"Kurt, I think I'm about to have a panic attack." Blaine said very calmly, sitting on Kurt and David's couch.
"What?" Kurt, who was next to him, looked up. He looked perfectly normal.
"I think I'm having a panic attack." Blaine took a deep breath. "My heart is pounding, my throat feels tight, my wrists feel clammy and it's hard to breathe."
"You're fine, Blaine. Just… Just try to breathe." Kurt hopped up and took Blaine's laptop away.
Baine took another deep breath. "This is not the time for this. This can't be happening right now. No."
"What do you need?" Kurt asked, squeezing Blaine's hand which was sweaty.
"God, this keeps happening." Blaine whimpered.
"What can I do?" Kurt repeated, his hand in Blaine's curls.
"Take away all of my responsibilities and this feeling of doom? Oh my God."
Blaine, who had at least looked like he was breathing well, suddenly gasped three times in a row.
Kurt clambered back on to the couch and wrapped his arms around Blaine. "I've got you. You're okay. You can get through this."
David came in, still in scrubs and looking tired. He stood in the doorway looking at Blaine for a split second and then rushed over. "How long has it been?"
"Not long." Kurt got off the couch.
"Blaine, do your breathing. Remember from high school?" David said calmly, taking the spot where Kurt had been. "Four, seven, eight? Inhale and count to 1, 2, 3, 4. Hold your breath for seven. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Exhale and count to eight."
Blaine did it with him.
"Come on. Let's keep doing it." David had his hand on Blaine's back. "1, 2, 3, 4… 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7…good, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8."
Kurt grabbed Blaine's hand, squeezing.
Blaine sat another minute, David counting in tune with Blaine's breathing. He then quit counting and felt Blaine's forehead.
"Are you okay?" David asked.
"Yeah. Sorry." Blaine looked to Kurt, who had never seen him have a panic attack. He didn't Blaine had ever had a panic attack.
"How many have you had?" David asked.
"Five in the last month." Blaine admitted. "But they keep getting worse. It's getting harder to keep up with stuff and finals aren't far away and then the next semester and then the move."
"You can't make yourself sick, Blaine. You've got to do your breathing or go back on medicine."
"I already went back on it." Blaine's voice was very quiet. If the room wasn't silent, David and Kurt wouldn't missed it.
"What?" Kurt dropped down by him.
"After the thing at Dalton... Us arguing like that. After that I was so angry and that I pinned Derek to the wall and I'm pretty sure I broke his nose. I didn't even know I was going to do it; it just happened. I felt like I was out of control. I had to do something." Blaine closed his eyes tightly and then covered his face. "Oh God."
Kurt stared at Blaine. Back on medicine?
"You were on it when we talked about my depression? And you didn't tell me? You acted like you weren't taking it anymore." Kurt looked at him.
"It wasn't supposed to be long term. It was supposed to… help me. Everything's been so crazy, though, and I'm really overwhelmed. I thought it would help but I've gone up twice. It works for a month or two and then…" Blaine trailed off.
"Blaine, that's not… Blaine, that was last year." David said. "That's not even recent."
"The internship turned into a job and I was there more. I wasn't going to turn down an actual job and the firm but then that's less time to study. The homework was longer and harder. And then the thing at that party when… well you know. I was barely getting sleep and I felt like I was going crazy and it helped… until this year, I don't know. I don't know. I'm sorry."
"No. I don't want you to apologize, Blaine. I'm trying to understand so I can help." David's voice was much gentler.
Kurt rubbed up and down Blaine's back, making hushing noises.
"What happened this year that's different?"
"I'm so stressed out. I kept losing focus in some of my lectures because I would be thinking about all the homework or… or… I don't know." Blaine took a deep breath. "So, I went back to the clinic and asked to up the dosage. And then more hours at the job and I asked to go up again."
David nodded.
Blaine covered his face and groaned.
"Okay well if you need to go up again…" David said.
"She said if the second dose didn't help, I would have to go to counseling for techniques. I know the techniques. I've done the techniques." Blaine lowered his hands, looking frustrated.
"Well…" David made eye contact with Kurt, who was still rubbing Blaine's back, the same way he always did when Blaine was upset. "Let's talk to Eric when he gets off, okay? We can go over there or he can come here."
"Dinner tastes great, by the way can you put me on more than 300mg a day of antidepressants?" Blaine scoffed.
"You're at 300 on Wellbutrin?" David asked. "That's high but the maximum is 450mg a day. You can still go up. You can go to another medicine. What worked when you were fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, and eighteen might not be right for you now. There are a lot of options out there. There's Prozac, Paxil, Celexa, Zoloft. You can exercise more, you can eat healthier to help."
"I just need to get through this semester and next semester and I'll be fine." Blaine rubbed at his eyes.
"So, 21 more panic attacks?" David looked at him. "Do you still sleep for hours after one happens? How does that help you get through the rest of the school years when you have work, studying, lectures?"
"Please stop." Blaine looked at him.
"No. You are not going to have another breakdown and sabotage everything you've worked so hard for. You deserve this and you're going to get this fucking law degree. Get it together."
Blaine covered his face again and began to cry.
"Blaine, no… Blaine…" David sat next to him, pulling Blaine into his arms. "We are going to get it figured out, alright? We will get it figured out. You've got Kurt, Wes, me… You've got Adrian who is in the exact same situation as you. You should talk to him."
"I just want to go home." Blaine cried.
"You are home, Blaine. We have to make it work like in high school. This time you have Kurt. He loves you so much and he's so proud of you. We're all so proud of you and you're going to finish this if it's the last thing any of us do. Okay?" David pulled back from him.
Blaine nodded, looking exhausted.
"Let's talk to Eric and see what he thinks, okay?" David asked. "You won't be bothering him. You're not bothering any of us."
Blaine nodded again, wiping his face with the back of his hand.
"I'm going to call him at the hospital. You've got this, Blaine." David stood.
Kurt instantly took his spot again, hand going to Blaine's back.
"This is so stupid." Blaine sniffed.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Kurt asked gently. "You acted like you weren't on medicine anymore…"
"I didn't tell you because it wasn't supposed to be a long-term thing… and then so much time had passed that it felt like if I said anything you would be upset because it had been so long." Blaine leaned his head on Kurt's shoulder.
"I wouldn't have been upset… I wish I had known before it got to the point of you having a panic attack. Maybe you should go to counseling." Kurt ran his fingers through Blaine's curls.
Blaine sniffled again. "God, I can't do this again. I don't want to go to counseling. I don't have time for counseling. I can't handle anything else."
"I'm here for you, Blaine." Kurt whispered, looking him in the eye. "I'm always here for you."
"I know. I do." Blaine took a deep breath. "Everyone is so busy and they don't need my problems on top of their own. I feel bad."
"Your problems are our problems, Blaine." David came back in. "Because when you need picking up, that's what all three of us are for. How many nights have you texted me until four in the morning after I had a really bad shift at the hospital? Or listened to Wes freaking out about the fact that he's about to have a baby?"
"It's not the same. I don't have problems. I'm becoming a problem."
"No." David shook his head. "No. You are not a problem. Get that out of your head now."
Blaine leaned against Kurt but was looking David in the eye.
"We're going to go over to Eric's place for dinner." David said. "He won't think you are a problem either."
Blaine nodded.
"And you need to be leaning on Wes more. Kurt and I are here in New York City but he lives with you, Blaine. If he knew you were struggling this much and on medicine again, he would be so upset that you didn't tell him—well, all of us." David kept eye contact. "You're going to have to tell him. You know that, right?"
"I know." Blaine sighed.
"We're here for you." Kurt whispered.
"I know." Blaine's voice was quiet and he looked up at the ceiling. "I'm really tired."
"You should take a nap. Your body needs a break." David frowned.
"Okay." Blaine stood. There was no point in arguing. David was right.
"I'll be back." Kurt mouthed to David before leading Blaine to his room.
…
"Hey." David looked up from his seat on the couch, where he had been looking at his tablet. "That didn't take long."
"No. He's exhausted." Kurt sat next to him. "He told me he was on medicine back when he was younger. He literally told me last October but he didn't say anything about being on it again. He hasn't said anything about being this overwhelmed."
"He hates being on it. He really hates being on it." David said. "It was horrible for months because he'd say he'd taken it when he hadn't and you could always tell because he wasn't Blaine, you know?"
Kurt nodded.
"He probably would have stayed on it and gotten off of it without telling anyone if it hadn't gotten to this point." David sighed.
"I feel like these layers keep opening up and he peels off one but a year later he peels off another one." Kurt sighed a bit.
"You're his happy place. He doesn't want to think about bad things when he's around you because you make him so happy. I honestly don't know how he would have gotten through all of this crap coming out about his family if he didn't have you." David looked Kurt in the eye.
"Sometimes I feel like he thinks I'll think less of him when he tells me this stuff. He never sits me down and tells me this stuff. It just comes spilling out when he's worked up." Kurt didn't look away.
"I don't think it's that at all. I honestly think he doesn't think about it as much when he's with you." David groaned. "The fact that he willingly went on medicine… Why doesn't he talk to us before it gets to this point where he's averaging more than one anxiety attack per week?"
"I think he has a hard time asking for help until he's really far in." Kurt said softly.
David nodded and sighed. "I just want him to be happy. He's almost done with the first semester. He's almost graduated from Harvard Law. He should be happy, Kurt."
"I don't think he's not happy… I think he's taken on too many extra things. He helps with school events all the time. He pulls extra hours at work. I don't know how he—or anybody—can keep up with the course load, work and volunteer." Kurt chewed on his lower lip.
"He's an overachiever." David said. "We've got to have Wes on this. I don't want Blaine to have a nervous breakdown. He's so close to the end and I think he's freaking out."
"I think so too." Kurt agreed.
"I don't know why he feels like he needs to do this stuff alone." David sighed. "He's the first person that will jump up and do anything but when he needs it…"
"That's just who he is." Kurt whispered.
"You should get your dad to give him a pep talk." David laughed a bit.
"I'm going to call him when Blaine goes back to Harvard." Kurt said, very seriously. He stood up. "I'm going to go in there with him. I don't want him to wake up alone."
"Okay. I'm going to call Wes. Blaine's getting this fucking degree." David stood as well, before going to his room.
…
When Kurt, Blaine, and David made it back to their apartment later that night it wasn't empty.
Wes was sitting at the kitchen table, phone in his hand and looking anxious.
"David." Blaine sighed, closing his eyes.
"Kurt and I are going to pick up your new prescription. You need to talk to Wes." David said. "Hey, Wes."
"Hey." Wes said softly.
"You shouldn't have come. AJ is sick." Blaine said.
"Alicia is fine. Adrian is there to help." Wes didn't move.
"We'll be back, okay?" Kurt kissed Blaine's cheek. "I love you."
"I love you too." Blaine said.
A few seconds later, the apartment door closed.
"Come on. Let's talk about this." Wes stood up.
Blaine nodded, going and sitting on the couch.
Wes sat back down and faced him.
"You shouldn't have—"
"You've been having panic attacks and you're on the second highest dose of Wellbutrin, Blaine. I think I should have." Wes interrupted. "Did you not think once to tell me what was going on during the twenty times that we see each other a day?"
"The baby—"
"The baby wasn't even a blip when you got back on the medicine, Blaine." Wes said. "Try again."
"I needed help." Blaine looked down. "I literally punched that creep Derek at Dalton last year. I was so mad and I didn't even know I had done it until it was over. Then school started getting more stressful and my grandma died and I had already hit the old roommate asshole. I felt out of control and felt like I needed help."
Wes nodded.
"I didn't have a panic attack until after the stuff with Preston and the party. And then I felt so disgusting because I initiated the whole thing and he almost… Oh my God. I can't even go there right now." Blaine groaned. "After the first panic attack every time I would get really worked up I would have another one. Then I got the actual job at CMJ and I had another one. Now any time I get super upset or think about everything I have to do I just…"
Wes watched him closely.
"I keep getting overwhelmed. I'm not getting enough sleep which makes it that much worse. It's spiraling and I can't get it to stop." Blaine's hands were shaking.
"What do we need to do to help you?" Wes asked softly.
"I don't know." Blaine sat on his hands.
"What did Eric say?"
"He wrote me a prescription for Lexapro. He said the Wellbutrin is more for depression and Lexapro is used a lot for depression and anxiety." Blaine sighed. "Which could be why the panic attacks keep getting worse."
"You never had panic attacks at Dalton." Wes watched him carefully.
"No." Blaine shook his head. "I didn't."
"And all of this stuff with your family can't be helping."
"No. I need help. I feel like I'm going crazy. I don't know how I'm managing to get all of my homework done because I just…" Blaine trailed off.
"You aren't going crazy." Wes' voice was gentle. "You are so close to the end of the line, Blaine, and a lot is going on. You're right. You've got family stuff going on. You're working at the law office and going to school. You do volunteer stuff for incoming students all the time. You're dealing with two of the four people in our apartment preparing to have a baby too. You are a great partner to Kurt. You are a great friend."
Blaine didn't say anything.
"I think you need to drop the volunteer stuff and I think you need to ask to work one less day a week at CMJ. They will understand—hell, isn't the person over you even teaching your class next semester?"
"Yeah, Bob is." Blaine took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
"See? You know he would understand. He likes you a lot, Blaine. I'm sure he'll let you work a little less until graduation. Maybe you could even talk to him about the school stress. Or anyone there really. They've all been last year law students." Wes looked him in the eyes. "Or Adrian. He is probably the perfect person to talk too."
"I don't know." Blaine covered his face and let out a frustrated groan. "He seems like he's handling it fine."
"Yeah, you do too. At least you did." Wes paused, clearly upset. "I hope you know I always have time for you. Since we visited you in the hospital when you were fourteen, I have always had time for you. I'm always going to have time for you regardless of if I've got fifteen kids and a circus, alright?"
Blaine nodded, his eyes tearing up.
"I always have time for you. You are family, Blaine. Okay? You're my brother from another mother—literally. You and David are family to me."
Tears spilled over. "Everyone is so busy. I feel bad adding to everyone else's to do list. Everyone let's stop our lives to comfort Blaine again. Great."
"You've got to stop that, dude. Seriously. Blaine."
"I'm sorry." Blaine covered his face again, his shoulders shaking.
Wes moved closer, pulling Blaine towards him. "It's okay. It's going to be okay. I promise. Quit trying to do everything on your own. You know how that ended up last time."
Blaine nodded into his chest.
"Come on. Just get it out of your system." Wes' hand went to his hair, absent mindedly running his fingers through it.
By the time Blaine sat up, Kurt and David were back. Kurt sat next to him, taking his hand and squeezing it.
"I'm sorry, Kurt. I didn't want you to think it was your fault because of the break up or something but I'm having a hard time right now." Blaine said, looking him in the eye.
"It's okay." Kurt's voice was gentle. "What can I do to help?"
"I don't know. I don't even know." Blaine took a deep breath.
"I think you should quit the volunteer work and go down in hours. It's a good option. If anything, you can take those extra hours and just… decompress." Wes said. "You need a break."
"And you need to take care of yourself. What Eric said was right. If you don't sleep, there is no way you're going to be able to keep up with everything you're doing." David added. "And your breathing. The breathing exercises always helped you before, even if just enough to take the edge off and make it more bearable."
Kurt kissed the top of Blaine's head, not saying anything.
"Kurt, what do you think?" Wes asked.
"I think I'm going to exclusively come down to Cambridge on the weekends. That gives you the extra six or so hours you'd be driving if you count back and forth."
"No, Kurt. You don't have to do that." Blaine looked at him.
"I want to." Kurt maintained eye contact.
"What else do you think?" David asked.
"That you aren't going to not get this law degree. You've put so much time into it and you're kicking serious ass. I'm not going to let this stuff with your family get in the way." Kurt's voice was gentle and he didn't look away from Blaine.
"Yeah. You need to keep it together. You already put a deposit on that apartment here in New York. We will all be in the same city again meaning I can see you more than once every two months. I miss seeing you." David said. "We all know you can finish this thing out."
"I miss seeing you too." Blaine wiped his eyes.
"Kurt's right. You've kicked ass, Blaine. Five people have offered you jobs within the last five days. You are so close." Wes went and shook Blaine's shoulder a bit. "Just hang in there a little longer and everything will be so much better."
"I'm taking a month off of studying after graduation." Blaine sniffled, resting his head on Kurt's shoulder. "I'm sorry."
"You didn't do anything. Nobody wants you to apologize." David said gently.
"We want you to feel better." Kurt whispered.
"Do you want pizza, Blaine? We can order it in. I'll even watch a Disney movie with you as long as it's not the one with the snowman." Wes hopped up.
"We can get something else delivered too. Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Taco Bell?" David said.
Blaine laughed a bit, scooting closer to Kurt. He couldn't get close enough.
"Seriously, though. What do you want for dinner? You are the one choosing." David said.
"Pizza is fine."
Wes pulled out his phone, stepping away to order it. Everyone knew what Blaine liked anyway.
David sat on Blaine's other side. "You should talk to Adrian and see how he's doing. He doesn't have family stuff but he's doing the same school and jobs as you."
"He doesn't volunteer." Blaine leaned against Kurt.
"See?" David asked, not unkindly. "How many extra hours does that give him?"
"Five."
"That's five hours a week you could rest. Or spread it out throughout the day for 'breaks.'" Kurt said.
"Yeah." David said. "I think you should talk to your boss. You two seem to have a good relationship. I bet he'll let you take your hours down a bit… and he'll remember getting his law degree. He could probably give you really good advice."
"I'm going to talk to him tomorrow if he has time."
Long Time Coming
"You're free to go."
Blaine stood and took a deep breath. "Can we talk?"
"Who offered you a job?" Bob looked up from his paperwork, looking annoyed.
"Nobody. Actually, a lot of people but I've turned them down." Blaine looked uneasy. "I wanted to talk about… me."
"Oh." Bob lowered his voice, glancing in the doorway. "Let me finish this page and we'll go somewhere. Vince is still here and I don't trust talking about anything around him—work or personal."
Blaine nodded.
"Not that—I mean— it isn't worth the drama it can cause. He runs his mouth about anything. He's an awesome lawyer, don't get me wrong. I'll leave it at that."
"Okay." Blaine nodded again and took another deep breath as Ryan came in.
"Yes?" Bob asked.
"I am giving you a heads up that Tammy Jo just got here and that she's already rounded up Jeff."
"Shit." Bob took the paper he was working on and put it in his desk drawer. "Come on, Blaine. Let's go."
Ryan smiled at Blaine. "Regretting it yet?"
"What?" Blaine asked.
"Law school. Adrian is starting to, so I figured you probably are too." Ryan shrugged. "I regretted it when I had seven classes in one semester. I ended up in the doctor's office so many times that semester."
"Really?" Blaine asked.
"Oh, yeah. All of you are freaking out. Every single person in your classes is no matter how collected they seem." Ryan shook his shoulder a bit. "Hang in there. The job is worth it."
"Go, go, go." Bob said, walking to the door.
Ryan walked in the opposite way from the exit once they exited the room.
Bob locked his office and then very quickly walked towards the exit. Unfortunately, Tammy Jo was right by it.
"You're not avoiding me tomorrow, Robert." She said. "And call off your watchdog. Every time I pass his office when I come in he either grabs the phone or leaves in the direction of your office."
"Even if I did avoid you here you'd show up at my house." Bob said, choosing to ignore the comment about Ryan.
"It's a good proposal. You'll like it." Tammy Jo said as he walked out the door.
"The answer will still be no. Good luck with Jeff."
Tammy Jo scowled as Bob walked out.
"I know. You're fine, Blaine." She sighed, pushing the door open for him.
"Are you hungry? I'm starving." Bob asked once he made it outside.
"Yes." Blaine said.
"Good. We'll get some food and talk."
"I mean, it doesn't have to take that long."
"Come on. It's right down the street." Bob gestured to his car.
"Okay." Blaine got into Bob's car. It was of course spotless, but Blaine would have expected no less.
…
"Alright, Blaine. What's going on?" Bob asked when they were nearly finished with their food.
Blaine took a deep breath. "I am freaking out."
"Why are you freaking out? Graduating? Moving? Passing your midterms?"
"Everything. I am so busy but nothing ever gets done. I used to be ahead on all my reading but I'm in seven classes this semester and I can't keep up with all of it. I have panic attacks at least once a week. I'm even on medicine and it's not making a difference."
"You've already done better than me."
Blaine opened his mouth and closed it again. Then he asked, "Huh?"
"I didn't make it two whole months into my first semester of 3L." Bob said. "I withdrew for a semester."
Blaine's mouth dropped. "You're one of the top three lawyers ranked in the city."
"And top fifteen in the country… that might be true but I still withdrew from Harvard for a semester." Bob shrugged his shoulder.
"But why? Can I ask?"
"My wife was five hours away, in her last year of graduate school, and she was with our first child. She did grad school in our hometown so she had both of our parents for help but it was hard on her. Living hours apart sucks when you're young but it really sucks when your newly married and have a five-month-old baby. Between flying home on weekends and trying to keep up with work and internships and lectures and mock trial… And then not having your baby know that you're actually Daddy and not just someone that pops in two days a week. It was a lot."
"That sounds awful."
"Yeah. Two months into the first semester of 3L was horrible. My grades were perfect, attendance was perfect, but I had two internships which were horrible, I was out of money, and I had a baby at home. One day I said fuck it and withdrew."
"You just withdrew?"
"Yes. I just withdrew. I went home and my wife about killed me…" Bob laughed. "I told her I was doing it, but I guess she didn't believe me."
"You're laughing about it?"
"It's funny now. Look, Blaine." Bob said. "You've gotten through the first year scare and the second year of work. You've gotten a lot of the core, bar-tested classes out of the way—or most of them, at least. You've done your classes on corporations, trusts, wills, administration. The 3L classes aren't supposed to kill you. You take classes that are more interesting to you so you can explore options. Once I came home and was away from the craziness, I realized that one—all of the real 'hard work' is done. And two, I was tired. All of the reading and the essays and the study groups and the different types of law that I had absolutely no interest in."
"When you came back, what did you do?"
"The same thing as when I was there five months earlier. I worked my ass off in my classes, went to the internships, and… kept at it. The job offers I had at the end of my second year were still up and people kept offering me jobs. It's like the job fair comes to you when you graduate Harvard Law, I swear. Even though I graduated a semester late."
"Was it easier after you came back?"
"No. Which is why I was stupid for getting one third of a semester done and then withdrawing. My wife still brings it up today and I've been a lawyer… probably longer than you have been alive. Maybe. I don't want to think about that… but I'm a partner in my own law firm. My oldest son is about to start medical school next year and my youngest daughter is seven. I've got four kids and I make enough that they have what they need and sometimes more. I have a house, a car, my kids don't have to worry about tuition—at least in undergrad, after that it's negotiable. The hard work does pay off."
Blaine nodded, not sure what to say.
"Skip a class. Call in at CMJ—I'm one of the owners, you work for me, and I'm telling you it's okay. Miss the reading occasionally. Don't do it a lot but get rest. It's not worth panic attacks, Blaine. Coming from somebody who did have panic attacks and even ended up in the hospital twice… it's not worth it."
"But…" Blaine trailed off.
"Listen to me." Bob leaned over a bit. "You already have a job at one of the best law offices in the state, okay? You have already taken the mandatory classes and exams. Your job isn't going anywhere and neither are you. I've been where you are right now—with a baby, too— and it isn't worth it to kill yourself before you even get to use the degree. It costs too much for that."
Blaine looked at him, not speaking.
"You think I'm crazy right now. You can't skip Harvard classes. You can't call in at work. But you can. You've got seven classes. The ones that are bullshit you're using to fill up credits… you can miss a class or two. You've got 7 classes. Four of them are probably fillers. Skip those four classes twice—it's either stuff you already know, stuff you can put off for a bit, or stuff that you won't need to know. Then you're able to catch up on the important paper or study for the test in the important classes. Obviously, you know which ones you can get away with skipping and which ones you can't."
"Did you ever skip?"
"A handful of times, yes. Not a lot and only if I knew I wouldn't be missing important information." Bob said.
"I'm so tired. My head feels like it's going to explode." Blaine took a deep breath. "Sometimes I wonder if I made a mistake."
Bob's face softened. "You have a lot of personal stuff going on too. That makes it a lot harder on you."
"Oh God." Blaine's eyes teared up. "I can't be doing this here and in front of you."
"It's okay, Blaine." Bob's voice was gentle.
"You're my boss." Blaine wiped his eyes. "It's not okay."
"Being a boss doesn't mean anything," Bob handed him a napkin. "Except that I have been doing this longer than you."
"I thought I was past all of this and then all of this stuff comes out about my family. Of course, I get pulled into it. Every time I finally let it go, something happens and it all comes up again." Blaine wiped under his eyes with the napkin. "It's like I can't get away."
"I don't know what all you've been through but I'm sorry." Bob sighed.
"Thanks." Blaine sniffled. "It's definitely not making this easier."
"I bet." Bob frowned.
"I would be fine if my emotions weren't all over the place. I feel like I'm going crazy sometimes. Which I shouldn't be telling my boss. Oh my God." Blaine groaned.
"Hey. Right now, I'm not your boss. None of this leaves this table, okay? Tomorrow we can pretend we didn't even have this conversation if you want. If you want to talk more, we can do this again. Go somewhere away from work that we can talk. Boss or not, I'm here for you and I care for your wellbeing."
Blaine nodded and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.
He was a mess.
"It's just a lot at once." Blaine said, voice quiet. "Once I start thinking about one thing five more follow and then ten and it keeps going."
"You're doing a lot. Working, studying."
"Yeah." Blaine wiped his eyes. "You aren't going to want to hire me now. I'm not crazy. I promise.""
"I don't think you're crazy. I think you are going through the hardest year of your educational life and that you've got a lot of other shit popping up too. I get it." Bob said gently. "I promise I don't think you are crazy."
Blaine nodded but didn't speak.
"You are a smart as hell, Blaine. You're assertive, determined and compassionate. You are one hell of a kid and you're going to make an amazing lawyer. I feel privileged to have someone like you on my team. I can't wait to see how far you are going to go." Bob said, looking at Blaine. "I'm not just saying that to cheer you up."
"Thank you." Blaine took a deep breath.
"I know the personal stuff is hard and you're having a tough time. What can I do to help? Is there anything?"
"No but thank you. I appreciate it."
"Take a week off work. Rest or video chat with your partner or something that makes you feel happy."
"No, I can't do that."
"I'm telling you that you are not to come in for the rest of the week. I don't want to see you until next Tuesday. I'm your boss and telling you to."
"I thought you weren't my boss outside of work." Blaine laughed a bit.
"I'm the boss. I get to change the rules when I want." Bob laughed.
"Are you sure?" Blaine looked at him.
"I'm very sure. Don't use the time for school, though. Use it to rest or to talk with your partner. It was Kurt, right?"
"Yeah." Blaine nodded.
"Use the time to talk with Kurt. From experience in long distance relationships, I know that can make the biggest difference in a day."
"I really appreciate you listening to me… and talking to me. You know all these interns come in and think you're this—"
"What is it, rude and overworked? Something like that?" Bob laughed. "I'm sure you thought that before you met with me... maybe you still think it, I don't know. The people that have been here longer know different and I keep quite a few of them here with me. Ryan was one of my first interns back when I first started picking up too many cases."
"Ryan that's going to New York with us for a while?" Blaine asked, surprised.
"Yeah, that Ryan. I'm working on getting him to stay with us too. I keep hoping Jeff will want out of CMJ. Ryan does half of the stuff Jeff should be doing anyway... He still does a bunch of stuff for me. I would love to have him be partner." Bob admitted. "Speaking as someone who definitely isn't your boss outside of work."
"Do you think he will?"
"I think he and his partner are taking it into more consideration than they were two months ago. He's worked for me for his first fifteen years of law and I'd like to keep it that way. I think he wants to keep it that way too. If you want to know who in that office is the most underappreciated one, it's Ryan."
"He definitely does a lot." Blaine nodded and then tilted his head. "Wait, he's gay?"
"Yes. His husband comes around once a week or so. His name is Jamie and he works just down the street. They go together to lunch all the time. You've probably seen him a dozen times and didn't know who he was. It's a pretty big office." Bob nodded.
"Oh." Blaine tried to think back.
Had he seen Ryan in the hallway with a man?
Well, most of the people that worked at CMJ were men, so yes. None of them stood out though.
"Anyway, you get on out of here. I'll wait for the check." Bob said.
"Are—"
Bob didn't let him finish. "Yes. I am sure you don't need to pay for your food and that I want you to take a week from work. I've made it 23 of my 25 years without you, you know? I will be fine."
"But—."
"I'm positive." Bob nodded. "And I think no less of you."
Blaine stood up. "Thank you for talking to me. I know it's kind of late… and you've got kids."
"They're fine. Only one of them has a 'bedtime' so they'll probably be awake long after I'm asleep." Bob reassured him. "You've got my cell phone number if you ever just want to talk, okay? You can use it. That's why I gave it to you."
"I really appreciate it." Blaine smiled.
"Anytime… preferably not in the middle of the night but with three sons, I'm used to it." Bob shrugged. "Get some rest."
"Thank you… Thanks." Blaine said somewhat lamely.
"You're welcome. Go on and get out of here."
Blaine picked up his bag and headed out of the restaurant, grabbing his phone to text Kurt while he walked back to his car.
Long Time Coming
"Do you think it would be stupid to just… like… quit." Adrian plopped on the couch two days later.
Blaine, who was sitting in an arm chair and looking down at his book, looked up. "Quit?"
"Law school. Just say fuck it. I'll go back to being a model and you can go back to your glee club."
"Model? What?" Blaine closed his binder.
"I was younger and weighed twenty-five pounds less. I don't know if I could even model anymore. I'm not as toned as I used to be. Maybe I can go into an environmental job." Adrian looked up at the ceiling.
"What are you even talking about it?"
"I've gained five pounds this week from stress eating and not having time to run." Adrian said. "Also, I think I'm going to drop the class Bob is teaching for next semester. He doesn't even like me."
"Why would he not like you?" Blaine looked confused.
"He doesn't like anybody." Adrian shrugged. "He likes Ryan but that's probably because they've worked together for so long."
"He doesn't not like you."
"I don't even know if I want to move anymore." Adrian groaned.
"Well… you've gotten a lot of other job offers. Have you looked into those?"
"Well Ryan is probably coming back to this office…"
"Nope. Bob talked him into moving to the new office yesterday. It's official. I bet he gave him a raise." Adrian sat up straight. "Which he deserves, but that doesn't help me right now."
"You could always… still stay in Cambridge?"
"That would be sending the wrong message to Matt… Which I don't want to do."
"What? No? He could get a job in New York." Blaine moved to sit on the couch.
"Yeah, I know. That's the issue." Adrian bit his lip.
"Why is that an issue? You two are so good together."
"Yeah, I know." Adrian repeated and sighed.
"What is bad in this scenario?" Blaine asked. "I'm sorry. I don't understand. You both have been dating for... two years in October. How has this much time passed?"
"Oh, God. It's almost been two years." Adrian took a deep breath. "Has it been two years? Are you getting hot? I'm getting hot."
"Yes. Almost two years." Blaine repeated. "I don't understand why it's unfathomable for Matt to move with you to New York… or anywhere you want to go. You've even gone on vacations and to his family's holiday stuff."
"I can't just go New York and take a Cambridge police officer with me. That would be taking him away from his entire family. Plus, he's one year younger than me. I can barely support myself let alone another human." Adrian covered his face. "Oh my God. This right here is why I don't date."
"He's not just a 'Cambridge police officer'. He's your boyfriend. I'm also positive he could get a job there so you wouldn't be supporting him. Have you all even talked about this?"
"He doesn't know I've gotten job offers let alone one in New York." Adrian moved his hand from his face long enough to speak and then covered it again. "He doesn't know."
"Why haven't you told him? Aren't you excited?"
"I think he's looking at rings. Oh my God. I feel sick to my stomach." Adrian took a deep breath.
"How do you know?"
"Well, you know I was staying with him last week after he got shot and he fell asleep so I went to move his phone so it wouldn't fall off. He was looking at rings when I was in the shower."
"If I am the only person in this house that isn't engaged—"
"Oh, shut up. You didn't want to 'be engaged' anyway… so why are you telling me to take Matt with me?"
"That was so rude." Blaine scoffed.
"That was the truth. Sorry."
"It was the truth." Blaine sighed. "You two just seem so good together, I guess… would it be the end of the world if he did propose?"
Adrian took two deep breaths and then said, "I think I'm going to puke."
"What would you say?"
"I would say no." Adrian put his hand over his mouth.
"Why?"
"Is it hot in here?" Adrian asked, standing up. "I need some water."
Blaine followed him into the kitchen. "It's a valid question and one that I had to answer. Why would you say no?"
"Because we don't even know each other that well." Adrian took a big gulp of water.
"It's been two years. If you don't know him 'that well' why did you look like you found out someone close had died when you heard he got shot? Why did you stay with him and help him? Why would you do that if you don't love him? Why have you been going to physical therapy with him then? I don't understand."
"I never said I didn't love him but not everyone gets to have the perfect little bow on the box like you've got, alright? Just because you and Kurt have such a perfect relationship doesn't mean that everyone else's is that way." Adrian's voice had rose.
"I'm trying to understand why you went to the hospital and took care of him and all of this stuff but you don't even want to talk about an engagement. Are you scared?"
Adrian looked at him for several seconds, barely blinking. He then spoke, not in his usual tone but one he would use in classes. "Please stop. I'm not comfortable with this conversation anymore. We aren't that close of friends. I'm going upstairs to study."
"I'm sorry?" Blaine looked at him, confused and now feeling guilty.
"It's fine." Adrian asked before going up the stairs.
"All I'm saying is if we can't agree we should stick them all in a hat and—" Wes said as the back door opened.
"That's not how we're choosing our daughter's name, Wes. Oh, hi, Blaine." AJ waved as they came in.
"I… think you may want to go and see Adrian. I think I upset him." Blaine bit his lip.
"He hasn't been in a great mood." AJ said gently. "I'll fix it."
"What happened?" Wes asked when they heard the bedroom door shut again.
"I don't know. He said he wasn't sure he wanted to stay at CMJ or go to New York City… and I figured it was because of Matt and them getting serious because it's been two years. I brought up that Matt could come to New York too and and he said he saw Matt looking at rings and he hasn't—."
"That's as far as you need to go." Wes said.
"What?"
"I don't know details but I know Adrian had a 'very, very, very' bad boyfriend." Wes said. "It's a big thing for him still which is why AJ was so thrilled when he even started dating Matt."
"I wouldn't have said that stuff if I'd know that." Blaine said. "How do you know and I not know?"
"I don't know. Alicia and I talk about our friends." Wes shrugged. "I'm sure whatever you said is fine. It's probably not even you he's mad at."
"He said not everyone has a relationship 'a box with a perfect bow on top.'"
"I know it's not but to people that don't know about your relationship… it probably looks like that. High school sweethearts, going to college, about to move back in together and get your dream jobs." Wes' voice was gentle. "He shouldn't have said that, though. I'm sure he's just freaked out right now because you brought up them living together."
"Yeah, fine." Blaine sighed. "Now I feel really bad… But Matt is always staying over or Adrian is at his place. They spend the night together more than alone. I just… figured…""
"It sounds like Adrian initiated the conversation… I think it'll be fine. It probably got too personal and he didn't want to talk about it anymore. If he got that upset, it's not just from the conversation." Wes shrugged. "Don't feel bad."
Blaine glanced upstairs and then went back into the living room.
Wes followed, plopping on the couch.
"Are you really trying to put names in a hat for the baby?"
"We can't pick. We had the perfect name for a boy picked out but we cannot agree on a girl name."
"I still feel bad." Blaine sighed.
"Everyone pisses each other off eventually. How many times have we and David bickered in the last nine years? It will be fine. Adrian is one of the sweetest people. He won't be mad at you forever… and he's probably not even mad at you." Wes pushed himself into a sitting position.
"But what if he gets a ring and Adrian says no?"
"Then that will have been Adrian's decision and even if they were soulmates, it's still not our place to get involved. Kind of like how I didn't get involve when you and Kurt were going at it in the hotel room at his brother's wedding. I'm sure everything will work out the way it's supposed to."
"Yeah. I guess." Blaine nodded and bent down, picking his book up off the floor.
Back to studying.
Long Time Coming
"Hey!" Blaine, who was in his bedroom the next day, looked up from his book and smiled.
"I got a job! I got a job!" Kurt ran over.
"What?! See, I told you that you would!" Blaine exclaimed, hopping out of the bed and hugging Kurt.
"Oh my God. It's a good thing I was already coming over tonight because I was going to come over anyway." Kurt said quickly, after pulling away.
"So, what happened? I want to know!"
"One of the higher up supervisors asked me if I had a job lined up and I lied and said yes, and he offered me a job!" Kurt bounced a bit. "I mean I'll still probably never even see Marc Jacobs but I don't even care because I have a job!"
"Kurt! See, I told you! I told you that you were freaking out over nothing!"
"That's not even the best part. I made up a fake salary that the fake job gave me and they added $20,000 to their offrt!" Kurt pulled away, grabbing Blaine's hands. "I haven't even told Dad or Carole. I had to tell you first."
"You are trying to act all sweet but that was very conniving!" Blaine laughed.
"It got me an extra $20,000 a year so I don't feel that bad." Kurt shrugged. He then bounced again, arms going around Blaine's neck and pulling him close.
"Okay. We need to do something to celebrate. We should go somewhere to eat or— what do you want to do?" Blaine asked, pulling back so he could see Kurt.
"I really just wanted to spend time with you. I don't care what we do." Kurt said earnestly.
Blaine kissed him, pulling him closer.
"Your bedroom door is open and I am too excited for that. I'm sorry! Plus, my stomach has been upset so that might not be a good idea anyway unless you want to bott—."
"Yes. Please." Blaine didn't let him finish.
"Okay but I need food first." Kurt pulled back. "I'm sorry! I literally got in my car, asked David if he could let Kreacher out, and drove here. I know, I've never made us wait to have sex but I'm just too excited and anxious and… I have a real job in actual New York City in fashion!"
"Did I just hear you got a job?" Wes said, popping through the open doorway.
"Yes!" Kurt waved. "Hi. I need to calm down."
"Don't calm down! That's exciting!" Wes grinned. "Congrats!"
"Aaah, thanks."
"He even weaseled an extra $20,000 a year acting like he had another offer." Blaine said.
"You've been around David too much." Wes laughed.
"That was my first thought but then I thought of food…" Blaine shrugged his shoulders.
"You would." Wes laughed again. "You two should go celebrate but I want to hear about it later!"
"I'm starving, Blaine." Kurt looked at him.
"Okay, let's go." Blaine grabbed a sweatshirt and his wallet.
"I'm driving." Kurt said once they made it downstairs. "I don't trust you."
"They hit me!" Blaine scoffed. "How is that my fault? Excuse me for driving when I've got the green light."
…
"Are you awake?" Kurt whispered later that night, in Blaine's bed with him and still undressed.
"Yeah." Blaine rolled over to face him, smiling.
"You haven't been bottom in a while. I didn't hurt you, did I?" Kurt asked.
"No." Blaine promised, looking at Kurt.
Kurt pushed himself into a sitting position, covering his lower half with Blaine's sheet. "I just…"
Blaine pushed himself up too, wincing just the tiniest bit. "I'm fine. Don't worry."
Kurt took a deep breath.
"What?"
"This time last year everything was in shambles. I was having nightmares. And that guy attacked you are that party… and we were just starting to talk about taking steps to getting back to this point." Kurt said slowly. "I just… I'm so happy that we are here, like this, right now. I want to share all of these thigs with you and I get to now."
"I love you so much." Blaine looked him in the eyes. "I want to share all of these things with you too. Jobs and anniversaries and eventually kids."
"The difference a year makes is crazy. That so many things can happen in 364 days and… and somehow, they all fell together perfectly for us. We get to move into that nice apartment and I'll be able to pay my own loans…" Kurt's face was serious. "I'm very glad for that."
Blaine squeezed his thigh. "You know I would have had no problem doing it."
"I do." Kurt promised. "It's important to me to do it, though."
"I understand that." Blaine nodded. "I told you that one day you'd make more money than me. I know you can do it… and that you will do it."
"I feel the same way about law school for you. I know the first year I wasn't… happy… but I understand now."
Blaine squeezed his thigh again. "I'm really glad we're here too, Kurt. We worked hard for it."
"Yeah." Kurt touched his face.
"Sometimes when I think about how much I love you I want to cry. It's so overwhelming." Blaine bit his lip. "When we weren't together… I knew I could never feel this way about anyone else. That was almost the worst part… knowing I could never love someone the way I love you."
"I could never either." Kurt looked into his eyes.
"I just love you so much and I'm really proud of you." Blaine sniffled.
"Oh my God, don't start that or I'll lose it. My emotions are all over the place right now."
"I'm sorry." Blaine half laughed, laugh cried. "At least I have the excuse of changing medicine, though."
"I'm so proud of you." Kurt hugged him. "And us. I'm really proud of us as a couple."
Blaine nodded.
Kurt gave him a big squeeze. "You are so special. You really are. I hope you know that."
"You too." Blaine wiped his eyes. "I need this school year to end and maybe I can go two weeks without wanting to cry."
Kurt laughed and moved them both into laying positions, his arms around Blaine from behind. "Well, soon the first semester will be over."
"Can we stop talking and have sex again?" Blaine asked, rolling over.
"Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you."
"Oh yes. I am very, very sure." Blaine laid flat on his back and pulled Kurt on top of him.
Kurt reached over, grabbing a bottle off of the nightstand where Blaine had put it. "I think we need this again."
Blaine laughed a bit and then pulled Kurt's head back down for a kiss.
Long Time Coming
"Can we talk?" Adrian asked, coming and sitting next to Blaine in their usual lunch spot the next day.
"Yes."
"I am sorry that I got so defensive other night…" Adrian put his fork so it was standing in his salad. "If I had known it was going to get stuck I wouldn't have done that. I promise that wasn't me being passive aggressive."
"I think that would count as aggressive." Blaine laughed.
"Look, I… shouldn't have gotten so upset by your questions." Adrian swallowed. "I have a hard time… uhm, being in a relationship long term and didn't really intend to still be with Matt right now."
"That's your business."
"It's why I got upset. Everything you said was true. It's been two years and I should be really happy that he's looking at rings but I can't be." Adrian took a deep breath.
"Adrian, it's your business. You don't have to explain."
"It's not that I don't want that but I just… I can't. He means a lot to me and he's such a good person… and I know I'm going to end up completely crushing his heart because of something that isn't even his fault." Adrian put a hand over his mouth. "I'm a horrible person."
"No, you're not." Blaine said gently, leaning over. "Listen… I don't know much but Wes told me you had a horrible boyfriend… I don't know details and I don't want to… but you aren't a horrible person for how you feel."
"I did this in undergrad too. This guy was so in love with me and I wanted it so bad but there's something wrong with me." Adrian took a deep breath. "And I said I wouldn't do it to somebody again and it's been two years with Matt and you're right. He got shot and I went to the hospital and I stayed with him and even went to some of the physical therapy appointments. Who does that?"
"Someone that loves him?"
"I do." Adrian let out another deep breath. "I didn't want to move in because my roommates got engaged. It's because he showed up at… at the house. They didn't know who he was and let him in and he was just sitting on the couch when I got home one day."
"Matt?"
"No. My ex. He does this. Once every year or year and a half he will find me and just show up. It's disgusting and I can never move on because I never know when he's going to show up. What if he showed up at Matt's house? Or our house? AJ would lose it and probably go into preterm labor or something." Adrian had started to cry. "It's just too much. It's too much to fully trust someone and it's too much to try to explain why after this long I just… don't want to be in the relationship anymore."
"Do you have an EPO on this guy?"
"I have a permanent one in three states. He doesn't care. Plus, he could be fifty feet away and I would still get just as physically sick as I do when I see his face. Oh, God. I can't go to class. I need to go home."
Blaine stood and grabbed Adrian's bag. "I'll drive you."
Adrian nodded, hand covering his mouth. As soon as they made it to the parking lot, he leaned over and vomited behind a bush.
Blaine leaned over too, hand on his back.
"Sorry. I'm fine. I'm fine." Adrian straightened himself. "Can we go home?"
"Yeah." Blaine's voice was gentle. "Let's go."
Adrian handed him the car keys and then got into the passenger seat.
Blaine walked around, getting into the driver's seat and starting the car.
"I'm sorry you have to miss a class." Adrian said, head tilted back against the head rest and looking at the roof of his car.
"Don't even apologize." Blaine watched him.
"Drive. I'm fine. I'm not going to puke." Adrian sniffled.
Blaine drove in silence and then went to open the passenger door for Adrian.
"Thanks. I'm fine. I promise." Adrian grabbed his bag. "Can you not tell AJ or Wes about this? Please?"
"I won't." Blaine opened the front door for Adrian.
Adrian headed straight for the bathroom and Blaine heard him throwing up again.
He grabbed his phone, his finger hovering over AJ's name, and then he clicked Bob's phone number—the personal one.
Is it okay if I come in tomorrow morning instead of this afternoon?
Bob answered within a minute—just two short sentences. Yep. I hope everything is okay.
Blaine set his phone down when Adrian came back in, sitting on the couch. "Can I get you some water or something?"
"I'm fine." Adrian forced a smile. "You didn't text AJ, did you? I'm fine."
"No. I told you I wouldn't." Blaine sat next to him.
"Thanks." Adrian leaned over, his head resting against Blaine's shoulder. That was a first. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay." Blaine whispered, reaching over with his other arm and ruffling his hair. "It's okay."
Adrian pulled his own phone out of his pocket, opening it up to his texts with Matt. He then put his phone on the couch beside him—almost like it was a comfort thing.
Blaine sat silently, waiting for Adrian to say something. After a few minutes, he spoke. "Adrian?"
"Yeah?" Adrian asked, voice barely above a whisper.
"Why don't you tell Matt? He's a police officer. He can protect you."
"I'm going to tell him tonight." Adrian sat up straight.
"You are?" Blaine looked at him.
"Yeah. I think so." Adrian took a deep breath. "I really love him."
"I knew you were lying when you said you didn't." Blaine nodded. "He loves you too."
"I know." Adrian leaned over, his head resting on Blaine's shoulder again. "Is this okay?"
"Yes." Blaine whispered back. "We're there."
Adrian relaxed against Blaine and was fast asleep within five minutes.
Long Time Coming
"You may have a problem when you come in the morning and you get here before me." Bob said, coming up to the door.
"Good morning." Blaine moved out of his way.
"We don't know if it's going to be good yet." Bob held the door open for him. "Was everything okay yesterday? Both you and Adrian didn't show up."
"Adrian got sick at school yesterday. I took him home but didn't want to leave him alone." Blaine said as he walked into the building— and it wasn't entirely a lie. "Sorry about that."
"No, it's fine. I wanted to make sure you hadn't decided to withdraw or that something hadn't happened in your family. I was worried I gave you an idea."
"No." Blaine laughed a bit. "Nothing that eventful this week so far."
"It's only Tuesday. Don't jinx it." Bob unlocked his office door and went to his desk. "How do I already have a voicemail? I didn't leave until 10:30 last night."
"That's pretty late."
"Yeah. Jeff, Tammy, and me locked in the conference room from 4:30 until 10." Bob groaned, looking up when Ryan came in.
"Was it about a buyout?"
"No." Bob looked confused.
"Well everyone else thinks we are merging with the what's-their-face firm in Boston." Ryan shrugged. "Just a heads up. Hey, Blaine, is Adrian feeling better?"
"Yeah, it was just a bug." Blaine said.
"Oh, great. I bet Jamie will bring it home. He brings everything home." Ryan groaned and left Bob's office.
Blaine looked at Bob, confused.
"His partner is a doctor. Jamie brings it home, gives it to the kids, and they give it to Ryan. It happens every time there's a bug going around."
"Well that sucks." Blaine felt kind of bad for lying but didn't say anything. "Why does everyone think the office is merging?"
"I don't know." Bob said as his cell phone began to ring. "This is… hey… are you throwing up? … Do you have a fever? … Did you call Mommy? … Yeah, let me try her. If I can't get her I will come and get you but you have to sit in the office with me until she gets off work or she can come get you… This isn't because you don't want to go to art club after school is it? … Do you promise?... Okay. I love you too. Bye."
Bob sighed and grabbed a post it off his desk as his phone started to ring again.
"No, you are not leaving school because your sister is… I heard you playing Fortnite at three in the morning. If you want to stay up all night on a school night, you have to deal with it… You can't out argue a lawyer. I've had ten years of law school… bye, Sam." Bob hung up. "Don't have boys, Blaine."
Blaine laughed as his phone rang again.
"Sam, seriously—oh, hey. Can you get her? I can but I've got court later. Probably twelve to two. No… yeah, if you can get her by 11:45… If not I can try to talk Ryan into it… that sounds good. I love you. Alright, bye."
"Have to go?" Blaine asked.
"I'll be back in twenty minutes or so. I think Adrian was due in if you don't want to stare at the wall." Bob grabbed his jacket, giving Blaine a pointed look. "See what I said about jinxing a good morning?"
"Sorry." Blaine laughed and went to find Adrian, who was in Ryan's office. "Hey."
"Hey." Adrian looked up from his stack of paper. "What's up?"
"Bob left to get one of his kids from school."
"Which one?" Ryan looked up from his computer.
"It sounded like a girl judging by the different tone with the son that called after."
"She's so cute." Ryan said.
"How many does he have?" Blaine asked.
"Four. Three boys and the youngest is a girl. I think she's seven or eight." Ryan looked thoughtful. "Three are still at home, though. They had their first kid right before his last year of law school. Knowing Bob, that probably wasn't planned… I don't know how I would function with four kids. God, I don't want to think about it."
Adrian snorted.
"Can I do anything for you?" Blaine asked Ryan.
"I don't even have anything to do today for myself… nothing that needs to be done within the week at least." Ryan sighed. "Adrian is working on that of his own free will. It's been a bit slower than usual. But you're more than welcome to sit in here."
Blaine sat in the other chair next to Adrian.
Mallory walked in. "Where's Bob?"
"He left saying something about being the superior child, I think." Ryan said with a straight face.
"You aren't cute. Seriously, though?" Mallory sighed. "I need him to sign something."
Ryan held out his hand.
"You better tell him this time." Mallory said, handing him the sheet.
Ryan scribbled something that looked exactly like Bob's signature.
"You shouldn't be this good at forging signatures." Mallory took the paper back and left.
"Hey, where is Bob?" A first-year intern came in with a paper right after.
"Oh, just start a line outside my office why don't you?" Ryan joked as he took the paper.
"Is this even legal?"
"I have been signing his name on stuff for fifteen years." was all Ryan said as he handed the paper back.
"Should I tell Vince or…?"
"That's up to you."
"Did you even look at the paper?" he asked.
"Does Bob ever look at the paper?" Ryan asked right back.
"True facts." The guy walked out.
"They could get Jeff or Tammy to sign it but they still bring it to me." Ryan sighed.
"Hey, were's B—"
"Seriously? I'm not his keeper—Jamie, what are you doing here?"
"You forgot your garage key and your coffee." The guy held out a coffee cup, grinning. "I figured you would want access to the house when you got home."
"I knew there was a reason I had babies with you." Ryan perked up, taking his coffee cup. "Well, you know."
"Playing Bob today?"
"No one needs anything until he leaves." Ryan groaned. "He has not left in the middle of the day for something other than a case in forever but every time he does, it's like an alarm goes off. 'Better get all of your stuff signed from Bob.'"
"You two look half dead inside." Jamie said cheerfully, looking at Adrian and Blaine . "Are you graduating soon?"
Before they could answer, Bob came in with his daughter in his arms. Immediately after, another intern came in. "Bob, can you sign this?"
"Ryan, can you sign that?" Bob sighed. "Hey, Jamie."
Ryan took the paper from the girl and signed it without even looking at it.
"Oh no. What's wrong with you, Emily?" Jamie asked.
"I'm dying." The girl said, arms wrapping around Bob's neck and burying her face against him.
Bob rolled his eyes, patting her back. "I think it's just a stomach bug."
She raised her head up. "No, Daddy. I'm dying."
"Okay. We'll go pick out a coffin when Mommy gets here."
She giggled into his neck and he laughed at her.
"Are you going to let me put you down?"
"No." Her voice was muffled. Blaine had never seen anyone so 'no' to Bob.
"Even when Mommy comes?"
"No."
"Okay then."
"He tells grown adults no all day and can't say it to a seven-year-old." Ryan laughed.
"If I make Emily or Sarah angry, my homelife is nonexistent. You try having one of them mad. It's not pleasant." Bob sighed. "Thank you for signing the stuff people are too afraid to bring to me and decide it needs signed the second I leave."
Ryan gave him a look.
"I don't know why they wait. I don't tell them to do it." Bob said. "Well, one day I did because I was busy and you weren't but that is the only time."
"Yeah. The time when it started." Ryan snorted.
"Okay. She's getting heavy. Blaine, I'll be in my office."
"I'm coming." Blaine stood. "See you guys."
Adrian mouthed 'take me with you' and Ryan threw a pen in his general direction.
His daughter raised her head. "Sam said I'm annoying on the way to school, Daddy."
"Tell him he's annoying." Bob said, walking into his office.
"I did and then Mommy said I need to quit taking your advice."
Blaine had a very hard time not laughing out loud.
"Well I can't say anything against Mommy. I'll get in trouble. I guess you better listen to her." Bob went to set her down.
"No. You have to hold me."
"I need to work, Emily."
"Mommy would hold me."
"Do you want to play with my phone?" Bob sighed. "I'll hold you when I get home from work."
"Fine." She held out her hand and then went to curl up in one of the chairs in front of Bob's desk.
"Don't even say anything, Blaine." Bob said when Blaine opened his mouth.
"Okay. I won't." Blaine sat back at his desk, grinning a bit.
"Daddy, what's your IQ?" Emily asked after five minutes of silence.
"I don't know and I don't know why because having an IQ and being smart are not the same. You can have a high IQ and be stupid."
"Mommy doesn't like that word."
Blaine had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. Grown adults were nervous to even get a signature from Bob, yet his seven year old daughter couldn't have cared less.
"Speaking of Mommy, Daddy hopes she gets here soon."
Emily turned so her back was to Bob and started a video.
"Do you see this?" Bob gestured to her.
"I see a Daddy's girl." Blaine got up and grabbed some papers off Bob's desk.
"God, please don't say that around Mallory. I might fire you."
"No, he won't." Emily said, her back still to them. "He likes you too much."
"How would you even know that?" Bob asked.
"Cause you let him take your stuff. You don't like it when people take your stuff." Emily turned so she was facing them and frowned.
"Hi, there!" A very pretty woman walked in.
Emily immediately started crying and said, "Mommy, I don't feel goooood."
"She feels good enough to watch Taylor Swift videos." Bob said as the woman picked up Emily, who instantly stopped crying.
"Of course she does. It's Taylor." The woman said. "Hi, are you Blaine?"
"Yeah. Hi." Blaine got up and shook her hand.
"I've heard a lot about you! Are you excited to almost be done with law school?"
"At this point I kind of want to crawl into a hole but I'll feel better about it in May when it's over." Blaine laughed.
"Robert was the same way." She smiled. "It'll be over soon."
Bob pulled a face when she said his full first name.
"Okay. I'm sure she has distracted you both enough so we're going to go lay in bed and watch the Taylor Swift concert… again."
"We love it." Emily told Blaine excitedly.
"One of us at least." His wife went to kiss Bob. "Can you leave on time today?"
"I'll try." Bob promised and ruffled Emily's hair. "See you later."
"By six."
"By 6:30."
"You didn't make it home until 11 last night."
"Well…"
"6:15 or I'm going to look up more home hacks on Pinterest."
"Six it is." Bob sighed as they left.
Another person Bob couldn't say no to, apparently.
"Your daughter is cute." Blaine said cheerfully.
"She's a ham is what she is." Bob corrected Blaine.
"She's also a Daddy's girl, isn't she?" Blaine grinned.
"Sort those papers, Blaine." Bob said.
"I will… but if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck it's usually…"
"If you finish that statement, you're listing the torts again."
"That is so rude." Blaine sighed mock sadly and returned to the paperwork.
…
Blaine could tell right away that Matt knew about Adrian's ex when he came into the house later that night. He hadn't even changed into his normal clothes—something he always made a point to do now that AJ had made been making jokes about roleplaying.
"Hey." Matt said, not sounding near as cheerful like he usually did.
Blaine had a feeling he hadn't gone home the night before… or gotten much sleep, by looking at him.
"Hey." Blaine looked up from his notes. "How are you?"
"I've been better." Matt admitted.
"How's your shoulder? Wait, how did you drive here?"
"I'm ambidextrous. I haven't been using my left arm or hand is all." Matt shrugged and winced. "I keep forgetting I can't do that without feeling like my arm is going to burst into flames. I never realized how much I shrugged until I got shot."
Adrian came downstairs and walked right up to him. "Did you not take your pain medicine?"
Matt forced a smile when he saw Adrian. "No. I drove here after work."
"I know you have to drive to work but I could have picked you up at your place… or even the station."
Matt gave a real smile. "I'm fine. Trust me. If I wasn't okay to drive, they wouldn't let me back to work."
"Wait." Blaine said. "Like legitimately back to work?"
"No. Dad wouldn't let me come back unless it was only desk work." Matt sighed. "I'm just so bored even that sounds appealing. Human interaction, you know. I'm too much of a talker."
"Your dad?" Blaine asked.
"My dad is the chief… and one of my older brothers is a sergeant." Matt shrugged his shoulder again and cursed.
"Family business?"
"Not exactly. I didn't want to go to college right out of high school, so he made me take police courses… and I had to take other regular classes to get to the advanced police ones because it was kind of cool… and then somehow I ended up getting a degree in it and there's only one police force in Cambridge, so… I work under my dad and brother." Matt said. "The plan was always to eventually go to school for a 'real degree' two years ago but my mom wants me close and the job pays well…"
"You can always go back to school later." Blaine said.
"I probably will eventually… or at least move up in law. I don't know. I feel like if 'real' school is meant to happen, it will happen. Plus, I may even get a dog out of being a police officer eventually so yay." Matt raised his good arm.
Adrian led Matt to the couch and put his head on Matt's chest when they were both seated.
"Was there really a bomb at the post office today?" Blaine asked.
"No. It was probably some teenager calling it in. It came from a payphone… which I didn't know we even had anymore. Apparently, it's downtown on Fifth Street in case you wanted to know… but you probably didn't. Because I definitely didn't."
Adrian snorted but didn't raise his head.
"Do we have a drug cartel?" Blaine tilted his head.
"No." Matt laughed.
"How sure are you?"
"Pretty sure. I mean, I'm sure there are groups but nothing as big as a cartel. Boston may have one. They've got higher crime rates."
"Is our mayor corrupt?"
"Aren't most people in leadership positions? Oh, did I say that out loud? Whoops."
Blaine snorted.
"Do little kids come up and try to get your gun?"
"Not often but they can't get to it anyway… and the safety is always on."
Blaine looked thoughtful. "Do you all ride on a float in the parades?"
"No. I usually ride on the motorcycle and do the siren to get people out of the streets beforehand… when I'm not doing that, I try to get free lemonade and popcorn. The badge has some perks." Matt looked thoughtful.
"Speaking of perks, have you ever drove with your lights and sirens just to get through rush hour traffic?"
"Of course not."
"Seriously?"
"If I'm in the car, I'm getting paid. Why would I want to give up that extra $5 worth of bumper to bumper traffic? That's a whole meal at McDonalds."
"So, you have never used your lights and sirens as a shortcut to getting somewhere quick?" Blaine asked.
"No." Matt shook his head.
"That is really depressing. If I was a police officer, I would probably do that all of the time." Blaine tilted his head. "Do you text and drive?"
"No."
"Okay. If you're at a red light, do you text?"
"Not if I'm in the police car. If I'm in my car, though, yeah."
"Where are the actual perks?!"
"Listen, I can walk into a restaurant and people offer to pay for my food. Someone gave me two gift cards to the movie theater just because I had a police t-shirt on. I wasn't even on duty; I just hadn't done laundry and it was the only thing clean."
Adrian snorted again, still not moving his head.
"Occasional free food and a free movie? That's it?"
"I get to ride the motorcycle and use a siren where people aren't allowed to walk before parades. Trust me, my six year old self would be very happy with that."
"There has to be better perks." Blaine said, looking at him. "Level with me."
Matt counted on his fingers. "I have a free car that goes really fast and I don't have to pay for the gas. I have an awesome belt with a taser and a baton that I can hit people with, and I have a really nice gun with high-capacity magazines. That's a lot of bullets. I get to do tactical training every once in a while, which is like the coolest thing ever. I get to do car chases. Car chases! I get to see attractive firefighters multiple times a day and that is definitely a perk."
"That would be." Adrian said, sitting up.
"This is what I'm more interested in." Blaine said.
"Dude, I delivered a baby in a Wal-Mart once. I didn't know what the hell I was doing but she pushed and I pulled and then there was a baby… I actually knew for a fact I would never experiment with a girl after that... Not that I ever really had doubts but… I mean I don't know how you could want to after seeing that up close."
"Okay, I'm not interested in that." Blaine made a face. "Any more good things?"
"It was so easy to get laid. I didn't even have to look. They'd come to me."
Adrian looked at him and scoffed.
"Sorry." Matt made a face. "It is true, though. Well, was true obviously."
"I don't like the direction this conversation is going so I'm stealing my boyfriend back, Blaine. Sorry." Adrian hopped up. "He needs to take his medicine anyway."
"Fine. Don't distract me from reading. That's alright." Blaine groaned. "I didn't want to talk to you anymore anyway."
Long Time Coming
"I know I'm early, but I thought you had your internship today!" Kurt said, coming into the house.
Blaine, who was on the couch and looking down at a text book, looked up. "Hey!"
"Now I'm glad I went ahead and came." Kurt smiled, going to sit by him. "Why are you still in your pajamas? It's four."
"I skipped two of my classes and Bob took a personal day since his kids were off of school." Blaine moved his book to the coffee table.
"Wait, what?" Kurt put the back of his hand to Blaine's forehead. "Are you sick? You don't have a fever."
"No… I had a talk with Bob, though, and he pretty much said it's better to skip classes than to end up in the hospital with panic attacks… so I skipped my two classes and I've literally been on the couch all day. It's amazing." Blaine said.
"Are you sure?" Kurt touched his neck. "Did you hit your head?"
"I mean… it was two classes I didn't really need for what I want to go into anyway. I can get the notes… and I was able to get two assignments done for the classes that are actually important." Blaine shrugged. "The medicine might be helping more too."
"I… think that's good?" Kurt kissed him. "Bob really told you it was okay to skip classes?"
"Yeah! I have a feeling he won't feel the same next semester when I'm in his class, but we'll see." Blaine smiled.
"But you feel better? Have you gotten more sleep?"
"More than before… probably not the recommended amount per day, but it's improvement regardless." Blaine leaned against him.
They both jumped when AJ let out a shriek from upstairs. They then heard Adrian very loudly go "Stop. It!"
"What is that about?" Kurt asked.
"It could be anything. Anything."
Wes, who had been in the kitchen, came into the living room. "Oh, hey, Kurt!"
"Hi." Kurt smiled and waved as there was a bang upstairs and then an, "I told you not to do that."
"What… are they doing?" Wes asked.
Blaine shrugged.
Wes walked to the stairs and called up, "What are you doing?"
AJ went to the top of the stairs. "I can't show you but it involves the word shirtless."
"Shut. Up!" Adrian called.
"Well now I have to go look." Wes said before going upstairs. Kurt and Blaine heard him go, "Hot damn."
"I swear to God, I will kill you both and you'll never get to see your child. Is that what you want? An orphaned child?" Adrian came downstairs, a bulky folder in his hand.
"No, don't take them away." AJ hobbled down the stairs behind him. "I didn't know you still had them. You're just so cute. And really hot."
Kurt had to try so hard to not laugh watching her come down the stairs. So hard.
"I will cut you. Seriously." Adrian went behind the couch where Kurt and Blaine were still sitting.
"You won't cut me because I'm pregnant."
Blaine looked at Wes and titled his head.
"There's shirtless photos in there. Nice ones." Wes shrugged.
"Nice? That is better than nice, okay? This is top quality shirtless pictures." AJ scoffed. "My hormones are feeling all kinds of things I never wanted to feel for you, Adrian, but oh my God."
"Wait, what?" Blaine looked at Adrian.
"AJ found picture of when I modeled and actually had abs. Now she's turned into a pregnant horn dog and wants to keep them." Adrian looked distressed. "If you ever say that about me again, AJ, we can never be as close as we are now. I'm talking no cuddles or anything. Ever. Don't cross that line."
"If I have the pictures, I'll make do." AJ shrugged. They could tell she was not kidding.
"Seriously?" Wes asked. "I'm right here."
"You won't have sex with me anymore. Don't get me started." She glared at Wes. "Maybe if you would I wouldn't have to resort to looking at my gay best friend's pictures from when he modeled when he was younger."
"Please put these under the couch. She can't get onto the floor to get it out." Adrian handed Blaine the folder when she was distracted.
Blaine took the folder and put it under the couch, like a sane person. Kurt watched him do it and then looked to Adrian again. He then looked back to the floor.
"No, Kurt. No." Adrian said when Kurt opened his mouth. He then turned to Wes. "Have sex with your fiancé so she will quit snooping in my room, Wes! Oh my God!"
"What if it pokes the baby?" Wes exclaimed right back as Matt came in the front door. "I can't handle it, okay?"
"Oh, God. You work out. You probably would have liked his pre-law school body a lot more, Matt. There's photos." AJ went over to Matt.
"I feel like I just walked into a very odd situation." Matt said, looking around the room at everybody. "I was just bringing…"
"Cookies on your lunch break. We know you two are cute and in love. Don't flaunt it." AJ sighed and left the room.
"Blaine, can you get the folder?" Adrian asked anxiously.
Blaine handed it to him.
"Please take this and hide it. Burn it. I don't care." Adrian took the bag of cookies from Matt and handed him the folder.
Matt opened the folder, tilted his head, and shrugged. "I mean they're nice but I like you better now."
"You're such a liar but thank you." Adrian looked at Matt. "Can we stay at your place tonight?"
"You better leave the pictures!" AJ called from the kitchen.
"I really want to see these…" Kurt cut in.
Matt pulled the first picture out and held it for Kurt and Blaine to see.
"Great. Now that we all know I have nipples, can we move on with our lives?" Adrian snapped, taking the folder back. "Obviously Blaine is my only true friend."
Blaine cringed.
"What?" Adrian sighed.
"It was a really nice picture." Blaine looked apologetic. "I'm sorry."
"And you." Adrian looked at Matt.
"Oh, like they weren't curious. You'll be fine." Matt grinned.
"I'm telling your mom." Adrian bit into one of the cookies, glaring at him. "And it's probably your fault I don't have abs anymore. You keep bringing me cookies."
"He's so cute when he's mad." Matt told Blaine, still holding the folder.
Blaine shrugged a shoulder.
"Bye." Adrian told Matt before walking upstairs.
"It looks like you're in trouble." Kurt said, glancing towards the stairs.
"He'll be alright." Matt said as his walkie-talkie went off. "See you all later!"
Kurt looked at Blaine after the door closed. "I would want to skip too if that's what I missed when I was in class."
"It's usually not quite this dramatic."
"Just so we're clear, though, that picture…"
"Let's agree to not talk about it, okay?"
"Yeah, that is probably for the best." Kurt looked thoughtful. "I don't even remember what we were talking about before that."
"My mental state." Blaine said.
"Yeah, how is that going?"
"God, when I talked to Bob I cried like three times." Blaine groaned, completely forgetting about Adrian.
"What?" Kurt looked concerned.
"I was talking about how stressed I was and I've just been so overwhelmed. He told me about his last year—he was married with a baby and they lived five hours apart. He apparently ended up in the hospital for panic attacks twice. He withdrew two months into the first semester and went home because he missed his family and he didn't know if his baby even knew he was it's dad." Blaine said. "And he talked about how hard long-distance relationships are."
"Oh, wow. That's personal." Kurt was surprised.
"Yeah… He was talking about how your last year makes you regret it and not want to finish… but that it was worth it in the end after it's all over. And then he mentioned how it must be harder for me with the family stuff and I just started blubbering. It was horrible. Then I told him I shouldn't be crying in front of him and he was nice. Then I told him about the medicine and how it hadn't been helping and then I told him I thought I might be crazy and he was great and it sucked. He told me we didn't even have to talk about it again which I appreciated… but it's like he really cares which is nice but is that weird?"
"I don't think it's weird that he would care… you've been interning with him for two years and he's gotten to know you. I'm sure he can tell when you're really upset over something and he probably really wants you to feel better." Kurt grabbed Blaine's hand.
"He told me I was really smart and all of this other stuff…. And he said I'm going to be a really good lawyer and that he's excited to have me on his team. He's one of the top three layers in the state and apparently in the top fifteen of the country and he's excited for me to be on his team. Maybe he's the crazy one."
"No." Kurt said. "I think he's probably had tons of interns and can tell who will be good and who won't… You had a paid internship in your second year, Blaine. I don't think that happens to a lot of people… and you said it was super competitive to even get the internship in the first place. It seems like everybody but you knows how good you are at this and how good you will be."
"Or you're all crazy."
"No." Kurt said again. "But he told you to skip classes?"
"Yeah and he gave me the week off at the internship." Blaine nodded. "It's why I've had the extra time for phone calls… he actually told me to use the extra time for that, too."
Kurt smiled and ruffled his hair. "It sounds like you've got a good boss that cares about you. That's good."
"Yeah. He's so smart too. I feel like half of the office is scared of him but I mean, honestly he reminds me of Burt. That person who is everybody's dad." Blaine laughed a bit.
"He would have to be smart to have his own firm and to be in the top fifteen in the country." Kurt nodded.
"Yeah. And he's got four kids and his wife is really pretty and sweet." Blaine nodded. "She's got some high up job too but I can't remember what it is."
"I bet their kids are smart."
"His oldest son is going into medical school." Blaine sighed.
"You feel better after talking to him, though?"
"A lot better… hearing it from somebody that's been through it. Another lawyer was talking about how hard it was for him in the last year too. It doesn't make it easier but it's encouraging to know I'm not alone in feeling like I'm going crazy."
Kurt smiled and squeezed his shoulder. "You are a little crazy."
"Hey!" Blaine laughed. "I would have to be to be with you."
Kurt bumped shoulders with him and grabbed his hand, squeezing it. "You aren't a walk in the park either."
Blaine smiled, laying his head on Kurt's shoulder. "Kurt?"
"Yeah?" Kurt pulled back to look at him.
"I'm sorry for getting the ring last year and acting like I was ready to propose when I wasn't." Blaine sighed. "Adrian was freaking out over Matt looking at rings and I just… I shouldn't have gotten a ring to make things better between us… because it wasn't something that I wanted… and it wasn't fair to throw that in your face when I didn't even… really want it. I really regret that… I feel like I ruined something special for us."
"No." Kurt kissed his shoulder. "You didn't… and it's okay that you aren't ready yet. Things are crazy right now. Everything is in disarray around us. It will happen when the time is right for both of us and it will still be just as special even if you threw a ring at my face in anger."
Blaine laughed a bit. "I can't believe I did that."
"I can." Kurt laughed. "You get really emotional."
Blaine nodded. "Yeah. Especially lately… but I really am sorry, Kurt. You didn't deserve that."
"It's okay." Kurt leaned forward and kissed him. "But when I ask you better say yes."
"Jut don't ask me until I pass the Bar, okay?" Blaine pulled back.
"I can handle that." Kurt sighed a bit and then smiled.
"What?"
"How were you going to do it? Did you have a plan?"
"Yeah… I was going to do it at your grandparent's house last year on the 23rd." Blaine admitted. "It was weird, though, because that's the day we got back together."
"Really?" Kurt looked at him.
"Yeah." Blaine nodded. "Really."
"That would have been really sweet." Kurt laid his head on Blaine's shoulder. "But why did you have it with you at Spring Break?"
"I was freaking out because I thought I was going to lose you. I don't know. I thought I needed to do something big to… save us?"
Kurt squeezed Blaine's thigh.
"I honestly don't know how I would be able to function without you right now. Everything has been so crazy and I've been crazy but you've just… grounded me and made me feel loved and supported. I'm so thankful for you… I always am but I'm extra thankful now." Blaine's voice was just above a whisper.
"I feel the same way. You missed classes after Dad's heart attack. That meant so much to me. I don't think I could have handled it without you there. You were so calm and you were just… there. Not even physically, just… there in so many ways. Thank you." Kurt took a deep breath. "That meant everything."
Blaine leaned up, kissing the top of Kurt's head.
Kurt squeezed his hand and let out a little sigh. "You are going to be such a good dad one day. I can't wait."
"Oh God. I don't even want to think about that. Let me get through the Bar and getting married." Blaine said quickly.
"I know but… you will be. I can't wait for you and me to have our own family. I can't wat to see you as a dad because you are going to love our kids so much more than you know."
"What if… I don't?" Blaine pulled back.
"You will." Kurt squeezed his hand. "We both will."
Blaine leaned back against him. "It doesn't scare me as much to think about it like it did before."
"Probably because we're in such a better place." Kurt squeezed his hand again.
Adrian came downstairs. "Matt took that folder, right?"
"Yes." Kurt laughed, sitting up.
"Good. Do you guys want to go and get ice cream? I really don't want to go look crazy alone."
Kurt looked at Blaine.
"I don't turn down soft serve." Blaine hopped up.
"Just out of curiosity… how old were you in that picture?" Kurt asked as they walked out the door.
"Sixteen. Maybe barely seventeen. I honestly try to block that whole period out to be honest." Adrian zipped up his jacket. "It already feels like winter."
"Halloween is next week." Blaine pointed out.
"God… that means finals are coming up." Adrian sighed. "If we all three fail them all, want to drop out together?"
"Oh my God." Kurt scoffed. "Neither of you are going to fail. You both have to know you're going to pass with flying colors. You always do. Why do you two do this?"
"Stop jinxing it." Adrian shook Kurt's shoulder a bit.
"So, are you and Matt going to get married any time soon?" Kurt asked.
"Why is everyone obsessed with me and Matt getting married?" Adrian threw his hands in the air.
"You guys have been together like two years." Kurt pointed out.
"Almost, yeah. At the end of October… It is the end of October." Adrian nodded. "But we haven't really talked about it much."
"Much?" Blaine asked. "Much? You all have talked about it at all?"
"Yes." Adrian said slowly.
"Wait. The last time we talked you were freaking out that you saw he had been looking at rings." Baine stopped walking. "And now you've talked about getting engaged?"
"Well… I talked to him about everything and… I'm going to move in with him in April when my lease is up here."
"Shut up!" Blaine's mouth dropped. "Seriously?"
"I… yeah." Adrian shrugged. "Yeah. And I think he's coming to New York with me."
"But did you tell him that you knew he was looking at rings?"
"Yeah." Adrian nodded.
"I need more than 'yeah' here, Adrian!" Blaine exclaimed.
"We talked about everything with my ex and… we've spent every night together since then between his place and ours. He wants to be around and I really like having him around. I like seeing him every single day and getting to sleep together every night and… I don't know!" Adrian looked embarrassed. "Plus, I like to make sure he takes his medicine."
"For what?" Kurt asked.
"He got shot two weeks ago."
"Wh… Where? He was just walking and talking fine. What?"
"His shoulder. He acts like he doesn't need the medicine but he does." Adrian explained.
"I feel like I am missing 90% of this story." Kurt looked between Blaine and Adrian.
"Long story short: I have a really bad ex and—"
"Your ex shot Matt?"
"No. There was a drug bust and his vest just… failed. He's going to be fine, though." Adrian said. "Let's not talk about that. That stresses me out."
"You all for real talked about it, though?" Blaine asked.
"Yeah, we did a bit. Not in details or anything but enough that we know it will happen in the future. We didn't talk about timing or anything… It was really just talking and what ifs." Adrian admitted. "I'm so excited for winter break."
"Ugh, me too. I need a break." Blaine sighed.
"Who ever thought graduate school was a good idea?" Kurt sighed too.
"A little over a semester and a half left, though." Adrian said as they got to the ice cream shop. "I don't want to leave here until I've eaten my entire weight in ice cream, alright?"
"Maybe grad school will be done by then." Blaine held the door open for Kurt and then grabbed his hand. He leaned over, kissing Kurt's cheek. "I love you."
"I love you too."