Kurt’s Alexander McQueen shoes clattered loudly against the floor as he walked along McKinley’s hallways, heading in the direction of his locker with his books clutched to his chest. Other students were milling about in a similar fashion; drinking coffee, discussing their plans for the weekend, sharing the latest gossip. Kurt sighed internally. He used to do that with his friends, but now he just felt like an empty shell of a person. Karofsky had reduced him to nothing; turned him from a happy, vibrant boy into a recluse with his constant bullying. He felt like, sooner or later, he was going to snap. And the consequences weren’t going to be pretty.

He’d almost reached his locker when he felt a shove from behind him and he flew forward, dropping his books on the floor. Karofsky. Again. His face met the locker, and he felt the cool metal sharply pressing into his cheek, almost cutting. This was all he needed. This was what would make him snap. Anger bubbled up in his chest and he pushed away from the locker, storming after the tall bully, following him into the locker room.

“HEY! I AM TALKING TO YOU!”

Karofsky spun round with a snarl. “The girl’s locker room is next door.”

The conversation continued in this fashion, with Karofsky getting angrier and angrier every second. Kurt was running on adrenaline, not even thinking about what the consequences would be. Maybe Karofsky would punch him, beat him up, whatever; it was worth it to finally tell Karofsky how he felt. Suddenly, Karofsky grabbed his face and pressed his lips against Kurt’s. Kurt felt like he wanted to vomit, tasting burger and slushee on Karofsky’s tongue. He froze in fear; not knowing what Karofsky would do next. Finally, after what felt like an hour, the bully pulled back, lust in his eyes. He moved forward once more, attempting to capture Kurt’s lips in his own. Kurt finally snapped out of his state of shock, pushing the boy away before he could kiss him again. Karofsky’s eyes filled with disappointment, then anger. He punched the locker next to Kurt’s face, making him jump in shock. Karofsky grabbed his arm, pulling him closer to the bully. Karofsky’s eyes glinted maliciously and he grabbed Kurt’s face tightly, pressing his lips to his own once more. Kurt felt his eyes fill with tears, trying to struggle away from the tight grip of the football player. He couldn’t escape.

**********

“No, please, please, stop! Please, I’m sorry; stop! Stop!”

Blaine woke up with a start, wondering what had woken him. He’d been having a great dream; he was playing at Madison Square Garden with all of the Warblers, and Katy Perry had come on stage mid performance, harmonising with the boys. It was awesome. Glancing at the clock, he saw it read 3:47. Why the hell was he awake so early? A sob from the opposite side of the room captured his attention and his brow burrowed in confusion. What was Kurt doing?

“No! No stop, please, stop, you’re hurting me! No, no, I don’t want to, no, please.”

Blaine jumped out of bed and crossed the room, perching on the edge of Kurt’s comforter. Kurt was curled up in a ball, tears staining his face, sobs shaking his body.

“No, no, please! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

Blaine’s heart broke in two at the sight. He tentatively placed a hand on Kurt’s shoulders, shaking him softly. His attempts were futile; Kurt just began to scream even more.

“NO! NO, LET ME GO! I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY, PLEASE!”

Blaine jumped back in shock, not wanting to hurt the countertenor. What was he dreaming about?

“Kurt. Wake up! Kurt, come on, wake up!”

Blaine began to shake Kurt more violently, determined to stop the pain the poor boy was experiencing.

“KURT!”

Kurt’s eyes snapped open, filled with tears. They landed on Blaine and he broke down into sobs, burying his face into Blaine’s shoulder. Blaine wrapped his arms around the shuddering boy, rubbing circles into his back soothingly.

“It’s ok, I’m here, I’m here.”

“He wouldn’t stop Blaine, he wouldn’t, even though I begged him, he wouldn’t.”

Blaine froze. Even after a week of Kurt being at Dalton, he had never found out why Kurt had transferred, and he had an idea of why.

“Who?”

“Karofsky.” Kurt broke out into fresh sobs, soaking Blaine’s t-shirt through.

“Is he why you transferred?”

He felt Kurt nod gently into his shoulder. Blaine stiffened.

“… What did he do?”

“He k-kissed me.”

Blaine felt a wave of anger flow through his body, tightening his arms around Kurt in an attempt to protect him from anything else.

“B-but in my dream it was worse, so so much worse, h-he wouldn’t stop and he pinned me against the locker and he…”

He could no longer speak from the sobs emanating from his body. Blaine ignored the tears welling up in his own eyes.

“It’s ok, I understand. You’re safe now.”

**********

Kurt’s eyes opened slowly, partially blinded by the light streaming in through the window. He was exhausted. His eyes were puffy and bloodshot from crying, his throat sore from screaming in terror and upset. Closing his eyes once more, he snuggled back into his pillow. Suddenly, the pillow began to move. Kurt’s eyes shot open and he looked up to see Blaine in his bed, his arms wrapped around Kurt protectively.

What the… Oh. The nightmare. Visions of Karofsky pinning Kurt to the locker, pressing small kisses up his neck flashed in front of Kurt’s eyes. He shook them away violently. Not today.

Extracting himself from Blaine’s arms, he picked up his clothes and began to get changed for the school day, trying not to think about last night. Blaine had comforted him, listened to him when he’d told him about Karofsky, held him whilst he cried. He’d been so… sweet. Although, it wasn’t the first time the two boys had spent the night together. They’d done it multiple times in the holiday, especially after Kurt had told him about his Mom. This morning… It was just like the old Kurt and Blaine. He liked it.

Blaine began to stir and Kurt froze, clutching his clothes to his chest. Blaine stuck his head up from the pillow, his hair stuck up in every direction. Blinking like a newborn lamb, he turned to look at Kurt, smiling softly.

“Hey. How are you feeling?” He breathed.

“I’m ok. Thank you for last night.”

“No worries. You needed someone to talk to, it’s the least I could do.”
An awkward silence filled the air, neither boy sure of what to say. Kurt finally broke the silence.

“Anyway, I need to get going. I’m auditioning for the Warblers today.”

Blaine’s face broke out into a grin.

“That’s great! What are you going to sing?”

Kurt tapped his nose, grinning. “You’ll find out later.”

Blaine rolled his eyes, climbing out of Kurt’s bed. The two boys set about getting ready for their day.

***********

“Today we have a new student auditioning for the Warblers. Please welcome Kurt Hummel!”

The doors swung open and Kurt entered the room, smiling nervously at the Warblers.

“Hi there.”

Wes banged his gavel, attracting Kurt’s attention (as well as freaking him out slightly. I mean, who carries a gavel?)

“What range do you sing, Kurt?”

“Countertenor.”

A look of delight passed across Wes’s face and the room erupted into a murmur of surprise. Countertenors were exceedingly rare; in fact, there hadn’t been a countertenor at Dalton in at least 8 years. The new boy fascinated the Warblers.

“Show us what you got.”

Kurt strode confidently over to the boom box on the side of the desk. Soft music soon filled the air. Taking a deep breath, Kurt tried to forget the boys with judging eyes and began to sing.

I can't really explain it, I haven't got the words
It's a feeling that you can't control
I suppose it's like forgetting, losing who you are
And at the same time something makes you whole

It's like that there's a music, playing in your ear
And I'm listening, and I'm listening, and then I disappear

The song summed up exactly the way Kurt felt when he sang; like he was flying, like he was free.

And then I feel a change, like a fire deep inside
Something bursting me wide open, impossible to hide
And suddenly I'm flying, flying like a bird
Like Electricity, electricity
Sparks inside of me, and I'm free, I'm free

It's a bit like being angry; it's a bit like being scared
Confused and all mixed up and mad as hell
It's like when you've been crying
And you're empty and you're full
I don't know what it is, it's hard to tell

It's like that there's some music, playing in your ear
But the music is impossible, impossible to hear

He looked around the room at the Warblers; many were watching in amazement, their eyes wide in admiration. His eyes found Ethan, who smiled encouragingly. Ethan was safe. Ethan was nice. Then his eyes found Blaine. Blaine was… perfection. Blaine was like his very own electricity. But could he truly forgive him for what happened? Blaine lied to him. He must have broken up with his boyfriend at some point in the last few months; maybe the boy found out about Kurt, maybe not. Blaine hadn’t even tried to apologize for breaking Kurt’s heart.

But then I feel it move me
Like a burning deep inside
Something bursting me wide open
Impossible to hide
And suddenly I'm flying
Flying like a bird
Like Electricity, electricity
Sparks inside of me
And I'm free, I'm free

Electricity sparks inside of me
And I'm free, I'm free
Oh, I'm free

The music trailed off to silence, as each one of the Warblers stared at Kurt in utter astonishment. After at least 30 seconds of silence, Wes found his voice.

“Welcome to the Warblers, Kurt.”

*********

The Warblers chattered excitedly as they left rehearsal. Now they had Kurt, there were so many song opportunities for them to sing. Many patted Kurt encouragingly on the shoulder, many congratulated him. Kurt felt like he finally had a place where he belonged, where he was wanted, acknowledged by his peers. It felt great. Blaine hung around, packing his bag slowly. Kurt’s audition had been… mind-blowing. Kurt’s voice was so beautiful, even better than it had ever been. It had made Blaine realize how much he’d missed Kurt. He needed to talk to him about what happened in the summer; get it all out in the open. Maybe then they can try and be friends again.

Soon all of the Warblers had filed out and just Kurt and Blaine were left. Blaine hung his bag onto his shoulder, turning round to face Kurt. The boy in question was just picking up his messenger bag, making his way towards the door. Now was the time. Blaine cleared his throat.

“Umm… Kurt?”

Kurt spun round, just as the door to the choir room burst open. Ethan stuck his head round, a smile on his face.

“Hey Kurt! I was wondering if you wanted to go and get something to eat? You know, just the two of us. Like… On a date.”

Blaine felt his heart stop. No. Not Kurt. Not his Kurt. No, he isn’t yours anymore, his brain told him. His heart felt differently.

Kurt blushed bright red. “Umm, ok. Sure.”

Ethan grinned and grabbed Kurt’s hand, leading him out the door. Blaine stared after the two, his heart breaking in two.

Maybe he’d never get his chance with Kurt again.