Kurt was sitting on the sofa in the same place Cooper had left him. After their discussion, Blaine had gone to get Kurt a nicer shirt now that he didnt have to fit it over his IV. He thought about a pair of jeans, but with the prosthesis, Blaine wasnt sure what would fit him.

“Hey, I have a Christmas sweater with reindeer and holly on it that might fit you,” Blaine said from the closet.

“Youre dead meat if you bring that out here for me to wear, Anderson,” Kurt laughed. He could hear Blaine in the closet rustling around.

“I hope this is all right,” Blaine said, coming back to show Kurt what hed picked out for him to wear. He held out a dove gray silk button-up with a charcoal tie. There was a rich mahogany shaded suede vest with brass buckles and dark reddish brown chinos. Kurts eyes lit up, his fingers petting the soft silk of the shirt before he smiled at Blaine.

“For me to wear? Blaine, this is beautiful. Are you sure?” he said in mild disbelief.

“Of course. I thought it would look nice with your coloring and it will make your gorgeous blue eyes show up even more. Youre going to look so good in this,” Blaine said, enthusiastic about seeing Kurt in the clothes.

Kurt ducked his head, shy now about wearing Blaines clothes.

“You dont have to loan me your best clothes, Blaine. I can just wear jeans or something,” he said softly.

“No, wear this, youll look great.”

“What are you wearing?” Kurt asked.

Blaine went back to the closet and brought out a teal blue silk shirt that matched the one he was loaning Kurt. He had a chocolate cardigan and dark chinos.

“Oh, youre going to be gorgeous,” Kurt grinned.

“Whos gorgeous?” Cooper asked, letting himself in the dorm room.

“Your brother,” Kurt said, laughing as Blaine blushed.

“All the Anderson men are pretty, Kurt,” Cooper laughed.

“Okay, off with the pants, I need to see how much damage youve done to yourself wearing this prosthesis that doesnt fit you,” Coop grouched. He was frowning, but Kurt took off the track pants anyway. Blaine quietly walked closer to show his support and felt warm at Kurts smile.

Cooper removed the loose dressing from the stump, then opened the curtains for more light as he studied the pressure sores caused by the too-tight prosthesis.

“See here, this has damaged deep tissue and youre lucky you didnt do permanent damage. I can pad this temporarily, but there is nothing to do here but get a new one. I know you dont want me to know where youre from, but having your records would go a long ways towards fixing this mess youve gotten yourself into, Mr. Kurt,” Cooper said, his authoritative voice making Kurts skin crawl on his scalp. He wasnt used to challenging his elders.

“How did you know my name is Kurt?” he asked, he was sure he hadnt mentioned it when Cooper was there to begin with.

“I was outside the dorm door, looking for the key on my ring and I heard Trent call you by your name. When Blaine said your name was Elijah, I knew youd made it up. I forgot when I left and accidentally called you by your real name.”

“Oh. I guess Im not meant to be sneaky, am I? Ah...lets get through today, I know theres nobody to help on Christmas. Can we just talk about this tomorrow?” he asked and Cooper nodded. He had plans.

The next hour was spent with Cooper and Blaine fitting and cutting the padding so Kurt could use his prosthesis. Blaine was almost brought to tears as he saw Kurt cringe upon putting his weight back on his artificial leg, but he saw the determined look in Kurts eye and kept his mouth shut. He had absolute faith in Coopers ability to make this right somehow.

Blaine helped Kurt get dressed in the new clothes, smiling at how nice he looked.

“Okay, heres your crutch, Kurt. Lets get going,” Cooper smiled and they locked up the dorm room and got in the BMW for the short ride to the Anderson house.

On the way off of Dalton grounds, Kurt noticed a building that looked newer than the others standing at the end of the row of the schools academic buildings. It was larger than the rest and had a sign that proclaimed it “Anderson Hall of Science”. He looked at Blaine, who blushed.

“Yeah, thats what my grandparents donated to the school in memory of my parents,” he said quietly.

They pulled up to a carriage house in back of a large brick mansion a short time later. Blaine helped Kurt get out of the low-slung sports car and into the cozy house.

“Oh, that smells delicious!” Kurt said, the scent of roast beef and caramelized onions pervading the house.

“Ah...I put it on to cook before I came to get you. Ill just go see how its doing,” Cooper excused himself.

“Would you like to sit?” Blaine asked and helped Kurt to a camelback sofa. He sat down next to his guest and Kurt looked around the room. There were similar furnishings to Blaines dorm room, everything looking as if it came off the set of Downton Abbey and Kurt wondered if it was all from the same large house. It all seemed to match.

“So, you and Cooper have the same decorator?” he asked, trying to look innocent. Blaine gave him a side look and started laughing. Kurt joined in.

“Yeah...its all from our parents house. The mansion we passed? Neither Cooper or I want to live there right now, its just not comfortable. I think one day when Im done with school and college I might live there again, but not until I can redecorate it. Coop and I just chose some of the furniture we liked – this is all from the back parlor that wasnt ever used much, so it doesnt have the sad memories that other things would.

“I took the bed Id always had, Cooper took his, but this stuff was just extra in that back room. Its comfortable and I kind of like it, so why not,” he said.

“It looks so inviting. I like your dorm room – are all the dorms like that at Dalton?” he asked.

“Ah, no. Remember the science building we passed? Well, as soon as that went up, I suddenly had a new dorm in the building that used to be the headmasters house. There are only four dorms in that building. I share it with a Mid-Eastern prince, the son of a lucrative bank owner and the grandson of one of Daltons founders. I argued about it for a while, but I finally just gave in. Im only there for another year, so I guess Ill just stay there. It means I get to have loud parties,” Blaine grinned.

“They wont get upset that youre hiding a fugitive?” Kurt tried to make it sound as if he were kidding, but Blaine understood.

“Not if they dont know about it,” he smiled.

“Thank you, Blaine. I just.....I cant be found right now. I cant tell you why, but I just cant,” Kurt said, tears threatening once again. He was tired of this, he had always been able to handle his emotions, but today it was just harder.

“Hey, you okay?” Blaine asked, sensing the bad feelings Kurt was trying to deny.

“Just...can you put your arm around me again, just for a few minutes?” Kurt asked in a whisper.

Blaine immediately put a comforting arm around Kurts shoulders and tugged him closer.

Kurt laid his head on Blaines chest and softly gave his thanks, closing his eyes against the burn in them for a few moments.

“Hey, its going to be about four hours until supper. Im going to run over to the hospital and check on all my patients, Ill be back around three. Okay? I have the oven set to turn off automatically, so you wont have to do a thing,” he said, pulling his coat back on and with a wave he was out the door.

“Are all your holidays like this?” Kurt asked when Cooper had left.

“Pretty much. With my grandfather, both parents, and now my brother all being doctors it has always been this way. Im used to it. Hell probably be back in time for supper and if he isnt well eat and save his for him.”

“Oh...okay,” Kurt said, trying not to imagine what his father was doing right now. He thought Burt might have gone to his grandparents for dinner, but wasnt sure. He knew he didnt want to think about it.

“Do you play?” Kurt asked, indicating the piano across the room.

“Yeah. Want to sing some carols?” Blaine asked, a smile on his face.

“Sure,” Kurt agreed. He and his dad always sang carols together on Christmas. “Do you know What Child Is This?”

Blaine played the song, amazed when Kurt sang the high part, his face a blaze of smiles. It was Kurts mothers favorite carol. They took turns picking carols and sang for about an hour.

“Im tired. Want to go up to my room and take a nap?” Blaine asked and Kurt nodded.

They made their way up the steps and Blaine could tell that his new friend was in pain. As soon as they got to the top of the stairs, Blaine put a hand on the small of Kurts back and guided him down the long hall to his own room.

Kurt walked in expecting to see more of the antique overstuffed furniture and was pleasantly surprised to find this room was more modern. There were gray walls with one dark wine colored accent wall. A fireplace took over the far corner and a cherrywood bed with matching dresser and highboy graced the room. The linens on the bed matched and there were framed prints on the walls.

“You decorated this room, didnt you?” Kurt guessed. Somehow the natural feel and sleek lines reminded him of Blaine.

Blaine smiled. “Yeah, I did. This is more my style, I guess,” he said.

Kurt sat down on a chair and Blaine came to help him.

“I can get this myself, Blaine. I have had to deal with the amputation for seven years, Im used to doing things myself,” he snapped.

“Sorry, Kurt I didnt mean to overstep. Ill be right back,” he said quickly and left the room, closing the door with a click. Kurt sat still for a moment. He hadnt meant to snap at Blaine. He knew the boy was just trying to be helpful. He didnt deserve to have Kurt let loose his frustration like that. Kurt sighed. He removed the vest and shirt, sitting in his undershirt; then took off his shoes. He wanted to take the heavy prosthesis off, it was causing all kinds of pain, but he wasnt sure if that would be polite or not. He used the crutch to go over and sit on the bed, dragging the duvet and blankets down evenly and then sitting to wait.

Blaine was back with a tray of cookies and glasses of milk.

“I thought we might like a snack. Looks like Grandma sent these cookies, I think theyre gingersnaps and Toll House chocolate chip,” he smiled at Kurt, ready to let go the small incident that had sent him away a few minutes ago.

“Thank you, Blaine. Please accept my apology – I dont mean to snap at you. I really can take care of myself. They sort of drilled it into my head that I had to learn to do things because I might not end up with anyone,” he said.

“What? Why on Earth would they tell a nine year old something so hateful?” Blaine burst out.

“No wonder you ran away,” he said.

“No! Thats not why I left! I had to go – I was killing him. He couldnt take the stress any more. No, I was taken care of....you dont understand,” Kurt said, his voice getting higher.

“So, you werent in like...foster care or something?” Blaine asked, surprised. He thought he had a good idea why Kurt was living alone and sleeping in libraries. Now he wasnt so sure.

“No. I dont want to talk about it. Ill just say it was not my fathers fault. Not at all. He was perfect...” Kurt said before his emotions caught up with him again.

“Hey, Kurt. Youre tired and youre sick. Getting upset is not going to make your pneumonia go away. I think we need to take a nap and everything will look better when were rested. Okay?” Blaine coaxed.

“All right. Damn. After all my whining about independence, Im going to need you to help me after all. Your brother put the leg on pretty tight and Im having trouble with the straps,” Kurt said.

Blaine helped him off with the chinos and then the buckles of the artificial leg. He pulled back the sheet and then stripped down to boxers and t-shirt himself. Both in bed now, Blaine opened his arms to ask if Kurt needed a hug and smiled when Kurt scooted closer. He was getting used to sleeping with this warm octopus of a boy. They tossed and turned for a while, neither able to get comfortable.

“Hey, you okay now? I mean with me,” Blaine asked, when he realized that Kurt wasnt asleep either.

“Yes. I am sorry for snapping at you. I was just told so often that I had to do everything myself it became a sore spot.”

“Why would those people make you feel as if you were going to end up alone? My god, you were just a little kid,” Blaine said.

“I dont know. I think it was because they figured out I was gay. I came in with my toys once, you know – I held my stuffed animals when they gave me chemo. Dad thought it would make me feel better. I always got nauseated after. I remember the guy that had to clean up my mess was teasing me about it. I had a stuffed Bambi and he said my name must be Flower. My dad got really angry, but I just thought he was talking about Bambis friend the skunk.”

“Oh, Kurt. Thats awful. You are not going to end up alone. Ill be there,” Blaine promised.

“You hardly know me – what makes you think youll be there when I need you in my old age?” Kurt tried to pass it off as a joke by laughing, but the joy didnt reach his eyes and Blaine could tell.

“Im a man of my word, Kurt. I told you I would keep you safe. I meant it,” he said, leaning over and kissing the shy boy on his cheek.

“So....my l-l-leg?” Kurt asked, blushing in embarrassment, not quite sure how to word his question. Blaine was paying attention, he had to say something....”Um...my stump,” Kurt whispered, still shy of talking about his condition, “My stump doesnt gross you out?”

“Oh, Kurt – no. Just no. It is a part of you, I couldnt possibly think of it as anything bad. Stop worrying about it, Okay?”

Kurt turned his face to Blaine, smiling.

“Can we do that again?” he asked and slid his arms around the boy with the silky curls and big brown eyes. This, Kurt decided, this kissing made him happy.

During the sixth or seventh kiss Kurt suddenly felt a hand smoothing along his upper thigh. He jumped a bit but recovered quickly and pushed himself closer to Blaine, his hips seeking the warmth of Blaines body under the covers. He wondered how it had come to this, after all they had known each other for less than a week, but it also seemed so natural that he accepted it as right. He tightened his arms around Blaines neck and kissed deeper.

Blaine massaged his leg for a while obviously gathering courage until Kurt was so nervous with anticipation that he slid his own hand under the waistband of Blaines briefs and wrapped it around Blaines erection instead. Blaine took in a breath, his eyes so wide Kurt had to hold back a giggle.

“Hello to you, too,” Kurt said in a low voice, enjoying the blush as it covered Blaines face. His embarrassment didnt last for long, however, as the good feelings started flowing and Blaine started with a whine in his throat as he got impossibly harder in Kurts grasp.

“This is okay?” Kurt asked and Blaine nodded, trying to pull himself together enough to reciprocate.

“I thought all you privileged boys-school snobs did this?” Kurt laughed.

“Ah...well, if so Ive been left out of the loop!” Blaine said, pushing harder into Kurts hand. “I might be new at this, but Ill try to keep up...” he said.

After a few moments, Kurt stopped, pulling Blaines hand back also.

“Can we...maybe lose the clothes? Youll know when your brother is coming back, right?” Kurt asked.

“Yeah. Hell call. I kinda asked him to,” Blaine admitted.

“Oh, well, then...” Kurt said. He pulled back the sheets and took off his remaining clothing, stopping to watch as Blaine did the same. He was a little self-conscious, but Blaine had seen his stump before, so he tried to make it not matter. It helped that it was dark in the room with the door closed and the drapes pulled tight.

Blaine turned back to Kurt, running his hand down the other boys chest and onto his thigh. He looked at Kurt, trying to judge if he could touch him anywhere. His hand went down the part of Kurts leg, stopping at the end of the stump.

“Do you have feeling in your leg?” Blaine asked.

“Yeah, but not down that far. I can feel inside, but the skin is numb up to here,” he said, moving Blaines hand to show him the limit of his nerves..

“Does it bother you that I”m seeing it, touching it? I thought it was okay, but you look upset now,” Blaine said, pulling back his hand.

“No, its okay. I have just never had anyone even talk about it, much less want to touch it. It has always been like this thing thats in the middle of the room but we dont talk about. Like they cut it off because I was bad or something – a punishment for some awful deed that cant be spoken about in public,” Kurt related. He had learned not to mention his amputated leg, nobody wanted to acknowledge it and he didnt bring attention to it.

“But, Kurt, its part of you. Why wouldnt I want to touch it? I want to touch all of you, not just the things that are socially acceptable. I like all of you,” he said, not sure if his real meaning was getting through.

Kurt laughed. “Oh, so you have a fetish for stumps?”

Blaine took in a breath. “Oh, no! Oh, is that what that sounded like? Im sorry, Kurt...” Blaine babbled in embarrassment.

“Im teasing you, Blaine. Calm down. No, I dont mind if you touch my leg, I do have some sore spots so be careful, but its perfectly fine for you to touch me. Anywhere,” he said in a sultry tone that made him smile at how silly he sounded.

Blaine pushed gently on Kurts shoulder until he was once more lying down, then moved to kiss him again, his hand migrating down to take his cock in hand once again. Kurt forgot about his leg and moaned at the delicious feeling.

An hour and a half drive from his carriage house, Cooper pulled up across from a house in the middle of the block. Among all the houses, this was the one with no decorations, no Christmas tree in the window, no lights on in the living room. It looked deserted, but Cooper had a feeling someone was in the house.

He walked up to the front door, stamping his feet to rid them of the snow and stood on the mat, trying to tell himself he was doing the right thing. He rang the bell. No dog barking, no sound. He looked through the window and saw a light in what was probably the kitchen. He heard a sound, then saw someone walking to the door.

“Hello, Merry Christmas,” Cooper said. The tall man just stood there for a moment, looking at him.

“You are Burt Hummel?” Coop asked and the mans face registered something.

“Oh, sorry, must have been somewhere else in my head. Ah, you need some help? I can give you a jump if your car needs it,” Burt said, squinting to see the BMW parked across the street.

“My car?” Cooper asked, confused.

“Yeah, somebody told you I have an auto shop? I know its Christmas, but I can come out and change a tire or something if you need it. Youre not interrupting anything,” Burt said, trying to smile at the man at his door.

“Oh, no...no, my car is fine. I was looking for you,” Cooper said.

“Me?” Burt still looked a bit dazed.

“You have a son? Kurt?” he asked.

Burt opened the door wide, staring at the man.

“Come in, do you know where Kurt is?” Burt asked.

“Yeah, I think so. I found this at a convenience store. Is this your son?” Cooper asked, showing Burt a flyer of Kurt asking if anyone had seen him.

“Thats my son. Kurt. He disappeared three months ago. He was on his way to school and he just....wasnt there. The police didnt show much interest because hes so close to his eighteenth birthday. I made those flyers, but...nobodys seen him. Where did you see him? Did he seem well?” Burt asked, still looking as if he were in a trance.

“Yes, I think hes friends with my little brother,” Coop said, a bit worried about the man. He had faded to a very pale color. “Listen, I think we should sit for a minute, okay?”

“Of course. Please,” Burt said, shaking his head as if to clear it. He walked into the den and indicated a seat for Cooper to sit down in.

“Can I get you something to drink?” he asked, but Coop shook his head.

“My name is Cooper Anderson. Last week my brother was walking home from a friends house. He saw a kid fall on the Alms Creek Bridge and it looked like he was hurt. He followed him to the mens restroom in Heritage Park and found the kid – waving a knife in his face and telling him to leave him alone.

“Blaine could see the kid was hurt, so he talked him into letting him help. My brother called a friend and they got this kid back to his dormitory room at Dalton.”

“Wait...Dalton School? Is this in Westerville?”

“Yeah. They found that the kid had cut himself pretty badly and put a pressure bandage on it, cleaned him up. The kid wouldnt tell them his name – he made one up. Elijah, I think,” Cooper said.

Burt laughed. “That was Kurts invisible friend when he was a little guy.”

“By morning the kid had a fever, so Blaine called me. Im a doctor. I came and treated him. I need to know for sure if youre his dad before I go any further. Tell me, why would I be so concerned about his condition?” Cooper asked.

“Kurt had bone cancer and they amputated his right leg when he was nine years old,” Burt said.

“Okay. Thats what I had to be sure of. He cut the stump pretty badly and it got infected. I gave him IV antibiotics and hes better, although he has pneumonia and a serious case of the nerves. He doesnt know that I know his real name, although he slipped and let me know his first name is Kurt. He has some other issues Im even more concerned about, though,” Cooper said, giving Burt a critical eye. The guy seemed obviously upset at his son being injured and he had tried to find him.

“Its about his stump. When I was treating the gash, I noticed some pressure sores that I think are caused by his prosthesis,” Cooper said, watching as Burt paled again.

“No, my Kurt? He just told me that it was fitting fine, that he had canceled his fitting because he didnt need it yet. Hes so adamant that the prosthesis is for him to take care of, I didnt check for myself this time. He wasnt limping or favoring it,” Burt said, now almost trembling. “My poor boy. Can you take me to him? Ill pay for the gas or we can take my truck. I need to go to him, find out what happened. Maybe he was hit on the head or kidnapped? Was he okay otherwise?” Burt asked, anxious for anything Coop could tell him.

“Hes skinny, malnourished, needed a bath, but Blaine is taking good care of him. I was thinking of who to report it to when I stopped for a pint of cream on the way back to my house. I saw the flyer in the window and drove straight here,” Cooper said.

“Ill come get him right now. Is there a number I can call? He doesnt have a cell,” Burt said.

Cooper sighed.

“He was really adamant that we dont tell anyone where he is. I think if I call, hell run again and hes sick with pneumonia. I think it might be best if we drive there. The boys are expecting me for Christmas supper.”

Burt grabbed a few things and was ready to go. He followed Cooper out to his BMW and got in, smiling at the sports car.

“Any idea why hes hiding from you?” Coop asked. It was still a concern to him and he was wondering if he should call in the authorities.

“Not really. That last morning he was talking to me and I asked if he needed to have a fitting for a new leg. He was pretty vocal that he didnt. I was on the phone with a guy I know that I get some hours doing odd jobs -taxi driver, shoveling snow, delivering flowers, stuff like that to earn a few dollars. Kurts medical bills are expensive. I thought I heard Kurt in the hall, I was kind of upset because the guy didnt have anything for me. I thought Kurt overheard, but he wasnt there when I looked. I dropped Kurt off at school, then went to work like usual and when I got home that evening, Kurt wasnt home. I never saw him again,” Burt said, anguish in his voice.

“Well, his leg has pressure sores all over it. We got into an argument about it, he wanted me to just pad it. I did for one day, but he was limping by the time we got to my house. It has been too tight for months Id venture to say,” Coop said.

“He was worried about the money....” Burt said with a whimper. He put his head down in his hands, “Oh, what have I done. I always find a way to get the money. I can try to ask his grandparents for a loan maybe. He has to be able to walk, my poor brave kid.”

“Dont worry. I think I know some people that can help. Lets just get your kid back home where he belongs.”

“Kurt, oh...mmmmmm,” Blaine whined, close to climaxing. He was worried about how Kurt was taking it, but the moan that came next told him he neednt worry. They were under the covers, face to face as Blaine gripped hard and pumped, their cocks sliding together and their breath coming in deep gulps as they came together, silent in their shock of the first time with another boy.

Both lay back, looking at each other with wide grins. Kurt reached forward and cupped Blaines cheek.

“Does this mean were boyfriends now?” he laughed and Blaine got up on his arm to lean over and kiss Kurts mouth.

“Absolutely,” he said. They lay back, smiles still on their faces.

“We better clean up. I think Cooper must be done at the hospital by now,” Blaine said. He went to the bathroom and brought back a damp washcloth and towel. Kurt cleaned himself up and got his briefs and t-shirt back on. Blaine came back dressed except for shoes and sat on the bed, helping Kurt with the prosthesis. It would not go on properly with the extra padding and the sores hurt. He finally turned to Blaine.

“I cant do this. Can you help me get back down stairs? Ill just pin the pants leg up and go without if you dont mind,” Kurt said, defeated.

“Sure, Kurt. It wont matter, its just me and Coop. Youll be fine. Dont feel self-conscious. We invited you, not your leg,” he said, smiling.

Kurt hit him in the shoulder, but smiled anyway. Blaine leaned closer and kissed him, scooting next to him on the bed as the kisses got deeper until they heard Cooper come in the door downstairs.