“Hey, Ladyface!” a jock yelled before Kurt felt the cool metal of his locker against his face. He fell back to the ground from the force of the shove.

      Laughter accompanied the taunting faces as they passed in front of him.

      Kurt held his bag to his chest and trembled as he watched them smirk at each other, patting their shoulders and laughing like they’d just won one of their football games. A sickness settled low in Kurt’s stomach and all he wanted was to curl up in a ball and cry. Not again.

      The jocks disappeared around the corner with a last sneer in the young man’s direction. Their red jackets that reminded Kurt a little bit of blood left some sort of ominous feeling in the air, like there was more to come. What will it be then? My head stuck in a toilet? My clothes destroyed? Kurt pushed his inner turmoil to the back of his mind.

      Overhead the bell for class rang clear and Kurt realized how empty the hallway had become. No one had noticed him being pushed into the locker and if they did, they certainly didn’t come to his rescue.

      Kurt glanced down both sides of the hallway and shivered, he wanted to get out of there before someone came back.

      Getting to his feet Kurt brushed off the back of his pants quickly and slung his backpack over his shoulder. Forgetting that he’d never gotten his locker open for his books Kurt made his way hurriedly to class.

      Rushing into Chemistry and hurriedly taking his seat beside Rachel only earned him a warning glance from Mrs. Worthington. His good manners seemed to have put him in her good graces.

      Rachel was another story.

      “Where were you?” Rachel whispered nosily, as if Kurt had missed the most important thing in the world. Kurt glanced at the board and rolled his eyes. The Periodic Table, was what they were currently being introduced to. This girl is something else.

      “My dad couldn’t find his car keys,” Kurt mumbled.

      Rachel seemed to accept this and nodded before pushing her notebook in front of him.

      Kurt frowned in confusion; what could she possibly want now?

      It was the notes for the next chapter. Shame washed through Kurt and his eyes softened. Rachel was the only person he’d found at this school that even bothered to talk to him, let alone be nice to him. And how had he been treating her?

      “Thank you, Rachel,” Kurt whispered, his words holding so much more gravity than the simple act of kindness required.

      Rachel inclined her head graciously in Kurt’s direction, her gaze on the teacher as she absorbed the new notes and saved them away for when she had her notebook back and could scribble them down.

      The notes were fairly straightforward and Kurt could have inferred most of them just from logic, but none the less Kurt was touched at the simple gesture and dutifully took them down quickly before pushing her notebook back over to her.

      The next forty minutes passed slowly, too slow for Kurt’s liking. The drone of Mrs. Worthington’s voice and the scratching of paper filled the silence as some of the class took down notes and the others doodled or texted. Surprisingly, Kurt found that between focusing on the words being spoken and the words being jotted down on paper he had little time to pay attention to the other thoughts bouncing around his head. It was refreshing. The clutter seemed to disappear and all he had to do was concentrate on the feel of the paper under his hand and the way his pen slid over the page.

      At least, until those forty minutes were up.

      Mrs. Worthington gave them the last ten minutes of class to do what they wanted.

      Kurt slipped his notebook and pen away, trying to think of what he could do to keep himself occupied for ten whole minutes, but he didn’t have long to think before Rachel turned to him.

      “You should join Glee,” Rachel said, slipping her own things away neatly.

      “What?”

      “Glee Club, you should join,” Rachel elaborated. “Well, you should join if you can sing,” she amended. “But I know a singer when I see one, and I’m never wrong.”

      He paused trying to think of a way to let the girl down easy; clearly this was something she cared about immensely.

      “Rachel-“ That was as far as he could get before she cut him off. Kurt was beginning to see a pattern with how conversations with Rachel went.

      “Just come to a meeting. You don’t even have to sing; you can simply sit and see what it’s like. If you don’t like it then okay.”

      Kurt was a little taken aback at the sudden change in the brunette girl. She seemed a little worn out, like she’d said those words too many times for own liking.

      That’s why instead of telling Rachel that no, he didn’t sing, at least not in public, Kurt nodded after a bit of a pause. “Okay, I’ll come to the meeting.”

      The smile that burst across the girls lips was so childlike with excitement that Kurt couldn’t help but give her a small smile back.

      “Oh that’s wonderful!” Rachel said excitedly, clapping her hands together. “Okay, do you know where the music room is?”

      After a few short directions and a look at his map of the school that he still carried around (Rachel highlighted the path from his sixth period class to the music room with a bright pink marker) he was finally prepared for his first meeting at Glee Club.

      There were just a couple things that Kurt couldn’t quite understand.

      “Rachel… did you put a star on my map?” Kurt asked, eyeing the gold star.

      “Yes.” She moved her straightened hair behind one of her shoulders.

      “Why?”

      “Because Kurt, stars shine so brightly they can’t be ignored and I am a star. Because of my shining personality and my talent,” Rachel said a raw energy building in her eyes that frightened Kurt a little.

      “O-kay,” Kurt said slowly.

      Thankfully the bell rang, saved by the bell Kurt thought dryly, cutting Rachel off from another one of her speeches.

      With a small wave and half a smile Kurt made his way to his locker.

      The one other thing he didn’t understand was what exactly he was getting himself into by visiting Glee Club.

***

      It happened again before lunch.

      This time the hard ridges of the vents on the locker dug into his cheek roughly, the panic rose more quickly in his chest when the pressure against his back didn’t disappear and let him fall back to the ground behind him.

      It was like being tackled. The air rushed out of his lungs and the weight pressing into him made it hard to breath. His diaphragm protested as Kurt panted slightly, his body producing unnecessary amounts of adrenaline because his mind was taking over. The panic was taking over.

      He became claustrophobic and his hands that were pinned beneath him clenched into fists before his nails scraped across the metal of the locker.

      Fight or Flight.

      He chose flight every time.

      Kurt jerked beneath the bully’s hold oblivious to the degrading words the ring of red jackets were flinging at him.

      The taunts and jeers all melted away when one voice in particular got through.

      “Look at you, Karofsky, your mother must be so proud,” the voice said loudly, smothered with smugness.

      The voices of the jocks died down and large hands that gripped Kurt’s shoulders clenched just a bit. Kurt bit into his lip harshly, don’t make a noise. They enjoy it.

      “What do you want Anderson?” Karofsky growled.

      That voice.

      It made Kurt’s skin crawl. His toes curled in his shoes, his whole body shrinking back even more, becoming as small as possible. He knew he couldn’t hold on that much longer. The wave was already building inside his body.

      “Why not let the kid go?” There was a pause before Blaine continued. “Six to one, that’s a fair fight,” Blaine said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

      “This is none of your business,” the hulking jock said.

      “Well I just made it my business, okay?” Blaine said. He’d been leaning against the wall casually, but then he moved off the wall, taking a few steps forward. “Let him go.”

      “Like I would listen to a fag like you,” Karofsky said his face twisting in disgust.

      “Let. Him. Go.” There was undeniable authority in Blaine’s voice, woven so thickly into the roots, some of the jocks surrounding Kurt shifted anxiously.

      Karofsky froze for a moment, before his gaze shifted to his teammates around him.

      “What’s going on here?” A voice rang out from down the hallway. A pair of heels clipped their way toward them and Karofsky let Kurt go, taking a step away from him and turning to Ms. Pillsbury.

      “Nothing,” he grunted out, glaring in Blaine’s direction.

      “Ahuh,” the slight red-haired women said as she eyed the large jocks and Kurt shaking against the locker. “Why don’t you gentlemen move along?”

      Karofsky sent Blaine a lingering glare and a glance in Kurt’s direction before he turned and left, his teammates following close behind.

      “Blaine,” Ms. Pillsbury said once the jocks were out of sight.

      “Emma, it’s so good to see you again. Did you have a nice summer?” Blaine asked charmingly.

      “It’s Ms. Pillsbury, Blaine, and yes, my summer was good, but that’s not the point. Do I need to take you to Principal Figgins?” she asked.

      “I don’t know, do you?” Blaine replied cockily.

      Emma sighed, “Blaine I can’t keep turning a blind eye when you get yourself into these situations.”

      Blaine didn’t say anything in return.

      She turned her attention to Kurt, who had slid down to the floor once Karofsky had let him go.

      “Are you okay? They didn’t hurt you did they?” She asked worriedly, beginning to take a few steps closer to Kurt who shrunk back even more.

      “No, they didn’t hurt him.” Blaine answered for him. “He’s just a little shaken up, I’ll take care of him.”

      Ms. Pillsbury gave Blaine a long look before nodding. “I wish I could, Blaine, but you know how things around here work,” she murmured.

      “Yeah, I know,” Blaine said darkly, his eyes narrowing.

      “Blaine,” she started out, trying to find a way to make it better.

      “Emma, I know. You don’t need to tell me again,” Blaine said.

      Ms. Pillsbury nodded. “Tell me if they’re giving you any trouble, okay?” She directed this to Kurt.

      Kurt didn’t hear her.

      Blaine reassured her that Kurt would be fine that he knew how to handle it and she disappeared down the hallway, her heels clips echoing off the walls.

      Blaine kneeled down in front of Kurt, a few feet away. “Can you hear me?” Blaine asked. Kurt had curled into himself, and his frame was shaking slightly.

      “What do you need?” Blaine asked in a clear voice.

      Kurt struggled to breathe properly, his breaths coming in small puffs of air as if Karofsky’s weight was still pressing into him. He knew he couldn’t break down in school though. Not here.

      “G-get me o-out of h-here,” Kurt got out, a begging undertone making itself noticeable.

      Blaine nodded, “Can you get up?”

      Kurt was shaking more and more and he moved his head back and forth frantically. “P-please, just-“ he cut off as a sob rose in chest.

      Blaine moved forward suddenly and wrapped Kurt up in his arms, being careful of his backpack still slung over his shoulder. He cradled him to his chest before rising and carrying him quickly down the hallway to the nearest exit.

      Blaine was prepared for Kurt to kick and scream when he touched him, but he was shocked when Kurt’s hands wrapped around the lapel of his jacket and his face pressed against his chest.

      “Shhh, it’s okay, baby.” Blaine didn’t think twice about what he was saying; it was instinct.

      The cool air hit Kurt’s face when they were finally outside and he took deep breaths, trying to get as much of it as possible. Blaine carried Kurt out to the football fields. It was a clear day and the sun was shining, there was still dew on the grass from the morning and it stuck to Blaine’s shoes as he walked. He set Kurt down carefully on the bleachers, keeping him close to his side.

      “Let me, just for a second,” Kurt mumbled as he untangled himself from Blaine’s arms and stood up. He paced slowly in front of where Blaine was sitting, letting the sun and cool air touch as much of his face as possible. He shook out his hands a few times, trying to get a grip on himself. It wasn’t that bad. Just deep breathes. You can do this.

      Blaine watched the young man pace for a few minutes. “Do you need anything?” he asked.

      Kurt stopped in his walking then and shook his head, “No… no I’m better, thank you.”

      “Maybe you should go home.” Blaine squinted against the bright sun.

      Kurt’s hair moved slightly when he shook his head, “No, I can’t go home.”

      “Why not?” Blaine asked.

      “My dad, uh, I don’t… he’s not supposed to know it’s this bad,” as Kurt spoke his words trailed off a little at the end and he frowned, why am I talking to this guy?

      Frowning Blaine shoved his hands in his pockets.       “Alright, well then how about we go somewhere else?”

      “What?”

      “Let’s leave,” Blaine said with a shrug.

      “And go where?” Kurt asked exasperated. He reached up and wiped at his eyes, making sure there was no moisture there. Blaine was doing an excellent job of distracting him.

      “I don’t know, the park, a field, where ever you want,” Blaine said.

      “No, I have to go back to class.” Kurt shook his head, his thoughts were scattered. Get it together.

      “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Blaine said.

      Kurt looked at Blaine then and just stared into his hazel eyes before shaking his head and turning on his heel.

      “Whoa, where do you think you’re going?” Blaine called after him as he jumped up and jogged to catch up with Kurt.

      “Just leave me alone,” Kurt said over his shoulder.

      “Nice way to treat the guy that helped you out,” Blaine said.

      Kurt stopped then and Blaine nearly walked right into his back. Kurt turned on his heel again, slower this time.

      “Thank you,” Kurt said quietly. “But please leave me alone,” Kurt’s eyes never left the ground as he spoke.

      “No promises,” Blaine said softly.

      His shoulder’s tensed and Kurt closed his eyes, “At least for today?”

      “Fine.” Blaine took a step back. You should let him be. Why do you even care so much?

      With a glance in Blaine’s direction Kurt turned again and hurried into the school.

      Blaine wondered in the back of his mind how many more times Kurt would walk away from him.

***

      “What happened to your cheek?”

      Kurt blinked and his eyes focused on the bright brown eyes staring at him. “What?”

      “You’ve got a small cut on your cheek, how’d that happen? It wasn’t there during first,” Rachel said.

      “Oh,” Kurt’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried to think of an excuse. “My locker, accidentally hit myself in the face,” he mumbled lamely.

      Rachel nodded slowly, “Okay, well I’m glad you came!” She brightened up dramatically, a smile gracing her features.

      “I said I would.” Kurt glanced around the music room where Glee Club took place and leaned back in the chair Rachel had given him to sit in.

      “Yes, well, not everyone is as honest as you,” Rachel said. “Anyway, just a few more minutes and we’ll have everyone here. Mr. Schue is usually a little late because he comes from his Spanish class.”

      Kurt nodded and looked around at the few students lingering in the room.

      It was the most unlikely group Kurt would have imagined to be part of a glee club. Jocks and popular kids were in the club. It didn’t make any sense, and yet Rachel reassured him that they all got along and they were actually kind of nice when they wanted to be.

      “Hi guys!” Mr. Schue said as he entered the room setting his bag down by the piano and clapping his hands together as he made his way to the center of the room.

      The students took their own seats and quieted down some.

      “So, is everybody ready to test out our newest number?” He asked with a grin.

      Kurt couldn’t help but think that for a teacher even as young as him, he had too much energy.

      “Mr. Schue,” Rachel said as he raised her hand.

      “Yes Rachel?”

      “Kurt is here to see if he’d like to join Glee Club so I think we should all do our very best to make him feel welcome,” she said.

      Kurt shrunk back in his seat a little.

      Mr. Schue smiled and nodded, “Alright, well that’s awesome. How about it guys? Finn?” He asked the class.

      Finn nodded and made his way over to the drums as Puck followed behind him to pick up the guitar.

      Kurt was surprised he remembered all their names even though Rachel had gone down the list of members so quickly. Of course, he knew some of them from his own classes.

      Mr. Schue took a seat in the front row of the chairs and watched the kids set up.

      Rachel stood front and center of course.

      The drums started first and it was only a couple seconds before Rachel began to sing.

      She didn’t lie about her talent, was the first thought through Kurt’s head.

If you want me, the cherry on top, the pick of the peck,

The crème de la crop.

If you want me you better do better than that tonight.

Oh, Oh.

      Kurt glanced at Puck as he jumped in with the guitar, but was soon distracted when Quinn, the queen bee, made her way to the front and sang the next few lines.

If you want me, it takes more than a wink,

And more than a drink and more than you think.

If you want me you’re gonna have to break the bank, tonight.

      Rachel took over again and Kurt couldn’t stop his lips from curling up a little at the irony of the lyrics she was singing.

Cause some don’t have the patience, some call me high-maintenance

But you pay the bill, cause, that’s the deal.

      All the girls joined in for the chorus and the guys sang in the back, making ridiculous faces at each other and messing around with the dance moves. Kurt didn’t know it was possible to move the way Mike was.

If you wanna ride, just name your price don’t play cheap, with your heart

Don’t make a bet if you can’t write the check, for me, for me.

Cause I can be bought, but you’ll pay the cost

If you can afford me

      Santana made her way to the front of the pack, clearly making a spectacle of herself and loving every second of it. Kurt made a mental note not the cross the Latina. She had a wonderfully unique voice to her though.

If you want me, I’m not a piece of ass, a one night stand, a storage shed

I think you better walk by, tonight

Oh, no.

If you want me, then stop begging I don’t put out for charity

If you want me there’s no discount price tonight

But I don’t need your dollar bills I just want something real

Cause, nothing’s free, except lovin’ me

      Kurt’s eyebrows went up when Santana nailed the higher note. His eyes swept over the whole group of students singing and dancing and he couldn’t believe how at ease they were. They looked like they were the best of friends. They looked unstoppable. Kurt felt a bud of jealousy worm its way into his stomach and he realized that he wanted what they had. Wanted to feel belonged and safe.

If you wanna ride, just name your price don’t play cheap, with your heart

Don’t make a bet if you can’t write the check, for me, for me.

Cause I can be bought, but you’ll pay the cost

If you can afford me

      All the girls grabbed one of the guys and pulled them into a dance move, some of them twirling around and others laughing at each other. Rachel made her way to the front again, smiling at Kurt excitedly.

If you want me, the cherry on top,

The pick of the peck, the crème de la crop

      Everyone joined in again and even Mr. Schue was clapping along as they sang and danced around. Kurt even caught himself smiling a little as he watched the group. They all looked so free when they sang.

If you wanna ride, just name your price don’t play cheap, with your heart

Don’t make a bet if you can’t write the check, for me, for me.

Cause I can be bought, but you’ll pay the cost

If you can afford –

If you wanna ride, just name your price don’t play cheap, with your heart

Don’t make a bet if you can’t write the check, for me, for me.

Cause I can be bought, but you’ll pay the cost

If you can afford me

      The group broke out in laughter when the song finished and they patted each other on the backs, smiles all around the room.

      Rachel made her way to stand in front of Kurt.

      “What’d you think?”

      “You guys are… definitely good,” Kurt said with a nod. “Really good.”

      Rachel beamed at Kurt. “Would you like to join?”

      Kurt bit his lip. He really didn’t understand why they’d want him. He wasn’t anything special.

      “Can I get back to you?” Kurt asked.

      Rachel nodded, Of course, but as soon as you know, tell me. We need to know how many people we have before we sign up for any of the competitions.”

      Kurt nodded and sat in the back of the room through the rest of the meeting, not really paying much attention. He was daydreaming. He wondered if it would feel as good to sing as all of them made it look.

      Nobody else approached Kurt the whole time, only shooting him the occasional curious glance. Kurt wondered if they all really wanted him there.

      When the meeting ended Kurt snuck out managing to get away before anyone could catch up and ask him questions.

      Burt was waiting in the parking lot for him.

      “How was your day?” he asked as they made their way home.

      “It was… interesting,” Kurt said quietly, his eyes trained on the blurred houses out the window. It’s the oddest day I’ve had in a while, Kurt thought.

***

      “So, how was school?” James asked his children as he passed the green beans to his husband.

      “Oh, it was wonderful! There’s this new boy at school, I mentioned him; you remember Kurt?” Rachel asked, setting her fork down to talk.

      “Ah yes, so what happened with Kurt?” James asked curiously.

      Neither of them noticed the way Blaine’s head shot up and his eyes darted between them. Kurt? Why are they talking about Kurt?

      “Well, I got him to come to Glee!” Rachel said.

      “Kurt joined Glee?” Blaine blurted out impulsively.

      Rachel’s smile faded and she narrowed her eyes at her twin. “No,” Rachel said slowly.

      Blaine blushed and lowered his head to play with his mashed potatoes while he listened intently.

      She turned her attention back to her fathers, “But I got him to sit in on today’s meeting and I think he really liked it. I’m hoping I’ve convinced him to join, but I can’t be sure.”

      “Well, only time will tell,” Michael said smartly as he took a sip from his wine glass.

      Rachel shrugged slightly and switched topics to talk about the rest of her day.

      Blaine blocked his sister out when he realized he’d hear no more from her on the subject of Kurt. He pushed his vegetables around his plate as he thought about Kurt possibly joining Glee.

      A light bulb went off over Blaine’s head and he set his fork down suddenly, “Can I be excused?” he asked his father, unaware that he’d cut Rachel off mid-sentence.

      “Sure, just put your plate in the dish washer,” Michael answered. His dads shared a small look before shrugging slightly. Teenagers never made sense.

      Blaine hurriedly got up and put his dishes away before disappearing up the stairs to his room. He had a song to prepare.