Kurt sat up in his bed with a jolt as he awoke. He let out a sigh of relief as he realized it was only a dream. After he regained his composure, he was able to finally take in the rumpled state of his bed and the cool sweat that drenched his body. He looked down at his hands to find that they were still shaking. "It seemed so real."

Kurt rolled over in his bed to look at his alarm clock, which read the time as 4:17 am. He groaned and blearily climbed out of bed and made his way to the bathroom to take a shower, deciding there was no way he was going to fall back asleep after that.

At breakfast, Kurt ate in silence as Nick and Jeff entertained the table. The table burst into laughter and Kurt forced a smile as he pushed the eggs back and forth on his plate, finding that he didn't have an appetite. Blaine frowned as he watched him, noting the difference in his boyfriend's demeanor.

Blaine leaned across the table to take Kurt's hand, "Are you alright, angel?"

Kurt blushed and looked away as he nodded gently, hoping Blaine would change the subject and take his mind off of the dream that was still plaguing his thoughts.

Blaine's jaw dropped slightly as he reached up and took a lock of Kurt's hair in his fingers. "Did you dye your hair?" He stopped short as Kurt's eyes widened and a hand flew up to grasp his hair, "Oh…are you sure you're alright?"

Kurt chewed his lip for a moment before nodding again, "I'll be fine. Just…stressed, that's all." Kurt smiled weakly at Blaine, "What color is it this time?" he shuddered.

Blaine laughed, "Still brown, just a little bit darker than normal. I don't think too many people will notice it."

"Just you?" Kurt grinned.

Blaine smiled back "Just me."

Over the next few days, Kurt found himself constantly peeking over his shoulder when he was alone. The dreams had only gotten worse, but it was still the same scene that replayed in his head every night. When he woke up from a particularly vivid dream early Friday morning, he felt his stomach twist and lurch as he ran to the bathroom to be sick.

After he flushed the toilet and cleaned himself up, there was a light knock on the door leading to Blaine's room, "You okay in there, angel?"

"Yeah," Kurt croaked. He reached for his tooth brush and the door knob simultaneously, "What time is it?" He squeezed tooth paste on to it and began to brush his teeth vigorously.

Blaine frowned as he took in Kurt's appearance when the door swung open. He had noticed a change in him over the past few days and it was really starting to worry him. He kept trying to get Kurt to talk about it—to see if there was anything he could do to help—but every time he brought it up, Kurt would immediately close off; putting up a wall in between them. "It's nearly 6:00."

Kurt let out a groan as he gargled his mouthwash and then spit, "Well, there's no point in going back to bed." He slowly slid down the counter to sit on the floor, "Why do you keep calling me angel." He looked up at Blaine, puzzled.

Blaine laughed, "Well, you are my angel. I feel like I'm blessed to have found someone who's so perfect. It's like you fell straight from heaven just for me—and at a time when I really needed you, at that." The intensity and love that bore down on Kurt from his gaze caused him to blush. Blaine chuckled at himself, his cheeks tinting pink, "Sorry, I promise that sounded a lot less cheesy in my head."

Kurt smiled up at him and pushed himself up off of the floor, "I'm the one who's blessed, you know?"

Blaine's eyebrows quirked, "And how is that exactly?"

Kurt wrapped his arms around Blaine's neck as he inched closer to him, "Because my life was shit before I met you, and now it's the best it's ever been." He leaned in to capture Blaine's lips with his own briefly before pulling back, "By far."

Friday night after dinner, Kurt had walked to the library by himself, assuring Blaine that he was 'fine' and just needed to do some extra research on his English project over Romanticism. Around 10:25, Kurt's eyes were tired and he thought if he read another random fact about Jane Austen's life he might gag, so he started packing his things.

As he slid his books into his bag one slipped from his hand and landed on the ground, the clatter echoing through the library. There was a sharp intake of breath from one of the aisles surrounding the seating area where Kurt was. He froze as his pulse began to hammer in his ears. He looked in the direction that he heard the noise come from and saw a figure move in the shadows. He stopped breathing.

Braeden stepped out of the aisle and into the light— that crooked smile plastered on his face. "Run!" Kurt willed his limbs to move, struggling against the feeling radiating off of Braeden that was creeping closer and closer to him.

Kurt scrambled down the stairs to the first floor of the library, slipping slightly on the floor that was still slick with rain that had been trailed in by students earlier that night. He glanced over his shoulder to see Braeden following right behind him. He crashed through the doors of the library and stumbled onto the wet grass at the end of the sidewalk. He searched desperately for someone, but there wasn't a soul in sight. He suddenly remembered that tonight was the night that they were having a social mixer on the first three floors of Dorm 3. He silently cursed himself for not being more careful.

Kurt picked up his feet as he began to run again, he looked over his shoulder and didn't see Braeden this time, but he wasn't going to take any chances. He backtracked slightly and pushed through the gate behind the library that led to the woods that surrounded the campus. Kurt kept running for his life, despite not having any idea where he was going.

He had made it about 100 feet into the forest when he heard the creak of the gate and the crunch of a second pair of feet on the leaves just behind him. He picked up his pace, not daring to look back again.

Kurt ran harder than he had ever run before, willing his feet to carry him further, even when he felt his legs wobble like they were going to give out. He could still hear Braeden's footsteps behind him and he began to panic and lose hope. He looked to his left and saw a clearing just past a thicket. Without second guessing it, Kurt dodged left into the brush, catching several branches to the face as he did. He winced at the sting but kept moving, praying that he could lose his pursuer in the darkness and overgrowth of the woods.

Kurt made it to the clearing and his body slowly began to give out. He collapsed onto the damp leaves and moss, panting and trying to scramble back to his feet. He turned around to see the dark figure of Braeden moving closer to him in the moonlight. Kurt's body twitched in panic as he felt his nerves begin to warm over. He regained his breath and sunk deeper into the soft ground as Braeden began to step closer to him. When he was within inches of Kurt, he reached his hand out to him and stroked his cheek.

"I can't give up this easily…" Kurt panicked and did the only thing he knew how to do; he fought back. He dug deep inside himself, searching for something—anything— to save him from this. He dug and dug until he found it and pushed it outward—and nothing happened.

Kurt was still frozen as Braeden's powers consumed him and began to control his free will entirely. "But I'm still panicking. How am I still panicking?" It suddenly occurred to Kurt that the shield was working, but only on his mind. It had been too late for it to reach the rest of his body.

So now he was trapped inside of his own body. He looked up to see Braeden hovering over his limp figure with hooded eyes.

"Now yar mine." Braeden attacked Kurt's lips hungrily. Kurt willed himself not to respond, but he did. His body leaned into the coolness of Braeden's as he kissed him back fervently. "No! No! This cannot be happening!"

A tear silently rolled down Kurt's cheek as Braeden pulled back from the kiss and flashed him a smile. Braeden stood up, dragging Kurt with him as they headed back in the direction of the campus.