Hi again, everyone! :)
I would just like to say before I start that I'm glad I decided to wait and see how the season played out rather than writing and posting these each week as the episodes aired. Because I would have given Kurt and Blaine an epic conversation about moving to New York together next year in this chapter, and then in the next episode... oh, Blaine's a junior. Well okay. So thanks for waiting, and I hope you enjoy my take on Kurt and Blaine's wild ride in season three!
(I do not own Glee or any of the characters, dialogue, or songs from the show. It's all just for fun!)
BLAINE
"... and Mr. Schu has crazy idea involving... wait for it... purple pianos!" Kurt laughed. "He's moving them all around the school, and if we pass one we're supposed to sing a song."
Blaine didn't understand.
"People aren't exactly lining up to be in New Directions," Kurt continued sourly. "We've got to try to interest people somehow... without at least three new people we can't compete this year!"
Blaine thought about that for a moment. Membership had never been a problem for the Warblers. It was part of why they were so good: they could be very selective when choosing new members. If you didn't sing well, there was absolutely no chance you could be a Warbler. Blaine hated that Kurt and New Directions had to struggle to find even the minimum number of people they needed to compete.
"Well hey," he replied, "it's the first day of school. Once people get used to their classes maybe they'll come looking for extracurriculars."
Kurt shrugged.
The barista handed Blaine both of their coffees, and they went to sit down. Blaine smiled as Kurt settled into the chair across from him; they had spent a great deal of time together over the summer, but something about this after-school ritual felt especially familiar and nice.
They made a little small talk, but Kurt wasn't saying much. It was the first day of school, but, other than the purple piano project, Kurt hadn't really said anything about his day. And he hadn't asked about Blaine's day either. He just kept glancing at Blaine and sipping his coffee.
Blaine was pretty sure he knew why.
"You're quiet," Blaine observed lightly.
"No," Kurt corrected, "I'm being passive-aggressive."
Blaine narrowed his eyes, but he knew what Kurt would say next.
"You promised that by the first day of school you'd make a decision," Kurt accused gently, "And yet, there you sit... cute as ever but still in your Warblers blazer."
Blaine had considered changing into regular clothes before coming to the coffee shop to meet Kurt, but had decided against it. He smiled at Kurt's compliment, clearly meant to lighten the accusation.
"I just can't bail on the Warblers," Blaine argued, hoping to appeal to Kurt's memories of his time away from McKinley, "Those guys are my friends."
The truth was that Blaine had been thinking about it nonstop since Kurt had brought up the possibility over the summer. He wanted to transfer to McKinley. He wanted to see Kurt at school every day like when they had both been at Dalton. He wanted to try again at a public school. He even wanted to see what it would feel like to be part of New Directions. But he knew that he would miss so much about Dalton. He felt guilty at the idea of leaving the Warblers when they were poised to make it to Nationals with him as their main soloist. And he felt nervous, although less so than he would have felt a year ago, about returning to an environment where bullying was a serious possibility.
Kurt mumbled a halfhearted acknowledgement, and he looked intently at Blaine. "One final sales pitch, and then we can talk about making over Nancy Grace."
"Okay," Blaine acquiesced, amused at the other boy's persistence.
"If you stay at Dalton, you and I are competitors," Kurt said in his best overly-dramatic voice.
"It's true," Blaine tried not to laugh.
"And I'm just not sure that our budding love can survive that," Kurt continued to act overly desperate.
"Let me get this straight," Blaine teased, "I have to transfer because you're just afraid that I'm gonna beat you at Sectionals?"
"No," Kurt answered, and Blaine could see his façade slipping, "I'm afraid that I'm gonna beat you."
"Ohhh," Blaine feigned fear, enjoying Kurt's light attitude.
"And I know what that does to you, when I win," Kurt said suggestively. Blaine laughed.
Kurt shifted in his chair and his expression turned serious. "Look, I mean, honestly," he said, "I just– I just want to see you more. I want my senior year to be magic, and the only way that's gonna happen is if I get to spend every minute of every day with you."
Blaine felt his heart swell in his chest at Kurt's honesty. He reached over to grasp Kurt's hand on top of the table and took a deep breath.
"You know I want that," he said earnestly. "But..."
Kurt nodded and picked up the sentence, "... you're getting a great education at Dalton, your parents aren't thrilled with the idea of you returning to public school, the Warblers will miss you. All valid points. I just... I miss you when you're not around. I miss being able to just bump into you in the hallway and being able to eat lunch together every day. And being in glee club with you."
"Want to come back to Dalton?" Blaine winked.
Kurt made a face that suggested he understood the one-sidedness of his request. He squeezed Blaine's hand, but said nothing.
"I'm not saying no," Blaine clarified. "There are pros to transferring, too... facing the demons of my old school, getting to spend more time with everyone in New Directions, getting to wear regular clothes..." he gave Kurt a pointed look.
Kurt feigned ignorance.
"You love the blazer," Blaine teased.
Kurt wouldn't commit to an opinion on the matter.
They looked at each other across the table for a moment, and Blaine thought about how light he felt inside when Kurt looked this happy. As he released Kurt's hand to make sure the lid of his coffee cup was on properly before he took a drink, he decided. He was going to take his own advice and find his courage. It had been building up inside of him since McKinley's junior prom, and he knew it was time to make the leap of faith. With Kurt.
"I just have to think about it a little more," Blaine lied.
Kurt nodded, taking a sip of his coffee. He looked relaxed.
"I really think that Nancy Grace's hair is all wrong," Kurt offered casually, and Blaine knew it was Kurt's way of reinforcing that it was okay for Blaine to continue to think about the potential transfer. As Kurt continued to analyze the best way to give the television personality a new look, Blaine's mind was preoccupied with a conversation he was going to have to have the next day...
BLAINE
"What?"
"Are you insane?"
"I think you need to sit down."
"Is someone forcing you into this? Because we can kick his –"
"You cannot just leave us!" Trent's voice wailed above the others, and the room fell silent.
"Look," Blaine threw his hands out in an apologetic manner, "I know it's sudden. And I know how ridiculous this sounds, but this is about me. Not all of you."
"We need you!" Trent insisted.
Blaine shook his head. "As flattering as that is... you don't. The Warblers have been one of Ohio's best show choirs for years. And that's because no one person makes or breaks us."
"Easy for you to say," someone mumbled.
Nick stepped forward to stand in front of Blaine. "Are you unhappy here?"
"No," Blaine stressed. He pursed his lips briefly as he tried to figure out how to describe why he needed to go.
"I need to do this," he explained. "I love it here. All of you have been amazing and I've had –" his voice failed him briefly and he cleared his throat and continued. "I've had so many wonderful times here. This isn't about wanting to get away from Dalton."
"You are not seriously transferring schools to be with your boyfriend," someone accused.
Blaine shook his head in aggravation. "That's part of it, yes."
There was a murmur of disapproval from the group, and Blaine felt a rush of defensiveness.
"I am not required to have a perfect justification for everything I do, okay?" he snapped. "And if you'd just be quiet for a second you might understand that Kurt is just part of why I'm going to McKinley."
The angry outburst silenced the room.
"We're all here for different reasons," Blaine started. "Some of your parents came to Dalton, and it was just always a given that you would come here too. Some of you are here for the superior education."
Blaine motioned inward toward himself. "And some of us are here because we weren't safe somewhere else."
The silence was rapidly starting to feel heavy and uncomfortable.
"I came here because I got the crap beaten out of me at a public school," Blaine tried to soften his tone so that it wouldn't sound so much like an accusation. "I was too young and too afraid to fight back, so I ran away. I ran here. To this place where what you are doesn't define who you are."
Blaine shrugged. "Is it so hard to imagine why I would want to face those demons?"
Silence.
"I've made my decision," Blaine said with authority. "By the end of the day tomorrow I'll be the newest student at William McKinley High School."
"We're really gonna miss you, man," Nick said, and the acknowledgement of Blaine's decision seemed to crack the anxiety in the room. Suddenly the room was loud with voices.
"Promise you'll come visit sometimes?" Trent asked.
Blaine laughed. "Are you kidding? Of course!"
The group closed in around him in a big group hug, and Blaine felt tears stinging in his eyes. He was going to miss this so much. Why was he leaving?
"Say 'hey' to Kurt for us," Jeff's voice reached his ear as the Warblers' released him and Blaine moved to leave the room. He smiled at the group.
"Thanks, guys," he managed before he slipped out the door. "See you around."
BLAINE
"This is actually kind of sickeningly wholesome, you know that, right?" Santana whined. "Not to mention insane."
"Hey, you agreed to help..." Blaine emerged from his closet with an armful of clothing options, depositing them in a heap on the end of his bed.
"How can I resist 'hey Santana, I want to surprise Kurt with a big song and dance number and, oh, I'm also transferring'?" Santana retorted lightheartedly.
"You think he'll like it?" Blaine asked.
Santana rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding? It's Kurt."
Blaine grinned, happy to hear her confirmation.
"No, but seriously," Santana's tone changed as she folded her arms across her chest and watched Blaine sift through his clothes, "you really want to leave Dalton for the hellhole that is William McKinley High School?"
Blaine paused to give her his full attention. "Yes," he responded.
They looked at each other for a moment, and Blaine could tell that Santana was trying to determine his state of mind.
"There's more to life than academics," Blaine offered.
"There's more to life than your boyfriend," she replied swiftly.
Blaine sat down on the side of his bed. "You think I'm making a mistake." It wasn't a question.
"Generally, yeah," Santana admitted. "Look at your life right now, pretty boy. You're the unchallenged leader of one of the Midwest's best show choirs. You're at a school that's basically a one way ticket to the Ivy Leagues. And you could release a sex tape with Kurt and nobody in those gorgeous hallways would bat an eyelash."
Blaine's brain momentarily short-circuited, and he saw the metaphorical light bulb go off in Santana's brain as she plopped down on the edge of the bed beside him.
"You really should take some acting lessons or something," she said deviously. "Your emotions are always written all over your face. And right now your face is telling me that you're embarrassed, which means one of two things. Either you and Kurt have a sex tape – which, when I really think about it, wouldn't surprise me at all given both of your propensities to perform in front of an audience..."
Blaine fell over backward and covered his face with his hands.
"Or," Santana twisted around to look at him, "you two have not yet done the nasty. Which, given your current state, is the most likely scenario."
Blaine took his hands off his face and decided to just get it over with and make eye contact with her. Santana burst into laughter.
"You know what?" she laughed, "I'm not even going to give you a," she cleared her throat, "hard time about it."
Blaine climbed off the bed and returned to his pile of clothes, trying to pretend she wasn't in the room.
After a moment of silence, he heard a soft sliding noise and turned to see Santana holding the framed photograph of Kurt that he kept on his dresser. "He's going to be unbearably excited," Santana said genuinely.
"I hope so," Blaine smiled. "I'm pretty excited too."
"You should wear those red pants," Santana pointed to a pair of bright red pants sticking out from the middle of the pile of clothes on his bed. "Kurt loves a bold fashion statement."
Blaine smiled fondly as he pulled the red pants out of the pile. "Yeah?"
Santana nodded. "And you'll match our uniforms a little bit. But wear a black shirt or something; let's not get carried away with the bright colors."
Blaine nodded. "Kurt bought me these," he informed her as he studied the pants.
Santana rolled her eyes. "Of course he did. Well, even more of a reason to wear them."
Blaine found a black shirt in the pile and held it and the red pants up to his body so Santana could scrutinize the potential outfit. She nodded.
"Thanks so much for helping me with this," Blaine said.
Santana shrugged. "I may think you're crazy, but Kurt's my friend. And he is going to lose his mind about this whole thing. The Cheerios will be ready. We can use a routine we practiced a few weeks ago. It should work with your song. I'll get the band to move one of the purple pianos to the courtyard before school."
Blaine felt a rush of gratitude toward the young woman. They had interacted a few times, most notably in the hallway with Dave Karofsky before the Night of Neglect concert the year before, but Santana's willingness to help him carry out his plan felt good. They could be friends. Eventually.
"Thanks, Santana," he said as she turned to leave, "See you tomorrow."
BLAINE
Blaine pulled into a visitor parking spot – he'd have to apply for his own – and turned his car off, but didn't get out.
His transfer had caused a huge argument in his family two nights prior. The day he had made the decision to transfer.
His father had been outraged that Blaine would leave such a high quality institution for any reason, and his mother had been upset that he would no longer have the protection of Dalton's no-bullying policy. Both of his parents were especially unhappy that Blaine wanted to transfer to this school. His father was convinced that Kurt had coerced him into it, although by the end of the discussion he had backed down from that accusation.
In the end, though, they had agreed. After the initial argument, his parents had been forced to admit that Blaine had really opened up since meeting Kurt. And that returning to face the demons of public school would be good for Blaine in the long run. His father had come to the conclusion that Blaine was "being a man" and stepping up to face his past, and that had seemed to satisfy him.
Secretly, Blaine thought it also had to do with the fact that his parents were possibly starting to actually like Kurt, rather than just politely tolerating him and praying that Blaine would suddenly realize he wanted to date a nice girl instead. Blaine had spent more time over the summer at the Hummel-Hudson house than Kurt had spent at the Anderson house, but Kurt was so eager to please Blaine's parents that he always charmed them to the best of his ability. Blaine had even caught his father asking Kurt about which tie looked best on him one morning after Kurt had spent the night.
As Blaine sat in the parking lot two days later, the argument over the transfer seemed as if it had happened a week ago. Now here he was, and as Blaine surveyed the lot full of cars – he had arrived early enough that he could get all the paperwork done and be ready to surprise Kurt immediately after school – he felt equal parts excited at all the possibilities and homesick for his friends and the familiar aura of Dalton.
After checking in the mirror to make sure his hair looked okay and that his bowtie was straight, Blaine grabbed his bag and hopped out of the car. He quickly made his way to the office, filled out all the paperwork, and received a locker number and combination, a school map, and a class schedule.
"Thanks," he said brightly as the receptionist told him how to get to his locker from the office. Walking down the nearly empty hallways, Blaine made it to the locker and opened it without any problems. He stuffed his entire bag inside and closed the door; he didn't want to have to worry about it when he was surprising Kurt.
He went into a bathroom stall to study the school map without fearing that someone would see him and target him as the "new kid". He was just around the corner from Kurt's locker. As he folded the map and slipped it into his pocket, the bell rang.
KURT
Kurt yanked his hairspray out of his locker and sprayed some on his hair, hoping that at least he looked good even if he felt so annoyed. Nobody was ever going to join the glee club. If they couldn't compete, how were he and Rachel going to have even the slightest change of standing out on a NYADA application?
"Hey you," Blaine's voice broke him out of his daydream. He turned, surprised, to see Blaine approaching.
"Well, aren't you a sight for these sore eyes," Kurt said happily as Blaine leaned on one arm against the row of lockers. As he looked at Blaine, Kurt marveled at how much just being around the other boy made him feel better.
"Bad day?" Blaine assessed.
"Bad week, more like it," Kurt acknowledged. As they turned to walk down the hallway toward the courtyard, Kurt realized that it was strange for Blaine to be here. Sometimes Dalton had half days to give the teachers opportunities for private tutoring or training, but why would they have a half day during the first week of school? "Wait, what are you doing here?" Kurt asked. "Shouldn't you be at Warbler practice? You know, putting the fine tuning touches on a new Katy Perry showstopper?"
Blaine had been dreaming all summer about convincing the Warblers to do Last Friday Night. Kurt had no doubt that it would be extraordinary, and he hated the universe for making the Warblers so fabulous while New Directions could barely keep its head above the water.
"Okay," Blaine admonished, "for someone who loves clothes so much, I can't believe you haven't noticed that I'm not in my Warbler outfit." He stopped walking and gestured at his clothing.
Kurt analyzed Blaine's outfit for a moment, feeling all of his negativity melt away. His brain felt as if it had stopped communicating with his mouth all together.
"Wait," Kurt managed, "Wait." He couldn't put into words the mixture of excitement and nervousness and love that was suddenly threatening to explode out of him. Blaine had been so uncertain. After their conversation at the Lima Bean on the first day of class, Kurt had been sure that Blaine would stay at Dalton. It made sense, really. It was the logical thing to do.
But Blaine was standing in front of him. In the red pants Kurt had bought for him over the summer and a bow tie and a huge smile on his face.
He was transferring.
They would get to see each other every day. They could eat lunch together. They could do homework together even if they wouldn't have any classes together.
They would be in New Directions together.
Kurt let out a laugh of exhilaration as he launched himself into Blaine's arms. He could hear Blaine laughing too, and he reveled in the feeling of Blaine's arms squeezing him so securely.
BLAINE
Blaine knew that he had made the right decision as Kurt threw himself into his arms. He squeezed the other boy tightly, feeling light and giddy about what the year ahead could be for them. Together.
Suddenly, he felt Kurt pulling away, and the other young man's eyes were unexpectedly concerned.
"Oh wait. You didn't do this for me, did you?" Kurt asked, "Because if you did this for me, I mean, it'd be very romantic for one, but, I mean, it could lead to resentment, which could lead to anger, which could lead to a horrible, horrible, nasty breakup. Like, you know on the Bachelorette, when we watched it? That was–"
Blaine felt his heart clench with affection for the other boy. He knew how much Kurt loved a dramatic gesture. But he also knew that Kurt desperately wanted their relationship to stay solid. They had something special, and Kurt would give up all the drama to hold on to it. Blaine held up his hands to stop Kurt from continuing.
"Hey, hey!" he interrupted. "I came here for me. Because I can't stand to be apart from the person I love."
That wasn't all of it, but Blaine knew there would be time for a better explanation later. Fortunately, the short version of the story seemed to quell some of Kurt's fears, and Blaine was pleased to see the excitement return to Kurt's eyes.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to find a way to ease you into the New Directions now, huh?" Kurt said. Blaine knew Kurt probably had it all planned out... what song Blaine should sing, what outfit he should wear, how the number should be choreographed. Blaine felt the start of an adrenaline rush as he thought about his plan.
Blaine grinned and leaned forward a little. "I already have that figured out," he winked.
Kurt's mouth dropped open. "You– I–" he spluttered, looking completely blindsided. Blaine shrugged noncommittally, and made a point to brush the entire side of his body against Kurt's as he gently pushed past him and moved toward the door that would lead them to the courtyard.
When Kurt caught up, he had transitioned from stunned to a combination of suspicious, delighted, and horrified.
"You planned this?" he squeaked.
"Sort of," Blaine allowed. "You said someone had to perform if there was a purple piano around."
They stepped out into the sunshine, and Blaine smiled widely at Kurt as the taller boy flailed his arms briefly in confusion.
"There's not even a–" Kurt's voice strangled off as Blaine motioned down at the purple piano at the bottom of the courtyard.
KURT
They stopped at the top of the courtyard's large cement staircase, and Kurt looked at Blaine as the other boy put on his yellow sunglasses.
"Ready?" Blaine teased.
"Oh my god," Kurt whined halfheartedly. "What are you going to do?"
"Sing?" Blaine offered teasingly. Kurt glared at him.
"Ease into New Directions," Blaine reminded him.
"They know about this?" Kurt gasped. He had a sudden urge to strangle all of them for keeping this secret from him.
Blaine shrugged. "Not everyone," he grinned, clearly taking pleasure in Kurt's flustered state.
"I hate you," Kurt grumbled.
"I love you," Blaine's smile was so big that Kurt wondered how he would be able to sing at all.
"Alright," Kurt sighed. "I admit, I'm curious. Go for it." He motioned outward with his hands.
Blaine turned and pointed at someone below, and suddenly the band was playing. Kurt's stomach felt as if it contained an entire swarm of butterflies as he thought about all of the other students. He knew that Blaine understood the student body's feelings about New Directions – opposite of how the students of Dalton felt about the Warblers – but he worried that Blaine was overestimating his chances of not receiving a slushy to the face as soon as this performance was over.
Blaine started to dance, silly and animated, and Kurt laughed at him before Blaine turned and slid down the banister to a better spot for his performance.
Someone suddenly grabbed Kurt's shoulders, and he turned his head to find Rachel beside him. Of course she was in on this. He could hear her giggling as they hurried down the stairs to sit with the rest of the members of New Directions to watch Blaine's audition, and he made a mental note to grill her later about this whole situation and how much she had known beforehand.
It's not unusual to be loved by anyone
It's not unusual to have fun with anyone
But when I see you hanging about with anyone
Blaine swept his sunglasses off his face and tossed them to Kurt, who had decided to sit on the table for the best possible view. Kurt felt his stomach knotting as he watched Blaine. He was more confident than ever.
It's not unusual to see me cry
I wanna die
Some of the Cheerios suddenly appeared behind Blaine, and Kurt realized that Blaine really had planned the whole thing. Kurt had never been more pleasantly surprised in his entire life, except perhaps on the afternoon when Blaine had suddenly confessed his feelings and had kissed him for the first time.
It's not unusual to go out at any time
But when I see you out and about
It's such a crime
Santana jumped up from where she was sitting and moved to join the other Cheerios dancing with Blaine. Blaine looked momentarily confused as she silently greeted him as she passed, but he didn't stop.
If you should ever wanna be loved by anyone
It's not unusual
It happens every day
No matter what you say
Kurt felt insane as he watched Blaine dancing and singing. He turned to look at Rachel. "That's my boyfriend," he whispered hysterically. She giggled and motioned frantically for him to keep his attention on Blaine.
You find it happens all the time
Love will never do
What you want it to
Why can't this crazy love be mine
Kurt knew that their relationship had matured and solidified over the summer because he didn't feel a shred of jealousy toward Santana as she danced with Blaine. Instead, he clapped along and wished the song would never end.
It's not unusual to be mad with anyone
It's not unusual to be sad with anyone
As Blaine and the Cheerios danced, Kurt thought for a moment about how different this was for Blaine. Blaine was used to the Warblers and their dignified atmosphere. But here, he was allowing the silly, loving side of himself that Kurt loved so much to come out. Kurt knew that Blaine was worried that the members of New Directions would be unsure about him joining after what had happened with Jesse St. James, and Kurt felt a surge of pride that Blaine was willing to go all out and perform like this for them – and a good number of the other students – regardless of his worries.
But if I ever find that you've changed at anytime
It's not unusual to find out I'm in love with you
Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Whoa-oh-oh
Blaine danced over to flirt a little with Kurt as he finished the song, and Kurt danced along playfully, mimicking Blaine's dance moves.
Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
The song ended, and Blaine had only a second to breathe before the purple piano burst into flames and drew the attention of everyone in the courtyard.
BLAINE
Blaine was startled by the sound and sudden wave of heat as the purple piano burst into flames. He wasn't sure what to do as the fire engulfed the top portion of the instrument and the entire courtyard fell silent. Nobody moved to do anything.
"God, it's just a fire," suddenly Puck hurried by with a fire extinguisher.
Blaine turned to look at Kurt, who jumped down from the table and moved to stand beside him. They watched as Puck finished putting out the fire.
"What was that?" Blaine managed to choke out as they watched the piano smolder.
Kurt rolled his eyes. "The Cheerios doused it with something while you were busy whoa-oh-ing."
"Oh my god," Blaine said. He rubbed the back of his neck.
Kurt nudged him with his elbow. "Happy first day!" he teased.
Blaine laughed, but he could hear the nervousness in the sound.
"That," Kurt said, grabbing Blaine's shoulders and turning him away from the piano until they were facing each other, "was outrageously perfect. Thank you so much."
"Yeah?" Blaine grinned. Kurt looked like he wanted to explode with happiness, and Blaine felt like he was living in an alternate reality as the smell of the smoke still rising from the purple piano filled the air and some of the students of New Directions crowded around him, voicing their approval about the performance.
"Oh no," Kurt suddenly wailed. "I should've filmed it!"
"That's covered," Blaine smiled, turning to look at Tina. She gave him a thumbs-up.
"I don't even have the brainpower to feel more surprise," Kurt said.
"Want some coffee?" Blaine suggested hopefully. Kurt laughed.
"Sure."
BLAINE
They were happy to find their usual table at the Lima Bean unoccupied when they arrived, and as they sat down Blaine noticed Kurt watching him intently.
"What?" Blaine grinned at the mixture of curiosity and affection on Kurt's face.
Kurt scrunched his nose. "I was just thinking about you."
"Well, I'm sitting right in front of you," Blaine teased, "so I hope so."
Kurt managed not to roll his eyes. "Very astute. No, I mean... you."
Blaine absorbed some of Kurt's gravity and silently encouraged Kurt to elaborate.
"You're so... light." Kurt struggled to find words to express what he meant, but Blaine understood. He felt lighter. He felt a lot of things.
"The thing about a uniform," he admitted, "is that it levels the playing field. It means that you blend in, regardless of the things that might make you stand out."
Kurt nodded, and Blaine was sure that he was remembering his brief time at Dalton. For Kurt it had been a difficult transition.
"For me," Blaine said, feeling a little nervous to confess this to anyone, even Kurt, "I liked that. I needed it. I needed to fit in."
Blaine could see the understanding in Kurt's eyes. "After that night."
Blaine nodded. "There was part of me that always hated myself for doing it – for transferring to Dalton – but I was so scared. I'm..." his face started to burn with embarrassment, although he knew Kurt loved him regardless, "I can be too trusting. I like to assume the best about people."
He paused for a moment to consider his conflicting emotions about that particular character trait. "I was too trusting that night," he admitted sadly. "I thought they'd tease, sure. But I had been out for such a short time. I had no idea."
Kurt nodded.
"So I went to Dalton," Blaine continued. "And I forced myself to join the Warblers. I didn't want to," he grinned as Kurt's eyes widened a bit, "I wanted to do nothing but bury my face in my schoolwork and pretend to be invisible. But I knew, deep down inside, that I was just scared. And the little part of me that was still in there told me that I had to do something before I fell into that pattern of invisibility and lost myself completely."
"And instead of turning you down or giving you the background spot that you probably wanted," Kurt grinned, "they collapsed at your feet and begged you to be their leader."
They laughed so hard that Blaine forgot for a moment what they were even talking about. When they both finally regained some composure, Blaine shook his head.
"Not exactly," he took a large drink of his coffee in an attempt to keep from laughing again. "It wasn't until about a month later, when I was just goofing off with some of the guys before practice, that someone on the council... noticed me, I guess."
He paused at the look on Kurt's face.
"It's just nice to know this about you," Kurt explained.
Blaine felt happily flustered. "Well anyway," he said, "the whole point of this story is to say... when you met me, I was finally starting to feel better. To feel truly comfortable with myself again. And with every day that I got to spend time with you, I started to see what I wanted to be. I started to see what really living again could mean."
That touched a nerve with Kurt. He stood up, grabbed his chair, and dragged it around so that he was sitting next to Blaine so he could hold one of Blaine's hands in both of his on his lap under the table.
"If I'm really honest, the idea of transferring out of Dalton slipped into my mind the day you transferred back to McKinley," Blaine admitted. "The idea that it was possible."
Kurt shook his head. "Why didn't you tell me any of this?" His voice was gentle, not accusatory.
Blaine shrugged. "I didn't make the decision that day. There were – are – plenty of things I truly loved about Dalton. But there was always that regret gnawing at the back of my mind."
"And then prom..." Kurt guessed.
Blaine smiled reminiscently. "After that night I started to consider leaving Dalton as a serious possibility. But I was considering transferring to the local public school in Westerville until you oh-so-casually dropped the 'want to come to McKinley?' hint on me that day over lunch."
Kurt pretended not to know what he was talking about.
"Eventually I realized that I wanted to transfer more than I wanted not to. I know I'm going to miss Dalton. I do miss it. But this is a chance to show myself that I can do it despite the fear."
"And you miss me?" Kurt teased.
"And I miss you," Blaine confirmed sweetly.
Kurt surprised him by initiating a hug for the second time that day. Blaine smiled as Kurt kissed his cheek as he pulled away.
"Well, I approve of this wardrobe," Kurt grinned. Blaine shook his head, amused. They had been shopping multiple times over the summer, and somehow Kurt had convinced him that what his wardrobe needed was a lot of color. To match his bright personality, Kurt always said.
"Thanks for telling me all of that," Kurt broke into his thoughts.
Blaine smiled, and the conversation shifted to more casual topics for the remainder of their time in the coffee shop. Eventually, Kurt's phone buzzed and Blaine remembered that Kurt and Rachel were going to Dayton for a NYADA mixer later in the evening.
"Gotta go?" he guessed as Kurt read the text message.
"Rachel's worried that we won't be able to find the hotel," Kurt confirmed. "So yeah."
Blaine grabbed his bag and followed Kurt out of the shop. When they reached the point where they had to separate to go to their cars, Blaine grabbed Kurt's hand briefly.
"Good luck tonight," he grinned. "Call me when it's over?"
Kurt nodded and squirmed excitedly. Blaine laughed as Kurt twirled around and nearly skipped over to his car. He watched until Kurt had driven out of sight before he got into his car and drove home.
BLAINE
Later that night, Blaine was happily interrupted from his homework by his phone buzzing on his desk. He jumped up from his bed and was pleased to see Kurt's name on the screen.
"Hey you," Blaine answered happily, "How was it?"
"They were fabulous!" Kurt wailed.
"What?" Blaine asked, concerned at Kurt's tone of voice. He had expected Kurt to be excited about the performance, and possibly slightly annoyed that there were other talented people in Ohio, but not so upset.
"I'm a nobody!" Kurt cried.
"Kurt, don't say that!" Blaine scolded. "What happened, exactly? Where are you?"
He heard Kurt sigh heavily. "I'm home. We didn't even get to perform our number. They had one planned, and it was magnificent."
"And they wouldn't let you perform?" Blaine frowned.
Kurt sniffled. "We didn't ask. We had to leave. It was like being run over by a truck carrying all of your hopes and dreams."
Blaine rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on, Kurt. You're fabulous! You and Rachel."
"That's what I told Rachel," Kurt confessed. "But–"
"Kurt," Blaine cut him off.
Kurt fell silent.
"You're amazing," Blaine said forcefully. "You're special. Who cares if there are other people out there with talent? They don't have your talent."
Kurt remained silent.
"Kurt?" Blaine decided to make sure that the other boy was still on the other end of the phone.
"Yeah," Kurt mumbled. Blaine could tell he wasn't convinced. "We panicked."
"Well," Blaine mused, hoping that a change in tactic might make Kurt feel better about his chances at NYADA, "maybe you should pick up another extracurricular? Colleges like that, right?"
Kurt made a reluctant noise of confirmation. "French club?" he offered lamely.
"You'd be great in French club!" Blaine encouraged. "You could do anything, Kurt. You could be senior class president if you wanted to!"
Kurt was silent for a moment, but Blaine could hear his breathing.
"I could," Kurt finally exhaled. "And then I could– and it– Blaine, you're a genius."
Blaine grinned at the liveliness that was quickly returning to Kurt's voice.
"Want to get ice cream?" Kurt asked suddenly.
"What? Kurt, it's–"
"I know," Kurt sighed. "And if I sneak out of the house I'm going to be grounded forever. Tomorrow?"
Blaine smiled. "Tomorrow."
"I love you," Kurt said.
"I love you, Kurt," Blaine echoed. "Sleep well."
KURT
Blaine's car wasn't in the lot yet when Kurt arrived at school the next morning. Kurt wasn't surprised; Blaine's drive was longer than most of the other students, so he was rarely early.
Kurt grabbed one of his notebooks and found a blank page that he could tear out. He scribbled down a quick note for Blaine as he walked into the building – Going to sign up for the class president ballot! See you at lunch! – and slipped it through one of the vents of Blaine's locker. As he turned to head toward the office, he had a second thought and ripped another piece of paper out of his notebook. P.S. Good morning! He drew a big heart under the words and slipped the second note into Blaine's locker.
During the walk to the office to add his name to the list of candidates for senior class president, Kurt thought about Blaine. Blaine was here. At McKinley. As a student. It was the first week of school, and the contrast between how Kurt had felt during the first week of his junior year to how he felt now made the single year feel like it had actually been three.
He hadn't even known Blaine a year ago. He had been lonely. Grateful for his friends in New Directions and the love of his father, but lonely. Now he had a step-mother and step-brother, and he had a boy in his life who made him feel alive and wanted.
"I'm gonna win this election," he mumbled to himself as he pushed the office door open.
The paperwork took longer than he anticipated, so he didn't get to see Blaine before he had to rush to class, but he received a short text from Blaine just as class was starting.
Sorry, I was running so late! P.S. Good morning to you, too!
BLAINE
Blaine got lost briefly at the start of the lunch period, so Kurt was leaning on the fence waiting for him when he finally arrived at the staircase where they had agreed to meet for lunch. As Blaine descended the stairs to where Kurt was waiting, he remembered the first time he had ever been on these stairs. At this school. The first time he had ever been to Lima at all. He had never imagined that, less than a year later, he would ever be here as a student.
"Hey," Kurt smiled at him as he approached.
"Mr. President," Blaine teased, tipping an invisible hat.
"Excited about officially joining New Directions after school today?" Kurt asked as they walked to the cafeteria.
"Yeah," Blaine admitted. "I hope they'll let me in," he half-joked.
"Oh, please," Kurt admonished. He gave Blaine a disapproving face before switching topics. "How were your early classes?"
"Easy," Blaine confessed.
"And he's smart, too!" Kurt pretended to faint as they scanned the room for a table. Blaine laughed. Kurt motioned for Blaine to follow and they ended up on the side of the room at a table with Tina, Mike, Mercedes, and Artie.
Blaine had met them all before, but he felt a little shy as he sat down between Kurt and Artie. He knew, from Kurt's stories, that New Directions was very different from what he was used to, and he really wanted to make a good impression.
"Hey Blaine!" Tina greeted as he sat down.
"Hey," he smiled at her, and at everyone else at the table.
He felt a hand on his arm, and turned to look at Artie. "Allow me to congratulate you on your brave soul," Artie deadpanned.
Blaine scrunched his nose approvingly, and Artie released his arm. The rest of lunch passed in a whirlwind of normal first-week conversations about the previous summer and about dreams of Nationals in Chicago. By the time the bell signaled the end of lunch, Blaine was starting to feel comfortable with this group.
"See you after school," Kurt said warmly as they parted ways. Blaine nodded, and as he turned to leave the cafeteria he felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned to find Tina standing beside him.
"Come on," she offered, "we've got our next class together so I'll show you the way."
BLAINE
After school, Blaine hurried to stop by Mr. Schuester's office before glee club. When he arrived, he could see the teacher sitting at his desk, absentmindedly tapping a pencil on the table as he studied something on his computer screen. Blaine reached out and knocked on the doorframe.
"Mr. Schuester?"
When the teacher looked up, he smiled encouragingly. "Blaine, right?" he asked. "What can I do for you?"
Blaine suddenly felt ridiculous. Kurt had told him to just come to glee club and that no formal request was necessary to join, but Blaine wanted to make sure.
"I was hoping it would be okay if I join New Directions," he explained.
Mr. Schu laughed. "It would be our pleasure to have you, Blaine."
Blaine felt relieved, although he wasn't really sure why he was anxious in the first place. "Thanks."
"I'm headed over there now," Mr. Schu said, powering off his computer monitor and standing up from his desk. "I'll introduce you to the group."
Blaine fell into step beside the teacher for the short walk to the choir room.
"What's your last name, Blaine?" Mr. Schu asked as they approached the door to the choir room.
"Anderson," Blaine supplied.
The teacher paused to let Blaine enter the choir room first, and Blaine looked around as he walked in. He had been in this room before, but now it was his home. His glee club.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Mr. Schu demanded the attention of the members of New Directions already in the choir room, "Let's hear it for glee club's newest member: Blaine Anderson!"
Something about being in front of the room made Blaine feel much more at ease, and he smiled as some of the other students applauded.
"Thanks so much, everyone," he said, "I'm so thrilled to be here! It's gonna be a great year, I can feel it. We're all gonna go to Nationals!"
His eyes landed briefly on Finn, and he wasn't sure what to make of the unhappiness he saw in the other boy's eyes.
"Is there a problem, guys?" Mr. Schu asked.
To Blaine's surprise, Finn spoke up. "I just want Blaine to know that we're not the Warblers," he said. "You know, we're not into the bells and whistles or the ball-hogging."
The Warblers. Blaine suppressed a surge of homesickness as he moved to the back of the room to sit next to Kurt, and he could feel hostility radiating off of Kurt's step-brother.
"I'm sorry, did I do something wrong?" Blaine asked, not interested in being labeled before he even had a chance to get to know everyone and find his place in New Directions. He was surprised at Finn's attitude; they had spent a little time hanging out together over the summer, and Blaine had always found Finn to be friendly and fun to be around. He wasn't sure how to address Finn's suddenly accusatory tone. He reminded himself that he had known all along that fitting into New Directions wouldn't be easy.
"Well yeah, you set a bonfire in our courtyard," Finn accused.
Blaine opened his mouth to protest, but Santana spoke up before he could deny it. "Actually, doorknob, that was an act of political protest," she explained.
Blaine turned to look at Kurt, but Kurt just shrugged. Everyone turned to look at Santana.
"Which leads me to the next order of business," Mr. Schu interrupted, "Santana, you need to leave. It was you and the Cheerios that set fire to our piano. How could you do that?"
Blaine frowned. He could handle some initial uncertainty from the group – he knew that it would pass as they got to know him – but this was not the atmosphere he had hoped to walk into on his first day.
"Mr. Schu, Sue made me," Santana argued.
"Brittany didn't do it," Mr. Schu pointed out.
"Well yeah, I was gonna help, but I'm a water sign, so..." Brittany trailed off.
"You're banned from glee," Mr. Schu said harshly. "Don't come back unless you can be as loyal to this club as the rest of the people in this room."
Blaine suddenly felt as if he couldn't make eye contact with anyone in the room. He felt horribly guilty as Santana stood up.
"You know what? I could use a break," Santana scoffed, and she abruptly left the room.
Blaine didn't agree with the teacher, but he knew that he couldn't speak up. The group already felt threatened by his presence, and he didn't want to stir things up more than he already had.
"You know, good for you, Mr. Schu," Mercedes said after a moment of uncomfortable silence, "It's about time we got some allegiance up in here."
Out of the corner of his eye, Blaine saw Kurt turn to look at him. He knew Kurt was probably trying to get a read on how he was feeling, so he tried to keep his face emotionless. Or slightly sad.
'I said it before and I will say it again," Mr. Schu said seriously, "If we want to win Nationals this year, we need to be united."
That was a familiar sentiment to Blaine. He decided that maybe he would talk to Mr. Schu privately and try to explain that the piano wouldn't have even been in the courtyard in the first place if Blaine hadn't asked Santana to move it there.
The teacher turned to Rachel. "Rachel, you had an announcement?" he asked.
Rachel stood up. "Yeah, um, after pushing the envelope last year, I strongly believe that we should secure the rights to a, shall we say, less controversial show for our school musical," she said. "Wait for it... West Side Story!"
The suggestion instantly changed the atmosphere in the room. Everyone approved. Blaine approved. He loved West Side Story. He and Kurt exchanged a quick glance of excitement.
"Is that the one with the cats?" Brittany asked. Everyone ignored her.
"And it just so happens to have a lead role that showcases my talent and essence perfectly," Rachel continued. "Maria."
"For which there will be open auditions, right?" Mercedes interrupted confidently, "Because Mercedes is feeling extremely pretty this year."
Blaine tried not to smile. He was excited to get to know all of these people better. They were Kurt's friends, but they would soon be his friends too.
Mr. Schu turned in Blaine and Kurt's direction. "Kurt, you've got something too, right?"
Kurt jumped to his feet, and Blaine felt his heart flutter with anticipation. He knew how excited Kurt was about his announcement.
"Kurt Hummel is wading into McKinley High's shark-infested political waters and running for senior class president," Kurt proclaimed proudly. "Alright, I thank you in advance for your votes."
Blaine smiled up at him, and Rachel, clapping enthusiastically, caught his attention out of the corner of his eye.
"Okay!" Mr. Schu said. "So much excitement! Now, let's rehearse."
"Look at what they did to us, Mr. Schu," Tina said sadly before anyone could get up, "Just like these purple pianos, they ripped out our guts, threw crap all over us, and burned us up."
"Yeah, we got hit pretty hard," Mr. Schu said, "But these pianos are still making music. And so are we."
"Mr. Schu, as always, you and I are on the exact same page," Rachel said authoritatively. She moved to the front of the room and began a familiar song.
You can't stop an avalanche
As it races down the hill
You can try to stop the seasons
But you know you never will
And you can try to stop my dancing feet
But I just cannot stand still
Cause the world keeps spinning
Round and round
And my heart's keeping time
To the speed of sound
I was lost till I heard the drums
Then I found my way
Cause you can't stop the beat
...
KURT
"Mmm," Kurt sighed happily as he took the first lick of his ice cream cone. "Let's never eat anything but this again."
"Yeah, who cares if we die at twenty five," Blaine agreed.
"Just as long as we get to spend some time in New York first," Kurt amended.
Kurt held his cone out so Blaine could have some of his flavor, and he couldn't resist mashing the ice cream into Blaine's face around his mouth before Blaine could get a taste.
"Hey!" Blaine cried, and Kurt jumped off the bench to run away as Blaine leapt up to chase him, wiping the ice cream off his face with the back of one of his hands.
After running down the sidewalk for moment, Kurt turned and put his hands out in surrender. "No, no, no!" he begged as Blaine advanced on him.
"I promise not to get it on your clothes," Blaine said darkly.
Kurt whined in protest, but he knew he had to get it over with. He made sure his own cone wasn't going to melt down his hand and onto his clothes before spreading his arms out in defeat.
Blaine stepped up to him and wiped a little bit of his ice cream over the top of Kurt's nose. Kurt giggled at the cold, and then couldn't stop giggling as Blaine tipped his face down so he could kiss the ice cream off Kurt's face. When he was finished, Blaine twisted Kurt's head gently one way and then the other, pretending to inspect it.
"Good as new," he announced.
Kurt managed to get his laughter under control as they strolled back over to the bench and sat down again.
"So," Blaine said casually, "you haven't said much about last night."
Kurt sighed. "What if I'm not good enough?"
Blaine frowned. "You are good enough, Kurt. You're one of the most talented people I've ever met."
Kurt gave him a disbelieving look. "Of course you're going to say that. And you probably believe it, too. But you're biased."
"Sure," Blaine allowed, "but you know I'm right about this. You know you're amazing."
"In Ohio!" Kurt was starting to feel the panic from the night before creeping into his mind again. "But for a world-class school like NYADA?"
"I'm going to say 'I told you so'," Blaine winked.
"I hope you get the chance," Kurt mumbled.
"I will," Blaine said smugly, and Kurt just rolled his eyes. But, secretly, he felt a little bit better.
KURT
As he fumbled with the books in his locker the next day, Kurt turned and caught sight of Blaine, who was chatting excitedly with Tina at her locker down the hallway. Kurt smiled at the happy gleam in Blaine's eyes as Tina spoke and Blaine nodded eagerly. After another moment of conversation, Tina grabbed Blaine's hand and twirled him around in place, and Kurt realized they were discussing the dress rehearsal that Mr. Schu had planned for after school.
With a shake of his head, Kurt turned back to his locker and retrieved the books he would need to complete his homework. As he closed the locker door, he caught sight of his framed photograph of Blaine – dressed in his Dalton uniform – and felt a twinge of nostalgia in his chest. He smiled fondly, turning back to look down the hallway at Blaine and Tina.
Just in time to see a tall boy in a red letterman jacket toss a blue slushy into Blaine's smiling face.
Blaine had been listening so intently to Tina that he hadn't seen the attack coming; his mouth was partially open and his eyes had not had time to close before the frozen drink impacted his face. As Blaine's hands flew up to his face in surprise, Kurt felt a surge of rage and concern and guilt. He rushed down the hallway to where Tina was trying to wipe the slushy off of Blaine's bag and the front of her shirt where some had splashed onto her and Blaine was spluttering and trying to wipe the ice off his face.
Kurt couldn't say anything; he grabbed Blaine's arm, shot a thankful and apologetic glance at Tina, and pulled Blaine away into the girl's restroom.
BLAINE
Blaine felt as if the drink had frozen his brain as well as his skin. He could vaguely hear a few girls squealing in protest as Kurt dragged him into the restroom, but he couldn't concentrate on anything but the way his face felt like it had just slammed into a wall of ice.
As Kurt took his bag and removed his stained cardigan, Blaine felt an unexpected rush of amusement. He had wondered, privately and aloud, what a slushy to the face felt like. He hadn't expected the cold to hurt so much, but it wasn't intolerable. His hilarity bubbled to the surface as Kurt turned on the faucet of one of the sinks, and he couldn't hold back a giggle.
The surprise on Kurt's face just added to Blaine's amusement, and he dissolved into nervous laughter.
"Are you okay?" Kurt asked skeptically. Blaine nodded, finally managing to get enough of the now rapidly melting ice out of his eyes to turn and look at himself in the mirror. The sight of his shirt stained blue and the little remnants of ice clinging to his eyebrows and the very front portion of his hair pushed him over the emotional edge, and he started to laugh harder.
Kurt made a noise that suggested he wasn't sure if Blaine was actually okay, and he pulled a washcloth out of his bag. Blaine was just coherent enough to raise an eyebrow at Kurt as he put the washcloth under the faucet's warm water.
"Better to be overly-prepared than not prepared at all," Kurt sighed. He wrung out the excess water and started to wipe the sticky blue liquid from Blaine's face.
"That feels nice," Blaine said, trying to reign in his hysterics.
"I'd wash your hair in the sink," Kurt said slyly, "but that would mess up your impeccable gel and I don't think you want that."
"No," Blaine agreed. He reached up to touch his hair. "It didn't get in my hair much, anyway."
Kurt rinsed off the washcloth and started wiping off Blaine's neck.
"Are you okay?" Kurt asked again, now that Blaine had gotten his laughter under control.
"Yeah," Blaine answered.
They were silent for a few moments as Kurt rinsed the washcloth again and returned to finish cleaning off Blaine's face.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Kurt said quietly.
"It's been almost a week," Blaine teased. "Too late to turn back now."
Kurt tossed the washcloth in the sink. "Blaine."
Blaine sighed. "Remember how you felt when you first came to Dalton?"
Kurt nodded, and Blaine didn't elaborate. He knew Kurt would remember the homesickness and the nervousness of having to suddenly find where he fit into a new school.
"I'm here now," Blaine said, looking directly into Kurt's eyes in the hopes that the other boy would understand his sincerity. "No looking back."
KURT
After school, Kurt hurried into the auditorium, still straightening his light purple shirt. He was running late for glee practice after a quick meeting of the candidates for student council president. He was relieved to see that the group had not started without him.
He spotted Blaine sitting at one of the purple pianos, quietly playing a lively tune, and he snuck up behind him.
"Boo," he whispered in Blaine's ear. The other boy jumped and let his hands fall to his lap. He was smiling as he twisted around to look at Kurt.
"Hey," Blaine said quietly.
Kurt sat down on the bench beside Blaine and played absentmindedly on the piano. He caught sight of Blaine's hands, now clasped in his lap, and he looked up from the sight to study Blaine's face.
"Are you nervous?" Kurt asked.
"Yes," Blaine acknowledged with a grimace.
"You've been perfect in rehearsals," Kurt reassured. "You're a great dancer. And, obviously, a great singer. Just wait – the first time we put it all together like this is a rush."
Blaine nodded.
Kurt glanced around to make sure nobody except the other members of New Directions were in the auditorium, and he reached over to grab Blaine's chin. He turned the other boy's head to face him and leaned in to press a gentle kiss to Blaine's lips. He could feel Blaine smiling through the kiss.
He felt Blaine's hand on the side of his face, and he let go of Blaine's chin so he could scoot closer to deepen the kiss. Blaine sighed happily, and Kurt smiled. He pulled back slightly to look at Blaine's face for a moment. The other boy's amber eyes twinkled with amusement and warmth, and Kurt leaned in for another kiss.
"Alright everyone!" Rachel appeared on the other side of the stage, clapping her hands loudly. "This is rehearsal time! Let's go!"
Blaine jumped back, almost falling off the piano bench in his attempt to sit up straight. Kurt leaned over and grabbed Blaine's hand to pull him up and off the bench.
"You've got this," he confirmed.
Blaine scooped Kurt into a brief hug. "Thanks," he smiled as he stepped back and straightened his shirt.
BLAINE
"Blaine!" Tina's voice sang out from across the room as Kurt smiled widely and moved to his starting position for the song. Blaine skipped across the stage to where Tina was waiting. She laughed as he skipped up to her.
Tina's smile, coupled with Kurt's encouragement and a mental reminder that he had been the leader of the Warblers, replaced some of Blaine's nervousness with excitement. He returned the smile.
"Let's do this," he said.
The performance was exactly as Kurt had explained; a rush. Blaine did his best to keep up, which wasn't particularly difficult with the way his adrenaline was pumping. The Warblers never got to dance like this. By the time he hopped onto one of the pianos at the end of the song, Blaine felt more alive and at peace with his decision than he had felt all week. As the group dissolved into cheering and laughter around him, Blaine turned to look at Kurt on the other side of the piano.
"That was fun," Blaine said excitedly, his breathing slightly heavier than normal after all the dancing.
"We haven't performed together since Regionals last year," Kurt's smile was huge.
Blaine nodded, and started to answer but was interrupted by Tina yanking him down off the piano. She made a show of applauding him, and suddenly everyone else was gathered around him clapping and hooting and whistling their approval.
"Well, Blaine Anderson," Mr. Schuester said as he made his way through the crowd to where Blaine was standing, "welcome to New Directions!"
Gosh, I love this episode! And hey, there was never any indication that Blaine's on-screen slushy later in the season was definitely his first slushy since transferring, so... ;)
Okay, so in terms of the rest of season three... the plan for now is to post one episode every WEEKDAY (Monday-Friday). Up next... 'I Am Unicorn'!