Blaine left the bathroom about five minutes before the final bell rang, his limbs sore from sitting on the floor for the last period. Limping on his left foot because he was so stiff, he turned the corner and almost ran into one of the freshman boys. The other boy stepped back as if he was afraid that Blaine would bite, and he hurried past him, unaware that Blaine wasnt going to hurt him. The fear in his face made Blaine sigh, because he knew exactly why he was scared, which gave Blaine more reason to avoid Kurt. Hed hurt people like Kurt, but he swore to himself that he would never cause Kurt harm, no matter what Karofsky tried to force him to do.

He went down another hallway and got to the home economics room, finding the door slightly open. He heard the teacher explaining how to sew a blanket, but he turned his attention to the bored kids, most of them staring at their feet or yawning. Seeing a pink purse on one of the desks, he jerked his head in that direction. His stomach twisted at the sight of Kurt, who was playing with his needle and thread, already sewing a small piece of cloth. Blaine blinked at him, watching him poke his tongue out of the corner of his mouth in concentration.

Swallowing thickly because his throat felt swollen, Blaine gasped when those blue eyes lifted at the sound of the bell. The teacher gave up and told her students to come back tomorrow with at least two inches sewn, and they started getting up and packing their bags. Blaine stepped back so he wasnt seen, getting not even a glance as the students walked out, hooting and hollering about something. After most of the students left, he dared a glance back into the room, and he saw Kurt still packing his bag, carefully putting the thread and needle away.

Once he was done with that, he slipped the bag onto his arm and stood up. Padding out of the room, Kurt looked both ways as if he couldnt remember how to get to the parking lot, his eyes just missing Blaine. He chose to go down the hallway where he could hear more voices from other students. After he was certain that he wouldnt be heard, Blaine peeled off the wall and followed Kurt, his footsteps short and quiet.

Kurt hesitated in a hallway full of freshmen and sophomores, all of them gathered around their lockers and stuffing their bags with books. He peeked at each of the chattering faces before finding a boy who was by himself, and he hurried over to him. Blaines jaw hardened when the startled boy ducked out of his locker and stared at Kurt, his jaw dropping at how pretty Kurt was. Blaine knew that the kid was straight-hed seen him holding hands with one of the cheerleaders-but he still wanted to push him away from Kurt and tell him that he was his.

Pressing his fingertips to his lips, Kurt gave the boy a small frown, "Im so sorry... I dont mean to be a bother. I was just hoping you could tell me if youve seen Blaine Anderson."

He inhaled sharply when he heard his name on Kurts tongue, and he ducked behind an open locker so he wasnt seen. He had no idea what Kurt could want from him, if hed heard horrible things about Blaine and wanted him to tell him why he was bad-a reason he wasnt quite sure of himself, or if he was going to yell at him for being mean to others. He expected both of those things, but he didnt want to hear them from Kurt, the one person left who had never been angry with him. Suddenly feeling terrible for the awful things hed done, he covered his face with his hands, but he spread his fingers so he could gaze through them when he heard the boy scoff. "Blaine Anderson? Why would you want to know where he is? Did he tell you to meet him outside so he could beat you up?"

"Oh, no!" Kurt seemed alarmed by his blunt statement, his hand flying up to his mouth. "Blaine would never hurt me! Hes very good to me."

Another kids head jerked up from a biology book, and he raised his brows at Kurt, "Are you making a joke? Blaines the worst. But if you really want to see the asshole, he throws footballs with Karofsky after school. Hes probably on the field."

Kurt pushed his bottom lip out in a pout, "Oh, dear. I dont want to interrupt their game. Perhaps Ill wait for him. Thank you for helping me!" Hurrying away from the two boys, he turned a corner and disappeared from Blaines line of sight, much to his disappointment.

Startled by what Kurt had said, he was unsure if he should keep going after him, but he stopped moving when a hand smacked his shoulder. He flinched and pinned himself against a wall, knowing that Karofsky was going to punch him, but then he heard Santana snap, "Why have you been following that tranny around all day? And why the fuck is he asking where you are? What are you planning on doing, meeting up with him so you can fuck him?"

Frowning down at his girlfriend, who had her hands on her hips, he started to walk away from her. He didnt know why he wasnt furious about her accusations, just bored with them. "Im not going to have sex with him." He told her, heading down the hallway. She ran after him, staying right on his heels.

"Blaine, youre so impossible!" She yelled at him, and he inwardly groaned. He was so tired of her complaining about him. "How am I supposed to know that when all I can see is you drooling down his neck? You get a boner every time he walks by, you dick!" When Blaine didnt say anything, Santanas voice raised, "Are you even listening to me? Karofskys been waiting for you on the field! Youre always with him, but now youre stuck to that fag. Whats wrong with you? Somethings going on with you, Blaine-"

"I dont have to be with Karofsky all the time, Santana." That was the first time Blaine had ever said anything against Karofsky. Part of him wanted to believe that he had a life outside of doing everything Karofsky said, even when he demanded that he hurt others, but he was starting to doubt that. He stopped walking at the end of a hallway and turned to his girlfriend, his arms crossing over his chest. "I saw... Puck kiss you."

Santanas eyes widened, "You saw that? But it was during glee club!" Suddenly taking a step away from him, she almost shouted, "You stayed for Kurt, didnt you? Thats how you saw it! You asshole, you think youre such a good boyfriend. All you want to do is sleep with Kurt, and I want in Pucks pants. Hes the hottest guy in school, Blaine. But Im not going to break up with you because youre the most popular guy. Were even, right?"

Blaine said nothing to that, keeping his face emotionless as she staggered away from him, obviously bothered by his interest in someone other than her. In her own eyes, she was the hottest girl to every guy in the school, but, for some reason, Blaine felt absolutely nothing for her. After she whipped around a corner and clicked away, he let his blank expression change into a deep frown. She hadnt kissed him goodbye in weeks, and even though he didnt like her kisses, it was something that every couple gave each other to at least show fondness. But all Santana wanted anymore was to show him off in front of other girls, and to brag that he was the most popular boy in school.

He wondered if anyone would ever want him for something more than a trophy, and then he hoped he could meet her sooner. Biting the inside of his cheek to distract himself from his pathetic self-pity, he strode down the hallway without anywhere to go. He didnt want to go home to two parents who would ignore him, and he was sure that Azimio had gone home already. Throwing footballs after school was a thing that Karofsky only wanted to do with him.

He wasnt sure how he ended up outside, but he figured he could just head over to the field and take the punishment he couldnt avoid any longer. Karofsky never forgot his punishments, and they seemed to get worse the longer they were ignored. If he decided to take them tomorrow, hed probably end up in a hospital. He sighed heavily because he didnt know where his life had gone so wrong, if hed done something to put off Finn and Puck, who used to be his best friends, if hed said something to piss Karofsky off so badly that he was just waiting for another reason to hurt him.

A tear rolled down his cheek, but before he could wipe it away and forget hed ever broken down like this, he saw something pink in the corner of his eye. Lifting his head, he caught Kurt peeking through the bars under the bleachers, trying to see the football field. Blaine almost slapped himself in the face because hed forgotten that Kurt had been looking for him. He guessed he wasnt used to people wanting to talk to him, so it had gotten away from him when hed been confronted by Santana.

He didnt want to approach Kurt and take him down into his ruined life, but he knew he would do anything to keep him safe, if he could just see his gentle smile for one minute. Taking a step in Kurts direction, Blaine walked as quickly as he could, needing to be beside of him because he was all that he had. He reached out for Kurt and touched his shoulder, making him jump with surprise. He spun around and gasped at Blaine, a happy smile curving his lips. "Blaine."

Blaine got so close to Kurt that their lashes almost brushed with each blink, and Kurts cheeks turned bright red. He didnt back away from Blaine. "Can I hold you?" He didnt expect the question to fall out of his mouth, and at first he wanted to take it back because he didnt even know Kurt, and Kurt was gay, and Karofsky would hate it if he saw Kurt in his arms-

But then he felt Kurts hands touch his sides, slowly sliding to his back, and Blaine went weak at his knees. "You can hold me." Kurt whispered to him, and that was all the encouragement Blaine needed. Bundling Kurt in his arms, Blaine pulled him against his chest, his body so warm and soft. He ran his fingertips down Kurts shoulders, over his arms, to his hands, and he held them in his. His skin was like silk, and he pressed them to his back. Feeling tears swell in the corners of his eyes because he hadnt been held in such a long time, Blaine knew he wouldnt be able to let Kurt go. Kurt stroked Blaines back with his fingertips to comfort him, "Can I lay my head on your chest?"

Blaine nodded, not able to make a noise as Kurt moved closer to him, hesitantly rubbing his cheek against his neck. He nuzzled into his shirt, resting his head on his heart, and his fingers tightened under Blaines. Shaking from his head to his toes, Blaine wrapped Kurt up tighter, "Please... just a little longer."

"You can hold me forever and ever if youd like." Kurt peeped, his lips parting against his skin. The feeling of Kurts mouth brushing his neck was enough to make Blaine shudder. Tilting his chin so he looked up at the soft spot under Blaines jaw, he said very quietly, "Youll be okay, Blaine, I promise. You could come to my house for some soup if youre hungry. Ill make you dinner."

After weeks of heating things up for himself or eating whatever his mom left him in the fridge, the thought of eating a good dinner with Kurt made his stomach growl. Kurt smiled at the noise, "Why dont you stay with me tonight? At least for a little while. It would be nice to have a friend to talk to. I get so lonely without my dad."

When Kurt wriggled out of his arms, Blaine grabbed for his hand, and Kurt let him hold it. "Im sorry... about your dad." Blaine muttered, and Kurt squeezed his hand. He felt stupid for saying something so simple, but Kurt seemed to appreciate it, anyway.

"Thank you, Blaine." He said, pausing in his little steps to lean closer to Blaine. He started to pucker his lips as if to kiss him, but then he blushed and turned away. Blaine almost grabbed him and told him he could kiss his cheek, but he kept himself under control.

They walked in silence until they got to Kurts car, and Blaine asked if he could drive. After Kurt gave him his keys, he helped Kurt around to the passenger side and boosted him in. Blaine got in on the drivers side and started the car, pulling out of the parking lot. To Blaine, this felt so normal, like he and Kurt drove home together every day. He felt so relaxed and comfortable, while in Karofskys car he was constantly listening for the next joke he had to force a laugh to, or else Karofsky would hit him.

Jerking out of his trance when he felt something pat his leg, he glanced over at Kurt, who was holding his hand out. He decided not to bother with thinking of how wrong this was, and he slid his fingers through Kurts. He gently rubbed Kurts palm with his thumb, and he let a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth.