"Oh! Sorry," Kurt said as he ducked, narrowly avoiding knocking into a woman on the sidewalk and spilling his tray of coffees. It was his first week interning at Vogue and it wasn't quite as glamorous as he'd been expecting, but still. It was Vogue! He was working (for free, true) under Isabelle Wright. And he was only 19. After having lived in Lima, Ohio his whole life, and staying an extra year after graduation to take care of his dad, he was finally living the dream in New York, with his best friend and roommate Rachel, and working at .

He tried to hurry as best as he could, jumping over a stray puddle, but something - or someone - caught his elbow and he ended up whipping around, sloshing a bit of coffee out of the cups, even though they had lids. "Hey!"

But then he looked at who it was that had stopped him, the woman he had just avoided hitting, and his jaw dropped.

Tamora Rivers, famous supermodel, talk show host, media mogul, and creator and star of one of his reality tv obsessions, Model America.

"Ohmygod," he said, stunned, "Tamora, I-I mean, Ms. Rivers, oh my god!"

"Look at you," she said, staring with wide eyes, "just...you're exquisite."

"E-excuse me?"

She brandished a business card at him. "How would you like to be a model?"

Kurt gaped at her.

"I assume you've heard of Model America-"

"Heard of it? I'm obsessed -" Kurt started to babble, but then clapped his mouth shut.

"This year, we're going to debut the new concept: guys versus girls. And you're exactly what I'm looking for. Have you modelled before?"

"No, I-"

"Fine, that's fine, we can work the diamond in the rough angle. I want you," Tamora said, pointing at him, "to send a video and photos to that email address," she pointed at the card, "and phone that number when you do."

And just like that, she was gone, and Kurt stood, clutching his coffees and the card, dumbstruck.

When he told Isabelle about the encounter, she insisted on arranging for some photos of him, as well as a video.

"You are doing this, Kurt," she insisted, "no, I don't want to hear it. I'll find another intern, and your position will be waiting for you whenever you come back. If you come back. A face like that belongs in magazines."

Rachel also insisted that he audition.

"You know I'll be incredibly jealous if you become famous before I do, but that doesn't mean I don't support you," she said, "and think of all the amazing performance opportunities! Granted, modelling isn't in the same league as Broadway or film -" Kurt rolled his eyes "- but it's something! And you could always become a model/actor like Tamora and then I would have connections in the industry! Oh, and it would help you get closer to the dream of your own clothing line. Lots of successful models produce their own lines eventually, right?"

She made a lot of sense, even in her self-absorbed Rachel way. He nodded thoughtfully as they watched an old episode of Model America.

"And," Rachel said slyly, as a certain gorgeous, curly haired photographer appeared, grinning and speaking to the camera, "you would get to meet Blaine Anderson."

Kurt blushed. "That's not a positive, Rachel."

"What! You have the biggest crush on him, Kurt! Why wouldn't you want to meet him?"

"Because I'd make a huge fool of myself. Or he'd turn out to not be the charming, dapper man he appears to be. Or both."

Blaine Anderson was the second most famous person on Model America, after Tamora herself. He was a well-known fashion photographer and sat on the show's panel of judges, as well as directing and sometimes photographing the models' shoots. He'd appeared in magazines as well, and Kurt thought he was just as beautiful on camera as the photographs he produced himself. On Model America, he was the most popular judge. All the girls loved him and he was an audience favorite. He was sweet, witty, and a true artist. Kurt would have no idea what to say to the man if he ever met him.

"Well, even still. Think of your career, Kurt! You owe this to yourself."

Kurt couldn't deny that it was an amazing opportunity, and he had Rachel pinch him several times as he sent off the video and photos to the email Tamora had given him, and then picked up the phone to make one of the biggest calls of his life.