Blaine was with his father for almost two years. Though he never called, he frequently checked in with both Kurt and Burt through text messages.

Blaine: I wish I were still living with you.

Burt: Is everything ok?

Blaine: Yea. Youre a better father though.

Blaine: Much better.

Kurt: Happy Birthday!

Blaine: Thanks. I miss you guys…I miss you.

Kurt: We miss you too. I miss you too. Are you and your dad doing anything fun to celebrate?

Blaine: No, he doesnt remember its my birthday.

Kurt: Blaine, you have to remind him! You have to do something for your birthday!

Blaine: The only time Ive ever celebrated my birthday was when I was living with you.

Kurt: Seriously?!

Blaine: Can we talk about something else?

Kurt: Blaine…

Blaine: Please, Kurt?

Kurt: Ok.

Kurt kept Blaine up to date on what was happening at home. He told him about how his dad had met Carole when she brought her car into the shop. How it was a little awkward that Finn was her son, but they were making it work. He made sure that Blaine knew what was happening and felt at least a little included.

Kurt: My dad asked Carole to marry him.

Blaine: Wow! Thats…wow.

Kurt: I know! Im both happy and sad about it…does that make me a horrible son?

Blaine: No! I feel that same way and Im not even his son.

Kurt: Blood doesnt make a family.

Blaine: Thank god for that.

Kurt: What?

Blaine: Nothing, now tell me about the color scheme and decorations!

And Blaine tried to keep Kurt up to date on what was happening at his fathers house. He left out some facts to keep Kurt from worrying, but he made sure to tell him some things.

Blaine: My dad tried to enroll me in some fancy private school today.

Kurt: What happened?

Blaine: They gave me an entrance exam and I did horrible. Completely failed it.

Kurt: Im sorry! What did your dad say?

Blaine: He was really angry. I told him that its not that easy to stay caught up with the rest of the kids when Im switching schools all the time and have a drunk as a mother who half the time cant wake up to get me to school.

Kurt: Oh, Blaine…

Blaine: He didnt want to hear it. He called me lazy! Its so frustrating, Kurt. I did the best I could and nothing is ever good enough for him.

Kurt: Im sorry it hasnt been great for you there.

Blaine: Its ok. Not your fault.

Blaines return was sudden and occurred late on a Friday night. Joan called and her voice was shaky and tired.

"Hello?" Carole answered.

"Hello, may I please speak with Burt Hummel."

"Who should I say is calling?"

"Joan. Please tell him its about Blaine and its important."

Carole was about to ask this woman who she thought she was, calling her husband at 10:30 at night, but the name Blaine stopped her. Her husband and stepson often talked about the boy who had been coming to stay with them on and off since he was a baby. The house was littered with pictures of him almost as much as there were pictures of Kurt and Finn. Though she had never met him, she felt as though she knew Blaine through all of the stories she had heard.

Burt had been sure to tell her, before they had gotten really serious in their relationship, that if Blaine ever needed a place to stay, for a day or forever, that he would come to live with them. He told her there were no other options and that he loved her with all of his heart, but would not turn his back on this boy. Of course Carole would never ask him to do so.

She quickly found her husband watching TV in the living room and handed the phone to him after relaying the message.

"Hey Joan, its a little late for working, isnt it?"

He listened to her speak and was out of the chair walking over to the front door and slipping on his shoes before she finished speaking.

"Of course…yes.. Ill be there soon, St. Anns right?"

Carole looked on nervously at the mention of Limas hospital. Burt was listening intently to Joan speak again. The creases on his forehead were deep with worry.

"Jesus…Youll stay with him until I get there?"

He nodded as she spoke.

"Thanks, see you soon."

He hung up the phone and looked to Carole, "Blaines father beat him and then left him unconscious on his bedroom floor. Joan found him when she went for a visit this afternoon.

Carole stared at him shocked, she didnt know him but couldnt imagine a parent ever hitting their child, "That poor boy!"

"I have to go, Ill call when I know anything and when were heading back home."

"Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, stay here in case Finn or Kurt call or need anything."

"Should I tell Kurt?"

"No, let him stay at Mercedes for the night as planned. Hell just worry and I dont know if Blaine can even have visitors or when hell be discharged. Its better this way until we know more."

"Ok, drive safe," She gave him a kiss and walked him out to the car, "And dont speed there, getting in an accident wont help him at all."

"I wont, I love you." He gave her one last kiss and got into the care and pulled out of the driveway.

When he arrived at the hospital, he ran into the emergency room and gave them Blaines name as well as Joans as she instructed. After a few minutes, Joan appeared from a room and they moved to an empty area of the waiting room.

"What the hell happened?"

"We dont know for sure yet. Hes been back and forth for testing since we got here and the police officer hasnt been able to interview him yet. I wanted to wait for you to get here anyway."

"I thought you were watching out for him? How could this have happened?" Burt was getting angry.

"I dont know, everything had seemed fine between them. Some tension, yes, but Blaine never said anything about abuse…I dont know." She sniffled a little.

Burt felt somewhat bad, he knew Joan cared, but at the same time, Blaine…his kid was hurt and all that kept running through his mind was that it was her job to stop it.

"How did you find him?"

"I went over there and no one answered so I looked in a few of the windows. When I saw into his I knew something had happened, the room was a mess!" She was sniffling, "Everything was turned upside down, but through all the clutter I saw his hand sticking out from behind the bed. I called the police and they got us in, but god Burt," A few tears were slipping down her cheeks, "There was blood and he had so many bruises." She continued to cry a little and Burt realized shed probably had to keep it together for Blaine since he had woken up.

"Has he said anything at all about it?"

"No, he just keeps asking for you, hes been a little out of it, though, they think he has a concussion."

"And Rebecca?" He hated that these people, his parents, still meant something.

Joan shook her head; "Shes been in and out of his life since Peter got custody of Blaine."

"When can I go see him?"

"I just need you to sign the temporary guardianship paperwork then I can take you to see him."

Once everything was signed and in order, Joan led Blaine through the maze of curtain rooms and gurneys until they got to the back, and she pulled away one of the curtain walls of a room.

"Jesus, Blaine." Burt took a step in and walked up to the side of the bed. He put a hand on Blaines good shoulder gently, careful of any bruises hiding under the hospital gown, "How are you feeling kid?"

Blaine looked at him in the eyes for a moment then back down, "Like how I probably look." He said in a groggy voice. His speech was a little impaired by a split lip and the fact that his left cheek was very swollen and bruised.

His face alone was covered in bruises that were dark purple and melded into each other. It was obvious that his father was right handed by the amount of bruising Blaine had on the left side of his face. His left eye was swollen shut and Burt felt a deep hatred for the man who did this to Blaine.

Blaines right arm was splinted and being held against his body by a sling, and though he wore the hospital gown, Burt could guess that the rest of his body was not free from injury.

Joan cleared her throat, "Ill get the doctor and he can explain whats going on."

Once she walked out, Burt sat in the chair next to the bed, "What happened?"

Blaine closed his good eye and sighed, then stared up at the ceiling, "He got angry."

"Hes never going to touch you again. I dont care what I have to do; youll never live with him again. They better throw his ass in jail and lose the key, hell be safer there." Burts face was turning redder as he spoke.

Blaine placed his hand gently over where Burts rested on the bed, "Thanks for coming."

He rolled his eyes a little, "I told you I would always be here for you, kid. I havent told Kurt yet, he wasnt at home, but hes going to go into full out nursing mode when he sees you. You wont be lifting a finger for weeks!"

They both laughed a little but stopped when Blaines laughter turned into painful coughs. Burt gave him a sip of water and then looked at him seriously.

"Why didnt you tell me, Blaine?"

Blaine looked at him confused, "It happened and the next thing I know Im here…how would I have told you?"

"You know what I mean. Theres no way that bastard never hit you before," Blaine ducked his head, "Why didnt you tell me?"

Blaine answered so quietly, Burt barely heard, "I didnt want to bother you. With the wedding and moving, I just didnt want to give you something else to stress about."

Burts eyes softened and he squeezed Blaines hand, "Kid," He waited until Blaine looked at him, "None of that matters when it comes to your safety. The rest is just extra. I couldve helped you, I would never choose a wedding or anything else over helping you and making sure youre ok."

Blaines eyes filled with tears, "Im sorry."

Burt squeezed his hand again, "You dont have to be sorry. Im sorry you had to go through this for so long."

Blaine shook his head and opened his mouth to answer, but at that moment Joan and the doctor walked into the cubicle.

"Mr. Anderson, how are you feeling?"

"Ok." Blaine answered quietly.

The doctor looked over to where Burt was sitting and extended his hand, "Hello, Im Dr. Pearson, Ive been overseeing Blaines care since he was brought in."

Burt stood up and shook his hand, "Burt Hummel, how is he doing?"

"Well, as you can see his arm is slinged up. The x-rays show a clean break, so it wont need surgery, but he will need to wear a cast for the next 6-8 weeks. The MRI came back clean, which is great, but he does have a concussion that will need to be monitored over the next few days, so no driving for the next week. Any signs of nausea, headaches, dizziness, anything that doesnt feel right, come back in immediately."

"How about the cuts and bruises?" Burt looked down to see Blaine staring at his hands, not engaged in the conversation at all.

"Well, I will prescribe some pain medication for the arm, his head, and his ribs which are bruised but thankfully not broken. He doesnt need any stitches but just keep the cuts clean and dry and they should heal up quickly. His eye looks ok, there doesnt seem to be any injury there, so when the swelling goes down it shouldnt give him any problems. Of course, if there is blurriness or any vision problems, I would get it checked out with his ophthalmologist."

"Great. Thanks, doc."

"No problem. Someone should be in soon to put the cast on and then you can take him home. Feel better Blaine." He watched Blaine nod his head then smiled one last time and walked out.

Joan was the first one to speak, "Blaine?" She waited until he looked at her, "I know its hard, but there is an officer here who needs to get your statement about what happened. Do you think you could do that now?"

Blaine looked down again, "Sure."

She nodded and walked out of the room. Burt looked at him, "Do you want me to stay or go during?"

"Please stay." He put his hand out a little towards him but then began to pull it back.

Burt quickly grabbed his hand and squeezed a little as he sat back down, "Of course I will."

When the officer came into the room, she identified herself as officer Shelley and had Blaine recount what had happened.

He kept his eyes downcast the entire time, but his hand stayed firm in Burts grip.

"Nothing was really happening before," He began, his voice quiet, "I was sitting on my bed and just looking at some pictures."

"Of what?" She cut in.

"Um…of the Hummel family."

"Who?"

He looked at Burt, "Burt and his family have been my foster family one and off since I was born," She nodded her head for him to continue, "Anyway, I was just looking at pictures and he came barreling through the door…" Blaines eyes glazed over as he got lost in his memory.

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU TO CLEAN YOUR SHIT UP?" His father stared at him expectantly.

Blaine just stared at him trying to remember what he had left out. His father was like this sometimes, hed get angry and blame Blaine for something he didnt do so that he could have a reason to push him around a bit.

"WELL?"

"Im sorry, sir, I dont know what I left messy."

"ARE YOU STUPID? THAT DRUNKEN WHORE MUSTVE DROPPED YOU ON YOUR HEAD A FEW TOO MANY TIMES."

"I…Im sorry. What can I do?"

"YOU CAN CLEAN UP THE DAMN MESS YOU LEFT IN THE KITCHEN!"

Blaine knew he didnt leave the kitchen dirty, he hadnt even been in there the whole day, between school and trying to stay away from his father, he barely left his room. Even so, he knew he had no choice but to go out there and face whatever his father had planned. He began putting the photos under his pillow where he kept them as he stood up, but suddenly he was knocked out of the way and his father had them.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"

"Thats...um thats."

"I ASKED WHO THIS WAS BLAINE. ARE YOU TOO DUMB TO ANSWER ME?"

"No. I…thats the family who always took me in when mom couldnt take care of me. Thats—"

He was cut off by a slap to the face. A slap that felt closer to an open handed punch. Blaine held his cheek and stared at his father with wide eyes.

"YOU UNGRATEFUL SON OF A BITCH! I TAKE YOU IN AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME? YOU KEEP PICTURES OF STRANGERS UNDER YOUR PILLOW LIKE THESE PEOPLE MATTER? LIKE THEY EVEN CARE ABOUT YOU."

Tears formed in Blaines eyes, he knew the Hummels cared about him but his fathers words still hurt.

Peter looked down at the pictures again and laughed, "LOOK AT THIS FRUIT! HES AS QUEER AS A THREE DOLLAR BILL!"

"SHUT UP!" Blaine looked just as surprised as his father did at his sudden outburst. He had never raised his voice to his father in the two years that he had lived with him, but something about him talking about Kurt…his Kurt…he just couldnt take, "I mean…say what you want about me, but…but leave him…" His father raised his eyebrow in amusement, "Them…kept them out of it."

When Peter spoke he was no longer yelling and stony calmness of his voice put Blaine even more on edge, "This your boyfriend, Blaine? You a queer too?"

His eyes opened even wider, "No! I…no." He knew his father would latch on to it. It didnt matter what he said, it wouldnt have mattered even if he werent gay.

"Come over here, Blaine." He pointed to the spot in front of him.

Blaine paused for a moment but then moved forward in front of his father, knowing he had no choice.

"Listen to me now, no son of mine is going to be a gay, do you hear me?" He began ripping the pictures, one by one as he continued speaking. Tears began to fall down Blaines face, "I would rather you be dead."

Blaines eyes snapped up and the expression, the pure hatred, in his fathers eyes gave all the evidence that he needed, he knew his father meant every word.

"You disgust me."

Those were the last three words Blaine heard from his father. With the first punch, he fell backwards and landed on his arm where he heard a crack and felt a burning pain run through it. He cried out, but his father pulled him to his feet and just as quickly shoved him back. When he fell this time, his head cracked against the nightstand by his bed and his world went black.

"I woke up a few times before I got here. I think he was gone already, I didnt hear anything in the house. Everything was spinning and I just felt so nauseas, it was easier to just fall asleep. I dont know how many times I actually did wake up, but the last time I was here."

The officer nodded, "They found your father at one of the local bars this evening and arrested him. I think with your statement well have enough to convict, but Ill be in touch if I need any more information."

They said their goodbyes after she handed Burt her card.

The three sat quietly in the room, unsure of where to go with the conversation after Blaine had recounted his ordeal. Luckily, not long after the officer left, the nurse came in to put the cast on Blaines arm.

After he had decided on a light blue cast, it was set and Blaine and Burt said goodbye to Joan and headed home. Blaine finally felt like he could breathe for the first time in two years.

Through all of the chaos, Blaine had forgotten that Kurt and Burt had moved after the wedding. He forgot that he would have to meet Carole and the she and Finn would now be a permanent fixture in his life.

Luckily, by the time they got home it was well after 3am and though Carole did say hello and offer him a drink and something to eat, he found himself in his new room which was located next to Finns and across from Kurts. It felt strange being in the new home and room, but at the same time, he could see all of the touches that Kurt had put into the room to make it look like Blaines. He loved that he came to this home with a family that wasnt technically his but he felt like he belonged here more than anywhere in the world.

Blaine steered clear of the mirrors and quickly got changed and laid in bed, falling asleep quickly, finally feeling safe for the first time in years.

True to Burts prediction, as soon as Kurt laid eyes on Blaine, he pampered the boy. Blaine found that though he often felt lazy and useless, he enjoyed Kurts constant presence and doting. Finn was friendly to Blaine and because they had met in school last time Blaine had stayed with the family, they picked up conversation like old friends. Carole was sweet to Blaine and it was obvious that she loved him like a son from the moment she laid eyes on him.

After a week off from school to heal, he returned with Kurt and Finn to McKinley and quickly found his place with the kids once again.

As the cuts, bruises, and broken bones healed, so did Blaines psyche. He went from a sad and lonely kid back to being the happy and charismatic boy that he always seemed to be around the Hummels and especially Kurt. The boys were still attached to the hip, even more so than before Blaine had left, but there still did not seem to be a romantic attachment as of yet which Burt was happy about for the time being. With teenage love came teenage drama and he wasnt quite ready for World War III if their relationship didnt work out.

Five months before Blaines sixteenth birthday, Rebecca reappeared.

Three months before his birthday, she entered a rehab and he once again started visiting with her.

One month before his birthday, this time actually seemed different to Blaine, Rebecca appeared serious about her recovery.

One week before his birthday and his mother made the choice to stay an extra two weeks.

Sixteen came and went with a small party the family threw and a few of the boys friends attended. It was exactly what he wanted.

One week after Blaine turned sixteen, Rebecca exited rehab and she began living in a half way house and got a job.

One month after his birthday, she moved out into an apartment in Lima near the Hummels home.

Three months after his birthday and Blaine began spending every other weekend at his mothers. She would come to dinner at the Hummels and he and Kurt would go to dinner at her house.

Five months after Blaine turned sixteen, he, Joan, and Rebecca decided that she was ready to have him come live with her again.

He was terrified to leave the safety of him home. He was terrified that his mother would relapse again. He was terrified to give her another chance to break his heart.

More than anything, though, he wanted his mom to be there. He wanted to know she loved him because he still loved her more than anything. He wanted this to be the change.

Six months after Blaines birthday he went to live with Rebecca. One week later he was back with the Hummels.