Kurt called his father that evening to let him know that he would not be returning home because he'd be staying at Blaine's house. When his father asked him why, the only answer he was able to give was that Blaine was having some troubles and he really needed him right now. His father seemed a little reluctant agreeing to this, considering it was a school night, but Kurt had literally begged him. So he asked no more questions.

Blaine's parents had left that morning for a four day weekend in New York City, and as such, they would not be returning home until the end of the weekend. Kurt attempted to tell Blaine that really, he needed to tell his parents what had happened. He was sure they'd come home when they heard.

Blaine refused to do so.

They had not left Blaine's room since Aydyn scurried out the door and off to wherever it was he planned on going. Blaine had taken two showers in his bathroom that was attached to his bedroom, claiming that he could still feel Aydyn on him, that he could still smell his rank cologne and the scratch of his stubble against his face. He vomited multiple times into the toilet and threw the clothes he had been wearing into the garbage.

Currently, the two boys lay huddled up under the blankets on Blaine's bed, Kurt on his back and Blaine on his chest. Kurt's shirt was damp with Blaine's tears. He didn't care. All he knew was that he was there with Blaine in his arms and they were both safe. Very few words were spoken until the clock chimed ten o'clock.

"I feel disgusting," Blaine finally admitted aloud, though his words were slightly muffled against Kurt's chest.

"You're not," Kurt said firmly while still keeping his tone soft.

"I feel used and cheap and…and tainted."

"You aren't any of those things."

"Did I…did I deserve it?"

"No, Blaine. You didn't."

"I keep…I keep thinking back to what he said, about me parading you in front of him? What if I was? And if I hadn't, would he still have hurt me?"

"Blaine-"

"He said he loved me," Blaine's voice was shaky. "Why would you do that to someone if you loved them? I don't…I know I hurt him by telling him things were over but…I don't understand."

Kurt pulled Blaine closer and tucked the boy's head under his chin as he began sobbing again. Kurt didn't think anyone could have that many tears. But Blaine seemed to have multiple reserves of them.

"Blaine, listen to me," Kurt said softly. "Are you listening?" He felt Blaine nod against his chest. "Aydyn was not a good person."

"But he was," Blaine countered. "I remember him. He was nice to me."

"You remember who he was almost a year ago. A lot can happen in a year. Look how much has happened to us in a few months."

"I guess," Blaine relented. "I just don't know how…he got this way."

"We'll probably never know," Kurt sighed. He didn't want to know. He didn't want Aydyn near them. He didn't ever want to hear the boy's voice again. "But let me finish. He isn't a good person anymore. He was jealous, obviously. He was probably more jealous than even Karofsky, if that was even his problem. I think…I think he did what he did because he wanted you so badly and you wouldn't let him have you, so he decided to take it on his own. I think we can both agree that while you're both from wealthy families, Aydyn took the spoiled, entitled rich kid title to heart and so he thinks he deserves whatever he wants."

"But why…why did he hurt me like this?"

"I…I don't have the answer to that. Maybe he…wanted to stake his claim on you? Mark you as his? I really don't know. But you need to know that you aren't disgusting. You aren't tainted or used or cheap. You aren't anything bad. You're not a different person because of something he did. I don't see you as different."

"You don't?" Blaine asked hopefully.

Kurt gave Blaine a small pat on the shoulder, urging him to sit up. Kurt leaned over and flicked on the lamp on Blaine's nightstand so that they weren't in the darkness anymore. Then he turned to face Blaine, sitting cross legged in front of him.

"Do you want to know what I see when I look at you?" Kurt asked.

"I…guess…"

"I see Blaine. I see my boyfriend. I see your precious face with your beautiful eyes. I see that curly adorable mop of dark hair on your head. I see perfect pink lips and a jaw covered with a bit of stubble." Kurt leaned towards him and tugged at the loose collar of Blaine's old t-shirt so it revealed his shoulder. He pressed a kiss to Blaine's warm skin there. "I see tears." Kurt brought his thumb up to wipe away at the tear track on Blaine's cheek. "I see sadness. And pain. But I also see the same boy that I fell in love with, the same boy who held my hand and ran with me down a hallway and sang 'Teenage Dream'. I see the same boy who protected me and helped me. I see the same boy who had my blood on his hands whenever I was concussed. I see the same boy who suffered from nightmares because he couldn't bear the thought of living in a world without me. I see the same boy who has serenaded me multiple times for numerous reasons. I see the boy that touched me gently and helped me through each and every new sexual experience, who kissed me sweetly, who held me when I cried, who made me feel worthwhile when I felt worthless. I see you, Blaine. And no one doing anything to you, no matter how awful it is, will ever make me see you differently."

Blaine sat wordlessly, with wide, wet eyes. Kurt saw his throat working as he swallowed before he spoke.

"You…you would still want me?"

"Of course I still want you," Kurt assured him.

"I mean…like, sexually?"

Kurt wanted to murder Aydyn Stonato. "Yes, Blaine. I still want you in every way possible. I still want to touch you. What he did most certainly does not make you repulsive to me."

"What if…what if I…can't?" Blaine asked brokenly. "What if I get scared?"

"Blaine," Kurt said, leaning back over to turn the light off before moving them both under the covers again. He tugged Blaine into his arms once more. "I'm not expecting us to have sex tonight. Or tomorrow. Or next week. Or any other time that you don't want to. If you don't want to touch me or if you don't want me touching you, I will not force you. I get that…when things like this happen, it takes time to heal. Just like you said to me, remember? Time helps you realize that there's nothing to be afraid of."

Blaine tilted his head up so that he could (almost) see Kurt's face in the darkened room. "I want to kiss you right now."

Kurt smiled and trailed his fingers over Blaine's jaw. "I'd let you if that's what you really wanted. But I won't make you."

It took all of Blaine's strength and courage to close the space between them, pressing his nervous lips against Kurt's soft, sure ones. The kiss was not meant to be arousing or heated. And it wasn't. It was exactly what Blaine needed. Gentle, chaste, and slow. It did not last a long time, but it did not last too short a time either. They simply parted mutually, their faces still close and their breaths mingling together.

"I love you," Blaine whispered against Kurt's lips, his eyes still shut.

"I love you, too," Kurt said just as quietly.

And so they fell asleep, wrapped in each other's warmth, love, and safety. Eventually all would be well. Only time would tell.

School was not an option the next day. They'd slept for too long and both of their eyes were swollen from so much crying. Blaine didn't want to get out of bed at all but Kurt eventually ended up convincing to at least go into the entertainment room with the huge flat screen TV so that they could watch movies. Kurt cooked them a late breakfast. He glared daggers at the broken toaster that still sat on the counter. When Kurt returned with two plates of food, Blaine sat wrapped up in a blanket on the sofa in the entertainment room. He had his phone in his hands, a text message on the glowing screen. Kurt sat the plates onto the coffee table and took the phone from Blaine's shaking hands. It was a text from Aydyn. They must have switched numbers that one first night Aydyn was there, when they actually got along for a few hours.

I'm so sorry. Please forgive me.

That was all that the text message said. Kurt took the phone and went back into Blaine's room, making sure to close the door.

He dialed Aydyn's number. The call was answered almost immediately.

"Oh thank god, Blaine. I'm so sorry, I don't know what I was thinking, I don't know what happened," the boy said quickly. Kurt let him continue rambling. "Listen, I'll make it up to you and I'll apologize to Kurt too…Blaine? Are you there?"

"Two things, Aydyn," Kurt snapped. "One, any kind of apology or excuses you come up with for what you did will never, and I mean never, ever be sufficient enough to fix this. And two, if you ever try to contact or see Blaine ever again, I will not hesitate to get a restraining order."

"…Kurt?"

"Yes. Blaine got your text. You scared him, you hurt him, and you violated him. He wants nothing to do with you. Are we clear?"

"You can't just-"

"I can. He's with me, Aydyn, and he will be with me until he's either tired of me or until one of us is old and dead and six feet under the ground. If I find out you tried to contact him, Blaine's parents will hear about everything. And I think we both know what money can buy."

"…just…tell him I'm sorry. Please."

"Are you though? Because you didn't seem very sorry when you were molesting him."

"Yes! I didn't…I don't know what happened! I was angry and…and…"

"And jealous. You were jealous and you wanted him for yourself, so you decided to take him. Trust me, I've figured it out."

"Okay! Yes, I was jealous! I was insanely jealous and hurt and-"

"Neither jealousy nor heartbreak are reasons to violate someone the way you did him. I'll be sure to have your number blocked soon. If you try to weasel your way around that, I'll make sure he gets a new number. We're done."

"Wait, no, pl-"

But Kurt did not wait. He ended the call and stood there for a few seconds, fully expecting Aydyn to call back immediately.

He did not.

Kurt returned to the entertainment room. Ah, at least Blaine was eating.

"I'm glad you still have an appetite," Kurt commented when he sat on the sofa next to him.

Blaine stilled but he did not turn to face Kurt. "Did you…"

"I called him. He attempted to apologize. His apology was insufficient. If he contacts you again, you need to tell me."

Blaine nodded. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Kurt replied, angling himself so he could press a kiss to Blaine's temple. "Beauty and the Beast?"

"Yes, please," Blaine said with the first genuine smile Kurt had seen since yesterday.

They spent all day on that sofa, re-watching all of their favorite Disney movies. Kurt's heart warmed when he heard Blaine laughing. They ended up making large bucketfuls of popcorn, though most of it ended up being thrown at each other rather than eaten. But they had just as much fun cleaning it up as they did making the mess.

"Do you think your dad will let you stay the night here again?" Blaine asked as he threw a handful of popcorn in the trash can he had retrieved.

Kurt had to pause. He hadn't thought of that. His father had only reluctantly let him stay last night. He might be pushing his luck by asking for a second night.

"I just…" Blaine continued, hesitating a bit, "…I just don't want to be alone."

"I don't want you to be alone either," Kurt said. "He might not let me stay here again, but there's no reason why you can't stay the weekend at my house until your parents get back."

"Yeah," Blaine nodded. "That'd be okay."

But instead of calling and asking his dad, they just packed Blaine a bag and drove to Kurt's house. Now, they both knew that Kurt's dad had never had a problem with Blaine staying over before. But as it stood, Blaine had been spending every weekend at Kurt's house for a while now, so they had planned on possibly spending the weekend apart, so as not to annoy any parents.

However, the situation had changed. And Kurt refused to leave Blaine all alone in an empty house for an entire weekend.

"Oh you're home, good," Burt said when Kurt walked through the door. "Oh…hey, Blaine."

Blaine gave an awkward wave.

"Kurt, I thought…it was just gonna be a family dinner tonight," Burt wondered. "No offense, Blaine," Burt said immediately, "I just thought it was gonna be the four of us tonight."

"No, that's fine. I can…I can go," Blaine panicked, making to turn around but Kurt grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Kurt, no it's fine. You didn't tell me you guys had a family thing pla-"

"Shut up, Blaine, you're staying," Kurt said firmly.

"Whoa," Burt said, "Last I checked I was still the dad here."

"I never said you weren't," Kurt snapped.

"Where the hell is this attitude coming from?" Burt asked, truly perplexed and a little angry.

"I don't have an attitude," Kurt denied. "And Blaine's staying the weekend."

"Kurt, we had this dinner planned all week."

"Really, it's fine, I can-"

"Blaine, stop it! You're not staying home alone!" Kurt interrupted him.

"But your dad said-"

"I don't care what my dad says!"

"I'm right here, damnit!" Burt shouted.

Kurt pointedly ignored his father. "You're not staying alone in that house the entire weekend, not after that! You just said you didn't want to be alone!"

"I don't!" Blaine started shouting back. "But he's your dad!"

"I don't care who he is, I'm not leaving you alone, I won't!" Kurt said with finality, dragging Blaine past his father, who immediately followed after them.

"Kurt, get your ass back here!" Burt yelled.

Carole came out of the kitchen, an apron wrapped around her waist. "What's with all the yelling?"

"I understand you kids like spending time together, I get that," Burt said. "But I'm still the adult here and when I say no, that means NO, Kurt!"

"I don't give a damn what you say right now!"

"Kurt, I can go home!" Blaine interjected again. "I'm not going to get you in trouble!"

"He can ground me for however long he wants, but I refuse to leave you alone like this!" Kurt replied vehemently.

"I'm…I'm fine!"

"No, you're not! Look at you!"

Blaine was shaking, terrified of being caught in the middle of this, but even more terrified at the thought of spending the night alone. What if Aydyn hadn't left? What if he was still in Ohio, just waiting to get Blaine away from Kurt, away from anybody? What if he came back to finish what he started. What if he wasn't safe anywhere alone ever again? What if Aydyn found him here? What if…oh god…he was gonna be sick…

He ripped his arm out of Kurt's grip and bolted down the hallway to the nearest bathroom, collapsed on the floor and proceeded to vomit in the toilet.

Kurt shot his father a glare and ran after his boyfriend. Blaine was still shaking. He was pale and had broken out into a cold sweat. Kurt turned his head away from the sight of him vomiting; he couldn't stand to see people sick like this. When the sound of retching ceased, he turned to the sink and filled the cup there with water. He took the hand towel on the rack and drenched it and then sat next to Blaine on the floor, handing him the cup. Blaine took it with quivering hands and Kurt brought the cool towel up to wipe the beads of sweat off the other boy's forehead.

"You see?" Kurt asked in a low voice. "You can't…I won't let you be alone right now. I won't."

"I don't want to get you in trouble," Blaine protested, his eyes not meeting Kurt's as he rinsed his mouth out with the water from the cup before spitting it into the toilet and flushing it all away.

"I don't care if I get in trouble," Kurt said, wiping at Blaine's mouth with the towel. "You're…you are more important right now."

"I'm not."

"Yes," Kurt hissed. "Yes, you are. I can see how scared you are."

"I…" Blaine gulped. "What if…what if he comes back?" He whispered, finally catching Kurt's eyes.

Kurt tossed the towel on the floor and wrapped Blaine in his arms. "He won't. He's not. I won't let it happen. I won't let anything happen to you."

"You can't…you can't keep him away, though," Blaine protested, tears filling his eyes.

"I can and I will. I can keep you safe."

"Kurt…" Burt's voice drifted to their ears from the doorway. When they turned, he and Carole were standing there, Carole with her hand over her mouth. "What the hell's goin' on?"

Kurt kept his eyes trained on Blaine's, who shook his head mutely. Kurt bit his lip. He desperately wanted to tell his father what was going on. But…Blaine said no.

"Nothing."

"Bullshit. We just heard everything you said," Burt stated.

"Burt, maybe we should just-"

"No," Burt interrupted Carole swiftly. "Something's going on and I think it's something big. And I need to know what it is."

"It's not," Kurt said quickly. "Everything's fine. But Blaine's staying here this weekend. His parents are out of town and he doesn't want to stay home alone."

Blaine's face crumbled. He hated sounding so weak. He hated feeling so weak. He hated all of this. Why couldn't he just man up and get over this? It's not like Aydyn actually…he didn't actually get what he wanted. FUCK, why couldn't he…why was this…WHY?

"Boys…" Carole said slowly, "come sit down for dinner when you're ready. We'll talk after." She then proceeded to pull a protesting Burt back into the kitchen with her.

Kurt released a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding and let his head fall onto Blaine's shoulder. "Well," he said after a few minutes of silence. "That went well."

"They're gonna make me tell them," Blaine said with surety.

"You don't know that."

"Yeah, I do."

Kurt hugged Blaine tighter. "Maybe…you should."

Blaine shook his head and buried his face into the crook of Kurt's neck. "I can't, I…I can't."

"But you…what if…"

"We got through everything else alone," Blaine whispered. "We can get through this."

Kurt wasn't so sure anymore.

Dinner was awkward. There was no other word to describe the tense silence and the fact that everyone was avoiding the eyes of anyone else at the table. Finn though, quite obliviously, just shoveled his food into his mouth with no regard to the situation. As soon as he was done, he went back up to his room to continue playing some video game on his X-Box.

Kurt took his time eating, wanting to prolong the time before the inevitable conversation as much as he could. He saw how pale Blaine still was, and how he pushed more food around his plate than he actually consumed. He knew the boy didn't want to talk about this, especially not to Kurt's parents. Blaine didn't even want to tell his own parents.

Yeah, they had gotten through everything else on their own. Together they'd curbed Blaine's nightmares, cured Kurt of his post-traumatic jitters, and dealt with all the bullying by themselves.

But this seemed bigger. Something about how Blaine was reacting towards the horrible experience with Aydyn was very off.

"So," Burt finally began speaking, "you boys gonna tell us what's goin' on here?"

Neither Kurt nor Blaine uttered a word.

"Does it have anything to do with why you begged me to let you stay at Blaine's house last night? On a school night?"

Silence reigned.

"Boys," Carole began, "we both know something's wrong. And the fact that you're keeping it a secret means it's something big."

He wanted to tell. Kurt wanted to scream it at them. He wanted Blaine to get better. He wanted to see him happy again. He wanted him to feel safe. What if he wasn't enough to make that happen? He reached under the table and put his hand on Blaine's knee. Blaine gave a small jerk at the unexpected contact, but then he reached his hand down to give Kurt's a firm squeeze.

"Kurt?" Burt prompted once more.

Kurt shook his head. It was only a small movement and he didn't meet Burt's eyes when he spoke. "It isn't my secret to tell."

"Blaine, then?" Burt asked, nodding his head in Blaine's direction.

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand tighter. Tell them, tell them, tell them, he thought in his mind. Say something. Say anything.

"I…I…" Blaine stuttered.

"Honey," Carole said softly with a loving smile on her face. "Whatever it is, you can tell us. I know we're not your mom and dad, but you might as well be part of this family. Maybe we can help."

Blaine closed his eyes and took a deep breath, willing his nerves to calm.

"I know you guys think you can handle everything on your own," Carole spoke. "I know that's how a lot of teenagers feel. But you're still kids. You can't do everything by yourself. Sometimes you need help. And you shouldn't be ashamed or afraid to ask for it."

Blaine's lower lip started to quiver and in that moment he hated himself. He hated that he wanted Kurt to keep his secret. He hated how much he asked of Kurt and how much Kurt was willing to give without any second thought to the matter. He couldn't do that to him anymore. Carole was right, he decided. He refused to put all of this on Kurt's shoulders anymore. And he couldn't handle things right now. He just…he couldn't.

"I…my…" Blaine cleared his throat before continuing. "My ex-boyfriend. He came into town a few days ago. I didn't…he didn't tell me. He just showed up."

"Okay," Carole said with an encouraging nod. "Did you two part on bad terms or something?"

"Not…he moved to France with his family. We tried the long distance thing, but it just…"

"Didn't work out," Carole finished for him.

Blaine nodded, grateful she understood things.

"So you two broke up and then…he came for an unexpected visit," she attempted to clarify the situation. "So what happened when he came back?"

"He was jealous of me," Kurt said, trying to take a bit of the stress off of Blaine. "He still loved Blaine and he thought they could…try again."

"So…was there cheating or something?" Burt asked, narrowing his eyes in Blaine's direction.

"No!" Blaine burst immediately. "No. He wanted…he might have wanted me to but…I didn't. I wouldn't. I'd never do that. I made it very clear that I was with Kurt and that I wasn't going to leave him."

"So what happened?" Carole wondered, her face screwed up in confusion now.

"We went for coffee," Kurt stated. "The three of us. We were just…trying to be nice and maybe, work something out. But he…Blaine's ex just didn't want that to happen. He was too jealous and he…wanted Blaine for himself."

"And he was mad at me for choosing Kurt over him," Blaine added quietly.

"He was just…being rude and horrible so we decided to go back to Blaine's. I left and they went inside."

Blaine's hand started shaking. This was his cue. Kurt didn't know exactly what had happened, didn't know the chain of events, so he couldn't tell the whole story. But his throat felt swollen shut and he couldn't speak.

"Blaine? Did something happen when you and your ex went back into your house?" Carole asked with as much delicacy as she could.

Blaine gave a shaky nod, his eyes glued to the tabletop.

"Blaine, sweety. You need to tell us," Carole said softly.

"I…he…"

Kurt couldn't take just sitting there anymore. He promptly reached over and wrapped his arms around Blaine as huge tears began to roll down his boyfriend's cheek for what seemed like the billionth time.

"Just tell them," Kurt encouraged him. "Please, tell them…"

"Did that boy force you?" Burt asked firmly, his hands flat on the table.

"He…" Blaine was sniffling. "We were arguing and he…he said I was parading Kurt in front of him, acting like I didn't…didn't care if it hurt him or not and he…I said I couldn't stand him and he said he'd…he said he'd make me…"

Blaine was still crying, clutching at Kurt like a lifeline.

"Blaine…honey, did he…did he rape you?" Carole finally asked upfront.

"No," Blaine shook his head in the negative. "No but he…he tried…"

"Oh thank god," Carole sighed in relief, pressing a hand over her heart.

"But he did somethin'," Burt countered. "What'd that boy do to you?"

"He…he kissed me and he…shoved me on the bed and…I tried! I tried to get him off! I couldn't even scream! He was too heavy and I…I tried! I didn't want him to, I swear I didn't!"

"What. Did he do?" Burt asked again, this time more slowly.

"He…oh god he just…he kept kissing me and he p-put his hand…b-between us and he put it o-on me and…it hurt! I couldn't…I thought he was just…oh god, I'm gonna…"

With very little preamble, Blaine disentangled himself from Kurt, stood, turned, and vomited into the sink. Kurt stood immediately, tears in his eyes as well, and rubbed a reassuring hand up and down Blaine's back. He turned his eyes back towards his parents.

"Something felt wrong to me," Kurt explained, "after I had left. Something about the guy was just…off. So I turned around and went back to Blaine's house and I found them…I found him on top of Blaine and…he was just crying. The guy's so much bigger than both of us…Blaine was just lying there, like he'd given up. I...I pulled Aydyn off of him and I…I might have…hit him. Kind of hard."

"What happened then?" Burt demanded to know.

"His uh…his nose was bleeding and I told him to leave. Okay, I might have used language that was a bit more…colorful than that. But he left."

Blaine had finally stopped sicking up. He rinsed his mouth out and wiped at his lips with the back of his hand before turning to face Kurt and his family.

"I'm sorry I…I didn't…"

"Don't you feel sorry for anything," Burt said immediately. "You did nothing wrong. You got that, kid? Nothing."

Kurt took Blaine is his arms once more, kissing the top of his head.

"Blaine…I think you need to tell your parents," Carole suggested. "This…this isn't something you should keep secret from them."

Blaine nodded against Kurt's shoulder. He'd made the decision to tell his parents at the same time he decided to tell Kurt's.

"And of course you can stay here," the kind woman said. "We wouldn't want you to be alone either."

"Thank you," Blaine mumbled.

Kurt kept his arm around Blaine's shoulders as they made their way to his bedroom. Still in the kitchen, Burt and Carole sighed heavily.

"I feel like an asshole," Burt admitted, removing his baseball cap to rub his hand on the top of his head.

"Don't," Carole said immediately, leaning over to kiss his cheek. "You didn't know what was going on."

"I should have known, though. I should have known something was wrong last night when Kurt called. I should have known something was up when he started arguing with me in the hallway."

"None of this is your fault, just like it isn't Blaine's fault."

Burt nodded sagely. "How much more do those two have to suffer before they can just be happy together?"

"I don't know," Carole replied. "That poor boy's got a lot of healing to do first. I feel for him. For both of them."

"Yeah, me too," Burt said. "He's…he's good to Kurt. He's a good kid. He doesn't deserve any of this crap."

"No. He doesn't."

In Kurt's room, the boys collapsed onto the bed, neither bothering to change their clothes. They were wrung out. They were exhausted. They'd been through too much.

They fell asleep immediately, hoping for a better tomorrow.