The two of them stop for lunch, and quickly discover they aren't very hungry. As Lima gets closer, Blaine's stomach knots tighter, and his tension is rubbing off on his counterpart. By the time they pull up to the station they're both so edgy that when they finally look at one another the contact is painful to keep.
The storm has reached its destination, and the rain doesn't do much to lift Blaine's spirits. It rattles down against Sebastian's car, tapping out sweet melodies of desperation, and that dreaded self-loathing creeps into the pit of Blaine's stomach. He stamps it out the best he can with his newfound courage, and stares at the large automated doors.
"Ready to put these assholes in jail?"
Blaine swallows. "Yes."
They run to the front of the station avoiding the rain. Why didn't he think to bring an umbrella? Sebastian takes his hands and ruffles them through Blaine's damp curls when they get to the door, and in retaliation Blaine 'accidentally' steps on Sebastian's toes.
It's innocent fun, and the two of them stand motionless- for one last attempt at peace- before they enter the building.
When they walk inside, the first thing Blaine notices is how different everything looks. It's a rude awakening of perception. Colors appear dimmer through red-rimmed eyes and sounds seem much softer under the roar of labored breathing.
All of this seemed duller then, hopeless, and now the surrounding environment keeps Blaine alert, assertive. I can do this. I can do this.
He signs in and leads Sebastian back towards the waiting area He couldn't sit down if he wanted to, he's to busy encouraging himself not to throw up. Shannon greets them not five minutes later, three files in hand, with Mr. Smythe toeing at her heels.
He double takes when he sees that Sebastian's there too, and Blaine bobs his head in recognition when their eyes meet. Words don't quite fit this situation, but Blaine feels alarmingly complete with such a strong group of avid supporters neighboring him. He's ready for this to be finished, anyhow, and today he's one step closer to achieving that goal.
"Blaine, baby! Oh Michael, look at him! Blaine you look so handsome sweetie!"
His mother is suddenly everywhere, appearing straight out of thin air. She rips him from his chair and detains him with a hug, pressing kisses to his forehead while grabbing at his biceps.
It strikes him funny that she doesn't ask how he's doing. She doesn't offer him aid or introduce herself to Sebastian. Instead Catherine stares into his eyes with tears forming in her own, and tells Michael how handsome their son has become.
Blaine has never felt more uncomfortable with his mother in his entire life.
"Catherine, give the boy a break, this isn't the time for that."
It's the first instance that Blaine's been appreciative for his father's controlling attitude. He accidentally flinches when his father pats him on the back, but an odd sense of pride takes over his senses.
For a split second Blaine's world spins, and he pictures himself as the child he was always supposed to be. He's resented his dad since the day he came out, and this small token of support earns a place in Blaine's heart that was left vacant long ago.
Truth be told- and this is hard for Blaine to admit- but ever since the mention of Dalton, Blaine's been grateful to his father. Without having transferred Blaine's sure he wouldn't be where he is now.
He knits his eyebrows in thanksas his dad pries his mother off of his body.
What would his life be like without the Warblers? Without boxing, without his friends and Sebastian...? Mostly Sebastian.
He looks back at the brunette and motions for him to come over. Sebastian diverts his gaze from the locked doors near by and gives Blaine a soothing smile, joining him promptly by his side.
Thunder cracks outside the station windows as he draws near. It lights up the space in a strange demonic way, to similar to Blaine's nightmares, and he ends up jumping out of his skin in surprise.
Sebastian pulls Blaine into his side. "I've got you, B."
Blaine's mother represses a squeal.
She's promptly encouraged to wait in the front.
The group shuffles towards a dark stained door, and Captain Bieste explains the procedure before they enter. First, Blaine will look at a series of photographs, and then he will be brought into a single mirrored room with suspects aligned behind the glass. From there, he identifies, and if his statement matches the other victim's they're in the clear for an arrest.
His heart starts coming to life within him, beating away wildly inside like a caged raven. What if he picks the wrong person? These guys aren't people, Blaine, they're monsters.
The first hour goes by in a blur.
He sits quietly across from Bieste, accepting photo after photo, and becomes entirely deprived of hope. She carefully picks and passes photos to him from a large manila envelope, but they all look the same. White, male, blue eyes, brown eyes, no tattoo…
The photographs are discouraging.
He sees no memorable marks, and as he rearranges each similar face he grows increasingly frustrated knowing that one of these men helped defile him. Nothing hurts him more than knowing he can't tell which one it was.
Blaine feels like he's standing in the middle of a crowded room, screaming for help at those who take pleasure in his demise.
Which one stood behind him and beat him with their gun?
Which one laughed at his attempts to escape, pulling on his hair to get off from his tears?
Which one tied him up and left him for dead, bloody and bruised?
Captain Bieste must sense his disappointment. She edges over to him and offers a glass of water. He's told that he can take a break, walk around the station to clear his mind, but Blaine turns down her offer. He wants this over and done with. He's stronger now and he never wants to deal with these men again, until it's absolutely necessary.
He exits the small room with no success at identification, and as he rejoins his family as well as a portion of Sebastian's, he stares silently at the floor.
They all look to Bieste who shakes her head, confirming their lack of success.
"We're bringing the suspects into the line up now. Should be any minute before you can go in. Just remember, take your time, Pumpkin. This is a serious accusation."
Blaine shows his understanding nonverbally because his insides are starting to squirm. For a moment, he thinks that he might pass out from the anxiety, but he knows he can handle worse. Although he wishes he didn't.
"Can we go in there too?" His dad chimes in.
"We'd prefer it if he went in with as little company as possible. Just to avoid distractions," she looks at Blaine who is visibly shaken, "but that should be fine. If he'd like he can bring his friend in too."
Blaine decides Captain Bieste isn't bad.
The space is cold and empty. There are several chairs lined up in the middle of the room, all bundled together, and a giant Plexiglas window separates one see-through wall from their observing minds.
Blaine knows the glass is one sided, but he still feels like he's being watched. Like the men who're about to enter on the other side can get to him just by reaching through an invisible barrier.
He holds his breath, and moves towards the chairs with Sebastian.
Six men shuffle in, all the same height, and all lacking tattoos. One of these men could easily be the second assailant and Blaine would never know it. It lowers his resolve as he tries to remember the earlier photographs. He hopes the other victim is able to serve that man justice, because he's obviously failed to do anything progressive about it.
It's almost too much.
"I don't-" he stutters, "I don't know. I only saw the other one."
The police officer nods, and says something into her walkie-talkie. All of the men shuffle out into another room, some smiling to themselves, and a new group takes their place.
Blaine's distracted watching the police officer, and when he feels Sebastian nudge him he takes the others hand and directs his attention to the new line of men. He scans once and double takes back towards the end. His knees involuntarily twitch.
Gasping, Blaine closes his fingers tighter under Sebastian's palm. Sebastian tries to ask, "Is it-?" but he doesn't get it all out. He remains silent.
Finally Blaine's able to communicate. "It's him."
There's a knife at his throat, a wicked smile crooked in tandem with the stretch of Blaine's mouth. Blaine closes his eyes and feels a hand slap against his ass. He's dead. He's dying. He's choking.
Spit's dribbling out of his orifice, the ragged feel of intrusion dragging painfully in and out behind him makes him queasy. He's dizzy from lack of breath, and there's a 'pop' as the tattooed man pulls out from his throat and comes in stripes across his face, not caring enough to avoid Blaine's eyes.
Blaine's whimpering to himself in disbelief between broken sobs. 'God. Oh-oh my god.' Metal makes contact with his head, there's a kick to his ribs, and then "black."
Blaine snaps out of his daze and notices how tense Sebastian has become. Sebastian mimics Blaine's iconic nose pinch. "Which one is it?"
It's obvious that he's trying to appear collected, but the hatred radiates off of body in waves, and for a second Blaine thinks Sebastian might tear through the glass and beat the guy senseless.
Unsurprisingly, Blaine feels the same. In order to calm himself down he's vows to put the man behind bars, hoping that this evil monster will be served a helping size of the same ill fate life dished him. "Number five."
"…Bastard."
The strange thing is, is that number five is an average looking man. If Blaine could erase the tattoo, his mind would never jump to the conclusion of 'rapist.' It's an upsetting idea that anyone can hide behind a smile, and Blaine realizes that's exactly what he'd been doing before he realized he had an emotional support system.
Number five has gray brown eyes, and a tribal tattoo that stretches from the nape of his neck up and around the left side of his face. He's big, built, and Blaine no longer feels weak for failing to escape. No one could get past this man- not even Mr. Smythe- and he has a gun.
Blaine raises his voice, wincing when it cracks from lack of use, "It's number five! Number five. Right there! Number five!"
He rushes out of his chair to fast.
The excitement causes his legs to wobble, but before Blaine's able to face plant into the linoleum, Sebastian's dad catches him in one swift movement.
"Easy. Easy. C' mere, lets sit you down."
He'd been so caught up in identifying number five that he's missed everyone else's reactions. Detective Smythe allows him to examine the area before they continue speaking, but Blaine can't hear himself think over his mother's wailing.
She'd insisted on coming in too, and she's not helping any by making so much noise. Sebastian's sitting stationary in the middle of the room, murdering number five with his mind, and Blaine's father is holding his wife, oblivious to- or not wanting to acknowledge- Blaine's existence.
"S-sorry." Blaine gathers his composure, and flicks out his wrists.
"Hey." Alan motions with two fingers from Blaine's sightline to his. "You're okay."
I'm okay.
He inhales.
In. Out. In. Out.
I'll be okay.
Suddenly Blaine can see where Sebastian gets his mannerisms. Adrien had been right in his allegation. Detective Smythe positions himself eye level with Blaine and prepares him for what's coming next. Court dates, testimonies… Blaine stops listening when his brain gets to full.
His eyes start to wonder when he gets lost, and he peers once more through the single sided mirror. Instantly Blaine is frozen to his seat.
Number five is looking directly at him. Okay, not right at him. There's no way that number five knows where Blaine is behind the glass, but it creeps him out on all accounts and Mr. Smythe has to physically turn Blaine's head to draw back his lost attention.
"Stay with me, kid."
He asks Blaine how sure he is about the identification, and after Blaine says one hundred percent he calls Sebastian over. The two of them talk privately for a little while before Sebastian strides over to Blaine and offers an escape. "He said we could go."
He reaches down and pauses with his hand on Blaine's cheek, and in that moment Blaine swears Sebastian's about to kiss him. He doesn't though. Instead he stands, hand extended, offering a way out of this terrible place.
Blaine wipes his eyes and ignores his grumbling stomach as he accepts Sebastian's offer. They make up a lie about exams in order to break away from Blaine's parents, and after hitting the restroom and grabbing some chips from a vending machine, they finally exit the station.
Mother nature decides she isn't feeling kind.
There's so much rain.
Another whip of thunder and Blaine decides he never wants to visit Lima again. Sebastian promises that if he does, he won't have to do it alone, and as pleasing as it's been having the taller stay with him throughout his journey, Blaine craves to know why.
What are they?
Friends?
Lovers?
Roommates?
They've been driving for thirty minutes when Blaine speaks up, yawning before crafting his speech. "Hey Bas?"
The rain pounds down and encases their moving car. Its patterns are soothing, and Blaine keeps nodding off to its rhythmic taps. It's a far cry from the desperate fallout earlier that evening.
Eventually the other answers, keeping his voice low. "You okay?"
"Yeah. I…" Blaine loses his confidence and trails off. "…Never mind."
More silence.
"Blaine, can I tell you something?"
Blaine's surprised Sebastian's asking, considering his request earlier that morning. He kicks off his shoes and makes himself comfortable, balling up in his seat, and mussing with his weighted curls. Blaine hopes he's not wound up over something insignificant.
"Sure." His eyes are heavy with sleep, but he licks his lips- eager to stay awake- as he waits for Sebastian to spill whatever's on his mind.
"I like you."
Blaine cocks his head through the drowsiness; the balance of being alert and tired at the same time is messing with his demeanor. "Uh. Bas, you already- not that I-"
"-Calm down. Fuck, you're making me nervous, just chill out for a second."
"Sorry…" Blaine apologizes even though he's sure the brunette is at fault for the tension. He slinks lower, blinking hard to avoid lidded eyes.
"Shit, I didn't mean to-" Sebastian advances the windshield wiper settings. "Let me start over." He looks thoughtful, like his head might detonate from all the ideas roaming around in there. "So, I like you, right? You know that. I, uh, earlier when you asked about team captain…"
Sebastian readjusts himself in his seat. Something takes over his expression and controls the silence. It hits Blaine like a fist to the face when he realizes what Sebastian's trying to say, or rather, say again.
The words 'I'm afraid,' echo over and over in his ears, a reminder of all the baggage Blaine's been avoiding between them. He's upset it took him this long to understand what Sebastian had really meant that night.
"I'm not going anywhere, Bas."
Sebastian relaxes, reaching over blindly for Blaine's hand. Like if he weren't touching the other, everything might fade away. Blaine knows Sebastian has a hard time showing affection and being intimate with those whom he actually cares about, and a tiny ache forms in the middle of his chest.
"Please, be patient with me, okay? I want to make," Blaine feels Sebastian's fingers fidget between his, "this, work."
'This?' Blaine wants to ask, but he doesn't push it. It's a huge effort on Sebastian's part to share himself like this, and although he's said so little, Blaine knows he's actually said much much more.
He surprises Blaine when he admits to another breakthrough.
"…I think I've found myself in you."
Blaine doesn't realize his mouth is hanging open until the silence goes on for to long. Still, Sebastian stares straight ahead, and Blaine can just make out the pink rushing to cover his neckline.
Blaine's heart flies to his ribcage and tattoos itself there. Sebastian's sentiment means more to Blaine than he could ever explain. More than anything he could ever imagine, and using the last of his energy Blaine raises his arm and places a lingering kiss to the top of Sebastian's wrist.
He'd been right about there being something hidden underneath, and Blaine feels lucky to be one of the privileged few who've seen it.
"I think I've found myself in you too, Bas."
He means it.
He really really means it.
They sit in comfortable silence, and eventually Blaine's nodding off again. His head lulls to the side and snaps up every time he falls asleep, and when Sebastian notices he sighs dreamily to himself, reaching in the back to grab an old balled-up hoodie.
"Here, babe."
Sebastian encourages him to rest, and slips in a CD. As Blaine zones out, the other stares into the warped and empty road, now unfamiliar in the dark. Blaine's emotionally out of it, but he gives Sebastian a sappy look when he hears Buddy Holly sound from his speakers.
'Everyday it's a gettin' closer
Goin' faster than a roller coaster
Love like yours will surely come my way
A hey, a hey hey'
There are so many questions he wants to ask the brunette. Does he listen to oldies often? How does he feel about Bryan Ferry? Roxy music?
'Everyday it's gettin' faster
Everyone says go ahead and ask her
Love like yours will surely come my way
A hey, a hey hey'
Blaine's battling with sleep, eyes fluttering open and closed with every dip and bump on the highway. His elbow's propped up on the console, and his head is placed awkwardly on top of Sebastian's jacket.
Playing the hero has drained him of any and all energy, and when he finally begins losing his struggle with sleep he feels the edges of soft fingertips brush against his temple. Sebastian's, he thinks, and he drifts off into space, unaware of another confession- the first of it's kind- that's soon to be exposed.
'Everyday seems a little longer
Every way love's a little stronger
Come what may do you ever long for
True love from me'
'Everyday it's a gettin' closer
Goin' faster than a rollercoaster
Love like yours will surely come my way
A hey, a hey hey'
'Everyday seems a little longer
Every way love's a little stronger
Come what may do you ever long for
True love from me'
'Everyday it's a gettin' closer
Goin' faster than a rollercoaster
Love like yours will surely come my way
A hey, a hey hey'
'Love like yours will surely come my way'
The tracks change; Blaine's breathing at a steady periodic pace. It's slow, natural, and everything about this boy- Sebastian decides- is beautiful. The way his eyelashes fan out, soft and dark across the tops of his cheeks. The way his lips part and teeth peak out from behind the edges of his lips. Even the tiny noises he makes, unaware in his deep sleep, make Sebastian feel funny.
He's tried for months to figure out what he's been feeling, and after lots of soul searching; Sebastian's pieced it together. He glances over at the balled up frame of a boy with messy hair and picture perfect eyes, and in the tiniest voice possible Sebastian says something he's never let himself believe in before.
"I think I might be in love you, B."
Blaine doesn't respond, he's already joined ranks with his subconscious, but the fact that it's out there is all the comfort that Sebastian needs. He looks out, back into the black of night, and for once he can see something bright in his future.
Hopefully he'll manage to hold onto it this time.