Everyone was gathered in the hospital waiting room. It might be good news because instead of it being just 45 minutes, which would have meant that the tumor was inoperable, it was five hours.

In spite of her prickly nature, Santana was docile and weepy the whole time. She just sort of pasted herself to Kurt, soaking up all of his kind and loving care. Nobody dared say a thing, worried that if they angered the girl she would explode like a vengeful storm and sweep them all off the face of the earth.

“Tana...” Puck said, brushing the hair out of her eyes and wiping her face with a cool damp cloth he got from a nurse. She didn't say anything in return, but her eyes focused on Puck and he knew she was acknowledging him in the only way she knew. After looking at Kurt for a moment and getting a nod, he gathered Santana in his arms and let her rest against his side, cuddling close to absorb his warmth. Lauren sat down on her other side, taking her hand and holding it in support. Finn came next, his mother producing a blanket just out of the warmer for Finn to tuck around her.

In the sofa across the small room were Dr. and Mrs. Pierce, embracing and waiting. Blaine sat next to Mrs. Pierce, holding her hand. She would occasionally look over at Santana, trying to smile encouragement to her daughter's girlfriend. They loved Santana, although Santana had trouble believing that. But the Pierce's were quiet people, faithful and willing to wait for Tana to see the truth: that anyone their daughter loved so much was a part of their hearts, too.

A doctor in blue-green scrubs walked into the room, his face tired but a smile on his lips.

He looked at Dr. Pierce, silently asking if they wanted to speak alone, but Dr. Pierce shook his head and waved his hand across the room.

“They're her friends, they can hear it. They have been with us through all of the waiting, so just tell us,” he urged.

“We did find a tumor. We were able to remove it in it's entirety and we sent a biopsy to the lab. They analyzed it during the surgery and it did not carry any cancer cells. It was totally benign, but was pressing on certain places in Brittany's brain that caused the problems she was experiencing.

“That said, she is going to take some time to recover. We are going to be very cautious because any time you operate on the brain, it can cause some damage. We don't know at this point if the damage caused by the tumor is permanent. Only time will tell. Brittany will need all of her family and friends now, to help her get through the recovery period. But I can feel the love in this room and I know you will be the best medicine she could have.

“Now, if you want to go and sit with your daughter, Dr. and Mrs. Pierce, you may,” he told them.

Santana's eyes searched out Mrs. Pierce with a begging look.

“Brittany's girlfriend needs to be there, too,” Mrs Pierce told the doctor, and he nodded.

“It isn't our usual policy, but I see this would be the best for Brittany. Of course you are welcome, Miss....”

“Lopez. Santana Lopez,” Dr Pierce provided.

“Miss Lopez, please come with me, and we will take you to Brittany,” he smiled at her as she got up, folding the blanket and thanking her friends.

“Britt? Baby?” Santana cooed, stroking her girlfriend's cheek. She was frightened, seeing Brittany covered with bandages and seeing her entire head was shaved. Under the edge of the white wrapping, Britt's skin was bruised and splotches of iodine were spattered across her cheeks. Her eyes fluttered, trying in vain to focus, but finally slipped shut with a sigh of resignation of her body's refusal to cooperate. She lifted a hand, but not too far because the IV tubes confused her.

“Tana? Come here...” Brittany's voice was soft and needy.

“I'm here, baby. Your mom and dad are here, too,” Santana told her, coming close and brushing her cheek again.

“Daddy? Am I okay? Did they find the cancer?” Brittany asked anxiously. “Mommy? Will I stop being stupid now?”

“We're here, honey. No, they didn't find any cancer at all. They took out the tumor and you're going to be all better. We're all here to help, but for now, just rest,” Mrs Pierce told her daughter. Brittany relaxed, holding her mother's hand for a minute.

“Britt, honey, you know you were never stupid, don't you?” Dr. Pierce told her, stroking his fingers across her forehead the was he had done when she was a child. She hummed a quizzical response, looking up at her dad with love in her eyes.

“We had been concerned about some of the things that seemed to be happening to you, but nobody thought you were stupid. Brittany, we have always been so proud of you. You have the most tender heart of anyone I've ever known, you care so much about those you love, how can that be stupid?” her father asked.

“We can talk all about this when you're rested and feeling better, Britt, but remember we all think you are sensational. Now, close your eyes and we'll be back in an hour or two to check on you. Santana is staying with you for a little while, okay?” Mrs. Pierce said.

“Okay, I'm sleepy. Kiss me, Tana,” Brittany said, dozing off to sleep again. Santana kissed her temple and stroked her cheek.

“Goodnight, baby. I'll be here when you wake up.”

Dr. Pierce put an arm around Mrs. Pierce and Santana, smiling because his daughter was going to be okay.

“They've given her a sedative for now, so she will be asleep for several hours. Why don't you all go home, take a shower, eat some dinner before you come back to visit. She will be in ICU overnight, so she can't have any visitors other than family for a while,” the nurse told them.

“Why don't we take you to dinner and then home for a while, Tana,” Blaine asked, his hand on her shoulder.

“I hope you plan on feeding me a feast, Prince of the Tower, because I'm ravenous. C'mon Pretty Pony, let's get going,” Tana barked, looking at Blaine and Kurt with a smile. Everyone brightened up at her insults, so happy that their friend was back. Nice Santana was scaring them, but if she was back to snarking and biting, they knew it would all be okay.

Brittany was recovering nicely. She still had a long way to go, but she seemed better in many ways. They all sort of missed her quirky observations...but were so relieved that there was no longer a tumor pressing on her brain that triggered some of the outrageous things she said: she no longer thought a ballad was a male duck, that dolphins were just gay sharks or that her cat was reading her diary. At first they kind of missed the funny things, but now that her friends knew it was caused from a brain tumor, it wasn't funny anymore.

All of her close friends took it in turns to spend the days with her. Puck and Lauren came and Puck brought his guitar to sing, which pleased Britt. Kurt and Blaine came, as did most of the New Directions, including Mr. Schue and Coach Sylvester. The Cheerios all came and did a routine out on the front lawn where Brittany could see it from her window, and her bright smile warmed everyone's heart.

Every day Santana came to sit with her girlfriend, offering support and kisses. The worst part was that there was no place for Brittany to recover in Lima. She would have to go to Columbus or Dayton to stay instead of having a place her parents could drive her to during the day so she could stay at home at night. Having to stay in a strange city by herself most of the time in the rehab hospital was depressing for Britt's family and friends, and frightening for her. She had told Kurt and Blaine about it one day, and Blaine came home to talk it over with Kurt.

It hadn't been very long since Kurt had Blaine back, but they still hadn't talked about it. Kurt was getting anxious, he knew from experience that letting something like that build up was not the way to go about it. He had started to say something several times, but it just wasn't the right time. He was determined to bring it up soon when Brittany had the accident and subsequent findings. Their little universe had been rocked by all of this and everyone had rushed to comfort Santana and Brittany, which was as it should be, but Kurt felt that his relationship with Blaine had been left on the back burner and it was beginning to make him worry.

After the whole meeting Sasha fiasco, then Blaine's awful nightmare that had turned violent and his running...then nothing. Kurt was concerned about Blaine's relationship with Cooper. They had been up and down so many times, and this was a bad thing now. They spoke, Cooper had made time to stay with Blaine and take him out, just the two of them, but it wasn't right. Kurt sighed. Blaine was out with him right now, eating at Breadstix.

“Dad?” Kurt called as he walked up the stairs. Carole was at class and Finn was over at Puck's playing video games. They had invited Kurt to come along, but he really needed to talk to his dad today, so he's asked him to come home for lunch.

“Kurt, I just walked in the door. Where is everybody?' Burt smiled at seeing his son.

“All out, which is why I asked you to come home for lunch. I really need to talk to you, Dad,” Kurt said. He had meant this to be casual, but seeing Burt standing there and knowing that whatever he said, Burt would take it to heart and really listen...Kurt sniffed and averted his eyes, but it didn't help. Burt could see the need in his son and opened his arms, grunting as Kurt flew into them.

“Is everyone okay, Kiddo?”

“Yeah, nothing like that, but I need to talk. Is that okay?” Kurt said, suddenly shy. He hadn't done this in a long time.

“Of course, Kurt. I'm always available for you. Tell me,” he encouraged as he steered Kurt to the sofa in the family room and sat down, pulling Kurt close to his side and keeping his arm around him.

“It's about Blaine,” Kurt started. “Ever since he ran away and got home it's been...different.”

“Different how?” Burt asked, hoping this was not about something he didn't understand, like details of sexual positions or something. Well, if it was he would do his best to find the answer.

“He and I were so glad to see each other, he was cuddly and clingy for a while, then it was just a return to normal. You know he has trust issues, but we can usually get past that. I thought after all this time, he trusted me implicitly.”

“Has he give you some indication that he doesn't now?”

“No. You know about the whole thing with his finding out Cooper is his father and he went to go see Sasha – which I think is part of why he ran away – and I've encouraged him to talk to me about it. Then the whole thing with Brittany came up, and of course that was paramount on our list. But she is in recovery now and I have wanted to get back to talking about what is happening with us. Blaine changes the subject or just plain refuses to discuss it at all. I am so frustrated. We need some kind of mediator maybe? Cooper is at the heart of it all, or a good part of it, so I can't ask him. Blaine needs someone who he sees as being impartial, somebody that can see his side of things so we can figure this out,” Kurt rushed it all out, afraid if he stopped, he couldn't continue.

Burt sat still for a while, trying to understand exactly what Kurt was asking him.

“Do you think he wants to leave you, Kurt? Is that what this is about?” Burt asked.

“No. If he wanted to leave, he just wouldn't have come back in the first place. No, it's more like he's scared of something, but so scared he won't say it. His nightmares have been pretty bad. Nothing like that one violent one, but he's having more of them and more frequently. Last week I had to ask Puck to stay the night because I was too exhausted to wake up with them. Finn did it one night, too.” Kurt looked away again. He knew what was coming.

“Kurt, why didn't you tell me? You know we can do something, increase his sedatives at night, or his anti-anxiety pills. We've done that before and the doctor is okay with it. You should have told me, Kurt.”

“Dad, I wasn't keeping it from you, but Puck was here and it was just easy to ask him. Blaine slept fine those nights, and I got caught up on my sleep. Finn was great, too. They care about Blaine, and they must care about me because they are always willing to come over to stay if I'm tired. We're graduating soon, and we need to depend on each other, Dad.”

“You're right, Kurt. But back to the problem at hand: would you want me to talk to Blaine? I know he used to be scared of me, but things between us are good now. I talk to him in the mornings, anyway, maybe I can take him to breakfast tomorrow morning if you...ah....have plans with Rachel or Mercedes?”

“That can be arranged. Thank you, Dad. You're the best,” Kurt smiled. He was grown up enough to know that not everything had an answer, but it just felt like having his dad in his corner would make this all right again. He hugged his dad, brushing his cheek with his lips before going into the kitchen to serve lunch.

“Hey, Sport, want to go get some breakfast with me?” Burt asked Blaine as he entered the kitchen the next morning. Kurt had gone to Rachel's for a sleep over to help Mercedes find a new look for the upcoming school dance. Finn had slept in Blaine's bed, but was still sleeping. Blaine didn't mind, he knew he needed somebody there in case of a nightmare and Finn was actually good to talk to once in a while. He never got the idea he was a bother when it was Finn staying with him.

“Hey, Burt, I'd love to. But don't think you can have bacon just because Kurt isn't there to watch you,” he grinned.

Sitting in Burt's office at the shop, Blaine opened the bag of food and set it out on the table he had hastily cleaned off, moving a carburetor and a pot of grease to the side to make room. He got the dishes out of the tiny cupboard above the sink and placed napkins at each place. Then Burt came in, carrying a chair for Blaine and they sat down to eat.

“This was a great idea, I haven't had a breakfast burrito in so long. Kurt won't let me eat chilies for breakfast,” Blaine lamented, dropping Tabasco on the egg and sausage and potato stuffing. Burt pulled his out: a white egg version with turkey sausage that he had learned to love.

“I'll get down to brass tacks here, sport. Kurt is concerned about you and he asked me to step in. He thinks you need somebody in your corner, and I agreed with him that I can have your back as long as I know what's bothering you,” Burt said. He wasn't one to beat around the bush or coddle Blaine. And Blaine appreciated it.

“Is it that I ran away?” Blaine asked. He thought he'd cleared that up with Kurt, explaining his fear that he would hurt him during a PTSD episode.

“Nope. It's after you came back. He says you have issues with Cooper, which I understand, and maybe this thing with poor Brittany getting in the way of you two communicating?” Burt probed.

“Yeah, that's all true. But the thing with Cooper? Not going away, not going to get better over night. Maybe it's not my place to have opinions about something that happened nine months before I was born, but I cannot get over the circumstances of it all. In my mind, Sasha raped him. Period. End of sentence. I won't change my mind over that, but Cooper is aware of my feelings. Kurt has expressed his agreement over this, but he refuses to get in the middle of it with Coop and I. And, truth be told, I'm glad. I can deal with the situation. I will visit with Sasha one day, but I'm not ready yet,” Blaine said, drumming his fingers on the table until Burt looked at them, Blaine stopped. He was agitated, but Burt acknowledged that and it passed.

“I think there is something else, Blaine. You don't have to tell me, but if you choose to, I think you know it will go no further. I am not comfortable hearing details about sex, which I think you already know, too. But Blaine, your health and happiness are more important than my comfort in this. If it is a sexual issue between you and Kurt, you can tell me. I will do my best to find an answer for you. Okay?” He was seven shades or red, but Burt was not one to back down when something as important as his boys' was concerned, and he meant to see it through.

“No, Burt. We're fine...ah...no problems with anything concerning that,” Blaine said, almost as red as Burt. Burt sighed in relief. So did Blaine. But now there was no more conjecture and Blaine was pretty sure he was going to have to actually face the problem. Kurt must have been desperate if he asked his father to step in.

“There is a problem, but Kurt is totally unaware of it. I hope by my telling you, it will go no further, and anything I say about Kurt will not upset you and make you think you have to talk to him about it. It is not what it seems at first, so could you please hold judgment, okay?”

All kinds of things went through Burt's mind, but he agreed. If it were something that involved Kurt's health, Blaine wouldn't have asked him that. He agreed to Blaine's terms.

“It's about Santana,” Blaine said, then looked away, blinking very fast. Burt's eyes widened, but he got himself under control very quickly.

“Okay,” He said in as even a voice as he could conjure.

“While I was...ah...missing...you know Kurt's friends came to comfort him,” Blaine said.

“Yeah, they were looking for you, Blaine, it wasn't just to do with Kurt, it was both of you. You know that, right?” Burt asked

“I like to think so,” Blaine said in a small voice. “Kurt told me that he had been pretty bad off, depressed and just short of despondent.” Burt nodded and Blaine continued, “He had even stopped eating and bathing when you went to Washington with Carole. Santana came to comfort him. He was so bad off, she took him into the shower. She was in there with him, bathing him. Both naked. Now, I know Kurt is gay, we all know that, but skin is skin and I am worried maybe something happened that …..in the name of comfort, I mean...and.....” he ran out of words. Burt put a hand to his back. Blaine wasn't done. “I just dismissed that. I knew Santana slept in the same bed with him, the way Kurt does with me, just so he knew somebody cared, you know? But one night we were sleeping and I woke up, really restless, and Kurt was sound asleep. He called me by her name.

“Then when Brittany had this terrible thing happen to her? Kurt has taken Santana into his arms several times. In the hospital waiting room, in Britt's room. I was sitting there, and there was nothing to be jealous about – Tana's girlfriend was sick, she needed to know her friends were there. But I was in this jealous rage inside. What made it worse was that I knew it was unfair, that Kurt is the most faithful person on earth, but I wanted to cry and scream for her to go away and not touch my boyfriend. I don't know what to do with this jealousy, especially since it is so unfounded,” Blaine was crying now, the confession so new and his nerves so raw.

Burt did understand, and he held up his arms as he had for Kurt just the day before. And Blaine did the same thing, he hurled himself into Burt's embrace and cried his heart out.

“Oh, Burt, that's the first time I've really put it all into a single thought. I can see now I was wrong, that Kurt is only doing the exact same thing I would do in his place. I was so worried he might love Santana,” he moaned.

“Blaine, he does love her. But he loves her the way he loves Finn or Carole or Rachel. She is a kind and wonderful girl, and I'm willing to bet you love her, too, in spite of her prickly attitude?” Blaine nodded. “But as for falling in love? Kurt thinks you are the love of his life, sport. I don't think that's going to change.”

Blaine smiled. He felt like in talking to Burt that the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. They finished their breakfast in silence, just happy to be sitting there with less cares than when they walked in.

That night after dinner, Kurt served a chocolate German Chocolate cake with coconut-pecan frosting. Both Blaine and Burt knew why, and they smiled at each other.

“I've been thinking about what Brittany told us last week, about being so far from her friends,” Blaine started.

“Me, too, I feel so bad for her, but what can we do?” Kurt asked. “We can drive over to see her once a week, but I know it's going to be hard on Santana,” Kurt said.

“I might have a solution. It would take a while, but since they're saying Brittany has to be in rehab for almost a year, we might be able to do something,” Blaine smiled. “I'll have to talk to Cooper, but...”

Kurt grinned, realizing what Blaine must be thinking.

The reconciliation between Cooper and Blaine was still a little tense, and both treated it with kid gloves, but it was returning to the old camaraderie, slowly. Cooper had been terribly worried about Blaine, who treated his father's worry with careless abandon, and so they just slowly drifted back together. It was agreed that Blaine would not go to see Sasha, nor allow her to come see him for the time being. He was working with his therapist about it, and he eventually wanted to have a relationship, but he was too angry right now to just do it. Cooper was slow to understand, his eyes blinded by his renewed love for her, but with Kurt's insistent encouragement, he was going to let Blaine decide when and where and even if there would be a meeting.

Less than two weeks after Kurt and Blaine cooked up the idea, Cooper and Blaine were sitting in Coop's office, going over the final paperwork. The Anderson Therapy and Rehabilitation Center was going to be a reality. There would be opportunities for a lot of people to benefit from this center. Carole was finishing up on her certification to be a PA, and would work at the Center, Sophia helped to staff it with friends from her years of counseling, and work had already begun on making the mansion ready.

“I feel really good about this,” Cooper said, smiling at his son. “It was a brilliant idea, which makes me so proud of you.”

“Thank you, Cooper. I just saw such a need for it, and we had talked about doing something for the community. It's good that we could take such a terrible thing, like what had happened in that house, and turn it into something good. I would hope our ancestors, like Nathaniel Anderson who made the Underground Railroad station, would be proud of what we have done with his mansion,” Blaine smiled and Cooper smiled back at him.

“You know, Blaine, I will buy you a house here in Lima. I know we talked about neither of us wanting to live in the house anymore, and I'm happy it can be used for such a good cause, but you can have a house – or an apartment if you would like?”

“I'm perfectly content living with the Hummels. You're not moving back to live here in Lima, are you?” Blaine asked.

“Probably not. I can stay until you graduate from high school, of course, but you're leaving then, aren't you? Kurt is going to college in New York and I thought that was your ambition, too.”

“Yeah, it is. I might come back here one day, but that is our plan. I'd really like it if you were in New York, too,” Blaine blushed a little. He still found it hard to think about Cooper being his father. The subject of Sasha had come up a few times, Cooper anxious to have Blaine meet with her and get to know her – but every time, Blaine had an anxiety attack or he just plain refused to talk about her. Cooper had spoken to Blaine's therapist (with his permission, of course), but even the therapist said that Blaine had to decide that in his own time. He'd already had so much happen, and he needed to be allowed to take things as slowly as he needed – and Cooper needed to respect that. It had gotten to the point that Sasha wasn't ever mentioned between the two at all.

This was breaking Cooper's heart. He had immediately taken up the relationship where it had left off, albeit a more mature one, but Sasha remained the love of his life and he saw no change in that at all. He was very anxious for Blaine to bond with her, but he also knew forcing him to do so would result in Blaine resenting them both, and that would get them nowhere. Cooper got more upset about it as time went on, but he recognized his own inability to change it.

Cooper knew it was risky to mention it, but maybe, since Blaine was in such a good mood and Kurt wasn't here.....

“You know your mom will be in New York.”

“What? She's in the state prison....oh, you mean Sasha. Well, New York is a big city, we probably won't run into each other,” Blaine said, getting up to pace back and forth in Coop's office. He didn't want to hurt his father's feelings, but he really did not want to talk about his mother. He closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. Cooper could see and feel the tension building.

“So, where's Kurt today?” he asked, although Blaine had already mentioned it earlier.

“He had to practice with Rachel for that try-out for NYADA,” Blaine said, wishing Kurt was here with him. He sighed again, wishing this day was over.

“I can drive you back to Lima now – we're done with the paperwork and I don't have any more appointments today. I called Carole earlier and told her I was staying at their house for a while before I had to fly into New York next week. How about we get a late lunch and then hit the road?” Cooper asked, trying not to let Blaine's reluctance to talk about Sasha upset him.

“Can we have Greek?” Blaine asked, excited since there wasn't a Greek restaurant in Lima.

“Of course! Let's go,” Cooper shut out the office lights and put on his suit jacket as they left the office, locking the door on the way.

Later that evening:

“What's wrong, Blaine?” Kurt asked, moving closer to rub Blaine's neck as they sat on the sofa in the family room watching a movie.

“Just a little tense. Everything for the Therapy Center is going great, and it looks like we can open at least part of it by the end of next month. Then Brittany can move back here. I know she's just one person, but she was really the catalyst for Cooper and I making the Center a reality,” Blaine enthused. Kurt smiled at his boyfriend, happy he was so excited.

“With everything Santana has done for me, Kurt, I would move heaven and earth to help her, and the best way I can see to help her is to help Brittany,” Blaine explained, a wistful look on his face.

“Blaine, you are the kindest person I have ever known,” Kurt smiled at the boy he loved, then tugged him into an embrace. “Do you know how much I love you?”

Blaine answered by kissing Kurt, looking into his blue gray eyes and kissing him again. No matter how long they knew each other, the sweetest thing Blaine could ever do was kiss his Kurt. He closed his eyes in thanks to a god he didn't believe in that he had been united with this wonderful angel. They kissed again and again, blanking out the rest of the world until they finally came apart, breathing heavily and needing to take a second to wind down before they noticed Finn sitting in the armchair across from them.

“Oh, sorry, Finn...I didn't realize you were there,” Blaine blushed.

“Obviously. But no worries, it doesn't bother me. I kiss Rachel in the hallway at school – I figure if I can get away with that, you can kiss in your own house. Just be glad it was me and not Burt that was sitting here,” Finn said, his eyes on the TV screen.

“Yeah, no kidding,” Kurt sighed, a little abashed he got caught in such a dramatic exchange with Blaine.

“Oh...and what is that supposed to mean?” Burt said, Kurt, Blaine, and Finn's eyes shifting across the room to see Burt leaning on the bar that separated the kitchen from the family room. They all jumped.

“Nothing, Dad, I just didn't want to disrespect you. Ah, how long have you been standing there?” Kurt asked in a sheepish tone, not meeting his father's eyes but thinking about how hot and heavy the kissing session had gotten before they noticed Finn.

“Long enough that clearing my throat, tapping my beer bottle on the counter, and talking to Carole on the phone didn't disturb the make-out session in my family room,” Burt growled out, shooting sparks out of his eyes as he looked at the two blushing boys. “But the lawn needs to be mowed, so maybe the two of you could get busy getting that done instead of removing each other's tonsils?” he barked.

Kurt and Blaine got up in a flash and were out the back door, on their way to the garage for the mower and clippers before Burt could utter another sound. It wasn't until the sound of the mower starting was heard that Finn dared to look at Burt. But what he saw made his mouth open in shock: there was Burt, laughing so hard his belly shook, his face was red and he had dropped his beer bottle. It was one of those laughs that was so hard, he wasn't making any sound at first, and Finn just sat and looked at Burt for a few heartbeats before he started laughing, too.

“Oh, my god, Finn – did you see the look on Blaine's face? He thought I was going to eat him alive! And Kurt, I haven't seen him that scared since he was ten years old and carved his name in my rocking chair!! Oh, I'm going to bust a gut...I better calm down before they come back inside.” Burt continued to chuckle, breaking into a laugh every now and then. “And over just some kissing!!” Burt said, starting the belly laughing again.