Kurt sighed. His dad wouldn't let him skip school. He figured facing Blaine and everyone else would help him deal with things quicker. Kurt disagreed, but here he was in Finn's truck on the way to school. It had been decided that Kurt would have a buddy all day long in case he needed help. Ever since he had woken from his stupor on Saturday, he'd been very jumpy. When Finn or even his dad tapped him on the shoulder or called his name, he would jerk. His family thought it was because he got hit. They couldn't know, and wouldn't as far as Kurt was concerned, that it was because of what Liam and Karofsky had done. Yes, he had forgiven Karofsky in a way and even felt for the confused teen. But the torment Kurt had endured had still left its mark. Now on top of it, he felt awful and looked awful. The lower left side of his face was swollen and bruised and his bottom lip was split. His dad thought the split lip was from the punch. It wasn't, just like the fear. It was from the attack.

They pulled into the school parking lot and Kurt's eyes automatically went to the far corner. His stomach sank as he saw Blaine leaning against his car. He was beautiful in jeans and a t-shirt. Kurt had never seen him so dressed down. Personally, Kurt felt dressed simply as well. Sturdy slacks, tall boots and a long sleeved sweater that went almost to his knees. He felt like the more layers he wore, the more protected he was. Silly, but it was true. His stomach twisted as he watched Blaine, trying not to see the tortured look on his face. Finn grunted and turned the truck so they were parked on the opposite side of the lot. They got out of the truck and Kurt heard Finn whistle. A moment later, Puck and Mike joined them and as a group they walked toward the school.

"Kurt! Kurt, please, can I talk to you?" Blaine's voice came from behind him.

Seeing Blaine's cold eyes from Friday night in his mind kept his eyes trained forward. He had stopped crying last night and had decided that was enough for now. He wasn't going to make himself more miserable by crying all day, even if that was what he really wanted to do.

"Blaine, I'm going to say this as nice as possible. You stay the hell away from my brother or you won't be walking anymore. Got it?" Finn's voice was filled with repressed rage.

"Finn," Blaine started.

"No, Blaine. Now, back off," Finn said and rejoined Kurt. They walked into the building where Mercedes, Quinn, Santana and Brittany were all waiting. Kurt stood there silently as they discussed who would walk with Kurt where and who would sit next to him in the two classes he had with Blaine.

"You guys, I really don't need a babysitter," Kurt said. "I've done nothing wrong here."

"We know that, Kurt," Mercedes said, rubbing his arm. Kurt backed away a little until she stopped.

"We just want to make sure you don't have to talk to the hobbit if you aren't ready to," Santana said.

Kurt sighed and got on with the day.

"Mercedes, I don't know if I can go to Glee today," Kurt said quietly.

"It'll be okay, Kurt, we'll all be there for you. You know he won't come near you. He's kept his distance all day," she responded.

"No he hasn't. I've stayed away from him, hidden from him, really. I haven't even looked him in the face. How am I going to deal with it in glee? I don't even know if I can sing," he said miserably. His mouth and jaw ached terribly. The thought of not being able to medicate himself with song made him feel even worse.

"Kurt, you have to see him sometime. You've seen all the break-ups this club has gone through. You'll get through this, I know you will," she reassured him.

"Hold my hand, will you," he asked nervously as they approached the door to the choir room.

She took his hand and they stepped through the door. The first face he saw was Blaine's. Kurt was surprised by the shock on his face until he realized that since he hadn't looked straight at Blaine, then Blaine hadn't either. He hadn't seen Kurt's bruised face.

"Oh my god, Kurt!" Blaine said and rushed toward him.

It took everything in Kurt to turn from him and walk to the other end of the room. He found a seat by Finn and watched as the members took seats around him, effectively guarding and blocking him from Blaine.

"Kurt, please, I didn't know!" Blaine's voice sounded so full of pain, tears welled up and overflowed down Kurt's face.

"Shut it, punk, leave Kurt alone. You've been warned, don't make us do it again," Puck threatened.

"Sit down, Puck. You, too, Blaine. Now, let's get straight into today's lesson," Mr. Schue said, effectively ending all talk. Kurt was grateful and tried to pay as much attention as he could.

At the end of glee club, Blaine walked out quickly and the guys trailed after him to make sure he left school grounds. It was like Karofsky all over again, Kurt thought. But Blaine hadn't hit him or bullied him. Just ripped his heart out.

"Kurt, sweetie, can you tell us what happened in that hallway Friday night?" Quinn asked softly from his right. Her soft green eyes were full of concern, as all of the girls' were. There was no gossipy eagerness to their compassionate gazes. And he needed to tell someone.

"This is just between us right? Britt, this means you too. You can't talk about this on your internet show," Kurt said.

When they all agreed, he shared what had happened, every detail. It felt good to get it out, like he was being cleansed. There were some gasps from the girls and they all reached over to touch his hands, his knees. He could have sworn he heard Santana growl. But they let him finish the story. When he was done, they all gathered around him and hugged him close.

"We'll take care of you, Kurt," Rachel promised and the air was filled with the sounds of the girls echoing her words. Kurt smiled, it felt nice to be loved.

That Friday, Kurt was feeling better physically. He was able to talk for long periods of time without his jaw hurting and his mouth only had a small scab left. Blaine had stopped trying to talk to him, having seemed to accept that his friends wouldn't let him near Kurt. He didn't text or call him anymore after trying for three days straight. It seemed that things were going to stay peaceful. At least during the day. At nights, though, all bets were off. During the nights, he was revisited by the nightmare he'd had right after the attack. When he would wake up from that, the longing for Blaine would be so overwhelming, he would ache from it. He had taken to sleeping for the few hours he could manage each night with a picture of himself and Blaine under his pillow. He had to have something of the man he loved nearby.

Today he was looking forward to glee club, if only to be able finally join in the singing. Glee club was the worst as far as seeing Blaine. In his regular classes, Kurt was able to keep his eyes trained on the board and his friends had taken Blaine's regular seat next to him. But in Glee, people were constantly moving around, learning choreography and singing together. They all tried to be there for Kurt, but sometimes it was impossible. Kurt was feeling stronger, though, so he would join in.

After discussing what they would do that day, Mr. Schue pointed to the side of the class.

"Blaine, did you have a question?"

"I have a song I'd like to perform for K.. um, for the class, if that would be okay, Mr. Schue," Blaine said.

Mr. Schue looked directly at Kurt, like he was asking for permission. Kurt just put his head down, not able to make that decision.

"Sure, Blaine. Now let's all show some respect around here," he said, giving warning glares to several of the students.

Blaine walked to the front of the class and looked Kurt in the eyes. "I hope you like this."

As soon as he opened his mouth and began singing, Kurt was lost. His voice was so beautiful and the words hit him like a ton of bricks.

"If you ever leave me, baby

Leave some morphine at my door

Cause it would take a whole lot of medication

To realize what we used to have

We don't have it anymore

There's no religion that could save me

No matter how long my knees are on the floor

Oh, so keep in mind all the sacrifices I'm making

To keep you by my side,

And keep you from walking out that door

Cause there'll be no sunlight

If I lose you, baby

There'll be no clear skies

If I lose you, baby

Just like the clouds

My eyes will do the same

If you walk away

Every day it will rain, rain, rain

I'll never be your mother's favorite

Your daddy can't even look me in the eye

If I was in their shoes I'd be doing the same thing

Saying, there goes my little girl

Walking with that troublesome guy

But they're just afraid of something they can't understand

Ooh but little darling watch me change their minds

Yeah for you I'll try, I'll try, I'll try

I'll pick up these broken pieces till I'm bleeding

If that'll make it right

Cause there'll be no sunlight

If I lose you, baby

There'll be no clear skies

If I lose you, baby

Just like the clouds

My eyes will do the same

If you walk away

Every day it will rain, rain, rain"

Kurt gasped through his tears as he saw Blaine fall to his knees as he continued singing. He heard other sniffles around him and knew all of them were affected.

"Ooh, don't just say goodbye

Don't just say goodbye

I'll pick up these broken pieces till I'm bleeding

If that'll make it right

Cause there'll be no sunlight

If I lose you, baby

There'll be no clear skies

If I lose you, baby

And just like the clouds

My eyes will do the same

If you walk away

Every day it will rain, rain, rain"

Kurt watched Blaine stay there on his knees, tears streaming down his face, as the music came to an end. He couldn't take it, his heart hurt too much. He couldn't see that beautiful face that he still loved so desperately and not run into his arms. But there was too much between them now. Too much hurt. He didn't know if it could ever be fixed.

Suddenly, Kurt felt like he couldn't breathe. His heart felt like it had blown up in his chest, blocking out all the air in the room. He had to get out of there. He grabbed his bag and flew from the room, not stopping until he got to his car. He drove out of the lot, seeing Mercedes and Finn on the sidewalk trying to wave him down. But he kept driving, hoping the miles would separate him from the pain in his heart.