There is no excuse for two years between updates. None whatsoever. Yet, here I am. I wouldn't blame you for not reading this chapter, as a form of silent protest against slacker writers. Or, you could just read it.

~oOo~

Kurt was silent as he took in what he thought Eden must have looked like. "What…where…what?" he asked, turning to Blaine, who grinned at Kurt's obvious lack of expression skills.

"Welcome to paradise," Blaine said, "also known as Sophie's Garden. Mama's husband, Joe, built this for her because he said he wanted her to always be able to look out her kitchen window and see beauty that matched her own. Joe died a year before I moved in with Mama, so I never did meet him. When I lived here, I took care of the landscaping, but when I moved to LA, I arranged to have the garden maintained so Mama Sophia would always have it as a memory of Joe. When times were lean, I'd pay the gardener before I paid my own rent. I think to this day, Sophia believes Joe set up an account to have someone come in each week to mow, weed, and keep everything in ship shape."

Kurt leaned in and kissed Blaine. "You are a good soul," Kurt said after pulling away.

"Well, I'm not there yet, but working on it," Blaine said, blushing. "Come on, I know the perfect place to sit and talk." Blaine led Kurt down a short gravel path to an outdoor room, hidden from the back of the house. There, they sat in two wooden Adirondack chairs beside a small pond and a fountain.

"I thought I heard falling water," Kurt said, taking the seat Blaine offered. "This place is magical, Mama Sophia is magical. Just how did you come to live here?"

"My dad cut me off financially and emotionally when I told him I'd not be studying law, but rather musical theater. My roommate at NYU was Gianni, Mama Sophia's grandson. This all happened right before Thanksgiving of my sophomore year and Gianni took pity on my soul and brought me home for the holiday. He promises he told Sophia nothing about my situation, but I swear she has some kind of magical powers, because she honed in on me right away, telling me, "…I know a troubled soul when I see one. You miss your mama, I can see. A boy with no mama walks a little heavier than not. What about your Papa? He doesn't do his job, does he?" I broke down and cried like a baby. At that point I had no idea what I was going to do. I had no money, no family, no place to stay. Tuition and living in the dorms was out of the question. She listened quietly and when I ran out of tears, she simply said, "You finish this semester and then you move here. Where there is a will, there is a way; we'll worry about your tuition later. For now, though, you are an official Lombardi. Let's go find the rest of the family before they come looking for us." And with that, I became one of "Sophia's boys," as we are known in the neighborhood."

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand with one hand and wiped away his tears with another. "Blaine, that is the most beautiful story I've ever heard. Mama Sophia is a saint!"

"Don't be fooled by her small stature and good works!" Blaine said with a laugh. "We had our fair share of butting heads. Once, when I was goofing off, not taking my studies seriously, she got on my case one time too many and out of my stupid mouth flies, "You are not my mother!" I immediately wanted to take the words back, but what was worse was the look on Sophia's face. I apologized a million times, but she wouldn't talk to me for three days. I thought for sure she was going to kick me out, and she probably should have. On the fourth day, I was studying at the dining room table, when I felt a series of smacks on the back of my heard, then I heard rapid-fire Italian. I have no idea what she actually said, but that didn't matter. She smacked me so many times, I thought I might go bald in that spot one day. In the end, she got her point across and I never talked back to her again."

Kurt giggled and said, "I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh, but I'm picturing that small woman taking you to task and smacking you to make sure her words are sinking in!"

"Well, when I told Gianni about being roughed up by his grandma, he laughed. 'Ha! You are an official Lombardi now! All us boys have been smacked by Grandma like that. She sees no difference between you and me. We are, just like all the grandsons, her bellos. Welcome to the family, bro!' And from that day forward, it's been true! I may be Blaine Anderson, but I'm Italian, through and through."

Kurt paused for a moment, a realization flashing across his face. "The song on your album, Mi Bellos, it's about Sophia, right? The lines 'A force to be reckoned with/barely five feet tall/when the world tipped me on my head/ she was there to catch my fall…' That's always been one of my favorites and now even more so. Blaine Anderson, you were born under a lucky star," Kurt said, reaching for Blaine's hand.

Blaine sighed. "Well, as much as I'd like to believe that is true, my current status does not look so good. What am I going to do, Kurt? What would you do if you were in my position? I really want to get back on track and I want people to know that I'm being earnest." Blaine stopped talking and looked down at his hand clasped in Kurt's. Even more softly, he said, "I want you to know too. I haven't felt this alive since the very beginning on my career, when everything was so fresh and new. I know we haven't…I don't even know what we are yet, but I do know that I feel like the real Blaine when I'm with you and I don't want that to go away. You know that, right?"

"Blaine, I'm going to be perfectly honest here. I'm not going to commit to anything right now. You know that I love you, that I've loved you for a very long time, but I can't live with an alcoholic who is not clean and sober. I've watched friends try to navigate those rough waters and the heartache is more than anyone should bear…"

"But…" Blaine interrupted.

"Let me finish," Kurt said. "Despite everything, I see the real you. I see the good in your soul. I believe you truly want to get well and I will stand beside you, no matter what, so support you in treatment. But if it doesn't work, know that I will walk away."

Blaine head lowered, was quite for a minute. When he looked up, tears spilled from his eyes. "I'm so sorry," he sobbed, "I'm so sorry. I know that I've messed up not only my life, but also the lives of people around me, people who have only wanted the best for me. No one owes me anything, but I'm asking for a second chance so that I can show everyone that I'm a changed person. I'm done being a self-centered asshole. I just want to make music…and love you." Tears continued to fall as Kurt pulled Blaine into a hug.

"I think you have your speech for the interview," Kurt whispered into Blaine's hair, as they continued to sit together in paradise.

~oOo~

Sophia Lombardi was no eavesdropper, no sir. She only listened in on her bellos' conversations when she needed to know how to help, how to make their lives better. Now she did listen in on the extension phone when her own sons had fights with their girlfriends, but only so she'd have the right words to say to make things better. And it worked! Four of her five boys married those same girlfriends, and her youngest, Franco, would probably remain a bachelor his whole life. No, she was not a snoop; she was a fixer and a fixer had to have facts in order to do her job properly.

So no one would be surprised to have looked into the garden to observe Sophia, with a tray of coffee and cannoli in hand, listening to her Blaine and his boy discussing their current situation. Sophia knew enough about Blaine's life to know that things were not right. All those prayers, where she bypassed the patron saints and went right to Jesus and Mary paid off. Kurt was just the man she prayed for. Now Blaine's broken heart could begin to mend.

~oOo~

Blaine jumped up and down, like a hyperactive five year old, whose birthday party starts in five minutes.

"Blaine. Blaine. BLAINE! Look at me and stand still. This is going to be fine. You know the questions you'll be asked. You know what is in your heart. Just tell everyone what you told me in Sophia's garden and they'll see the real you."

Blaine stood still, looked directly into Kurt's eyes, and smiled. "Oddly," he said, "I feel really calm, like everything is falling in place, working out the way it should. I'm not nervous for the interview, I'm not nervous for the song. I'm not even nervous for the outcome, whether people accept my apology or not. Everything just feels…peaceful, in balance. I haven't felt this way in a very long time and I have you to thank for it."

"Don't cut yourself short, Blaine. This is you. I love you. You are going to kill this!" Kurt said.

The production assistant approached Blaine and Kurt and told them it was time. Listening carefully, both boys heard David Letterman introduce Blaine as part-time bad boy and full-time musical phenom. At "Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome the very talented Blaine Anderson" followed by polite applause, Blaine walked on set, smiling and waving as he walked, and took a seat in the chair where he'd introduce the real Blaine Anderson to the world.