The Best Laid Plans

Chapter Summary: Before Sam and Blaine can be together, they have to work out where everything went wrong. Even then, being together means telling the world. And the New Directions.

Notes: Thank you to everyone who has read this story, reviewed, favorite, followed, bookmarked, whatever. I hope this ending suitably wraps everything up for everyone. I know some of you were rather upset with Sam, and others were upset with Blaine. I hope both have been redeemed here or at least shown why they behaved the way they did.

While I have a busy semester coming up, I could probably fit in some one-shots so, please, I'm open to any prompts you may have as follow ups for this story.

Chapter 15:

"So where do we start?" Sam asked.

Blaine shifted. "I guess I really made a mess of things if a starting point isn't clear." They looked at each other. "Maybe we should start by sitting down?" Blaine suggested, as he took a seat on the couch. Sam sat on the armchair and the tense atmosphere in the room made it as if he chose to sit at the other end of the house.

"We can talk about what happened at the party," Sam offered.

Blaine shook his head. "I know what happened. Both Rachel and Jesse have told me. I may have over-reacted. I had no claim on you." His hands fidgeted on his lap.

"But it still hurt you," Sam said, quashing the urge to reach out and stop Blaine's fidgeting. "I know it would've hurt me." He took a breath as he saw Blaine only tensing. "Okay, so we won't talk about that anymore. Maybe we should start with the fact that I love you. I just never thought you would love me back." He let out a little awkward laugh. "Honestly, sometimes I still don't get it, but apparently you do."

"I do," Blaine nodded earnestly. "I wanted to tell you, but I was scared."

"I was, too," Sam told him, leaning forward a bit, not quite believing they were actually finally talking about this. "I thought you weren't over Kurt. And that once you were, you would go find someone else. I mean, why would you want me? I'm an idiot."

"You're not an idiot," Blaine said, voice soft. "And I think the better question is why wouldn't I want you? Sam, you're a good man. You care about your friends, you're kind, you're funny. There's never been someone who's been there like you have. Through everything. And you're so talented, whether it's music or art. I don't know why you refuse to recognize that you're a catch."

Sam smiled awkwardly. "Yeah, well, tell that to my track record with girls. When you say it like that, though, I sound good."

"Yeah, well," Blaine returned the smile, "that's the way I see you." He cleared his throat, smile fading, and the tenseness returning. "I'm sorry I doubted you…you know about your sexuality."

Sam shrugged. "I can't really blame you. I did say a lot of things. But it was never about you, you know? Or maybe it was all about you. You're the only one I wanted to go there with because I trust you. And I just kept comparing guys to you. It's not even like I've dated any girls since figuring out my feelings for you."

Blaine looked down at his lap where his hands were still fidgeting. "I didn't even realize. Not until after I spoke to Jesse. Um, how long have you, you know?"

"Had feelings for you?" Sam asked. "I don't even know. Remember that first party I went to with you and I wasn't feeling well so you brought me home? I wasn't sick. Kitty had just kind of informed me I was half-way in love with you. And I realized she wasn't wrong. I mean, it's not like I questioned my sexuality because of you. I struggled with my sexuality for so long, but I kind of stopped once I realized I was into you. It didn't seem like such a big deal after that."

"But all our conversations," Blaine prompted in confusion. "The things you told me about your insecurities…"

"I've always told you that it's different with you," Sam offered him a smile. "Plus I kind of had to separate the Blaine I was in love with from Blaine who's the best friend I had to interact with. It was confusing." Blaine nodded, sitting there in silence for a moment. Sam felt the need to fill up the silence so he blurted out, "I'm sorry about Rachel."

"Stop," Blaine held up a hand. "I know. It's over. There are more important things for us to talk about." Again, the silence. But it was Blaine who broke it this time. "So you like guys just for more than sex?" he blurted. After the words were out, he seemed shock he had said them. He bit his lip as if in shock.

"I like you for more than sex," Sam told him, trying to catch Blaine's eye.

Blaine allowed the eye contact and Sam was surprised to see such conflicted emotion there. Weren't they fixing everything? Wasn't everything about to work out? "Why aren't you mad at me?" Blaine asked quietly. This time he didn't duck his head to avoid eye contact. "How can you still want me after I treated you the way I have the last few months?"

Sam was confused. "Well, I may have been annoyed. And sure, sometimes I was angry, but then you started talking to me again," Sam shrugged. "Besides, I hurt you."

Blaine stood and walked away from him. His shoulders seemed tense as he paced the room. He turned back to Sam. "Sam, you should be angry," Blaine insisted. "Don't you get that I didn't treat you right? Me being hurt over something I had no right to feel hurt about was no excuse for just leaving you hanging. Don't you get that?"

Blaine kept saying he had no right to be hurt but didn't he get that it didn't matter. Sam remembered how he felt when he thought Jesse and Blaine were together. It hurt. It hurt so much. What would it have been like if that hurt didn't come about through slow suspicion? If he was getting ready to confess his love, only to walk in on Blaine and Jesse together? Of course Blaine was hurt.

"Maybe I have no right to feel hurt about that," Sam suggested. "Like I said, it did hurt, but you're here now."

Blaine sighed, sloppily perching himself at the window. He rubbed at his eyes. "I think we should talk about the last few months," Blaine said wearily. "Because I really need you to get something."

"Alright," Sam nodded seriously, reaching out for Blaine. "But don't sit so far away. Come back over here." Blaine didn't quite acknowledge he heard him beyond doing as asked and returning to his seat. Sam waited until Blaine settled down before asking, "Alright, so why did you wait so long to talk to me?"

"You're right: I was hurt," Blaine said, seemingly more than ready to confess. "At first. But it was hard to stay that way with both Rachel and Jesse on your side. Rachel must have told me ten times what happened that night, from both her eyes and yours. Then it was Jesse. At first he was on my side, kind of making things worse. You can imagine some of the stuff Jesse may have said. But then he talked to you. Then he was right there with Rachel trying to get me to talk to you. They wrote a song together and performed it, thinking I might get it if it was in the language of musicals or something." Blaine couldn't help the small smile that appeared on his face for a moment. Just a moment. "I should've called after those first two weeks."

"Why didn't you?" Sam urged him.

Blaine shrugged half-heartedly. "I wasn't ready. The truth was, even though I was hurt, I refused to think about it. The only time I really thought about it was when Rachel and Jesse were in my face about it, which was why I avoided them. I just had no time. End of season shooting had begun, then my agent called about the 'Spring Awakening' offer and I was either filming or in negotiations for a while. And it was like everywhere I went there were cameras, even on the street. I had to be on at all times. I couldn't afford to be hurt. There was this one day that I couldn't get you out of my head. One day. And I couldn't land anything on set. There was a guest director and he was so fed up with me by the end of the day. It was so humiliating. I felt terrible. That was when I got angry."

Sam couldn't help his surprise.

"Not at you," Blaine quickly insisted. "At myself. What was wrong with me that I couldn't do my job? That I wasn't adult enough to keep things separate. So the next day I was all business, and the day after that, and the day after that. Then the pressure started coming up about houses and I had to think about you. Long enough to know I couldn't deal with it if I lost you as a friend. So I sent Rachel with that listing to you before I ran off to the final negotiations about the movie. Once I signed, things just got so much more hectic. We had to rush the final shooting for 'Stardom', rearrange everything so that we could get my scenes finished as quickly as possible. I was so exhausted all the time. It was go, go, go and at night I just collapsed. I stopped checking my personal e-mail."

"Wait," Sam stopped him. "You weren't getting my e-mails?"

"Not until the news broke about 'Spring Awakening'," Blaine told him. "And even then it was because someone told me to. Apparently, Kitty told Rachel who told Kurt about your e-mail plan. Then Kurt of all people texted me to check my e-mail. I think at that point I did as he said because I was curious what could have made him break our post-break-up mutual silent treatment."

"You could've e-mailed me then," Sam pointed out, feeling a little bit of the old annoyance, as if he was experiencing it all again.

"Well, by then I hit my stride of pretending not to have a personal life," Blaine said, mocking himself. "I just put it on my list of things to do when I had time to breathe. Time to feel without affecting my job. Things kind of changed by the time I was in Toronto. I started checking my e-mail all the time to see if you sent anything. I didn't even realize I was doing it at first. There was still that crazy film schedule, but there were fewer cameras in my face off set. Fewer negotiations and more me time. So I started thinking about it. And thinking, and thinking. I probably started thinking too much but I think in the end it was a good thing. I realized how long it had been since I last spoke to you. Yet, you were still e-mailing me. Still trying. I got angry at myself for you but I started thinking about us again. You know, being an us. When I wasn't filming or working on my lines it was all I could think of, much to my brother's frustration. And I got scared."

"Scared of us? Of me?" Sam asked in confusion.

Blaine sighed. He looked down at his hands before meeting Sam's eyes. "Sam, did you move to LA for me?"

Sam's eyebrows furrowed. "For you? Not for you, but with you. With Artie, too. Why?"

"You had a life in New York and you dropped it because I was leaving," Blaine said slowly. "You don't see a problem with that."

"Blaine," Sam rolled his eyes. "My life was modeling, hooking-up, and hanging out with you. If I stayed in New York, I could only keep two of those things. In LA, I could do it all. It was an easy choice. I did it because you were my best friend. I don't even know if I was into you like that then. Okay?"

"Okay," Blaine nodded thoughtfully. He took a breath then threw out a barrage of questions. "But how about ignoring your feelings for me because I was with someone else but letting me cling to you like I did? Offering to re-schedule your flight because I broke up with my boyfriend? Cutting a friend out of your life because of me? Just hooking-up even though you wanted more? And hiding that from me. Or how about letting me treat you like that and waiting for anything I'll give you? You don't see a problem with that?"

Sam went to speak but Blaine kept going. Blaine stood now, clearly agitated. He began his pacing again. He stopped, turning to face Sam. "I'm needy, Sam. I'm needy and dramatic. And you are just so wonderful and giving. You make me feel like I can ask for anything from you. It wasn't until I knew that you loved me that it all started making sense. You can't let me walk all over you, just because you love me. You'll just give until you can't give any more. That's not healthy. I know. I was in your shoes. But unlike me, you never think about your needs if you think someone else is more important."

"You think we're going to turn into you and Kurt?" Sam asked, standing as well. "You're really scared of that, aren't you?" He went to Blaine, but Blaine avoided his touch. "Blaine, you do remember that things weren't all bad between you and Kurt, right? I know you have break-up goggles on, but there were good times, too."

"Good times mean nothing," Blaine insisted, his eyes becoming a little watery. "Absolutely nothing when things end and that person is gone. You can't ever get that person back, at least not in the way you would want. I can't have that happen to us, Sam. If we broke up, we could never be like we were. Maybe it would be better to never have each other the way we really want if that means we'll never have to lose each other. I mean look what already happened to us."

"Okay," Sam breathed, wondering what to address first. There were so many things he wanted to say. He pursed his lips, studying Blaine, what he wanted suddenly very clear. "We can't be friends, Blaine. At least not like that anymore. Because there's this between us and we're both aware of it now. I want to promise that I'll never let it get so bad that we can't be with each other anymore, but I know that's unrealistic. We can't go back, only forward. And I want our forward to be me and you as boyfriends, not some weirdly strained friendship."

Blaine blinked. Sam wondered if he had really thought that going back was an option. "But what about you giving too much? I don't want to take everything you offer."

Sam sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm not a saint, Blaine. I give only what I can. I do know how to stand up for myself. And you talk like you don't give as much as I do. That you don't help me figure out where I'm going with my life or comfort me about my parents. That you didn't just let me use you for sex when you thought that was what was happening. Or that you didn't face my mom when you were clearly uncomfortable with it. Maybe I give too much, but so do you Blaine. And I think that's how we work. We have like, a system. And I'm not worried about you taking advantage or whatever it is you're worried about. I'll make a blood oath or something if you don't believe me. We can both solemnly swear to stand our own ground or whatever it is," Sam slipped into a fake British accent and moved towards Blaine again who at least didn't move away. He was still stiff as Sam reached out for him. Sam just wanted him to relax. To get through to him. "Dude, I know what I want. And I'm not giving in to your fears. I should totally get points for that. And I'm telling you not to even think about making decisions for me. It's up to me if I want to do this. You're only job is to figure out if you want to do it, too."

They stood in silence, staring each other down. Sam watched as Blaine slowly gave in. "There's one more thing," Blaine said, looking up at him. Some of the fight was gone from him but he still looked worried. "I know you want to be with me, but it's not the same anymore." He let out a shuddery breath. "I wanted to be famous, you know? I wanted to be recognized as great but you don't realize how ridiculous it all is. You've seen some of it. The tabloids, the fans. Anyone who's with me has to deal with that, too. You'll have to deal with all the publicity, people in our private business, weird fan love and weird fan hate. Because I want to do this all with someone. I need whoever I'm with to accept all that I am, cameras and all."

"You know I wouldn't mind that," Sam told him with a small smile. "I've seen it."

"It's gotten worse," Blaine sighed. "I don't mind the fans. I just feel bad when the people around me are thrown into it. But the tabloids and the cameras really are terrible. And once the movie comes out, if it does well, things are really going to change. I think I'm starting to get that I'm a celebrity now. There's no more just going home and pretending it's still like we're in our apartment in New York."

"I know, Blaine," Sam rolled his eyes. "We've all just been waiting for you to catch on. For a smart dude, you're kind of slow the uptake sometimes." Sam placed his hand on Blaine's arm, but let him decide whether to come to him. He seemed to be thinking about it. "And imagine how much more crazy everyone's going to be about you once you have such a catch for a boyfriend," Sam said teasingly, wagging his eyebrows. Blaine offered him a smile so Sam continued. "And this body? I could totally steal some of your fans."

Blaine laughed lightly. "Doubt it." He looked up at Sam, those eyes seriously taking him in. Sam let him look, just waiting for him. "You're sure about this?"

"As a heart attack," Sam nodded solemnly. "Or something even more serious than a heart attack? What's more serious than a heart attack?"

"A heart attack is plenty serious," Blaine rolled his eyes fondly. "And you'll think about everything I said about not giving into my neediness?"

"You make yourself sound awful," Sam finally pulled him in, happy that Blaine finally let himself be drawn in. "You're kind of a catch, too," he stage whispered. "Okay?"

"Okay," Blaine nodded, eying Sam's lips. He moved his focus back to the rest of Sam's face. "How are we going to do this with the media? Should I just let it slip in an interview? Or maybe we should just subtly start touching each other more and see if the paparazzi or fans notice? I guess we can—"

"Dude, stop thinking so much," Sam told him. Blaine offered him a little smile before pulling him in for a kiss. Apparently, he intended it to be a quick, affectionate one, but Sam pulled him in tighter, enjoying the little noise Blaine made when he deepened the kiss. Blaine moved his hand to the nape of Sam's neck to gain better purchase. They pulled apart.

"I say the second option," Sam announced.

"Huh?" Blaine asked, eying Sam's lips again.

Sam rolled his eyes, poking Blaine in the side. Blaine dodged before pulling Sam in towards him and hooking an arm around his waist. They stood there for a moment. "Your plans about letting the world know. I say we see just how long it takes for them actually to get it right. We could totally have fun with it. Like act all couply and then go out together and make it look like we're on a double date or something with other people. Keep them guessing."

"Alright, but with less deceiving," Blaine agreed. He pulled away, hooking his hand with Sam and dragging him towards the bedrooms. "But let's worry about it after I finally get a full night's sleep."

"And you need me for that?" Sam teased.

"I warned you about me," Blaine smiled at him. And just like that, with everything on the table, the tenseness was gone. Sure, they still had a lot to learn about being together, being boyfriends instead of friends. Kurt was at least a little right. Sam didn't know Blaine that way. Not yet.

After months of no sightings together, Blaine Anderson was seen today with his 'bro', model Sam Evans. The two were seen meeting with a Hollywood real estate agent. Anderson currently lives with both Evans and his showrunner, Artie Abrams but Abrams is conspicuously missing. Is Evans just helping a friend pick out some real estate?

Since Anderson has returned to LA after shooting his scenes for 'Spring Awakening', he has been seen all over LA: gyms, parties, clubs, and restaurants. A constant presence by his side has been his friend and roommate Sam Evans. Fans and the media alike have been reading into it, but Anderson's love life has been under constant scrutiny since his appearance on the scene with rumors of relationships with Evans, his co-star Jesse St. James, and even Rachel Berry, a long term friend who made an appearance on 'Stardom' last season. Excuse us if we take these most recent rumors with a grain of salt too.

A camera follows Anderson who is leaving a restaurant with his showrunner Artie Abrams, a young blonde woman, and his friend Sam Evans.

"Hey, Blaine!" the camera man calls.

"Hey, guys," Anderson greets. He pauses, waving his friends ahead. Evans hesitates and the two exchange looks for a moment before Evans follows the couple.

"Just having a bite to eat?" the cameraman prompts.

Anderson follows after his friends but turns so he can speak to the camera. "Just finished," Anderson offers a smile. "Whenever you're done with that camera, you should totally try it out. The food is great." His friends climb into a car and Anderson pauses at the open door. "Seriously try the food."

"Wait, where are you off to next?" the cameraman asks.

"Date night isn't over, yet," Anderson winks. He climbs into the car and waves.

"Did he just say date night?" the cameraman asked, presumably to the rest of his team.

"Man, that's nothing new. It's probably another bro-date or something. Those kids are weird," someone says off camera. The video cuts off.

'Stardom' began filming for season 2 yesterday. While no behind the scene photos have been released, sources on set have hinted at some rather physical scenes. Scenes of the kind of nature which apparently require regular breaks, which Anderson spent smiling over texts and apparently being teased by his showrunner. Is Anderson getting a little something on and off screen? If so, it seems as if St. James has nothing to do with the latter.

I know we've been speculating for a while that Anderson and his roommate Sam Evans are more than just bros, but after almost a year of it, you start thinking you have to accept that you're imagining things. Except are we? After months of nothing, they are everywhere together. And is it just us, or do they walk awfully close to each other? The way their shoulders are touching and their hands keep brushing? We don't know what to even think anymore. Weigh in below.

"Alright, everyone. It's time for 'So true, so false," Jason Kennedy says as he stands on the E! set. "We have a good one to start with. So since 'Stardom' has hit our screens, everyone has been talking about who its star Blaine Anderson may or may not be dating. And there have been some weird claims on that one." An image of Anderson appears on the small screen to his right. "But are Blaine Anderson and his model friend Sam Evans dating?" The image shifts to show Anderson and Evans leaving the gym together. They appear to be talking, Evans in a wife beater and shorts while Anderson is wearing a white t-shirt, tight sweats, and sunglasses. "Are you ready for this one, guys?" Kennedy asks, motioning as if warning his audience to brace themselves.

"So true!" he exclaims. "After nearly a year of rumors, it has finally been confirmed. While there have been a lot of photos and talk about the possibility in the past, this weekend their mutual friend and Anderson's showrunner Artie Abrams tweeted a picture of them on instagram."

The screen shifts to show a picture, clearly not a professional photo, of Anderson and Evans apparently napping together on the couch, curled up together. The caption reads: "The bromance is dead."

The screens shifts back to Kennedy and the E! set. "Now the re-tweets have been interesting," Kennedy comments. "But none more interesting than the ones from their high school show choir teammates."

Again the screen shifts to show some of the re-tweets, all a variation of "Blam!" One tweet coming from a Tina Cohen-Chang reads: "Wait!? Romantic Blam?"

The E! set comes back into view. "Anderson's people have confirmed the rumors," Kennedy states. "Though they deny that the couple has been hiding their relationship, stating that it is a recent development, they admit that Anderson and Evans were planning to let the information come out on its own. When asked whether Abrams was overstepping with his tweet, Anderson's people confirm that Abrams was given permission by the couple to post the photo."

The image behind him fades out. "Okay so next up," Kennedy says.

Sam spotted them before anyone else did. Glancing over at Blaine who was already buzzed and having some sort of animated conversation with Marley and Kitty, he went over to greet the last of their guests.

"You're late," he told them as he met them at the gate. Rachel handed him some sort of box, coming over to kiss his cheek.

"Only fashionably," she insisted. She glanced back at Kurt, Santana, and Mercedes who were taking in the backyard which was full of ex-New Direction members. "They take forever to get ready."

"Are you kidding?" Santana brushed Rachel aside. "Now step away from Trouty Mouth before you cause another Anderson hissy fit." She pulled Sam into a hug.

Sam hugged her before moving on to Mercedes. They hesitated a moment before Mercedes sent a mock glare. "Get over here and give me hug boy," she called.

"It's good to see you," Sam said as he followed her orders. He met Kurt's eyes over her shoulder. Kurt sent him a tense smile and Sam offered an awkward wave.

"Relax," Sam told him.

"I'm fine," Kurt insisted. "And hello to you too."

Sam rolled his eyes, throwing an arm around Kurt's shoulder, not letting Kurt shy away. "If it helps, he's already a little drunk. You know how friendly Blaine is when he's drunk. There are going to be no problems," Sam insisted. "Besides, it's not like he didn't want you here. He's the one that said we had to invite every one of the New Direction to our reunion-slash-house warming extravaganza."

"You're kind of lacking people for this to be an extravaganza," Mercedes stated, hooking her arm through Kurt's. Sam let him go, letting Mercedes take over.

Santana looked around, somewhat impressed. "Sure there aren't a lot of people, but the music, the drinks." She pointed over her shoulder. "The security? Now that the people who know what's up have arrived, we're really gonna get this party started. What's with the security anyway?"

"Well, party crashers are a problem when they can be stalkers. Or the weird paparazzi who are convinced we live some scandalous life here," Sam told her. "Did you hear Blaine's famous? Speaking of Blaine…" he scanned the party, looking past the pool and the lights but couldn't spot him.

He tugged the group in the direction of Marley and Kitty. "Where's Blaine?" Sam asked. Marley offered a little wave to the newcomers while Kitty looked them over appraisingly.

"No drama," she warned, pointing her finger at Kurt.

"What are you, their guard dog?" Santana rolled her eyes.

"I'm the only sense these boys have," Kitty shrugged. Her eyes landed on Rachel. "That," she acknowledged.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Hello, Kitty, how nice to see you." She took in the rest of the party, quickly getting excited. "What a great turn out. Is that Quinn? Everyone really did show."

"Mr. Shue couldn't make it," Kitty told her. Despite her sarcastic greeting, it was clear there was no bad blood between the two. Kitty even shifted to include her better in the group. "Blaine insisted on inviting him but apparently Mrs. Pillsbury-Shuester is like super pregnant. Can't fly or something."

"On that note," Sam announced. "Kitty, you're in charge of entertainment. I'm going to go find Blaine."

"He's on the phone," Marley offered. "I think it's his brother. Since Toronto, usually personal calls mean it's Cooper, right? Or well, you, but you're here. Anyway, he said he'll be right back."

Almost as if he heard her words, Blaine returned to the party. Puck and Mike stopped him for a moment and Blaine stared in interest as Puck started gesticulating about something. Blaine spotted Sam over Puck's shoulder and made his excuses.

A smile broke out on Blaine's face as he got closer. "Blaine," Rachel announced happily as he joined them. She was perhaps slightly hesitant, but Blaine only grinned wider as she called to him.

"Rachel," Blaine pulled her in for a hug. She relaxed in his arms, a relieved look appearing on her face. He held her at arm's length for moment. "You look amazing. Did you get a haircut?" he asked. Sam looked a little closer at her. Huh, her hair was much shorter, about shoulder length.

"You've noticed," she exclaimed, looking pleased. "Your boyfriend didn't even notice," she made a face in Sam's direction.

"Clearly he just can't appreciate you like I do," Blaine winked. Sam wanted to pull him in close after that comment. He had plenty of confidence in Blaine to put the past spring behind him but he had underestimated Blaine's ability to put people at ease. Rachel just looked so relieved.

Kitty and Marley ducked out as Unique called them over and Blaine quickly moved on from Rachel, greeting Mercedes who he hadn't seen in years. He spent a little more time saying hello to Santana. "I'm happy you accepted our invitation," he informed her sincerely.

Santana rolled her eyes. "Please, talk like a normal human. As if I wouldn't come. Just be happy I forgive you for never calling."

Blaine's eyes widened. "I didn't know you wanted me to."

"I don't chase after people, Anderson," she said plainly. "People come to me."

Blaine offered her a small smile, his eyes traveling over to Kurt who was standing quietly next to Sam observing. "Hello, Kurt," Blaine said, shifting a little closer to Sam. He seemed to catch himself, stopping suddenly.

"Hi Blaine," Kurt offered, eying the two of them. "By the way, I won't explode into some sort of rage if you want to stand next to your boyfriend. Or hold his hand or something. It's not like pictures of the two of you aren't everywhere I look as it is." Blaine looked down at his feet sheepishly and Kurt rolled his eyes. "It was a joke Blaine. I'm fine with you two." Sam sighed, and pointedly grabbed Blaine's hand. He waved it a little for Kurt to see. "Yes, thank you Sam."

Blaine offered Kurt a small smile before glancing over at Sam. His eyes landed on where Rachel's gift was tucked under Sam's arm. "What's that?" he asked.

Sam looked at it. "I have no idea. Rachel just handed it over to me."

"It's a housewarming gift," Rachel informed them. "It's customary social etiquette, Sam."

"But Blaine's like super rich," Sam responded. "He can just get it himself."

Blaine grinned at him, grabbing for the gift. "Thank you Rachel." He let go of Sam's hand and grabbed Rachel's arm. "Let's put this somewhere safe. And then I may or may not have reserved you the first spot for karaoke."

Rachel happily followed him and Sam just shook his head, wondering how quickly this party was going to turn into a sing off. "On that note," Kurt breathed out. "I'm going to go say hello to everyone before people start singing."

That left Sam with Mercedes. He couldn't remember the last time they had really spoken. After they broke up at the end of his junior year they just kind of let things be. "So, are you going to show me around your new place?" Mercedes asked as she turned to him.

"Well, it's Blaine's place," Sam shrugged. "I just help pay some of the bills. Though I'm starting to think he's not really telling me how expensive things are."

"You're probably right," Mercedes laughed. "How dare your millionaire celebrity boyfriend pay most of the bills. Now show me the damn house."

"As you wish," Sam bowed a little, leading her towards the house. He showed her a bit of the house, telling her a little about it. "That's my room," he pointed to a door. "Right now it's just mostly holding my stuff. Blaine's idea," Sam rolled his eye. "He doesn't want to rush things, but it's not like I've ever actually slept in there."

"Hmmm," Mercedes said un-committedly. It took him a moment to realize she wasn't following him anymore. He turned to face her. "You could've told me, you know," she said to him a little sadly. "I wouldn't have judged. It wouldn't have stopped me from wanting to date you either."

"That's nice," Sam told her a little confusedly. "You know, if I knew back then. The whole bisexual thing has been kind of post-McKinley, though, and we don't exactly talk."

"You really didn't know back then?" Mercedes asked curiously.

"Nope," Sam confirmed.

"So it just kind of came out of nowhere? Suddenly you were attracted to men?" Mercedes asked, leaning lightly against the wall.

"Not really?" Sam replied, not too sure himself. "I think it's more like I didn't really recognize it as attraction. At least that's Blaine's guess. You know how Blaine's more into all of this than I am."

"I guess," Mercedes shrugged. "Blaine and I were never close. We kind of hit it off on the wrong foot and then he was just part of Kurt and Blaine."

"You don't like Blaine?" Sam asked a little defensively.

"I like Blaine just fine," Mercedes assured him. "This all is just weird." She stood up straight again. "Anyway, that's not the point. I just wanted to check in with you. See if you're happy. Rachel told me how it all went down. Even if I had known you were bi, I don't know if I would have every guessed the two of you would hook up. But as long as you're happy…I mean it's a lot. You were never about fame like the rest of us and now you're dating Blaine Anderson. Not Blaine from high school, but Blaine Anderson the star of a hit TV show and possible future movie star."

Sam laughed. He got why Mercedes was worried. He was thrilled she cared enough to worry about him, but a lot had changed since high school. And he was happy about that change because it brought him to where he was now, but at least the fact that the New Direction was a family didn't change.

"Mercedes," he patted her shoulder. "I am dating Blaine Anderson from high school. I'm just also dating Blaine Anderson the TV star. Just like Blaine is dating Sam from high school and Sam the LA model. We totally got this." He peaked down the hallway, wondering whether to tell her this. "And I've been re-signed to do some shoots for America's Next Top Model. Sure, that's no secret, but the producers approached my agent about making a reality show for me. Well, Blaine and I, but they kind of want to focus it on me. I could be just as famous as Blaine. I could be like a reality star."

Mercedes stared. "That seems like a terrible idea. Are you really considering it?"

"Kind of," Sam said. "I mean I want my privacy but this could be super fun, too. Blaine's on the fence, too. Blaine secretly loves all the attention and he's a reality TV junkie so this totally appeals to him, but again the privacy thing."

"Well," Mercedes said with a grin, pulling him back towards the yard. "I think everyone at this party would tune in. Rachel would probably start the fan page for it." They stepped back out into the loud yard. Rachel and Blaine had already gotten the karaoke started. They were doing a very lively version of 'U + Ur Hand' by Pink that had everyone laughing as they rocked out. "Oh, no," Mercedes took in Rachel and Blaine's performance. "We can't have those two hogging the spotlight all night. I need to bring some Mercedes Jones star power to this party."

Sam laughed, watching her rush towards the two. He could only watch as the New Directions drama unfolded over who got to sing. Blaine was happy to hand the mic over to Mercedes but it appeared as if Rachel was trying to talk Mercedes into a duet. Blaine quickly backed out of the argument, bouncing off towards where Puck, Jake, and Ryder were starting up a game of beer pong.

"How did I date a man who plays beer pong?" Kurt asked as he sipped from his glass of wine and joined Sam. "So, did you soothe Mercedes' worries?"

"Yeah," Sam told him. "Easy peasy."

"Right," Kurt raised an eyebrow. "I tried telling her you two were fine but, you know, for the original New Directions, Blam wasn't a thing. People like Mercedes, Puck, and Quinn just watched it unfold in the media. Though that little interview where Blaine admitted 'Overjoyed' was about you was just oh so sweet. What did he say? Oh, yes. 'Sam, every word was about Sam'. Cute."

"I'm a little confused," Sam admitted. "Is this you being jealous? Or you being happy for us?"

"Can I be both?" Kurt seemed unsure. "I'm still a little bitter. Blaine and I had plans. Sure, I was humoring him when he drew up that weird little five year plan but I didn't expect for things to go so far from planned. We were supposed to get married. And then he was just gone and living the life. Not anything he planned but what just kind of fell into his lap. And yet my plans weren't unfolding the way I hoped. I lashed out. Then Blaine lashed out. And things ended. There went my marriage. Well, my future marriage."

Sam sighed. "I hope you're not trying to get me to feel bad for you. I heard those phone conversations. And don't act like you don't have anything. Kurt, you're working for Vogue. At twenty-three! Give everything some time. If you don't get Broadway, you still have that."

Kurt glared but seemed to calm himself down pretty quickly. "You're not wrong, but it's easy to say that Mr. Model in the Hollywood house. Rachel's on Broadway. Blaine's in Hollywood. Artie's a showrunner."

"And you're at Vogue," Sam repeated as he rolled his eyes. "Go speak to Mercedes who is still trying to get that album out. Or Santana who keeps booking random commercials."

"I know," Kurt sighed. "I know." He sent Sam a dry look. "I forgot what it's like to be around someone who brings me back down to earth. You mind if I call you when my dad's unavailable?"

Sam shrugged, a little distracted by the beer pong game. Apparently Ryder and Blaine had teamed up against the Puckerman brothers. It looked like Ryder and Blaine were winning if Ryder's overly excited celebration was anything to go by.

"Never mind," Kurt told him, sipping at his wine again. "You have your hands full with that one. I am happy for you two, you know? As much as I can be. Which is why I'm going to give you some more advice. When something happens, talk it out. Or at least fight it out. Otherwise, you might find yourself with a faceful of a pissed of Blaine Anderson telling you to get your eyes out of the goggles that make you the center of the universe. Or just because you might not be good enough doesn't mean that you have to blame everyone who is."

Sam's eyebrows flew up into his hair. "Blaine said that?" Somehow when both Rachel and Kurt, even Blaine himself, said Blaine had gotten nasty, Sam hadn't expected that.

"In his defense, he apologized almost immediately," Kurt shrugged. "And I had just called him an alpha gay who didn't know what it was like to actually have to earn anything." He shook his head. "But that's not the point. The point is: don't let Blaine hold things in. When he does, that happens. Or that shove fight you two got in back in the day over sexy dance moves."

"Thanks for the advice?" Sam figured that was the best response.

"And now I'm back to a little bitter," Kurt sighed, finishing his drink. "I need another one of these." He paused, his eyes traveling in Blaine's direction. "It would just be so much easier if he let us get past this and be friends. I was so convinced that breaking up didn't mean I lost him. Just that I was freeing us both up to be happy. I didn't want us out of each other's lives."

"It's not going to be like it was when you were teenagers," Sam reminded him. "He wanted you here. Just give him some time."

"Right, patience," Kurt sighed. "I'm only twenty-three. Yah-dee-dah. Okay." He turned, looking pointedly at Sam. "And I expect you to put in a good word for him. Like I did for you when Blaine wasn't checking his e-mail."

"Sure thing," he waved Kurt off to get more alcohol. Sam quickly found a seat, hoping no one else would find a need to have another heart to heart about him and Blaine. Their friends were really nosy.

Sam listened as Tina took her turn singing, but he only got a few minutes of uninterrupted relaxation. At least this interruption was much more welcome. Blaine wasn't graceful as he settled himself next to Sam. The chair wasn't exactly big enough for two but Blaine didn't seem to mind. Sam knew he certainly didn't.

"Hi," Blaine breathed into his ear.

"Hi, back," Sam said, shifting Blaine over so he was no longer half hanging off the chair. If he was now somewhat on Sam's lap, neither one of them complained. "So everyone seems to be having a good time."

Blaine nodded in agreement, moving his lips from where they were near Sam's ear to the crook of his neck. "I really want to kiss you."

"You can kiss me whenever you want," Sam told him.

"That sounds nice," Blaine said, but made no move to kiss him, just cuddling closer into Sam's side.

"How drunk are you?" Sam asked as Blaine's hand started lightly tracing Sam's abs.

"Two games of beer pong," Blaine informed him. "We lost the second one. Too much beer." They sat there in silence, well relative silence because Tina was still singing. Sam spotted Mercedes watching them. When he caught her eye, she grinned, sending him a thumbs up. "Would the world like this side of me? You know Blaine the light-weight who gets cuddly after too many beers."

"I love this side of you," Sam told him with a grin. "Is this about the reality show?"

Blaine shrugged. "How can I think something's the absolute worst idea ever but still kind of want to do it? I think I'm weird."

"I know you're weird," Sam dipped his head down and stole a kiss.

"Hmm," Blaine looked happy. "I love you." Grinning, Sam decided to go for another kiss, but Blaine kept talking. "That's what I told you mother on the phone earlier. And I told her that I would talk to you about having your whole family over for Thanksgiving this year."

"Wait? My mom?" Sam asked. "I thought you were on the phone with Cooper. How did my mom even get your number?"

"I gave it to her," Blaine admitted. "The day of Stevie's birthday party. I went down to make hot chocolate and we talked. I told her she was wrong about bisexuality and that she didn't have to understand where you were coming from. She just had to accept it. Then I gave her my number if she needed to talk. She called me last month and we've been talking almost every week. I think she's ready to hear you out."

"I can't believe you've been talking to my mother," Sam stated at a loss.

"I'm sorry?" Blaine guessed. "She just seemed to need help with it all. And I was there and—"

Sam kissed him. "I love you," he repeated as they broke apart. That probably would've very quickly led to a very public make out session if they weren't interrupted.

"This just blows my mind," Tina said, throwing herself down on the chair next to theirs. "I never would've thought Sam was bi. I thought Blaine was just in the same boat as me, crushing on the unattainable. And then wham! Blam! Crazy."

"Blaine's boat never involved vapo—" Sam started, but Blaine tugged at his arm, stopping him. "Yeah, sure. Crazy." Blaine had a hard time hiding a smile at that.

"I'm happy for you two," Tina assured them, glaring for a moment at Sam. She poked him. "Treat my boo well." Luckily, she quickly got distracted. "Oh no they aren't. They really can't be thinking about singing without me." She stormed off as quickly as she had arrived, back in the direction of the karaoke machine where Unique, Marley, Kitty, and Brittany were looking through songs.

"Our friends are crazy," Sam shook his head.

"But they're good friends," Blaine told him. "High school feels so long ago but they're still all here."

"Butting their noses in our relationship," Sam pointed out, spotting a few of them glancing over at them.

"Their curious," Blaine smiled. "It's probably weird to some of them."

"Well, they need to get used to us. And hopefully stop checking in on me," Sam said. "It gets a little annoying. And there's no doubt that we are totally awesome together."

"We totally are," Blaine agreed. He sighed and pulled himself away from Sam. Standing, he held his hand out to Sam. "Now let's be good hosts and mingle."

"You just want to sing again," Sam teased, but allowed Blaine to pull him up. "But I want a duet. We can do something from high school. 'Heroes' maybe. Just no sappy love songs. I refuse to be that couple."

"I like sappy love songs," Blaine whined.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Okay, maybe one sappy love song. But then we have to do something fun."

With a huge grin, Blaine led him past the girls who were still arguing about what song to sing. Sam watched as Blaine gleefully flipped through the songs, looking up every so often to glance at Sam. He looked so incredibly happy here to be surrounded by his friends. Sam couldn't believe they were here. That they were living together (even if officially as roommates not boyfriends, whatever Blaine meant by that). That they were happy. It was hard to think that just a few years ago, Sam was adamant about not sharing his sexuality. About hiding that part away from all of his friends. Like it was something to be ashamed of. But Sam was finally comfortable with that part of him and he was in the best relationship of his life. With Blaine.

Sam smiled as Blaine sent him mischievous grin. He wondered if he should worry about whatever sappy song Blaine had chosen. The opening notes of Wham's 'Wake Me Up Before You Go Go' started to play. Sam shook his head as Blaine bounced on the balls of his feet and he took the mic that Blaine offered. Their friends cheered as they started to sing.