It was just another human interest story, just like the hundreds of others he'd read sat on his couch on an off-day, indulging in how wrong the media could get over something celebrities, including himself, did and the stories of real courage and hope. It was a picture of a solemn looking couple and a tall man, presumably their son holding a framed picture of a young man. The man in the frame was gorgeous; pale skin, perfectly coiffed hair and dazzling blue eyes that seemed to call out to him.

The headline, as usual a heart-breaking quote from the loved one, this time the dad said, 'We Still Hope He'll Walk Through The Door'. His eyes welled with tears at the sentiment and he settled in to read on.

The man, Kurt Hummel, had vanished from his New York apartment a few weeks into his freshman college year. They had no suspects, the boyfriend in Ohio checked out, the friend he lived with didn't know who else Kurt had spent time with other than her and their friends and couldn't find anyone who knew anything. Leads had gone cold and the police had all but closed the case, leaving his parents, friends and stepbrother with a hole in their lives.

He was a lot like Blaine. Bullied in school but strong and sure of himself, in Glee club and an amazing singer, or would have been and was gay. When he was done his mind was set. However he could, he'd find a way to send him home. He rang the phone number at the bottom, a personal number for anyone with any information and waited. It rang five times before a deep voice answered. Blaine took a breath and spoke quickly. "Hello. You don't know me but I want to help you. I know what it feels like to be lost and I promise you Mr Hummel, I will bring Kurt home to you."

There was a choked sob then the voice on the other end spoke. "Burt."

"What?"

"Burt. If you're going to find my kid you call me Burt." The other man said and it made Blaine blink hard against more tears. They spoke for another hour about Kurt and exchanged numbers, Burt giving him his home and mobile numbers and letting out a quiet gasp when Blaine told him exactly who he was. He understood; it wasn't exactly normal for a famous pop star to ring and promise his life goal to finding someone's missing kid.

The first thing he did was call his management. Paul was surprised, confused but he couldn't hide the slight awe in his voice at the idea of Blaine wanting to do something like this. The second thing they do is hire a private investigator, one of the guys who used to be a Marine and worked at one point for the government, someone Blaine would salute on the street for the sheer principle. They talk about Kurt, talk to his dad who spends most of his time choking on tears and thanking Blaine. Blaine tells him he shouldn't thank him until Kurt walks through the door. They try to keep a lid on how much people know at first but then realise that it could actually help them. The media is a different creature, deferential to the idea of someone like Blaine reaching out to people he doesn't know and trying to reunite this lost young man with his family. They don't draw any parallels to the smatterings of information he's released to the press about his past and his life in Ohio and Blaine heaves a sigh of relief because, they could. They could pull the idea of Blaine replacing a family for a family that didn't care, that didn't notice that one day their son had packed up, taken his money and walked out of their house, moving to LA to chase this dream and never seeing them again. He does though, he knows and in the dark night he wonders, he wonders about his life and what Kurt would have done if he'd been given the chance to live it and if their similarities and differences would have pulled their lives into crossing the way it has now. He likes to think so, he thinks about staircases and hallways and bright, shining days, breathless laughter and fingertips brushing against skin and lilting laughs even though he's never heard Kurt's voice, he's sure they would have harmonised seamlessly.

None of that matters right now though. All that matters is finding Kurt and sending him home.

He organises to meet Kurt's friends himself. He wants to, he has to. This boy that he didn't know has come to be so much to him in such a short amount of time and he wants to know if the quiet love and awe for the person Kurt was extends further than his family.

The first is with three of his friends in LA. One he knows from reputation, she's a rising singer and they've seen each other at industry functions enough that they'd recognise each other. They've sent him an address and as he checks it he realises he's walking into a coffee shop on the Venice Beach Boardwalk he's been to with Cooper. He checks the names and descriptions and takes a breath. Mercedes Jones the singer he knows; Noah (Puck) Puckerman pool cleaning company owner; Artie Abrams director.

The bell tinkled loudly as he entered and as he looked around he saw them almost immediately. He walked to the counter and turned, waving at Mercedes as she waggled her fingers at him then ordered. He sits down and is relieved none of them are starry-eyed. He didn't know if he could have coped if they fawned all over him like fans.

Mercedes pipes up first and cuts straight to the point. "Why does Blaine Anderson want to talk to us about our friend and what? Find him?"

He looks around the table and shifts forward, he knows he'll have to repeat the things he's spent days thinking about, reasons why he's doing this, in his mind. "I saw his story and, yeah, it affected me. No-one should be lost or missing. I want to find him to give him back his life but today I just want to know about him."

"You don't think he's dead?" Puck says bluntly.

"Do you?" Blaine counters.

Puck smirks sadly and shrugs "Most do. We don't 'cause we can't and he's strong. The police do."

Blaine nods, he understands. "All I care about is finding him and bringing Mr Hummel answers."

"Daddy issues?" Puck asks but it doesn't sound condescending and Blaine blinks nonplussed. "Hey it's cool. My dad wasn't around either. Burt turned into that for me. He has that kind of draw. Kurt too."

"Kurt?" Blaine questions and Artie finally speaks up from where he's been staring at Blaine judgingly.

"Kurt was – is – pretty awesome. His dad is the reason he is. When his mom died they became each other's best friend and, sorry 'Cedes, he stayed that until Kurt vanished."

"Kurt's mom died?" Blaine asks.

Mercedes nods. "When he was eight. She was in an accident and for a while Burt kind of broke but he and Kurt looked after each other. He told Kurt when he came out that he'd known for years. Kurt's strong; he has his own set of beliefs and ideals, morals and ways to get him through life. He didn't let those assholes get him down and he was someone we looked up to."

"He was our friend." Puck mumbles and Blaine's heart breaks for them as he realises he's not just getting answers for his parents, he'll be getting answers for his friends too. He can picture Kurt shopping with Mercedes, chatting to Artie and laughing with Puck about something.

After the coffee shop meeting he talks to Kurt's friends, exchanges emails and tweets with them, learning more and more about this man and if he's honest, gaining more than a small crush on him.

He was my Gaylinda, and my favourite person, Rachel says. He was always there if someone needed to talk and he had the best advice, Quinn says. He was such a good friend and fashion adviser, Tina says. He was always happy, no matter what happened and when he wasn't he sang about it, Mike says. He was an awesome guy and very funny, Sam says. He was ok, yeah he was probably pretty much the best person I've met, you'd better bring him home or something, Santana says. He was my sparkly unicorn and I miss him, Brittany says. He writes all of their messages down, the main points anyway and sends everything he gets to the investigators, hoping something will help.

The phone rings while he's in Columbus on tour and he answers, having written the number from Burt for Finn, Kurt's stepbrother, into his phone but hearing nothing so far from the older man.

"You're trying to find him aren't you?" The deep voice asks.

"Yes." He says and swallows thickly; Finn's memories of Kurt would be much deeper than his friends, having been his brother for almost two years before he went missing.

"Then we need to talk," Finn replies. "I'm in Columbus, where are you?"

"I'm at the Hilton, you know where that is?"

"Uh yes I'm standing in front of it."

Blaine gasps and stands, grabbing his coat and rushes next door to tell his manager where he's going. "I'll be right down, ok?"

"I'll be here."

He hangs up and races downstairs. He stops in the lobby and schools himself into 'star' mode, smiling charmingly at everyone he walks past and waving to the paparazzi who are wandering around, waiting for him. When he gets to the door he stops and looks, outside is the tall man from the picture in the magazine and he takes a deep breath before he walks out, hoping the paparazzi don't follow him. Finn watches him walk over and they shake hands before Finn speaks. "Let's go somewhere private. I don't want to talk about this with your shadows around." He says and points vaguely in the direction of the paparazzi. Blaine nods and they walk far from the hotel and duck into a little bistro.

"So what do you want to know?" Finn asks and Blaine wonders if it's a trait that Kurt himself has, everyone's been so direct.

"I just want to know about him. The private investigators are doing their job trying to find him but I guess I want to know about the person he is." Blaine replies earnestly.

Finn looks him up and down then glances around before looking back at Blaine. "Kurt's...Kurt was my little brother. He wasn't always. Back when we were younger I was an asshole to him. I was quarterback and he was the outcast if you know what I mean," Finn looks at him and Blaine flinches, he's been there. "That changed when our parents started dating. I was still, well, not a great person but I changed, and most of that was to do with him. Kurt was so honest, so caring about others and didn't care what others said. He stood up for people who didn't deserve it and protected his family. I just wanted to be like him," Finn's blinking back tears by the time he finishes and he looks at Blaine with teary eyes and takes a shaky breath. "I don't know where he is. I've tried so hard to make people listen, but I know who has him."

Blaine's eyes widen into saucers and he gasps. "You do? Who?"

"His boyfriend. The one he had when he graduated and left for New York."

Blaine shook his head. "I thought he checked out."

Finn snorts derisively. "The Lima police checked him out, or didn't. This is the 21st century Blaine but this is still Ohio. The gay kid disappears. They didn't give a damn."

Blaine feels cold all of a sudden in the midday sun. All this time he's been right where everyone first assumed he was. If the police had done more, he could have been home by now. He grabs his phone and dials the investigator's number, repeating everything Finn has told him and letting Finn speak to him. He feels like maybe they have a real chance now, even if they don't know where he is, it's only a matter of time.

Finn takes off work and spends his time with Blaine, the two of them chatting about Kurt, life, everything and anything while they coordinate with the investigators and Kurt and Finn's parents. They find out pretty quickly that the police investigation, at least on the Lima side, was flawed from the second it started. Chandler Kiehl, Kurt's boyfriend since about halfway through his senior year was known to be troubled, used drugs and drank far more than someone his age should ever think about. He even had previous for an attack on an ex but the charges were dropped and according to neighbours there was regular sounds of a fight going on at his house but there had been when his parents were around too. None of this was taken into account and Chandler was only spoken to at his place of work about Kurt's disappearance and had told police he hadn't seen him since he left. The investigators took the new evidence to both police in Lima and New York and suddenly the case was open, Chandler Kiehl the prime suspect.

It all happened so quickly.

Blaine was on stage, singing his heart out and listening to the screams of his fans then as the screams ended and he bowed a final time he knew something was going on. He stepped backstage and looked at the two men he knew as part of the investigation team, his heart hammering in his chest. "What's happened?" He asked.

The taller man smiled and placed his hand on Blaine's shoulder. "At 9.20 this evening Mr Hummel was found at a residence in Lima. He's alive."

"Oh my God." Blaine gasped and clapped his hand over his face, stumbling as tears of happiness rolled down his face.

"He's in hospital getting checked out right now but he's going home to his family Blaine. You did it, congratulations." The smaller man smiles then they're gone and Blaine's alone in his dressing room, choking on tears and the idea. He's done it, he's kept his promise.

His phone rings the next day and he answers before checking the id.

Burt's voice on the end is different than the times they've spoken before. The deep tone is filled with happiness, like the weight on the older man has been lifted. "Blaine...Blaine, my...I can't thank you enough I...My son, you brought my son home. Thank you."

Blaine smiles and blinks as tears fill his eyes again. "I just kept my promise Burt. How is he?"

Burt sighs happily on the other end and Blaine can hear Finn in the background laughing. "He's fine. That...thing...that boy had him drugged. He was never...only physically and mentally. My boy's strong. Thank you Blaine, you found him."

"It was my honour." Blaine chokes out and waits until Burt hangs up to let himself cry out with joy. Kurt's home, he's ok.

Blaine decides to let Kurt find himself again and doesn't let anyone draw any attention to him while they celebrate a missing case solved. He quietly slips into the background, getting on with his life.