They had lost at Regionals. Lost. Honestly, Kurt was expecting it. The moment he saw that New Directions chose to perform original songs, he was almost completely convinced that The Warblers didn’t stand a chance. He was upset about the loss, of course, but not as much as he had suspected. He just wished he could have still been a member of the New Directions. The Warblers were great, of course. They treated Kurt with respect and even invited him out to lunch or to a movie. But Kurt knew where his true place was. And he knew it wasn’t as a member of The Warblers.

But, as they say, you can’t always get what you want.

So, for the time being Kurt convinced himself to be satisfied with the good things in his life. His safety at Dalton and his boyfriend.

However, that was proving to be a little difficult as of late. Blaine was being distant which was a little unusual for the older boy. Blaine was always the more touchy feely kind of person. He loved holding Kurt’s hand and he would always brush his hand over Kurt’s arm or shoulder. And most of all, he loved kissing Kurt which definitely did not bother Kurt. It all seemed to stop out of no where though. Yes, Kurt would get the occasional little peck every now and then. Blaine would still hold his hand, too. But that was just about it. Kurt tried to decipher Blaine’s behavior. He couldn’t help but feel like maybe Kurt had done something wrong. Like maybe he wasn’t giving Blaine enough. Like maybe Kurt wasn’t enough for Blaine. Perhaps Blaine was bored with Kurt. It was a difficult idea to grasp. Things seemed to be so perfect and now they were beginning to roll downhill. Kurt hadn’t mentioned anything yet, though. He wasn’t even sure where to start.

Kurt sat at a table by the window in the Lima Bean. Hanging his bag on his seat, he let his eyes drift over to the register where Blaine was currently helping a customer with that brilliant smile of his. Even until this day, Kurt’s heart fluttered at that smile even when it wasn’t directed at him. Tugging his phone out of his pocket, Kurt glanced down at the screen to distract himself from Blaine for a moment. Soon enough he found himself looking back up at Blaine who was writing down the customer’s order. Kurt watched his boyfriend in silence, thinking back to that first time he had noticed Blaine in the coffee shop. Kurt was almost immediately attracted to him. And, really, how could he not be? Blaine was pretty much one of the most gorgeous boys Kurt had ever seen. And the way Blaine had just smiled at him so kindly that day. It made Kurt never want to leave his sight. It made him want to make any excuse to have a conversation with him just so he could hear Blaine’s voice. Kurt was pretty much convinced that it was love at first sight--at least for him.

It was that night that Kurt found himself sprawled on the bed beneath Blaine for the first time in about a week--which was a long time for them. Blaine was hovering over Kurt, fingers tangled into his hair and mouth on his neck. Kurt’s hand was resting on the small of Blaine’s back as he made an attempt to tug his boyfriend closer. Blaine didn’t budge, though. Kurt made a frustrated and somewhat desperate little sound. A moment later, Blaine was pulling his head back to look down at Kurt.

“What?” he asked, voice a little breathless and low. The sound of Blaine’s voice shot right through Kurt and he nearly arched his back in response.

“Closer,” Kurt muttered as he sat up a bit, surging forward to kiss Blaine’s mouth muttering, “Please,” against his lips.

Again, Blaine was pulling away carefully to look at Kurt’s face. “I don’t think we should…”

Now, Kurt was getting annoyed. It’s not like he was asking Blaine to have sex with him. Kurt let his head fall back on the pillows as he let out a frustrated little noise as Blaine shifted to sit on his knees beside Kurt. Blue eyes stared into hazel for a few moments before Kurt tore his gaze away, closing his eyes.

“We’re taking things slow, remember?” Blaine reminded Kurt much to his frustration.

It was a conversation they had had about three weeks into their relationship. This was both their first relationship and they were both a little clueless when it came to dating. They agreed not to rush into anything. But, damn it. Kurt was a teenage boy with his first boyfriend. They were two months or so into their relationship and they were barely past the heated making out stage. They were taking this relationship way too painfully slow.

“Sometimes I wonder if you’re an old man stuck in a teenager’s body,” Kurt admitted before opening his eyes to look up at Blaine to see the older boy pouting down at him. “I know we’re taking things slow but, really?”

“What?” Blaine shot back, sounding a little offended.

“What do you mean what?” Kurt snapped. Now he was starting to feel like some horn dog. “Do you really think taking things this slow is normal?”

“Well, I mean. Yeah, why not?” Blaine was starting to look a little uncomfortable. Like maybe he wanted to say, “No.” And how Kurt wished he would say no because that would mean they could get past these stupid innocent little kisses. They were sweet and all but, really.

Sitting up, Kurt leaned forward to kiss Blaine full on the mouth, a hand reaching up to cup the side of his boyfriend’s face. He felt Blaine begin to slowly return the kiss, but it only lasted for a few moments before Blaine was pulling away only to frustrate Kurt further.

“Blaine,” Kurt nearly whined. This wasn’t fair. And why the hell did Blaine have to look so damn gorgeous when he smiled at Kurt like that?

“I should probably go,” he said softly.

“Or you could stay,” Kurt suggested as he slipped his hand down the side of Blaine’s neck, watching as the older boy shut his eyes, taking in a sharp little breath that made Kurt smile hopefully. Blaine shook his head, though, twisting it a little to get at Kurt’s hand and kiss his palm.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Kurt,” he muttered before moving off of the bed leaving behind a very annoyed, very sexually frustrated Kurt.

“Old man,” Kurt called behind Blaine right before the door shut.

---

It was on Sunday afternoon that Kurt decided he would find a way to make Blaine want to take their relationship a step further. Kurt was ready. He had been ready two weeks ago and he simply wasn’t having this. He knew Blaine wanted it just as bad because he could feel the older boy struggling when they kissed. He could feel that want and he knew Blaine wanted to give in but he wasn’t doing it and it drove Kurt mad. And Blaine made it so hard for Kurt to keep his hands to himself. Like now, for instance.

Blaine was wearing his weekend clothes. A black v-neck t-shirt with a blue cardigan and jeans. It was so simple compared to Kurt’s clothes but god he looked amazing. Blaine always looked amazing and it was something Kurt both loved and hated about the older boy. The way the t-shirt stretched perfectly over his chest and the way his pants were rolled up a little and the way his damn neck looked, collar bone peeking from beneath the t-shirt. Kurt could hardly keep his eyes off of Blaine and the older boy had noticed in the car, mouth twitching up into a little smile as he glanced at Kurt. He said nothing, though.

They were making a trip to the mall to meet up with a few of the girls from New Directions. It would be the first time Blaine would be officially meeting them. After much begging on Rachel’s part, Kurt had agreed to ask Blaine to come along on this shopping trip. Kurt was a little hesitant, thinking there might be a bit of tension considering that these were girls from their opposing team.

Kurt was pleasantly surprised when Blaine kindly introduced himself and reminded them that it was a Saturday so that didn’t make him a Warbler. He was just Blaine Anderson, Kurt’s boyfriend. Kurt’s boyfriend. Hearing Blaine refer to himself as his boyfriend to the girls made Kurt’s heart flutter. It had been two months and Kurt was still swooning at these little things that Blaine did and Kurt hoped that never stopped.

It was a little while after lunch that Kurt found himself sitting outside of the girls’ fitting room. He had helped each of them pick out an outfit and they were currently trying them on. Beside him, Blaine sat playing some game on his iPhone, making these adorable little frustrated noises every now and then. After a few moments, Kurt turned his head a little to look at Blaine, reaching out to touch the back of his neck, fingers lightly playing at the little curls there. It was one of the few sections of Blaine’s hair that he didn’t gel down and it was always so soft. The moment Kurt’s fingers came in contact with Blaine’s neck, the older boy’s head rose to look at Kurt, game suddenly completely forgotten. Kurt smiled softly before he spoke. “Thanks for coming today,” he said. “I know shopping sprees aren’t really your thing.”

Blaine shook his head. “This is nice,” he muttered, “and I finally get to meet your friends.”

“They seem to really like you.” Kurt slipped his fingers into Blaine’s hair and he watched Blaine shut his eyes and lean back into the touch.

“That feels really nice,” he muttered quietly.

Kurt was about to speak, but Santana’s voice was suddenly cutting right through the air. “Save it for the bedroom, boys!” Kurt pulled his hand back as Blaine’s head shot up, eyes snapping open.

Kurt sighed before standing to get a better look at her outfit. Behind him, Blaine fumbled with his phone for a moment before sliding it into his pocket.

“I was thinking,” Quinn said as she stepped out of her own dressing room. “That since you’re picking out an outfit for all of us, maybe we should do the same for you.”

Kurt’s eyes went wide for a moment.

“Both of you,” Mercedes added, peeking behind Kurt to look at Blaine who was still sitting down. Kurt had never trusted anyone but himself with an outfit and this seemed like a bit of a dangerous idea. Then again, it wasn’t like the girls had a horrible fashion sense. In fact, they dressed pretty well.

“As long as Rachel isn’t the one picking,” Kurt said finally.

From within the dressing room, Kurt could hear Rachel call out an offended sounding, “Hey!” to which Mercedes laughed at before looking at Blaine.

“You down?” she asked.

Blaine smiled that gorgeous smile of his before shrugging. “Sure, why not?”

---

“But I don’t even like this,” Kurt was saying, staring at the clothes that Santana held up. He watched as she placed it into his arms before shoving him towards the fitting room.

“Just shut up and try it on.”

Kurt groaned before walking into the little room right beside Blaine. He could hear the older boy fumbling around with the clothes beside him and Kurt sighed. “This was an awful idea, I’m going to look horrible.”

“I highly doubt--” a little thud against the wall, “--that,” Blaine finished. “You look amazing in anything.”

Kurt sighed and rolled his eyes. “And I highly doubt that.”

The outfit that Santana had picked out for him wasn’t absolutely awful but it wasn’t something that Kurt would have chosen for himself. A pair of dark blue jeans, some converse and a light blue short sleeved button up collared shirt. It was just so…plain. There wasn’t enough going on to satisfy Kurt. But, he tried on the damn clothes anyway to get Santana to shut the hell up. And in minutes, Kurt was stepping out of the little room and walking to the waiting area where the girls (and Blaine) were. Quinn and Mercedes were examining Blaine’s clothes, giving his shirt a little tug before stepping back and looking at him. And then, Santana spoke. “Oh my GOD, I am a fucking genius.”

Kurt watched as everyone looked up at him and Blaine as he turned to face Kurt. And he could have sworn Blaine’s jaw dropped for a moment when he saw Kurt. He blinked a few times before smiling. Blaine was the first to speak. “You look amazing,” he said.

Kurt didn’t agree entirely, but he did have to admit that he looked a little better than he expected. The outfit wasn’t really him considering the jeans were too loose for his personal taste and the top didn’t have a lot going on save for the little pockets at the chest. But, Blaine seemed to really like it from the way he was just staring at Kurt in a way that was making him blush a little.

“Come on, Kurt,” Santana was saying. “You have to get it. If not for you, do it for your boy. He seems to like it judging from the way he’s eye-fucking you.”

Kurt’s eyes went wide at Santana’s statement as Blaine quickly tore his gaze away from Kurt to stare at Santana who shrugged and smiled at him. “Well, it’s true.” She placed a hand on her hip.

“Whatever.” Kurt said quickly before retreating into the stupid fitting room and closing the door behind him. A few moments later, he heard Blaine return to his room.

“So, are you getting it?” Blaine asked suddenly.

Kurt bit his lip. He was still blushing and he couldn’t stop thinking about Santana’s comment. “Should I?”

“If you like it.”

There were a few minutes of silence between them as they finished changing back into their clothes. Kurt stepped out first and a few moments later, Blaine did as well. The older boy smiled up at Kurt. “I really like it,” he said softly before looking down at the clothes that hung at Kurt’s arm.

“So, Santana was right then?” he asked with a quirk of the eyebrow.

Blaine lowered his eyes to the ground before looking back up at Kurt to smile at him. “Pretty much.”

Kurt’s heart fluttered in his chest as he hugged the clothing closer. “I guess I’m getting a new outfit today, then.”

----

“I’m sorry, Kurt, I completely forgot I was supposed to meet my parents for dinner today.” Blaine apologized for a second time. Kurt had his arms crossed over his chest as he kept his gaze forward. They were supposed to go to dinner tonight and Kurt was so looking forward to it. Why did Blaine have to be so forgetful sometimes?

Kurt crossed his legs, sitting back against the bench as Blaine scooted a little closer to him, nuzzling into his neck. There weren’t many people around considering the mall was closing soon. “I promise I’ll make it up to you.” Blaine muttered against his skin before kissing it.

Stupid Blaine being stupidly affectionate and making Kurt nearly melt. Stupid, stupid, stupid. “Stop that,” Kurt muttered before Blaine pressed another kiss to his skin and nuzzled again.

Sighing, Kurt pulled away from Blaine to look down at him as Blaine peeked up at Kurt from beneath his eyelashes. His stupidly long, amazing, beautiful eyelashes. “Just go,” Kurt said placing a quick little kiss on his forehead. “Before I change my mind and decide that I’m still mad at you for canceling our date and being forgetful.” Of course, Kurt was aware that spending time with his parents was more important than their dinner date. He was just being a little bitch because Blaine had forgotten.

Blaine grinned up at Kurt before standing. “You sure Mercedes can give you a ride back?” he asked.

Kurt nodded. “Yeah. I’ll just explain that you screwed up and forgot about me, no big deal.” Kurt winked and Blaine frowned a little. “Go,” Kurt said with a little laugh before Blaine tugged Kurt’s hand to his mouth, pressing a little kiss at his palm before running off towards the exit considering he was already late to dinner.

With another little laugh and shake of the head, Kurt pulled out his phone and began typing a message to Mercedes.

Mercedes’ reply came rather quickly.

Slipping his phone back into his jean pocket once he stood, Kurt grabbed the shopping bag sitting next to him and began heading towards the entrance where he would meet Mercedes. He failed to notice the small group of teenage boys who had been watching him and Blaine from afar. He had also failed to notice that they were following him now.

Stepping outside, Kurt made his way towards one of the benches, setting the shopping bag down as he pulled out his phone again deciding it would be a good source of entertainment while he waited for Mercedes. The sun was beginning to set and the cool night air was beginning to set in. Kurt wished he brought some kind of jacket. Hopefully he wouldn’t be waiting for Mercedes for far too long. A short distance away, he heard a group of people exiting the doors but paid little mind to them, far too preoccupied with his phone. Soon, though, they made their presence evident as they snatched the phone from Kurt. Quickly, they boy looked up, “Hey!” he snapped as he looked up at the tall boy who seemed to be around his age. Kurt could have sworn he had seen him around McKinley at one time or another.

“You know, people don’t really like seeing two fags practically fucking in public.”

“It’s gross.”

“Don’t go around shoving it into everyone’s face.”

Kurt’s hands were shaking at this point. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know what to say. There was no one around to see what was going on or to even stop what might happen. Should he run? Could he really outrun three huge guys?

“I…” Nothing else came out.

“You need to be taught a lesson. You need some of the gay kicked out of you. Maybe then you’ll understand that it’s disgusting. That you’re disgusting and so is that other fucking homo.”

“Please, I’m just…” Kurt couldn’t finish his sentence and his voice quivered as he spoke. He was just waiting for Mercedes. He just wanted to get home and work on some last minute homework. He just wanted to be in the safety of Mercedes’ car. The safety of dorm at Dalton.

And suddenly, the only thing he could think about right now was Blaine and how he wished he hadn’t left. How he wanted Blaine to be with him. How he didn’t want to be alone. But he was. There was no one around and it was just Kurt and these terrible people hovering over him. They were moving closer and all Kurt wanted to do was run but his legs weren’t working. The next moment, he was falling back onto the ground and then there was a sharp pain to his side. And then a kick to his head. Kurt was trembling now, eyes stinging as tears welled up. And then, he felt a hand grabbing at his collar as he was yanked to his feet. A punch across his cheek then one to his mouth. The metallic taste of his own blood filled his mouth. He felt another punch to his face and then one to his stomach. Kurt tried to fight back, kick himself away but there was another boy moving behind him to grab at him. He took both of Kurt’s arms, locking them behind his back and keeping them from moving. By this time, Kurt was thrashing about, kicking and begging for them to stop. He managed to get a kick to one of the boy’s shin but it wasn’t enough. It only made the large boy angrier.

Kurt wasn’t sure how much time had passed. How many times he had kicked and begged. But it all stopped when he heard a voice cut through the air.

“What the hell are you guys doing?!”

The voice was familiar, but Kurt couldn’t put a name to it. His head was spinning and his body was throbbing in pain. Everything just hurt so much. They had stopped and Kurt dropped his head wheezing for breath. The punches as his stomach made it so very difficult to breathe. They had finally stopped and Kurt was taking that opportunity to just breathe. When he was released, his legs gave out beneath him and Kurt fell to his knees, barely holding himself up with his hands. There was struggling going on around him and he could hear arguing but Kurt could barely understand the words. He was far too focused on keeping himself from just falling over and sleeping. Resting. Forgetting about everything around him and making all of the pain go away. His ribs were aching and he wondered if they were broken. His vision was blurry and it was hard to take in a deep breath without coughing.

Kurt nearly screamed when he felt someone touch his back. No. No, no, no. They were coming back for him. He expected to be yanked up by the arm. Kicked to his back. But nothing happened. That hand just stayed there and it was warm and comforting. And the first thing that crossed Kurt’s mind was Blaine. But when Kurt raised his head, he saw someone completely different. Someone he wasn’t expecting.

“David?” he barely got the word out. David Karofsky was kneeing before him, concern in his face and this must have been some kind of dream. Maybe Kurt had passed out during the beat down and now he was having some strange dream. But the pain overwhelming his body was enough to remind Kurt that this was all still very real.

“Are you alright?”

“Of course I’m not alright,” Kurt hissed out before coughing and lowering his head. “Fuck.” Kurt never cursed and this was one of those very, very rare occasions. He coughed again, pain shooting through him at the action and Kurt groaned in pain, tears welling up in his eyes from pure frustration and pain and terror and just everything. This was so much worse than anything that had happened to him. And none of it made sense. The boy who had made Kurt’s life a living hell at McKinley was now the boy who was kneeling by his side calling 911. He had practically saved Kurt’s life just then.

And Kurt just wanted to curl up in a little ball and cry for hours.