Blaine woke up with a start, sweat on his forehead and his fingers clenched into the blanket. He took a deep breath, and tried to calm his racing heart.

Two years and the nightmares still haunted him. Two years and Kurt’s voice pleading for their attackers to stop still haunted him in his sleep. Blaine shook his head and threw the covers off. This had been his life for two years, and he didn't see it changing anytime soon.

He sighed when his phone went off and he glanced at it to see who was calling. Blaine rolled his eyes and hit the ignore button. He was not in the mood to talk to Jamie. They'd broken up three weeks ago and the boy still wouldn't let Blaine go.

Blaine got out of bed, grabbed a towel from the closet and headed to the shower. Stripping off his shirt, he tossed it towards the laundry bin and turned on the taps. He eyed himself in the mirror for a moment, fingers tracing down the scars above his rib cage. They stopped hurting years ago, but he still cringed whenever he saw them. He leaned against the counter, momentarily letting his thoughts drift back to Kurt. He'd lost his first real friend, and that was the one thing he hated the most.

After he showered, he gelled his hair and picked up his blazer from the side of his bed. He'd transferred to Dalton after the attack, and to say it had been a cultural shock was an understatement. The no bullying rule was heavily enforced, and in the two years he'd been attending Dalton Academy, he'd never once been afraid to be himself.

Blaine walked down the stairs, surprised to find his mom still home. “Why aren't you at work?” he asked as he sat down at the kitchen table.

His mother was interesting to say the least. Blaine's parents had been more devastated than he was after the attack, and now they barely even talked to him. It made life easier for Blaine in a way. They never asked questions, and he never offered information.

“I had something I needed to tell you,” she replied swiftly, turning around with a coffee cup in her hands. “Your father and I have decided we don't want you in the house anymore.”

Blaine nearly dropped his spoon.

“I'm sorry, what?”

His mother waved her hand impatiently. “You're always up in that room. We figure if we make you stay out, maybe you'll actually make some friends. Plus, there's that condition you have that neither of us can tolerate.”

“I'm gay. It's not disease,” Blaine snapped irritably. He was so tired of these conversations. He's heard all of the blatant homophobia from his parents before, so it shouldn't really surprise him that it had come to this.

“Regardless, you'll be boarding at Dalton,” she said swiftly, turning to put her cup in the sink. “You're leaving today. The movers will be in shortly to take all of your things to Dalton for you. Hurry up and eat your cereal you're going to be late for school.”

Blaine pushed away his bowl. “I'm not hungry anymore. I'll just go. See you at Christmas or something.”

He grabbed his bag from the banister and left the house without another word.

--

Blaine wasn't a very angry person. At least he tried not to be, and he usually did a pretty good job. So when he's suddenly pulled into a class room and shoved against the wall, he can't help it when he raises his knee in defence. His attacker promptly fell to the floor, and Blaine exhaled when he recognized the bright blonde hair.

“Jamie! Oh god, I'm sorry! I didn't know if you.. I'm sorry,” Blaine knelt down, placing his hand on Jamie's shoulder. “What are you even doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at college? How did you get in here?”

Jamie shrugged it off. “I probably shouldn't have surprised you like that,” he looked up. “You've been ignoring my calls, Blaine. You've been avoiding me. I just want to talk about-”

“About what, Jamie? I caught you cheating on me. I caught you fucking another guy. What is there to talk about? I wouldn't go all the way with you, so you found somewhere else to get it!” Blaine said, voice raising as he went. “There is nothing for us to talk about. We're done. Over. Nothing left.”

Jamie stood up straight, and when his hair fell into his eyes, Blaine resisted the urge to push it out of the way. “It was a mistake, Blaine. I love you, it's always been you.”

Blaine shook his head. “No, it hasn't. It's been me and a side of the guys who will give you what you want,” he huffed out, and crossed his arms over his chest. “Are we done? I have to get to class.”

He didn't wait for Jamie to reply and simply turned on his heel, leaving the other boy speechless.

Blaine walked down the hall and leaned against the lockers. He was so tired of this. He just wanted one day where he didn't feel like he was going to break down. He allowed his head to fall back, the clanging of the metal echoing around the hall. One day it would get better, and he'd stop feeling like he couldn't breathe. But that day obviously wasn't today.

He was about to start walking again when someone grabbed his shoulder, making him freeze on the spot. “Look, Jamie. I told you- oh! Jeff, sorry. I was expecting someone else.”

“It's okay. But.. are you okay? You look a little stressed,” Jeff said, and Blaine could tell he was concerned.

Blaine nodded and faked a smile. “Yeah, just a little tired. Been a long day. You want to walk to class with me?”

“Actually, I was just coming to tell you that the movers dropped off your stuff. They weren't very quiet about it and made a lot of noise. I wasn't snooping or anything,” replied Jeff. “Also, Wes decided it's time for our surprise performance in the common room.”

“Ah, right. I have to go to the bathroom first, but I'll meet you down there, okay?”

Jeff looked at him for a moment before replying. “Yeah sure. Five minutes dude, don't be late. You know how Wes gets with that damn gavel,” he gave Blaine a reassuring smile before walking away, leaving Blaine to collect his thoughts.

Blaine brought a hand to his temple, exhaling slowly. He waited until Jeff was out of eye-sight before following after him.

Other students pushed past him, and he dug into his pocket to get his pocket watch. He flicked it open as he walked down the stairs, feet moving easily down the familiar steps.

“Excuse me?”

Blaine's nose scrunched up for a moment as he smelled cigarette smoke, but he stopped and turned to look at who had been talking to him. His bag dropped to the floor, and his heart into the pit of his stomach.

“Kurt?”