Only a week or so had passed since the night he'd gotten hit with the beer bottle and...somewhat got into a relationship with his boss? While this thought hadn't affected his work ethic at all, work did feel...different. Not really in a bad way, it was just interesting and a lot of things were still beyond his grasp of understanding. Baby steps. One small step at a time, right?

He'd gotten off work at the bar, and went straight home, changing into a dark blue tee shirt that was tight enough to show off his physique. His long hair still hung just at his shoulders as he sat on the couch in contemplative silence while waiting for Lee to show up; this time, he was expecting her, so maybe that would make things a little less awkward; not that he really cared the first time, but he did remember her blushing a lot. So hopefully it'd be a bit better this time.

However, there really was no plan; she was just going to be over later to hang out. In his mine, he figured he'd just approach this relationship like he would a fight. When faced with a new opponent, or one they hadn't studied, fighters spend the first little bit of a fight getting to know their opponent to figure out what to do, what would work. While he in no means was in a fight with Lee, he figured it'd be best to sort of see how she operated, what she was like as a person. Maybe it was a bad analogy, but it was all he knew. He figured drawing wouldn't be any better; just stare at her until he figured it out.

Ugh. It was really messing with his brain thinking about this kind of thing. But...he did want to at least try, so here he was. He closed his eyes as he listened for the knock on his door--which he actually had unlocked, as much as it may have bothered him. But...he was expecting company, and he wasn't planning on going to sleep or getting drunk anytime soon.

Later...well, he'd just have to see how this went.

It had been a week since Lee had seen a bottle broken over Blaine's head before the broken glass was stabbed into his back. A week since they had talked about powers, relationships, and how being different doesn't mean that they can't find someone.

A week since they had realized - or had it been decided? - they were going to try to have a relationship.

It had been an interesting week, that was for sure. Not had, definitely not bad, but it was a little weird technically being Blaine's boss. But it was nice to be able to spend a few minutes here and there talking.

That night, however, they had planned for her to head over to Blaine's place when she finished up at the bar. She wasn't planning on doing much, though Blaine had already headed for home.

About an hour and a half after Blaine had left the bar, Lee was walking up the stairs of his building her bag over her shoulder. And carrying her guitar case in her right hand. That was something she hadn't told Blaine about. She thought it might be a nice surprise, a more enjoyable way to spend the night than watching reruns. Coming to a stop in front of Blaine's door, Lee knocked.

He sat on the couch awhile, just lost in his thoughts, trying to sort and figure this whole thing out. Confusing as it was, he had to admit, it was kind of nice. So far, Lee was shaping up to be a pretty great person; one that was worth sharing his past, his fears, and his art with. So at the very least, she'd be a great person to have around.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when there was a knock on the door, but he knew full well who it was. Blaine didn't get company, especially this late. Standing up, he opened the door very quickly compared to the first time she'd come over, and he smiled as he let her in and shut the door behind her.

"Hey," he said, not really knowing what else to say. Maybe it wasn't too awkward, he hoped. "Oh, you brought your guitar?" he asked, sort of cocking his head to the side, mildly surprised by this, and it soon turned into a smile. Then, he turned and walked back to the couch and sat down where he had been, the TV was still off, but now he was just sort of looking her over instead of letting his mind wander.

It did not take long for Blaine to answer the door, much faster than the first time she had been here a week earlier. And as the door opened, Lee smiled up at Blaine as she stepped into the apartment.

And he asked about the guitar. Still smiling, Lee shrugged as she set her things down to take her jacket off. ”I thought it might be better than the crap they play on TV at night,” Lee replied as her jacket slipped off her shoulders. ”I mean, we don't have to, but I haven't play this since we moved back to the city and I thought it'd be nice since you showed me some of your drawings already.”

He smiled as she came in and shed her jacket. "While that is true, crappy TV did sort of work in our favor, didn't it?" He gave a slight chuckle as he relaxed on the couch, propping his feet on the coffee table and putting his hands behind his head. It was rather nice seeing her here, and willing to play guitar for him, even if it'd been awhile since she had.

"Maybe playing for me will get you back into practice," he murmured, then thought for a moment. "You know, you're right. I did show you my art, so it'd be only fair." His tone was mildly teasing, and he adjusted his gaze to look over at her.

Hanging her coat up, Lee just gave Blaine a look when he said the TV had worked in their favour. ”I don't know,” Lee said as grabbed the guitar, leaving her bag where she had left it, before moving over to the couch. Though this time she sat slightly further away from Blaine than they had before on this couch. ”I'm still convinced it's gotta be those tattoos.”

After shooting him a grin, Lee bent over to pull the guitar out of the case. She had just straightened up and set her fingers to the strings when she heard Blaine's next words. ”If I were that rusty, I'd have to practice before I'd play for you. It's only been a couple months.” That said, Lee lowered her eyes to the guitar. She might not be out of practice, but the guitar has sat untouched other than being bounced around in the move, for two months.

He smiled when she mentioned his tattoos. "If that's the case, I'm glad you like 'em," he said lightly. "Though I'm pretty sure the crap TV led to us talking." He gave another chuckle--he seemed to do that a lot around her.

He shrugged as she spoke. "I don't know how playing music works, honestly. I just know if I go awhile without drawing or fighting, it takes me a little bit to get back into the swing of things." He looked at her, actually finding himself a little excited to hear her play. It wasn't something he normally did, but since it was her, he guessed that was okay.

”Ah, maybe you have a point,” Lee said with a shrug. Then Lee listened as Blaine explained that when he didn’t draw or fight for a while, it took a bit to get back into it. Again, Lee shrugged as her fingers plucked the strings, making adjustments every so often. ”Normally, I’d agree. But I was playing every single day for a few months before we moved, which was more frequently than I ever played, so I should be good.”

As she finished speaking, Lee tilted her head to look over at Blaine. ”So what do you normally listen to?”

He listened as she spoke, and he nodded in agreement. "True. It's one of those things you never really forget. Once you find your edge again, it's like you never stopped." He smiled, remembering all the times he got back into the ring after an injury, or the time he was able to draw again after breaking his hand. In a sense, he understood, even if it was in his own, strange way.

Then, she asked what he liked to listen to, and he sat up a moment. "It depends; if I'm gearing up for a fight or looking to unwind, I listen to mostly hard rock, but I like a lot more instrumental pieces and classical numbers when I want to relax. Though I'll give anything a try." He sat back on the couch once he finished speaking.

Lee nodded as she turned back to the guitar to finish tuning it. Her fingers may stumble over the strings when she hadn’t played in a while, but she never forgot. Even when she hadn’t touched a guitar in 5 years, she hadn’t forgotten how to play.

Finally satisfied with the tuning, Lee started to just play around with it a bit, playing a few notes here, then the start of a song before changing her mind and starting something else. And as she played, she thought. While she had decided that she would play for Blaine, Lee hadn’t actually decided what she was going to play.

But at least he liked rock. Even if the hard rock he mentioned happened to be heavier than what she normally listened to, it was still rock. A teasing smile crossing her face as she glanced over at Blaine again, Lee continued to pluck out notes, not quite playing a song just yet. ”I’m just glad you didn’t say pop or rap or something like that. That might have been a bit too much for me to deal with.”

Taking a breath, Lee turned back to the guitar, realizing that the notes she was playing had slowly started to form an actual song. Without realizing it, she had started to play Finger Eleven. Well, they played good music. After replaying the intro to give herself a few more seconds, Lee started to sing.

”Restless tonight
Cause I wasted the light
Between both these times
I drew a really thin line…”

He watched as she finished tuning her guitar, and then became reacquainted with it. He sat in silence as she finished up and then as she just sort of played around for a moment before she finally settled on a song. His blue-gray eyes settled on her guitar; more specifically, he was watching her fingers move along the strings as he listened. Sure, he didn't know music, or what exactly was going on there, but watching her play sort of gave him an idea of how it worked.

And then...she started singing. By now, he was mesmerized by the sound of her voice, and he was as relaxed as he'd ever been. He sat up, leaning on his knees as he slid to the edge of the couch and just listened to her play and sing. An impressed smile stretched across his face. Part of him wanted to join her, but he didn't feel that the world--or his neighbors--would be ready for that.

If I traded it all
If I gave it all away for one thing
Just for one thing
If I sorted it out
If I knew all about this one thing
Wouldn't that be something?

As the song trailed to an end, Lee didn’t even realize that she had closed her eyes as she sang. Letting the notes trail off, Lee let her hands just rest on the guitar as she glanced over at Blaine, a small yet contented smile on her face. She hadn’t even noticed that Blaine had moved while she played, she had quickly become wrapped up in the music.

And then Lee saw the expression on Blaine’s face, and couldn’t stop the slight blush from rising on her cheeks. ”What do you think? she finally asked in a whisper.

Blaine sat and listened in silent awe as the song continued, getting lost in the music, her fingers actually playing, and the sound of her voice. He propped his elbows on his thighs and leaned his chin against his hands, and then the song faded to a close.

He couldn't help but smile as she blushed--she seemed to do that quite a bit around him, for some reason, and he kind of wondered if that was something you felt, or if your face just turned red and you didn't know about it. He made a note to ask her about that later, but not tonight; he didn't want to potentially ruin this with an awkward question, after all.

"I think that was ****ing amazing," he finally said, grin still plastered on his face.

Blaine didn’t answer right away. Not that he put off answering for long, but there was a moment or two between her asking the question and him answering. But when he did answer, Lee’s blush just intensified. ”You really think so?” Lee asked, her voice still soft, dropping her eyes to the guitar once again as she started playing again. She may be better at taking compliments than she had been years ago, but that felt like a little more than just a simple compliment.

After taking a couple of slow, deep breaths, Lee looked back at Blaine. ”Any requests? It’d help me get to know your taste in music.”

As her blush deepened, he wondered how red her face could get. Did that hurt? Or was it just awkward? It didn't seem to hurt, which didn't make him feel as guilty for thinking it was so darn adorable. "Yeah...I do. You were great," he replied softly, still sitting in the same position.

Then she asked for suggestions, and his mind blanked for a moment. He rubbed his chin a moment as he thought. "You wouldn't happen to know Through Glass by Stone Sour, would you?" he asked after a long moment. He honestly didn't really expect her to know it, but it was the best he could do under the circumstances.