Kurt wasn't at school the next day. Blaine sat quietly in the back during Glee rehearsal, and felt like hitting something when he heard Finn tell Mr. Schuester that Kurt just wasn't feeling well. He suddenly remembered a series of absences over the course of the several months that Blaine had been in attendance at McKinley, when Kurt "hadn't felt well" and Finn had casually told anyone who asked that Kurt just had a cold, that it was nothing big and he'd be back the next day.

After rehearsal, Blaine walked with Mercedes to the library to spend a couple hours on their homework before heading home. This was usually something they did with Kurt, and since Kurt wasn't there to distract Mercedes, she immediately picked up on the fact that Blaine was preoccupied.

"What's up?" she asked. "You haven't cracked a smile in at least three days, and even Santana's starting to get freaked out that you haven't popped up with a new Katy Perry number since last week."

"I'm fine," Blaine replied, a little too snappishly to abate Mercedes' interest.

She cocked an eyebrow. "The last time you used that tone of voice, you nearly kicked the crap out of Sam. Spill."

"Mercedes, it's none of your business."

She shrugged. "Okay. At least say that instead of BS-ing me with 'I'm fine'."

Blaine was surprised but also grateful that she'd backed off, and she didn't bring it up again for the duration of their ninety minutes in the library poring over physics, Shakespeare, and Spanish conjugations. Just as they were packing up their books to head home, Kurt entered the library, looking rushed and worried.

"Kurt? What are you doing here? You're supposed to be in bed," Mercedes said with a smile, straightening her best friend's sweater collar.

Kurt was out of breath. "I'm feeling better now; I just… I need to talk to Blaine about something," he panted.

Mercedes glanced back to where Blaine was frozen by the table, his eyes wide like a deer in headlights, and she frowned at Kurt. "If you two are fighting, I expect a full explanation later," she told him sternly before saying a quick goodbye and leaving the two of them alone.

"Can you… Can you sit down? Please?" Kurt said, looking hopeful more than anything else.

Blaine's jaw clenched, but he sat. Kurt sank into the chair across from him.

"I'm glad I caught you," said Kurt. "I wasn't sure you would pick up if I called."

Blaine said nothing.

"Blaine, I've… I've been doing a lot of thinking," Kurt said quietly. "I know I kept a lot of things from you because of how scared I was of how you'd react. To be honest, I'm still scared. Really scared."

Blaine swallowed, waiting for Kurt to continue. He was still at a complete loss for what to say or do, and he knew that his own avoidance was making Kurt feel even worse, but he had no idea how to be around Kurt any more. He wasn't sure whether he had to be walking on eggshells or running to catch up, and he didn't comprehend what could trigger a switch or what to do if Kurt turned violent.

"But… the reason you didn't find out until now is that I'm never stressed around you," Kurt said, his voice cracking as he looked Blaine in the eye. "You make me feel safe. And that's… that's something that's really hard to come by for me." Kurt took a long breath, trying to calm himself. He was so nervous that his hand shook as he reached across the table to brush his fingers over Blaine's wrist.

Blaine didn't pull away from the touch, but he didn't respond to it either. "I don't understand what you're trying to say."

Kurt drew his hand back, running his fingers through his hair. "I want you to stay," he said. "I want that more than anything, and I know that sounds selfish, but I don't know what I'd do without that feeling of security in my life."

"Kurt, I—"

"But," Kurt interrupted. "I also understand that if I even ask you to do that, then you should know… what happened."

Blaine swallowed again, this time audibly. "Okay," he said, feeling a little nauseous. He wasn't sure that he wanted to know what Kurt had experienced, but he was at least willing to let Kurt tell him if that was what he needed. "I'm listening."

Kurt sighed, shutting his eyes tightly as if he were trying to hold back tears. "I – I can't tell you."

"…What—?"

"Blaine, I don't have any of those memories." Kurt's body seemed to be crumpling in on itself as he ventured further and further outside of his comfort zone. Blaine prayed that whatever was going on in Kurt's head wouldn't make him switch, because Blaine didn't think he could handle that again.

"Kurt, if you don't remember the accident, then how—?"

"Tyler remembers." Kurt's eyes were still squeezed shut, but a few tears had escaped and made their way down to his chin. "I know it's a lot to ask, but will you talk to him? Even if you decide to leave, I want you to at least understand why I am the way I am."

Blaine felt his stomach twist painfully in his gut. "Kurt, I don't know—" He gulped, trying to push down the bile in his throat. "I don't think I can do that."

"Please," Kurt whispered. "For me. Not for us – for me."

For a second, Blaine thought that the 'us' referred to Kurt's other personalities, but then he realized that it actually referred to the relationship between the two tangible people in the room.

He blew out a heavy breath through his mouth. "Okay," he said. "If that's what you want."

In half an hour, Kurt and Blaine were in the Hudson-Hummels' living room, Kurt anxiously sitting on the far left of the couch and Blaine cross-legged on the floor, propping his elbows against his knees. Kurt was staring off into space, jiggling his leg in uneasiness.

"Kurt, you okay?" Blaine asked.

"Huh? Oh. Yeah. Sorry, I'm just…" Kurt trailed off and Blaine nodded, pretending he knew what Kurt was feeling.

At the moment, they were waiting for Finn to come downstairs. Kurt had asked Finn to be there with Blaine during… whatever was going to happen (Blaine was still really unclear on what that was), and Finn had gone upstairs to get Raleigh. Blaine had been confused and slightly horrified that there might have been an eighth personality, but then Kurt had assured him that Raleigh was only a stuffed animal that Tyler liked to have with him.

Finally, Finn hopped down the stairs with a worn stuffed elephant in his hand. "Found him," he said, handing the elephant to Kurt. "He was under your bed."

"Thanks."

Blaine had seen the elephant in Kurt's room before and figured that it was nothing more than a childhood toy that Kurt couldn't bring himself to throw away, never once thinking that it was still used for any purpose. Kurt set Raleigh on the cushion next to him as Finn sat in the armchair closest to Kurt and Blaine.

"You ready?" Finn said, though it was unclear which boy he was talking to.

Kurt took a deep breath before nodding. "Okay."

"See you in a bit." Finn leaned forward. "Tyler, can I talk to you for a minute?" he called softly.

Kurt cast a look in Blaine's direction that was so full of pure, raw fear that it made Blaine's heart skip. The look only lasted for a moment, however, as Finn called Tyler's name again and Kurt's body suddenly relaxed, sinking into the cushions as his eyes slid out of focus.

"Tyler, come on out. I want to talk to you," Finn repeated.

Kurt didn't move for several minutes, his eyes moving back and forth but not landing on anything in particular.

"Isn't the switch supposed to happen quickly?" Blaine whispered nervously.

"Not when you actually try to get one of them out," Finn explained, keeping an eye on his stepbrother. "And dude, don't worry. I'll do the talking. This might get a little disturbing."

"Have you done this before?"

Finn shook his head. "No, I don't know what Kurt saw exactly. I've never talked to him about it. This'll be the first time I hear any of the details." He paused for a minute, then glanced at Blaine. "Dude, I hope you realize how big this is, that Kurt's willing to do this for you."

Blaine's eyebrows knitted together, but he wasn't given a chance to respond, as Kurt's eyes snapped open and Finn's attention shifted. Kurt pulled himself up on the couch so that his legs were crossed under him and he grabbed Raleigh, holding him in his lap. "Hi," he said, his voice disconcertingly young, though the tone was far more innocent than the voice that Eleanor possessed.

"Hey, Ty," said Finn.

"Raleigh says hi too." Kurt picked up the elephant and wagged a front leg so that it was waving at Finn.

"Hi, Raleigh." Finn leaned his chin on his fist. "Ty, I need to talk to you about something that's really important. You think you can do that?"

Kurt was intently studying the fur on the back of Raleigh's head and didn't seem to be listening. "I dunno," he said.

"I want to talk about the accident with Mom. Is that okay?"

Kurt hid his face behind Raleigh, drawing his knees up to his chest. "I don't want to talk about that."

"I know it's hard," Finn said. "But it's really, really important to Kurt that you do."

"Kurt wants me to?" Kurt asked, peeking out from behind Raleigh's ear for a moment. Finn nodded, and Kurt drew the elephant close to his chest, wrapping his arms around it tightly.

Blaine felt numb watching Kurt behave like a small boy; he hadn't quite accepted that Tyler was a separate entity from Kurt and that, as far as Tyler was concerned, he was a small boy. Blaine was suddenly very, very grateful that Finn had offered to ask the questions. He didn't think he could hold himself together, much less Kurt.