jeff.

Jeff had finally settled back into his dorm room after spending the last few days away from campus with his family. He had really enjoyed seeing everyone, but had been looking forward to the solitude that was Dalton and it’s parent and relative free zone. He always felt weird being around his parents when they were home for the holidays, also because it was an election year and his mother had won her seat yet again which means celebrating usually ran from November, thru thanksgiving and into December with her constantly reminding everyone of her platforms and her victory and how her gay son had helped her win the vote. Remembering this fact had him rolling his eyes as he walked through the shared dorm room and into the small bathroom. He had been grateful to come back to an empty room he didn’t need to see Blaine right away and unload his life on the curly haired man. He just needed to shower the Sterling Family Love Fest off of him and put on Dalton Jeff and hide the insanity back in it’s neat little place back in Columbus where it belonged. 

Once he’d stripped himself of the sweater, button up, undershirt, belt, Jeans, loafers, boxer briefs and socks he’d stepped into the water that he’d already set a moment earlier. Thankful for the schools heating system he let the hot water spray over him as he adjusted the new shower speaker he’d gotten from his Aunt on his fathers side and let the familiar playlist start to belt out. Using his love for glitter and Ke$ha to cleanse himself of the weekend he’d had.

Blaine debated spending the entirety of his Christmas break at Dalton.  There were students who were staying through the vacation that he thought could use the company.  Being around friends was far more appealing.  Judging from examples from recent years–Christmas could go several (but mostly one of two) ways.  At another of his parents associate Christmas parties. Which meant reassuring his mother that things were perfect over and over and her never agreeing to the last minute.  Then his father would fly in two days beforehand.  There would be an awkward silence between them that made the house feel like it never could heat up enough where it was once warm and comfortable.  That’d only lead to him focusing on how wrong it was to feel that cold around someone who was supposed to be the opposite.  But there was always his brother to look forward to.  

Or, it could be like last year.  When Cooper was ‘contracted’ to film a social experiment inside local Los Angeles malls, the dinner was held at another location and he opted to stay home and not tell Cooper his parents were gone.

In the end–he left Thursday and was back that Tuesday when Cooper flew home and dropped Blaine off to ring in the New Year with his Dalton classmates.  He’d just excused himself to dash up to his room and grab some music when he walked into the sound of water running through the pipes and the hum of Jeff’s singing filling the room.  Jeff was back!  A broad smile lit up his features as he leaned on the wall beside the door and spoke loud enough for his roommate to hear.  “Hey.  Just letting you know I’m here.  Welcome back. How was your Christmas?  Nice song choice, by the way.  I’d give you an A plus.”

jeff.

Jeff heard the complaints coming from Blaine’s mouth, turning in his seat he leaned in. “I highly doubt you are a bad singer, forget we share a bathroom and don’t think you haven’t escaped quite yet mister I sing maroon 5 in the shower when you don’t think anyone is hearing” He quipped quietly into his roommates ear as they were seated on the couch. He laughed when he pulled away and Blaine was apologizing and he’d heard them all wave off Jeff and say hi to Blaine then go back to what they were talking about. 

He had sat next to Blaine before in the cars, in class, while studying, but never this close. He had to admit to himself that his roommate smelled good, shaking the thought away and focusing on the music that the council was putting forth he felt someone poke his leg  and look down to see Trent and Thad both giving them glares. Sticking out his tongue he leaned closer into Blaine and whispered “Are you going to audition today?” lifting a brow curiously as he’d heard something about a potential Train song, Jason Mraz, perhaps Usher and his head spun around “I can work with those, but please no Bieber” He cried out dramatically putting his hand to his heart.

Fascinated by the side chatter as well as what the Council was pitching to the team–Blaine’s gaze darted from one person’s face to the other and back to the students seated behind the desk.  Over and over again.  Without really looking at any of them for very long.  He wanted to take it all in.  Understand what this was about.  More than what Jeff told him–and there was a lot–he wanted to see this in action.  Even if he wasn’t a part of it.  When Jeff leaned in–Blaine leaned closer too.  “You heard me do that,” he quipped back in a whisper trying not to be as embarrassed as he was after learning that his fair haired roommate was privy to his showertime homages to Adam Levine.

Oh God.  How much did he hear?  How often?  What about Katy Perry Monday Mornings? Hopefully he wouldn’t bring those up either.  Blaine thought he timed his showers after Jeff left or was dead asleep.  Here’s to making a note to fix that asap.  “I-I’m not sure,” he smiled at Jeff not seeming to mind the closeness as he did the first night in the car when he tried to make his already small stature even smaller as to not impose on anyone.  In fact?  He seemed to welcome it with a smile and a bubbling laugh he hid behind his hand.  Quieting down with an apologetic cringe given to Wes–Blaine returned his attention back to Jeff to say something else but only ended up laughing at his dramatic denouncement of the Biebs.  “Not a fan–I see?”

jeff.

Jeff had spent the weeks after Blaine had arrived keeping an eye on him making sure he made it to all his classes and that he had people to sit and be social with as well as caught up to the rest of them in classes so he wouldn’t be left out of anything. Now weeks had passed and he felt it was time to drag Blaine into the mass of Warblers and let him experience how the rockstars of the school lived. Yeah he had been to a few impromptu performances that they’d preformed during school, but he hadn’t been to an actual practice and sure Jeff had gossiped non stop about the boys even going so far as giving Blaine some information that he’d never shared about the time he’d hooked up with Nicky and got disappointed when Nicky expressed that he was more into females than he was males.

Jeff had shaken himself out of his thoughts when he heard the door open and his roommate walked in. “PERFECT TIMING” he told him bouncing on his bed as he took his tie off “I’m heading towards practice, you should come with me!” he bounced himself off the bed and headed toward Blaine “Set down your bag and come on!” he bounced towards the door excited to be dragging Blaine along with him to practice.

Dalton was quickly becoming home.  Two weeks in and he called his parents to let them know he’d rather stay at the dorms this coming weekend than make the short drive back. There wasn’t much of a point anyway but even not having something to go home to didn’t seem to bother him much.  Not when he had this place.  There was more pep to his step, more energy in his eyes and the quiet boy that was huddled in the booth at the pizza shop with the Warblers his first night here was becoming someone else.  Brighter, happier. Blaine stood straighter.  Carried himself with a better ease and continued to engage in more interactions with the boys who seemed to be welcoming the late arriving student with open arms.

One thing he hadn’t done yet?  Jeff mentioned maybe a few times that he needed to attend a real practice with the Warblers.  He saw them perform throughout the school and eagerly waited for the chance when they’d have a real meeting.  Rumors were that was tonight and when he returned to the dorm room he shared with the blonde–Blaine was already holding his breath hoping that he’d be reinvited.  Hazel eyes went round as Jeff bounced towards the door.  “Yeah! That’d be great!”  Blaine’s bag hit the floor and he hurried after.  “Coming!  Go, go, go,” he gently nudged Jeff along like the long legged boy couldn’t move fast enough.

jeff.

Jeff nodded as Blaine spoke about wanting to get a better grip on the campus and not looking like a lost puppy tomorrow when school had started. He swung his arm around his new roommates shoulder and grinned up at him. “Trust me, you won’t get lost, if anything you’ll have me there to make sure of where you need to be” He told Blaine as they walked, and Jeff bounced more like towards the car and piled in. He made sure that he sat himself next to Blaine glad to have another friend among his friend of Warblers. 

“So, you went to Central did you say?” He turned to look at Blaine once the car was started and Wes was driving them all back to Campus. “What was that like?” he asked curious about the public school as he’d only ever been to private school ever since pre school. 

After settling in the car for the ride back to Dalton–Blaine perked up and glanced at Jeff once they were on their way.  A tint of pink lingered on olive cheeks and he rubbed the back of his neck in a nervous, slightly embarrassed fidget.  “As sweet as that offer is?  I can’t make you late to all your classes because you’re busy rushing me around to mine.  I promise.  All I need is a little time in the hallways tonight and I won’t be that bad off.  I think.  We’ll see?  Worse comes to worse?  I could text you a where am I, please help me message?”

Blaine bit his lip and shrugged trying not to show how Jeff’s question made his pulse race.  It was his fault for bringing it up so he could talk about the fact he sang there as a common ground anyway.  He smiled and gently placed his hands cupped together on his lap.   “It was okay as far as schools, I guess.  Crowded,”  his fingers were toying with one another as he weighed his words carefully.  “Worlds away from the way Dalton runs–from what we were told–and the opportunities that private schools offer but–.”  Blaine tuned in that several pairs of curious eyes were on him.  That didn’t help matters much. “I’m really glad to be here.”  What kind of answer was that?  A jumbled one at best.  So he smiled at Jeff and waited to see what the hyperactive boy would ask next.

jeff.

Nick laughed “you’ve just met Jeff and i’ll give you this warning as his room mate if you see Candy in the room I suggest you let one of us know or confiscate and run for your life” he added the last words as whisper when he noticed his friend pout. Jeff’s pout followed by a whine “Nicky, don’t scare him” His eyes connected with Blaine’s and let his lips twitch out of their pout into a smirk before rolling his eyes at his friend “I’m not really THAT bad with my candy intake I just have a little sugar problem” he confessed at the others around them mouthed “little sugar problem” 

Wes coughed loudly to mask the laugh he was hiding. “Blaine, you are definitely in for an interesting year here at Dalton and I’m glad that you’ve got a good roommate you won’t ever be bored with this blonde puppy” He reached his hand across the table and mussed up Jeff’s hair. Jeff swiped playfully at the seniors hands and smiled “They’re making me out to be this horribly hyper and weirdly obnoxious person and I’m not I promise, but I will make it my mission to make your time here at Dalton as fun and boredom free as possible.” 

“So, we should probably get back to Dalton.” Trent finally spoke up “Let Blaine get use to the campus and all of us have homework to do and perhaps Jeff can help Blaine get caught up with where we are in our classes?” he suggested and Jeff nodded “Yeah, we should probably get back to the campus besides you guys probably scared him into asking the dean for a change of room” He said making a face towards his friends

Blaine grinned from ear to ear as Wes promised him that his year at Dalton was going to be an interesting one.  Looking at all the faces around the table and listening to how they bantered back and forth–he could tell the love they had for each other ran deep.  Brothers.  They all acted like brothers.  It was equally alluringly comforting to think he might be welcome into their group and utterly intimidating all at once to walk into such a tight knit crowd and hope he fit in and could catch up to the ties they had to one another.

The thing was?  As the hours went by and he watched the hair ruffles, playful prods and adoring glances shared between them?  This is what he wanted.  Somewhere to be like them.  Finding it felt unreal.  “That’s okay, Jeff. I promise to only hide your candy if you start bouncing off the walls.  Once the deal was made–Blaine wasted no time trying to finish up his dinner so he wouldn’t hold everyone else up.

Fair enough,” he hummed back over the rim of his glass before washing down the last of his food.  Trent was given a quick nod.  “Sure!  Sounds great.  I’d like to wander the halls and see where everything is so I don’t get lost an embarrassing bunch of times tomorrow.  Dalton is massive in comparison to Central. You guys can get your work done and Jeff can catch me up tomorrow.  Deal,” he asked his roommate following the others out of the bench.

jeff.

Jeff beamed at Blaine’s curiosity and wiped his mouth and reached for his drink. Once he set it down he opened his mouth and let the words fall out fast, eager to let his new friend know. “Well every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday depending on the schedules of everyone we try to make it flexible since a few of us have other activities other than the Warblers, like I dance” He told Blaine as he went on “We just practice whatever the council has for us, sometimes we do some moves, sometimes we just stand or sit and harmonize together, the best thing is, and sometimes the worst is that there’s no instruments to drowned us out” he laughed as Nicky and a few of the boys made a face at his words

Nick took over pushing Jeff back and smiled “We pretty much sing pop, jazz at time it depends on what we have to work with as Jeff said what the council picks is what we sing during competitions” he smiled at the new kid. 

Idly toying with the end of a breadstick–Blaine tore it off and blindly popped it into his mouth and dabbed the grease off his fingertips with a press of them against the napkin folded to his right laughing over the rim of his glass when Jeff rushed to answer. The blonde’s over exuberant reply had Blaine playing tennis match with his attention shifting between him, Nick and the others. Seeing their faces screw up at Jeff’s poke only made him chuckle harder.  The way they all reacted to one another was inspiring to watch.  It was impossible to shake the notion that he might’ve just landed himself in the middle of something beyond special.

Letting Nick explain further–Blaine nodded and hesitated for a moment trying to give a voice to his excitement that the near contagious levels of from the other boys only egged on. He smiled, blushed and tucked his hands under the table so they couldn’t see him fidget his thumbs against one another.  “How far are you from your next competition?  I mean–my showing up won’t be a distraction, will it?  I’d love to see this in action but I don’t want to intrude.  I promise–I’ll sit and watch and keep completely out of the way,”  he grinned hoping that they truly didn’t mind.

jeff.

Jeff and Nick shared a look towards the end of  Blaine’s answer then Jeff wrapped an arm around Blaine and whispered in his new roommate’s ear “Their loss our gain” then smiled to him as the pizza arrived at the table with the soda’s and other items that were ordered. He moved his arm out from around the curly haired boy and reached for a mozzarella stick and a piece of pizza and began stuffing his face. 

Nick rolled his eyes and smiled at Blaine saying “Glad you came here then” He smiled to the boy as he also reached for food. Jeff with his face stuffed looked towards Blaine and then around at all the other warblers. He really was glad he had a new roommate sure he could get away with Having nick in his room from time to time without Blaine being there, it has been what he did when he didn’t have a roommate, but now that he had Blaine he could see fun times ahead and perhaps someone other than nick who could help him with the storms got too bad. He didn’t relish having to tell his roommate about that, but then again Blaine just told him the group of them things that he probably didn’t want to share just yet and he was thankful to the boy.

The shared glance between Jeff and Nick didn’t go unnoticed by the avoidant boy sitting next to the blonde.  Blaine quickly turned his attention away from them so he wouldn’t make them uncomfortable should they see he noticed their look.  What were they thinking?  Did he share too much?  Too little?  He tried to answer their question without seeming too stand offish. Did talk so cryptically that he came off exactly how he was trying not to?  Or worse?  As soon as he felt an arm wrapped around him and breath on his ear–he relaxed into it and glanced at Jeff from the corners of his eyes.  His smile was back and it was honest and full of relief.  –It’s okay. Didn’t blow it for trying not to.  Breathe and relax.  They’re friends.–

“Me too,” his voice picked up and so did the twinkle in his eye that seemed to keep trying to shine even if his nerves suffocated each attempt after only letting it briefly shine.  He didn’t shy away when his leaning in to grab a slice of pizza fit shoulder against Jeff’s arm.  “So..,” he nudged Jeff and took a drink of his soda to wash down a bite.  “You guys sing.  What’s that like? Choir?  My old school had one and I sang in it my freshman year and some of this year.  We were okay. A lot of kids used it as an excuse to hook up at camp or go on trips.  But the ones who were dedicated to singing made it fun.”

jeff.

Jeff beamed brightly at Blaine’s words as he nodded “Quite right, the more the better” He admitted as he turned around and stared at his friend and stuck his tongue out at him “You snooze, you lose Nicky poo” He winked as he sat next to Blaine. He’d heard Nick grumble about maybe limiting Jeff’s candy intake or perhaps pushing the blonde out of the booth which Jeff pouted at that last grumble. 

Ignoring the Brunette’s sour words he smiled “So Blaine, where are you from? What do you do for fun? Do you have a girlfriend or boyfriend? Do you play sports? Do you enjoy school? what are you good at? What brought you to Dalton?” He blurted the questions out in quick succession he was nosy and he had waited patiently to get to the pizza place to ask the new kids the questions with his friends around he was sure they were all eager and he wanted to know more about this new roommate.

The sudden onslaught of questions made Blaine’s fingertips vice grip the edge of the table. Especially the last one considering why he was here.  He was still wearing some of the worst of the ‘reason’ why on the outside.  And a whole lot of it on the inside.  Thus the quiet.  He smiled awkwardly and looked at each of their expectant faces and felt his rise in temperature.  “I’m from Westerville.  My parents don’t live very far away.  We’re up in the hills.” AKA?  The very well off edge of town.  “I–uhm.  Sing and play some instruments or play polo and go sailing for fun,” it was getting harder not to start stumbling for words considering he was nearing the last question.

“I enjoyed school.  I’m really looking forward to enjoying it again.”  He darted his gaze to Nick and Jeff in particular because he felt the most connection to them for some reason.  “I’m good at History and English and I think I don’t do half bad in Science.  No I don’t have a girlfriend. Or a boyfriend,” he added the last in so fast at such a low volume it was easy to see how jittery he was getting, “and–I’m here because–because things didn’t work out at my old school anymore.” What kind of reason was that?  The truth. A very watered down version.  He was too busy drawing in a deep breath after rambling so much that he didn’t think to elaborate any further.