Blaine awoke the next morning to find his stomach in knots, and it took him a few minutes to realise why. Kurt was lying next to him, a peaceful, angelic expression on his face. His hair was messy and pressed ever so slightly to his forehead, and his arms were wrapped gently around Blaine's waist, his fingers grabbing at the shorter boy's shirt.

Blaine studied his boyfriend for a while; how did he pull off looking so beautiful in his sleep? It was as if all of his troubles melted away as soon as his head hit the pillow. Slowly, Kurt's eyes began to blink open, and Blaine was blinded by a flash of deep blue. It marvelled the tenor how Kurt's eyes could make every single problem of his seem minute, pointless even. Kurt smiled at his boyfriend, nestling gently into the crook of his neck. Blaine picked up Kurt's hand, kissing the ring that now subsisted on his finger. Kurt sighed, before being hit by a sudden realisation of the day. His face contorted in fear and he sprung upwards.

"Holy shit. It's Nationals today!"

Blaine nodded slowly. He was trying to push the thought to the back of his mind, that today, he would be singing a duet in front of the biggest crowd of his life. The knot returned, bigger than it had ever been before. Kurt began frantically searching through his suitcase for his costume, which he had already ruled was "completely revolting" and that "Alexander McQueen is turning in his grave". He began to talk at lightening speed.

"What time are we on?"

"1pm."

"And what time do we have to be there?"

"12:45."

"And what time are the Warblers singing, I mean we can't miss them."

"They're the one before us, so we'll watch them and then go get ready. Calm down honey."

He bent down and kissed Kurt softly on the cheek.

"It'll be fine. You're incredible."

Kurt blushed, before grabbing his clothes and heading to the bathroom. This was a big day for the entire club, and they wanted to make sure it went off without a hitch.

-------

Karofsky hoisted himself out of bed, unwilling to do anything but sleep. His body seemed to be ignoring every thought his brain had, as he reluctantly moved towards the bathroom. Today was a big day for more reasons than one. Today was Nationals, today was the day the entire club had been waiting for; but today was also the day he was going to tell Kurt that he loved him. He'd planned what he was going to say right down to the last word, he'd put tissues in his pockets just in case Kurt began to cry with happiness.

Today is the day my life gets a whole lot better.

---------

By 11am, the whole club was down in the lobby, waiting anxiously for their bus to arrive. They were all dressed in matching outfits, as per usual; the boys were wearing black suits and waistcoats, with white shirts and emerald green ties, and the girls were wearing emerald and black dresses. Kurt didn't know who had designed them, but he suspected that Mercedes had something to do with it. Thankfully, Santana's ankle had practically healed, but Mr Schue had changed some of the more difficult choreography so there were no risks of injury due to Finn's uncontrollable arms.

Blaine gripped Kurt's hand tightly. They had been practising their duet for over a week now, and, between them, they thought it was pretty brilliant. They knew they had some tough competition in the form of Vocal Adrenaline and even the Warblers (Wes had proudly informed Blaine of how hard they had been working), but the whole club knew that, if they tried their very best, they would have a good chance of winning.

The bus pulled up shortly, and the club climbed on in silence. The atmosphere on the bus was agitated; no one spoke, or even felt the need to. They were all as nervous as each other, and the knots in each member's stomach was enough to shut up even Rachel. Mr Schue stood up to give them one last pep talk, and every member rolled their eyes. Mr Schue was famous for two things; his pep talks, and his ridiculous amount of vests. They were pretty sure they'd heard every single pep talk in his repertoire.

"Guys, I just wanted to say how proud of you I am. You've all worked so hard to get here, and I've seen you all grow from teenagers into mature adults, who are determined to win. And I know you've got it in you to do so. I just wanted to say, it doesn't matter if you don't win; you should each know how incredible you are, and how the club can't function without you. Good luck."

And with that, he took his place again. The club looked around in surprise. They hadn't expected Mr Schue to tell them he didn't care if they didn't win; wasn't that the only reason he was still at the school? To get the Glee club to win Nationals? Kurt felt tears welling up in his eyes. Glee club had made him part of something; they were like a family. Before Glee club, he'd spent all day trying to avoid the jocks, walking around the school as if he didn't care, with no friends to turn to if he felt it was all getting too much for him to handle by himself. But now he had 13 other people who cared about him so much that they would do anything for him, and he'd never been more grateful in his life. He wiped back a tear before it could properly fall. Today was going to be emotional, he just knew it. Blaine looked at his boyfriend in concern.

"Are you ok?"

Kurt nodded, smiling tearfully at the tenor.

"I'm just thinking about how lucky I am to have you all. Especially you."

Blaine grinned, and pulled his boyfriend into a bone-crushing hug.

"If our date in Radio City Music Hall didn't prove it to you already, I love you."

"I love you too."

They pulled up outside the Lincoln Centre far too soon. The entire club attempted to swallow the lumps that had formed in their throats, somewhat unsuccessfully. This was what they had all been working for. Entering the theatre, they saw the Warblers standing nervously by the coffee stand. Blaine and Kurt forgot where they were momentarily; they were so excited to see their friends.

"BLAINE! KURT!"

Wes and David seemed equally as excited to see them, as they ran to meet the boys half way, enveloping both boys in a giant bear hug. Mercedes sidled up beside the boys, smiling shyly at her boyfriend, before kissing him softly.

"I've missed you." He breathed as he pulled away from the kiss. Kurt grinned at Blaine. They were clearly incredibly good matchmakers. Grabbing a cup of coffee each, they sat down at the nearest table with the two Warblers.

"So, are you guys nervous? Us Warblers have been practising all day and all night. I think you have sufficient reason to be." Wes smiled smugly at the three New Directions, who rolled their eyes at Wes's attitude. He was always like this before competitions. Before they had chance to answer, Jude walked up to them, still sporting his bleach blonde hair. Blaine and Kurt chuckled at the hilarious sight.

"Yes, yes, I still have hooker hair. Can we get past it now?"

Blaine and Kurt both pulled their lips together in a tight line to attempt to stop the chuckles from escaping. Jude frowned at the boys.

"Anyway, I came to tell these two that it's time to go. Our performance starts in 15 minutes."

The three Warblers said their goodbyes to the New Directions, who wished them luck, before walking towards the theatre door to secure good seats. By this time, the New Directions were getting jittery. They just wanted their performance to be over and done with. Soon, the lights were going down, and the Warblers were forming their typical position on stage. As they began to sing, Kurt instantly recognized the song as 'The Lazy Song' by Bruno Mars. He looked at Blaine, who was chuckling. Wes had taken the solo, and he was doing an excellent job of it; despite the fact he wasn't quite as good as Blaine, his voice was deep and smooth, and hit the notes perfectly. 5 of the Warblers ran off stage, before coming back on in monkey masks, making the audience erupt in hysterical laughter. They followed it with a slow ballad sung by Jude, balancing it out perfectly. At the end, Blaine and Kurt leapt to their feet, applauding so hard their hands hurt. The Warblers exited the stage, and the New Directions headed towards the door slowly. It was their time.

Waiting backstage, Kurt and Blaine stood in a comfortable silence. Kurt felt his stomach flip when the judges took their seats once more. Blaine cast a sideways look at his boyfriend.

"It's going to be ok. You're so incredible, and I can't imagine anyone else I'd rather be singing a duet with. I love you."

Kurt kissed his boyfriend softly.

"I love you too."

And then it was time. The stage blacked out, and the boys walked to the centre, hand in hand. They had been through so much together, and now they were going to prove to everyone that they didn't need anything but each other. They were soul mates. The music started up, and Kurt began to sing.

Made a wrong turn

once or twice.

Dug my way out,

blood and fire.

Bad decisions,

that's alright.

Blaine took over, staring straight at Kurt with love in his eyes.

Welcome to my silly life.

Mistreated, misplaced, misunderstood!

Miss "No way, It's all good", it didn't slow me down

Mistaken, always second guessing, underestimated!

Look, I'm still around...

The boys took each other's hands, and turned to face the audience.

Pretty pretty please!

Don't you ever ever feel

Like you're less than,

Less then Perfect

Pretty pretty please

If you ever ever feel like you're nothing

You are Perfect to me!

You're so mean (Your so mean)

When you talk (When you talk) about yourself, you were wrong

Change the voices (Change the voices) in your head(In the head)

Make them like you instead

So complicated, look how happy you'll make it!

Filled with so much hatred... such a tired game

It's enough! I've done all I can think of

Chased down all my demons, I've seen you do the same.

Kurt looked towards the wings to see Karofsky staring at him, his arms crossed across his chest and an unreadable expression on his face. He turned away, not wanting to even think about what is going through the burly boy's head.

The whole world's scared so I swallow the fear

The only thing I should be drinking is an ice cold beer

So cool in line, and we try try try,

But we try too hard and it's a waste of my time

Done looking for the critics, cause they're everywhere

They dont like my jeans, they don't get my hair

Exchange ourselves, and we do it all the time

Why do we do that? Why do I do that?

Why do I do that?

Blaine was watching Kurt intently, as if nothing else in the world mattered. Just him and Kurt.

Yeah, oh, oh baby, pretty please!

Pretty pretty please,

Don't you ever ever feel

Like you're less than

Less then perfect

Pretty pretty please

If you ever ever feel

Like you're nothing, you are Perfect to me Yeaaahhh...!

You are Perfect, you're Perfect!

Pretty pretty please, if you ever ever feel like you're nothing

You are Perfect to me.

Kurt and Blaine couldn't hear the applause that erupted around the theatre, they were both lost in each other's eyes. After a few moments, they reluctantly let go of each other's hands and found their positions on the stage with the other members of New Directions. Once the applause died down, the music for the next song began to play and Rachel ran down to the front of the stage, holding hands with Finn.

I've been roaming around, I was looking down at all I see

Painted faces fill the places I can't reach

You know that I could use somebody

You know that I could use somebody

The club began dancing simultaneously and Artie rolled in front of the group to take the next solo, with the rest of the club providing backing vocals.

Someone like you and all you know and how you speak

Countless lovers under cover of the street

You know that I could use somebody

You know that I could use somebody

Someone like you

Brittany and Mike began to execute impressive dance moves in the centre, looking improvised and free flowing. Each of the club had their own skills that they put into practice in the song.

Off in the night while you live it up I'm off to sleep

Waging wars to shake the poet and the beat

I hope it's gonna make you notice

I hope it's gonna make you notice

They all joined together at the front of the stage, dancing seamlessly.

Someone like me, someone like me

Someone like me, somebody

I'm ready now, I'm ready now

I'm ready now, I'm ready now

I'm ready now, I'm ready now

I'm ready now

Someone like you, somebody

Someone like you, somebody

Someone like you, somebody

I've been roaming around, I was looking down at all I see

The music stopped and the audience burst into rapturous applause. The club laughed and hugged each other; they'd done better than they could even imagine. They headed off the stage to be met by Mr Schue, and shared another hug with him.

"Guys you did so well! Even better than I could possibly ask for." He looked teary eyed. "Now there's still at least 20 clubs to perform; we should go back to the hotel, and come back here at 5 for the results. Well done!"

The club headed back to the bus, chattering excitedly about their performance. They knew they had it in the bag.

----------

Kurt and Blaine returned to their room, collapsing on the bed in a state of utter exhaustion. There was so much adrenaline running through their veins, but they both knew that if they tried to get up, their legs would give way and they would fall to the floor in a jellified heap. After 10 minutes of lying in a comfortable silence, Kurt felt his stomach rumble loudly, reminding him of the fact that he had been too nervous to eat anything that morning. Blaine heard it too, and chuckled.

"I think I might go and get us some food."

Kurt looked gratefully at his boyfriend.

"Please go to that sushi shop down the road, I've been craving that stuff since we went there on the first night!"

Blaine mock saluted his boyfriend, and walked out the room, chuckling to himself. He went round the corner, not noticing the door to Finn and Karofsky's room open, and the ex bully walk towards Kurt and Blaine's room. You can do this, Karofsky thought to himself.

Kurt heard a soft knock on the door, and shouted at the person on the opposite side that they could come in. He was shocked to see Karofsky tentatively enter, and shot up off the bed.

"Kurt… Can I talk to you?"

Kurt gulped, knowing that this probably wasn't going to go well.

"Umm… Sure, I guess."

Karofsky smiled slightly, before settling down on the foot of the bed and motioning to Kurt to do the same. The countertenor looked extremely uncomfortable, as if he wished that Blaine could walk back through the door and kick Karofsky out. Karofsky swallowed nervously, and began his speech.

"I recently… realised that I was…umm… gay. And I'm happy that you helped me realise that. But… umm… more than that, I realised that I… I love you. And I know it's hard for you to forgive me after I was such a douche to you, but I can't stop thinking about how perfect you are, and every time I see you with that freaking boyfriend of yours I wish it was me. So badly. And I just wanted to tell you… How much I need you, more than he does, more than anyone does. I love you more than anyone else possibly could."

Kurt looked gobsmacked, as if someone had just told him that ET had kidnapped his entire family.

"Say something."

"I'm… flattered. But you were right. I can't forgive you for what you did to me, and I love Blaine. I know that, sometime soon, you will find someone that you love as much as I love Blaine, and someone who loves you back. But that isn't me."

Karofsky felt a bubble of anger form in his stomach. He didn't expect this. He expected Kurt to fall into his arms, placing soft kisses onto his mouth, saying he loved him more than anything in the entire world. And here he was, rejecting Karofsky and breaking his heart in two. No way he was going to stand for that.

"You… you can't just reject me. I love you. You need to love me too."

Kurt looked momentarily terrified; he could see the old Karofsky coming back. There was a flash of insanity in his eyes.

"I don't love you. Why can't you understand that?" He looked down at his feet. "You need to leave."

He began to stand, but was pushed back down by Karofsky.

"Let me go!"

"Shut up!" Karofsky growled.

Karofsky grabbed his face in his big hands, pressing his lips to Kurt's angrily. Kurt attempted to pull his face away, but Karofsky's grip was so strong. He opened his mouth to scream, but no sound came out. He was frozen with fear; the bully's hands began pulling at his shirt, ripping it off to reveal the boy's pale chest. Karofsky released his grip on Kurt's face, and pinned his hands back on the bed, kissing down Kurt's neck. His hands travelled lower, pulling at the zip on his jeans, and wrenching them down to his knees. Kurt's eyes opened in shock, but he was unable to move and stop him, for the weight of the bigger boy on top of him was too immense for him to run away. Kurt realised what would happen if he didn't do anything. He opened his mouth and emitted a high-pitched scream, which echoed around the room. Karofsky looked shocked, and bent down closer to the boy, fumbling in his pocket.

"I told you to keep quiet." He hissed, flipping open his penknife. Kurt's eyes widened, and he attempted to scream again, but was distracted by the immeasurable pain as the knife plunged into his stomach. Karofsky pulled out the knife, wiping it on the bed beside Kurt, before his mind registered what he had done. Whimpering, he stuffed the knife back in his pocket and ran, slamming the door behind him. Kurt's hands travelled down to the wound in his stomach, pain filling his entire body. The wound was wet, and Kurt retracted his hands to see that they were covered in rich red blood. He tried to scream, but the pain was too strong, washing over him and making him feel woozy.

This is it. I'm going to die.

His eyes began to droop shut, and a single face appeared in his mind before he fell into unconsciousness.

Blaine.

--------

Blaine dug the key out from his pocket, swinging the bag of sushi from his arm. He was exhausted after the competition, and couldn't wait to curl up under the covers and feed sushi to his boyfriend. Smiling, he swung the door open, and was rooted to the spot at the sight in front of him.

Kurt was lying on the bed, drenched in his own blood. His pants were around his knees, and his eyes were closed, his face contorted in pain. Everything moved in slow motion; as if he couldn't get to Kurt quick enough. Blaine ran towards his boyfriend, attempting to hold back the tears in his eyes. His body was shaking with sobs as he stroked Kurt's hair, trying to soothe whoever was listening. Fumbling with his boyfriend's wrist, he could feel a weak pulse.

Thank God.

He kissed his boyfriend's forehead, pulling out his phone to dial 911. Kurt lay completely still, as if he was already dead.

"It's my b-boyfriend, he-e's been stabbed, and I d-don't know what to d-do!"

He gave them an address, before clutching at his boyfriend's hand.

Please be ok, Kurt. Please don't die. You can't die.