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Blaine was always tactile. Kurt noticed it from the time they first met, when a gorgeous boy took his hand and fixed his jacket.
Before, when they were still just friends, it took some getting used to. For the longest time, touch was a double edged sword, something Kurt longed for and feared. Hugs and linked arms with Mercedes and even Rachel were fine, because they were his girls. Sometimes, when Kurt felt worn down and hopeless, he held his father’s hand or rested his head on his shoulder, and the comfort it brought felt like early Sunday mornings when his mom was still alive. She used to wake him up with tickles and kisses, shushing him as they walked down the stairs hand in hand to make vanilla waffles.
Eventually, Blaine’s touches became less surprising and more frustrating, because while Kurt may have not had much experience with boys, he knew what a friendly pat on the shoulder was, and Blaine was full of them. It wasn’t that Kurt minded, but those light taps seared through his Dalton blazer every time, and silly thoughts of first love would bubble to the surface only to be smashed.
Until, of course, they weren’t, and those friendly taps became warm, lingering hugs and skimming fingers along collars and hemlines. Blaine’s touches were more frequent and purposeful, combined with slow kisses and hard kisses and every kind of kiss in between. Blaine’s hands were often restless, dragging along Kurt’s neck to his chest and back up again, like he wanted to touch every part of Kurt all at once. It’s was overwhelming and exhilarating, especially when Kurt came to terms with the fact that he could touch, too. He could explore the lines of Blaine’s arms and the softness of his waist all he wanted, and not only did Blaine not judge him for it, he welcomed it.
Cuddling, however, took some time to get right. It was one thing to clutch Blaine’s shoulders and back while they were heavily making out, but to settle down together on a couch or bed to just be was slightly terrifying. With a flick of his tongue or a nip at Blaine’s bottom lip, Kurt could distract from the reality that he had no idea what he was doing. However, when they were pressed together side by side, watching a marathon of Project Runway, Kurt may as well have been a stunned octopus. He was able to avoid it at first, offering to hold the bowl of popcorn or insisting that he needed to maintain his good posture, but eventually Blaine, in all of his touchy-feely glory, became increasing persistent.
“C’mere,” Blaine said on one such occasion, holding his arms out. He looked so adorable, all earnest eyes and wiggling fingers, that Kurt couldn’t deny him any longer. They had been watching movies on the couch, pressed shoulder to shoulder for the past hour with their fingers tangled between them, the perfect picture of chaste courtship.
Slowly, Kurt shuffled closer and leaned into Blaine’s side, and Blaine turned his body and wrapped his arms around him.
It was… uncomfortable. Kurt’s arm was pinned against the back of the couch and his neck was at a weird angle. The closeness was nice, but there was no way he could stay like that for long.
“Hang on.” Kurt sat back up and leaned forward, grabbing one of Blaine’s legs and maneuvering it behind him. He paused and looked at Blaine critically, trying to figure out how to arrange his own limbs without making an ass of himself.
“It’s not rocket science, Kurt,” Blaine teased, and Kurt could feel his face start to heat up even though Blaine was smiling. Apparently, he was more transparent than he thought. “Just lay down, right here. I wanna hold you.”
Well, he couldn’t say no to that, not when Blaine was patting the space between his legs in invitation and being incredibly sweet about it.
Kurt moved so he was facing away from Blaine and lowered himself down so his back was resting against Blaine’s front. He stretched his legs out in front of him and crossed his arms over his chest, because in all honesty, he had no clue what to do with them. The muscles of his stomach – which were developing nicely, thank you very much – tightened as he tried not to lean back too far.
Blaine’s arms came around him, circling his waist. He sounded much closer that usual as he whispered for Kurt to relax.
“I don’t want to squish you,” Kurt blurted out, immediately feeling foolish and juvenile. Blaine wasn’t deterred though, so that was something.
“You won’t. Don’t worry.”
Slowly, Kurt took a deep breath, and then slouched back as he exhaled. He uncrossed his arms and placed his hands over Blaine’s, and they kind of looked like a horizontal prom photo, but it was pleasant. Cozy, even, especially when Kurt tilted his head just right.
The longer they stayed like that, the more content Kurt felt, and as an added bonus, all he had to do was turn his head to give Blaine small, soft kisses that were a little off center but still sent ripples of warmth through his entire body.
Eventually, Kurt loosened up even more, running his fingers over the hair of Blaine’s forearms and playing with Blaine’s fingers thoughtlessly. By the time their movie was over, Kurt didn’t want to move. He felt safe with Blaine’s arms around him, and it was like something clicked, but he didn’t know what.
Kurt couldn’t call it love, not yet, even when the word was hanging off the tip of his tongue, almost fully formed and ready to burst out.
For now, he was happy and warm, and next time, he would definitely ask to be the big spoon.