Friday, seven in the evening

Blaine was wiping the sweat out of his eyes as they finished doing the dance routine for Raise Your Glass. It was getting early in the afternoon and they had been rehearsing since nine o'clock in the morning with only a half hour break for lunch before diving back into practice. Blaine only had ten minutes for lunch as he had to talk with the Council on cutting certain lines from Raise Your Glass seeing as it didn't work as well with the choreography. He hastily swallowed his sandwich and drank his water down in two big mouthfuls before going to the meeting.

Kurt looked on concernedly after all of them returned to rehearsal. They were doing another run through of Candles, by Hey Monday, when he noticed something wrong with Blaine towards the end. Usually, Blaine would end by looking at him but this time, he seemed to be stumbling through and slurring the last few lyrics while looking blankly at the floor.

Wes stopped the singing and looked at Blaine, who was still looking at the floor, his mouth not singing but slightly opened. "Blaine! What happened that time? It was perfect all the other times!" Wes said loudly, getting slightly mad.

Blaine didn't answer. Wes started to walk out of formation and towards him. Kurt stepped in before he could get close.

"Could we have a tiny respite? I think Blaine is feeling a little tired." Kurt asked politely of Wes.

The Council president sighed gustily. "Fine, but only ten minutes! We need to get this perfect before we retire for the night!"

Kurt led Blaine over to a nearby chair away from the other Warblers and pushed on his shoulders to make him sit down. He kneeled down until his eyes met Blaine's hauntingly blank ones. "Blaine, it's me. I know you're there. Come back to me, Blaine. Come back to the present." Kurt urgently whispered. He had asked Mairead about how to handle this kind of situation if it should occur; and it was happening right now. Blaine was having a flashback, or a waking nightmare as he put it. "Come back, Blaine. Come back to me. Come on, Blaine, I know you're there."

It seemed to help, as Blaine started mumbling. "…no. Please, don't. Please!" Blaine shut his eyes and started shaking. "Please, just let me go. I didn't do anything to you, you stupid idiot." His eyes started leaking tears.

"Shh, shh, Blaine. It's me, Kurt. Come back to me." Kurt started rubbing his hand on Blaine's upper leg to soothe him and get him to come back; his other hand was rubbing his shoulder and back.

"Let me GO!" Blaine said loudly. His outburst drew the stares of some of the Warblers to where the two boys were sitting. Kurt looked over and shook his head, giving some of them a bitch stare when they wouldn't look away.

"I have to run… I have run… let me go, please. Just let me go." Blaine pleaded to an unseen enemy as he started breathing heavily as if he was actually running.

"Blaine, you need to calm down. You need to run, but calm down. Run towards me, Blaine, run to me." Kurt said more urgently than before. Looking at the clock he only had three minutes left before Wes would resume rehearsal and come over to see what's happening to Blaine. "Keep running towards me, Blaine. I'm right here; I'm not going anywhere. Come back to me."

Blaine's breathing started evening out and he opened his eyes, blinking several times to see clearly. Luckil,y he was wearing his glasses instead of the contacts due to Kurt's insistence that he looked hotter in glasses despite his own thought of looking nerdy or like a dork. "K-Kurt? W-where am I-I?" He asked, slurring a little bit. Blaine raised his hands to take off his glasses and wipe his eyes.

"You're at Dalton, with me. You're in the Warbler's rehearsal hall. Tomorrow's the Regionals competition. We're singing Candles together, remember?" Kurt reminded Blaine softly. "Here, let me get you a glass of water." He started to stand up and walk over to the table where the kitchen staff had brought up refreshments for the Warblers.

"No! I'm fine." Blaine stood up and started walking stiffly back to the crowd of Warblers who were starting to get back into formation for their performance.

Kurt sighed following Blaine and squeezing his shoulder reassuringly as he got into his own spot besides the front line of the Warblers.

They practiced for another four hours before heading back to the dorms to sleep for tomorrow. Kurt was thinking of calling Mercedes to wish her good luck tomorrow but his thought was interrupted by the items lying on his bed.

On his bed was a perfectly washed, ironed, and pressed Dalton uniform with a note on top of the blazer reading:

Courtesy of Dalton's Housekeeping.

Good luck tomorrow Warblers!

Kurt walked into Blaine's room next door and saw him reading the same note from his perfect uniform. "Looks like someone's rooting for us!" Kurt waved the note at his boyfriend.

Blaine chuckled and ran a finger down the length of his blazer's lapel, feeling how soft and clean it was.

"Hey, are you sure you're okay, Blaine? I know you had a flas-"

"I'm perfectly fine. I was just a little tired and I was daydreaming, okay?" Blaine interrupted, stiffening up right away.

"But Blaine-"

"Kurt, I'm perfectly fine, okay? Just leave me alone!" Blaine snapped in anger.

Kurt shrunk back, not wanting to get into a fight and attract attention. "Fine, I'll be in my room if you need me." Kurt stiffly told him. He walked rapidly back into his room and shut the door, letting the tears freely fall from his face. To keep his mind off of what just happened, he pulled out some hangers from his closet and proceeded to carefully hang up each part of the perfect uniform carefully from his coat hanger pole.

He was just getting into bed when he heard a quiet knock at his door and Blaine's voice timidly asking, "Kurt?"

Kurt contemplated whether to answer it or not.

Opening his door, he saw Blaine in a white t-shirt and his boxers with remorse in his eyes. "I'm sorry, Kurt. I know you were just worried about me, but… I just…" Kurt held up his hand.

"It's okay, Blaine. I understand; really, I do. I just wanted to let you know that I'm there for you, no matter what." He told him softly.

Blaine's eyes watered up. Kurt hugged him and Blaine responded by hugging him back with a tight grip. "Thank you, Kurt. I love you so much, I hope you know that."

"Yes, yes I do, Blaine Anderson. And I love you so very much, too." Blaine heard the passion in his voice. Kurt leaned into Blaine's face for a kiss. It was short, but very sweet as they headed back into their respective rooms for the night, resting up for the big competition for tomorrow.

Mairead was looking anxiously at the front door and watching the clock. Lauren's flight home from California landed an hour ago at ten o'clock, and her dad went to pick her up. Lauren was Mairead's best girl friend. Not girlfriend, but a best friend who is a girl. People got that confused so many times when they hung out together because they were so close and called each other sisters.

The door opened and she flung herself towards the person stepping inside. She basically tackled the person to ground, learning to her amusement and dismay that she tackled her father to the ground when he was holding a stuffed suitcase in his hand.

"I'm right here, Mairead. And that was your dad you just wiped the front doorstep with." A voice said dryly.

Mairead looked up and quickly flung herself into the right person she was looking for. Lauren responded in excitement, finally seeing her again after six months. Mairead broke the embrace but remained in Lauren's arms, taking a good look at her. If Blaine and Joey looked almost identical, Lauren looked the exact opposite of them. Lauren was five foot eight, four inches taller than Mairead; kind of long, blond hair that fell to the middle of the top of her back; pasty white skin that clearly looked red, painful, and sunburned; glasses that were somewhat identical to hers, purple top framed glasses and frameless at the lower half of the glasses; and an excited smile. She was wearing a rumpled t-shirt and jeans with comfy running shoes.

"I'm so glad you're home!" Mairead squealed, flattening herself against her best friend again. Lauren's bright blue-grey eyes twinkled. "C'mon, let's go up to my room." She took her best friend by the hand and they both ran up to her room. Lauren was just about to close the door before she remembered that she forgot something crucial: her suitcase. Laughing embarrassingly, she ran back down the spiral staircase to the front door entrance where Jason was about to bring the suitcase up. "I'll take that… Dad." She said to him with a twinkle in her eye. He smiled and laughed as she started to lug the suitcase up the stairs.

Once the door was shut and they had both changed into their pajamas, Lauren in shorts and an old cross-country shirt and Mairead in her shorts and tank-top, they caught up with each other. They both sat on the bed with Mairead's sleeping bag on the floor for Lauren.

"How've you been, Mari? I've missed you so much! Skype isn't exactly the best way to see each other." Lauren asked and explained.

Mairead smiled. "I've been… alright. My PTSD's kinda been a nuisance with what's happened recently and all…" She looked down at her finger tips.

Lauren, always the one to notice the subtlest changes in behavior, noticed her lackluster answer. "What's going on with my brothers? Is that why you've been stressed? I can see those bags under your eyes."

Mairead explained everything to Blaine's sister, starting from the Nerf war up to when she was beaten by Matthew. Lauren listened in horror, occasionally asking a clarifying question.

"My own father… actually did all that?" She whispered, not wanting to realize it. Mairead nodded. "I'm going to press charges against that man. He had no right to beat you within an inch of your life and harm my brother." She growled.

"Actually, I was probably beaten within ten yards of my life." Mairead interrupted. The girls looked at each other for a second before bursting into laughter.

"We should get some rest; Blaine's show choir competition is at one tomorrow and it's getting late. Not to mention, you're probably tired from that plane ride." Mairead looked pointedly at the digital clock displaying that it was seventeen minutes after one o'clock in the morning in neon green numbers. "What time do you want to wake up?"

Lauren responded after a minute. "Maybe around ten o'clock?" Mairead shook her head.

"It'll take us two hours to get to the place where the Warblers are going to perform. It's like in downtown Toledo or somewhere close to there. What about seven?" She suggested as her best friend snorted.

"No way, nine forty-five."

"Eight."

"Nine thirty."

"Eight thirty."

"Fine! Eight thirty it is." Lauren said, exasperated. "Why do you always have to get up so early?"

Mairead smiled mischievously in victory. "I have my reasons. At least we don't have to get up at five in the morning. Kurt told me the Warblers have to get up to take the bus to Toledo. Imagine being stuck on a bus with all those boys." She already explained to Lauren about Blaine's boyfriend.

Lauren laughed. "That actually sounds kinda fun. Considering that three-fourths of them are going to go straight back to sleep as soon as the bus starts rolling. Imagine all the pranks you can do to sleeping high school boys."

"You should also imagine all the pain that would be coming your way when they wake up." Mairead said dryly, smiling.

Lauren rolled her eyes. "C'mon, let's go to sleep. I'll turn off the lights." She got off the bed and went to turn the lights off.

Mairead turned on the mini lamp that she turned on at night on her bed stand. Once both girls were settled in, Mairead sleepily said, "Night, sis. I love you."

"Love you too."

And just like that, both girls were unconscious in two minutes flat.

Saturday, four o'clock in the morning

Blaine's alarm went off at four in the morning and he groaned. Why is it so ungodly early? He mumbled in his head. Wes had called the bus company and told them that they would be leaving Dalton's campus by five o'clock in order to make it to Toledo's Fitzgerald Auditorium for the competition by nine. They had to register by nine-thirty and then rehearse for an hour before heading to sit down and watching the other Regional show choir competition taking place the same day in the same auditorium before it would come to his Regionals. They had half an hour before they had to sing to warm up.

Getting off of the bed slowly, not wanting to cause a head rush, he dragged himself to the bathroom and into a warm shower. The water revived him a bit and got him to run through the songs in his head. As he was shaving, he heard a slow knock at his bathroom's door. He opened it, shaving cream still on his face. Kurt was in the door way, dressed and looking quite nervous.

"You almost ready?" He asked, his voice going up an octave or two in Blaine's opinion. Blaine saw the barely noticeable bags under his eyes. He cocked one of his triangular eyebrows.

"Did you get any sleep last night? You look… tired." Blaine tried to explain, considering Kurt was bouncing a little on the heels of his newly polished and shiny black dress shoes.

"Yeah, a little. But I'm perfectly fine. Why?" Kurt's voice went up another octave.

Blaine chuckled, not wanting to ruin the moment. "Never mind. C'mon, let's go down for breakfast." He grabbed his messenger bag with his bottle of hair gel as he walked out of his room; he left his hair un-gelled considering the long bus trip.

As they arrived down to the dining hall, the two boys noticed three large reusable bags full of something. They thought nothing of it as they entered the dining hall full of drowsy boys and a stressed out Wes, David, and Thad. Those three looked like they had no sleep whatsoever and were drinking large cups of coffee. Getting a toasted English muffin and slathering it with honey and peanut butter, he noticed Kurt not really taking anything other than a banana and a cup of coffee.

"Kurt, we're going to be on the road for four hours. A cup of coffee and a banana is not going to keep you full for that long." Blaine stated, looking at Kurt's face as he stirred in cinnamon to his own cup of coffee. Kurt concentrated on stirring milk and sugar in his cup of coffee. "Kurt, did you hear me? You need to eat something more." Blaine urged his boyfriend.

Kurt finally looked up before nodding; he was walking towards the bread table. Blaine caught a glance of something in his eyes, but couldn't figure out what it was. He finished stirring his coffee and grabbed two seats at nearby table were Jeff and another drowsy Warbler were slowly eating their plate of scrambled eggs. Jeff and the Warbler nodded their greeting, not quite finding the energy to use their voice just yet. Kurt found his way over to them, as Blaine finished his first round of breakfast items, balancing a plate of buttered toast and a small muffin with his cup of coffee. Blaine nodded and smiled his approval of Kurt's breakfast, before heading back to the breakfast buffet for a small plate of eggs and another cup of coffee.

It was getting close to four-forty five when Wes ushered the sleepy show choir out to the coach bus parked in front of Dalton's main entrance. They trooped inside the bus with Blaine calling dibs on the very back seat considering that the buses they usually rode never had bathrooms but a long back seat that spanned across the back of the bus. Blaine took Kurt's hand and sat down in the comfy back seats. He took off his bag and placed it at his feet. Kurt placed his bag on the seat beside him.

The sun was just struggling to come up as David came in last on the bus with the three large bags that Blaine and Kurt saw as they went down to breakfast. He placed the green bags in the compartment above his seat before collapsing in it.

The bus started rolling and they were on their way to Toledo. The good thing about the Warblers was that they were a reasonably small group so they didn't fill up all the seats. Some of them took off their blazers and shoes and laid down on the seats with the arm rest up, asleep in three seconds. Others had to awkwardly lean against each other and tried to catch some shut-eye. Almost all of the boys brought their iPods and had their ear buds or sound canceling headphones on or in their ears. Blaine looked out the window relaxed, hoping he wouldn't fall asleep. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kurt falling asleep with his head drooping forward. Pulling the ear buds out of his ears and Kurt's, he asked the sleepy boy, "Kurt, you didn't sleep much, did you?"

"Um… a little, but not a lot." Kurt admitted, yawning. His eyes started to droop again.

Blaine chuckled, pulling a folded Dalton sweatshirt out of his bag, bumping his Kindle. "Here, use this as a pillow. Take off your shoes and blazer. This seat is more than enough for you lay down in. I mean you can stretch without being cramped like some of these guys." He pointed generally down the length of the bus while whispering.

Kurt smiled and kissed his boyfriend on the lips before doing what he suggested. He hung the blazer on the back of the seat in front of him and unlaced his shoes before putting his ear buds back in and laying down on the sweatshirt. Blaine was right, that back seat had more than enough room for him to lie down and stretch his long legs comfortably. Kurt was out in five seconds.

Checking to make sure he was asleep, Blaine kissed Kurt sweetly on the temple. He slowly bent down to grab his Kindle and turned it on. Choosing Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire out of his list of books, he relaxed and leaned into his seat.

Nothing more than having my boyfriend by my side and reading and listening to Harry Potter could be better. Blaine thought contentedly and smiled, as Hedwig's theme sounded in his ears.

Saturday, eight fifteen in the morning

Mairead woke up after the sun shined on her face through her window. She rolled over and saw her best friend sleeping on the ground in front of her. She slowly and quietly got up, not wanting to wake Lauren for another fifteen minutes. She gathered her clothes for the day, a long sleeved purple t-shirt and dark blue jeans, before opening her door as silently as possible and heading for the bathroom. Hearing her mother tinker with something down in the kitchen, she shut the door to the bathroom and locked it and turned on the shower faucet to the hottest temperature she could handle before taking off her clothes.

She was blowing drying her hair for about forty-five minutes before she heard an impatient knocking at the door. Opening the door with the blow dryer still on, she yelled at Nick "What? I'm almost done!"

"It's nine thirty! Why don't you use the blow dryer in Mom and Dad's bathroom and let me use this one to shower?" Nick hollered over the loud noise.

"No! This one dries my hair faster than theirs! Use Mom and Dad's shower if you're so eager to take a shower." She yelled back at him.

"Yes, but this one has all my shaving stuff in it along with my contact solution!"

"Use Dad's!"

"I would die using his! It's too big!"

"Just take a shower over there, and I'll be done with my hair by the time you get out!" Mairead was getting impatient.

"Fine!" She watched her brother's tall lanky form deliberately slouch off to their parents' master bedroom for their bathroom.

She finished drying her hair and spent two minutes detangling her long, thick, black, hair and wrestling it into a low ponytail before heading downstairs and finding Lauren still dressed in her pajamas eating Sarah's homemade waffles and talking to her.

"Morning, Mom! Hey you; you finally woke up." She nudged her in the ribs as she set down her plate next to her on the counter, sitting in one of the four tall stools that were behind the counter.

Lauren stuck her tongue out at her. "You were the one who suggested waking up at seven."

"Told you I was an early riser." Mairead said through a mouth full of waffles and maple syrup.

Taking a sip of her glass of milk, she heard her father's heavy steps coming down the stairs. He was in the same state as Lauren, still in his sleeping pants and a t-shirt. Kissing his wife and daughter on the temple, he grabbed a plate with two waffles and drenched it in syrup before taking a seat at the dining room table to read the newspaper.

Nick appeared in the kitchen grabbing a plate for himself before sitting beside Mairead and talking to his mom. He was dressed in skinny jeans, a white and black striped shirt with a red cardigan slung over one arm. His short brown hair was slightly damp as he voraciously ate his waffles.

Lauren finished her breakfast and ran upstairs to take a shower. Mairead was next to finish and flopped down on the couch in the living room to flip though the TV channels to find a decent Saturday morning cartoon to watch while waiting for her best friend. Lauren came down forty-five minutes later with damp hair and a bag full of stuff to do on the way to Toledo. Mairead forgot that she didn't pack a bag yet, and jumped up to pack one in her room. She only packed her Kindle, iTouch, a big plastic bag filled with Apples to Apples card, and her cell phone in her small but light messenger bag.

Once Jason was done showering and getting ready, the whole house hold trooped into the garage and into the Pilot with Mairead and Lauren taking the back seats; Nick getting the middle seats to himself; and Sarah, of course, taking the passenger seat up front. Jason slowly backed out of the driveway and closed the garage. Driving only next door and going in the driveway, Jason honked the horn for Joey to come out of his house and get in the car so he could come to see Blaine in the competition. He had no idea Lauren was in the car though. He opened the door opposite of Nick and Lauren and Mairead screamed "SURPRISE!" at the top of their lungs.

Joey hit his head on the ceiling of the car in shock and astonishment. "When did you get here?" He laughed as he awkwardly hugged his older sister over the seat. He finally sat down besides Nick and fastened his seat belt.

"Last night. Jason drove me and I just stayed at Mairead's house." She shrugged as she refastened her seat belt.

"Everyone have your seat belts on? Good, let's get this party started!" All the kids in the back groaned at the weak joke.

Joey shifted his seatbelt around and let out a small yelp of pain.

"You okay there, Joe?" Mairead asked, zeroing in on his remark.

"Yeah." He laughed. "Just a small bruise on my hip got bumped. It's nothing." Joey said. Behind him, Lauren and Mairead looked at each other, thinking about what they discussed last night.

Mairead remembered that there was a black SUV in the Anderson's driveway, she meant to ask him but totally forgot in yelling surprise to Joey. I'll just ask him when we're waiting for Blaine to perform. She made a mental note to herself.

When they were about half an hour into the trip, she pulled out the bag full of Apples to Apples cards and suggested they play together. Considering that they were in two separate seats, she split up the green and red cards and handed the two piles to Nick so they didn't have to reach over the seat to get the cards. They were roaring with laughter by the time Jason parked the car in nearby parking ramp near the Auditorium.

"We so have to continue this after the competition. I have a killer card I need to play." Joey said as they cleaned up. Mairead grabbed her bag filled only with her iTouch and her Kindle and slid her cell phone in her pocket, making sure she set it to vibrate only and locked the phone. Nick folded the chair to let the girls out of the back seat and they climbed out. They stumbled a bit as they came out of the car, having not been able to stretch their legs for the last two hours. They walked the short distance to the auditorium and found the seats where they could see the stage the clearest.

"You said that Blaine and the Warblers were performing at one?" Sarah asked her husband while reading the program.

"Yup. Looks like we got her a little early. Oh well, we can watch the other choirs perform until Blaine come out." Jason said, playing around with his cell phone.

It was only eleven-fifteen and the first show wasn't until twelve o'clock. Mairead and Joey were getting all fidgety in their seats, waiting.

"Hey, why don't we go outside to the lobby? Maybe Blaine and Warblers have already arrived and they're registering." Lauren suggested, anxious to see her brother.

Mairead nodded and looked at her mother. Sarah nodded. "Just keep your cell phone on you; I'll call you when they sound the five minute warning to take seats."

The three of them, Lauren, Joey, and Mairead, walked out to the chaotic lobby looking for a sign of the distinctive dark blue blazer with red piping and the Dalton insignia in the crowd.

Saturday, an hour back, ten-fifteen

Wes was going crazy in the bus; he looked at his watch and was panicking because they were late to registration and they were also in a traffic jam. "I told you to take other routes than the highway. I thought you knew how crowded these roads are on the weekends?" Wes angrily said to the bus driver. Luckily, unbeknownst to Wes, Thad had called ahead to the Regionals' coordinators and registered the Warblers over the phone. So once they got there, all they needed to do was find their green room and grab their "commemorative" lanyard with their passes before competing.

Blaine looked on amusingly at the front of the bus as Wes continued quietly venting his anger on the bus driver and spewing the occasional Chinese swear while Thad was calling the Regionals' officials and quietly registering all of them. Everyone was still asleep except for him, Wes, Thad, and the bus driver.

Kurt was still heavily asleep when Blaine shook his shoulder, took out the ear bud in his exposed ear, and kissed him on the temple to wake him up. "Hey, we're nearly there. Wake up, Kurt." He whispered in his ear.

Kurt slowly resurfaced back to the waking world when he heard Blaine's voice summoning him. Opening his eyes and slitting them to protect his vision from the bright sun shining through the windows, he saw Blaine Anderson, his beautiful boyfriend, leaning over and smiling at him. He sat up and kissed him. "You know, I could get used to this. Waking up to a kiss every time I fall asleep."

Blaine chuckled. "I think that can be arranged." He said as he kissed him again.

Kurt looked around and saw all the boys still fast asleep. He also saw an angry Wes arguing with the bus driver and Thad looking amused. "What happened up there? Wes looks like he swallowed a beehive. And why did you wake me when no one else is awake?" he asked Blaine, yawning one last yawn to wake himself up.

"Well," Blaine started. "Wes is arguing with the bus driver because he took the quote en quote, the 'fastest' route to the auditorium. Wes is mad because he thinks that we missed the registration and doesn't know that Thad already registered us over the phone and is not telling Wes because it's kinda amusing watching Wes argue with someone; he occasionally slips and swears at the bus driver in Chinese before reverting back to English swearing." Blaine finished with the first question while Kurt laughed softly.

"And I thought that we should run through our duet together before everyone else wakes up and we wouldn't get any work done." Blaine whispered in Kurt's ear, pulling him close to his side. Kurt nodded, Blaine made sense.

They continued to practice for the next half hour they were in the bus before Wes recruited them in waking everyone up and getting them off the bus and into the empty auditorium lobby. Wes got off the bus as soon as the grumpy bus driver opened the doors and bolted inside. Thad rolled his eyes as he saw Wes frantically explain to an amused coordinator why they were late. The Warblers marched off the bus, bags in hand; in the case of David, three large green bags in hand, and followed the coordinator to their green room. Once they entered the room, they spotted the coffee maker and bolted for it. The coordinator stood dumbfounded as the group of immaculately dressed private school boys were fighting over the coffee pot. Only Kurt and Blaine stood back from their peers.

"This is normal for us if we wake up at four in the morning to come here." Blaine reassured the female coordinator. She nodded her eyes wide.

"I'll see if I can wrangle up some more coffee makers and cups for you guys." She said. She shook her head at the scene. "Now, seeing as your group leader is in that all out brawl," referring to Wes, "I'll just talk to you instead." She handed Kurt a big pile of lanyards with passes swinging from them and handed Blaine a sheaf of papers. "You guys are performing at one o'clock so that means you guys have to be back stage by twelve fifty-five. Normally, all participants are suppose to go out in the auditorium and sit down, but considering you guys are late, you can stay back here until you perform and then sit down after. I'll go and see to those coffee makers now before they hurt each other…" She looked edgily at the pile of boys.

Blaine said thank you to the coordinator before sitting down in one of the couches and sorting through the papers on the coffee table. The coordinator came back with two more coffee makers and handed them to two boys who were waiting in the long line for the original coffee maker. They soon had the other coffee pots up and running and the smell of the bitter black concoction permeated the air in the green room.

Kurt handed Blaine a cup of coffee as he was filling out the forms. Kurt sat down on the couch beside him and sat silently.

David revealed that the green bags he brought with them contained junk food, something banned at Dalton. The kitchen staff had been saving them for a special occasion and decided that the Warblers going to Regionals was an exception. David told them that there would be a banquet in their honor on Monday at dinner, whether they bring back a trophy or not. The boys diverged on the chips like mosquitoes to human blood. Kurt and Blaine decided not to partake in the junk food; Blaine doing the paper work and Kurt not wanting to eat greasy, acne-causing fried bits of potato slices. After eating through at least six bags of potato chips, Wes had them warm up.

Finishing the forms just in time, the coordinator came back and told them it was time to go back stage. Blaine handed the forms to her and followed everyone back stage.

As they waited for the previous school to finish, Kurt became paler and even more silent if that was possible.

The previous school finished and curtain was dropped. Kurt stood rooted to one spot while the Warblers walked behind him to take their places and the school just went walked in front of him back to their green room.

Blaine was one of the last to go behind stage and saw Kurt standing right there, not moving at all. He sighed a calming breath, excited to actually be performing for other people than mall shoppers and old people in nursing homes.

"Has anyone ever died literally on stage?" Kurt asked him, wide eyed.

Blaine looks at Kurt, trying to hold back the amusement that was showing on his face. "Are you nervous?"

Kurt glanced nervously over at Blaine before returning his sight to the curtain that was hiding him and the Warblers from the audience. "Please don't judge me. This is the first time I've had a solo in front of a competition audience. I have this nightmare that I'm going to forget the lyrics and that I'm going to sing and nothing comes out."

While Kurt was rambling his fears out, Blaine walked behind him to get out of the way for the backstage crew to walk. He flexed his neck to relax him and loosen himself up before taking his position. Looking at Kurt and smiling, Kurt looks back at Blaine and gives him a nervous smile in return and then reflexively looks back at the ruby red curtains. Kurt quietly says "Okay, you can judge me now."

"I think it's adorable," Blaine explained. "I think you're adorable. And the only people who are going to be dying are the people in that audience." He points to the curtain and squeezes both of Kurt's tense shoulders to support him. "Because we are going to kill this thing." Blaine gives Kurt one last loving look before taking his place on the risers. Kurt slowly takes his place on the risers and waits anxiously for the curtain to rise.

Mairead couldn't believe what she saw. Honestly? Jesus is a friend of mine? I thought the coaches didn't know the judges before they came here. It's like that school is catering to the judges to win. That's really unfair and dirty. Honestly, two out of the three of them are freaking conservative. You have a stupid news reporter who doesn't know what a show choir is, a supposedly home-school teacher Republican, and a stripper who turned into a nun? What the heck were the coordinator thinking? Mairead stared in disbelief between the spectacle on stage and to where the judges were sitting. The Republican seemed to rocking out while the other two were tapping a foot or finger.

Finally the song ended and while everyone was clapping, Mairead, Joey, Lauren, and Nick were laughing at the foolishness that just happened to each other. The curtain finally dropped and the stage was hidden from view.

"Blaine's up next!" Lauren said excitedly. Joey was literally bouncing up and down on his seat. Mairead smiled and laughed, waiting patiently to see her best friend sing with his boy friend.

"Do you think I should record this?" Mairead asked her friends.

"Honey, they did say at the beginning of the shows that no recording was allowed." Sarah reminded her.

"But Mom," Mairead protested. "Look at all the mini-camcorders everyone else up here is holding and recording. No one's going to notice an iTouch recording it. If anyone asks, I'll just say I'm texting or something and pass this off as an iPhone, instead." It was true, they had found seats in the front row of the balcony and everyone was holding a small device that was emitting a red beam of light.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Fine." She said, not wanting to fight.

Mairead's eyes gleamed with triumph as she touched her camera app on her iTouch and turned the camera on to video camera and started recording when the announcer proclaimed in his deep voice, "From Westerville, Ohio, the Dalton Academy Warblers!" Lauren and Joey looked excitedly at the curtain going up.

As the curtain opened, the Warblers started to sing their voices out to the audience, Kurt widened his eyes, not realizing how big the audience was. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Visualizing his mother was the only one in the audience, I love you, Mom, he thought and took the biggest step forward into the spot light.

The power lines went out
And I am all alone
But I don't really care, at all

Not answering my phone

Blaine smiled as he sang with the Warblers during Kurt's first stanza of the song. It was his turn to step in the spotlight and sing his heart out to the boy he loved. He turned to Kurt and shut the audience out of his mind, singing only to him.

All the games you played
The promises you made
Couldn't finish what you started
Only darkness still remains

Crossing behind him, Kurt tilted his head down, smiling , and waited for Blaine to come to his other side. Blaine looked him in the eye as they both began to sing their hearts out to each other. Kurt begins to walk backwards carefully, realizing that they were no longer in the center of the stage. Blaine walks forward, following Kurt and then doesn't turn back to the audience, facing only Kurt and looking him again in the eye with such a loving expression.

Lost sight
Couldn't see
When it was you and me
Blow the candles out
Looks like a solo tonight

Blaine was so in awe of Kurt's voice that he actually forgot to sing the first two lines of the stanza! Whoops, Blaine thought quickly before joining in the third line and then harmonizing perfectly with Kurt.

Both of the boys finally realized that there was an audience watching them and turned their bodies, voices, hearts, and souls out to the people listening to them. Blaine starts feeling the song, bouncing a little on his feet, moving his hands; closing them and the splaying them out to hopefully convey to the audience what love he had for Kurt.

I'm beginning to see the light
Blow the candles out
Looks like a solo tonight
But I think I'll be alright

The Warblers backed off a little on their voices, allowing Kurt and Blaine to shine and sing their hearts out to each other.

One day,

You will wake up
With nothing but you're sorry's

Blaine snuck a glance at Kurt, his body turning halfway towards Kurt, and then turns back to the audience, focusing on making sure that his voice washes over the audience.

Kurt wanted so badly to turn towards Blaine when he turned towards him, but he realized what a critical lyric it was and how it was supposed to sound to the audience, so he refrained from turning to Blaine.

And someday,
You will get back

Blaine completely shuts out everyone except for the boy he wants to spend eternity with. Singing his heart out, he turns his body towards Kurt and takes a few steps forward.

Everything you gave me

Blow the candles out

Looks like a solo tonight
I'm beginning to see the light

Kurt turned his head towards Blaine, who was absolutely singing his entire being out to him and only him.

Blaine closed his eyes and let his voice sing out with all the emotion, heart, and soul as humanly possible towards his boyfriend, tears stinging his eyes behind closed eyelids.

Taking a step closer to Blaine, Kurt realized that throughout this entire song, that he didn't care what place he got in this damn competition. He shut everyone out except for him and Blaine in his mind, not noticing the audience waving cheap battery powered candles at him or the Warblers glancing at each other with knowing looks.

As Blaine held out the last syllable, Kurt takes one last loving look at him and start to turn his body, but not his head towards the audience. He finally realizes that his voice was not going to carry out that well to the audience if he was still facing Blaine. Kurt reluctantly turned his voice to the large group of people waving their "candles" at him.

Blow the candles out
(The candles out)
Looks like a solo tonight
(Solo tonight)

Blaine and Kurt turned towards the quiet audience at this point, letting their harmonized voices wash over the minds of the audience. Blaine followed every line Kurt sang with an echo of the last four syllable, accenting Kurt's beautiful voice nicely.

But I think I'll be alright

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and they sang their absolutely hearts out to each other. The last line ended too soon, each boy thought as they looked into each other's eyes, drinking in what they saw. Blaine had every benevolent expression in his eyes, while Kurt had the look of a proud father in his eyes. Blaine and Kurt took one last second of gazing at each other before bowing to the wildly cheering and clapping audience.

For some reason, Kurt's spotlight that had been trained on him during the entire song had shut down and Blaine was the only one in the spotlight.

Idiots, this is not happening. Blaine thought as he dragged Kurt into his spotlight as he stepped out of it, clapping hard.

Kurt was suddenly aware of a sudden darkness that had fallen over him as his spotlight was now shut down and only Blaine was in the spotlight. He wasn't going to do anything, Blaine really did deserve the spotlight. Until his boyfriend grabbed him by the upper arms and dragged him into the rightful place he deserved. Kurt looked like a deer in headlights, again. Making some half bows and half curtsies to the audience, he spotted Rachel and Mercedes waving their arms and screaming out his name towards him.

Mommy, I hope I made you proud. Kurt thought as he quickly ran back into the risers to take his position for the next song. Blaine took center stage after the clapping was finished.

Joey, Lauren, and the whole Stryka family were in awe of what they just witnessed. Blaine and Kurt just presented to the audience. They could see everything, every emotion the two boys were literally pouring out to each other through their voices. Every line was so perfect for the two boys that no other song would have fit them as well as this song.

When the song ended, Lauren, Mairead, and Joey had tears in their eyes. They looked at each other and thought the exact same thought: Wow!

Kurt ran back into the risers next to two other boys while the next song started. Everyone remained on their feet and started moving and grooving to the Warblers' singing. Blaine kicked it off with his voice singing solo and the Warblers in the background

Right right, turn off the lights
We gonna lose our minds tonight
What's the dealio?

I love when it's all too much
5 AM turn the radio up
Where's the rock and roll?

Party crasher,
panty snatcha'

Call me up if you are gangsta'

Don't be fancy
Just get dancey
Why so serious?

The Warblers joined Blaine in singing and dancing to the next set of lyrics, clearly having the time of their lives on that stage.

So raise your glass if you are wrong
In all the right ways
All my underdogs, we will never be, never be
Anything but loud
And nitty gritty dirty little freaks
Won't you come on, and come on, and
Raise your glass!
Just come on and come and
Raise Your Glass!

The Warblers backed off on their voices for Blaine so he could sing the next set without being too overpowered by them considering he had half-talking, half-singing lines next.

So if you're too school for cool
And you're treated like a fool (treated like a fool)
You could choose to let it go
We can always, we can always
Party on our own...

Blaine cleverly started to walk back into formation in the middle of the stage before popping back out and singing his voice out on the first line before rejoining the rest of his boys.

So raise your
So raise your glass if you are wrong
In all the right ways
All my underdogs, we will never be, never be
Anything but loud
And nitty gritty dirty little freaks

Won't you come on! and come on! and
Raise your glass!
Just come on and come and
Raise your glass!

Blaine finished up the song on a triumphant note. Letting the audience know how appreciative the Warbers, and him, enjoyed singing for them.

...for me!

The Warblers bowed simultaneously, before breaking formation and hugging Blaine and Kurt on center stage.

Mairead, Lauren, Joey, and Nick screamed until their voices grew hoarse. They had never seen the Warblers this animated and look so fun before!

Blaine hugged Kurt the longest as the other Warblers squeezed their shoulders in congratulations and Kurt blew kisses out to Rachel and Mercedes, who he could hear cheering from the stage.

Blaine also saw Mairead and family, Joey, and to his delightful surprise, his sister Lauren! They were all jumping up and down and screaming for him. Blaine pointed to them and laughed.

Watching the Warblers go off stage and curtain come down, Mairead, Joey, Lauren, and Nick couldn't stop laughing joyfully and telling each other the most awesome parts of the Warblers' performance.

"Dude, did you see that? How they were all-"

"I can't believe how awesome that was, I mean-"

"I know! And how they looked at each other during that part of the song-"

"That part when they all jumped up at the same time-"

They couldn't talk to each other unless the other was talking so it was a jumbled mess of words and shrieks from the girls and deep laughing from the boys. They looked down in time to see the Warblers coming into the auditorium and sit in the seats designated for them. All four of them screamed loudly and cheered for them again, not caring about the people around them staring at them.

Kurt and Blaine looked up, waved and smiled before sitting down. Then the four of them sat down just the announcer proclaimed, "From Lima, Ohio, the New Directions!"

The Warblers were just getting back to their green room to grab a cup of coffee and then were told to go out and sit in the audience in the seats reserved for them. Walking out the door, Kurt and Blaine hung back in the green room for two minutes, kissing each other passionately before running out and joining their fellow Warblers into walking into the auditorium. Walking in the narrow walkway between the rows of seats, the two boys heard yelling and screaming come from above them. They both looked up and laughed, it was the Stryka family and Joey and Lauren. Both of them waved as they sat down.

"Blaine, who is that blond haired girl sitting next to Mari?" Kurt asked Blaine as he sipped his cup of coffee.

Blaine swallowed his sip as he answered, "That's my younger sister, Lauren. She goes to an all-girls school in California. I'm really surprised that she came out. I thought that she had school but apparently not by the fact that she's here right now. She and Mari are the best of friends; and they are so alike, it's scary. They both play viola, absolutely love video games, love smearing Nutella over cake, and a lot of other similarities."

"Hmm," Kurt hummed thoughtfully. "You have to introduce me to Lauren after the award ceremony."

Blaine nodded and kissed him on the cheek just as the announcer boomed, "From Lima, Ohio, the New Directions!" The two boys along with the rest of the Warblers set down their cups of coffee by their feet, not wanting to be distracting to the performers on stage.

Rachel came out in a light turquoise dress with a black sash and beading along the neckline, wearing black leggings, and oddly enough, black combat-ish boots. Who the hell put their costume together? Kurt thought, cocking and eyebrow silently.

Rachel looked to her left before gripping the bejeweled microphone and microphone stand and started to sing.

What have I done
I wish I could run away from this ship going under
Just trying to help
Hurt everyone else
Now I feel the weight of the world is, on my shoulders

What can you do when your good isn't good enough
And all that you touch tumbles down

'Cause my best intentions
Keep making a mess of things

I just wanna fix it somehow
But how many times will it take?
Oh how many times will it take for me
To get it right
To get it right

Kurt didn't recognize the song until it dawned on him that they were doing original songs! He turned to Blaine and quietly whispered, "Oh my God, they're doing original songs!" before turning his head back to the stage. Kurt could hear the emotion in Rachel's voice coming out in the song.

Can I start again
With my faith shaken

Brittany and Tina came out from the side of the stage and took center stage on the first tier of the risers; giving Rachel's a voice a chance to shine more fully than it was.

Cause I can't go back and undo this

Brittany and Tina backed off, letting Rachel go solo on the next two lines of the song.

I just have to stay
And face my mistakes

Tina and Brittany rejoined Rachel and softly sung out to the audience how much pain they were always in from being in Glee club at McKinley and being slushied everyday.

But if I get stronger and wiser

I'll get through this

What can you do when your good isn't good enough

And all that you touch tumbles down

But how many times will it take?
Oh how many times will it take for me
To get it right

Both of the girls in the background backed off again, letting Rachel go solo.

So I throw up my fist
Throw a punch in the air
And accept the truth
That sometimes life isn't fair

This time only Tina accompanied Rachel.

I'll send out a wish yeah

I'll send up a prayer

Tina fell silent as Rachel victoriously belted out the last note of the next set of lyrics.

And finally someone will see
How much I care!

Blaine, Kurt, the Warblers, and the rest of the audience stood up and cheered for Rachel's long note as the rest of New Directions come onto the stage and take their positions on the risers behind Rachel.

Rachel ended her long winded note and let the other girls sing as she caught her breath.

What can you do when your good isn't good enough

Finally having caught her breath, she continued onto the last stanza of the song.

And all that you touch tumbles down
Oh, Cause my best intentions
Keep making a mess of things
I just wanna fix it somehow
But how many times will it take?
Oh how many times will it take

To get it right

To get it right

Everyone in the audience stood up and applauded the New Directions for a stunning performance, not remembering they registered a second song listed in the program.

Rachel smiled and looked around the large audience and spotting Kurt and Blaine before announcing, "Ladies and gentlemen, we are the New Directions!" A sound tech quickly walked out from the side of the stage and handed her a microphone that attached to her ear and cheek before taking the bejeweled microphone and microphone stand and quickly walked backstage.

Rachel was attaching the microphone as she was running into the risers to her place in the formation. The audience sat back down in their seats as Kurt was leaning forward in his seat, excited for the next song his old school was going to sing.

The song started off with everyone stomping their heels on the risers causing a cool contrast to the instrumentalist playing.

Rachel turned around and sang with a smile on her face.

Yeah, you may think that I'm a zero,
Huh.
But hey, everyone you wanna be
Probably started off like me.
You may say that I'm a freak show,

Kurt noticed Santana looking a little excited as she quickly half-sang the next line that fit her psyche so perfectly.

I don't care.

The singing shifted back to Rachel's voice as she joyfully sang.

But, hey, give it just a little time
I bet you gonna change your mind.
All of the dirt you've been throwing my way,
It ain't so hard to take.
That's right
'Cause I know one day you'll be screaming my name,

And I'll just look away.
That's right.

Kurt's foot moved under his seat and bumped something soft. He reached under and pulled out several foam fingers that had the index finger up and thumb pointed out, making an "L" sign. He smiled and started tossing them to the Warbler, and handing one to Blaine, putting his own on.

Kurt stood up and screamed "WHAOOOOO!" High pitched in support of New Directions efficiently killing this song, in a good way. Blaine smiled up at Kurt as he continued watching the girl he had kissed drunkenly sing with the rest of her choir.

Just go ahead and hate on me run your mouth
So everyone can hear.
Hit me with the worst you've got, and knock me down.
Baby, I don't care.
Keep it up, and, soon enough, you'll figure out
You wanna be,
You wanna be
A loser like me,
A loser like me.

Rachel ran into one side of the stage while Finn took center stage.

Push me up against the locker,
And, hey, all I do is shake it off.
I'll get you back when I'm your boss.
I'm not thinking about you haters,
'Cause, hey, I could be a superstar.
I'll see you when you wash my car.

Everyone in the audience was up on their feet at this point, dancing to the beat of the song. Blaine was grooving with Jeff next to him, moving his shoulders and slightly bouncing while Kurt was jumping up and down, going berserk for his friends.

Finn let Rachel take center stage as he moved to the side.

All of the dirt you've been throwing my way,
It ain't so hard to take.

Finn and Rachel sang the next line together before Finn backed off and let her take the rest her solo lines.

That's right.

Rachel started enjoying herself more as she moved and danced to the lyrics she was singing.

'Cause I know one day you'll be screaming my name.
And I'll just look away.

Finn joined Rachel once more.

That's right.

Rachel sang with New Directions:

Just go ahead, and hate on me; run your mouth

Rachel, and Finn joined in with New Directions:

So everyone can hear.

Rachel only with New Directions:

Hit me with the worst you've got, and knock me down.

Rachel, and Finn once again, with New Directions:

Baby, I don't care.

Rachel's solo with New Directions:

Keep it up, and, soon enough, you'll figure out
You wanna be,
You wanna be
A loser like me

Rachel belted out a note while the rest of the group sang over her.

Just go ahead and hate on; me run your mouth.

Rachel with Finn:

So everyone can hear.
Hit me with the worst you've got, and knock me down

Baby, I don't care

Rachel only with New Directions:

Keep it up, and, soon enough, you'll figure out
You wanna be,
You wanna be
A loser like me.

Kurt sees Mike run off stage for a second and then reappears with a cart with two clear containers on top filled with a red and green icy liquid. His eyes widened as he looked at Blaine and Blaine looked back at him with his eyes wide open also.

"Are they going to slushy the audience?" Kurt yelled to Blaine to he could hear. Some of the girls on stage were pretending to drink out of their cups as they took them off of the cart.

All of them walked, well, wheeled in Artie's case, to the edge of the stage. Rachel took center stage once more.

A loser like me,

Rachel with New Directions:

A loser like me!

And they thrust they're cups out into the front row of the audience, covering them in confetti, not slushies. Soon the whole audience was covered in confetti as it started falling from the ceiling.

Blaine and Kurt laughed as the New Directions joyfully ran off the stage. "That was pretty awesome, if I do say so myself." Blaine laughed to Kurt as he was trying to get the confetti out of his gelled hair.

"Let me help." Kurt finished getting all the little pieces of paper out of his hair just as a coordinator yelled for them to come back to their green room as the judges went into their deliberation room to decide the winners.

It was nearly two thirty when Lauren, Joey, and the Stryka family sat back down in their seats after a short lunch break. They were waiting for the curtain lift up and for the judges to come out and announce the winner.

The curtain finally lifted and they saw all three groups of participants standing on the risers with a table on the side of the stage holding three trophies of varying sizes and colors.

"And now to announce our winners," the announcer boomed over the sound system, "our lieutenant governor's wife, Carla Turlington-Stevens."

The audience clapped politely and anxiously as a short pudgy woman with short curly blond hair wearing a low cut shiny blue blouse with a black pencil skirt and black high heels walked out on stage looking a little… drunk.

She held the microphone up to her mouth and said, "My husband is verbally abusive and I have been drinking since noon." Silence reigned in the auditorium as they wait for the results. "I'm bored, let's just see who won, huh?"

Opening the envelope, Kurt looked at Blaine, who looked down at his shoes and took a deep breath, nervously and anxiously; while Rachel looked towards Blaine and Kurt the same way Kurt looked.

Pulling out the little piece of paper from the envelope, Carla Turlington-Stevens read it for a moment before announcing "The New Directions! You're going to Nationals in New York!"

The New Directions erupted into celebratory cheers as the biggest trophy on the table was handed to Mr. Shuester.

The other two groups clapped politely. Kurt looked at Blaine sadly and raised his hands saying oh well, we tried.

Carla Turlington-Stevens had walked over to the side of the stage near Blaine after handing the trophy to the New Directions.

Suddenly, a tall blond mean-looking woman in a red matching track suit walked over and clocked Carla Turlington-Stevens under the chin, effectively knocking her out.

Blaine's and Kurt's jaws dropped along with the rest of the Warblers and New Directions.

Before heading back into their green room with the third-place trophy in hand, Rachel and Mercedes found Kurt and Blaine and given each of them a quick hug before heading back into their green room.

"At least they were awesome. Too bad they won third, though." Joey said, as they all walked out through the doors outside.

"Hey, I need to go to the bathroom before we go home. Anybody else need to?" Mairead asked when she handed her bag with her iTouch and Kindle to her mother. Joey nodded.

"We'll be out in the car." Jason said as Sarah, Nick, and Lauren followed him to the parking ramp.

They were just coming out of the bathroom when a man in a suit ran up to the pair of them. "Excuse me, I'm from a news station from southern Ohio and I was wondering if I could have your reactions on today's show choir competition?" The man asked them, clearly and quite nervously.

Joey and Mairead looked at each other before following the man outside. The man opened the door to a black SUV and suddenly a man dressed in all black, including a black ski mask, jumped out at them.

Mairead shoved Joey behind him as she fought the man who was trying to drag her into the SUV when she felt something sharp pierce the skin on her neck. She started to slow down her punches, her muscles getting heavy and her tongue growing numb.

"Jobey!" she yelled through her numb tongue. " Runb, runb, Jobey!" and then she knew know more as darkness overtook her eyes.

The man dragged her into the car and as soon she was in the car, he jumped out and ran to the fleeing boy. Tackling him, he took a needle out of his pocket and injected the same drug he had injected the girl with. Once the boy was still, he picked him up and slung him over his shoulder while walking quickly to the car.

He slung the boy carelessly into the car and got in himself, closing the door behind him. Taking out the rope and duct tape, he quickly slapped a piece of tape onto each of their mouths and tied their hands and feet together. He then opened the door, slammed it shut, and locked it before heading back inside the theater where he needed his true targets to come with him.

Just as they were about to board the bus back to Dalton, Blaine forgot that his bag was still in the green room. "Hey, Wes. I'm just going to get my bag from the green room. I'll be back in a sec." Blaine told him as he walked back into the building.

"I'll come with; chances are that someone else forgot their stuff in the room , too." Kurt added.

Wes nodded as he boarded the bus.

Walking quickly to the green room, the two boys quickly located Blaine's messenger bag lying on the couch and another bag on the counter. As they walked out the door, they encountered a man in a suit asking where the exit was. Blaine was explaining the way out when he felt something poke through his blazer and dress shirt to the back of his shoulder and felt something cold run through his bloodstream. His arms started getting heavier along with this tongue.

"Kurpt!" He tried to say. "Run! Rumn!" And then he fell forward, unconscious into the suited man's arms.

Kurt stood there frozen before running. Someone tackled him down just feet away from the door that opened to the street and stabbed a needle into his shoulder as well. Kurt tried to fight off his attacker but couldn't when he finally fell unconscious and oblivious to the world.

"You got him?" the man grunted to his crony. The man dressed in the suit nodded nervously as the man dressed in black pulled out a gun. "Good, now walk to the car and don't say anything. I don't care if I have to shoot you if you yell." The man shifted the unconscious boy on his shoulder and kept the barrel of the gun to the suit man's back. They both walked quickly to SUV and slung the boys into the car.

"You've been a good man. Here's your reward." He handed the man a stack of hundred dollar bills. "Now get out of here before I change my mind." He pushed the man out of the entrance of the car door before slamming it in his face.

Retrieving the rope and tape he had use earlier on the boy and the girl, he proceeded to do the same to the two new boys. He tossed the extra material into the back seat, not caring where it landed. Climbing into the driver's seat, he revved up the engine and speeded out of there without people noticing that the car had no license plates.

Perfect. Now just to get to my special little spot. The man thought and smiled maliciously as he drove out of there