Kurt Hummel was being forced to leave his family and friends behind to attend Dalton Academy. It was an all-boys private school with a strictly enforced zero-tolerance bullying policy. That's why he was there; he had been run out of his own school by the homophobes that tortured him daily. He tried to stay strong as the bullying got worse but it got harder as the days passed. When David Karofsky forced himself on Kurt however, that's when everything changed. Karofsky was Kurt's biggest fear, his worst nightmare. The same bully that tortured him for being gay was a closeted gay himself. The first time it happened, it was barely a kiss. The next time it happened, Karofsky forced Kurt to touch him. It only got worse after that. Kurt became cold and withdrawn as the abuse escalated. His family and friends tried talking to him but he refused to acknowledge that anything was wrong. It wasn't until his step-brother Finn found him cutting that he was forced to answer questions.

He didn't tell his family the extant of it. He was far too worried about his father's heart to tell him that he'd been sexually abused at school. He didn't have to tell his father anything though; Burt knew. Burt could tell that there was so much more than to the bullying story Kurt told them but prayed it wasn't what he was thinking. The fact was, whatever was really happening to his son at school, was slowly killing him. The bright, confidant young man he raised was now a sad, distant boy whose only outlet had become self-harm. Burt had his son stay home from school the rest of that week. Part of Kurt was relieved that he wouldn't have to see Karofsky for a week, but a bigger part of him was terrified of what Karofsky was going to do to him when he got back. After doing quite a bit of research, Burt found Dalton Academy. He did everything in his power and then some to get Kurt into that school, praying that his son would be safer there.

"This will be good for you kiddo." Burt said to Kurt as they drove into the school.

"I know Dad." Kurt replied lifelessly.

It was Friday afternoon when they pulled into the school. Burt was glad that Kurt had the weekend to get himself settled into the school while Kurt was indifferent. Kurt knew that he would supposedly be safer there, but it was something he was having a hard time believing. He was certain that there would be at least one person that would make him a target but he didn't care. He would take being verbally abused and shoved against lockers over what Karofsky forced him to do any day. Kurt followed his father into the administration office with his head down. The less eye contact he made with people, the better. He stayed quiet the entire time his father talked with the Dean. It wasn't until Burt touched his arm that he began to pay attention. Burt frowned at how Kurt flinched when he touched him; he used to never flinch and now it like he was afraid that everyone was out to get him.

"Kurt, I want you to know that this is a very good school. We strive for excellence and we teach our boys to be outstanding members of society. No one will hurt here. I understand your situation, it's not the first time I've seen it, and I personally promise you that you are safe here. If anyone even says anything to you, you come straight to me and they will be handled." The dean told him.

Kurt nodded at the middle aged woman but said nothing. She gave his dad his class schedule, a map, and his room assignment before dismissing them from the meeting.

As they reached his room, they heard two boys talking inside.

"I swear I'm going to shove that gavel straight up his ass if he pushes me today!" One boy said.

"Come on, David, he's not that bad." The other boy said laughing.

"Are you kidding me, Blaine? He smacked the shit out me with his book in class today because I said that I didn't like his set list ideas. Mr. Roberts didn't even do anything about it!" David said angrily.

"To be fair, you did set his lab on fire a few weeks ago. I'm not surprised that he didn't do anything when Wes smacked you." Blaine told him.

"Details, details." David replied.

Blaine and David were interrupted when Burt knocked, then opened the door.

"Hey. You must be my new roommate." Blaine said, smiling at Kurt. Kurt glanced up at Blaine, then quickly looked back down.

When Kurt didn't say anything, Blaine introduced himself to Burt. Blaine saw the distant look in Kurt's eyes and instantly recognized it; he had the same distant look when he first transferred to Dalton.

"I'm Blaine Anderson. This is my friend David Thompson." Blaine said as he reached to shake Burt's hand.

"Burt Hummel. This is my son Kurt." Burt said as he shook hands with both boys. "Teacher's let students smack each other with books here?" Burt asked firmly.

"No sir! Please ignore David, he tends to overreact." Blaine said, shooting David a look.

"Uh huh." Burt said, eyeing the boys. "I'm going to go get your stuff, you helping?" Burt asked Kurt.

"We can help if you like." David said.

"Sure, I'll take up on that." Burt told them and walked out with David and Blaine close behind.

Kurt took in his surroundings while he had the opportunity to be alone. The room was surprisingly big. It had two full size beds opposite from each other, two decently size closets, two desks, one big window, a decent size bathroom, and enough room to still walk around. Kurt climbed onto his bed, scooting all the way back, and leaning his head on the hall. So kids beat each other up with books here; that's a new one. It's better than Karofsky-

"You like that Hummel? You like it when I touch you?" Karofsky asked.

"Stop, please. Just stop." Kurt said crying.

"Answer my question!" Karofsky said, slamming Kurt into the shelves of the supply closet.

"...Yes..." Kurt lied. He learned the hard way what would happen if he said no.

Kurt shuddered the memory away, bringing his knees up to his chest. He can't touch me here. He can't. Unless someone else touches you. No! I'm safe here. I'm safe here. Kurt hadn't realized that he was chanting 'I'm safe here', nor had he realized that he was swaying himself back and forth. It had become second nature to him to do it whenever he thought back at the things he'd done. When things got really bad and he couldn't shake the memory off, he'd cut. It was the only thing that brought him back to reality.

"Hey, you ok?" Blaine asked Kurt with concern. Blaine walked into the room with one of his boxes to find Kurt swaying and muttering to himself. It pained him to see such a beautiful boy so broken.

"Fine." Kurt replied quietly. He stopped his swaying but continued to hold his knees protectively.

Within the next 15 minutes, Burt, Blaine, and David finished bringing Kurt's things in. David and Blaine stayed outside in the hallway while Burt said goodbye.

"If you need anything son, anything at all, do not hesitate to call." Burt said firmly.

"Ok Dad." Kurt replied quietly.

"I'm serious Kurt. You're going to be fine here. I love you kid." Burt said, pulling Kurt in for a hug.

Kurt flinched for a second before returning the hug. "Love you too Dad."

With a final goodbye, Burt walked out of the room. As he made his way out, Blaine stopped him.

"Mr. Hummel, is there anything I should know about Kurt?" Blaine asked him.

"Exactly what do you mean by that?" Burt asked defensively.

"I didn't mean to offend you sir." Blaine said quickly. "Dean Morrison told me that Kurt's situation was similar to mine and I just wanted to know if there was anything I needed to know to help him." When Burt didn't answer him but looked at him curiously, Blaine elaborated. He pulled his sleeves up to show his old scars. "I used to get night terrors too. It took me a long time to be ok, but being here and being a Warbler really helped me out."

"I see. Well, the only thing I can tell you is to keep an eye on him and don't leave him alone for too long. I think...I think he goes somewhere else when he's left alone and I don't think it's somewhere he should be." Burt said quietly.

"Does he sing? If he does he could join the Warblers. It was my Godsend to be totally honest." Blaine told him.

"Yeah he sings. Or well, he used to. He hasn't in a while." Burt said sadly. Blaine nodded in understanding. "Watch out for my boy. You seem like a good kid; I'm trusting you."

"Yes sir." Blaine said quickly.

Burt thanked him, said his goodbye, and left.

Blaine walked back to the room expecting Kurt to still be sitting in his bed. He was surprised to see that he was up and unpacking. That's something. I didn't unpack for days.

"Would you like some help?" Blaine asked him.

"Sure." Kurt said quietly.

Blaine picked up one of the boxes and began unpacking.

"So, what brings you to Dalton?" Blaine asked. When Kurt didn't answer, he continued talking. "I remember my first day at Dalton, I didn't talk to anyone either." Kurt still said nothing.

They unpacked in silence until Blaine had to leave for Warbler practice 20 minutes later.

"Do you want to come? You aren't a Warbler but it's always fun to sit and listen." Blaine told him.

"No thanks." Kurt replied. Blaine nodded and sighed as he made his way out.

"Kurt," Blaine said before he left. "I know this hard, but things will get better. When I transferred here, I felt completely alone. I thought that no one would understand me or what I went through but I was wrong. I want you to know that if you need to talk, I'm here. I know you don't know me and you may not even care, but I promise you, you aren't alone." When Kurt stayed quiet, Blaine turned around and reached for the door.

"Blaine." Blaine turned around quickly to see Kurt watching him with curiosity. "Why did you come to Dalton?"

"I was bullied for being gay," Blaine said truthfully.

"Was it hard? Getting over it?" Kurt asked looking away.

"At first yeah, but only because I didn't talk to anyone about it. Talking and joining the Warblers really helped. You're not alone Kurt. I know it seems like it now but you're not." Blaine said thoughtfully.

"Thanks Blaine." Kurt said quietly.

"Of course. I'll be back in a couple of hours. Maybe we can hang out, get to know each other better?" Blaine suggested.

"Yeah, maybe." Kurt shrugged.

Blaine smiled softly and left. Kurt finished unpacking his last box before lying down in bed and drifting off to sleep.

Blaine ran all the way to Warbler practice. Wes was on a rampage that day and the last thing he needed was to be late. Luckily, he arrived with a few minutes to spare.

"Hey, how's the new kid?" his friend Nick asked him.

"He's...quiet." Blaine told him.

"Yeah that's what David told me. Do you know what happened?" Nick asked curiously.

"No. I asked but he didn't say anything. Whatever it was really broke him, I can tell." Blaine said sadly.

"Broke him like it broke you?" Nick asked.

"Yeah, I think so." Blaine said quietly.

"Well then, we'll have to show him that being here is a good thing." Nick said confidently.

"That we will Nick. That we will." Blaine agreed.

Blaine only paid partial attention to Warbler practice that night. His mind kept going back to how he was when he first arrived at Dalton and how much Kurt reminded him of his old self. He didn't know what it was that had broken Kurt, but he would do his best to help Kurt the way his friends had helped him.