"Kurt, stop worrying," Burt said as they took their seats in the main courtroom. "He's not going to get away with this."

Kurt didn't say anything. He felt like if he opened his mouth, he'd throw up. Instead, he folded his arms and took in his surroundings. The courtroom wasn't as big as he'd expected it to be. As everyone took their seats, including the jury and the lawyers, a trolley was wheeled into the room, a laptop on top of it. The screen was blank, but then someone pressed a button and it flickered to life.

"Oh my…" Kurt gasped.

On the screen was a terrified-looking Blaine. From what Kurt could see on the laptop screen, he was in a small, blank room, curled up on a chair. His eyes were fixed on the screen in front of him and he looked as though he was going to faint.

"Dad, look-"

"All rise," a voice said, cutting off Kurt's words. He didn't stand at first – it was only when Burt nudged him that he got to his feet. "Judge Eleanor presiding," the voice continued. "Please be seated."

Once they had sat down, a door opened, just to the left of the judge. And then Kurt saw him. Andrew Anderson. He walked in and took his seat next to his lawyer. His eyes moved from Cooper, to Kurt and then rested on the laptop screen, an eyebrow raised. There was the ghost of a smile on his lips. Kurt's attention turned to the laptop, his heart breaking. Even though the image wasn't clear, he could tell Blaine was trembling. For one heart-stopping second, Kurt thought he was having a panic attack. Then he saw Blaine run his hands through his hair and sit up a little straighter.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," Judge Eleanor said. "Calling the case of the People of the State of Ohio verses Andrew Anderson. Are both sides ready?"

The District Attorney and the lawyer beside Blaine's father both replied to the judge. Then, the clerk got the jury to 'swear' that they would fairly try the case. The two lawyers both gave their opening statements. Kurt's nose wrinkled when Blaine's father's lawyer spoke about him being 'innocent until proven guilty'. He bit down on his lip to prevent himself from speaking.

"The prosecution may call its first witness," the judge said. The district attorney nodded and called Cooper up to the stand.

"Raise your hand," he said. Cooper did. "Do you promise that the testimony you shall give in the case before this court shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I do," Cooper said.

"Please state your first and last name."

"Cooper Anderson."

"And Andrew Anderson is your father, yes?" Cooper nodded. "And you are the older brother of Blaine Anderson, who has chosen not to be present due to the nature of the allegations, correct?"

"Yes. I'm Blaine's older brother."

"Now, in your original statement, you said that your father has never been affectionate and would treat you roughly. Care to elaborate?"

"He was harsh growing up. If I did one thing wrong, even if it was something as simple as spilling a cup of water, he'd yell until he was hoarse. He'd scream abuse at me and it brought my confidence down. I was eight when he first hit me."

"What happened?"

"I'd been painting in my bedroom, and I accidentally dropped the brush so there was paint on the carpet. He kept on hitting me and everything just went black. When I woke up, I was exactly where he'd left me. But I never had it as bad as Blaine."

"You haven't seen your brother's statement, is that correct?"

"No, I haven't. He made it when I was still in New York."

"So you have no idea what he has said on it?" Cooper shook his head. "Can you please explain, in your own words, what your father is accused of doing to Blaine?"

"Fine," Cooper said. His eyes were no longer on his father – they were fixed on the laptop screen, on his little brother's terrified face. "My father beat him on a daily basis. He'd text me, asking for the best way to deal with it, but he'd never tell anyone. Blaine wasn't a planned pregnancy. My father only wanted one child and he was furious. But my mother was thrilled. Even though she wasn't in the best state of mind, she'd always wanted another child. She thought I was lonely. When Blaine was born, my father resented him. He refused to feed or change him, and because my mother was so ill, I did a lot of it. I left home as soon as I was eighteen. I was in New York when Blaine came out to the family. I had a phone call from him and he… he was a mess. It took me about an hour to calm him down enough to even speak."

"What did he say?"

"That dad had been beating him for years and that he'd come out to the family."

"Did he say anything else?"

"That he could barely breathe – he said dad had beaten him until he was unconscious because he told him he was gay."

A brief murmur ran through the courtroom. The district attorney asked Cooper a few more, fairly simple questions, before moving back to his seat.

Kurt watched as the other lawyer, the one defending Andrew Anderson, got to his feet and started firing questions at Cooper, trying to make Blaine out to be the villain. The lawyer asked if Blaine had ever got into any fights at school, if his grades were high and what his friends were like.

"Blaine isn't a troublemaker in any way, shape or form," Cooper snapped after a while. "He's the kindest, sweetest boy I've ever met, and I'm not just saying that because I'm his brother. You can ask any one of his friends and his teachers; they'll tell you the same thing. He refuses to call the man he lives with by his first name because he's so polite."

"This brings me to my next question," the lawyer said, cutting off Cooper's words. "Blaine lives with his boyfriend's family, correct?" He nodded. "Why? Why not live with you?"

"Because of him," Cooper said, pointing to his dad. "When our mother died a few weeks ago, he finally told someone what had been going on. He couldn't live with me, because I was in New York. I know he would have been told to finish his education here in Ohio. He was going to be placed in a foster home until they could find somewhere for him, but Burt wouldn't let that happen."

"How long have Blaine and his boyfriend been together?"

"Just over a month, I think."

"Now, if they've been together for such a small amount of time, why would they allow him to move in with them?"

Cooper's eyes narrowed, as though he could see what the lawyer was trying to suggest. "Because Burt Hummel has the biggest heart I've ever seen. What, would you rather see someone that means the world to your child suffering?"

"I have no further questions."

Cooper gave a slight nod to the judge and took his seat, just on the other side of Kurt. He was shaking, obviously from anger, but remained silent.

"The prosecution may call the next witness," the judge said.

"The people call Burt Hummel."

Burt stood and made his way over to the witness stand. He looked calm and composed. Once he had sworn under oath to tell the truth, the questions began. The district attorney asked simple things, such as how Blaine looked when he first met him, and how he'd been dealing with it. Once he was done, the defence lawyer stood.

"Mr Hummel, Blaine Anderson is currently living with you, correct?"

"Yes sir, he is."

"What is he like around the house?"

"Blaine's… well, he's polite. He talks to Kurt more than any of us. He's obviously more comfortable around him than any of us, and seems to trust him with his life. Blaine gets on with Carole very well, and he seems to get along with Finn, her son. He's nervous around me, but I fully understand that. If I ask him to do some laundry, he will. He offers to make breakfast every morning and helps with dinner. He's very quiet, but he's a nice boy."

"How can you be sure of that if you've only known him for a month?"

"There are some things you can't fake and kindness is one of them," Burt said. "He's shown my son an enormous amount of it, right from the moment they met."

"Your son Kurt is in a relationship with Blaine, yes?" Burt nodded. "Do they share a room?"

"I don't understand what this has to do with anything-"

"Please, just answer the question Mr Hummel."

"Yes, they share a room now. They didn't at first."

"So what's different? Why do they share a room?"

"I got up one night and heard laughter, so I went into Blaine's bedroom to see them sat on the bed. That's how I found out they were together. Later on, Kurt told me that when they sleep next to each other, they barely get nightmares and if they do, they comfort each other until they go to sleep."

"So they lied to you about being together?"

"No. My son never said the words 'me and Blaine aren't in a relationship' – they just chose to not tell me, which I understand. They were scared of how I'd react."

The lawyer seemed to be getting angry. He was silent for a few seconds, gently tapping his finger against his chin.

"What can you tell me about what happened a week ago?"

"What part? A lot happened."

"All of it would be good."

With a sigh, Burt began his explanation. "The boys got back from school earlier than usual. Blaine went downstairs to make a phone call, and Kurt asked if we could talk in the kitchen, so we did."

"What did you talk about?"

"It has nothing to do with this case. It was about his personal life."

"You are under oath Mr Hummel; I'd like to know what the conversation was about."

"Objection," the prosecuting lawyer said, getting to his feet. "If what Mr Hummel and his son spoke about had nothing to do with this case, then it should not be brought up in this courtroom."

The defending lawyer looked furious, especially when the judge agreed. "Very well," he said. "What happened with Blaine?"

Burt told them about how Kurt had gone downstairs but then started yelling. He told them how he saw his son holding Blaine in his arms, and how they had seen the cuts on his wrist.

"Do you know what made him do that?"

"No," Burt said truthfully. "I have a general idea, but I can't say for sure. It was something to do with all of this, I know that much."

"No further questions."

Burt was excused and took his seat. There was a few seconds of silence, interrupted only by the quiet murmurs coming from Andrew Anderson and his lawyer. Then, the judge spoke.

"Would the defence like to call anyone up to the stand before we watch Blaine Anderson's statement video?"

"We would, Your Honour. We call Kurt Hummel to the stand."

Kurt froze. He'd been told there was a possibility he'd be called up, but he never expected that it would actually happen. He stood slowly and, with one final glance at Blaine on the laptop, took his place in the witness stand.

"You are Kurt Elizabeth Hummel, yes?" Kurt nodded, "The boyfriend of Blaine Anderson?" Again, he nodded. "Can you please tell us how and when you first heard what was supposedly happening to Blaine?"

"Y-Yes, it was last month, before we got together. We both auditioned for our school's glee club and he waited for me after. I… I noticed the bruising on his neck and asked him about it. He just sort of… broke down crying, so I asked him again and he eventually told me."

"Just like that, he told you?" The lawyer asked sceptically.

"Obviously not," Kurt snapped. "When I asked who did it, he just kept saying that he couldn't tell me because whoever it was would kill him. I asked if it was his dad, just as a guess and he went silent. So I knew it was. Then he told me… he told me how his dad hated him because he wasn't like Cooper, because he was gay. So I was angry, but he got me to change the subject."

"And you just forgot about it?"

"Of course I didn't forget about it! We may not have been together at the time, but I still cared about Blaine. He was a new student and I'd been assigned to show him around. Plus he was so scared and innocent, I wanted to protect him."

"And did you protect him?"

"Obviously I didn't, otherwise we wouldn't be here today."

"You misunderstood my question," the lawyer said, an eyebrow raised. "What happened later that day, in the parking lot of the William McKinley High School?"

Kurt let out an angry sigh. Of course Blaine's dad would use that against him.

"I walked Blaine out of the school," he said, his voice relatively steady despite his anger. "And he froze and got all weird. So I looked at I saw him. His dad was just staring at us. So I went up and spoke to him."

"Would you repeat what you said to my client, and please remember that you are under oath."

"I told him to stop hitting Blaine," he almost spat. "Or I'd go to the police."

"Did you swear at him?"

"Yes."

"Did you end up going to the police?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Blaine asked me not to."

"And when did he ask this?"

"He phoned me later that night. Or early the next morning, depending on how you want to look at it. He was crying and… I could tell how much pain he was in. But he told me he wanted a distraction, so we got talking about him tutoring me French."

"Didn't you find that suspicious?"

"What?"

"Well, if Blaine Anderson was in as much pain as you're suggesting, how would he have had the energy to phone you?"

"I don't-"

"If Blaine really was injured, he wouldn't have asked about tutoring you French, he'd be begging for your help, begging for the pain to stop."

"No, he-"

"Your Honour," the lawyer said, turning away from Kurt. "I don't believe there is any truth to what these boys are suggesting."

"Oh, so I'm guessing Blaine's nightmares are about his other dad or some bullshit like that, are they?"

Everyone in the room gasped. Kurt had finally snapped. He was on his feet, glaring at Blaine's father. His entire body was shaking with the rage he'd been trying so hard to contain.

"I think you should step outside, young man," the lawyer said.

"Why the fuck should I do that? You asked those questions and I answered them truthfully, but now you're trying to make out that we're lying? Blaine is terrified to sleep because of the nightmares he has. I have to hold him and just talk to him until he's calm enough to even consider closing his eyes. He calls my dad sir, because he's afraid he'll get beaten if he doesn't. Did your client tell you that? He would beat the shit out of Blaine if he called him anything but sir. Of course he didn't tell you, because he doesn't give a shit about anyone except himself!"

"ORDER," the judge bellowed, banging the gavel hard. "Time for intermission, court will resume in ten minutes!"

Kurt was out of the courtroom before anyone else was even on their feet. He walked through the courthouse as fast as he could, ignoring the shouts from his father behind him. Where the fuck was Blaine? He looked around wildly, before spotting the English man from before.

"Where the hell is he?" He said, his voice harsher than he'd expected it to be.

"I'm sorry, I don't know who-"

"Blaine Anderson, the boy you took into a room to watch his father's trial, where the fuck is he?!"

"Sir, if you would please calm down, I will take you to him. Follow me."

Kurt just gave a stiff nod and followed the man through a set of doors. He barely got a glance at the room he was in – the moment he stepped inside, Blaine threw himself into his arms.

"Kurt," he said, his voice completely broken. "He… he's saying I'm lying. B-But I'm not, you know I'm not. Why would he say that?"

"That's his job," Kurt said softly. "He has to try and convince the jury that your dad's innocent."

"But he's not!"

"I know that baby, of course I do. I'm sorry you have to watch all of this. You looked terrified."

"You c-could see me?" Blaine repeated, his eyes growing wide with fear.

"Yes… They've linked a camera somewhere in here to play back into the courtroom."

"Oh." Blaine's face fell. Kurt's heart skipped several beats as he watched his boyfriend stand up a little straighter and brush down his jacket. "Can you t-take me to see Rose? I think… I think I need to talk to her."

Kurt nodded and took hold of Blaine's hand without saying anything. Together they walked through the courthouse. Rose was stood with Burt, Carole and Cooper, near the main reception area.

"Kurt, what the hell was that in the courtroom?" Burt exploded as soon as the two boys were within earshot. "That could lose us the entire case! You need to control your god damn temper!"

"Dad-"

"I swear, if that bastard gets let off because of you, I don't know what I'll do!"

"Burt!"

"No Carole, Kurt doesn't realise how serious this is!"

"Dad, shut up for a moment please. Blaine wants to speak to Rose. You can rant at me after."

Rose's eyes widened, but she gave a small nod. She and Blaine walked away, leaving the others stood in a slightly awkward silence. Kurt knew that his father was angry at him, but he honestly didn't care. He knew that he probably should have controlled his temper, but with the lawyer constantly accusing Blaine of lying, he just couldn't do it.

After only a few minutes, Blaine and Rose returned. She looked unhappy, and that was to say the least. Blaine looked as though he was going to faint. He glanced up at Kurt and gave a small smile.

"B-Blaine… are you okay?" Cooper asked gently. When he nodded, he continued. "What did you say to Rose?"

Blaine looked at Rose, who gave him a small, encouraging nod. Then he looked at Kurt and took a deep breath in a final attempt to calm his nerves.

"I want to testify."