Chapter Nine

When Blaine met Kurt at the entrance to the school on Monday morning, he was bruised again. Kurt could tell that they were fresh bruises because he could still see the previous ones that were only just fading. They looked so painful and it made Kurt's heart ache to think of the pain that Blaine must have been dealing with.

Of course Blaine just shrugged it off. Kurt knew he acted tough but even the toughest of people have their limits and Kurt wondered what Blaine's were. How many more bruises would Blaine show up with?

"You should see the other guy." Blaine said in greeting.

Kurt knew that Blaine could tell from his facial expression that he was worried. And Kurt didn't really care about any other guy. His guy was hurt. His boyfriend.

"Are you hurting? What happened?"

Blaine sighed. "I'm fine, Kurt. Honest."

Kurt lightly traced his fingertips across Blaine's bruised cheek and the other boy winced involuntarily at the touch.

"Don't lie to me Blaine. What happened?" Kurt asked again.

"It doesn't matter what happened!" Blaine snapped.

Kurt looked alarmed at Blaine and all of Blaine's features turned apologetic in an instant.

"Kurt I'm sorry. I shouldn't be snapping at you. I guess it does hurt a little." Blaine admitted, reluctantly.

"Oh, Blaine..." Kurt sighed, his heart heavy.

"You know what would make me feel better? Some sweet kisses from the most beautiful guy I know." Blaine said coyly.

"Well when I find him I'll let him know." Kurt winked, turning away.

Blaine caught Kurt in his arms, turning the boy back to him. He kissed Kurt softly and Kurt surrendered to him instantly. Neither boy could see the disgusted looked they were getting as people walked past them to get into the school. Though, honestly, neither boy really cared what anyone else thought of them. If Kurt were with anyone else he probably would have been a bit more wary but Blaine had the reputation that made the people that Kurt was feared, scared of him. And it didn't help that he couldn't think of much else when he was with Blaine.

"There is no one more beautiful than you." Blaine whispered before releasing Kurt.

Instead he held the boys hand and started walking into school. If it were just him he would have loitered outside school a bit longer but he didn't want Kurt to be late because of him. He didn't want to be the bad influence that got Kurt into trouble.

Man, if the guys at Dalton could see him now. They'd probably be proud of him for being a more upstanding citizen. So, obviously, he wasn't going to let them know. But he couldn't help feel happy at the thought that they'd be proud of him and rooting for him. Maybe he should go and see them sometime soon. It had been a while. Maybe he'd even take Kurt.

His friends at Dalton had always been there for him. They had seen him transition into the new personality that he'd taken with him to McKinley. They hadn't been happy that he was changing but they knew that he didn't want to change. They knew that something else was going on but because he wouldn't tell them they couldn't do anything.

If he went to Dalton with Kurt, his old friends might say that he was becoming the old Blaine again. But Blaine knew that, that wasn't the case. He still had a lot to deal with and he wondered if he would ever be that bright eyed boy again. No. Kurt was transforming him again but this time it was into a better form. Kurt didn't even know it but he was saving Blaine in so many ways.

Blaine was still scared. Kurt could easily take his heart and smash it until it crumbled into tiny little pieces that could just be blown away in the wind. He knew that Kurt would never try to hurt him on purpose. Kurt couldn't even hurt a fly if he tried. It wasn't who he was. But the danger of being hurt accidentally was ever present, niggling in his head.

XXXX

Kurt wasn't about to let the bruises on his boyfriend go. He was determined to get to the bottom of it, sooner, hopefully, rather than later. But for now, he let it slide. It was obvious that Blaine didn't want to talk about it. He'd gotten defensive and put up a barrier against Kurt. Kurt hated that barrier and would do anything to make sure it never came up against he again. He knew he couldn't destroy it completely. Blaine had it for a reason, he was fragile.

One day he hoped that Blaine would trust him enough to confide in him. He loved the boy and although they hadn't exactly exchanged the statement to each other, Kurt was pretty certain that Blaine knew that Kurt loved him and he shared the feelings with him.

XXXX

Lunch time came around and the two boys met up to go to the bleachers where they would make out for most of lunch and barely eating anything. As they were heading out they were stopped by Mercedes who blocked their path with a hand on her hip.

"Where do you think you're going?" She asked.

"I'm going to make out with my boyfriend for the entire lunch." Blaine said smirking at the blush that appeared on Kurt's cheeks.

"While I'm sure that's fun for you I have a request."

"What's your request Mercedes?" Kurt asked.

"You guys come and eat lunch with the New Directions. We miss you Kurt. Ever since you started dating Blaine you haven't really been around. And I know that you don't want to miss any time with Blaine so I'm extending an invitation to him as well. Bedside, it will be good for the club to actually get to know Blaine and see that he's not all bad."

"I don't want to get to know anyone." Blaine said, scowling.

"But you'll do it for Kurt, right?"

Blaine remained silent so Mercedes and Kurt knew that he would do this for Kurt.

Though it may sound bad, Kurt hadn't really missed the presence of his friends all that much. Blaine occupied his head so much that he didn't think about much outside of his relationship. People might call him a fool for that but it wasn't like he could help it.

It would be nice for Blaine and the members of the glee club to get along. New Directions had been like a second family to him. They were there for him a lot of the time, until recently, and that wasn't they're fault as Kurt chose not to go to them with his problems.

"Come on you too. Let's go and get lunch. One lunch time away from the bleachers isn't going to hurt."

XXXX

Lunch was a painful experience for both Blaine and Kurt.

The members of the glee club were anything but welcoming to Blaine, choosing instead to ignore him. When Kurt tried to bring him into the conversation they had simply talked over him. Kurt was so angry at his supposed friends. Couldn't they see how happy Blaine made him? Didn't they understand the extent of his feelings?

Blaine didn't much care what the New Directions thought of him. The thing that really bothered him was that the situation was making Kurt upset and that was one thing he could not forgive the group for. Half way through lunch he had felt Kurt grip his hand under the table, looking for some kind of life support.

It was nearing the end of lunch before anyone else but Kurt and Mercedes actually addressed Blaine.

"So Anderson, you just gonna fuck Kurt and run?" Santana asked out of the blue.

Kurt spluttered on the water that he had just taken a sip of. "Santana!"

"No someone's gotta ask it. That's the only reason he's with you. He just wants to stick his dick in another virgin."

Blaine felt anger pulse through him. It was accurate that Blaine had done those things before but he couldn't imagine doing something like that to Kurt. Kurt wasn't just someone in a long line of people. He was something more.

But he knew that Kurt's ignorant friends wouldn't be able to understand that. They were so closed off. Pretending to be accepting but really being just as judgmental as the rest of the school.

What really made Blaine snap though was the unshed tears that glistened in Kurt's eyes.

"Not the it's any of your business but I am not going to hurt Kurt like that." Blaine said, his voice dangerously low.

"And we're just supposed to believe you?!"

"I don't care if you believe me or not. The only person that I need to believe me is Kurt. I will not have you upsetting him." Blaine yelled, rising to his feet.

Before he could storm away from the table and the glances that were directed at said table he felt Kurt take his hand. He expected Kurt to pull him back down to work something out with his friends.

Kurt did the opposite. He stood up and pulled Blaine away from the table.

"If you leave with him now don't come crying back to us when he leaves you in the dirt!" Santana yelled after them.

Kurt stopped and turned to give them one last look. Then he pulled Blaine out of the cafeteria leaving his so-called friends behind.