A/N: So there was a Glee spoiler that said that they were building a set based on Ellen's Stardust Diner. Basically, it's a diner in NYC that's famous for the fact that the waiters/waitresses perform and jump on the tables and stuff. And that just about drove me mad because I've been talking about that place in regards to Klaine for a whole year. I went there last year and when I came home I started a fic and then eventually forgot about it but now i feel motivated so here is the thing.
I apologize if there are a lot of holes in this but i just picked it up after not touching it for a year so yeah.
xx
Blaine Anderson absolutely adored his job. How could he not? Singing in front of a great crowd, interacting with them and making a pretty sum of money, all of which contributed towards his voice, acting, and dance lessons, and to top it all, this all happens right off of Times Square, on the Great White Way itself.
Alright, to clarify, Blaine wasn't on Broadway. Well, technically he was, but he wasn't part of an actual running show. Or really even a show at all. In fact, Blaine was just wait staff in a diner. But not just any diner. Oh no. Ellen's Stardust Diner, one of the most popular diners in all of NYC.
He had been working at Stardust for almost seven months. After graduating from Dalton Academy back in Ohio, Blaine moved to the Big Apple with his two best friends, Nick and Jeff. The three of them pitched in to pay the rent of a miniscule apartment on the outskirts of the city. It wasn't exactly "living the dream", but it was as close as he was going to get.
Getting hired to work at Ellen's Stardust Diner was quite possibly the best thing that had ever happened to Blaine. Surprisingly, auditioning to get a job at a diner, of all places, was one of the scariest moments of Blaine's life. He had ended up singing "Beauty School Dropout" from Grease, which had won over the owner instantly. At first, working at the diner was miserable. He didn't know anybody, it was always crazy packed, and the hours tended to be long and he'd be too exhausted to do anything other than sleep on his time off. But Blaine quickly made friends. It was actually quite easy, because all of the people working at Stardust shared a common goal, so there was much to bond over. Blaine was close with most of the girls, and even some of the boys, including the assistant manager, Wes.
Today was supposed to be just another normal day working. Blaine came into work just like any other day, prepared to perform a couple of his usual Broadway standards and make it out of there in one piece.
That isn't exactly what happened.
"Next up, we have a brand new face at Ellen's Stardust Diner, ready to make his "Broadway" debut. Give it up for Porcelain!"
At the complete opposite side of the diner, a boy, looking about Blaine's own age, sat at a seat right next to a customer. Blaine had seen him wandering around the diner already today, taking orders and delivering food. He made the assumption that he was just another new kid, and had kind of brushed it off, without paying too much attention. But now, Blaine couldn't look away. This boy was beautiful. He was taller than Blaine (but then again, who wasn't?), thin but not lanky, keeping a good overall figure. His brown hair was perfectly coiffed up. Not a hair was out of place. And his eyes... Blaine could see them clear as day from all the way across the room. They were mostly blue, with hints of green and grey. Overall, this boy was exactly Blaine's type. And he was absolutely perfect.
A microphone already clutched in his hand, he began to sing to the customer, and Blaine's perfect image was about to get even better.
"What's new, New York City?
I'm new, I wanna say I'm just a little stuck on you
You'll be on me too..."
His voice was, in a word, beautiful. Blaine was quick to note that he was a countertenor, a voice that he would have killed to have in the mix of his high school show choir. It was captivating, and that voice alone could have made Blaine fall in love.
"Stand back, New York City
Because you oughta know whatcha gonna get in me
Just a little touch of star quality!"
The boy was now up and was dancing enthusiastically around the restaurant. And not only Blaine, but the whole diner seemed to be entranced with him.
Kurt spun around the banister of the staircase that led to the second floor of the diner, leaning against the railing as he sung the slower part of the song.
"And if ever I go too far
It's because of the things you are
Beautiful town, I love you..."
Blaine was absolutely entranced by Porcelain. He could barely focus on his job, even flubbing up an order as he snuck glances at the boy and listened.
"Stand back, New York City
Because you oughta know whatcha gonna get in me
Just a little touch of
Just a little touch of
Just a little touch of star quality!"
The boy finished with a flourish. Immediately, the whole diner broke out into thunderous applause. Blaine enthusiastically among them. He was in awe. This boy could really, really sing.
Porcelain handed off the mic to Harmony, the diner's current resident diva. She started some slowed down rendition of "All that Jazz", which was, in Blaine's taste, far too cliche and overdone. These were the kind of numbers that Blaine would tune out and focus on the job he was actually being paid for: waiting the customers.
His business was actually dwindling down quickly. He was scheduled to perform after Tina and Mike, who should be going right after Harmony, so he hadn't been taking new customers in a while. So he did find himself to be dragging his feet with little to do near the halfway point of Mike and Tina's duet.
Blaine had just finished returning some dishes to the kitchen when he saw Porcelain. He was standing in the corner of the diner, obviously lost and confused. Blaine's mind raced as an idea popped into his head. He raced over to Wes, who was the DJ for the night.
"Hey, Wes, I know I'm signed up to sing that West Side Story song, but I need you to change it for me real quick," Blaine said, his voice low. Wes looked at him for a long time, his eyes narrowing.
"Blaine. We've discussed this. No more last minute song changes. It throws everybody off."
"I know, I know. I'm sorry. But it'll be worth it, I promise," Blaine reassured. Wes was unfazed.
"Blaine. You said the same exact thing last time. Word for word. And you ended up serenading a customer with a song about sex toys.You almost got fired!"
"Yeah, but I didn't." Blaine muttered. Wes raised his eyebrows, and Blaine took off again. "This song will be one hundred percent clean, I promise. Please, Wes."
Wes intensified his condescending gaze. It didn't take long for Blaine to crack.
"Fine, fine. I'll babysit Lilah and James again."
Wes gave a satisfied smile. "Thank you. Now what song?"
xx
"And next up, we have our crowd favorite, Warbler! He'll be singing a new song for you all."
Blaine beamed as the guitar of his song started up. It was a favorite of his from one of his all time favorite movie-musicals, Across the Universe, and of course, before that, The Beatles.
"I've just seen a face
I can't forget the time or place
Where we just meet
He's just the boy for me
And want all the world to see
We've met, mmm-mmm-mmm-m'mmm-mmm..."
He wasn't even ashamed to look straight at Porcelain as he sang. Of course, the new boy was busy waiting tables, but that didn't stop him from meeting Blaine's eyes every once and awhile. And when he did, Blaine was powered even more to sing on.
"Falling, yes I am falling
And he keeps calling
Me back again..."
xx
After his shift was up, Blaine was seriously torn about wanting to approach Porcelain. On one hand, he wanted nothing more than to talk to this boy and get to know everything there is to know about him. The other part was terrified of messing up and making a fool out of himself. Something he already feared he had done, given his impromptu serenade.
He finally made up his mind to at least introduce himself, quickly. Porcelain was just outside of the kitchens, having just put in an order, so Blaine knew he didn't have much time. Porcelain grinned as he saw Blaine approach.
"Hey! Warbler! That was a nice song."
"Hi!" Blaine squeaked, taken aback by the fact that he knew his name. His stage name, that is. But still. "Thanks! Um. You too. I mean, your song. That you did. It was nice."
"Thank you. I'm Kurt, by the way."
It took all of the strength inside of him for Blaine not to burst out into song West Side Story style when he heard the name.
"Kurt, cool," Blaine managed. Kurt laughed, raising an eyebrow.
"And you are...? I'm assuming your name isn't really 'Warbler'."
"Ah. Yeah. You would be correct. I'm Blaine."
Kurt stuck his hand out and Blaine eagerly shook it, grinning.
"Nice to meet you, Blaine. See you tomorrow?"
"Yeah! Yeah, tomorrow."
Kurt was whisked away in the hustle and bustle of the busy diner, and Blaine was left to go back home, his heart practically beating out of his chest.
This day certainly didn't go as planned.
xx
The next day at work, Blaine came to realize that his and Kurt's shifts only overlapped each other's by about an hour. This meant that each of them would only get to perform once in front of each other. And Blaine was determined to make the most of this.
And as it would seem, Kurt had the same idea.
"Where have all the good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where's the streetwise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?
Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and I turn and I dream of what I need!"
His voice was fierce and strong as he marched throughout the diner with such strength and power that left Blaine completely breathless.
"I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night
He's gotta be strong
And he's gotta be fast
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight..."
xx
"Wes. Add another day onto the Lilah and James gig again?"
"Damnit, Blaine. He better be worth it."
xx
"He is definitely worth it," Blaine whispered before he started to sing.
"Would you dance
If I asked you to dance?
Would you run
And never look back?"
And Blaine could have sworn he saw Kurt laugh. And if he got to make Kurt laugh? Well, that was enough to make him happy for a lifetime.
"I can be your hero, baby.
I can kiss away the pain.
I will stand by you forever.
You can take my breath away..."
xx
It went on like this for a few days. Kurt would start off with a song, and Blaine would counter it with another. They never spoke of it. They never really spoke at all, apart from friendly greetings and smiles exchanged as they passed each other in the busy diner.
One night, Blaine stayed late working some extra hours. He didn't have any homework to do, so he offered to stay and close up. He didn't tell his boss about any ulterior motives that may or may not have had to do with Kurt.
And even when he ran out of things to do at the end of the day, he found himself lingering just so he could leave at the same time as Kurt.
They both exited through the back doors of the diner, behind the kitchen, that let out into an alleyway that eventually let out into the main roads of the city. It was a friendly silence, both of them walking seemingly separately, until Kurt stopped and spun around to face Blaine.
"Is it just me, or is this really weird?"
"Sorry?" Blaine said, torn away from his thoughts. "What's weird?"
"You and I. Back and forth with the songs..." Kurt trailed off. Blaine's eyes widened in panic.
"Is it weird?"
"I mean, no," Kurt shook his head, before pausing, looking confused. "Well, kind of. Are you..."
"Am I what?" Blaine asked, in response to Kurt's mid sentence trail.
"Are you flirting with me?"
"Yes." Blaine said, a little too quickly. He tried to cover it up as best as he could, but he ended up rambling. "I mean. I was trying to? I'm so sorry. God, you probably aren't even gay. Oh, man. Sorry, sorry. I always do this. It's a force of habit, maybe. Serenading people with music when I really shouldn't, I mean. Listen, I'll just-"
"Blaine," Kurt stopped him with a smile. "I just wasn't sure if it was me who was getting the wrong impression. Yes, I am gay. And I'm glad you were flirting. I was trying to flirt back."
"Yeah?" Blaine asked, hopefully, but he couldn't help but smile. His smile only grew wider when Kurt smiled back.
"Yeah."
Blaine was unsure as to where to go from here. "So, um... Do you want to... I mean, if you don't it's fine. But, uhm... Maybe, if you aren't busy..."
"Yes, Blaine, I will go on a date with you," Kurt said, reading Blaine's mind. Blaine couldn't help but blush. "How about dinner after my Thursday shift? I'm sure there's a nice place that's not Ellen's nearby. My treat."
"Yes! Yes, that would be great. I'd really like that."
Kurt and Blaine just grinned at each other for several silent moments, before Kurt broke eye contact and spoke.
"I have to go. My brother is in town and he needs a constant chaperone, but... I'll see you at work?" Kurt asked, sounding a bit hopeful. Blaine nodded.
"Yeah, at work. Yeah, I'll... I'll see you."
"Bye, Blaine."
"Bye, Kurt."
Kurt spun on his heels and began to walk towards the street.
"Wait, Kurt!"
Kurt spun yet again to face Blaine, who was rushing after him. Blaine reached out for Kurt's arm and pulled him close, and pressed a gentle kiss on his cheek.
"Thursday?" Blaine asked, eagerly. Kurt, who now glowed a bright shade of pink, smiled wide.
"Thursday. Bye, Blaine."
Blaine Anderson really loved his job.