Thank you all for your sweet words so far! It's fun to imagine what Kurt and Blaine were up to when the cameras weren't on them (or weren't featuring them), so I'm glad you think what comes out of my crazy little mind is worth reading!

Blaine was gone for most of this episode because Darren was in New York filming Imogene, if I'm recalling the timeline correctly. But they managed to squeeze in a super adorable scene between Kurt and Blaine, so I'm a happy fangirl!

(I do not own Glee or any of the characters, dialogue, or songs from the show. It's all just for fun!)

BLAINE

"Would you mind reading for Tony?" Artie asked.

Blaine's felt an avalanche of emotions as he considered the request. He wanted to. He wanted to play Tony. He had planned to audition for Tony. But his promise to Kurt that, as a junior, he would stick to a smaller role was at the forefront of his mind. Was a shot at playing Tony worth hurting Kurt's feelings?

"I–" he had to say no, but he couldn't force his vocal cords to cooperate.

"Is everything okay, Blaine?" Ms. Pillsbury asked.

"Um, yeah. I just– I'm not sure," Blaine managed to choke out. He hoped they would tell him that it was okay. That, if he didn't want to, he didn't have to audition for Tony.

"Punkin'," Coach Bieste said, "I don't know what on Earth you're not sure about. That was outstanding."

"Thank you," Blaine tried to smile, but he imagined that it probably looked more like a grimace.

"So?" Artie asked.

"Okay," Blaine replied.

By the time his brain caught up with his mouth, it was too late. "Excellent!" Artie clapped his hands. "Thanks, Blaine! We'll be in touch if we need anything more from you!"

Blaine turned and walked off the stage without another word. Why had he just agreed? If he got the part, all the other guys in New Directions were going to think he was trying to steal their spotlight. What had Finn said about ball-hogging on his first day? And Kurt. What was Kurt going to say?

He didn't have to wait long to find out. As he stepped into the hallway, Kurt was waiting for him.

"Oh!" Blaine gasped, startled. "Hey."

"How was it?" Kurt asked, and Blaine had a feeling Kurt had overheard some of what had just happened.

"They asked me to put my name in for Tony," he admitted. "I don't know why I said yes. I'll go back in there and tell them no." Panicking, he turned to go back into the auditorium.

"No," Kurt's hand was suddenly on his arm. "No, don't do that."

Blaine allowed Kurt to turn him back around.

"I'm sorry," Blaine said miserably.

"Yeah," Kurt answered vaguely. Blaine could tell that Kurt was unhappy, but he didn't seem angry.

They stood there for an awkward moment, and Blaine thought about the future. He was going to have so much regret if his ambition had just permanently damaged his relationship with Kurt.

"I love you," he said quietly.

"I love you too," Kurt responded. It sounded like an automatic response more than a heartfelt sentiment, but Blaine was relieved to hear him say the words.

"Well, um," Blaine decided to give Kurt some space. Regardless of his intentions, he had just hurt Kurt's feelings. And Blaine didn't want to force Kurt to talk about it if he didn't want to. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Kurt nodded, and Blaine hurried away. He didn't feel like crying, but he didn't feel amazing, either. He wanted to feel amazing about nailing his audition and the potential for a lead role in his first school musical, but how could he feel those things when Kurt was so unhappy?

He made his way to his car and tossed his bag onto the passenger's seat before he pulled out his phone to make sure he didn't have any text messages to respond to before the drive. His dad's name was there along with a short message; a reminder that they were going Indiana for a few days for his aunt's funeral. Blaine had completely forgotten. They were leaving the next morning.

Before he could stop it, the image of something terrible happening to him before he could speak to Kurt again sprung to his mind. He wrenched the car door open and jumped out, running back into the school building.

"Kurt!" he was relieved to see that the other boy was still there, grabbing a few things out of his locker. Blaine saw the photograph of himself on the locker door and knew he had made the right decision by coming back.

"Are you okay?" Kurt turned, and there was genuine worry in his voice at the sight of Blaine jogging up the hallway toward him.

"No," Blaine admitted. "I'm going to Indiana in the morning, and I can't just leave when you're so disappointed in me. I don't care about Tony as much as I care about you, Kurt."

Kurt's eyes softened a little. "Blaine," he chided, "I'm not disappointed in you."

Hope sprung to life in Blaine's chest, and he stepped closer to grab one of Kurt's hands.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "It's me," he said. "I'm battling a severe case of jealousy. And not just at you... at the entire world. But I'll get over it."

Kurt threw his free hand out to stop Blaine from speaking when he opened his mouth to apologize.

"Don't apologize again," Kurt said. "It only makes it worse."

"Sorry," Blaine mouthed at him.

The corners of Kurt's mouth twitched upward, and Blaine knew that things were going to be okay between them. Kurt wasn't ready to let it go yet, but he wasn't ready to let go of Blaine yet either.

"See you when I get back?" Blaine asked.

Kurt squeezed his hand. "Yes," he agreed. "Safe driving, okay?"

Blaine nodded, and he felt much better as he squeezed Kurt's hand in return before releasing it. "Bye," he said as he backed away briefly before turning to walk back to his car.

KURT

Two days later, Kurt's jealousy was rapidly decreasing. He and Blaine had been texting a lot because Blaine was still in Indiana. And, although most of their conversations had been ordinary and frivolous, Kurt felt as if their rapport was as effortless as ever. Reminding himself that Blaine was just Blaine was helping Kurt to release some of his jealousy in favor of his usual affection for the other boy.

Blaine had been especially excited to hear that Santana had re-joined New Directions. Thank goodness! Blaine had texted him, Remind me to beg her for forgiveness when I get back.

As he sat in glee club, watching Rachel and Mr. Schu chat excitedly about Rachel's ideas for West Side Story, Kurt pulled out his phone. He had planned to attempt some bonding time with Mercedes while Blaine was gone, but she looked like she would rather be anywhere but in the room with all of them. He decided to give her space instead.

When are you coming back? I'm dying of boredom with these people, he texted Blaine.

As soon as he sent the message he remembered that Blaine had gone to Indiana for a funeral.

Sorry, he sent another message. Figure of speech.

It's okay! Blaine responded almost immediately. She'd been ill for a long time, so we're sad but it's not a huge shock.

Before Kurt could reply, Blaine sent another message.

I thought we were coming home tonight. But, much to my dismay, my dad decided that he wanted to stay overnight again.

Kurt smiled. You mean you don't love the little family reunion this has become?

It's actually not too bad. Wait a second...

Kurt waited patiently for a minute until Blaine's next message came through. It was a photograph of Blaine holding a tiny baby.

My cousin's two-week-old daughter Charlotte!

Kurt tried to ignore the way that seeing Blaine with such a small baby made his heart wrench in his chest. Wow, that's not cute at all, he replied.

I miss you, though, Blaine's next message said. It would be more fun with you here. My cousins want to know everything about you.

I hope you're making me sound more fabulous than I actually am, Kurt teased.

Impossible, Blaine replied. Kurt smiled.

Ah, Blaine texted again, gotta go. Family bonding time, yay!

Say hi to your cousins! :) Kurt replied. Talk to you later!

KURT

The morning Blaine was supposed to return to school, Kurt woke up early.

He had missed Blaine terribly. And, once the jealousy had started to wear off, he had started to feel terrible for letting his own momentary lack of confidence get between him and the boy he loved so dearly. None of this West Side Story stuff was going to matter a few years from now, but Blaine mattered. Kurt hoped that Blaine would matter to him for the rest of his life.

He needed to apologize. As he rolled over to look at his clock to see how much more time he had before his alarm would go off, Kurt had a sudden moment of inspiration. He jumped out of bed, dressed, styled his hair quickly and grabbed a hat so he didn't have to worry about it all day, and was downstairs almost an hour earlier than normal. Carole, up for an early shift, was sitting at the table reading a book and drinking some coffee when he hurried into the room.

"Well, good morning," she greeted him. "You're up early."

"What time does the local florist open?" Kurt asked as he grabbed some cereal out of the pantry and poured himself a bowl.

"I'm not sure," Carole replied. She watched him pour his cereal before continuing. "So Blaine's coming back today, huh?"

"What?" Kurt finished pouring some milk into his cereal and looked up at her.

"If you're buying flowers for someone other than Blaine," Carole smiled, "I think we need to talk."

"Oh," Kurt said. "Yeah, he's coming back today. And... I've missed him."

If Carole knew about his little meltdown about the whole West Side Story thing, she didn't let on. "He's an old soul; he's going to love flowers," she said.

Kurt ate his breakfast and was out the door in plenty of time to stop by the florist on the way to school. He was happy to find that it was open – it had just opened – and he approached the only young woman in the store to inquire about buying some roses for Blaine.

He ended up with a bouquet of two colors. He had planned on something other than red, but when the woman had shown him the list of meanings for the different colors of roses, he hadn't been able to resist. Red roses for love. Yellow roses for friendship. Kurt was so delighted with the final bouquet that he had to restrain himself from hugging the young florist as she handed the flowers over to him.

"Thank you!" he said, dipping into a tiny bow before he twirled around and ran to his car.

Blaine's car wasn't in the lot yet when he arrived, so Kurt had no problem sneaking the flowers into the school and into his locker. He and Blaine had a ritual of meeting on the staircase before lunch, so he would surprise the other boy then.

BLAINE

As the bell rang to signify the start of the lunch period, Blaine felt both excited and a little nervous. He had missed Kurt while he had been gone and he couldn't wait to see him. But what if Kurt was still harboring some resentment about Blaine accepting the audition for Tony? The cast list was set to be posted at the end of the week, and Blaine was trying not to think about what it might say.

He reached the top of the stairs and started to descend, and he was so lost in thought that he didn't see Kurt until he was standing right in front of him.

Kurt's face lit up with a toothy smile as their eyes met, and Blaine felt relief wash over him. Kurt didn't smile like that when he was upset.

"The cast list goes up on Friday," Kurt said immediately. "Are you nervous?"

That was unexpected. Blaine had anticipated that Kurt would probably ignore the entire topic of West Side Story for now until a decision was made or until Blaine forced him to talk about it again.

"A little," he admitted casually. "But I'm trying not to think about it."

"I wouldn't be," Kurt suggested. "My mole in the casting office says that there's only one actor they're seriously considering for the role of Tony... and his initials are B.A."

Blaine wasn't sure about that. But, before he could respond, Kurt pulled a bouquet of yellow and red roses from behind his back and held them out to Blaine.

"Kurt!" Blaine exclaimed, delighted. "They're beautiful!" He had no idea what he had done to warrant such a sweet gesture. "But what are they for?"

"You killed your audition, Blaine," Kurt said seriously. "If anyone else got Tony, including me, the wrath of Sondheim would fall upon William McKinley like a plague of Shubert Alley locusts."

Blaine felt a surge of affection as he listened to Kurt's words and examined the flowers. The curse of having as much ambition and pride was that Kurt was incredibly prone to jealousy. But he was also one of the kindest souls Blaine had ever known. When it came to Blaine, Kurt always found a way to rise above the jealousy to see the big picture. Blaine knew it wasn't easy for him, and the extra effort that Kurt always put forward for their relationship made Blaine feel safe and wanted.

"These are to celebrate... you," Kurt added.

Blaine felt like his heart was going to climb out of his chest. Kurt looked so at ease. So happy. This was his way of apologizing.

"You always zig when I think you're about to zag," Blaine smiled, "and I... I just– I love that about you."

He stepped down to get closer to Kurt, but Kurt hesitated and glanced around at the other students on the staircase. Blaine hoped that a simple "thank you" would be enough as he clasped his hand on Kurt's shoulder.

Their eyes met for a moment, and Blaine could see understanding in Kurt's expression. They were both still too nervous about being bullied to show much physical affection in public.

"Right," Kurt said. He turned to descend the stairs.

Blaine pressed the flowers to his face to smell them as he followed, thinking about how grateful he was to have Kurt in his life. The first time they had been on this staircase together, they had essentially been strangers. And Kurt had been in emotional turmoil. McKinley had been a strange place for Blaine then. A reminder of his life before the safety of Dalton. A reminder of what he had escaped.

Kurt had matured so much since then, Blaine thought. And now Blaine was starting to feel comfortable at McKinley. Although he had not quite reached the point where it felt like his school, it no longer felt like a reminder of what he had run from. It was a reminder of what he had to live for. Second chances. And a boy who was worth fighting with and fighting for.

"Welcome back," Kurt turned to wait for him so they could walk side-by-side when they reached the bottom of the stairs.

Blaine smiled. "Thanks," he said. "I missed you so much."

"Me too," Kurt agreed.

"Nobody has ever given me flowers before," Blaine admitted, bringing the bouquet up to his face again to smell the flowers.

Kurt's face lit up at the confession. "Yellow for friendship and red for love," he explained. "The red can stand for congratulations, too."

"You're the best friend I've ever had," Blaine said warmly as they entered the cafeteria, and the way Kurt's eyes shone with happiness when he turned to smile at Blaine made Blaine's heart flutter as if they had just met.

There was a chorus of "welcome back's" as Blaine and Kurt found most of New Directions sitting at a table in the center of the large room. But the conversation quickly turned to the flowers in Blaine's hand.

"Alright, Kurt," Puck approved.

"They're beautiful!" Rachel extended a questioning hand, and Blaine gave her the bouquet. She passed it to Quinn, and it made its way all the way around the table before Rachel handed it back to Blaine. He set it gently on the table.

As the group shifted into its normal lunchtime hum of conversation, Blaine turned to Mike.

"I heard you auditioned for Riff!" he said excitedly.

Mike nodded and reached out to grab Tina's hand on top of the table. "Tina's been coaching me all summer."

"He's going to blow you away," Tina smiled.

"That's wonderful," Blaine replied. "I'm sure you'll get it!"

"I guess we'll know on Friday," Mike said.

"But first we get to watch Rachel and Mercedes duel over Maria tomorrow after school," Kurt chimed in excitedly.

Blaine laughed. "I think they'd both be great."

"But," Kurt said dramatically, "there can be only one Maria."

KURT

"I have a feeling that people are going to be talking about this face-off for the rest of our lives," Kurt whispered.

"It's a difficult decision," Blaine replied quietly. "They're both amazing."

"The fallout from whichever one of them loses is going to be epic," Kurt informed him.

"Let's hope not," Blaine mumbled as Rachel won the coin toss and gave Mercedes the first slot.

As they watched the girls perform, Kurt didn't know what to feel. His friendship with Mercedes had cooled a bit since he had gone to Dalton, while his friendship with Rachel had really taken hold since he had returned. But they were both still his friends. He could see them both in the role.

"This is an impossible decision," he whispered to Blaine.

"Shhhh!" Blaine shushed him, but he nodded his agreement.

When the competition was over, both girls received standing ovations. But Kurt could tell that Rachel wasn't happy.

"She thinks she's been beaten," he whispered to Blaine.

"I don't know," Blaine shook his head. "I'm just glad I'm not the one deciding."

They found out the next morning just how sure Rachel was that she wasn't going to get the part.

"Hey, Kurt," Puck snuck up to him at his locker before school, "just a heads up... your friend Rachel? She's now your competition."

"Don't be ridiculous," Kurt scolded. "There's no gender-bending in this year's production."

"No," Puck said, "for senior class president. I overheard Bieste talking to her about it."

Kurt felt a surge of betrayal and anger. He couldn't speak. He slammed his locker closed and turned to go find Rachel without another word to Puck.

He found her at her locker, and tried to tone down his anger so he could express his argument properly.

"I think we should talk, don't you?" he asked as he approached.

"About the, um, upcoming deadline for NYADA applications?" Rachel hedged.

"About you telling Coach Bieste that you're running for senior class president," Kurt gently corrected. "Against me."

"Look, Kurt, you saw Mercedes, okay?" Rachel said. "I'm not gonna get the part. So I– I figured if I win I'll make you vice president and then maybe we could just do vice-versa."

Kurt knew this feeling. The feeling of panic and desperation.

"Rachel, if you win, yes, it will better your chances of getting into NYADA," he acknowledged. "Yes. But if I win, it could make a huge difference at this school. Not just for me, but kids like me. Things could actually change for them."

"So," Kurt informed her, "whatever it takes. I'm winning."

"Okay, I just– I need something for my senior year that's going to make me special," Rachel argued. "That's going to make me stand out. I thought Maria was going to be that. You understand; you're just as ambitious as I am. That's why we're friends!"

It was part of why they were friends. In many ways, Kurt understood exactly why Rachel had run to Coach Bieste to put her name in the class president race. But just because he understood the impulse didn't mean he had to agree with her actions. As he looked at the anxiety on Rachel's face, he was glad that he had managed to get his jealousy and panic under control before he had done major damage to his relationship with Blaine.

"Rachel," he said, "in ten years, when you look back on this time, you're not going to be thinking about the clubs you belonged to or the parts you had. You'll be thinking about the friends you had and the ones you just tossed aside."

He hoped that she appreciated the dramatic exit as he turned and walked away without giving her a chance to say anything more.

To Kurt's surprise, he turned the corner to find Blaine waiting for him at his locker.

"Good morning," Blaine grinned at him.

"Not a good morning," Kurt corrected bitterly. "Rachel is now running against me for class president."

"What?" Blaine asked. "Why?"

"She's panicking," Kurt groaned.

"Maybe in a few days she'll calm down and withdraw her name," Blaine suggested.

Kurt shrugged. "I hope so."

They both paused and looked up as Finn walked quickly past, and Kurt held up a hand to stop Blaine from saying anything else.

"I'll be right back," he told Blaine.

"Finn!" he called after his step-brother. "Finn, I know you can hear me. Stop!"

Finn reluctantly slowed his pace to allow Kurt to catch up.

"Did you know about this?" Kurt asked sharply. He knew the answer already, but he wanted Finn to admit it.

"Yes," Finn admitted awkwardly.

Kurt let out a huff of angry air. "Great. Good job, Finn. Fanning the flames of Rachel's crazy fire."

"You think I could've stopped her once the idea was in her head?" Finn retorted.

"You could've tried!" Kurt shouted at him.

Kurt felt a gentle hand on his back, and he turned to find Blaine standing beside him.

Kurt turned back to Finn. "So I assume you're voting for her now."

To his surprise, Finn hesitated. "I dunno, dude," he said quietly.

Kurt shook his head disapprovingly. "See you later," he dismissed, and Finn didn't wait around to see if Kurt would change his mind. He disappeared around the corner as fast as he could move without running.

"My own brother," Kurt mumbled unhappily as he and Blaine walked down the hall on their way to class.

"Yeah," Blaine agreed.

When they reached the end of the hallway where they had to split up to go to their respective classrooms, Blaine massaged Kurt's shoulders briefly.

"I still think you're going to win," he encouraged.

"You're sweet," Kurt twisted out of his grip to turn and look at him. "I hope you're right."

KURT

The cast list went up on Friday, as promised, and everyone gathered around the bulletin board to see the results.

Blaine would play Tony. He reacted as if the whole thing was a huge surprise to him. Which, Kurt thought, it probably was. Blaine never assumed anything.

Kurt would play Officer Krupke. As Blaine grabbed Kurt to hug him, Kurt felt one final pang of disappointment. He was happy for Blaine, but he was sad for himself. Officer Krupke was a decent part. But it wasn't the part he wanted.

"Hey Blaine," Santana nudged his side as she walked by, "I guess it's not going to be a stretch to act attracted to Rachel, huh?"

Kurt couldn't resist laughing as Blaine's face flushed and he refused to meet anyone's eyes for a moment.

"Congratulations," Kurt wound his arm around Blaine's waist as they walked back into the choir room.

Blaine beamed up at him. "You too," he said.

Once everyone was sitting down, Mr. Schu addressed the room.

"Congratulations to all of you on your roles in the musical!" he said. "Artie wanted me to announce that rehearsals start next week; see him after glee today for schedules. Now, for today's lesson..."

"Where's Mercedes?" Kurt wondered aloud, interrupting.

"I saw her a minute ago in the hallway," Rachel said.

"I'll go find her," Kurt decided. "Be right back!"

He hopped to his feet and left the room, hoping that he wasn't going to find his friend crying in the bathroom or raging against an innocent inanimate object due to Rachel being cast as Maria.

"Oh hey," he spotted her inside a nearby classroom, "we were wondering where – oh, hi Ms. Corcoran."

The presence of the vocal coach, when paired with the fact that Mercedes had her back to him and had not acknowledged him immediately, made Kurt suspicious.

"Glee's starting," he said.

"I'm not coming," Mercedes replied.

"Believe me," Kurt said, "I know how you feel. But–"

Mercedes turned to face him. "No, Kurt, you don't know how I feel. I'm done," she said sharply.

"Whatever," Kurt rolled his eyes. He didn't want to have this argument with her. Kurt was furious with Rachel, but he wasn't interested in feeding Mercedes' victim complex.

"I'm leaving New Directions," Mercedes announced as Kurt turned to leave.

He froze in the doorway. He could hear the other students in the choir room starting to warm up.

"Excuse me?" he said, turning back to face the classroom. He gave Ms. Corcoran a hard look before turning all of his attention on Mercedes.

"I'm joining Ms. Corcoran's group," Mercedes said. "So why don't you run back to Mr. Schu and have fun playing second or third fiddle to Rachel Berry all year."

"You're just going to abandon us?" Kurt snapped. "Just like that? You think I don't want more solos? Of course I do. But we're a team."

"Yeah, some team," Mercedes said sourly. "That whole 'we're a team' routine is code for 'we follow our leader', and I'm done being a follower."

"We don't have enough people to compete as it is," Kurt reminded her. "You can't just leave."

"You left," Mercedes accused.

The hurt and sadness that Kurt was feeling disappeared in an instant and was replaced by rage.

"I left because I feared for my life," Kurt shouted, stepping forward until he was right in front of her. "You're leaving because your ego isn't being adequately stroked. But you know what? We may miss you, but we don't need you. We're going to win Sectionals without you and then you'll be forced to come crawling back begging for a background spot!"

"Kurt–" Mercedes started, but Kurt didn't want to hear any more. With an aggravated wave of his hands, he stormed out of the room and back to where New Directions was finishing warming up.

"Is she coming?" Mr. Schu asked as Kurt marched through the door.

"She joined Ms. Corcoran's group," Kurt explained briefly. "And no, I don't want to talk about it," he added for Blaine's benefit.

"No she did not," Artie gasped.

"Screw her," Puck added.

"Guys! Guys!" Mr. Schu's voice rose above the sudden buzz of voices in the room. "I'll go and talk to her..."

"As they say in show business," Rachel said with authority, "the show must–"

Kurt glared at her as he walked by, and she fell silent. Mr. Schu left the room.

Kurt fell into a chair in the corner, and Blaine sat down beside him. Kurt sighed as Blaine reached out and put his hand on Kurt's knee.

"I'm going to be fine," Kurt reassured him. "I just hate the universe today."

Blaine smiled sadly. "We'll find more people," he said encouragingly. "Don't despair."

"Thanks," Kurt put his hand on top of Blaine's. "Having you here certainly helps."

Blaine surprised him by leaning forward and kissing him, slowly and gently.

"Does that help?" Blaine breathed against his lips.

"No," Kurt managed before he re-captured Blaine's mouth with his own for another kiss.

"Oh, get a room," Santana whined.

"This is a room," Brittany said to Santana, and everyone laughed. Blaine kissed Kurt once more before he sat back in his chair.

"Who needs girls, anyway?" Blaine winked at him.

To Kurt's surprise, he blushed so intensely that he was surprised when he skin didn't burst into flames. He could only nod in agreement, and his mind was so jumbled that, by the time Mr. Schu re-entered the room with the official report on Mercedes' defection, Kurt had completely forgotten that she was gone at all.

Have a lovely weekend, everyone! See you on Monday for 'Pot o' Gold'!