“God, apartments are expensive,” I groaned, bringing the book I held above me down so I could bury my face into it. I had my head in Blaine’s lap as the two of us sat underneath our favorite tree at the park. The green was filled with more people than usual, it being summer now. Couples lay out on clich�, checkered blankets, girls in nothing but bikinis soaked in the sun, children ran through the grass and splashed each other in the pond. To say that it was a picture perfect day would be an understatement.

“No need to call me, God, sweetheart,” Blaine quipped, earning a smack with my book. “I know that things will be tight. Well, as we both know, things are already pretty tight between us.”

“Oh my god, Blaine stop.” I blushed. He laughed at my obvious embarrassment. “You can’t just say things like that!”

“What, and not deliver? Kurt, we both know that I come through when you want me to,” he winked.

My eyes widened to a comical size, as I blushed deeper and sat upright.

“Blaine,” I hissed. I couldn’t really be mad at him though because he did always come through whether that was literally or physically. As time had progressed, Blaine and I had become even closer, if that were even possible.

I buried my face in my hands at the memories, too embarrassed by my own dirty thoughts to even look at him.

“Will you stop making Kurt blush, Blaine? I think he’s going to explode if he changes to another shade of red!” Mattie said, stepping from behind the tree. He brushed off his violet polo with a smirk.

“I didn’t even do anything for that last one!” Blaine defended. I peeked at him through my hands and I saw his expression change from innocent to wicked. “What were you thinking about, Kurt? Hmm?”

I had to cover my face again as he pulled me back to him with a laugh.

“Gosh, if I knew you two would be this sappy when you were finally together, I never would have pushed you along!” Mattie groaned, taking a seat next to us.

“Well excuse me for loving my boyfriend like I should!” Blaine said, sticking out his tongue like he was the ten year old.

“Boys, please,” I said, pulling out of Blaine’s arms to face them properly. “Enough with the bickering?”

“Yes, mom,” they said in unison, both earning a bop on the head from me.

“Now before we got off on this tangent, I was serious about our future expenses in New York. Blaine, it’s not going to be cheap.” I opened my book entitled New York Living for the Young and Inspired to my last page, pointing the statistics listed.

“Between you, Rachel, and myself, we’ll be able to manage,” he said confidently. “And my parents said that they were willing to help us out until we got squared away.”

It was true, Blaine’s parents had actually been thrilled to hear that Blaine had gotten into NYU for music education and was going to live with Rachel and myself. The three of us had been doing a lot of research to find an apartment that would be able to fix the three of us plus a music room for Blaine and a design room for me. Rachel, though hesitant with the idea at first had finally caved into the idea of Blaine living with us when she heard that he could pay for most of our expenses.

“And what about me?” Mattie pouted, crossing his arms. “Where am I going to stay?”

I laughed a little. “Well we’re looking for a place with a guest room too, so you can have your own room when you visit.”

“Mom and Dad won’t let me visit on my own,” he argued.

“Sure they will. I’ve already asked them if you could come with us to check out some apartments this weekend. You know, if you want to spend a weekend in New York City with your boring old brother and his beautiful boyfriend.”

Mattie’s face lit up like the fourth of July as he nodded enthusiastically.

“Oh, and we have to figure in distance too, Blaine,” I added.

“Distance?”

“It would be nice if we could find a place that was centralized between NYADA, NYU, and Parsons. I know I don’t want to lug samples across town to Parsons.”

I had been accepted to Parsons for fashion design and marketing; the best fashion school in the country. When I told my Dad and Carole, they couldn’t be more proud of me for both getting in and pursuing a dream that I wanted. There was a lot of crying that day.

“That’s a good point,” Blaine agreed, marking off a few more potential homes in the newspaper ad in front of him with a sigh.

We settled into contented silence when we noticed just how quiet it had gotten.

“Mattie?” I asked, looking at him with a curious expression. It was never this quiet when the youngest Anderson was around. Why was that?

“Huh?” He asked, still not looking at me. I followed his gaze across the park to a boy sitting on a bench by the pond reading a book. He looked to be about Mattie’s age, if not taller; both the Anderson boys were cursed in the height department. The boy brushed his black hair out of his eyes and turned the page.

“Why don’t you go talk to him?” I offered.

That got Mattie’s attention, whipping his head around quickly to gawk at me.

“I can’t just go talk to him, Kurt! Do you even know who that is?”

By now we had caught Blaine’s attention as he too looked over the boy on the bench.

“Uh, no?”

“That’s Ian Mitchell,” he said in a hushed tone, as if the other boy would hear if he said his name too loud. “He’s the prettiest boy in school. All the girls have crushes on him, but he always turns them down. He’s super nice, though, and smart and funny and a good speller.”

“Hmm,” Blaine smirked, looking at me with a knowing expression. I smiled back at him with a nod. “Mattie, why don’t you go and talk to him? I’m sure he would like to hear you say some of those things.”

Mattie blushed a bit at the idea, looking back over at Ian, who was looking over in our direction for what must have been the fourth time since our conversation started.

“Yeah, I think he wants to talk to you, Mattie,” I said honestly.

He looked back at Ian, who looked away quickly again. Mattie smiled a little wider and nodded to us, leaving and heading toward the dark haired boy.

“Do you think Mattie likes that boy?” I asked when he was out of earshot.

“I don’t know,” Blaine smiled, watching as Mattie talked with the other boy. Ian laughed at something Mattie said, putting down his book and walking toward the pond with Mattie at his side.

Just then, my phone beeped in my pocket. I groaned a little, pulling it from its place.

“Queen Bee?” Blaine asked with a bit of a grumble.

I nodded sympathetically, reading her text.

(4:34pm) To Kurt:

Hey, you need to get over here, stat! I need to pick out the right dresses for this weekend and I need your help.

I looked at Blaine who, though he was learning to tolerate Rachel, was scowling at my phone like he was trying to set it on fire.

(4:36pm) From Kurt:

Relax, Rachel, we still have two days to pack and it’s just a visit to find a house. I’m busy right now. I’ll come over tomorrow morning and help you sort through things. Okay?

(4:37pm) To Kurt:

Fine. I’ll see you then. Give Blaine a kiss for me.

I tucked my phone away with a smile. Since Nationals, Rachel has been a lot better with the over demanding, territorial thing.

“So what’d she say?” Blaine asked aggressively. “Are you leaving now?”

I smiled darkly at him, pulling him in for a hungry kiss. His eyes widened at the sudden contact but didn’t pull away. Instead, he kind of melted into my arms, his hands clutching into my shirt. I moved to his neck, placing wet kisses up and down the smooth column of skin.

“No,” I breathed, “But she told me to give you a kiss for her.”

“Fuck, if this is a kiss from Rachel, what is a kiss from you like?”

I pulled back to look mischievously into his eyes. “My kisses are for places Rachel could never dream of going.”

Blaine gaped at me. “Why, Kurt, did you just make a dirty joke?”

“I think you’re rubbing off on me.”

“That’s not all I can rub on you,” Blaine said, earning a loud laugh from me.

 Another familiar laugh pulled our attention elsewhere. Looking up, we found Mattie and Ian staring into the pond. They stood as close they dared, keeping a slightly awkward space between them. Ian pointed to something far out in the pond, losing his balance and falling toward the water. Just in time, Mattie pulled him backward, toppling them both to the ground. Mattie’s hand remained on Ian’s as they stared, shocked at each other. Even from where we were sitting, Blaine and I could see the blush creep onto Ian’s cheeks. They stood, only this time, Ian kept Mattie’s hand in his.

I couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

“They almost look like us, you know,” I whispered to Blaine, leaning back on him.

Blaine wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my shoulder with a sigh. “Ah, young love.”

“What’s up, Klainers?” called a familiar voice. Tina approached us from across the field. She was in a bikini top and shorts, her long raven hair let down freely. She bent down to retrieve a Frisbee that she must have missed.

“What?” Blaine snorted.

“Klainers. It’s a combination name, like Finn and Rachel are Finchel and Mike and I are Tike,” she said, waving to Mike Chang who stood across the park in only a pair of shorts.

“But Klainers?” I asked, laughing a little.

“Yeah, Kurt and Blainers, becomes Klainers.”

“Wait a minute, since when am I Blainers?” Blaine barked.

“What are you guys doing?” Tina asked, ignoring his question.

“Just hanging out,” I replied, trying to calm a confused Blaine. “And looking for apartments in the city. You’re lucky you have another year. Being an adult is hard.”

“Yeah, but I’ll miss My Chang next year when he goes to that fancy dance school.” I giggled at her nickname for Mike and wondered if Blaine and I would ever have them. “Well, I guess I’d better get back to him. I’ll see you later, boys.”

We waved to her as she retreated back the way she had come. Instead of throwing the Frisbee like Mike was expecting, she ran at him with a delighted squeal, jumping into his arms. He caught her by the waist, spinning her around as they shared a kiss.

After Nationals, Tina had also been freed from Rachel’s wrath. When I had spoken to her about being able to be her own Leading Lady next year she had shook her head, saying that she would never put another person through what we had been through. Instead she would lead the New Directions fairly and openly.

“I’m going to miss her, Blainers.”

“Now don’t you start with that!” Blaine laughed, jabbing me in the sides, effectively making me squeak. Blaine’s brow knit, as if he was confused for a moment. His hands began to shake a little bit and my eyes widened in horror because I knew that look.

“Blaine. No. No Blaine, don’t you dare.”

He winced comically, holding his wrist with his other hand. “Kurt! Kurt what’s happening to me? Kurt!”

I jumped up from my spot, ready to run.

“Blaine no!” I laughed.

Blaine stood too, holding his hand down at his side with the other, trying to control himself. “Kurt, what’s going on? Don’t leave me! What is happen-happening to me?”

“Blaine,”

“It’s like they-”

“Don’t!”

“-Have a mind of their own!”

That’s when he ran at me, arms at the ready for his assault. I sprinted as fast as I could from him, leaving our books behind. But even though I was taller than Blaine, he was faster. He collided with me soon after, sending us to the ground in a giggling heap.

“Blaine!” I shrieked, as he attacked my side with his vicious fingers. I tried to get away from him, but he had trapped me; one leg on either side of my waist.

“Hush, baby, I’ll make you scream my name later,” he laughed.

He continued his assault, making tears stream down my face. “Agh! P-p-please! I can’t, I can’t breathe! I’ll do anything!”

He stopped then, pinning my arms above my head and leaning down close.

“Anything?” He asked darkly.

My eyes widened a bit as the blush crept up onto my cheeks but I nodded quickly, desperate to not be tickled again.

“Hmm, I could think of a few things.” With that, Blaine leaned down and kissed me. It was all tongue and teeth and passion. Normally I would have been outraged at this kind of public affection, but between the tickling and his kisses, my brain was completely scrambled.

A clearing of the throat stopped Blaine’s new mission of touching my tonsils. He turned to see Mattie standing with his friend. We both blushed. Public or not, making out in front of Blaine’s little brother was kind of embarrassing. We scrambled to our feet, dusting each other off.

“Hey guys, this is Ian,” he said, ignoring the awkward moment and addressing the taller boy next to him.

“Ian?” Blaine asked mockingly. I nudged him in the side and gave him a look that told him to behave himself.

“Ian, this is my big brother Blaine and his boyfriend Kurt.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ian,” I answered.

Ian looked between us as if we were mythical creatures with extra eyes and wings. What was his deal?

“So you’re, like, boyfriends?” Ian asked, looking from us to Mattie and back again.

Oh. I got it then.

“That’s right,” Blaine supplied, wrapping an arm around my waist.

Ian looked at us with his striking, bright blue eyes for a moment more before his face split into a smile so wide I thought it might break in half.

“That’s so cool!”

“I think so,” Blaine smiled, looking at me.

The four of us headed back to our tree, gathering up our books and bags. As I picked up one of books, a small piece of paper fell from inside it. I bent down to pick it up with a nostalgic smile. It was a picture Mattie had taken of Blaine and I, the night we had won Nationals. Blaine had put his hand out to block the picture as he kissed me. When the film had developed Mattie had given it to me saying that it was his favorite. I had to agree.

“Blaine, I was wondering if Ian could come over for dinner tonight?” Mattie asked hopefully.

“I don’t see why not. I think that’s a great idea!” his older brother said with a clap of his hands. “Kurt, do you want to come over as well? We could make it a double date.”

Mattie’s face blanched at the suggestion but Ian seemed to be on board.

“That’s a great idea, Blaine.”

“You know, I really like your shirt, Mattie,” Ian said to him. “Violet is my favorite color.”

Mattie turned back to look at Blaine with an expression I could only describe as elation.

“It’s my favorite color too!”

As we headed out of the park, Mattie and Ian in front of us, still holding hands, I thought of what the future might hold for us. Blaine and I. It seemed so natural, our domestic way of life. I had a sudden flash, years ahead in time, when Blaine and I would go to Central Park with our own son or daughter. Our child coming up to us with a new friend or possible lover in tow, asking to come over to our house for dinner. It all seemed so perfect and possible.

Blaine turned to me, taking in my profile and kissed me on the cheek. And I knew then that Blaine and I would be together for a long time. Whether it was set by fate or my own actions, I had somehow become the Leading Man in someone’s life. A wingman, no more.