God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
As it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
If I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
And supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.

'Serenity Prayer'
-Reinhold Niebuhr

It’s a brand new year at McKinley High School and Kurt Hummel is one hundred percent prepared for a fresh start. He’s a junior this year, an upper classman. He has suffered two full years in this hellhole. He has officially paid his dues. So far, it seems to be going fairly well; he made it from the parking lot, through the front doors, and to his locker with no dumpster tossing and no slushie facials.

He’s opening his locker, ready to decorate the inside of the door for the year, when he spots someone new.

A boy is crouching in front of a bottom locker a few doors down, fussing with the lock, reading the combination off a piece of paper. His hair is dark, gelled within an inch of its life, and his tiny pink tongue pokes out between his lips in concentration. He’s wearing a deep red pullover, layered on top of a white, collared shirt and slim fitting blue jeans. He successfully opens the locker doors and seems to sigh in relief to himself.

Kurt doesn’t even notice that he’s staring openly until he’s shoved roughly into his locker by a beefy football player in a letterman jacket. The edge of his still-open locker door digs painfully into his shoulder and he slides to the ground.

The football player turns and smirks at Kurt’s form on the floor before turning the corner and disappearing out of sight.

Kurt cradles his shoulder and hisses in pain, positive a bruise is forming.

“Are you okay?” a soft voice asks from his side.

Turning his head, Kurt sees a set of golden eyes staring back at him with a sympathetic, nervous look furrowing his perfectly trimmed eyebrows.

“I’m fine,” Kurt says, completely out of habit.

“That was really rude of him,” the boy says, standing and offering Kurt his hand.

Kurt eyes the proffered hand warily, also out of habit, but ultimately decides to take it and allows the help to his feet.

“It’s nothing new, actually,” Kurt mumbles, brushing off his pants.

“Doesn’t seem like something you should have to get used to,” the new student comments.

“Well,” Kurt shrugs, pulling out folders and notebooks from his bag and stacking them in his locker, “welcome to McKinley.”

“I’m Blaine,” the boy says, leaning against the row of lockers. “Blaine Anderson.”

Kurt eyes this new boy called Blaine, soaking in his impeccable appearance and just how very small he is. It’ll be a miracle if he lasts a month at this school.

“Kurt Hummel,” he eventually says in return.

“It’s nice to meet you, Kurt,” Blaine says with a soft smile.

“You’re quite polite, aren’t you?” Kurt teases, hanging a picture of himself and his best friend Mercedes inside his locker.

Blaine shrugs, smiles, and looks down at the floor.

“Just the way I was raised, I guess,” he says.

“Well be careful,” Kurt cautions, closing his locker. “Politeness might not get you very far here.”

“I’m…not sure what you mean,” Blaine says, scrunching his nose in a dangerously adorable way that Kurt does his very best to look past.

“I’m sure you’ll find out soon enough,” Kurt says airily, closing his book bag. “I’ll see you around, Blaine Anderson.”

Kurt walks away, leaving the new kid behind. He briefly thinks that maybe he should have at least shown this boy to his first class, but it’s not that big of a school. Surely he can manage.

Kurt doesn’t see polite mister Anderson again until lunch that day. They don’t seem to have any morning classes together, which Kurt refuses to be sad about. Now, however, Kurt sits at a table next to Mercedes and across from Rachel Berry and he’s watching Blaine stand at the end of the lunch line with a sandwich in his hand and a blank look on his face. The only small tic that gives way to his nerves is the action of worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Blaine glances around the lunch room, desperate for an empty table or a friendly face.

“I’ll be right back,” Kurt says, quite distracted, to Mercedes. He’s pretty sure she’s still talking at his back as he stands and walks toward Blaine.

When he catches Blaine’s eye, the boy in the red sweater immediately seems to relax.

“Come sit with us,” Kurt says directly.

“I was afraid I was going to have to eat my lunch alone in the bathroom or something,” Blaine admits sullenly.

“I know,” Kurt says, leading the way back to the table. “I’ve been there.”

“You were a transfer?” Blaine asks.

“No. I’ve lived in Lima all my life,” Kurt tells him. “I was just an outcast.”

Blaine falls silent at Kurt’s words when they arrive at the table.

“Who’s this?” Rachel asks when Kurt tugs Blaine’s sleeve, forcing him to sit in the seat next to him.

“Blaine Anderson,” Kurt introduces. “These are some of my friends; Mercedes Jones and Rach-”

“Rachel Berry,” Rachel interrupts swiftly to introduce herself with an overly bright smile.

“It’s nice to meet you both,” Blaine replies kindly, unwrapping his sandwich from the plastic wrap.

“Wait,” Mercedes says quickly, “you have manners? Boys have manners? Since when?”

“I take offense to that,” Kurt drawls. “I’m perfectly polite.”

“You’re only polite in sarcastic form,” Rachel reminds him, eyes still locked on Blaine. “Where are you from, Blaine?”

“I transferred from a school in Missouri, actually.”

“Wow, a southern boy,” Rachel says with a bit too much enthusiasm.

“Is it really the south?” Kurt wonders with a delicately raised eyebrow. “I figured it was more central.”

“Close enough,” Rachel says quickly. “You don’t really have an accent, though.”

“I think the accents are really only pronounced in certain places of the state,” Blaine informs. “Mine only really comes out when I’m tired.”

“What’re you doing in Ohio?” Mercedes asks.

Yes, what exactly is this classic movie star lookalike doing in Lima, Ohio?

“My parents just…wanted a change of scenery. And they prefer I attend a school in a smaller district.”

“Not much to look at in Ohio,” Kurt quips.

“There’s a bit,” Blaine says softly, eyes on the table as he bites into his sandwich.

Kurt immediately wonders what Blaine means by that single, hushed statement.

“Can you sing?” Rachel blurts out.

“Jesus, we haven’t even had our first Glee meeting and you’re already trying to recruit poor, unsuspecting new members? Calm down, woman,” Mercedes admonishes.

“We need all the help we can get,” Rachel snaps before turning her starry eyes back to her shiny new toy, aka Blaine. “I’m the captain of our Glee club so I have quite a few responsibilities,” she explains unnecessarily, “one of which is recruiting new members. Our twelfth member, Matt, transferred over the summer and we have to have at least twelve members to compete. More than twelve would be nice too. It would be fantastic if I had as many backup singers as possible.”

Kurt and Mercedes share an annoyed glance and roll their eyes while Rachel continues talking. Blaine, however, focuses intently on her face as if he’s really invested in her self-important spiel. Kurt zones her out for the next five minutes while he pokes at his salad but he can’t seem to stop himself from glancing over at Blaine every few seconds, waiting for the polite-new-kid face to falter.

It doesn’t.

Thoroughly impressed, Kurt is suddenly intrigued and enamored with this boy.

“…so you should definitely audition today. I’ll tell Mr. Schuester, he’s our Glee club director, that you’re willing to join,” Rachel finally concludes.

“The boy hasn’t even said he can sing,” Mercedes points out.

“I can sing,” Blaine says, voice soft and sweet. “At least, people say I can sing.”

“Then you should join!” Rachel says, clapping her hands together excitedly.

Blaine looks to Kurt with something like hope in his eyes before speaking. “Are you in Glee club?”

“Sadly, yes,” Kurt informs him.

But Blaine’s lips slowly turn up into a smile and he turns back to Rachel.

“I’ll audition,” he says to her.

Kurt has one class with Blaine and it’s the very last class of the day. The class is depressingly boring and Kurt finds himself spending most of the period sparing Blaine a few, discreet glances. It’s strange, really. He doesn’t know why he feels the need to check up on this new boy so often, as if his emotional or physical state will suddenly deteriorate in the span of the five minutes since he last looked at him. Maybe it’s because there’s something…different about him, something wholly mystifying to Kurt. There’s this pure kind of radiance that beams in his eyes, seeping out through his long, envious eyelashes to create this simple, fragile energy about his body. He’s so little and it scares Kurt that he’s so polite and soft spoken because Kurt knows that somehow, especially if he joins Glee club, he will become an easy target for the jocks and their ire.

Randomly, Kurt has this vivid image of holding Blaine in his arms, protecting him from those that would harm him.

Why?

A note appears on his desk.

You look lost.

Looking around to find the author of the note, he sees Blaine next to him, the corners of his lips quirked up into a sly smile.

I’m disgustingly bored.

Kurt hands the note back, sure to avoid the teacher’s gaze, sliding it onto Blaine’s desk. Blaine looks to muffle a tiny, precious laugh and scribbles a hasty reply. When the note reappears on Kurt’s desk, it reads:

What should I sing for my audition?

Oh. Right, he would be auditioning in less than half an hour. He wonders why Blaine hadn’t been thinking about this earlier, but pens his reply before handing it back.

Pick something you know really well. Just something off the top of your head. Or a favorite song you know well enough to at least get by.

Blaine reads the note and his eyes turn upward, as if searching the heavens for the answer. Kurt keeps an eye on his face and that’s when he really notices just how beautiful his profile is, how soft his lips look and good lord, Kurt has got to stop thinking things like this. It’s terribly painful to tear his gaze away, though, because there’s this sort of innocence that Blaine simply exudes and Kurt has the inexplicable need to revel in it, if only for a few seconds at a time.

The bell rings and there’s a loud shuffling and clatter of motion as everyone stuffs their notebooks into their bags and race out of the room. Kurt moves more slowly than the others because, even though the method isn’t proven by practice, he always believes that there’s less of a chance he’ll be shoved into a locker if the hallways are overcrowded and his tormentors can’t see him.

“Do I just go straight to the audition?” Blaine asks and that’s when Kurt sees that Blaine has waited for him by the door of the classroom.

“I’ll walk you,” Kurt says.

“-oh and this must be him!” Mr. Schue says happily as Kurt leads Blaine into the choir room. “Blaine, right?”

“Yes, sir,” Blaine answers quietly. “You must be Mr. Schuester. It’s very nice to meet you.”

Mr. Schuester looks taken aback at Blaine’s calm, courteous manner. “It’s nice to meet you, too, Blaine. But feel free to call me Mr. Schue. Rachel tells me that you’d like to audition for Glee club.”

Other students begin to file in and oh god, when Finn walks in, he towers over Blaine. Blaine watches him pass, almost looking directly up at him with large, stunned eyes until he takes a seat in a chair on one of the risers.

“Oh, yes, sir,” Blaine says quickly.

“He’s a teddy bear,” Mr. Schue says with a wink, as if sensing Blaine’s anxiety. “Do you have a song ready to sing?”

“I do, yes.”

“Good to hear. Just take a seat and we’ll get started when everyone arrives.”

Blaine nods and smiles before making his way over to the seat next to Kurt, just in front of Santana Lopez.

“Fresh meat,” Santana purrs behind him.

“Down, girl,” Kurt says with a roll of his eyes. “At least let him audition before you maul him.”

“Sure you’re not trying to keep him for yourself, Kurt?” she asks slyly.

At that comment, Blaine whirls his head around to stare at her in confusion. He quickly darts his eyes to Kurt and Kurt assumes he’s praying for a savoir from this very forward young woman.

“Stop it, Santana. I’m just trying to help him finish his first day in one piece,” Kurt returns.

Blaine relaxes instantly and smiles at Kurt, as if to say thank you. Ah yes, Kurt would protect this boy from someone like Santana. His innocence shouldn’t be defiled so soon.

“Alright, guys!” Mr. Schue announces from his spot beside the piano. “Welcome back! I know you guys heard about Matt transferring, which leaves us one member short of the requirement for competition. Luckily, it looks like we might have someone interested in taking his spot. Blaine here wants to give a shot at auditioning. So be nice and let him have the floor.”

Rachel applauds loudly with a self-satisfied grin. Kurt’s sees Blaine’s Adam’s apple bob in his throat as he swallows down his nerves and Kurt thinks he didn’t know he’d have to audition right away like this. Taking a deep breath, Blaine stands, walks to the center of the room, and turns to face his small audience.

“H-hi,” Blaine greets shyly. “My name is Blaine Anderson and I’ll – I’ll be singing Amazing Grace.” He turns to look at their teacher with a bit of panic in his eyes. “I know it’s technically a religious song and those aren’t allowed in school but Kurt suggested I pick something I know and it’s one of those songs that almost everyone knows and I just learned how to play it on the piano in-”

“It’s fine for an audition song, Blaine,” Mr. Schue says, cutting off Blaine’s frightened rant.

Blaine gives a shaky nod, a smile, and turns back to look at the students.

He opens his mouth to sing, lungs full of breath, and Kurt wonders what his lips taste like.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now am found
Was blind, but now, I see

By the end of the first verse, Kurt is in awe. Despite the fact that the song is definitely religious, something Kurt is definitely not, Blaine’s voice is even purer than the energy he exudes and Kurt is absolutely captivated by his entire being. He continues to sing, lulling the room into a serene state with his words but Kurt can’t focus on the words because all he hears is beauty and perfection in the form of song.

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
as long as life endures

The notes are quite repetitive, especially considering the amount of verses the hymn seems to have, but Kurt doesn’t care. He could listen to Blaine Anderson sing every day, even if it was only ever this one song. It’s simple. It’s sweet. It screams Blaine’s name.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now am found
Was blind, but now, I see

When Blaine brings the song to a close with that final note, Kurt stands to applaud him, as does Rachel. The others in the club follow their lead, clapping loudly and it looks like Quinn Fabray is almost in tears, which makes sense to Kurt, knowing how…invested she is in her religion.

“Thank you,” Blaine says, though he looks to Rachel with a smile as he says it.

Considering she’s the one who practically dragged him into this damn club, Kurt refuses to feel even the slightest bit of disappointment when Blaine doesn’t look to him and smile too.

“I think we’ve found our twelfth member!” Mr. Schuester says happily, clapping Blaine on the back with a heavy hand.

Despite his lack of smile to Kurt, Blaine still returns to his same seat.

“Was it okay?” Blaine asks Kurt, knees bouncing with barely contained excitement.

Mentally slapping himself for jumping to the swift, ridiculous conclusion that Blaine had decided to show more interest in Rachel, Kurt gives his new friend a broad smile.

“It was lovely,” Kurt assures him.

Their first rehearsal comes to a close early, considering they don’t have that much to talk about on the first day. Blaine and Kurt strike up a light, easy friendship based on smiles and Kurt’s sarcasm. It’s so effortless to talk to Blaine; he’s got these open eyes that could read into your soul if you’d allow it and this simple, sweet way about him that’s making Kurt’s heart stutter in his chest.

But when Blaine leans over to pick up his bag, a necklace that Kurt had not previously been able to see slips out from under the confines of his white, collared shirt. The chain of the necklace is plain silver, as is the charm that hangs from it, and Kurt has to wonder how he didn’t put so many pieces of this new puzzle together.

For the charm that hangs from the chain is a simple, silver cross.