost always go to dinner together. Whether that just be the two of them or the two of them with a group of friends, it doesn't matter. Because they always sit next to each other or across from each other and share tiny moments just between them.
Walking back from dinner one night with the group of guys on their floor, Kurt and Blaine shrink back from the group, walking a few steps behind everyone.
"I can't believe he'd do that!" Kurt shakes his head, grinning a bit in disbelief.
"Hey!" Blaine defends. "It was an act of love."
"How embarrassing. I swear, if anyone ever barged into my class to sing me Happy Birthday or give me a box of chocolates I'd die of embarrassment."
"Note to self: never serenade Kurt." Blaine pretends to write this in the air, using his finger as a pencil.
Kurt shoulder checks him. "I never said never. I just meant in public."
Blaine turns to look at Kurt and smiles. "Expect grandiosity from me on your birthday."
"As long as it's behind closed doors, I'm fine," Kurt laughs, skipping a bit ahead of Blaine to catch up with the guys and turning around to taunt Blaine. Blaine picks up his speed to catch up.
As they walk their hands occasionally brush, causing Blaine's blush to grow deeper in scarlet.
When they get back to the dorm they all attempt to overrun the lounge located on the top floor. There's a small room there with a TV, and often groups of people like to commandeer it and bring DVD players and movies or video game consoles and throw mini get-togethers and gatherings, since the room is much bigger than any dorm room.
Tonight the group carries up a PlayStation and some movies. They're lucky to find not only the room free, but also half of the lounge empty. They grab a couch and a love seat from the common area that no one is using and push it into the empty TV room—something they do all the time. Kurt and Blaine go back out to steal some chairs and a round table where they can throw snacks and drinks, and eventually play some poker.
"I call couch!" Blaine hollers as he jumps onto the couch, snuggling into the corner. When Ben goes to sit next to him, Blaine pushes him off. "No no no no no. Kurt, here. You, there," he says like a caveman, pointing and thrusting his hand to the other side of the couch. Ben just rolls his eyes and goes to his designated seat, letting Kurt sit down next to Blaine. But since there are seven people in the room and only five couch cushions, the couches get stuffed full, Kurt ending up half on Blaine's lap. With their legs intertwined and Kurt's head resting on Blaine's shoulder, they watch the movie. It's a generic action movie that the guys apparently love, or at least that's what their hooting and hollering indicates.
They stay cuddled up to each other for the entire two hours before the group dissolves towards the table, grabbing chairs to sit around it. Charlie breaks out his pack of cards and they start a game of Texas Hold 'Em, betting candy instead of money. When they run out of candy they start betting promises and dares.
"I bet two weeks of trash duty," Ben says to his roommate Charlie. Charlie just rolls his eyes, lamenting about the fact that it doesn't really matter because he always takes the trash out anyway.
Charlie bets Blaine a bottle of vodka, which Blaine ends up winning before ultimately losing it to Kurt in the subsequent round. It's fun and confusing and they all end up sharing the candy anyway. When it's nearing one in the morning and they all have class that day, they start to clean up and head downstairs.
"Help me with the couch?" Blaine asks Kurt. Kurt just nods demurely and gently settles himself on the couch, laying on his side.
"Paint me like one of your French girls?" He asks.
Blaine laughs. "Absolutely, darling," he says. Charlie grabs the other end of the couch and they slowly maneuver it, with Kurt still on it, through the small doorway.
"Don't drop me!" Kurt screams, laughing hysterically as Blaine and Charlie angle the couch a bit to get it through the doorway.
"My love, we'd never do such a thing!" Charlie exclaims in all seriousness, looking into Kurt's eyes.
They finally get the couch back to its original resting spot, and everyone else is putting away the last few chairs and heading towards the elevators to get back downstairs.
"Care to join me?" Blaine asks, extending his hand to Kurt.
Kurt looks up with a smile. "Gladly," he says, grabbing Blaine's hand and accepting his help up off the couch. When they're both standing up he nervously interlaces his fingers with Kurt's, afraid to look at Kurt's reaction but assuming that if Kurt weren't okay with it he'd pull away. He then walks towards the elevator where their friends are waiting inside and screaming for them to hurry up.
"After you, my friend," Blaine whispers to Kurt, embarrassed that he can't get his voice to sound as debonair as he was aiming for.
Kurt smiles, ducking his head and walking forward, hands still interlaced.
They hold hands all the way to their room, where they have to break apart to grab a room key. Kurt lets them in quietly, smiling shyly at Blaine.
"Have fun tonight?" Blaine asks hopefully.
"Yeah," Kurt smiles. "A lot." He's sitting on his bed and looking up at Blaine who's standing just a few feet away, leaning against his desk.
"Good," he says truthfully. "I'm glad."
Kurt nods and they sit in charged silence for a few seconds. Kurt finally excuses himself to the bathroom, grabbing his toothbrush, washcloth, and soap on the way out.
Blaine waits a few seconds after he leaves to jump up and down and twirl around in excitement before calming himself down and grabbing his toothbrush, too, going out to meet Kurt in the bathroom.
I hope you all like this update! I have 3 more chapters written already. Expect the next chapter in a few days. Hopefully on Thursday. I love hearing from you! Comments, kudos, reblogs, Tumblr messages-whatever medium, I don't care. Let me know if you like it or have any ideas or inklings as to what might happen next!